CN114574833A

CN114574833A - Conveying device and film forming device

Info

Publication number: CN114574833A
Application number: CN202111373251.0A
Authority: CN
Inventors: 砂川贵宏; 佐藤功康
Original assignee: Canon Tokki Corp
Current assignee: Canon Tokki Corp
Priority date: 2020-11-30
Filing date: 2021-11-19
Publication date: 2022-06-03
Anticipated expiration: 2041-11-19
Also published as: JP7213226B2; JP2022086585A; CN114574833B; KR20220076323A

Abstract

The invention provides a conveying device and a film forming device, which can facilitate the maintenance of an adhesion preventing plate of a ceiling covering the conveying space of the in-line film forming device. A conveying device of an in-line film forming device for forming a film while conveying a substrate includes: a ceiling portion forming a ceiling of a conveying space of the conveying device; a plurality of adhesion preventing plates covering the inner surface of the ceiling portion; and a detachable structure capable of detaching the adhesion preventing plate from the ceiling portion.

Description

Conveying device and film forming device

Technical Field

The present invention relates to a substrate transfer apparatus and a film deposition apparatus.

Background

In the production of an organic EL display or the like, an in-line film forming apparatus is known which forms a film of a vapor deposition material on a substrate using a mask. In reference 1, a film deposition apparatus is shown in which a film is deposited while a substrate is conveyed in a chamber for film deposition.

Documents of the prior art

Patent document

Patent document 1: japanese patent laid-open No. 2014-173170

Here, an adhesion prevention plate for preventing an evaporation material discharged from an evaporation source provided in the film forming apparatus from adhering to and accumulating on a wall of the chamber space is provided on a ceiling portion of the chamber space. In addition, in order to prevent the evaporation material that has adhered to the adhesion preventing plate of the ceiling portion and solidified from falling onto the substrate or from falling onto the driving structure of the film forming apparatus, and thus causing a film forming failure or an operation failure of the film forming apparatus, maintenance work for periodically replacing or cleaning the adhesion preventing plate is required.

Disclosure of Invention

The invention provides a technology for facilitating maintenance of an adhesion preventing plate on a ceiling covering a conveying space of an in-line film forming device.

Means for solving the problems

According to an aspect of the present invention, there is provided a carrier device for an inline film deposition apparatus for depositing a film on a substrate while the substrate is being carried,

the conveying device comprises:

a ceiling portion forming a ceiling of a conveying space of the conveying device;

a plurality of adhesion preventing plates covering an inner surface of the ceiling portion; and

and a detachable structure that allows the attachment prevention plate to be detached from the ceiling portion.

According to one aspect of the present invention, there is provided a film deposition apparatus of an inline type for performing film deposition while conveying a substrate,

the film forming apparatus includes:

a conveying unit for conveying the substrate; and

a vapor deposition unit disposed below the conveying unit and discharging a vapor deposition material to the substrate conveyed by the conveying unit,

the conveying unit includes:

a ceiling portion forming a ceiling of a conveyance space of the conveyance unit;

Effects of the invention

According to the present invention, it is possible to facilitate maintenance of the adhesion preventing plate on the ceiling covering the transport space of the in-line film forming apparatus.

Drawings

Fig. 1 is a schematic view of a film deposition apparatus according to an embodiment.

Fig. 2 is a diagram illustrating a film formation process of the film formation apparatus.

Fig. 3 is a diagram showing separation of the transfer unit and the vapor deposition unit.

Fig. 4 is a schematic view of a conveyance unit according to an embodiment.

Fig. 5 is a cross-sectional view of the conveying unit at plane X.

Fig. 6 is a cross-sectional view of the conveying unit at the plane Y.

Fig. 7 is a view showing the top adhesion preventing plate detached from the top surface side.

Fig. 8 is a view showing the top adhesion preventing plate removed from the side surface side.

Description of reference numerals

Film forming apparatus 1, conveying unit 2, vapor deposition unit 3, top adhesion preventing plate 23, and top cover 26.

Detailed Description

Hereinafter, embodiments will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. The following embodiments do not limit the invention according to the claims. In the embodiments, a plurality of features are described, but all of the plurality of features are not limited to the features essential to the invention, and a plurality of features may be arbitrarily combined. In the drawings, the same or similar components are denoted by the same reference numerals, and redundant description thereof is omitted.

[ outline of film Forming apparatus ]

Fig. 1(a) and 1(B) are schematic views showing a film deposition apparatus according to the present embodiment. The film forming apparatus 1 of the present embodiment shown in fig. 1(a) and 1(B) is an inline film forming apparatus that performs film formation while conveying a substrate. The film forming apparatus 1 of the present embodiment is applied to a production line of electronic devices such as display panels of organic EL display devices for smart phones, for example. The film forming apparatus 1 includes a conveyance unit 2, a vapor deposition unit 3, and a frame 4.

