HK1014213B - Watch with time indication by non-sonic vibrations - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a watch part which delivers horometric information by touch in a non-sound manner, and in particular to a watch of ordinary appearance which can be worn by a visually impaired person to enable him to know the current time and to have access to other ordinary watch functions, such as setting an alarm clock, without arousing the attention of a third party or requiring his assistance.

The present invention does not therefore concern essentially acoustic devices, such as voice synthesis watch parts, the usefulness of which for visually impaired persons is not disputed, but which have the disadvantage of clearly indicating the user's disability.

The watches for the visually impaired, which are still the most widely used, use an active sense of touch, such as the positioning of the hands in relation to relief indicators positioned on the dial, the reading of the time being made after the watch's glass is tilted to form the lid. A watch of the previous type corresponds, for example, to the device described in German utility models No. 7 435 930 and No. 8 700 364. In the latter case, the watch has a 24-hour movement, a double inscription in Arabic and Braille, and allows the installation of an alarm clock.

Such watches, both by their overall appearance and by the manipulations they require, clearly indicate that the wearer is visually impaired.

Based on the principle of known vibrating watches, in particular so-called non-noise-alarming watches, such as the device described in patent CH-A-323 056, the designers conceived of coding the vibrations to allow a visually impaired person to know the time by using his passive tactile sense, that is, without the need for positioning.In US-A-3 938 317 a single vibrator is used, in connection with a trait-point coding to encode the digits 1 through 12 and zero by means of trains with no more than three trait-point vibrations. As disclosed, this device has the advantage of being able to deliver the time to the minute, but has the disadvantage of requiring learning a complex code.

The present invention is intended to remedy these disadvantages by providing a watch whose external appearance makes it impossible or very difficult to distinguish it from a regular watch, but which enables a visually impaired person not only to know the current time but also, without the use of a third party, to have access to other usual functions, such as the correction of the internal time, or the setting of an alarm clock.

For this purpose, the watch part as defined in claim 1 has a glass-enclosed case which protects a dial with a conventional analogue or digital time display. The case contains a traditional timing circuit, combined with a power source, including an oscillator, a division chain and meters. The timing circuit controls a conventional display and delivers time signals to electronic means designed to encode these signals in the form of pulses or pulse trains, which can also receive and encode other time signals.The watch movement also includes a non-noise generating device such as a solid electromagnetic micromotor at the bottom of the case, and, finally, on the outside of the case, controls designed to operate with electronic coding to control the vibration generating device or vibration trains by means of pulses, to give off horometric information such as the current time or alarm time, or to confirm the accuracy of the detection of an hourly value, hourly control or non-hourly control introduced by means of these controls.

As will be shown below, one of the essential features of the present invention is to enable a visually impaired person to have confirmation that the manipulation he has performed on a control organ, which he does not see or sees little, is correct. To this end, it is important that the vibration trains encoding each manipulation are easily understandable, as must the vibration trains encoding the current time. Many coding principles can be used but will be proposed in the detailed examples which will follow codings involving signals of different durations and whose sequencing is designed in a logic to promote learning and memorization.

To facilitate learning, another object of the invention is to allow the product to be adapted to the memory capacities of each individual by incorporating into the electronic coding means means means for varying the emission rate of the vibration trains.

Similarly, in order to adapt the product to the individual's needs as regards the desired degree of accuracy in the indication of the current time, it is provided, according to another feature of the invention, that the control to be manipulated to determine the time can be activated in two different modes to deliver the time with an accuracy of 5 minutes, or with an accuracy of 1 minute.

The vibrating device may be one of the devices known and used in silent alarms, such as a piezoelectric vibrating element of the type described in patent EP-B-0 349 230, or an electromagnetic motor of the type described in patent application EP-A-0 625 738 incorporated in this application by reference.

The controls for the input of time and non-time information may be made in the form of touch-activated markers on the bezel, on the ice and/or on the frame.

