US20170159196A1

US20170159196A1 - Electrical deposition apparatus

Info

Publication number: US20170159196A1
Application number: US15/250,945
Authority: US
Inventors: Chun-Fu Lu; Ya-Ching Chou; Li-Wei Liu; Hsin-Hwa Chen
Original assignee: Industrial Technology Research Institute ITRI
Current assignee: Industrial Technology Research Institute ITRI
Priority date: 2015-12-03
Filing date: 2016-08-30
Publication date: 2017-06-08
Also published as: TWM522954U

Abstract

An electrical deposition apparatus includes a brush plating head. The brush plating head includes a plurality of channels, and there are openings at the same surface of the brush plating head. Each of the channels extends from within the brush plating head to each of the openings.

Description

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This application claims the priority benefit of Taiwan application serial no. 104219438, filed on Dec. 3, 2015. The entirety of the above-mentioned patent application is hereby incorporated by reference herein and made a part of this specification.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present disclosure relates to an electrical deposition apparatus.

BACKGROUND

In an electrical deposition process, when the workpiece size is up to tens of meters, it is not easy to build a giant electroplating bath for electrical deposition. Thus, a 3D electroplating method to deposit metal is needed. The so-called 3D electroplating method belongs to brush plating in the electrical deposition process particularly.
When the brush plating is applied to the electrical deposition, the deposition efficiency of some metal (e.g., chromium) is not high because it is not easy for reduction and precipitation, and there is a tendency for ionization. To solve the above problems, high current density is required to use in the electrical deposition process. However, brush plating apparatuses may generate heat due to the high current density passing through, and high temperature may also cause the efficiency of metal deposition to become worse.

SUMMARY

The present disclosure provides an electrical deposition apparatus including a brush plating head. The brush plating head includes a plurality of channels, and there are openings at the same surface of the brush plating head. Each of the channels extends from within the brush plating head to each of the openings.
Based on the above, the electrical deposition apparatus provided by the present disclosure can increase the reaction area of the brush plating head in the process of electrical deposition and improve the current density at the end of the brush plating head by the channels in the brush plating head, so as to increase the efficiency of metal deposition.
Several exemplary embodiments accompanied with figures are described in detail below to further describe the disclosure in details.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The accompanying drawings are included to provide a further understanding of the disclosure, and are incorporated in and constitute a part of this specification. The drawings illustrate embodiments of the disclosure and, together with the description, serve to explain the principles of the disclosure.

FIG. 1 is a schematic view of an electrical deposition apparatus according to a first embodiment of the present disclosure.

FIG. 2A and FIG. 2B are schematic three-dimensional views of two variant embodiments of a brush plating head of the first embodiment.

FIG. 3 is a schematic cross-sectional view of an electrical deposition apparatus according to a second embodiment of the present disclosure.

FIG. 4 is a schematic cross-sectional view of a variant embodiment of a brush plating head of the second embodiment.

FIG. 5 is a schematic cross-sectional view of an electrical deposition apparatus according to a third embodiment of the present disclosure.

FIG. 6A is a schematic cross-sectional view of an electrical deposition apparatus according to a fourth embodiment of the present disclosure.

FIG. 6B is a schematic three-dimensional view of a cover plate in FIG. 6A.

FIG. 6C is a schematic cross-sectional view of another electrical deposition apparatus according to the fourth embodiment of the present disclosure.

FIG. 6D is a schematic three-dimensional view of a cover plate in FIG. 6C.

FIG. 6E is a schematic cross-sectional view of yet another electrical deposition apparatus according to the fourth embodiment of the present disclosure.

FIG. 6F is a schematic three-dimensional view of a cover plate in FIG. 6E.

FIG. 7 is a schematic three-dimensional view of another variant embodiment of the cover plate of the fourth embodiment.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF DISCLOSED EMBODIMENTS

