Method for manufacturing horology appliques

Abstract

A strip is uniformly made of a material of an ornament to be manufactured, a plurality of rows of guide holes are formed along the longitudinal edge of the strip, and at least one group of openings are formed among the plurality of rows of guide holes. The set of openings encircles a central portion of the strip material such that the central portion remains attached to the strip by an attachment formed by a narrow area on the strip between two adjacent openings. A stamping process is then performed on the central portion to form the trim. The size and shape of the opening are configured such that the stamping tool can creep the material of the central portion without causing deformation of the guide hole, resulting in a deformed portion that remains attached to the strip by the attachment portion. At the same time, on one of the faces of the deformed portion, a trim is formed in an embossed form with respect to the face, and preferably, an attachment foot is formed concomitantly on the opposite face. The strip is then fed into a blanking tool to blank the trim part, thereby separating the trim part from the deformed portion. The undeformed guide hole enables the deformed part to be accurately positioned relative to the blanking tool.

Description

(19) State Intellectual Property Office (12) Invention Patent Application (10) Application Publication Number (43) Application Publication Date (21) Application Number 202511342404.3 (22) Application Date 2025.09.19 (30) Priority Data 24214927.6 2024.11.22 EP (71) Applicant Univeso GmbH Address Switzerland (72) Inventor D.T. Nguyen (74) Patent Agency Beijing Zhongzi Law Firm 11247 Patent Agent Mi Fenghua Wu Peng (51) Int.Cl. G04D 3 / 00 (2006.01) G04B 47 / 04 (2006.01) (54) Invention Title Method for Manufacturing Watch Ornaments (57) Abstract A strip, uniformly made of the material of the ornament to be manufactured, and having multiple rows of guide holes along its longitudinal edge, with at least one set of openings between the multiple rows of guide holes. The set of openings surrounds the central portion of the strip material, such that the central portion is held attached to the strip by an attachment portion formed by a narrow area on the strip between two adjacent openings. A stamping process is then performed on the central portion to form a trim. The size and shape of the openings are configured such that the stamping tool can cause the material of the central portion to creep without deforming the guide holes, thereby creating a deformed portion, which is held attached to the strip by the attachment portion. Simultaneously, a trim in a raised form relative to one face of the deformed portion is formed, preferably accompanied by an attachment foot on the opposite face. The strip is then fed into a blanking tool to blank the trim, thereby separating the trim from the deformed portion. The undeformed guide holes allow for precise positioning of the deformed portion relative to the blanking tool. Claims 1 page Description 4 pages Drawings 3 pages CN 122072447 A 2026.05.22 CN 1 22 07 24 47 A 1. A method for manufacturing at least one ornament (2) for a watch, the ornament being made of a predetermined material, the method comprising: providing a longitudinal strip (1) made of said material, the strip being defined by two parallel edges; punching or passing through a plurality of rows of equidistant guide holes (5) along each edge of said strip (1); punching or passing through at least one set of openings (6) at a central position between the plurality of rows of guide holes, such that the contour section of said openings defines an edge portion of a central portion (8) made of said material, said central portion being held attached to said strip by an attachment portion (7) defined by a narrow region on said strip located between two adjacent said openings; and then guiding said strip through said guide holes (5) via a stamping tool, using said stamping tool to simultaneously perform at least the following operations: The material of the central portion (8) is subjected to creep without causing deformation of the guide hole (5), thereby producing a change.A deformable portion (8') is attached to the strip by an attachment portion (7'). A decorative element (2) is formed on one surface of the deformable portion (8') in a raised form relative to the surface. The strip is then guided through a blanking tool using the guide hole (5) to feed the deformable portion (8') through the blanking tool to blank the decorative element (2). 2. The method according to claim 1, wherein the edge portion on the central portion (8) has a recessed shape relative to the center of the central portion. 3. The method according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the opening (6a-6d) is elliptical. 4. The method according to claim 3, wherein the set of openings includes four elliptical openings (6a-6d), namely, two openings (6a, 6b) whose long axis of the profile is oriented perpendicular to the longitudinal direction of the strip (1), and two openings (6c, 6d) whose long axis of the profile is oriented parallel to the longitudinal direction. 5. The method according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the strip (1) includes a plurality of sets of openings (6) equidistantly arranged on the strip to generate a plurality of said central portions (8), and a plurality of ornaments (2) are formed from these central portions (8). 6. The method according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein while generating the deformed portion and forming the ornament in a raised form relative to the surface, one or more attachment feet (4) are formed using the stamping tool, the attachment feet (4) being located on the surface of the deformed portion (8') opposite to the surface forming the raised ornament (2). 7. The method according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the material of the ornament (2) is copper, gold, silver, or a copper alloy, gold alloy, or silver alloy. 8. The method according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the blanking tool is a laser blanking tool, or a stamping tool using a die and a blanking punch. Claims 1 / 1 Page 2 CN 122072447 A Method for Manufacturing Watch Appliques Technical Field

