JPH09211150A - Time piece - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a time piece exhibiting the site time of the user and the site GMT time at the other time. SOLUTION: Each of 24 countries on each GMT time zone is shown on a city dial rotated in clockwise direction at every 12 hour by one turn hour hand mechanism. The cities in time zones 0100 to 1200 and 1300 to 2400 have 12 hours time difference between the cities on the opposite side of the outer and inner city rings. Thus, the site GMT time of a certain city is obtained from the position of the city concerning the time mesh on the outer time dial and the inner time dial on the dial. The quarter dial top and bottom seen through an opening rotates one and a quarter turns at every 6 hours to show the time range of the day, which drives the city dial and the two quarter dials.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a clock, wristwatch,
And other time-related devices, such as a more specific location, usually the user's current time,
Regarding clocks that give both local time in numerous other locations in the world.

[0002]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Such watches are often referred to as "world clocks" or "world timekeeping". US-A-4634287
And US-A-5383165 both describe a conventional fixed timepiece dial and an hour and minute hand mechanism which together form a world time indicator. .

In US-A-4634287, the world time indicator consists of a disc in the center of the dial, which rotates clockwise every 24 hours. The disc has a 1-24 hour scale marked on its outer edge, and the names of geographical locations corresponding to different GMT time zones are marked on the opposite inner edge of the fixed dial. . US-A-
At 5383165, the world time indicator consists of two circular dials on the clock dial. The inner annular dial rotates counterclockwise once every 24 hours and has a 1-24 hour scale noted above it. The outer ring dial is fixed and has geographic location names on it that correspond to different GMT time zones.

In both cases, the local time at each position can be read from the time scale marked on the rotating disk or dial facing the name of the position. In both cases the geographical name and the position of the time scale are interchangeable. Another type of world clock is EP-A-488114, US
-A-4222227, US-A-4579460, E
P-A-214293.

[0005]

It is an object of the present invention to provide a more easily readable alternative to the world clock described above.

[0006]

According to one aspect of the present invention, an hour hand; a fixed dial means; a rotatable dial means; a time scale 0100-1200 is arranged on one time ring and a time scale is provided. 1300-2400 is a time scale means consisting of inner and outer time rings arranged on the other time ring; GMT time zone 0100-
Each position of 1200 is provided on one position ring, and each position of GMT time zone 1300-2400 is provided on the other position ring, and the position display means composed of inner and outer position rings; A timepiece providing local GMT time at a number of positions, the two time rings or the two position rings being mounted on the rotatable dial means and the other two rings fixed. A watch provided on the dial means is provided.

Timepieces usually have a standard timepiece dial with time ticks 1-12 thereon, with the hour and minute hands pointing to it to provide the correct local time. According to the invention, the local GMT at the position marked on one or the other of the position rings
The time is obtained from the time scale on one of the time rings,
The positions are opposite, as explained below.

In one embodiment, the position ring is mounted on a rotatable dial means, the rotatable dial means taking the form of an annular dial with respect to the dial of the watch, the annular dial rotating the hour hand once every 12 hours. Rotate clockwise (the hour hand is provided on the clock face). In this embodiment, the rotatable dial is set so that the hour hand points to a position corresponding to the position of the timepiece. Then the other positions on the position ring will automatically face the exact time scale corresponding to that local GMT time. In practice each arrangement faces two time scales, which are exactly one and twelve.
One with a time difference (ie one on each of the inner and outer time rings), as described below and in the specific embodiment to determine which of the two is correct. One of many methods is used.

In contrast to the prior art, the present invention does not use a single 24 hour dial or a single 24 hour GMT placement dial that rotates once every 24 hours. It divides the 24 GMT time zone, 0000-2400 hours, into two 12 sets. This offers many advantages and allows the position and time scale to be written in a neat manner on the clock. Further, in the above example, there are only 12 arrangements per ring so the rotary dial can rotate at the same speed as the hour hand (ie once every 12 hours). This means that the position ring is always marked one position above the position ring where the hour hand points to the exact time, and by this embodiment that position is located on the rotatable dial which is always pointed to by the hour hand. This is a particular advantage. This latter feature contrasts with the prior art, which emphasizes the exact time of day for that position and does not always indicate the position of the clock as marked by the world clock display, with the hour hand.

For example, the two-hour ring is mounted on the dial of a timepiece when the position ring is mounted on a rotatable dial (the dial acts like a fixed dial means). The 1-12 hour scale of a conventional watch dial is also used as the 0100-1200 scale of the inner or outer ring. In the preferred form, the fixed dial means includes a fixed outer annular dial provided about the outer periphery of the rotatable dial means. This is, for example, 0100-
The 1200 hour ring is mounted on a fixed inner dial, such as the dial of a watch, while the 1300-2400 hour ring allows it to be mounted on the outer fixed dial.
This provides a more easily readable arrangement.

