US2836956A

US2836956A - Electrically driven calendar clock

Info

Publication number: US2836956A
Application number: US525279A
Authority: US
Inventors: Lees W Chadwick
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1955-07-29
Filing date: 1955-07-29
Publication date: 1958-06-03
Anticipated expiration: 1975-06-03

Description

June 3, 1958 L. w. CHADWICK 2,335,955

ELECTRIGALLY DRIVEN CALENDAR CLOCK Filed July 29, 1955 5 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTOR.

A666 CZaJu/z'cv? June 3, 1958 w. CHADWICK ELECTRICALLY DRIVEN CALENDAR CLOCK 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed July 29, 1955 faPA/z/S June 3, 1958 w. CHADWICK ELECTRICALLY DRIVEN CALENDAR CLOCK 5 Sheets-Sheet 3 Filed July 29, 1955 I INVENTOR.

10 C/zaiwzcz Ma TaF/vE/ June 3, 1958 L. w. CHADWICK ELECTRICALLY DRIVEN CALENDAR CLOCK 5 Sheets-Sheet 4 Filed July 29, 1955 June 3, 1958 L. w. CHADWICK 2,836,956

' ELECTRICALLY DRIVEN CALENDAR CLOCK Filed July 29.- 1955 5 Sheets-Sheet 5 E- i gym IN V EN TOR.

United States Patent 2,836,956 ELECTRICALLY DRIVEN CALENDAR CLOCK Lees W. Chadwick, Miami, Fla. Application July 29, 1955, Serial No. 525,279 20 (Ilaims. (Cl. 58-6) This invention relates to perpetual calendar clocks, and particularly to a clock which provides automatic readings for the time of day, the date, the day, the month, and the extra day in February of a leap year.

The present invention pertains to a perpetual calendar clock having the usual clockworks for recording the seconds, minutes and hours of the day and having mechanism driven thereby which records the day of the week, the date of the month, and the month of the year. The mechanism automatically adjusts itself to the variation on the number of days for the different months and also for the extra day in leap year, which is every year divisible by four. The mechanism is constructed of rotatable and oscillatable parts which have little wear, the parts being so interrelated as to simply and automatically adjust the readings to conform to the variations between the days of the month, including leap year. The parts are lacking in critical dimensions and may be made very cheaply so that the clock may be sold at a low price with the possibility of creating a high demand therefor.

Accordingly, the main objects of the invention are: to provide a perpetual calendar clock which furnishes readings for the seconds, minutes and hours of the day, the day of the week, the date of the month, and the month of the year; to provide a perpetual calendar clock which automatically changes its settings for the different number of days in the month and for the extra day of leap year; to provide a perpetual calendar clock which furnishes readings for the seconds, minutes and hours of the days, the day of the Week, the date of the month, and the month of the year which is readily set for any particular time and date to make it simple to start the clock initially or after it has stopped, and, in general, to provide a perpetual calendar clock which is simple in construction, positive in operation and economical of manufacture.

Other objects and features of novelty of the invention will be specifically pointed out or will become apparent when referring, for a better understanding of the invention, to the following description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, wherein:

Figure 1 is a view in elevation of a perpetual calendar clock embodying features of the present invention;

Fig. 2 is an enlarged view in front elevation of the structure illustrated in Fig. 1, with the case removed;

Fig. 3 is a side view of the structure illustrated in Fig. 2, as viewed from the right-hand side thereof;

Fig. 4 is an enlarged, broken sectional view of the structure illustrated in Fig. 2, taken on the line 4-4 thereof;

Fig. 5 is an enlarged broken view of the structure illustrated in Fig. 2, taken on the line 5-5 thereof;

Fig. 6 is an enlarged broken view of the structure illustrated in Fig. 2, taken on the line 6-6 thereof;

Fig. 7 is an enlarged broken view of the structure illustrated in Fig. 2, taken on the line 7-7 thereof;

Fig. 8 is an enlarged, broken sectional view of the supported in a shaft is journaled in a hub 37 on 9 H structure illustrated in Fig. 2, taken on the line 8-8 thereof;

Fig. 9 is a side view of the structure illustrated in Fig. 2, as viewed from the left-hand side thereof;

Fig. 10 is a diagrammatic view of the month control element of Fig. 8 and the location of the pins controlled thereby;

Fig. 11 is an enlarged broken view of a stop finger of the present invention; and

Fig. 12 is a plan view of the finger illustrated in Fig. 11 as viewed from the point 12 thereof.

The case 9 for the calendar clock illustrated in Fig. 1 may vary in size, but the one herein illustrated is substantially six inches wide, six inches high and approximately four and one-half inches deep. The clock may be driven by a spring, a pendulum, weight, and the like, but is preferably driven by a conventional electric motor.

A base plate 10 supports a left-hand end plate 11, a right-hand end plate 12, and an intermediate plate 13. The plates are interconnected across the top by a bar 14. The base plate supports a laterally extending wall 15 and a rearwardly extending Wall 16. A motor 17 of the well known electric type which runs continuously without attention, is joined by a coupling 18 to a shaft 19. The shaft has a right-hand worm 21 near the righthand end and a left-hand worm 22 near the left-hand end. The ends of the shaft are supported in bosses 23 on the left-hand end plate and on the rearwardly extending wall 16. The worm 21 drives a worm wheel 25 mounted on a shaft 26 to drive the minute and

hour hands

27 and 28 through suitable gearing, not herein illustrated. The minute hand travels twelve times faster than the hour hand through suitable gear mechanism 29 at the front of the device.

