Concept

Balance wheel

Related publications (29)

Balanceable Coupled Piezoelectric NEMS Resonators

This project aims at designing, fabricating and characterising balanceable coupled NEMS resonators, in order to verify a theoretical model. In the field of sensing, coupled NEMS resonators benefit from an immensely increased sensitivity towards changes in ...

2022

Optical measurement method for mechanical time base characterization

Simon Nessim Henein, Etienne Frédéric Gabriel Thalmann

The recent adoption of silicon components by the mechanical watch industry has triggered the search for new time bases to advantageously replace the traditional balance and hairspring oscillator. In particular, flexure-based oscillators manufactured in sil ...

2021

Rocker oscillator time bases

Simon Nessim Henein, Ilan Vardi

Since the invention of the pendulum clock by Christiaan Huygens in 1657, precision timekeepers have been regulated by oscillators. Although the pendulum is not an isochronous oscillator, its introduction as a time basis for clock regulation led to a signif ...

2021

Flexure Pivot Oscillators for Mechanical Watches

Etienne Frédéric Gabriel Thalmann

It appears that the concerted efforts of the watchmaking industry are leading towards a limit in mechanical watch accuracy. The general consensus in horology is that the time base's quality factor, a dimensionless number that characterizes the oscillator d ...

EPFL2020

Flexure Pivot Oscillator With Intrinsically Tuned Isochronism

Simon Nessim Henein, Ilan Vardi, Etienne Frédéric Gabriel Thalmann, Mohammad Hussein Kahrobaiyan

The most important property for accurate mechanical time bases is isochronism: the independence of period from oscillation amplitude. This paper develops a new concept in isochronism adjustment for flexure-based watch oscillators. Flexure pivot oscillators ...

2020

Tribological Approach to the Watch Movements

Valentine Agnès Madeleine Magnin

Mechanical watches are complex and sensitive systems that have to maintain a faultless precision over their lifetime. However, this precision can be altered by disturbances occurring during the functioning time, such as friction, lubricant drying, or wear, ...

EPFL2020

Automatically Starting and Secured Detent Escapement for a Timepiece

Simon Nessim Henein, Ilan Vardi

A horological detent escapement for a horological movement arranged to transmit a torque from said horological movement to an oscillating regulating organ of said horological movement, the regulating organ comprising a first mobile body and the escapement ...

2019

Conceptual design of a rotational mechanical time base with varying inertia

Simon Nessim Henein, Etienne Frédéric Gabriel Thalmann

Flexure pivot oscillators have the potential to advantageously replace the traditional balance wheel-spiral spring oscillator used in mechanical watches due to their significantly lower friction. However, they have inherent nonlinear elastic properties tha ...

2019

Flexure-Pivot Oscillator Restoring Torque Nonlinearity and Isochronism Defect

Simon Nessim Henein, Etienne Frédéric Gabriel Thalmann, Mohammad Hussein Kahrobaiyan

Flexure pivot based oscillators can advantageously replace the hairspring and balance wheel, the time base used in mechanical watches, by drastically reducing friction. However, flexure pivots have drawbacks including gravity sensitivity and restoring torq ...

AMER SOC MECHANICAL ENGINEERS2018

Gravity-Insensitive Flexure Pivot Oscillators

Simon Nessim Henein, Ilan Vardi, Etienne Frédéric Gabriel Thalmann, Lennart Rubbert, Mohammad Hussein Kahrobaiyan

Classical mechanical watch plain bearing pivots have frictional losses limiting the quality factor of the hairspring-balance wheel oscillator. Replacement by flexure pivots leads to a drastic reduction in friction and an order of magnitude increase in qual ...

2018

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