Wet treatment apparatus and method of manufacturing flexible printed circuit board

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-12460312-B2
Application number	US-202218286999-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Apr 13, 2022
Priority date	Apr 22, 2021
Publication date	Nov 4, 2025
Grant date	Nov 4, 2025

Abstract

A wet treatment apparatus is configured to treat a continuously moving sheet-shaped workpiece and includes a wet treatment tank including a side surface portion having a first slit, a pair of rolls located outside the wet treatment tank, the pair of rolls being spaced apart from the first slit and being arranged in such a manner as to nip the workpiece in a transverse direction, and a pair of treatment-liquid shield members disposed on a side opposite to a side on which the wet treatment tank is disposed with the pair of rolls interposed between the pair of treatment-liquid shield members and the wet treatment tank in a movement direction of the workpiece. In a direction parallel to a width of the first slit, a width of the shield member is larger than a width of the roll.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1 . A wet treatment apparatus configured to treat a continuously moving sheet-shaped workpiece, the wet treatment apparatus comprising:
a wet treatment tank including a side surface portion having a first slit, the first slit extending in a height direction in such a manner as to allow the workpiece to pass through the first slit; a pair of rolls located outside the wet treatment tank, the pair of rolls being spaced apart from the first slit and being arranged in such a manner as to nip the workpiece in a transverse direction; and a pair of treatment-liquid shield members disposed on a side opposite to a side on which the wet treatment tank is disposed with the pair of rolls interposed between the pair of treatment-liquid shield members and the wet treatment tank in a movement direction of the workpiece, wherein the side surface portion includes a first side surface portion and a second side surface portion with the first slit formed between the first side surface portion and the second side surface portion, wherein the pair of treatment-liquid shield members include a first shield member and a second shield member, and the first shield member and the second shield member are arranged in such a manner as to allow the workpiece to pass between the first shield member and the second shield member, wherein the pair of rolls include a first roll located between the first shield member and the first side surface portion and a second roll located between the second shield member and the second side surface portion, and wherein, in a direction parallel to a width of the first slit, a width of the first shield member is larger than a width of the first roll, and a width of the second shield member is larger than a width of the second roll, wherein a distance between the first side surface portion and the first roll in the movement direction of the workpiece and a distance between the second side surface portion and the second roll in the movement direction of the workpiece are each larger than the width of the first slit.

2 . The wet treatment apparatus according to claim 1 ,
wherein a height of the first roll and a height of the second roll are each equal to a height of the first slit or larger than the height of the first slit.

3 . The wet treatment apparatus according to claim 1 ,
wherein the pair of rolls and the pair of treatment-liquid shield members are positioned upstream from the wet treatment tank in the movement direction of the workpiece.

4 . The wet treatment apparatus according to claim 1 ,
wherein the wet treatment tank is a plating treatment tank.

5 . The wet treatment apparatus according to claim 1 ,
wherein the pair of treatment-liquid shield members each have a plate-like shape.

6 . A wet treatment apparatus configured to treat a continuously moving sheet-shaped workpiece, the wet treatment apparatus comprising:
a wet treatment tank including a side surface portion having a first slit, the first slit extending in a height direction in such a manner as to allow the workpiece to pass through the first slit; a pair of rolls located outside the wet treatment tank, the pair of rolls being arranged in such a manner as to nip the workpiece in a transverse direction; a pair of treatment-liquid shield members disposed on a side opposite to a side on which the wet treatment tank is disposed with the pair of rolls interposed between the pair of treatment-liquid shield members and the wet treatment tank in a movement direction of the workpiece; an auxiliary chamber provided between the side surface portion and the pair of rolls; and an additional pair of rolls provided inside the auxiliary chamber, wherein the auxiliary chamber includes a side surface portion of the auxiliary chamber having a second slit, the second slit extending in a height direction in such a manner as to allow the workpiece to pass through the second slit, wherein the side surface portion of the auxiliary chamber includes a third side surface portion and a fourth side surface portion with the second slit formed between the third side surface portion and the fourth side surface portion, wherein the pair of treatment-liquid shield members include a first shield member and a second shield member, and the first shield member and the second shield member are arranged in such a manner as to allow the workpiece to pass between the first shield member and the second shield member, wherein the pair of rolls include a first roll located between the first shield member and the third side surface portion and a second roll located between the second shield member and the fourth side surface portion, and wherein, in a direction parallel to a width of the second slit, a width of the first shield member is larger than a width of the first roll, and a width of the second shield member is larger than a width of the second roll, wherein a distance between the third side surface portion and the first roll in the movement direction of the workpiece and a distance between the fourth side surface portion and the second roll in the movement direction of the workpiece are each larger than the width of the second slit.

7 . The wet treatment apparatus according to claim 6 ,
wherein a height of the first roll and a height of the second roll are each equal to a height of the second slit or larger than the height of the second slit.

8 . The wet treatment apparatus according to claim 6 ,
wherein the pair of rolls, the pair of treatment-liquid shield members, the auxiliary chamber, and the additional pair of rolls are positioned upstream from the wet treatment tank in the movement direction of the workpiece.

9 . A method of manufacturing a flexible printed circuit board, the method comprising:
preparing a wet treatment apparatus including a wet treatment tank; and performing a wet treatment on a flexible printed circuit board base member having a sheet-like shape in the wet treatment tank, wherein the wet treatment apparatus is a wet treatment apparatus configured to treat the flexible printed circuit board base member that continuously moves, wherein the wet treatment apparatus includes
a wet treatment tank including a side surface portion having a first slit, the first slit extending in a height direction in such a manner as to allow the flexible printed circuit board base member to pass through the first slit,
a pair of rolls located outside the wet treatment tank, the pair of rolls being spaced apart from the first slit and being arranged in such a manner as to nip the flexible printed circuit board base member in a transverse direction, and
a pair of treatment-liquid shield members disposed on a side opposite to a side on which the wet treatment tank is disposed with the pair of rolls interposed between the pair of treatment-liquid shield members and the wet treatment tank in a movement direction of the flexible printed circuit board base member,
wherein the side surface portion includes a first side surface portion and a second side surface portion with the first slit formed between the first side surface portion and the second side surface portion, wherein the pair of treatment-liquid shield members include a first shield member and a second shield member, and the first shield member and the second shield member are arranged in such a manner as to allow the flexible printed circuit board base member to pass between the first shield member and the second shield member, wherein the pair of rolls include a first roll located between the first shield member and the first side surface portion and a second roll located between the second shield member and the second side surface portion, and wherein, in a direc

Assignees

• Sumitomo Electric Industries
• Sumitomo Electric Printed Circuits Inc

Inventors

• Miura Kousuke
• Nitta Koji
• Sakai Shoichiro

Classifications

• C25D17/00

  Constructional parts, or assemblies thereof, of cells for electrolytic coating · CPC title

• H05K3/0085

  Apparatus for treatments of printed circuits with liquids not provided for in groups H05K3/02 - H05K3/46; conveyors and holding means therefor (apparatus specially adapted for manufacturing assemblages of electric components, e.g. printed circuit boards, H05K13/00) · CPC title

• H05K2203/1545

  Continuous processing, i.e. involving rolls moving a band-like or solid carrier along a continuous production path · CPC title

• H05K2203/0723

  Electroplating, e.g. finish plating · CPC title

• H05K3/18

  using precipitation techniques to apply the conductive material · CPC title