The worm wheel 22 drives the worm 31 on a shaft 32 plurality of bosses 33 on the left-hand side plate 11 of the device. The shaft has a worm 34 thereon which drives a worm wheel 35 which is mounted on a shaft 36, one end of which is journaled in an aperture in the left-hand plate 11. The other end of the the intermediate plate movement by a collar 36 by a setscrew 39.

13, being retained against endwise 38 which is secured to the shaft The

worms

21 and 22 are driven one revolution per minute, while the shaft 36 and a cam 41 thereon are driven one revolution per day.

A drum 42 has seven faces thereon, one for each day of the week. A drum 43 has twelve faces thereon, one for each month of the year. A drum 44 has ten faces thereon containing numbers from zero to nine. The drums are mounted for free rotational movement on a shaft 45 which is secured to the left and right-

hand side plates

11 and 12. A drum 46, smaller in diameter than the

aforesaid drums

42, 43 and 44, is mounted on a separate shaft 47 on a depending bracket 48 secured to the under face of the bar 14. The drum 46 contains numerals l, 2 and 3 and a blank on each semi-circular surface thereof. The shaft 47 is offset relative to the shaft 45 so as to bring the periphery of the drum 46 aligned with the periphery of the drum 44 at the window opening 49 of the clock case, as illustrated in Fig. 1. The cam plate 41, Fig. 9, has a cam notch 51 therein in which a pin 52 will drop, the pin being mounted on the end of an arm 53 which is fixed to a gear 24 on the shaft 45. The gear 24 has on the side adjacent to the drum 42, a pawl 54 which engages one of seven teeth 55 of a ratchet wheel 50 on the end of the drum 42. Since the shaft 36 and cam 41 rotate once in 24 hours, the drum 42 will be advanced one-seventh of its periphery each 24 hours. In this manner, days of the week are shown in the window opening 56 in the case of the clock illustrated in Fig. 1. The gear 24 has its 3 teeth in a mesh with the teeth of a sector 57 which is secured to a shaft 58 supported between the right and left-

hand side plates

11 and 12. A spring 59 urges the sector 57 in a clockwise direction, thereby biasing the gear 24 and the arm 53 in a counterclockwise direction, urging the pin 52 into the cam notch 51 of the cam plate 41. This permits the pawl 54 in engagement with the next adjacent tooth 55 to rotate the drum 42 counterclockwise to advance the next day in the window opening.

It can well be understood that the driving power from the motor 17 is limited and it is essential that all parts operate with a minimum of friction and effort. It is necessary, therefore, to provide nonfrietional means to prevent the dru-ms from rebounding from advanced position and to positively retain them in such positions. The sector gear 57 has a crescent-shaped stop 16% which intercepts one of the seven angular-shaped nibs 161 on the inner face of the drum 42. As the drum is being advanced, the sector gear 57 is oscillating downwardly and at approximately the middle of this movement the nib 161 can pass by the stop 169 but will not be able to rebound as the stop 160 will thereafter intercept the nib. For retaining the drums 42 in advanced position, a spring finger 162 has a forward stop projection 164 and a rear stop projection 165 which engage the nibs 161 on opposite sides and retain the drums in exact position. The cam portion 166 of the cam plate 41 rotates the arm 53 and gear 24 clockwise, moving the pawl 54 into a position of engagement with the next adjacent tooth 55 of the drum ratchet wheel 50 and returning the sector gear 57 to its initial position while tensioning the spring 59.

7 As illustrated in Fig. 5, the oscillation of the shaft 58 oscillates the arm 61 and through the slot and pin connection 62 an arm 63 is oscillated. The arm 63 carries a pawl 64 in position to engage one of ten teeth on a ratchet wheel 65 secured to the drum 44, the pawl having a finger 66 for a purpose which will be described hereinafter. In this manner, each time a new day is advanced in the window opening 56, the drum 44 will be advanced to add one more day to the window opening 49 of the case. It will be noted in Fig. 6 that the drum 44 has a finger 67 in position to engage one of eight projections 68 on the drum 46. Each revolution of the drum 44 causes the finger 67 thereof to engage one of the projections 68 of the drum 46 and advance the drum oneeighth of a revolution so that the lef -hand digit in the window 49 at the beginning of a month will show a blank and be advanced to

digits

1, 2 and 3 each succeeding tenth day. A stop element 60 on the drum 44 spaced from the finger 67 prevents the drum 46 from over-running by i11- tercepting the projection 68 following the one engaged by the finger 67, but which clears the projection as the drum 44 advances. The blank face and those containing

digits

1,2 and 3 on one-half of the periphery of the drum 46 would normally require 40 days to pass the window opening 49. The fact that the digit 3 is only employed. for one or at the most two days additional, mechanism hereafter to be described is required to advance the drum 46 to the next advanced position completing the 180 half turn.

