Vehicle mounted warning device

Claim 1

A warning device intended for permanent mounting on the body of a vehicle, such as an automobile, in a substantially concealed inoperative position and adapted for utilization in an operable position disposed at an elevation substantially higher than the top of the passenger compartment of the vehicle, comprising: an upright longitudinally elongated hollow open ended cylindrical support tube having an open top end and an open bottom end, the top end adapted to be mounted to the body of the automobile below an exterior portion thereof and axially aligned with an opening provided therefor in the automobile body with the support tube positioned in a substantially vertical manner, the support tube having an elongated cylindrical compartment extending axially completely therethrough between the resepctive ends thereof; mounting means associated with said support tube top end for affixing said tube to said vehicle body, said mounting means including a flat washer affixed to the tube top end concentric with the tube to define an annular shoulder thereabout for engaging the interior of the vehicle body to secure the tube thereto; a telescopic mast axially positioned within the support tube and telescopic relative thereto between a retracted inoperative position in which it is completely concealed from sight within the support tube, and an operative display position in which it is extended telescopically from the support tube with the top end thereof projecting a substantial height above the automobile passenger compartment roof surface, the telescoping mast consisting of at least three longitudinally elongated hollow cylindrical mast sections each having a different interior and exterior diameter, the lower section having an exterior diameter of a size to be slidably telescopically received for reciprocal movement within the support tube compartment through the top end thereof, the intermediate section being of a diameter to be telescopically received within the lower section through its top end, and the upper section being of a diameter to be telescopically received within the intermediate section through its top end, the collapsed telescoped position of the sections all being completely contained within the support tube compartment in the inoperative position; a disc shaped base mounted to the top end of the mast upper section normal to the axis of the mast, the base completely covering the vehicle body opening when resting on the vehicle body when the mast is in the collapsed inoperative position; an electric lamp socket mounted centrally of the base and extending upwardly therefrom; an electric lamp removably received in the socket for energization thereby to provide a visible warning light signal; a light transmitting dome shaped transparent protective cover surrounding the lamp and socket and removably secured to the top surface of the base about the periphery thereof; a pair of suitably insulated electrical wires attached to the socket and passing downwardly therefrom through all of the mast section and through the supporting tube to be connected to the electrical circuit of the vehicle to permit selective energization and de-energization of the lamp; a rigid triangularly shaped pennant signaling member having a base edge and an apex and forming a visible signal to be detachably attached along its base edge to the side wall of the upper mast section and extend laterally outwardly therefrom for visibility to oncoming traffic approaching the vehicle; a pair of longitudinally spaced apart parallelly aligned radially disposed openings extending through the side wall of the upper mast section and opening into the hollow interior thereof; and a pair of identical members affixed to the opposite ends of the pennant base edge and projecting outwardly therefrom in the plane of the pennant and normal to the base edge, the spacing between the members being equal to the spacing between the upper mast section openings and adapted to be detachably received therein to retain the pennant removably secured to the mast, the members being formed of a resilient material, the members being of an elongated cylindrical shape, each member having one end thereof permanently mounted to the pennant base edge with the opposite end terminating in an enlarged diameter greater than the diameter of the openings in the upper mast section, the members being provided intermediate their respective ends with a diameter of reduced cross-section less than the diameter of the upper mast section openings, the members each having a diametric disposed slot extending longitudinally along their axis through the enlarged diameter end portion and the intermediate central portion, the slot being of a thickness permitting the opposite ends of the end portions of each member to be resiliently deflected inwardly toward each other for insertion axially into the associated upper mast section opening after which the opposite ends again separate to retain the intermediate reduced area central portion in contact with the edges of the opening and the enlarged opposite end removably retained within the interior of the upper mast section whereby the pennant is thus detachably attached to the upper mast section for signaling purposes.