Liquid Droplet Ejection Inspection via High-Frequency Drive
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing liquid droplet ejection apparatuses face issues with detecting defective ejection ports before the manufacturing process, leading to potential device malfunctions and decreased yield ratios due to clogged nozzles or dirt accumulation, which are not effectively addressed by current inspection methods.
Innovation Solution
A method that involves ejecting liquid droplets at an inspection drive frequency higher than the normal operation frequency, measuring characteristics such as drop landing accuracy, and determining defective ejection ports based on predetermined ranges, allowing for the continuous application of liquid solutions during manufacturing by excluding defective ports.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If liquid droplets are ejected at normal operation frequency, then the manufacturing process proceeds efficiently, but defective ejection ports cannot be detected before production
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies preliminary action by performing inspection at a higher drive frequency before the actual manufacturing process. This allows defective ejection ports to be detected in advance, so that only functional ports are used during production, ensuring both high detection accuracy and manufacturing efficiency without compromise
2Measurement precision
If inspection is performed at higher drive frequency, then defective ejection ports are detected more accurately, but the inspection process takes more time
Solution Approach 1:
The patent uses partial action by ejecting liquid droplets only from ejection ports that are suspected to be defective, rather than inspecting all ports equally. This selective approach maintains high measurement precision for problematic ports while minimizing the overall inspection time
Data Source
AI summary
A method for inspecting a liquid droplet ejection apparatus that ejects a liquid droplet from an ejection port includes (a) ejecting the liquid droplet toward an ejection target at an inspection drive frequency that is higher than an operation drive frequency set during a normal operation; (b) measuring a characteristic of the liquid droplet deposited on a surface of the ejection target; and (c) determining that the ejection port the characteristic of which is outside a predetermined range is defective.