JP2014081289A - Radio wave correction clock, control method and control program therefor, and recording medium - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a radio wave correction clock capable of reducing power consumption and time required for receiving a standard radio wave and improving a probability of successful reception.SOLUTION: A radio wave correction clock includes time measurement means 410, clock-time display means 500, reception means 200, current clock-time correction means 440, reception control means 420, and external operation means 600. Further, in a case where an automatic reception clock-time, as a clock-time for the reception means 200 to start receiving a standard radio wave, is pre-set, with a current clock-time counted by the time measurement means 410 reaching the automatic reception clock-time, the reception control means 420 executes a first reception mode that is to cause the reception means 200 to receive only a partial portion of limited clock-time information that is a limited portion of clock-time information on the standard radio wave, while in a case where a forced reception operation for the standard radio wave is instructed at the external operation means 600, executes a second reception mode that is to cause the reception means 200 to receive more pieces of clock-time information on the standard radio wave than in the first reception mode.

Description

  The present invention relates to a radio-controlled timepiece, a radio-controlled timepiece control method, a radio-controlled timepiece control program, and a recording medium.

Conventionally, a radio-controlled timepiece that can receive standard radio waves is known.
As shown in FIG. 3, the time code format of the standard radio wave on which the time information is superimposed is configured such that one signal is transmitted every second and one record is formed in 60 seconds (1 minute).
The time code format of the standard radio signal includes, as items, the current time minute, hour, the day of the current year since January 1, the year (last 2 digits), day of the week, and leap second digits. It consists of
In addition, there are items of a parity bit relating to minutes and hours, a spare bit, and a break notice bit.
The value of each item is configured by a combination of numerical values (bit data) assigned to each second.

The radio-controlled timepiece has a time measuring means for measuring the current time (second, minute, hour, day of the week, year, and day of the week) based on a reference clock, a time display means for displaying the current time measured, and a standard time signal. Receiving means, and current time adjusting means for correcting the current time of the time measuring means based on the time information received by the receiving means.
In the radio-controlled timepiece having such a configuration, a standard radio wave including time information is received by the receiving means.
Then, based on the time information of the standard radio wave, the current time of the time measuring means is corrected by the current time correcting means.
This current time is displayed on the time display means.

  By the way, the reception state of the standard radio wave in the radio timepiece varies greatly depending on the installation location and environmental conditions. For example, when a radio clock is placed inside a reinforced steel house or on the basement of a building, the reception state of the radio clock is significantly degraded due to the attenuation of the radio waves that arrive. Also, when there are many sources of radio noise around the radio timepiece, the reception state of the radio timepiece deteriorates due to the influence. As described above, the radio timepiece has a built-in crystal oscillation circuit for time counting. Therefore, even if the radio wave timepiece becomes incapable of receiving standard radio waves normally due to deterioration of the reception status, The display time will not be inaccurate.

However, if the reception impossible state continues for a long time, there is a possibility that an error occurs in the display time due to the accuracy of the crystal resonator used in the crystal oscillation circuit built in the radio timepiece. Therefore, in order to reduce the error of the display time, it is necessary to use a high-precision crystal resonator, and there is a problem that the product cost is naturally increased.
Moreover, in order to reduce the power consumption, the radio timepiece generally operates the radio wave receiver intermittently. Therefore, if the time interval of the intermittent operation is extended, the power consumption can be reduced, but when the reception state deteriorates, the reception impossible state continues for a long time and an error in the display time is likely to occur. On the other hand, if the time interval is shortened, the display time error can be reduced even when the reception state deteriorates, but there is a problem that the power consumption increases.

  In view of this, there has been disclosed a timepiece capable of reducing current consumption by intermittently performing reception itself and providing a time when reception is not performed (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2004-340749

  However, in Patent Document 1, there is a possibility that a period during which no reception is performed occurs and an error in the display time of the clock occurs.

  The problem to be solved by the present invention is to provide a radio-controlled timepiece that reduces power consumption and time required for receiving standard radio waves and improves the probability of successful reception.

  SUMMARY An advantage of some aspects of the invention is to solve at least a part of the problems described above, and the invention can be implemented as the following forms or application examples.

  Application Example 1 A radio-controlled timepiece according to this application example includes a time measuring unit that counts the current time based on a reference clock pulse, a time display unit that displays the current time measured by the time measuring unit, and time information. Receiving means for receiving a standard radio wave including: current time correcting means for correcting the current time of the time measuring means based on time information received by the receiving means; and reception control means for controlling the receiving operation of the receiving means; An external operation means capable of selectively inputting an external correction command of the current time and a forced reception operation command of a standard radio wave that are timed by the time measuring means and displayed by the time display means, and the reception control means includes: When the automatic reception time is preset as the time for starting reception of the standard radio wave at the receiving means, and the current time counted by the time measuring means reaches the automatic reception time, When the first reception mode in which only the limited time information of the limited information among the information is received is executed and a forced reception operation of a standard radio wave is instructed by the external operation unit, the first The second reception mode is executed in which the reception unit receives more time information of the standard radio wave than in the first reception mode.

According to this application example, when the current time counted by the timing means reaches the automatic reception time, the first reception mode is executed, and the forced reception operation of the standard radio wave is commanded by the external operation means In this case, the second reception mode is executed.
That is, when the first reception mode is selected, only a limited part (for example, seconds, minutes, hours, and parity) of the time information of the standard radio wave is received by the receiving unit.
When the second reception mode is selected, more time information than the first reception mode, for example, all the time information of the standard radio wave (for example, seconds, minutes, hours, parity, total date, and year) Is received.

