JP2003202578A - Cell gap adjusting device and method for manufacturing liquid crystal display device - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a cell gap adjusting device capable of accurately and quickly adjusting a cell gap of one or more liquid crystal (LC) cells, and to provide a pressure sealing device and a method for manufacturing a liquid crystal display device. <P>SOLUTION: The cell gap adjusting device for adjusting a cell gap in an LC cell group 1 consisting of a plurality of LC cells 1a formed by injecting LC in each of cells is provided with a supporting means 3 having a plurality of frame-like closing seals 32 for forming respective closed spaces between both the outer surfaces of the LC cell group 1 and the surfaces of supporting tools (301a, 301b, 3021 to 302e) opposed to the LC cell group 1 and a pressurizing means for simultaneously pressurizing both the outer surfaces of the LC cell group 1 by the pressure of fluid introduced into the closed spaces. The surrounding area of the supporting means 3 which is surrounded by the seals 32 is overlapped to the LC cells 1a constituting the LC cell group 1. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2003,JPO

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

TECHNICAL FIELD The present invention relates to a thickness between a pair of substrates in a liquid crystal cell (hereinafter referred to as “cell gap”).
The present invention relates to a cell gap adjusting device, a pressure sealing device, and a method for manufacturing a liquid crystal display device for adjusting the temperature.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Liquid crystal devices that have been widely used in the past are
A pair of substrates facing each other are bonded to each other through a sealing material having a frame shape and having an opening portion at a predetermined position of the frame wall to form a cell, and then the inside of the cell is provided with an opening portion of the sealing material. Liquid crystal is injected by means of the above method, and this opening is generally sealed with a sealing material. Here, a so-called vacuum injection method is widely used as a method for injecting the liquid crystal into the cell. That is, when the inside of the chamber in which the cell is placed is evacuated and the inside of the chamber is returned to the atmospheric pressure while the opening of the sealing material of the cell is immersed in the liquid crystal, the atmospheric pressure difference between the inside of the cell and the inside of the chamber is reduced. It occurs, and as a result, liquid crystal is injected into the cell.

However, when the above method is used,
The liquid crystal may be excessively injected into the cell, and the cell gap of the liquid crystal cell may become thicker than a desired thickness (hereinafter, referred to as “target value”). That is, the pair of substrates may have a shape that bulges outward (on the side opposite to the liquid crystal). As described above, in the liquid crystal device using the liquid crystal cell in which the cell gap is thicker than the target value, there is a problem that desired display characteristics cannot be obtained. In order to solve such a problem, pressure is applied to both outer surfaces of the substrate of the liquid crystal cell after the above-mentioned liquid crystal injection step and before sealing the opening of the sealing material, thereby discharging excess liquid crystal. And adjust the cell gap to the target value,
A so-called pressurizing step is generally performed.

Here, FIG. 13 is a sectional view showing an example of a conventional pressurizing device used in the pressurizing step. As shown in FIG. 13, conventionally, the liquid crystal cell 1 to be pressed is sandwiched by a pair of rigid plate-like members 90, and a force F is applied to the plate-like members 90, whereby the substrate of the liquid crystal cell 1 is applied. It was common to apply pressure to 11,12.

FIG. 14 is a sectional view showing another example of a conventional pressurizing device. In addition, in this figure, a case where a plurality of liquid crystal cells 1 are processed at one time is shown.

As shown in FIG. 14, in the conventional pressurizing device, first, the liquid crystal cell 1 to be processed and the interleaf sheet 9 for absorbing impact and protecting the substrate surface of each liquid crystal cell 1 are provided.
1 and 1 are alternately laminated and sandwiched by a plate member 90 having rigidity. Then, the plate member 90
A pressure is applied to the outer surfaces of the substrates of the liquid crystal cells 1 through the interleaf paper 91 to apply pressure.

[0007]

However, as shown in FIG.
In the pressure device shown in FIG.
Since it is configured to come into direct contact with the substrate surface of the plate member 90, in order to accurately adjust the cell gap of the liquid crystal cell 1, this contact surface needs to be a complete flat surface. There is a limit to making the surface such a perfect flat surface, and some unevenness is formed on this surface,
Under the present circumstances, it is inevitable that the thickness of the plate member 90 becomes uneven. Then, unless the cell gap is accurately adjusted to the target value by directly pressurizing the liquid crystal cell 1 by such an incomplete plane, there is a problem that the desired display characteristics cannot be obtained in the completed liquid crystal device.

Further, in the pressure device shown in FIG.
Since the interleaf paper 91 is configured to be in direct contact with the substrate surface of the liquid crystal cell 1, uniform pressure should be applied to the substrate surface of the liquid crystal cell 1 as in the case of the pressure device shown in FIG. However, there is a problem that the desired display characteristics cannot be obtained in the completed liquid crystal device.

During the period from the start of pressurization to the plate-shaped member 90 until the slip sheet 91 contracts sufficiently, the pressure to the plate-shaped member 90 is absorbed by the slip sheet 91, so that the liquid crystal The intended pressure cannot be applied to the substrate surface of the cell 1. As a result, the liquid crystal cell 1 is provided for the above period.
There is also a problem that it takes a long time for the cell gap to reach the target value. Further, when the number of liquid crystal cells 1 to be processed at the same time is increased in order to improve the productivity, the number of interleaf sheets 91 inserted between the liquid crystal cells also increases, so that such a problem becomes particularly remarkable. .

The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and a cell gap adjusting device, a pressure sealing device, and a liquid crystal display capable of accurately and quickly adjusting the cell gaps of one or more liquid crystal cells. An object is to provide a method for manufacturing a device.

[0011]

In the cell gap adjusting device of the present invention, a sealing material having a plurality of frame shapes and having openings at predetermined positions of respective frame walls is planarly interposed without overlapping with each other. A cell for adjusting a cell gap, which is a thickness between the pair of substrates, in a liquid crystal cell group having a configuration in which a plurality of liquid crystal cells are formed by injecting liquid crystal into each of a plurality of cells formed by bonding a pair of substrates. A gap adjusting device, comprising a plurality of supporting jigs for sandwiching and supporting one or more liquid crystal cell groups, and
Disposed between the liquid crystal cell group and the supporting jig adjacent to the liquid crystal cell group, and between both outer surfaces of the liquid crystal cell group and a surface of the supporting jig facing the liquid crystal cell group. A supporting means having a plurality of frame-shaped sealing seals for forming respective closed spaces, and a pressurizing means for simultaneously pressing both outer surfaces of the liquid crystal cell by the pressure of the fluid introduced into the closed space. In the supporting means, the surrounding area surrounded by the sealing seal overlaps the plurality of liquid crystal cells forming the liquid crystal cell group.

In the cell gap adjusting device of the present invention, it is preferable that the sealing seal has a portion that overlaps with the sealing material when viewed from a direction substantially perpendicular to the pair of substrate surfaces.

In the cell gap adjusting device of the present invention, 1/3 or more of the area of the substrate contacting the sealing seal of each of the liquid crystal cells forming the liquid crystal cell group is included in the surrounding area. Preferably.

In the cell gap adjusting device of the present invention, the plurality of supporting jigs can respectively support one or more liquid crystal cell groups in which the sizes of the substrates are different from each other, and the sealing is performed. It is preferable that the seal for use is in contact with all the liquid crystal cells supported by the plurality of supporting jigs.

In the cell gap adjusting device of the present invention, the cell gap of one or more of the liquid crystal cell groups specified as a cell for detecting a cell gap among the one or more liquid crystal cell groups is detected, and the detected cell is detected. It is preferable to further include control means for calculating a pressure for pressurizing both outer surfaces of the liquid crystal cell group based on the gap and for instructing and transmitting a signal relating to the pressure to the pressurizing means.

In the cell gap adjusting device of the present invention, one of the two detection supporting jigs, which are the supporting jigs for sandwiching and supporting the detection cell, is provided on the side opposite to the surface facing the detection cell. The control means further comprises a light source disposed on the surface, and the control means is disposed outside the detection supporting jig on the other side, and detects the transmitted light emitted from the light source and passing through the detection cell. A light section, a cell gap detection section that detects a cell gap based on the detection result by the light detection section, and a comparison between the detected cell gap and a target value, and the liquid crystal cell group calculated based on the comparison result. It is preferable to have a pressure instructing section for instructing and transmitting a signal relating to the pressure for pressing both outer surfaces to the pressing means.

In the cell gap adjusting device of the present invention, when the cell gap is larger than a target value, the pressure instructing unit instructs and transmits a signal for increasing the pressure to the pressurizing means, Is smaller than the target value, it is preferable to instruct and transmit a signal to decrease the pressure to the pressurizing means.

In the cell gap adjusting device of the present invention, it is preferable that the cell gap detecting section detects the cell gap based on chromaticity coordinates of the transmitted light detected by the light detecting section.

