Tag Archives: Diamon-Fusion International

Curved glass, Italy, and Diamon-Fusion

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You just don’t expect a glorious moment when you’re searching for more information about a glass company but I had it on seeing some of the gallery images at the Curvet website (Italy),

_Edilizia facciate, vetrate isolanti, fotovoltaic (Curvet Italy website)

Getting to the news part of this, Curvet has signed with Diamon-Fusion international (they produce nanocoatings used on glass) for a third renewal  of their licensing deal. From the May 17, 2012 news item on Nanowerk,

Diamon-Fusion International, Inc. (DFI), global developer and exclusive licensor of patented hydrophobic nanotechnologies, announced today the renewal of its license agreement with Italian glass manufacturer Curvet Group, one of the world’s leaders in the fabrication of specialty bent and flat glass in the architectural field for its application license agreement for Diamon-Fusion® glass nano-coating. This is the third renewal for Curvet Group and extends the partnership with DFI into 2017. For over a decade, Curvet has utilized DFI’s industrial flexibility in its 3D ultra-efficient CVD chamber, a patented technology that showcases DFI’s exclusive production capabilities.

Here’s a little more about Curvet,

Curvet Group produces glass for use in many different applications, incorporating modern stylish designs and a myriad different colors and effects, while maintaining and enhancing the inherent safety aspects and practical uses of this versatile product. Its wide-range of market segments include; home furnishings, bathroom furniture, automotive, transportation, marine, construction, architecture, urban furniture, household appliances, lighting and new technologies. In addition, the importance of renewable energy products today is an area in which glass plays a prominent part and where Curvet is an international leader in the field.

Curvet, a 30-year Italian privately-held holding group, is the only company in Europe that is able to produce bent glass of every type with unique and innovative solutions for every sector. The differentiation in equipment and the resulting flexibility are the key factors of Curvet’s success. It is the only company to carry out the whole processing of flat glass into any kind of curved finished product. Curvet is also a manufacturer of tempered, laminated and security glass with strategic distribution and sales offices in Italy, Poland, Bulgaria, Russia, USA and Morocco.

I have mentioned Diamon-Fusion and its technology previously (in a Nov. 26, 2009 posting and in a Feb. 11, 2011 posting) but here we go again with a very brief description  (from the May 17, 2012 news item),

Through DFI’s patented nano-coating process, the treatment to the glass creates a water repellent effect which enables ease of cleaning and protection against scratches, abrasion, hard water, soap scum, mildew and environmental elements, therefore considerably reducing the overall costs of maintenance. The Diamon-Fusion® nano-coating is optically clear, and does not affect the natural reflection of the glass.

If you want to see more beautiful images of Curvet glass, go here and click on the coloured boxes.

Canadian cameras acquire nanocoatings

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A Canadian company that produces marine cameras recently formed a strategic partnership with Diamon-Fusion International (DFI), a US company that specializes in nanocoatings. From the Feb. 9, 2011 news item on Nanowerk,

Diamon-Fusion International, Inc. (DFI), global developer and exclusive licensor of patented hydrophobic nanotechnologies, announced today it has entered into a strategic marketing partnership with Canadian-based Current Corporation, manufacturers of high-end day and night vision camera systems for commercial, private, high-speed, law enforcement and military marine vessels. Utilizing the award-winning, patented Diamon-Fusion® nanocoating on the Night Navigator camera glass protects the lens from harsh sea salt and environmental elements. In addition, the coating provides better visibility, reducing night glare as well as the corrosion and mineral buildup that can occur by ever-present saltwater.

This marks the second time I’ve come across an item about DFI and a Canadian company. From my Nov. 26, 2009 posting,

I’m always happy to see innovations with glass and mirrors (I hate window cleaning as I always leave streaks no matter how hard I try). So this news warmed my heart: an Alberta-based (Canada) company, House of Mirrors and Glass, has signed a licensing agreement with Diamon-Fusion International [DFI Nanotechnology] for a coating. From the news item on Nanowerk,

The agreement provides distribution of DFI’s NanoPax™ product throughout the Province of Alberta and further expands DFI’s applications into a diverse niche of architectural markets province-wide.

I gather DFI is expanding into the marine market via this partnership agreement with Current Corporation, which is located in Port Moody, British Columbia. Here’s a picture of one of Current Corporation”s cameras,

Image from Current Corporation website.

This camera’s ability to detect whale spouts successfully passed a round of tests recently. From the company’s Feb. 9, 2011 news release,

The purpose of the testing was to prove that ships can detect whale spouts at great distances, night and day, through high-resolution thermal imaging. This allows ships to avoid collisions with marine mammals.

Two separate camera systems were used during testing; a Night Navigator 3 with a thermal optical dual field of view of 20° and 6.8° (25 micron pitch), and a Night Navigator 3 with a thermal optical dual field of view of 13.8° and 4.6° (17 micron pitch). Both systems also feature image-intensified night vision and high-definition day cameras.

To simulate the spout of a whale, an air compressor was customized to eject from 0.5-2 liters of mammal temperature (98°F) and ocean temperature (60°F) seawater and freshwater. When initiated, the simulator blew the contents approximately 3-6 meters into the air. The simulator was placed on a 13 meter test barge which was then sent to varying distances of 100, 250, 500, 1000, 1500 and 2000 meters. At each distance, night and day, the simulator made several blows. In each instance the spout could clearly be seen through the thermal imager.

The testing was overseen by Professor Joe Mobley, PhD, MA, Professor, of the University of Hawaii, a leading expert in whale research, who validated the results. “I’ve been presented with a lot of papers, proposals and products over the years and have never seen what was demonstrated to me in Vancouver by Current Corporation”. [sic]

As for DFI, from their home page,

For over a decade, Diamon-Fusion International (DFI), a California-based and privately-held US Company has pioneered the use of protective coatings for surface care.

Known throughout the world as a leader in the glass protection and protective coatings industry, DFI has developed, produced and distributed a variety of products designed for the restoration, protection and maintenance of not only glass but ALL silica-based surfaces, such as granite, ceramic tile, porcelain, quartz, among the main ones. The breadth of DFI’s product offering ranges from award-winning and patented, professional quality products only available through authorized distributors (licensees) to easy-to-use highly-effective, do-it-yourself products for consumers.

Here’s an explanation of why their coating technology is described as a ‘nanocoating’ (from the company’s Nanotechnology page),

DFI’s coating, a patented process, works at nanoscale levels, approximately 30 nanometers. The change of the molecular composition of the silica-based surface created by DFI’s chemistry and bonding nanoparticles, along with the cross-linking, branching, and final “capping”, enables the full efficiency of the coating process at an atomic scale.

Good luck to the strategic partnership!