EP1795979A1 - Timepiece with rocking case - Google Patents

Abstract

The timepiece has a fixed external case (1) in which a tiltable internal case (10) is articulated by the action of a spring to an inclined position. A locking/unlocking mechanism comprises a movable covering element which is manipulated on a plane of a rotational bezel (20) of the internal case provided with a toe (22) that is engaged into a slot (2) of the external case. The toe is provided in the form of a L and has a small arm oriented towards the exterior for cooperating with the slot whose length is selected for permitting the rotation of the bezel between two positions.

Description

Technical area

The present invention relates to a timepiece having a movement-carrying case that can tilt around the hinge of a fixed housing, such as a wristwatch possibly having a chronograph function.

Technological background

To make reading hourly information easier when the watch is worn on the wrist, or to be able to use it as a bedside watch, it has long been proposed to have a first fixed case attached to the wrist by strands. bracelet or can be placed on a table, and a second housing containing the watch movement, movable and articulated in the first housing that can take a first position where it is locked in the fixed housing and a second position where it can take an inclined position .

The patent US 1,804,048 describes already a device in which the mobile housing is unlockable by pressing a push-button through the middle part. In the patent CH 161 610 , the display is hidden when the two housings are nested, and made visible by tilting of the mobile unit by entering a tab at 12 o'clock. In the device described in the patent CH 343 946 , one side of the middle of the fixed housing is removed to allow to enter a corresponding middle portion of the mobile housing to unlock against the action of a spring and tilt. In the patent US 4,168,607 the mobile housing is also brought into the raised position under the action of a leaf spring disposed in the bottom of the fixed housing, by pressing a push button as in the first document cited.

These devices of the prior art may possibly make it possible to protect or hide the crown or other control member, but they have the disadvantage either of leaving a pusher or an unlocking tab visible, or of having an obvious element in the caseband, which in both cases is inconvenient to handle or unattractive.

Summary of the invention

The present invention therefore aims to overcome the disadvantages of the aforementioned prior art by providing a timepiece and more particularly a watch having two nested housings, the inner housing supporting the movement being able to assume an inclined position with respect to the fixed outer casing. acting with a finger on a movable element and dressing to print a displacement according to the plane of the timepiece to cause the unlocking of the mobile housing.

For this purpose the invention relates to a timepiece and in particular a wristwatch comprising a fixed outer casing and a tilting inner casing supporting the movement and a display of hourly or non-hourly information. The inner housing is articulated around an axis parallel to the reading direction of the information and disposed in the lower part of the display, ie at 6 o'clock in the case of an analog display. The inner casing is held in the normal position in the fixed casing by locking means and can occupy an inclined position under the action of a spring when said locking means are deactivated. The invention is characterized in that the locking means are formed by a movable element of the covering which can be manipulated in the plane of the timepiece in rotation or in translation. In other words, the timepiece no longer includes push-button or tab-type locking means.

This movable element of the covering can be part of either the inner housing or the outer housing. When part of the inner housing, it is preferably constituted by a rotating bezel. When part of the outer casing, it is preferably constituted by a sliding flap disposed in the upper part of the bezel-middle.

With the exception of timepieces with full touch control by means of sensors arranged at the level of the ice, it is necessary to have protruding control means, such as a crown or pushers in the case of a chronograph watch, said control means being damaged during an impact and not necessarily aesthetic.

According to another aspect of the invention, the outer casing makes it possible to protect the control members, and the movable element possibly makes it possible to mask them.

According to a first embodiment, the movable element is a rotating bezel integral with the inner casing and may have an asymmetrical outer contour if the timepiece is provided with control members to which it is necessary to have easy access in position. tilted, for example in the case of a chronograph watch. The movable element can also be only a mobile rotating bezel sector.

According to a second embodiment, the movable element is a sliding shutter disposed in the upper part of the bezel-middle of the outer casing. In the case where the timepiece is provided with control members, the shutter may be disposed at said control members so as to be able to hide them in the normal position.

