JP2003233051A - Holding device for liquid crystal panel and method for manufacturing liquid crystal panel - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a method and a device for manufacturing a liquid crystal panel which can efficiently perform pitch adjustment and cell thickness adjustment of many liquid crystal panels at a time by a simple mechanism. <P>SOLUTION: A principal part of a holding device 20 is comprised of a pressure control plate 27 for holding strip panels P, a pitch adjustment mechanism 40 which presses the pressure control plate 27 to perform pitch adjustment of the strip panels P, and a pressure control part which performs cell thickness adjustment of the strip panels P after the pitch adjustment. The pitch adjustment mechanism 40 comprises a mobile plate 26 for pressing the pressure control plate 27 and a driving part for driving the mobile plate 26. <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 liquid crystal panel holding device and a liquid crystal panel manufacturing method which are applied to, for example, a liquid crystal panel pressure-bonding sealing step in manufacturing a liquid crystal device.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Generally, in a manufacturing process of a liquid crystal panel, first, two substrates are bonded together via an uncured sealing material, and then a predetermined pressure is applied to press the substrates to each other. Then, the sealing material is hardened by performing a treatment such as heating to form a cell structure of the liquid crystal panel. The sealing material is provided with an opening that constitutes a liquid crystal inlet, and liquid crystal is injected into the cell through this opening, and then the liquid crystal panel is pressure-bonded and sealed.

In this pressure-bonding and sealing step, first, a plurality of liquid crystal panels to be pressure-bonded are laminated with interleaving paper between them to protect the panel, and a pressure jig made of a plate-shaped member having rigidity is used. Hold it. Next, pressure is applied to the pressure adjusting plate to collectively adjust the cell thickness of the plurality of liquid crystal panels. Next, after the excess liquid crystal ejected from the liquid crystal injection port by pressure is wiped off, a sealant such as a UV curable resin is manually applied to each liquid crystal injection port. Then, each pressure regulating plate is conveyed to a UV curing furnace by, for example, a forklift, and the sealing agent is cured by UV irradiation.

[0004]

However, when a plurality of liquid crystal panels are collectively processed in the pressure-bonding and sealing step as described above, pressure unevenness occurs between the plurality of panels when pressure is applied by the pressure jig. There is a problem that the cell thickness between panels varies.

Therefore, instead of such batch processing,
Although it is possible to perform the processing while adjusting the cell thickness one by one in a single-wafer method, such processing has a problem that productivity is poor.

The present invention has been made under the above circumstances, and provides a liquid crystal panel holding device and a liquid crystal panel manufacturing method capable of holding a plurality of liquid crystal panels collectively while eliminating variations in cell thickness. The purpose is to do.

A further object of the present invention is to provide a liquid crystal panel holding device and a liquid crystal panel manufacturing method capable of holding a larger number of liquid crystal panels together with a simple structure.

[0008]

A liquid crystal panel holding device according to the present invention includes a frame-like elastic seal member which is sandwiched between liquid crystal panels and which forms a sealed space between the liquid crystal panels. A pressure regulating plate provided with a gas flow passage for regulating the pressure inside the closed space, a means for pressing between the liquid crystal panels sandwiched by the pressure regulation plate, and the inside of the closed space via the gas flow passage. And a means for adjusting the pressure.

According to such a configuration of the present invention, since the pressure regulating plate is sandwiched between the liquid crystal panels, it is possible to regulate the pressure of each liquid crystal panel and eliminate the pressure unevenness. It is possible to eliminate the variation in cell thickness. Further, since a closed space for adjusting pressure is formed between the panel surface itself of the liquid crystal panel, the pressure adjusting plate and the elastic seal member, the structure is simple and within a limited width. It becomes possible to pressurize while holding a larger number of liquid crystal panels.

According to one aspect of the present invention, in the holding device described above, means for detecting the color tone of at least one liquid crystal panel pressed by the pressing means, and the adjustment means based on the detection result. Means for controlling the pressure means.

According to this structure, for example, the color tone of one liquid crystal panel can be detected and the cell thickness can be measured from this color tone. The gas supply pressure is calculated by the control means so that the cell thickness becomes a desired cell thickness. The calculated gas supply pressure is introduced into the closed space through the gas flow passage. Thus, after adjusting the pitch of the liquid crystal panels, the cell thickness of the other liquid crystal panels can be adjusted at the same time only by detecting the color tone of one liquid crystal panel among the plurality of liquid crystal panels.

