Improvements in Means for Displaying News, Advertisements, and the like.
Year: 1893

page_text: COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Means for Displaying News, Advertisements, and
the like.
I FREDERICK WILLIAM GOLBY of 36 Chancery Lane, in the County of
Middlesex, Patent Agent do hereby declare the nature of this invention as com-
municated to me by Daniel McFarlan Moore of 44 Broad Street, in the City,
County, and State of New York, United States of America Electrician, and in
what manner the same is to be performed, to be particularly described and
ascertained in and by the following statement:-
Heretofore it has been proposed to produce illuminated letters, words, pictures &c.
by close circuiting certain of many lamps arranged over a given surface. It is
unnecessary to enumerate the advantages and uses of such an invention as they are
well known to those versed in the art. It is necessary to state however, that
business men who use such an invention for advertising purposes, and bulletins are
apparently not sufficiently satisfied with the same from the fact that the formation
of the characters or groups thereof involve the use of numerous corresponding
specific mechanical constructions either of an apparatus or of a stencil. The
system is therefore not sufficiently flexible. As there are thousands of words in
the English and other languages, and an infinite number of pictures and other
characters possible, it would be necessary to have a similar number of stencils or
special devices to represent all predetermined words and pictures.
By this invention any word, of any language and any picture, numeral or number
may be represented without any change in the mechanical construction and without
any stencil.
The drawings illustrate the construction of the apparatus.
Figure 1 shows in elevation, the sign board and the operating board, and the
electric circuits; also, the lamp and generator.
Figure 2 is an elevation of an operating board of large capacity and on an
enlarged scale over that of Figure 1, and also shows details of construction.
Certain parts are broken away.
Figure 3 is an end elevation of the board in Figure 2, the interior being partly
represented.
Figure 4 is a section of the operating board at the line X. Some small details
are not in section.
a is a sign board or bulletin, and has numerous lamps barranged thereon 'as
closely together as advisable. For best effects it is preferred that they be arranged
at equal intervals in parallel rows equally displaced.
is the operating board having a permanently lighted lamp & behind it and
holes e normally closed by stoppers f. These holes and stoppers are arranged in
exactly a similar manner as the lamps on the board, except that the former
may be closer together for mere convenience. The sign board and operating
boards are fac-similes of each other as to the relative arrangements of the lamps b
and stoppers f
The general idea is that if the stoppers are pushed in so as to outline the
letter N on the operating board, corresponding lamps will be lighted on the
sign board so as to outline the same letter of exactly the same proportions,
and differing only in size if at all. This is accomplished because a circuit
closer g is connected to and operative by each stopper f. The stoppers are
conical and located in the holes and when pushed downward allow the light from
the lamp d to exit so that the operator may see a faint fac-simile image of that
D

