the hair spring wants to be straight, in warping it, creates a nice wave illusion. the purpose for this though isn't just for the pleasure of seeing a wave inside the watch. otherwise it'd be too superficial without function. this minimizes the force needed to unlock the wheel by preloading the charge needed on the return of the balance wheel. so the balance wheel will not feel the force, and will not slow down as much, smoothing the watch's crucial moment of inertia.
On first sight, it looks like friction between the pallets and the nickel escape wheels would be high. Unless I misunderstand this, it goes against the whole idea of modern movements - a free balance and no friction. Compare this to the co-axial...
I think I've finally wrapped my head around this escapement, but isn't there going to be a crapton of sliding friction between the locking jewels and the escape wheels (maybe even more than the lever escapement)? I just keep thinking back to George Daniels and how hard he worked to eliminate all of the sliding friction from the escapement. I mean, obviously the sliding friction in this form is vastly preferable to the sliding friction in the lever escapement, where it can actually change the impulse, but it still seems like there might be excessive wear here. I mean, the jewels are at an angle that actually resembles a cutting angle.
OK, I think I get it. You’ve removed the force for the impulse phase of the movement from the escapement wheel and the pallet fork and redirected that force to the silicon hairspring. In a typical escapement wheel there is a moment of inertia where the pallet fork has to escape before the escapement wheel starts applying force for the impulse phase of the movement so the impulse phase is not a constant force, it has a small gap in the movement. With this design the impulse phase remains a constant force to push the balance wheel as it swings resulting in more accuracy since there is no gap in the movement between the escapement and the impulse. Ingenious design. How much more accurate is it? And what about longevity, will that impulse hairspring last a lifetime?
This to me seems to be an arrangement of storing energy at any variable rate in a stressed unit ( silicon) which later hands it back to the balance wheel at a very constant rate. As for the principle of operation I do not see much difference in any escapement system.
@1:18 very difficult to follow this animation, especially when you are taking your first glance and trying to see what's happening here. At this marked cue of the video, the balance wheel is traveling clockwise. Then a second later, the next shift of "camera view" shows the balance wheel traveling counter-clockwise; and performing a different step of the operation. When I first watched this, I didn't expect that I'd have to doubt the accuracy in the depiction of the movement's chronological sequence. That was a mouthful, but anyone will understand after taking a few moments to think about what it is that I'm pointing out.
The snap of the silicon buckled-blade is precisely identical every time which compensates for the variable energy of the barrel by releasing the same amount of energy each time. A traditional escapement provides variable energy depending on the state of the mainspring.
All these very clever mechanical escapements!. I consider them exercises in brilliant engineering. Take the co-axial, no oil! well of course it needs just a touch of oil all escapements do. Then -0.2 to +0.2 Sec`s daily. I feel sure one would be lucky in this area. I have a Pulsar Quartz watch that gains circa 3 Seconds per year and 1 Sec gain this year by the atomic clock !. Pretty good for a Xtal and chip running at 32768 KHz. No sync pulse either !!!!. Get this, I also have a cheap Ingersoll brand that is almost as good. If you want timekeeping then get a Quartz watch. On the other hand mechanical watches are interesting and fascinating, also good talking points.
Marveling at the engineering in an escapement these days is like marveling at the engineering used in a Roman aqueduct. The Spring Drive movement has made the escapement obsolete.
Ditch all this fancy stuff and just use a properly adjusted fusee to equalize the motive power. It would also get this watch intact and working past the next would be watchmaker.
While a fusee is a very elegant way of compensating for the problem of isochronicity, it doesn't really solve the problem. Replacing the mainspring means the fusee must be completely readjusted, while replacing a mainspring would have no effect on the constancy of force of this escapement. Each one, the fusee and the constant escapement, deal with the problem of isochronism at different points in the drive. It's more sound design-wise to solve the problem at its focus (the actuating force of the escapement) rather than just compensate for it at the other end of the movement. Other advantages of the constant escapement over a fusee: A snapping fusee chain could ruin lots of internals, the silicon buckled-blade breaking likely wouldn't (and may be more easily replaceable). Plus a fusee makes your watch much taller off the wrist. By contrast, the constant escapement is very thin.
The Zahir Yes there are disadvantages with the fusee but not as many as with this escapement. How for example to repair if it goes wrong? Although highly ingenious, it has of course no relevance to the overall isochronism of the balance, unless the watch is kept in one position only. It was known even 200 years ago that the escapement does not in itself control the timekeeping.
Si j'ai bien compris, le balancier est actionné par les ressorts intermédiaires en "S", qui passent de l'état "S" à l'état "Z", à chaque mouvement, c'est cela ?
+ve2zzz You would think they would consider that right? I mean you are paying thousands for a watch. Of course it is reliable. They wouldn't risk creating a shitty product.
+SirManDudeGuy1 I did remember they said the escapement was (at the time) a proof of concept and wasn't particularly reliable or durable. They don't intend for it to be an every day wear watch, more of something you'd display on a shelf for all eternity. Besides, it costs $100,000 and is far too large for anyone but The Rock to wear.
