IMPROVED SELF-WINDING APPARATUS FOR CLOCKS, MUSICAL BOXES, AND OTHER SIMILAR PURPOSES
Year: 1874

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to John William Wignall, of Manchester, in the
County of Lancaster, for the Invention of "IMPROVED SELF-WINDING
Sealed the 19th June 1874, and dated the 25th April 1874.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said John William Wignall
at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition,
on the 25th April 1874.
I, JOHN WILLIAM WIGNALL, of Manchester, in the County of
Lancaster, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for
"IMPROVED SELF-WINDING APPARATUS FOR CLOCKS, MUSICAL BOXES, AND OTHER
SIMILAR PURPOSES," to be as follows:-
1
is
This Invention relates to the construction of a self-winding apparatus
which I call an "electrical winder," and which is applicable to clocks,
musical boxes, or other similar mechanism wherein the motive
power
derived from the descent of a weight which requires to be wound
from time to time to keep the mechanism in action.
up

page_text: The Invention consists principally of an electro-magnet excited by a
bi-chromate or other suitable battery, and so combined or connected with
the main weight of the clock or other mechanism that the descent of
the latter to a certain point sets free a catch and puts the battery into
action, which causes the electro-magnet to attract the armature. The
movement of the latter towards the magnet causes a lever to draw up
the main weight, and this puts the battery out of action (by raising the
zinc electrode out of the solution or by withdrawing the solution from
the electrode), and the apparatus is then in a position to wind up the
weight again as soon as the latter has descended again to the given
point. The battery thus being only in action momentarily at intervals
during the winding up of the weight will retain its power for several
months and keep the mechanism constantly going, and all that is
requisite to keep the movement perpetual is to supply fresh solution
when the action becomes too weak to lift the weight and to renew the
zinc electrode when necessary.
The battery which I prefer to employ is that known as a "bi-chromate
battery," consisting of a glass vessel to contain the solution of bi-
chromate of potash and sulphuric acid, a wooden top or cover from
which are suspended two carbon electrodes about half an inch apart,
and extending to nearly the bottom of the vessel, a wire being con-
nected to each carbon by means of a brass clamp.
The zinc electrode passes freely between the two carbons and is
attached to a brass sliding rod, by means of which it may be lowered
into the solution or raised up out of it so as to put the battery out of
or into action as required.
The electro-magnet is a stout piece of soft iron bent in the form of a
horseshoe, round the legs of which are coiled several layers of stout silk
covered copper wire, the extremities of which have screws firmly
soldered to them to allow of the attachment of the wires proceeding
from the battery. At the end of the legs of the electro-magnet is the
armature, one end thereof being firmly secured or hinged to the frame
or case, and the other connected with the lever that winds up the main
weight. On this lever is a piece of brass with a wire firmly screwed in
it, and which at the up or down stroke of the lever releases or engages a
catch which acts on the teeth of a ratchet wheel attached to one side
of a pulley or drum. To this pulley are attached two cords, one
.

page_text: connected to the brass rod which carries the zinc electrode, and the other
(on the other side of the centre of the pulley) to a weight a little heavier
than the zinc electrode, so that it can raise the latter and keep it out of
the liquid in the cell.
It will be evident that in order to carry the zinc electrode into the
liquid when the battery is required to be in action, a supplemental
weight must be caused to attach itself thereto and to detach itself when
the top lever is raised so as to enable the zinc electrode to rise out of
the liquid as soon as the electro-magnet has accomplished the winding
up of the weight. This is effected by the winding lever carrying a sup-
plemental weight which rises with it in its lifting motion, but leaves it
at the end of the stroke in consequence of the ratchet opposing the
backward action of the pulley until the winding lever releases the
locking lever and allows it to go back. The supplementary weight is
kept up in its position until the time for rewinding arrives by means
of a lever which acts like the one already described, but in an opposite
direction.
I may here remark that instead of raising and lowering the zinc
electrode the latter may remain stationary and the level of the
liquid may be raised or lowered as required by means of a float or
otherwise.
In order to keep the wires always in metallic contact, whether the
zinc electrode is immersed in the liquid or not, I employ a glass tube
filled with mercury, and of such a length that a wire (one end of which
is soldered to the rod which carries the zinc electrode) may dip into the
mercury and not leave it during the whole length of the up or down
stroke of the brass rod. The wire from the electro-magnet also dips
into the mercury, and thus the two wires are always in metallic contact,
whether the zinc is immersed or not, and hence there is an entire
absence of the clectric spark, the destructive effect of which is well
known to electricians.

