Simplex traffic signal

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Four-directional signal Darley Simplex C-810 Two bulb in Ohio

The Simplex Traffic Signal from the manufacturer WS Darley & Co. is one of the first electrical traffic light systems . Another system made by American Traffic Signal Co. was commissioned on August 5, 1914 in Cleveland , United States , and was patented in the same year. It was placed on all four corners of the intersection of East 105th Street and Euclid Avenue, a major arterial road along Lake Erie heading northeast to Buffalo . The manufacture of the first devices goes back to Police Chief Sergeant William Potts (1883–1947), a little later these were replicated by many manufacturers.

The inauguration ceremony took place on August 5th, 1914 with great participation from the population. Lawyer Alfred A. Benesch (1879–1973), chairman of the security committee, put the facility into operation at 5:00 p.m., as the rush hour meant the highest traffic density.

history

At the beginning of the 20th century , automobile traffic increased many times faster than the expansion of the roads was possible. Pedestrians traveled faster than motorists in city centers during rush hour. Semaphores , a kind of form signals similar to those used in the railroad, are considered to be the forerunners of technology . These were tried out on a trial basis in nearby Toledo from 1908 . By 1930 all the relevant systems had disappeared again. Semaphores were considered too poorly visible, especially at night. Similar experiments were also started in Leipzig and New York , although an exact determination of the pioneer is not possible due to the lack of mention in the local press. The Simplex Traffic Signal was also designed according to the models used by the railways, which in turn had borrowed from shipping . Red and green signal lamps for port and starboard had been in use in commercial shipping since 1852 and in sailing ships from 1857. It was safe to sail at sea if the two ships passed each other on the starboard side. The use of “green” for free travel was therefore an obvious choice. Red light has a wide range and is easy to distinguish from green at night. Also beacon use only white, red and green light for the lateral navigation . In 1868 the world's first traffic light system was installed in Parliament Square in London . The red and green lanterns were operated with gas light , but proved to be prone to failure.

In the spring of 1914, more and more car accidents were reported for the first time, especially in the major cities of the Midwest , where the auto industry had established itself. The octagonal stop sign , which was first erected by the Motor Club of Michigan in Michigan , also dates from the same period . This sign is said to have helped to accept the requirement of mutual consideration , the guiding principle of many road traffic regulations.

technology

The Simplex Traffic Signal consisted of an upper and a lower light chamber, each of which had red and green round glass panes on two sides with a sheet metal shield against the sunlight. If the lamp was burning in one of the chambers, a red light was arranged for one street and a green light for the other street, and the signal was switched by changing the lighting in the other chamber. The lightbulbs were connected by separate electrical cables to a switch box, which was a little higher than street level and could be heated in winter. From there it was possible for a police officer to switch the traffic lights manually depending on the traffic situation. This manual operation was not necessarily due to a lack of technical switching capability: just a few years later, manual switching was dispensed with for cost reasons with the help of the Reynolds Time-O-Matic control. However, in the early years it was later judged that “nobody expected that drivers, drivers or pedestrians would follow such a signal without the police being present.” With the American Traffic Signal Co. system , the police officer on duty was also in contact with the control center and was able to assist Set the fire alarm at all traffic lights to red and trigger an additional gong like at a railway barrier to signal the vehicle drivers to clear the road for the fire brigade.

The system was patented as a “manually controlled traffic light system using electric lights” under the number 1.251.666. The letters “STOP” and “MOVE” were poured into the glass. The then 31-year-old inventor himself failed to apply for a patent and had no part in it.

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b The Motorist ( Memento from February 7, 2012 in the Internet Archive ), club booklet of the Cleveland Automobile Club, p. 28f.
  2. ^ Alfred Abraham Benesch Papers , OhioLINK Finding Aid Repository
  3. ↑ a b c d e f Clay McShane: The Origins and Globalization of Traffic Control Signals . In: Journal of Urban History, March 1999
  4. ^ Lay Maxwell: A History of the World's Roads and the Vehicles That Used Them , New Brunswick, 1992, pp. 184-185.
  5. ↑ Burkhard Strass: Ampel: Die Autorität . In: Die Zeit 32/2014 from August 5, 2014.
  6. ↑ Clay McShane: The Origins and Globalization of Traffic Control Signals , in: Journal of Urban History, March 1999, p. 382, ​​quoted and translated by: Christian Weber: The human thinks, the traffic light steers ; in: Süddeutsche Zeitung, July 26, 2014, p. 22
  7. ↑ Traffic lights in use before there were motorcars . Entry on Did you know? dated February 7, 2010.

Web links

Coordinates: 41 ° 30 ′ 13.3 "  N , 81 ° 36 ′ 54.9"  W.