The history of the clock. History of the invention

The first science of time is astronomy. The results of observations in ancient observatories were used for agriculture and religious ceremonies. However, with the development of crafts, it became necessary to measure short periods of time. Thus, mankind has come to the invention of the clock. The process was long, full of hard work of the best minds.

The history of the watch has many centuries, it is the oldest invention of mankind. From stick stuck into the ground to an accurate chronometer - a path length of hundreds of generations. If you make a rating of the achievements of human civilization, in the nomination "great inventions" the clock will be in second place after the wheel.

There was a time when people had enough calendar. But there were crafts, there was a need for fixing the duration of technological processes. It took hours, the purpose of which - the measurement of time intervals shorter than a day. For this, man has used various physical processes for centuries. Corresponding were the constructions that realize them.

The history of the clock is divided into two large periods. The first is several millennia long, the second less than one.

1. The history of the appearance of the clock, called protozoa. This category includes solar, water, fire and sand instruments. The period ends with the study of the mechanical clock of the period of the period. These were medieval chimes.

2. A new history of the clock, beginning with the invention of a pendulum and balance, which marked the beginning of the development of classical oscillatory chronometry. This period is not over yet.

Sundial

The most ancient, surviving to us. Therefore, it is the history of the sundial that opens the parade of great inventions in the field of chronometry. Despite the apparent simplicity, they were distinguished by a wide variety of designs.

The Sun clock is based on the apparent movement of the Sun during the day. The count is taken from the shadow cast by the axis. Their use is only possible on a sunny day. Ancient Egypt had favorable climatic conditions for this. The greatest spread on the banks of the Nile was a sundial, which looked like obelisks. They were installed at the entrance to the temples. Gnomon in the form of a vertical obelisk and a scale applied on the ground - so the ancient sundial looked like. The photo below shows one of them. Up to now, one of the Egyptian obelisks, transported to Europe, has been preserved. The Gnomon, 34 meters high, now stands on one of the squares in Rome.

The usual sundial had a significant drawback. They knew about him, but they reconciled themselves for a long time. In different seasons, that is, in summer and winter, the duration of the hour was not the same. But in the period when the agrarian system and trade relations dominated, there was no need to accurately measure the times. Therefore, the sundial safely survived until the late Middle Ages.

The gnomon was replaced by more progressive designs. The improved sundial, in which this deficiency was eliminated, had scales of curvilinear form. In addition to this improvement, various variants of execution were used. So, in Europe wall and window sundials were common.

Further improvement took place in 1431. It was included in the orientation of the shadow arrow parallel to the earth's axis. This arrow was called the semi-axis. Now the shadow, rotating around the semi-axis, moved uniformly, turning for an hour by 15 °. Such a design made it possible to produce a fairly accurate solar clock for its time. The photo shows one of these devices, preserved in China.

For the correct installation, the steel was supplied with a compass. There was an opportunity to use the clock everywhere. It was possible to produce even portable models. From 1445, the sundial began to be built in the form of a hollow hemisphere equipped with an arrow, the shadow of which fell on the inner surface.

Search for an alternative

Despite the fact that the sundial was convenient and accurate, they had serious shortcomings of an objective nature. They were completely dependent on the weather, and their functioning was limited to part of the day, concluded between the sunrise and sunset. In search of an alternative, scientists sought to find other ways of measuring time intervals. It was required that they should not be connected with observing the motion of stars and planets.

The search led to the creation of artificial time standards. For example, this was the interval necessary for the flow or combustion of a certain amount of matter.

The simplest watches created on this basis have gone a long way of developing and improving the designs, thus preparing the ground for creating not only mechanical watches, but also automation devices.

Clepsydra

Behind the water clock, the name "klepsydra" was fixed, so there is a misconception that they first invented them in Greece. In reality it was not so. The most ancient, very primitive klepsydra was found in the temple of Amun in Febach and is kept in the museum of Cairo.

When creating a water clock, it is necessary to ensure a uniform decrease in the level of water in the vessel when it flows through the bottom of the calibrated hole. This was achieved by making the vessel a cone shaped, tapering closer to the bottom. It was only in the Middle Ages that one could obtain a regularity describing the rate of flow of liquid, depending on its level and the shape of the container. Before this, the shape of the vessel for the water clock was selected experimentally. For example, the Egyptian klepsydra, mentioned above, gave a uniform decrease in the level. Let and with some error.

Since klepsydra did not depend on time of day and weather, it maximally met the requirements of continuous measurement of time. In addition, the need for further improvement of the device, the addition of various functions provided scope for flight fantasy designers. Thus, the klepsydra of Arab origin represented works of art combined with high functionality. They were equipped with additional hydraulic and pneumatic mechanisms: a sound time alarm, a night lighting system.

