TW200946247A - Method and system for coating an article - Google Patents

Abstract

A method of coating an article including obtaining an image of the article with the image being limited to an area fraction of the article. A coating is applied onto the area fraction.

Description

200946247 VI. Description of the Invention: L·j^jt Mb 发明 Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a method and system for coating articles. t first * Γ Γ good] 1 Background of the invention Cardiovascular disease is indeed a major loss in humans. Heart failure has long been associated with death or prolonged injury. For those who survive a heart attack, it is almost certain to have a thoracotomy to repair the injury. However, the introduction of modern catheter surgery has greatly expanded the treatment options for patients with heart disease. In many heart disease patients, one or more arteries block and restrict blood flow to the heart. In this condition, catheter treatment involves placing the stent within the arterial block artery after expanding the obstruction portion with a blood vessel balloon expansion repair. In many instances, a therapeutic coating is provided on the surface of the stent to deliver one or more drugs to the artery of the stent. Different strategies have been applied to coated stents. In some instances, attempts have been made to coat the entire surface of the stent (which is achieved by soaking or spraying). However, in other examples, it is desirable to coat only one side of the stent, such as the outer surface of the stent or the abluminal edge. The latter method is much more difficult to achieve due to the accuracy 20 and accuracy required to coat only the sides of the stent. Moreover, conventional coating methods are time consuming and inconvenient when applying such stents, which are often complex structures. A further factor that complicates the accurate coating of the stent is a small but recognizable change from the stent to the stent. In addition to stents, many other implantable medical devices have a coating that has been coated with 200946247 to its outer surface. For example, dental implants, orthopedic implants, and ocular implants are only a few types of medical devices that are coated prior to implantation. As with stents, these implantable medical devices also require precise and accurate application of the coating material. 5 For these reasons, surgeons and medical device manufacturers continue to struggle to find accurate and efficient techniques for coating stents and/or other medical devices that can be inserted into the body. SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 3 SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In the following detailed description, reference is made to the accompanying drawings which are shown by way of a particular specific example that can be practiced, which forms part of this. In this regard, directional terminology such as "upper", "bottom", "front", "back", "guide", "drag", etc. are used to refer to the orientation of the graphic to be described. The directional terminology used in the specific embodiments of the present disclosure is to be construed as illustrative and not restrictive. It is understood that other specific examples may be used and structural or logical changes may be made without departing from the disclosure. Therefore, the following detailed description is not to be taken in a limiting sense, and the scope of the present disclosure is defined by the scope of the appended claims. The specific examples of the present disclosure relate to a medical device (such as a stent) Or a method and system for other implantable medical devices. In one embodiment, instead of a conventional one-time application of a medical device, in one embodiment, a medical device array is simultaneously imaged and coated. In particular, Obtaining an image of a portion of each medical device and then ejecting droplets from a printhead to a portion of each individual medical device Applying the partial area to the upper surface of the field 200946247. In addition, one portion of the image (of each medical device) is imaged once, and then the coating of the coating material is limited to be imaged and coated before the other partial area or The partial area is completely coated (partially or completely coated). 5 In one aspect, the coating material is limited to be applied to the proximal edge (ie, the outer surface) of the stent or other implantable medical device. Several non-limiting embodiments of implantable medical devices coated by specific embodiments of the methods and systems include dental implants, eye implants, non-stent drug delivery structures, for monitoring blood pressure, glucose Or 10 other parameters of the sensor, orthopedic implants (eg, screws, artificial joints, etc.), cochlear implants, and electrical leads (eg, cardiac leads). In one specific example, the coating is applied Before the coating material is applied to a partial area of each medical device, the target coating pattern is confirmed for each of the individual portions 15 of the outer surface of the medical device. a target coating pattern that produces a set of target shot points on which droplets will be deposited based on the intersection of the target coating pattern and the nozzle scan path of the printhead. In one embodiment, the target selected for droplet deposition is selected The shooting points are limited to those target shooting points that are separated from each other by a minimum distance. The unselected target shooting point is selected as the effective shooting point of the printing head on the medical device after the late 20th. In a specific example, The implantable medical device comprises a support comprising a net of rods, and the target coating pattern comprises a line pattern of the rods of the support. In one aspect, spraying a droplet onto the target coating pattern produces a 5 200946247 accurately and precisely limits the application of the upper surface of the medical device without the application of material to the non-standard portion of the medical device. In a specific example of the medical device comprising the stent, the droplet is sprayed into and The corresponding coating pattern (ie, the midline pattern) of the centerline of the mast produces an accurate and precise limit of 5 brackets (or other medical devices) The upper surface of the rod is coated without the coating material seeping onto the edge of the mast. After the droplet is ejected at the first alignment position of the printhead, then over the medical device, the printhead is offset so as to fall within the original nozzle scan path (ie, in the first alignment position) Image pixel alignment between nozzle scan path positions). This arrangement increases the accuracy and precision of depositing droplets on the target coating pattern (e.g., the midline pattern) of the components of the medical device. In one embodiment, the method includes determining the centerline pattern with a resolution of an image having a resolution greater than the portion of the region. This arrangement produces an intermediate bit map with a smaller pixel size. If the 15 pixel size of the intermediate bit map is smaller than the interval between the adjacent nozzles (ie, the nozzle interval), a series of bit maps are generated by finding the intersection of the nozzle scan path and the center line pattern. . Different bit maps in the series are generated by offsetting the nozzle scan path by a distance less than the nozzle spacing. In one aspect, if the droplets produced by the droplets of the coating material on the appliance (eg, 20, the droplet size) are greater than the nozzle offset distance, then the nozzle need not be offset to Each possible position on the line pattern is used to obtain a continuous coating. In another aspect, the resolution along the scan path is sufficient to place the drop near the desired centerline. Once the desired amount of coating material has been applied to the first portion of the 200946247 portion of the respective medical device, the medical devices are rotated synchronously to enable imaging and coating of the second portion of the medical device. In one aspect, the second partial region overlaps the first partial region. In one embodiment, the degree of overlap is about 50 percent, although in other embodiments, the degree of overlap 5 can be greater or less than 50 percent. Again, the iterative process is repeated one or more times around the circumference of the medical device until the desired coating material thickness is uniformly achieved in the target coating pattern on the upper surface of each medical device. ® In one aspect, the 10 overlap between the first partial region and the second partial region provides some desired variability in the placement of the droplets, since the portion of the first partial region that overlaps the second partial region becomes The portion of the image obtained by the second portion ^ area. Furthermore, this "overlapping" portion of the first partial region is reimaged as part of the second partial region and, therefore, will provide some 15 stacks between the previously applied shot point and the newly applied shot point. The restriction method is recoated. When overlapping is considered, the overlap of the firing points between the first partial region and the second partial region produces a substantially continuous pattern on the target coating pattern on the surface of the stent or other implantable medical device. Easy to apply. In one embodiment, the substantially continuous coating is applied to the integral proximal or outer surface of the medical device. In other embodiments, the coating of the substantially continuous coating is limited to the portion of the outer surface of the medical device (according to the target coating pattern). In a few non-limiting embodiments, the target portion includes a spiral pattern, one or more islands, or a more complex pattern. In each instance, the individual target portions (e.g., the portion of each interval 7 200946247) are subjected to substantially continuous coating while the non-standard portion of the outer surface of the medical device (between the spaced portions) is not Accept any coating. In addition, the coating is substantially continuous as each location of the coating is applied. However, as illustrated by these examples, the application of this substantially continuous coating does not require the application of the entire outer surface of the medical device. In one embodiment, these methods are capable of producing a large number of medical device coatings at high throughput. In one example, the number of medical devices applied simultaneously by these methods is at least two orders of magnitude (eg, 10-99 or more); and in other examples, the number of levels is at least 10 three-level size (for example, 100-999 or more). In one aspect, this high production capacity can be achieved while maintaining the accuracy of the deposited droplets in the pattern limited to the upper surface of the medical device because it only images and coats a portion of the individual medical device at a time. Regions, and other parameters as described in more detail throughout the disclosure (eg, midline decisions, expanded bitmaps, etc.). 15 While the foregoing description has focused on implantable medical devices, the method (and system) for applying a coating material by partial regions can also be applied to other types of three-dimensional articles that are not medically relevant and/or non-implantable. In addition, the method and system of the present disclosure can provide a large number of medical appliances or other three-dimensional articles with coordinated control of the time between the shots of the coating material and the location 20 to produce a highly accurate, high throughput coating. deal with. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS Figure 1 is a schematic illustration of a method and system for coating a medical device in accordance with one embodiment of the present disclosure. Figure 2 is a block diagram illustrating the applicator 200946247 manager in accordance with one embodiment of the present disclosure. Figure 3A is a schematic illustration of a method of imaging a partial region of the medical device, including an end view of the medical device, in accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure. 5 Figure 3B is a pictorial representation of an image of a top plan view of the medical device of Figure 3A, in accordance with one embodiment of the present disclosure. Figure 4A is a pictorial representation of an image of a pixel map showing a portion of the region in Figure 3B, in accordance with a specific embodiment of the present disclosure.

