SYSTEM FOR CLEANING PARTICLES FROM A SURFACE

摘要

A system for axially reciprocating a tacky roller (contact cleaning roller, or CCR) across a substrate being cleaned by the roller, to spread particles which are non-uniformly distributed on the substrate surface over a broader area of the tacky roller collecting surface, thereby decreasing the rate of decay of collecting efficiency, improving the average cleanliness of the treated substrate, and extending the operating lifetime of the tacky roller between renewals. The roller may or may not be in contact with the substrate surface during reciprocation of the roller. The system includes a second CCR to alternate with the first CCR, such that at least one roller is cleaning the substrate while another roller is being renewed. The system can be configured to provide full-width CCRs which overlap both edges of a surface at all times during reciprocation. It also can include shorter CCRs for cleaning only a portion of a surface, such as along only one edge, and can also include CCRs substantially shorter than the width of the substrate which can be programmed to reciprocate periodically across the entire substrate width. The system is useful for cleaning workpiece substrates, such as webs and sheets, and also process hardware elements such as calender rollers, coating rollers, conveyance rollers, and other CCRs having surfaces of lower tackiness.