US2002998A - Alarm clock - Google Patents

Description

y 8, 935 c. JAUCH 2,002,998

ALARM CLOCK Filed April 6, 1933 2 Sheets-Sheot l Patented May 28, 1935 ALARM GLCK Christian Jauch, Winsted, Conn. assignor to William L. Gilbert Clock Company, Winsted,

Conn. a corporation of Connecticut Application April 6, 1933, Serial N0. 664,730

3 Claims.

This invention relates to alarmclocks and. has particular reference to alarm mechanism for giv- Ing a. more or less gentle audible signal a.t the predetermined time in order to wake the sleeper "5 without unduly startling him, and a subsequent more or lass violent audlble signal to stir the sleeper into activity should he not hear or ignore the preliminary or gentle Signal.

The ai1n of the invention is to provide an a1arm mechanism of this sort having various features of novelty and advantage andwhich is particularly characterized by its low cost of manufacture, Its simplicity in construction, and 1ts reliability in operation.

Other objects will be in part obvious and in part pointed out more in detail hereinafter.

'Ihe invention accordingly consists in the features of construction, combination of elements and arrangement of parts which Will be exemplified in the construction hereinafter set forth and the scope of the application of which will be indixzated in the appended c1aims.

In the accompanying drawings, wherein is shown, for illustrative purposes, one embodiment which the present invention may take:

Figure 1 is a rear view of the clock mechanism;

Fig. 2 is a view looking at the frohi. end of the alarm mechanism;

Fig. 3 1s a side view 015 what is shown in Fig. 1;

and

Referring I:o Izhe drawings in detail, the clock may have the usua1 froni: frame or plate I0, a back upper plate II, and a back 1ower plate I2 spaced rearwardly of the plate II, theplates being held in spaced relation by the usua1 pillars I3. 'Ihe plates carry the usual time train of gears which may be of any suitable construction and arrangement and; therefore, is not shown in detail. This time train may be driven by a time main spring I4 and may have the usual center or minute arbor I5 and. an hour wheel I6 driven from. the shafi; I5 through a minute wheel I'I.

The letter B designates a hell (shown in broken lines, Fig. 3) which, when struck, will give an audible signal and, associated with this hell, are two hammers 20 and 2I, the former of which is actuated with a relatively s1ow movexnent so as to give a more or less preliminary gent1e audible signal and the latter of which is actuated w1'th a fast movement or beat so as to give a more violent signal after the hammer 20 has given its initial sinal.

resilient arm 22 extending from a rock shaft 23 which is journalled in the plates I0 and II and which has a projecting finger 24 adapted to engage a pillar I3 in order to limit movement of the hammer 20 towards the hell. A spring 25 coi1ed about ehe rock shaft 23 and having its opposite ends connected to the finger 24 and the pll1ar I3, respectively, is provided for resiliently urging the harnmer 20 towards the hell. 'I'he fast alarrn hammer 2I is carried by a depending arm 26 projecting from a r0ck shaft 21 journalled in the plates I0 and I I and having a limited axial movement relative to those plates for a purpose hereinafter described more in detail. 'I'he hammer 20 is operated by an actuating wheel 28 having ratchet teeth 20 with which cooperates a rod 30 projecting radially from the rock shaft 23. The fast hammer 2I is operated by a crown or escapement wheel 3I with which cooperates an alarm verge 32 fixed to I;he rock shaft; 2'I.

