JP6874341B2 - How to operate the drive mechanism for watches, mechanical watches and royal fern - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a mechanical timepiece that utilizes a driving force generated by a royal fern.

A mechanical timepiece equipped with a drive mechanism (movement) powered by a mainspring has been conventionally proposed. For example, in Patent Document 1, a mechanical clock including a barrel with an inner end of a royal fern fixed, a barrel for accommodating the royal fern, and a barrel with a square hole screw fixed to the end of the barrel with a square hole screw. Is disclosed. The barrel true is rotatably supported by the main plate and the barrel holder, and the square hole wheel and the square hole screw are located on the opposite side of the barrel holder with the barrel holder in between.

Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 11-183644

For example, during work such as inspection or maintenance, by forcibly rotating the square hole screw with a tool, it is possible to wind the fern quickly and easily as compared with the case of operating the crown, for example. However, in the configuration of Patent Document 1, since the square hole wheel and the square hole screw are installed on the opposite side of the barrel wheel from the barrel holder, there is a problem that it is difficult to reduce the thickness of the drive mechanism. In consideration of the above circumstances, an object of the present invention is to reduce the thickness of the drive mechanism while realizing quick and easy operation of the royal fern.

In order to solve the above problems, the watch drive mechanism according to the first embodiment of the present invention accommodates the barrel true to which the end of the royal fern is mounted and rotates with respect to the barrel true. It includes a barrel, a support for supporting the barrel, and a square hole wheel installed between the barrel and the support and mounted on the barrel. In the above configuration, since the square hole wheel is installed between the barrel and the support, the drive mechanism for the watch is different from the configuration in which the square hole wheel is installed on the opposite side of the barrel with the support in between. It has the advantage of being thinner.

The clock drive mechanism according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention includes a train wheel that transmits the driving force generated by the balance spring, and the support supports the barrel true and the wheel train. In the above configuration, a common support is used for the support of the barrel and the support of the train wheel. Therefore, there is an advantage that the configuration of the drive mechanism is simplified as compared with the configuration in which the member supporting the barrel and the member supporting the train wheel are separately installed.

In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, a recess is formed in the end face of the barrel true on the support side. In the above configuration, since the recess is formed on the end face of the barrel on the support side, there is an advantage that the winding or rewinding of the royal fern can be quickly and easily performed by using the tool engaged with the recess.

In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the recess is a polygonal shape located inside the outer peripheral edge of the end face when viewed from the direction of the true rotation axis of the barrel. In the above configuration, a polygonal recess located inside the outer peripheral edge of the end face of the barrel true is formed when viewed from the direction of the barrel true rotation axis. In the above configuration, since the outer peripheral surface contacts the support over the entire circumference of the barrel true, for example, a notch is formed in a part of the outer peripheral surface of the barrel true (for example, a minus groove crossing the end surface of the barrel true is formed). It is possible to reduce the friction between the barrel and the support as compared with the above configuration).

In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the end face of the barrel true on the support side is located in the same plane as the surface of the support opposite to the barrel, or on the barrel side when viewed from the surface. .. In the above configuration, the end face of the barrel true on the support side is located on the same surface as the surface of the support opposite to the barrel, or on the barrel side when viewed from the surface. Compared to the configuration in which the true end of the barrel protrudes from the surface on the opposite side, the effect of making the drive mechanism for the watch thinner is particularly remarkable.

The mechanical timepiece according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention includes a timepiece drive mechanism according to any one of the above-described aspects. According to each of the above-described aspects, the drive mechanism for the timepiece is made thinner, so that the mechanical timepiece can also be made thinner.

A preferred embodiment of the present invention is a method of operating a royal fern in a drive mechanism for a watch, wherein the drive mechanism for a watch accommodates a barrel to which an end of the barrel is mounted and a barrel that accommodates the barrel. The barrel includes a barrel that rotates with respect to the barrel, a support that rotatably supports the barrel, and a square hole wheel that is installed between the barrel and the support and is mounted on the barrel. By rotating the barrel barrel using the recess formed on the end face of the barrel barrel on the support side, the operation of winding or rewinding the royal fern is executed. In the above operation method, the barrel is rotated by using the recess on the end face of the barrel on the support side (for example, the tool is engaged with the recess), so that the barrel in the barrel can be quickly wound or rewound. It has the advantage of being easy to implement.

It is sectional drawing of the mechanical timepiece which concerns on 1st Embodiment of this invention. It is a cross-sectional view of a barrel. It is a partial perspective view of a barrel. It is a cross-sectional view of inverse proportion. It is a partial perspective view of the barrel true in the second embodiment. It is explanatory drawing of the friction which acts on a barrel. It is sectional drawing of the mechanical timepiece which concerns on the modification.

