Patent ID: 7107901

Claim:
A method of cooling a mask frame and screening mask used in a screen printing process comprising the steps of: providing a cooling section having spaced apart rails or supports on which a mask frame holding a screening mask rests wherein one or more of the sides of the mask frame is cantilevered and can be bent in the space between the rails or supports; providing a cooling plate in the cooling section having a front side, rear side and opposed sides and corresponding lower surfaces and upper surfaces which lower surfaces contact the corresponding upper surfaces of the mask frame, with at least one of the lower surfaces of the cooling plate being concave downward; providing means to vertically raise and lower the cooling plate; moving a heated cleaned screening mask and mask frame to the cooling section; lowering the cooling plate and contacting the lower surfaces of the cooling plate with the upper surfaces of the mask frame whereby the corresponding sides of the mask frame and cooling plate mate and one or more sides of the mask frame are bent downward because of the concave curvature of the lower surface of the cooling plate; cooling the mask frame and screening mask with the cooling plate; and removing the cooled mask frame and screening mask from the cooling section.