Method for manufacturing mask plate and mask plate

Abstract

The present disclosure provides a method for manufacturing a mask plate and a mask plate, wherein the manufacturing method includes: providing a plurality of precision metal mask plates, providing a support mask plate; and repeating the following steps: selecting one of the plurality of precision metal mask plates, applying tension to the selected precision metal mask plate, attaching it to the support mask plate, and joining the aligned vacant support openings with qualified mask units; retaining the joined qualified mask units, and cutting off the remaining parts of the selected precision metal mask plate. The manufacturing method in the present disclosure can significantly improve the effective utilization rate of the precision metal mask plate, and can also improve the overall stretching accuracy.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present disclosure relates to the technical field of OLED display device manufacturing, and in particular to a method for manufacturing a mask plate and the mask plate. Background Art

[0002] Organic Light-Emitting Diode (OLED) display panels are currently mostly manufactured using evaporation technology, and the mask plate is an important device in the evaporation process. Among them, the FMM (Fine Metal Mask) is a precision metal mask plate, which is used to achieve the separate deposition of the RGB pixel light-emitting layer.

[0003] Precision metal mask (FMM) is generally made into a long strip, with multiple pattern units distributed along its long axis. For example, there are usually 3 to 9 pattern units on a precision metal mask. Each pattern unit corresponds to a display panel (screen body). The pattern unit is made by etching, and there are several pixel openings in the pattern unit. The number of pixel openings on a single precision metal mask can reach millions.

[0004] In the prior art, the precision metal mask (FMM) is usually joined to a frame for use, which requires that all pattern units on the precision metal mask meet the requirements of qualified products, and the manufacturing difficulty is extremely high. Specifically, since the yield rate of each pattern unit of the precision metal mask is relatively limited, the yield rates of multiple pattern units are superimposed, resulting in an overall yield rate of the precision metal mask that meets the qualified requirements of only about 10%, that is, only about 10% of the finished products can be effectively used, resulting in extremely high production costs.

[0005] In addition, the precision metal mask plate needs to be aligned during the web stretching process, which requires highly difficult operations: on the one hand, the tension applied to both sides of the mask strip needs to be slightly adjusted, and on the other hand, the alignment status needs to be confirmed in real time. The difficulty lies in the need to ensure that all pattern units on the precision metal mask plate are accurately aligned, and the tension must be controlled so that the morphology of all pattern units meets the requirements. The failure rate is high, further exacerbating the problem of low effective product utilization and extremely high production costs caused by the low overall yield of the precision metal mask plate. Summary of the invention

[0006] In order to solve the above problems existing in the prior art, the present disclosure first provides a method for manufacturing a mask plate, which method includes:

[0007] Providing a plurality of precision metal mask plates, the precision metal mask plates comprising a plurality of mask units, the plurality of mask units comprising at least one qualified mask unit;

[0008] Providing a support mask plate, the support mask plate comprising a plurality of rows of support openings, wherein a plurality of support openings in any row correspond one-to-one to a plurality of mask units;

[0009] For a row of support openings, perform the following stretching steps:

[0010] Selecting one of a plurality of precision metal mask plates, wherein the selected precision metal mask plate includes at least one qualified mask unit corresponding to the vacant support opening;

[0011] Apply tension to the selected precision metal mask plate, attach it to the support mask plate according to the correspondence between the mask unit and the support opening, and fine-tune it so that at least one vacant support opening is aligned with the corresponding qualified mask unit;

[0012] engaging the aligned vacant support openings with the qualified mask cells;

[0013] The qualified mask units that have been bonded are retained, and the remaining parts of the selected precision metal mask are cut off;

[0014] Repeat the stretching step to join at least one qualified mask unit in the subsequently selected precision metal mask plate to other vacant support openings in the same row until all support openings in a row are joined to qualified mask units;

[0015] In the same way, all the support openings in each row are connected to the qualified mask units.

[0016] In the above method, the precision metal mask plate can be used as long as it has at least one qualified mask unit, which greatly improves the product utilization rate and greatly reduces the difficulty and cost of production. At the same time, when applying tension and alignment to the precision metal mask plate, it is only necessary to pay attention to the alignment accuracy and morphology accuracy of individual qualified mask units, without having to consider the alignment and morphology of all mask units at the same time as in the prior art. It has been verified that the tension mesh bonding accuracy has been greatly improved, from 2μm to 2.5μm in the prior art to 1μm.

[0017] Optionally, multiple mask units in the precision metal mask plate are arranged along a first direction; multiple rows of support openings in the support mask plate are arranged along a second direction, wherein multiple support openings in any row are arranged along the first direction; and the first direction is perpendicular to the second direction.

[0018] The disclosed embodiment is particularly suitable for a support mask plate with support openings arranged in a matrix. The multiple mask units on the precision metal mask plate correspond one-to-one to the support openings of each row. When the net is stretched, tension is applied to both ends of the precision metal mask plate, and it is attached to the target row, and then only fine-tuning is required. For any row, the clamping position in the first direction is substantially the same, which helps to ensure consistency when each mask unit is joined, and does not cause interference of the clamping claws with the support mask plate.

