[New for 2022] Ressence Type 3 BBB, a monochrome oil-filled watch

Belgian watch manufacturer Ressence has announced a new model, the Type 3 BBB, a monochrome representation of the world's first oil-filled mechanical watch.

The new model, "Type3BBB," inherits the evolution of "Type3B" and "Type3BB." The "BBB" in this model stands for the black case, black dial, and black buckle and strap. It will be produced for a limited period of one year until December 31, 2022.

Oil-filled watches

　Ressence continues to challenge the status quo of mechanical watches, and in 2013, its Type 3, equipped with a design that transcends the expression of time and innovative technology, won the Horological Revelation Award at the Grand Prix d'Horlogerie de Genève. Its oil-based movement offers visual effects and high legibility.

Visual effects

The optical illusion created by filling the space between the dial, which is set with minute and hour hands, date, day of the week, thermometer, etc., and the domed sapphire crystal with oil creates a visual effect and a flowing fluidity.

High visibility

The watch is equipped with the in-house developed (patented) ROCS unit (Ressence Orbital Convex System), which allows the dials to constantly move as if they are on an orbit, chasing each other.The information on the dial, which appears to be refracted by the oil, is displayed as if it were a single picture, achieving high visibility.

Perfect black pebbles

　The Ressence Type 3 BBB features Ressence's unique crown-free case and edge-to-edge glass. Its polished black DLC-coated titanium case (grade 5) features lustrous sapphire crystals on both the front and back of the watch. To create a striking face design, the indicators are available in white and light gray, creating a striking contrast with the black dial and case. Its rounded, ergonomic shape evokes the image of a perfect black pebble.

ROCS (Ressence Orbital Convex System)

　The ROCS, which consists of 215 individual components, is a mechanism that allows the dials to constantly move in tandem, tracking each other, and its primary purpose is to tell the time in a more efficient way. The gears in the ROCS calculate the hour, day of the week, and date using the minutes information from the automatic movement as a reference.

　One of the challenges the Ressence team faced in creating the ROCS was ensuring the escapement would oscillate properly in a viscous liquid. Using innovative ingenuity, they designed a two-chamber system, separating the mechanical chamber from the oil-filled chamber. The lower chamber houses a customized automatic movement, while the upper chamber is a sealed space where the ROCS display unit is submerged in 35.7ml of oil.

　The two-chamber system means there is no direct connection between the watch movement and the ROCS. Therefore, a method suited to this structure is to connect the modules using magnetic transmission. Multiple micro-magnets are placed in the upper chamber, filled with oil, and the lower chamber, which is dry, utilizing the mutual attraction between them. To compensate for the oil's characteristic volumetric fluctuations due to temperature, the watch is equipped with a system of seven tiny bellows called bellows, each of which contracts in response to the volumetric fluctuations of the oil.

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