TWI686285B - Extruding device, wax printing device and wax printing method thereof - Google Patents

Abstract

An extruding device adapted to provide a forming material is provided. The extruding device includes a storage tube, a piston element and an output element. The storage tube has a space adapted to fill the forming material. The piston element is disposed in the space and covers one end of the forming material. The piston element is adapted to move in the space. The output element is disposed at one end of the storage tube and covers the other end of the forming material. The output element has an opening. Wherein the storage tube and the output element are adapted to receive a heat source to heat the forming material to a liquid state. The forming material is pushed toward the output element by the piston element in the storage tube and outputted from the opening. In addition, the wax printing device and wax printing method thereof are also provided.

Description

Extrusion device, wax printing device and wax printing method

The invention relates to an output device, a printing device and a printing method thereof, and particularly relates to an extrusion device, a wax printing device and a wax printing method thereof.

The paper microfluidic paper-based device (μPAD) is a sensor built on paper. Because it uses low-cost materials as the substrate, this sensor is very cheap and easy to carry. In addition, as a disposable sensor, it is also very convenient to use, it has the potential to become a commercial point-of-care device (point-of-care), and its characteristics are also in line with the World Health Organization (WHO) The "Affordable, Sensitive, Specific, User-Friendly, Fast and Powerful, Equipment-Free" medical equipment in the overview. So far, many research scholars have applied paper micro-channel analysis devices to various kinds of sensing, such as glucose, protein, uric acid, E. coli, cancer cells, and many other chemical substances, which proves that paper micro-channel analysis devices can be put into medical treatment. Diagnosis and environmental monitoring.

In the paper microchannel analysis device, since the paper substrate is hydrophilic, the In order to manufacture a paper microchannel analysis device, a hydrophobic barrier is usually first established to restrict the fluid flow in a desired position or to indicate the fluid along a desired path. A variety of technologies such as photoresist, plasma processing, wax processing, screen printing, flexographic printing, polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) printing, and laser processing technologies have been developed for Create a hydrophobic barrier.

But for now, although paper microchannel analysis devices have developed many manufacturing methods, most of the manufacturing technologies have some shortcomings, and the materials used in some manufacturing technologies are quite expensive. In addition, the use of simpler or lower-cost manufacturing techniques can also easily reduce the printing resolution of the paper micro-channel analysis device. Therefore, how to simplify the complicated multi-step technology to effectively reduce the manufacturing cost while maintaining a good printing resolution is a goal that those skilled in the art are committed to achieve.

The invention provides an extrusion device, a wax printing device and a wax printing method thereof, which can effectively simplify the manufacturing process of the micro-flow channel element, greatly reduce the manufacturing cost thereof, and at the same time improve the printing resolution of the micro-flow channel element.

An embodiment of the invention provides an extrusion device suitable for providing a molding material. The pressing device includes a hollow storage tube, a piston element and an output element. The hollow storage tube has an accommodating space, which is suitable for filling the molding material. The piston element is disposed in the accommodating space and covers one end of the molding material. The piston element is adapted to move in the receiving space. The output element is disposed at one end of the hollow storage tube and covers the other end of the molding material. The output element has an opening. Among them, the hollow storage tube and output The element is adapted to receive a heat source to heat the molding material to a liquid state. The molding material is pushed by the piston element toward the output element in the hollow storage tube and is output from the opening.

In an embodiment of the invention, the main component of the molding material is paraffin.

In an embodiment of the invention, the above-mentioned pressing device further includes a pump connected to the piston element. The pump receives an operation signal to move the piston element in the accommodation space.

In an embodiment of the present invention, the above-mentioned pressing device further includes a cover member disposed at the end of the hollow storage tube opposite to the output element. The cover member has a perforation adapted to pass a connecting rod of the piston element through the perforation.

