A MECHANISM OF REMONTOIR IN PENDANT APPLICABLE WITH AN AND
Year: 1864

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to George Gondelfinger and Jean Louis Bichet,
Merchants, residing at Paris, 39, Faubourg St. Martin (France), for
the Invention of "A MECHANISM OF REMONTOIR IN PENDANT APPLICABLE TO
Sealed the 9th December 1864, and dated the 15th June 1864.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said George Gondelfinger and
Jean Louis Bichet at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with
their Petition, on the 15th June 1864.
We, GEORGE GONDELFINGER, and JEAN LOUIS BICHET, Merchants, residing
at Paris, 39, Faubourg St. Martin (France), do hereby declare the nature
of the said Invention for "A MECHANISM OF REMONTOIR IN PENDANT APPLICABLE
TO ALL WATCHES WITH AN ANCHOR AND CYLINDER," to be as follows:-
This remontoir is based on the principle of the absolute elimination of
every sort of toothed crown wheel, in other words all the wheels toothed in
two directions, the one vertical the other horizontal, are suppressed. The
elimination of these wheels removes from the wheel gear all difficulties and
imperfections under which they so frequently labor.
The following is a description of our Invention, reference being had to the
annexed Drawing, forming part of this our Provisional Specification.
The screw A (Fig. 1) or even a pin holds the wheel B on the barrel
arbor, which barrel in all clockwork encloses the main spring. After the

page_text: descent of this spring, which gives motion to the horary mechanism, the
wheel C is made to act by setting in motion the axle or arbor D hid in the
pallet plate in a hole which penetrates to the centre of this plate. The axle D
having at its lower extremity the wheel E, acts on C in such wise as to give
it a rotary movement which it communicates to B, four turns of the one and
the other wheel bend the spring, and thus the motive power of the movement
s regenerated by the axle D crowned by F to facilitate the winding. To
keep the wheel E in constant readiness to act under the impulsion of the
axle D we have fitted a bolt, the forked extremity of which penetrates into a
groove in the axle D at its point of contact with H; but when it is desired to
set the watch to a given hour on the dial the bolt is drawn back, and the
axle D finding itself freed from the forked end of the bolt may descend and
come on the pin that keeps the minute hand. This pin toothing into the
gear which has been brought to it moves the hands left and right, and brings
them to the required hour. In order to prevent stoppage of the watch by
the interposition of the teeth of E in the pin, if from forgetfulness they should
be left there, a spiral spring pinned on to the axle, and with part resting at
the bottom of the pendant of the case, causes the spindle D to rise again and
isolates E from the pin. Figure 2 shews the same remontoir with combinations,
which render it preferable to the preceding; thus the axle or arbor A has no
longitudinal motion, but remains fixed in its position; it is held immovable
(excepting as regards the circular movement given by hand at D) by a
screw, the median part of which passes in a groove left in the axle towards E;
lastly, at the lower part, corresponding with the centre of the pillar plate,
the axle terminates in form of a square stem, on which is adjusted, but 2
movable in its longitudinal journey, the wheel F. The lever moved by the
driver causes the wheel F to descend to the pin of the minute hand, and by
its rotation gives the hour sought, but on releasing this driver the spring causes
the lever to rise again, and the wheel F gears again with H only. It is
impossible in any case that F should interfere with the regular march of the 3
clockwork. The wheel J fulfils the same functions as B at Figure 1.
Figure 3 represents the wheel F, Figure 1, set on the axle D; the Figures 5
and 6 shew the same wheel seen from its two extremities. Figure 4 represents
the wheel F, Figure 2, set on the axle A; the Figures 7 and 8 shew the same
wheel seen from its two extremities.
Arrangement of the click and spring work.--At the moment the re-
montoir acts upon the spring to bring it to the proper degree of tension a
ystem of clickwork becomes indispensable, and here, as in all clockwork, the
lick and spring work is composed of K and the spring L, Figure 2. When B
35

page_text: travels from right to left the catch K. permits the tooth of B to pass, but this
wheel would be suddenly stopped directly it would march from left to right.
This clickwork is common to Figure 2.
Stopwork. The application of our remontoir or wind from the pendant
has led us to seek a visible stop work, and we have arrived at a transformation
of the old stopwork fitted beneath the barrel by placing ours above the
motor, making use of the shaft A, Figure 9, of which we leave a base notched
in form of an ellipsis, see Figure 10, in the middle of which we apply a pin
forming the stop; we then complete the mechanism by the Maltese cross, and
our stopwork acts.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent filed,
by the said George Gondelfinger and Jean Louis Bichet in the Great Seal
Patent Office on the 15th December 1864.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, we, GEORGE
GONDELFINGER and JEAN LOUIS BICHET, Merchants, residing at Paris, 39,
Faubourg St. Martin, France, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Fifteenth day of June, in the year of our Lord One
thousand eight hundred and sixty-four, in the twenty-seventh year of Her
reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto us, the
said George Gondelfinger and Jean Louis Bichet, Her special licence that
we, the said George Gondelfinger and Jean Louis Bichet, our executors, ad-
ministrators, and assigns, or such others as we, the said George Gondelfinger
and Jean Louis Bichet, our executors, administrators, and assigns, should
at any time agree with, and no others, from time to time and at all times
thereafter during the term therein expressed, should and lawfully might make,
use, exercise and vend, within the United Kingdom of Great Britain and
Ireland, the Channel Islands, and Isle of Man, an Invention for "A MECHANISM
OP REMONTOIR IN PENDANT APPLICABLE TO ALL WATCHES WITH AN ANCHOR AND
CYLINDER," upon the condition (amongst others) that we, the said George
Gondelfinger and Jean Louis Bichet, our executors or administrators, by an
instrument in writing under our, or one of our, their, or one of their hands
and seals, should particularly describe and ascertain the nature of the said
Invention, and in what manner the same was to be performed, and cause
the same to be filed in the Great Seal Patent Office within six calendar months
next and immediately after the date of the said Letters Patent.

