Optical device for forming an electrochromic ophthalmic lens, eyeglasses incorporating same, and method for manufacturing same

Abstract

The present invention relates to an optical device for a wearer intended to form an electrochromic ophthalmic lens, to a pair of spectacles including two such lenses fitted in a frame, and to a method for manufacturing such an optical device. The optical device (1) comprises at least one electrochromic cell (3) with a rear shell (4) and a front shell (5) defining, respectively, a rear surface (4b) close to at least one eye of the wearer and a front surface (5b) facing the optical device (1), the rear shell and the front shell being provided with at least a pair of transparent electrodes, the rear shell and the front shell delimiting a sealed cavity filled with an electrochromic composition (7). According to the invention, one of the front shell and the rear shell comprises a mineral glass substrate and the other comprises an organic polymer substrate, the electrochromic cell forming a mineral-organic hybrid ophthalmic lens selected from plano lenses and prescription lenses meeting prescriptions for refractive correction.

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to an optical device for a wearer intended to form an electrochromic ophthalmic lens, to a pair of spectacles comprising two such electrochromic ophthalmic lenses fitted in a frame, and to a method for manufacturing such an optical device. The invention applies in particular to electrochromic cells for smart eyewear, such as spectacles, which can advantageously form prescription ophthalmic lenses, but the invention also relates to electrochromic lenses of the planar type or even electrochromic semi-finished lenses. [Background technology]

[0002] As is known, electrochromic (EC) cells typically have a structure with two transparent outer shells, both made of inorganic materials or both made of organic materials, on which transparent conductive coatings are placed on their inner surfaces to form electrodes. An EC liquid or gel composition usually fills the cavities formed between the facing conductive coatings, the EC composition comprising at least one oxidizing compound and at least one reducing compound that are respectively reduced and oxidized when an electric field is applied between the electrodes of the cell. Alternatively, only one conductive coating may be provided on the same shell inner surface, in which case this conductive coating is separated into the two electrodes by a structure on this same shell, for example having a comb-like or interdigitated structure. At least one of these oxidizing and reducing compounds is an EC compound. Thus, by applying this electric field, the light transmission value of the cell can be changed. Support of the two transparent shells and sealing of the cavities are usually achieved by a peripheral seal.

[0003] EC compounds are substances that have electrochromic properties, i.e., substances that change color between reduced and oxidized states. They may be mixtures of different EC compounds. When an EC compound is reduced or oxidized, another redox active compound is required that can donate or accept the electrons that the EC compound accepts or donates, respectively. This other redox compound may itself be an EC compound.

[0004] With such EC cells, it is possible to control the redox state in the cell, and therefore the color of the EC compounds, by applying an electric field between the electrodes. Combining several EC compounds in an EC cell can be useful to tune the color of the cell when no electric field is applied between the electrodes (passive state) and when such a field is applied (active state).

[0005] US 2013 / 293825 A1 relates to an electrochromic optical system comprising an optical substrate and an EC stack forming a glass substrate disposed on the optical substrate, the EC stack including at least five ceramic layers disposed successively one after the other. As seen in FIG. 7 of this document, the EC glass substrate is bonded to an optical substrate, for example a lens or lens blank made of optical glass or plastic, by using an adhesive layer between them.

[0006] Similarly, EC prescription lenses are known in which a prescription plastic wafer (e.g. made of polycarbonate) is bonded in a glue step to the backside of a planar EC cell that includes two mineral glass shells (i.e. both having a mineral glass substrate) that are coated on their inner surfaces with a transparent conductive coating (e.g. of ITO).

[0007] The main drawbacks of the EC optical system disclosed in US Patent Publication No. 2013 / 293825A1 are, as explained above, the very special EC stack which, in contrast to most conventional EC cells, does not contain any liquid or gel compositions, and further the presence of required optical substrates which significantly increase the overall thickness and weight of the entire EC optical system.

[0008] Another drawback of the EC optical system of US 2013 / 293825 A1 and the above EC prescription lenses having a mineral EC cell and prescription plastic wafer is the step of bonding the EC stack or mineral EC cell to the optical substrate or prescription wafer, which is delicate as it may introduce several defects that reduce production yields and increase non-quality costs.

[0009] US Patent No. 9,766,528 B2 describes an EC device for a vehicle mirror, - a first flexible or rigid plastic substrate comprising a front surface and a rear surface, the rear surface comprising a first conductive material and the front and / or rear surface comprising a gas diffusion barrier; - a second flexible or rigid plastic substrate including a front surface and a rear surface, the front surface comprising a second conductive material; and Including, An EC device is disclosed in which a first substrate is bonded to a second substrate by a sealing member, the rear surface of the first substrate and the front surface of the second substrate, together with the sealing member, defining a chamber therebetween.

[0010] The main drawback of this EC device is that the disclosed laminate for vehicle mirrors having a flat shell is not intended for obtaining curved EC devices, nor is it intended for obtaining prescription lenses for optical correction. Summary of the Invention [Means for solving the problem]

[0011] The object of the present invention is to overcome at least the above mentioned drawbacks by providing a wearer with a new optical device comprising at least one electrochromic cell including a rear shell and a front shell each defining a rear surface proximate to at least one eye of the wearer and an opposing front surface of the optical device, the rear shell and the front shell being provided with at least a pair of transparent electrodes, the rear shell and the front shell delimiting a sealed cavity filled with an electrochromic composition, thereby enabling the optical device to form either planar or prescription electrochromic lens structures with improved trade-offs between the properties of the lens structure including, in particular, impact resistance, thickness, weight, transparency, color homogeneity, barrier properties, and abrasion resistance of the front surface of the lens structure.

[0012] In accordance with the present invention, the optical device is such that one of the anterior and posterior shells comprises a mineral glass substrate and the other (i.e., the posterior or anterior shell, respectively) comprises an organic polymer substrate, thereby forming a mineral-organic hybrid ophthalmic lens structure in which the electrochromic cell is selected from plano lenses and prescription lenses that meet optical power correction prescriptions.

[0013] It should be noted that this mineral-organic hybrid ophthalmic lens forming the optical device of the present invention is preferably such that both the anterior shell and the posterior shell are curved, and that this mineral-organic hybrid ophthalmic lens may optionally exhibit any desired base curve determined in relation to the total refractive power of the particular lens required for the prescription ophthalmic lens, in addition to the above-mentioned satisfactory trade-off of properties obtainable in the overall lens structure, and in particular at its anterior surface.

[0014] It should also be noted that this (mineral-organic) hybrid EC ophthalmic lens of the present invention is distinguished from the above-mentioned fully mineral EC prior art ophthalmic lenses available today (such available mineral EC lenses each include anterior and posterior shells based on a mineral glass substrate) by the specific combination of a front or posterior shell of essentially mineral glass EC (i.e. based on a mineral glass substrate) and a rear or anterior shell of essentially organic polymer EC (i.e. based on an organic polymer substrate, such as a plastic substrate).

[0015] For simplicity, the following description of the features of the present invention will refer to the mineral and plastic shells of a hybrid ophthalmic lens.

[0016] According to another aspect of the invention including any of the above features, the rear shell or the front shell comprises an organic polymer substrate which may be monolayer or multilayer according to a weight fraction which may be greater than 50%, preferably greater than 70%, and which may be based on at least one thermoplastic, thermosetting or photocurable polymer.

