JP2001099953A - Lid opening/closing mechanism for timepiece - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a lid opening/closing mechanism for timepiece capable of giving excellent appreciativeness, capable of obtaining a smooth and sure movement, and capable of being miniaturized. SOLUTION: Divided pieces 2A, 2B are revolved around a prescribed axis by rotating a support member 16 relative to the prescribed axis. Planetary gears 20, 22 engaged with a sun gear 14 are revolved, and coupling members 24, 26 mounted on the planetary gears 20, 22 are coupled with guide grooves 28, 30 formed on divided one side, to thereby drive the divided pieces 2A, 2B to be opened or closed. The moving directions of the divided pieces 2A, 2B are regulated by rail members 36, 40 so as to be in parallel and fixed directions.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a cover opening / closing mechanism for opening and closing a cover for covering a front surface of a timepiece used for a timepiece and the like.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art A timepiece dial is composed of a plurality of divided pieces. For example, at the hour, the plurality of divided pieces are moved so as to separate them, and a decorative body such as a doll housed behind the pieces appears. Watches have been developed and commercialized that operate this decorative body according to music.

As such a timepiece, for example, Japanese Patent Publication No.
Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 10256/1996 and Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. H8-68869 and the like exist. This Tokuho 8-10256
In the timepiece disclosed in the publication, the dial is formed of a plurality of divided substantially fan-shaped segments, and at a predetermined time, these segments are rotated to spread in a petal shape. The decorative body such as a doll housed behind the plate can be visually checked. As a driving mechanism for rotating each element piece of the divided dial, a plurality of gears and the like are provided radially outside the rack so as to mesh with a ring-shaped rack having teeth formed on the outer periphery. Each of the segments is fixed to the rotating shafts of the plurality of gears, and the rack is driven by a drive motor so that the segments can be opened and closed freely.

[0004] The timepiece disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 8-68869 is formed so that the dial can be divided vertically into two parts.
At a predetermined time, the dial is divided into upper and lower parts so that a decorative body such as a doll housed behind the dial can be visually checked.

[0005]

By the way, in the timepiece disclosed in Japanese Patent Publication No. Hei 8-10256, teeth are formed on the outer periphery as a drive mechanism for rotating each element of the divided dial. Since a ring-shaped rack, a plurality of gears arranged radially outside of the rack so as to mesh with the rack, and the like are employed, the entire timepiece becomes large in the radial direction, and it is difficult to integrate components. There was a problem that.

Further, each piece of the dial plate which is opened by being rotated is only supported by the rotating shaft, which causes rattling in the front-rear direction, ie, tilt, and the impression that the operation is not smooth. There was a problem of giving.

Further, the range of movement of each element forming the dial is a range in which it rotates around a fixed rotation axis, so that it is not so noticeable, and in terms of unexpectedness of dynamic change. However, there was a problem that it lacked a little power. The same applies to the timepiece disclosed in the above-mentioned Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 8-68869. The dial divided into upper and lower parts merely moves up and down, giving a strong impression as a change in appearance. There was a problem that the change was not surprising.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned conventional problems, and is rich in the unexpectedness of dynamic change, provides better appreciation, and can obtain a smooth and reliable operation. It is an object of the present invention to provide a timepiece cover opening / closing mechanism capable of minimizing the entire timepiece while minimizing the maximum operation range.

