JP2003181697A - Vacuum press apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a vacuum press apparatus capable of bonding a film-like material on even a substrate having a deep recessed part on its surface without leaving bubbles in the recessed part. <P>SOLUTION: The vacuum press apparatus 1 is provided with a vacuum chamber 1. The chamber 1 is provided with an upper housing member 2 and a lower housing member 3. An upper pressurizing block 17 and a lower pressurizing block 18 are provided in the chamber 1. The blocks 17, 18 have heater plates 20, 23 respectively. A mechanical driving device 29 is provided to allow one of the blocks 17, 18 to approach and separate from the other. The device 29 has a plurality of rods 25 extending so as to pierce upper and lower housing members 2, 3. By the operation of the device 29, the substrate 14 holding the film-like material on its surface can be sandwiched between the blocks 17 and 18. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2003,JPO

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a vacuum pressing device for bringing a film material into close contact with the surface of a printed circuit board or the like having irregularities.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Some printed circuit boards have an uneven surface due to a conductive pattern or the like. When a film-shaped material such as a film-shaped insulating material or a photosensitive material is attached to the surface of such a substrate, if a normal laminator is used, bubbles are likely to remain in the concave portion of the substrate surface, and many defective products are generated. become. Therefore, a vacuum press device for sticking a film-like material on the substrate surface in vacuum is used. Prior to using the vacuum press, the film material is held lightly against the substrate. This work is performed using a normal laminator.

The most important function of a vacuum press machine is
It is to embed a film-like material in the recesses on the substrate surface without leaving bubbles. For that purpose, firstly, the air in the recess is sufficiently exhausted before the film-like material is embedded in the recess on the substrate surface, and secondly, the film-like material is formed on the substrate surface. The film-like material is uniformly heated to a predetermined temperature so that it adheres closely to each other along the edge so that optimum softness (fluidity) is obtained. That is, the film-shaped material is uniformly and uniformly pressed over the entire surface of the substrate so that the film-shaped material is closely adhered to the uneven portion without a gap.

In a vacuum pressing apparatus that has been widely used in the past, a substrate holding a film material is placed on an elastic flat plate member in the housing of the vacuum pressing apparatus, and then the housing is sealed. Exhaust the interior sufficiently so that almost no air remains on the irregularities on the substrate surface. The substrate is heated by the heater provided on the flat plate member, whereby the film material is softened. After that, the elastic film arranged above the substrate is pressed by the gas to press the film against the substrate. The substrate holding the film-like material is pressed so as to be sandwiched between the film and the flat plate member, and the softened film-like material is attached so as to be substantially in close contact with the uneven surface on the substrate.

[0005]

In such a conventional vacuum press machine, there is room for improvement in the above-mentioned third point. That is, in the method in which the substrate is sandwiched between the film and the flat plate member and pressurized by the pressure of gas, it is difficult to embed the softened film-shaped material even in the deep recesses on the surface of the substrate so that the film-shaped material is brought into close contact with no gap.

[0006] Therefore, the problem to be solved by the present invention is
It is an object of the present invention to provide a vacuum press device capable of adhering a film-like material to a substrate having a deep concave portion on the surface without leaving bubbles in the concave portion.

[0007]

In order to solve the above problems, according to the present invention, there is provided a vacuum pressing device for bringing a film-like material into close contact with the surface of a substrate, which comprises an upper housing member and a lower housing member. To form a vacuum chamber by creating a vacuum state by sealingly engaging the upper and lower housing members with each other and evacuating the inside, and separating the upper and lower housing members from each other to remove the substrate. A vacuum chamber capable of forming an opening for an entrance and an outlet, and upper and lower pressure blocks arranged in the vacuum chamber, each having a heater plate and holding a film-like material on the surface An upper side and a lower side pressure block capable of sandwiching the substrate therebetween, and one side of the upper side and the lower side pressure block close to the other side and A mechanical drive device for reciprocating, the drive having a plurality of rods, one end of which is attached to one of the upper and lower pressure blocks, and which extends through one of the upper and lower housing members. An apparatus and a vacuum pressing apparatus are provided.

