|
Aperture |
Small opening.
The dials of some watches
(in French: montres à
guichet) have apertures
in which certain indications
are given (e.g. the date,
the hour, etc). |
|
Applique |
Applique
or applied chapters are
numerals or symbols cut
out of a sheet metal and
stuck or riveted to a dial. |
|
Assembling |
Process
of fitting together the
components of a movement.
This was formerly done entirely
by hand, but the operations
have now been largely automated.
Nevertheless, the human
element is still primordial,
especially for inspection
and testing. |
|
Assortiment |
French
term for the parts used
for making an escapement. |
|
Automatic Watch |
A watch
whose mainspring is wound
by the movements or accelerations
of the wearer's arm. On
the basis of the principle
of terrestrial attraction,
a rotor turns and transmits
its energy to the spring
by means of an appropriate
mechanism. The system was
invented in Switzerland
by Abraham-Louis Perrelet
in the 18th century. |
|
Balance |
Moving
part, usually circular,
oscillating about its axis
of rotation. The hairspring
coupled to it makes it swing
to and fro, dividing time
into exactly equal parts.
Each of the to-and-fro movements
of the balance ("tick-tack")
is called an "oscillation".
One oscillation is composed
of two vibrations. |
|
Bar, lug |
In wristwatch-cases,
a thin metal rod fixed between
the horns, for attaching
the wristlet. |
|
Barrel |
Thin cylindrical
box containing the mainspring
of a watch. The toothed
rim of the barrel drives
the train. |
| Bridge |
Complementary
part fixed to the main plate
to form the frame of a watch
movement. The other parts
are mounted inside the frame
(part of the "ébauche"). |
|
Calibre |
Originally
used to mean the size of
a watch movement, this term
now denotes a type of movement
(men's calibre, automatic
calibre, etc). When a calibre
number is accompanied by
the manufacturer's mark,
it serves as an indication
of origin. |
|
(Watch-) Case |
Container
that protects the watch-movement
from dust, damp and shocks.
It also gives the watch
as attractive an appearance
as possible, subject to
fashion and the taste of
the public. |
|
Casing (up) |
Process
of inserting and fixing
a watch movement into its
case. |
|
Chablon |
French
term for a watch movement
(not including the dial
and hands), of which all
or part of the components
are not assembled. |
|
Chronograph |
Watch or
other apparatus with two
independent time systems:
one indicates the time of
day, and the other measures
brief intervals of time.
Counters registering seconds,
minutes and even hours can
be started and stopped as
desired. It is therefore
possible to measure the
exact duration of a phenomenon.
Not to be confused with
the timer, the stopwatch
and the chronometer. |
|
Chronometer |
Watch which
has undergone a series of
precision tests in an official
institute. The requirements
are very severe: a few seconds
per day in the most unfavourable
temperature conditions (for
mechanical watches) and
positions that are ordinarily
encountered. |
|
Crown |
Knurled
knob located on the outside
of a watch case and used
for winding the mainspring.
It is also used for setting
the hands to the right time
and for correcting thecalendar
indications. |
| Date |
Ordinal
number referring to a day
of the month: the 10th February.
Date-watch: watch indicating
the date, the month and
sometimes the year and the
phases of the moon. Also
called a calendar-watch
or calendar. Perpetual calendar:
watch indicating leap years
as well as the date. |
| Dial |
Indicating
"face" or plate
of metal or other material,
bearing various markings
to show, in ordinary watches
and clocks, the hours, minutes
and seconds. Dials vary
verymuch in shape, decoration,
material, etc. The indications
are given by means of numerals,
divisions or symbols of
various types. |
| Direct-drive |
Refers
to a seconds-hand that moves
forwards in little jerks.
Trotteuse, French term for
a direct-drive seconds-hand,
especially a centre seconds-hand. |
| Display |
Indication
of time or other data, either
by means of hands moving
over a dial (analogue display)
or by means of numerals
appearing in one or more
windows (digital or numerical
display); these numerals
may be completed by alphabetical
indications (alphanumerical
display) or by signs of
any other kind. Example:
12.05 MO 12.3 = 12 hours,
5 minutes, Monday 12th March.
