US2587026A - Time switch - Google Patents

Description

Feb. 26, 1952 E, ER 2,587,026

TIME SWITCH Filed NOV. 14, 1947 4 Sheets-Sheet l a 12, 3 ll l5 iNYE-NTOM ELMER H. BEISER Feb. 26, 1952 E. H. BEISER 2,587,026

TIME SWITCH v Filed Nov. 14, 1947 v 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 ENvsna-rokd ELMER H. BEISER m TORNB-Y/ Feb. 26, 1952 E. H. BEISER 2,587,026

TIME SWITCH Filed Nov. 14, 1947 I 4 Sheets-Sheet 3 ELM ER H. BEISER "WI-M Feb. 26, 1952 E.IH. BEISER 2,587,026

TIME SWITCH Filed NOV. 14, 1947 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 r -T u Y i sz 2.- 69 105 I05 b 55- 0 65 b 68 55 66 ea; s5 g 55 55 Patented Feb. 26, 1952 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE TIME SWITCH Elmer. H. Beiser, Peru, Ill.,,assignor to General Time Corporation, a corporation of Delaware Application November 14, 1947, Serial No. 786,065

8 Claims. 1.

The present invention relates to time controlled switches and more particularly to clock actuated mechanism for controlling both an electrical alarm circuit and an audible alarm.

Clocks having switch mechanism for controlling an electrical circuit to energize a radio receiver, lamp or the like for alarm purposes, have been known for a number of years but have not been' widely used for several reasons, primarily of which are the high cost and complexity of construction and operation. Another drawback is the inability of switch mechanisms conventionally used to clearly and positively make and break the circuit of electrical appliances having a'heavy current drain such as ovens and miscellaneous types ofheaters Then too, it has'been considered impracticable to mount adequate switch control mechanism in a clock housing which is of substantially the same size and external appearance as an ordinary electric alarm clock.

One of the factors in the complexity of operation of prior art alarm switches has to do with the-manual setting of the control element. In a number of such switches a-control 'knob or the like is provided for selecting an on,, off, or auto position, the auto position being the one normally used and which causes'the switch to be operated after apredetermined time interval Upon expiration of the time interval, however, the switch will be thrown "on but the control knob will not indicate that such condition exists.

It-is, accordingly, one of the objects of the present invention to provide an improved alarm clock switching mechanism in which the control knob or the like at all timesindicates whether or not current is actually flowing through the device. It is a related object to provide an improved switch of 'the above type in, which the control knob is automatically moved from the .auto position in. unison. with switch operation and in which the return movementto set up a successive switching cycle serves to reset or recock the switch operatingmechanism without. intentional care onthe-part of the operator.

It is a further object of the presentinvention toprovidean improved electric alarm clock having a controlledswitch mechanism in,.which heavy duty electricalcontacts may be operated rapidly and positively while imposing only slight mechanical load. on theclock. It is another b- Ject to provide a durable switch operating-mechanism in an alarm clock which may becompletely included in a housingnolargerthan that ordinarily employed in the audible type alarm clock. A further object is to provide a time switch mechanism employing clock type components in a simple and straightforward manner, the entire device costing very little more than competitive clocks not having the electrical control feature. Also, it is an object of the invention to provide a switch type alarm clock in which the audible alarm portion is coordinated with the switch portion in an improved manner and without interfering with separate manual control of either of them.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will be apparent from the following detailed description taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, in which:

Fig. 1 is a perspective view showing the general external appearance of my improved alarm clock.

Fig. 2 is a fragmentary view of the central porti'on of the face of the alarm clock shown in Fig.1.

Fig. 3 is a transverse sectional view of the clock mechanism taken along the line 33 of Fig. '2 and bisecting the central axis of the clock.

Fig. 4 is a side elevation of the clock mechanism as the mechanism appears when viewed from the left.

Fig. 5 is an enlarged rear view of the clock mechanism showing the electrical contacts and operating cam therefor.

Fig. 6 is a view similar to Fig. 5 but in vertical section with the rear plate removed to show the internal gear wheels and release mechanism in greater detail.

Fig. 7 is a fragmentary detailed view showing the control knob, control shaft and associated parts.

Fig. 8 is a perspective view of the portion of the mechanism shown in Fig. '7.

Fig. 9 is a fragmentary stop motion view show-' larged to show in detail the structure of the switch controlling cam for enabling immediate resetting.