According to one aspect of the present invention, in the holding device described above, the pressing means holds the pressure plate with a fixed plate provided on one side of the liquid crystal panel holding the pressure plate. The liquid crystal panel comprises a movable plate provided on the other side and a pitch adjusting mechanism for moving the movable plate.

With such a structure, it is possible to hold a plurality of liquid crystal panels with a simpler structure.

The method of manufacturing a liquid crystal device according to the present invention is the method of manufacturing a liquid crystal panel using the above-mentioned holding device, wherein (a) the liquid crystal inlet of each liquid crystal panel is exposed in one direction, A step of holding each liquid crystal panel in the holding device; (b) a step of pressing the space between the liquid crystal panels while pressurizing each of the closed spaces; and (c) applying a sealing material to each of the liquid crystal inlets. And (d) depressurizing each of the closed spaces, and (e) curing the applied sealing material.

According to this structure, the liquid crystal panel is held by the holding device so that the liquid crystal inlets are continuous in one direction,
Adjust the pitch of the liquid crystal panel and the cell thickness of the liquid crystal panel. After this, a sealing material is applied to the liquid crystal injection port, and the liquid crystal panel is depressurized. As a result, the pressure inside the liquid crystal panel is reduced and the volume is increased, so that the sealing material is drawn to a predetermined portion of the liquid crystal inlet. In order to bring the encapsulant into the retracted state, the process proceeds to the step of curing the encapsulant in the same reduced pressure state. Thus, a plurality of liquid crystal panels can be simultaneously subjected to predetermined processing in the pressure-bonding sealing step such as adjustment between liquid crystal panels, cell thickness adjustment of liquid crystal panels, application of sealing material, and curing of sealing material. In addition, since it is a multiple type, the pitch adjustment and the cell thickness adjustment of the liquid crystal panel of the liquid crystal panel can be performed in the same manner.

According to an aspect of the present invention, in the manufacturing method described above, the step (b) is performed by pressing with a first pressure larger than a pressure corresponding to a target value of the cell thickness of the liquid crystal panel. Then, while the cell thickness is being monitored, the liquid crystal is discharged quickly, and when the set lower limit cell thickness is reached, a feedback step of gradually approaching the pressure corresponding to the target value of the cell thickness is provided. .

According to this structure, the movable plate on the other side of the holding device is moved to the one fixed plate side to adjust the pitch of the liquid crystal panel. By this movement, the liquid crystal panel is held by the adjusting plate and sealed with the elastic sealing material. After that, the first pressure is applied by the gas supply into the closed space to adjust the cell thickness of the liquid crystal panel itself, and the liquid crystal panel becomes thinner than the proper cell thickness. After that, the pressure is lowered while monitoring the cell thickness (second pressure) to bring the cell thickness close to the target value. When the cell thickness reaches the target value, a sealing material is applied to the liquid crystal injection port. Next, the encapsulant must be pulled to a predetermined position in the liquid crystal panel. Then, the liquid crystal panel is decompressed, the volume in the liquid crystal panel is increased, and the sealing material is drawn into the liquid crystal panel. This pressure is the third pressure, and this pressure is a value calculated such that when the sealing material is applied, the pressure is drawn to a predetermined position and the cell thickness becomes appropriate. As a result, it is possible to perform the predetermined process of the pressure-bonding and sealing process only by adjusting the pressure.

[0018]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

First, the structure of the liquid crystal device according to this embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 and 2. 1 is a schematic plan view of the liquid crystal device 101, and FIG. 2 is a schematic cross-sectional view of the liquid crystal device 101 of FIG.

As shown in the figure, the liquid crystal device 101 has a first
A first substrate 141 having a surface 141a and a second surface 141b
And a second substrate 142 having a first surface 142a and a second surface 142b are arranged with a predetermined gap so that the first surface 141a of the first substrate 141 and the first surface 142a of the second substrate 142 face each other. Has been done. In addition, the first substrate 141 is
The first side 141c and the second side 141d orthogonal to the first side 141c are included, and the second substrate 142 includes the first side 142c and the second side 142d orthogonal to the first side 142c. The 1st board | substrate 141 and the 2nd board | substrate 142 are the 1st sides 141c and 142c each, 2nd side 141d, 1st.
42d are arranged so that their comrades match. Incidentally, FIG.
In the above, the second substrate 142 is arranged on the front side and the first substrate 141 is arranged on the rear side, and the first side 141c and the second side 141d of the first substrate 141 are respectively the first side 142c and the second side 142c of the second substrate 142. Since it does not overlap with the two sides 142d, it cannot be seen.
It is written in parentheses.