The transfer unit 2 is a device for transferring a mask tray on which a substrate masked by a mask such as a metal mask having an opening pattern corresponding to a thin film pattern formed on the substrate is placed, from the carry-in port 5 to the carry-out port 6. Further, an opening is disposed in the bottom surface of the transfer unit 2 so that the vapor deposition material discharged from the vapor deposition source of the vapor deposition unit 3 is vapor-deposited on the substrate disposed on the mask tray.

The vapor deposition unit 3 has a vapor deposition source described later, and has an opening for discharging a vapor deposition material to the substrate conveyed by the conveying unit 2 on the top surface side of the vapor deposition unit 3. The separation between the transport unit 2 and the vapor deposition unit 3, which will be described later, is performed by the elevating mechanism 41 and the sliding mechanism 42 disposed in the vapor deposition unit 3 or the frame 4.

The frame 4 is configured to support the transport unit 2 and the vapor deposition unit 3. In the present embodiment, a case where the frame 4 includes the elevating mechanism 41 and the sliding mechanism 42 is described, but at least one of the elevating mechanism and the sliding mechanism may be provided in the vapor deposition unit 3.

As shown in fig. 1B, in the present embodiment, the film forming apparatus 1 includes 3 vapor deposition units 3A to 3C (collectively referred to as vapor deposition units 3), and can continuously vapor deposit 1 or more vapor deposition materials on a substrate to be conveyed. In the example of fig. 1(B), the elevating mechanism 41 is omitted. The number of the vapor deposition units 3 and the type of the vapor deposition material discharged from each vapor deposition unit 3 can be changed arbitrarily. The elevating mechanism 41 and the sliding mechanism 42 may elevate and lower or slide the plurality of vapor deposition units 3 together, or may elevate and lower or slide the units, respectively.

Fig. 2(a) to 2(D) show the film formation process of the film formation device 1 according to the present embodiment. Here, a cross-sectional view of the film forming apparatus 1 of fig. 1(a) at the plane XZ is shown. In fig. 2(a) to 2(D), the frame 4 is omitted.

Fig. 2(a) shows the film deposition apparatus 1 in a state where the mask tray 201 on which the substrate is placed is carried in from the carrying-in port 5. The transfer unit 2 includes openings 21A to 21C (collectively referred to as openings 21) corresponding to the respective vapor deposition units 3. The vapor deposition unit 3 includes corresponding vapor deposition sources 31A to 31C (collectively referred to as vapor deposition sources 31). In fig. 2(a), the mask tray 201 carried in is conveyed to the opening 21 of the conveying unit 2 by a plurality of conveying rollers 22 provided in the conveying unit 2.

Fig. 2(B) shows the film forming apparatus 1 in a state where the mask tray 201 is conveyed to the opening 21A and the vapor deposition material is discharged from the vapor deposition source 31A of the vapor deposition unit 3A. In fig. 2(B), the vapor deposition material is discharged upward from the vapor deposition source 31A while the substrate is being transported. Thereby, the vapor deposition material is vapor-deposited on the substrate in accordance with the mask pattern. The film deposition apparatus 1 of the present embodiment is described as an apparatus that performs vapor deposition while the mask tray 201 is moving, but the transport speed of the mask tray 201 may be controlled so that the movement is temporarily stopped or decelerated while the mask tray 201 is positioned above the opening 21. Thus, the film deposition apparatus 1 can be controlled to deposit a deposition material having an appropriate thickness on the substrate.

Fig. 2(C) shows a state in which the vapor-deposited substrate is conveyed by the conveying unit 2 and the mask tray 201 is conveyed to the opening 21B corresponding to the next vapor deposition unit 3B. Here, the vapor deposition material is discharged from the vapor deposition source 31B of the vapor deposition unit 3B. Then, the film formation device 1 carries the mask tray 201, and carries out the next vapor deposition by the next vapor deposition unit 3C, and as shown in fig. 2(D), carries out the mask tray 201 on which the vapor deposition has been completed, from the carrying-out port 6. In this way, vapor deposition can be performed by the plurality of vapor deposition units 3 before being conveyed from the carry-in port 5 to the carry-out port 6 by the conveying roller 22 of the conveying unit 2.

