JPH10332376A - Watch with azimuth indicator - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To enable accurate and instantaneous azimuth detection in daytime without the influence of magnetism by providing an azimuth indicator in such a manner as to rotate at a specified speed in a specified direction on a dial having an azimuth reference. SOLUTION: A watch 1 with an azimuth indicator includes an azimuth indicator 2 and an azimuth reference display 3 provided on the watch main body 10. The azimuth indicator 2 is, for example, long rectangular, the tip thereof is provided with an azimuth indicating part 2a, and the base end part is pivoted on the central part of a dial 4 by a pin or the like so that the indicator is rotated counterclockwise at a rate of 15 degrees to one hour. The azimuth reference display 3 is formed by a timing line of 12 o'clock of the dial 4 or the like. With the axis of the azimuth reference display 3 aligned with the direction of the sun, the tip of the azimuth indicator 2 is adjusted to a designated direction such as the north or the like by operating an initializing screw 14 to complete setting, and in the case of investigating the azimuth, the axis of the azimuth reference display 3 is aligned with the direction of the sun to read the direction of the azimuth indicator 2. Preferably the position of the azimuth indicator 2 is corrected, interlocking with the time adjustment.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a timepiece with a direction indicator having a function of detecting a direction (direction of east, west, north and south) at an observation position based on the direction of the sun.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, in order to check the direction at a certain place, unless the measurement needs to be performed precisely, the direction is graduated around the disk, and a magnetic needle indicating the direction of the north and south poles of the earth is provided at the center. It is common to use a compass that is designed to rotate horizontally.

[0003]

However, even when there is a purpose to check the direction, it is surprising to forget to carry the direction magnet since the direction magnet is not carried on a daily basis. In many cases, the goal cannot be achieved or inconvenience is required. Or if you suddenly need to know the bearing,
Ordinary direction magnets and other azimuth detecting means are not carried, and in most cases, the azimuth cannot be known, which is inconvenient.

The compass is naturally susceptible to the influence of the surrounding magnetic field. If there is a machine or device that generates a magnetic field such as a mobile phone nearby, the compass deviates from the correct direction due to the magnetic field. There was a problem of pointing in the direction.

For example, a compass has been conventionally installed in a car for lost or the like, but a car stereo speaker mounted on most cars generates a strong magnetic field. In addition, the compass cannot be installed in the vicinity of this, and in recent years, computerization in automobiles has been rapidly progressing, and there are other devices and components that generate magnetic fields in automobiles. In view of the fact that mobile phones are often brought into vehicles with the spread of mobile phones, the fact is that the compass installed in the vehicle is not necessarily in an environment that can point in the correct direction. It is.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made in view of the above technical background, and provides a portable timepiece with a direction detecting function so that the direction can be accurately and instantaneously known at any time during the day. A first object is to increase the added value of the timepiece itself.

It is a second object of the present invention to provide a timepiece with an azimuth detecting function capable of indicating a correct azimuth even in an environment affected by a magnetic field.

[0008]

Means for Solving the Problems In order to achieve the above object, the present inventor has conducted intensive studies and found that, on a board provided with an azimuth reference display, an azimuth indicator is positioned around the base end thereof.
A compass set to rotate counterclockwise at a constant rotational speed of 15 degrees per hour, with the compass pointing to the north direction with the compass reference display pointing to the sun as an initial setting If you keep the direction, if you match the direction reference display to the direction of the sun when knowing the direction, you will find that the direction indicated by the direction pointer at this time points to the north direction,
By combining a compass with such a configuration and a watch that is highly portable, it has been found that the portability of the direction detection means can be dramatically improved, and the added value of the watch itself can be increased. The present invention has been completed.

The principle of the azimuth detecting function will be described below step by step.

First, FIG. 3 shows that a certain point in Japan is selected as an observation point (K), and each season in the celestial sphere (around the summer solstice, These are the orbits of the sun during the autumn or spring equinox and the winter solstice, respectively (hereinafter referred to as "horizontal coordinates"). As is clear from this figure, the sun rises from north to northeast in summer, and the altitude of the sun is higher in the south, while in winter the sun rises from south to northeast. However, the altitude of the sun in the south is low, and the trajectory of the sun in the celestial sphere is completely different depending on the season.

However, when viewed from the observation point (K), the angle at which the sun moves during one hour in the horizon coordinate is always 15 degrees regardless of the season. That is, the angle formed between the observation point (K) at a certain time and the vertical plane including the sun (perpendicular to the ground plane) and the observation point (K) at another time and the vertical plane including the sun is defined as “azimuth”. Horns "
If it is called (θ), the azimuth that occurs while the sun moves for one hour is always 15 degrees regardless of the season.

