US 9,989,925 B2Granted

Analog type watch and time set method

AssigneeWithings

InventorsEdouard Wautier, Rachid Saadi, Cédric Hutchings

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Abstract

An interaction method between a graphic tactile device such as a smartphone and a timepiece having at least two analog-type physical pointers is disclosed. Each of the pointers is controlled independently by a stepper motor and referenced relative to a ref-position. The timepiece comprises a control unit configured to handle time count and to control stepper motors. The smartphone has a value setting interface, and the timepiece and the smartphone communicate through a wireless remote short-range communication link. The method comprises the steps of initiating a calibration procedure, causing the minute pointer to be moved to the ref-position via the value setting interface, causing the hour pointer to be moved to the ref-position via the value setting interface, and ending the calibration procedure, and return to a normal time display, Thereby, starting from an initial unknown pointer positions, the control unit of the timepiece can accurately know the positions of pointers.

An interaction method between on the one hand a graphic tactile device and on the other hand a timepiece having at least two analog-type physical pointers, among which are an hour pointer and a minute pointer, each being controlled independently by a stepper motor and each referenced respectively relative to a first and second ref-position, the timepiece comprising a control unit configured to handle time count and to control stepper motors,

the timepiece being deprived of any time set button/actuator,
the graphic tactile device having a value setting interface,
the timepiece and the graphic tactile device being able to be in communication through a wireless remote short-range communication link, the method comprising the steps:
initiating a calibration procedure,
causing the minute pointer to be moved to the first ref-position via the value setting interface,
causing the hour pointer to be moved to the second ref-position via the value setting interface,
ending the calibration procedure, and return to a normal time display, which causes the control unit of the timepiece to know accurately the positions of pointers,
wherein the value setting interface comprises a graphic object,
wherein at when causing the minute pointer to be moved to the first-ref position via the value setting interface, or at when causing the hour pointer to be moved to the second-ref position via the value setting interface, a movement of a pointer is performed in response to a drag travel on the graphic object by the finger of a user, and
wherein at when causing the minute pointer to be moved to the first-ref position via the value setting interface, or at when causing the hour pointer to be moved to the second-ref position via the value setting interface, there is defined a transfer gain from the finger drag travel to the pointer angular travel, and there is defined a speed of the finger drag, wherein the transfer gain is adjusted and updated in response to the speed of the finger drag.

7 more elements

Facts

Application

14/621,111Filed 12 Feb 2015

Published

US 2016/0238996 A118 Aug 2016

Granted

5 Jun 2018

Term ends

Not estimatedThe source records don’t support an estimate.

Classification4 codes

G04C 3/001
Electromechanical clocks or watches independent of other time-pieces and in which the movement is maintained by electric means: electromechanical…
G04R 20/30
The radio signal being a near-field communication signal: decoding time data; Circuits therefor
G04C
Electromechanical clocks or watches
G04R
Radio-controlled time-pieces

Abstract

Claims9