Multi-segment edge correction

Abstract

The invention describes a method of creating an image file for a thin film deposited by an industrial inkjet printer, comprising: acquiring a base image; defining grating pixelation of the base image; filling the mapping table with an index of the edge contour table; defining an edge processing area by using the grating pixelation; defining an edge processing profile representing a thickness profile to be applied to the layer at an edge of the layer; populating the edge profile table with a value representing an image scale of the edge processed profile; obtaining the index from a cell of the mapping table corresponding to the edge processing area; extracting, from the edge profile table, an image value for each index acquired from the mapping table; and storing the image value in an image file.

Description

Cross-references

[0001] This patent application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 63 / 374,463, filed on September 2, 2022, which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety. Background Art

[0002] Industrial inkjet printers are used to apply materials onto large substrates to form a wide variety of devices. The substrates can be rigid or flexible, thick or thin, and can be made from a range of materials. The most common types of substrates used in this way are made from various types of glass, which are processed to make electronic displays such as televisions and smartphone screens. The substrates are typically built into large panels that are then divided into individual products. Features and devices can be built on the panels by depositing microscopic droplets of printing material at precise locations on the panel and curing the deposited material. The material typically forms a layer that covers an area of ​​the panel. The layer can be a light generating layer, a frequency shifting layer, or a protective layer.

[0003] Typically, the deposition of the material is controlled by determining the coordinates at which droplets of the material are to be deposited. The coordinates of a large number of droplets are determined based on a print plan that specifies the layer to be formed. The print plan specifies the thickness of the layer at each location of the layer. The specified thickness can vary in order to compensate for the diffusion and accumulation characteristics of the liquid droplets and the dimensional changes during the solidification of the material. In particular, edges are often specifically designed with a corrective thickness profile in order to achieve a certain effect in the layer located at the edge. Considering that a very large number of droplets are to be printed on the panel to form a layer, a way of designing an edge correction profile is required so that it can be quickly converted into print plan data. Summary of the invention

[0004] The embodiment described herein provides a method for forming an image file of a material layer to be formed on a substrate by inkjet printing, comprising: obtaining a base image; defining raster pixelation of the base image; filling a mapping table with indices of an edge contour table; defining an edge processing area using the raster pixelation; defining an edge processing profile, the edge processing profile representing a thickness profile to be applied to the layer at the edge of the layer; filling the edge contour table with a value representing an image scale of the edge processing profile; obtaining the index from a cell of the mapping table corresponding to the edge processing area; extracting from the edge contour table an image value for each index obtained from the mapping table; and storing the image value in an image file.

[0005] Other embodiments described herein provide a method for forming an image file of a material layer to be formed on a substrate by inkjet printing, comprising: obtaining a base image; defining raster pixelation of the base image; filling a mapping table with indices of an edge contour table; defining an edge processing area using the raster pixelation; defining an edge processing profile, the edge processing profile representing a thickness profile to be applied to the layer at the edge of the layer; filling the edge contour table with image values ​​representing the edge processing profile; obtaining the index from a cell of the mapping table corresponding to the edge processing area; extracting from the edge contour table an image value for each index obtained from the mapping table; and storing the image value in an image file.

[0006] Other embodiments described herein provide a method for defining edge treatment of a material layer to be formed on a substrate by inkjet printing, comprising: displaying a base image of the layer on a display of a digital processing system; accepting user input of an edge treatment area from an input end of the digital processing system, the edge treatment area being defined by the raster pixelation; accepting user input of an edge treatment profile from the input end of the digital processing system, the edge treatment profile representing a thickness profile to be applied to the layer at the edge of the layer; and using the digital processing system to perform the following operations: defining raster pixelation of the base image, filling a mapping table with indices of an edge profile table, filling the edge profile table with image values ​​representing the edge treatment profile, obtaining the index from a cell of the mapping table corresponding to the edge treatment area, extracting from the edge profile table an image value for each index obtained from the mapping table, and storing the image value in an image file. Other embodiments described herein provide a method for defining edge treatment of a material layer to be formed on a substrate by inkjet printing, comprising: obtaining a base image; defining raster pixelation of the base image; filling a mapping table with indices of an edge contour table; accepting digital user input defining an edge treatment area based on the raster pixelation; accepting digital user input defining an edge treatment profile, the edge treatment profile representing a thickness profile to be applied to the layer at the edge of the layer; filling the edge contour table with image values ​​representing the edge treatment profile; obtaining the index from a cell of the mapping table corresponding to the edge treatment area; extracting from the edge contour table an image value for each index obtained from the mapping table; storing the image value in an image table; and outputting the image table to an image file. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0007] Figure 1 A flow chart outlining a method according to one embodiment is shown.

