[001] The present invention relates to the field of watch dial. The present invention
in pa1iicular relates to a system and method for multitone watch dial.
DESCRIPTION OF THE RELATED ART:
5 [002] Watch dials, commonly known as surface plates, have a variety of appearance
styles, from materials to beautiful design, from processing methods to painting
processes, showing a wide variety of, but also people's minds. The most commonly
used materials are aluminum and copper. Commonly used decorative methods
include embossing, silk screen printing, inlaying, painting, dyeing, etc., countless.
I 0 An unusual substrate is shells. The surface of the shells is rich in interference colors,
has a pearl-like luster and texture, and presents a special beauty and is very
fashionable. The traditional beauty process of shell dials is painting and dyeing, but
the finished products obtained therefrom lack the desired metal texture or ceramic
texture.
15 [003] Reference may be made to the following:
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25
[004] Publication No. CN204462649 relates to a watch shell dial with a black
decorative film, and a watch. The dial comprises a shell base material dial and the
black decorative film covering the shell base material dial. The black decorative
film is in a multi-layer structure, and the total thickness of the black decorative film
is from 0.5 mm to 1.5 mm. According to the utility model, the black decorative film
is in the multi-layer structure, thereby facilitating the better control of time of
continuous coating, controlling the coating temperature to be less than 70 DEG C
better, preventing the excess temperature from causing the breakage of a shell, and
improving the yield. Meanwhile, the multi-layer film structure facilitates the
adjustment ofthe blackness ofthe black decorative film. The structure of the black
decorative film composite layer and an amorphous carbon film top layer formed by
the sputtering of a graphite target not only enable the special nacreous luster and
textile on the shell to be shown, but also enable the shell to achieve a strong feel of
black ceramic, and enable the water shell dial to show special aesthetic feeling.
[005] Publication No. CN205827087 relates to a mica colored drawing dial plate,
including natural mica basic unit, natural mica basic unit one side is provided with
5 the colored drawing layer on the surface, is provided with the mother -of -pearl
inlay layer on the colored drawing layer, is equipped with cover lacquer layer on
the mother -of -pearl inlay layer. This mica colored drawing dial plate adopts the
natural mica material as the chassis to the dial plate is decorated to traditional
painting such as mother -of -pearl inlay, colored drawing skill, and the pattern
I 0 pluralism is exquisite graceful, combines together traditional handicraft and modern
prevailing element, has both improved the sight of wrist -watch, has also promoted
the expansion of traditional lacquer ware technology at new product field
simultaneously.
[006] Publication No. EP1640822 relates to a ceramic base plate (1) whose surface
15 includes portions in relief forming recesses or bumps. The surface and the portions
in relief are coated with layers of enamel. The base plate is made of ceramic material
and the portions in relief are made by pres-shaping the base plate prior to enamelling
or by machining the enamel layer, through the latter, or through the base plate.
[007] Publication No. GB 1427674 relates to a timepiece a part of which has been
20 coated with a material by a process comprising establishing a plas ma glow
discharge between the part and the material to evaporate the coating material which
is deposited on the part. The coating material may be at least one of Fe, Co, Ni, W,
Mo, Ti, Cr, Th, Ag, Zr, Ta, Au, Pd, Cu and AI, an alloy or intermetallic compound
or a carbide, nitride, oxide, boride or silicate or an Ag alloy containing at least one
25 of Sb, ln, Cd, Ni, Co, Cr, Au, Rh, Ru, Pd, Pt, Os, Sn, Re, W or Mo. The timepiece
part may be a watch band, a case, a dial disc, a crown or balance staff of steel or
brass and the coating thickness is# 3 microns with a hardness# 1000 HV. The Ag
or Ag alloy coating may be covered with a lacquer layer. Coating is effected in an
evacuated chamber containing argon at 2-6x 1 O-2 mm Hg and a D.C.
electric field # I KV is supplied between the cathode timepiece and the anode
coating material which is heated by resistance or electron beam. Alternatively a
reactive gas e.g. carburizing, oxidizing or nitriding may be used in the evacuated
chamber to form carbides, oxides or nitrides.
