EP0455183A2 - Autonomous radio-controlled clock - Google Patents

Abstract

An autonomous radio-controlled clock (11) is to be equipped in accordance with the operational requirements, in particular for a small portable clock such as a travel alarm clock or a wristwatch. For this purpose, a display (25) of the current reception field strength is provided, which at the same time can signal the switch-on operation of the receiver (14) for decoding an absolute time information and expediently as a bar graph from the adjacent marks (27) of a jumping weekday display (26) is combined. When operating beyond the time zone for which the transmitter emits the encoded absolute time information, it is expedient to switch manually to the currently applicable time zone. For this, the number of time zone changes can be entered and displayed; or the current hour (H) of the current time zone is entered, into which an electromechanical time display (18) then runs. <IMAGE>

Description

The invention relates to an autonomous radio clock according to the preamble of claim 1.

Such a radio clock is known, for example, from US Pat. No. 4,650,344. Their function is based on checking from time to time whether the current electromechanical time display (such as the angle of the pointer) due to switching from an internal time-keeping circuit corresponds to the current absolute time, which is transmitted in coded form by a transmitter and from one to the Radio clock built-in receiver tuned to this transmitter is decoded. If necessary, the time display is corrected on the basis of the received, completely coded absolute time information. In order to be able to determine whether a display correction by means of received radio information is to be expected at all when the clock is started up, that is to say in the event of any false indication, or after actuation of the so-called "transmitter call button", an indicator pointer is provided for that radio clock, which initially is in the rhythm of the received coding frequency is continued until an absolute time information could be decoded to correct the time display. A restless run of the indicator pointer is an unmistakable indication that no undisturbed reception of the time information coded in the second grid is possible, that is to say an adjustment or correction of the time display is not to be expected under the current reception conditions. This applies accordingly if, after a reset, the received and decoded seconds information is displayed digitally, but does not count up from 1 to 59 undisturbed in seconds.

From DE-OS 37 31 956 it is known to use at least one electro-optical display digit to indicate how many receiver activations (decoding attempts) have already been attempted in vain. If, for example, this takes place in the programmed hourly grid during autonomous operation of the radio clock, that statement conveys information about how many hours the current time display could no longer be checked on the basis of absolute time information and corrected if necessary.

However, it is of particular interest, in particular for small portable clocks, such as travel alarm clocks or wristwatches, even if e.g. no indicator pointer that can be switched every second is available, and even without interrupting the autonomously advancing time display, it is possible to estimate at any point in time whether, under current operating conditions, reception of decodable absolute time information is to be expected, or manual activation of the receiver would currently be unsuccessful. On the basis of this consideration, the object of the invention is to create a radio-controlled clock of the generic type which provides a more meaningful reception signal display in terms of operational readiness than e.g. the mere fact that there have been several unsuccessful attempts to receive it.

This object is achieved in a radio clock of the generic type by the characterizing part of the main claim.

According to this solution, the actually given reception field strength is measured and presented at the operating location of the radio clock. If the field strength of the time information transmitter recorded via the watch antenna is too small, a trouble-free decoding of an absolute time information for the control and possibly correction of the current time display cannot be expected. Often, an at least temporarily changed spatial orientation of the receiving antenna is then sufficient, so that it can be observed from the corresponding change in the displayed receiving field strength whether sufficient reception conditions have now been achieved for decoding the absolute time information.

In particular, if the radio clock is equipped with an optronic display for displaying time-derived information, it is advisable to implement the field strength display as a so-called bar diagram, the length of which is currently displayed depends on the current reception field strength. Such a bar graph display can also be switched to display other variable sizes that are of interest for the operation of the clock; such as for displaying the battery voltage as needed so that a new power source can be used in good time before it is exhausted. Above all, equipping the clock with an incremental bar graphic also enables the bar elements to be used as individual jump mark displays (so-called flags). These elements can be used, for example, to mark a weekday scale relative to the current day of the current week, information that can be obtained from a calendar advance, but can also be decoded from the absolute time information transmitted by radio.

A blinking of the bar graph field strength display expediently indicates that the receiver is currently switched on; which in a manner known per se automatically occurs at predetermined times during the autonomous operation of the watch from the internal time-keeping circuit, but can also be done manually via the so-called JUNGHANS "transmitter call button".

