Torque smoothing for a timepiece, particularly with a striking mechanism

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11435696-B2
Application number	US-201816205279-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Nov 30, 2018
Priority date	Jul 25, 2017
Publication date	Sep 6, 2022
Grant date	Sep 6, 2022

Abstract

Timepiece with a movement driving an output wheel set, a passing strike or minute repeater mechanism, including a strike drive wheel set including a release ratchet with which cooperates a click for execution of a strike function, a strike uncoupling lever for moving any click away from the strike wheel set, including a first lever carrying the click and its spring, the output wheel set activating a second lever, the pivoting of which causes the first lever to pivot, the striking mechanism includes a torque smoothing jumper, which is returned by a first spring into abutment on the output wheel set, in order to use, when the second lever is not in mesh with the output wheel set, an equivalent torque to that which it uses when meshed with this output wheel set.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A timepiece comprising:
at least one movement including main energy storage means for powering at least one resonator and arranged to continuously drive at least one output wheel set including at least one tooth; and
at least one display mechanism arranged to be controlled by a said movement or by user action, said display mechanism being supplied with energy at least by said main energy storage means and/or by secondary energy storage means via said output wheel set, and said display mechanism including elastic return means gradually wound by means of said output wheel set and arranged to change the display at instants controlled by a said movement or by user action, by unwinding said elastic return means, the winding and unwinding cycle of said elastic return means corresponding to a variation in the torque used by said display mechanism at said output wheel set, which includes at least one tooth arranged to lift an intermediate movement-actuated release lever, comprised in said display mechanism, wherein said display mechanism includes a torque smoothing jumper which is arranged for discontinuous abutting engagement with said output wheel set, either directly, or via an intermediate train, and which a first spring tends to return into abutment on said output wheel set, in order to use, when said intermediate, movement-actuated release lever is not in mesh with said output wheel set, a torque equivalent to that used by said intermediate, movement-actuated release lever when it is in mesh with said output wheel set, so as to avoid jerks in the going train of said movement and to prevent any amplitude variation of said resonator.

2. The timepiece according to claim 1 , wherein said display mechanism is a striking mechanism for executing a passing strike and/or minute repeater function when said striking mechanism includes a minute repeater, said striking mechanism being arranged to be controlled by a said movement or by user action, said striking mechanism being supplied with energy by said main energy storage means and/or by said secondary energy storage means, and said striking mechanism including at least one strike drive wheel set including a release ratchet with which is arranged to cooperate a main click for the passing strike function and/or the minute repeater function when said striking mechanism includes a minute repeater, wherein said striking mechanism includes a strike uncoupling lever arranged to move away from said strike wheel set said main click and said minute repeater release click when said striking mechanism includes a minute repeater, said strike uncoupling lever including a movement-actuated release lever which carries said main strike click and a thrust spring which rests on said main strike click, in that said output wheel set includes at least one tooth arranged to lift an intermediate, movement-actuated release lever, comprised in said striking mechanism, and the pivoting of which causes movement-actuated release lever to pivot, and in that said striking mechanism includes a torque smoothing jumper which is arranged for discontinuous abutting engagement with said output wheel set, either directly, or via an intermediate train, and which a first spring tends to return into abutment on said output wheel set, in order to use, when said intermediate, movement-actuated release lever is not in mesh with said output wheel set, a torque equivalent to that used by intermediate, movement-actuated release lever when it is in mesh with said output wheel set, so as to avoid jerks in the going train of said movement and to prevent any amplitude variation of said resonator.

3. The timepiece according to claim 2 , wherein said striking mechanism includes an eccentric member resting on an arm of said torque smoothing jumper to adjust the position of said torque smoothing jumper so that the torque used by said torque smoothing jumper and that used by said intermediate, movement-actuated release lever overlap as little as possible.

4. The timepiece according to claim 3 , wherein said torque smoothing jumper includes a polygonal head including a main bearing surface whose position can be adjusted by said eccentric member, separated by an edge from a second bearing surface which is arranged to be set in position at the factory by material removal, once said movement and said striking mechanism have been placed in said timepiece and before the latter is placed in service, and in order to avoid the premature release of said torque smoothing jumper and thus to prevent any knocking in the resonator, and to avoid the delayed release of said torque smoothing jumper and thus to prevent any loss of amplitude of said resonator.

5. The timepiece according to claim 2 , wherein said intermediate, movement-actuated release lever includes an elastic beak arranged to cooperate with a tooth of said output wheel set.

6. The timepiece according to claim 2 , wherein said movement-actuated release lever is subject to the return torque of a second spring resting on a pin comprised therein.

7. The timepiece according to claim 1 , wherein said output wheel set is a star wheel with four teeth, in order to lift, at each quarter hour, said intermediate, movement-actuated release lever.

8. The timepiece according to claim 1 , wherein said output wheel set includes a first wheel for driving an intermediate wheel carrying a cam with which cooperates one end of a support lever, the other end of which is subject to the action of a spring arranged to press said support lever onto said cam, the profile of said cam being such that, when said output wheel set is in contact with said intermediate, movement-actuated release lever, said support lever is along a concentric radius of said cam, and, when said output wheel set is no longer in contact with said intermediate, movement-actuated release lever, said support lever is along a rising radius of said cam, in order to use the same torque as during the driving of said intermediate, movement-actuated release lever.

9. The timepiece according to claim 1 further comprising:
an additional mechanism which includes a torque smoothing jumper, arranged to pivot on a plate or a bridge of a said timepiece or of a said display mechanism or of a said movement, and includes a first spring fixed to said plate or to said bridge and tending to return said torque smoothing jumper into discontinuous abutment on said output wheel set, either directly, or via an intermediate gear, so as to use as much torque from said movement as said display mechanism uses when it uses torque, during the phases where said display mechanism does not use torque from said movement, and in that said additional mechanism includes an eccentric member arranged to be fixed on said plate or on said bridge, and to rest on an arm of said torque smoothing jumper to adjust the position of said torque smoothing jumper so that the torque used by said torque smoothing jumper and that used by said display mechanism overlap as little as possible.

Assignees

• Blancpain Sa

Inventors

• Peter Julien
• Reymond Cedric

Classifications

• G04B23/12

  Alarm watches to be worn in pockets or on the wrist (giving signals by stimulating the skin G04B25/04) · CPC title

• G04B21/02 Primary

  Regular striking mechanisms giving the full hour, half hour or quarter hour {(electrically operating striking mechanism G04C21/06)} · CPC title

• G04B9/02 Primary

  Devices controlled by such state, e.g. device affording protection means against overwinding (protecting means preventing overwinding arranged in or on the barrel G04B1/20; protecting means in connection with keys or the like G04B3/06; in connection with parts of the cases G04B3/10; in connection with automatic winding devices G04B5/24 {; electric winding up of mechanical clockworks G04C1/10}) · CPC title

• G04B21/14

  Winding-up the striking mechanism by the clockwork; winding up the clockwork by the striking mechanism {(winding up by hand or mechanically G04B3/00)} · CPC title

• G04B31/08

  Lubrication {(self-lubricated plastic bearings G04B31/016; lubrication of the escape wheel G04B15/14; lubrication of synchronous clockworks G04C15/009; lubrication devices and lubricant containers G04D5/00)} · CPC title