Added: 1 year ago
From: engineerguyvideo
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  • Good one 

  • Subscribed! I'm in the market to buy a watch, and the general concensus is that mechanical watches are superiour due to the feeling of it. Now I feel I needn't feel as though a quartz watch is any less special - they are just not as expensive.

  • After watching two tutorial videos, I am now subscribed. From Charleston AFB SC, thank you Mr. Hammack! You make every day apparatuses more understandable and enjoyable, one video at a time.

  • more videos please

  • Really helpful...i have always wondered about this thing and now i am clear...thanks bro!!

  • He is very simplified with the crysta. The crystal is actually in a resonant feedback look with an oscillator circuit. You cannot put DC from a battery directly across the crystal. The oscillator circuit goes in to a resonance and thus puts out the frequency. The oscillator is slightly fine tunable to tweak for greatest accuracy. The crytal circuit is loaded in the feedback loop to cause some distortions in the feedback signal. This loading is tunable with a trimmer capacitor, or by software.

  • Superb video!

  • I watched 3 of these videos and already learned more science & engineering in the past 10 minutes than I did in 4 years of high school.

  • How come a constant voltage sources as a battery sets of an oscillating current and oscillating crystal motion in the watch? I would've expect a constant deformation until the battery is dead?

  • way better than teachers

  • terrific!

    

  • 1$, in most dollar shop.

  • awesome!

  • Seeing him taking the watch apart reminds me of Mad Hatter in Alice in Wonderland. Hahaha.

  • haha keep pressing 6 and he says lol.

  • He's indirectly suggesting a raise on the quartz watch price.

  • Now a film please about the calculator how it calculates and displys results -also amazing

  • MADE IN CHINA FOR $10

  • the volume of the background music...IS TOO DAMN HIGH

  • IMMA STEAL TONS OF WATCHES AND BE RICH YIPEE THX 2 DA GOLD

  • how is the quartz held in place so that it is shock proof? And where do the current fluctuation come from...

    And where is the big hammer that can take everything apart, why the screwdriver?

    Also i kinda miss the jokes.

  • I see 2 people still prefer the water clock... how could anyone dislike any of this channel's videos? =/

  • As a kid, did your parent often get mad at you because you kept taking apart their home appliances?

  • you just said a lot of words

  • not as interesting as a mechanical watch

  • So that's how you pronounce "piezo-"!

  • so i can just buy alot of watches and take the gold and quartz and get rich?

  • @DAGrahmCRacka You'd make more selling the gold from your old mobile phone. It's used on pretty much every electronic contact point you get, but the amounts in it would cost far far far less than it would to buy and break down the parts to get it from whatever you get it from.

  • lol I never felt more proud wearing my cheap watch :P

  • So the onboard computer measures the quartz frequency to tell time? Cant the chip contain a program that tells time?

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  • @NorbPwn That's exactly what the program does. When the program counts exactly 32,768 pulses from the crystal, it knows that exactly one second has passed and breaks it down into minutes and hours to display the time. However, less featureful watches usually contain circuitry that does the same thing as a program would except cheaper and while using less power.

  • Damn, That's freakin amazing man. I had to idea that a digital watch was so... amazing!

  • Why aren't you a partner?! what's wrong with this world?!

  • you have a very soothing voice...gosh that sounded creepy, what i mean is, I had a really bad head ache and your voice made it go away. :)

  • Have you thought of writing a book consisting these short snippets of engineering?

  • @StRoRo Kind of ... for series #4 we are writing a companion volume that goes into more detail for those who want it .... not a textbook but instead something as approachable as we try to make the videos.

  • One more thing to add: the crystal is tuned to 32768 Hz because when this is divided by two 15 times (32768/2/2/2/2/2/2/2/2/2/2/2/2­/2/2/2) you get 1 Hz, which is one wave per second. In other words 2^15 = 32768 Hz.

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  • Thanks Bill, I just used you to prove to my girlfriend that the watch I gave her is as good as a Rolex. She's still made for some reason.

  • and i didn't know a single thing before i watched this. fascinating...

  • But will it blend?

  • why gold? and why doesn't it resonate differently when its hit? shouldn't it be thrown off if it is interrupted by something hitting the watch?

  • Grandpa Luke Skywalker talking about time... 0_o

  • I'll stick to my Panerai's and Omega's. Nice show though :)

  • So... ! Your telling me a Rolex and a $9.99 (~£4.80) watch, both Quartz, do the same *expletive* thing!?

