CH710491A2 - 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 stud (9) and a stud holder (3), which stud carrier comprises: a base (30) comprising a first abutment (32) extending along a longitudinal axis of said base; means for attaching said bolt carrier to a pendulum bridge, characterized in that said bolt carrier further comprises elastic means provided with a second abutment (36).

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 spiral clock spring that allows a mounting or a simplified disassembly of the stud.

For this purpose, the present invention relates to a holding or support assembly of a spiral clockwork spring, comprising a pin and a bolt carrier, which bolt carrier 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 bolt carrier further comprises elastic means provided with a second abutment, the elastic means extending along said longitudinal axis of said base so that the second abutment is opposite the first abutment, space between said first stop and said second stop forming a housing for said peak, and in that the elastic means are made so as to naturally exert a stress on the peak when it is placed in the housing, the housing can be enlarged to release the peak by deformation of said elastic means.

An advantage of this invention is that it allows a simple assembly / disassembly of the piton.

In a first advantageous embodiment, the elastic means comprise at least one arm, the free end of said arm bearing the second stop.

In a second advantageous embodiment, the elastic means comprise two arms extending from said base, the arms being integral with each other and having a convex shape.

In a third advantageous embodiment, the two arms forming the elastic means are symmetrical with respect to the longitudinal axis of said base.

In a fourth advantageous embodiment, each of the two arms comprise a notch.

In another advantageous embodiment, the bolt carrier is made of a plastic material.

In another advantageous embodiment, the bolt carrier is made of a metallic material.

In another advantageous embodiment, the bolt carrier 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 bolt carrier 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 comprises 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 bolt carrier and the balance bridge are monobloc.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES

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; <tb> Figs. 2a to 2d <SEP> show a diagram of a second embodiment of the holding assembly according to the invention; <tb> Figs. 3a to 3b <SEP> represent a diagram of a first alternative of the fastening means according to the invention; <tb> Figs. 4a to 4c <SEP> represent a diagram of a second alternative means of fasteners according to the invention; <tb> fig. <SEP> represents a diagram of a variant of the second alternative of the fastening means according to the invention; <tb> fig. 6 <SEP> represents a diagram of a third alternative means of fasteners according to the invention; <tb> fig. 7 <SEP> represents a diagram of a fourth alternative means of fasteners according to the invention; <tb> fig. SEP represents a schematic of a variant of the invention;

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

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

In figs. 1a to 1d are schematic views of a holding or supporting assembly 1 of a spiral spring clock 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 bolt carrier 3 comprises a base 30 having a longitudinal axis. The base 30 may be of any shape. From this base 30 extends a first stop 32. This first stop is in the form of a protrusion of the base 30.

Advantageously according to the invention, the bolt carrier 3 also comprises elastic means 34 provided for fixing the stud 9 to the bolt carrier.

In the first embodiment shown in FIG. 1a, the elastic means comprise an arm 35. This arm 35 extends from the base 30 in a direction similar to that of the first stop 32, that is to say in a direction similar to that of the longitudinal axis . This arm 35 has a rectilinear shape ending in a bend and has a free end at which a second stop 36 is arranged. The elastic arm 35 and the second stop 36 are made so that the second stop 36 is, in an initial position, opposite the first stop 32 when the elastic arm 34 is in rest mode, that is to say that no constraint is applied to it.

In this case, a space 4 is present between the first stop 32 and the second stop 36, this space forming a housing for the peak 9.

Cleverly according to the invention, the elastic arm 34 is designed to naturally exert a force on the stud 9 when it is placed in the housing 4 present between the first stop 32 and the second stop 36 as shown in FIG. . 1 C .

Therefore, to mount or remove the stud 9 on the bolt carrier 3, a stress C must be exerted on the arm 65. This stress C is exerted on the elastic arm 34 so as to deform elastically.

This elastic deformation causes a displacement of the second stop 36 relative to the first stop 34 as shown in FIG. 1b. This displacement tends to enlarge the housing. This enlargement of the housing 4 makes it possible to place the stud or to release the stud 9. In the case of the disassembly of the stud 9, the displacement of the second stop 36 with respect to the first stop 32 tends to reduce the stress applied to the stud. piton 9.

This embodiment has the advantage of being simple because there is no screw or complex handling to do. Just move the elastic arm to release the stud 9 or to insert it into the housing. In addition this system allows the mounting or dismounting of the piton without shock.

In a variant of this first embodiment, the elastic arm 35 has a non-rectilinear shape. For example the arm can be curved to have a convex or concave profile as visible in FIG. 1d.

