US327898A - Clocks in series - Google Patents

Description

(No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet 1.

O. H. POND.

ELECTRICAL ATTACHMENT FOR WINDING CLOCKS IN SERIES. No. 327,898. Patented Oct. 6, 1885.

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0. H. POND. I ELECTRICAL ATTACHMENT FOR, WINDING CLOCKS IN SERIES.

No. 327,898. Patented Oct. 6, 1885.

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UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

CHESTER H. POND, OF BROOKLYN, NE? YORK.

ELECTRICAL ATTACHMENT FOR WINDING CLOCK$ IN SERIES.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 327,898, dated October 6, 1885.

I Application filed January 14, 1885. Serial No. 152,843. (No model.)

To all whom i2? may concern.-

Be it known that I, OHEs'rER H. POND, a

citizen of the United States, residing in Brooklyn, in the county of Kings and State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Electrical Attachments for Winding Clocks, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to the class of electric clocks which are actuated directly by the force of a spring or weight, Whichis wound through the agency of electro-magnets.

In organizing electric clocks it has been customary to propel secondary clocks by means of a pawl or by means of an escapement, which is actuated by the movements of the lever of an electro-magnet. Such an electro-magnet is caused to be vitalized periodically by the movements of a clock-train or by the operation of a primary regulator which causes electric impulses to be transmitted to the secondary clock at predetermined intervalssuch, for instance, as once each second or once each minute. The movements of such secondary clocks, instead of being constant and regular, as in the ordinary clocks, are periodical. During the greater portion of the time, therefore, the hands of the clocks are motionless or dead. When a number of secondary clocks are driven or controlled by the movements of a primary clock, they are liable to be stopped, or a portion of them to be thrown out of synchronism, by any accident to the primary clock or to the main conductors leading to the secondary clocks. Moreover, the uniform movements of the hands of such clocks as are operated by an electromagnet vitalized at frequent intervals, require that the battery strength shall be at all times sufficient to drive the pawls and move the hands, otherwise one or more of the clocks of the system will fall behind the regulator. To pro vide a clock and a system of clocks which shall be free from these and other incidental defects is the object of this invention.

It has heretofore been proposed to actuate clocks by a spring or weight maintained under tension, or wound by means of an eleetro-magnet and a pawl actuated by the armature of the same at frequent intervals. The expenditure of energy in such organizations is considerable, and owing to the frequent movements of the armatures the operation of the mechanism is more or less unreliable.

This invention is based upon the employ ment, in connection with the ordinary clockmovement, which is driven by a spring or a Weight, of an electromagnetic device which periodically winds the spring or weight to a predetermined tension. Each. clock in a sys tem is constructed in such a manner that it will operate independently of the other clocks, while it may be one of a series controlled by a central clock. The spring or weight is preferably of such capacity that it will serve to actuate the clock several hours without rewinding. At the commencement of each hour, or at some other predetermined interval, the clocks, if there are several clocks in a system, are placed in such condition that their springs or weights will be successively wound, while no cessation occurs in the driving force which each spring or weight exerts upon its train of wheels.

After the springs or weights have been Wound to a predetermined limit or tension the normal conditions of each clock are re-established. The time required for winding each clock is very shortsay one minute or less. It will be apparent, therefore, that a large number of clocks may be included in a system, and yet the time during which the battery force employed for winding the clocks shall be actually employed will be considerably less than an hour. During such time the connections of the main conductor may be automatically severed, if it is so desired, so that the battery force shall not be uselessly consumed.

In a patent issued to me November 25, 1884, there is described an organization in which rotary electric motors are employed for winding clocks, and these motors are placed in circuit at predetermined intervals. The battery has several circuits-that is to say, one through each motor-but the greater portion of the current will traverse the motor nearest the battery until its circuit is interrupted; nevertheless, some partof the current traverses each motor, and it is possible for all to act simultaneously. In this invention it is designed that the circuit shall be completed through but one of the winding devices at a time, and in this manner it is impossible for IOO more than one to operate at a time, so that a battery of less strength is sufficient.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a diagram showing the general organization of a clock system constructed upon the prineiple of this invention, and Figs. 2 and 3 are diagrams showing the details in the construction of the clocks.

