US1594042A - Safety-island-light fixture - Google Patents

Description

Julyy 27 1926. 1,594,042

F. BRUEGGEMAN SAFETY ISLAND LIGHT FIXTURE Filed May 4. 1922 By www@ Patented July 27, 1926.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

FRANK BBUEGGEMAN, 0F CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, .ASSIGNOR 0F ONE-HALF TO WILLIAM IRA. BELL, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS.

SAFETY-ISLAND-LIGHT rrxfrunn.

Application vfiled Hay 4,

In and about highways, usually at the intersection of two or more highways, or where there is a rather abrupt turn 1n the road, it is customary to place what is termed a safety island. As its name implies, a safety island is supposed to furnish, map out, or del-lne a zone to be avoided and often times a zone from which an oflicer or other traffic official can safely direct the traffic. Even though a traiic oiiicer is not provided these safety islands or zones are necessary at busy intersections, or yat abrupt turns, in order that vehicles may be compelled to take the course around .such zone and no1 make a short cut diagonally across the stree\ or road.

In order that such safety islands may function best it is necessary that they be o f such character as easily to be viewed both in the day time and at night. It has heretofore been the usual practice to place a post or pillar in the, center of the' safety island or zone, at the upper end of which is positioned a light enclosed within a red or ruby globe so that at night a red light or globe' is visible. While a red globe has certain advantages in that when the light is on it may be clearly and distinctly seen, it is open to objection in that the base of the pillar, and any surrounding area constituting the safety -zone or island is dark, and hence invisibleso much so that when vehicles in passing the safety zone cannot determine its bounds l accurately and hence very frequently run into the safety zone and collide with the base portion of the pillar or stand supporting the light before .mentioned.. This ineffective lighting of the ground area of the zone also puts the life of thetraic oflicer in jeopardy. Again in the day time, particularly at dusk, before the lights are turned on, as well as upon dark days, it is difficult to see the red globe as its color thenis a dark hue corresponding very much to the then atmospheric color.

The general object of m invention is to provide a safety island lig t fixture which shall be better ada ted for the'pur `ose inT tended than those eretofore devise A further. object of my invention is to provide a safety island light fixture which shall show at its upper end or part a red light that shall clearly bel visible, and which shall provide a white, i. e.,noncolored light ma serial No. 558,444.

illumination for the base or defined area of.

to provide an electrical safety island lighting fixture which shall be of simple, cheap,

and durable construction and which shall be so constructed that with a single lamp it shall be possible to rovide an upper red light and a lower w ite, i. e. non-colored light for the illumination of an area surrounding the safety island.

Another object of my invention is to provide a safety island light fixture adapted to show both a colored light and a clear light and which can be assembled within a glass or globe of standard construction, such' as can be procured in the open market.

Other objects of my invention are to rovide a safety island light fixture which s all be composed of relatively few parts of simple design such as lend themselves to quick, and cheap manufacture, and which shall be efficient and durable in use.

My invention consists generally in the form, arrangement, constructionl and co-operation of the parts whereby the above named objects, together with others that\will appear hereinafter are attainable; andmy invention will be more readily understood by reference to the accompanying drawings which illustrate what I consider at the present time to be the preferred embodiment thereof. In said drawings:

Fig. 1 is a View in elevation, part thereof being broken away, of a safety island light construction embodying my invention.

Fig. 2 is a sectional view substantially on the line2-2 of Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 illustrates the Vrespective parts of the refiector separated and before they are assembled within the globe; and Fig. 4 is a sectional view, on a larger scale, of the upper part of the safety island light construction shown inFig. 1.

1, represents a street or roadway in or upon which is mounted a safety island which, as

here shown, is composed of an enlarged vbase y portion 2 upstanding from which is a. post central opening or duct A4 for the accommodation of the electric wires 5. The construction of the base 2, pillar or post 3 and the proportions thereof may vary widely Without affecting the invention and the construction shown and described shoud therefore be considered as by way of illustration and not by way of limitation.

At the upper end of the pillar 3 there is mounted a p'othead 6 which is positioned over the opening 4. There is also provided at the upper end of the pillar a vcollar 8 which surrounds the member 6 and which is provided with an annular recess 9 and lugs 7. In this recess there is accommodated the lower or base portion 10 of the globe 11. The globe 11 may be made of different materials, but I preferably chose a glass globe which is translucent and white in character and which therefore in the day time is white or milky in appearance and hence easily visible even at dusk or upon dark days. The globe 11 is held in the collar 8 by means of set screws 12. This globe 11 is or may be a standard globe, that is to say, one which can be procured in the open market and hence which shall have its price xed by the competitive conditions prevailing in the large production of articles of this kind. The globe obviously may vary in size but I have found a globe which is sixteen inches in diameter and which has an opening, defined by the annular portion 10, of about seven inches to be quite satisfactory. l

Instead of merely positioning a lamp within the globe 11 I have 'provided a novel and unique arrangement whereby it is possible to dlsplay a red Ilight which shall be visible yat a great distance and to direct a noncolored light light downwardly to the base surrounding portion ofy the safety island. To this end I position substantially centrall of the globe 11 an auxiliary globe 13 whic y in turn is supported by means of a plurality of wires 14 that extend upwardly from the member 6. As will be observed, the wires 14 adjacent the upper end thereof are bent outwardly as indicated at 15, thus providing a suitable rest or support for the globe 13. Partly positioned within the `globe 13 and partly without is an incandescent lamp 16 which is or may be of standard construction and which receives current from the wires 5, before referred to. While the lamp 16 may be any of a number of standard designs, it is preferably one of the concentrated filament type. It is obvious that when the lamp 16 is lighted both red and white or uncolored light will be visible within the globe 11. In order to prevent intermingling of the light rays and in order properly to receive and distribute the rays from the respective parts of the lamp I have provided a reflector 21 which, as a whole, is substantially conical in Jform and which has an upper reflecting surface 22 and a lower reflecting surface 23.