[0009]

A cover opening / closing mechanism for a timepiece according to the present invention is directed to a timepiece having a lid formed by a plurality of divided pieces which are openably and closably divided by a line passing through a predetermined axis. An opening / closing drive unit is provided which opens and closes by opening and closing the divided piece forming the lid by revolving in parallel while revolving around the predetermined axis. The opening and closing drive means in the opening and closing mechanism of the timepiece includes a sun gear fixed non-rotatably coaxially with the predetermined axis, a planetary gear meshing with the sun gear,
A connecting member having one end fixed to the center of rotation of the planetary gear and the other end positioned at a position deviated from the center of rotation, the connecting member being oriented in a direction orthogonal to the direction of movement of the split pieces; A guide groove provided on the divided piece and having the other end of the connecting member slidably inserted therein, rotatably disposed around the predetermined axis, and capable of rotating the planetary gear and rotating around the predetermined axis. A support member that revolves and supports, a rail member that is disposed on the support member and supports the divided pieces movably in parallel, and a drive source that rotates the support member about the predetermined axis. Have

The rail members in the lid opening / closing mechanism are provided in pairs so as to be parallel to each of the divided pieces.

The planetary gear and the connecting member in the lid opening / closing mechanism are provided in plurality for one of the divided pieces.

The planetary gears provided for one of the divided pieces in the lid opening / closing mechanism may rotate partially as part of the planetary gears mesh with the sun gear and rotate with the sun gear. Another planetary gear meshes with the intermediate gear supported so as to be able to rotate while rotating so as to revolve around the predetermined axis.

[0013]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS In a cover opening / closing mechanism for a timepiece according to the present invention, a cover such as a dial is divided, and the divided piece is revolved around a predetermined axis such as a pointer shaft by opening / closing drive means. It is moved in parallel with it and opened and closed. The divided piece of the lid revolves around a predetermined axis by rotating a support member supporting the divided piece of the lid via a rail member about a predetermined axis by a driving source. In addition, a sun gear fixed coaxially to a predetermined axis is provided, and a planetary gear meshing with the sun gear is supported by the above-described support member so as to revolve around a predetermined axis, and divided by the planetary gear. By driving the piece, the divided piece is driven to open and close while revolving. Further, the split piece is driven by the connection between a crank-shaped connecting member attached to the planetary gear and a guide groove provided on one side of the split piece. This guide groove
The divided pieces are provided so as to be orthogonal to the moving direction of the divided pieces, that is, the sliding direction of the rail member, and the moving directions of the divided pieces are regulated by the rail members so as to be parallel and constant. For this reason, the connection member rotates by the rotation of the planetary gear, and when the driving force is transmitted to the divided piece while the end of the connected member moves along the guide groove, the divided piece is parallel to the direction in which the rail member can move. They will move and open and close.

[0014]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a sectional view of a main part showing a cover opening / closing mechanism of a timepiece according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIGS. 2 to 5 are front views of the timepiece showing opening / closing operations of the cover shown in FIG. FIGS. 2 to 5 show only a part necessary for explaining the opening / closing operation in order to clearly illustrate the opening / closing operation.

Reference numeral 2 denotes a cover for covering the front face of the timepiece, and in this embodiment, forms a circular dial in the closed state. The cover 2 is provided with a line 6 passing through the pointer shaft 4 as a predetermined shaft.
Are divided into two semi-circular divided pieces 2A and 2B. The divided pieces 2A and 2B are slidably supported by a rail member to be described later so as to be able to move in parallel.

Reference numeral 8 denotes a substrate which forms a part of the housing of the timepiece or is fixed to the housing. On the back side of the substrate 8, a movement 10 having the above-described pointer shaft 4 and driving a pointer attached to the pointer shaft 4, and a motor 12 as a drive source for rotating and driving a support member described later are mounted. I have.

Reference numeral 14 denotes a sun gear, which is fixed to the outer periphery of a cylindrical portion 8a provided on the substrate 8 for inserting the pointer shaft 4 so that the center axis is coaxial with the pointer shaft 4.

Reference numeral 16 denotes a disk-shaped support member. The support member 16 includes a plate-shaped front portion 16a and a back portion 16b so as to sandwich the sun gear 14 from the front and the back. The support member 16 is rotatably fitted to the outer periphery of the cylindrical portion 8a of the substrate 8 or the outer periphery of the central cylindrical mounting portion 14a of the sun gear 14. A projecting edge 16c is provided on the outer peripheral portion of the support member 16, and is supported by a plurality of spinning wheel-shaped rollers 18 rotatably attached to the substrate 8 so as to rotate smoothly. Further, at the center of the back surface of the back portion 16b of the support member 16, a drive gear 16d arranged so that the pointer shaft 4 and the central axis are coaxial is fixed, and meshes with the drive pinion 12a of the motor 12. I have.

