GB2217052A

GB2217052A - Timepiece for different time zones

Info

Publication number: GB2217052A
Application number: GB8807900A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Adrian John Halkes
Original assignee: FAR EAST HOLOGRAPHICS Ltd
Current assignee: FAR EAST HOLOGRAPHICS Ltd
Priority date: 1988-04-05
Filing date: 1988-04-05
Publication date: 1989-10-18
Anticipated expiration: 2008-04-05
Also published as: GB8807900D0; GB2217052B

Abstract

A timepiece such as a watch has two hands 22, 24 fixed to one another at an angle corresponding to a fixed time difference in hours for the hour hand, so that the user can quickly and easily read of the time in a home time zone and another different the zone. The hands are made distinguishable and may be mechanical or simulated. <IMAGE>

Description

TIMEPIECE This invention relates to time keeping instruments and in particular to analogue clocks and watches, ie. these having moving hands or simulated hands indicating the time.

It is often useful to be able to see the time at a glance not only at one's own location but also at some other place in the world. Therefore many arrangements have been developed to achieve this. For example, watches having been produced with two separate faces within the same housing so that one can set the hands on one face to one time zone and on the other face to another time zone.

As a refinement to this a digital display can be substituted for one of the faces. In another arrangement an outer rotatable bezel is provided around the face and subdivided into 12 markings so that the user can calculate the time if he knows how many hours another time zone is in advance or behind his own time zone. More sophisticated arrangements also exist where the electronics of the timepiece can be set to calculate and show the time difference.

The invention aims to provide a very simple arrangement whereby the user can immediately see and read at least two different time zones from the face of the timepiece.

According to the invention an analogue timepiece has moving hands or simulated hands indicating at least minutes and hours, the hour hand having at least two radial arms which are fixed to one another or positioned in relation to one another at an angle to show a constant time difference as an integral number of hours, eg. an angle of 900 to show a constant time difference of 3 or 9 hours, the arms being visibly distinguishable from one another.

What is in effect the addition to a conventional hour hand of a further hour hand fixed at a constant angle to the first is a very simple expedient but one which gives a quick indication of the time in two different time zones.

No significant changes in the construction or operation of a watch or clock are necessary since even with a quartz controlled drive, the torque available to rotate the hour hand is large in comparison with that available for say a second hand which of necessity must be very light in weight and in any case the weight of the extra arm or arms is almost insignificant.

Although a single watch can only show two different time zone, or three if three arms are provided for the hour hand, this is satisfactory for many users.

0 Thus by providing two arms at 90 to one another one can very conveniently show the constant time difference between say New York and Los Angeles, ie. the East and West coasts of America. The same spacing could alternatively be used to indicate the time difference between GMT and Tokyo time.

Other angles can be chosen to show other constant time zone differences.

In order to distinguish between the two arms of the hour hand some visible distinction is necessary.

Simple distinguishing features are a difference in colour or surface texture for each hand, a difference in shape, or each arm can be marked with the name of the relevant time zone, city or country.

An example of a watch or clock according to the invention is shown in the accompanying drawing which shows the face of that watch or clock.

The face 10 is marked in conventional fashion with indications 12 corresponding to hourly-or 5-minute divisions. A conventional minute hand 14 and a conventional second hand 16 are provided.

In addition, and mounted conventionally on the hour hand drive, is an hour hand 20. This has two integral 0 and fixed arms 22 and 24. They are angled at 90 to one another, ie. an angle equivalent to a time difference of 3 or 9 hours, equally they could be angled at 1800 corresponding to a difference of 6 hours and so on.

These arms should be visibly different. For example, they could be of different colours, eg. the arm 22 and the hands 14 and 16 could be of one colour to correspond to a home zone time and the arm 24 could then be of a contrasting colour. Alternatively they could be of different shapes or could carry makings corresponding to the time zones, eg. the arm 22 could be marked NEW YORK and the arm 24 marked LOS ANGELES.

Claims

C L A I M S:

1. An analogue timepiece having moving hands or simulated hands indicating at least minutes and hours, the hour hand having at least two radial arms which are fixed to one another or positioned in relation to one another at an angle to show a constant time difference as an integral number of hours, the arms being visibly distinguishable from one another.

2. A timepiece as claimed in Claim 1 in which the hour hand has two arms.

3. A timepiece as claimed in Claim 2 in which the arms are angled at 900 to one another.

4. A timepiece as claimed in any preceding claim which is a watch.

5. An analogue timepiece substantially as herein described with reference to the accompanying drawing.