JP2003043501A - Method for manufacturing planar display element - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To make a substrate thinner in high manufacturing yield by surely sealing around a pair of substrates by using a coating applicator of a wide use without causing rise of manufacturing cost and thereby to increase productivity of a planar display element of a thin shape and reduced weight. SOLUTION: After applying a product sealant and an inside sealant 24 onto a mother glass plate 21, a mother glass plate 22 is stuck to the mother glass plate 21. Then a peripheral sealant 27 is applied to four linear sides of a pair of mother glass plates 21, 22 by using the coating applicator 28 of a wide use and both ends of the peripheral sealant 27 are connected with an end part of the inside sealant 24. Thereafter an air vent port 27a is sealed and both mother glass plates 21, 22 are polished and are made thinner.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a method of manufacturing a flat panel display element, and more particularly to a method of manufacturing a flat panel display element for laminating a pair of substrates and then thinning them.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art A flat panel display device having a pair of substrates each having a pixel electrode or a counter electrode on an insulating substrate made of glass or the like and facing each other and enclosing a light modulation layer such as a liquid crystal layer in the space between them is thin. In order to reduce the weight, a thin insulating substrate is required. For this reason, in recent years, for example, a manufacturing method has been developed in which after a pair of glass substrates are arranged to face each other to form a liquid crystal cell, the outer surface of at least one of the glass substrates is mechanically or chemically polished to thin the glass substrate. Has been done.

As a method of manufacturing the flat display element in which the outer surface of the glass substrate is polished and thinned as described above, for example, in the case of the multi-manufacturing method, as in the first conventional example shown in FIG.
A liquid crystal injection port 2a is provided on each of the peripheral edges of a plurality of electrode patterns 4 formed in the display area on the mother glass 1 having an area corresponding to a plurality of flat display element substrates 5 to apply the product sealant 2 thereto. , Multiple patterns of product sealant 2
After the outer peripheral sealant 3 having the air vent port 3a is applied to the outer periphery of the, the other mother glass 6 is attached.
Next, the product sealant 2 and the outer peripheral sealant 3 are cured in a state in which air is evacuated from the air vent port 3a and the two glass substrates are held parallel to each other, and the air vent port 3a is further sealed with the encapsulating material 4 to remove both mother The outer surfaces of the glasses 1 and 6 were polished.

[0004]

However, in the above manufacturing method, in order to effectively utilize the mother glass 1, when the flat display element substrate 5 is faced to the edge of the mother glass 1, the peripheral sealant 3 is applied. The space to be provided becomes very narrow, and it is unavoidable to provide the mother glass at the very limit of one end and within a limited width. Moreover, in the outer peripheral area of the mother glass 1, there are residues generated when the electrode pattern of the flat display element substrate 5 and the color filter are formed, and contamination residues due to handling when the mother glass 1 is handled by hand.

Due to these influences, the conventional outer peripheral sealant 3 cannot secure a sufficient coating width, and the adhesiveness is deteriorated. As a result, the outer peripheral sealant 3 may be cut or peeled off. . If the peripheral sealant 3 is cut or peeled off, the polishing agent or the etching solution penetrates inside when the mother glasses 1 and 6 are thinned, resulting in defective products and a reduction in manufacturing yield.

Therefore, instead of applying the peripheral sealant around the substrates before bonding the substrates together, the sealant is applied around the substrates after bonding the substrates to seal the space between the substrates. How to stop is being studied. This is the same as the second conventional example shown in FIG. 7, after the two mother glasses 7 and 8 are bonded together, the two mother glasses 7 and 8 are bonded by using the coating device 9.
A peripheral sealing agent 27 is applied to the periphery of 8 to seal between the mother glasses 7 and 8.

However, in the method of applying the sealant around the substrates after the substrates of the second conventional example are bonded together,
The peripheral part of the mother glass 7, 8 is the peripheral sealing agent 9a.
Can be applied relatively easily, but it is difficult to apply to the corners. This is because the corner portions of the mother glasses 7 and 8 are usually cut, and the cut shapes are variously formed for distinguishing the model, so that it is difficult to move the coating device 9 along this shape. It depends.

