ELECTRICAL INTENSITY

At the end of the 19th century, the watchmaking industry contributed to the rise of electricity in Switzerland and the rapid development of the domestic network. Machines, which had previously been manually and then hydraulically driven, were among the first beneficiaries, along with workshop lighting. Efficiency and productivity experienced unprecedented growth. Indirectly, reliability, precision, costs, and prices benefited from this advent.

In addition to production tools, electricity quickly found its way into measurement and control devices. Moreover, older technologies such as galvanic treatments or anodisation, and more recent ones such as electro-erosion or even femtosecond lasers, use electricity as a tool or vector for additive manufacturing. Thus, electrical conductivity is an increasingly important factor in material selection.

Regarding time measurement, the first electric clocks appeared as early as 1840, while electronic watches became widespread in the 1970s with the advent of quartz.

The electrical measurements a watchmaker might be required to take traditionally revolve around Ohm’s law and essentially consist of voltages, currents, and resistances.

According to the International System of Units (SI):

Voltage is symbolised by U. Its unit of measurement is the volt (V).

Current is symbolised by I. Its unit of measurement is the ampere (A).

Resistance is symbolised by R. Its unit of measurement is the ohm (Ω).

Although devices exist to measure each of these specifically (voltmeter, ammeter, ohmmeter), they are generally combined into a single device (the multimeter) which can measure all three values together.