EP0582676B1 - Improvements in or relating to razor blades - Google Patents

Improvements in or relating to razor blades Download PDF

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Publication number
EP0582676B1
EP0582676B1 EP92913377A EP92913377A EP0582676B1 EP 0582676 B1 EP0582676 B1 EP 0582676B1 EP 92913377 A EP92913377 A EP 92913377A EP 92913377 A EP92913377 A EP 92913377A EP 0582676 B1 EP0582676 B1 EP 0582676B1
Authority
EP
European Patent Office
Prior art keywords
diamond
substrate
interlayer
layer
carbon material
Prior art date
Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
Expired - Lifetime
Application number
EP92913377A
Other languages
German (de)
English (en)
French (fr)
Other versions
EP0582676A4 (en
EP0582676A1 (en
Inventor
Manohar S. Grewel
Chong-Ping P. Chou
Steve S. Hahn
John Madeira
Current Assignee (The listed assignees may be inaccurate. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation or warranty as to the accuracy of the list.)
Gillette Co LLC
Original Assignee
Gillette Co LLC
Priority date (The priority date is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the date listed.)
Filing date
Publication date
Priority claimed from US07/759,812 external-priority patent/US5142785A/en
Application filed by Gillette Co LLC filed Critical Gillette Co LLC
Publication of EP0582676A1 publication Critical patent/EP0582676A1/en
Publication of EP0582676A4 publication Critical patent/EP0582676A4/en
Application granted granted Critical
Publication of EP0582676B1 publication Critical patent/EP0582676B1/en
Anticipated expiration legal-status Critical
Expired - Lifetime legal-status Critical Current

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Classifications

    • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
    • B26—HAND CUTTING TOOLS; CUTTING; SEVERING
    • B26B—HAND-HELD CUTTING TOOLS NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR
    • B26B21/00—Razors of the open or knife type; Safety razors or other shaving implements of the planing type; Hair-trimming devices involving a razor-blade; Equipment therefor
    • B26B21/54—Razor-blades
    • B26B21/58—Razor-blades characterised by the material
    • B26B21/60—Razor-blades characterised by the material by the coating material

