JP2001047395A - Manufacturing equipment for optical film laminate - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a manufacturing facility for optical film laminate in good accuracy whereby optical films can be affixed together smoothly. SOLUTION: This equipment includes a film cutout device to cut a first optical film 1 whose optical axis is parallel or perpendicular to the film longitudinal direction piece by piece in the direction to generate a set angle to the film longitudinal direction and a film affixing device to affix each cut-out piece 3 of optical film to a second optical film 4 whose optical axis is parallel or perpendicular to the film longitudinal direction. A pair of pinch rollers 28 transport pinchedly the cut-out pieces 3 from a film supporting table 25 and the second optical film 4 from a second film supplying part, and the film supporting table 25 is furnished with a plurality of air jets to blow up the air from the obverse surface of the table 25.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a facility for manufacturing an optical film laminate.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art For example, in an STN type liquid crystal display device (in which the twist angle of liquid crystal molecules is set at 180 ° to 270 °), a yellow screen is formed due to the relationship between the birefringence of the STN type liquid crystal and the wavelength of visible light. It becomes blue and the display becomes difficult to see.

Therefore, an optical film laminated chip in which a polarizing film having birefringence as an optical film and a retardation film are bonded to each other so that their optical axes form a predetermined angle is used as a glass encapsulating liquid crystal. And the like, thereby canceling out the phase difference of the liquid crystal cell to realize black and white display.

Conventionally, as means for obtaining the above-mentioned optical film laminated chip, there has been provided equipment having the following constitutions [A], [B] and [C].

[A] A parallelogram cut optical film is obtained by sequentially cutting a first optical film having an optical axis parallel or perpendicular to the film longitudinal direction in a direction forming a set angle with respect to the film longitudinal direction. To obtain a film cutting device.

[B] An optical film cutout is formed by cutting a parallelogram cut optical film cutout by a film cutout device and a second optical film whose optical axis is parallel or perpendicular to the film longitudinal direction. A film bonding apparatus for bonding two side surfaces and both side edges of the second optical film so as to be along each other.

[C] To constitute the film laminating apparatus, a second film supply unit for supplying a second optical film is provided, and a film support on which the cut-out optical film is placed is arranged in a direction along the surface of the support. The optical film cut body is provided so that the feed of the optical film cut body is allowed, and the optical film cut body is fed while the lower surface thereof is slid against the support base surface, and the optical film cut body from the film support base side is provided. And a pair of nipping rollers for nipping and transporting the second optical film from the second film supply unit so that they are bonded to each other.

Then, an optical film laminated chip was cut out from the optical film laminated body obtained by the film laminating apparatus in accordance with the size of the liquid crystal display device.

Means for obtaining an optical film laminated chip by the above-described equipment can reduce the number of manufacturing steps, improve work efficiency, improve production capacity, improve yield, and increase the types of optical film laminates to be stocked. Can be obtained.

[0010]

However, in the above-mentioned conventional construction, the film support for mounting the optical film cutout as described in the above [C] is moved in the direction along the support base surface. Is allowed, and since the cut-out optical film body is provided so that the lower surface thereof is slid against the support base surface, the optical film is moved along the support base surface between the pair of nipping rollers. When the optical film was sent, the optical film bends in the left-right direction and easily advances due to the sliding contact resistance received from the support surface of the film support.

In particular, the cut-out portion of the optical film on the film support base is tapered such that the front edge in the feed direction is located on the lower side (front side) in the feed direction toward one end in the feed width direction. At the beginning of conveyance, the pulling force from the clamping roller is applied to the front edge portion at one end side in the feed width direction, so that the optical film cutting body is easily swung to one of the right and left sides at the beginning of the clamping conveyance, and the sliding contact is performed. When there was resistance, the deflection was enlarged, and the cut piece of the optical film was likely to bend in the left-right direction and proceed.

As a result, the optical film cutout and the second
Even if the optical film of the former is laminated in such a manner that the two sides of the former cut side and the both sides of the latter are separately along each other to obtain an optical film laminate, the angle formed by the optical axes of both films is The liquid crystal display device having an angle deviating from a desired angle and sticking the optical film laminated chip cut out from the optical film laminated body has a problem that desired display performance cannot be obtained.

