document_title: Remote control

question_text: when was the first remote control tv invented

text: Remote control

text: History[edit]

text: In 1894, the first example of wirelessly controlling at a distance was during a demonstration by the British physicist Oliver Lodge, in which he made use of a Branly's coherer to make a mirror galvanometer move a beam of light when an electromagnetic wave was artificially generated. This was further refined by radio innovators Guglielmo Marconi and William Preece, at a demonstration that took place on December 12, 1896, at Toynbee Hall in London, in which they made a bell ring by pushing a button in a box that was not connected by any wires.[3] In 1898 Nikola Tesla filed his patent, U.S. Patent 613,809, named Method of an Apparatus for Controlling Mechanism of Moving Vehicle or Vehicles, which he publicly demonstrated by radio-controlling a boat during an electrical exhibition at Madison Square Garden. Tesla called his boat a "teleautomaton".[4]

text: In 1903, Leonardo Torres Quevedo presented the Telekino at the Paris Academy of Science, accompanied by a brief, and making an experimental demonstration. At the same time he obtained a patent in France, Spain, Great Britain, and the United States. The Telekino consisted of a robot that executed commands transmitted by electromagnetic waves. With the Telekino, Torres-Quevedo laid down modern wireless remote-control operation principles[5] and was a pioneer in the field of remote control. In 1906, in the presence of the king and before a great crowd, Torres successfully demonstrated the invention in the port of Bilbao, guiding a boat from the shore. Later, he would try to apply the Telekino to projectiles and torpedoes, but had to abandon the project for lack of financing. The first remote-controlled model aeroplane flew in 1932, and the use of remote control technology for military purposes was worked intensively during the Second World War, one result of this being the German Wasserfall missile.

text: By the late 1930s, several radio manufacturers offered remote controls for some of their higher-end models.[6] Most of these were connected to the set being controlled by wires, but the Philco Mystery Control (1939) was a battery-operated low-frequency radio transmitter,[7] thus making it the first wireless remote control for a consumer electronics device.  Using pulse-count modulation, this also was the first digital wireless remote control.

text: Television remote controls[edit]

text: The first remote intended to control a television was developed by Zenith Radio Corporation in 1950. The remote, called "Lazy Bones", was connected to the television by a wire. A wireless remote control, the "Flashmatic", was developed in 1955 by Eugene Polley. It worked by shining a beam of light onto a photoelectric cell, but the cell did not distinguish between light from the remote and light from other sources. The Flashmatic also had to be pointed very precisely at the receiver in order to work.[8]

text: In 1956, Robert Adler developed "Zenith Space Command", a wireless remote.[9] It was mechanical and used ultrasound to change the channel and volume. When the user pushed a button on the remote control, it clicked and struck a bar, hence the term "clicker". Each bar emitted a different frequency and circuits in the television detected this sound. The invention of the transistor made possible cheaper electronic remotes that contained a piezoelectric crystal that was fed by an oscillating electric current at a frequency near or above the upper threshold of human hearing, though still audible to dogs. The receiver contained a microphone attached to a circuit that was tuned to the same frequency. Some problems with this method were that the receiver could be triggered accidentally by naturally occurring noises, and some people could hear the piercing ultrasonic signals.

text: The impetus for a more complex type of television remote control came in 1973, with the development of the Ceefax teletext service by the BBC. Most commercial remote controls at that time had a limited number of functions, sometimes as few as three: next channel, previous channel, and volume/off. This type of control did not meet the needs of teletext sets, where pages were identified with three-digit numbers. A remote control to select teletext pages would need buttons for each numeral from zero to nine, as well as other control functions, such as switching from text to picture, and the normal television controls of volume, channel, brightness, colour intensity, etc. Early teletext sets used wired remote controls to select pages, but the continuous use of the remote control required for teletext quickly indicated the need for a wireless device. So BBC engineers began talks with one or two television manufacturers, which led to early prototypes in around 1977–1978 that could control many more functions. ITT was one of the companies and later gave its name to the ITT protocol of infrared communication.[10]

text: In 1980, a Canadian company, Viewstar, Inc., was formed by engineer Paul Hrivnak and started producing a cable TV converter with an infrared remote control. The product was sold through Philips for approximately $190 CAD. At the time the most popular remote control was the Starcom of Jerrold (a division of General Instruments) which used 40-kHz sound to change channels. The Viewstar converter was an immediate success, the millionth converter being sold on March 21, 1985, with 1.6 million sold by 1989.[11]

text: Other remote controls[edit]

text: The Blab-off was a wired remote control created in 1952 that turned a TV's sound on or off so that viewers could avoid hearing commercials.[12] In the 1980s Steve Wozniak of Apple started a company named CL 9. The purpose of this company was to create a remote control that could operate multiple electronic devices. The CORE unit (Controller Of Remote Equipment) was introduced in the fall of 1987. The advantage to this remote controller was that it could "learn" remote signals from different devices. It had the ability to perform specific or multiple functions at various times with its built-in clock. It was the first remote control that could be linked to a computer and loaded with updated software code as needed. The CORE unit never made a huge impact on the market. It was much too cumbersome for the average user to program, but it received rave reviews from those who could.[citation needed] These obstacles eventually led to the demise of CL 9, but two of its employees continued the business under the name Celadon. This was one of the first computer-controlled learning remote controls on the market.[13]

