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EP0342705B1 - Montre électronique - Google Patents

Montre électronique Download PDF

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Publication number
EP0342705B1
EP0342705B1 EP19890109092 EP89109092A EP0342705B1 EP 0342705 B1 EP0342705 B1 EP 0342705B1 EP 19890109092 EP19890109092 EP 19890109092 EP 89109092 A EP89109092 A EP 89109092A EP 0342705 B1 EP0342705 B1 EP 0342705B1
Authority
EP
European Patent Office
Prior art keywords
electronic watch
hair
wheel
set forth
viscous fluid
Prior art date
Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
Expired
Application number
EP19890109092
Other languages
German (de)
English (en)
Other versions
EP0342705A2 (fr
EP0342705A3 (en
Inventor
Osamu Miyazawa
Current Assignee (The listed assignees may be inaccurate. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation or warranty as to the accuracy of the list.)
Seiko Epson Corp
Original Assignee
Seiko Epson Corp
Priority date (The priority date is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the date listed.)
Filing date
Publication date
Application filed by Seiko Epson Corp filed Critical Seiko Epson Corp
Publication of EP0342705A2 publication Critical patent/EP0342705A2/fr
Publication of EP0342705A3 publication Critical patent/EP0342705A3/en
Application granted granted Critical
Publication of EP0342705B1 publication Critical patent/EP0342705B1/fr
Expired legal-status Critical Current

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Classifications

    • G—PHYSICS
    • G04—HOROLOGY
    • G04C—ELECTROMECHANICAL CLOCKS OR WATCHES
    • G04C3/00—Electromechanical clocks or watches independent of other time-pieces and in which the movement is maintained by electric means
    • G04C3/16—Electromechanical clocks or watches independent of other time-pieces and in which the movement is maintained by electric means incorporating an electro-dynamic continuously rotating motor
    • G—PHYSICS
    • G04—HOROLOGY
    • G04C—ELECTROMECHANICAL CLOCKS OR WATCHES
    • G04C3/00—Electromechanical clocks or watches independent of other time-pieces and in which the movement is maintained by electric means
    • G04C3/008—Mounting, assembling of components