While the invention is susceptible of various modifications and alternative constructions and 7 "uses, I have shown in the drawings and will herein describe in detail one embodiment of the invention. It is to be understood, however, that I do not intend to limit the invention by such disclosure, but aim to cover all modifications of alternative constructions and uses falling within the spirit and scope of the invention as expressed in the appended claims.

Referring now to Figs. 1 and 2 it will be noted that the clock indicated generally at H) has an hour hand II, a minute hand I2 and a revolving star H] as a seconds indicator. The time may be set just as in a conventional clock by a knob |5 on the minute hand. Also shown is an auxiliary or alarm dial l6 which cooperates with an auxiliary pointer l 8 on the hour hand. As will later be seen in greater detail, the auxiliary dial I6 is rotatably adjustable with respect to the hour hand by means of a setting knob l9 located at the left-hand side of the clock. Another knob, which may be conveniently called a control knob and indicated at 20, determines whether an internally contained time switch is controlled automatically or is set in the on or off condition. When the control knob is set in the auto position, provision is made within the clock mechanism to operate an electric circuit at the time designated by the pointer l8 on the dial [6.

The clockwork, the initial portion of which is conventional, can be clearly understood from inspection of Fig. 3. The mechanism, mounted on front and back plates Ha, is driven by a clock motor and gear train (not shown), the driving power being applied at the right-hand portion of the figure. A shaft 2| is timingly rotated by the driving train, while a gear 22 coaxial with such shaft is rotated in unison but at a reduced speed. Fast on the forward end of the shaft 2| is a pinion 24 which drives a gear 25. Mounted flatly adjacent the gear 25 and on a common sleeve 26 is a disk 28 which carries at its periphery the seconds indicator which, as previously noted, is a star IS. The latter projects through an annular slot defined by the clock face and the auxiliary face I6 contained within it.

. Drawing attention now to the driving gear 22, it will be noted that it carries a pinion 29 which in turn drives a gear 30 of relatively large diameter and mounted on a main spindle 3|. Normally rotatable with the gear 30 is a central pinion 32 which is fastened to the central spindle 3| and thus serves to rotate the minute hand |2 (and knob I 5) pressed on the forward end thereof.

In order to rotate the hour hand at a reduced speed, the pinion 32 is in mesh with an intermediate gear 34 having a pair of pinions 35, 36 thereon. The first of these, 35, is in mesh with an hour reduction gear 38 which is fast to a central sleeve 39 on the spindle 3|. At its forward end the sleeve 39 carries the hour hand I! in driving engagement. Thus far described, the clock mechanism will provide an indication of time just as any conventional clock, provided that the input elements 2|, 22 are rotated at the proper rate. If desired, the hands of the clock may be adjusted manually by rotation of the knob l5 at the outer end of the shaft 3|, slippage taking place in a friction clutch 40 to make it impossible to jam the gear train.

Having observed the main gear train, attention may now be given to the means for controlling the audible alarm which may be of the conventional type, employing a buzzer energized by the leakage flux from the clock driving motor. The buzzer armature will be observed at 46 in Fig. 6. It includes a magnetic portion 42 in close proximity to poles 44 of the driving motor 43. Such armature is preferably disabled prior to alarm by applying outward pressure to a downwardly extending tongue 45, the latter being accomplished by an alarm controlling cam 46. As will be observed, the latter, upon passage of time, is caused to rotate, a notch 48 formed therein being gradually advanced until the tongue 45 drops free, enabling vibration of the armature 4| to take place. The construction of both the notch and the tongue will become apparent by reference to Fig. 15 in the drawings. Manual shut-oil of the buzzer is effected by shut-off lever 41 operated by manual plunger 49.

Referring again to Fig. 3 the means here employed for driving the alarm controlling cam 46 may be seen. The pinion 36 as stated above, rotates in unison with the hour hand II. In driving engagement with pinion 36 is an alarm gear 50 which is fastened on the forward end of an alarm spindle 5| by means of a flanged collar 5|a. An alarm sleeve 54 which carries the alarm controlling cam is telescoped over the spindle 5| and seated on the flanged collar 5|a. Upon passage of time, the alarm controlling cam 46 on the sleeve 54 is timingly advanced until dropoff of the alarm control tongue 45 occurs. Advanced simultaneously with the alarm controlling cam 46 is a switch controlling cam, indicated generally at 55, lying flatly adjacent thereto. Since the latter cam and its associated mechanism constitute a primary feature of the present invention, they will later be covered in detail.