Definitions

  • This invention relates to razor blades and to processes of forming razor blades with sharp and durable cutting edges.
  • a razor blade typically is formed of suitable substrate material such as metal or ceramic and an edge is formed with wedge-shape configuration with an ultimate edge or tip that has a radius of less than about 1,000 angstroms, the wedge shaped surfaces having an included angle of less than 30°.
  • suitable substrate material such as metal or ceramic
  • the wedge shaped surfaces having an included angle of less than 30°.
  • supplemental coating material has been proposed for shave facilitation, and/or to increase the hardness and/or corrosion resistance of the shaving edge.
  • a number of such coating materials have been proposed, Such as polymeric materials and metals, as well as other materials including diamond and diamond-like carbon (DLC) material.
  • Each such layer or layers of supplemental material must have adhesion compatibility so that each layer remains firmly adhered to the substrate throughout the useful life of the razor blade, and desirably provide characteristics such as improved shavability, improved hardness and/or corrosion resistance while not adversely affecting the geometry and cutting effectiveness of the shaving edge.
  • DLC diamond-like carbon
  • Such materials may be characterized as having substantial sp 3 carbon bonding; a mass density greater than 1.5 grams/cm 3 ; and a Raman peak at about 1331 cm 1 (diamond) or about 1552 cm 1 (DLC).
  • DLC diamond-like carbon
  • U.S. Patent 3,761,374 discloses a process for depositing a strengthening layer of metal or alloy material such as chromium or chrome-platinum upon a sharpened edge of a razor blade.
  • German Patent 3,047,888 discloses coating a tool or razor blade surface with a carbon layer having a diamond-like structure and with an interlayer of silicon or silicon dioxide,
  • the invention resides in a process of forming a razor blade which comprises providing a substrate, forming a wedge-shaped sharpened edge on the substrate having an included angle of less than 30 degrees, depositing an interlayer on the substrate, and depositing a layer of diamond or diamond-like carbon material on the interlayer so that the interlayer is between and in contact with the layer of diamond or diamond-like carbon material on the one side and with the substrate including its sharpened edge on the other side, characterized in that the substrate has a tip radius of less than twelve hundred angstroms and the interlayer consists of niobium.
  • the invention also resides in a razor blade which is the direct end product of the aforesaid process, comprising a substrate having a wedge-shaped edge with an included angle of less than 30 degrees, an interlayer on the substrate and a layer of diamond or diamond-like carbon material on the interlayer so that the interlayer is between and in contact with the layer of diamond or diamond-like carbon material on one side and with the substrate including its sharpened edge on the other, characterized in that the substrate has a tip radius of less than twelve hundred angstroms and the interlayer consists of niobium.
  • the invention further resides in a shaving unit including one or more of such blades.
  • the blade exhibits excellent shaving properties and long shaving life.
  • the interlayer and the diamond or DLC layer may be deposited by various techniques such as plasma decomposition of hydrocarbon gases, sputter deposition using ions from either a plasma or an ion gun to bombard a target, directly using a beam of carbon ions, and ion bean assisted deposition (IBAD) process using either E-Beam or sputtering sources.
  • plasma decomposition of hydrocarbon gases sputter deposition using ions from either a plasma or an ion gun to bombard a target, directly using a beam of carbon ions
  • IBAD ion bean assisted deposition
  • the substrate is mechanically abraded in a sequence of honing steps to form the sharpened edge; layers of niobium and diamond or diamond-like carbon material are successively deposited by sputtering; the niobium interlayer having a thickness of less than about five hundred angstroms, and the diamond or DLC coating on the niobium coated cutting edge having a thickness of at least about twelve hundred angstroms; the layer of diamond having a Raman peak at about 1331 cm -1 and the layer of diamond-like carbon (DLC) material having a Raman peak at about 1550 cm -1 ; substantial sp3 carbon bonding; and a mass density greater than 1.5 grams/cm 3 ; and an adherent polymer coating is applied on the diamond or DLC coated cutting edge.
  • layers of niobium and diamond or diamond-like carbon material are successively deposited by sputtering; the niobium interlayer having a thickness of less than about five hundred angstroms, and the diamond or DLC coating
  • the shaving unit comprising a razor blade according to the invention may be of the disposable cartridge type adapted for coupling to and uncoupling from a razor handle or may be integral with a handle so that the complete razor is discarded as a unit when the blade or blades become dull.
  • the front and rear skin engaging surfaces cooperate with the blade edge (or edges) to define the shaving geometry.
  • Particularly preferred shaving units are of the types shown in U.S. Patent 3,876,563 and in U.S. Patent 4,586,255.
  • shaving unit 10 includes structure for attachment to a razor handle, and a platform member 12 molded of high-impact polystyrene that includes structure defining forward, transversely-extending skin engaging surface 14. Mounted on platform member 12 are leading blade 16 having sharpened edge 18 and following blade 20 having sharpened edge 22.
  • Cap member 24 of molded high-impact polystyrene has structure defining skin-engaging surface 26 that is disposed rearwardly of blade edge 22, and affixed to cap member 24 is shaving aid composite 28.