The first substrate 141 and the second substrate 142 are
A liquid crystal 144 is provided between the first substrate 141 and the second substrate 142, which is an area surrounded by the open curved sealing material 12 and the pair of first sealing materials 15 and surrounded by the open curved sealing material 12. Is enclosed. The liquid crystal injection port 10 is closed by a sealing material 11.

The open-curved sealing material 12 is formed in a substantially rectangular shape along the substrate peripheral edge of the second substrate 142.
The liquid crystal injection port 10 is provided with an opening on the first side 142c (141c) side.

The above-mentioned pair of first sealing materials 15 are connected to the respective ends of the open curved sealing material 12, and the first side 14
2c (141c) substantially perpendicular to the first side 142c (14
1c) is extended and arranged. The pair of first seal materials 15 form the liquid crystal injection port 10, and the liquid crystal is injected through the space between the pair of first seal materials 15 into the area surrounded by the open curved seal material.

On the first surface 141a of the first substrate 141,
The transparent electrode 146 and the alignment film 147 are formed, and the transparent electrode 146 is a wiring that extends to the outside of the open-curve sealing material 12 and is drawn out onto the substrate overhanging portion 141c.
In addition, the transparent electrode 148 and the alignment film 149 are formed on the first surface 142 a of the second substrate 142, and the transparent electrode 148 is formed.
Is a substrate overhanging portion 141c through a vertical conducting portion (not shown).
It is connected to the upper wiring.

A semiconductor chip 150 that constitutes a liquid crystal drive circuit is mounted on the first surface 141a of the substrate overhanging portion 141e. The semiconductor chip 150 includes transparent electrodes 146, 1
The wiring on the board overhanging portion 141c that is electrically connected to the switch 48 and the input terminal 151 formed at the end of the board overhanging portion 141c are both electrically connected. Here, depending on the structure of the liquid crystal device, the flexible wiring board is conductively connected to the input terminal 151, or the first portion of the board overhanging portion 141e is connected.
Processing such as sealing the surface 141a with a sealing material such as silicone resin is performed.

Next, a method of manufacturing the above-mentioned liquid crystal device and a structure of the liquid crystal device panel will be described with reference to FIGS. In the present embodiment, a multi-cavity production in which a large number of liquid crystal devices are manufactured from a pair of substrates will be described as an example.

FIG. 3 is a flow chart for explaining a method for manufacturing a multi-panel liquid crystal device panel. 4 and 5 are schematic process diagrams showing a manufacturing process of a multi-piece liquid crystal panel. FIG. 6 is a diagram for explaining the positional relationship between the sealing material and the substrate in the strip panel P.

First, a first mother substrate 2 having a first surface 2a and a second surface 2b facing each other, and a first surface 4a and a second surface facing each other.
A second mother substrate 4 having a surface 4b is prepared. First mother board 2
Is a first side 2c and a second side 2d orthogonal to the first side 2c.
The second mother substrate 4 has a first side 4c and the first side 4c.
And has a second side 4d orthogonal to. First mother substrate 2 and second
A transparent electrode and an alignment film are formed on the first surfaces 2a and 4a of the mother substrate 4, respectively.

Next, as shown in FIGS. 3 and 4 (a),
On the first surface 2 a of the first mother substrate 2, the open-curve sealing material 1
2. The dummy seal material 13 and the first seal material 15 are applied by a printing method. The open-curved sealing material 12 is provided in a plurality of substantially rectangular shapes (here, nine) so that the opening serving as the liquid crystal injection port 10 is located toward the first side 2c side. The pair of first seal members 15 are connected to the ends of the open curved seal members 12 and are provided substantially parallel to the second side 2d. The three open-curve seal materials 12 are provided along the first side 2c, and the dummy seal material 13 sandwiches the three open-curve seal materials 12 provided along the first side 2c. Thus, it is provided on both sides, and is provided so as to substantially fill the region where the open curved sealing material 12 is not formed. In the present embodiment, the dummy seal material 13 is
It has a substantially rectangular shape.

