Citizen Watch Company, Ltd.

Citizen Holdings Company, Ltd.

Isao Kitazawa

Tomio Okigami

Masakazu Ichikawa

Haruhiko Higuchi

Masahiro Sase

Akiyoshi Murakami

Masaaki Namekawa

Takayuki Hasumi

Masao Sakuyama

Takashi Osa

Takuji Ike

Takayuki Uchida

Yukio Ito

Teruhiko Fujii

Hiroshi Fujioka

An analog electronic watch of the present invention includes: a display unit () for displaying time with a position of a hand; a stepper motor () for driving the hand; a motor drive unit () for controlling driving of the stepper motor at a predetermined hand drive cycle at normal time; hand position detection means () for detecting a position of the hand; a hand position detection means control unit () for intermittently controlling driving of the hand position detection means () at a first detection cycle which is longer than the hand drive cycle; and a detection cycle changing unit () for instructing the hand position detection means () to change the detection cycle. When detecting a predetermined detection cycle changing condition, the detection cycle changing unit () changes a cycle at which the hand position detection means () detects a position of the hand, from the first detection cycle to a second detection cycle, while maintaining the hand drive cycle at which the stepper motor () drives the hand.

Analog electronic watch

Impact detecting resistors (), () of an impact detecting circuit () detect a counter electromotive force of a step motor () generated due to an impact. This counter electromotive force is amplified applying a predetermined period and a predetermined chopper-width by a chopper-amplifying waveform shaping circuit (). Therefore, even a light impact can be detected. Inverters (), () compare these impact detecting signals (S), (S) with a threshold value and detect an impact when the signals exceeds the threshold value. A controlling circuit () provides a lock pulse to the step motor () through signal lines (AA), (BB) when an impact is detected, brakes rotation of a rotor () thereby preventing a deviation of the time displayed with a second hand ().

Analog electronic timepiece that prevents deviation of displayed time when an impact is applied to the timepiece

The power generated by a power generating means () of a power-generating type electronic clock is measured by a first power generating sensing means () and a second power generating sensing means (). The power generation level required when the operation is changed from a normal mode to a power-saving mode and the power generation level required when the operation is changed from the power-saving mode back to the normal mode are made different to prevent the phenomenon that the operation changes frequently by imparting hysteresis characteristics to the power generation level which causes a change in the mode, thereby improving the power-saving effect.

Power generating type electronic timepiece

A first voltage detector detects whether the voltage of a secondary cell has reached to 1.2V and a first timer counts a time duration for which the voltage is equal to or above 1.2V. If the time counted by the first timer reaches one hour, a second timer starts counting time for one hour. An amount of charge accumulated in the secondary cell is displays after counting of the one hour by the second timer is over. As a result, an accurate display of the amount of charge accumulated in the secondary cell can be achieved.

Electronic timepiece, information processing device, method of displaying charged condition of secondary cell, and computer product

An electronic device provided with a multilayer display panel ( ), in which during information display by any display panel layer ( or ) of the multilayer display panel ( ), display driving means ( ) maintains all the display segments of the other display panel layer ( or ) to be off, allowing simple display control.

Electronic device

A small electronic apparatus provided with a functional display unit is formed of function driving device for generating function driving signals corresponding to a plurality of functions, a plurality of functional display devices corresponding to the functions and including first and second display devices, and a single motor electrically connected to the function driving devices and operated according to the function driving signals from the function driving device. A driving device transmits a driving force to the first functional display device, and an intermittent driving device is connected to the driving device to operate in association therewith. The intermittent driving device rotates the second display device intermittently. A clocking device is electrically connected to the function driving device. When a function of the first display device is completed, the clocking device sends a signal to reset the first display device to have a desired positional relation between the driving device and the intermittent driving device.

Growing community of inventors

Tokyo, Japan

Isao Kitazawa