Reference numerals 20 and 22 denote planetary gears, and in this embodiment, planetary gears 20A and 22A for driving the split piece 2A.
And planetary gears 20B and 22B for driving the split pieces 2B. These planetary gears 20A, 22A, 20B, 2
2B meshes with the sun gear 14, respectively, and its shaft portions 20Aa, 22Aa, 20Ba, 22Ba are rotatably supported from the front and back by the front portion 16a and the back portion 16b of the support member 16, respectively.

Reference numerals 24 and 26 denote connecting members, which are divided pieces 2A.
And the connecting members 24B and 26B for driving the divided pieces 2B. The connecting members 24A, 26A, 24B, 26B are bent in a crank shape, and have one ends 24Aa, 26Aa, 24B.
a, 26Ba are planetary gears 24A, 26A, 24, respectively.
B, 26A, 20Aa, 22Aa, 20Ba, 22
Ba, and the other end portions 24Ab, 26Ab, 24B
b, 26Bb are shaft portions 20Aa, 22Aa, 20Ba, 2
It is located at a position deviated from 2Ba and protrudes forward.

Reference numerals 28 and 30 denote guide grooves provided in the divided pieces 2A and 2B, respectively. These guide grooves 28, 30
Is provided in a direction orthogonal to the direction in which the divided pieces 2A and 2B move (left and right in the figure). Also, guide groove 2
8 and 30 are formed directly on the divided pieces 2A and 2B, or are formed on plate members 32 and 34 integrally provided on the back side of the divided pieces 2A and 2B as shown in FIG. The guide grooves 28 and 30 have connecting members 24A and 26A, respectively.
24B, the other end 24Ab, 26Ab, 24B of 26B
b, 26Bb are slidably inserted along the guide grooves 28, 30.

Reference numerals 36, 38, 40, and 42 denote rail members. The rail members 36, 38 are arranged in parallel with each other to support the divided piece 2A so as to be movable in parallel.
Numerals 0 and 42 are arranged in parallel with each other to support the divided piece 2B so as to be movable in parallel. This rail member 3
6, 38, 40 and 42 are fixed rails 36, respectively.
a, 38a, 40a, 42a and the movable side rails 36b, 3
8b, 40b, and 42b, the fixed rails 36a, 38a, 40a, and 42a are fixed on the front surface 16a of the support member 16, and the movable rails 36b and 38 are provided.
b is attached to the back of the split piece 2A, and the movable side rail 4
0b and 42b are attached to the back surface of the split piece 2B.

Next, the operation of the lid opening / closing mechanism of this embodiment having the above-described configuration will be described. First, the split piece 2 of the lid 2
When A and 2B abut on the line 6, the connecting members 24A, 26A, 24B and 26B are oriented so that the guide grooves 28 and 30 come closest to each other as shown in FIG. It is closed. Here, when the motor 12 operates and the support member 16 is driven to start rotating counterclockwise in FIG. 2, the planetary gears 20A, 22A, 20B, and 22B revolve around the pointer shaft 4 with the rotation. start. At this time, each planetary gear 20A, 22
Since A, 20B, and 22B mesh with the fixed and non-rotating sun gear 14, each of them starts to rotate in the counterclockwise direction with their revolution.

