LCD Exposure Mask Pattern for Stitch Failure Prevention
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Solution Overview
Problem
The existing exposure methods for liquid crystal display (LCD) manufacturing often result in stitch failures and degraded image quality due to overlapped exposure regions, which increase line resistance and storage capacitance, leading to manufacturing costs and image quality issues.
Innovation Solution
The proposed solution involves an exposure mask pattern that divides sub-pixel or pixel regions into multiple exposure regions and performs a LEGO pattern exposure, minimizing process deviations by sequentially exposing these regions to prevent stitch failures and merge exposure deviations in RGB pixels.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of manufacture
If a partitioned exposure process is performed to reduce manufacturing costs, then manufacturing costs are reduced, but overlapped exposure regions are generated causing stitch failures and degraded image quality
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the exposure process into multiple sequential exposure steps, where each step exposes a specific region of the array substrate. By dividing the large array into smaller regions and exposing them sequentially rather than attempting to expose the entire array at once, the patent achieves both cost reduction (smaller exposure lens required) and precision maintenance (controlled exposure regions without overlap).
Solution Approach 2:
The patent employs preliminary alignment marks and pre-defined exposure regions that are established before the actual exposure process. These preliminary structures guide the sequential exposure process to ensure precise positioning and prevent overlaps, allowing the system to achieve low cost through partitioned exposure while maintaining high precision through pre-planned exposure geometry.
2Manufacturing precision
If a concentrated exposure process is used to expose entire active region at once, then manufacturing precision is maintained, but manufacturing costs increase due to larger exposure lens requirements
Solution Approach 1:
Instead of using a single concentrated exposure process that requires a large expensive exposure lens, the patent segments the exposure into multiple smaller exposure steps. Each step uses a smaller, more affordable exposure lens to expose a specific region, achieving the same manufacturing precision as concentrated exposure but at lower cost through partitioned processing.
3Ease of manufacture
If overlapped exposure regions are generated in partitioned exposure, then manufacturing costs are reduced, but line resistance and storage capacitance increase degrading image quality
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the array substrate into distinct non-overlapping exposure regions, ensuring that each region is exposed exactly once in a controlled sequential manner. This segmentation prevents the formation of overlapped exposure regions that would create unwanted electrical pathways, thereby maintaining stable line resistance and storage capacitance while still enabling cost reduction through partitioned exposure processing.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent applies different exposure strategies to different regions of the array substrate, with each region receiving precisely controlled exposure tailored to its specific location and requirements. This local quality approach ensures that exposure deviations are minimized in each local region, preventing the accumulation of errors that would lead to electrical property degradation, while the overall process remains cost-effective through partitioning.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
This approach effectively reduces process deviations and prevents stitch failures by compensating exposure process errors, maintaining image quality and reducing manufacturing costs by minimizing the size of the exposure lens.
Implementation Method 1
a photoresist layer is coated onto the surface. After coating, the photoresist layer is patterned by an exposure and development process using a mask
Data Source
AI summary
An exposure method for an LCD is provided. In the method, a sub-pixel region of an array substrate is divided into a first exposure region and a second exposure region, and the first exposure region and the second exposure region are sequentially exposed.