NZ244809A - Display panel capable of displaying a series of panels sequentially - Google Patents

Description

1 Priority Date(s): Complete Specification Filed. t..\ Cc.c\CW Class: •/ ?6 t1.AY.J995.

Publication Date. . n • • • ( 3 ri 2. . P.O. Journs'. No: Patents Form No. 5 NEW ZEALAND PATENTS ACT 1953 COMPLETE SPECIFICATION INFORMATION DISPLAY DEVICE WE, ELECTRONIC SEQUENCES PLUS, a French company of 18 Boulevard Carnot, 81000 Albi, FRANCE hereby declare the invention, for which we pray that a patent may be granted to us, and the method by which it is to be performed, to be particularly described in and by the following statement: (followed by page la) 44BO'; - 1a- INFORMATION DISPLAY DEVICE The present invention relates to an information display device.

Various devices for displaying information, in 5 particular advertising, posters are known. Thus display panels exist which comprise a display window in which appear items of information previously printed on a film rolled round a first roller located in the lower part of the display panel, a second receiving roller located in the 10 upper part rolling up the film to a length corresponding to the height of the poster.

Such display panels are usually actuated by motor and the poster is periodically changed. It is even arranged that the rolling-unrolling directions be reversible so as to 15 be able to return to the preceding panels. These periodic changes are controlled by a programmable control unit.

This type of display panel is a distinct improvement over fixed display panels receiving adhered posters, but it is unsatisfactory for several reasons.

The main reason is the lack of flexibility of this type of display panels. Indeed, it is necessary to make up a film with a succession of posters in a given order, and these posters will be presented in this order in one direction or the other, but necessarily chronologically one 25 after the other.

Further, the passage from one poster to the other can be arranged for one direction of travel but, on the other hand, (followed by page 2) ~j A f] 0 '-t '<j this passage may be found very unpleasant for the consumer in the other direction.

There is also the question of cost, since it is necessary to screen print the whole of a film with no possibility of inserting a poster between two other posters so that the programming must be perfectly pre-established and the films must be made to order. Further, often the device is controlled solely by means of a timing system which maintains a poster displayed in the window for a given period of time and which causes the passage of the following poster.

The use of such display devices also presents another drawback in that the changing of the posters remains long and difficult.

Other devices propose rollers with a transparent support film which cannot be dismounted and is held taut between the rollers and disposed in the display frame. Each poster consists of a plurality of parts disposed in cavities provided in the transparent support film. These parts are introduced one by one in the respective cavities in the manner of a puzzle.

When it concerns posters measuring four metres by three metres, eight posters measuring one metre by one and one-half metres must be installed in the support film in accordance with present display standards. It will then be understood that changing the posters is a long and delicate operation usually requiring two persons working together for ; -1 * P r . ~ '■i j \j long periods of time.

It is moreover clear that during these long changing periods, the display device is immobilized and therefore useless and unprofitable. This changing operation is rendered still more fastidious in the case of display panels disposed in height on posts in the middle of a town and when the weather conditions become bad.

Any remote control of such a display device is also rendered impossible, on one hand owing to the order of passage of the posters which is pre-established and, on the other hand because any modification necessarily involves long periods of immobilization.

Advertising and communication contracts require great flexibility in use and it may be of interest to be in a position to modify the order of the passage of the different items of information, to modify one of the items without modifying the others, or to quite simply eliminate the passage of one of the items while maintaining the display of the others.

In a sports events for example, it may become necessary to increase the duration of the passage of the posters of an advertiser on his request, in accordance with the audience who receives the televised retransmission of this event. At present, this is impossible with existing devices.

It must also be mentioned that halls for sports events or theatres are, for reasons of profitability, increasingly polyvalent and the different events follow one another very - 1 /) p L1 L\ KJ rapidly and may be of completely different types with different publics, all of which requires rapid changes in the posters displayed.