<First Embodiment>
FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view of a mechanical timepiece 100 according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention. In the following description, the Z direction illustrated in FIG. 1 is assumed. The Z direction is, for example, a direction perpendicular to the surface of the dial of the mechanical timepiece 100. As illustrated in FIG. 1, one side in the Z direction is referred to as the Z1 side (back cover side) and the other side is referred to as the Z2 side (display plate side). The mechanical timepiece 100 of the first embodiment includes a drive mechanism (example of a timepiece drive mechanism) 10 installed on the Z1 side when viewed from the dial. The drive mechanism 10 is a movement that drives a plurality of pointers (not shown) that indicate the time.

As illustrated in FIG. 1, the drive mechanism 10 includes a power device 12 that generates a driving force for driving a plurality of pointers. The power unit 12 is installed between the main plate 22 and the support 24. The support body 24 is a plate-shaped member (so-called receiving component) arranged at intervals with respect to the main plate 22.

As illustrated in FIG. 1, the power unit 12 of the first embodiment includes a barrel 32, a royal fern 34, and a barrel 36. The barrel 32 is a substantially cylindrical structure that houses the royal fern 34, and is mounted on the barrel 36 in a state in which it can rotate around the barrel 36. The barrel 32 of the first embodiment is composed of a bottom surface portion 322, a side wall portion 324, and a barrel lid 326. The bottom surface portion 322 and the side wall portion 324 are integrally formed. Specifically, a cylindrical side wall portion 324 projects from the outer peripheral edge of the disk-shaped bottom surface portion 322 toward the Z1 side. The barrel lid 326 is a disk-shaped member that is installed on the Z1 side of the side wall portion 324 and closes the opening of the side wall portion 324. As illustrated in FIG. 1, the barrel 32 of the first embodiment is a barrel wheel in which a plurality of teeth 328 are formed on the outer peripheral surface of the side wall portion 324.

The barrel Shin 36 is a structure that supports the barrel 32 and the royal fern 34. The barrel 36 of the first embodiment is supported between the main plate 22 and the support 24, and can rotate about a rotation axis parallel to the Z direction. Further, a square hole wheel 50 is attached to the barrel Shin 36. The square hole wheel 50 is a gear for winding the royal fern 34. For example, the square hole wheel 50 is rotated in conjunction with the crown by a hand-wound mechanism (not shown) including a crown that is rotated by the user. It is also possible to rotate the square hole wheel 50 by an automatic winding mechanism (not shown) using a rotary weight. When the square hole wheel 50 rotates integrally with the barrel Shin 36, the mainspring 34 mounted on the barrel Shin 36 is wound up.

FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view focusing on the barrel Shin 36, and FIG. 3 is a perspective view focusing on the Z1 side portion of the barrel Shin 36. The square hole wheel 50 is also shown in FIG. 2 for convenience. As illustrated in FIGS. 2 and 3, in the barrel 36 of the first embodiment, the base portion 42, the support portion 44, the end portion 46, and the end portion 48 are integrally formed along a common central axis. It is a substantially rod-shaped structure. The support portion 44 is located on the Z1 side of the base portion 42, and the end portion 46 is located on the Z1 side of the support portion 44. The end 48 is located on the Z2 side of the substrate 42. That is, the end 46 is one end of the barrel 36 on the Z1 side, and the end 48 is one end of the barrel 36 on the Z2 side.

The base portion 42 is a substantially columnar portion. A flange-shaped portion 422 having a diameter larger than that of the other portion is formed in a part of the base portion 42 in the Z direction. As illustrated in FIG. 1, the barrel portion 32 is attached to the barrel barrel 36 by sandwiching the flange-shaped portion 422 between the bottom surface portion 322 and the barrel lid 326 in the Z direction. The barrel 32 is rotatable with respect to the barrel true 36. The inner end of the royal fern 34 is attached to the side surface of the base portion 42 (specifically, the flange-shaped portion 422). Specifically, the inner end of the royal fern 34 is locked to the protrusion formed on the outer peripheral surface of the flange-shaped portion 422. On the other hand, the outer end of the royal fern 34 is fixed to the inner peripheral surface of the side wall portion 324 of the barrel 32. Therefore, the royal fern 34 is wound up by the rotation of the barrel Shin 36.

The end portion 48 in FIG. 2 is a substantially columnar portion formed having a smaller diameter than the base portion 42. As illustrated in FIG. 1, the end 48 is rotatably supported by an annular bearing 222 installed on the main plate 22. Specifically, the end 48 is supported by the bearing 222 in a state where the outer peripheral surface of the end 48 and the inner peripheral surface of the bearing 222 are in mutual contact with each other.

