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The Ultimate in Contemporary Clocks
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Established 1971
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ChronoArt II (China version)
The finest in electronic-clock-art from the 1970's updated to 2006 technology.
| One of the joys, is that reading the time is now fun. When a store clerk hands you three dimes, a nickel and two pennies, we see 37¢ without thinking – it's automatic. Reading the minutes is just as quick and easy. With the hours, you learn in a different way – pattern recognition. Once you get above 6, instead of counting the hour dots, you will begin to automatically recognize the pattern. |
The time is the quantity of lights lit in each group. The left grouping of 12 dots is the hour. The upper right is the 10's of minutes. In the bottom right there is one 5 minute light and 4 minute lights. The 5 minute light is always a different color than the minutes. It is the only place where color has a meaning. |
For artistic balance and just for the fun of it, this clock incorporates pattern switching in the hours. Note the three different patterns for 8 o'clock. While you are learning, this feature can be turned off. |
ChronoArt Inc. was started in 1971 with our Model I, Dot Clock. People have loved them for 30 years and continue to enjoy them today. They have been passed down from one generation to the next. I have had many requests to redesign it, so here it is renamed as – ChronoArt II.
People have loved that it does not look like a clock and does not remind them that time is passing. They have loved the mystery it created for their friends and visitors. Dentists displayed it to occupy their patients. Cocktail Lounges that generally avoid clocks, displayed it with enthusiasm. It was written into the script of the original TV series "The Odd Couple." Others enjoyed stupefying their friends. Parents with mentally challenged children called with delight. It was the only clock that their child could read –– quantities are easier to understand than numbers and hands. Legally blind people with 20/200 corrected vision, tell me, "this is the only clock that I can see the time on since the hour pattern is 12 inches high." It has brought a lot of amusement and delight to many peoples lives for many years.
So what's new – better esthetics. Color changing and better pattern changing –– great fun!
The pattern changing is greatly improved for better artistic balance. The dots are ovals and of slightly different size to flow more with the pattern. A smoother more integrated feel -- very nice. What makes the artistic balance so much better is this – the hour lights pattern is different depending on the minutes. For example, on the hour the hour pattern is in the middle, but when the minutes in the lower right are ON, then the hour pattern shifts to the upper left for balance. Similarly, if only the 10's of minutes in the upper right are ON then the hour pattern shifts to the lower left. And when both minutes and tens of minutes are ON, still a fourth pattern is on in the hours now shifted to the left. This takes a little longer to learn to read than the original clock, but the fun and interest is more than worth the trouble.
The lights continuously change color. The lights go throught the same color changing sequence each minute -- so the color is like a second hand. The minute starts and ends at blue with a few dots at green for accent. Slowly during the minute, the blue changes to magenta then to rose, red, orange, yellow, lime, green, aqua and back to blue. The accent green dots do the same sequence but with a color lag. Each time you look up it feels very different.
Plus, if you have a favorite color combination, you can stop on those colors. For example, stop on red -green at Christmas. Or if you like pastels, stop on light blue and rose. Or, for the cool colors, stop on the blue–green.
Personal: Creating this clock has been a labor of love – like visiting a good old friend. Hope your life has similar joys. Barry Gamble, designer.
