US2029559A - Watch movement for fancy watches - Google Patents

Description

Feb. 4, 1936. H COLQMB 2,029,559

WATCH MOVEMENT FOR FANCY WATCHES Filed Aug. 5, 1932 5 Sheets-Sheet l lNVENTOR 0 LOM B Feb. 4,\ 1936. H COLMB 2,029,559

WATCH MOVEMENT FORA FANCY WATCHES Filed Aug. 5, 1932 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 H. coLoMB WATCH MOVEMENT FOR FANCY WATCHES Filed Aug. 5, 1932 Sheets-Sheet Feb. 4, 1936.

FfgilZL"u Patented Feb. 4, 1936 .lNlTED STATES PATENT OFFICE Application August 5, 1932, Serial No. 627,639 In Switzerland September 4, 1931 10 Claims.

The present invention relates to a watch movement for fancy watches especially for Wrist watches Where the barrel meshes directly with the center wheel pinion.

6 According to the present invention the center wheel axis is out of center and is placed with the barrel within one of the two divisions separated by a transverse center line of the movement. The axis of the hands is located on said l center line and a toothed cannon frictionally fitted upon said center wheel pinion is provided for working the hands by means oi at least one cannon pinion carrying the minute-hand.

This arrangement has particular advantages.

l Applied to an elongated wrist watch it permits the location within the available space of a barrel, a train of gears, an escapement and a relatively large balance, all these for enlarging appreciably the available space, ordinarily very 2o limited, for the winding and the hand-setting gears.

In a fancy watch having the seconds axis on the longitudinal center line the arrangement according to the present invention will be very advantageous and in the self-winding watches this arrangement allows placing the barrel at one or the ends of the movement and the driving train and the escapement at the other end of the design to save the space for putting in a powerful winding gear.

The annexed drawings show several working forms according to the present invention.

Fig. 1 is a diagrammatical plan View of an elongated movement 3%,-9 x 21 millimetersaccording to the invention.

Fig. 2 is a section on line II-II in Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is a similar plan like that of Fig. 1 but for another working form.

Fig. 4 is a section on line IV-IV in Fig. 2, Fig. 5 a section on line V-V in Fig. 1 and Fig. 6 a section on line VI-VI in Fig. 2.

Fig. '7 is a diagrammatical plan of a movement having the axle of the seconds on the longitudinal axis of the movement and having a cylindrical escapement.

8 shows in plan and as far as is needed for clearness a movement according to the present invention and of the form called to-nneau.

Fig. 9 and Fig. 10 are diagrammatical plan views referring to the hand-setting gears and the minute work.

Fig. 11 is a diagrammatical view of a detail which shall be explained further on.

Fig. 12 is a plan view of a self-winding watch having the arrangement according to the invention.

Fig. 13 is a similar view of a watch having the second-hand axis on the longitudinal axis of the movement, the showing of the swinging weight being omitted.

Fig. 14 is a section on the line ll-H-Il of the preceding gure and Fig. l5 is a section on the pivot axis of the swinging mass of the forms according to Fig. 12 l0 or 13.

Referring to the Figs. 1 and 2, the barrel A meshes with the center wheel pinion a, to the axle of Which is also fixed the center wheel B. This axle is generally located at the center of a watch 16 movement or in a fancy watch it is situated at the intersection of the transverse or minor and the longitudinal or major axes. In the present invention this pinion is entirely displaced from the center. It is located on the left hand side 20 of the plate I, if this plate is considered to be divided into two halves by the axis v -1v,

Two particular features of this construction permit the disposition on said plate of a barrel,

a driving gear, an escapement and a balance rela- 25 tively large so as to enlarge the space left for the winding and the hand-setting gears. The first feature consists in putting the center wheel out of the watchs center in a longitudinal sense in order to put the barrel at the end of the 3U plate and the second feature is the transverse displacement which makes it possible to solve the problem. Besides in spite of a larger center wheel the longitudinal displacing of it makes it possible to avoid the inconvenience of almost all 35 such fancy watches, namely, that the support of the contrate wheel is rendered unsafe by the passage of the center wheel.

In a fancy Watch of the type called baguette where the length as compared to the width is 40 ordinarily greater than in the described example the eccentric position of the center Wheel pinion which places the barrel at the extremity oi the plate would be still more apparent, for in the said fancy watch having the pinion at the center 40 of the movement 2 to 4 millimeters of the length of the plate next to the barrel remain nonutilized. According to the invention this place can be utilized for placing into the same watch a drivingtrain, an escapement and a larger bal- 5U ance. In certain cases it will be possible to dispose the lever escapement on one side on account of the small space available for a normal escapement on a straight line.