Brief description of the drawings

• les figures 1 et 2 représentent en perspective un premier mode de réalisation d'une montre-bracelet selon l'invention respectivement avec le boîtier interne en position normale et en position basculée;
• les figures 3, 4 et 5 représentent schématiquement les manipulations à effectuer pour faire passer le boîtier interne de la position normale à la position basculée;
• les figures 6, 7 et 8 représentent les diverses pièces à assembler pour obtenir la montre de la figure 1;
• la figure 9 est une vue en perspective correspondant à la figure 2 sous un angle permettant de montrer une partie du mécanisme de verrouillage;
• la figure 10 correspond à la figure 9, sans le boîtier extérieur;
• la figure 11 est une coupe brisée de la montre représentée à la figure 1, selon les axes 2h-6h;
• les figure 12 et 13 représentent en perspective un deuxième mode de réalisation respectivement avec le boîtier interne en position normale et en position basculée;
• les figure 14, 15 et 16 représentent schématiquement les manipulations à effectuer pour faire passer le boîtier interne de la position normale à la position basculée;
• les figures 17 et 18 représentent en perspective uniquement le boîtier interne et le volet en position verrouillée et déverrouillée;
• les figures 19, 20, 21 représentent en perspective uniquement le volet sous trois angles différents, et
• la figure 22 est une coupe de la montre représentée à la figure 12, passant par le dispositif de verrouillage.

Other advantages and features of the present invention will appear in the following description of various embodiments given by way of illustration and without limitation, with reference to the appended drawings in which:

• Figures 1 and 2 show in perspective a first embodiment of a wristwatch according to the invention respectively with the inner housing in the normal position and tilted position;
• Figures 3, 4 and 5 show schematically the manipulations to be made to pass the inner housing from the normal position to the tilted position;
• Figures 6, 7 and 8 show the various parts to assemble to obtain the watch of Figure 1;
• Figure 9 is a perspective view corresponding to Figure 2 at an angle to show part of the locking mechanism;
• Figure 10 corresponds to Figure 9, without the outer casing;
• Figure 11 is a broken section of the watch shown in Figure 1, along the axes 2h-6h;
• Figures 12 and 13 show in perspective a second embodiment respectively with the inner housing in the normal position and tilted position;
• Figures 14, 15 and 16 show schematically the manipulations to be made to pass the inner housing from the normal position to the tilted position;
• Figures 17 and 18 show in perspective only the inner housing and the shutter in the locked position and unlocked;
• FIGS. 19, 20, 21 represent in perspective only the shutter under three different angles, and
• Figure 22 is a section of the watch shown in Figure 12, passing through the locking device.

Detailed description of the invention

Referring first to FIGS. 1 to 11, a first embodiment of a tilting-case chronograph watch and how to change the display from a normal position to a tilted position is described below. allowing a more convenient reading of the information displayed on the dial and giving access to the controls, time setting, chronograph function or others.

Figure 1 is a perspective representation in the "normal" position, that is to say as we usually see a wristwatch in the wrist, with one exception: no control member is apparent on the middle of the outer casing 1 which allows the fastening of the bracelet strands 3.

The only visible part is a display 12, which is in this example is an analog display with chronograph function, and a bezel 20 having an asymmetrical shape including a particular 21 in its outer contour. The telescope 20 is a rotating bezel that can be manipulated in rotation in the plane of the watch.

The same watch is shown in the "tilted" position in FIG. 2, facilitating, when it is worn on the wrist, reading the information of the display 12 and disengaging the control members, such as a ring 14 and two pushers. The way in which the transition from the normal position to the tilted position is carried out will be better understood by referring also to the diagrams of FIGS. 3, 4 and 5. Starting from the normal position (FIG. the rotating bezel 20 a rotation of a certain angle (Figure 4) which will position the recess 21 above the location where the control members 14, 16 and 18 and will cause, under the action of a helical torsion spring 7, not visible in these figures, the tilting of an inner housing 10 enclosing the watch movement with its display 12, and the control members 14, 16 and 18. This tilting is carried out around an axis 4, arranged at 6 o'clock and crossing 5, 15 of the housings 1, 10.

Figures 6, 7 and 8 showing a view from above the various parts to be assembled to obtain the watch shown in Figures 1 and 2.

In FIG. 6, it can be seen that the outer casing 1 comprises a cavity 6 whose contour corresponds to that of the outside contour of the tilting casing 10 represented in FIG. 7. Its extensions 5a, 5b according to the direction of the strands of bracelet 3 comprise in particular housing 6a, 6b for respectively receiving the control members 14, 16 and 18 and the extension 15 of the inner housing 10. As seen in Figure 8, in the example shown, the rotating bezel 20 to a shape asymmetrical having an obvious 21. It is obvious that the shape of the bezel 20 is adapted to the contour of the fixed housing, the aesthetic effect possibly sought, and the type of movement and control members integrated in said watch. For example, it is possible to have a telescope having an oblong shape according to the direction of the bracelet strands and of which an elongated part covers the organs control in the locked position, and whose narrow part allows to release said bodies in the tilted position after rotation of said bezel.

