Shift lever position indicator for motor vehicle automatic transmission system

Claim 1

A shift lever position indicator for a motor vehicle automatic transmission system having a manual selector valve spool movable to different control positions, which comprises: a shift lever adapted to be connected to the manual selector valve spool so that the valve spool is positioned when said shift lever is placed at one of the control positions; a casing including upper and bottom walls and having at the upper wall thereof a first central slot, and first and second elongated side windows extending along said first central slot and having at the bottom wall thereof a second central slot coextensive with said first central slot, said casing being so positioned as to allow said shift lever to be inserted into said first and second central slots and to be movable along the longitudinal direction of said first and second central slots; an opaque patterned plate member snugly fitted with said first elongated side window, said patterned plate member having first transparent patterned portions representing the respective control positions, said first transparent patterned portions being ordered along the moving direction of said shift lever; guide means formed on said the inner surface of the bottom wall of said casing and extending along said second central slot; a blind and slide member slidably mounted on said guide means and connected with said shift lever so that said blind and slide member slides along the direction of said shift lever in accordance with the movement of said shift lever, said blind and slide member having such an extent as to blind said first central slot; an opaque indicating plate member connected with said blind and slide member and having second transparent patterned portions representing the respective control positions, said second transparent patterned portions being arranged beneath said second elongated side window in a direction inverse to that of said first transparent patterned portions; an opaque apertured plate member snugly fitted with said second elongated side window and having an aperture having substantially the same extent as that of each second transparent patterned portion and formed at such a portion as to allow one of said second transparent patterned portions to be exposed outside of said casing; and at least one energizable light source positioned within said casing so that said light source irradiates light rays emitted from it when it is energized.