5 [008] Publication No. CN2505877 relates to a dial of clock and watch, comprising
a bottom plate, through holes arranged on the center of the bottom plate, and a
decorative layer attached to the surface of the bottom plate, wherein, the decorative
layer comprises an even or uneven fancy glass lacquer coating; and a polyurethanes
water paint layer and a vitreous enamel oil paint layer are attached to the fancy glass
I 0 lacquer coating one by one. The dial of clock and watch of the utility model has the
surface decorative effects of wear resistance, good gloss and various different
colors and images formed; and the whole preparation process is simple and the cost
of materials used is low while the effects which cannot be achieved by the prior m1
are reached.
15 [009] Publication No. GB 1356534 relates to a dial e.g. for a watch comprises a
metallic base-plate I having a thin plate of nacreous or iridescent shell 2 bonded
thereto by adhesive 4, the rear face of the shell being substantially covered by an
opaque layer 3. The adhesive 4 may be applied in patches and the layer 3 prevents
any irregularity in the adhesive being visible from the front of the shell 2. The layer
20 3 may be formed of paint or lacquer or by electro less plating; one or several colours
may be used. Aligned holes I b, 2a are provided for hand shafts, and feet I a for
fixing to a watch plate. Time indicating chapters may be printed on the upper
surface of the shell 2 Fig. 2 (not shown) or formed as separate brass members 7
attached to the dial by spot-welded legs 7a. The front of the shell 2 is coated with a
25 transparent or semi-transparent lacquer 6.
[010] Publication No. JPS6029486 relates to a dial of an extra thin type which is
fantastic in design and has high-grade feel at a low cost by coating a paint contg.
conductive powder to a base plate provided with dial legs, polishing the coating and
forming plating on the exposed conductive powder. A colored paint contg.
conductive powder 3 is coated atop a base plate I provided with dial legs and is
cured to form a paint coated film layer 2. The layer 2 is polished to expose the
powder 3 and to finish the layer 2 to a smooth surface. Metallic pieces 4 are formed
by plating on the exposed powder 3. A protective film of clear lacquer or SiO, etc.
5 is applied thereto if necessary. The dial formed by such method has the noble stonelike
appearance interspersed and embedded with the spots which have metallic
luster and are visible in relief.
[011] Publication No. JPS57206878 relates to a process of fitting characters on a
dial base plate by forming the characters monolithically with the base plate by using
I 0 plastics. Constitution: A dial-plate pattern is transferred on a polyvinyl
chloride/acetate copolymer film I by hot press by using a mold whereon the dialplate
pattern is applied. Next, a thin metal film 2 of Ni and Ag is formed on the
surface of a plastic film I by spattering by using a low-temperature spattering
device. Then, an outside-diameter shape, a central hole and character holes are
15 formed by press punching and lacquer coating 3 and water-soluble lacquer coating
4 are applied. Furthermore, the film thus processed is inserted into an injection dial
mold to be subjected to outsert molding, a dial base plate 5, characters 6 and
character legs 7 are thereby molded with resin, and Cr8 is spattered on the surface
thereof. Lastly, the water-soluble lacquer coating 4 is dissolved by water and a Cr
20 film sticking to a part other than the characters is removed, whereby a dial plate for
a clock is completed.
25
[012] Publication No. CN2505877 relates to a dial of clock and watch, comprising
a bottom plate, through holes arranged on the center of the bottom plate, and a
decorative layer attached to the surface of the bottom plate, wherein, the decorative
layer comprises an even or uneven fancy glass lacquer coating; and a polyurethanes
water paint layer and a vitreous enamel oil paint layer are attached to the fancy glass
lacquer coating one by one. The dial of clock and watch of the utility model has the
surface decorative effects of wear resistance, good gloss and various different
colors and images formed; and the whole preparation pr.
