US2090370A - Clock casing - Google Patents

Description

Aug. 17, 1937. F. LUX 2,090,370

CLOCK CASING Filed Dec. 14, 1954 2 Sheets-Sheet l HYVENTOR Frederzck Lux Aug. 1 7, 193 7.

F. LUX 2,090,370

CLOCK CASING Filed Dec. 14, 1934 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 IN VENTOR Fvederzch Lux.

ATTOR EY Patented Aug. 17, 1937 UNITED STATES PATENT iJt' i- 'ifiif.

CLOCK CASING Application December 14, 1934, Serial No. 757,486

17 Claims.

This invention relates to clocks, and more particularly to an improved construction for mounting a clock movement in a casing.

One object of this invention is to provide a clock casing consisting of two interfitting telescoping shells which, when assembled, are adapted to hold tightly in proper relation the clock frame, dial, and accessories without the use of screws or nuts.

A further object is to provide a two-part clock casing of the above nature having a supporting base which is adapted to be secured to the assembled casing by nut and screw means.

A further object is to provide a clock casing having exterior ribs adapted to have interlocking engagement with grooves in the supporting base. A further object is to provide a clock casing of the above nature in which one of the shells is provided with a plurality of locating pins adapted 20 to extend into cooperating apertures in the clock frame for properly positioning said frame when in assembled position.

A further object is to provide a clock casing of the above nature in which the cooperating inter- 20 fitting shells are provided with interlocking bayonet pin and slot means, and said shells when in assembled position are adapted to press inwardly upon the clock movement to hold it securely in position.

A further object is to provide novel means for attaching the dial backing plate to the clock frame, and for supporting a fiat cupped alarm gong therebetween.

A further object is to provide a clock casing of the above nature which will be simple in construction, inexpensive to manufacture, easy to assemble, compact, ornamental in appearance, and very eflicient and durable in use. With these and other objects in view, there have been illustrated on the accompanying drawings two forms in which the invention may be conveniently embodied in practice.

In the drawings:

Fig. 1 represents a front elevational view of the clock casing and base.

Fig. 2 is a side view of the same.

Fig. 3 is a vertical sectional view through the same on an enlarged scale s Fig. 4 is a front perspective view of the rear a casing shell.

Fig. 5 is a rear perspective view of the clock work frame per se.

Fig. 6 is a rear perspective view of the front casing shell.

Fig. '7 is a front elevation of a modified form of clock casing in which legs are substituted for the base.

Fig. 8 is a side elevation view of the same.

Fig. 9 is a fragmentary vertical sectional view on an enlarged scale, taken along the line 99 of Fig. 8, looking in the direction of the arrows.

In the standard type of metal cased clocks now in general use, the clock movement has almost invariably been secured directly to the casing or indirectly thereto by means of supporting brackets. The attachment was usually done by threaded means, such as nuts and screws, and the cost of assembling the movement in the oasing was quite high by reason of the fact that the nuts and screws had to be picked up, turned down, and tightened by hand or machine operations. The resulting construction was quite expensive, involving a large number of parts and often requiring special tools to assemble.

By means of the present invention, the above and other disadvantages have been avoided, and a clock construction has been provided eliminating the use of nuts, bolts, or other attaching means between the movement and casing.

Referring now to the drawings in which like reference numerals denote corresponding parts throughout the several views, the numeral l0 indicates generally an ornamental-shaped cylindrical clock casing comprising a circular front shell 5! and a circular rear shell l2, adapted to be telescopically interfitted and enclosing a clock frame l3, within which are the usual escapement controlled time and alarm trains i l. The front shell l l is provided with an open front I 5 through which is adapted to project a concavo-convex glass crystal l6, the edge of which is adapted to rest against the front beveled bezel-like rim 16a of the front shell H. The front shell H is provided with a rear cylindrical rim l? and has an intermediate raised strengthening rib or bead l8.

The front shell is also provided with an outstanding shoulder Eta for keeping the crystal l6 and dial-holding plate 36 in proper position within the clock casing lb.