[0017] According to a first embodiment, the organic polymer substrate comprises: (Meth)acrylic (co)polymers, in particular polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA), - Triacetate of cellulose (TAC), polyesters, such as polyethylene furanoate (PEF), polyethylene terephthalate (PET) or polyethylene naphthalate (PEN); - copolyester, - Polycarbonate (PC), - cyclic olefin copolymers (COC), - Cyclic olefin polymers (COP), and - multilayer films of at least one of these polymers and / or of at least one copolymer of ethylene and vinyl alcohol (EVOH), poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVA), polychlorotrifluoroethylene (PCTFE), polyvinylidene chloride (PVDC), and polyamide (PA); The composition may be based on at least one transparent thermoplastic polymer selected from the group consisting of:

[0018] According to a second embodiment, the organic polymer substrate may be based on at least one transparent thermosetting or photocurable polymer selected, for example, from polyurethanes, polyurethane / polyureas, polythiourethanes, polyol(allylcarbonate) (co)polymers, polyepisulfides, polyepoxides.

[0019] In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the front shell comprises said mineral glass substrate and the rear shell comprises said organic polymer substrate. In this preferred case, the so-called mineral shell and plastic shell comprise the front shell and rear shell respectively.

[0020] As will be described in more detail below, this preferred embodiment offers additional particularly advantageous properties as compared to other contemplated instances of the invention in which so-called mineral and plastic shells comprise the rear and front shells, respectively.

[0021] Advantageously, the optical device of the present invention does not have an optical substrate bonded to the front or rear shell, in contrast to the above-mentioned prior art related to bonding an EC stack or EC cell to a separate optical substrate or wafer of lens type, thus eliminating the above-mentioned drawbacks of this prior art by using an organic polymer substrate to create a rear shell which may be flat, may already have a determined prescription, or may be a semi-finished lens.

[0022] As a result, the absence of any separate plastic lens substrate or wafer bonded to the optical device can reduce the overall thickness and weight of the optical device, as well as eliminate the additional glue step and the resulting aesthetic defects and additional non-quality costs.

[0023] According to one aspect of the invention, the rear shell or the front shell may each have a curved inner surface facing the rear surface of the rear shell and the front surface of the front shell, and the curved inner surface is provided with at least a pair of transparent electrodes as described above, facing each other on the rear and front shells, or both disposed on the rear or front shell.

[0024] According to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the curved inner surfaces of the mineral shell (preferably the front shell) and the plastic shell (preferably the front shell) are provided with a pair of said transparent electrodes facing each other on the plastic shell and the mineral shell respectively.

[0025] According to another preferred embodiment of the present invention, including the preceding embodiments, at least one transparent electrode comprises: at least one transparent conductive oxide (TCO) deposited by sputtering, for example chosen from ATO (AlSnO), ATZO (AlSnZnO), AZO (AlZnO), FTO (FSnO), GZO (GaZnO), ITO (InSnO), ITZO (InSnZnO), IZO (InZnO) and mixtures thereof, - a deformable conductive nanostructure comprising a metal, for example selected from a nanomesh, a nanowire, and a nanogrid; - M is, for example, silver, gold, copper, I1 is equal to or different from I2, an insulating layer (I1)-metal layer (M)-insulating layer (I2) stack, The insulating layer (I2) is in contact with an electrochromic composition (7) comprising a transparent conductive oxide (TCO), for example indium tin oxide (ITO), The other insulating layer (I1) comprises a transparent conductive oxide (TCO), for example indium tin oxide (ITO), or is a non-conductive layer capable of increasing the light transmission of the stack or forming a barrier layer; and - Polymer conductive coating The conductive layer includes at least one of

[0026] Thus, the conductive layer may comprise a combination of said transparent conductive oxide (TCO) and said deformable conductive nanostructures, and / or said stack of insulating layer (I1)-metal layer (M)-insulating layer (I2).

[0027] According to a more preferred embodiment of the invention, the curved inner surfaces of the mineral front shell and the plastic rear shell are provided with said pair of transparent electrodes facing each other on the rear and front shells respectively and defined by the combination of: - the inner surface of the mineral front shell comprises said at least one TCO (e.g. at least one of ATO, ATZO, AZO, FTO, GZO, ITO, ITZO, and IZO) deposited by sputtering by the front electrode, - the inner surface of the plastic rear shell, facing the rear electrode, comprises one of the above mentioned conductive metal nanostructures selected from one or several layers of nanomeshes, nanowires and nanogrids (including, if necessary, multiple layers made of several superimposed conductive layers and alternating passivation layers, treated with a conductive coating as at least one passivation layer as described below to avoid undesired reactions of the metal with the oxidizing compounds of the EC formulation in the EC cell, whereby the passivation layer can be an inert metal layer, e.g. a conductive coating such as a gold layer), optionally in addition to a barrier layer.

[0028] These nanomeshes and nanowires can be obtained by methods known in the art, including deposition of a layer of a suspension of nanowires in a solvent followed by solvent removal, e.g., by drying. Nanogrids can be obtained by photolithographic methods applied to a metal layer, as known in the art. These metal nanomesh, nanowire, or nanogrid layers are also advantageously capable of withstanding high levels of deformation without losing electrical conductivity, compared to existing TCO brittle materials, such as ITO thick film coatings, conventionally deposited, e.g., by sputtering.

[0029] Advantageously, the passivation layer may be a single passivation layer or a multi-layer passivation layer (in the above case of alternating conductive nanostructures and passivation layers), - may be deposited on the deformable conductive nanostructures, the passivation layer being preferably a conductive layer, such as a PEDOT, gold, rhodium, platinum or palladium based coating or a transparent conductive oxide (TCO) coating, or else - directly comprised in said at least one conductive layer, preferably a mixture of deformable conductive nanostructures with one or several conductive layers (including multiple layers, such as two or more layers) or a mixture of deformable conductive nanostructures with one or several transparent conductive oxides (TCOs).

[0030] The TCOs that can be used in the passivation layer of the present invention are generally doped metal oxides with formulations containing various ratios of oxygen atoms and at least two other elements, such as ATO (AlSnO), ATZO (AlSnZnO), AZO (AlZnO), FTO (FSnO), GZO (GaZnO), ITO (InSnO), ITZO (InSnZnO), IZO (InZnO), or mixtures thereof.

[0031] Moreover, the TCO structured electrodes that can be used for the conductive layers are advantageously much less brittle than full TCO layers.

[0032] According to a preferred embodiment of the invention, which may include any of the above aspects, the rear shell and the front shell each have a curved inner surface facing the rear surface of the rear shell and the front surface of the front shell, and the plastic rear shell further comprises a single or multi-layer deformable barrier coating on the curved inner surface and / or the rear surface.

[0033] The deformable barrier coating may form a barrier to at least one of oxygen, water vapor, and solvents, and preferably - based on at least one polymer derived from alcohol units, such as a copolymer of ethylene and vinyl alcohol (EVOH) or a poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVA), or at least one polymer not derived from alcohol units, for example an adhesive layer based on polyisobutylene (PIB), or - For example, x and y are greater than 0 and less than or equal to 4, Al2O3, Si3N4, SN, TiN, SiO x N y , SiO x C y , Indium Tin Oxide (ITO), SiO2, ZnO2, and TiO2, or an inorganic or hybrid organic / inorganic gas barrier coating. It is.

[0034] Such a barrier may be applied to a mineral glass substrate (respectively a plastic substrate) by physical vapor deposition, e.g., vacuum evaporation or sputtering, plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition (PECVD), atomic layer deposition (ALD) or by neutral beam assisted sputtering (NBAS).

