US 11,940,760 B2
Moon phase display mechanism
Nicolas Debaud, Blonay (CH); Bernat Monferrer, St-Prex (CH); Pierpasquale Tortora, Neuchatel (CH); and Cédric Blatter, Commugny (CH)
Assigned to Blancpain SA, Le Brassus (CH)
Filed by Blancpain SA, Le Brassus (CH)
Filed on Oct. 1, 2020, as Appl. No. 17/060,392.
Claims priority of application No. 19219495 (EP), filed on Dec. 23, 2019.
Prior Publication US 2021/0191331 A1, Jun. 24, 2021
Int. Cl. G04B 19/26 (2006.01); G04F 7/08 (2006.01)
CPC G04B 19/268 (2013.01) [G04B 19/266 (2013.01); G04F 7/0866 (2013.01)] 22 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. A moon phase display mechanism configured to be moved by a horological movement, said moon phase display mechanism comprising:
a transparent support provided with an upper face and a lower face which extends at a distance from the upper face, a representation of the Moon being provided on one of the upper or lower faces of said transparent support,
a substrate being disposed under the transparent support, at a distance from the lower face of the transparent support,
a shutter, and
drive means configured to be moved by the horological movement, and arranged to drive the shutter in displacement between the transparent support and the substrate,
the shutter and the substrate having display contrasts which are inverted relative to each other,
the shutter being displaced from an initial position to a final position for a duration of a lunar cycle, so as to reveal day after day to an observer an aspect of the Moon which changes from a new moon to a first quarter moon, then from the first quarter moon to a full moon, then to a last quarter moon and finally to the new moon, and
the shutter being returned by the drive means from the final position of the shutter to the initial position of the shutter at an end of the lunar cycle.