FIG. 1 is a schematic view of an electrical deposition apparatus according to a first embodiment of the present disclosure.
Referring to FIG. 1, an electrical deposition apparatus 100 includes a brush plating head 102, wherein the brush plating head 102 includes a plurality of channels 104, and there are openings 104 a at the same surface 102 a of the brush plating head 102. Each of the channels 104 extends from within the brush plating head 102 to each of the openings 104 a. The electrical deposition apparatus 100 also has an electric power supply 106 electrically connected to the brush plating head 102 and a to-be-plated workpiece 108 respectively. Also, since the brush plating head 102 in FIG. 1 is connected to a grip 110, the electric power supply 106 is electrically connected to the brush plating head 102 through the grip 110 indirectly. In the embodiment, the surface 102 a having the openings 104 a is a flat surface. However, in other embodiments, the surface 102 a may also be an arc surface or a corresponding shape designed corresponding to the to-be-plated workpiece 108 with different shape. The present disclosure is not limited to the flat surface. The present disclosure is not limited the shape of the brush plating head 102. As long as the brush plating head 102 includes the channels 104 therein, it belongs to the scope of the present disclosure. The shape of the brush plating head 102 can be changed according to the needs of the product design by those skilled in the art. For example, the brush plating head 102 may also be round pie-shaped, and be with a proper grip, which can be applied to a rotary brush pen. Furthermore, by the design of the brush plating head 102 having the plurality of channels 104, the weight of the brush plating head 102 can be reduced. Thus, the brush plating head 102 is easier to operate. A plating solution recycle device 112 may also be disposed at the position corresponding to the to-be-plated workpiece 108 of the electrical deposition apparatus 100. The plating solution recycle device 112 is used to recover a plating solution dropped from the to-be-plated workpiece 108. The plating solution can be supplied to the brush plating head 102 during electroplating by using an extra plating solution supply device 114. In other embodiments, the plating solution may be supplied to the brush plating head 102 by the plating solution supply device 114, and then the plating solution may reach the to-be-plated workpiece 108 through pipelines (not shown) in the grip 110.
In the embodiment, the plating solution is selected from gold (Au), silver (Ag), nickel (Ni), iron (Fe), copper (Cu), cobalt (Co), zinc (Zn), tin (Sn), tungsten (W), lead (Pb), cadmium (Cd), indium (In), chromium (Cr) plating solutions. For example, cobalt-nickel, tungsten-nickel, nickel-phosphorus, iron-nickel, cadmium-nickel, cadmium-zinc, cobalt-nickel-phosphorus, nickel-zinc, zinc-tin, tin-lead, antimony-copper-tin, indium-copper alloy plating solutions. Additionally, the plating solution may also be selected from composite plating solutions of metal and oxide, metal and nitride, or metal and inorganic substances.
In FIG. 1, the channels 104 in the brush plating head 102 are slit channels. However, the present disclosure is not limited thereto. The brush plating head of the first embodiment may be as shown in FIG. 2A and FIG. 2B.
In FIG. 2A, a brush plating head 200 has a plurality of pillar structures 202 to form a plurality of channels 204. Since the channels 204 are composed of the pillar structures 202, the end thereof may produce point discharge. Thus, the current density is further increased. Also, by using the brush plating head 200 with high current density, the problems that some metal (e.g., chromium) is not easy to be reduced and precipitated can be avoided. Additionally, although a top surface 202 a of the pillar structure 202 of FIG. 2A is a flat surface, it can be designed to an arc surface or other shape according to the needs. In FIG. 2B, the channels 208 in the brush plating head 206 are concave channels, and openings 208 a thereof are in dotted distributed. When the pillar structures 202 of FIG. 2A are separated from each other, point discharge can be produced at the pillar structure 202 and an end of one side close to a workpiece (e.g. 108 of FIG. 1) in the process of operating the electrical deposition apparatus. Thus, the current density can be further increased. By using the brush plating head 200 with high current density, the problems that some metal (e.g., chromium) is not easy to be reduced and precipitated can be avoided.
FIG. 3 is a schematic view of an electrical deposition apparatus according to a second embodiment of the present disclosure.
Referring to FIG. 3, an electrical deposition apparatus 300 of the embodiment is similar to the first embodiment. The electrical deposition apparatus 300 includes a brush plating head 302, a plurality of channels 304 located in the brush plating head 302, an electric power supply 306, a to-be-plated workpiece 308, a plating solution recycle device 312 for recycling a plating solution, and a plating solution supply device 314. In the second embodiment, the to-be-plated workpiece 308 is disposed on an electrode plate 310, and thus the electric power supply 306 is electrically connected to the brush plating head 302 and the electrode plate 310 respectively. Additionally, by a pump 318, the recycled plating solution in the plating solution recycle device 312 is supplied to the plating solution supply device 314, and then entering a plating solution supply duct 316 in the brush plating head 302. Additionally, bubbles may be produced during the electrical deposition, and the production of bubbles may cause the reaction area to become smaller. Also, the burning is easy to happen. Thus, the plating solution supply duct 316 may also be changed to as an exhaust vent to use. By the design of the exhaust vent, the production of bubbles can be exhausted during the electrical deposition. Thus, the problems of reduction of reaction area and burning with the process of electrical deposition can be avoided. Additionally, by a connection channel 320 connected to the plurality of channels 304, the production of bubbles in the channels 304 can be guided to exhaust. If the position of the connection channel 320 is lower, the plating solution in the channels 304 may be uniformly mixed through the connection channel 320. Additionally, the electrical deposition apparatus 300 may further include a friction pad 322 covering at least a surface 302 a having openings 304 a. During the electrical deposition, the brush plating head 302 is electrically connected to a positive electrode of the electric power supply 306, and the to-be-plated workpiece 308 is electrically connected to a negative electrode of the electric power supply 306 through the electrode plate 310, such that the brush plating head 302, the plating solution, and the to-be-plated workpiece 308 perform a redox reaction. The metal to be plated is reduced on the to-be-plated workpiece 308. The friction pad 322 is disposed between the brush plating head 302 and the to-be-plated workpiece 308, which can avoid the problems of the short circuit between the brush plating head 302 and the to-be-plated workpiece 308. Also, the friction pad 322 can make the plating solution pass through.
