TWM633582U - UV curing equipment for contact lens polymerization process - Google Patents

Abstract

An ultraviolet light curing equipment used in the polymerization process of contact lenses. For each mold cavity carrying a contact lens curing mold, an ultraviolet light curing module is provided. The ultraviolet light curing module has a plurality of first ultraviolet lights located above the mold cavity. The light source and a plurality of second ultraviolet light sources located below the mold cavity, and the light emitted by the first ultraviolet light sources are guided by the plurality of light-emitting areas of the first light guide device to pass through and irradiate the mold On the light-receiving surface, the light emitted by the second ultraviolet light source is reflected by the multiple reflectors of the second light-guiding device and then scattered to the light-receiving surface under the mold to achieve uniform curing of the contact lens polymerization in the mold material, and improve the production yield of the product.

Description

UV curing equipment for contact lens polymerization process

The invention relates to a contact lens manufacturing equipment, in particular to an ultraviolet light curing equipment used in the contact lens polymerization process.

Contact lenses are a popular option for people with worsening or degenerative conditions such as nearsightedness, as they can replace regular eyeglasses to correct vision problems. In addition to this, contact lenses have also achieved fashion statement status, contact lenses with colorful designs around the optical zone have become a popular fashion must-have accessory in many countries. In some styles, contact lenses perform the dual function of correcting vision and providing a special style to the wearer.

Contact lens manufacturing processes include lathe cutting, cast molding, spin coating, thermal curing or UV curing. As shown in Figure 1, the conventional contact lens manufacturing method is to carry a carrier plate 52 carrying a plurality of molds 51 on a conveyor belt 50, and a contact lens polymer 53 is injected into the mold 51, and passes through a plurality of upper molds. The long strip of ultraviolet light tube 54 is irradiated to make the contact lens polymer 53 solidify and form, and the contact lens lens can be obtained after the mold 51 is removed. However, this method only uses ultraviolet light to irradiate a single surface of the mold until the contact lens polymer is completely cured, and its curing efficiency is not good, and various parts of the contact lens polymer will be cured unevenly, resulting in poor production efficiency. This uneven curing process will make the contact lens polymer prone to defects such as optical zone instability, structural deformation, and cracks after curing, which will seriously affect the yield of the product.

In view of this, the main purpose of this creation is to provide a UV curing equipment for the contact lens polymerization process, which is equipped with UV curing modules above and below the mold cavity, and is equipped with a light guide device to allow the mold to The upper and lower light-receiving surfaces can be fully irradiated by curing light, so that the contact lens polymer in the mold can be uniformly cured, which can shorten the curing time, improve the production yield, and reduce the process cost.

To achieve the above purpose, the present invention provides a UV curing device for contact lens polymerization process, which includes a carrying device, a UV curing module, a first light guiding device and a second light guiding device. The supporting device has a plurality of mold cavities, the aforementioned multiple mold cavities are respectively used to carry a mold, the mold accommodates the contact lens polymer, the mold has an upper light-receiving surface and a lower light-receiving surface, and the upper light-receiving surface is a plane, and the lower light-receiving surface is surface. The ultraviolet light curing module has a plurality of first ultraviolet light emitting sources and a plurality of second ultraviolet light emitting sources, wherein the first ultraviolet light emitting sources are located above the cavity, and the second ultraviolet light sources are located below the cavity. The first light-guiding device includes a plurality of light-exiting areas, and these light-exiting areas are respectively arranged corresponding to the first ultraviolet light emitting source and located between the first ultraviolet light emitting source and the mold cavity, so as to guide the light emitted by the first ultraviolet light emitting source. The light rays respectively pass through the corresponding light-emitting regions and irradiate to the light-receiving surface on the mould. The second light guide device includes a plurality of reflectors, and these reflectors respectively surround the second ultraviolet light emitting source, so that the second ultraviolet light emitting source is separated from each other, so that the light emitted by the second ultraviolet light emitting source is respectively Reflected by the reflector and then scattered to the light-receiving surface under the mold.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, the aforementioned first ultraviolet light emitting source and the second ultraviolet light emitting source are light emitting diodes.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, the aforementioned first light guide device includes a substrate, and a plurality of light guide holes are opened on the substrate to form the aforementioned plurality of light exit regions, which are used to limit the light emitted by the first ultraviolet light source. conduction in the light guide hole.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, the diameter of the aforementioned light guide hole is tapered from the direction close to the first ultraviolet light source to the direction away from the first ultraviolet light source.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, the aforementioned substrate is made of matte material; preferably, the substrate can be made of plastic material or coated with a matte film made of glass or metal material.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, the aforementioned first light guiding device includes a plurality of condenser lenses to form the aforementioned plurality of light exit regions, so that the light emitted by the first ultraviolet light source passes through the condenser lenses and then vertically incident on the mold The upper light-receiving surface; preferably, the condenser lens can be a Fresnel lens.

