Inside the Bezel of the GMT-Master II 11671x

[Prof. Rolex]

Dear Rolex-Fans,
from the patent of the bezel for the GMT-Master II 11671x please find following some scans, which (hopefully) show the function of the bezel. At first you will find an explosion drawing of the bezel:



1=turning bezel with guidance (1a) and spring operated pins (14)
2=lower part with sinusoidal running path and 24 lock-in positions (2a) in which the pins (14) snap in
13=spring ring with 3 pins (14), equi-circumferential positioned every 120°

Following you will find a top view:



By turning the bezel the pins (14) operated by the spring ring (13) are lifted in their guidance (1a) through the sinusoidal running path and are then guided smoothly to the next lock-in position (2a) with a position shifted by 15°. The sinusoidal running path and the three equi-circumferential positioned pins ensure a smooth and bidirectional turning of the bezel. The design allows despite the smooth running of the bezel defined snap-ins of the bezel every 15°.

And now please have a look to another, very interesting picture from the patent:



This view has nothing to do with the GMT-Master, as the lower part (32) does NOT have a sinusoidal running path and 24 snap-ins, but a saw-toothed running path with much more snap-ins (33a). It can also be seen, that the turning bezel himself and the spring ring with 3 pins are unchanged. The bezel therefore can only be turned in one direction and is positionable in much more smaller steps. Here we have the preview of the bezel for the Submariner coming in the near future!

Best Regards
Matthias

[spacedweller]

interesting - thanks for sharing, Matthias !!

[Dr. K]

Thank you for the information & for sharing!

Greetings,
Marco.

[timske]

Thank you for information.... great scan

[jholbrook]

Wow....very cool! Where'd you dig this up from Matthias?

[Prof. Rolex]

Original von jholbrook
Where'd you dig this up from Matthias?

Hi John,
the scans are from the european patent No. EP 1 431 845 A1 (Title: Boite du Montre) published on 23th June 2004. Those patents can be seen under the homepage of the european patent office www.espacenet.com. The resp. US-Patent was published under the No. US 6 871 997 B2 (Title: Watch Case). I assume, that the US patent office also has a homepage, where patents are available for "public viewing".

Best Regards
Matthias

[jholbrook]

Originally posted by Prof. Rolex

Original von jholbrook
Where'd you dig this up from Matthias?

Hi John,
the scans are from the european patent No. EP 1 431 845 A1 (Title: Boite du Montre) published on 23th June 2004. Those patents can be seen under the homepage of the european patent office www.espacenet.com. The resp. US-Patent was published under the No. US 6 871 997 B2 (Title: Watch Case). I assume, that the US patent office also has a homepage, where patents are available for "public viewing".

Best Regards
Matthias

Very cool - thanks much!