US 4,827,644 A · Tambour-type sign

Abstract

A tambour-type sign has carrier bars hinged together to form a closed loop. The bars provide for inserting strips which display information. Pin and socket elements are formed on opposite edges of each carrier bar for the pin of one to engage in the socket of the next one to form a hinge. The loop is translated on a ring gear having internal teeth and a periphery in which there are equiangularly spaced apart grooves into which the sockets on the hinges register as a chain would on a sprocket. The ring gear is journaled for rotation on a bearing member exemplified by a square having four walls, the corners of which are segments of a circle whose diameter is equal to the diameter between the tips of the ring gear teeth. This drive structure is mounted on the laterally spaced apart support members so as to support the loop at both ends of the carrier bars. There are spaced apart pinions fixed on the cross shaft which engage with the respective ring gears. The shaft is motor driven. One end of the loop runs over similarly constructed ring gear and bearing assembly which are idlers.

Claims6

Dependent claims

A sign comprising:

laterally spaced apart side support members,
a rotatably driven shaft extending laterally between said support members and pinions on said shaft proximate to each support member, respectively,
bearing means fixedly mounted adjacent said side support members, respectively, said bearing means each having a fixed bearing surface in the form of a segment of a circle generated from a central axis that is parallel to and displaced from the axis of said shaft,
ring gears having on their inside peripheries teeth whose tips lie on circles that are concentric to said bearing surfaces, said gear teeth being journaled for slidable rotation on said bearing surfaces and said pinions respectively being meshed with said teeth of the ring gears for driving said ring gears in synchronism,
a plurality of carrier bar members for carrying sign strips, said carrier bar members being hingedly connected to each other to form a closed loop, and
means on said carrier bar members for engaging said loop with the outer peripheries of said ring gears for translating said carrier bar members in response to rotation of said ring gears by said pinions.

3 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Tambour-type sign

Life of this patent

Tambour-type sign

Life of this patent

Abstract

Claims6