In the cell gap adjusting device of the present invention, it is preferable that the cell gap detecting section detects the cell gap based on a spectral characteristic of the transmitted light detected by the light detecting section.

In the cell gap adjusting device of the present invention, it is preferable that a polarizing plate is provided on the surface of the detection supporting jig facing the detection cell.

In the cell gap adjusting device of the present invention, at least a part of the surface of one of the detection supporting jigs facing the outer surface of the detection cell is formed of a material having a light transmitting property. Is preferred.

In the cell gap adjusting device of the present invention, among the plurality of supporting jigs, the supporting jigs directly adjacent to each other without interposing the liquid crystal cell group between them are arranged between the outer surfaces facing each other. A liquid crystal cell which is formed of a bag-shaped elastic member capable of supplying a fluid therein, and which can press the mutually opposing outer surfaces of the adjacent supporting jigs by the pressure of the fluid supplied. It is preferable to further include a fixing pressure member.

According to the method of manufacturing a liquid crystal display device of the present invention, a pair of sealing members having a plurality of frame shapes and having openings at respective predetermined positions of the frame walls are planarly interposed without overlapping each other. A liquid crystal injecting step of injecting liquid crystal into each of a plurality of cells formed by bonding the substrates to each other to form a liquid crystal cell group having a plurality of liquid crystal cells, and a cell for adjusting a cell gap of the liquid crystal cell group. A method for manufacturing a liquid crystal display device, comprising: a gap adjusting step; and a sealing step of sealing the opening of the sealing material when the cell gap of the liquid crystal cell group becomes substantially equal to a target value, In the cell gap adjusting step, one or more liquid crystal cells are sandwiched and supported by a plurality of supporting jigs, respectively, and the liquid crystal cell group and the liquid crystal cell group are adjacent to each other. A hermetic seal provided between the supporting jigs forms a hermetic space between both outer surfaces of the liquid crystal cell group and a surface of the supporting jig that faces the liquid crystal cells. The region surrounded by the seal for use overlaps with the plurality of liquid crystal cells forming the liquid crystal cell group, introduces a fluid into the plurality of closed spaces, and the pressure of the introduced fluid causes the fluid to flow outside the liquid crystal cells. The feature is that the surface is pressed at the same time.

The cell gap adjusting device includes a pair of substrates in a liquid crystal cell having a frame shape and a liquid crystal injected between a pair of substrates bonded together through a sealing material having an opening at a predetermined portion of the frame wall. A cell gap adjusting device for adjusting a thickness (cell gap) between substrates, the pair of supporting jigs sandwiching and supporting one or more liquid crystal cells, and the liquid crystal cell and the supporting jig. A frame which is disposed between the two liquid crystal cells and forms a hermetically sealed space by the outer surfaces of the pair of substrates, the surfaces of the pair of support jigs facing the liquid crystal cell, and the inner surface (of the hermetic seal). As a constitution comprising a support means having a body-shaped sealing seal and a pressurizing means for simultaneously pressurizing both outer surfaces of a pair of substrates of the liquid crystal cell by the pressure of a fluid introduced into the sealed space. Good.

According to such a cell gap adjusting device, since both outer surfaces of the pair of substrates of the liquid crystal cell can be pressed by the pressure of the fluid introduced into the closed space, the member for pressurizing is directly connected to the pair of substrates. The cell gap can be accurately adjusted as compared with the conventional method of contacting both outer surfaces of the substrate and pressing both outer surfaces of the pair of substrates.

Further, as described above, in the case of the conventional pressing method in which liquid crystal cells and slip sheets are alternately laminated and pressure is applied, from the start of pressurization until the slip sheet is sufficiently contracted. During this time, a desired pressure cannot be applied to both outer surfaces of the substrate of the liquid crystal cell, and accordingly, it takes a long time for the cell gap to reach the target value. According to the apparatus, the pressure of the fluid can be quickly applied to both outer surfaces of the substrate, so that the cell gap can be adjusted in a short time.

As a liquid crystal cell, a pair of substrates are
It may be a liquid crystal cell group in which liquid crystal is injected into each of a plurality of cells formed by laminating a plurality of frame-shaped sealing materials through a plane without overlapping each other. That is, as a liquid crystal cell to be processed by the cell gap adjusting device of the present invention, (a) a liquid crystal obtained by bonding a pair of substrates with one sealing material interposed and injecting liquid crystal between the pair of substrates. In addition to the "cell", (b) "a liquid crystal cell in which a pair of substrates are bonded together via a plurality of sealing materials and liquid crystal is injected into a plurality of regions surrounded by both outer surfaces of the substrates and each sealing material" That is, it also includes a plurality of liquid crystal cells of the above (a) (a liquid crystal cell group).

The cell gap adjusting device detects the cell gap of one or more liquid crystal cells (detection cells) specified as cell gap detection cells among the one or more liquid crystal cells,
Based on the detected cell gap, a pressure for pressurizing both outer surfaces of the pair of substrates of the liquid crystal cell is calculated, and a control means for instructing and transmitting a signal related to this pressure to the pressurizing means is further provided. Good. With this configuration, the pressure to be applied to both outer surfaces of the liquid crystal cell substrate can be adjusted according to the current state of the cell gap of the liquid crystal cell to be processed, so that the cell gap can be adjusted more accurately. can do. Note that, as described above, the “detection cell” means a liquid crystal cell that is a cell gap detection target among one or more liquid crystal cells that are a processing target by the cell gap adjusting device of the present invention.

Further, the cell gap adjusting device has a surface of one of the pair of supporting jigs (a pair of detecting and supporting jigs) for sandwiching and supporting the detecting cell, the surface facing the detecting cell of one of the detecting and supporting jigs. A light detector further provided with a light source disposed on the opposite surface, and the control means is disposed outside the other detection supporting jig and detects transmitted light emitted from the light source and passing through the detection cell. Section, a cell gap detection section that detects a cell gap based on a detection result by the light detection section, and a detected cell gap and a target value are compared, and both of a pair of substrates of the liquid crystal cell calculated based on the comparison result. It is preferable to have a pressure instructing section for instructing and transmitting a signal relating to the pressure for pressurizing the outer surface to the pressurizing means.

When the pressing member is directly brought into contact with both outer surfaces of the substrate and pressed as in the conventional method, in order to accurately adjust the cell gap to a desired thickness, the pressing member and the liquid crystal cell are combined. Very high flatness is required for the contact surface. Therefore, the materials used to form this member are limited to those that can meet such requirements. On the other hand, according to the cell gap adjusting device of the present invention having the above-described configuration, since it is not necessary to directly contact the members with both outer surfaces of the substrate, the pressing member (without being restricted by the material of the pressing member). The material of the supporting jig, etc.) can be arbitrarily selected. As a result, according to the cell gap adjusting device of the present invention, the light emitted from the light source for detecting the cell gap is made to pass through the liquid crystal cell (detection cell), for example, the supporting jig is made of a light-transmissive material. The structure formed by can be easily realized.

As a method for obtaining the cell gap based on the detection result of the light detecting section, for example, a method of detecting the cell gap based on the chromaticity coordinates of the transmitted light detected by the light detecting section, A method of detecting the cell gap based on the spectral characteristics of the transmitted light detected by the light detecting unit can be mentioned. According to the latter method, the cell gap can be accurately obtained without being affected by the characteristics of the color filter even when the liquid crystal cell is provided with the color filter or the like. In addition, this method is, for example, by detecting the wavelength of the transmitted light such that the transmittance of the transmitted light becomes a minimum value or a maximum value, and by performing a predetermined calculation using this wavelength, the cell gap is detected. Will be realized.

Here, as a mode of supporting one or more liquid crystal cells by a pair of supporting jigs, for example, one or more liquid crystal cells arranged on one plane are supported by a pair of supporting jigs. Although a mode is also conceivable, a mode in which the pair of supporting jigs is composed of a pair of plate-shaped members laminated at intervals from each other, and the liquid crystal cell is sandwiched and supported between the pair of plate-shaped members, respectively. It is preferable that By showing such a configuration, the cell gap adjusting device can be arranged in a narrower space as compared with the case where one or more liquid crystal cells are arranged on one plane. When such a configuration is adopted, among the pair of plate-shaped members, the plate-shaped members that are directly adjacent to each other without a liquid crystal cell interposed therebetween are provided between the outer surfaces facing each other. The liquid crystal cell fixing pressure member) is constituted by a bag-shaped elastic member capable of being supplied with a fluid, and the pressure of the supplied fluid applies pressure to the outer surfaces of the adjacent plate-shaped members facing each other. It is preferable to further include a pressure member for fixing the obtained liquid crystal cell. By adjusting the fluid supplied into the liquid crystal cell fixing pressure member, the liquid crystal cell can be easily attached to and detached from the support member.