Of particular interest is the equipment according to the invention of a radio clock of the generic type that can be carried along on the edge or beyond the limits of the time zone for which the coded absolute time information transmitted by radio is designed. Such a radio clock is expediently equipped with a zone switch in order, if necessary, to change the time display decoded from the radio information by zone increments when the time zone equipped with the aforementioned transmitter is exited or returned to. For this purpose, an immediate manual switchover of the hour display (i.e. a fixed hour offset compared to the possibly still receivable and decoded hour information, with the display of the other time and time-derived variables remaining unchanged) can be provided. Here you can display how many time zones the manual adjustment took place. However, since in the case of an electromechanical time display, this cannot change as quickly as required for gearbox reasons, i.e. cannot follow the manual time zone changeover without delay, in this case it is more convenient to use the time zone switch to directly enter the hour assigned to the future time zone as the new current target time in which the electromechanical time display is received in the same way as in the case of a correction based on an absolute time information that differs from a current display. Such time zone switches appear independently of the need for protection, regardless of the presence of a field strength display in an autonomous radio clock.

Fig. 1

im vereinfachten einpoligen Blockschaltbild eine schaltungstechnische Realisierung der wesentlichen funktionalen Zusammenhänge in der erfindungsgemäßen Funkuhr und ihren Weiterbildungen sowie

Fig. 2

stark vergrößert und nicht ganz maßstabsgerecht eine Ausbildung der Funkuhr nach Fig. 1 als Funkuhr-Armbanduhr.

Additional alternatives and developments as well as further features and advantages of the invention result from the further claims and, also taking into account the explanations in the summary, from the following description of one in the drawing below Limitation to the essentials, a highly abstracted preferred implementation example for the solution according to the invention. It shows:

Fig. 1

in the simplified single-pole block diagram, a circuit-related implementation of the essential functional relationships in the radio-controlled clock according to the invention and their further developments as well

Fig. 2

greatly enlarged and not quite to scale, a design of the radio clock according to FIG. 1 as a radio clock wristwatch.

The circuit clock and sketched radio clock 11 is equipped with a miniaturized antenna 12 which feeds a receiver 14 via an antenna line 13. This is tuned to at least one transmitter, which is usually operated in the long-wave frequency band and which quasi-continuously emits coded absolute time information. This is demodulated in the receiver 14 and converted in a decoder 15 into digitized time information, which is transferred to a display control circuit 16 for a multi-digit digital display 17. If an analog display 18 is additionally provided for the display of the current hour and minute, this information need not additionally be presented in the digital display 17; this can then be limited to a two-digit day, month and second display D, M, S, of which the first two groups of digits are followed by an ordinal point 19 to simplify the interpretation (FIG. 2).

As shown in more detail in US Pat. No. 4,650,344 already cited at the beginning, an electromechanical display 18 is equipped with a coding or incremental detector 20 in order to display the current mechanical display position (i.e. the current time display) in a comparator 21 with the (absolute ) Time information on to compare. In the event of a false indication, the latter actuates a changeover switch 22 in order to control the electromechanical converter 23 (for example a clock stepper motor) with an increased frequency f2 from an autonomous internal time-keeping circuit 24 until the mechanical display 18 again matches the predetermined time information. Then the comparator 21 switches the changeover switch 22 back, and from then on the converter 23 is clocked further at the time-keeping frequency f1.

In order to signal the viewer that the clock 11 is currently trying to record a coded time information, that is to say that its receiver 14 is switched on, a reception indicator 25 is provided, which is preferably implemented as a flashing representation between or next to the digits of the optronic display 17 . If, according to the preferred implementation example shown, a weekday display 26 with jump labels 27 is provided, the weekday abbreviations (in FIG. 2 the English-language abbreviations M, T, T, W, F, S, S for the weekdays Monday ... Sunday) is assigned, then it can be provided that the brightness control of the respectively valid mark 27, which takes place from the decoder 15 via a flag control circuit 28, is modulated by means of a chopper 29 by periodic interruption if and as long as the receiver 14 is controlled to receive.