During some sports events, there may also occur prolongations of the duration of the match or events which require staggering the diffusion of the advertising or information messages, so that in systems in which the program is established prior to the event, it is often difficult to modify the program. Further, a type of advertising exists which consists in circulating vehicles on which are disposed fixed display panels or boards carrying adhered posters. Such a system lacks flexibility in use, since any required change in the poster displayed involves returning to the advertising firm for stripping the poster and then sticking up the other poster, whereas automatic systems having a travelling film, as mentioned before, present all the aforementioned drawbacks in their use, whether they are on posts or on a vehicle.

An object of the present invention is to provide a device for displaying information, in particular advertising, which is highly flexible in use, which allows an immediate modification of the pre-established programming, which allows a modification of the order of passage of the display panels, which may receive an additional panel or receive a whole lot of new panels, which may be controlled manually or by an internal programming or by remote control, which is capable of receiving a plurality 1 0 1 5 of juxtaposed modules so as to create a very wide poster, which is inexpensive as concerns both maintenance and the use of the device, which is of small overall size thereby permitting its transportation on a mobile unit or its mounting on posts at fixed places or on a unit which is manually movable by rolling along the ground.

To this end, the invention provides a device for displaying information, in particular advertising, characterized in that it comprises a support frame provided with a display window, a magazine comprising at least two information support panels, means for selecting and holding one of said panels, and means for transferring the selected panel to a position aligned with the display window.

The selecting means of the device according to the invention comprise more particularly index members carried by the panels and disposed in facing relation to the holding means mounted on the transfer means.

According to a particular embodiment, the transfer means comprise at least two rollers, namely an upper roller and a lower roller, at least one of which is a driving roller, and around which there is rolled a closed-loop support band on which the panel holding means are mounted.

In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the holding means comprise electromagnets arranged along a common line parallel to the axes of rotation of the rollers, the core plungers of these electromagnets constituting the panel holding means proper and the index members comprising at least two tabs which project from the upper edge of each panel and each define an aperture adapted to cooperate with the end of the plunyer of the confronting electromagnet.

According to another feature of the invention, the frame is substantially a parallelepiped having a width and height substantially corresponding to those of the panel to be displayed and a small depth substantially corresponding to the diameter of the rollers plus the thickness of the magazine which is disposed on the rear side opposed to the side having the display window.

According to another feature, the frame comprises a unit controlling the selecting, holding and transfer means.

According to another feature of the invention, the magazine is a removable cassette including a memory which is programmed in respect of the order and the duration of the passage of the panels it contains, and connections permitting the communication of the contents of the programmed memory of the cassette to the control unit.

Further, the modules may be juxtaposed and interconnected along a horizontal axis so as to form a display of great width.

In a particular embodiment, the frame is rearwardly inclined so as to permit the release and the automatic stacking of the panels merely by the effect of gravity.

In a particular embodiment, the panel comprises a sheet or plate carrying the index members and so deformable as to marry up with the radius of curvature of the rollers, the f /•( '6' Q N '•) v./ ^ information proper being mounted on said sheet.

An embodiment of the invention will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: Fig. 1 is a diagrammatic perspective view of a display 5 device according to the invention, Fig. 2 is a front elevational view of the display device with a part cut away, Fig. 3 is an end elevational view of the display device according to the invention, the lateral case having been 10 removed, Fig. 4 is a rear elevational view of the display device according to the invention, Fig. 5 is a diagrammatic perspective view of the arrangement of the panels within the cassette, Fig. 6 is a detail view of an electromagnet of -the selecting and holding means, Fig. 7 is an exploded perspective view of an alternative embodiment of a fixed module, Fig. 8 is an alternative embodiment of the selecting means, and FEB 153J j Fig. 9 is a view of the holding means. wl*^" Shown in Fig. 1 is a display device according to the invention which comprises a frame 10., display window J 2, transfer means 14 and a magazine 16.

The frame 10 is shown in Fig. 2 in front elevation with a part cut away. It can be considered that this frame is substantially a parallelepiped of great width, great /44L height but small depth.