When supporting one or more liquid crystal cells in a stacked state as described above, the detection cell (that is, the liquid crystal cell to be the cell gap detection target) is mutually connected among the one or more liquid crystal cells. It is preferable that the liquid crystal cell is sandwiched and supported by a pair of plate-shaped members located at an end of a pair of plate-shaped members stacked at intervals. With this configuration, the other liquid crystal cell can be positioned only on one side, and thus a device for detecting the cell gap of the detection cell can be easily arranged on the opposite side. .

Further, it is preferable that the sealing seal has a portion that overlaps with the sealing material when viewed from a direction substantially perpendicular to the pair of substrate surfaces.

By the way, when the sealing material (for example, one having ultraviolet curability) applied to the opening of the sealing material in the liquid crystal cell and drawn between the pair of substrates is cured, a direction parallel to the substrates is used. Rather than irradiating the substrate with ultraviolet light, it is possible to shorten the time required to cure the sealing material by irradiating the substrate with ultraviolet light in a direction perpendicular to the substrate. When irradiating ultraviolet rays from the direction perpendicular to the substrate in this way, if the distance from the edge of the substrate of the liquid crystal cell near the opening of the sealing material to the sealing seal is too short, the ultraviolet rays will be blocked by the sealing seal. As a result of being blocked, it may not be possible to irradiate the sealing material with sufficient ultraviolet rays. In view of such circumstances, it is preferable that the distance from the edge of the substrate near the opening to the sealing seal is 1 mm or more.
With this configuration, it is possible to irradiate the sealing material with sufficient ultraviolet rays and improve the certainty of curing.

Here, although it is assumed that the above distance cannot be ensured by 1 mm or more, in this case, the portion of the sealing seal near the opening of the sealing material is moved away from the opening. It is preferable to have a concave shape. In other words, the shape of the portion of the sealing seal in the vicinity of the opening of the sealing material, viewed from the direction perpendicular to the substrate surface, does not overlap with the sealing material drawn between the pair of substrates, that is, It is preferable to have a shape that avoids the region where the encapsulant is drawn. With this configuration, it is possible to irradiate the sealing material with sufficient ultraviolet light without the ultraviolet light being blocked by the sealing seal.

Here, in the above-described cell gap adjusting device, the surfaces of the pair of supporting jigs facing the liquid crystal cell, the inner surface of the sealing seal, and both outer surfaces of the substrate of the liquid crystal cell surrounded by the sealing seal. It is preferable to form a closed space with a part of the area. With this configuration, it is possible to process a plurality of types of liquid crystal cells having mutually different substrate surface sizes by using one type of sealing seal. That is, the pair of supporting jigs can respectively support one or more liquid crystal cells having mutually different substrate sizes,
It is preferable that the hermetic seal is configured to be in contact with both outer surfaces of the substrates forming all the liquid crystal cells supported by the pair of supporting jigs. In this case, in order to ensure a sufficient pressure applied to both outer surfaces of the substrate to discharge the extra liquid crystal in the liquid crystal cell, both outer surfaces of the substrate of the liquid crystal cell surrounded by the sealing seal are secured. It is preferable that the area of a part of the area is ⅓ or more of the area of both outer surfaces of the substrate.

Further, the pressure sealing device seals one or more liquid crystal cells at the stage where the cell gap adjusting device described above and the cell gap of the detection cell are adjusted to be substantially equal to the target value by the cell gap adjusting device. A sealing material applying means for applying a sealing material in the vicinity of the opening of the sealing material, and at least a part of the sealing material drawn between a pair of substrates of one or more liquid crystal cells, and the sealing material is cured. May be provided with a sealing material curing means for advancing in a direction substantially perpendicular to the substrate surface of the liquid crystal cell.

With this structure, the curing of the sealing material can proceed in a direction substantially perpendicular to the surface of the liquid crystal cell substrate, so that the sealing in a direction parallel to the liquid crystal cell substrate is performed. Compared with the case where the curing of the material proceeds, the entire sealing material drawn between the pair of substrates can be cured in a short time.

Specifically, the encapsulating material has a photo-curing property, and the encapsulating material curing means is disposed substantially perpendicular to the encapsulating material with respect to the substrate surface of one or more liquid crystal cells. It is preferable to irradiate light from the direction.

The liquid crystal display device is manufactured by injecting liquid crystal between a pair of substrates bonded together via a sealing material having a frame shape and having an opening at a predetermined position of the frame wall. Liquid crystal injecting step for forming a liquid crystal cell, a cell gap adjusting step for adjusting the cell gap of the liquid crystal cell, and a sealing step for sealing the opening of the sealing material when the cell gap of the liquid crystal cell becomes substantially equal to the target value. A method of manufacturing a liquid crystal display device having:
One or more liquid crystal cells are sandwiched and supported by a pair of supporting jigs, and the inner surface of the sealing seal disposed between the liquid crystal cell and the supporting jig and both outer surfaces of the pair of substrates of the liquid crystal cell. And a step of forming a closed space by the surface of the pair of support jigs facing the liquid crystal cell, and introducing a fluid into the closed space, and by applying pressure of the introduced fluid to the outer surfaces of the pair of substrates of the liquid crystal cell. It may be configured to include a pressurizing step of pressurizing all at once.

With this configuration, the pressure of the fluid supplied to the closed space does not directly contact the members for pressurizing both outer surfaces of the substrate, but indirectly the both outer surfaces of the substrate of the liquid crystal cell. Since it is possible to press, the cell gap can be adjusted accurately and quickly, as compared with the conventional method. Therefore, according to this manufacturing method, it is possible to efficiently manufacture a liquid crystal display device with little variation in display quality.

In this case, in the cell gap adjusting step, the cell gaps of one or more liquid crystal cells (detection cells) specified as cell gap detection cells among the one or more liquid crystal cells are detected, and the detected cell gaps are set. It is preferable that the method includes calculating a pressure for pressing both outer surfaces of the pair of substrates of the liquid crystal cell on the basis of the pressure, and instructing and transmitting a signal related to this pressure to the pressing means.

With this structure, the pressure to be applied to both outer surfaces of the substrate of the liquid crystal cell can be adjusted according to the current state of the cell gap of the liquid crystal cell to be processed. Can be adjusted.

[0045]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. Such an embodiment shows one aspect of the present invention, does not limit the present invention, and can be arbitrarily modified within the scope of the present invention.

A: Configuration of Embodiment (1) Configuration of Liquid Crystal Cell (Group) First, prior to the description of the configuration of the cell gap adjusting device of the present embodiment, a liquid crystal cell (liquid crystal) to be processed by this device (liquid crystal) The configuration of cell group 1 will be described.

FIG. 1A is a plan view showing an example of the structure of the liquid crystal cell group 1, and FIG. 1B is a sectional view taken along the line AA 'in FIG. 1A. As shown in these figures, in the present embodiment, a case will be described in which a liquid crystal cell group 1 having a configuration in which four liquid crystal cells 1a are connected is a processing target. That is, first, as shown in FIGS. 1 (a) and 1 (b), a pair of substrates 11 and 12 facing each other are formed in a frame shape in the region corresponding to each liquid crystal cell 1a, and Sealing material 1 having opening 13a
Three cells are bonded together via a plane without overlapping each other to form four cells. Then, the liquid crystal 14 is injected into the inside of each cell, that is, the region surrounded by the pair of substrates 11 and 12 and the sealing material 13 through the above-mentioned opening 13a, whereby four liquid crystal cells 1a are connected. The liquid crystal cell group 1 is formed. Liquid crystal cell group 1 having such a configuration
However, after processing by the cell gap adjusting device of the present invention,
Each liquid crystal cell 1a is divided along the broken line shown in FIG. It should be noted that in practice, the liquid crystal 14 is provided for each liquid crystal cell 1a on the inner surface (the liquid crystal 14 side) of the substrates 11, 12.
Electrodes, wirings, alignment films, etc. for driving the liquid crystal display device are appropriately formed, but since they are not directly related to the present invention, their illustration and description are omitted.

When the above-mentioned vacuum injection method is used as the method for injecting the liquid crystal 14, the liquid crystal 14 is excessively injected into each cell. Therefore, as shown in FIG. The cells 11 and 12 are convexly bulged outward (that is, on the side opposite to the liquid crystal 14), and the cell gap (d) becomes thicker than the target value (d ₀ ).

The cell gap adjusting device of this embodiment is
In this way, the liquid crystal 14 excessively injected is caused to flow out from the liquid crystal cell 1a to adjust the cell gap (d) to the target value (d ₀ ), and the opening 13a of the sealing material 13 is sealed with a sealing material. This is an apparatus for performing a pressure sealing step. Therefore, the target of processing by the cell gap adjusting device of the present embodiment is the stage after the liquid crystal 14 is injected into each cell, and the opening 13 of the sealing material 13 is processed.
A is a liquid crystal cell (liquid crystal cell group) 1 at a stage where it is not yet sealed with a sealing material.

