Patent ID: 6869484

Claim:
An apparatus for coating two substrates in the form of two rolled webs of material, said apparatus comprising: two supply means for supplying and supporting respective uncoated portions of the web substrates; two web-handling portions for guiding the respective web substrates through a coating area, the web substrates being proximal to one another in said coating area to form a deposition plenum; two take-up means for supporting respective coated portions of the web substrates and for driving the respective web substrates from the supply rollers through the coating area and onto their respective take-up means; and a coating material source for providing coating material to the deposition plenum; wherein, the webs are oriented vertically within said deposition plenum, said coating material source is located at the bottom of the deposition plenum, and said apparatus includes a exhaust system at the top of the deposition plenum, such that the coating material flows between the two webs from the bottom of the deposition plenum to the top of the deposition plenum; and wherein said two web-handling portions each include a plurality of arch bars, each of said arch bars supporting the respective webs along a horizontal line, thereby forming bends in the respective webs, wherein the coating material is redirected as it flows past the bends forming turbulence regions within the deposition plenum.