® Fig. 48 is a schematic illustration of the line pattern of the image pixels of the frame of the medical device in a portion of the medical device according to a third embodiment of the present disclosure. Figure 4C is a schematic illustration of a nozzle array scanning path plotted against a line pattern of image pixels displayed in Figure 4B, in accordance with one embodiment of the present disclosure. 15 Figure 5A is a diagram illustrating a method of selecting a target shot point relative to a minimum gap distance between adjacent possible shot points in accordance with a specific embodiment of the present disclosure. Figure 5B is a diagram illustrating another aspect of the method of selecting a target shot point 20 relative to a minimum gap distance between adjacent possible shot points, in accordance with a specific example of the present disclosure. Figure 6 is a top plan view illustrating the movement of a printhead in a method of coating a medical device array in accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure. Figure 7 is a top plan view illustrating the movement of a printhead in a method of coating a medical device array in accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure. 9 200946247 FIG. 8A is a schematic illustration of a nozzle array scan path drawn relative to a line of image pixels in a portion of a medical device in accordance with a specific embodiment of the present disclosure. Figure 8B is a schematic illustration of the offset position of the scan path of the nozzle array plotted against the midline image element of Figure 8A5, in accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure. Figure 9 is a flow chart of a method of coating a medical device in accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure. Figure 10 is a flow diagram of a method of coating a medical device in accordance with one embodiment of the present disclosure. Figure 11 is a diagram illustrating a method of coating a three-dimensional object in accordance with a specific example of the present disclosure. [Embodiment 3] DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 15 These embodiments and others are described and illustrated in conjunction with Figures 1-10. In accordance with one embodiment of the present disclosure, system 20 for coating array 50 of medical devices 52 is shown in FIG. System 20 includes an applicator 30 that is mounted to coat medical device 52 via array 4 of nozzles 4 of printhead 44. The print head 44 includes a fluid ejection device that requires a spray. In a specific embodiment, the printhead 44 includes a thermal inkjet printhead. In some other specific examples, the printhead 44 comprises any of a piezoelectric printhead, a bubble jet printhead, or other suitable accurate printhead. In one specific example, system 20 is limited to a single printhead 44. In other embodiments, system 20 includes more than one printhead 44. 200946247 In one aspect, the print head 44 includes at least a nozzle 42 that is generally traversing the - dimensional (e.g., length) of the single-print head 44 and arranged in series. However, it is to be understood that in some example towels, the nozzles 42 are arranged to have some degree of staggered arrangement (e.g., micro-staggered arrangement) while still being arranged in series with respect to the length of the print head 44. Each of the nozzles 42 can be individually controlled via the controller 60 of the applicator 40 so that the respective nozzles can be "started" or one set.纵 纟 In a non-limiting configuration, the longitudinal axes of the respective medical devices 52 are generally aligned parallel to each other. In one aspect (as illustrated in Figure i), the haptics 52 are arranged in a juxtaposed pattern below the path of the printhead 44 with its longitudinal axis generally parallel to the longitudinal axis of the nozzle 42 column 41. In another aspect, the applicator 30 includes a locator 62 that is mounted to move the position of the printhead 44 relative to the medical device 52. As indicated by the direction arrows X and y, which are not shown in Fig. 1, the positioner phantom energy is in the first direction (e.g., indicated by the direction arrow χ φ) which is generally perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of each of the 15 medical devices 52. The print head 44 is moved in a second direction (e.g., indicated by the direction arrow y) that is generally parallel to the longitudinal axis of the respective medical device 52. In another aspect, each medical appliance 52 is slidably fitted to the mandrel 54. The rotating mechanical device controlled by controller 60 is operatively coupled to each mandrel 54 via link set 2〇59 and is mounted to selectively rotate each mandrel 54, thus controlling each medical device 52 relative to each other The position at which the print head tangles and/or the imager 70 rotates. In one embodiment, the rotating mechanism 58 is coupled to the linkage 59 to cooperatively rotate the spindle 54 (and thus the associated medical appliance 52). In another embodiment, the rotating mechanism 11 200946247 58 and the linkage set 59 are mounted such that each of the spindles 54 and the respective respective spindles 52 rotate or rotate some of the spindles 54 in groups. In one embodiment, system 20 includes an imager 70 that is mounted to obtain an image of medical device 52. In one aspect, imager 70 5 can change position on array 50 of medical appliances 52 in cooperation with locator 62. Although graphically represented as illustrated in Figure 1, the imager 70 can be sized and shaped to capture an image comprising a portion of all of the medical devices 52. In one aspect, the imager 70 captures a top view of a portion of each medical device 52, and for each medical device 52, a portion of the region of the respective medical device 52 has its common parameters (ie, The length, width, magnification range, etc.) are substantially the same. The image of the portion of the individual medical device 52 obtained is used to develop a map of the target of the shot point so that the print head 44 can pass over the array of medical devices 50 at a time while depositing droplets of the coating material to The selected sub-groups of the shooting points drawn (partial areas of the respective medical treatments) are further described in conjunction with Figures 3A-5B. Upon completion of application of a predetermined volume of coating material to the first partial region, the rotating mechanism 58 rotates all of the medical device 52 (via the rotating mandrel 54) to expose another portion of the medical device to the imager 70. After obtaining a single image of the second portion of the medical device 52, as previously described, a process for determining the firing point and applying the coating material to the second partial region is performed. In one aspect, the second partial region overlaps the first partial region. After the processing of the second partial region is completed, the process is repeated over until the entire circumference of the respective medical device 52 has been applied one or more times. 12 200946247 In one embodiment, the imager 70 includes an area scan camera; while in other embodiments the imager 7 includes a line scan camera. 5 ❹ 10 15 ❿ 20 Fig. 2 is a block diagram of the manager 100 of the system 2 according to a specific example of the present invention. In one specific example, the manager 100 is stored in the memory of the controller 60 (Fig. 1); while in other embodiments, the manager 100 stores the memory of the computing unit associated with the applicator 30 of the system 20. In the body. As illustrated in FIG. 2, the manager 100 includes a user interface 102, a tool module 110, a print head module 112, an imaging module 114, and a firing module 116. In one aspect, the user interface 102 includes a graphical user interface mounted to the display and is capable of operating various parameters, components, and functions of the respective modules 110, 112, 114, and 116. In addition, via the user interface 1 〇 2, the manager 100 displays the display of parameters, components, and functions of the modules 110, 112, and 114 and/or the medium used to initiate those individual parameters, components, and functions. In one embodiment, the appliance module 110 of the manager 100 is installed to specifically assign the particular parameters of the array 50 of medical appliances 52 to the controller 60 and the printhead 44. These parameters enable accurate and reproducible ejection of droplets from the printhead 44 to the target locations of the medical device 52. In one embodiment, as illustrated in FIG. 2, the appliance module 110 includes a dimension parameter 120, a quantity parameter 122, a column parameter 124, and a row parameter 126. The size parameter 120 enables confirmation of the length, width and/or other dimensional parameters of each individual medical device 52. The quantity parameter 122 enables confirmation of the amount of medical device 52 to be imaged and/or coated. In one aspect, this amount of information is used by controller 60 to coordinate the 13200946247 cycles through which printhead 44 passes and/or the drying time period between successive passes of the same medical device set. The column parameter 124 and the row parameter 126 can confirm the number and number of rows of medical instruments 52 to be coated and control them. This column and row message is used to coordinate the direction in which the print head 44 passes through the locator 62 on multiple columns and/or rows of the medical device 52. One embodiment of an array of medical devices 52 having multiple rows and columns is described in more detail later in conjunction with Figures 6 and 7. In one embodiment, the printhead module 112 of the manager is mounted to enable common control of the operation of the printhead 44 and control of the respective nozzles 52. The printhead module 112 is also capable of controlling the nozzles 52 of the column 10 printheads 44 to move on the array 50 of medical devices 52 in a strategic pattern when mated with the positioner 62. In one embodiment, as illustrated in FIG. 2, the printhead module 112 includes cluster parameters 140, interval parameters 142, offset parameters 144, and direction parameters 146. The cluster parameter 140 is capable of confirming and controlling how many nozzles 42 are gathered together at a time for the nozzle group for shooting. This cluster parameter 140 operates in association with the interval parameter 142, wherein the interval parameter is installed to specifically specify the spacing (i.e., the number of nozzles) to determine which nozzles form a group. In one non-limiting embodiment, one nozzle group contains each fourth nozzle (in the nozzle column) such that there are three nozzle spacings between the respective nozzles of the group. The spacing is typically selected to prevent coalescence between adjacent deposited droplets (to the top surface of the medical device) and to ensure that subsequent printheads deposit other droplets from each other through each nozzle group. There is sufficient drying time before the other points of the medical device 52. The application of the cluster parameter 140 and the interval parameter 142 is described in more detail later in conjunction with the 4C-5B map. In another aspect, the offset parameter 144 of the printhead module 112 can be 200946247 5 ❹ 10 15

