Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
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This invention relates to a device for
successively displaying illuminated pictures.
More specifically this invention relates to an
improvement in the moveable band o-F a Flexible
material constituting the system of an
illuminated display mechanism that is fully
; automated, and in which the jackets which receive
the display material are prevented from forming
air gaps with the conveyor band. Illuminated
display mechanisms are typically employed a5 an
advertising medium. The configurations and
applications oF such mechanisms may vary
considerably. However, it should be remembered
that the purpose of the mechanism is to
pictorially convey information in some
predetermined recurring pattern. It i5 known that
pictorial displays are carried by a moveable band
of transparent or translucent material. The prior
art teaches a number of solutions to carry the
pictorial displays wich all have several
draw~acks. For;e~ample, It i5 known tD place the
displays~directly on a band by means of dyes and
~ ~ ; paints. Thi~s represents a time consuming and
`~ ~ e~pensive effort. In addition~ the display
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material is permanent and the user must change
the entire band to replace part or all of the
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~ dlsplay material. Laminating the display material
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between two transpare~t moveable bands is also
known. The display material becomes unitary with
the band of moveable material and i5 or may
require to be spliced. User must change the
entire band to replace part or all of the display
material. Canadian patent 1,126,020 granted to
Rota-vu Canada Inc. d i 5C loses a band o-f flexible
translucent material in the form
of contiguous pockets adapted to receive and
carry pictorial displays. The pictorial displays
can be replaced independently without havin~3 to
remove the Flexible moving band. With the use oF
contigu~us pockets, the plurality oF thicknesses
of material used makes it necessary to slacken
the outermost layer of flexible translucent
material with respect to the innermost layer~ in
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I order to obtain smooth and even storage of the
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band of flexible material on the main rollers of
the illuminated display mechanism. This
Z0 slackeniny of the outermost layer of translucent
material with respect to the the innermost layer
results in a lack of support for the display
material, which will make ~t warp and crease when
it is displayed. It is therefore an object of
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the preS~nt Invention to provide an improved
carrier system for an illuminated display
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mechanism having a reliable and simple means for
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securing and carrying pictorial display material
an the band. ~nother object of the invention is
; to provide a carrier system that can carry
display material of varying thicknesses ano
rigidity. Qnother object of the present
invention is to prevent the carrier system from
being damaged, cut, ripped~ etc.. by rigid
display material. ~nother object of the inventiDn
is to provide a carrier system that can keep the
display material of varying thicknesses and
rigidity straight while the material i5 on
di5play. Still another object o-f the invention
is to enable the carrier and display rnaterial to
be rolled and unrolled smoothly. Still another
object of the present invention is to provide for
an easy insertion and removal of the display
material from the carrier. Still another ob~ject
of the present invention is to provide a means to
1 prevent the display material from creeping along
; 20 the conveyor band as a result of static
~ electricity or inertia of the display material.
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Still another object of the present invention is
to provide a polyester or polycarbonate based
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;I 25 prevent and~or reduce abraslon of the transparent
film of the carrier system. These and other
objects according to the invention and problems
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associated with the prior art may be overcome by
providing a flexible conveyor band which is
resiliently joined to a plurality of
independently moveable jackets adapted tD receive
and carry pictorial displays. ~ccording to the
inventionl there is provided a device for
success/vely displaying a plurality of
illuminated pictures in a predetermined re~urring
pattern, including a conveyor band made of
flexible material, having a plurality of jackets
associated therewith, the jackets tD contain
pictorial displays to be revealed, the conveyor
band travelling around at least one roll. ~he
jackets are individually formed and spaced from
; 15 one another and each comprises an individual
rectangular sheet of flexible materiàl shaped to
overlie the conveyor band. Resilient means
connect the sheet to the conveyor band so as to
cause the sheet to be carried by the conveyor
band while being displaceahle relative thereto
when the conveyor band together with the sheet
travels around the roll. Resilient means also
apply a force to said jackets in an axis
~; longitudinal to the displacement of the conveyor
: ~ es band to prevent~ flexure of display ma;terial in
said ~acket and formation of air gaps between
display~ materla~l and ~said~conveyor band~ when
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operating said device.
A mDre complete understanding o-f this invention
may be ~btained fr~m the detailed descripti~n
that follows, taken with the accompanying
S drawings in which :
FIGURE 1 is a layout oF the flexible carrier band
according to Canadian patent 1,12~,020;
FIGURE 1~ is a cT-oss-section taken along line A-A
oF FIGURE l;
FIGURE 1~ is a sketch showing the rolling up of
the b~nd oF contiguous pocket~
: according to Canadian Patent
1,126,0Z0;
FlGURE 2 is a sketch of an existing carrier band
design showing the flaws associated
` therewith;
FIGURE 3 is a layout of an improved carrier
system according to the invention;
I FIGURE 3~ is a section taken along line A-~ of
FIGURE 3;
~:: FIGURE 4 is a layout of an individual jacket
~before assembly;
25 ~ FIGURE 5 is a layou:t of an assemDled jacket;
FIGURE 5~ is a crDss-section taken along line h-~
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FIGURE ~ is a cross section view in elevatiDn
showing drawing o-f the means o-F joining
the individual jackets to the conveyor
band.