Provision is made in the device disclosed for varying the relative angular position of the cams 46, 55 with respect to the remainder of the clock driving train to set the alarm. As shown in Fig. 3, such positioning is made possible by the construction of the members 5| a, 54 which form a friction clutch. Such clutch members are pressed together axially by a spring 52, the friction being suiiiciently great so that sleeve 54 is normally driven in unison with the hour hand The force required to cause slippage may be regulated merely by controlling the degree of compression of the spring 52. ing movement of the sleeve 54 with respect to the clock train is accomplished by means of the alarm setting knob l9. This knob serves to rotate a pair of pinions 60, 6| which in turn rotate an alarm setting gear 62, pressed or otherwise fastened on the forward end of the sleeve 54. It will be apparent, therefore, that rotation of the alarm setting knob l3 will cause joint rotative adjustment of the cams 46, 55 with slippage taking place at the clutch surfaces.

In order that indication of the alarm setting may be made onthe face of the clock, means are provided for coupling the cams 46, 55 with the auxiliary dial l6. To accomplish this, an auxiliary pinion 64 is used which rotates a gear 65 on a forwardly projecting sleeve 66. The dial l6, mounted at the forward end of the sleeve 66, rotates coaxially with the hands of the clock, and the relative position of the cams with respect to the driving train is at all times indicated by a cooperating pointer IS on the hour hand The indication on the dial |6 thus designates the time at which the alarm cams 46, 55 will be transported around to the alarm position.

In the practice of the invention, improved means are provided for actuating an electrical switch upon advancement of switch controlling cam 55 into the alarm position.- As disclosed Rotative adj ust-- in Fig. 6 and in the fragmentary views of Figs. 9l5,.-the switch controlling-earn 55 has a cam follower 68, the latter being carried by. a cam follower lever (i9 pivoted at astationarypivot point 10. The cam follower 69 is biase d into engagement with. the periphery of the cam 55 by means of a biasing spring ll a that is wound around pivot 10 ,(Fig. 6). The lower arm 12 of 1e'ver59has arflexible lateral; extension "II that bears on the upper surface of a switch release arm .19. Arm [2 also has a rigid lug 14 that bears on the bottom of arm 19. A reset lug 'l5 I is. formedon arm 12. j v 7 Upon passage of time, the switch controlling carnl55 is driven slowly in a clockwise. direction as viewed in Fig. 15, and in a counterclockwise direction as viewed in Figs. 6, 9, and 10 {Even-- tually,.by reason of a notch 55a cut intothe periphery. of the switch controlling cam 55, the

carnfollower 39 drops radially inward. This movementis accompanied byv rotational movement of the cam follower lever 69 under the invention, rotational movement of the cam fole lower lever 69 is caused to release or trigger? a cocked electrical switch, such switch being indicated generally at 16 .in Figs. 5 and '7. To accomplish this a switch release plate 18 is used which is normally retained in cocked position by the switchrelease arm 19. The latter has anoifset ,tip, portion 80 which rides on the peripheryof theswitch release platefl8 .to engage an abutment 8| formed thereon. As shown in Figs.l 9 and lO, the switch release arm '19 is pivoted freely at pivot and is engaged by the flexible extension ll. of lever 69 to press the tip portion BU againstthe peripherygof plate 18. The lug 14 engages the bottom of the switch release arm 19 so that rotational, movement of the cam followerflleverlfiil in a clockwise ,direction (as viewed in Figs. 9 and l0') isfpositively transmitted to the switch, release arm. Rotational movement of the lever 69 in a counter clockwise direction is transmitted by flexure of the extension H. cam follower 68 into thenotch 55a of the switch controlling cam causes the switch release arm 19 to be rotated clockwise as viewed in Figs. 9 and 10. This disengages the ofiset tip 80 of the arm 19 from the cooperating abutment ,8! on the switch release plate. The manner in which the latter results in operation of the switch contacts will be apparent iipon reference to Figs. 5, '7, and 8.

