Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
6~S~
BACKGROt~ND OF THE INVENTION
This invention relates generally ~o nail polish
applicable to fingernails and toenails; more specifically,
it concerns a process employing co:Lor coatings applied to
nails and ultra violet radiation treatment of such coatinas,
to produce extremely durable polishes, which also act to
support and protect nails. The latter include natural nails,
and alternatively natural and artificial nail composites.
There is need for extremely durable nail polishes
that do not easily chip. There is also need for a simple,
effective, reliable process to pr~duce nail polish hardened
and protected natural, and also composite natural and artiicial,
fingernails and toenaiis. Prior nail polishes lacked the
unusual application steps and improved results, i.e. extremely
durab~e polishes, and polish protected nails characterized
by the present invention.
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SVMI~SARY OF THE INVENTI ON
It is a major object of the invention to provide
a nail polish, and a polish forming or application process,
meeting the above needs. Basically, the process of the
invention comprises the steps:
a) cleaning the nail surface,
b) applying a lay~r of liquid hydrocarbon primer
to said surface 1:o condition same, and allowing the primer
layer to dry,
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c) applying at least one layer of a nail polish
composition to said dried primer, and curing s~e to form
a first coating, said composition consisting essentially of:
i) a U.V. hardenable gel, and
ii) colorant particles distribu,ed throughout
the gel to form a mix, the particles having
powder size and forming with the gel a hard,
durable polish matrix when the mix is applied
as a layer on the nail and hardened under
lD such U.V~ radiation.
d) the curing ~f at least one of said polish
layers including subjecting said layer to ultra violet radiation
treatment.
Additionalfeatures and steps of the invention
include: the application of a second layer ~f the polish
composition to the U.V. cured first layer, the gel in each
layer ~onsisting of a U.V. polymer gel containing primarily
urethane acrylate; the applieation of the polish composition
to both nat~ral and artificial nails tv build ~p protective
and polish forming layers extensively overlap~ing bot~ ~uch
nails, which are only initially ~oined at their terminals,
and the application of one or more su~h layers to 2 nail
orm used to build up a nail extension forwardly of the tip
of a natural nail, the resultant nail extension being colored
throughout.
These and ~ther objects and advantag~s of the
invention, as well as the details of an illustrati~e embodiment,
will be more fully understood from the ~ollo~-ing specifica~ion
and drawings, in whieh:
DRAWING DESCRIPTION
Fig. 1 is a process flow diagram;
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Fig. 2 is a vertical section taken through a
fingernail onto which a hardened polish layer, or layers,
have been applied;
Fig. 3 is a view like Fig. 2 also showing a
fingernail tip, i.e. artificial fingernail, to which the
hardened polish layer, or layers, have been appl1ed;
Fig. 4 is a view like Fig. 2 but also sho~ling the
use of a removable form onto which the har~ened polish layer,
or layers, have been applied;
Fig. 5 is a vertical section showin~ ultraviolet
radiation treatment of fingernails to which a polish layer
or layers have been applied; and
Fig. 6 is an enlarged section, showing the polish
matrix of particles and hardened gel, applied to a nail.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
In Fig. 2, fingernail 10 is to undergo treatment.
- It is first buffed at 20 (in Fig. 1) to roughen its top
surface. Next, it is cleaned at 21, as by application of a
liquid hydrocarbon cleaner, and preferably trichloroethane.
After during, a primer coat 11 is brushed onto the cleaned
nail surface, as indicated at 22 in Fig. 1, to condition
tha-t surface. The primer preferably has an acrylate base,
and preferably consis-ts of mixture of methacrylic acid
isobutyl methacrylate, and benzyl alcohol, in the following
25 proportions
W _ght %
methacrylic acid about 74%
isobutyl methacrylate about 24
benzyl alcohol about 2%
,.