[0008] Figure 2 2 is a screen view of a graphical user interface according to another embodiment. Implementation

[0009] Methods are described herein for displaying and specifying edge treatments for a layer of material to be formed on a substrate. The layer will be formed by printing a material using microscopic droplets and then curing the material. The printed material is typically a curing material that is cured by exposure to one or another form of radiation. Ultraviolet radiation is commonly used, but infrared radiation can also be used, and thermal energy can also be applied. The printed material has a certain density and viscosity to provide a target deposition characteristic in the printer and a diffusion characteristic when deposited on the substrate. Based on the diffusion characteristic of the material, the droplets are positioned so that they spread and accumulate to form a film. The thickness of the film is related to the density of the deposited droplets, so a film of a desired thickness can be related to a certain droplet spacing on the substrate.

[0010] It is often necessary to use some kind of printing pattern at the edge of a layer to make the edge of the layer sharp and smooth. Sometimes, for very thin layers, printing a uniform density droplet directly to the intended edge of the layer can result in an uneven edge due to surface effects at the edge of the layer, especially after the layer solidifies. Therefore, a preset taper, convex, or other edge treatment is often required.

[0011] In some cases, the substrate on which the film is printed can be as large as 8m 2 , and the droplets used to form the film can cover as small as 50 μm 2 This means that a substrate can theoretically have 1.6×10 11 possible locations to apply a drop of printing material. If this substrate is used to form several products, each of which requires edge adjustment during printing, millions of calculations may be required to determine the thickness of each possible drop location in order to form the film edge. If multiple such films are formed on the substrate for each product, the computing resources required to directly calculate all edge thickness values ​​will increase rapidly. However, the edge treatment contains a lot of redundancy, so it is more efficient to calculate the edge profile (e.g., a transverse slice of the edge treatment) and simply replicate this profile across the entire edge treatment area rather than calculating each location.

[0012] In the method described herein, edge profiles are calculated and stored in a one-dimensional edge profile table. A lookup process is used to extract thickness values ​​from the edge profile table for the edge treatment area of ​​a film. The lookup process is computationally much more efficient than calculations and can quickly convert user design inputs for the edge treatment of a film into an image file of the film, wherein the image file can be processed into a print plan for execution by a printer.

[0013] Figure 1 1 is a flow chart outlining a method 100 according to one embodiment. Method 100 is a method of quickly applying edge processing to a base image to form an image file of the base image using the edge processing. At 102, a base image of a layer to be formed on a substrate is obtained. The layer to be formed may have any convenient shape or configuration, and may be a plurality of layers spaced apart on the substrate. The base image is obtained in the form of an electronic file, which may be in any format or using any protocol to define a shape. The file contains data defining the shape of the base image, and may contain data defining the thickness or thicknesses of a layer that matches the shape of the base image to be formed on the substrate. The thickness data is optional. The base image may be a template image of the layer to be formed, which does not have any details of edge processing or details to be formed as part of the layer. In some cases, the base image is a vector graphics image, while in other cases, the base image is a raster graphics image.

[0014] At 104, the raster pixelation of the base image is resolved. The raster pixelation appears in a coordinate system defined on the base image. When the base image is a vector graphics image, the vector graphics data is converted to raster pixelation at an appropriate resolution. When the base image is a raster graphics image, the raster graphics data may be rendered at a resolution for planning the formation of the film.

[0015] The raster pixelation includes pixel coordinates defined from the base image. The pixels are small adjacent areas of regular shape and size, which together represent the base image. In general, the pixels are defined based on the characteristics of the device to be used to form the layer on the substrate. Each pixel has coordinates and dimensions. Each pixel may also have a thickness. The thickness may be expressed as a value of an image scale, such as grayscale. The thickness of each pixel may be parsed from a single thickness specification of the layer to be formed in the shape of the base image, or may be specified in any convenient manner. For example, if the uniform thickness of the layer to be formed is 8μm (excluding any edge processing), the thickness of each pixel may be 8μm. The thickness of each pixel may be expressed in any convenient numerical manner. The thickness data associated with the pixel is optional.

