System and method for manipulating color changing materials

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10317711-B2
Application number	US-201715443008-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Feb 27, 2017
Priority date	Mar 24, 2014
Publication date	Jun 11, 2019
Grant date	Jun 11, 2019

Abstract

Systems and methods of manipulating a color displayed by an article of wear comprising iron oxide colloidal nanocrystals arranged within chains are described. Steps may include forming the article of wear from a raw material that include the chains of nanocrystals, applying a magnetic field to the raw material, applying energy to at least some of the chains of nanocrystals to soften materials within the raw material immediately surrounding the chains of nanocrystals to which the energy is applied, adjusting a strength of the magnetic field to control the color displayed by the raw material, removing the energy to allow the materials within the raw material immediately surrounding the chains of nanocrystals to harden and fix a location of the nanocrystals within the chains, and removing the magnetic field.

First claim

That which is claimed is:

1. A method of manipulating a color displayed by at least one article comprising iron oxide colloidal crystals arranged within chains embedded within a material or a transfer medium, the method comprising:
(a) applying a magnetic field to the at least one article;
(b) applying energy to at least some of the chains of nanocrystals to soften the material or transfer medium immediately surrounding the chains of nanocrystals to which the energy is applied;
(c) adjusting a strength of the magnetic field until a color displayed by the at least one article substantially corresponds to a pre-selected color;
(d) removing the energy to allow the material or transfer medium immediately surrounding the chains of nanocrystals to harden and fix a location of the nanocrystals within the chains; and
(e) removing the magnetic field.

2. The method of claim 1 , further comprising:
placing the at least one article on a platform, wherein the magnetic field is concentrated and oriented perpendicular to the platform; and
applying the energy via a laser controlled by a numerical control device.

3. The method of claim 1 , wherein the at least one article comprises at least one color zone comprising the chains of nanocrystals and at least one zone that does not comprise the chains of nanocrystals, further comprising applying the magnetic field and the energy to the at least one color zone.

4. The method of claim 1 , wherein the pre-selected color is chosen by a consumer from a collection of color options.

5. The method of claim 1 , wherein the pre-selected color is a color of a selected article of wear.

6. The method of claim 1 , wherein the pre-selected color is a color of a selected piece of equipment.

7. The method of claim 1 , wherein the energy is applied with a laser.

8. The method of claim 1 , wherein the energy is heat, UV, and/or microwave radiation.

9. The method of claim 1 , wherein the at least one article is selected from articles of wear and pieces of equipment.

10. The method of claim 1 , wherein the at least one article comprises a plurality of articles.

11. The method of claim 10 , further comprising:
inserting the plurality of articles within a central opening of an activation tunnel; and
applying the magnetic field via a plurality of solenoids substantially surrounding the activation tunnel.

12. The method of claim 10 , further comprising inserting the plurality of articles of wear within a drum of an industrial dryer.

13. A method of manipulating a color displayed by at least one article comprising iron oxide colloidal crystals arranged within chains, the method comprising:
(a) forming the at least one article from at least one raw material, wherein the at least one raw material comprises the chains of nanocrystals;
(a) applying a magnetic field to the at least one article;
(b) applying energy to at least some of the chains of nanocrystals to soften the at least one raw material immediately surrounding the chains of nanocrystals to which the energy is applied;
(c) adjusting a strength of the magnetic field until a color displayed by the at least one article substantially corresponds to a pre-selected color;
(d) removing the energy to allow the at least one raw material immediately surrounding the chains of nanocrystals to harden and fix a location of the nanocrystals within the chains; and
(e) removing the magnetic field.

14. The method of claim 13 , further comprising:
placing the at least one article on a platform, wherein the magnetic field is concentrated and oriented perpendicular to the platform; and
applying the energy via a laser controlled by a numerical control device.

15. The method of claim 13 , wherein the at least one article comprises at least one color zone comprising the chains of nanocrystals and at least one zone that does not comprise the chains of nanocrystals, further comprising applying the magnetic field and the energy to the at least one color zone.

16. The method of claim 13 , wherein the pre-selected color is chosen by a consumer from a collection of color options.

17. The method of claim 13 , wherein the pre-selected color is a color of a selected article of wear.

18. The method of claim 13 , wherein the pre-selected color is a color of a selected piece of equipment.

19. The method of claim 13 , wherein the energy is applied with a laser.

20. The method of claim 13 , wherein the energy is heat, UV, and/or microwave radiation.

Assignees

• Adidas Ag

Inventors

• Lussier Michel Reginald Pierre Joseph

Classifications

• G02F1/23

  for the control of the colour (G02F1/03 - G02F1/21 take precedence) · CPC title

• G02F1/092 Primary

  Operation of the cell; Circuit arrangements · CPC title

• G02F1/091 Primary

  based on magneto-absorption or magneto-reflection · CPC title

• G02B1/005

  made of photonic crystals or photonic band gap materials (photonic band-gap structures or photonic lattices in integrated optics G02B6/1225; photonic band-gap structures or photonic lattices in optical fibres G02B6/02295) · CPC title

• B01J13/0047

  containing a metal oxide · CPC title