A mini LED panel windowing system and method based on an acousto-optic deflector

Abstract

The application discloses a mini LED panel windowing system and method based on an acousto-optic deflector. The system comprises a laser, a front beam expander, an acousto-optic deflector, a diffraction plate, a rear beam expander and a galvanometer arranged in sequence along a light path of the laser. The laser is configured to emit a laser beam. The front beam expander is configured to expand the diameter of the laser beam to a required spot size for entering the acousto-optic deflector. The acousto-optic deflector is configured to control the deflection angle of the laser beam. The diffraction plate is configured to block Bragg diffraction light generated by the acousto-optic deflector and allow 0th-order and 1st-order diffraction beams to pass through. The rear beam expander is configured to expand the diameter of the light beam to a required focused spot size. The galvanometer is configured to jump to a next processing position after the acousto-optic deflector deflects by a preset angle.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention belongs to the field of laser removal technology, and particularly relates to a laser process for rapidly removing tiny pads on mini LED panels by using an acousto-optic deflector to control the direction of light. It also relates to a device for achieving large-format rapid scanning by combining an acousto-optic deflector with a galvanometer. Specifically, it is a mini LED panel windowing system and method based on an acousto-optic deflector. Background Technology

[0002] Mini LED stands for Mini LED Backlit LCD Display, but it is essentially still an LCD. Because the LED chips in each Mini LED panel are made extremely small, LCD panel production requires corresponding exposure films, and the exposure parameters need to be adjusted according to different boards. Inadequate operator control of the exposure machine, film wrinkles, and black spots can all affect the final solder mask effect. Since a single Mini LED panel has a large number of LED chips, using conventional laser processing methods would result in very low processing efficiency and poor quality, making mass production impractical.

[0003] Current traditional exposure and development methods are prone to problems such as pad welding bulging or collapse, resulting in very low product yield and high production costs.

[0004] Current conventional laser removal methods cannot achieve the required 20µm accuracy across the entire 720*620mm area of ​​a mini LED panel. Furthermore, multi-spot processing limits the processing area and requires the use of telecentric lenses, resulting in low pad removal efficiency and difficulty in achieving the required precision for small-size processing. Summary of the Invention

[0005] To overcome the shortcomings of the prior art, the present invention provides a mini LED panel window opening system and method based on an acousto-optic deflector to solve at least one of the above-mentioned technical problems.

[0006] On one hand, the present invention provides a mini LED panel window opening system based on an acousto-optic deflector, including a laser, and a front beam expander, an acousto-optic deflector, a diffraction plate, a rear beam expander, and a galvanometer mirror arranged sequentially along the laser's output light path; wherein, the laser is used to emit a laser beam; the front beam expander is used to expand the diameter of the laser beam to the required spot size for entering the acousto-optic deflector; the acousto-optic deflector is used to control the deflection angle of the laser beam; the diffraction plate is used to block the Bragg diffraction light generated by the laser beam passing through the acousto-optic deflector, and to allow the 0th and 1st order diffracted beams to pass through; the rear beam expander is used to expand the beam diameter to the required focused spot size; and the galvanometer mirror is used to jump to the next processing position after the acousto-optic deflector deflects by a preset angle.

[0007] The aforementioned technical solution utilizes an acousto-optic deflector in conjunction with a galvanometer's mechanical rotation to achieve rapid windowing of mini LED panels. Compared to existing exposure and development methods, this shortens the manufacturing process, reduces production costs, and minimizes environmental pollution from exposure and development chemicals. Furthermore, this solution employs an acousto-optic deflector for deflection scanning and a galvanometer for direct rotation of the processing position, significantly improving the efficiency of laser removal of ink from the windowed area. Compared to traditional galvanometer deflection methods, its efficiency is increased by 80%.

[0008] Furthermore, the above technical solution combines an acousto-optic deflector and a galvanometer. The acousto-optic deflector performs deflection scanning in the windowed area, which is not limited by the processing area and does not require multi-spot beam splitting. This avoids the problem of distortion caused by multiple spots passing through the lens, as well as the problem of decreased accuracy due to the increased processing area.

[0009] As a further technical solution, the mini LED panel is placed on a honeycomb adsorption platform. This arrangement allows the panel to be evenly stressed and adhered to the honeycomb adsorption platform.

[0010] As a further technical solution, the honeycomb adsorption platform is equipped with an automatic dust removal device, which includes a strip-shaped air blowing device and a strip-shaped air suction device arranged opposite to each other on both sides of the honeycomb adsorption platform, and a dust extraction hood arranged between the strip-shaped air blowing device and the strip-shaped air suction device.