Particularly in the case of a small radio clock 11 that is carried along, that is to say not operated in a stationary manner, such as in the form of a travel alarm clock or even a wristwatch, it is of particular interest to the user whether the available reception field strength is also available for the operation of the receiver 14 under the current operating conditions would be sufficient if this should be switched on. For this purpose, the antenna 12 is followed by a level measuring device 30 upstream or downstream of the amplifying receiver 14, which can control the sequence of all day marks 27 via an intensity control circuit 31 in the manner of a bar graph display. When the display is switched appropriately (for example by means of a pushbutton switch 34 or when a switch 41, which is provided for other functions, is actuated for a long time), then appear the more successive marks 27 side by side (illustrated by the intersecting diagonals in FIG. 2), the higher the level of the received field strength is currently. It is expedient to also modulate this display again, for example to periodically darken it using a chopper 29 if and as long as the receiver 14 is switched on. The switchover between the special display with bar graph field strength display in the optoelectronic display 17 (according to FIG. 2) on the one hand and on the other hand the normal date, second and weekday display (dotted below in FIG. 2) is preferably carried out via an operating mode switch 32 with a control stage 33, which can be set by manually operated pushbuttons 34, among others. At the same time, its reset input 35 is activated, which activates an internal timer which resets the changeover switch 32 via the control stage 33 (after a circuit-specific waiting period from the last SET activation) into the regular optronic date and second display on the display 17.

A part of the optronic display 17 can be used to signal, if necessary, that the operating voltage of the power source 36 has dropped critically, for example, a buffered solar cell should be exposed to the radiation or the battery should be changed immediately in order to avoid an imminent stoppage of the clock 11 . For this purpose, a detector 37 is provided, which works, for example, as a voltmeter. If the display position detector 20 works with light-emitting diodes in light barriers, as described in more detail in US Pat. No. 4,645,357 for a pointer mechanism, it is more reliable to interrogate the voltage-dependent functional threshold thereof by means of the detector 37 and to display it on the display 17 (preferably via the display control circuit 16) to have warning information 38 appear in the upper half of the monthly display M), for example the representation of a battery symbol (as taken into account in FIG. 2 above).

As illustrated by the dynamic input in the middle of the OR gate 39, the receiver 14 is switched on whenever the clock 11 is put into operation, for example by equipping it with a (fresh) power source 36 Query circuit 40, which is preset to certain times, such as reaching every full hour of the current time. However, if it is a configuration as a wristwatch radio watch 11, it is more expedient to specify only a few points in the night in the query circuit 40 as switch-on times for the receiver 14. Because when the wristwatch 11 is worn during the day, the movements cause field strength fluctuations in the receiving antenna 12, which overlap with an amplitude-modulated coding of the received time information and thus falsify the coding, i.e. can prevent the decoding of current time information, although the reception field strength actually would be sufficient. Such irritation of the wearer, and the unnecessary energy consumption due to a functionally unsuccessfully switched on receiver 14, are avoided if the switch-on times are shifted into the deep night in which the wristwatch 11 is stored or in any case the arm of the wearer is at rest.

Finally, the receiver 14 can also be switched on manually via a so-called “transmitter call button” 41, which is arranged in a recessed manner in the housing 60 of the clock 11 in order to avoid erroneous actuation (as can be seen in FIG. 2).

Each time the receiver 14 is switched on, an isolating switch 42 between the decoder 15 and a register 43 is opened, which is placed on the plausible current time information when it is decoded and is then clocked out of the time-keeping circuit 24 for the continuous time determination. However, it can be useful be, during the activation of the receiver 14 in the optoelectronic display 17 on a part of the display, for example in the two-digit date range, the second information determined by the decoder 15 instead of the usual (date) display with ordinal point 19 to present the synchronization process during the reception of the To be able to observe time information, as taken into account in FIG. 1 by an observation changeover switch 44 in the supply of the display control circuit 16.

Switching on the receiver 14 is interrupted again by a switching stage 45 when the decoder 15 has been able to decode current correct time information and therefore also resets the switches 42, 44 to the normal display function; or if such plausible current time information could not be obtained by the decoder 15 over a certain receive operating period of time (specified in the switching stage 45). The plausibility criterion is a defined time difference between currently decoded received time information and a reference time information obtained in the past or from the advanced time register 43.

