COVER STORY
Right: The Rudis Sylva RS 14
Left: The seconds indicator bridge on the RS 16 is made from titanium and is hand-beveled.
Below: Rudis Sylva Watchmaker Mika Rassinen, who developed the Harmonious Oscillator from an idea by Roman Gillet.
outward-facing teeth around the perimeter of each balance.
Rudis Sylva’ s watchmaker, the Finnish-born Mika Rissanen, created the Harmonious Oscillator from a concept conceived by local watchmaker Romain Gillet. Rissanen has made this seemingly impossible engineering feat a reality by truncating the already unusual tooth design on the perimeter of each balance. Each meshes with the other without binding or interfering with the free swing( s) of the dual balance system. The symmetry and energy of the balance springs are in permanent opposition, enabling instantaneous average correction in the vertical position. The link ensures the same amplitude.
In the same position, the typical stable tourbillon will correct differences due to gravity in about a minute or so. The Harmonious Oscillator, according to figures from Rudis Sylva( see illustration on pg. 46), seems to offer better accuracy than conventional tourbillons or carrousels.
ONGOING INNOVATION While now presented within RS 16, which debuted this past summer, The Harmonious Oscillator was first seen at Baselworld 2009 in the Rudis Sylva RS 05. The brand at that time was just a few years old. Its founder is former Zenith and Rodolphe executive Jacky Epitaux who started the watch brand to honor the mountainous Franches Montagnes region east of La Chauxde-Fonds known primarily for its watch component businesses. Hence, he named his new brand Rudis Sylva, which is actually of an old name given to the nearby town of Les Bois by a historic figure in the region Jean Ruedin, who named the area after himself( Rudis) and the Latin word for forest( Sylva), which dominated the region at the time.
Today all the company’ s components are produced in or near the company’ s atelier in Saignelégier or from the nearby watchmaking mecca of Le Locle.“ Rudis Sylva has remained true
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WRISTWATCH | 2017