Multi-segment Edge Correction

Abstract

A method for creating an image file of a film deposited by an industrial inkjet printer is provided. [Solution] The method includes obtaining a base image, defining a raster pixelation of the base image, entering an index of an edge profile table into a map table, defining an edge treatment zone using the raster pixelation, defining an edge treatment profile representing a thickness profile to be applied to the layer at an edge of the layer, entering an image scale value representing the edge treatment profile into the edge profile table, obtaining an index from a cell of the map table corresponding to the edge treatment zone, looking up an image value from the edge profile table for each index obtained from the map table, and storing the image value in an image file.

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] (CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS) This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 63 / 374,463, filed September 2, 2022, the entire contents of which are incorporated herein by reference. [Background technology]

[0002] Industrial inkjet printers are used to apply materials to large substrates to create various devices. The substrates can be rigid or flexible, thick or thin, and made of a variety of materials. The most common types of substrates used in this way include glass substrates, which are processed to produce electronic displays such as televisions and smartphone displays. Substrates are typically constructed as large panels that are then separated into individual products. The construction of features and devices on the panels is achieved by depositing minute droplets of printing material in precise locations on the panel and then curing the deposited material. The material typically forms layers that cover various areas of the panel. These layers can be light-generating layers, frequency-shifting layers, or protective layers.

[0003] Material deposition control is typically achieved by determining the coordinates at which droplets of material are deposited. The coordinates of a large number of droplets are determined by a print plan that specifies the layers to be formed. The print plan specifies the layer thickness at each location in the layer. The specified thickness can be varied to compensate for droplet spreading and layering behavior, as well as dimensional changes in the material during curing. In particular, edges of layers are often designed in detail using correction thickness profiles to achieve specific effects. Considering the large number of droplets printed on a panel to form layers, a solution is needed to design edge correction profiles that can be quickly converted into print plan data. Summary of the Invention

[0004] According to embodiments described herein, there is provided a method for creating an image file of a layer of material to be formed on a substrate by inkjet printing, the method including obtaining a base image, defining a raster pixelation of the base image, inputting an index of an edge profile table into a map table, defining edge treatment zones using the raster pixelation, defining an edge treatment profile representing a thickness profile to be applied to the layer at an edge of the layer, inputting an image scale value representing the edge treatment profile into the edge profile table, obtaining an index from a cell of the map table corresponding to the edge treatment zone, looking up an image value from the edge profile table for each index obtained from the map table, and storing the image values ​​in an image file.

[0005] According to another embodiment described herein, there is provided a method for creating an image file of a layer of material to be formed on a substrate by inkjet printing, the method including obtaining a base image, defining a raster pixelation of the base image, entering an index of an edge profile table into a map table, defining edge treatment zones using the raster pixelation, defining an edge treatment profile representing a thickness profile to be applied to the layer at an edge of the layer, entering image values ​​representing the edge treatment profile into the edge profile table, obtaining an index from a cell of the map table corresponding to the edge treatment zone, looking up an image value from the edge profile table for each index obtained from the map table, and storing the image values ​​in an image file.

[0006] According to another embodiment described herein, there is provided a method for defining an edge treatment for a layer of material to be formed on a substrate by inkjet printing, the method including: displaying a base image of the layer on a display of a digital processing system; accepting user input from an input of the digital processing system of edge treatment zones defined using raster pixelation; accepting user input from an input of the digital processing system of an edge treatment profile representing a thickness profile to be applied to the layer at an edge of the layer; defining the raster pixelation of the base image using the digital processing system; inputting edge profile table indices into a map table; inputting image values ​​representing the edge treatment profile into the edge profile table; obtaining indices from cells of the map table corresponding to the edge treatment zones; looking up image values ​​from the edge profile table for each index obtained from the map table; and storing the image values ​​in an image file. According to another embodiment described herein, there is provided a method for defining an edge treatment for a layer of material to be formed on a substrate by inkjet printing, the method including obtaining a base image, defining a raster pixelation of the base image, inputting an index to an edge profile table into a map table, accepting digital user input defining edge treatment zones based on the raster pixelation, accepting digital user input defining an edge treatment profile representing a thickness profile to be applied to the layer at an edge of the layer, inputting image values ​​representing the edge treatment profile into the edge profile table, obtaining an index from a cell of the map table corresponding to the edge treatment zone, looking up an image value from the edge profile table for each index obtained from the map table, storing the image values ​​in the image table, and outputting the image table to an image file. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0007] [Figure 1]1 is a flowchart outlining a method according to one embodiment.