The rear shell I2 is provided with a back wall l9 having a plurality of properly located apertures 28, through which are adapted to extend the usual arbors carrying the hand setting knobs 2|, winding keys 22, and. other regulating devices. The apertures 29 for the knobs 2! are preferably large enough to permit the heads of said knobs to pass therethrough upon assembly, while the apertures for receiving the winding keys 22 are just large enough to accommodate the shanks of said keys, it being understood that said keys are assembled after the casing shells H and i2 have been put together.

The forward end of the rear shell i2 is provided with a cylindrical rim 23 adapted to telescope within the rim ll of the front shell H. An intermediate raised rib or bead 25, similar to the rib it of the front shell H, is provided on said rear shell i2 and serves as a stop or abutment for the cylindrical rim ll of the front shell ll when said shells are in assembled position.

In order to detachably interlock the front and rear shells ii and 2 with each other, the rim ll of the front shell ii is provided with an inwardly projecting radial stud 2%, preferably riveted in place, said stud 25 being adapted to enin a corresponding bayonet slot 2? provided in the rim 23 of the rear shell l2. The lower section of the rim 23 of the rear shell i2 is provided with a radial screw pin 28 projecting outwardly therefrom and having interfitting' engagement with a bayonet slot 2;) provided in the lower section of the rim ll of the front shell H. When the shells have been thus assembled, they are adapted to be supported upon an ornamental flat cupped base 3% having an arcuate upper section for fitting under the assembled shells H and i2 of the cylindrical casing in, as shown in Figs. 2 and 3.

The screw pin 23 previously mentioned is adapted to project downwardly through an aperture 3% provided in the base 36 and receives a binding nut 3|. It is to be noted from this construction that when the two shells are assembled with the stud 26 and the screw pin 28 fitted in their respective bayonet slots 21 and 29, and with the base Sil in position, the binding nut 35 serves to lock the base 313 securely upon the casing ill. The arcuate section tile is also provided with a pair of grooves 300 for fitting over the intermediate ribs i8 and 25, respectively. The separation of the shells ii and i2 when the base "it is assembled, will thus be impossible.

In order to properly aline the clock frame l3 Within the casing it to prevent said frame from twisting with respect to said casing, the rear shell if: is provided with a pair of horizontal alining pins 32 diametrically positioned with respect to each other, and preferably riveted to the inside of the back wall H9. The forward ends of the pins 32 are provided with reduced shanks 33 which fit into corresponding apertures (it provided in the rear plate 35 of the clock frame l3.

Positioned in front of the clock frame It and spaced therefrom is a backing-up plate 35 for supporting a dial 3?, in front of which are the usual hour and minute indicating hands 38 and 352, and an alarm set pointer til.

In order to rigidly secure the dial-supporting plate 36 to the clock frame !3, provision is made of a plurality of rearwardly projecting fiat lugs ll preferably struck out of the metal of the plate 35, and having reduced rearwardly projectears 42 passing through the front plate 43 of the clock frame 5 and bent over therebehind. A relatively shallow cupped gong i l is positioned between the front plate of the clock frame iii and the dial-supporting plate 35, and is adapted to be secured in spaced relation from both of said plates by means of a central forwardly offset section :5 spot-welded to the dial-supporting plate The gong it is provided with suitable apertures 45 (only one being shown on the drawings), through which the lugs ll and pointeroperating arbors l'i may project without touching the gong.

The back wall i9 and the outer edge of the dial supporting plate 36 are made resilient and yieldable and the overall thickness of the movement and crystal is made greater than the normal width of the space between the front and rear walls of the shells H and I2. When the shells ii and i2 are interlocked, the movement and crystal will thus be tightly clamped therebetween by a cushion mounting. This will reduce the possibility of breakage of crystals and will compensate for variations in the thickness of the movement, permitting greater tolerances in the manufacture thereof.

The alarm silencing mechanism is preferably located permanently on the back Wall I9 of the rear shell i2, and includes a tubular bushing 48 rigidly afiixed to the upper section of said Wall 59, as shown in Figs. 3 and 4. A plunger rod 49 is slidable in the bushing 48 and carries a handle knob 5E3 on its outer exposed end and a conical nose 5! on its inner end. By manually pushing in on the knob 59 the conical nose 5| will be caused to engage an alarm stop lever 52 for shutting off the alarm mechanism.

