Notes on a watch idea: two screens, a real crown for setting time, a software “movement” you can see on the back, and a phone app that shows the same model with all the parts labeled. Written down so we don’t lose the thread. Early research, not a build plan.
Worth keeping as a concept. Fine to prototype in software. Hardware is optional; the shared software model is the actual idea. Fits as one research/product lane among others (same way a firm can run markets work and hardware ideas in parallel).
The point is not another smartwatch face with spinning gears. It’s closer to: keep time accurately with electronics, but set it like a watch, flip it over and see something that behaves like a movement, and open an app when you want the full breakdown. First version should stay simple — hours and minutes, maybe small seconds, micro-rotor style on the back. No grande complications.
Real mechanical movements that look good through a sapphire back are expensive and slow to change. Custom work is worse. Smartwatches go the other way: any graphic you want, accurate time, sensors, but the “movement” is usually a wallpaper. The gears don’t mean anything.
There’s room for something in the middle. The calibre is software. The case is still a watch-shaped object with a crown. You get fast iteration and accurate time without pretending you run a manufacture.
Jewellery CAD, SolidWorks-style watch construction, and hybrid smartwatches with real hands all exist. None of them are quite “this software calibre is the product, shown on the back and fully openable in an app.”
Internal name: Digital Calibre.
Dual-display watch. Front is the dial (any design we ship as a pack). Back shows the movement running. Crown sets time the normal way. Phone app is the same movement with explode views and part names. You should not need the phone to tell time.
| Piece | Job | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Front display | Dial | Must stay readable. Design packs, not a widget board. |
| Crown | Set time | Pull and turn with clicks. Not a nested settings menu first. |
| Back display | Movement view | One calibre look. Wake when you flip or tap. Locked to the clock. |
| App | Full model | Labels, explode, slow-mo, cosmetics. Optional day to day. |
| Timebase | Actual time | Quartz-class or better. Phone sync optional. Works offline. |
Real hands feel classic but lock the dial and add motors. We already said the front should be free to change design. Two screens fit that better: front for the dial, back for the movement.
If front and back are both free wallpapers, there’s no reason to pay for two panels.
| Action | What it does |
|---|---|
| Turn (in) | Wind feel / scroll / brightness |
| Pull 1 | Set minutes / hours, haptic ticks |
| Pull 2 | Later: date, TZ, dial switch |
| Push | Confirm / back out |
Two screens plus animation will kill the cell if we’re careless.
Target for the first software calibre: a thin automatic that people flip over to look at, not a sealed brick. Below is the kind of feature set that makes watches in this class get sought after — and what that means for a digital version.
| Feature / quality | Why it matters on a real watch | Digital version |
|---|---|---|
| Micro-rotor winding | Full rotor covers the works; micro-rotor leaves the architecture open while still self-winding | Rotor is the main moving piece on the back; driven by wear / IMU |
| Thin, compact stack | Sits better under a cuff; feels modern instead of thick dress-watch | ~30 mm class footprint, low height — good mental model while we fight dual-screen thickness |
| Exhibition caseback (and finishing that rewards it) | People pay for something worth looking at: bevels, frost, contrast, clean layout | Back display exists for this; finishing is art, not a second complication |
| Hours, minutes, small seconds | Enough life without a busy dial; small seconds proves the train is running | Same functions; small seconds locks the animation to the clock |
| Steady modern beat (e.g. 4 Hz) | Smooth seconds hand feel; balance looks alive in open views | Balance animation at a readable rate; no need for real isochronism physics |
| Useful power reserve (~2 days class) | Can sit overnight and still run; less “did I wind it?” anxiety | Reserve meter as battery story or pure fiction; drain/fill rules |
| Visible barrel / energy path | You can read where power lives; open barrel covers are a common flex | Barrel as a clear node in the model, not hidden under a solid plate |
| Readable bridge architecture | Layout you can follow with the eye — not a junk drawer of bridges | Flat stack, named parts in the app, caseback only shows the heroes |
| Jewel contrast / light play | Small reflective points make the open movement feel finished | Materials pass on screen; easier to overdo — keep it restrained |
| Quiet time-only identity | No date window clutter unless you need it; the object stays calm | No date/chrono on v1; complications later as packs if ever |
| Chronometer-grade rate (aspirational on metal) | Buyers trust a movement that holds a tight daily error band | Electronics already win on accuracy; don’t fake “COSC” theatre — just keep time |
| Rotor decoration / mass that feels intentional | The spinning weight is jewelry, not a blank disc | Original rotor art; high visual weight when it moves |
First software calibre should feel like it belongs in that class: open, thin-looking, micro-rotor front and center, calm dial side. Invent the architecture; don’t cosplay a specific commercial movement.
Gear angles and hand positions are normal code (ratios and a clock). Don’t use ML for the tick. ML is only useful later for textures, help text, maybe classifying how active the wear day was.
| Real feature | Software |
|---|---|
| Hours / minutes | Angles from one timebase |
| Small seconds | Drives the visible train |
| Balance ~4 Hz | Looks right; not real hairspring physics |
| Micro-rotor | IMU or fake wear + coast |
| Power reserve | 0–1 number that drains and fills |
| Crown set | Overrides displayed time while pulled |
Date, chrono, calendars, minute repeater are all doable as separate logic later. They make validation and UI much bigger. Leave them off the first freeze. Repeater notes exist in private scratch if we ever want them.
| Work | Difficulty | Comment |
|---|---|---|
| Time + gear graph | Low–medium | Good first prototype target |
| 3D viewer | Medium | Art and pivot points take longer than the math |
| Dual-display hardware | Medium–hard | Thickness, water resistance, battery, BOM |
| Crown feel | Medium | Mostly ID + haptics tuning |
| Looks expensive | Hard | Taste, not pure engineering |
| Exact clone of a real calibre | Hard + legal mess | Don’t |
Browser demo with crown set, small seconds, rotor, balance: short project if we care. Actual wrist hardware: months minimum, and only if we still want it after the demo.
| Stage | Output | Done when |
|---|---|---|
| 0 | This note + private archive | On the site under Concepts |
| 1 | Browser demo | Crown set, seconds, rotor, balance, locked to clock |
| 2 | App shell | Explode, labels, dial skin swap |
| 3 | Hardware spike (optional) | Two screens + crown on a known module; measure battery |
| 4 | Design freeze (optional) | One calibre identity, materials, WR target |
Parked under Concepts. No production freeze and no customer promise yet.
Keep: two screens, crown set, micro-rotor-style first calibre, normal kinematics, app as the deep view.
Defer: hardware program, complication catalog, dial marketplace.
Contact: martialsys@gmail.com — general only. This page isn’t an RFP.
