TWI810088B - System for printing - Google Patents

Abstract

The present teachings disclose various embodiments of a gas enclosure system can have a gas enclosure that can include a printing system enclosure and an auxiliary enclosure. In various embodiments of a gas enclosure system of the present teachings, a printing system enclosure can be isolated from an auxiliary enclosure. Various systems and methods of the present teachings can provide for the ongoing management of a printing system by utilizing various embodiments of isolatable enclosures. For example, various measurement and maintenance process steps for the management of a printhead assembly can be performed in an auxiliary enclosure, which can be isolated from a printing system enclosure of a gas enclosure system, thereby preventing or minimizing interruption of a printing process.

Description

system for printing

This application is a continuation-in-part of US Application No. 13/802,304 filed on March 13, 2013 and published as US 2013/0206058 on August 15, 2013. US Application No. 13/802,304 is a continuation-in-part of US Application No. 13/720,830 filed on December 19, 2012 and published as US 2013/0252533 on September 26, 2013. US Application No. 13/720,830 claims the benefit of US Provisional Application No. 61/579,233, filed December 22, 2011. U.S. Application No. 13/720,830, filed December 19, 2012, is a continuation-in-part of U.S. Application No. 12/652,040, filed January 5, 2010 and issued February 26, 2013 as US 8,383,202, The US Application No. 12/652,040 is a continuation-in-part of US Application No. 12/139.391 filed on June 13, 2008 and published as US 2008/0311307 on December 18, 2008. US Application No. 12/652,040 also claims the benefit of US Provisional Application No. 61/142,575, filed January 5, 2009. All cross-referenced applications listed herein are incorporated by reference in their entirety.

The present teachings relate to various embodiments of gas enclosure systems with inert, substantially particle-free environments for fabricating OLED panels on various substrate sizes and substrate materials.

The focus on the potential of OLED display technology is driven by the attributes of OLED display technology, including the demonstration of display panels that have highly saturated colors, are high-contrast, ultra-thin, fast-responsive and energy-efficient. In addition, various bases including flexible polymer materials The sheet material can be used in the manufacture of OLED display technology. While demonstrations of displays for small-screen applications, primarily in cell phones, have been used to highlight the technology's potential, challenges remain in scaling manufacturing to larger formats. For example, high volume fabrication of OLED displays has proven challenging on substrates larger than Gen 5.5 substrates having dimensions of approximately 130 cm x 150 cm.

Organic light emitting diode (OLED) devices can be fabricated by printing various organic thin films and other materials on substrates using OLED printing systems. Such organic materials can be easily damaged by oxidation and other chemical processes. Accommodating OLED printing systems in a manner that is scalable for a variety of substrate sizes and that can be performed in an inert, substantially particle-free printing environment can present various challenges. Manufacturing tools for large format substrate printing require substantially large facilities to accommodate them. Thus, maintaining large facilities under an inert atmosphere (which may require gas purification to remove reactive atmospheric species such as water vapor and oxygen, as well as organic solvent vapors) and maintaining a substantially particle-free printing environment presents significant engineering challenges. For example, providing a substantially hermetic seal for a large facility can present engineering challenges. Additionally, the various bundles of cables, wires, and tubing that feed into and out of an OLED printing system for operating the printing system can create significant dead volumes in which reactive gaseous species can be occluded. Thus, such cable harnesses, wire harnesses and pipe bundles can present challenges for gas enclosures to effectively meet regulations regarding the content of reactive atmospheric constituents such as oxygen and water vapor, as well as organic vapors. Furthermore, such bundles of cables, wires and tubing used in the operation of the printing system can be a constant source of particulate matter. Thus, providing and maintaining a substantially inert and particle-free environment in an overall closed gas enclosure system presents additional challenges for processes that can be performed in atmospheric conditions, such as under open-air, high-flow laminar flow hoods does not exist.

In this regard, scaling OLED printing from Gen 3.5 to Gen 8.5 and beyond, while providing robustness that accommodates OLED printing systems in an inert, substantially particle-free gas inclusion environment with minimal downtime The inclusion system presents many challenges. Therefore, there is a need for various embodiments of gas enclosure systems that can house OLED printing systems in an inert, substantially particle-free environment, and that can be easily scaled to provide on a variety of substrate sizes and OLED panel manufacturing on substrate material, but also Provides various measurement and maintenance procedures with minimal downtime.

The present teachings disclose various embodiments of systems and methods that can have a gas enclosure that can include: a gas enclosure assembly for housing a printing system, ie, a printing system enclosure, the gas enclosure The assembly may define a first volume or a working volume; and an auxiliary enclosure defining a second volume. In accordance with the present teachings, various embodiments of the gas enclosure may have openings that allow access between the printing system enclosure and the secondary enclosure and openings that allow access between the secondary enclosure and the exterior of the gas enclosure. In various embodiments of the gas enclosure, the opening can be sealably closed. Various embodiments of gas enclosures of the present teachings can have openings and openings that can be sealably closed. According to the present teachings, the auxiliary enclosure can be isolated from the printing system enclosure, for example, by sealing in a sealable manner an opening between the printing system enclosure and the auxiliary enclosure that allows access.

Separating the auxiliary enclosure from the printing system enclosure can allow various processes related to the management of the various components of the printhead assembly to proceed with minimal or no interruption to the printing process. A printing system can include various embodiments of a printhead management system that can be used to perform various measurements and maintenance procedures associated with a printhead assembly. A print head management system may consist of several subsystems that allow such metrology tasks as checking nozzle firing and measurement of droplet volume, velocity and trajectory from each nozzle in the print head ; and maintenance tasks such as wiping or blotting excess ink from nozzle surfaces, priming and flushing printheads by jetting ink from the ink supply through the printhead and into the waste pool, and replacing printheads head or print head unit.

Accordingly, each subsystem may have various components that are consumable in nature and require replacement, such as replacement of blotters, ink, and waste reservoirs. Various consumable components may be packaged ready for insertion using a handler, for example in a fully automatic mode. As a non-limiting example, blotter paper can be packaged in a cartridge format that can be easily inserted into a blotter module for use. To give another non-limiting For example, inks can be packaged in replaceable reservoir and cartridge formats for use in printing systems. Various embodiments of waste receptacles can be packaged in a cartridge format that can be easily inserted into a flush tank module for use. Additionally, parts of the various components of a printing system that are subject to constant use may require periodic replacement. For example, each printhead assembly can include between about 1 and about 60 printhead devices, wherein each printhead device can have between about 1 and about 30 printhead devices in each printhead device. between print heads. Accordingly, various embodiments of printing systems of the present teachings may have between about 1 and about 1800 print heads. During the printing process, expedient management of the printhead assembly may be required, such as but not limited to printhead assembly or printhead exchange. A printhead replacement module can have components, such as a printhead assembly or printhead, that can be easily inserted into a printhead assembly for use. Metrology systems for checking nozzle firing and making measurements based on optical detection of droplet volume, velocity and trajectory from each nozzle may have sources and detectors that may require periodic replacement after use. Various high usage components can be packaged for ready insertion using a handler, for example in a fully automatic mode. In this respect, various process steps related to the on-going management of the printing system can be carried out in an auxiliary enclosure which can be separated from the printing system enclosure. All steps associated with the printhead management program can be performed to eliminate or minimize the exposure of the printing system enclosure to contaminants such as air and water and various organic vapors, as well as particulate contaminants. According to various systems and methods of the present teachings, printing system inclusions can be introduced to sufficiently low levels of contamination that a purification system can remove the contaminants before they can affect the printing process.

Furthermore, due to the relatively small size of the auxiliary package, recovery of the auxiliary package may take significantly less time than recovery of the overall printing system package. For various embodiments of the systems and methods of the present teachings, the auxiliary enclosure can be less than or equal to about 1% of the enclosure volume of the gas enclosure system. In various embodiments of the systems and methods of the present teachings, the auxiliary enclosure can be less than or equal to about 2% of the enclosure volume of the gas enclosure system. For various embodiments of the systems and methods of the present teachings, the auxiliary enclosure can be less than or equal to about 5% of the enclosure volume of the gas enclosure system. In various embodiments of the systems and methods of the present teachings, the auxiliary enclosure can be less than or equal to about 10% of the enclosure volume of the gas enclosure system. exist In various embodiments of the systems and methods of the present teachings, the auxiliary enclosure may be less than or equal to about 20% of the enclosure volume of the gas enclosure system.

Various embodiments of a gas enclosure system comprising a first volume defined by a printing system enclosure and a second volume defined by an auxiliary enclosure may include environmental control of various environmental parameters such as lighting, gas circulation and filtration, gas purification control, and thermal control of the environment maintained in the gas enclosure system. Various embodiments of the gas enclosure system may have a consistent controlled environment for both the printing system enclosure defining the first volume and the auxiliary enclosure defining the second volume. Such a consistently controlled environment for a gas enclosure system can provide, for example, an inert gas environment and a substantially particle-free environment for many processes requiring such an environment. Alternatively, various embodiments of the gas enclosure system may provide a controlled environment in the printing system enclosure of the gas enclosure system that may be maintained under different conditions than the controlled environment maintained for the secondary enclosure .

As previously mentioned, various embodiments of the gas enclosure may have sealable openings or channels that allow access between the printing system enclosure and the secondary enclosure, and openings that allow access between the secondary enclosure and the exterior of the gas enclosure . Accordingly, various embodiments of the auxiliary enclosure can be isolated from the printing system enclosure of the gas enclosure system such that each volume is an independently functioning segment. In addition, when the printing system enclosure is isolated from the auxiliary enclosure, the opening between the auxiliary enclosure and the outside of the gas enclosure can be open to ambient or non-inert air without contaminating the printing system enclosure.

For various embodiments of the gas enclosure system, the sealable openings or passages may include, by way of non-limiting examples, enclosure panel openings or passages, doors or windows. According to systems and methods of the present teachings, sealable openings or passages may allow access between two volumes or compartments, such as between two enclosures or between an enclosure and the external environment of a gas enclosure. According to the present teachings, when the sealable opening is sealed in a sealable manner, isolation of at least one volume or compartment can result. For example, in various embodiments of the present teachings, the printing system enclosure and auxiliary enclosure can be sealed by using a structural closure to sealably close an opening or passageway that allows access between the printing system enclosure and the auxiliary enclosure. Body isolation. Similarly, the gap that allows access to the secondary enclosure and the environment outside the secondary enclosure can be sealed in a sealable manner through the use of a structural closure. Openings or passages between the auxiliary enclosures are isolated from the outside of the gas enclosure assembly. As will be discussed in more detail subsequently, the structural closure may include various sealable coverings for openings or passages; such openings or passages include non-limiting examples of enclosure panel openings or passages, doors or windows. According to systems and methods of the present teachings, the gate can be closed by any structure that can be used to reversibly cover or reversibly close any opening or passageway using pneumatic, hydraulic, electrical, or manual actuation. pieces.

Furthermore, the use of a dynamic closure can effectively close the opening or channel in a sealable manner and thereby effectively prevent contamination of the enclosure by reactive gases such as oxygen, water vapour, and organic vapors. For example, in various embodiments of the present teachings, the printing system enclosure can be closed by using a dynamic closure to effectively sealably close an opening or passageway between the printing system enclosure and the secondary enclosure that allows access. Isolated from auxiliary inclusions. Similarly, the secondary enclosure may be isolated from the exterior of the gas enclosure assembly by using a dynamic closure to effectively sealably close an opening or passageway allowing access between the secondary enclosure and the environment external to the secondary enclosure. In accordance with the present teachings, dynamic closures may include use between volumes or compartments, such as at openings or passages between a printing system enclosure and a secondary enclosure or between a secondary enclosure and the exterior of a gas enclosure system Use pressure differential or air curtain. By way of non-limiting example, the printing system can be integrated by using a pressure differential at an opening or channel between the printing system enclosure and the auxiliary enclosure to prevent backdiffusion of non-inert gases into the printing system enclosure. Inclusions are dynamically isolated from auxiliary inclusions. Similarly, the secondary enclosure can be dynamically isolated from the outside of the gas enclosure by using a pressure differential at an opening or channel between the secondary enclosure and the exterior of the gas enclosure to prevent backdiffusion of the non-inert gas into the secondary enclosure . As another non-limiting example, the printing system enclosure can be dynamically isolated from the secondary enclosure using an air curtain that can effectively act as a diffusion barrier between the printing system enclosure and the secondary enclosure. Similarly, a gas curtain may be used to dynamically isolate the secondary enclosure from the exterior of the gas enclosure, which gas curtain may effectively act as a diffusion barrier between the secondary enclosure and the exterior of the gas enclosure.

For various embodiments of gas enclosure systems, combinations of various embodiments of dynamic closures and structural closures may be used to sealably close openings or channels. give non-limiting examples In other words, the printing system enclosure and the auxiliary enclosure can be connected between the printing system enclosure and the auxiliary enclosure using a sealable cover in combination with a dynamic closure such as a pressure differential or an air curtain between openings or channels that allow access between the printing system enclosure and the auxiliary enclosure. Body isolation. Similarly, a sealable cover in combination with a dynamic closure such as a pressure differential or gas curtain may be used to seal the secondary enclosure from the exterior of the gas enclosure between openings or passages that allow access between the secondary enclosure and the exterior of the gas enclosure. isolation. As another non-limiting example, the printing system enclosure can be isolated from the auxiliary enclosure using a sealable covering between an opening or passageway that allows access between the printing system enclosure and the auxiliary enclosure, while Dynamic closures such as pressure differentials or gas curtains may be used between openings or channels that allow access between the secondary enclosure and the exterior of the gas enclosure to isolate the secondary enclosure from the exterior of the gas enclosure.

According to various embodiments of the present teachings, a gas enclosure may have an auxiliary enclosure which may be a variety of enclosures. Various embodiments of the auxiliary enclosure can be configured as a section of the gas enclosure assembly to house the printing system. Various embodiments of auxiliary enclosures may be, for example but not limited to, adjustable controlled environment enclosures, transfer chambers, and load lock chambers. Various embodiments of auxiliary enclosures such as adjustable controlled environment enclosures, transfer chambers, and load lock chambers can be easily moved from one location to another. In various embodiments, the secondary enclosure can define a second volume that can be maintained as an inert environment. For embodiments of the gas enclosure system of the present teachings, the gas enclosure assembly to house the printing system defining the first volume can have a gas volume that can be maintained at or below 100 ppm, For example at 10 ppm or less, at 1.0 ppm or less, or at 0.1 ppm or less for each of the various reactive species, including various reactive atmospheric gases such as water vapor and oxygen and organic solvent vapors. Additionally, the gas enclosure system of the present teachings, the auxiliary enclosure defining the second volume, can have a gas volume that can be maintained at 100 ppm or less, such as at 10 ppm or less, at 1.0 ppm or Lower, or at or below 0.1 ppm, for each of the various reactive species, including various reactive atmospheric gases such as water vapor and oxygen, as well as organic solvent vapors. Additionally, various embodiments of the gas enclosure system can provide a low particle printing environment that meets the standards of the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) 14644-1:1999, "Clean rooms and associated controlled environments - Part 1: Atmospheric Classification of cleanliness (Cleanrooms and associated controlled environments-Part 1: Classification of air cleanliness), as specified in categories 1 to 5.

As mentioned previously, the fabrication of OLED displays on substrates larger than Gen 5.5 substrates, which have dimensions of approximately 130 cm x 150 cm, presents significant engineering challenges. For flat panel displays manufactured by non-OLED printing, the size of the mother glass substrate has evolved across generations since about the early 1990s. The first generation mother glass substrates, designated as generation 1, were approximately 30 cm x 40 cm, and thus could produce 15" panels. Around the mid-1990s, the existing technology for the production of flat panel displays had evolved to generation 3.5 mother glass Substrate size, which has dimensions of about 60 cm x 72 cm.

As each generation has progressed, the mother glass sizes of the 7.5th generation and 8.5th generation are used in the production of non-OLED printing manufacturing processes. The Gen 7.5 mother glass has dimensions of approximately 195 cm x 225 cm, and can be cut into eight 42" slabs or six 47" slabs per substrate. The mother glass used in Generation 8.5 is approximately 220cm x 250cm and can be cut into six 55" slabs or eight 46" slabs per substrate. The promise of OLED flat-panel displays for qualities such as truer colors, higher contrast, thinness, flexibility, transparency, and energy efficiency is understood, while OLED manufacturing is practically limited to Gen 3.5 and smaller. Currently, it is believed that OLED printing is the best manufacturing technology that breaks this limitation and enables OLED panel manufacturing not only for mother glass sizes of Gen 3.5 and smaller, but also for technologies such as Gen 5.5, Gen 7.5 and Gen 8.5 Substitute the maximum mother glass size. One of the characteristics of OLED panel printing includes the use of various substrate materials, such as but not limited to various glass substrate materials and various polymer substrate materials. In this regard, the dimensions described in terms resulting from the use of glass-based substrates can be adapted to substrates of any material suitable for OLED printing.

It is contemplated that a wide variety of ink formulations can be printed within the inert, substantially particle-free environment of various embodiments of the gas enclosure systems of the present teachings. In addition to various ink formulations for printing the emissive layer (EL) of the OLED substrate, various ink formulations may include a hole transport layer (HTL), a hole injection layer (HIL), An ink of one or more components of at least one of an electron transport layer (ETL) and an electron injection layer (EIL).

It is further contemplated that inkjet printing may be used to print the organic encapsulation layer on the OLED panel. It should be contemplated that inkjet printing may be used to print the organic encapsulation layer, since inkjet printing may offer several advantages. First, a series of vacuum processing operations can be eliminated, since such inkjet-based fabrication can be performed at atmospheric pressure. Additionally, during the inkjet printing process, the organic encapsulation layer can be positioned to cover the portion of the OLED substrate on or adjacent to the active area to effectively encapsulate the active area, including the lateral edges of the active area. Targeted patterning using inkjet printing results in the elimination of material waste, as well as the elimination of additional processing typically required to achieve patterning of the organic layers. Encapsulating inks can comprise polymers that can be cured using heat treatment (such as baking), UV exposure, and combinations thereof, including, for example, but not limited to, acrylates, methacrylates, urethanes, or other materials, and other Copolymers and blends.

With respect to OLED printing, in accordance with the present teachings, it has been found that maintaining substantially low levels of reactive species, such as but not limited to atmospheric gases such as oxygen and water vapor, is associated with providing OLED flat panel displays that meet the necessary lifetime specifications. Components and vapors of various organic solvents used in OLED inks. The lifetime specification is particularly important for OLED panel technology because it is directly related to display product longevity; this product longevity is a product specification for all panel technologies, which is the challenge that current OLED panel technology will face. Reactive species such as water vapor, oxygen, and organic solvent vapors may be maintained at levels of each of reactive species such as water vapor, oxygen, and organic solvent vapors at or below 100 ppm for various embodiments of gas enclosure systems of the present teachings in order to provide panels that meet the necessary lifetime specifications Low, such as at 10 ppm or less, at 1.0 ppm or less, or at 0.1 ppm or less. Additionally, OLED printing requires a largely particle-free environment. Maintaining a substantially particle-free environment for OLED printing is particularly important because even extremely small particles can cause visible defects on OLED panels. Maintaining a substantially particle-free environment in an overall closed system presents additional challenges not present for processes that can be performed in atmospheric conditions such as in the open air, under a high flow laminar flow hood due to particle reduction . Therefore, maintaining the necessary specifications for an inert, particle-free environment in large facilities can present various challenges.

In reviewing the information outlined in Table 1, for printing OLED panels in a facility The need can be stated that the level of each of reactive species such as water vapor, oxygen, and organic solvent vapor in the facility can be maintained at 100 ppm or less, for example at 10 ppm or less, at 1.0 ppm or lower, or at 0.1 ppm or lower. The data summarized on Table 1 were generated from experiments with each test coupon fabricated in a large-pixel, spin-coating device format that included a test coupon for each of red, green and blue organic thin film composition. Such attached test strips are generally easier to manufacture and test for the purpose of quickly evaluating various formulations and processes. Although attached coupon testing should not be confused with life testing of printed panels, it can indicate the impact of various formulations and processes on life. The results presented in the table below represent a change in the process step in the manufacture of attached coupons where the transfer coating environment was changed only for attached coupons made in a nitrogen environment compared to those in air but not nitrogen. The reactive species in the nitrogen environment was less than 1 ppm for attached test pieces made in a similar manner.

From inspection of the data in Table 1, it is evident that, for the attached test pieces produced under different processing conditions, especially red and blue conditions, in an environment that effectively reduces the exposure of the organic film composition to reactive species Printing can have a substantial impact on the stability, and thus lifetime, of various EMLs.

Additionally, as previously discussed, maintaining a substantially particle-free environment for OLED printing is particularly important because even extremely small particles can cause visible defects on OLED panels. Currently, the challenge for facilities producing OLED displays is to meet the low defect levels required for commercialization, to maintain low levels of each of reactive species such as water vapor, oxygen, and organic solvent vapors, and to maintain sufficiently low particle environment. Additionally, it is contemplated that the gas enclosure system will have attributes including, but not limited to, the following: The gas enclosure assembly can be easily scaled to provide an optimized working volume for an OLED printing system while providing minimal and additionally provide ready access to the OLED printing system from the outside during processing while providing access to the inside for maintenance with minimal downtime. In this regard, according to various embodiments of the present teachings, gas enclosure assemblies for various air-sensitive processes requiring an inert environment are provided, which may include a plurality of wall frames that may be sealed together components and roof frame components. In some embodiments, the plurality of wall and ceiling frame members may be fastened together using reusable fasteners such as bolts and threaded holes. For various embodiments of gas enclosure assemblies according to the present teachings, a plurality of frame members can be constructed to define the gas enclosure frame assembly, each frame member comprising a plurality of panel frame sections.

The gas enclosure assembly of the present teachings can be designed to accommodate a printing system, such as an OLED printing system, in a manner that minimizes the volume of the enclosure surrounding the system. Various embodiments of such a printing system enclosure can be constructed in a manner that minimizes the internal volume of the printing system enclosure while optimizing the working volume to accommodate various footprints of various OLED printing systems. For example, an OLED printing system according to various embodiments of a gas enclosure system of the present teachings may include, for example: a granite base; a movable bridge capable of supporting an OLED printing device; Embodiments extend one or more devices and equipment, such as substrate floating stages, air bearings, rails, rails; inkjet printer systems for depositing OLED film-forming materials on substrates, including OLED ink supply subsystems and inkjet print heads, one or more robots, and the like. Given the various components that can be included in an OLED printing system, various embodiments of an OLED printing system can have various footprints and form factors. so-constructed gas pack Various embodiments of the body assembly additionally provide ready access from the outside to the interior of the gas enclosure assembly during processing for easy access to the printing system for maintenance while minimizing downtime. In this regard, various embodiments of gas enclosure assemblies according to the present teachings can be shaped with respect to various footprints of various OLED printing systems. According to various embodiments, once the formed frame members are constructed to form the gas enclosure frame assembly, panels of various types may be sealably installed in the plurality of panel sections making up the frame members to complete the gas enclosure assembly the installation. In various embodiments of the gas enclosure assembly, a plurality of frame members may be fabricated at one or more locations and subsequently constructed at another location, including for example, but not limited to, wall frame members and At least one roof frame member, and a plurality of panels for mounting in the panel frame section. Furthermore, given the transportable nature of the components used to construct the gas enclosure assemblies of the present teachings, various embodiments of the gas enclosure assemblies can be repeatedly installed and removed through cycles of construction and deconstruction.

In addition, various embodiments of the secondary enclosure can be isolated from the working volume of the printing system enclosure of the gas enclosure system, from the exterior of the gas enclosure, or both by using a structural closure for the sealable opening. The sealable opening can be used to allow access, for example, between the auxiliary enclosure and the printing system enclosure, or between the auxiliary enclosure and the outside of the gas enclosure. For various embodiments of the systems and methods of the present teachings, structural closures may include various sealable coverings for openings or passages; Limiting example. According to systems and methods of the present teachings, the gate can be closed by any structure that can be used to reversibly cover or reversibly close any opening or passageway using pneumatic, hydraulic, electrical, or manual actuation. pieces. The secondary enclosure may be closed by using a dynamic closure such as a pressure differential or a gas curtain at the opening between the working volume of the gas enclosure system and the secondary enclosure or between the secondary enclosure and the exterior of the gas enclosure. Various embodiments of the enclosure are isolated from the working volume of the printing system enclosure, from the exterior of the gas enclosure, or both. For various embodiments of the gas enclosure system, combinations of various embodiments of the structural closure and the dynamic closure may be used to isolate the auxiliary enclosure from the working volume of the printing system enclosure, from the gas Body inclusions are isolated from the outside or both.

For various embodiments of the systems and methods of the present teachings, the auxiliary enclosure can be less than or equal to about 1% of the enclosure volume of the gas enclosure system. In various embodiments of the systems and methods of the present teachings, the auxiliary enclosure may be less than or equal to about 2% of the enclosure volume of the gas enclosure system. For various embodiments of the systems and methods of the present teachings, the auxiliary enclosure can be less than or equal to about 5% of the enclosure volume of the gas enclosure system. In various embodiments of the systems and methods of the present teachings, the auxiliary enclosure can be less than or equal to about 10% of the enclosure volume of the gas enclosure system. In various embodiments of the systems and methods of the present teachings, the auxiliary enclosure may be less than or equal to about 20% of the enclosure volume of the gas enclosure system. Thus, recovery of the auxiliary package may take significantly less time than recovery of the overall printing system package, given the relatively small size of the auxiliary package. Thus, utilizing the auxiliary enclosure to simultaneously execute various printhead management procedures can minimize or eliminate gas enclosure system downtime.

To ensure that the gas enclosure is hermetically sealed, various embodiments of the gas enclosure assembly of the present teachings provide for joining each frame member to provide a frame seal. The interior may be adequately sealed, eg, hermetically sealed, by tight fits of intersection sections between the various frame members, including gaskets or other seals. Once fully constructed, the sealed gas enclosure assembly may comprise an interior and a plurality of interior corner edges, at least one interior corner edge being provided at the intersection of each frame member with an adjacent frame member. One or more of the frame members, for example at least half of the frame members, may include one or more compressible spacers secured along one or more respective edges thereof. One or more compressible gaskets may be configured to create a hermetically sealed gas enclosure assembly once the frame members are joined together and the gas-tight panels installed. The sealed gas enclosure assembly may be formed with corner edges of the frame members sealed by a plurality of compressible gaskets. For each frame member, such as, but not limited to, inner wall frame surfaces, top wall frame surfaces, vertical side wall frame surfaces, bottom wall frame surfaces, and combinations thereof, there may be one or more compressible spacers.

For various embodiments of gas enclosure assemblies, each frame member may comprise a plurality of a plurality of sections framed and fabricated to receive any of a variety of panel types that may be sealably mounted in each section to provide an airtight panel for each panel seal. In various embodiments of gas enclosure assemblies of the present teachings, each segment frame may have a segment frame spacer that, along with selected fasteners, secures fit in each segment frame Each of the panels may provide a hermetic seal for each panel and thus for the fully constructed gas enclosure. In various embodiments, the gas enclosure assembly may have one or more of a window panel or service window in each wall panel; wherein each window panel or service window may have at least one glove collar. During assembly of the gas enclosure assembly, each glove collar may have a glove attached so that the glove can extend into the interior. According to various embodiments, each glove loop may have hardware for mounting the glove, wherein such hardware utilizes a gasket seal around each glove loop that provides an airtight seal for Ferrule leakage or molecular diffusion is minimized. For various embodiments of the gas enclosure assembly of the present teachings, the hardware is further designed to provide the end user with the convenience of capping and decapping the glove collar.

Various embodiments of gas enclosure systems according to the present teachings can include a gas enclosure assembly formed from a plurality of frame members and panel sections, as well as gas circulation, filtration, and purification components. For various embodiments of the gas enclosure system, the piping may be installed during the assembly process. According to various embodiments of the present teachings, ductwork may be installed within a gas enclosure frame assembly that has been constructed from a plurality of frame members. In various embodiments, the ductwork may be installed on the frame members before the frame members are joined to form the gas enclosure frame assembly. The piping for the various embodiments of the gas inclusion system can be configured such that substantially all of the gas drawn into the piping from one or more piping inlets moves through the various embodiments of the gas circulation and filtration loop for use in Remove particulate matter inside the gas enclosure system. Additionally, the piping of various embodiments of the gas enclosure system can be configured to separate the inlet and outlet of the gas purification circuit outside the gas enclosure assembly from the gas circulation and filtration circuits inside the gas enclosure assembly. According to various embodiments of a gas enclosure system of the present teachings, a gas circulation and filtration system may be in fluid communication with components such as, but not limited to, a particle control assembly. For the gas enclosure assembly For various embodiments, the gas circulation and filtration system may be in fluid communication with the cable tray assembly exhaust system. For various embodiments of the gas enclosure assembly, the gas circulation and filtration system may be in fluid communication with the printhead assembly exhaust system. In various embodiments of the gas enclosure system, various components of the particle control system in fluid communication with the gas circulation and filtration system can provide a low particle zone adjacent to a substrate positioned in the printing system.

For example, a gas enclosure system may have a gas circulation and filtration system inside the gas enclosure assembly. Such an internal filtration system may have a plurality of fan filter units within the interior, and may be configured to provide a laminar flow of gas within the interior. Laminar flow may be in the direction from inner top to inner bottom or in any other direction. Although the gas flow generated by the circulation system need not be laminar, a laminar flow of gas can be used to ensure thorough and complete inversion of the gas in the interior. Laminar gas flow can also be used to minimize turbulence, which is undesirable because it can cause particles in the environment to collect in these turbulent regions, thereby preventing filtration systems from removing these particles from the environment . Furthermore, to maintain the desired temperature in the interior, a thermal regulation system may be provided utilizing a plurality of heat exchangers, for example operating with, adjacent to or in conjunction with a fan or another gas circulation device. The gas purification circuit may be configured to circulate gas from within the interior of the gas enclosure assembly via at least one gas purification component external to the enclosure. In this regard, the circulation and filtration system inside the gas enclosure assembly combined with the gas purification circuit external to the gas enclosure assembly can provide a continuous circulation of a substantially low particulate inert gas throughout the The gas inclusion system has a substantially low content of reactive species.

Various embodiments of a gas enclosure system including a gas enclosure assembly can be configured to maintain very low levels of undesired components such as organic solvents and their vapors, as well as water, water vapor, oxygen, and the like , the gas enclosure assembly has a gas enclosure defining a first volume and an auxiliary enclosure defining a second volume having a gas purification system. In retrospect, various embodiments of auxiliary enclosures can be readily integrated with environmental conditioning system components such as lighting components, gas circulation and filtration components, gas purification components, and thermostat components of gas enclosure systems. Therefore, gases including auxiliary inclusions Various embodiments of the enclosure system may have a consistent controlled environment for the gas enclosure defining the first volume and the auxiliary enclosure defining the second volume. Such a controlled environment can provide, for example, an inert, thermally controlled, and substantially particle-free environment for processes requiring such an environment. In various embodiments of the gas enclosure system of the present teachings, the controlled environment can provide a thermally controlled and substantially particle-free environment, for example, for processes requiring such an environment.

