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Revolution Awards 2017: Revolutionary Watch — Zenith Defy Lab Caliber ZO 342
News
Revolution Awards 2017: Revolutionary Watch — Zenith Defy Lab Caliber ZO 342
Reviving a name from its past, “Defy” having stood for disruptiveness and boldness, Zenith has used the range to showcase a rethinking of British horologist Robert Hooke’s invention of the balance and hairspring principle (erroneously credited to Dutch scientist Christiaan Huygens until the discovery of a missing manuscript in 2006). The key element of the watch is a monolithic silicon oscillator, replacing the classic Swiss anchor, hairspring and balance wheel.
In the caliber ZO 342, Zenith has done away with the conventional balance, lever and balance spring, as well as a conventional shock-resistance system. The revolutionary essence of the ZO 342 is its single-piece nature, which Zenith says eliminates around 30 components. Guy Sémon, the physicist known for his radical work as general director of Zenith’s sister brand TAG Heuer, devised the Zenith oscillator, etched from a silicon wafer using the latest techniques to guarantee absolute consistency in manufacture for all physical and operational parameters.
Zenith will only produce 10 of these, a means of letting this amazing technology escape into the real world. While it remains to be seen how widespread its usage will be, the Zenith Defy Lab certainly tips its hat to the name of this magazine, and we in return are delighted to identify it as the Revolutionary Watch of 2017.