20 is sufficient to confirm and control the offset of the print head 112 to a controlled distance to realign the nozzle scan path relative to the components of the respective medical device 52 (e.g., relative to the mast of the stand). This realignment can align the nozzle scan path with the intermediate position of the previous nozzle scan path, thus ensuring that the coating (4) is deposited onto the previously uncoated target points in the previous channel of the print head 44. In one aspect, the direction parameter 146 of the printhead module 112 can confirm and control the print head in the forward or backward direction (by the direction arrow X in the figure) and the money to the side. The direction (represented by the arrow y in the direction of the old towel) is moved by the '(four) nozzle 42 placed at the position where the droplet can be ejected at the position of the s-therapy 52. Dan and 爹 爹 珉 珉 核 核 核 核 114 114 114 114 114 114 114 114 114 114 114 114 114 114 114 114 114 114 114 114 114 114 114 114 114 114 In a specific example, the imaging module 114 is capable of obtaining an upper top view image of the array of medical devices 52. In a specific example, the imaging module 114 includes a partial region parameter _, a morpheme function W, and a centerline parameter 162. The partial_parameter 160 is capable of transferring the image of the medical material 52 (as viewed from the top view) and isolating the partial image. The isolated portion of this image corresponds to a portion of each of:: other medical devices 52. In one embodiment > S P/7 area and - light-radial sector or general tubular medical device (such as a stent). p points to the outer surface correspondingly. In other embodiments, portions of the array of other types of dimensional objects may achieve substantially similar image patterns. However, the shape of the partial region in the specific example of the repetition is not limited to the radial sector portion of the tubular member. The mid-area parameter 16〇 can synchronously confirm substantially similar portions of each medical device 52. Via this image, this arrangement can be replaced by a single-medical device coating-coating that will be applied to each print head 44 as is the case in many conventional systems and methods. (For example, a 'nozzle array') is applied to many medical devices 52. By limiting the coating-coating of the coating material to a target zone 5 of each medical device 52, a fine fineness and accuracy is achieved on the droplets of the spray coating material, which is the most, -, in the king . [5 A more accurate and uniform coating on each of the medical devices is described in more detail later in conjunction with Figure 3A_10. In a specific example, the halogen function 101 can be tracked from medical use.

