Cats Eyes

Not a very good photo I'm afraid, but the cat wouldn't keep still!
However a good story!

Who has heard of Percy Shaw?

One foggy night in 1933, Percy Shaw was driving down the steep road from Queensbury to his home in Boothtown, Halifax. He had made this journey many times before, using the reflection of his car headlamps on the tramlines to help negotiate the hazardous bends.
Suddenly , Percy was plunged into pitch darkness, the reassuring reflected light was no longer there, the tramlines had been taken up for repair.

Out of the swirling gloom he noticed two points of light that helped him; his headlights had caught the eyes of a cat sitting on a fence!
Percy suddenly realised the great potential of improving road safety if he could create a reflecting device that could be fitted to road surfaces.

So he created the Reflecting Roadstud, or "Cats Eyes". It's clever design enables the rays of light entering the front of the lens to reflect back in the same direction and it includes a wiper that automatically cleans the eye every time the rubber pad is pressed down.

Over one million Cats Eyes are produced each year and are to be found worldwide.
They have been called " the most brilliant invention ever produced in the interest of road safety"

This cat was part of the exhibition in Calderdale Industrial Museum.
Percy had it made to demonstrate the cats eyes.

We spent a couple of hours looking round the museum, which was open as part of the Heritage Open Days Weekend.

Many thanks to fellow blipper MidgeholeDave and his Friday blip. see his blip here
We wouldn't have know about this otherwise.