UNIVERSAL WORLD TIME CLOCK

Description

[0001] The invention relates to a universal world time clock, comprising a clockwork with hands, a stationary 24-hour dial, a dial that can be rotated relative to the 24-hour dial and has a symbol for each time zone (time zone dial) and a corresponding digital clock.

[0002] The need for a universal world time clock for international trade, for arranging international conference calls, or for arranging appointments between two corresponding partners across time zones has long existed. To simplify appointments, smaller clocks are arranged in the dial of a classic clock with a circular dial, 12-hour divisions, and hour and minute hands (analog clocks). These clocks display a preset time at another location on Earth. Furthermore, companies that frequently correspond with partners in other time zones maintain different clocks for major capitals around the world. It is also common practice to hold international appointments according to Universal Time, the so-called UTC. "Universal Time Coordinated",to agree on. When agreeing on time across time zones, the terms time zone and zone time are often confused. A time zone describes an area on earth roughly oriented according to geographical longitude, whereas zone time describes the local time agreed upon in the respective time zone. Local time, universal time, and also daylight saving time, which is introduced in some countries at different times of the year and abolished again at other times, cause great confusion when agreeing on appointments across time zone boundaries. Even very experienced people, such as airline pilots or frequent travelers, often make mistakes about the actual time. Coded appointment files that are exchanged with computers to arrange telephone conferences pose a particular problem.Despite the availability of a universally accepted universal time, UTC, calendar appointments are still made using San Francisco's local time. Computers convert the San Francisco time to local time.

[0003] To agree on international appointments, it is necessary to use an intuitive time calculation. The mere specification of two times with identical structures—namely, a local time and a universal time—is sufficient to distort the understanding of the actual time between two corresponding partners. This intuitive time calculation does not require a change in the mathematical notion of time, but rather a change in the international agreement on how universal time is to be named, so that universal time can be clearly identified as such. The syntax of the time specification should already make it clear which time is being used by two corresponding partners when agreeing on an appointment.

[0004] Approaches to this have already been disclosed in Swiss patent CH 267439. This patent discloses a pointer clock that, in addition to the familiar 12-hour dial, features a mask with windows rotated by 30°, with each window assigned to one of the twelve hours of a clock. Below the twelve windows, a clockwork mechanism operates a dial divided into 24 sections, each of which displays the numbers 1 to 12 and 13 to 24, in a 12-hour rhythm. This clock displays the time in 24-hour format with a 12-hour dial. A key feature of the clock according to Swiss patent CH 267439 is that each 24 hours is assigned a letter of the Latin alphabet. Starting from a time zone corresponding to UTC+2, Central European Time, a watch user sets the time 0:00 so that it corresponds to a letter assigned to the time zone, in this case "L".If the watch user moves to a different time zone, they rotate the hands according to the local time zone, but move the disc with the letters for each time zone along with them. The relationship between the local time on the stationary dial changes compared to the movable dial. However, absolute time, in the sense of a universal time that is the same for all time zones, remains unchanged. The example chosen in Swiss patent CH 267439 assumed that the time M o'clock corresponds to universal time noon and Z o'clock corresponds to universal time midnight. The disadvantage of the watch disclosed therein is that it must be adjusted to the local time. Furthermore, Swiss patent CH 267439 teaches the 24 hours of the day to be named using the letters of the Latin alphabet, except for "L" ("local") and "W" ("world"), which already presents an initial difficulty in naming the time.Furthermore, the symbol "Z" is used as the last hour of the day, which is misleading because times with a "Z" usually indicate the so-called "Zulu" time, the world time in NATO's "Z" time zone.

[0005] The German utility model DE 20 2014 103 526 U1 discloses a pointer instrument which displays the current location coordinates by the position of the pointer.

[0006] German utility model DE 200 13 105 U1 discloses a watch with a dial divided into time zones. The time zones are permanently anchored on the dial.

[0007] US patent application US 2014 / 24770 A1 discloses a watch with two sets of hands and dials, in which a first hand and dial combination remains unaffected by GPS signals and a second hand and dial combination (as a small clock display in the large clock display) displays the local time.

[0008] The object of the invention is therefore to provide a universal world time clock that provides a convenient and intuitive time display of the world time.

[0009] The object of the invention is achieved in that, in or on the world clock, a device for determining geocoordinates is connected to a device for automatically rotating the 24-hour dial, and the device for automated rotation rotates the 24-hour dial in accordance with the time zone when the geocoordinates change. Further advantageous embodiments are specified in the subclaims to claim 1.

