IMPROVEMENTS IN WATCHES
Year: 1863

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to Charles Eugene Laederich, of Paris, France,
Gentleman, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN WATCHES."
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said Charles Eugene Laederich
at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the
28th May 1863.
I, CHARLES EUGENE LAEDERICH, of Paris, France, Gentleman, do hereby
declare the nature of the said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN WATCHES," to
be as follows:-
These improvements consist in a mechanical arrangement which may be
applied to any kind of watches in order to allow of winding the same up, and
setting the hands by means of the knob of the pendant, viz., without the aid
of a separate watch.key, thus forming what is called a remontoir watch.
In the annexed Drawing, Fig. 1 shows the inside of a watch (with the dial
plate removed) in which those parts only are represented as form the arrange-
ment called remontoir; Figs. 2 & 3 show other and separate views of some
of these parts; and Figs. 4 & 5 separate views of two wheels hereafter to
be mentioned. The same letters of reference show corresponding parts in the
various Figures.
a is the knob of the pendant, and forms the end of a spindle b, passing.
through this latter; this spindle may be pushed forward or backward, and kept
fixed by a stop a. A pinion c fixed at the opposite end of the spindle 6 takes
into a conical wheel d (Fig. 4,) to which latter is fixed a spur wheel e in gear

page_text: with the ratchet wheel f, the latter working the spindle of the main spring
barrel for winding up the watch. For setting the hands the spindle 6 is
pushed forward till the pinion c is brought in gear with the 18-teeth wheel g,
this latter of the shape shown in Fig. 5; this wheel g is in gear with the
6-teeth pinion working the minute hand, and to this wheel g is fixed the
8-teeth pinioni in gear with the 32-teeth wheel working the hour hand.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent filed
by the said Charles Eugene Laederich in the Great Seal Patent Office on
the 27th November 1863._.
TO ALL TO WHOM, THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, CHARLES
EUGÈNE LAEDERICH, of Paris, France, Gentleman, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her Most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Twenty-eigth day of May, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and sixty-three, in the twenty-sixth year of Her
reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant unto me, the
said Charles Eugène Laederich, Her special licence that I, the said Charles
Eugène Laederich, my executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others
as I, the said Charles Eugène Laederich, 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 time 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
"IMPROVEMENTS IN WATCHES," upon the condition (amongst others) that I, the
said Charles Eugène Laederich, my executors or administrators, by an
instrument in writing under iny, or 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.
NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said Charles Eugène Laederich, do hereby
declare the nature of my said Invention, and in what manner the same is to
be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the
following statement :-
These improvements relate to a mechanical arrangement which in the
manufacture of watches may be applied to the movement of the same with
the object of allowing the winding up and the setting of the hands of the watch

page_text: to take place by the knob of the pendant instead of by a separate watch key,
thus forming a new and more simple description of remontoir watch than the
watches of that class hitherto manufactured.
In the annexed Drawings, Fig. 1 shows a view of the inside of a watch
with the dial plate removed, in which Fige. those parts only are represented as
constitute the arrangement called remontoir, forming the object of my
Invention; Fig. 2 shows another view of some of these parts; Fig. 3 is a
side view of these latter; and Figs. 4 & 5 show views of separate parts; the
same letters, of reference show corresponding parts in the various Figures.
a is the pallet or pillar plate of the watch, of which latter b is the ring and
c the knob of the pendant c', which knob c is fixed to the end of a spindle d,
passing through a projecting boss e, and which spindle may glide forwards and
backwards in this pendant c¹. To the other end of the spindle d is fixed a
pinion f called the remontoir pinion; 9, 9', is a depression provided in the
said spindle d for giving passage to a small wheel h, represented separately in
Fig. 5, which wheel h forms part of the ratched wheel i, and is situated in the
inside of a depression or cavity ; provided in the pallet plate a (see Fig. 2)
round the boss or projection e. The wheel is consequently situated in the
position shown in Fig. 1, and its motion is steadied by a disc k fixed in position
by means of two screws and ¹. The wheel i is in gear with a ratched
wheel m fitted on the axis of the barrel; n is a gliding stop, the free end n¹
of which, when the stop is pushed forward, takes into the neck o of the
spindle d for permitting to keep the remontoir pinion f, when required, in
gear with the wheel h in order to allow of, by turning the knob c of the pendant,
winding up the watch. In order to allow the setting of the hands to take
place by means of the said knob, the minute wheel p is situated on the pro-
longation and in the axis of the spindle d; this wheel p is of 18 teeth, and
drives a 6-teeth pinion p' moving the minute hand, and the same has also an
8-teeth pinion på driving a 32-teeth wheel for the hour hand. The pinion p
or minute wheel, of which Fig. 5 represents a separate side view, is arranged
in such manner that the side gear becomes at the same time a top gear when
the pinion f is put in gear with the cogs or teeth p³ at the lower part of this
pinion or wheel p. In Fig. 1 either the teeth of the wheel h or the projecting
parts, cogs, or teeth p³ of the wheel p may, according as required, be put in
gear with the remontoir pinion f; thus, if it be wished to wind up the watch,
the spindle d is, by means of the stop n, fixed in the position shown in Fig. 1,
whereas, for setting the hands the stop n is drawn back, and the spindle d
pushed forward so as to cause the pinion f to set free the wheel h, and be
brought in gear with the teeth p³ of the minute wheel p. The setting of the

page_text: hands being finished, the spindle d is drawn back in the position required for
winding up, viz., as shown in Fig. 1.
From what has been said it will be obvious that my improved remontoir
arrangement offers the following conspicuous points:-1ly, that the winding
up by the wheels i and m requires but very little turning of the spindle d;
2ly, that for setting the watch hands the operator requires the use of one of
his hands only; 3ly, that the arrangement may be applied to any description
of watches, as well above as underneath the pallet or pillar plate of the
same.
Having thus described and particularly ascertained the nature of my
Invention, and the manner in which the same operates, I wish it to be under-
stood that I do not intend to restrain or restrict myself to the precise details
of the above description, as long as the main features of the Invention be
preserved; but what I consider to be novel and original, and therefore claim
as the Invention secured to me by the herein-before in part recited Letters
Patent, is the herein-before described remontoir arrangement for watches,
allowing the winding up and the setting of the hands of the same to take place
by means of the knob of the pendant, thus doing away with the use of a
separate watch key, substantially as described and illustrated in the annexed
Drawings.
In witness whereof, I, the said Charles Eugène Laederich, have here-
unto set my hand and seal, this Thirty-first day of August, in the year
of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-three.
Witness,
DREYFOUS,
Eng. Civil.
CH. EUGNE. LAEDERICH. (L.S.)