Definitions

  • the present invention generally relates to an electronic watch which makes a smooth movement of a second hand, and more particularly, to a structure of a wheel train thereof.
  • a prior art electronic watch (e.g. Japanese Utility Model Application No. 147940/1987 or PAJ, vol. 012359 [P-762], & JP-A-63-109389) is, as illustrated in Fig. 3, composed of: an accumulating means consisting of a hair wheel 9, a hair spring 10 and a hair pinion 11; and a control means consisting of a viscous rotor spindle 13, a viscous rotor 14, a viscous fluid 17 and a container 19, these means being constructed separately.
  • a prior art electronic watch e.g. Japanese Utility Model Application No. 147940/1987 or PAJ, vol. 012359 [P-762], & JP-A-63-109389
  • Fig. 3 composed of: an accumulating means consisting of a hair wheel 9, a hair spring 10 and a hair pinion 11; and a control means consisting of a viscous rotor spindle 13, a viscous rotor 14, a viscous fluid 17 and
  • a second hand spindle 3 a minute hand spindle 40 and an hour hand spindle 47 are disposed about the center of a base plate 21.
  • superposed on these spindles are a driving magnet 43, a driven magnet 44 immersed in a viscous fluid and a linkage magnet 45.
  • the accumulating means and the control means are constructed separately from each other, which requires intermediate wheels 12 and 48 for linking these two means.
  • This kind of arrangement entails a relatively large area and is unsuitable for miniaturization.
  • hour hand spindle 47 when the hour hand is mounted, there are superposed hour hand spindle 47, minute hand spindle 40 mounted with the minute hand, the fourth wheel 15 for driving second hand spindle 3 and a third wheel 25 for linking the fourth wheel to a second wheel 39.
  • driving magnet 43, driven magnet 44, linkage magnet 45 and a second wheel train receiver 46 for retaining these magnets, as a result of which it is difficult to decrease the thickness of watch because of its thick movement.
  • an electronic watch which makes a smooth movement of a hand, comprising: an accumulating means for accumulating rotational energy of an actuator which is intermittently driven; and a control means for continuously releasing the rotational energy accumulated in the accumulating means, wherein the accumulating means and the control means are coaxially constructed and disposed apart from the central spindle mounted with a hand.
  • Fig. 1 there is illustrated a sectional view of a wheel train unit in a first embodiment of an electronic watch according to the present invention.
  • Fig. 12 is a plan view depicting the entire mechanism including the wheel train unit of Fig. 1.
  • An accumulating means functions to accumulate rotational energy in the form of elastic deformation of a hair spring 10 by elastically connecting a hair wheel 9 and a viscous rotor 14 through hair spring 10.
  • a control means behaves to control a rotational velocity by utilizing a viscous resistance of a viscous fluid 17 in which the viscous rotor 14 is immersed within a fluid container 19 mounted on a base plate 21.
  • An actuator involves a step motor composed of a coil 1, a magnetic core 2, a stator 4 and a rotor 5.
  • Coil 1 causes a magnetic field for driving rotor 5 through magnetic core 2 and stator 4.
  • Rotor 5 drives hair wheel 9 through a sixth pinion 6, a fifth wheel 7 and a fifth pinion 8.
  • a hair pinion 11 serves to drive a fourth wheel 15 through an idler 12.
  • Hair pinion 11 and viscous rotor 14 are fixed to a viscous spindle 13, while hair wheel 9 is rotatable about viscous spindle 13.
  • Fifth wheel 15 is fixed to a second hand spindle 3 integral with a fourth pinion 41, thereby driving a second hand 16.
  • the reference numeral 22 designates a wheel train receiver, disposed vis-à-vis with base plate 21, for retaining the wheel train.
  • the numeral 23 denotes a minute wheel for driving an hour hand; 24 represents a small iron wheel meshing with a sliding pinion 37 by the action of a setting lever 31 and a gate bar 30 when operating a winding stem 32. The hour and minute hands can thus be adjusted.
  • the numeral 33 stands for an IC having a timer circuit; and 35 indicates an oscillator quartz crystal. IC 33 and quartz crystal 35 cooperate to supply coil 1 via a circuit substrate 34 with driving signals for moving rotor 5 of the step motor.
  • the numeral 36 denotes a battery.
  • Fig. 2 is a sectional view showing a second embodiment of the electronic watch in accordance with the present invention.
  • container 19 is integrally formed with the base plate 21.
  • Fifth wheel 7 serves to drive hair pinion 11, and viscous fluid 17 is present between hair wheel 9 and the surrounding walls of container 19, whereby hair wheel 9 is smoothly moved.
  • Second hand 16 is then driven through fourth wheel 15.
  • hair pinion 11 is rotatable about viscous spindle 13 fixed to hair wheel 9, and hair pinion 11 is linked through hair spring 10 to hair wheel 9.
  • This structure permits the integrality of the viscous rotor with the hair wheel, which, in turn, causes a drop in cost.
  • FIG. 5 there is shown a sectional view of a third embodiment of the electronic watch of the invention.
  • a hair spring 10 connected to hair pinion 11 is provided inwardly of hair wheel 9.
  • Viscous fluid 17 is, after being supplied, sealed with a cap 18.
  • Viscous fluid 17 is stagnant in a gap defined by cap 18, hair pinion 11 and hair wheel 9 by dint of the surface tension.
  • the force is imparted from hair wheel 9 via hair spring 10 to hair pinion 11.
  • the deformation of hair spring 10 is so regulated by the viscous resistance of viscous fluid 17 as to provide a gradual deformation, and it follows that the hair pinion continuously rotates. Based on this kind of structure, the electric current consumed can readily be reduced, because there is no loss of step motor energy between the base plate and the motor itself due to the viscous load.
  • Fig. 6 is a sectional view illustrating a fourth embodiment of the electronic watch of the invention.
  • Fifth wheel 7 intermittently drives hair pinion 11, with the result that the hair wheel is smoothly driven through hair spring 10 immersed in viscous fluid 17.
  • hair pinion 11 is intermittently rotated, and the inertia moment of the intermittently movable member can be reduced, resulting in a drop in consumption of electric currents.
  • Fig. 9 is a graphic chart showing an example of characteristics of the restoring torque and the winding angles of a hair spring.
  • the winding angle increases due to angular deviation between hair pinion 11 and hair wheel 9, the restoring torque increments almost proportionally.
  • the viscous load associated with the viscous fluid is proportional to a rotational velocity, and hence the rotation is given in a state where the viscous load is equilibrated with the restoring torque.
  • Fig. 7 is a conceptual diagram depicting another example of the accumulating means incorporated in the electronic watch of the invention, wherein the magnetic attraction or repulsion of a pair of magnetic elements is utilized.
  • the symbol 10a represents a driving magnet
  • 10b denotes a driven magnet.
  • the symbols 10c and 10d indicate magnetizing boundaries between N and S pole.
  • the restoring torque when causing angular deviation ⁇ , the restoring torque, as illustrated in Fig. 8, varies in the form of a sine wave.
  • the load torque of the control means is set so that the angular deviation does not exceed 180°C, the same utilization as with the hair spring can be attained.
  • Fig. 10 is a sectional view showing a fifth embodiment of the electronic watch of the invention, wherein driving magnet 10a and driven magnet 10b are provided instead of a hair spring employed in the example of Fig. 1.
  • driving magnet 10a and driven magnet 10b are provided instead of a hair spring employed in the example of Fig. 1.
  • the magnets can be magnetized after having been assembled in the watch movement. This makes the assembly of the watch movement substantially easier since it is not influenced by magnetic forces.
  • Fig. 11 is a sectional view illustrating a sixth embodiment of the electronic watch of the invention.
  • Driving magnet 10a and driven magnet 10b are disposed in the axial direction, which arrangement prevents a leakage of magnetic field by equalizing the magnitudes of magnets. Consequently, bad influences on the step motor can be prevented.
  • the accumulating means and control means are coaxially constructed and disposed apart from the center of the watch body. Therefore, the present invention is not limited to those examples.
  • the actuator may be a piezoelectric element which makes reciprocatory motions or may be an ultrasonic motor.
  • the control means not only involves the use of the viscous fluid but includes a velocity adjusting unit such as an electromagnetic brake or an escapement.
  • the accumulating means and the control means are coaxially constructed and disposed apart from the center of watch body. This arrangement leads to decreases in the number of components, in size and in cost, and further facilitates the thinning of the watch.