In addition to i v ferred to,,it will beobserved that the switch mechanism includes a switchadvancing plate- 85 joined rigidly with the release platev by means of a spring barrel 86. Wound aboutthe barrel 86 is a coil spring 88, one end of which is re..- ceived in the plate 85 while the other end, .89,

is caught on a projection 99 formed integral with...

the back plate Ila of, the clock. The spring, thus anchored, serves to store energy which is released for switch advancing purposes upon. movement of the release arm 19. ,Mo mted adjacent the switch advancing plate '85 is aninsulated switch cam 9| The latter is fixed toa rotatable c'onA trol shaft 91 which extends forwardly. withinthe housing of theclock to the knob 29. A lost 9| and the dva c pl t son of the engagement of cooperating abutments In this way, dropping of the w the switch release plate 18 recooking the switch releaseplate 15.

6 thereon. In the present instance such abutments; include an axially extending .iproiectio'n 85a on the switch advancing'plate. and a radially extending shoulder em. on the. .switch icam 9|. Triggering of, the. release plate is thus effective torotate the switch cam 9| in acounterclockwise direction as viewed in Fig. 5.

'Turning'now to the portion of the switchassociated with cam 9| (Fig. 5), it will be noted that th'ecam has a notch 9ld bounded by high portions 9Ib, 9Ic on the respective sides thereof. Riding on the periphery of the cam 9| and'biased .thereagainst is a switch arm 94 carrying a movable contact 95. Cooperating with the contact 95 and mounted on a stationary arm 96 is a second contact 98. By means ofelect'rical wiring, which will be obvious to one skilled in-the'art, closure of the contacts 95, 98 is effec; tiveto apply voltage to an outputsocket 990i aconventional type into which a radio or other appliance may be plugged. Summarizing the-operation of the device thus far disclosed, it will be apparent that the plate I8 may be cocked merely by turning the control knob to the left as in Fig. 8. Subsequent advancement of the switch controlling cam will cause movement of the levers 69, I9, release of--the plate' l8, and consequent rotation of the switch advancing plate 85 under the influence of the spring 88. Due to the 'meeting of the abutments 85a, 91a, the switch cam 9| "will be advanced in a counterclockwise direction (as shown-in'Fig. 5), allowing the switch arm 94 to drop from 9lb into the notch 9ld inthe periphery thereof. 1'": This causes forcible closure of the contacts 95,-98.- While such contacts are shown to beef moderate-size they'may, if desired, be'consider-' ablylarger thanillustrated' and the arms upon which they are mounted maylikewisebeisuififartherthan'n'ecessary to drop the arm 94 into the notch 91d. fThereason for this is that an abutment "b on the plate is located to strike aprojection -"I' 'which is rigid with the back plate- Ha of the clock; The cam projection 1'00 serves to limit movement or the plate 85 in the opposite directioir as well, by reason of another abutment 85c. In short-cocking movement'oi the switch advancing plate 85 is limited by the abutment85c while the advancement of the switch cam 91 is limited by the abutment 85b.

In' accordance with one of the aspects of the invention, means" are provided for-simultaneously cooking thecam follower-lever 59 upon Asa result of-suchresettirig,- the cam follower 68'wi1l be infupraised position ready to drop into the notch I 55a of the switch controlling cam upon expira tion of predetermined time interval and'the' switch mechanism will have sufficient energy stored'in thespr'ing 88 to cause positive opera tion ofthe switch arm94 and the contacts controlledthereby. In the present device this dual function isperformed by the control shaft 92 by rotating the same in a clockwise direction as shown in Figs. 9 and 10. As viewed from the front of the clock and as shown in Fig. 8 such cocking rotation takes place in the counterclockwise direction, the control knob being moved to a position designated auto. Taking up these functions one at a time, it will be apparent that counterclockwise rotation of the shaft 92 (Fig. 8) will cause interference to take place between the abutment 85a, 9Ia causing the plate I8 to rotate into a cocked position in which it is retained by the offset portion 80 of the switch release arm I9. Cooking of the cam follower 58, on the other hand, is accomplished by a cam follower reset lever IOI which is rigidly fastened on the shaft 92. The end portion IOIa of the reset lever IOI (as shown in Fig. 9) engages the reset lug I on the cam follower lever 69. This serves to raise the cam follower 68 onto the periphery of the switch controlling cam 55. Under such conditions the clock is in readiness to close an electrical circuit at such time as the switch controlling cam 55 rotates the notch 55a into the receiving position.