The mechanism controls the timing for 28 days in February and for leap year every fourth year, for 30 days in April, June, September and November, and 31 days for the remainder of the months. The computation for the mechanism is based on a 366-day year divided into twelve parts of 30 /2 days each. Twelve pins are provided on the drum 43, some of which are disposed on radii of different lengths from the center of the drum. Pins 71 are disposed on the shorter radii, pins 72 on a longer radii, pins 73 on still a longer radii, while a single pin 74 is provided on the longest radii. A timer disk 75 has a flange 76 thereon that is engaged by one of the pins 71 to 74 which is prevented from passing downwardly. The flange 76 is interrupted at 77 to permit a pin to drop downwardly and the drum 43 to advance. The flange 76 5 V has a wide slot 78 therein for the purpose of permitting the pins to pass from below the flange as the drum is advanced.

Referring to Fig. 7, a cam 79, secured to the shaft 36 which revolves once in 24 hours, has a pair of earn fingers 81 diametrically disposed in position to engage a projection 82 on an oscillatable lever 83 for rocking the lever twice in a 24-hour period. A pawl 34 on the lever engages the teeth of a ratchet wheel 85 Which is secured to a shaft 86 on which the timing disk 75 and a spaced cam plate 87 are also secured. The earn plate and timing disk are driven by the ratchet wheel 85 as it is advanced an increment each twelve hours, or twice a day, as indicated above. A pawl 88 retains the ratchet wheel 85 in advanced position against backward motion. A pair of space washers 89 has the upper end of the lever 83 disposed therebetween to maintain the lever in aligned position on the shaft 36. The lever 83 is supported near the lower end on a pivot 91 having a spring 92 wound thereabout which engages a pin 93 on the lever for urging the lever in a counterclockwise direction. A finger 31 on the cam disk '79 will engage the finger 82 and the lever 83 and will carry the lever along therewith for a predetermined distance, after which the finger 81 will pass beneath the finger 82, producing the advancement of the ratchet disk 85 clockwise by the pawl 84 and the return of the lever 83 to its original position by the spring 92. The ratchet wheel 85 has a cam plate 94 ndjustably secured thereto through the slot and screw connection 95 at diametrically opposite points. The plate 94 has a pair of

lobes

96 and 97 which are spaced 6 of a revolution apart. A projecting finger 98 on the lower end of the lever 83 engages the periphery of a disk 99 to thereby limit the counterclockwise return movement of the lever 83. The disk 99 has three spaced notches 188, 181 and 192 in the peripheral edge thereof which permit the finger 98 to move into the notch, thereby permitting a greater travel to the return movement of the lever 83 so that the next movement thereof in the opposite direction will rotate the ratchet wheel 35 a greater amount. The disk 99 has a ratchet wheel 103 secured thereto on a shaft 184 and a lever 185 pivoted on a pin 1% has a pawl 107 thereon which actuates the ratchet wheel 1113 when the lever is oscillated. The lever has a cam lobe 108 which is engaged by the

lobes

96 and 97 on the plate 94 to rock the lever 105 clockwise to have the pawl 187 advance the ratchet Wheel 103 and disk 99. A spring 189 about the pivot 1136 returns the'lever 105 to its initial position against a pin 111 each time the lever is oscillated by a

lobe

96 or 97. A pair of washers 112 engage opposite sides of the upper end of the lever 185, thereby maintaining the pawl 107 aligned with the teeth of the ratchet wheel 103. Through the actuation of the levers 83 and 105 in the manner just described, the ratchet wheel 85 (see Fig. 7) is advanced to rotate the shaft 86 and therefore the cam plate 87 and the timer disk 75, to thereby control the advancement of the drum 43, indicating the month of the calendar year in which the clock is operating. Between the cam plate 87 and the timer disk 75 is a gear 114 rotatably supported on the shaft 45.

A disk 115, having a pair of lobes 116 116a thereon, is rotatably mounted on the shaft 4-5 on the opposite side of the cam plate 87 from the gear 114 and is secured in fixed relation to the gear. The gear 114 carries a pawl 117 (Fig. 8) which engages one of twelve teeth of a ratchet wheel 118 which is secured to the drum 43. A pin 119 on the gear 114 will ride upon the periphery of the cam plate 87 until a cam slot 121 is reached, whereupon the pin 119 will drop down, advancing the gear 114- and causing the pawl 117 to rotate the ratchet wheel 118 A one notch. This will occur at the time a pin, such as the pin 71, drops through the slot 77 in the flange 76 of the timer disk 75. Thus, it will be seen that the ratchet wheel 85 will be rotated once in 330 /2 days, thereby controlling the turning of the drum 43 twelve revolutions each 366 days.

It will be noted in Fig. that the three innermost pins 71 representing the months February, April and June will pass directly through the slot in the position in which the timer disk is illustrated. It will be noted that the pins 72, five in number representing the months March, May, July, September and November, require a further advancement of the timer disk 75 to permit the pins to drop through the slot 77, while the pins 73 indicating the months of August, October and December require still further advancement of the timer disk 75 in order to have the pins drop through the slot 77, while the pin 74 of greatest radius from the center of the disk requires a still further advancement of the timer disk 75 before the pin will be permitted to drop through the slot 77.

It will thus be noted that the

pins

71, 72, 73 and 74, of different radial distance from the center of the drum 43, alternate with each other so that when one pin drops through a slot 77 the next adjacent pin will rest upon the flange of the timer disk 75, thereby limiting the rotation of the drum 43 to of a circle or 30, the angular distance between the adjacent pins. As a pin passes through the slot '77, the pin 119 will move into the cam slot 121 of the cam plate 87.

