U.S. patent number 3,881,313 [Application Number 05/502,998] was granted by the patent office on 1975-05-06 for battery discharge guard for electric watch.
This patent grant is currently assigned to Timex Corporation. Invention is credited to Edward Kaulins.
United States Patent |
3,881,313 |
Kaulins |
May 6, 1975 |
BATTERY DISCHARGE GUARD FOR ELECTRIC WATCH
Abstract
A guard for the external actuator which internally connects the
battery in an electric watch. The guard holds the actuator crown in
an extended non-operative position to prevent accidental starting
of the watch and discharge of the battery during shipping or
storage. The guard has a stretchable portion enclosing the stem and
pendant for holding the crown in an extended position and a tab for
removing the guard by stretching it over the crown.
Inventors: |
Kaulins; Edward (New Milford,
CT) |
Assignee: |
Timex Corporation (Waterbury,
CT)
|
Family
ID: |
24000337 |
Appl.
No.: |
05/502,998 |
Filed: |
September 3, 1974 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
368/288; 200/327;
968/503; 200/52R; 200/61.19; 368/308; 968/377 |
Current CPC
Class: |
G04B
43/00 (20130101); G04C 10/00 (20130101) |
Current International
Class: |
G04C
10/00 (20060101); G04B 43/00 (20060101); G04b
043/00 (); G04c 003/00 (); H01h 035/00 () |
Field of
Search: |
;58/1R,23BA,105,61.08,61.19 ;200/153M,329,334 |
Foreign Patent Documents
Primary Examiner: Miller, Jr.; George H.
Claims
I claim:
1. A battery discharge guard for an electric watch of the type
having a depressible external actuator for closing an internal
circuit or connecting the battery and having a stem slidable within
a pendant and an enlarged crown,
said guard comprising a first pendant-enclosing portion of
stretchable material of sufficient thickness to hold the stem in an
extended non-operative position, and a second portion connected to
the pendant-enclosing portion for stretching it and pulling it over
the crown of the actuator.
2. The combination according to claim 1, wherein said first and
second portions are formed as an integral member of stretchable
material.
3. The combination according to claim 1, wherein said first portion
comprises a washer-like element with an internal hole of a diameter
substantially less than that of said actuator crown.
4. The combination according to claim 1, wherein said first portion
comprises a washer-like element and said second portion comprises
an integral connected tab member, all of substantially uniform
thickness.
5. The combination according to claim 4, wherein said tab member is
flat and adapted to carry legible characters.
Description
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Electric watches which employ an internal energy cell or battery as
a power source, generally have an external actuator, such as a
knob, button or crown, for connecting the battery through an
internal switch to the watch circuit or releasing a balance wheel
locked in open circuit position when it is desired to operate the
watch. Such actuators may perform other functions such as setting
the hands.
Similar guards are known in the art comprising metal clips which
slip transversely over the stem of the external button or crown and
hold it in an extended position during shipping or storage. This
prevents accidental starting of the watch and consequent discharge
of the battery. The clip is removed by the purchaser and generally
discarded.
Because of the great variety of shapes and sizes of the external
crowns, buttons or knobs, various types and shapes of clips have
been needed in the past to accommodate the different designs.
Additional expense is required to manufacture and stock the
different types of clips.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
Accordingly, it is one object of the present invention to provide
an improved battery discharge guard for an electric watch which
accommodates most of the common types of external actuators.
Another object of the invention is to provide an improved battery
discharge guard which is more economical to manufacture and easier
to remove than previous types.
Briefly stated, the invention comprises a battery discharge guard
for a depressible external actuator having a stem within a pendant
and an enlarged crown. The guard comprises a pendant-enclosing,
portion of stretchable material for holding the actuator in an
extended position, and a connecting tab portion for pulling the
pendant-enclosing portion over the crown.
DRAWING
Other objects and advantages of the invention will be more clearly
understood by reference to the following description, taken in
connection with the accompanying drawing, in which:
FIG. 1 is a perspective drawing of the battery discharge guard,
FIG. 2 is a plan view, partly in section, showing the guard in
place on the actuator stem,
FIG. 3 is a perspective view illustrating operation of the
invention, and
FIG. 4 is a perspective view of a modification of the
invention.
DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT
Referring now to FIG. 1 of the drawings, the battery discharge
guard, illustrated at 1 comprises a first pendent-enclosing portion
2 and a connected second portion 3 in the form of a finger tab. The
pendant-enclosing portion is generally in the shape of a washer
with an internal hole 4 of diameter sufficient to enclose the
pendant and stem of the actuator but substantially less than the
crown diameter. The portion 2 is of a thickness sufficient to hold
the actuator in its extended non-operative position.
The pendant-enclosing portion 2 is made of thermoplastic rubber or
other stretchable plastic material, such as polyvinyl chloride. In
the preferred embodiment of FIGS. 1-3, the entire number 1 is
molded in one piece so that the second or tab portion 3 is integral
with the pendant-enclosing portion.
FIG. 2 illustrates the battery discharge guard in position on a
watch 5 having an external actuator 6. The actuator is depressible
to connect the battery to the internal circuitry through an
internal switch or by releasing the balance wheel locked in open
circuit position. Actuator 6 has a stem 7 slidable within a fixed
pendant 15 and an enlarged connected crown or knob 8. As seen in
FIG. 2, the pendant-enclosing portion 2 just fits over the pendant
15 where it can be put during assembly when the actuator is
inserted, or subsequent to assembly by stretching over the crown
after assembly.
Reference to FIG. 3 illustrates the method of removal. The
purchaser simply grasps the tab 3 and pulls to deform or stretch
the pendant-enclosing portion 2 so that it may be removed by
twisting up over the crown 8. The guard may then be discarded and
the actuator depressed to start the watch running.
When manufactured in one piece, as illustrated in FIG. 1, the
improved guard is economical to manufacture and fits many different
types and sizes of external actuators. It may also carry legible
characters giving an advertising message or trademark by
appropriate indicia as shown at 9.
Referring to FIG. 4, another version of the invention comprises a
stretchable washer 10 serving as the pendant-enclosing portion and
a connected tag 11 attached to member 10 by a cord or wire 12
serving as the second portion of the guard. This is operated in a
manner similar to the embodiment of FIGS. 1-3.
In some types of watches not having an extended pendant, the
portion 2 may simply fit over the stem. In the appended claims,
"pendant-enclosing" is intended to mean stem-enclosing in watches
of this type.
Thus there has been shown an improved battery discharge guard which
is easier to remove and which accommodates a greater variety of
watch designs than previous guards. It is particularly economical
to manufacture and easy to install.
While there has been described what is considered to be the
preferred embodiment of the invention, other modifications will
occur to those skilled in the art, and it is desired to secure in
the appended claims all such modifications as fall within the true
spirit and scope of the invention.
* * * * *