page_text: SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said John William Wignall in the Great Seal Patent
Office on the 24th October 1874.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, JOHN
WILLIAM WIGNALL, of Manchester, in the County of Lancaster, send
greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent, bearing date the Twenty-fifth day of April, in the year
of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-four, in the thirty-
seventh year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give
and grant unto me, the said John William Wignall, Her special license
that I, the said John William Wignall, my executors, administrators, and
assigns, or such others as I, the said John William Wignall, my executors,
administrators, and assigns, should at any time agree with, and no
others, from time to time and at all times thereafter during the termi
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 "IMPROVED SELF-
WINDING APPARATUS FOR CLOCKS, MUSICAL BOXES, AND OTHER SIMILAR PURPOSES,"
upon the condition (amongst others) that I, the said John William
Wignall, my executors or administrators, by an instrument in writing
under my, or their, or one of their bands 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 imme-
diately after the date of the said Letters Patent.
NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said John William Wignall, do hereby
declare the nature of the said Invention, and in what manner the
same is to be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained
in and by the following statement and accompanying Drawings (that is
to say)
:-
•
This Invention relates to the construction of a self-winding apparatus
which I call an "electrical winder," and which is applicable to clocks,
musical boxes, or other similar mechanism wherein the motive power is
derived from the descent of a weight which requires to be wound up
from time to time to keep the mechanism in action.

page_text: The Invention consists principally of an electro-magnet excited by a
bi-chromate or other suitable battery, and so combined or connected
with the main weight of the clock or other mechanism that the descent
of the latter to a certain point sets free a catch and puts a battery into
action which causes the electro-magnet to attract the armature. The
movement of the latter towards the magnet causes a lever to draw up
the main weight, and this puts the battery out of action (by raising the
zinc electrode out of the solution or by withdrawing the solution from
the electrode), and the apparatus is then in a position to wind up the
weight again as soon as the latter has descendod again to the given
point. The battery thus being only in action momentarily at intervals
during the winding up of the weight will retain its power for months or
even years and keep the mechanism constantly going, and all that is
requisite to keep the movement perpetual is to supply fresh solution
when the action becomes too weak to lift the weight and to renew the
zinc electrode when necessary.
The battery which I prefer to employ is that known as a "bi-chromato
battery," consisting of a suitable vessel to contain the solution of bi-.
chromate of potash and sulphuric acid, a wooden top or rail from which
are suspended two carbon electrodes about half an inch apart, a wire
being connected to each carbon by means of a brass clamp.
The zinc electrode passes freely between the two carbons, and (if tlie
electrode is to be movable) it is attached to a brass sliding rod by means
of which it may be lowered into the solution or raised up out of it so as
to put the battery out of or into action as required.
The electro-magnet is a stout piece of soft iron bent in the form of a
horseshoe or two cylinders connected together, round the legs of which
are coiled several layers of stout silk covered copper wire, the
extremities of which have screws firmly soldered to them to allow of
the attachment of the wires proceeding from the battery. At the end of
the legs of the electro-magnet is the armature, one end thereof being
firmly secured or hinged to the frame or case and the other connected
with the lever that winds up the main weight. On this lever is a piece
of brass with a wire firmly screwed in it, and which at the up or down
stroke of the lever releases or engages a catch which acts on the teeth
of a ratchet wheel attached to one side of a pulley or drum. To this
pulley are attached two cords, one connected to the brass rod which

page_text: carries the zinc electrode and the other (one the other side of the centre
of the pulley) to a weight a little heavier than the zinc electrode, so
that it can raise the latter and keep it out of the liquid in the cell.
.
It will be evident that in order to carry the zinc electrode into the
liquid when the battery is required to be in action a supplemental
weight must be caused to attach itself thereto and to detach itself when
the top lever is raised, so as to enable the zinc electrode to rise out of
the liquid as soon as the electro-magnet has accomplished the winding
up of the weight. This is effected by the winding lever carrying a sup-
plemental weight which rises with it in its lifting motion, but leaves it
at the end of the stroke in consequence of the ratchet opposing the
backward action of the pulley until the winding lever releases the
locking lever and allows it to go back. The supplementary weight
is kept up in its position until the time for rewinding arrives by
means of a lever which acts like the one already described, but in an
opposite direction.
Instead of raising and lowering the zinc electrode the latter may
remain stationary, and the level of the liquid may be raised or lowered
as required by means of a float or otherwise.
In order to keep the wires always in metallic contact, whether the
zinc electrode is immersed in the liquid or not, I sometimes employ a
glass tube filled with mercury, and of such a length that a wire (one
end of which is soldered to the rod which carries the zinc electrode)
may dip into the mercury and not leave it during the whole length of
the up or down stroke of the brass rod. The wire from the electro-
magnet also dips into the mercury, and thus the two wires are always
in metallic contact, whether the zinc is immersed or not, and hence
there is an entire absence of the electric spark, the destructive effect of
which is well known to electricians. But when it is arranged so as to
put the battery into or out of action by raising and lowering the surface
of the liquid, the electrodes being stationary, the the wires may be soldered
together so that they are always in metallic contact, in which case also
there is no spark. This arrangement I find to be much more simple
than the preceding, and I will therefore proceed to describe its construc-
tion more in detail with the aid of the annexed Drawings.
Fig. 1 is a vertical section of a self-winding clock constructed
according to my Invention; Fig. 2 is a section taken through about

