FOM AlphaSC Handbuch

FOM alphaSC

OPERATION & MAINTENANCE MANUAL

Revised January 2023

FOM TECHNOLOGIES A/S

Enabling Functional Materials R&D

info@fomtechnologies.com

Artillerivej 86, 1.

Copenhagen 2300, Denmark

(+45) 88 70 89 00

Contents

1. Introduction ..............................................................................................................1

1.1. Equipment specifications ...................................................................................1

1.2. Safety: disclaimers & equipment hazards ..........................................................2

2. Description of equipment .........................................................................................6

2.1. Relevant standards..........................................................................................12

2.1.1. Machine standards ....................................................................................12

2.1.2. Electrical panel standards..........................................................................12

2.2. System requirements.......................................................................................13

2.2.1. Wiring information......................................................................................16

2.2.2. Compressed air .........................................................................................16

3. Setup instructions...................................................................................................17

3.1. Safe startup......................................................................................................17

3.2. Installation........................................................................................................18

3.3. WiFi or ethernet connection from the tool ........................................................21

3.4. Connecting a FOM machine to the internet......................................................23

3.4.1. Introduction to IXON Router ......................................................................23

3.4.2. Get connected to the internet ....................................................................24

4. Control interface.....................................................................................................27

4.1. Home screen & Quick Access Ribbon .............................................................27

4.2. Coating screen.................................................................................................30

4.3. Bridge & sequence screen...............................................................................35

4.4. Protocol screen................................................................................................39

4.5. Import/save protocol screen.............................................................................44

FOM TECHNOLOGIES A/S

Enabling Functional Materials R&D

info@fomtechnologies.com

Artillerivej 86, 1.

Copenhagen 2300, Denmark

(+45) 88 70 89 00

4.6. Settings screen ................................................................................................47

4.7. Motion settings screen.....................................................................................50

4.8. Heating settings screen....................................................................................52

4.9. Miscellaneous settings screen .........................................................................54

4.10. Alarms screen...............................................................................................55

5. Slot-die, syringe, substrate mounting.....................................................................57

5.1. Slot-die assembly, syringe & tubing connection...............................................57

5.2. Slot-die mounting.............................................................................................59

5.2.1. Slot-die across web parallelism adjustment...............................................62

5.2.2. Chuck down-web parallelism adjustment...................................................64

5.3. Mounting syringe into pump.............................................................................67

5.3.1. Reversing syringe mounting orientation ....................................................69

5.4. Substrate mounting..........................................................................................71

6. Getting started with coating....................................................................................72

7. Service & maintenance ..........................................................................................75

7.1. Standard maintenance.....................................................................................75

8. Appendices ............................................................................................................77

8.1. Appendix 1: Software background calculations for film thickness, pump rate and

coating width..............................................................................................................77

FOM TECHNOLOGIES A/S

Enabling Functional Materials R&D

info@fomtechnologies.com

Artillerivej 86, 1.

Copenhagen 2300, Denmark

(+45) 88 70 89 00

1. Introduction

This document is the operation and maintenance manual for the FOM Technologies

alphaSC. The FOM alphaSC is a benchtop slot-die coating tool designed for use with rigid

and flexible substrates. The tool is designed to deposit thin films composed of a wide

variety of solution-processed precursor materials onto an additionally wide variety of

coating substrates. It represents a miniaturized demonstration of industrial-scale roll-to-

roll and sheet-to-sheet manufacturing technologies. By providing simple, precise control

over coating speed, thickness, and substrate heating, the FOM alphaSC offers a user-

friendly coating experience that is ideally suited for a lab-scale materials research

environment and upscaling to pilot scale coating processes.

1.1. Equipment specifications

Several key specifications of the FOM alphaSC are outlined below (Table 1):

Table 1: Key equipment specifications of the FOM alphaSC.

Specification

Value

Coating width

≤ 500 mm

Substrate compatibility

Rigid and flexible

Substrate throughput

0.01 up to 5.0 m/min

Syringe pump

Integrated

Substrate heating

≤ 200 °C

Slot-die heating

≤ 80 °C (optional)

Slot-die height precision

1 μm

Protocol control

Yes

Dimensions (D x W x H)

680 x 1190 x 690 mm3

Weight

250 kg

Intended lifetime of equipment and safety components

20 years

Site workspace requirement

Suitable extraction

FOM TECHNOLOGIES A/S

Enabling Functional Materials R&D

info@fomtechnologies.com

Artillerivej 86, 1.

Copenhagen 2300, Denmark

(+45) 88 70 89 00

The FOM alphaSC has been designed and dimensioned for convenient glovebox

compatibility. The stated temperature rating and coating speed are ideally suited to

achieve stable coating of a wide range of materials with thicknesses on the order of less

than one to several tens of microns.

1.2. Safety: disclaimers & equipment hazards

IMPORTANT

To ensure successful operation of the FOM alphaSC and the safety of all lab users,

operators, trainees and maintenance personnel should read and understand this manual

before beginning with any coating experiments or tool maintenance. Operators must be

of sound mind and body before operating this equipment. Operators under the age of 18

should not attempt to operate this equipment. The general public should not be permitted

to use this equipment.

It is recommended that new users should be trained in the use of this equipment by

experienced operators, any deviation from the instructions provided in this manual may

lead to personal and material damage for which FOM Technologies A/S cannot be held

responsible.

The FOM alphaSC is equipped with an emergency stop button, which immediately halts

all ongoing operations in case of an emergency. Thisbutton must be tested once per year

to guarantee its function.

Further information on the risks and hazards associated with the operation of the FOM

alphaSC is provided below.

FOM TECHNOLOGIES A/S

Enabling Functional Materials R&D

info@fomtechnologies.com

Artillerivej 86, 1.

