HK1031985B - Wrist watch band adjust pin, method of manufacturing the pin, and wrist watch band connection structure - Google Patents

Description

Adjustment pin for watch band, method for manufacturing the same, and connection structure for watch band

Technical Field

The present invention relates to an adjustment pin for connecting a plurality of segments of a watchband in an interlocked manner, a method for manufacturing the adjustment pin, and a watchband connection structure using the plurality of segments.

Background

As is known, a wristwatch is provided with a band for wearing on the wrist. As a band of this wristwatch, for example, a band of tanned leather such as cow leather or crocodile leather is generally cut into a band shape, and the band-shaped leather is sewn with leather of different materials, thereby providing strength.

In addition, a band of a wristwatch is also called a metal band, in which pieces made of metal or the like are connected in a chain shape, and the pieces are connected by a pin called an adjustment pin, so that the band is formed by bending the connected pieces along a wrist. In recent years, there is also a band-shaped watch band called a resin watch band, which is formed of a synthetic resin such as polyurethane.

These watch bands are generally all composed of two band-shaped portions, and are made such that one end side of each band-shaped portion is connected to a body of the watch including a display portion, and the other end sides can be connected to each other by a metal clip or the like.

Further, when the wristwatch is mounted on the wrist, if the wristwatch is worn on the wrist and the two band-like bands are connected to each other by means of the metal clip, the wristwatch does not fall off the wrist.

As the metal clip, a belt buckle called a buckle is mainly used for a leather watch band or a resin watch band, and a hook snap is often used for a metal watch band[ original text') め’】The connecting member of (1).

However, the thickness of the wrist on which the watch is worn varies from person to person. Therefore, in a typical wristwatch band, the length of the band can be adjusted within a certain range.

For example, in a leather band, a plurality of holes are continuously formed at regular intervals in the longitudinal direction in one band divided into two band-shaped portions, and a pin for positioning (a t-pin for a buckle) provided in the other band is inserted into the holes and fixed at a position where the band has an optimum length.

In addition, in the metal band, the length of the band is generally adjusted by increasing or decreasing the number of the segments. When the length of the band is adjusted, the adjustment pin is pulled out to separate the connection of the segments.

Here, a mechanism for adjusting the length of a wristwatch band using a conventional clip will be described with reference to fig. 25 and 26.

Fig. 25 is a perspective view showing an example of a wristwatch including a metal band in which metal pieces are connected.

The metal wristwatch band 103 attached to this wristwatch is formed by connecting a plurality of metal segments 102 in an interlocking manner, and connecting the segments 102 to each other by an adjustment pin 111 shown in fig. 26 as a connecting pin to form two band-like bands 105 and 106.

A hook snap 107 functioning as a metal clip is attached to an end of the strap 106, and the strap 106 is connected to the strap 105 via the hook snap 107.

In this wristwatch band 103, when the length of the band is adjusted, the insertion adjustment pin 111 is pulled out to increase or decrease the segment 102.

Referring to fig. 26, a mechanism for adjusting the length of the band by inserting and removing the adjustment pin 111 will be described.

For example, when the length of the band is lengthened, the adjustment pin 111 of the extension is pulled out, the additional segment 102C is inserted between the segments 102A and 102B, the adjustment pin 111 inserted into the connection through hole 102A of the segment 102A is inserted into the connection through hole formed in the additional segment 102C, the adjustment pin 111 inserted into the connection through hole formed in the segment 102C is inserted into the protrusion connection through hole 102C of the segment 102B, and the segments 102A and 102C and the segments 102C and 102B are connected, respectively.

On the other hand, when the length of the band is shortened, the adjustment pins 111 and 111 on both sides of the segment 102C to be removed are pulled out to remove the segment 102C, and then the segments 102A and 102B are connected again by the adjustment pins 111.

Thus, when the adjustment pin 111 is inserted into the through hole of the segment 102 to connect the adjacent segments 102A and 102B, the adjustment pin 111 must be strongly fitted into the through hole of the segment 102 so that they do not fall off after insertion.

However, the strong fitting force with the segment required for the adjustment pin is contrary to the fact that the adjustment pin must be easily inserted and removed when adjusting the length of the band.

Therefore, both of these cannot be satisfied at the same time, so that it is preferable to prevent the adjustment pin from coming off the segment, and the fitting force is generally improved at the expense of ease of extraction and insertion. That is, the outer diameter of the adjustment pin is sized to have a strong fit (spring force, friction force are large) with the hole of the segment.

Therefore, when the length of the band is adjusted, the adjustment pin cannot be easily inserted and removed, which is inconvenient.

On the other hand, as shown in fig. 27, there is also a cotter pin type adjustment pin 121. This adjusting pin 121 is formed by bending a wire having a semicircular cross section and drawing flat portions together, thereby making the entire cross section circular and making a part of the longitudinal direction thereof bulge outward in a curved manner, and the ease of pulling out the pin from the connecting through hole 102a of the segment 102 and the reliability of fitting can be obtained by the elasticity of the bent portion.

Further, this type of adjustment pin is generally manufactured by press working, but since press working cannot be performed if a material having a high restoring force is used among the materials, a material having a not so high restoring force is generally used. Therefore, the fitting force of the bent portion has to be set to be enhanced to some extent while sacrificing the ease of the extraction and insertion.

Further, if there are machining variations in the outer diameter of the cotter pin, the inner diameter of the hole into which the segment is inserted, and even the height of the bent portion of the cotter pin, it is necessary to consider wear and the like when the adjusting pin is pulled out of and inserted into the hole of the segment, and therefore, the inner diameter of the hole of the segment is often designed to be relatively small.

Therefore, the adjusting pin may be difficult to be inserted and removed, and may be deformed when a relatively strong force is applied thereto when the adjusting pin is removed.

Further, since the above-mentioned bent portion is easily deformed by simply folding the semicircular wire in half to bring the flat portions together, the semicircular joint may be displaced at the end portion (upper side in fig. 27) of the pin due to the deformation of the bent portion when the adjustment pin is pulled out and inserted.

If this is done, the pull-out force for pulling out the adjustment pin is extremely reduced, and therefore, in a serious case, the fitting force is not generated at all, and the function as the adjustment pin may be lost.

Further, Japanese patent application laid-open No. Sho 58-27505 describes that a spring bar for the purpose of connecting a wrist watch band is formed of a shape memory alloy exhibiting superelasticity.

However, this spring bar is merely formed of a shape memory alloy having pins protruding from both ends, and it is not clear whether or not the watch band is held by the super-elastic property, because it is not described at all.

As described above, in any of the connection structures of the adjustment pin and the band of the prior art, since the engagement force between the band and the adjustment pin is not made to be prioritized, there is a problem that the insertion and removal of the adjustment pin cannot be easily performed when the length of the band is adjusted, or the band segments cannot be reliably connected.

Disclosure of Invention

The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned technical background, and an object of the present invention is to provide an adjustment pin which can be easily inserted and removed when adjusting the length of a watch band and can reliably connect a plurality of segments in an interlocking manner by engaging holes of the segments with a strong engaging force, and a watch band connecting structure using the adjustment pin.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a manufacturing method capable of easily manufacturing the adjustment pin.

