Roll-to-roll coating

CeSMA uses the roll-to-roll (R2R) coating process to produce high-precision, high-quality printed sensors in large quantities and various sizes, even spanning several meters. Thanks to this innovative process, functional layers such as lead wires, electrodes, dielectrics, and protective layers can be applied with maximum precision, resulting in high yields and efficient production.

CeSMA offers comprehensive process development services for transferring customer-specific sensor designs from sheet-to-sheet (S2S) to roll-to-roll. We support our partners and customers in the in-house development of printing inks, the determination and adjustment of optimal process parameters, and the selection or adaptation of commercial materials for R2R printing.

Our services:

Transfer of sensor designs and process parameters from S2S to R2R
Development of customer-specific sensor designs for the R2R coating process
Process development and optimization for the production of customer-specific sensor designs
Development and adaptation of customer-specific printing inks
Use and optimization of commercial printing inks

Benefit from our expertise in roll-to-roll coating and increase the efficiency of your sensor production. Contact us for customized solutions to optimize your production processes!

Roll-to-roll coating machine — © Fraunhofer ISC
“Click and Coat” roll-to-roll coating machine situated in cleanroom environment

Roll-to-roll optical sensors automatic alignment — © Fraunhofer ISC
Optical sensors for accurate overcoating by automatic alignment

Roll-to-roll web guiding of paper substrate — © Fraunhofer ISC
Web guiding of a paper substrate with printed structures

Technical details and specifications of the roll-to-roll coating system at a glance

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Technical Details

CeSMA uses the roll-to-roll (R2R) coating process in an innovative “Click&Coat” machine from Coatema to produce high-precision printed sensors with high throughput and excellent quality. This technology has already proven itself in successful projects such as C3PO and SuperSmart. The process includes various thermal drying stations and can use either slot die coating or rotary screen printing to apply materials to the substrate.

Slot die coating enables full-surface coating of the substrate, which is ideal for barrier or protective layers, while rotary screen printing with a customized screen design can print precise structures in the sub-mm range, such as conductor tracks, capacitors, sensor surfaces or sensor arrays. Depending on the material, curing takes place thermally or by UV exposure using LED technology, with the process being adapted to the temperature stability of the substrate.

Functional elements can be printed on both the top and bottom of the substrate.

The ISO Class 8 cleanroom environment guarantees maximum precision in material coating, which is particularly important for sensitive and extremely thin functional layers. The R2R system is particularly suitable for the production of stretchable dielectric elastomers (DE) and flexible piezopolymer sensors based on PVDF copolymers. Both technologies require the precise printing of several functional layers on top of each other with minimal lateral deviation.

On a screen circumference of 64 cm, either individual, recurring patterns in high quantities or, with a customized screen design, very long functional patterns (up to a maximum substrate length of approx. 200 m) can be printed. Prints can be made up to a width of 40 cm and at printing speeds of up to 4 m/min.

The application of double web edge control guarantees highly precise alignment of the substrate during coating and winding/unwinding, and with the aid of an optical registration and alignment system, the subsequent print can be printed with a lateral deviation of less than 200 µm from the previous one. PET or paper are the preferred substrate materials for cost-effective and efficient production processes.

Specification

Specification of R2R printed piezoelectric sensors

	Area	Exemplary value (Project C3PO)	Note
Piezoelectric Sensors: Multilayer composed of	According to customer specifications	Silver ink, intrinsically conductive polymer, piezo polymer, and protective coating	Multiple printing of the functional piezo layer
Lateral Accuracy for multiple printing	< 50 µm	< 200 µm
Sensorsize	1 cm² - 500 cm²	2 cm Durchmesser	any sizes and geometries possible
Substrate	Paper, plastic	PET
Substrate-thickness	50 µm – 500 µm	125 µm
Sensor-thickness	10 µm – 50 µm	20 µm	Layer thickness of functional piezo layer 7.6 µm (multiple printing), protective layer 10 µm
Yield		> 75 %	Tested for short circuit

Roll-to-roll coating

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