Furthermore, various embodiments of a gas enclosure system that includes a secondary enclosure can provide a controlled environment in the working portion of the gas enclosure system that can be maintained at a different level than the controlled environment maintained for the secondary enclosure. condition. Accordingly, various embodiments of the auxiliary enclosure can be isolated from the working volume of the gas enclosure system so that each volume is an independently functioning segment. For various embodiments of the gas enclosure system, a structural closure for an opening, such as an enclosure panel opening or channel, door or window, may be used to isolate the auxiliary enclosure from the working volume of the gas enclosure system. For various embodiments of the systems and methods of the present teachings, structural closures may include various sealable coverings for openings or passages; Limiting example. According to systems and methods of the present teachings, the gate can be closed by any structure that can be used to reversibly cover or reversibly close any opening or passageway using pneumatic, hydraulic, electrical, or manual actuation. pieces. Various embodiments of secondary enclosures can be combined with dynamic closures, such as pressure differentials or gas curtains, and combinations of various embodiments of dynamic closures and structural closures between the working volume of the gas enclosure system and the secondary enclosure. Working volume isolation for gas inclusion systems. Additionally, each of the working volume of the gas enclosure and the auxiliary enclosure can have an independently controlled environment, providing the ability to independently adjust, for example, but not limited to, temperature, lighting, particle control, and gas purification. Thus, the specifications for thermal control, lighting control, particle control, and inert gas environment control for the auxiliary enclosure volume and the working volume of the gas enclosure can be set to be the same or different for each volume.

In addition to providing gas circulation, filtration, and purification components, the ductwork may be sized and shaped to accommodate within the ductwork at least one of electrical wires, wire harnesses, and various fluid-containing tubing Alternatively, the wires, wire bundles, and various fluid-containing tubing when bundled can have a considerable dead volume in which atmospheric constituents such as water, water vapor, oxygen, and the like can become trapped and difficult to remove by purification systems. remove. Additionally, these bundles are a recognized source of particulate matter. In some embodiments, the combination of electrical and optical cables and wire and wire bundles and fluid-containing tubing may be disposed substantially within the ductwork and may be associated with optical systems, electrical systems, optical systems, mechanical systems, and At least one of the fluid systems is operatively associated. Because gas circulation, filtration, and purification components can be configured such that substantially all of the circulating inert gas is drawn through the ductwork, the materials produced by such bundles can be efficiently removed by having them contained within the ductwork. Both particulates and atmospheric constituents trapped in the dead volume of the various bundled materials.

Various embodiments of systems and methods of the present teachings may include various embodiments of gas enclosures having first and second volumes and gas circulation, filtration, and purification components, as well as additional various embodiments of pressurized inert gas recirculation systems. Example. As will be discussed in more detail subsequently, such a pressurized inert gas recirculation system can be utilized in the operation of OLED printing systems for various pneumatic drives and equipment.

In accordance with the present teachings, several engineering challenges have been addressed to provide various embodiments of a pressurized inert gas recirculation system in a gas enclosure system. First, under typical operation of a gas enclosure system without a pressurized inert gas recirculation system, the gas enclosure system can be maintained at a slightly positive internal pressure relative to the external pressure so that if Leakage prevents outside gas or air from entering the interior. For example, under typical operation, for various embodiments of the gas enclosure system of the present teachings, the interior of the gas enclosure system can be maintained at a pressure relative to the ambient atmosphere outside the enclosure system, such as at least 2 mbarg The pressure, for example the pressure of at least 4mbarg, the pressure of at least 6mbarg, the pressure of at least 8mbarg or higher pressure. Maintaining a pressurized inert gas recirculation system within a gas enclosure system can be challenging because of its requirements regarding the dynamics and Constant balancing act. In addition, various The variable demands of devices and equipment can create irregular pressure profiles on the various gas enclosure assemblies and systems of the present teachings. Maintaining under such conditions a dynamic pressure balance of the gas inclusion system maintained at a slightly positive pressure relative to the external environment can provide continuous OLED printing process integrity.

For various embodiments of gas enclosure systems, pressurized inert gas recirculation systems according to the present teachings can include various embodiments of pressurized inert gas circuits that can utilize compressors, accumulators, and blowers At least one of them and combinations thereof. Various embodiments of the pressurized inert gas recirculation system including various embodiments of the pressurized inert gas loop can have specially designed pressure controlled bypass loops that can stabilize defined values to provide the gas containment systems of the present teachings Internal pressure of inert gas. In various embodiments of the gas enclosure system, the pressurized inert gas recirculation system may be configured to pass through the pressure controlled bypass loop when the pressure of the inert gas in the accumulator of the pressurized inert gas loop exceeds a preset threshold pressure to recirculate the pressurized inert gas. Threshold pressure may, for example, be in the range of about 25 psig to about 200 psig, or, more specifically, in the range of about 75 psig to about 125 psig, or, more specifically, in the range of about 90 psig to 95 psig. In this regard, the gas enclosure system with the pressurized inert gas recirculation system of the present teachings can maintain a balance in the hermetically sealed gas enclosure with the pressurized inert gas recirculation system that is recirculated The circulation system has various embodiments of specially designed pressure controlled bypass circuits.

In accordance with the present teachings, various devices and equipment can be disposed within and in fluid communication with various embodiments of pressurized inert gas recirculation systems having various pressurized inert gas circuits that can utilize various pressurized inert gas circuits. A source of compressed gas, such as at least one of a compressor, a blower, and combinations thereof. For various embodiments of the gas enclosures and systems of the present teachings, the use of various pneumatically operated devices and equipment can provide low particle production performance and low maintenance. Exemplary devices and equipment that may be disposed within the gas enclosure system and in fluid communication with various pressurized inert gas circuits may include, for example, without limitation, pneumatic robots, substrate floating stages, air bearings, air bushings, compressed gas tools, pneumatic actuation One or more actuators and combinations thereof. Substrate floats as well as air bearings can be used to operate according to the teachings Various views of the OLED printing system of various embodiments of the gas inclusion system. For example, a substrate float using air bearing technology can be used to transport the substrate into position within the print head chamber and support the substrate during the OLED printing process.

I: First Spacer/Conduit

I': pad fragment

II: Gasket/Conduit

II': Pad Fragment

III: Gasket

III': Pad Fragment

V ₁ : valve

V ₂ : valve

V ₃ : valve

V ₄ : valve

W ₁ : contact length

W ₂ : contact length

W ₃ : contact length

10: Embedding Panel Sections

12: frame

14: blind screw hole

15: screw

16: Gasket

18: Compressible gasket

20: window panel section

22: frame

30: Service window panel section

32: Panel section frame

34: window guide spacer

35: Window Clamp

36: Clamping bolt

38: Compressible Gasket

40: Roof frame section

41: First side

42: Roof frame beam

43: Second side

44: Roof frame beam

45: The first lighting element

46: Lighting elements

47:Second lighting element

100: Gas package assembly

103: Fan filter unit cover

105: 1st roof frame piping

107:Second roof frame piping

109: sheet metal panel section

110: Embedded panel

120: window panel

122: Panel frame

124: window

125: window panel

130: service window

130A: First removable service window

130B: Second removable service window

132: Service window frame

134: window

136: Reverse Action Toggle Clamp

138: window handle

140: Glove ferrule

142: Gloves

200: frame member assembly

202: base

204: Chassis

210: wall frame

210': Front wall panel or first wall panel

220: wall frame

220': left wall panel

226: top

227: top wall frame partition

228: bottom

229: Bottom wall frame partition

230: wall frame

230': wall panels

240: wall frame

240': Rear wall panel

250: roof frame

250': Roof panel

251: Internal part

300: seal assembly

302: Gasket clearance

304: Gasket clearance

306: Spacer clearance

310: wall frame

311: Internal side/internal frame members

312: Spacer board

314: vertical side

315: top surface

316: Spacer board

317: inner edge

320: Gasket

321: Vertical gasket length

323: Length of curve gasket

325: gasket length

340: second gasket

345: length

350: wall frame

353: External frame side / external frame member

354: vertical side

355: top surface

356: Spacer board

360: Gasket

361: horizontal length

363: Curve length

365: length

370: Roof frame

500: Gas inclusion system

501: Gas inclusion system

502: Gas inclusion system

503: Gas inclusion system

504: Gas inclusion system

505: Gas inclusion system

506: Gas inclusion system

507: Gas inclusion system

1000: gas package assembly

1001: Gas package assembly

1010: Auxiliary package

1012: The first gate

1014: The second gate

1020: Auxiliary package

1022: opening

1024: second gate

1026: Conduit

1100: Gas package assembly

1101: Gas package assembly

1101-S1: The first gas package assembly section

1101-S2: Second gas package assembly section

1102:Print system package body

1110: Entrance chamber

1112: Entrance gate

1114: The first inclusion gate

1120: exit chamber

1122: exit gate

1124:Second Enclosure Gate

1130: System Controller

1150: Pneumatic control system

1152: Inert gas source

1154: Vacuum

1156: valve

1158: valve

1200': Front panel assembly

1220': Front base panel assembly

1240': Front wall panel assembly

1242: opening

1260': Front roof panel assembly

1300': Middle panel assembly

1320': Intermediate base panel assembly

1325': First Isolator Wall Panel

1327': Second Isolator Wall Panel

1330': The first printing head management system auxiliary panel assembly

1335: First Seal Support Panel

1337: first outer surface

1338': 1st back wall panel assembly

1340': The first tundish panel assembly

1341': 1st floor panel assembly

1342: The opening of the first printing head assembly

1345: The first printing head assembly docking gasket

1347: Gate valve of the first printing head assembly

1350: load lock

1360': Intermediate wall and roof panel assembly

1361: first channel

1363: First seal/gasket

1365:Second channel

1367:Second Seal

1370':Second Printhead Management System Auxiliary Panel Assembly

1375:Second seal support panel

1377: Second exterior surface

1378: Second back wall frame assembly

1378': Second back wall panel assembly

1380': Second tundish panel assembly

1381': Second floor panel assembly

1382: Opening of the second printing head assembly

1385:Second printing head assembly docking gasket

1387:Second printing head assembly gate valve

1400': rear panel assembly

1420': rear base panel assembly

1440': Rear wall panel assembly

1460': rear roof panel assembly

1500: circulation and filtration system

1501: Body piping system assembly

1502: Fan filter unit assembly

1504: opening

1505: Roof Piping/Roof Panel Piping

1507: Roof Piping/Roof Panel Piping

1509: Inlet Piping System Assembly

1510: Front wall panel piping system assembly

1512: Front Wall Panel Inlet Duct

1514: First Front Wall Panel Riser

1515: Outlet/Front Wall Panel Outlet

1516:Second Front Wall Panel Riser

1517: Outlet/Front Wall Panel Outlet

1520: Left wall panel piping system assembly

1521: opening

1522: Left wall panel inlet duct

1524: First Left Wall Panel Riser

1525: first pipe inlet port

1526: The second vertical board of the left wall panel

1527: Second pipeline outlet port

1528: The upper pipe of the left wall panel

1530:Right wall panel piping system assembly

1531: opening

1532: Right wall panel inlet duct

1533: pipe opening

1534: The first vertical board of the right wall panel

1535: First pipeline inlet port

1536: The second vertical board of the right wall panel

1537: Second pipeline outlet port

1538: The upper pipe of the right wall panel

1540: Rear wall piping system assembly

1541: Rear wall panel first entry/opening

1542: Rear Wall Panel Inlet Duct

1543: Second entrance to rear wall panel

1544: Rear wall panel bottom pipe

1545: ventilation hole

1546: Rear wall panel upper duct

1547: The first bulkhead

1549: Second bulkhead

1552: Fan filter unit

1554: Fan filter unit

1562: heat exchanger

1564: heat exchanger

2000: OLED printing system/OLED inkjet printing system

2001: Printing system

2002: Printing system

2003:OLED printing system/inkjet printing system

2011: Equipment

2012: Second End

2013: Print head replacement module

2050: Substrate

2100: Printing system base/floating table base/base

2101: first end

2102: second end

2110: The first isolator group

2112: The second isolator group

2120: First Riser

2122: Second Riser

2130: bridge

2132: first bridge end

2134: the second bridge terminal

2200: Substrate floating stage

2210: District

2211: First Transition Zone

2212:Second Transition Zone

2213: pressure only zone

2214: pressure only zone

2220: Substrate floating table base

2250: Substrate support equipment

2300: X, Z axis bracket assembly

2301: The first X, Z axis bracket assembly

2302: The second X, Z axis bracket assembly

2310: The first Z-axis moving plate

2400: Cable Tray Assembly Exhaust System

2401: Cable carrier channel

2500: print head assembly

2501: The first printing head assembly

2502: The second printing head assembly

2503: The first printing head assembly package

2504: Second printing head assembly package

2505: print head / print head device

2506: print head device

2507: Opening of the package body of the first printing head assembly

2509: The first printing head assembly package body rim

2510: Second printing head assembly package body rim

2530: Processor

2534: arm

2536: terminator

2700: print head management system

2701: The first printing head management system

2701A: The first printing head management system

2702:Second print head management system

2703: The first printing head management system platform

2704: The second printing head management system platform

2705: The first printing head management system positioning system

2706: The second printing head management system positioning system

2707: The first printing head management system equipment

2709: The first printing head management system equipment

2711: The first printing head management system equipment

2713:Print head replacement module

3000: Pressurized inert gas recirculation system

3130: Gas Purification System/Gas Purification Circuit

3131: Export pipeline

3132: Solvent Removal Assembly

3133: Inlet pipeline

3134: Gas Purification System

3140: thermal regulation system

3141: Fluid outlet line

3142: Fluid Cooler

3143: Fluid Inlet Line

3200: External gas circuit

3201: Inert gas source

3202: The first mechanical valve

3203: Clean Dry Air Source/CDA Source

3204: second mechanical valve

3206: The third mechanical valve

3208: The fourth mechanical valve

3210: Contained Inert Gas Lines

3212: Low Consumption Manifold Lines

3214: The first section of the cross pipeline

3215: Low Consumption Manifold

3216: First flow junction zone

3218:Second flow junction zone

3220: Compressor Inert Gas Line

3222: Clean Dry Air Line/CDA Line

3224: High Consumption Manifold Lines

3225: High Consumption Manifold

3226: Third flow junction zone

3228: The second section of the cross pipeline

3230: valve

3250: compressor circuit

3252: Gas package body assembly outlet

3254: pipeline

3256: valve

3258: check valve

3260: Pressure Controlled Bypass Circuit

3261: First bypass inlet valve

3262: Compressor

3263: second valve

3264: The first accumulator

3266: Back Pressure Regulator

3268: Second accumulator

3270: vacuum system

3272:Pipeline

3274: valve

3280: blower circuit

3282: shell

3283: first isolation valve

3284:First blower

3285: check valve

3286: Adjustable valve

3287:Second isolation valve

3288: heat exchanger

3290: Vacuum Blower/Second Blower

3292:Pipeline

3294: valve

3400: The first module

3402: observation window

3404: observation window

3406: observation window

3410: first transfer chamber

3412: gate

3416: The first module buffer gate

3418: The first transfer module printing system gate

3422: Fan filter unit

3423: Fan filter unit

3430: Processor

3432: base

3434: arm assembly

3436: terminator

3450: First Load Lock Chamber

3452: the first gate

3454: Primary support structure

3460: First buffer chamber

3500: print module

3510: gas package assembly

3520: The first panel assembly

3522: Fan filter unit

3530: Processor

3540: Printing system package body assembly

3542: Fan filter unit

3544: Fan filter unit

3550: Auxiliary package

3552: the first gate

3554: second gate

3560:Second panel assembly

3562: Fan filter unit

3570: The first printing system package body assembly area

3572: The second printing system includes the body assembly area

3600: Second module

3602: observation window

3604: observation window

3610: second transfer chamber

3612: gate

3614: Second transfer module output gate

3630: Processor

3650: Second load lock chamber

3652: second gate

3654:Secondary support structure

3660: Second buffer chamber

3700: The third module

3702: first side

3704: second side

3710: third transfer chamber

3712:gate

3714: gate

3716:gate

3718:gate

3730: Processor

3750: Third Load Lock Chamber

3752:gate

3830: Processor

3834: arm

3836: terminator

4000: OLED printing tool

4001: OLED printing tool

4002:OLED printing tool

A better understanding of the features and advantages of the present disclosure will be obtained with reference to the accompanying drawings, which are intended to illustrate rather than limit the present teachings.

[ FIG. 1 ] is a schematic diagram of a gas enclosure system according to various embodiments of the present teachings.

[ FIG. 2 ] is a left front perspective view of a gas enclosure system according to various embodiments of the present teachings.

[ FIG. 3 ] is a right front perspective view of a gas enclosure assembly according to various embodiments of the present teachings.

[ FIG. 4 ] An expanded view depicting a gas enclosure assembly according to various embodiments of the present teachings.

[ FIG. 5 ] Is an exploded front perspective view of a frame member assembly depicting various panel frame sections and section panels according to various embodiments of the present teachings.

[FIGS. 6A, 6B, and 6C] are top schematic views of various embodiments of gasket seals for forming joints.

[ FIGS. 7A and 7B ] Various perspective views depicting sealing of frame members of various embodiments of gas enclosure assemblies in accordance with the present teachings.

[ FIGS. 8A and 8B ] are various views related to the sealing of a segment panel for receiving an easily removable service window of various embodiments of gas enclosure assemblies according to the present teachings.

[FIG. 9A and FIG. 9B] are enlarged perspective cross-sectional views related to the sealing of the section panel, the section Segment panels are used to receive inset panels or window panels according to various embodiments of the present teachings.

[ FIG. 10 ] Is a view of a ceiling including an illumination system for various embodiments of a gas enclosure system according to the present teachings.

[ FIG. 11 ] is a graph depicting LED spectra for lighting systems of various embodiments of gas enclosures according to the present teachings.

[ FIG. 12 ] Is an imaginary front perspective view of a gas enclosure assembly depicting ductwork installed in the interior of a gas enclosure assembly according to various embodiments of the present teachings.

[ FIG. 13 ] Is an imaginary top perspective view of a gas enclosure assembly depicting piping installed in the interior of a gas enclosure assembly according to various embodiments of the present teachings.

[ FIG. 14 ] Is an imaginary bottom perspective view of a gas enclosure assembly depicting piping installed in the interior of a gas enclosure assembly according to various embodiments of the present teachings.

[ FIG. 15 ] is a schematic diagram of a gas enclosure system according to various embodiments of the present teachings.

[ FIG. 16 ] is a schematic diagram of a gas enclosure system according to various embodiments of the present teachings.

[ FIG. 17 ] is a schematic diagram of a gas enclosure system according to various embodiments of the present teachings.

[ FIG. 18 ] is a schematic diagram of a gas enclosure system according to various embodiments of the present teachings.

[ FIG. 19 ] Is a front perspective view of a gas enclosure assembly according to various embodiments of the present teachings.

[ FIG. 20A ] An expanded view depicting various embodiments of gas enclosure assemblies as depicted in FIG. 19 and associated printing systems according to various embodiments of the present teachings. [FIG. 20B] An enlarged iso perspective view depicting the printing system depicted in FIG. 20A.

[ FIG. 21 ] Perspective views depicting floating stages according to various embodiments of the present teachings.

[ FIG. 22A ] Is a schematic cross-sectional view of a gas enclosure system according to various embodiments of the present teachings.

[FIGS. 22B and 22C] are schematic cross-sectional views of gas enclosure systems depicting continuous movement of a printhead assembly moving into a position for maintenance, according to various embodiments of the present teachings.

[ FIGS. 22D-22F ] are schematic cross-sectional views of gas enclosure systems according to various embodiments of the present teachings.

[ FIG. 23 ] A perspective view depicting a maintenance station installed in an auxiliary enclosure of a gas enclosure assembly according to various embodiments of the present teachings.

[FIGS. 24A and 24B] Depict various embodiments of systems and methods in accordance with the present teachings.

[ FIG. 25 ] is a perspective view of an auxiliary enclosure of a gas enclosure assembly according to various embodiments of the present teachings.

[ FIG. 26A ] Is a front perspective view of an OLED printing tool according to various embodiments of the systems and methods of the present teachings.

[ FIG. 26B ] Is a first imaginary perspective view of the OLED printing tool as shown in FIG. 26A according to various embodiments of systems and methods of the present teachings.

[ FIG. 26C ] Is a second imaginary perspective view of the OLED printing tool as shown in FIG. 26A according to various embodiments of systems and methods of the present teachings.

[ FIG. 27 ] is an iso perspective view of a printing system according to various embodiments of the printing system of the present teachings.

[ FIG. 28A ] Is a front perspective view of an OLED printing tool according to various embodiments of the systems and methods of the present teachings.

[ FIG. 28B ] Is a schematic plan view of an OLED printing tool as depicted in FIG. 28A , according to various embodiments of systems and methods of the present teachings.

[ FIG. 28C ] Is a schematic plan view of an OLED printing tool according to various embodiments of the systems and methods related to FIG. 28A in accordance with the present teachings.

[ FIGS. 29A , 29B and 29C ] are schematic plan views of various embodiments of gas enclosure systems of the present teachings with auxiliary enclosures.

[ FIGS. 30A , 30B and 30C ] are schematic plan views of various embodiments of gas enclosure systems of the present teachings with auxiliary enclosures.

As previously discussed, various embodiments of substrate floating stages and air bearings may be suitable for operating various embodiments of OLED printing systems housed in gas enclosure systems according to the present teachings. As shown schematically in FIG. 1 for gas enclosure system 500 , a substrate float using air bearing technology can be used to transport the substrate into position within the print head chamber and to support the substrate during the OLED printing process. In FIG. 1 , the gas enclosure assembly 1100 for accommodating a printing system may be a load lock system, which may have an inlet chamber 1110 for receiving substrates through an inlet gate 1112 and for removing substrates from the inlet chamber 1110. The first enclosure gate 1114 that moves to the gas enclosure assembly 1100 for printing. Various gates in accordance with the present teachings can be used to isolate chambers from each other and from the external ambient. According to the present teachings, various gates can be selected from physical gates and air curtains.

During the substrate receiving process, the inlet gate 1112 may be open while the first enclosure gate 1114 may be in a closed position to prevent atmospheric gases from entering the gas enclosure assembly 1100 . Once the substrate is received in the inlet chamber 1110, both the inlet gate 1112 and the first inclusion gate 1114 can be closed and the inlet chamber 1110 can be flushed with an inert gas such as nitrogen, any noble gas, and any combination thereof until Reactive atmospheric gases at low levels of 100 ppm or less, such as at 10 ppm or less, at 1.0 ppm or less, or At 0.1ppm or lower. After the atmospheric gas has reached a sufficiently low level, the gate first enclosure gate 1114 can be opened while the inlet gate 1112 remains closed to allow the substrate 2050 to be delivered from the inlet chamber 1110 to the gas enclosure assembly 1100, as shown in FIG. as depicted in 1. The transport of substrates from the inlet chamber 1110 to the gas enclosure assembly 1100 may be accomplished through, for example but not limited to, floating stages provided in the gas enclosure assembly 1100 and the inlet chamber 1110 . The transfer of the substrate from the inlet chamber 1110 to the gas enclosure assembly 1100 can also be accomplished by, for example but not limited to, a substrate transfer robot that can place the substrate 2050 onto a floating stage provided in the gas enclosure assembly 1100 superior. The substrate 2050 may remain supported on the substrate float during the printing process.

Various embodiments of the gas enclosure system 500 can have an outlet chamber 1120 in fluid communication with the gas enclosure assembly 1100 via a second enclosure gate 1124 . According to various embodiments of the gas enclosure system 500 , after the printing process is completed, the substrate 2050 may be transported from the gas enclosure assembly 1100 to the outlet chamber 1120 through the second enclosure gate 1124 . The transfer of substrates from the gas enclosure assembly 1100 to the outlet chamber 1120 may be accomplished via, for example but not limited to, floating stages provided in the gas enclosure assembly 1100 and the outlet chamber 1120 . The transfer of substrates from the gas enclosure assembly 1100 to the exit chamber 1120 can also be accomplished by, for example but not limited to, a substrate transfer robot that can pick up the substrate 2050 from a floating table provided in the gas enclosure assembly 1100 and place It is delivered into the outlet chamber 1120 . For various embodiments of the gas enclosure system 500, when the second enclosure gate 1124 is in the closed position, the substrate 2050 can be withdrawn from the outlet chamber 1120 via the exit gate 1122 in order to prevent reactive atmospheric gases from entering the gas enclosure Total 1100.

In addition to a load lock system including an inlet chamber 1110 and an outlet chamber 1120 in fluid communication with the gas enclosure assembly 1100 via a first enclosure lock 1114 and a second enclosure lock 1124, respectively, the gas enclosure system 500 may include system controller 1130 . System controller 1130 may include one or more processor circuits (not shown) in communication with one or more memory circuits (not shown). The system controller 1130 can also communicate with the load lock system including the inlet chamber 1110 and the outlet chamber 1120, and ultimately the printing nozzles of the OLED printing system. In this manner, system controller 1130 can coordinate the opening and closing of gates 1112 , 1114 , 1122 , and 1124 . The system controller 1130 can also control the ink distribution to the printing nozzles of the OLED printing system. match. Substrate 2050 can be transported via various embodiments of a load lock system of the present teachings, which includes an inlet chamber 1110 and an outlet chamber 1120 via gate 1114 and gate 1124 , respectively, via, for example, but not limited to A substrate float using air bearing technology or a combination of a substrate float using air bearing technology and a substrate delivery robot is in fluid communication with the gas enclosure assembly 1100 .

Various embodiments of the load lock system of FIG. 1 can also include a pneumatic control system 1150, which can include a vacuum source and an inert gas source that can include nitrogen, any noble gas, and any combination thereof. The substrate floating system housed within the gas enclosure system 500 may include a plurality of vacuum ports and gas bearing ports typically arranged on a flat surface. The substrate 2050 may be lifted and held off the hard surface by the pressure of an inert gas such as nitrogen, any noble gas, and any combination thereof. Drainage of the bearing volume is accomplished by means of several vacuum ports. The floating height of the substrate 2050 above the substrate floating stage generally varies with gas pressure and gas flow. The vacuum and pressure of the pneumatic control system 1150 may be used to support the substrate 2050 during its handling inside the gas enclosure assembly 1100 in the load lock system of FIG. 1 , eg, during printing. Control system 1150 may also be used to support substrate 2050 during its transport through the load lock system of FIG. Oral chamber 1120. To control the transport of substrate 2050 through gas enclosure system 500, system controller 1130 communicates with inert gas source 1152 and vacuum 1154 via valves 1156 and 1158, respectively. Additional vacuum and inert gas supply lines and valves, not shown, can be provided to the gas enclosure system 500 exemplified by the load lock system in FIG. 1 to further provide the various gas and vacuum facilities needed to control the enclosed environment.

To give a more spatial perspective of various embodiments of gas enclosure systems according to the present teachings, FIG. 2 is a left front perspective view of various embodiments of gas enclosure systems 501 . Figure 2 depicts a load lock system including various embodiments of the gas enclosure assembly 100, which will be discussed subsequently. The gas enclosure system 501 may have a load lock inlet chamber 1110 which may have an inlet gate 1112 . The gas enclosure system 501 of FIG. 2 may include a gas purification system 3130 for providing a constant supply of an inert gas to the gas enclosure assembly 100 having a substantially low content of reactive atmospheric species such as water vapor and oxygen. ,by And organic solvent vapor generated by OLED printing process. The gas enclosure system 501 of FIG. 2 may also have a controller system 1130 for system control functions as previously discussed.

3 is a right front perspective view of a fully constructed gas enclosure assembly 100 in accordance with various embodiments of the present teachings. The gas enclosure assembly 100 may contain one or more gases for maintaining an inert environment within the interior of the gas enclosure assembly. The gas enclosure systems of the present teachings can be adapted to maintain an inert gas atmosphere inside. An inert gas is any gas that does not undergo a chemical reaction under a defined set of conditions. Some common examples of inert gases can include nitrogen, any noble gas, and any combination thereof. The gas enclosure assembly 100 is configured to enclose and protect air sensitive processes, such as organic light emitting diode (OLED) printing using industrial printing systems. Examples of atmospheric gases that react with OLED inks include water vapor and oxygen. As previously discussed, the gas enclosure assembly 100 can be configured to maintain a sealed atmosphere and allow the component or printing system to operate efficiently while avoiding contamination, oxidation, and other damage to reactive materials and substrates.

As depicted in FIG. 3, various embodiments of the gas enclosure assembly 100 may include component parts including a front or first wall panel 210', a left or second wall panel (not shown). ), the right wall panel or the third wall panel 230', the rear wall panel or the fourth wall panel (not shown) and the roof panel 250', the gas enclosure assembly can be attached to the base (not shown) ) on the chassis 204. As will be discussed in more detail subsequently, various embodiments of the gas enclosure assembly 100 of FIG. A third wall frame 230, a rear wall panel or a fourth wall panel (not shown), and a roof frame 250 are constructed. Various embodiments of the roof frame 250 may include the fan filter unit cover 103 , and the first 105 and second 107 roof frame ducts. According to embodiments of the present teachings, various types of segment panels may be installed in any of the plurality of panel segments making up the frame member. In various embodiments of the gas enclosure 100 of FIG. 1 , sheet metal panel sections 109 may be welded into the frame members during construction of the frame. For various embodiments of the gas enclosure assembly 100, the types of section panels that may be repeatedly installed and removed through cycles of construction and deconstruction of the gas enclosure assembly may include as indicated for the front wall panel 210' the embedded panel 110, and if Window panel 120 and easily removable service window 130 are indicated for wall panel 230'.

Ready access to the interior of the enclosure 100 is provided through the easily removable service window 130, and any panel that is removable can be used to provide access to the interior of the gas enclosure system for maintenance and periodic service purposes. This access for service or maintenance is distinct from that provided by panels such as window panel 120 and easily removable service window 130, which provide access to the gas enclosure from outside the gas enclosure assembly during use. End-user glove access inside the assembly. For example, any of the gloves, such as glove 142 attached to glove collar 140 (as shown against wall panel 230' in FIG. 3), may provide end-user access to the interior during use of the gas enclosure system.