This can be easily understood from FIG. 4 showing the movement of the sun on the celestial sphere projected on the ground plane. That is, when the movement of the sun is projected on the ground plane and viewed, the time required for the sun to make one circuit is, of course, 24 hours regardless of the season. This is quite natural in view of the fact that the movement of the sun on the celestial sphere is caused by the rotation of the earth in the first place, and that the rotation of the earth rotates once in 24 hours. So the sun is 1
The azimuth that occurs during time movement is always 15 degrees.

The azimuth detecting function of the timepiece with azimuth indicator according to the present invention utilizes the above principle. As mentioned above,
When the sun is projected on the ground plane and observed from the zenith (T) side,
15 times per hour clockwise around observation point (K)
The direction is shifted at a constant speed at a rate of degrees.

Here, for example, it is assumed that a fixed reference line is engraved on the peripheral portion of the upper surface, and an azimuth detecting function is provided by using an azimuth plate provided with a pointer rotatable about the center of the upper surface. Considering that, as an initial setting, if the pointer is set to the north direction while the fixed reference line is set to the direction of the sun in advance, the sun moves clockwise around the observation point (K). Since the azimuth is shifted at a constant speed of 15 degrees per hour, the pointer is moved counterclockwise on the compass at a rate of 15 degrees per hour.
If the azimuth is shifted at a constant speed at a rate of degree, when detecting the azimuth, if the fixed reference line is aligned with the direction of the sun, the direction indicated by the pointer will point to the north direction Becomes The present invention can be achieved by adding a bearing detecting function based on such a principle to a timepiece.

That is, in the timepiece with azimuth hands according to the present invention, the azimuth hands rotate counterclockwise on the dial face at a constant rotational speed of 15 degrees per hour around the base end thereof. And an azimuth reference display is provided on a portion of the timepiece main body that is in view from the front side.

If the azimuth indicator is set in advance in the north direction while the azimuth reference display is set in advance in the direction of the sun, when the azimuth is known from the above principle, the azimuth reference display can be set in the direction of the sun. At this time, the direction of north can be detected based on the direction indicated by the direction indicator, and the directions of east, west, north and south can be known accurately and instantly.

On the other hand, the above-mentioned principle is based on the assumption that the observation point (K) is in the northern hemisphere. In the southern hemisphere, the sun basically moves on the north side of the celestial sphere. The azimuth is shifted at a constant speed of 15 degrees per hour counterclockwise, so when detecting the azimuth in the southern hemisphere, the azimuth pointer is clockwise at a constant rate of 15 degrees per hour. It is necessary to shift the direction.

That is, in the timepiece with another azimuth hand of the present invention, the azimuth hand rotates clockwise on the dial surface at a constant rotational speed of 15 degrees per hour around the base end thereof. The watch is characterized by being provided with an azimuth reference display at a portion of the timepiece main body that is in view from the front side.

In the southern hemisphere, the directions of east, west, north and south can be accurately and instantaneously known in the same manner as described above.

In the above description, when the azimuth reference display is constituted by the time line of the dial, it is necessary to newly provide a reference line, a reference point, and the like for the azimuth reference only on the dial. Since there is no watch, it is possible to avoid deteriorating the design of the watch.

In the case where the position of the azimuth hand is corrected in conjunction with the operation of adjusting the time of the watch body, once the initial setting of the azimuth hand is made, The position of the azimuth hand is automatically corrected at the same time as the operation of adjusting the time of, so there is no need to periodically perform the same operation as the initial setting for the purpose of correcting the position of the azimuth hand, eliminating the need for cumbersome operation Is done.

[0022]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS One embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a timepiece (1) with an azimuth indicator according to the present invention. In these figures, (2)
Is a direction pointer, (3) is a direction reference display, and (10) is a watch body.

The watch body (10) is a so-called analog wristwatch having a short hand (11) indicating the time and a long hand (12) indicating the minute on the dial (4), and displays the time by a known mechanism. It has been done. The watch body (10) may be, for example, a digital wristwatch or a pocket watch.

The azimuth indicator (2) is an azimuth indicating unit having a long rectangular shape, the tip of which is formed in a sharp shape, and a plane shape corresponding to the letter "N" of the alphabet at the foremost end. (2a) is attached, while the base end of the orientation indicator (2) is connected to the center of the dial (4) by a pin (not shown), and at a rate of 15 degrees per hour with the rotation of the pin. It is designed to rotate counterclockwise at a constant rotation speed. As the mechanism for rotating at a constant rotation speed, a known mechanism generally used for displaying the time of the watch can be used. In other words, the time can be indicated by utilizing the fact that the oscillation period of the oscillator is constant, and based on this, the long hand (12) rotates once clockwise in one hour and the short hand (11) It is possible to make one turn clockwise in time and one turn counterclockwise in 24 hours for the direction indicator (2). It should be noted that the present invention is not particularly limited to such a mechanism, and any other mechanism may be employed as long as the mechanism rotates at a constant rotation speed.

