Krayon: Fundamental watchmaking innovation

Krayon revisits its foundational innovation in mechanical horology:

A complication that calculates the exact time of sunrise and sunset for a specific location, including variations within the same time zone. 

Without ever needing to be adjusted. Day in, day out, year after year – true precision for eternity.

Regardless of your actual position, anywhere in the world – between two cities or in the middle of the ocean.

…or in the middle of the desert, deep within the Amazon rainforest, in New York or Shanghai, or on an island in the Pacific...

Krayon’s first invention is a masterpiece of mechanical watchmaking that gives you the precise time of sunrise and sunset for the place that holds special meaning you – your home, a fond memory, a chance encounter, a key event… – wherever you are in the world.

Krayon’s second invention adds simplicity to the complication: no changes of cams or other components inside the movement are necessary. All it takes is a setting by the Master Watchmaker.

Three patents have been granted for these two inventions, making Krayon the only watchmaker to offer such an adjustment capability – both incredibly complex in its design and remarkably simple in its use.

How setting a Krayon watch captures the essence of timekeeping

Among the rarer complications, knowing the time of sunrise and sunset is undoubtedly one of the most poetic. This concept first captivated Greek astronomers and mathematicians in antiquity, who devised a formula for determining the duration of a year: 365 days, 12 months.

Setting a watch to accurately indicate the time of sunrise and sunset for a specific location, regardless of your position on Earth, remains an extremely complex task. It requires a deep understanding of geography, astronomy, and horological mechanics.

The 5 key parameters in calculating sunrise and sunset times.

The times of sunrise and sunset vary based on five parameters:

• Latitude, as the sun's path differs depending on location;
• Time zone;
• Longitude. For example, Paris and Zurich are both in the same time zone (UTC+1), but their respective sunrise and sunset times can differ significantly, sometimes by 2 or 3 hours;
• Date (the time of year); and
• The equation of time, which is the offset between mean time and solar time (all of us on Earth live by the same equation of time because mean time regulates human life).

A universal system for calculating the time of sunset and sunrise for a specific place, regardless of location and date.

The algorithm invented by Krayon is implemented through an extremely complex yet user-friendly mechanical system, designed with:

• A pair of cams (one for sunrise and one for sunset),
• which are linked to an annual wheel
• through a worm gear.
• Feeler spindles read the cam,
• and transmit this information to racks that drive a disc with a system of gears to display the sunrise and sunset times.

Until Krayon completely rethought this system, there was no mechanical means to accurately determine the time of sunrise and sunset, wherever you might be.

A Protected Innovation
 
The heart of the mechanism, visible between two bridges, allows one to observe its operation. Inside the watch, instead of a single cam, the system engineered by Krayon features two cams working together – which no longer need to be changed.

Three patents have been filed:

• Patent #1 relates to the initial component that comes into contact with the cam and follows a horizontal track;
• Patent #2 concerns the function selector; and
• Patent #3 covers the setting of longitude and time zones.

The two cams are stacked and mounted on a large annual wheel (which makes one turn per year), adjusted to define latitude, longitude, and time zones. The wheel is linked to the calendar by a gear system to ensure perfect synchronization under all circumstances.

• One screw allows for latitude adjustment, simultaneously applying the setting for both sunrise and sunset;
• Another screw interacts solely with the sunrise setting, to adjust longitude and time zones;
• Finally, a last screw interacts only with sunset, longitude, and time zones.

These patents make Krayon the industry’s only Maison to offer such an advanced watch adjustment capability.

The Genesis of Krayon's Invention
 
From the beginning of his career in horology, Rémi Maillat, Master Watchmaker and founder of Krayon, was inspired to design a complication that would always precisely indicate the time of sunrise and sunset for a specific location. The initial idea came from experiencing a sunrise during a vacation in a remote area, just before going snorkeling, to catch the perfect light.

In 2017, Rémi launched Krayon with a significant innovation: a watch named ‘Everywhere.’ This inaugural creation was awarded the Innovation Prize at the Grand Prix d’Horlogerie de Genève (GPHG) in 2018. Three years later, Krayon unveiled ‘Anywhere,’ an even more complex yet simplified version of ‘Everywhere,’ retaining only the essential aspects of the complication for more intuitive use.