  • the shaving unit 30 shown in Fig. 2 is of the type shown in Jacobson U.S. Patent 4,586,255 and includes molded body 32 with front portion 34 and rear portion 36. Resiliently secured in body 32 are guard member 38, leading blade unit 40 and trailing blade unit 42. Each blade unit 40, 42 includes a blade member 44 that has a sharpened edge 46. A shaving aid composite 48 is frictionally secured in a recess in rear portion 36.
  • FIG. 3 A diagrammatic view of the edge region of the blades 16, 20 and 44 is shown in Fig. 3.
  • the blade includes stainless steel body portion 50 with a wedge-shaped sharpened edge formed in a sequence of edge forming honing operations that forms a tip portion 52 that has a radius typically less than 500 angstroms with facets 54 and 56 that diverge at an angle of about 13°.
  • Deposited on tip 52 and facets 54, 56 is interlayer 58 of niobium that has a thickness of about 300 angstroms.
  • niobium interlayer 58 Deposited on niobium interlayer 58 is outer layer 60 of diamond-like carbon (DLC) that has a thickness of about 2,000 angstroms, with facets 62, 64 that have lengths of about one-quarter micrometer each and define an included angle of about 80°, facets 62, 64 merging with main facet surfaces 66, 68 that are disposed at an included angle of about 13° and an aspect ratio (the ratio of the distance (a) from DLC tip 70 to stainless steel tip 52 and the width (b) of the DLC coating 60 at tip 52) of about 1.7.
  • DLC diamond-like carbon
  • facets 62, 64 that have lengths of about one-quarter micrometer each and define an included angle of about 80°
  • main facet surfaces 66, 68 merging with main facet surfaces 66, 68 that are disposed at an included angle of about 13° and an aspect ratio (the ratio of the distance (a) from DLC tip 70 to stainless steel tip 52 and the width (b) of
  • FIG. 4 Apparatus for processing blades of the type shown in Fig. 3 is diagrammatically illustrated in Fig. 4.
  • That apparatus includes a DC planar magnetron sputtering system manufactured by Vac Tec Systems of Boulder, Colorado that has stainless steel chamber 74 with wall structure 80, door 82 and base structure 84 in which is formed port 86 coupled to a suitable vacuum system (not shown).
  • a suitable vacuum system (not shown).
  • mounted in chamber 74 is carousel support 88 with upstanding support member 90 on which is disposed a stack of razor blades 92 with their sharpened edges 94 in alignment and facing outwardly from support 90.
  • Targets 96 and 98 are vertically disposed plates, each about twelve centimeters wide and about thirty-seven centimeters long.
  • Support structures 76, 78 and 88 are electrically isolated from chamber 74 and electrical connections are provided to connect blade stack 92 to RF power supply 100 through switch 102 and to DC power supply 104 through switch 106; and targets 96 and 98 are connected through switches 108, 110, respectively, to DC magnetron power supply 112.
  • Shutter structures 114 and 116 are disposed adjacent targets 96, 98, respectively, for movement between an open position and a position obscuring its adjacent target.
  • Carousel 88 supports the blade stack 92 with the blade edges 94 spaced about seven centimeters from the opposed target plate 96, 98 and is rotatable about a vertical axis between a first position in which blade stack 92 is in opposed alignment with niobium target 96 (Fig. 4) and a second position in which blade stack 92 is in opposed alignment with graphite target 98.
  • a stack of blades 92 (five centimeters high) is secured on support 90; chamber 74 is evacuated; the targets 96, 98 are cleaned by DC sputtering for five minutes; switch 102 is then closed and the blades 92 are RF cleaned in an argon environment for five minutes at a pressure of ten millitorr, an argon flow of 200 sccm and a power of 1.5 kilowatts; the argon flow is then reduced to 150 sccm at a pressure of 2.0 millitorr in chamber 74; switch 106 is closed to apply a DC bias of -25 volts on blades 92; switch 108 is closed to commence sputtering at one kilowatt power and shutter 114 in front of niobium target 96 is opened for thirty seconds to deposit a niobium layer 58 of about 300 angstroms thickness on the blade edges 94.
  • Shutter 114 is then closed, switches 106 and 108 are opened, and carousel 88 is rotated 90° to juxtapose the blade edges of blade stack 92 with graphite target 98.
  • Pressure in chamber 74 is maintained at two millitorr with an argon flow of 150 sccm; switch 110 is closed to sputter graphite target 98 at 750 watts; switch 102 is closed to apply a 13.56 MHz RF bias of eight hundred watts (-420 volts DC self bias voltage) on blades 92, and concurrently shutter 116 is opened for twenty minutes to deposit a DLC layer 60 of about two thousand angstroms thickness on niobium layer 58.
  • the DLC coating 60 had a radius at tip 70 of about 350 Angstroms that is defined by facets 62, 64 that have an included angle of about 80°, and an aspect ratio of about 1.9:1.
  • Raman spectroscopy of the coating material 60 deposited in this process shows a broad Raman peak 118 extending between about 1350 and 1530 cm -1 wave numbers, a spectrum typical of DLC structure.
  • a coating 72 of polytetrafluoroethylene telomer is then applied to the DLC-coated edges of the blades.
  • the process involves heating the blades in a neutral atmosphere of argon and providing on the cutting edges of the blades an adherent and friction-reducing polymer coating of solid PTFE.
  • Coatings 58 and 60 were firmly adherent to the blade body 50, provided low wet wool felt cutter force (the lowest of the first five cuts with wet wool felt (L5) being about 0.45 kilogram), and withstood repeated applications of wool felt cutter forces indicating that the DLC coating 60 is substantially unaffected by exposure to the severe conditions of this felt cutter test and remains firmly adhered to the blade body 50, even after immersion in 80°C. distilled water for sixteen hours.
  • Resulting blade elements 44 were assembled in cartridge units 30 of the type shown in Fig. 2 and shaved with excellent shaving results.

