Printing of multiple inks to achieve precision registration during subsequent processing

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9766732-B2
Application number	US-201515319020-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jun 5, 2015
Priority date	Jun 20, 2014
Publication date	Sep 19, 2017
Grant date	Sep 19, 2017

Abstract

Methods of achieving precision registration in a roll to roll process for making patterned substrates by depositing first and second inks in a predetermined pattern, the predetermined pattern having fiducial marks and main pattern marks. One of these inks prints the fiducial marks onto a substrate while another ink prints main pattern marks on the same substrate such that the predetermined pattern bears a predictable spatial relationship to the pattern of fiducial marks. Consequently, even if the ink forming the predetermined pattern is invisible, or has such low contrast with the substrate that it is effectively invisible, or even has been dissolved away in a subsequent processing step, it is still possible to know where the predetermined pattern is by referring to the pattern of fiducial marks. Touch screen displays including patterned substrates prepared of the methods are also disclosed.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A method of patterning a substrate, comprising:
providing a printing roll, a first ink dispenser, and a printer, wherein the printing roll has a predetermined pattern thereon, the predetermined pattern having both fiducial marks and main pattern marks;
dispensing a first ink soluble in a selected solvent onto the printing roll with the first ink dispenser;
advancing the substrate against the printing roll, printing the negative of the predetermined pattern onto the substrate with the first ink;
advancing the substrate past a printer and applying a second ink that is non-soluble in the selected solvent onto the fiducial marks;
overlaying a layer of functional material onto the substrate over the predetermined pattern; and
rinsing the substrate with the selected solvent, thereby removing the soluble ink, leaving on the substrate the functional material in the predetermined pattern of the main pattern marks, and the non-soluble ink in the predetermined pattern of the fiducial marks on the substrate.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein the selected solvent is water.

3. The method of claim 1 wherein the second ink is UV curable, and wherein the method further comprises curing the second ink with UV radiation.

4. The method of claim 1 wherein the printing roll is a roll selected from the group consisting of flexographic, gravure, dual offset and screen rolls.

5. The method of claim 1 wherein the predetermined pattern includes features having a dimension of less than 20 microns in size.

6. The method of claim 1 wherein the fiducial marks and the predetermined pattern are in registration with a dimensional accuracy of less than 20 microns.

7. The method of claim 1 wherein the functional material is a conductive material selected from the group consisting of metal, conductive metal oxides, and conductive inks.

8. A touch screen display comprising a patterned substrate prepared of claim 1 .

9. The touch screen display of claim 8 , wherein the touch screen display is a component of an electronic device selected from a cellular telephone, a tablet computer, a notebook computer, a laptop computer, a computer display, or a television.

10. A method of patterning a substrate with a predetermined pattern having both fiducial marks and main pattern marks, comprising:
coating at least a first visible ink and a second ink in at least one longitudinal lane each onto the substrate;
applying a predetermined pattern with a resist material onto the first and second inks, the predetermined pattern having both fiducial marks within the lane(s) coated with the first visible ink and main pattern marks within the lane(s) coated by the second ink;
hardening or curing the resist material;
over coating the pattern with a strippable polymer layer; and
peeling the strippable polymer layer from the substrate, thereby removing the portions of the first and the second inks not protected by the resist.

11. The method of claim 10 wherein the second ink comprises nanowires and is conductive.

12. The method of claim 10 wherein over coating the pattern with the strippable polymer layer comprises over coating the one or more first regions and the one or more second regions with a strippable polymer layer-forming liquid.

13. The method of claim 12 wherein the strippable polymer layer-forming liquid is selected from the group consisting of polymer solution, monomer, monomer solution, and polymer melt.

14. The method of claim 13 , wherein the strippable polymer layer-forming liquid comprises a polymer solution and over coating includes slot coating, roll coating, flood coating, notch bar coating, direct gravure, offset gravure or spraying.

15. The method of claim 14 wherein the strippable polymer layer-forming liquid comprises PVA.

16. The method of claim 10 wherein the predetermined pattern is applied by a printing roll selected from the group consisting of flexographic, gravure, dual offset, and screen rolls.

17. The method of claim 10 wherein the predetermined pattern includes features having a dimension less than 20 microns in size.

18. The method of claim 10 wherein the fiducial marks and the first predetermined pattern are in registration with a dimensional accuracy of less than 20 microns.

19. A touch screen display comprising a patterned substrate prepared of claim 10 .

20. The touch screen display of claim 19 , wherein the touch screen display is a component of an electronic device selected from a cellular telephone, a tablet computer, a notebook computer, a laptop computer, a computer display, or a television.

Assignees

• 3M Innovative Properties Co

Inventors

• Gilman Ann M
• Theis Daniel J
• Stay Matthew S

Classifications

• C23C14/042

  using masks · CPC title

• B41M1/30

  on organic plastics, horn or similar materials {(recording sheets having a coating to improve ink, dye or pigment receptivity B41M5/50; marking or recording on plastic by irradiation with electromagnetic beams, e.g. laser, B41M5/267)} · CPC title

• H05K1/0269

  for visual or optical inspection · CPC title

• C23C14/02

  Pretreatment of the material to be coated (C23C14/04 takes precedence) · CPC title

• H05K2201/09918

  Optically detected marks used for aligning tool relative to the PCB, e.g. for mounting of components · CPC title