FIG. 4 depicts expanded views of various embodiments of a gas enclosure assembly as depicted in FIG. 3 . Various embodiments of the gas enclosure assembly may have a plurality of wall panels, including front wall panel 210' outer perspective view, left wall panel 220' outer perspective view, right wall panel 230' inner perspective view, rear wall panel 240 ′ interior perspective view and top perspective view of roof panel 250 ′, which wall panels may be attached to chassis 204 resting on base 202 as shown in FIG. 3 . OLED printing systems can be mounted on top of chassis 204, such printing processes are known to be sensitive to atmospheric conditions. In accordance with the present teachings, the gas enclosure assembly may be constructed from frame members such as wall frame 210 of front wall panel 210', wall frame 220 of left wall panel 220', wall frame 230 of wall panel 230', rear The wall frame 240 of the wall panel 240' and the roof frame 250 of the roof panel 250', a plurality of segment panels can then be installed in these frame members. In this regard, it may be desirable to streamline the design of section panels that may be repeatedly installed and removed through cycles of construction and deconstruction of various embodiments of gas enclosure assemblies of the present teachings. Additionally, shaping of the gas enclosure assembly 100 can be done to accommodate the footprint of various embodiments of the OLED system to allow for the required inertness in the gas enclosure assembly during use and during maintenance of the gas enclosure assembly. The volume of gas is minimized and ready for entry is provided to the end user.

Using the front wall panel 210' and left wall panel 220' as an example, various embodiments of the frame member may have sheet metal panel sections 109 welded into the frame member during construction of the frame member. Inset panels 110, window panels 120, and easily removable service windows 130 may be installed in each wall frame member and may be repeatedly installed and removed through the cycle of construction and deconstruction of the gas enclosure assembly 100 of FIG. As can be seen, in the example of front wall panel 210 ′ and left wall panel 220 ′, the wall panels may have window panel 120 adjacent to easily removable service window 130 . Similarly, as depicted in exemplary rear wall panel 240 ′, the wall panel may have a window panel, such as window panel 125 , with two adjacent glove collars 140 . For various embodiments of wall frame members according to the present teachings, and as seen with gas enclosure assembly 100 of FIG. access. Accordingly, various embodiments of the gas enclosure can provide two or more glove loops so that an end user can extend left and right gloves into the interior and manipulate one or more items within the interior without disturbing the interior The composition of the gaseous atmosphere inside. For example, any of window panel 120 and service window 130 may be positioned to facilitate easy access to adjustable components in the interior of the gas enclosure assembly from the exterior of the gas enclosure assembly. According to various embodiments of window panels such as window panel 120 and service window 130, such windows may exclude glove loops and glove loop assemblies when not directed to end user entry via glove loop gloves.

As depicted in FIG. 4 , various embodiments of wall panels and ceiling panels may have a plurality of inset panels 110 . As can be seen in Figure 4, the embedded panels can have various shapes and aspect ratios. In addition to being embedded in the panel, the roof panel 250' may have the fan filter unit cover 103 and the first roof frame duct mounted, bolted, screwed, fastened or otherwise secured to the roof frame 250 105 and the second roof frame pipe 107. As will be discussed in more detail subsequently, piping in fluid communication with the second roof frame piping 107 of the roof panel 250' may be installed within the interior of the gas enclosure assembly. In accordance with the present teachings, such piping may be part of a gas circulation system inside the gas enclosure assembly and may provide for separating the flow stream exiting the gas enclosure At least one gas purification module is circulated.

FIG. 5 is an exploded front perspective view of frame member assembly 200 in which wall frame 220 may be configured to include a full complement of panels. While not limited to the designs shown, the use of wall frames 220 Frame member assembly 200 may serve as an example of various embodiments of frame member assemblies in accordance with the present teachings. Various embodiments of frame member assemblies can include various frame members and segment panels installed in various frame panel sections of various frame members according to the present teachings.

According to various embodiments of various frame member assemblies of the present teachings, frame member assembly 200 may include a frame member such as wall frame 220 . For various embodiments of gas enclosure assemblies such as gas enclosure assembly 100 of FIG. inclusions and require a substantially particulate-free environment. In this regard, frame members according to the present teachings can utilize various sized metal tubing materials for constructing various embodiments of the frame. Such metal tubing materials address desirable material properties including, but not limited to, being a high-integrity material that does not degrade to generate particulate matter, and producing a frame member with high strength yet weight-optimized, providing self- Site-to-site transfer-ready, construction, and de-construction of gas enclosure assemblies comprising various frame members and panel sections. Any material that meets these requirements can be used to create various frame members in accordance with the present teachings.

For example, various embodiments of frame members according to the present teachings, such as frame member assembly 200, may be constructed from extruded metal tubing. According to various embodiments of the frame members, aluminum, steel, and various metal composite materials may be utilized to construct the frame members. In various embodiments, with dimensions such as, but not limited to, 2"w x 2"h, 4"w x 2"h, and 4"w x 4"h and having 1/8" to 1/4" wall thickness Metal tubing may be used to construct various embodiments of frame members according to the present teachings. Additionally, various tube or other forms of various reinforced fiber polymer composites are available with material properties including but not limited to: it is a high integrity material that will not degrade to produce Particulate matter and produce high strength yet weight-optimized framing members that provide ready delivery, construction, and deconstruction from one site to another.

With regard to the construction of various frame members from various sized metal tubing materials, it should be contemplated that welding may be performed to produce various embodiments of frame weldments. Alternatively, appropriate industrial adhesives can be used agents for the construction of various framing members from various dimensional construction materials. It is contemplated that the construction of the various frame members should be done in a manner that does not inherently create leak paths through the frame members. In this regard, construction of the various frame members may be performed using any method that does not inherently create a leak path through the frame members of the various embodiments of the gas enclosure assembly. Additionally, various embodiments of frame members in accordance with the present teachings, such as wall frame 220 of FIG. 4 , can be painted or coated. For various embodiments of framing members made of, for example, metal tubing materials that are prone to oxidation, where the material formed at the surface can generate particulate matter, painting or coating to prevent particulate matter formation or Other surface treatments such as anodizing.

A frame member assembly such as frame member assembly 200 of FIG. 5 may have a frame member such as wall frame 220 . The wall frame 220 may have a top 226 to which a top wall frame bulkhead 227 may be fastened and a bottom 228 to which a bottom wall frame bulkhead 229 may be fastened. As will be discussed in more detail subsequently, the bulkheads mounted on the surface of the frame members are part of a gasket seal system that, in combination with the gasket seals of the panels installed in the frame member sections, provides Hermetic sealing of various embodiments of the gas enclosure assembly of contents. A frame member such as wall frame 220 of frame member assembly 200 of FIG. The service window 130 can be easily removed. Various types of panel sections can be formed in the construction of the frame members. Types of panel sections may include, for example but not limited to, an inset panel section 10 to receive an inset panel 110, a window panel section 20 to receive a window panel 120, and a service window to receive an easily removable service window 130. Window panel section 30 .

Each type of panel section may have a panel section frame to receive the panels, and it may be provided that each panel may be sealably fastened into each panel section in accordance with the present teachings for constructing a hermetic Type sealed gas package assembly. For example, in FIG. 5, which depicts a frame assembly according to the present teachings, inset panel section 10 is shown with frame 12, window panel section 20 is shown with frame 22, and service window panel section 30 is shown with panel Section frame 32 . For the wall frame assembly of this teaching For various embodiments, the various panel section frames may be sheet metal material that is welded into the panel section using continuous beads to provide a hermetic seal. For the various embodiments of the wall frame assembly, the various panel section frames can be made from various sheet materials including construction materials selected from reinforced fiber polymer composite materials, which can be bonded using suitable industrial adhesives. To be installed in the panel section. As discussed in more detail in subsequent teachings on sealing, each panel section frame can have a compressible gasket disposed thereon to ensure that each panel section frame can be formed for installation and secured in each panel section. One-panel hermetic seal. In addition to the panel section frames, each frame member section may have hardware associated with positioning the panels and securing the panels securely in the panel sections.

Various embodiments of the inlay panel 110 and the panel frame 122 for the window panel 120 may be constructed from sheet metal materials such as, but not limited to, aluminum, various aluminum alloys, and stainless steel. The properties of the panel material may be the same as the properties of the structural material making up the various embodiments of the frame members. In this regard, materials with properties for the various panel members include, but are not limited to, high integrity materials that do not degrade to generate particulate matter and result in weight-optimized frame members with high strength , in order to provide ready delivery, construction and deconstruction from one site to another. Various embodiments of chip-like materials such as honeycomb core may have the necessary properties to be used as a panel material for constructing the inset panel 110 and the panel frame 122 for the window panel 120 . Honeycomb core chip materials can be made from a variety of materials: metals and both metal composites and polymers, and polymer composite honeycomb core chip materials. When fabricated from metallic materials, various embodiments of the removable panel may have a ground connection included in the panel to ensure that the overall structure is grounded when the gas enclosure assembly is constructed.

Given the transportable nature of the components used to construct the gas enclosure assemblies of the present teachings, any of the various embodiments of the segment panels of the present teachings may be repeatedly installed and removed during use of the gas enclosure system, To provide access to the interior of the gas enclosure assembly.

For example, the panel section 30 for receiving the easily removable service window 130 may have a set of four spacers, one of which is indicated as the window guide spacer 34 . Additionally, easily removable The panel section 30 of the service window 130 can have a set of four clamping pegs 36 that can be used to use a set of four clamping pegs mounted on the service window frame 132 for each easily removable service window 130. A counteracting toggle clamp 136 is used to clamp the service window 130 to the service window panel section 30. Additionally, two window handles 138 can each be mounted on the easily removable service window frame 132 to provide end user convenience in removing and installing the service window 130 . The number, type and placement of removable service window handles may vary. Additionally, the service window panel sections 30 for receiving the easily removable service windows 130 may have at least two window clips 35 selectively installed in each service window panel section 30 . Although described as being at the top and bottom of each service window panel section 30 , the at least two window clips may be installed in any manner that functions to secure the service window 130 in the panel section frame 32 . A tool may be used to remove and install window clamp 35 to allow removal and reinstallation of service window 130 .

The reverse acting toggle clamp 136 of the service window 130 and the hardware mounted on the panel section 30 including the pinch pin 36, the window guide spacer 34 and the window clamp 35 may be constructed of any suitable material and combination of materials. For example, one or more of these elements may comprise at least one metal, at least one ceramic, at least one plastic, and combinations thereof. The removable service window handle 138 may be constructed of any suitable material and combination of materials. For example, one or more of these elements may comprise at least one metal, at least one ceramic, at least one plastic, at least one rubber, and combinations thereof. Enclosure windows such as window 124 of window panel 120 or window 134 of service window 130 may comprise any suitable material and combination of materials. According to various embodiments of the gas enclosure assembly of the present teachings, the enclosure window can comprise transparent and translucent materials. In various embodiments of the gas enclosure assembly, the enclosure window may comprise silica-based materials such as, but not limited to, glass and quartz, and various types of polymer-based materials, such as, but not limited to, various types of polymer Carbonate, polyacrylic and polyvinyl. Various composites and combinations thereof of exemplary window materials can also be used as transparent and translucent materials in accordance with the present teachings.

As will be discussed below in connection with the teachings of FIGS. 8A-9B , the wall and roof frame member seals, in combination with the airtight section panel frame seals, provide Various embodiments of hermetically sealed gas enclosure assemblies for air sensitive processes requiring inert environments. Components of a gas enclosure system that contribute to providing a substantially low concentration of reactive species and a substantially low particulate environment may include, but are not limited to, hermetically sealed gas enclosure assemblies, and high-efficiency gas circulation and particle filtration systems, including piping systems . Providing an effective hermetic seal for a gas enclosure assembly can be challenging; especially where three frame members come together to form a three-sided joint. Thus, three-sided joint sealing presents a particularly difficult challenge relative to providing an easily installable hermetic seal for a gas enclosure assembly that can be assembled and disassembled via a construction and deconstruction cycle.

In this regard, various embodiments of gas enclosure assemblies in accordance with the present teachings provide hermetic sealing of fully constructed gas enclosure systems via effective gasket sealing of joints and provide effective gasketing of components around load bearing builds seal. Unlike conventional joint seals, joint seals according to the present teachings: 1) include uniform parallel alignment of adjoining gasket segments from orthogonally oriented gasket lengths at the top and bottom end frame joint joint strips where three frame members join , so as to avoid corner seam alignment and sealing; 2) provide abutment length for forming across the entire joint width, thereby increasing the sealing contact area at the three-sided joint joint zone; 3) designed with a spacer plate, the spacer The plates provide uniform compression across all vertical and horizontal as well as top and bottom three-sided joint gasket seals. Additionally, the choice of gasket material can affect the effectiveness of providing a hermetic seal, as will be discussed subsequently.

6A-6C are top schematic diagrams depicting a comparison of a conventional three-sided joint seal and a three-sided joint seal according to the present teachings. According to various embodiments of gas enclosure assemblies of the present teachings, there may be, for example but not limited to, at least four wall frame members, a roof frame member, and a chassis that may be joined to form a gas enclosure assembly, thereby creating the need for a hermetic seal. Multiple vertical, horizontal and three-sided joints. In FIG. 6A , a top schematic view of a conventional three-sided gasket seal formed by a first gasket I oriented orthogonally to gasket II in the XY plane. As shown in Figure 6A, the seam formed by the orthogonal orientation in the XY plane has a contact length _W1 between the two segments defined by the pad width dimension. Additionally, as indicated by the hatching, the terminal end portion of Spacer III, which is a spacer oriented orthogonally to both Spacers I and Spacer II in the vertical direction, may be adjacent to Spacer I and Spacer II. . In Figure 6B, a top schematic view of a conventional three-sided splice gasket seal formed by a first gasket (I) length that is orthogonal to a second gasket (II) length and A seam having a 45° face joining two lengths, wherein the seam has a contact length _W2 between the two segments that is greater than the width of the gasket material. Similar to the configuration of FIG. 6A , the ends of Spacer III that are perpendicular to both Spacers I and II may be adjacent to Spacer I and Spacer II as indicated by hatching. Assuming that the pad widths in FIG. 6A and FIG. 6B are the same, the contact length W ₂ of FIG. 6B is greater than the contact length W ₁ of FIG. 6A .

6C is a top schematic view of a three-sided joint gasket seal in accordance with the present teachings. The first spacer (I) length can have a spacer segment I' formed perpendicular to the direction of the first spacer (I) length, wherein the spacer segment I' has a length that can be approximately the width dimension of the structural component being joined , such as the 4"w x 2"h or 4"w x 4"h metal tubes used to form the various wall framing members of the gas enclosure assemblies of the present teachings. Spacer II is orthogonal to spacer I in the XY plane and has a spacer segment II' having a length overlapping spacer segment I' approximately the width of the joined structural component. The width of gasket segments I' and II' is the width of the selected compressible gasket material. Spacer III is oriented orthogonally to both Spacer I and Spacer II in the vertical direction. Spacer segment III' is the end of spacer III. Pad segment III' is formed from the orthogonal orientation of pad segment III' to the vertical length of pad III. Pad segment III' may be formed such that it has approximately the same length as pad segments I' and II' and a width that is the thickness of the compressible pad material selected. In this regard, the contact length _W3 of the three aligned segments shown in FIG. 6C is greater than that of conventional three-corner joint seals shown in FIG. 6A or FIG. 6B having contact lengths _W1 and _W2, respectively. contact length.

In this regard, a three-sided splice gasket seal in accordance with the present teachings produces uniform parallel alignment of gasket segments at the end splice junction zone, rather than the orthogonal alignment shown in the situation of FIGS. 6A and 6B spacers. This uniform parallel alignment of the three-sided joint gasket sealing segments provides for uniform lateral sealing force across the segments to facilitate hermetic three-sided joint sealing at the top and bottom corners of the joint formed by the wall frame members . In addition, each of the uniformly aligned pad segments of each three-sided splice seal is selected to be large Appropriate to the width of the structural components being joined, thereby providing maximum contact length for evenly aligned segments. Furthermore, joint seals in accordance with the present teachings are designed with spacer plates that provide uniform compressive force across all vertical, horizontal and three sided gasket seals of the constructed joint. It can be discussed that the width of the gasket material selected for the conventional three-sided seal given for the example of Figures 6A and 6B can be at least the width of the structural components being joined.

In the expanded perspective view of FIG. 7A , seal assembly 300 in accordance with the present teachings is depicted before all frame members have been engaged such that the gaskets are depicted in an uncompressed state. In FIG. 7A, a plurality of wall frame members such as wall frame 310, wall frame 350, and ceiling frame 370 may be sealably joined in the first step of constructing a gas enclosure from the various components of the gas enclosure assembly. A frame member seal in accordance with the present teachings is an essential component that provides a hermetic seal when the gas enclosure assembly is fully constructed and provides a seal that can be implemented through cycles of construction and deconstruction of the gas enclosure assembly. Although the examples given below in the teachings of FIGS. 7A-7B are for sealing a portion of a gas enclosure assembly, these teachings are applicable to the entirety of any gas enclosure assembly of the present teachings.

The first wall frame 310 depicted in FIG. 7A may have an interior side 311 on which a spacer plate 312 is mounted, a vertical side 314 and a top surface 315 on which a spacer plate 316 is mounted. The first wall frame 310 may have a first spacer 320 seated and adhered to the space formed by the spacer plate 312 . The gap 302 left after the first spacer 320 is placed and adhered to the space formed by the spacer plate 312 may extend the vertical length of the first spacer 320, as shown in FIG. 7A. As depicted in FIG. 7A , a compliant shim 320 may be seated and adhered to the space formed by the spacer plate 312 and may have a vertical shim length 321 , a curved shim length 323 , and a shim length 325 . The length 325 forms 90° in a plane with the vertical spacer length 321 on the inner frame member 311 and terminates at the vertical side 314 of the wall frame 310 . In FIG. 7A, the first wall frame 310 may have a top surface 315 on which a spacer plate 316 is mounted, thereby forming a space on the surface 315 into which a second spacer 340 is placed and adhered adjacent to the wall frame. 310 within edge 317 . The gap 304 left after the second gasket 340 is placed and adhered to the space formed by the spacer plate 316 may extend the horizontal length of the second gasket 340, As shown in Figure 7A. Additionally, as indicated by the hatching, the length 345 of the spacer 340 is evenly parallel and aligned with the length 325 of the spacer 320 .

The second wall frame 350 depicted in FIG. 7A may have outer frame sides 353 , vertical sides 354 and a top surface 355 on which spacer panels 356 are mounted. The second wall frame 350 may have a first gasket 360 seated and adhered to the first gasket space formed by the spacer plate 356 . The gap 306 left after the first spacer 360 is placed and adhered to the space formed by the spacer plate 356 may extend the horizontal length of the first spacer 360, as shown in FIG. 7A. As depicted in FIG. 7A , compliant gasket 360 may have a horizontal length 361 , a curved length 363 , and a length 365 that forms 90° in the plane of top surface 355 and terminates at outer frame member 353 .

As indicated in the expanded perspective view of FIG. 7A , inner frame members 311 of wall frames 310 may be joined to vertical sides 354 of wall frames 350 to form one of the build joints of the gas enclosure frame assembly. With respect to the seal of the thus formed construction joint, in various embodiments of the gasket seal at the end joint joint zone of a wall frame member according to the present teachings as depicted in FIG. 7A, the length 325 of the gasket 320, the gasket The length 365 of 360 and the length 345 of spacer 340 are contiguous and evenly aligned. Additionally, as will be discussed in more detail subsequently, various embodiments of the spacer plate of the present teachings can provide a uniform compression that is intermediate to the compressibility of various embodiments of gas enclosure assemblies for hermetically sealing the present teachings. Between about 20% and about 40% deflection of the gasket material.

FIG. 7B depicts seal assembly 300 according to the present teachings after all frame members have been joined such that the gaskets are depicted in a compressed state. 7B is a perspective view showing details of the three-sided joint corner seal formed at the top end joint joint strip between the first wall frame 310, the second wall frame 350, and the roof frame 370, shown in phantom lines. As shown in FIG. 7B, the spacer space defined by the spacer panels may be measured to a width such that after joining the wall frame 310, the wall frame 350, and the roof frame 370 (shown in phantom lines), there Uniform compression between approximately 20% and approximately 40% deflection of the compressible gasket material forming vertical, horizontal and three-sided gasket seals ensures: Sealing at wall frame member joints Gasket seals on all surfaces provide a hermetic seal. In addition, shim gaps 302, 304, and 306 (not shown) are sized so that after an optimal compression of between about 20% and about 40% deflection of the compressible shim material, each shim can be as The gasket gap is filled as shown for gasket 340 and gasket 360 in FIG. 7B . Thus, in addition to providing uniform compression by defining the space in which each spacer sits and adheres, various embodiments of spacer plates designed to provide clearance also ensure that each compression spacer can conform to the space provided by the spacer plate. within a defined space without wrinkling or bulging or otherwise irregularly forming a compressed state in a manner that could form a leak path.

According to various embodiments of gas enclosure assemblies of the present teachings, various types of segment panels may be sealed using compressible gasket materials disposed on each panel segment frame. In combination with frame member gasket seals, the location and material of compressible gaskets used to form seals between the various section panels and panel section frames provide a hermetically sealed gas enclosure assembly with little or no gas leakage . Additionally, the seal design for all types of panels such as the inset panel 110 of FIG. Repeated removal and installation of such panels provides access to the interior of the gas enclosure assembly, eg, for maintenance.

For example, FIG. 8A is an expanded view depicting service window panel section 30 and easily removable service window 130 . As previously discussed, the service window panel section 30 may be fabricated to receive the easily removable service window 130 . For various embodiments of the gas enclosure assembly, a panel section such as the removable service panel section 30 may have a panel section frame 32 and a compressible gasket 38 disposed on the panel section frame 32 . In various embodiments, the hardware associated with securing the easily removable service window 130 in the removable service window panel section 30 can provide ease of installation and reinstallation to the end user while ensuring The easily removable service window 130 is installed and reinstalled in the panel section 30 as desired to maintain the hermetic seal by the end user requiring direct access to the interior of the gas enclosure assembly. The easily removable service window 130 may include a rigid window frame 132, which may be constructed of a material such as, but not limited to, metal tubing, as described for constructing any frame members of the present teachings. Service window 130 may utilize snap-action fastening hardware such as, but not limited to, reverse acting toggle clamp 136 for Provides end-user ready removal and reinstallation of service window 130 .

As shown in the front view of the removable service window panel section 30 of FIG. 8A , the easily removable service window 130 may have a set of four toggle clamps 136 secured to the window frame 132 . The service window 130 may be positioned in the panel section frame 32 at a defined distance for ensuring a proper compressive force against the gasket 38 . Using a set of four window guide spacers 34, as shown in FIG. . A set of clamp pegs 36 may each be provided to receive a reverse acting toggle clamp 136 from which a service window 130 may be easily removed. According to various embodiments in which the service window 130 achieves a hermetic seal through cycles of installation and removal, the combination of mechanical strength of the service window frame 132 combined with the service window 130 relative to the compressible spacers provided by the set of window guide spacers 34 The defined location of 38 ensures that once the service window 130 is secured in place, such as but not limited to, using reverse acting toggle clamps 136 secured in respective clamping bolts 36, the service window frame 132 can be positioned as shown in FIG. A uniform force is provided on the panel section frame 32 at a defined compression set by a set of window guide spacers 34 . The set of window guide spacers 34 are positioned such that the compressive force of the service window 130 against the gasket 38 deflects the compressible gasket 38 by between about 20% and about 40%. In this regard, the construction of the service window 130 and the fabrication of the panel section 30 provide for a hermetic seal of the service window 130 in the panel section 30 . As previously discussed, the window clamp 35 may be installed into the panel section 30 after the service window 130 is secured therein, and removed when removal of the service window 130 is desired.

The reverse acting toggle clamp 136 may be secured to the easily removable service window frame 132 using any suitable mechanism and combination of mechanisms. Examples of suitable fastening mechanisms that may be used include at least one adhesive (such as, but not limited to, epoxy or cement), at least one bolt, at least one screw, at least one other fastener, at least one slot, at least one track, At least one solder and combinations thereof. The reverse acting toggle clamp 136 may be connected directly to the removable service window frame 132, or indirectly via an adapter plate. Reverse-acting toggle clamp 136, clamp pin 36, window guide spacer 34, and window clamp 35 may be constructed from any suitable material and combination of materials. For example, one or more of such elements may comprise at least one metal, at least one ceramic, at least one plastic, and combinations thereof.

In addition to sealing easily removable service windows, hermetic sealing is also available for recessed panels and window panels. Other types of segment panels that can be repeatedly installed and removed in a panel segment include, for example but not limited to, inset panels 110 and window panels 120 as shown in FIG. 5 . As can be seen in FIG. 5 , the panel frame 122 of the window panel 120 is constructed similarly to the inset panel 110 . Thus, according to various embodiments of the gas enclosure assembly, the fabrication of the panel sections for receiving the insert panel and the window panel may be identical. In this respect, the sealing of inlay panels and window panels can be carried out using the same principles.

9A and 9B, and in accordance with various embodiments of the present teachings, any panel of a gas enclosure, such as the gas enclosure assembly 100 of FIG. Sections may have frames 12 configured to receive respective inlay panels 110 . FIG. 9A is a perspective view indicating an enlarged portion shown in FIG. 9B. In FIG. 9A , inset panel 110 is depicted positioned relative to inset frame 12 . As can be seen in Figure 9B, the inset panel 110 is attached to the frame 12, which may be constructed of metal, for example. In some embodiments, metals may include aluminum, steel, copper, stainless steel, chromium, alloys, combinations thereof, and the like. A plurality of blind screw holes 14 may be made in the embedded panel section frame 12 . The panel section frame 12 is configured to include a gasket 16 between the inset panel 110 and the frame 12, wherein a compressible gasket 18 may be seated. The blind screw hole 14 is available in the M5 variant. Screws 15 can be received through blind screw holes 14 , thereby compressing spacers 16 embedded between panel 110 and frame 12 . Once secured into position against gasket 16 , inset panel 110 forms an airtight seal within inset panel section 10 . As previously discussed, such panel sealing may be implemented for various segment panels, including but not limited to inset panels 110 and window panels 120 as shown in FIG. 5 .

According to various embodiments of compressible gaskets in accordance with the present teachings, the compressible gasket material used for frame member sealing and panel sealing can be selected from various compressible polymer materials such as, but not limited to, closed unit cell polymers of any type Biomaterials, also known in the art as generated rubber materials or generated polymer materials. Briefly, closed unit cell polymers are prepared in such a way that a gas is encapsulated within discrete unit cells, each discrete unit cell being encapsulated by a polymeric material. Properties of compressible closed-cell polymeric gasket materials required for hermetic sealing of frame and panel assemblies include, but are not limited to, their robustness against a wide range of Chemical attack by surrounding chemical species, has excellent moisture barrier properties, has elasticity in a wide temperature range and is resistant to permanent compression setting. In general, closed cell polymer materials have higher dimensional stability, lower moisture absorption coefficient, and higher strength than open cell structure polymer materials. Various types of polymer materials that can be made into closed unit cell polymer materials include, for example but not limited to, polysiloxane, neoprene, ethylene-propylene-diene terpolymer (EPT); using ethylene-propylene-diene- Polymers and compounds made of monomer (EPDM), ethylene nitrile, styrene-butadiene rubber (SBR) and various copolymers and blends thereof.

The desirable material properties of closed cell polymers are only maintained if the cells comprising the bulk material remain intact during use. In this regard, use of such materials in a manner that may exceed the material specifications set for closed cell polymers, eg, beyond specifications for use within a specified temperature or compression range, can cause degradation of the gasket seal. In various embodiments of closed cell polymer gaskets used to seal frame members in frame panel sections and section panels, compression of such materials should not exceed a deflection of between about 50% and about 70%, And for optimum performance, may be between about 20% and about 40% deflection.

In addition to closed cell compressible gasket materials, another example of a class of compressible gasket materials having desirable properties for use in constructing embodiments of gas enclosure assemblies in accordance with the present teachings includes hollow extruded compressible gaskets sheet material. As a class of materials, hollow extruded gasket materials possess desirable properties including, but not limited to, their robustness against chemical attack by a wide range of chemical species, their excellent moisture barrier properties, their elasticity over a wide temperature range, and their resistance to permanent Compression set. Such hollow extruded compressible gasket materials can have a variety of form factors such as, but not limited to, U-shaped cells, D-shaped cells, square cells, rectangular cells, and various custom shape factors of hollow extruded gasket materials Any form factor in . Various hollow extruded gasket materials can be manufactured from polymer materials used in closed cell compressible gasket fabrication. Various embodiments of hollow extruded gaskets can be made from such as, but not limited to: polysiloxane, neoprene, ethylene-propylene-diene terpolymer (EPT); using ethylene-propylene-diene-monomer (EPDM), vinyl nitrile, styrene-butadiene rubber (SBR) and its various copolymers and blends made of polymers and compounds. in this class Compression of empty cell gasket material should not exceed about 50% deflection in order to maintain desired properties.

While closed cell compressible gasket material classes and hollow extruded compressible gasket material classes have been given as examples, any compressible gasket material having the desired properties can be used to seal structural components such as various wall and roof framing member; and, as provided by the present teachings, sealing the various panels within the panel section frame.

10 is a bottom view of various embodiments of a roof panel of the present teachings, such as roof panel 250' of gas enclosure assembly 100 of FIG. 3 . According to various embodiments of gas enclosure assemblies of the present teachings, lighting equipment may be mounted on an interior top surface of a ceiling panel, such as ceiling panel 250' of gas enclosure assembly 100 of FIG. 3 . As depicted in Figure 10, a roof frame 250 having an interior portion 251 may have lighting mounted on the interior portion of various frame members. For example, the roof frame 250 may have two roof frame sections 40 that collectively have two roof frame beams 42 and 44 . Each roof frame section 40 may have a first side 41 positioned toward the inside of the roof frame 250 and a second side 43 positioned toward the outside of the roof frame 250 . For various embodiments providing lighting for gas enclosure systems in accordance with the present teachings, pairs of lighting elements 46 may be installed. Each pair of lighting elements 46 may include a first lighting element 45 adjacent to the first side 41 and a second lighting element 47 adjacent to the second side 43 of the roof frame section 40 . The number, positioning and grouping of lighting elements shown in Figure 10 are exemplary. The number and grouping of lighting elements may be varied in any desired or suitable manner. In various embodiments, the lighting elements can be mounted flat, while in other embodiments, the lighting elements can be mounted such that they can be moved to various positions and angles. The placement of lighting elements is not limited to the top panel ceiling 433 but may additionally or alternatively be located on any other interior surface, exterior surface, and combination of surfaces of the gas enclosure assembly 100 shown in FIG. 3 .