(2) Configuration of Cell Gap Adjusting Device Next, the configuration of the cell gap adjusting device 2 of the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. As shown in FIG. 2, the cell gap adjusting device 2 includes a supporting jig (a pair of transparent supporting jigs 301a and 301b, five (three pairs of) opaque supporting jigs 302a to 302e) and a sealing seal to be described later. Support means 3 having 32, fluid supply pipe 40, pressurizing means 5
0, light source 60, pressure member 65 for fixing liquid crystal cell, color C
A CD (Charge Coupled Device) camera 70 and a personal computer (corresponding to the above-mentioned "control means").
Hereinafter, it will be referred to as “PC”) 80. Under such a configuration, the cell gap adjusting device 2 has four liquid crystal cell groups 1 (each of which has four liquid crystal cells 1 as described above).
(composed of a), and these can be simultaneously processed. In the following, when it is not necessary to specify any of the transparent support jigs 301a and 301b and the opaque support jigs 302a to 302e, they are simply referred to as "support jigs 30" (see FIG. 6). 2 shows a case where four liquid crystal cell groups 1 are supported,
The number of the liquid crystal cell groups 1 supported is not limited to four, and is similarly applied when one or more (that is, when supported by a pair or more supporting jigs).

FIG. 3 shows another embodiment of the cell gap adjusting device of the present invention, in which one liquid crystal cell group 1 is supported by a pair of supporting jigs. The apparatus configured as described above sequentially processes the liquid crystal cell group 1, and is suitable when the cell gap adjusting apparatus 2 is incorporated in an automatic line. The reference numerals of the respective constituent elements in FIG.
The same reference numerals as in the case of are used.

As shown in FIG. 2, the supporting jig 30 constituting the supporting means 3 is a substantially rectangular plate-like member, and two through holes 34 are provided near each edge. . Then, as shown in FIG. 2, the two shafts 66 are connected to the support jigs 30.
The supporting jigs 30 are inserted into the through holes 34, and each of the plurality of supporting jigs 30 is stacked with the adjacent supporting jigs 30 with a gap. Under such a configuration, the liquid crystal cell group 1 to be processed is provided between (a pair of) supporting jigs 30 adjacent to each other (more specifically, the transparent supporting jig 301a).
And 301b, opaque support jigs 302a and 302b
, Between the opaque support jigs 302c and 302d, and between the opaque support jigs 302d and 302e).
Supported.

Here, the transparent support jig 301b and the opaque support jigs 302a and 302d are fixed to the shaft 66. On the other hand, the transparent support jig 301a and the opaque support jigs 302b, 302c and 302e can be moved relative to the shaft 66.
On the other hand, a liquid crystal cell fixing pressure member 65 is arranged between the opaque support jigs 302b and 302c and between the opaque support jig 302e and the transparent support jig 301a. The liquid crystal cell fixing pressure member 65 is, for example, a bag-shaped member formed of an elastic material such as rubber, and the liquid crystal cell fixing pressure member 65 is formed by the pressure Q of the fluid supplied therein. The support jigs 30 located above and below can be pressed (the pressing direction is indicated by a white arrow in FIG. 2). Under such a configuration, when the liquid crystal cell fixing pressure member 65 is pressing the supporting jig 30, the liquid crystal cell group 1 arranged between the supporting jigs 30 is fixed. On the other hand, when the pressing of the support jig 30 by the liquid crystal cell fixing pressure member 65 is stopped, the liquid crystal cell group 1 is inserted between the support jigs 30 or the support jig 3 is inserted.
The liquid crystal cell group 1 inserted between 0 can be removed.

A pair of transparent support jigs 301a and 301b
(Hereinafter, when it is not necessary to specify any of these, it is simply referred to as "transparent support jig 301".)
It is a plate-shaped member made of a light-transmissive material. Each of these transparent supporting jigs 301 is a surface facing the other transparent supporting jig 301 (in other words, a surface facing both outer surfaces of the substrate of the liquid crystal cell group 1 to be supported). Hereinafter, this is referred to as a "flat surface portion" 31 and a sealing seal 32 is disposed on the flat surface portion 31. The sealing seal 32 is a frame-shaped member made of an elastic material such as rubber, which constitutes the supporting means 3 together with the supporting jig 30, and as shown in FIG. It has a protruding structure. Further, a polarizing plate 33 is attached to a region surrounded by the sealing seal 32 on the surface of the flat portion 31 of the transparent supporting jig 301. Here, the polarization axis of each polarizing plate 33 corresponds to the rubbing direction of both outer surfaces of the substrates of the liquid crystal cell group 1 supported by the transparent supporting jig 301.

On the other hand, the opaque supporting jigs 302a to 302e
(Hereinafter, when it is not necessary to specify any of these, it is simply referred to as “opaque support jig 302”)
The transparent support jig 301 has substantially the same structure. That is, as shown in FIG.
02 has a flat surface portion 31 facing another opaque support jig 302 adjacent to each other, and a sealing seal 32 similar to that of the transparent support jig 301 is disposed on the flat surface portion 31. . However, the opaque support jig 302 is a plate-shaped member (for example, an aluminum plate) that does not have light transparency, and the polarizing plate 33 is not attached to the transparent support jig 3 described above.
Different from 01.

As shown in FIG. 2, the liquid crystal cell group 1 to be processed by the cell gap adjusting device 2 includes substrates 11 and 12.
Is supported between the pair of support jigs 30 in a state where the surface thereof contacts the sealing seal 32 of each support jig 30.

FIG. 4 shows a state in which the liquid crystal cell group 1 is supported by the cell gap adjusting device 2, and when the viewpoint is changed upward, the liquid crystal cell group 1 and the sealing seal 32 are shown. The positional relationship is shown. As shown in FIG. 4, the sealing seal 32 in the present embodiment is provided on both sides of the substrates of the liquid crystal cell group 1 so as to surround most of the four liquid crystal cells 1a forming the liquid crystal cell group 1 in a row. Contact the outer surface. Further, the sealing seal 32 is arranged such that the entire shape thereof is located inside the edge portion of the substrate 11 or the substrate 12 (see FIG. 1B). As a result of the liquid crystal cell group 1 being supported in this manner, both outer surfaces of the substrate of the liquid crystal cell group 1, the inner surface of the sealing seal 32, and the flat surface portion 31 of the supporting jig 30 (for the transparent supporting jig 301 Is the polarizing plate 3
The space surrounded by and 3) forms a closed space (hereinafter, referred to as a “pressurized space”) that is closed except for the hole connected to the fluid supply pipe 40 (see FIG. 2).

In FIG. 2, the fluid supply pipe 40 is a pipe provided so as to connect the above-mentioned pressurizing spaces to the pressurizing means 50. More specifically, this fluid supply pipe 40
Is branched from the pressurizing means 50 and extends to each supporting jig 30, and is passed through the inside of the supporting jig 30 from the outside of the area surrounded by the sealing seal 32 in each supporting jig 30 for sealing. The shape extends to the inside of the area surrounded by the seal 32 (that is, the pressurizing space). In the opaque support jig 302d, the liquid crystal cell group 1 is supported on both sides of the opaque support jig 302d to form a pressure space.
Therefore, the fluid supply pipe 40 is attached to the opaque support jig 30.
The inside of 2d is branched into two, one reaches a pressure space to be formed on the upper side and the other to a pressure space to be formed on the lower side.

Next, the pressurizing means 50 is used for the fluid supply pipe 40.
It is a device for supplying a fluid (in the present embodiment, an example of air is shown) to each pressurized space via. Under such a configuration, air is supplied from the pressurizing means 50 to the respective pressurizing spaces, whereby the pressure of the air is simultaneously applied to the pressurizing spaces including both outer surfaces of the substrates of the respective liquid crystal cell groups 1. Also,
The pressurizing means 50 applies pressure to the pressurizing space according to the pressure control signal PCS supplied from the PC 80 (that is, pressure applied to both outer surfaces of the substrates of the liquid crystal cell group 1).
Can be adjusted.

Next, a light source 60 is arranged on the side of the transparent supporting jig 301a opposite to the side on which the liquid crystal cell group 1 is supported. The light source 60 is for irradiating the transparent support jig 301a with light, and is supported by the light source support jig 61. Here, as described above, the transparent support jigs 301a and 301b are made of a material having a light-transmitting property, and the polarization axes of the respective polarizing plates 33 attached to these flat portions 31 are the liquid crystal cells. This corresponds to the rubbing direction of each substrate of group 1. Therefore, the light emitted from the light source 60 follows the paths of the transparent support jig 301a, the polarizing plate 33, the pressure space, the liquid crystal cell group 1, the polarizing plate 33, the pressure space, and the transparent support jig 301b in order, and is transparent. Support jig 301b
The liquid crystal cell group 1 is emitted from the side opposite to the side supported.