Further, as described above, when the cut piece of the optical film advances in the left-right direction, the resistance of the cut piece of the optical film to the holding roller increases, and the holding roller smoothly grips and transports the cut piece of the optical film. However, there is also a problem that the cut-out body of the optical film tends to be clogged on the side of the holding roller.

It is an object of the present invention to provide an optical film laminate manufacturing facility capable of forming an optical film laminate with high accuracy and performing an optical film laminating operation smoothly.

[0015]

The constitution, operation and effect of the invention according to claim 1 are as follows.

[Structure] A parallelogram is provided by providing a film cutting device for sequentially cutting a first optical film having an optical axis parallel or perpendicular to the film longitudinal direction in a direction forming a set angle with respect to the film longitudinal direction. The optical film cutting body is configured to obtain an optical film cutting body, and the parallelogram cut optical film cutting body cut by the film cutting device, and a second optical film whose optical axis is parallel or orthogonal to the film longitudinal direction, A film laminating apparatus is provided for laminating the two cut sides of the film cutout body and both side edges of the second optical film so as to be respectively along the two sides, to constitute the film laminating apparatus, (2) A second film supply unit for supplying an optical film is provided, and a film support on which the optical film cutout is mounted is supported by the support. Provided to feed the optical film cut out of the direction along the base surface is allowed, and the optical film cut bodies from the film support base side, the second
A second optical film from a film supply unit, a pair of nipping rollers for nipping and transporting them so that they are bonded to each other, and a plurality of air ejection ports for blowing air from the support table surface side of the film support table. It is provided on the support base.

[Operation] A film cutting device sequentially cuts a first optical film having an optical axis parallel or perpendicular to the film longitudinal direction in a direction forming a set angle with respect to the film longitudinal direction, thereby forming a parallelogram. To obtain an optical film cutout.

The film laminating device connects the parallelogram cut optical film cutout and the second optical film whose optical axis is parallel or perpendicular to the longitudinal direction of the film to the cut side of the cutout optical film cutout. The two sides and the both side edges of the second optical film are stuck separately along each other.

That is, a pair of nipping rollers pinch and convey the optical film cut body sent from the film supporting table side along the surface of the supporting table and the second optical film from the second film supply unit. And stick them together.

In this case, since a plurality of air outlets for blowing air from the support table surface side of the film support table are provided on the film support table, the cut out optical film body is sent to the holding roller side while blowing air on the lower surface thereof. be able to.

By blowing air onto the lower surface of the cut out optical film, the weight of the cut out optical film applied to the film support can be reduced, and if the cut out optical film is lifted by the air, The weight can be reduced to almost zero.

As a result, in the former case, the sliding contact resistance of the optical film cutting body from the support table surface of the film supporting table can be reduced, and in the latter case, the sliding contact resistance can be made almost zero.

The optical film cutout on the film support has a tapered shape such that the front edge in the feed direction is tapered such that one end in the feed width direction is located on the lower side (front side) in the feed direction. Initially, the pulling force from the nipping roller is applied to the front edge portion on the one end side in the feed width direction, so that the optical film cutout easily swings to one of the left and right sides at the beginning of the nipping conveyance, and the sliding contact resistance is reduced. If so, the run-out is likely to increase, but according to the configuration of the first aspect, the sliding contact resistance can be made small or almost zero, so that the spread of the run-out can be suppressed.

Thus, the cut piece of optical film can be sent straight to the pair of holding rollers, and the cut piece of optical film and the second optical film can be separated from each other by two sides of the former cut side and both sides of the latter. In the case where the edges and the edges are bonded separately, an optical film laminate in which the angle between the optical axes of both films is accurately set to a desired angle can be obtained.

Further, by moving the cut piece of optical film straight and sending it to the pair of nipping rollers, it is possible to avoid an increase in the resistance of the cut piece of optical film with respect to the nipping roller. The clogging can be avoided, and the cut out optical film body can be smoothly held and transported.

[Effects] Accordingly, it is possible to provide an optical film laminate manufacturing facility capable of forming an optical film laminate with a high degree of accuracy and smoothly performing an optical film laminating operation.

