Exterior components including a lamination of interference layers deposited on a chromium carbide surface

Abstract

To provide an exterior component that includes a lamination of interference layers deposited on a surface made of chromium carbide. [Solution] The present invention relates to an exterior part (10) of chromium carbide Cr, wherein the real part n of the complex refractive index at a wavelength of 550 nm is >1 and the imaginary part k is <1.5. x C y The present invention relates to an exterior component (10) comprising a substrate (100) having a support surface (101) made of TiO2, wherein a thin-film dielectric coating (110) is deposited on the support surface (101) by alternating stacking of at least one TiO2 layer and an Al2O3 layer, and includes a TiO2 terminal layer (111) and a TiO2 or Al2O3 base layer (112) covering the support surface (101).

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] This invention relates to the field of watches, jewelry, or fine jewelry, and more specifically to exterior components used in watches, jewelry, or fine jewelry.

[0002] In this specification, the term “exterior components” refers to components that are visible to the user and have a decorative function, that is, components that contribute to the appearance of an object, as is commonly understood in the aforementioned fields. [Background technology]

[0003] In the fields of watches, jewelry, and fine jewelry, aesthetics is generally a primary objective.

[0004] In the watch industry, external components such as the watch face can help distinguish a watch brand from competitors and contribute to the uniqueness of the brand and watch model.

[0005] To color exterior parts, a metal substrate is typically plated using methods such as painting, varnishing, or enamel coating. However, these coloring methods are not always suitable if the material layer applied to the substrate surface is too thick, obscuring surface structures such as brushed finish, sunray finish, sandblasted finish, or laser processing. Furthermore, the lifespan of this layer, and consequently its color, is not always satisfactory.

[0006] Therefore, thin-film vacuum deposition techniques such as physical vapor deposition (PVD), chemical vapor deposition (CVD), and atomic layer deposition (ALD) are preferred. These thin-film vacuum deposition techniques make it possible to form durable thin layers that are typically suitable for plating small parts, such as those containing fine surface structures. [Overview of the project] [Problems that the invention aims to solve]

[0007] However, with these film-forming technologies, the number of colors that can be imparted to exterior parts is limited.

[0008] The present invention aims to obtain exterior parts that retain the appearance of any substrate structure and have a new range of colors.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0009] The present invention solves the aforementioned drawbacks, and for this purpose, it is an exterior part for a watch, jewelry, or high-class jewelry, and has a real part n of the complex refractive index at a wavelength of 550 nm greater than 1 and an imaginary part k less than 1.5, and chromium carbide Cr x C y The present invention relates to an exterior part including a substrate having a support surface made of C, on which a semi-transparent thin-film dielectric coating is deposited, which is formed by at least one alternating laminate of a layer made of TiO2 and a layer made of Al2O3, and includes a terminal layer made of TiO2 and a base layer made of TiO2 or Al2O3 covering the support surface.

[0010] The present invention advantageously enables the imparting of new colors to exterior parts while at the same time providing chemical and environmental protection. Advantageously, the color imparted to the exterior part depends on the stoichiometric ratio of carbon and chromium on the support surface.

[0011] In certain embodiments, the present invention can further include one or more of the following features, individually or in any technically possible combination.

[0012] In some embodiments, the support surface is the surface of a support layer made of Cr x C y manufactured.

[0013] In some embodiments, the atomic ratio of carbon and chromium on the support surface is equal.

[0014] In some embodiments, the thin-film dielectric coating includes five layers, the base layer is made of TiO2, and the layers of the thin-film dielectric coating have a thickness selected to impart an interference color characterized in the CIELAB space in reflection mode using standard light source D65, observer: 10° and measurement geometry di: 8°, with parameters L * =[45;55], a * =[-10;0], b * =[0;10] to the exterior component.

[0015] In some embodiments, the thin-film dielectric coating includes six layers, the base layer is made of Al2O3, and the layers of the thin-film dielectric coating have a thickness selected to impart an interference color characterized in the CIELAB space in reflection mode using standard light source D65, observer: 10° and measurement geometry di: 8°, with parameters L * =[15;25], a * =[35;45], b * =[15;25] to the exterior component.

