Fig. 134.—Typical Driving Clock. (Courtesy of The Clarendon Press.)
An excellent type of the simple spring driving clock is shown in Fig. 136 as constructed by Zeiss. Here 1 is the winding gear, 2 the friction governor, and 3 the regulating gear. It will be seen that the friction studs are carried by the fly balls themselves, somewhat as in Fraunhofers’ construction a century since, and the regulation is very easily and quickly made by adjusting the height of the conical friction surface above the balls.
For heavier work the same makers generally use a powerful weight driven train with four fly-balls and electric seconds control, sometimes with the addition of electric motor slow motions to adjust for R. A. in both directions.
Fig. 135.—Clark Driving Clock.
Figure 135 is a rather powerful clock of analogous form by the Clarks. It differs a little in its mechanism and especially in the friction gear in which the bearing disc is picked up by a delicately set latch and carried just long enough to effect the regulation. It is really remarkable that clockworks of so simple character as these should perform as well as experience shows that they do. In a few instances clocks have depended on air-fans for their regulating force, something after the manner of the driving gear of a phonograph, but though rather successful for light work they have found little favor in the task of driving equatorials. An excellent type of a second genus is the pendulum controlled driving clock due to Sir David Gill. This has a powerful weight-driven train with the usual fly-ball governor. But the friction gear is controlled by a contact-making seconds pendulum in the manner shown diagrammatically in Fig. 137. Two light leather tipped rods each controlled by an electro magnet act upon an auxiliary brake disc carried by the governor spindle which is set for normal speed with one brake rod bearing lightly on it. Exciting the corresponding magnet relieves the pressure and accelerates the clock, while exciting the other adds braking effect and slows it.
Fig. 136.—Spring Operated Driving Clock.
In Fig. 137 is shown from the original paper, (M. N. Nov., 1873), the very ingenious selective control mechanism. At P is suspended the contact-making seconds-pendulum making momentary contact by the pin Q with a mercury globule at R. Upon a spindle of the clock which turns once a second is fixed a vulcanite disc γ, δ, ε, σ. This has a rim of silver broken at the points γ, δ, ε, σ, by ivory spacers covering 3° of circumference. On each side of this disc is another, smaller, and with a complete silver rim. One, ηθ, is shown, connected with the contact spring V; its mate η′θ′, on the other side contacts with U, while a third contact K bears on the larger disc.