Optics: measuring and testing – By configuration comparison – With photosensitive film or plate
Patent
1997-12-19
1999-11-23
Kim, Robert H.
Optics: measuring and testing
By configuration comparison
With photosensitive film or plate
118712, 356446, G01B 1106, B05C 1102
Patent
active
059910429
DESCRIPTION:
BRIEF SUMMARY
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
This invention relates to a method and to an apparatus for the characterisation of lacquered or multi-layer coated surfaces as regards their visual effect.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The visual effect of a lacquered or multi-layer coated surface results from the interplay of various optical impressions, such as gloss and structure, and such as colour shade, which in turn is composed of colour location, brightness and colour intensity, for example. In the case of multi-layer coatings, the visual impression generally originates not only from the outer lacquer coat, but may also be influenced by one or more lacquer coats situated underneath. There is a wealth of methods which are known for the characterisation of a lacquered surface and which are suitable for describing the visual effect thereof on the eye of an observer. Examples include methods, which are known to one skilled in the art and which operate based on optical principles, of gloss measurement, of measuring gloss fogging (haze), of measuring colour shade (colorimetry) and of determining surface structures. One important influencing variable as regards the visual effect of a lacquered surface is the coat thickness at which the respective lacquer coat or respective lacquer coats have been applied. If a surface which is provided with a single-layer coating or a multi-layer coating is to be characterised as regards its visual effect as a function of the coat thickness of a specific lacquer coat or of the coat thickness of lacquer coats of particular interest, it is necessary to lacquer and measure a multiplicity of test panels. This multiplicity results firstly from the necessity of having to lacquer a plurality of test panels at different coat thicknesses, and secondly in order to obtain a statistical mean, which first ensures reproducibility of the readings obtained. The meaningfulness of readings obtained in this manner must nevertheless be considered critically, since a correlation with the visual impression is only obtained to a limited extent.
SUMARY OF THE INVENTION
The human eye has a function which perceives the visual impression of a lacquered area as an integral.
The object was to provide an efficient method of characterising lacquered surfaces as regards their visual effect as a function of the coat thickness of one or more lacquer coats. The method to be found should be reproducible, should provide measured results which correlate well with the integrating function of the human eye, and should make the dependence on coat thickness as perceptible as possible. It should be possible to carry out the method with the lowest possible consumption of lacquer and test panels, and the method should be capable of being used in the fields of lacquer development, quality control in lacquer manufacture, and in both the development and monitoring of lacquering processes, comprising both the application and the drying process.
It has been shown that this object is achieved by the method, to which the present invention firstly relates, for the determination of the visual effect of lacquer coatings, which is characterised in that one, two or more lacquer coatings are applied to the surface of a flat substrate and are dried or hardened, wherein one or two of the lacquer coats are applied with a coat thickness gradient, and one or more surface properties which influence the visual impression are subsequently each measured on the lacquered surface thus obtained, at measuring points distributed over the surface, by means of one or more optical methods of measurement, and the respective thickness of the lacquer coat applied in the form of a gradient or the respective thickness of each one of the two lacquer coats applied in the form of a gradient is also measured.
If two lacquer coats have a coat thickness gradient in the method according to the invention, the two lacquer coats are preferably applied with coat thickness gradients disposed at right angles to each other.
The measurements are preferably made with the aid of measuring
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Scheibe et al., "Flexibles Prufsystem fur die Oberflachentechnik", pp. 287-299.
Garmsen, "Uber die Purfung von Lackfarben an Keilformlgen Schichten", Farbe Und Lack, 60 (1954), pp. 257-261.
Unterforsthuber, "Pigmente, Fullstoffe und Farbstoffe Fur die Lackindustrie", Technische Akademie Esslingen, 1993, pp. 1-48.
Blum Joachim
Cramm Joachim
Hoffer Michael
Rupieper Paul
Herberts GmbH
Kim Robert H.
Smith Zandia V.
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