Another embodiment of the present invention provides a wax printing device suitable for making a micro-channel element. The wax printing device includes a moving module and a pressing device. The mobile module includes a mobile device and a bearing platform. The extrusion device is configured on the mobile module, and is suitable for moving in a three-dimensional space by the mobile device and providing a molding material. The pressing device includes a hollow storage tube, a piston element and an output element. The hollow storage tube has an accommodating space, which is suitable for filling the molding material. The piston element is disposed in the accommodating space and covers one end of the molding material. The piston element is adapted to move in the receiving space. The output element is disposed at one end of the hollow storage tube and covers the other end of the molding material. The output element has an opening. Wherein, the hollow storage tube and the output element are adapted to receive a heat source to heat the molding material into a liquid state. The molding material is pushed by the piston element toward the output element in the hollow storage tube and output from the opening onto a paper body, so that the liquid molding material solidifies in the paper body to form a micro-channel structure.

In an embodiment of the invention, the main component of the molding material is paraffin.

In an embodiment of the invention, the above-mentioned pressing device further includes a pump connected to the piston element. The pump receives an operation signal to move the piston element in the accommodation space.

In an embodiment of the present invention, the above-mentioned pressing device further includes a cover member disposed at the end of the hollow storage tube opposite to the output element. The cover member has a perforation adapted to move the piston element in the perforation.

In an embodiment of the invention, the wax printing device further includes a processor, which is electrically connected to the mobile module and the pump. The processor is adapted to provide operating signals.

In an embodiment of the invention, the wax printing device described above further includes a heating device connected to the pressing device, which is adapted to provide a heat source to the output element.

In an embodiment of the invention, the above wax printing device further includes at least one electronic device connected to the processor.

Another embodiment of the present invention provides a wax printing method, which is suitable for manufacturing a micro-channel element. The wax printing method includes: providing a wax printing device, including a moving module, a pressing device, and a pump. The extrusion device is configured on the mobile module. The extrusion device includes a hollow storage tube, a piston element and an output element; provides a paper body to a carrying platform of the mobile module and provides a molding material to the hollow storage material In the tube; provide an operation signal to the wax printing device; provide a heat source to the extrusion device according to the operation signal and control the moving module to move the extrusion device; provide molding material to the paper body to form a micro-channel structure; and finish Micro-channel components.

In an embodiment of the present invention, the wax printing device further includes a heating device connected to the pressing device, and the method for providing a heat source to the pressing device according to the operation signal further includes: detecting A temperature signal; and activate the heating device according to the temperature signal to adjust the temperature of the extrusion device.

In an embodiment of the present invention, the method for providing a molding material to a paper body to form a micro-channel structure further includes: providing a molding material to the paper body to solidify in the paper body to form a part of the micro-channel structure; And repeatedly providing the molding material to the paper body to push a part of the micro-channel structure in the paper body away from the pressing device and solidify in the paper body to form another part of the micro-channel structure.

Based on the above, in the wax printing device and wax printing method of the present invention, the wax printing device moves the extrusion device by the moving module, and at the same time heats the molding material in the extrusion device by the heat source and by the piston The element is pushed to provide a molding material onto the paper body to form a micro-channel structure, and then a micro-channel element is produced. Therefore, the manufacturing process of the micro-channel element can be effectively simplified, the manufacturing cost can be greatly reduced, and the printing resolution of the micro-channel element can be improved.

In order to make the above-mentioned features and advantages of the present invention more obvious and understandable, the embodiments are specifically described below in conjunction with the accompanying drawings for detailed description as follows.

10: paper body

20: molding material

30: Micro-channel structure

50: Micro-channel components

100: Wax printing device

110: mobile module

112: mobile device

114: Carrying platform

115: the first driving element

116: Second drive element

117: Third drive element

120: Extrusion device

121: Hollow storage tube

122: Piston element

123: Piston parts

124: connecting rod

125: output element

126: Pump

127: cover

128: limit piece

130: processor

140: heating device

160: frame

G: accommodating space

H: perforated

O: opening

S200~S250: Steps

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of a wax printing apparatus according to an embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 2 is a schematic cross-sectional view of the extrusion device in FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a graph showing the width of the micro-channel structure printed by the wax printing apparatus of FIG. 1.

