F.P. Journe

Updated Report! - Introducing the Centigraphe Souverain - New Photos!

 

Moments before the exhibition took place on Monday, April 16th, 2007 at Montres Journe SA Geneva!

Our gracious host Mr. Francois-Paul Journe.

Distinguished guests, all accompanied by something familar on the wrist.

Wait! Is that really a rose gold bracelet attached to a Chronometre Souverain?

YG Resonance and Ruthenium Remontoir - a perfect pair!

The presentation began with Mr. Journe joined by master watchmaker Dr. Ludwig Oechslin, Director-Curator of the International Watch Museum in La Chaux-de-Fonds. Among his many accomplishments Dr. Ludwig Oechslin is his creation of the Trilogy of Time and a perpetual calendar watch that bears his name.


Dr. Ludwig began by speaking about the fascinating restoration of the astronomical clock built by CL Detouche that now is prominately displayed upon entering. This was followed by a short video.


Next we were joined by conference call with the Jean Todt, Ferrari CEO. Mr Todt discussed how part of the proceeds from the sale of the Centigraph would be donated to ICM to help with their important plans to build a research center to help treat those with certain brain and spinal cord diseases.

And finally, the moment all of us were waiting for, the official launch of the new Centigraphe Souverain! Mr. Journe spoke about how 15 years ago he was asked to find a mechanical solution to build an exponential chronograph which at the time he could not providing the inspiration for the Centigraphe. He also spoke about how Chronograph's in the 19th century were made with 2 buttons and decided he should do it better! This gave him the idea for the rocker which he obtained a patent for. He also received another patent for the mechanism that seperates the chronograph from the timekeeping movement. When asked how difficult it all of this was he said "After making the Grand Sonnerie, everthing is easier!"
For those of you who could not join please take a look a the video!
www.fpjourne.com

During the video you we see multiple computer images of the Centigraphe.

Some superimposed on track runners.

Others with a view from the inside.

Particularly of the the flying second hand.

Presenting the Centigraphe Souverain in PT

Now look closely at the actual photo above. There is a subtle change from the image in the video presentation. This was because one of the parts could not be ready in time for the exhibition. Can you guess what it is?


Celebrating the successful launch of the Centigraphe Souverain with Mr. Journe.


After the exhibition I had time to admire the previously announced Octa automatique series.
Octa Automatique Reserve de Marche

Octa Automatique Lune

I want to congratulate Mr Journe and his entire team for a wonderful exhibition! Once again he has proven to be a brilliant watchmaker and creator. Invenit et Fecit.

CENTIGRAPHE SOUVERAIN
360,000 KM/H AT YOUR FINGERTIPS
THE ART TO CONVERT 6KM/H IN 360.000KM/H

François-Paul Journe’s spectacular new watch for 2007, the Centigraphe Souverain, is a mechanical
chronograph unlike any that has ever been made before.

The hand-wound movement measures elapsed times from one hundredth of a second to 10 minutes on
three dials, each with a time scale in red and a tachometer scale in black.

The tachometer scales convert times into speeds ranging from 6 km/h — walking pace — to 360,000 km/h,
well above the escape velocity of a rocket going into low-level orbit.

The indications

The flying-seconds hand at 10 o’clock goes around the dial in one second against a scale marked in
hundredths of a second, making it theoretically possible to time an object moving at 360,000 km/h, or
approximately 1/3000ths of the speed of light.

On the dial at 2 o’clock, the hand goes around in 20 seconds and the time scale is marked in seconds. The
outer tachometer scale shows the speed against odd numbers of seconds — 1, 3, 5, etc. — while the inner
scale corresponds to the even numbers of seconds.

The third dial, at 6 o’clock, where the hand goes around in 10 minutes, has a similar tachometer scale with
speeds corresponding to 20-second markers. Thus a kilometre travelled in three minutes 40 seconds
represents a speed of 16.4 km/h (to one decimal place).

Ergonomic chronograph control

The chronograph is started, stopped and zeroed by a rocker at 2 o’clock in the caseband instead of the usual
buttons on either side of the crown — an ergonomic solution that has been granted a patent.
The rocker turns a column-wheel that activates the levers in the start, stop and zero sequence in the
conventional way.

Patented chronograph mechanism

A second patent has been granted for the ingenious configuration of the mechanism, which effectively
isolates the chronograph from the timekeeping function. This means the amplitude of the balance is
unaffected when the chronograph is running.

This is achieved by using a single mainspring that unwinds at both ends, driving the chronograph trains
from the barrel arbor, and the going train of the movement from the barrel itself.
(This is similar to the mainspring system used in the Sonnerie Souveraine clockwatch).
The one-second counter and the 20-seconds counter are driven by two wheel-trains departing in either
direction from a single intermediate wheel working off the barrel arbor.
A separate train of wheels, also driven by the barrel arbor, moves the 10-minutes chronograph hand.

Flying seconds

The high-speed, flying seconds, released by the escapement of the watch, jumps around the dial 16 times a
second. A wheel, mounted on the fourth wheel of the movement engages a pinion carrying the flying-
seconds hand. This means that the flying seconds are driven by both the going train of the movement,
working off the barrel, and the chronograph train, working off the barrel arbor.
One ingenious feature of the flying-seconds hand is that it can be stopped anywhere along its one-second
journey around its dial, even between two 100th-second divisions, enabling an approximate fractional
reading.

This is done by vertically disengaging the pinion of the flying seconds from the escapement. A device
converting lateral movement into vertical movement pushes the pinion down onto a brake.

Back to zero

The 20-seconds hand and the 10-minutes hand are zeroed by hammer levers acting on snail cams. This
eliminates the play inherent in the conventional heart-pieces while ensuring that the two hands return to
zero anti-clockwise.

The flying-seconds hand is stopped at zero by a beak protruding from its pinion coming against a lever.

Maintaining power and power reserve

Maintaining power ensures that the watch can be wound without interrupting the driving power to the
movement or running chronograph.

The mainspring delivers at least 90 hours of power reserve, and 45 hours with the chronograph running. This message has been edited by bs22fly on 2007-04-19 19:27:15

Site Info.

Privacy Policy Cookie Policy