In order to achieve the above object, an adjustment pin for a wrist band according to the present invention, which is formed by connecting a plurality of segments in an interlocking manner and connects the segments to each other, is formed of a metal material having a superelastic region in which a change stress of a relative strain is constant, and has at least one bent portion formed to apply a stress of the superelastic region to the segments in a state where the segments are connected, the bent portion being fixed in engagement with an inner wall of a hole formed in the segments.

Thus, the adjusting pin is inserted into the hole of the segment, and the bent portion presses the inner wall of the hole, so that the adjusting pin is reliably held by the frictional force at that time.

In addition, in the state where the segments are connected together in this way by the adjustment pin, the stress generated in the bent portion of the adjustment pin is in the superelastic region that does not change even if the strain changes, and therefore, even if, for example, the inner diameter of the hole or the size of the adjustment pin varies, the spring force acting on the inner wall of the hole is constant.

Therefore, even if the fitting of the adjustment pin to the hole of the segment is strengthened in advance without considering machining error or wear, stable fitting can be achieved, and the adjustment pin can be easily inserted into and removed from the hole of the segment.

The superelastic metal used for the adjustment pin may be an alloy containing nickel-titanium or nickel-titanium-cobalt as a main component.

The bent portion may be a portion bent in a curved shape, and the bent portion may be fixed in cooperation with an inner wall of a hole formed in the segment. Further, the adjustment pin may be formed in a curved surface shape by rounding both ends in the longitudinal direction thereof into a hemispherical shape.

Thus, even if the adjustment pin has a high hardness, the end of the adjustment pin can be prevented from scratching the inner surface of the hole when the hole of the segment is inserted.

The adjusting pin may have a wire diameter of 0.8mm to 1.2mm, and the length of the bent portion in the horizontal direction from a bending start position of a portion contacting one side of the segment to a maximum height of the bent portion may be 1mm to 3.7 mm.

Further, as the method of manufacturing the above-described adjustment pin, there is provided a method of manufacturing an adjustment pin, including a step of bending at least one portion of a wire made of a metal material having a superelastic region by pressing, a step of cutting the wire to include the bent portion, and a step of forming both end portions of the cut wire in the longitudinal direction into curved surfaces.

Similarly, as a method for manufacturing the adjustment pin, there is provided a method for manufacturing the adjustment pin, which includes a step of cutting a wire made of a metal material having a superelastic region to a desired length, a step of bending at least one portion of the cut wire by pressing, and a step of forming both longitudinal end portions of the bent wire into curved surfaces.

Further, as a connection structure of a wristwatch band in which a plurality of segments are connected in a linked manner, each of the plurality of segments has a concave portion on one end side in a linking direction of the band and a convex portion capable of being inserted into the concave portion of an adjacent segment on the other end side, a pair of arm portions on both sides separated by the recess on the one end side are formed with a connecting through hole along the lateral direction of the band, a convex connection through hole is formed in the convex portion in a direction parallel to the connection through hole, and in a state where the convex portion of the adjacent segment is inserted into the concave portion, the connection structure of the band, in which the adjacent pieces are detachably connected by inserting an adjustment pin made of a metal material having a superelastic region in which a change stress of a relative strain becomes constant into the connection through-hole of the arm portion and the protrusion connection through-hole, has the following features.

That is, there is provided a wrist watch band connecting structure in which a bent portion is formed on an adjusting pin, and the maximum height of the bent portion is made larger than the hole size of one of the pair of arm portions, and when the adjusting pin is inserted into each of the pair of arm portions and the convex portion connecting through hole to a predetermined position, the bent portion of the adjusting pin is deformed at the one connecting through hole, whereby a stress generated in the bent portion of the adjusting pin is in a superelastic region, and the adjusting pin is fixed to a segment by a force generated by the stress.

A hole-enlarged portion having a size larger than the diameter of the boss connecting through hole may be formed at least at an entrance portion of one of the pair of arm portions.

The hole-enlarged portion is a stepped hole portion formed at least in an inlet portion of one of the pair of arm portions, and a dimension between inner walls facing in a hole radial direction is larger than a diameter of the convex portion connecting through hole.

The hole-size-enlarged portion is a hole formed over the entire range of the connecting through-hole of one of the pair of arm portions; a diameter of the adjusting pin is such that when the adjusting pin is inserted into a predetermined position of each of the connecting through-holes of the pair of arm portions and the convex connecting through-hole, the bent portion of the adjusting pin is deformed at the connecting through-hole portion of the one arm portion, so that a stress generated at the bent portion of the adjusting pin is in a super-elastic region, and the adjusting pin is fixed to the diameter of the segment by a force generated by the stress, thereby forming the connecting through-hole of the one arm portion; the aperture of the connection through hole of the other arm of the pair of arm portions is made larger than the linear diameter of the adjustment pin.

Further, the adjustment pin may be formed of an alloy containing nickel-titanium or nickel-titanium-cobalt as a main component.

In the adjustment pin in the connection structure of the wristwatch band, the wire diameter may be 0.8mm to 1.2mm, and the length of the bent portion in the horizontal direction from a bending start position of a portion of the bent portion contacting one side of the segment to a maximum height of the bent portion may be 1mm to 3.7 mm.

In the case of the wrist band connecting structure, the bent portion of the adjustment pin may be formed by bending at a high temperature or by performing a heat treatment after bending at a low temperature.

Drawings

FIG. 1 is a front view showing a 1 st embodiment of an adjustment pin for a wrist band according to the present invention.

Fig. 2 is a perspective view showing an example of use of the adjustment pin.

Fig. 3 is a longitudinal sectional view showing a state where the adjustment pin is inserted into a hole formed in a segment of the watch band.

Figure 4 is a graph showing a 'stress-strain' curve.

Fig. 5 is a longitudinal sectional view similar to fig. 3 showing a state where an adjustment pin is inserted into a hole formed in a segment for explaining embodiment 2 of the adjustment pin for a wristwatch band according to the present invention.

Fig. 6 is a perspective view for explaining a process of bending a wire in the method of manufacturing the adjustment pin for a wristwatch band according to the present invention.

Fig. 7 is a perspective view for explaining a process of cutting the wire in the manufacturing method.

Fig. 8 is a perspective view for explaining a barrel polishing process of the manufacturing method.

Fig. 9 is a schematic view for explaining a connection structure of the band according to the present invention.

Fig. 10 is a front view showing a fragment of the wristwatch band used in the connection structure of the wristwatch band.

Fig. 11 is a front view showing an adjustment pin used in the connection structure of the band.

Fig. 12 is a view showing an example of forming the hole-size-enlarged portion in the embodiment of fig. 9 into a stepped hole portion in both front and side views.

Fig. 13 is a view showing an example of a key-groove type hole shape of the hole-size enlarging portion in the embodiment of fig. 9, in both front and side views.

Fig. 14 is a schematic diagram showing an example of a device for measuring the spring rate of the bent portion of the adjustment pin.