In a second embodiment shown in FIG. 2a, the elastic means 340 comprise two elastic arms 350. Each elastic arm 350 comprises a first end and a second end. These arms 350 extend from the base 300, via the first end, 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.

In this second embodiment, the two elastic arms 350 are secured at their second end. At this point of attachment 351, the second stop 360 is arranged to be opposite the first stop 320.

[0034] Cleverly according to the invention, 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 the mounting / disassembly of the stud, a stress C is applied simultaneously on the two elastic arms 350. This stress C applied to each elastic arm 350 causes a deformation of the arms 350. This deformation tends to bring them closer as visible to fig. 2b.

It is then noted that the deformation of the arms 350 causes a displacement of the second stop 360. This displacement of the second stop is characterized in that said second stop 360 away from the first stop 320 enlarging then the housing 4 located between the first stop 320 and the second stop 360.

This enlargement of the housing then makes it possible to accommodate or easily dislodge the piton 9.

When the operator wants to mount the bolt, it applies a stress C on the two elastic arms 350. This stress or pressure C can be applied via a tool as a clamp. This constraint C applied by the operator tends to deform the arms 350 so that the second stop 360 moves and enlarges the housing.

The operator is then equipped with the pin 9 and is placed in support on the first stop 320. It can be provided with a notch to immobilize the pin 9. When the pin 9 is immobilized on the first stop 320, the operator releases the pressure C exerted on the elastic arms 350 causing a displacement of the second stop 360. This movement tends to bring the second stop 360 of the first stop 320 until the second stop 360 enters into position. contact with the pin 9 as shown in fig. 2c. It will be expected that the stud 9 is sized to have a larger size than that of the housing 4. Therefore, when the second stop 360 moves to return to the initial position that is to say its position when the 350 elastic arms are at rest, it can not find exactly its initial position because of the larger size of the peak 9.

The second stop 360 thus exerts a force on said pin 9 to maintain it between the first stop 320 and the second stop 360.

When the operator wants to remove the stud 9, it exerts a stress such as a pressure C on the elastic arms 350. This pressure causes a deformation of the elastic arms 350 and therefore a displacement of the second stop 360. This displacement increases the housing 4 thus releasing the pin 9 so that the operator can grasp it.

In a variant of this second embodiment shown in FIG. 2d, each elastic arm comprises a notch 352 on its outer surface. These notches 352 are used as specific areas allowing the tool used to exert the pressure on the elastic arms 350 to be positioned there and not to slide during assembly or disassembly.

For fixing the bolt carrier to the balance bridge, fastening means 7 are provided.

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

In a second alternative visible in FIG. 4a, the attachment means 7 comprise a through hole or not 70 arranged on the balance bridge 5 and a first through hole 71 arranged on the stud holder 3, These two holes allow the use of a screw 72 for the The attachment means 7 further comprise a pin 74 and a second hole 75 passing through or not. The stud 74 can be arranged on the stud holder 3 and the second hole 75 arranged on the balance bridge as shown in FIG. 4a or conversely as shown in FIG. 4b and 4c.

This pair of stud 74 - second hole 75 is used to stabilize the position of the bolt carrier 3 relative to the pendulum bridge 5. In fact, having the stud 74 which fits into the second hole 75 makes it possible 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 to the pendulum bridge 5.

In a variant of this second alternative visible in FIG. 5, 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 adjust the angular position of the bolt carrier 3. In this case, the pin 74 serves as a pivot axis allowing, after loosening the screw, to pivot the bolt carrier 3 to adjust its position.

In a third alternative visible in FIG. 6, the fastening means 7 comprise a hole 70 passing through or not arranged on the balance bridge 5 and a first through hole 71 arranged on the stud holder 3. These two holes allow the use of a screw 72 for the securing the bolt carrier 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, the guide means comprise a recess.76 arranged on the stud holder and a protrusion or protrusion 77 arranged on the balance bridge. This recess 76 and the projection 77 are made so as to cooperate with each other, the protrusion 77 can penetrate the recess 76. The recess 76 has a shape of a circular arc. When the bolt carrier 3 is mounted on the rocker bridge 5, the projection 77 fits into the recess 76 to limit the movements of said bolt carrier 3 with respect to the rocker arm 5.

The projection 77 may be dimensioned to leave no freedom of movement to the bolt carrier 3 or on the contrary it may be sized to allow an angular adjustment of the position of the bolt carrier. In the example where the protrusion 77 and the recess 76 have an arc shape. If the recess is angularly larger than the projection then the peg holder can be adjustable if the hole 70 is also in the form of an arc.