[0016] The raster pixelation may reference and / or define, or be based on, rows and columns of a mapping table (e.g., as an array of numbers in a digital memory) containing numbers representing the thickness of the layer at each pixel location. The raster pixelation may also reference and / or define, or be based on, rows and columns of an image table that is different from the mapping table and contains numbers representing the thickness of the layer at each pixel location. If separate mapping and image tables are used, the mapping table will contain data used by the algorithm to resolve image values ​​to be stored in the image table to represent the thickness of the film to be formed on the substrate. Thus, the coordinates of each pixel may be row / column coordinates of the mapping table and / or the image table, and the thickness of the pixel may be represented as the image value at the row / column coordinate of the pixel in the mapping table and / or the image table. The image value may be a physical thickness, such as 8 (μm in the above example), or the image value may be a ratio value representing a thickness within a range, wherein the extreme values ​​of the ratio represent the end points of the thickness range. The image values ​​may be stored as digital arrays at memory addresses corresponding to the row / column coordinates of the image values ​​in the mapping table and / or the image table.

[0017] The raster pixelation may include pixels defined by the raster pixelation. The size of each pixel may be related to the print pitch of the printer used to form the layer on the substrate. The print pitch is actually how many different spots of printing material can be deposited by the printer within a given distance interval. In some cases, the print pitch is essentially the size of the spots of printing material deposited by the printer, and the print pitch may be the same in multiple directions, or may be different in all directions. Each pixel may represent a print pitch, or an integer number of print pitches, or a rational number multiple of a print pitch, and may be considered to have a size equal to a print pitch, which in some cases may be the size of a printed drop of printing material. Alternatively, each pixel may represent multiple print pitches. In such cases, each pixel represents an area of ​​the surface of the substrate on which the drop is deposited. The raster pixelation forms a reference based on the position and thickness of the film at each position to represent the film layer to be formed on the substrate. In a mapping table and / or an image table, the pixel may be represented by a cell labeled based on the coordinates of the raster pixelation. As described above, each location of the substrate defined or referenced by the raster pixelation may be a location where a drop of printing material may be deposited, or each location may be an area on which a drop is to be deposited.

[0018] At 106, an edge profile benchmark may be defined. The edge profile benchmark is optional, but it may help reduce computational burden by limiting the area where edge treatments may be designed and applied. In the absence of an edge profile benchmark, the edge profile benchmark actually covers or includes the entire base image area. The edge profile benchmark is a mapping (e.g., a subset of pixels, or a subset of the mapping table representing the film, or a subset of the coordinates) defined on a portion of the raster pixelation that represents an area of ​​the base image where an edge profile may be applied to complete edge treatment of the base image. The edge profile benchmark may be populated with a set of indices into an edge profile table, which will be populated with edge profile thickness values. The edge profile table is a one-dimensional table having edge thickness image values ​​for a particular edge treatment. The edge profile table, its application and use are further described below.

[0019] The edge contour benchmark may be a set of numbers that define the area of ​​the base image included in the edge contour benchmark. For example, the edge contour benchmark may include an edge identifier (a numeric or alphanumeric value that references an edge of the base image), a starting position (a numerical value that identifies the coordinates on the edge where the edge contour benchmark begins), an ending position (a numerical value that identifies the coordinates on the edge where the edge contour benchmark ends), and a width (a numerical value that defines the distance from the edge of the base image covered by the area of ​​the edge contour benchmark). For example, if a raster pixelization of a rectangular base image includes 1000 row coordinates and 1000 column coordinates that define 1000000 pixels, and the base image has edges numbered "1" to "4", then the edge contour benchmark of the raster pixelization may include the numerical values ​​"1, 200, 400, 200". In this example, the width is defined as a number of pixels, but the width may be defined in distance units, such as μm or mm. In other cases, the edge contour benchmark may be a single point definition, such as the centroid of the base image, which may be used to symmetrically define the area where the edge processing may be performed. In other cases, the edge profile reference may be a single point definition combined with a depth or width. In other cases, the edge profile reference may be a shape definition that can be applied as a mask. In other cases, the edge profile reference may be a shape definition that can be applied as an anchor point, such as a straight line or curve, to define an area where the edge processing can be applied.

[0020] The edge profile reference identifies a plurality of pixels and may include the identified pixels. In the process of creating the raster pixelation, each cell of the mapping table is filled in at the coordinates of the pixel identified by the edge profile reference, using an index value pointing to a location in the edge profile table, wherein the location is used to apply the edge processing in an edge processing area defined within the edge profile reference. The edge processing area will be further described below. The index value is selected as a value of the image scale that is not used to specify the thickness. In the grayscale example, the index value will start from a number (such as 257) to outside the range of index values ​​that define the grayscale. In this way, the entry of the edge profile table can distinguish the image scale value of the base layer from the image scale value to be subjected to the edge processing at that location.