Such displays can be obtained
by mechanicalor electronic
means. |
| Ebauche |
French
term (but commonly used
in English-speaking countries)
for a movement blank, i.e.
an incomplete watch movement
which is sold as a set of
loose parts, comprising
the main plate, the bridges,
the train, the winding and
setting mechanism and the
regulator. The timing system,
the escapement and the mainspring,
however, are not parts of
the "ébauche". |
| Escapement |
Set
of parts (escape wheel,
lever, roller) which converts
the rotary motion of the
train into to-and-fro motion
(the balance). |
| Etablissage |
French
term for the method of manufacturing
watches and/or movements
by assembling their various
components. It generally
includes the following operations:
receipt, inspection and
stocking of the "ébauche",
the regulating elements
and the other parts of the
movement and of the make-up;
assembling; springing and
timing; fitting the dial
and hands; casing; final
inspection before packing
and dispatching. |
| Etablisseur |
French
term for a watch factory
which is engaged only in
assembling watches, without
itself producing the components,
which it buys from specialist
suppliers. |
| Factory,
works |
In
the Swiss watch industry,
the term manufacture is
used of a factory in which
watches are manufactured
almost completely, as distinct
from an "atelier de
terminage", which is
concerned only with assembling,
timing, fitting the hands
and casing. |
| Fly-back
Hand |
In
a chronograph with analogue
display, an additional centre
second hand which can remain
superposed on the other
one as it moves, can be
stopped independently and
then made to "fly back"
so as to catch up with the
other hand, can be stopped
and reset to zero together
with the other hand. In
chronographs with numerical
display, a "function"
having the same effect. |
| Glass,
Crystal |
Thin
plate of glass or transparent
synthetic material, for
protecting the dials of
watches, clocks, etc. |
| Hand |
ndicator,
usually made of a thin,
light piece of metal, very
variable in form, which
moves over a graduated dial
or scale. Watches usually
have three hands showing
the hours, minutes and seconds.
|
| Jewel |
Bearing,
endstone or pallet used
for reducing friction. Generally
made of synthetic material,
except for the precious
or semi-precious stones
(ruby, sapphire, garnet)
which are sometimes used
in "de luxe" watches. |
| Main
Plate |
Base
plate on which all the other
parts of a watch movement
are mounted (part of the
"ébauche"). |
| Mainspring |
The
driving spring of a watch
or clock, contained in the
barrel. |
| Manufacture
d'horlogerie |
French
term for a watch factory
which itself produces the
components (particularly
the "ébauches")
needed for the manufacture
of its products (watches,
alarm and desk clocks, etc). |
| Marine
Chronometer |
Highly
accurate mechanical or electronic
timekeeper enclosed in a
box (hence the term box
chronometer), used for determining
the longitude on board ship.Marine
chronometers with mechanical
movements are mounted on
gimbals so that they remain
in the horizontal position
is necessary for their precision. |
Middle
(of watch-case) |
Middle
part of the case, in which
the movement is fitted. |
| Movement |
Assembly
consisting of the principal
elements and mechanisms
of a watch or clock: the
winding and setting mechanism,
the mainspring, the train,
the escapement, the regulating
elements. "Anatomically",
the movement consists of
the "ébauche",
the regulating elements
and the other components. |
| Regulating
Elements |
Set
of parts comprising the
regulating system (sprung
balance) and the escapement
(escape wheel, lever and
roller). |
| Repeater |
Watch
that strikes the hours by
means of a mechanism operated
by a push-piece or bolt.