As described above, the planetary gears 20A, 22A, 2
When 0B and 22B rotate in the counterclockwise direction, the connecting members 24A, 26A, 24B, and 2 attached to the rotation centers thereof.
6B also rotates counterclockwise, and the other end 24A
b, 26Ab and the other end portions 24Bb, 26Bb rotate and move in directions away from each other. This other end 24Ab, 26Ab
And the guide grooves 28 and 30 into which the other ends 24Bb and 26Bb are inserted, respectively.
Only the driving force directed outward in the radial direction of the lid 2 during the rotational movement of the Ab, 24Bb, 26Bb is transmitted to the divided pieces 2A, 2B, respectively. Due to this driving force, the divided pieces 2A and 2B move parallel to the outside in the radial direction supported movably by the rail members 36, 38, 40 and 42, and start to open. At this time, for example, if the support member 16 is rotated by 90 degrees, the planetary gears 20A, 22A, 20B, 22B and the divided pieces 2A, 2B revolve around the pointer shaft 4 by 90 degrees, and FIG.
The state is as shown in FIG.

The support member 1 is further moved from the state shown in FIG.
When 6 rotates in the counterclockwise direction by 90 degrees, the planetary gears 20A, 22A, 20B, and 22B and the connecting members 24A, 26A, 24B, and 26B further rotate in the counterclockwise direction with the rotation. As a result, as shown in FIG. 4, the guide grooves 28 and 30 are urged further away, and the divided pieces 2A and 2B are moved in the radial direction by the driving force of the connecting member planetary gears 24A, 26A, 24B and 26B at that time. Moved outwards and becomes most open. At this time, the divided pieces 2A and 2B are also connected to the rail members 36, 38, 40 and 4 respectively.
2 to be translated. Further, the planetary gears 20A, 22A, 20B, 22B and the split pieces 2
A and 2B revolve around the pointer shaft 4 further by 90 degrees and reach the position shown in FIG.

Further, when the supporting member 16 rotates counterclockwise by 90 degrees from the state shown in FIG. 4, the planetary gears 20A, 22A, 20B, 22B and the connecting members 24A, 26A, 24B, 26B are also moved in the same manner as the above-described operation. Each rotates counterclockwise. At this time, the connecting members 24A, 26A, 24
B, 26B and the other end 24Ab, 26Ab and the other end 24B
b and 26Bb rotate again so as to approach each other, and as shown in FIG. 5, only the driving force directed inward in the radial direction of the lid 2 is divided through the guide grooves 28 and 30 into the divided pieces 2 and 26Bb.
A, 2B, the divided pieces 2A, 2B begin to move in the approaching direction. At this time, the divided pieces 2A, 2B are also supported by the rail members 36, 38, 40, 42 and move in parallel, and the planetary gears 20A, 22A, 20B, 22
B and the divided pieces 2A and 2B revolve around the pointer shaft 4 further by 90 degrees.

Thereafter, when the support member 16 further rotates counterclockwise by 90 degrees from the state shown in FIG. 5, the planetary gears 20A, 22A, 20B, 22B
The connecting members 24A, 26A, 24B, 26B rotate and revolve, and are urged so that the guide grooves 28, 30 come closest to each other, and the divided pieces 2A, 2B abut as shown in FIG. 2 to return to the closed state. .

In the above embodiment, the support member 16 is
Although the split pieces 2A and 2B are set to open and close once during rotation, the sun gear 14 and the planet gears 20A and 22
By changing the number of teeth of A, 20B, and 22B, it is also possible to set the split pieces 2A and 2B to open and close twice or plural times while the support member 16 makes one rotation.

In the above embodiment, the planetary gear 20
A, 22A, 20B, and 22B are all set to rotate in the same direction. For example, as shown in FIG. 6, an intermediate member rotatably supported by the support member 16 like the planetary gears 24 and 26. Gears 44 and 46 are provided.
4 and 46 mesh with the sun gear 14, and this intermediate gear 4
If the planetary gears 22A and 20B are meshed with the planetary gears 20A and 22B,
The rotation directions of A and 20B can be set in opposite directions. With this setting, the connecting member 24A and the connecting member 26A or the connecting member 24B and the connecting member 2
6B rotate in the opposite directions, and the guide grooves 28, 30
The driving force in the radial direction is transmitted with good balance. For this reason, the opening and closing operation of the divided pieces 2A and 2B is always performed smoothly without difficulty.