The various lighting elements may comprise any number, type of lamp or combination of lamps, such as halogen lamps, white lamps, incandescent lamps, arc lamps or light emitting diodes or devices (LEDs). For example, each lighting element may contain 1 LED to about 100 LEDs, about 10 LEDs to about 50 LEDs, or greater than 100 LEDs. LEDs or other lighting devices can emit any color or combination of colors within the color spectrum, outside the color spectrum, or a combination thereof. According to various embodiments of the gas enclosure assembly for inkjet printing of OLED materials, the wavelength of light of the illumination device installed in the gas enclosure assembly can be specifically selected because some materials are sensitive to certain wavelengths of light to avoid material degradation during handling. For example, 4X cool white LEDs can be used as 4X yellow LEDs or any combination thereof. An example of a 4X cool white LED is the LF1B-D4S-2THWW4 available from IDEC Corporation of Sunnyvale, CA. An example of a 4X yellow LED that can be used is LF1B-D4S-2SHY6, also available from IDEC Corporation. LEDs or other lighting elements may be positioned or suspended anywhere on the interior portion 251 of the roof frame 250 or on another surface of the gas enclosure assembly. The lighting elements are not limited to LEDs. Any suitable lighting element or combination of lighting elements may be used. Figure 11 is a graph of IDEC LED spectra and shows the X-axis corresponding to the intensity at 100% of the peak intensity and the Y-axis corresponding to the wavelength in nanometers. Shown are the spectra of: LF1B Yellow Type, Yellow Fluorescent Lamp, LF1B White Type LED, LF1B Cool White Type LED, and LF1B Red Type LED. Other spectra and combinations of spectra can be used in accordance with various embodiments of the present teachings.

A gas enclosure system according to the present teachings can have a gas circulation and filtration system inside the gas enclosure assembly. Such an internal filtration system may have a plurality of fan filter units within the interior, and may be configured to provide a laminar flow of gas within the interior. Laminar flow may be in the direction from inner top to inner bottom or in any other direction. Although the gas flow generated by the circulation system need not be laminar, a laminar flow of gas can be used to ensure thorough and complete inversion of the gas in the interior. Laminar gas flow can also be used to minimize turbulence, which is undesirable because it can cause particles in the environment to collect in these turbulent regions, thereby preventing filtration systems from removing these particles from the environment .

FIG. 12 depicts a phantom right front perspective view of a circulation and filtration system 1500 that may include a ductwork assembly 1501 and a fan filter unit assembly 1502 of the gas enclosure assembly 100 . The enclosure plumbing assembly 1501 may have a front wall panel plumbing assembly 1510 . As shown, the front wall panel ductwork assembly 1510 may have a front wall panel inlet duct 1512, a first front wall panel riser 1514, and a second front wall panel riser 1516, both of which are Inlet duct with front wall panel 1512 is in fluid communication. A first front wall panel riser 1514 is shown having an outlet 1515 that sealably engages a ceiling duct 1505 of the fan filter unit cover 103 . In a similar manner, the second front wall panel riser 1516 is shown having an outlet 1517 that sealably engages the ceiling duct 1507 of the fan filter unit cover 103 . In this regard, a front panel ductwork assembly 1510 is provided for circulating inert gas within the gas enclosure system from the bottom through each front panel riser 1514 and 1516 utilizing a front panel inlet duct 1512, And air is delivered through ceiling ducts 1505 and 1507 respectively so that the air can be filtered by fan filter unit 1552 such as fan filter unit assembly 1502 . Adjacent to fan filter unit 1552 is heat exchanger 1562 as part of a thermal regulation system that maintains inert gas circulating through gas enclosure assembly 100 at a desired temperature.

Right wall panel ductwork assembly 1530 may have right wall panel inlet duct 1532 in fluid communication with right wall panel upper duct 1538 via right wall panel first riser 1534 and right wall panel second riser 1536 . Right wall panel upper duct 1538 may have a first duct inlet end 1535 and a second duct outlet end 1537 in fluid communication with rear wall panel upper duct 1546 of rear wall ductwork assembly 1540 . The left wall panel ductwork assembly 1520 may have the same components as described for the right wall panel assembly 1530, where in FIG. The upper panel duct (not shown) is in fluid communication with the left wall panel inlet duct 1522 . Rear wall panel ductwork assembly 1540 may have a rear wall panel inlet duct 1542 in fluid communication with left wall panel assembly 1520 and right wall panel assembly 1530 . In addition, the rear wall panel ductwork assembly 1540 may have a rear wall panel bottom duct 1544 which may have a rear wall panel first inlet 1541 and a rear wall panel second inlet 1543 . The rear wall panel bottom duct 1544 can be in fluid communication with the rear wall panel upper duct 1546 via a first bulkhead 1547 and a second bulkhead 1549, wherein the bulkhead structure can be used for example, but not limited to, to connect various cable bundles, wire bundles, and tube bundles and The analogue is fed from the exterior of the gas enclosure assembly 100 into the interior. Conduit opening 1533 provides for the removal of cable bundles, wire bundles and tubing bundles and the like out of rear wall panel upper conduit 1546 which can be accessed via The pipe 1546 passes through the upper part of the rear wall panel by the bulkhead 1549 . Bulkheads 1547 and 1549 can be hermetically sealed to the exterior using removable insert panels as previously described. The rear wall panel upper duct is in fluid communication with, for example but not limited to, a fan filter unit 1554 via a vent hole 1545 , one corner of which is shown in FIG. 12 . In this regard, left wall panel ductwork assembly 1520, right wall panel ductwork assembly 1530, and rear wall panel ductwork assembly 1540 provide for utilizing wall panel inlet ducts 1522, 1532, and 1542 and rear panel lower portions, respectively. Conduits 1544 to circulate the inert gas from the bottom within the gas enclosure assembly are in fluid communication with vents 1545 via various risers, ducts, bulkhead channels and the like as previously described. Thus, air may be filtered by, for example, fan filter unit 1554 of fan filter unit assembly 1502 of circulation and filtration system 1500 . Adjacent to fan filter unit 1554 is heat exchanger 1564 as part of a thermal regulation system that maintains inert gas circulating through gas enclosure assembly 100 at a desired temperature. As will be discussed in more detail subsequently, the number, size and shape of fan filter units for a fan filter unit assembly, such as fan filter unit assembly 1502 including fan filter units 1552 and 1554 of circulation and filtration system 1500 Can be selected based on the physical location of the substrate in the printing system during processing. The number, size and shape of the fan filter units used in the fan filter unit assembly are selected relative to the physical travel of the substrate to provide a low particle zone adjacent to the substrate during the substrate manufacturing process.

In Fig. 12, the cable feed through opening 1533 is shown. As will be discussed in more detail subsequently, various embodiments of gas enclosure assemblies of the present teachings provide for routing bundles of cables, wires, and tubing, and the like, through ductwork. To eliminate leak paths formed around such bundles, various methods of using conformal materials to seal cables, wires and tubing of different sizes in bundles are available. Also shown in FIG. 12 are conduits I and II of the enclosure piping assembly 1501 , which are shown as part of the fan filter unit cover 103 . Conduit I provides an outlet for the inert gas to the external gas purification system, while conduit II provides the return of the purified inert gas to the circulation and filtration loop inside the gas enclosure assembly 100 .

In Figure 13, a top phantom perspective view of the inclusion tubing assembly 1501 is shown. visible The symmetrical nature of the left wall panel ductwork assembly 1520 and the right wall panel ductwork assembly 1530 . For right wall panel ductwork assembly 1530 , right wall panel inlet duct 1532 is in fluid communication with right wall panel upper duct 1538 via right wall panel first riser 1534 and right wall panel second riser 1536 . Right wall panel upper duct 1538 may have a first duct inlet end 1535 and a second duct outlet end 1537 in fluid communication with rear wall panel upper duct 1546 of rear wall ductwork assembly 1540 . Similarly, the left wall panel ductwork assembly 1520 may have a left wall panel inlet duct 1522 that connects to the left wall panel upper duct via a first left wall panel riser 1524 and a left wall panel second riser 1526 1528 is in fluid communication. Left wall panel upper duct 1528 may have a first duct inlet end 1525 and a second duct outlet end 1527 in fluid communication with rear wall panel upper duct 1546 of rear wall ductwork assembly 1540 . Additionally, the rear wall panel duct assembly may have a rear wall panel inlet duct 1542 in fluid communication with the left wall panel assembly 1520 and the right wall panel assembly 1530 . In addition, the rear wall panel ductwork assembly 1540 may have a rear wall panel bottom duct 1544 which may have a rear wall panel first inlet 1541 and a rear wall panel second inlet 1543 . Rear wall panel bottom duct 1544 may be in fluid communication with rear wall panel upper duct 1546 via first bulkhead 1547 and second bulkhead 1549 . As shown in Figures 12 and 13, ductwork assembly 1501 can provide efficient circulation of inert gas from front wall panel ductwork assembly 1510, which allows inert gas to flow from the front wall via front wall panel outlets 1515 and 1517, respectively. Panel inlet duct 1512 circulates to roof panel ducts 1505 and 1507 and provides effective circulation of inert gas from left wall panel assembly 1520, right wall panel assembly 1530, and rear wall panel ductwork assembly 1540, which effectively circulates air Circulate from inlet pipes 1522, 1532 and 1542 to vent 1545, respectively. Once the inert gas is vented into the enclosure area below the fan filter unit cover 103 of the enclosure 100 via the ceiling panel ducts 1505 and 1507 and vent 1545, the inert gas so vented can pass through the fan of the fan filter unit assembly 1502 Filter units 1552 and 1554 to filter. Additionally, circulating inert gas can be maintained at the desired temperature by heat exchangers 1562 and 1564 that are part of the thermal regulation system.

FIG. 14 is a phantom view of the bottom of the enclosure tubing assembly 1501 . inlet pipe assembly 1509 includes front wall panel inlet conduit 1512, left wall panel inlet conduit 1522, right wall panel inlet conduit 1532, and rear wall panel inlet conduit 1542 in fluid communication with one another. As previously discussed, conduit I provides an outlet for the inert gas to an external gas purification system, while conduit II provides the return of the purified inert gas to the circulation and filtration loop inside the gas enclosure assembly 100 .

For each inlet duct included in inlet ductwork assembly 1509, there is an even distribution of apparent openings across the bottom of each duct, each set of openings being specifically highlighted as a front wall for purposes of this teaching Opening 1504 of panel inlet duct 1512 , opening 1521 of left wall panel inlet duct 1522 , opening 1531 of right wall panel inlet duct 1532 and opening 1541 of rear wall panel inlet duct 1542 . Since such openings are surface openings across the bottom of each inlet conduit, such openings provide for efficient absorption of inert gas within enclosure 100 for continuous circulation and filtration. The continuous circulation and filtration of the inert gas of the various embodiments of the gas enclosure assembly is part of the particle control system that may be provided for maintaining a substantially particle-free environment within the various embodiments of the gas enclosure system. Various embodiments of the gas circulation and filtration system can be designed to provide a low particle environment with airborne particles that meets the standards of the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) 14644-1:1999: "Clean rooms and associated controlled environments- Part 1: Classification of Air Cleanliness", as specified in categories 1 to 5.

In addition to the gas enclosure system that utilizes a gas circulation and filtration system to provide laminar flow of gas to ensure thorough and complete inversion of the gas within the interior, a thermal regulation system utilizing multiple heat exchangers to maintain the interior interior can be provided. desired temperature. For example, a plurality of heat exchangers may be provided to operate with, adjacent to, or in conjunction with a fan or another gas circulation device. The gas purification circuit may be configured to circulate gas from within the interior of the gas enclosure assembly via at least one gas purification component external to the enclosure. In this regard, the circulation and filtration system inside the gas enclosure assembly combined with the gas purification circuit external to the gas enclosure assembly can provide a continuous circulation of a substantially low particulate inert gas throughout the The gas inclusion system has a substantially low content of reactive species. Various embodiments of gas inclusion systems with gas purification systems can be configured to maintain very low levels of unwanted components components such as organic solvents and their vapors, as well as water, water vapour, oxygen and the like.

FIG. 15 is a schematic diagram showing a gas enclosure system 502 . Various embodiments of the gas enclosure system 502 in accordance with the present teachings can include a gas enclosure assembly 1101 for housing a printing system, a gas purification circuit 3130 in fluid communication with the gas enclosure assembly 1101, and at least one thermal regulation system 3140. In addition, various embodiments of the gas enclosure system 502 can have a pressurized inert gas recirculation system 3000 that can supply inert gas for operating various devices, such as substrate floating stages for OLED printing systems. Various embodiments of the pressurized inert gas recirculation system 3000 may utilize compressors, blowers, and combinations of both as sources for the various embodiments of the pressurized inert gas recirculation system 3000, as will be discussed in more detail subsequently. In addition, the gas enclosure system 502 may have a circulation and filtration system (not shown) inside the gas enclosure system 502 .

As depicted in FIG. 15 , for various embodiments of gas enclosure assemblies in accordance with the present teachings, the piping system is designed to combine the inert gas circulated through gas purification circuit 3130 with the various components in the gas enclosure assembly. Embodiment The inert gas separation of internal continuous filtration and circulation. Gas purification circuit 3130 includes outlet line 3131 from gas enclosure assembly 1101 to solvent removal assembly 3132 and then to gas flushing system 3134 . The inert gas purified from solvents and other reactive gas species such as oxygen and water vapor is then returned to the gas enclosure assembly 1101 via inlet line 3133 . The gas purification circuit 3130 may also include appropriate conduits and connections, and sensors, such as oxygen, water vapor, and solvent vapor sensors. A gas circulation unit such as a fan, blower or motor and the like may be provided separately or integrated in, for example, the gas purification system 3134 in order to circulate the gas through the gas purification circuit 3130 . According to various embodiments of the gas enclosure assembly, although the solvent removal system 3132 and the gas purification system 3134 are schematically shown as separate units in FIG. be accommodated.

The gas purification loop 3130 of FIG. 15 may have a solvent removal system 3132 placed upstream of the gas purification system 3134 so that the inert gas circulated from the gas enclosure assembly 1101 passes through the outlet tube Line 3131 passes through solvent removal system 3132. According to various embodiments, the solvent removal system 3132 may be a solvent capture system based on absorbing solvent vapor from an inert gas passing through the solvent removal system 3132 of FIG. 15 . One or more beds of adsorbents such as, but not limited to, activated carbon, molecular sieves, and the like can effectively remove a variety of organic solvent vapors. For various embodiments of the gas enclosure system, cold capture techniques may be employed to remove solvent vapor in the solvent removal system 3132 . As previously noted, for various embodiments of gas enclosure systems according to the present teachings, sensors such as oxygen, water vapor, and solvent vapor sensors can be used to monitor the self-continuous circulation of such species through the gas enclosure. Efficient removal of inert gases from a bulk system, such as the gas enclosure system 502 of FIG. 15 . Various embodiments of the solvent removal system can indicate when an adsorbent, such as activated carbon, molecular sieves, and the like, has reached capacity so that one or more beds of the adsorbent can be regenerated or replaced. Regeneration of the molecular sieve may involve heating the molecular sieve, contacting the molecular sieve with a gas mixture, combinations thereof, and the like. Molecular sieves configured to trap various species including oxygen, water vapor, and solvents can be regenerated by heating and exposing to a gas mixture containing hydrogen, such as a gas mixture containing about 96% nitrogen and 4% hydrogen , the percentages are either by volume or by weight. Physical regeneration of activated carbon can be performed using a similar heating procedure under an inert environment.

Any suitable gas purification system may be used for gas purification system 3134 of gas purification circuit 3130 of FIG. 15 . Gas purification systems such as those available from MBRAUN Inc. of Statham, NH or Innovative Technology of Amesbury, MA may be suitable for integration into gas enclosures in accordance with the present teachings Various embodiments of the assembly. The gas purification system 3134 can be used to purify one or more inert gases within the gas enclosure system 502, such as purifying the overall gas atmosphere within the gas enclosure assembly. As previously stated, to circulate the gas through the gas purification loop 3130, the gas purification system 3134 may have a gas circulation unit such as a fan, blower or motor and the like. In this regard, the gas purification system can be selected depending on the volume of the enclosure, which can define the volumetric flow rate at which the inert gas is moved through the gas purification system. For various embodiments of the gas enclosure system having a gas enclosure assembly with a volume of up to about 4 m ³ , a gas purification system that can move about 84 m ³ /h can be used. For various embodiments of the gas enclosure system having a gas enclosure assembly with a volume of up to about 10 m ³ , a gas purification system that can move about 155 m ³ /h can be used. For various embodiments of the gas enclosure assembly having a volume between about ^52m3 and ^114m3 , more than one gas purification system may be used.

Any suitable gas filter or purification device may be included in gas flushing system 3134 of the present teachings. In some embodiments, a gas purification system may comprise two parallel purification units such that one of the units can be taken offline for maintenance while the other unit can be used to continue system operation without interruption. In some embodiments, for example, a gas purification system can include one or more molecular sieves. In some embodiments, the gas purification system may comprise at least a first molecular sieve and a second molecular sieve such that when one of the molecular sieves becomes saturated with impurities or is otherwise deemed insufficient to operate efficiently, the system may switch to the other molecular sieve, Simultaneously regenerate saturated or ineffective molecular sieves. A control unit may be provided for determining the operating efficiency of each molecular sieve, for switching between the operation of different molecular sieves, for regenerating one or more molecular sieves, or for a combination thereof. As previously described, molecular sieves can be regenerated and reused.

The thermal regulation system 3140 of FIG. 15 may include at least one cooler 3142 which may have a fluid outlet line 3141 for circulating the coolant into the gas enclosure assembly and a fluid for returning the coolant to the cooler. Inlet line 3143. At least one fluid cooler 3142 may be provided for cooling the gas atmosphere within the gas enclosure system 502 . For various embodiments of the gas enclosure system of the present teachings, fluid cooler 3142 delivers cooling fluid to a heat exchanger within the enclosure where the inert gas is passed over a filtration system inside the enclosure. At least one fluid cooler may also be provided with a gas enclosure system 502 for cooling the heat emitted from equipment enclosed within the gas enclosure system 502 . For example and without limitation, at least one fluid cooler may also be provided for the gas enclosure system 502 to cool the heat emitted from the OLED printing system. Thermal regulation system 3140 may comprise a heat exchange or Peltier device and may have various cooling capacities. For example, for various embodiments of the gas enclosure system, the cooler may provide a cooling capacity of between about 2 kW and about 20 kW. Various embodiments of the gas enclosure system may have a plurality of fluid coolers that can cool one or more fluids. In some embodiments, the fluid cooler can use multiple fluids for cooling Agents such as, but not limited to, water as heat exchange fluids, antifreezes, refrigerants, and combinations thereof. Appropriate leak-free locking connections can be used to connect associated conduits to system components.

As shown in FIG. 15 , various embodiments of a gas enclosure system may include a pressurized inert gas recirculation system 3000 . Various embodiments of the pressurized inert gas recirculation loop may utilize compressors, blowers, and combinations thereof.

For example, as shown in FIG. 16, various embodiments of the gas enclosure system 503 may have an external gas circuit 3200 for integrating and controlling a source of inert gas 3201 suitable for various aspects of operating the gas enclosure system 503 and clean dry air (CDA) source 3203. The gas enclosure system 503 may also include various embodiments of an internal particle filtration and gas circulation system, as well as various embodiments of an external gas purification system as previously described. In addition to the external circuit 3200 for integrating and controlling the source of inert gas 3201 and the source of CDA 3203, the gas enclosure system 503 can have a compressor circuit 3250 that can supply inert gas for operation and can be placed in the gas enclosure Various devices and equipment inside the system 503.

The compressor circuit 3250 of FIG. 16 may include a compressor 3262 , a first accumulator 3264 , and a second accumulator 3268 configured in fluid communication. Compressor 3262 may be configured to compress the inert gas drawn from gas enclosure assembly 1101 to a desired pressure. The inlet side of compressor circuit 3250 may be in fluid communication with gas enclosure assembly 1101 via gas enclosure assembly outlet 3252 via line 3254 having valve 3256 and check valve 3258 . The compressor circuit 3250 may be in fluid communication with the gas enclosure assembly 1101 via the external gas circuit 3200 on the outlet side of the compressor circuit 3250 . The accumulator 3264 can be positioned between the compressor 3262 and the interface of the compressor circuit 3250 and the external gas circuit 3200, and can be configured to generate a pressure of 5 psig or higher. A second accumulator 3268 may be in the compressor circuit 3250 for providing damped fluctuations due to the compressor piston cycling at about 60 Hz. For various embodiments of the compressor circuit 3250, the first accumulator 3264 can have a capacity between about 80 gallons and about 160 gallons, while the second accumulator can have a capacity between about 30 gallons and about 60 gallons. room capacity. According to various implementations of the gas enclosure system 503 For example, compressor 3262 may be a zero flow compressor. Various types of zero-inflow compressors can operate without leaking atmospheric gas into various embodiments of the gas enclosure systems of the present teachings. Various embodiments of a zero-inflow compressor can operate continuously, for example, during an OLED printing process utilizing the use of various devices and equipment requiring compressed inert gas.

Accumulator 3264 may be configured to receive and accumulate compressed inert gas from compressor 3262 . The accumulator 3264 can supply compressed inert gas in the gas enclosure assembly 1101 as needed. For example, accumulator 3264 may provide gas to maintain pressure in various components of gas enclosure assembly 1101 such as, but not limited to, one or more of the following: pneumatic robot, substrate float, air bearing, air liner, compression Gas tools, pneumatic actuators and combinations thereof. As shown for gas enclosure system 503 in FIG. 16 , gas enclosure assembly 1101 may have OLED printing system 2003 encapsulated therein. As schematically depicted in Figure 16, inkjet printing system 2003 may be supported by printing system base 2100, which may be a granite platform. The printing system base 2100 can support substrate support equipment, such as chucks, such as, but not limited to, vacuum chucks; substrate floating chucks with pressure ports; and substrate floating chucks with vacuum and pressure ports. In various embodiments of the present teachings, the substrate support apparatus may be a substrate floating stage, such as the substrate floating stage 2200 indicated in FIG. 16 . The substrate floating stage 2200 can be used for frictionless support of substrates. In addition to a low particle generating floating stage, the printing system 2003 can have a y-axis motion system utilizing air bushings for frictionless y-axis transport of substrates. Additionally, printing system 2003 may have at least one X, Z axis carriage assembly with motion control provided by a low particle generating X axis air bearing assembly. Various components of the low particle generating motion system, such as the X-axis air bearing assembly, can be used in place of, for example, various particle generating linear mechanical bearing systems. For various embodiments of the gas enclosures and systems of the present teachings, the use of various pneumatically operated devices and equipment can provide low particle production efficiency and low maintenance. Compressor circuit 3250 may be configured to continuously supply pressurized inert gas to various devices and equipment of gas enclosure system 503 . In addition to supplying pressurized inert gas, substrate floating stage 2200 of inkjet printing system 2003 using air bearing technology also utilizes vacuum system 3270 via line 3272 and gas enclosure assembly when valve 3274 is in the open position 1101 fluid communication.

A pressurized inert gas recirculation system in accordance with the present teachings may have a pressure controlled bypass circuit 3260 as shown in FIG. 16 for the compressor circuit 3250 that functions to compensate for the pressurized gas during use. The variable demand of the present teaching provides a dynamic balance for various embodiments of the gas enclosure system. For various embodiments of gas enclosure systems according to the present teachings, a bypass loop can maintain a constant pressure within accumulator 3264 without disturbing or changing the pressure within enclosure 1101 . The bypass circuit 3260 may have a first bypass inlet valve 3261 on the inlet side of the bypass circuit, which is closed until the bypass circuit 3260 is used. The bypass circuit 3260 may also have a back pressure regulator 3266 available when the second valve 3263 is closed. The bypass loop 3260 may have a second accumulator 3268 disposed at the outlet side of the bypass loop 3260 . For embodiments utilizing the compressor circuit 3250 with zero inflow to the compressor, the bypass circuit 3260 can compensate for small pressure excursions that can occur over time during use of the gas enclosure system. Bypass circuit 3260 may be in fluid communication with compressor circuit 3250 on the inlet side of bypass circuit 3260 when bypass inlet valve 3261 is in the open position. With the bypass inlet valve 3261 open, the inert gas diverted through the bypass loop 3260 can be recycled to the compressor if the inert gas from the compressor loop 3250 is no longer needed within the interior of the gas enclosure assembly 1101 . Compressor circuit 3250 is configured to divert inert gas via bypass circuit 3260 when the pressure of the inert gas in accumulator 3264 exceeds a preset threshold pressure. The preset threshold pressure of accumulator 3264 may be between about 25 psig and about 200 psig at a flow rate of at least about 1 cubic foot per minute (cfm), or at a flow rate of at least about 1 cubic foot per minute (cfm) Between about 50 psig and about 150 psig, or between about 75 psig and about 125 psig at a flow rate of at least about 1 cubic foot per minute (cfm), or at a flow rate of at least about 1 cubic foot per minute (cfm) The rate is between about 90 psig and about 95 psig.

Various embodiments of the compressor circuit 3250 may utilize various compressors other than zero inflow compressors, such as variable speed compressors or compressors that can be controlled to be on or off. As previously discussed, the zero inflow compressor ensures that atmospheric reactive species cannot be introduced into the gas inclusion system. Therefore, prevent Any compressor configuration that introduces atmospheric reactive species into the gas inclusion system may be used for compressor loop 3250 . According to various embodiments, the compressor 3262 of the gas enclosure system 503 may be housed in, for example but not limited to, a hermetically sealed enclosure. The interior of the enclosure can be configured to be in fluid communication with a source of an inert gas, such as the same inert gas that forms the inert gas atmosphere for the gas enclosure assembly 1101 . For various embodiments of compressor circuit 3250, compressor 3262 may be controlled at a constant speed in order to maintain a constant pressure. In other embodiments of compressor circuit 3250 that do not utilize zero inflow to the compressor, compressor 3262 may be turned off when a maximum threshold pressure is reached and turned on when a minimum threshold pressure is reached.

In FIG. 17, a blower circuit 3280 utilizing a vacuum blower 3290 for the gas enclosure system 504 is shown for operating the substrate floating stage 2200 of the inkjet printing system 2003 housed in the gas enclosure. Body Assembly 1101. As previously discussed for compressor circuit 3250 , blower circuit 3280 may be configured to continuously supply pressurized inert gas to substrate float 2200 of printing system 2003 .

Various embodiments of gas enclosure systems that may utilize pressurized inert gas recirculation systems may have various circuits utilizing various sources of pressurized gas, such as at least one of compressors, blowers, and combinations thereof. In FIG. 17 , for gas enclosure system 504 , compressor circuit 3250 may be in fluid communication with external gas circuit 3200 , which may be used to supply inert gas to high consumption manifold 3225 and low consumption manifold 3215 . For various embodiments of gas enclosure systems in accordance with the present teachings, as shown in FIG. It is limited to one or more of substrate floating table, pneumatic robot, air bearing, air bushing and compressed gas tool and combinations thereof. For various embodiments of gas enclosure systems according to the present teachings, low consumption manifold 3215 may be used to supply inert gas to various equipment and devices such as, but not limited to, one or more of isolators and pneumatic actuators and their combinations.

For various embodiments of the gas enclosure system 504 of FIG. It may be used to supply pressurized inert gas to, for example, but not limited to, one or more of pneumatic robots, air bearings, air bushings, and compressed air tools, and combinations thereof. In addition to supplying pressurized inert gas, the substrate floating stage 2200 of the OLED inkjet printing system 2003 using air bearing technology also utilizes a vacuum blower 3290 that communicates with the gas enclosure via line 3292 when the valve 3294 is in the open position. into 1101 fluid communication. The housing 3282 of the blower circuit 3280 can hold a first blower 3284 for supplying a source of pressurized inert gas to the substrate floating stage 2200, and have a second blower 3290 act as a vacuum source for the substrate floating stage 2200 contained in the gas In the inert gas environment of the package body assembly 1101. Attributes of various embodiments that may make a blower suitable for use as a source of pressurized inert gas or vacuum for use with a floating substrate include, for example, but not limited to, that it has high reliability; that it is low maintenance; that it has variable speed control; and that it has Wide range of flow volumes; various embodiments are capable of providing volume flow rates between about 100 m ³ /h and about 2,500 m ³ /h. Various embodiments of the blower circuit 3280 may additionally have a first isolation valve 3283 at the inlet end of the blower circuit 3280 , and a check valve 3285 and a second isolation valve 3287 at the outlet end of the blower circuit 3280 . Various embodiments of the blower circuit 3280 may have an adjustable valve 3286 which may be, for example but not limited to, a gate valve, a butterfly valve, a needle valve, or a ball valve, and for maintaining the inert gas at a defined temperature from the blower circuit 3280 to the substrate float 2200 Below the heat exchanger 3288.

Figure 17 depicts an external gas circuit 3200, also shown in Figure 16, for integrating and controlling the inert gas source 3201 and Clean Dry Air (CDA) source 3203. The external gas circuit 3200 of FIGS. 16 and 17 may include at least four mechanical valves. These valves include a first mechanical valve 3202 , a second mechanical valve 3204 , a third mechanical valve 3206 and a fourth mechanical valve 3208 . These various valves are located at various locations within various flow lines that allow control of both inert gases such as nitrogen, any noble gas, and any combination thereof, and air sources such as clean dry air (CDA). Contained inert gas line 3210 extends from source 3201 of contained inert gas. Contained inert gas line 3210 continues with low consumption manifold line 3212 Extending linearly, the low consumption manifold line is in fluid communication with low consumption manifold 3215. The intersection line first section 3214 extends from a first flow junction 3216 at the intersection of the contained inert gas line 3210 , the low consumption manifold line 3212 and the intersection line first section 3214 . The cross-line first section 3214 extends to a second flow junction 3218 . Compressor inert gas line 3220 extends from accumulator 3264 of compressor circuit 3250 and terminates at second flow junction 3218 . CDA line 3222 extends from CDA source 3203 and continues with high consumption manifold line 3224 , which is in fluid communication with high consumption manifold 3225 . The third flow junction 3226 is located at the intersection of the second section of crossing line 3228 , the clean dry air line 3222 and the high consumption manifold line 3224 . Intersection line second section 3228 extends from second flow junction 3218 to third flow junction 3226 . Various components with high consumption can supply CDA by means of high consumption pipe 3225 during maintenance. Isolating the compressor using valves 3204, 3208, and 3230 prevents reactive species such as oxygen and water vapor from contaminating the inert gas within the compressor and accumulator.

