Ceramic sintering for uniform color for a housing of an electronic device
First Claim
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1. A housing for an electronic device, comprising:
- a wall defining an exterior surface of the housing and comprising;
a ceramic material;
a pigment incorporated with the ceramic material;
whereina color distance between a first portion of the ceramic material at or near the exterior surface and a second portion of the ceramic material about 0.5 mm below the exterior surface has a Delta E 76 value of less than or equal to about 2.0; and
a color of the first portion and a color of the second portion each has an L* value greater than about 87.
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Abstract
A method of manufacturing a housing of an electronic device includes determining a sintering profile configured to produce a selected color at a selected depth within a wall of the housing, sintering a ceramic housing precursor in accordance with the determined sintering profile, thereby forming the housing, and removing material from the housing up to the selected depth.
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Citations
19 Claims
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1. A housing for an electronic device, comprising:
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a wall defining an exterior surface of the housing and comprising; a ceramic material; a pigment incorporated with the ceramic material;
whereina color distance between a first portion of the ceramic material at or near the exterior surface and a second portion of the ceramic material about 0.5 mm below the exterior surface has a Delta E 76 value of less than or equal to about 2.0; and a color of the first portion and a color of the second portion each has an L* value greater than about 87. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8)
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9. A method of manufacturing a housing of an electronic device, comprising:
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heating, at a first temperature for a first duration, a ceramic housing precursor comprising a ceramic material and a pigment, thereby sintering the ceramic material and forming the housing; heating the housing at a second temperature for a second duration, the second temperature being lower than the first temperature, lower than a sintering threshold of the ceramic material, and higher than a pigment stabilization threshold; cooling the housing; and removing material from the housing up to a selected depth. - View Dependent Claims (10, 11, 12, 13, 14)
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15. A housing for an electronic device, comprising:
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a pigmented ceramic wall defining a machined exterior surface of the housing and having; a color, of the machined exterior surface of the housing, having an L* value greater than about 87, an a* value between about −
5.0 and about 5.0, and a b* value between about −
5.0 and about 5.0; anda color distance between the machined exterior surface of the housing and a portion of the ceramic material about 0.25 mm below the machined exterior surface has a Delta E 76 value of less than or equal to about 1.0. - View Dependent Claims (16, 17, 18, 19)
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Specification