  • @cpmc1 Indeed yes. Now when watches were purely mechanical there was a difference ... an excellent book to read is David Landes Revolution in Time ... I recommend it without reservation!

  • @engineerguyvideo Thanks. I'll try to get a read of it.

  • @engineerguyvideo That's where I'll get you wrong. Rolexes and extreme luxury watches are all tourbillon driven. That is what is to be expected at the least by high paying customers. Not only are they fully mechanical with no electric parts, but they are almost all hand tuned and assembled. They no longer make all the parts by hand (needless to say) as that would take to long.

  • @Ichvyenichalster And they are not as accurate.. so you pay more for a less accurate watch.

  • @engineerguyvideo you think you could do how a camera works

  • @engineerguyvideo But surely these super expensive watches must be more accurate or functional than cheap Wal-Mart ones.

  • @LordBifford I have noticed that the breakfast cereal watches tend to deviate from standard time more than my $30 multifunction sport watches.

  • @cpmc1 except rolex doesn't make quartz watches anymore.

  • @gyang333 But they still exist, and any already owned Rolex's are important due to the price. They have a great resale value.

  • This guy is awesome. He actually shines new light on shit I didn't even think about anymore.

  • What about radio controlled watches by Casio? these have a radio reciever that picks up the NPL, MSF signal the signal then goes to the osalator circuit and contols

    the time keeping.

  • I love the videos Bill, reminds me of an old BBC Television show called "The Secret Life Of Machines", hosted by Tim Hunkin and Rex Garrod, it was a bit of a tongue in cheek look at tech, and although a bit dated by todays standards (it was filmed back in the 80's), was very informative and entertaining nontheless.

  • @charleswolfman I always loved that show. In fact my viewers often mention it to me. Its an interesting question whether one could survive in this era with the leisurely pace - which I liked! - of their show ...

  • Thanks! I love your videos.

  • Liked and sub. Man that was great video answers my question competently thank you. keep up the great videos

  • excellent explanation thank you

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  • wow u have amazing presentation skills

  • Thank you for this informative video! I have to write an article for why someone would want to buy quartz movement or automatic movement, and your diagrams and explanations helped me alot! It will make things so much easier to write this in terms people like me could understand!!!

  • Dude, I have to say, your videos are just plain awesome. I've seen your transistor one, your telephone line/grocery checker one, and now this one. I love your videos--keep up the good work! :)

  • @thatTeeRavis Thx dude ... more on the way ... we are "soon" releasing series #3 ... had hoped the first would go out last week ... in fact I'm responding to youtube comments instead of editing as I should be doing ;-)

  • Thank you very much for this video! Were doing digital clocks in electronics and to see what's at the heart of it is rather fascinating.

    Thank you for this informative video!

  • Wow..very very well edited together video, very informative and entertaining...good music! :) I never knew that about watches.

  • Well, you had me up to the point you were talking about the vibrations of the crystal tuning fork, but you didn't really explain how those vibrations are translated into the movements of the watch's arms -or digital numbers. Are the vibrations translated into electrical pulses which move the arms -or change the numbers? How do these pulses actually move the arms -or change the numbers. This seems critical to understanding how the watch really works.

    I am trying to explain this to 5th graders.

  • @jsteed33 Fair enough. If you go to my website ... the address is given in the video under "learn more" banner on the video (YouTube prohibits URLs in comments!) ..... and click in the banner on "Watch Videos" and then choose the quartz watch video you'll see a set of "Learn more" links for that video. The article I posted there from the physics teacher is superb! It will explain what you need. Email me if you have problems find it and I can give you the URL. Let me know if this helps.

  • mechanical watches ftw!!!!!!!!!!!!!

  • this is soooooooooo awesome and interesting!!!!!!!!!

  • @engineerguyvideo

    I just love the fact you take time to replay to messages, even when to video is a month old.

    Subscribed.

  • @amitamar2 I suppose I MUST respond to this one ;-) We love to get viewer feedback: It is a hallmark and strength of this media as opposed to public radio for example where I did a lot of work in the past. Although one needs as thick a skin as possible .... my favorite comment comes from Reddit: "Mark Hamill has really let himself go."

  • Sorry, but i'm going to Douglas Admas on this one.

  • @amitamar2 I actually tried to incorporate his statement in here, but realized I DO "think digital watches are a pretty neat idea."

