EP0807872A1 - Anordnung mit einem aus hartem Kunststoff hergestellten Uhrengehäuse und mit mindestens einem Drücker und Herstellungsverfahren für eine solche Anordnung - Google Patents

Anordnung mit einem aus hartem Kunststoff hergestellten Uhrengehäuse und mit mindestens einem Drücker und Herstellungsverfahren für eine solche Anordnung Download PDF

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Publication number
EP0807872A1
EP0807872A1 EP97107770A EP97107770A EP0807872A1 EP 0807872 A1 EP0807872 A1 EP 0807872A1 EP 97107770 A EP97107770 A EP 97107770A EP 97107770 A EP97107770 A EP 97107770A EP 0807872 A1 EP0807872 A1 EP 0807872A1
Authority
EP
European Patent Office
Prior art keywords
box
rod
head
flexible
flexible head
Prior art date
Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
Granted
Application number
EP97107770A
Other languages
English (en)
French (fr)
Other versions
EP0807872B1 (de
Inventor
Jacques Müller
Rolf Widmer
Clément Meyrat
Current Assignee (The listed assignees may be inaccurate. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation or warranty as to the accuracy of the list.)
Swatch Group Management Services AG
Original Assignee
SMH Management Services AG
Priority date (The priority date is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the date listed.)
Filing date
Publication date
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First worldwide family litigation filed litigation Critical https://patents.darts-ip.com/?family=9492226&utm_source=***_patent&utm_medium=platform_link&utm_campaign=public_patent_search&patent=EP0807872(A1) "Global patent litigation dataset” by Darts-ip is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
Application filed by SMH Management Services AG filed Critical SMH Management Services AG
Publication of EP0807872A1 publication Critical patent/EP0807872A1/de
Application granted granted Critical
Publication of EP0807872B1 publication Critical patent/EP0807872B1/de
Anticipated expiration legal-status Critical
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Classifications

    • G—PHYSICS
    • G04—HOROLOGY
    • G04C—ELECTROMECHANICAL CLOCKS OR WATCHES
    • G04C3/00—Electromechanical clocks or watches independent of other time-pieces and in which the movement is maintained by electric means
    • G04C3/001—Electromechanical switches for setting or display
    • G—PHYSICS
    • G04—HOROLOGY
    • G04B—MECHANICALLY-DRIVEN CLOCKS OR WATCHES; MECHANICAL PARTS OF CLOCKS OR WATCHES IN GENERAL; TIME PIECES USING THE POSITION OF THE SUN, MOON OR STARS
    • G04B37/00—Cases
    • G04B37/08—Hermetic sealing of openings, joints, passages or slits
    • G04B37/10—Hermetic sealing of openings, joints, passages or slits of winding stems
    • G04B37/106—Hermetic sealing of openings, joints, passages or slits of winding stems of push buttons

