Big Pilot’s Watch Perpetual Calendar Proset Le Petit Prince

IWC SCHAFFHAUSEN REDEFINES PERPETUAL CALENDARS WITH IWC- PROSETTM

IWC Schaffhausen unveils the Perpetual Calendar IWC-ProSetTM at Watches and Wonders in Geneva. This milestone in modern watchmaking ushers in a new era for perpetual calendars at IWC. For the first time, a completely synchronised and gear-based design ensures seamless forward and backward adjustability, making the calendar easier and more intuitive to set and operate than ever before. With a deviation of just one day after 1040 years, the moon phase display also reaches a new level of precision. This groundbreaking calendar innovation debuts in three editions of the Big Pilot’s Watch in 18-carat 5N gold, white ceramic and stainless steel, all powered by the IWC-manufactured 82665 calibre.

Displaying the intricate rhythm of the Gregorian calendar on the dial of a mechanical watch has been one of the greatest challenges in fine watchmaking. IWC Schaffhausen embarked on this journey over 40 years ago. In 1985, the Da Vinci Perpetual Calendar Chronograph (Ref. IW3750) introduced the world to the genius of Kurt Klaus. With his ingenious crown-controlled perpetual calendar, the legendary watchmaker defined this complication for decades. Inspired by his pioneering spirit and bold vision, the next generation of engineers at IWC is now building on Kurt Klaus’s legacy and carrying it into the future with the new Perpetual Calendar, IWC-ProSetTM.

“The Perpetual Calendar ProSet is a testament to the comprehensive expertise that our watchmakers and engineers have accumulated in mechanical calendar complications. Protected by several patent applications, this groundbreaking innovation radically redefines how a perpetual calendar is set and operated. Its fully synchronised design is entirely based on gears and makes adjusting the calendar forward and backward as easy and intuitive as setting the time,” explains Chris Grainger-Herr, CEO of IWC Schaffhausen.

The Perpetual Calendar ProSet is presented in three versions.

The Big Pilot’s Watch Perpetual Calendar ProSet Le Petit Prince (Ref. IW339601) features a 43-millimetre white zirconium oxide ceramic case and a deep blue dial with a gradient finish. The numerals and indices are printed in white on the dial, while the hands are rhodium-plated and filled with Super-LumiNova®. This watch is fitted with a white rubber strap featuring the EasX-CHANGE® system.

The Big Pilot’s Watch Perpetual Calendar ProSet Le Petit Prince (Ref. IW329601) features a 42-millimetre stainless steel case and 5-link stainless steel bracelet with EasX-CHANGE® system. The deep blue dial is complemented with rhodium-plated appliques for the indices and numerals, while the hands are also rhodium-plated. Both the appliques and the hands are filled with Super-LumiNova®. This watch comes with an additional blue rubber strap. With the integrated EasX-CHANGE® system, the metal bracelet can be exchanged for the rubber strap quickly and easily without any tools.

Both models feature stainless steel crowns and stainless steel case back rings with an engraving of “Edition Le Petit Prince”. As a charming reference to Antoine de Saint-Exupéry’s most famous novel, the rotor of the automatic winding system boasts a gold-plated medallion depicting the Little Prince on his asteroid.

The Big Pilot’s Watch Perpetual Calendar ProSet (Ref. IW329602) features a 42-millimetre 18-carat 5N gold case, crown and case back ring. The precious metal is paired with a dark olive green dial. The applied gold indices and numerals, and the gold-plated hands, are filled with Super-LumiNova®. This watch is fitted with an olive green buffalo leather strap with an 18-carat 5N gold pin buckle.

FORWARD AND BACKWARD CALENDAR ADJUSTABILITY

Like Kurt Klaus’s original mechanism, the Perpetual Calendar ProSet automatically accounts for varying lengths of months and adds a leap day every four years. While the dial maintains its familiar appearance, the internal mechanics have been completely overhauled. Engineered from the ground up with forward and backward adjustability in mind, the Perpetual Calendar ProSet is based entirely on gears with multiple functional layers and flexible, extendable and retractable fingers. This innovative new approach makes it possible to adjust the calendar in both directions using a single position of the crown. There is no need for separate corrector buttons, changes of crown positions or having to follow complicated setting menus. These adjustments can be made via the patented quick-correction function, moving the displays in precise daily steps.

MOON PHASE WITH AN ENHANCED ACCURACY OF 1040 YEARS

For the Perpetual Calendar ProSet, IWC’s engineers recalculated the reduction gear leading to the moon phase display. As a result, the indicator deviates from the moon’s actual orbit by just one day every 1,040 years. IWC’s signature Double MoonTM shows the phase of the moon as seen from the northern and southern hemispheres. Each night around midnight, the synchronised switching sequence advances the date, weekday and moon phase. At the end of a month, the month display is advanced by one position, and after twelve months, the year is moved forward. The four-digit year display, a hallmark of IWC’s perpetual calendars, is located between 7 and 8 o’clock.

A SMART MECHANICAL PROGRAMME ADJUSTS THE MONTH LENGTHS

In months with fewer than 31 days, the mechanical programme  of  the  calendar  comes  into  play. All adjustments are governed by a complex geometry arranged across several layers within the programme wheel. The month length wheel contains different elevations to provide information about the lengths of the months. In shorter months, its unique shape triggers the extension of flexible fingers. When these fingers are extended, the 24-hour wheel engages not one but several teeth during its nightly switching sequence, ensuring that the calendar advances directly to the 1st of the next month. At the end of February, the leap year wheel, which completes one revolution every four years, indicates whether it is a leap year. This information is also transmitted through a finger: in regular years, the finger is extended, while it remains retracted in a leap year.

MICRO-ENGINEERING ENABLES HIGHLY COMPLEX GEOMETRIES

Components such as the 24-hour wheel, the programme wheel, the month length wheel or the moon phase gears feature intricate geometries and must be manufactured with the highest precision. To achieve this, IWC utilises the advanced LIGA process. This micro-structuring technique combines lithography, electroplating and moulding. It enables the manufacturing of highly complex shapes and intricate geometries with previously unattainable levels of precision. Another significant advantage of this process is the capability to integrate multiple functional layers into a single component.

PRECISE AND STATE-OF-THE-ART AUTOMATIC CALIBRE

The calendar module has been integrated into the IWC-manufactured 82665 calibre, which is equipped with a nickel-phosphorus escapement and a silicon hairspring. The highly efficient Pellaton winding system uses movements of the oscillating mass in both directions to wind the mainspring. Components of the winding system that are subject to high stress, such as the automatic wheel or the clicks, are manufactured from virtually wear-free zirconium oxide ceramic. The movement is elaborately finished and decorated with circular graining and Geneva stripes. On all three new watches, the movement can be viewed through the transparent sapphire glass case back.