The direction indicator (2) is connected to the watch body (1).
0), the rotation can be performed independently of the short hand (11) and the long hand (12) by an initial setting screw (14) protruding from the right side surface. In the initial setting, with the azimuth reference display (3) aligned with the direction of the sun, the initial setting screw (14) is operated to move from the base end of the azimuth indicator (2) to the tip azimuth indicating unit (2a). Align the axis to the north.

On the other hand, the azimuth reference display (3) is composed of a time line (12:00 time line) of the dial (4).
With such a time line, it is not necessary to newly provide a reference line or a reference point serving as an azimuth reference display on the dial (4) or the like, so that the design of the timepiece is not impaired. The azimuth reference display (3) may be any display as long as the reference direction of the azimuth can be clearly indicated. For example, the azimuth reference display may be a linear projection or a point projection, as well as a line or a point. The azimuth reference display (3) may be provided at a place other than the dial (4) as long as the part can be seen from the front side. For example, small linear or dot-like projections may be provided on the watch body (10). It may be provided on the outer peripheral portion. When the azimuth reference display (3) is formed in a dot shape,
In the initial setting, the direction from the center of rotation of the azimuth indicator (2) to the point of the azimuth reference display (3) is preferably adjusted to the direction of the sun.

By the way, the azimuth indicator (2) is inevitably caused to lead or delay over a long period of time, regardless of the mechanism used to rotate it at a constant rotational speed. In this case, the position of the azimuth indicator (2) can be corrected by performing the initial setting again. However, the correction operation has to be performed only for this purpose, which is rather troublesome. Therefore, in the timepiece (1) with azimuth hands of the above embodiment, the azimuth hands (2)
Is corrected in conjunction with the operation of adjusting the time of the clock. That is, when adjusting the time, the adjustment can be made with the adjusting screw (13) protruding from the right side of the timepiece body (10). The short hand (11) and the long hand by the adjusting screw (13) are used. The adjustment rotation operation of the azimuth indicator (2) can be performed in conjunction with the adjustment rotation operation of (12). Specifically, the azimuth indicator (2) is set so that the angle of the azimuth indicator (2) is adjusted in the opposite direction by half the angle with respect to the adjustment angle of the short hand (11). As described above, the position of the azimuth hand (2) is automatically corrected at the same time as the time of the clock is adjusted, and the time adjustment and the azimuth hand position correction are completed by one operation. Can be simplified as a whole.

When the azimuth is to be detected using the azimuth indicator-equipped timepiece (1) having the above-described configuration, an initial setting is first performed. That is, with the axis direction of the azimuth reference display (3) aligned with the direction of the sun, the tip of the azimuth pointer (2) is adjusted to the north direction by operating the initialization screw (14).
This completes the initial settings.

When checking the azimuth, the axis direction of the azimuth reference display (3) is adjusted to the direction of the sun, and the direction indicated by the azimuth indicator (2) is read in that state. You can know. In this way, it is possible to know the directions of east, west, north and south accurately and instantly.

FIG. 2 shows a specific example in which the azimuth is detected using the timepiece with azimuth indicator (1). FIG. 2A shows an initial setting state in which the tip of the azimuth indicator (2) is adjusted to the north direction with the axis direction of the azimuth reference display (3) adjusted to the direction of the sun. The tip of the pointer (2) indicates the direction of 9 o'clock.

FIG. 2 (b) shows an example in which the azimuth is detected using the initially set clock with azimuth indicator (1) when the sun goes southwards. The azimuth reference display (3). When the direction of the axis was adjusted to the direction of the sun, the tip of the azimuth indicator (2) indicated the north direction exactly as shown in the figure.

FIG. 2 (c) shows an example in which the azimuth is detected using the initially set clock with azimuth indicator (1) when the sun sets to the west thereafter. When the axial direction of (3) was aligned with the direction of the sun, the tip of the azimuth pointer (2) indicated the north direction exactly as shown in the figure.

In the above embodiment, the orientation indicator (2)
Is set at the same position as the center of rotation of the short hand (11) and the long hand (12). However, the present invention is not particularly limited to this position. The center may be set at the eccentric position of the dial (4).