Definitions

  • the present invention relates to an assembly comprising a watch case made of hard plastic and at least one pusher having a rod and a flexible head projecting outside the box, the rod extending from the head through an opening. lateral of the box, the flexible head being integral with the rod and the box and sealingly closing said opening.
  • the invention also relates to a method of manufacturing such an assembly.
  • Pushers of this kind generally have a short stroke, which primarily means that they control an electrical contact in an electronic watch, for example a chronograph or a multifunction watch, but one can also envisage their application to a movement watch. mechanical.
  • Patent publication GB 2 077 506 describes a watch case having pushers of this kind, except that the rod does not completely or not pass through the opening of the case.
  • the rod and the outer head of the pusher are made in one piece molded from hard plastic.
  • the head has a wall which is thin enough to be slightly flexible, thus allowing a short longitudinal stroke of the rod and serving as a return spring.
  • the free end of the rod carries a conductive rubber plate which, when the pusher is pressed, is applied to two fixed contacts to connect them electrically.
  • the periphery of the flexible head is in the form of a cylindrical skirt which, in a first embodiment of the pusher, is glued in leaktight manner against the wall of the opening of the box.
  • the molded part is made in one piece with the box, the skirt connecting directly to the box around the opening.
  • Such a pusher head must have a large enough diameter for the head to be flexible. This is possible in the case of the cited document because the pushers are located on an upper face of the box. By cons they could not be on the side wall of a wristwatch (the part called the middle part), because the height of this wall is generally very limited. In addition, repeated bending of the flexible hard plastic head over time risks detaching or cracking the skirt, thus affecting the seal and the operation of the pusher.
  • the present invention aims to avoid the aforementioned drawbacks, by means of a pusher economically feasible by a molding process and in such a way that the pusher can be on the middle of a wristwatch.
  • the invention relates to an assembly of the kind indicated above, characterized in that the flexible head is made of an elastomeric material and is fixed in leaktight manner to an outer surface of the box around the opening.
  • the elastomeric material of the flexible head owing to the fact that it is very elastically deformable and fixed on an external surface of the box and not in the opening, makes it possible to produce a relatively narrow pusher in the direction of the thickness of the watch, so on the outside of the middle as in traditional chronograph watches with metal pushers.
  • the elastomer head can advantageously be molded hot on the box, as will be described later, which ensures a solid and durable bond between the elastomeric material and the plastic of the box.
  • the elastomer head also has the advantage of absorbing accidental impact on the pusher, thus avoiding causing damage to the interior of the watch.
  • the rod can be made of a hard plastic material and in particular of the same plastic material as the box, which makes it possible to mold it at the same time as the box.
  • the rod can be in one piece with the box, being connected to it on one side by a flexible part, or on the contrary being separated from the box by being connected to the latter only by the elastomer head.
  • the rod can be made of elastomeric material and be made in one piece with the flexible head.
  • a so-called "bi-material” injection molding process is thus used, which is particularly efficient and economical because it uses only one mold for the production of the watch case and the push button (s) fitted therewith. In addition, this process ensures integrity of each push rod relative to the box and therefore to the movement.
  • the push rod is made of the same plastic material as the box and is molded during step (I).
  • the push rod is made of the same elastomeric material as the flexible head and is molded during step (III).
  • FIGS 1 and 2 schematically show a wristwatch box 2 of hard thermoplastic material such as ABS or the like.
  • the box 2 comprises a bottom 3 and a middle part 4 on which are provided in the present case two lateral pushers 5.
  • One or more other pushers can be provided on the opposite side of the box.
  • the box 2 defines a circular central cavity 6 in which will take place, in a conventional manner, a clockwork movement, display means and possibly other members, in particular electronic modules.
  • a control rod (not shown) may be provided through the middle part 4, in particular between the two pushers 5 shown.
  • these are identical or symmetrical to each other and act along respective axes 7 directed towards the center 8 of the box.
  • Each pusher 5 mainly consists of an elongated rod 10, preferably having a cylindrical, slightly conical or prismatic shape oriented along the axis 7 in a lateral opening 11 of the middle part 4, and a flexible head 12 protruding outside the box 2.
  • the head 12 here has an outer surface 13 in the form of an elongated bell, which smoothly connects to the adjacent outer surface of the box 2.
  • the head 12 is made of a relatively soft elastomeric material, hot injection molded so as to bond both to a first end 14 of the rod 10 and to an outer surface portion 15 of the box 2 which surrounds the opening 11.
  • the surface portion 15 is preferably recessed to provide a sufficient thickness of the elastomeric material around the periphery of the head 12.
  • the elastomeric head 12 and the connection between the two materials on the surface portion 15 guarantees issent the tightness of the box in the area of the opening 11.
  • the end 14 of the rod 10 may have projecting parts embedded in the elastomeric material in order to strengthen its connection with the head 12.
  • the rod 10 is linked to the box 2 by a flexible part 16 in the form of a band extending in the opening 11 and serving as a return spring for the pusher, in cooperation with the elastic return provided by the flexible head 12.
  • a thin lateral clearance 17 is provided around the outer end 14 of the rod 10, except on the side of the flexible part 16, against which the head can s 'to press.
  • the second end of the rod 10 has a front bearing surface 18 which can have any shape suitable for cooperating with the element of the movement which it has to push, for example an electrical contact element or a moving mechanical part.
  • a flexible metal strip (not shown) fixed to the box 2 can be interposed between the front surface 18 and the movement to protect the plastic material of the rod 10.
  • the deformation of the flexible head 12 and of the flexible part 16 causes a stroke C of the rod 10 up to an active position shown in phantom.
  • the rod is returned to the rest position by the elasticity of the material.
  • Its front surface 18 can advantageously then be located near a peripheral inner surface 20 of the cavity 6, which facilitates the mounting of the movement.
  • the construction described above has the advantage of being able to be manufactured by a so-called "bimaterial" injection molding process, that is to say that a single mold is used in which two different materials are successively injected.
  • the mold is provided with a part which takes the place of the flexible head 12 and the hard plastic material is injected therein forming the box 2 with the rod 10 and the flexible part 16.
  • replacing said part of the mold in order to mold the flexible head 12 and the elastomeric material is injected into this region, which binds hot to the rod 10 and to the surface 15 of the box 2.
  • the manufacturing process is inexpensive, it is therefore easy to manufacture boxes having different numbers of pushers, or also to use a box having for example four pushers with a movement needing only three pushers, if this is justified for economic or aesthetic reasons.
  • FIG. 3 represents a variant of the construction of FIGS. 1 and 2, the difference being that the rod 10 is separated from the box 2, to which it is only connected by the flexible head 12 made of elastomer.
  • the opening 11 of the box simply has a cylindrical shape, completely surrounds the rod 10 and is extended by the clearance 17 of annular shape.
  • the rod 10 is made of the same hard plastic as the box 2, this construction can be manufactured by the same process as in the previous example.
  • the rod 10 is made of another material, either by prefabrication or by injection into the same mold.
  • the push-button is returned only by the elasticity of the elastomeric material of the head 12.
  • the rod 10 of the pusher 5 is made of the same elastomeric material as the flexible head 12, to which it is connected by its first end 14, the pusher being thus made of a single piece.
  • the rod 10 may have any suitable cross section, in particular a cross section in the present case.
  • the “two-material” injection method described above can be used, by successively injecting the hard plastic material of the box 2, then the elastomeric material of the pusher 5, in the same mold.

