Abstract: An integral assembly of a single or double hairspring and an unsplit collet including two portions opposite one another for receiving the balance staff, one portion including one of the bearing surfaces (2 or 3) for the balance staff and a point (10, 11) for attaching the hairspring, and the other portion including another bearing surface (4, 5 or 14) for the balance staff, the two portions being connected together by two linking portions that are less rigid than the receiving portions so as to be capable of elastically deforming during the fitting of a balance staff. According to another aspect, the invention also relates to an integral assembly of a hairspring and a collet, including at least two stages, as well as to a method for manufacturing such an assembly.

Abstract: A split collet in which the contour of the central opening that is intended to receive a balance staff is not circular. The collet is characterized in that the contour (3) of the central opening (2) comprises a limited number of supporting parts (4, 5, 12, 14, 15) intended to co-operate with the balance shaft, said number being greater than two.

Abstract: An integral assembly of a single or double hairspring and an unsplit collet including two portions opposite one another for receiving the balance staff, one portion including one of the bearing surfaces (2 or 3) for the balance staff and a point (10, 11) for attaching the hairspring, and the other portion including another bearing surface (4, 5 or 14) for the balance staff, the two portions being connected together by two linking portions that are less rigid than the receiving portions so as to be capable of elastically deforming during the fitting of a balance staff. According to another aspect, the invention also relates to an integral assembly of a hairspring and a collet, including at least two stages, as well as to a method for manufacturing such an assembly.

Abstract: The present invention relates to a hairspring for a timepiece hairspring-balance oscillator, which can be produced, in particular, from a low-density material such as silicon, diamond or quartz, and to a method of manufacturing such a hairspring. According to the invention, this hairspring comprises at least one leaf (2) the cross section of which has a thickness and a height and its characterizing feature is that the leaf (2) comprises a plurality of apertures (3) extending in the heightwise direction of the leaf and alternating with bridges (5). The invention also relates to a method of manufacturing such a hairspring.

Abstract: Hairspring for a balance wheel/hairspring resonator, comprising n blades, where n?2, which are fastened via at least one of their respective homologous ends and wound in spirals with an angular offset capable of neutralizing the lateral forces liable to be exerted on its central arbor when one of the ends of each blade is moved angularly around said central arbor relative to its other end.

Abstract: A split collet in which the contour of the central opening that is intended to receive a balance staff is not circular. The collet is characterised in that the contour (3) of the central opening (2) comprises a limited number of supporting parts (4, 5, 12, 14, 15) intended to co-operate with the balance shaft, said number being greater than two.

Abstract: This flat balance spring for a horological balance comprises a wound strip shaped to ensure an approximately concentric development of the balance spring and almost zero force on the pivots and on the fixing point, during a rotation of less than 360° of its inner end relative to its outer end in both directions from its rest position. The stiffness of its strip decreases gradually and through more than 360° from each of its two ends, the lowest stiffness being situated in the median part of the strip.

Abstract: The present invention relates to a hairspring for a timepiece hairspring-balance oscillator, which can be produced, in particular, from a low-density material such as silicon, diamond or quartz, and to a method of manufacturing such a hairspring. According to the invention, this hairspring comprises at least one leaf (2) the cross section of which has a thickness and a height and its characterizing feature is that the leaf (2) comprises a plurality of apertures (3) extending in the heightwise direction of the leaf and alternating with bridges (5). The invention also relates to a method of manufacturing such a hairspring.

Abstract: Hairspring for a balance wheel/hairspring resonator, comprising n blades, where n?2, which are fastened via at least one of their respective homologous ends and wound in spirals with an angular offset capable of neutralizing the lateral forces liable to be exerted on its central arbor when one of the ends of each blade is moved angularly around said central arbor relative to its other end.

Abstract: Hairspring for a balance wheel/hairspring resonator, comprising n blades, where n?2, which are fastened via at least one of their respective homologous ends and wound in spirals with an angular offset capable of neutralizing the lateral forces liable to be exerted on its central arbor when one of the ends of each blade is moved angularly around said central arbor relative to its other end.

Abstract: The invention relates to a backlash-compensating toothed moving part, for a precision gear assembly, particularly in clock-making, in which the backlash-compensating teeth each have a section extending symmetrically to both sides of the radius of said mobile passing the tip of said teeth with an elastic connection to said mobile to give said teeth a freedom of movement in the plane of the mobile, at least one tooth in two being a backlash-compensating tooth comprising stop means arranged to limit the freedom of movement as a function of the backlash in the gear assembly to be compensated for.