As previously discussed, the present teachings disclose various embodiments of a gas enclosure system that can include a gas enclosure assembly defining a first volume and a secondary enclosure defining a second volume. Various embodiments of the gas enclosure system can have a secondary enclosure that can be configured in a sealable manner as a segment of the gas enclosure assembly and easily integrated with gas circulation, filtration, and purification components to form an inert , A gas enclosure system for a substantially particle-free environment with little or no interruption to the printing process, the inert, substantially particle-free environment being used in processes requiring such an environment. For example, all steps associated with a printhead management program can be performed to eliminate or minimize exposure of the printing system enclosure to contaminants such as air and water and various organic vapors, as well as particulate contaminants. According to various systems and methods of the present teachings, printing system inclusions can be introduced to sufficiently low levels of contamination that a purification system can remove the contaminants before they can affect the printing process.

Various embodiments of printing system enclosures and auxiliary enclosures configured as segments of a gas enclosure assembly in accordance with various systems and methods of the present teachings can be configured in a manner that provides independently functioning frame member assembly segments. The gas enclosure system 505 of FIG. 18 may have a first gas enclosure assembly section 1101 defining a first volume of the gas enclosure assembly 1101 in addition to having all the elements disclosed for the gas enclosure systems 502 to 504 - S1 and the second gas enclosure assembly section 1101 -S2 of the gas enclosure assembly 1101 defining the second volume. If all valves V ₁ , V ₂ , V ₃ and V ₄ are open, the gas purification circuit 3130 operates essentially as previously described for the gas enclosure assembly and system 1101 of FIG. 15 . With V ₃ and V ₄ closed, only the first gas enclosure assembly section 1101 -S1 is in fluid communication with the gas purification circuit 3130 . Such a valve state may be used, for example but not limited to, when the second gas enclosure assembly section 1101-S2 can be sealed in a sealable manner When isolated from the first gas enclosure assembly section 1101-S1 during various measurements and maintenance procedures open to the atmosphere. With V ₁ and V ₂ closed, only the second gas enclosure assembly section 1101 -S2 is in fluid communication with the gas purification circuit 3130 . Such a valve state may be used, for example but not limited to, during recovery of the second gas enclosure assembly section 1101-S2 after the section has been opened to atmosphere. As mentioned previously with respect to the present teachings in relation to FIG. 15 , the requirements for the gas purification circuit 3130 are specified relative to the total volume of the gas enclosure assembly 1101 . Thus, recovery time can be substantially reduced by dedicating the source of the gas purification system to the recovery of a gas enclosure assembly section, such as the second gas enclosure assembly section 1101-S2 , which is depicted in FIG. 18 as having a volume significantly smaller than the total volume of gas inclusions 1101 .

In addition, the various embodiments of the auxiliary enclosure can be easily integrated with a set of dedicated environmental conditioning system components, such as lighting components, gas circulation and filtration components, gas purification components, and thermostatic components. In this regard, various embodiments of a gas enclosure system including a secondary enclosure that may be sealably configured as a section of a gas enclosure assembly may have a controlled environment configured and controlled by The first volume defined by the gas package assembly containing the printing system is consistent. Additionally, various embodiments of a gas enclosure system including a secondary enclosure that may be sealably configured as a section of a gas enclosure assembly may have a controlled environment configured and controlled by a housing printing system The controlled environment of the first volume defined by the gas enclosure assembly is different.

In retrospect, the various embodiments of the gas enclosure assembly used in embodiments of the gas enclosure system of the present teachings can be constructed in such a way that the internal volume of the gas enclosure assembly is minimized while optimizing Optimized working volumes for various footprints to accommodate OLED printing system designs. For example, various embodiments of shaped gas enclosure assemblies according to the present teachings can have gas enclosure volumes of between about ⁶ m and about 95 ^m for various embodiments of gas enclosure assemblies of the present teachings, This covers substrate sizes from Gen 3.5 to Gen 10. Various embodiments of shaped gas enclosure assemblies in accordance with the present teachings may have, for example and without limitation, a gas enclosure volume of between about 15 m ³ and about 30 m ³ , which may be suitable for use with, for example, 5.5 OLED printing up to the 8.5th generation substrate size. Various embodiments of secondary enclosures can be configured as a segment of a gas enclosure assembly and readily integrated with gas circulation and filtration and purification components to form a gas enclosure system that can remain inert, substantially A particle-free environment is used for processes that require such an environment.

According to various embodiments of the systems and methods of the present teachings, the configuration of frame member configurations, panel configurations, frame and panel seals, and gas enclosure assemblies, such as gas enclosure assembly 100 of FIG. And designed gas package assembly. For example and without limitation, various embodiments of shaped gas enclosure assemblies of the present teachings encompassing Gen 3.5 to Gen 10 substrate sizes may have an internal volume between about ⁶ m and about 95 ^m , for an enclosure that is unformed and of comparable overall size, the internal volume can be saved between about 30% and about 70% in volume. Various embodiments of the gas enclosure assembly can have various frame members configured to provide contours to the gas enclosure assembly to facilitate operation of various embodiments of the printing system optimally adapted to the present teachings volume; while minimizing inert gas volume and to allow ready access to the OLED printing system from the outside during processing. In this regard, the molding topology and volume of the various gas enclosure assemblies of the present teachings may vary.

Additionally, various embodiments of the gas enclosure system of the present teachings may utilize a gas enclosure assembly having a secondary enclosure that may be sealably configured as a section of the gas enclosure assembly for easy Perform various procedures related to the ongoing management of the printing system, such as but not limited to processes related to managing the print head assembly. Various implementations for gas enclosure assemblies with auxiliary enclosures For example, the sub-frame member assembly section may be less than or equal to about 1% of the enclosure volume of the gas enclosure system. In various embodiments of the gas enclosure assembly, the sub-frame member assembly section may be less than or equal to about 2% of the volume of the enclosure of the gas enclosure system. For various embodiments of the gas enclosure assembly, the sub-frame member assembly section may be less than or equal to about 5% of the enclosure volume of the gas enclosure system. In various embodiments of the gas enclosure assembly, the sub-frame member assembly section may be less than or equal to about 10% of the volume of the enclosure of the gas enclosure system. In various embodiments of the gas enclosure assembly, the sub-frame member assembly section may be less than or equal to about 20% of the enclosure volume of the gas enclosure system. Various procedures related to the continuous management of the printing system, such as but not limited to various process steps related to the management of the print head assembly, can be executed in the auxiliary package. According to various systems and methods of the present teachings, the auxiliary enclosure can be separated from the printing system enclosure portion of the gas enclosure system, thereby ensuring minimal or no interruption to the printing process. Furthermore, given the relatively small size of auxiliary packages, recovery of auxiliary packages may take significantly less time than recovery of overall printing system packages.

Additionally, various embodiments of gas enclosure assemblies of the present teachings can be constructed in a manner that provides independently functioning frame member assembly sections. Referring back to FIG. 5 , the frame member assemblies of various embodiments of gas enclosure assemblies and systems according to the present teachings may include a frame member having various panels sealably mounted to the frame member . For example and without limitation, a wall frame member assembly or a wall panel assembly may be a wall frame member comprising various panels sealably mounted to the wall frame member. Thus, various complete structural panel assemblies, such as, but not limited to, wall panel assemblies, roof panel assemblies, wall and roof panel assemblies, base support panel assemblies, and the like, are various types of frame member assemblies. The gas enclosure assembly of the present teachings can provide various embodiments for the gas enclosure assembly having various frame member assembly sections, where each frame member assembly section is 1/4 of the total volume of the gas enclosure assembly part. The various frame member assembly sections making up the various embodiments of the gas enclosure assembly may generally have at least one frame member. For the various embodiments of the gas enclosure assembly, the various frame member assembly sections making up the gas enclosure assembly can generally have at least one frame Frame assembly. The various frame member assembly sections making up the various embodiments of the gas enclosure assembly can generally have a combination of at least one frame member and a frame member assembly.

In accordance with the present teachings, various frame member assembly sections may be divided into sections by, for example and without limitation, closing openings or channels common to each frame member assembly section, or a combination thereof. For example, in various embodiments, an auxiliary frame member assembly section can effectively close the opening by covering an opening or channel in a frame member or frame member panel common to each frame member assembly section; or channels or combinations thereof. In various embodiments, the secondary frame member assembly sections may be separated by sealing openings or channels common to each frame member assembly section, or a combination thereof. In this regard, sealing the opening or channel or combination thereof may result in a separation, thereby interrupting the separation between the gas enclosure frame member assembly section defining the working volume and each volume of the auxiliary enclosure defining the second volume. in fluid communication between them, each volume being a fraction of the total volume contained within the gas enclosure assembly. Sealably closing the opening or passageway may thereby isolate the working volume of the gas enclosure assembly from the sub-frame member assembly section defining the second volume.

19 depicts a perspective view of a gas enclosure assembly 1000 according to various embodiments of a gas enclosure assembly of the present teachings. The gas enclosure assembly 1000 may include a front panel assembly 1200', a middle panel assembly 1300', and a rear panel assembly 1400'. The front panel assembly 1200' may include a front ceiling panel assembly 1260', a front wall panel assembly 1240' which may have an opening 1242 for receiving a substrate, and a front base panel assembly 1220'. The rear panel assembly 1400' may include a rear ceiling panel assembly 1460', a rear wall panel assembly 1440', and a rear base panel assembly 1420'. The intermediate panel assembly 1300' may include a first tundish panel assembly 1340', an intermediate wall and roof panel assembly 1360', a second tundish panel assembly 1380', and an intermediate base panel assembly 1320'. In addition, the middle panel assembly 1300' may include a first print head management system auxiliary panel assembly 1330' and a second print head management system auxiliary panel assembly (not shown). Various embodiments of a secondary enclosure configured as a segment of a gas enclosure assembly can be sealably isolated from the working volume of the gas enclosure system. This physical separation of secondary enclosures allows for various procedures, such as, but not limited to, various Maintenance procedures that are performed with little or no interruption to the printing process, thereby minimizing or eliminating gas enclosure system downtime.

As depicted in FIG. 20A , the gas enclosure assembly 1000 may include a front base panel assembly 1220', a middle base panel assembly 1320', and a rear base panel assembly 1420' which form abutting joints when fully constructed. A base or a chassis, on which the OLED printing system 2000 can be installed. In a manner similar to that described for the gas enclosure assembly 100 of FIG. 3 , the various frame members and Panels can be bonded around the OLED printing system 2000 . Thus, a fully constructed gas enclosure assembly such as gas enclosure assembly 1000 when integrated with various environmental control systems can form various embodiments of gas enclosure systems, including various embodiments of OLED printing system 2000 . According to various embodiments of the gas enclosure system of the present teachings as previously described, environmental control of the interior volume defined by the gas enclosure assembly may include: by the number and placement of lamps having specific wavelengths Control of lighting, control of particulate matter using various embodiments of gas circulation and filtration systems, control of reactive gas species using various embodiments of gas purification systems, and control of gas enclosure assemblies using various embodiments of thermal control systems The temperature control.

An OLED inkjet printing system, such as OLED printing system 2000 of FIG. 20A , shown in expanded view in FIG. 20B , may include devices and apparatus that allow for reliable placement of ink drops at specific locations on a substrate. Such devices and equipment may include, but are not limited to, printhead assemblies, ink delivery systems, motion systems, substrate support equipment, substrate loading and unloading systems, and printhead management systems.

The printhead assembly may include at least one inkjet head having at least one orifice capable of ejecting ink droplets at a controlled rate, velocity, and size. The inkjet head is fed by an ink supply system which provides ink to the inkjet head. As shown in the expanded view of FIG. 20B , OLED inkjet printing system 2000 can have a substrate such as substrate 2050 that can be supported by a substrate support device such as a chuck, such as but not limited to a vacuum chuck , Substrate floating chuck with pressure port and substrate floating chuck with vacuum port and pressure port. Various aspects of the systems and methods of the present teachings In an embodiment, the substrate supporting device may be a substrate floating stage. As will be discussed in more detail subsequently, the substrate floating stage 2200 of FIG. 20B can be used to support a substrate 2050 and can be combined with a Y-axis motion system as part of a substrate transfer system that provides frictionless transfer of the substrate 2050 . The substrate floating stage 2200 of the OLED inkjet printing system 2000 shown in FIGS. 20A and 20B can define the travel of the substrate 2050 through the gas enclosure assembly 1000 of FIG. 19 during the printing process. Printing requires relative motion between the print head assembly and the substrate. This system is completed using a motion system, which is usually a gantry or split axis XYZ system. The printhead assembly can be moved over a stationary substrate (gantry style), or in the case of a split shaft configuration, both the printhead and substrate can be moved. In another embodiment, the printhead assembly can be substantially stationary; for example, in the X and Y axes, and the substrate can be moved relative to the printheads in the X and Y axes, The Z-axis movement is provided by the substrate supporting device or provided by the Z-axis movement system associated with the print head assembly. As the print heads move relative to the substrate, droplets of ink are ejected at the correct time for deposition in the desired location on the substrate. Substrates may be inserted and removed from the printer using the substrate loading and unloading system. Depending on the printer configuration, this can be done using a mechanical conveyor, a substrate float with a transfer assembly, or a substrate transfer robot with a terminator. A print head management system may include several subsystems that allow such management tasks as checking nozzle firing and measurement of droplet volume, velocity and trajectory from each nozzle in the print head; and maintenance tasks such as wiping or blotting excess ink off the nozzle surface, priming and flushing the printhead by jetting ink from the ink supply through the printhead and into the waste pool, and replacing the printhead . Given the various components that can be included in an OLED printing system, various embodiments of an OLED printing system can have various footprints and form factors.

In the expanded view of the OLED printing system 2000 of FIG. 20B , various embodiments of the printing system may include a substrate floating stage 2200 supported by a substrate floating stage base 2220 . The substrate floating base 2220 can be installed on the printing system base 2100 . The substrate floating stage 2200 of the OLED printing system can support the substrate 2050 and define the travel that the substrate 2050 can move through the gas enclosure assembly 1000 during printing of the OLED substrate. In this regard, the substrate floating stage 2200 can move with the Y axis as depicted in FIG. 20B The system's kinematics combination provides frictionless transport of the substrate 2050 through the printing system.

FIG. 21 depicts a floating stage for frictionless support in combination with a transfer system to achieve stable transfer of loads such as substrate 2050 of FIG. 20B , according to various embodiments of the present teachings. The various embodiments of the floating table can be used with any of the various embodiments of the gas enclosure system of the present teachings. As previously discussed, various embodiments of the gas enclosure system of the present teachings can handle a range of OLED flat panel display substrate sizes, from sizes smaller than Gen 3.5 substrates having dimensions of about 61 cm x 72 cm and progressing to larger algebraic size. It should be contemplated that various embodiments of the gas enclosure system can handle Gen 5.5 substrate sizes having dimensions of approximately 130 cm x 150 cm, as well as Gen 7.5 substrate sizes having dimensions of approximately 195 cm x 225 cm, and can be cut into each Substrate Eight 42" flat panels or six 47" flat panels and larger. Gen 8.5 substrates are roughly 220 x 250 cm and can be cut into six 55" slabs or eight 46" slabs per substrate. However, substrate generation sizes continue to advance such that the currently available 10th substrate generation with dimensions of approximately 285 cm x 305 cm does not appear to be the final generation substrate size. Additionally, the dimensions described in terms resulting from the use of glass-based substrates can be adapted to substrates with any material suitable for OLED printing. For various embodiments of the OLED inkjet printing system, various substrate materials can be used for the substrate 2050, such as but not limited to various glass substrate materials and various polymer substrate materials. Thus, in various embodiments of the gas enclosure system of the present teachings, there are various substrate sizes and materials that need to be transported stably during printing.

As depicted in FIG. 21 , a substrate floating stage 2200 according to various embodiments of the present teachings can have a floating stage base 2220 for supporting a plurality of floating stage regions. The substrate float 2200 can have a region 2210 where both pressure and vacuum can be applied through a plurality of ports. Such a region with both pressure control and vacuum control can provide a fluid spring between region 2210 and the substrate (not shown). Region 2210 with both pressure control and vacuum control is a fluid spring with bi-directional stiffness. The gap that exists between the load and the surface of the floating table is called the fly height. A region such as region 2210 of substrate floating stage 2200 of FIG. And a vacuum port to create a fluid spring with bi-directional stiffness.

Adjacent to region 2210 are first transition region 2211 and second transition region 2212, respectively, and then adjacent to first transition region 2211 and second transition region 2212 are pressure-only regions 2213 and 2214, respectively. In these transition regions, the ratio of pressure nozzles to vacuum nozzles gradually increases towards the pressure only region in order to provide a gradual transition from region 2210 to regions 2213 and 2214 . As indicated in Figure 21, Figure 14B depicts an expanded view of three regions. For various embodiments of the substrate floating stage, such as depicted in FIG. 21 , the pressure-only regions 2213, 2214 are depicted as including rail structures. For various embodiments of the substrate floating stage, pressure-only regions such as pressure-only regions 2213 , 2214 of FIG. 21 may comprise a continuous plate such as that depicted for pressure-vacuum region 2210 of FIG. 21 .

For various embodiments of the floating table as depicted in FIG. 21, there may be substantially consistent heights between the pressure-vacuum, transition, and pressure-only regions such that, within tolerances, the three regions are substantially at In one plane and variable in length. For example, but without limitation, to provide a sense of scale and proportion, for various embodiments of floating platforms of the present teachings, the transition zone may be about 400mm, while the pressure-only zone may be about 2.5m, and The pressure-vacuum zone may be about 800mm. In FIG. 21 , pressure only regions 2213 and 2214 do not provide a fluid spring with bi-directional stiffness, and thus do not provide the control that region 2210 may provide. Thus, the fly height of the load above the pressure-only region may typically be greater than the fly-height of the substrate above the pressure-vacuum region to allow for enough height that the load will not collide with the floating table in the pressure-only region. For example, without limitation, it may be desirable to process an OLED panel substrate with a fly height of between about 150 μ to about 300 μ above a pressure-only zone such as zones 2213 and 2214, and a subsequent pressure-vacuum zone such as zone 2210 The region has a fly height of between about 30μ to about 50μ.

Various embodiments of the substrate floating stage 2200 can be housed in gas enclosures, including gas enclosure assemblies of the present teachings, such as, but not limited to, those depicted and described in FIGS. 3 and 19 assembly, the gas enclosure assembly can be used with various systems of theirs as described in Figures 15 to 18 Functional integration. For example, various embodiments of the gas enclosure system may utilize a pressurized inert gas recirculation system for operation of various pneumatically operated devices and equipment. Additionally, as previously discussed, embodiments of gas enclosure assemblies of the present teachings may be maintained at a slightly positive pressure relative to the external environment, such as, but not limited to, a pressure between about 2 mbarg and about 8 mbarg. Maintaining a pressurized inert gas recirculation system within a gas enclosure system can be challenging because of its requirements regarding the dynamics of maintaining a slightly positive internal pressure of the gas enclosure system while continuously introducing pressurized gas into the gas enclosure system and constant balancing act. Additionally, the variable demands of the various pneumatically operated devices and equipment can create irregular pressure profiles on the various gas enclosure assemblies and systems of the present teachings. Therefore, maintaining under such conditions a dynamic pressure balance of the gas inclusion system maintained at a slightly positive pressure relative to the external environment can provide continuous OLED printing process integrity.

Referring back to FIG. 20B , the printing system base 2100 may include a first riser (not visible) and a second riser 2122 on which the bridge 2130 is mounted. For various embodiments of the OLED printing system 2000, the bridge 2130 can support a first X, Z-axis carriage assembly 2301 and a second X, Z-axis carriage assembly 2302, which can respectively control the The movement of the first print head assembly 2501 and the second print head assembly 2502. Although FIG. 20B depicts two carriage assemblies and two printhead assemblies, for various embodiments of the OLED inkjet printing system 2000 there may be a single carriage assembly and a single printhead assembly. For example, either the first print head assembly 2501 and the second print head assembly 2502 can be mounted on the X, Z axis carriage assembly, and the camera system for inspecting the features of the substrate 2050 can be mounted on the On the second X, Z axis bracket assembly. Various embodiments of the OLED inkjet printing system 2000 can have a single print head system, for example either the first print head assembly 2501 and the second print head assembly 2502 can be mounted on the X, Z axis carriage assembly, and the UV lamp used to cure the encapsulation layer printed on the substrate 2050 can be installed on the second X, Z axis bracket assembly. For various embodiments of the OLED inkjet printing system 2000, there may be a single printhead assembly, such as either the first printhead assembly 2501 and the second printhead assembly 2502 mounted on X, The Z-axis bracket assembly, and the heat source for curing the encapsulation layer printed on the substrate 2050 can be mounted on the second bracket assembly.

In FIG. 20B, the first X, Z-axis bracket assembly 2301 can be used to position the first print head assembly 2501 above the substrate 2050, and the first print head assembly can be mounted on the first Z-axis moving plate At 2310 , the substrate is shown supported on a substrate floating stage 2200 . The second X,Z carriage assembly 2302 can be similarly configured to control the X-Z movement of the second printhead assembly 2502 relative to the substrate 2050 . Each print head assembly, such as the first print head assembly 2501 and the second print head assembly 2502 of FIG. Printhead assembly 2501 is depicted in a partial view, which depicts a plurality of printheads 2505 . A printhead arrangement may include, for example and without limitation, fluid and electrical connections to at least one printhead; each printhead having a plurality of nozzles or orifices capable of ejecting ink at a controlled rate, velocity and size. For various embodiments of printing system 2000, a printhead assembly may include between about 1 and about 60 printhead devices, where each printhead device may have a Between about 1 and about 30 print heads. A print head, such as an industrial inkjet head, can have between about 16 and about 2048 nozzles that can eject droplet volumes between about 0.1 pL and about 200 pL.

According to various embodiments of the gas enclosure assembly 1000 and printing system 2000 of FIGS. 20A and 20B , the printing system may have a print head management system mountable adjacent to the print head assembly, such as a first print head The management system 2701 and the second print head management system 2702 can be installed on the first print head management system platform 2703 and the second print head management system platform 2704 respectively. A first printhead management system platform 2703 and a second printhead management system platform 2704 are depicted attached to the floating stage base 2100 in FIG. 20B . Various embodiments of the printhead management system can perform various metrology and maintenance tasks on the printhead assembly. Various measurements performed on the printhead may include, for example and without limitation, checking nozzle firing, measuring droplet volume, velocity, and trajectory, and tuning the printhead so that each nozzle ejects a droplet of known volume. Maintaining printheads may include, for example but not limited to, procedures such as printhead flushing and priming, which entail collecting and containing ink ejected from the printhead; removing excess ink after flushing or priming procedures, and printhead Or the replacement of the print head device. In the printing process, for example, for the printing of OLED display panel substrates, the nozzle can Relying on emission is critical to ensure that the printing process can produce acceptable OLED panel displays. It is therefore necessary that the various procedures associated with print head management can be easily and reliably performed to eliminate or minimize the exposure of the printing system enclosure to contaminants such as air and water vapor and various organic vapors and particulate pollution. According to various systems and methods of the present teachings, printing system inclusions can be introduced to sufficiently low levels of contamination that a purification system can remove the contaminants before they can affect the printing process.

According to various embodiments of the gas enclosure system of the present teachings, the first print head management system 2701 and the second print head management system 2702 can be accommodated in the auxiliary enclosure in view of the large number of print head devices and print heads In the printing process, the auxiliary package can be isolated during the printing process to perform various metrology tasks and maintenance tasks with little or no interruption of the printing process. As can be seen in Figure 20B, it can be seen that the first printhead assembly 2501 is positioned relative to the first printhead management system 2701 in preparation for performing various quantities that may be performed by the first printhead management system equipment 2707, 2709, and 2711 testing and maintenance procedures. Devices 2707, 2709, and 2011 may be any of various subsystems or modules for performing various printhead management functions. For example, devices 2707, 2709, and 2011 may be any of a droplet measurement module, a printhead replacement module, a rinse tank module, and a blotter module.

In retrospect, a printhead assembly may include between about 1 and about 60 printhead devices, wherein each printhead device may have between about 1 and about 30 printhead devices located in each printhead device. between print heads. Accordingly, various embodiments of a printing system of the present teachings may have between about 1 and about 1800 print heads. A large number of printheads may require ongoing measurement and maintenance procedures to be performed periodically as needed. For example, the droplet measurement module can be used for maintenance tasks such as checking nozzle firing and measuring droplet volume, velocity and trajectory from each nozzle in the print head. The flush tank module can be used to prime and flush the printhead by jetting ink from the ink supply through the printhead and into the waste reservoir, while the blotter module can be used to wipe or blot excess from the inkjet nozzle surface ink.

In this regard, each subsystem may have various components that are essentially Is consumable and requires replacement, such as replacement of blotter paper, ink, and waste reservoirs. Various consumable components may be packaged ready for insertion using a handler, for example in a fully automatic mode. As a non-limiting example, blotter paper can be packaged in a cartridge format that can be easily inserted into a blotter module for use. As another non-limiting example, ink can be packaged in replaceable reservoir and cartridge formats for use in a printing system. Various embodiments of waste receptacles can be packaged in a cartridge format that can be easily inserted into a flush tank module for use. Additionally, parts of the various components of a printing system that are subject to constant use may require periodic replacement. During the printing process, expedient management of the printhead assembly may be required, such as but not limited to printhead assembly or printhead exchange. A printhead replacement module can have components, such as a printhead assembly or printhead, that can be easily inserted into a printhead assembly for use. Droplet metrology modules used to check nozzle firing and measure based on optical detection of droplet volume, velocity and trajectory from each nozzle may have sources and detectors that may require periodic replacement after use. Various consumable and high-use components can be packaged for ready insertion, eg, in a fully automatic mode using a handler or by end-user ease of exchange. Thus, the use of auxiliary packages for automated or end-user eased exchange of components of the printing system ensures that the printing process can continue in an uninterrupted manner. As depicted in FIG. 20B , first printhead management system devices 2707 , 2709 , and 2711 may be mounted on linear rail motion system 2705 for positioning relative to first printhead assembly 2501 .

Referring again to FIG. 20A regarding various embodiments of a gas enclosure assembly having an auxiliary enclosure that may be sealed off from and sealably isolated from the first working volume. As depicted in Figure 20B, there may be four isolators on OLED printing system 2000; A second isolator on the opposite side is shown), and the set of isolators supports the substrate floating stage 2200 of the OLED printing system 2000 . For the gas enclosure assembly 1000 of FIG. 20A , a first set of isolators 2110 and a second set of isolators 2112 may be installed in each respective isolator wall panel, such as the first set of intermediate base panel assemblies 1320 ′. In the isolator wall panel 1325' and the second isolator wall panel 1327'. For the total gas inclusions in Figure 20A In step 1000, the middle base assembly 1320' may include a first printhead management system auxiliary panel assembly 1330' and a second printhead management system auxiliary panel assembly 1370'. The gas enclosure assembly 1000 of FIG. 20A depicts a first printhead management system auxiliary panel assembly 1330' which may include a first back wall panel assembly 1338'. Similarly, a second printhead management system auxiliary panel assembly 1370', which may include a second back wall panel assembly 1378', is also depicted. The first back wall panel assembly 1338' of the first printhead management system auxiliary panel assembly 1330' can be constructed in a similar manner as shown for the second back wall panel assembly 1378'. The second back wall panel assembly 1378' of the second printhead management system auxiliary panel assembly 1370' can be constructed from a second back wall frame assembly 1378 having a second seal support panel 1375 that can Sealably mounted to the second back wall frame assembly 1378. The second seal support panel 1375 can have a second channel 1365 adjacent to the second end of the base 2100 (not shown). The second seal 1367 may be mounted on a second seal support panel 1375 surrounding the second channel 1365 . The first seal may similarly be positioned and installed around the first channel for the first printhead management system auxiliary panel assembly 1330'. Each lane in auxiliary panel assembly 1330' and auxiliary panel assembly 1370' can be adapted such that each maintenance system platform, such as first maintenance system platform 2703 and second maintenance system platform 2704 of FIG. 20B, passes through each lane . As will be discussed in more detail subsequently, in order to sealably isolate auxiliary panel assembly 1330' from auxiliary panel assembly 1370', a channel such as second channel 1365 of FIG. 20A must be sealable. It is contemplated that various seals such as inflatable seals, bellows seals, and lip seals may be used to seal channels such as second channel 1365 of FIG. 20A around a maintenance platform attached to the printing system chassis.

The first printhead management system auxiliary panel assembly 1330' and the second printhead management system auxiliary panel assembly 1370' can include the first printhead assembly opening 1342 and the second printhead assembly opening 1342 of the first floor panel assembly 1341', respectively. The opening 1382 of the second printing head assembly of the second floor panel assembly 1381'. A first floor panel assembly 1341' is depicted in FIG. 20A as part of a first tundish panel assembly 1340' of an intermediate panel assembly 1300'. The first floor panel assembly 1341' is a panel assembly shared by both the first tundish panel assembly 1340' and the first printing head management system auxiliary panel assembly 1330'. The second floor panel assembly 1381' is depicted in Fig. 20A Portion of the second tundish panel assembly 1380' is depicted as the middle panel assembly 1300'. The second floor panel assembly 1381' is a panel assembly shared by both the second tundish panel assembly 1380' and the second printing head management system auxiliary panel assembly 1370'.

As previously mentioned, the first printhead assembly 2501 can be accommodated in the first printhead assembly enclosure 2503, and the second printhead assembly 2502 can be accommodated in the second printhead assembly enclosure 2504 in. As will be discussed in more detail later, the first printhead assembly enclosure 2503 and the second printhead assembly enclosure 2504 may have openings at the bottom which may have a rim (not shown) so that various The printhead assembly can be positioned for printing during the printing process. Additionally, portions of the first printhead assembly enclosure 2503 and second printhead assembly overall 2504 that form the housing can be constructed as previously described for the various panel assemblies so that the frame assembly members and panels can provide Hermetically sealed enclosure.

A compressible gasket may be attached around each of the first printhead assembly opening 1342 and the second printhead assembly opening 1382, or alternatively around the second printhead assembly opening 1382, as previously described for the hermetic seal of the various frame members. The rims of the package body 2503 of the first print head assembly and the package body 2504 of the second print head assembly are attached.