There are various types
of repeaters. Quarter-repeater:
sounding a low note for
the hours and a "ding-dong"
for each of the quarters;
Five-minute repeater: striking
the hours, quarters and
five-minute periods after
the quarter; Minute-repeater:
striking the hours, quarters
and minutes; Grande sonnerie
(grand strike): striking
the hours and quarters automatically
and repeating when a push-piece
is pressed down; Chiming
repeater: in which the quarters
are struck on three or four
gongs of different pitch. |
| Rotor |
Half-disc
of heavy metal, which is
made to rotate inside the
case of an automatic watch
by the energy produced by
the movements of the wearer's
arm. Its weight tends always
to bring it back to the
vertical position. Demultiplied
by a specially designed
device, its rotations continually
wind the mainspring of the
watch. |
| Second |
Basic
unit of time (abbr. s or
sec), corresponding to one
86,000th part of the mean
solar day, i.e. the duration
of rotation, about its own
axis, of an ideal Earth
describing a circle round
the Sun in one year, at
a constant speed and in
the plane of the Equator.
After the Second World War,
atomic clocks became so
accurate that they could
demonstrate the infinitesimal
irregularities (a few hundreths
of a second per year) of
the Earth's rotation about
its own axis. It was then
decided to redefine the
reference standard; this
was done by the 13th General
Conference on Weights and
Measures in 1967, in the
following terms: "The
second is the duration of
9,192,631,770 periods of
the radiation corresponding
to the transition between
the two hyperfine levels
of the fundamental state
of the atom of caesium 133".
Conventionally, the second
is subdivised into tenths,
hundredths, thousendths
(milliseconds), millionths
(microseconds), thousand-millionths
(nanoseconds) and billionths
(picoseconds). |
| Setting
(to time) |
Process
of bringing the hands of
a watch or clock to the
position corresponding to
the exact time. |
| Shock
Absorber |
Resilient
bearing which, in a watch,
is intended to take up the
shocks received by the balance
staff and thus protects
its delicate pivots from
damage. |
| Skeleton |
Skeleton
watch: watch in which the
case and various parts of
the movement are of transparent
material, enabling the main
parts of the watch to be
seen. |
| Stopwatch |
Timekeeping
instrument which can be
used for measuring intervals
of time. When this is done,
the time display is partly
or wholly lost until the
hands are reset. |
| Striking-work,
Striking-Mechanism |
In
a watch or clock, automatic
or hand-operated mechanism
that strikes the hours,
etc, or rings an alarm-bell
(v. repeater). |
| Tachometer |
Instrument
for measuring speed. In
watchmaking, a timer or
chronograph with a graduated
dial on which speed can
be read off in kilometres
per hour or some other unit
(see timer). |
| Terminage |
French
term denoting the process
of assembling watch parts
for the account of a producer. |
| Termineur |
French
term for an independent
watchmaker (or workshop)
engaged in assembling watches,
either wholly or in part,
for the account of an "établisseur"
or a "manufacture",
who supply the necessary
loose parts. |
| Timer |
Instrument
used for registering intervals
of time (durations, brief
times), without any indication
of the time of day. |
| Tourbillon |
Device
invented to eliminate errors
of rate in the vertical
positions. It consists of
a mobile carriage or cage
carrying all the parts of
the escapement, with the
balance in the centre. The
escape pinion turns about
the fixed fourth wheel.
The case makes one revolution
per minute, thus annulling
errors of rate in the vertical
positions. |
| Vibration |
Movement
of a pendulum or other oscillating
element, limited by two
consecutive extreme positions.
The balance of a mechanical
watch generally makes five
or six vibrations per second
(i.e. 18,000 or 21,600 per
hour), but that of a high-frequency
watch may make seven, eight
or even ten vibrations per
second (i.e. 25,200, 28,800
or 36, 000 per hour). |
| Watch
Material |
Loose
parts, components either
for producing watches or
for repairing them. In the
latter case, they are often
called "spare parts"
or "repair material". |
| Water
Resistant |
Made
to prevent water from entering.
Water-resistant case, watch-case
whose joints are made to
prevent moisture from entering. |
| Winding |
Operation
consisting in tightening
the mainspring of a watch.
This can be done by hand
(by means of the crown)
or automatically (by means
of a rotor, which is caused
to swing by the movements
of the wearer's arm). |