[0008] [Figure 2] FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating a screen of a graphical user interface according to another embodiment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0009] This document describes a method for indicating and specifying edge treatments for a layer of material to be formed on a substrate. The layer is formed by printing the material using fine droplets and then curing the material. The printing material is typically a curable material that is cured by exposure to various forms of radiation. Ultraviolet radiation is commonly used, but infrared radiation can also be used, and thermal energy can also be applied. The printing material is formulated with a density and viscosity that achieves the desired deposition behavior within the printer and spreading behavior when deposited on the substrate. The droplets are positioned to spread and coalesce to form a film based on the spreading behavior of the material. Because film thickness is related to the density of the deposited droplets, a film with a desired thickness can be associated with a specific drop spacing on the substrate.

[0010] It is often desirable to employ a specific printing pattern at the edge of a layer to achieve a clean and smooth layer edge. For very thin layers, printing a uniform density of droplets right up to the edge of the programmed layer can result in uneven edges due to surface effects at the edge of the layer, especially after the layer has cured. For this reason, it may be desirable to program a tapered, bulged, or other edge treatment.

[0011] In some cases, the size of the substrate on which the film is printed is 8m. 2 The area covered by the droplets used to form the film is about 50 μm 2 This means that theoretically, there may be only 1.6 × 10 11This means that droplets of printing material can be applied at locations along the edge of the substrate. When multiple products are created using such a substrate, the edges must be adjusted for each product during the printing process, requiring millions of calculations to determine the thickness at every possible droplet location for the film edge formation. When multiple such films are created on a substrate for each product, the computational resources required to directly calculate all edge thickness values ​​rapidly increase. However, edge treatments are highly redundant, and it is much more efficient to simply calculate an edge profile, such as a cross-section of the edge treatment, and copy that profile across the entire edge treatment zone rather than performing calculations for every location.

[0012] In the method described herein, an edge profile is calculated and stored in a one-dimensional edge profile table. A lookup process is used to retrieve thickness values ​​from the edge profile table for edge treatment zones of the film. The lookup process is much more computationally efficient than calculations and allows for fast conversion of a user's design input for the film edge treatment into a film image file that can be processed into a print plan for a printer to execute.

[0013] FIG. 1 is a flowchart outlining a method 100 according to one embodiment. The method 100 rapidly applies edge processing to a base image and generates an image file of the base image with the edge processing applied. At 102, a base image of a layer to be formed on a substrate is acquired. The layer to be formed can have any convenient shape or configuration, including multiple layers spaced apart on the substrate. The base image is acquired as an electronic file, which may be in any format and may use any conventional technique for defining the shape. The file includes data defining the shape of the base image and may include data defining the thickness(es) of the layer(s) to be formed on the substrate to match the shape of the base image. Thickness data is not required. The base image may be a template image of the layer to be formed, and does not include details about the edge processing or the portions of the layer to be formed. In some cases, the base image is a vector graphics image or a raster graphics image.

[0014] At 104, raster pixelization of the base image is performed. The raster pixelization is performed in a coordinate system defined on the base image. If the base image is a vector graphics image, the vector graphics data is raster pixelated at an appropriate resolution. If the base image is a raster graphics image, the raster graphics data can be rendered at a resolution used in the film formation plan.

[0015] Raster pixelation includes coordinates of pixels defined from a base image. Pixels are adjacent regions of regular shape and size that collectively represent the base image. Pixels are typically defined based on the characteristics of the device used to form the layer on the substrate. Each pixel has coordinates and a size. Each pixel may also have a thickness. The thickness may be expressed as an image scale value, such as a grayscale. The thickness of each pixel may be converted from a single thickness specification for the layer to be formed in the shape of the base image, or may be specified in any convenient manner. For example, if the thickness of the layer to be formed is uniformly 8 μm (excluding edge treatment), the thickness of each pixel may be 8 μm. The thickness of each pixel may be expressed using any suitable numerical method. Thickness data associated with a pixel is not required.

