US3402494A - Internally illuminated sign - Google Patents

Description

v Sept. 24, 1968 R. 1.. GRAY 3,402,494

INTERNALLY ILLUMINATED SIGN Filed Oct. 22, 1965 5 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTOR RAYMOND L. GRAY ATTORNEYS Sept. 24, 1968 R. L. GRAY INTERNALLY ILLUMINATED S IGN 5 SheetsSheet 2 \NVENTOR RAYMOND L. GRAY Filed 001.

ATTORNEYS p 24, 1968 R. L. GRAY 3,402,494

INTERNALLY ILLUMINATED 5 IGN Filed Oct. 22, 1965 5 Sheets-Sheet 3 INVENTOR ATTORNEYS RAYMOND L GRAY I Sept. 24, v GRAY INTERNALLY ILLUMINATED SIGN 5 Sheets-Sheet 4 FIG. I3

Filed Oct. 22, 1965 FIG. II

FIG. IO

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, FIG. I?

INVE NTOR RAYMOND L. GRAY ATTORNEYS P 1968 R. L. GRAY INTERNALLY ILLUMI NATED SIGN 5 Sheets-Sheet 5 Filed Oct. 22, 1965 FIG. I8

' FIG. 20

FIG. 22

INVENTOR. RAYMOND L. GRAY FIG. 2|

ATTORNEYS United States Patent 3,402,494 INTERNALLY ILLUMINATED SIGN Raymond L. Gray, Lithonia, Ga., assignor to Lithonia Lighting, Inc., Conyers, Ga., a corporation of Georgia Filed Oct. 22, 1965, Ser. No. 508,416 16 Claims. (Cl. 40-130) ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE An internally illuminated sign having a direction indicator. Two oppositely directed arrowheads and a removable cover for one of the arrowheads constitute the direction indicator. The cover may have the shape of the feather portion of an arrow. The sign case is made from two identical halves and has break-away portions for mounting from either of the sides, the top, the bottom, or the rear face. Light from several lamps spaced along the lower inside edge of the sign case is directed through a lens onto a vertical translucent face mounted within the sign case.

This invention relates to a lighted sign, and more particularly relates to a sign of the type to be mounted in a public building to designate an exit from the building, the location of a lounge, stairs, fire escape, etc., where vivid illumination markings are desired.

In placing signs around a public building to mark exits,

etc., it is difficult to utilize one standard sign for every occasion. For instance, if the :sign is to be utilized to mark an exit at the end of a hallway where the exit door is perpendicular to the hallway, it would be most desirable to mount the exit sign above the door against the wall, and parallel to the wall, so that the face of the sign can be seen for the full length of the hall. In the instance where the exit is located at the mid point of a long hall it would be desirable to place the sign above the exit door and have its face disposed perpendicular to the wall to which it is attached, and perpendicular to the length of the hall. This arrangement would make the sign visable from its face to the end of the hall. Of course, if it is desired to have the sign mounted above an exit near the center of the hall so that it can be seen from both ends of the hall, the sign should have two oppositely facing faces. Occasionally, there are instances where hallways intersect, as in the case of a T-intersection, and it is desired to let the people in the hallways know that the exit is through the stem of the T. In this instance, it might be desirable to mount the exit sign to the ceiling by its upper portion.

With each of the arrangements recited above, it can be seen that the various different manners in which exit signs, and other type signs, are mounted in a public place might normally require a different sign for each arrangement.

Since signs of the type utilized in marking public places quite often require the designation of a particular direction of the thing it is marking, as with an arrow pointing toward an exit, the normal previous arrangement of signs of this type have called for left-handed and righthanded signs, or faces thereof, to adapt the sign to the particular location. Also, there are some instances that require no particular direction indicated so that no arrow is required on the face of the sign.

Thus, it can be seen that the placement of several simple signs such as exit signs in several locations in a public building might require several different type mounting means or frame constructions of the sign, and several different face arrangements on the sign to indicate the proper direction of the item being marked.