Not many names of the creators of the water clock have been preserved by history. They were manufactured not only in Europe, but also in China and India. We got information about the Greek mechanic named Ktesibius of Alexandria, who lived 150 years before the new era. In klepsidry, Ktesibius used gears, the theoretical development of which was performed by Aristotle.

Fire Clock

This group appeared in the early 13th century. The first fire hours were thin candles up to 1 meter high with marks on them. Sometimes certain divisions were equipped with metal pins, which, falling on a metal stand when the wax burned around them, produced a distinct sound. Such devices served as a prototype of an alarm clock.

With the advent of transparent glass, the fire clock is transformed into lamp-lamp. A scale was applied on the wall, along which, as the oil burned out, time was determined.

The most widespread such devices are in China. Along with the lamp-lamps in this country, another type of firing watch was widespread: wicker watches. We can say that it was a dead-end branch.

Hourglass

When they were born, it is not exactly known. It can be stated with certainty only that they could not have appeared before the invention of glass.

The hourglass is two transparent glass flasks. Through the connecting throat, the contents are poured from the upper flask into the lower flask. And in our time it is still possible to meet an hourglass. The photo depicts one of the models stylized in the old days.

Medieval masters in the manufacture of instruments decorated the hourglass with exquisite decor. They were used not only for measuring time intervals, but also as an interior decoration. In the homes of many nobles and dignitaries, one could see a luxurious hourglass. A photo represents one of these models.

In Europe, the hourglass came late enough - at the end of the Middle Ages, but their spread was rapid. Thanks to their simplicity, the possibility of using them at any time, they quickly became very popular.

One of the shortcomings of the hourglass is a fairly short period of time, measured without turning them over. Cassettes made up of them did not catch on. The propagation of such models was inhibited by their low accuracy, as well as wear during long-term operation. It was as follows. The calibrated orifice in the diaphragm between the flasks was abraded, increasing in diameter, the particles of sand - on the contrary, crushed, decreasing in size. The expiration rate increased, the time decreased.

Mechanical clock: prerequisites for appearance

The need for a more accurate measurement of time intervals with the development of production and social relations has steadily increased. The best minds worked on solving this problem.

The invention of mechanical watches is an epoch-making event that occurred in the Middle Ages, because they are the most complex device created in those years. In turn, this served as an impetus to the further development of science and technology.

The invention of watches and their perfection required more perfect, precise and high-efficiency technological equipment, new methods of calculation and design. This was the beginning of a new era.

The creation of mechanical watches became possible with the invention of spindle descent. This device converted the translational motion of a weight on a rope into an oscillating motion of the clock wheel back and forth. Here continuity is clearly traced - after all, the complex models of the clapsider had already a dial, a gear, and a battle. It was necessary only to change the driving force: to replace the jet of water with a heavy weight, which was easier to handle, and add the trigger and the regulator.

On this basis, mechanisms were created for the tower clock. The chimes with the spindle regulator came into use approximately from 1340 and became the pride of many cities and cathedrals.

Formation of classical oscillatory chronometry

The history of the clock kept for the descendants the names of scientists and inventors who made it possible to create them. The theoretical basis was the discovery that Galileo Galilei made, voicing the laws that describe the oscillations of the pendulum. He is also the author of the idea of mechanical pendulum clocks.

Realize the idea of Galileo was in 1658, the talented Dutchman Christian Huygens. He is also the author of the invention of a balance regulator, which made it possible to create pocket watches and then wristwatches. In 1674 Huygens developed an improved regulator by attaching a spiral spring in the form of a hair to the wheel-flywheel.

Another iconic invention belongs to a watchmaker from Nuremberg named Peter Henlein. He invented the spring, and in 1500, based on it, created a pocket watch.

In parallel, there were changes in appearance. At first one arrow was enough. But since the watches became very precise, they required an appropriate indication. In 1680, a minute hand was added, and the dial acquired a familiar look. In the eighteenth century, a second hand was set. At first lateral, and later it became central.

In the seventeenth century, the creation of the watch was translated into the category of art. Exquisitely decorated body, decorated with enamel dials, which by then covered with glass - all this turned the mechanisms into a luxury item.

Work to improve and complicate the devices continued continuously. Increased the accuracy of the stroke. At the beginning of the eighteenth century, ruby and sapphire stones were used as supports for the rocker and gear wheels. This allowed to reduce friction, increase accuracy and increase the power reserve. There were interesting complications - perpetual calendar, automatic plant, power reserve indicator.

The impetus to the development of the pendulum clock was the invention of the English watchmaker Clement. Around 1676 he developed the anchor-anchor descent. This device was well suited to pendulum clocks, which had a small amplitude of oscillations.

Quartz watch

Further development of instruments for measuring time took place in an avalanche manner. The development of electronics and radio engineering has paved the way for the emergence of quartz watches. Their work is based on the piezoelectric effect. It was discovered in 1880, but the quartz watch was made only in 1937. From classic mechanical, the newly created quartz models were remarkably accurate. The era of electronic hours began. What is their feature?