The support portion 44 of the barrel Shin 36 is a portion that supports the square hole wheel 50. As can be seen from FIG. 3, the planar shape of the support portion 44 in the cross section perpendicular to the Z direction includes a straight line. Specifically, the planar shape of the support portion 44 in the first embodiment is an oval shape (so-called track shape) in which both sides of two parallel straight lines are connected by an arc (for example, a semicircle). As illustrated in FIG. 2, the square hole wheel 50 is formed with a through hole 52 having the same shape as the outer shape of the support portion 44. The square hole wheel 50 is installed on the upper surface (Z1 side surface) of the base portion 42 with the support portion 44 inserted into the through hole 52 of the square hole wheel 50. The inner peripheral surface of the through hole 52 of the square hole wheel 50 and the outer peripheral surface of the support portion 44 come into mutual contact with each other. As described above, since the planar shape of the support portion 44 includes a straight line, the rotation of the square hole wheel 50 with respect to the barrel true 36 is restricted by the support portion 44. That is, the barrel Shin 36 and the square hole wheel 50 rotate as one. The planar shape of the support portion 44 is arbitrary. For example, it is also possible to form a support portion 44 whose planar shape is a polygonal shape.

The end portion 46 in FIG. 2 is a columnar portion connected to the support portion 44, and is formed to have a smaller diameter than the base portion 42. As illustrated in FIG. 1, the end 46 is rotatably supported by an annular bearing 242 installed on the support 24. Specifically, the end portion 46 is supported by the bearing 242 in a state where the outer peripheral surface of the end portion 46 and the inner peripheral surface of the bearing 242 are in mutual contact with each other. Of the barrel 36, the end surface E on the support 24 side (Z1 side) and the surface of the support 24 and the bearing 242 on the opposite side (Z1 side) of the barrel 32 are located in the same plane. The end face E is the upper surface of the end portion 46.

As understood from the above description, in the first embodiment, the barrel 32 is supported by the base portion 42, the square hole wheel 50 is supported by the support portion 44 located on the Z1 side of the base portion 42, and the support portion 44 is supported. The end 46 located on the Z1 side when viewed is supported by the support 24. Therefore, as can be understood from FIG. 1, the square hole wheel 50 is located between the barrel 32 and the support 24. A predetermined gap is secured between the square hole wheel 50 and the barrel 32, and a predetermined gap is also secured between the square hole wheel 50 and the support 24.

A recess 462 is formed in the end surface E of the barrel barrel 36. As illustrated in FIG. 3, the recess 462 is a bottomed hole (engagement portion) that can be engaged with a hexagonal bar wrench (example of a tool) 82 for rotating the barrel shin 36. Therefore, the planar shape of the recess 462 of the first embodiment is a regular hexagon. As illustrated in FIG. 3, the planar shape of the recess 462 is a closed figure located inside the outer peripheral edge of the end surface E of the barrel 36 when viewed from the Z direction (that is, the direction of the rotation axis of the barrel 36). That is, the recess 462 does not reach the outer peripheral surface of the end portion 46. Therefore, the outer peripheral surface of the end portion 46 continuously contacts the inner peripheral surface of the bearing 242 over the entire circumference of the barrel 36.

As illustrated in FIG. 1, the drive mechanism 10 of the mechanical timepiece 100 includes a train wheel (drive wheel train) 14 composed of a plurality of vehicles including gears and kana. The train wheel 14 is a mechanism that transmits the driving force generated by the royal fern 34 of the power device 12 to a plurality of pointers and escape mechanisms (not shown). The wheel train 14 of the first embodiment is composed of a plurality of vehicles including a second wheel 142, a third wheel (not shown), a fourth wheel 144, and a cylinder wheel (not shown). Each car constituting the train wheel 14 is rotatably supported between the main plate 22 and the support 24, similarly to the barrel barrel 36. That is, the support 24 of the first embodiment is an element that supports the barrel barrel 36 and the train wheel 14. As illustrated in FIG. 1, a plurality of teeth 328 formed on the outer peripheral surface of the barrel 32 mesh with the second wheel 142. Therefore, each car in the train wheel 14 rotates in conjunction with the rotation of the barrel 32 by the driving force of the royal fern 34. The minute hand is installed on the second wheel 142, the second hand is installed on the fourth wheel 144, and the hour hand is installed on the cylinder wheel.

