Horology: time measuring systems or devices – Time interval – Electrical or electromechanical
Reexamination Certificate
2000-02-29
2002-04-09
Roskoski, Bernard (Department: 2859)
Horology: time measuring systems or devices
Time interval
Electrical or electromechanical
C368S080000, C368S112000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06370087
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Technical Field
The present invention relates to a multi-function time measurement device having hands and a time measurement method.
2. Background Art
Conventionally available as a multi-function time measurement device having hands is an electronic watch having an analog indicator chronograph function, for example.
Such an electronic watch has, for chronograph purposes, a chronograph hour hand, a chronograph minute hand, and a chronograph second hand, starts time measurement at the pressing of a start/stop button, causing the chronograph hour hand, the chronograph minute hand, and the chronograph second hand to turn. When the start/stop button is pressed again, the electronic watch stops time measurement, thereby stopping the chronograph hour hand, the chronograph minute hand, and the chronograph second hand and indicating a measured time. With a reset button on the electronic watch pressed, the measured time is reset, and the chronograph hour hand, the chronograph minute hand, and the chronograph second hand are reset to zero positions (hereinafter referred to as zero reset).
Such an electronic watch has a function called split function that works as follows. When a split switch is pressed in the middle of time measurement, such an electronic watch stops the chronograph hour hand, the chronograph minute hand, and the chronograph second hand while continuing time measurement. When the split button is pressed again, the electronic watch rapidly drives the chronograph hour hand, the chronograph minute hand, and the chronograph second hand to compensate for the corresponding measurement time, and then allows them to turn in a standard speed thereafter. With this function, a user visually and accurately recognizes the measurement times at a plurality of points of time, and may record a measured time, for example.
Besides such a function, the electronic watch has a function of automatically stopping the chronograph hour hand, the chronograph minute hand, and the chronograph second hand at a maximum measurement time, for example, at a watch hand start position for the time measurement. With this function, no power is consumed needlessly even if the user forgets to press the start/stop button to stop the time measurement.
In such an electronic watch, the user may visually recognize the time indicated by temporarily stopping the time measurement with the split function after the start of the time measurement. The user may forget to release the temporary stop state thereafter. The user may notice it later, and may release the temporary stop. The electronic watch tries to rapidly drive the hands to their originally expected positions to compensate for a long temporary stop, thereby leaving the hands continuously turning for a relatively long duration of time. In the electronic watch, the power consumed in the form of motor pulses for rapidly driving the hands to their originally expected positions is greater than the power consumed in the form of motor pulses for normally driving the hands. For this reason, if this happens, the power of a power source battery of the electronic watch is greatly consumed. If only one motor is employed for rapid watch hand driving, it takes considerable time to rapidly drive all hands to their originally expected positions.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a time measurement device and a time measurement method, which are free from the above problem, and automatically release a suspended state in the middle of time measurement after a predetermined amount of time elapse, thereby shortening the temporary suspension time and reducing power consumed to rapidly driving hands to their originally expected positions when the temporary suspension is released.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
A time measurement device of the present invention has at least, both a function of measuring standard time and a function of measuring any elapsed time, wherein when a predetermined amount of time passes from a temporary suspension of a watch hand in position in the middle of the measurement of the elapsed time, the suspension of the watch hand is automatically released and the watch hand is driven to a watch hand position indicating the elapsed time.
In accordance with another aspect of the invention, the time measurement device automatically releases the temporary suspension of the time measurement when the predetermined amount of time passes since the user temporarily suspended the display of measurement time in the middle of time measurement. For this reason, the time measurement device reduces the power required to drive the watch hand to its originally expected position when the temporary suspension is automatically released. The time measurement device reduces the time required to drive the watch hand to its originally expected position following the automatic release of the temporary suspension of the time measurement. When the user uses such a time measurement device, the time measurement device, even in its temporary suspension state, is automatically released from the temporary suspension state after the predetermined amount of time passes, and this arrangement saves the user the time needed for releasing the temporary suspension state.
A time measurement device of the present invention, includes an elapsed time display mechanism for measuring the duration of time from the start of the temporary suspension of the time measurement to an originally expected watch-hand position at which the watch hand is supposed to be if no temporary suspension takes place, a release section for releasing the temporary suspension by measuring the predetermined amount of time during the temporary suspension, and a watch-hand driving section for driving the watch hand to the originally expected watch hand position, in accordance with the value measured by the elapsed time display mechanism, when the temporary suspension is released.
In accordance with another aspect of the invention, the release section measures time and automatically releases the temporary suspension at the moment the predetermined amount of time passes, after the user temporarily suspended the indication of the measurement time in the middle of the time measurement. For this reason, the time measurement device reduces the power the watch-hand driving section requires to drive the watch hand to the originally expected watch hand position, in accordance with the value measured by the elapsed time display mechanism, when the temporary suspension is automatically released.
A time measurement device of the present invention, includes a first measurement section for managing the position of the watch hand during time measurement, a second measurement section for managing the position of the watch hand in a temporarily suspended state in the middle of time measurement, a release section for releasing the temporary suspension by measuring the predetermined amount of time during the temporary suspension, a comparator section for comparing the position of the watch hand determined by the first measurement section and the position of the watch hand determined by the second measurement section, and a watch-hand driving section for driving the watch hand in accordance with the comparison result provided by the comparator section, which has compared the watch hand position by the first measurement section and the watch hand position by the second measurement section, when the release section releases the temporary suspension after the temporary suspension of the time measurement.
In accordance with another aspect of the invention, when the user temporarily suspends the indication of the measurement time in the middle of the time measurement the second measurement section holds the watch hand position, and the first measurement section measures time normally. The release section measures time and automatically releases the temporary suspension at the moment the predetermined amount of time passes, after the indication of the measurement time is suspended in the middle of the time measure
Akahane Hidehiro
Koike Nobuhiro
Maruyama Akihiko
Okuhara Kenichi
Gabrik Michael T.
Roskoski Bernard
Seiko Epson Corporation
Watson Mark P.
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