[0019] Optionally, applying tension to the selected precision metal mask includes:

[0020] The ears at both ends of the precision metal mask are clamped, and tension is applied along a first direction.

[0021] When the precision metal mask plate is attached to the supporting mask plate, the clamping position is located outside the supporting mask plate.

[0022] When the precision metal mask plate is attached to the support mask plate, the ears extend beyond the edge of the support mask plate, which is convenient for clamping and can also avoid the interference of the clamping claws on the support mask plate. At the same time, for the stretching and bonding processes acting on the same row, the clamping position is roughly the same, and only fine-tuning for alignment is required, which helps to ensure the consistency of the stretching of each mask unit.

[0023] Optionally, each row of support openings is fully engaged with qualified mask units by the same method, including: from the center of the support mask plate outward along the second direction, performing and repeating the stretching step row by row to ensure that each row of support openings is fully engaged with qualified mask units.

[0024] In the step of providing the support mask plate, the support mask plate also needs to be tensioned, but the middle part of the support mask plate will inevitably fall and deform, especially for the support mask plate with a larger size. In an optional solution, the mask unit is preferentially joined to the middle part of the support mask plate in the second direction, which helps to compensate for the above deformation through the tensioning force of the mask unit. On the contrary, if the edge parts on both sides of the support mask plate in the second direction are preferentially joined, the above deformation will be aggravated, resulting in a bad effect.

[0025] Optionally, the remaining portion of the selected precision metal mask plate is removed by laser cutting.

[0026] Optionally, multiple precision metal masks are available, including:

[0027] Forming half-etched or dotted through-etched lines on both sides of each mask unit;

[0028] The half-etched etch line includes: an etched groove formed on one surface of the precision metal mask plate, or an etched groove formed on two surfaces of the precision metal mask plate;

[0029] The remaining portion of the selected precision metal mask is cut off, including breaking the precision metal mask along the half-etched line or the through-etched line.

[0030] The production of etching lines can be completed simultaneously with the process of etching the pattern of the mask unit, without adding additional processes, but can omit additional steps such as laser cutting, effectively improving production efficiency.

[0031] Optionally, aligning at least one vacant support opening with a corresponding qualified mask unit comprises:

[0032] The preset alignment holes are used as alignment references to align the vacant support openings with the corresponding qualified mask units. The alignment holes include but are not limited to being set on the support mask plate, for example, at the four corners of the support mask plate; or, the alignment holes are set on the mask frame, for example, by tightening and fixing two alignment masks on the mask frame, the alignment holes are located on the alignment masks and at the four corners of the mask frame. The preset alignment holes referred to in this application include but are not limited to being set in the aforementioned manner.

[0033] The alignment conditions of other support openings and mask units are ignored during the alignment process.

[0034] That is to say, when stretching the network, it is only necessary to ensure the accuracy of a few qualified mask units. For other unqualified mask units, or mask units whose corresponding supporting openings are already occupied and engaged (even if the mask units are qualified), there is no need to consider their alignment accuracy or morphology accuracy, thereby effectively improving the network stretching accuracy and the accuracy of the overall spliced ​​mask plate product, and the production efficiency can also be improved.

[0035] Optionally, in the step of stretching the mesh for the same row of support openings:

[0036] For a precision metal mask having any number and / or any position of qualified mask units, a consistent tension is applied. Optionally, the consistent tension is specifically a tension whose tension value deviation does not exceed 10%, or a tension with the same tension value.

[0037] In the method of this embodiment, qualified mask units are utilized, and unqualified mask units, or mask units whose corresponding positions are occupied, are used as auxiliary units in this method. In a precision metal mask plate, no matter how many qualified mask units can be utilized, and no matter how the qualified mask units are located, due to the occupation of the auxiliary units, the overall mechanical / deformation properties of the precision metal mask plate are unified, so the same tension can be applied or only fine-tuning can be performed, which helps to improve production efficiency.

[0038] On the other hand, due to the positioning of the auxiliary unit, when any qualified mask unit is engaged, the clamping position is the ears at both ends of the precision metal mask plate. At the same time, the ears can also extend to the outside of the contour of the supporting mask plate. The clamping position is unified and the clamping claws will not touch other mask units or supporting mask plates.

[0039] Optionally, a support mask is provided, including:

[0040] Provide a mask frame and support mask mesh;

[0041] The supporting mask mesh is stretched and then joined to the mask frame.

[0042] Another aspect of the disclosed embodiment provides a mask plate, which is manufactured by the manufacturing method described in the aforementioned technical solution or any preferred or optional solution thereof.

[0043] To summarize, using the mask plate manufacturing method provided in the embodiment of the present invention, at least one qualified mask unit is used on a precision metal mask plate, and other mask units are used as auxiliary mask units to perform overall network stretching. Only the alignment accuracy of a few qualified mask units needs to be ensured, and the overall accuracy is greatly improved, which can be increased from the existing 2μm to 2.5μm to 1μm.

