See also: Top 5 Dive Watches Under $1000

Coolest Dive Watch Technology

by Pat Grenson, www.RussArmy.com

Watches were originally constructed to simply let a person keep track of time. Early improvements were mostly on its appearance. Innovative designs with the inclusion of glam stones and gems were introduced, as well as the use of precious elements like gold and silver. The need for more sturdy and closed in watches started when an explorer requested a dust and water resistant watch. Then wars came and the need for watches for the armies and the navies gave way to waterproof watches.

In 1932 Omega watch makers released the first diver’s watch. A diver’s watch has to sustain water resistance in a minimum of 100 meters. ISO 6425 mark watches that comply with the requirement with the “DIVER’S” distinction. A waterproof watch can actually sustain pressure of any depth without any damage. Helium, the smallest particle on earth can work through the watch’s seals but as it is natural gas, it doesn’t do any damage. The damage is when the diver is ascending; the pressure inside the watch caused by the trapped helium is stronger than the outside environment, resulting to bursts or watch popping.

To resolve that, the helium escape valve or the helium release valve is integrated to the watch. Some valves are automatically activated whenever the need arises. In some watch models, it will be the divers that will have to manually operate the helium release, to be coordinated with his ascend. In 2008, Rolex released the Rolex Oyster Perpetual Sea-Dweller Submariner 1967 which was rated with the diving depth of 2000 feet or 610 meters, more than double the standard set by ISO 6425. In 1992, the record was doubled to 4000 feet by the enhanced Rolex Sea-Dweller. The successful testing was done with diver Theo Mavrostomos completing 43 days inside a hyperbaric chamber with pressure equal to 4000 feet.

The 2008 version of the series already sports the integrated helium valves. A recent update to the Rolex Sea-Dweller series is the Rolex Oyster Perpetual Date Sea-Dweller Deep Sea Challenge where testing is proposed to be done in the deepest ocean points with a depth of almost 40,000 feet.

Perhaps the sturdiest and most functional of the watches are the Luminox watches especially designed and manufactured for military use. They do not only tell the time, date, location and directions. These watches are guaranteed to be visible at all times. This is made possible with tritium gas. When subjected to beta decay, the gas releases electrons that produce fluorescent light when it encounters phosphorous compounds, giving the watch steady glow in the dark. It also gives different lights when underwater, in the air or in land.

Another amazing technological property of diver watches is the depth gauge. When the diver goes over 50 meters underwater, water pressure that enters the outer chamber of the watch will activate the depth gauge. There are two indicators, one to measure the present depth and the other one will show the maximum depth reached.

Citizen’s contribution to the diver’s watch technology is by incorporating computer application to its watches. These watches boast various warning devices and functions, depth measurements, alarms, timers and chronographs. Data are automatically transmitted to on land computer. The Citizen Cyber Aqualand NX has five settings for every one of its environment namely air diving, NITROX diving, high-altitude diving, dive plan mode and normal setting.

With the current innovations, watches have certainly come abreast to other technological improvements most recently concentrated in communication gadgetry. A watch is no longer just simply a watch.