Astron (wristwatch)

The Astron wristwatch, formally known as the Seiko Quartz-Astron 35SQ, was the world's first "quartz clock" wristwatch. It is now registered on the List of IEEE Milestones as a key advance in electrical engineering.

Seiko Quartz-Astron 35SQ
TypeQuartz
DisplayAnalogue
IntroducedDecember 25, 1969

History

The Astron was unveiled in Tokyo on December 25, 1969, after ten years of research and development at Suwa Seikosha (currently named Seiko Epson), a manufacturing company of Seiko Group. Within one week 100 gold watches had been sold, at a retail price of 450,000 yen (US$1,250 (equivalent to $10,386 in 2023)) each (at the time, equivalent to the price of a medium-sized car).[1] Essential elements included a XY-type quartz oscillator of 8192 Hz (8192 = 213), a hybrid integrated circuit, and a phase locked ultra-small stepping motor to turn its hands. According to Seiko, Astron was accurate to ±5 seconds per month or one minute per year, and its battery life was 1 year or longer.[2]

Anniversaries

In March 2010, at the Baselworld watch fair and trade show in Switzerland, Seiko previewed a limited edition new version of the watch and related designs of the original Astron watch, commemorating the fortieth anniversary in December 2009 of the debut of the Astron watch.[3]

Second Generation

Seiko used the "Astron" trademark again as "Seiko Astron" when it released a satellite radio-wave solar-powered wristwatch using GPS satellites in 2012.[4]

50th Anniversary Model

In 2019, Seiko released several limited edition Astron models to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the quartz Astron.[5][6] Among them, the model produced in a limited edition of 50 pieces (3.8 million yen) mimics the original case design and has a rough engraving pattern by craftsmen belonging to Epson's "Micro Artist Workshop".[6]

Footnotes
  • "IEEE History Center: Electronic Quartz Wristwatch, 1969". IEEE.
  • "Seiko Quartz Astron 35SQ December 1969: The quartz watch that revolutionized horological history". Seiko Epson. Archived from the original on 2012-03-10. Retrieved 2012-07-22.
  • "The Watch That Changed Horological History" (PDF). Seiko Epson. Archived from the original (PDF) on March 31, 2010. (alternate version Archived 2022-03-16 at the Wayback Machine)

References
  1. The price of Toyota Corolla E10 was 432,000 yen (US$1,200) when it was released in 1966. Archived 2009-05-10 at the Wayback Machine
  2. "Seiko Quartz Astron 35SQ" (PDF). Seiko Epson Corporation. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2020-01-22. Retrieved 2018-01-22.
  3. "The new SEIKO Quartz Astron: A demonstration of SEIKO’s four decades of dedication to the perfection of the quartz watch", Archived 2013-03-19 at the Wayback Machine Seiko press release, March 18, 2010
  4. 世界初。全世界39のタイムゾーンに対応。ソーラーGPSウオッチ<セイコー アストロン>衛星シグナルをキャッチし、地球上どこでも現在時刻をすばやく取得 - セイコープレスリリース（2012年3月5日）
  5. クオーツ アストロン 50周年記念限定モデル - セイコー
  6. "セイコー、「クオーツ アストロン」誕生50周年を記念したトリビュートモデルを数量限定発売". トラベル Watch. 2019-11-01. Retrieved 2020-11-29.

Further reading
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.