In FIG. 3, the channels 304 in the brush plating head 302 are distributed at equal distance, and have the same width. However, the present disclosure is not limited thereto. The brush plating head of the second embodiment may be as shown in FIG. 4.
Referring to FIG. 4, channels 402 a to 402 b of a brush plating head 400 are distributed at unequal distance. For example, a width W1 of the channel 402 a located at an edge of the brush plating head 400 is more than a width W2 of the channel 402 b located at a center of the brush plating head 400. Since temperature rising may cause the efficiency of metal deposition to become worse, the design may improve the situation of overheating at the edge region caused by the larger current density at the edge region of the brush plating head 400.
FIG. 5 is a schematic cross-sectional view of an electrical deposition apparatus according to a third embodiment of the present disclosure.
Referring to FIG. 5, an electrical deposition apparatus 500 of the third embodiment not only includes components of a brush plating head 502, a plurality of channels 504 located in the brush plating head 502, an electric power supply 508, a to-be-plated workpiece 510, and an electrode plate 512, but also has a spacer 506 disposed on a surface 502 a having openings 504 a. Since the spacer 506 is disposed between the brush plating head 502 and the to-be-plated workpiece 510, the problems of the short circuit between the brush plating head 502 and the to-be-plated workpiece 510 can be avoided, of which the effect is similar to the friction pad 322 in FIG. 3.
FIG. 6A is a schematic cross-sectional view of an electrical deposition apparatus according to a fourth embodiment of the present disclosure.
Referring to FIG. 6A, an electrical deposition apparatus 600 of the fourth embodiment not only includes components of a brush plating head 602, a plurality of channels 604 located in the brush plating head 602, an electric power supply 606, a to-be-plated workpiece 608, an electrode plate 610, and a friction pad 612, but also has a cover plate 614 disposed at a surface 602 a having openings 604 a. The cover plate 614 includes a plurality of through holes 616, of which the three-dimensional view is as shown in FIG. 6B, and the through holes 616 of the cover plate 614 are connected to the openings 604 a respectively. The connection between the cover plate 614 and the brush plating head 602 may be achieved by using an extra fastener (not shown) or a connection part (not shown) of a slot or a latch. The effect of the cover plate 614 is to adjust the plating solution output amount in the brush plating head 602. Thus, the through holes 616 of the cover plate 614 not only have a fixed hole diameter d1 as shown in FIG. 6A, but also have other different variants.
FIG. 6C is a schematic cross-sectional view of another electrical deposition apparatus according to the fourth embodiment of the present disclosure, wherein the component notations the same as FIG. 6A are used to represent the same or similar components. As shown in FIG. 6C, a cover plate 618 also has a plurality of through holes 620, of which the three-dimensional view is as shown in FIG. 6D. However, a hole diameter d2 of the through holes 620 close to the brush plating head 602 is more than a hole diameter d3 of the through holes 620 away from the brush plating head 602. Thus, in the process of moving the brush plating head 602, the plating solution is easier to form a vortex, so as to increase the cooling effect of the brush plating head 602.
FIG. 6E is a schematic cross-sectional view of yet another electrical deposition apparatus according to the fourth embodiment of the present disclosure, wherein the component notations the same as FIG. 6A are used to represent the same or similar components. A cover plate 622 of FIG. 6E can be provided with through holes 624 and a connection channel 626 connected to the through holes 624, of which the three-dimensional view is as shown in FIG. 6F. The effect of the connection channel 626 is similar to the connection channel 320 of FIG. 3, which can be connected to an exhaust vent 602 b disposed in the brush plating head 602, so as to exhaust the bubbles formed during the electrical deposition. Moreover, the problems of reduction of reaction area and burning can be further avoided. Additionally, the exhaust vent 602 b may also be changed to connect to the channels of the plating solution supply device for supplying the plating solution to the brush plating head 602.
FIG. 7 is a schematic three-dimensional view of another variant embodiment of the cover plate of the fourth embodiment. In FIG. 7, a cover plate 700 may further include a plurality of blind holes 702. The blind holes 702 are toward the to-be-plated workpiece (608), and are disconnected from the openings (604 a). During the electrical deposition, the blind hole 702 may be used as another space for temporarily keeping the plating solution, such that the plating solution is uniformly distributed on the to-be-plated workpiece (608) to improve the uniformity of electrical deposition. Additionally, the through holes of the cover plate 700 can have different design and distribution according to the needs, such as a dot-shaped through hole 704, a slit through hole 706, a dashed-line through hole 708, or a combination thereof The present disclosure is not limited to the shape of the through holes 704 to 708, and the shape and distribution thereof can be adjusted according to the needs of the product by those skilled in the art.
It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various modifications and variations can be made to the structure of the disclosed embodiments without departing from the scope or spirit of the disclosure. In view of the foregoing, it is intended that the disclosure cover modifications and variations of this disclosure provided they fall within the scope of the following claims and their equivalents.

