JPS628759B2 - - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to a time signal device for a clock that generates the time and electronic sounds such as music.

Various configurations are currently being proposed for time signal devices for watches. For example, a time signal device disclosed in Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 49-40171 is shown in FIG.

In the figure, 1 is an input terminal for a signal that arrives once every hour on the hour from a signal generator (not shown);
2a is a count up register consisting of a 1/12 frequency divider circuit, 2b is a countdown register that can be set by a 1/12 frequency divider circuit, 3 is a flip-flop circuit with set/reset input terminals, 4 is a clock signal generator, 5 7 is a gate circuit, and 7 is a time pulse generation mechanism.

The operation of the system is as follows. When a signal arrives at the input terminal 1 once every hour, this signal activates the count-up register 2a and advances by one count. At the same time, this input signal inverts the flip-flop circuit.

This inverted signal is input as a set signal to the countdown register 2b, and the countdown register 2b stores the time. On the other hand, the inverted signal opens the gate 5, passes the signal from the hour striking signal generator 4, and sounds the hour striking generating mechanism 7, which at the same time continues to sound until the contents of the countdown register 2b reach 0. Then, when the countdown register 2b counts down the signal from the gate 5 and its contents become 0, the signal indicating 0 inverts the flip-flop circuit 3 and closes the gate circuit 5, thus ending the timing operation.

In the time signal mechanism, 2b is an independent 1/12 frequency division countdown register, which is used exclusively for the time signal function.

Further, the conventional music signal generation device includes an address register for sequentially reading out the ROM and a device for converting the output signal into a music signal. Therefore, in order to combine the music signal generation function and the time signal function to create a clock with enhanced time signal effect, separate registers are required. For this reason, it is necessary to design both devices independently and to synchronize them, which has the disadvantage of making the device extremely complicated. Furthermore, the output sound is generated by a signal generator separate from the music signal, and is different from the pleasant output sound generated by the music signal generator.

In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, the present invention realizes time reporting and music performance in the same device with a simple configuration, and the configuration will be explained below with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 2 shows an embodiment of a time signal and music signal generating device according to the present invention. 11 is an input terminal for an hourly signal that arrives once every hour from a signal generator (not shown), 12a is a countdown register consisting of a 1/12 frequency dividing circuit, and 12b is for generating music signals.
This is a settable count-up register for sequentially reading ROM and is used as an address register. 13 is a resettable flip-flop circuit, 14 is a signal generator, 15 is a gate circuit,
16 is a storage device consisting of a ROM that stores music signals and time signals; 17 is a music signal generator; 1
8, 19, 20, 21, 22 and 23 are NAND circuits, 24 is a time signal path, and 25 is a highest address signal path (or play stop signal path). The operation of this device is as follows.

When a signal arrives at the input terminal 1 once every hour, this signal activates the countdown register 12a to decrease the count by one. At the same time, this signal inverts the flip-flop circuit. This inverted signal opens the gate circuit 15 and advances the address register of the storage device 16 through the signal of the signal generator 14 to begin playing the music. The address register of the ROM counts up, the music performance ends, and when the time signal address is entered, one time signal is performed, and at the same time, the signal path 24 opens the NAND gate circuits 18 to 23 and addresses the contents of the countdown register 12a. Transfer to the register as the complement of time information. The transfer is performed for the lower 4 bits of count up register 12b, and there is no bit 12 corresponding to 12a.
All 1 states are transferred to the upper bits of b. The post-transfer address register counts up sequentially and reaches the highest address. This most significant signal inverts the flip-flop 13 and closes the gate circuit 15, thus ending the timing operation.

As a result, the countdown register 12a stores the current time, and the address register stops at the most significant bit. The time number is the sum of the first 1 and the number rounded up from the transferred complement to the most significant number. For example, at 5 o'clock, the countdown register 12a is set in order from the upper bit.
It is 0101. Since the transferred data is the complement of time information, the post-transfer address register 12b is
It becomes 1010. The address registers are sequentially 1011, 1100, 1101, 1110, etc. according to the input clock signal.
Counts up to 1111, and every time the clock signal
Each of the 17 music signal generators generates a time signal sound once, and a total of 5 times from 1010 to 1110, that is, the 5 o'clock time signal sound is generated. When the circuit detects 1111, it stops the time signal, further inverts the flip-flop 13, and stops the input signal of the address counter. The stopped state is released from 11 to notify the next time of 6 o'clock by inverting the flip-flop with the next time signal. Similarly for other times, N is 1
Assuming the time stored in 2a, its complement is 15
The number 15-N is obtained by subtracting N from (1111), and from 15-N
The number of counts up to 15 (the highest address) is N. By detecting the highest address of 1111, not only can the time signal be stopped, but it can also be used as a jump command to another address, and a music signal can be generated after the time signal has been reported.

According to the present invention, as explained above, in an electronic watch, it is possible not only to notify the time but also to generate music and to notify the time with a pleasant tone without increasing the number of registers, and furthermore, the tone of the time signal can be freely changed. It has the effect of gaining. Further, the application of the present invention is not limited to the time information device of an electronic watch, but can also be incorporated into other music signal generating devices and used as a predetermined signal generating circuit.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a conventional embodiment, and FIG. 2 is a block diagram of an embodiment of the present invention. 2a, 12b...Count up register, 2
b, 12a...Countdown register, 3, 13
...flip-flop circuit, 4...hour signal oscillator,
14... Signal generator, 5, 15... Gate circuit, 7...
Time striking mechanism, 16... Storage device, 17... Music signal generator, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23...
NAND circuit, 24...time signal path, 25...most significant address signal (or play stop signal) path.

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1 The first unit that counts every hour signal and holds time information.
a register for storing the music signal and the time signal, a second register for specifying the address of the storage device, a signal generator for supplying a signal to the second register to advance the address, and a storage device for storing the music signal and the time signal. a music signal generating device that generates music and time signal sound by output; a gate circuit that transfers information in the first register to the second register by output corresponding to a first predetermined address; and the hourly signal. from a flip-flop which inputs and starts supplying the signal of the signal generator to the second register, and stops supplying the signal of the signal generator by an output corresponding to a second predetermined address of the second register. An electronic time signal generator for a watch, characterized in that: