Luminous signage blade

Abstract

The invention relates to a signage strip (1) comprising a body (10) having a front face (10A) and a rear face (10B), at least one internal housing (11) of parallelepipedal shape is formed inside said body (10) between said front face (10A) and said rear face (10B), at least one rectangular flat luminous plate (20) is mounted in said at least one internal housing (11), at least one hatch (30) is mounted at the rear face (10B) of the body (10) and allows access to said at least one internal housing (11), at least one through opening (10A1) is formed in the front face (10A) in line with the at least one luminous plate (20) by defining the outline of at least one character and / or at least one pattern. Figure for abstract: Figure 3

Description

Title of the invention: Luminous signage blade Technical field

[0001] The present invention relates to the field of signage and more particularly concerns a luminous signage strip. Prior art

[0002] In the field of signage, it is known to use slats in the form of elongated plates of rectangular or arrow shape on which characters or symbols are engraved to indicate a direction or a place. Such plates can for example be made of wood, metal, in particular aluminum, or Polyvinyl Chloride (PVC). Such slats can be mounted on a mast or between two masts, in this case forming a device called a "bi-mast".

[0003] In order to be able to read the inscriptions on the blades at night, there are several solutions.

[0004] It is for example known to illuminate the blade using a lamp, for example mounted above the blade, which requires added lighting which must be arranged so as to illuminate the blade. However, such lighting generally proves to be insufficient and can have maintenance and cost disadvantages, particularly when bulbs or neon lights are used.

[0005] It is also known to use fluorescent or phosphorescent panels to make them visible at night. Fluorescent panels are only visible when they are illuminated, which does not allow inscriptions to be read at night without lighting. Phosphorescent panels must have received light beforehand to be visible and therefore become less and less visible, and therefore readable, or even totally invisible or illegible as the night progresses in the absence of lighting nearby.

[0006] It is also known to use light-emitting diodes mounted on the surface of traffic signs to make them more visible, in particular to warn of danger by flashing the diodes. This solution, which can be transposed to strips, is however complex and expensive and does not allow inscriptions to be correctly illuminated.

[0007] Finally, an effective signage solution consists of the use of a display screen. This solution, however, proves to be significantly expensive, both in manufacturing and in purchasing, electricity consumption and maintenance, especially since this type of screen can prove to be particularly sensitive to shocks, particularly in urban environments, and to weather elements.

[0008] There is therefore a need for a simple and effective solution to at least partially remedy these drawbacks. Statement of the invention

[0009] For this purpose, the invention firstly relates to a signage strip, in particular for a mast or twin-mast, said strip comprising a body having a front face and a rear face and being remarkable in that at least one internal housing of parallelepiped shape is formed inside said body between said front face and said rear face, in that the strip comprises at least one rectangular flat luminous plate mounted in said at least one internal housing, and in that at least one through opening is formed in the front face in line with the at least one luminous plate so that the light emitted by the at least one luminous plate passes through the at least one through opening located in line with said at least one luminous plate.

[0010] By integrating the light source into the blade and using at least one through opening in the front face, characters and patterns formed in the front face or printed on the light plate appear luminous and are thus easy to read in the dark. The use of a light plate type light source makes the lighting uniform and gentle on the eyes. The light blade according to the invention is also easy and inexpensive to manufacture.

[0011] Advantageously, the blade comprises at least one hatch allowing access to the at least one internal housing.

[0012] Preferably, the at least one hatch is mounted at the rear face of the body.

[0013] The at least one hatch may be opaque, translucent or transparent.

[0014] In one embodiment, the at least one through opening is formed in the front face and / or in the rear face in line with the at least one light plate by defining the outline of at least one character and / or at least one pattern.

[0015] The at least one pattern may be a symbol or a logo or any other desired shape.

[0016] In one embodiment, the at least one through opening formed in the front face is rectangular and the light plate has at least one character and / or pattern printed, for example by screen printing, on its front face so as to appear in the rectangular through opening.

[0017] In one embodiment, the blade comprises a protective plate placed in front of the light plate to protect it, for example against the front face of the light plate. The protective plate may be a hatch.

[0018] In one embodiment, the blade comprising at least one through opening formed in the front face of the body, the blade further comprises at least a through opening formed in the rear face of the body, in particular in the hatch, in line with the at least one light plate by defining the outline of at least one character, in particular alphanumeric, and / or at least one pattern so that the light emitted by the at least one light plate passes through the at least one through opening located in line with said at least one light plate.

[0019] Preferably, several through openings defining a series of characters, for example alphanumeric, and / or patterns are formed in the front face and / or in the rear face of the body of the blade. The front face and / or the rear face may for example each comprise several letters forming one or more words and / or patterns of all types such as, for example, arrows, stars, circles, rectangles, etc.

