Electrically illuminated wrist watch dial

Claim 1

In combination with a battery-operated wrist watch having an internal battery, a casing, a dial face, a crystal and a time-set stem, (a) a miniature electric bulb mechanically supported in position over the center of said dial face against, and without attachment to, the inner surface of said crystal so as to be capable of uniformly illuminating said dial face; (b) a pair of bulb support conductors, electrically connected to said bulb, said support conductors being in the form of spring metal wires with their ends opposite the bulb connections being attached and electrically insulated at the outer edge of the watch dial face and suitably shaped to follow the contour of the inner surface of said crystal so as to avoid interference between said spring wires and the watch hands; said spring wires being shaped and affixed to said dial face such that assembly of said crystal to the watch casing compresses said spring wires in toward said dial face to produce and maintain a positive spring-tension force between said watch crystal and said spring wires so as to maintain said bulb and said spring wires in proper position without attachment to said crystal regardless of the axes of positions to which the watch is normally subjected, so as to minimize vibration and shock bounce of said spring wires and said bulb; (c) a glare shield mounted above said bulb and suitably shaped to cover said bulb; (d) a manually actuated momentary electric switch of the normally open type for actuating said bulb to illuminate said dial face , wherein one of said bulb support conductors connects one side of said bulb to one terminal of said battery and the other bulb support conductor connects the second side of said bulb to one terminal of said switch; and (e) an electric lead connecting the second terminal of said switch to the second terminal of said battery, wherein said bulb, said switch and said battery are connected in series circuit when said switch is closed; said series circuit being in parallel connection to the electric operating circuit of said watch as relates to both circuits operating simultaneously from said battery.