Production of composite timepiece component with waterproof joint
By using additive manufacturing and 3D printing technology to produce customized waterproof joints and seals on timepiece components, the problems of waterproof joint damage and high machining accuracy requirements in the prior art are solved, and efficient and durable composite timepiece components are achieved.
Patent Information
- Application Number
- CN202411681046.4
- Authority / Receiving Office
- CN · China
- Patent Type
- Applications(China)
- Current Assignee / Owner
- Priority Date
- 2023-12-15
- Filing Date
- 2024-11-22
- Publication Date
- 2025-06-17
AI Technical Summary
The prior art is difficult to avoid damage to the waterproof joints when producing composite timepiece components and requires extremely precise machining operations, limiting the shape and material selection of seals.
Through the additive manufacturing process, especially 3D printing technology, custom waterproof joints and seals are produced directly on timepiece components, including growing raised portions made of different materials, enabling the production of complex shapes and multifunctional seals.
This method eliminates the need for driving and assembly steps, improves water resistance and durability, allows for the production of seals in complex shapes, and reduces material waste and production costs.
Smart Images
Figure CN120156100A_ABST
Abstract
Description
Technical Field
[0001] The present invention relates to a method for manufacturing composite timepiece components, and more particularly, to a method for manufacturing composite timepiece components with a waterproof joint.
[0002] The present invention relates to the waterproofness of timepiece components and sub-assemblies. Background Art
[0003] Watertight seals are typically produced by injection molding or extrusion, followed by machining or another manufacturing process that requires a machining step. These seals must meet very strict tolerance standards.
[0004] In the watchmaking industry, waterproof joints are present at all interfaces between the external environment and the timepiece, and in particular, the interior of the watch. More particularly, but not exclusively, seals are present on the supporting surfaces of the watch glass, the case back, the crown, the push buttons, the screws or other static or operating components, and more typically, on all the elements of a timepiece or watch that must be highly waterproof.
[0005] The timepiece components and the waterproof joints with which the timepiece components must operate in contact are manufactured independently.
[0006] The assembly of the waterproof joints, and in particular the seals, is delicate, and this operation is entrusted to qualified personnel and often requires a driving operation in order to assemble two rigid timepiece components that are not waterproof, during which there is a risk of damaging the joint. The timepiece components can also be made integral with the waterproof joints by bonding or a similar method, but this does not provide good long-term stability because it is difficult to develop an adhesive that is suitable for the materials involved and stable within the operating temperature range. Summary of the Invention
[0007] In order to avoid damaging the waterproof joints and avoid having to perform machining operations on the timepiece components that must be extremely precise in terms of dimensions and surface finish, the present invention proposes to directly produce a customized waterproof joint, and in particular a seal, on the timepiece components, and more particularly, to produce a customized seal that is manufactured, and in particular printed, on the timepiece components.
[0008] The object of the present invention is to eliminate the need for certain driving and / or assembly steps by directly producing joints, and in particular seals, on the components of a timepiece, and in particular a watch, in order to improve and ensure waterproofness and ensure its durability.
[0009] Conventional waterproof joint production techniques involving molding and / or turning limit the range of shapes that can be obtained and typically involve producing joints made of only one material.
[0010] The present invention further proposes to develop a series of special and unconventional seal shapes by producing joints or seals of any shape and doing so directly on the timepiece components.
[0011] The present invention preferably uses an additive manufacturing process, particularly but not limited to 3D (i.e., three-dimensional) printing.
[0012] To this end, the present invention relates to a method for producing composite timepiece components.
