Back to results
US 5,871,805 AGranted
Computer controlled vapor deposition processes
OwnerJerome Lemelsoninventor
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A method for computerized control of vapor deposition processes, including chemical vapor deposition and electron beam physical vapor deposition processes, uses optical imaging sensors and/or laser interferometers or infrared ellipsometers focused on the substrate being coated or on a nearby test blank to provide information which is computer analyzed to yield optimum control points for the coating process. A method is also disclosed for shaping or contouring one or more surfaces of an object(s) using the techniques disclosed here.
Claims40
A method for controlling a vapor deposition process comprising:
- a. providing a substrate to be coated;
- b. exposing said substrate to a gas atmosphere;
- c. depositing a coating from said gas atmosphere onto said substrate in an ongoing coating process;
- d. providing at least one imaging sensor operatively situated to provide an image of said substrate;
- e. scanning said substrate during said coating process, and using said imaging sensor to produce images of said coating;
- f. providing a programmable computer having a memory;
- g. processing said image signals using said computer and comparing the image signals to those of a predetermined computer model of said coating process resident within the memory of said computer, to thereby generate one or more objective functions related to the quality of said coating;
- h. numerically applying to said one or more objective functions a feedback optimization algorithm to yield control points for said coating process;
- i. modifying at least one of said control points based on the results obtained from said optimization algorithm;
- j. providing a laser interferometer or an infrared ellipsometer to measure thickness of said coating, in addition to said imaging sensor;
- and
- k. switching to thickness measurements from said laser interferometer or said infrared ellipsometer as an input to said computer model when said coating thickness approaches a predetermined, desired value.
9 more elements
A method for controlling a vapor deposition process comprising:
- a. providing a substrate to be coated;
- b. exposing said substrate to a gas atmosphere;
- c. depositing a coating from said gas atmosphere onto said substrate during an ongoing coating process;
- d. providing a test blank exposed to said gas atmosphere under substantially the same conditions as said substrate, thereby depositing said coating on said test blank;
- e. providing at least one imaging sensor operatively situated to provide image signals of said test blank;
- f. scanning said test blank using said imaging sensor to produce image signals of said coating during the coating process;
- g. providing a programmable computer having a memory;
- h. processing said image signals using said computer and comparing the image signals to those of a predetermined computer model of said coating process resident within said computer memory to generate one or more objective functions related to the quality of said coating;
- i. numerically applying to said one or more objective functions a feedback optimization algorithm to yield control points for said coating process, said optimization algorithm being designed to maximize the quality of said coating;
- j. modifying at least one of said control points based on the results obtained from said optimization algorithm;
- k. providing a laser interferometer or an infrared ellipsometer to measure thickness of said coating, in addition to said imaging sensor;
- and
- l. switching to thickness measurements from said laser interferometer or said infrared ellipsometer as an input to said computer model when said coating thickness approaches a predetermined, desired value.
10 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.