In particular, when the peripheral sealant 9a is applied automatically, the straight line portion can be formed only by moving the coating device 9 in parallel, but when the cut corner portion is to be coated,
The coating device 9 must be moved in the direction of the arrow r following the cut shape using a detection device or the like, and the coating device becomes complicated and large in size, and it has not been put to practical use.

Therefore, the present invention eliminates the above problems and improves the production yield when thinning a substrate by easily and reliably sealing the periphery of a product sealant without using a complicated coating device. However, it is an object of the present invention to provide a method for manufacturing a flat panel display element that improves productivity of a thin and lightweight flat panel display element.

[0010]

In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, the present invention provides a pair of substantially rectangular substrates, a product sealant arranged so as to surround a display area of the pair of substrates, and a product sealant. In a method of manufacturing a flat display element having a light modulation layer sealed between a pair of substrates in a region surrounded by an agent, a product sealing agent that surrounds the display region is applied to at least one of the pair of substrates. And a step of applying an internal sealant to a corner area of at least one of the pair of substrates, which is outer than the product sealant, and the pair of substrates by the product sealant and the internal sealant. A laminating process for laminating
A sealing step of applying a side sealing agent that connects the internal sealing agents to each other on a linear periphery of the pair of the bonded substrates, and sealing the outer periphery of the product sealing agent, and the sealing step ends. After that, the step of thinning the outer surface of at least one of the pair of substrates is performed.

In order to solve the above problems, the present invention provides a pair of substrates, a product sealant arranged so as to surround a display area of the pair of substrates, and the pair of substrates in a region surrounded by the product sealant. In the method for manufacturing a flat display element having a light modulation layer enclosed between the substrates, the display area is provided on at least one of a pair of substantially rectangular large substrates having an area for a plurality of surfaces of the flat display element. A plurality of patterns of a product sealing agent surrounding the plurality of patterns, a step of applying an internal sealing agent to a corner region of at least one of the pair of large-sized substrates which is outer than the plurality of patterns of the product sealing agent, and the product A bonding step of bonding the pair of large-sized substrates with a sealing agent and the internal sealing agent, and the periphery of the pair of bonded large-sized substrates,
Applying a side sealant that connects the internal sealants,
A sealing step of sealing the outer periphery of the plurality of patterns of the product sealing agent and a step of thinning the outer surface of at least one of the pair of large-sized substrates after the sealing step are performed.

According to the present invention having such a structure, when sealing the periphery of the substrates after the substrates are bonded together, a relatively simple coating device is used without using a complicated and large-sized coating device, and easily and reliably. It is possible to seal, and it is possible to improve the productivity of a thin and lightweight flat display element.

[0013]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION The present invention will be described below with reference to the first embodiment shown in FIGS. FIG. 1 is a configuration diagram showing a liquid crystal display element 10 which is a flat display element.
A thin film transistor (hereinafter abbreviated as TFT) element 11b is formed on a substantially rectangular glass substrate 11a having a thickness of 0.5 mm.
An array substrate 11 having a color filter layer 11c, pixel electrodes 11d patterned in a matrix, and an alignment film 11e, and a counter electrode 12b and an alignment film 12c on a glass substrate 12a having a thickness of 0.5 mm. The array substrate 11 of the liquid crystal cell in which the counter substrate 12 formed of the
Further, a liquid crystal layer 17 which is a light modulation layer is sealed in the gap between the counter substrate 12. In addition, 11f and 12d are polarizing plates.

Next, a method of manufacturing the liquid crystal display element 10 will be described. Mother glass 21, 2 having a thickness of 0.7 mm and a substantially rectangular shape, which has an area capable of forming 3 × 3 pieces of array substrate 11 or counter substrate 12 of liquid crystal display element 10.
An array substrate pattern (not shown) and a counter substrate pattern (not shown) are formed on each of the two by a film forming technique and a photolithography technique. Further, an alignment film 11e is formed on the array substrate pattern or the counter substrate pattern,
After forming 12c, alignment treatment is performed.

