How do atomic clocks/watches work? The government owns and operates an "atomic clock" that is located in Colorado. This atomic clock keeps precise time by dropping atoms. It is the most accurate clock in the world and is considered the official US time. The clock is hooked up to a huge radio antenna which sends out a strong signal across the US. These clocks tune into that radio signal's frequency, decode the signal, and untimely set its time to the US atomic clock. The clocks also atomically search for the signal once a day in order to keep precise time. Will I be able to pick up the time signal where I live? The government recently upgraded the signal strength from 27,000 watts to 50,000 watts, therefore the signal currently covers the entire continental US. The signal is weakest on the east coast so it may take a little longer to pick up the signal there, and in some rare cases some people have not been able to pick up the signal (mostly in commercial metal/brick enclosed buildings with few windows). Overall 97% of our customers have been able to pick the signal. How long does it take to pick up the signal? Each case varies depending on the strength of the signal at the time you set up your clock, the clock or watch you have, and your location. In most cases people are able to pick up the signal within a day (usually during the first night). Will I be able to return the clock if I can't pick up the signal? Yes. If after 7 days you have followed the instructions and still have not been able to pick up the signal you may return your clock for a full refund (excluding shipping costs). Do your clocks work outside of North America, like say in Europe? Unfortunately Not. Yet we do have clocks and watches which work in Europe. Do the clocks run on batteries and if so how long do they last? Most of the clocks run on batteries. The batteries in the watches and wall clocks usually last about 2 years. The batteries in the digital clocks usually last about a year. My watch does not pick up the signal every day. Will it still keep precise time? Yes. This is normal operating procedure for the sync-time watches. They were designed with this in mind. As long as your watch picks up the signal a couple times a week you'll always have accurate time. What do I do when my watch battery runs out? It is recommended that you send it back to us. We will gladly replace the battery for a small fee. Please see your instruction booklet. If you can not find the instruction booklet please email us and we'll send you the info.
Why should I consider an atomic (radio controlled) watch/clock? The accuracy of an atomic watch (radio controlled) watch/clock is unprecedented and absolute. You will never have to adjust your watch for Daylight Savings Time (DST) or bother with the date. This is taken care of automatically by the synchronization signal. How do Junghans Atomic clocks and watches work? All watches receive a radio signal from the Caesium atomic, the world's most precise clock, accurate to 1 second in 1 million years. The signal is encoded so that it can be transmitted in long wave radio form. The signal originates from the WWVB transmitter in Fort Collins, Colorado and is transmitted on a frequency of 60 kHz. The atomic watches contain an antenna and internal program to receive and encode the radio signal. It is then decoded to display the precise time. They maintain total accuracy by automatic nightly updates with the radio signal. Junghans watches and clocks may be manually updated by the user. I bought an atomic (radio controlled) watch in Europe. Does it work here in North America? It will only work as a regular quartz watch. The transmitter frequencies between Europe and North America are different. Does my atomic (radio controlled) watch work everywhere in North America? The transmitter range is 1864 miles (radius) from Fort Collins, Colorado. Your watch will work in most parts of the USA and Canada. The exceptions are Hawaii, Alaska, part of the Maritimes and all of Newfoundland. In Newfoundland, the watch cannot be used at all. At the present time, there is no way to adjust the time zone to half hours. If I travel overseas can I use my watch? Yes, you can use your watch, however not as an atomic (radio controlled) watch - but as a regular quartz watch. You simply have to adjust your watch to the appropriate time zone. (Push button at 10 o'clock to select time zone) Make sure to select the appropriate "am" or "pm" time to assure date change at midnight. How do I find out what time zone my watch is set at? Press button located at 2 o'clock (ceramic watch only: press recessed button with a pointed object.) You should see a letter P, M, C, E followed by a number. The letters stand for: P=Pacific, M=Mountain, C=Central, E=Eastern Time Zone. The number shows the actual hour the watch displays at the moment. If your watch displays a number without any of the letters, your watch ins not set to any of the North American time zones. How do I adjust the time zone? Press the recessed button at 10 o'clock until you see the letter appear for your time zone. You might have to press this button repeatedly up to 23 times to arrive at your time zone. My watch does not show any of the North American time zones when pressing the button at 10 or 2 o'clock. Simply keep on pressing the button at 10 o'clock until you get the Pacific time zone (P). Now choose your time zone (if other then "P") by pressing button repeatedly. Do I have to adjust the date/month of my watch? No, your watch adjusts itself automatically - even in a leap year (February 29th) the watch will set itself properly. Do