FIG. 4 is a flowchart of steps of a wax printing method according to an embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of a wax printing apparatus according to an embodiment of the invention. 2 is a schematic cross-sectional view of the extrusion device in FIG. 1. Please refer to FIGS. 1 and 2. In this embodiment, the wax printing apparatus 100 can be regarded as being placed in the space defined by the rectangular coordinate system formed by the X-axis, Y-axis, and Z-axis. The wax printing apparatus 100 is suitable for making a micro-channel element 50. The micro-channel element 50 is, for example, a paper micro-channel analysis device or other paper-based detection device that can be used to detect or analyze chemical substances. Specifically, in this embodiment, the wax printing apparatus 100 provides a molding material 20 onto a paper body 10 to form a micro-channel element 50.

Specifically, the wax printing device 100 includes a moving module 110 and a pressing device 120. The mobile module 110 includes a mobile device 112 and a carrying platform 114. In the present embodiment, the mobile device 112 is used to move the extrusion device 120 in a three-dimensional space, and the carrying platform 114 is used to carry the micro-channel element 50 in production. For example, in this embodiment, the carrier platform 114 and the moving device 112 are, for example, the first driving element 115 to move the micro-channel element 50 to be manufactured and the second driving element in the Y-axis and X-axis directions, respectively. 116 Move the pressing device 120 to print. Before printing starts, the moving device 112 performs initial height correction with the third driving element 117 in the Z-axis direction, for example. In this way, high-precision automatic control can be realized to improve the printing resolution of the micro-channel element 50. The first driving element 115, the second The driving element 116 and the third driving element 117 may use stepping motors, but the invention is not limited thereto. In other embodiments, the mobile device 112 and the carrying platform 114 may be configured to drive objects in different dimensions to move objects, and the invention is not limited thereto.

The pressing device 120 is disposed on the mobile module 110 and is suitable for moving in the three-dimensional space by the mobile device 110 and providing the molding material 20. In this embodiment, the main component of the molding material 20 is paraffin wax. However, in other embodiments, for the molding material 20, for example, a solid ink such as a polymer material or a low melting point metal may be used, and the present invention is not limited thereto. The pressing device 120 includes a hollow storage tube 121, a piston element 122 and an output element 125.

The hollow storage tube 121 has an accommodating space G suitable for filling the molding material 20. The material of the hollow storage tube 121 is, for example, metal. For example, in this embodiment, the hollow storage tube 121 is a hollow copper tube, but in other embodiments, it may be made of other metals or thermally conductive materials. In this embodiment, the inner diameter of the hollow storage tube 121 is 14 mm and the outer diameter is 22 mm, but the invention is not limited to this.

The piston element 122 is disposed in the accommodation space G and covers one end of the molding material 20, and the piston element 122 is adapted to move in the accommodation space G. In detail, in this embodiment, the pressing device 120 further includes a pump 126 connected to the piston element 122. The pump 126 is, for example, a stepping motor, but the invention is not limited thereto. The pump 126 receives an operation signal to move the piston element 122 in the accommodation space G. Specifically, the piston element 122 includes a piston member 123 and a connecting rod 124. In this embodiment, the diameter of the piston member 123 is 14 mm and the thickness is 6 mm, and its main material is poly armor Polymethylmethacrylate (PMMA) or other types of plastics, the invention is not limited thereto. The connecting rod 124 is connected between the piston member 123 and the pump 126. Therefore, when the pump 126 receives the operation signal, the piston 124 is pushed by the connecting rod 124, and the molding material 20 is pushed out.

In this embodiment, the squeezing device 120 further includes a cover 127 disposed at the end of the hollow storage tube 121 opposite to the output element 125 to seal the hollow storage tube 121. The cover member 127 has a perforation H suitable for moving the piston element 122 in the perforation H. Specifically, the connecting rod 124 of the piston element 122 extends through the perforation H. In this embodiment, the cover 127 is, for example, a silicone plug with a diameter of 14 mm.

In addition, in this embodiment, the pressing device 120 further has a limiting member 128 disposed on the connecting rod 124. When the pump 126 pushes the piston member 123 through the connecting rod 124, the connecting rod 124 can stop moving further by the frame 160 supporting the pressing device 120 against the stopper 128. In other words, the user can further limit the movable range of the piston member 123 by adjusting the limit member 128 on the connecting rod 124, but the invention is not limited thereto.

