KEYLESS CENTRAL WINDING MECHANISM APPLICABLE TO ALL KINDS OF CLOCKWORK
Year: 1885

page_text: I, ALEXANDER MELVILLE CLARK, of the firm of A. M. and Wm. Clark, of
53, Chancery Lane, in the County of Middlesex, Fellow of the Institute of Patent
Agents, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for " KEYLESS CENTRAL
WINDING MECHANISM APPLICABLE TO ALL KINDS OF CLOCKWORK "
a communication
to me from abroad by Victor Emile Versepuy, Commission Merchant, of 32 Rue du
Faubourg Poissonnière, Paris, France, to be as follows:-
This Invention relates to an improved keyless central winding mechanism
applicable to all kinds of clock work.
In central winding clockwork more especially those in which two barrels are
employed, the winding stem passes freely through the hand arbor and is provided
with a knob or turned by a key. It is however difficult to apply sufficient force
by means of this knob to wind up the barrels and the object of the present
invention is to provide means of facilitating the winding, which consists essentially
in making the winding stem to slide in and out of the hand arbor and in so jointing
it that when drawn out it may be cranked for winding.
The accompanying drawing represents a clock movement provided with the
improved central-winding mechanism.
Figure 1 shows the front plate of the clock movement and the clickwork of the
two barrels, figure 2 is a top plan and figure 3 a side view of the same, with the
winding stem slid inwards upon the central arbor, so as to be concealed within
the movement, when not required for winding. Figure 4 is a similar view with the
stem pulled out and formed into a crank for winding. Figure 5 shows the mode
of gearing the two barrels together. The same letters of reference indicate the
same parts in all the figures. The winding mechanism may be of any kind and
needs no description. The arbors of the minute hand and hour hand are both
mounted on a canon or pipe a through which the jointed winding stem 6 slides
freely. The stem is provided with a button or milled head a or its equivalent and

page_text: is jointed at d and also at e to enable it to be bent to the cranked form shown in
figure 4, when the stem is completely drawn out for the purpose of winding up the
barrels.
Figure 4 shows clearly how in this manner a cranked form of winding stem may
be produced by which the effort of winding is reduced proportionately to the
leverage d e. Under these conditions, the winding can be very smoothly effected,
while the construction of the stem enables it to be entirely concealed within the
movement. The stem a is made of such form in section, that when in the winding
position it will operate pinion fin gear with the toothed wheels of the barrels g h
As the barrels are wound up separately, each is provided with a ratchet wheel i,
the teeth of said ratchets being oppositely inclined and the two pawls k being
mounted in opposite directions so that the winding of one barrel shall not unwind
the spring of the other barrel. The click work of the barrels may however be of any
other kind adapted to this particular kind of clockwork.

page_text: pawls k, being also mounted in opposite directions so that the winding of one
barrel shall not unwind the spring of the other barrel. The clickwork of the
barrels may, however, be of any other kind adapted to this particular kind of
clockwork.
Having now particularly described, and ascertained the nature of the said
Invention and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what
I claim is
A central-winding mechanism for clocks, consisting of a stem passing through a
pipe, on which the hand-arbors turn, said stem being fitted to slide through, and
to operato a pinion in gear with the wheel on the barrel-arbor, and being jointed
so that when drawn out it may be formed into a winding crank, substantially as
described, and shown in the drawings.