Thomas Rohland | Flexoo: Can you print a 200-meter-long continuous temperature sensor and cut it to any length on-demand?
03:45 - 05:03
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Can you print a 200-meter-long continuous temperature sensor and cut it to any length on-demand?
Integrating complex sensory arrays into challenging physical environments often introduces prohibitive wiring bottlenecks and high connector failure rates. Thomas Rohland introduces Flexoo's patented versatile wiring solution, showcasing how a continuous roll-to-roll printed layout can overcome traditional geometric limits.
By utilizing advanced printing inks and flexible polymer substrates, this process enables the fabrication of a continuous 200-meter-long temperature sensor array. The key technical breakthrough lies in the architecture: the printed array can be cut at any arbitrary interval to yield custom lengths while maintaining full readout capability through a single backend electronic controller.
This cut-to-size sensory strip opens new possibilities for large-scale spatial profiling. Engineers can wrap the ribbon around industrial bioreactors to monitor localized thermal gradients in 20-to-30 cm steps, or implement spatial cell-level temperature and pressure tracking throughout large-scale battery energy storage systems (BESS).
In this short video, you can learn:
* How roll-to-roll printing processes produce continuous 200-meter sensor layouts
* The electrical design principles allowing cut-to-length flexible circuits with a single-point controller interface
* Practical applications in spatial thermal profiling for industrial bioreactors and EV battery stacks
📋 **Clip Abstract** Discover Flexoo's patented versatile wiring technology designed to simplify flexible sensor integration over long distances. Learn how continuous roll-to-roll printing allows sensory lines to be cut-to-size on demand without compromising electrical addressing.
#RollToRollElectronics, #CutToLengthCircuits, #PrintedSensorArrays, #FlexiblePrintedCircuits, #SpatialThermalProfiling, #BESSMonitoring
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07:43 - 09:00
How do you seamlessly integrate five distinct printing, coating, and curing technologies on a single roll-to-roll platform?
How do you seamlessly integrate five distinct printing, coating, and curing technologies on a single roll-to-roll platform?
Scaling up printed electronics from laboratory scale to high-throughput manufacturing requires highly flexible, multi-process web handling platforms. Thomas Rohland details the technical capabilities of their Heidelberg-engineered Gallos pilot and production systems, which allow the rapid sequence of diverse deposition mechanics on a single pass.
The system is designed to sequentially execute up to five different processes, including rotary screen printing, flexography, gravure printing, and slot-die coating. Curing is managed inline using a broad toolkit of technologies—such as infrared, hot air, mercury UV lamps, and UV LED arrays—alongside mechanical conversion stages like lamination, kiss-cutting, and hole-punching.
Beyond ink deposition, this hybrid platform handles complex substrate modification. The machine controls web tension and edge guides to perform high-speed, inline hot-embossing of precise microstructures directly onto polyethylene terephthalate (PET) and polycarbonate (PC) foils, opening up advanced roll-to-roll optical and microfluidic applications.
In this short video, you can learn:
* The configuration of hybrid R2R systems combining rotary screen, flexo, gravure, and slot-die printing
* Curing parameter optimization using UV-LED, mercury UV, and IR hot-air systems on active webs
* Techniques for continuous hot-embossing of microstructures onto PET and polycarbonate substrates
📋 **Clip Abstract** Explore the advanced multi-process roll-to-roll printing platforms utilized for scaling flexible electronic components. Learn how combining diverse coating methods with precise thermal and UV curing enables the high-speed manufacturing of microstructured polymer substrates.
#RollToRollManufacturing, #SlotDieCoating, #ContinuousHotEmbossing, #InlineCuring, #PrintedElectronics, #FlexibleElectronics
12:35 - 13:21
Is it possible to run high-precision, sub-micron photolithography in a continuous roll-to-roll process at 8 meters per minute?
Is it possible to run high-precision, sub-micron photolithography in a continuous roll-to-roll process at 8 meters per minute?
Adapting standard web-handling machinery to support high-precision semiconductor or display processes requires custom hardware modification and modular design. Thomas Rohland explains how their modular, "Lego-like" roll-to-roll machinery allows the physical integration of proprietary, non-standard processing modules directly onto the web line.
A major milestone of this custom-engineered approach is their inline roll-to-roll photolithography module. Developed in collaboration with an industrial partner, this custom subsystem operates at a continuous web speed of eight meters per minute specifically to achieve high-precision alignment for liquid crystal displays (LCDs).
By capturing and feeding real-time machine signals back into the master register control loop, the system dynamically manages speed, unwinding, and winding tension. This real-time feedback ensures precise alignment of fine structures across a moving polymer web, bridging the gap between low-cost printed electronics and high-precision optoelectronics.
In this short video, you can learn:
* Modular engineering strategies for adapting standard R2R web lines with custom processing heads
* How inline roll-to-roll photolithography achieves precise patterning at speeds of 8 m/min
* The role of real-time machine signal feedback in managing high-precision alignment for display substrates
📋 **Clip Abstract** Discover how modular roll-to-roll machinery can be modified with custom components to execute high-precision semiconductor-level tasks. Learn about the technical execution of inline roll-to-roll photolithography designed for scalable display and optoelectronic alignment.
#RollToRollPhotolithography, #RegisterControl, #PrecisionWebHandling, #InlinePhotolithography, #FlexibleElectronics, #DisplayManufacturing