The output element 125 is disposed at one end of the hollow storage tube 121 and covers the other end of the molding material 20. Specifically, the output element 125 covers one end of the hollow storage tube 121, and the molding material 20 is filled between the output element 125 and the piston member 123. In detail, the output element 125 has an opening O through which the molding material 20 can be extruded. The material of the output element 125 is, for example, metal. For example, in this embodiment, the output element 125 is a spiral needle made of aluminum, and the aperture of the opening is less than 0.3 mm. However, in other embodiments, it may be Other metals Or made of thermally conductive material.

In this embodiment, since the molding material 20 uses paraffin wax with a melting point higher than normal temperature, when extruding out of the molding material 20, a heat source can be additionally provided to the hollow storage tube 121 made of metal or other thermally conductive materials or The output element 125 further heats and melts the molding material 20 into a liquid state. In this way, the molding material 20 can be heated and melted into a liquid state by the heat conduction effect of the hollow storage tube 121 and the output element 125.

While the molding material 20 is heated and melted into a liquid state, the applied pressure is pushed by the piston element 122 toward the output element 125, so that the molding material 20 can be smoothly extruded from the opening O of the output element 125 to be contained in the paper body 10 Solidification forms a micro-channel structure 30, and then a micro-channel element 50 is made. In this way, the wax printing apparatus 100 of the present embodiment can complete the micro-channel element 50 without using additional organic solvents, light masks, or various molds. Therefore, the manufacturing process of the micro-channel device 50 can be effectively simplified, and the manufacturing cost can be greatly reduced.

It is worth mentioning that, in this embodiment, the molding material 20 can be adjusted to provide the number of times according to the type or demand of the micro-channel element 50 to be manufactured. In detail, the molding material 20 exhibits a liquid state when extruded by the extrusion device 120, so it can penetrate into the fiber gap of the paper body 10 by the capillary phenomenon. At this time, since the molding material 20 is far from the heat source, the viscosity in the paper body 10 will rapidly increase to form the micro-channel structure 30.

Therefore, the user can provide the molding material 20 to the paper body again to push the previously formed micro-channel structure 30, while the molding material 20 just provided rapidly increases the viscosity to form a new micro-channel structure 30. In other words, as the number of times the molding material 20 is provided increases, the reachable depth range of the formed micro-channel structure 30 Big. In this way, compared with the traditional manufacturing method, this embodiment can increase the depth of the micro-channel structure 30 in the micro-channel element 50 while reducing the influence on the forming width of the micro-channel structure 30, thereby reducing the micro-channel The effect of the printing resolution of the element 50.

In this embodiment, the wax printing device 100 further includes a processor 130, a heating device 140, and at least one electronic device 150. The processor 130 is electrically connected to the mobile module 110, the pressing device 120, the heating device 140, and at least one electronic device 150. In detail, the processor 130 can provide operation signals to the first driving element 115, the second driving element 116, and the third in the mobile module 110 for driving the pressing device 120 or the paper body 10 to move in the three-dimensional space, respectively The driving element 117 moves the pressing device 120 to form the micro-channel structure 30 in the paper body 10.

The processor 130 includes, for example, a central processing unit (Central Processing Unit, CPU), a microprocessor (Microprocessor), a microprocessor (Micro controller), a digital signal processor (Digital Signal Processor, DSP), a programmable controller, A programmable logic device (Programmable Logic Device, PLD) or other similar device or a combination of these devices is not limited by the present invention. In this embodiment, the processor 130 uses an Arduino Mega 2560 microprocessor.

In addition, the processor 130 can further provide an operation signal to the pump 126 on the pressing device 120, and at the same time provide an operation signal to the heating device 140. Therefore, the molding material 20 in the extrusion device 120 can be instantly heated and extruded by the piston element 122. In this way, the molding material 20 can be in a liquid state and penetrate into the paper body 10 to form the micro-channel structure 30. Therefore, compared to the traditional way of manufacturing the micro-channel element, the wax printing apparatus 100 of this embodiment does not need to extrude the molding material 20, The paper body 10 is additionally heated to melt the molding material 20.

