In 1981, Kikuo Ibe, a watch designer at Casio Computer Co., submitted an idea for a heavy-duty watch to a company program that encouraged employees to pitch new products and technologies. His inspiration came after his own wristwatch broke easily when dropped, leaving him frustrated and disappointed. Ibe's idea was initially approved by his boss, but he still needed to test the watch's durability from an engineering standpoint. He started by focusing on the core component of the watch, called a module, and quickly realized that cushioning was crucial in protecting a wristwatch when dropped. After months of testing, Ibe came up with the idea of covering the timepiece with parts made of rubber and metal to absorb shocks.   Finally, after eight months of trial and error, Ibe discovered that suspending the module in a ball-like structure might work. This discovery led to the birth of the G-Shock, which hit the market on April 12, 1983. The watch was almost twice as thick as o...