[0001] This invention relates to the field of watchmaking, and more particularly to the manufacture of appliques, which are attached to the surface of a watch dial for marking hours or for arranging other marks or symbols. Background Art

[0002] There are various methods for manufacturing appliques. Continuous production methods have proven effective in terms of production speed. These methods involve processing a strip through a series of steps, and finally blanking multiple appliques.

[0003] One currently used method uses a steel strip in which guide holes are passed along the edge of the strip, and openings are arranged in series between multiple rows of guide holes. A workpiece of applique material (usually gold or brass) is pressed into the openings. The strip containing the workpiece is then guided relative to a stamping tool through the guide holes, the stamping tool deforming the workpiece according to the desired applique shape. Afterwards, the strip is...The strip is fed into a blanking tool, which blanks the trim. Afterward, the workpiece is peeled off the steel strip, which can then be reused in the same process.

[0004] Because the steel strip is stronger than the workpiece material, this process avoids guide hole deformation during stamping and blanking. However, this method also has some drawbacks. The steel strip is very hard and difficult to process. Processing guide holes and openings requires powerful machinery, and the tools used to process the steel strip may break quickly and cannot withstand the forces applied during blanking and piercing. Due to stamping deformation, the workpiece is subjected to considerable strain, which may cause the steel strip to crack. Ultimately, after multiple uses of the steel strip, the openings provided for the workpiece will deform, thus limiting the service life of such strips. Summary of the Invention

[0005] The present invention aims to provide a method without the defects described above. This object is achieved by the method according to the appended claims.

[0006] According to the invention, a strip uniformly made from the material of the trim to be manufactured is used. The strip has multiple rows of guide holes / positioning holes along its longitudinal edge, and at least one set of openings is arranged between the rows of guide holes. In practice, several identical sets of openings are equidistantly arranged in the longitudinal direction of the strip. One set of openings surrounds the central portion of the strip material, such that the central portion is held attached to the strip by an attachment portion formed by a narrow area in the strip between two adjacent openings. The central portion is then stamped to form a trim. The size and shape of the openings are configured such that the stamping tool causes the material of the central portion to creep without deforming the guide holes, thereby creating a deformed portion held attached to the strip by the attachment portion. Simultaneously, on one face of the deformed portion, the trim is formed in a raised form relative to the face, preferably accompanied by an attachment foot on the opposite face. The strip is then fed into a blanking tool (e.g., by stamping or using a laser), which blanks the trim, thereby separating the trim from the deformed portion. The undeformed guide holes allow the workpiece / deformed portion to be precisely positioned relative to the blanking tool.

[0007] This method enables continuous assembly line operation from raw materials to finished ornaments, thereby avoiding the use of steel strips. Since the shape of the central portion defined by the opening can absorb deformation during the stamping process, the guide holes on the strip will not deform, thus ensuring optimal positioning. The deformed portion remains attached to the strip after the stamping operation, which also ensures optimal positioning. Compared with the prior art, these differences enable the method of the present invention to reduce manufacturing costs and time. Specification 1 / 4 pages 3 CN 122072447 A Brief Description of the Drawings

[0008] The invention will now be described in more detail with reference to the accompanying drawings, which are given by way of non-limiting example, in which:

[0009] FIG1 shows a front view of a strip made of watch ornament material according to an embodiment of the present invention, the strip having holes and openings.

