Improvements in and connected with Watches, Clocks, and the like.
Year: 1897

page_text: Date of Application, 7th Apr., 1897-Accepted, 16th Oct., 1897
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in and connected with Watches, Clocks, and the like.
I, ERNEST ANTOINE, of 5, Rue Moncey Besançon (Doubs) in the Republic of France,
Watch and Clock Manufacturer, 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 relates to a device applicable to watches clocks and the like whereby
the extent to which the main spring has been unwound can be seen at any moment
thereby indicating whether the watch, clock or the like needs winding up.
To enable my invention to be fully understood I will describe it by reference to the
accompanying drawing, in which :-
Figure 1 is a side view of the movement of a watch, having my device applied
thereto, a portion of the top plate being supposed removed.
Figure 2 is a view of the indicating mechanism.
Figure 3 is a section on the line x-x Figure 1.
Figure 4 is a view of a detail, and,
Figure 5 is a view similar to Figure 2 of a modification.
a is the ratchet wheel of the barrel A which contains the main spring of the move-
ment, the said ratchet wheel being fixed on the arbor C of the barrel and adapted to
gear with the winding wheel 6º, which is loose on its arbor and gears with a wheel b¹
also loose on its arbor and made in one with a pinion 62 gearing with a wheel bloose
on its arbor E which passes through the top plate D and the bottom or pillar plate F
and carries a pinion c. The wheel has, as clearly shewn in Figure 4, a double set
of teeth so as to enable one part of it to engage with the wheels a and b¹ and the other
part with the winding pinion s. The pinion c gears with a wheel g, the boss i of
which carries, on the side nearest the dial of the watch, a hand or pointer m, adapted
to move over a scale on the dial, the said scale being graduated in accordance with
the number of hours that the watch is constructed to run.
The wheel b is made in one piece with a pinion d which gears with a wheel f fixed
on one end of an arbor h passing freely through a wheel j and the opposite end of
which is fixed to a wheel / which gears' with a pinion fixed on the arbor E. The
wheel is loose on the arbor E and gears with the barrel wheel J.
The pinion d and the wheel fare of the same diameter, whilst the diameter of the
pinion is only two-thirds of that of the wheel k. The relation between the teeth of
the ratchet & and the wheels 6º, 61, b and that between the teeth of the wheels J j are
such that the angular displacement of the wheel j for one revolution of the barrel is
three times as great as that of the wheel b for one revolution of the ratchet wheel.
The arbor of the wheel g can be placed at any point on the straight line extending
from the axis of the contrate wheel to the axis of the watch pendant.
The relation between the number of the teeth of the pinion c and of the wheel g is
arbitrary and depends both on the angular movement it is desired to give the band
or pointer m and on the position of the centre of this wheel g.

page_text: The wheels and pinions a, bº, b¹, b², b, j, J, d, f, k, lc and g can for instance
advantageously have the following number of teeth, viz.
Ratchetļa
Wheel bo
Wheel b¹
Pinion b²
Wheel b
Wheel j
Wheel J
Pinion d
Wheel f
Wheel k
Wheel
Pinion c
Wheel g
55 teeth
-
40
"
-
24
35
-
12
"
42
"
56
"
110
15
"
15
"
18
12
"
6
29
40
29
55 12
The mechanism above described operates as follows:-
When the watch is wound up, that is to say, when the ratchet wheel is rotated
in the direction of the arrow t by means of the winding mechanism so as to cause the
barrel arbor C to wind up the main spring, the wheel 6º, through the medium of the
wheel and pinion 61 and 62, rotates the wheel b and the pinion d in the direction of
the arrow (Figures 1 and 2) with an angular velocity equal to
of the
24 42
angular velocity of the ratchet wheel a and the pinion d rotates the wheels f and k in
the direction of the arrow y with an equal angular velocity, that is to say, with an
55 12
angular velocity equal to X
of that of the ratchet wheel a or of the barrel
24 42
arbor C. This rotary motion of the wheels f and k or of the arbor h is transmitted by
the wheels, c which rotate in the direction of the arrow a and with an angular
55 12 18 165
velocity equal to X
24 42
×
or of the angular velocity of the ratchet wheel
12 168
to the wheel g so that the hand or pointer i fitted to the boss of the latter will move
over the scale on the watch dial in the direction of the arrow 2. It is clear that for
four revolutions of the barrel arbor C, the wheels and c will make 4 ×
165
168
= 4 x
55
56
revolutions.
110
110
56
When the spring unwinds, that is to say, operates the watch movement, the wheel j
will be caused to move, by the barrel wheel with an angular velocity equal to
of the angular velocity of the barrel and the wheelf will roll on the pinion d, kept
immovable by the connection of the wheel b through the medium of the
wheels 62, 61, 0 with the ratchet wheel a which is held by the pawl so that the
wheelf moves around the arbor E in the direction of the arrow x, the said wheel f
and its arbor moving with a velocity equal to × 2 of the angular velocity of the
barrel. This planetary motion around the spindle E causes the wheel and the
wheels b, c respectively to rotate in directions opposite to those of the arrows y, x and
the wheel gas also the hand or pointer m in a direction opposite to that indicated
by the arrow z, the wheel k having during this movement an angular velocity of
rotation around its axis equal to that of the wheelf and an angular velocity of
translation around the arbor E equal to that of the wheel j, whilst the wheels and c,
during this movement, only have an angular velocity equal to
56