Landscapes

  • Physics & Mathematics (AREA)
  • General Physics & Mathematics (AREA)
  • Electric Clocks (AREA)
  • Push-Button Switches (AREA)
  • Injection Moulding Of Plastics Or The Like (AREA)
  • Manufacture Of Switches (AREA)
EP97107770A 1996-05-17 1997-05-13 Anordnung mit einem aus hartem Kunststoff hergestellten Uhrengehäuse und mit mindestens einem Drücker und Herstellungsverfahren für eine solche Anordnung Expired - Lifetime EP0807872B1 (de)

Applications Claiming Priority (2)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
FR9606155 1996-05-17
FR9606155A FR2748828B1 (fr) 1996-05-17 1996-05-17 Ensemble comprenant une boite de montre en plastique dur et au moins un poussoir, et procede de fabrication d'un tel ensemble

Publications (2)

Publication Number Publication Date
EP0807872A1 true EP0807872A1 (de) 1997-11-19
EP0807872B1 EP0807872B1 (de) 2002-01-09

Family

ID=9492226

Family Applications (1)

Application Number Title Priority Date Filing Date
EP97107770A Expired - Lifetime EP0807872B1 (de) 1996-05-17 1997-05-13 Anordnung mit einem aus hartem Kunststoff hergestellten Uhrengehäuse und mit mindestens einem Drücker und Herstellungsverfahren für eine solche Anordnung

Country Status (10)

Country Link
US (2) US6000842A (de)
EP (1) EP0807872B1 (de)
JP (1) JPH1048352A (de)
CN (1) CN1132070C (de)
AU (1) AU719683B2 (de)
DE (1) DE69709484T2 (de)
FR (1) FR2748828B1 (de)
HK (1) HK1008248A1 (de)
SG (1) SG65649A1 (de)
TW (1) TW324796B (de)

Cited By (2)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
EP1301011A2 (de) * 2001-10-05 2003-04-09 Nokia Corporation Durch den Benutzer austauschbare Abdeckungen eines elektronischen Geräts oder Mobiltelefons und Verfahren dafür
SG109448A1 (en) * 2000-05-11 2005-03-30 Swatch Group Man Serv Ag Portable electronic device such as, in particular, a timepiece, fitted with a push-button

