Minute Repeater Lever Mechanism Height Reduction
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Minute repeater timepieces face challenges in achieving a low height due to the need for sufficient separation between rakes to prevent contact, which increases the overall height of the movement, making it difficult to integrate into wristwatches where thickness is critical.
Innovation Solution
Each hammer is operated by a single lever with a single toothed organ, allowing the rakes to be superimposed without play, reducing height and simplifying the mechanism while maintaining proper functionality.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If sufficient separation is provided between rakes to prevent contact, then the rakes can move freely without interference, but the overall height of the movement increases significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The invention merges the control of multiple rakes (hours, quarters, minutes) into a single integrated lever mechanism. Instead of separate levers for each rake that would require significant separation, one lever simultaneously controls all three rakes through a unified toothed organ design, allowing the rakes to be superimposed without play and reducing the overall height of the movement.
Solution Approach 2:
The single lever performs multiple functions by controlling hours, quarters, and minutes rakes simultaneously. The toothed organ on the lever engages with multiple rakes in sequence, making the lever a universal control element that eliminates the need for separate control mechanisms for each rake, thereby reducing height while maintaining reliable operation.
2Ease of operation
If multiple separate levers and toothed organs are used for each hammer, then each rake can be controlled independently, but the mechanism becomes complex and occupies significant vertical space
Solution Approach 1:
The invention combines multiple control functions into a single lever with an integrated toothed organ. This toothed organ engages with hours, quarters, and minutes rakes in a coordinated manner, providing independent control of each rake through the unified mechanism rather than requiring separate levers, thus reducing complexity while maintaining operational independence.
Solution Approach 2:
The toothed organ on the single lever is segmented into distinct engagement zones for hours, quarters, and minutes rakes. Each segment can engage its corresponding rake independently, allowing the lever to control multiple rakes sequentially without requiring separate levers, thereby simplifying the overall mechanism while preserving independent control capability.
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 2
Figure 3
AI summary
According to the invention, the escapement racks for the hour (11), for the quarter-hour (10) and for the minutes (9) on the minute-repeater are mounted such that the same pivot about a common axis (14), with the escapement racks for the hour (11) and the quarter-hour (10) on one side, and the racks for the quarter-hour (10) and for the minutes (9) on the other side connected by a unidirectional drive connection consisting of a ratchet (15, 17), a pawl that is toothed (10a, 9a) such that the same engages with the ratchet, a banking pin (10b, 9b) and a cam (16b, 18b) to enable the selective engagement of the ratchet (15, 17) with the pawl teeth (10a, 9a). The end of the motor spring is kinetically secured to the two separate sets of activating pawl teeth (13a, 13b) for the first chime lift (21), with the first set of teeth (13a) for the hour chime, and the second set of teeth (13b) for chiming quarter-hours and minutes.