JP2006220509A - Clock displaying equipment - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a globe that is high in decorativeness, capable of regularly using as a clock function and also capable of being used as a universal clock, while representing the motion of celestial bodies, such as the earth in cosmic space. <P>SOLUTION: An outer shell on which a map is displayed on the outer shell of a spherical surface that is transparent or translucent, the internal shell stored in the outer shell, on the surface of which any one of characters, designs or colors representing time or time zone is displayed, and a rotation means for internal shell for making the internal shell relatively rotate to the outer shell of the cube with a prescribed time period, while centered about the rotational axis. Any one of the characters, designs or colors displayed on the surface of the inner shell, representing the time or time zone is recognized, by seeing through the map displayed on the outer shell, thereby making the time or time zone on the spot on the map can be recognizable. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2006,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to an apparatus for displaying a clock at an arbitrary point such as a world clock, and more particularly to a clock display apparatus that can easily check a time change and a change in the degree of sunshine based on the rotation and revolution of the earth. is there.

World clocks have been used for a long time to know the clocks around the world, and there are ones that use a globe, as well as those with multiple clocks in each place.
What is currently commercialized is the one that reads the time from the scale of 24 equal parts that are fixed on the outer circumference of the globe. However, since the globe rotates, it is not suitable for daily use. In other words, since the place (country) where the owner of the watch is moving moves with the rotation of the watch every day, it goes around the backside for half an hour, so it cannot be seen without moving the globe.
There is also a problem that you cannot enjoy the movement because the globe operates at a slow speed of one rotation in 24 hours.

Conventionally known patent documents include the following.
Japanese Patent Publication No.8-1463 Utility Kaihei 4-1574

  The present invention was created in view of the above-mentioned problems of the prior art, and is a timepiece that can be used as a clock function while expressing the movement of celestial bodies such as the earth in outer space, and also as a world clock. The purpose is to provide a highly decorative globe that can be used.

In order to solve the above problems, the present invention provides the following configuration of a clock display device.
That is, the invention described in claim 1 includes an outer sphere on which a map is displayed on the surface of a transparent or translucent sphere, and a character, pattern, A timepiece display device comprising: an inner shell displaying at least one of colors; and an inner shell rotating means for rotating the inner shell relative to the outer sphere at a predetermined time period around a rotation axis. I will provide a.
Then, the time or time at each point on the map is checked by overlapping and visually recognizing at least one of the character, pattern, and color representing the time or time zone displayed on the inner shell surface. It is characterized in that the band can be recognized.

  The invention according to claim 2 is a configuration in which the outer sphere includes a globe-like display, and the inner shell includes a display indicating at least the degree of sunshine, and the relative rotational motion on the rotation shaft is Rotating shaft oscillating means for oscillating the rotating shaft in the revolution cycle with the amplitude of the inclination of the rotating shaft with respect to the revolution axis as an amplitude is represented by rotating the earth once in a rotation cycle to express the time change due to the rotation of the earth. It represents the change in the degree of sunshine due to the revolution of.

  According to a third aspect of the present invention, the rotating shaft oscillating means includes a shaft supporting arm that supports the rotating shaft at the same angle as the inclination of the rotating shaft, and the shaft supporting arm has a revolving period around the revolving shaft. It is characterized by comprising a pivot arm rotating part that rotates once.

  The invention according to claim 4 is characterized in that the outer sphere is a celestial body, and the temporal change in the celestial body can be displayed by at least the rotation period of the celestial body. That is, even a celestial body such as Mars or Saturn can reproduce the time change in the Mars time or Saturn time as described above, and can be provided as a celestial teaching material or the like.

The invention according to claim 5 includes an outer shell sphere having a globe-like display on a transparent or translucent sphere surface, and a character / pattern that represents the time or time zone on the surface of the outer shell sphere. An inner shell provided with display means capable of displaying at least one of the colors, and an inner shell display control means for causing the display means to display relative rotation at a predetermined time period around the rotation axis with respect to the outer shell sphere. A clock display device having the above is provided.
Then, the time or time zone at each point on the map is determined by visually recognizing at least one of the character, pattern, and color representing the time or time zone displayed on the surface device on the map on the outer shell sphere. It is configured to be recognizable.

  According to the present invention, the time and the time zone can be sensuously known from the movement of the earth in outer space, unlike the clock and the digital clock that have the concept of time with hands and dials. In addition, it is possible to provide a timepiece display device that is highly decorative and enjoys operation.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described based on examples shown in the drawings. The embodiment is not limited to the following.
The present invention is composed of a spherical outer sphere and an inner spherical sphere. The globe, which is the outer shell, is stationary, but the movement can be expressed by the rotation of the inner shell sphere. It is characterized by the fact that it can express the time difference between day and night in the change of the four seasons by day and night of the day, sunrise, sunset, and 12-month revolution movement.