Referring to the figures, B represents the trainof wheels commonly employed for actuating the hour, minute, and second hands of a clock. The train B is normally impelled by a spring, 0, acting through a center wheel, G, carried upon an arbor, c. The spring 0 is preferably of such length that it is capable of actuating the clock to which it is applied for several hours. An escapement anchor, 1), serves to control the movements of the train, and a vibrating pendulum, b, controls the movements of the escapement in the usual manner. The spring 0 is designed to be wound once each hour, or at some other convenient interval, by means of an electro-magnet, E, its armature c, and lever 6. Upon the lever 6 there is carried a driving-pawl, 6 which is pressed, by means of a spring, 0 against the periphery of a toothed wheel, 0. The collet or sleeve 0 of the wheel 0 loosely surrounds the arbor of the center wheel, 0, of the train. The spring 0 has one end attached to the ar her 0, while its other end is secured to the wheel 0. When, therefore, the electro-magnet E is vitalized, the wheel 0 will be driven forward by the action of the lever c and pawl 6 If, therefore, a series of impulses be sent through the coils of the electro-magnet, the spring will be wound so long as the impulses continue, or until it has reached a predetermined tension.

The method of placing the electro-magnet in circuit will now be described. Loosely mounted upon the arbor c is a balanced arm, R, which is dcsigncd to operate a circuit closing and opening device once each hour. The arm R carries at one end a small roller, 1", which is designed to be carried against the lower end of a pendent arm, 1*, when the clock is to be wound. The arm 1- carries a hook or catch, r which normally engages a circuitclosing arm, 1". The pendent arm 1' is normally held in the position to engage the arm 1" by a spring, \Vhen, however, the roller 9*,at the end of the arm R is forced against the pendent arm 0, the latter is moved backward against the tension of the spring 0' and the catch r is moved out of the path of the shoul der 9* upon the circuit-closing arm 1*. The latter is thus pressed downward by the action of its supporting-spring 1. WVhen the circuit-closing arm 0" is thus released, a yielding contact arm or spring, 8', which is carried thereon, is caused to rub against an insulated contact-arm, s". A frictional contact is thereby made between the two points,and a reliable electrical connection is insured. The contactarm 8 is connected with the main line, L, or the section thereof leading to the clock, while the point 5' is connected, through the coils of the electroanagnet E, either with a return con ductor or with the earth. The circuit of the electro-magnet will therefore be completed as soon as the arm R has caused the arm 1- to be released, and if, therefore, a series of impulses be at that time transmitted over the main line the clock will be wound thereby. Such a series of impulses are transmitted to the clocks by means of a suitable automatic transmitter located, preferably, at the central station, and which will be hereinafter described. For the purpose of thus operating the arm R a pin, t, is caused to project laterally from the face of the center wheel, 0. This wheel revolves once an hour, and the pin will therefore, by engaging the arm, cause it to be forced against the pendent arm a once each hour. The circuit will be completed thus at a predetermined moment; but it is evident that the slow movement of the center wheel, 0, cannot be relied upon for interrupting the circuit, thereforeit is desirable that when the spring is wound the circuit through the electro-magnet should be immediately interrupted. For this reason there is placed upon the wheel 0 a pin, t, which, like the pin t, projects laterally from the face of the wheel toward the arm B.

As already described, the operation of the electro-magnet and its armature and armaturelever is to turn the wheel 0 in the direction of the arrow. The pin 25 will therefore be caused to overtake the arm R, and cause it to advance rapidly from the pin it and the arm 9" into engagement with the circnit-closing arm r. The latter is thereby lifted, causing the contact-points to be separated, and the catch 1- again passes into engagement with the circuit-closing arm 0". The arm R then remains at rest until the pin t is caused, by the revolution of the center wheel, 0, to again overtake and to gradually advance it, thus causing the operation to be repeated. It will be understood that the spring is intended to be normally wound sufficiently to actuate the clock to which it is applied for several hours, even though through any accident the winding de vice should not be meanwhile actuated.