[0013] According to the present invention, in a first step, a substrate and at least one first material suitable for additive manufacturing are provided; in a second step, the substrate is prepared and positioned on an additive manufacturing device; in a third step, a first raised portion made of the at least one first material is grown by performing additive manufacturing on at least one side of the substrate; in a fourth step, the development of the first raised portion is verified against a first predetermined setpoint value, and the third step and the fourth step of additive manufacturing of adding the first material are iteratively repeated until the first raised portion is seen and verified to have developed to reach or exceed the first predetermined setpoint value, and when the first raised portion has developed to reach or exceed the first predetermined setpoint value, the additive manufacturing of adding the first material is stopped. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0014] The objects, advantages and features of the present invention will be better understood by reading the following detailed description with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:
[0015] - Figure 1 is a flow chart illustrating the various steps of a composite timepiece component produced according to the present invention in various alternative embodiments of the method;
[0016] - Figure 2 schematically shows a cross-sectional view of such a composite timepiece component produced using this method, in which a first raised portion made of a first material grows on a first side of the substrate;
[0017] - Similar to Figure 2 , Figure 3 schematically shows another composite timepiece component produced using this method, in which a first raised portion made of the first material grows on a first upper side of the substrate, and in another step, another first raised portion made of the same first material grows on a second lower side of the same substrate;
[0018] - Similar to Figure 2 and Figure 3 , Figure 4Another composite timepiece component produced using the method is schematically shown, in which a first raised portion made of a first material grows on a first upper side of a substrate, a second raised portion made of a second material grows such that it is partially stacked on the first raised portion on the same first upper side, and another second raised portion made of the same second material grows on a second lower side of the same substrate. Detailed Description
[0019] The present invention relates to a method for producing a composite timepiece component 1000.
[0020] In a first step 100, a substrate 50 and at least one first material 1 suitable for additive manufacturing are provided.
[0021] In a second step 200, the substrate 50 is prepared and positioned on an additive manufacturing device.
[0022] In a third step 300, a first raised portion 10 made of at least one first material 1 is grown on at least one side of the substrate 50 by additive manufacturing.
[0023] In a fourth step 400, the development of the first raised portion 10 is verified against a first predetermined setpoint value.
[0024] Furthermore, the third step 300 of additive manufacturing adding the first material 1 and the fourth step 400 are iteratively repeated until the first raised portion 10 is seen and verified to have developed to reach or exceed the first predetermined setpoint value, and when the first raised portion 10 has developed to reach or exceed the first predetermined setpoint value, the additive manufacturing adding the first material 1 is stopped.
[0025] More particularly, in the first step 100 or in one of the subsequent steps, at least one second material 2 different from the first material 1 is provided, and during the third step 300 or during a fifth step 500 after the first raised portion 10 has developed to reach or exceed the first predetermined setpoint value, a second raised portion 20 made of at least one second material 2 is grown by performing additive manufacturing on at least one side of the substrate 50 and / or on the first raised portion 10.
[0026] More particularly, in a first alternative embodiment, the second raised portion 20 is grown by additive manufacturing starting from the third step 300, and in the fourth step 400 or the sixth step 600, the development of the second raised portion 20 is verified against a predetermined second setpoint value, and the manufacturing steps are iteratively repeated (which on the one hand is the third step 300 of additive manufacturing for adding the second material 2, or the fifth step 500 of additive manufacturing for adding the second material 2, and on the other hand is the verification step, the verification step being the sixth step 600) until the second raised portion 20 is seen and verified to have developed to reach or exceed the predetermined second setpoint value, and when the second raised portion 20 has developed to reach or exceed the second predetermined setpoint value, the additive manufacturing for adding the second material 2 is stopped.
[0027] More particularly, in a second alternative embodiment, after the first raised portion 10 has developed to reach or exceed the first predetermined setpoint value, the second raised portion 20 is grown by additive manufacturing during such a fifth step 500. Further, in the sixth step 600 after the fifth step 500, the development of the second raised portion 20 is verified against the second predetermined setpoint value, and the fifth step 500 of additive manufacturing for adding the second material 2 and the sixth step 600 are iteratively repeated until the second raised portion 20 is seen and verified to have developed to reach or exceed the second predetermined setpoint value, and when the second raised portion 20 has developed to reach or exceed the second predetermined setpoint value, the additive manufacturing for adding the second material 2 is stopped.
[0028] Still more particularly, the sixth step 600 is separate from the fourth step 400.
[0029] More particularly, in another alternative embodiment, in the third step 300 of additive manufacturing for adding the first material 1, in two separate steps, the first raised portion 10 made of at least one first material 1 is grown by performing additive manufacturing on at least two different sides of the substrate 50, one being grown on each side of the substrate 50.
[0030] More particularly, in another alternative embodiment, during the third step 300 or the fifth step 500, in two separate steps, the second raised portion 20 made of at least one second material 2 is grown by performing additive manufacturing on at least two different sides of the substrate 50, one being grown on each side of the substrate 50.
[0031] More particularly, in another alternative embodiment, during the third step 300 or during such a fifth step 500, the second raised portion 20 made of at least one second material 2 is grown by performing additive manufacturing on at least a part of the first raised portion 10.