[0010] Figure 2 shows an example of an ornament made from the strip shown in Figure 1.

[0011] Figures 3a to 3c show partial enlarged views of the strip, where Figure 3a shows the strip before it is deformed by stamping, and Figures 3b and 3c show two sides of the strip after it has been deformed by stamping, respectively.

[0012] Figure 4 shows a 3D view of the strip after multiple ornaments have been formed by stamping, but before the blanking process.

[0013] Figure 5 shows the strip portion shown in Figures 3a-3b after the ornaments have been blanked.

[0014] Figure 6 shows the process of producing the strip shown in Figure 1 with guide holes and openings using a blanking punch configuration. Detailed Description

[0015] Figure 1 shows a strip 1 made of a material suitable for watch ornaments, such as brass or other copper-based alloys. Any other material suitable for making ornaments can be used, such as gold, silver, or alloys thereof.

[0016] According to a non-limiting embodiment of the invention, the strip has multiple holes and openings. The ornament to be manufactured in this example is shown in Figure 2. This is a rectangular ornament 2 having a central groove 3 and two legs 4 located on the lower surface for attaching the ornament to the watch dial. The size of the ornament 2 is adapted to the size of the dial so that the ornament can be presented as a time-grading element or as a decorative element. Therefore, the size of the strip 1 has a similar design, for example, a width between 10 mm and 40 mm. The size of the strip can be similar to that of a steel strip with a press-fit workpiece (as described in the introduction). According to a non-limiting embodiment, the thickness of the strip 1 can be between 0.3 mm and 1.5 mm.

[0017] Equidistant guide holes 5 are formed along the edge of the strip 1 by through-cutting or punching. The position and size of these guide holes 5 are designed such that the strip 1 can be guided by the guide teeth of an inserted strip feeder, the movement of which will convey the strip through various tools.

[0018] Between the two rows of guide holes 5, the strip 1 has multiple sets of openings 6, each set of openings 6 being identical to each other and equidistantly distributed along the longitudinal direction of the strip 1.

[0019] FIG3a shows a partial detail view of the strip 1. According to the non-limiting embodiment shown, each set of openings 6 comprises four elliptical openings. The major axes of openings 6a and 6b are oriented perpendicular to the longitudinal direction of the strip 1, while the major axes of openings 6c and 6d are oriented parallel to the longitudinal direction. The lengths of openings 6c and 6d are less than the lengths of openings 6a and 6b, and the shorter openings 6c and 6d are located between the ends of the longer openings 6a and 6b, while being spaced apart from the longer openings 6a and 6b by attachment portions 7. The attachment portions 7 are defined by a narrow region on the strip 1 located between two adjacent openings (e.g., between 6a and 6c, or between 6b and 6d). Thus, openings 6a-6d surround a central portion 8 of the strip, the edge of which is shaped as a concave curve defined by multiple contour segments of openings 6a-6d.

[0020] The size and position of each set of openings 6a-6d are determined such that the center portion 8 can be plastically deformed in a specific and predetermined manner using a stamping tool used in the existing method described in the introduction. The stamping tool will press the center portion 8 between a die and a punch configured to form the trim 2. The openings 6a-6d are configured such that when the material of the center portion 8 is deformed, neither the attachment 7 will separate / break, nor will the guide hole 5 deform.