As shown in detail in Fig. 15, the notch 55a is bounded on its trailing edge by an integral ear 55b which is angularly offset to serve as a lateral cam. Thus, after the cam follower 68 drops into the notch 55a, further rotation of the cam 55 will cause the cam follower to ride axially on the ear 55b and onto the lateral surface of the member 55. Under such conditions the cam follower 68 can be stated to be in an inoperative position, as contrasted with its operative position on the peripheral edge of the cam 55. It will be apparent that further automatic switch operation will require that the cam follower 68 be restored to its operative position by resetting the control knob back into the auto or left-hand setting.

Immediate reset In accordance with one of the more detailed aspects of the invention, provision is included in the clock for immediate resetting of the switch mechanism. It will be apparent upon inspection of Fig. that if no such provision were made, resetting would not be possible until the clock mechanism had advanced the switch controlling cam 55 past the cam follower 68 through an arc corresponding to the width of the notch 55a formed therein. The latter normally would take an hour or more. The latter would be disadvantageous since it not only requires the operator of the clock to remember to reset it upon the expiration of such disabled period, but it prevents the setting of an alarm time interval on the order of eleven to twelve hours.

In order to resolve the difficulty noted above, I provide a notch closing or bridging member I02 (Fig. 15). Such member, which may also be termed an immediate spring, is preferably in the form of an arcuate leaf spring which is fastened to the side of the switch controlling cam 55 in position to span the entire length of the notch 55a therein. As shown in Figs. 9 and 10, the

spring member I02 is preferably disk-shaped having an annular slot I03 formed along one side and defining a resilient" annular strip I04. While the outer radius of the portion I04 corresponds generally to the outer radius of the cam 55, the

portion thereof which bridges the notch preferably has a somewhat greater radius. Furthermore, the resilient portion I 04 is, in the preferred embodiment, shaped to have a deflecting surface I05.

As a result of the increased radius of portion I04 and the deflecting surface I05, it will be apparent that the bridging portion of the spring will tend to deflect outwardly as the cam 55 is rotatively advanced with respect to the cam follower 68. Also, the cam follower lever, which is preferably flexible in a lateral direction, will allow the cam follower to follow the deflecting surface I05. As a result of such construction the spring member I02 cannot in any way interfere with a sharp drop-off of the cam follower 68 into the notch 55a at the end of the pre-set time interval. However, upon a cocking or outward movement of the cam follower lever 69, the cam follower 68 will be raised clear of the bridging spring member I02 and the latter will be free to spring back into its normal position illustrated in Fig. 15. The member I02 therefore serves to support the cam follower 68 in its cooked or reset position on the cam 55 over the entire extent of the notch 55a. Thus it is seen that no time interval whatsoever need elapse after an alarm and before the switch mechanism can be reset. Since this removes one of the limitations of prior art switches, the desirability of such feature is obvious, and it is to be noted that it has been accomplished entirely without the use of finely machined or carefully dimensioned mechanical parts.

The series of Figures 11-14 show the relative positioning of the cam follower and the cam under the various conditions of operation previously alluded to. In Fig. 11 the cam follower 68 is shown as riding on the periphery of the switch controlling cam 55 corresponding to normal operation. In Fig. 12 the, cam follower has dropped into the notch 55a. In Fig. 14 the relative positioning of the spring I02 and follower 68 is shown as they appear after an immediate resetting operation. Fig. 13 shows the position of the parts after they have been normally reset, that is, afterv the passage of a time interval of an hour or more since an alarm.

In accordance with a further aspect of the invention, provision is made for operating the electrical contacts completely independently of the automatic mechanism described above. This is accomplished by manual rotation of the control knob 20 one step in the clockwise direction so that it indicates on. It might be expected that rotation of the knob 20 and the shaft 92 connected thereto would be impossible by reason of the interference between the cam follower reset lever I M and the reset lug I5 on the cam follower lever 69. Provision is made, however, for allowing non-interferring return passage of the member IOI and the lug I5. This is effected by tapering the forwardly facing surface of the reset lever as shown at IOIb in Fig. 8. Interference between the two members upon clockwise rotation of the shaft 92 thus causes the reset lug I5 to ride upwardly on the tapered surface IOIb and therefore to clear the same without damage to any of the parts in the clock. Since the switch cam 9| is directly fastened to the rear end of the control shaft 92, the cam BI is readily rotated so that the switch arm 94 falls into position in the notch 9Id. Under such conditions the contacts 95, 98 come together causing the electrical load to be constantly energized from the receptacle 99. This mode of operation is completely independent of the movement of the timecontrolled components utilized for automatic switching.