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Also, included in the previously discussed problems is the problem of properly illuminating the sign so that it is clearly visable over its entire face from a great distance.

Accordingly, this invention comprises a lighted sign including the following features: a casing having two halves, each half being fabricated from a single mold, the halves of the sign casing having break away tab portions that are easily removed so that the mounting means can be attached to the sign casing through the broken away portions thereof, arrows pointing in opposite directions on the face of the sign, arrow covers placeable over either or both of the arrows, and an illuminating means along an inside edge of the sign casing to uniformly illuminate the sign througout its face.

Thus, it is an object of this invention to provide an illuminated sign having a casing formed of two parts, each part being fabricable from a single mold.

It is another object of this invention to provide an illuminated sign having a face with the letters of the sign cut therethrough, a brilliant material positioned behind the face of the sign so that a portion thereof shows through the cutout portion of the face of the sign, and an illuminating means remote from the cutout portion of the face of the sign to uniformly illuminate the cut out portions of the face of the sign.

Another object of this invention is to provide a sign having letters cut in the face thereof, means for indicating a direction on the face of the sign, means for illuminating the sign, and means for changing the direction indicated by the sign.

Another object of this invention is to provide a lighted sign of the type having arrows thereon to indicate direction and means to cover the arrows.

Another object of this invention is to provide a lighted sign that can be mounted from either of its ends, from its top portion, or from its rear portion.

Another object of this invention is to provide a lighted sign of the type utilized in a darkened public building to indicate the directions to an exit, wherein the sign is vividly and uniformly illuminated with a single source of illumination which also illuminates an area immediately beneath the sign.

Another object of this invention is to provide a sign having a plurality of arrow heads out in the face portion, with arrow covers insertable into the arrow heads, with said arrow covers having a locking means for locking them into place in the arrow heads.

Another object of this invention is to provide a lighted sign which is lighted from within, the source of illumination being a plurality of bulbs disposed along an inner edge of the sign, and a single lens dispersing the light from each of the bulbs uniformly over the inner face of the sign.

Another object of this invention is to provide a lighted sign that is economical to manufacture, simple to install, adapted to a plurality of uses, and well designed to meet the demands of economic manufacture.

Other objects, features and advantages of the present invention will become apparent upon reading the following specification, taken in conjunction with the drawing, in which:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the lighted sign;

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of an exploded version of the sign in its open condition;

FIG. 3 is a plan view of the lighting fixture of the sign with the lens removed;

FIG. 4a is a bottom view of the lighting fixture of the sign showing a plurality of lens;

FIG. 4b is a bottom view of the lighting fixture, similar to FIG. 4a, but showing a single lens;

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of the sign and its attaching means, with the attaching means being exploded to show its method of assembly;

FIG. 6 is a perspective view of the face of the sign, showing how the break-away tabs are removed;

FIG. 7 is a perspective view of a closure plate utilized to close the opening created by the breaking away of one of the knock-out tabs;

FIG. 8 is a perspective view of the sign, showing the method in which it is mounted from one end thereof;

FIG. 9 is a perspective view of the lighted sign, showing the method by which the sign is mounted from its rear wall;

FIG. 10 is a front view of a twist connection arrow cover of the lighted sign;

FIG. 11 is a back view of a twist connection arrow cover of the lighted sign, showing its attaching means;

FIG. 12 is a side view of the twist connection arrow cover;

FIGS. 1317 show the method of inserting the arrow cover of FIGS. 11 and 12 over the arrow head, and locking the arrow cover to the face of the sign;

FIG. 18 is a front view of a snap connection arrow cover;

FIG. 19 is a back view of a snap connection arrow cover, showing its connecting means;

FIG. 20 is a side view of the snap connection arrow cover;

FIG. 21 is a back view of the snap connection arrow cover as it appears in place over the arrow head;

FIG. 22 is a cross-sectional end view of the lens of the light fixture, showing the manner in which light enters, travels through, and emerges from the lens;

FIG, 23 is a plan view of another form of the invention;

Referring now more particularly to the drawings, in which like numerals indicate like parts throughout the several views, the lighted sign 20 comprises a casing 21 having a front face 22 and a rear face 23. The front face 22 and rear face 23 are identical and are formed from the same mold. Of course, the front face 22 has the lettering 25 cut therethrough while the rear face 23 can be left blank if the sign is to be utilized so that the rear face is not to be used as a sign. Of course, the rear face 23 can also have lettering cut therethrough as the front face 22 so that the sign can be placed in a location where it is visible from both sides.