It will be noted that a shaft 122, extending between the right-hand plate 12 and the intermediate plate 13, has three

sectors

123, 124 and 125 secured thereto which are urged in a counterclockwise direction by a spring 126, as illustrated in Figs. 5, 6 and 8. When the pin 119 drops into the cam slot 121 of the cam plate 87, the spring 126 will urge the sectors in a counterclockwise direction with the sector 123, positively rotating the gear 114, the disk 115, the ratchet wheel 118, and the drum 43. When this month-end movement occurs, the shaft 122 and the

sectors

123, 124 and 125 are moved through an angular distance regulated by the degree of rotation of the gear 114 which is controlled by the movement of the pin 119 on the cam surface 121. The sector 124 is in mesh with the teeth of a gear 127 which is rotated on the shaft 47 upon a counterclockwise movement of the sector to advance the pawl 128 carried by the gear. The pawl engages a finger 129 or 131 on the drum 46 to thereby rotate it an additional amount to complete a 180 advancement to have a blank face appear in the window opening 49 where the numeral 2 is now illustrated. Stop pins 132 are carried by the drum 46 which strikes a projecting flange 133 on the sector 124 to accurately stop the rotation of the drum 46 at the end of each 180 advancement thereof.

The sector 125 is in mesh with the teeth of a gear 134 and a pin 135 on the ratchet wheel 65 is disposed in position to engage the finger 66 on the pawl 64 to move the pawl out of engagement with a tooth of the ratchet wheel 65. A pawl 136 carried by the gear 134 is spring pressed against a pin 137 and is advanced to strike a pin 138 to advance the ratchet wheel 65 to move the

drums

44 and 46 to a position in'which the numeral 1 appears in the window opening 49 in place of the 23 now appearing therein, as illustrated in Fig. 1. In other words, at the month end the window opening 49 will disclose a blank in place of the

numeral

2 or 3 and a numeral 1 in place of the

numeral

8, 9, 0 or 1 indicating the first day of the month. This month-end movement occurs just prior to the movement of the lever 61. When the lever 61 is moved, the pawl 64 will be out of engagement with a tooth on the ratchet wheel 65 because of the position of the pin 135 rendering the pawl inoperative so that the movement of the lever 61 will not advance the ratchet wheel 65 nor the drum 44 and for the first day of the month the number 1 will appear in the open ing. When, for example, a month has 31 days therein, so that 31, will appear in the window 49, the pin 138 will have advanced to such a position that the pawl 136 will merely engage the pin at the end of its stroke but will not advance the ratchet wheel 65 and therefore the drum 44, thereby leaving the 1 on the right-hand portion of the window 49. The 3, however, will be advanced by the movement of the drum 46 through the engagement of pawl 123 with the projection 129 to rotate the drum 46 so that a blank will appear in the left-hand part of the window. If the numeral 28 were in the window opening 49, for example, the pawl 128 would strike the finger 129 in an earlier position and move the 2 and 3 past the window until the next adjacent blank appeared and the 8 would be advanced to 9, 0, 1, through the movement of the ratchet wheel 65 by the pawl 136 engaging the pin 138 and moving it sufficiently to pass the

numbers

8, 9 and 0 beyond the window opening 49 so that a 1 will appear therein. In this manner, at the month end, whether a 28, 29, 30 or 31 day month, the

drums

44 and 46 will be rotated to have blank and 1 appear in the window opening 49. As pointed out above, this occurs just before the movement of the lever 61, but since the pawl 64 has been rendered inoperative by the pin 135, this movement of the lever 61 will occur without advancing the drum 41 until its subsequent occurrence the next succeeding day.

By the end of the first day of the month, the pin 138 and pawl 136, as well as the gear 134, must be moved backwardly to separate the pin 135 from the finger 66. A disk 141 (Fig. 8) is secured to the shaft 86 having four teeth 142 thereon corresponding to the four different axial lengths of the

