System and method for coating a substrate

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10112213-B2
Application number	US-201815981710-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	May 16, 2018
Priority date	Jan 18, 2016
Publication date	Oct 30, 2018
Grant date	Oct 30, 2018

Abstract

A method of powder coating a substrate includes receiving a powder coating material into a feed input, using the feed input, melting the powder coating material into a homogeneous fluid of powder coating material, receiving the homogeneous fluid of powder coating material into a filament extension atomizer positioned in-line with the feed input, atomizing, with the filament extension atomizer, the received homogeneous fluid of powder coating material into multiple droplets of powder coating material, cooling the droplets of powder coating material to a processing temperature that prevents the droplets from agglomerating, and directing the cooled droplets through a deposition passage positioned in-line with the filament extension atomizer, the deposition passage configured to direct at least a portion of the cooled droplets towards a substrate.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A method of powder coating a substrate, comprising:
receiving a powder coating material into a feed input;

using the feed input, melting the powder coating material into a homogeneous fluid of powder coating material;
receiving the homogeneous fluid of powder coating material into a filament extension atomizer positioned in-line with the feed input;
atomizing, with the filament extension atomizer, the received homogeneous fluid of powder coating material into multiple droplets of powder coating material;
cooling the droplets of powder coating material to a processing temperature that prevents the droplets from agglomerating; and
directing the cooled droplets through a deposition passage positioned in-line with the filament extension atomizer, the deposition passage configured to direct at least a portion of the cooled droplets towards a substrate.

2. The method of powder coating a substrate of claim 1 , further including preparing the substrate surface for deposition of cooled droplets of powder coating material.

3. The method of powder coating a substrate of claim 1 , further including heating the substrate surface in preparation for deposition of the aerosolized coating material.

4. The method of powder coating a substrate of claim 1 , wherein the feed input is further configured to receive at least one of a colorant, a stabilizer and an additive, and to mix the received at least one of the colorant, the stabilizer and the additive into the homogeneous fluid of powder coating material.

5. The method of powder coating a substrate of claim 1 , wherein the feed input is a twin screw apparatus.

6. The method of powder coating a substrate of claim 1 , further including excluding cooled droplets based on a physical parameter, including at least one of droplet size and weight.

7. The method of powder coating a substrate of claim 1 , further including electrostatically charging the at least a portion of cooled droplets.

8. The method of powder coating a substrate of claim 7 , further including causing the electrostatically charged at least a portion of cooled droplets to be directed onto the substrate due to an electrostatic potential between the electrostatically charged at least a portion of cooled of droplets and the substrate.

9. The method of powder coating a substrate of claim 1 , further including maintaining an elevated temperature of the at least a portion of the cooled droplets before depositing the at least a portion of the cooled droplets onto the substrate.

10. The method of powder coating a substrate of claim 1 , further including curing the at least a portion of cooled droplets onto the substrate to form a cohesive layer across the substrate.

Assignees

• Palo Alto Res Ct Inc

Inventors

• Johnson David Mathew
• Beck Victor Alfred

Classifications

• B05B5/081

  specially adapted for treating particulate materials · CPC title

• B05D2401/32

  applied as powders · CPC title

• B05D2401/00

  Form of the coating product, e.g. solution, water dispersion, powders or the like · CPC title

• B05B17/04

  operating with special methods · CPC title

• B05D2202/00

  Metallic substrate · CPC title