[0021] The optional edge profile datum defines the location where edge treatment may be specified and is therefore constructed to have a size that can accommodate any degree of edge treatment that may be selected. The edge profile datum thus acts as an envelope within which edge treatment may be specified but outside of which it cannot be specified. As described above, in the process of creating the raster pixelization, the cells of the mapping table corresponding to the pixels covered by the edge profile datum (or indeed the entire area to which edge treatment may be applied, for example, the entire underlying image area if no edge profile datum is used) are filled in by the image value index values ​​used to look up each pixel in the one-dimensional edge profile table. The number of index values ​​required to fill in the cells is determined by the number of pixels covered by the edge profile datum in the orthogonal direction of the edge associated with the edge profile datum. Thus, if an edge profile datum of 10 mm width and a pixel size of 10 μm is used, 1000 indices are required to provide the possibility of edge treatment of the film over the entire area covered by the edge profile datum.

[0022] In one embodiment, the edge profile reference can be used to fill indices into a mapping table according to an erosion method. In the erosion method, cells in the mapping table corresponding to pixels defined during raster pixelization of the base image and associated with the edge reference profile are filled starting from the edge of the image and moving inward from the edge until all cells corresponding to the edge reference profile are filled. The cells can be filled one "row" at a time or one "column" at a time in a manner parallel to the edge or perpendicular to the edge. After filling a "row" or "column", the next "row" or "column" is processed. Such an approach can simplify processing because in many cases, when processing to the next "row" or "column", the index to be filled into the mapping table cell can simply be increased.

[0023] At 108, an edge processing region is defined on the base image using the pixels of the raster pixelation. The edge processing region may be defined by specifying a position on the edge of the base image and a width of the edge processing region. A plurality of edge processing regions may be defined on the base image. The edge processing region may have the same content as the edge profile reference, including an edge identifier, a start position, an end position, and a depth.

[0024] The edge processing area is an object different from the edge contour benchmark. As described above, the edge processing area may have the same content as the edge contour benchmark, or may have different content. The edge contour benchmark defines the location where the edge processing can be specified, while the edge processing area defines the location where the edge processing is defined. Therefore, the edge processing area may be located within the area defined by the edge contour benchmark, or may be coextensive with the area defined by the edge contour benchmark. The edge processing area cannot define an area larger than the edge contour benchmark. It should be noted that multiple edge processing areas can be defined based on one edge contour benchmark. It should also be noted that without using an edge contour benchmark, the edge processing area can be defined at any position of the base image as long as a portion of the edge processing area coincides with the edge of the base image.

[0025] Edge processing areas can be defined using a graphical interface. Figure 2 A screen view of an example. Figure 2 The view of FIG. 2 shows a base image 202 having a plurality of edge processing regions 204 marked thereon. The edge processing regions 204 are specified by identifying (using the coordinates defined by the pixel rasterization) a boundary position 206, a start position 206A, and an end position 206B on the edge of the base image 202 as the boundaries of the edge processing region, and specifying the width 208 of the edge processing region. Each edge processing region may have the same width or may have a different width. Figure 2 A plurality of edge treatment regions 204 of varying widths are shown. Figure 2The base image 202 in has a rectangular-like shape with rounded corners, but any shape can be used. To help the user define the edge processing area, the edge contour reference can be displayed as 210 so that the user can be aware of the limit that the edge processing cannot exceed. Here, one edge processing area 204 is defined for each side of the base image 202, but multiple edge processing areas 204 can be defined on one side of the base image 202, each edge processing area 204 having a different width if necessary. Mathematically, the edge processing area 204 can be represented as a set of values ​​representing the coordinates of the boundaries of the edge processing area 204 and a set of values ​​representing the width of the edge processing area 204. Each edge processing area 204 can be represented electronically as an array instantiated with the values ​​of the set.

[0026] A width is specified for each edge treatment region. The width specifies the distance from the edge of the base layer to which the edge treatment is to be applied. The width is typically a numerical value for each edge treatment region and must be less than the width of the edge profile datum. For example, for each edge treatment region, a width of 150 μm specifies that the edge treatment to be applied will extend into the base layer at a distance of 150 μm from the edge and in a direction orthogonal to the edge. The width, together with the above-mentioned boundaries, determines which pixels defined by the raster pixelation are included in the edge treatment region. As described above, the width of 150 μm (specified in any convenient numerical format) can be the same as the width of the edge profile datum defining the edge treatment region, or it can be less than the width of the edge profile datum. For example, an edge treatment region with a width of 150 μm can be defined on an edge profile datum with a width of 200 μm.