[013] Publication No. JPS59140394 relates to an ultrathin type dial which has a
metallic gloss, has a three-dimensional feel and is provided with a luxurious feel by
forming a pattern atop a base plate then forming successively from below a colored
film, (semi)transparent org. and inorg. films, partial conductive film and metallic
5 layer thereon. A colored film 5 is formed by dry or wet plating on a base plate I on
which a rugged pattern is formed by striking, coating etc. or electroforming and
thereafter a transparent or semitransparent org. or inorg. film 2 is formed thereon.
The org. film can be formed by coating a clear lacquer of, for example, aery] or the
like or a colored resin having the transparency to the extent of making the rugged
I 0 pattern see-through on the surface. The inorg. film can be formed by depositing a
material having good transparency such as Si02, MgF2 or the like by a gaseous
phase method such as, for example, sputtering.
[014] Publication No. JPS55135772 relates to the bonding layer 4 is provided on
the surface of the dial I having the processing for decoration effect on its surface
15 and additional parts 2 are sticked. Further, the bonding layer 4 is formed by coating
on the entire surface with thermoplastic acrylic system lacquer, and the additional
parts can be pressed with heating. Thus, the hold making for mounting the
additional parts to the dial I can be made unnecessary and punch processing only
is required for the additional parts since no mounting pin is required, allowing to
20 simplify the processing.
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[015] Publication No. US4495254 relates to the surface of a metal article which is
exposed to the atmosphere and abrasion during normal use of the article is protected
from scratches and/or corrosion during such use by a thin transparent abrasionresistant
film of an inert non-metallic material such as Si02, SiC, Si3N4, Ti02,
MgO, Al203, Ta205, Nb205, Ge02, spinel and selected colorless glass
compositions. The protective film is preferably deposited by RF-sputtering
techniques and undesirable coloration of the article by optical interference effects
from incident light rays is avoided by properly correlating the film thickness with
the refractive index of the particular material used to form the film. The invention
permits the use of thinner gold plating on such items as articles of expensive jewelry
and bracelets and cases for fine wristwatches without detracting from the quality,
durability or appearance of the merchandise. Alternative embodiments in which
several films of various selected non-metallic inert materials are combined to form
composite protective coatings that provide additional cost and manufacturing
5 advantages are also disclosed along with methods for sputter-depositing the
protective films in the proper thicknesses to avoid optical discoloration effects,
either on articles that have been previously plated with gold or which have been
provided with a sputter-deposited layer of gold by sequentially operating the
sputtering apparatus.
10 [016] Pub! ication No. US4517217 relates to the surface of a metal article which is
exposed to the atmosphere and abrasion during normal use of the article is protected
from scratches and/or corrosion during such use by a thin transparent abrasionresistant
film of an inert non-metallic material such as Si02, SiC, Si3N4, Ti02,
MgO, Al203, Ta205, Nb205, Ge02, spinel and selected colorless glass
15 compositions. The protective film is preferably deposited by RF-sputtering
techniques and undesirable coloration of the article by optical interference effects
from incident light rays is,avoided by properly correlating the film thickness with
the refractive index of the particular material used to form the film. The invention
permits the use of thinner gold plating on such items as articles of expensive jewelry
20 and bracelets and cases for fine wristwatches without detracting from the quality,
durability or appearance of the merchandise. Alternative embodiments in which
several films ofvarious selected non-metallic inert materials are combined to form
composite protective coatings that provide additional cost and manufacturing
advantages are also disclosed along with methods for sputter-depositing the
25 protective films in the proper thicknesses to avoid optical discoloration effects,
either on articles that have been previously plated with gold or which have been
provided with a sputter-deposited layer of gold by sequentially operating the
sputtering apparatus.
(017] Pub! ication No. GB2173511 relates to a method of applying a dense tightly
30 adhering stop-off coating to the surface of a substrate including steps of introducing
the substrate into an ine1i atmosphere maintained at a low pressure and depositing
on said surface the said stop-off material by means of an ion-plating process. The
substrate being a metal blank part of an article to be produced by a plastic forming
and diffusion bonding process or it may be a mould tool for use in a superplastic
5 forming process. The stop-off material is preferably Yttria boron nitride, graphite
or Alumina and the coating has a thickness of the order of 2 microns.