Fig. 15 is a graph showing the measurement result of the spring rate of the bent portion of the adjustment pin.

Fig. 16 is a graph showing the results of an experiment comparing the pulling-out force of the adjustment pin in the connection structure of the band according to the present invention and the pulling-out force of the prior art cotter pin type adjustment pin.

Fig. 17 is the same schematic view as fig. 9 for explaining another embodiment of the link structure of the band according to the present invention.

Fig. 18 is the same schematic view as fig. 17 for explaining another different embodiment of the link structure of the band according to the present invention.

Fig. 19 is a graph showing the measurement result of the spring rate of the bent portion of the adjustment pin in the example of fig. 18.

Fig. 20 is a front view showing an example of an adjustment pin having two bent portions.

Fig. 21 is a front view showing an example of an adjustment pin having a curved portion formed at a central portion in the longitudinal direction.

Fig. 22 is a front view showing an example of an adjustment pin in which a bent portion having a curved shape is formed at one end portion.

Fig. 23 is a front view showing an example of an adjustment pin formed to have a bent portion formed in a different direction.

Fig. 24 is a perspective view showing an example of connecting the wristwatch case and the band as an example of using the adjustment pin other than the connection of the band pieces.

Fig. 25 is a perspective view showing an example of a wristwatch including a metal band in which metal pieces are connected according to the related art.

Fig. 26 is a perspective view for explaining a mechanism for adjusting the length of the metal band.

Fig. 27 is a perspective view illustrating a prior art cotter pin type adjustment pin.

Detailed Description

To explain the present invention in more detail, embodiments of the present invention are explained with reference to the drawings.

[ embodiment 1: FIGS. 1 to 4

Fig. 1 is a front view showing a first embodiment of an adjustment pin for a watch band according to the present invention, fig. 2 is a perspective view showing an example of use of the adjustment pin, and fig. 3 is a longitudinal sectional view showing a state where the adjustment pin is inserted into a hole formed in a segment of the watch band.

An adjustment pin for a wrist band (hereinafter, simply referred to as an adjustment pin) 1 shown in fig. 1 is a connecting member for connecting segments 2 of a wrist band 3 in which a plurality of band segments (hereinafter, simply referred to as segments) 2 are connected in a chain as shown in fig. 2, and is formed by inserting and connecting through holes 2A and 2B formed in a segment 2A and a protrusion connecting through hole 2c formed in an adjacent segment 2B and also formed as a segment hole to connect them, and similarly connecting adjacent segments 2 to each other with respect to the other segments 2.

Further, this adjustment pin 1 is formed with a bent portion 5 which becomes a bent portion for applying a stress of a superelastic region, which will be described in detail later, to the wall surface of the connection through-hole 2A of the segment 2A in a state where the adjacent segments 2A and 2B are connected as shown in fig. 3.

The bent portion 5, which is a portion formed by bending in an ヘ shape in this embodiment, is formed at one end side of the adjustment pin 1.

The adjusting pin 1 is formed of a superelastic alloy mainly composed of nickel-titanium (NiTi) having superelasticity, and is formed to have a diameter of 1mm and a length of 15mm, for example. Both ends of the adjustment pin 1 are formed into a curved surface by barrel polishing to have rounded corners.

In general, although it is difficult to process a metal material having superelasticity as such by using a press, since plastic deformation occurs by deforming to a plastic deformation region at a large angle, a bent portion 5 may be formed at an end of the adjustment pin 1 as shown in fig. 1.

In this adjustment pin 1, as described above, the stress in the superelastic zone is applied to the wall surface of the connection through-hole 2A of the segment 2A by the bending portion 5 in the state where the adjacent segments 2A and 2B are connected, and the stress in the superelastic zone will be described below.

In general, the 'stress-strain' curve of an elastic material, as shown by the dashed line in fig. 4, increases strain with increasing stress. However, some metals such as NiTi alloys have a region (superelastic region) where the stress is constant although the strain increases, as shown by the solid line in fig. 4. This property is called superelasticity, and alloys with this superelasticity are called superelastic alloys.

The adjustment pin 1 illustrated in fig. 2 is formed of a super-elastic alloy having such super-elasticity.

The bending angle of the bent portion 5 is set so that when the adjustment pin 1 is inserted into the connecting through-hole 2A and the convex connecting through-hole 2c and the connecting through-hole 2B of the segments 2A and 2B from the end portion on the side where the bent portion 5 is formed as shown in fig. 3 to connect the segments 2A and 2B, the stress generated at the bent portion 5 of the adjustment pin 1 becomes the superelastic region as illustrated in fig. 4 by the bent portion 5 being bent back by the wall surface of the connecting through-hole 2A.

Therefore, due to the variation in the connection through hole 2A of the segment 2A in fig. 3 or the variation in the bending angle of the bent portion 5 of the adjustment pin 1 due to the machining, the amount of deformation of the bent portion 5 of the adjustment pin 1 in the state of being inserted into the connection through hole 2A changes, and the variation occurs in strain.

However, since the adjustment pin 1 according to this embodiment has superelasticity, even if the above-described strain varies, if the variation range is within the superelasticity zone described in fig. 4, the reaction force (stress) that the adjustment pin 1 acts on the wall surface of the connection through-hole 2a is always constant. Therefore, even if the hole diameter of the connection through-hole 2A is somewhat varied, the reaction force of the bending portion 5 is always constant due to the superelasticity effect, and therefore, the engagement force of the adjustment pin 1 and the segment 2A becomes constant, and stable connection of the segments 2A and 2B can be achieved.

Further, since the adjustment pin 1 is formed with curved surfaces (hemispherical shapes) at both ends thereof as shown in fig. 1, although NiTi alloy is a material having high hardness, the inner surfaces of the connection through-holes 2A, 2B and the convex connection through-hole 2c can be prevented from being scratched by the ends of the adjustment pin 1 when the connection through-hole 2A, the convex connection through-hole 2c and the connection through-hole 2B of the segments 2A, 2B are inserted.

With this, since the connection through holes 2a and 2b and the projection connection through hole 2c are not scratched, even if the adjustment pin 1 is repeatedly pulled out and inserted, the fitting force of the adjustment pin 1 with the connection through hole 2a is not reduced. Thus, the adjustment pin 1 can be prevented from coming off the attachment through-hole 2a of the segment 2, and the length of the wristwatch band can be easily adjusted.

[ embodiment 2: FIG. 5)

Next, referring to FIG. 5, a 2 nd embodiment of an adjustment pin for a wrist band according to the present invention will be described.

FIG. 5 is a vertical cross-sectional view similar to FIG. 3 showing a state where an adjustment pin is inserted into a hole formed in a segment for explaining embodiment 2 of the adjustment pin for a wristwatch band according to the present invention.

The adjusting pin 11 according to this embodiment has bent portions 15a and 15b bent in a curved shape formed at both ends thereof, respectively, and the bent portions are fitted and fixed to inner walls of the connecting through holes 2A and 2b of the arm portions 6 and 7 on both sides of the segment 2A, respectively.