The resolution of the image obtained in a partial area and/or the resolution of the Q 1 mouth 42 when the head 44 is printed (i.e., the 'nozzle spacing'). Moreover, the halogen function (6) makes it easier to scale the printable bit map associated with the print head 44 relative to the image processing resolution. In a specific example, the midline parameter 162 can use the medical device 52 image (FIG. 1) obtained via the imager 70 to activate and control the struts (or other portions) of the partial regions of the respective medical device 52. ) The automatic determination of the midline pattern. Deciding the midline pattern will be described in more detail later in conjunction with Figure 3A-4C. In other (4) real money, the towel line parameter 162 is used to provide other types of target coating patterns for the outer surface of the mosquito doctor or other three-dimensional object that is not implantable and/or medically unrelated. The firing module 116 of the 20f processor (10) is capable of automatically controlling a portion of the area of the medical device 52 to develop a series of shot maps. In one embodiment, as in the second diagram, the firing module 116 includes a target point parameter, a minimum distance parameter 172, an injection parameter m, an exclusion parameter Μ, and a tracking function m. The target point parameter m can automatically control the minimum distance between (4) and the distance between the shots used for the coating material (four) and the handsome red material. When those 5 ❹ 10 15 ❿ 20 shots are at a minimum distance, the injection parameter 174 can automatically exclude the point for the riding effect. The exclusion parameter 176 can automatically detect a possible shot point that is less than the minimum distance. In some cases, the U-power 178 can automatically track the excluded shooting points for the shots, and the effective shot points in the channel where the headstock is printed later. This 'unfinished' shot point is excluded, and any uncoated place is identified as a new target shot point in the later imaging step. - ', understand; the ruler 1 is not only - define all the money of the various modules of the applicator%, Wei and components, such as coating (four) of various views can be confirmed with the material of the drug treatment ( As described in conjunction with Section 3A__ and throughout the disclosure. Figure 3A includes an end view of the respective medical device 52 and a graphical representation of the imager 7' (Fig. 1) in the position of the top view image from which the medical device η can be dispensed. Figure 3B shows only a longitudinal segment of the top plan view of a plurality of medical devices 52 - obtained via the imager 7 。. In addition, it is to be understood that the 3A-3B diagram is merely representative of the imager 7 that obtains an image of a portion of the medically corrected portion of the medical device array. Figure 3A further steps 218 correspond to the radial sector of the outer surface 53 of the tubular medical device 52. In one aspect, the arcuate range defining the radial sector portion corresponds to the pie portion (represented by the angle α). Further, the width (W2) of the partial region 218 (or the range of the radial sector portion) displayed in Fig. 3B can be effectively selected by selecting the size of the angle (4) 17 200946247 displayed on the first towel. Once the angle is selected, the imager 70 automatically obtains a partial region 218 having a width (W2) corresponding to the selected angle. 5 As illustrated in Fig. 3B, in one non-limiting embodiment, the medical device 52 includes a lattice or pattern 2〇8 of the mast 21〇. As further illustrated in the 3A-3B diagram, the 'edge 215' represents the lateral extent of the top view of the medical device 52 and defines the full width (W1) of the medical device 52. At the same time, the dividing line 220 represents the lateral edge of the partial area of the top view of each medical device 52 and defines a second width (W2) which is part of the first width (W1). Furthermore, this second width (W2) generally defines the width of the partial region 218. While Figure 3B illustrates a partial length (L2) of the medical device 52, it is to be understood that the partial region 218 typically has a length corresponding to the full length of each individual medical device 52. However, in other embodiments, the partial region 218 can include a portion of the length of the respective medical device 52. Finally, because the imager 7A obtains a single image of all of the medical devices 52 including the array 50, the single image includes a separate partial region 218 for each medical device 52. In one aspect, the single-image obtained from a portion of the respective medical device 52 contains a two-dimensional projection of a generally rounded member. Furthermore, since only a partial region (of all the medical devices) is applied, the two-dimensional coordinate system is used to control the movement of the print head 44 (cooperating with the positioner 62 and the controller 60), In order to eject the droplets onto the desired target firing point (which is further described in connection with Figures 4A-8B). This arrangement provides a greatly simplified method of applying a coating material to a medical device, such as a full-screen operation of a medical device with a three-dimensional coordinate system. To those things I: == I 2 makes it possible to apply a coating (in addition to medical objects) n-7Q to obtain a multi-turned three-dimensional object 5 Ο 10 15 ❹ 20 according to the principles of the present disclosure. In a specific example, in which the imager % includes more than one imaging device m limitation, the system view includes two imager first images (3) to obtain a first image of the first three-dimensional object group, and the imaging limit is Individually - the [partial area of the object. The second image of the second three-dimensional object group is obtained, and the second image is limited to 1 ', the first partial region of the parent-specific object. For later, in conjunction with Figure 4A-10, a more detailed financial plan 'in the shape of the head--: under- or linear path coating material applied to the first object (from the first image) and each The first part of the first object (from the second image). In a specific example, the first image is combined with the second image to form a complex image of the first partial region of the first article and the first partial region of the second article. The composite image excludes the first and second appliances from being located outside the respective first knife region & In one aspect, the first set of appliances and the second set of medical appliances are generally arranged parallel to one another along a linear path. In one embodiment, the first image and the first image are obtained by the same imager, wherein the imager is positioned relative to the controlled relative movement between the imager and the array of medical devices to obtain separation from the image. The first image. In still another specific example, once the first image is obtained, the first portion of the first appliance is coated while the first image is obtained. In this example, the amount of the appliance group has at least two levels of size. Fig. 4A is an enlarged view of an image of a partial region 218 of the medical device of Fig. 3B, which illustrates a map of the pixel of the image outline of the partial region 218 (shown graphically by point 252 for clarity of illustration). 250. As will be appreciated by those skilled in the art, each point 252 corresponds only to one element in the pixel grid and each pixel typically does not correspond to the shape of the point as illustrated in Figure 4A. In one embodiment, the resolution of the image is in the order of 1 to 15 microns. In another aspect, the image pixel resolution is less than or equal to the size of the droplets to be deposited on the medical device. 10 filtering the image pixels 252 to separate the struts 210 from the medical device 52 using techniques known to those skilled in the art, such as contrast techniques, edge detection techniques, skeletal techniques, trimming techniques, and the like. The corresponding image elements 252 ' corresponding to the midline are as illustrated in Figure 4B. As shown in FIG. 4B, the pattern produced by the separated image elements produces a pattern 260 of only the midline image pixels 262 corresponding to the line in the struts 210 of the medical device 52 15 . It is also understood that the centerline pattern 260 is not limited to the shape, size, and orientation shown in Figure 4B. Rather, the size, shape, and orientation of the midline pattern can vary with the size, shape, and orientation of the members of the medical device to be coated. In one aspect, the midline pattern 260 is obtained to assure accuracy and precision of ejecting the droplets 20 onto the mast 210 of the medical device 2〇8. This accuracy and precision can be applied to the upper surface 270 of the stem 210 of the medical device 208 without the coating material dripping onto the stem 21 of the medical device 2〇8 when combined with the appropriate volume of each mouth-dropping droplet. On the edge of 〇 272. In another specific example of 200946247, which is intended to coat something other than the frame of the stent, 'use a technique known to those skilled in the art to be suitable for a particular target coating pattern to confirm implantable medical use. The coating pattern of the object or other three-dimensional object. 5 ❹ 10 15 ❿ 20 With the established centerline pattern 260, each scan path of the nozzles 42 of the nozzle array 40 (Fig. 1) is continued with respect to the centerline pattern 260, as illustrated in Figure 4C. . In one embodiment, each scan path corresponds to a plurality of sets of nozzles. For example, as illustrated in Figure 4C, scan paths a, b, C, and D each represent a path of nozzle groups a, B, (: and £). As shown in Fig. 4C, the 'female nozzle scan path and at least some of the midline image pixels 2 of the midline pattern lake are forked to produce a possible shot point (10) array 280, when the print head 44 passes the secret device 52. The coating material can be deposited there over a portion of the region 218. However, in a specific example, instead of cutting the print head 44, only the coating material is sprayed onto all of the shot points 282. 'Coating (four) will be sprayed to the selected shot point 282 with the print pass each time. This selective shot prevents coalescence between the droplets deposited by the money, as will be further described in conjunction with Figures 5 and 5; In one embodiment, the print head 44 passes a large number of passes (eg, a second set of nozzles above the first partial area of the shot owed to the first set of nozzles (eg, 'Group A)) (eg, the group shame is reliant on the first Partial area I side, etc., the towel has a foot-to-dry material in the female cut. In another specific example, the first set of nozzles is used by the print head before using the second set of nozzles (eg, group, etc.) (For example, group A) is only second. In this latter specific example, only the 'time' is passed before turning to the lower-group nozzle and this rotation is automatically continued until each nozzle group reaches the desired number of passes. 21 200946247 In one embodiment, the diameter of the droplet of coating material ejected onto the firing point (e.g., the target location) is about 75 percent of the width of the mast (or other member) on which the droplet is deposited. This relationship ensures droplets The edge 272 of the mast 210 is not oozing out but remains on the upper surface 27 of the mast 210. By the subsequent passage of the print head 44 (Fig. 1), the droplets or overlapping shots that are subsequently sprayed nearby are overlapped. Point to provide full coverage of the mast 2_ upper surface 27〇. Specific example, the respective parameters, and the function member of the plurality of viewpoints, and methods to be used for the coating of the second manager of FIG. 10 to

The methods described and illustrated in combination with the 4A_4C, 5th, 6th, and 8A sides, respectively. In another embodiment, the coating method in addition to the centerline pattern is used to perform the method of the method of drawing in conjunction with the 4B_4C drawing. In addition, the nozzle scanning path is compared with the target coating pattern to confirm the image pixel that is intersected with the target coating pattern, and then according to the "target coating pattern 15 " image pixel and print head 44 The intersection of the nozzle scan path to determine the bid

