Improvements in or relating to Watches.
Year: 1899

page_text: Date of Application, 21st Jan., 1899
Complete Specification Left, 22nd June, 1899-Accepted, 29th July, 1899
Improvements in or relating to Watches.
We, ALBERT SMITH, of Loxley House, Linthorpe Road, Middlesbrough, in the
County of York, Gentleman, and JOSEPH DENMAN WILLIAMS, of Hawthorn Villa,
Linthorpe, Middlesbrough, in the County of York, Bank Clerk, do hereby declare
the nature of this invention to be as follows;
-
This invention comprises the application to a watch-case of a mirror which may
be placed either inside or outside the front or back cases, or may itself form
the case and may be used as a mirror upon both sides if desired.
In some cases the mirror may be formed with a hole in the centre as is now
commonly done with half-hunter cases so that the face of the watch may be
seen through it, the figures being marked upon the mirror.
In some cases a plain piece of glass or pebble may be used a dark surface if
desired being temporarily placed behind it when required for use.
Improvements in or relating to Watches.
We, ALBERT SMITH, of Loxley House, Linthorpe Road, Middlesbrough, in the
County of York, Gentleman, and JOSEPH DENMAN WILLIAMS, of Hawthorn Villa,
Linthorpe, Middlesbrough, in the County of York, Bank Clerk, do hereby declare
the nature of this invention and in what manner the same is to be performed,
to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following statement:-
This invention comprises the application to a watch-case of a mirror which may
be placed either inside or outside the front or back cover of the case, or may
itself form the cover on one or both sides, or may be placed on or form the dome
or inner cover of the case if desired.
In some cases the mirror may be formed with a hole in the centre as is commonly
done in metal covers for half-hunter cases so that the hands of the watch may
be seen through it, the figures being marked upon the mirror.
In place of a permanent mirror a plain piece of glass or pebble may in some
instances be used, a dark surface being temporarily placed behind it when required
to act as a mirror.

page_text: panying drawings
Fig. 1 shows a mirror set in the back cover of a watch-case;
Fig. 2 is a top view or plan of the same case the back cover and mirror being
shown in vertical section;
Fig. 3 shows a mirror attached to or forming the front cover of a watch
case;
Fig. 4 shows a mirror set in the dome or inner cover of a watch-case, and
Figs. 5, 6, 7 and 8 show details of the construction of the mirrors and the
covers to receive the same.
Like letters indicate like parts throughout the accompanying drawings.
The back-cover A of the watch-case illustrated in Figs. 1 and 2 is cut away at
its centre so as to form what is practically a broad bezel having a groove A
A circular mirror or piece of plain glass or pebble B having a bevelled edge is
then sprung into the groove A¹ of the bezel or mount thus formed, and is by
this means secured in place. If plain glass or pebble is used the case may be
opened and the back cover held over any dark substance such as the sleeve of the
user's coat or dress when required to act as a mirror, or the dome or inner cover
of the watch case might be oxidised or otherwise provided with a dead black
surface which would case the glass. or pebble to act as a mirror when the back
cover was closed or only slightly opened. In both of these cases ordinary crystal
or other watch glasses might be used, the convexity of the surface serving as a
magnifying mirror.
If preferred the mirror B may be placed on the inside of the cover as shown,
for instance on the front cover C (Fig. 3) of a "hunter." The cover C may be
provided with an inside bezel C₁ (Fig. 5) into which the mirror B, formed as
before described may be sprung, or the cover C may be provided with an annular
recess into which the circular mirror B may be placed as shown in Fig. 6.
The mirror B may be secured in the recess C2 by means of cement or by a split
ring C3 sprung into the upper part of the recess C2, or the ring C³ need not be
split but may be secured to the cover by any convenient means such as by soldering
or by passing small screws through it into the case or cover C; or again, an annular
groove C may be made in the side of the cover just above the surface of the glass
into which the split ring C³ may be sprung as shown in Fig. 6. The mirror B
when secured by either of these means may have either a plain or bevelled edge.
Again the cover C may be formed with a bezel C so that (Fig. 8) two mirrors
may be placed back to back one on the outside and one on the inside of the cover.
Any of these arrangements will of course equally apply to the back cover A of
a watch-case.
As a further modification the mirror B may be secured to or made to form part
of the dome or inner cover D of a watch-case as shown in Fig. 4. The dome D
may be made with a raised beading or bezel D₁ (Fig. 7) to receive the mirror B,
or the dome D may only consist of a bezel as in those watches provided with a
glass inner cover in which case the glass ordinarily used would be replaced by
the mirror B which may be curved or convex
outer cover and to act as a magnifying mirror as described above, or it may be
to adapt itself to the
flat or concave the back-cover being made slightly deeper than usual to receive it.
Again the mirror may be secured to the dome or inner cover D by forming a
bezel on the outside of it in the same manner as that formed on the inside of the
cover C, Fig. 5. This arrangement would have the advantage that if the mirror
was by any means broken the pieces would not fall into the watch movement.
In this arrangement and in that shown in Fig. 5 however it might be found
necessary to turn the bezel large enough to receive the mirror freely and after-
wards spin it over the edge of the mirror as it is possible the bezel might prove too
stout to spring the mirror in after the usual manner of fitting watch glasses.
A still more simple method of securing the mirror is to stick it by means of any
well known cement to either the outside or the inside of the watch-case, no hezel.
being in this instance necessary. An ordinary watch-glass may be used as the

page_text: mirror in this construction or in any of the constructions referred to, the glass
being made opaque on one side by any convenient means.
It will be understood that in all of the instances cited above the mirror used
may be made in any proportion to the case, i.e., it may either be small as compared
to the part in which it is set or it may be of such proportions as to practically
form the cover itself,, being carried and secured to the watch-case by a bezel as
described with reference to Fig. 4.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of our said
invention, and in what manner the same is to be performed, we declare that what
we claim is:
1. The combination with a watch-case of a mirror substantially as described.
2. The combination with a watch-case of a mirror forming part of the back
cover of a watch-case substantially as described.
3. The combination with a watch-case of a mirror secured in a bezel formed
in the back cover of the case substantially as described.
1000
ALBERT SMITH.
JOSEPH DENMAN WILLIAMS.
Boult & Wade,
Agents for the Applicants.