[0021] Figures 3b and 3c show this result, showing the two sides of the strip 1 after each center portion 8 has been stamped. Stamping deforms the center portion 8, forming the deformed portion 8'. Due to the contours of the die and punch, the leg 4 of the trim is formed on the upper surface of the deformed portion (Figure 3b), which is raised relative to the upper surface, and the trim 2 itself with the groove 3 is formed on the lower surface (Figure 3c), which is raised relative to the lower surface. On the exterior of the trim, stamping has caused material creep, resulting in an expansion of the surface of the deformed portion 8' relative to the surface of the central portion 8 before deformation. It can be seen that the contour segments of each ellipse 6a-6d surrounding the central portion 8 have been pushed outward, but the rest of the contour remains essentially intact. In other words, the openings 6a-6d absorb the deformation. Therefore, the guide hole 5 is not deformed. Furthermore, after deformation, the deformed portion 8' remains attached to the strip via the attachment 7', which may be slightly deformed relative to the original attachment 7, but it still maintains the integrity / consistency of portion 8' with the strip 1. In other words, the attachment 7 does not break or fracture due to the force generated by stamping.

[0022] Figure 4 shows a 3D view of a non-limiting embodiment of the strip 1, in which multiple central portions 8 have been fed through a stamping tool to form deformed portions 8'. The shape of the deformed portion 8' is slightly different from the flat portion 8' shown in Figures 3b and 3c. In Figure 4, it can be seen that the ends of the deformed portion 8' are slightly curved upward. These variations are completely equivalent, and in both cases, performing the stamping will not cause deformation of the guide hole 5 or damage to the attachment 7.

[0023] After stamping, the deformed portion 8' undergoes a blanking process, causing the ornament 2 to separate from the deformed portion 8'. The undeformed guide hole allows the portion 8' to be precisely positioned relative to the blanking tool. Figure 5 shows a portion of the strip 1 shown in Figures 3a-3c after blanking. The tool used can be a laser cutter or a stamping tool similar to the stamping tool described above, but the stamping tool includes a die and a blanking punch. These blanking processes are well known and are also used or can be used in the method described in the introduction. During the stamping process, the punch leaves a gap to allow the legs 4 of the ornament 2 to pass through. The die matches the shape of the ornament.The trim is then held in place during blanking. Then, an extractor in the mold ejects the blanked trim.

[0024] To obtain an opening configuration that achieves the desired result, i.e., producing the trim 2 without deformation of the guide holes 5 and without damage or breakage of the attachment 7, those skilled in the art can follow the method described below.

[0025] First, some parameters are collected, including:

[0026] the material to be used,

[0027] the width and thickness of the strip,

[0028] the shape and size of the trim,

[0029] the diameter and spacing of the guide holes.

[0030] Based on these parameters, simulation software is used to calculate the amount of deformation of the part processed by the stamping tool, thereby determining the opening configuration. Examples of commercially available software that can be used to implement the present invention include (manufactured by Transvalor) and Abaqus (manufactured by Dassault Systèmes).

[0031] Starting from an initial configuration obtained, for example, based on experience or preliminary calculations, the software can simulate the forces applied by the tools used in the process and deduce from the simulation results the deformation of the strip under the influence of these forces. By repeatedly simulating and improving the shape and size of the openings each time, the configuration can be optimized to minimize deformation near the guide hole and optimize the deformation of the attachment to prevent breakage of the attachment. Optimization can be achieved using the simulation software described above, or other computational software known to those skilled in the art can be used.

[0032] It should be noted that the present invention is not limited to the configuration shown, which consists of four elliptical openings. The number of openings around the central portion 8 can be different, for example, three, five or more. The shape of the openings can be other than elliptical, such as circular or rectangular, or a combination of openings of different shapes can be used. In a preferred embodiment that provides the outline of the central portion, the central portion has a recessed edge relative to its center (e.g., portion 8 shown in the figure), but this type of outline is not limited to elliptical openings. The recessed edge of the central portion can also be achieved by using openings with other outlines (e.g., circular outlines). Specification 3 / 4 pages 5 CN 122072447 A

[0033] Determining the optimal configuration depends on many parameters, including the shape and size of the trim, the strip material, and the shape and size of the guide hole. It should be noted that the shape of these guide holes can be other than circular (e.g., rectangular or other shapes).

[0034] For the strip 1, the invention is not limited to one or more specific materials. However, preferred materials are those most commonly used in the manufacture of watch ornaments, particularly copper and copper alloys, such as brass, and gold or silver, or alloys of gold or silver.