[0011] During the processing, air is blown into the processing area by a strip-shaped air blowing device. The blown air passes over the processing surface and is then sucked out by a strip-shaped air suction device to prevent the plasma sputtered during the processing from affecting the energy attenuation of the laser beam and the stability of the beam direction.

[0012] Furthermore, using a dust extraction hood can prevent smoke and dust from causing blackening and deposition in the processing area, protecting the product surface from carbonization and affecting its appearance.

[0013] As a further technical solution, the system also includes a lens for focusing the deflection beam of the acousto-optic deflector onto the processing position.

[0014] As a further technical solution, the laser is configured with different laser power and pulse frequency according to the different ink thicknesses at the window opening position. This configuration allows for the selection of appropriate power and pulse for processing different panels and different inks, thereby achieving optimal process results.

[0015] Furthermore, the laser power of the laser ranges from 30W to 45W. The pulse frequency ranges from 100kHz to 300kHz.

[0016] As a further technical solution, the acousto-optic deflector is set with different deflection angles according to the different dimensions of the window opening position. This setting can achieve the target size of the object to be processed. Using the deflection angle of the acousto-optic deflector, a single object or multiple arbitrary objects can be processed within the range of 0.1-1mm.

[0017] As a further technical solution, the system also includes a control component for converting the vector graphics of the processing area into the positions of individual light spots for scanning by the acousto-optic deflector, with each light spot emitting a single pulse of light.

[0018] As a further technical solution, the adjustable parameters of the control component include the number of pulses per pulse, laser deflection angle, starting position coordinates, number of rows and columns of AOD (Alternating Distance Occurrence), and spacing between AOD points. By adjusting these parameters, the windowing process effect can be controlled.

[0019] Specifically, the number of rows and columns of AOD determines the density distribution of single-pulse points. The spacing between AOD points determines the spot overlap rate. The starting position coordinates determine the size of the processing dimension.

[0020] As a further technical solution, the acousto-optic deflector simultaneously processes one or more graphics within a preset area according to the size of the window.

[0021] After the deflection angle of the acousto-optic deflector is determined, it is focused by a lens and the scanning area on the workpiece processing surface is determined. The area within this scanning area can be covered by one pad or multiple pads. Regardless of whether the processing area is covered by one or multiple pads, one or more patterns within a certain area can be scanned at high speed without inertia by the acousto-optic deflector to achieve synchronous processing and improve processing efficiency.

[0022] On the one hand, a method for opening a window in a mini LED panel based on an acousto-optic deflector is provided, which is implemented using the aforementioned system. The method includes: turning on the laser and the acousto-optic deflector driver; locating the mark points on the mini LED panel; sending the coordinate data of the mark points to the acousto-optic deflector driver; according to the coordinate data, the acousto-optic deflector uses light spots to stack the points into a processed pattern for processing; and the galvanometer jumps to different positions to remove the ink on the surface of the mini LED panel, thus completing the window opening.

[0023] The above technical solution uses a combination of acousto-optic deflectors and galvanometer jumping to achieve rapid window opening of mini LED panels. This can shorten the product processing cycle by reducing the series of processes such as exposure, development, film removal, and chemical cleaning. At the same time, the galvanometer in this technical solution only plays a jumping role. The jumping of the galvanometer has almost no delay. After the acousto-optic deflector deflects at a certain angle, the galvanometer immediately jumps to the next object to complete the removal of ink from the surface. This greatly improves the efficiency of laser removal, which is 80% higher than the traditional galvanometer deflection method and 30% higher than the multi-head multi-spot solution.

[0024] Compared with the prior art, the beneficial effects of the present invention are as follows:

[0025] (1) This invention provides a system that utilizes an acousto-optic deflector and a galvanometer mechanically rotating to achieve rapid windowing of mini LED panels. Compared to existing exposure and development methods, this system shortens the manufacturing process, reduces production costs, and minimizes environmental pollution from exposure and development chemicals. Furthermore, the system uses an acousto-optic deflector for deflection scanning and a galvanometer to directly rotate the processing position, significantly improving the efficiency of laser removal of ink from the windowed area. Compared to the traditional galvanometer deflection method, its efficiency is increased by 80%.

[0026] (2) The system uses an acousto-optic deflector to perform deflection scanning in the windowed area. It is not limited by the processing area and does not require multi-spot beam splitting, thus avoiding the problem of distortion caused by multiple spots passing through the lens, as well as the problem of decreased accuracy due to the increased area.

