CH710490A2 - Holding assembly or support of a timepiece balance spring. - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to a holding or supporting assembly of a clockwork spiral spring, comprising a peg and a peg holder, which bolt carrier comprises: a base (300) having a first stop extending in a manner longitudinal axis of said base; means for attaching said bolt carrier to a pendulum bridge, characterized in that said bolt carrier further comprises a shock absorber system comprising a pivot element for pivoting the balance shaft and an elastic element for damping said axle. balance shaft.

Description

The present invention relates to a holding or support assembly of a spiral watch spring, comprising a pin and a bolt carrier, which comprises: A base comprising a first abutment extending along a longitudinal axis of said base; Means for fixing said bolt carrier to an exhaust mechanism.

PRIOR ART

In a mechanical watch, it is customary to use a regulating member comprising a sprung balance device. Conventionally, the inner end of the hairspring is fixed to a ferrule provided on the axis of pivoting of the balance. In order to fix and position the outer end of the hairspring, it is known to use a peg holder housing a pin, in combination with a clamping screw for tightening the bolt against the portion of the hairspring engaged in the bolt carrier.

In such an assembly, the peg carrier is conventionally attached to a cock also serving to fix one end of the axis of the balance. In practice, during assembly and / or adjustment, the manipulations to be performed with these various elements are delicate because access is restricted and the parts are very small. In addition, with such configurations, it is common for the spiral clamping screw or peg holder to come loose, and / or be lost during handling such as adjusting the active length of the hairspring.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The invention aims to overcome the disadvantages of the prior art by proposing to provide a holding or support assembly of a simplified watch spring spiral and to ensure the damper function.

As such, the present invention relates to a holding or support assembly of a spiral clock spring, comprising a pin and a bolt carrier, which comprises: A base comprising a first abutment extending along a longitudinal axis of said base; Means for attaching said bolt carrier to a pendulum bridge, characterized in that said piton door further comprises a shock absorbing system comprising a pivot member for pivoting a balance shaft and an elastic member for damping said balance shaft.

This invention has the advantage of having a single structure that acts as a door bolt but also shock absorber system. This also allows for simplified mounting and cost reduction.

In a first advantageous embodiment, the base comprises a main through opening in which said shock absorber system is arranged

In a second advantageous embodiment, the pivot element is a stone provided with a recess adapted to allow the balance shaft to cooperate with said stone, said elastic member comprising a ring made of an elastic material, said ring being made to be inserted into the main opening between the base and the stone.

In a third advantageous embodiment, the pivot element comprises at least two arms each extending from a wall of the opening towards the center of said main opening and a central ring fixed to the free end of the arms. said ring being adapted to cooperate with the balance shaft.

In a fourth advantageous embodiment, the shock absorber system comprises a resilient arm extending from a wall of the main opening towards the center of said opening, the free end being provided with the pivot member.

In a fifth advantageous embodiment, said pivot member comprises a pellet made in the manner of the arm, said pellet provided with a recess adapted to allow the balance shaft to cooperate with said pellet.

In a sixth advantageous embodiment, said arm comprises at its free end a ring made of material with said arm, said ring for inserting said pivot member.

In another advantageous embodiment, the pivot element is a single stone inserted into said ring and provided with a recess capable of allowing the balance shaft to cooperate with said stone.

In another advantageous embodiment, the shock absorbing system further comprises an elastic ring inserted into said ring between the base and the single stone.

In another advantageous embodiment, the pivot element comprises at least two arms each extending from a wall of the ring towards the center of said ring and a central ring attached to the free end of the arms, said central ring being adapted to cooperate with the balance shaft.

In another advantageous embodiment, the piton door is made of a metallic material.

In another advantageous embodiment, the piton door is made of a monocrystalline material.

In another advantageous embodiment, the attachment means comprise a hole arranged on the balance bridge cooperating with a first hole of the door pin and a screw inserted into the two holes.