Next, spacers 13 are scattered on the counter substrate pattern on the mother glass 22. On the other hand, using a small-sized, multi-sided liquid crystal fully automatic seal coater MLC-6200 (not shown) manufactured by Musashi Engineering Co., Ltd., an epoxy resin adhesive is applied to the periphery of the array substrate pattern on the mother glass 21. Inject the product sealing agent 23 into the injection port 23a
At the same time as applying and applying, an internal sealant 24 made of an epoxy resin adhesive is applied to the corner of the mother glass 21 along the shape of the corner using the same application device. The internal sealant 24 is applied so that both ends reach the adjacent sides. Further, a temporary fixing sealant 26 made of an acrylic UV curable resin for preventing sticking to the mother glass 22 is formed on part of four sides around the mother glass 21.
Apply.

After that, two mother glasses 21 and 22 are arranged facing each other and alignment is adjusted, and then a temporary fixing sealant 2
2 mother glass 2
Temporarily fix 1, 22. Further, the product sealant 23 and the internal sealant 24 are heat-cured to form two mother glasses 21,
22 is pasted together.

Next, the coating device 28 is scanned in the direction of arrow s in FIG. 3, and the pair of mother glasses 21 and 22 bonded together is scanned.
Air vents 27a are provided on the four sides of the inner sealant 24 at each corner to the inner sealant 2 at the next corner.
A peripheral sealant 27 made of an epoxy resin adhesive reaching the four ends is applied. Both ends of the peripheral sealant 27 on each side are connected to the ends of the internal sealant 24, respectively. After this, the peripheral sealant 27 is heated and cured. The application device (not shown) for the temporary fixing sealant 26 or the application device 28 for the peripheral sealant 27 may be a simple general-purpose device capable of quantitatively ejecting the sealant 26, 27.

Next, a plurality of mother glass pairs 21 and 22 are overlapped and pressed in parallel to push out an excess air pool from the air vent port 27a, and then the sealing agent 30 is sucked into the air vent port 27a to make the mother glass pair. 21 and 22 are sealed. After the inner glass sealant 24, the peripheral sealant 27, and the sealant 30 are securely sealed around the mother glass pairs 21 and 22 in this manner, the mother glasses 21 and 22 are thinned.

For example, when thinning is performed by chemical polishing, the mother glasses 21 and 22 are immersed in an etching solution containing hydrofluoric acid as a base in an etching tank (not shown) for about 2 hours so that the mother glasses 21 and 22 are respectively separated. Grind evenly to 0.5 mm. After the etching is completed, the mother glass pairs 21 and 22 are promptly washed to completely remove the attached etching liquid.

In the case of mechanically polishing to make a thin plate,
The mother glasses 21 and 22 are evenly polished with a polishing device (not shown) at a pressure of 150 gf / cm ² for about 2 hours until both mother glasses 21 and 22 have a thickness of 0.5 mm.

After the mother glasses 21 and 22 are thinned in this way, each liquid crystal display element 10 is cut out to a predetermined size, and a display surrounded by the product sealing agent 23 is made from the injection port 23a for each liquid crystal display element 10. Liquid crystal is injected into the region by a vacuum injection method to form the liquid crystal layer 17, and then the injection port 23a is sealed to complete the thin and lightweight liquid crystal display element 10.

According to such a manufacturing method, when the periphery of the pair of mother glasses 21 and 22 is sealed, the internal sealant 24 is preliminarily provided at the corner portions of the mother glasses 21 and 22 which are cut into various shapes. While the mother glasses 21 and 22 are adhered to each other while being applied, the mother glass pair 2 is attached to the side portions of the straight mother glasses 21 and 22.
After attaching Nos. 1 and 22, the peripheral sealant 27 is applied from the outside.
By coating the mother glass 21 and 22, the surroundings are narrow, and even if residue or dirt is generated, the mother glass pair 2
1 and 22 can be sealed satisfactorily and surely.