[0027] (3) The present invention provides a method that uses a combination of acousto-optic deflector and galvanometer jumping to achieve rapid window opening of mini LED panels, which can shorten the product processing cycle due to a series of processes such as exposure, development, film removal, and chemical cleaning; at the same time, the galvanometer in this technical solution only plays the role of jumping, and the jumping of the galvanometer has almost no delay. After the acousto-optic deflector deflects at a certain angle, the galvanometer immediately jumps to the next object to complete the removal of ink surface, thereby greatly improving the efficiency of laser removal, which is 80% higher than the traditional galvanometer deflection and 30% higher than the multi-head multi-spot solution. Attached Figure Description

[0028] Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram of the optical path of a mini LED panel window opening system based on an acousto-optic deflector according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0029] Figure 2 This is a schematic diagram of an automatic dust removal device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0030] Figure 3This is a flowchart illustrating a method for opening windows in a mini LED panel based on an acousto-optic deflector according to an embodiment of the present invention. Detailed Implementation

[0031] The technical solutions of various embodiments of the present invention will be clearly and completely described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. Obviously, the described embodiments are only some embodiments of the present invention, and not all embodiments. Based on the embodiments of the present invention, all other embodiments obtained by those skilled in the art without creative effort are within the scope of protection of the present invention.

[0032] In the description of this invention, it should be noted that, unless otherwise explicitly specified and limited, the terms "installation," "connection," and "linking" should be interpreted broadly. For example, they can refer to a fixed connection, a detachable connection, or an integral connection; they can refer to a mechanical connection, an electrical connection, or a connection that allows for communication; they can refer to a direct connection or an indirect connection through an intermediate medium; they can refer to the internal communication of two components or the interaction between two components. Those skilled in the art can understand the specific meaning of the above terms in this invention according to the specific circumstances.

[0033] In this invention, unless otherwise explicitly specified and limited, "above" or "below" the second feature can include direct contact between the first and second features, or contact between the first and second features through another feature between them. Furthermore, "above," "over," and "on top" of the second feature includes the first feature directly above or diagonally above the second feature, or simply indicates that the first feature is at a higher horizontal level than the second feature. "Below," "below," and "under" the second feature includes the first feature directly below or diagonally below the second feature, or simply indicates that the first feature is at a lower horizontal level than the second feature.

[0034] like Figure 1 As shown, this invention provides a mini LED panel windowing system based on an acousto-optic deflector, including a laser, and a front beam expander, an acousto-optic deflector, a diffraction plate, a rear beam expander, a galvanometer, and a lens arranged sequentially along the laser's output light path. The laser emits a laser beam; the front beam expander enlarges the laser beam diameter to the required spot size for the acousto-optic deflector; the acousto-optic deflector controls the deflection angle of the laser beam; the diffraction plate blocks the Bragg diffraction light generated by the laser beam passing through the acousto-optic deflector, while allowing the 0th and 1st order diffracted beams to pass through; the rear beam expander enlarges the beam diameter to the required focused spot size; the galvanometer moves to the next processing position after the acousto-optic deflector has deflected the beam by a preset angle; and the lens focuses the deflected beam from the acousto-optic deflector onto the processing position.

[0035] The beam expander and the acousto-optic deflector are connected by two mirrors that deflect the light path. The propagation direction of the light incident on the first mirror is parallel to the propagation direction of the light exiting the second mirror.

[0036] The rear beam expander and the galvanometer are connected by two mirrors that deflect the light path. The propagation direction of the light wave incident on the third mirror is parallel to the propagation direction of the light emitted from the fourth mirror.

[0037] In this invention, the laser power is 30W-45W, the pulse frequency is 100kHz-300kHz, and the pulse width is 10-25ns. The galvanometer's jumping speed is 5000-10000mm / s. The acousto-optic deflector's center frequency is 150MHz, the scanning bandwidth is 30MHz, and the scanning angle is 2.2mrad.

[0038] The size of the pads to be removed on the Mini LED panel is arbitrary. To achieve efficient processing, different processing areas can be determined based on the size of the pads to be removed, and then different deflection scanning angles can be set.

[0039] Meanwhile, the thickness of the pad points to be removed on the Mini LED panel is also arbitrary; different laser power and pulse frequency can be set according to the thickness of the pad points to be removed.

