Pixellized transparent optical component comprising an absorbing coating, production method thereof and use thereof in an optical element

• US 8,231,217 B2
• Filed: 07/13/2006
• Issued: 07/31/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 07/20/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Essilor International SA
• Original Assignee: Essilor International SA
• Inventors: Ballet, Jerome, Cano, Jean-Paul
• Primary Examiner(s): Mack, Ricky
• Assistant Examiner(s): Wilkes, Zachary
• Application Number:
  US11/996,091
• Publication Number:
  US 20080212017A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,210 Days
• Field of Search: 351/159, 351/41, 351/163, 351165-167, 351/159.75, 351/159.73, 351/159.41, 351/159.49, 351/159.6, 351/159.62, 351/159.63, 351/159.65, 351/159.01, 351/159.02, 35115905-15907, 359618-622, 359294-296, 359/290, 359/237, 264/1.7, 264/2.7, 349/13
• US Class Current: 351/159.65
• CPC Class Codes: G02C 2202/18 Cellular lens surfaces
• CPC Class Codes: G02C 7/083 Electrooptic lenses
• CPC Class Codes: G02C 7/101 having an electro-optical light valve electro-optical elements per se G02F
• CPC Class Codes: G02C 7/102 Photochromic filters
• CPC Class Codes: G02C 7/12 Polarisers

Abstract

A transparent optical component (10) comprises at least one transparent set of cells (15) juxtaposed parallel to a surface of the component, each cell being separated by walls (18) parallel to the component surface, hermetically sealed and containing at least one substance having an optical property, and at least one absorbing coating (30), placed on the walls on one side extending parallel to said component surface.

The optical component can be cut out along a predefined contour and optionally drilled. The invention also comprises a method for producing such optical component and its use for producing an optical element. The optical element may be a spectacle lens in particular.

Claims

1. Method for producing a transparent optical element selected from ophthalmic lenses, contact lenses, and eye implants, comprising the production of a transparent optical component having at least:

one set of cells juxtaposed parallel to a surface of the component, each cell being hermetically sealed and containing a substance having an optical property, the cells being separated by walls;

and at least one absorbing coating, placed on the walls on a side extending parallel to said component surface, the absorbing coating having at least one wavelength absorption band of between 400 nm and 700 nm,

the transparent optical component configured so that a single image of an object is obtained when the object is viewed through the whole set of cells.

2. Method for producing a transparent optical element according to claim 1, further comprising a step of cutting out the optical component along a contour defined on said surface, corresponding to a predefined shape for the optical element.

3. Method according to 1, in which the optical property is selected from colouration, photochromism, polarization and refractive index.

4. Method according to claim 3, in which the substance having an optical property contained in at least some of the cells is in liquid or gel form.

5. Method according to claim 1, in which the set of cells of the optical component is formed directly on a rigid transparent support, or within a flexible transparent film, then transferred onto a rigid transparent support.

6. Method according to claim 5, in which the rigid transparent support may be convex, concave, or planar on the side receiving the set of cells.

7. Method according to claim 1, in which the absorbing coating has an absorption band over the whole visible spectrum.

8. Method according to claim 7, in which the absorbing coating also has a spectral absorption band in at least one of the near infrared, that is above 700 nm and the near ultraviolet, that is below 400 nm.

9. Method according to claim 1, in which the absorbing coating is produced by a metallization process.

10. Method according to claim 1, in which the absorbing coating is deposited prior to the formation of said walls, or subsequent to the formation of said walls.

11. Method according to claim 1, comprising the following steps:

depositing a uniform absorbing coating on the whole of the surface of a rigid transparent support or of a flexible transparent film;

depositing a layer of a wall-constituting transparent material and producing the cell network within said layer of transparent material in order to obtain said set of cells juxtaposed in parallel to said surface;

performing a chemical or physicochemical etching of the absorbing coating within each cell.

12. Method according to claim 1, comprising the following steps:

depositing an absorbing coating through a mask, said mask having the pattern of the cell distribution in the network to be obtained;

depositing a layer of wall-constituting transparent materials by implementing a positive photolithographic process while aligning said layer of transparent materials with respect to the pattern of the absorbing coating.

13. Method according to claim 1, comprising the following steps:

depositing a uniform layer of wall-constituting transparent material on the whole of the surface of a rigid transparent support or of a flexible transparent film;

depositing a metal layer on said uniform layer of wall-constituting material;

producing the cells by implementing an etching process through the mask of said metal layer, and then said layer of transparent material in order to obtain said set of cells juxtaposed parallel to said surface.

14. Method according to claim 13, in which the metal layer is etched using a Reactive Ion Etching process.

15. Method according to claim 1, in which the cell network is obtained by implementing a method selected from hot printing, hot embossing, micromoulding, photolithography, microdeposition, screen printing, and inkjet printing.