The color CCD camera 70 (light detecting portion) receives the light from the light source 60 emitted from the transparent supporting jig 301b, and outputs red light (R), green light (G), and blue light (B). The image signal V representing the light amount of each monochromatic light is output to the PC 80.

The PC 80 is means for instructing and transmitting to the pressurizing means 50 the pressure to be applied to the pressurizing space. Specifically, the PC 80 includes the liquid crystal cell group 1 (detection cell 1) supported by the transparent support jig 301 based on the image signal V supplied from the color CCD camera 70.
C) The cell gap (d) is detected, and the pressure to be applied to the pressurizing space in order to bring the cell gap (d) close to the preset target value (d ₀ ) is determined by the pressure control signal PC.
By S, the pressure means 50 is instructed and transmitted.

FIG. 5A is a block diagram showing an example of a functional configuration for pressure instruction by the PC 80. PC8
0 is the cell gap detection unit 81, the storage unit 82, the calculation unit 8
3 and a pressure instruction unit 84.

The cell gap detector 81 is a color CCD.
The cell gap (d) of the detection cell 1C at that time is detected based on the image signal V supplied from the camera 70. More specifically, as shown in FIG. 5B, the cell gap detection unit 81 according to the present embodiment has a conversion unit 81a.
And a table 81b. Converter 81a
Is an image signal V indicating the light amount of each of R, G, and B monochromatic light,
It is a means for converting into chromaticity coordinates (X, Y, Z) on the CIE chromaticity diagram. Further, the table 81b has a preset correspondence relationship between the chromaticity coordinates on the CIE chromaticity diagram and the cell gap (d). When the chromaticity coordinates are input from the conversion unit 81a, the correspondence relationship is established. The cell gap (d) is output.

In FIG. 5A, the target value (d ₀ ) is stored in the storage unit 82. The calculation unit 83 calculates a difference value (Δd) between the current cell gap (d) detected by the cell gap detection unit 81 and the target value (d ₀ ) stored in the storage unit 82, that is, (d−d). ₀ ) is calculated and output to the pressure instruction unit 84.

The pressure instructing section 84 instructs the pressurizing means 50 by means of the pressure control signal PCS of the pressure to be applied to the pressurizing space in order to bring the difference value (Δd) output from the calculating section 83 closer to "0". ,introduce. Specifically, when the difference value (Δd) is positive, that is, when the cell gap (d) is larger than the target value (d ₀ ), the pressure instructing unit 84 outputs a signal for increasing the pressure. The pressure control signal PCS for instructing and transmitting is output to the pressurizing means 50. On the other hand, when the difference value (Δd) is negative, that is, when the cell gap (d) is smaller than the target value (d ₀ ),
A pressure control signal PCS for instructing and transmitting the signal for reducing the pressure is output to the pressurizing means 50. In this way, the cell gap (d) of each liquid crystal cell group 1 is set to the target value (d
₀ ), the substrates 11 and 12 of each liquid crystal cell group 1
The pressure applied to (strictly, the pressurizing space) is adjusted (see FIG. 1B).

B: Concrete procedure for processing liquid crystal cell group 1 Next, referring to FIG.
A specific procedure for processing the plurality of liquid crystal cell groups 1 by using will be described.

First, a plurality of liquid crystal cell groups 1 to be processed
Are set in the cell gap adjusting device 2 such that both outer surfaces of each substrate are in contact with the sealing seals 32 of the pair of supporting jigs 30. Specifically, the liquid crystal cell group 1 to be processed is inserted between the pair of supporting jigs 30 in a state where the pressing of the supporting jig 30 by the liquid crystal cell fixing pressing member 65 is stopped. Then, the liquid crystal cell fixing pressure member 65.
The liquid crystal cell group 1 is fixed between the pair of supporting jigs 30 by applying pressure to the supporting jigs 30 by means of.

Thereafter, the liquid crystal cell group 1 is applied by the pressing means 50.
While pressure is applied to both outer surfaces of the substrate, the pressure is adjusted by the control of the pressurizing means 50 by the PC 80, whereby the cell gap (d) of each liquid crystal cell 1a is brought close to the target value (d ₀ ). (See FIG. 1).

Specifically, first, the pressurizing means 50 supplies a preset flow rate of air to the pressurizing space. As a result, an initial pressure corresponding to this flow rate is applied to both outer surfaces of the substrates of the liquid crystal cell group 1.

Thereafter, under the control of the PC 80, the pressure applied to both outer surfaces of the substrates of the liquid crystal cell group 1 is applied to the detection cell 1C (that is, the liquid crystal supported by the transparent support jig 301) at each point during processing. It is adjusted at any time according to the cell gap (d) of the cell group 1) (see FIGS. 5A and 5B). That is, the PC 80 is the color CCD camera 70.
The cell gap (d) of the detection cell 1C is obtained at regular time intervals based on the image signal V output from the device, and the difference value (Δd) between this cell gap (d) and the target value (d ₀ ) is obtained. . Then, the PC 80 outputs to the pressurizing means 50 a pressure control signal PCS for instructing and transmitting the pressure to be applied to the pressurizing space so that the difference value (Δd) approaches “0”.

As a result of such control, the cell gap (d) of the detection cell 1C becomes sufficiently close to the target value (more specifically, the cell gap (d) reaches a value within a predetermined range including the target value (d ₀ ). ), And on the condition that the cell gap (d) is maintained without changing for a predetermined period, a sealing material is applied so as to close the opening 13a of the sealing material 13 of each liquid crystal cell group 1 ( (See FIG. 1). Note that in this embodiment mode, an example of using a resin material having an ultraviolet curability as a sealing material is shown (see FIG. 10).

When the application of the sealing material is completed, the PC
Reference numeral 80 outputs to the pressurizing means 50 a pressure control signal PCS for instructing and transmitting a signal for slightly reducing the pressure applied to both outer surfaces of the substrates of the liquid crystal cell group 1. As a result of the pressure applied to both outer surfaces of the substrate being weakened in this way, the sealing material applied to the opening 13a flows into the inside of the opening 13a (that is, between the pair of substrates). With such a configuration, it is possible to ensure the sealing by curing the sealing material slightly in the state of flowing between the pair of substrates, as compared with the case where the sealing material is simply coated in the opening 13a and cured. Can be enhanced (see FIG. 1).

Next, the pressure control signal PC for weakening the pressure
After S is output to the pressurizing means 50, the sealing material is irradiated with ultraviolet rays when a predetermined time has elapsed. As a result, the sealing material is hardened and the liquid crystal 14 is sealed in each liquid crystal cell 1a (see FIG. 1).

The above is the specific contents of the pressure sealing process according to the present embodiment. In this way, each liquid crystal cell 1a has a liquid crystal 1
After the liquid crystal cell 4 is sealed, the pressure applied by the liquid crystal cell fixing pressure member 65 is stopped, and the liquid crystal cell group 1 is removed from the cell gap adjusting device 2. After that, each liquid crystal cell group 1 is divided into four liquid crystal cells 1a, and a polarizing plate, a retardation plate or the like is attached to both outer surfaces of each substrate, and a drive circuit for driving the liquid crystal 14 is provided. Liquid crystal display device is completed by mounting (Fig. 1
reference).

As described above, in the present embodiment, the fluid pressure is applied to both outer surfaces of the substrates of the liquid crystal cell group 1.

As shown in FIG. 14, when the interleaving paper 91 is brought into contact with both outer surfaces of the substrate for pressing, the irregularity of the interleaving paper 91 or the surface of the plate-shaped member 90 and the variation in the thickness cause both the substrates. It can be difficult to apply uniform pressure to the outer surface. On the other hand, according to the above-described present embodiment, uniform pressure can be easily applied to the entire outer surfaces of the substrates of the liquid crystal cell group 1.

Further, in the conventional method shown in FIG. 14, it takes a certain amount of time for the interleaf paper 91 inserted between the liquid crystal cells to fully contract, but according to the present embodiment, Since the fluid pressure can be quickly applied to both outer surfaces of the substrate of the liquid crystal cell 1, the cell gap can be adjusted more quickly than in the conventional method. Further, according to the present embodiment, since a plurality of liquid crystal cell groups 1 can be processed at the same time, productivity can be improved as compared with the case where the liquid crystal cell groups 1 are processed one by one.

Further, in the present embodiment, the cell gap (d) is detected for any one of the plurality of liquid crystal cell groups 1 (detection cell 1C), and each liquid crystal cell is detected based on this cell gap (d). Since the pressure applied to both outer surfaces of the substrates of group 1 is controlled, it is possible to apply an appropriate pressure to both outer surfaces of the substrates according to the situation of the liquid crystal cell group being processed. The gap (d) can be adjusted accurately.