[0040] The acousto-optic deflector processes one or more patterns simultaneously within a preset area, depending on the size of the window. Specifically, the acousto-optic deflector has a deflection angle parameter, which represents its ability to diffract and deflect a laser beam. For example, if the maximum deflection angle is 5 mrad, then when the galvanometer xy lens is not scanning, the acousto-optic deflector can scan a 5 mrad area on the workpiece surface after the field lens focuses. This area is a small area of ​​about 400 μm. It can be imagined that since the size of the processing pad can be arbitrary, one pad can cover the entire small area, or multiple pad patterns can be distributed within the small area. Therefore, the acousto-optic deflector can perform high-speed, inertia-free scanning of one or more patterns within a certain area.

[0041] By utilizing the deflection angle of the acousto-optic deflector, a single object or multiple arbitrary objects can be processed within the range of 0.1-1mm.

[0042] The mini LED panel described in this invention is placed on a honeycomb adsorption platform.

[0043] like Figure 2As shown, the honeycomb adsorption platform is equipped with an automatic dust removal device. This device includes strip-shaped air blowing devices and strip-shaped air suction devices positioned opposite each other on both sides of the platform, as well as a dust extraction hood positioned between the air blowing devices and the air suction devices. The automatic dust removal device automatically adsorbs products upon arrival, simultaneously blowing air from the left and suction air from the right, forming a barrier to protect the product surface from carbonization.

[0044] During the processing, air is blown into the processing area by a strip-shaped air blowing device. The blown air passes over the processing surface and is then sucked out by a strip-shaped air suction device to prevent the plasma sputtered during the processing from affecting the energy attenuation of the laser beam and the stability of the beam direction.

[0045] Furthermore, using a dust extraction hood can prevent smoke and dust from causing blackening and deposition in the processing area, protecting the product surface from carbonization and affecting its appearance.

[0046] By utilizing the deflection angle of the acousto-optic deflector, a single object or multiple arbitrary objects can be processed within the range of 0.1-1mm.

[0047] As one implementation method, a four-axis linkage (X-axis, Y-axis, galvanometer GA axis, galvanometer GB axis) and an acousto-optic deflector are used for scanning. The acousto-optic deflector scans according to the position of the light spot. The upper layer converts the vector graphics (outline, fill) into the positions of individual light spots, and the light spots emit light in single pulses. The galvanometer and platform control are based on line segments and arcs.

[0048] Taking rectangular filling as an example, the rectangular area is smaller than the AOD scanning area. Configurable parameters include the number of pulses per pulse, laser deflection angle, starting position coordinates, number of AOD rows and columns, and AOD point spacing, which control the windowing process effect. The number of rows and columns determines the density distribution of single pulses, the AOD point spacing determines the spot overlap rate, and the starting position coordinates control the processing size.

[0049] The laser power, number of pulses, and number of rows and columns all affect the processing results. Excessive power and pulse density can cause the panel to darken, while insufficient power will result in incomplete removal. If the windowing effect is unsatisfactory, the desired effect can be achieved by adjusting the laser power, number of pulses, or number of rows and columns.

[0050] like Figure 3As shown, the present invention also provides a method for opening a window in a mini LED panel based on an acousto-optic deflector, implemented using the aforementioned system. The method includes: turning on the laser and the acousto-optic deflector driver; locating the mark points on the mini LED panel; sending the coordinate data of the mark points to the acousto-optic deflector driver; processing the points into a pattern using light spots according to the coordinate data; and rotating the galvanometer to different positions to remove the ink from the surface of the mini LED panel, thus completing the window opening.

[0051] This invention patent primarily utilizes an acousto-optic deflector and a galvanometer with mechanical rotation to achieve rapid windowing. The acousto-optic deflector leverages the acousto-optic Bragg effect, where the deflection angle is proportional to the applied radio frequency, to achieve high-speed, inertia-free scanning of the incident laser through high-speed modulation of the sound field frequency. Specifically, the laser passes through the acousto-optic deflector, with the 0th and 1st order beams overlapping and passing through the main optical path, while other diffraction spots are blocked by a diffraction plate; then, large-area processing is achieved through galvanometer rotation. It is particularly noteworthy that, depending on the size of the window, the acousto-optic deflector can simultaneously process one or more patterns within a certain area.

[0052] The current manufacturing process includes chemical treatment, hole plugging, film application, exposure, development, and baking. However, the process after using laser processing is chemical treatment, hole plugging, film application, baking, and laser engraving. It can be seen that using laser removal can shorten the series of processes such as exposure, development, film removal, and chemical cleaning, thereby shortening the product processing cycle, reducing production costs, and reducing environmental pollution from chemicals.