In this embodiment, the heating device 140 is connected to the pressing device 120 and provides a heat source to the output element 125. In detail, the heating device 140 is, for example, a heating element embedded in the output element 125, and heats the output element 125 and the hollow storage tube 121 by the current information provided by the processor 130, thereby melting the molding near the opening O Material 20. In addition, the processor 130 can also monitor the actual temperature of the output element 125 and adjust the current information input to the heating device 140 to further control the temperature of the molding material 20 at the time of output. In this way, the distance of the molding material 20 flowing on the paper body 10 can be controlled by the effect of the temperature gradient to complete the high-resolution printing effect.

In this embodiment, the electronic device 150 is, for example, a battery or a display, which is used to provide power to the processor 130 or display production information, respectively. The present invention is not limited to this.

3 is a graph of the width of the micro-channel structure printed by the wax printing apparatus of FIG. 1. Please refer to FIGS. 1 to 3 at the same time. The horizontal axis is the printing width of the wax printing apparatus 100 in micrometers, and the vertical axis is the actual width measured on the micro-channel element 50 in micrometers. As shown in FIG. 3, the wax printing apparatus 100 of the present embodiment can print the micro-channel structure 30 printed with a printing width of 200 to 500 microns, and the actual width of 400 to 1000 microns can be obtained by actual measurement. The experimental data shows that the correlation coefficient can be as high as 0.985, and the micro-channel structure 30 with an effective width of 468 microns can be formed. In other words, the wax printing apparatus 100 of this embodiment can effectively control the flow distance of the liquid molding material 20 by the heating device 140, thereby improving the printing resolution of the micro-channel element 50.

FIG. 4 is a flowchart of steps of a wax printing method according to an embodiment of the invention. please 1, 2 and 4, the wax printing method of this embodiment can be applied to the wax printing device of FIG. 1, but the wax printing method of this embodiment is not limited to the wax printing device of FIG. 1. carried out. In step S200, a wax printing device 100 is provided, including a mobile module 110, an extrusion device 120, and a pump 126. The extrusion device 120 is disposed on the mobile module 110, and the extrusion device 120 includes a hollow storage tube 121, a piston Element 122 and output element 125.

Next, in step S210, the paper body 10 is provided onto the carrying platform 114 of the mobile module 110, and the molding material 20 is provided into the hollow storage tube 120. Next, in step S220, an operation signal is provided to the wax printing apparatus 100. Next, in step S230, a heat source is provided to the pressing device 120 according to the operation signal and the mobile module 110 is controlled to move the pressing device 120. Next, in step S240, a molding material 20 is provided to the paper body 10 to form the micro-channel structure 30.

Finally, in step S240, the micro-channel element 50 is completed. In this way, the wax printing apparatus 100 of the present embodiment can complete the micro-channel element 50 without using additional organic solvents, light masks, or various molds. Therefore, the manufacturing process of the micro-channel element 50 can be effectively simplified, the manufacturing cost can be greatly reduced, and the printing resolution of the micro-channel element 50 can be improved.

In addition, in this embodiment, the wax printing device 100 further includes a heating device 140 connected to the pressing device 120, and may further include a step of detecting a temperature signal on the pressing device 120 in step S230 , And then activate the heating device 140 according to the temperature signal to adjust the temperature of the pressing device 120. In this way, the temperature of the molding material 20 in the extrusion device 120 can be further controlled by The step of heating the paper body 10 additionally to melt the molding material 20 is omitted.

It is worth mentioning that, in this embodiment, in step S240, the method of providing the molding material 20 to the paper body 10 to form the micro-channel structure 30 further includes providing the molding material 20 to the paper body 10 Part of the micro-channel structure 30 is solidified. Next, the molding material 20 is repeatedly provided to the paper body 10 to push a part of the micro-channel structure 30 in the paper body 10 away from the pressing device 120, and solidifies in the paper body 10 to form the micro-channel structure Another part of 30. In addition, in this embodiment, the number of times that the molding material 20 is provided to the paper body 10 can be adjusted according to different types of micro-channel elements 50 to increase the depth of the micro-channel structure 30 in the micro-channel elements 50 At the same time, the influence on the forming width of the micro-channel structure 30 is reduced, and the influence on the printing resolution of the micro-channel element 50 is also reduced.

