EP0170359A1
Expired / Lapsed
EP
⏱️ 0.0 years remaining
Multilayer coating
Assignee: Energy Conversion Devices Inc
•
Filing: 1985-05-28
•
Granted: —
•
Expires: 2005-05-28
Abstract
Abstract Multilayer protective coatings that are applied over a substrate (12) are disclosed that comprise a plurality of superimposed multilayer units (18). Each multilayer unit contains two or more superimposed thin layers in which at least two layers are compositionally different. The properties of the resulting coating are a combination of the properties of the individual layers. One layer of a multilayer unit may provide hardness or wear resistance and another layer may provide lubricity, for example. The thickness of the individual layers can be related to the microscopic surface relief of the substrate to which the protective coating is applied.
Inventors
- 👤 John Edward Keem
- 👤 James Dominick Flasck
Bibliographic Details
Application Number
—
Jurisdiction
EP
Data Source
google_patents
Last Synchronized
2026-11-09 04:26
CPC Classifications
C; C23; C23C; C23C28/00; C23C28/02; Y; Y10; Y10T; Y10T428/00; Y10T428/26; Y10T428/261
Claims Analysis
Total Claims: 25
Claim 1
Independent Claim
53 words
A coating applied over a rigid substrate characterized by a plurality of superimposed multilayer units, each unit comprising at least two compositionally different thin layers and each layer having a thickness sufficient to obtain its bulk coating properties, the properties of said coating being a combination of the individual properties of said layers.
Claim 2
Dependent Claim
53 words
A coating applied over a rigid substrate characterized by a plurality of superimposed multilayer units, each unit comprising at least two compositionally different thin layers and each layer having a thickness sufficient to obtain its bulk coating properties, the properties of said coating being a combination of the individual properties of said layers.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim
23 words
The coating of claim 1 further characterized by the thickness of said layers being less than the characteristic surface microstructure of said substrate.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim
24 words
The coating of claim 1 further characterized by said layers being in the range of from about 0.005 micrometers to about 0.5 micrometers thick.
Claim 5
Dependent Claim
51 words
The coating of claim 1 further characterized by one or more of said at least two layers in each of said multilayer units comprising material for providing one or more of the following properties: hardness, wear resistance, lubricity, shock resistance, corrosion resistance, oxidation resistance, heat resistance, adherence, ductility, elasticity and strength.
Claim 6
Dependent Claim
16 words
The coating of claim 1 further characterized by said plurality of multilayer units comprising repeating units.
Claim 7
Dependent Claim
17 words
The coating of claim 1 further,characterized by said plurality of multilayer units being at least about 10.
Claim 8
Dependent Claim
63 words
The coating of claim 1 further characterized by at least one of said layers of each unit comprising material for providing hardness selected from the group consisting of materials containing: carbon; tungsten and carbon; carbon, aluminum and oxygen; titanium and boron; tungsten and boron; molybdenum and boron; silicon and nitrogen; boron and nitrogen; tantalum and carbon; titanium and nitrogen; and titanium and carbon.
Claim 9
Dependent Claim
36 words
The coating of claim 1 further characterized by at least one of said layers of each unit comprising material for providing lubricity selected from the group consisting of materials containing: germanium; transition metal borides; and fluorocarbons.
Claim 10
Dependent Claim
35 words
The coating of claim 1 further characterized by at least one of said layers of each unit comprising material for providing corrosion resistance selected from the group consisting of: carbon; silicon; tantalum; and stainless steel.
Claim 11
Dependent Claim
40 words
The coating of claim 1 further characterized by at least one of said layers of each unit comprising material for providing oxidation resistance selected from the group consisting of silicon, titanium, carbon, aluminum, aluminum oxide, silicon oxide and zirconium oxide.
Claim 12
Dependent Claim
38 words
The coating of claim 1 further characterized by at least one of said layers of each unit being for providing lubricity and comprising disordered Mo x B 1-x where x is less than or equal to about 0.5.
Claim 13
Dependent Claim
33 words
The coating of claim 1 further characterized by multilayer units of a first layer comprising carbon, a second layer comprising silicon, a third layer comprising molybdenum and a fourth layer comprising molybdenum carbide.
Claim 14
Dependent Claim
24 words
The coating of claim 1 further characterized by multilayer units of a layer comprising tungsten and carbon and another layer comprising molybdenum and boron.
Claim 15
Dependent Claim
31 words
The coating of claim 1 further characterized by each of said multilayer units comprising a layer of material comprising aluminum and oxygen and a layer of material comprising molybdenum and boron.
Claim 16
Dependent Claim
66 words
The coating of claim 1 further characterized by a wear resistant coating wherein each unit comprising at least three compositionally different thin layers, each layer having a thickness sufficient to obtain its bulk coating properties, the three compositionally different layers being: (a) oxidation resistant material; (b) nitride material selected from the group consisting of titanium nitride and hafnium nitride; and (c) disordered boron and carbon material.
Claim 17
Dependent Claim
26 words
The coating of claim 15 further characterized by said oxidation resistant material being selected from the group consisting of aluminum oxide, zirconium oxide and silicon oxide.
Claim 18
Dependent Claim
16 words
The coating of claim 15 further characterized by said disordered boron and carbon being substantially amorphous.
Claim 19
Dependent Claim
20 words
The coating of claim 15 further characterized by at least one adherence layer between the substrate and said multilayer units.
Claim 20
Dependent Claim
23 words
The coating of claim 18 further characterized by said at least one adherence layer comprising a layer of titanium carbide over the substrate.
Claim 21
Dependent Claim
19 words
The coating of claim 19 further characterized by an adherence layer of titanium nitride over the titanium carbide layer
Claim 22
Dependent Claim
19 words
The coating of claim 15 further characterized by said multilayer units further comprising a fourth layer of titanium carbide.
Claim 23
Independent Claim
79 words
A method of machining a workpiece characterized by machining the workpiece with a tool having a protective coating applied over at least a portion of the working surface of the tool, said protective coating comprising a plurality of superimposed multilayer units, each unit comprising at least two compositionally different thin layers and each layer having a thickness sufficient to obtain its bulk coating properties, the properties of said coating being a combination of the individual properties of said layers.
Claim 24
Independent Claim
79 words
A method of machining a workpiece characterized by machining the workpiece with a tool having a protective coating applied over at least a portion of the working surface of the tool, said protective coating comprising a plurality of superimposed multilayer units, each unit comprising at least two compositionally different thin layers and each layer having a thickness sufficient to obtain its bulk coating properties, the properties of said coating being a combination of the individual properties of said layers.
Claim 25
Dependent Claim
68 words
The method of claim 22 further characterized by the thickness of said layers being less than the characteristic surface microstructure of the tool surface to which the coating is applied so that the surface of the protective coating has a plurality of layers exposed after being subjected to sufficient wear so that at least a portion of the outer layer of the protective coating has been worn through.
References Cited (Backward Citations)
USPTO Annuity & Maintenance Windows
Maintenance schedule is calculated for granted US utility patents.