Referring now to FIGS. 2, the rear face 23 of the casing 21 is rectangular in configuration, with its corners being rounded. The inner edge 26 of the rear face 23 of the casing 21 is grooved at 28 so that a ridge 29 extends around the left side of the rear face 23. The inner edge 26 is oppositely grooved on the right side of the rear face 23 so that a flange 30 is present on the outer portion of the rear face 23 while a step-down portion is present inwardly thereof.

The upper surface 31 of the rear face 23 is recessed at 32. A similar recess 33 is present in the left side 34, while a projection 35 of equal dimensions to the recesses 32 and 33 is present in the right side 36 of the rear face 23. The lower surface 38 has a. plurality of indentations 39 along its length, the tabs 40 between the indentations being constructed at their outer ends in a manner similar to the left side 34 and right side 36 inner edges. In order words, the tabs to the left of the center of the rear face 23 are constructed with a stepped portion So that the flange 41 is positioned toward the inner portion of the rear face 23 and stepped down toward the outside of the sign to form the remaining portion of the tab, while th flange 42 on a tab to the right side of the rear face 23 is positioned outwardly of the inner portion of the rear face so that it is stepped down toward the inside. The center tab 44 is divided at its center so that its left portion matches the left portion of the inner edge 26 of the casing while its right portion matches the right portion of the inner edge of the casing.

A plurality of internally threaded bosses 45 are attached to the rear face 23 of the casing 21, and are located near the ends of each of the recesses 32 and 33, and near the ends of the projection 35. Threaded bosses 46 are attached to the rear face 23 of the casing 21 on the right side thereof, as viewed in FIG. 2, and double threaded projections 48 are positioned in the lower corners of the rear face 23 of the casing. The double threaded projections 48 have two threaded apertures therein so that they are adapted to receive two threaded screws. Plain nipples 50 are attached to the rear face 23 of the casing 21, in the upper corners thereof and are adapted to receive self locking catches 51.

The rear face 23 of the casing 21 is die-cast in such a manner that its center portion 52 and its small side portions 54 are recessed so that the casing is thin in these areas. The center portion 52 is further recessed at 55 to such a degree that the portion 55 can be easily removed by knocking it inwardly of the casing 21 with a tool.

As shown in the lower portion of FIG. 2, the front face 22 of the casing 21 is constructed from the same die as the rear face 23, and is identical thereto except for the modifications made therein after it has been removed from the die. It should be noted that the lower portion of FIG. 2 shows that the projection 35 has a groove 56 that extends inwardly of the projection 35 which is a mirror image of the projection. The groove 56 is of such a depth that the projection 35 can be easily removed by bending it inwardly toward the center portion of the side with a tool. This, of course, makes the projection 35 a break-away or knock-out projection, as is the encircled portion 55 of the center portion 52 of the rear face 23.

The rear face 23 and the front face 22 which has an inner edge 26 is identical to that of rear face 23, and are positioned so that they are disposed next to each other and their inner edges 26 meet each other. Since the inner edges 26 are grooved, the rear face and front face will fit each other and be locked in place with respect to each other when positioned in this manner.