Therefore, there is no risk that the peripheral sealing agent 27 will be cut or peeled off while the mother glasses 21 and 22 are being thinned, and the occurrence of defects due to infiltration of the abrasive or the like into the product sealing agent 23 can be reliably prevented, and the thin type Light weight liquid crystal display element 10
Can be obtained with a high manufacturing yield. Moreover, the corner portions of the mother glasses 21 and 22 having various shapes are sealed by the internal sealant 24, which does not require a complicated coating device and can be applied only to the straight side portions which can be easily coated by the general-purpose coating device 28. Since the peripheral sealant 27 is applied, the application device 28 can be downsized and simplified, and the manufacturing cost can be easily increased without increasing the manufacturing cost.

Next, the present invention will be described with reference to the second embodiment shown in FIG. In the present embodiment, the internal sealant applied to the corners of the mother glass is applied at the same timing as the application of the temporary fixing sealant in the first embodiment, and the others are the first embodiment. Therefore, the same parts as those in the first embodiment are designated by the same reference numerals and the description thereof will be omitted.

In this embodiment, an array substrate pattern on the mother glass 21 is used by using a small-sized, multi-sided liquid crystal fully automatic seal coater MLC-6200 (not shown) manufactured by Musashi Engineering Co., Ltd. Inlet 2 on the periphery
A product sealing agent 23 made of an epoxy resin adhesive having 3a is applied. A temporary fixing seal made of an acrylic UV-curable resin that prevents sticking to the mother glass 22 is formed on a part of the four sides around the mother glass 21 by using a general-purpose coating device (not shown) capable of discharging a fixed amount. The agent 26 is applied. At the same time, an internal sealant 32 made of an acrylic ultraviolet curing resin is applied to the corner of the mother glass 21 using a general-purpose coating device.

After that, two mother glasses 21 and 22 are arranged so as to face each other and alignment adjustment is performed.
The 6 and the internal sealant 32 are irradiated with ultraviolet rays to be cured, and the two mother glasses 21 and 22 are temporarily fixed. Next, the product sealant 23 is heat-cured, and the two mother glasses 21 and 2 are
Stick 2 together. Further, an air vent 27a is provided on the four sides of the pair of mother glasses 21 and 22 which are pasted together by the coating device 28 so that the inner sealant 32 end of each corner is moved to the inner sealant 32 end of the next corner. A peripheral sealing agent 27 made of an epoxy resin adhesive is reached. Both ends of the peripheral sealant 27 on each side are connected to the ends of the internal sealant 32, respectively. After this, the peripheral sealant 27 is heated and cured. Next, as in the first embodiment, the air vent 27a is sealed with the sealant 30, and the mother glasses 21 and 22 are thinned.

According to such a manufacturing method, as in the first embodiment, when the periphery of the pair of mother glasses 21 and 22 is sealed, after the mother glasses 21 and 22 are bonded together,
By applying the peripheral sealing agent 27 from the outside, the mother glass pairs 21 and 22 can be satisfactorily and reliably sealed, and a defect due to breakage or peeling of the peripheral sealing agent 27 while thinning the mother glasses 21 and 22 can be prevented. Without happening
The thin and lightweight liquid crystal display element 10 can be obtained with a high manufacturing yield. Moreover, the peripheral sealant 27 is applied to the general-purpose coating device 28.
Since the coating is applied only to the linear side portion that can be easily coated, the coating device 28 can be downsized and simplified, and the manufacturing cost is not increased.

Next, the present invention will be described with reference to the third embodiment shown in FIG. The present embodiment is the internal seal for sealing the mother glass in the first embodiment, by applying the temporary fixing sealant to a shape that extends to the corner of the mother glass and further surrounds the corner of the mother glass. Since it is also used as an agent and is otherwise the same as that of the first embodiment, the same parts as those of the first embodiment are designated by the same reference numerals and the description thereof will be omitted.

