Why people are still buying mechanical watches? Because, the mechanics – is the only thing, that: intuitive, real, perceived, works in any conditions, is the embodiment of the quality and is most harmoniously combined with precious metals, stones and incrustation. As a matter of fact, the innovation in clockwork means the creation of simpler solutions uniting reliability and functional qualities in one for balancing between: beauty, practicality – universality, cost.

Basically, for some centuries the development of watch kinematics did not undergo essential changes. Commonly, pinion-gear sets mounted in the bearings actuate various hands for indication of time: from a drive in quartz watches, or connecting a power source and an escapement in mechanical clocks. Thus complication functions, such as: calendar, self-winding, control and accuracy increasing systems serve only as additions, without breaking fundamental base of the reducing mechanism. The recent fashion developments of clockwork kinematics with use of: chains, Geneva drives, time visualization elements… are the more design solutions which overload the watches in its functional purpose and reduce their efficiency, thus often increase their complexity. Really, the gearing has the highest efficiency of the engagement, and the indication by hands is the lightest, so, has the minimum kinetic losses, therefore classical hands watches with the dial are the most elegant, reliable and respectively demanded. However their multilayer structures consist, at least, of: the protective glass, several coaxial arrows, the dial, the mechanism, the case, the bridges and the back cover, limit the possibility of their slimming. Also, use of the high reduction ratios are resulted to create of the thinnest pinions with the minimum quantity of teeth, thus their axes cannot use other mountings as sliding bearings, so use of lubrication and periodic services. The arrangement of gear wheels is determined by the condition of gears linking what is stipulated their non-uniform distribution on the case and in turn complicates the time reading without the dial.

Having the goal to develop the elegant, esthetic and jewelry applicable watch movement naturally using for indication of time and as much as possible kinematicaly excluding the sliding friction, connections and case details, I developed the models of mechanical and quartz planetary wristwatches.

Their principles are based on use of the nested compound planetary gear bearings with time visualization by orbital movement of satellites. Thus, the placement of the drive and regulation systems both in the center and on the periphery of the planetary reducer gave the possibility to achieve technologically the slimmest mechanism and hence the watches.

The gear bearings representing the combination of roller bearings with planetary gears allow to exclude the need of axial fixing and therefore sliding friction. The pairwise connection of satellites along with fixed one solar gear and other joined to a ring gear for the enclosed gear bearings create highly effective multistage planetary mechanism with the high transfer ratios. By selecting the parameters of gears to obtain the orbital satellites rotations, to correspond: second, minute, hour and even week hands it is realized the intuitive concentric reducer. By the different decoration of one satellite on each planetary gear is implemented the system visualization of time. By using as the case for fixing gears one of the watch glasses could be obtained the highest reliability and refinement, with the next advantages:

1) Especially adapted for jewelry applications, as it could be perfectly decorated by moving precious stones;
2) Very reliable mechanics, as it is more constrained in comparison by traditional watch reduction gear mechanism;
3) Superbly refined design with hardly using of filling, proportions and symmetry;
4) Maximization of rolling along with minimization of sliding friction;
5) The best arrangement of the components.

The described solutions in the field of mechanical and quartz watches are qualitatively new since they are realized more effective and reliable principle of the reduction along with possibility of its use directly as visualization by concentric orbital movement of satellites gears, and also gradation of their own rotation for visualization of turn fractions, that not only increases consumer and jeweler appeal, but also gives the possibility to create ultra-thin elegant and naturally-refined mechanical movements have not had before analogs in the world of watch technologies.

Here is only presented the design-kinematical concepts. The solutions are developed in details, so for the energy, friction-losses, driver and escapement questions don’t hesitate to contact me by phone or contact form.