[0016] Raster pixelation can reference, base, and / or define rows and columns of a map table, for example, as a numeric array in digital memory, containing values ​​representing layer thickness at each pixel location. Raster pixelation can also reference, base, and / or define rows and columns of an image table, separate from the map table, containing values ​​representing layer thickness at each pixel location. When a map table and an image table are used separately, the map table stores data used by an algorithm to convert image values ​​stored in the image table to represent the thickness of a film to be formed on a substrate. In this manner, the coordinates of each pixel can be row / column coordinates in the map table and / or image table, and the thickness of that pixel can be represented as an image value located at the pixel's row / column coordinates in the map table and / or image table. The image value can be a physical thickness (e.g., 8 μm in the above example) or a scale value representing a range of thickness, with both endpoints of the scale representing the thickness range endpoints. The image values ​​may be stored as a digital array at memory addresses corresponding to the row / column coordinates of the image values ​​in the map table and / or image table.

[0017] Raster pixelation can include pixels defined by the raster pixelation. The size of each pixel can be related to the printing pitch of the printer used to form the layer on the substrate. The printing pitch is the number of distinct dots of printing material that the printer can effectively deposit at a given distance. In some examples, the printing pitch is essentially the dot size of the printing material deposited by the printer, which can be the same in two or more directions or different in all directions. Each pixel can represent a single printing pitch, an integer multiple of the printing pitch, or a rational multiple of the printing pitch and can be considered to have the same size as a single printing pitch or, in some cases, the size of a single printed drop of printing material. Alternatively, each pixel can represent two or more printing pitches. In such cases, each pixel represents an area on the substrate surface where a drop will be deposited. The raster pixelation provides a basis for representing a film layer to be formed on the substrate according to the film position and thickness at each location. In a map table and / or image table, pixels can be represented by cells dimensioned on the coordinates of the raster pixelation. As noted above, each location on the substrate defined or referenced by raster pixelation may be a location where a single drop of printing material can be deposited, or an area where multiple drops can be deposited.

[0018] At 106, an edge profile criterion is defined. While the edge profile criterion is not required, it helps reduce computational load by limiting the area over which edge treatments are designed and applied. If the edge profile criterion is not used, the edge profile criterion effectively covers or includes the entire base image area. The edge profile criterion is a map defined on a portion of the raster pixelation (e.g., a subset of pixels, a subset of a map table representing a film, or a subset of coordinates) that represents the area of ​​the base image to which the edge profile is applied to perform edge treatment of the base image. The edge profile criterion can be populated with a set of indices used for an edge profile table into which edge profile thickness values ​​are entered. The edge profile table is a one-dimensional table with edge thickness image values ​​for a particular edge treatment. Edge profile tables, and their applications and uses, are further described below.

[0019] An edge profile criterion is a series of numbers that defines the region of the base image that is included in the edge profile criterion. For example, the edge profile criterion can include an edge identifier (a numeric or alphanumeric value referencing the edge of the base image), a start position (a number identifying the coordinate on the edge where the edge profile criterion begins), an end position (a number identifying the coordinate on the edge where the edge profile criterion ends), and a width (a number defining the distance from the edge of the base image that is covered by the region of the edge profile criterion). For example, if a raster pixelization of a rectangular base image includes 1000 row coordinates and 1000 column coordinates, defining 1,000,000 pixels, and the base image has edges numbered "1" through "4," the edge profile criterion of the raster pixelization might include the values ​​"1,200,400,200." In this example, the width is defined as a number of pixels, but it can also be defined in units of distance, such as microns or millimeters. In another example, the edge profile criterion can be defined by a single point, such as the centroid of the base image, which can be used to symmetrically define the region where edge processing can be performed. In other examples, the edge profile criterion can be defined by a single point in combination with a depth or width. In other examples, the edge profile criterion can be a defined shape that can be applied as a mask. In other examples, the edge profile criterion can be a defined shape that can be applied as an anchor, such as a line or curve, to define an area where edge processing can be applied.