[0010] According to the invention, a world time indication on a clock is automatically adjusted by a device for determining the geocoordinates. The device for determining the geocoordinates is connected to a table containing the geographical boundaries of the time zones. Once the device for determining the geocoordinates has determined a coordinate, the time zone in which the world time clock is located is determined using known algorithms for determining whether a two-dimensional point lies within a predetermined area. The 24-hour clock face is adjusted accordingly, so that the relationship between midnight on the stationary clock face, which corresponds to the local time, and world time is set according to the time zone.

[0011] To ensure that the world time is intuitively recognizable as such, and that the name of the world time clearly indicates which time is meant, it is preferred that the 24-hour dial display a letter of the Latin alphabet for each hour of the 24-hour day, preferably the hours 01:00 to 0:00 of the next day display the continuous and unbroken letters from A to X in alphabetical order. Therefore, the times in the 24-hour format of the "Z" (Zulu) time zone of UTC time have the following designations: 01:00 02:00 03:00 04:00 05:00 06:00 07:00 08:00 09:00 10:00 11:00 12:00 A B C D E F G H I J K L and 13:00 14:00 15:00 16:00 17:00 18:00 19:00 20:00 21:00 22:00 23:00 00:00 M N Q P Q R S T U V W X

[0012] This designation with A for 01:00 has the advantage that the usual counting system starting at 1 is mapped to the familiar letters of the alphabet. X:00 is the time at which the universal time day begins. The syntax of the clock notation from X:00 via A:00 to W:00 is easily recognizable from the syntax of the time notation, even for computerized applications. The notation is easily distinguishable from other time notations such as 00:00UTC+2 for 0:00 Central European Time, or 00:00 L for 00:00 for local time, 00:00 W or 00:00 Z for the time 00:00 in NATO's Zulu time zone. L:00 is therefore the time 12:00 in the arbitrarily defined UTC time and not 00:00 L in local time.

[0013] In order to ensure concordance between universal time and time zones, a time zone list can be present on the watch that is not changeable with respect to universal time. Table 1: List of standard time zones Standard time zone Time difference from world time Degrees opposite 00:00 or X:00 World time in the dial with 24h display Z 00 h + 000° A - 01 h + 015° B - 02 h + 030° C - 03 h + 045° C* - 03:30 h + 052° 30' D - 04 h + 060° D* - 04:30 h + 067° 30' E - 05 h + 075° E* - 05:30 h + 082° 30' E †< - 05:45 h + 086° 15' F - 06 h + 090° F* - 06:30 h + 097° 30' G - 07 h + 105° H - 08 h + 120° H* - 08:30 h + 127° 30' I - 09 h + 135° I* - 09:30 h + 142° 30' K - 10 h + 150° K* - 10:30 h + 157° 30' L - 11 h + 165° L* - 11:30 h + 172° 30' M - 12 h 180° M ††< - 12:45 h - 168° 45' M* - 13 h - 165° M †< - 14 h - 150° N + 01 h - 015° O + 02 h - 030° P + 03 h - 045° P* + 03:30 h - 052° 30' Q + 04 h - 060° Q* + 04:30 h - 067° 30' R + 05 h - 075° S + 06 h - 090° T + 07 h - 105° U + 08 h - 120° V + 09 h - 135° V* + 09:30 h - 142° 30' W + 10 h - 150° X + 11 h - 165° Y + 12 h 180°

[0014] In a particular embodiment of the invention, it is provided that in or on the world time clock according to the invention, a device for determining geocoordinates is connected to the clockwork, and that the clockwork rotates the hands in relation to the stationary 24-hour clock face when the geocoordinates change, corresponding to the time zone.

[0015] The analog clock can also be implemented as a clock in a computer. In this case, an analog clock with a dial and hands is displayed on the computer display. The computer contains a device for determining the geocoordinates, which changes a counter or variable within the algorithm for displaying the clock in such a way that the 24-hour clock face is rotated according to the time zone when the geocoordinates change.

[0016] Radio-controlled clocks or clocks that receive their time from a network, such as those using the NTP (Network Time Protocol) protocol or via the GSM or ISDN networks, recognize the local time using the usual time specification convention, such as UTC-x, where x represents a time offset, or XX:XXA, where A represents the time zone, and do not require a device for determining geocoordinates. In these clocks, the device for determining geocoordinates is replaced by an algorithm for determining the time zone from the remotely transmitted time.