It will be understood that in the construction herein shown, all of the parts must be so made as to permit of free'passage through the opening in the lower part of the globe 11, and I have therefore made the reflector in a special manner, i. e. in two parts. In Fig. 3, the parts are separated to indicate the form that they are before they are placed within the globe. To assemble these parts within the globe, first one-half of the reflector is inserted and then the other half, at which time the assembler,'by placin one hand through the globe opening, can ,ring the end portions 24 and 25 together, these end portions being adapted to interlock and being provided with an openinV 26 adapted to receive a locking pin 27. hen the end portions 24 and 25 are secured together the assembler can then bring the opposite end portions together in the same way and insert the locking pin 28 at 4which time the parts vwill be firmly secured into the conical or annular form desired. The assembler may then permitthe conical or annular reflector to rest on the globe, the lower edges thereof contacting the globe. Thereafter the globe 11 may be placed over the auxiliary inner globe 13 until the upper inner portion of the conical reflector engages the lower rib or extension 13 of the globe 13 whereupon further slight downward movement of the globe 11i' separates the reflector from its supporting position on the globe. It is thus obvious that when the parts are in their final assembled condition the conical or annular reflector 21 is supported entirely through the medium of the wires 14 and the globe 13 supported thereon, and that in use the globe 11 is not called upon to carry or support the reflector.v

It should also be obvious that when the lamp 16 is lighted it will give a rub or red glow to so much of the globe 11 as 1s above the reflector 21, both b virtue of the direct rays and by virtue o any rays that may pass downwardly and are therefore reflected from the upper surface 22 of the refiector; and are thereupon directed outwardly to serve by way of adding to the illumination of the direct rays'. On the other hand, the

light from the exposed part of the lamp 16 and the li ht rays therefrom do not interfere with t e colored illumination above referred to, but as indicated by the direction lines and arrows. Such light rays are projected downwardly and hence serve to illuminate the base portion of the standard or fixture and in fact the whole of the area constituting the safety island. Thus, I have provided in a sim le and inexpensive device, a construction w ich is ideally adapted to serve the purpose intended.- Forconvenience, the space within 'the globe and above lll() llO the reflector will be referred to as the upper light compartment and that below as the lower light compartment.

Globe, as herein used means a light penetrable casing Whether of a globular shape or not.

Clear or non-colored light as herein used is meant in contradistinction to a color such as red or ruby for example, and is not inenxlied to mean an absolutely White or clear From the foregoing it is clear that the` objects and purposes sought are accomplished by the structure herein disclosed, but inasmuch as this disclosure will suggest to others skilled in the art to which this appertains, various modified constructions whereby the substantial objects and purposes of my invention may be attained, I do notI Wish to be limited to the specific construction and arrangement of the parts herein shown and described except only as may be necessary by limitations in the hereunto appended claims.

I claim: A

l. A safety island lighting fixture embodying therein an outer globe having but a single opening therein, a source of light therein, an auxiliary globe withinthe outer globe positioned partly to enclose said source of light, and means dividing the outer globe into isolated compartments, said source of light being so positioned With respect to said last mentioned means that said source of light illuminates both compartments.

2. A safety island lighting fixture embodying therein an outer globe having but a single opening therein, a source of light therein, an auxiliary colored globe within the outer globe positioned partly to enclose said source of light, and means dividing the outer globe into isolated compartments, said source being so positioned with respect to said last mentioned means that said source of light illuminates both compartments, the

illumination of one compartment being colored.

3. A safety island lighting fixture embodying therein an outer globe, a source of light therein, an auxiliary globe Within the outer globe positioned partly to enclose said source of light, means extending from the auxiliary globe downwardly and outwardly substantially to the inner surface of the outer globe serving to divide the outer globe into isolated compartments, said source of light being so positioned with respect to said last mentioned means as to illuminate both compartments and means for supporting the auxiliary globe and the outer globe dividing means. l

4. A safety island lighting fixture embodying therein an outer globe, a source of light therein, an auxiliary globe Within the outer globe positioned partly to enclose said source of light, means extending from the auxiliary globe substantially to the inner surface of the outer globe serving to divide the outer globe into isolated compartments, said source of light being so positioned with respect to said last mentioned means as to illuminate both compartments, and means for supporting the auxiliary globe and the outer globe dividing means, said means including a plurality of standards surrounding said source of light.

5. A safety island lighting fixture embodying therein an outer globe having a single opening in its bottom, a source of light positioned Within the outer globe, an

auxiliary globe within the outer globe positioned partly to enclose the source of light, and means dividing the outer globe into isolated light compartments, said source of light being so positioned with respect to said last mentioned means as to illuminate both com artments, said auxiliary globe and outer glo e dividing means being formed to permit passage through the opening in the outer globe.

In testimony whereof, I have hereunto set my hand, this 28th day of April, 19%2.

FRANK BRUEGGEMAN.

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