page_text: which is being formed simultaneously upon the sign board. The circuit closers g
are mounted upon insulators at the lower ends of the stoppers. Each insulator
normally separates the two springs or terminals i. These springs bold the
terminals, when pushed in, as long as it is desired that the lamps 6 be kept in
circuit, because, the bent ends of the springs i spring into notches ; in the circuit
closers.
When the characters are once formed upon the sign board, it becomes necessary
to destroy the same to make room for more. This is done rapidly by means of
the rods which when pushed inwardly against the action of the springs on the
rods m, also push in the rods n, formed of a series of conical insulators o, which
separate the spring terminals i and the stoppers snap upwards and close the holes e
through the action of the retractile springs p. The insulators o, will immediately
resume their original positions in view of the retractile springs g.
The circuits may be easily traced in Figure 1 is the generator and the terminal
wires or main lines are s. The lamps are in multiple arc and so are the circuit
closers 9, and each circuit closer will close a corresponding lamp with which it is
in circuit.
Suppose that the operating board is in the reporter's room of a newspaper and
the sign board or bulletin a is on the street. A certain item of news comes by
telegraph. The operator pushes in the stoppers to spell the item on his board.
Immediately a fac-simile of the item appears in the street on the bulletin.
The operation will be much more rapid than by writing it by hand upon the
bulletin. Again, the growth of any spelling by lights will be watched with interest
by spectators even in the case of advertisements, depending upon the mental
principle of curiosity, which becomes very much excited by brilliant, and to the
public, mysterious appearance of beautifully colored lights. The sign board usually
in practice covers a number of square feet of surface while the operating board is
small enough to be reached as to all its circuit closers, by a man standing in front
thereof.
Having now particularly described, and ascertained the nature of this said inven-
tion, and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I
claim is :-
1. An electric light display system, consisting of the combination of a sign
board at a given point and of a given size, carrying a given number of electric
lamps equally displaced in parallel rows equally displaced and an operating board
at a distant point and of smaller size carrying the same number of circuit closers
equally displaced in parallel rows equally displaced, the circuit closers being in
circuit with the respective lamps in such a manner that any given lamp in any
given row is in circuit with the corresponding circuit closer in the corresponding
row.
2. An electric light display system, consisting of the combination of a sign board
at a given point and of a given size, carrying a given number of electric lamps
equally displaced in parallel rows equally displaced an operating board at a distant
point and of smaller size carrying the same number of circuit closers equally
displaced in parallel rows equally displaced, the circuit closers being in circuit with
the respective lamps in such a manner that any given lamp in any given row is in
circuit with the corresponding circuit closer in the corresponding row, and means
for illuminating the sign board at the points of location of the circuit closers.
3. An electric light display system, consisting of the combination of a sign board
at a given point and of a given size, carrying a given number of electric lamps
equally displaced in parallel rows equally displaced, an operating board at a distant
point and of smaller size carrying the same number of circuit closers equally
dieplaced in parallel rows equally displaced, the circuit closers being in circuit
with the respective lamps in such a manner that any given lamp in any given row
is in circuit with the corresponding circuit closer in the corresponding row, and
means for illuminating the sign board at the points of location of the circuit

page_text: closer, said means consisting of a lighted lamp behind the operating board and
stoppers attached to the circuit closers and normally closing the holes which are
provided in the said operating board.
4. An electric light display system, consisting of the combination of lamps
equally displaced and of a given number in rows equally displaced, an operating
board provided with holes equally displaced and of the same number, in rows
equally displaced, stoppers normally closing said holes, and circuit closers, con-
nected to said stoppers, and respectively in circuit with the lamps so that any
lamp in a given location in a given row is in circuit with the circuit closer
connected to that stopper which has the corresponding position in a corresponding
row.
5. An electric light display system, consisting of the combination of lamps
equally displaced and of a given number in rows equally displayed an operating
board provided with holes equally displaced and of the same number, in rows
equally displaced, stoppers normally closing said holes, circuit closers, connected
to said stoppers, and respectively in circuit with the lamps so that any lamp in a
given location in a given row is in circuit with the circuit closer connected to that
stopper which has the corresponding position in a corresponding row, and means
for reopening two or more circuit closers simultaneously.
6. An electric light display system consisting of the combination of lamps equally
displaced and of a given number in rows equally displaced, an operating board
provided with holes equally displaced, and of the same number, in rows equally
displaced, stoppers normally closing said holes, circuit closers, connected to said
stoppers, and respectively in circuit with the lamps so that any lamp in a given
location in a given row is in circuit with the circuit closer connected to that stopper
which has the corresponding position in a corresponding row, and means for
reopening two or more circuit closers simultaneously, said means consisting of a
series of conical insulators between the terminals of the circuit closers, and a
movable rod k opposite the insulators which are in the path of the said rod.
Dated this 11th dow of DL.
1000
F. W. GOLBY,
36, Chancery Lane, London, W.C., Patent Agent.
F. W. GOLBY,
36, Chancery Lane, London, W.C., Patent Agent.