As depicted in FIG. 20A , first PHA docking gasket 1345 and second PHA docking gasket 1385 may surround first PHA opening 1342 and second PHA opening 1342 , respectively. The opening 1382 is attached. During various print head measurement and maintenance procedures, the first print head assembly 2501 and the second print head assembly 2502 can be moved by the first X, Z axis carriage assembly system 2301 and the second X, Z axis assembly system 2301, respectively. The Z-axis bracket assembly 2302 is respectively positioned above the first print head assembly opening 1342 of the first floor panel assembly 1341' and the second print head assembly opening 1382 of the second floor panel assembly 1381'. In this regard, the first printhead assembly 2501 and the second printhead assembly 2502, respectively, may be positioned on the first floor panel assembly 1341' for various printhead measurement and maintenance procedures. Above the first print head assembly opening 1342 and the second print head assembly opening 1382 of the second floor panel assembly 1381', there is no need to cover or seal the first print head assembly opening 1342 and the second print head assembly Opening 1382. The first X, Z-axis bracket assembly 2301 and the second X, Z-axis bracket assembly 2302 can respectively connect the first print head assembly package body 2503 and the second print head assembly package body 2504 with the second print head assembly package body 2504 respectively. a print The auxiliary panel assembly 1330' of the head management system is docked with the auxiliary panel assembly 1370' of the second printing head management system. This docking effectively closes the first PHGA opening 1342 and the second PHGA opening 1382 without sealing the first PHGA opening during various printhead measurement and maintenance procedures. 1342 and the opening 1382 of the second printing head assembly. For various printhead metrology and maintenance procedures, the interface may include the formation of a gasket seal between the printhead assembly enclosure and each of the printhead management system panel assemblies. Combining the sealable closed channel such as the second channel 1365 of FIG. 20A and the complementary first channel, when the first print head assembly package 2503 and the second print head assembly package 2504 are combined with the first print head management system When the auxiliary panel assembly 1330' and the second printhead management system auxiliary panel assembly 1370' are docked to sealably close the first printhead assembly opening 1342 and the second printhead assembly opening 1382, it is formed in this way The combined structure is hermetically sealed.

Therefore, the sealing of the first printhead assembly opening 1342 and the second printhead assembly opening 1382 can use the first printhead management system auxiliary panel assembly 1330' as an auxiliary enclosure section and the second printhead assembly The head management system auxiliary panel assembly 1370' is separated from the remaining volume of the gas enclosure assembly 1000 as an auxiliary enclosure section. For various print head measurement and maintenance procedures, the first print head assembly 2501 and the second print head assembly 2502 can be docked with the first print head assembly opening 1342 and the second print head assembly respectively Formed on a spacer in the Z-axis direction above the opening 1382 , thereby closing the opening 1342 of the first printing head assembly and the opening 1382 of the second printing head assembly. According to the present teaching, depending on the force applied to the first print head assembly enclosure 2503 and the second print head assembly enclosure 2504 in the Z-axis direction, the first print head assembly opening 1342 and the second print head assembly opening 1342 Printhead assembly opening 1382 can be covered or sealed. In this regard, a force applied in the Z-axis direction to the sealable first printhead assembly opening 1342 of the first printhead assembly enclosure 2503 can move the first printhead management system auxiliary panel assembly 1330 ′ serves as an auxiliary enclosure section isolated from the remaining frame member assembly sections making up the gas enclosure assembly 1000 . Similarly, a force applied in the direction of the Z axis to the sealable second printhead assembly opening 1382 of the second printhead assembly enclosure 2504 can use the second printhead management system auxiliary panel assembly 1370' as The auxiliary enclosure section is separated from the remaining frame member assembly sections that make up the gas enclosure assembly 1000 Leave.

22A-22F are schematic cross-sectional views of the gas enclosure assembly 1001, which may further illustrate the first print head management system auxiliary panel assembly 1330' and the second print head management system auxiliary panel assembly 1370' various viewpoints. Various embodiments of printing systems such as printing system 2000 of FIGS. 20A and 20B can be symmetrical and can have a first printhead assembly 2501 and a second printhead assembly 2502 respectively. One X, Z-axis bracket assembly 2301 and the second X, Z-axis bracket assembly 2302. In addition, various embodiments of the gas enclosure assembly may have a first sub-enclosure and a second sub-enclosure, such as the first printhead management system auxiliary panel assembly 1330' and the second printhead management system of FIG. 20A Auxiliary panel assembly 1370', which is used for docking the first X, Z-axis bracket assembly and the second X, Z-axis bracket assembly, and these bracket assemblies can have at least one printing head assembly and can Various other equipment that needs maintenance. In this regard, with respect to FIGS. 22A-22D , given the printing system symmetry of the various printing systems of the present teachings, the following teachings set forth for the first print head management system auxiliary panel assembly 1330 ′ can be Suitable for the second printing head management system auxiliary panel assembly 1370'.

Figure 22A depicts a schematic cross-sectional view of the gas enclosure assembly 1001 showing a first printhead management system auxiliary panel assembly 1330' and a second printhead management system auxiliary panel assembly 1370'. The first print head management system auxiliary panel assembly 1330' of FIG. 22A can accommodate the first print head management system 2701, which can be positioned relative to the first print head management system The print head assembly opening 1342 is used for positioning. The first printhead assembly opening 1342 is an opening in the first floor panel assembly 1341', which is formed by the first printhead management system auxiliary panel assembly 1330' and the first tundish The panel shared by the panel assembly 1340'. The first print head management system positioning system 2705 can be installed on the first print head management system platform 2703 , and the first print head management system platform can be firmly installed on the first end 2101 of the base 2100 . The first printhead management system platform 2703 can extend from the first end 2101 of the base 2100 through the first channel 1361 to the first printhead system auxiliary panel assembly 1330'. Similarly, as depicted in Figure 22A, the second printhead management system auxiliary panel of Figure 22A Assembly 1370 ′ can accommodate second printhead management system 2702 , which can be positioned relative to second printhead assembly opening 1382 by second printhead management system positioning system 2706 . The second printhead assembly opening 1382 is an opening in the first floor panel assembly 1381' that is formed by the second printhead management system auxiliary panel assembly 1370' and the second tundish Panel assembly 1380' common panel. Second printhead management system positioning system 2706 can be mounted on second printhead management system platform 2704, which can extend from second end 2102 of base 2100 through second channel 1365 to Second printhead management system auxiliary panel assembly 1370'.

A first seal 1363 may be mounted around the first channel 1361 on the first outer surface 1337 of the first seal support panel 1335 . Similarly, a second seal 1367 may be mounted around the second channel 1365 on the second exterior surface 1377 of the second seal support panel 1375 . With respect to seals 1361 and 1367 of FIG. 22A, it should be contemplated that various gaskets providing mechanical seals may be used to seal passages 1361 and 1367.

In various embodiments, an air-filled gasket for sealing channels 1361 and 1367 may be used. Various embodiments of inflatable spacers can be fabricated from reinforced elastomeric materials into hollow molded structures that can be in a concave, convoluted or flat configuration when not inflated. In various embodiments, gaskets may be mounted on the first outer surface 1337 of the first seal support panel 1335 and the second outer surface 1377 of the second seal support panel 1375 for respectively enclosing the base 2100 in a sealable manner. Passageways 1361 and 1367 are closed. Accordingly, various embodiments of inflatable gaskets for sealably closing passages 1361 and 1367 around base 2100 may be provided on the mounting surface when inflated using any of various suitable fluid media such as, but not limited to, inert gases. A tight barrier is formed between an impact surface, such as the first outer surface 1337 of the first seal support panel 1335 and the second outer surface 1377 of the second seal support panel 1375, such as the first end of the base 2100 2101 and the surface of the second end 2012. In various embodiments, inflatable gaskets may be mounted on the first end 2101 and the second end 2012 of the base, respectively, to seal the channels 1361 and 1367 . In this regard, for various embodiments, the first and last base 2100 End 2101 and second end 2012 may be mounting surfaces, and first outer surface 1337 of first seal support panel 1335 and second outer surface 1377 of second seal support panel 1375 , respectively, may be impact surfaces. In this regard, various embodiments of conformal seals may be used to sealably close channels 1361 and 1365.

In addition to the various embodiments of inflatable gaskets, flexible seals such as bellows seals or lip seals may also be used to seal channels such as channels 1361 and 1365 of Figure 22A. Various embodiments of the flexible seal can be permanently attached, for example to the first outer surface 1337 of the first seal support panel 1335 and the second outer surface 1377 of the second seal support panel 1375 . Alternatively, various embodiments of flexible seals may be permanently attached to the first end 2101 and the second end 2102 of the base 2100 . Such a permanently attached seal can provide the flexibility needed to accommodate various translational and vibratory movements of the base 2100 while providing a hermetic seal for channels such as channels 1361 and 1365 .

With regard to the various challenges associated with hermetic sealing of various embodiments of gas enclosure assemblies of the present teachings, forming a conformal seal around well-defined edges can be problematic. In various embodiments of the gas enclosure in which the seal is made around a structure such as the first print head management system platform 2703 and the second print head management system platform 2703 attached to the first end 2101 and the second end 2012 of the base 2100 respectively. Head management system platform 2704 . Such platform structures can be fabricated to eliminate the need for a well-defined edge to be sealed. For example, the first PMS platform 2703 and the second PMS platform 2704 attached to the first end 2101 and the second end 2012 of the base 2100 may initially be manufactured with rounded lateral sides for facilitating sealing. edge. The first PMS platform 2703 and the second PMS platform 2704 attached to the first end 2101 and the second end 2012 of the base 2100 can provide the required stability for supporting the PMS. It is also made of materials modified to facilitate sealing, such as, but not limited to, granite and steel.

22B and 22C illustrate the covering and sealing of the various openings and channels of the gas enclosure assembly 1001 of the present teachings, such as for various procedures related to print head assembly management, the first print Orientation of head assembly 2501 relative to first print head management system auxiliary panel assembly 1330' bit. As previously mentioned, the following teachings for the first PMS auxiliary panel assembly 1330' are also applicable to the second PMS auxiliary panel assembly 1370'.

In FIG. 22B, a first printhead assembly 2501 may include a printhead assembly 2505 having at least one printhead including a plurality of nozzles or orifices. The printing head device 2505 can be accommodated in the first printing head assembly package body 2503, and the first printing head assembly package body can have a first printing head assembly package body opening 2507, and the printing head device 2505 can be The opening from the first printhead assembly enclosure is positioned so that during printing, the nozzles eject ink at a controlled rate, speed and size onto the substrate mounted on the substrate floating stage 2200 . As previously discussed, the first X,Z carriage assembly 2301 can be controlled during the printing process to position the first print head assembly 2501 over the substrate for printing. In addition, as depicted in Figure 22B, for various embodiments of the gas enclosure assembly 1001, having a first X,Z axis carriage assembly 2301 with controllable X-Z axis movement can position the first printhead assembly 2501 Above the opening 1342 of the first print head assembly. As depicted in Figure 22B, the first printhead assembly opening 1342 of the first floor panel assembly 1341' is the first tundish panel assembly 1340' and the first printhead management system auxiliary panel assembly 1330' shared.

The first print head assembly package body 2503 of FIG. 22B may include a first print head assembly package body rim 2509, which may surround the first print head assembly opening 1342 and the first floor panel assembly 1341' of docking surfaces. First printhead assembly enclosure rim 2509 may engage first printhead assembly docking pad 1345 , which is depicted as being attached around first printhead assembly opening 1342 in FIG. 22B . Although first printhead assembly enclosure rim 2509 is shown depicted as an inwardly protruding structure, any of a variety of rims may be configured on first printhead assembly enclosure 2503 . Additionally, although the first printhead assembly docking spacer 1345 is depicted in FIG. 22B as being attached around the first printhead assembly opening 1342, it will be understood by a typical practitioner that the spacer 1345 can be attached to the first column Print head assembly package body rim 2509. The first printhead assembly docking gasket 1345 can be any of the gasket materials previously described for the sealing frame member assembly. In various embodiments of gas enclosure assembly 1001 of FIG. 22B , first printhead assembly docking gasket 1345 may be an inflatable gasket, such as gasket 1363 . In this regard, the first printhead assembly docking pad 1345 can be as follows Inflatable gasket previously described with respect to Figure 22A. As previously noted, a first seal 1363 may be mounted on the first outer surface 1337 of the first seal support panel 1335 around the first channel 1361 .

As depicted in Figures 22B and 22C, the first printhead assembly 2501 can remain positioned over the first printhead assembly opening 1342 for various measurements and maintenance procedures that can be performed in a fully automatic mode. In this regard, the first printhead assembly 2501 can be adjusted in the Z-axis direction via the first X, Z-axis carriage assembly 2301 to align the printheads with respect to the first printhead management system 2701. Device 2505 is positioned over first printhead assembly opening 1342 . In addition, the first print head management system 2701 can be adjusted in the Y-X direction on the first print head management system positioning system 2705 so as to position the first print head management system 2701 relative to the print head device 2505 . Among various procedures related to the management of the print head assembly, the first print head assembly 2501 can be placed into a Contact with the first print head assembly mating spacer 1345, so that the first print head assembly enclosure 2503 is placed in a position to cover the first print head assembly opening 1342 (not shown). As depicted in Figure 22C, for various maintenance procedures related to the management of printhead assemblies, such as but not limited to maintenance procedures that require direct access to the interior of the first printhead management system auxiliary panel assembly 1330', The first X, Z-axis bracket assembly 2301 is further adjusted in the Z-axis direction to make the first print head assembly 2501 dock with the first print head assembly docking gasket 1345, thereby sealing the first Print head assembly opening 1342 . As previously mentioned, the first printhead assembly docking gasket 1345 can be a compressible gasket material as previously described for the hermetic seal of the various frame members, or an inflatable gasket as previously described for FIG. 22A piece. Additionally, as depicted in Figure 22C, the inflatable gasket 1363 may be inflated, thereby sealingly closing the first channel 1361. Additionally, the portion of the first printhead assembly enclosure 2503 that forms the housing can be configured as previously described for the various panel assemblies so that the frame assembly members and panels provide a hermetic enclosure. Therefore, for FIG. 22C, when the first print head assembly opening 1342 and the first channel 1361 are sealed in a sealable manner, the first print head management system auxiliary panel assembly 1330' can be connected to the gas enclosure assembly. Into 1001 of the remaining volume isolation.

In FIGS. 22D and 22E , various embodiments of gas enclosures 1001 are depicted, wherein the first A print head management system 2701 and a second print head management system 2702 can be installed on the first print head management system platform 2703 and the second print head management system platform 2704 respectively. In Fig. 22D and Fig. 22E, the first print head management system platform 2703 and the second print head management system platform 2704 are respectively enclosed in the first print head management system auxiliary panel assembly 1330' and the second print head management system Head management system auxiliary panel assembly 1370'. As previously mentioned, the following teachings for the first PMS auxiliary panel assembly 1330' can also be applied to the second PMS auxiliary panel assembly 1370'. In this regard, as depicted in FIG. 22D , the first printhead assembly 2501 can be aligned with the first printhead assembly 2501 by the first X, Z-axis carriage assembly 2301 with sufficient force in the Z-axis direction. The print head assembly abutting gasket 1345 is butted against so that the first print head assembly opening 1342 can be sealed. Therefore, for FIG. 22D , when the first print head assembly opening 1342 is sealed in a sealable manner, the remaining volume of the first print head management system auxiliary panel assembly 1330 ′ and the gas enclosure assembly 1001 can be isolation.

As previously taught for the various embodiments of the gas enclosure assembly 1001 of FIGS. 22A-22C , during various procedures related to the management of the print head assembly, the print head can remain positioned in the first print head assembly. above the opening 1342 without covering or sealing the opening 1342 of the first printing head assembly so as to close the opening 1342 of the first printing head assembly. In various embodiments of the gas enclosure assembly 1001, such as, but not limited to, for various maintenance procedures, the printhead assembly enclosure can be placed in contact with the shim to cover the printhead by adjusting the Z-axis Assembly opening. In this regard, Figure 22E can be interpreted in two ways. In a first interpretation, first PHA docking gasket 1345 and second PHA docking gasket 1385 may be made of a compressible gasket material such as previously described for hermetic sealing of various frame members . In Figure 22E, the first printhead assembly 2501 has been positioned in the Z-axis direction above the first printhead management system 2701 such that the gasket 1345 has been compressed, thereby sealingly enclosing the first printhead assembly 2501. Head assembly opening 1342. In contrast, the second printhead assembly 2502 has been positioned above the second printhead management system 2702 in the Z-axis direction so as to contact the second printhead assembly docking pad 1385, thereby covering the second printhead assembly. There are two openings 1382 for the print head assembly. In the second explanation, the first print head assembly docking pad 1345 and the second print head assembly docking pad 1385 can be as before The inflatable gasket described above with respect to Figure 22A. In FIG. 22E, the first printhead assembly 2501 may be positioned in the Z-axis direction above the first printhead management system 2701 so as to contact the first printhead assembly docking pad 1345 before it is inflated, In this way, the opening 1342 of the first printing head assembly is covered. In contrast, the second printhead assembly 2502 has been positioned above the second printhead management system 2702 in the Z-axis direction so that when the second printhead assembly docking gasket 1385 is inflated, the second printhead assembly Printhead assembly opening 1382 is sealably closed.

FIG. 22F depicts that, for example, the volume defined using the first printhead management system auxiliary panel assembly 1330' and the second printhead management system auxiliary panel assembly 1370' can be used, for example but not limited to, gate-valve The cover of the assembly is sealed. The following teachings for the first print head management system auxiliary panel assembly 1330' and the second print head management system auxiliary panel assembly 1370' can be applied to the print head management system panel assembly and the gas enclosure assembly various embodiments. As depicted in Figure 22F, the first PHA opening 1342 and the second PGA opening 1342 and the second PHA gate valve 1387 are closed using, for example but not limited to, the first PHA gate valve 1347 and the second PHA gate valve 1387, respectively. The opening 1382 can respectively provide continuous operation of the first print head assembly 2501 and the second print head assembly 2502 . As depicted for first printhead management system auxiliary panel assembly 1330' of FIG. 22F, first printhead assembly gate valve 1347 is used to sealably close first printhead assembly opening 1342 and to Closing the first channel 1361 around the base 2100 can be done remotely and automatically. Similarly, as depicted for the second printhead management system auxiliary panel assembly 1370' of FIG. automatically and automatically. It is to be contemplated that this can be accomplished by isolating the volume defined by the sub-frame member assembly sections, for example by the first print head management system auxiliary panel assembly 1330' and the second print head management system auxiliary panel assembly 1370 'Defined volume to facilitate various printhead measurement and maintenance procedures, while still providing continuity of the printing process utilizing the first printhead assembly 2501 and the second printhead assembly 2502.

As previously mentioned, the first PHA docking gasket 1345 and the second PHA docking gasket 1385 may surround the first PGA opening 1342 and the second PHA opening, respectively. 1382 attached. Additionally, as depicted in Figure 22F, the first printhead assembly abuts spacer 1345 and the second printhead assembly The mating pads 1385 can be attached around the first PHA body rim 2509 and the second PHA body rim 2510 respectively. When maintenance of the first print head assembly 2501 and the second print head assembly 2502 is indicated, the first print head assembly gate valve 1347 and the second print head assembly gate valve 1387 can be opened, and the first print head assembly The head assembly 2501 and the second print head assembly 2502 can interface with the first print head management system auxiliary panel assembly 1330' and the second print head management system auxiliary panel assembly 1370', as previously described.

For example and without limitation, the first printhead management system auxiliary panel assembly 1330' and the second printhead management system auxiliary panel assembly 1370' can be separated by separating the first printhead management system 2701 and the second print head management system 2702 execute any program related to the management of the print head assembly without interrupting the printing process. It should be further envisaged that the loading of new printheads or printhead assemblies into the system, or the removal of printheads or printhead assemblies from the system, may be assisted by the first printhead management system respectively The panel assembly 1330' and the second printhead management system auxiliary panel assembly 1370' are performed in isolation without interrupting the printing process. Such activities may be facilitated automatically using, for example and without limitation, robots. For example, but without limitation, auxiliary frame members stored in the first printhead management system auxiliary panel assembly 1330' and second printhead management system auxiliary panel assembly 1370' such as in FIG. 22F The printheads in the volume defined by the assembly section are retrieved robotically, and then the printhead assembly 2505 of the first printhead assembly 2501 or the printhead assembly 2506 of the second printhead assembly 2502 Faulty print heads are replaced with valid print heads by robot. This can then be followed by automatic storage of faulty printheads in modules in either the first printhead management system 2701 or the second printhead management system 2702 . These maintenance procedures can be performed in an automatic mode without interrupting the ongoing printing process.

After the faulty print head robot is stored in the first print head management system 2701 or the second print head management system 2702, by using, for example but not limited to, the first print head assembly gate valve 1347 and the second print head Head assembly gate valve 1387 to close the first print head assembly opening 1342 and the second print head assembly opening 1382, which can be sealed and isolated by the first print head management system auxiliary panel assembly 1330 respectively 'and the auxiliary frame member assembly of the second printing head management system auxiliary panel assembly 1370' The volume defined by the segment. Furthermore, the volume defined by the auxiliary frame member assembly sections can then be opened to atmosphere, eg, in accordance with the previous teachings, so that a failed printhead can be retrieved and replaced. As will be discussed in more detail subsequently, because the various embodiments of the gas purification system are designed relative to the volume of the overall gas enclosure assembly, gas purification resources can be dedicated to flushing the space created by the auxiliary frame member assembly section spaces. Significantly reduced volume in the defined volume, thereby significantly reducing system recovery time for the volume defined by the sub-frame member assembly sections. In this regard, the various procedures associated with managing the printhead assembly that require opening subframe member assembly sections to the atmosphere can be performed with no or minimal interruption to the ongoing printing process.

23 depicts an expanded view of the first printhead management system 2701 housed within the first printhead management system auxiliary panel assembly 1330' of various embodiments of gas enclosure assemblies and systems according to the present teachings. As previously discussed, a printhead management system may include, for example but not limited to, a droplet metering module, a rinse station, a blotter station, and a printhead exchange station. In various embodiments of the printhead management system, the droplet measurement module can perform measurements on the printhead, such as checking nozzle firing, measuring droplet volume, velocity, and trajectory, and tuning the printhead so that each A nozzle ejects droplets of known volume. For various embodiments of the print head management system, the flush station can be used to prime and flush the print head, which requires collecting and containing the ink ejected from the print head, while the ink suction station can be used during the priming process or the flushing process Excess ink is then removed. Additionally, the printhead management system may include one or more printhead exchange stations for: receiving one or more printheads or printhead devices that have been removed from a printhead assembly, the printhead A head assembly such as the first print head assembly 2501 and the second print head assembly 2502 of FIG. 20B; and for storing print heads or print head devices that can be used in Various programs related to the management of the print head assembly are loaded into the first print head assembly 2501 and the second print head assembly 2502 .

Various embodiments of a printhead management system according to the present teachings, such as the first printhead management system 2701, devices 2707, 2709, and 2011 of FIG. 23, may have various modules for performing various functions. For example, devices 2707, 2709, and 2011 may be droplet measurement modules, print head replacement modules, flushing One or more of the pool module and the blotting paper module. The first print head management system 2701 can be installed on the first print head management system positioning system 2705 . The first printhead management system positioning system 2705 can provide Y-axis movement to selectively align each of the various modules with printhead assemblies with the first printhead assembly opening 1342, the column The printhead assembly has a printhead assembly with at least one printhead, such as printhead assembly 2505 of FIG. 22B. Positioning of the various modules with a print head assembly having a print head assembly with at least one print head can be performed using the first print head management system positioning system 2705 and a pattern such as that shown in FIG. 20B . The combination of the print head assembly positioning system of the first X, Z-axis bracket assembly 2301 is carried out. For various embodiments of the gas assembly system of the present teachings, the print head management system positioning system 2705 can provide the various modules of the first print head management system 2701 relative to the first print head assembly opening 1342. Y-X positioning, and the first X, Z-axis bracket assembly 2301 can provide the X-Z positioning of the first printing head assembly 2501 above the opening 1342 of the first printing head assembly. In this regard, a printhead assembly with at least one printhead can be positioned over or within first printhead assembly opening 1342 to receive maintenance.

24A depicts an expanded view of a first printhead management system 2701A housed within a first printhead management system auxiliary panel assembly 1330' according to various embodiments of gas enclosure assemblies and systems according to the present teachings. As depicted in Figure 24A, the auxiliary panel assembly 1330' is shown lacking the front removable service window to allow for a clearer view of the details of the first printhead management system 2701A. Various embodiments of a printhead management system according to the present teachings, such as first printhead management system 2701A, devices 2707, 2709, and 2011 of FIG. 24A, can be various subsystems or modules for performing various functions. For example, devices 2707, 2709, and 2011 may be a droplet measurement module, a print head rinse module, and a blotter module. As depicted in FIG. 24A , a printhead replacement module 2713 may provide a location for docking at least one printhead assembly 2505 . In various embodiments of the first printhead management system 2701A, the first printhead management system auxiliary panel assembly 1330' can be maintained at the same environmental specifications as the maintenance gas enclosure assembly 1000 (see FIG. 19). The first printhead management system auxiliary panel assembly 1330' can have a handler 2530 positioned to perform tasks associated with various printhead management programs. For example, each subsystem can have various components, which are consumable in nature and require replacement, such as replacement of blotters, ink, and waste reservoirs. Various consumable components may be packaged ready for insertion using a handler, for example in a fully automatic mode. As a non-limiting example, blotter paper can be packaged in a cartridge format that can be easily inserted into a blotter module for use. As another non-limiting example, ink can be packaged in replaceable reservoir and cartridge formats for use in a printing system. Various embodiments of waste receptacles can be packaged in a cartridge format that can be easily inserted into a flush tank module for use. Additionally, parts of the various components of a printing system that are subject to constant use may require periodic replacement. During the printing process, expedient management of the printhead assembly may be required, such as but not limited to printhead assembly or printhead exchange. A printhead replacement module can have components, such as a printhead assembly or printhead, that can be easily inserted into a printhead assembly for use. Droplet metrology modules used to check nozzle firing and measure based on optical detection of droplet volume, velocity and trajectory from each nozzle may have sources and detectors that may require periodic replacement after use. Various consumable and high-use components can be packaged for ready insertion using a handler, for example in a fully automatic mode. Handler 2530 may have terminator 2536 mounted to arm 2534 . Various embodiments of terminator configurations may be used, such as blade-type terminators, clip-type terminators, and clamp-type terminators. Various embodiments of the terminator may include mechanical gripping and clamping assemblies, as well as pneumatic or vacuum assisted assemblies to actuate portions of the terminator or otherwise hold the printhead assembly or pressure from the printhead assembly. print head.

Regarding the replacement of print head devices or print heads, the print head replacement module 2713 of the print head management system 2701A of FIG. 24A may include a docking station for a print head device having at least one print head and a Storage container for print head. Since each printhead assembly (see FIG. 20B ) may include between about 1 and about 60 printhead devices, and since each printhead device may have between about 1 and about 30 Therefore, various embodiments of the printing system of the present teachings may have between about 1 and about 1800 print heads. In various embodiments of the printhead replacement module 2013, each printhead mounted to the printhead assembly can be maintained in an operational condition while being unused in the printing system while the printhead assembly is docked state. For example, when placed in a docking station, each print head is loaded with Each print head placed on it can be connected to an ink supply and electrical connections. A source can be provided to each printhead on each printhead arrangement such that a periodic firing pulse can be applied to each nozzle of each printhead upon docking to ensure that the nozzles remain activated and unclogged. Handler 2530 of FIG. 24A may be positioned adjacent printhead assembly 2500 . As depicted in Figure 24A, the printhead assembly 2500 can be docked above the first printhead management system auxiliary panel assembly 1330'. During the procedure for exchanging printheads, handler 2530 may remove a target component, ie, a printhead or a printhead device having at least one printhead, from printhead assembly 2500 . The handler 2530 can retrieve replacement parts such as print head devices or print heads from the print head replacement module 2013 and complete the replacement process. The removed parts may be placed in print head replacement module 2713 for retrieval.

As depicted in FIG. 24B, the auxiliary panel assembly 1330' may have a first removable service window 130A and a second removable service window 130B mounted on the front panel for use with a gas enclosure such as that of FIG. 20A. 1000's of gas enclosure exterior ready to enter. Additionally, a load lock such as load lock 1350 may be mounted on the wall panel of auxiliary panel assembly 1330'. According to various embodiments of the present teachings, the printhead management routine illustrated as being executed by a handler as described with respect to FIG. 24A can be executed remotely by an end user through various glove loops, as shown in FIGS. 24A and 24B. The various positions of the glove and glove collar are shown in .

Additionally, for various embodiments of the systems and methods of the present teachings, the loadlock 1350 can be used to transfer various components for the subsystems and modules of the various embodiments of the printhead management system of the present teachings. Various replacement parts for the printhead management system 2701A of FIG. 24A are, for example but not limited to, blotter cartridges, ink cartridges, waste receptacles, printheads, and printhead assemblies, and the disposer 2530 of FIG. 24A can be used , transferred to the auxiliary panel assembly 1330' using the load lock 1350, and can be moved to the print head management system 2701A of FIG. 24A. Conversely, parts requiring replacement such as, but not limited to, blotter cartridges, ink cartridges, waste receptacles, printheads, and printhead assemblies can be removed from the printhead management system 2701A by the handler 2530 of FIG. 24A Removed and placed in load lock 1350. In accordance with the present teachings, load lock 1350 may have a gate open to the exterior of a gas enclosure, such as gas enclosure 1000 of FIG. 20A , allowing access to the secondary surface The gate of the plate assembly 1330' is closed, exposing only the load lock 1350 to the ambient atmosphere during the procedure for transferring components. After the procedure for retrieving the part, the procedure for replacing the part, or both have been completed, the gate for the load lock 1350 allowing access to the outside of the gas enclosure can be closed and the load lock 1350 can undergo a recovery procedure to place the load The gas environment of the lock is restored to the target specification. In a next step, the gate between the load lock 1350 and the auxiliary panel assembly 1330' can be opened for both retrieval or removal of components from the auxiliary panel assembly 1330' and transfer of replacement parts to the auxiliary panel assembly 1330' This is done by a handler such as handler 2530 of Figure 24A.

Given the generally small volume of the load lock 1350 compared to the volume of the auxiliary panel assembly 1330', the recovery time is substantially shorter than for the auxiliary panel assembly 1330', allowing the load lock 1350 to be integrated with the auxiliary panel assembly. Ready transfer of parts between 1330' without interrupting the printing process. Additionally, removable service windows 130A and 130B may allow access to secondary panel assembly 1330' from outside the gas enclosure, such as gas enclosure 1000 of FIG. Such direct access. Given the generally small volume of the auxiliary panel assembly 1330' compared to the volume of the working volume of a gas enclosure such as the gas enclosure 1000 of FIG. The recovery time of the overall working volume of the inclusion body is generally short. Thus, all steps associated with a printhead management program can be performed to eliminate or minimize the exposure of the printing system enclosure to contaminants such as air and water vapor and various organic vapors, as well as particulate contaminants. According to various systems and methods of the present teachings, printing system inclusions can be introduced to sufficiently low levels of contamination that a purification system can remove the contaminants before they can affect the printing process. In this regard, various embodiments of the auxiliary panel assembly 1330' can provide for fully automated replacement of components in a printhead management system while maintaining an inert, particle-free environment with little or no interruption to the printing process.