pins

71, 72, 73 and 74 from the center of the drum 43. The gear 114 and the cam plate will rotate through 30 or of a revolution and the finger 116 will contact one of the teeth 142 on the plate 141, the particular tooth depending upon the number of days in the month just ended. The pin 119 moves into the cam slot 121 of the cam plate 87 as the pin 71 drops through the slot 77, and the finger 116 will strike the tooth corresponding to the end of either the month of February, April or June. The pin 119 passes across the bottom portion 143 of the cam plate 37 and will ride up the adjacent cam surface as the cam plate 87 continues to be revolved, rotating the gear 114 counterclockwise. This moves the sector 123 clockwise to thereby rotate the shaft 122, moving the sector clockwise, thereby moving the gear 134 counterclockwise and moving the pin out of engagement with the finger 66 of 'ie pawl 64 which then drops in position to engage a tooth of the ratchet wheel 65 so that it may advance each succeeding day. This backing off rotates the sectors clockwise only through a small distance, moving the finger 116 of the disk 115 out of engagement with the tooth 142 of the disk 141. Sufficient movement, however, is provided in this manner to move the pin 135 to release the pawl 64 so that it may function thereafter until the next month-end day. To provide assurance that the pin 135 will not slip back to again engage the arm 56 on the pawl 64, a lockout mechanism 144 is provided for the disk 115. The mechanism 144, as illustrated in Figs. 4 and 8, is mounted on the intermediate plate 13 having a detent 145 pivoted thereon to move downwardly into position of engagement with the finger 116a. A pivoted trigger 146 has an arm 147 which engages a projecting arm 148 on the detent 145 for raising the detent and permitting the finger 116a to pass therebeyond. A spring 149 biases the detent 145 downwardly, while a spring 151 retains the trigger 146 in the position illustrated, permitting the finger 116a to carry it beyond this position in both directions of movement thereof. An arm 152 on the trigger extends downwardly in a position to be engaged by the finger 116a which rotates the trigger 146 counterclockwise to have the arm 147 engage the arm 148 and raise the detent 145 so that the finger 116a can pass the detent which drops down on the finger after it passes beyond the end of the finger 152 of the trigger which returns to the position illustrated. When the reverse movement of the disk 115 occurs, as the pin 135 is moved away from the detent 64, the finger 116a will have moved counterclockwise sufficiently to have the detent 145 drop down and prevent the plate 115 from moving clockwise and therefore the pin 135 from advancing and again moving the detent 64 into inoperative position. This provides assurance that the numeral 2 will be advanced into the window opening 49 on the second day of the month and that advancement will occur thereafter in the normal manner, recording each of the succeeding days. As the finger 116a is advanced further, counterclockwise, it will strike the arm 152 of the trigger 146 and rotate it clockwise until the finger moves beyond the arm, whereupon the spring 151 will return the trigger to normal position with the arm 152 in position to again be engaged by the finger 1160 when advanced clockwise.

Since the mechanism is set up as explained hereinabove to operate on a 366 day year, it follows that during February in three of each four years one day must be lost so that in each of tr c three years February will show 28 days and in each fourth year will show 29 days. It will be noted, as pointed out above with regard to Fig. 7, that the cam plate 79 has two lobes 81 thereon which oscillate the lever 83 to advance the pawl 84 which engages and advances the ratchet wheel of a revolution every half day. The disk 94 has the pair of

lobes

96 and 7 thereon, as pointed out hereinabove, which operates the lever 105 to have the pawl 1617 advance the ratchet wheel 103 two teeth for each revolution of the disk 94. the ratchet wheel 103 has 96 teeth and will therefore be advanced revolution with'the disk 9 each month, one complete revolution every four years.

As pointed out hereinabove, the periphery of the disk 99 has three notches therein 1%, 101 and 102 which are 90 apart. The mechanism is so adjusted that the first lobe $6 on the disk 94 brings one of the notches 1%, 101 and 162 opposite to the finger 98 on the lever 83 during the month of February. When the finger 3 drops into a notch, the lever 33 moves a greater distance counterclockwise so that the ratchet wheel 85 will move twice the distance, or 3 revolution, thereby advancing the movement a whole day. The second lobe 97 on the disk 94 is so spaced that the tip of lever 83 remains in notch 1' 2 and will again move a greater distance counterclockwise to advance the ratchet Wheel 85 an additional half day, or ,4 revolution, thereby providing an advancement of a full day. By this means, the mechanism loses one day in each of the three years in which February has 28 days, thus reducing the length of each of the three years to 365 days. The fourth year or leap year will have the full 366 days since there is no notch similar to notches 1%, 101 and 162 on the fourth 90 position on the periphery of the disk 99 between the notches 1G9 and 162 in which the finger 98 can drop.

The second lobe 97 on the disk 94 actuates the lever 105 to thereby advance the disk $9 and move the slot 102 past the finger 98 so that the finger, after moving from the notch 1122 on the third year, will have no notch to drop in on the fourth year, which will be a 366-day year or leap year. On the first year of the next four-year period, the finger $13 will drop into notch and thereby produce a 365-day year. The second year of the period will have 365 days as the finger 98 will drop into the notch 141 and likewise the third year wiil'have 365 days. as the finger 98 drops into the third notch 1112. In this manner, a 365-day year is provided at all times except for leap year when a year of 366 days will occur. The pin 71 drops through the slot 77 of the disk 75 at the end of the month of February after the numeral 28 appeared in the window opening 49 of the clock ease for twenty-four hours. The additional day provided by the absence of the notch in the disk 93 will cause a delay in 8 the dropping of the pin so that the number 29 will appear in the window opening 49 for twenty-four hours before the first day of March is set up in the opening.

All of the

drums

42, 43, 44 and 46 have nibs 161 thereon for locating the positions of the drums to have the numeral, day and month indications accurately located in the windows of the case.

Drums

42, 44 and 46 are freely revoluble and these drums employ the spring fingers 162 for engaging the nib and securing the drum in position while preventing any rebound which might otherwise occur. The fingers 162 are mounted on the frame 163 and have

parallel projections

164 and 165, as illustrated in Figs. 11 and 12, which engage opposite sides of the nibs. The drum 43 is also freely revolvable but has no chance to rebound since one of the

pins

71, 72, 73 and '74 will rest upon the flange of the timer disk 75, urged thereagainst by spring pressure from the sector 123 so that the lever 170 having a notch 171 therein will accurately position the drum relative to the window. The lever is secured on a pivot 172 on a bracket 173 extending downwardly from the cross bar 14 to which it is secured by a plurality of screws 174. A spring 175 about the pivot 172 urges the lever 170 in a counterclockwise direction for forcing the notch into engagement with a nib 161. The nib cams itself into and out of the notch by rocking the lever about the pivot 172 as the drum 43 is rotated.