In the above configuration, for example, a worker who performs work such as inspection or maintenance of the mechanical timepiece 100 puts the tip of the hexagon wrench 82 in the recess 462 formed in the end face E on the support 24 side of the barrel true 36. The barrel wrench 82 is rotated in the engaged state to rotate the barrel wrench 36. By the above work, it is possible to quickly and easily wind (tighten) the royal fern 34 without using a manual winding mechanism or an automatic winding mechanism.

FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view illustrating a configuration in which a square hole wheel 50 is installed on the side opposite to the barrel 32 with the support 24 sandwiched therein, as a inverse proportion to the first embodiment. As illustrated in FIG. 4, in inverse proportion, the square hole wheel 50 located on the opposite side of the barrel 32 with the support 24 sandwiched is fixed to the barrel true 36 by the square hole screw 54.

In the inverse proportion of FIG. 4, it is necessary to secure a gap D2 between the support 24 and the square hole wheel 50 separately from the gap D1 between the support 24 and the barrel 32. In contrast to inverse proportion, in the first embodiment, the square hole wheel 50 is installed between the support 24 and the barrel 32. Therefore, as can be understood from FIG. 1, a gap D2 between the support 24 and the square hole wheel 50 is secured as a part of the gap D1 between the support 24 and the barrel 32. Therefore, according to the first embodiment, it is possible to make the power unit 12 thinner (that is, reduce the size in the Z direction) as compared with the inverse proportion. Since the power device 12 is a relatively large component of the drive mechanism 10, the thinning of the power device 12 is directly linked to the thinning of the drive mechanism 10 (and thus the overall thinning of the mechanical timepiece 100). That is, according to the first embodiment, the drive mechanism 10 can be made thinner as compared with the inverse proportion. In the first embodiment, in particular, since the end surface E on the support 24 side of the barrel 36 and the surface of the support 24 on the opposite side of the barrel 32 are located on the same surface, the drive mechanism 10 can be made thinner. The effect is particularly remarkable.

By the way, in the inverse proportion illustrated in FIG. 4, it is possible to rotate the barrel screw 54 and wind the royal fern 34 by rotating the square hole screw 54 using a tool such as a screwdriver. On the other hand, in the first embodiment, the royal fern 34 can be wound by rotating the barrel wrench 36 with the tip of the hexagon wrench 82 engaged with the recess 462 formed in the end surface E of the barrel shin 36. Is. That is, according to the first embodiment, the square hole screw 54 is not required for work such as inspection or maintenance. From the above viewpoint as well, according to the first embodiment, the drive mechanism 10 can be made thinner as compared with the inverse proportion.

Further, in the first embodiment, the support 24 common to the support of the barrel 36 and the support of the train wheel 14 is used. Therefore, there is an advantage that the configuration of the drive mechanism 10 is simplified (for example, the number of parts is reduced) as compared with the configuration in which the member supporting the barrel Shin 36 and the member supporting the train wheel 14 are separately installed. There is.

<Second Embodiment>
A second embodiment of the present invention will be described. For the elements whose actions or functions are the same as those in the first embodiment in each of the embodiments exemplified below, the reference numerals used in the description of the first embodiment will be diverted and detailed description of each will be omitted as appropriate.

FIG. 5 is an explanatory diagram of the barrel barrel 36 in the second embodiment. As illustrated in FIG. 5, the recess 464 formed in the end face E of the barrel 36 in the second embodiment is a linear groove portion (minus groove) that crosses the end face E over the entire width in a plan view. For example, a worker who performs work such as inspection or maintenance of a mechanical watch 100 engages the tip of a flat-blade screwdriver (example of a tool) 84 with a recess 464 and rotates the flat-blade screwdriver 84 in that state to make a barrel. Rotate 36. By the above work, it is possible to quickly and easily wind the royal fern 34 without using the manual winding mechanism or the automatic winding mechanism. The configuration of the barrel Shin 36 other than the recess 464 is the same as that of the first embodiment. Therefore, the same effect as that of the first embodiment is realized in the second embodiment.