The hammer actuating members 28 and 3I are driven through an alarm train by a single source of power, such, for example as an a1arm main spring 35, one end of which is fixed in the usual manner to an alarm ind arbor 36 journalled in the plates I0 and II. Loose upon the alarm Wind arbor is a main wheel 31 and fixed to the arbor is a ratchet wheel 30 cooperating with a spring pressed pawl 39 carried by the main wheel 3'I. With this arrangement, the alarm main spring may be wound up by turning the arbor in one direction without turning the main wheel, and the main wheel will rotate With the arbor when the latter is driven in the opposite direction by the main spring. In like manner the hammer actuaoing wheel 28 is associated with the arbor 36 by a ratchet wheel 40 and a spring pressed pawl II. In order to control the speed at which the alarm t:rain is driven by the spring 36, the usua1 air fly 42 is provided, the same being carried by a shaft 43 journalled in ehe back plates II and I2. The fly shaft 43 is driven from the main wheel 31 through a lautem pinion 44, wheel 45, 1antern pinion 46, shaft; 4'I and the cooperating wheels and pinions 48-49, 505I and 5253. The shaft 4'I, which is rotated ab a faster speed than the wind arbor 36, carries the crown or escapement wheel 3I for actuating the fast hammer 2I.

Any suitable settable means operatively counected to the time movement may be employed Tor controlling the operation of the a1arm train in order that the alarm may be given at any desired time. By way cf example, the means is here shown as comprising an alarm cam 60 and a settable carn finger Ei oooprating with the oam. I'he cam 68 is fixed. to a wheel 62 meshing With the minute wheel i1 so that the cam will make one revolution during every twelve hours, for example. The cam has the usual helical cam edge provided with a notoh 63 in which the finger 611 is adaptecl to engage after the high point of the cam ri des from under the fingen 'Ihis finger is staked to the forward end of the usual alarm set shaft 6%, the extreme forvvarcl endet which may be provideol with an indicating hand (not shown). The unit comprising the cani 69 and. the wheel 62 is slidably mounted 011 the forward end of the set Shaft 654 anal is normally urged forwardly towards the finger 61 by a resilient control lev er 85 which is here shovvn as being in the form of a spring strip, one end of which is fixed to the frontplate, as at E55, anti the free endof which is bent rearwardly, as at 67. The end 67 oi the oontrol lever is adapted to eoop'erate With a suitable stop lnger 58 on the arbororshaft Q! for preventing rotation of the alarm train.

As' previously stateol, the rock shaft 27, which carriesthe fast harnmer ancl the alarm verge 32, is mounteolfor 'axial movenient, the purpose of such movement being to permit theverge to be movedinto and out of operative relationto the crowrl er esoapem'ent Wheel 3I. In order to so moVe the rock shaft, there is provided, rearwardly 01 the-back plate H, .a cam wheel 15 having an arc'zuate slot 76 in whioh is adaptedto engage a taperecl stud E! carried by a spring 8 one end of which isfixed to the back plate H, as at E9. The oth'er en. of this spring is forked. to provide a pair of arms il Which engage in the groove of a collar 8l fixed to the rock shaft 2I. When the stud H is engaged in the arouate slot ES, the spring 78 urges the rook shaft 27 forwardly so as to engage the verge With the esoapement wheel 3 i. When the stucl engages the unslotted. portion of the cam wheel 75 whioh is between the ends of the slot, the rock shaft is held in a rearward position in:whicli the verge is out of operative relation to the escapement wheel. 'Ihe oam wheel 15 has gear teeth 75 on its periphery whih mesh With a pinion 82 fixed to a wheel or gear 83 which meshes With a srn'all pinion' 84 fixeol to the alarrnwind shaft 36. The periphery of the "cam wheel 75 has a blank or untoothed. prtion I" which acts as a stop for limiting the extent of rotary movement of the cam wheel. 'Ihe operation of the meohanism is briefly as follows: T0 Wind up the alarm main spring, the Winding shaft is turned counterclookwise, reference being had to Fig. l, and, when so turned, the Garn Wheel l5 will loe turned Counterelookwise until the blank portion 'i5" of the eam wheel engages the teeth of the srnall pinion 82.- At this time, the Inain spring is fully wouncl up anal the stu.d H 'ngages the unslotted portion o1? the cam wheel so that the verge is held rearwardly out of operative relation to the escapement wheel 3i.- The alarm set lever may be turned so as to set the alarm in the usual manner. It is', of course, understoool that the rearvvardly turned end of the control lever %5 will be in the path ofthe stop finger 58 and thus prevent turning of the alarm train so long as the set finger 61 is not in the notch 63 0f the cam 6'i). When the time 'arrives for the alarm to go off, the oam Ei! will haveturnr'ed to the positionwhere the finger 55 may engage in the notch 63, whereupon the enol 6i of the control lever 65 is free to move forvvardly out of engaging position With the stop finger 558 and that finger now being released,