Este es el sistema de escape mas inovador que he visto, tensión mas espiral, lo que dará mas fineza de movimiento y por consecuencia mas exactitud, firmado por Girard-Perregaux..... ¡¡¡¡¡¡
The deforming silicon spring means that the exact same impulse is being applied to the balance each time. It means the watch will maintain higher accuracy throughout its entire power reserve. Its not just complexity for the sake of complexity its an ingenious constant force escapement system.
Looks flimsy, unless they've discovered unobtanium, I don't know any material (certainly not silicone?) that can stand-up to constant back/forth deformation over millions of cycles without issue.
An amazing piece of engineering! I wonder how fragile it is...
the hair spring wants to be straight, in warping it, creates a nice wave illusion. the purpose for this though isn't just for the pleasure of seeing a wave inside the watch. otherwise it'd be too superficial without function. this minimizes the force needed to unlock the wheel by preloading the charge needed on the return of the balance wheel. so the balance wheel will not feel the force, and will not slow down as much, smoothing the watch's crucial moment of inertia.
On first sight, it looks like friction between the pallets and the nickel escape wheels would be high. Unless I misunderstand this, it goes against the whole idea of modern movements - a free balance and no friction. Compare this to the co-axial...
Totally agree. As soon as I saw it, I thought it would need oil to keep the friction low - and the oil is going to dry out, sooner or later.
Nice demonstration but the BGM is sooooo sick.......
I think I've finally wrapped my head around this escapement, but isn't there going to be a crapton of sliding friction between the locking jewels and the escape wheels (maybe even more than the lever escapement)? I just keep thinking back to George Daniels and how hard he worked to eliminate all of the sliding friction from the escapement.
I mean, obviously the sliding friction in this form is vastly preferable to the sliding friction in the lever escapement, where it can actually change the impulse, but it still seems like there might be excessive wear here. I mean, the jewels are at an angle that actually resembles a cutting angle.
I'm think that it's simply lower impact.
George Daniels didn't eliminate all friction. Most, but not all. In terms of friction its about a 9/10's improvement.
it is very pleasing to watch operate, but i can't see why this is superior, or is it just another example of technique?
OK, I think I get it. You’ve removed the force for the impulse phase of the movement from the escapement wheel and the pallet fork and redirected that force to the silicon hairspring. In a typical escapement wheel there is a moment of inertia where the pallet fork has to escape before the escapement wheel starts applying force for the impulse phase of the movement so the impulse phase is not a constant force, it has a small gap in the movement. With this design the impulse phase remains a constant force to push the balance wheel as it swings resulting in more accuracy since there is no gap in the movement between the escapement and the impulse. Ingenious design. How much more accurate is it? And what about longevity, will that impulse hairspring last a lifetime?
This to me seems to be an arrangement of storing energy at any variable rate in a stressed unit ( silicon) which later hands it back to the balance wheel at a very constant rate.
As for the principle of operation I do not see much difference in any escapement system.
Yeah like the impulse for the balance wheel comes from the silicon hair spring and not the main barrel. That's what I thought.
@1:18 very difficult to follow this animation, especially when you are taking your first glance and trying to see what's happening here. At this marked cue of the video, the balance wheel is traveling clockwise. Then a second later, the next shift of "camera view" shows the balance wheel traveling counter-clockwise; and performing a different step of the operation. When I first watched this, I didn't expect that I'd have to doubt the accuracy in the depiction of the movement's chronological sequence. That was a mouthful, but anyone will understand after taking a few moments to think about what it is that I'm pointing out.
Sorry to be a bit negative, but my interpretation of an "explanation" is that it contains speech. Am I wrong here?
What's the benefit of it compared to the typical escapement?
利用硅钢游丝的固定形变来释放等量的动力，这个思路确实很好。。。但是原来单一的杠杆被一套连杆取代，连杆的运作一样有摩擦，润滑系统减弱以后一样会出现动力不能等量释放吧。。。不过整个擒纵系统真的很漂亮。。
难得看到中国人回复钟表视频，交流一下吧！
看到和我想的一样的了。应该是主发条不再直接驱动摆轮，而是只驱动硅弹簧。硅弹簧驱动摆轮。所以硅弹簧和其他零件的耦合也是有空隙的，就是为了防止主发条的动力直接传递到摆轮。
Can't wait til Watchfinder & Co have a go at this, eh?
Seems like it would be higher maintenance, how long does that fiber last
How it works? Well, it escapes me...!
What's the soundtrack?
Hmm, is there a purpose to all that other than looking interesting? How is it an improvement over a more conventional escapement?
The snap of the silicon buckled-blade is precisely identical every time which compensates for the variable energy of the barrel by releasing the same amount of energy each time.
A traditional escapement provides variable energy depending on the state of the mainspring.
All these very clever mechanical escapements!. I consider them exercises in brilliant engineering. Take the co-axial, no oil! well of course it needs just a touch of oil all escapements do. Then -0.2 to +0.2 Sec`s daily. I feel sure one would be lucky in this area. I have a Pulsar Quartz watch that gains circa 3 Seconds per year and 1 Sec gain this year by the atomic clock !. Pretty good for a Xtal and chip running at 32768 KHz. No sync pulse either !!!!. Get this, I also have a cheap Ingersoll brand that is almost as good. If you want timekeeping then get a Quartz watch. On the other hand mechanical watches are interesting and fascinating, also good talking points.
