Vertical clutch device for a timepiece
AssigneeMontres Breguet S.A.
InventorsPolychronis Nakis Karapatis, Marc Stranczl
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A vertical clutch device for a timepiece includes along a vertical axis a first wheel rotatably mounted about the vertical axis, a clutch disc, a spring, and a second wheel rotatably mounted about the vertical axis. The vertical clutch device is able to assume a clutched position where the second wheel is rotated by the first wheel under the action of the spring exerting a vertical force Fe to press the clutch disc against the first wheel and a disengaged position where the clutch disc is subjected against the action of the spring to a vertical force Fd separating it from the first wheel so that the second wheel is not rotated by the first wheel. The spring of the vertical clutch device is made of a shape memory alloy.
Claims13
A vertical clutch device for a timepiece, comprising:
- along a vertical axis a first wheel rotatably mounted about said vertical axis, a clutch disc, a spring, and a second wheel rotatably mounted about said vertical axis, said vertical clutch device being configured to assume a clutched position where the second wheel is rotated by the first wheel under the action of the spring exerting a vertical force Fe to press the clutch disc against the first wheel and a disengaged position where the clutch disc is subjected against the action of the spring to a vertical force Fd separating the clutch disc from the first wheel so that the second wheel is not rotated by the first wheel, wherein the spring of said vertical clutch device is made of a shape memory alloy,
- wherein the vertical force Fd is comprised between 1 and 3 N and in that the vertical force Fe is comprised between 0.5 and 2 N for a vertical displacement d, between the clutched position and the disengaged position, comprised between 0.05 and 0.3 mm, said vertical force Fd being greater than said vertical force Fe.
A vertical clutch device for a timepiece, comprising:
- along a vertical axis a first wheel rotatably mounted about said vertical axis, a clutch disc, a spring, and a second wheel rotatably mounted about said vertical axis, said vertical clutch device being configured to assume a clutched position where the second wheel is rotated by the first wheel under the action of the spring exerting a vertical force Fe to press the clutch disc against the first wheel and a disengaged position where the clutch disc is subjected against the action of the spring to a vertical force Fd separating the clutch disc from the first wheel so that the second wheel is not rotated by the first wheel, wherein the spring of said vertical clutch device is made of a shape memory alloy,
- wherein, on a force-displacement curve of said spring, with the force defining the axis Y and the displacement defining the axis X, the angle α2, relative to the axis X of the straight line connecting the origin of the axes X-Y to the vertical force Fe, is greater than the angle α1 relative to the axis X of the straight line connecting the origin of the axes X-Y to the vertical force Fd.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.