Improvements in Clocks, more particularly in Electric Winding- mechanism therefor.
Year: 1899

page_text: Date of Application, 7th Sept., 1899-Accepted, 14th Apr.,
1900
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improvements in Clocks, more particularly in Electric Winding-
mechanism therefor.
I, FRED ISAAC GETTY, of 936, South Central Park Avenue, in the City of
Chicago, in the County of Cook and State of Illinois, United States of America,
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 electric clocks and more particularly to that class
of independent clocks wherein the power which actuates the clock mechanism
is furnished by weights; and electricity is employed for the purpose of lifting
the weights after their descent, and thus practically rewinding the clock.
The object of this invention is to produce a clock of superior accuracy combined
with simplicity of construction and a reduced expenditure of electrical energy.
and to these ends the invention consists in certain novel features which I will
now proceed to describe and will then particularly point out in the claims.
In the accompanying drawings,
Figure 1 is a front elevation of a clock embodying my invention, the door
of the case being open:
Figure 2 is a side elevation, on an enlarged scale, of the clock mechanism
proper, a portion of the dial being shown in section:
Figure 3 is a rear elevation, on the same enlarged scale as Figure 2 of the
clock mechanism proper:
Figure 4 is a sectional plan taken on line 4-4 of Figure 2.
Figure 5 is a detail sectional view, on a still larger scale, taken on the line 5-5
of Figure 3.
Figure 6 is a similar view, taken on the line 6-6 of Figure 5 and looking
in the direction of the arrow: and
Figure 7, a similar view, taken on the line 7-7 of Figure 5 and looking in
the opposite direction, as indicated by the arrow at the top of said figure.
Figure 8 is an enlarged view of the contact arm and its attachments.
In the said drawings, 10 indicates the clock case, which may be of any suit-
able construction, and 11 an electric battery of any approved type mounted
therein. 12 indicates the dial of the clock, which I prefer to construct of glass
or other transparent material, but which may be of any approved construction.
13 indicates a bracket or support, upon which the clock mechanism proper is
mounted and supported, and which, in the present instance, I have shown as
depending from the top of the clock case, to which it is secured by an enlarged
head 14. The body portion of this bracket is laterally off-set, as indicated
at 15 in Figures 1 and 3, and in the space thus formed, between the shoulders 16
18 re-
of the bracket, is mounted the frame 17 which supports the clock work.
presents the minute hand shaft or arber, which rotates once in an hour and which
carries the minute hand 19. This shaft is connected by the usual gearing to
the hour hand sleeve 20 carrying the hour hand 21, and is also connected by a
suitable train of gearing, of any approved type, with the second hand shaft 22,

page_text: which carries the second hand 23 and an escapement wheel 24, 25 indicates the
escape lever, the arbor 26 of which is connected by the arm 27 with the
pendulum 28. All of these parts may be of any approved construction; or any
approved type of clock train may be substituted therefor.
Upon the minute hand shaft or arbor 18 are secured two ratchet wheels 29
and 30 Figure 5, and in the space between said ratchet wheels, which are sepa-
rated a sufficient distance for the purpose, are mounted two levers 31 and 32,
provided with suitable actuating weights at their outer ends. These levers are
loosely mounted upon the shaft 18, and the lever 31 is provided with a spring
pawl 33 to engage the ratchet wheel 29, while the lever 32 carries a similar
spring pawl 34 which engages the ratchet wheel 30. The ratchet wheels, 29
and 30 are constructed as shown in detail in the drawings so as to have circular
portions 69 intervening between the notches 70 with which the spring pawl
engages. The lever 31 has a hub 35 and an enlarged disk shaped portion 36
connected therewith, said disk shaped portion being, for the greater portion of
its body, of a radius equal to or greater than the adjacent ratchet wheel 29, but
a portion of its periphery being cut away, as shown at 37, said cut away portion
terminating in a cam incline 38 of the body of the disk. The disk 36 is also
provided with a slot or groove 39 concentric with the disk and lying inward
towards the center from the cut away portion 37 with which it is substantially
co-extensive. The lever 82 has a hub 40 and disk 41, similar to the hub and
disk 35 and 36, the disk 41 having a cut away portion 42, cam incline 43, and
slot or groove 44, corresponding to the similar parts 37, 38 and 39 of the disc 36.
45 indicates an electro-magnet of any approved construction, having its coils
connected at one end with one terminal of the battery by a wire 46 said magnet
having its coils suitably insulated from the frame 17. The electromagnet 45
is provided with an armature 47 pivotally mounted in the frame above the poles
of the electro-magnet, and having an arm 48 extending upwards on that side
of the shaft 18 opposite the side on which the levers 31 and 32 are located. The
arm 48 has pivoted to it a link 49 which extends inward between the disc shaped
portions of the hubs of the levers 31 and 32, as indicated in detail in Figure 5
of the drawings. This link is provided at this point with a pin 50 which pro-
jects beyond the link at each side thereof, one projecting end entering the slot 39,
while the other projecting end enters the slot 44.
The other end of the coils of the electro-magnet 45 is connected by a wire 51
with a contact arm 52 supported on the frame 17 and suitably insulated there-
from by a block 53 of insulating material. This contact arm carries at its other
extremity two contact leaves 54 of a yielding or elastic material and having
diverging ends to receive between them a contact finger 55 on a contact lever 50
pivoted on an axis 57 projecting from the frame 17. The lever 56 tends to
engage its finger 55 with the leaves or brush 54 by gravity, but in order to
insure and give quickness to its operation I provide a spring 58 to aid in depress-
ing said lever. This spring may be of any approved form, and as shown it
consists of a leaf spring secured at one end to the moving end of the lever and
having its other free end extended under a pin 59 projecting from the frame 17.
Mounted on the axis 57 and connected to and moving in unison with the con-
tact lever 56 is a detent lever 60, having a tooth 61 which extends across and
reaches upon the upper edges of the discs 36 and 41 and the ratchet wheels 29
and 30, as clearly shown in Figure 5.
The contact lever 56 is in electrical connection with the terminal of the
battery opposite to that with which the electro-magnet 45 is connected. This
connection may be effected in any suitable manner, and in the construction shown
it is accomplished by having the lever 56 in electrical connection with the
frame 17 through the medium of its axis, while the said frame is connected with
the proper terminal of the battery 11 by means of a wire 62.
A suitable stop is provided to limit the upward movement of the levers 31
and 32, and for this purpose I have devised and prefer to employ the construction

