# US 2013/0156965 A1 · Coating apparatus and coating film manufacturing method > Agents: this data is available as JSON from the patentgrep API and MCP server — see https://patentgrep.com/llms.txt - Number: US 2013/0156965 A1 - Document ID: US20130156965A1 - Status: Published application - Kind: A1 - Application number: 13/713,783 - Filed: 2012-12-13 - Published: 2013-06-20 - Earliest claimed: 2011-12-16 - Assignees: FUJIFILM Corporation - Inventors: Takeo YAMADA; Kazuya KOJIMA - Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US20130156965A1 ## CPC - B05C 5/0291: {the material being discharged on the work through discrete orifices as discrete droplets, beads or strips that coalesce on the work or are spread on the work so as to form a continuous coating} - B05C 5/0254: {Coating heads with slot-shaped outlet (B05C5/0283 takes precedence)} - B05C 11/1039: {Recovery of excess liquid or other fluent material; Controlling means therefor} - B05D 1/26: performed by applying the liquid or other fluent material from an outlet device in contact with, or almost in contact with, the surface - B05D 1/265: {Extrusion coatings} - B05C: APPARATUS FOR APPLYING FLUENT MATERIALS TO SURFACES, IN GENERAL (spraying apparatus, atomising apparatus, nozzles B05B; plant for applying liquids or other fluent materials to objects by electrostatic spraying B05B5/08) - B05D: PROCESSES FOR APPLYING FLUENT MATERIALS TO SURFACES, IN GENERAL (conveying articles or workpieces through baths of liquid B65G, e.g. B65G49/02) ## Abstract A coating apparatus includes a die coater that supplies a coating liquid to a web. The die coater includes a die main body, a manifold, a slot, a lip face, a mount, a decompression chamber, and a container. The container includes a guide plate guiding the coating liquid or a solvent ejected from the slot of the die coater without bringing the coating liquid or solvent into contact with the mount and the decompression chamber in a non-steady state, in which the coating liquid is not supplied from the die coater to the web. The container collects the coating liquid or the solvent guided by the guide plate. The coating apparatus also includes a liquid discharge tube that is connected to the container and discharges the coating liquid or solvent to an outside of the decompression chamber. ## Claims ### Claim 1 A coating apparatus comprising: a die coater that supplies a coating liquid to a web which is continuously travelling, the die coater including a die main body, a manifold formed in the die main body, a slot formed in the die main body and communicating with the manifold, a lip face formed in the die main body at a tip of the slot; a mount that supports the die coater; a decompression chamber that is disposed upstream of the die coater in a web conveyance direction; a container that includes a guide plate guiding the coating liquid or a solvent ejected from the slot of the die coater without bringing the coating liquid or solvent into contact with the mount and the decompression chamber in a non-steady state, in which the coating liquid is not supplied from the die coater to the web, the container collecting the coating liquid or the solvent guided by the guide plate; and a liquid discharge tube that is connected to the container and discharges the coating liquid or solvent to an outside of the decompression chamber. ### Claim 2 (depends on 1) The coating apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the container including the guide plate is integrally formed. ### Claim 3 (depends on 2) The coating apparatus according to claim 2, wherein when average rigidity is defined as an average value of {(thickness)×(Young's modulus)×(coefficient of thermal expansion)} in a width direction, the average rigidity of the container is 20,000 (N/(m·k)) or less. ### Claim 4 (depends on 2) The coating apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the container is disposed as being spaced apart from the mount and the decompression chamber by a distance of 0.5 mm or more. ### Claim 5 (depends on 2) The coating apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the container is attached to the die main body by a plurality of first attachment units along a width direction of the web, and an average distance between the first attachment units and an lowest end portion of the container is 80 mm or more. ### Claim 6 (depends on 5) The coating apparatus according to claim 5, wherein the container is attached to the die main body through an elastic body. ### Claim 7 (depends on 2) The coating apparatus according to claim 2, wherein a caulking material is provided at an upper end of the container, the caulking material being configured to cover a gap between the container and the die main body. ### Claim 8 (depends on 5) The coating apparatus according to claim 5, wherein the first