[0020] The edge profile criteria may identify multiple pixels and may include the identified pixels. Each cell in the map table receives an index value indicating a location in the edge profile table at the coordinates of the pixel identified by the edge profile criteria that is used to apply edge processing in the edge processing zone defined in the edge profile criteria during raster pixelization. Further discussion of edge processing zones follows. The index value is selected to be a value that is not an image scale value used to specify thickness. In the grayscale example, the index value begins with a number such as 257 to fall outside the range of index values ​​defining grayscale. In this way, the edge profile table entries allow the image scale value of the base layer to be distinguished from the image scale value of the edge processing applied at that location.

[0021] Although the edge profile criterion is not required, because it defines the location where edge treatments are specified, the edge profile criterion is configured to have a size that can accommodate the full range of possible edge treatments. In this way, the edge profile criterion is like a boundary within which edge treatments can be specified and outside of which edge treatments cannot be specified. As described above, during raster pixelization, the map table cells corresponding to the pixels covered by the edge profile criterion (or the entire area to which the edge profile criterion applies, e.g., the entire base image area if edge treatments are not available) are populated with index values ​​that are used to determine the image value of each pixel in the one-dimensional edge profile table. The number of index values ​​required to populate a cell is determined from the number of pixels covered by the edge profile criterion in a direction perpendicular to the edge associated with the edge profile criterion. Thus, if a 10 mm wide edge profile criterion is used with 10 μm-sized pixels, 1000 indexes are required to be able to apply edge treatments to the film in the entire area covered by the edge profile criterion.

[0022] In one embodiment, an edge profile criterion may be used to populate a map table according to an erosion method. In the erosion method, cells in the map table corresponding to pixels defined during raster pixelization of the base image and associated with the edge profile criterion are populated starting from the edge of the image and moving inward from the edge until all cells corresponding to the edge profile criterion have been populated. Cells may be populated one "row" or one "column" at a time, parallel or perpendicular to the edge. Once a "row" or "column" is populated, processing moves to the next "row" or "column." This method often simplifies processing because the index populated into the map table cell can simply be incremented when processing moves to the next "row" or "column."

[0023] At 108, an edge processing zone is defined on the base image using pixels from the raster pixelation. The edge processing zone can be defined by specifying a location on the edge of the base image along with a width of the edge processing zone. Multiple edge processing zones can be defined on the base image. The edge processing zone can have the same content as the edge profile criteria, including an edge identifier, a start location, an end location, and a depth.

[0024] An edge treatment zone is a separate object from an edge profile criterion. As described above, an edge treatment zone can have the same content as an edge profile criterion or different content. While an edge profile criterion defines a location where edge treatment can be specified, an edge treatment zone defines a location where edge treatment is defined. Thus, an edge treatment zone can be within the area defined by the edge profile criterion or can be an area coextensive with the area defined by the edge profile criterion. An edge treatment zone cannot define an area larger than the edge profile criterion. Note that one edge profile criterion can define two or more edge treatment zones. Furthermore, if an edge profile criterion is not used, an edge treatment zone can be defined anywhere in the base image, provided that a portion of the edge treatment zone coincides with the edge of the base image.

[0025] Edge processing zones can be defined using a graphical interface. FIG. 2 is an example screen shot. It shows a base image 202 with multiple identified edge processing zones 204. The edge processing zones 204 are specified by identifying boundary locations 206, a start location 206A, and an end location 206B on the edge of the base image 202 (using coordinates defined by pixel rasterization) that bound the edge processing zone, and by specifying a width 208 of the edge processing zone. Each edge processing zone can have the same width or different widths. In FIG. 2, multiple edge processing zones 204 of different widths are shown. The base image 202 in FIG. 2 has a quasi-rectangular shape with rounded corners, but any shape can be used. To assist the user in defining the edge processing zones, edge profile criteria can be displayed, as indicated at 210, to indicate the limit beyond which the edge processing cannot be extended. Here, one edge processing zone 204 is defined for each side of the base image 202, but multiple edge processing zones 204 of different widths can be defined on each side of the base image 202, if desired. An edge processing zone 204 can be mathematically represented as a set of values ​​representing the coordinates of the boundary of the edge processing zone 204 and a value representing the width of the edge processing zone 204. Each edge processing zone 204 can be electronically represented as an array of values.