In the first case, activated markers are carried by a fixed bezel which has a position sensor such as a capacitive, resistive or piezoelectric sensor or simply an electrical contactor in front of each bezel, as these sensors are sensitive to positioning or pressure of a finger.

In a second way, the markings are carried by a rotating bezel, which can be activated by rotating them against a fixed mark.

In this first and second embodiments, the confirmation of the selection of a mark is given by the emission of a vibration train encoding the mark, either by holding the selection for a specified time or by applying pressure to another control such as a push button carried by the carriage.

The markings carried by the fixed or rotating bezel can be divided into two ranges corresponding to numerical markers and operating mode markers respectively. To allow changing the horometric values of the watch, the numerical markers can have 10 or 12 positions representing the digits 1 to 9 and zero, or digits 1 to 12 depending on the coding used for vibration trains. The range with markers for operating modes can for example allow changing the speed of transmission of vibrations, activating or deactivating the alarm function or calling horometric information other than the time, such as a calendar function.

In a third embodiment, the controls consist only of the crown and push-buttons carried by the carriage, one of which is reserved for the entry of numerical data by simple counting, either of the number of pressures applied or of the number of simple uncoded vibrations, counted to the desired number by maintaining pressure on the push-button.

Other features and advantages of the invention will be more clearly seen by reading the following detailed description, made with reference to the attached drawings which are given here as examples, in which: Figure 1 is a top view of a first watch making mode of the invention in which markers are worn by a fixed bezel;Figure 2 is a cut-out view according to line II-II of Figure 1;Figure 3 is a block diagram of the circuit of a watch making mode of the invention;Figure 4 is a working diagram of a meter of the type incorporated in the diagram of Figure 3;Figure 5 is a coding of the twelve hourly positions;Figure 6 is a schematic representation of a first variant of the watch making mode represented in Figure 1;Figure 7 is a schematic representation of a second variant of the watch making mode in Figure 1;Figure 8 is a schematic representation of a second mode of manufacture in which a bezel and a third variant of the watch making mode are not represented in Figure 1;Figure 9 is a schematic representation of a second variant of the watch making mode in which the bezels are not a schematic representation of the invention;Figure 9 is a schematic representation of a third variant of the watch making mode in which the bezels are not a schematic representation of the invention.

With particular reference to Figures 1 and 2, a brief description of a watch part, designated by General Reference 1, with a module containing the non-noise vibration generator, designated by General Reference 2, will be given. The watch part has a box 4, consisting of a carriage 5 and a bottom 6 normally fixed to the carriage. The carriage has a fixed bezel L with a first sector N with markers Ni corresponding to numerical values, and a second sector with markers Mi corresponding to operating modes.

As shown in Figure 2, each Ni or Mi marker is shaped into a bucket so that it can be tactilely identified by a visually impaired person. Instead of buckets, it is easy to imagine that the identification can be facilitated by workpieces or by any other means combining for example buckets and workpieces.

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Box 4 is closed on the side opposite bottom 6 by a glass 13, which is embedded in carriage 5 with a seal 14 between.

The carcase also has a C-crown which can cause a rod to be translated or rotated in a slow or fast mode, corresponding to several different controls, as described for example in patent EP-0 175 961.

Module 2 comprises a power source 21, electronic coding means 22 and a vibration device 23. The power source 21 may be the one also needed for the movement. In the example described, the vibration device 23 includes an electromagnetic type motor capable of transmitting oscillatory motion to a mass 24 via an elastic linking element 25, and this oscillatory motion is transmitted to the cover 6 to be perceived as vibrations on the wearer's wrist. Depending on the characteristics of the electromagnetic motor and the materials that make up the watch case, these vibrations may also be perceived by touching a finger at any point on the watch, such as a point on the glass or the watch or a button B12.

Figure 3 shows in block diagram the circuit of a watch manufacturing mode according to the invention.