[0044] In addition, the embodiment adopts a method of splicing the FMM as a whole and then cutting off the excess parts, which effectively utilizes the auxiliary mask units. In other words, the unqualified mask units are reused, so that the stretching of qualified mask units in different numbers and positions is consistent, and the clamping when stretching the net is also more convenient.

[0045] The embodiments of the present disclosure remove the technical shackles of the prior art that "the mask units on the precision metal mask plate must be 100% qualified". Although the splicing process is added, the overall production efficiency is increased instead of decreased due to the aforementioned beneficial effects such as easy alignment, improved accuracy and consistency of the network. More importantly, the effective utilization rate of the finished precision metal mask plates is increased from about 10% to more than 30%, which greatly reduces the difficulty and cost of production. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0046] In order to more clearly illustrate the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present disclosure or the background technology, the drawings required for use in the embodiments of the present disclosure or the background technology will be described below.

[0047] Figure 1 is a flow chart of a method for manufacturing a mask plate involved in an embodiment of the present disclosure;

[0048] Figure 2 This is an example of a step of selecting a precision metal mask plate according to a vacant support opening in a method for manufacturing a mask plate according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

[0049] Figure 3 This is an example of the steps of stretching and aligning a precision metal mask in the method for manufacturing the mask of the embodiment of the present disclosure;

[0050] Figure 4 It is an example of a bonding step in the method for manufacturing the mask plate of the embodiment of the present disclosure;

[0051] Figure 5 It is an example of a supporting mask plate and a qualified mask unit thereon after removing redundant parts in the method for manufacturing the mask plate of the embodiment of the present disclosure;

[0052] Figure 6 In the method for manufacturing the mask plate of the embodiment of the present disclosure, Figure 5 In a further implementation example of the process shown in , a qualified mask unit is further bonded in the same row;

[0053] Figure 7 In the method for manufacturing the mask plate of the embodiment of the present disclosure, Figure 6 In a further implementation example of the process shown in , two qualified mask units are further bonded in the same row, so that the entire row of support openings are all bonded with qualified mask units;

[0054] Figure 8 In the method for manufacturing the mask plate of the embodiment of the present disclosure, Figure 8 A further implementation example of the process shown in , indicating that after the middle row is completely processed, qualified mask units are joined row by row from the middle to both sides of the second direction;

[0055] Fig. 9 shows three precision metal masks selected in order to completely splice a row of a support mask consisting of five support openings;

[0056] Fig.10 An example of a structure for supporting a mask plate is shown;

[0057] Fig.11 The half-etched lines (A) and the dashed through-etched lines (B) of the precision metal mask are shown;

[0058] Fig.12 It is an example of a strip-shaped precision metal mask. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0059] The present disclosure will be described more fully below with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which various embodiments are shown. However, the present disclosure can be implemented in many different ways and should not be construed as being limited to the embodiments set forth herein. On the contrary, these embodiments are provided so that the present disclosure will be exhaustive and complete, and will fully convey the scope of the present disclosure to those skilled in the art. The same reference numerals throughout the text represent the same components. Furthermore, in the accompanying drawings, the thickness, ratios, and sizes of the components are exaggerated for clarity.

[0060] The terms used herein are only used for the purpose of describing specific embodiments and are not intended to be limiting. Unless the context clearly indicates otherwise, "one", "the", "at least one" as used herein do not represent a limitation on quantity, but are intended to include both the singular and the plural. For example, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise, "a component" has the same meaning as "at least one component". "At least one" should not be interpreted as being limited to the number "one". "Or" means "and / or". The term "and / or" includes any and all combinations of one or more of the associated listed items.

[0061] Unless otherwise defined, all terms used herein, including technical and scientific terms, have the same meanings as those generally understood by those skilled in the art. Terms defined in commonly used dictionaries should be interpreted as having the same meanings as in the relevant technical context, and unless explicitly defined in the specification, these terms are not interpreted as having formal meanings in an idealized or overly formal sense.

[0062] The meaning of “include” or “comprising” specifies properties, quantities, steps, operations, components, parts or a combination thereof, but does not exclude other properties, quantities, steps, operations, components, parts or a combination thereof.

[0063] Embodiments are described herein with reference to cross-sectional views as idealized embodiments. Thus, variations in shape relative to the illustrated diagram are anticipated as a result of, for example, manufacturing techniques and / or tolerances. Therefore, the embodiments described herein should not be interpreted as being limited to the specific shapes of the regions as shown herein, but should include deviations in shape due to, for example, manufacturing. For example, a region shown or described as flat may typically have rough and / or nonlinear features. Moreover, the sharp angles shown may be rounded. Therefore, the regions shown in the figures are schematic in nature, and their shapes are not intended to illustrate the precise shape of the regions and are not intended to limit the scope of the claims.

[0064] The precision metal mask (FMM) is a very important precision tool in the process of making OLED panels. It is used to accurately control the position and shape of the red, green and blue primary color OLED materials in the evaporation process.

[0065] The inventors of the present disclosure recognize that, at present, one of the root causes of the problem restricting the cost and output of precision metal mask plates is that the yield rate of precision metal mask plates is too low.