Copenhagen 2300, Denmark

(+45) 88 70 89 00

Table 2 Risks and hazards associated with the use of the FOM alphaSC.

Risk

Comment

Burn risk

Operators should avoid touching the heating parts when they are hot, as

temperature can reach 200 °C. It should be noted that heated parts will

remain hot for some time even after the equipment has been shut down,

representing a burn risk for operators even when power is not supplied to

the tool. In the case of FOM alphaSC units fitted with an oven module,

operators should additionally avoid touching or opening the oven while it

is heating due to high temperatures and significant IR output. To prevent

the risk of burn, the FOM alphaSC is equipped with a warning LED red

light which will be activated when either the chuck or the slot die head

temperatures are higher than 50 °C. Burn risk areas are depicted in Figure

Crushing/pinching

People can be struck and injured by moving parts of machinery. Parts of

the body can also be drawn in or trapped between, belts drivers and

other components of the tool. Operators should avoid placing their

fingers or any other body parts in the path of any moving part. Damage to

items and persons may occur if they become caught between the slot-die

and chuck, the chuck and the alphaSC housing case, or the shaft and

plates of the syringe pump as they are moving. In the case of FOM

alphaSC units fitted with an oven module, operators should additionally

avoid placing objects or body parts in the path of the oven lid while it is

opening or closing. Crushing/pinching parts are depicted in Figure 2.

Electric shock

Operators should avoid contact with cables and plugs at the rear of the

tool while the main power is being supplied. Operators should avoid

contact with wiring for the chuck energy chain and heated slot-die while

mains power is being supplied. Operators should avoid contact with

electrical cabinet wiring while main power is being supplied. Operators

should take care to only touch the physical power switch on the exterior

of the electrical cabinet when switching on the main power supply for the

tool.

FOM TECHNOLOGIES A/S

Enabling Functional Materials R&D

info@fomtechnologies.com

Artillerivej 86, 1.

Copenhagen 2300, Denmark

(+45) 88 70 89 00

Chemical exposure

Open coating of heated, solution-processed chemical mixtures may lead

to the evaporation of solvents and other hazardous materials. Operators

should ensure that the tool is installed in a suitably ventilated location to

avoid unintended exposure to these chemical hazards. Operators should

be fully aware of the material risks associated with their work.

Misc.

To avoid damage to persons and equipment, repairs, and servicing of the

FOM alphaSC and its accompanying electrical components should only be

carried out by authorized, trained technicians. If on-site servicing is

required, please contact FOM Technologies directly.

Figure 1: Burn risk. Hot surface hazards are present on the FOM alphaSC. (1) Hazard due to heated vacuum

chuck surface, (2) Hazard due to heated slot-die head.

FOM TECHNOLOGIES A/S

Enabling Functional Materials R&D

info@fomtechnologies.com

Artillerivej 86, 1.

Copenhagen 2300, Denmark

(+45) 88 70 89 00

Figure 2: Crushing/pinching. AlphaSC render showing Crushing and pinching hazards. (1) Hazard

between moving syringe pump components, (2) Hazard between moving slot-die and chuck

component, (3) Hazard between moving chuck and end-stop components.

NOTE: the FOM alphaSC can be integrated with syringe heating sleeves and oven drying

modules if required. These are frequently provided as custom modifications depending

on process specifications and are therefore not pictured in the standard model render

above. However, they certainly represent hot surface hazards if present. Operators

should be fully aware of all custom heating solutions on mounted on their FOM alphaSC

unit to avoid burn risks during operation.

FOM TECHNOLOGIES A/S

Enabling Functional Materials R&D

info@fomtechnologies.com

Artillerivej 86, 1.

Copenhagen 2300, Denmark

(+45) 88 70 89 00

2. Description of equipment

The FOM alphaSC is a compact slot-die coating tool with a simple, user-friendly design.

The exterior of the tool consists of several simple components, as seen below (Figure 3):

Figure 3: (a) Labelled render of the alphaSC and its respective components; (1) Coating bridge, (2)

Slot-die positioning gantry, (3) Slot-die, (4) Heated vacuum chuck and (5) Hardware quick buttons and

Emergency stop button. (b) Photograph of an external manual control box where the control box is

position on the outside of an inclosure hood with air extraction.

1. Coating bridge: supports the slot-die positioning gantry over the substrate.

2. Slot-die positioning gantry: holds the slot-die on the tool and controls its position

over the substrate.

3. Slot-die: Slot-die receives coating fluid from the syringe and distributes it evenly

across the desired coating width on the substrate.

FOM TECHNOLOGIES A/S

Enabling Functional Materials R&D

info@fomtechnologies.com

Artillerivej 86, 1.

Copenhagen 2300, Denmark

(+45) 88 70 89 00

4. Heated vacuum chuck: The vacuum chuck fixates the substrate through a

vacuum applied through the porosity of the material. Additionally, the temperature

can be controlled with the aid of heat convection from resistive elements

embedded on the body of the chuck.

5. Hardware quick buttons: provide quick access to common tool functions such as

pumping, chuck motion, vacuum activation, and experiment execution.

Emergency stop buttons: immediately halts all ongoing tool operations when

pressed in case of an emergency. Twist to release the button and return the tool

to a normal functioning state. NOTE that the emergency stop bottom along with

the manual control box can be, in some cases, be positioned externally to facilitate

compatibility with enclosure elements. A photograph of an external manual control

box is shown in Figure 3 (b) where the control box is position on the outside of an

inclosure hood with air extraction.

Many configurations of the FOM alphaSC are equipped with a vertically mounted syringe

pump on the rear of the slot-die bridge (Figure 4), as well as an array of hardware quick

buttons for common functions on the tool base plate, as seen below (Figure 3):

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