In another advantageous embodiment, the attachment means further comprise a stud arranged on the balance bridge and a second hole arranged on the stud holder, said stud cooperating with the second hole.

In another advantageous embodiment, the attachment means further comprise a stud arranged on the stud holder and a second hole arranged on the balance bridge, said stud cooperating with the second hole.

In another advantageous embodiment, the attachment means further comprise a recess arranged on the balance bridge and a projection arranged on the bolt carrier, said recess cooperating with said projection.

In another advantageous embodiment, the first hole has an arcuate shape allowing the bolt carrier to rotate angularly.

In another advantageous embodiment, the door pin and the balance bridge are monobloc.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURE

The objects, advantages and features of the invention will appear more clearly in the following detailed description of at least one embodiment of the invention given solely by way of non-limiting example and illustrated by the accompanying drawings in which: : <tb> Figs. 1a to 1d <SEP> represent a diagram of a first embodiment of the holding assembly according to the invention and its variants; <tb> Figs. 2a to 2b <SEP> show a diagram of a second embodiment of the holding assembly according to the invention; <tb> Figs. 3a to 3e <SEP> show a diagram of a third embodiment according to the invention; <tb> Figs. 4 to 8 <SEP> represent a diagram of the means of fasteners and their variants according to the invention;

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The present invention proceeds from the general idea of providing a holding or support assembly of a spiral clock spring for mounting / dismounting the simplest piton.

In FIG. 1a is a diagrammatic view of a holding or supporting assembly 1 of a spiral clock spring according to a first embodiment. This holding assembly 1 comprises a peg carrier 3 arranged to be fixed to the balance bridge 5 also called cock via fastening means 7. The retaining assembly also comprises a peg 9 fixed on a coil of the spiral spring. The balance bridge 5 has an outer surface and an inner surface, the outer surface being the visible surface from above.

The door pin 3 comprises a base 300 having a longitudinal axis (L). The base 300 may be of any shape that is to say circular or rectangular or ovoid. In the case of a circular base 300, the longitudinal axis will be one of the diameters. From this base 300 extends a first abutment 320. This first abutment is in the form of an outgrowth of the base 300.

The door pin 3 also includes fastening means 340 provided for fixing the pin 9 to door piton. The elastic means 340 comprise two elastic arms 350. These arms 350 extend from the base 300 in a direction similar to that of the first stop 320, that is to say in a direction similar to that of the longitudinal axis ( L). The two elastic arms 350 are integral at their end. At this point of attachment 351, the second stop 360 is arranged to be facing the first stop 320.

The two elastic arms 350 each have a curvature. This curvature is preferentially convex. This convex shape of the elastic arms 350 allows assembly / disassembly of the piton 9 simplified. Indeed, for mounting / disassembly of the stud, a constraint C is applied simultaneously on the two resilient arms 350 resulting in deformation of the arms 350. This deformation tends to bring them closer together.

There is then a displacement of the second stop 360 away from the first stop 320 enlarging then the housing located between the first stop 320 and the second stop 360. This enlargement of the housing then makes it easy to accommodate / dislodge the piton 9.

Cleverly according to the invention, the piton door further comprises a shock absorbing system 400. This shock absorbing system 400 is arranged on the base 300 and is used to damp the shocks of the balance shaft 2.

In a first embodiment visible in FIGS. 1a, 1b and 1c, the base 300 is provided with a main opening 301 in which the shock absorbing system 400 is inserted. This shock absorbing system comprises a pivot element 410 and a separate elastic element 420. The pivot element 410 is in the form of a single pivot stone 411 made for example in ruby. This stone 411 has in its center a non-through recess 411a in which the axis of the balance is inserted. The elastic element 420 is in turn in the form of a ring 421 or elastic ring. This ring is made of an elastic material of the rubber or plastic type.