Under the structure in which the substrate is pressed by the method shown in FIG. 14, the color C is used as in the above-described embodiment.
It is conceivable to measure the cell gap (d) using the CD camera 70 or the like, but in this case, the interleaf paper 91 and the plate-shaped member 90 need to be made of a light-transmissive material. However, as described above, since the interleaf paper 91 or the plate-shaped member 90 is required to have a considerable degree of flatness, there is a restriction that they must be made of a material satisfying such a requirement, so that the light transmissivity is reduced. It is not always possible to arbitrarily select the material to have. On the other hand, as shown in the present embodiment, under the configuration in which both outer surfaces of the substrate are pressed by the pressure of the fluid, it is sufficient if the pressurization space can be a sealed space. It is not necessary to consider restrictions on the material of the support jig (the transparent support jig 301 in the present embodiment) that supports the target liquid crystal cell group 1.

In the present embodiment, the sealing seal 32 having the frame shape in which the frame wall has a rectangular cross section is used. Such a sealing seal 32 can be easily manufactured, for example, by removing the central portion of the rectangular plate-shaped member made of rubber and leaving the edge. However, if it is not necessary to consider such circumstances, the sealing seal 32 of any shape may be used.

For example, as shown in FIG. 6 (a), a sealing seal 32 having a frame body in which the frame wall has a circular cross section may be used. As shown in d), the cross-sectional shape of the frame wall is a bell shape (a shape combining a semicircle and a rectangle), an "X" shape, or a "U" shape. Good. In short, the support jig 3
It suffices that it be sandwiched between the flat portion 31 of 0 and the substrate of the liquid crystal cell group 1 so as to be able to seal between them.

C; Modifications Although one embodiment of the present invention has been described above, the above-described embodiment is merely an example, and the scope of the present invention is not deviated from the spirit of the present invention. Various modifications can be made with. The following can be mentioned as a modification.

<Modification 1> In the above-described embodiment, as shown in FIG. 2, the color CCD camera 70 detects the amount of each monochromatic light emitted from the light source 60 and transmitted through the detection cell 1C. Then, the cell gap (d) is obtained based on the detection result. Here, for the detection cell 1C having no color filter, the cell gap (d) can be accurately obtained by such a method. However, the detection cell 1 with a color filter
When this method is used to obtain the cell gap (d) of C, since the light received by the color CCD camera 70 is the light that has passed through the color filter, the CIE
The chromaticity coordinates on the chromaticity diagram may fluctuate depending on the characteristics of the color filter, which may cause a problem that the cell gap (d) cannot be accurately obtained. In order to avoid such a problem, when the detection cell 1C provided with a color filter is to be processed, it is preferable to use the following method.

In this modification, the color C shown in FIG. 2 is used.
A spectrometer is installed instead of the CD camera 70. This spectrometer (light detecting means) receives the transmitted light emitted from the light source 60 and passed through the detection cell 1C, and has the wavelength (λ) and the transmittance (T) of this transmitted light (or the intensity of this transmitted light). It is a means for measuring the spectral characteristics representing the relationship with. In this modification, as the light source 60, a light source that can emit light in the visible light region without a bright line spectrum (for example, a halogen lamp or the like) is used.

This modified example shows a case where the cell gap detection unit 81 in the PC 80 shown in FIG. 5A is replaced with the configuration shown in FIG. 7 from the configuration shown in FIG. 5B. That is, the cell gap detection unit 81 ′ in the PC 80 according to this modification.
Is composed of a wavelength detector 81c and a calculator 81d. However, the cell gap detection unit 81 ′ is similar to the cell gap detection unit 81 shown in FIG. 5B in that it plays a role of obtaining the cell gap (d) of the detection cell 1C.

With this configuration, when the cell gap measurement timing comes during processing of the detection cell 1C, the PC 80
The cell gap detection unit 81 'therein determines the cell gap (d) based on the spectral characteristics measured by the spectrometer.
The details are as follows.

Here, the characteristic a in the graph showing the spectral characteristic (relationship between transmittance (T) [%] and wavelength (λ) [nm]) in FIG. 8 is that of the detection cell 1C provided with the color filter A. It is a graph which shows an example of the spectral characteristic measured by the spectrometer when it makes it a processing target. As can be seen from the spectral characteristics shown in FIG. 8, the transmitted light of the detection cell 1C has a wavelength (λ ₀ ) at which the transmittance (T) has a minimum value. Wavelength detector 81c in cell gap detector 81 '
Is a calculation unit 8 that detects the wavelength (λ ₀ ) at which the transmittance (T) has a minimum value based on the spectral characteristics output from the spectrometer.
1d (see FIG. 7).

On the other hand, the computing unit 81d is configured to notify the notified wavelength.
(Λ₀) Value and the birefringence index (Δn) obtained in advance (normal
The difference between the refractive index ne and the extraordinary refractive index no)
"D = λ ₀/ Δn ”is calculated and the Sergi
The cap (d) is detected. Here, the transmittance (T) is minimal
The value is that when the wavelength (λ) is equal to Δnd, that is,
Then, when λ = Δnd. From this relationship, the wavelength (λ
₀) And Δn, the above d = λ₀Calculation of / Δn
Detects the cell gap (d) of the target liquid crystal cell group 1.
It is possible (see FIG. 7).

The other operation is the same as that of the above-described embodiment. That is, the difference value (Δd) between the cell gap (d) calculated by the calculation unit 81d of the cell gap detection unit 81 ′ and the target value (d ₀ ) is calculated, and this difference value (Δd) is “0”. Is transmitted to the pressurizing means 50 (see FIG. 7).

Here, the characteristic b in the graph showing the spectral characteristic (relationship between transmittance (T) [%] and wavelength (λ) [nm]) in FIG. 8 is different from that of the color filter A described above. FIG. 8 shows the spectral characteristics measured when the detection cell 1C having different color filters B is processed.
The characteristic c in the graph in Fig. 2 indicates the spectral characteristic measured when the detection cell 1C having no color filter is the processing target. As can be seen from these figures, the wavelength (λ ₀ ) at which the transmittance (T) has a minimum value has the same value regardless of the difference in the characteristics of the color filters and the presence or absence of the color filters. Therefore, by using the method according to this modification, the cell gap (d) can be accurately measured without being affected by the characteristics of the color filter. In the above example, the wavelength (λ
₀₎ was to detect the, instead of this, the transmittance (T) is the wavelength becomes the maximum value (lambda ₀ ') (detects not shown), a cell gap on the basis of this (d) You may ask.

However, the method of detecting the cell gap shown in the above-described embodiment and this modification is merely an example, and various other methods can be used without being limited to such a method. For example, from the difference between the volume of the detection cell before processing and the volume inside the detection cell after the liquid crystal has flowed out due to the pressure on both outer surfaces of the substrate (which can be determined from the outflow amount of the liquid crystal), A method of obtaining the cell gap (d) can also be used.

<Modification 2> In the above-described embodiment, the substrate surface of the liquid crystal cell group 1 and the sealing seal 32 are shown in FIG.
Although it is assumed that the positional relationship shown in (1) is satisfied, this positional relationship is not limited to this, and may be as follows.

FIG. 9A shows a liquid crystal cell when the state in which the liquid crystal cell group 1 is supported by the cell gap adjusting device 2 is viewed in a direction perpendicular to the substrate surface of the liquid crystal cell group 1 in the present modification. FIG. 6 is a plan view showing the positional relationship between the group 1 and the sealing seal 32. Further, FIG. 9B is an enlarged view of a region C surrounded by a broken line in FIG. 9A. As shown in FIG. 9, in this modification, at least a part of the sealing seal 32 overlaps with each sealing material 13 of the liquid crystal cell group 1 when viewed from a direction perpendicular to the substrate surface of the liquid crystal cell group 1. It has become. In addition, the entire shape of the sealing seal 32,
As in the above-described embodiment, the liquid crystal cell group 1 is located inside the edge of the substrate. By the way, when the sealing material applied near the opening 13a of the sealing material 13 and drawn between the pair of substrates is cured by irradiation of ultraviolet rays (see FIG. 9), conventionally, FIG.
As shown in FIG. 3, the sealing material 15 drawn between the pair of substrates.
In contrast, ultraviolet rays (U
It was common to irradiate V). In this case, the sealing material 15 is gradually cured from the side closer to the ultraviolet irradiation device to the side farther from the ultraviolet irradiation device (that is, from the right side to the left side in FIG. 10A). The length L in the UV irradiation direction is significantly longer than the length in the direction perpendicular to the UV irradiation direction. Therefore, a considerable amount of time is required until the entire sealing material 15 is completely cured (the leftmost portion of the sealing material 15 shown in FIG. 10A is cured). Was.