Landscapes

  • Life Sciences & Earth Sciences (AREA)
  • Forests & Forestry (AREA)
  • Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
  • Mechanical Engineering (AREA)
  • Physical Vapour Deposition (AREA)
  • Dry Shavers And Clippers (AREA)
  • Cutting Tools, Boring Holders, And Turrets (AREA)
  • Polishing Bodies And Polishing Tools (AREA)
  • Chemical Vapour Deposition (AREA)
  • Mechanical Treatment Of Semiconductor (AREA)
  • Perforating, Stamping-Out Or Severing By Means Other Than Cutting (AREA)
  • Nonmetal Cutting Devices (AREA)
EP92913377A 1991-04-26 1992-04-22 Improvements in or relating to razor blades Expired - Lifetime EP0582676B1 (en)

Applications Claiming Priority (7)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
US69201091A 1991-04-26 1991-04-26
US692010 1991-04-26
US07/759,812 US5142785A (en) 1991-04-26 1991-08-26 Razor technology
US759812 1991-08-26
US83525192A 1992-02-13 1992-02-13
US835251 1992-02-13
PCT/US1992/003330 WO1992019425A2 (en) 1991-04-26 1992-04-22 Improvements in or relating to razor blades

Publications (3)

Publication Number Publication Date
EP0582676A1 EP0582676A1 (en) 1994-02-16
EP0582676A4 EP0582676A4 (en) 1994-07-06
EP0582676B1 true EP0582676B1 (en) 2000-03-22

Family

ID=27418553

Family Applications (1)

Application Number Title Priority Date Filing Date
EP92913377A Expired - Lifetime EP0582676B1 (en) 1991-04-26 1992-04-22 Improvements in or relating to razor blades

Country Status (18)

Country Link
EP (1) EP0582676B1 (ru)
JP (1) JP3439761B2 (ru)
KR (1) KR100241239B1 (ru)
CN (1) CN1039527C (ru)
AT (1) ATE190892T1 (ru)
AU (1) AU666659B2 (ru)
CA (1) CA2102222C (ru)
CZ (1) CZ288085B6 (ru)
DE (1) DE69230822T2 (ru)
EG (1) EG19582A (ru)
ES (1) ES2143473T3 (ru)
HU (1) HUT69255A (ru)
MX (1) MX9201910A (ru)
MY (1) MY107736A (ru)
RU (1) RU2108234C1 (ru)
TR (1) TR26981A (ru)
TW (1) TW221976B (ru)
WO (1) WO1992019425A2 (ru)