Instead of a position ring, a time ring is provided on the rotatable dial means. In this case the time scale must be arranged counterclockwise on the time ring. In an alternative to the annular rotary dial means, the rotatable dial means is a rotatable disc, which extends over the dial of the watch, preferably the dial and the hour and minute hands are visible to indicate the local time. So transparent at its center. This embodiment has the advantage that when the disc rotates clockwise it is mounted directly on the hour hand drive mechanism, for example without the need for intermediate gears required with an annular rotary dial. In this case another hour hand is not necessarily needed by drawing itself directly on the disc.

The rotatable dial means need not rotate clockwise but may be counterclockwise. In that case, the time scale on the time ring must be marked counterclockwise when installed on the fixed dial means. If the time rings are on a rotatable dial means they move clockwise. In a further preferred embodiment, the watch has a replaceable bezel thereon. This is for example when the position ring is provided on the outer fixed dial, which dial is replaced by a further dial having a different arrangement above it for the GMT time zone.

Time scale 0100-01200 or 13
00-2400 is provided on the inner or outer time ring, 0100-01200 or 1300-2400GM
The geographical location corresponding to the T time zone is on the inner or outer location ring. In certain preferred embodiments, the watch includes means for indicating the time range of the day. The time range sets the duration of the day, for example in the morning or afternoon or more preferred, with one of the four quadrants of the day having more advantage.
This may indicate that the user is either 1100 or 2300 local time, for example indicated by the hands of a clock, and so on.

Preferably, the time range display means is adjusted thereto to provide the exact range of the day for positions other than the hour hand of the watch indicating the exact time. If the user of the watch is interested in the local time of a particular position marked on one of the position rings, the user sets the time range indicator to indicate the time range of that position. The user then finds that they are opposite in position so that by checking the time range for that location from the time range display means, by selecting the exact one of the two time rings. Simply indicate the local time at the location by noting the two time scales.

Preferably, two time range display means are provided, one for indicating the range of the day with respect to the position where the hour hand of the clock indicates the exact time and the other for indicating the range of the day at other positions at different time zones. . The time range display means is moved to rotate 90 ° once every 6 hours if the display means indicates that it is one of four time ranges. To achieve this, the time range display means comprises a disc with four teeth about its periphery, which is arranged at one side of the 12, 3, 6, 9 o'clock position in the home position, on which the hour hand mechanism is located. Includes a disc having two opposing teeth, the arrangement of which is such that as the hour hand disc rotates, the two opposing teeth of the hour hand disc rotate once every six hours for 90 ° rotation of the range indicating means. Engages one of the teeth of the disc. The time range display means includes a dial driven by a four-tooth disc, which has time zone information (eg, an appropriate view) above it, which is located below the dial of the watch and provides the exact time range. The portion of the dial that carries the information rotates into a position below the opening in the dial of the watch to indicate the time range. Alternatively, the time range display means is provided on the timepiece dial and comprises a hand driven by a disc having four teeth, the hands pointing to the time range information marked on the timepiece dial.

As described above, the rotatable dial means is driven by the hour hand mechanism via a gear means in the case of an annular dial, or by being directly attached to the hour hand mechanism in the case of a rotating disk. However, the present invention also employs manually rotatable dial means, in which case the local GMT time of the other position is found by rotating the dial, whereby the hour hand of the clock is the one marked with the position ring. The place as is the exact local time (which is usually the position of the clock) is on the other side of the exact time scale of the time ring. Each of the other locations will automatically face both its exact local time and a time difference of 12 hours, and the exact one will be obtained in a similar manner to the embodiment above.
This embodiment has the advantage that no drive means are required for the rotatable dial.

The arrangement of all the same mechanism, namely an annular dial driven by the hour hand mechanism and a pair of four-division dial means (eg two of the time range information dials) need not be used in a world time display. It is useful and is an invention in itself. Therefore, in view of a further feature, the present invention is an hour hand mechanism, an inner fixed dial, a rotating outer annular dial,
A timepiece having a pair of four-division dial means, the outer annular dial having teeth about its inner periphery, preferably on the hour hand mechanism to rotate the outer annular dial once every 12 hours. The toothed wheels engage the gear means and the pair of four-division dial means are driven to rotate 90 ° once every 6 hours by a further wheel on the hour hand mechanism having a pair of opposed teeth thereon. The split dial means 12 when the wheel is in its home position,
Including a ring with four teeth on it slightly provided on one side at the 3, 6 and 9 o'clock position, one of the teeth of an hour wheel with two teeth thereby tripping the ring, Engages with one of the four teeth of a four-division dial disc every 6 hours to rotate 90 °. The four-division dial means comprises a rotating disc below the timepiece dial of the timepiece or a hand above the timepiece dial as described above for world timepieces.