According to an embodiment of the invention, the aforementioned reflective plate is made of glass or metal material, or is coated with a reflective film on the surface of the substrate.

The detailed description of the specific embodiments below will make it easier to understand the purpose, technical content, characteristics and effects of this creation.

100, 200, 300, 400: UV curing equipment

10: Carrying device

11: Mold cavity

12:Mold

121: Upper light-receiving surface

122: Lower light-receiving surface

13: Contact lens polymer

20: UV curing module

21: The first ultraviolet light source

22: The second ultraviolet light source

30: The first light guide device

31: Light emitting area

32: Substrate

33: Light guide hole

34: Concentrating lens

40: Second light guide device

41: Reflector

50: conveyor belt

51: Mold

52: carrying plate

53:Contact lens polymer

54: Ultraviolet light tube

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of an ultraviolet curing device for contact lenses in the prior art.

FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram of an ultraviolet curing device for contact lens polymerization process according to the first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram of an ultraviolet curing device used in a contact lens polymerization process according to a second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram of an ultraviolet curing device used in a contact lens polymerization process according to a third embodiment of the present invention.

Please refer to FIG. 2 , which shows a schematic cross-sectional structure diagram of an ultraviolet curing device 100 for contact lens polymerization process according to the first embodiment of the present invention. In this embodiment, the UV curing device 100 includes a carrying device 10 , a UV curing module 20 , a first light guiding device 30 and a second light guiding device 40 . A plurality of mold cavities 11 are arranged at intervals on the carrying device 10 , and the mold cavities 11 are spaces for carrying the mold 12 . The mold 12 is light-transmissive, such as PP plastic, which can penetrate ultraviolet light. The mold 12 includes an upper light-receiving surface 121 and a lower light-receiving surface 122 corresponding to the upper light-receiving surface 121. The upper light-receiving surface 121 is a plane, and the lower light-receiving surface 122 is a curved surface, and a contact lens polymer 13 is housed in the mold 12; as is well known to those skilled in the art, the contact lens polymer 13 is a material for polymerization and molding into a contact lens lens, and can include hydrophilic monomers (such as poly -2 (hydroxyethyl methacrylate)), hydrophobic monomers (such as siloxane) or a combination of monomer mixtures, may also contain other special functional substances and components, such as photoinitiators or thermal Initiators and additives that increase the hydrophilicity of contact lenses.

The ultraviolet curing module 20 has a plurality of first ultraviolet light sources 21 and a plurality of second ultraviolet light sources 22 . The first ultraviolet light emitting source 21 is located above the mold cavity 11, and the second ultraviolet light emitting source 22 is located below the mold cavity 11, so that the top and bottom of each mold cavity 11 can roughly correspond to a first ultraviolet light emitting source 21 and A second ultraviolet light emitting source 22 . In this embodiment, the first ultraviolet light source 21 and the second ultraviolet light source 22 are light-emitting diodes, and the light emitted by each light-emitting diode is a point light source with concentrated brightness.

