Method and apparatus for dyeing plastic lens

• Main Authors: KUBOTERA, TAKAAKI, MIYAJIMA, SHINYA, FUTAMI, HIROSHI
• Format: Patent
• Language: English; French; German
• Published: 23.04.2014
• Subjects: CONTACT LENSES; DYEING LEATHER, FURS, OR SOLID MACROMOLECULAR SUBSTANCES INANY FORM; DYEING OR PRINTING TEXTILES; FLEXIBLE MATERIALS NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR; LAUNDERING; OPTICAL ELEMENTS, SYSTEMS, OR APPARATUS; OPTICS; PERFORMING OPERATIONS; PHYSICS; PRODUCING PARTICULAR ARTICLES FROM PLASTICS OR FROM SUBSTANCESIN A PLASTIC STATE; SPECTACLES; SUNGLASSES OR GOGGLES INSOFAR AS THEY HAVE THE SAME FEATURESAS SPECTACLES; TEXTILES; TRANSPORTING; TREATMENT OF TEXTILES OR THE LIKE; WORKING OF PLASTICS; WORKING OF SUBSTANCES IN A PLASTIC STATE, IN GENERAL

A method of dyeing a plastic lens includes the steps of applying a sublimation dye to a dyeing substrate, holding the dyeing substrate on a holding member, holding a plastic lens on the holding member at a position above the dyeing substrate, evacuating a vacuum vessel which accommodates the holding member, transferring the dyeing substrate from the holding member to a heating device provided in the vacuum vessel, so that the dyeing substrate is held to be heatable by the heating device, by vertically moving at least one of the holding member and the heating device, bringing the plastic lens in close proximity to the dyeing substrate by vertically moving at least one of the holding member and the heating device which holds the dyeing substrate, and dyeing the target surface of the plastic lens with the sublimation dye by sublimating the sublimation dye by heating the dyeing substrates using the heating device. An apparatus for dyeing a plastic lens is also disclosed.