The 30 timepiece circuit consists essentially of a quartz oscillator with a base frequency of 32786 Hz and its 31 maintenance circuit, a chain of 32 divisions giving a 1 Hz frequency signal at its output, a 33 second counter, a 34 minute counter, and a 35 hour counter.

As shown in Figure 4, the successive pulses of a signal S are counted by a binary register 38 of at least six bits, which they increment. The state of this register can be read at any time (Si signal). At each increment, the register 38 is tested in a circuit 39 consisting of a divisor by sixty. When the number it contains is sixty, an if signal is issued on the one hand to cause the reset of the register 38 (RESET), on the other hand to constitute the input signal of another meter.

Referring again to Figure 3, it is seen that the signals emitted by each meter are operated by a control circuit 36 for the usual display of the time.

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The signal S' is emitted by a binary division chain 43, in response to a signal extracted from the division chain 32, and selected at a frequency greater than 1 Hz. This signal S' is the clock signal which will vary the speed of emission of the vibration trains. Its useful frequency can be adjusted by means of a signal received from a circuit 41 interpreting manipulations performed on the external controls B1, B2, C or L, the said circuit 41 also emitting to the electronic means of coding 22 other signals representative of selected functions, other than the speed of emission of vibrations.

In the block diagram in Figure 3, for better understanding, the twelve-divider 42 and the binary division chain 43 are shown separately from the electronic means of coding 22, but the professional will easily understand that these elements can be integrated into a single programmed microprocessor. The same could be said of the management circuit 36 for the usual display of time. The signal emitted by the electronic means of coding 22 ultimately commands the emission of non-sonic vibration trains by the vibrating device 23.

In the above, it has been assumed that the horometric information given is the current time, or the alarm time installed, but by adding other meters in series with meters 33, 34, 35 it is also possible to know the day of the week and the month with pulse trains coded as hours, and to know the quantum of the month with pulse trains coded as minutes, when using a minute-by-minute coding.

The electronic means of coding 22 can be advantageously implemented in the form of a programmed microprocessor.

With reference to Figures 1 and 5 to 9, five examples illustrating various modes of operation of the invention are described below.

Example 1

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By acting on the time for which the pressure is maintained, short or long, it is possible to get a knowledge of the time to five minutes or to one minute.

After the appropriate manipulation on the C-ring, the time is delivered as vibration trains according to a proposed coding to facilitate memorization and correlatively simplify the construction of the watch part.

In reference to Figure 5, we see that the digits 1 to 12 are coded according to their position logic on the dial, a logic that a visually impaired person already knows from the open-ended ice watches that require tactile tracking. This code is point-strait type and each pulse train has no more than three signals. For the digits in the first and second quadrants, priority is given to short pulses, so that all the digits 1 to 6 start with a short pulse and a long pulse is only used when the progression to an increasing value does not allow another choice.

It follows from this coding that each group of three digits contained in each quadrant has the same attack signals, which signals are used to encode the values 1 to 4, to be added to the integer values multiples of 5 in order to achieve minute precision.

It will also be noted that the trait-point coding of the diametrically opposite digits are complementary, which also facilitates memorization. Two complementary coding are free to allow the hour to be delivered in 24 hours by AM and PM coding. Start coding the quadrant, or value +1: Start coding 2nd quadrant, or value +2 Start coding 3rd quadrant, or value +3: - Start coding 4th quadrant, or value +4: -· The following shall be added:

Figure 5 shows an example of coding over 12 hours per minute, and as an additional indicator, the following shows the coding of four different hours over 24 hours, with the AM or PM coding at the beginning. - What?

0h 42mn
21h 03mn	--·/---/-··/- (=21h +00mn + 3mn)
21h 35mn	--·/---/-
9h 01mn	..-/---/-··/·

The respective durations of a short vibration, of a gap between two vibrations, of a long vibration and of a gap between two trains of vibrations are advantageously multiples of the duration separating two pulses of the signal S'. Also in the case of a resonator with a frequency of 32768 Hz, the above durations may be, for example, 125 ms, 250 ms, 500 ms and 1250 ms. By acting on the frequency of the signal S' via the divider 43, these durations can be varied proportionally to allow the speed of emission of the trains of pulses to be adapted to the perception ability of each user.

