Street Light Technical Information Willis Lamm   STREET LIGHTS: Patents from 1945 through 1949

Patents are an effective way to understand the development of street lighting in the United States. In this section I have posted patents as I located them. (Early patents are difficult to locate as they were not cross-indexed.) All patents are listed in order of their filing dates. Click on the patent number or thumbnail to view the entire patent.

The post war period saw a resurgence in street light design development.

Patent No. 2432977 Filing date: June 8, 1945 Patent date: December 23, 1947 Title: Highway Light Inventor: Thomas W. Allmond Claims: Projection type lighting system with movable deflectors.
Patent No. 2474326 Filing date: December 18, 1945 Patent date: June 28, 1949 Title: Street Lighting Luminaire Inventor: Thomas W. Rolph Assignee: Holophane Co. Claims: Improved bowl (gumball) refractor to project more semi-horizontal light.
Patent No. 2575310 Filing date: April 12, 1946 Patent date: November 13, 1951 Title: Street Spring Biased Sealing Device for Supporting a Luminaire Bowl on the Reflector Inventor: Edward H. Yonkers and James H. Fahey Assignee: Joslyn Manufacturing and Supply Co. Claims: Gasket free spring mechanism for attaching the refractor bowl to the reflector.
Patent No. 2474327 Filing date: May 7, 1946 Patent date: June 28, 1949 Title: Street Lighting Luminaire Inventor: Thomas W. Rolph Assignee: Holophane Co. Claims: CR (cone) type refractor.
Patent No. 2584671 Filing date: July 30, 1946 Patent date: February 5, 1952 Title: Street Electric Lighting Fitting Having the Lamp and Control Elements Therefor Removable as a Unit Inventor: Frederick L. Cator and Frederick William Thorpe Assignee: General Electric Co. Claims: Mercury vapor luminaire where the ballast and condensor pack swings out with the lamp for servicing.
Patent No. D149972 Filing date: July 31, 1946 Patent date: June 15, 1948 Title: Street Lighting Reflector Inventor: Charles H. Rex Assignee: General Electric Co. Claims: Streamlined ornamental design for "moon crescent" admiral's hat reflector.
Patent No. 2448493 Filing date: August 30, 1946 Patent date: August 31, 1948 Title: Multiple Life Light Bulb Inventor: Stanley Joseph Meno and John Richard Cavinaugh Claims: Dual filament lamp bulb where the back-up filament engages once the primary filament fails.
Patent No. 2578451 Filing date: August 30, 1946 Patent date: December 11, 1951 Title: Luminaire Inventor: Charles H. Rex Assignee: General Electric Co. Claims: Improved admiral's hat reflector shape.
Patent No. 2443442 Filing date: February 25, 1947 Patent date: June 15, 1948 Title: Lamp Cutout Inventor: Henry E. Butler Assignee: General Electric Co. Claims: Improved magazine type film cutout.
Patent No. 2455829 Filing date: April 30, 1947 Patent date: December 7, 1948 Title: Electric Lamp Inventor: Ralph B. Thomas and Mazeppa Don Betts Assignee: Sylvania Electric Producte, Inc. Claims: Sealed beam luminaire.
Patent No. 2612600 Filing date: August 12, 1947 Patent date: September 30, 1952 Title: Open Type Luminaire with Easily Removed Reflector Inventor: Edward H. Yonkers Assignee: Joslyn Manufacturing and Supply Co. Claims: Open full cutoff refractor.
Patent No. 2486558 Filing date: August 17, 1947 Patent date: November 1, 1949 Title: Street Lighting Luminaire Inventor: Kurt Franck Assignee: Holophane Co. Claims: Ovate refractor.
Patent No. 2566126 Filing date: August 19, 1947 Patent date: August 28, 1951 Title: Street Lighting Luminaire Inventor: Kurt Franck Assignee: Holophane Co. Claims: Shallow bowl refractor.
Patent No. 2600514 Filing date: February 2, 1948 Patent date: June 17, 1952 Title: Elliptical Type Street Lighting Reflector Incorporating Parabolic Reflecting Areas Inventor: Percival H. Mitchell Claims: Improved parabolic reflector with elliptical elements.
Patent No. D152446 (Design patent) Filing date: February 20, 1948 Patent date: January 18, 1949 Title: Street Lighting Standard Inventor: Alva B. Winters Assignee: Revere Electric Manufacturing Co. Claims: Post mount vertical flourescent luminaire.
Patent No. D153196 (Design patent) Filing date: May 19, 1948 Patent date: March 22, 1949 Title: Street Lighting Standard Inventor: Alva B. Winters Assignee: Revere Electric Manufacturing Co. Claims: Post mount flourescent and incandescent combo luminaire.
Patent No. 2610310 Filing date: June 2, 1948 Patent date: September 9, 1952 Title: Fluorescent Street Lighting System Inventor: Alfred M. Miles Claims: High power factor fluorescent lighting circuitry for street lamps.
Patent No. 2608369 Filing date: June 23, 1948 Patent date: August 26, 1952 Title: Street-Lighting Fixture Inventor: Andrew A. Hocher Asignee: Hubbard and Co. Claims: Improved bracket arm mounting system for wooden poles.
Patent No. 2610239 Filing date: September 7, 1948 Patent date: September 9, 1952 Title: Traffic Signal and Street Light Control System Inventor: Jason O'D. Shepherd Claims: System where coordinated traffic signal controllers can also operate street light circuits.
Patent No. 2599285 Filing date: October 6, 1948 Patent date: June 3, 1952 Title: Ovate Roadway Reflector Inventor: Charles H. Rex Assignee: General Electric Co. Claims: Improved reflector for teardrop pendant luminaires.
Patent No. 2489076 Filing date: November 12, 1948 Patent date: November 22, 1949 Title: Photoelectric Controlled Luminaire Inventor: Arthur M. Bjontegard Assignee: General Electric Co. Claims: Canopy top photocontrol.
Patent No. 2610289 Filing date: February 23, 1949 Patent date: September 9, 1952 Title: Enclosed Internally Heated Electric Discharge Lamp Luminaire for Variable Temperature Service Inventor: Arthur A. Brainerd Claims: Fluorescent luminaire with internal heating element.
Patent No. 2493087 Filing date: February 2, 1949 Patent date: January 3, 1950 Title: Street Lighting Luminaire Inventor: Thomas W. Rolph Assignee: Holophane Co. Claims: Improved VR low glare refractor.
Patent No. 2739226 Filing date: June 3, 1949 Patent date: March 20, 1956 Title: Luminaire Inventor: Charles H. Rex Assignee: General Electric Co. Claims: Horozontal mercury vapor luminaire (Form 109.)
Patent No. 2631247 Filing date: September 17, 1949 Patent date: March 10, 1953 Title: Photocell Mounting Device Inventor: Burton E. Shaw Assignee: Photoswitch, Inc. Claims: Thread-on photocontrol.

Continue to 1950 - 1953

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Please note: This index is a work in progress. If you notice an error or are aware of something that is missing, please feel free to Email me. Thanks!