[0032] More particularly, a first material 1 is selected to form a first raised portion 10 constituting a first waterproof joint.
[0033] More particularly, a second material 2 is selected to form a second raised portion 20 constituting a second waterproof joint.
[0034] More particularly, a second material 2 is selected to form a second raised portion 20 constituting a second waterproof joint having a resistance property complementary to that of the first waterproof joint.
[0035] More particularly, elastomeric materials are selected for the first material 1 and the second material 2, which materials have different Shore hardnesses in the respective final states of the first raised portion 10 and the second raised portion 20 after an additive manufacturing operation in which the first material 1 and the second material 2 are respectively added.
[0036] More particularly, the materials selected for the first material 1 and each at least one second material 2 are capable of forming a waterproof layer after an additive manufacturing operation in which the first material 1 and the at least one second material 2 are respectively added.
[0037] More particularly, the first raised portion 10 and the second raised portion 20 are produced with a geometrically different development compared to the substrate 50.
[0038] More particularly, the material selected for at least the first material 1 is capable of forming the first raised portion 10 that forms an optical contrast with the substrate 50 for the display function of the timepiece component 1000.
[0039] More particularly, the material selected for at least the first material 1 is capable of forming the first raised portion 10 that fluoresces or phosphoresces.
[0040] More particularly, the material selected for at least the first material 1 is capable of forming the first raised portion 10 that is transparent and / or colored.
[0041] More particularly, a transparent or translucent substrate 50 is selected.
[0042] More particularly, a watch glass, a watch back, a watch movement, an outer ring or a crown is selected as the substrate 50.
[0043] More particularly, the additive manufacturing is carried out by three-dimensional printing.
[0044] Thus, the present invention is based on the use of additive manufacturing, particularly direct 3D printing onto timepiece components, to produce customized waterproof joints, particularly seals, which ensures manufacturing repeatability and control of production costs.
[0045] Those skilled in the art will also be able to apply such overprinting sealing systems to different types of timepiece components, such as crowns, screwed-in backs (driven in back), movements, cases of capsule watches, etc.
[0046] 3D printing can be carried out using a suitable printer with custom leveling options. Depending on the complexity of the component, the printer nozzle can be modified and adapted for optimal printing.
[0047] The advantage of this method is that no waste is generated during the manufacture of waterproof joints or functional sub-assemblies, which are composite timepiece components produced by the method according to the invention and include a basic timepiece component and at least one joint permanently applied to the basic component. Therefore, this method does not result in material losses or wasted operating time.
[0048] The present invention allows the production of difficult and complex joint shapes that would not be possible with any other technology.
[0049] The materials used according to this technology include all thermoplastic materials, which cover a wide range of properties required for waterproof joints.
[0050] Due to the wide possibilities in terms of coloring, transparency, shape, phosphorescence, fluorescence, and the production of multiple materials, multi-coloring or other types of waterproof joints, waterproof joints produced using an additive process, in particular a printing process, can achieve several functions: a sealing function, a display function, and / or an aesthetic and / or decorative function.
Claims
1. A method for producing a composite timepiece component (1000), wherein: In a first step (100), a substrate (50) and at least one first material (1) suitable for additive manufacturing are provided; in a second step (200), the substrate (50) is prepared and positioned on an additive manufacturing device; in a third step (300), a first raised portion (10) made of the at least one first material (1) is grown by additive manufacturing on at least one side of the substrate (50); in a fourth step (400), the development of the first raised portion (10) is verified against a first predetermined set point value, and the third step (300) and the fourth step (400) of additive manufacturing of the first material (1) are iteratively repeated until the first raised portion (10) is seen and verified to have developed to reach or exceed the first predetermined set point value, and when the first raised portion (10) has developed to reach or exceed the first predetermined set point value, the additive manufacturing of the first material (1) is stopped.
2. The production method according to claim 1, characterized in that In the first step (100) or in one of the subsequent steps, at least one second material (2) different from the first material (1) is provided, and during the third step (300) or during the fifth step (500) after the first raised portion (10) has developed to reach or exceed the first predetermined set point value, a second raised portion (20) made of the at least one second material (2) is grown by additive manufacturing on at least one side of the substrate (50) and / or on the first raised portion (10).
