Improvements relating to Electrically Lighted Devices for Advertising and other Purposes.
Year: 1897

page_text: Date of Application, 16th June, 1897
Complete Specification Left, 16th Mar., 1898--Accepted, 11th June, 1898
Improvements relating to Electrically Lighted Devices for
Advertising and other Purposes.
We, EDMOND LYONS O'BRIEN, A.I.E.E., Electrical Engineer, 135, Victoria
Street, S.W., and LEONARD GRANT, Engineer, 135, Victoria Street, S.W., do hereby
declare the nature of this invention to be as follows:-
This invention relates to electrically lighted devices for advertising and other
purposes and its object is to effect an automatic manipulation of the current
passing through electric lamps so that the light may be changed slowly from
one colour to another, or from one design to another, or slowly fade away & slowly
brighten again. The invention consists of a suitable number of electrical contacts
connected to the electrical lamps to be manipulated, moving through a specially
prepared solution. The contacts are mounted on a disk which may be kept in
motion by hand or any discription of motive power, and a corresponding number
of contacts are fixed in the vessel containing the solution.
Dated the 16th dox of Lune 1807
J. C. MEWBURN & ELLIS,
55 & 56, Chancery Lane, London, W.C.,
Chartered Patent Agents.
Improvements relating to Electrically Lighted Devices for
Advertising and other Purposes.
We, EDMOND LYONS O'BRIEN, A.D.E.E., Electrical Engineer, and LEONARD
GRANT, Engineer, both of 135, Victoria Street, S.W., do hereby declare the nature
of this invention and in what manner the same is to be performed, to be particu-
larly described and ascertained in and by the following statement:—
This invention relates to electrically lighted devices for advertising and other
purposes, and its object is to effect an automatic manipulation of the current.
passing through electric lamps arranged so as to form one or more devices or
designs, in such a manner that the illumination of the device or design, or devices
or designs, may be caused to change slowly from one colour to another, or from
one device or design to another device or design, or may be caused to slowly fade
away and slowly brighten again.
In carrying out this invention a suitable number of electrical contacts connected
to the electric lamps (composing the device or design) which are to be manipulated
are caused to move through a specially prepared liquid or solution (hereinafter

page_text: called the solution) contained in a vessel in which are fixed a corresponding number
of contacts connected to the one pole or terminal of the dynamo or other source
of supply of the electric current serving to illuminate the lamps.
The electric conductivity of the solution is such that the resistance offered by
the solution to the passage of the electric current from any one of the fixed contacts
in the vessel to the corresponding movable contact will vary appreciably in propor-
tion to the distance between these two contacts, so that the luminosity of the lamp
or lamps included in the circuit of which the said two contacts, together with the
intervening path through the solution, form part, will also vary but in inverse
proportion, with the distance between the said two contacts,
Consequently by causing the said distance to vary according to any given law,
the luminosity of the said lamp or lamps will also be caused to vary in accordance
to the same law.
This invention may be carried out in various ways, and we shall now proceed to
describe by way of example two arrangements of apparatus for that purpose, with
reference to the accompanying illustrative drawings in which:-
Figures 1, 2 and 3 are respectively a side elevation, a plan, and a vertical section
of one arrangement of apparatus and Figure 4 is an underside view of the support 4
hereinafter referred to.
Figures 5 and 6 are respectively an end elevation and a side elevation of another
arrangement of apparatus.
In Figures 1, 5 and 6 the side of the vessel containing the solution is partly
broken away in order to show the internal arrangements.
Referring to Figures 1 to 4, 1 indicates the solution contained in a vessel 2 to
one side of which is fixed an electrical contact piece 3 dipping in the solution.
A support 4 tilted at an angle is fixed across the upper part of the vessel 2;
it carries a depending spindle 5 upon the lower end of which is mounted a rotary
disc 6 of non-conducting material. To the underside of the disc there are fixed
a number of electric contacts corresponding in number to the number of different
colours of the groups of lamps constituting the device or design to be illuminated
Assuming, in this case, that the device is composed of coloured lamps arranged
in groups or designs of three different colours, say, red, white and blue, there
will be three contacts fixed equidistantly on the disc 6.
These contacts are suitably made in the form of depending tapering metal
rods 7, 8, 9 of equal length. By means of suitable spring contacts 7", 8" 9"
arranged on the upper side of the disc 6, the movable contacts 7, 8, 9 are main-
tained in constant rubbing electrical connection respectively with three conducting
rings 10, 11, 12 (corresponding to the number of the movable contacts) arranged
on the underside of the support 4 concentrically to one another and to the central
spindle 5. These rings 10, 11, 12 are electrically connected respectively through
three binding screws 13, 14 15 and three conducting wires 16, 17, 18 to the three
groups of the differently coloured lamps (not shown) constituting the device.
The lamps are in turn connected to the negative pole or terminal of the current
source (not shown), whilst the fixed contact 3 is connected through the binding
screw 19 and wire 20 to the positive pole or terminal of the current source. The
disc 6 is arranged to be rotated slowly by any suitable means, such as by hand, or
preferably by an electric motor 21 mounted on the side of the vessel 2, and serving
to drive the disc 6 by means of a worm gearing with worm wheel teeth 6 provided
on the edge of the disc 6. The spindle 5 that is to say, the rotary axis of the
disc 6 is tilted at such an angle and the length of the movable contacts 7, 8, 9 is
made such, in conjunction with the level of the solution in the vessel 2, that when
one movable contact is immersed to its fullest extent in the solution the other
two movable contacts will barely touch the solution.
In the figures, the movable contact 7 is shown immersed to its fullest extent,
namely, at that point of its passage through the solution when it is nearest to the
fixed contact 3. Therefore the resistance offered to the passage of the current
from the fixed contact 3 to the movable contact 7 is at its minimum and conse-

