RAMPONI, Alfredo (Via Zanchetta 6, Carbonate, I-22070, IT)
C L A I M S
1. An imitation gemstone for ornament of garments and accessories, comprising:
- a base side (2) defining a support plane (3) for application of the stone (1) to an article of manufacture,
- a girdle (4) having an outer surface (5) of convex conformation protruding from the base side (2), characterised in that it comprises: - a concave pavilion (6) opening onto the base side (2) and formed with a recess in the girdle (4), so as to create a hollow in the girdle (4) itself, and having a surface (7) with a plurality of facets (8) disposed in an inclined orientation relative to the outer surface (5) of the girdle (4), in order to reflect the incident light through the girdle (4).
2. An imitation gemstone as claimed in claim 1, wherein said concave pavilion (6) has a pyramid-shaped conformation.
3. An imitation gemstone as claimed in claim 1, wherein said concave pavilion (6) is in the form of a frustum of pyramid.
4. An imitation gemstone as claimed in claim 1, wherein an ideal triangle adapted to be inscribed in a concave pavilion (6) whose height is coincident with a geometric axis (10) of the stone (1) perpendicular to the support plane (3), and whose base is contained in the support plane (3) of the stone (1) , has a base angle (11) of a width in the range of 5° to 30'
5. An imitation gemstone as claimed in claim 1, wherein the outer surface (5) of said girdle (4) has a plurality of facets (12) .
6. An imitation gemstone as claimed in claim 5, wherein the outer surface (5) of said girdle (4) has a facet (12a) parallel to the support plane (3) defined by the base side (2) .
7. An imitation gemstone as claimed in claim 1, wherein the surface (7) of said concave pavilion (6) is coated with a film (13) of reflective material directly applied onto the plurality of facets (8) .
8. An imitation gemstone as claimed in claim 7, wherein said film (13) of reflective material is applied onto the surface (7) of the pavilion (6) by heat transfer.
9. An imitation gemstone as claimed in claim 1, wherein said girdle (4) is made of glass material.
10. An imitation gemstone as claimed in ' claim I 1 wherein said girdle (4) is made of plastic material.
11. An imitation gemstone as claimed in claim 1, comprising an adhesive substance disposed in the concavity of the pavilion (6), for application of the stone (1) to an article of manufacture.
12. An imitation gemstone as claimed in claim 1, wherein said base side (2) has at least two through holes for sewing said stone (1) onto a garment or an accessory.
13. An imitation gemstone as claimed in claim 1, wherein said base side (2) has at least one hole for engagement of an attachment pin of the imitation gemstone .
14. An imitation gemstone as claimed in claim 1, comprising a collet into which the stone (1) is to be set for application of the stone (1) onto an article of manufacture .
15. A method of producing imitation gemstones "in accordance with claims 1 to 14, comprising the steps of providing a first concave mould half (14) of a shape matching that of a girdle (4), providing a second convex mould half (15) having a punch (16) shaped like a pavilion (6), positioning a film (13) of reflective material between the two mould halves (14, 15), coupling the two mould halves (14, 15) in such a manner that the convex punch (6) penetrates into the mould half (14) having a shape conforming to that of the girdle, injecting a material to be moulded between the girdle-shaped mould-half (14) and the film (13) of reflective material. |
"IMITATION GEMSTONES FOR ORNAMENT OF GARMENTS AND ACCESSORIES AND RELATED MANUFACTURING METHOD"
D e s c r i p t i o n
The present invention relates to an imitation gemstone for ornament of garments, accessories or articles of manufacture in general. The invention also concerns a method of manufacturing said imitation gemstone.
Imitation gemstones for ornament such as strasses or imitation gems aim at simulating the effect of a diamond or a precious stone applied to the garment.
Precious stones such as diamonds generally have a convex upper portion that is usually faceted, commonly known as girdle, and a lower portion commonly known as pavilion which is convex and faceted as well, typically having the shape of a pyramid or a frustum of pyramid, to increase the stone brightness.
The pavilion facets oriented following different inclinations, reflect the light in several directions towards the girdle, thus increasing brightness of the stone seen from the girdle.
The imitation gemstones or strasses for ornament reproduce the diamonds and precious stones as to their shapes and aesthetic effect. The imitation gemstones are generally made of glass or plastic material, and in any case they typically consist of a transparent, semitransparent or coloured material, in such a manner that the light striking on the girdle is partly reflected outwardly and partly refracted at the inside of the stone.
To ensure a full reflection of the incident light and increase the strass reflection and brightness, the pavilion is generally coated with a metal layer which is reflective to the inside of the stone in such a manner that the light radiation refracted at the inside of the stone can be reflected outwardly, through the girdle .
The presence of the pavilion in ornamental stones however, involves some drawbacks.
In fact, the pavilion makes it difficult to apply the stones to the garment to be decorated by mere gluing; therefore it is necessary to resort to other techniques for fastening the stone to the article of manufacture, such as setting the stone into metal collets or stone- holders that are then applied to the object to be decorated.
This unavoidably involves an increase in the production costs because in addition to the collet cost, the working cost for coupling the collet with the stone is also to be added.
