Abstract:
A timepiece includes a display face having a color time field with a first axis representing a first unit of time and a second axis representing a second unit of time, wherein a colored section fills the color time field as time elapses and wherein a current color displayed in the colored section is one color in a set of different colors that correspond to a predetermined measurement of time.

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
   1. Field of the Invention 
   The present invention relates generally to the display of time. In particular, the present invention relates to a timepiece that associates particular colors with each hour in a day and enables a person to tell time without the use of any numerical indicia. 
   2. Discussion of the Related Art 
   Although many specific improvements have been implemented in timepiece designs, these basic improvements have remained unchanged in that they generally consist of using color not as a functional part of telling time, but merely to enhance a particular design. Therefore, the use of color is primarily cosmetic and not an integral function of the timepiece. 
   Learning to read traditional analogue clocks can be difficult for some people. For example, it is a common mistake to confuse the minute hand with the hour hand. It is also difficult to teach children to correctly “read” the minute hand (e.g., when the minute hand is pointing to number 1, it is 5 minutes past the hour, when the minute hand is pointing to number 2, it is 10 minutes past the hour, etc.). Finally, as the minute hand approaches the 12, the hour hand moves towards the next hour, thereby making it unclear what is the current hour unless the person makes the association that it is almost the next hour because the minute hand has almost completed a full revolution around the timepiece. All of these concepts are very difficult to master for a young child and in some cases even for adults. 
   Rather than improving the design of analogue clocks, digital designs have replaced the traditional analogue timepieces. Digital timepieces are easy to read and reduce the time and effort required to learn how to “tell time”. Children, however, often find it difficult to understand time based on a digital design because there is no visual representation of time that has past or time that is remaining in a particular hour. For example, looking at an analogue timepiece, it is easy to understand that if it is 6:15, there are 45 minutes remaining in the hour. 
   In other words, because the minute hand has to complete another ¾ of a revolution around the face, it does not require a lot of effort to visualize and quickly associate the position of the minute hand with a particular time based on the knowledge that one revolution around the timepiece equates to 60 minutes. On the contrary, there is no corresponding visual representation of time that is remaining in a particular hour in a digital timepiece. 
   What is needed, therefore, to overcome these inherent design limitations of both analogue and digital timepieces is the design of a new timepiece that utilizes specific colors that are associated with particular increments of time. 
   SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
   According to one aspect of the invention, a timepiece includes a display face having a first color on the face corresponding to a current predetermined measurement of time and a second color on the face corresponding to a consecutive predetermined measurement of time, wherein the second color fills the face clockwise as an interval of time elapses. 
   According to another aspect of the invention, a timepiece includes a display face having a color time field with a first axis representing a first unit of time and a second axis representing a second unit of time, wherein a colored section fills the color time field as time elapses and wherein a current color displayed in the colored section is one color in a set of different colors that correspond to a predetermined measurement of time. 
   According to yet another aspect of the invention, a method of telling time includes assigning a different color to a predetermined measurement of time, displaying on a face of a timepiece a first color corresponding to a current predetermined measurement of time and a second color corresponding to a consecutive predetermined measurement of time, wherein each of the colors are displayed sequentially in a continuous loop representing the predetermined measurements of time that elapse in the day, and filling the face of the timepiece with the second color as an interval of time elapses. 
   These and other objects, features, and advantages of the invention will become apparent to those skilled in the art from the following detailed description and the accompanying drawings. It should be understood, however, that the detailed description and specific examples, while indicating preferred embodiments of the present invention, are given by way of illustration and not of limitation. Many changes and modifications may be made within the scope of the present invention without departing from the spirit thereof, and the invention includes all such modifications. 

   
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     A clear understanding of the various advantages and features of the present invention, as well as the construction and operation of conventional components and mechanisms associated with the present invention, will become more readily apparent by referring to the exemplary, and therefore non-limiting, embodiments illustrated in the following drawings which accompany and form a part of this patent specification. 