Cited By (8)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US7273655B2 (en) 1999-04-09 2007-09-25 Shojiro Miyake Slidably movable member and method of producing same
US7650976B2 (en) 2003-08-22 2010-01-26 Nissan Motor Co., Ltd. Low-friction sliding member in transmission, and transmission oil therefor
US7771821B2 (en) 2003-08-21 2010-08-10 Nissan Motor Co., Ltd. Low-friction sliding member and low-friction sliding mechanism using same
US8096205B2 (en) 2003-07-31 2012-01-17 Nissan Motor Co., Ltd. Gear
US8152377B2 (en) 2002-11-06 2012-04-10 Nissan Motor Co., Ltd. Low-friction sliding mechanism
US8206035B2 (en) 2003-08-06 2012-06-26 Nissan Motor Co., Ltd. Low-friction sliding mechanism, low-friction agent composition and method of friction reduction
US8575076B2 (en) 2003-08-08 2013-11-05 Nissan Motor Co., Ltd. Sliding member and production process thereof
US11230024B2 (en) 2014-12-22 2022-01-25 Bic-Violex Sa Razor blade

Families Citing this family (18)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
PL170815B1 (en) * 1991-06-24 1997-01-31 Gillette Co Method of making a safety-razor blade and safety-razor blade as such
CZ293994B6 (cs) * 1994-04-25 2004-09-15 The Gillette Company Holicí břit, způsob jeho výroby, a holicí jednotka
DE69610576T2 (de) * 1995-05-19 2001-05-31 Matsushita Electric Works Ltd Schneideinheit für elektrischen Rasierapparat
JP5212416B2 (ja) * 2000-02-25 2013-06-19 住友電気工業株式会社 非晶質炭素被覆部材
US6684513B1 (en) 2000-02-29 2004-02-03 The Gillette Company Razor blade technology
US7673541B2 (en) 2004-06-03 2010-03-09 The Gillette Company Colored razor blades
US7284461B2 (en) * 2004-12-16 2007-10-23 The Gillette Company Colored razor blades
TWI410507B (zh) * 2005-12-23 2013-10-01 Hon Hai Prec Ind Co Ltd 一種磁性耐磨鍍膜及其製作方法
US8011104B2 (en) 2006-04-10 2011-09-06 The Gillette Company Cutting members for shaving razors
US7966909B2 (en) * 2007-07-25 2011-06-28 The Gillette Company Process of forming a razor blade
US20130014395A1 (en) * 2011-07-14 2013-01-17 Ashok Bakul Patel Razor blades having a large tip radius
US20130031794A1 (en) 2011-08-05 2013-02-07 Duff Jr Ronald Richard RAZOR BLADES WITH ALUMINUM MAGNESIUM BORIDE (AlMgB14)-BASED COATINGS
US9808944B2 (en) * 2014-06-17 2017-11-07 The Gillette Company Llc Methods of manufacturing silicon blades for shaving razors
WO2016015771A1 (en) * 2014-07-31 2016-02-04 Bic-Violex Sa Razor blade coating
EP3616800B1 (en) * 2018-08-31 2022-11-09 BIC Violex Single Member S.A. Thinning of razor blade coatings
WO2021211812A1 (en) * 2020-04-16 2021-10-21 The Gillette Company Llc Multi-layer coatings for a razor blade
CN112157817B (zh) * 2020-06-05 2022-04-05 新蔚来智能科技(山东)有限公司 一种装配式建筑预制构件生产线发泡混凝土混配系统
WO2022092544A1 (ko) * 2020-10-27 2022-05-05 주식회사 도루코 비대칭 면도날

Citations (2)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
JPH01244707A (ja) * 1988-03-28 1989-09-29 Mitsubishi Metal Corp 人工ダイヤモンドコートの金および金合金製装飾品
US4933058A (en) * 1986-01-23 1990-06-12 The Gillette Company Formation of hard coatings on cutting edges