page_text: shown, in which the bracket 13 is provided with an arm 63, from which there
projects in the path of the levers a pin or axis 64, having loosely mounted thereon
a stop 65, comprising two arms 66 and 67 arranged at right angles to each other
to form an open jaw, which is provided with a cushion 68 of cloth or other soft
material. One of the arms 66 and 67 is made heavier than the other, as for
instance in the construction shown; by making the arm 66 of greater length than
the arm 67, so that the stop, when free, will always hang in such a position as
to present its open jaw to the terminal weights on the ends of the levers 31
and 32.
The
The mechanism thus constructed operates in the following manner:
weighted levers 31 and 32, by means of the engagement of their spring pawls
with the ratchet wheels 29 and 30, impart a rotary movement to the shaft 18,
which movement, being regulated by the escapement and pendulum, causes said
shaft to make a complete rotation once in an hour, and thereby causes the clock
to indicate the proper time upon the dial. While the levers 31 and 32 operate
simultaneously upon the clock train throughout all of their movement, except
for a brief instant, said levers are not arranged parallel to each other, but sub-
stantially at an angle of forty-five degrees, as indicated in Figure 3 of the
drawings, so that when one of said levers shall liave reached the limit of its
downward motion, the other lever will have about completed one-half of its
descent. When the lower lever, for instance the lever 32, approaches the down-
ward limit of its motion, the tooth 61 of the detent lever 60 is riding upon the
circular portions 69 of the ratchet wheels 29 and 30 and is supported thereby,
as shown in Figures 5, 6 and 7, while the cut away portions 37 and 42 of the
hubs of the actuating levers lie beneath said tooth and do not prevent its down-
ward motion. When the tooth 61 passes clear of the circular portions 69 of
the ratchet wheels and drops into the notches 70 thereof, it permits the detent
lever 60 and the contact arm 56 to drop and to make an electrical contact between
the finger 55 and the leaves 54, which completes or closes the circuit. As soon
as this contact is made the electro-magnet 45 is energized and its armature 47
is attracted, causing a downward movement of the arm 48 and link 49. The
pin 50 then engages the upper end of the slot 44 and thereby rotates the disc 41
upon the shaft 18 and moves the lever 32 quickly upward. This upward move-
ment of the lever brings the cam incline 43 into contact with the tooth G1 and
thereby raises the detent lever and contact arm and breaks the circuit. This
breaking of the circuit occurs when the lever 32 has accomplished about one-
half of its upward movement, but its momentum is sufficient to cause the lever
to continue to move upward until it engages with the notch upon its ratchet
wheel 30 above the notch corresponding to that of the ratchet wheel 29 with
which the pawl of the lever 31 is engaged. In other words, the lever 32 is
moved upward two notches at each upward movement and the battery current
is cut off at about one-half of this upward movement, the momentum of the
lever serving to complete said movement. The stop 65, by means of its cushion,
serves to arrest the lever should it tend to move too far. upward. It will be
5 observed that during this upward movement of the lever 32, the lever 31 has
been continually acting upon the shaft 18 to cause it to rotate in the proper
direction and thereby keep the movement of the clock mechanism normal and
accurate. By reason of this action the upward motion of the lever 32 has no
tendency to delay or move backward the shaft 18 and thereby retard the clock
and cause it to lose time.
When the lever 32 has reached its uppermost position it re-engages its ratchet
wheel, in the manner thus described, and the two levers continue to operate in
unison to drive the clock until the other lever 31 has reached its lowest position.
At this time the notches of the two ratchets and the cut away portions of the
5 two hubs or discs again coincide and the detent lever fails, permitting the con-
tact lever to make its contact and thereby close the circuit and energize the
magnet. The movement of the armature and the link connected thereto at this