[0016] In some embodiments, the atomic ratio of chromium on the support surface is lower than that of carbon.

[0017] In some embodiments, the atomic concentration of carbon on the support surface is more than 60%.

[0018] In some embodiments, the thin-film dielectric coating includes three layers, the base layer is made of TiO2, and the layers of the thin-film dielectric coating have a thickness selected to impart an interference color characterized in the CIELAB space in reflection mode using standard light source D65, observer: 10° and measurement geometry di: 8°, with parameters L * =[70;80], a * =[-10;0], b * =[-5;5] to the exterior component.

[0019] In some embodiments, the atomic concentration of carbon on the support surface is more than 80%.​​​In some embodiments, the thin-film dielectric coating comprises six layers, the base layer is made of Al2O3, and the layers of the thin-film dielectric coating (110) are measured in CIELAB space using the standard light source D65 in reflection mode, with observer: 10° and measurement geometry di: 8°, parameter L * =[35;45], a * =[-5;5], b * The thickness is selected to impart interference colors characterized by =[-10;-20] to the exterior component (10).

[0021] Other features and advantages of the present invention will be described in detail below as non-limiting examples with reference to the drawings. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0022] [Figure 1] This figure shows a schematic cross-sectional view of an exterior part according to a first modification in the first embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 2] This figure shows a schematic cross-sectional view of an exterior part according to a second modification of the first embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 3] This figure shows a schematic cross-sectional view of an exterior part according to the first modification in the second embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 4] This figure shows a schematic cross-sectional view of an exterior part according to a second modification in a second embodiment of the present invention. [Modes for carrying out the invention]

[0023] Please note that for clarity, the drawings are not drawn to actual size.

[0024] This invention relates to chromium carbide (Cr x C y The present invention relates to an exterior component 10 used in watches, jewelry, or high-end jewelry, which includes a substrate 100 having a support surface 101 made of [material name missing].

[0025] In particular, the substrate 100 is coated with Cr by, for example, a physical vapor deposition method known to those skilled in the art as "PVD". x Cy It can be formed by a body on which layers of material are deposited. In this way, a chromium carbide layer is deposited to form a support surface 101. Such a layer may have a thickness of 50 nm to 10 μm, preferably 50 to 500 nm.

[0026] The exterior component 10 according to the present invention is schematically shown in Figures 1 and 2 and is particularly suitable for forming the dial of a timepiece, or other, preferably, internal components of a timepiece.

[0027] The exterior component 10 has a translucent, i.e., transparent, thin film dielectric coating 110 on its support surface 101. The layers of the thin film dielectric coating (110) are deposited by a method known to those skilled in the art as "atomic layer deposition," or "ALD." Each layer of the thin film dielectric coating 110 has a thickness of several nanometers to tens of nanometers. This property protects the support surface 101 of the exterior component 10 from chemical and environmental attacks such as humidity, and allows for precise and selective coloring of interference effects in a repeatable and robust manner. Thus, the thickness of the thin film dielectric coating 110 is uniform and consistent across its entire surface.

[0028] The support surface 101 can be structured, for example, by machining, for example by hand engraving or by machining with a numerically controlled machine tool, by chemical processing, or by laser processing. The structure is formed by recesses and protrusions, and the distance between the recesses and protrusions is, for example, at least 1 μm.

[0029] The thin-film dielectric coating 110 is formed by alternating stacking of at least one TiO2 layer and an Al2O3 layer, and includes a TiO2 terminal layer 111 and a TiO2 or Al2O3 base layer 112 covering the support surface 101.

[0030] In this case, it should be understood that the properties of the base layer 112 depend on the number of thin-film dielectric coatings 110, particularly whether the number of thin-film dielectric coatings is even or odd.

