Abstract:
A timepiece with mobile decorations comprises: a roof disposed over a case body having a timepiece unit built therein; driving means to make said roof up and down while turning the same in response to a signal from the said timepiece unit; and mobile decorations disposed inside of the roof to operate and become visible from the outside while the roof is in a raised position.

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention relates to a timepiece with mobile decorations. 
     In the prior art, the so-called &#34;Karakuri&#34; or puppet clock, in which puppets dance at the hour, is well known and has a variety of structures. 
     The puppet clock of the prior art has a complicated structure and is expensive so that it is hard to buy personally. Despite of this problem, however, the &#34;Karakuri&#34; have a deep-rooted popularity. Especially in recent years, a demand for joyful or surprising clocks is increasing. 
     An object of the present invention is to meet the demand and to provide at a reasonable price a clock having mobile decorations which can perform joyful motions at the hour. 
     In order to achieve the above-specified object, the timepiece with mobile decorations according to the present invention comprises: a roof disposed over a case body having a timepiece unit built therein; driving means to make said roof up and down while turning the same in response to a signal from the said timepiece unit; and mobile decorations disposed inside of the roof to operate and become visible from the outside while the roof is in a raised position. 
     The driving means of the roof may include a motor adapted to operate in response to the signal; a cylindrical member adapted to be rotationally driven by the motor and supported rotatably on the case body; a lead screw fitted so as to be nonrotatable but axially slidable relative to said cylindrical member and having its upper end portion connected to the roof; and a protrusion disposed in a fixed relation to the case body and meshing with the lead screw. 
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     In the drawing showing one embodiment of the present invention: 
     FIG. 1 is a front elevation; 
     FIG. 2 is a section taken along the line A--A of FIG. 1 in the operating state; 
     FIG. 3 is an enlarged section taken along the line B--B of FIG. 2; 
     FIG. 4 is a section taken along the line C--C of FIG. 2; and 
     FIG. 5 is a section taken along the line D--D of FIG. 2. 
    
    
     DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
     One embodiment of the present invention will be described in the following with reference to the accompanying drawings. 
     As shown in FIG. 1, a timepiece unit 2 is built in the front of a case body 1. Over this case body 1, a roof 3 is disposed This roof 3 is provided to cover mobile decorations 4, while it is in a lowered position, as shown in FIG. 1, to make them invisible from the outside. The roof 3 exposes the mobile decorations 4 to the outside, while it is in a raised position, to make them visible from the outside. The roof 3 can be moved up and down, while turning, between those two positions. 
     Driving means 5 for turning and moving the roof 3 up and down will be described in hereinbelow. 
     As better seen from FIG. 2, the roof 3 is fixed on the upper end portion of a lead screw 6. To an install stud 1a of the case body 1, there is fixed by means of screws 7a a cylindrical support member 7 which is formed with a hole having a protrusion 7b which is in meshing engagement with the lead screw 6. This lead screw 6 extends through that hole while meshing with the protrusion 7b. To the lower end portion of the lead screw 6, there is fixed a slider 9 which can slide in the axial direction on the inner circumference of a cylindrical member 8. A pin 10 extends radially through the upper portion of the slider 9 with its two ends protruding. The two end protrusions of the pin 10 are fitted in axial grooves 8a, which are formed in the inner circumference of the cylindrical member 8, as better seen in FIG. 3, so that the lead screw 6 is made nonrotatable relative to the cylindrical member 8. This cylindrical member 8 is rotatably supported by a support member 1b  of the case body 1 and is equipped with a driving gear 8b. 
     The cylindrical member 8 is rotationally driven by a motor M1 which operates in response to a signal produced by the timepiece unit 2. As shown in FIG. 4, specifically, a worm gear 11b meshes through a transmission wheel 11c with a worm 12, which is mounted on the spindle of the motor M1, and the driving gear 8b meshes with a pinion 11a integral with the worm gear 11b, thus turning the cylindrical member 8. 
     Next, driving means 13 for the mobile decorations 4 will be described in the following. 
     As shown in FIG. 2, a turn disk 14 is rotatably supported through a bushing 15 by the support member 7 and is formed with a driving gear 14a at its lower face. The turn disk 14 is equipped with a plurality of shafts 17 which extend vertically and slidably through bushings 16, and the mobile decorations 4 are fixed to the upper end portions of the shafts 17. To the lower end portions of the shafts 17, there are turnably connected rollers 18 which are movable while turning on a cam 19 which is formed in the case body 1. The cam 19 has a circular shape, as seen in a top plan view in FIG. 4, and has an undulation of a wave form. 
     The turn disk 14 is rotationally driven by a motor M2 which operates in response to the signal produced by the timepiece unit 2. More specifically, a worm gear 20b meshes through a transmission wheel 20c with a worm 21 which is mounted on the spindle of the motor M2, and the driving gear 14a meshes with a pinion 20a integral with the worm gear 20b, thus turning the turn disk 14. 
     As shown in FIG. 5, reference numeral 22 designates a printed circuit board which provides a control circuit not-shown and which is installed on install studs 1c of the case body 1 by means of screws 23. Numeral 24 designates a battery for providing a driving source of the motors M1 and M2 and the timepiece unit 2. Numeral 25 designates a music box which is equipped with a vibration leaf 25a and a drum 25b. This drum 25b is rotationally driven by a motor M3 which operates in response to the signal produced by the timepiece unit 2. A bottom lid 26 is fixed to a mounting portion 1d of the case body 1 by means of screws. 
     When the motors M1 and M3 operate in response to the signal produced by the timepiece unit 2, e.g., the signal of the hour, the worm 12 of the spindle of the motor M1 is rotated so that these rotations are transmitted sequentially to the transmission wheel 11c, the worm gear 11b, the pinion 11a and the driving wheel 8b to turn the cylindrical member 8. Then, the cylindrical member 8 turns the lead screw 6 and the roof 3. Since the stationary protrusion 7b meshes with the lead screw 6, the lead screw 6 gradually raises, as it is turned, to raise the roof 3. At the same time, moreover, a melody is played by the music box 25 by the operation of the motor M3. 
     When the roof 3 is raised to allow the mobile decorations 4 to be seen below its lower end portion from the outside, the signal is fed to the motor M2 to rotate the worm 21 of the motor spindle. The rotations are transmitted sequentially to the transmission wheel 20c, the worm gear 20b, the pinion 20a and the driving gear 14a to turn the turn disk 14. As the turn disk 14 is turned, the mobile decorations 4 are also turned. At this time, the rollers 18 turn on the undulating cam 19 to move the shafts 17 up and down so that the mobile decorations 4 are turned while being moved up and down. In this meanwhile, the play of the melody is continued by the music box 25. 
     After a predetermined time has elapsed, a reverse signal is fed to the motor M1. As a result, the lead screw 6 is rotated in the opposite direction to the aforementioned one so that the roof 3 is gradually lowered while being rotated backward. When the roof 3 is lowered up its lowermost position, the application of the signal to the motors M2 and M3 is interrupted. When the roof 3 is returned to the original position shown in FIG. 1 to cover the mobile decorations 4, the operation of the motor M1 is interrupted. 
     Incidentally, the mobile decorations 4 are exemplified by a merry-go-round but should not be limited thereto. For example, puppets can be easily constructed to revolve on their axes and around the lead screw. It is also possible to provide a variety of mobile decorations. 
     According to the present invention described in the above, it is possible to provide at a reasonable price and in a simple structure a timepiece having mobile decorations which are enabled to perform joyful motions at the correct hour. Thus, the present invention can meet the demand of users for joyful and surprising clocks.