Methods and apparatus for reducing irregularities in color filters

• US 7,923,057 B2
• Filed: 02/06/2007
• Issued: 04/12/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 02/07/2006
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Applied Materials Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Applied Materials Incorporated
• Inventors: Kurita, Shinichi, Shamoun, Bassam
• Primary Examiner(s): Meeks; Timothy H
• Assistant Examiner(s): Lin; James
• Application Number:
  US11/671,781
• Publication Number:
  US 20070182775A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,526 Days
• Field of Search: 427/58, 427/66, 427/427.3
• US Class Current: 427/58
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 5/201 in the form of arrays
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 5/223 containing organic substances, e.g. dyes, inks or pigments
• CPC Class Codes: G02F 1/133516 Methods for their manufacture, e.g. printing, electro-deposition or photolithography

Abstract

Methods, apparatus and systems are disclosed for printing color filters for flat panel displays and avoiding mura effects by depositing a plurality of ink drops on a substrate within a column of pixel wells and intentionally varying the size and/or the relative lateral position of the ink drops deposited in the pixel wells. Numerous other aspects are disclosed.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

depositing a plurality of ink drops on a substrate within a column of pixel wells; and

intentionally varying a size of the ink drops ejected from a given nozzle and deposited in the pixel wells,

wherein the size of the ink drops is varied randomly to prevent an occurrence of a mura irregularity.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein the size of the ink drops is varied based on a function of a position of the substrate.

3. The method of claim 1 wherein the size of the ink drops is varied based on a function of time.

4. The method of claim 1 further including intentionally varying a relative lateral position of the ink drops deposited in the pixel wells.

5. The method of claim 4 wherein intentionally varying a relative lateral position of the ink drops includes varying a lateral position of a print head during printing.

6. The method of claim 1 wherein the size of the ink drops is varied between each ink drop.

7. The method of claim 1 wherein the size of the ink drops is varied between groups of ink drops.

8. The method of claim 1 wherein the size of the ink drops is varied between pixel wells.

9. A method comprising:

depositing a plurality of ink drops on a substrate within a column of pixel wells; and

intentionally varying a relative lateral position of the ink drops deposited in the pixel wells,

wherein the relative lateral position of the ink drops is varied randomly to prevent an occurrence of a mura irregularity.

10. The method of claim 9 wherein the relative lateral position of the ink drops is varied based on a function of a position of the substrate.

11. The method of claim 9 wherein the relative lateral position of the ink drops is varied based on a function of time.

12. The method of claim 9 further including intentionally varying a size of the ink drops deposited in the pixel wells.

13. The method of claim 12 wherein intentionally varying a size of the ink drops includes varying a volume of ink jetted by a print head during printing.

14. The method of claim 9 wherein the relative lateral position of the ink drops is varied between each ink drop.

15. The method of claim 9 wherein the relative lateral position of the ink drops is varied between groups of ink drops.

16. The method of claim 9 wherein the relative lateral position of the ink drops is varied between pixel wells.

17. A method comprising:

depositing a plurality of ink drops on a substrate within a column of pixel wells; and

intentionally varying a size of the ink drops ejected from a given nozzle and deposited in the pixel wells,

wherein a nominal tolerance of the size of the ink drops is increased to prevent an occurrence of a mura irregularity.

18. The method of claim 17 wherein the size of the ink drops is varied based on a function of a position of the substrate.

19. The method of claim 17 wherein the size of the ink drops is varied based on a function of time.

20. The method of claim 17 further including intentionally varying a relative lateral position of the ink drops deposited in the pixel wells.

21. The method of claim 20 wherein intentionally varying a relative lateral position of the ink drops includes varying a lateral position of a print head during printing.

22. The method of claim 17 wherein the size of the ink drops is varied between each ink drop.

23. The method of claim 17 wherein the size of the ink drops is varied between groups of ink drops.

24. The method of claim 17 wherein the size of the ink drops is varied between pixel wells.

25. A method comprising:

depositing a plurality of ink drops on a substrate within a column of pixel wells; and

intentionally varying a relative lateral position of the ink drops deposited in the pixel wells,

wherein a nominal tolerance of the relative lateral position of the ink drops is increased to prevent an occurrence of a mura irregularity.

26. The method of claim 25 wherein the relative lateral position of the ink drops is varied based on a function of a position of the substrate.

27. The method of claim 25 wherein the relative lateral position of the ink drops is varied based on a function of time.

28. The method of claim 25 further including intentionally varying a size of the ink drops deposited in the pixel wells.

29. The method of claim 28 wherein intentionally varying a size of the ink drops includes varying a volume of ink jetted by a print head during printing.

30. The method of claim 25 wherein the relative lateral position of the ink drops is varied between each ink drop.

31. The method of claim 25 wherein the relative lateral position of the ink drops is varied between groups of ink drops.

32. The method of claim 25 wherein the relative lateral position of the ink drops is varied between pixel wells.