Sliding member, inner and outer blades of an electric shaver and film-forming method

• US 6,354,008 B1
• Filed: 09/21/1998
• Issued: 03/12/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 09/22/1997
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Diamond Coating Technologies, LLC (Vector Capital Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Sanyo Electric Limited (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Inventors: Kuramoto, Keiichi, Domoto, Yoichi, Hirano, Hitoshi
• Primary Examiner(s): PAYER, HWEI SIU CHOU
• Application Number:
  US09/156,825
• Time in Patent Office: 1,268 Days
• Field of Search: 303/465.1, 303/465.4, 303/465.8, 303/50, 303/465.3, 761/15, 761/16, 761/041, 76D/IG.8
• US Class Current: 30/346.53
• CPC Class Codes: B26B 19/38 Details of, or accessories for, hair clippers, or dry shavers, e.g. housings, casings, grips, guards cutters, cutting heads B26B19/04, B26B19/12, B26B19/14; cleaning or disinfecting devices A45D27/46; drying devices A45D27/48; casings for electric apparatus in general H05K
• CPC Class Codes: B26B 19/3846 Blades; Cutters B26B19/044, B26B19/141 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: C23C 16/04 Coating on selected surface areas, e.g. using masks
• CPC Class Codes: C23C 16/452 by activating reactive gas streams before their introduction into the reaction chamber, e.g. by ionisation or addition of reactive species
• CPC Class Codes: C23C 16/505 using radio frequency discharges

Abstract

A sliding member having a sliding surface for sliding contact with a cooperative member is disclosed. A protective film is deposited not only on the sliding surface but also a surface region immediately adjacent the sliding surface such that a ratio d1/d2 is controlled to be 1 or greater, where d1 is a thickness of the protective film on the sliding surface and d2 is a thickness of the protective film on the surface region immediately adjacent the sliding surface. Alternatively, the protective film is deposited at least on the sliding surface such that the protective film is varied in thickness to define an irregular top surface.

Claims

1. An electric shaver outer blade having at least one bore formed therein defining a hole for catching a beard, and a sliding surface for sliding contact with an electric shaver inner blade on an inner surface region around said hole for catching the beard, said sliding surface projecting toward said inner blade and having a protective film deposited not only on said sliding surface but also on an outer surface region around said hole in such a manner that d1/d2 is controlled to be within a range of 1.1-3.3 where d1 is a thickness of the protective film deposited on the sliding surface and d2 is a thickness of the protective film deposited on said outer surface region, the protective film comprising a hard carbon film formed of a diamond and/or amorphous carbon containing a diamond structure and wherein the protective film having a thickness d1 is disposed across the entire sliding surface of the outer blade during operation, said entire sliding surface being flat.

2. An electric shaver inner blade having at a distal end a sliding surface for sliding contact with an electric shaver outer blade, said inner blade having a protective film deposited not only on said sliding surface but also on a side region immediately adjacent said sliding surface in such a manner that d1/d2 is controlled to be within a range of 1.1-3.3, where d1 is a thickness of the protective film deposited on the sliding surface and d2 is a thickness of the protective film deposited on the side region immediately adjacent the sliding surface, the protective film comprising a hard carbon film formed of diamond and/or amorphous carbon containing a diamond structure and wherein the protective film having a thickness d1 is disposed across the entire sliding surface of the inner blade during a shaving operation.

3. A sliding member having a sliding surface for sliding contact with a cooperative member, said sliding member having a protective film deposited not only on said sliding surface but also on a surface region immediately adjacent the sliding surface in such a manner that d1/d2 is controlled to be within a range of 1.1-3.3, where d1 is a thickness of the protective film deposited on the sliding surface and d2 is a thickness of the protective film deposited on the surface region immediately adjacent the sliding surface, the protective film comprising a hard carbon film formed of diamond and/or amorphous carbon containing a diamond structure and wherein the protective film having a thickness d1 is disposed across the entire sliding surface of the sliding member during a sliding operation.

4. The sliding member of claim 3, wherein said protective film has a hardness of not less than 1000 Hv.

5. The sliding member of claim 3, wherein said surface region adjacent the sliding surface is on a surface angularly oriented with respect to the sliding surface.