Cox's timepiece is a

clock A clock or a timepiece is a device used to measure and indicate time. The clock is one of the oldest human inventions, meeting the need to measure intervals of time shorter than the natural units such as the day, the lunar month and t ...

developed in the 1760s by James Cox. It was developed in collaboration with

John Joseph Merlin John Joseph Merlin (born Jean-Joseph Merlin, 6 September 1735 – 8 May 1803) was a Belgian from the Prince-Bishopric of Liège in the Holy Roman Empire. He was a Freemason, clock-maker, musical-instrument maker, and inventor. He moved to England ...

(with whom Cox also worked on developing

automata An automaton (; plural: automata or automatons) is a relatively self-operating machine, or control mechanism designed to automatically follow a sequence of operations, or respond to predetermined instructions.Automaton – Definition and More ...

). Cox claimed that his design was a true

perpetual motion machine Perpetual motion is the motion of bodies that continues forever in an unperturbed system. A perpetual motion machine is a hypothetical machine that can do work infinitely without an external energy source. This kind of machine is impossible, a ...

, but as the device is powered from changes in

atmospheric pressure Atmospheric pressure, also known as barometric pressure (after the barometer), is the pressure within the atmosphere of Earth. The standard atmosphere (symbol: atm) is a unit of pressure defined as , which is equivalent to 1013.25 millibars, ...

via a mercury

barometer A barometer is a scientific instrument that is used to measure air pressure in a certain environment. Pressure tendency can forecast short term changes in the weather. Many measurements of air pressure are used within surface weather analysis ...

, this is not the case. The clock still exists, but was deactivated at the time of its relocation to the

Victoria and Albert Museum The Victoria and Albert Museum (often abbreviated as the V&A) in London is the world's largest museum of applied arts, decorative arts and design, housing a permanent collection of over 2.27 million objects. It was founded in 1852 and nam ...

in London.

Design and history

The clock is similar to other mechanical clocks, except that it does not need winding. The change of pressure in the

Earth's atmosphere The atmosphere of Earth is the layer of gases, known collectively as air, retained by Earth's gravity that surrounds the planet and forms its planetary atmosphere. The atmosphere of Earth protects life on Earth by creating pressure allowing fo ...

acts as an external energy source and causes sufficient movement of the winding mechanism. This keeps the

mainspring A mainspring is a spiral torsion spring of metal ribbon—commonly spring steel—used as a power source in mechanical watches, some clocks, and other clockwork mechanisms. ''Winding'' the timepiece, by turning a knob or key, stores energy in ...

coiled inside the barrel. The clock is designed to enable the timepiece to run indefinitely and overwinding is prevented by a safety mechanism. The

prime mover Prime mover may refer to: Philosophy *Unmoved mover, a concept in Aristotle's writings Engineering * Prime mover (engine), motor, a machine that converts various other forms of energy (chemical, electrical, fluid pressure/flow, etc) into energy ...

, encased in a finely detailed clock body, is a Fortin mercury barometer. The barometer contained 68 kilograms (150 pounds) of mercury (approximately 5 litres).

Similar clocks

A similar design is Cornelis Drebbel's circa 1610 device that told the time, date, and season. The gold machine was mounted in a globe on pillars and was powered by changes in air pressure (a sealed glass tub with liquid varied in volume through atmospheric pressure changes, rewinding constantly). It is unknown whether Cox was aware of Drebbel's device. The Atmos, manufactured by Jaeger LeCoultre is a modern clock which is similar to Cox's clock although the main driving force is generated from temperature differential, instead of pressure differential.

References

External articles and further reading

Journals

* William Nicholson, "''Concerning those perpetual motions which are produced in machines by the rise and fall of the barometer or thermometrical variations in the dimensions of bodies''". Philosophical Journal. * William Nicholson, Philosophical Journal, vol I, 1799, p375

Books

* Arthur W. J. G. Ord-hume, "''Clockwork Music''", Allen & Unwin, London 1973. * John Joseph Merlin, "''The Ingenious Mechanick''". The Greater London Council, The Iveagh Bequest, Kenwood, Hampstead Lane, London, © 1985. *

Christoph Ransmayr Christoph Ransmayr (born 20 March 1954) is an Austrian writer. Life Born in Wels, Upper Austria, Ransmayr grew up in Roitham near Gmunden and the Traunsee. From 1972 to 1978 he studied philosophy and ethnology in Vienna. He worked there as ...

, " Cox oder der Lauf der Zeit". Fischer, Frankfurt am Main 2016.

Radio

* *{{cite episode , series=The Engines of Our Ingenuity , series-link=The Engines of Our Ingenuity , credits=John H. Lienhard , network=NPR , station=KUHF-FM Houston , airdate=1991 , number=630 , transcript=John Joseph Merlin , transcript-url=http://www.uh.edu/engines/epi630.htm Perpetual motion Individual clocks in England