The manufacturing of such watches for the reasons given will be facilitated, the quality will be improved and the manufacturing cost diminished.

The center wheel is as a rule connected with the balance G by the intermediate Wheels ZJ, C, c, D, d, E and the lever F. Only the two pallet stones are shown in Fig. 1.

Upon the center wheel pinion a is mounted with frictional contact a wheel H which meshes with wheel O which, in turn, meshes with the cannon pinion J which is xed to the stud K. The cannon pinion J moves the minute wheel I the pinion M of which moves the wheel N. L designates the wheel for time setting. The longitudinal section shown in Fig. 2 shows that there is no particular dimculty to dispose the driving gear and the escapement nor to obtain a flat movement. the same letters of reference as corresponding parts in Fig. l.

In the fancy watch 9 x 2l illimeters of Figs. l and 3 it is possible according to the invention to use for the third wheel, seconds wheel and escapement wheel two pinions of seven and one of six teeth, while ordinarily only three pinions of six teeth are possible.

It must be noted that in this working form the parts of the movement which make the quality and fix the price, to wit: the barrel, the escapement and the balance, have exactly the dimensions which will permit them to be mounted in a plate 10 x 23.7 millimeters of the conventional type of movement when the center Wheel is disposed at the center of the movement. But here the plate is sensibly smaller, namely, 9 x 21 millimeters.

In the working form of the Figs. 3 and 1 where similar parts are marked with the same letters of reference as in Figs. 1 and 2 the wheelO is omitted. The minute wheel I substitutes said wheel and transmits the movement of the Wheel H which is concentric with the center wheel pinion to the cannon pinion J. Due to this construction the axes of the pinion b and the seconds pinion c are close to the minute wheel I. v The Fig. 7 represents a watch movement of the type called baguette with a cylindrical escapement. The arrangement of the barrel and of the center wheel pinion allows the use of a larger driving train than is usual. Here also the minute wheel forms the intermediate member between pinion I-I and the cannon pinion J or the cannon pinion M. Here the arrangement of the .driving train according to the present invention makes it possible to dispose the axis of the second-hand pinion on the longitudinal axis y-y of the plate. This result cannot be obtained with the generally used arrangement of parts.

The Fig. 8 represents the arrangement according to the present invention -applied to a fancy watch of the type tonneau where all the wheels are represented. Besides the whole series of parts already enumerated with regard to Figs. l to 7, an additional pinion u and an additional Wheel V have been intercalate-d here. These additional members transmit the movement from the center Wheel B to the pinion b of the third wheel. In this case the wheel H meshes directly with the cannon pinion J which is of course at the center.

In the shown arrangement the center wheel pinion is likewise out of center and located within one of the two halves of the plate separated by the transverse center line on which is also located the axis of the watch hands. Directly due to this it Visrpossible to dispose not only a large barrel All parts in Fig. 2 are marked withV of 11 lines, but also a proportionately large balance. In a watch of 8% lines of the design tonneau measuring 19.7 x 26.5 millimeters over all the contrivance of placing the center pinion out of center makes it possible to put in a balance of 950/ millimeters diameter which corresponds to a normal watch of lOl/2 lines. The presence of the additional wheel between the center wheel and the third wheel facilitates greatly the distributing of parts. It is possible to keep all the wheels except the center wheel at asuflicient distance from the balance and the third wheel from the lever, so that these wheels do not interfere with the movements of the balance. The pallets of the lever are well cleared and the mounting of the escapement is rendered easier.

Figs. 9 and 10 show a watch movement of the design tonneau from the side of the dial and two ways of connection of the hand-setting gears with the sleeve of the crown gear S.

In the Fig. 9 it is the wheel L which moves, by means of the minute wheel I, the cannon pinion J while in the Fig. 10 this cannon pinion is moved by means of the intermediate wheels L, O and H. T designates the drum of the barrel. The other wheels have the same letters of reference as in the former examples.

In the Fig. 11 it is the wheel L of the handsetting mechanism which is intermediate between i the cannon pinion J and the wheel H which is frictionally fitted on the center wheel shaft. The minute wheel I meshes then only with the cannon pinion.