[0035] Guide holes 5 and elliptical openings or other opening configurations can be manufactured using known methods. As shown in Figure 6,The specific state of strip 1 shown in Figure 1 can be obtained by repeatedly performing the three blanking steps. The cross-section of a set of blanking punches is shown as part P in the figure. For example, strip 1 made of brass is fed under a set of punches with different shapes, which can simultaneously blank any material present. This type of tool is called a progressive stamping press. To obtain all the guide holes and elliptical openings, three blanking processes A, B, and C are required, after which the strip is precisely advanced in the direction of the arrow. By repeating these three processes multiple times, a strip with multiple equidistant guide holes and openings can be produced. Instructions 4 / 4 pages 6 CN 122072447 A Figure 1 Figure 2 Figure 3a Instructions drawings 1 / 3 pages 7 CN 122072447 A Figure 3b Figure 3c Figure 4 Instructions drawings 2 / 3 pages 8 CN 122072447 A Figure 5 Figure 6 Instructions drawings 3 / 3 pages 9 CN 122072447 A Abstract A strip, made of the material of the appliques to be manufactured, includes multiple rows of pilot holes along its longitudinal edges with at least one group of openings arranged between the rows. The openings surround a central portion of the strip material, such that the central portion remains attached to the strip; the attachment portions being formed by narrow regions of the strip between two adjacent openings.pilot holes, producing a distorted part that remains attached to the strip via the attachment portions. At the same time, on a face of the distorted part, the applique is formed in relief relative to the face, and preferably, attachment legs are correspondingly formed on the opposite face. The strip is fed through a blanking tool that blanks the applique, thereby separating it from the distorted part. The undistorted pilot holes enable the part to be precisely positioned relative to the blanking tool.

Claims

1. A method for manufacturing at least one ornament (2) for a watch, said ornament being made of a predetermined material, said method comprising: Provides a longitudinal strip (1) made of the material, the strip being defined by two parallel edges. Multiple rows of equidistant guide holes (5) are punched or drilled along each edge of the strip (1). At least one set of openings (6) is punched or punched at the center position between multiple rows of guide holes, such that the outline section of the opening defines the edge of a central portion (8) made of the material, the central portion being held attached to the strip by an attachment portion (7) defined by a narrow region on the strip located between two adjacent openings. Then, the strip is guided through the punching tool using the guide hole (5). At least the following operations are performed simultaneously using the stamping tool: The material of the central portion (8) is creeped without causing deformation of the guide hole (5) to create a deformed portion (8'), which is held attached to the strip by the attachment portion (7'). A decorative element (2) is formed on one of the surfaces of the deformed portion (8') in a raised form relative to the surface. Then, the guide hole (5) is used to guide the strip through the blanking tool. The deformed portion (8') is fed through the blanking tool to blank the ornament (2).

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein, The edge portion on the central portion (8) has a concave shape relative to the center of the central portion.

3. The method according to claim 1 or 2, wherein, The openings (6a-6d) are elliptical.

4. The method according to claim 3, wherein, The set of openings includes four elliptical openings (6a-6d), namely, two openings (6a, 6b) whose major axis of the profile is oriented perpendicular to the longitudinal direction of the strip (1), and two openings (6c, 6d) whose major axis of the profile is oriented parallel to the longitudinal direction.

5. The method according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein, The strip (1) includes multiple sets of openings (6) arranged equidistantly on the strip to generate multiple central portions (8), and multiple ornaments (2) are made from these central portions (8).

6. The method according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein, While creating the deformed portion and forming a raised ornament relative to the surface, one or more attachment feet (4) are formed using the stamping tool, the attachment feet (4) being located on the surface of the deformed portion (8') opposite to the surface of the raised ornament (2).

7. The method according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein, The material of the ornament (2) is copper, gold, silver, or copper alloy, gold alloy, silver alloy.

8. The method according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein, The blanking tool is either a laser blanking tool or a stamping tool using a die and a blanking punch.

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