Hinges 58 of simple bent wire construction are positioned at the lower edge of the rear face 23 in the grooves 59 of the double-threaded projections 48 and fastened in place by inserting clamps 60 thereover and screwing the clamps 60 in place with the screws 61. The other end of the hinges 58 are attached to the front face 22 in a similar manner by the clamps 62 and screws 64. The clamps 61? and 62 are bent so that their leg portions 65 and 66 Wlll contact the inner portion of their respective rear face 23 and front face 22. The clamp 60 and its leg 65 are also utilized to clamp the internal wiring of the sign in place. The hinges 58 are constructed so that the front face 22 can be pivoted away from the rear face 23 along their bottom edges so that they can be disposed generally in the position shown in FIG. 2.

A transformer 70 is attached to the threaded bosses 46 of the rear face 23 and suitable wiring 71 leads to the transformer from outside the lighted sign, while internal wir ng 72 leads from the transformer 70 toward the source of illumination of the sign. The wires 72 of the transformer 70 are clamped in place by inserting the selflocklng holders 51 thereover and sliding them over the nipples 50 so that the wires 72 are wedged between the self-locking holders 51 and the inner surface of the rear face 23 of the casing 21.

The source of illumination for the sign is the lighting fixture 75 which is attached to the rear face 23 of the casing 21 by the tabs 76. The tabs 76 are placed over the double threaded projections 48 and fastened thereto by suitable screws 78. As is best shown in FIGS. 3 and 4a, the lighting fixture 75 comprises a plurality of light bulbs 79 positioned along its length in a plastic casing 80 of suitable design. The light bulbs 79 are recessed in the casing 80 and their sockets are located in the platforms 81. The tabs 76 have projections 82 that extend to a short distance over the housing 80 and the lens 85 is held on the several platforms 81 by wedging it between these platforms and the tabs or projections 82 of the tabs 76. The lens 85 is fabricated of a hard plastic material that is transparent and substantially semi-circular in cross-section. The recesses 77 of the fixture extend all the way therethrough and the corrugated prismatic plastic lenses 86:: (FIG. 4a) are positioned on the bottom side thereof by sliding them through the tabs 88 in the conventional manner. When the lighting fixture 75 is attached to the rear face 23 of the lighted sign the bulbs 79 and their prismatic plastic lenses 36 are positioned over the recesses or indentations 39 (FIG. 2) in the lower surface 38 of the casing 21. As is shown in FIG. 4b, a single lens 86b can be inserted through the tabs 88 for simplicity of assembly.

As shown in FIG. 2, the front face 22 has letters 90 cut therethrough in its inner portion 52 and arrows 91 in its side portion 54. While the letters shown in this specific embodiment spell the word Exit it should be obvious that other words could be spelled out in the face of the sign.

A translucent cover 92 is placed against the inner surface of the front face 22 so that it covers both the letters 90 and the arrows 91. The translucent cover 92 is dimensioned so that it can be positioned near the plain nipples 50 and the double threaded projections 48 and self-locking catches 51 can be slipped over the plain nipples 50 so that they trap the translucent cover 92 against the inner portion of the front face 22 while the clamp 62 is attached to the front face 22 by the screws 64 so that its leg portion 66 bears against the cover. In this manner, the translucent cover is firmly maintained in its position against the inner surface of the front face 22 so that the letters 90 and arrows 91 expose a portion of the translucent cover 92. Of course, the translucent cover is of a color that contrasts with the face of the sign, and in the case of an exit sign, the color usually used is a bright reddish color which is clearly visible when illuminated.

Referring now to FIGS. 6 and 7, it can be seen that the projection 35 of either the rear face 23 or the front face 22 of the sign casing 21 can be broken away by bending it inwardly of the sign. When the projection is broken away in this manner and the front and rear faces of the sign placed back together, as shown in FIG. 1, a hole is left in the side of the sign. The closure plate 95 of FIG. 7, is constructed of a shape that matches the outline of the hole left by breaking away a projection 35. The closure plate 95 defines a central projection 96 and side projections 98. The central projection 96 and the closure plate 95 are centrally apertured at 99 while all three projections have screw holes 100 extending into one side thereof, the screw hole of the central projection being threaded. The closure plate 95 is positionable in the hole left by breaking away the projection 35 of the side of the casing 21 and the closure plate is attached to the casing by inserting the screws through the holes 100 of the side projections 98 and threading the screws into the threaded bosses 45.