Similarly, the control knob 20 may be utilized to place the switch contacts in a permanently. off condition. To do this, it is merely necessary to turn the control knob 20 clockwise an additional step, causing the switch arm 94 to ride up on the raised portion 9 of the switch cam 9|. jIhe latteris effective toseparate the contacts 95, 98 Which'are taken completely out of the control of the time-controlled part of the device. It is to be noted that in my improved construction control of the circuit is ac,- complished by a single pair of contacts regardless of whether the operation is automatic or manual. The break is positive, the contacts being pulled apart by direct manual effort. Thus all possibility of maloperation due, to sticky contacts as a result of wear or current overleads is eliminated. -It will, however, be appreciated that other specific contact structures and cam profiles could be used without departing from the more basic features of my invention.

Specific mention may next be made of a feature inherent in the device as described but which contributes markedly to the simple and foolproof operation. This is the simultaneous.

movement of the control knob from the auto to the on? position which occursv incident to the automatic closure of the switch. The user of the clock is thus constantly apprised of the actual conditionof the contacts. For example, the position of the knob 23 indicates at a glance whether the switch has just. closed or whether it. is about to close, it being impossible to determine this accurately by observing posi-.- tion of the dials relative to the hour hand of the clock when the pre-set time interval is about to expire. This is of particular value when the device being controlled does not give any observable indication of whether current is being supplied to it. 4 The fact that the control knob 20 and the contacts always keep in step in the improved clock also insures that the mechanism will be reset each. time that. automatic switching is utilized, If, for example,.the device were constructed in the manner. of conventional time switches in which the controlknobremains set at the auto? position in spite of closure of the contacts, the user might .well..ass'ume that the device is're'ady foran automatic switching-cycle when, in fact, the mechanism had not been reset. In the improved device resetting takes place automatically as an incident to moving the controlknob to the auto position and it is not necessary for the user of the switch even to be aware that he is, by such movement, recocking the internal mechanism.

In the above discussion it has been assumed that the audible alarm and the electrical circuit are operated at the same time, in other words, that the alarm controlling cam 46 and the switch controlling cam 55 are in phase with one another. Normally however, the cams will be offset in phasing by a matter of a few minutes, the electrical circuit being completed prior to sounding the alarm. In this way a person using the clock to energize a radio may, upon being awakened by the latter, depress the plunger 49 and thereby prevent the audible alarm from sounding.

I claim as my invention:

1. The combination with a clock having an alarm device thereon of an alarm controlling cam driven thereby, means including a cam follower movable between a cocked position in which it rides on the periphery of said cam and 9. released 10.. W positionbelow said periphery for operating said alarm device, said cam. having a notch in the periphery thereof-adapted to receive said cam follower .upon :advancement of said :cam into a predetermined position, a notch'bridging memher, said notch-bridging member. having means thereon forqdisabling..it,-as.an incident to the normal approach .ofsaid cam follower toward said, notch i.to.enable said cam follower to 1 drop freelyintoits released position, and means'for raising .said. cam= follower out of said notch so that it: rideson saidnotch bridging member in readiness fora subsequent alarm.

-2. 'iheccombinationnv with a clock having a switchthereon of aswitch controlling cam driven thereby, means including a cam follower movable between-a reset position in which it rideson the 'periphery. of. said: cam and a released position belowusaid periphery for operating said switch, saidcam having anotch in the periphery thereof. adapted toreceive said cam follower upon advancementof said cam into a predetermined position, and anotch: bridging member mounted 0I1S8dd cam-for bodily rotation therewith, said notch bridging. member having means thereon for deflecting it into relation tosaid cam follower as anincident to the normal approach of said cam follower towarclsaid notch to enable said cam follower to dropfreely. into a released position, said notch bridging member including biasing means tending to restore it to anotch'closing position, and-manually operable means for raising said cam: follower out of said notch so that it rides on said notch closing member for-purposes of immediate reset.

v3. In combination with a clock having a switch thereon, a switch controlling cam disk driven thereby, means including a .cam follower movable between a cocked position in which it rides on the periphery of said camv disk and a released position belowv said periphery for. operating said switch, said camhaving anotch in thesperiphery tion; to bridge said notch, said leaf spring having a deflecting surface .thereonfor, deflecting itiout" of -the-wayof said cam follower as an incident to the normal approach of said cam follower toward said notch thereby permitting said cam follower to drop freely into a released position in said notch, and manual means for lifting the cam follower out of said notch and into a cocked position on said bridging spring even though said notch is still in position to receive said cam follower.