Landscapes

  • Physics & Mathematics (AREA)
  • General Physics & Mathematics (AREA)
  • Electromechanical Clocks (AREA)

Claims (7)

  1. Une montre électronique qui assure un mouvement progressif d'une aiguille, comprenant :
       des moyens d'accumulation (10 ; 10a, 10b) destinés à accumuler de l'énergie de rotation d'un actionneur (1, 2, 5) qui est entraîné de façon intermittente ; et
       des moyens de commande (14, 17) destinés à libérer de manière continue l'énergie de rotation qui est accumulée dans les moyens d'accumulation, caractérisée en ce que les moyens d'accumulation et les moyens de commande sont réalisés de manière coaxiale et sont disposés à distance d'un axe central (3) sur lequel est montée une aiguille.
  2. La montre électronique selon la revendication 1, dans laquelle les moyens de commande sont constitués par un rotor (14) immergé dans un fluide visqueux (17).
  3. La montre électronique selon la revendication 1 ou 2, dans laquelle les moyens d'accumulation sont constitués par un ressort de balancier (10).
  4. La montre électronique selon la revendication 1 ou 2, dans laquelle les moyens d'accumulation sont constitués par une paire d'aimants permanents (10a, 10b) placés face à face.
  5. La montre électronique selon la revendication 3, dans laquelle le ressort de balancier (10) est immergé dans le fluide visqueux (17).
  6. La montre électronique selon la revendication 3, dans laquelle le ressort de balancier (10) est accouplé à un rotor (14) qui est immergé dans le fluide visqueux (17).
  7. La montre électronique selon la revendication 4, dans laquelle l'un (10b) des aimants permanents (10a, 10b) est accouplé à un rotor (14) qui est immergé dans le fluide visqueux (17).
EP19890109092 1988-05-19 1989-05-19 Montre électronique Expired EP0342705B1 (fr)

Applications Claiming Priority (2)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
JP12258288A JPH01292286A (ja) 1988-05-19 1988-05-19 電子時計
JP122582/88 1988-05-19

Publications (3)

Publication Number Publication Date
EP0342705A2 EP0342705A2 (fr) 1989-11-23
EP0342705A3 EP0342705A3 (en) 1990-05-23
EP0342705B1 true EP0342705B1 (fr) 1992-09-30

Family

ID=14839482

Family Applications (1)

Application Number Title Priority Date Filing Date
EP19890109092 Expired EP0342705B1 (fr) 1988-05-19 1989-05-19 Montre électronique

Country Status (3)

Country Link
EP (1) EP0342705B1 (fr)
JP (1) JPH01292286A (fr)
DE (1) DE68903034T2 (fr)

Families Citing this family (2)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
JP2646946B2 (ja) * 1992-12-02 1997-08-27 セイコーエプソン株式会社 時 計
JP6319834B2 (ja) * 2014-03-04 2018-05-09 セイコーインスツル株式会社 時計表示機構、時計用ムーブメント及び時計

Family Cites Families (4)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
DE940722C (de) * 1943-09-25 1956-03-22 Siemens Ag Vorrichtung an den Antrieben fuer mit zeitlich gleichbleibender Geschwindigkeit umlaufende Zeitlaufwerke u. dgl.
GB890349A (en) * 1959-12-15 1962-02-28 Kenji Tokita Electric clock
US3978654A (en) * 1973-06-07 1976-09-07 Kabushiki Kaisha Suwa Seikosha Motion transformer
JPH0823594B2 (ja) * 1986-10-28 1996-03-06 セイコーエプソン株式会社 時計用指針機構

Also Published As

Publication number Publication date
EP0342705A2 (fr) 1989-11-23
DE68903034D1 (de) 1992-11-05
EP0342705A3 (en) 1990-05-23
DE68903034T2 (de) 1993-03-04
JPH01292286A (ja) 1989-11-24

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