In a fourth alternative, the attachment means 7 comprise the guiding means used for the third alternative, that is to say a recess 76 arranged on the bolt carrier and a projection 77 arranged on the pendulum bridge. The attachment means 7 further comprises a brake78. This brake 78 visible in FIG. 7 consists of a flexible arm. This flexible arm extends from the base in a direction opposite to that of the first stop. This flexible arm acts on the balance bridge so that said flexible arm tends to limit the rotation of the stud holder 3 by friction.

Of course, it will be understood that the bolt carrier 3 can be placed on the upper surface of the balance bridge 5 but also at the lower surface, that is to say the surface facing the spiral. This configuration at the level of the lower surface makes it possible to bring the stud 9 closer to the balance shaft. This then makes possible the use of small diameter spirals.

To achieve this bolt carrier 3, several materials are usable. According to a first solution, the bolt carrier 3 can 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.

The crystalline materials may 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, while the lamella bonded to an elastic limit of 32GPa.

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

The 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 bolt carrier and the elastic arms according to whether one wishes 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-resistant properties, high yield strength and low density. This material is also attractive because of its antimagnetic properties and its high resistance to corrosion. A material such as silicon may be used because the system according to the present invention allows assembly / disassembly of the stud 9 without shock.

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 bolt carrier 3 and the pendulum bridge 5 are monoblock that is to say that they form one and the same piece. As such, the balance bridge 5 serves as a base 3 comprising the first stop and from which the elastic arm or arms 35, 350 forming the elastic means 34, 340 extend.

This third embodiment makes it possible to dispense with the attachment means 7 of the bolt carrier 3 to the balance beam 5. Consequently, there are risks of misplacement when mounting the bolt carrier to the bridge. balance.

Furthermore, 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.

For example, the first stop may be configured to serve as a stop for the elastic arms. Indeed, according to the dimensions and the material constituting the arms, there is a risk of breakage or plastic deformation. To solve this problem, the first stop 320a visible in FIG. 8 is designed to extend in width so as to have a greater width than that of the base 300. This feature makes it possible to limit the displacement of the arms 350 when the stress C is applied. Consequently, the deformation of the arms 350 is limited and the risk of breakage decreases.

It is also possible that the stud, the first abutment and / or the second abutment are provided with a plate so as to prevent the rotation of the stud on itself.

Claims (14)

1. Support or support assembly of a spiral clockwork spring, comprising a stud (9) and a stud holder (3), which comprises: A base (30, 300) having a first stop (32, 320) extending along a longitudinal axis (L) of said base; - Fastening means (7) of said bolt carrier to a pendulum bridge (5), characterized in that said peg carrier further comprises elastic means (34, 340) provided with a second stop (36, 360), the elastic means extending along said longitudinal axis of said base so that the second stop is opposite the first stop, the space between said first stop and said second stop forming a housing (4) for said pin, and in that the elastic means are made so as to naturally exert a stress on the pin when it is placed in the housing, the housing can be enlarged to release the peak by deformation of said elastic means. 2. Holding assembly according to claim 1, characterized in that the elastic means (34, 340) comprise at least one arm (35, 350), the free end of said arm bearing the second stop. 3. Holder assembly according to claim 1, characterized in that the elastic means (340) comprise two arms extending (350) from said base, the arms being integral with each other and having a convex shape. 4. Holder assembly according to claim 3, characterized in that the two arms forming the elastic means are symmetrical with respect to the longitudinal axis of said base. 5. Holder assembly according to claim 3, characterized in that each of the two arms comprise a notch (352). 6. Holding assembly according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the bolt carrier (3) is made of a plastic material. 7. Holding assembly according to one of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that the bolt carrier (3) is made of a metallic material. 8. Holding assembly according to one of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that the bolt carrier (3) is made of a monocrystalline material. 9. 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 bolt carrier and a screw (72) inserted into the two holes. 10. Holder assembly according to claim 9, characterized in that the fastening means (7) further comprises 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. 11. Holder assembly according to claim 9, characterized in that the fastening means (7) further comprise a stud (74) arranged on the stud holder and a second hole (75) arranged on the balance bridge, said stud cooperating with the second hole. 12. Holder assembly according to claim 9, characterized in that the attachment means (7) further comprise a projection (77) arranged on the balance bridge and a recess (76) arranged on the bolt carrier, said recess cooperating with said projection. 13. Holder assembly according to one of claims 8 to 12, characterized in that the first hole (71) has an arcuate shape allowing the bolt carrier to rotate angularly. 14. holding assembly according to one of claims 1 to 8, characterized in that the peg carrier and the balance bridge are monobloc.