Next, separation of the transport unit 2 and the vapor deposition unit 3 will be described with reference to fig. 3(a) and 3 (B). The vapor deposition material discharged from the vapor deposition source 31 of the vapor deposition unit 3 adheres to the side walls and the top surface of the conveying unit 2, and falls to adhere to the substrate being conveyed, and thus the vapor deposition process may fail. Further, the vapor deposition material adhering to the side walls and the top surface of the transfer unit 2 falls and adheres to the transfer roller 22, and thus the substrate being transferred may be contaminated or a malfunction of the transfer roller 22 may occur. Therefore, it is necessary to provide an adhesion preventing plate on the side wall or the top surface of the conveying unit 2 and perform maintenance such as regular cleaning or replacement of the adhesion preventing plate.

Further, dust generated by contact between the conveying roller 22 and the mask tray 201 flies due to the airflow generated by the rotation of the conveying roller and the discharge of the vapor deposition material, and adheres to the substrate and the driving structure of the film deposition apparatus 1, and a failure in the film deposition process or a malfunction in the conveying unit 2 may occur. Therefore, the conveying roller 22 may be provided with a dust collection cover for preventing the generated dust from scattering, and maintenance such as replacement or cleaning of the dust collection cover may be performed periodically.

In such a case, by separating the transport unit 2 and the vapor deposition unit 3, the transport unit 2 enters the transport space in the transport unit 2 from the opening 21 on the bottom surface side, and convenience of the operation during maintenance is improved. As shown in fig. 3(a), the separation between the transport unit 2 and the vapor deposition unit 3 is performed by moving the vapor deposition unit 3 downward relative to the transport unit 2 by the elevating mechanism 41 provided in the frame 4. Note that, as described later, the vapor deposition unit 3 of the present embodiment has a portion that enters above the Z axis of the opening 21 when connected to the conveyance unit 2, and therefore the vapor deposition unit 3 needs to be lowered by the elevating mechanism 41. This allows the vapor deposition unit 3 to move in the horizontal direction with respect to the transfer unit 2.

Next, as shown in fig. 3(B), the vapor deposition unit 3 is horizontally moved relative to the conveyance unit 2 by the slide mechanism 42 provided in the frame 4. This allows the conveyance space inside the conveyance unit 2 to be accessible from below the conveyance unit 2 held by the frame 4, thereby improving the ease of maintenance. Further, since the vapor deposition unit 3 can be inserted into the vapor deposition unit 3 from above, the maintenance of the vapor deposition unit 3 can be facilitated.

Next, fig. 4 shows a structure of the conveyance unit 2. The conveyance unit 2 includes an opening 21 on the bottom surface, a plurality of conveyance rollers 22, a top adhesion preventing portion 23, a side wall adhesion preventing portion 24, a frame 25, and a top cover 26. In fig. 4, only a part of the side wall adhesion preventing portion 24 is illustrated.

The top adhesion preventing portion 23 is detachably disposed from the frame 25, so that maintenance such as removal of the vapor deposition material deposited on the top surface side of the conveyance path in the conveyance unit 2 is facilitated. In the present embodiment, the top surface adhesion preventing portion 23 is disposed in the top surface cover 26, and when the top surface cover 26 is detached from the frame body 25, the top surface adhesion preventing portion 23 is also detached from the frame body 25 together with the top surface cover 26. The top adhesion preventing portion 23 is formed of a plurality of adhesion preventing plates (top adhesion preventing plates), and each of the top adhesion preventing plates is detachable from the frame 25 or the top cover 26. The structure in which the top cover 26 supports the plurality of top adhesion prevention plates will be described later with reference to fig. 5 and 6. The detailed structure of the frame 25, the top cover 26, and the top adhesion preventing section 23 will be described later with reference to fig. 5 and 6.

The side wall adhesion preventing section 24 includes an adhesion preventing plate that is attachable to and detachable from a side wall of the frame 25 in the transfer unit 2, and prevents the vapor deposition material from being deposited on the inner side wall of the frame 25. In maintenance, the sidewall adhesion preventing portion 24 is removed from the housing 25, replaced, or cleaned, whereby maintenance work can be easily performed. The side wall adhesion preventing portion 24 of the present embodiment is also formed of a plurality of side wall adhesion preventing plates, and each side wall adhesion preventing plate can be detached from the frame 25.

The top cover 26 is disposed on the top surface side of the housing 25, and the top cover 26 can be detached from the housing 25 by lifting the top cover 26 upward. This allows the conveyance space to be accessed from the top surface side of the housing 25. That is, the top cover 26 is a ceiling portion of a ceiling forming a conveyance space inside the conveyance unit 2, and the frame 25 is a side wall portion forming a side wall of the conveyance space. The top adhesion preventing portion 23 is an adhesion preventing portion covering a ceiling portion of the conveying space, and the side wall adhesion preventing portion 24 is an adhesion preventing portion covering a side wall portion of the conveying space.