text: In 2006, Hillcrest Labs introduced the Loop pointer, a remote control that used Hillcrest's Freespace motion control technology to allow users to control their televisions with natural gestures. The Loop had just four buttons and a scroll wheel.[14][15][16][17] Freespace-enabled remote controls use radio waves to communicate with a USB antenna connected to a computer that is also connected to the television, so they do not need to be pointed at the PC, or even have a direct line of sight.[18][19][20]

text: In the 2010s, cars are increasingly sold with electronic remote control door locks. These remotes transmit a signal to the car which locks or unlocks the door locks or unlocks the trunk. An aftermarket device sold in some countries is the remote starter. This enables a car owner to remotely start their car. This feature is most associated with countries with winter climates, where users may wish to run the car for several minutes before they intend to use it, so that the car heater and defrost systems can remove ice and snow from the windows.

text: Proliferation[edit]

text: By the early 2000s, the number of consumer electronic devices in most homes greatly increased, along with the number of remotes to control those devices. According to the Consumer Electronics Association, an average US home has four remotes.[citation needed] To operate a home theater as many as five or six remotes may be required, including one for cable or satellite receiver, VCR or digital video recorder (DVR/PVR), DVD player, TV and audio amplifier. Several of these remotes may need to be used sequentially for some programs or services to work properly. However, as there are no accepted interface guidelines, the process is increasingly cumbersome. One solution used to reduce the number of remotes that have to be used is the universal remote, a remote control which is programmed with the operation codes for most major brands of TVs, DVD players, etc. In the early 2010s, many smartphone manufacturers began incorporating infrared emitters into their devices, thereby enabling their use as universal remotes via an included or downloadable app.[21]

text: Technique[edit]

text: The main technology used in home remote controls is infrared (IR) light. The signal between a remote control handset and the device it controls consists of pulses of infrared light, which is invisible to the human eye, but can be seen through a digital camera, video camera or a phone camera.  The transmitter in the remote control handset sends out a stream of pulses of infrared light when the user presses a button on the handset. A transmitter is often a light emitting diode (LED) which is built into the pointing end of the remote control handset. The infrared light pulses form a pattern unique to that button.  The receiver in the device recognizes the pattern and causes the device to respond accordingly.[22]

text: Opto components and circuits[edit]

text: Most remote controls for electronic appliances use a near infrared diode to emit a beam of light that reaches the device. A 940 nm wavelength LED is typical. This infrared light is invisible to the human eye, but picked up by sensors on the receiving device. Video cameras  see the diode as if it produces visible purple light. With a single channel (single-function, one-button) remote control the presence of a carrier signal can be used to trigger a function. For multi-channel (normal multi-function) remote controls more sophisticated procedures are necessary: one consists of modulating the carrier with signals of different frequency. After the receiver demodulates the received signal, it applies the appropriate frequency filters to separate the respective signals. One can often hear the signals being modulated on the infrared carrier by operating a remote control in very close proximity to an AM radio not tuned to a station. Today, IR remote controls almost always use a pulse width modulated code, encoded and decoded by digital computer: a command from a remote control consists of a short train of pulses of carrier-present and carrier-not-present of varying widths.

text: Consumer electronics infrared protocols[edit]

text: Different manufacturers of infrared remote controls use different protocols to transmit the infrared commands. The RC-5 protocol that has its origins within Philips, uses, for instance, a total of 14 bits for each button press. The bit pattern is modulated onto a carrier frequency that, again, can be different for different manufacturers and standards, in the case of RC-5, the carrier is 36 kHz. Other consumer infrared protocols include the various versions of SIRCS used by Sony, the RC-6 from Philips, the Ruwido R-Step, and the NEC TC101 protocol.

text: Infrared, line of sight and operating angle[edit]

text: Since infrared (IR) remote controls use light, they require line of sight to operate the destination device. The signal can, however, be reflected by mirrors, just like any other light source. If operation is required where no line of sight is possible, for instance when controlling equipment in another room or installed in a cabinet, many brands of IR extenders are available for this on the market. Most of these have an IR receiver, picking up the IR signal and relaying it via radio waves to the remote part, which has an IR transmitter mimicking the original IR control. Infrared receivers also tend to have a more or less limited operating angle, which mainly depends on the optical characteristics of the phototransistor. However, it's easy to increase the operating angle using a matte transparent object in front of the receiver.

text: Radio remote control systems[edit]

text: Radio remote control (RF remote control) is used to control distant objects using a variety of radio signals transmitted by the remote control device. As a complementary method to infrared remote controls, the radio remote control is used with electric garage door or gate openers, automatic barrier systems, burglar alarms and industrial automation systems. Standards used for RF remotes are: Bluetooth AVRCP, ZigBee (RF4CE), Z-Wave. Most remote controls use their own coding, transmitting from 8 to 100 or more pulses, fixed or Rolling code, using OOK or FSK modulation. Also, transmitters or receivers can be universal, meaning they are able to work with many different codings. In this case, the transmitter is normally called a universal remote control duplicator because it is able to copy existing remote controls, while the receiver is called a universal receiver because it works with almost any remote control in the market.