The structure, operation and effect of the invention according to claim 2 are as follows.

[Configuration] In the configuration according to the first aspect of the present invention, the film support mounts and fixes a resin-made corrugated cardboard on a support member, and connects and connects an air supply unit to a number of spaces partitioned by the corrugated cardboard. At the same time, the end of the many spaces separated from the cardboard which is opposite to the air supply unit is sealed so that air does not leak, and a number of the air outlets are formed on the upper surface of the cardboard. I have.

[Operation] In addition to the same operation as the operation according to the first aspect, the following operation can be obtained.

The air from the air supply enters a large number of cardboard partitioned spaces in the film support,
It blows upward from a number of air jets on the upper surface of the cardboard. Then, the cut-out optical film body is fed to the holding roller side while receiving air from the air jet port on its lower surface.

Since the air flow passage to the air outlet is formed by a large number of corrugated cardboard spaces as described above, for example, when the air flow passage is formed by machining the film support base, etc. As compared with the above, the film support can be configured at a lower cost.

Further, since the corrugated cardboard is made of resin, the strength can be increased as compared with that made of paper, so that the air ejection port can be easily formed.

[Effect] Therefore, in addition to the same effects as the effects of the first aspect, the manufacturing cost of the film support can be reduced and the durability of the film support can be improved. The manufacturing equipment of the optical film laminated body which can be provided was able to be provided.

[0034]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 and FIG. 2 show an optical film laminate manufacturing facility (an optical film laminate chip to be attached to a liquid crystal display device is cut out from the optical film laminate obtained by this facility).

The manufacturing equipment for the optical film laminate includes a polarizing film 1 whose optical axis is parallel to the longitudinal direction of the film.
A polarizing film cutting device 2 (corresponding to a film cutting device) for cutting a parallelogram-shaped polarizing film cutting body 3 (corresponding to a cutting body of an optical film) from a (corresponding to a first optical film, to which a release film is attached). The polarizing film cut body 3 and the retardation film 4 (corresponding to a second optical film) whose optical axis is parallel to the longitudinal direction of the film are separated from each other.
The two sides of the cut side and the both side edges of the retardation film 4 are stuck so as to be respectively along the optical film laminate 31.
A film laminating device 6 for obtaining (see FIG. 3) is provided.

Next, the polarizing film cutting device 2
And the film bonding apparatus 6 will be described.

[Polarizing Film Cutting Device 2] A polarizing film supply unit 7 for feeding the polarizing film 1 in the longitudinal direction of the film, and the polarizing film 1 from the polarizing film supply unit 7
And a cutting portion 8 for

As shown in FIG. 4 and FIG. 5, the polarizing film supply unit 7 is configured such that both ends of a cylindrical first rotating shaft 9 in which the polarizing film 1 is wound in a roll shape are radially outward and longitudinally. A plurality of support rollers 10 that are separately supported rotatably from the outer side in the direction are supported by a cutting device frame 11, and a pair of upper and lower feed rollers 12 that sandwich and feed the polarizing film 1 are provided. .

A leather band 32 for giving resistance to the rotation of the first rotating shaft 9 is wound around both ends of the first rotating shaft 9 to prevent the deflection of the polarizing film 1 on the upper side of the feeding roller 12. is there. A spring 33 is connected to both ends of the leather band 32, and a hook connected to the spring 33 is cut out and locked to a locked portion on the device frame 11 side.

Although not shown, the polarizing film 1 is wound in a roll shape with a strip of aluminum sheet material superposed on both ends in the width direction, and foreign matter such as dust enters between the winding portions of the polarizing film 1. In addition to the above, even if dust or the like is wound between the winding portions, it is possible to prevent the pressing shape due to the dust or the like from attaching to the polarizing film 1.

The above-mentioned aluminum thin plate material is produced as the polarizing film 1 is fed out and becomes linear from a roll.
It is separated from the polarizing film 1 by its own weight and collected on the floor side.

With the feeding of the polarizing film 1,
The auxiliary cutter 14 for cutting one side of the release film 34 attached to the polarizing film 1 is attached to the first film support 13.
Has been supported.