The four-division dial means described above is a unique advantage of the invention in its own right, and in a further feature, the invention provides a watch with a 12-hour dial and means for indicating the exact quarter of the day. provide. Four division is 0000-060
0,0600-1200,1200-1800,180
It is set to 0-2400. This tends to favor a watch with a regular 12-hour dial as the 24-hour time system is used, and this additional feature of the invention is such that a standard 12-hour dial is 24 hours.
It has the advantage of allowing it to be used to indicate time in a time system. Furthermore, the use of four time ranges is advantageous for example for two 12 hour time ranges, where 1
Avoid any ambiguity as the exact time in the 200 or 2400 hour range. Only two 0000-01
If a range of 200 and 1200-2400 is used, the indicator in that range will not trip exactly 1200 or 2400 hours to indicate the next range. Instead, it trips at any time during the first half-hour, eg after 1200 or 2400. It is therefore possible to know during this time whether the exact time is 1200 hours or just after 2400 hours. By contrast, this latter feature of the invention makes it possible to always know the exact time of 2400 hours: if the time is immediately after 1200, depending on whether the travel mechanism of the time range indicator has been tripped. The clock then indicates either the second quadrant (between 0600 and 1200) or the third quadrant (1200-1800), while if the time is just after 2400, the clock is in the fourth quadrant. Either the 4 divisions (between 1800 and 2400) or the first 4 divisions (0000-6800) are designated.

The means for indicating the exact quadrant is in the form of the quadrant dial means described above with respect to the first and second aspects of the invention, wherein the watch user cannot see the sun and moon or the user is continuous. This is especially useful when you are in an environment where you are changing positions.

[0020]

Embodiments of the invention are described below by way of example only with reference to the drawings. Referring to FIG. 1, the wristwatch 1 has a time scale 1-12 marked clockwise on it.
The dial 2 has a dial 2, an hour hand 3, a minute hand 4, and a timepiece mechanism for driving the hour and minute hands 3, 4. The hands 3, 4 indicate the current time at a particular location, which is normally the time at the wearer's location.

Wristwatches are also local GMs in many places around the world.
Includes a world time indicator that shows T time. The world time indicator is an internal time dial, with the time scale on the dial 2 1-12
(Inner time ring), a rotating annular city dial 5 provided with respect to dial 2, and a fixed (ie non-rotating) outer time dial 6 (outer) with time scales 13-24 marked above it. Time ring) and.

The city dial 5 rotates once every 12 hours clockwise at the same time as the hour hand, and the names of different cities, one for each of the 24 GMT time zones, are located on the city dial 5 on two 12 hour rings. , Inner city ring 5a is 0
The city has a city in the 100 to 1200 GMT time zone, and the other city ring 5b has a city in the 1200 to 2400 GMT time zone. Two sets of twelve geographical location names are marked clockwise on their respective rings 5a, 5b by the local GMT time and have two local times 12 hours apart.
It has cities facing each other on one ring.

Each of the 13-24 hour scales on the outer dial 6 faces one of the 1-12 hour scales on the dial 2 and they have a difference of 12 hours, ie the 13 scales on the outer dial 6 are Face the 1 scale on dial 2, and so on. When the city dial 5 whose GMT is 2400 hours is in the home position, the inner and outer city rings 5a and 5b are respectively aligned with the time scales on the inner time dial (clockface 2), and the outer time dial 6 is the GMT time. Corresponds to the obi.

Thus, unlike the prior art world timepiece which has the cities sequentially marked on the 24-hour ring, the timepiece of the invention has two 12-hour (inner and outer time) rings and two 12GMT bands (inner and outer time). ) Consisting of a position ring. The time at any of the locations on the city dial 5 is obtained from the location of the location on the city dial 5 with respect to the time scale on the inner and outer time dials 2,6.

The dial 2 also comprises openings 7 and 8 in which the information 9 on the upper and lower quadrant dials 10, 11 (see FIG. 7) provided under the dial 2 can be seen. The quadrant dials 10, 11 rotate 90 ° once every 6 hours to bring different information 9 in front of the openings 7, 8 to indicate the "time sector" of the day.

The time range is divided into four, for example, 0 for 24 hours.
-6 hours (range 1), 6-12 hours (range 2), 12-
18 hours (range 3) and 18-24 hours (range 4). By knowing the time range, a person wearing a clock can find that even in environments where day and night are difficult to distinguish, such as in the North Pole or South Pole or in enclosed rooms or in constantly changing positions such as airplanes, for example daytime. You can decide either 1:00 or 1:00 pm. The lower dial 11 is set to provide a time range for the position of the time indicated by the hour and minute hands 3, 4 which is usually the place of the wearer. The dial 10 above is used to give the watch wearer an accurate time range for different locations of particular interest.
The hour hand mechanism can be adjusted independently by pulling 2 and rotating. The latter feature, as explained below, has made it very easy to get time elsewhere from the city dial 5.

