GB2162675A - Display device - Google Patents

Abstract

A display device comprises prisms 10,12 bearing indicia and rotatable by a drive motor 32 into display positions in which the indicia surfaces are exposed. A microswitch 40 is actuated by pins 38 on one of the prism shafts to interrupt the drive at successive display positions for a predetermined interval according to control circuitry. In another operating mode the microswitch is normally by-passed, but is activated by a remote switch operable by a viewer so that the prisms stop at the next display position. The remote switch is suitably a proximity switch on the opposite side of a viewing window from the viewer. <IMAGE>

Description

SPECIFICATION An improved display device This invention relates to the provision of display material in which it is desired that one or more of the display items should be selectable by a remote viewer for further or longer consideration.

The invention provides a variety of constructions and modes of operation, preferred of which are represented below.

According to one aspect of the present invention there is provided a display device comprising indicia surfaces movable into and out of a display position, a drive means to move said indicia surfaces, and a remotely operable switch linked to control means for controlling the operation of the drive means so that a viewer can from a distance control the presentation of the indicia.

Preferably the indicia surfaces are provided by one or more prisms rotatable so that individual faces thereof move into and out of a display position.

The drive means may suitably comprise an electric motor and associated apparatus. The remotely operable switch is suitably a proximity switch of the kind not requiring physical contact between the operator and the switch. This switch may suitably be one of the type wherein the capacitance to earth established by an operator bringing his hand into proximity with a panel causes a switching circuit to operate.

According to another aspect of the present invention there is provided a display device comprising indicia surfaces movable into and out of a display position, a drive means to move said indicia surfaces, and remotely operable switch linked to control means for controlling the operation of the drive means so that a viewer can from a distance control the presentation of the indicia, the drive means comprising an electric motor controllable by circuitry including a second switch operable by means movable with the indicia surfaces to interrupt the drive from the motor when the indicia surfaces are in a display position, actuation of said remotely operable switch having the effect of bringing said second switch into operation whereby the remote viewer can halt the indicia surfaces in a display position.

According to a third aspect of the present invention there is provided a display device comprising indicia surfaces movable into and out of a display position, a drive means to move said indicia surfaces, and a remotely operable switch linked to control means for controlling the operation of the drive means so that a viewer can from a distance control the presentation of the indicia, the control means being switchable between alternative modes of operation, one mode activating the remotely operable switch so that its actuation halts the indicia surfaces in a display position, another mode deactivating the remotely operable switch and causing the indicia surfaces to be continuously moved or intermittently moved with predetermined pauses at successive display positions.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention there is provided a display device comprising a changeable display and means for changing the display, and a remotely operable proximity switch for enabling a viewer to control the display change by bringing his hand or other part of his person into proximity with, but not contacting, the switch. The display device is suitably arranged on one side of a window so that the display can be viewed through the window, the proximity switch being secured to the surface of the window on the same side thereof as the display device but visible to a viewer on the other side so that he can operate it by contacting the surface of the window opposite the switch.

One embodiment of the present invention will now be described, by way of illustration and with reference to the accompanying drawings in which: Figure 1 is a side view of one embodiment of display device; Figure 2 is a front view of the display device; Figure 3 is a perspective view of the display device; Figure 4 is a perspective view of a frame of the display device; Figure 5 is a circuit diagram of the display device controller; and Figure 6 is a front view of a mounting for a sensing plate.

Referring to Fig. 1, this shows two similar prisms 10 and 12 each being an equilateral triangle in cross-section, and both of them being attached to a frame 14 by means of respective axles 16 and 18.

The axle 16 is driven by a pulley 20 which is itself driven by a toothed belt 22. The belt 22 passes around a pulley 26 mounted on the axle 18 and another pulley 28 mounted on the drive axle 30 of an electric motor 32. The motor 32 is itself mounted on a plate 34 which is pivoted to the frame 14 at 36; the pivoting is such that should one of the prisms 12 and 14 become jammed and hence unable to be rotated, the motor 32 will rotate anticlockwise about the pivot 36 and hence the pulley 28 will be disengaged from the toothed belt 22.

The pulley 26 is provided with a collar mounting grub screws 38 which extend radially from the body of the pulley 26. This collar is rotatable about the axle 18 and is adjusted so that the grub screws 38 operate a microswitch 40 whenever indiciabearing faces 34 and 36 of the prisms 10 and 12 are in the desired alignment.

