Well, basically the title says it all. The catch is that the magnifying glass is not separate, it's on the actual hand of the watch, thus rotating along with it. The watch face would include the hour as they normally do, and through the magnifying glass you could see either a color-coded or somehow simplified notation of the minutes, along with an extra mark on the lens itself for precise reading. The watch would of course only be able to show some 5 minute increments, and you'd have to have pretty good vision to read it, but I think it would be a neat gadget.-- gutza, Apr 22 2004 same idea, less accuracy http://www.halfbake...ddhist_20Wristwatch [yabba do yabba dabba, Oct 17 2004] one-handed 24 hour watch http://www.thinkgee...dgets/watches/6004/At $425 this watch is a little over the top with features, but it seems to work, even without a magnifying glass. "Oops, I missed my 3:17 appt." [joking victim, Oct 17 2004] What it might look like . . . maybe . . . sort’a http://bz.pair.com/fun/automagtic.jpg[43KB image] [bristolz, Oct 17 2004] Indeed.-- yabba do yabba dabba, Apr 22 2004 Yeah, i'd have one of these!-- MikeOliver, Apr 22 2004 Yep, nice.-- half, Apr 22 2004 // The watch would of course only be able to show some 5 minute increments//
Not if it were big enough!-- phundug, Apr 22 2004 "Not if it were big enough", or if you eyesight was good enough!-- MikeOliver, Apr 22 2004 Say you have good eyesight and the magnifying glass can magnify some 0.5 mm high figures enough for you to read them (I assume the figures would "radiate" from the center of the watch, i.e. they would be vertical around noon and horizontal at 3).
You'd have to represent 60 of these to show each minute in the hour. 60 x 0.5 = 30 mm, which is 3 cm. Let's round that to pi for the purpose of this calculation. You'd end up with a inner perimeter for the minute marks 12 x pi cm long. Since perimeter is 2 x pi x radius, that means the inner minute marking circle must have a 6 cm radius. Add another cm for the hour markings and the watch frame and you end up with a whopping 14 cm (5.5") diameter. I wouldn't wear that.-- gutza, Apr 22 2004 Good link there, joking victim, it's close enough and personally I like the day/night indicator. Not very accurate--misses the magnifier, see?--, but it's pretty darn close.-- gutza, Apr 22 2004 Sounds like an application for a vernier scale. 59 on the "hand", and 60 on the dial.-- Ling, Apr 22 2004 [Bristolz], You never cease to amaze me. How can you do it so fast?-- Ling, Apr 23 2004 Nice idea [gutza]. [bristolz] - freakish. +-- Lacus Trasumenus, Apr 23 2004 Bristolz, whoa! If you're keen on using your 3D skills, might I suggest checking out http://www.wikipedia.org -- they always need a hand, especially regarding graphics representation of various concepts, and you'd also put your talent to use in a nobler direction IMHO. That doesn't mean I don't appreciate your representation of my idea, it's obviously flattering. Just a couple of notes if you're in the mood to revisit the rendering: I would go with "0" instead of "60" for minutes, and the extra marking on the lens should be a lot thinner. But other than that, nice design!-- gutza, Apr 23 2004 Better now?
I only do ignobly directed illustration.-- bristolz, Apr 23 2004 I just want to know that the other hand's doing. Or maybe I don't.-- DrCurry, Apr 23 2004 "Ti ti ti" - the sound of one hand ticking.-- FarmerJohn, Apr 23 2004 Bristolz, yes, much better. And nice comment about ignoble illustration, I can't beat that. Have fun!-- gutza, May 03 2004 random, halfbakery