In this adjustment pin 11, the material is made of a superelastic alloy having superelasticity, and the heights of the bent portions 15a and 15b are set so that when the adjustment pin 11 is inserted into the connection through holes 2a and 2b and the convex connection through hole 2c to a predetermined position, the bent portions 15a and 15b are bent back by the wall surfaces of the connection through holes 2a and 2b, respectively, and the stress generated in the bent portions 15a and 15b of the adjustment pin 11 is in the superelastic region as illustrated in fig. 4.

[ embodiment 3: FIGS. 6 to 8

The following describes a method for manufacturing an adjustment pin for a wrist band according to the present invention with reference to fig. 6 to 8.

Fig. 6 to 8 are perspective views showing respective steps for a method of manufacturing an adjustment pin for a wrist watch band according to the present invention.

To manufacture the adjustment pin 1 illustrated in fig. 1, first, one end side of a superelastic alloy wire (hereinafter referred to simply as a wire) 50 having NiTi as a main component is bent by means of a press as illustrated in fig. 6 to form a bent portion 5.

Next, the wire 50 with the one end side bent is cut into a desired length as shown in fig. 7, and finally both ends of the cut wire are ground to be rounded into a hemispherical shape by means of a barrel polisher as shown in fig. 8, thereby completing the illustrated adjustment pin 1.

When the adjustment pin 1 manufactured by this manufacturing method is used for connecting the segments 2 as described in fig. 2, stable fitting force and ease of insertion and removal as described in example 1 can be obtained.

As another manufacturing method of the adjustment pin for a wristwatch band, the manufacturing method described below may be performed.

That is, the superelastic alloy wire 50 having NiTi as its main component is first cut to a desired length as illustrated in fig. 7. Next, one end side of the cut wire 50 is bent by a press machine as described with reference to fig. 6 to form a bent portion 5.

Finally, as illustrated in fig. 8, both ends of the wire 50 are ground to be hemispherical by means of a barrel polisher, thereby completing the adjustment pin 1.

When the adjustment pin 1 manufactured by this manufacturing method is used for connecting the segments 2 described with reference to fig. 2, stable engagement force and ease of insertion and removal can be obtained in the same manner as in the manufacturing method of the adjustment pin for a wristwatch band of the above embodiment.

[ example 4: FIGS. 9 to 16)

Next, an example of the connection structure of the band according to the present invention will be described with reference to fig. 9 to 16.

Fig. 9 is a schematic view illustrating a connection structure of a band according to the present invention, fig. 10 is a front view illustrating a segment of a watch band used for the connection structure of the band, and fig. 11 is a front view illustrating an adjustment pin used for the connection structure of the band.

This band connection structure is a band connection structure in which a plurality of segments 22 are connected in an interlocking manner as shown in fig. 9, and the plurality of segments 22 are formed with recesses 23 on one end side in the interlocking direction shown by arrow a of the band and projections 24 capable of being inserted into the recesses 23 of the adjacent segments on the other end side, as shown in fig. 10.

In the segment 22, the arm portions 25 and 26 on both sides separated by the concave portion 23 on the one end side are formed with connection through holes 27 and 28 respectively extending in the lateral direction indicated by the arrow B of the band, and the convex portion 24 is formed with a convex portion connection through hole 29 extending in a direction parallel to the connection through holes 27 and 28.

In this connection structure of the band, as shown in fig. 9, in a state where the projections 24 of the adjacent segments 22 are inserted into the recesses of the segments 22, the adjacent segments 22 and 22 are detachably connected by inserting the adjustment pins 21 into the connection through holes 27 and 28 and the projection connection through hole 29 of the arm portions 25 and 26.

As shown in fig. 10, a pair of arm portions 25 and 26 are formed in each segment, and an enlarged hole 31 is formed in an inlet portion of the connecting through hole 27 on the side of one arm portion 25. The hole-enlarged portion 31 is a portion enlarged by a dimension D2 between inner walls facing each other in the hole radial direction, from the diameter D1 of the boss-connecting through hole 29.

Further, the hole diameters of the portions of the connection through-holes 27 other than the hole-size-enlarged portions 31, the hole diameters of the connection through-holes 28, and the hole diameters of the protrusion connection through-holes 29 are made the same.

On the other hand, as shown in fig. 11, the adjustment pin 21 is formed in the same shape as that described in fig. 1, and a bent portion 5 as a bent portion bent in an ヘ shape is formed on one end side. The maximum height Hmax of the bent portion 5 is set to be larger than a dimension D2 between the inner walls of the hole-size enlarging portion 31. The wire diameter of the adjustment pin 21 is slightly smaller than the diameter of the connection through hole 28 and the diameter of the projection connection through hole 29.

That is, for example, the wire diameter of the adjustment pin 21 is set to 1mm, and the respective hole diameters of the connection through hole 28 and the projection connection through hole 29 are set to about 1.05mm, so that a gap of about 0.05mm is provided between the adjustment pin 21 and the wall surface of the connection through hole 28, and between the adjustment pin and the wall surface of the projection connection through hole 29.

Further, as shown in a segment 22 shown in the lower side of fig. 9, when the adjustment pin 21 is inserted into the connection through-hole 28 on the arm portion 26 side from the hole-size-enlarged portion 31 to a predetermined position via the boss-connection through-hole 29, the bent portion 5 of the adjustment pin 21 is deformed at the hole-size-enlarged portion 31, and the stress generated at the bent portion 5 of the adjustment pin 21 is in the superelastic region as described in fig. 4.

The hole-size-enlarged portion 31 formed in the through-hole 27 is not limited to the stepped hole portion 31a shown in fig. 12, and may be an enlarged portion 31b formed by cutting a part of the wall surface of the through-hole 27 in the circumferential direction into a notch-like shape as shown in fig. 13 and enlarging the dimension D2 between the inner walls facing each other in the radial direction of the hole.

In the case of forming the stepped hole portion 31a shown in fig. 12, the diameter of the small diameter portion of the stepped hole portion 31a is set to 1.05mm, for example, and the diameter of the large diameter portion is set to 1.15mm, for example. Further, the depth C of the large diameter portion is made deeper than the length L of the bent portion 5 of the adjustment pin 21 shown in fig. 11.

The length L of the bent portion 5 is a length in the horizontal direction in fig. 11 from a portion a on the side contacting the connection through hole 31 at the bending start position of the bent portion 5 to a portion of the bent portion 5 having the maximum height Hmax, and this length L is required to be 1mm or more.

In this connection structure of the band, since the maximum height Hmax of the bent portion 5 of the adjustment pin 21 is taken to be larger than the dimension D2 between the inner walls of the hole-size enlarging portion 31, if the adjustment pin 21 is inserted into the connecting through-holes 27, 28 and the boss connecting through-hole 29 of the connected two pieces 22 and 22 to a prescribed position as shown in fig. 9, the portion of the maximum height Hmax of the bent portion 5 is located at the portion of the hole-size enlarging portion 31, and this height is deformed by the dimension D2 between the inner walls of the hole-size enlarging portion 31.