The shock absorbing system 400 is mounted by placing in the first place the single stone 411 in the ring 421. The whole then forms a module which is in turn placed in the main opening 301 of the base 300. module can be driven out or glued to be held in place in said main opening 301.

During an impact, the axis moves so as to abut on the pivot stone 411. It moves thanks to the elastic properties of the ring 421 elastic material in which it is placed to cushion the shock. When the shock is no longer applied, these same elastic properties tend to return the pivot stone to its initial position.

In a variant of this embodiment visible fig. 1d, it is possible that the pivot stone is replaced by a kitten 402 in which a pierced stone 403 and a pivot stone 404 are arranged.

In a second embodiment shown in FIG. 2a, the base 300 and the shock absorber system are integrated that is to say monoblocs. For this, the base 300 always comprises a main opening 301 comprising an inner wall. From the inner wall, a plurality of arms 422 extend. These arms 422 extend in a radial direction, ie in a direction towards the center of the main opening 301. The shock absorbing system 400 further comprises a central ring 412 to which the ends of the arms are fixed. This central ring 412 cooperates with the balance shaft, the latter inserting via its tigeron into said central ring 412.

This configuration allows, during an impact, the central ring 412 to move by deforming the arms 422. These arms 422 then act as elastic means since they tend to resume the central ring 412 its initial position.

When the stress due to impact is no longer applied, the central ring 412 resumes its initial position driven by the arms 422.

The shock absorbing system comprises at least two arms 422, this number being up to 8 or 10 or 12 depending on the size of the shock absorber system. It will be cleverly provided that the arms 422 are angularly distributed in order to have a homogeneous behavior.

In an advantageous variant visible in FIG. 2b, the arms 422 are configured to have a curved shape so that the effective length of each arm 422 is greater than the distance between the inner wall of the opening and the central ring 412. This feature allows the arms 422 to to lengthen during a shock so as to offer a greater amplitude of deformation and thus a better damping. Arms 422 of curved shape also make it possible to damp the lateral shocks

In a third embodiment, the base 300 still comprises a main through opening 301 in which the shock absorbing system 400 is arranged. From the inner wall of this opening, an arm 423 extends. This arm 423 acts as an elastic means 420. At the free end of this arm, the pivot module 410 is arranged.

In a first alternative visible in FIG. 3a, the pivot module comprises a pellet 413 made of material with the arm 423. This pellet 413 comprises a recess 413a allowing the cooperation between the balance shaft and the pellet 413.

In this configuration, under the effect of a shock, the balance moves so that the balance shaft abut on the pellet 413. Under the effect of this constraint exerted by the balance shaft, the arm 423 is deformed to accompany the displacement of the balance shaft. Once the constraint exerted by the balance shaft fades, the arm 423 acting as a spring tends to resume the balance shaft its initial position.

In a second alternative visible in FIGS. 3b and 3c, the arm 423 comprises at its free end a support ring 423a in which the pivot module 410 is arranged. The latter comprises a single stone 414 provided with a recess 414a for the balance shaft. This single stone 414 is driven into the support ring 423a. The operation of this alternative is therefore similar to the operation of the first alternative.

This alternative has the advantage of being able to dissociate the material used for the pivot function and the material used for the spring function damping. For example, it will be possible to choose a material recognized for its friction resistance and wear resistance properties for the pivot function while a material known for its elastic properties will be used for the damping function.

In a variant of this second alternative visible in FIG. 3d, an intermediate piece 414b located between the ring 423a and the single stone 414 in the form of a spring ring made of elastic material such as rubber or a polymer. This variant makes it possible to improve the damping function by offering two distinct means for effecting said damping.

In a third alternative visible in FIG. 3e, the arm 423 comprises at its free end a support ring 423a. From the inner wall of this support ring 423a, a plurality of arms 415 extend. These arms 415 extend in a radial direction, that is to say in a direction going towards the center of the support ring 423a. The shock absorbing system 400 further comprises a central ring 416 to which the free ends of the arms 415 are fixed. This central ring 416 cooperates with the balance shaft, the latter being inserted via its tigeron into said central ring 416.

