Balance Wheel

As an important part of watches, the balance wheel functions as a rate regulator. This fine wheel is part of the balance-spring oscillating system and can be found especially in pocket and wrist watches. It is also known as the heart of the watch and ensures the precision and correct beat of the watches. To ensure this, the balance wheel oscillates at a certain frequency or oscillation period. Together with the escapement, it then ensures the partial release and stopping of the gear train within the watch. Since the problem of accuracy was a central issue in the development of clocks, research was carried out on this subject for a long time. Then, in the 17th century, Jean de Hautefeuille and Christiaan Huygens solved the problem by creating a balance wheel with a spiral spring. However, this watch component is not a single piece, but several individual parts. The system includes, for example, the balance rim, which is a thin wheel and contains the hairspring. The balance wheel thus forms the oscillating system of the watch and ensures the accuracy of the rate. The frequency of the balance is adjusted by bending, shortening or lengthening the hairspring so that the rate is even. On some watches, you can also see the balance wheel inside the dial.