In view of such circumstances, as shown in FIG. 10B, it is preferable to irradiate the sealing material 15 with ultraviolet rays from a direction perpendicular to the substrate surface. That is, in this way, the sealing material 15 in the irradiation direction of ultraviolet rays is formed.
The length (corresponding to the cell gap) is significantly shorter than that of the conventional method described above. As a result, FIG. 10 (b)
When the ultraviolet irradiation method shown in FIG. 2 is adopted, the time required until the entire sealing material 15 is completely cured is significantly shortened as compared with the above-mentioned conventional method in which ultraviolet rays are irradiated from the direction parallel to the substrate surface. can do.

Here, in the case where the configuration shown in FIG. 10B is adopted in this modification, in order to irradiate the sealing material 15 with sufficient ultraviolet rays, the distance P shown in FIG.
That is, it is preferable to make the distance P between the edge of the substrate 11 or the substrate 12 and the sealing seal 32 relatively long. If the distance P is short, the ultraviolet light is blocked by the sealing seal 32, and as a result, it becomes difficult to irradiate the sealing material 15 drawn between the pair of substrates with sufficient ultraviolet light, and the sealing material 15
May not be completely cured.

According to the test by the inventor of the present invention, it has been obtained that the sealing material 15 can be sufficiently cured when the distance P is 1 mm or more. Therefore, the edge of the substrate 11 or the substrate 12 of the liquid crystal cell group 1 and the sealing seal 32
It is preferable that the distance P between and is 1 mm or more (FIG. 1).
reference).

However, due to the structure of the liquid crystal cell group 1, it may be difficult to secure the distance P of 1 mm or more. In such a case, as shown in FIG. 11B, the opening 13a of the sealing material 13 of the sealing seal 32 is formed.
It is preferable that the neighboring portion has a hollow shape that is recessed in a direction away from the opening 13a. In other words, it is preferable that the portion of the sealing seal 32 near the opening 13a be shaped so as to avoid the region where the sealing material 15 is drawn. With this configuration, it is possible to reduce the portion of the sealing seal 32 that blocks ultraviolet rays (in other words, the portion of the sealing material 15 that is irradiated with ultraviolet rays can be increased). It is possible to irradiate the sealing material 15 with sufficient ultraviolet rays to surely cure the sealing material 15.

<Modification 3> In the above-described embodiment and modifications, the case where the sealing seal has a shape enclosing most of the substrate surface of the liquid crystal cell group has been described. When using a hermetic seal that encloses a part of the substrate, use a common hermetic seal (that is, a common cell gap adjustment device) to process multiple types of liquid crystal cell groups with different substrate sizes. You can In the following specific description of the above, when a plurality of types of liquid crystal cell groups 1 each having a different substrate size are to be processed, the liquid crystal cell group 1 having the largest substrate area among them is referred to as " The liquid crystal cell group 1A "and the liquid crystal cell group 1 having the smallest substrate area are referred to as" liquid crystal cell group 1B ".

In order to process a liquid crystal cell group 1A having a large substrate area, as shown in FIG. 12 (a1), when a sealing seal 32a that encloses most of the substrate is used, the sealing seal 32a is used. For example, since the entire substrate of the liquid crystal cell group 1A (specifically, the region surrounded by the sealing seal 32a) can be pressed, the liquid crystal cell group 1
It is suitable for use in processing. However, FIG.
As shown in (a2), when the liquid crystal cell group 1B having a smaller area than this is processed, the sealing seal 32a is used.
Cannot be used. That is, the sealing seal 32a
In addition, a portion that does not come into contact with the substrate surface of the liquid crystal cell group 1B is generated, so that it is not possible to form a closed pressure space.

On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 12 (b1), a sealing seal 3 surrounding a part of the substrate of the liquid crystal cell group 1A.
When 2b is used, pressure cannot be applied to the entire substrate of the liquid crystal cell group 1A, but by applying pressure only to a part of the substrate (that is, the area surrounded by the sealing seal 32b), It is possible to adjust the cell gap (d) to the target value (d ₀ ) by causing excess liquid crystal 14 (see FIG. 1B) in the liquid crystal cell 1a to flow out. Further, as shown in FIG. 12B2, the liquid crystal cell group 1
When processing the liquid crystal cell group 1B having a substrate area smaller than A, the entire sealing seal 32b can be brought into contact with the substrate surface of the liquid crystal cell group 1B to form a sealed pressure space. In this way, the common sealing seal 32b can be used when processing both the liquid crystal cell groups 1A and 1B having different substrate sizes.

As described above, when a plurality of types of liquid crystal cell groups 1 having mutually different substrate areas are to be processed, the entire shape of one sealing seal is provided on the substrate surfaces of all liquid crystal cell groups. So that they come into contact with each other (in other words, a sealed pressure space is formed for all liquid crystal cell groups using a common sealing seal), and the size and shape of this sealing seal are selected. Then, a plurality of types of liquid crystal cell groups 1 can be processed by using the cell gap adjusting device 2 including one type of sealing seal 32. That is, for each of a plurality of types of liquid crystal cell groups to be processed, a cell gap adjusting device 2 including a sealing seal 32 matching the liquid crystal cell group is prepared, or the sealing seal 32 provided in the cell gap adjusting device 2 is provided. Since it is not necessary to replace the different liquid crystal cell group 1 each time the liquid crystal cell group 1 is processed, the productivity can be improved. The cell gap adjusting device 2 described above has a configuration capable of simultaneously processing a plurality of liquid crystal cell groups 1. Therefore, when the sealing seal 32 is shared by a plurality of types of liquid crystal cell groups 1 as described above, a plurality of liquid crystal cell groups 1 of the same type can be processed, and the size of the substrate is different. Multiple types of liquid crystal cell group 1
Can also be processed at the same time.

By the way, in order to commonly use one sealing seal 32 in the processing of more kinds of liquid crystal cell groups 1, the sealing seal 32 surrounds the liquid crystal cell group having a particularly small substrate area. It is preferable that the area (hereinafter, referred to as “surrounding area”) be as small as possible. However, such a sealing seal 3 having a small enclosed area
When 2 is used in the liquid crystal cell group 1 including a substrate having a relatively large area, the pressure space is narrowed, and as a result, each liquid crystal cell 1
There may be a case where a pressure sufficient to cause the excess liquid crystal 14 to flow out from inside a cannot be applied to the substrate (see FIG. 1B).

As a result of an experiment by the present inventors, liquid crystal cell group 1
The area of the substrate of each liquid crystal cell 1a constituting the
It has been found that the pressure applied to the surrounding area of about / 3 is sufficient to cause the excess liquid crystal 14 to flow out from the liquid crystal cell 1a. Therefore, the area of the surrounding area of the sealing seal 32 is at least ⅓ or more of the area of the substrate of each liquid crystal cell 1a forming all liquid crystal cell groups 1 to be processed, It is preferable to select the size or shape of 32 (see FIG. 1B).

<Modification 4> In the above-described embodiment, the target liquid crystal cell group 1 which is the target of cell gap detection.
Support jig 30 (that is, the detection cell 1C)
Although the case where the entire transparent supporting jig 301) is made of a material having a light transmitting property is shown, the present invention is not limited to this, and only a part of the supporting jig 30 may be made of a material having a light transmitting property. May be. For example, only a part of the transparent support jig 301a is made of a light-transmissive member so that the light emitted from the light source 60 irradiates at least a part of the target liquid crystal cell group 1, and the transparent support jig 301a passes through the detection cell 1C. Only part of the transparent support jig 301b may be made of a light-transmissive member so that part of the light is emitted to the color CCD camera 70 side. In short, the light source 60
At least part of the light emitted from the detector cell 1C
It suffices that the color CCD camera 70 be transmitted through the color CCD camera 70 (see FIG. 2).

<Fifth Modification> In the above-described embodiment, the cell gap measurement of the detection cell 1C and the pressure control based on the measurement are performed every time the liquid crystal cell group 1 is processed. Such processing may be performed only when the above processing. That is, the cell gap measurement and the pressure control based on the cell gap measurement are performed only when the four liquid crystal cell groups 1 that are the targets of the cell gap adjustment are processed first. Then, an average pressurizing condition is statistically obtained from the pressurizing condition in the processing of the liquid crystal cell group 1. on the other hand,
When processing the liquid crystal cell group 1 from the next time, the processing may be performed under this average pressure condition. That is, it is not always necessary to measure the cell gap and perform the pressure control based on the measurement every time the processing is performed by the cell gap adjusting device 2 of the present embodiment.

<Modification 6> In the above-described embodiment and modifications, the case where the liquid crystal cell group 1 in which a plurality of liquid crystal cells 1a are connected is to be processed has been described. It is also applicable to the case where pressure sealing is performed for each of the plurality of liquid crystal cells 1a obtained by dividing. That is, the above-mentioned "liquid crystal cell" means a concept including both "individual liquid crystal cell" and "each of the liquid crystal cell groups 1 configured by a plurality of liquid crystal cells 1a" (see FIG. 1).

Further, in the above embodiment, the cell gap adjusting device 2 capable of simultaneously processing four liquid crystal cell groups 1 is shown. However, the number of liquid crystal cell groups 1 which can be simultaneously processed is , But is not limited to this.

