Method for surface treatment of contact lenses

• US 4,214,014 A
• Filed: 10/12/1978
• Issued: 07/22/1980
• Est. Priority Date: 12/16/1977
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: CIBA Vision Corporation (Novartis Ag)
• Original Assignee: Titmus Eurocon Kontaklinsen GmbH & Company KG
• Inventors: Hofer, Peter, Kohl, Wolfgang
• Primary Examiner(s): Hoffman, James R.
• Application Number:
  US05/950,894
• Time in Patent Office: 649 Days
• Field of Search: 427/38, 427/40
• US Class Current: 427/570
• CPC Class Codes: B29C 59/14 by plasma treatment plasma tubes per se H01J
• CPC Class Codes: B29L 2011/00 Optical elements, e.g. lenses, prisms

Abstract

Surface treatment for hard or dehydrated hydrophilic contact lenses, to reduce the deposit of impurities thereon, comprising subjecting the lens, after shaping and polishing, to a gas discharge, e.g., in an oxygen atmosphere.

Claims

1. Method for treating the surface of a hard or dehydrated hydrophilic contact lens, which method comprises introducing a lens which has been shaped and polished into a container, evacuating the container, flushing same with an oxygen-containing atmosphere, re-evacuating to an absolute pressure of 10 mm Hg or less and then initiating a gas discharge and subjecting the lens to said gas discharge.

2. Method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the gas discharge is generated by glow discharge.

3. Method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the gas discharge occurs in an alternating electromagnetic field.

4. Method as claimed in claim 3, wherein the gas discharge occurs in an oxygen atmosphere.

5. Method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the gas discharge occurs in an oxygen atmosphere.

6. Method as claimed in claim 5, comprising introducing the contact lens into a container, evacuating the container, flushing with oxygen and then re-evacuating to an absolute pressure of 10 mm Hg or less, and then initiating the gas discharge.

7. Method as claimed in claim 6, wherein the oxygen atmosphere has a pressure of 0.01 mm Hg during the gas discharge.

8. Method as claimed in claim 7, wherein the gas discharge is effected with a current intensity in the range of 10 to 100 mA and a voltage in the range of 200 to 1000 V.

9. Method as claimed in claim 6, wherein the gas discharge is effected with a current intensity in the range of 10 to 100 mA and a voltage in the range of 200 to 1000 V.