To make a correction of the internal time, it is planned to first apply a long pressure on B1, for example for more than 2 seconds, and then to introduce the desired time in the form h.h./mn.mn, by applying successive pressures on the numerical markers of the crown, each pressure giving rise to a confirmation vibration. The accuracy of the correction can be checked by applying pressure on C, immediately after the correction. In the case of an analogue type display, the correction of the internal time generally does not change the position of the hands 11, 12 and this correction must be carried out by turning the rod, which is the only operation that requires the intervention of a third party without visual impairment.

A similar process can be used to program an alarm clock after a long time of pressing on B2. Once the alarm clock is programmed, it is activated by pressing the ON key. A brief press on B2 gives a confirmation of the alarm clock. This can be done at any time to check whether the alarm is on or off.

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As mentioned at the beginning, the tactile identification of the different active areas of the bezel is facilitated by a bowl-like conformation. This identification can be made even easier by giving the bowl shapes according to their assignment, numerical or functional, or even by separating the two respective areas by 3 sheaths and/or also by adding 3 sheaths between the numerical markings, for example both digits.

Example 2

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To read the time, the C-corona is pressed to initiate the function without causing vibration, and the ice is then felt on the sensors 8a until a vibration or several vibrations representing the position of one or both hands are detected, the time position is then identified by the corresponding Ni marker and the emitted vibrations decoded. a long vibration for hours, for example 2 seconds;a short vibration for minutes, for example 0,5 seconds;and a very short vibration sequence, for example 5 vibrations of 0,1 seconds each, for zero or for an entire hour.

For a current hour, for example 11:48, two locations are required. By following with his finger the circumference of the user's ice, the user will first identify the position 11h by perceiving long vibrations, as long as he keeps his finger on this position. By following a second time the circumference of the ice, he will perceive at the position 9h, that is 45 minutes, trains composed of as many short vibrations as it is necessary to add units to the integer multiple of five already identified to know the hour per minute, namely in this example the entire trains composed of three short vibrations.

Two categories of time situations allow you to know the time by a single hand.

For an entire hour, e.g. 18:00, the vibrations emitted for the position are a series of very short vibrations.

For an hour in which both hands are at the same position, for example at 6:32, the vibrations emitted for the position are the succession of a long vibration and a train composed of as many short vibrations as one must add to the multiple of five, already identified to know the exact time, i.e. in this example trains composed of a multiple of long vibration and two short vibrations.

As you can see, learning and memorization are limited to tactile recognition of the twelve hour positions, to identifying vibrations of three different durations and to counting to four.

To make a correction of the internal time, one presses B1 for a long time, then one makes a tactile positioning of the desired time on the lens and moves the finger over the corresponding sensor 8a. The same is done to set the minutes to five minutes, then one activates a sensor 8b in the center as many times as necessary to have a correction of the internal time to the minute. To validate this selection, one presses B1 briefly if one is before noon (AM), or two presses briefly if one is after noon (PM).

The same procedure is used to set an alarm clock by applying a long pressure on B2 and activating the alarm by applying a short pressure on B2 and deactivating the alarm by applying a second short pressure. To adjust the vibration rate, the interpretation circuit 41 is designed to initialize this function when the rod is pulled by the C-ring, the speed being then selected by means of the markers 1 to 12 of the crown, the selection being also validated by a short pressure on B1.

Example 3

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In the displayed watch, the usual display is digital, so that a visually impaired person can correct the displayed time by correcting the internal time as shown above, after pressing B1 for a long time. Similarly, to set the alarm, one presses B2 for a long time, then programs the selected time by pressing successive times on each area identified by the Braille code.