[0031] The interference colors obtained by the combination of the thin film dielectric coatings 110 and the support surfaces 101 depend particularly on the thickness of each thin film dielectric coating 110, their arrangement and number, and the material of the support surfaces 101.

[0032] In particular, the present invention proposes a specific arrangement of a thin-film dielectric coating 110 associated with a chromium carbide support surface 101, in which the stoichiometric ratio is selected such that the real part n of the complex refractive index at a wavelength of 550 nm is > 1 and the imaginary part k is < 1.5.

[0033] Advantageously, by selecting the properties and thickness of the thin-film dielectric coating 110 layer, and the material of the support surface 101, particularly the stoichiometric ratio of carbon to chromium in the support surface 101, the interference colors produced by the properties of the present invention are highly precise and can be selected from a wide range of colors.

[0034] In particular, in the first embodiment of the present invention shown in Figure 1, the atomic ratio of carbon to chromium on the support surface 101 is equal. As a result, the original color is a yellowish gray, and when combined with the thin-film dielectric coating 110, a range of colors that would be difficult to obtain outside of the features of the present invention can be realized.

[0035] In this embodiment of the present invention, the thin film dielectric coating 110 comprises six layers, and the base layer 112 is made of Al2O3. The layers of the thin film dielectric coating 110 are reflected in CIELAB space using the standard light source D65 in reflection mode, with observer: 10° and measurement geometry di: 8°, and parameter L * =[15;25], a * =[35;45], b * =[15;25], and more specifically, parameter L * =22, a * =39, b * The exterior part 10 has a thickness selected to impart an interference color characterized by =19 to the exterior part 10.

[0036] Therefore, in this first modification, the exterior part 10 has a reddish color, such as burgundy or orange-red.

[0037] In a second modification of this embodiment of the present invention, as shown in Figure 2, the thin film dielectric coating 110 comprises five layers, and the base layer 112 is made of TiO2. The layers of the thin film dielectric coating 110 are reflected in CIELAB space using the standard light source D65 in reflection mode, with observer: 10° and measurement geometry di: 8°, and parameter L * =[45;55], a * =[-10;0], b * =[0;10], and more specifically, parameter L * =50, a * = -7, b * The thickness is selected to impart an interference color characterized by =7 to the exterior part 10.

[0038] Therefore, in this second modification, the exterior part 10 has a dark green appearance.

[0039] In this embodiment of the present invention, each layer of the thin-film dielectric coating 110 may have a thickness of 1 nm or several nm, for example, 1 to 10 nm, and several tens of nm, for example, 80 to 90 nm.

[0040] In a second embodiment of the present invention, the atomic ratio of chromium in the support surface 101 is lower than that of carbon.

[0041] In the first modification of this embodiment shown in Figure 3, the atomic concentration of carbon on the support surface 101 may exceed 60%. As a result, the original color becomes a dark gray with an intermediate tone compared to the first example, and when combined with the thin-film dielectric coating 110, it becomes possible to realize a range of colors that would be difficult to obtain outside of the features of the present invention.

[0042] In this variation example, the thin-film dielectric coating 110 may consist of three layers, with the base layer 112 being made of TiO2. The layers of the thin-film dielectric coating 110 are measured in CIELAB space using the standard light source D65 in reflection mode, with observer: 10° and measurement geometry di: 8°, with parameter L * =[70;80], a * =[-10;0], b *=[-5;5], and more specifically, parameter L * =76, a * = -6, b * The thickness is selected to impart an interference color characterized by =-1 to the exterior part 10.

[0043] Therefore, in this first modified example, the exterior part 10 has a light green appearance.

[0044] In the second modified example shown in Figure 4, the atomic concentration of carbon on the support surface 101 may exceed 80%. This results in a very dark gray or black color, and when combined with the thin-film dielectric coating 110, it becomes possible to achieve a range of colors that are difficult to obtain outside of the features of the present invention.