       FIG. 1  illustrates a color grid corresponding to 24 different hours in a day in accordance with the present invention; 
       FIG. 2  illustrates an analogue dial design implementing the color grid in accordance with the present invention; 
       FIG. 3  illustrates an analogue dial design with a digital hour indicator implementing the color grid in accordance with the present invention; 
       FIG. 4  illustrates a positive circular cycle to graphically display the passing of time in accordance with the present invention; 
       FIG. 5  illustrates a negative circular cycle to graphically display the passing of time in accordance with the present invention; 
       FIG. 6  illustrates a bar filling a field to graphically display the passing of time in accordance with the present invention; 
       FIG. 7  illustrates a bar crossing a field and stacking to graphically display the passing of time in accordance with the present invention; 
       FIG. 8  illustrates a line crossing a field to graphically display the passing of time in accordance with the present invention; 
       FIG. 9  illustrates objects flashing in a field and successively filling a field to graphically display the passing of time in accordance with the present invention; 
       FIG. 10  illustrates a basic color time field in accordance with the present invention; 
       FIG. 11  illustrates the passing of time using a basic color time field in accordance with the present invention; 
       FIG. 12  illustrates a digital display of time using a basic color time field in accordance with an alternative embodiment of the present invention; 
       FIG. 13  illustrates a basic color time field with grid lines in accordance with the present invention; 
       FIG. 14  illustrates a basic color time field with grid lines in accordance with the present invention; 
       FIG. 15  illustrates a basic color time field stretched in a vertical direction in accordance with the present invention; and 
       FIG. 16  illustrates a basic color time field stretched in a horizontal direction in accordance with the present invention. 
   

   DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
   Like the passing hours of the day, color tends to evoke a variety of human responses. A person can learn to associate specific times of the day with specific colors, just as specific times are now associated with numbers. The colors that correspond to different times may reference a variety of daily experiences (e.g., qualities of natural light, colors of the sky, ambient temperature, mood, energy, etc.). 
   In this regard, colors can be assigned to different measurements of time and displayed on a timepiece instead of displaying the traditional analogue or digital time. For example, a particular color can be associated with a person&#39;s workday and displayed on a timepiece or three separate colors corresponding to the morning, afternoon and evening can be displayed. In the present invention, any measurement of time including different intervals of blocks of time are assigned a particular color and a person determines a measurement of time by viewing the color on the timepiece. 
   Referring now to  FIG. 1 , a set of colors can also be assigned to each of the hours in a day. In particular, a color grid  10  includes 24 arbitrary different colors or shades of color corresponding to the 24 different hours in a day. In the first row of the grid, color A  12  corresponds to the first hour in a day, color B  14  corresponds to the second hour in a day, color C  16  corresponds to the third hour in a day, color D  18  corresponds to the fourth hour in a day, color E  20  corresponds to the fifth hour in a day, and color F  22  corresponds to the sixth hour in a day. 
   Similarly, in the second row of grid  10 , color G  24  corresponds to the seventh hour in a day, color H  26  corresponds to the eighth hour in a day, color I  28  corresponds to the ninth hour in a day, color J  30  corresponds to the tenth hour in a day, color K  32  corresponds to the eleventh hour in a day, and color L  34  corresponds to the twelfth hour in a day. 
   In the third row of grid  10 , color M  36  corresponds to the thirteenth hour in a day, color N  38  corresponds to the fourteenth hour in a day, color O  40  corresponds to the fifteenth hour in a day, color P  42  corresponds to the sixteenth hour in a day, color Q  44  corresponds to the seventeenth hour in a day, and color R  46  corresponds to the eighteenth hour in a day. 
   Finally, in the fourth row of grid  10 , color S  48  corresponds to the nineteenth hour in a day, color T  50  corresponds to the twentieth hour in a day, color U  52  corresponds to the twenty-first hour in a day, color V  54  corresponds to the twenty-second hour in a day, color W  56  corresponds to the twenty-third hour in a day, and color X  58  corresponds to the twenty-fourth hour in a day. 
   In addition to the 24 distinct colors described above in relation to grid  10 , alternative color schemes that maintain the functional relationship between the hour and color include implementing a grid with 12 different colors having 2 different shades for each color, 6 different colors having 4 different shades for each color, and 4 different colors having 6 different shades for each color. 
   Referring to  FIG. 2 , an analogue dial design  60  relies upon the association of colors in color grid  10  with the hours of a day to tell time. In particular, color  62  represents the current hour, and color  64  represents the next consecutive hour. As the minutes pass, color  64  continues to fill the dial while color  62  diminishes correspondingly until the full sixty minutes in the current hour have passed and color  64  entirely fills dial  60 . 
   Thereafter, the color that is associated with the next hour after the hour corresponding to color  64  will begin to fill the dial as the minutes pass. This process continues based on the colors associated with the particular hours as assigned in grid  10 . Alternatively, dial  60  may implement a color grid associated with 12 different hours in the day and rely upon the person to determine whether the particular time of day is in the a.m. or p.m. 