[0035] It may be noted that a deformable barrier coating is less necessary on a mineral glass substrate than on a plastic substrate, and the barrier coating may not be necessary on said mineral glass substrate.

[0036] According to another feature of the invention, the rear and front shells of the hybrid EC lens, preferably both curved, may be spaced apart from each other by a distance of 10-400 μm, preferably 20-250 μm, forming a gap defining said sealed cavity, the sealed cavity being bounded at its periphery by an adhesive seal, said front and back surfaces being, for example, convex and concave, respectively.

[0037] According to a preferred general embodiment of the present invention, which may include any of the above aspects, the mineral-organic hybrid ophthalmic lens fills a prescription for at least one refractive power correction and optionally astigmatism, and the rear surface of the posterior shell comprises at least one of cylindrical, toric and spherical curvatures, and is preferably a progressive surface when the posterior shell comprises the organic polymer substrate.

[0038] According to one particular embodiment of the invention which may be related to the preceding aspect (i.e. which may relate to a hybrid EC prescription lens), the posterior and anterior shells may be arranged according to the known Alvarez design for two transmission plates, where the posterior or anterior shell is derived from a first surface profile based at least in part on a cubic function, and the anterior or posterior shell is derived from a second surface profile based at least in part on the inverse of the cubic function, such that when the posterior and anterior shells are positioned at their respective vertices on the optical axis, induced phase variations in the posterior shell are cancelled by the anterior shell, and the posterior or anterior shell has an inverse spherical surface.

[0039] Advantageously, one initial Alvarez design of the posterior shell and the anterior shell may allow for a variety of different prescriptions of the mineral-organic hybrid ophthalmic lenses of the present invention to be obtained after edging and cutting both shells of the initial design.

[0040] According to another feature of the invention, which may include any of the above aspects, the rear shell and the front shell may each have a curved inner surface facing a rear surface of the rear shell and a front surface of the front shell, the front shell and / or the rear shell each further comprises at least one of a polarizing film, a photochromic layer, a photochromic polarizing layer, a hard coat, an anti-reflective coating, an anti-fouling coating, an anti-fog coating, a blue light blocking coating, and an anti-static coating, e.g., on the front and / or back surface; Optionally, at least one of a hard coat and an anti-reflective coating is disposed on said curved inner surface of the front shell and / or rear shell, respectively.

[0041] According to another feature of the invention, which may include any of the above aspects, the electrochromic composition of the hybrid EC lens comprises: at least one electrochromic oxidant chosen, for example, from mono- or bis-viologens, anthraquinones, benzazoles, imidazo[1,2-α]pyridines, 2,1,3-benzothiadiazoles, imidazoles, benzoselenadiazoles, benzoselenazoles and derivatives thereof, at least one electrochromic reducing compound chosen, for example, from derivatives of ferrocene, derivatives of phenoxazine, derivatives of phenazine, derivatives of phenothiazine, derivatives of thioanthrene, derivatives of tetrathiafulvalene, and mixtures thereof, - solvents, such as propylene carbonate, thickening agents, for example polyfunctional polymers containing at least two carboxyl moieties selected from carboxylic acid-functional polyesters, carboxylic acid-functional polyethers, carboxylic acid-functional polyurethanes, carboxylic acid-functional polyacrylates, carboxylic acid-functional polymethacrylic acids, carboxylic acid-functional polyvinyl acetate copolymers, combinations thereof, or reaction products or copolymers thereof (polymethyl methacrylate, polyvinyl acetate or polyvinyl acetate derivatives can in particular be used); and - optionally an electrolyte, such as tetra-n-butylammonium tetrafluoroborate (TBA) The composition may be a liquid solution or gel comprising:

[0042] It may be noted that the at least one electrochromic oxidant may act as an electrolyte, and therefore it may not be necessary to add the optional electrolyte mentioned above.

[0043] Preferably, the sealed cavity is bounded at its periphery by an adhesive seal which is a flexible glue selected from acrylates, methacrylates, cyanoacrylates, epoxides, polyurethanes, polyisobutylenes, silicones, and pressure sensitive adhesives.

[0044] It should be noted that all types of EC cells containing EC compositions can be used in the present invention, preferably so-called "all-in-one" ECs, as defined by Alesanco et al. (Materials 2018, 11, 414) as EC cells in which the EC formulation contains at least one oxidizing compound and at least one reducing compound that are reduced and oxidized, respectively, when an electric field is applied between the electrodes, at least one of which is an EC compound.

[0045] According to one exemplary embodiment of the EC composition of the hybrid lens, the at least one EC oxidant is selected from mono- or bis-viologens (i.e. 4,4'-bipyridinium salts or bis[4,4'-bipyridinium] salts), such as alkyl viologens, aryl viologens, aryl alkyl viologens, alkyl aryl viologens, anthraquinones, benzazoles, imidazo[1,2-α]pyridines, 2,1,3-benzothiadiazoles, imidazoles, benzoselenadiazoles, benzoselenazoles, and derivatives thereof; said at least one EC reducing compound is selected from derivatives of ferrocene, derivatives of phenoxazine, derivatives of phenazine, derivatives of phenothiazine, derivatives of thioanthrene, derivatives of tetrathiafulvalene, and mixtures thereof, such as 10-methylphenothiazine (MePhtz).

[0046] Non-limiting examples of such viologen compounds or viologen derivatives, more specifically substituted dialkyl, diaryl 4,4'-bipyridinium salts, substituted dialkyl, diaryl bis[4,4'-bipyridinium] salts, and mixtures thereof, are described in EP 2848667A1, EP 2848668A1, EP 2848669A1, EP 2848670A1, EP 3115433A1, and EP 3345981A1, the teachings of which are incorporated herein. Preferred examples, such as 1,1'-bis(3-(tert-butyl)phenyl)[4,4'-bipyridine]-1,1-diium bis(tetrafluoroborate), are described herein.

[0047] In a preferred embodiment, the redox chemical mixture comprises at least one reducing compound as described above (such as 10-methylphenothiazine) and at least one EC oxidizing compound, preferably at least two EC oxidizing compounds, for example two or three EC oxidizing compounds, preferably each EC oxidizing compound independently selected from a substituted dialkyl 4,4'-bipyridinium salt, a substituted diaryl 4,4'-bipyridinium salt, a substituted dialkyl bis[4,4'-bipyridinium] salt, or a substituted diaryl bis[4,4'-bipyridinium] salt, more preferably the at least two electrochromic oxidizing compounds are at least a substituted diaryl 4,4'-bipyridinium and at least a substituted diaryl bis[4,4'-bipyridinium].

[0048] The EC composition may be described as a solution comprising a solvent such as propylene carbonate, a thickener as defined above (i.e., a multifunctional polymer as defined above that contains at least two carboxyl moieties), at least one oxidizing agent and reducing agent as defined above, and an electrolyte such as tetra-n-butylammonium tetrafluoroborate (TBA). As is known, at least a portion of the EC compounds in an EC cell form an EC composition and are contained in a liquid or gel that fills the space between the electrodes to ensure ionic conduction between them through the electrolyte (the essence of which is the EC material itself and / or other redox active species and / or charged species that may include EC properties and other ions that are not redox active).The EC composition thus confers at least a portion of its EC properties to the EC cell.