In use, the wearer's local time can be read from the standard hour and minute hands 3, 4 and the current time range can be seen from the information 9 on the lower 4-part dial 11 as seen through the opening 8. It is readable. The wearer can thus easily get an accurate local 24-hour time. To know the local GMT time at other positions, the city dial 5 is first set by pulling and turning the crown 13 so that the standard hour and minute hands indicate the exact time (this is usually the person wearing it). Face the exact local GMT time scale on dial 2 or time dial 6. Then the names of other cities will automatically have the exact local GMT time facing them and the wearer can read the local GMT time of these other cities around the world as explained below. .

Once the city dial is set correctly, the local GMT time of the other city remains accurate as the city dial 5 rotates with the hour hand 3, and the city dial 5 does not need to be reset again. This is in contrast to some prior art systems, which require rotating various dials, such as a 24 hour dial, each time looking for a GMT in a particular city.

There are two possible local GMT times associated with it for each city noted on the city dial 5.
Either that of the outer dial 6 or that on the dial 2 (these two times are 12 hours apart). If the city in question is one in which the upper four-division dial 10 is set to give the correct time range, the correct one of the two times is simply selected based on the time range indicated by opening 8 above. It Otherwise, one of the following methods is used to determine which of the two times is correct.

In the first method of reading the local GMT time of the "target" city (different from the "local" city as indicated by the hour and minute hands 3, 4), the person wearing the dial is Identify whether it is on the inner or outer ring 5a, 5b and note the local time indicated by the hour and minute hands 3, 4 (in order to know if it is am or pm You can check the information on the lower 4-part dial 11 as you can see through the opening 8 on the dial 2).

The target city is then located. Check if the local city and if it is on the same ring are clockwise between the local city of the city dial and the GMT range. If so, time is counted,
It is added clockwise from the local city until it reaches the target city. The local GMT time for the target city is then easily read. The target city is the local city of dial 5 and GM
If counterclockwise to the T range, the time is counted and subtracted counterclockwise until the target city is reached, so the local GMT time for the target city is read.

If the target city is on a different city ring than the ring of the local city, look at the city directly opposite the target city, which is on the same ring as the local city. The same method as clockwise / counterclockwise above is performed to give the local city GMT time to the opposite city, and the target city GMT time is obtained from the found opposite time markers.

If the local time is on the GMT range of the city dial 5 (ie GMT or Auckland in FIG. 1), the time is counted and subtracted counterclockwise to read the time for the target city. . If the target city is in the GMT range of city dial 5 (ie, GMT or Auckland in FIG. 1), the time is counted and added clockwise to read the time for the target city. In both cases, if the local and target cities are not on the same location ring, switch to the opposite city first.

The following is an example using the above method and the wristwatch of FIG. 1 in which the hands 3 and 4 are set to the local time (1100) in Hong Kong. 1. Solomon Islands (SOLOMON I.) is on the same city ring 5a as Hong Kong and is located clockwise between Hong Kong and GMT. Therefore, counting the time clockwise from Hong Kong to the Solomon Islands (1200, switching the time ring, 1300, 1400) to get 1400 hours.

2. Moscow (MOSCOW) is on the same city ring 5a as Hong Kong, but it is located counterclockwise between Hong Kong and GMT. Therefore, count the time counterclockwise from Hong Kong to the Solomon Islands and subtract (1000-0600),
Get 0600 hours. 3. The GMT is on ring 5b, opposite ring 5a in Hong Kong. The city on the other side of GMT is Auckland (AUCKLAN
D). Since the target city is on the GMT range of city dial 5, counting the time clockwise from Hong Kong to Auckland (1200-1500) gives 1500 hours for Auckland, so 0300 for GMT. Is. Here is an example of when the local time shown on the wristwatch in Figure 1 is 2300 o'clock: MONROVIA is on a different city ring 5b from Hong Kong 5a. Opposite to Monrovia is the Solomon Islands, which is located clockwise between Hong Kong and GMT. Therefore, count the time clockwise to the Solomon Islands and add (2400, switch the time ring to 0
100, 0200), 0200 hours for the Solomon Islands, so 1400 for Monrovia.

5. Honolulu is on a different city ring 5b from Hong Kong. The opposite position is CAIRO
Which is counterclockwise between Hong Kong and GMT. Therefore, count and subtract the time until Cairo (2200-
1700), 1700, so 0 for Honolulu
500. The following example relates to FIG. 2, where the local time in Hong Kong is 0300 hours.

6. PARIS is on the same city ring 5a as Hong Kong and is located counterclockwise between Hong Kong and GMT. Therefore, the time is counted counterclockwise to Paris and subtracted (0300, 0200, 0100, switching the time ring, 2400-2000) to get 2000 hours. 7. GMT is on ring 5b, opposite Hong Kong. GMT
The city on the other side of is Auckland. Since the target city is on the GMT range of city dial 5, count the time clockwise from Hong Kong to Auckland and add (040
0-0700), 0700 hours for Auckland, so 1900 for GMT. The following example relates to Figure 3, where local time is GMT
(Not Hong Kong) and at 0700 o'clock: 7. NEW YORK has the same ring 5 as GMT
on b. Therefore, the local time is for the GMT position, so the time to New York is counted and subtracted (0600-0200) to get 0200 hours.