~s shown in FIGURE 1, the band of flexible
translucent material comprising a plurality of
; contigucus pockets adapted to receive and carry
pictorial displays according to Canadian Patent
1,126.020, is made up of an inner sidewall t and
an overlying outer sidewall 2. The sidewalls are
Joined together by means oF a seam 3 along one
edge thereof to form a closed bottom and are
further joined together at predetermined : :
~` in~tervals along lines 4 which are orthogonal to
the olosed ~ottom 3. It must be understood that
the aforementioned band of material ls~described
in an unrolled or flat condition. Rolling up the:
: : band of fle~ible material creates a number of
prohlems, which will be described brlefly ln
; 20 ~ order :to~better understan~ the improvement
accord~ing to the present Invention.
Referring~t~o FIGURE l~, it will be seen that the
;band h~as:three thicknesses : namel~y the inner
: sidewa:ll I~has th~ickness tl,:the overlying outer
25::~r~illewall~2;:has thickness t3:and the display ~ :
material~S has~th~ckness t2~. The display~m.~ r
is:inserted between the inner sidewall 1 and
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the outer sidewall 2. It is clear that the
materials previously described will not be rnlled
onto the same radius.
If we suppose R : radius of roll
tl : thickness of inner wall
tZ : thi~kness of the display material;
~ aftef having rolled the materials one turn, the
: foll~wing will be obtained :
- a perimeter of Z X Pi X R for the inner wall
- a perimeter of 2 X Pi X ~ R ~ tl ) For tl-e
display material
- a perimeter oF 2 X Pi X ~ R ~ tl ~ tZ)
for the auter wall
where Pi = 3.1415
., :
;l 15 For each revolution of the band onto the roll~
the outer wall must be Z X Pi X ~tl-~tZ) longer
than the inner wall.
Therefore, if the outer wall Z is joined to the
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: inner wall 1 at predetermined regular intervals
the outer wall will have to be ~ 2 X Pi X ~tl~tZ)
X No of turns ) longer if the band is tn be
rolled and unrolled smoothly. As illustrated in
FIGURE 2~when:t~he pictorial infarmatian 5 i 5
belng displ:ayed, the outer wall 2 will not b~e
25~ straigh~t and unlfarm be~ause of the ex-tra length
oF ~:2~X Pi;X ~tl~+t2~) X No af turns ) required to
be:~ble ta~rDll i:t up smoothly.
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The extra length of the outer wall will create
bubbles, waves and will of-Fer no structural
support to the display material. The appearance
of the display material will be of doubt-Ful
quality~ To be able to use the prior art carrier
system, the inner wall and display material
thicknesses must be made up of very thin material
~tl ~ t2 become negligible ). The use of very
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thin material make the carrier band very -fragile
and prevents the use oF high quality and rigid
display material lil<e "DURQTR~NS" ( TM from
KODQK ), "CI~C~IROME" ~ TM From ILFORD ) or
others .
The present inventian proposes to solve the
problems associated with the device of the prior
art by means of a carrier system comprised of
independently moveable jackets 6 adapted to
receive and carry pictorial displays.
; Qs illustrated in FIGURE 3, it will be seen that
the device according to the invention generally
comprises a continuous conveyor band 7. a ~ :
plurality of independently moveable jackets 6,
strips of elastic materials 8, rectangular pieces
o-F non elastic~materi21~q to join the jacke-ts
to.the~inner wall~of the conveyor bar,d 7 an~
opaque masks lO which are placed at regular
intervals over the outer wall of the conveyor
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band 7 as shown at the top of FIGURE 3. In this
context, it will be realised that the opaque
masks 10 have not been showr, a-t the ;unction
between two jackets in order to better illustrate
S the device.
~s shown in FIGURE 4, an individual jacket 6 is
made from one piece of transparent or translu~ent
material which is die cut into an I form. ~oth
horizontal edges 11,12 o~ the I shaped Form are
folded 180 degrees alDng dotted lines 13.
The len~th o-F a given jacket 6 depends only ~n
the vertical size oF the display material. I-ur
display material having a given vertical size the
3acket will have an optimum fald width. For
display material having a longer vertical size,
the width of the fold would be longer.
The four flaps 14 are then also folded 180
degrees, along dotted lines 15. The folds are
nece55ary to prevent lateral movement of the
Z0 display material relative to the jackets 6.
s shown in FIGIJRE 5~, the four folded flaps 14
are~then bonded a~t 19 to~the body of the jackeb~
; ; w~ith an adhesive. The folded flaps 1~ uith the
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dhesive applie~ in specified manner, take a ring
~for~m la.; The hole in the :rlng is necessary to
nsert an ;elasti~c~band 8 fur;ther in the assembly
process, a~s will be described later.