[0027] Graphical masking can be used to define edge treatment areas and edge profile benchmarks. The graphical user interface 200 shows a shape definition 212, which can be made by a user using any suitable function of the graphical user interface 200 (e.g., a standard drawing function for making any type of shape). The user can create the shape definition 212 in a manner that overlaps any portion of the edge profile benchmark. The overlapping area can be established as an edge treatment area. The mask function drawn by the user can be activated by a button or menu selection. For example, a button 214 can be provided to activate the mask function drawn by the user. The mask can also be constructed by the user using another computer program and provided as a digital file that can be applied to the base image to define the edge treatment area.

[0028] The edge contour criterion may also be defined using a user-drawn or user-provided mask. The graphical user interface 200 shows a second shape definition 216 (where the second shape definition is used, the shape definition 212 is a first shape definition), which may be made by the user in the manner described above. When the second shape definition 216 overlaps any portion of the base image 202, an edge contour criterion may be established. As with the edge processing area, the user-drawn mask function may be activated by a button or menu selection, for example, a button similar to the button 214. In this case, when mask processing is used to define the edge contour criterion, if the user accepts the edge contour criterion defined by the mask, the acceptance operation may trigger the filling of the corresponding pixel in the mapping table with the index.

[0029] The mask may have any suitable shape. In the graphical user interface 200, the shape is defined as a rectangle, but the user may use any shape drawing function to define a suitable shape, such as a regular or irregular polygon, a regular or irregular closed curve region, or a stylized definition, such as a cloud shape.

[0030] It should be noted that both the edge profile reference and the edge treatment area have the following property, that is, in the direction parallel to the edge of the base image, no part thereof is larger than the part of the edge of the base image enclosed by the edge treatment area of ​​the edge profile reference. Therefore, the edge treatment area or edge profile reference has the widest dimension at the edge of the base image enclosed by the edge treatment area or edge profile reference, and the dimensions of the other parts thereof in the direction parallel to the enclosed edge are not larger than the dimensions at the enclosed edge. Accordingly, it should also be noted that the dimensions of the edge treatment area or edge profile reference in the direction parallel to the enclosed edge can be smaller than the dimensions at the enclosed edge. When a user-defined or user-drawn shape definition has a dimensional feature that will create a dimension at the enclosed edge in the direction parallel to the enclosed edge that is narrower than the internal dimension of the shape definition, the graphical user interface 200 may display an implicit definition of the edge treatment area or edge profile reference, or the graphical user interface 200 may display a message to the user.

[0031] At 110, an edge treatment profile is defined. The edge treatment profile is a specification for shaping the edge of the film in a dimension orthogonal to the edge. The edge treatment profile can be applied to one or more edge treatment areas, and different edge treatment profiles can be applied to different edge treatment areas of the base image. The edge treatment profile of the edge treatment area is applied to each edge position of the edge treatment area between the starting position and the ending position of the edge treatment area. Therefore, only one edge profile can be applied to an edge treatment area. If multiple edge profiles are required, separate edge treatment areas are defined, one for each edge profile. As described above, all such edge treatment areas can be defined on an edge profile benchmark. Of course, multiple edge profile benchmarks can also be defined on a base image, and each edge treatment area and corresponding edge profile can be defined on each edge profile benchmark. When applying the edge treatment profile, the pixels corresponding to the edge treatment area are identified, and the edge treatment profile is used to fill the cells corresponding to the pixels.

[0032] The edge treatment profile may be specified in any convenient manner. Fundamentally, the edge treatment profile specifies the variation in the film thickness near the edge of the film to be formed corresponding to the base image. For example, the edge treatment profile may reflect a linear taper of thickness at the edge of the film. This edge treatment may be specified by a starting position, a width or an ending position, and a taper specification. The taper specification may be a starting thickness and an ending thickness, a starting thickness and a slope, or an ending thickness and a slope. The thickness may be specified in distance units (i.e., μm) or as a percentage of the base film thickness. So, for example, if the base film represented by the base image has a nominal thickness of 20 μm, the edge treatment profile may specify a linear taper of film thickness covering an area of ​​the edge of the film, wherein the thickness at 50 μm from the edge of the film is 100% of the nominal thickness, and the thickness at 10 μm from the edge of the film is 50% of the nominal thickness. This taper specification has a shape identifier that represents a linear taper, where the starting position is 10 μm, the starting thickness is 50% (or 10 μm), the ending position is 40 μm, and the ending thickness is 100% (or 20 μm). Other methods of specifying edge treatment profiles can also be used. For example, the curvature can be specified using the starting position, the ending position, and the radius of curvature (where positive and negative values ​​represent convex or concave curvature). A piecewise linear edge treatment profile can also be specified as multiple tapers with different slopes and / or different thickness variations.