That is, the release film 34 is cut in a direction along the one side edge at one side edge of the release film 34 in the state of being adhered (see FIG. 3 for the release film 34).

The cutting portion 8 receives the polarizing film 1 from the first film support table 13 side and places it on the second
A film support 15 is provided, and a cutter mechanism 16 for sequentially cutting the polarizing film 1 on the second film support 15 in a direction forming a set angle with the longitudinal direction of the film is provided to obtain a parallelogram cut-out body 3. It is configured as follows.

As shown in FIGS. 1, 2, 6 and 7, the second film support 15 is
0, and a resin corrugated cardboard 21 is placed and fixed on the substrate portion on the upper side of the cutting line of the cutter 14.

A hollow arc-shaped air flow path forming body 22 is fixed to the upper peripheral portion of the substrate 20 in such a manner that the hollow portion communicates with a large number of spaces partitioned by the cardboard 21. The lower end of the corrugated cardboard 21 is sealed so that air does not leak from the large number of spaces of the corrugated cardboard 21, and the air supply unit 23 is connected to the air flow path forming body 22 so as to communicate therewith. A number of air outlets 24 are formed through the upper surface of the cardboard 21 so that the air flows through the plurality of spaces of the airflow path forming body 22 and the cardboard 21 and is ejected upward.

That is, the polarizing film supply unit 7 feeds the polarizing film 1 in the longitudinal direction of the film, and blows air from the air outlet 24 of the second film support base 15 so that the polarizing film 1 is blown on the lower surface. It is supplied and placed on the second film support 15 while spraying.

By blowing air on the lower surface of the polarizing film 1 in this manner, the weight of the polarizing film 1 applied to the second film support 15 can be reduced, and if the polarizing film 1 is lifted by the air, The weight may be substantially zero.

Therefore, the sliding contact resistance which the polarizing film 1 receives from the support surface of the second film support 15 can be reduced in the former case, and can be made almost zero in the latter case.

The cutter mechanism 16 will be described. A cutter case 18 traversing the substrate 20 above the substrate 20 is supported by a second film support 15.

As shown in FIG. 2, the cutter case 18
Is set in such a state that it is inclined at a set angle with respect to the feeding direction of the polarizing film 1 (that is, the film longitudinal direction) in plan view, and the circular cutter 17 reciprocates in the cutter case 18 in the longitudinal direction. Then, the polarizing film 1 is cut.

When the cutter 17 cuts the polarizing film 1, the film holding member (not shown) supported on the cutter case 18 so as to be able to move up and down is lowered to cut the polarizing film 1 while holding the polarizing film 1. When the cutting is completed, the pressing member is retracted and raised.

The feeding roller 12 repeats a state in which the polarizing film 1 is fed by a predetermined length and a state in which the feeding is stopped. Then, in the stopped state, cutter 1
7 cuts the polarizing film 1.

[Film Laminating Apparatus 6] A third film support 25 for receiving the polarizing film cut body 3 cut out by the polarizing film cutting apparatus 2 is arranged below the polarizing film cutting apparatus 2. A fourth film support 26 is disposed below the third film support 25, and a retardation film supply unit 27 for supplying the retardation film 4 is provided on the fourth film support 26. , Retardation film supply unit 27
The fourth film support 26 is provided with a pair of nipping rollers 28 for nipping and transporting the retardation film 4 and the nipping and transporting so that they are stuck together.

An operator performs the transfer of the polarizing film cutting body 3 from the polarizing film cutting device 2 side to the third film support 25 side.

The third film support 25 is configured such that the polarizing film cutting body 3 is allowed to be fed in a direction along the surface of the support table (specifically, in a direction along the support table surface and toward the nipping roller 28). It is provided in. The operator feeds the polarizing film cutout 3 placed on the third film support 25 to the holding roller 28 side.

As shown in FIGS. 8, 9 and 10, the third film support 25 will be described in detail.
A resin-made corrugated cardboard 36 is placed and fixed on a rectangular substrate 35 (corresponding to a support member) supported by the resin, and a resin-made airflow path forming member 37 is provided in a large number of spaces partitioned by the cardboard 36.
The air supply unit 23 is connected to the air supply unit 23 through the airbag, and the end of the space separated from the air supply unit 23 in a large number of spaces of the cardboard 36 is sealed so that air does not leak. Is formed.