page_text: 112
of the angular velocity of the barrel, that is of the angular velocity of the barrel.
Now supposing the power of the main spring be such that it causes the barrel A to
make four revolutions in the direction of the arrow t, the wheels f and operated by
the wheel gearing with the barrel wheel J will, on account of their planetary
movement, that is to say, a combination of movements of translation and rotation,
cause the wheel and therefore the arbor E and the wheel c to make 4 x
55
56
110
112
or
4 x revolutions in the opposite direction of the arrow in such a manner that
the wheel g and the hand or pointer m will be moved by the wheelf in a direction
opposite to the arrow z and with the same velocity as they had in the direction of the
arrow when winding up the watch, and so that during the unwinding of the spring
the hand or pointer will every moment indicate on the scale on the watch dial the
extent to which the said spring has been unwound.
My improvements are especially applicable to all long running watches, that is to
say, to watches which go for more than two days as, for instance, watches which go
for 55 or 56 hours, keyless open face, hunters or half hunters, repeaters, and to all
other timekeepers having a going barrel and particularly to watches and timekeepers
which run for more than forty-eight hours.
It is obvious that the arrangement above described with reference to Figures 1, 2
and 3, can be utilized as an hour-counter if care be taken to wind the watch up fully,
that is to say, to return the hand or pointer to zero on the scale. In order that the
arrangement may also serve as a minute-counter, the device shewn in Figure 5 may
be adopted.
In this figure a second hand or pointer is used to count the minutes. The
cannon of this hand or pointer passes through the cannon i of the hand or pointer m
as well as the wheel g and carries under the latter a pinion o which gears by means
of the wheels and pinion p, pl and g, with a wheel c¹ fixed on the arbor E. The pivots
on which the wheels and pinion p, p, q freely turn, are fixed to the bottom or pillar
plate F. The hand or pointer n must necessarily move in the same direction as the
hand or pointer m and the diameters of the wheels and pinions c', q, p¹, p, o are such
that when the watch is going, the hand a moving over a scale on the dial makes one
revolution an hour. It is obvious that the hand n can receive its notion from the
wheel g.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I
claim is
1. A device for indicating the extent to which the main spring of watches and other
long running timekeepers has been unwound, such device having two toothed
wheels b and fitted loosely on the same arbor E and one 6 of which is connected by
suitable intermediate wheels such as 62, 61, 60 with the barrel ratchet and is rigidly
fixed to a pinion d, whilst the other wheel gears with the barrel wheel and has
passing freely through it an arbor h to the ends of which two wheels f and k are fixed
one of which gears with the pinion d, whilst the other k gears with a wheel l, keyed
on the arbor E which also carries a pinion c gearing with a wheel g, furnished with a
hand or pointer m, designed to indicate at each instant the extent to which the main
spring has become unwound by its position on a scale on the dial of the watch, the
relations between the number of teeth of these wheels and pinions being such that the
hand or pointer m is caused to move through equal distances but in opposite directions
according to whether it is operated from the barrel ratchet when winding up the
watch or from the barrel wheel when the watch is going, substantially as described.
2. The device for watches and other long running time keepers as described in the
preceding claim and arranged to count hours and minutes, the hand m for indicating
the extent to which the main spring is unwound being adapted to count the hours if

page_text: care be taken to fully wind up the watch, that is to say, to return the hand to zero
and also being combined with a second hand n designed to count the minutes and
which is operated either by the arbor E or by the wheel g carrying the hand or pointer
indicating the extent to which the main spring has unwound through the medium of
suitable gear wheels so that it makes one revolution per hour whilst the watch is going, 5
substantially as hereinbefore described.
G. F. REDFERN & Co.,
4, South Street, Finsbury, London, Agents for the Applicant.