As before, each manoeuvre is confirmed by the emission of a vibration train, or on the contrary by its absence.To adjust the speed of emission of the vibration trains, the push button B1 can be used by applying successive short presses, which allow access to a loop on which certain speeds have been programmed in the electronic coding means.

Example 4

According to a second embodiment, shown schematically in Figure 8, a watch according to the invention has a rotating bezel with twelve markers corresponding to twelve time positions. The time reading is performed as shown in example 1, after pressure on the crown C. This rotating bezel allows selectively activating twelve contacts carried by the bezel ring in front of the bezel, when one of the Ni markers is brought by rotation of the bezel in front of a fixed bezel, such as the B1 button.

The contactors for selection can be formed by micro-machined Reed relays, the magnet for their activation being then immersed in the material forming the bezel.

In one variant, it can be expected that any angular displacement of a step corresponding to a reference will cause the emission of a vibration which the user can count, until validated by a brief pressure on B1, pressure which will at the same time cause the count to reset to zero.

In this second embodiment, the correction of the internal time can be carried out by applying a long pressure on B1, then by selecting by rotating the bezel and validating by one or two short presses on B1 two numbers between 1 and 12 allowing an accuracy of five minutes.

The vibration emission rate can be adjusted as shown in Example 2.

Example 5

In a third embodiment, shown schematically in Figure 9, the controls consist only of the C-crown and the push-button buttons B1 and B2.

Pressure on the C-ring allows a time reading to be made as shown in example 1.

To correct the internal time, first a brief pressure is applied to B1, then a second pressure is applied and, while holding it, four counts are made of the number of vibrations emitted to the desired values to obtain the hour to minute accuracy in the form h.h/mn.mn.

Similarly, to set the alarm time, a long pressure is first applied to B2 and a count is made as shown above by means of the B1 button.

To control the transmission speed of the vibration trains, the interpretation circuit 41 is designed to initialize this function when the rod is pulled by means of the crown, the speed being then selected by applying long pressure on B2 to access a loop containing predetermined speeds.

According to the general principle of the invention, a vibration or a train of vibrations serves as a means of checking the accuracy of the manipulation performed. In this third embodiment the vibrating organ 23 can also be connected to the B1 button to deliver vibrations not only to the wrist through the case but also to the finger which maintains the pressure.

In the examples above the same organs B1, B2 and C perform substantially the same functions, only for the purpose of ensuring a better understanding, but it is quite obvious that the craftsman is able, by a suitable arrangement of the interpretation circuit, to make them perform functions other than those just described.

Similarly, although the whole description of the present invention has been essentially made in reference to a person with a visual impairment, it is quite obvious that this same watch piece can also prove very useful for a sighted person in certain situations where the time can not be consulted visually.

Claims (18)

1. Electronic timepiece adapted to deliver horometric information in silent tactile manner and comprising :

   - a housing (4) closed by a glass (13);

   - a time-keeping circuit (30) associated with an analog or digital display, notably comprising an oscillator and its maintenance circuit (31), a division chain (32) and counters (33, 34, 35);

   - control elements provided on the outside of said housing, selected from amongst a bezel (L) provided with numerical tactile marks (Ni) or functional marks (Mi) opposite sensors (8,8a) and a crown and buttons with push-button function (C, B₁, B₂),

   - an interpretation circuit (41) of the displacements of said control elements (L, C, B₁, B₂),

   - electronic coding means (22) adapted to code time signals received from said time-keeping circuit (30) and/or non-time signals received from said interpretation circuit (41) in the form of pulse strings, and