Families Citing this family (9)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
DE60044711D1 (de) * 2000-05-11 2010-09-02 Swatch Group Man Serv Ag Mit einer Drucktaste versehene tragbare elektronische Vorrichtung, insbesondere eine Uhr
US7408843B2 (en) * 2005-07-15 2008-08-05 Dennis Brandon Medicine cap timing apparatus
DE102006010896A1 (de) * 2006-03-09 2007-09-13 Witte-Velbert Gmbh & Co. Kg Gehäuse eines Funkschlüssels
EP2033174B8 (de) 2006-05-22 2015-04-15 Nike International Ltd. Uhrenanzeige mit lichtquellen und mit einer lichtdurchlässigen abdeckung
EP1933213A1 (de) * 2006-12-11 2008-06-18 Globalsat Technology Corporation Wasserdichtes Uhrengehäuse mit GPS und Verfahren zu dessen Herstellung
EP2746873B1 (de) * 2012-12-21 2017-11-15 Meco S.A. Modularer Zusammenbau eines Druckknopfs
US9720443B2 (en) 2013-03-15 2017-08-01 Nike, Inc. Wearable device assembly having athletic functionality
GB2558415B (en) 2015-05-22 2019-02-06 Dyson Technology Ltd A hand held appliance
CN111061140A (zh) * 2018-10-17 2020-04-24 精工爱普生株式会社 钟表壳体以及钟表

Citations (4)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
FR2030093A1 (de) * 1968-12-18 1970-10-30 Omega Brandt & Freres Sa Louis
EP0099308A1 (de) * 1982-07-06 1984-01-25 René Pasquier Quarzuhr
EP0452254A1 (de) * 1990-04-11 1991-10-16 Fabrique D'ebauches De Sonceboz S.A. Funktionssteuerungsvorrichtung im Boden eines Uhrengehäuses
DE9415401U1 (de) * 1994-09-23 1996-01-25 Junghans Uhren Gmbh, 78713 Schramberg Uhr, insbesondere Armbanduhr, mit Tastschalter zur Betätigung einer elektrischen Kontaktstrecke

Family Cites Families (5)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US3973099A (en) * 1974-11-11 1976-08-03 American Micro-Systems, Inc. Push button switch for electronic watch
CH626773B (fr) * 1977-11-22 Ebauches Sa Dispositif d'actionnement a touche fixe du circuit electronique de commande des fonctions d'une piece d'horlogerie electronique.
JPS6035937Y2 (ja) * 1980-04-15 1985-10-25 シチズン時計株式会社 時計ケ−スの外部操作スイツチ
SE433675B (sv) * 1981-04-09 1984-06-04 Ericsson Telefon Ab L M Forfarande for tillverkning av en tryckknappsats
TW328924B (en) * 1995-06-09 1998-04-01 Daisei Plastic Kk A method for assembling a control panel of an electronic apparatus

Patent Citations (4)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
FR2030093A1 (de) * 1968-12-18 1970-10-30 Omega Brandt & Freres Sa Louis
EP0099308A1 (de) * 1982-07-06 1984-01-25 René Pasquier Quarzuhr
EP0452254A1 (de) * 1990-04-11 1991-10-16 Fabrique D'ebauches De Sonceboz S.A. Funktionssteuerungsvorrichtung im Boden eines Uhrengehäuses
DE9415401U1 (de) * 1994-09-23 1996-01-25 Junghans Uhren Gmbh, 78713 Schramberg Uhr, insbesondere Armbanduhr, mit Tastschalter zur Betätigung einer elektrischen Kontaktstrecke

Cited By (3)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
SG109448A1 (en) * 2000-05-11 2005-03-30 Swatch Group Man Serv Ag Portable electronic device such as, in particular, a timepiece, fitted with a push-button
EP1301011A2 (de) * 2001-10-05 2003-04-09 Nokia Corporation Durch den Benutzer austauschbare Abdeckungen eines elektronischen Geräts oder Mobiltelefons und Verfahren dafür
EP1301011A3 (de) * 2001-10-05 2009-03-25 Nokia Corporation Durch den Benutzer austauschbare Abdeckungen eines elektronischen Geräts oder Mobiltelefons und Verfahren dafür

Also Published As

Publication number Publication date
CN1132070C (zh) 2003-12-24
FR2748828A1 (fr) 1997-11-21
HK1008248A1 (en) 1999-05-07
FR2748828B1 (fr) 1998-07-10
US6346208B1 (en) 2002-02-12
TW324796B (en) 1998-01-11
SG65649A1 (en) 1999-06-22
AU2082097A (en) 1997-11-20
DE69709484D1 (de) 2002-02-14
DE69709484T2 (de) 2002-10-17
CN1171571A (zh) 1998-01-28
EP0807872B1 (de) 2002-01-09
US6000842A (en) 1999-12-14
AU719683B2 (en) 2000-05-18
JPH1048352A (ja) 1998-02-20

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