A trim component including a substrate having localized variations in refractive index, and a method for manufacturing such a trim component.
A trim component with a substrate having localized refractive index variations and a coating produces a wide range of saturated colors efficiently by using localized surface treatments, addressing the limitations of existing thin films in watchmaking and jewelry.
Patent Information
- Authority / Receiving Office
- JP · JP
- Patent Type
- Patents
- Current Assignee / Owner
- THE SWATCH GRP RES & DEVELONMENT LTD
- Filing Date
- 2024-10-08
- Publication Date
- 2026-07-08
- Estimated Expiration
- Not applicable · inactive patent
AI Technical Summary
Existing thin films used in watchmaking and jewelry manufacturing have a limited color range and require cumbersome and costly structuring processes to achieve multicolor decoration.
A trim component with a substrate featuring localized variations in refractive index, achieved through localized surface treatments such as laser annealing or electron beam deposition, combined with a transparent or translucent coating to produce interference colors.
Enables a wide range of intensely saturated colors with simplified manufacturing processes, reducing costs and complexity.
Smart Images
Figure 0007886923000001
Abstract
Description
Technical Field
[0001] The present invention relates to the field of watchmaking, jewelry, or ornament manufacturing, and more particularly to a trim part including a substrate with locally varying refractive index.
Background Art
[0002] In the field of watchmaking, thin films are commonly used to modify the optical properties and thus the aesthetic appearance of the visible surfaces of external components.
[0003] Several methods can be used to deposit thin films, including physical vapor deposition (PVD), chemical vapor deposition (CVD), atomic layer deposition (ALD), and galvanic growth.
[0004] The thin films can be made of pure metals, metal alloys, or ceramic materials.
[0005] However, these thin films have a relatively limited range of solid colors depending on their composition and thickness.
[0006] By the interference colors obtained by stacking different thin layers (typically made of translucent materials) deposited on a reflective layer, a wide range of colors and highly saturated colors can be obtained.
[0007] All of the aforementioned thin layers are monochromatic, and for multicolor decoration, as many deposition steps as the number of required colors are needed, and these deposition steps are typically followed by an intermediate structuring step performed by photolithography and chemical etching, "lift-off", processes known as "shadow masks", or ablation by laser or reactive ion etching.
[0008] These structuring steps are often cumbersome and costly to ensure compliance with tolerance requirements.
[0009] Therefore, there is a need to provide parts that include several bright saturated colors across a wide color palette. [Overview of the Initiative]
[0010] The present invention relates to a trim component including a substrate having a trim surface. The substrate includes a decorative area, the first portion of the trim surface being defined by the decorative area, and the remaining portion of the trim surface defining a second portion of the trim surface. The first portion of the trim surface has a different refractive index from the second portion, and the entire trim surface is covered with a transparent or translucent coating between 5 nm and 1 μm in thickness, such that it gives the trim surface interference colors, and the colors of the first and second portions of the trim surface are different.
[0011] In this text, colors produced by optical interference phenomena are referred to as "interference colors."
[0012] In this way, a wide range of intensely saturated colors can be produced on the trim parts in a relatively simple manner.
[0013] In certain embodiments, the present invention may further include one or more of the following features, either individually or in any technically possible combination:
[0014] In certain embodiments, the decorative area of the substrate has a crystalline phase and the rest of the substrate has an amorphous phase, or vice versa.
[0015] In certain embodiments, the decorative area of the substrate and the rest of the substrate have different crystalline structures.
[0016] In certain embodiments, the decorative area of the substrate and the rest of the substrate have different crystal plane orientations.
[0017] In certain embodiments, the decorative area of the substrate has a different chemical composition from the rest of the trim surface.
[0018] In certain embodiments, the substrate is made from a metal, glass, sapphire, ceramic material, polymer, or metal matrix composite material.
[0019] In certain embodiments, the coating is formed by layers of oxides, nitrides, fluorides, carbides, borides, or at least two combinations of these elements.
[0020] In certain embodiments, the coating is formed by stacking layers made of oxides, nitrides, fluorides, carbides, and / or combinations of at least two of these elements.
[0021] In certain embodiments, the coating is formed by stacking layers consisting of two layers of TiO2 with a layer of Al2O3 interposed between them.
[0022] In a particular embodiment, the coating is configured to impart a color to the trim part characterized by L* being between 28 and 60, a* being between -9 and -0.6, and b* being between 21 and 31 in space L*a*b*.
[0023] Another aspect of the present invention relates, for example, to a method for providing decoration on a trim component according to the above description. This method includes the step of locally surface treating the trim surface of a substrate, wherein a decorative area is generated on a portion of the trim surface on the substrate, and the decorative area has a different refractive index from the rest of the trim surface, and the method includes the step of depositing a coating over the entire generated trim surface such that the trim surface has interference colors.