In addition, since the dimensions of the adjustment pin 21 and the through holes are set to the above dimensions in the portions of the adjustment pin 21 other than the bent portion 5 inserted into the small diameter portions of the connection through holes 28, the convex portion connection through holes 29, and the connection through holes 27, the clearance between the wall surfaces of the through holes and the adjustment pin 21 is only 0.05 mm. Therefore, since the portions of the adjustment pin 21 other than the bent portion 5 are hardly deformed, the force generated in the direction in which the portions other than the bent portion 5 contact the wall surface of each through hole is very small.

Thus, the fixing force applied to the segment 22 by the adjustment pin 21 inserted into this segment 22 is mostly a force generated in accordance with the deformation of the bent portion (from the portion a to the right in fig. 11) 5.

The adjustment pin 21 may be formed by bending at a high temperature or may be formed by performing heat treatment after bending at a low temperature to form the bent portion 5.

That is, as the material of the adjustment pin 21, a wire of NiTi alloy, which is a shape memory alloy, is used, and is cut into a predetermined length by performing a linear shape memory treatment at a high temperature of 500 ℃. Then, one end of the cut wire was bent into ヘ -shape by a press, and both ends of the wire were barrel-polished to round the end surface into a hemispherical shape.

Here, since the structure of the portion of the wire deformed by the bending work is a martensite phase, the spring rate of the bent portion 5 becomes insufficient if the wire is used in an intact state. Therefore, in order to thereafter restore the structure of the processed portion to an austenite phase that can obtain superelastic characteristics, heat treatment may be performed at 500 ℃ for 1 hour, followed by cooling in air or water.

The maximum height Hmax of the bent portion 5 was actually measured for the adjustment pin 21 thus produced (see fig. 11), and although the average value of 20 of the maximum heights Hmax before the heat treatment was 1.693 (standard deviation 0.017), the maximum height Hmax after the heat treatment was 1.450 (standard deviation 0.014).

It is thus clear that the stress is relieved by the heat treatment, causing elastic deformation recovery (Hmax reduction). Therefore, the maximum height Hmax can be designed by estimating the final shape in consideration of the shape change during heat treatment and the amount of barrel polishing, and setting Hmax after bending.

Further, since the variation in the maximum height Hmax of the bent portion of the adjustment pin is not so large before and after this heat treatment, the processing variation can be sufficiently suppressed if this manufacturing process is employed.

Next, the force generated by the deformation of the adjustment pin 21 used in the connection structure of this band will be described including the experimental results.

The adjusting pin 21 used in this experiment was formed to have a wire diameter of 1mm and a total length of 16mm, a bent portion length L of 2mm, and a maximum height Hmax of the bent portion 5 of 1.5 mm. The hole-size-enlarged portion 31 of the connection through-hole 27 is formed as a stepped hole portion 31a as described with reference to fig. 12, and the size D2 of the large-diameter portion of the stepped hole portion 31a is set to 1.25 mm.

Therefore, in this connection structure of the band, the amount of deformation of the bent portion 5 of the adjustment pin 21 when the adjustment pin 21 is inserted into the connected segment 22 becomes Hmax (1.5) -D2(1.25) of 0.25mm, which is a value set based on the measurement results shown below.

First, using the measuring device shown in fig. 14, the spring rate of the bent portion 5 of the adjustment pin 21 is measured by measuring the spring force.

In this measuring device, in a state where the clamp member 17 completely fixes the portion of the adjusting pin 21 on the long axis side other than the bent portion 5 so as not to be deformed, the load sensor 18 positioned on the bent portion 5 of the adjusting pin 21 is lowered, and the force acting on the load sensor at this time is measured.

Then, the "displacement-force" curve of the bending portion is actually measured from the measurement result.

Fig. 15 shows the measurement results. According to this measurement result, although the spring force detected by the load sensor 18 increases as the displacement of the bending portion increases, the slope of the "displacement-force" bending becomes gentle in the vicinity of the displacement of 0.15mm to 0.3mm, and the curve rises again from the vicinity of 0.3 mm.

Here, the region of 0.15mm to 0.3mm or so corresponds to the aforementioned superelastic region.

The displacement of the spring material when bent is not uniform in the cross-sectional direction, and naturally, the displacement is larger as it approaches the outer periphery and the displacement is smaller as it approaches the center. Therefore, the spring force due to the displacement can be estimated as an integrated value of the entire displacement.

Fig. 15 also shows the results of measuring the extraction force when the adjustment pin inserted into the hole of each tool is pushed out from the side of the long axis portion opposite to the bent portion, by forming a plurality of tools having different diameters of the large diameter portions in the stepped holes of the segments constituting the band.

When the measurement result is compared with the above-mentioned data of the spring force, it can be seen that a region in which the pull-out force is relatively stable exists in the portion of the displacement of 0.15 to 0.3mm corresponding to the superelastic region described above.

Therefore, from this measurement result, it can be seen that the amount of deformation of the bent portion 5 of the adjustment pin 21 was 0.25mm and fallen into the superelastic region.

However, since the withdrawal force is a value obtained by multiplying the coefficient of friction by the spring force, the superelastic region of the spring force coincides with the superelastic region of the withdrawal force, meaning that the coefficient of friction between the adjustment pin 21 and the enlarged hole-size portion 31 of the segment 22 assumes an almost constant value in the superelastic region.

If the maximum height Hmax of the adjustment pin shown in fig. 11 and the radial dimension D2 of the hole-size-enlarged portion 31 of the segment 22 shown in fig. 10 are designed to be optimum dimensions by utilizing this, the extraction force of the adjustment pin 21 against the segment 22 becomes almost constant and stable because the curved portion 5 of the adjustment pin 21 is caused to act on the hole-size-enlarged portion 31 of the segment 22 with a stable spring force in the superelastic region.

Further, the displacement of the bent portion 5 in the state where the adjustment pin is inserted into the stepped hole portion 31a of the segment 22 is a value obtained by subtracting the dimension D2 of the large diameter portion of the stepped hole portion 31a from the maximum height Hmax of the bent portion 5 of the adjustment pin 21 shown in fig. 11.

Next, a mathematical formula for calculating the dimensions of the respective portions of the adjustment pin, the hole diameter on the side of the segment into which they are inserted, and the like so as to obtain a desired extraction force will be described.

The "displacement-force" curve of the spring force shown in fig. 15 can be inferred by making the following assumptions.

That is, the spring force when the cross-sectional shape of the spring material used as the adjustment pin is not specified can be obtained by the following formula (1).

P＝E·I·w·K/(L³/3+kIEL/(AG)) ...(1)

In the formula, E: longitudinal modulus of elasticity (700 kgf/mm for NiTi)²＝700×9.8×10⁶Pa)

G: transverse coefficient of elasticity

I: 2-order moment of section

w: amount of deformation

A: cross sectional area

K: correction term

k: ratio of shear stress of neutral axis to average shear stress

L: length of spring

The spring force in the case of a round rod material having a circular cross-sectional shape as the spring material used for the adjustment pin can be obtained by the following equation (2).

P＝3Eπd⁴wK/64L³(1+0.65·d²/L²) ...(2)

In the formula, d: wire diameter

Further, the extraction force can be expressed by the following formula (3).

