Winding device for self-winding automatic watch

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9836027-B2
Application number	US-201414768610-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Mar 20, 2014
Priority date	Apr 10, 2013
Publication date	Dec 5, 2017
Grant date	Dec 5, 2017

Abstract

A device for winding automatic watches, including an electrical energy source and a receptacle support including a surface configured to receive in abutment a back cover of a watch, the device configured to generate a magnetic and/or electrostatic field or eddy currents, in a fixed position underneath the bearing surface and generate, on a substantially annular angular sector, a magnetic and or electrostatic field that varies as a function of time and whose direction is orthogonal to the bearing surface, or generating eddy currents that vary as a function of time. The device can be provided for a watch including an automatic winding mechanism with an oscillating weight including a first ferromagnetic inner part and a second heavy metal peripheral part, and possibly with a paramagnetic conductive disc coaxial to the oscillating weight.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A winding mobile member for an automatic watch winding mechanism comprising:
a guide to pivotably support the winding mobile member on a pivot axis thereof, and the guide is disposed at a center part of a cylinder of maximum radius that inscribes the winding mobile member;
a mechanism to drive an energy recharging mechanism;
at least one ferromagnetic or magnetized part of the automatic watch winding mechanism produces a variable magnetic field to drive the winding mobile member; and
at least one moving magnetic weight, which includes a first ferromagnetic inner part extending over radii smaller than a minimum radius of a second peripheral part made of heavy metal having an atomic number of between 73 and 79, or made of an alloy including at least 80% of the heavy metal with the atomic number of between 73 and 79.

2. The winding mobile member according to claim 1 , wherein the second peripheral part includes at least 50% by mass of tungsten.

3. The winding mobile member according to claim 1 , wherein the second peripheral part includes at least 50% by mass of tungsten and at least 20% by mass of gold.

4. The winding mobile member according to claim 1 , wherein the second peripheral part includes at least 20% by mass of iron.

5. The winding mobile member according to claim 1 , wherein the first inner part is made of soft magnetic material.

6. An automatic watch winding mechanism including at least one moving mechanical weight to recharge with mechanical energy at least one barrel or mechanical energy accumulator, wherein the automatic winding mechanism includes, in addition to the at least one moving mechanical weight, at least one winding mobile member according to claim 1 .

7. An automatic watch winding mechanism including at least one moving mechanical weight to recharge with mechanical energy at least one barrel or mechanical energy accumulator, wherein the at least one moving mechanical weight is a winding mobile member according to claim 1 .

8. An automatic watch winding mechanism including at least one moving mechanical weight to drive a microgenerator to recharge with electrical energy an electrical energy accumulator, wherein the automatic winding mechanism includes, in addition to the at least one moving mechanical weight, at least one winding mobile member according to claim 1 .

9. An automatic watch winding mechanism including at least one moving mechanical weight to drive a microgenerator to recharge with electrical energy an electrical energy accumulator, wherein the at least one moving mechanical weight is a winding mobile member according to claim 1 .

10. An automatic winding mechanism including at least one moving mechanical weight to recharge with mechanical energy at least one barrel or mechanical energy accumulator or to drive a microgenerator to recharge with electrical energy an electrical energy accumulator, the automatic winding mechanism including at least one winding mobile member according to claim 1 being in addition to the at least one moving mechanical weight, wherein the at least one winding mobile member is an oscillating weight which includes at least one cut-out.

11. A timepiece movement including at least one automatic winding mechanism including at least one moving mechanical weight to recharge with mechanical energy at least one barrel or mechanical energy accumulator or to drive a microgenerator to recharge with electrical energy an electrical energy accumulator, the automatic winding mechanism including at least one winding mobile member according to claim 1 being the at least one moving mechanical weight, or being in addition to the at least one moving mechanical weight.

12. A timepiece movement including at least one microgenerator driven to recharge an accumulator with electrical energy, and at least one automatic winding mechanism including at least one moving mechanical weight to recharge with mechanical energy at least one barrel or mechanical energy accumulator or to drive a microgenerator to recharge with electrical energy the electrical energy accumulator, the automatic winding mechanism including at least one winding mobile member according to claim 1 being the at least one moving mechanical weight, or being in addition to the at least one moving mechanical weight.

13. A self-winding automatic watch including at least one automatic winding mechanism including at least one moving mechanical weight to recharge with mechanical energy at least one barrel or mechanical energy accumulator or to drive a microgenerator to recharge with electrical energy an electrical energy accumulator, the automatic winding mechanism including at least one winding mobile member according to claim 1 being the at least one moving mechanical weight, or being in addition to the at least one moving mechanical weight.

14. The winding mobile member according to claim 1 , wherein the first ferromagnetic inner part connects the guide to the second peripheral part.

15. The winding mobile member according to claim 1 , wherein a thickness of the first ferromagnetic inner part along the radius of the cylinder is greater than a thickness of the second peripheral part along the radius of the cylinder.

16. The winding mobile member according to claim 1 , wherein the first ferromagnetic inner part and the second peripheral part form a substantially semicircle shape.

17. The winding mobile member according to claim 1 , wherein the first ferromagnetic inner part includes a plurality of apertures.

18. The winding mobile member according to claim 1 , wherein a maximum angular span of the first ferromagnetic inner part extending in a circumferential direction of the cylinder and a maximum angular span of the second peripheral part made of the heavy metal extending in the circumferential direction of the cylinder are the same.

19. A device for winding an automatic watch, the winding device being separate from the watch and comprising:
at least one electrical powering mechanism or one electrical accumulator;
at least one receptacle support for the watch, the receptacle support including a bearing surface configured to removably receive in abutment a back cover of the watch, the bearing surface being an outer surface of the winding device; and
a mechanism to generate eddy currents disposed in a fixed position on an emission area underneath the bearing surface and generating, on at least one main sector, eddy currents that vary as a function of time,
wherein the mechanism to generate eddy currents is disposed so that the emission area at least partially overlaps a trajectory of a winding mobile member of the watch along which the winding mobile member is driven by the eddy currents when the bearing surface receives in abutment the back cover of the watch.

20. A device for winding an automatic watch, the winding device being separate from the watch and comprising:
at least one electrical powering mechanism or one electrical accumulator;
at least one receptacle support for the watch, the receptacle support including a bearing surface configured to removably receive in abutment a back cover of the watch, the bearing surface being an outer surface of the winding device; and
a mechanism to generate a magnetic field disposed in a fixed position on an emission area underneath the bearing surface and generating, on at least one main sector, at least one magnetic field that varies as a function of time,
wherein the mechanism to generate the magnetic field is disposed so that the emission area at lea

Assignees

• Swatch Group Res & Dev Ltd

Inventors

• Willemin Michel
• Born Jean-Jacques
• Klopfenstein Francois
• Ragot Patrick

Classifications

• G04B13/00

  Gearwork {(gearwork for driving the hands G04B19/02; calibers G04B33/00; dispositions and components for transmission in general F16H)} · CPC title

• G04C1/028

  with linearly moving armature · CPC title

• G04C1/022

  with snap-acting armature · CPC title

• G04D7/009 Primary

  with regard to the functioning of the automatic winding-up device · CPC title

• G04C1/02

  by electromagnets · CPC title