FIG. 25 illustrates an expanded perspective view of the first printhead management system auxiliary panel assembly 1330'. As indicated, it is contemplated that the various PMS panel assemblies, such as the first PMS auxiliary panel assembly 1330', may have a volume of about 2 ^m3 . It is contemplated that various embodiments of the sub-frame member assembly section may have a volume of about 1 m ³ , and for various embodiments of the sub-frame member assembly section, the volume may be about 10 m ³ . For various embodiments of gas enclosure assemblies such as gas enclosure assembly 100 of FIG. 3 and gas enclosure assembly 1000 of FIG. The fractional value of the volume. For example, the sub-frame member assembly section may be less than or equal to about 1% of the enclosure volume of the gas enclosure system. In various embodiments of the gas enclosure assembly, the sub-frame member assembly section may be less than or equal to about 2% of the volume of the enclosure of the gas enclosure system. For various embodiments of the gas enclosure assembly, the sub-frame member assembly section may be less than or equal to about 5% of the total volume of the gas enclosure system. In various embodiments of the gas enclosure assembly, the sub-frame member assembly section may be less than or equal to about 10% of the volume of the enclosure of the gas enclosure system. In various embodiments of the gas enclosure assembly, the sub-frame member assembly section may be less than or equal to about 20% of the volume of the enclosure of the gas enclosure system. Therefore, given the relatively small volume of auxiliary packages, recovery of auxiliary packages may take significantly less time than recovery of overall printing system packages.

Various procedures associated with print head management can be performed in a fully automated mode. As will be discussed in more detail subsequently, in some cases end-user access may be obtained through, for example, the use of Ferrules are performed externally. As previously discussed, various embodiments of the gas enclosure assembly having an auxiliary enclosure as a section of the gas enclosure assembly effectively reduce the amount of energy generated during the OLED printing process, as depicted in FIGS. 19-25 . The required volume of inert gas while providing ready access to the interior of the gas enclosure.

In addition to the various embodiments of the gas enclosure system having the secondary enclosure configured as a section of the gas enclosure assembly, various embodiments of the secondary enclosure may be associated with the gas enclosure system without being configured as a gas enclosure Auxiliary frame member assembly section of body assembly.

For example, for various embodiments of the gas enclosure system of the present teachings, the secondary enclosure may be an adjustable controlled environment enclosure. In accordance with the present teachings, adjustable controlled environment enclosures are adjustable with respect to flexibility in design and construction, which may include, for example, the number and type of openings, environmental control system, size of materials used for construction, breadth of choice, and ease of installation. For example, in various embodiments, the adjustable controlled environment enclosure can be of soft wall construction, wherein the frame can be, for example, steel, powder coated steel or aluminum, and the panels can be made of, for example, vinyl, polyvinyl chloride, and Manufactured from flexible polymer sheet material of polyurethane. For various embodiments of soft wall construction, the flexible polymer sheet material can be installed as a series of tapes, complete sheets, and combinations of tapes and sheets. In other embodiments of the secondary enclosure, the tunable controlled environment enclosure may be of hard wall construction where the panel material is a rigid material such as rigid plastic, eg acrylic or polycarbonate material or reinforced glass material. For the various embodiments of the hard wall construction, the various panels of the hard wall construction, such as wall panels, window panels, and door panels, can be selected from different materials. In various embodiments of the present teachings, adjustable controlled environment enclosures can be a combination of hard-wall and soft-wall constructions. Panel materials for various embodiments of tunable controlled environment enclosures of the present teachings can be selected for attributes including, but not limited to, low particle generation, high optical clarity, effective static dissipation, and mechanical durability.

In addition to adjustable controlled environment enclosures, various embodiments of secondary enclosures may be transfer chambers. In other embodiments, the auxiliary chamber may be a load lock chamber. According to the present teachings, various embodiments of the secondary enclosure can have a separate environmental control system from the working volume of the gas enclosure system, while other embodiments of the secondary enclosure can use the same environment as the working volume of the gas enclosure system control system to maintain. Various embodiments of the secondary enclosure may be stationary, while other embodiments of the secondary enclosure may be mobile, such as may be on wheels or on a track assembly, so that it can be easily positioned adjacent to the gas enclosure system for use.

26A depicts a perspective view of an OLED printing tool 4000, which may include a first module 3400, a printing module 3500, and a second module 3600, according to various embodiments of the present teachings. Various modules such as the first module 3400 may have a first transfer chamber 3410 which may have gates such as gates 3412 for each side of the first transfer chamber 3410 to accommodate Various chambers for specified functions. As depicted in Figure 26A, the first transfer chamber 3410 can have a load lock gate (not shown shown) and a buffer gate (not shown), the load lock gate is used to integrate the first load lock chamber 3450 with the first transfer chamber 3410, and the buffer gate is used to integrate the first buffer chamber 3460 with the first Transfer chamber 3410. The gate 3412 of the first transfer chamber 3410 may be used for a movable chamber or unit, such as but not limited to a load lock chamber. Viewing windows, such as viewing windows 3402 and 3404 of the first transfer chamber 3410 , and viewing window 3406 of the first buffer chamber 3460 , can be provided for an end user, for example, to monitor a process. The printing module 3500 may include a gas enclosure assembly 3510 , and the gas enclosure assembly may have a first panel assembly 3520 , a printing system enclosure assembly 3540 and a second panel assembly 3560 . Similar to the gas enclosure assembly 1000 of FIG. 19, the gas enclosure assembly 3510 can accommodate various embodiments of the printing system. The second module 3600 can include a second transfer chamber 3610, which can have gates, such as gates 3612, for each side of the second transfer chamber 3610 to accommodate various chambers with designated functions room. As depicted in FIG. 26A , the second transfer chamber 3610 may have a load lock gate (not shown) and a buffer gate (not shown) for integrating the second load lock chamber 3650 with the second transfer chamber. chamber 3610 , and the buffer gate is used to integrate the second buffer chamber 3660 and the second transfer chamber 3610 . The gate 3612 of the second transfer chamber 3610 may be used for a movable chamber or unit such as but not limited to a load lock chamber. Viewing windows, such as viewing windows 3602 and 3604 of the second transfer chamber 3610, may be provided for end users, for example, to monitor a process.

The first load lock chamber 3450 and the second load lock chamber 3650 are attachably associated with the first transfer chamber 3410 and the second transfer chamber 3610, respectively, or the load lock chambers may be movable, such as Can be on wheels or on a track assembly so that it can be easily positioned adjacent to the chamber for use. As previously described for the gas enclosure system 500 of FIG. 1 , the load lock chamber may be mounted to a support structure and may have at least two gates. For example, the first load lock chamber 3450 can be supported by a first support structure 3454 and can have a first gate 3452 and a second gate (not shown) that can allow fluid connection with the first transfer module 3410 connected. Similarly, a second load lock chamber 3650 may be supported by a second support structure 3654 and may have a second gate 3652 and a first gate (not shown) that may allow communication with the second transfer module 3610 fluid communication.

26B is a first phantom perspective view of the OLED printing tool 4000 of FIG. 26A, which depicts, inter alia, the placement of a plurality of fan filter units adjacent to where the substrate travels. As previously discussed, the number, size and shape of the fan filter units of the fan filter unit assembly of the circulation and filtration system can be selected based on the physical location of the substrate in the printing system during processing. The number, size and shape of the fan filter units of the fan filter unit assembly are selected with respect to the physical travel of the substrate to provide a low particle zone adjacent to the substrate during the substrate manufacturing process. Various embodiments of the printing module 3500 of FIGS. 26A-26C may also include controlled particle levels that meet the standards of the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) 14644-1:1999, "Clean rooms and associated controlled environments - Section Part 1: Classification of Air Cleanliness", as specified in categories 1 to 5. In the illustrative example of FIG. 26B, arrays of fan filter units, such as fan filter units 3422 and 3423 of first module 3400, and columns of Fan filter units 3522, 3542, 3544, and 3562 of impression set 3500 are depicted in Figure 26B. Fan filter units may be included in other chambers, such as one or more fan filter units located within the transfer chamber 3610 of the second module 3600, or similar to those of the first module 3400 The fan filter units 3422 and 3423 are located in the first buffer chamber 3460 or the second buffer chamber 3660 . As previously stated, the various embodiments of the circulation and filtration systems of the present teachings need not provide a downflow direction for airflow. For various embodiments of the systems and methods of the present teachings, the ductwork and fan filter unit can be positioned to provide substantially laminar flow in lateral directions as well as in vertical directions across the surface of a substrate, such as substrate 2050, As depicted in Figure 26B. Such laminar flow can enhance or otherwise provide particle control.

26C is a second perspective view of the OLED printing tool 4000 of FIG. 26A showing more details of the processor and printing system in accordance with the present teachings. As previously discussed, the OLED printing tool 4000 can include a first load lock chamber 3450 that can be sealably coupled to the first transfer chamber 3410 . The first load lock chamber 3450 may be in fluid communication with the transfer chamber 3410 via a port, which may be, for example, an airtight lock. When the airtight damper is opened, the first load lock cavity The interior of chamber 3450 is accessible by a handler, such as handler 3430 in first transfer chamber 3410 depicted in Figure 26C. The handler 3430 shown in FIG. 26C can have a base 3432 , an arm assembly 3434 and a terminator 3436 . A handler 3430 adjacent to the first transfer module printing system gate 3418 can position the substrate on the input of the floating stage 2200 , which can be supported by the printing system base 2100 . Given the location of the handler 3430 within the first module 3400, the handler 3430 may be adjacent to any chamber of the first module 3400 and may, for example, position a substrate in any chamber. In this regard, the handler 3430 can position the substrate in the buffer chamber 3460 via the first module buffer gate 3416 as the workflow may require. Handler 3430 may be a robotic assembly with various degrees of freedom for manipulating a substrate, such as substrate 2050 , which is shown supported on floating stage 2200 of printing system 2000 in FIG. 26C . Handler 3430 may use a terminator, such as terminator 3436, to manipulate the substrate. A terminator such as terminator 3436 may include a tray or frame configured to support the substrate by gravity, or the terminator may firmly grip or clamp the substrate to allow, for example, securing the transfer chamber from one position to the other. next position, or for reorienting the substrate from a face-up or face-down configuration to one or more other configurations. Various embodiments of terminator configurations may be used, such as fork-type terminators, blade-type terminators, clip-type terminators, and clamp-type terminators. Various embodiments of the terminator may include mechanical gripping and clamping assemblies, as well as pneumatic or vacuum assisted assemblies to actuate portions of the terminator or otherwise hold the substrate. Various embodiments of the terminator may include vacuum cups.

With regard to other features of the OLED printing tool 4000 as depicted in FIG. 26C, as previously discussed for the gas enclosure assembly 100 of FIG. 3 and the gas enclosure assembly 1000 of FIG. Module 3500 may include gas enclosure assembly 3510 . The gas enclosure assembly 3510 can have a first panel assembly 3520 , a printing system enclosure assembly 3540 and a second panel assembly 3560 . The printing module 3500 can have an internal environment maintained as an inert gas environment, and as previously discussed, the internal environment can be sealed (eg, hermetically sealed) from the surrounding environment. In addition, the first module 3400 and the second module 3600 and all associated chambers can also have an internal environment maintained as an inert gas environment so that the OLED printing tool 4000 can be completely sealed (eg, hermetically sealed) isolated Ambient environment and maintained as an inert gas The internal environment of the environment. As will be discussed in more detail subsequently, a print head management system (such as print head management system 2701 of FIGS. 20B and 23 and print head management system 2701A of FIG. 24A ) can be located in the printing system enclosure assembly area 3570 , adjacent to the first bridge end 2132 and the print head assembly 2500 . Enclosure systems, such as printing tool 4000 , including owners of various enclosure interior regions, can be monitored and controlled to maintain specified levels of one or more of: gas purity, contaminants, or particulates. In retrospect, the inert gas environment may be maintained using a gas such as nitrogen, any noble gas, and any combination thereof. The inert gas environment within the gas enclosure system may have each of reactive species (such as water vapor, oxygen) and organic solvent vapor at levels maintained for various embodiments of the gas enclosure system of the present teachings : 100 ppm or less, such as 10 ppm or less, 1.0 ppm or less, or 0.1 ppm or less.

For various embodiments of the OLED printing tool 4000 of FIG. 26C, the first processing module 3400 may include a buffer or holding module 3460 configured to provide respective environmentally controlled areas to accommodate the respective substrate. The various environmentally sensitive regions can be offset from each other along a specified (eg, vertical) axis of the buffer or retention module to provide a "stacked buffer" configuration. In this manner, one or more substrates may be buffered or stored within the inert environment of OLED printing tool 4000, such as queued for further processing in one or more other modules. Individual substrates may be transferred to individual environmentally controlled areas using a handler 3430, which may have a terminator 3436 for robotic manipulation, which may be a fork-type terminator as depicted in Figure 26C. In retrospect, the various OLED substrates can be from generation 3.5 to generation 8.5 and beyond, so that the substrate size can vary from about 60 cm x 72 cm to about 220 cm x 250 cm and larger. To further secure substrates through various operations, these fork terminators can be equipped with mechanical gripping and clamping assemblies, or can be designed to use mechanical or vacuum suction.

As previously described for the gas enclosure system 500 of FIG. 1 , the first load lock chamber 3450 of FIG. 26C can receive a substrate via a gate 3452 . When a substrate is received in the load lock chamber 3450, the chamber can be isolated and flushed with an inert gas, such as nitrogen, any noble gas, and any combination thereof, until the reactive atmospheric gas is at a low level of 100 ppm or less, Such as 10ppm or less, 1.0ppm or less, Or low levels of 0.1ppm or less. The transfer of substrates from the load lock chamber 3450 to the first transfer module 3400 may be performed by a handler 3430 that may place a substrate, such as substrate 2050 , on the floating stage 2200 in the printing module 3500 . As depicted in FIG. 26C , floating stage 2200 may be supported by printing system base 2100 . The substrate 2050 can remain supported on the substrate floating stage during the printing process and can be moved by the Y-axis positioning system relative to the print head assembly 2500, which can be mounted to the X, Z-axis carriage Total 2300. The printing system 2000 of the printing module 3500 can be used to controllably deposit one or more thin film layers on a substrate during OLED device fabrication. The printing module 3500 can also be coupled to the output package area of the second module 3600 such as FIG. 26C. As depicted for the handler 3430 of the first module 3400 , the second module 3600 may have a second transfer module output gate 3614 and may have a handler positioned in the second transfer module 3610 . The floating table 2200 and the Y-axis positioning system can be extended along with the travel of the substrate in the printing module 3500, so that the substrate can travel to a position adjacent to the gate 3614 of the printing system of the second transfer module, and can be easily positioned by the second transfer module. The handler in module 3610 accesses for transfer to the second module 3600. As described for the handler 3430 positioned in the first transfer module 3410 , the handler may be located in the second module 3600 for easy positioning of substrates in any chamber of the second module 3600 . In this regard, a handler positioned in the second transfer chamber 3610 may position the substrate in the buffer 3660 as the workflow may require.

Within the first module 3400, the printing module 3500, and the second module 3600, substrates can be repositioned as desired for various processes or during a single deposition operation. In various embodiments of the OLED printing tool, the inert environment within the first module 3400, the printing module 3500, and the second module 3600 can be maintained by a common environmental control system. For various embodiments of the OLED printing tool, the inert environment within the first module 3400, the printing module 3500, and the second module 3600 can be maintained by an independent environmental control system. The second load lock chamber 3650 may be used to transfer the substrate out of the second module using a handler in the second transfer module 3610, such as after one or more deposition operations involving the printing module 3500 or after other processing 3600.

The printing system 2000 can include at least one printing system with one or more printing head devices Head assembly, the print head devices may have at least one print head, eg for nozzle printing, the print head may be thermal jet type, nozzle jet type or ink jet type. The at least one printhead assembly may be mounted to an overhead carriage, such as configured to deposit one or more thin film layers on a substrate in a "face-up" configuration. For example, one or more thin film layers that may be deposited by one or more print heads may include one or more of an electron injection or transport layer, a hole injection or transport layer, a barrier layer, or an emissive layer. These materials may provide one or more electrically functional layers. Other materials such as monomeric or polymeric materials may be deposited using printing techniques, such as to provide one or more encapsulation layers for the substrate 2050 being fabricated, as described in other examples herein.

Although various embodiments of OLED printing tool 4000 can utilize printing system 2000 of FIG. 20B , other embodiments of printing systems, such as exemplary printing system 2001 of FIG. . 27 is a front perspective view of printing system 2001 shown with cable tray assembly exhaust system 2400 mounted on top of bridge 2130 to contain and exhaust particulates formed by the continued movement of cable bundles substance. As previously described for printing system 2000 of FIG. 20B and printing system 2001 of FIG. 27, various embodiments of printing system 2001 may have a number of features. For example, the printing system 2001 can be supported by the printing system base 2100 . The first vertical board 2120 and the second vertical board 2122 can be installed on the printing system base 2100 , and the bridge 2130 can be installed on the first vertical board and the second vertical board. For various embodiments of the inkjet printing system 2001, the bridge 2130 can support at least one X, Z-axis carriage assembly 2300 that is movable in the X-axis direction relative to the substrate support apparatus 2250. Pass cable carrier runway 2401. In various embodiments of the printing system 2001 , a second X, Z-axis bracket assembly can be mounted on the bridge 2130 . For an embodiment of the printing system 2001 with two X, Z carriage assemblies, the print head assembly can be mounted on each X, Z carriage assembly, or as for the printing system of FIG. 20B As described in 2000, various devices such as cameras, UV lamps, and heat sources can be mounted on at least one of the two X, Z-axis carriage assemblies of the printing system 2001 . According to various embodiments of the printing system 2001, the substrate supporting device 2250 for supporting the substrate 2050 may be a floating stage, which is similar to the substrate floating stage 2200 of the printing system 2000 of FIG. 20B ; or it may be a chuck, as previously described. It is described for the printing system 2000 in FIG. 20B. Printing system 2001 in Figure 27 There may be an inherent low particle generation X-axis motion system into which the X,Z carriage assembly 2300 may be mounted and positioned on the bridge 2130 using an air bearing linear slide assembly. Various embodiments of the air bearing linear slide assembly can wrap around the integral bridge 2130, thereby allowing frictionless movement of the X,Z axis carriage assembly 2300 on the bridge 2130, and allowing for the provision of retainable X,Z axis carriages The three-point installation of the travel accuracy of the frame assembly 2300, and the deflection resistance.

The sequence of diagrams from FIGS. 28A to 30C depicts various embodiments of systems and methods for printhead management in a fully automated mode or in a remote operator-assisted mode, with little or no interruption to an ongoing process, while Maintain an inert, substantially particle-free process environment. In retrospect, a printhead assembly may include between about 1 and about 60 printhead devices, wherein each printhead device may have between about 1 and about 30 printhead devices located in each printhead device. between print heads. Accordingly, various embodiments of a printing system of the present teachings may have between about 1 and about 1800 print heads. In addition, a print head, such as an industrial inkjet head, can have between about 16 and about 2048 nozzles that can eject droplet volumes between about 0.1 pL and 200 pL. A large number of printheads may require ongoing measurement and maintenance procedures to be performed periodically as needed. According to various systems and methods of the present teachings, various process steps related to the ongoing management of various components of the printing system, such as various process steps related to the continuous measurement and maintenance procedures, can be used such as FIG. 20B and FIG. The print head management system 2701 of FIG. 23 and the print head management system 2701A of FIG. 24A are executed. Various embodiments of a printhead management system may include various subsystems or modules, such as a printhead replacement module, a droplet metering module, a printhead rinse tank module, and a blotter module.

Each subsystem or module may have various components that are consumable in nature and require replacement, such as replacement of blotters, ink, and waste reservoirs. Various consumable components may be packaged ready for insertion using a handler, for example in a fully automatic mode. As a non-limiting example, blotter paper can be packaged in a cartridge format that can be easily inserted into a blotter module for use. As another non-limiting example, ink can be packaged in replaceable reservoir and cartridge formats for use in a printing system. waste storage Various embodiments of the present invention can be packaged in a cartridge format that can be easily inserted into a flush tank module for use. Additionally, parts of the various components of a printing system that are subject to constant use may require periodic replacement. During the printing process, expedient management of the printhead assembly may be required, such as but not limited to printhead assembly or printhead exchange. A printhead replacement module can have components, such as a printhead assembly or printhead, that can be easily inserted into a printhead assembly for use. Droplet metrology modules for checking nozzle firing and measuring based on optical detection of droplet volume, velocity and trajectory from each nozzle may have sources and detectors that may require periodic replacement after use. Various consumable and high-use components can be packaged for ready insertion using a handler, for example in a fully automatic mode.

For various embodiments of the systems and methods of the present teachings (those represented by FIGS. 28A-30C ), by way of non-limiting example, the printing system package may be associated with various types of auxiliary packages. Example isolation. Thus, the utilization of auxiliary packages for automated or end-user eased exchange of components of the printing system ensures that the printing process can continue with minimal or no interruption. Various embodiments of the gas enclosure may have sealable openings or channels that allow access between the printing system enclosure and the secondary enclosure, and openings that allow access between the secondary enclosure and the exterior of the gas enclosure. Accordingly, various embodiments of the auxiliary enclosure can be isolated from the printing system enclosure of the gas enclosure system such that each volume is an independently functioning segment. In addition, when the printing system enclosure is isolated from the auxiliary enclosure, the opening between the auxiliary enclosure and the outside of the gas enclosure can be open to ambient or non-inert air without contaminating the printing system enclosure.

For various embodiments of the gas enclosure system, the secondary enclosure may be isolated from the printing system enclosure of the gas enclosure system using a structural closure for an opening, such as an enclosure panel opening or channel, door or window. For various embodiments of the systems and methods of the present teachings, structural closures may include various sealable coverings for openings or passages; Limiting example. According to systems and methods of the present teachings, the gate can be closed by any structure that can be used to reversibly cover or reversibly close any opening or passageway using pneumatic, hydraulic, electrical, or manual actuation. pieces. Can work in gas inclusion system The use of dynamic closures such as pressure differentials or gas curtains between the volume and the secondary enclosure, and combinations of various embodiments of dynamic and structural closures to isolate various embodiments of the secondary enclosure from the working volume of the gas enclosure system . Additionally, each of the working volume of the gas enclosure and the auxiliary enclosure can have an independently controlled environment, providing the ability to independently adjust, for example, but not limited to, temperature, lighting, particle control, and gas purification. Thus, the specifications for thermal control, lighting control, particle control, and inert gas environment control for the auxiliary enclosure volume and the working volume of the gas enclosure can be set to be the same or different for each volume.

28A-28C depict various embodiments of printing systems and methods for printhead management in a fully automated mode or in a remote operator-assisted mode with little or no interruption to ongoing processes while maintaining OLED arrays. An inert, substantially particle-free process environment in the printing tool 4001. Compared to the OLED printing system 4000 of FIGS. 26A-26C , various embodiments of the OLED printing tool 4001 of FIGS. 28A-28C may include auxiliary enclosures such as, for example but not limited to, transfer chambers, load lock chambers chambers and adjustable controlled environment enclosures. For embodiments of the systems and methods of the present teachings, the OLED printing tool 4001 can have a secondary enclosure that can be maintained in a controlled environment for the controlled environment and the controlled environment for the printing module 3500 under the same specifications as the In various embodiments of the systems and methods of the present teachings, the OLED printing tool 4001 can have a secondary enclosure that can be maintained in a controlled environment for the controlled environment and the controlled environment for the printing module 3500 different specifications without compromising the integrity of the environment of the OLED printing tool 4001.

As depicted in FIG. 28A , the printing module 3500 of the OLED printing tool 4001 can have a third module 3700 coupled to the printing system enclosure assembly 3540 . The third module 3700 can be positioned adjacent to the first bridge end 2132 of the bridge 2130 , wherein the print head assembly 2500 mounted on the X, Z carriage assembly 2300 can be positioned adjacent to the third module 3700 . The third module 3700 of FIG. 28A can have a third transfer chamber 3710, which can be an auxiliary enclosure for the OLED printing tool 4001, which is suitable for performing various print head maintenance procedures. The third die set 3700 of FIG. 28A can have a third load lock chamber that can be coupled to a third transfer chamber 3710 . Various aspects of the systems and methods of the present teachings In an embodiment, the third chamber 3700 may be positioned adjacent to the second bridge end 2134 . For various embodiments of the systems and methods of the present teachings, printing module 3500 may have a module, such as third module 3700 of FIG. 28A , adjacent to first bridge end 2132 and second bridge end. 2134. Additionally, while a single carriage is shown as printing system 2000 for OLED printing tool 4001 shown in FIG. 28A , printing systems such as the printing system of FIG. Various devices, such as the print head assembly, camera, UV lamp, and heat source mounted on the second carriage, are as previously described for printing system 2000 of FIG. 20B and printing system 2001 of FIG. 27 .

In FIG. 28A , although an additional chamber associated with the third die set 3700 is not shown, the chamber may be coupled to the first side 3702 of the third transfer chamber 3710 and the third chamber may be accessed via a gate 3714 . Transfer chamber 3710. Similarly, a chamber can be coupled to a third transfer chamber 3710 on the second side 3704 and can be accessed via a gate 3718 . Various additional chambers coupled to the third transfer chamber 3710 can be adapted for various print head maintenance procedures. For various embodiments of the OLED printing tool 4001, the third transfer chamber 3710 of the third module 3700 can be used to house a handler, and an additional chamber associated with the third transfer module 3710 can be used for storage and transfer Various components of subsystems and modules of various embodiments of the printhead management system of the present teachings. In various embodiments of the OLED printing tool 4001, the printing system enclosure assembly 3540 may have a volume or area, such as the first printing system enclosure assembly area 3570 adjacent to the first bridge end 2132 and The second printing system enclosure assembly area 3572 adjacent to the second bridge end 2134 . According to various embodiments of the OLED printing tool of the present teachings, one or both of the first printing system housing assembly area 3570 and the second printing system housing assembly area 3572 can be used to house the printhead management A system, such as the print head management system 2701 of FIG. 20B and FIG. 23 and the print head management system 2701A of FIG. 24A (see also FIG. 26C ). In this regard, for example, the handler located in the third transfer module 3710 may be located in various chambers associated with the third transfer module 3710 and the print head maintenance system located in the printing module 3500, such as But not limited to moving parts between load lock chambers 3750).

Figure 28B is a plan view of the OLRD printing tool 4001 shown in Figure 28A, according to the present invention Various embodiments of the teachings, wherein the third transfer chamber 3710 is an auxiliary enclosure. The third transfer chamber 3710 can have a gate 3412 that can provide access to the load lock chamber 3750 and can have a gate 3416 that can provide access to the printing module 3500 . The third load lock chamber 3750 can have a gate 3752 that can provide access to the third load lock chamber 3750 from outside the OLED printing tool 4001 . As previously discussed, handler 3430 and handler 3630 may have features selected for substrate handling tasks. Handler 3730 of FIG. 28B can have features selected for handling various components associated with a print head management system such as print head management system 2700 in accordance with the present teachings. The print head management system 2700 can be, for example but not limited to, a print head management system such as the print head management system 2701 of FIGS. 20B and 23 and the print head management system 2701A of FIG. 24A . As mentioned previously with reference to the teachings of FIG. 28A , the print head management system may be located in a volume or area such as 3570 or 3572 of print module 3500 . As depicted in FIG. 28B , the handler 3730 housed within the auxiliary enclosure defining the third transfer chamber 3710 can be positioned so that the handler can access the printing system enclosure assembly area 3570 , the printing system enclosure The assembly area is adjacent to the X,Z axis bracket assembly 2300. The X, Z-axis bracket assembly 2300 mounted to the bridge 2130 can support the print head assembly 2500, which can include a plurality of print head devices. Various embodiments of the handler 3730 can have a variety of terminator configurations, such as fork terminators, blade terminators, clip-type terminators, and clamp-type terminators, which can be selected from Used to manipulate the various components of the print head management system. In accordance with the present teachings, a terminator may include mechanical gripping and clamping assemblies, as well as pneumatic or vacuum-assisted assemblies to actuate portions of the terminator or otherwise hold various components of a printhead management system, such as Examples include, but are not limited to, blotter cartridges, ink cartridges, waste receptacles, print heads, and print head assemblies.

Regarding printhead replacement in accordance with various embodiments of the present teachings, the handler 3730 of FIG. 28B can retrieve parts that need to be replaced, for example, from the printhead assembly 2500 mounted on the X, Z-axis carriage assembly 2300, Such as a print head or a print head unit. In a later step, handler 3730 may retrieve a replacement part from the printhead, eg, from management system 2700 . Once the replacement part has been retrieved, the handler 3730 can then insert the replacement part, such as a printhead assembly or printhead, into the printhead assembly 2500 to complete the printhead replacement program. Additionally, for various embodiments of the OLED printing tool 4001 of FIG. 28B, the third transfer chamber 3710 of the third module 3700 can be used to accommodate a handler, and the load lock chamber 3750 can be used to store and transfer the teachings Various components of subsystems and modules of various embodiments of a printhead management system. Various replacement parts for the printhead management system 2700 stored in the load lock chamber 3750, such as but not limited to blotters, can be accessed by the handler 3730 and moved to the printhead management system 2700 Cartridges, Ink Cartridges, Waste Receptacles, Print Heads, and Print Head Units. Conversely, parts requiring replacement such as, but not limited to, blotter cartridges, ink cartridges, waste receptacles, printheads, and printhead assemblies may be removed from the printhead management system 2700 by the handler 3730 and Placed in load lock chamber 3750. In various embodiments of the printhead management process, components such as printhead devices or printheads may be removed from load lock chamber 3750 by handler 3730 and inserted into printhead assembly 2500 . The gate 3752 of the load lock chamber 3750 can be opened while the gates 3712 and 3716 are closed to retrieve or remove parts from the load lock chamber 3750, and transfer of replacement parts to the load lock chamber 3750 can be done by a handler or An end user located outside the OLED printing tool 4001 in ambient air.

After the procedure for retrieving the part, the procedure for replacing the part, or both have been completed, the gate 3752 of the load lock chamber 3750 can be closed and the load lock chamber 3750 can undergo a recovery procedure to degas the chamber. The environment is restored to the target specification. Given the generally small volume of the load lock chamber 3750 compared to the volume of the OLED printing tool 4001 , the recovery time is generally shorter than for the OLED printing tool 4001 . All steps associated with the printhead management program can be performed to eliminate or minimize the exposure of the printing system enclosure to contaminants such as air and water and various organic vapors, as well as particulate contaminants. According to various systems and methods of the present teachings, printing system inclusions can be introduced to sufficiently low levels of contamination that a purification system can remove the contaminants before they can affect the printing process. In this regard, various embodiments of the OLED printing tool 4001 can provide for fully automated replacement of components in a printhead management system while maintaining an inert, particle-free environment with little or no interruption to the printing process. Although the various print head management procedures can be performed in a fully automated Where a degree of end-user intervention is indicated during various procedures related to the management of the print head assembly, end-user access may be done externally, for example through the use of a glove loop.