[0049] Optical devices according to the present invention include all ophthalmic devices, for example glasses, sports goggles (eg for skiing, cycling, motorcycling or other sports using goggles), or augmented reality devices, preferably glasses.

[0050] It should nevertheless be noted that the optical device according to the present invention as defined in the appended claims may also be a semi-finished ophthalmic device having, for example, a hybrid EC ophthalmic lens, lacking an electronic system, battery and sensors for controlling the frame and / or the lens.

[0051] The eyeglasses of the present invention comprise two ophthalmic lenses fitted in a frame, the ophthalmic lenses comprising an optical device as defined above for the present invention, each of said two ophthalmic lenses comprising: - an electrochromic cell comprising a rear shell and a front shell, preferably both curved, defining said rear surface and said opposing front surface, preferably the front shell comprising an upper mineral glass substrate and the rear shell comprising said organic polymer substrate, forming said mineral-organic hybrid ophthalmic lens selected from plano lenses and prescription lenses meeting a refractive power correction prescription.

[0052] Advantageously, as explained above, each of the two ophthalmic lenses may be a prescription lens, for example having a convex front surface and a concave back surface.

[0053] Such glasses according to the invention allow the color and transmittance to be changed on demand. In most cases, it is preferred that the EC cell has a higher transmittance in the passive state and is darker in the active state. Therefore, the EC compounds in the EC cell are preferentially selected to be colorless or weakly colored in the passive state. In many cases, it is also preferred that the combination of EC compounds in the EC cell gives the EC cell a natural color, such as gray or brown, especially in the active state of the EC cell.

[0054] For frames into which the EC ophthalmic lenses of the present invention are fitted, it is advantageous to include an electronic system configured to control these lenses.

[0055] A method according to the invention for producing an optical device as defined above, such as a pair of spectacles, comprises the steps of: - calculating and designing, for example by digital surfacing, said one of the rear shell and the front shell comprising said organic polymer substrate; - assembling the rear shell and the front shell including the organic polymer substrate to the other of the front shell or rear shell by sealing the periphery of the sealed cavity with an adhesive seal and filling the sealed cavity with the electrochromic composition, thereby forming the electrochromic cell; - surfacing and / or edging at least one of the rear shell and the front shell, said shell comprising an organic polymer substrate; Includes.

[0056] According to one advantageous embodiment of the invention, the method comprises the steps of: - assembling an initial Alvarez assembly of rear and front shells according to the Alvarez design for a transmission plate between two, wherein the blank of the rear or front shell is derived from a first surface profile based at least in part on a cubic function, and the blank of the front or rear shell is derived from a second surface profile based at least in part on an inverse of the cubic function, such that when the rear and front shells are positioned such that their vertices are on the optical axis, induced phase variations in the rear shell are cancelled by the front shell, and the rear and front shells have opposing spherical surfaces; - edging and cutting both shells of said initial Alvarez assembly, thereby obtaining mineral-organic hybrid ophthalmic lenses of various different prescriptions starting from said initial Alvarez assembly; Includes.

[0057] In summary, the advantageous properties of the hybrid EC lens that combines the plastic shell with the mineral shell to form the optical device (e.g., eyeglasses) of the present invention include at least the following: - when the plastic and mineral shells have TCO (e.g. ITO) electrodes coated on each inner surface, the hybrid EC lens shows better transmission and therefore transparency than a fully plastic EC "witness" lens (i.e. with both plastic rear and front shells), because the TCO coating must be applied on the plastic shell at low temperatures to avoid plastic deformation and at a significant thickness to maintain good electrical conductivity at this low temperature, but with a thick TCO coating the plastic becomes partially absorbing and therefore less transparent than the same TCO deposited on mineral glass at a higher temperature; - the TCO electrode coating deposited at low temperature on the plastic shell has a higher sheet resistance than that deposited on the mineral shell, so that the undesirable non-homogeneous color in the hybrid EC lens produced due to the high sheet resistance of both TCO coatings is avoided or at least reduced, compared to the all-plastic EC "reference" lens described above, which comprises both TCO coatings with higher sheet resistance; - thanks to the mineral shell, the hybrid EC lens exhibits a lower diffusion of oxygen and moisture inside the entire lens compared to the fully plastic EC "reference" lens, in view of the EC redox reactions which require a good barrier against oxygen and moisture, which is less satisfactory when using plastic substrates than with mineral substrates; - Thanks to the mineral front shell, the hybrid EC lens shows better abrasion resistance than the fully plastic EC "reference" lens mentioned above; - Hybrid EC lenses are lighter than the all-mineral EC "reference" lenses, improving both aesthetics and wearer comfort (even though hybrid EC lenses can have a thickness equal to or greater than that of all-mineral EC lenses, due to the much lower density of the plastic substrate than the mineral substrate); The preferably plastic rear shell allows to improve the impact resistance of the hybrid EC lens by retaining the final mineral glass pieces that may interrupt in the mineral front shell from the front surface of the lens, compared to the impact resistance of a fully mineral EC "reference" lens having a front and rear shell both based on a mineral glass substrate.

[0058] The invention will now be described in more detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0059] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a pair of spectacles including a pair of hybrid EC ophthalmic lenses forming an optical device according to the present invention. [Figure 2A] FIG. 2 is a front view of one hybrid EC ophthalmic lens of the eyeglasses of FIG. 1. [Figure 2B] FIG. 2B is a schematic cross-sectional view of this hybrid EC ophthalmic lens in plane IIB-IIB of FIG. 2A, showing the EC cells that form this lens. [Diagram 3] FIG. 2 is a front view of a hybrid EC ophthalmic lens according to another example of the present invention connected to a control circuit by a conductive intermediate element. [Figure 4] FIG. 2C is an enlarged schematic cross-sectional view of a hybrid EC ophthalmic lens according to the present invention consisting of the EC cell seen in FIG. 2B, with the control circuitry located directly between the two connecting elements. [Diagram 5] FIG. 2C is a schematic cross-sectional view similar to FIG. 2B of a hybrid EC ophthalmic lens according to the present invention, showing the EC cells that form the hybrid lens. [Figure 6] FIG. 6 is a schematic perspective view of a hybrid EC ophthalmic lens according to the present invention in one particular embodiment of the lens shown in FIG. [Figure 7A] FIG. 2 is a schematic cross-sectional view of an Alvarez-type arrangement of posterior and anterior shells according to one embodiment of the present invention configured to provide the above-mentioned hybrid EC ophthalmic lens. [Figure 7B] FIG. 7B is a full-scale cross-sectional view of an exemplary embodiment of an Alvarez-type arrangement according to FIG. 7A, shown in horizontal cross-section (including the EC cell) in the left half-view and in vertical cross-section in the right half-view. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0060] The terms "comprise" (and its grammatical variations such as "comprises" and "comprising"), "have" (and its grammatical variations such as "has" and "having"), "contain" (and its grammatical variations such as "contains" and "containing"), and "include" (and its grammatical variations such as "includes" and "including") are open-ended linking verbs. They are used to specify the presence of a stated feature, integer, step, or component, or group thereof, but do not preclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, integers, steps, or components, or groups thereof. As a result, a method or step within a method that "comprises," "has," "contains," or "includes" one or more steps or elements is not limited to having only those one or more steps or elements.

[0061] Unless otherwise indicated, all numbers or expressions referring to amounts of ingredients, ranges, reaction conditions, and the like used herein are understood to be modified in all cases by the term "about." Also, unless otherwise indicated, the expression of a value interval "from X to Y" or "between X and Y" according to the present invention is meant to include the values ​​of X and Y.