9. Dubai (DUBAI) is on a separate ring 5b from GMT. Opposite position is LOS ANGE
LS). Therefore, the local time is counted and subtracted from the time from GMT to Los Angeles (0600-0100,
Switching the time ring, 2400, 2300), 230
You get 0, so you get 1100 against Dubai. An alternative way to read the clock is to find the destination city before. If it is on the same city ring as the local city, count and add clockwise from the local city until the destination city is reached. If the count stops at or before the GMT range, read the local GMT time for the destination city when the city is reached. If the count passes over the GMT range, switch to another setting on the time scale and continue counting and adding until the destination city is reached, at which point the local time GMT can be read.

When the target city is on a different city ring from the local city, the city opposite to the target city is noted, and the local GMT for the opposite city is read using the same method as above. The local time of the destination city can be read from the opposite time dial scale. If the local time is on the GMT range of the city dial 5 (ie, GMT or Auckland in FIG. 1), the destination city on the same ring is switched to another set of time scales and the destination city's local GM.
Count and add clockwise to read T time. If the destination city is on another city ring, find the local GMT time for the opposite city through the above procedure and then read the local GMT time from the other time dial for the destination city.

If the destination city is on the GMT range of the city dial 5 (GMT or Auckland in FIG. 1), count clockwise to read the time of the destination city,
to add. This is called the "always clockwise" method, and the principle is to always count clockwise, add, and GM on the same ring.
Change course for time display ring when passing T range.

An example of this method is shown below with reference to FIG. 1, where Hong Kong is 1100 local time. 10. Moscow is on the same ring 5a as Hong Kong. Therefore, count clockwise and add (1200, 1300, 1400, 150) until the GMT range reaches 1500 hours.
0), then switch from outer dial to inner dial and continue counting until Moscow reaches 0600 hours (0400, 0500, 0600).

11. Honolulu is on the other side of the city ring 5b. Therefore, paying attention to the opposite city, Cairo, counting clockwise until it reaches the GMT range from the local city Hong Kong at 1500, add up, and then switch to another time dial 2 and continue until Cairo is reached at 0500. Count,
Thus Honolulu is 1700. 12. Revisit Honolulu again, assuming Hong Kong is 2300 o'clock, revisit Cairo, count clockwise until it reaches the GMT range at 0300 from the local city Hong Kong, add, then switch dials 1700 Continuously count until reaching Cairo at, so Honolulu is 0500.

The names of the various cities in the 24 GMT time zone are listed below and are used in place of those shown on the watch in the figure:

[0044]

[Table 1]

It should be noted that the local time of the person wearing the clock is usually indicated by both the standard hour and minute hands and by the position on the city dial 5. In conventional world timepieces, the wearer's position on the world indicator is often not the same as the normal hour hand pointing, which is often confusing. However, in this embodiment, the position of the wearer as noted on the city dial 5 follows the hour hand 3 with respect to the dial 2 of the watch as the city rotates with the hour hand (see FIGS. 1 and 2).

FIG. 4 shows a second embodiment of the invention in which the arrangement of the cities on the two rings 5a, 5b of the city dial 5 are interchangeable, ie the inner ring 5a is 13
Outer ring 5b with cities in the 00-2400 time zone
Is the same as FIG. 1 except that it has cities in the time zones 0100-1200. In this case, the outer dial 6 is 1
It is marked with a time scale of 1-12 instead of 3-24, and dial 2 (as the inner time dial) is a time scale of 13-.
24 is written. Standard time scale 1-1 to show the local time of the person who is using the standard hour and minute hands 3 and 4
2 is also marked on the dial 2 of the watch, or the wearer uses the scale on the outer dial 6 (the hands are extended to facilitate this if desired).

5 and 6 show a further alternative embodiment, in which the outer time dial 6 has been removed and the time scale from that dial 6 is instead written on the watch dial 2 like inner and outer time rings. 1 and 2 except that they are the same. In another embodiment including the outer time dial 6, both the inner and outer time rings are provided on the outer time dial 6.

A further alternative of the above embodiment is the location name and the place marked with the 1-24 hour scale is the 1-24 hour scale marked on the rotary dial 5, which are interchanged and fixed. The names of the positions on the dial 2 and, if included, on the outer dial 6 are interchanged. In these embodiments, the time scale needs to move counterclockwise. Furthermore, they are not used with the hands 3, 4 because the 1-12 hour scale of the world indicator moves, so an additional 1-12
A set of scales is required on the dial 2 for the hands 3,4.