text: A radio remote control system commonly has two parts: transmit and receive. The transmitter part is divided into two parts, the RF remote control and the transmitter module. This allows the transmitter module to be used as a component in a larger application. The transmitter module is small, but users must have detailed knowledge to use it; combined with the RF remote control it is much simpler to use.

text: The receiver is generally one of two types: a super-regenerative receiver or a superheterodyne. The super-regenerative receiver works like that of an intermittent oscillation detection circuit. The superheterodyne works like the one in a radio receiver. The superheterodyne receiver is used because of its stability, high sensitivity and it has relatively good anti-interference ability, a small package and lower price.

text: Usage[edit]

text: Industry[edit]

text: Remote control is used for controlling substations, pump storage power stations and HVDC-plants. For these systems often PLC-systems working in the longwave range are used.

text: Garage and gate[edit]

text: Garage and gate remote control are very common, especially in some countries such as the US, Australia, and the UK, where garage doors, gates and barriers are widely used.  Such a remote is very simple by design, usually only one button, and some with more buttons to control several gates from one control.  Such remotes can be divided into two categories by the encoder type used: fixed code and rolling code.  If you find dip-switches in the remote, it is likely to be fixed code, an older technology which was widely used.  However, fixed code has been criticized for its (lack of) security, thus rolling code has been more and more widely used in later installations.

text: Military[edit]

text: Remote controls in military usage employ jamming and countermeasures against jamming. Jammers are used to disable or sabotage the enemy's use of remote controls. The distances for military remote controls also tend to be much longer, up to intercontinental distance satellite linked remote controls used by the U.S. for their unmanned airplanes (drones) in Afghanistan, Iraq and Pakistan. Remote controls are used by insurgents in Iraq and Afghanistan to attack coalition and government troops with roadside improvised explosive devices, and terrorists in Iraq are reported in the media to use modified TV remote controls to detonate bombs.[23]

text: Military history[edit]

text: In World War I, the Imperial German Navy employed FL-boats (Fernlenkboote) against coastal shipping. These were driven by internal combustion engines, and controlled remotely from a shore station through several miles of wire wound on a spool on the boat. An aircraft was used to signal directions to the shore station. EMBs carried a high explosive charge in the bow and traveled at speeds of thirty knots.[24] The Soviet Red Army used remotely controlled teletanks during the 1930s in the Winter War against Finland and the early stages of World War II. A teletank is controlled by radio from a control tank at a distance of 500 to 1,500 meters, the two constituting a telemechanical group. The Red Army fielded at least two teletank battalions at the beginning of the Great Patriotic War. There were also remotely controlled cutters and experimental remotely controlled planes in the Red Army.

text: Space[edit]

text: Remote control technology is also used in space travel, for instance the Soviet Lunokhod vehicles were remote-controlled from the ground. Many space exploration rovers can be remotely controlled, though vast distance to a vehicle results in a long time delay between transmission and receipt of a command.

text: Video games[edit]

text: Video game consoles had not used wireless controllers until recently, mainly because of the difficulty involved in playing the game while keeping the infrared transmitter pointed at the console. Early wireless controllers were cumbersome and when powered on alkaline batteries, lasted only a few hours before they needed replacement. Some wireless controllers were produced by third parties, in most cases using a radio link instead of infrared. Even these were very inconsistent, and in some cases, had transmission delays, making them virtually useless. Some examples include the Double Player for NES, the Master System Remote Control System and the Wireless Dual Shot for the PlayStation.

text: The first official wireless game controller made by a first party manufacturer was the CX-42 for Atari 2600. The Philips CD-i 400 series also came with a remote control, the WaveBird was also produced for the GameCube. In the seventh generation of gaming consoles, wireless controllers became standard. Some wireless controllers, such as those of the PlayStation 3 and Wii, use Bluetooth. Others, like the Xbox 360, use proprietary wireless protocols.

text: PC control[edit]

text: Existing infrared remote controls can be used to control PC applications. Any application that supports shortcut keys can be controlled via IR remote controls from other home devices (TV, VCR, AC).[citation needed] This is widely used[citation needed] with multimedia applications for PC based home theatre systems. For this to work, one needs a device that decodes IR remote control data signals and a PC application that communicates to this device connected to PC. Connection can be made via serial port, USB port or motherboard IrDA connector. Such devices are commercially available but can be homemade using low-cost micro controllers.[citation needed] LIRC (Linux IR Remote control) and WinLIRC (for Windows) are software packages developed for the purpose of controlling PC using TV remote and can be also used for homebrew remote with lesser modification.

text: Photography[edit]

text: Remote controls are used in photography, in particular to take long-exposure shots. Many action cameras such as the GoPros [25] as well as standard DSLRs including Sony's Alpha series [26] incorporate Wi-Fi based remote control systems.  These can often be accessed and even controlled via cell-phones and other mobile devices.[27]

text: Standby power[edit]

text: To be turned on by a wireless remote, the controlled appliance must always be partly on, consuming standby power.[28]

text: Alternatives[edit]

text: Hand-gesture recognition has been researched as an alternative to remote controls for television sets.[29]


document_title: You Don't Bring Me Flowers

question_text: who sings you don't bring me flowers

question_tokens: who sings you do n 't bring me flowers

root

text: You Don't Bring Me Flowers

text:
"You Don't Bring Me Flowers"

