Coating system and method for manufacturing light-emitting device

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9466807-B2
Application number	US-201314390499-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Apr 5, 2013
Priority date	Apr 6, 2012
Publication date	Oct 11, 2016
Grant date	Oct 11, 2016

Abstract

Provided is a coating system allowing on-demand preparation and coating of an ink. The coating system ( 10 ) includes an ingredient ink supply portion ( 20 ), a first pipe ( 90 a ), a stirring tank ( 50 ) including an ink stirring mechanism ( 52 ), a supply regulator portion ( 30 ) regulating the respective amounts of ingredient inks supplied to the stirring tank, a controller portion ( 70 ) connected to the supply regulator portion through an electric telecommunication line ( 80 ), determining a mixing ratio of the ingredient inks, and controlling operation of the supply regulator portion based on the mixing ratio, and a coating device ( 100 ) including an ink transport portion ( 120 ) connected to the stirring tank and including an ink discharge portion ( 130 ).

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A coating system comprising:
an ingredient ink supply portion supplying ingredient inks used in a coating method, each of the ingredient inks being a coating liquid that contains a light-emitting material being an organic compound;
a first pipe connected to the ingredient ink supply portion;
a stifling tank comprising an ink stirring mechanism and connected to the ingredient ink supply portion through the first pipe
a supply regulator portion provided on the first pipe and regulating the respective amounts of the ingredient inks supplied to the stirring tank;
a controller portion connected to the supply regulator portion through an electric telecommunication line, determining a mixing ratio of the ingredient inks, and controlling operation of the supply regulator portion based on the mixing ratio; and
a coating device comprising an ink transport portion connected to the stirring tank through a second pipe and comprising an ink discharge portion connected to the ink transport portion through a third pipe, wherein the controller portion has functions of receiving request ink data,
receiving a standard ink data set and determining a mixing ratio of a plurality of ingredient inks based on the standard ink data set and the request ink data, wherein standard ink data constituting the standard ink data set are the correlation between a mixing ratio of the ingredient inks in terms of weight ratio and a chromaticity of the light-emitting color, and are selected in a manner that coordinates are distributed in a larger area in the chromaticity coordinates,
determining the amounts of the ingredient inks supplied to the stirring tank based on the determined mixing ratio,
determining operation of the supply regulator portion for supplying the respective ingredient inks in the determined amounts and outputting a setup signal for performing the operation from an output portion, and
the supply regulator portion supplying the respective ingredient inks in the determined amounts into the stirring tank based on the input setup signal,
stirring the supplied ingredient inks with the ink stirring mechanism provided in the stirring tank to prepare a mixed ink for coating, and
applying the prepared mixed ink onto an object, and wherein the controller portion, in the step of determining a mixing ratio of a plurality of the ingredient inks
comparing the standard ink data set comprising three or more standard ink data with the request ink data,
calculating distances between coordinates in chromaticity coordinates of the respective standard ink data and coordinates in chromaticity coordinates of the request ink data to obtain distance data set,
ranking the distance data set and the corresponding standard ink data set in ascending order of the distance based on the obtained distance data set,
obtaining an equation of a first straight line passing through first coordinates of the first place and second coordinates of the second place in the ranking,
determining a-th coordinates corresponding to an a-th place in ranking, the a-th place being highest except the first coordinates and the second coordinates in the standard ink data set, such that the coordinates of the request ink data are comprised in an area surrounded by straight lines passing through the first coordinates, the second coordinates, and the a-th coordinates, at the controller portion,
obtaining an equation of a second straight line passing through the a-th coordinates thus determined and the coordinates of the request ink data,
obtaining coordinates of an intersection point of the first straight line and the second straight line,
determining whether at least one of conditions (1) and (2) is satisfied,
(1) x-coordinate value of the a-th coordinates≧x-coordinate value of the request ink data≧x-coordinate value of the intersection point, and
(2) x-coordinate value of the a-th coordinates≦x-coordinate value of the request ink data≦x-coordinate value of the intersection point,
obtaining a first distance value from the firs coordinates to the coordinates of the intersection point and a second distance value from the second coordinates to the coordinates of the intersection point,
determining the mixing ratio of the ingredient inks at the intersection point based on the first distance value and the second distance value,
obtaining a third distance value from the a-th coordinates to the coordinates of the request ink data and a fourth distance value from the coordinates of the request ink data to the coordinates of the intersection point, and
determining the mixing ratio of the ingredient inks for the request ink data based on the third distance value and the fourth distance value.

2. The coating system according to claim 1 , wherein the supply regulator portion comprises a flow measurement portion provided on the first pipe and connected to the controller portion through the electric telecommunication line and comprises a regulator portion provided on the first pipe and connected to the controller portion through the electric telecommunication line.

3. The coating system according to claim 1 , wherein the supply regulator portion comprises a front valve provided on the first pipe and connected to the controller portion through the electric telecommunication line, a diaphragm metering pump provided on the first pipe and connected to the controller portion through the electric telecommunication line, and a rear valve connected to the controller portion through the electric telecommunication line.

4. The coating system according to claim 1 , further comprising a washing portion that comprises a washing solution supply portion connected to the stirring tank through a washing solution supply pipe and comprises an inert gas supply portion connected to the stifling tank through an inert gas supply pipe.

5. The coating system according to claim 1 , wherein a coating method performed by the coating device is a spin coating method, a slit die method, a spraying method, or a capillary coating method.

6. A method for manufacturing a light-emitting device using the coating system according to claim 1 , the method comprising the steps of:
receiving request ink data at the controller portion;
receiving a standard ink data set and determining a mixing ratio of a plurality of ingredient inks based on the standard ink data set and the request ink data at the controller portion;
determining the amounts of the ingredient inks supplied to the stifling tank based on the determined mixing ratio at the controller portion;
determining operation of the supply regulator portion for supplying the respective ingredient inks in the determined amounts and outputting a setup signal for performing the operation from an output portion, at the controller portion;
supplying the respective ingredient inks in the determined amounts into the stifling tank based on the input setup signal at the supply regulator portion;
stirring the supplied ingredient inks with the ink stirring mechanism provided in the stirring tank to prepare a mixed ink for coating; and
applying the prepared mixed ink onto an object, wherein the step of determining a mixing ratio of a plurality of the ingredient inks comprises:
comparing the standard ink data set comprising three or more standard ink data with the request ink data at the controller portion, wherein the standard ink data are the correlation between a mixing ratio of the ingredient inks in terms of weight ratio and a chromaticity of the light-emitting color, and are selected in a manner that coordinates are distributed in a larger area in the chromaticity coordinates;
calculating distances between coordinates in chromaticity coordinates of the respective standard ink data and coordinates in chromaticity coordina

Assignees

• Sumitomo Chemical Co

Inventors

• Mima Shoji

Classifications

• B05B12/02

  for controlling time, or sequence, of delivery · CPC title

• G05D11/132

  by controlling the flow of the individual components (G05D11/133 takes precedence) · CPC title

• C09D11/10

  based on artificial resins · CPC title

• C08G2261/3422

  conjugated, e.g. PPV-type · CPC title

• C09D165/00

  Coating compositions based on macromolecular compounds obtained by reactions forming a carbon-to-carbon link in the main chain (C09D107/00 - C09D157/00, C09D161/00 take precedence); Coating compositions based on derivatives of such polymers · CPC title