Bell & Ross alters the design of telling the time

First published: 25-08-2010

A Bell & Ross aviation watch has challenged preconceptions about which item moves around on the face to tell the time.

Whereas in many timepieces, hour, minute and, sometimes, second hands are displayed for reading purposes, the Bell & Ross Instrument BR 01-92 Compass instead used two discs that rotate around a stationary vertical line, writes Watch Report.

One of these discs displays the hours and another minutes and time is then read by seeing which two numbers are at the vertical line.

The watchmaker was founded in 1992 as an attempt to create watches that will be "suiting a professional use" and this particular design is said to have been inspired by traditional compasses found in aviation vehicles.

Other features about the timepiece includes a sapphire crystal coating that uses anti-reflective technology and a 100 metre maximum water resistance, though seconds and dates will not be available through this model.