Further, the frame 10 comprises a foot 18 which is connected to the parallelepipedic part and extends rearwardly so as to impart to the whole of the frame a 5 certain stability bearing in mind that the parallelepipedic part of the frame is slightly rearwardly inclined.

Further, wheels 20 are incorporated in the foot 18 so as to permit a displacement of the whole of the display device.

The display window has a width substantially equal to 10 that of the parallelepipedic part, apart from the thickness of the case surrounding the parallelepipedic part and defining the display window 12.

This display window 12 faces toward the front of the device and is delimited by an upper strip 22 and a lower 15 strip 24 which are adapted to cover the transfer means 14 which will be described hereinafter.

Fig. 2 shows a front view of the device with a part cut away.

The display window 12 comprises a transparent front wall 20 26 which is fixed relative to the frame, and more specifically relative to the upper strip 22 and lower strip 24 so as to provide a protection and a sealing off of the interior of the frame and the component parts contained in the latter.

The transfer device 14 for the panels 28 comprises a mechanical transfer system 30, holding means 32, and selecting means 34. 4 As shown in detail in Fig. 6, the holding means 32 comprise the end of a core plunger of an electromagnetic jack 36 having an electromagnet 38. The excitation of this electromagnet 38 causes the displacement of the holding means 32, in the present instance the plunger, in the direction indicated by the arrow 40. This jack 36 is directly fixed on a support bar 41 connected to a closed-loop band 42 engaged around two notched pulleys 44 driven in rotation by a shaft 46, the upper and lower mechanical systems 30 being synchronized by a notched belt 48 which cooperates with the pulleys and is connected to said band.

The driving means per se has not been shown, since it is known in the art and may be disposed between the upper and lower pulleys 44.

Also provided on the notched belts are pressing elements 50, for example of the spring blade type.

On the sides, side walls 52 connected to the case ensure the guiding of the closed-loop band 44 on its lateral part hidden by the upper strip 22 and perform the function of a bearing for the shaft 46 while maintaining the panel close against the band.

Further, the bore acting as a bearing in the side wall is a throughway bore and the lateral case has an opening which is in facing relation to the bore in the side wall and is provided with a removable cover.

The reserve supply of panels or magazine 16 is partly shown in detail in Fig. 5. It comprises a cassette 54 in 1 /! ' '' C I 4 L\ o u j which are disposed panels 28 arranged parallel to one another and provided with tabs 56 carrying the reference letters A, B and C in respect of the three illustrated panels, these tabs being at variable distances from the edges, while the panels are in alignment with one another.

Each projecting tab is provided with an aperture 58 in its upper part, i.e. above the respective panel.

This cassette is provided with a memory 60 and a contact member 62 adapted to be connected to a corresponding contact member (not shown) mounted on the frame of the display 1 0 device.

These panels are so oriented that the tabs are in the upper position.

The frame of the display device according to the invention comprises a foot 18 extending rearwardly and 1 5 imparting stability to the whole of the device, as shown in detail in Fig. 3.

Provided inside the foot 18 is a control unit 64 for controlling the selecting means, the holding means and the transfer means, this control unit being fed with data contained in the memory 60 through the connecting contact member 62 of the cassette.

The display device according to the invention operates in the following manner: The user positions a module of the display device according to the invention, as just described, at the place where he desires to display the information shown on the 1 / ** I v*» display panels 28.

A cassette 54 contains different panels 28, 28 A, 28 B, 28 C which are disposed in any order in the cassette, the tabs being located at the top and the surface of the panels carrying the information facing toward the rear of the device.

The memory 60 of the cassette has been programmed with the duration of the passage of the panels and the order of the passage of the latter. When the cassette has been connected to the frame 10, the data contained in the memory 60 is transferred through the contact member 62 to the control unit 64.

The control unit 64 consequently has stored in the memory the passage signals or "pips", the durations of the passages and the coordinates of the panels to be made to pass.

