- Bruce Alvin Kock
Bruce Alvin Kock (September 22, 1919 – April 6, 2007) was an American inventor.
History
A student of art at the
California College of Arts and Crafts , Bruce was considered by all who knew him to be arenaissance man, active in the natural andscientific world, as well as an accomplishedartist in mediums as diverse as oil,charcoal ,watercolor andbronze .For 25 years he was the Curator of Horology at the
California Academy of Sciences . He also served as President of the San Francisco Chapter of theNational Association of Watch and Clock Collectors for two terms. He was an avid collector of fine art, and horological, scientific and navigational instruments through out the course of his life.Inventions
Bruce A.Kock was an accomplished
inventor developing a hydraulic braking system for commercial trucks and a transmission system that surpassed the engineering of the standard automatic shifting method. He was well known for creating the financially successful Teeter Totter Watch. This unique watch, a children's toy capable of keeping accurate time, is the only watch with traditional moving parts ever produced entirely of plastic.He died peacefully at the age of 87 on Good Friday, April 6, 2007. He was a devoted
husband to Velma Harriet Kock and lovingfather to their twins, Arlene Dorothy Kock and Bruce James Kock. Bruce was born inSan Francisco on September 22, 1919, thirteen years after theSan Francisco Earthquake . His parents were Henry Franz Kock and Arliss Vivian Kock.His patents include the following inventions (incomplete list):
US Patent Number 3613353 - the Teeter Totter watch:http://www.google.com/patents?vid=USPAT3613353
US Patent Number 4122663 – the stop watch:http://www.google.com/patents?vid=USPAT4122663
US Patent Number 3685282 – the watch mechanism:http://www.google.com/patents?vid=USPAT3685282
US Patent Number 3540208 - the Hydraulic Watch:http://www.google.com/patents?vid=USPAT3540208
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