Patent No. EP3374537 (titled "A Method For Pre-Treating A Surface For Coating") was filed by Sandvik on Oct 20, 2016. The application was issued on Oct 23, 2024.
A method for producing a coated cutting tool by pre-treating the substrate in two steps. The first step uses a glow filament to create a plasma of noble gas ions for etching, while the second step employs High Power Impulse Magnetron Sputtering (HIPIMS) to introduce metal ions into the substrate surface. The two-step process enables controlled etching and ion implantation without preferential edge etching or excessive substrate heating, maintaining the tool's original geometry and material properties.

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