[0066] Usually, if Fig.12 As shown, a long strip of precision metal mask plate is required, which includes a plurality of mask units, and each mask unit has a pixel opening of the order of millions. Then the long strip of precision metal mask plate is joined to a support frame and used in the evaporation process.

[0067] Obviously, the above method requires that every mask unit on a whole precision metal mask plate is qualified before it can be used, and the mask unit with millions of pixel openings has a very limited yield rate. When added together, the yield rate of the whole precision metal mask plate is only about 10%.

[0068] The production cost and material cost of the precision metal mask plate itself are very high, and 90% of the precision metal mask plates are discarded due to substandard performance, pushing the overall cost to an unimaginable height.

[0069] Without wishing to be bound by any theory, the inventors of the present disclosure believe that how to improve the utilization rate of the entire precision metal mask plate finished product, or in other words, how to reuse some qualified mask units among the overall unqualified products, is the key to reducing production costs.

[0070] On the other hand, as mentioned above, the long strip of precision metal mask plate needs to be joined to the supporting frame. It should be understood that during the evaporation process, the alignment accuracy between the FMM and the substrate is required to be very high in order to ensure the uniformity and consistency of the pixels. Similarly, ensuring the alignment accuracy between the precision metal mask plate and the frame when they are joined is a prerequisite for ensuring the alignment accuracy during the evaporation process.

[0071] The inventors of the present disclosure further recognize that the alignment of the long strip-shaped precision metal mask plate and the support frame in the prior art is extremely difficult, which is reflected in the following aspects:

[0072] (1) To apply rated tension and tighten the precision metal mask, the tension needs to be finely adjusted to ensure that the morphological features of each mask unit meet the requirements.

[0073] (2) While maintaining and adjusting the tension as mentioned above, the alignment state must be adjusted precisely and finely to ensure that each mask unit meets the alignment requirements.

[0074] In order to at least solve the problems of low yield and high difficulty in alignment in the above-mentioned prior art, the present disclosure provides a method for manufacturing a mask plate, including: Figure 1 The steps shown are:

[0075] αProvide a plurality of precision metal mask plates, the precision metal mask plates include a plurality of mask units, and the plurality of mask units include at least one qualified mask unit.

[0076] like Fig. 9 As shown, the precision metal mask plate includes a plurality of mask units arranged in a single row along a first direction. The number of mask units shown in the figure is 5, but the present disclosure is not limited thereto, and the number may be more or less, and is generally selectable to be 3 to 9.

[0077] In the figure, the light-colored squares indicate qualified mask units (which may be referred to as screen bodies), and the dark-colored squares indicate unqualified mask units.

[0078] What is significantly different from the prior art is that in the embodiment of the present disclosure, after the precision metal mask plate is inspected and qualified or unqualified mask units are distinguished, the unqualified mask units are not processed (such as cut and removed, or discarded as a whole), but are marked and used as auxiliary mask units (or auxiliary screen bodies).

[0079] like Fig. 9 As shown, ears are provided at both ends of the precision metal mask plate for clamping to apply tension.

[0080] The precision metal mask plate applicable to the embodiments of the present disclosure may have one or more qualified mask units with no limitation on the position, for example Fig. 9 The first or second from the left in A, or Fig. 9 The qualified mask unit in the middle of B, or Fig. 9 The fourth and fifth from the left in C.

[0081] β provides a support mask plate, the support mask plate includes at least one row of a plurality of support openings corresponding to a plurality of mask units. Fig.10 A typical support mask plate structure example is shown. The support mask plate can be used with Fig. 9 The precision metal mask shown is used in conjunction with the 7 rows arranged along the second direction, each row including 5 support openings, wherein the five support openings in each row are Fig. 9 The five mask units on the precision metal mask plate shown correspond to each other, which means that their spacing, nominal size, and arrangement are consistent. In an ideal state, Fig. 9 When the precision metal mask plate shown covers any row of the support mask plate, each mask unit can cover one support opening.

[0082] In a typical embodiment, the precision metal mask plate includes N mask units arranged along a straight line, and the support mask plate includes N×M support openings arranged in a matrix.

[0083] The aforementioned preparation steps α and β may be performed in any order, and include, for example, a detection process for the mask unit, which is the same as the prior art and will not be described in detail in this disclosure due to space limitations.

[0084] In the inspection process of judging whether the mask unit is qualified or unqualified, the inspection standard can be formulated according to national standards, industry standards or enterprise standards, and more commonly, it can be formulated according to the specific requirements of the actual user of the product. In the embodiment of the present disclosure, it is only necessary to distinguish qualified or unqualified mask units based on the inspection results, and the specific selection of the inspection standard has no effect on the implementation of the present disclosure. Therefore, the inspection standard of the mask unit is not described in detail in the present disclosure.