As is shown in FIGS. 10, 11, and 12, twist connection arrow covers 101 are provided that comprise a rectangular plate with stripes 102 of contrasting color painted thereon. A locking device 104 is positioned on the rear side of the arrow tail 101. The locking device 104 comprises a projection 105 attached to the rear face of the arrow cover 101 with tabs 106 and 107 extending on opposite sides thereof, and parallel to the plane of the arrow cover 101. The tabs 106 and 107 are displaced from the plane of the arrow cover a distance approxi mately equal to the thickness of the front face 22 of the casing 21. The projection 105 is generally circular in configuration having a pointed portion 108 substantially intermediate the tabs 106 and 107.

The arrow cover 101 has a tensioning knob 110 attached to its rear face at a distance displaced from the locking device 104 and a locking knob 111 attached to the rear face at a position remote from the tensioning knob 110. The locking knob 111 is positioned at a distance closer to the projection 105 than the tensioning knob 110.

FIGS. 18-20 show a snap-on arrow cover 125 that comprises a substantially flat plate 126 having a projection 128 extending from one surface thereof that functions as a locking device. The projection 128 has a pointed portion 129 and sloping side portions 130 that slope away from the pointed portion 129 at an angle approximately equal to the angle that the wings of the arrow of the face of the sign slope away from its pointed portion. The tab 131 extends outwardly from the pointed portion 129 of the projection 128, is displaced from the surface of the plate 126, and extends substantially parallel to the plate. Locking knobs 132 are re motedly disposed from the projection 128, and the tensioning knobs 134 are remotely disposed from both the locking knobs 132 and the projection 128.

Referring now to FIG. 22, the transparent lens 85 is shaped in such a manner that the light emitted from the source of illumination 135 is directed primarily upwardly of the fixture as opposed to laterally thereof. The lens is shaped in this manner so that the translucent screen or cover 92 is more uniformly illuminated throughout its entire width even though the source of illumination 135 is located along one edge of the sign casing. The lens 85 has been accurately shaped so that when it is positioned over the source of illumination 135, the ratio of the intensity of light emitted from the face of the sign from the bottom toward the top of the sign is approximately three to one. Without a lense of this type, the ratio of intensity of the light emitted from the bottom of the sign as compared to that emitted from the top of the sign would be much greater than three to one, since the ratio would be merely a function of the distance of the source of illumination 135 from the various portions of the sign. For instance, if the source of illumination 135 was located at a distance of onehalf inch from the lower portion of the sign and at six inches from the upper portion of the sign, the ratio of intensity of the light emitted from the lower portion of the sign to the upper portion of the sign would be approximately twelve to one.

Operation The lighted sign can be mounted from the ceiling as shown in FIG. 5, extending outwardly from a wall as shown in FIG. 8, or attached in a parallel fashion to a wall as shown in FIG. 9.

When attaching the sign to the ceiling, a mounting bar 114 is attached to the outlet box to which the sign is to be connected. A threaded tube 115 is screwed into the central threaded aperture of the mounting bar 114, a canopy 116 is slipped over the threaded tube, a closure plate is slipped over the treaded tube, the bar passing through the aperture 99, and a locking nut 118 is threaded over the end of the threaded tube to tightly assemble the parts. The closure plate 95 is then connected to the threaded bosses 45 and the wires 71 of the sign connected to the wires of the outlet.

Of course, if it is desired to mount the sign from one of its ends, as shown in FIG. 8, one of the projections 35 is broken away and a closure plate 95 is positioned therein and the sign mounted in a similar manner. If it is desired to mount the sign from its rear surface, as shown in FIG. 9, the knock-out 55 is removed from the rear face 23 of the sign and the threaded tube 115 inserted therethrough. Of course, a closure plate is not required when the sign is mounted in this manner.