The point of the shooting point is the same, and the point of view of the method is still generally the same. In still another embodiment, the method described in connection with Figures 4A-4C can also be applied to implantable medical devices other than stents and three-dimensional objects that are not implanted and/or medically unrelated. In those examples, the target 20 coating pattern is not limited to the centerline pattern. 5A and 5B are diagrams of a map - a shooting map, which includes a portion of the medical device (not shown) - __4 and a multi-nozzle sweep path through four different groups of mouths (by the direction arrow) Possible shooting points 296 resulting from the intersection of numbers A, B, C, and D). In order to obtain a shot pattern that prevents the deposition of the crucible, it is possible to exclude certain possible shot points 296 at least one pass of the print head 44 (Fig. 1). 5 Ο 10 15 20 In one embodiment, a minimum distance is established between the droplets of the adjacent shots, and then a radius R corresponding to the minimum distance is confirmed around each possible shot point 296. In one aspect, the minimum distance corresponds to the distance that adjacent droplets will not coalesce together. Second, as the radius (R) pattern 297 is drawn for each possible shot point 296, any possible shot points that fall within the radius of another possible shot point 296 will be excluded. For example, Figure 5 illustrates several excluded shot points (represented by a blank circle 300) that fall between other adjacent shot points 296. In one aspect, the pattern 297 of radius R acts as a purge filter that will be removed from some of the possible shots to be fired at least once in the print head 44, while the special shot map will be 29 The remaining possible shooting points 296 are fired. Shooting @290 is only applied in a strategic sequence to deposit coating material droplets onto medical devices to obtain tens, hundreds or thousands of shots of a substantially continuous and uniform coating. . Each shot map is different, but when all of the continuous shot maps are completed, all possible shot points corresponding to the midline of the rod of the medical device will be used, thus covering (by coating material) the respective medical devices 52 The poles are added to substantially all of the exposed areas of the surface π◦ (4th (10)).仕为-- Point ΓΓ In the fifth picture, the excluded shooting point 300 is in the other nozzle scanning path of the nozzle 6 with the valid standard, such as the mouth of the nozzle (for example, the scanning path Α Or C) 23 200946247 However, the effective shot point 296 that adjoins each other and falls along the same nozzle scan path (eg, B or D) remains because its radius R does not overlap other individual shot points. Multiple shot points for the same nozzle scan path. This arrangement is usually the result of a special geometric pattern of the medical device to be coated. 5 Medical tools with other geometric patterns will produce different shapes of possible shot point patterns, so 'different exclusions Shooting point and effective shot point pattern. For example, in a non-limiting embodiment as illustrated in the "different map", using substantially the same way as the previous description in conjunction with Figure 5A, the confirmed centerline 330 and The medical device 322 that has determined the possible firing point (represented by the black point 10 340) produces a shot map 32A. However, in this embodiment, the medical device 322 has A geometric pattern different from the medical device 29 of Figure 5, such that some possible firing points 34 along a single nozzle path (such as the nozzle scanning path c) have a conflicting radius R. In other words, some of this The shot points are close enough to each other to potentially cause coalescence. In addition, using the minimum distance parameter, some of these possible shot points will be excluded from the first or second pass of the print head 44 and passed in the future. Medium printing. In this way, full coverage will be obtained, but at the same time avoiding the deposition of droplets in the batch deposition. 10 In particular, as illustrated in Figure 5B, the possible shot point 340 will be excluded from the contiguous (where will At the first pass of the print head 44, a certain coating point within the radius of the coating is deposited (represented by a blank circle 342). In one aspect the 'u rod 324 is along the nozzle scan path. The particular geometry of an extended medical device 322 creates a plurality of possible slap points 340 that are too close to each other. Further, one aspect of the present disclosure includes clearing or eliminating a scan path along the earlier nozzle (eg, at 5B) In the picture Some of the possible points of path c) 24, the firing point 342 of 200946247, as opposed to some possible firing points excluded from the nozzle scanning path (eg, paths B, C, D in Figure 5A). 5 e 10 15 ❹ 20 Again, using a substantially identical way to the clarification of the line pattern 294 of the shot map 29 illustrated in Figure 5A, some along the masts 326, 327, 328 and The possible shot point 342 of the extension of 329 is excluded. In another embodiment, the method described in connection with the 5A-5B diagram can also be applied to implantable medical devices other than stents and non-implantable and/or medically. A related three-dimensional object. At this time, a target coating pattern other than the center line pattern is used. Other aspects' Other views of the method are still generally the same. FIG. 6 is a top plan view of a method 350 of applying a coating to an array 360 of medical devices 362 in accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure. In one aspect, method 350 uses the same features and characteristics as previously described in connection with Figures 1-5B. In particular, this view of the method includes simultaneous imaging of portions of each medical device 362 by obtaining a single image of all medical devices 362. After confirming the center line of the mast 364 (or other target coating pattern) of the respective medical device 362 from the single image, a possible range of shooting points is established, and then the series of shots is developed using the minimum distance parameter. Map. In each shot map, certain shot points are excluded so that a full range of shot points have been performed after the full shot map has been completed. As illustrated in FIG. 6, method 350 includes moving printhead 44 containing one or more nozzles 42 columns 41 over array 360 of medical appliances 362. In one aspect, the print head 44 moves along a path 365 that can be repeatedly passed over the medical device 362 when supported by the positioner 62 and the controller 6 (Fig. 25 200946247 In one non-limiting embodiment, array 36 includes two rows of medical devices 362 and n columns of medical devices. This configuration can be moved over each medical device 362 in a circular path 365 pattern, thus avoiding wasting the action of the print head 44 during coating application. Path 365 includes a first coating zone (represented by dashed line 37A), a fifth coating zone (represented by dashed line 372), a first transition zone (represented by dashed line 374), and a second transition zone (represented by dashed line 376). . In another aspect, the array 36A is arranged in substantially the same manner as illustrated by the medical device 52 and the printhead 44 in FIG. 1 such that the longitudinal axis of the medical device 362 is generally associated with the printhead 44. The longitudinal axis 1〇 of the row 42 of nozzles 42 extends in parallel. However, in this particular example, array 360 of medical appliances 362 are arranged in two rows 380,382. Moreover, the first row 38〇 generally corresponds to the first coated region 370 of the path 365 of the printhead 44, and the second row 382 generally corresponds to the second coated region 372 of the path 365 of the printhead 44. Moreover, in one complete path 365, the printhead 44 moves through the first 15 coating zone 370 to partially coat the first row 380 of the medical device 362, and partially coats the medical device through the second coating zone. The second line of 362 is 382. After completing the single pass through the first coating zone 370, the printhead 44 is laterally mobilized through the first transition zone 374 without spraying any coating material until the printhead 44 is positioned to move through the second coating zone 372. . In each of the first and second 20 coating zones, the printhead 44 ejects the coating material droplets in a plurality of successive shots according to the installed plurality of shot maps, depositing the coating in a non-cohesive manner. The cover material (to a portion of the region 218 of the medical device 362) is simultaneously subjected to a final substantially uniform coating. After the partial coating of the second row 382 of the medical device 362 is completed, the print head 44 is mobilized through the second conversion 26 200946247 Ο lo region 376 to the origin 37UX to allow the print to be ready for the ring through the road 365 . Of course, when each subsequent loop is performed, a different shot map is executed to cover the warp-excluded shot points of the partial area until all possible shot points have been performed at least - times. When the target thickness of the coating material is properly achieved, the subsequent loop is performed. In another aspect, the nozzle 42 of the print head 44 is cleaned during passage through the first and first transition regions 376 to allow the nozzle π to be ready for ejecting droplets into the medical device 362 of the next row. A pair of ## sub-regions are fully coated and rotated through the mandrel 364 to the entire medical device 362 - the selected amount. In a nutshell, the next 15