Therefore, during an impact, the central ring 416 moves by deforming the arms 415. These arms 415 then act as elastic means since they tend to return to the central ring 423a its initial position. . In the case where the stress exerted during the shock is so important that the arms 415 reach their voltage limit, the arm 423 supporting the pivot module begins to deform. This gives a shock absorber system 400 at two levels. The dimensions of the arm 423a supporting the pivot module and arms 415 supporting the central ring 416 can be sized and designed to achieve optimum damping.

For fixing the bolt carrier 3 to the pendulum bridge 5, fastening means 7 are provided.

In a first alternative visible in FIG. 4, the attachment means 7 comprise a through hole or not 70 arranged on the balance bridge associated with a through hole 71 arranged on the door pin. These two holes allow the use of a screw 72 for securing the piton door with the balance bridge. This single screw 72 for attaching the door pin 3 to the balance bridge 5 allows to use it as the axis of rotation. Indeed, it is conceivable to use this single attachment point to allow the angular adjustment of the bolt carrier 3, the operator rotating the bolt carrier 3 around the axis of the screw.

In a second alternative visible in FIG. 5, the fastening means 7 comprise a through hole or not 70 arranged on the balance bridge 5 and a first through hole 71 arranged on the door pin 3. These two holes allow the use of a screw 72 for joining together The attachment means 7 further comprise a stud 74 and a second hole 75 passing through or not. The pin 74 can be arranged on the door pinion 3 and the second hole 75 arranged on the balance bridge 5 as shown in FIG. 5 or vice versa (not shown).

This pair of stud 74 - second hole 75 is used to stabilize the position of the door pin 3 with respect to the balance bridge 5. Indeed, having the pin 74 which fits into the second hole 75 allows to block the angular movements when the operator fixes the screw 72. Indeed, without the presence of the stud 74, there is a risk of angular displacement of the bolt carrier 3 during the screwing of the screw 72 to secure the bolt carrier 3 at the pendulum bridge 5.

In a third alternative visible in FIG. 6, the fastening means 7 comprise a hole 70 passing through or not arranged on the rocker arm 5 and a first through hole 71 arranged on the stud bolt 3. These two holes allow the use of a screw 72 for the fastening Piton door with the pendulum bridge. The attachment means 7 further comprise guiding means used to stabilize the position of the bolt carrier and serve as a pivot axis for the angular adjustment of said bolt carrier. For this purpose, the guiding means comprise a recess 76 arranged on the piton door and a projection 77 arranged on the pendulum bridge. This recess 76 and the projection 77 are made so as to cooperate with each other, the projection 77 can penetrate into the recess 76. When the door pin 3 is mounted on the balance bridge 5, the protrusion 77 is inserted into the recess 76 to limit the movement of said door stud 3 relative to the balance bridge 5. The projection 77 may be dimensioned to allow no freedom of movement to the stud holder 3. In one example, the protrusion 77 and the recess 76 has an arcuate shape.

[0054] Cleverly according to this third alternative, the through hole of the base 300 of the third embodiment used to house the shock absorber system is also used for the guide means. Indeed, this through hole of the base 300 is used to cooperate with the projection. This is even more true when the hole in the base 300 is designed for such a configuration.

This configuration advantageously makes the shock absorber system the center of the door piton. In the case where the recess and projection have an arcuate shape, it is conceivable that the recess is more important than the protrusion. The piton door then becomes angularly movable relative to the pendulum bridge. The advantage of this configuration is to have a piton door that can be angularly adjusted without changing the position of the shock absorber system. For this, the first hole 71 arranged on the bolt carrier 3 in which the screw 72 fits may take the form of an oblong hole or a groove. This groove forms an arc so as to be able to adjust the angular position of the bolt carrier 3. In this case, the assembly protrudes 77 - recess 76 or the stud 74 serves as a pivot axis allowing, after loosening of the screw, rotate the bolt carrier 3 to adjust its position.