Fascia elements 42 and 44, chosen so as to provide an appropriate surround for the faces 34 and 36 are provided. The display device is mounted on castors 48 and is contained in a body 50.

The operation of the electric motor 32 is controlled by a controller which can be switched between "manual" and "automatic" running by means of switch 44. In "automatic" running, the motor runs continually between pauses initiated by the tripping of the microswitch 40. In "manual" running, when a remote viewer brings his hand into proximity with a metal plate suitably connected to the controller the motor will be stopped by the operation of the microswitch 40 being tripped by one of the grub screws 38 and will remain off for a period determined by the length of time that the viewer holds his hand in place.

If there is no hand-application in the "manual" mode, the motor will run continuously and hence the prisms 10 and 12 will be in continuous rotation.

Referring to Fig. 2; this shows the two exposed prism faces 34 and 36, the fascia elements 30 and 32, the castors 38 and the visible areas of the body 50. It also shows an indicator lamp 124 and a DIN socket 52; the former serves to show when a viewer's hand is brought into proximity with a detector plate and the latter serves to allow connection between the controller and its associated remote sensing circuit.

Referring to Fig. 3, this shows the body 28 mounted on castors 38 and the exposed prism faces 34 and 36. The fascia elements 30 and 32 are disposed so as to allow free rotation of the prisms 12 and 10 about their respective axes. Also shown are the indicator lamp 124 and the DIN socket 52.

Referring to Fig. 4; this shows the frame 14 and the apertures 60 which are provided to receive the axle 18 supporting the upper prism and attaching it to its drive-wheel. Similar holes 62 are provided for the axle supporting the lower prism.

The vertical flange 64 of the forwardmost member 66 is supplied with holes 68 to allow fixing to the body of the device. A hole 70 is also supplied to accommodate the axle about which the motor pivots.

Referring to Fig. 5; this shows a high-frequency oscillator 110 whose output is fed to a filter circuit 112 and from there to a proximity detector plate 114 and a voltage doubler circuit 116. If a hand of a distance viewer of the display device is placed near the plate 114, part of the high-frequency input to the voltage doubler 116 will leak to earth due to the hand-capacitance effect and hence the DC output of the voltage doubler 116 will be reduced. The output of the voltage doubler 116 is fed into the comparator 118 whose sensitivity is adjusted by the variable resistor 120. The output of the comparator is fed to a triac switching circuit which drives a lamp 124. This portion of the controller is adjusted so that the comparator 118 gives a LOW output and the lamp 124 lights when a remote viewer's hand is brought near to the plate 114; normally its output is HIGH.

There is further provided a timer circuit 126 which will provide a HIGH output after a delay (which may be varied by means of a variable resistor 128) upon receiving a LOW input by the closing of the microswitch 40. With the switch 44 in the MANUAL position as shown, the operation of the timer is prevented by the application of a HIGH input from the cathode of a diode.

The operation of the rest of the circuit will now be described first of all with the switch 44 in the MANUAL position as shown and then with it in the AUTOMATIC (or lower) position. It will be seen that the output from the comparator 118 is fed to an OR gate 130. When the comparator 118 gives a LOW output indicating the presence of a viewer's hand near the plate 114 in conjunction with the microswitch 40 being closed by the action of one of the grub screws 38 indicating that the faces 36 and 34 are in the correct alignment for viewing, the transistor 134 is switched off and will cause the triac switching circuit 132 to switch the motor 32 off for as long as the viewer's hand remains near the plate 114.

When the switch 44 is in the lower or AUTO MATIC position, the gate 130 is permanently switched on and the comparator 118 is driven permanently HIGH by means of an input applied through the resistor 134. Thus, the upper portion of the circuit may be ignored and the timer 126 produces a HIGH output for a certain time period adjustable by the variable resistor 40 after the microswitch 40 has been closed by the action of one of the grub screws 38; this causes the triac switching circuit 132 to switch the motor 134 off. At the end of this time period, the motor 32 will start running again.

Hence, with the switch 44 in the MANUAL position, the motor 32 will run continuously unless a remote viewer brings his hand near the plate, in which case the prisms 10 and 12 will remain at rest with their faces in one of the chosen positions for as long as the viewer keeps his hand in place. With the switch 44 in the AUTOMATIC position, the motor 32 will stop at the desired positions for a period determined by the variable resistor 40.