At a given instant t, it is arranged to display the panel A. At this instant, the electromagnet 38 of the jack 36 A, i.e. the jack placed in alignment with the tab A is supplied with current and the plunger acting as a support projects out of the body of the jack 36 and passes through the aperture 58 of the tab 56 A. The control unit 64 then causes the operation of the driving means to cause the rotation of the pulleys 44 which drive the notched belt 48, which drives the support band 42 on which the jacks 56 are mounted. The display panel A is therefore extracted from the reserve supply or cassette 54 and the tab, flexibly ;:44b09 mounted on the panel, is driven along and bent so as to follow the profile of the closed-loop band 42, the tab being supported and maintained in position by the inner surface of the strip 22 so that the tab does not "jump" off the end of the plunger of the holding means 32.

For the purpose of further hindering the disconnection of the tab, the end of the head of the plunger is slightly flattened as shown in Fig. 6 so as to have a locking function.

Indeed, as soon as the band 42 has been put into rotation, the electric supply of the electromagnet 38 of the jack 36 is cut off so that the plunger retracts into the body of the jack.

As the tab is driven along, the semi-rigid panel becomes in turn bent and follows the profile of the band 42 and, as soon as the panel starts to descend through the display window 12, it is held against the transparent outer protecting wall 26 by the spring action of the pressing elements 50.

As soon as the support system and the tab are hidden by the lower strip 24, the control unit stops the drive so that the side of the panel A carrying the information is perfectly positioned in the display window 12.

When the duration of the display of the panel A has elapsed, the control unit once again supplies current to the driving means so as to cause the seizure or the holding of the panel B by a second series of jacks 36, and the panel A - S D U is simultaneously returned to its initial position.

During the rotation in the lower part, the tab is maintained by the strip 24 on the holding means 32, the tab being, after its rotation, maintained by the effect of gravity and the panel exerting a downward pull by the action of its own weight.

When the panel is in alignment with the reserve supply, bearing in mind the inclination of the frame, the lower part of the panel comes to place itself in the reserve supply. It is then sufficient to excite the electromagnet of the jack 36 to cause the tab to be disengaged from the holding means 32. The panel, which is of sufficient rigidity, places itself flat against the panel C remaining in the reserve supply. During this stage, the panel B has been placed in alignment with the display window 12 and remains there during the programmed duration. The control unit therefore causes the display of the different panels at different instants for established durations.

The programming may be arranged to cause the panel C to appear after the panel B. But it is also possible to cause the panel A to directly appear after the panel C. Indeed, the chronological order of passage is indifferent, since the jacks can engage in the confronting tabs. It is therefore sufficient to program the movement of the jack corresponding to the tabs of the panel it is desired to display, the order of the passage or the order in which the panels are put back into the reserve supply having no relationship to each 2 4 A 8 0 9 other.

The user may also change the display panels practically instantaneously. For this, it is sufficient for him to prepare a cassette and to store in the memory 60 the 5 required data and then replace the first cassette by the second, the data transmitted to the control unit through the first cassette being erased and replaced by the data contained in the memory 60 of the second cassette.

The foregoing utilization was described within the 10 framework of a self-contained unit. However, it is also possible to remote control the order of the passage of the panels.

In this case, the cassette does not have a memory and the control unit 6 4 is connected either through a radio 15 connection or through a cable to a control station which may be a program previously entered into a microcomputer.

The control unit is then in direct connection with the pre-established sequence in the microcomputer, which permits modifying in real time the order of the passage of the 20 panels, or simply the duration of the passage.

If the user desires to add further advertising panels, he merely has to introduce the panels in the reserve supply in place and then control by means of the program of the microcomputer the order and the duration of the passage of 25 these new panels relative to the others.

The previous description concerns one display device module, but it is also possible to juxtapose a plurality of — * •» e > ^ ^ i ^ 4 b U >» modules and thereby provide panels of very large width. In this case, the covers disposed on the lateral cases are removed and connecting members are inserted so as to interconnect the shafts 46 of the different modules, which 5 then constitute a single display device consisting of a plurality of modules.