[018] Publication No. EP0038294 relates to a method of depositing a metal coating
on a solid substrate. In a vacuum enclosure (I), the substrate is fixed to a first
electrode (2) called the substrate. A composite target (5) composed substantially of
10 one of the noble metals such as gold, silver, rhodium, palladium, platinum, iridium,
osmium, and of one at the metal compounds such as nitride, carbide, boride of the
metals of the group IV b of the periodic table of the elements and tantalum. An
atmosphere of high purity argon at a pressure between 4 x I 0 <-> <4> and 3 x I 0
<-> 2 Torr is then established in the enclosure. The coating is then deposited by ion
15 deposition or vapor phase evaporation at a fixed speed.
[019] Publication No. GB738438 relates to a luminous dial 1 for a watch 2
comprises a luminescent background foil Ia, a semi-transparent light reflecting
metal film lb coating the surface of the luminescent foil Ia and opaque markings ld
on the metal film lb. The luminescent foilla consists of a plastic sheet of an acrylic
20 acid derivative containing in suspension crystallites of a luminescent medium with
a high degree of phosphorescent afterglow and which may contain radioactive
substances such 'as small quantities ofmesothorium. The surface ofthe foil Ia may
be smooth or preferably slightly dulled or matted and is covered by the film I b of
silver of about 0.6 A. thickness produced by chemical precipitation, by cathodic
25 spraying or by precipitation out of the vapour phase in a vacuum. The film I b which
is slightly dulled or matted gives the dial a metallic appearance in daylight and can
be protected by a transparent layer lc of varnish or lacquer. The signs or symbols
1 d are impermeable to light or at least to light of the spectrum emitted by the
luminescent dial so that they appear as black silhouettes against a luminescent
background, and are applied graphically, by spraying or by printing, preferably
being directly imposed by pressure on the layer 1 c.
[020] Publication No. GB2182950 relates to an improved method for forming an
aesthetically beautiful black-coloured surface film of titanium nitride on an
5 ornamental article by the method of ion plating is characterised in that titanium
metal is vaporized in an atmosphere of nitrogen containing oxygen and carbon
dioxide, each in a small but substantial volume%, under a reduced pressure while
a DC voltage of 1 to 450 volts is established between the vaporizing titanium source
and the article to be surface-treated. Unlike the golden coloured film of titanium
10 nitride obtained by conventional ion plating, the surface film deposited on the
surface has a beautiful grey to black colour with good reproducibility and reliability
and finds particular application in personal ornamental articles such as cases and
straps of watches, and frames of spectacles. The substrate may be titanium, or brass
plated first with nickel and then with an alloy of palladium and nickel.
15 [021] The article entitled "Thickness of protective coatings on wristwatch dials" by
Fischer-technology talks about the importance of this "cultural companion" has also
changed in recent decades. For some, it just tells the time, helping its wearer to
structure daily routines. For others, however, it is jewelery made of precious metal,
some even set with diamonds and other gemstones. Because it is worn directly on
20 the wrist, a watch is continuously exposed to a wide range of temperature stresses,
for example, abrupt changes between body heat and cold outside temperatures in
winter, the shock of being dipped into the pool, or baking in the sun- to name just
a few. So that the beautiful metal plating retains its brilliant polish without surface
discoloration (especially silver), the finished coating is sealed with a thin layer of
25 varnish.
[022] Thus through the traditional process of dial painting and dyeing, the final
products lacks the desired finish and texture. Hence there needed an effective
system and method for making multi tone dials.
- 9 -
[023] In order to overcome above listed prior art, the present invention aims to
provide a system and method of making multi tone dials by mechanical means.
OBJECTS OF THE INVENTION:
[024] The principal object of the present invention is to provide a system and
5 method a of making multi tone dials by mechanical means.
