With Combined Alarm And Time Motor Patents (Class 368/260)
  • Patent number: 9207643
    Abstract: A striking mechanism, particularly for a watch, includes at least one gong fixed to a gong-carrier, at least one hammer for striking the gong at predetermined times, and a device to select at least one mode of vibration of the gong. The selection device includes at least one selector element arranged in contact on a part of the gong and held on a vibration node of a mode of vibration of the gong to be selected so as to block other modes of vibration. The selector element can be moved on the gong by a mechanical or magnetic movement device.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 13, 2014
    Date of Patent: December 8, 2015
    Assignee: Montres Breguet S.A.
    Inventors: Polychronis Nakis Karapatis, Jerome Favre, Davide Sarchi, Younes Kadmiri, Fabio Sciascia
  • Patent number: 8500324
    Abstract: Timepiece movement 1 including an energy source 36 coupled to an oscillating weight 2 by a first kinematic chain 3 for automatically winding the movement 1, the timepiece movement 1 being characterized in that the energy source 36 is also coupled to an actuation device 41 and a vibrating element 42 via a second kinematic chain 4 to form a vibrating alarm mechanism that can be released at a predetermined time.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 21, 2010
    Date of Patent: August 6, 2013
    Assignee: The Swatch Group Research and Development Ltd
    Inventors: Jean-Jacques Born, Cédric Nicolas
  • Patent number: 7322742
    Abstract: The invention proposes a timepiece including a motion work (12) which drives analogue display means (14) and a strike train (16) which drives a striking mechanism (18), wherein the motion work (12) is driven in rotation by a barrel (20) including a spring, a toothing which meshes with the motion work (12), and a winding ratchet (38) coaxial to the barrel (20), the winding ratchet (38) being secured in rotation to the drive arbour (26) of the barrel (20), and wherein a winding member (44) is provided to mesh with the winding ratchet (38) in order to wind the barrel spring (24), characterized in that the winding ratchet (38) drives the strike train (16) in rotation via an intermediate wheel set (45) whose axis (A2) is shifted relative to the axis (A1) of the barrel (20), and in that the intermediate wheel set (45) includes a click device (47) for uncoupling the winding ratchet (38) relative to the strike train (16) during the winding phase of the spring (24).
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 11, 2007
    Date of Patent: January 29, 2008
    Assignee: Montres Breguet S.A.
    Inventor: Eric Goeller
  • Publication number: 20080008052
    Abstract: A timepiece has a timekeeping mechanism for keeping and displaying the time, a hammer, a bowl-shaped sound source that sounds when struck by the hammer, a sound source mounting member for fastening the bowl-shaped sound source to the timekeeping mechanism, and a striking control means for causing the hammer to operate. The bowl-shaped sound source has a bottom part and a side wall part. The hammer, the striking control means, and at least a part of the timekeeping mechanism are disposed in an internal space between the bottom part and the side wall part of the bowl-shaped sound source. The sound source mounting member is attached to the center of the bottom part of the bowl-shaped sound source, and fastens the bowl-shaped sound source to the timekeeping mechanism so that the bowl-shaped sound source can move a prescribed distance within a range not contacting the case of the timepiece or the timekeeping mechanism.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 20, 2007
    Publication date: January 10, 2008
    Applicant: Seiko Epson Corporation
    Inventor: Masatoshi Moteki
  • Patent number: 7021819
    Abstract: A timepiece including a clockwork movement for measuring the time, and a striking work actuated by a barrel with a motor spring independent of the clockwork movement, this timepiece also including mechanical control means capable of being actuated manually to trigger the striking work, wherein the barrel is wound by means of a winding bar that ends, at its free end, in a toothed sector or rack and is kinematically connected to a winding push-button on the one hand, and to the motor spring of said striking work on the other hand.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 21, 2001
    Date of Patent: April 4, 2006
    Assignee: Glashutter Uhrenbetrieb GmbH
    Inventor: Christian Schmiedchen
  • Patent number: 6018290
    Abstract: A timer for controlling an appliance includes a bell chime assembly having a striker, a torsion spring, and a bell. The striker is secured to the torsion spring. The timer further includes a cam follower operatively coupled to the torsion spring. The cam follower is operatively associated with a cam assembly which includes a first cam and a second cam. The first cam and the second cam are configured such that during manual setting of the timer, the torsion spring is prevented from deflecting by an amount sufficient to cause the striker to contact the bell whereby relatively quiet manual setting of the timer is enabled.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 12, 1998
    Date of Patent: January 25, 2000
    Assignee: Emerson Electric Co.
    Inventors: Steven W. Vande Lune, Ronald E. Cole, Ross G. Helft
  • Patent number: 4659233
    Abstract: The present invention provides a timpiece including clock and timer sections which can be operated solely or in association with each other. When the clock and timer sections are combined with each other, the start of the timer section is controlled by an alarm signal from the clock section such that two different alarm functions can be attained. The alarm signal is preferably in the form of an alarm output or alarm pause output. The clock and timer secitons may be connected into a unit or mechanically disconnected from each other. When the clock section can be separated from the timer section, the state of connection therebetween and the life of a battery used can warningly be indicated.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 11, 1984
    Date of Patent: April 21, 1987
    Assignee: Rhythm Watch Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Norihiko Nakamura, Hideki Morishima
  • Patent number: 4657404
    Abstract: An hour detection wheel and a minute detection wheel for detecting an alarm signaling time are provided in combination with an hour time wheel and a minute time wheel respectively. An alarm signaling time indicating block having a minute indication drum connected to an alarm signaling time setting member and marked with minute-scale alarm signaling time graduations and an hour indication drum marked with hour-scale alarm signaling time graduations and adapted to be turned intermittently by the minute indication drum is disposed outside a clock movement having the hour and the minute detection wheels and the minute indication drum interlocked by gear trains with the hour and the minute detection wheels.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 20, 1984
    Date of Patent: April 14, 1987
    Assignee: Seikosha Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Masuo Ogihara, Tadashi Ishikawa
  • Patent number: 4461583
    Abstract: In an alarm electronic timepiece having a reference time generator, a normal hand stepping pulse generator for driving a stepping motor, an alarm coincidence circuit and an electric buzzer, it includes an alarm hand stepping pulse generator which produces an alarm hand stepping pulse to drive the stepping motor instead of the normal hand stepping pulse from the normal hand stepping pulse generator, in an alarm sound generating state. The alarm hand stepping pulse produces at the lowest alarm sound pressure of the electronic buzzer, whereby a highly reliable and acoustically excellent alarm electronic timepiece is provided.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 20, 1981
    Date of Patent: July 24, 1984
    Assignee: Seiko Instruments & Electronics Ltd.
    Inventor: Nobuo Obara