[0085] Furthermore, if Figure 1 As shown, repeat the following steps until all the support openings of the support mask plate are engaged with the qualified mask units:

[0086] S102. Select one of a plurality of precision metal mask plates, wherein the selected precision metal mask plate includes at least one qualified mask unit corresponding to the vacant support opening;

[0087] S104. Apply tension to the selected precision metal mask plate, attach it to the support mask plate according to the correspondence between the mask unit and the support opening, and fine-tune so that at least one vacant support opening is aligned with the corresponding qualified mask unit;

[0088] S106. Joining the aligned vacant support openings with the qualified mask units;

[0089] S108. Keep the joined qualified mask units and cut off the remaining parts of the selected precision metal mask plate.

[0090] Thus, a spliced ​​metal mask plate is obtained.

[0091] The above steps are described in detail below in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. Explanatory, in the following description, descriptions such as 1, 2, 3, etc. refer to the first, second, and third mask unit or support opening from the left in each row of the figure.

[0092] like Figure 2As shown, in step S102, one of a plurality of precision metal mask plates is selected, wherein the selected precision metal mask plate includes at least one qualified mask unit corresponding to the vacant support opening:

[0093] According to the positions of the vacant support openings on the support mask plate, a precision metal mask plate with qualified mask units at corresponding positions is selected.

[0094] In a typical embodiment, when the entire row is empty support openings, a precision metal mask plate with qualified mask units can be selected, preferably, a precision metal mask plate with as many qualified mask units as possible is selected. Optionally, multiple qualified mask units can be continuous or discontinuous, preferably, a precision metal mask plate with qualified mask units arranged continuously is selected as much as possible.

[0095] exist Figure 2 In the example shown, positions 1 and 2 on the row that requires operation (the fourth row) are vacant support openings, and positions 3, 4, and 5 are support openings of the engaged mask units. In this case, the three types of precision metal mask plates A, B, and C all meet the requirement of "including at least one qualified mask unit corresponding to the vacant support opening."

[0096] Most preferably, the precision metal mask plate A can be selected to fully utilize the two qualified mask units thereon, so that the entire row of support openings can be directly completed.

[0097] Next, the precision metal mask plate C may be selected, and a qualified mask unit thereon may be used, and a precision metal mask plate including at least 2 qualified mask units may be selected again.

[0098] Secondly, you can choose precision metal mask plate B. Although the 3-bit mask unit is qualified, it does not correspond to the vacant support opening. Therefore, it can only be used as an auxiliary unit and removed after the 1-bit and 2-bit mask units are joined. This solution wastes a qualified mask unit, so it is a less preferred solution.

[0099] like Figure 3 As shown, in step S104, tension is applied to the selected precision metal mask plate, and it is attached to the support mask plate according to the correspondence between the mask unit and the support opening, and fine-tuned so that at least one vacant support opening is aligned with the corresponding qualified mask unit:

[0100] As indicated by the arrows, pulling force is applied to both ends of the precision metal mask plate. It can be seen that no matter how many qualified mask units there are in the precision metal mask plate, and no matter what the positions of the qualified mask units are in the precision metal mask plate, due to the existence of auxiliary units (i.e., unqualified mask units, or qualified mask units that cannot be used because their positions do not correspond to the vacant support openings), the overall shape of the precision metal mask plate is the same, and therefore the clamping position and the direction of force applied when tension is applied are the same.

[0101] For example, as shown in the figure, the clamping position when the tension is applied is located outside the supporting mask plate, and the force application direction is also toward the outside, so that the clamping device can avoid hitting or interfering with the supporting mask plate and the qualified mask unit joined thereon.

[0102] In this step example, the selected precision metal mask is Fig. 9 As shown in A, bits 1 and 2 are qualified mask units.

[0103] More importantly, in Figure 3 In the example shown, only the mask units 1 and 2 and the support openings need to be aligned, and the other auxiliary units do not need to be considered. Compared with the prior art which requires ensuring that each mask unit meets the alignment requirements, the difficulty of the operation is greatly reduced.

[0104] Similarly, when applying tension, it is only necessary to ensure the morphological characteristics of 1 or 2 mask units, which is much easier than the prior art that takes into account the morphological characteristics of each mask unit.

[0105] In the scheme of selecting precision metal mask plates with 1 or 2 qualified mask units for splicing, it has been verified through experiments that the screen stretching accuracy can be improved from 2μm to 2.5μm to 1μm.

[0106] Step S106: The aligned vacant support openings are joined to the qualified mask units. Figure 4 As shown, in a typical embodiment, when two connected qualified mask units need to be joined, only the two ends of the two qualified mask units as a whole can be joined. The specific joining method used in the embodiment is welding, and the positions of the welding points are as shown in FIG. Figure 4 Indicated by the black dots.

[0107] At the same time, the position used for bonding should be the shielding area of ​​the precision metal mask plate or the supporting mask plate (the area outside the pixel opening area of ​​the precision metal mask plate or the area outside the supporting opening of the supporting mask plate). Preferably, the shielding area is made into a solid material area (an area without any through openings) to avoid damage during bonding.

[0108] like Figure 5As shown, in step S108, the qualified mask units that have been joined are retained, and the remaining parts of the selected precision metal mask plate are cut off, so that other vacant support openings in the same row are exposed, which facilitates the continued alignment and joining of qualified mask units in subsequent steps, until all support openings in the entire row / support mask plate are joined with qualified mask units.

