Horology: time measuring systems or devices – Power supply details – Electrical
Patent
1999-07-19
2000-11-07
Miska, Vit
Horology: time measuring systems or devices
Power supply details
Electrical
G04B 100, G04C 300
Patent
active
06144622&
DESCRIPTION:
BRIEF SUMMARY
In a large number of current electronic watches, there are means for detecting insufficiency of the supply source called EOL for <<end of life>> which indicate that the battery reaches the end of its life. Such detection, essentially based on the measurement of a minimum battery voltage, generally generates particular behaviour of the second hand of the watch, which is capable of drawing the user's attention to the fact that he needs to change the battery as soon as possible. There also exist watches including two hands driven by at least one motor wherein the position of the hands is controlled by the electronic circuit so as to display internal circuit data, for example time data. This is the case of the TWO TIMER watch by Tissot, wherein the positions of the hour and minute hands have to correspond to an internal electronic counter also able to be digitally displayed. The same is true for the displays of the chronograph of the watch Swatch Chrono as well as for the watches Stop Swatch and Swatch MusiCall wherein the hands can display either the hours and the minutes, or an alarm time, or an internal counter. This type of arrangement requires perfect synchronisation between the internal electronic counters and the movement of the hands on the dial. However, in the aforecited watches, this synchronisation can no longer be assured when the power supply has been interrupted. Thus it is necessary, for example when the battery is changed, to perform a quite complicated hand phase setting operation which is not easy for the average user.
This is not serious insofar as the battery is generally only changed after several years, and when said user goes to an approved seller to change the battery, said seller himself undertaking the operation. It would be much more inconvenient within the scope of watches which are automatically recharged by solar cells or a generator. As a matter of fact, this type of watch has a much more limited power reserve and it would be very restrictive for the user to have to perform this hand phase setting operation each time that he put his watch to one side for a few days.
The object of the present invention is precisely to provide a simple and efficient solution to this problem. The invention concerns an electronic watch including at least two hands driven by at least one motor, electronic means arranged for positioning said hands on the dial so as display internal data determined by said electronic means, in particular time data, as well as a power source and means for detecting any insufficiency of said power source,
This is not serious insofar as the battery is generally only changed after several years, and said user goes to an approved seller to change the battery, said seller himself undertaking the operation. It would be more inconvenient within the scope of watches which are automatically recharged by solar cells or a generator. This type of watch has a much more limited power reserve and it would be very restrictive for the user to have to perform this hand phase setting operation each time that he put his watch to one side for a few days.
European Patent No. A-591557 concerns an electronic watch including at least two hands driven by at least one motor, electronic means arranged for positioning said hands on the dial to display internal data determined by said electronic means, in particular time data, as well as a power source. Detection means supply signals in the event of an insufficiency of the power source. During this detection, the position of the hands and the value of the corresponding electronic counters are stored in a non-volatile memory provided for this purpose.
European Patent No. A-285838 concerns an electronic watch including at least two hands driven by at least one motor, electronic means arranged for positioning said hands on the dial to display internal data determined by said electronic means, in particular time data, as well as a power source. According to this document, detection means supply signals corresponding to an insufficiency of th
REFERENCES:
patent: 4041691 (1977-08-01), Chihara et al.
patent: 4280208 (1981-07-01), Nomura
patent: 4314274 (1982-02-01), Ushikoshi
Eta SA Fabriques d'Ebauches
Miska Vit
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