Lift printing system

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9925797-B2
Application number	US-201515326498-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Aug 2, 2015
Priority date	Aug 7, 2014
Publication date	Mar 27, 2018
Grant date	Mar 27, 2018

Abstract

Printing apparatus (20) includes a donor supply assembly (30), which provides a transparent donor substrate (26) having opposing first and second surfaces and a donor film formed on the second surface so as to position the donor film in proximity to a target area (28) on an acceptor substrate (22). An optical assembly (24) directs multiple output beams of laser radiation simultaneously in a predefined spatial pattern to pass through the first surface of the donor substrate and impinge on the donor film so as to induce ejection of material from the donor film onto the acceptor substrate according, thereby writing the predefined pattern onto the target area of the acceptor substrate.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. Printing apparatus, comprising:
a donor supply assembly, which is configured to provide a transparent donor substrate having opposing first and second surfaces and a donor film formed on the second surface so as to position the donor film in proximity to a target area on an acceptor substrate,
wherein the donor substrate comprises a continuous flexible foil, and wherein the donor supply assembly comprises feed rollers, which are configured to feed the foil across the target area, and
wherein the donor supply assembly comprises a coating module, which is configured to apply at least a component of the donor film to a first area of the continuous flexible foil while a second area of the continuous flexible foil, to which the donor film has already been applied, is fed across the target area, and
wherein the coating module is configured to apply different, respective donor materials to alternating areas of the foil in succession; and
an optical assembly, which is configured to direct multiple output beams of laser radiation simultaneously in a predefined spatial pattern to pass through the first surface of the donor substrate and impinge on the donor film so as to induce ejection of material from the donor film onto the acceptor substrate according, thereby writing the predefined pattern onto the target area of the acceptor substrate.

2. The apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the donor film comprises a metal.

3. The apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the donor film comprises a rheological material.

4. The apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the optical assembly comprises a laser, which is configured to emit a single input beam, and optics configured to split the single input beam into the multiple output beams and to direct the multiple output beams in accordance with the predefined spatial pattern.

5. The apparatus according to claim 4 , wherein the optics comprise an acousto-optic deflector, which is positioned so as to intercept the input beam, and a driver, which is configured to provide a multi-frequency drive to the acousto-optic deflector so as deflect the multiple output beams at different, respective angles.

6. The apparatus according to claim 5 , wherein the acousto-optic deflector is configured to deflect the multiple output beams at the respective angles along a first direction, and wherein the optics comprise at least one scanning mirror, which is configured to deflect the multiple output beams in a second direction, orthogonal to the first direction.

7. The apparatus according to claim 5 , wherein the acousto-optic deflector that receives the multi-frequency drive comprises a first acousto-optic deflector, which is configured to deflect the multiple output beams at the respective angles along a first direction, and wherein the optics comprise a second acousto-optic deflector, which is configured to cause the multiple output beams to scan over the donor film in a second direction, orthogonal to the first direction.

8. The apparatus according to claim 1 , and comprising a positioning assembly, which is configured to shift at least one of the donor substrate and the acceptor substrate in order to position a first donor area of the donor film in proximity to a first target area of the acceptor substrate, so that the multiple output beams write a first predefined spatial pattern onto the first target area, and subsequently to position at least one second donor area of the donor film, different from the first donor area, in proximity to at least one second target area of the acceptor substrate, different from the first target area, so that the multiple output beams write at least one second predefined spatial pattern onto the second target area.

9. The apparatus according to claim 8 , wherein the positioning assembly is configured to hold the donor and acceptor substrates in fixed, first and second relative positions while the optical assembly writes the first and second spatial patterns, respectively, as two-dimensional arrays of spots on the first and second target areas of the acceptor substrate.

10. The apparatus according to claim 8 , wherein the positioning assembly and donor supply assembly are configured to cause a relative shift between the donor and acceptor substrates as the optical assembly writes successive lines of the first and second spatial patterns.

11. The apparatus according to claim 8 , wherein the positioning assembly is configured to successively position at least first and second donor areas of the donor film in proximity to at least the first target area, and wherein the optical assembly is configured to direct the multiple output beams over the first and second donor areas in respective first and second spatial patterns so as to write a multi-layer pattern on at least the first target area.

12. The apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the coating module comprises a reservoir containing a donor material and a gravure cylinder, which is configured to apply a layer of the donor material from the reservoir to the first area of the foil in order to form the donor film.

13. Printing apparatus, comprising:
a donor supply assembly, which is configured to provide a transparent donor substrate having opposing first and second surfaces and a donor film formed on the second surface so as to position the donor film in proximity to a target area on an acceptor substrate,
wherein the donor substrate comprises a continuous flexible foil, and wherein the donor supply assembly comprises feed rollers, which are configured to feed the foil across the target area, and
wherein the donor supply assembly comprises a coating module, which is configured to apply at least a component of the donor film to a first area of the continuous flexible foil while a second area of the continuous flexible foil, to which the donor film has already been applied, is fed across the target area; and
an optical assembly, which is configured to direct multiple output beams of laser radiation simultaneously in a predefined spatial pattern to pass through the first surface of the donor substrate and impinge on the donor film so as to induce ejection of material from the donor film onto the acceptor substrate according, thereby writing the predefined pattern onto the target area of the acceptor substrate,
wherein the donor film comprises a first donor material, which is pre-coated on the foil, and wherein the coating module is configured to apply a second donor material to the pre-coated foil, so that the donor film comprises the first and second donor materials.

14. A method for printing, comprising:
positioning a transparent donor substrate, having opposing first and second surfaces and a donor film formed on the second surface, in proximity to a target area on an acceptor substrate,
wherein the donor substrate comprises a continuous flexible foil, and wherein positioning the transparent donor substrate comprises feeding the foil across the target area on feed rollers;
applying at least a component of the donor film to a first area of the continuous flexible foil while a second area of the continuous flexible foil, to which the donor film has already been applied, is fed across the target area,
wherein the donor film comprises a first donor material, which is pre-coated on the foil, and wherein applying at least the component of the donor film comprises applying a second donor material to the pre-coated foil, so that the donor film comprises the first and second donor materials; and
directing multiple output beams of laser radiation simultaneously in a predefined spatial pattern to pass through the first

Assignees

• Orbotech Ltd

Inventors

• Kotler Zvi
• Zenou Michael
• Peled Itay

Classifications

• G03F7/2014

  Contact or film exposure of light sensitive plates such as lithographic plates or circuit boards, e.g. in a vacuum frame · CPC title

• B41J2/455 Primary

  using laser arrays {, the laser array being smaller than the medium to be recorded} · CPC title

• C23C14/28 Primary

  by wave energy or particle radiation (C23C14/32 - C23C14/48 take precedence) · CPC title

• C23C14/04

  Coating on selected surface areas, e.g. using masks · CPC title

• B41J2202/04

  Heads using conductive ink · CPC title