[0020] In one embodiment, the blade comprises an electrical power source, for example a power supply battery, electrically connected to the at least one light plate to supply it with electrical current.

[0021] Preferably, the power supply battery is rechargeable.

[0022] Advantageously, the blade comprises at least one solar panel electrically connected to the rechargeable power supply battery in order to recharge it with electrical energy. The blade can thus operate partially or totally on solar energy.

[0023] In one embodiment, the blade comprises a means of connection to an electrical network, for example a cable, in order to electrically power the light plate partially or totally.

[0024] Preferably, the at least one light plate is a light-emitting diode plate, easy to manufacture and inexpensive.

[0025] In one embodiment, the blade comprises a transparent or translucent protective plate positioned in the housing between the light plate and the front face of the body in order to protect the light plate from external elements, in particular rain and shocks.

[0026] Advantageously, the at least one hatch is integrated into the body, preferably so that the rear face of the blade is flat.

[0027] Alternatively, the blade comprises a single hatch completely covering the rear face of the body so as to completely constitute the rear face of the blade or completely covering the front face of the body so as to completely constitute the front face of the blade. In the latter case, the front hatch is transparent at least at the level of inscriptions printed on the front face of the light plate.

[0028] In a preferred embodiment, the body is made of wood, which makes it easy to manufacture, inexpensive, more eco-friendly and easy to recycle.

[0029] In one embodiment, the at least one hatch is made of wood, in particular when the body is made of wood.

[0030] The invention also relates to a mast comprising at least one blade as presented previously.

[0031] The invention also relates to a twin-mast comprising two masts and at least one blade as presented previously mounted between said two masts.

[0032] The invention also relates to a signage assembly comprising at least two twin masts as presented previously, two uprights of which are arranged side by side and are mechanically and / or electrically connected to each other.

[0033] Advantageously, the mechanical connection is made by a system of hooks.

[0034] Advantageously again, the mechanical connection is made by electrically conductive elements each electrically connected to the at least one light plate of the at least one blade of the corresponding bi-mast so as to electrically connect the light plates of the blades of the bi-masts to each other.

[0035] The invention also relates to a method of manufacturing a blade as presented previously, comprising the steps of:

[0036] - formation of at least one internal housing in the body,

[0037] - formation of at least one through opening in the front face,

[0038] - insertion of the at least one light plate into the at least one internal housing.

[0039] In one embodiment, the method further comprises closing the at least one internal housing using at least one hatch.

[0040] Advantageously, the body being made of wood, the formation of the at least one internal housing in the body and the formation of the at least one through opening in the front face are carried out by machining, for example by milling or by routing.

[0041] The invention also relates to a method of assembling two twin-masts as presented above, comprising the placement of an upright of one twin-mast next to an upright of the other twin-mast and the mechanical and / or electrical connection of said two uprights to each other. Brief description of the drawings

[0042] Other characteristics and advantages of the invention will become apparent from reading the description which follows. This is purely illustrative and must be read in conjunction with the appended drawings in which:

[0043] [Fig-1] [Fig.l] schematically illustrates a front perspective view of a embodiment of the blade according to the invention.

[0044] [Fig.2] [Fig.2] schematically illustrates a rear perspective view of the blade of [Fig.l].

[0045] [Fig.3] [Fig.3] schematically illustrates a rear exploded view of the blade of Figures 1 and 2.

[0046] [Fig.4] [Fig.4] schematically illustrates an embodiment of the blade according to the invention comprising a power supply battery integrated into the internal housing.

[0047] [Fig.5] [Fig.5] is a front perspective view of an embodiment of the blade according to the invention comprising two internal housings, two light plates and two hatches.

[0048] [Fig.6] [Fig.6] schematically illustrates a rear perspective view of the blade of [Fig.5].

[0049] [Fig.7] [Fig.7] schematically illustrates an embodiment of the blade according to the invention connected to an electrical network via a cable.

[0050] [Fig.8] [Fig.8] schematically illustrates a front perspective view of another embodiment of the blade according to the invention.

[0051] [Fig.9] [Fig.9] schematically illustrates an embodiment of a mast according to the invention.

[0052] [Fig. 10] [Fig. 10] schematically illustrates an embodiment of a twin-mast according to the invention.

[0053] [Fig. 11] [Fig. 11] schematically illustrates an embodiment of a set of twin masts according to the invention.

[0054] [Fig. 12] [Fig. 12] schematically illustrates one embodiment of a connection assembly for mechanically and electrically connecting two uprights supporting blades according to the invention.

[0055] [Fig. 13] [Fig. 13] schematically illustrates an embodiment of the method of manufacturing the blade according to the invention. Description of the embodiments

[0056] Figures 1 to 3 schematically illustrate an example of blade 1 according to the invention.