The first light-guiding device 30 includes a plurality of light-exiting areas 31, each of which is set correspondingly to a first ultraviolet light emitting source 21, and is located between the first ultraviolet light emitting source 21 and the mold cavity 11 for guiding The light emitted by the first ultraviolet light source 21 passes through the corresponding light emitting area 31 and irradiates the upper half of the mold cavity 11 , that is, irradiates the upper light receiving surface 121 of the mold 12 . In this embodiment, the first light guide device 30 includes a light-tight substrate 32, and a plurality of light guide holes 33 are opened on the substrate 32, and these light guide holes 33 form a plurality of light exit areas 31, for each The light emitted by the first ultraviolet light source 21 is limited to The corresponding light guiding holes 33 conduct transmission, so that the light is irradiated concentratedly on the upper light receiving surface 121 of the mold 12 without being interfered by other adjacent light emitting sources.

The second light guide device 40 includes a plurality of reflectors 41, and each reflector 41 is respectively surrounded by a second ultraviolet light source 22, so that the plurality of second ultraviolet light sources 22 can pass through the reflector 41 are separated from each other, so that the light emitted by the second ultraviolet light source 22 can be reflected by the corresponding reflector 41, and then scattered to the lower half of the mold cavity 11, that is, to the lower light-receiving surface 122 of the mold 12 . In this embodiment, since the second ultraviolet light source 22 is separated by the reflector 41, the light emitted by the second ultraviolet light source 22 will be limited to reflect in the corresponding reflector 41, and will not be affected by the adjacent Moreover, since the lower light-receiving surface 122 of the mold 12 is a curved surface, this embodiment uses the reflector 41 to change the irradiation path of the curing light source, and the light reflected by the reflector 41 will be scattered, making the mold The lower light-receiving surface 122 of 12 can be irradiated more uniformly.

Further, the substrate 32 of this embodiment can use a matte material to reduce the refraction of light passing through the light guide hole 33; for example, the substrate 32 can preferably be made of plastic material, or the substrate 32 can also be made of glass or The metal material is coated with a matting film. The reflector 41 of this embodiment adopts a material with good refraction function to achieve uniform illumination on the lower light receiving surface 122 of the mold 12; for example, the reflector 41 can preferably be made of glass or metal material, or the reflector 41 can also It can be formed by coating a layer of reflective film on the surface of any substrate.

In the actual process application of this invention, the carrying device 10 can be transported in an inching manner by a transport mechanism (such as the conveyor belt 50 in Figure 1), so that each mold cavity 11 can be transported to the first UV The position between the light emitting source 21 and the plurality of second ultraviolet light emitting sources 22 enables the mold 12 carried by each mold cavity 11 to correspond to the first ultraviolet light emitting source 21 and the second ultraviolet light emitting source 22, so that The contact lens polymer 13 in the mold 12 is solidified and formed under ultraviolet light irradiation, and the mold 12 is removed after cooling to obtain the contact lens lens. In this creation, the light from the first ultraviolet light source 21 and the second ultraviolet light source 22 can be irradiated to the entire mold cavity 11 effectively by the first light guide device 30 and the second light guide device 40, so that the mold The upper light-receiving surface 121 and the lower light-receiving surface 122 of 12 can fully receive light, so that the contact lens polymer 13 in the mold 12 can be uniformly cured, thereby shortening the curing time, improving the yield rate of the product, and helping to reduce the process cost.

In the above embodiments, the diameter of the light guide hole 33 is roughly slightly larger than the size of the light source, and is designed as a cylindrical hole; in practical applications, the shape and size of the light guide hole 33 are not limited, and can be adjusted according to requirements . Please refer to FIG. 3 , which shows a schematic cross-sectional structure diagram of an ultraviolet curing device 200 for contact lens polymerization process according to the second embodiment of the present invention. The difference from the first embodiment is that in this embodiment, the diameter of the light guide hole 33 is designed to be tapered from the direction close to the first ultraviolet light source 21 to the direction away from the first ultraviolet light source 21, that is, it appears as Conical hole. In this way, the divergence angle of the light emitted through the light guide hole 33 can be reduced, so that the light irradiates evenly on the upper light-receiving surface 121 of the mold 12 .