Next, the detailed structure of the conveying unit 2 will be described with reference to fig. 5. Fig. 5 is a sectional view of the conveyance unit 2 at the plane 401 of fig. 4. In fig. 5, the vapor deposition unit 3 is also shown.

In fig. 5, a guide roller 27 is disposed on the top cover 26, and top adhesion preventing plates 501 to 504 are supported by the guide roller 27. That is, the guide rollers 27 and the portions of the top adhesion preventing plates 501 to 504 which are in contact with the guide rollers 27 function as a sliding structure (detachable structure) which supports the adhesion preventing plates so as to be movable along the top cover 26. In the present embodiment, the moving direction of the guide roller 27 is a direction intersecting the substrate conveying direction, and is the Y-axis direction in fig. 5. In the example of fig. 5, the guide roller 27 is disposed on the top cover 26, and the top adhesion preventing plates 501 to 504 are shown as including a rolling surface on which the guide roller 27 rolls. However, in another example, a rail may be disposed on the top cover 26, and rollers rolling along the rail may be disposed on the top adhesion preventing plates 501 to 504. In addition, as the detachable structure in which the top surface cover 26 supports the top surface adhesion preventing plates 501 to 504, any structure such as a hook-type retaining member may be used in addition to the sliding structure.

Further, as indicated by circles 506 to 508, the top adhesion preventing plates adjacent to each other in the direction intersecting the sliding direction form a labyrinth structure on the surface horizontal to the top adhesion preventing plates. Here, the labyrinth structure means that the adhesion preventing plates adjacent to each other in a direction perpendicular to a surface covered with the adhesion preventing plates, that is, in the vertical direction overlap each other. Among the top adhesion preventing plates 501 to 504, the adhesion preventing plates adjacent in the vertical (Z axis) direction are overlapped. Thus, even if the positions of the adjacent top adhesion preventing plates 501 to 504 are slightly changed, the top adhesion preventing plates 501 to 504 can cover the inner surface of the ceiling of the conveying space, and the vapor deposition material can be prevented from adhering to the guide roller 27, the top cover 26, and the frame 25.

As shown by a circle 509, the side wall adhesion preventing portion 24 attached to the side surface of the frame 25 and covering the side surface of the conveying space and the top surface adhesion preventing plate 501 adjacent to the side wall adhesion preventing portion 24 form a labyrinth structure. Accordingly, even if the position of the top adhesion preventing plate 501 is slightly changed, the vapor deposition material can be prevented from adhering to the guide roller 27, the top cover 26, and the frame 25.

The top cover 26 of the present embodiment has an engagement structure with the frame 25, and can be detached from the frame 25 by releasing the engagement between the frame 25 and the top cover 26. When the top cover 26 is detached from the frame 25, the hook of the crane is attached to the hook hole 505 provided in the top cover 26, whereby the top cover 26 can be detached using the crane.

Next, the detailed structure of the conveyance unit 2 will be described with reference to fig. 6. Fig. 6 is a sectional view of the conveyance unit 2 at the plane 402 of fig. 4. Fig. 6 also illustrates the vapor deposition unit 3.

In fig. 6, the guide roller 27 abuts against a stopper 606 provided on the frame 25 or the top cover 26 of the conveyance unit 2 in one of the sliding directions. The other side in the sliding direction abuts on the cover 28. The cover 28 is a locking structure capable of switching whether or not the top adhesion prevention plates 601 to 605 can be detached by the guide roller 27. In the example of fig. 6, the cover 28 is in a closed state in which the top adhesion prevention plates 601 to 605 cannot be detached from the top cover 26 alone. On the other hand, as will be described later with reference to fig. 8, by switching the cover 28 to the open state, the top adhesion preventing plates 601 to 605 can be detached individually along the guide rollers 27 from the opening of the frame 25 covered with the cover 28 in the closed state. Further, the top adhesion preventing plate is attached along the guide roller 27 from the opening of the frame 25 alone, and is slid until it comes into contact with the stopper 606 or another top adhesion preventing plate already attached, whereby the top adhesion preventing plate can be attached without being aligned in the sliding direction. In this way, by adopting the sliding structure as the attaching and detaching structure, the work efficiency in attaching and detaching the top adhesion prevention plate can be improved.

Further, as shown by circles 607 to 610, the adhesion preventing plates adjacent to each other in the sliding direction also form a labyrinth structure. This prevents the vapor deposition material from adhering to the guide roller 27, the top cover 26, and the frame 25 even if the positions of the top adhesion prevention plates 601 to 605 adjacent to each other in the front-rear direction in the sliding direction slightly change.