Various embodiments of an OLED printing tool such as the OLED printing tool 4002 depicted in plan view in FIG. 28C can have an auxiliary enclosure 3550 that can be a load lock chamber or a tunable controlled environment enclosure. The auxiliary enclosure 3550 may have a first gate 3552 and a second gate 3554 . Printing module 3500 may have a volume or area such as first printing system enclosure assembly area 3570 and second printing system enclosure assembly area 3572 (see also FIG. 26C ), respectively. For various embodiments of the OLED printing tool 4002, the volumes or areas 3570 and 3572 of the printing module 3500 of FIG. 28C may be used, for example, to house a print head management system, such as the print head management systems of FIGS. 20B and 23 2701 and the print head management system 2701A of FIG. 24A. As depicted in FIG. 28C , for various embodiments of OLED printing tool 4002 , volume or area 3570 may be used to house printhead management system 2700 and handler 3530 . For the various embodiments of FIG. 28C , printhead management system 2700 and handler 3530 may be located, for example, in printing system enclosure assembly area 3570 adjacent to X, Z carriage assembly 2300 . The print head assembly 2500 can be mounted on the X,Z axis bracket assembly 2300 (see also FIG. 26C ), which is supported on the bridge 2130 . The print head assembly 2500 may include a plurality of print head devices. Various embodiments of the handler 3530 can have a variety of terminator configurations, such as fork-type terminators, blade-type terminators, clip-type terminators, and clamp-type terminators, which can be selected from Used to handle various components of the printhead management system, such as, but not limited to, blotter cartridges, ink cartridges, waste receptacles, printheads, and printhead assemblies.

Regarding print head replacement, for various embodiments of the OLED printing tool 4002, the setter 3530 can retrieve parts that need to be replaced, for example, from the print head assembly 2500 mounted on the X, Z axis carriage assembly 2300 , such as a printhead or printhead assembly. In a later step, handler 3530 may retrieve a replacement part from printhead management system 2700, for example. Once the replacement part has been retrieved, the handler 3530 can then insert the replacement part, such as a printhead assembly or printhead, into the printhead assembly 2500 to complete the printhead replacement procedure. Additionally, for various embodiments of the OLED printing tool 4002 of FIG. 28C , the auxiliary enclosure 3550 Various components of the subsystems and modules of various embodiments of the printhead management system may be used to store and transfer the teachings. Various replacement parts of the printhead management system 2700 stored in the auxiliary package 3550, such as but not limited to blotter cartridges, Ink cartridges, waste reservoirs, print heads, and print head assemblies. Conversely, parts requiring replacement such as, but not limited to, blotter cartridges, ink cartridges, waste receptacles, printheads, and printhead assemblies may be removed from the printhead management system 2700 by the handler 3730 and Placed in the auxiliary package 3550. In various embodiments of the printhead management program, components such as printhead devices or printheads may be removed from auxiliary enclosure 3550 by handler 3530 and inserted into printhead assembly 2500 . The gate 3552 of the auxiliary enclosure 3550 can be opened while the gate 3554 is closed to retrieve or remove parts from the auxiliary enclosure 3550, and transfer of replacement parts to the auxiliary enclosure 3550 can be done by a handler or located at the OLED printing tool 4002 To be performed by an end user whose exterior is in ambient air.

After the procedure for retrieving the part, the procedure for replacing the part, or both have been completed, the gate 3552 of the auxiliary enclosure 3550 can be closed and the auxiliary enclosure 3550 can undergo a recovery procedure to restore the atmosphere of the auxiliary enclosure Revert to target specification. Given the generally small volume of auxiliary enclosure 3550 compared to the volume of OLED printing tool 4002 , the recovery time is generally shorter than for OLED printing tool 4002 . All steps associated with the printhead management program can be performed to eliminate or minimize the exposure of the printing system enclosure to contaminants such as air and water and various organic vapors, as well as particulate contaminants. According to various systems and methods of the present teachings, printing system inclusions can be introduced to sufficiently low levels of contamination that a purification system can remove the contaminants before they can affect the printing process. In this regard, various embodiments of the OLED printing tool 4002 can provide for fully automated replacement of components in a printhead management system while maintaining an inert, particle-free environment with little or no interruption to the printing process. While the various printhead management procedures can be carried out in a fully automated mode, where a certain degree of end-user intervention may be dictated during the various procedures related to the management of the printhead assembly, end-user access can be obtained via, for example, the use of Glove looping is performed externally.

29A-29C depict various embodiments of printing systems and methods for printhead management in a fully automated mode or in a remote operator-assisted mode with little or no interruption to ongoing processes while maintaining printing An inert, substantially particle-free process environment within the system enclosure 1102. For the various print head management procedures that may be performed in the gas enclosure system 506 of FIGS. 29A-29C , the auxiliary enclosure 1010 may be maintained in a controlled environment with the printing system enclosure 1102 for a controlled environment. under the same specification. Various embodiments of gas enclosure system 506 of FIGS. 29A-29C can be incorporated into OLED printing tools, such as OLED printing tool 4000 of FIG. 26A and OLED printing tool 4001 of FIG. 28A .

29A-29C depict a gas enclosure system 506 that may include a printing system enclosure 1102 and a printing system 2002 that may have a print head assembly 2500 . Printing system enclosure 1102 may be any gaseous enclosure in which printing system 2002 may be housed and maintained in a targeted controlled environment. The printing system enclosure 1102 may have a controlled environment that may include target specifications for reactive species, such as water vapor and oxygen, and target specifications for particulate matter. The printing system enclosure 1102 can be, for example but not limited to, any of the gas enclosure assemblies as described with respect to FIGS. 1 , 3 , 15 , 18 and 19 . As previously stated, printing system 2002 may be any printing system, including, for example and without limitation, the non-limiting examples of FIGS. 20B and 27 . The print head assembly 2500 can have at least one print head. As previously mentioned, the print head management system 2700 can be any print head management system, such as, but not limited to, non-woven fabrics including the print head management system 2701 of FIGS. 20B and 23 and the print head management system 2701A of FIG. 24A. Limiting example.

The auxiliary enclosure 1010 of FIGS. 29A-29C can have a first gate 1012 and a second gate 1014 that can remain closed during normal operation. For various embodiments of the gas enclosure system 506, the auxiliary enclosure 1010 depicted in FIGS. 29A-29C may be a load lock chamber. For various embodiments of the gas enclosure system 506, the secondary enclosure 1010 depicted in FIGS. 29A-29C may be a hard-walled adjustable controlled environment enclosure. In other embodiments of the gas enclosure system 506, the auxiliary enclosure 1010 depicted in FIGS. 29A-29C may be a transfer chamber. For various types of gas inclusion system 506 By way of example, the controlled environment of the secondary enclosure may include target specifications for reactive species such as water vapor and oxygen, and various organic vapors, as well as target specifications for particulate matter. In various embodiments of the gas enclosure system 506 of FIGS. 29A-29C , the auxiliary enclosure 1010 can be maintained to the same environmental specifications as the printing system enclosure 1102 is maintained. For various embodiments of gas enclosure system 506 of FIGS. 29A-29C , auxiliary enclosure 1010 and printing system enclosure 1102 may be maintained to different environmental specifications. The gas enclosure system 506 of FIGS. 29A and 29B can have a handler 3830 positioned to perform tasks associated with the printhead management process. Handler 3830 may have terminator 3836 mounted to arm 3834 . Various embodiments of terminator configurations may be used, such as blade-type terminators, clip-type terminators, and clamp-type terminators. Various embodiments of the terminator may include mechanical gripping and clamping assemblies, as well as pneumatic or vacuum-assisted assemblies to actuate portions of the terminator or otherwise hold various components of the printhead management system, such as, for example, But not limited to blotter cartridges, ink cartridges, waste receptacles, print heads, and print head assemblies.

For printhead replacement, handler 3830 of FIG. 29A may be positioned adjacent printhead assembly 2500 and printhead management system 2700 of printing system 2002 . During a procedure for printhead replacement, handler 3830 can remove a target component from printhead assembly 2500; the target component is a printhead or a printhead device having at least one printhead. In various procedures for printhead replacement for gas enclosure system 506 of FIG. 29A, removed components may be placed in printhead management system 2700 for later retrieval. For removing a removed part from the printing system case 1102, the second gate 1024 can be opened while the first gate 1012 is kept closed so that the handler 3830 can place the removed part in the auxiliary case Body 1010. In a later step, handler 3830 may retrieve a replacement part from printhead management system 2700 . Alternatively, handler 3830 may retrieve replacement parts from auxiliary enclosure 1010 . Once the replacement part has been retrieved, the handler 3830 can then insert the replacement part, such as a printhead assembly or printhead, into the printhead assembly to complete the printhead replacement procedure. After the components are moved between the printing system package 1102 and the auxiliary package 1010 , the gate 1014 can be closed so that the printing system package 1102 can be isolated from the auxiliary package 1010 . The gate 1012 can be opened and the removed part placed in the auxiliary enclosure 1010 can be retrieved by the source (handler or end user) and can Additional functional components (replacement printhead or replacement printhead device) are placed in the auxiliary package 1010 for the subsequent printhead exchange procedure. Finally, after closing the gate 1012, the auxiliary enclosure 1010 can undergo a recovery procedure in order to achieve target specifications for reactive species such as water vapor and oxygen and for particulate matter so that it can be initiated when required The next print head replacement procedure. In various embodiments of the gas enclosure system 506, the auxiliary enclosure 1010 may have the same specifications as the printing system enclosure 1102 for a controlled environment. For various embodiments of the gas enclosure system 506 of FIG. 29A , the auxiliary enclosure 1010 may have different specifications for the controlled environment than the printing system enclosure 1102 .

For the gas enclosure system 506 of FIG. 29B, the disposer 3830 can be positioned in the auxiliary enclosure 1010 so that the terminator 3836 of the disposer 3830 can easily reach the print head assembly 2500 and the print head of the printing system. Management system 2700.

Regarding the print head replacement procedure for the gas enclosure system 506 of FIG. removing a target component; the target component is a printhead or a printhead device having at least one printhead. In various procedures for printhead replacement for gas enclosure system 506 of FIG. 29B, removed components may be placed in printhead management system 2700 for later retrieval. For removal of a removed part from the printing system enclosure 1102, the second gate 1014 can be opened while the gate 1012 is kept closed so that the handler 3830 can place the removed part in the auxiliary enclosure 1010 middle. In a later step, handler 3830 may retrieve a replacement part from printhead management system 2700 . Alternatively, handler 3830 may retrieve replacement parts from auxiliary enclosure 1010 . Once the replacement part has been retrieved, the handler 3830 can then insert the replacement part, such as a printhead assembly or printhead, into the printhead assembly to complete the printhead replacement procedure. After the removed part is in the auxiliary enclosure 1010, the replacement part has been inserted into the print head assembly 2500 of the printing system enclosure 1102, and the handler 3830 is in the auxiliary enclosure 1010 and the gate can be closed 1014 , so that the printing system package 1102 can be isolated from the auxiliary package 1010 . At any time after a replacement part has been inserted into the printhead assembly and the gate 1014 has been closed, the gate 1012 can be opened and the disposer 3830 can place the removed part in its place. Put into a position outside the auxiliary package 1010, and additional functional components (replacement print head or replacement print head device) can be placed in the auxiliary package 1010 for the subsequent print head exchange procedure. Finally, the auxiliary enclosure 1010 can undergo a recovery procedure to achieve target specifications for reactive species such as water vapor and oxygen as well as target specifications for particulate matter so that a subsequent printhead replacement procedure can be initiated when required . In various embodiments of the gas enclosure system 506, the auxiliary enclosure 1010 may have the same specifications as the printing system enclosure 1102 for a controlled environment. For various embodiments of gas enclosure system 506 of FIG. 29B , auxiliary enclosure 1010 may have different specifications for a controlled environment than printing system enclosure 1102 .

Additionally, for the various embodiments of the gas enclosure system 506 of FIGS. 29A and 29B , the auxiliary enclosure 1010 may be used to store and transfer various subsystems and modules of the various embodiments of the printhead management system of the present teachings. part. Various replacement parts of the print head management system 2700 stored in the auxiliary enclosure 1010 can be accessed by the handler 3830 and moved to the print head management system 2700 through the gate 1014 while the gate 1012 is closed to maintain the gas enclosure system 506 In an inert environment, such replacement parts are, but not limited to, blotter cartridges, ink cartridges, waste receptacles, printheads, and printhead assemblies. Conversely, parts requiring replacement may be removed from printhead management system 2700 by handler 3830 through gate 1014 while gate 1012 is closed and the removed part is placed in auxiliary enclosure 1010 . In a later step, the gate 1012 of the auxiliary enclosure 1010 can be opened while the gate 1014 is closed to retrieve or remove the part from the auxiliary enclosure 3550, and the transfer of the replacement part to the auxiliary enclosure 3550 can be done by a disposer or This is performed by an end user located outside the gas enclosure system 506 of Figures 29A and 29B in ambient air.

After the procedure for retrieving the part, the procedure for replacing the part, or both have been completed, the gate 1012 of the auxiliary enclosure 1010 can be closed and the auxiliary enclosure 1010 can undergo a recovery procedure to restore the atmosphere of the auxiliary enclosure Revert to target specification. Given the substantially smaller volume of the auxiliary enclosure 1010 compared to the volume of the gaseous enclosure system 506 of FIGS. 29A and 29B , the recovery time is substantially greater than the recovery time for the gaseous enclosure system 506 of FIGS. 29A and 29B . short. All steps associated with the printhead management program can be performed to eliminate or minimize the exposure of the printing system enclosure to contaminants such as air and water vapor And various organic vapors, as well as particulate pollutants. According to various systems and methods of the present teachings, printing system inclusions can be introduced to sufficiently low levels of contamination that a purification system can remove the contaminants before they can affect the printing process. In this regard, various embodiments of the gas enclosure system 506 of FIGS. 29A and 29B can provide for fully automated replacement of components in a printhead management system while maintaining an inert, particle-free environment with little or no Interrupt the printing process.

Variations may be made to the printhead replacement procedure for the various embodiments of Figures 29A and 29B without departing from the spirit of the automated process for maintaining the printhead array. For example, in various embodiments, the handler 3830 of FIGS. 29A and 29B can remove the printhead from the printhead assembly 2500 when the gate 1012 of the auxiliary enclosure 1010 is closed and the gate 1014 of the auxiliary enclosure 1010 is opened. and place it in the auxiliary package 1010, the print head component is a print head or a print head device with at least one print head. In a next step, when the gate 1014 of the auxiliary enclosure 1010 is closed, the gate 1012 can be opened to allow retrieval of the removed part from the auxiliary enclosure 1010 and the replacement of the part, as previously described for FIGS. 29A and 29B . Placed in the auxiliary package 1010. Once the removed part has been retrieved and the replacement part is located within the auxiliary enclosure 1010, the gate 1012 can be closed and the auxiliary enclosure 1010 can undergo a recovery procedure to be free for reactive species such as water vapor and oxygen. Target Specifications and Meeting Target Specifications for Particulate Matter. Once the auxiliary enclosure 1010 is placed in proper controlled environment specifications, the gate 1014 can be opened and replacement parts can be inserted into the printhead assembly. When the replacement part has been inserted into the printhead assembly, the gate 1014 can be closed so that the printing system enclosure 1102 can be isolated from the auxiliary enclosure 1010 .

In FIG. 29C , for various embodiments of the printhead replacement procedure as described in FIGS. 29A and 29B , the end user can, via manipulation as illustrated when performed remotely by a handler through various glove loops to execute. Although two glove loops are shown in FIG. 29C , it should be appreciated that in order to provide support for various positions (for example, as previously shown for the gas enclosure assembly 100 in FIG. 1 and as shown in FIG. 24B ), For the purpose of remote entry in the case), the glove loop can be placed in several locations.

Figures 30A to 30C depict a method for operating in a fully automated mode or a remote operator assisted mode Various embodiments of printing systems and methods provide printhead management with little or no interruption to ongoing processes while maintaining an inert, substantially particle-free process environment within the printing system enclosure 1102. Auxiliary enclosure 1020 may be maintained in a controlled environment with printing system enclosure 1102 for the various print head management procedures that may be performed in gas enclosure system 507 of FIGS. 30A-30C Under different specifications, the integrity of the environment of the printing system package 1102 will not be compromised. Various embodiments of gas enclosure system 506 of FIGS. 29A-29C can be incorporated into OLED printing tools, such as OLED printing tool 4000 of FIG. 26A and OLED printing tool 4001 of FIG. 28A .

30A-30C depict a gas enclosure system 507 that may include a printing system enclosure 1102 and a printing system 2002 that may have a print head assembly 2500 . Printing system enclosure 1102 may be any gaseous enclosure in which printing system 2002 may be housed and maintained in a targeted controlled environment. The printing system enclosure 1102 may have a controlled environment that may include target specifications for reactive species, such as water vapor and oxygen, and target specifications for particulate matter. The printing system enclosure 1102 may be, for example but not limited to, any of the gas enclosure assemblies as depicted with respect to FIGS. 1 , 3 , 15 , 18 , and 19 . As previously described herein, printing system 2002 may be any printing system, such as, but not limited to, including the non-limiting examples of FIGS. 20B and 27 . The print head assembly 2500 can have at least one print head. As previously mentioned, the print head management system 2700 can be any print head management system, such as, but not limited to, non-woven fabrics including the print head management system 2701 of FIGS. 20B and 23 and the print head management system 2701A of FIG. 24A. Limiting example.

The auxiliary enclosure 1020 of FIGS. 30A-30C can have an opening 1022 and a gate 1024 and a conduit 1026 that can be in fluid communication with a source of inert gas. During normal operation, the gate 1024 of the auxiliary enclosure 1020 can be maintained in a closed position. For various embodiments of the gas enclosure system 507, the auxiliary enclosure 1020 depicted in FIGS. 30A-30C may be a tunable controlled environment enclosure with a soft wall configuration. For various embodiments of the gas enclosure system 507, the auxiliary enclosure 1020 depicted in FIGS. 30A-30C may be a tunable controlled environment enclosure having a hard wall configuration. In other embodiments of the gas enclosure system 507, Fig. The secondary enclosure 1020 depicted in FIGS. 30A-30C may be an adjustable controlled environment enclosure having a combination of hard and soft wall constructions.

For various embodiments of the gas enclosure system 507, the opening 1022 may be a passage such as, but not limited to, a window or door having a solid material. In various embodiments in the gas enclosure system 507, the opening 1022 can be a flexible doorway that can be covered, for example, by a curtain having a strip of flexible polymer sheet material, thereby providing access and egress. Auxiliary package 1020 ready channel. According to various embodiments of the gas enclosure system 507 of FIGS. 30A-30C , as previously discussed, various embodiments of dynamic closures can be used to effectively seal the opening 1022 . For various embodiments of the secondary enclosure, the opening 1022 may be a window that may be covered by a flexible polymer material, thereby providing a ready passage of material into and out of the secondary enclosure 1020 . In various embodiments of the auxiliary enclosure, the opening 1022 can be a channel, such as but not limited to a window or door, which, in addition to being covered by a flexible polymer material, can have an air curtain for placing the auxiliary The enclosure is isolated from the outside of the gas enclosure system 507 . In various embodiments of the secondary enclosure, the opening 1022 may be a passage, such as but not limited to a window or door, which may have a gas curtain for isolating the secondary enclosure from the outside of the gas enclosure system 507 . As will be discussed in more detail later, in addition to an air curtain, the pressure differential between the auxiliary enclosure 1020 and the printing system enclosure 1102 can be utilized to isolate the auxiliary enclosure 1020 having the opening 1022 . The gas enclosure system 507 of FIGS. 30A and 30B can have a handler 3830 positioned to perform tasks associated with the printhead management process. Handler 3830 may have terminator 3836 mounted to arm 3834 . Various embodiments of terminator configurations may be used, such as blade-type terminators, clip-type terminators, and clamp-type terminators. Various embodiments of the terminator may include mechanical gripping and clamping assemblies, as well as pneumatic or vacuum assisted assemblies to actuate portions of the terminator or otherwise hold the printhead assembly or pressure from the printhead assembly. print head.

As indicated in FIGS. 30A-30C , the conduit 1026 of the secondary enclosure 1020 can be in fluid communication with a source of inert gas so that for various embodiments of the gas enclosure system 507 of FIG. 30A , the secondary enclosure 1020 can be maintained until use. Targets for reactive species (such as oxygen and water vapor) and organic solvent vapors The specification is the same as that of the printing system package 1102. In various embodiments of the gas enclosure system 507 of FIG. 30A , the gaseous environment of the secondary enclosure 1020 can be maintained at target specifications for reactive species such as oxygen and water vapor, and organic solvent vapors that differ from The specification of the print system package 1102 . According to various embodiments of the gas enclosure system 507, the source of inert gas may be filtered for particulate matter. In retrospect, the gas enclosure assembly may be maintained at a pressure above atmospheric pressure. It is contemplated that, for example, during various process steps of various print head management procedures, the pressure of the auxiliary enclosure 1020 may be maintained at a value above the atmospheric pressure value and at a value below the pressure value of the printing system enclosure 1102 in order to prevent Retain or prevent the gas from diffusing from the auxiliary enclosure 1020 to the printing system enclosure 1102 . In this regard, for the various embodiments of the gas enclosure system 507 of FIGS. 30A-30C , target specification of the secondary enclosure 1020 for reactive species such as water vapor and oxygen and for particulate matter The target specifications for the print system packages 1102 may not be as stringent as those for the print system package 1102 .

For printhead replacement, handler 3830 of FIG. 30A may be positioned adjacent printhead assembly 2500 and printhead management system 2700 of printing system 2002 . During the procedure for exchanging printheads, handler 3830 can remove a target component from printhead assembly 2500; the target component is a printhead or a printhead device having at least one printhead. In various procedures for printhead replacement for gas enclosure system 507 of FIG. 30A, removed components may be placed in printhead management system 2700 for later retrieval. For removal of a removed part from printing system enclosure 1102 , gate 1024 may be opened so that handler 3830 may place the removed part in auxiliary enclosure 1020 . When the gate 1024 is opened, the opening 1022 can be sealed using various embodiments of a dynamic closure as previously described. In a later step, handler 3830 may retrieve a replacement part from printhead management system 2700 . Alternatively, handler 3830 may retrieve replacement parts from auxiliary enclosure 1020 . Once the replacement part has been retrieved, the handler 3830 can then insert the replacement part, such as a printhead assembly or printhead, into the printhead assembly to complete the printhead replacement procedure. After the components are moved between the printing system package 1102 and the auxiliary package 1010 , the gate 1024 can be closed so that the printing system package 1102 can be separated from the auxiliary package 1020 . For various embodiments of the gas enclosure system 507, the disposer can be placed in The transition time of moving parts between the printing system enclosure 1102 and the auxiliary enclosure 1010 is minimized in order to combine the positive pressure maintained in the printing system enclosure 1102 with respect to the pressure of the inert gas environment of the auxiliary enclosure 1020, listed During the print head replacement procedure, any reactive species and particulate matter that can diffuse into the printing system enclosure can be easily removed by the gas purification system and the gas circulation and filtration system. Additionally, as previously discussed, a gas curtain may be used in conjunction with the opening 1020 to isolate the secondary enclosure from the exterior of the gas enclosure system 506 . Removed components placed in auxiliary enclosure 1020 can be retrieved by a source (handler or end user) located outside of auxiliary enclosure 1020, and additional functional parts (replacement printhead or replacement row print head device) can be placed in the auxiliary package 1020 for the subsequent print head exchange procedure.

For the gas enclosure system 507 of FIG. 30B, the disposer 3830 can be positioned in the auxiliary enclosure 1020 so that the terminator 3836 of the disposer 3830 can easily reach the print head assembly 2500 and the print head of the printing system. Management system 2700.

Regarding the printhead replacement procedure for the gas inclusion system 507 of FIG. The removed components are placed in the auxiliary package 1020; the target component is a print head or a print head device having at least one print head. As previously discussed, the opening 1022 can be closed using various embodiments of a structural closure or effectively sealed using various embodiments of a dynamic closure. The handler 3830 can retrieve the replacement part from the auxiliary package 1020 and insert the replacement part into the print head assembly 2500 of the printing system 2002 to complete the replacement procedure. Once the replacement part has been inserted into printhead assembly 2500 and handler 3830 is located within auxiliary enclosure 1020 , gate 1024 may be closed so that printing system enclosure 1102 may be isolated from auxiliary enclosure 1020 . At any time after the replacement procedure has been completed, the handler 3830 can position the removed part at a location outside of the auxiliary enclosure 1010 through the opening 1022, and can place additional functional parts (replacement printhead or replacement printhead device) is placed in the auxiliary package 1020 for the subsequent print head exchange procedure.

Additionally, for various embodiments of gas enclosure system 506 of FIGS. 30A and 30B , auxiliary enclosure 1010 may be used to store and transfer various implementations of printhead management systems of the present teachings. Example subsystems and various components of modules. Various replacement parts of the printhead management system 2700 stored in the auxiliary enclosure 1020 can be accessed by the handler 3830 and moved to the printhead management system 2700 via the gate 1024, while the opening 1022 can use various implementations of structural closures Various embodiments such as sealing or using dynamic closures are effectively sealed to maintain an inert environment in the gas enclosure system 507, such replacement parts as but not limited to blotter cartridges, ink cartridges, waste reservoirs, Print head and print head device. Conversely, parts requiring replacement can be removed from print head management system 2700 by handler 3830 via gate 1024, while opening 1022 can be closed using various embodiments of structural closures or effectively using various embodiments of dynamic closures It is sealed and the removed part is placed in the auxiliary package 1020. In a later step, when the gate 1024 is closed, the retrieval or removal of the part from the auxiliary enclosure 3550, and the transfer of the replacement part to the auxiliary enclosure 3550 can be done by the disposer or the gas enclosure located in Figures 30A and 30B. The system 506 is performed by an end user outside in ambient air. All steps associated with the printhead management program can be performed to eliminate or minimize the exposure of the printing system enclosure to contaminants such as air and water and various organic vapors, as well as particulate contaminants. According to various systems and methods of the present teachings, printing system inclusions can be introduced to sufficiently low levels of contamination that a purification system can remove the contaminants before they can affect the printing process. In this regard, various embodiments of the gas enclosure system 507 of FIGS. 30A and 30B can provide for fully automated replacement of components in a printhead management system while maintaining an inert, particle-free environment with little or no Interrupt the printing process.

In FIG. 30C , for various embodiments of the printhead replacement procedure as described with respect to FIGS. 30A and 30B , the end-user can perform the printhead replacement procedure as described when performed remotely by a handler via various glove loops. manipulation to perform. Although two glove loops are shown in FIG. 30C , it should be appreciated that in order to provide for a variety of positions (e.g., as previously shown for the gas enclosure assembly 100 in FIG. 1 and as shown in FIG. 24B ), For the purpose of remote entry of the case), the glove loop can be placed at several locations.

All publications, patents, and patent applications mentioned in this specification are herein incorporated by reference to the extent that each individual publication, patent, or patent application is specifically and individually indicated to be Indications are incorporated by reference to the same extent.

While embodiments of the disclosure have been shown and described herein, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that such embodiments are provided by way of illustration only. Numerous variations, changes, and substitutions will now occur to those skilled in the art without departing from the present disclosure. It should be understood that the disclosure may be practiced using various alternatives to the embodiments of the disclosure described herein. The following claims are intended to define the scope of the present disclosure, and methods and structures falling within the scope of these claims and their equivalents are intended to be covered by the claims.

100: Gas package assembly

501: Gas inclusion system

1110: Entrance chamber

1112: Entrance gate

1130: System Controller

3130: Gas Purification System/Gas Purification Circuit

Claims (17)

A printing system comprising: a printing system package; a printing system accommodated in the printing system package, the printing system including a print head assembly to deposit a material on a substrate; a an auxiliary enclosure coupled to the printing system enclosure and having a conduit in fluid communication with a source of inert gas; a first sealable opening positioned to connect the auxiliary enclosure to the printing system enclosure placed in fluid communication with each other; and a handler positioned to transfer a component between the printing system enclosure and the auxiliary enclosure through the first sealable opening, the component to provide the print head Assembly maintenance. The printing system according to claim 1, wherein the handler is located in the auxiliary package. The printing system according to claim 1, further comprising a print head replacement module positioned in the printing system enclosure or the auxiliary enclosure to store print heads. The printing system according to claim 1, further comprising an air circulation and filtration system coupled to the printing system enclosure. The printing system according to claim 1, wherein the printing system package and the auxiliary package are made of frame panels, and the first sealable opening is located in at least one of the auxiliary package and the printing system package One of the frame panels. The printing system according to claim 5, further comprising a structural closure to close the first sealable opening. The printing system according to claim 6, wherein the structural closure includes at least one of a door, a window, or a gate. As the printing system of claim 5, it further includes a dynamic closure to close the first A sealable opening, the dynamic closure being at least one of a pressure differential or an air curtain. The printing system according to claim 1, wherein the part is a consumable part. The printing system of claim 9, wherein the component includes at least one of the following: a replacement component of the printing system, a component for performing cleaning of the printing system, or a One part of the printing system that receives waste ink. The printing system of claim 1, further comprising: a load lock chamber coupled to the auxiliary enclosure through a second sealable opening, the load lock chamber configured to store one or more components To provide maintenance of the printing system. The printing system of claim 11, wherein the load lock chamber further comprises a third sealable opening positioned to allow access to the load lock chamber from outside one of the load lock chamber and the auxiliary enclosure one inside. The printing system according to claim 1, further comprising a second sealable opening positioned to allow access from an exterior of the auxiliary enclosure to an interior of the auxiliary enclosure. The printing system according to claim 1, further comprising a second sealable opening positioned to allow access to an interior of the auxiliary package from an outside of the auxiliary package, the second sealable opening can pass through At least one of an air curtain or a pressure differential is closed from fluid communication with the exterior. The printing system according to claim 1, further comprising: a substrate support device to support the substrate; a bridge positioned to straddle the substrate support device, wherein the print head assembly is movably mounted on the bridge a cable tray mounted to the bridge to store a cable bundle; and a cable tray assembly exhaust system mounted to the cable tray to exhaust particulate matter generated by the cable bundle away from the print head Assembly. Such as the printing system of claim 4, wherein the gas circulation and filtration system includes a wind A fan filter unit and a pipe arranged in the printing system enclosure to circulate the air in the printing system enclosure to the fan filter unit. The printing system of claim 16, wherein the duct includes a plurality of risers to circulate air from a bottom plate of the printing system enclosure to the fan filter unit.