Roller with salient members

Abstract

A roll for feeding substrate material, which includes a sheet roller, which has a circumference and a surface layer, configured to rotate about a first axis. A plurality of salient members are disposed on the surface layer to extend along the first axis at intervals about the circumference. Each of the plurality of salient members is configured to cause a fold line to form across a width of the substrate material, which is substantially perpendicular to a direction of travel of the substrate material.

Description

BACKGROUND [0001] 1. Field of the Invention [0002] The present invention relates to a roll and, more specifically, to a roll which includes salient members for forming fold lines on a substrate material. [0003] 2. Related Art [0004] Deposition systems have been created for the deposition of metal, oxides, or similar materials onto continuously wound thin substrates, such as paper, plastic film, metal foil and the like. The wound or rolled thin substrates can be used, for example, as packaging material, capacitors and magnetic tape. [0005] Unfortunately, rolled thin substrates are easily warped during processing. As illustrated in FIG. 1A, typically, the warped area 100 may be created by the expansion of the substrate (i.e. bulging) which occurs when the thin substrate is exposed to heat or when the thin substrate has formed wrinkles, during the rolling process. [0006] Wrinkles or bulges 102 formed on the thin substrate 104 make it difficult to properly and adequately deposit vaporiz...

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

[0009] The present invention provides a roll of a roller assembly that can reduce or eliminate the formation of bulges and wrinkles that create warped areas on thin substrate materials.

[0013] Advantageously, the sheet roller including the plurality of salient members causes fold lines to be formed across the width of the substrate material, as the substrate material is wound about the roll. The fold lines increase the tensile strength of the substrate material across the width, which increase the resistance of the substrate material to unwanted expansion due to heat and to the unwanted formation of wrinkles.

[0014] Depending on the specifications of the substrate material, the radius of the fold lines, the interval between the fold lines and the pitch of the fold lines can be tailored by modifying the size and shape of the salient members. Fold lines can be formed on the top and bottom surfaces of the substrate material to further increase the strength of the material.

[0015] Beneficially, if the substrate material can be wound through the roll without forming warped areas, the substrate material is in a better condition for being subjected to various forms of deposition, such as vacuum deposition and other deposition techniques at ambient pressure and temperature, which reduces or eliminates detriments, such as the formation of rails.

[0016] The fold lines formed by the present invention are very small and therefore cannot be detected by the naked eye. Moreover, the fold lines do not cause a detriment to any deposition processes. In addition, the fold lines are easily removed from the substrate material with minimal further processing.

Problems solved by technology

Unfortunately, rolled thin substrates are easily warped during processing.

As shown in FIG. 1B, the bulged area is not flat, thus, causing a portion of the bulged area to be inadequately covered with vaporized material.

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