[0017] The invention is explained in more detail with reference to the following figures. They show: Fig. 1 a dial of an analog clock according to the invention, or of an analog clock simulated by a computer and according to the invention, Fig. 1.1 a dial of an analog clock according to the invention, or of an analog clock simulated by a computer and according to the invention, rotated by one time zone hour towards the east, Fig. 2 a wristwatch according to the invention, Fig. 3 a digital wristwatch according to the invention, Fig. 4 a computer-based digital clock, Fig. 5 time zone map to explain the time zones in contrast to world times based on Latin letters, Fig. 6 a concordance plot of world time and time zones.

[0018] In Figure 11 shows a dial 100 of an analog world time clock according to the invention, or of an analog clock simulated by a computer and according to the invention. This dial 100 has a stationary 24-hour dial 101, which serves to display the local hourly time. Furthermore, the dial 100 has another second / minute dial 202, on which both the seconds and the minutes can be read. In principle, it is possible to divide the 24-hour dial 101 into 60 units and use only a single dial for the local time display of the analog clock. However, a regular subdivision of the 24-hour dial 101 into 60 parts for 60 minutes or seconds leads to an irregular structure of the division marks, because 60 cannot be divided into whole parts by 24.For intuitive and easier readability, the dials for the 24 hours and for the minutes / seconds are separated from one another. According to the invention, the dial 100 includes a world time dial 103 that can be rotated relative to the stationary 24-hour dial 101. This world time dial 103 is rotated by the clock in parallel with the hands depending on the geographical location and the time zone present there. For example, if the clock were located in time zone Z (Greenwich, Great Britain) at 00:00:00 local time, all hands would point to the top digit at 0. The world time dial 103 would be at the top with a rotation position X. If the clock were now fictitiously transported to Central Europe (UTC+1h), without real time passing, all hands would point to 1 on the 24-hour dial 101.At the same time, the rotating world time dial 103 with the X would also align with the 1 of the 24-hour dial 101, because the world time has not changed during the spatial transport. The hands for local time readings point to the 1 for 01:00, but remain congruent with the X for X:00 or 00:00 UTC, or 00:00 Z.

[0019] If two corresponding partners agree to meet, one of whom is based in Greenwich, Great Britain (21:09 Z, UTC+0) and sees the clock as shown in Figure 1, and the other corresponding partner is in Central Europe (22:09 A, UTC+1), these corresponding partners can, for example, arrange a telephone conference at J:00 the next day. For the corresponding partner in Greenwich, Great Britain (21:09 Z, UTC+0), it will then be 10:00 Z local time at J:00. Since the partner in Central Europe (22:09 A, UTC+1) sees the world time dial 103 rotated 15° clockwise, as in Figure 1.1 For the corresponding partner in Central Europe, it will be 11:00 at J:00 (11:00 A, UTC+1). The World Time dial 103, through automatic rotation, presents a concordance list between local time and world time, which can be easily and intuitively read by anyone.

[0020] In Figure 2Finally, a wristwatch according to the invention is shown, which has a dial 300 divided into a stationary, 24-hour dial 301, a second / minute dial 302, and a world time dial 303 that can be rotated relative to the stationary, 24-hour dial 301. The wristwatch can have a GPS receiver as a device for determining the geocoordinates and internally look up in a table which time zone the specific geocoordinate is assigned to, or it can have a GSM module with which the wristwatch receives both a network time and information about the local time zone. Instead of the device for determining the geocoordinates, an algorithm for extracting the local time zone now causes the world time dial 303 to be rotated.

[0021] In Figure 3A wristwatch based on a computer is shown. This wristwatch is essentially a fully-fledged computer as small as a wristwatch and simulates an analog clock, having a dial 400 divided into a stationary, 24-hour dial 401, a second / minute dial 402, and a world time dial 403 that can be rotated relative to the stationary, 24-hour dial 301. The wristwatch can have a GPS receiver as a device for determining the geocoordinates and internally look up in a table which time zone the specific geocoordinate is assigned to, or it can have a GSM module with which the wristwatch receives both a network time and information about the local time zone. Instead of the device for determining the geocoordinates, an algorithm for extracting the local time zone now causes the world time dial 403 to be rotated.