A suitable drive mechanism for the above wristwatch is shown in FIG. This represents a mechanism for driving three different dial mechanisms from a single power source-the hour wheel 13 which moves the hour hand 3. This figure shows the outer time dial 6 of the first embodiment.
Not shown, which is fixed, for example the bezel of a watch. The hour hand wheel 13 rotates clockwise once every 12 hours and consists of upper and lower wheels 13a, 13b, which drive the four-division dials 10, 11 and the outer dial 14, respectively. The upper wheel 13a is smaller than the lower wheel 13b and has a pair of opposed teeth 15 on it at 12 and 6 o'clock when in the home position. The lower ring 13b has teeth continuously around it.

The upper and lower four-division dials 10, 11 each consist of a dial surface 16 on which the information 9 relating to the time range of the day is marked. A small disc 17 is provided below the dial surface 16 and has four teeth 18 located above it when the disc 17 is in its home position, slightly to the right of the 12, 3, 6 and 9 o'clock positions. The tooth 18 lies on the same surface as the tooth 15 of the ring 13a above the hour hand and engages with the latter once every 6 hours as the hour wheel 13 rotates.

One of the two teeth 15 of the upper time wheel 13a is, for example, at the time of approximately 1130, the four-division dials 10 and 11 have four teeth.
Although not shown when starting to mesh with one of the four teeth 18, it is similar to that of the date update arrangement The mechanism of rotation initiates setting for each quad dial 10, 11.
Immediately after 1200 o'clock, the rotating mechanism of each four-division dial 10, 11 is triggered to advance the dial 10, 11 by a quarter of one revolution. Thus, the four-division disk 10, 11
The exact information 9 on the dial surface 16 of the is visible through the corresponding openings 8, 9 on the dial 2 of the watch to provide the current time range of the day.

In FIG. 7, the upper four-division dial 10 has the upper four
It includes a lever 19 operated by the split dial setting device 12. Dial 1 by pulling and turning the setting device 12.
The 0 is freely advanced by a quarter from the hour hand 3 to allow proper adjustment. In this system, the upper four-division dial 10 may indicate a time range other than where the wearer is (which time range is indicated by the four-division dial 11 below). Thus, if there is a second particular location of interest to the wearer, the quad dial 10 above is set to indicate the time range of that location. As mentioned above, this allows the wearer to know the exact time of the other place very quickly: the wearer is looking for the location of that place on the city dial, dial 2
Note the two times for the top and its location on the outer dial 6 (which differ from each other by 12 hours) and then the above 4
It is only necessary to select the correct time from the two based on the time range information 9 of the division dial 10.

The outer dial 14 has teeth around its inner peripheral edge and engages via these teeth by connecting the gear wheels 21, 22 to the lower toothed wheel 13b of the hour wheel 13. . The overall meshing of the outer dial 14 connecting the gears 21, 22 to the lower hour wheel 13b having multiple teeth is such that the outer dial 14 moves at the same speed as the hour hand 3, i.e. one full revolution every 12 hours. To be

Four-division dial 1 with dial surface 16
Instead of using 0, 11 it is possible to replace the dial surface 16 with a needle 23. Each hand 23 is provided by a shaft extending through the dial 2 so as to be present on the dial 2 of the timepiece, and itself also indicates the time range information written on the ground 2. FIG. 8 shows the alternative arrangement of FIG. 7 to the fifth embodiment of the invention, where there is only one connecting gear 24, which drives the outer dial counterclockwise,
The outer dial still meshes to rotate once every 12 hours. In this example, the time scales 1-12, 13-24 move counterclockwise when the city is on the rotating outer dial 14 as in the city dial 5 of FIG. In this case, the 1-12 hour scale of the world time indicator is not used with the hour and minute hands 3, 4, so that the clockwise 1-1
The second set of 2 hour scales should be needles. When the time scale is on the rotary dial 14 and its position is on a fixed inner and / or outer dial (eg dials 2 and 6 in FIG. 1), the time scale moves clockwise.

FIG. 9 shows an alternative mechanism of FIG. 7 in a sixth embodiment of the invention, wherein the "outer dial" 14 of FIG. 7 is the time without the intermediate connecting gears 21, 22 or 23. It is driven directly from the wheel 13. In this arrangement the outer dial cannot take the form of an annular disc 14 as in FIGS. 1 and 7, but takes the form of a disc 24 provided on the hour hand shaft and extending over the entire dial 2. The disc 24 is transparent at its center so that the dial 2 of the clock can be seen, and the peripheral edge 24
It is opaque at a and is marked here with the required geographical position or time scale. In this case, the hour hand 3 of the timepiece is removed and instead the hour hand is marked on the transparent surface of the disc 24. However, this has the disadvantage that the position of the hour hand with respect to the 24 marked positions is fixed, so that the local time in many places is only accurate when the hour hand is used to indicate the time of a particular position. Have.