4. In combination with. a switch operating alarm clock, a switch controlling cam disk driven thereby, means including a cam follower movable between a cooked position in which it rides on the periphery of said disk and a released position below said periphery for the operation of said switch, said cam having a notch in the periphery thereof adapted to receive said, cam follower upon advancement of said cam into a predetermined alarm position, an arcuate spring bodily carried by said disk and biased flatly thereagainst for normally bridging said notch, said spring being arranged to form a continuation of the outer periphery of the cam and having a deflecting surface thereon to enable said spring to be deflected out of its bridging position relative to said cam follower and upon the approach of the same to permit said cam follower to fall freely into said notch, and means for manually moving said cam follower out of said notch and onto said spring to permit resetting of said cam follower into its cocked position immediately after said cam follower has dropped into said notch and before said clock has had an opportunity to rotate the notch appreciably out of said predetermined position.

5. The combination with a clock of a switch release arm releasable by said clock at a predetermined time, a rotatably biased switch release plate having means thereon to restrain the same against movement except when released by said switch release arm, a rotatable switch cam having an active portion thereon and first and second inactive portions located on the respective sides of said active'portion, said portions being presented with the cam in corresponding angular positions, switch means including a cam follower for riding on said cam and contacts operated upon said cam follower passing from an inactive to an active portion of said cam, a projection on said switch release plate for rotating said cam from the first inactive position to the active posi-- tion upon the release of said release plate, and means including a manual operator for rotating said cam into its active position or into its second inactive position independently of the positioning of said switch release plate.

6. In combination with a clock, an alarm circuit including a switch, a rotatably biased switch release plate, a switch release arm actuated by saidclock at a predetermined time for releasing said release plate, a rotatable switch cam having an active portion thereon and first and second inactive portions located on the respective sides thereof, a switch operating cam follower for riding on said cam and for operating said switch upon said cam follower passing between said active and inactive portions of said cam as the latter is moved between corresponding positions, an abutment on said switch release plate for shoving said switch cam from the first inactive position to the active position upon release of said plate, and means including a three position manual operator for (1) cooking said switch release plate and for moving said cam into the first inactive position, (2) for moving said cam into the active position and (3) for moving said cam into the second inactive position, movement into said second and third positions causing operation of said switch independently of said clock. K

7. The combination with a clock of a rotatable spring biased member releasable by said clock at a predetermined time, a manually rotatable shaft on which said spring biased member is rotatably mounted, a switch, a switch operating cam rotatable with said shaft, and a lost motion means connecting said spring biased member and said cam so that manual rotation of said shaft to a first position cocks said spring biased member for causing said cam to operate the switch when the spring biased member is released by said clock, and manual rotation of said shaft to a second position causes the cam to operate the switch independently of said spring biased member.

8. The combination with a clock of a cam having an operating position and driven by said clock, a pivoted cam follower lever having one end adapted for riding on said cam and means on the other end co-operating with a resetting means, a switch, means for operating said switch including a biased member, a switch release arm pivoted on said cam follower lever and having means for temporarily maintaining said biased member in a cocked position, said cam follower lever having means to positively transmit motion in one direction to said switch release arm to release said biased member upon movement of the cam follower lever into the cam operating position and having resilient means for transmitting motion from the cam follower lever to the switch release arm in the opposite direction for resetting: and manual resetting means for recocking said biased member and moving said cam follower lever out of said cam operating position.

ELMER H. BEISER.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,831,605 Porter Nov. 10, 1931 2,297,090 Weaver Sept. 29, 1942 2,309,065 Hall Jan. 19, 1943 2,421,986 Bohman June 10, 1947 2,430,286 Flegel Nov. 4, 1947 2,445,223 Kieifer July 13, 1948 2,450,287 Macintyre Sept. 28, 1948

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