Operation In the operation of assembling the clock movement in the clock casing, the rear shell I2 will first be positioned horizontally with its open end up in a suitable jig fixture, not shown, which has suitable vertical projections and cavities for the purpose of properly alining the shell and allowing suitable downward clearance for all the clock movement parts that project beyond the back wall Iii.

The clock movement which includes the clock frame i3, dial 3i, backing plate 36, gong i l, etc., will then be dropped into position within the casing ii], and by alining the pins 32 of the rear clock wall l9 with the apertures 34 in the clock frame is, the movement will be properly located with respect to the shell l2.

The crystal it will next be placed upon the dial 37, after which the front shell H may be assembled by alining the radial stud 26 and the bayonet slot 29 thereof with the bayonet slot 21 and the screw pin 23, respectively, of the rear shell 52. The shell ill will then be telescoped upon the shell i2, and given a slight clockwise twist to interlock the stud 26 and screw pin 28 in their respective bayonet slots.

The clock casing H3 and enclosed movement will then be removed from the jig fixture and inverted. The base will then be placed in position with the pin 23 extending through the aperture 361) in said base Bil, and with the ribs it and located in the grooves 300. The nut 35 will then be screwed upon the pin 28 and tightened up.

The final operation in the assembly of the clock is to place the winding keys 22 upon their respective arbors, and screw them up tightly.

Modified form In the modified form illustrated in Figs. '7, 8 and 9, the construction is identical in all re spects to the first form of the invention, except that supporting legs are substituted for the base 38. The rim of the front shell 55 of the mcdified form is provided with a pair of bayonet slots 56 and 5'! adapted to receive a pair of screw pins 58 and 59, rigidly secured to the rim of the telescoping rear shell 69 as by riveting. After the shells 55 and 60 have been assembled in the usual manner, a pair of hollow tapped ornamental members BI and 62 are adapted to be screwed upon the outwardly projecting threaded sections of the screw pins 58 and 59. The leg members i i 5 and 62 function in the same manner as the nut 3| of the first form to lock the shells and 66 against relative twisting. The rear shell @Q is also provided with a permanent ar leg 63, preferably formed of sheet metal, and rigidly attached to the wall of said shell as by means of rivets 64. If desired, the leg E3 may be formed in the shape of a curved ornamental scroll shown in Fig. 8, and it is preferably arranged so that the clock dial will be rearward-11y inciined 15 when the casing is set on a horizontal surface.

While there have been disclosed in this specification two forms in which the invention may be embodied, it is to be understood that these forms are shown for the purpose of illustration only.

and that the invention is not to be lin.... ed to the specific disclosures but may be modified and em bodied in Various other forms without departing from its spirit. In short, the invention in eludes all the modifications and embodiments 5 coming within the scope of the following claims.

Having thus fully described the invention, what is claimed as new and for which it is desired to secure Letters Patent is:

1. In a clock, a pair of opposed resilient slightly expansible shell members having telescoping rim sections, means to hold said shell members together, a clock movement held tightly under pressure between said shell members, each of said rim sections having an outwardly extending bead,

a base member for supporting said clock on a fiat surface, said base member having a recess shaped to lit the lower part of the assembled shell members, said recess being provided with a pair of grooves adapted to fit about said beads, and means for detachably securing said base to the telescoped shell members.

2. In a clock, a pair of opposed resilient longitudinally expansible shell members having telescoping rim sections, means to hold said shell members together, a clock movement held tightly under compression between said shell members, each of said rim sections having an outwardly extending bead, a base member for sup porting said clock on a flat surface, said base member having a recess shaped to fit the lower part of the assembled shell members, said recess being provided with a pair of grooves adapted to fit about said beads, and threaded means for detachably securing said base to the telescoped shell members.

3. In a clock, a pair of opposed resilient shell members having telescoping rims and axially expansible end faces, means to hold said shell men..- bers together, a clock movement held tightly with in said shell members and compressed thereby,

one of said shell members having inwardly extending means for non-rotative engagement with said clock movement.

