Combined message display and brake light

• US 4,928,084 A
• Filed: 01/23/1989
• Issued: 05/22/1990
• Est. Priority Date: 01/23/1989
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Steven M. Reiser
• Original Assignee: Steven M. Reiser
• Inventors: Reiser, Steven M.
• Primary Examiner(s): Crosland, Donnie L.
• Application Number:
  US07/300,790
• Time in Patent Office: 484 Days
• Field of Search: 340/479, 340/469, 340/471, 340/478, 340/321
• US Class Current: 340/479
• CPC Class Codes: B60Q 1/444 with indication of the braking strength or speed changes, e.g. by changing shape or intensity of the indication B60Q1/1407, B60Q1/442, B60Q1/447 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: B60Q 1/50 for indicating other intentions or conditions, e.g. request for waiting or overtaking
• CPC Class Codes: B60Q 1/5035 electronic displays

Abstract

A vehicle brake light and display system employs a display screen having an array of light emitting diodes arranged to transmit a selected pattern or message in red light. A fixed or programmable memory has sets of data stored therein that can be selectively extracted to energize certain of the light emitting elements and display a single line of a selected message. Upon actuation of the brake of the vehicle in which the display screen is mounted, display of the message is disabled, and all of the light emitting elements are energized to provide a solid display of red over the entire screen. As a further safety feature, the display is maintained in a disable condition until initial application of the brake, and thereafter subsequent applications of the brake will cause display of the brake light over the entire display panel.

Claims

1. A combined vehicle brake light and message display apparatus comprising:

a display screen adapted to be mounted at the rear of a vehicle, said screen comprising an array of light emitting elements and means for transmitting light from said elements,

message display control means for selectively energizing different ones of said elements to form a selected pattern of transmitted light, said display control means comprising;

memory means for storing a plurality of sets of data, each set representing an individual message,

control unit means for transmitting a selected set of data from said memory means to said display screen for causing said elements to display a message, and

said control unit means including brake signaling means responsive to a vehicle brake signal for disabling display of said message and energizing at least a major number of said elements in a stop pattern.

2. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein said brake signaling means comprises means for interrupting said message display and lighting substantially all of said light emitting elements to form a solid brake light display over at least a major area of said screen.

3. The apparatus of claim 1 including means for causing said array of light emitting elements to display a default message after each display of a selected message.

4. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein said control unit means comprises means for disabling said display prior to receipt of a first brake signal.

5. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein light transmitted from each of said elements is red.

6. The apparatus of claim 1 including a message selector having a keyboard, said selector including means responsive to operation of said keyboard for transmitting a message identifying signal to said control unit, said control unit including means responsive to said message identifying signal for transmitting to said display screen a set of data signals corresponding responding to said message identifying signal.

7. A method of providing a rearwardly directed message from a vehicle comprising the steps of:

mounting upon a rear portion of the vehicle a display screen having an array of light emitting elements, said array including different groups of elements that form different messages,

energizing one of said groups of elements to display a message, and

energizing a major part of said array when brakes of the vehicle are applied, said step of energizing one of said groups to display a message comprising the step of storing sets of data in a memory, each said set representing a message to be displayed, selectively extracting at least one of said sets of data from said memory, and employing the selectively extracted set to energize elements of said array of light emitting elements in a pattern that forms a message represented by the selectively extracted set.

8. A method of providing a rearwardly directed message from a vehicle comprising the steps of:

mounting upon a rear portion of the vehicle a display screen having an array of light emitting elements,

providing a plurality of sets of data, each set representing a message to be displayed,

employing a selected one of said sets to energize a group of said elements to display a message represented by the selected set, and

energizing a major part of said array when brakes of the vehicle are applied,

said step of energizing a major part of said array comprising concomitantly interrupting display of said message represented by the selected set.

9. A method of providing a rearwardly directed signal from a vehicle comprising the steps of:

mounting upon a rear portion of the vehicle a display screen having an array of light emitting elements, said array including different groups of elements that form different messages,

energizing one of said groups of elements to display a desired message, and

energizing at least a major part of said array when brakes of the vehicle are applied, said step of energizing one of said groups of elements comprising the step of displaying a multi-line message one line at a time.

10. A method of providing a rearwardly directed signal from a vehicle comprising the steps of:

mounting upon a rear portion of the vehicle a display screen having an array of light emitting elements said array including different groups of elements that form different messages,

energizing one of said groups of elements to display a message, and

maintaining said display screen in disabled condition until a first application of vehicle brakes, and then energizing at least a major number of said elements upon each subsequent application of the vehicle brakes.

11. A method of providing a rearwardly directed message from a vehicle comprising the steps of:

mounting upon a rear portion of the vehicle a display screen having an array of light emitting elements,

storing a plurality of sets of data in a memory, each set representing an individual message,

transmitting one of said sets of data from said memory to said array to cause elements of said array to display a selected message, and

energizing at least a major number of said elements when brakes of the vehicle are applied.

12. The method of claim 11 including the step of varying at least some of the sets of data stored in said memory, thereby storing sets of data representing different messages.

13. The method of claim 11 including the step of causing said elements to display a default message after each display of a selected message.

14. The method of claim 11 including the step of programming said memory to store sets of data representing different messages.