Single by Neil Diamond and Barbra Streisand

from the album Barbra Streisand's Greatest Hits Vol. 2 and You Don't Bring Me Flowers

A-side
"You Don't Bring Me Flowers (Duet)"

B-side
"You Don't Bring Me Flowers (Instrumental)"

Released
October 1978

Format
7" single

Genre
Easy listening

Length
3:25

Label
Columbia

Songwriter(s)
Neil Diamond
Alan Bergman and Marilyn Bergman

Producer(s)
Bob Gaudio

Barbra Streisand singles chronology

"Prisoner (Love Theme from Eyes of Laura Mars)"
(1978)
"You Don't Bring Me Flowers"
(1978)
"The Main Event/Fight"
(1979)

"Prisoner (Love Theme from Eyes of Laura Mars)"
(1978)
"You Don't Bring Me Flowers"
(1978)
"The Main Event/Fight"
(1979)

Neil Diamond singles chronology

"Desiree"
(1977) Desiree1977
"You Don't Bring Me Flowers"
(1978) You Don't Bring Me Flowers1978
"Forever in Blue Jeans"
(1979) Forever in Blue Jeans1979

tag: table

text: "You Don't Bring Me Flowers" is a song that hit the top of the Billboard Hot 100 chart in 1978. It is a song about two lovers who have drifted apart while they "go through the motions" and heartache of life together.

tag: p

text: The song was written by Neil Diamond with Alan and Marilyn Bergman for the ill-fated TV show All That Glitters.[1] The song was intended to be the theme song, but Norman Lear changed the concept of the show and the song was no longer appropriate. Diamond then expanded the track from 45 seconds to 3:17, adding instrumental sections and an additional verse. The Bergmans contributed to the song's lyrics.[2]

text: In 1977, Diamond released the album I'm Glad You're Here with Me Tonight, which included the track "You Don't Bring Me Flowers" as a solo performance. Early in 1978, Barbra Streisand covered the song on her album Songbird.

text: The roots of the duet version, as chronicled in myriad Streisand and Diamond biographies as well as Streisand's Just for the Record box set, revolve around WAKY-AM/Louisville KY program director, Gary Guthrie, who spliced the two solo tracks together as a going away present to his wife, whom he had just divorced. As the real life fairytale behind the song unfolded, it triggered a media buzz worldwide from Good Morning America and People magazine to the BBC. Interest in the duet caused such a clamor on the retail level that Columbia Records was compelled to bring Streisand and Diamond into the studio to record an "official" version in October 1978. The song reached number one on the Hot 100 chart for two non-consecutive weeks in December 1978, producing the third number-one hit for both singers.[3] Acknowledgment and gratitude for Guthrie came from CBS with a Gold record plaque, flowers from Diamond and a telegram from Streisand. The duo performed the song at the 1980 Grammy Awards show, a performance released on the 1994 album Grammy's Greatest Moments Volume I.[4]

text: Chicago’s WGN radio personality Roy Leonard and producer Peter Marino are also credited for coming up with the idea to create this duet. Leonard and Marino had put the separately recorded versions together and played them on the air.[5][6]

text: Radio personalities Jack Hood and Gene Kruszewski of WJR-AM/Detroit also cut a duet version of the song which was a local and regional hit and helped escalate the song’s novelty. Columbia Records granted gold records to Hood and Kruszewski in recognition of their efforts.

text: Diamond and Streisand had planned to star in a motion picture based on the song, but such plans were canceled when Diamond starred in a remake of The Jazz Singer.

text: Other versions[edit]

text: Concurrent with the success of Diamond and Streisand's version of the song, country singers Jim Ed Brown and Helen Cornelius released a country version of the song which reached number ten on the Billboard Hot Country Singles chart in early 1979. Also, in the same year, Lynda Carter (of Wonder Woman fame) re-performed this song on Dick Emery's British variety show, The Dick Emery Hour.

text: In 1980 a cover version of the song was recorded by expatriate American singer Dean Reed and Hungarian vocalist Kati Kovács in German and in English.[7]

text: In 1982 Julie Andrews covered the song for her country music inspired-album, Love Me Tender, though it was only included on the international version of the album.

text: In 1986 Norwegian soprano Sissel Kyrkjebø performed the song on Norwegian Television in the TV-show "Kanal 1". In 2006 this performance was included on her album De beste, 1986–2006.[8]

text: In 1993 UK TV presenter Noel Edmonds was tricked into singing the whole song on his show, Noel's House Party. Noel Edmonds had earlier recorded a duet of the song sung by fellow DJs John Peel and Tony Blackburn for use on his BBC Radio 1 show in 1979.

text: In 1996 the song was sung by rappers Ice-T and Tupac Shakur during a Saturday Night Live show.

text: In 1997 it was parodied by Bob Rivers as "You Don't Smell Like Flowers Anymore".[9] There is also a parody by Weird Al Yankovic which he performed on the Dr. Demento show, "You Don't Take Your Showers".