[0057] The blade 1 according to the invention constitutes a signage element, in particular for mast 100 ([Fig.9]) or twin-mast 200 ([Fig. 10]).

[0058] In the example of Figures 1 to 3, the blade 1 comprises a body 10, a light plate 20, mounted in said body 10 and shown in dotted lines in [Fig.l], and a hatch 30 ([Fig.3]).

[0059] The body 10 has a front face 10A ([Fig.l]) and a rear face 10B (figures 2 and 3).

[0060] With reference to [Fig.l], through openings 10A1 (cutouts) are formed in the front face 10A of the body 10 defining the outline of characters, for example alphanumeric, and patterns. Patterns can be symbols (arrows, ...) or logos or any other desired shapes.

[0061] Through openings 10A1 representing the outlines of the same or other characters / patterns may also be formed in the rear face 10B, in particular in the hatch 30, as illustrated in FIGS. 2 and 6, for double-sided use of the blade 1.

[0062] With reference to [Fig. 3], an internal housing 11 (shown in dotted lines in [Fig. 1]) of parallelepiped shape is formed inside said body 10 between the front face 10A and the rear face 10B.

[0063] Still with reference to [Fig. 3], the light plate 20 is flat and has a rectangular shape. Preferably, the light plate 20 is a light-emitting diode plate.

[0064] The light plate 20 is mounted in the internal housing 11 by the rear face 10B of the body 10 and the hatch 30 is mounted at the rear face 10B of the body 10 so as to hold the light plate 20 in the internal housing 11, preferably by contact and without play.

[0065] The hatch 30 can be fixed on the rear face 10B of the body 10, for example, by gluing, screwing or nailing or any other suitable method, so as to close the internal housing 11.

[0066] Preferably, still with reference to [Fig. 3], the blade 1 further comprises a transparent or translucent protective plate 25 positioned in the housing between the light plate 20 and the front face 10A of the body and through which the light is transmitted to the through openings 10A1 in order to protect the light plate 20, in particular from rain and shocks.

[0067] In the non-limiting example of the figures, the hatch 30 is rectangular (but could be of any other shape) and is integrated into the rear face 10B of the body 10. As a variant, the hatch 30 could completely cover the rear face 10B of the body 10.

[0068] Once lit, the light emitted by the light plate 20 passes through the through openings 10A1 formed in the front face 10A of the body 10 of the blade 1 so as to render the characters and patterns luminous.

[0069] Preferably, the body 10 is made of wood or metal or PVC. The hatch 30 is preferably made of wood, in particular when the body 10 is made of wood, or metal or PVC.

[0070] In one form of claim, an example of which is illustrated in [Fig.4], the blade 1 further comprises an electrical power supply battery 40 electrically connected to the light plate 20 to supply it with electrical current. The power supply battery 40 may be rechargeable.

[0071] In the example of Figures 5 and 6, the blade 1 comprises two separate internal housings 11. Each internal housing 11 receives a light plate 20 and is closed by a hatch 30.

[0072] Alternatively or additionally, as illustrated in the example of [Fig.7], the blade 1 can be connected via a cable 60 to an electrical network 65, for example a domestic electrical network, in order to electrically supply the light plate 20.

[0073] [Fig.8] illustrates another embodiment in which the front face 10A comprises a single rectangular through opening 10A1 opening onto the internal housing 11. A light plate 20 having printed inscriptions 21 is mounted in the internal housing 11 so as to be visible through the through opening 10A1. A protective plate (not visible) may be placed against the front face of the light plate 20 to protect it.

[0074] [Fig.9] illustrates an example of a mast 100 comprising an upright 110 and blades 1 mounted on said upright 110. In this example, the blades 1 are two in number and have the shape of a directional arrow.

[0075] In this non-limiting example, the blade 1 comprises a rechargeable power supply battery 40 (not visible for the sake of clarity) coupled to a solar panel 50 electrically connected to the power supply battery 40 in order to recharge it with electrical energy. This solar panel 50 can be mounted remotely, in particular on the upper end of the upright 110, as illustrated in the example of [Fig. 9], or directly on the body of the blade 1 or integrated in the internal housing 11 with an opening made through said body 10 to capture the solar rays and produce electrical energy in order to store it in the rechargeable power supply battery 40 and power the light plate(s) 20 continuously or at night, with automatic triggering using a lack of light detector, with a program or remotely via a smartphone and a mobile application, or manually, by connecting a cable or by activating a switch.

[0076] [Fig. 10] illustrates an example of a twin-mast 200 comprising two masts 210 positioned vertically and two blades 1 mounted between said two masts 210. The blades 1 are mounted for example in grooves formed in the masts 210 and possibly fixed to the uprights, for example by screwing or via locking elements.