The partial area will overlap the first partial area. The degree of overlap can vary, ranging from 5 percent overlap to a maximum overlap of 9 percent. After the mandrel 364 and thus the medical device 362 are rotated to the position of the next partial region, this portion of each medical device 362 is imaged. As in the previous iteration, establish a mid-line to establish a possible range of shooting points' and then develop the __ series of shooting programs to allow the print head 44 to ride through the green cover (4) with M2, the 20th part of the Μ . Once the entire firing sequence is executed for this second partial region, the droplets will have been deposited in the full range of the target firing point. Repeatingly repeating the rotation of the medical device 362 (via the rotating mandrel 361) - the respective amount is then applied through the target firing point range (via successive firing programs that deposit droplets) to apply the new partial region until The entire circumference of the medical device has been coated. Further, in some other specific examples, more than one complete circumferential cycle is performed to thicken the layer of coating material to ensure uniform coating and/or coating of different coating materials. For example, in the first circumferential coating cycle, the portion of the knives that are joined in the evening may have a first degree of overlap. Connected here in the subsequent circumferential coating cycle. Use a smaller or greater degree of overlap between the p-knife regions. A (or more) 1 week coating cycle is provided to re-image the medical device's 5 knives area to identify any possible target shot points that were not coated in the earlier circumferential cycle. In one particular example, the medical device 362 has a generally elongated shape that is substantially identical to the medical device 52 shown in Figure 1, however it can have a different frame or other component arrangement. In one aspect, each column 41 of nozzles 42 ® 1 (shown in Figure 6) has a length greater than the length of each individual medical device 362. This arrangement simplifies the application of a respective portion of a row of medical devices 38" because the print head 44 can be moved along a single axis while coating those medical devices 362. In another aspect, the column 41 includes hundreds of nozzles 42 to ensure proper deposition of the coating material onto the medical device 362 while maintaining the print head 44 by providing a substantially stable mouth that is available. Operating performance. Figure 7 is a top plan view of a method 4GG of applying a coating to an array 41G of the 412 device 412 according to a particular embodiment of the present disclosure. In one aspect, the method 4 〇 0 uses substantially the same features and characteristics as the previous description in conjunction with the W diagram. However, in this example, the array 41 is arranged such that the longitudinal axes of the rows 42 of nozzles 42 of the print head 44 are generally perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the medical device 412. In one aspect, array 41A includes a first row 42〇 and a second row 422. In each of the respective rows 42, 422, a plurality of columns 430 of medical devices 412 are arranged in an edge-to-edge relationship, and each column 43 of the medical device 412 is supported on a mandrel 28 200946247 442. In addition, the medical device 412 of each column 430 extends generally perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the column 42 of nozzles 42 of the printhead 44. 5 ❹ 10 15 ❿ 20 In another aspect, the medical device 412 in the first row 420 is edge-to-edge with respect to the medical device 412 in the second row 422, and within each column 420 of the respective rows 420, 422 The medical device is arranged end to end on a mandrel 442, and a plurality of mandrels 442 are placed side to side with each other. In this example, a portion of each medical device 412 also extends generally perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the column 42 of nozzles 42. Printhead 44 moves through path 365 including first coating zone 372, first transition zone 374, second coating zone 376, and second transition zone 376, in substantially the same manner as previously described in connection with FIG. To complete a single pass over a portion of the area of all of the medical devices 412 of the array 410. Again, the iterative process as performed by the method of Figure 6 wherein each step of the process includes before all of the medical device 412 is rotated to another position for imaging and coating the lower-only region , imaging - part of the area, and then a selective shooting program for that part of the area. In one aspect, the overall drying time is reduced by making a number of successive passes i (wherein each deposition - a set of differently positioned sets of drops). In addition, by depositing droplets over a plurality of medical secrets, the droplets on the first medical device 412 are simultaneously coated with other subsequent medical devices 412 to serve as print heads. When the mail path returns to the partially coated medical device 412, the first drop group has dried. In Figures 6 and 7 by means of image-wise imaging and coating (multiple medical or 412 partial areas, a very large number of medical devices (362,412) can be processed in a single-batch, because each medical treatment The utensils 362 or 412 are simultaneously coated with the single pass of the print head 44. Further, even if multiple passes are made on each partial area and each partial area is separately coated, it still achieves a high production rate because A large number of medical devices synchronize 5 imaging and coating in a coordinated manner. Furthermore, accuracy and accuracy are maintained in this high-volume method 'Because-: a partial area that is only secret and coated (many (four) treatments) In another specific example, the point of view of the method described in connection with Figures 6 and 7 is performed to coat the target portion of the three-dimensional object other than the medical device. Xin 10 Figure 8A illustrates a number of A nozzle scanning path (represented by A, B, c, D) (which is drawn in a partial region of the medical device (not shown) with a scan pattern of the line pattern 460 in the frame (standing member)) Shooting map 450. Each individual The intersection of the nozzle scan path and the centerline pattern 46A defines the target shot point 462. Further, as the print head 44 passes (15 times along the scan axis, the coating material will be ejected onto the target shot points 462, which limits The condition is that they are separated by a minimum distance to avoid jetting of the droplets. In one aspect, the nozzle group is selected to maintain a minimum separation distance between adjacent sprayed coating material droplets. However, if desired, from the column The first pass of the printhead excludes certain target shot points to avoid coalescing and printing as it passes through the subsequent print heads 44. As illustrated in Figure 8A, for the first position of the print head 44 A number of mid-shirts like the pixels 462 fall between the nozzle scanning paths (and therefore between the adjacent target points 462). For example, Figure 8A illustrates four target shooting points 464 (for medical devices) Each rack) is arranged in the middle of the target firing point that intersects the nozzle scan path of the nozzle - 30 200946247 (Group A) and No. 2 (Group B). In addition, in order to spray the coating material to these now In the middle line On the pixel 464, the print head is offset using a locator 62 - a small distance to rearrange the nozzle scan path and intersect with some of these intermediate center line 5 like the pixel 464, as illustrated in section 8B. In the figure, this rearrangement will generally be referred to as offsetting the nozzle scan path. In addition, a new shot program is provided in which a new target shot point 466 is placed in the middle of the target shot point 462 前述 of the aforementioned shot program. The disclosed method and system deposits a coating material onto a number of previously excluded shot points 464. Overlap the offset process 10 to produce a full intermediate target shot point for the first or original nozzle scan path, Until the full range of target points corresponding to all of the midline image pixels 461 are executed. In one specific example, the offset process is performed before the medical device rotates c through the rotation of the mandrel to a subsequent partial region until (over the centerline pattern 460) the full range of targets are coated in a single portion of the region. Shoot 15 o'clock. In another embodiment, the offset process is performed before the medical device is rotated (via the rotating mandrel) φ to a subsequent partial region so as to coat only certain targets within the partial region (of the full range of target firing points) Shooting point. In this latter specific example, when a continuous circumferential coating pass is made around the respective medical device, any uncoated shot points will be confirmed and imaged in the subsequent partial areas 20 and coated. In another embodiment, the method described in connection with the 8th _8β map can also be applied to implantable medical devices other than stents and three-dimensional objects that are not implanted and/or medically unrelated. In this example, a coating pattern other than the neutral pattern is used. In other respects, other views of the method 31 200946247 are usually still the same. "Figure - illustrates the process of applying a coating to a medical device array 500 _ > - 圃. In one embodiment, the method 5 is performed using any one or more of the systems and methods described in conjunction with Figures 1-8B. As seen in Figure 9, the ancient and soil method 50 includes obtaining a single image of the array of medical devices, wherein the single image is limited to a portion of each individual device, such as the box 5 in Figure 9 of Figure 9. 〇 2 in. In block 5〇4, each of the other J-knife regions is coated at a time. In one aspect, the method includes isolating an image corresponding to a line in each of the masts (or other members) of each of the four treatments, as illustrated in block 506. In one embodiment, the line pattern of the respective masts of the medical device is confirmed prior to isolating the midline image pixels. In one aspect, after confirming the midline pattern, the bitmap of the image is expanded so that the resolution of the later shot point group is higher than the resolution of the print head nozzle or the original captured image. This arrangement also increases the accuracy of the centerline pattern, which makes it easy to set the firing point at the centerline of the pole of the appliance to prevent the coating material from seeping onto the edge of the mast. Ο At block 508, a target firing point range for the partial region is determined based on the intersection of the isolated midline image pixel and the nozzle scan path group of the nozzle array of the single printhead. In some specific examples (as set forth at block 510 20), determining the target firing point further includes selecting a sub-group of the target firing point in the partial region by temporarily excluding the target of the unseparated minimum distance. In other words, the selected target shooting points are separated from each other by a minimum distance. This minimum gap distance acts to prevent coalescence between adjacent deposited coating material droplets. The shot point is deposited when one or more of the nozzle arrays are passed through the respective medical area 32 200946247 to select over this portion of the area of any temporarily excluded target. The linear road print head 'in the target shot prints the second square 512'. The method further comprises spraying the coating material droplets via the nozzle array by moving the single point over the second jade medical device. In a specific example, 'Ru Ming at block 514, __________

