An Improved Method of Lighting and Indicating Locality in Roads, Streets, and Footpaths, applicable also to Railways, Canals, Rivers, Docks, and other places where Traffic is carried on, and for Indicating the Channel or Course to Vessels at Sea.
Year: 1891

page_text: Date of Application, 17th Sept., 1891-Accepted, 14th Nov., 1891
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
An Improved Method of Lighting and Indicating Locality in Roads,
Streets, and Footpaths, applicable also to Railways, Canals, Rivers,
Docks, and other places where Traffic is carried on, and for
Indicating the Channel or Course to Vessels at Sea.
I, ELIZABETH DEAN, of Glenthorne, Epsom, in the County of Surrey, Widow,
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 improved method of lighting which forms the subject of the present inven-
tion is more especially intended for use during fogs.
According to the present system of lighting by means of illuminants elevated
some distance above the ground level, during a thick fog little if any light reaches
the roadway or other surface where traffic takes place and where it is most
required.
Now in lighting roads, streets, and footpaths, according to my invention, I place
the illuminants employed (preferably incandescent electric lamps) below the ground
level within suitable chambers or cavities covered at the top by glass or other
suitable transparent plates or lenses sufficiently strong to sustain the weight of
traffic and which diffuse near the surface of the ground the light passing through
them. These chambers or cavities are situate at convenient intervals apart along
the footpath or roadway, or both, following the course of the same, and may each
contain one or more lamps according to requirements. Illuminants may also be
placed if desired within chambers or recesses formed in the kerb, and closed by
strong transparent vertical plates or lenses, or by gratings, so as to project beams
of light horizontally across the surface of the roadway.
In order to indicate the locality, chambers or recesses of larger size and con-
venient shape may be employed covered by strong transparencies of glass or other
suitable material displaying the name of the road or street the points of the
compass or other required indications. The footpath lights may also serve in like
manner to indicate the numbers of the houses opposite which they are situated.
Or a series of lamp containing chambers or recesses may be so grouped and
arranged as to form on a large scale the name of the road or street or other indica-
tion required.
Persons can thus ascertain their whereabouts in the thickest fog.
By another arrangement, the illuminants employed, in lieu of being situate below
the ground level, as first above described, may be placed just above the ground
level, either upon the surfaces of the sides of the walls houses or fences bordering
the road or footpath, or within recesses formed therein, and protected by strong
plates of glass or other suitable transparent material which may also serve as
transparencies for displaying any required indications, such as the name of the
street or house numbers, or the lamps themselves may be so grouped as to form
the words, letters, figures, or signs required. Where the lamps are so placed as
to permit the free access of air to them, electric gas or oil lamps may be used as
desired.
It will be well to light the stables of horses by lights placed below the floor
level as in the arrangement first herein described in order to accustom them to
the roadway lights.
The above described methods of lighting will be found especially useful in
railway tunnels and other parts of the permanent way where illumination is
desirable.
In applying my invention to the lighting of rivers, canals, docks, and the like,
the lamps would be attached to buoys moored at convenient intervals (so that the

