Solar Time Display With Moving Horizon and Equation-of-Time Correction
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing timekeeping devices fail to accurately represent the natural movement of the sun and earth, leading to inaccuracies in time representation and disassociation from natural time experiences, lacking integration of solar time, civil time, and seasonal variations.
Innovation Solution
A system that graphically represents the sun's movement once per solar day, integrates solar noon at the top, adjusts hour indications based on longitude and equation of time, and translates a horizon vertically to account for seasonal changes, providing a single display for civil time, solar time, sunrise/sunset times, and seasonal indicators.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If a mechanical clock with 12-hour dial is used, then the time display is simplified and easy to read, but the relationship between time and solar movement is lost
Solution Approach 1:
The clock face is segmented into two independent time scales: a 12-hour civil time scale and a 24-hour solar time scale. This allows the display to maintain simplicity for civil time while accurately representing solar time through the separate 24-hour numbering system that tracks the sun's position across the sky.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent adds a temporal dimension by introducing a second time scale (24-hour solar time) alongside the traditional 12-hour civil time scale. This dimensional expansion allows the clock to simultaneously display both simplified civil time and accurate solar time without compromising either aspect.
2Device complexity
If the sun is represented as revolving once per civil day, then the display is simplified, but the equation of time and solar day variations are not accounted for
Solution Approach 1:
The sun's position is dynamically adjusted based on the actual solar day length and equation of time calculations. Rather than a fixed civil day rotation, the sun marker moves at a variable rate that reflects real solar movements, accurately representing the changing length of solar days throughout the year while maintaining visual clarity.
3Ease of operation
If civil time is displayed without solar time adjustments, then the display is straightforward, but inaccuracies occur due to longitude and equation of time
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces solar time as an intermediary representation that mediates between civil time and actual solar position. The 24-hour solar time scale acts as an intermediate layer that accounts for longitude and equation of time, allowing users to understand the relationship between civil time and solar time without confusion.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces the mechanical assumption of uniform 12-hour cycles with a calculated solar time system that accounts for variable solar day lengths. This substitution of mechanical simplicity with calculated accuracy allows the clock to maintain ease of reading while correcting for temporal variations through mathematical computation.
4Device complexity
If seasonal variations in sunrise and sunset are not represented, then the display is simple, but the natural time experience is disconnected
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements periodic action by displaying the sun's daily revolution across the sky, which repeats each day but varies in duration and position due to seasonal changes. The 24-hour solar time scale provides a periodic framework that naturally accommodates seasonal variations in day length and sun position, connecting the display to natural temporal cycles.
Data Source
AI summary
An apparatus for displaying the passage of time as we experience the movement of the sun. Civil time, solar time, sunrise, solar noon, sunset, the date, equinoxes, solstices, and seasons are represented in a single, integrated display. The display includes a representation of the sun revolving about a center once per day, rising and setting relative to a representation of the horizon, with solar noon, rather than civil-time noon, continuously at the top of the display. The apparatus accounts for and is adjustable to latitude and longitude. The apparatus accounts for all naturally perceptible motions of the earth with respect to the sun, including the variation in the length of the solar day, whose cumulative difference with civil time is expressed as the equation of time.