“CLOCKS AND WATCHES THAT TALK?” “WHY NOT.”

1. “CLOCKS AND WATCHES THAT TALK?” “WHY NOT.”

2. “SOUNDING THE TIME” • Since the earliest mechanical clock, sound has been an accompaniment to sight. Bells, chimes, cuckoos, gongs, trumpets, etc. announce the hour. • Ship’s bells, town crier, call to prayer, mid-day cannon, church bells, etc.

3. FIRST TALKING CLOCKS AND WATCHES • A French recording from 1860 is the oldest known recorded human voice. It could not be played back. • Thomas Edison, in 1877,recorded, and played back, “Mary had a little lamb”. • In 1878, the first clock spoke the time. • In 1895, the first watch spoke the time.

4. 1878. Just months after Edison's invention of the tin foil recorder, inventor Frank Lambert applied Edison's technology to the development of an experimental talking clock using a lead cylinder.

5. 1895- Sivan of Geneva creates the first miniature application of Edison’s phonograph in a talking pocket watch. The hard rubber disc has 48 grooves corresponding to the twelve hours and thirty six quarters. A press of the button starts the disc rotating and the stylus transfers the vibration from the disc to the membrane on the rear of the case to create the sound !

6. 1911 - Bernhard Hiller of Berlin creates a viable talking clock. • 14 kgs. • The 48 recordings (12 hours, 36 quarters) were on 48 tracks of a celluloid ribbon 39 inches long. • It was played by a sapphire reproducer similar to disc machines, such as Pathe. • Major fault was the celluloid strip on which the time is recorded.

7. Spoken Time Services • 1933 - First speaking-clock telephone service, invented by Ernest Esclangon, was launched in Paris. On the first day 140,000 phone calls were received. • 1936 - London’s “Girl with the Golden Voice” went on line. Auto-shut off. • 1954 - Melbourne & Sydney went on line with British made mechanical systems. • 1990 – Digital systems introduced • 2010 - Dial 1194 for the spoken time.

8. Mechanical speaking clock Melbourne & Sydney 1954 Assmann digital speaking clock 1990

9. AFTER THIRTY YEARS OF PEACE ! • 1968 - Mattel Corp create a portable talking clock, the “Mattel-a-Time”, a teaching aid. • Transistors and printed circuits leads to the development of miniature circuits for sound recording and playback. • “What time is it ?” “What time will it be in 1 hour?” etc.

10. Teaching Clocks

11. “BUILD YOUR OWN” KIT

12. THE NOVELTY ERA – 1970’S • An entirely new genre of talking clock emerges. • Animated characters, popular carton characters, super heroes. • More than 20 languages, some clocks having more than 5 languages available.

13. Cartoon "People"

14. Heroes and Super Heroes

15. Females Who Never Lived

16. Kingdom of Animals

17. The Most Famous Mouse

18. Trains and Automobiles

19. Religious and Mystical

20. Sports

21. Rockets and Robots Click

22. Clocks on the Wall

23. Advertising Clocks

24. Miscellaneous

25. THE INTEGRATED CIRCUIT. • Further miniaturisation and silicon chip integrated circuit (IC) technology increases the functions • All talk, no display. • Developed for the visually impaired.

26. MULTIFUNCTION.

27. FOR THE VISUALLY IMPAIRED. NO DISPLAY

28. MINIATURISATIONTALKING WATCHES

29. MINIATURISATIONPENS, PEDOMETERS, KEY CHAINS, ETC.

30. 2010 – LATEST TECHNOLOGY • Mini Talking Clock Digital Video Recorder with Remote Control Motion Activated, Hidden Pinhole Colour Camera

31. TALKING ATOMIC CLOCK • Atomic watches and clocks include a tiny antenna and receiver inside that receives a radio signal beamed out by various land based transmitters. • There are no atomic time broadcasts in Australia. You may pick up a signal from Japan in North Australia. • Accuracy to about one second in 20 million years, (providing the battery doesn’t go flat)

32. TALKING ATOMIC CLOCK A sleek, modern silver talking clock with the most up-to-date functions as well as snooze. Press the button on the top or on the small remote to hear the time, the date or the indoor temperature. Very pleasant female voice. Remote has a 7.5 metre range (note: remote is very small). Tower is 190mm H x 75mm W x 38mm D. Base is 100mm W x 60mm D.

33. TALKING ATOMIC WATCH White face with black numbers Atomic function assures accurate time

34. ON-LINE TALKING CLOCKS • Internet talking clock. • GPS talking clock – GPS uses 24 satellites each with 4 atomic master clocks.(Note: 1 billionth of a second error = 305 mm error in a GPS ) • In your mobile phone!

35. MOBILE PHONE Alarm Weather Talking Time Clock for iPhone • Sound sensitive display control • Wake up to your favorites music • Talking weather forecast and talking time • Real-time detailed local area weather and talking time. • Automatically finds your local weather anywhere in the world • Nightstand as a clock and wake you up with your favorites music • Real-time local area weather with temperature, wind, pressure, humidity • Shake to turn ON/OFF the flashlight Sound controller • Talking time every hour or on-demand by touch the screen. • Alarm Sound ON/OFF • Week calendar repeat alarm on any day of the weekday or everyday Snooze mode • Alarm indicator on main screen LCD style display with almost all kinds of colors. • Customisable date format: With or without am/pm, second, day, date, with or without backlight support both portrait and wide landscape modes. • 12-hour/24-hour time format Digital/Analogue display.

36. THE LANGUAGE OF TIME • Digital : Eight fifty five = Analogue : Five to nine • 12 hour : 8:55 am = 24 hour : 08:55 • 12 hour : 8:55 pm = 24 hour : 20:55 • Talking clocks use digital time expression but usually a 12 or 24 hour format can be selected.