F＝μs·P ...(3)

μ s in the formula: coefficient of static friction

F: withdrawal force

Thus, according to equation (3), if the coefficient of static friction μ s is assumed to be almost constant, the withdrawal force F is almost constant if the spring force P is kept constant. Thus, if made to utilize the spring force of the superelastic region, the extraction force becomes semi-permanently stable.

Using the above formula, the shape of the adjustment pin, particularly the maximum height Hmax, the wire diameter, the material characteristics, the hole diameter of the hole-size enlarging portion 31 of the segment 22, and the like described in fig. 11 can be obtained by calculation so as to obtain a desired extraction force.

Next, the results of an experiment performed to compare the pulling-out force of the adjustment pin with the connection structure of the band described in fig. 9 and the connection structure of the band using the prior art cotter pin will be described with reference to fig. 16.

Fig. 16 is a graph showing the results of an experiment comparing the extraction force of the adjustment pin in the connection structure of the band according to the present invention with the extraction force of the adjustment pin in the connection structure of the band with the cotter pin of the related art described in fig. 27.

According to this experimental result, the pull-out force was dispersed in the range of (1.8 to 3.4) × 9.8N as shown by the histogram of the blank for the constructor of the prior art. In contrast, in the connection structure according to the present invention, the pull-out force is dispersed in the range of (2.0 to 3.2) × 9.8N as shown by the histogram of the hatching, and the deviation range is small.

The deviation is normally distributed, and the deviation of the pull-out force implies a deviation reflecting the dimension of the adjustment pin during the machining, that is, the deviation of the maximum height Hmax of the adjustment pin, which is specifically described in fig. 11.

In contrast, in the structure using the cotter pin according to the related art, the variation in the pull-out force is asymmetric with respect to the center of the distribution, and it is estimated that influences other than the dimensional variation at the time of processing the adjustment pin, for example, the influence of plastic deformation, are increased.

[ embodiment 5: FIG. 17)

Another attachment structure of the band according to the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. 17

Examples are given.

Fig. 17 is a schematic view similar to fig. 9 for explaining another example of the connection structure of the band according to the present invention, and the same reference numerals are given to parts corresponding to fig. 9.

This band attaching structure is different from the embodiment illustrated in fig. 9 only in that the hole diameters of the attaching through holes 37, 38 and the protrusion attaching through hole 39 forming the segment 32 are made completely the same.

In this embodiment, the long axis portion of the adjustment pin 41 other than the bent portion 5 is not deformed, and the maximum height Hmax illustrated in fig. 11 is set so that the spring force generated at the bent portion 5 of the adjustment pin 41 acts on the wall surface of the connection through hole 37 of the segment 32 with the force of the superelastic zone.

That is, in the embodiment illustrated in fig. 9 to 16, the length L of the bent portion of the adjustment pin 21 is 2mm, the D2 is 1.25mm, and the maximum height Hmax is 1.5mm, so that the amount of deformation of the bent portion 5 when the adjustment pin 21 is inserted into the segment 22 to a predetermined position is 0.25 mm.

In contrast, in this embodiment, although the length L of the bent portion of the adjustment pin 41 is the same as 2mm, the maximum height Hmax is reduced to 1.3mm to 1.05mm in D2. In this case, since the deformation amount is 0.25mm, the spring force of the superelastic region can be applied to the wall surface of the connection through-hole 37 of the segment 32 by the adjustment pin 41 in the same manner as in the embodiment of fig. 9. Thus, a stable pullout force can be obtained.

[ embodiment 6: FIG. 18 and FIG. 19

Another more different embodiment of the connection structure of the band according to the invention is described below with reference to fig. 18 and 19.

Fig. 18 is the same schematic view as fig. 17 for explaining another different embodiment of the connection structure of the band according to the present invention, and the same reference numerals are given to parts corresponding to fig. 17.

In this connection structure of the band, similarly to the 5 th embodiment described in fig. 17, the connection through holes 47 and 48 and the projection connection through hole 49 formed in the segment 42 have the same hole diameter, but the hole diameter is made slightly larger than the wire diameter of the adjustment pin 51, so that the adjustment pin 51 is deformed at a portion other than the bent portion 5.

The results of the experiments on the "displacement-force" curve of the spring force and the "displacement-force" curve of the extraction force of the adjustment pin when made with this aperture size are shown in fig. 19.

From this experimental result, the "displacement-force" curve of the spring force in the adjustment pin is almost the same as the result shown in fig. 15.

On the other hand, in the experiment for adjusting the pin pullout force, assuming that the hole diameters of the connection through holes 47 and 48 and the protrusion connection through hole 49 are made to be completely the same, a plurality of tools having the same size from one end to the other end of the hole are made with different hole diameters, and the pullout force when pushing out from the side of the long axis portion opposite to the bending portion 5 after inserting the adjustment pin 51 into the hole of the tool is measured.

The measurement results are shown in FIG. 19. When the measurement result is compared with that shown in fig. 15, a region in which the gradient of the pull-out force is small exists in the small displacement region, unlike in example 4.

The data in this region is a region having a diameter of the hole of 1mm in the wire diameter of the pin when the adjustment pin is inserted, and is considered to be because the gap between the long shaft portion of the adjustment pin other than the bent portion and the wall surface of the hole into which the adjustment pin is inserted is large, and the bent portion 5 is long, so that the long shaft portion has low rigidity and is easily deformed in advance.

Further, after the long axis portion other than the bent portion is sufficiently deformed, the bent portion 5 is also gradually deformed, and thus the pull-out force tends to be rapidly increased. Thus, in this embodiment, it is necessary to set the maximum height Hmax of the adjustment pin 51 and the respective hole diameters of the connection through-holes 47, 48 and the boss connection through-hole 49 formed in the segment 42 of the watch band in consideration of the initial deformation of the long shaft portion.

For example, the force of the superelastic region can be applied by setting the displacement amount of the bent portion 5 of the adjustment pin 51 to 0.2mm, and the extraction force can be stabilized as in the example described with reference to fig. 9.

[ best definition example ]

In the present invention, the bent portion of the adjustment pin has a curved shape, and the bent portion is an ヘ -shaped adjustment pin (the shape shown in fig. 1) having one position, and low-temperature pressing is easy, and the variation of the maximum height of the bent portion (Hmax in fig. 11) can be made relatively small, so that the adjustment pin is suitably configured to act in the superelastic region.

Next, a description will be given of a preferred example of the adjustment pin formed in the ヘ shape.

Table 1 shows experimental data showing the relationship between the range of occurrence of the superelastic region and the pull-out force for the adjustment pin formed in the ヘ -shape according to the present invention.

However, as can be seen from the above equation (2), the spring force of the adjustment pin is proportional to the 4 th power of the wire diameter d and inversely proportional to the 3 rd power of the length L of the bent portion. From this case, it is understood that the rigidity of the adjustment pin is higher as the wire diameter d is larger and the length L is shorter in shape. Further, the higher the rigidity of the adjustment pin, the greater the stress applied to the adjustment pin against any deformation.

