Switch pattern selection and informational display arrangement for a multiple pattern sewing machine

Claim 1

A stitch pattern selection and informational display arrangement for use in an electronically controlled multiple pattern sewing machine comprising: a graphics element having thereon a plurality of stitch pattern indicia arranged in groups and a plurality of sets of informational indicia, each of said sets of informational indicia being associated with a respective stitch pattern indicium, said graphics element comprising a card having the stitch pattern and informational indicia printed thereon, said card being slidably mounted for back and forth sliding motion; means for masking said graphics element to make visible at any time only the stitch pattern indicia from one of said groups and the corresponding sets of informational indicia, said masking means including a fixed opaque element with a plurality of optically transparent window regions; operator influenced shifting means for relatively positioning said masking means with respect to said graphics element so as to selectively make visible a desired group of said stitch pattern indicia and the corresponding sets of informational indicia, said shifting means including a tab member extending outwardly from said card to a region where its position can be influenced by an operator; first switching means responsive to the position of said shifting means for providing a first signal corresponding to the visible group of said stitch pattern indicia; operator actuable second switching means for providing a second signal indicative of a selected one of said stitch patterns indicia within said visible group; and means for combining said first and second signals to provide a stitch pattern selection signal.