10 and 11 show a further embodiment of the invention, which comprises a replaceable bezel 25 mounted on the watch 1 by means of an insert 26 for fixing, which is inside a flange 28 of the bezel. It passes through hole 27 and extends into hole 29 in lug 30 of watch case 31. Bore 29 is an inverted conical structural shape, and insert 26 includes a retractable friction spring 32, which is biased outwardly to engage the sides of bore 29 to provide good fixation.

This arrangement allows the watchmaker to choose between different bezel designs. When attaching the bezel, it is placed on the case 31 of the watch so that the hole 27 in the bezel 25 corresponds to that 29 in the lug 30. The fixing insert 26 is pushed into the hole 29 of the lug 30,
The friction spring 32 meshes strongly with the side surface of the hole 29. The insert 26 does not fall out easily because the hole 29 in the lug is conical. When removing the bezel, the watch is placed face down on a suitable support (not shown), and the locking insert is also pushed out by an inverted conical screwdriver.

This arrangement is such that the time scale is on a rotating dial, the geographic position is fixed so that the geographic position is marked on the interchangeable bezel, and the wearer can adjust its position as shown in the table above, for example. It is particularly preferred for use in embodiments where a number of different bezels having different configurations above can be selected.
The above mechanism of FIG. 7 is a particularly useful mechanism for driving three other elements regardless of the information or markings placed on the element, so another feature of the invention resides in the mechanism of FIG. 7 itself. , Here the upper and lower quadrant dials or needles and outer dials may have any desired information or markings on them and may be used for any suitable purpose.

The use of a four-piece dial 11 is also a particularly desirable feature in its own right, and the invention also lies in the use of a four-piece dial in such a timepiece. Although 24-hour time systems are being used more and more, people still prefer watches with a standard 12-hour dial. The advantage of the quadrant dial is that it allows a standard 12 hour dial to be used to indicate time within a 24 hour system. Use of four more time ranges is for example 1200
Or it is preferable to two 12 hour time ranges that avoid any ambiguity as the exact time in the 2400 hour region. For example, two range systems (0000-12
00 and 1200-2400) is used, the range indicator does not trip to indicate the next range at exactly 1200 or 2400 hours. Instead, for example, 1
At any time during the first 30 minutes after 200 or 2400, it trips. So just 1200 during this time
I don't know where it is or after 2400. In contrast, the present invention allows one to always know the exact time: if the standard hour and minute hands indicate just past 1200, the four-division dial will trip the mechanism that advances the four-division dial. The second range (0 depending on whether
600-1200) or the third range (1200-1
800)) while the time is exactly 240
If it exceeds 0, the four-division dial will move to the fourth time range (1
800-2400) or the first time range (0000
(Between −0600).

The four-division dial is particularly useful in situations where the watch user is in a location where the sun or moon cannot be seen, or in an environment where the user continuously changes position. The above is only the preferred embodiment of the present invention, and various modifications and improvements of the above embodiment are possible. For example, the city dial 5 can be manually rotated instead of being rotated by the hour hand mechanism. In this case, the person holding the time dial at the other time is called the city dial manually, the hands 3, 4 usually indicate the current time in the city where the person is wearing, the opposite of the hour hand. Move to the side. The wearer can determine the time at the other location by one of the methods described above. Furthermore, one or both of the upper and lower quadrant dials can be omitted. The present invention is not limited to wristwatches and can be used with any timepiece.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a plan view of a dial of a timepiece according to a first embodiment of the present invention in which the hands indicate the local time in Hong Kong.

FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a dial of the timepiece of FIG. 1 at different times.

FIG. 3 shows the dial of the timepiece of FIG. 1 with hands indicating the local time at the GMT position at another time.

FIG. 4 shows a second embodiment of the invention, in which the names of locations on the inner and outer dials of the city dial are exchanged.

5 shows a third embodiment of the invention, which corresponds to FIG. 1 but does not include an annular outer time dial.

FIG. 6 shows a third embodiment of the invention, which corresponds to FIG. 4 but does not include an annular outer time dial.

FIG. 7 is a diagram showing an outline of a drive mechanism used in the embodiments of FIGS. 1 to 6;

FIG. 8 is a schematic view of a drive mechanism used in a fifth embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 9 is a diagram showing an outline of a drive mechanism used in a sixth embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 10 is a plan view of a case of a wristwatch having a removable bezel according to a sixth embodiment of the present invention.