On the other hand, on the first surface 4a of the second mother substrate 4,
Spacers 19 that hold the gap between the pair of mother substrates are scattered. Then, the first mother board 2a and the first mother board 4a face each other, and the second mother board via the seal material 12 so that the first sides and the second sides of the mother boards overlap each other. The first mother substrate 2 is arranged on the substrate 4.

Next, as shown in FIGS. 3 and 4 (b),
The first mother substrate 2 and the second mother substrate 4 are pressure-bonded by a substrate bonding device to form a large-sized assembled panel, and the large-sized assembled panel is baked by a baking device to heat and cure the sealing material to form the large-sized panel 3. To do. At the time of this pressure bonding step, in the present embodiment, the dummy seal material 1
Since 3 is provided, it is possible to perform uniform pressure bonding in the plane of the mother substrate, and the gap between the first mother substrate and the second mother substrate 4 in the region surrounded by each open-curve sealant 12 is formed on the substrate surface. It can be uniform. Further, since the distance between the substrates is always constant between individual panels obtained from the same large format panel, a liquid crystal device having stable display characteristics can be obtained.

Next, the first mother board 2 and the second mother board 2 of the large-format panel 3
A scribe groove 6x extending in the X direction in the drawing (a scribe groove similarly formed on the first mother substrate 4 is not shown) is formed on each of the first surfaces 2a and 4a of the mother substrate 4 (primary scribe), By applying a breaking force along these scribe grooves 6x, the first mother substrate 2 and the second mother substrate 4 are each broken (primary break). As a result, FIG.
A strip panel P as a panel for a liquid crystal device shown in (c) is formed. In this embodiment, three strip panels P are formed from one large-sized panel.

The shape of the sealing material in the above strip panel P will be described with reference to FIGS. 4 (c) and 6. FIG. 6 is a view in which the first strip substrate 2'is located on the front side and the second strip substrate 4'is located on the back side, and the second strip substrate 4'is invisible by the first strip substrate 2 '. There is. The fractured first strip substrate 2'and second strip substrate 4'constituting the strip panel P have a first side 2'c and a first side 4'c, respectively.
And a second side orthogonal to the first side 2'c and the first side 4'c
It has a side 2'd and a second side 4'd.

The strip panel P includes a first strip substrate 2'and a second strip substrate 2 '.
The pair of first sealing materials 15 to be the liquid crystal inlets 10 are exposed at the broken portion of the strip substrate 4 '.
In other words, the liquid crystal injection ports are exposed and aligned along the first side 2'c (4'c).

The dummy sealing materials 13 are provided on both sides so as to sandwich the three open-curved sealing materials 12 provided along the first side 2c, and the regions where the open-curved sealing material 12 is not formed are almost formed. It is provided in a rectangular shape so as to surround it.

Next, as shown in FIGS. 3 and 5 (a),
Liquid crystal is injected from the liquid crystal injection port 10, and then the opening is closed by the sealing material 11. The details of the pressure sealing method for applying the sealing material 11 will be described later.

Next, as shown in FIGS. 3 and 5 (a),
A scribe groove 6y (a scribe groove formed on one of the strip substrates is not shown) is formed in each of the first strip substrate 2'and the second strip substrate 4'which constitute the strip panel P'injected with the liquid crystal. (Secondary scribe) Then, the two first strip substrates 2'and the second strip substrate 4'are both fractured (secondary break) by applying a breaking force along these scribed grooves 6y, as shown in FIG. 5 (b). A single liquid crystal panel p is formed. At this time, the dummy seal material 1
The substrate corresponding to the area where 3 is formed is cut off.
The formed liquid crystal panel p is configured by bonding the first substrate 141 and the second substrate 142 with the seal material 12 and the first seal material 15. In the present embodiment, three single liquid crystal panels p can be formed from one strip panel P. Therefore, nine single liquid crystal panels p can be formed from a large panel.

A semiconductor chip is mounted on the liquid crystal panel p thus formed, and the liquid crystal device 1 shown in FIGS.
01 is completed.

Next, the pressure-bonding sealing device 1 for applying and curing the sealing material 11 to the liquid crystal injection port 10 of the strip panel P after the liquid crystal injection will be described with reference to FIG.