[0026] A width is specified for each edge treatment zone. The width specifies the distance from the edge of the base layer that the edge treatment is applied. The width is typically a single numeric value for each edge treatment zone and must be smaller than the width of the edge profile fiducial. For example, a width of 150 μm specifies that for each edge treatment zone, the applied edge treatment extends 150 μm into the base layer in a direction perpendicular to the edge. This width, along with the boundary lines described above, determines the edge treatment zone within which the pixels defined by the raster pixelization fall. As noted above, the 150 μm width (specified in any convenient numeric format) can be the same as or smaller than the width of the edge profile fiducial for which the edge treatment zone is defined. For example, a 150 μm wide edge treatment zone can be defined on a 200 μm wide edge profile fiducial.

[0027] The edge treatment zones and edge profile criteria can be defined using a graphical masking process. The graphical user interface 200 shows a prescribed shape 212 that the user can create using any suitable function of the graphical user interface 200 (e.g., a standard drawing function for creating any type of shape). The user can generate the prescribed shape 212 to overlap any portion of the edge profile criteria. The overlapping zone can be set as the edge treatment zone. The user-drawn mask function is activated by a button or menu selection. For example, a button 214 can be provided for activating the user-drawn mask function. The mask can also be created by the user using a separate computer program and provided as a digital file that can be applied to a base image to define the edge treatment zone.

[0028] The edge profile criteria can also be defined using a user-drawn or provided mask. The graphical user interface 200 shows a second defined shape 216 (when a second defined shape is used, defined shape 212 is the first defined shape), which can be created by the user as described above. If the second defined shape 216 overlaps any portion of the base image 202, the edge profile criteria is set. As with the edge processing zone, the user-drawn mask function can be activated by a button, such as button 214, or a menu selection. In this case, the mask process is used to define the edge profile criteria, and when the user accepts the edge profile criteria defined by the mask, this acceptance can trigger an index entry into the corresponding pixel in the map table.

[0029] The mask may take any suitable shape: in the graphical user interface 200, the prescribed shape is a rectangle, but the user may use any shape drawing function to obtain any suitable prescribed shape, such as a polygon, a regularly or irregularly enclosed curved area, a regularly or irregularly stylized cloud shape, etc.

[0030] Note that both the edge profile fiducial and the edge treatment zone have the property that no portion of the edge of the base image is larger in a direction parallel to the edge of the base image than the portion of the edge of the base image encompassed by the edge treatment zone of the edge profile fiducial. Thus, the edge treatment zone or edge profile fiducial has its widest dimension at the edge of the base image encompassed by the edge treatment zone or edge profile fiducial, and no other portion has a dimension larger than the encompassed edge dimension in a direction parallel to the encompassed edge. Thus, the edge treatment zone or edge profile fiducial may have a dimension smaller in a direction parallel to the edge in which it is included than the edge dimension. If the defined shape defined or drawn by the user has a dimensional characteristic that is narrower at the edge in which it is included in a direction parallel to the edge than the internal dimension of the defined shape, the graphical user interface 200 can display a shape definition suggestion for the edge treatment zone or edge profile fiducial or a message to the user.

[0031] At 110, an edge treatment profile is defined. The edge treatment profile is a specification of the shape of the edge in one dimension perpendicular to the edge of the film. An edge treatment profile can be applied to one or more edge treatment zones, and different edge treatment profiles can be applied to different edge treatment zones of the base image. The edge treatment profile applied to an edge treatment zone is applied at each edge position of the edge treatment zone between the start and end positions of the edge treatment zone. In this manner, only one edge profile can be applied to an edge treatment zone. If more than one edge profile is required, a separate edge treatment zone is defined, one for each edge profile to be applied. As described above, all such edge treatment zones can be defined on a single edge profile reference. Of course, alternatively, multiple edge profile references can be defined on a single base image, with different edge treatment zones and corresponding edge profiles defined on different edge profile references. When applying an edge treatment profile, a pixel corresponding to the edge treatment zone is identified, and the edge treatment profile is used to fill the cell corresponding to the pixel.

