JPS59141088A - Area time display analog timepiece - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To facilitate the recognition of time by providing an area time display panel for displaying time depending on area corresponding to the elapse time and a control circuit for controlling the reverse rotation of the area time display panel. CONSTITUTION:An oscillation circuit 1 supplies a frequency signal serving as standard for time and a division circuit 2 fetches a necessary frequency signal by dividing a time standard signal. A mode switching circuit 3 selectively switches a time display circuit 4 and a timer circuit 5. A pointer forward rotation control circuit 6 and a pointer reverse rotation control circuit 7 are provided to sent a control signal for performing a rotation in either one direction to a step motor driving circuit 8. Thus, as shown by the arrow in the drawing, one position can be always selected from A for normal time indication, B for reverse rotation when the pointer reaches the noon position, C for the timer being set and D for the timer during measurement.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The present invention incorporates the characteristics of an analog clock that displays the time by the rotation angle of the hour hand and minute hand, and adds a regional time display function to the analog clock for the purpose of making the time display easier to understand. It is related to.

Analog watches display the time based on the length of the hour and 9-minute hands and the rotation angle of the hands, allowing you to know the time intuitively. This is a characteristic and important property of analog clocks. In recent years, as more and more emphasis has been placed on the fashionability of watches, the hands have become thinner and the time display has become harder to read. Furthermore, analog watches cannot tell the time in dark places such as at night. Even on watches with hands coated with luminous paint, the hands are so thin that it is difficult to tell the time in the dark. Furthermore, it has been considered difficult to make a two-hand analog watch multi-functional and add a timer function, an alarm function, etc. because the current operating mode is difficult to understand.

The present invention aims to make the time display of a two-hand analog watch easier to understand, and to make it easier to recognize the time in the dark.
The purpose of this watch is to make it easier to recognize the current operating mode when the watch is multi-functional, and it uses an area time display board to tell the time more visually than before. The present invention will be explained in detail below using the drawings.

FIG. 1 is an external view of a basic area time display analog clock. During normal time display, the movement of the hour and two-minute hands is similar to that of conventional analog watches.

As shown in FIG. 1, a circular area display plate is attached to each of the hour and two minute hands. In FIG. 1, 1 is an hour hand, 2 is a minute hand, 3 is an area time display plate for the hour hand, 4 is an area time display plate for the minute hand, and 5 is a dial plate.

In order to take advantage of the area display, the area time display board has a large radius. Therefore, the radius of the minute hand area time display plate is made larger than the radius of the hour hand area display plate.

The area time display board rotates according to the movement of the hands as time passes. As it rotates, the central angle between the hands and the 12 o'clock direction widens, and the area of the fan-shaped area time display board increases, which indicates the passage of time. The two area time display boards combined with the hands are the same as the hands on the dial.
When pointing to 2 o'clock, it is completely hidden under the dial, and as time passes, it rotates and appears on the dial. As described above, by displaying the time in an area, it becomes easier to visually read the wire, and the time can be known accurately and instantaneously.

In Fig. 2, the area time display plate is not located on the same plane as the hands because in conventional analog watches, the minute hand is located above the hour hand, so the radius of the area time display plate for the minute hand is This is because in order to make the hour hand area larger than the radius of the time display plate, the relationship shown in FIG. 2 must be established. In this case, the structure of the hands and the area time display plate becomes complicated, and the thickness of the watch increases. Third
The figure shows the minute hand positioned below the hour hand. From FIG. 3, the hour hand and 1 minute hand region time display plates can be mounted on the same plane as the hour hand and 9 minute hand, respectively. With this configuration, a regional time display function can be added without making the watch thicker than conventional analog watches.

FIG. 4 shows the positional relationship between the dial and the area time display board. The dial plate and the area time display plate have a spiral structure with the axis as the center, and the area time display plate is attached to the rotating shaft of the hour hand and the nine minute hand, respectively. The shaft moves up and down as it rotates, keeping the distance between the three plates constant.

With the above structure, it is possible to display the time area.

The shape and color of the regional time display board can be varied to make the clock more functional.