In summary, in the wax printing device and wax printing method of the present invention, the wax printing device moves the extrusion device by the moving module, and at the same time heats the molding material in the extrusion device by the heat source and borrows Pushed by the piston element to provide the molding material to the paper body to form a micro-channel structure, and then the micro-channel element is manufactured. Therefore, the manufacturing process of the micro-channel element can be effectively simplified, the manufacturing cost can be greatly reduced, and the printing resolution of the micro-channel element can be improved.

Although the present invention has been disclosed as above with examples, it is not intended to limit the present invention. Any person with ordinary knowledge in the technical field can make some changes and modifications without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention. The scope of protection of the present invention shall be subject to the scope defined in the appended patent application.

10‧‧‧paper

20‧‧‧Molding material

30‧‧‧Micro channel structure

50‧‧‧Micro channel components

110‧‧‧Mobile module

120‧‧‧Extrusion device

121‧‧‧Hollow storage tube

122‧‧‧Piston components

123‧‧‧piston parts

124‧‧‧Link

125‧‧‧Output element

126‧‧‧Pump

127‧‧‧Cover

128‧‧‧Limiting parts

130‧‧‧ processor

140‧‧‧Heating device

160‧‧‧frame

G‧‧‧accommodation space

H‧‧‧Perforation

O‧‧‧ opening

Claims (9)

A wax printing device suitable for making a micro-channel element, including: a mobile module, including a mobile device and a carrying platform; and an extrusion device, which is arranged on the mobile module, the extrusion device is suitable for By the moving device moving in a three-dimensional space and providing a molding material, the extrusion device includes: a hollow storage tube with a containing space suitable for filling the molding material; and a piston element arranged in the container Placed in the space and covering one end of the molding material, the piston element is adapted to move in the containing space; and an output element is disposed at one end of the hollow storage tube and covers the other end of the molding material, the The output element has an opening, wherein the hollow storage tube and the output element are adapted to receive a heat source to heat the molding material into a liquid state, wherein the molding material is pushed by the piston element toward the output element in the hollow storage tube Output from the opening to a paper body, so that the liquid molding material solidifies in the paper body to form a micro-channel structure. The wax printing device as described in item 1 of the patent application, wherein the main component of the molding material is paraffin. The wax printing device as described in item 1 of the patent application scope, wherein the pressing device further includes a pump connected to the piston element, the pump receives an operation signal so that the piston element is in the accommodating space mobile. The wax printing device as described in item 1 of the patent application range, wherein the pressing device further includes a cover member disposed at an end of the hollow storage tube opposite to the output element, the cover member having a perforation suitable for The piston element is moved in the perforation. The wax printing device as described in item 1 of the patent application scope further includes: a processor electrically connected to the mobile module and the pump, the processor being adapted to provide the operation signal. The wax printing device as described in item 1 of the patent application scope further includes: a heating device connected to the pressing device, suitable for providing the heat source to the output element. The wax printing device as described in item 5 of the patent application scope, wherein the wax printing device further comprises: at least one electronic device connected to the processor. A wax printing method, suitable for making a micro-channel element, includes: providing a wax printing device, including a moving module, an extrusion device, a pump, and a heating device connected to the extrusion device, The squeezing device is configured on the mobile module. The squeezing device includes a hollow storage tube, a piston element and an output element; provides a paper body to a carrying platform of the mobile module and provides a molding material Into the hollow storage tube; provide an operation signal to the wax printing device; provide a heat source to the extrusion device according to the operation signal and control the mobile module to move the extrusion device, including: detecting the extrusion A temperature signal on the pressing device; and starting the heating device according to the temperature signal to adjust the temperature of the pressing device; Providing the molding material to the paper body to form a micro-channel structure; and completing the micro-channel element. The wax printing method as described in item 8 of the patent application scope, wherein the method of providing the molding material to the paper body to form the micro-flow channel structure further comprises: providing the molding material to the paper body to form in the paper body Solidification to form a part of the micro-channel structure; and repeatedly providing the molding material to the paper body to push a part of the micro-channel structure in the paper body away from the pressing device, and in the paper The body solidifies to form another part of the micro-channel structure.

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