     FIG. 3  illustrates a similar dial  66  also implementing color grid  10 . Dial  66  uses a color  68  to represent the current hour and a color  70  to represent the next consecutive hour. In an alternative embodiment of the present invention, dial  66  further includes a numerical indicator  72  that is displayed to assist a person in remembering the hour associated with color  68  or color  70 . In this case, numerical hour indicator  72  is “6” which is associated with color  68  that represents 6:00 p.m. Another numerical hour indicator  74  is associated with color  70  that represents 7:00 p.m. Numerical indicators  72  and  74  are placed along the circumferential edge of dial  66  consistent with the traditional placement of the numbers 1-12 representing the hours on a traditional analogue watch dial. 
   The implementation of color grid  10  does not necessarily have to be in the form of a circular dial. In this regard,  FIGS. 4-9  illustrate different graphic forms to display the passing of time. In particular,  FIG. 4  illustrates a circular dial  76  having a first color  78  corresponding to a particular hour and a second color  80  corresponding to the next consecutive hour. Dial  76  is positively filled by color  80  as the minutes pass. 
     FIG. 5  illustrates a negative circular dial  82  that begins with a color  84  that gradually disappears as the minutes pass.  FIG. 6  illustrates a field  86  with a bar  88  that gradually fills field  86  as time passes. Another embodiment to illustrate the passing of time is a field  90  in  FIG. 7  having a bar  92  that traverses across field  90 . 
     FIG. 8  illustrates a line  94  in a field  96  that moves across field  96  as time passes.  FIG. 9  illustrates a grid  98  with an object  100  that flashes in a field  102  in grid  98 . Each successive field is filled with a color  104  as time passes. 
     FIG. 10  illustrates the use of color grid  10  implemented in a basic color time field. There are 60 seconds in a minute and 60 minutes in an hour. Therefore, a 60 unit×60 unit grid  106  has 3,600 units and provides the basic color time field in the preferred embodiment of the present invention. 
   As illustrated in  FIG. 11 , minutes of time are represented by a horizontal axis  108  and seconds of time are represented by a vertical axis  110 . A person can easily see the passing of both seconds and minutes using grid  106  by viewing the consecutive filling of each of the 3,600 units in every hour. Moreover, the specific color that fills grid  106  corresponds to a particular hour represented on color grid  10 . Therefore, a person can easily determine the exact hour, minute and second (e.g., accurately tell time) displayed on grid  106  by entirely relying upon color instead of numerical indicia. 
   In operation, a color  112  corresponding to a particular hour on grid  10  fills color time field  106  over the course of an hour. After the hour is completed by filling each second and minute in color time field  106 , then the next consecutive color in color grid  10  representing the next successive hour begins to fill each of the  3 , 600  units in grid  106 . This process continues in a repeating 24 color loop corresponding to the hours in a day. 
   In an alternative embodiment of the present invention,  FIG. 12  illustrates color time field  106  having external indicia also representing the time. A date indicator  114  displays the day of the week, month and date. A time indicator  116  displays the hour and minutes and a second indicator  118  displays the elapsed seconds. Digital indicia  114 ,  116  and  118  may be turned on and off by a person and is used primarily to assist the user in learning the association of specific colors with specific hours as represented in grid  10 . 
   As illustrated in  FIGS. 13 and 14 , a reference grid  120  can be displayed in color time field  106  to assist a person in telling time more accurately. For example, in  FIG. 13 , a set of horizontal reference lines  122 ,  124 ,  126  and  128  correspond to elapsed time of 15 seconds, 30 seconds, 45 seconds and 60 seconds, respectively. A set of vertical reference lines  130 ,  132 ,  134 , and  136  corresponds to elapsed time of 15 minutes, 30 minutes, 45 minutes and 60 minutes, respectively. 
   Similarly, a set of reference lines  138 ,  140 ,  142 ,  144 ,  146  and  148  correspond to elapsed time of 10 minutes, 20 minutes, 30 minutes, 40 minutes, 50 minutes and 60 minutes, respectively. A set of reference lines  150 ,  152 ,  154 ,  156 ,  158  and  160  corresponds to elapsed time of 10 minutes, 20 minutes, 30 minutes, 40 minutes, 50 minutes and 60 minutes, respectively. 
   Color time field  106  can also be stretched to accommodate different shapes of different timepieces. For example, as illustrated in  FIG. 15 , the length of an axis  162  representing the minutes is substantially less than the length of an axis  164  representing the seconds. In  FIG. 16 , however, the length of an axis  166  representing the minutes is substantially greater than the length of an axis  168  representing the seconds. By stretching and contracting the axes representing the seconds and minutes across color time field  106 , color grid  10  can be implemented in a variety of different shapes of timepieces. 
   The scope of the application is not to be limited by the description of the preferred embodiments described above, but is to be limited solely by the scope of the claims that follow. For example, color time field  106  can be replaced with a circular design or any other geometric design without departing from the scope of the preferred embodiment of the present invention.