[0077] [Fig. 11] illustrates an example of a signage assembly comprising two twin masts 200 according to the invention.

[0078] Two uprights 210 of the twin masts 200 are arranged side by side and are mechanically and electrically connected to each other.

[0079] The mechanical connection is achieved by mechanical connection parts, for example complementary, mounted on the uprights 210 such as, for example, hooks 310, 320, as illustrated in [Fig. 12], or clips or any other suitable means.

[0080] The electrical connection makes it possible to power the light plates 20 of the blades 1 from a single current source, for example a power supply battery mounted in one of the blades 1 or a connection to an electrical network 65 via a cable 60.

[0081] In the example of [Fig.12], the electrical connection is made via the mechanical connection parts 310, 320 made of an electrically conductive material and electrical wires 400 mounted in the uprights connected to the mechanical connection parts 310, 320 so as to conduct the current from one side to the other between the light plates 20 and the electrical power source.

[0082] Alternatively, the electrical connection could be made via electrical cables directly connecting the light plates 20 to each other, without passing through the mechanical connection parts 310, 320.

[0083] The manufacture of a blade 1 according to the invention comprises the steps of forming E1 the internal housing 11 in the body 10, forming E2 the openings 10A1 in the front face 10A, inserting E3 the light plate 20 into the internal housing 11 and closing E4 the internal housing 11 using the hatch 30 and possibly mounting E5 the blade 1 on a mast 100 or a twin-mast 200.

[0084] When the body 10 is made of wood, the formation of the internal housing 11 in the body 10 and the formation of the openings 10A1 in the front face 10A are preferably carried out by machining, in particular by milling or tapping.

[0085] The blade 1 according to the invention is therefore easy to manufacture, assemble and install. The characters and patterns are illuminated and visible in the dark. Maintenance of the blade 1 is easy and in the event of a breakdown, it is sufficient to open the hatch 30 and change the light plate 20 which is inexpensive and easy to replace.

Claims

Claims

1. Signage blade (1), in particular for mast (100) or bi-mast (200), said blade (1) comprising a body (10) having a front face (10A) and a rear face (10B) and being characterized in that at least one internal housing (11) of parallelepiped shape is formed inside said body (10) between said front face (10A) and said rear face (10B), in that the blade (1) comprises at least one rectangular flat light plate (20) mounted in said at least one internal housing (11), and in that at least one through opening (10A1) is formed in the front face (10A) in line with the at least one light plate (20) so that the light emitted by the at least one light plate (20) passes through the at least one through opening (10A1) located in line with said at least one light plate (20).

2. Blade (1) according to claim 1, said blade (1) comprising at least one hatch (30) allowing access to the at least one internal housing (11).

3. Blade (1) according to the preceding claim, in which the at least one hatch (30) is mounted at the rear face (10B) of the body (10).

4. Blade (1) according to the preceding claim, in which the at least one through opening (10A1) is formed in the front face (10A) in line with the at least one luminous plate (20) by defining the outline of at least one character and / or at least one pattern.

5. Blade (1) according to claim 1, wherein the at least one through opening (10A1) formed in the front face (10A) is rectangular and the light plate comprises at least one character and / or pattern printed on its front face so as to appear in the rectangular through opening (10A1).

6. Blade (1) according to any one of the preceding claims, further comprising an electric power supply battery (40) electrically connected to the light plate (20) to supply it with electric current.

7. Blade (1) according to the preceding claim, in which the power battery (40) is rechargeable and the blade further comprises at least one solar panel (50) electrically connected to the battery rechargeable power supply (40) in order to recharge it with electrical energy.

8. Blade (1) according to any one of the preceding claims, further comprising a connection means (60) to an electrical network in order to electrically supply the at least one light plate (20).

9. Blade (1) according to any one of the preceding claims, in which the at least one light plate (20) is a light-emitting diode plate.

10. Blade (1) according to any one of claims 2 to 10, wherein the at least one hatch (30) is integrated into the body (10).

11. Blade (1) according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the body (10) is made of wood and the at least one hatch (30) is made of wood.

12. Mast (100) comprising at least one blade (1) according to any one of the preceding claims.

13. Bi-mast (200) comprising two masts (210) and at least one blade (1) according to any one of claims 1 to 11, mounted between the two masts (210).

14. Signage assembly comprising at least two twin masts (200) according to claim 13, two uprights (210) of which are arranged side by side and are mechanically and / or electrically connected to each other.

15. Method of manufacturing a blade (1) according to any one of claims 1 to 11, comprising the steps of: - forming (El) the at least one internal housing (11) in the body (10), - forming (E2) the at least one through opening (10A1) in the front face (10A), - inserting (E3) the at least one light plate (20) into the at least one internal housing (11).

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