Improved Method of and Means for Exhibiting Advertisements.
Year: 1897

page_text: Date of Application, 3rd July, 1897
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improved Method of and Means for Exhibiting Advertisements.
We, WESTLEY HENRY FLETCHER (Architect), of 123, Abbey Road; GEORGE
ROBERT ROLLASON (Engineer), of 16, Greenhill Road, Harlesden; and CHARLES
ARTHUR ROLLASON (Engineer), of 6, Fairlight Avenue, Harlesden, all in the
County of London, do hereby declare the nature of this invention to be as
follows:-
The object of our invention is to produce an improved apparatus for exhibiting
revolving advertisements in open spaces adjacent to railway lines or in any other
suitable situation.
In carrying our invention into practical effect, we erect on the site where it is
required to exhibit the advertisement or advertisements a vertical pillar or post
which may be maintained in its vertical position by means of suitable stays if
necessary.
Capable of revolving in a horizontal plane round this post or pillar on ball,
roller, or other suitable bearings attached thereto, we place a number of collars
or the like carrying radial arms at regular distances having attached thereto
vertical sails. These arms and sails are concave in shape, all the sails facing in
the same direction. These sails, which may each be of one piece of any suitable
substance or material, or which may each be formed with a number of adjustable
slats, carry the advertisements painted on or otherwise affixed thereto in any
convenient manner and are caused to rotate in a horizontal plane round the said
post or pillar by means of the wind.
If preferred the said arms carrying the vertical sails may be rigidly fixed to the
said pillar or post which latter may then itself be capable of revolving in suitable
bearings and be carried by a suitable framework.
Improved Method of and Means for Exhibiting Advertisements.
We, WESTLEY HENRY FLETCHER, of 123, Abbey Road, N.W.,
Architect; GEORGE
ROBERT ROLLASON, of 16, Greenhill Road, Harlesden, N.W., Engineer; and
CHARLES ARTHUR ROLLASON, of 6, Fairlight Avenue, Harlesden, N.W., Engineer,
all in the County of London, do hereby declare the nature of this invention and

page_text: .
in what manner the same is to be performed, to be particularly described and
ascertained in and by the following statement:-
Our invention has for its object an improved apparatus for exhibiting revoly-
ing advertisements in open spaces adjacent to railway lines, or in other suitable
situations.
In carrying our invention into practical effect, we erect on the site where it is
required to exhibit the advertisement or advertisements a vertical pillar which
may be of metal, wood, or other suitable substance, and which is maintained in
its vertical position by means of a suitable framework above which it projects.
Capable of revolving in a horizontal plane round this pillar are a set of five verti-
cal sails for carrying advertisements. These sails branch radially from the pillar
and are supported by straps. The inner ends of these straps are carried by the
upper cups of roller bearings, the lower cups of which are keyed or otherwise
suitably attached to the projecting part of the vertical post or pillar as hereinafter
described.
The advertisements are painted or otherwise marked upon or affixed to either one
or both sides of these vertical sails, and the latter, when the apparatus is in use,
are caused to rotate by means of the wind.
These vertical sails have their edges at their outer sides slightly curved or bent
towards the wind, and a space of at least one foot must be left between the edge
at the inner side of each sail and the said vertical pillar. This space enables the
wind to pass between any two adjacent sails and strike the curved part or side of
another sail on the opposite side of the pillar, thus ensuring that the sails will
always revolve in the same direction.
We will now proceed to further describe our invention in connection with the
accompanying drawings, in which the same letters of reference indicate like parts
in the various figures.
Fig. 1 shows an elevation of our apparatus.
Fig. 2 is a plan of the vertical sails from above.
Fig. 3 is a plan from above of the supporting frame of the vertical pillar, with
the pillar and sails removed.
Fig. 4 is a vertical sectional view of one of the roller bearings.
Fig. 5 is a plan of the lower cup and rollers of one of the roller bearings.
The vertical pillar a has its lower end fixed in the ground, or attached to any
suitable base on or in the ground, and is supported by a framework consisting of
four main posts 6 having their ends at their upper extremities fitted into the metal
casting (through the centre of which the pillar a passes), and having their ends
at their lower extremities respectively fitted into the metal shoes c¹; these four
main posts b being supported by a suitable system of beams and supports such as,
is shown in Figs. 1 and 3. Any suitable form of supporting framework may be
used but the form illustrated is found most convenient.
C
Vertical sails d, having their outer edges curved towards the wind, and having
a space of at least one foot between their inner edges and the pillar a, are carried
by means of horizontal straps e, the latter having their inner ends respectively
attached to the top cups of the roller bearings f, the lower cups of which bear-
ings are keyed or otherwise suitably attached to the vertical pillar a.
.
Above each of these bearings a suitable weather guard 9 is placed. The vertical
sails may be constructed of a number of slats of wood or other suitable material,
or may each be made of one piece of such material.
Each sail is strengthened by a stay e¹ and is connected with the sail next to it
on either side by means of two sets of horizontal tie rods h (Figs. 1 and 2).
Each of the roller bearings f is constructed, as shown in Figs. and 5, of a
lower cup
and sleeve k, (this lower sleeve being passed on to the pillar a, and keyed
or otherwise fixed thereto), and an upper cup and sleeve f, this upper sleeve being
passed loosely on to the pillar a so as to be capable of revolving round the same.
The travelling ring r has fixed to it radial axles 7 upon which revolve a suitable

page_text: number of rollers ², usually from 3 to 5, according to requirements, being used
in each bearing. Each of these rollers is in the shape of a frustrum of a cone and
has its end of smaller diameter situated inwards and furnished with a flange t.
These rollers 2 are capable of revolving between suitably inclined races s and s¹
formed in the upper and lower cups respectively, the projecting flange t bearing
against the inner sides of these races. The travelling ring serves as a space-
maintainer to the rollers 2, and the lower cup is filled or partly filled with lubri-
cating oil.
The advertisement or advertisements may either be painted, or otherwise suit-
ably marked directly upon the surfaces of the sails, or may be printed, painted,
embossed, or otherwise formed upon a sheet or sheets of paper, canvas, sheet metal,
or other convenient substance, and then such sheet or sheets attached to the said
sails.
When now exposed to the wind the sails with their advertisements will revolve.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of our said in-
vention and in what manner the same is to be performed we declare that what we
claim is
(1) Wind power apparatus for exhibiting revolving advertisements substantially
as described.
(2) In wind power apparatus for exhibiting revolving advertisements, roller
bearings consisting of lower cups (carrying lubricating oil) fixed to a vertical
pillar, and upper revolving cups carrying horizontal straps. These cups being
provided with inclined races between which are situated a set of rollers, each of
which is in the shape of a frustrum of a cone flanged at its end of smaller diameter,
and revolves upon a fixed radial axle carried by a travelling ring; substantially
as described.