  • Quartz tuning forks are also used to create a clock pulse in the chipsets in your computer, phone, or just about any other moden electronic device. They're quite useful! :)

  • @anfedorov Indeed they are! I think most used in cell phones and computers use a different mode of vibration then the tuning fork configuration. . .. thus they vibrate at much higher frequencies ... the wikipedia page on quartz resonators show these other modes pretty well . . .

  • One person don't have 10 bucks...

  • BTW I really like your presentation style. I bet your lectures are quite interesting.

  • @bowlingb Thx again .. maybe we'll try blue next series!

  • anything but red. It seems to be bleeding all over the place. Then again maybe it's my monitor.

  • Great video as always. Please don't wear the red shirt again though. :-)

  • @bowlingb Sorry about the shirt. . . We have two. . . . What color do you want? Thx for kind words.

  • Thanks Mate, great info, please keep them coming

  • I subscribed because the best of youtube podcast posted this video.

  • @jr52990 I really appreciate this type of info ... we often have no idea where they are picked up and where people like viewing them. So thx ... and happy new year ....

  • @engineerguyvideo I found this on Reddit, subscribed :)

  • @nuclearlion Oddly this one has made it onto reddit twice ...

  • congrats man! you made the best of youtube podcast! Another great video as usual.

  • @SpooderW Thx ... and as always thx for your support from nearly the first video!

  • @engineerguyvideo no problem. Keep 'em coming! :D

  • U of I <3

  • Interesting. 

  • great video

  • True crystal power. Take that, New Age !

  • Love this. I've always wondered how these little watches worked.

  • I thought the background music was just fine

  • You're my hero. I love finding out how things work. Watched queuing theory the other day and I will now being looking through old videos :) Thanks!

  • Hello from Reddit (voice of the internet)

  • The background music didn't bother me. I'm using regular low-end desktop PC speakers.

  • Great video, very informative! I already knew about the constant resonance of some measurement of the quartz but it was great to see this all put together in a way anybody can see. Also, I didn't know they actually shaped it like a fork, or used gold to perfect the timing.

  • Sylar approves of this video.

  • WWAAAHHHHHHH THE BACKGROUND MUSIC!!! MUST KILL EVERYONE!!!!

  • you call it quartz, i call it witchcraft.

  • wow subscribed!

  • You are my new Bill Nye the Science Guy....

  • Love engineering. Love physics.

  • Cool! :)

  • Your videos are great! I agree with Johnnicely, go to the Science Channel or similar venue and propose a show. These watches are so common, yet no one really knew how they work, outside the industry. You really make complicated stuff look simple! I am in awe every time I watch one of these videos. It's amazing that most things use simple machines, even if not obvious.

  • I love your videos, man 1019 Likes and 1 Dislike is gooood. :)

    Make a TV show! :) You're like the Alton Brown of the how-it-works world. :)

  • Thanks engineer guy!!!

  • Doe the Piezoelectric effect cause deformation or vibration (difference being that vibration is a *periodic* deformation).

    What sort of mechanism controls the excitation interval of the battery voltage to the crystal?  How does the battery/supply know when/how-much excitation to supply to crystal. It seems that a simple DC current would cause the fork to simply deform, without vibration to speak of. What determines the character of the excitatory impulse from the battery?

  • Bravo

  • saw this on reddit.com

  • Good video - but the background music was up a bit much.

  • @xcaiver too loud? too repetitious? always interested in feedback.

  • @engineerguyvideo just a little loud while there was speech, if it was turned a little down, then the video would be PERFECT! Informational and interesting, thank you!

  • @TheImmortalness Thx for feedback. It is invaluable. Here's the deal: Mixing the sound is maybe the most difficult part because we have no control over the speakers used ultimately ... so we try with different systems, with tiny one and bigs ones and before and after compression ....and take a stab at what works ... it is both evolving and a moving target!

  • @engineerguyvideo you can always ask one of us, audiophiles with the heavily expressed anal retentive trait :)

  • @engineerguyvideo If you keep dialogue between 12db and 18db while music is at 20db - 23db, you'll be golden. Any major editing program will allow you to view the db of the audio tracks.

  • @engineerguyvideo You always have interesting videos, and love the fact you listen to others' criticism and not lash out. Subscribed. :]

  • @engineerguyvideo You could try to just record your voice, and add music in at the editing stage? And you know the comment i made is literally not a problem, i saw that you wanted feedback so i tried to provide some, and had to nit pick, the music volume is perfect at 1:00 min. Looking forward to some new videos, you do what "How stuff is made" tries to do, but without getting boring :D Keep on doing what you do so well!