Current clocks (such as quartz clocks) can generate stable reference clock pulses that achieve timekeeping accuracy of less than 20 seconds per month, and even the current time count in the timekeeping means is very likely to shift to, for example, the date or day of the week. In many cases, it is not necessary to receive the standard radio wave and correct the date and day information.
Therefore, usually, by selecting the first reception mode, only a necessary part of the time information of the standard radio wave is received to correct only the necessary part. By displaying the time, it is possible to reduce power consumption and improve reception probability.
On the other hand, time information including day information and day information is required when the calendar information of at least one of day information and day information is changed among the current time of the time measuring means by manual external operation. A second reception mode that is a reception mode that receives more time information than the first reception mode, and receives more time information than the first reception mode (for example, all the time information of the standard radio wave), Time display based on standard radio waves can be performed.

Since different reception modes are set as described above and the reception mode is selected as necessary, it is possible to receive the standard radio wave in the reception mode according to the situation.
Then, only the limited time information necessary according to the situation is received, and the power consumption required for reception can be reduced by shortening the reception time. In particular, since a large amount of power is required for the reception operation for receiving the standard radio wave, the power consumption reduction effect by shortening the reception time is very large.
Further, since only the necessary limited time information is received, the amount of information to be received is small and the reception time is shortened, so that the possibility of noise on the standard radio wave can be reduced.
Then, since the probability of successful reception can be improved, it is no longer necessary to repeat the reception operation. In addition to shortening the reception time, the possibility of erroneous reception can be reduced, so an incorrect time correction due to erroneous reception can be incorrect. It is possible to prevent the displayed time from being displayed.

  As a result, even when reception is performed, the current consumption is reduced, the frequency of reception can be increased, and the error in the display time of the watch is reduced.

In addition, when at least one of the day information and the day of the week information among the current time information of the time measuring means is corrected by the external operation means, there is a possibility that the time correction by the user may be incorrect and the external correction was made by mistake. In order to correct the day information and the day information with the standard radio wave information, it is necessary to receive all the time information including the day information and the day information in the second reception mode, so the second reception mode is selected. .
When forced reception of standard radio waves is commanded by an external operation means, the user is instructed to correct the time by receiving standard radio waves, so all digits (seconds, minutes, hours, total date, year) , And the day of the week), the second reception mode is selected in order to ensure complete correction.

  Application Example 2 In the radio-controlled timepiece described in the application example, the limited time information received in the first reception mode is information on seconds, minutes, and hours of time information of a standard radio wave. Features.

According to this application example, in the first reception mode, which is the reception mode selected when the current time counted by the time measuring means reaches the automatic reception time, the second, minute, and hour of the time information of the standard radio wave Receive information only.
In general, for example, in a quartz clock, the accuracy is within 20 seconds per month, so the information on the day and day of the week is accurately counted, and the second minute of the time measuring means is determined by the second, minute, and hour information received in the first reception mode. If the time is corrected, the current time of the time measuring means can be corrected to an accurate time.
In other words, since calendar information such as days and days of the week that do not deviate even by the counting of the time measuring means is not received, the reception time can be shortened to reduce the power consumption required for reception, and the amount of information to be received is reduced. It is possible to improve the probability of successful reception by reducing the possibility of noise.

  In the first reception mode, when receiving the time information of the standard radio wave, the second, minute, and hour information is received. When the time information of the second is received, the first time code of the time code (the position marker) is received. Synchronizing and actually receiving the time code includes minute digit data and hour digit data.

  Application Example 3 In the radio-controlled timepiece described in the above application example, whether the time information of the standard radio wave received by the receiving unit is temporarily stored and the received time information is correctly received. In the first reception mode, the reception information processing means receives if the difference between the received time information and the current time counted by the time measuring means is within an allowable range. It is characterized by judging that it has succeeded.

  According to this application example, when the standard radio wave is received in the first reception mode, when determining whether or not the reception is successful, the time information of the received second, minute, and hour is counted by the time measuring means. Contrast with the current time. Then, if the difference between the received time information (second, minute, and hour information) and the current time counted by the time measuring means is within an allowable range, it is determined that the reception is successful, and the received time information To correct the current time of the timekeeping means.

  For example, current clocks (for example, quartz clocks) achieve a precision of about 20 seconds per month by a stable reference clock pulse, so that the true current time is within an allowable range with respect to the current time counted by the time measuring means. Within (for example, within a few seconds). If the first reception mode is selected after judging according to the determination condition, the previous standard radio wave has been successfully received, so the current time counted by the time measuring means is considerable. Can be judged accurate and reliable. Therefore, if the received time information is within an allowable range (for example, within several seconds) with respect to the current time of the time measuring means, it can be determined that the reception is successful.

  In this way, since the time information of the standard radio wave is compared with the current time of the time measuring means, the success or failure of the reception can be determined, so the number of times of reception of the standard radio wave may be one time. , Second, minute, and hour information), the reception time becomes very short, and the power consumption required for reception can be reduced. Further, since the amount of information to be received is reduced, it is possible to improve the probability of successful reception by reducing the possibility of noise on the signal.

  Application Example 4 In the radio-controlled timepiece described in the above application example, whether the time information of the standard radio wave received by the receiving unit is temporarily stored and the received time information is correctly received. Receiving information processing means for determining, in the second receiving mode, the time information received continuously is a predetermined time difference and the time information received continuously Is judged to have been successfully received when there are a plurality of times when there is a predetermined time difference.

  According to this application example, when the standard radio wave is received in the second reception mode to determine whether the reception is successful, the time information of the continuously received standard radio wave is equal to the predetermined time difference (1 If it meets such a requirement by confirming whether continuous time information having such a predetermined time difference has been received a plurality of times (for example, three times). It is determined that the standard radio wave has been successfully received.