[0053] The method of this invention uses a combination of acousto-optic deflectors and galvanometer jumping to achieve rapid window opening of mini LED panels. The galvanometer only plays the role of jumping, and the jumping of the galvanometer has almost no delay. After the acousto-optic deflector deflects at a certain angle, the galvanometer immediately jumps to the next object to complete the removal of ink from the surface, thereby greatly improving the efficiency of laser removal. It is 80% higher than the traditional galvanometer deflection method and 30% higher than the multi-head multi-spot solution.

[0054] In the description of this specification, the references to terms such as "one embodiment," "some embodiments," "illustrative embodiment," "example," "specific example," or "some examples," etc., indicate that a specific feature, structure, material, or characteristic described in connection with the embodiment or example is included in at least one embodiment or example of the invention. In this specification, the illustrative expressions of the above terms do not necessarily refer to the same embodiment or example. Furthermore, the specific features, structures, materials, or characteristics described may be combined in any suitable manner in one or more embodiments or examples.

[0055] Finally, it should be noted that the above embodiments are only used to illustrate the technical solutions of the present invention, and not to limit them; although the present invention has been described in detail with reference to the foregoing embodiments, those skilled in the art should understand that modifications can still be made to the technical solutions described in the foregoing embodiments, or equivalent substitutions can be made to some or all of the technical features therein; and these modifications or substitutions do not cause the essence of the corresponding technical solutions to deviate from the technical solutions of the embodiments of the present invention.

Claims

1. A mini LED panel window opening system based on an acousto-optic deflector, characterized in that, The system includes a laser, and a front beam expander, an acousto-optic deflector, a diffraction plate, a rear beam expander, a lens, and a galvanometer, arranged sequentially along the laser's output beam path. The laser emits a laser beam. The front beam expander enlarges the laser beam diameter to the required spot size for the acousto-optic deflector. The acousto-optic deflector controls the deflection angle of the laser beam. The diffraction plate blocks the Bragg diffraction generated by the acousto-optic deflector while allowing the 0th and 1st order diffracted beams to pass through. The rear beam expander... The system includes a mirror for expanding the beam diameter to the desired focused spot size; a lens for focusing the deflected beam from the acousto-optic deflector onto the processing position; a galvanometer for jumping to the next processing position at a speed of 5000-10000 mm / s after the acousto-optic deflector has deflected at a preset angle, with the galvanometer only serving the jumping function and the jumping having almost no delay; and a control component for converting the vector graphics of the processing area into the positions of individual light spots for the acousto-optic deflector to scan, with each light spot emitting a single pulse of light.

2. The mini LED panel window opening system based on an acousto-optic deflector according to claim 1, characterized in that, The mini LED panel is placed on a honeycomb adsorption platform.

3. The mini LED panel window opening system based on an acousto-optic deflector according to claim 2, characterized in that, The honeycomb adsorption platform is equipped with an automatic dust removal device, which includes a strip-shaped air blowing device and a strip-shaped air suction device arranged opposite each other on both sides of the honeycomb adsorption platform, and a dust extraction hood arranged between the strip-shaped air blowing device and the strip-shaped air suction device.

4. The mini LED panel window opening system based on an acousto-optic deflector according to claim 1, characterized in that, The laser is configured with different laser power and pulse frequency depending on the thickness of the ink at the window opening position.

5. The mini LED panel window opening system based on an acousto-optic deflector according to claim 1, characterized in that, The acousto-optic deflector is set with different deflection angles depending on the size of the window opening.

6. The mini LED panel window opening system based on an acousto-optic deflector according to claim 1, characterized in that, The adjustable parameters of the control component include the number of pulses per pulse, laser deflection angle, starting position coordinates, number of AOD rows and columns, and AOD point spacing.

7. The mini LED panel window opening system based on an acousto-optic deflector according to claim 1, characterized in that, The acousto-optic deflector processes one or more graphics simultaneously within a preset area, depending on the size of the window opening.

8. A method for opening windows in a mini LED panel based on an acousto-optic deflector, implemented using the system described in any one of claims 1-7, characterized in that, The method includes: turning on the laser and the acousto-optic deflector driver; locating the mark point on the mini LED panel; sending the coordinate data of the mark point to the acousto-optic deflector driver; according to the coordinate data, the acousto-optic deflector uses light spots to stack the points into a processed pattern for processing; the galvanometer jumps to different positions to remove the ink on the surface of the mini LED panel, completing the window opening.

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