attachment units that are adjacent to each other are disposed to be spaced from each other at an interval of 30 mm or more. ### Claim 9 (depends on 2) The coating apparatus according to claim 2, wherein a groove or a convex portion is formed on a container attaching surface of the die main body, the groove or the convex portion being configured to guide the coating liquid or solvent ejected from the slot to the container. ### Claim 10 (depends on 1) The coating apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the container including the guide plate is configured by a guide plate member and a container member. ### Claim 11 (depends on 10) The coating apparatus according to claim 10, wherein when average rigidity is defined as an average value of {(thickness)×(Young's modulus)×(coefficient of thermal expansion)} in a width direction, the average rigidity of the container member is 20,000 (N/(m·k)) or less. ### Claim 12 (depends on 10) The coating apparatus according to claim 10, wherein the container member is disposed as being spaced apart from the mount and the decompression chamber by a distance of 0.5 mm or more. ### Claim 13 (depends on 10) The coating apparatus according to claim 10, wherein the guide plate member is attached to the die main body by a plurality of second attachment units along a width direction of the web, the container member is attached to the decompression chamber or the mount by a plurality of third attachment units along a width direction of the web, and an average distance between the third attachment units and the lowest end portion of the container member is 80 mm or more. ### Claim 14 (depends on 13) The coating apparatus according to claim 13, wherein the guide plate member is attached to the die main body through an elastic body. ### Claim 15 (depends on 10) The coating apparatus according to claim 10, wherein a caulking material is provided at an upper end of the container, the caulking material being configured to cover a gap between the guide plate member and the die main body. ### Claim 16 (depends on 13) The coating apparatus according to claim 13, wherein the third attachment units that are adjacent to each other are disposed to be spaced from each other at an interval of 30 mm or more, and the second attachment units that are adjacent to each other are disposed to be spaced from each other at an interval of 30 mm or more. ### Claim 17 (depends on 10) The coating apparatus according to claim 10, wherein the guide plate member and the container member are physically separated from each other or are coupled to each other at one place. ### Claim 18 (depends on 10) The coating apparatus according to claim 10, wherein a groove or a convex portion is formed on a container attaching surface of the die main body, the groove or the convex portion being configured to cover a gap between the guide plate member and the die main body. ### Claim 19 (depends on 10) The coating apparatus according to claim 10, wherein a lowest end of the guide plate member is located at a lower position compared to the third attachment units. ### Claim 20 (depends on 1) The coating apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the decompression chamber includes two sheets of arc-shaped side plates and a back plate that is connected to the two sheets of side plates, and a distance between the side plates and the lip face of the die coater is set to 0.1 mm or more. ### Claim 21 (depends on 1) A method of manufacturing a coated film by supplying a coating liquid to a web which is continuously traveling, the method comprising: preparing the coating apparatus according to claim 1; causing the coating apparatus to stand by at a position at which a clearance between the coating apparatus and the web is larger than a predetermined clearance while the die coater is caused to eject a solvent, the predetermined clearance being a clearance which is kept between the coating apparatus and the web during coating; and forming a coating film by causing the die coater to eject the coating liquid switched from the solvent, moving the coating apparatus to a position at which the predetermined clearance is present between the coating apparatus and the web in a state in which the coating liquid is ejected, forming a bead between the web and the die coater, and supplying the coating liquid to the web. ### Claim 22 (depends on 21) The method of manufacturing a coated film according to claim 21, further comprising: moving the coating apparatus to so that the clearance between the coating apparatus and the web be larger than the predetermined clearance before a joint portion of the web passes a coating position; and moving the coating apparatus so that the clearance between the coating apparatus and the web be the predetermined clearance after the joint portion passes the coating portion.