Improvements in Electrical Winding Mechanism for Clock Movements..
Year: 1892

page_text: Date of Application, 20th Aug., 1892
Complete Specification Left, 20th June, 1893-Accepted, 19th Aug., 1893
BOYIDIONAL DIGITIVATION.
Improvements in Electrical Winding Mechanism for Clock
Movements..
We ADOLPH EDWARD VIDAL of 20 Central Hill, Norwood in the County of
Surrey, Gentleman, and GASTON HERVIEU of 73 Cambridge Road, Hammersmith
in the County of Middlesex, Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of this
invention to be as follows:-
1
This invention refers to electrical winding mechanism for clock movements and
its object is to wind up the spring or weight at intervals (automatically) to the
same extent as either have become unwound during a short time of working.
Various attempts have been made to attain this object by the use of electro
magnets having an armature connected at one end to the arbor on which the
spring is mounted and by means of a ratchet wheel and clicks to wind up the
spring when the armature is attracted, upon the magnet becoming excited but it
has been found in practice that the distance that the armature has to be attracted
has been too great, now to obviate this objection according to this invention
instead of ordinary electro magnets we employ a solenoid or solenoids by which
we are enabled to get a much longer "pull" than with an ordinary electro magnet
as heretofore employed.
One way of carrying out this invention is to connect to the core of the solenoid
one end of an arm the other end of which is connected to the arbor (so as to work
loosely thereon) on which the spring that works the clock mechanisin is mounted
which should be the minute or any other wheel of the train so that a weak spring
may be used. To the aforesaid arm we connect a click or clicks which take or
takes into a ratchet wheel or wheels fixed on to the arbor on which the spring is
mounted so that upon the solenoid being excited the core will be drawn in and thus
wind the spring to the same extent as it has become unwound during the short
interval of working the length of stroke of the core of the solenoid and the nuniber
of teeth in the ratchet wheel being such as to carry out this object.
Suitable mechanism operated by the clock mechanism is provided in order to
open and close the electric circuit at the proper times and the core of the solenoid
may be brought back again by a small spring and we weight the other end of the
aforesaid arm so as to counter balance the weight of the core so that the clock may
go in any position. The battery may consist of two or more dry cells so that the
whole may be combined in a compact form.
For movements worked by weight power we connect the core of the solenoid to
one end of an arm the other end of which works loosely on an arbor of a chain
wheel on the said arbor is also fixed a ratchet wheel into which a click fixed on the
aforesaid arm engages another chain wheel is used instead of the ordinary cord
drum over the two said chain wheels passes an endless chain so as to hang loosely
between same this chain passing also under the pulley fixed on to the weight.
Dated this 20th day of August. 1892.

page_text: COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Electrical Winding Mechanism for Clock
Movements.
We ADOLPH EDWARD VIDAL of 20 Central Hill, Norwood, in the County of
Surrey, Gentleman, and GASTON HERVIEU of 73 Cambridge Road, Hammersmith
in the County of Middlesex, Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of this inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed, to be particularly described
and ascertained in and by the following statement :-
This invention refers to electrical winding mechanism for clock movements and
its object is to wind up the spring or weight at intervals (automatically) to the
same extent as either have become unwound during a short time of working.
Various attempts have been made to attain this object by the use of electro
magnets but it has been found in practice that the distance that the armature has
to be attracted has been too great, now to obviate this objection according to this
invention instead of ordinary electro magnets we employ a solenoid or solenoids by
which we are enabled to get a much longer "pull" than with an ordinary electro
magnet as heretofore employed.
One way of carrying out this invention is to connect to the core of the solenoid
one end of an arm the other end of which is connected to an arbor (so as to work
loosely thereon) on which the spring that works the clock mechanism is mounted
which should be the minute or any other wheel of the train so that a weak spring
may be used. To the aforesaid arm we connect a click or clicks which take or
takes into a ratchet wheel or wheels fixed on to the arbor on which the spring is
mounted so that upon the solenoid being excited the core will be drawn in and thus
wind the spring to the same extent as it has become unwound during the short
interval of working. The length of stroke of the core of the solenoid and the
number of teeth in the ratchet wheel being such as to carry out this object.
Suitable mechanism operated by the clock mechanism is provided in order to
open and close the electric circuit at the proper times and the core of the solenoid
may be brought back again by a small spring and we weight the other end of the
aforesaid arm so as to counter balance the weight of the core so that the clock may
go in any position. The battery may consist of two or more dry cells so that the
whole may be combined in a compact form.
For movements worked by weight power we connect the core of the solenoid to
one end of an arm the other end of which works loosely on an arbor of a chain
wheel on the said arbor is also fixed a ratchet wheel into which a click fixed on the
aforesaid arm engages; another chain wheel is used instead of the ordinary cord
drum over the two said chain wheels passes an endless chain so as to hang loosely
between same this chain passing also under the pulley fixed on to the weight.
And in order that our said invention may be better understood we will now
describe the same with reference to the accompanying sheet of drawings in
which,
Fig. 1 shews elevation of a lever clock movement constructed according to our
invention.
Fig. 2 top plan of Fig. 1.
Fig. 3 shews detached view hereafter referred to.
The wheels not lettered are those of the ordinary clock train and are only shewn
to indicate more clearly the position of our improved mechanism.
Similar letters of reference are employed to denote the same parts in all the
views.
A shews a solenoid the core b. being connected by a link c. to the arm d. the other
end of this arm is provided with a weight e. in order to counter balance the weight of
the core b. f. is a click pivotted to arm d. and engaging with ratchet wheel Jo fixed

