Electric turn signal lights were devised as early as 1907 (U.S. Patent 912,831 ). In 1925, Edgar A. Walz, Jr. secured a patent for the first modern automobile turn signal[citation needed]. He marketed the device to all the major automobile manufacturers but none indicated an interest[citation needed]. Fourteen years later the patent expired;[citation needed] the modern turn signal was first generally offered by major automobile manufacturers in 1939. Today, turn signals are required on all vehicles that are driven on public roadways in most countries. Alternative systems of hand signals were used earlier, and they are still common for bicycles. Hand signals are also sometimes used when regular vehicle lights are malfunctioning.
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