[0022] In Figure 4Finally, a laptop computer is shown as a computer that simulates a world time clock according to the invention twice, namely once as an analogue clock 500 and once as a digital world time clock 600. The same applies to the computer as to the wristwatch based on a computer in Figure 4The computer simulates an analog clock 500, which has a dial divided into a stationary, 24-hour dial 501, a second / minute dial 502, and a world time dial 503 that can be rotated relative to the stationary, 24-hour dial 501. The computer can have a GPS receiver as a device for determining the geocoordinates and internally look up in a table which time zone the specific geocoordinate is assigned to, or it can have a GSM module with which the computer receives both a network time and information about the local time zone. Finally, location determination is also possible via the local network infrastructure, such as information from a network router connected to the computer.Instead of the device for determining the geocoordinates, an algorithm for extracting the local time zone from the received information now causes a rotation of the world time dial 503.

[0023] In Figure 5is a world map showing the 40 standard time zones Z, A, B, C , C*, D, D*, E, E*, E †< , F, F*, G, H, H*, I, I*, K, K*, L, L*, M, M ††< , M*, M †< , N, O, P, P*, Q, Q*, R, S, T, U, V, V*, W, X, Y. These time zones, with their standardized names, are invariant compared to universal time, which is divided here into 24 hours from A to X. The similar nomenclature of the 40 time zones should not be confused with the naming of the 24 hours with the letters A to X. In standard time zone Z (Greenwich, Great Britain), the local time 00:00 Z will always be time X:00, and in time zone H (Western Australia), the local time 00:00 H will always be universal time H:00. This similarity is not accidental, but intentional. The time of day change should correspond as closely as possible to the local time zone to support the intuitiveness of the time measurement.The standard time zones do not include time zone L to avoid confusion with a possible misinterpretation of a local time. Universal time L:00 corresponds to the time 13:00 A prevailing in Central Europe (UTC+1), time zone A (see . Fig. 1.1 ). At L:00 it is 00:00 in the time zone UTC+12 (default time zone Y). Intuitiveness is therefore not present in time zone Y, where time zone Y has been changed to a time zone X, W, and M* due to the proximity of the date change for the areas located there.

[0024] For a very precise display, the dial 703 for the world time, which can be rotated relative to the 24-hour dial, can also be provided with an application of the standard time zones 704, as shown in Figure 6 shown, so that the watch can also be used in NATO areas and in aviation, where times are given in DTG (Date Time Group) or in standard time zones.

[0025] The universal world clock presented here is based on the assumption that the time is the same for all time zones. This means that a time of L:00, chosen arbitrarily as an example, is actually called L:00 throughout the world at the same time. For one person in one place in the world, the time L:00 may be in the morning, whereas for a second person in another place in the world, the same L:00 may be in the evening. For example, it would be possible to name the world time UTC in the 24-hour notation from 00:00UTC+00 (X:00) to 01:00UTC+00 (A:00) to 23:00 (W:00). LIST OF REFERENCE SYMBOLS 100 Dial 403 World time dial 101 stationary dial 102 Seconds / minutes dial 500 simulated analog clock 501 stationary dial 103 World time dial 502 Second / minute dial 300 Dial 503 World time dial 301 stationary dial 302 Seconds / minutes dial 600 digital world clock 303 World time dial 703 World time dial 400 Dial 704 Standard time zones 401 stationary dial 402 Second / minute dial

Claims

1. A world clock, having - a clockwork with hands, - a stationary 24-hour dial (101, 301, 401, 501), - a dial (103, 303, 403, 503) rotatable relative to the 24-hour dial (101, 301, 401, 501), with a symbol for each hour of the 24-hour day characterized in that in or on the world clock, a device for determining geocoordinates is connected to a device for automated rotation of the rotatable dial (103, 303, 403, 503), and in case of a change of the geocoordinates, the device for automated rotation rotates the rotatable dial (103, 303, 403, 503) in accordance with the time zone.

2. The world clock according to claim 1, characterized in that the 24-hour dial (103, 303, 403, 503) has respectively one letter of the Latin alphabet for each respective hour of the 24-hour day, the hours from 01:00 to 0:00 of the next day preferably have the letters from A to X in continuous and gapless alphabetical order.

3. The world clock according to one of the claims 1 or 2, characterized in that the 24-hour dial has one respective identifier for each of the standard time zones.

4. The world clock according to one of the claims 1 or 2, characterized in that a device for determining geocoordinates is connected to the clockwork, and, in case of a change of the geocoordinates, the clockwork rotates the hands with respect to the stationary 24-hour dial (101, 301, 401, 501) in accordance with the time zone.

5. The world clock according to one of the claims 1 to 3, characterized in that a device for receiving a network time is present in or on the world time clock and the device for determining geo-coordinates is replaced by an algorithm for determining the time zone from the network time.