  In the second reception mode, when all the time information (second, minute, hour, day of the week, year, and day of the week) of the standard radio wave is received, the amount of information to be received increases, so there is a risk that noise will be superimposed on the radio wave Since there is no parity bit in the time code of the day of the year, year, day of the week, etc., it is judged even if noise is superimposed on the time code of the day of the year, year, day of the week, etc. I can't.

  In this regard, in this application example, it is confirmed whether the time information received continuously has a predetermined time difference (1 minute difference), and further, whether the time information having the predetermined time difference has been received a plurality of times. Therefore, the success or failure of reception can be determined strictly.

  As a result, it is possible to prevent erroneous reception, prevent erroneous time correction based on erroneously received time information, and perform accurate time correction based on correctly received time information. it can.

  Application Example 5 In the radio-controlled timepiece according to the application example described above, the reception unit amplifies the reception signal of the standard radio wave and can adjust the gain, and an auto gain for controlling the gain of the reception circuit A control circuit, wherein the reception control means is configured to intermittently perform the reception means for temporarily stopping the operation of the reception means while data that does not need to be acquired is being transmitted during acquisition of time information. The reception control means holds the auto gain control voltage for controlling the auto gain control circuit at the voltage at the time of the operation stop and cancels the pause during the pause in the intermittent reception operation. When the operation is resumed, the operation of the auto gain control circuit is performed based on the held auto gain control voltage. Is opened, the receiving means, when the pause has resumed operation is released, characterized in that to resume the gain of the receiving circuit from the state prior to the pause.

  According to this application example, the AGC voltage of the AGC circuit is held at the voltage at the time of the operation stop even while the operation of the reception unit is temporarily stopped. Therefore, when the operation of the reception unit is resumed, Can quickly return to normal operation. For this reason, when the operation of the receiving means is suspended, the restart time after the operation of the receiving circuit is stopped can be shortened compared to the case where the AGC voltage is not held, and the receiving circuit is operated intermittently. However, the problem can be eliminated and the reception power consumption required for time correction can be reduced.

  Application Example 6 A radio-controlled timepiece control method according to this application example includes a time measuring process for counting the current time based on a reference clock pulse, and a time display process for displaying the current time measured in the time measuring process. A receiving step for receiving a standard radio wave including time information, a current time correcting step for correcting the current time of the time measuring step based on the time information received in the receiving step, and a reception for controlling the receiving operation of the receiving step A control process; and an external operation process capable of selectively inputting an external correction command at a current time and a forced reception operation command of a standard radio wave that are timed in the time measurement process and displayed in the time display process, and the reception control In the process, an automatic reception time is preset as a time at which reception of the standard radio wave is started in the reception process, and the standard time is counted when the current time counted in the timing process reaches the automatic reception time. In the case where the first reception mode in which only the limited limited time information among the radio wave time information is received by the reception process is executed, and the forced reception operation of the standard radio wave is instructed in the external operation process The second reception mode is executed in which the reception process receives more time information of the standard radio wave than the first reception mode.

  According to this application example, it is possible to achieve the same effects as the application example.

In addition, when a forced reception operation is performed, the second reception mode is immediately selected and a reception operation in the second reception mode is executed.
When forced reception operation is performed, the user is instructed to correct the time by receiving standard radio waves, so all digits (seconds, minutes, hours, day of year, year, and day of the week) are corrected. In order to ensure completeness, the second reception mode is selected, and the reception operation is immediately executed.

  Furthermore, when the calendar information (day information, day information) by external operation is corrected, the second reception mode is selected and reception of all time information of the standard radio wave is executed. At this time, the time information corrected by the user is displayed on the time display means from the correction of the day information and the day of the week information by the user until the start of the next reception operation, and the forced reception operation is commanded to reach the automatic reception time. The reception operation starts when

  [Application Example 7] In the radio-controlled timepiece control method according to the application example described above, the limited time information received in the first reception mode is information on seconds, minutes, and hours of time information of a standard radio wave. It is characterized by being.

According to this application example, in the first reception mode, which is the reception mode selected when the current time counted by the time measuring means reaches the automatic reception time, the second, minute, and hour of the time information of the standard radio wave Receive information only.
In general, for example, in a quartz clock, the accuracy is within 20 seconds per month, so the information on the day and day of the week is accurately counted, and the second minute of the time measuring means is determined by the second, minute, and hour information received in the first reception mode. If the time is corrected, the current time of the time measuring means can be corrected to an accurate time.
In other words, since calendar information such as days and days of the week that do not deviate even by the counting of the time measuring means is not received, the reception time can be shortened to reduce the power consumption required for reception, and the amount of information to be received is reduced. It is possible to improve the probability of successful reception by reducing the possibility of noise.

  Application Example 8 In the radio-controlled timepiece control method according to the application example described above, the time information of the standard radio wave received in the reception step is temporarily stored and the received time information is correctly received. A reception information processing step for determining whether the difference between the received time information and the current time counted in the timing step is within an allowable range in the first reception mode. If there is, it is judged that the reception is successful.

  According to this application example, it is possible to achieve the same effects as the application example.

  Application Example 9 In the method for controlling a radio-controlled timepiece according to the application example described above, the time information of the standard radio wave received in the receiving step is temporarily stored and the received time information is correctly received. A reception information processing step for determining whether or not the received information processing step has a predetermined time difference between consecutively received time information in the second reception mode, and the reception information processing step When the received time information has a predetermined time difference a plurality of times, it is determined that the reception is successful.

  According to this application example, it is possible to achieve the same effects as the application example.