[0109] After step S108 is completed, Figure 5 As described above, it can be seen that the vacant support openings in this row are 3, 4, and 5.

[0110] Further, the aforementioned steps are repeated, and in the second cycle L2 of each step, as Figure 6 As shown, a precision metal mask having at least one qualified mask unit in positions 3, 4, or 5 is selected. Figure 6 Select Fig. 9 The precision metal mask plate B shown in FIG. In the second cycle L2, the steps to be repeated are not described in detail. After the end, there are 4 and 5 vacant support openings left in the row.

[0111] In the third cycle L3 of each step, if Figure 7 As shown, a precision metal mask having at least one qualified mask unit in a 4-bit or 5-bit position is selected. Figure 7 Select Fig. 9 The precision metal mask plate C shown in FIG.

[0112] After the third loop L3 is executed, at this point, if Figure 8 As shown, the row in the middle of the supporting mask plate has all been accurately joined with qualified mask units, that is, the row has been completed.

[0113] Although in the aforementioned embodiment, the mask units are sequentially bonded from left to right in the same row, the present disclosure is not limited thereto. Figure 8 Taking the reference direction shown as an example, in the first direction, that is, within the same row, the order of the bonding mask units can be arbitrary.

[0114] Furthermore, in the same way, all the supporting openings in each row are respectively connected with the qualified mask units.

[0115] In a preferred embodiment, Figure 8 Taking the reference direction shown as an example, the support openings in the middle row are preferentially joined. When the support openings in the middle row are filled, the processing is performed row by row in the positive or reverse direction of the second direction until the entire support mask plate is processed. Figure 8 In the state shown, the bonding operation of the mask unit is performed on the third row or the fifth row.

[0116] In a typical embodiment, the support mask plate includes a plurality of rows of support openings, and the manufacturing method specifically includes:

[0117] Repeat the following steps until all the support openings of the support mask plate are engaged with the qualified mask units:

[0118] S202. Selecting a row of support openings closest to the center of the support mask as a target row, wherein the target row includes at least one vacant support opening;

[0119] S204. Select one of a plurality of precision metal mask plates, wherein the selected precision metal mask plate includes at least one qualified mask unit corresponding to the vacant support opening in the target row;

[0120] S206. Apply tension to the selected precision metal mask plate, and according to the correspondence between the mask unit and the support opening, attach it to the support mask plate and align the target row, and fine-tune so that at least one vacant support opening is aligned with the corresponding qualified mask unit;

[0121] S208. Joining the aligned vacant support openings with the qualified mask units;

[0122] S210. Keep the joined qualified mask units and cut off the remaining parts of the selected precision metal mask plate.

[0123] Return to step S202, reselect the target row, and when the target row selected last time is not filled, still select the row; when the target row selected last time is filled, reselect a row of empty support openings closest to the center in the support mask plate as the target row, and continue to execute steps S204 to S210.

[0124] In the above method, the precision metal mask plate can be used as long as it has at least one qualified mask unit. The product utilization rate is greatly improved, and the production difficulty and cost are greatly reduced. It can be said that except for products in which all mask units are unqualified, most products can be used. More importantly, the improvement in utilization rate will further increase with the increase in product output.

[0125] At the same time, when applying tension and alignment to the precision metal mask plate, it is only necessary to pay attention to the alignment accuracy and morphology accuracy of individual qualified mask units, without having to consider the alignment and morphology of all mask units at the same time as in the prior art. It has been verified that the tension network bonding accuracy is greatly improved, from 2μm to 2.5μm in the prior art to 1μm, which is a significant improvement.

[0126] So far, the problems existing in the above-mentioned prior art have been well solved.

[0127] According to the embodiments of the present disclosure, Fig. 9 As shown, a plurality of mask units in the precision metal mask plate are arranged along a first direction;

[0128] like Fig.10 As shown, the support mask plate includes multiple rows of support openings arranged along the second direction, wherein the support openings in any row correspond one-to-one to multiple mask units in the precision metal mask plate; and the first direction is perpendicular to the second direction.

[0129] For a support mask plate with support openings arranged in a matrix, the multiple mask units on the precision metal mask plate correspond one by one to the support openings of each row. When stretching the net, tension is applied to both ends of the precision metal mask plate, and it is fitted to the target row, and then only fine-tuning is required. For any row, the clamping position in the first direction is roughly the same, which helps to ensure consistency when each mask unit is joined, and will not cause interference of the clamping claws on the support mask plate.

[0130] According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, optionally, applying tension to the selected precision metal mask plate includes:

[0131] like Figure 3 As shown, the ears at both ends of the precision metal mask are clamped, and tension is applied along a first direction. When the precision metal mask is attached to the support mask, the clamping position is located outside the support mask.

[0132] When the precision metal mask plate and the support mask plate are correspondingly fitted, the ears extend beyond the edge of the support mask plate, which is convenient for clamping and can also avoid the interference of the clamping claws on the support mask plate. At the same time, for the stretching and bonding processes acting on the same row, the clamping position is roughly the same, and only fine-tuning for alignment is required, which helps to ensure the consistency of the stretching of each mask unit.

