Waterbury Democrat., 1902-05-07
THE EN HOLM ELECTRIC CLOCK
A New Application of Electricity


 Runs Three Years Without Winding. During the latter part of the nine teenth century electricity has been ap- piled in many ways to many things but one of the most radical changes which it has ever made, of any descr1p- ton seems to have taken place Ill clock making. Until this year, clocks were constructed on practically the same principles as those of 100 years ago. Even the clocks in offices ana pendulum factories syuchrOnized by w. U. telegraph wires are run by spring and pendulum and wound regularly. The En Holm clock, however, invent ed and patented by Oscar A: En Holm. and manufactured by the Commercial Electric Time company, of Amerlca, Homer w. Hedge, president, With or fees at 120 Broadway, New York, IS a radical departure from any form or clock now on the market.
 AS may be seen by the accompany ling illustration, the application of cleo trieity is in supplying a motive power in the place of the usual spring. In the base of the clock, concealed from view, are two sealed batteries whose capacity is 10 ampere hours. In the place of the spring, and running through the center of an electric tromagnet or solenoid is an armature in the form of rod composed of magnetic material. This core is suspended from lever, which is con nected to the gear train by means Of ! small ball clutch guided by standards. The clock starts with the core or arm ature at it's highest point, it's own weight carries it downward; and, as 1t descends, it pulls down the lever with it, which has a sliding motion lnsurlng uniform driving power, thus giving the driving power to the regular machln- cry of the clock.
 The circuit of the magnetic or sole noid coil is completed by the switch shown above and to the right of the core It is composed of a glass bulb attached to pivot and moved by the armature weight in one end of which are the two wires not connected. In the bulb also is a small quantity of mercury; and in it's ordinary position the wires are at the top and the mer- cury at the bottom. When the core reaches the lowest point i'll it's descent, it tips the bulb (with which it is con nected) until the end with the two wires is the lower. The mercury con- pletes the circuit, the electromagnet raises the core to it's original height, and the bulb assumes it's upright posi- ton again, thus disconnecting the cir cult By another ingenious device, the driving power of the core is not stop ped while it is being raised. There is
 nothing to wear in the mechanism, as 1 the friction is reduced to minimum l The weight takes five and fraction
 minutes to make the descent, and the
 amount of time necessary for the cleo ] tricity to lift it is less than 1-3 of a second. The capacity of the batteries l as stated above is 10 ampere hours or
 3 .6OO,OOO millampere seconds. Every l i've and a half minutes the clock re l ouires for 1-3 of a second $50 millam- pere seconds As the electricity is l only in use during the 1-3 of second | in which the core is being raised, it
 follows, therefore, that the batteries contain enough electricity to run the clock for more than 5000 days. The makers only guarantee is for three
 years, however.
 One important point in favor of
 this clock is that as it has no pendu-
 lum or spring, it does away with the
 necessity of a perfectly horizontal
 base; and helps to assume correct time.
 This extraordinary clock will cost
 no more than the spring driven clock
 in the various styles of cases, for all
 purposes where accurate time is re-