  Application Example 10 In the method for controlling a radio-controlled timepiece according to the application example described above, the receiving step amplifies the reception signal of the standard radio wave, adjusts the gain, and controls the gain of the receiving circuit. The reception control step controls the reception step with an intermittent reception operation that temporarily stops the operation of the reception step while data that does not need to be acquired is being transmitted during acquisition of time information. The reception control step holds the auto gain control voltage at the voltage at the time of operation stop while the operation is paused in the intermittent reception operation, and when the operation is resumed after the suspension is canceled, The operation is resumed based on the auto-gain control voltage that has been held, and when the reception process is resumed after the suspension is released, the gain is changed to the state before the suspension. Characterized in that it resume from.

  According to this application example, since the AGC voltage is maintained at the voltage at the time when the operation is stopped while the operation of the reception process is temporarily stopped, normal operation is performed when the operation of the reception process is resumed. It is possible to return quickly. For this reason, when the operation of the reception process is temporarily stopped, the restart time after the operation is stopped can be shortened compared with the case where the AGC voltage is not held, and the trouble is eliminated even if the operation is intermittently performed. It is possible to reduce the reception power consumption required for time correction.

  Application Example 11 A radio-controlled timepiece control program according to this application example uses a computer incorporated in a radio-controlled timepiece having receiving means for receiving a standard radio wave including time information to determine the current time based on a reference clock pulse. Time counting means for counting the time, time display means for displaying the current time measured by the time measuring means, and current time correcting means for correcting the current time of the time measuring means based on the time information received by the receiving means; A receiving control means for controlling the receiving operation of the receiving means, and an external correction command for the current time and a forced reception operation command for the standard radio wave which are timed by the timekeeping means and displayed by the time display means can be selectively input. A control program that functions as an external operation unit, wherein the reception control unit predicts an automatic reception time as a time at which the reception unit starts reception of a standard radio wave. When the current time that is set and counted by the time measuring means reaches the automatic reception time, a first limited time information that is limited among the time information of the standard radio wave is received by the receiving means. A second reception mode in which the reception mode is executed, and when the forced operation of the standard radio wave is instructed by the external operation unit, the reception unit receives more time information of the standard radio wave than the first reception mode. It is made to perform.

  Application Example 12 A recording medium according to this application example is characterized in that the control program for the radio-controlled timepiece according to the application example is recorded in a computer-readable manner.

  According to this application example, it is possible to achieve the same effects as the application example. In addition, if a computer equipped with a CPU (Central Processing Unit), memory (storage device), etc. is incorporated in the radio-controlled watch, and a program is incorporated in this computer to function as a reception mode control means, various setting changes can be made. It can be done easily. For example, the type of limited time information received as the first reception mode, the determination conditions when selecting the second reception mode, and the like can be easily changed. The control program may be installed via a communication means such as the Internet or a recording medium such as a CD-ROM or a memory card, and the functions of the above means may be realized by the installed program.

The functional block diagram which shows the electromagnetic wave correction timepiece which concerns on this embodiment. The flowchart which shows a reception operation process. The figure which shows the time code format of a standard radio wave.

  DESCRIPTION OF EXEMPLARY EMBODIMENTS Hereinafter, embodiments of the invention will be described with reference to the drawings. Note that the drawings to be used are appropriately enlarged or reduced so that the part to be described can be recognized.

FIG. 1 is a functional block diagram showing a radio-controlled timepiece 100 according to this embodiment.
The radio-controlled timepiece 100 according to this embodiment includes a receiving unit 200 that receives a standard radio wave, a reference clock generating unit 300 that generates a reference clock pulse, and a central control unit 400 that counts the current time and controls the receiving operation. And a time display means 500 for performing time display and an external operation means 600 for performing external input by manual operation.

  The receiving means 200 receives an antenna 210 that receives a standard radio wave, a receiving circuit 220 that receives a time code of the standard radio wave by tuning and amplifying the standard radio wave received by the antenna 210, and supplies power to the receiving circuit 220. A reception power supply circuit 230 to perform, an AGC (Auto Gain Control) circuit 232 that outputs a signal for determining a gain when the reception signal is amplified by the reception circuit 220 based on the reception signal, and a time code from the reception circuit 220 And a decoding circuit 240 for demodulating the signal. The receiving circuit 220 is configured to be able to adjust the gain according to the signal input from the AGC circuit 232. Then, the receiving circuit 220 whose gain has been adjusted amplifies the received signal so as to be input to the decoding circuit 240 as a constant amplitude. That is, the receiving circuit 220 reduces the gain when the amplitude is large, and increases the gain when the amplitude is small, according to the signal input from the AGC circuit 232, so that the received signal has a constant amplitude. Amplify to. A receiving step for receiving the standard radio wave is performed by the receiving means 200.

  The reference clock generator 300 oscillates a crystal resonator (not shown) to generate a signal having a constant frequency, and a frequency divider 320 to divide the signal from the oscillator 310 and generate a reference clock pulse. It is equipped with.

  The central control unit 400 counts the current time, the reception control unit 420 that controls the reception operation by the reception unit 200, and processes the time information received by the reception unit 200 to determine whether the reception is successful or not. The received information processing means 430, the current time correcting means 440 for correcting the current time counted by the time measuring means 410 based on the received time information, the operation of the external operation means 600 is detected and in response to an external input command External operation control means 450 for instructing time correction and forced reception, and hand movement drive control means 460 for causing the time display means 500 to display the current time counted by the time measuring means 410 are provided.

  The time measuring means 410 includes a second / minute counter 411 and a calendar counter 412.

  The second / minute / hour counter 411 counts the second, minute, and hour of the current time based on the reference clock pulse from the reference clock generating means 300 (time measuring step). Specifically, the second counter 411 counts seconds. And an hour / minute counter (not shown) for counting hours and minutes.