A further non negligible cost results from application of the reflecting layer to the pavilion, this operation requiring adoption of complicated and expensive vacuum plating techniques.
Then various geometries and sizes for the stone-holders are to be provided, as they are based on the size and shape of the different stones; in addition each collet must have a deep seat for housing the pavilion, which will hinder application of the stones onto certain accessories where the presence of decorations jutting
out too much is unacceptable.
To obviate these drawbacks, imitation gemstones or strasses that are devoid of the pavilion are also made for application to fabrics, garments or accessories, so that they exhibit a flat lower surface for easy coupling with the article of manufacture to be decorated.
Following the operational requirements of the machines adapted to work, handle and assemble these stones in an automatic manner, it is sometimes required • that the girdle too should have a flat lower facet, parallel to the band plan.
The dual flat surface however greatly reduces the aesthetic impact of the imitation gemstone, as it decreases the brilliance and brightness of the stone itself in the direction perpendicular to the band plan.
The imitation gemstones can be applied to the garments or accessories to be decorated through gluing, sewing or mounting.
If the stone is glued, the glue amount is to be suitably measured in- order to avoid smears of same from the side edges of the stone. If the stone is sewn, holes or small loops are to be provided in the stone itself, preferably at a concealed location so that the stone appearance is not altered.
If fastening of the stone takes place with the aid of an attachment pin, a blind hole is to be provided at a central position on the base side, for engagement of the attachment pin that is usually fastened in place
through clinching.
Finally, if the stone is to be set in a collet, coupling between the flat surface of the stone and the inner part of the collet, should the collet be provided with small surface unevennesses, may involve efforts concentrated on some points of the flat stone surface that in some cases may also cause breakage of the stone .
In the light of the above, the present invention aims at providing an imitation gemstone for ornament of garments and accessories that is capable of solving the above mentioned drawbacks.
In particular, it is an aim of the present invention to propose an imitation gemstone for ornament of garments, accessories or articles of manufacture in general that enables achievement of an aesthetic effect, brightness and brilliancy that are comparable with those obtainable with stones provided with a convex outer pavilion.
It is another aim of the invention to conceive an imitation gemstone for ornament of garments or accessories that does not give rise to the described drawbacks in connection with the step of applying the stone to the article of manufacture.
The technical task mentioned and the aims specified are substantially achieved by an imitation gemstone for ornament of garments, accessories or articles of manufacture in general in accordance with the features recited in the appended claims .
The description of a preferred but not exclusive embodiment of an imitation gemstone for ornament of garments, accessories or articles of manufacture in general in accordance with the present invention, is now given hereinafter by way of non-limiting example, and is illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which:
- Figs. Ia and Ib are elevation side views of a first and a second embodiments of an imitation gemstone in accordance with the present invention;
- Figs 2a and 2b show plan views of Fig. Ia and Fig. Ib, respectively;
- Figs. 3a and 3b are sectioned elevation side views of the embodiments shown in Figs. Ia and Ib, respectively;
- Fig. 4 is a perspective bottom view, i.e. from the side opposite to the girdle, of an imitation gemstone in accordance with the present invention;
- Fig. 5 shows a cross-section of a mould for producing an imitation gemstone in accordance with the present invention.
With reference to the drawings, an imitation gemstone for ornament of garments, accessories or articles of manufacture in general, in accordance with the specification and claims, has been generally identified with reference numeral 1.
This imitation gemstone 1 comprises a base side 2 defining a support surface or plane 3 by which the stone 1 is applied to a generic article of manufacture to be decorated. A girdle 4 having an outer surface 5 of substantially convex conformation protrudes from the base side 2.
On the side of the support plane 3 opposite to that from which the girdle 4 protrudes, i.e. under the girdle 4, the imitation gemstone 1 has a concavity 6 recessed towards the inside of the girdle 4 and defining a concave pavilion 6 opening onto the base side 3. It will be understood that the support plane 3 is only an ideal plane because physically the lower part of the girdle 4 is not closed by a plane but is only delimited by the base side 2 defining a perimetral edge.
The concave pavilion 6 has a surface 7 with a plurality of facets 8 disposed in an inclined orientation relative to the outer surface 5 of the girdle 4. The concave pavilion 6 can be faceted according to different cuts, to have more or less complex plays of colour given by the reflection of the incident light radiation.
Preferably the concave pavilion 6 has a pyramid-shaped ' conformation and alternatively it may be in the form of a frustum of pyramid. The cross-section of the convex pavilion 6 substantially follows the geometry of the girdle 4.
Preferably, stones have a substantially circular plan shape but there are many other geometries equally used in the sector which involve stones of elliptical, rectangular and square shape or stones in the form of a drop, a navette or the like.
There is however the possibility of shaping the inner pavilion 6 in the preferred form and based on the light effect that is wished to be obtained.
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The maximum depth that the pavilion 6 can reach in its recess inside the girdle 4 is preferably included between 0.2 and 5 mm at the central point 9 thereof, located on a geometric axis 10 of the stone 2 perpendicular to the support plane 3.