[0062] Exemplary hybrid EC ophthalmic lenses according to the present invention: Figures 1-6 and their following descriptions relate to non-limiting examples of EC cells and related ophthalmic devices as disclosed in WO 2017 / 009563 A1, except for the combinations of materials selected for the anterior and posterior shells, respectively, as detailed below in accordance with the present invention.

[0063] According to the embodiment depicted in FIG. 1, an ophthalmic device 1 comprises a frame 2 to which two EC cells 3a, 3b are attached.

[0064] As represented in FIG. 2B, each EC cell 3 comprises two transparent shells 4, 5 which advantageously form an outer layer that is not electrically conductive and which delimit between them a cavity 6 intended to be filled with an electrochromic composition 7.

[0065] Each transparent shell 4, 5 therefore comprises an inner surface 4a, 5a and an outer surface 4b, 5b. The term "inner" therefore more specifically denotes the surfaces 4a, 5a which delimit the cavity 6 of the cell 3, and the term "outer" more specifically denotes the surfaces 4b, 5b which are external to the cavity 6. The cavity 6 therefore has a thickness e between the two inner surfaces 4a and 5a.

[0066] In particular, the transparent shell 4, which is designed with its outer surface 4b to form the rear surface adjacent the wearer's one eye of the resulting hybrid EC ophthalmic lens when worn by the wearer, defines the plastic posterior shell 4 of the present invention as defined above according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention and therefore mainly comprises the above-mentioned organic polymer substrate of the thermoplastic, thermosetting and photocurable type by weight.

[0067] Conversely, the other transparent shell 5, designed with its outer surface 5b to form the opposing front surface of the resulting hybrid EC ophthalmic lens when worn by a wearer, defines the mineral front shell 5 as defined above in accordance with the preferred embodiment and therefore mainly comprises by weight the mineral glass substrate.

[0068] The transparent shells 4, 5 may also be chosen to filter ultraviolet radiation, in particular to absorb wavelengths shorter than, for example, 420 nm. In general, the material of the shells 4, 5 or the treatment of their inner surfaces 4a, 5a and / or outer surfaces 4b, 5b may enable the shells 4, 5 to have advantageous features such as, but not limited to, allowing colored reflection, mirror effect, protection against blue light, or protection against infrared radiation. These outer surfaces 4b, 5b may also be coated with anti-scratch coatings, anti-reflection (AR) coatings, anti-soiling coatings, anti-fog coatings, primer coatings, etc. According to an embodiment, the shells 4, 5 may be colored, photochromic, and / or polarized. According to an embodiment, the front shell 5 may be made of a reinforced material to increase its mechanical strength.

[0069] For example, each of the shells 4, 5 may have a hard coat, an AR coating, an anti-soiling coating, or an anti-static coating on its outer surface 4b, 5b. Some hard coats or AR coatings may also be used under the conductive coatings 9, 10 described below. Additionally, the rear shell 4 and / or the front shell 5 may include a polarizing film, a photochromic layer, or even a photochromic polarizing layer.

[0070] Preferably, the shells 4, 5 have a thickness of 50 μm to 2000 μm or 300 μm to 1000 μm. The shells 4, 5 may for example be spherical shells, in particular having a spheroid or ovoid shape bounded by a peripheral edge 8. In particular, the shells 4, 5 are preferably ophthalmic lenses that fill the ophthalmic prescription (RX) of the wearer of the ophthalmic device 1 with the EC composition 7 of the cavity 6.

[0071] According to the invention, at least one inner surface 4a, 5a of the shells 4, 5, in particular both inner surfaces 4a, 5a, are curved, i.e. have a non-zero curvature. For example, the inner surfaces 4a, 5a of the shells 4, 5 may each be concave or convex. Furthermore, the outer surfaces 4b, 5b of the shells 4, 5 may also be curved, in particular concave or convex.

[0072] The inner surface 4a, 5a of each of the transparent shells 4, 5 is at least partially, preferably completely, covered by a conductive coating 9, 10 as defined above, i.e. each of the conductive coatings 9, 10 is e.g. - a transparent conductive coating of at least one TCO (for example at least one of ATO, ATZO, AZO, FTO, GZO, ITO, ITZO, and IZO) deposited by sputtering, or - conductive nanostructures based on metals (e.g. silver) selected from nanomeshes, nanowires and nanogrids, if necessary treated with at least one passivation layer to avoid reaction of the metal with the EC formulation of the EC cell; - M is, for example, silver, gold, copper, I1 is equal to or different from I2, an insulating layer (I1)-metal layer (M)-insulating layer (I2) stack, The insulating layer (I2) is in contact with an electrochromic composition (7) comprising a transparent conductive oxide (TCO), for example indium tin oxide (ITO), the other insulating layer (I1) comprises a transparent conductive oxide (TCO), e.g. indium tin oxide (ITO), or is a non-conductive layer, e.g. capable of increasing the light transmission through the stack or forming a barrier layer; and / or - Polymer conductive coating Equipped with.

[0073] It should be noted that treatment of the conductive nanostructures with at least one passivation layer (including multiple layers made of several stacked conductive layers and alternating passivation layers) may not be necessary if the conductive nanostructures (e.g., nanowires) used are already passivated.

[0074] The plastic posterior shell 4 may include at least one barrier layer, which may be a single or multi-layer barrier coating, on its inner surface 4a and / or outer surface 4b. The barrier layer of the posterior shell 4 may be, for example, a barrier to gases (e.g., oxygen) and / or water vapor to further protect the EC ophthalmic device 1 and enable it to extend its lifespan.

[0075] As disclosed above in a particularly preferred embodiment of the present invention, the advantageous combination of the conductive coatings 9, 10 on both the rear shell 4 and the front shell 5 is - providing the plastic rear shell 4 with a combination of a conductive coating made of metallic nanowires, nanomesh or nanogrid combined with a conductive polymer layer as a barrier layer and passivation layer as previously disclosed; - providing the mineral front shell 5 with a TCO (e.g. ITO) coating exhibiting satisfactory electrical conductivity; It could be that.

[0076] In particular, the nanowires or nanomeshes may be applied, for example, by spray coating, bar coating, inkjet coating, spin coating, or even by screen printing on flat substrates or spray, spin, or inkjet coating on curved substrates. Metallic nanogrids can be made by photolithography, and passivation layers can be applied by various techniques, for example, from PEDOT or other conductive polymer layers applied by spin, spray, inkjet, or bar, or screen print coating processes, or from gold or rhodium coatings by electrochemical or electroless processes, or from thin layers of TCOs such as ITO deposited by PVD, PECVD, or sputtering. Silver nanowires or nanomeshes may be directly included in the polymer conductive coating, for example, as in the commercially available mixture of PEDOT and silver nanowires (e.g., from Heraeus).

[0077] The radii of curvature of the shells 4, 5 are adapted so as to have a constant gap between both shells 4 and 5 after assembly. To assemble the shells 4 and 5, a process similar to the one known to be used for mineral glass shells can be used, providing that it minimizes the constraints applied to the plastic rear shell 4 in order to avoid any deformation of this plastic shell 4, especially if this latter is thin. Nevertheless, other known processes may also be used.