page_text: next succeeding light is always visible) following the course or channel at a
sufficient depth below the surface to be out of the way of vessels or boats, or
they might in some cases be placed in chambers or recesses protected by trans-
parent fronts or by gratings, formed along the banks or boundaries just above the
surface of the water after the fashion of the kerb lights herein before described.
- Submerged electric lamps may also be employed at sea for marking out the
course or channel and indicating the same to vessels at night.
It will be obvious that in all cases where submerged lights or lights to which
there is no free access of air are employed, illuminants which do not require air
such as incandescent electric lamps must be used.
In the accompanying drawings
Fig. 1 is a diagrammatic view illustrating in plan a roadway and footpaths
lighted according to my invention by lamps sunk below the ground level.
a is the roadway. the footpaths. cc represents the glass lenses or covers
closing the chambers or cavities in which the lamps are placed. The lamp con-
taining chambers or cavities should be so spaced as that during the thickest fog
the light of the next succeeding lamp will always be visible and as the lamps
follow the course of the road or footpath it will thus be impossible for passengers
to accidentally stray from the footpath or for vehicles to run off the road. dd¹are
strong glass transparencies covering lamp containing chambers of convenient
shape, here shewn as displaying respectively the name of the street and the points
of the compass.
d represents a footpath light the glass cover or lens of which
displays the number of the house opposite which it is situate.
Fig. 2 is a diagram representing in elevation a kerb provided with lamps as
hereinbefore described.
e is the kerb. a the roadway. ce are vertical glass plates or lenses in the
side face of the kerb (or they might be gratings) forming fronts to lamp con-
taining chambers or recesses formed therein.
Fig. 3 is a diagram view representing in elevation a wall provided with illuminants
near the ground level as hereinbefore described.
fis the wall. the footpath. el represents a glass plate (preferably ground
glass guarded by a trellis or grating as shewn) forming a protecting front to the
lamps placed behind and serving also as a transparency upon which the name of
the road or other required indication as to locality may be placed. Or the lamps
themselves may be so grouped as to form the letters, words figures or signs required
in which case the front of the case would be of plain glass. I prefer however the
first mentioned arrangement as being more practical. The transparencies employed
for indicating locality may in all cases either consist of opaque bodies with trans-
parent letters, figures, words or signs, or vice versa, as found most convenient.
I have not considered it necessary to illustrate in the annexed drawings the
application of my invention to rivers, canals docks, and the like, as the same will
be readily understood by the foregoing description.
In substitution for lighthouses, powerful electric lights may be erected upon
tall poles along the shore, for conveying indication of locality to ships at sea. The
lights would be so arranged as to form the letters or words required on a very
large scale. For instance I would erect lights so grouped and arranged as to form
the word "Godwin" on the Godwin Sands and the lights forming this word would
extend a distance of some twelve miles. The number of letters would as a rule
serve to indicate the locality and the dangers which might result from colour
blindness on the part of the commander of a vessel would thus be obviated.
Fishermen will also find that the lighting of their nets by electric lamps will
attract fish to the nets.
I do not lay any claim to the two arrangements just above described (viz. :-con-
veying indications of locality to ships at sea by elevated lights grouped to form
words or signs indicating locality, and lighting fishing nets by electric lamps) but
wish the same to be inserted in this my Specification for the benefit of and as a
free gift to the public at large.

page_text: I would here observe that I am aware that there is no novelty in placing lamps
along walls houses or fences near the ground, such having been often done for
purposes of ornamental illumination, but I am not aware that they have ever
before been employed in such a manner as to serve the double purpose of giving
light near the ground and indicating locality. I am also aware that submerged
lights have also been employed for purposes of ornamental illumination and there-
fore I neither claim broadly the employment of lights secured along walls houses
or fences near the ground nor of submerged lights.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I
claim is :-
1. The herein described method of lighting roads, streets and footpaths by
means of illuminants disposed below the ground level within chambers or cavities
covered by strong transparent plates or lenses substantially as specified.
2. The herein described method of lighting streets and roads by means of
illuminants disposed within chambers or recesses formed in the kerb as specified.
3. The herein described method of lighting and indicating locality by means
of illuminants situate below the ground level beneath strong transparencies which
display the required indications substantially as specified.
4. The herein described method of lighting and indicating locality by means of
illuminants situated just above the ground upon the walls houses or fences bordering
a footpath or road and protected by transparent fronts upon or through which the
required indications as to locality are displayed or seen as specified.
5. The herein described method of indicating locality by means of a series of
lamp containing chambers or cavities covered by strong transparent plates or
lenses and so grouped and arranged as to form the letters, words, figures or signs
required as specified.
6. Marking out and indicating the course or channel to boats or vessels by means
of submerged lights, and also, in the case of rivers, canals, and docks, indicating
the situation of the banks or boundaries by means of lights contained within
chambers or recesses formed at intervals along such banks or boundaries just above
the water level, as specified.
DLL 71
omban 1901
ELIZABETH DEAN.
By E. P. Alexander & Son,
Chartered Patent Agents, 19, Southampton Buildings, London, W.C.,
Agents for the Applicant.