[0033] The graphical user interface 200 may display representations of edge treatment profiles. One or more such representations may be displayed, such that a graphical representation of a first edge treatment profile 220 may be displayed and a graphical representation of a second edge treatment profile 222 may be displayed simultaneously. Each graphical representation may have a scale feature 224, wherein the scale features 224 may be the same or different depending on the scale of the edge treatment to be applied using the edge treatment profile. The units of the scale feature may also be displayed. Selection means (such as buttons and menu options) may be used to activate the display of the graphical representations of the edge treatment profiles. The graphical user interface 200 may also have a graphics system (not shown) for editing edge treatment profiles. The system may provide a template screen on which a user may draw a shape definition for use as an edge treatment profile using any suitable drawing function. The graphical system may convert the shape definition defined by the user into an edge treatment profile using the scale information provided by the user.

[0034] The graphical user interface 200 may also have data display and editing functions. For example, the graphical user interface 200 may use a selection means (such as a button or menu option) to display one or more data tables 226. The data may be any data related to the layer design displayed in the graphical user interface 200, such as size, table content, coordinates, thickness, etc.

[0035] To identify the value to be filled corresponding to the pixel, an edge contour table corresponding to the edge treatment profile is defined at 112. As described above, the edge contour table is a one-dimensional table containing image values ​​(representing thickness) representing the edge contour shape to be applied to the base layer. The edge contour table is a mapping-through table that converts index values ​​to image values. The cells of the edge contour table are filled with image values ​​representing the layer thickness corresponding to the edge treatment profile defined at 110. For example, when the edge treatment profile specifies a taper of thickness, the cells of the edge contour table will be filled with image values ​​corresponding to the taper thickness.

[0036] The edge processing area is defined above using an index into a one-dimensional edge profile table. The first N values ​​of the edge profile table are the see-through values ​​that convert the index into itself so that the unchanged image value is passed through the conversion of the edge profile table. In one case, when grayscale image values ​​are used, the first 256 values ​​of the edge profile table will contain grayscale image values ​​(0-255). In one case, the 257th value of the edge profile table can be used to return the thickness of the base layer. In another case, if the image scale has 1000 values ​​corresponding to the partial thickness between the minimum and maximum values, the first 1000 values ​​of the edge profile table (index 0-999) will become the see-through values ​​(0-999), and the edge processing values ​​(e.g., values ​​between 0 and 999) can be placed in the edge profile table with index values ​​exceeding 1000. If any cells other than the cells in the edge configuration table used to specify the edge processing are not used, these cells can be filled with the "maximum" thickness value (e.g., "999" in the image scale above) to show that the original film thickness at these pixels has not changed. When an image ratio is used, any suitable image ratio that provides the resolution necessary to specify the various thicknesses to be formed may be used.

[0037] Reference again Figure 1 , the image value entry of the edge profile table is determined from the edge processing profile defined at 110. If an image scale of 0 to 999 is used to represent thickness, and a taper from 100% thickness at 50 μm from the edge of the film to 50% thickness at 10 μm from the edge of the film is specified with a pixel size of 10 μm, then five image values ​​will be required to specify the taper, the image value corresponding to the film thickness at 0 μm to 10 μm from the edge of the film, and the image values ​​at 10-20 μm, 20-30 μm, 30-40 μm, and 40-50 μm. If the image value for 100% thickness is 999 and the image value for 50% thickness is 499 (basically percentage thickness × 10-1), the image values ​​at each position are as follows: 0-10μm 499 10-20μm 599 20-30μm 699 30-40μm 799 40-50μm899. Above 50 μm, the image value is 100% (ie 999). These image values ​​are placed into the edge profile table, with indices defined below.