[0030]

According to the present invention, since a cover such as a dial plate rotates and opens and closes, surprising operations which cannot be easily imagined from a stationary state can be obtained, and the appreciation can be enhanced and the product can be improved. Can increase value.

Also, since the lid is opened and closed by moving the divided pieces in parallel, the rail members are provided in the moving direction, and the rail members can support the divided pieces. Can be performed more reliably and smoothly. In particular, since the divided pieces are reliably supported by the rail members, no tilt and blur occur during operation, and it can be visually confirmed that the operation is extremely smooth.

Further, since the divided pieces obtained by dividing the lid move in parallel in the radial direction of the lid, each divided piece opens and closes while being displaced obliquely, and each divided piece opens and closes while making a circular motion. As compared with the case where the watch is opened and closed, the rotation trajectory when revolving while opening and closing can be reduced, the maximum operation area can be reduced, and the external shape of the timepiece can be reduced.

Further, since the divided piece is linearly moved while being supported by the rail member, positioning in the closed state or the open state is easy, and a special stopper, a position detecting means and the like are provided. Positioning can be performed in each state.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a sectional view of a main part showing a cover opening / closing mechanism of a timepiece according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a front view showing a state of each part in a closed state of the lid opening / closing mechanism shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a front view showing a state when the support member is rotated by 90 degrees from the state shown in FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a front view showing a state where the support member is further rotated by 90 degrees from the state shown in FIG. 3;

FIG. 5 is a front view showing a state when the support member is further rotated by 90 degrees from the state shown in FIG. 4;

FIG. 6 is a front view showing a state where an intermediate gear is provided in the lid opening / closing mechanism shown in FIG. 2;

[Explanation of symbols]

 2 Lid 4 Pointer shaft 8 Substrate 10 Movement 12 Motor 14 Sun gear 16 Support member 20,22 Planetary gear 24,26 Connecting member 28,30 Guide groove 36,38,40,42 Rail member 44,46 Intermediate gear

Claims (5)

[Claims] 1. A timepiece having a lid formed of a plurality of divided pieces that are openably and closably divided by a line passing through a predetermined axis, wherein the divided pieces forming the lid are rotated around the predetermined axis. A timepiece cover opening / closing mechanism provided with opening / closing drive means for opening / closing by moving in parallel while revolving. 2. The opening / closing drive means includes: a sun gear fixed so as to be non-rotatable coaxially with the predetermined axis; a planetary gear meshing with the sun gear; and one end portion at a center of rotation of the planetary gear. A connecting member fixed and the other end positioned at a position deviated from the rotation center portion; and a connecting member provided on the divided piece so as to face a direction orthogonal to a moving direction of the divided piece and the other of the connecting member. A guide groove having an end slidably inserted therein, a support member disposed rotatably around the predetermined axis, and supporting the planetary gear so as to be able to rotate around the predetermined axis and revolve around the predetermined axis; A rail member disposed on a member and supporting the divided piece so as to be movable in parallel, a drive source for rotating the support member about the predetermined axis,
The watch cover opening and closing mechanism according to claim 1, further comprising: 3. The timepiece cover opening and closing mechanism according to claim 2, wherein a pair of said rail members are provided so as to be parallel to each of said divided pieces. 4. The timepiece cover opening and closing mechanism according to claim 2, wherein a plurality of the planetary gears and the connecting member are provided for one of the divided pieces. 5. The planetary gears provided in plurality for one of the divided pieces, some of the planetary gears mesh with the sun gear and rotate, and mesh with the sun gear and can rotate. The timepiece cover opening / closing mechanism according to claim 4, wherein another planetary gear meshes with the intermediate gear rotatably supported around the predetermined axis and rotates.