Since'a substantial movement may occur to the drum 44 when it is returned to number one position, care must be exercised to prevent it from overrunning or rebounding, over and above that provided by the finger 162. A pair of projections 176 and 177 are disposed on the drum,

the former in position to be intercepted by a stop block 178 as the sector drops down. Near the end of the downward movement of the sector the stop block 178 moves out of position of engagement with the projection 176 and a stop block 179 moves into a position to be engaged by the projection 177. Before the next day advancement, the sector 125 is moved upwardly sufficiently to move the stop block 179 out of the path of the projection 177 which permitsthe drum to be advanced daily in the normal manner positioned by the finger 162.

It will be noted that the lever 61 of the drum 44, as

illustrated'in Fig. 5, also has a pin which intercepts the nibs 161 of the drum so as to prevent the overrunning of the drum during each day movement.

In the calendar clock thus constructed, all of the drums move in the same direction by mechanism urged in that direction, which eliminates any question of backlash or out-of-timing occurring between the movement of the drums. The advancing movement of the drums occurs through thedownward movement of the sectors in which energy is stored during the normal driving of the clock motor for tensioning'springs which move the sectors downwardly'when released so that energy is provided for rapidly advancing the drums to the next position. The drums are freely advanced, and since as much friction as possible has been eliminated, a minimum of resistance is offered to the advancing movement. For example, the ends 164 and of the fingers 162 do not contact the ridge of the drum from which the nibs 161 extend, but only engage the nibs to accurately locate the drums. The parts of the calendar clock operate in unison so that groups can be die-cast as a unit, substantially reducing the number of parts from that herein illustrated, which were of the original prototype. For example, the

sectors

123, 124 and 125 and the supporting shaft will all be cast as a single unit. This is true of cam platesand ratchet wheels so that the resulting parts will be inexpensive, but will be sturdy with a long life as the parts rotate or have arcuate movements resulting in little wear.

To further protect the mechanism from damage, the drive from the gear 35 to the disk 41 is through a pawl 180 engaging spaced pins 181 and 182. This permits.

the mechanism to be moved without putting any strain on the gear drive from the motor. When the worm wheel 35 is advanced, the pawl 180 will pick up the pins 181 and 182 and drive the mechanism in the normal manner. When it is desired to set the clock, the

sectors

57, 123, 124 and 125 must be in up position to have the arm 61 in raised position, with the pin 52 out of the cam notch 51. When in this position, the

drums

42, 44 and 46 may be advanced to set the desired day and date on the clock. The

disks

75 and 76 must be advanced to drop one of the series of pins for each month movement until the desired month appears within the clock window. It is to be understood that a simple mechanism could be provided for advancing all of the drums to any desired date. A plate could be mounted on the back of the clock to indicate when the month-end drums advancement had reached the month desired. It is felt, however, that the advancement of the month drum can occur without any ditficulty since the month window will show the advancement. The second and minute hands may be adjusted on the face of the clock in the normal manner.

What is claimed is:

1. In a calendar clock, motor means for driving the hour and minute hands in a normal manner to provide the time of day, a month name drum, a day name drum, and a pair of date drums, means for advancing said drums, gear sectors moved to raised position by said motor means for storing energy for rapidly actuating said advancing means, and control means for releasing said sectors.

2. In a calendar clock, motor means for driving the hour and minute hands in a normal manner to provide the time of day, a month name drum, a day name drum, and a pair of date drums, means for advancing said drums, gear sectors moved to raised position by said motor means for storing energy for rapidly actuating said advancing means, control means for releasing said sectors, projections on said drums, and spring fingers having end portions engaging opposite sides of a projection for accurately positioning said drums and preventing the drum from rebounding.

3. In a calendar clock, motor means for driving the hour and minute hands in a normal manner to provide the time of day, a month name drum, a day name drum, and a first and second date drum, means for advancing said drums, gear sectors moved to raised position by said motor means for storing energy for actuating said advancing means, and control means for releasing certain of said sectors at the end of each 24-hour period.

4. In a calendar clock, motor means for driving the hour and minute hands in a normal manner to provide the time of day, a month name drum, a day name drum, and a first and second date drum, means for advancing said drums, an energy storing means driven by said motor means for storing energy for actuating said advancing means, control means for releasing certain of said energy storing means at the end of each 24-hour period, twelve pins on said month name drum spaced varying radial distances from the center thereof, means preventing the rotation of the month name drum by intercepting one of said pins, and means driving said preventing means for releasing a pin once each revolution which releases said month end storing means for advancing the month name drum one-twelfth of a revolution in accordance with the number of days in a particular month.

5. In a calendar clock, motor means for driving the hour and minute hands in a normal manner to provide the time of day, a month name drum, a day name drum, and a first and second date drum, means for advancing said drums, an energy storing means driven by said motor means for storing energy for actuating said advancing means, control means for releasing certain of said energy storing means at the end of each 24-hour period, twelve pins on said month name drum some of which are spaced varying radial distances from the center thereof, means preventing the rotation of the month name drum by intercepting one of said pins, and means driving said preventing means for releasing a pin once each revolution which releases said month end storing means, said driving means being rotated one revolution each 30 /2 days.