By the way, since the recess 464 of the second embodiment covers the entire diameter of the end 46 of the barrel 36, notches 466 corresponding to the cross section of the recess 464 are formed at two locations on the outer peripheral surface of the end 46. .. As described above, in the configuration in which the notch 466 is formed on the outer peripheral surface of the end portion 46, as illustrated in FIG. 6, the tips of the corner portions 468 located on both sides of the notch 466 are the tips of the bearing 242 in the support 24. Point contact with the inner peripheral surface. Therefore, as compared with the configuration in which the outer peripheral surface has no notch 466 (the outer peripheral surface of the end portion 46 is a continuous arc surface over the entire circumference), the outer peripheral surface of the end portion 46 and the inner circumference of the bearing 242 in the support 24 There is a tendency that the friction generated between the surface and the surface is large. From the viewpoint of suppressing the loss of the driving force generated by the driving mechanism 10, it is important to reduce the friction between the end portion 46 and the bearing 242. Considering the above circumstances, it can be said that a configuration in which a notch 466 is not formed on the outer peripheral surface of the end portion 46 is preferable. In the above-described first embodiment, since the recess 462 is located inside the outer peripheral edge of the end surface E of the barrel 36 when viewed from the Z direction, the recess 462 does not reach the outer peripheral surface of the end 46. That is, the outer peripheral surface of the end portion 46 is a continuous arc surface in which the notch 466 and the corner portion 468 are not formed. Therefore, according to the first embodiment, the friction between the outer peripheral surface of the end portion 46 and the inner peripheral surface of the bearing 242 is reduced as compared with the second embodiment, and as a result, the drive mechanism 10 is generated. There is an advantage that the loss of driving force can be suppressed.

In each of the above-described embodiments, the operation of winding the royal fern 34 is illustrated, but by rotating the barrel 36 in the opposite direction using a tool that engages with the recesses (462,464) of the barrel 36, It is also possible to rewind (unravel) the royal fern 34. As can be understood from the above examples, the barrel 34 is rotated by engaging the tool with the recesses (462,464) formed in the end face E on the support 24 side of the barrel 36. It is possible to perform a hoisting or rewinding operation.

Further, in each of the above-described embodiments, the configuration in which the end surface E on the support 24 side of the barrel 36 and the surface of the support 24 on the opposite side of the barrel 32 are located on the same surface is illustrated. The positional relationship between the end face E of 36 and the surface of the support 24 is not limited to the above examples. For example, as illustrated in FIG. 7, a configuration in which the end surface E of the barrel 36 is located on the barrel 32 side (that is, the Z2 side) of the support 24 when viewed from the surface opposite to the barrel 32 can be adopted. That is, the end surface E of the barrel 36 is in a recessed position with respect to the surface of the support 24 on the Z1 side. The end surface E of the barrel 36 is located on the same surface as the surface of the support 24 opposite to the barrel 32 (FIG. 1), or is located on the barrel 32 side of the support 24 as viewed from the surface. According to the configuration (FIG. 7), the effect that the drive mechanism 10 can be made thinner is particularly remarkable as compared with the configuration in which the end portion 46 of the barrel 36 projects from the surface of the support 24, for example.

100 ... Mechanical clock, 10 ... Drive mechanism, 12 ... Power unit, 14 ... Wheel train, 142 ... Second wheel, 144 ... Fourth wheel, 22 ... Main plate, 222,224 ... Bearing, 24 ... Support, 32 ... Incense box, 322 ... Bottom part, 324 ... Side wall part, 326 ... Incense box lid, 328 ... Teeth, 34 ... Zenmai, 36 ... Incense box true, 42 ... Base part, 422 ... Bearing part, 44 ... Support part, 46 ... End part , 462, 464 ... concave, 48 ... end, 50 ... square hole wheel, 52 ... through hole, 82 ... hexagonal bar wrench, 84 ... flat-blade screwdriver.

Claims (5)

The barrel Makoto, to which the end of the royal fern is attached,
An incense box that houses the mainspring and rotates with respect to the barrel true
The support that supports the barrel and the support
It is provided with a square hole wheel installed between the barrel and the support and mounted on the barrel.
A recess is formed on the end face of the barrel on the support side .
The end face of the barrel true on the support side, including the recess, is located in the same plane as the surface of the support opposite to the barrel, or on the barrel side when viewed from the surface. mechanism.
It is provided with a train wheel that transmits the driving force generated by the royal fern.
The watch drive mechanism according to claim 1, wherein the support body supports the barrel barrel and the train wheel train.
The clock drive mechanism according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the recess is a polygonal shape located inside the outer peripheral edge of the end face when viewed from the direction of the true rotation axis of the barrel.
A mechanical timepiece comprising the timepiece drive mechanism according to any one of claims 1 to 3.
It is a method of operating the mainspring in the drive mechanism for watches.
The clock drive mechanism is
The barrel Makoto, to which the end of the royal fern is attached,
An incense box that houses the mainspring and rotates with respect to the barrel true
A support that rotatably supports the barrel, and
Including a square hole wheel installed between the barrel and the support and mounted on the barrel.
A recess formed on the end face of the barrel royal fern on the support side, and the end face including the recess is in the same plane as the surface of the support opposite to the barrel or when viewed from the surface. A method of operating a royal fern in a watch drive mechanism for performing a winding or rewinding operation of the royal fern by rotating the barrel true using the concave portion located on the barrel side.

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