[025] Another object of the present invention is to provide watch dial with desired
metal texture and finish
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION:
[026) The present invention relates to a system and method of making multi tone
10 dials by mechanical means. The method provides watch dial with desired metal
texture and finish. The base is prepared at first as per the customer requirement.
Now base is electroplated with required color plating .i.e. gold, rhodium, silver,
blue, ardose etc. Then for attaining multi-tone layer, special lacquer is applied on
the plated surface to protect it from mechanical defects. By mechanical means such
15 as without limitation sun brush, brushing, diamond cutting, and record turning is
done on the same dials. Then again galvanic process of other color is done on the
same dial. Then again layer of special lacquer is applied on surface of dial. The
dials again will be moved for record turning by mechanical means and then
galvanizing of another color different from the previous colors is done. Now the
20 special lacquer is removed by acetone and final finishing lacquer is applied on the
surface of dials.
BREIF DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
[027] It is to be noted, however, that the appended drawings illustrate only
typical embodiments of this invention and are therefore not to be considered
25 for limiting of its scope, for the invention may admit to other equally effective
embodiments.
[028] Figure I shows to multi tone dials according to the present invention;
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION:
[029] The present invention provides a system and method of making multi tone
dials by mechanical means. The method provides watch dial with desired metal
5 texture and finish. The base is prepared at first as per the customer requirement.
Now base is electroplated with required color plating .i.e. gold, rhodium, silver,
blue, ardose etc. Then for attaining multi-tone layer, special lacquer is applied on
the plated surface to protect it from mechanical defects. The special lacquer is
prepared by preparing the base of dials as per the requirement. Once the Finish-! is
I 0 prepared; the second finish is done on dials. After attaining the second finish on the
dials a layer of special lacquer is applied on the dials to prevent it from mechanical
& other defects while performing the further operation for attaining multi tone.
[030) By mechanical means such as without I imitation sun brush, brushing, diamond
cutting, and record turning is done on the same dials. Then again galvanic process
15 of other color is done on the same dial. Then again layer of special lacquer is applied
on surface of dial. The dials again will be moved for record turning by mechanical
means and then galvanizing of another color different from the previous colors is
done. Now the special lacquer is removed by acetone and final finishing lacquer is
applied on the surface of dials.
20
25
[031) The method of preparing multi tone dials includes following steps:
a) Prepare finish A of dials as per the requirement
b) Once the finish A is prepared now we attain the Finish -8
c) Now after attaining the Finish -8 apply special lacquer on the dials to
prevent it from mechanical & other defects while performing the further
operation for attaining multi tone.
d) After the special lacquer is applied now the dials are processed for further
attaining the Finish -C.
e) Again apply the Special lacquer to the dials and now process the dials for
further finish i.e. Finish -0
5 f) Now after the dial has attained the multi tone now the special lacquer is
removed by chemical wash.
g) Finally, after the special lacquer is removed then lacquer is applied on the
surface of dial.
[032] Numerous modifications and adaptations of the system of the present
I 0 invention will be apparent to those skilled in the art, and thus it is intended by
the appended claims to cover all such modifications and adaptations which fall
within the true spirit and scope of this invention.

WE CLAIM:

1. A system method of making multi tone dials by mechanical means to provide
watch dial with desired metal texture and finish wherein the method includes
following step.
a) The base is prepared at first as per the requirement.
b) Now base is electroplated with required color plating
c) Special lacquer is applied on the plated surface to protect it from
mechanical defects.
d) By mechanical means such as without limitation sunbrush, brushing,
diamond cutting, and record turning is done on the same dials.
e) Then again galvanic process of other color is done on the same dial.
f) Then again layer of special lacquer is applied on surface of dial.
g) The dials again will be moved for record turning by mechanical means and
then galvanizing of another color different from the previous colors is
done
h) Now the special lacquer is removed by acetone and final finishing lacquer
is applied on the surface of dials.