  In this way, since the globe is stationary, it can be used as a watch in daily life. The globe can be rotated manually, and the map contents on the globe and the display contents of the inner shell are viewed in duplicate, so that the distinction and time of each day in the world can be known. Hereinafter, a specific configuration will be described based on the drawings.

In Fig. 1, the outer shell (1) consists of a globe, the inner shell (2) consists of a sphere representing day and night, a time display panel (3), a main body case (4), and a rotating seat (5).
The outer shell 1 is a sphere formed of a transparent or translucent material, and a world map, meridian, and latitude are drawn on the surface. With regard to the paint drawn on the world map, it is possible to color-code if it is a transparent paint, and the color of the inner shell 2 can be identified through the outer shell 1.

  The outer shell (1) consists of two parts. The northern hemisphere is a hemisphere. The Southern Hemisphere has a shape that allows the arm 7 to rotate and the time display board 3 to be seen. The northern and southern hemispheres are joined on the equator.

The inner shell (2) is attached inside the outer shell (1). The shape of the inner shell (2) is arbitrary and may be a plate or the like as long as it can be visually recognized overlapping with the outside of the outer shell. The material is preferably a plastic or the like with a hollow inside. Other materials can also be used if they are lightweight.
The size of the inner shell (2) is preferably close to the inner size of the outer shell 1 as long as it does not contact the outer shell (1) and does not interfere with rotation.

The surface of the inner shell (2) is painted separately for morning, noon, evening, and night. For color coding, divide the inner shell (2) into 24 equal lines and apply the color of the sky in the clear weather or the characteristic color of the time zone.
5am to 6am light blue, 7am light blue and yellow, 8am to 10am light blue, 11:00 to 15:00 light blue, 16:00 to 17:00 light blue, 18:00 light blue and red, 19:00 to 20 Dark blue 21 o'clock-2 o'clock dark blue 3:00 o'clock-4 o'clock Each color is color-coded as dark blue.

Also, enter a line that bisects the sphere. A thick meridian is drawn on the circumference from the attachment part of the inner shell rotation shaft and the zenith part on the opposite side, and a clear line that can distinguish day and night is entered.
The mounting location of the inner shell (2) is attached to the inner shell rotation shaft (11). The inner shell rotation shaft (11) is attached to the arm (7) with an angle of elevation of 66.6 degrees inside from the horizontal direction. This is based on the inclination (23.4 degrees) between the rotation axis and the revolution axis.

The center of the sphere of the inner shell (2) attached to the inner shell rotation shaft (11) is on the perpendicular of the center of the arm (7).
In order to rotate the inner shell (2) stably, the inner shell auxiliary wheel (12) is attached in the direction opposite to the inner shell rotation axis.

The time display board (3) is conical and has a scale for displaying time in 24 minutes and a scale for displaying minutes.
The number of scales on the minute display is the number that can be ticked in proportion to the size of the globe. For example, the minute display can be made in increments of 1 minute when the scale of the globe is large, and in increments of 30 minutes when the scale is small.

  The outer shell (1) is fixed to the case (4). There is also a rotating seat (5) at the bottom, which can rotate the globe. The drive unit shown in FIG. 3 is incorporated therein.

Next, description will be made with reference to FIGS. 2, 3, 4, and 5. FIG.
The 24-hour clock module (6) has an axis that rotates 360 degrees in the 24-hour rotation period.
From this shaft, the gear of the gear case (9) and the shaft attached to the gear are rotated to drive the arm (7), the inner shell rotation shaft (11), and the time display panel (3).

The shaft (10c) is fixed to the gear (3c) and rotates.
The shaft (10b) is inserted into the shaft (10c) and fixed to the main body case. A bearing (13) is attached to the upper portion of the shaft (10b), and an arm (7) is disposed on the outer periphery thereof, thereby acting as a support column for stably rotating the arm (7).

  Since the shaft (10a) is inserted into the shaft (10b) and the lower end is fixed to the gear (7i), the shaft (10a) rotates together. The upper end is fixed to the arm (7) with a fixing screw (8).

The time display board (3) is fixed by gears (3d) (3c) and a shaft (10c) and rotates integrally.
The arm (7) is fixed by a shaft (10a) and a screw (8). The shaft (10a) is coupled to the gear (7i) and rotates integrally.

The inner shell rotation shaft (11) is on the same shaft as the gear (3h), and both are fixed to the shaft.
The gears (3d), (3e), (3f), (3g), and (3h) are meshed with the same number of teeth 72, and the rotation speed of the inner shell and the rotation speed of the dial face are the same.