After drying o the primer, for about 4~ seconds,
indicated at 23, a viscous flowable polish layer 12 is
brushed i.e., applied unto the dried primer layer 11, this
step shown at 24. Layer or coating 12 is ultra -:iolet
radiation sensitive, and adapted to harden and protect, when
such radiation is applied. The layer 12 contalns a U.V.
sensitive polymer gei, and the gel by way oi e~a~?le may have
the following composition, for very good results:
Ingredients Relative weights
Urethane acrylate about 60
acrylic ester monomers
(such as ethyl and/or
methyl methacrylate) about 15
aromatic amine (such as
phenyl diethanolamine)
tPhoto initiator) about
~dditive/Adhesion about
Promotors (such as
- Silane
The above ingredients in base gel for~, may vary
in weight percent as follows:
Base gel
Ingredient Weight percent
urethane acrylate 50-85
acrylic ester monomers 5-35
photo initïator ~ 1-10
additive/adhesion promotor C 3
The base gel is sold by International Beauty Products,
Gardena, California, under the trademark "SOFT-LIGH~ GEL" and
has the following physical properties:
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Boiling point: Does not pour at 10C
% Volatiles by volume: ~ 1
Solubility in H: Insoluble
Evaporation Rate Butyl Acetate = 1): `;e lible
Viscosity: 48-4 37,000 cpsat 25C
40-1 117,000 cps at 25~C
Flash Point: l90~F
The layer 12 also contains colorant ~æ~ticles
distributed throughout the gel to iorm a mix, the particles
having powder size and forming with the gel a ha~d, durable
polish matrix when the mix is appl~ed as a layer on the nail
and hardened under said U.V. radiation. The particles preferably
consist essentially of pigments such as metal salts, such as
selected from the grGup iron oxide (rusty red), mica bismuth
oxychloride, titanium dioxide manganese oxide(violet) carbon
black, chrome yellow primrose, pigment scarlet, alkali blue,
cyclo~liphatic dye epoxides, dihyroxyl ether in selected pro- ~
portions to give the resultant hardened nail polish the desired oolor.
The gel after prior curing for about 1-3 minutes si allowed
to cure under U.V. radiation, for a short time interval, i.e., between
1 and 3 minutes, and perferably about 2 minutes, as indicated at 25.
Fig. 5 shows a fingernail 40, coated as described,
inserted into a recess 36a in a receptacle 36, the finger
40_ placed ~n a shelf 37 in the racetacle. An ultra~iolet light
bulb 38 at predetermined distance above the fincernail, emits
ultraviolet radiation 39 impinging on the nail. This treatment
continued for betwee~ 1 an~ 4 minutes, prefereabl~ about 2
minutes, cures the gel coating to a hardened state. Thereafter,
the treated nail is cleaned at 26, as with trichloroethane~
and the resul~ant nail is presented at 27 in clean~d and
hard~ned state. Fig 6 sho~s a polish matrix 40 as on a nail
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41, with particles 42 uniformly distributed in the cured
gel to form the tough, hardened, non-chipping nail polish
matrix.
Fig. 1 also illustrates an alterna i;e p-ocessing
path, after step 23, Step 28 is the same as s.e~ 24, and
comprises a second polish coat or layer app'~c_tion. The
next steps 29 and 30 are the same as steps 2S and 26 described
above. After cleaning at 30, the resultant ~e-y hard polished
and protected nail is presented at 31.
A typical U.V. bulb 38 is of 4 watt po.;er, delivers
between .25 and .75 milliwatts per square cen~imeter
~preferably about .5 milliwatts per cm2) at the location of
the fingernail.
~ig. 3 snows application of the process to a nail
composite which includes the natural nail 10 of Fig. 2, and
also ~ nail tip, i.e. artificial, or plastic nail 100 attached
at 101 to nail 10. See for example ~.S. paten. 4,135,526
to Matranga et al. "Five second" glue may be ap?lied at
102 to the top surface junction between the nails 10 and 100.
One such glue is known as "KRAZY GLUE," a product of Krazy
Glue, Inc., Itaska, Illinois. Primer 11 as referred to above
is applied to the natural nail as described above; and primer
lla as referred to above is applied to the top surface of
the nail tip. That primer may ~onsist of SIL~E, a product
(A 187) of Union Carbide Corp.
The polish layer 12, as aescribed above, is applied
to the primer layers 11 and lla as described above, bu~ layer
lla should be sli.ghtly damp The sequence 25-27 is then fsllowed,
or in addition sequence 28-31.
* TRADEMARK
~36~54
Fig. 4 shows application of the process to a nail
10 and nail form, i.e. support, 200 projecting forwardly of
nail 10. The form may be put in place aEter steps 20 and 21
of Fig. 1 are carried out. Sequence 22-27, or sequence 22-25
and 28-31 may be employed, after which the form is removed,
whereby a hardened nail extension is provided as at 201.
The polish layers ex-tending at 204 forwardly of the natural
nail are colored throughout, color being visible on top and
bottom sides of the layers at 204.
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