Quartz watches have a mechanism consisting of an electronic unit and a so-called stepper motor. How it works? The engine, receiving a signal from the electronic unit, moves the arrows. Instead of the usual dial in a quartz watch, a digital display can be used. We call them electronic. In the West - quartz with digital indication. Essence does not change it.

In fact, a quartz watch is a mini-computer. Very easy to add additional functions: stopwatch, moon phase indicator, calendar, alarm clock. The price of the clock does not increase so much, unlike mechanics. This makes them more accessible.

Quartz watches are very accurate. Their error is ± 15 seconds / month. Correct the instrument readings twice a year.

Wall clock

Digital indication and compactness are the distinguishing features of this kind of mechanisms. Electronic watches are widely used as integrated. They can be seen on the dashboard of the car, in the mobile phone, in the microwave and in the TV.

As an element of the interior, you can often meet a more popular classical performance, that is, with a pointer indication.

Electronic wall clock organically fit into the interior in the style of high-tech, modern, techno. They attract primarily by their functionality.

By type of display, electronic watches are liquid crystal and LED. The latter are more functional, since they have a highlight.

According to the type of power source, electronic watches (wall and desktop) are divided into network, operating from 220V, and battery. More convenient devices of the second type, because they do not require the presence of a nearby outlet.

Wall clock with cuckoo

German masters began to make them from the beginning of the eighteenth century. Traditionally, the cuckoo clocks were made of wood. Richly decorated with carvings, made in the form of a house for a bird, they were the decoration of rich mansions.

At one time inexpensive models were popular in the USSR and the post-Soviet space. For many years the wall clock with the cuckoo "Mayak" produced a factory in the Russian city of Serdobsk. Weights in the form of spruce cones, decorated with a simple carving house, paper furs of the sound mechanism - they are so remembered by the representatives of the older generation.

Now the classic wall clock with a cuckoo is a rarity. This is due to the high price of quality models. If you do not take into account the quartz crafts of Asian craftsmen made of plastic, fabulous cuckoos cuckoo only in the homes of true connoisseurs of watch exotics. Exact, complex mechanism, leather furs, exquisite carving on the body - all this requires a large amount of manual labor. Only the most solid manufacturers can produce such models.

Alarm Clock

These are the most common "walkers" in the interior.

Alarm clock is the first additional function that was implemented in the clock. Patented in 1847 by the Frenchman Antoine Rudier.

In the classic mechanical desktop alarm clock, sound is produced by hammering on metal plates. Electronic models are more melodic.

On execution alarm clocks are divided into small and large, desktop and road.

Table clock-alarm clock is made with separate engines for the clock mechanism and signal. They are set up separately.

With the advent of quartz watches, the popularity of mechanical alarm clocks fell. There are several reasons for this. The table clock-alarm clock with a quartz movement has a number of advantages over classic mechanical devices: they are more accurate, do not require a daily plant, they can easily be selected for the design of the room. In addition, they are light, not so afraid of bumps and falls.

Wrist mechanical clock with an alarm clock is usually called a "signal". Few companies produce such models. So, collectors know the model called "presidential cricket"

"Cricket" (under the English cricket) - under this name the Swiss company Vulcain released a wristwatch with an alarm function. They are known for being owned by US presidents: Dwight Eisenhower, Harry Truman, Richard Nixon and Lyndon Johnson.

History of watches for children

Time is a complex philosophical category and at the same time a physical quantity that requires measurement. Man lives in time. Already from the kindergarten, the program of education and upbringing provides for the development of children's time orienting skills.

It is possible to teach a child to use the clock as soon as he has learned the account. Help in this layout. You can combine the watch from the cardboard with the daily schedule, placing it all for greater visibility on the sheet of Whatman. Organize classes can be with the elements of the game, using for this riddles with drawings.

The history of watches for children aged 6-7 years is studied in thematic occupations. The material must be submitted in such a way as to arouse interest in the topic. Children in an accessible form are introduced to the history of watches, their views in the past and present. Then reinforce the knowledge gained. To do this, demonstrate the principle of the simplest clock - solar, water and fire. These activities arouse in children interest in research, develop creative imagination and curiosity. They bring up a cautious attitude to time.

In school, in grades 5-7, the history of the invention of watches is studied. It is based on the knowledge gained by the child in the lessons of astronomy, history, geography, physics. Thus, the acquired material is fixed. Hours, their invention and improvement are considered as part of the history of material culture, the achievement of which is aimed at meeting the needs of society. The theme of the lesson can be formulated as follows: "Inventions that have changed the history of mankind".

In high school it is advisable to continue studying watches as an accessory in terms of fashion and interior aesthetics. It is important to introduce children to watch etiquette, to tell about the basic principles of choosing an interior clock. One of the lessons can be devoted to time management.

The history of the invention of watches clearly demonstrates the continuity of generations, its study is an effective means of forming a young man's outlook.