The 24-hour clock display module (6) has an axis that rotates once in 24 hours. The rotation is transmitted from the shaft to the gear (3a) (number of teeth 72) and the gear (7a) (number of teeth 73).
The gear (3a) meshes with the gear (3b) and the gear (3c). The gear (3c) is fixed to the shaft (10c) and transmits the rotation to the time display board (3) and the gear (3d) (number of teeth 72).
Furthermore, the gear (3d) meshes with the gear (number of teeth 72) (3e) (3f) (3g) (3h) attached to the arm, and the inner shell from the rotation of the arm (7) and the rotation of the gear (3d) Rotate the rotating shaft (11).

The time display board (3) is the current time where the destination you want to know has been lowered vertically from the longitude line of the globe.
The rotating seat (5) can rotate the entire globe. This allows you to see the distinction between time and daytime around the world.

  With the above configuration of the present invention, the outer shell can be visually recognized by overlapping the display indicating the degree of sunshine on the inner shell and the globe by rotating the inner shell while the outer shell is stationary. . The time is not limited to the above configuration using the time display board, and the time may be directly written in the inner shell, and the function as a world clock can be enhanced by displaying characters large.

Next, a mechanism for expressing changes in sunshine hours based on the revolution of the earth, which is the second feature of the present invention, will be described.
First, the rotation is transmitted from the clock module for 24-hour display (6) to the gear (7a) (number of teeth 61). The gear (7a) meshes with the gears (7b) (7c) (7d) (7e) (7f) (7g) (7h) (7i).

  Fig. 5 shows how the gears mesh. The gear (7i) is fixed to the shaft (10a). The shaft (10a) is attached and fixed to the arm (7) with a fixing screw (8). The ratio of gears (7a) to (7i) is 1: 1.00274. When the gear (7a) rotates 365 times, the gear (7i) rotates 366 times.

This causes arm (7) to rotate 360.986 degrees clockwise in 24 hours.
After 24 hours from the rotation start time, it will make one rotation and go further 0.986 degrees clockwise. Repeat this 365 days later to return to the original position. This movement expresses the earth's revolutionary motion.

  The rotation of the time display panel (3) and the gear (3d) is transmitted from the 24-hour clock display module (6) to the gear (3a) (number of teeth 72). The gear (3b) (number of teeth 72) and the gear (3c) (number of teeth 72) are engaged and transmit rotation. The gear (3c) is fixed to the shaft (10c) and rotates the time display board (3) and the gear (3d) 360 degrees in 24 hours.

  When the arm (7) rotates 360.986 degrees in 24 hours, the inner shell rotation axis rotates 360 degrees. As a result, the daytime and nighttime of the earth is represented by the inner shell (2), and the current time is represented by the time display board (3).

The movement of the inner shell (2) attached to the arm (7) and the inner shell rotation shaft (11) represents the rotation and revolution of the earth. The details of the revolution will be described in detail.
Fig. 6 shows the state of daily movement. a to d illustrate the positions of the inner shell (2) and the arm.
a is the winter solstice in the season, and the time of the region on the meridian centerline of the outer shell (1) is 6 o'clock in the morning. b is 12:00, c is 18:00, and d is 24:00.

Figure 7 shows the state of movement for one year. e to h show the positions of the inner shell (2) and the arm (7). The time is the same time.
e is the time of the winter solstice, and the time of the region on the meridian centerline of the outer shell (1) is illustrated at 6 am. f is 6 o'clock of spring equinox, g is 6 o'clock of summer solstice, and h is 6 o'clock of autumn equinox. It goes 0.986 degrees clockwise per day and in 365 days the arm rotates 360 degrees and returns to its original position.

  FIG. 8 is a model diagram when priority is given to the clock function by changing the display position of the time display board (3) and moving the time display board on the equator of the globe. In this way, the clock display board can be moved.

  Although the present invention can constitute a world clock using the outer shell as a globe as described above, the present invention can also be used to reproduce any celestial body such as a Mars globe, Saturn globe, or lunar globe with a similar construction. In other words, by setting the rotation period and revolution period of each celestial body (especially planets and satellites) and the inclination of the rotation axis from the revolution axis, the time of each celestial body and the state of sunshine (reflection) accompanying it are reproduced. Can do. It is preferable to use it as a celestial teaching material.

  Furthermore, in the above description, the structure in which the inner shell is seen through from the outer shell using characters, patterns, and colors is shown. However, the inner shell is not mechanically moved, and the inner shell surface is covered with a display device. It is also possible to have a configuration that reproduces the display. As the display device, for example, a number of light emitting diodes arranged in parallel toward the outer periphery of the sphere, a liquid crystal monitor, and the like are provided, and a known CPU device can be used as the display control device.