6. In a calendar clock, motor means for driving the hour and minute hands in a normal manner to provide the time of day, a month name drum, a day name drum, and a first and second date drum, means for advancing said drums, an energy storing means driven by said motor means for storing energy for actuating said advancing means, control means for releasing certain of said energy storing means at the end of each 24-hour period, twelve pins on said month name drum spaced varying radial distances from the center thereof, means preventing the rotation of the month name drum by intercepting one of said pins, means driving said preventing means for releasing a pin once each revolution which releases said month end storing means for advancing the month name drum one-twelfth of a revolution in accordance with the number of days in a particular month, and means delaying the release of the month end storing means for one full day each fourth year when February has 29 days.

7. In a calendar clock, motor means for driving the hour and minute hands in a normal manner to provide the time of day, a month name drum, a day name drum, and a first and second date drum, means for advancing said drums, an energy storing means driven by said motor means for storing energy for actuating said advancing means, control means for releasing certain of said energy storing means at the end of each 24-hour period, twelve pins on said month name drum spaced varying radial distances from the center thereof, means preventing the rotation of the month name drum by intercepting one of said pins, means driving said preventing means for releasing a pin once each revolution which releases said month end storing means for advancing the month name drum one-twelfth of a revolution in accordance with the number of days in a particular month, and means actuated by the energy storing means for returning the date drums to register the first day of the following month.

8. In a calendar clock, motor means for driving the hour and minute hands in a normal manner to provide the time of day, a month name drum, a day name drum, and a first and second date drum, means for advancing said drums, an energy storing means driven by said motor means for storing energy for actuating said advancing means, control means for releasing certain of said energy storing means at the end of each 24-hour period, twelve pins on said month name drum spaced varying radial distances from the center thereof, means preventing the rotation of the month name drum by intercepting one of said pins, means driving said preventing means for releasing a pin once each revolution which releases said month end storing means for advancing the month name drum one-twelfth of a revolution in accordance with the number of days in a particular month, means actuated by the energy storing means for returning the date drums to register the first day of the following month, and means preventing said energy storing means actuated at the end of the following 24-hour period from advancing said date drums registering the first day of the month until the succeeding day.

9. In a calendar clock, motor means for driving the hour and minute hands in a normal manner to provide the time of day, a month name drum, a day name drum, a pair of date drums, means for advancing said drums to show the date, the day and the month, said means operating on a 366-day year, and means for losing a day each of three years of a four-year period when February has 28 days and employing the 366-day year for the fourth year when February has 29 days.

10. In a calendar clock, motor means for driving the hour and minute hands in a normal manner to provide the time of day, a month name drum, a day name drum, a pair of date drums, means for advancing said drums to show the date, the day and the month, said drums being advanced in the same direction and being free of friction so as to be moved with little effort, a projection on at least one of said drums, and stop means which permits the projection on said one drum to pass thereby when in a predetermined position and otherwise preventing such passage.

11. In a calendar clock, motor means for driving the hour and minute hands in a normal manner to provide the time of day, a month name drum, a day name drum, a pair of date drums, means for advancing said drums to show the date, the day and the month, said drums being advanced in the same direction and being free of friction so as to be moved with little efiort, projections on said drums, stop means which permits the projection on said drums to pass thereby when in a predetermined position and otherwise preventing such passage, and spring means contacting'the drum projections at points which accurately locate the drum.

12. In a calendar clock, motor means for driving the hour and minute hands in a normal manner to provide the time of day, a month name drum, a day name drum, a pair of date drums, means for advancing said drums to show the date, the day and the month, said drums being advanced in the, same direction and being free of friction so as to be moved with little effort, projections on said drums, spring means contacting said projections on the drum at points which accurately locate the drum, said pair of date drums being of different diameter and having their axes offset relative to each other, and means on the larger drum engaging a projection on the smaller .drum for advancing it one step each time the larger drum advances one revolution.

13. In a calendar clock, motor means for driving the hour and minute hands in a normal manner to provide the time of day, a month name drum, a day name drum, a pair of date drums, means for advancing said drums to show the date, the day and the month, said drums being advanced in the same direction and being free of friction so as to be moved with little effort, projections on said drums, spring means contacting said projections on the drum at points which accurately locate the drum, said pair of date drums being of different diameter and having their axes offset relative to each other, means on the larger drum engaging a projection on the smaller drum for advancing it one step each time the larger drum advances one revolution, gear means driven one revolution each day, energy storing means driven by said gear means, and means releasing said storing means at the end of each day for advancing the day drum and one of the date drums.

14. In a calendar clock, motor means for driving the hour and minute hands in a normal manner to provide the time of day, a month name drum, a day name drum, a pair of date drums, means for advancing said drums to show the date, the day and the month, said drums being advanced in the same direction and being free of friction so as to be moved with little effort, projections on said drums, spring means contacting said projections on the drum points which accurately locate the drum, said pair of date drums being of different diameter and having their axes offset relative to each other, means on the larger drum engaging a projection on the smaller drum for advancing it one step each time the larger drum advances one revolution, gear means driven one revolution each day, energy storing means driven by said gear means, means releasing said storing means at the end of each day for advancing the day drum and one of the date drums, and means advancing said other date drum of the pair each revolution of said first date drum which occurs once in ten days.