After the sign is mounted in its proper position it might be desirable to cover one of the arrows 91, or possibly cover both of the arrows. This can be easily done by covering the arrows with the twist connection arrow covers 101. As is shown in FIGS. 15-17, the projection of the arrow cover 101 is inserted through the arrow so that the tabs 106 and 107 extend inside the casing 21. The arrow cover 101 is then rotated in the direction as indicated by the arrow 120 so that the tabs 106 and 107 extend on opposite sides of the front face 22 from the arrow cover 101. When the arrow cover 101 is positioned so that its locking device 104 is inserted through the arrow 91, the tension knob 110 and the locking knob 111 tend to hold the arrow cover 101 slightly away from the surface of the front face 22 so that the projection 105 does not extend far enough through the arrow 91 to permit the tabs 106 and 107 to grip the inner surface of the front face 22 of the casing 21. Thus, the operator must exert enough force on the arrow cover to bend it slightly so that the tabs 106 and 107 are projected far enough into the casing to grip the inner surface of the front face 22. Of course, the arrow cover is fabricated of a material that allows it to bend in such a manner.

After the tabs 106 and 107 grip the front face 22 as shown in FIG. 16, the arrow cover is rotated in the direction as indicated by the arrow 120 until the stripes 102 of the arrow cover are in a position so that they appear to be an arrow tail, as shown in FIG. 14. When the arrow cover is in this position, the locking knob 111 has rotated to the position as shown in FIG. 17 where it has slipped into the pointed edge or wing 121 of the arrow 91. Of course, the tension knob 110 still maintains the arrow cover 102 in a slightly bowed condition so that the locking knob 111 is firmly positioned in the pointed edge or wing 121 of the arrow 91.

As is shown in FIG. 12, the locking knob 111 is formed with relatively straight side portions 122 while the tension knob 110 has relatively rounded side portions 124. The straight side portions 122 of the locking knob 111 function to permanently lock the arrow cover to the arrow since it is difficult to remove the straight side portion from the pointed edge 121 of the arrow because of the tension exerted on the arrow cover by the tension knob 110.

As is shown in FIG. 15, when the arrow cover 101 is inserted in the arrow 91, the pointed portion 108 of the projection 105 is positioned so that it bears against the base 109 of the arrow and the arrow cover cannot be rotated in a direction opposite to that indicated by the arrow 120. When the arrow cover 101 has been rotated to the position as shown in FIG. 17, the pointed portion 108 bears against the point of the arrow so that the arrow cover cannot be moved any further.

The arrows 91 can also be covered with the snap connection arrow covers 125. The arrow cover is merely positioned over the arrow so that the tab 131 slips under the point of the arrows and the pointed portions 129 bears against the pointed portion of the arrow head. The sloping side walls 130 of the projection 128 of the snap connection cover 125 will 'bear against the sloped portions of the arrow head so that the cover will be properly aligned. After the tab 131 has positioned as described above, the locking knobs 132 will be positioned in the Wing portions 121 of the arrow head and tend to lock the arrow cover in place over the arrow head. The tensioning knobs 134 are positioned to one side of the tab 131 so that they bear against the face of the sign and tend to pivot the arrow cover 125 around its tab 131 as it grips the inside surface of the sign casing. This, of course, tends to force the locking knobs 132 into the wing portions 121 of the arrow head so that they are difficult to remove. This construction tends to make the arrow covers tamper-proof so that they are not easily removed by a person that does not know their method of construction. Of course, the locking knobs 132 are configured with substantially straight sides as described of the locking knobs 111 of the arrow cover 101. Furthermore, the tensioning knobs 134, together with the resiliency of the plate 126 of the arrow cover 125 tend to compensate for any variations in thickness of the casing of the sign, so that when a substantially thick sign casing has arrow applied thereto, the plate 126 will merely bend slightly more to compensate for the extra thickness; whereas a thinner sign casing will not fiex the plate 126 quite as much.