In addition, the top adhesion preventing plates 601 to 605 in the same row in the sliding direction have the same shape. This eliminates the need to consider the procedure of installing the adhesion preventing plates, and facilitates the work of attaching and detaching the top adhesion preventing plates.

Further, as shown by circles 611 to 612, the side wall adhesion preventing portion 24 attached to the side surface of the frame 25 and covering the side surface of the conveying space and the top surface

adhesion preventing plates

601 and 605 adjacent to the side wall adhesion preventing portion 24 form a labyrinth structure. Accordingly, even if the positions of the top

adhesion preventing plates

601 and 605 are slightly changed, the vapor deposition material can be prevented from adhering to the guide roller 27, the top cover 26, and the frame 25.

The conveying roller 22 is driven by a conveying roller driving unit 622 via a shaft 621.

Next, a process of detaching the ceiling adhesion preventing section 23 from the ceiling side will be described with reference to fig. 7(a) to 7 (B).

In fig. 7 a, the top cover 26 is lifted vertically upward by a crane (not shown). In one example, as shown in fig. 7(B), the top adhesion preventing portion 23 can be removed from the housing 25 at a time by moving together with the top cover 26 in a state where the top adhesion preventing portion 23 is supported by the guide roller 27 provided in the top cover 26. In the present embodiment, the case where maintenance is performed by replacing the top adhesion preventing plate attached to the top cover 26 is described, but maintenance may be performed by cleaning the vapor deposition material attached to the top adhesion preventing plate in a state where the top adhesion preventing plate is attached to the top cover 26. Since the work of replacing and cleaning the top surface adhesion preventing plate can be performed in a state where the top surface cover 26 is detached from the housing 25, the work can be performed more easily than the work performed in the housing 25, and the convenience of the maintenance work of the adhesion preventing plate is improved.

Next, a process of detaching the top adhesion prevention plate from the side wall will be described with reference to fig. 8(a) to 8 (C).

In fig. 8(a), the hood 28 is switched to the open state, and the side wall adhesion preventing portions 24 facing the hood 28 are removed, whereby the top adhesion preventing plates 601 to 605 can slide along the guide rollers 27 with respect to the housing 25. As shown in fig. 8(B), the worker can detach the top adhesion prevention plate 605 from the frame 25 by sliding it from the opening on the cover 28 side. Next, as shown in fig. 8(C), the top adhesion preventing plate 604 is removed from the opening on the cover 28 side. In this way, the top adhesion preventing plate can be detached from the top cover 26 only by sliding the top adhesion preventing plate, so that a complicated work in the frame 25 is not required, and the convenience of the maintenance work of the adhesion preventing plate is improved.

[ other embodiments ]

The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and various changes and modifications can be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. Therefore, the claims are attached to disclose the scope of the invention.

Claims

1. A carrying device of an inline film forming apparatus for forming a film while carrying a substrate,

the conveying device comprises:

2. The conveying device according to claim 1,

the attachment/detachment structure is a sliding structure that moves the adhesion prevention plate along the ceiling portion.

3. The conveying device according to claim 2,

the sliding construction includes:

a guide roller provided on one of the ceiling portion and the adhesion preventing plate; and

and a rolling surface provided on the other of the ceiling portion and the adhesion preventing plate, and on which the guide roller rolls.

4. The conveying device according to claim 2,

the slide structure moves the adhesion preventing plate in a direction intersecting a substrate conveying direction.

5. The conveying device according to claim 1,

the conveying device is provided with a side wall part surrounding the conveying space,

the ceiling portion is detachable from the side wall portion.

6. The conveying device according to claim 5,

the ceiling portion is detachable from the side wall portion in a state where the plurality of adhesion preventing plates are attached to the ceiling portion.

7. The conveying device according to claim 5,

a sidewall adhesion preventing plate is provided on an inner side of the sidewall part,

the side wall adhesion preventing plate has a portion that vertically overlaps with an adhesion preventing plate adjacent to the side wall adhesion preventing plate among the plurality of adhesion preventing plates covering the inner surface of the ceiling portion.

8. The conveying device according to claim 1,

the adhesion preventing plate has a portion overlapping with another adjacent adhesion preventing plate in the up-down direction.

9. A film forming apparatus of an in-line type for forming a film while conveying a substrate,

the film forming apparatus includes:

a conveying unit for conveying the substrate; and

the conveying unit includes:

10. The film forming apparatus according to claim 9,

the vapor deposition unit is movable relative to the conveyance unit.