h a l f b a k e r yThe mutter of invention.
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[Hazel] and I were given a carriage clock
as an engagement present which now sits
on the mantelpiece. Those of you who've
visited will have seen it I'm sure.
One of the most annoying things about
this clock and others of it's ilk is the fact
that it runs out of wind without warning.
This
of course means that when I do come
to winding the thing up, I also have to
spend additional time resetting the time.
So, I propose a small board of circuitry for
windup clocks of all kinds that use the
final power from the spring to chime the
bell of the clock (or other similar alarm) to
remind me to wind it up.
... or it'll be 3:47 forever in my house.
Right, twice a day.
[link]
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I can't think of any way to determine when there's yet enough of the spring power left to ensure that the warning chime gets sounded. |
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Even if the circuitry can't detect that the clock is about to stop, it could detect that the clock has (just) stopped. Then the circuitry could sound the alarm using some charge stored in a capacitor.(?) For that to work, the circuit would have to be able to drive the alarm gears. (since the spring is dead by then).
Then you wind it immediately. |
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I know this isn't the kind of clock you're talking about,
but.. |
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If you have a wind up clock where the "wind" is not a spring
but a weight (i.e. a grandfather clock or a mechanical
cuckoo clock) you could put possibly implement a DIY
version of this by putting a piece of tape low on the
window/on the wall at a point where the weight is ALMOST
at the floor (not all the way unwound) so that if you notice
that it's at or lower than the tape when you glance at the
clock, you'll then wind it before it runs out altogether. |
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One possible way to have a notification with a spring-
driven clock, maybe a red flag could be somehow designed
to be pushed up when the hair spring is uncoiled beyond a
certain point, but before being completely unwound? |
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Another (more complex) way would be to have 2 springs
somehow wound by the same knob, and when the main
spring runs out, the bell spring constantly rings the bell
until it runs out, while using some of it's power to drive
the clock? |
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