4. In a clock having a movement and a front crystal, a pair of opposed resilient telescoping casing sections for housing the clock movement and crystal, and means for detachably securing said sections together and simultaneously clamping said movement and crystal under compression therebetween. I I

5. In a clock, a movement, a casing comprising front and rear telescoping resilient shells for enclosing said movement, means for interlocking said shells, the thickness of said movement being greater than the normal width of the space between the ends of said shells so that said movement will be held under compression by the resilient shells.

6. In a clock, a movement having a dial plate provided with a yieldable resilient rim, a crystal seated on said rim, a casing comprising a front shell for engaging said crystal and a resilient rear shell engaging said movement, said shells being interlocked telescopically together to hold said movement and crystal tightly compressed therebetween, the resiliency of said dial plate rim and said rear shell providing a cushion mounting for said crystal for preventing breakage and compensating for variations in thickness of crystal.

7. In a clock, a pair of cooperating resilient telescoping casing members, a clock movement held between said members under compression by the pressure thereof without being connected therewith, and means for detachably locking said casing members together. i

8. In a clock, a pair of opposed resilient shell members having telescoping rims and outwardly expansible end faces, means to hold said shell members together, a clock movement held tightly within and compressed by said shell members, said clock movement having non-twisting engagement with one of said shell members.

9. In a clock having an interior movement and. a front crystal, 2. pair of opposed resilient telescopic casing sections for housing the clock movement and crystal, means for detachably securing said sections together and simultaneously clamping said movement and crystal under compression therebetween, and a plurality of leg members projecting downwardly from said casing to support it upon a table or other horizontal surface, said leg members also serving to lock said casing sections together.

10. In a clock, a pair of cooperating resilient slightly expansible casing members, means. to hold said casing members together, and a clock movement securely positioned in said casing by and between said casing members, the latter members being expanded by engagement with said movement.

11. In a clock, a pair of telescoping resilient shell members, a clock movement held tightly between and under compression by said shell members, and means for detachably interlocking said shell members with each other in expanded condition, said movement having non-rotative interlocking engagement with one of said shell members.

12. In a clock, a front shell having a front open face and a rear cylindrical rim, a rear shell having a resilient metallic back wall and a front cylindrical rim for telescopically fitting the rear rim of said front shell, means on said rims for detachably interlocking the shells with each other, an intermediate rib on one of said rims serving as an abutment for the edge of the other rim, and a movement held under compression by and between said shells.

13. In a clock casing, a front cup-shaped shell having an open front face and a rear cylindrical rim, a rear cup-shaped shell having a resilient back wall and a front cylindrical rim for telescopic engagement with said rear rim, one of said rims having a raised rib for engaging the edge of the other rim, means on said rims for detachably interlocking said shells with each other, and a movement held under compression by and between said shells.

14. In a clock, a clock movement, a casing comprising a pair of front and rear telescoping shells, the front shell having an open face and the rear shell having a closed resilient back Wall, means on said back Wall extending into said clock movement for non-rotative engagement therewith, and means for detachably holding said shells in tight clamping engagement about said clock movement, said movement being held under pressure by said shells.

15. In a clock, a clock movement, a casing comprising a pair of front and rear telescoping shells, the front shell having an open face and the rear shell having a closed resilient back Wall, said back Wall having interlocking engagement with said clock movement, and pin and bayonet slot means for detachably holding said shells in tight clamping engagement about said clock movement, said movement being held under pressure by said shells.

16. In a clock, a clock movement, a pair of cooperating telescoping casing members having resilient end sections and surrounding said movement, and means for detachably locking said casing members together to hold the end sections expanded by contact with said movement, Whereby said movement is held and clamped therebetween by the pressure thereof.

17. In a clock, a pair of opposed resilient shell members having axially expansible end sections adapted to press upon the opposite faces of a clock movement, and means for detachably connecting said shell members whereby said movement is held and clamped therebetween by the pressure thereof.

FREDERICK LUX.

Images