The piton door can be mounted on the outer surface or at the inner surface. For this, the balance bridge is provided with a rocker orifice 302 so that said rocker orifice 302 and the shock absorber system coincide.

In the case where the piton door is arranged on the outer surface of the pendulum bridge 5, the orifice 302 is through so that the balance shaft 2 can cooperate with the shock absorber system 400 while crossing the bridge. as shown in fig. 4-6.

In the case where the piton door is arranged under the inner surface of the balance bridge 5 as shown in FIGS. 7 and 8, the orifice 302 can be through or not. This orifice is necessary during the displacement of the shock absorber system during an impact, this displacement being mainly axial. The orifice acts as a clearance to allow the shock absorbing system to move.

The advantage of having a through hole is to allow to see the shock absorber system. This orifice also allows to intervene on such allow the lubrication of said shock absorber system.

To achieve this bolt carrier, several materials are usable. According to a first solution, the peg holder may be made of a plastic material such as polyurethane. The advantage of this material is that it can be easily shaped by molding techniques and thus ensure good reproducibility. Moreover, this material has good mechanical properties since it is easily deformable while having good wear resistance.

According to a second solution, the metallic materials are usable. These materials fall into two categories: crystalline materials and amorphous materials.

Crystalline materials are materials in which the atoms are structured. These materials can be pure metals such as iron or aluminum or alloys such as brass, steel. These metallic materials have a first advantage of having good mechanical characteristics. Indeed, the metals have a large elastic limit allowing them to undergo a high stress before deforming plastically. For example, aluminum has a yield strength of 180 to 240 GPa, the steel has a yield strength of 235 to 1500 GPa depending on the type of steel, whereas glued laminated wood has a yield strength of 32 GPa.

In addition, these metal materials have the advantage of being easily shaped. Indeed, it is possible to form them by casting molding or injection into a mold or by stamping that is to say by cutting in press.

Furthermore, it is possible to use the LIGA process consisting of an X-ray lithography followed by electroplating galvanization and completed by a forming step. This LIGA process has the advantage of being inexpensive and quick to implement while ensuring good reproducibility and high accuracy of implementation.

Amorphous metals also called metallic glasses are materials whose atoms are not structured between them. Indeed, in the case of an amorphous material, the ratio σe / E is increased by raising the elastic limit σe. The material therefore sees the stress, beyond which it does not resume its initial shape, increase. This improvement of the ratio σe / E then allows a larger deformation. This optimizes the dimensions of the door pin and elastic arms depending on whether we want to vary the pressure applied by the second stop on the bolt carrier.

Another advantage of these amorphous materials is that they open new perspectives of formatting for the development of complicated shapes with greater precision. Indeed, the amorphous metals have the particular characteristic of softening while remaining amorphous in a given temperature range [Tx-Tg] specific to each alloy (with Tx: crystallization temperature and Tg: glass transition temperature). It is thus possible to shape them under a relatively low stress and at a low temperature. This makes it possible to reproduce very precisely fine geometries because the viscosity of the alloy decreases sharply and the latter thus marries all the details of the mold.

Another solution is to use a monocrystalline material such as silicon. This material has friction resistance, strength and light weight properties. This material is also attractive because of its low density, its antimagnetic properties and its high resistance to corrosion.

To achieve such a silicon part, the known methods of LIGA or DRIE are used and allow good reproducibility and high accuracy of the parts.

In a third embodiment, the piton door and the balance bridge are monobloc that is to say they form a single piece. As such, the balance bridge serves as a base comprising the first stop and from which the elastic arm or arms forming the elastic means extend but also the shock absorber system.

This third embodiment makes it possible to overcome the means for attaching the bolt carrier to the pendulum bridge. Consequently, there is a risk of incorrect positioning when mounting the bolt carrier to the pendulum bridge.