  The calendar counter 412 counts calendar information such as year, month, day, day of the week, etc. based on the count of the second minute hour counter 411 (time measuring step).

The reception control means 420 controls the reception operation by the reception means 200, and the reception timing control means 421 for controlling the timing of receiving the standard radio wave. The reception control means 420 receives the reception operation in the reception means 200 in a reception mode selected from different reception modes. Receiving mode control means 422. The reception control means 420 outputs a control signal for controlling power on / off of the reception circuit 220 and a control signal for holding the AGC voltage of the AGC circuit 232 to the reception power supply circuit 230.
Specifically, the reception control unit 420 transmits a control signal for powering on the reception circuit 220 when a preset scheduled reception time is reached or when manual reception is instructed by the external operation unit 600. Then, the reception circuit 220 is operated to start the reception process. Then, during the reception process, as will be described later, a control signal for powering off is transmitted at a predetermined timing, and the reception circuit 220 is temporarily stopped.
Further, before and after the power-on and power-off, a control signal for holding the AGC voltage of the AGC circuit 232 is output, and the AGC voltage is continuously held while the receiving circuit 220 is temporarily stopped.

  The reception control unit 420 executes a reception control step for controlling the reception operation of the reception unit 200.

  The reception timing control means 421 stores an automatic reception time (for example, 2 am and 5 am) set in advance as a time for receiving a standard radio wave. When the automatic reception time is reached, the standard radio wave is received. Command reception start.

  Also, the reception timing control means 421 instructs the start of reception of the standard radio wave when receiving a forced reception command by the operation of the external operation means 600 even at times other than the set reception time. A reception start command is output to the reception mode control means 422.

The reception mode control means 422 will be described.
The first reception mode and the second reception mode are set in advance as different reception operation patterns when the standard radio wave is received by the reception unit 200, and the reception mode control unit 422 determines whether the first reception mode and the first reception mode are different depending on the situation. The receiving means 200 is operated in either of the two reception modes (reception mode control step). The result of the operation is output to reception information processing means 430.

  As different reception modes set in the reception mode control means 422, the first reception mode is a mode for receiving only the second, minute, and hour information in the time information of the standard radio wave, and the second reception mode is second. In this mode, all the time information of the standard radio wave including the date, year, and day of week information as well as the hour, minute, and hour is received.

  As a specific configuration, the reception mode control unit 422 includes a first reception mode processing unit 423 that causes the reception unit 200 to execute a first reception mode in which only the second minute hour data of the time information of the standard radio wave is received, and the standard radio wave. A second reception mode processing unit 424 that causes the reception means 200 to continuously execute a second reception mode for receiving all of the time information.

  The reception information processing unit 430 temporarily stores the time information of the standard radio wave received by the reception unit 200 and determines whether the received time information is correctly received (reception information processing step). .

  The reception information processing unit 430 outputs the received time information to the current time correction unit 440 when determining that the reception is correctly received while outputting the success or failure of reception to the reception control unit 420.

  Note that, as reception modes, there are a first reception mode and a second reception mode, and the determination of the success or failure of the reception is also different between the first reception mode and the second reception mode.

  In the first reception mode, the reception information processing unit 430 determines that the reception is successful if the difference between the received time information and the current time counted by the time measuring unit 410 is within an allowable range.

  In the second reception mode, the reception information processing means 430 has a time difference of 1 minute (predetermined time difference) in continuously received standard radio waves and a time of continuously received time information of 1 minute. Judgment is successful if there are multiple differences. The specific reception success / failure determination operation will be described later with reference to the flowchart of FIG.

  The current time correcting means 440 corrects the count value of the time measuring means 410 based on the time information received by the receiving means 200 when the reception information processing means 430 determines that the reception is successful (current time correcting step). ).

  The external operation control unit 450 includes a forced reception operation detection unit 453 that detects a forced reception command input by an operation by the external operation unit 600 and outputs a forced reception command to the reception control unit 420.

  The hand movement drive control means 460 outputs a drive pulse so that the time display means 500 displays the current time (second minute hour and calendar) counted by the time measuring means 410.

  The time display means 500 displays the current time information counted by the time measuring means 410 (time display process).

  The time display means 500 includes a dial 520 that faces the outside from the opening of the exterior case 510, a pointer 530 that rotates on the dial 520, and a date display 540 that faces the outside from the opening of the dial 520. Prepare.

  As the pointer 530, a second hand 531, a minute hand 532, and an hour hand 533 are provided. These pointers 530 are a stepping motor (not shown) driven by a driving pulse from the hand movement drive control means 460 and a train wheel as an operation transmitting means ( (Not shown).

  The date display unit 540 is configured such that a date display engraved on a date dial that rotates under the dial 520 is provided so as to be visible from the opening of the dial 520.

  The external operation means 600 is composed of three switches provided on the side surface of the outer case 510 so as to be manually operable. The manual operation of these switches corrects the current time measured by the time measuring means 410 by the user and the standard radio wave. Command a forced reception operation.

Next, the operation of the radio-controlled timepiece 100 will be described.
Here, the present invention relates to a radio-controlled timepiece. The current time counted by the time counting means 410 is displayed on the time display means 500, and the automatic reception time is reached or an external operation is performed. Since the standard radio wave is received by forced reception and the current time counted by the time measuring means 410 is corrected based on the received time information, it is the same as that of a conventionally known radio wave correction clock. Detailed description of the step of displaying at 500, the step of correcting the current time counted by the time measuring means 410 based on the received time information, and the like will be omitted.