10

20 times = the mother-in-law passes the 'droplet injection' is limited to the mouth sweep with the nozzle array: slightly off the selected shot point. When a single print head subsequently passes over a portion of the area of the medical device, it becomes coated with any selected shot point that is uncoated in the kth pass. Figure 10 is a flow chart illustrating a method of applying a coating to a medical device in accordance with a specific example of the present disclosure. In a specific example, the method is performed using any of the systems, components, or methods previously described in conjunction with the Red 9 diagram. For example, in this method, it will be appreciated that a single image has been obtained from a portion of the array of medical devices using the previously described methods and systems in conjunction with the figures. As in the block diagram of Fig. 10, the method 600 includes selecting an image pixel column that aligns the nozzle sweep path based on the generally uniform _ between the nozzles of the nozzle row. In block 〇4, the nozzles are assigned to the repeating pattern ' of the 〇 group so that the members of each group _ open a minimum distance. The method further includes generating n shot programs, and a shot program is uniquely associated with each nozzle group, as illustrated in block_. At block 6, the n shots are each executed (i.e., the droplets are ejected onto respective target shots) m times while providing sufficient drying time between successive passes. In a view of 33 200946247, each drop contains less than the final coated volume desired for each shot, so that more drops are deposited at the target shot: the last desired spread after the drop Cover the volume. This is in a continuous step', the view of the redundant droplets (with sufficient drying time between each liquid droplet) 5 10 15 20 The coating evenly covers the upper surface of the rod of the medical device without, moxibustion $ ^ ^ out The edge of the pole. In this view, each 'to the same shot point' the diameter of the drop is slightly increased or covered at the target shot point. At the decision position 610, an inquiry is made to determine whether the right is any remaining

The target shooting point is excluded. If the answer is yes, then the gentleman, 1 J孑 method continues to block 612 where the nozzle array is offset to enable the coating #_ to be pre-excluded to the target shot point. This offset is typically performed in substantially the same manner as the previous description of 8A_8Be #. Repeat this imaging and coating a portion of the area, then offset the nozzle array before passing the nozzle another time over the portion of the area to cover the pre-excluded shot point.

All target shooting points of the midline pattern are coated. Here, as in the March & Block 614, all of the stents or medical devices are rotated to provide the next partial region' to be imaged and coated according to the methods set forth in blocks 602-612. In one aspect, the next partial area overlaps the previous partial area. Finally, the overall method illustrated by blocks 602-614 is performed until one or more complete circumferential coating cycles are performed around the respective medical device. In another embodiment, the method of the method described in connection with Figure 9-10 can also be applied to implantable medical devices other than stents and three-dimensional objects that are not implantable and/or medically unrelated. In this example, a target coating pattern other than the neutral pattern is used. Otherwise, other views of the method 34 200946247 are usually still the same. Figure 11 is a diagram illustrating a method 650 of coating a three-dimensional object in accordance with one embodiment of the present disclosure. In one embodiment, a substantially continuous coating is applied to a three-dimensional article (such as an implantable medical device) in substantially the same manner as the previously described methods and systems in conjunction with Figures 1-10. Outside surface. In one aspect, the substantially continuous coating is applied to one or more of the outer surfaces of the article to isolate the target portion. With this in mind, Figure 11 illustrates a three-dimensional object 660 having an outer surface 662. In a specific example 10, the target portion includes an island 664° of coating material on the outer surface 662. In one embodiment, the target portion includes a coating of a coating material on the outer surface 662. Stripe pattern 670 (including spaced apart individual fragments 672). In another embodiment, the stripe pattern 670 is formed as a continuous strip of strips extending around the circumference of the article 660 (i.e., without broken, spaced apart fragments). In still another embodiment, the target portion comprises a more complex coating pattern 680 of coating material. In a non-limiting embodiment, the complex coating pattern defines a dome pattern profile, as illustrated in Figure 11. 20 In each instance, the coating material is substantially continuous to the target portion of the coated article, and no coating material is present on the portion of the article surrounding the target portion. Moreover, the coating is substantially continuous as for the target portion, but is discontinuous as to the overall outer surface of the article 660. 35 200946247 5 10 Penalty - In a specific example, the target coating pattern of an object is limited to the 'coating pattern (eg, stripe)'. Meanwhile, in other specific examples, the labeling of 16 pieces is difficult to include several (four) patterns. Coating pattern. In the figure, in the figure u, the target coating pattern is limited to the part of the object instead of covering the whole object. Remember this view 'confirm a partial area in the area of the target coating pattern. The image areas of the respective confirmed regions are obtained, and each of the partial regions has been coated before the image of the next partial region is obtained. This method is repeated until the coating material has been applied to the target coating pattern. Further, other images of the article are not obtained for successive partial regions as in other specific examples until a portion of the region corresponding to the first partial region is coated. However, because the target coating pattern contains less than the overall outer surface of the article, the method also uses rotating mechanism 58 (Fig.) to rotate the article to each of the images obtained to include at least one of the target coating patterns. The location of these parts. same

The ground 'rotation mechanism 58 will manipulate the item so that the imager 70 avoids imaging a portion of the area where the target coating pattern portion is absent, thus avoiding coating the non-standard portion of the object.

In one embodiment, the three-dimensional object 660 illustrated in Figure 11 includes an implantable medical device; while in other embodiments, the three-dimensional object 660 includes a non-medical, non-implantable object. Moreover, although the object 660 is a generally tubular member, in other embodiments, the object 660 includes other three-dimensional shapes. The specific examples of the present disclosure enable accurate, high throughput application of implantable medical devices and other three-dimensional articles. These specific examples use a single image of a portion of each of the 36 200946247 regions to apply an image processing tool to the single image to develop a shot map, and then use the print head alone to pass the print material through the print head. The droplets are ejected onto each partial region of the respective medical device to process a partial region of the appliance array once. Repeat the pass 5 to ensure that the droplets are deposited at all locations of the shot map. This method is repeated repeatedly until the overall upper surface of each medical device is uniformly coated, resulting in high speed processing of a large number of medical devices without sacrificing the accuracy of depositing droplets onto the upper surface. Although specific embodiments have been illustrated and described herein, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that the specific embodiments shown and described may be substituted by various alternatives and/or equivalents without departing from the scope of the disclosure. This application is intended to cover any adaptation or variations of the specific embodiments disclosed herein. Therefore, it is intended that the present disclosure be limited only by the scope of the claims and the equivalents thereof. 15 [Simple Description of the Drawings] _ Figure 1 is a schematic illustration of a method and system for coating a medical appliance in accordance with one embodiment of the present disclosure. Figure 2 is a block diagram illustrating an applicator manager in accordance with one embodiment of the present disclosure. 20 Figure 3A is a schematic illustration of a method of imaging a partial region of the medical device, including an end view of the medical device, in accordance with one embodiment of the present disclosure. Figure 3B is a pictorial representation of an image of a top plan view of the medical device of Figure 3A, in accordance with one embodiment of the present disclosure. 37 200946247 Figure 4A is a pictorial representation of an image pixel map showing a portion of the region in Figure 3B, in accordance with one embodiment of the present disclosure. Fig. 4B is a schematic illustration of the line pattern 5 of the image pixels of the mast of the partial region of the medical device shown in Fig. 3B, in accordance with a specific example of the present disclosure. Figure 4C is a schematic illustration of a nozzle array scanning path plotted against a line pattern of image pixels displayed in Figure 4B, in accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure. Figure 5A is a diagram illustrating a method of selecting a target shot point relative to a minimum gap distance between adjacent possible shot points in accordance with a specific embodiment of the present disclosure. Figure 5B is a diagram of another perspective of a method of selecting a target shot point relative to a minimum gap distance between adjacent possible shot points, in accordance with a specific example of the present disclosure. 15 Figure 6 is a top plan view illustrating the movement of a printhead in a method of coating a medical device array in accordance with a specific embodiment of the present disclosure. Figure 7 is a top plan view illustrating the movement of a printhead in a method of coating a medical device array in accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure. Figure 8A is a schematic illustration of a nozzle array scan path drawn relative to a line of image elements of a pole of a portion of a medical device 20 in accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure. Figure 8B is a schematic illustration of the offset position of the scan path of the nozzle array plotted against the midline image pixel of Figure 8A, in accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure. 200946247 Figure 9 is a flow chart of a method of coating a medical device in accordance with one embodiment of the present disclosure. Figure 10 is a flow diagram of a method of coating a medical device in accordance with one embodiment of the present disclosure. Figure 11 is a diagram illustrating a method of coating a three-dimensional object in accordance with a specific example of the present disclosure. [Main component symbol description]

