The Swatch Group Research and Development Ltd

Eta Sa Fabriques D'ebauches

Eta Sa Manufacture Horlogere Suisse

Montres Breguet S.a.

Asulab S.a.

Blancpain Sa

Beat Gilomen

Dominique Lechot

Michel Willemin

Jean-Jacques Born

Joachim Grupp

Christophe Germiquet

Clement Meyrat

Jean-Philippe Rebeaud

Guy Raeber

Jan Pittet

Naci Basturk

Andre Triponez

Vincent Berseth

Fabio Sciascia

Frank Kräuchi

Dave Mangin

Dominique Léchot

Dominique LÉCHOT

Jean-Jaques Born

Guy Räber

A timepiece movement, a calendar mechanism and device for indicating the sunrise and sunset that takes account of seasonal variations. The simple calendar mechanism includes a display mechanism for displaying the date and a display mechanism for displaying the month. The sunrise and sunset indicating device also includes an annual cam having a profile representative of the tilt of the sun with respect to the equatorial plane and arranged to be driven in rotation via the hour wheel set through a kinematic chain that passes through the month display device and has a transmission ratio of 1:744.

Timepiece comprising a day/night display that takes account of seasonal variations

A timepiece includes a timepiece movement, a calendar mechanism and a mechanism for indicating the sunrise and sunset that take account of seasonal variations. The calendar mechanism includes a date display and a month display. The sunrise and sunset indicating mechanism also includes an annual cam having a profile representative of the tilt of the sun with respect to the equatorial plane and arranged to be driven in rotation by the date wheel set via a third kinematic chain.

An ascent rate indicator mechanism includes a first wheel set and a pressure sensor. The first wheel set is connected to the pressure sensor driven in rotation by a pressure variation. The mechanism further includes a second wheel set driven by the first wheel set in a single direction of rotation from a start position into a measurement position corresponding to a decrease in pressure, uncoupling and return structure to be actuated at regular intervals to uncouple the second wheel set and to return it to the start position, an ascent rate display mechanism connected to the second wheel set and including an indicator member arranged to occupy, at each regular interval, a display position representative of the decrease in pressure during the interval, and synchronization structure actuated at each regular interval and arranged to maintain the display position of the indicator member during the regular interval.

Ascent rate indicator mechanism and diver's watch comprising such a mechanism

A timepiece indicates the sunrise and sunset taking into account seasonal variations. The timepiece includes a sphere representing the Earth, a shell arranged concentrically to the sphere and arranged to delimit a part of the globe where it is night time from another part where it is daytime by indicating the position of the Earth's terminator. The shell can pivot around the globe along two perpendicular axes. The shell is driven by the movement in order to revolve at the rate of one revolution every 24 hours around the polar axis. A differential mechanism is controlled by a year cam that has a profile representing the inclination of the sun in relation to the equatorial plane. The differential mechanism controls the inclination of the shell around the axis by a drive shaft concentric to the polar axis.

Timepiece capable of indicating the sunrise and sunset at every point of the globe

The timepiece comprises means for indicating the sunrise and sunset taking account of seasonal variations. These means comprise a sphere reproducing the terrestrial globe, a shell arranged concentrically to the sphere and arranged to demarcate one portion of the terrestrial globe where it is night from another portion where it is day by indicating the position of the Earth's terminator. The shell can pivot about the globe on two axes perpendicular to each other. The shell is driven by the movement so as to rotate at a rate of one revolution per 24 hours about the polar axis. A disconnecting mechanism is controlled by an annual cam which has a profile representative of the tilt of the Sun with respect to the equatorial plane. The disconnecting mechanism controls the tilt of the shell about the axis by means of a drive shaft concentric to the polar axis.

Timepiece able to indicate the sunrise or sunset anywhere in the world

The timepiece includes sunrise and sunset indicating means taking account of seasonal variations, said means include a sphere reproducing the terrestrial globe, a shell arranged concentrically to the sphere and arranged to demarcate one portion of the terrestrial globe where it is night from another portion where it is day by indicating the position of the earth's terminator. The sphere is arranged to be driven by the movement so as to rotate at the rate of one revolution per 24 hours about a first axis of rotation oriented parallel to the plane of the dial, and the shell is mounted to pivot about a second axis perpendicular to the plane of the dial. The sunrise and sunset indicating means also include an annual cam arranged to be driven in rotation by the movement at the rate of one revolution per year, the cam having a profile representative of the tilt of the sun relative to the equatorial plane.

The electric solar watch winder includes a rotating support, a motor arranged to drive the rotating support, an accumulator arranged to power the motor, a solar cell arranged to charge the accumulator, an internal clock, an electronic means of controlling the motor, a light sensor connected to the electronic means, and a user control interface for the electronic means. The electronic means is arranged to be controlled by the user to be selectively placed in one or other of a plurality of operating modes, the plurality of operating modes including a first mode in which the rotating support is only driven when the winding mechanism is illuminated and a second mode in which a rotating support drive program is started at a pre-selected time using the control interface.