As it is the purpose of this invention to place several clocks in series and to wind them all in the manner described, it is designed that the conductors 1 and 2, leading from the electramagnet, shall be connected with the earth, as already described, and thus with the pole of the main battery V, which is connected with the earth by a conductor,3,one pole of this battery being connected with the main line through the circuit-controlling device V, which remains to be described. As it is desirable, however, that the battery force employed for winding the clocks shall be as small as possible, it is intended that each clock shall be wound at a different time from the other clocks, and for the purpose of causing the electrical connections to be completed from the main line through each clock independently of the other clocks, a device is applied to each clock IIO which serves to interrupt the connections of the main line with all the succeeding clocks in the system while that particular clock is being wound, and when it has been wound to reestablish the main-line connection with the next succeeding clock. To this end a yielding contact'spring, n, is applied to the arm 1*, and when the latter is in its upper position the arm r* is in contact with this spring a. As already stated, the incoming main line or section thereof is connected with each clock through the spring a. Each spring a, however, is connected with the succeeding section of the main line, and thus with the succeeding clock. When, therefore, the first clock-A, for instanceof the series is actuated, the arm "r being thrown downward, the main-line connections are interrupted at the spring a, and the remaining clocks in the series are out of circuit. Immediately, however, upon the comple tion of the winding of the spring of the clock A, the section L of the main line leading to the second clock is placed in connection with the section L, through the arm 1" and spring a. Likewise the circuit-connections of the remaining sections of the main line are controlled by the preceding clocks. It may happen that a second clock in the seriesA for instancewill gain upon'the clock A and place its electro-rnagnet in circuit before the clock A is wound. The circuitconnections will then be reestablished through the clock A", which will immediately complete its winding. In other words, the clocks have precedence one over the other accordingly as they are locatedfirst, second, third, and so forthin the series; but each clock will ultimately be wound.

The circuit-controlling deviceV, which may conveniently be employed for transmitting the successive impulses to the clocks, may be of any convenient form. In the drawings there is shown a series of contact-segments, 2;, which are connected with the battery WV. A revolving circuit-closing arm, 0', is caused to make successive contact with these segments, and for this purpose is driven by means of a suitable train of wheels, v The arm n is connected with the section L of the main line leading to the first clock. It is designed that the arm 1) shall be actuated at such times as is necessary to cause it to send the electric impulses required for vitalizing the electro-mag nets applied to the clocks, and for this purpose it may be set in operation, say, during the quarter of an hour at the commencement of each hour, providing that the clocks are designed to be wound during this time. This may be done manually or automatically in any convenient well-understood manner.

The clocks may, it is evident, be actuated at any other desired periods than once an hour.

I claim as my invention 1. A series of mechanical clocks, electromagnetic devices for winding the same, and a circuit controlling device applied to each clock for completing a circuit through said winding devices, one at a time, thereby successively actuating such devices.

2. The combination, substantially as hereinbefore set forth, with a series of clock movements, of an electromagnetic device applied to each of said movements, a battery for actuating said electromagnetic devices, a circuitcontrolling device for each clock which respectively serve to interrupt the connections with the succeeding clocks of the series, substantially as described, thereby causing said battery to actuate said electromagnetic devices successively.

3. The combination, substantially as hereinbefore set forth, with a series of electromechanical clocks, of a battery for operating the same, means, substantially such as described, for completing the circuit of said battery through said clocks successively, and means for interrupting the connections through each succeeding clock when the connections of one are completed.

4. The combination, substantially as hereinbefore set forth, of a series of clocks, a battery, electromagnetic devices applied to each of said clocks for winding the same intermittently, and a circuitcontrolling device for each clock for completing a circuit through the corresponding winding device and interrupting the connections with the succeeding clock, thereby actuating said devices successively.

5. The combination, substantially as here- .inbefore set forth, with a series of electro mechanical clocks, of a battery, a main line leading to said clocks and connecting them with said battery in multiple are, and a circuit-controlling device applied to each clock for interrupting the circuit-connections of all the succeeding clocksin said series by the operation of the preceding clock in said series and for recstablishing said connections.

6. The combination, substantially as hereinbefore set forth, with the battery V and the clock mechanism, of the main-line sections L and L the circuit-closing arm 0", the circuitclosing points 8 and 8 the conductor Z, means for winding the clock, operated by currents traversing said conductor, and the contactsprings a, organized substantially as described.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto subscribed my name this 3lst day of December, A. D. 1884.

CHESTER H. POND.

Vitnesses:

DANL. W. EDGEOOMB, CHARLES A. TERRY.

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