[0133] According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, in a preferred embodiment, among the multiple rows of support openings of the support mask plate, qualified mask units are joined to the vacant support openings row by row along the second direction from the center of the support mask plate outward.

[0134] According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, in an optional embodiment, the remaining portion of the selected precision metal mask plate is removed by laser cutting.

[0135] The invention includes a laser cutting device with programmed control of the direction and laser power, which cuts the precision metal mask plate along the preset path between the mask units or the preset path between the mask units and the ears. The specific cutting scheme can be selected by those skilled in the art according to the existing technology, and will not be described in detail in this disclosure.

[0136] In a preferred embodiment, a plurality of precision metal mask plates are provided, including:

[0137] Forming half-etched or dotted through-etched lines on both sides of each mask unit;

[0138] Half-etched lines Fig.11 As shown in A, it includes: an etching groove formed on one surface of a precision metal mask plate, or an etching groove formed on two surfaces of a precision metal mask plate opposite to each other;

[0139] The dotted through-etching lines are as follows Fig.11 As shown in B.

[0140] The aforementioned cutting off of the remaining portion of the selected precision metal mask plate specifically includes breaking the precision metal mask plate along the half-etched lines or the through-etched lines.

[0141] The production of etching lines can be completed simultaneously with the process of etching the pattern of the mask unit, without adding additional processes, but can omit additional steps such as laser cutting, effectively improving production efficiency.

[0142] Optionally, aligning at least one vacant support opening with a corresponding qualified mask unit includes: aligning the vacant support opening with alignment marks around the qualified mask unit, wherein alignment conditions of other support openings and mask units are ignored during the alignment process.

[0143] In the embodiments of the present disclosure, alignment references / alignment marks are provided around the support mask plate and / or at corresponding positions of the mask frame. The alignment / alignment described in the above embodiments can be performed based on the alignment references / alignment marks, and the specific operation method is the same as that of the prior art, which is not described in detail in this disclosure due to space limitations.

[0144] In a typical embodiment, four alignment holes are respectively provided at four corners of the supporting mask plate. Furthermore, the qualified mask unit is positioned at a designated position by measuring the sub-pixel holes of the qualified mask unit.

[0145] In a typical embodiment, an alignment mask is additionally provided, the alignment mask is provided with reference holes, and the alignment mask is fixed at a desired position on the supporting mask plate. For example, four reference holes are provided on two alignment masks, the two alignment masks are tightened and fixed on the mask frame, and the four reference holes are located at the four corners of the mask frame, and the four reference holes are used as alignment holes.

[0146] When stretching the net, the sub-pixel holes of the qualified mask units corresponding to the vacant support openings are measured, and the qualified mask units are precisely aligned. During this period, the tension can be fine-tuned to adjust the morphological features of the qualified mask units to meet the requirements.

[0147] The relevant technical features of the alignment mask, alignment hole, etc. have been disclosed in the prior art. Due to space limitations, they will not be described in detail in this disclosure.

[0148] In addition, in the embodiment of the present disclosure, the alignment mask may be retained on the support frame as a whole; or, only a portion having the reference hole may be retained, while other portions may be removed.

[0149] In the embodiments of the present disclosure, when stretching the network, only the accuracy of a few qualified mask units needs to be ensured, and the alignment accuracy or morphology accuracy of other unqualified mask units, or mask units whose corresponding supporting openings are already occupied and engaged, do not need to be considered, thereby effectively improving the network stretching accuracy and the accuracy of the overall mask plate product.

[0150] In the embodiment of the present disclosure, in the step of applying tension to the selected precision metal mask: for precision metal mask plates with any number and / or any position of qualified mask units, a consistent tension is applied. Preferably, the consistent tension includes a tension value deviation of no more than 10%, or the same tension.

[0151] The disclosed embodiment utilizes qualified mask units, and unqualified mask units, or qualified mask units whose corresponding positions are occupied, are used as auxiliary units in the method. In a precision metal mask plate, no matter how many qualified mask units can be utilized and no matter how the qualified mask units are positioned, due to the occupation of the auxiliary units, the overall mechanical / deformation properties of the precision metal mask plate are unified, so the same tension can be applied or only fine-tuning can be performed, which helps to improve production efficiency.

[0152] Further, based on the above, the manufacturing method in the disclosed embodiment can make the requirements for the net stretching equipment consistent, or in other words, make the net stretching equipment universal. Moreover, during the design, there is no need to repeatedly perform equivalent simulation verification on the precision metal mask plate net stretching.

[0153] On the other hand, due to the positioning of the auxiliary unit, when any qualified mask unit is engaged, the clamping position is the ears at both ends of the precision metal mask plate. At the same time, the ears can also extend to the outside of the contour of the supporting mask plate. The clamping position is unified and the clamping claws will not touch other mask units or supporting mask plates.

[0154] Optionally, a support mask is provided, including:

[0155] Provide a mask frame and support mask mesh;

[0156] The supporting mask mesh is stretched and then joined to the mask frame.