I have to adjust my watch for daylight savings? No. Your watch will adjust itself overnight - provided it can receive the synchronization signal. Will my watch adjust itself when I travel from one time zone to another? No. Your watch is not equipped with a GPS system (global positioning system). You will have to adjust the time zone yourself. My watch does not receive the synchronization signal. Why? Make sure that your watch is set to your time zone (see above). Your watch can only receive the radio signal if it is set to one of the 4 North American tome zones (P, M, C, or E). My watch is off by a few seconds. Why? Your watch is adjusted to run within +/- 0.05 seconds in a 24 hour period as a regular quartz watch. Most likely, your watch did not receive a signal for some time and was not synchronized with the atomic cesium clock in Colorado. Can I find out when my atomic watch (radio controlled) watch was last synchronized? Yes. Simply press the button at 2H and hold for 10 sec. After approx. 3 seconds, your hands will start to move to the 12 o'clock position. A double 00 appears in the LCD display. After 7-8 seconds, a single digit appears (0-9). Within 9 minutes the watch resumes normal operation. What does this single digit mean? (see previous question) If the displayed number is "0" (zero) your watch received the signal within the last 24 hours and your watch is synchronized. A number of 1, 2, 3, etc. means that your watch did not receive the signal for 1, 2, 3 days. The number 9 means that your watch was not synchronized for at least 9 days (perhaps more). When is the atomic watch (radio controlled) watch synchronized? Your watch is programmed to receive the signal during the night (starting at 11 pm) on the hour for 9 minutes. If the watch does not receive the signal during the first attempt, it will try again (for 9 minutes) at 12 o'clock and so on during the whole night. Once the signal is received, the receiver shuts down until the next night in order to save battery power. Can I activate the receiver manually? Yes. Simply press the button at 2 o'clock and hold for 3 seconds. The hands will go to the 12 o'clock position and stay there for 9 minutes. The receiver is now manually activated. If the signal is not received within 9 minutes, the watch will go back to the time which was previously displayed. Why is there a difference between reception of signal during the day and night? There is a lot of "electronic pollution" especially during working hours in urban areas. Many factors can affect the reception of the signal such as cell phones, computers, faxes, satellite dishes, etc. The watch is subject to such interferences similar to a cell phone. During the night, the "electronic pollution" is greatly reduced. What do I do if my watch does not receive the signal? Make sure that the watch does not rest during the night beside or on top of an electronic device which might interfere with the reception. My watch never gets the signal. Why? Make sure you have a watch made for the North American market. Furthermore, make sure you are within the range of the transmitter. Also check if you are living near power lines, they can interfere with reception. I keep my watch in a safe. It does not receive a time signal. Your safe does not just keep burglars out but also the time signal. The metal casing acts as a shield and prevents the signal from reaching the watch. I am a retailer, located in a large shopping mall. I noticed that the watches are not synchronized. Why? Most likely the watches did not receive the synchronization signal for some time. Most shopping malls have heavy duty steel roofs which shield your watches from the signal. Also note, that the watches can interfere with each other if they are kept very close together in you showcase or overnight in a safe. My watch behaves strangely. It displays the wrong date, time or is otherwise not properly functioning. What do I do? Perhaps the memory of the watch is mixed up due to any number of factors. You have to wipe the memory clean (hardware reset). Press and hold both buttons (at 2 and 10 o'clock) simultaneously for at least 4 seconds. The hands will go back to 12 o'clock. The watch memory has now been cleared and the watch is waiting to receive the signal. This can easily take overnight - so, please be patient. Once your watch receives the signal, it will be on to the proper time and date. However, the watch will set itself to the Pacific time zone ("P") by default. If necessary adjust to your time zone. Why is the display of my Ceramic and Carbon watch constantly blinking? You need a new battery. Have a qualified watchmaker replace it or send it back to the closest service center. After I had my battery replaced, how do I set the watch? Replacing the battery is the equivalent of a hardware reset. You simply have to wait (probably overnight) until the watch receives the synchronization signal. If I replace my battery do I have to adjust the hands of my Ceramic or Carbon watch? No, the Ceramic and Carbon Junghans watches are equipped with an exclusive world wide patented system which remembers the 12 o'clock position of the watch. See the technical information for further details. Where can I find more information about atomic timekeeping in general? Simply send us an email with your questions to: support@atomictime.com or check the following website: www.boulder.nist.gov. Do you have Atomic Solar watches?
Yes, they do exist in Europe already. They will be launched in June 2001 (Las Vegas jewelry show) for the North American market. |
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