It is sufficient to adapt the order of the passage of the panels, the synchronization being achieved by the mechanical interconnection between the rotating shafts. 10 Many alternative embodiments can be adopted within the scope of the invention.

Thus, the selecting and holding system with a jack, tabs and apertures may be replaced by simple tabs and holding means based on tongs.

Likewise, the holding means, i.e. the plunger, may be itself an electromagnet against which the tab covered with a metallic film would be directly attracted and held by magnetic forces.

As concerns the means for driving and rotating two 20 rollers, it is possible to imagine solid rollers with an internal motor, rollers having bars, sprocket wheels with a chain or any other transfer method within the knowledge of one skilled in the art.

Likewise, the frame may be modified, in particular its 25 inclination, or its general outer appearance.

Such a display device may be mounted on posts for displaying in towns for example or installed on a vehicle ;;44- affording mobile display means in a town.

As concerns the materials making up the frame, the preferred embodiment of the invention teaches the use of composite materials or more generally plastics materials which allow manufacture of elements of high precision by moulding, whereas the various transparent front walls, the panels and the band of the transfer means are provided in suitable materials such as polycarbonate, plasticized sheets for the panels and a transparent plastics film for the closed-loop band.

The panels may advantageously be constructed from plastics sheets the lateral edges of which are stiffened by a transversely slightly bent metal strip, equivalent to a tape measure, so as to provide a sufficient stiffness of the panel when it is in a vertical position while permitting an easy bending as soon as the curved part is reached.

The system may be rendered luminous by means of for example neon tubes disposed behind the panels.

The holdiny or hooking means may consist of a withdrawable lug, an inflatable small balloon, or an expansible chuck, disposed at the end of a movable rod, these various means cooperating with the apertures of the tabs of the panels.

According to the invention, there is provided an alternative embodiment shown in Figs. 7, 8 and 9 which, while it uses the general structure just described, essentially differs therefrom in that the selecting means > a z1 c o r » .> v-» and the holding means are separate.

In Fig. 7, which is an exploded perspective view of the module according to the alternative embodiment of the invention, there is shown a support frame 100 comprising a base 102 and two side walls 104 and 106.

Ribs 108 having a slightly curved profile are provided for receiving the posters which bear thereagainst.

Also provided is a control unit 110 for controlling the whole of the operation of the device, the frame further comprising an upper guide 112, selecting means 114, holding means 116 and transfer means 118.

The frame further comprises a display window protected by a sheet 120 of transparent material.

The selecting means are shown in detail in Fig. 8.

They comprise a square-section shaft 120 mounted by journals 124 on the frame to pivot about the axis 122.

The selecting means 114 also include a platen 126 mounted to be movable in translation in one direction or the other, as shown by the arrows 128, by a rack-and-pinion device 130 driven by a step-by-step motor 132 connected in the known manner to the control unit 110.

This platen 126 includes selecting finger members 134.

Further, another motor-speed reducer 136 is capable of alternately driving the shaft 120 in rotation through a crank-connecting rod device 138 whereby to put the finger members 134 in a withdrawn position when moving in translation ana in a projecting position when carrying out <44 809 the selecting operation.

Lateral cams 140 fixed in translation enyage and rotate complementary selecting finger members 142 which are fixed in translation and merely afford safety in the selection of 5 the poster owing to the provision of lateral index members carried by the posters in addition to the selecting index members.

The transfer means comprise holdiny means 116 connected to a belt 144 of the transfer means 118, these holdiny means 10 comprising inverted U-shaped members 148 which have a lower open end and are provided with lockiny pawls 150 which come to enyaye in lateral openings 152 in the poster 146.

Thus, by the effect of gravity, the poster comes to lock the finger member 150, while a stud 156, which is fixed 15 relative to the frame, permits withdrawing the locking pawl 150 after the assembly has effected one rotation under the action of the transfer means.