15. In a calendarclock, motor means for driving the hour and minute hands in a normal mannerto provide thetirne of .day, a month name drum, a day name drum, a pair of date drums, means for advancing said drums to show the date, the day and the month, said drums being advanced in the same direction and being free of friction so as to be moved with little efiort, projections on said drums, spring means contacting said projections on the drum at points which accurately locate the drum, said pair of date drums being of different diameter and having their axes offset relative to each other, means on the larger drum engaging a projection on the smaller drum for advancing it one step each time the larger drum advances one revolution, gear means driven one revolution each day, energy storing means driven by said gear means, means releasing said storing means at the end of each day for advancing the day drum and one'of the date drums, means advancing said other date drum of the pair each revolution of said first date drum which occurs once in. ten days, and month end control mechanism which is normally advanced once in 30 /2 days for releasing said energy storing means which advances the month name drum and returns the date drums to register the first day of the month.

16. In a calendar clock, motor means for driving the hour and minute hands in a normal manner to provide the time of day, a month name drum, a day name drum, a pair of date drums, means for advancing said drums to show the date, the day and'the month, said drums being advanced in the same direction and being free of friction so as to be moved with little effort, projections on said drums, spring means contacting said projections on the drum at points which accurately locate the drum, said pair of date drums being of different diameter and having their axes offset relative to each other, means on the larger drum engaging a projection on the smaller drum for advancing it one step each time the larger drum advances one revolution, gear means driven one revolution each day, energy storing means driven by said gear means, means releasing said energy storing means at the ;end of each day for advancing the day drum and one of the date drums, means advancing said other date drumof the pair each revolution of said first date drum' which occurs once in ten days, month end control mechanism which is normally advanced once in 30 /2 days for releasing said energy storing means which advances the month name drum and returns the date drums to register the first day of the month, and means rendering the date advancing means inoperative for the first day of the month following the month end operation which sets up the first day of the month on the date drum.- 7 7 17. In a calendar clock, motor means for driving the hour and minute hands in a normal manner to provide the time of day, a month name drum, a day name drum, a pair of date drums, means for advancing said drums to show the date, the day and the month, said drums being advanced in the same direction and being free of friction so as to be moved with little effort, projections on said dnims, spring means contacting said projectionson the drum at points which accurately locate the drum, said pair of date drums being of different diameter and having their axes offset relative to each other, means on the larger drum engaging a projection on the smaller drum for advancing it one step each time the larger drum advances one revolution, gear means driven one revolution each day, energy storing means driven by said gear means, and

cans releasing said storing means at .the end of each day for advancing the day drum'and one of the date rums, the drive from said gear means embodying a pawl engaging a pair of pins for driving in one direction while permitting the advancement of the mechanism in the said direction without interfering with said gearmeans.

18. A calendar clock having hour and minute hands, a day name dram having the seven name days of the week thereon, a month name drum having the twelve name months of the year thereon, and two date drums,

one having

numerals

1, 2, 3 and a blank on each 180 portion of its periphery, the other having numerals 1 to 9 and zero thereon, motor means for driving the hands of the clock, means driven by the motor means for controlling operation of the drums daily and at month ends, energy storing means operated by said motor means, the stored energy being released by said control means for rapidly advancing said day name and said other date drum daily, and means on said other date drum for advancing said one date drum every ten days.

19. A calendar clock having hour and minute hands, a day name drum having the seven name days of the week thereon, a month name drum having the twelve name months of the year thereon, and two date drums, one having

numerals

1, 2, 3 and a blank on each 180 portion of its periphery, the other having numerals 1 to 9 and zero thereon, motor means for driving the hands of the clock, means driven by the motor means for controlling operation of the drums daily and at month ends, energy storing means operated by said motor means, the stored energy being released by said control means for rapidly advancin' said day name and said other date drum daily, and means on said other date drum for advancing said on date drum every ten days, said control means releasing said energy storing means for advancing said month name drum at each month end and for advancing the date drums to register the first day of the month.

20. A calendar clock having hour and minute hands, a day name drum having the seven name days of the week thereon, a month name drum having the twelve 14 name months of the year thereon, and two date drums, one having

numerals

1, 2, 3 and a blank on each 180 portion of its periphery, the other having numerals 1 to 9 and zero thereon, motor means for driving the hands of the clock, means driven by the motor means for controlling operation of the drums daily and at month ends, energy storing means operated by said motor means, the stored energy being released by said control means for rapidly advancing said day name and said other date drum daily, means on said other date drum for advancing said one date drum every ten days, said control means releasing said energy storing means for advancing said month name drum at each month end and for advancing the date drums to register the first day of the month, and means preventing the advancement of the date drums on the first day of each month by said energy storing means which advances only the day name drum on said first day.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 250,682 Seem Dec. 13, 1881 968,319 Boillot Aug. 23, 1910 1,990,645 Greenawalt Feb. 12, 1935 2,073,275 Elberg Mar. 9, 1937 2,470,692 ACourt Farr May 17, 1949 FOREIGN PATENTS 6,133 Great Britain Mar. 12, 1898