Improvements in Clocks.
Year: 1888

page_text: Date of Application, 18th Dec., 1888
Specification Accepted, 22nd Jan., 1889
'
Improvements in Clocks.
We, CHARLES BICKFORD, of Boston in the county of Suffolk, and State of
Massachusetts, United States of America, Teacher of Elocution and JOHN SWANN, of
New York in the county of New York, and State of New York, United States of
America, Counsellor of law, do hereby declare the nature of our invention for IMPROVE-
MENTS IN CLOCKS and in what manner the same is to be performed, to be particularly
described and ascertained in and by the following statement :-
This invention has for its object to enable the time movement of a clock to be
wound by the operation of the spring of the striking movement, and to this end it
consists in the combination with the time movement and the striking movement and
their operating springs, of a connection between said springs whereby the rotation.
of the barrel of the striking movement, during the operation of the striking move-
ment and the unwinding of said spring, is caused to wind the spring of the time
movement; the latter being therefore wound at frequent intervals and kept in a nearly.
uniform state of tension, as we will now proceed to describe.
Of the accompanying drawings forming a part of this specification,
Figure 1 represents a front elevation of a clock movement embodying our
invention.
Figure 2 represents a side elevation of the same, the dial being removed in both
figures.
Figure 3 represents a section on line 3, 3, Figure 2.
The same letters of reference indicate the same parts in all the figures.
In the drawings
a represents the barrel which contains the impelling spring 6 of the striking
movement of a clock, and is rotated by said spring when the striking mechanism is
in operation, as in any spring driven striking movement, the barrel a having a
gear c formed on or attached to it, which gear forms a part of the usual striking.
movement.
d represents the usual winding post or arbor which supports the striking spring
and its barrel, and is operated as usual by a key to wind up the striking spring.
e represents the barrel containing the going or time movement spring. Said
barrel has formed on or attached to it a gear 9 which forms a part of the time train,
the latter being organized in the usual or any suitable manner. The arbor g, which
supports the going spring fand takes the place of the usual winding post whereby
the going spring is wound by a key applied thereto, is not formed to receive a key,
but is connected by suitable gearing with the barrel a of the striking movement, so
that at each operation of the striking movement, the rotation of the barrel a caused
by such operation will rotate the arbor g¹ in the direction required to wind the going
spring.
:

page_text: Any arrangement of gearing whereby this result will be effected may be adopted
without departing from the spirit of our invention. We have here shown the arbor i,
having the pinion that engages with the gear c on the winding barrel, extended
through the plate of the supporting frame and provided with another pinion k which
meshes with a pinion m on the arbor g¹ of the going spring.
It will be seen that by this arrangement each operation of the striking movement
is caused to partially wind the going spring, so that the latter is partially wound at
least once each hour, and twice each hour in case the striking movement strikes the half
hours. The chief advantages of this improvement may be stated as follows:-
The going spring is kept at a nearly uniform strength or tension instead of
varying from a condition of strong tension to one of weak tension, as. is the case with
springs which are wound at long intervals, as in ordinary eight day or even
twenty four hour clocks. A comparatively light, and therefore compact, going
spring can be employed, requiring for its winding but little expenditure of power
from the striking movement spring occupying but little room. The going spring
will necessarily be wound more during the latter part of each period of twelve
hours beginning at one o'clock, than during the earlier part of said period; but this
variation will not affect more than two coils of the spring-that is to say, the
spring will have only two more coils under tension when at its highest state of
tension than when at the lowest state. In an ordinary clock movement which is
wound by a key at intervals of eight days or thereabouts, this difference usually
involves as many as eight coils of the spring.
To guard against overwinding of the going spring its outer end may be attached
to a band or shoe o, in frictional contact with the inner surface of the barrel e
and adapted to slip thereon when the spring is entirely wound; the pressure of
said shoe in the barrel being reduced by the entire winding of the spring, so that
the shoe slips on the barrel.
p represents the hammer of the striking movement, the same being arranged to
strike a gong or a spiral wire (not shown). Said hammer is attached to a rocking
arbor Я which has an arm projecting into the path of a series of pins which
are affixed to a wheel t. Said wheel is affixed to an arbor t¹, which has a pinion u
meshing with the gear wheel on the arbor i. The rotation of the arbor i by
the striking spring b is imparted to the arbor t, and the pins 8 of the latter act
on the arm and alternately raise and release the hammer in a manner well
known.
We have not shown all the operative parts of the striking movement, as our
invention does not relate to the construction thereof, but may be used with any
suitable striking movement.
.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of our said inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed, we declare that what we
claim is :
In a clock, the combination of the barrel and spring of a striking movement,
a time movement consisting of a time train and a main spring having frictional
contact with its enclosing barrel so as to slide thereon when fully wound, and
connections between the barrel of the striking movement and the said main spring,
whereby the latter is partially wound at each periodical release of the striking spring,
substantially as described.
Dated this 18th day of December 1888.