In this embodiment, an array substrate pattern on the mother glass 21 is used by using a small-sized, multi-sided liquid crystal fully automatic seal coater MLC-6200 (not shown) manufactured by Musashi Engineering Co., Ltd. Inlet 2 on the periphery
A product sealing agent 23 made of an epoxy resin adhesive having 3a is applied. Further, by using a general-purpose coating device (not shown) capable of discharging a fixed amount, the mother glass 21 is made of an acrylic UV-curing resin that reaches a corner from a part of four sides and prevents misalignment with the mother glass 22. An internal sealant 34 which also serves as a temporary fixing sealant is applied.

After that, two mother glasses 21 and 22 are arranged opposite to each other and alignment adjustment is performed, and then an internal sealant 34 is used.
It is irradiated with ultraviolet rays to cure the two mother glasses 21,
22 is temporarily fixed. Next, the product sealant 23 is cured by heating, and the two mother glasses 21 and 22 are bonded together. Further, an air vent 36a is provided on the four sides of the pair of bonded mother glasses 21 and 22 by the coating device 28,
A peripheral sealant 36 made of an epoxy resin adhesive is applied from the end of the inner sealant 34 at each corner to the end of the inner sealant 34 at the next corner. Both ends of the peripheral sealant 36 on each side are connected to the ends of the internal sealant 34, respectively. After this, the peripheral sealant 36 is cured by heating. Next, as in the first embodiment, the air vent 36a
After being sealed with the sealant 37, the mother glasses 21 and 22 are thinned.

According to such a manufacturing method, as in the first embodiment, when the periphery of the pair of mother glasses 21 and 22 is sealed, after the mother glasses 21 and 22 are bonded together,
By applying the peripheral sealing agent 36 from the outside, the mother glass pair 21 and 22 can be satisfactorily and surely sealed, and the peripheral sealing agent 36 is prevented from being broken or peeled during thinning of the mother glass 21 and 22. Without happening
The thin and lightweight liquid crystal display element 10 can be obtained with a high manufacturing yield. Moreover, since the peripheral sealant 36 is applied only to the straight side portion which can be easily applied by a general-purpose applying device, the applying device 28 can be downsized and simplified, and the manufacturing cost is not increased. . Furthermore, in this embodiment, since the internal sealant 34 also serves as the temporary fixing sealant,
Since it is not necessary to apply the temporary fixing sealant again, the operability can be reduced and the manufacturing cost can be reduced.

The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and modifications can be made without departing from the spirit of the present invention. For example, the thickness of the substrate is not limited by thinning the flat display element. The thickness may be 0.4 mm or less as long as the workability or handleability is not impaired. Also, the structure of the flat display element is arbitrary, the light modulation layer is not limited to the liquid crystal layer, the structure of the switching element and the number of pixel electrodes are also arbitrary, and the color filter is arranged on the counter substrate side. Is also good. Further, the size of the mother glass, the number of planes of the flat display element formed on the mother glass, etc. are arbitrary and may be a single plane. Further, the material of the sealant and the kind of the etching liquid for chemical polishing are not limited, and mechanical polishing may be performed with sandpaper. Further, both mechanical polishing and chemical polishing may be carried out as required, or only one side of the substrate may be polished.

[0033]

As described above, according to the present invention, the sealing agent application space on the outer periphery of the substrate is narrow, and even when there is a residue or stain on the outer peripheral region of the substrate when forming an electrode pattern, The periphery of the pair of substrates can be excellently and surely sealed. Therefore, it is possible to reliably prevent the inside of the substrate from being contaminated due to a defective seal when the plate is made thin, and it is possible to obtain a thin and lightweight flat display element with a high manufacturing yield. In addition, when applying the peripheral sealant, a general-purpose coating device can be used without requiring a complicated coating device, so that it can be easily put into practical use and the manufacturing cost can be reduced.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a configuration diagram showing a liquid crystal display element according to a first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a schematic plan view showing a sealant applied to the mother glass according to the first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a schematic explanatory diagram showing application of a peripheral sealant to the mother glass according to the first embodiment of this invention.