That is, the cut out polarizing film body 3 is fed to the holding roller 28 side while blowing air from the air outlet 38 to the lower surface thereof.

The air flow path forming body 37 is made of a cardboard 36
The air flow passage forming body 37 has a rectangular shape along the width direction of the
Is formed in a hollow shape with one end in the width direction opened. Further, the upper surface of one end in the longitudinal direction of the cardboard 36 is cut off, and the lower end is removably fitted to the hollow portion of the airflow path forming body 37, and the lower end is connected to the airflow path. An adhesive tape is attached to a connection portion on the outside with the formed body 37.

The air supply section 23 is connected to an air flow hole formed at one end in the width direction of the air flow path forming body 37 through a pipe.

With the above structure, when the cardboard 36 is damaged or the like, the cardboard 36 is removed from the airflow path forming body 37, and a new cardboard 36 is placed in the airflow path forming body 3
7 can be replaced.

By blowing air on the lower surface of the polarizing film cutting body 3, the weight of the polarizing film cutting body 3 applied to the third film support 25 can be reduced, and the polarizing film cutting with the air can be performed. If the body 3 is raised, the weight can be reduced to almost zero.

As a result, in the former case, it is possible to reduce the sliding contact resistance that the polarizing film cutting body 3 receives from the support table surface of the third film supporting table 25, and in the latter case, the sliding contact resistance can be made almost zero. .

A plurality of guide rollers 29 are provided on the laterally outward substrate portion of the corrugated cardboard 36 to guide the cut out polarizing film body 3 toward the sandwiching roller 28.

The guide roller 29 abuts on one of the two sides on the cut side of the polarizing film cutting body 3,
Nipping roller 2 of polarizing film cutting body 3 by operator
It rotates around the axis of the vertical axis as it is sent out to the side 8.

The phase difference film supply section 27 has a cylindrical second rotating shaft 30 around which the phase difference film 4 is rolled.
Is rotatably supported by the fourth film support 26 in a state of being located above the fourth film support 26.

The cut out polarizing film 3 and the retardation film 4 are bonded as follows.

1) An operator puts the polarizing film cut body 3 in a state where the two sides on the cut side of the polarizing film cut body 3 are along the longitudinal direction of the retardation film 4 from the retardation film supply unit 27. It is placed on the film support 25 (see FIG. 3).

2) The operator can select one of the first divided release film 34A and the second divided release film 34B on one side edge of the release film 34 divided by the auxiliary cutter 14.
Leaving the first split release film 34A in the adhered state,
The front end side of the second split release film 34B is the polarizing film 1
(See FIG. 3).

Then, the polarizing film cut body 3 is sent out to the holding roller 28 side while holding the peeled second divided peeling film portion in hand.

3) A pair of sandwiching rollers 28 sandwich and transport the cut piece of polarizing film 3 and the retardation film 4, and thereby, the two sides of the cut side of the cut piece of polarizing film 3.
The retardation film 4 is adhered to the adhesive surface (the surface protected by the second split release film 34B) of the cut out polarizing film 3 so that the sides and the both side edges of the retardation film 4 are separately along. .

The second split peeling film 34B is peeled off with the nipping and transporting of the nipping roller 28. For example, when the whole of the second split release film 34B is peeled off from the cut piece of polarizing film 3 and then the cut piece of polarizing film 3 is sent to the sandwiching roller 28 side, foreign matter such as dust adheres to the adhesive surface of the cut piece of polarized film 3. In addition, the adhesive surface may be touched by an operator's hand or the like. However, in the above-described means 2), the second divided release film 34B is peeled off with the nipping and transporting of the nipping roller 28. The problem can be solved.

When the operator sequentially supplies the cut pieces of the polarizing film 3 to the pair of nipping rollers 28 along with the supply of the retardation film 4, the plurality of cut pieces of the polarizing film 3 are formed on a series of the retardation films 4. Are sequentially bonded, and a strip-shaped optical film laminate 31 in which the cut out polarizing film 3 and the retardation film 4 are bonded can be obtained.