The constellations of a receiver switch-on and switch-off without decoding a valid time information are recorded in an inhibit link gate 46 and added up by a counter 47, the current counter reading of which is shown numerically on the display 17 switched to transmitter display by correspondingly loading the display control circuit 16 '; For example, as a number of attempts to receive 48 with at least one of the digits that serve as the daily display D in the normal display 17 (as taken into account at the top left in FIG. 2). The display of the number of attempts to receive 48 therefore always remains "zero" if (in the reception area of the time information transmitter) each activation of the receiver 14 - be it manually or automatically - leads to the decoding of current time information.

Every time the receiver 14 switches off, without it being possible to obtain confirmed, i.e. currently absolute, time information in the decoder connected downstream, the old time information, which is kept internally in register 43, is returned to the display 17 via the display control circuit 16. This ensures that a correct (even if not confirmed by radio) time display continues to occur even if, for example, reception and decoding of radio time information is currently not possible due to interference or a switched-off transmitter.

However, if the transmitter call button 41 remains actuated for a predetermined longer period of time detected by a timer 49, then when the receiver 14 is switched on there is a complete circuit and program reset including resetting all the registers, including the progressive time register 43 So all the displays are reset to the zero position, and the clock operation starts again with counting and displaying the continuous seconds decoded from the radio information. It is expressed by the OR operations 50 in FIG. 1 that this triggers the same operating start state as in the case of the replacement of the power source 36.

A transmitter for transmitting coded absolute time information relates this to a specific geographical time zone, regularly to the time zone in which it is operated. It can be assumed that in the mutually adjacent edges of the adjacent time zones, those transmitters can also be recorded with sufficient field strength for the operation of the receiver 14 via the antenna 12. However, that is no longer the case if the Radio clock 11 is operated beyond the time zones adjacent to the transmitter to which the receiver 14 is tuned. Here, the continuous time display 18, including the additional displays on the display 17, therefore only works from the register 43, which is internally kept up-to-date.

In order to change the time display differently from the transmitter information in order to change the display units according to the number of time zone changes, i.e. to adapt it to the local time in the time zone, a manually operated zone switch 51 is provided, with which the register 43 operating the display control circuit 16 by full hours (without influencing the current minute and second performances; but taking into account any calendar change of the day) can be probed back and forth, for example by actuating pushbutton switches 52+, 52- which are recessed in the watch case 60. For the sake of clarity, this addition or subtraction of complete hours in the block diagram of FIG. 1 has been moved to an adaptation register 53 connected downstream of the time register 43.

In the time zone adjacent to the transmitter, one hour is deducted or added to the hourly information received for display. However, as soon as this manual time zone adjustment is more than one time zone, that is to say relates to regions in which reliable reception of the transmitter can no longer be expected, the activation of the receiver 14 to relieve the power source 36 is blocked via a gate circuit 54. They are controlled by a comparator 55, which switches through the gate circuit 54 again when the manually effected hour change returns below plus or minus two. This results, for example, from a comparison of the hourly information in front of and behind the adaptation register 53.

In order to avoid any errors, the actuation of any of the time zone pushbuttons 52 expediently - as also mentioned above the actuation of an additional switchover pushbutton switch 34 - changes the presentation on the optronic Display 17 of the date and second display of the current time (indicated by dots in Fig. 1 above) on a previously mentioned auxiliary display. In this, for example in the two second digits, the display control circuit 16 'can now be used to visually show how many counting or counting operations of the pushbutton switch 52 have been carried out, that is to say by how many time zones to the east or west the time display has changed compared to the transmitter time zone shall be. The traversing of the electromechanical flaps or pointer display 18 via the increased setting frequency f2 cannot, however, take place at any desired speed for reasons of transmission technology; and if a mechanical rapid traverse is only possible in one direction, the changes of minus two time zones in a twelve-hour display 18, for example, require ten complete rotations of a minute hand coupled to the hour hand. So while the time zone change can be made quickly via the pushbutton switches 52, it can be irritating that the wake of the electromechanically advanced hands or numbers does not follow this in any way.

