Improvements in "In or Out" Indicators.
Year: 1887

page_text: Date of Application, 7th Mar., 1887
Complete Left, 7th Dec., 1887
Complete Accepted, 13th Jan., 1888
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in "In or Out" Indicators.
I, FREDERICK SAGE of 80 to 84 Grays Inn Road in the county of Middlesex,
Shopfitter, do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as follows:-
This invention relates to that class of indicators frequently employed in factories,
workshops and offices to indicate whether the various principals and heads of depart-
menis are in or out and when the absent ones may be expected to return.
The salient features of this indicator are a clock face hand or hands one or both of
which may bear an indication such as "Return at," a cover or other means of pre-
venting the hands from being seen when not wanted, a revolving disc or equivalent
bearing such indications as are likely to be required such for instance as In, Out,
Factory, Out of town, and the like, a portrait of the individual and generally his
name also.
These parts may be combined in various ways as for example the portrait in a
medallion at one side of a frame the clock face and hands at the other and the
indicator in the middle, but the most compact form would perhaps be to form
openings in the clock face through which the indicator and the portrait would
appear. Any words or embellishments could of course appear upon the dials or
case and the shape and details of construction of the whole apparatus may be varied
as required.
In some cases a number of portraits or names may be employed so as to increase
the field of utility of the instrument.

page_text: COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in "In-or-out" Indicators.
1, FREDERICK SAGE of 80 to 84 Grays Inn Road in the County of Middlesex,
Shopfitter, do hereby declare the nature of this invention and in what manner
the same is to be performed to be particularly described and ascertained in and
by the following statement:-
The invention relates to that class of indicators frequently employed in factories
workshops and offices to indicate whether the various principals and heads of
departments are in or out and when the absent ones may be expected to return.
The salient features of this indicator are a clock face or dial with a hand or hands,
a cover or other means of preventing the hands from being seen when not wanted,
« In,"
a revolving disc or equivalent bearing such notifications as for instance
"Out," Factory," "Out of Town," and the like, a portrait of the individual and
generally his name also. These parts may be combined in various ways as for example
the portrait in a medallion at one side of a frame, the clock face and hands at the
other, and the indicator in the middle but a more compact arrangement is to form
openings in the clock face through which the indicator and portrait would appear.
This latter construction is illustrated in the accompanying drawings in which figure I
represents a front view of a single indicator, figure 2 a vertical section thereof.
Figure 3 a view of the revolving disc and figure 4 a diagrammatic view of the clock
face with the device for concealing the hand."
A is a frame of wood or other suitable material in which is fitted a plate B,
bearing figures or numerals corresponding to those on the face of a clock. The
circle a enclosing the numerals may be divided into minutes in the usual manner but
a more convenient way is to divide it into 48 degrees whereby the space between one
numeral and the next in order will contain three division marks indicating intermediate
quarters of the hour. By adopting this arrangement only one hand is necessary for
ordinary purposes.
The plate B may be made of any suitable material having three openings or trans-
parent parts B1, B2, B3. Behind the opening B' may be fixed a strip of paper bearing
the name of the person whose doings this apparatus is used to chronicle; behind B
may be fixed a portrait of the same person; and through the opening B³ may be
observed the indications on the disc C, sec detail figure 3. The space cupon the
disc is left blank for notices of less general applicability than the examples given.
The disc C is mounted on an axis D which passes through the face B and is pro-
vided with a milled head D¹ by means of which the disc, being made fast to the axis,
can be readily turned to place any of the indications opposite the opening B³. A strip
of metal E is attached to a collar e capable of turning independently of the axis D and
to the underside of this strip is fixed a loop or buttom e¹ through which passes a
wire the wire being bont to the arc of a circle whose radius is equal to its distance
from the centre of the clock face and supported at each end in a stud e³ fixed into the
plate B.

page_text: The strip E can thus turn upon its axis for a limited distance. It may however be
fixed, the movable arrangement being merely a matter of convenience.
The hand F works with a little friction on the collar e moving independently
thereof without liability to slip. The apparatus is operated as follows:
Suppose the proprietor about to leave his place of business and wishing to intimate
the time of his return he revolves the disc so as to expose the words "Out,
return at, through the opening B³ and turns the hand F until it points to the
hour or sub-division thereof that he may fix upon, say a quarter past three as shown
in figure of the drawings. In case he does not wish to indicate the time of
return the hand F may be concealed by placing it beneath the strip E provided for
the purpose as shown in figure 4 and the space of disc C marked return doubtful
placed against the opening B³. If the strip E were a fixture it might happen that
the position of the hand when set to indicate the time of return would be too near
or perhaps directly underneath the strip E and it is to obviate the inconvenience
arising from such a co-incidence that provision is made for moving the strip through
a small portion of a circle as above described. As above stated the strip E may be
fixed and if so extra space may be left between two numerals so that the lines
denoting the divisions of the hour need not be obscured though any provision of this
kind is entirely optional.
Any words or embellishments could of course appear upon the dial or case and the
shape and details of construction of the whole apparatus may be varied as required.
In some cases a number of such dials with the portraits and names of various
principals or managers may be included in one frame so as to increase the field of
utility of the instrument.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said
invention, and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what
I claim is
1. The herein-described in-and-out" indicator comprising
(a) an opaque plate such as B provided with three transparent portions or
openings such as B1, B2, B33 to indicate respectively the name and the portrait
of the person to whom the apparatus is apportioned, and the required facts
concerning him ;
(b) a clock face or dial and one hand to indicate the desired time;
(c) a revolving disc such as C hearing the information and
(d) a cover or screen such as E movable within a limited space and adapted
when required to screen the hand from view, the whole constructed and
operating substantially in the manner and for the purpose described and
illustrated in the accompanying drawings.
::
2. In an in-and-out" indicator the method of facilitating identification by com-
bining with the name the portrait of the individual in question.
3. The combination with an in-and-out" indicator of the portrait of the person
whose movements the indicator is intended to chronicle.
4. In an in-and-out" indicator the combination with the dial or clock face and hand
or hands of a cover or screen such as E for the purpose of concealing the hand when
not wanted for use substantially as described.
Datad this 7th day of December 1887
FREDERICK SAGE.