The pressure-bonding sealing device 1 comprises a holding device 20 for adjusting the pitch and cell thickness of the strip panel P, and the holding device 20.
This main part is composed of a UV irradiating section 21 which cures the sealing material 11 after applying the sealing material 11 to the liquid crystal injection port 10 of the strip panel P therein.

The UV irradiator 21 is provided with a UV irradiating chamber 22 into which the holding device 20 itself is introduced, and an encapsulant 11 disposed above the UV irradiating chamber 22 and applied to the liquid crystal injection port 10.
A UV lamp 23 that emits UV light that cures is provided.

Further, the UV irradiation unit 21 has a holding device 20.
There is provided an opening / closing door 24 that moves up and down when being transported to the UV irradiation chamber 22. By opening and closing the opening / closing door 24, the holding device 20 can be carried in and out, and by closing the opening / closing door 24, the UV treatment can be safely performed without affecting the outside.

Next, the holding device 20 in the pressure-bonding and sealing step will be described with reference to FIGS.

FIG. 8 is a schematic sectional view showing the overall structure of the holding device 20, and FIG. 9 is an exploded perspective view of the strip panel P sandwiched by the pressure adjusting plate 27 via the elastic seal member 29.
FIG. 10 is a schematic sectional view specifically showing the pressure adjusting plate 27 of the holding device 20, and FIG. 11 is a schematic view of a vertical movement drive mechanism of the pressing screw 31 provided on the pressing plate 33b.

As shown in FIG. 8, the holding device 20 holds, for example, 16 to 20 strip panels P (here, 8 strips are shown for convenience of description), and each strip panel P is held. A plurality of pressure adjusting plates 27 sandwiched between them, a plurality of strip panels P sandwiching these pressure adjusting plates 27 are collectively pressed to adjust the pitch between them, and a strip panel P. Panel surface itself and pressure plate 27
Each enclosed space 28 surrounded by the elastic sealing member 29
The main part is composed of a pressure adjusting part 41 for adjusting the internal pressure. In addition, one strip panel P ′ at the left end in the figure is
It is a sample when measuring the cell thickness. This point will be described later.

The surface of the pressure regulating plate 27 facing the panel is shown in FIG.
As shown in, a frame-shaped elastic seal member 29 is provided so as to form a sealed space 28 between each panel surface. The elastic seal member 29 is preferably made of, for example, a rubber material, has a height of, for example, about 1 mm, and is embedded in the groove of the pressure regulating plate 27, for example, about 1 mm. This allows
The strip panel P can be prevented from being damaged without being in direct contact with the pressure adjusting plate 27, and can further improve the degree of adhesion.

Further, as shown in FIG. 10, a gas flow passage 30 for adjusting the pressure inside the closed space 28 is provided inside the pressure adjusting plate 27. The pressure regulating section 4 is provided in the gas flow passage 30.
The pressure of the gas from 1 is applied to the closed space 28 through the hole 42, whereby the cell thickness is adjusted.

The pitch adjusting mechanism 40 includes a fixing plate 25 provided on one side of the strip panel P sandwiching a pressure adjusting plate 27,
The movable plate 26 provided on the other side and a moving mechanism 33e for moving the movable plate 26 form a main part.

The moving mechanism 33e is a rail 33a for moving.
A pressing plate 33b is movably arranged along the above. The pressing plate 33b is attached to the rotation driving unit 33 via the ball screw 33c.
It is connected to d. Then, the rotation driving unit 33d rotates the ball screw 33c, so that the pressing plate 33b moves to the position shown in FIG.
It is designed to move from side to side.

As shown in FIG. 11, the pressing plate 33b includes
A pressing screw 31 that presses the movable plate 26 is provided.
The pressing screw 31 is vertically movable. When the pressing screw 31 is moved to a desired position, the pressing screw 3
It is fixed by a pair of stopper members 37 provided on both sides of 1.
As a result, the pressing screw 31 can move up and down and can be pressed at a desired position. That is, the size of the elastic seal member 29, which is slightly smaller than the strip panel P, changes according to the size of the strip panel P held in the holding device 20. Since the elastic seal member 29 can be moved up and down according to the change in size, it is possible to constantly press the center.