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As shown in FIGURE 3, the jackets 6 are joined to
the inner wall of the conveyor band 7 by a
~: combination of s-trips of elastic material ~ and
non elastic material 9.
It must be understood that the term non
ela~tic m~an~ a material whose constant of
elasticity is high enough to prevQnt the material
from stretching~ ~5 shown in FIGURE 6, one of
two materials that joins the jackets 6 to the
inner wall of the conveyor band 7 is constituted
by strips of elastic material ~. The strips o-F
elastic material a are stretched orthogonal to
the top and bottom edges 16, 17 of the jackets 6
and further inserted through the ring 18 for~ed
as shown in FIGURE 5~ Qs shown in FIGURE 6, Dne
extremity of the strip of elastic material a i5
bonded at 20 to the outer wall of the jacket 6
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: and the middle of the elastic strip is fastened
at 21 to the inner wall of the Conveynr band 7.
The other half of the elastic is then fixed at 22
: to an other jacket 6, and the assembling process .
: of the entire device i5 continued ~t the first
and last Jackets;6 the~str~ps of elastic
materials are only half len~th and have both one
extremity fastened to the jacket and the other
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adhesively secured to:the conveyor band as
described~previously. Of course the strips of
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elastic material with their three bonds Z0,21,22
could oe replaced by two shorter strips of
elastic material with an additional bond to the
inner wall of the conveyor band 7 as will be
readily apparent to one skilled in the art. The
length of the elastic is determined to obtain a
fairly even ~orce between maximum and minimum
extensions. ~fter having bonded the middle oF
each strip 8 a prestretch of for example about
10% of the overall length of the strip of elastic
material 3 is given to the ~trip before bonding
both extremities. This insures smooth rolling
and unrolling of the carrier system. ~s shown in
dotted llnes in FIGURE 6, without the aoove
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mentioned prestretch, the leading edge of the
jacket 6 would curl at Z3 under the weight of the
display material 24 preventing it from passing
~ver the tensionning rolls 25 around which the
conveyor band 7 travels. The prestretch also
insures that the strips 8 will always exert a
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tension b`etween the jacket 6 and the conveyor
band 7;therefore~ensuring that the display
material 24 is straight whlle~being d~splayed.
:: : The stri~s of elastic~material are fastened as
~outllned above ~ i~n~order not; to obstruct the
illumination of the dlsplay area. This also
permits longer ela~stic bands to be used in order
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to minimise differences in tension between
ma~imum and minimum extensions without
lengthening the gap between the sheets of display
material 24. Evaluation has shown that strips 8
made of a polyester rubber type material work
best, hawever other types of elastic material can
be used. Q width of about .25" has given the
best results althaugh it is not intended tD be
limited by specific width.
It must be understood by those skilled in the art
that the çame result could be obtained by simply
fastening the strips of elastic rnaterial along
the horizontal edges of the jackets ~ to the
conveyor band 7. However because of the constant
~5 of elasticity of strips oF elastic material
generally faund on the market, the gap between
display materials would be greatly increased
crr-ating an awkward effect.
It will be seen that the aforementionecl prnblems
of the prior art resulting from the presence of
contiguous pockets wound on a roll may be solved
by proviciing strips of elastic material ~ between
;ackets 6 contalning the display material Z4 and
the conveyor band 7. ~ccording to the invention
Z5 the relative motions of the multiple layers which
-- are being~wound on a roll are still inherent but
the Qla5tiC mater~al will compensate for the
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differences in radius as mentioned previous1y~
This allows for a smooth storage and retrieval on
and from a roll. It also yields a display
material 24 that is flat while on display.
Strips of non elastic material 9 in FIGURE 3 join
the j~cket to the inner wall of the conveyor band
7 at properly spaced in-l;ervals between lateral
Fdges thereof. The strips of non elastic
material need a minimum width to insure that no
lateral movement of the jackets 6 relative to the
conveyor band iB possible. Experience has shown
that a width oF abo~t one inch gives be~t r~,ult~
although it is not intended to be limited by
specific width.
~150 the non elastic material i5 necessary -to
; prevent the jackets 6 in which are inserted the
display material 24 from creeping in reference to
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the conveyor band. Creep is generated by the
ccnstant relative mnvement of the display
i Z0 material 24 in reference to the conveyor band 7.
The relative movement creates friction between
the two plastic ~ilms. This produces static
electricity which results in a surface tension
between the d~fferent layers and eventually creep
of one wlth respect td tho~other. Finally at
regular intervals~opaque bands 10 are fixed on
the outer wall of the conveyor band 7 to hide
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From view the strip of elastic material inner
wall conveyor band bDnd 21 and the nDn elastic
material 9. ~ecause of the continual mDvement of
the carrier system as previously discussed, the
relative movement of the jackets b and display
material 24 in reference to the conveyor band 7
creates friction. On the long term that c1-eates
abrasion of the transparent film and scratching.
This problem maj be solved by using a polyester
or polycarbonate film which is treated on both
sides to reduce scratching.
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