In the initial setting, the direction indicator (2)
Is set to the north direction, but this is merely an example of the set direction, and the azimuth indicator (2) may be set to, for example, the south direction instead of the north direction. In this case, when actually examining the azimuth, align the axis direction of the azimuth reference display with the direction of the sun,
In this state, the direction indicated by the direction pointer indicates the south direction. Of course, this setting direction may be, for example, the east direction or the west direction.

The timepiece with azimuth pointer (1) of the above embodiment
Is applicable when the observation point (K) is in the Northern Hemisphere such as Japan. On the other hand, when the observation point (K) is in the southern hemisphere, the rotation direction of the azimuth hand (2) in the clock (1) with the azimuth hand of the above embodiment is assumed to rotate in the reverse rotation direction, that is, clockwise. Good.
Of course, it is necessary to set the rotation speed to a constant speed of 15 degrees per hour as described above.

In the present invention, the direction indicator (2)
It is necessary to set the rotation speed at a constant rotation speed at a rate of 15 degrees per hour as described above, but the daily difference (integrated value of error per day) of a clock such as a general wristwatch or wall clock The degree of error is sufficiently tolerable.
In view of the fact that the watch rotates, the present invention can be sufficiently configured even if it has a larger day difference than a general timepiece. It is needless to say that it is desirable that the accuracy be as high as possible in consideration of the frequency of the necessary adjustment operation.
It may have an error on the order of degrees, and if it allows the frequency of the adjustment operation to increase, it may have a larger daily difference.

[0038]

As described above, in the timepiece with azimuth hands according to the present invention, the azimuth hands have a constant rotation speed of 15 degrees per hour around the base end of the dial on the dial surface. Since the azimuth reference display is provided in a part of the main body of the watch which is in view from the front side, the azimuth indicator is set in advance with the azimuth reference display in the direction of the sun. If the observation point is in the northern hemisphere, if the observation point is in the northern hemisphere, adjust the azimuth reference display to the direction of the sun, and the north direction will be detected according to the direction indicated by the azimuth pointer at this time. It is possible to know the directions of east, west, north and south accurately and instantly. And since such a direction detecting means is provided in a watch which is usually carried when going out, it is possible to dramatically improve the portability of the direction detecting means,
At any time during the day, even if it becomes necessary to know the direction unexpectedly, it is possible to easily know the direction. Further, since the azimuth detection principle of the present invention does not use magnetism at all, a correct azimuth can be indicated even in an environment affected by a magnetic field.

Further, in another timepiece with an azimuth indicator according to the present invention, the azimuth indicator rotates clockwise instead of counterclockwise in the above, and the azimuth detecting means is similar to the above. In the case where the observation point is in the southern hemisphere, the direction of east, west, north and south can be known at any time during the day accurately and instantaneously without being affected by the magnetic field.

In the above description, when the azimuth reference display is constituted by the time line of the dial, a new reference line or reference point only serving as the azimuth reference is provided on the dial, or There is no need to provide the protrusion on the outer peripheral portion of the timepiece body, so that the design of the timepiece is not impaired.

If the position of the azimuth hand is corrected in conjunction with the operation of adjusting the time of the main body of the watch, the initial setting of the position of the azimuth hand may be performed once. The position correction of the azimuth hands is automatically performed only by adjusting the time of the main body, that is, the time adjustment and the position correction of the azimuth hands are completed by one operation, so that these adjustment operations can be simplified.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a timepiece with a directional indicator according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIGS. 2A and 2B are explanatory diagrams showing a specific example in which the direction is detected using the timepiece with a direction indicator, wherein FIG. 2A is an initial setting state, and FIGS. FIG.

FIG. 3 is a horizontal coordinate diagram showing the orbit of the sun on a celestial sphere.

FIG. 4 is a projection top view showing the movement of the sun on the celestial sphere in the horizon coordinate map projected on the horizon plane.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1. Clock with azimuth pointer 2. azimuth pointer 3. Reference azimuth display 4. Dial face 10. Clock body

Claims (4)

[Claims] 1. An azimuth indicator on a dial face is rotated counterclockwise at a constant rotational speed of 15 degrees per hour around a base end thereof, and a watch body. A timepiece with a direction hand, characterized in that a direction reference display is provided in a part of the device which is in view from the front side. 2. An azimuth hand on a dial face is rotated clockwise around a base end thereof at a constant rotation rate of 15 degrees per hour, and a clock body of the timepiece body. A timepiece with an azimuth indicator, characterized in that an azimuth reference display is provided in a portion which is in view from the surface side. 3. A timepiece with a direction indicator according to claim 1, wherein the direction reference display is constituted by a time line of a dial. 4. The timepiece with a direction indicator according to claim 1, wherein the position of the direction indicator is corrected in conjunction with an operation of adjusting the time of the timepiece.