Water-resistant watch case

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-12332604-B2
Application number	US-202218050768-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Oct 28, 2022
Priority date	Dec 16, 2021
Publication date	Jun 17, 2025
Grant date	Jun 17, 2025

Abstract

The water-resistant watch case includes at least one crystal mounted on an upper side of a middle, a fastening gasket positioned between an upper annular inner wall of the middle and an upper annular outer wall of the crystal. The crystal includes an annular peripheral surface below the upper annular outer wall inclined at an angle smaller than 90° in relation to an axis perpendicular to a plane of the watch case. The peripheral surface comes into contact against an annular inner surface of the middle inclined at an angle similar to the inclination of the annular peripheral surface and below the upper annular inner wall of the middle. The annular peripheral surface and/or the annular inner surface of the middle includes a domed contact portion for a contact on an annular contact line between the two surfaces.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A water-resistant watch case, for a diving watch, the case comprising at least one crystal mounted on a portion of a middle, a fastening gasket of the crystal being disposed between an annular inner wall of the middle and an annular outer wall of the crystal,
wherein between the annular outer wall and the centre of the watch case, the crystal comprises an annular peripheral surface inclined at a defined angle smaller than 90° in relation to an axis perpendicular to a plane of the watch case and coming into direct contact against an annular inner surface of the middle, the annular inner surface being inclined at a same angle as the angle of inclination of the annular peripheral surface and disposed below the annular inner wall of the middle, and
wherein the annular peripheral surface comprises a domed contact surface portion with a convex curvature having a first radius (R 1 ) defining an annular contact line against the annular inner surface of the middle.

2. The watch case according to claim 1 , wherein the annular inner surface of the middle is inclined with a regular slope without variation of the profile of the surface in the direction of the centre of the watch case.

3. The watch case according to claim 1 , wherein the fastening gasket is made of polyurethane or of cross-linked polyurethane.

4. The watch case according to claim 1 , wherein the middle is made of material with elastic limit higher than 500 MPa, and wherein the crystal is made of sapphire.

5. The watch case according to claim 4 , wherein the middle is made of stainless steel with high nitrogen content or of grade 5 titanium (Ti6Al4V).

6. The watch case according to claim 1 , wherein the first radius (R 1 ) and/or the first complementary radius (R 1 ′) are chosen in the order of 10.7 mm±5 mm.

7. The watch case according to claim 1 , wherein a top portion of the annular peripheral surface of the crystal comprises a curvature of a second radius (R 2 ) in connection with the upper annular outer wall of the crystal, for which the second radius (R 2 ) is smaller than the first radius (R 1 ) of curvature of the domed portions, to facilitate the mounting of the crystal on the middle with the fastening gasket.

8. The watch case according to claim 7 , wherein a bottom portion of the annular peripheral surface of the crystal comprises a curvature of a third radius (R 3 ) to avoid having too sharp an edge, and wherein the third radius (R 3 ) is smaller than or equal to the second radius (R 2 ).

9. The watch case according to claim 7 , wherein the second radius (R 2 ) and/or the third radius (R 3 ) are of value more than 10 times smaller than the first radius (R 1 ).

10. The watch case according to claim 9 , wherein the second radius (R 2 ) and/or the third radius (R 3 ) are chosen in the order of 0.75 mm+0.2 mm.

11. The watch case according to claim 1 , wherein the watch case has a cylinder shape, in that the annular inner wall of the middle and the annular outer wall of the crystal are of cylindrical shape, and
wherein the annular peripheral surface and the annular inner surface have a conical shape with domed contract surface portions on one of the surfaces or the two surfaces to have a direct contact on an annular contact line.

12. The watch case according to claim 1 , wherein the middle of the watch case has an external cylindrical shape, and
wherein the annular inner wall consists of four vertical flat walls provided and disposed one after the other in the shape of a ring, whereas the annular inner surface comprises four flat plates joined one after another and inclined in the direction of the centre of the watch case.

