How Clocks Work

All clocks – no matter what kind – have a few required components:

-         A power supply to run the clock

-         An accurate “heartbeat” for the clock – something to keep the time.

-         A way to extract different components of time from the clock: hours, minutes, and seconds.

-         A display for the time.

The way these requirements are fulfilled varies based on the technology of the clock. The three primary types of clocks are pendulum clocks, digital clocks, and atomic clocks. Perhaps you have wondered how they work or which one is better… Well, wonder no more. These are the basics parts of clocks and what they do:

-         Pendulum Clocks.  Since 1656, pendulum clocks have been used to keep time. While they are still primarily the same in essence, they have adapted from just the “grandfather” weight driven clocks to small modern clocks using springs. The pendulum clock uses something like weights or a wound spring to supply power to run the clock. The weights act as an energy storage device that enables the clock to run for long periods of time unattended. The pendulum acts as the timekeeper (in large clocks, the pendulum swings once per second; in small cuckoo clocks, the pendulum may beat twice per second). The gears in the clock help the clock “gear down” to obtain different increments of time. The face and hands work as the display for the time.

 

-         Digital Clocks.  A digital clock is not very different than a mechanical clock except that it handles the functions electronically. A digital clock uses a battery or another source of power rather than weights. It also has an electronic timebase that keeps the accurate time. The gearing – extracting increments of time – is done by an electronic counter; and the display (possibly LED or LCD) shows the time.

 

-         Atomic Clocks.  While some hear the word “atomic” and think “radioactive,” atomic clocks do not rely on atomic decay. They have a spring and other parts just like other clocks.  In fact, the atomic clock is much like the digital clock in its use of power and display.  The biggest difference between atomic clocks and others is that the oscillation (what keeps track of passing time) in an atomic clock happens between the nucleus of an atom and the electrons around it.   Atomic clocks keep time better than any other clock and make things like GPS navigation and internet synchronization possible.