As seen from table 1, the adjusting pin superelasticity region tends to become narrower as the rigidity is higher (the wire diameter d is larger and the length L is shorter), and the extraction force in the superelastic region tends to become larger.

TABLE 1

Condition mm	Segment aperture mm	Diameter of the pin line mm	Lmm	Range of Hmax (mm) showing superelastic properties	Withdrawal force N
							NiTi	NiTiCo
					a	0.9			0.8	0.9	0.92～0.95	1.6×9.8	2.08×9.8
b	0.9	0.8	1	0.95～1.01			1.2×9.8	1.56×9.8
					c	0.85			0.7	1	0.89～0.97	0.76×9.8	0.988×9.8
d	1.2	1	1	1.23～1.28			5.35×9.8	6.955×9.8
					e	1.2			1	2	1.5～1.65	2×9.8	2.6×9.8
f	1.2	1	3.7	1.7～1.9			1.1×9.8	1.43×9.8
					g	1.3			1.2	3.7	1.6～1.8	4.5×9.8	5.85×9.8

In order to set the extraction force of the adjustment pin and the width of the superelastic region to effective values, it is extremely effective to set the wire diameter d and the length L to a certain effective range.

The width of the superelastic zone is preferably greater than the width of the deviation in the amount of deformation of the adjustment pin due to the deviation in the size and segment diameter of the adjustment pin.

The present invention is intended to provide a pin with a stable pull-out force by setting the deformation of the pin in the superelastic region in a state where the adjustment pin is inserted into the segment hole, and with a narrow superelastic region, the pin is separated from the superelastic region due to the variation in the amount of deformation of the pin, and the pull-out force varies, and thus an effective effect cannot be expected.

When considering the variation in the size of the pin due to the cold pressing and the variation in the hole diameter (and the hole position) of the segment due to the drilling, the range of the maximum height Hmax of the bent portion of the adjustment pin exhibiting superelasticity (superelastic zone) is preferably 0.05mm or more in width.

In addition, in order to prevent the adjustment pin from being naturally detached during use of the wristwatch, the pull-out force must be at least about 1 × 9.8N. Therefore, it is necessary to set the shape of the adjustment pin so that the pull-out force becomes 1 × 9.8N or more in terms of its function.

However, if the pull-out force is too high, it becomes difficult to push out the adjustment pin from the segment, and the efficiency of the work of adjusting the length of the band becomes poor. Therefore, the upper limit of the withdrawal force is generally set to about 7 × 9.8N.

Thus, the pull-out force of the adjustment pin is preferably set in a range of about 1 × 9.8N to 7 × 9.8N.

Although the extraction force of the superelastic region can be made to fall within the range of 1 to 7 x 9.8N even if the length L of the bend shown in fig. 11 of the adjusting pin is less than 1mm, the machining becomes very difficult.

That is, if the length L is taken to be less than 1mm, the material is easily broken because the shearing force becomes large at the time of pressing.

Further, if the length L is less than 1mm, the superelastic zone becomes narrow because of the high rigidity. For example, in condition a of table 1, the superelastic zone is only 0.03mm with a maximum height Hmax of from 0.92 to 0.95mm, and it can be said that it is difficult to effectively use the superelastic zone if variations in pin machining are taken into account.

However, as shown in conditions b to g of table 1, since the width of the superelastic zone exceeds 0.05mm if the length L is greater than 1, the superelastic zone can be effectively utilized. Therefore, it is effective to adjust the length L of the bent portion of the pin to be greater than 1 in terms of both the ease of pressing during the processing of the pin (wire) and the width of the superelastic region.

Further, since the adjustment pin is inserted into the hole of the arm portion of the watch band, the value of the length L of the bent portion is limited by the design of the segment. That is, the length L has to be shorter than the width of the segment.

In addition, in the case where the adjustment pin bent in an ヘ shape is used as described above, if the length L is increased, not only is the type of band piece that can be accommodated limited, but it becomes difficult to insert the pin into the piece.

When the band pieces are made to be adaptable to a general band, the length L is preferably made to be 3.7mm or less in consideration of workability when inserting the band pieces into the piece holes.

As described above, the length L of the bent portion of the ヘ -shaped adjustment pin according to the present invention is most effectively set to a value of 1mm to 3.7 mm.

Further, according to condition c of table 1, if the wire diameter of the adjustment pin is taken to be less than 0.8mm, the extraction force in the superelastic region is less than 1 × 9.8N even if the length L is taken to be 1 mm. That is, the wire diameter is preferably greater than 0.8 mm.

Further, since the wire diameter is increased to increase the rigidity of the adjustment pin, the extraction force of the superelastic region is increased, and the superelastic region is narrowed. Considering the case where the withdrawal force is set to 1X 9.8N or more, the width of the superelastic region is set to 0.05mm or more, and the length L is set to between 1mm and 3.7mm, the above-mentioned conditions can be satisfied by setting the upper limit of the wire diameter to 1.2mm of the condition g in Table 1.

That is, the wire diameter of the ヘ -shaped adjustment pin of the present invention is set to 0.8mm to 1.2mm, which is most effective.

As described above, it is most effective to use a wire having a wire diameter in the range of 0.8mm to 1.2mm for the adjustment pin, and to set the length L of the bent portion (bent portion) to be 1mm to 3.7 mm.

Further, in the case of nickel-titanium-cobalt (NiTiCo), the coefficient of longitudinal elasticity is 7450X 9.8N/mm²Since it is 1.3 times larger than nickel-titanium (NiTi), it is effective when the spring force is desired to be given largely in design or when the wire diameter is desired to be small even with the same spring force.

The effective size ranges of NiTi and NiTiCo are somewhat different, but the above ranges are effective for both, and can be said to be the most effective ranges in consideration of the combination.

[ other variations ]

Although various examples have been described above in which the material for the adjustment pin is NiTi or NiTiCo, a material having superelastic characteristics such as CuAlNi or CuZnAl may be used as another material.

The adjustment pin is not limited to a rod having a circular cross-sectional shape, and may have a rectangular cross-sectional shape.

Further, in the above embodiments, the band pieces connected by the adjustment pins are the integral band, but the present invention can be applied to a rolled band using the connection links, and the like.

In the above embodiments, the case where the band pieces are the entire band and the pair of arm portions are formed on the band pieces so as to be spaced apart from each other via the concave portions is described as an example, but the present invention can be similarly applied to the band pieces in which three or more arm portions are formed.

The shape of the bent portion of the adjustment pin is not limited to the shape described in fig. 1 or 5, and may be formed in shapes of the adjustment pins 61, 71, 81, and 91 shown in fig. 20 to 23, or may be formed in two bent portions as shown in fig. 5 or 23.

Although the pull-out force was confirmed for the adjustment pins 61, 71, 81 and 91 having the shapes shown in fig. 20 to 23, respectively, a stable holding force with respect to the segment was obtained as in the example described in fig. 11. Further, the insertion and extraction of the adjustment pin can be easily performed.

Further, any of the adjustment pins 61, 71, 81, and 91 can be manufactured by the same process as that described in embodiment 3.