Family Cites Families (7)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US3480483A (en) * 1965-05-06 1969-11-25 Wilkinson Sword Ltd Razor blades and methods of manufacture thereof
US3349488A (en) * 1966-08-09 1967-10-31 Burnie J Craig Razor blades
US3829969A (en) * 1969-07-28 1974-08-20 Gillette Co Cutting tool with alloy coated sharpened edge
US3802078A (en) * 1971-06-07 1974-04-09 P Denes Cutting device and method for making same
US3761374A (en) * 1971-07-09 1973-09-25 Gillette Co Process for producing an improved cutting tool
US4291463A (en) * 1979-12-31 1981-09-29 Warner-Lambert Company Water-soluble shaving aid for razor blades
DE3047888A1 (de) * 1980-12-19 1982-07-15 Philips Patentverwaltung Gmbh, 2000 Hamburg "schneidwerkzeug, verfahren zu seiner herstellung und seine verwendung"

Patent Citations (2)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US4933058A (en) * 1986-01-23 1990-06-12 The Gillette Company Formation of hard coatings on cutting edges
JPH01244707A (ja) * 1988-03-28 1989-09-29 Mitsubishi Metal Corp 人工ダイヤモンドコートの金および金合金製装飾品

Non-Patent Citations (1)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Title
DATABASE WPI Week 8945, Derwent World Patents Index; Class A44, Page 4, AN 89328714 *

Cited By (8)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US7273655B2 (en) 1999-04-09 2007-09-25 Shojiro Miyake Slidably movable member and method of producing same
US8152377B2 (en) 2002-11-06 2012-04-10 Nissan Motor Co., Ltd. Low-friction sliding mechanism
US8096205B2 (en) 2003-07-31 2012-01-17 Nissan Motor Co., Ltd. Gear
US8206035B2 (en) 2003-08-06 2012-06-26 Nissan Motor Co., Ltd. Low-friction sliding mechanism, low-friction agent composition and method of friction reduction
US8575076B2 (en) 2003-08-08 2013-11-05 Nissan Motor Co., Ltd. Sliding member and production process thereof
US7771821B2 (en) 2003-08-21 2010-08-10 Nissan Motor Co., Ltd. Low-friction sliding member and low-friction sliding mechanism using same
US7650976B2 (en) 2003-08-22 2010-01-26 Nissan Motor Co., Ltd. Low-friction sliding member in transmission, and transmission oil therefor
US11230024B2 (en) 2014-12-22 2022-01-25 Bic-Violex Sa Razor blade

Also Published As

Publication number Publication date
CA2102222A1 (en) 1992-10-27
ES2143473T3 (es) 2000-05-16
CA2102222C (en) 1998-08-25
HUT69255A (en) 1995-08-28
EP0582676A4 (en) 1994-07-06
WO1992019425A2 (en) 1992-11-12
TR26981A (tr) 1994-09-12
JP3439761B2 (ja) 2003-08-25
MY107736A (en) 1996-05-30
DE69230822D1 (de) 2000-04-27
EG19582A (en) 1999-05-31
AU2184292A (en) 1992-12-21
MX9201910A (es) 1992-11-01
EP0582676A1 (en) 1994-02-16
CZ227593A3 (en) 1994-03-16
CN1068058A (zh) 1993-01-20
CN1039527C (zh) 1998-08-19
TW221976B (ru) 1994-04-01
WO1992019425A3 (en) 1993-01-21
DE69230822T2 (de) 2000-12-07
CZ288085B6 (cs) 2001-04-11
KR100241239B1 (ko) 2000-03-02
RU2108234C1 (ru) 1998-04-10
AU666659B2 (en) 1996-02-22
ATE190892T1 (de) 2000-04-15
JPH06507100A (ja) 1994-08-11

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