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US 4,228,646 AGranted
Electronic timepiece with indication disk for internal state of timepiece
AssigneeCitizen Watch Co., Ltd.
InventorYoshiaki Kato
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
An electronic timepiece having time indicating hands driven by a stepping motor, means for detecting an internal condition such as battery voltage, pulse generating means for generating one or more pulses which are added to the time unit signal pulses applied to the stepping motor if the detected condition changes, and an indication disk which is periodically rotated by the stepping motor and which displays a pattern through a viewing aperture which varies depending upon whether additional pulses have been applied to the stepping motor or not.
Claims18
An electronic timepiece powered by a battery, comprising:
- a standard frequency signal source for providing a standard frequency signal;
- timekeeping circuit means responsive to said standard frequency signal for providing a time unit signal;
- drive circuit means responsive to said time unit signal for providing first drive pulses;
- a stepping motor having a drive coil coupled to said drive circuit means with a rotor of said stepping motor being rotated through a fixed angle by each of said first drive pulses;
- time indicating hands driven by said stepping motor for providing a display of time information;
- a rotatable display indicia normally driven by said stepping motor in a first operating mode to provide an indication of an internal state of the timepiece;
- detection means for detecting a change of said internal state of the timepiece to provide a detection signal in response thereto;
- and
- circuit means for providing an input signal in response to said detection signal and said time unit signal;
- said drive circuit means being responsive to said input signal for providing modulated drive pulses by which said stepping motor changes said display indicia to a second operating mode to cause said display indicia to provide an indication of said change of said internal state of the timepiece;
- said rotatable display indicia being alternately rotated through a first predetermined angle and held stationary in each of a first set of angular positions when said stepping motor is driven in response to said drive pulses and rotated through a second predetermined angle due to said modulated drive pulses being applied to said stepping motor;
- said display indicia comprising an indication member having a plurality of indication patterns on a surface thereof and with each of said indication patterns being situated relative to adjacent indication patterns at angular intervals corresponding to said first predetermined angle.
9 more elements
An electronic timepiece powered by a battery, comprising:
- a standard frequency signal source for providing a standard frequency signal;
- timekeeping circuit means responsive to said standard frequency signal for providing a time unit signal and at least one auxiliary timing signal;
- detection means for detecting at least one internal state of said electronic timepiece to provide at least one detection signal when a change in said internal state is detected;
- addition pulse generation means responsive to said auxiliary timing signal and to said detection signal for generating an output signal comprising at least one additional pulse each time said detection signal is generated;
- gate means response to said output signal from said pulse generation means and to said time unit signal for combining said time unit signal with said output signal from said pulse generation means to provide a drive input signal;
- drive circuit means responsive to said drive input signal means for producing drive pulses;
- a stepping motor having a drive coil coupled to said drive circuit means with a rotor of said stepping motor being rotated through a fixed angle by each of said drive pulses;
- a rotatable display indicia driven by said stepping motor to be thereby alternately rotated through a first predetermined angle and held stationary in each of a first set of angular positions prior to said detection signal being generated and to be thereby rotated through a second predetermined angle due to said at least one additional pulses being applied through said drive circuit to said drive coil of said stepping motor after said detection signal is generated and thereafter to be alternately rotated through said first predetermined angle and held stationary in each of a second set of angular positions;
- and
- for providing a display of time information;
- said display indicia comprising an indication member having a plurality of indication patterns on a surface thereof and with each of said indication patterns being situated relative to adjacent indication patterns at angular intervals with each angular interval corresponding to said first predetermined angle.
8 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.