In the case of a touch-only controlled watch by sensors arranged at the ice, and therefore not provided with any control member located on the middle of the casing 10, or a watch which one would like keep the controls permanently visible. It is even possible to have a ring-shaped bezel perfectly circular whose manipulation will only serve to move the inner housing from the normal position to the tilted position, or vice versa. In such an embodiment, it is even possible to limit the movable element to a bezel sector that can be manipulated in rotation between a locked position.

Referring now more particularly to Figures 9, 10 and 11 is described below the locking / unlocking mechanism to move from the normal position to the tilted position.

The angle at which the watch is shown in the tilted position in FIG. 9, shows that the telescope 20 has in its lower part a lug 22 in the shape of an L whose small arm is oriented outwards in order to cooperate with a groove 2 the outer casing 1, on the principle of a bayonet assembly, through a passage 2a between said groove 2 and the scope of the middle of the outer casing 1.

It is obvious that the length of the groove 2 can be limited to the length simply sufficient to allow the rotation of the bezel 20 between a position where the recess 21 is above the control members 14, 16, 18 and a position where the wider part of the telescope comes to hide them. In the case of a bezel 20 perfectly circular, either because the movement has no control member protruding from the middle of the tilting case, or because it was decided to leave the control members permanently visible, the length of the groove 2 may be limited to the width of the small arm of the lug 22 L. Similarly, it is possible to provide more than one locking lug, for example by arranging two lugs symmetrically with respect to the center of rotation of the rotating bezel.

It can also be seen that the tilting box 10 comprises a battery door 19, opposite a corresponding opening 9 in the fixed housing 1, in order to facilitate the replacement of the battery. The lid of the hatch 19 is indeed not very accessible, even in the tilted position.

Indeed, as can be seen in Figure 10 in which the outer casing 1 is not shown, the movement of the casing 10 is limited by a pin 13 positioned in a lower part of the extension 15 of the tilting box. It is obvious that other equivalent devices could be used to control the tilt angle.

This figure also shows the end of the helical torsion spring 7 whose turns are contained in a housing 8 of the extension 15 of the tilting housing 10. The other end of the spring 7 abuts against the bottom of the fixed housing 1.

Figure 11 is a broken sectional representation passing through the center of the dial and the positions 2h. 6h. This section makes it possible to better see the location of the housing 8 of the torsion coil spring 7. This location being located in an extension 5a of the stationary housing 1 allowing the fastening of the bracelet strands, does not modify in any way the thickness of the housing and the overall aesthetic of a watch that would not be provided with such a device. This cut also makes it possible to better see the location of the groove 2 in which the pin 22 engages.

In the description of this first embodiment the helical torsion spring 7 is given only by way of example. It is indeed possible to use other types of spring, for example a leaf spring, or other elastic means.

Figures 12 to 22 are used to describe a second embodiment, based on the same principle but differs from that just described by the arrangement of the locking / unlocking device. Elements identical or similar to those of the first embodiment are designated by the same references.

FIGS. 12 and 13 show a rectangular chronograph wristwatch whose control members constituted by a ring 14 and two pushbuttons 16, 18 are arranged in the upper part of the display 12, substantially between the horns allowing fixing the bracelet strands 3, no other control member being visible on the middle of the fixed outer casing 1.

Figure 12 shows in perspective such a watch in the normal position, the members 14, 16, 18 being visible but not accessible. FIG. 13 represents the same watch in which the inner case 10 is in the tilted position, ie a position allowing a better reading of the display 12 and giving access to the control members 14, 16, 18.

Referring also to FIGS. 14, 15 and 16, the manner in which the transition from the normal position to the tilted position is explained below. Starting from the normal position (FIG. 14), a flap 25 (FIG. 15) is slid with a finger towards the outside of the casing which will provoke under the action of a spring, which is not visible. in the figures, the tilting of an inner case 10 (FIG. 16) enclosing the watch movement with its display 12, as well as the control members 14, 16 and 18, said tilting being effected around pivot points in the part bottom of an outer casing 1 allowing the fastening of the bracelet strands 3.

FIGS. 17 to 22 describe in greater detail an embodiment allowing the sliding shutter to lock / unlock the tilting box 10.