Thus, it can be seen that the instant invention is truly universal in that it requires only a single mold to cast both the front face and the back face of the sign casing so that the faces thereof are interchangeable and the sign can be mounted with a single lettered sign face or with oppositely facing lettered sign faces, the casing can be mounted from either of its ends, from its rear wall, or from its upper edge, and the arrows of the sign face can be covered with arrow covers so that the remaining arrow is the only one visible and the arrow cover covering the opposite arrow helps to emphasize the direction of the remaining exposed arrow. Furthermore, the arrow covers are constructed so that they are locked in place when properly inserted over the arrows so that they are difiicult to remove and not subject to tampering.

While the invention has been disclosed as a sign with arrow heads at each end of a sign face and arrow covers to selectively cover the arrows, it is anticipated, as is shown in FIG. 18, that a single, long, double-headed arrow could be utilized along a border of the sign and one of the arrow heads covered by an arrow cover. Furtheremore, to further emphasize the direction of the exit, the arrow cover, instead of having the stripes 102 as shown in FIG. 10, could have a series of apertures cut therethrough so that the light from the interior portion of the lighted sign could pass therethrough.

The lighting fixture functions to uniformly illuminate the interior portion of the sign casing 21. The plurality of light bulbs 79 are disposed so that they illuminate the single lens which, because of its shape and location, directs a large portion of the light toward the upper portion of the cover 92, refracts the light and illuminates the entire interior casing 21 and cover 92 of the sign 20 without a bright spot appearing on the face of the sign. Of course, since the bulbs 79 are positioned over the indentations 39 in the lower surface 38 of the sign 20, a portion of the light emanating from the bulbs 79 is directed .below the sign. Of course, this feature is highly desirable in dimly lighted locations, such as a movie house, where the public not only needs to know the location and direction of the exit, but also needs a small amount of light to see the stairs, the aisle, the location of seats, etc. The prismatic plastic lens 86 in the lighting fixture 75 functions to diffuse the light given off from the bulbs 79 so that this light is not disturbing to the people in the darkened area as it might be if a bare bulb were exposed.

It will be obvious to those skilled in the art that many variations may be made in the embodiments chosen for the purpose of illustrating the present invention without departing from the scope thereof as defined by the appended claims.

What is claimed as invention is:

1. In a plate with an inner surface and an outer surface having an arrow head cut therethrough, means for covering said arrow head from the outer surface comprising a substantially flat plate, a projection extending from one side of said plate, said projection having a pointed portion with sides sloping away from said pointed portion at angles generally equal to the sloping sides of the point of said arrow head, a tab extending from the pointed portion of said projection parallel to and spaced from said plate, at least one locking knob extending from said one side of said plate remotely disposed from said projection, and at least one tension knob extending from said one side of said plate remotely disposed from said projection and said locking knob, whereby said projection is adapted to fit through the arrow head with the pointed portion and sloping sides of said projection fitting the pointed portion and sloping sides of the arrow head, said tab grasping the inner surface of said plate, said locking knob projecting into said arrow head and said tension knob bearing against the outer surface of said plate having the arrowhead cut therethrough.

2. In a sign casing having an arrowhead cut therethrough, an opaque arrowhead cover comprising means for insertion through said arrowhead for attaching said cover to said casing, means for biasing said cover against said casing, and means for preventing rotation of said cover with respect to said casing.

3. In a sign casing having a noncircular hole cut through its face, means for covering said hole comprising a plate having one surface thereof being substantially flat, a projection extending from said one surface for insertion through said hole, tabs extending from opposite sides of said projection, said tabs being spaced from said one surface for gripping said face, and locking means for preventing relative rotation between said sign and said surface.

4. In a sign casing hole covering means as claimed in claim 3, further comprising means for biasing said means for covering said hole away from said face.