  • @engineerguyvideo If it's too much trouble to lower the background volume, I would suggest just scrap it (or just leave it for the intro/credits)! It interrupts my though process while I'm listening to you talk. Thanks for the vid though! It's great!

  • @engineerguyvideo I actually didnt have much trouble with the background music, but I think it would be good to put some more compression on the voice (if there is any), and duck/gate the background music using the voice as a sidechain input, so that the music will be turned a few db down when you speak. interesting vid!

  • @engineerguyvideo What always works for me is to turn the speakers down to a volume where you can barely hear the speech. If the music is mixed properly, you'll barely be able to hear the music.

    As an editor for 30 years, I think your delivery is great...if you lower your music and FX it'll be even better.

    Great video, btw!

  • @engineerguyvideo

    Too loud, do not need it when your talking its too over powering, have it when your not talking or transitions.

    Great video.

  • @engineerguyvideo I think the music is a nice touch, informative and interesting!

  • @engineerguyvideo The music was fine to me. Not distracting at all.

  • @engineerguyvideo too loud. It wasn't so loud that it was hard to hear you talking, but it was loud enough that it was distracting at some points.

  • Great videos!

  • how do they measure the frequency of quartz vibration?

  • @amnesiai Also interested in this.

  • luke?

  • @engineerguyvideo Have you seen "The Secret Life of Machines"? Well worth a watch if you haven't seen it already, pretty sure it will inspire you

  • Great video! Thank you for explaining that to us!

  • excellent informative video. great job man, keep doing it.

  • Keep making great videos. Science is awesome. Help people see that.

  • Your videos are fantastic. Concise and with great commentary.

  • Amazing info! I'm now wondering if the Citizen Eco-Drive watch works by the same concept except it exchanges light to energy then to the quartz?

  • i read somewhere that quartz watches lose a couple seconds every day...is that just because of the +/- .06 hz?

  • I wonder, can any animals actually hear the vibration of the quartz crystal?

  • I like this video, short and educative :) thank you for making these! It's like a short episode of "how it's made" with the extra bit of science in it!

  • education in US sucks

  • Thank you, I thoroughly enjoyed this video. Very fascinating insight. I hope you keep making these!

  • So do you think my phone/camera would have one of these in it? Or would it state it somewhere?

  • I'm no engineer but I love this kind of stuff. Keep up the great videos!

  • Clear and concise explanation, but watch your sig figs! Should be (32768.00+/-0.06)Hz.

  • @pastamancer07 Yeah, I hate it when I make errors ... sigh.

  • @engineerguyvideo

    If you meant 1/600 Hz (as you said in the audio track), that would actually be +/- 0.00167 Hz, not 0.06 Hz as you stated in your slide. I'm not sure which one you meant.

  • @ragingtoxin It should be 0.0.6 ... I erred in my voiceover.

  • I knew roughly why quartz was used in watches like this, but I didn't know that it was a quartz fork, or tuned with gold--very interesting! It is, indeed, rather amazing that they're so cheap!

  • thanks! ive always wondered how "quartz" movement works

  • Always wondered what a "quartz" digital watch meant. Thanks for the informative video.

  • really nice video! It was a pleasure to watch it

  • A good example for the piezoelectric effect would be one of those grill lighters that use a quartz crystal to make a spark.

  • Nice video broham!

  • @yoboss1049 I admit to being so old that I had to go to the Urban Dictionary to find out what "broham" mean. Thx back to you broham.

  • He picked that watch because it matches his shirt.

  • @jerowee I picked it because it stands out again the blue table ... and in general we like jewel tones, or as close as we can get. Also, we didn't want something shiny ... that's hard to work with ... although dulling spray is our friend!

  • I've Always wanted to know this, but always forget to look it up on wikipedia!

    This video is great! It saves a lot of time, since I don't read super fast.

  • Awesome!

  • the new bill nye!

  • xtal controlled oscillators aren't that accurate. GPS uses atomic clocks for the broadcast, too. so don't be too praising.

  • @wesisapie Didn't mean to imply that THIS watch and quartz oscillators in general where the end all for time, but that more and more precise timekeeping is a hallmark of the modern age .... as you point out the time signal used in GPS ... thx for making this point.

  • mind = blown.... fkn subscribed

  • Amazing video!!