The pressing plate 33b is provided with a lead-in screw 32 fixed to the movable plate 26. And
When the pressing plate 33b presses the movable plate 26, the pressing screw 31
A pressing force acts on the movable plate 26 from the pressing plate 33b via the pulling plate 33b so that when the pressing plate 33b pulls the movable plate 26, a pulling force acts on the moving plate 26 from the pressing plate 33b via the lead-in screw 32. It has become. In the present embodiment, in particular, by disposing the main part of the moving mechanism 33e below the panel holding part as described above, the size of the entire device can be reduced.

The pressure adjusting section 41 includes a color tone detecting mechanism 41a for detecting the color tone of the strip panel P'and a color tone detecting mechanism 41a.
The cell thickness measuring unit 41 which analyzes the color tone detected by the above, calculates the cell thickness of the strip panel P according to the analysis result, and calculates the pressure in the closed space 28 so that the cell thickness becomes a predetermined thickness.
b and a gas supply unit 41c that applies a gas having a pressure calculated by the cell thickness measurement unit 41b to the closed space 28.

In the color tone detecting mechanism 41a, the light source 41d arranged on one side of the strip panel P'arranged on the left side in FIG.
Of the light is transmitted through the strip panel P ′ through the optical path 34 formed of, for example, quartz glass, and the color tone detection mechanism 41 is provided through the reflection plate 39 such as a prism provided on the outer side in the left direction.
It is designed to enter a.

As a result, the cell thickness of all the other strip panels P can be adjusted only by analyzing the color tone of one strip panel.

Next, a method for manufacturing the strip panel P of the present invention described above will be described with reference to process drawings.

FIG. 12 is a process diagram showing a pressure-bonding sealing process of the strip panel P. FIG. 13 shows the movable plate 26 of the holding device 20.
FIG. 9 is a diagram showing pitch adjustment of the strip panel P by moving to the left. FIG. 14 is a diagram showing the pressure applied to the strip panel P and the cell thickness of the strip panel P at this time.

First, at the position where the movable plate 26 in the state of FIG. 13A has moved to the right, the spaces between the pressure regulating plates 27 are open. The strip panel P after the liquid crystal is injected is inserted into the pressure adjusting plate 27 (step 1).

Next, as shown in FIG. 13B, the movable plate 26 is moved to the left side toward the fixed plate 25, and all the pressure adjusting plates 2 are moved.
7 is closed, and the pitch of the strip panel P is adjusted. (Step 2). The pressurization at this time is 150 to 200 KPa as the first pressure as shown in the graph of FIG. 14, which is thinner than the desired cell thickness.

Next, the cell thickness is measured by the cell thickness measuring section 41b while monitoring the color tone of the strip panel P'on the left end.
Gas is supplied from the gas supply unit 41c into the closed space 28 so that the cell thickness is desired. The pressure applied in this cell thickness adjustment is 10 to 30 KPa as the second pressure.
At this time, the cell thickness of the strip panel P is also thinner than the proper cell thickness. (Step 3) By such cell thickness adjustment, the strip panel P is pressed and the liquid crystal in the strip panel P is blown out from the liquid crystal inlet 10. Therefore, this surplus liquid crystal is wiped off (step 4).

After wiping off the excess liquid crystal, the liquid crystal injection port 10
Then, the sealing material 11 is applied (step 5).

After applying the sealing material 11 to all the liquid crystal injection ports 10, the gas in the closed space 28 is evacuated and the pressure is reduced to 10 KPa. That is, the strip panel P is in a pressure state of 0 to 20 KPa as the third pressure. Due to such a pressure reduction, the sealing material 11 is drawn to a predetermined sealing region in the strip panel P (step 6). By applying pressure after depressurization here, the strip panel P has an appropriate cell thickness.

After that, the UV irradiator 2 is attached to each holding device 20.
1 is transported to the inside (step 7). In this way, since the entire holding device 20 is conveyed, it is possible to perform processing while maintaining the cell thickness.

The liquid crystal injection port 10 is irradiated with UV to cure the sealing material 11 (step 8).

After the irradiation, the holding device 20 is transported to the original position (step 9).

The movable plate 26 is moved to the right, and each strip panel P is taken out from the holding device 20 (step 10).