Solar electric winder for a self-winding watch

The musical or striking watch includes a watch case, which is formed of a middle part and a back cover, provided with side apertures and removably secured in a sealed manner to the middle part. A crystal closes the case in a sealed manner. A timepiece movement is held inside the watch case and provided with a striking mechanism that can be actuated at determined times to produce notes or music. The watch further includes at least one removable acoustic radiating membrane, which is arranged in the watch case. The removable membrane includes, in a central position, a retaining member. This retaining member is arranged with play in a housing in an inner stop member of the back cover. Owing to the cooperation between the retaining member and the stop member, the bending of the membrane is limited following excess pressure or vacuum pressure according to environmental conditions.

Removable acoustic radiating membrane for a musical watch or striking watch and watch including the same

There is disclosed a portable electronic device (), particularly of the wristwatch type, comprising at least first and second analogue display members, a sensor () powered to take measurements of a surrounding physical magnitude and a memory zone () for storing the measured physical magnitude values. The electronic circuits of the device are capable of operating the analogue display members, in an operating mode called the historic mode, such that at least one of them indicates the change in the stored value as a function of time opposite suitable graduations () of the device.

Electronic device with analogue display of the history of at least one quantity measured by a sensor

The present invention proposes an electronic dive watch () including a water resistant case () containing a watch movement () on which there is mounted a dial () provided with at least one first and one second coaxial hand (), each hand () being driven independently by an associated motor (), of the type wherein the watch movement () includes an electronic circuit () that controls the first and second hands () in accordance with a first operating mode in which each hand () indicates a distinct item of data and in accordance with a second operating mode, called the dive mode, in which at least the first hand () indicates an instantaneous depth value (Pi), characterized in that, in the dive mode, the first and second hands () are controlled such that they simultaneously indicate the same instantaneous depth value.

Electronic dive watch including a redundant instantaneous depth display

A sequential control method for a display assembly including two superposed, respectively top ( ) and bottom ( ), display devices, the top display device ( ) including at least a liquid crystal display cell ( ) and being arranged so as to be transparent in a first state to make the bottom display device ( ) visible, and so as to display a data item and to be opaque and reflective and to mask at least partially the bottom display device ( ) in a second state, control means supplying a control voltage to cause the top display device ( ) to pass from the first state to the second state and vice versa, characterised in that the display assembly is made to enter an operating state in which the top display device ( ) automatically switches into the state in which it is transparent or into the state in which it is opaque and reflective, so that the display assembly passes alternately from a mode displaying data via the top display device ( ) to a mode displaying data via the bottom display device ( ).

Sequential control method for a display assembly including two superposed display devices

The invention concerns a display assembly including two superposed, respectively upper ( ) and lower ( ) display devices, characterised in that the upper display device ( ) includes a double structure formed of a display cell ( ) arranged above an optical valve ( ), said double structure being arranged so that said cell ( ) and said valve ( ) are transparent in a first state to make the lower display device visible ( ), and that the cell ( ) displays an item of data and that the valve ( ) is opaque and masks at least partially the lower display device ( ) in a second state, control means being provided for supplying a control voltage to the cell ( ) and the optical valve ( ) to cause them to switch from the first state to the second state and vice versa.

Display assembly including two superposed display devices

The invention concerns electronic chronograph watches which include a central hour hand ( ), a central minute hand ( ) and a small off-central second hand ( ) for permanently indicating the current time, chronograph hands ( ) for indicating a measured time when the watch is operating in chronograph mode, drive units for driving said hands and generator means responding to manual control means (P , P ) to apply control pulses to said drive units. According to the invention, the watch also includes a central second hand ( ) driven by its own drive unit and the generator means include means for selectively applying the control pulses to this drive unit, so that the central second hand indicates the seconds of the current time, in phase with the small off-center second hand ( ), when the watch is operating normally and the measured seconds when the watch is operating in chronograph mode.

Electronic chronograph watch

A chronograph watch comprises time keeping first indicators (H, M, S1) used for displaying the time of day and chronograph second indicators (h, m, S2) used for displaying an interval of time in response to a control arrangement (P1, P2) with the aid of which the chronograph can be started, stopped and reset to zero. The chronograph watch includes instantaneous conversion means for at least one of the second indicators (here the seconds counter S2) into an indicator of another function, for example an indication of the date (Q), when the chronograph is not in use. In such example there is also provided the transformation of the minutes counter (m) into a four-year cycle indicator (BISS) and the hours counter (h) into a months indicator (Mo).

Chronograph watch with date indicator

A timepiece includes a case (2), a crystal (10) fixedly mounted on the case (2) and a rotatable bezel (16) guided in rotation relative to the crystal (10) and said case (2), said bezel (16) furthermore being associated with a ratchet mechanism (M) and is characterized in that said bezel (16) includes sealing means (36, 40) against solid impurities, such means being intended to isolate at least the ratchet mechanism (M) from the exterior and to prevent solid impurities from becoming embedded at least between said bezel (16) and the crystal (10) and in that it additionally includes means (24, 44) enabling the driving of such impurities towards the exterior of the timepiece.

Growing community of inventors

Grenchen, Switzerland

Beat Gilomen