The Energy Of Grandfather clocks

Development of clocks

The mechanical clocks first appeared during the fourteenth century and they were spring operated. The energy of spring would drive the clock mechanism until the spring lost its stored energy. The spring would drive a series of gear train and this gear train would move the hands on face of clock. The time element of this clock came from escape mechanism, which would let the clock advance once every second. Thus, two springs made the clock one for giving the energy and other for operating escape mechanism. The spring controlling escape mechanism gave the clock the required accuracy.

Development Of Grandfather Clocks

When scientists realized that, a pendulum moving between two points has a constant period of oscillation irrespective of the angular movement of the pendulum. The time-period of pendulum depends only on the length of pendulum and not the angular displacement. This realization was the basis of development of grandfather clocks. Soon the clock seen at every municipal office was replaced by a grandfather clock in each house. Since the pendulum swung once every second, the clock hands had an addition of a second hand in addition to the hour and minute hand. Thus, the importance of a second in a life was introduced.

Mechanism Of Grandfather Clock

Grandfather clocks have the same mechanism as spring operated clock.The energy for moving the clock can be given by a spring or by the energy of a falling weight. The controlling the clock was done by the impulse provided by the pendulum. Since the time-period was a function length of pendulum, a new material known as Invar was developed. This could avoid the change in length of pendulum during summer and the winter and made the clock more accurate. Invar had the lowest coefficient of linear expansion, and hence its length would not with temperatures in the entire year and clock could keep more time that is accurate. Clock with Invar pendulum would not gain time or lose time.

Basic Push To Accurate Time Keeping

The concept of a second was made popular by grandfather clocks. Before that, the concept was so many hour and so many quarters of hour. The concept of minutes and second was made popular when grandfather clocks were introduced in each house. The realization that a second was also of importance was introduced along with grandfather clocks. This is the major contribution of Grandfather clocks. At present, we talk of microseconds and picoseconds and understand the importance of time, but remember that the push for this was came from grandfather clocks.

Modern Day Grandfather Clocks

Modern day grandfather clocks are just no more than an item of home décor. The accuracy of the grandfather clocks has improved considerably but the importance given to it is reduced considerably. In early days the privilege of winding of grandfather clock was not given to everyone in the house, only the grandfather could have that exalted status, but no more so. All the same, the fact that it still has a place in the house, speaks volumes about it.