[0024] In a specific implementation mode, the localized surface treatment step is performed by laser to generate localized annealing of the trim surface to bring about a decorative area through phase change, crystal structure change, surface diffusion, oxidation, reduction, or nitriding.
[0025] In a particular implementation mode, the step of locally surface-treating is performed by electron beam evaporation, ion bombardment, or electron beam lithography so as to cause a local change in the chemical composition of the trim surface to result in a decorative area.
Brief Description of the Drawings
[0026] Other features and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the following detailed description given by way of example and not by way of limitation while referring to FIG. 1.
[0027] [Figure 1] A cross-sectional view of a trim component according to an embodiment of the present invention is schematically shown.
Modes for Carrying Out the Invention
[0028] The present invention relates to a trim component 10 including a substrate 11 having at least one decorative area 12, 13 in a first portion 111 of a trim surface 110. The substrate 11 can be made from metal, glass, sapphire, ceramic material, polymer, or a metal matrix composite material, or more generally any material whose atomic arrangement can be modified. By way of example, the substrate 11 may be made from CrNi, CrC, or an alloy of gold and nickel.
[0029] FIG. 1 shows a trim component 10 having two different decorative areas 12 and 13. However, for the sake of readability of the text, one decorative area will be described below.
[0030] The decorative area 12 or 13 is brought about by a localized surface treatment of the display surface 110. As a result, the decorative area 12 or 13 has a different refractive index from the rest of the display surface 110, i.e., the second untreated portion 112 of the display surface 110. In this section, the term surface treatment may also be referred to as volume treatment insofar as it results in a surface treatment. In detail, as shown in Figure 1, the surface treatment generates a decorative area 12 or 13 that extends into the volume of the substrate 11. For example, the decorative area 12 or 13 resulting from the surface treatment may extend into the volume of the substrate to a depth equal to 100 μm.
[0031] The entire trim surface 110 is covered with a transparent and / or translucent coating 14, the thickness of which is between 5 nm and 1 μm, so as to give interference colors to the trim surface 110. Since the refractive index of the decorative area 12 or 13 (i.e., the first portion 111 of the trim surface 110) is different from that of the second portion 112 of the trim surface 110, these colors are different, and the decorative area 12 or 13 forms a colored decorative pattern on the trim surface 110.
[0032] The present invention includes several variations for producing this colored decorative pattern.
[0033] In the first embodiment, the substrate 11 has an amorphous phase, and this amorphous phase can be locally converted to a crystalline phase by local surface treatment of the trim surface 110. In this way, the decorative area 12 or 13 has a crystalline phase, and the rest of the substrate 11 has an amorphous phase.
[0034] Localized surface treatment is preferably performed by laser to induce localized annealing on the trimmed surface. This annealing may have the effect of locally reducing or oxidizing the surface of the substrate 11.
[0035] Conversely, the substrate 11 may have a crystalline phase, and the crystalline phase can be locally converted to an amorphous phase by local surface treatment of the trim surface 110. In this way, the decorative area 12 or 13 has an amorphous phase, while the rest of the substrate 11 has a crystalline phase. In this example, the substrate 11 may be made from sapphire or diamond.
[0036] In the second embodiment, the decorative area 12 or 13 is made to have a different crystalline structure from the rest of the substrate 11.
[0037] In the third embodiment, the decorative area 12 or 13 is made to have crystal planes with a different orientation from the crystal planes of the rest of the substrate 11.
[0038] In these embodiments, these different configurations of the decorative area 12 or 13 are obtained depending on the material of the substrate 11 and the laser parameters. Modifying these parameters according to the desired results is within the reach of those skilled in the art.
[0039] In a fourth embodiment of the present invention, the decorative area 12 or 13 is provided to have a different chemical composition from the second portion 112 of the trim surface 110. For example, the substrate 11 may be locally treated by electron beam deposition or lithography to produce a localized change in the chemical composition of the trim surface in order to provide the decorative area 12 or 13.
[0040] More specifically, if the substrate 11 is made of a metal alloy or doped crystalline silicon, atoms may migrate from the substrate 11 to the trim surface 110. Furthermore, atoms may be lost, for example, by evaporation, or gained on the trim surface 110, for example, by oxidation in ambient air or by nitriding in a controlled atmosphere.
[0041] The loss or gain of atoms can be achieved by sputtering or any other suitable method.
[0042] To obtain at least two different decorative areas 12 and 13 on the trim surface 110, several localized surface treatment solutions from among those described above are used.