[0078] The cell 3, and in particular the two transparent shells 4, 5, are held together by a peripheral seal 11. The seal 11 therefore completely surrounds the cavity 6. The seal 11 makes it possible to ensure that there is a sufficient thickness e of the cell 3 and that the conductive coatings 9 and 10 of each of the shells 4, 5 are not in direct contact.

[0079] The seal 11 has a height h of several tens of μm to several hundreds of μm, preferably 20 μm to 400 μm, or more particularly 80 μm to 300 μm or even more particularly 90 to 250 μm, especially after assembly of the cell 3. By way of example, the height h of the seal 11 may be equal to about 200 μm. This height h corresponds to the thickness of the cavity 6 near the peripheral edge 8 of the transparent shells 4, 5, especially near the peripheral edge of the inner surfaces 4a, 5a.

[0080] More specifically, the height h of the seal 11 depicted in Figure 2B corresponds to the seal 11 not deposited on the connecting elements 14, 15 described below. However, in an embodiment in which the seal 11 specifically deposits on the connecting elements 14, 15, the height h corresponds to the height of the seal 11 together with the height of the connecting elements 14, 15.

[0081] Furthermore, the width L of the seal 11 is preferably less than 5000 μm for goggle applications, or less than 1000 μm for ophthalmic lenses, or less than 3000 μm for goggles and less than 800 μm for ophthalmic lenses. Thus, when the ophthalmic device 1 is attached to the frame 2, the seal 11 is not visible and does not limit the wearer's field of vision or the useful area of ​​the ophthalmic device 1.

[0082] The term "width" refers to the size of an element extending in a plane generally parallel to the inner surfaces 4a, 5a of the transparent shells 4, 5. The terms "height" or "thickness" refer to the size of an element extending in a direction generally transverse to the inner surfaces 4a, 5a of the shells 4, 5.

[0083] The seal 11 is made from an adhesive material 20 that maintains intimate contact between the two transparent shells 4 and 5. The adhesive material 20 can be any flexible glue capable of withstanding deformation during the selected assembly process.

[0084] According to one embodiment, the adhesive material 20 may be a flexible glue selected from acrylate, methacrylate, cyanoacrylate, epoxide, polyurethane, polyisobutylene, silicone glues, preferably polyisobutylene, cationic epoxy, epoxy-amine, epoxy-anhydride, or oxime silicone glues. The adhesive material 20 may alternatively be a pressure sensitive adhesive, solvent-based or not, that can be applied like a hot melt adhesive.

[0085] The adhesive material 20 is preferably a photo- and / or thermally polymerizable resin, and may in particular be a polyisobutylene pressure-sensitive adhesive or a cationic initiated epoxy resin. Except for the polyisobutylene glue, such resins (e.g. cationic epoxies) may be crosslinked by exposure to light and / or heating, as will be explained subsequently. The filled epoxy resin, when crosslinked, allows to obtain a seal 11 with good mechanical strength. Moreover, the seal 11 so obtained is watertight and airtight.

[0086] According to one embodiment, adhesive material 20 is compatible or inert with respect to EC composition 7 , i.e., does not induce chemical interaction or degradation of EC composition 7 .

[0087] According to one embodiment, the adhesive material 20 comprises spacing elements 12, such as glass or polymer beads. The spacing elements 12 are insulating. In particular, the spacing elements 12 of the adhesive material 20 contact each of the inner surfaces 4a, 5a of the shells 4, 5. The spacing elements 12 therefore define and control the height h of the seal 11, and thus ensure that a sufficient thickness e of the cavity 6 is obtained. If a drop-filling process is used, the spacing elements 12 may not be necessary (in which case the thickness is controlled by the amount of liquid dispensed on one surface and the height of the seal 11).

[0088] According to one embodiment, the adhesive material 20 also comprises a thixotropic agent. Such a thixotropic agent allows optimizing the shape of the seal 11 by controlling the amount of adhesive material 20 deposited on one of the shells 4, 5.

[0089] The thixotropic agent in particular allows to obtain a satisfactory ratio between the height h and the width L of the seal 11. It is therefore possible to obtain a cavity 6 with a sufficient thickness e while minimizing the width L of the seal 11. This makes it possible to avoid edge effects, i.e. local diffusion of the adhesive material 20 during deposition on the shells 4, 5, which would lead to a large increase in the width L of the seal 11. As represented for example in Fig. 2B, the seal extends perpendicularly to the inner surfaces 4a, 5a of the transparent shells 4, 5.

[0090] Additionally, the thixotropic agent allows the seal to be deposited on the curved surface of the bowl while controlling the ratio of the seal's height h to its width L. Thus, the cross section of the seal (height h and width L) remains approximately constant even when the seal is deposited along complex lines on a curved surface, as control of the seal's rheology avoids the seal from spreading or slumping, leading to leak tightness defects or aesthetic defects. Other additives may also be used in the adhesive material 20, such as fillers, e.g., carbon black, which can color the seal.

[0091] The conductive coatings 9, 10 of each of the shells 4, 5 are not in direct contact with each other and form electrodes that are intended to be electrically connected to an external power source 13, such as a battery as represented in FIG.

[0092] For this purpose, a connecting element 14, 15 (also called "bus"), in particular made of metal, may be deposited on the periphery of each of the shells 4, 5 in direct contact with the respective conductive coating 9, 10. Each of the connecting elements 14, 15 partially, in particular completely, surrounds each of the shells 4, 5 on its peripheral edge 8, in particular at the end face of the cell 3. Each of the connecting elements 14, 15 is in particular located on the peripheral edge 8 of each of the shells 4, 5 and in particular forms an equipotential around each of the shells 4, 5. The connecting elements 14, 15 are made, for example, of copper, gold, silver or nickel. Preferably, the connecting elements 14, 15 do not interact with the EC composition 7 and are passivated to avoid their corrosion.

[0093] Each of the connecting elements 14, 15 is located outside the cavity 6 formed by the cells 3 and is therefore not in contact with the EC composition 7 filling the cavity 6. As a variant, the seal 11 may at least partially cover the connecting elements 14, 15.

[0094] The seal 11 is located between the cavity 6 and each of the connection elements 14, 15. In other words, the perimeter of the seal 11 is smaller than the perimeter of each of the connection elements 14, 15. Each of the connection elements 14, 15 is therefore separated, and in particular insulated, from the EC composition 7 in order to avoid any local malfunction of the cell 3.

[0095] Each connecting element 14, 15 preferably has a width of 500 μm to 1500 μm for goggles. Each connecting element 14, 15 further preferably has a height of 0.5 μm to 50 μm, preferentially 1 to 30 μm, more preferentially 1 to 25 μm. The total thickness of the two connecting elements 14, 15 is necessarily smaller than the thickness e of the cell 3, so that these two connecting elements 14 and 15 do not contact each other.

[0096] To ensure the electrical operation of the cells 3, each connection element 14, 15 is electrically connected to a control circuit 16. The control circuit 16 is for example a small electronic control board equipped with a microcontroller allowing the cells 3 to be switched on and off and / or the transmission level to be controlled.

[0097] According to an embodiment, for example represented in Fig. 4, the control circuit 16 is located directly between the two connection elements 14 and 15. In that case, the seal 11 does not contact and does not interfere with this control circuit 16. The control circuit 16 also comprises two faces 16a, 16b, each of which is electrically connected, in particular in direct contact or by means of a conductive glue or adhesive, with the connection elements 14, 15. According to this embodiment, the height of the control circuit 16 between its two faces 16a, 16b is equal to the thickness e of the cavity of the cell 3 minus the thickness of the connection elements 14, 15.