5. In a sign having a casing with an arrow with a point, wing portions and a stem cut therethrough, the combination therewith of a cover for covering said arrow comprising a flat plate, a substantially circular projection extending from one surface of said plate, tabs extending from said projection, said tabs being disposed substantially parallel to and displaced from said plate, a knob extending from said one surface of said plate whereby said tabs and said projection are inserted through said arrow and rotated so that said tabs engage said casing on the side thereof opposite from said cover and said knob is inserted into one of said wing portions.

6. The combination of claim wherein said cover has a second knob for biasing said cover away from said casing.

7. In an internally illuminated sign of the type utilized to indicate a direction, the combination of a hollow casing having a front face, a rear face, top, bottom and side surfaces, said front face defining apertures including a direction indicator, a translucent screen juxtaposed the inner surface of said front face, a plurality of lighting means disposed within said casing, a single lens juxtaposed said plurality of lighting means to disperse the light emanating from said lighting means and to uniformly illuminate said translucent screen, means for mounting said sign selectively from its top surface or side surfaces, and means for changing the direction indicated by said direction indicator.

8. The internally illuminated sign of claim 7 including means for illuminating an area below said sign.

9. In a surface having an arrow head cut therethrough, means for covering said arrowhead comprising a flat plate, a projection extending from one side of said plate, said projection being substantially round in cross section with a dull pointed portion, tabs extending from opposite sides of said projection, parallel to and spaced from said plate, a tension knob extending from said one side of said plate and remotely disposed from said projection and a locking knob extending from said one side of said plate and remotely disposed from said projection and said tension knob.

10. A direction indicating means for a sign, comprising: means representing a horizontal arrow shaft having left and right ends, a left directed arrowhead adjacent to said left end, a right directed arrowhead adjacent to said right end, and means releasably engaged with said sign, and covering one of said left directed and right directed arrowheads, said last-named means also being releasably engageable with the other of said left directed and right directed arrowheads.

11. The direction indicating means of claim 10 wherein said arrow shaft, said left directed arrowhead and said right directed arrowhead are translucent, and said cover means is opaque.

12. The direction indicating means of claim 11 including means within said sign for illuminating said arrow shaft, said left directed arrowhead and said right directed arrowhead, and wherein said arrow shaft defines a group of letters forming a message.

13. The direction indicating means of claim 10 wherein the surfaces of said arrow shaft, said left directed arrowhead and said right directed arrowhead reflect light.

14. The direction indicating means of claim 10 wherein said cover means is shaped to form the feather of an arrow.

15. A sign having means for selectively indicating one of two directions or both directions, said indicating means comprising: a rectangular arrow shaft having first and second ends, a generally triangular shaped first arrowhead adjacent to said first end and pointing away from said arrow shaft, a generally triangular shaped second arrowhead adjacent said second end and pointing away from said arrow shaft, and means releasably engaged with said sign and covering one of said left directed or said right directed arrowheads, said covering means also being releasably engageable with the other of said left directed or said right directed arrowheads.

16. A direction indicating means for a sign, comprising: means on the sign for defining a group of letters forming a message, said group of letters having left and right ends, a left directed arrowhead adjacent to said left end, a right directed arrowhead adjacent to said right end, means releasably engaged with said sign and covering said left directed arrowhead, and means releasably engaged with said sign and covering said right directed arrowhead.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,081,646 12/1913 Witz 40-130 1,145,005 7/1915 Dolan 40-61 1,241,886 10/1917 Rowe 40-130X 1,385,913 7/192'1 Goldstein 40-132 1,497,958 6/ 1924 Swinford 40-125 1,884,290 10/1932 Schults et a1. 40-130 1,932,291 10/1933 Profantaine 215-32 2,148,179 2/ 1939 Sunderhauf 40-130 2,857,067 10/ 1958 Lehmans-Leroy 215-132 2,902,784 9/1959 Sukul 40-61 3,215,453 11/ 1965 Malcom 40-130 FOREIGN PATENTS 5,638 3/ 1907 Great Britain.

EUGENE R. CAPOZIO, Primary Examiner. W. J. CONTRERAS, Assistant Examiner.

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