page_text: the line A, B, in Fig. 1; and Figs. 3 and 4 are detached views of
.separate parts of the mechanism.
a, a, is the ordinary clock movement of which 6, b, is the main arbor
round which the central part of the chain c, c, is coiled, one end of the
latter supporting the main weight d, d, which propels the mechanism of
the clock, and the other end being attached to the pulley e, e, for a.
purpose herein-after described. The pulley c, e, is fixed on an arbor f,f,
to which are also fixed two other pulleys 9, 9, and h, h, of much smaller
diameter. To the pulley h, h, is fixed the chain or cord i, i, the other
end of which is attached to the armature k, k, which is hinged to the
case at 1, 1. The battery vessel is made with an inner cell m, m, and an
outer cell connected together by an opening n, n.
Inside the cell m, m,
is a float or plunger o, o, resting on the surface of the bi-chromate:
solution and connected by a chain p, p, passing over a pulley q, q, to
the pulley g, g, on the arbor f,f, to which latter pulley its end is fixed.
8, 8, are the carbon electrodes, and t, t, the zinc, which are fixed in such
a position that when the battery is required to bo out of action their
lower extremities do not touch the solution, but when the float or
plunger o, o, descends it forces the solution into the outer cell so that it
rises into contact with the electrodes. The pulley q, q, is provided with
a pin or tooth u and a catch v, v, the other end of this catch being acted
upon by a pin w fixed in the side of the pulley e, e.
The action is as follows:-Supposing the apparatus to be in the
position shown in Fig. 1, with the main weight.d, d, descending and
keeping the clock in action by means of the chain c, c, coiled round the
arbor b, b, the catch v, v, holding the pin or tooth u and keeping up the
float or plunger o, o, whilst the chain p, p, becomes slack between the
pulleys q and g, as shown by the dotted curved line; as soon as the
chain c, c, has drawn the pulley e, e, so far round that the pin w reaches the
end of the catch c, c, it releases the other end from the pin or tooth u, and
the float or plunger o, o, descends by its own weight and forces the bi-
chromate solution from the inner to the outer cell, where it rises till it
comes into contact with the electrodes. The magnet x, x, is immediately
excited and attracts the armature k, k, which by pulling the arbor ƒ, f,
round in the reverse direction winds up the main weight d, d, and at
the same time raises the plunger o, o, which is held by the catch v, v.
As soon as the plunger is raised the bi-chromate solution recedes from
the electrodes; the electric current ceases when the weight d, d, com-

page_text: .
mences its descending movement, gradually raising the armature as
before, and so on continuously so long as the strength of the battery
remains sufficient to lift the weight d, d.
Having now described the nature and object of my said Invention,
together with the manner in which the same is to be or may be per-
formed or carried into practical effect, I wish it to be understood that I
claim as my Invention, the construction and arrangement of a self-
winding apparatus for clocks or other mechanism (wherein the motive
power is derived from a weight) in such a manner that the movement
of the weight in descending causes the electro-magnet to become excited
and thus by attracting an armature winds up the weight again, the
ascending movement of which weight throws the electro-magnet out of
action again, and so on alternately as herein-before described, the
putting of the battery into and out of action being effected by either
dipping the electrodes into the solution, or by raising the solution to the
electrodes, substantially as herein-before described.
In witness whereof, I, the said John William Wignall, have here-
unto set my hand and seal, this Twenty-second day of October,
in the year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and
seventy-four.
JOHN WILLIAM WIGNALL. (L.S.)
Witnessed by
JOHN HUGHES,
Clerk to Geo. Davies, C.E.,
Patent Office,
St. Ann's Sq.,
Manchester.