Dans l'horlogerie moderne, de nombreuses complications parfois difficiles à produire (et donc très coûteuses) sont devenues de moins en moins nombreuses. Regardez les marques, guidées par le désir d'offrir une meilleure valeur aux consommateurs (et plus de pression pour le faire, en tant que boom de l'achat des années 2000), profitent de plus en plus des méthodes de fabrication industrielle pour faire des complications comme les tourbillons et les calendriers perpétuels Plus abordable que jamais. Mais il y a encore quelques complications qui résistent à cette tendance - et l'une d'elles est le répétiteur des minutes.
Audemars Piguet: Royal Oak Concept Supersonnerie
DIODE SA - DENIS HAYOUN
Audemars Piguet: Royal Oak Concept Supersonnerie
Plutôt que de devenir de plus en plus abordables, on observe presque la tendance inverse dans les répéteurs: ils deviennent, de plus en plus, des endroits où les marques mettent en valeur leurs compétences les plus élevées et, de même, les prix élevés. L'une des montres les plus récentes à entrer dans cette catégorie est la «Supersonnerie» d' Audemars Piguet : un répétiteur de huit ans en cours, destiné à offrir une série d'améliorations techniques que AP pense que cela ne fera que rien de plus que le meilleur Répétition dans le monde. (Le terme «sonnerie» est le plus souvent vu en référence à des montres de grande sonnerie, qui frappent le temps de passage plutôt que sur demande, mais le terme pris seul peut également se référer à un répéteur qui frappe à la demande. L'utilisation de " Sonnerie "ici pourrait être déroutant,
To understand why, it helps to look at what a minute repeater is, and how it does what it does.
The Supersonnerie incorporates, in addition to an advanced minute repeater, a 30-minute chronograph and tourbillon regulator.
©DIODE SA
The Supersonnerie incorporates, in addition to an advanced minute repeater, a 30-minute chronograph and tourbillon regulator.
A minute repeater is a watch that chimes the time “on demand” — that is, it rings the time when you tell it to. Typically, a repeater springs into action when you push a slide set into the side of the case. Pushing the slide winds a spring that powers the chiming operation. A classic minute repeater will ring on two gongs: one lower in pitch, and one higher. The hours ring on the lower pitched gong. The number of quarter hours past the hour are indicated by a chime on both the lower and higher gong. And the minutes chime on the higher gong.
Inside every minute repeater is a complicated system of gears, cams and levers making up the minute repeater complication. The minute repeater complication basically works by reading the time mechanically from the position of the hands, and then chiming the time. The minute repeater is not a new complication at all; it existed in basically its modern form by the time of Breguet.
Abraham-Louis Breguet was also fascinated from very early on by repeating watches. In 1783 he created the first striking repeating watch to be operated by a gong rather than a bell, which had been universally used until then. Initially straight, and mounted crosswise on the back plate, the gong evolved to a circular form, coiled around the movement. It had the advantage of dramatically reducing the thickness of striking watches, while at the same time making the tone more harmonious and clearer. An exceptionally useful invention, it was adopted immediately by most contemporary watchmakers. Breguet also invented multiple striking mechanisms for repeating watches, notably for the quarters, half-quarters and minutes. Just as in Breguet’s time, modern watchmakers face certain challenges: making the repeater as loud as possible but at the same time making it sound pleasant. Also, repeaters can chime the time at different tempos, depending on how the repeater is adjusted, and a watch that chimes too fast or too slow may sound unpleasant. Perhaps more than any other complication, a minute repeater requires the watchmaker to understand the watch as a whole, as the quality of sound is intimately related to the construction of the case and dial as well.
Lateral view of the case of the Supersonnerie. The apertures in the outer caseback, which allow for sound transmission from the gongs, through the inner resonating membrane, are visible.
©DIODE SA
Lateral view of the case of the Supersonnerie. The apertures in the outer caseback, which allow for sound transmission from the gongs, through the inner resonating membrane, are visible.
The Supersonnerie began with the idea of taking all the basic parts of a repeater – the striking system, case, regulating system, and so on — and seeing what could be done to improve them as much as possible. The project was spearheaded by Giulio Papi, and Audemars Piguet Renaud et Papi (APRP). APRP was founded in 1986, by Dominique Renaud (who has since left the company) and Giulio Papi, as Renaud & Papi, and, over the years, some of the most famous names in modern horology have worked there, including Stephen Forsey of Greubel Forsey and Cartier’s head of fine watchmaking, Carole Forestier. The company eventually became part of Audemars Piguet, which now has 80 percent ownership, and APRP has been known for many years as one of the top complications specialists in the world. That a research program was in place first became apparent to the general public when the Acoustic Research RD 1 concept watch was shown at the SIHH in 2015 – the watch could be heard, and the sound was remarkable, but Audemars Piguet gave few details as to the actual specifics of the development process. With the debut of the Supersonnerie, however, the steps taken in that research can now be discussed in more detail.
The first step was to analyze the sound created by a repeater, in order to have a solid, objective basis for changes and improvements. Traditionally repeaters were tuned, and had their sound refined, by ear. Today, however, finding a watchmaker with the necessary sense of musical tone is difficult (near impossible, Giulio Papi said, at a discussion at APRP) and so, having a sound profile of the optimum sound characteristics was a necessary way to begin.
The sound recordings took place in a special chamber designed to eliminate confusing echoes, and for the analysis, APRP was assisted by the École polytechnique fédérale de Lausanne (Swiss Federal Institute of Technology, Lausanne), which has a long history of providing technical assistance and microengineering expertise to watch brands. Eventually, a sound profile was created that allowed the first hurdle to be overcome: creating a way of making the gongs that was already close to the ideal sound character. The circular, hardened steel gongs of a repeater can be tuned in two basic ways: by reducing their overall length (which heightens the pitch) or by filling the base of the gong where it is attached to a small steel block. The ability to make a gong with certain ideal sound properties yielded the first patent associated with the Supersonnerie project. The second problem was that of sound transmission. Minute repeaters traditionally were not waterproof or dustproof. As the repeater is a delicate mechanism, repeating watches have never been sports watches, and also, a heavy, durable, waterproof watch case tends to muffle sound volume as well as deaden tone. The best-sounding traditional repeating watches, therefore, tended to have no gaskets, and to have relatively thin cases (the best sound was thought to come from rose gold). The Supersonnerie, however, is designed for 20-meter water resistance, and has a titanium case.