Springs were originally used to power a watch and would usually need to be wound each day. Springs were short lived, often requiring replacement several times during the lifespan of the watch, very few new watches use owner wound springs today. Self-winding watches are still produced; these use a spring which is continually wound by the movement of the wearer’s body.
Kinetic power is used by some watches to power an electronic movement, this movement will power a small generator that is used to run a quartz movement, in a very similar fashion to a self-winding spring watch.
The most common form of power in a modern watch is the battery which is cheap to produce, easy to replace, and long lived. The Hamilton Watch Company produced the first battery powered watch, called the Hamilton Electric 500, in 1957. Modern watch batteries are very small and capable of producing tiny amounts of electricity over a very long period.
A much newer invention is the light powered watch; these will use a photovoltaic cell to charge a battery of capacitor. The movement will pull its power from the battery, and as long as the watch spends some time in bright light, then the battery will be kept charged.
Kinetic power is used by some watches to power an electronic movement, this movement will power a small generator that is used to run a quartz movement, in a very similar fashion to a self-winding spring watch.
The most common form of power in a modern watch is the battery which is cheap to produce, easy to replace, and long lived. The Hamilton Watch Company produced the first battery powered watch, called the Hamilton Electric 500, in 1957. Modern watch batteries are very small and capable of producing tiny amounts of electricity over a very long period.
A much newer invention is the light powered watch; these will use a photovoltaic cell to charge a battery of capacitor. The movement will pull its power from the battery, and as long as the watch spends some time in bright light, then the battery will be kept charged.
Thermal power is infrequently seen in watch design; this power source will use the difference in temperature between the wearer’s skin and the surrounding environment to produce a very small electrical charge.