document_title: The Roy Rogers Show

question_text: where did they film the roy rogers show

question_tokens: where did they film the roy rogers show

text: The Roy Rogers Show

text: Format[edit]

text: The show starred Roy Rogers as a ranch owner, Dale Evans as the proprietress of the Eureka Café and Hotel[1] in fictional Mineral City,[2] and Pat Brady as Roy’s sidekick and Dale's cook. Brady's jeep Nellybelle at times had a mind of her own and sped away driverless with Brady in frantic pursuit on foot. Earlier, during the show's 1952 episodes, the jeep was called LuLubelle. Animal stars were Roy's Palomino horse Trigger and his German Shepherd Bullet,[1] the "Wonder Dog".

text: Plot[edit]

text: Like Rogers’s and many other Western films of the 1930s through 1950s, the series featured traditional cowboys and cowgirls riding horses and carrying six-shooters in a contemporary setting where they coexisted with automobiles, telephones, and electric lighting. No attempt was made in the scripts to explain or justify this strange amalgamation of 19th-century characters with 20th-century technology. Typical episodes followed the stars as they rescued the weak and helpless from the clutches of dishonest lawmen, con artists, bank robbers, claim jumpers, rustlers, and other "bad guys."

text: In addition to traditional Western plot themes such as cattle rustling and bank robberies, the program featured more contemporary topics, including gun safety and conservation of natural resources. "Many of the shows expressed a moral, and several preached a Christian message."[3]

text: Production[edit]

text: Interior shots for the show were filmed at the Samuel Goldwyn Studio, with much of the outdoor action footage filmed on the Iverson Movie Ranch in Chatsworth, Los Angeles, California The program was originally sponsored by General Foods (Post Cereals and Jell-O).  The show's theme song, “Happy Trails”, was written by Dale Evans and sung by her and Rogers over the end credits of each episode.[2]

text: The show received an Emmy nomination in 1955 for Best Western or Adventure Series, but it lost out to the syndicated Stories of the Century, an anthology series starring and narrated by Jim Davis.[4] The series finished #27 in the Nielsen ratings for the 1951-1952 season and #30 for 1954-1955.[5]

text: Related merchandise[edit]

text: The show was merchandised for the juvenile market with comic books, playsets, cowboy and cowgirl costumes, toy pistols, longbows, and many other items. In 1957, 2 million copies of each comic book were sold. A related comic strip was syndicated to 186 newspapers.[6]

text: Reruns[edit]

text: From January 1961 until September 1964, CBS broadcast reruns of The Roy Rogers Show on Saturday mornings.[1]


document_title: Stop sign

question_text: what are the measurements of a stop sign

text: Stop sign

text: Specifications[edit]

text: The 1968 Vienna Convention on Road Signs and Signals allows for two types of stop sign, as well as three acceptable variants. Sign B2a is a red octagon with the inscription "STOP" in white. Sign B2b is a red circle with a red inverted triangle with either a white or yellow background, and the inscription "STOP" in either black or dark blue. The Convention allows for the word "STOP" to be in either English or the national language of the particular country. The finalized version by the United Nations Economic and Social Council's Conference on Road Traffic in 1968 (and in force in 1978) proposed the standard stop sign diameters of 600, 900 or 1200 mm.

text: The United Kingdom and New Zealand stop signs are 750, 900 or 1200 mm, according to sign location and traffic speeds.[2][3]

text: In the United States, stop signs have a size of 750 mm across opposite flats of the red octagon, with a 20 mm white border. The white uppercase letters in small caps forming the stop legend are 250 mm tall.[4][5] Larger signs of 900 mm (35 in) with 300 mm (12 in) legend and 25 mm (⅞ in) border are used on multi-lane expressways. Regulatory provisions exist for extra-large 1,200 mm (47 in) signs with 400 mm (16 in) legend and 30 mm (1 1⁄4 in) border for use where sign visibility or reaction distance are limited, and the smallest permissible stop sign size for general usage is 600 mm (24 in) with a 200 mm (7.9 in) legend and 15 mm (⅝ in) border.[6] The metric units specified in the US regulatory manuals are rounded approximations of US customary units, not exact conversions.[5][7] The field, legend, and border are all retroreflective. In the Vienna Convention on Road Signs and Signals of the UN, the instruction on the sign to stop is specified to be either in English as stop or written in the local language. Some countries use both. The sign's distinctive design was developed and first used in the US, and later adopted by other countries and by the UN. Despite this, the US is not a signatory to this UN Convention; the US has the same sign design as specified by the Convention, which adopted the US standard.

text:
B2a

B2b

Acceptable variant of B2b

Acceptable variant of B2b

Acceptable variant of B2b

tag: ul

text: Placement and standardization[edit]

text: The examples and perspective in this article deal primarily with the Northern Hemisphere and do not represent a worldwide view of the subject. You may improve this article, discuss the issue on the talk page, or create a new article, as appropriate. (August 2013) (Learn how and when to remove this template message)

text: Stop signs are used globally. However, most countries see fewer of them than North America and South Africa, because all-way stops are never used and may even be legally prohibited.[8] In a majority of European and Central Asian countries, as well as Cuba in North America, junctions without traffic lights or roundabouts are controlled by stop signs on minor roads and by white, yellow and black priority diamond signs on the major road. In the UK, the Netherlands, Scandinavia, New Zealand and Australia, stop signs are restricted to situations wherein coming to a dead stop is actually necessary because of severely limited sight lines. At the vast majority of minor intersections in these countries Give Way signs and/or equivalent road markings are used. Finally, at the busier crossing streets, Give Way signs may be replaced by (mini) roundabouts, which also work on the give way (rather than stop) principle.

