IMPROVEMENTS IN ELECTRIC SIGNS OR APPARATUS FOR ILLUMINATING AND SIGNALLING PURPOSES
Year: 1883

page_text: PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by Henry Vander Weydo at the Office
of the Commissioners of Patents on the 18th January 1883.
HENRY VANDER WEYDE of Regent Street in the County of Middlesex
IMPROVEMENTS IN ELECTRIC SIGNS OR APPARATUS FOR ILLUMINATING AND
SIGNALLING PURPOSES
My Invention relates to improvements in the construction and arrangement of
electric incandescence lamps and in the composition therewith of letters, words,
figures, signals and designs for the purposes of publicity signalling and illumination.
Heretoforo electric incandescence lamps have been used to form letters words
and designs by placing a sufficient number of lamps each complete in itself in
succession along the lines of the letter, word or design intended to be formed, the
lamps thus forming a number of isolated dots of light which collectively but more
or less imperfectly represent the desired result.
The great disadvantage of this mode of producing the design and the useless
expenditure of current in rendering incandescent a carbon of horseshoe form when
a single straight or curved line only is required will be evident.
Incandescent lamps of elongated form have also been made in some cases but
even in these the carbon has been made in the form of an elongated horseshoe and
not a single line and the form of the bulb at the point where the conductors enter
and the place at which these are situated havo detracted from the completeness of
the letter, word or design.
In carrying out my Invention I form the letters or design of single lines of light
by forming the carbons of straight angled or curved form according to the con-
figuration of the letter, word, figure or design or of the component part thereof
which the carbon is to represent, and the conducting wires are sealed into the tube
or bulb at the back so that a number of such lamps may be so assembled together
as to collectively represent letters, words, figures or designs in apparently but not
necessarily continuous lines of light.
When the letter or design is of large dimensions the carbons are enclosed .in
separate tubes or bulbs of glass but when small the whole letter, figure, word or
design or a component part thereof is enclosed in a glass case which if of flat form
[Price 2d.]

page_text: may be stayed internally by glass pillars to enable it to sustain the atmospheric
pressure upon its flat faces the pillars passing through the interstices of the design
at convenient points. The case may be made in two parts one more or less flat
with rounded sides and having the pillars already fixed in position therein. The
carbons to form the design being suitably arranged therein hetween the said pillars
and the conducting wires sealed through the glass at convenient points the other
part or cover is then applied and sealed to the first part after which the air may be
pumped out in the usual way.
A number of these cases of suitable shape and size each containing a component
part of the entire design may be so closely assembled together as to collectively
represent one whole and apparently continuous figure or design.
Where interrupted lines or dots of light are required in order to produce a letter,
word, figure or design I connect series of short carbon filaments having the proper
form and position by intermediate conducting wires which not being rendered
incandescent by the current, remain invisible. In this way the most intricate
lettering or designs such as portraits in outline may be produced:
For signalling on Railways Steam ships, Harbors and in other situations two or
more letters, signs or words produced or composed as above described and contained
in the same vacuum chamber or in separate tubes may be placed the one in front
of the other so that by means of a suitable switch any one may be illuminated
whilst the rest remains invisible.