The complication he developed allows the watch to indicate the precise times of sunrise and sunset for a set location, no matter where you are in the world (even at the ends of the earth), without changing any cams or components within the movement.

The wearer can easily adjust the calendar themselves, moving it forward or backward, simply by setting the watch to the correct time and date using the crown. This unique capability for quick and precise adjustment contrasts with traditional watches, which require a special cam for each city and a return to the watchmaker’s workshop to change the cam and other components for such adjustments.

Precise to within 10 minutes over an entire year
 
Latitude (which determines the maximum annual variation) and longitude are set independently in Krayon workshops. The watch is quickly and simply calibrated, from Geneva to Shanghai – with an accuracy of just 10 minutes over an entire year.

The sunrise and sunset indicators never need to be adjusted because the calendar is aligned with the sun, ensuring precision for the next 10,000 years. With this creation, Krayon has succeeded in designing a watch that is a feat of engineering yet simplicity itself in its use – making its complexity invisible to the user.

Rémi Maillat comments: “We strongly believe in designing watches that are built to last and transcend trends. Each one is an exceptional timepiece meant to accompany you throughout your life. A unique, deeply personal object, connected to a cherished place, a geographic point on the globe, but most importantly, to the light and the sun, which guide our daily lives and evoke intimate memories and precious personal moments.”

The origins of Krayon

Rémi Maillat, a watchmaking engineer-designer and the founder of Krayon, possesses a rare talent: the ability to transform mathematical calculations into fantastic timepieces, all with the elegance of simplicity. Whether he’s working on projects for famous clients or giving form to his own imagination, this gifted engineer has mastered the technical intricacies of the art of watchmaking. For him, a successful concept comes to life with a sketch from the tip of a pencil (crayon in French).

After unveiling his first creation, Everywhere, in June 2017, Maillat introduced a bespoke timepiece, Everywhere Horizon, the following year, which won the Innovation Prize at the Grand Prix d'Horlogerie de Genève in 2018.

In 2020, Rémi Maillat presented Anywhere, staying true to the concept of singular time measurement. This piece beautifully synthesizes mathematics, artistic horological creation, poetic details, and a genuine philosophical dimension. 2021 marked Krayon's inaugural participation in the Only Watch charity auction, with the one-off Anywhere Métiers d’Art, featuring a magnificent rendition of a sunset by Claude Monet. It sold for four times the estimate.

In 2022, the Krayon brand opened a new chapter, Anywhere Métiers d’Art Azur. Produced in a limited series of just 15 pieces, the watch features a champlevé enamel dial capturing countless shades of blue – an invitation to escape, discover, and dream.

The spirit of innovation at Krayon shines through in the exceptional longevity and reliability of its creations.

Four years after winning the Innovation Prize, Krayon won the Grand Prix d’Horlogerie de Genève's for its second creation Anywhere. Reflecting an obsession with our intimate relationship with nature, 2023 witnessed the unveiling of Anywhere Green Aurora, a timepiece in a titanium case with a magical green hue achieved through atomic layer deposition (ALD), a true technological feat.

2024 marked another milestone with the presentation of a unique piece commissioned by a notable figure from the automotive world. Highlighting the Maison’s bespoke prowess, this creation demonstrates Krayon’s commitment to preserving the high craftsmanship of watchmaking and timepiece decoration, while transcending the simple instrument of time measurement to become a work of art.

The Krayon Philosophy
 
There is a method to the brand’s growth, with a manufacturing process that reveres the handcrafted, resulting in an inherently limited production volume. The team has gradually expanded, guided by a spirit of excellence. Today, Rémi Maillat is supported by 12 collaborators, primarily watchmakers, who work together to create refined timepieces. The workshops, featuring parquet floors, marble fireplaces, and ornate ceilings, provide an exceptional setting where each watchmaker participates in both the assembly and finishing of the pieces. Krayon’s “One Watch, One Watchmaker” philosophy ensures complete transparency throughout the process of making a watch, and it enhances individual accountability.

Krayon is available in the United States at Cellini, Silver, and Oster; in Singapore at The Hour Glass; in Hong Kong at Lavish Attic; in Dubai at Perpetuel, in Italy at Pisa; in St Barth at Diamond Genesis; and in Japan at Kamine.