CH688982A5 - Wrist watch with luminous hands and reference markers - Google Patents

Abstract

The wrist watch either has no markers for the hours on the face, or such markers are not visible in darkness. It includes two luminous hands (16,17) to mark the hours and minutes, and the casing of the watch includes at least one visible marker (13A, 13B) on the periphery of the case so that the position of the hands can be deduced with respect to the hour positions. The fixed visible markers are situated on the 12 hour - 6 hour axis, whilst additional or alternative markers may be situated on the 9 hour - 3 hour axis. The markers comprise cut diamonds set into the watch casing - preferably set into the brackets by which the strap is attached. These may include a luminous material beneath the diamond seating, rendering them visible in darkness and providing reference markers.

Description

       

  
 



  Watches, wristwatches, chronographs or the like are known, with luminous hands, without dial (skeleton watch) or comprising a dial without time signs or with time signs not visible in the dark.



  These watches do not allow the angular positions of these hands to be located at night with respect to the 12-6 and 9-3 o'clock axes and, therefore, to deduce the time from them.



  The present invention relates to a watch of this type which does not have this drawback.



  This watch is defined by claim 1 of this patent.



  The attached drawing shows, schematically and by way of example, a chronograph wristwatch constituting an embodiment of the subject of the invention.
 
   Fig. 1 is a plan view thereof.
   Fig. 2 is a sectional view of a detail.
 



  The chronograph represented is constituted (fig. 1) by a movement housed in a box 10, in the bezel 11 and the horns 12 from which are set diamonds 13 cut in brilliant (fig. 2).



  The cylinder head of each diamond 13 is covered with a layer 14 of phosphorescent substance emitting light rays which pass through the crystalline medium to exit therefrom through its crown 15. These rays give diamonds 13 a certain luminosity at night.



  The diamonds 13A and 13B set in the center of the horns 12 are aligned with the 12-6 o'clock time axis of the chronograph and their positions, outside the crown of diamonds 13 set in the bezel 11, makes them easily identifiable at night.



  The chronograph further includes hour hands 16, minutes 17 and seconds 18 also covered with a phosphorescent substance so as to be visible in the dark, a winding crown 19 and the traditional push buttons 20, 21 and 22.



  The hands 16, 17 and 18 rotate in front of a dial 23 devoid of time signs.



  During the day, the times are read by estimating the positions of these hands relative to the imaginary axes 24 (12-6 hours) and 25 (3-9 hours).



  In the dark, this reading is made possible by the diamonds 13A and 13B which constitute luminous references of the axis 24 and thus make it possible to determine the angular positions of the hands 16, 17, 18 relative to this axis and to deduce therefrom. time.



  The invention is obviously not limited to the embodiment shown in the drawing and described above.



  In particular, variants of the chronograph described could:
 - understand only a single light mark 13A or 13B, the axis 24 being determined, at night, by this mark and the point of intersection of the hands 16, 17, 18,
 - include a single light mark 13C or 13D located on the axis 25, this being determined at night, as in the previous variant,
 - two light references 13C and 13D located on the axis 25,
 - four light marks 13A, 13B, 13C, 13D located, the first two on axis 24, the other two on axis 25,
 - any number of light marks 13N located on axes 24, 25 or on other determined axes.



  Furthermore, the diamonds 13 could be replaced by other precious stones, natural or synthetic, made visible in the dark by a phosphorescent substance, possibly by other light sources.


    

Claims (10)

    1. Watch without hourly signs or with hourly hour signs not visible in the dark, comprising at least two luminous hands - hours and minutes - characterized in that its case (10) has at least one visible marker (13A, B , ...) in the dark allowing the angular positions of the two luminous hands (16, 17) to be located at night and the time to be deduced therefrom. 2. Watch according to claim 1, characterized in that said mark (13A or 13B) is located on the 12-6 o'clock axis (24). 3. Watch according to claim 1, characterized in that said mark (13C or 13D) is located on the 3-9 o'clock axis (25). 4. Watch according to claim 1, characterized in that it comprises two pins (13A, 13B or 13C, 13D). 5.  Watch according to claims 1 or 4, characterized in that the said mark (s) (13A, B, ...) are mounted in the bezel (11) or in one or both horns (12) of the case ( 10). 6. Watch according to claim 1, characterized in that said mark (13A, B, ...) is constituted by a precious stone. 7. Watch according to claim 6, characterized in that said precious stone (13A, B, ...) is a diamond. 8. Watch according to claim 7, comprising ornamental diamonds (13), characterized in that said diamond (13A, B, ...) constituting said mark is located or has a particular appearance so as to be distinguished from ornamental diamonds (13). 9. Watch according to claim 7, characterized in that said diamond (13A, B, ...) is made luminous in the dark by a phosphorescent substance. 10.  Watch according to claim 9, characterized in that the said phosphorescent substance is formed by a layer (14) of this substance lining the bottom of the recess in which the diamond (13A, B, ...) is housed.