[0043] The coating 14 may be formed by layers of oxides, nitrides, fluorides, carbides, borides, or at least two combinations of these elements, or by stacking these layers. Preferably, it is deposited by ALD or PVD. Alternatively, it may be deposited by any suitable thin-film deposition method.
[0044] More specifically, in one embodiment, the coating 14 is formed by stacking layers consisting of two TiO2 layers interposed by an Al2O3 layer. More specifically, a first TiO2 layer is deposited on the trim surface 110 of the substrate 11 and has a thickness between 5 and 15 nm, and may even have a thickness between 6.5 and 9 nm. An Al2O3 layer is deposited on the first TiO2 layer and has a thickness between 60 and 70 nm, for example between 62 and 68 nm. Finally, a second TiO2 layer is deposited on the Al2O3 layer and has a thickness between 25 and 35 nm, for example between 28 and 31 nm.
[0045] These features of the coating 14, when combined with the glass substrate 11, make it possible to give the trim part 10 a color characterized in space L*a*b* between L* 28 and 60, a* between -9 and -0.6, and b* between 21 and 31. Specifically, the trim part 10 has a green color, and the first portion 111, i.e., one or more decorative areas 12 and 13, in other words, the first portion 111 and the second portion 112 of the trim surface 110, each have a different shade of green.
[0046] Generally, the coating 14 may consist of stacked layers, each layer having a thickness between 1 and 100 nm, and the coating may be dimensionally sized to have a thickness between 5 and 200 nm.
[0047] Furthermore, it should be noted that the implementation examples and embodiments considered above are described as non-limiting examples, and therefore other modifications are conceivable.
[0048] In this document, the substrate 11 may consist of a substrate body and a coating deposited on the substrate body. In this case, the trim surface 110 of the substrate 11 is formed by the visible surface of the coating, and one or more decorative areas 12 and 13 are formed within the coating.
Claims
1. A trim component (10) including a substrate (11) having a trim surface (110), The substrate (11) includes decorative areas (12, 13), the first portion (111) of the trim surface (110) is defined by the decorative areas (12, 13), the remaining portion of the trim surface (110) defines the second portion (112) of the trim surface (110), the first portion (111) of the trim surface (110) has a refractive index different from that of the second portion (112) of the trim surface (110), the entire trim surface (110) is covered with a transparent and / or translucent coating (14) having a thickness between 5 nm and 1 μm so as to give interference colors to the trim surface (110), and the first and second portions (111, 112) of the trim surface (110) have different colors. The decorative areas (12, 13) form a portion of the depth of the substrate (11), and the trim component (10) has a different chemical composition in the decorative areas (12, 13) than in the rest of the trim surface (110). The trim component (10) is characterized in that the substrate (11) is made of glass, sapphire, ceramic material, or polymer.
2. The trim part (10) according to claim 1, wherein the coating (14) is formed of layers of oxide, nitride, fluoride, carbide, boride, or at least two combinations thereof.
3. The trim part (10) according to claim 1, wherein the coating (14) is formed by stacking layers of oxides, nitrides, fluorides, carbides, and / or combinations of at least two of these elements.
4. The coating (14) is Al ２ O ３ Two layers of TiO with a layer interposed in between. ２ The trim part (10) according to claim 3, which is formed by stacking layers of the above.
5. The trim part (10) according to claim 1, wherein the coating (14) is configured to impart a color to the trim part (10) characterized in that, in space L*a*b*, L* is between 28 and 60, a* is between -9 and -0.6, and b* is between 21 and 31.
6. A method for adding decoration to a trim part (10), The process includes a step of local surface treatment of the trim surface (110) of the substrate (11), wherein a decorative area (12, 13) is generated on a portion of the trim surface (110) of the substrate (11) such that it has a different refractive index than the rest of the trim surface (110), The decorative areas (12, 13) form a part of the depth of the substrate (11). The method includes the step of depositing a coating (14) over the entire trim surface (110) such that the trim surface (110) has interference colors. The method is carried out by electron beam deposition, ion bombardment, or electron beam lithography such that the local surface treatment step generates a local change in the chemical composition of the trim surface to produce the decorative area (12, 13). A method characterized in that the substrate (11) is made of glass, sapphire, ceramic material, or polymer.
7. The method according to claim 6, wherein the local surface treatment step is performed by a laser to generate local annealing of the trim surface to bring the decorative area (12, 13) to fruition by phase change, crystal structure change, surface diffusion, oxidation, reduction, or nitriding.
8. The trim component (10) according to claim 1, wherein the decorative areas (12, 13) extend into the volume of the substrate (11) to a depth equal to 100 μm.