The Fig. V12 relates to a self-winding watch Where the arrangement of the barrel and of the center wheel pinion according to the present invention has been accepted. The figure gives a diagrammatical view of the gearing and the escapement with its balance. All the wheels are designated by the same letters of reference as in the preceding examples. The bridges of the movement have been left out and the hand-setting mechanism whereof the stem is located in the transverse center line Z-Z of the watch is only indicated by a rectangle I3 representing the window for the sleeve with clutch and contrate teeth.

The winding weight IG is very powerful. It fills the whole thickness of the watch case in the largest part of the left hand division of the Fig. l2. This considerable advantage is a direct result of using an arrangement according to the present invention by having the center wheel pinion put out of the center of the watch and a toothed wheel mounted with frictional contact for setting the hands.

The rectangular watch case with slanted or cut-off cornersI of this example measuring 21 x 31 millimeters possesses a barrel, a driving train, an escapement and a balance of 101/2 lines; and all the wheels of the movement from the barrel to the escape wheel included and the axis of the balance are disposed on the one side of the plate the minor axis of the watch forming the limit. It is owing to the invention that this combination has been possible and that such a space could have been saved for the winding weight I 4.'

rIhe Fig. 15 will help to explain the following statements. The winding weight I4 is rotatably guided on the pivot pin I5 by means of two bushes e2 xed to the ends of a cannon e1 integral with said weight. This pivot pin is forced with one end into the plate and supported at the other end by a cock I6 which limits at the same time all axial play of the weight. The oscillations of the weight are transmitted to the ratchet wheel 2l by means of a pawl 2| and thence to pinion 22 integral with the ratchet wheel 2| and from here to a wheel 23 fast to the pinion 24 which controls the ratchet 25 and the spring of the barrel.

The stop pawl, 26 pivoted at 21, is held engaged with `teeth of the ratchet 2| by a spring 28 attached to a stud 29. The operation of this working example is easily understood from the described construction.

In the Working example according to the Figs. 13 and 14 the arrangement of the self-Winding movement of the driving train and of the escapement are the same as in the example just described. But here the center Wheel B meshes with a pinion 32 riveted to a wheel 33 which is pivoted on a staff 35 i'ixed to a cock 36. The wheel 33 meshes With a seconds wheel pinion 34 at the center of the watch. This pinion is pressed upon the staif 38 which carries the second-hand 39. A brake spring 40 is fixed to a stud fil which is held by frictional contact in the barrel bridge 3 and adapted to regulate the friction of the spring 40 which bears upon a cannon provided on the staff 38 right above the pinion 34.

The cannon K upon which the cannon pinion J is revolvably mounted is pressed into the plate l and carries near each end a bearing for the staif 38. In this way the indications of the secondhand are exact for the resulting friction takes oi the damaging eiect of the play between the gears connected with this second-hand.

What I claim is:

1. In a watch of the character described, an oblong plate, concentric minute and hour-handcarrying spindles mounted at the intersection oi the major and minor axes of said oblong plate, a toothed driving barrel positioned on said plate entirely on one side of the minor axis thereof, a center wheel, a shaft carrying said center wheel and laterally spaced from the hands-carrying spindles, a center Wheel pinion aflixed to said shaft and meshing with teeth on said barrel, said center wheel pinion and the shaft carrying the same being mounted entirely on the same side of the minor axis of the oblong plate as the barrel, and a pinion frictionally mounted on said shaft for driving said handsmarrying spindles.

2. In a watch of the character described, an oblong plate, concentric minute and hour-handoarrying spindles mounted at the intersection of the major and minor axes of said oblong plate, a toothed driving barrel positioned on said plate entirely on one side of said minor axis, a center wheel, a shaft carrying said center wheel and laterally spaced from the hands-carrying spindles, a center wheel pinion affixed to said shaft and meshing with teeth on said barrel, said center wheel pinion and the shaft carrying the same being mounted entirely on the same side of the minor axis of the oblong plate as the barrel, hands-carrying and moving mechanism, a pinion frictionally mounted on said shaft for driving said mechanism, a balance wheel unit positioned entirely on the opposite side of said minor axis, and a gear train for transmitting motion from said center wheel to said balance mechanism.