text: In North America[edit]

text: Stop signs are often used in North America to control conflicting traffic movements at intersections that are not busy enough to justify the installation of a traffic signal or roundabout. In the United States, the stop sign is not intended for use as a traffic calming device;[6] it is intended to be installed mainly for safety and/or to assign right-of-way for a certain direction. Nevertheless, in the United States, Mexico and Canada, stop signs are commonly deployed as supposed safety measures in residential areas and near places where children play or walk (such as schoolyards), or that experience frequent automobile collisions, making extra precautions necessary. Stop signs may be erected on all intersecting roads, resulting in three- and four-way stops.[6] However, studies have confirmed that stop signs do not offer measurable safety benefits over the Yield approach adopted in the countries listed above based on original European research dating back many decades.[9][10]

text: More recently, Georgia Traffic Engineer Martin Bretherton Jr. reviewed over 70 technical papers to find that multi-way stop signs do not typically control traffic speeds, and can create a variety of problems, including liability issues, traffic noise, pollution, enforcement problems and poor stop compliance when drivers feel that the signs have no justification. Fifteen studies found that unwarranted multi-way stops actually increased speed away from intersections as motorists try to make up lost time spent at "unnecessary" stop signs. Multi-way stop signs impose high vehicle operating costs, longer than needed travel times, excessive fuel consumption and increased vehicle emissions.[11]

text: Researchers also found that safety of pedestrians (especially small children) may sometimes be actually decreased. Pedestrians expect vehicles to stop, but many drivers run the "unnecessary" signs. Engine exhaust, brake, tire and aerodynamic noise may all increase as cars brake and then accelerate up to speed. While the initial cost of installing stop signs is low, enforcement costs can be prohibitive, and one 1990 study estimated extra travel costs per intersection as $210,061/year.[12] Finally, where unwarranted multi-way stops have been successfully removed with public support, results have included improved compliance at justified stop signs.

text: Another major issue surrounding the use of stop signs pertains to the public's variegated understanding of their meaning. One prolific source of crashes is the misconception of law that every motorist who attempts to enter a main highway from a side road, does so at his or her peril. Such motorists usually have very definite rights granted by provisions of state vehicle codes, which provide that after the driver has 'yielded' by stopping at an arterial sign he or she may proceed and the drivers of all other vehicles approaching the intersection on the through highway shall yield the right of way to the vehicle crossing the through highway.[13] Where a car has actually entered an intersection before the other approaches it, the driver of the first car has the right to assume that he or she will be given the right of way and be permitted to pass through the intersection without danger of collision. He or she has a right to assume that the driver of the other car will obey the law, slow down, and yield the right of way, if slowing down be necessary to prevent a collision.[14] In order to be able fulfill the duty of yielding to entering motorists who have established control of the intersection, the through-driver must travel no faster than permitted by the assured clear distance ahead.[15][16]

text: Vehicles that are approaching an intersection from beyond the subtended angular velocity detection threshold (SAVT) limit may be perceived with subjective constancy by the stopped driver;[17] which means the oncoming vehicle cannot be reliably distinguished between moving or parked or give insight to time-to-collision, though they may be traveling at such an imprudent speed as to pose an immediate hazard.[18] An entering driver must have fair notice that his or her contemplated conduct is forbidden by such hazard for it to be illegal.[19]

text: Stop sign placement can pose an additional challenge to users. There is a trade-off between the salient visual cues provided by increased limit line set-back, and the crucial time that is lost in approaching the intersection from behind that line; being closer can provide a few additional seconds requisite for safe transit. However, common creeping into the intersection past the limit line causes drivers to lose the invaluable perspective of the visual acuity of lateral motion,[20] crippling them to the more dangerous SAVT.[18] This makes it very difficult to estimate the movement of oncoming traffic.[18][17] As intersections are not engineered to be used this way,[21] the traffic flow ideals have broken down when drivers consistently choose this method as the safer alternative. Stop signs are accompanied with a limit line,[22] which has a mandatory set-back distance[23][24][25] which is often not less than 15 feet.[25] While it may be negligence per se to prematurely pass the stop limit line,[22] drivers may be unfairly denied sufficient time gap or opportunity to enter otherwise because of the through-traffic flow and speed; the inherent problem with this traffic control device. While stop signs are a relatively inexpensive method of traffic management, they can be expensive from perspective of the damage they cause users. Pricey but safer traffic signals, roundabouts, and traffic circles are alternatively used where traffic flow dictates it is inappropriate to use a stop sign. It is just as crucial for law enforcement to regulate traffic through-speed that is above the assured clear distance ahead ahead as it is to cite stop sign runners for this device to be a viable option.