3. The production method according to claim 2, characterized in that: The second raised portion (20) grows by additive manufacturing starting from the third step (300), and in the fourth step (400) or the sixth step (600), the development of the second raised portion (20) is verified against a predetermined second set point value, and the manufacturing steps are iteratively repeated until the second raised portion (20) is seen and verified to have developed to reach or exceed the predetermined second set point value, and when the second raised portion (20) has developed to reach or exceed the second predetermined set point value, the additive manufacturing of the second material (2) is stopped, the manufacturing step being on the one hand the third step (300) of additive manufacturing of the second material (2) or the fifth step (500) of additive manufacturing of the second material (2), and on the other hand a verification step, the verification step being the sixth step (600).
4. The production method according to claim 2, characterized in that: After the first raised portion (10) has developed to reach or exceed the first predetermined set point value, the second raised portion (20) is grown by additive manufacturing during the fifth step (500), characterized in that in a sixth step (600) after the fifth step (500), the development of the second raised portion (20) is verified against the second predetermined set point value, and the fifth step (500) and the sixth step (600) of additive manufacturing of the second material (2) are iteratively repeated until the second raised portion (20) is seen and verified to have developed to reach or exceed the second predetermined set point value, and when the second raised portion (20) has developed to reach or exceed the second predetermined set point value, the additive manufacturing of the second material (2) is stopped.
5. The production method according to claim 3 or 4, characterized in that: The sixth step (600) is separate from the fourth step (400).
6. The production method according to any one of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that In a third step (300) of additive manufacturing of adding the first material (1), the first raised portions (10) made of the at least one first material (1) are grown in two separate steps by additive manufacturing on at least two different sides of the substrate (50), one on each side of the substrate (50).
7. The production method according to any one of claims 2 to 6, characterized in that During the third step (300) or during the fifth step (500), second raised portions (20) made of the at least one second material (2) are grown in two separate steps by additive manufacturing on at least two different sides of the substrate (50), one on each side of the substrate (50).
8. The production method according to any one of claims 2 to 7, characterized in that During the third step (300) or during the fifth step (500), a second raised portion (20) made of the at least one second material (2) is grown by additive manufacturing on at least a portion of the first raised portion (10).
9. The production method according to any one of claims 1 to 8, characterized in that The first material (1) is selected to form the first raised portion (10) constituting a first waterproof joint.
10. The production method according to any one of claims 2 to 8, characterized in that The second material (2) is selected to form the second raised portion (20) constituting a second waterproof joint.
11. The production method according to claims 9 and 10, characterized in that The second material (2) is selected to form the second raised portion (20) constituting the second waterproof joint, which has resistive properties that are complementary to the resistive properties of the first waterproof joint.
12. The production method according to any one of claims 2 to 11, characterized in that An elastomeric material is selected for the first material (1) and the second material (2), and after an additive manufacturing operation of adding the first material (1) and the second material (2), respectively, the material has different Shore hardnesses in the respective final states of the first raised portion (10) and the second raised portion (20).
13. The production method according to any one of claims 2 to 12, characterized in that The materials selected for the first material (1) and each of the at least one second material (2) are capable of forming a waterproof layer after an additive manufacturing operation of adding the first material (1) and the at least one second material (2), respectively.
14. The production method according to any one of claims 2 to 13, characterized in that The first raised portion (10) and the second raised portion (20) are produced by development with a different geometry compared to the substrate (50).
15. The production method according to any one of claims 1 to 14, characterized in that At least the material selected for the first material (1) is capable of forming the first raised portion (10), which forms an optical contrast with the substrate (50) for the display function of the timepiece component (1000).
16. The production method according to any one of claims 1 to 15, characterized in that At least the material selected for the first material (1) is capable of forming the first raised portion (10) which is fluorescent or phosphorescent.
17. The production method according to any one of claims 1 to 16, characterized in that At least the material selected for the first material (1) is capable of forming the first raised portion (10) to be transparent and / or colored.
18. The production method according to any one of claims 1 to 17, characterized in that A transparent or translucent substrate (50) is selected.
19. The production method according to any one of claims 1 to 18, characterized in that A watch glass, a watch back, a watch movement, an outer ring or a watch crown is selected as the substrate (50).
20. The production method according to any one of claims 1 to 19, characterized in that The additive manufacturing is performed by three-dimensional printing.
21. A timepiece comprising a timepiece component according to the method defined in any one of claims 1 to 20.