The Swatch Group Research and Development Ltd

Eta Sa Manufacture Horlogere Suisse

Nivarox-Far S.a.

Montres Breguet S.a.

Gianni Di Domenico

Pascal Winkler

Jean-Luc Helfer

Dominique Lechot

Baptiste Hinaux

Jerome Favre

Jean-Jacques Born

Marc Stranczl

Olivier Matthey

Michel Willemin

Laurent Klinger

Jean-Claude Martin

Mohammad Hussein Kahrobaiyan

Pierre Cusin

Thierry Conus

Lionel Paratte

Alex Gandelhman

Lionel Tombez

Yves Winkler

Jérôme Favre

Benoit Legeret

Francois Gueissaz

Alexandre Haemmerli

Donald William Corson

Patrick Ragot

Benoît Légeret

Davide Sarchi

Jean-Bernard Peters

François Gueissaz

Laurent Nagy

Fanel Piccini

Yves-Alain Cosandier

Rene Piguet

Ahmad Odeh

Grégory Musy

Gérard Surmely

Florent Cosandier

René Piguet

Dominique Léchot

Benoît Legeret

Dominique LÉCHOT

A flexible guide assembly for a rotating resonator mechanism, the assembly including a fixed support and two flexible guides extending in substantially the same plane or in two different parallel planes, the first flexible guide including a first element movable with respect to the fixed support, a first pair of flexible strips connected to the first movable element, such that the first movable element can move by bending the strips of the first pair in a circular motion about a first centre of rotation, the second flexible guide includes a second element movable with respect to first movable element, a second pair of flexible strips connecting the second movable element to the first movable element, such that the second movable element can move with respect to the first movable element by bending the strips of the second pair in a circular motion about a second centre of rotation. The first centre of rotation and the second centre of rotation are offset by a first predefined distance belonging to a plane of the assembly.

Flexible guide assembly for a rotating resonator mechanism, particularly for a timepiece movement

A flexible guide assembly () including a fixed support () and three flexible guides arranged in series, the first flexible guide including a first movable element () relative to the fixed support (), a first pair of uncrossed flexible blades () connected to the first movable element (), the second flexible guide including a second movable element () relative to the first movable element (), a second pair of uncrossed flexible blades () connecting the second movable element () to the first movable element (), the third flexible guide including a third movable element () and a third pair of uncrossed flexible blades () connecting the third movable element () to the second movable element (), the third movable element () forming a balance or a balance support of the rotary resonator mechanism.

Flexible guide assembly for a rotary horological resonator mechanism

A regulating member () for a horological movement including a balance, a balance spring including a flexible strip () coiled on itself in several turns, the strip () having a predefined rigidity to enable the balance to perform a rotary oscillatory movement, the strip including an outer end (). The regulating member () includes a resilient device for compensating the direction of gravity with respect to the regulating member (), the resilient device adapting its stiffness according to gravity to compensate for the effect of gravity on the regulating member, the resilient device including a resilient element () connecting the outer end () to a first non-movable support () with respect to the horological movement, as well as prestressing means () for applying a variable force or torque on the resilient element () according to the direction of gravity with respect to the regulating member ().

Timepiece regulating member with a balance spring provided with means for gravity compensation

Method for adjusting the rate of a basic oscillator of a watch arranged to oscillate at a nominal frequency N0, with a master oscillator generating an excitation frequency NE approximately equal to an integer multiple of this nominal frequency N0, the master oscillator subjecting the watch to excitation or a modulated motion during a transition phase after which the basic oscillator is stabilised at the excitation frequency NE, and a state of display correction method with a winder for mechanical or automatic watches, moving a support carrying the watch and comprising a state of display correction oscillator, having a lower variation of rate value than the initial variation of rate value DI of this basic oscillator, and oscillating at a correction frequency NC to impose oscillation or a motion on the watch, during a state of display correction phase whose duration is adjusted to exactly correct a state of display error measured at the initial moment of actuation.

Device and method for adjusting the rate and correcting the state of display of a watch

A horological resonator mechanism, including a structure carrying, via a flexible suspension, an anchor unit from which is suspended an inertial element oscillating about a pivot axis extending in a first direction Z, in a first degree of rotational freedom RZ, under the effect of the return forces of a flexure pivot including longitudinal elastic strips, each fixed to the inertial element and to the anchor unit, the flexible suspension allowing the anchor unit to move in five degrees of freedom, this resonator is a composite assembly made of at least two different materials, on the one hand for the flexure pivot, and on the other hand for the flexible suspension.

Shock protection of a resonator mechanism with rotary flexure bearing

A flexible guide for a rotating resonator mechanism, in particular of a horological movement, the guide including a fixed support, an element that is capable of moving relative to the fixed support, at least one main flexible blade allowing the movable element to move relative to the fixed support by bending the one or more main flexible blades via a rotary motion about a centre of rotation, the flexible guide being arranged substantially in one plane, and includes at least one translation table joined to one end of the main flexible blade, the main flexible blade and the translation table forming a pair connected to the fixed support, to the movable element, or to an intermediate movable part, such that the translation table is configured to move in translation at least in part under the effect of the bending of the main flexible blade.

Flexible guide with translation table for a rotating resonator mechanism, in particular for a horological movement

A timepiece resonator mechanism (), including a structure () carrying, by a flexible suspension (), an anchoring block () from which is suspended an inertial element () oscillating about a pivot axis (D) extending in a first direction Z, according to a first rotational degree of freedom RZ, under the action of return forces of a flexible pivot () including elastic longitudinal strips () each fixed to said inertial element () and to said anchoring block (), the resonator mechanism including a viscous substance () arranged at least partly around the flexible suspension (), the viscous substance () being configured to at least partly dissipate the energy due to a shock.