The shape of the bent portion (curved portion) of the adjustment pin may be any shape other than those of the above-described embodiments, and is not limited as long as the stress of the superelastic region is substantially applied to the hole of the segment in the connected state.

Further, in the above embodiments, the case where the holes on the segment side are not damaged when the holes of the segment are inserted and extracted by the adjustment pins is described as an example of the best case where both end portions of the adjustment pins are formed into the hemispherical curved surfaces, but it is not essential to form the both end portions into the curved surfaces.

The process of the adjustment pin may be a sequence of cutting → bending → heat treatment → barrel polishing, or a sequence of cutting → barrel polishing → bending → heat treatment.

Further, the present invention is not limited to the use as an adjustment pin for connecting band pieces to each other, and may be applied to a fixed pin or a structure in which a grip case 65 and a band 66 are connected to each other like the adjustment pin 1 shown in fig. 24 (referred to as an end-embedded portion)[ original text') か D')There was also no problem at all.

As described above, the adjustment pin according to the present invention can be applied not only to the connection of the band pieces for adjusting the length of the band but also to the connection of other parts.

As described above, according to the watchband adjustment pin of the present invention, since the length of the watchband can be easily adjusted and the watchband can be prevented from falling off from the watchband piece with a stable engaging force even if the hole diameter of the watchband piece varies, the adjustment pin is expected to be widely used as a part for connecting the watchband pieces in an interlocking manner.

Further, if the method of manufacturing the adjustment pin for a wristwatch band according to the present invention is performed, the adjustment pin can be easily manufactured, and therefore, the method is expected as an effective manufacturing method of the adjustment pin in the future.

Further, if the connection structure of the band according to the present invention is used, the band pieces can be stably connected in an interlocking shape, and the length adjustment of the band can be easily performed, so that it is expected to be widely used as an effective connection structure of the band.

Claims (13)

1. An adjustment pin for a wrist watch band in which a plurality of segments are connected in an interlocking manner and the adjustment pin is used for connecting the segments to each other,

the elastic sheet is formed of a metal material having a superelastic region in which a stress is constant with respect to a change in strain, and at least one bent portion is formed to apply the stress of the superelastic region to the segment in a state where the segment is connected, and the bent portion is fixed in cooperation with an inner wall of a hole formed in the segment.

2. The adjustment pin for wristwatch band of claim 1, wherein the metal is an alloy mainly containing nickel-titanium or nickel-titanium-cobalt.

3. The adjustment pin for wrist watch band according to claim 1, wherein the bent portion is a portion bent in a curved shape.

4. The adjustment pin for a wristwatch band of claim 1, wherein both ends in a longitudinal direction are formed in a curved surface shape.

5. The adjusting pin for a wristwatch band of claim 2, wherein the adjusting pin has a wire diameter of 0.8mm or more and 1.2mm or less, and a length of the bent portion in a horizontal direction from a starting bending position of a portion of the bent portion contacting one side of the segment to a maximum height of the bent portion is 1mm or more and 3.7mm or less.

6. A method for manufacturing an adjusting pin for a wrist watch band, the wrist watch band is formed by connecting a plurality of segments in a chain shape; the adjusting pin is used for connecting the segments, is formed by a metal material with a super elastic area with constant relative strain change stress, and is provided with at least one bent part which is used for applying the stress of the super elastic area to the segments under the state of connecting the segments, and the bent part is matched with the inner wall of the hole formed on the segments and is fixed; it is characterized in that the preparation method is characterized in that,

the method comprises a step of bending at least one portion of a metal wire made of a metal material having a superelastic region by pressing, a step of cutting the metal wire to include the bent portion, and a step of forming both ends of the cut metal wire in the longitudinal direction into curved surfaces.

7. A method for manufacturing an adjusting pin for a wrist watch band, the wrist watch band is formed by connecting a plurality of segments in a chain shape; the adjusting pin is used for connecting the segments, is formed by a metal material with a super elastic area with constant relative strain change stress, and is provided with at least one bent part which is used for applying the stress of the super elastic area to the segments under the state of connecting the segments, and the bent part is matched with the inner wall of the hole formed on the segments and is fixed; it is characterized in that the preparation method is characterized in that,

the method comprises a step of cutting a metal wire made of a metal material having a superelastic region to a desired length, a step of bending at least one portion of the cut metal wire by pressing, and a step of forming both ends of the bent metal wire in the longitudinal direction into curved surfaces.

8. A connection structure of a wrist band in which a plurality of segments each having a concave portion on one end side in a chain direction of the band and a convex portion capable of being inserted into the concave portion of an adjacent segment on the other end side are connected in a chain form, connection through holes along a lateral short direction of the band are formed in a pair of arm portions on both sides separated by the concave portion on the one end side, respectively, a convex portion connection through hole is formed in the convex portion in a direction parallel to the connection through holes, and an adjustment pin made of a metal material having a superelasticity region in which a change stress of a relative strain becomes constant is inserted into the connection through holes of the arm portions and the convex portion connection through holes in a state in which the convex portion of the adjacent segment is inserted into the concave portion, whereby the adjacent segments are detachably connected,

a bent portion is formed on the adjustment pin, and the maximum height of the bent portion is made larger than the hole size of one of the pair of arm portions,

when the adjustment pin is inserted into each of the connection through holes of the pair of arm portions and the convex portion connection through hole to a predetermined position, the bent portion of the adjustment pin is deformed at the one connection through hole, whereby a stress generated at the bent portion of the adjustment pin is in a super elastic region, and the adjustment pin is fixed to the segment by a force generated by the stress.

9. The structure of claim 8, wherein an enlarged hole is formed in at least an entrance portion of one of the pair of arm portions, and a dimension between inner walls of the enlarged hole facing in a radial direction of the hole is larger than a diameter of the protrusion connecting through hole.

10. The band-connecting structure according to claim 9, wherein the hole-size-enlarged portion is a stepped hole portion formed at least in an entrance portion of one of the pair of arm portions, and a size between inner walls opposed in a hole radial direction is larger than a diameter of the convex portion connecting through hole.

11. The structure of claim 9, wherein the enlarged hole-size portion is a hole formed over the entire range of the through-hole for connection of one of the pair of arm portions; a diameter of the adjusting pin is such that when the adjusting pin is inserted into a predetermined position of each of the connecting through-holes of the pair of arm portions and the convex connecting through-hole, the bent portion of the adjusting pin is deformed at the connecting through-hole portion of the one arm portion, so that a stress generated at the bent portion of the adjusting pin is in a super-elastic region, and the adjusting pin is fixed to the diameter of the segment by a force generated by the stress, thereby forming the connecting through-hole of the one arm portion; the aperture of the connection through hole of the other arm of the pair of arm portions is made larger than the linear diameter of the adjustment pin.

12. The band link structure of claim 8, wherein the adjustment pin is formed of an alloy containing nickel-titanium or nickel-titanium-cobalt as a main component.

13. The structure of claim 8, wherein the adjustment pin has a wire diameter of 0.8mm to 1.2mm, and the bent portion has a length in a horizontal direction of 1mm to 3.7mm from a bending start position of a portion contacting one side of the segment to a maximum height of the bent portion.