How is this an explanation?
It clearly shows the difference from normal escapement.
Marveling at the engineering in an escapement these days is like marveling at the engineering used in a Roman aqueduct. The Spring Drive movement has made the escapement obsolete.
Wait..!! Go back...I actually like the suspended balls idea...
It’s a gimmick. What is the hairspring made of?
Ok what time it is? "Squiting my eyes"
there's.... a dial for the time at the top?
Making the Complex more Complex.....
Molto scenografico, ma dubito ci siano reali vantaggi rispetto ad uno scappamento tradizionale.
Ditch all this fancy stuff and just use a properly adjusted fusee to equalize the motive power. It would also get this watch intact and working past the next would be watchmaker.
While a fusee is a very elegant way of compensating for the problem of isochronicity, it doesn't really solve the problem. Replacing the mainspring means the fusee must be completely readjusted, while replacing a mainspring would have no effect on the constancy of force of this escapement. Each one, the fusee and the constant escapement, deal with the problem of isochronism at different points in the drive. It's more sound design-wise to solve the problem at its focus (the actuating force of the escapement) rather than just compensate for it at the other end of the movement.
Other advantages of the constant escapement over a fusee: A snapping fusee chain could ruin lots of internals, the silicon buckled-blade breaking likely wouldn't (and may be more easily replaceable). Plus a fusee makes your watch much taller off the wrist. By contrast, the constant escapement is very thin.
The Zahir Yes there are disadvantages with the fusee but not as many as with this escapement. How for example to repair if it goes wrong? Although highly ingenious, it has of course no relevance to the overall isochronism of the balance, unless the watch is kept in one position only.
It was known even 200 years ago that the escapement does not in itself control the timekeeping.
this escapement is solving far more than variable mainspring force. and fusees are stupid
Some of those plates still look to rough on the sides, they should look as clean as clean as the side of the case, not stamped!
Constant escapement? I don’t get it- the alternations seem the same. But what do I know!
Now THAT is a movement.
Si j'ai bien compris, le balancier est actionné par les ressorts intermédiaires en "S", qui passent de l'état "S" à l'état "Z", à chaque mouvement, c'est cela ?
Cool. Now I want to become an indie all absolutely. in-house (like Seiko), watchmaker.
Don't drop it...
This 14 um silicon hairspring seems so fragile...
And silicon is highly brittle...
Beautiful, but not my escapement.
+ve2zzz You would think they would consider that right? I mean you are paying thousands for a watch. Of course it is reliable. They wouldn't risk creating a shitty product.
+SirManDudeGuy1 I did remember they said the escapement was (at the time) a proof of concept and wasn't particularly reliable or durable. They don't intend for it to be an every day wear watch, more of something you'd display on a shelf for all eternity.
Besides, it costs $100,000 and is far too large for anyone but The Rock to wear.
karlzhao314 well at the time, it didn't have durable materials. Materials change over the process of development.
Well that explains it!
Can't wait til Watchfinder & Co have a go at this, eh?
Bloody music drove me nuts. How can one ever concentrate on mechanics with that row going on?
there is an easy button to silence the music
looks like its inspired by a gravity ascapement but instead of gravity you use the silicon robon
i wanna see it in large sculpture
they should put it in a multi-axis tourbillon
this video, pretty as it is, is so far short of explaining anything that I PITY THE FOO. most commenters clearly didn't understand the overall process
A silicon hair spring.... Seems soooooooooo fragile...
Piece of crap. Just buy a thirty dollar quartz timex expedition at Walmart. A lot more accurate and 1/1000 the price.
Este es el sistema de escape mas inovador que he visto, tensión mas espiral, lo que dará mas fineza de movimiento y por consecuencia mas exactitud, firmado por Girard-Perregaux..... ¡¡¡¡¡¡
And very expensive. I have an old pocket watch with this principal
And it makes the case thick af.
Well screw that!
""""""""Explained""""""""
Brilliant engineering, masterful execution, a real understanding of materials.
However, complexity for complexities sake?
The deforming silicon spring means that the exact same impulse is being applied to the balance each time. It means the watch will maintain higher accuracy throughout its entire power reserve. Its not just complexity for the sake of complexity its an ingenious constant force escapement system.
Revolutionary
great,¡¡¡¡¡ just wonderful
FANTÁSTIC MECANISME, BRASIL OK.
At 45k its more of a statement. Of im bord with my life hey look at this
,дааа, что только не придумают на мою голову
The music is a horrible distraction and the animation is more cutesy than helpful. Your graphics designer sold you a bill of goods.
silly hyperbole
wow
5番車草
5番車
wot n tarnation
25 ETA fans disliked the video
The music is absolutely horrible! like nails on a chalkboard!
Looks flimsy, unless they've discovered unobtanium, I don't know any material (certainly not silicone?) that can stand-up to constant back/forth deformation over millions of cycles without issue.
Horrible music
😮
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