Surface-textured glass-ceramic article and process of manufacture
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Solution Overview
Problem
Glass-ceramic hobs face challenges in maintaining the sharpness of light patterns while ensuring mechanical strength, ease of maintenance, and resistance to scratches and abrasions, particularly when used as cooking surfaces or furniture, due to their traditional smooth or spiked surfaces which can distort visual displays.
Innovation Solution
A glass-ceramic article with a textured surface featuring pyramidal patterns on the lower face, allowing clear visibility of illuminated patterns without compromising mechanical strength or ease of cleaning, achieved through a manufacturing process that includes rolling the glass substrate before ceramization.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If a smooth surface is used on glass-ceramic hobs, then good contact with cooking vessels and easy cleaning are achieved, but the surface becomes fragile and vulnerable to micro-scratches
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies a textured surface structure (pyramidal patterns or granular texture) to specific regions of the glass-ceramic hob surface where contact with cooking vessels occurs, while maintaining smooth surfaces in other areas. This localized texturing provides scratch resistance and structural reinforcement exactly where mechanical contact is most frequent, without compromising the overall ease of cleaning or aesthetic appearance of the hob surface.
2Strength
If raised dots or studs are added to improve mechanical resistance, then scratch resistance improves, but the view of underlying elements is distorted and display complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The textured surface is applied selectively to specific zones of the glass-ceramic hob, particularly in areas where mechanical reinforcement is needed for cookware contact, while leaving display and control areas with smooth surfaces or minimal texturing. This ensures that underlying displays and control elements remain clearly visible and accessible, eliminating the distortion problem associated with comprehensive surface texturing.
Solution Approach 2:
Instead of using protruding three-dimensional studs that extend upward and block views of underlying elements, the patent employs surface texturing that modifies the topography at a microscopic level (pyramidal patterns or granular structures) without creating significant height variations. This dimensional approach provides mechanical reinforcement while maintaining optical clarity for displays and controls beneath the surface.
3Illumination intensity
If the glass-ceramic is made darker to mask heating elements at rest, then visibility of heating elements in operation is improved, but the transmission in visible range must be carefully balanced
Solution Approach 1:
The patent utilizes the inherent optical properties of the glass-ceramic material itself, selecting compositions that provide appropriate darkness and light absorption characteristics. The textured surface structure further enhances this effect by creating light scattering and reflection patterns that improve the masking of heating elements at rest while maintaining visibility during operation, eliminating the need for additional opacifying coatings or filters.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The pyramidal texturing preserves the sharpness of light patterns, maintains mechanical strength, and ensures long-lasting glass-ceramic products that are easy to maintain, with improved optical quality and resistance to scratches and thermal degradation.
Implementation Method 1
The pyramidal texturing preserves the sharpness of light patterns... improved optical quality
Implementation Method 2
A glass-ceramic is originally a type of glass, called precursor glass, mother glass, or green glass, whose specific chemical composition allows for controlled crystallization through appropriate heat treatments known as ceramization
Data Source
Figure 1~1b
Figure 2a~2c
Figure 3a~3d.
AI summary
The invention relates to a glass-ceramic article comprising at least one substrate, such as a plate, made of glass-ceramic, said substrate having, in at least one area of one face, surface texturing in the form of pyramidal patterns such that the root mean square slope (Rdq) of said patterns is at least 0.25 degrees and less than 3 degrees. The invention also relates to a process for manufacturing a glass-ceramic article, in which the patterns are formed by rolling the plate before ceramisation.