If an ideal triangle is drawn internally of the pavilion 6 in such a manner that the triangle base is contained in the support plane 3 and the triangle height is coincident with the depth of the pavilion 6 at the geometric axis 10 of the stone 1, a base angle 11 of the ideal triangle has a width preferably included between 5° and 30°.
The volume between the girdle 4 and the pavilion 6 is fully filled with the material of which the stone 1 is made. Air spaces or empty portions are not present within the stone 1.
The outer surface 5 of the girdle 4 comprises a plurality of facets 12. Advantageously, one of the facets 12 of the girdle 4 can be parallel to the support plane 3. The presence of this flat upper facet 12a facilitates manipulation of the imitation gemstone 1 by the automatic machines used in the automatic handling and assembling lines.
The imitation gemstone 1 is commonly made of plastic or glass material, typically transparent, semitransparent, possibly coloured material. The light striking on the stone is partly reflected by the facets 8 of the girdle 4 and partly refracted at the inside of the stone 1, where it hits the facets 8 of the pavilion 6 from the inside.
To be sure that the light portion refracted into the stone 1 is then reflected by the facets 12 of the pavilion 6 to the girdle 4, the pavilion surface 7 is coated with a film 13 of reflective metal material facing the inside of the stone 1.
Advantageously, the film 13 of reflective metal material is applied by heat transfer. A heat-transfer technique involves application of the metal film 13 to the imitation gemstone 1 already formed by injection moulding or heat compression. A punch to a given temperature and of a shape matching that of the pavilion 6 applies hot to the reflective film 13 within the pavilion 6, directly onto the facet 8.
An alternative method contemplates application of the metal film 13 directly during the stone 1 moulding step. The film 13 is interposed between two mould halves 14 and 14, a concave half 14 of a shape matching that of the convex girdle 4 and a convex half 15 of a shape matching that of the concave pavilion 6, said film 13 carrying a layer of reflective material on its side facing the concave mould half 14.
The two mould halves 14 and 15 are moved close to each other for coupling, in such a manner that the convex punch 16 of mould 15 of the pavilion 6 enters the mould 14 of the girdle 4.
When the mould is closed, glass or plastic material in a liquid state is injected between the girdle mould half 14 and the metal film 13, in such a manner that the film 13 directly adheres to the glass or plastic material being the component of the imitation gemstone 1.
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lt will be advantageously appreciated that the depth of the concave portion of stone 1, and consequently the base angle 11 of the ideal triangle inscribed in the pavilion, are such determined that the reflective film 13 is not damaged during deposition on, and adaptation of the film 13 itself to the faceted surface 7 of the pavilion 6.
Once the stone 1 has been obtained, it can be applied to any garment such as T-shirts, trousers, jackets, shirts, shoes or any other accessories such as bags, belts, glasses, rings or bracelets.
The stone 1 can be applied by gluing. In this case an adhesive substance is directly laid on the concave pavilion 6 and subsequently the stone 1 is put on the object to be decorated.
An alternative solution contemplates application of the stone 1 by sewing. In this case one or more holes, not shown, are provided either under the stone or at a side position for passage of the thread.
Finally the stone can also be set into collets, not shown, typically made of metal, that are then applied to the object by gluing, sewing or other technique.
The invention achieves important advantages.
Due to the presence of the concave pavilion forming a recess at the inside of the stone, and provided with a faceted surface, all advantages resulting both from the presence and the absence of the convex pavilion are combined. The facets of the concave pavilion enable the
girdle itself and in particular the flat upper facet parallel to the support plane, to be exploited, so that the brightness of the whole stone is enhanced. In this way, in fact, a light reflection can be achieved that is similar to that obtainable with stones provided with a convex outer pavilion, since the facets reflect the light radiation penetrating into the stone, in different directions. The refracted incident light does not hit a single flat surface parallel to the support plane but it strikes on a plurality of facets oriented according to different inclinations with respect both to each other and to the facets of the girdle. Thus a play of colour is created resulting in a higher brilliancy and brightness than the brightness obtained with the traditional stones devoid of the pavilion and having a completely flat bottom.
The stone production can also be automated, taking into account the fact that the absence of the outwardly protruding pavilion enables an automatic easy assembling of the stones.
The internally-made concave pavilion enables setting in place of the stone through gluing and involves an improvement in this method of application. In fact, due to the pavilion concavity, a seat is obtained for containing the adhesive substance so that possible smears of the bonding agent are avoided, which would impair brightness of the stone and the aesthetic appearance of the whole article of manufacture.
Should the stone be set in a collet, the presence of the concavity at the lower part of the stone itself would enable a more precise knowledge of where the efforts are applied, i.e. along the perimetral edge of
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the stone. Possible unevennesses present on the collet surface in contact with the stone that in the traditional stones devoid of the pavilion created localised efforts of uncertain identification and sometimes, as a result, breaking of the stone, in the imitation gemstones in accordance with the present invention do not constitute a drawback any longer because these unevennesses are at the inside of the pavilion concavity.
Use of two mould halves enables interchangeability of the different punches so that inner pavilions having different facets or more or less complex geometries can be associated with the different girdles having different geometries and cuts.