[0098] According to another embodiment, depicted in Fig. 3, the control circuit 16 is not located directly between the two connection elements 14 and 15. In that case, the ophthalmic device 1 comprises a conductive intermediate element 17 (also called a "flex line"), which is preferably located on the nasal or temple side of the frame 2 of the ophthalmic device 1, as depicted in Fig. 1.

[0099] According to this embodiment, the conductive intermediate element 17 is electrically connected independently to each of the connection elements 14, 15 at a first end 17a. The conductive intermediate element 17 may contact a relatively large surface of each of the connection elements 9, 10. According to this embodiment, the conductive intermediate element 17 may, for example, partially adopt the shape of the peripheral edge 8 of the shells 4, 5 to facilitate assembly with the cell 3.

[0100] Thus, the conductive intermediate element 17 may partially or completely surround the peripheral edge 8 of each of the shells 4, 5. According to this embodiment in which the conductive intermediate element 17 completely surrounds the peripheral edge 8 of the shells 4, 5, the cell 3 does not need to comprise the connecting elements 14, 15, but the conductive intermediate element 17 acts as the connecting elements 14, 15.

[0101] Thus, as a variant, the cell 3 may not comprise connecting elements 14, 15, in particular if the above-mentioned coatings 9, 10 are made from a sufficiently electrically conductive material.

[0102] The conductive intermediate element 17 is also electrically connected at a second end 17 b to a control circuit 16 so as to enable the operation of the cell 3 to be controlled.

[0103] To prepare a complete EC polymer device, such as the EC cell 3 disclosed above, a standard EC cell assembly / filling process is performed by either the drop-filling (DF) technique or the back-filling technique (BF).

[0104] Conductive tracks may be required around each face of the lens to maintain a constant potential around the lens, which can be applied, for example, by depositing a metallic ink, such as a silver ink, directly onto the conductive layer, either before or after the assembly process (where this ink should be compatible).

[0105] Method for manufacturing the hybrid EC ophthalmic device of the present invention: The following exemplary methods present the invention in a more detailed, but non-limiting manner.

[0106] 5, the posterior shell 4 and anterior shell 5 are assembled together with an adhesive seal 11 to produce the resulting EC ophthalmic lens, with the EC cell 3 and the cell 3 being filled with an EC liquid or gel composition 7. As previously explained, the plastic posterior shell 4 can be flat, already have a determined prescription (RX), or can be a semi-finished lens.

[0107] The use of a plastic rear shell 4 means in particular that access to Digital Surfacing (DS) techniques is possible, allowing for the calculation and manufacture of more perfect surfaces (e.g. surface fitting) as well as access to techniques that are primarily used in ophthalmic plants.

[0108] If edging is performed, the plastic rear shell 4 may have a bevel machined using a standard edging machine or other solution to achieve integration of the wafer into the frame, so that the EC cell can be properly fitted into the frame.

[0109] Such conductive coatings may be applied after surfacing or edging of the plastic rear shell 4, as some conductive coatings are fragile and cannot withstand the constraints imposed during the surfacing and / or edging process.

[0110] According to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention, a plastic rear shell is cut with a mineral front shell already assembled on it. Typically, the data on the installation is integrated into the edging step and therefore into the calculation of the surface, thus having the wearer data before this calculation.

[0111] FIG. 6 illustrates an exemplary, non-limiting embodiment of a mineral anterior shell 5 and a plastic posterior shell 4 showing the rear surface 4b and the front surface 5b, respectively, of a hybrid EC ophthalmic lens.

[0112] According to another embodiment of the present invention, an Alvarez design such as that shown in the diagrammatical view of Fig. 7A and the full-scale view of Fig. 7B (see EC cell 3 shown in both halves of Fig. 7B) is used to obtain the placement of a plastic posterior shell 4 and a mineral anterior shell 5 in one operation of prescription addition and assembly. An exemplary Alvarez design for an ophthalmic lens, a known design originating from the document US Patent No. 3,305,294 A, is disclosed, for example, in the internet website https: / / www.laserfocusworld.com / optics / article / 16555776 / alvarez-lens-enters-the-real-world.

[0113] In particular, the method for obtaining this arrangement includes arranging an initial Alvarez assembly of rear and front shell blanks according to the Alvarez design for two transmission plates. By definition of the Alvarez assembly, the rear or front shell blank is derived from a first surface profile based on a cubic function (i.e., the phase locus of the diffractive Alvarez plate is z=ax 3 -bx-cy 3 +dy), the front or rear shell blank, respectively, is derived from the second surface profile based on the inverse of the cubic function above according to the Cartesian coordinate system (XYZ) shown in FIG. 7A.

[0114] According to the prescription RX to be obtained for the wearer, the edging of the plastic rear shell blank is adapted to obtain the correct refractive power for the hybrid lens. In this case seen in the example of FIG. 7A, the prescription RX is obtained using a spherical shell with an Alvarez design on the opposing surfaces.

[0115] In a second step, one shell blank is - Translation along the X-axis and the orthogonal Y-axis to control refractive power and astigmatism, respectively - rotation by the Z axis so as to control the cylindrical axis (the thickness direction Z of the shells 4, 5 intersects both curvatures of the shells 4, 5, and the height direction X of the shells 4, 5 is perpendicular to the plane of FIG. 7A which contains both the length direction Y and the thickness direction Z) The shell blank is positioned relative to the other shell blank by

[0116] The anterior shell blank was fixed and the posterior shell blank was edged using different centering locations to ultimately obtain different optical powers from exactly the same original blank.

[0117] Alternatively, when properly assembled, it is possible to edge both shell blanks simultaneously.

[0118] In other words, both shell blanks of the initial Alvarez assembly are edged and cut to obtain the above-mentioned posterior and anterior shells 4 and 5, thereby advantageously allowing a variety of different prescriptions RX to be managed with the hybrid lens of the present invention starting from only one reference of the posterior and anterior shell blanks from the initial Alvarez assembly.

[0119] It should be noted that thanks to this Alvarez embodiment, the rear surface 4b of the rear shell 4 of the hybrid lens can be advantageously manufactured on demand by digital surfacing with the correct geometry to obtain the required RX prescription.

Claims

1. An ophthalmic device (1) for a wearer, comprising at least one electrochromic cell (3) with a rear shell (4) and a front shell (5) defining, for said ophthalmic device (1), a rear surface close to at least one eye of said wearer and an opposing front surface, said rear shell (4) and said front shell (5) being provided with at least a pair of transparent electrodes (9 and 10), said rear shell (4) and said front shell (5) delimiting a sealed cavity (6) filled with an electrochromic composition (7), the front shell comprises a mineral glass substrate and the rear shell comprises an organic polymer substrate; An ophthalmic device, wherein the electrochromic cell forms an ophthalmic lens that meets the prescription for at least one optical power correction, and the rear surface of the posterior shell includes at least one of a cylindrical, a toric, and a spherical curvature.

2. The ophthalmic device (1) of claim 1, wherein the ophthalmic device does not have an ophthalmic substrate joined to the anterior shell or the posterior shell.

3. 3. The ophthalmic device (1) according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the rear shell (4) and the front shell (5), both of which are curved, are spaced from each other by a distance of 10 μm to 400 μm to form a gap defining the sealed cavity (6), the sealed cavity (6) being bounded at its periphery by an adhesive seal (11), and the front and back surfaces being convex and concave, respectively.