  FIG. 2 is a flowchart showing the reception operation process. With reference to FIG. 2, the receiving operation for receiving the standard radio wave will be described. The radio-controlled timepiece 100 waits until the automatic reception time set in the reception timing control means 421 is reached in step S200 or until the forced reception operation by the external operation means 600 is detected in step S210. The current time measured by is displayed on the time display means 500.

  First, when the automatic reception time set in the reception timing control means 421 determined as “YES” in step S200 is reached, the reception mode control means 422 starts reception from the reception timing control means 421 in step S220. The command is output and the standard radio wave reception process is started. The reception mode control means 422 activates the first reception mode processing unit 423. Then, in step S310, the first reception mode processing unit 423 instructs the reception power supply circuit 230 to supply power to the reception circuit 220, and the reception circuit 220 is activated.

  In the first reception mode, only the second, minute, and hour information of the standard radio wave time information is received once in step S320, and the reception circuit 220 is stopped in step S330. While the receiving circuit 220 is temporarily stopped, the AGC voltage is continuously held.

  The time information (second, minute, and hour information) of the standard radio wave received by the receiving circuit 220 is demodulated by the decoding circuit 240 and temporarily stored by the reception information processing means 430. In step S340, whether or not the reception is successful is determined. To be judged.

  In the determination of the success or failure of reception in the first reception mode, the received time information is compared with the current time information counted by the second counter 411 of the time measuring means 410 in step S350, and the difference between the two is within an allowable range. It is judged whether it is within.

  An example of the allowable range is 20 seconds or less. If the difference between the received time information determined as “YES” in step S350 and the current time information counted by the second / minute counter 411 of the time counting means 410 is within a few seconds (within an allowable range), the reception is successful. In step S360, the current time correcting means 440 corrects the count value of the second / minute counter 411 of the time measuring means 410, and according to the corrected current time information, the hand movement drive control means 460 corrects the time display means. The display time of 500 is corrected. For example, the allowable range is set to about 1 to 2 seconds.

  If “NO” in step S350, which is not within the allowable range, the process returns to step S310 and the reception is resumed.

  Next, the case where there is a forced reception operation determined as “YES” in step S210 will be described.

  First, forced reception operation is performed by the external operation means 600, and “YES” is determined in step S210. If this operation is detected by the forced reception operation detection means 453, reception timing is determined in step S225. A reception start command is output from the control means 421 to the reception mode control means 422, and the reception process of the standard radio wave is started. The reception mode control unit 422 activates the second reception mode processing unit 424. Then, in step S410, the second reception mode processing unit 424 instructs the reception power supply circuit 230 to supply power to the reception circuit 220, and the reception circuit 220 is activated.

  In the second reception mode, in step S420, all the time information of the standard radio wave (second, minute, hour, total date, year, and day of week information) is received.

  At this time, two pieces of continuous time information are received, and the received time information is demodulated by the decoding circuit 240 and temporarily stored in the reception information processing means 430. In step S430, the success or failure of reception is determined. The In the determination of the success or failure of reception in the second reception mode, it is determined whether the time information received continuously is at one minute intervals.

  In step S440, if the time information continuously received, which is determined as “YES”, is 1 minute different, it is determined that the reception is successful. Further, in step S450, whether the reception is successful three times. To be judged.

  In step S450, if the reception that is determined to be “YES” has been successful three times, the reception circuit 220 is stopped in step S460, and in step S470, the current time correction unit 440 causes the time measuring unit 410 to count the second minute. The count values of the counter 411 and the calendar counter 412 are corrected, and the time display is corrected by the hand movement drive control means 460 according to the corrected time information.

  If the continuous time information determined as “NO” in step S440 is not one minute difference, or if there are no three successful receptions determined as “NO” in step S450, the process returns to step S420 and returns to the time. Information reception continues.

  When the forced operation is instructed by the external operation means 600, the user has instructed the time correction by receiving the standard radio wave, so all digits (seconds, minutes, hours, days, and days of the week) In addition, it is considered that the forced reception operation by the user is often performed during the day, and because the reception status of radio waves is not good during the day, it is easy to receive errors. is there.

According to the embodiment having such a configuration, the following effects can be obtained.
(1) A first reception mode processing unit 423 and a second reception mode processing unit 424 are provided, and standard radio waves can be received in a reception mode according to the situation. Normally, only the time information (including parity) of the second, minute, and hour is received in the first reception mode, so that the reception time can be shortened and the power consumption required for reception can be reduced. Further, in the first reception mode by the first reception mode processing unit 423, only the time information of the second, minute, and hour is received, so that the amount of information to be received is small, and the reception of the standard radio wave in the first reception mode. In order to determine whether or not the reception has been successful in the case of performing the measurement, it is determined by comparing the received second, minute, and hour time information with the current time counted by the time measuring means 410. The number of times may be one. As a result, the reception time becomes very short, and the power consumption required for reception can be greatly reduced. Further, since the amount of information to be received is reduced, it is possible to improve the probability of successful reception by reducing the possibility of noise on the signal. As an example, if JJY 40/60 does not take a time code for the day of the week, there is no need to obtain a signal for 49 to 60 seconds, and reception is possible with a very low current consumption for about 11 seconds.

  (2) When the standard radio wave is received in the second reception mode, it is confirmed whether the time information of the continuously received standard radio wave is 1 minute difference in determining whether the reception is successful. (Step S440), and confirms whether or not continuous time information having a difference of 1 minute has been received a plurality of times (for example, three times) (Step S450). Since it is determined that the reception has succeeded, it is possible to make a strict determination by checking the success or failure of reception very strictly. In the second reception mode, all the time information (second, minute, hour, day of the week, year, and day of the week) of the standard radio wave is received, so there is a risk that the amount of received information will increase and noise will be superimposed on the radio wave This increases the risk of erroneous reception, but since strict reception success / failure determination (steps S440 and S450) is performed, it is possible to prevent incorrect time correction from being performed based on erroneously received time information. Thus, accurate time correction can be performed based on the correctly received time information.