[0045] In this example of variation, the thin-film dielectric coating 110 consists of four layers, and the base layer 112 is made of Al2O3. The layers of the thin-film dielectric coating 110 are measured in CIELAB space using the standard light source D65 in reflection mode, with observer: 10° and measurement geometry di: 8°, with parameter L * =[35;45], a * =[-5;5], b * =[-10;-20], and more specifically, parameter L * =40, a * =-3, b * It has a thickness selected to impart an interference color characterized by =-15 to the exterior component.

[0046] Therefore, in this first modification, the exterior part 10 has a blue appearance.

[0047] In this second embodiment of the present invention, each layer of the thin-film dielectric coating 110 may have a thickness of 1 nm or a few nm, for example 5 to 10 nm, and several tens of nm, for example 70 to 80 nm.

[0048] More generally, it should be noted that the embodiments and uses discussed above have been described as non-limiting examples, and therefore other modifications are conceivable. [Explanation of Symbols]

[0049] 10 Exterior parts 100 circuit boards 101 Support surface 110 Thin-film dielectric coating 111 Termination layer 112 Base layer

Claims

1. An exterior part (10) for a watch, jewelry, or high-class jewelry, comprising chromium carbide Cr having a real part n of the complex refractive index at a wavelength of 550 nm > 1 and an imaginary part k < 1.5 ３ , ２ C ｙ comprises a substrate (100) having a support surface (101) made of C, on which a layer made of TiO ２ and a layer made of Al ２ O ３ are formed by at least one alternating laminate, and a terminal layer (111) made of TiO ２ and a TiO ２ made or an Al ２ O ３ made base layer (112) covering the support surface (101), and a semi-transparent thin-film dielectric coating (110) is deposited. The exterior part (10) is characterized by this.

2. The support surface (101) is made of Cr on the substrate body. ｘ C ｙ The exterior part (10) according to claim 1, which is the surface of the support layer made of [material].

3. The exterior component (10) according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the atomic ratio of carbon to chromium in the support surface (101) is equal.

4. The thin film dielectric coating (110) comprises five layers, and the base layer (112) is TiO ２ The thin film dielectric coating 110 layer is measured in CIELAB space using a standard light source D65 in reflection mode with observer: 10° and measurement geometry di: 8°, with parameter L ＊ =[45;55],a ＊ =[-10;0], b ＊ The exterior part (10) according to claim 3, having a thickness selected to impart an interference color characterized by = [0;10] to the exterior part (10).

5. The thin film dielectric coating (110) comprises six layers, and the base layer (112) is Al ２ O ３ The thin film dielectric coating 110 layer is measured in CIELAB space using a standard light source D65 in reflection mode with observer: 10° and measurement geometry di: 8°, with parameter L ＊ =[15;25],a ＊ =[35;45],b ＊ The exterior part (10) according to claim 3, having a thickness selected to impart interference colors characterized by = [15;25] to the exterior part (10).

6. The exterior component (10) according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the atomic ratio of chromium in the support surface (101) is lower than that of carbon.

7. The exterior part (10) according to claim 6, wherein the atomic concentration of carbon in the support surface (101) is greater than 60%.

8. The thin film dielectric coating (110) comprises three layers, and the base layer (112) is TiO ２ The thin film dielectric coating 110 layer is measured in CIELAB space using a standard light source D65 in reflection mode with observer: 10° and measurement geometry di: 8°, with parameter L ＊ = [70; 80], a ＊ =[-10;0], b ＊ The exterior part (10) according to claim 7, having a thickness selected to impart an interference color characterized by = [-5;5] to the exterior part (10).

9. The exterior part (10) according to claim 6, wherein the atomic concentration of carbon in the support surface (101) is greater than 80%.

10. The thin film dielectric coating (110) comprises six layers, and the base layer (112) is Al ２ O ３ The thin film dielectric coating 110 layer is measured in CIELAB space using a standard light source D65 in reflection mode with observer: 10° and measurement geometry di: 8°, with parameter L ＊ =[35;45],a ＊ = [-5; 5], b ＊ The exterior part (10) according to claim 8, having a thickness selected to impart interference colors characterized by = [-10;-20] to the exterior part (10).

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