11 is a line XI-XI of FIG. 10 showing how the removable bezel is attached to the watch case.
FIG.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1 wristwatch 2 dial 3 hour hand 4 minute hand 5 city dial 5a, 5b city ring 6 outer dial 7, 8 opening 9 information 10, 11 4 split dial 12 setter 13 hour wheel 14 outer dial 16 dial surface 21, 22 gear 23 needle 24 Connection Gear 24a Edge 25 Bezel 26 Insert 27 Hole 28 Flange 29 Hole 30 Lug 31 Case 32 Friction Spring

 ─────────────────────────────────────────────────── ───Continued from the front page (71) Applicant 596149235 PPI Intellectual Properties Limited P. P. I. Intellectual Properties Limited Hong Kong, Wan Chai, Queens Road East 231-233, Han Wai Commercial Building 24 EF (72) Inventor Alfred Yang Ou Hong Kong, Wan Chai, Queens Road East 231 −233, Han Wai Commercial Building 24 F

Claims (24)

[Claims] 1. An hour hand; fixed dial means; rotatable dial means; time scales 0100-1200.
Are placed on one of the time rings and have a time scale of 1300
-2400 is a time scale means consisting of inner and outer time rings arranged on the other time ring; each position of GMT time zones 0100-1200 is provided on one position ring, and GMT time zones 1300-2400. A position indicating means consisting of inner and outer position rings on each of the other position rings;
A timepiece in which the two time rings or the two position rings are provided on the rotatable dial means and the other two rings are provided on a fixed dial means. 2. A timepiece according to claim 1, wherein the rotatable dial means is manually moved. 3. The timepiece of claim 1, wherein the rotatable dial means is moved by the hour hand drive mechanism of the timepiece to rotate once every 12 hours. 4. A timepiece according to claim 1, wherein the fixed dial means comprises an inner fixed dial and the rotary dial means is an annular dial located around the inner fixed dial. 5. A timepiece according to claim 1, wherein the rotatable dial means is a rotating disk. 6. The center of the rotating disk is transparent so that the inner fixed dial of the fixed dial means can be seen.
The clock described. 7. A timepiece according to claim 3, wherein the rotating disk is moved clockwise and the hour hand is marked on the rotating disk. 8. A timepiece according to claim 1, wherein the rotatable dial means rotates clockwise. 9. A timepiece according to claim 1, wherein the rotatable dial means rotates counterclockwise. 10. A timepiece according to claim 1, wherein the position ring is on a rotatable dial means and the time scale ring is on a fixed dial means. 11. A timepiece according to claim 1, wherein the time scale ring is on a rotatable dial means and the position ring is on a fixed dial means. 12. A timepiece according to claim 1, wherein the fixed dial means comprises a fixed outer annular dial provided around the outer periphery of the rotatable dial means. 13. A timepiece according to claim 1, wherein the timepiece has a replaceable bezel thereon. 14. The inner time ring has a time scale 1-12 on it, and the inner position ring has 0100- on it.
14. A watch according to any one of claims 1 to 13 having a geographical position corresponding to the 1200 GMT time zone. 15. A timepiece according to claim 1, including means for indicating the time range of the day. 16. A timepiece according to claim 15, wherein the means for indicating the time range is adjustable to provide the exact range of the day for positions other than for the hour hand of the watch to indicate the exact time. 17. The means for indicating two time ranges, one indicating the range of the day with respect to the position where the hour hand of the clock indicates the exact time, the other the day at other positions in different time zones. The timepiece according to claim 15 or 16, showing the range of. 18. A timepiece according to claim 15, wherein the means for indicating the time range is moved to rotate 90 ° once every 6 hours. 19. The displayed time range is 0000-06.
00, 0600-1200, 1200-1800, 18
The timepiece according to claim 18, which is 00-2400. 20. The means for indicating the time range comprises a disc having four teeth arranged around its perimeter on one side of the position 12,3,6,9 o'clock in the home position, the hour hand mechanism facing each other. A disk having two teeth to rotate, the arrangement being once every six hours to trip one of the two opposing teeth on the hour hand disk to rotate the range indicating means through 90 ° as the hour hand disk rotates. 20. A timepiece according to claim 18 or 19, which engages with one of the teeth on the disc of the range indicating means. 21. The timepiece according to claim 15, wherein the means for indicating the time range includes a disc having time range information thereon. 22. A timepiece according to claim 15, wherein the means for indicating the time range includes a hand provided on the dial of the timepiece. 23. An hour hand mechanism, an inner fixed dial, a rotating annular outer dial, and a pair of four-division dial means, the outer annular dial having teeth around its inner peripheral edge for 12 hours. Each time engaged with gear means driven by multiple teeth on the hour hand mechanism to rotate the outer annular dial once, the four-division dial means has a pair of opposed teeth on the hour hand mechanism having a pair of opposing teeth thereon. Is driven by a wheel to rotate 90 ° once every 6 hours, and the four-division dial means have one when each wheel is in its home position.
4 slightly on one side at 2, 3, 6, 9 o'clock position
One of the four teeth of a four-division dial disk is rotated every 6 hours to trip the ring and rotate it by 90 °, including a ring with one tooth and a tooth with two teeth. A watch that engages one. 24. A timepiece having a 12 hour dial and means for indicating the exact quarter of the day.