[0038] The user-defined dimensions of the edge treatment region determine how many indices of the edge profile table are used to express the edge treatment profile. In one case, the width of the edge treatment region is compared to the width of the edge profile baseline. Roughly speaking, if the width of the edge treatment region is 40% of the width of the edge profile baseline, then, according to the specification of the edge treatment profile, 40% of the entries in the edge profile table that define the edge treatment may be filled with modified image values. Thus, in the example above where the edge profile table has 1000 entries available for specifying edge treatments, if the width of the edge treatment region defined by the user is 100 μm (and the width of the edge profile baseline is 10 μm-10000 μm), then 1% of the cells in the edge profile table, or 10 cells, may be used to define the edge treatment. This number may be less if the edge treatment profile does not utilize all of the defined width of the edge treatment region, as described above, only five image values ​​are needed to specify the edge treatment. Thus, in this case, the edge contour table will have N cells with see-through image values, optionally 1 cell (index N+1) with an image value for the base layer thickness, and 5 cells with image values ​​representing the edge treatment of the base layer. The remaining cells in the edge contour table are set to "maximum value". Thus, in the above example, the first 1000 entries of the edge contour table will be filled with values ​​0 to 999, the next entry may be filled with the value 1000 (to represent "base layer thickness"), and the next five entries may be filled with the values ​​499, 599, 699, 799 and 899. In addition to this, the remaining cells in the edge contour table may be filled with the value 999. This table constructed in this way can be used as a lookup table to look up image values ​​so that the edge treatment of the base layer is performed in the corresponding edge treatment area.

[0039] As described above, the mapping table is initialized in the area covered by the edge profile benchmark using the index to be used to look up the image value in the edge profile table. The edge profile table is filled with the image value representing the selected edge profile in the above operation. At 114, a cell is read from the mapping table corresponding to the edge processing area to obtain the index for the lookup in the edge profile table. The image value is obtained from the edge profile table using the obtained index. At 116, the image table is filled with the image value obtained by the lookup operation using the edge profile table. The image table has the same size as the edge processing area or the edge profile benchmark and corresponds to the area selected or defined by the user for applying edge processing. After performing the process 116 at all positions within the edge processing area, the image table contains image values ​​for the film thickness within the edge processing area.

[0040] The use of separate image tables enables other potentially valuable processes. For example, when considering multiple edge treatments for a layer, each edge treatment can be processed separately into its image table, and then the individual image tables can be merged into the overall image table for the final layer specification. In such cases, each edge treatment area acts as a mask to capture pixels of the base layer that fall within the respective edge treatment area. The edge treatment areas can be combined and used as an inverse mask to capture pixels of the base layer that do not fall within any edge treatment area. A similar lookup table process can be used to adjust values ​​and correct errors in the image values ​​representing areas of the base layer that do not fall within edge treatment areas. When multiple image tables are created in this manner, the values ​​of the image tables can be converted from 8-bit values ​​to floating point values, added using simple addition, and then converted back to 8-bit values ​​to generate a composite image table representing the final edge compensation layer. Using known methods, the final 8-bit image can be processed into print data for operation by a printer to deposit printing material to form the layer.

[0041] The methods and means described herein are implemented by using a digital processing system having a processor, a memory, a display, and an input terminal. The digital processing system may have multiple instances or units of each functional component. The various files and tables described herein may be stored in the memory for extraction and operation by a user using the input terminal, which may be a keyboard, a touch screen, a drawing device, or other input terminals or input terminal combinations. The data, shapes, and interactive objects described herein may be displayed on a screen for user operation. The digital processing system may also communicate with other systems, for example, an enterprise system or a manufacturing system that controls and operates a thin film forming device such as an inkjet printer. The digital processing system may be used to display all of the above-mentioned graphical interface elements, accept user input as shape definitions and / or files using any input terminal of the digital processing system, and store data related to the layer design and the edge processing defined by the user in the memory of the digital processing system. In particular, the above-mentioned image table may be stored in the digital memory and used to create printer control data to form the layer designed using the method and graphical user interface described herein.

[0042] The foregoing is directed to embodiments of one or more inventions, however, other embodiments not specifically described in this disclosure may be devised without departing from the basic scope of other embodiments of such inventions, the basic scope of which is determined by the following claims. The embodiments described herein are examples to illustrate the invention. Other embodiments embodying the same invention may be conceived from the description herein.