The driving device includes a support plate to which the other ends of the plurality of rods are attached, and a plurality of cylinder devices provided on opposite sides of the rods with the support plate sandwiched therebetween. In addition, the vacuum press device may further include guide means for guiding the vertical movement of the support plate.

Alternatively, the drive unit may include a plurality of cylinder units each including the plurality of rods, and a vacuum press unit guides the vertical movement of the one of the upper and lower pressure blocks. It is also possible to further provide a guide means.

A space between the one of the upper and lower housing members and the rod extending therethrough can be sealed by various sealing means. At least one of the upper and lower pressure blocks preferably includes a diaphragm on the pressure surface side.

The plurality of rods may be arranged so that uniform pressing force can be applied to the substrate on the surface of the one of the upper and lower pressure blocks to which the rods are attached.

[0012]

1 is a side view of an embodiment of a vacuum pressing apparatus according to the present invention, which is a partial cross section.
The vacuum press device includes a vacuum chamber 1. The vacuum chamber 1 is composed of an upper housing member 2 and a lower housing member 3. The upper housing 2 is
It is attached to the support block 4. Guide rods 5 extend through the four corners of the support block 4. The upper part of the guide rod 5 is a screw part 5a. A rotary nut 6 is provided on the upper surface side of the support block 4, and the nut 6 is screwed with the threaded portion 5 a of the guide rod 5. Therefore, the upper housing member 2 attached to the support block 4 is supported by the guide rod 5 via the nut 6. During normal use of the vacuum press device, the upper housing member 2 is stationary. However, at the time of maintenance, the upper housing member 2 can be raised along with the support block 4 along the threaded portion 5a of the guide rod 5 by rotating the nut 6.

Lower housing member 3 of vacuum chamber 1
Is supported by the rod end 8 of the air cylinder 7 at two or more positions on the left and right of the lower surface. The cylinder end of the air cylinder 7 is attached to the base 9. The guide member 1 is provided between the lower surface of the lower housing member 3 and the rod end 8.
One end of 0 is interposed. The other end of the guide member 10 is slidably attached to the guide rod 5. Therefore, by operating the air cylinder 7, the lower housing member 3 can be raised and lowered in a stable state.

Sealing members 11 and 12 are provided on the lower end peripheral portion of the upper housing member 2 and the upper end peripheral portion of the lower housing member 3, respectively. When the lower housing member 3 is raised, the sealing members 11 and 12 are engaged with each other, and the inside of the vacuum chamber 1 is sealed. In this state, when the internal air is exhausted from the exhaust port (not shown) provided in the vacuum chamber 1, the inside of the vacuum chamber 1 can be put into a vacuum state. On the other hand, when the lower housing member 3 is lowered as shown in FIG. 1, the sealing members 11 and 12 are separated from each other, and the opening 13 for the entrance and exit of the substrate 14 is formed.

The substrate 14 holds a film-like material (for example, an insulating material or a photosensitive material attached to a plastic base film) on one side or both sides by using an ordinary auto-cut laminator before performing the work by the vacuum pressing device. I will let you. Substrate 1 holding a film material on the surface
4 is a guide roller 1 arranged in front of and behind the vacuum chamber 1.
5 is conveyed so as to be sandwiched between two webs 16 traveling on the upper side of the upper part 5. The web 16 has an open vacuum chamber 1
The substrate 14 can be loaded into and unloaded from the vacuum chamber 1 by traveling through the vacuum chamber 1. Web 1
Since 6 is thin, when the lower housing member 3 is raised and the sealing members 11 and 12 press the web 16 against each other, the sealed state is sufficiently maintained.
Thus, the two webs 16 function as a substrate transfer device.

An upper pressure block 17 and a lower pressure block 18 are arranged in the vacuum chamber 1. The upper pressure block 17 is attached to the upper housing member 2 and has a heater plate 20 on the inside via a heat insulating material 19. The surface of the heater plate 20 facing the substrate, that is, the pressure surface side is covered with the diaphragm 21.