Thus, the holding device 2 according to the present embodiment
When 0, the pressure can be adjusted for each strip panel P, and it is possible to eliminate unevenness in pressure and variations in cell thickness. The sealed space 28 can be easily formed between the strip panel P and the pressure adjusting plate 27 only by interposing the elastic seal member 29.
Therefore, the structure is simple and it is possible to hold a large number of strip panels P within a limited width.
By using the holding device 20 having such a configuration, a plurality of strip panels P can be simultaneously adjusted between the strip panels P, the cell thickness of the strip panels P can be adjusted, the sealing material 11 can be applied and the sealing material 11 can be cured. It is possible to efficiently perform the predetermined processing in the pressure-bonding and sealing step.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic perspective view showing a structure of a liquid crystal device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a schematic sectional view showing a structure of a liquid crystal device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a flowchart of a method for manufacturing a liquid crystal panel according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a schematic perspective view showing an external appearance of a panel in a main step (No. 1) of the method for manufacturing a liquid crystal panel according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a schematic perspective view showing an external appearance of a panel in a required step (No. 2) of the method for manufacturing a liquid crystal panel according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a schematic perspective view of a strip panel according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 7 is a configuration diagram of a strip panel manufacturing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 8 is a perspective view showing a holding device for a strip panel according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 9 is a cross-sectional view of the pressure adjusting plate in the holding device according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 10 is an exploded perspective view showing a state where the pressure regulating plate and the strip panel according to the embodiment of the present invention interpose a seal member.

FIG. 11 is a view showing a mechanism for vertically moving the pressing screw according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 12 is a process drawing showing the method of manufacturing a strip panel according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 13 is a holding device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 14 is a graph showing the relationship between the pressure and the cell thickness of a strip panel according to one embodiment of the present invention over time.

[Explanation of symbols]

1. Crimping and sealing device 10 ... Liquid crystal inlet 11 ... Sealing material 20 ... Holding device 25 ... Fixing plate 26 ... Movable plate 27 ... Pressure regulating plate 28 ... Closed space 29 ... Elastic seal member 30 ... Gas flow passage P ... Strip panel

Continued front page    F-term (reference) 2H088 FA01 FA02 FA03 FA04 FA05                       FA07 FA10 FA11 FA16 FA17                       FA21 FA24 FA26 FA30 HA01                       HA02 HA03 HA06 HA28 KA02                       MA17 MA20                 2H089 LA21 LA22 LA24 LA41 NA09                       NA24 NA25 NA32 NA33 NA39                       NA43 NA44 NA45 NA48 NA60                       QA12 QA14 QA16 SA01 TA01                       TA02 TA03 TA04 TA07 TA18

Claims (5)

[Claims] 1. An elastic seal member, which is sandwiched between liquid crystal panels and has a frame shape so as to form a closed space between the surfaces of the liquid crystal panels, and a gas flow for adjusting the pressure in the closed spaces. A liquid crystal device comprising: a pressure regulating plate provided with a passage; a means for pressing between the liquid crystal panels sandwiched by the pressure regulating plate; and a means for regulating the pressure inside the closed space via the gas flow passage. Panel holding device. 2. The holding device according to claim 1, wherein the means for detecting the color tone of at least one liquid crystal panel pressed by the pressing means, and the means for controlling the pressure adjusting means based on the detection result. A holding device for a liquid crystal panel, comprising: 3. The holding device according to claim 1, wherein the pressing unit includes a fixed plate provided on one side of the liquid crystal panel holding the pressure adjusting plate, and a liquid crystal holding the pressure adjusting plate. A liquid crystal panel holding device, comprising: a movable plate provided on the other side of the panel; and a moving mechanism for moving the movable plate. 4. A method of manufacturing a liquid crystal panel using the holding device according to claim 1, wherein: (a) each liquid crystal is so arranged that a liquid crystal injection port of each liquid crystal panel is exposed in one direction. A step of holding the panel on the holding device; (b) a step of pressurizing the inside of each of the closed spaces while pressing between the liquid crystal panels; and (c) a step of applying a sealing material to each of the liquid crystal inlets. And (d) a step of decompressing the inside of each closed space, and (e) a step of curing the applied sealing material, a method of manufacturing a liquid crystal panel. 5. The manufacturing method according to claim 4, wherein the step (b) comprises pressing with a first pressure larger than a pressure corresponding to a target value of the cell thickness of the liquid crystal panel, Pressing with a pressure of 1, reaching a set cell thickness smaller than the target cell thickness, gradually lowering the pressure from the first pressure, and pressing with a second pressure corresponding to the target cell thickness. Characteristic liquid crystal panel manufacturing method.