page_text: on the arbor of the second wheel of the clock train. The click is kept in
contact with ratchet g. by a spring n.
The arm d. works loosely on the arbor j and a small main spring i is fixed at one
end to a collar k. of ratchet wheel g. revolving on this arbor and at the other end
to the disc h. which is fixed on the arbor j. so that as the core b. is drawn down
each time the solenoid is excited it will cause the ratchet wheel g. to be turned by
the click the distance of one tooth and thus wind the main spring to the same
extent as it has become unwound in working the clock since the last contact took
place. Although we have described and shewn the ratchet g. collar k. arm d.
disc h. main spring i. as mounted on the arbor; which we prefer we do not intend
to limit ourselves to this as these may be mounted on another arbor of the clock
train.
position by the spring 1. and wire m,
pl clock hands.
The arm d. is brought back to its normal
o is a click to prevent the spring unwinding.
We will now describe our mechanism for completing and breaking the electric
circuit at the proper times which in this case is arranged to take place 64 times in
the course of an hour.
This mechanism is shewn detached at Fig. 3. for sake of clearness.
On one of the arbors of the clock train we fix another ratchet wheel p. (see
Fig. 3). We prefer to fix it on the same arbor as that on which the ratchet g.
fixed as shewn in the drawings in which case it must be provided with the same
number of teeth as the ratchet wheel g. but if it is fixed on a different arbor of the
train of wheels the number.of teeth must be such as to still give the same number
of electric contacts in the same time.
With the ratchet wheel p. a click r. engages; this click is fixed to or formed
with the piece s. to which also is connected a contact piece t, t¹ is the other contact
piece, the piece s. is pivotted at e to an arm u which latter pivotted at w. to the
frame B (Fig. 1). is a spring to keep the click r. against the ratchet wheel P,
y is another spring to press the arm u up to its normal position, the arm u is
regulated by the two stop pins z. z.
Fig. 4 shews our invention adapted to wind clocks worked by a weight instead of
a spring in this figure the winding ratchet 9 is fixed to a chain wheel 14 so as to
turn on same arbor with it and we use another chain wheel 15. which latter takes
the place of the cord drum employed in ordinary clock movements worked by a
weight and to this wheel 15. the contact ratchet p. (Fig. 3) may be attached.
Over the wheels 14 and 15 we pass an endless chain 16. which also passes under
the pulley 17 on which the weight 18 is suspended; this chain must hang down
loosely betweeu the wheels 14 and 15. so as to allow the weight to be wound up
when the arm d. is drawn down by the solenoid.
The clock train is actuated by a toothed wheel connected to wheel 15. 19 shews
a break on to the balance for stopping the clock train when required as shewn in
Fig. 1. The action of our improved winding mechanism is as follows,
The spring i. being first fully wound up by pulling the arm d. down, a sufficient
number of times to attain this, the clock will thus be set going and upon the
ratchet wheel p. turning the distance of one tooth in the direction of the arrows
flight it will on account of the form of its teeth force the click r. outward and with
it also the contact piece t. which will come in contact with piece t' thus completing
the electric circuit upon which the solenoid will be excited and thus the core b will
be drawn into the bobbin A and pull down arm d. to the position shewn in dotted
lines at Figure 3. and by means of the pin 10 acting on the arm u (when the core b
is drawn down) will depress this latter to the position shewn also in dotted lines at
Fig 3 and by so doing will raise the click so that it may fall over the tooth and
thus break contact by allowing the contact piece t. to return to its normal position;
the core b. will then be brought back to the position shewn on drawings by the
spring . and wire m. by the above action the click f. will turn the ratchet wheel
the distance of one tooth and thus wind up the spring or weight to the same extent
as either of these have become unwound.
g.

page_text: 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.
1. In electrical winding mechanism for clock movements, the use of a solenoid.
2. In electrical winding mechanism for clock movements the combination of a
solenoid and weak main spring the latter mounted on the arbor of one of the wheels
of the clock train substantially as described.
3. Electrical winding mechanism for clock movements substantially as described.
Dated this 20th day of June 1893.
BROWNE & Co.,
9, Warwick Court, W.C., Agents for Applicants.