Cobalt plating by chemical reduction

Claim 1

AN AUTOCATALYTIC CHEMICAL REDUCTION PROCESS FOR CONTINUOUSLY PLATING COBALT ON METALLIC OBJECTS CONSISTING ESSENTIALLY OF A METAL SELECTED FROM THE GROUP CONSISTING OF IRON, NICKEL, COBALT, PALLADIUM, AND COPPER, SAID PROCESS COMPRISING THE STEPS OF: PROVIDING AN AQUEOUS SOLUTION OF A COBALT SALT AND AN ALKALINE HYPOPHOPHITE, THE COBALT ION BEING PRESENT IN AN AMOUNT NOT SUBSTANTIALLY IN EXCESS OF ABOUT 2.5 PARTS BY WEIGHT TO ABOUT 100 PARTS BY WEIGHT OF SAID SOLUTION, THE HYPOPHOSPHITE RADICAL BEING PRESENT IN AN AMOUNT NOT SUBSTANTIALLY IN EXCESS OF ABOUT 10.7 PARTS BY WEIGHT TO ABOUT 100 PARTS BY WEIGHT OF SAID SOLUTION, IMMERSING AN OBJECT OF ONE OF SAID METALS IN SAID SOLUTION, COBALT PLATING SAID IMMERSED OBJECT BY AUTOCATALYTIC REACTION OF SAID SALT AND SAID HYPOPHOPHITE, REMOVING SAID PLATED OBJECT FROM SAID SOLUTION, MAINTAINING SAID SOLUTION THROUGHOUT THE PERIOD OF SAID IMMERSION AT A TEMPERATURE IN THE RANGE OF ABOUT 90 DEGREES CENTIGRADE TO ABOUT 100 DEGREES CENTIGRADE AND AT A SUBSTANTIALLY UNIFORM PH VALUE IN THE RANGE OF ABOUT 8 TO ABOUT 11 BY THE PRESENCE IN THE SOLUTION OF AT LEAST ONE OF THE SALTS SELECTED FROM THE GROUP CONSISTING OF SODIUM CITRATE, ROCHELLE SALTS AND AMMONIUM CHLORIDE, AND INTRODUCING THROUGHOUT SAID IMMERSION PERIOD AND AT SUBSTANTIALLY REGULAR INTERVALS ADDITIONAL HYPOPHOSPHITE INTO SAID SOLUTION IN AMOUNTS OF ABOUT 5 GRAMS PER LITER OF SAID SOLUTION.