Claims

1. A method for defining an edge treatment of a layer of material to be formed on a substrate by inkjet printing, comprising: Get the base image; defining a raster pixelation of said base image; Fill the mapping table with indices from the edge contour table; defining an edge processing region using said raster pixelation; defining an edge treatment profile representing a thickness profile to be applied to the layer at an edge of the layer; populating the edge contour table with image values ​​representing the edge processing contour; Acquire the index from a cell of the mapping table corresponding to the edge processing area; extracting from the edge contour table an image value for each index obtained from the mapping table; as well as The image value is stored in an image file.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein: The edge profile table is a one-dimensional table.

3. The method according to claim 1, wherein: The edge profile table is also populated with see-through values.

4. The method according to claim 1, wherein: The edge processing region is a first edge processing region, the index is a first index set, and the image file is a first image file, and the method further comprises: defining a second edge processing region using the raster pixelation; Acquire a second index set from a cell of the mapping table corresponding to the second edge processing region; extracting an image value for each index of the second set of indices from the edge contour table; and The image value extracted for each index in the second index set is stored in a second image file.

5. The method according to claim 4, further comprising: defining a third image file from the mapping table using the first edge processing region and the second edge processing region as a mask; as well as adding the first image file, the second image file, and the third image file to form a composite image file for the layer; as well as The composite image file is stored.

6. The method according to claim 1, further comprising: An edge reference profile is defined and populating a mapping table with indices of an edge profile table is performed using the edge reference profile.

7. The method according to claim 1, wherein: The image values ​​are values ​​from the scale.

8. The method according to claim 1, wherein: Defining the edge processing region includes accepting user input of the edge processing region using a drawing function of a graphical user interface.

9. The method according to claim 1, wherein: Further including: The image file is converted into print data for an inkjet printer.

10. A method of defining an edge treatment of a layer of material to be formed on a substrate by inkjet printing, comprising: displaying the base image of the layer on a display of a digital processing system; accepting user input of an edge processing region from an input of the digital processing system, the edge processing region being defined by raster pixelation; accepting user input of an edge treatment profile from the input of the digital processing system, the edge treatment profile representing a thickness profile to be applied to the layer at an edge of the layer; and Use the digital processing system to: defining said raster pixelation of said base image; Fill the mapping table with indices from the edge contour table; populating the edge contour table with image values ​​representing the edge processing contour; Acquire the index from a cell of the mapping table corresponding to the edge processing area; extracting from the edge contour table an image value for each index obtained from the mapping table; and The image values ​​are stored in an image file.

11. The method according to claim 10, further comprising: A graphical representation of the edge treatment profile is displayed on the display of the digital processing system.

12. The method according to claim 10, further comprising: A graphical representation of the edge processing region is displayed on the display of the digital processing system.

13. The method according to claim 10, wherein: The user input of the edge processing region is a shape definition created by the user.

14. The method according to claim 10, wherein: The user input to the edge processing area is a digital file created by the user.

15. The method according to claim 10, further comprising: In response to a user selection, data of the base image, the mapping table, and the edge contour table are displayed.

16. A method of defining an edge treatment of a layer of material to be formed on a substrate by inkjet printing, comprising: Get the base image; defining a raster pixelation of said base image; Fill the mapping table with indices from the edge contour table; accepting a numerical user input defining an edge processing region based on said raster pixelation; accepting a numerical user input defining an edge treatment profile representing a thickness profile to be applied to the layer at an edge of the layer; populating the edge contour table with image values ​​representing the edge processing contour; Acquire the index from a cell of the mapping table corresponding to the edge processing area; extracting from the edge contour table an image value for each index obtained from the mapping table; storing the image value in an image table; as well as The image table is exported to an image file.

17. The method according to claim 16, wherein: The edge processing region is a first edge processing region, the index is a first index set, the image value is a first image value, the image table is a first image table, and the image file is a first image file, and the method further includes: accepting a numerical user input defining a second edge processing region based on said raster pixelation; Acquire a second index set from a cell of the mapping table corresponding to the second edge processing region; extracting from the edge contour table a second image value for each index of the second set of indices; and storing the second image value in a second image table; and A combination of the first image table and the second image table is output to the image file.

18. The method according to claim 17, further comprising: defining a third image table from the mapping table using the first edge processing region and the second edge processing region as masks; as well as adding the first image table, the second image table, and the third image table to form a composite image table for the layer; as well as The composite image table is exported to the image file.

19. The method according to claim 17, wherein: The edge profile table is a one-dimensional table further including a penetration value.

20. The method according to claim 17, wherein: The image values ​​are values ​​from the scale.

21. The method of claim 17, further comprising: The image file is converted into print data for an inkjet printer.

Images