Optical product cure oven
First Claim
1. A method for curing adhesive used in the joining together of one or more optical sub-components of an optical component, the method comprising the acts of:
- pressurizing a gas inside an oven chamber within which the optical sub-components are disposed;
adjusting the temperature within the oven chamber to a target curing temperature;
monitoring the gas pressure in the oven chamber;
if the gas pressure inside the oven chamber is too low at the target temperature compared to an ideal gas pressure, increasing the gas pressure inside the oven chamber until the gas pressure in the oven chamber is substantially equal to the ideal gas pressure; and
if the gas pressure inside the oven chamber is too high at the target temperature compared to the ideal gas pressure, reducing the gas pressure inside the oven chamber until the gas pressure in the oven chamber is substantially equal to the ideal gas pressure.
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Accused Products
Abstract
A cure oven comprises a sealable door and one or more pressure valves mounted inside for curing optical subcomponents that have been assembled using an adhesive. The cure oven comprises a chamber that can be configured to receive several hundreds of assembled optical subcomponents. The cure oven is further coupled to a computerized system via a drive motor. The computerized system initiates the heating and cooling sequences, and indicates whether the door can be opened, or must remain shut. The cure oven maintains a certain pressure inside the oven chamber consistent with a rise in temperature, allowing assembled optical subcomponents to be cured at a much higher rate than possible without disassembling, or being damaged.
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Citations
18 Claims
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1. A method for curing adhesive used in the joining together of one or more optical sub-components of an optical component, the method comprising the acts of:
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pressurizing a gas inside an oven chamber within which the optical sub-components are disposed; adjusting the temperature within the oven chamber to a target curing temperature; monitoring the gas pressure in the oven chamber; if the gas pressure inside the oven chamber is too low at the target temperature compared to an ideal gas pressure, increasing the gas pressure inside the oven chamber until the gas pressure in the oven chamber is substantially equal to the ideal gas pressure; and if the gas pressure inside the oven chamber is too high at the target temperature compared to the ideal gas pressure, reducing the gas pressure inside the oven chamber until the gas pressure in the oven chamber is substantially equal to the ideal gas pressure. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8)
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9. A method for manufacturing an optical component, the method comprising the acts of
assembling, for each optical component, one or more optical sub-components together with an adhesive into an assembled optical component; -
positioning the one or more assembled optical components in an oven chamber; identifying an initial temperature and an initial pressure inside the oven chamber; changing the temperature in the oven chamber to a subsequent temperature within a predetermined time period; identifying an ideal pressure based at least in part on the initial pressure, the initial temperature, and the sub sequent temperature; comparing a subsequent pressure inside the oven chamber with the ideal pressure; and adjusting the pressure inside the oven chamber if the subsequent pressure is different from the ideal pressure. - View Dependent Claims (10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18)
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Specification