16. Method according to claim 15, in which the wall-constituting material has an absorption over at least part of the visible spectrum.

17. Method according to claim 1, which comprises forming a wall network on a substrate to bound the cells parallel to said component surface, forming at least one absorbing coating parallel to the surface of said walls, this step occurring at least one of prior to and subsequent to the forming of said wall network, a collective or individual filling of the cells with the substance having an optical property in liquid or gel form, and sealing the cells on their side opposite the substrate.

18. Method according to claim 1, in which the absorbing coating comprises a metal selected from aluminium, silver, chromium, titanium, platinum, nickel, copper, iron, zinc, tin, palladium and gold.

19. Method according to claim 18, in which the absorbing coating comprises a metal selected from silver, aluminium, titanium, chromium and gold.

20. Method according to claim 1, in which the absorbing coating comprises an absorbing material selected from hybrid materials including sol-gel resins, composite materials including ceramic/metal or silica/metal mixtures, and carbon.

21. Method according to claim 1, in which the absorbing coating comprises an absorbing material selected from polymers intrinsically absorbing or made absorbing by doping, diffusion or absorption of absorbing particles.

22. Method according to claim 21, in which the absorbing particles are selected from dyes, inks, pigments, colloids, metal particles, alloys, carbon black, and carbon nanotubes.

23. Optical component configured to be used to produce a transparent optical element selected from ophthalmic lenses, contact lenses, and eye implants, the optical component comprising

at least one set of transparent cells juxtaposed parallel to a surface of the component and

at least one absorbing coating, placed on the walls on one side extending parallel to said component surface, the absorbing coating having at least one wavelength absorption band of between 400 nm and 700 nm, each cell being hermetically sealed and containing a substance having an optical property, all the cells being separated by walls, the optical component configured so that a single image of an object is obtained when the object is viewed through the whole set of cells.

24. Optical component according to claim 23, in which the absorbing coating is deposited parallel to the base of the wall surface.

25. Optical component according to claim 24, in which the absorbing coating has a thickness identical to the wall thickness or a thickness greater than the wall thickness.

26. Optical component according to claim 23, in which the absorbing coating is deposited parallel to the top of the wall surface.

27. Optical component according to claim 23, in which the absorbing coating is deposited parallel to the base and to the top of the wall surface.

28. Optical component according to claim 23, in which the absorbing coating comprises a material selected from aluminium, silver, chromium, titanium, platinum, nickel, copper, iron, zinc, tin, palladium and gold.

29. Optical component according to claim 28, in which the material is selected from silver, aluminium, titanium, chromium and gold.

30. Optical component according to claim 23, in which the absorbing coating comprises a material selected from hybrid materials including sol-gel resins, composites including ceramic/metal or silica/metal mixtures, and carbon.

31. Optical component according to claim 23, in which the absorbing coating comprises a material selected from polymers intrinsically absorbing or made absorbing by doping, diffusion or absorption of absorbing particles.

32. Optical component according to claim 31, in which the absorbing particles are selected from dyes, inks, pigments, colloids, metal particles, alloys, carbon black, and carbon nanotubes.

33. Optical component according to claim 23, in which the absorbing coating has a height of between 2 nm and 5 μ

m.

34. Optical component according to claim 23, in which the cells are separated by walls having a thickness of between 0.10 μ

m and 5 μ

m, and a height of between 1 μ

m and 50 μ

m inclusive.

35. Optical component according to claim 23, in which the filling ratio is between 90% and 99.5% inclusive.

36. Spectacle lens produced by cutting out an optical component according to claim 23.

37. Spectacle lens according to claim 36, in which at least one hole is drilled through the optical component to fasten the spectacle lens to a frame.

38. Method for producing a transparent optical element selected from ophthalmic lenses, contact lenses, and eye implants, comprising the production of a transparent optical component having at least:

one set of cells juxtaposed parallel to a surface of the component, each cell being hermetically sealed and containing a substance having an optical property, the cells being separated by walls;

and at least one absorbing coating, placed adjoining the walls on a side extending parallel to said component surface, the absorbing coating having at least one wavelength absorption band of between 400 nm and 700 nm,

the transparent optical component configured so that a single image of an object is obtained when the object is viewed through the whole set of cells.

39. Optical component configured to be used to produce a transparent optical element selected from ophthalmic lenses, contact lenses, and eye implants, the optical component comprising

at least one set of transparent cells juxtaposed parallel to a surface of the component and

at least one absorbing coating, placed adjoining the walls on one side extending parallel to said component surface, the absorbing coating having at least one wavelength absorption band of between 400 nm and 700 nm, each cell being hermetically sealed and containing a substance having an optical property, all the cells being separated by walls, the optical component configured so that a single image of an object is obtained when the object is viewed through the whole set of cells.