An operator cuts the strip-shaped optical film laminate 31 along the shape of the polarizing film cut-out body 3 to obtain a cut sheet-shaped optical film laminate 31, and the cut sheet-shaped optical film laminate. From 31, an optical film laminated chip is cut out according to the size of the liquid crystal display device.

[Another Embodiment] The polarizing film 1 or the retardation film 4 may have an optical axis perpendicular to the longitudinal direction of the film.

A transport device for feeding the cut out polarizing film body 3 to the pair of nipping rollers 28 may be provided.

As shown in FIG. 11, a box-shaped air flow path forming body 37 along the width direction of the cardboard 36 is connected to one end of the cardboard 36 on the third film support 25 from below. A large number of partitioned spaces of the corrugated cardboard 36 may communicate with the space in the air flow path forming body 37, and the air supply unit 23 may be connected to the air flow path forming body 37.

The transfer of the polarizing film cut body 3 from the polarizing film cutting device 2 side to the third film support base 25 side is automatically performed by a robot hand having a suction nozzle for the polarizing film cutting body 3. It may be configured as follows.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic side view of a manufacturing facility for an optical film laminate.

FIG. 2 is a schematic plan view of a manufacturing facility for an optical film laminate.

FIG. 3 is a schematic view showing a manufacturing process of the optical film laminate.

FIG. 4 is a front view showing the structure of a polarizing film supply unit.

FIG. 5 is a view along AA in FIG. 4;

FIG. 6 is a partially cutaway perspective view showing a cutting portion in the polarizing film cutting device.

FIG. 7 is a longitudinal sectional view showing a cut portion in the polarizing film cutting device.

FIG. 8 is a perspective view showing a cardboard and the like of a film support base.

FIG. 9 is a longitudinal sectional side view showing a connection structure between a corrugated cardboard and an airflow path forming body.

FIG. 10 is a longitudinal sectional front view showing cardboard.

FIG. 11 is a perspective view of another embodiment.

[Explanation of symbols]

 REFERENCE SIGNS LIST 1 first optical film 2 film cutout device 3 optical film cutout body 4 second optical film 6 film laminating device 23 air supply unit 24, 38 air jet port 25 film support stand 27 second film supply unit 28 pinching roller 35 support member 36 Cardboard

 ──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continued on the front page (72) Inventor Naoya Nogi 5-1 Sokai-cho, Niihama-shi, Ehime Sumitomo Chemical Co., Ltd. F-term in DEL Corporation (reference) 2H049 BA02 BA06 BB03 BB51 BC01 BC13 BC14 2H091 FA08X FA08Z FA11X FA11Z FC16 FC29 FD06 FD15 HA10 LA12 LA16 3C021 DA02 DA07 DA13 3C027 GG09

Claims (2)

[Claims] 1. A film cutting device for sequentially cutting a first optical film having an optical axis parallel or perpendicular to a longitudinal direction of a film in a direction forming a set angle with respect to the longitudinal direction of the film is provided. A parallelogram-shaped optical film cutout configured to obtain an optical film cutout and cut by the film cutout device, and a second optical axis parallel or orthogonal to the film longitudinal direction.
An optical film is provided with a film laminating device for laminating two sides of the cut side of the optical film cut body and both side edges of the second optical film along the respective sides, and the film laminating device is provided. In the configuration, a second film supply unit for supplying the second optical film is provided, and a film support on which the optical film cutout is mounted is provided with the optical film cutout in a direction along the support base surface. A pair of nipping members for nipping and transporting the optical film cut-out body from the film support table side and the second optical film from the second film supply unit so that they are bonded to each other; A roller is provided, and a plurality of air ejection ports for blowing air from the support table surface side of the film support table are provided on the film support table. Equipment. 2. The film supporter mounts and fixes a resin corrugated cardboard on a supporting member, connects an air supply section to a plurality of spaces separated by the corrugated cardboard, and connects the corrugated cardboard with a plurality of separated corrugated cardboards. 2. The optical film according to claim 1, wherein an end of said space opposite to said air supply portion is sealed so as not to leak air, and a large number of said air ejection ports are formed on an upper surface of said corrugated cardboard. Equipment for manufacturing laminates.