Moreover, this third embodiment reduces costs because there is only one room instead of two and one process step less.

It will be understood that various modifications and / or improvements and / or combinations obvious to those skilled in the art can be made to the various embodiments of the invention described above without departing from the scope of the invention defined by the appended claims.

Claims (18)

1. Support or support assembly of a spiral clockwork spring, comprising a stud (9) and a stud holder (3), which comprises: A base (300) comprising a first abutment extending along a longitudinal axis (L) of said base; - Fastening means (7) of said bolt carrier to a balance bridge (5), £ characterized in that said door pin (3) further comprises a shock absorbing system (400) having a pivot member (410) for pivoting a balance shaft and an elastic member (420) for damping said axis of balance. 2. Holding assembly according to claim 1, characterized in that the base (300) comprises a main opening (301) through which said shock absorbing system (400) is arranged 3. Holder assembly according to claim 2, characterized in that the pivot element (410) is a stone (411) provided with a recess (411 a) adapted to allow the balance shaft to cooperate with said stone , said elastic member (420) comprising a ring (421) made of an elastic material, said ring being made to be inserted into the main opening between the base and the stone. 4. Holding assembly according to claim 2, characterized in that the pivot member (410) comprises at least two arms (422) each extending from a wall of the main opening (301) towards the center of said opening main and a central ring (412) attached to the free end of the arms, said ring (412) being adapted to cooperate with the balance shaft. 5. holding assembly according to claim 2, characterized in that the shock absorbing system (400) comprises an elastic arm (423) extending from a wall of the main opening towards the center of said opening, the end free being provided with the pivot member (410). 6. holding assembly according to claim 5, characterized in that said pivot member (410) comprises a pad (413) made in the manner of the arm, said pad provided with a recess (413a) adapted to allow the axis balance to cooperate with said pellet. 7. Holder assembly according to claim 5, characterized in that said arm (423) comprises at its free end a ring (423a) made of material with said arm, said ring for inserting said pivot member (410). 8. Holder assembly according to claim 7, characterized in that the pivot element is a single stone (414) inserted into said ring and provided with a recess (414a) adapted to allow the balance shaft to cooperate with said stone. 9. Holding assembly according to claim 8, characterized in that the shock absorbing system (400) further comprises an elastic ring (414b) inserted between said ring (423a) and the single stone (414). 10. Holding assembly according to claim 7, characterized in that the pivot member (410) comprises at least two arms (415) each extending from a wall of the ring (423) towards the center of said ring and a central ring (416) fixed to the free end of the arms, said central ring (416) being adapted to cooperate with the balance shaft. 11. Holder assembly according to one of claims 1 to 10, characterized in that the door pin (3) is made of a metallic material. 12. Holding assembly according to one of claims 1 to 10, characterized in that the pinch door (3) is made of a monocrystalline material. 13. Holder assembly according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the fastening means (7) comprise a hole (70) arranged on the balance bridge cooperating with a first hole (71) of the piton door and a screw (72) fitting into the two holes. 14. Holder assembly according to claim 14, characterized in that the fastening means (7) further comprise a stud (74) arranged on the balance bridge and a second hole (75) arranged on the stud holder, said stud cooperating with the second hole. 15. Holder assembly according to claim 14, characterized in that the attachment means further comprises a pin (74) arranged on the stud holder and a second hole (75) arranged on the balance bridge, said pin cooperating with the second hole. 16. Holder assembly according to claim 14, characterized in that the attachment means (7) further comprise a recess (76) arranged on the balance bridge and a projection (77) arranged on the bolt carrier, said recess cooperating with said projection. 17. Holding assembly according to one of claims 13 to 16, characterized in that the first hole (71) has a circular arc shape allowing the bolt carrier to rotate angularly. 18. Holding assembly according to one of claims 1 to 12, characterized in that the door pin and the balance bridge are monobloc.