MECHANICAL OSCILLATOR (BALANCING SYSTEM AND SPIRAL SPRING) IN MATERIALS FOR REACHING A HIGHER LEVEL OF PRECISION, APPLIED TO A WATCHMAKING MOVEMENT OR OTHER PRECISION INSTRUMENT

摘要

Mechanical oscillator (balance system and spiral spring) made of materials allowing to reach a higher level of precision, applied to a watch movement or other precision instrument. The spiral spring is made of a non-magnetic composite material of fibers carbon in a polymer, carbon or ceramic matrix, and the balance is also non-magnetic ceramic. The values of the thermal expansion coefficients for the spring and the balance are similar, stable, and very small over a large temperature range. The coefficients of expansion of the axial direction of the spring and of the balance are of opposite signs and they compensate for each other. The density of materials is lower than that of commonly used metals. By this combination of materials it is possible to obtain significant advantages and a higher and more stable precision than that of metallic oscillator systems.