Horology: time measuring systems or devices – Chronological – With supplemental power source
Patent
1993-02-03
1999-07-13
Miska, Vit W.
Horology: time measuring systems or devices
Chronological
With supplemental power source
368204, 310 75A, 310156, 320 21, 322 10, G04B 100, G04C 300, H01M 1046, H02K 2114
Patent
active
059236191
DESCRIPTION:
BRIEF SUMMARY
The present invention relates to a generator, for miniature power consuming devices in particular, comprising a rotor wheel being coupled to a driven shaft and having magnetized poles, a stator having a plurality of windings for providing an electric voltage, a driving means for driving the driven shaft, and a transmission means having a resilient body for providing a resilient transmission between said driving means and said driven shaft.
Such a generator is known from European patent application EP-A-0170303, which discloses a generator suitable for being part of a wristwatch, wherein a driving means in the shape of an eccentric mass is set in motion by wearing the watch. The voltage generated by the generator can be used for charging an accumulator arranged within the watch, if it exceeds the minimum charging voltage of the accumulator. In accordance with Faraday's law, the higher the angular speed of the rotor wheel is, the higher the voltage generated by the generator will be. A relatively high angular speed can be obtained when the eccentric mass, which is coaxial to the driven shaft, is connected at an inner rim thereof to one end of a resilient body, a spiral spring in particular, the other end of which being connected to the driven shaft of the rotor wheel. Being retained in relation to the stator in one of its rest positions by a detent torque between the rotor wheel and the stator, the rotor wheel will not be carried along by the eccentric mass until the spring is tensioned to a certain extent, as a result of which--upon dislodging the rotor wheel--the potential energy stored in the spring will be available for accelerating the rotor wheel, thus increasing its angular speed. After the dislodgement of the rotor wheel due to a sufficiently large torque exerted on the driven shaft by the spring, the spring is tensioned in opposite direction, after having been fully released, resulting in a gradual reduction in the speed of the rotor wheel. After the rotor wheel has come to a standstill, it will be set in motion again by the spring, this time in the opposite direction. Thus, the rotor wheel performs an oscillatory movement, wherein the generated voltage shows an oscillating amplitude decreasing down to zero.
A drawback to this known generator is that the voltage generated by the generator each time the direction of movement of the rotor wheel is about to be reversed is unusable, as the voltage will be less than the required minimum charging voltage. During these unusable periods of voltage, however, energy losses, e.g. due to friction, continue to occur. Furthermore, for tensioning the spring in such a way that a predictable, sufficient amount of energy is produced it is required that the detent torque between the stator and the rotor wheel for the respective rest positions is uniform and of sufficient magnitude, which is hard to realize in a reproducible way in the case of stator-rotor combinations having very small dimensions. Under no circumstances stator-rotor combinations having a negligible detent torque can be applied.
The present invention aims to remove these drawbacks and to this end, in accordance with the invention, a generator of the type as mentioned in the preamble is provided, characterized in that interrupting means are provided for at least substantially interrupting the transmission between the driving means and the driven shaft as a function of the spring tension of said resilient body.
By at least substantially interrupting the resilient transmission from the driving means to the driven shaft by means of interrupting means, an oscillatory movement of the resilient body and the rotor wheel is avoided, resulting in a voltage being generated having an amplitude which exceeds continuously the minimum charging voltage for at least essentially the full period when the resilient body is being released.
In the generator according to the invention the interrupting means may comprise a rotatable supporting means which is coupled to said driving means, one end of said at least one resilien
REFERENCES:
patent: 2791732 (1957-05-01), Jones
patent: 3005305 (1961-10-01), Thoma
patent: 4008566 (1977-02-01), McClintock
patent: 4091302 (1978-05-01), Yamashita
Japanese Kokai 53-42771 dated Apr. 18, 1978 for Perfect Electronic Watch Abstract
Japanese Kokai 53-42772 dated Apr. 18. 1978 for Electronic Watch Abstract.
Japanese Kokai 53-42773 dated Apr. 18, 1978 for Portable Power Generator Abstract.
Japanese Kokai 53-26169 dated Mar. 10, 1978 for Generation Set for Portable Electronic Apparatus, Abstract.
Japanese Kokai 53-26170 dated Mar. 10, 1978 for Handy Electronic Watch Abstract.
Japanese Kokai 53-26171 dated Mar. 10, 1978 for Handy Watch Abstract.
Patent Abstracts of Japan vol. 2, No. 61 (E-78) (May 9, 1978) & JP A,53 026 169 (Daina Seikosha K.K.) Oct. 3, 1978.
Patent Abstracts of Japan vol. 2, No. 61 (E-78) (1788) May 9, 1978 & JP,A,53 025 472 (Daini Seikosha K.K.) Sep. 3, 1978.
Patent Abstracts of Japan vol. 1, No. 132 (E-77) (6017) Oct. 1977 & JP A,52 067 365 (Suwa Siekosha K.K.) Mar. 9, 1978.
Goemans Paulus Adrianus Ferdinand Maria
Knapen Petrus Matheus Josephus
Meyer Bernardus Johannes
Kinetron B.V.
Miska Vit W.
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