Eta Sa Manufacture Horlogere Suisse

The Swatch Group Research and Development Ltd

Nivarox-Far S.a.

Montres Breguet S.a.

Jean-Luc Helfer

Pascal Winkler

Gianni Di Domenico

Thierry Conus

Baptiste Hinaux

Dominique Lechot

Thierry Hessler

Marc Stranczl

Jerome Favre

Jean-Jacques Born

Laurent Klinger

Yves Winkler

Michel Willemin

Pierre Cusin

Alain Zaugg

Yves-Alain Cosandier

Lionel Tombez

Jean-Claude Martin

Lionel Paratte

Olivier Matthey

Francois Gueissaz

Alexandre Haemmerli

Alex Gandelhman

Andres Cabezas Jurin

Donald William Corson

Kaspar Trumpy

Marco Verardo

Ivan Villar

Jean-Bernard Peters

Emmanuel Graf

Raphaël Courvoisier

Mohammad Hussein Kahrobaiyan

Davide Sarchi

Jérôme Favre

Nakis Karapatis

Andrés Cabezas Jurin

Daniel Mallet

François Gueissaz

Patrick Ragot

Antonio Merino

Fanel Piccini

David Richard

Sylvain Huot-Marchand

Nicolas Rebeaud

Giuseppe Cappadona

Christian Ruefenacht

Philippe Marmy

Maria Fernandez Ciurleo

Julien Moulin

Sebastien Graf

Christian Rüfenacht

Laurent Jeanneret

Xavier Berdat

Grégory Musy

Patrick Moller

Lucie Brocher

Sébastien Graf

Florent Cosandier

Cyril Ruchti

Kaspar Trümpy

Sébastien Roder

Philipp Schneider

Cédric Decosterd

Nicolas Loetscher

Frédéric Kohler

Werner Haenzi

Patrick Gasser

Dominique Léchot

Dominique LÉCHOT

Patrick Möller

Piotr Mazanowski

Javier José Silva Otaiza

Kaspar TRÜMPY

Frédéric Gonzales

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

An element for radial guiding of a pivot of a rod of a rotating wheel, for example a rod of a balance, for a bearing of an horological movement, in particular shock-absorbing, the guide element including a body configured to cooperate with a bearing unit in such a way as to be maintained in the unit, the body defining a space for radial retention of the pivot, to maintain the rod radially while allowing it to rotate. The radial guide element includes at least three localized radial-bearing parts distributed angularly, the three parts defining the radial retention space, each part having a face for contact with the pivot, each face locally having a cylindrical shape convex towards the inside of the radial retention space, the bearing parts having an elongated body.

Bearing of an horological movement, in particular shock-absorbing, for a rod of a rotating wheel

A rotary wheel set system of a horological movement with a rotary wheel set a first and a second bearing for a first and a second pivot of the arbor of the rotary wheel set, the wheel set including a mass center in a position of its arbor, the first bearing including an endstone including a main body equipped with a conical cavity configured to receive the first pivot of the arbor of the rotary wheel set, the first pivot being capable of cooperating with the cavity of the endstone to rotate in the cavity, at least one contact zone between the first pivot and the cavity being generated, the normals of the contact zone forming a minimum contact angle relating to the plane perpendicular to the arbor of the pivot, the minimum contact angle being less than or equal to 30°, preferably less than or equal to arctan (½).

Rotary wheel set system of a horological movement

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 horological resonator mechanism, including a structure and an anchoring unit from which is suspended at least one inertial element arranged to oscillate along a first degree of freedom in rotation RZ about a pivoting axis extending along a first direction Z, the inertial element being subjected to return forces exerted by a virtual pivot including a plurality of substantially longitudinal elastic strips, each fastened, at a first end to the anchoring unit, and at a second end to the inertial element. Each elastic strip is deformable essentially in a plane XY perpendicular to the first direction Z. The anchoring unit is suspended from the structure by a flexible suspension arranged to allow the mobility of the anchoring unit along a plurality of degrees of freedom including at least two in the plane XY, along a direction X and along a direction Y orthogonal to the direction X.

Shockproof protection with banking of a rotary flexible guidance resonator mechanism

Timepiece () comprising at least one mechanical movement () including at least a main plate (), a resonator () and energy storage and distribution means () connected to an escape wheel set () by a going train (), wherein at least one of the wheel sets, comprised in the going train () or an escapement mechanism () to which the escape wheel set () belongs, and which cooperates with the resonator (), and which moves in a jerky or reciprocating motion during operation of the resonator (), is a display wheel set () which includes at least two distinct pictures or patterns (), which are arranged to move in succession before a fixed point of the main plate (), during operation of the resonator (), and to display thereon a sequence of animated images.

Mechanical timepiece with an animated display

A mechanical horological bearing () intended to be arranged on a mechanical timepiece movement (), the bearing () including, coaxial around a common rotation axis (D), at least one internal frame () and at least one external frame () forming a running track (), as well as a plurality of wheels () sliding or rolling in the running track (), during a relative movement between the internal frame () and the external frame () that guides them and wherein at least one of the internal frame () and external frame () is a dynamic frame, at least one structural part of the bearing () being produced from an elastic metal material with a high damping capacity, the damping factor of which is greater than 10%, preferably greater than 30%.