page_text: quently the group of, say, the red lamps connected thereto through the rubbing
contact 7, conducting ring 10, binding screw 13, and wire 16, will emit its
maximum intensity of light, whilst the groups of white lamps and blue lamps
connected respectively to the movable contacts 8, 9 will not be luminous because
the latter barely touch the solution.
Now assuming the disc 6 to be rotating in the direction indicated by the arrow
in Figures 1 and 2, the contact 7 will move gradually away from the fixed con-
tact 3, with a consequent gradual decrease in the luminosity of its connected group
of red lamps.
Meanwhile the contact 8 will be gradually approaching its deepest point of
immersion nearest to the fixed contact 3, with a consequent brightening of the
white lamps, whilst the red lamps will be luminous so long as the contact 7 is
in the solution. In this manner the red, white and blue portions of the illumi-
nation device will be caused to gradually brighten and slowly fade away in
succession so long as the disc 6 is being rotated.
In the arrangement shown in Figures 5 and 6 the movable contacts 7, 8, 9 are
pivotally suspended at their upper ends from the respective cranks of a three-throw
crank shaft 22 adapted to be rotated by means of belt pulley 23 and carried in
bearings 24 over the vessel 2 containing the solution. The fixed contact 3 is
situated on the bottom of the vessel 2. The movable contacts are connected to
their respective lamps through the binding screws 13, 14, 15 and the wires 16,
17, 18. By reason of their pivotal suspension the contacts 7, 8, 9 will always
remain vertical, and will be caused by the rotation of the shaft 22 to approach
to and recede from the fixed contact 3 in succession, the result as it affects the
luminosity of the device to be illuminated being the same as that produced by
the operation of the apparatus shown in Figures 1 to 4.
In practice we find it desirable to coat the movable contact pieces 7, 8, 9 with
an insulating material down to within a short distance of their points thereby
ensuring more direct communication between each contact piece and the fixed
contact 3.
Although we have described and shown the moving contacts as being in connec-
tion with the lamps and the fixed contact as being in connection with the source
of supply, this being the preferred arrangement it is obvious that the arrangement
can be reversed, by having one moving contact in connection with the source of
supply and the required number of fixed contacts in connection with the lamps.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of our said inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed, we declare that what we
claim in respect of electrically lighted devices for advertising and other purposes
is:-
1. Two or more groups of electric lamps so arranged as to change slowly from
one colour to another or from one design to another design or to slowly fade away
and slowly brighten again, by varying in the manner described the length of the
path of the current through a liquid of suitable resistance forming part of the
lamp circuits:
2. For the purpose of automatically varying the length of the path of the electric
current through the liquid between the movable contacts connected to the lamps
and a fixed contact (in the liquid) connected to the source of current, mounting
the movable contacts on a rotary disc arranged above the liquid substantially as
described with reference to Figures 1 to 4 inclusive of the accompanying drawings.
3. For the purpose of automatically varying the length of the path of the
electric current through the liquid between movable contacts connected to the
lamps and a fixed contact (in the liquid) connected with the source of current,
suspending the movable contacts from crank pins or crank arms of a crank shaft
arranged to rotate above the liquid in which the fixed contact is situated sub-

page_text: stantially as described with reference to Figures 5 and 6 of the accompanying
drawings.
Dated this 16th day of March 1898
J. C. MEWBURN & ELLIS,
55 & 56, Chancery Lane, London, Chartered Patent Agents.