These transfer means 118 are substantially identical to those of the main embodiment.

Indeed, these transfer means 118 comprise two side walls 160, two rollers, namely an upper roller 162 and a lower roller 164 driven in rotation by a set of year wheels 166 and a motor-speed reducer 168, the belts 144 beiny held taut between the upper roller 162 and the lower roller 164. 25 The operation of this display device is identical to that of the first embodiment except that the selecting means are not connected to the transfer means but to the frame.

Claims (14)

0 - 19 - WHAT XWE CLAIM IS:

1. A device for displaying information, in particular advertising, comprising a support frame having a display window, characterized in that said device further comprises 5 a magazine containing at least two information support panels, means for selecting and holding one of said panels, and means for transferring the selected panel to a position in which it is aligned with the display window.

2. A device according to claim 1, wherein the selecting 10 means comprise index members carried by the panels in facing relation to holding means connected to the transfer means.

3. A device according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the transfer means comprise at least two rollers, namely an upper roller and a lower roller, at least one of which 15 rollers is a driving roller, and a closed-loop support band which is rolled round said rollers and on which are carried the holding means for the panels.

4. A device according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the holding means comprise jacks having 20 electromagnets arranged along a common line parallel to the axis of rotation of the rollers; plungers of said sC> electromagnets constitute the holding means proper for/the ^ ;> oi panel; the selecting means comprises at least two tabd; r \ ? 7 t'LB 1S35 projecting from the upper edge of each panel; and each\, 25 provided with an aperture adapted to cooperate with u plunger of the confronting electromagnet.

5. A device according to any one of the precediny claims, . o 00 1 0 - 20 - wherein the frame is substantially a parallelepiped the width and height of which substantially correspond to the panel to be displayed, whereas the frame is of small depth substantially corresponding to the diameters of the rollers plus the thickness of the magazine which is disposed on the rear side opposed to the side comprising the display window.

6. A device accorainy to claim 5, wherein the frame comprises a control unit for the selecting, the holding and the transfer means.

7. A device according' to claim 5 or 6, wherein the magazine is a removable cassette including a memory programmed in respect of the order and the duration of the passaye of the panels contained in the cassette, and connections for puttiny the contents of the programmed •] 5 memory of the cassette in communication with the frame.

8. A device according to claim 3 or any one of claims 4 to 7 when dependent on claim 3 comprising modules provided with connection and synchronization means along the longitudinal axis of the rollers, thereby providing a display of greater width. 20

9. A device according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the frame is rearv/ardly inclined so as to permit the disengagement and the automatic stacking of the p£ merely under the effect of gravity. / . 25

10. A device according to claim 3 when depended v , i L> -J claim 2 or any one of claims 4 to 9 when dependent oil v- ^fi «l claims 2 and 3, wherein each panel comprises a sheet carrying the index members and deformable in such manner as to match the 2 Lri 8 0$ 21 radius of curvature of the rollers on which sheet the information proper is carried.

11. A device accordiny to claim 1, further comprising selectiny means connected to the support frame and holding means connected to the transfer means, each panel comprising index members for cooperation with the selecting means, and lateral holding tabs for cooperation with the holding means.

12. A device according to claim 11, wherein the selecting means comprise finger members movable in translation in a direction parallel to the longitudinal axis of the rollers and movable between two positions, in one of which positions they are withdrawn and in the other position they project for cooperation with the index members of the selected information panel.

13. A device according to claim 12, wherein the selecting means comprise a platen supporting the selecting finger members which is mounted on a shaft having a flat-sided cross-sectional shape, driven in rotation alternately by a driving device comprising a motor and a crank-connecting rod system, the platen being connected to a unit comprising a rack and a driving pinion engaging said rack for displacing said platen in translation on said shaft.

14. a device for displaying information, — substantially as herein described with reference to' the Drawings. ELECTRONIC SEQUENCES PLUS By Their Attorneys BALDWIN SON & CAREY