20.. System 30.. . Applicator 40, 50, 280, 360, 410 · · array 41, 430 · · column 42 " nozzle 44 ·. · print head 52, 322, 362, 412 ...health appliances 53.. outer surface 54,361,442...mandrel 58..rotating mechanism 59."link set 60..controller 62.. positioner 70.. imaging 100.. .Manager 39 200946247 102.. User Interface 110.. .Tools Module 112.. Print Head Module 114.. Imaging Module 116.. Shooting Module 120.. . Size parameter 122...Quantity 124.. Column parameter 126. "Line parameter 140...Cluster parameter 142...Interval parameter 144...Offset parameter 146.. Direction parameter 160.. . Partial area parameter 161.. . Function 162.. . Center line parameter 170.. Point target parameter 172.. Minimum distance parameter 174.. Injection parameter 176.. Exclusion parameter 178.. Tracking function 200946247 208.. Pattern, medical device 210 ,326,327,328,329,364·.·Rack 215...edge 218..partial area 220...demarcation line

250.. .Map 252·.·Point 260,294...Center line pattern 262.. Center line image pixel 270.. Upper surface 272... Edge 282.. Shooting point 290, 320, 450... Shooting map 296,300,340,342...possible shooting point 297...radius pattern 324.. center rack 330.. . center line 350,400,500,600,650...method 365&quot;.path 370 .. . First coating area 371.. Origin 41 200946247 372.. Second coating area 374.. First conversion area 376.. Second conversion area 380, 420... First line 382 , 422... second 亍 460.. . center line pattern 461, 464... mid-line image pixels 462.. . target shooting point 466.. . new target shooting point 502, 504, 506, 508 , 510, 512, 514, 602, 604, 606, 608, 612, 614.. Block 610.. Determine position 660.. . Three-dimensional object 662.. . External surface 664 · · · Island 670.. . Broken stripe pattern 672.. .Fragment 680.. . Coating pattern X, y··. Arrow number <... Angle L2... Part length 42 200946247 R... Conflict radius W1... Full width W2.. .width

Claims (1)

200946247 VII. Patent application scope: 1. A method for coating a three-dimensional object, the method comprising: obtaining an image of a partial region of the object to generate a two-dimensional image of the partial region; 5 before obtaining other images of the object, The material is printed onto the article at the partial area via a drop-on-demand droplet ejection device, and the method is repeated over a continuous portion of the article until the material is printed onto the target area of the article. 2. The method of claim 1, wherein the article comprises an implantable 10 medical device array and the partial region comprises a first partial region of each individual appliance; and wherein the printed material comprises a Coating the coating on each of the first partial regions: isolating the pixels of each of the 15 first partial regions corresponding to the target coating pattern of each appliance; according to the isolated pixels and the nozzle of the fluid ejection device The intersection of the scan paths of each of the nozzles of the array determines a first set of shot points; and in the first linear path, moves the fluid ejection device over all of the respective utensils for first shot through the array of nozzles A droplet of coating material is sprayed onto the first partial region at the point group. 3. The method of claim 2, wherein each of the respective implantable medical devices comprises a support comprising a pole net, wherein the target coating pattern comprises a grid of the respective brackets A centerline view of each of the rails 200946247, and coating the coating therein includes coating a substantially continuous coating, wherein the coating is limited to one portion of each individual appliance corresponding to the first shot point set And the coating pattern thereof is limited to the outer surface of the stent. 4. The method of claim 2, wherein the nozzle array has a length of 5 degrees greater than the length of the article, wherein the nozzle array has a nozzle having an amount of at least two stages, and wherein the array of objects comprises a The amount is at least two levels of objects. 5. The method of claim 2, comprising: arranging the array of tools in an edge-to-edge relationship in a first row to arrange 10 longitudinal axes of the nozzle array to be generally associated with the first row The longitudinal axes of the appliances are parallel, wherein the length of the nozzle array has at least a common space with the length of the respective tool; the array of appliances is arranged to further include a second row of tools in an edge-to-edge relationship to The longitudinal axis is arranged generally parallel to the longitudinal axis of each of the 15th row; and the linear firing path is arranged to include an annular pattern comprising a first dimension in the first direction above the first row of the appliance a firing zone and a second firing zone above the second row of the appliance in a second direction opposite the first direction. 20. The method of claim 2, comprising: rotating the array of appliances; obtaining a second image of the array of appliances, the second image being limited to a second partial region of each individual appliance, the a two-part area overlapping the first partial area; 45 200946247 producing a coating on the respective second partial area by: isolating an image of each second partial area corresponding to the target coating pattern of each appliance a pixel; a second shot point group is determined according to an intersection of the isolated image pixels of the second partial region and the scan path of each nozzle of the nozzle array; and in the first linear path, all of the pixels The print head is moved over the respective tool to shoot the coating material droplets onto the second partial region at the second shot point group via the nozzle array. 7. A system for coating a three-dimensional object array using a method as claimed in any one of claims 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 or 6, the system comprising: an imager, A single image of the first partial region of each of the articles 15 of the array of objects; a row of printheads comprising at least one column of nozzles; _ 定位 a locator coupled to the printhead and mounted for linear path Moving the at least one column of nozzles over the array of objects; and an coating manager comprising: 20 a target coating pattern parameter mounted to confirm on a surface of the respective object within the first portion region a coating pattern of the image pixels; and a shooting map module installed to confirm the intersection of the scanning path of the respective nozzles and the image of the target coating pattern 46 200946247 . Use the system of the scope of the patent scope item 'the shooting map module package-minimum distance parameter, which is installed to calculate the minimum distance of the night shot 5 ^ shooting off, in which the shooting shot module is installed Selecting a shooting point that is at least the minimum distance of the target, and excluding other shooting points from the shooting map that are less than the distance from the selected target shooting point; and ^##Installing the shooting image to select The pre-excluded target shooting point' is included to include the target shooting point in the subsequent shooting map as the selected one. The system of claim 4, wherein the printhead module of the manager includes an offset parameter that is mounted such that the position of the printhead is offset to cooperate with the shot map module. The nozzle scanning path is then aligned with the target coating pattern image pixel to confirm the second target shooting point group different from the first target shooting point group, wherein the second group of each other is shot The points are arranged in the middle of the shooting points of the respective targets of the first group. 10. The system of claim 7, wherein the coating manager comprises a 歹J head module, which is configured to dispense individual nozzles into n sets of nozzles 20, wherein each group is defined to contain each other Between the nozzles of the η_1 nozzles, wherein the shot map module is further installed so that the print head directs the ejection of the coating material droplets through the set one time each time the print head passes over the object array until the droplets have been completely The n group is sprayed onto the first partial region. 47