Fraunhofer Institute for Production Technology IPT
Replicating complex glass parts
The replicative glass forming process enables large quantities of complex glass components to be manufactured. Wear resistant PVD-coatings can increase the service life of the forming tools, thereby increasing the economic efficiency of production processes many times over.
Whether it is used to produce complex glass optics for high-tech applications, display elements for smart phones or infrared optics designed to detect the presence of persons, replicative glass forming is ideally suited to economically efficient manufacture of a large number of parts.
Wear protection via ceramic and precious metal coating
However, high thermal, mechanical and chemical loads during the process frequently result in premature tool wear. Special wear resistant coatings can prolong tool life thereby substantially increasing the economic efficiency of the process.
The Fraunhofer IPT develops and refines ceramic and precious metal coatings which can be applied via PVD coating technology to forming tools used for glass replication operations. These are suitable for a range of substrates and glass types and ensure the premium surface quality essential for optical applications.
The Fraunhofer IPT develops coatings to match you own, individual industrial process and the type of glass specified by you.
Customized PVD coatings for specific areas of application
For special applications such as forming operations conducted on particularly complex or large-scale glass components in which, in addition to tool life, tribological and thermal interaction at the contact surface between the glass and the forming tool is a decisive issue, we adapt PVD coatings to match the friction behavior or heat transfer between glass and tool. The friction-minimizing coatings contribute to enhanced glass flow and with it the ability to fill complex cavities, for example.
The tool life testing facility used the Fraunhofer IPT is unparalleled worldwide and permits newly developed coatings for molded glass elements to be tested and optimized in material-efficient, cost-effective operations. Various combinations of glass coatings can be investigated under actual process conditions. This enables us to swiftly provide conclusive statements as to the suitability of selected coatings for various types of glass and to play our part in implementing newly developed wear resistant coatings speedily in an industrial mass production environment.
Our Services
- We develop wear resistant PVD coatings for glass forming operations such as precision glass molding, non-isothermal glass molding or vacuum-assisted glass deep drawing.
- We analyze and characterize wear-resistant coatings for glass forming operations.
- We conduct service life investigations on innovative PVD coatings on a glass testing facility which is the first of its kind worldwide.
- We increase the tool life of your forming tools thereby improving the economic efficiency of your glass forming processes.