text: On school buses[edit]

text: A pivoting arm equipped with a stop sign is a piece of equipment required by law on North American school buses. The sign normally stows flat on the left side of the bus, and is deployed by the driver while picking up or dropping off passengers. Some buses have two such stop arms, one near the front facing forwards, and one near the rear facing backwards. The stop sign is retroreflective and equipped either with red blinking lights above and below the stop legend, or with a stop legend that is illuminated by LEDs. Unlike a normal stop sign, this sign requires other vehicles travelling in both directions to remain stopped until the sign is retracted.

text: United Kingdom[edit]

text: In the UK, stop signs may be placed only at sites with severely restricted visibility, and each must be individually approved by the Secretary of State for Transport.[26] Section 79 of the Highways Act 1980 enables the government to improve visibility at junctions, as by removing or shortening walls or hedges, in preference to placing a stop sign. The former UK practice of using "Halt" or "Slow" at Major Road Ahead signs was discontinued in 1965 at the recommendation of the Worboys Committee.[27] Instead of replacing all the old "Halt" signs with the new Vienna Convention "Stop" sign, "Give Way" became the standard sign at UK priority junctions.[28]

text: Compliance requirements[edit]

text: Laws and regulations regarding how drivers must comply with a stop sign vary by jurisdiction. In the United States and Canada, these rules are set and enforced at the state or provincial level.[citation needed] At a junction where two or more traffic directions are controlled by stop signs, generally the driver who arrives and stops first continues first. If two or three drivers in different directions stop simultaneously at a junction controlled by stop signs, generally the drivers on the left must yield the right-of-way to the driver on the far right.

text: In all countries, the driver must come to a complete stop before entering a stop-controlled intersection, even if no other vehicle or pedestrian is visible. If a stop line is marked on the pavement, they must stop before crossing the line.

text: However, some drivers slow but don't come to a complete stop. This maneuver is called a rolling stop or nicknamed after a city or region regarded as somewhere it is commonplace (e.g., "Rhode Island roll" or "California stop"[29]) – slowing down significantly but not stopping completely at the sign.[30] This partial stop is not acceptable to most law enforcement officials, and can result in a traffic citation.

text: Bicycles[edit]

text: In some jurisdictions, most notably Idaho, the traffic code allows for cyclists approaching a stop sign to slow to a "reasonable speed" and yield to conflicting traffic, but does not mandate a full stop unless "required for safety".[31] This is commonly known as an "Idaho stop" or "stop-as-yield". The Idaho law has been in effect since 1982 and has not been shown to be detrimental to safety.[32] Cyclist advocacy groups have sought similar laws for other jurisdictions in the United States.[33][34]

text: History[edit]

text: Stop signs originated in Michigan in 1915.[35][36] The first ones had black lettering on a white background and were 24 by 24 inches (61 cm × 61 cm), somewhat smaller than the current sign. As stop signs became more widespread, a committee supported by the American Association of State Highway Officials (AASHO) met in 1922 to standardize them, and selected the octagonal shape that has been used in the United States ever since. The unique eight-sided shape of the sign allows drivers facing the back of the sign to identify that oncoming drivers have a stop sign and prevent confusion with other traffic signs. It was also chosen so that it could be identified easily at night, since the original signs were not reflective. The National Conference on Street and Highway Safety (NCSHS), a group competing with AASHTO, advocated a smaller pink-on-yellow stop sign.[35] These two organizations eventually merged to form the Joint Committee on Uniform Traffic Control Devices, which in 1935 published the first Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices for Streets and Highways (MUTCD) detailing the stop sign's specifications.

text: The MUTCD stop sign specifications were altered eight times between 1935 and 1971, mostly dealing with its reflectorization and its mounting height. From 1924 to 1954, stop signs were made with a black stop legend on a yellow field. The reflective sign, initially yellow, was developed by the reflective applications division of 3M spearheaded by Joseph E. Van Kirk, Sr.. The sign gained its current white legend/red field color configuration. Red signifies stop on traffic signals, so this specification unified red as a stop signal whether indicated by sign or by light. The original decision to use a yellow background for the stop sign was based “largely on the unavailability of red pigments that would not fade on exposure.”[37][38] The mounting height reached its current level of 7 ft (2.13 m) in 1971;[35] previously, stop signs were typically mounted 2–3 feet (0.61–0.91 m)[vague] above the ground.[39]

text: The already-widespread use of the MUTCD stop sign became law in the United States in 1966.[35] In 1968, this sign was adopted by the Vienna Convention on Road Signs and Signals as part of United Nations Economic Commission for Europe's effort to standardize road travel across borders. The Convention specifies that 'stop' be written in English or the national language and allows an alternative circular yellow sign. Many European countries are party to the Convention. English-speaking countries, the exception being India, are not party to the Convention but usually use the red octagonal stop sign per their own standards, like the MUTCD. Even in countries not associated with either standard mentioned above, the red octagonal stop sign is often used. Unique types of stop signs may still be observed in countries like Japan.

text: Sign variants[edit]

text: Although all English-speaking and many other countries use the word stop on stop signs, some jurisdictions use an equivalent word in their primary language instead of or in addition to it. Israel uses the image of a hand in a "stop" gesture.