[0032] The edge treatment profile can be specified in any convenient manner. The edge treatment profile essentially specifies the change in film thickness near the edge of the film to be formed corresponding to the base image. For example, the edge treatment profile can reflect a linear taper of the film thickness at the edge. Such edge treatment can be specified by a start position, a width or end position, and a taper specification. The taper specification can be a start and end thickness, a start thickness and slope, or an end thickness and slope. The thickness can be specified in distance units (i.e., microns) 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 can specify a linear taper of the film thickness covering the edge region of the film, such that the film thickness is 100% of the nominal thickness at 50 μm from the film edge and 50% of the nominal thickness at 10 μm from the film edge. Such a taper specification would have a shape identifier meaning a straight taper, a start position of 10 μm, a start thickness of 50% (or 10 μm), an end position of 40 μm, and an end thickness of 100% (or 20 μm). Other methods of specifying an edge treatment profile can also be used. For example, a curved shape can be specified using a start position, an end position, and a radius of curvature (with positive or negative values ​​indicating convex or concave curvature). Piecewise linear edge treatment profiles can also be specified as multiple tapers with different slopes and / or thicknesses.

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

[0034] The graphical user interface 200 may also have data display and editing capabilities. For example, the graphical user interface 200 may display one or more tables 226 of data using selection means such as buttons or menu options. The data may be any data related to the layer design displayed in the graphical user interface 200, such as dimensions, table contents, coordinates, thicknesses, etc.

[0035] To identify the values ​​to be entered for a pixel, an edge profile table corresponding to the edge treatment profile is defined at 112. As described above, the edge profile table is a one-dimensional table containing image values ​​that represent the edge profile shape (representing thickness) to be applied to the base layer. The edge profile table is a map-through table that converts index values ​​to image values. Cells in the edge profile table are populated with image values ​​that represent the layer thickness corresponding to the edge treatment profile defined at 110. For example, if the edge treatment profile specifies a thickness taper, the cells in the edge profile table are filled with image values ​​that correspond to the thickness of that taper.

[0036] The indexes of the one-dimensional edge profile table are used as described above to define the edge treatment zone. The first N values ​​in the edge profile table are pass-through values ​​that convert the index to itself, and image values ​​that are not changed are passed through the edge profile table transformation. As an example, if grayscale image values ​​are used, the first 256 values ​​in the edge profile table contain grayscale image values ​​(0-255). In one example, the 257th value in the edge profile table can be used to return the thickness of the base layer. As another example, if the image scale has 1000 values ​​corresponding to thicknesses divided between the minimum and maximum values, the first 1000 values ​​in the edge profile table (indexes 0-999) are pass-through values ​​(0-999), and edge treatment values ​​(e.g., values ​​between 0 and 999) are placed at index values ​​above 1000 in the edge profile table. If unused cells in the edge profile table are larger than the cells used to specify edge treatment, those cells can be populated with a "maximum" film thickness value, e.g., "999" in the image scale described above, to reflect that the initial film thickness is unchanged at those pixels. If an image scale is used, any suitable image scale may be used that provides the necessary resolution to specify the various thicknesses to be formed.

[0037] Referring again to Figure 1, the image value entries in the edge profile table are determined from the edge treatment profile defined in 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 film edge to 50% thickness at 10 μm is specified with a pixel size of 10 μm, five image values ​​are required to specify the taper: an image value corresponding to a thickness of 0 μm to 10 μm from the film edge, and image values ​​of 10 μm to 20 μm, 20 μm to 30 μm, 30 μm to 40 μm, and 40 μm to 50 μm. If the image value for 100% thickness is 999 and the image value for 50% thickness is 499 (basically thickness percent × 10-1), the image values ​​at each position are as follows: 0μm~10μm 499 10μm~20μm 599 20μm~30μm 699 30μm~40μm 799 40μm~50μm 899 Above 50 μm the image value is 100% (i.e. 999). These image values ​​are entered into the edge profile table at the index defined as follows:

[0038] The user-defined dimensions of the edge treatment zone determine the number of edge profile table indices used to represent the edge treatment profile. In one example, the width of the edge treatment zone is compared to the width of the edge profile reference. Roughly speaking, if the width of the edge treatment zone is 40% of the width of the edge profile reference, then depending on the edge treatment profile specification, 40% of the edge profile table entries available for specifying the edge treatment may be populated with modified image values. Thus, in the example above where the edge profile table has 1,000 entries that can be used to specify an edge treatment, if the user-defined width of the edge treatment zone is 100 μm (and the width of the edge profile reference is 10 μm to 10,000 μm), then 1% of the edge profile table cells, i.e., 10 cells, may be used to specify the edge treatment. If the edge treatment profile does not utilize the entire defined width of the edge treatment zone, the number may be even smaller, as shown above where only five image values ​​are required to specify the edge treatment. Thus, in that case, the edge profile table would have N cells with pass-through image values, optionally one cell (at index N+1) with an image value for the base layer thickness, and five cells with image values ​​representing the edge treatment of the base layer. The remaining cells in the edge profile table would be set to "maximum values." Thus, in the above example, the first 1000 entries in the edge profile table would be populated with values ​​from 0 to 999, the next entry with a value of 1000 (representing "base layer thickness"), and the next five entries with values ​​of 499, 599, 699, 799, and 899. Thereafter, the remaining cells in the edge profile table could be populated with a value of 999. A table configured in this way could be used as a lookup table to determine image values ​​for applying edge treatment to the base layer in the corresponding edge treatment zone.

[0039] As described above, the map table is initialized with an index used to look up image values ​​in the edge profile table in the area covered by the edge profile reference. The edge profile table is populated with image values ​​representing the edge profile selected in the above operation. At 114, the cell in the map table corresponding to the edge treatment zone is read to obtain an index for lookup in the edge profile table. The image value is retrieved from the edge profile table using the obtained index. At 116, the image value retrieved from the lookup operation using the edge profile table is entered into the image table. The image table has the same dimensions as the edge treatment zone or edge profile reference and corresponds to the area selected or defined by the user to apply edge treatment. Once step 116 has been performed for all locations within the edge treatment zone, the image table contains image values ​​of film thickness within the edge treatment zone.

[0040] The use of separate image tables enables other useful processing. For example, if multiple edge treatments are planned for a layer, each edge treatment can be performed separately in its own image table, and then the individual image tables can be combined into an overall image table for the final layer specification. In such a case, each edge treatment zone acts as a mask to obtain the base layer pixels that fall within the respective edge treatment zone. By combining the edge treatment zones and using them as an inverse mask, the base layer pixels that do not fall within any edge treatment zone can be similarly obtained. A similar lookup table process can be used to adjust image values ​​representing areas of the base layer that do not fall within an edge treatment zone to correct errors. Once multiple image tables have been generated in this manner, the image table values ​​can be converted from 8-bit values ​​to floating-point values, combined by simple addition, and then converted back to 8-bit values ​​to obtain a composite image table representing the final edge correction layer. The final 8-bit image can be processed as print data to operate a printer that deposits printing material to form layers using known methods.

[0041] The methods and means described herein are implemented using a digital processing system having a processor, memory, display, and input. 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 memory for user retrieval and manipulation using a keyboard, touch screen, drawing device, or other input or combination of inputs. The data, shapes, and interactive objects described herein may also be displayed on a screen for user manipulation. The digital processing system may also communicate with other systems, such as enterprise or manufacturing systems that control and operate film-forming devices such as inkjet printers. The digital processing system may be used to display all of the graphical interface elements described above, accept user input as defined shapes and / or files using any of the digital processing system's inputs, and store data related to user-defined layer designs and edge treatments in the digital processing system's memory. In particular, the image tables described above may be stored in digital memory and used to create printer control data for forming layers designed using the methods and graphical user interface described herein.

[0042] While the foregoing description is directed to one or more embodiments of the invention, other embodiments of the invention not specifically described in this disclosure may be devised without departing from the basic scope thereof as defined by the claims that follow. The embodiments described herein are illustrative of the invention. Other examples embodying the same invention may be envisioned from the description herein.