In each pixel in each light emitting diode or liquid crystal monitor, a color change is generated in the same manner as in the above movement so that the degree of sunshine at the point can be understood when superimposed on the globe from the outer shell appearance. Also good. In this case, since mechanical movement is not required, energy saving and display diversification can be achieved.
On the other hand, by using a globe that is actually drawn on the outer shell, it can be rotated by touching the hand, enabling intuitive operation.

  Moreover, in order to simulate the more accurate operation of the earth, it is possible to use a stepping motor for the drive unit and connect a microcomputer for operation control. In this case, a numeric keyboard is connected for external input. It is also possible to add a function for fast-forwarding to the position by inputting an arbitrary date and time from the numeric keypad. By controlling with a microcomputer, it is possible to fast-forward to an arbitrary position and return to the current location, and it is also possible to make a fine correction to trace an accurate orbit.

By having the configuration as described above, the present invention can be used to know changes in the sunshine hours, the winter solstice, the spring solstice, the summer solstice, the autumn quintuple, etc. during the four seasons of the earth while enjoying it. Can be used. It can be used as a practical world clock, knowing the length of day and night, the distinction and time of day and night in the world.
The present invention is not limited to the combination of the revolution operation and the rotation operation described above, and can be made to function only by the revolution operation or only the rotation operation. For example, as shown in FIG. 9 or FIG. 10, it is possible to provide a world clock that rotates and omits the revolution operation. Note that the reference numerals in the figure are the same as those in the above embodiment.

Front view of a clock display device according to the present invention Same as above, front view and internal perspective view Same as above Same as above, drive unit plan view Explanatory drawing which shows the gear combination in arrow BB Illustration of operating status every 6 hours for 1 day Explanatory diagram of operating status every three months for one year Another example of changing the display position of the time display panel Simple model Assembly drawing of simplified model

Explanation of symbols

1 outer shell
2 Inner shell
2a Time display inner shell
3-hour display board
3a ~ b Gear (72 teeth)
3d gear (72 teeth)
3e-3h Gear (72 teeth)
4 cases
5 Rotating seat
5a Back cover
6 24-hour clock module
7 arm
7a Gear (number of teeth 61)
7b Gear (50 teeth, 10 teeth)
7c Gear (40 teeth, 10 teeth)
7d Gear (30 teeth, 10 teeth)
7e Gear (20 teeth, 10 teeth)
7f Gear (50 teeth, 10 teeth)
7g gear (50 teeth, 10 teeth)
7h Gear (number of teeth 50)
7i Gear (73 teeth)
8 Fixing screw
9 Gear case
10a shaft
10b shaft
10c shaft
11 Inner shell rotation axis
12 Inner shell auxiliary wheel
13 Bearing

Claims (5)

An outer sphere with a map displayed on the surface of a transparent or translucent sphere;
An inner shell that is embedded in the outer sphere and displays on the surface at least one of a character, a pattern, and a color representing time or a time zone;
A timepiece display device comprising: inner shell rotation means for rotating the inner shell relative to the outer sphere at a predetermined time period around a rotation axis;
By visually recognizing at least one of the characters, patterns, and colors representing the time or time zone displayed on the inner shell surface on the map on the outer shell sphere, the time or time zone at each point on the map is determined. A clock display device characterized by being configured to be recognizable. The outer sphere has a globe-like display, and the inner shell has a display showing at least the degree of sunshine,
While the relative rotational movement on the rotation axis represents a time change due to the rotation of the earth by making one rotation in the rotation period,
The rotation shaft swinging means for swinging the rotation shaft in a swing cycle with the inclination of the rotation shaft with respect to the revolution shaft as an amplitude is provided to represent a change in the degree of sunshine due to the revolution of the earth. Clock display device. The rotating shaft swinging means is
A pivot arm that pivotally supports the rotation axis at the same angle as the inclination of the rotation axis;
The timepiece display device according to claim 2, wherein the pivot support arm comprises a pivot support arm rotating section for rotating the pivot support arm around the revolution axis at a revolution cycle.   The timepiece display device according to claim 1, wherein the outer sphere is a celestial body, and a time change in the celestial body can be displayed by at least a rotation period of the celestial body. An outer sphere with a globe-like display on the surface of a transparent or translucent sphere,
An inner shell provided with display means capable of displaying at least one of a character, a pattern, and a color representing the time or time zone on the surface, which is embedded in the outer shell sphere;
A timepiece display device comprising: an inner shell display control means for causing the display means to display a relative rotation at a predetermined time period around a rotation axis with respect to the outer shell sphere,
The time or time zone at each point on the map can be recognized by visually recognizing at least one of the characters, patterns and colors representing the time or time zone displayed on the surface device on the map on the outer sphere. A clock display device characterized by being configured as described above.

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