The voltage-doubler circuit 116 and plate 114 are mounted together and remote from the rest of the circuit; they constitute a remote sensing unit.

The live mains supply is connected to the terminal 140 and the neutral to the terminal 142.

Referring to Fig. 6, this shows the detector plate 114 mounted within a plastic hand-shaped member 150. The detector plate can be mounted in a position where it can be approached by a viewer's hand but not actually touched. For example, it can be mounted on the side of a window remote from the viewer. The hand-shaped member is visible to the viewer and indicates where he should place his hand on the window to actuate the switch.

Claims (17)

1. A display device comprising indicia surfaces movable into and out of a display position, a drive means to move said indicia surfaces, and a remotely operable switch linked to control means for controlling the operation of the drive means so that a viewer can from a distance control the presentation of the indicia.

2. A display device according to claim 1 wherein the remotely operable switch is a proximity switch.

3. A display device according to claim 2 wherein the proximity switch is of the type wherein the capacitance to earth established by an operator bringing his hand into proximity with a panel causes a switching circuit to operate.

4. A display device according to any one of claims 1, 2 and 3 wherein the indicia surfaces are provided by one or more prisms rotatable so that individual faces thereof move into and out of a display position.

5. A display device according to claim 4 wherein the prisms are driven by an electric motor controllable by circuitry including a microswitch operated by one or more elements movable with the prisms to interrupt the drive from the motor when the prisms are in a display position to interrupt the drive from the motor.

6. A display device according to claim 5 wherein the circuitry includes means providing a delay after the drive is switched off by the microswitch before the drive is resumed.

7. A display device according to claim 5 or claim 6 wherein the circuitry includes means normally by-passing the effect of operation of the microswitch, but alterable by actuation of said proximity switch so as to bring the microswitch operation into effect.

8. A display device according to claim 7 wherein the circuitry is arranged to permit resumption of the drive when the proximity switch is deactuated.

9. A display device according to claim 8 wherein the circuitry is switchable between a manual and an automatic mode; the manual mode providing for the actuation of the proximity switch to interrupt the drive when the prisms are in a display position and to resume the drive when the proximity switch is deactuated, the automatic mode bypassing the effect of actuation of the proximity switch and causing the drive to be interrupted for a predetermined period at successive display positions.

10. A display device comprising indicia surfaces movable into and out of a display position, a drive means to move said indicia surfaces, and remotely operable switch linked to control means for controlling the operation of the drive means so that a viewer can from a distance control the presentation of the indicia, the drive means comprising an electric motor controllable by circuitry including a second switch operable by means movable with the indicia surfaces to interrupt the drive from the motor when the indicia surfaces are in a display position, actuation of said remotely operable switch having the effect of bringing said second switch into operation whereby the remote viewer can halt the indicia surfaces in a display position.

11. A display device according to claim 10 wherein deactuation of the remotely operable switch deactivates the second switch and allows the drive to the indicia surfaces to be resumed.

12. A display device according to claim 11 wherein the circuitry is switchable into an alternative mode of operation in which the remotely operable switch is deactivated and said second switch remains activated and interrupts the drive to the indicia surfaces at successive display positions for a predetermined period.

13. A display device comprising indicia surfaces movable into and out of a display position, a drive means to move said indicia surfaces, and a remotely operable switch linked to control means for controlling the operation of the drive means so that a viewer can from a distance control the presentation of the indicia, the control means being switchable between alternative modes of operation, one mode activating the remotely operable switch so that its actuation halts the indicia surfaces in a display position, another mode deactivating the remotely operable switch and causing the indicia surfaces to be continuously moved or intermittently moved with predetermined pauses at successive display positions.

14. A display device comprising a changeable display and means for changing the display, and a remotely operable proximity switch for enabling a viewer to control the display change by bringing his hand or other part of his person into proximity with, but not contacting, the switch.

15. A display device according to claim 14 arranged on one side of a window so that the display can be viewed through the window, the proximity switch being secured to the surface of the window on the same side thereof as the display device but visible to a viewer on the other side so that he can operate it by contacting the surface of the window opposite the switch.

16. A display device, substantially as described herein with reference to the accompanying drawings.

17. A display device controlled in a manner substantially as described herein with reference to the accompanying drawings.