The lower pressure block 18 has the same structure as the upper pressure block 17. That is, the heater plate 23 is provided inside via the heat insulating material 22, and the surface of the heater plate 23 facing the substrate side, that is, the pressing surface side is covered with the diaphragm 24. However, one of the diaphragms 21 and 24 may be omitted. Further, it is desirable that the upper and lower pressure blocks 17 and 18 have a hermetically sealed structure by the diaphragms 21 and 24, and that the internal space thereof be provided with a function of making a vacuum state or a pressure state. The lower pressure block 18 is not attached to the lower housing member 3, but is attached to the upper ends of a plurality of rods 25 extending through the lower housing member 3. Multiple rods 25
On the lower surface of the lower pressure block 18, a total of five are arranged at positions corresponding to the four corners and the center of the substrate so that uniform pressure can be applied to the substrate 14. The lower end of the rod 25, whose upper end is attached to the lower surface of the lower pressure block 18 in this manner, is attached to the guide support plate 26. The four corners of the guide support plate 26 are slidably attached to the guide rod 5, and together with the guide rod 5, form guide means. Lower housing member 3 through which the rod 25 penetrates
Between the periphery of the hole 27 and the rod 25, in order to maintain the airtightness in the vacuum chamber 1, a bellows 28 is used as a sealing means.
Is provided. As another sealing means, bellows 28
Alternatively, a diaphragm, packing, etc. can be used. Each rod 2 with the guide support plate 26 in between.
A cylinder device 29 is arranged at a position opposite to 5. The upper end of the piston rod 30 of each cylinder device 29 is attached to the guide support plate 26 at a position directly below each rod 25. The cylinder device 29 is preferably a hydraulic cylinder device. The rod 25, the guide support plate 26, and the cylinder device 29 constitute a mechanical drive device for causing the lower pressure block 18 to approach and separate from the upper pressure block 17.

The operation of the vacuum pressing device according to the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. First, the air cylinder 7 is shortened to lower the lower housing member 3, and the vacuum chamber 1 is opened to form an opening 13 for a substrate 14 as shown in FIG. 2A. Two webs 16 sandwiching the substrate 14 holding the film-like material on the surface run in the open vacuum chamber 1 and position the substrate 14 in the central portion of the vacuum chamber 1.

Next, as shown in FIG. 2B, the air cylinder 7 is extended to raise the lower housing member 3, and the vacuum chamber 1 is closed. In this way, the vacuum chamber 1
After the airtight is closed, the gas is exhausted through the exhaust port 31. Further, the upper and lower heater plates 20 and 23 heat the substrate 14 to sufficiently soften the film material held on the substrate surface.

Next, as shown in FIG. 2C, the cylinder device 29 is extended while continuing exhausting and heating, and the lower pressurizing block 18 is inserted through the guide supporting plate 26 and the plurality of rods 25. To raise. While being heated in a vacuum atmosphere, the substrate 14 is sandwiched between the upper pressure block 17 and the lower pressure block 18 and pressed with sufficient force. Since a uniform pressing force is applied to the substrate 14, the forces exerted by the plurality of cylinder devices 29 can be individually adjusted. In this way, even if the surface of the substrate 14 has an uneven shape with deep recesses, the softened film-like material is pushed into the deep recesses with sufficient force and adheres closely to the uneven shape of the substrate surface. can do.

FIG. 3 is a side view showing a lower portion of a modified example of the vacuum pressing apparatus according to the present invention. The embodiment of FIG. 3 differs from the embodiment of FIG. 1 in that the guide support plate 26 in FIG. 1 is omitted, and the piston rod 30 of the cylinder device 29 extends through the lower housing member 3 and the piston rod 30 Is attached directly to the lower pressure block 18. In the case of the embodiment shown in FIG. 3, the guide cylinder device 32 serves as the guide means for guiding the vertical movement of the lower pressure block 3. Guide cylinder device 3
2, the cylinder portion 33 is attached to the lower housing member 3, and the upper end of the piston rod portion 34 is attached to the lower surface of the lower pressure block 18.

In the above-described embodiments, the lower housing member 3 and the lower pressure block 18 are vertically moved during normal operation. However,
The vacuum chamber 1 may be opened and closed by moving the upper housing member 2 up and down, or the upper pressure block 17 may be moved up and down to apply a pressing force to the substrate 14. Since the configurations of these modified examples can be easily considered from the above description, detailed description thereof will be omitted.