text: In some Caribbean and South American countries (Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Cuba, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Paraguay, Peru, Puerto Rico, Uruguay and Venezuela), signs bear the legend pare ("stop" in Portuguese and Spanish). Mexico and Central American countries bear the legend alto ("halt") instead.

text: In the Canadian province of Quebec, modern signs read either arrêt or stop;[40] however, it is not uncommon to see older signs containing both words in smaller lettering, with arrêt on top.[41] Both stop and arrêt are considered valid French words and the Office québécois de la langue française (OQLF) notes that the use of "stop" on stop signs is attested in French since 1927.[42] At the time of the debates surrounding the adoption of the Charter of the French Language ("Bill 101") in 1977, the usage of "stop" on the older dual-word signs was considered to be English and therefore controversial; some signs were occasionally vandalized with red spray paint to turn the word stop into "101".[43] However, it was later officially determined by the OQLF that "stop" is a valid French word in this context, and the older dual arrêt + stop usage is therefore not considered bilingual but merely redundant and therefore deprecated (à éviter). All newly installed signs thus use either one word or the other, but not both. In practice, the vast majority of signs use "arrêt" in the province of Québec. The "stop" word is usually seen in predominantly english-speaking areas.

text: The province of New Brunswick has bilingual stop arrêt in English-speaking areas. Acadian regions of Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island also have bilingual signs. Some areas in Manitoba and Ottawa, Ontario also have bilingual signs, as do entrances to the country through Canada Customs. On First Nations or Inuit territories, stop signs sometimes use the local aboriginal language in addition to or instead of English, French or both. Other parts of Canada use stop. The use of native languages is also commonplace on U.S. native reservations, especially those promoting language revitalization efforts.

text:
Arabic-speaking countries use قف qif
Greater China (including Taiwan) uses 停 tíng
Iran and Afghanistan use ایست ist
Japan uses 止まれ tomare
North Korea uses 섯 sŏt
South Korea uses 정지 jeongji
Malaysia and Brunei use berhenti
Mongolia uses ЗОГС zogs
Thailand uses หยุด yùd
Turkey uses dur

text: Almost all of Europe, including France, Greece, Russia, Serbia and Spain, (except Turkey) use stop in Latin letters.

text: The white text on red background appearance is usually the same. Exceptions include Japan, which uses an inverted solid red triangle, and Zimbabwe, which (until 2016) used a disc bearing a black cross.

text: Stop signs around the world[edit]

text:
Argentina

Armenia

Australia, New Zealand, Canada, United States

Bangladesh, Nepal

Bhutan

Brunei

Brazil

Cambodia

Canada (Quebec)

Canada (Nunavut, Inuktitut language)

Canada (Abenaki-speaking communities)

Canada (Cree-speaking communities)

Canada (Mi'Kmaq-speaking communities)

Canada (Mohawk-speaking communities)

Canada (Wendat-speaking communities)

Canada (English and French)

Mexico And Central America

Chile, Dominican Republic, Venezuela

China (Mainland)

Taiwan

Hong Kong

Cuba

Cyprus (Northern Cyprus)

Czech Republic

Ethiopia

France

Germany

Indonesia

Iran

Ireland (Irish language)

Israel

Jamaica

Japan

Jordan

Laos (Lao)

Libya

Malaysia

Mongolia

Morocco

Morocco (Berber-speaking communities)

Myanmar

North Korea

Norway

Pakistan

Papua New Guinea

Poland

SADC

Saudi Arabia

Singapore

South Korea

Thailand

Tonga

Turkey

United Arab Emirates

United States (Cherokee Nation)

United States (Seneca Nation)

United States (Puerto Rico)

Vanuatu

text: Old stop signs[edit]

text:
Old American stop sign until 1954

"Halt" sign used in Australia (1940s–1956)

Old Australian stop sign (1956–1964)

Old Austrian stop sign (1960–1971)

Old Belgian stop sign (1950–1971)

Bohemia and Moravia stop sign (1939–1960)

Old Chinese stop sign

Old Danish stop sign (1955–1978)

Old Finnish stop sign (1957–1971)

First German stop sign (before 1937)

Second German stop sign (1938–1953 West; 1938–1956 East)

West German stop sign (1953–1956)

West German stop sign (1956–1971)

East German stop sign (1956–1978)

Old Icelandic stop sign (1956-1975)

Old Israeli stop sign

Old Italian stop sign (before 1959)

Old Italian stop sign (1959–1992)

Japanese stop sign (1950–1960)

Japanese stop sign (1960–1963)

Old Malawian and Zimbabwean stop sign (replaced with the international standard in 2016)

Old Mozambique stop sign until 1980

Old North Korean stop sign

Old Dutch stop sign (1950–1979)

Old Norwegian stop sign (1953–1971)

Old Romanian stop sign (1957–1961)

Old Romanian stop sign (1961–1966)

Old Romanian stop sign (1966–1970)

Old Romanian stop sign (1970)

Old South Korean stop sign

Old Swedish stop sign (1951–1975)

Old Swiss stop sign

Old Taiwanese stop sign

Old Thai stop sign

Old version of the STOP sign in the United Arab Emirates until 1971

Former UK stop sign until 1975 (still used in the Bahamas)

Stop sign used in South Vietnam since the 1950s