Tissot Six-T (T02118184)

L'ImpartialA number of blind people use hunter watches as they can lift the glass and calculate the hours according to the position of the hands by running their fingertips over the dial. Some are able to tell the time with relative approximation by touch alone; the majority however find it difficult to work it out, not to mention the fact that fingering the hands in this way, however gently, can cause them to break or at any rate shift in one direction or the other, thus increasing the scope for error. An Austrian from Vienna came up with the idea of replacing the Roman numerals on the dial with a sequence of conventional signs allegorically reminiscent of the hour denoted by them.The Lukaschovsky system (named after its inventor) consists in the representation of one o'clock by a dot, two o'clock by two dots, three o'clock by a triangle, four o'clock by a square, five o'clock by a five-point star, six o'clock by a zero. On the first half of the dial the signs are in relief while on the second half they are symmetrically reproduced but are concave. The hands are made of steel and are robust enough to withstand frequent finger contact. Another system devised by P. Tissot, a watchmaker from Le Locle (Switzerland), has the advantage over the previous watch of employing Braille characters, already familiar to the blind. Furthermore, the dial features minute divisions represented by tiny raised dots.EXAMPLES OF WATCHES FOR THE BLIND
The A. Reymond Manufactury, true to its pioneering spirit, worked tirelessly at the cutting edge of technological and aesthetic advances in watchmaking. Accordingly, in the early 1950s, its engineers developed new products that would secure the reputation of the brand for over 20 years: 'jumping hours' digital watches and Braille watches for the blind. Even today, Auguste Reymond is the undisputed specialist in tactile watches for the blind, marketed under the ARSA (Auguste Reymond S.A.) trademark. A replica of a 'jumping hours' watch, dubbed 'Jumping Jive', was made in 1994. All 500 timepieces in this series are already treasured by collectors of rare watches.
(Reymond Auguste SA / rue de la Promenade 29 / 2720 Tramelan BE / tel 032 487 42 46) / www.augustereymond.chOTHER WATCHES FOR THE BLIND
Tissot "Silent T" watchesHot on the heels of the renowned "T-Touch" comes the "Silent-T". To celebrate its 150th anniversary, the Tissot watch brand - owned by the Swatch Group - has launched a watch which uses silent vibrations to tell the time. The partially sighted are a target public, but are not the only ones. "The Silent-T is first and foremost a watch for busy executives rushing between meetings who need to 'feel the time or set the vibration alarm without offending their business partners, knowing though that the discussion needs to be brought to a close", in the words of the Le Locle-based company.How does this new Tissot-signed innovation work? "By pressing briefly on the crown and then running your finger around the screen, the wearer can "feel" the time thanks to a constant vibration on the hour and intermittent vibrations for the minutes. These different vibrations correspond to one of twelve raised features on the bezel", explains the watchmaking firm. For the ultimate in discretion, the watch "comes with a silent vibrating alarm which, like the automatic time-setting, can be activated and checked simply by pressing the crown and moving the finger anti-clockwise around the screen".The design of this technology has taken years to develop. Tissot did not work alone. Numerous associations were involved "to ensure that the watch met all the requisite criteria". There is no doubt that it marks a breakthrough for the sight-impaired community.The "Silent-T" features a quartz movement with silent alarm. The tactile sapphire crystal glass is scratch-resistant. The watch is waterproof to 30 metres. It comes in a choice of a black, white or silver dial, a stainless-steel bracelet or a leather strap.The Lorm gloveTo launch this product in Switzerland, Tissot has backed a project set up by the UCBA (Swiss Union for the Welfare of the Blind). It is a Lorm glove "which, like the watch itself, combines touch and creativity for easy and efficient use", according to a spokesperson from Le Locle. For each watch sold in Switzerland, Tissot and its retailers will pay 15 francs each to support the UCBA project.This project is "the only one of its kind in the world", allowing sighted people to "enter the world of the deaf-blind and to communicate easily without having to undergo a lengthy apprenticeship". What does it involve? "The entire sound alphabet (or, for example, the letter c once and not c and k) is printed on the glove. By simply applying slight pressure of the finger to trace the lines, arrows and dots, it is possible to make yourself understood".This digital alphabet was developed by Hieronymus Lorm, whose real name was Heinrich Landesmann. Born in the Czech Republic in 1821, the essayist, journalist and playwright became almost blind at the age of 16 and created a system to allow the visually-impaired to converse.