Figures 17 and 18 show in perspective only the tilting housing 10 and the flap 25, also shown at different angles in Figures 19, 20 and 21.

The flap 25 is formed by a substantially rectangular plate 26 which, in the example shown in FIGS. 12 to 16, has a clearance 28 making it possible to leave the control members 14, 16, 18 permanently visible in the normal position. As shown in Figure 20, the plate 26 may also be provided without clearance if it is desired on the contrary to mask the control members in the normal position.

The plate 26 has, in its lower face to slide over a span of the middle of the fixed housing 1, two parallel grooves 27 near the edges of the short sides of the plate 26.

The grooves 27 are closed at each end and make it possible to limit the travel of the flap 25 and to actuate the unlocking system of the tilting box 10.

Each groove 27 is in fact designed to receive the end of a pin 29 secured perpendicularly to a slide 30, housed in a slide 35 formed in the middle of the fixed housing 1, close to its bottom, and open towards the inside of said fixed housing 1. The stud 29 passes through the middle part by a well 39 of oblong shape.

The end of the slider 30 directed towards the inside of the fixed housing 1 comprises a bevel 31 and the other end directed towards the bottom of the slider 35 is provided with a helical compression spring 33 resting on the bottom of the slider 35.

Referring to the normal position, shown in Figures 12, 14 and 17, it is seen that the spring 33 forces the bevel 31 of the slider 30 to engage in a groove 11 of the tilting housing 10, located near its bottom, in below the control members 14, 16, 18.

To switch to the tilted position, shown in Figures 13, 16 and 18, the flap 25 is slid outwards. In a first phase (FIG. 15) the housing remains in the normal position, the end of the post 29 only sliding in the groove 27 to position the flap 25 beyond the control members 14, 16 and 18. When the pin 29 abuts the bottom of the groove 27, an additional thrust compresses the spring 33, to release the bevels 31 of the groove 21, and thus to tilt the inner housing 10 under the action a spring, not shown but may have the same arrangement as the spring of the first embodiment. The largest dimension of the well 39 of oblong shape must therefore correspond to the necessary clearance of the slider 30 to completely clear the bevel 31 of the groove 11.

In the case of a flap 25 whose plate 26, has a recess 28, which corresponds to the example more particularly illustrated, it is obvious that the tenon can be simply fixed, for example by driving, in the base of the tray 26.

Other variants may be provided, particularly in terms of the shapes of the housings and the movable member for locking / unlocking without departing from the scope of the present invention.

Claims (10)

Timepiece comprising a fixed outer casing (1) and a rocking inner case (10) supporting the movement and a display of hourly or non-hourly information (12), said inner casing (10) being articulated around an axis parallel to the reading direction of the information and arranged in the lower part of the display being held in the fixed housing (1) by locking means and can occupy under the action of a spring (7) an inclined position when said locking means are deactivated, characterized in that the locking means are formed by a movable member (20, 25) of the cladding that can be manipulated in the plane of the timepiece. Timepiece according to claim 1, characterized in that the movable member is part of the casing of the inner housing (10). Timepiece according to claim 2, characterized in that the movable element is a rotating bezel (20) having at least one lug (22) adapted to be positioned opposite a groove (2) formed in the inner wall of the outer casing (1) and to be engaged in said groove to lock said inner casing (10) when said bezel (20) is rotated. Timepiece according to claim 1, characterized in that the movable element is part of the casing of the outer casing (1). Timepiece according to claim 5, characterized in that the movable element is a sliding flap (25) disposed in the upper part of the bezel-middle adapted to lock the inner tilting housing (10) and to unlock it when said flap (25) is slid. Timepiece according to Claim 1, comprising control members (14, 16, 18) arranged on the middle of the inner casing (10), characterized in that the movable element (20, 25) has a contour enabling furthermore to mask or protect the control members (14, 16, 18) in the locked position, and to disengage them in the unlocked position. Timepiece according to claim 6, characterized in that the control members (14, 16, 18) are arranged at 12 o'clock. Timepiece according to claim 1 constituted by a wristwatch, characterized in that the hinge pin (4) of the two housings (1, 10) is merged with a strap of a strap strand ( 3). Timepiece according to claim 8, characterized in that the fastening means of the bar comprise a housing for the spring (7) causing the tilting of the inner housing (10). Timepiece according to claim 1 wherein the movement is powered by a battery, characterized in that the bottom of the outer casing (1) has an opening (9) giving access to a battery door (19) disposed in the bottom the inner case (10).

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