3. In a Watch of the character described, an oblong plate, a toothed driving barrel positioned on said plate entirely on one side of the minor axis thereof, a center wheel, a shaft carrying said center Wheel, a center wheel pinion affixed to said shaft and meshing with teeth on said barrel, said center wheel pinion and the shaft carrying the same being mounted entirely on the same side of the minor axis of the oblong plate as the barrel, concentric hollow spindles mounted at the intersection of the major and minor axes of said plate and carrying minute and hour-hands, a pinion ainxed to the spindle carrying the minute-hand, a pinion frictionally mounted on the center wheel shaft, and intermediate gear means for transmitting motion from said frictionally mounted pinion to the pinion on said minute-hand spindle.

4. In a Watch of the character described, an oblong plate, a toothed driving barrel positioned on said plate entirely on one side of the minor axis thereof, a center wheel, a shaft carrying said center wheel, a center wheel pinion affixed to said shaft and meshing with teeth on said barrel, said center wheel pinion and the shaft carrying the same being mounted entirely on the same side of the minor axis of the oblong plate as the barrel, concentric hollow spindles mounted at the intersection of the major and minor axes of said plate and carrying minute and hour-hands, a pinion aiixed to the spindle carrying the minute-hand, a pinion frictionally mounted on the center Wheel shaft, intermediate gear means for transmitting motion from said frictionally mounted pinion to the pinion on said minute-hand spindle, a balance mechanism positioned entirely on the opposite side of said minor axis, and a gear train for transmitting motion from said center Wheel to said balance mechanism.

5. In a Watch of the character described, an oblong plate, concentric hands-carrying spindles mounted at the intersection of the major and minor axes of said plate, a spring actuated driving barrel, a balance, intermediate gears and pinions, all having their axes mounted on one side of the minor axis of said plate, and a weighted Winding mechanism having the actuating Weight positioned on the opposite side of said minor axis of the plate.

6. In a watch of the character described, an oblong plate, an hour-hand spindle, a hollow minute-hand spindle concentric with the hour-hand spindle, a spring actuated driving barrel having teeth on the periphery thereof, a center wheel, a center Wheel pinion meshing with said barrel, a shaft carrying said center wheel and pinion, said center wheel pinion and the axis of said barrel being mounted entirely on one side of the minor axis of said plate, a pinion frictionally mounted on said shaft, gear Wheels for transmitting motion from said frictionally mounted pinion to said hollow minute-hand spindle, an escapement mechanism," gear Wheels connecting the escapement mechanism with said center Wheel, the axes of all of said Wheels and of said escapement mechanism being positioned on the same side of said minor axis as said barrel, and a weighted winding mechanism having the actuating weight positioned on said plate on the opposite side of said minor axis.

7. In a Watch of the character described, an oblong plate, concentric minute and hour-handcarrying spindles mounted at the intersection of the major and minor axes of said oblong plate, a toothed driving barrel positioned on said plate entirely on one side of the minor axis thereof, a center wheel, a shaft carrying said center wheel and laterally spaced from the hands-carrying spindles, and a center wheel pinion aixed to said shaft and meshing with teeth on said barrel, said center wheel pinion and the shaft carrying the same being mounted entirely on the same side oi.' the minor axis of the oblong plate as the barrel.

8. In a Watch movement for Wrist watches, an oblong plate, concentric hands-carrying spindles, a toothed driving barrel, a pinion meshing With said barrel, a shaft transversely spaced from said hands-carrying spindles and carrying said pinion, and a second pinion on said shaft for transmitting driving movement to said hands-carrying spindles, the barrel and pinions being positioned on one side of an axis extending transversely across said plate and passing through the axis of the hands-carrying spindles.

9. In a Watch movement for Wrist Watches, an oblong plate, concentric hands-carrying spindles, a toothed driving barrel, a pinion meshing with said barrel, a shaft transversely spaced from said hands-carrying spindles and carrying said pinion, a second pinion on said shaft for transmitting driving movement to said hands-carrying spindles, the barrel and pinions being positioned on one side of an axis extending transversely across said plate and passing through the axis of the hands-carrying spindles, a center Wheel on said shaft, a seconds pinion, a shaft carrying the seconds pinion, a third wheel meshing with said seconds pinion, and a pinion carried by said third Wheel and meshing With said center Wheel, the third wheel and the shaft carrying the seconds pinion being mounted on the plate on the same side of said transverse axis thereof as the barrel.

10. In a Watch movement for wrist Watches, an oblong plate, concentric hands-carrying spindles, and a spring driven Watch movement including a plurality of gear Wheels and pinions and an escapement and balance unit, the axes of all of which lie on one side of an axis extending transversely across said plate and passing through the axis of the hands-carrying spindles. Y

HENRI COLOMB.

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