In addition, please refer to FIG. 4 , which shows a schematic cross-sectional structure diagram of an ultraviolet curing device 300 for contact lens polymerization process according to a third embodiment of the present invention. The difference with the first embodiment and the second embodiment is that the first light guiding device 30 of this embodiment includes a plurality of condenser lenses 34, and forms a plurality of light exit areas 31 for turning the first ultraviolet light source 21 The emitted light can be vertically incident on the upper half of the mold cavity 11 after passing through the corresponding condenser lens 34 , that is, to irradiate the upper light-receiving surface 121 of the mold 12 . Further, the condensing lens 34 of this embodiment may be a Fresnel lens. Since the upper light-receiving surface 121 of the mold 12 is a plane, in this embodiment, the light-receiving surface 121 of the mold 12 can be more uniformly irradiated by adjusting the irradiation path of the curing light source through the condenser lens 34 to improve the scattering phenomenon of the light source.

Only the above-mentioned ones are only preferred embodiments of this creation, and are not used to limit the scope of implementation of this creation. Therefore, all equal changes or modifications based on the characteristics and spirit described in the scope of application for this creation shall be included in the scope of patent application for this creation.

100: UV curing equipment

10: Carrying device

11: Mold cavity

12:Mold

121: Upper light-receiving surface

122: Lower light-receiving surface

13: Contact lens polymer

20: UV curing module

21: The first ultraviolet light source

22: The second ultraviolet light source

30: The first light guide device

31: Light emitting area

32: Substrate

33: Light guide hole

40: Second light guide device

41: Reflector

Claims (9)

An ultraviolet light curing equipment for contact lens polymerization process, comprising: A carrying device has a plurality of mold cavities, and these mold cavities are respectively used to carry a mold, the mold accommodates a contact lens polymer, and the mold has an upper light-receiving surface and a lower light-receiving surface, the upper light-receiving surface is flat, The lower light-receiving surface is a curved surface; An ultraviolet light curing module has a plurality of first ultraviolet light emitting sources and a plurality of second ultraviolet light emitting sources, the first ultraviolet light emitting sources are located above the mold cavities, and the second ultraviolet light emitting sources are located on the Below the mold cavity; A first light-guiding device, including a plurality of light-exiting areas, the light-exiting areas are respectively arranged corresponding to the first ultraviolet light emitting sources and located between the first ultraviolet light emitting sources and the mold cavities, for guiding the The light rays emitted by the first ultraviolet light emitting sources respectively pass through the corresponding light-emitting areas and irradiate the upper light-receiving surface of the mold; and A second light guide device, including a plurality of reflectors, these reflectors respectively surround the second ultraviolet light emitting sources, and separate the second ultraviolet light emitting sources from each other, so as to make the second ultraviolet light emit light The light emitted by the source is respectively reflected by the reflectors and scattered to the lower light-receiving surface of the mould. The ultraviolet light curing equipment for the contact lens polymerization process according to claim 1, wherein the first ultraviolet light sources and the second ultraviolet light sources are light emitting diodes. The ultraviolet light curing equipment used in the polymerization process of contact lenses as described in claim 1, wherein the first light guide device includes a substrate, and a plurality of light guide holes are opened on the substrate to form the light exit regions. The light emitted by the first ultraviolet light emitting sources is limited in the light guide holes for transmission. The ultraviolet light curing equipment used in the contact lens polymerization process as described in claim 3, wherein the hole diameter of the light guide holes is from close to the first ultraviolet light sources to far away from the first ultraviolet light sources The direction appears tapered. The ultraviolet light curing equipment used in the contact lens polymerization process as described in claim 3, wherein the substrate is made of a matte material. The ultraviolet light curing equipment for the contact lens polymerization process as described in claim 5, wherein the substrate is made of plastic material or is coated with a matting film made of glass or metal material. The ultraviolet light curing equipment used in the contact lens polymerization process as described in claim 1, wherein the first light guiding device includes a plurality of condenser lenses to form the light exit areas for the first ultraviolet light sources The emitted light is vertically incident on the upper light-receiving surface of the mould, after passing through the condenser lenses. The ultraviolet light curing equipment for contact lens polymerization process as described in claim 7, wherein the condensing lenses are Fresnel lenses. The ultraviolet light curing equipment used in the contact lens polymerization process as described in claim 1, wherein the reflective plates are made of glass or metal materials or reflective films are coated on the surface of the substrate.

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