page_text: time has no effect upon the lever 32, as the pin 50 moves freely in the slot 44
thereof. But said pin engages with the end of the slot 39 in the disc or hub
of the lever 31 and raises said lever in the manner described with relation to
the lever 32. The cam incline 38 raises the detent lever and breaks the circuit,
in the manner already described in connection with the cam incline 43, and the
lever 31 completes its upward movement by reason of its momentum.
It will thus be seen that at all times the clock mechanism is being actuated
by at least one of the weighted levers, and it results from this that there is no
retardation of the said mechanism due to the ceasing of the impelling force,
or to the reverse movement imparted by the re-winding thereof, which retarda-
tion occurs where only a single lever is used as in such clocks as ordinarily con-
structed. It will also be observed that the drain upon the battery is extremely
slight, as the contact is made only to be almost instantly broken and is not even
continued during the entire upward movement of the lever which is being
raised, but is cut off after a portion only of that movement is accomplished,
relying upon momentum to complete the same.
In the particular construction of clocks,. shown, the battery is called upon only
eight times in an hour, and then only for a space of time so brief as to be diffi-
cult of calculation, the contact being practically instantaneous. Of course, the
number of times the arms are raised and the battery called upon to accomplish
this work may be varied by correspondingly varying the range of movement
of the arms and the number of notches in the ratchet wheel.
It will be observed that the clock is exceedingly simple in construction and
composed of few working parts, so that the cost of constructing the same is
comparatively small. The cost of operating is also reduced to a minimum, by
reason of the very small call upon the battery. Superior accuracy of the clock
is obtained by reason of the movement of the two weighted arms, one of which
is constantly actuating the clock mechanism and thereby preventing any retarda-
tion during the winding of the clock.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said in-
vention, and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I
claim is:--
1. In an independent electric clock, the combination with a driven shaft or
arbor of the clock train, of two levers having pawl and ratchet connections
with said arbor to actuate the same by gravity, an electro-magnet having an
armature operatively connected with said levers to alternately lift the same,
an energizing circuit for said magnet, and means for making and breaking
said circuit at the termination of the downward movement of each lever, sub-
stantially as described.
2. In an independent electric clock, the combination, with a driven shaft or
arbor of the clock train, of two weighted levers having pawl and ratchet con-
nections with said arbor, said levers being so arranged that one has about half
completed its descent when the other is at the beginning of its descent, an
electro-magnet having an armature operatively connected with said levers to
alternately lift the same, an energizing circuit for said magnet, and means for
making and breaking said circuit at the termination of the downward movement
of each lever substantially as described.
3. In an independent electric clock, the combination, with a driven shaft or
arbor of the clock train, of a ratchet wheel secured thereon, the said ratchet
wheel having notches in its periphery equal in number to the times the magnet
is energized during a single rotation of the said shaft, a weighted lever loosely
mounted on said shaft and having a pawl to successively engage each of the
notches of said ratchet wheel, an electro-magnet provided with an armature
having a lost motion connection with said lever to lift the same, an energizing
circuit for said magnet, means for closing said circuit at the termination of
the downward movement of said lever, and means for breaking said circuit

page_text: before the said lever reaches the limit of its upward movement substantially
as described.
4. In an independent electric clock, the combination, with a driven shaft or
arbor of the clock train, of a ratchet wheel mounted thereon and having its
periphery alternately circular and notched, a weighted lever loosely mounted on
said arbor and having a hub disc of a diameter equal to that of the ratchet
wheel but partly cut away and terminating in a cam incline, an electro-magnet
having an armature operatively connected with said lever to lift the same, an
energizing circuit for said magnet, means for making and breaking said circuit,
and a detent lever bearing upon the peripheries of the ratchet wheel and hub
disc and connected with and controlling the circuit making and breaking means,
substantially as described.
5. In an independent electric clock, the combination with a driven shaft or
arbor of the clock train, of two ratchet wheels mounted thereon, two levers having
slotted hub discs loosely mounted on said arbor between the ratchet wheels, an
electro-magnet having a vibrating armature, a link pivoted on said armature
at one end and engaging the slots of the lever hub discs at its other end, an
energizing circuit for the magnet, and means for making and breaking said
circuit at the termination of the downward movement of each lever, substantially
as described.
6. In an independent electric clock, the combination, with a weighted actuat-
ing lever, and means for imparting to said lever an upward movement with
excess momentum, of a pivoted stop located in the path of the lever and com-
prising two arms at an angle to each other, the jaw thus formed being cushioned,
substantially as described.
7. In an independent electric clock, the combination, with a driven shaft or
arbor of the clock train, of a ratchet wheel connected with said shaft or arbor,
an electro-magnet an energizing circuit for the magnet a weighted actuating
lever having a pawl engaging the ratchet wheel to rotate the same on the down-
ward movement of the latter, an armature arranged in proximity to the electro-
magnet, a link pivoted to the armature and having a pin and slot connection
with the actuating lever, and a circuit maker and breaker actuated by the
descending weight to close the circuit after energizing the electro-magnet and
thereby raising the weight, substantially as described.
1
1000
HASELTINE, LAKE & Co.,
45, Southampton Buildings, London, W.C., Agents for the Applicant.