4. The ophthalmic device (1) according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the ophthalmic lens also fills an astigmatism prescription and the rear surface of the posterior shell is a progressive surface when the posterior shell comprises the organic polymer substrate.

5. The ophthalmic device (1), wherein the posterior shell (4) and the anterior shell (5) are arranged according to an Alvarez design for two transmission plates, in which the posterior shell or the anterior shell is derived from a first surface profile based at least in part on a cubic function, and the anterior shell or the posterior shell, respectively, is derived from a second surface profile based at least in part on an inverse of the cubic function, such that when the posterior shell and the anterior shell are arranged at their respective vertices on the optical axis, induced phase variations in the posterior shell are cancelled by the anterior shell, and the posterior shell or the anterior shell has a spherical surface. The ophthalmic device of claim 4 .

6. The ophthalmic device (1), wherein the rear shell (4) and the front shell (5) have curved inner surfaces (4a and 5a) facing the rear surface of the rear shell and the front surface of the front shell, respectively, and the curved inner surfaces are provided with at least a pair of transparent electrodes (9 and 10) facing each other on the rear shell (4) and the front shell (5) or both arranged on the rear shell (4) or the front shell (5); Each electrode of the at least one pair of transparent electrodes (9 and 10) is at least one transparent conductive oxide (TCO) deposited by sputtering, selected from ATO (AlSnO), ATZO (AlSnZnO), AZO (AlZnO), FTO (FSnO), GZO (GaZnO), ITO (InSnO), ITZO (InSnZnO), IZO (InZnO) and mixtures thereof, - a deformable conductive nanostructure comprising a metal and selected from a nanomesh, a nanowire, and a nanogrid; and M is silver, gold or copper, Il is equal to or different from I2, and is a stack of insulating layer (I1)-metal layer (M)-insulating layer (I2). The conductive layer includes at least one of The insulating layer (I2) is in contact with the electrochromic composition (7) comprising a transparent conductive oxide (TCO), An ophthalmic device according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the other insulating layer (I1) comprises a transparent conductive oxide (TCO) or is a non-conductive layer capable of increasing the light transmission of the stack or forming a barrier layer.

7. The ophthalmic device (1) according to any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein the posterior shell comprises an organic polymer substrate which is monolayer or multilayer according to a weight fraction of more than 50% defined by a weight ratio of the organic polymer substrate to the posterior shell, the organic polymer substrate being based on at least one thermoplastic, thermosetting or photocurable polymer.

8. The ophthalmic device (1), wherein the organic polymer substrate is - (meth)acrylic (co)polymers, - triacetate of cellulose (TAC), - polyester, - copolyester, - Polycarbonate (PC), - cyclic olefin copolymers (COC), - cyclic olefin polymers (COP), and - multilayer films of at least one of these polymers and / or of at least one copolymer of ethylene and vinyl alcohol (EVOH), poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVA), polychlorotrifluoroethylene (PCTFE), polyvinylidene chloride (PVDC), and polyamide (PA); 8. The ophthalmic device of claim 7, based on at least one transparent thermoplastic polymer selected from:

9. 8. The ophthalmic device (1) of claim 7, wherein the organic polymer substrate is based on at least one transparent thermosetting or photocurable polymer selected from polyurethanes, polyurethane / polyureas, polythiourethanes, polyol(allylcarbonate) (co)polymers, polyepisulfides, polyepoxides.

10. The ophthalmic device (1), wherein the rear shell (4) and the front shell (5) have curved inner surfaces (4a and 5a) facing the rear surface of the rear shell and the front surface of the front shell, respectively; the rear shell further comprising a deformable barrier coating on its curved inner surface and / or the rear surface, the deformable barrier coating forming a barrier to at least one of oxygen, water vapor, and solvents; based on at least one polymer derived from alcohol units, or an adhesive layer based on at least one polymer not derived from alcohol units, or - x and y are greater than 0 and less than or equal to 4; A ２ O ３ , Si ３ N ４ , SN, TiN, SiO ｘ N ｙ , SiO ｘ C ｙ , indium tin oxide (ITO), SiO ２ , ZnO ２ , and TiO ２ an inorganic or hybrid organic / inorganic gas barrier coating selected from The ophthalmic device according to any one of claims 1 to 9,

11. An ophthalmic device (1), wherein the rear shell (4) and the front shell (5) have curved inner surfaces (4a and 5a) facing the back surface of the rear shell and the front surface of the front shell, respectively; the front shell and / or the rear shell each further comprises at least one of a polarizing film, a photochromic layer, a photochromic polarizing layer, a hard coat, an anti-reflective coating, an anti-soiling coating, an anti-fog coating, a blue light blocking coating, and an anti-static coating on the front surface and / or the back surface; Optionally, at least one of the hard coat and the anti-reflective coating is disposed on the curved inner surface of the anterior shell and / or the posterior shell, respectively.

12. The ophthalmic device (1), wherein the electrochromic composition (7) comprises: at least one electrochromic oxidant selected from mono- or bis-viologens, anthraquinones, benzazoles, imidazo[1,2-α]pyridines, 2,1,3-benzothiadiazoles, imidazoles, benzoselenadiazoles, benzoselenazoles, and derivatives thereof, at least one electrochromic reducing compound selected from derivatives of ferrocene, phenoxazine, phenazine, phenothiazine, thioanthrene, tetrathiafulvalene, and mixtures thereof; solvent, - thickeners, and optionally an electrolyte, A liquid solution or gel comprising:

12. An ophthalmic device according to any one of claims 1 to 11, wherein the sealed cavity (6) is bounded at its periphery by an adhesive seal (11) which is a flexible glue selected from acrylates, methacrylates, cyanoacrylates, epoxides, polyurethanes, polyisobutylenes, silicones and pressure sensitive adhesives.

13. A pair of spectacles comprising two ophthalmic lenses fitted in a frame, the ophthalmic lenses comprising an ophthalmic device (1) according to any one of claims 1 to 12, each of the two ophthalmic lenses being both curved and forming, for each of the two ophthalmic lenses, the electrochromic cell (3) comprising the rear shell (4) and the front shell (5) defining the rear surface and the opposing front surface.

14. A method for manufacturing an ophthalmic device (1) according to any one of claims 1 to 12, comprising the steps of: - calculating and designing said one of said rear shell (4) and said front shell (5) comprising said organic polymer substrate; - assembling said one of the rear shell and the front shell containing the organic polymer substrate to the other of the front shell or the rear shell by sealing the periphery of the sealed cavity (6) with an adhesive seal (11) and filling the sealed cavity (6) with the electrochromic composition (7), thereby forming the electrochromic cell; - surfacing and / or edging at least said rear shell comprising said organic polymer substrate; The method includes:

15. - assembling an initial Alvarez assembly of the rear shell (4) and the front shell (5) according to the Alvarez design for two transmission plates, the rear shell or the front shell being derived from a first surface profile based at least in part on a cubic function, and the front shell or the rear shell being derived from a second surface profile based at least in part on the inverse of the cubic function, such that when the rear shell and the front shell are positioned such that their vertices are on the optical axis, induced phase variations in the rear shell are cancelled by the front shell, and the rear shell and the front shell have spherical surfaces; - edging and cutting both shells of said initial Alvarez assembly, thereby obtaining said ophthalmic lenses of various different prescriptions starting from said initial Alvarez assembly; The method of claim 14 comprising:

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