  It should be noted that the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and modifications, improvements, and the like within the scope that can achieve the object of the present invention are included in the present invention. For example, when there is no display of the day of the week as in this embodiment, it is not necessary to receive the day of the week data, but the second, minute, hour, parity, total date, and year data are received, and the total date and year data are received. Find the day and correct it.

  For example, a control program may be incorporated in a computer having a CPU (Central Processing Unit) and a memory (storage device) to realize the functions as each unit of the central control unit 400. If it functions as the control unit 422, various setting changes can be easily performed. For example, the type of limited time information received as the first reception mode, the determination conditions when selecting the second reception mode, and the like can be easily changed. The control program may be installed via communication means such as the Internet or a recording medium such as a CD-ROM and a memory card, and the functions of the above means may be realized by the installed program.

  When determining the success or failure of the reception, in the first reception mode, the received time information is compared with the current time of the time measuring means to determine the success or failure of the reception. In the second reception mode, the time information of the standard radio wave continuously received is determined. Has been described as an example of determining whether the reception is successful or not by determining whether or not the reception time information of the predetermined time difference has been successfully received a plurality of times (three times). Such a reception success / failure determination method is not particularly limited and can be variously changed.

  The determination condition for selecting the second reception mode is not limited to the determination condition described in the embodiment, and the digit data of the limited time information received in the first reception mode, the reception success / failure determination method, etc. Of course, if is changed, the determination conditions will be different depending on this change.

  As the reception mode, the case where the first reception mode and the second reception mode are set has been described. However, the reception mode is not limited to two, and three or four reception modes may be various as required. A pattern reception mode may be set. For example, in the first reception mode, one second minute time information is received by one reception operation, and in the second reception mode, three continuous time information are received by one reception operation. For each of the reception mode and the second reception mode, a reception mode may be provided in which the number of times of continuous reception is different in one reception operation, or a reception mode in which the automatic reception timing is increased or decreased is provided. May be.

  The time display means 500 has been described by way of an example of a pointer type time display means for displaying the time by the hands 530, but it is of course possible to be a digital display type.

  In the confirmation of the success or failure of reception in the first reception mode (step S340), the received second / minute information is compared with the current time information counted by the second / minute counter 411, and the difference between the two is within an allowable range. If the reception is not successful, the process returns to step S310 to resume the reception and repeat steps S310 to S350. However, the success or failure of the reception in the second and subsequent reception operations is determined. The confirmation (step S340) may be as follows.

  That is, in addition to determining whether the second minute time information received after the second time is within an allowable range by comparing with the current time information of the second time counter 411 (step S350), the second time received after the second time. Compared with the minute / minute information received so far, it is judged whether it is a predetermined time difference (1 minute difference), and if the condition is satisfied in any of the judgments, the reception is considered successful. Time correction based on second minute hour information may be performed. If the time information counted by the time measuring means 410 is incorrect, it can be determined that the reception has succeeded because the received second / minute / hour information deviates from the time / hour / hour counter 411 even if it is correctly received. If the current time of the second minute counter 411 is incorrect, there is also a path for comparing the second minute hour information received continuously to determine the success or failure of reception. However, it is possible to correctly determine the success of reception without repeating reception many times.

  Alternatively, in the confirmation of the success or failure of reception in the first reception mode (step S340), when the first reception is not successful, the second minute counter 411 is used to determine the reception success or failure in the second and subsequent reception operations. Without determining whether the current time information is within the allowable range (step S350), the second minute time information received after the second time is compared with the second minute time information received so far, and a predetermined time difference ( The reception success or failure may be confirmed only by determining whether or not the difference is 1 minute.

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 100 ... Radio wave correction clock 200 ... Reception means 210 ... Antenna 220 ... Reception circuit 230 ... Reception power supply circuit 232 ... AGC circuit 240 ... Decoding circuit 300 ... Reference clock generation means 310 ... Oscillation circuit 320 ... Frequency division circuit 400 ... Central control means 410 ... Time measuring means 411 ... Second minute counter 412 ... Calendar counter 420 ... Reception control means 421 ... Reception timing control means 422 ... Reception mode control means 423 ... First reception mode processing section 424 ... Second reception mode processing section 430 ... Reception information Processing means 440 ... Current time correction means 450 ... External operation control means 453 ... Forced reception operation detection means 460 ... Hand movement drive control means 500 ... Time display means 510 ... Exterior case 520 ... Dial 530 ... Hand 531 ... Second hand 532 ... Minute hand 533 …Time 540 ... Date display unit 600 ... external operation means.

Claims (12)