Claims

What is claimed is:

1. An electrical deposition apparatus, comprising a brush plating head, the brush plating head comprises a plurality of channels, and a plurality of openings is disposed at one surface of the brush plating head, wherein each of the channels extends from within the brush plating head to each of the openings.

2. The electrical deposition apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the brush plating head has a plurality of pillar structures to form the plurality of channels.

3. The electrical deposition apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the surface having the plurality of openings comprises a flat surface or an arc surface.

4. The electrical deposition apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a plating solution recycle device.

5. The electrical deposition apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a plating solution supply device used for supplying a plating solution to the brush plating head.

6. The electrical deposition apparatus according to claim 5, wherein the brush plating head further comprises a plating solution supply duct used for supplying the plating solution to the channels.

7. The electrical deposition apparatus according to claim 5, further comprising:

a plating solution recycle device configured to recycle the plating solution; and

a pump configured to supply the recycled plating solution to the plating solution supply device.

8. The electrical deposition apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the channels in the brush plating head are distributed at unequal distance.

9. The electrical deposition apparatus according to claim 8, wherein a width of the channel located at an edge of the brush plating head is more than a width of the channel located at a center of the brush plating head.

10. The electrical deposition apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a friction pad covering at least the surface having the openings.

11. The electrical deposition apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a spacer disposed at the surface having the openings.

12. The electrical deposition apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the brush plating head further comprises a connection channel connected to the plurality of channels.

13. The electrical deposition apparatus according to claim 12, wherein the brush plating head further comprises an exhaust vent connected to the connection channel.

14. The electrical deposition apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a cover plate, disposed at the surface having the openings, wherein the cover plate comprises a plurality of through holes connected to the openings respectively.

15. The electrical deposition apparatus according to claim 14, wherein the cover plate further comprises a plurality of blind holes disconnected from the openings.

16. The electrical deposition apparatus according to claim 14, wherein each of the through holes has a fixed hole diameter.

17. The electrical deposition apparatus according to claim 14, wherein a hole diameter of the through holes close to the brush plating head is more than a hole diameter of the through holes away from the brush plating head.

18. The electrical deposition apparatus according to claim 14, wherein the through holes comprise a dot-shaped through hole, a slit through hole, a dashed-line through hole, or a combination thereof.

19. The electrical deposition apparatus according to claim 14, wherein the cover plate further comprises a connection channel connected to the plurality of through holes.

20. The electrical deposition apparatus according to claim 19, wherein the brush plating head further comprises an exhaust vent connected to the connection channel.