[0109]

As described above, according to the present invention,
It is possible to provide a cell gap adjusting device, a pressure sealing device, and a method for manufacturing a liquid crystal display device, which can accurately and quickly adjust the cell gaps of one or more liquid crystal cells.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is an explanatory view schematically showing an example of the configuration of a liquid crystal cell group to be processed in a cell gap adjusting device of the present invention, in which (a) is a plan view and (b) is A- in (a).
It is a sectional view taken along the line A '.

FIG. 2 is a sectional view schematically showing an embodiment of a cell gap adjusting device of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a sectional view schematically showing another embodiment of the cell gap adjusting device of the present invention.

FIG. 4 schematically shows a positional relationship between a liquid crystal cell group and a sealing seal when the liquid crystal cell group used in one embodiment of the cell gap adjusting apparatus of the present invention is attached to the cell gap adjusting apparatus. It is a top view.

FIG. 5 is a block diagram schematically showing the function of one embodiment of the cell gap adjusting device of the present invention, in which (a) is
Example of functional configuration for pressure instruction and transmission by PC,
(B) shows an example of a specific configuration of the cell gap detection unit in the same PC.

FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view showing another example of the sealing seal used in the embodiment of the cell gap adjusting device of the present invention.

FIG. 7 is a block diagram showing an example of a configuration of a cell gap detection unit in a modification of the present invention.

FIG. 8 is a graph showing an example of spectral characteristics measured by a spectroscope in the modification shown in FIG.

FIG. 9 is a plan view showing a positional relationship between a liquid crystal cell group and a hermetic seal in another modification of the present invention.

FIG. 10 is a cross-sectional view showing an example of a conventional mode of irradiating a sealing material with ultraviolet rays.

FIG. 11 is a plan view showing an example of the configuration of the vicinity of an opening of a liquid crystal cell group and a sealing seal in the modified example shown in FIG.

FIG. 12 is a plan view for explaining still another modification of the present invention and its effect.

FIG. 13 is a cross-sectional view showing an example of a conventional pressurizing device.

FIG. 14 is a cross-sectional view showing another example of a conventional pressurizing device.

[Explanation of symbols]

1 ... Liquid crystal cell group (liquid crystal cell) 1a ... Liquid crystal cell 1A ... Liquid crystal cell group 1B having the largest substrate area ... Liquid crystal cell group 1C having the smallest substrate area ... Detection cells 11, 12 ... Substrate 13 ... Sealing material 13a ... Opening 14 ... Liquid crystal 15 ... Sealing material 2 ... Cell gap adjusting device 3 ... Supporting means 30 (301a, 301b, 302a to 302e) ... Supporting jig 301 (301a, 301b) ... Transparent supporting jig 302 (302a to 302e) ... Opaque support jig 31 ... Flat surface 32 ... Sealing seal 33 ... Polarizing plate 40 ... Fluid supply tube 50 ... Pressurizing means 60 ... Light source 61 ... Light source supporting jig 65 ... Liquid crystal cell fixing pressing member 66 ... Shaft 70 ... Color CCD camera 80 ... PC 81, 81 '... Cell gap detection unit 81a ... Conversion unit 81b ... Table 81c ... Wavelength detection unit 81d ... Calculation unit 82 ... Storage unit 83 ... Calculation unit 84 The distance between the sealing seal and the pressure indicator portion 90 ... plate-like member 91 ... slip sheet L ... length in the ultraviolet irradiation direction of the sealing member P ... substrate edge

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Claims (13)

[Claims] 1. A plurality of cells which are formed by bonding a pair of substrates through a sealing material which has a plurality of frame shapes and has openings at predetermined positions of respective frame walls without overlapping each other in a planar manner. A cell gap adjusting device for adjusting a cell gap, which is a thickness between the pair of substrates, in a liquid crystal cell group in which a plurality of liquid crystal cells are formed by injecting liquid crystal into each of the liquid crystal cells. A plurality of supporting jigs for sandwiching and supporting the groups, and arranged between the liquid crystal cell group and the supporting jigs adjacent to the liquid crystal cell group, and outside the liquid crystal cell group. Supporting means having a plurality of frame-shaped sealing seals for forming a sealed space between the surface and the surface of the supporting jig facing the liquid crystal cell group; By pressure A pressurizing unit that pressurizes both outer surfaces of the liquid crystal cell group at the same time, and in the supporting unit, an enclosing region surrounded by the sealing seal includes a plurality of the liquid crystal cells forming the liquid crystal cell group. A cell gap adjusting device characterized by being overlapped with. 2. The cell gap adjusting device according to claim 1, wherein the sealing seal has a portion that overlaps with the sealing material when viewed from a direction substantially perpendicular to the pair of substrate surfaces. 3. The surrounding area covers one-third or more of the area of the substrate that is in contact with the sealing seal of each of the liquid crystal cells forming the liquid crystal cell group. The cell gap adjusting device according to 1 or 2. 4. A plurality of the supporting jigs can respectively support one or more liquid crystal cell groups in which the sizes of the substrates are different from each other, and the sealing seal has a plurality of the supporting jigs. The cell gap adjusting device according to claim 1, wherein all the liquid crystal cells supported by a jig are in contact with each other. 5. The cell gap of one or more liquid crystal cell groups specified as cell gap detection cells among the one or more liquid crystal cell groups is detected, and the liquid crystal cell group of the liquid crystal cell groups is detected based on the detected cell gap. The cell gap adjusting device according to any one of claims 1 to 4, further comprising control means for calculating a pressure for pressurizing both outer surfaces and instructing and transmitting a signal related to the pressure to the pressurizing means. 6. A light source disposed on a surface opposite to a surface facing the detection cell in one of two detection supporting jigs, which are the supporting jigs for sandwiching and supporting the detection cell. The control means is disposed outside the detection support jig on the other side, and a detection section for detecting transmitted light emitted from the light source and passing through the detection cell; and the detection section. Comparing the detected cell gap and the target value with the cell gap detection unit that detects the cell gap based on the detection result by
The cell gap adjusting device according to claim 5, further comprising: a pressure instructing unit that instructs and transmits to the pressurizing means a signal regarding a pressure for pressurizing both outer surfaces of the liquid crystal cell group calculated based on a comparison result. 7. The pressure instructing unit instructs and transmits a signal for increasing the pressure to the pressurizing unit when the cell gap is larger than a target value, and when the cell gap is smaller than the target value, 7. The cell gap adjusting device according to claim 6, wherein a signal for reducing pressure is instructed and transmitted to the pressurizing means. 8. The cell gap adjusting device according to claim 6, wherein the cell gap detecting unit detects the cell gap based on chromaticity coordinates of the transmitted light detected by the light detecting unit. 9. The cell gap adjusting device according to claim 6, wherein the cell gap detecting unit detects the cell gap based on a spectral characteristic of the transmitted light detected by the light detecting unit. 10. The cell gap adjusting device according to claim 8 or 9, wherein a polarizing plate is provided on a surface of the detection supporting jig facing the detection cell. 11. A method according to claim 6, wherein at least a part of a surface of one of the detection support jigs facing the outer surface of the detection cell is formed of a material having a light-transmitting property.
The cell gap adjusting device according to claim 1. 12. A fluid is provided inside the supporting jigs, which are arranged between the outer surfaces of the supporting jigs, which are directly adjacent to each other without interposing a liquid crystal cell group between the supporting jigs. And a liquid crystal cell fixing pressurizing member which is composed of a bag-shaped elastic member capable of being supplied and which can press the outer surfaces of the adjacent supporting jigs facing each other by the pressure of the supplied fluid. The cell gap adjusting device according to any one of claims 1 to 11. 13. A plurality of sealing members having a plurality of frame shapes and having openings at respective predetermined positions of those frame walls are formed by laminating a pair of substrates through a plane without overlapping each other. A liquid crystal injecting step of injecting liquid crystal into each cell to form a plurality of liquid crystal cells, a liquid crystal injecting step of adjusting a cell gap of the liquid crystal cell group, and a liquid crystal cell group And a sealing step of sealing the opening of the sealing material when the cell gap becomes substantially the same as a target value. One or more liquid crystal cells are sandwiched and supported by a supporting jig, and the liquid crystal cell group and a close contact provided between the supporting jigs adjacent to the liquid crystal cell group are provided. Seals each form a sealed space between both outer surfaces of the liquid crystal cell group and a surface of the supporting jig facing the liquid crystal cell, and a region surrounded by the sealing seal is the liquid crystal. It is overlapped with a plurality of liquid crystal cells constituting a cell group, a fluid is introduced into the plurality of closed spaces, and both outer surfaces of the liquid crystal cells are simultaneously pressurized by the pressure of the introduced fluid. Liquid crystal display device manufacturing method.