Electric heating – Metal heating – By arc
Patent
1995-01-10
1998-05-12
Evans, Geoffrey S.
Electric heating
Metal heating
By arc
36034651, 427555, B23K 2600
Patent
active
057509565
DESCRIPTION:
BRIEF SUMMARY
This invention relates to methods of manufacturing perforated foils, e.g. foils for dry shavers, filters, sieves or the like, to a method of manufacturing dry shavers, and to foils manufactured by the methods.
A known process for manufacturing foils for dry shavers will now be described. A first step of creating a pattern of holes in a metal foil is carried out using a photo resist. In a preparatory step, a steel plate is cleaned and dip-coated with photo resist. The photo resist is then exposed through a mask and developed to generate the foil pattern. This photo resist pattern is then cured in an oven.
Next, the plate carrying the pattern is transferred to a pre-nickel electroforming tank, for electroforming with nickel to a thickness of approximately 25 microns. Then the plate is transferred to a passivation tank, and finally it is transferred to a main electroforming tank in order to electroform a main layer of nickel onto the foil to a thickness of 60 microns. The nickel foil can then be peeled away from the plate.
This whole process has various disadvantages. It is time consuming and involves many stages. It occupies a significant amount of workspace, and requires a significant amount of time and effort in transferring the plate from stage to stage. By its nature, the process is discontinuous and only produces foils in batches. Also, the photo resist process creates troublesome effluents as by-products.
Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide an improved method of manufacturing perforated foils.
According to one aspect of the invention, there is provided a method of manufacturing a perforated foil e.g. for a filter, a sieve, a dry shaver, or the like, comprising the steps of: creating a pattern of holes in an electrically conductive film using a laser; and thickening the patterned film.
According to another aspect of the invention, there is provided a method of manufacturing a perforated foil e.g. for a filter, a sieve, a dry shaver, or the like, comprising the steps of: creating a pattern of holes in an electrically-conductive film supported on an electrically insulating substrate; and thickening the patterned film.
The pattern of holes may be created by patterning and developing a layer of photoresist.
But by the use of a laser, manufacturing time can be reduced, the space required for manufacturing can be reduced, and the amount of effluents produced as by-products can be reduced since the photo resist developing and curing stages are no longer required.
Preferably, the laser creates the holes by removing material in a mainly photochemical ablative process.
Preferably the laser is an ultraviolet excimer laser, and a suitable mask or image projection technique is used to create the pattern of holes.
The film, e.g. a metal film or foil, may be present on one or both sides of a plastic sheet, or other electrically insulating substrate, which may be sufficiently flexible to be stored on a reel, thus reducing space requirements for storage.
The thickening step preferably includes forming at least one layer of material containing nickel or copper on the patterned film.
If the film is present on only one side of the substrate, and the combination is sufficiently flexible, it may be shaped into an arch before carrying out any further step of forming at least one layer of material containing nickel or copper on the patterned foil. This is of advantage in the preparation of foils for electric shavers, since it enables the foil to be produced in the required arched configuration without any strain imposed on the material.
A preferred feature involves providing the film in continuous strip form which is easier to handle in manufacturing than individual portions.
Preferably, the composite layer of film and substrate should not be so thick as to become rigid.
Preferably, when using a laser the thickness of the film is between 0.05 and 0.25 microns, before any thickening step.
Advantageously, the nickel forming step may be carried out by electroforming using a continuous reel to reel typ
REFERENCES:
patent: 4056992 (1977-11-01), Blume
patent: 4184250 (1980-01-01), Meijer
patent: 4262186 (1981-04-01), Provancher
patent: 4391885 (1983-07-01), Tomita et al.
patent: 4490211 (1984-12-01), Chen et al.
patent: 4575406 (1986-03-01), Slater
patent: 4780177 (1988-10-01), Wojnarowski et al.
patent: 4801379 (1989-01-01), Ehrsam et al.
patent: 4857698 (1989-08-01), Perun
patent: 4879451 (1989-11-01), Gart
patent: 4900581 (1990-02-01), Stuke et al.
patent: 4981715 (1991-01-01), Hirsch et al.
patent: 5017460 (1991-05-01), Schuurman
patent: 5304772 (1994-04-01), Snakenborg
Barnes Clive
Crichton Trevor John
Braun Aktiengesellschaft
Evans Geoffrey S.
LandOfFree
Methods of manufacturing perforated foils does not yet have a rating. At this time, there are no reviews or comments for this patent.
If you have personal experience with Methods of manufacturing perforated foils, we encourage you to share that experience with our LandOfFree.com community. Your opinion is very important and Methods of manufacturing perforated foils will most certainly appreciate the feedback.
Profile ID: LFUS-PAI-O-982539