Abrading – Abrading process – Glass or stone abrading
Reexamination Certificate
2000-03-08
2001-12-11
Hail, III, Joseph J. (Department: 3723)
Abrading
Abrading process
Glass or stone abrading
C451S005000, C451S008000, C451S042000, C451S043000, C451S255000, C451S256000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06328635
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a device for the display of engravement shape of an eyeglass lens and a method and apparatus for machining a peripheral edge of the lens using the display device.
2. Description of the Related Art
According to the prior art, in a lens grinder (a lens peripheral edge machining apparatus), an eyeglass lens for the right-hand eye is subjected to grinding in accordance with a lens peripheral shape of one (right-hand eye) eyeglass frame portion and thereafter an eyeglass lens for the left-hand eye is subjected to grinding in accordance with a lens peripheral shape of the other (left-hand eye) eyeglass frame portion. A certain lens grinder of this type is provided with a display device which displays engravement information by engravement simulation before grinding so that right and left eyeglass lenses can be fitted tastefully into the eyeglass frame. In such a lens grinder, an estimated engravement shape after the machining is displayed on the display device by engravement simulation, the worker for the machining is allowed to recognize at which position from a front end of an eyeglass lens on the lens edge face a vertex position between engravements after the grinding work is formed, and thereafter eyeglass lenses for the right and left eyes are subjected to grinding.
As eyeglass lenses, various lenses are available, including plastic lenses, flat lenses, and minus lenses. In the conventional lens peripheral edge machining apparatus, for the purpose of fitting eyeglass lenses into an eyeglass frame tastefully, a division ratio, which is defined in terms of a ratio between the distance from a front end of each lens on the lens edge face up to a vertex position between engravements and the distance from the vertex position between engravements to a rear end of the lens, is set, for example, at 4:6 in case of a plus lens, 5:5 in case of a flat lens, and 3:7 in case of a minus lens, and engravement is subjected to grinding in this condition.
On the other hand, a certain eyeglasses wearer wears eyeglass lenses which are markedly different in their degrees between the right and left eyes. For example, a certain eyeglasses wearer wears a plus lens for the right-hand eye and a minus lens for the left-hand eye. If a plus lens is subjected to grinding and engravement is formed at a division ratio established for the plus lens, while if a minus lens is subjected to grinding and engravement is formed at a division ratio established for the minus lens, and when eyeglass lenses for the right and left eyes are fitted in right and left lens frame portions, respectively, of an eyeglass frame, one eyeglass lens looks protruding too much from the front side of the lens frame in comparison with the other eyeglass lens, that is, both lenses do not look protruding uniformly from the lens frame front side, thus giving rise to the problem that the eyeglasses when put on its wearer look poor.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
It is a first object of the present invention to provide a device for the display of engravement shape of an eyeglass lens which, when an eyeglass lens for the right-hand eye of and an eyeglass lens for the left-hand eye of a wearer are of different types, can allow a worker who machines the lenses to recognize to that effect.
It is a second object of the present invention to provide a method and apparatus for machining a peripheral edge of an eyeglass lens which, even when an eyeglass lens for the right-hand eye of and an eyeglass lens for the left-hand eye of a wearer are of different types, can grind the eyeglass lenses so that the lenses can be fitted in an eyeglass frame tastefully.
For achieving the above-mentioned objects, according to the present invention, in a first aspect thereof, there is provided a device for the display of engravement shape of an eyeglass lens, comprising an edge thickness measuring means which measures, as an edge thickness, the thickness of each of unmachined eyeglass lenses at the portion of a lens peripheral shape of an eyeglass frame on the basis of data on lens peripheral shape of the eyeglass frame, a judging means which judges the type of each of the eyeglass lenses on the basis of the shape of the edge thickness and which classifies the eyeglass lenses into groups, and a display which displays, as an estimated engravement shape, the engravement shape of an edge end after each of the eyeglass lenses has been machined along the lens peripheral shape and which displays the groups to which the eyeglass lenses belong in a distinguishable manner on the basis of the result of the judgment made by the judging means.
In a second aspect of the present invention there is provided a method for machining a peripheral edge of an eyeglass lens, comprising classifying unmachined right and left eyeglass lenses into groups in accordance with edge thickness shapes at lens peripheral shape portions of right and left eyeglass lens frame portions of an eyeglass frame, displaying on a display the groups to which the right and left eyeglass lenses belong in a recognizable manner, machining a peripheral edge of one unmachined eyeglass lens in accordance with data on one lens peripheral shape out of the right and left eyeglass lens frame portions, then when a peripheral edge of the other unmachined eyeglass lens is to be machined in accordance with data on the other lens peripheral shape out of the right and left eyeglass frame portions, adjusting engravement information at an arbitrary circumferential edge position of the other lens peripheral shape in accordance with the group information to which one eyeglass lens belongs and the group information to which the other eyeglass lens belongs both displayed on the display, and machining the peripheral edge of the other eyeglass lens in accordance with the thus-adjusted engravement information.
In a third aspect of the present invention there is provided an apparatus for machining a peripheral edge of an eyeglass lens, comprising an edge thickness measuring means which measures, as an edge thickness, the thickness of each of unmachined eyeglass lenses at the portion of a lens peripheral shape of an eyeglass frame on the basis of data on lens peripheral shape of the eyeglass frame, a judging means which judges the type of each of the eyeglass lenses on the basis of the shape of the edge thickness and which classifies the eyeglass lenses into groups, a display which displays, as an estimated engravement shape, the engravement shape of an edge end after each of the eyeglass lenses has been machined along the lens peripheral shape and which displays the groups to which the eyeglass lenses belong in a recognizable manner on the basis of the result of the judgment made by the judging means, an engravement information adjusting means which adjusts engravement information at an arbitrary circumferential edge position of the other lens peripheral shape in accordance with the group information to which one eyeglass lens belongs and the group information to which the other eyeglass lens belongs both displayed on the display, and a machining control means which makes control to machine a peripheral edge of the other eyeglass lens in accordance with engravement information after the adjustment.
According to the present invention summarized above, after the peripheral edge of one eyeglass lens has been machined on the basis of one lens peripheral shape, when the peripheral edge of the other eyeglass lens is to be machined on the basis of the other lens peripheral shape, it is possible to recognize to which of plus lens, flat lens, and minus lens, (including special lenses such as progressive multi-focus lenses), groups the eyeglass lenses for the right and left eyes belong respectively and then adjust engravement information to effect engravement-grinding. Therefore, even if the eyeglass lenses for the right and left eyes are of different degrees, it is possible to fit them into an eyeglass frame tastefully.
REFERENCES:
patent: 6045432 (2000-04-01), Shibat
Nakamura Takeshi
Suzuki Yasuo
Hail III Joseph J.
Kabushiki Kaisha Topcon
McDonald Shantese
Oblon & Spivak, McClelland, Maier & Neustadt P.C.
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