Mechanical horological bearing provided with a damping

A device for assembly and alignment on a first bridge, particularly a timepiece movement plate, arranged in a first plane, the device including a second bridge arranged in a second plane, the second bridge being intended to carry a component, in particular a moving component of a timepiece resonator mechanism, the device including a device for aligning the second bridge on the first bridge, the alignment device including at least two bearing faces of the second bridge arranged orthogonally to the second plane in two different directions, the alignment device further including at least two movable adjustment pieces connected to the first bridge, the adjustment pieces each being configured to contact with one of the bearing faces to position the second bridge in a position on the first bridge, the movable pieces defining a plurality of positions of the second bridge on the first bridge.

Assembly and alignment device, particularly for a timepiece resonator mechanism

A rotary wheel set system of a horological movement with a rotary wheel set, a first and a second bearing, for a first and a second pivot of the arbor of the rotary wheel set, the wheel set including a mass center in a position of its arbor, the first bearing including an endstone including a main body equipped with a pyramidal cavity configured to receive the first pivot of the arbor of the rotary wheel set, the cavity having at least three faces giving its pyramidal shape, the first pivot being capable of cooperating with the cavity of the endstone to rotate in the cavity, at least one contact zone between the first pivot and a face being generated, the normal at the contact zone or zones forming a contact angle (α) relating to the plane perpendicular to the arbor of the pivot, wherein the contact angle (α) is less than 45°.

A winding machine includes motorization means arranged to move a support, carrying at least one watch or one horological movement, along a path in a plane. The motorization means are arranged to move each support parallel to a starting position corresponding to the loading or unloading of a watch or of a movement on the support, the axes of a three-dimensional frame of reference specific to the support always remaining parallel to the oriented directions that the axes occupy in the starting position.

Machine for winding a watch and/or horological movement

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 flexible guide for a rotary resonator mechanism, in particular of a horological movement, the guide including a first support, an element movable relative to the first support, a first pair of flexible strips connecting the first support to the movable element, so that the movable element can displace relative to the first support by bending the strips in a circular movement about a centre of rotation, the flexible guide being arranged substantially in a plane, including a prestressing device, the prestressing device being configured to apply a force for buckling the flexible strips by bringing the first support closer to the movable element, so that the flexible guide includes two stable positions of the element movable relative to the first support for which the return moment is zero, the two stable positions having a predetermined angle of rotation therebetween.

Flexible guide and set of superimposed flexible guides for rotary resonator mechanism, in particular of a horological movement

Timepiece regulator comprising a detached lever escapement mechanism, and a resonator with a quality factor Q including an inertia element including an impulse pin cooperating with a fork of the lever, subjected to the return force of two flexible strips attached to the plate, defining a virtual pivot having a main axis (DP), the lever pivoting about a secondary axis (DS), and the lift angle (&#x3b2;) of the resonator, during which the impulse pin is in contact with the fork, is less than 10&#xb0;, and the ratio I/Ibetween the inertia Iof the inertia element with respect to the main axis (DP) and the inertia Iof the lever with respect to the secondary axis (DS) is greater than 2Q&#xb7;&#x3b1;/(0.1&#xb7;&#x3c0;&#xb7;&#x3b2;), where &#x3b1; is the lift angle of the lever corresponding to the maximum angular travel of the fork.

Rotating resonator with flexure bearing maintained by a detached lever escapement

A process for producing a metal alloy balance wheel by molding includes a) making a mold in the negative shape of the balance wheel; b) obtaining a metal alloy that has a thermal expansion coefficient of less than 25 ppm/&#xb0; C. and is able to be in an at least partly amorphous state when it is heated to a temperature between its glass transition temperature and its crystallization temperature; c) putting the metal alloy into the mold, the metal alloy being heated to a temperature between its glass transition temperature and its crystallization temperature so as to be hot-molded and to form a balance wheel; d) cooling the metal alloy to obtain a balance wheel made of the metal alloy; and e) releasing the balance wheel obtained in step d) from its mold. The process also includes a step for over-molding flexible centering components in the hub.

Process for producing a balance wheel for a timepiece

Timepiece regulator () comprising a detached lever () escapement mechanism (), and a resonator () including an inertia element (), which includes an impulse pin () cooperating with a fork () of the lever (), and which is subjected to the action of elastic return means () fixed to the plate () and is arranged to cooperate indirectly with an escape wheel set (), this resonator () is a resonator with a virtual pivot rotating about a main direction (DP), with a flexure bearing returned by flexible strips () attached to the plate (), defining a virtual pivot having a main axis (DP), the resonator () is attached to an elastic suspension strip () attached to the plate (), allowing displacement in the main direction (DP), the plate () comprising shock absorber stops (), in the main direction (DP), cooperating with at least one stiff element of the inertial element ().

Growing community of inventors

Le Landeron, Switzerland

Jean-Luc Helfer