Claims

1. 1. A method for defining an edge treatment of a layer of material to be formed on a substrate by inkjet printing, comprising: acquiring a base image; defining a raster pixelation of the base image; entering an index of the edge profile table into a map table; defining an edge processing zone 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 profile table with image values ​​representing the edge treatment profile; obtaining the index from the map table cell corresponding to the edge treatment zone; retrieving an image value from the edge profile table for each index obtained from the map table; storing said image values ​​in an image file; A method comprising:

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the edge profile table is a one-dimensional table.

3. The method of claim 1 , wherein the edge profile table is also populated with pass-through values.

4. the edge processing zone is a first edge processing zone, the index is a first set of indexes, the image file is a first image file, and the method includes: defining a second edge treatment zone using the raster pixelation; obtaining a second set of indices from cells of the map table corresponding to the second edge treatment zone; retrieving an image value from the edge profile table for each index of the second set of indexes; storing the retrieved image values ​​for each index of the second set of indexes in a second image file; The method of claim 1 further comprising:

5. defining a third image file from the map table using the first edge processing zone and the second edge processing zone as a mask; combining the first image file, the second image file, and the third image file to form a composite image file for the layer; storing the composite image file; The method of claim 4 further comprising:

6. The method of claim 1 , further comprising defining an edge profile criterion, wherein entering an index of an edge profile table into the map table is performed using the edge profile criterion.

7. The method of claim 1 , wherein the image values ​​are scale values.

8. The method of claim 1 , wherein defining the edge treatment zone comprises accepting user input of an edge treatment zone created using a drawing function of a graphical user interface.

9. The method of claim 1 , further comprising converting the image file into print data for an inkjet printer.

10. 1. A method for defining an edge treatment of a layer of material 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 processing zone defined using raster pixelation from an input of the digital processing system; accepting a 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; Using the digital processing system, defining the raster pixelation of the base image; entering an index of the edge profile table into a map table; populating the edge profile table with image values ​​representing the edge treatment profile; obtaining the index from the map table cell corresponding to the edge treatment zone; retrieving an image value from the edge profile table for each index obtained from the map table; storing said image values ​​in an image file; A method comprising:

11. The method of claim 10 , further comprising displaying a graphical representation of the edge treatment profile on the display of the digital processing system.

12. The method of claim 10 , further comprising displaying a graphical representation of the edge treatment zone on the display of the digital processing system.

13. The method of claim 10 , wherein the user input of the edge treatment zone is a prescribed shape created by the user.

14. The method of claim 10 , wherein the user input for the edge treatment zone is a digital file generated by the user.

15. The method of claim 10 , further comprising displaying data from the base image, the map table, and the edge profile table in response to a user selection.

16. 1. A method for defining an edge treatment of a layer of material to be formed on a substrate by inkjet printing, comprising: acquiring a base image; defining a raster pixelation of the base image; entering an index of the edge profile table into a map table; accepting digital user input defining an edge treatment zone based on said raster pixelization; accepting digital 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 profile table with image values ​​representing the edge treatment profile; obtaining the index from the map table cell corresponding to the edge treatment zone; retrieving an image value from the edge profile table for each index obtained from the map table; storing the image values ​​in an image table; outputting the image table to an image file; A method comprising:

17. the edge processing zone is a first edge processing zone, the index is a first set of indexes, the image values ​​are first image values, the image table is a first image table, and the image file is a first image file; accepting digital user input defining a second edge treatment zone based on the raster pixelation; obtaining a second set of indices from cells of the map table corresponding to the second edge treatment zone; retrieving a second image value from the edge profile table for each index of the second set of indexes; entering the second image values ​​into the second image table; outputting the combination of the first image table and the second image table to the image file; 17. The method of claim 16, further comprising:

18. defining a third image table from the map table using the first edge processing zone and the second edge processing zone as a mask; combining the first image table, the second image table, and the third image table to form a composite image table for the layer; outputting the composite image table to the image file; 18. The method of claim 17, comprising:

19. The method of claim 17 , wherein the edge profile table is a one-dimensional table that also includes pass-through values.

20. The method of claim 17 , wherein the image values ​​are scale values.

21. 18. The method of claim 17, further comprising converting the image file into print data for an inkjet printer.

Images