Portal: Watch Knowledge

The drive mechanism of a watch is called movement. The characteristic ticking of the mechanical watch is the vibration and acoustic feature of the escapement system of a watch movement.

The oscillating system consists of the back and forth swinging balance wheel [5] on the balance staff, the balance spring [6] and an apparatus for rate regulation, often called regulator. Hereby the oscillation of the balance spring can be precisely adjusted, so that the desired correct rate of the watch can be attained.

The exact rate is based on the maximum possible uniformity of the back-and-forth oscillation of the balance wheel [5], which must also be balanced as accurately as possible.

Without a steady, precise dosed energy supply this regulated organ however would cease to move. Therefore, it is constantly fed by the force coming from the barrel and via the gear train [1], in accordingly reduced doses …

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