Furthermore, if a luminescent paint is applied to the area time display plate and used, the fluorescent surface can be made very large, so it is thought that it will be easier to recognize the time in the dark than the hands of a conventional analog watch.

Here, the operation of the area time display board will be explained in detail. The hour hand and minute hand and area time display board rotate once from the 12 o'clock position. At the moment when the watch points to the 12 o'clock position again, that is, when the area time display plate appears on the dial 360°, the watch moves backward by one rotation. For example, at the moment the clock strikes 12 o'clock, both the hour hand and 9 minute hand area time display boards are displayed in a circular shape on the dial to inform you of the time.
At the moment the clock strikes 2 o'clock, the hands and the area time display plate rotate in the opposite direction at high speed, and the area time display plate is retracted under the dial. Thereafter, the area time display board follows the pointer again and the area displays the time.

Furthermore, by adding the reverse rotation function to the area time display analog clock, it can be used as a timer in a mode independent of the time display mode.

To operate it, select timer mode using the crown or push button switch.

The moment the timer mode is entered, the hour and minute hands rotate at high speed, and the area time display board is completely retracted under the dial.
It stops at the 12 o'clock position. This is set to timer standby state. (FIG. 5) Next, set the minute hand to a desired timer of one hour. In this state, the remaining time is displayed by the area of the area time display board. By pressing the timer start button, the minute hand begins to rotate in reverse, and the area of the regional time display plate gradually becomes smaller, allowing the remaining time on the timer to be recognized. (Figure 6) When the remaining time on the timer reaches zero, the bell rings to notify that the desired time has elapsed. By using the area time display board, it is possible to easily display subtraction in timer mode, which is difficult to understand with analog clocks. When the crown or push button switch is used to return to the time display mode, the hands rotate to the current time and display the time.A block diagram of the entire system is shown in FIG. In the figure, 1 is an oscillation circuit which supplies a frequency signal serving as a time standard. 2 is a frequency dividing circuit, which divides the time standard signal,
Extract the required frequency signal. A mode switching circuit 6 selects and switches between the time display circuit 4 and the timer circuit 5. 6 is a pointer forward rotation control circuit, 7 is a pointer backward rotation control circuit, and a control signal for rotation in one direction is sent to the step motor drive circuit 8. In the arrows in the figure, A indicates normal time display, B indicates reverse rotation when the hand reaches the 12 o'clock position, C indicates timer setting, and D indicates timer measurement, and one of the states is always selected. Ru.

The features and configuration of the present invention are as described above, and the present invention makes it possible to realize a multi-functional analog timepiece that allows easier time recognition than conventional analog timepieces.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

Figure 1; Front view of area time display analog clock 1...
...Hour hand 2...Minute hand 3...Hour hand area Time display plate 4...Minute hand area Time display plate 5...Dial plate 2nd Figure: Figure 3 shows a conventional two-hand analog watch with an area time display plate attached to the hands. Figure 3: The hour hand is attached above the minute hand, and the area time display plate is combined with the hands. Figure 4: The dial and Positional relationship of area time display board 6...
...Hour hand area display board 7...Minute hand area display board 8...Dial board Fig. 5; Timer standby state Fig. 6; Timer set, timer start state Fig. 7; Book Overall block diagram of the invention 1... Oscillation circuit 2... Frequency dividing circuit 3... Mode switching circuit 4... Time display circuit 5... ...Timer circuit 6...Pointer forward rotation control circuit 7...
Pointer reverse direction rotation control circuit 8...Step motor drive circuit Fig. 4 Fig. 5

Claims (1)

[Scope of Claims] 1. A two-hand analog watch having an oscillation circuit, a frequency dividing circuit, and a step motor), and a time-varying zone and footboard for displaying the time in an area corresponding to the elapsed time, and An area time display analog clock, characterized in that it has a control circuit for controlling reverse rotation of the area time display plate. 2. Claim 1: A self-mounted area time display analog watch, in which the minute hand is positioned below the hour hand in the area time display mechanism. & The area time display analog timepiece according to claim 1, characterized in that the analog timer that displays the remaining time in areas includes the area time display board and a front self-reverse rotation mechanism.