[0023]

According to the vacuum pressing apparatus of the present invention, a mechanical driving device having a plurality of rods is used to press the substrate so as to be sandwiched between the upper and lower pressure blocks. The held film-like material can be pressed down with a sufficient force, and as a result, the film-like material can be embedded also in the deep recesses on the substrate surface and can be adhered along the uneven shape without gaps.

Further, by using a plurality of cylinder devices as the mechanical driving device, it becomes easy to control the pressing force over the entire surface of the substrate and the film material can be surely and uniformly pressed against the substrate.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a side view of an embodiment of a vacuum pressing apparatus according to the present invention, in which a housing member of a vacuum chamber, a guide support plate, and a central bellows are shown in cross section.
Further, the guide rod on the front side is not shown.

FIG. 2 is a fragmentary side view for sequentially explaining a step of bringing a film-like material into close contact with a substrate in an embodiment of a vacuum pressing apparatus according to the present invention, in which a housing member of a vacuum chamber is shown in cross section.

FIG. 3 is a side view of the lower portion of another embodiment of the vacuum pressing apparatus according to the present invention, with the lower housing member of the vacuum chamber and the central bellows shown in cross section.

[Explanation of symbols]

1 vacuum chamber, 2 upper housing member, 3 lower housing member, 4 support block, 5 guide rod,
5a screw part, 6 rotating nut, 7 air cylinder, 8
Rod end, 9 base, 10 guiding member, 11 sealing member, 12 sealing member, 13 opening, 14 substrate, 15
Guide rollers, 16 webs, 17 upper pressure block, 18 lower pressure block, 19 heat insulating material, 20 heater plate, 21 diaphragm, 22 heat insulating material, 2
3 heater plate, 24 diaphragm, 25 rod, 26 guide support plate, 27 hole, 28 bellows, 2
9 cylinder device, 30 piston rod, 31 exhaust port, 32 guide cylinder device, 33 cylinder part, 34
Piston rod part.

─────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continuation of the front page (51) Int.Cl. ⁷ Identification code FI theme code (reference) // B29L 7:00 B29L 7:00 9:00 9:00 F term (reference) 4E090 AA08 AB02 DA09 DB01 HA10 4F211 AD08 AG01 AG03 AH36 AM28 AM32 TA03 TC02 TD11 TH02 TH06 TJ14 TJ16 TJ30 TN07 TQ04 TQ07 TQ08 5E314 AA24 BB02 BB06 BB11 BB12 CC15 EE03 FF01 GG11 5E339 CC10 CD01 CE11 CE16

Claims (6)

[Claims] 1. A vacuum pressing device for bringing a film-like material into close contact with a substrate surface, which is a vacuum chamber including an upper housing member and a lower housing member, and seals the upper and lower housing members with each other. A vacuum chamber in which a vacuum state can be created by engaging and exhausting the inside, and an opening for entrance and exit of a substrate can be formed by separating the upper and lower housing members from each other; In the upper and lower pressure blocks arranged inside, each has a heater plate,
Upper and lower pressure blocks capable of sandwiching a substrate having a film-shaped material on its surface, and a mechanical drive device for bringing one of the upper and lower pressure blocks close to and away from the other And a drive device having a plurality of rods, one end of which is attached to one of the upper and lower pressure blocks and which extends through one of the upper and lower housing members. 2. The vacuum pressing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the drive device has support plates to which the other ends of the plurality of rods are attached, and opposite sides of the support plates sandwiching the support plates. A plurality of cylinder devices provided in the vacuum press device, further comprising guide means for guiding the vertical movement of the support plate. 3. The vacuum pressing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the drive device has a plurality of cylinder devices each including the plurality of rods, and the one of the upper and lower pressure blocks. A vacuum press device further comprising guide means for guiding the vertical movement of the vacuum press. 4. The vacuum pressing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein a sealing means seals between the one of the upper and lower housing members and the rod extending therethrough. The vacuum press device is characterized in that 5. The vacuum pressing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein at least one of the upper and lower pressure blocks is
A vacuum press device having a diaphragm on the pressurizing surface side. 6. The vacuum pressing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the plurality of rods are attached to a substrate at a surface of the one of the upper and lower pressure blocks to which the rods are attached. A vacuum press device characterized in that it is arranged so as to be able to apply a uniform pressing force.