A time counting means for counting the current time based on a reference clock pulse;
Time display means for displaying the current time measured by the time measuring means;
A receiving means for receiving a standard radio wave including time information;
Current time correcting means for correcting the current time of the time measuring means based on the time information received by the receiving means;
Receiving control means for controlling the receiving operation of the receiving means;
An external operation means capable of selectively inputting an external correction command of a current time and a forced reception operation command of a standard radio wave which are timed by the time measuring means and displayed by the time display means;
Including
The reception control means is configured such that an automatic reception time is preset as a time at which reception of the standard radio wave is started by the reception means, and when the current time counted by the time measuring means reaches the automatic reception time, Causing the receiving means to receive only a limited part of the limited time information of the radio wave time information;
When a forced reception operation of a standard radio wave is instructed by the external operation unit, a second reception mode is executed in which the reception unit receives more time information of the standard radio wave than the first reception mode. A radio correction watch. The radio-controlled timepiece according to claim 1,
The radio-controlled timepiece according to claim 1, wherein the limited time information received in the first reception mode is information on seconds, minutes, and hours among time information of standard radio waves. The radio-controlled timepiece according to claim 1 or 2,
Receiving information processing means for temporarily storing time information of the standard radio wave received by the receiving means and determining whether the received time information is correctly received;
In the first reception mode, the reception information processing means determines that the reception is successful if the difference between the received time information and the current time counted by the timing means is within an allowable range. Features a radio-controlled watch. The radio-controlled timepiece according to any one of claims 1 to 3,
Receiving information processing means for temporarily storing time information of the standard radio wave received by the receiving means and determining whether the received time information is correctly received;
In the second reception mode, the reception information processing means may receive a plurality of times when the continuously received time information has a predetermined time difference and the continuously received time information has a predetermined time difference. A radio-controlled timepiece that is judged to have been successfully received if there is. The radio-controlled timepiece according to any one of claims 1 to 4,
The receiving means includes
A receiving circuit capable of amplifying the received signal of the standard radio wave and adjusting the gain;
An auto gain control circuit for controlling the gain of the receiving circuit;
With
The reception control means controls the reception means in an intermittent reception operation that temporarily stops the operation of the reception means while data that does not need to be acquired is being acquired during acquisition of time information,
The reception control means holds the auto gain control voltage for controlling the auto gain control circuit at the voltage at the time of the operation stop while it is temporarily stopped by the intermittent reception operation, and operates after the suspension is released. When the operation is resumed, the operation of the auto gain control circuit is resumed based on the auto gain control voltage that has been held,
The radio-controlled timepiece according to claim 1, wherein when the suspension is released and the operation is resumed, the reception unit resumes the gain of the reception circuit from a state before the suspension. A time counting process that counts the current time based on a reference clock pulse;
A time display step for displaying the current time measured in the time counting step;
A receiving process for receiving a standard radio wave including time information;
A current time correcting step of correcting the current time of the time measuring step based on the time information received in the receiving step;
A reception control step for controlling the reception operation of the reception step;
An external operation step capable of selectively inputting an external correction command of the current time and a forced reception operation command of a standard radio wave which are timed in the time measuring step and displayed in the time display step;
Including
The reception control step includes
If the automatic reception time is preset as the time to start receiving the standard radio wave in the reception step, and the current time counted in the time counting step reaches the automatic reception time, Causing the receiving step to receive only a limited part of the limited time information, and executing the first reception mode,
When a forced reception operation of a standard radio wave is commanded in the external operation step, a second reception mode is executed in which the reception step receives more time information of the standard radio wave than in the first reception mode. How to control the radio correction clock. In the control method of the radio-controlled timepiece according to claim 6,
The method of controlling a radio-controlled timepiece according to claim 1, wherein the limited time information received in the first reception mode is information on seconds, minutes, and hours of time information of standard radio waves. In the control method of the radio-controlled timepiece according to claim 6 or 7,
A reception information processing step of temporarily storing the time information of the standard radio wave received in the reception step and determining whether the received time information is correctly received,
In the first reception mode, the reception information processing step determines that reception is successful if the difference between the received time information and the current time counted in the timing step is within an allowable range. A control method for a radio-controlled timepiece. In the control method of the electric wave correction timepiece according to any one of claims 6 to 8,
In the control method of the radio-controlled timepiece according to claim 6 or 7,
A reception information processing step of temporarily storing the time information of the standard radio wave received in the reception step and determining whether the received time information is correctly received,
In the reception information processing step, in the second reception mode, the time information continuously received has a predetermined time difference, and the time information continuously received has a predetermined time difference. A radio-controlled timepiece control method, wherein if there is, it is determined that the reception is successful. In the control method of the electric wave correction timepiece according to any one of claims 6 to 9,
The receiving step includes
Amplifying the received signal of the standard radio wave and adjusting the gain;
Controlling the gain of the receiving circuit;
With
The reception control process controls the reception process with an intermittent reception operation that temporarily stops the operation of the reception process while data that does not need to be acquired is being transmitted during the acquisition of time information.
While the reception control step is temporarily stopped by the intermittent reception operation, the auto gain control voltage is held at the voltage at the time of operation stop, and when the operation is resumed after the suspension is canceled, The operation is restarted based on the auto gain control voltage that has been maintained.
In the reception step, when the suspension is released and the operation is resumed, the gain is resumed from the state before the suspension, and the method of controlling the radio-controlled timepiece is characterized in that A computer incorporated in a radio-controlled timepiece having a receiving means for receiving a standard radio wave including time information, a time counting means for counting the current time based on a reference clock pulse, and a current time measured by the time measuring means. Time display means for displaying; current time correcting means for correcting the current time of the time measuring means based on time information received by the receiving means; reception control means for controlling the receiving operation of the receiving means; and the time measuring means A radio frequency correction clock control program that functions as an external operation means capable of selectively inputting an external correction command of the current time and a forced reception operation command of a standard radio wave that are timed at and displayed by the time display means. ,
The reception control means includes
When the automatic reception time is preset as the time for starting reception of the standard radio wave at the receiving means, and the current time counted by the time measuring means reaches the automatic reception time, Causing the receiving means to receive only a limited part of the limited time information, and executing the first reception mode,
When a forced reception operation of a standard radio wave is instructed by the external operation unit, a second reception mode is executed in which the reception unit receives more time information of the standard radio wave than the first reception mode. Control program for radio correction clock.   A recording medium in which the control program for a radio-controlled timepiece according to claim 11 is recorded so as to be readable by a computer.

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