# Side-Reading Digitals



## Chascomm (Feb 13, 2006)

I'm not a designer so I'm not here to show you renders or prototypes, but I thought it might be interesting to explore a particular design theme which in my opinion has a lot of untapped potential, and need not remain the exclusive preserve of _haute horologie_. What I'm talking about is the Side Reading Digital Wristwatch.

An early famous example is the *Bulova Computron*.










This has sometimes been touted as a 'driver's watch' due to the display being at a suitable angle to be seen while driving without moving one's hand of the wheel. This of course is a complete furphy as the only way to activate the LED display is to take the other hand off the wheel. So I think that it is fair to say that in this instance the side-reading layout was a purely style-driven decision.

Now compare it with the *Girard Perregaux Casquette*...










This is very similar but the key difference is that the display is shrouded to reduce reflection and hopefully improve contrast on a sunny day (as genuine problem with LEDs in my part of the world). So here we have a practical reason for moving the display from the top to the side.

The *Synchronar* (whose engineering began before any LED watches had hit the market and takes a very original approach to almost everything) also has a shrouded display and also makes use of the top surface to house a very effective photovoltaic panel.










So much for LED watches. How about mechanical digital displays? Such as this one...










...or maybe not. :-d Similar but not so silly is the *Jaz Derby*










An electromechanical movement drives a set of rotating drums in an elegant installation that is as compact as possible while offering decent legibility.

But if that is too chunky for you then there is the cheap and cheerful, and very low-slung *Amida Digitrend*










Whereas the Casquette and Synchronar have their displays shielded from the sun, the Digitrend is fully exposed because the same prism that projects up the numbers on the flat disks also draws in the light needed to make them visible. As a result the display is not very clear and has a very narrow viewing angle. Perhaps not so good for reading while driving. I think it is a very cool looking concept, but very much a triumph of style over practicality.

Long ago I wondered if the Digitrend could be improved by illuminating the disks with light drawn through the top of the case, and perhaps using luminous numbers to improve contrast. It seems that *MB&F* has similar ideas with their rather expensive homage to the Digitrend, called *HM5*.










The HM5 has a set of louvres that may be opened to admit more light to charge up the luminous numbers. It is an elaborate solution and I can't help wondering if it could be done more simply with a permanent window.

And that brings me to my own idea for an affordable and practical side-reading digital watch...

Imagine a 'tank'-cased side-reader similar to the examples above, but with a simple negative monochrome LCD. Instead of a reflector behind the display, light is draw in through a window occupying most of the top of the case and projected via prisms through the back of the LCD. Using the kind of light-scattering techniques used in the design of camera flash filters it should be possible to get even, intense light through the display. The display should be well set back in the case with a black surround to maximise contrast. The advantage of this layout is that the brighter the ambient light, the brighter the display; and vice versa, so you're not blinded by your watch on a dull day. Electronic back-lighting could also be included for use at night.

What do you think? Does this concept have merit? How might it be improved? Are there other side-reading digital possibilities that you can imagine? I am aware of many other non-digital side-readers out there, but this post is about digitals only.

(incidentally, I'm not planning to make my own watch, so if you like this idea feel free to use it)


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## ar.javid (Feb 8, 2012)

Chascomm good post. 
I would buy one


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## Sonic_driftwood (Mar 5, 2014)

Awesome! I love the "idea" of these. Tough to find a big market though! Not very practical for most environments, especially now when time is clearly displayed for drivers in several displays.


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## Magura (Jun 7, 2014)

Nice thought.

Magura 


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## Chascomm (Feb 13, 2006)

Chascomm said:


> Imagine a 'tank'-cased side-reader similar to the examples above, but with a simple negative monochrome LCD. Instead of a reflector behind the display, light is draw in through a window occupying most of the top of the case and projected via prisms through the back of the LCD. Using the kind of light-scattering techniques used in the design of camera flash filters it should be possible to get even, intense light through the display. The display should be well set back in the case with a black surround to maximise contrast. The advantage of this layout is that the brighter the ambient light, the brighter the display; and vice versa, so you're not blinded by your watch on a dull day. Electronic back-lighting could also be included for use at night.


Looking over what I've written I realize that there is something that I have not addressed; the user interface. Electronic digital watches need buttons to operate the various functions. My concern here is that the top window not be obscured by one's hand while pressing the buttons, as that would dim the display. So if we assume that the watch is to be worn on the left hand, then if a button is to be located on the left side of the case, then it must be positioned close to the front (i.e. the display end) to be pressed with the thumb without reaching across the display, or close to the back end to be pressed with the index finger without reaching over the top window.


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## dspt (Apr 18, 2014)

I think that LCD can be put directly on the side, just as in the original Bulova Computron. The technology should allow this and this is obviously much easier then adding prisms. Light sensor could control the back-light sensitivity


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## The Guvnah (Nov 9, 2011)

Chascomm said:


> Electronic digital watches need buttons to operate the various functions.


Not necessarily; for set up perhaps but to simply illuminate the display you could use an accelerometer chip set to respond to a tap on the case or a flick of the wrist.


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## nixiebunny (Feb 2, 2015)

The Guvnah said:


> Not necessarily; for set up perhaps but to simply illuminate the display you could use an accelerometer chip set to respond to a tap on the case or a flick of the wrist.


I make a Nixie watch that uses an accelerometer to activate the display when it is tilted at the right angle. 
I just got a bunch of tiny end-view Nixie tubes, and I'm currently considering the production of a Nixie driver's watch similar to the one that Jeff Thomas started but never finished before passing away last year. He had some rolling ball thing with a timer to detect a flick of the wrist, according to his web page, but he never made so much as a drawing of a case. You can find his description page by asking Google for "nixie watch redux". 
That's the thing that I can't work out - what sort of gesture could be detected with an accelerometer, that would be easy to make while both hands are on the wheel, that is not going to make a lot of false positives.


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## Chascomm (Feb 13, 2006)

The Guvnah said:


> Not necessarily; for set up perhaps but to simply illuminate the display you could use an accelerometer chip set to respond to a tap on the case or a flick of the wrist.


My thought was that illuminating the display is taken care of 90% of the time and where artificial illumination is needed then it wouldn't matter if the natural light was obscured. My concern was more with the other functions available on an electronic watch such as alarm, date, chronograph, count-down, etc.


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## Chascomm (Feb 13, 2006)

nixiebunny said:


> I make a Nixie watch that uses an accelerometer to activate the display when it is tilted at the right angle.
> I just got a bunch of tiny end-view Nixie tubes, and I'm currently considering the production of a Nixie driver's watch similar to the one that Jeff Thomas started but never finished before passing away last year. He had some rolling ball thing with a timer to detect a flick of the wrist, according to his web page, but he never made so much as a drawing of a case. You can find his description page by asking Google for "nixie watch redux".
> That's the thing that I can't work out - what sort of gesture could be detected with an accelerometer, that would be easy to make while both hands are on the wheel, that is not going to make a lot of false positives.


Sounds like a tough project but surely worth persisting with. Good luck!


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