   - a device (23) generating silent vibrations, said timepiece being characterized in that said control elements (L, C, B₁, B₂) cooperate via the intermediary of said interpretation circuit (41) with said electronic coding means (22) to drive the vibration generating device (23) by means of pulse trains so as to emit vibration pulses representative of horometric information or of the accuracy of a time instruction or non-time instruction introduced by means of said control elements.
2. Timepiece according to claim 1, characterized in that the control elements cooperating with electronic coding means (22) to deliver a horometric information are formed at least by one push-button, (C, B₁, B₂), the activation of which enables the vibration generating device (23) to emit a vibration string representative of said time information in a single action.
3. Timepiece according to claim 1, characterized in that the control elements cooperating with the electronic coding means (22) to deliver an item of horometric information are composed of one or two numerical keys (Ni) the activation of which by pressure or positioning of a finger enables the vibration generator devised to emit one or two vibration strings representative of said horometric information.
4. Timepiece according to claim 1, characterized in that the push-button control elements are provided with several activation modes recognisable by the interpretation circuit (41) to make it possible to deliver various items of horometric information or to execute various time instructions or non-time instructions.
5. Timepiece according to claim 1, characterized in that the electronic coding means (22) also have means to vary the speed of emission of the pulse strings.
6. Timepiece according to claim 1, characterized in that the vibration generating device (23) is of the electromagnetic type and in that it is entirely contained in the housing.
7. Timepiece according to claim 1, characterized in that a control element making it possible to introduce time information or non-time information is composed of a bezel (L) outside the housing and provided with tactile activatable marks (N_i, M_i).
8. Timepiece according to claim 7, characterized in that the bezel (L) is a fixed bezel and in that each mark is opposite a position sensor (8) activatable by pressure or positioning of a finger.
9. Timepiece according to claim 7, characterized in that the bezel (L) is a revolving bezel and in that each mark can be activated by causing it to coincide with another fixed tactile mark.
10. Timepiece according to claim 7, characterized in that confirmation of the selection of a mark is effected by the emission of an associated vibration string, either in automatic manner, or by pressure on a control element.
11. Timepiece according to claim 7, characterized in that the bezel has an area having 10 or 12 positions corresponding to numerical marks (N_i) making it possible to correct the internal time or to set the alarm time, and an area corresponding to marks of the mode of operation (M_i) that can be selected to obtain a change in the speed of transmission of vibrations, the activation or deactivation of the alarm function or the call-up of a calendar function.
12. Timepiece according to claim 1, characterized in that the control elements making it possible to introduce time information or non-time information are solely composed of a crown and push-buttons (C, B₁, B₂).
13. Timepiece according to claim 12, characterized in that one of the push-buttons (B₁, B₂) is adapted to permit the introduction of a time information by simple counting of the vibrations up to a desired number by maintaining pressure with one finger.
14. Timepiece according to claim 2, characterized in that the electronic coding means (22) are composed of a microprocessor programmed so as to code the twelve hour positions in the form of pulse strings comprising at most three short or long pulses, according to a logical progression giving priority to the selection of short pulses for the numbers from 1 to 6 of the first and of the second area, and priority to the selection of long pulses for the numbers from 7 to 12 of the third and fourth quadrant.
15. Timepiece according to claim 14, characterized in that the sequences of pulses common to the numbers of each quadrant code the pulse strings representative of the values from 1 to 4 which must be added to a time information given to the nearest 5 minutes by the twelve hour positions to obtain an accuracy to the nearest minute.
16. Timepiece according to claim 3, characterized in that the numerical marks (Ni) are positioned on the twelve hourly positions and that the electronic coding means (22) are composed of a microprocessor programmed so as to emit one or several long pulses when the activated numerical mark (Ni) corresponds to the hour, short pulse strings when said mark corresponds to the minutes, each string having 1 to 4 pulses depending on the value to be added to the immediately lower number of minutes being a multiple of five corresponding to the numerical mark (Ni) activated, and very short pulse strings when said mark corresponds to the value zero or a whole hour.
17. Timepiece according to claim 16, characterized in that the long pulses for the hours and the strings of short pulses for the minutes commence when the hour hand and the minute hand depend on a single numerical mark (Ni).
18. Timepiece according to any one of the preceding claims composed of a pocket-watch or a wristwatch adapted for a visually impaired person.