the alarm train will be driven by the main spring 35. This means that the shaft 36 is rotated with the hammer actuating wheel 28 so that the teeth 29 of that wheel will cause the hamrner 20 to tap the hell, the intervals between the taps being relatively long. Thus, a gentle er warning signal is given to the sleeper without uncluly startling him. When the arbor 36 is tu'rned, the oam wheel for the fast alarm is also turned bot, for an appreciable period or time, the stud 77 Will be in engagement With the unslotted portion of the cam wheel, thus allowing the gentle 'signal to sound Tor some time before the fast alarm comes into play; When the oam wheel has been turned to such an angle that the slot therein' registers With' the stud. H, this stud will move into the slot 'and, therefore, the spring arm 18 Will push the rock shaft 21 forwarolly thereby bringing the verge 32 into operative relation with the'teeth 011 the escapemen't or crown wheel 3I. These teeth will now rock the verge with a rapid or vibrating movement, thereby eausing the hammer 2 i whic'h has also'been movecl into operative relation tothe hell, to strike the hell quite rapidly and thusgive a more 0r lessviolent signal Which the sleeper will be unable to ignore. The alarm may be manually shut off by pressing downward- 1y on a shut-off rocl9 having a depencling finger 91 adapted.to lie in'the path ofrotation of the air fiy This shut-oif rod may be mounted for sliding movent1ent in any suitable manner as, for example, by.rneans of screws 52extending loosely through elongatecl slots in the rod."When the alarm spring is again wound up, the, oam wheel 75 is turne'cl to the position shown in Fig. 1 so that, 011 theynext operation of the alarm,the slow hammer will first be Operated and. then the fast hammer, as just described.

As many.changes could. be made in the above construction anol many apparently widely different embodiments of this invention could. be made without departing from the soope thereof, it is intendecl that all matter containecl in the above :description or shown in the accompanying drawings' shall be interpreted as illustrative and not in a limiting sense.

' It is also to be underfstood that the 'language used. in the follovving claims is intended to co ver all of the generic and sp'ecific, features of the invention herein deseribed anol all statements of the scope of the inVention which,'as a matterof langu'age, might be saiclto fall therebetween.- 1

I claim as my invention:

1. In an alarm olock, a hammer for gii'ling a gentle audible Signal, actuating means for imparting a slotv beat to said hammer, a sedond. ha'mmer for giving a more disturbing signal, actuating means for impai*ting a fast 'beat to saicl seconcl hammer, driving means 'oornmon to both of said hammer actuating means, said second mentionedactuating means including an actuatingpart and an aotuatecl part relatively movable into and out of'operative relation, nd means driven in timed relation to said first mehtioned aotuating means for controlling said second a'ct1iating means.

2. In an alarm clock, a hammer for giving.

gentle audible Signal, actuating means for im-.

driven in timed relation to saicl first mentioned 7 actuating means and having an arcuate slot, and a stud on said spring adapted to engage in said slot, said spring When the stud is engaged in said slot maintaining said part in operative position am]. the unslotted portion of said cam being employed to hold said part in imperative position.

3. In an alarm clock, a hammer f0r giving a gent1e audible signal, actuating means for imparting a s1ow beat to said hammer, a second hanimer for giving a more disturbing signal, actuating means for imparting a fast beat to said second hammer and including a toothed whee1 and. a. verge cooperating therewith, driving means for said first actuating means and said toothed wheel, an axially movab1e rock shaft carrying said verge and said. second mentioned hammer, a spring normally urging said shaft 150 a position where said verge is engaged With said toothed wheel, and a cam for moving said verge into imperative position with respect to said toothed wheel.

CHRISTIAN JAUCH.

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