Therefore, it may be more appropriate not to indicate the time zone change (in hours) compared to the previous time in the auxiliary display 17, but rather to use the two digits of the second display in this switchover state to make a real (target) hour display H, which is directly the corresponds to the given hour in the notified new time zone. In relation to the example mentioned above, after the minus button 52 has been actuated twice, "-2" is now not shown on the right in the switched display 17, but (based on the pointer position according to FIG. 2) the new time zone target hour "20" ( Clock, without taking into account the unaffected minutes and seconds). This is the target hour display for the mechanical display 18, the latter being entered via the comparator 21 the minutes and seconds required for this setting process. In the switched display 17, an hour display always appears on the right, which corresponds to that of the received time information (and the electromechanical display 18) if no manual time zone jumps have been entered.

The functions illustrated in the drawing in the manner of a block diagram can largely be implemented in a processor which is primarily intended for the receiver and display control from the demodulated and decoded absolute time information.

The antenna 12 of the radio clock 11 is expediently designed as a magnetic antenna, consisting of a flat coil 56 connected to the antenna line 13 on a flexible core 57, as described in more detail for example in DE-GM 88 15 967. This antenna 12 can be drawn into a bracelet 58 and can be connected electrically and mechanically to the housing 60 of the radio-controlled wristwatch 11 by means of a combined plug-in and fastening device 59. If, according to the preferred implementation example shown (FIG. 2), it is equipped as a hybrid watch, i.e. with a combination of electromechanical display 18 and electro-optical display 17, the latter is preferably - contrary to the usual design of such hybrid watches - not below but above the electromechanical pointer display 18 arranged. As a result, sufficient space is available at the lower edge in the housing 60, under the lower region of the minute track 61, for the configuration of the counterpart to the plug and fastening device 59 of the bracelet 58; so that this is due to the installation of the antenna 12 somewhat stiffer and thicker part of the bracelet 58 in a desirable manner to lie on the inside of the support arm. Opposite, next to the installation space for the display 17, the partial bracelet not equipped with an antenna is then articulated to the edge of the watch case 60 via a conventional hinge 62.

Claims (13)

Autonomous radio clock (11),
characterized,
that it is equipped with a field strength display (25). Radio clock according to claim 1,
characterized,
that the field strength display 25 is designed as a bar graph. Radio clock according to claim 1 or 2,
characterized,
that the elements of the field strength display (25) are also jump labels (27) of a weekday display (26). Radio clock according to one of the preceding claims,
characterized by a field strength display (25) which is modulated while a radio clock receiver (14) is switched on. Radio clock according to one of the preceding claims,
characterized,
that it is additionally equipped with a display of the number (48) of unsuccessful previous reception attempts, possibly flashing when its receiver (14) is switched on. Radio clock according to claim 5,
characterized,
that the presentation of the number of attempts to receive (48) is provided when the optronic display (17) is switched manually from the normal display. Radio clock according to claim 6,
characterized,
that the number of attempts to receive (48) is presented with at least one of the daily digits of the optronic display (17). Radio clock, in particular according to one of the preceding claims,
characterized,
that when the display (17) is switched manually from the regular display, a manually changeable time zone information can be presented by means of its digits, preferably the second display digits. Radio clock according to claim 8,
characterized,
that a time zone difference compared to the absolute time information coded for an operating time zone of the transmitter can be displayed. Radio clock according to claim 8,
characterized,
that the current hour of the different time zone can be represented digitally and serves as reference information for tracking an electromechanical time display (18). Radio clock according to one of the preceding claims,
characterized,
that it is equipped with an electromechanical time display (18) and additionally with a manually switchable optoelectronic display (17) which, with regard to the electromechanical display (18), the electrical and mechanical connection device (59) is fitted into a bracelet (58) integrated antenna (12) diametrically opposite in the housing (60) of a wristwatch radio clock (11) is installed. Radio clock according to one of the preceding claims 2 to 11,
characterized,
that the bar graph can be switched over to display the capacity of a built-in power source (36). Radio clock according to one of the preceding claims,
characterized,
that digit parts of a switchable optronic display (17) serve to display warning information (38) when the capacity of a built-in power source (36) drops critically.

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