Patent ID: 7863583

Claim:
Apparatus 1 for effecting a cure of coatings on a substrate S under an inert gas atmosphere, comprising side covers ( 2 ), ( 3 ), ( 4 ), and ( 5 ), top and bottom covers ( 6 ) and ( 7 ), with ( 2 ), ( 3 ), ( 4 ), ( 5 ), ( 6 ) and ( 7 ) together enclosing an interior, one or more dividing walls ( 8 ) which subdivide the interior, the dividing walls ( 8 ) finishing at the bottom cover ( 7 ) and leaving open a distance (d 1 ) from the top cover ( 6 ), one or more dividing walls ( 9 ) which subdivide the interior, the dividing walls ( 9 ) finishing at the top cover ( 6 ) and leaving open a distance d 2 from the bottom cover ( 7 ), with ( 8 ) and ( 9 ), together with the respectively adjacent dividing wall ( 8 ) and ( 9 ), and optionally, with the side covers ( 2 ) or ( 3 ), forming a subdivided interior (compartment), at least one radiation source ( 10 ) radiating within the interior or into the interior or both, at least one gas supply means ( 11 ), with which a gas or gas mixture can be passed into the interior or formed therein, at least one conveying means ( 12 ) for the substrate (S), inlet ( 13 ) and outlet ( 14 ), where the dividing walls ( 8 ) stand substantially perpendicular to the bottom cover ( 7 ), the dividing walls ( 9 ) stand substantially perpendicular to the top cover ( 6 ), the distances (d 1 ) and (d 2 ) and also the breadth (b) of apparatus ( 1 ) being chosen such that they are greater than the dimensions of the substrate (S) along the conveying direction of the conveying means ( 12 ), and means ( 2 ), ( 3 ), ( 8 ) and ( 9 ) form at least 4 compartments.