FIG. 4 is a schematic plan view showing a sealant applied to the mother glass according to the second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a schematic plan view showing a sealant applied to a mother glass according to a third embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a schematic plan view showing a sealant applied to the mother glass of the first conventional example.

FIG. 7 is a schematic explanatory view showing application of a peripheral sealant to a mother glass of a second conventional example.

[Explanation of symbols]

10 ... Liquid crystal display element 11 ... Array substrate 11a ... Glass substrate 12 ... Counter substrate 12a ... Glass substrate 13 ... Spacer 17 ... Liquid crystal layer 18 ... Liquid crystal display element 21, 22 ... Mother glass 23 ... Product sealant 23a ... injection port 24 ... Internal sealant 26 ... Temporary fixing sealant 27 ... Peripheral sealant 27a ... Air vent 28 ... Coating device 30 ... Sealing agent

─────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continued Front Page (51) Int.Cl. ⁷ Identification Code FI Theme Coat (Reference) G09F 9/35 G09F 9/35 F Term (Reference) 2H088 FA01 HA01 HA08 MA20 2H089 LA01 LA41 QA16 TA01 TA09 2H090 JA09 JB02 JC01 JC11 LA02 LA04 5C094 AA15 AA43 BA43 CA24 EA04 EA07 ED03 GB01 5G435 AA17 AA18 BB12 CC09 CC12 EE09 KK02 KK05 KK10

Claims (8)

[Claims] 1. A pair of substantially rectangular substrates, a product sealant arranged so as to surround a display area of the pair of substrates, and a space enclosed by the product sealant between the pair of substrates. In a method for manufacturing a flat display element having a light modulating layer, a step of applying a product sealant surrounding the display area to at least one of the pair of substrates, and an outer periphery of the product sealant, A step of applying an internal sealant to at least one corner area of the pair of substrates; a step of attaching the pair of substrates with the product sealant and the internal sealant; and a pair of the attached substrates In a linear periphery of, a side sealing agent that connects the internal sealing agents is applied, and a sealing step of sealing the outer periphery of the product sealing agent, and after the sealing step is completed, the sealing step is performed. Manufacturing method of a flat display device, characterized in that comprises a step of thinning at least one of the outer surfaces of the pair of substrates. 2. A pair of substrates, a product sealant arranged so as to surround a display area of the pair of substrates, and a light modulation layer sealed between the pair of substrates in a region surrounded by the product sealant. In a method of manufacturing a flat display element having, a plurality of patterns of product sealant that surrounds the display area are applied to at least one of a pair of substantially rectangular large-sized substrates each having an area for a plurality of surfaces of the flat display element. A step of applying an internal sealant to a corner region of at least one of the pair of large-sized substrates, which is outer than the product sealant of the plurality of patterns, and the pair of the product sealant and the internal sealant. And a step of bonding the large-sized substrates together, and applying a side sealant that connects the internal sealants to the periphery of the paired large-sized substrates bonded together. It is characterized by comprising a sealing step of sealing the outer periphery of the plurality of patterns of the product sealing agent, and a step of thinning the outer surface of at least one of the pair of large-sized substrates after the completion of the sealing step. Method of manufacturing flat display element. 3. The flat display device according to claim 1, wherein the internal sealant is applied so as to reach from one side of the corner region to an adjacent side thereof. Method. 4. The method of manufacturing a flat display element according to claim 1, wherein the product sealant and the internal sealant are applied at the same timing. 5. The internal sealant is applied at the same timing as the temporary sealant provided to prevent the positional deviation during the bonding step.
A method for manufacturing a flat display element according to any one of 1. 6. The flat display element according to claim 1, wherein the internal sealing agent also serves as a temporary fixing sealing agent provided for preventing the positional displacement during the bonding step. Manufacturing method. 7. The method of claim 1 or 2, wherein the step of thinning is a step of polishing the outer surface.
A method for manufacturing a flat display element according to any one of 1. 8. The method of manufacturing a flat display element according to claim 1, wherein the light modulation layer is a liquid crystal layer.