[0157] Another aspect of the disclosed embodiment provides a mask plate, which is manufactured by the manufacturing method described in the aforementioned technical solution or any preferred or optional solution thereof.

[0158] In the embodiments of the present disclosure, the described joining may specifically be welding, bonding or other applicable joining forms.

[0159] In summary, using the mask plate manufacturing method provided in the embodiment of the present invention, at least one qualified mask unit is used on a precision metal mask plate, and other mask units are used as auxiliary mask units to perform overall network stretching. Only the alignment accuracy of a few qualified mask units needs to be ensured, and the overall accuracy is greatly improved, which can be increased from the existing 2μm to 2.5μm to 1μm.

[0160] Furthermore, the embodiment adopts the method of stretching and joining the whole net and then cutting off the redundant parts, which effectively utilizes the auxiliary mask units, so that the stretching of the nets for qualified mask units of different numbers and positions is consistent, and the clamping during the stretching of the net is also more convenient.

[0161] The embodiments of the present disclosure remove the technical shackles of the prior art that "the mask units on the precision metal mask plate must be 100% qualified". Although the splicing process is added, the overall production efficiency is increased instead of decreased due to the aforementioned beneficial effects such as easy alignment, improved accuracy and consistency of the network. More importantly, the effective utilization rate of the finished precision metal mask plates is increased from about 10% to more than 30%, which greatly reduces the difficulty and cost of production.

[0162] The above description is only part of the specific implementation methods of the present disclosure, but the protection scope of the present disclosure is not limited thereto. Any changes or substitutions that can be easily thought of by any technician familiar with the technical field within the technical scope disclosed in the embodiments of the present disclosure should be included in the protection scope of the present disclosure. Therefore, the protection scope of the present disclosure should be based on the protection scope of the claims.

Claims

1. A method for manufacturing a mask plate, characterized in that: include: Providing a plurality of precision metal mask plates, wherein the precision metal mask plates include a plurality of mask units, and the plurality of mask units include at least one qualified mask unit; Providing a support mask plate, the support mask plate comprising a plurality of rows of support openings, wherein a plurality of support openings in any row correspond one-to-one to the plurality of mask units; For a row of support openings, perform the following stretching steps: Selecting one of the plurality of precision metal mask plates, wherein the selected precision metal mask plate includes at least one qualified mask unit corresponding to the vacant support opening; Applying tension to the selected precision metal mask plate, attaching it to the support mask plate according to the correspondence between the mask unit and the support opening, and fine-tuning so that at least one of the vacant support openings is aligned with the corresponding qualified mask unit; engaging the aligned vacant support openings with the qualified mask cells; The qualified mask units that have been bonded are retained, and the remaining parts of the selected precision metal mask are cut off; Repeat the stretching step to join at least one qualified mask unit in the subsequently selected precision metal mask plate to other vacant support openings in the same row until all support openings in a row are joined to qualified mask units; In the same way, all the support openings in each row are connected to the qualified mask units.

2. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that: The plurality of mask units in the precision metal mask plate are arranged along a first direction; The multiple rows of support openings in the support mask are arranged along the second direction, wherein the multiple support openings in any row are arranged along the first direction; The first direction is perpendicular to the second direction.

3. The method according to claim 2, characterized in that: The step of applying tension to the selected precision metal mask plate includes: Clamping the ears at both ends of the precision metal mask plate and applying tension along the first direction; When the precision metal mask plate is attached to the support mask plate, the clamping position is located outside the support mask plate.

4. The method according to claim 2, characterized in that: The method of using the same method to respectively make all the support openings in each row be connected with the qualified mask units includes: The stretching step is performed and repeated row by row from the center of the support mask plate outward along the second direction, so that all the support openings in each row are engaged with qualified mask units.

5. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that: The remaining portion of the selected precision metal mask plate is removed by laser cutting.

6. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that: The method provides a plurality of precision metal mask plates, including: Forming half-etched or dotted through-etched lines on both sides of each mask unit; The half-etched lines include: etching grooves formed on one surface of the precision metal mask plate, or etching grooves formed on two surfaces of the precision metal mask plate; The cutting off of the remaining portion of the selected precision metal mask plate includes breaking the precision metal mask plate along the half-etching line or the through-etching line.

7. The manufacturing method according to claim 1, characterized in that: The step of aligning at least one of the vacant support openings with a corresponding qualified mask unit comprises: The preset alignment holes are used as alignment references to align the vacant support openings with the corresponding qualified mask units, wherein the alignment conditions of other support openings and mask units are ignored during the alignment process.

8. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 7, characterized in that: During the stretching step for the same row of support openings: Apply consistent tension to precision metal masks with any number and / or location of qualified mask cells.

9. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 7, characterized in that: The providing of a supporting mask plate comprises: Provide a mask frame and support mask mesh; The supporting mask mesh is stretched and then joined to the mask frame.

10. A mask plate, characterized in that: The mask plate is manufactured by the manufacturing method according to any one of claims 1 to 9.

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