Shock-resistant protection provided with a viscous substance for a resonator mechanism with rotary flexible guide

A horological movement including a mechanical resonator and a hybrid escapement including an escapement wheel and a pallet assembly with at least one magnetic pallet-stone formed of a magnet and associated with a mechanical banking, the escapement wheel including a periodic magnetised structure defining increasing gradients of magnetic potential energy for the magnetic pallet-stone, and protruding parts associated with the increasing gradients of magnetic potential energy. When the force torque is equal to a nominal force torque or has a value within at least an upper part of a given range of values, one of the protruding parts of the escapement wheel is subjected to at least one shock on the mechanical banking of the pallet assembly after the magnetic pallet-stone has climbed any one of the increasing gradients of magnetic potential energy, thus dissipating at least partially a kinetic energy of the escapement wheel.

Horological movement comprising an escapement provided with a magnetic system

A horological movement includes a resonator and an escapement wheel with flexible teeth, and an anchor formed of two mechanical pallets capable of abutting, when the anchor switches between its two rest positions, with any one of the flexible teeth depending on the angular position of the escapement wheel. Each flexible tooth is arranged to bend by undergoing an elastic deformation under a radial force that can be exerted by one of the two mechanical pallets abutting against this flexible tooth while the escapement wheel has an unfavourable angular position and the resonator is braked by the anchor. Each tooth has an elastic capacity to elastically absorb, in a radial direction, most of a maximum mechanical energy that the mechanical resonator may have during normal operation of the horological movement, to avoid breakage or deterioration of the escapement.

Horological movement comprising an escapement provided with a toothed wheel and a stopper

The horological movement includes a mechanical resonator and an escapement including an escapement wheel, which has a plurality of teeth, and an anchor formed by a stick and two arms having respectively two mechanical pallets likely to come into contact, when the anchor is subject to an alternative movement, with any of the teeth according to the angular position of the escapement wheel. To avoid damage to the escapement during rocking of the anchor while the escapement wheel is positioned in an unfavourable angular position, the anchor is arranged, during the rocking of this anchor, to be able to bend being subjected to an elastic deformation. The anchor has an elastic capacity between each of the two mechanical pallets and a fork of the anchor, enabling it to absorb elastically, during the elastic deformation, a maximum mechanical energy that the mechanical resonator can have during the normal functioning of the horological movement.

Mechanical horological movement provided with an escapement comprising an anchor

A horological movement includes an escapement with a magnetic system to generate magnetic force impulses, so as to sustain the oscillation of the mechanical resonator associated with the escapement. In order to make possible an effective self-starting of the assembly formed of the mechanical resonator and of the escapement during a winding of the barrel, after a stop of the horological movement due to the unwound barrel spring, the escape wheel includes teeth and the pallet assembly includes two mechanical pallet-stones arranged to receive, upon starting, at least one mechanical force impulse of the escape wheel via one of the teeth thereof, the mechanical force impulse generating a starting force torque on the pallet assembly that is transmitted to the balance of the mechanical resonator to begin an oscillation of the latter so that the assembly can operate normally after a starting phase.

Horological movement comprising an escapement equipped with a magnetic system

A timepiece movement includes a magnetic escapement formed of a magnetic escape wheel with an annular magnetized structure and a pallet fork whose shaft is formed by a ferromagnetic material. The pallet shaft exerts on the escape wheel a magnetic disturbance torque due to the fact that the annular magnetized structure exhibits an angular variation of at least one defining physical parameter thereof, such that the magnetic attraction varies as a function of the angular position of the escape wheel and has a tangential component. A magnetic compensation pin is incorporated in the timepiece movement, this magnetic compensation pin being arranged such that the second magnetic disturbance torque that it exerts on the escape wheel exhibits an angular phase shift relative to the first magnetic disturbance torque generated by the pallet shaft, so as to compensate largely for this first magnetic disturbance torque.

Timepiece movement comprising a rotating element provided with a magnetized structure having a periodic configuration

A balance for timepieces includes a rim, a hub, and at least one arm connecting the hub to the rim. At least one portion of the balance is made of an at least partially amorphous metal alloy. The at least partially amorphous metal alloy is based on an element chosen from the group consisting of platinum, zirconium and titanium, and has a coefficient of thermal expansion comprised between 7 ppm/&#xb0; C. and 12 ppm/&#xb0; C. The balance can be manufactured by moulding. A resonator can include such a balance and a monocrystalline quartz balance spring.

Balance for timepieces and method for manufacturing the same

A device () for guiding a pivoting mass in rotary pivoting, in particular for a horological movement comprising, arranged in series substantially in the same plane, a first support (), a first pair of uncrossed strips (), a second support (), a pair of crossed strips (), and a third support (), the pair of uncrossed strips including, a first () and a second () flexible strip connecting the first support () to the second support () without crossing each other, the pair of crossed strips including a third () and a fourth () flexible strip connecting the second support () to the third support (), the third () and fourth () flexible strips crossing each other between the second () and the third () support.

Pivoting guide device for a pivoting mass and timepiece resonator mechanism

An inertial mass with adjustment of inertia and/or unbalance for a horological resonator, including a plurality of mobiles for adjusting inertia and/or unbalance, toothed or fluted, each mounted pivotably about a mobile axis with respect to a flange that the inertial mass includes, and with a centre of mass off-centre with respect to this mobile axis, each mobile cooperating by meshing with an inertia and/or unbalance adjustment crown, toothed or fluted, under a permanent constraint exerted by an elastic return force exerted by the crown and/or the mobile.

Horological resonator mechanism with inertial mass with adjustment of inertia and/or unbalance

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Neuchatel, Switzerland

Gianni Di Domenico