Electronic watch with illumination device

• US 4,221,112 A
• Filed: 11/13/1978
• Issued: 09/09/1980
• Est. Priority Date: 11/16/1977
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Citizen Watch Co Limited (Citizen Electronics Company Limited)
• Original Assignee: Citizen Watch Co Limited (Citizen Electronics Company Limited)
• Inventors: Koide, Hiroshi, Ito, Nobuo, Kasai, Hidefumi, Enomoto, Tadao, Noguchi, Tsutomu
• Primary Examiner(s): Jackmon, Edith S.
• Application Number:
  US05/960,340
• Time in Patent Office: 666 Days
• Field of Search: 58/14 A, 58/23 R, 58/50 R, 58/50 A, 58/127 R, 250/462, 250/463, 350/337, 350/338, 350/345, 313/483, 362/23, 362/26, 362/29
• US Class Current: 368/84
• CPC Class Codes: G04G 9/0041 Illumination devices

Abstract

An electronic watch construction which comprises a casing, a watch glass supported by the casing, a module fixedly held in the casing and having a recess facing the watch glass, and a liquid crystal display cell at least a portion of which is disposed in the recess of the module, the display cell being fixedly mounted on one side of the module. An illumination device is disposed in the recess of the module below the liquid crystal display cell to illuminate the liquid crystal display cell.

Claims

1. An electronic watch construction comprising:

a casing;

a watch glass supported by said casing;

a module fixedly held in said casing and having a recess facing said watch glass;

a liquid crystal display cell at least a portion of which is disposed in the recess of said module, said display cell being fixedly mounted on one side of said module; and

an illumination device disposed in said recess of said module below said liquid crystal display cell to illuminate said liquid crystal display cell, said illumination device comprising side sealing members arranged in a predetermined shape to define a space therein, a back sealing member provided at a bottom portion of said space, a top sealing member provided at a top portion of said space, a layer of light-storing paint formed on a top surface of said top sealing member and having a high degree of reflectivity, and a light emitting paint disposed in said space.

2. An electronic watch construction according to claim 1, in which each of said side sealing members consists of a light-storing paint.

3. An electronic watch construction according to claim 2, in which each of said side sealing members consists of synthetic resin.

4. An electronic watch construction according to claim 1, in which said back sealing member consists of white vinyl chloride.

5. An electronic watch construction according to claim 1, in which said top sealing member consists of transparent polyester resin.

6. An electronic watch construction according to claim 1, in which said top sealing member consists of transparent ethylene trifluoride resin.

7. An electronic watch construction according to any one of preceding claims 1 to 6, in which said light emitting paint consists of a composition of 147Pm, ZnS and Cu.

8. An electronic watch construction according to claim 1, in which said back sealing member comprises a metal plate, and a layer of titanium white paint provided on top of said metal plate.

9. An electronic watch construction according to claim 4, in which said back sealing member has a box-shaped configuration which covers the bottom and side surfaces of said side sealing members.

10. An electronic watch construction according to any one of preceding claim 1 or 6, further comprising a plurality of glass beads fixed to the top surface of said top sealing member by said light-storing paint.

11. An electronic watch construction according to claim 7, further comprising a plurality of glass beads fixed to the top surface of said top sealing member by said light-storing paint.

12. An electronic watch construction comprising:

a casing;

a watch glass supported by said casing;

a module fixedly held in said casing and having a recess facing said watch glass;

a liquid crystal display cell at least a portion of which is disposed in the recess of said module, said display cell being fixedly mounted on one side of said module; and

an illumination device disposed in said recess of said module below said liquid crystal display cell to illuminate said liquid crystal display cell, and said illumination device comprising a light condensing member made of a transparent material and disposed outside said liquid crystal display cell, said light condensing member having a window portion on the top surface thereof so as to introduce ambient light through said window portion, a reflecting portion provided at the bottom portion of said light condensing member and adapted to reflect incident light toward a region located below said liquid crystal display cell, and an illumination portion provided on the bottom side of said liquid crystal display cell and adapted to illuminate said liquid crystal display cell upon receiving the light reflected by said reflecting portion.

13. An electronic watch construction according to claim 12, in which said illumination portion comprises a light-guiding plate.

14. An electronic watch construction according to claim 13, in which said illumination portion further comprises a reflecting plate fixed to a bottom surface of said light-guiding plate.

15. An electronic watch construction according to claim 13 or 14, in which said light-guiding plate has a plurality of light-emitting paint regions embedded in said light-guiding plate in a predetermined configuration.

16. An electronic watch construction according to claim 12, 13 or 14, in which said light condensing member is integral with said watch glass.