Abstract: This flat balance spring for a horological balance comprises a wound strip shaped to ensure an approximately concentric development of the balance spring and almost zero force on the pivots and on the fixing point, during a rotation of less than 360° of its inner end relative to its outer end in both directions from its rest position. The stiffness of its strip decreases gradually and through more than 360° from each of its two ends, the lowest stiffness being situated in the median part of said strip.

Abstract: The invention relates to a backlash-compensating toothed moving part, for a precision gear assembly, particularly in clock-making, in which the backlash-compensating teeth each have a section extending symmetrically to both sides of the radius of said mobile passing the tip of said teeth with an elastic connection to said mobile to give said teeth a freedom of movement in the plane of the mobile, at least one tooth in two being a backlash-compensating tooth comprising stop means arranged to limit the freedom of movement as a function of the backlash in the gear assembly to be compensated for.

Abstract: Hairspring for a balance wheel/hairspring resonator, comprising n blades, where n?2, which are fastened via at least one of their respective homologous ends and wound in spirals with an angular offset capable of neutralizing the lateral forces liable to be exerted on its central arbor when one of the ends of each blade is moved angularly around said central arbor relative to its other end.

Abstract: The invention relates to a backlash-compensating toothed moving part, for a precision gear assembly, particularly in clock-making, in which the backlash-compensating teeth each have a section extending symmetrically to both sides of the radius of said mobile passing the tip of said teeth with an elastic connection to said mobile to give said teeth a freedom of movement in the plane of the mobile, at least one tooth in two being a backlash-compensating tooth comprising stop means (6, 7; 8a, 8b, 9a, 9b; 14; 17a; 18a; 29; 31a, 34; 31b, 35; 40) arranged to limit the freedom of movement as a function of the backlash in the gear assembly to be compensated for.

Abstract: The respective proportions of currency items of different denominations in a multi-denominational store are adjusted in accordance with future change requirements for the different denominations. This is achieved by inhibiting the sending of a particular denomination to the store if the number of currency items of that denomination currently contained in the store exceeds a threshold, leaving more room for currency items of other denominations. There is also disclosed a multi-denominational banknote store which stores banknotes individually in radial regions of a drum, and which can rotate to bring each region into registry with an input/output conveyor.

Abstract: The invention relates to a backlash-compensating toothed moving part, for a precision gear assembly, particularly in clock-making, in which the backlash-compensating teeth each have a section extending symmetrically to both sides of the radius of said mobile passing the tip of said teeth with an elastic connection to said mobile to give said teeth a freedom of movement in the plane of the mobile, at least one tooth in two being a backlash-compensating tooth comprising stop means (6, 7; 8a, 8b, 9a, 9b; 14; 17a; 18a; 29; 31a, 34; 31b, 35; 40) arranged to limit the freedom of movement as a function of the backlash in the gear assembly to be compensated for.

Abstract: A banknote stacker comprising at least one first scissors linkage acting to extend a pusher into a cashbox, and at least one second scissors linkage acting transversely to said first to extend a lateral portion of said pusher to flatten a note in the cashbox.

Abstract: In this defect-compensating gear assembly for a timepiece mechanism, in which at least some of the uniformly distributed teeth of at least one of the mating toothed moving parts have regions which are elastically deformable in the direction of their respective thicknesses, the meshing teeth of said moving parts have at least two simultaneous contact points, the addition of the nominal thicknesses (eSJ, e2) of the teeth in contact of said respective mating moving parts, measured along the pitch circles (C1, C2) of these mating moving parts, gives a resultant length greater than the pitch (p) of these toothed moving parts. The thickness of said elastically deformable region extends on either side of the theoretical profile of said teeth.

Abstract: A banknote store (10, 12, 14, 16) comprises first and second drums (18, 20; 18, 22) mounted for rotation about respective axes on, respectively, first and second shafts (51), an elongate support strip (24; 26) which can be unwound from one of the drums onto the other of the drum, and vice versa, such that banknotes (60) can be supported in succession by the support strip while that is wound around at least one of the drums, coupling means (44, 46, 50) for coupling the shafts together, first biasing means (54) between the coupling means and the first drum and second biasing means (56; 58) between the coupling means and the second drum for allowing biased relative motion between each said drum and said coupling means, and for maintaining tension in the support strip.