13. The watch case according to claim 1 , wherein the middle of the watch case has an external parallelepiped shape with four sides, and
wherein in the inside, the annular inner wall has a cylindrical shape, whereas the inclined annular inner surface has a conical shape.

14. The watch case according to claim 1 , wherein the middle of the watch case has a parallelepiped shape with four sides on the outside, and
wherein the annular inner wall consists of four vertical flat walls provided and disposed one after the other in the shape of a ring, whereas the annular inner surface comprises four flat plates joined one after another and inclined in the direction of the centre of the watch case.

15. A water-resistant watch case, for a diving watch, the case comprising at least one crystal mounted on a portion of a middle, a fastening gasket of the crystal being disposed between an annular inner wall of the middle and an annular outer wall of the crystal,
wherein between the annular inner wall and the centre of the watch case, the middle comprises an annular inner surface inclined at a defined angle smaller than 90° in relation to an axis perpendicular to a plane of the watch case and coming into direct contact against an annular peripheral surface of the crystal, the annular peripheral surface being inclined at a same angle as the inclination of the annular inner surface and disposed below the annular outer wall of the crystal, and
wherein the annular inner surface comprises a domed contact surface portion with a convex curvature having a first additional radius (R 1 ′) defining an annular contact line against the annular peripheral surface of the crystal.

16. The watch case according to claim 15 , wherein the annular peripheral surface of the crystal is inclined with a regular slope without variation of the profile of the surface in the direction of the centre of the watch case.

17. The watch case according to claim 15 , wherein the fastening gasket is made of polyurethane or of cross-linked polyurethane.

18. The watch case according to claim 15 , wherein the first radius (R 1 ) and/or the first complementary radius (R 1 ′) are chosen in the order of 10.7 mm±5 mm.

19. A water-resistant watch case, for a diving watch, the case comprising at least one crystal mounted on a portion of a middle, a fastening gasket of the crystal being disposed between an annular inner wall of the middle and an annular outer wall of the crystal,
wherein between the annular outer wall and the centre of the watch case, the crystal comprises an annular peripheral surface inclined at a defined angle smaller than 90° in relation to an axis perpendicular to a plane of the watch case, in that between the annular inner wall and the centre of the watch case, the middle comprises an annular inner surface inclined at a same angle as the angle of inclination of the annular peripheral surface, and coming into direct contact against the annular peripheral surface of the crystal, and
wherein the annular peripheral surface comprises a domed contact surface portion with a convex curvature having a first radius (R 1 ), whereas the annular inner surface comprises a domed contact surface portion with a convex curvature of a first complementary radius (R 1 ′) defining an annular contact line against the annular peripheral surface of the crystal.

20. The watch case according to claim 19 , wherein the fastening gasket is made of polyurethane or of cross-linked polyurethane.

21. The watch case according to claim 19 , wherein the first radius (R 1 ) and/or the first complementary radius (R 1 ′) are chosen in the order of 10.7 mm±5 mm.

Assignees

• Omega Sa

Inventors

• Kissling Gregory
• Kaltenrieder-Ellis Cédric
• Lazzari Nicolas
• Derriey Gilles
• Viprey Jérôme
• Winkler Yves
• Hinaux Baptiste

Classifications

• G04B37/11

  of the back cover of pocket or wrist watches · CPC title

• G04B37/10

  of winding stems {(construction of winding crowns G04B3/041; in combination with hermetic sealing G04B37/081)} · CPC title

• G04D3/067

  Setting or taking apart, whereby a temporary deformation of the glass may take place · CPC title

• G04B37/088

  Means affording hermetic sealing inside the case, e.g. protective case for the clockwork against dust, the escapement being in a hermetically sealed case (case for watch pieces G04B37/0091; synchronous motor lubrication G04C15/009) · CPC title

• G04B39/02 Primary

  Sealing crystals or glasses {(sealing the case and the winding stem G04B37/08)} · CPC title