page_text: KNOW YE, that I, the said Jean Louis Bichet, for myself and
behalf of my Co-patentee, do hereby declare the nature of our said Inve
tion, and in what manner the same is to be performed, to be particular
described and ascertained in and by the following statement :-
This remontoir is based on the principle of the absolute elimination of ever
sort of toothed crown wheel, in other words we suppress all wheels toothed i
two directions, the one vertical the other horizontal. The elimination o
these wheels removes from the wheel gear all the difficulties and imper
fections under which it so frequently labours, and, while simplifying the work
manship, we adopt the only means by which winding from the pendan
(otherwise the pendant remontoir) may be economically executed and generally
adopted.
The following is a description of our Invention, reference being had to the
accompanying Sheet of Drawing, forming part of this our Specification, and to
the figures and letters of reference placed thereon.
The screw A (Figure 1) or even a pin holds the wheel B on the barrel
arbor, which barrel in all clockwork encloses the main spring. After the
descent of this spring, which gives motion to the horary mechanism, the wheel C
is made to act by setting in motion the spindle or axle D hid in the pallet
plate in a hole which penetrates to the centre of this plate. The spindle D,
having at its lower extremity the wheel E, acts on C in such wise as to give
it a rotary movement which it communicates to B, four turns of the one and
the other wheel bend the spring, and thus the motive power of the movement
is regenerated by the spindle D crowned by F to facilitate the winding. To
keep the wheel E in constant readiness to act under the impulsion of the
spindle D we have fitted, concealed in the breadth of the case, a bolt H, the
forked extremity of which penetrates into a groove in the spindle D at its
point of contact with H; but when it is desired to set the watch to a given
hour on the dial the bolt is drawn back in the direction indicated by the
arrow, and the spindle D finding itself freed from the forked end of the bolt
may descend and come on the pin J. This pin J toothing into the gear
which has been brought to it moves the hands left or right, and brings them to
the required hour. In order to prevent stoppage of the watch by the inter-
position of the teeth of E in the pin, if from forgetfulness they should be left
there, a spiral spring pinned on to the spindle, and with part resting at the 3
bottom of the pendant of the case, causes the spindle D to rise again and
isolates E from J. The horary movement, completely disengaged from the
remontoir or winding-up mechanism, thus follows its regular course, and to
complete and insure this isolation and prevent the consequences of the contact

page_text: of E with the pin J it will be necessary to bring the bolt H back to its point
of departure. Figure 2 shews the same remontoir with combinations, which
render it preferable to the preceding; thus the spindle A has no longitudinal
motion, but remains fixed in its position, one of its parts resting against the
centre of the pallet plate and the other having for support the entire length of
the hole which hides it from B to C; it is held immovable in its position
(excepting as regards the circular movement given by the hand at D) by a
screw, the median part of which passes in a groove left in the spindle
towards E; lastly, at the lower part, corresponding with the centre of the
pallet plate, the spindle terminates in form of a square stem, on which the
wheel F is adjusted moveable in a longitudinal direction. The lever moved
by the push pin causes the wheel F to descend to the pin that keeps the
minute hand, and by its rotation gives the hour sought, but on releasing this
push pin the spring causes the lever to rise again, and the wheel F gears
again with H only. It is impossible in any case that F should interfere with
the regular march of the clockwork. The wheel J fulfils the same functions
as at Figure 1. Figure 3 represents the wheel F, Figure 1, set and fixed on
the spindle D; the Figures 5 and 6 shew the same wheel seen from its two
extremities. Figure 4 represents the wheel F, Figure 2, set on the spindle A ;
the Figures 7 and 8 shew the same wheel seen from its two extremities.
Arrangement of the click and spring work.-At the moment the re-
montoir acts upon the spring to bring it to the degree of tension admitted by
the principles of chronometrical art a system of click work becomes indispen-
sable, and here, as in all clockwork, our click and spring work is composed of K
and the main spring L. When B travels from right to left the catch K
permits the tooth of B to pass, but this wheel would be suddenly stopped
directly it would attempt to march from left to right. This click work is
common to Figure 2.
Stop work. The application of our remontoir or wind from the pendant has
led us to seek a visible stop work, and we have arrived at a transformation of
the old stop work fitted beneath the barrel by placing ours above the wheel,
making use of the spindle A, Figure 9, of which we leave a base notched in
form of an ellipsis A, Figure 10, in the middle of which we apply a pin forming
the rack detent; we then complete the mechanism by adding the Maltese
cross, and our stop work acts; it eliminates by the fixity and solidity of the
rack detent the numerous inconveniences of the old stop works with moveable
rack detent.
We would further state that our system of descending remontoir, Figure 2,
dispenses very readily with stop work. When the spring is wound to its

page_text: greatest tension the stop takes place of itself, and the winder might turn the
axle indefinitely without causing any damage, as the teeth of the wheel
escape successively from the teeth of H without producing any effect.
In witness whereof, I, the said Jean Louis Bichet, have hereunto set
my hand and seal, this Thirteenth day of December, in the year
of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-four.
JEAN LOUIS BICHET. (L.S.)