How do quartz watches work?

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How do quartz watches work?
How do quartz watches work?

Video: How do quartz watches work?

Video: How do quartz watches work?
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Humanity has not imagined life without watches for several centuries and is constantly improving these mechanisms. It was possible to achieve incredible accuracy of the course - +/- 5 seconds per day. Such complex devices are very expensive, but in everyday life the accuracy provided by quartz watches is quite enough, especially since they are available to absolutely everyone.

Quartz watch
Quartz watch

Today, the vast majority of watch movements produced in the world are quartz. From time to time, looking at a moving hand or seconds flashing on the scoreboard, you catch yourself thinking: “I wonder how they work?” And if this article caught your eye, let's stop for a second and finally find out what a quartz watch is.

Briefly about the main things

The main elements in the watch mechanism are a stepper motor and an electronic unit. Once per second, the block sends an electrical signal to the motor, and it turns the arrows. The engine and block are powered by a microbattery, which is designed for several years. Wind up quartz watch nonecessary.

The electronic unit consists of a generator of electrical oscillations and a divider that converts them. The generator contains a quartz crystal, which is a source of periodic pulses. They are transmitted with great precision due to the piezoelectric effect of the crystal.

What is a quartz watch
What is a quartz watch

The peculiarity of the quartz oscillator is that the pulses generated by it have a very high frequency - 32768 oscillations per second. Therefore, the divider converts them into oscillations with a frequency of 1 hertz and transfers them to the winding of the stepper motor. When passing through the coil, an electrical impulse excites a magnetic field in it, which causes the rotor to move half a turn. That, in turn, rotates the arrows. This is how a quartz watch works.

Their mechanism can be considered a mini-computer, because a programmed microcircuit can turn them into a multifunctional device, including a stopwatch, chronograph, alarm clock, compass, etc. Sometimes they use a digital display instead of a dial. In this case, the time information is displayed in the form of numbers, but they are still based on a crystal oscillator.

quartz wall clock
quartz wall clock

The design of the movement on crystals is very simple. It is noteworthy that quartz watches do not contain elements operating in a state of tension. That is why they are so durable. Their mechanism is constantly being improved. No wonder quartz watches are becoming more and more popular.

We do not even think about the fact that the mechanismsbased on an electronic quartz block, they also work in all known electronic devices that have a time fixing function: computers, mobile phones, navigation systems, heart rate monitors, etc.

We can say that by choosing quartz watches, we pay tribute to the present, because they were created just over 40 years ago. Supporters of these watch mechanisms are now no less than those of mechanical ones. The watch we wear on our wrist characterizes us in the same way as our favorite books, car or suit.

It is believed that quartz models are chosen by dynamic people who value their accuracy and unpretentiousness in watches. In addition to wrist watches, quartz wall, table, and fireplace watches are produced. Almost every home and office has these tireless guardians of our time. Diverse in design and function, original and simple, they are always with us. They are needed and irreplaceable.

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