JP2003237653A - Glass separating method - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a glass separating method separating glass from a glass element having an adhering member. <P>SOLUTION: The glass separating method comprises a laser irradiating process applying a laser L from the glass side to the adhering member 232 to glass 231 in the glass element 230 to heat an adhering interface K between the glass and the adhering member, and melting the glass near the adhering interface; wherein the glass element 230 is composed of the glass 231 allowing the laser L to pass through, and the adhering member 232 to absorb the laser L and having a melting point higher than that of the glass 231, an adhering member embrittlement process making the adhering member 232 brittle by resolidifying of the glass 231 melted in the laser irradiating process; and a separating process separating the adhering member 232 made to be brittle in the adhering member embrittlement process and the glass 231. By melting and resolidifying of the glass 231, the adhering member 232 facing to the glass 231 is made to be brittle, so that the adhering member 232 is easily separated from the glass 231. <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 glass separating method and apparatus for separating glass and a fixing member fixed to the glass.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Various glasses are attached to window frames (fixed frames) of automobiles, railway vehicles, airplanes and the like. Such glass may be mechanically fixed to the fixing frame, but is often adhered with an adhesive. In the latter case, since the adhesive firmly connects the glass and the fixed frame, the glass cannot be easily removed from the fixed frame. However, it may be necessary to remove the bonded glass from the fixed frame for recycling, dismantling, repair, repair of the vehicle, replacement of the glass itself, and the like. In such a case, a method of cutting the glass itself and separately removing the remaining adhesive or a part of the glass has been conventionally performed. However, according to this method, when the glass is removed, the glass fragments are scattered and the workability is poor. Further, since the glass thus removed does not retain its original shape, it cannot be recycled as it is, and it is unavoidable to separately perform a crushing process and reuse it for other purposes. Therefore, this method cannot effectively recycle the glass.

Therefore, JP-A-11-267627 and JP-A-11-320138 disclose a method for removing glass in a non-destructive state and an apparatus therefor. These methods irradiate a laser from the glass side to the adhesive layer formed by the adhesive to thermally break the adhesive interface between the glass and the adhesive layer (cohesive failure due to decomposition), and the glass to the adhesive layer. The glass is removed and the glass is removed. In particular, in the case of glass for automobiles, it is utilized that the laser is absorbed by the black ceramic portion fixed to the glass side to efficiently generate heat. This allows
It is possible to remove and recover the glass without breaking it.

[0004]

However, in the case of the method disclosed in the above publication, the resin-based adhesive layer is deteriorated, the adhesive interface is thermally destroyed, and the adhesive layer is peeled from the glass. To separate. When the glass is removed from the fixed frame by using such a method, the black ceramic or the like, which has become the laser absorber, remains adhered and remains on the glass. Such black ceramics and the like are firmly adhered to the glass, and conventionally, unless chemicals or the like were used, they could not be easily peeled and removed. Therefore, even if the glass is recovered by the above method, a large number of man-hours are required separately for peeling and removing the black ceramic and the like from the glass. The present invention has been made in view of such circumstances. That is, it is possible to easily separate a fixing member such as black ceramic adhered to glass from glass, and to provide a glass separation method and an apparatus therefor capable of further improving the workability of removing glass, the recyclability of glass, and the like. To aim.

[0005]

Therefore, the present inventor has diligently studied to solve this problem, and as a result of repeated trial and error,
It was discovered that the fixing member can be easily separated from the glass by irradiating the fixing interface between the glass and the fixing member with a laser, and melting and re-solidifying the glass in the vicinity thereof, thus completing the present invention. is there. (Glass removal method) That is, the glass separation method of the present invention, a glass body consisting of a glass that transmits laser and a fixing member that is fixed to the glass and absorbs the laser and has a melting point higher than that of the glass, A laser irradiation step of irradiating the fixing member with the laser from the glass side to heat the fixing interface between the glass and the fixing member to melt the glass in the vicinity of the fixing interface; and a laser irradiation step of melting the glass in the laser irradiation step. The method is characterized by comprising a fixing member embrittlement step of embrittlement the fixing member by resolidification, and a separation step of separating the fixing member embrittled in the fixing member embrittlement step and the glass.

According to the present invention, the fixing member fixed to the glass is embrittled in the fixing member embrittlement step. As a result, it has become possible to easily separate and remove the fixing member, which was conventionally difficult to remove, from the glass. Therefore, for example, the work of removing the fixing member from the glass, the work of removing the glass from the fixed frame, and the like can be performed more easily. And it has become possible to improve the recyclability of glass more than ever before.

Here, the reason why the fixing member can be easily separated according to the present invention will be described below within the scope of the present understanding. When the fixing member is irradiated with the laser in the laser irradiation step, the fixing member absorbs the laser and generates heat to raise the temperature of the fixing interface between the glass and the fixing member. At this time, if the output of the laser, the beam diameter (irradiation diameter), etc. are appropriately set to adjust the energy density and the like, only the glass in the vicinity of the fixed interface can be easily melted. At this time, since the fixing member has a higher melting point than glass, the fixing member does not melt prior to the glass. When this laser irradiation is stopped, the molten glass is cooled by heat conduction and heat transfer and solidifies again. At the time of this resolidification, a contraction stress acts on the side of the fixed interface of the glass. Then, depending on the contracting stress, a tensile stress mainly acts on the fixing interface side of the fixing member. Of course, in reality, it is expected that various stresses act in various directions, but in any case, the stress sufficient to break the fixing member or its fixing interface due to melting and resolidification of the glass is expected. It is thought to work. As a result, it is considered that the fixing member becomes brittle at least at the fixing interface, and the glass and the fixing member are easily separated in the separation step after the fixing member embrittlement step.

As described above, in the fixing member embrittlement step of the present invention, it is sufficient if the fixing member is embrittled at the fixing interface.
The fixing member does not need to be peeled from the glass. For example, it is sufficient that the vicinity of the fixing interface of the fixing member is cracked in the fixing member embrittlement step. The reason is that even if it does not lead to peeling, the fixing member can be easily scraped off from the glass by cracking. Of course, if the type of laser and the degree of irradiation are adjusted according to the characteristics of the fixing member, it is easy to peel the fixing member from the glass in the fixing member embrittlement step. It goes without saying that the fixing member embrittlement step is suitable as an embrittlement peeling step in which the fixing member is embrittled and peeled from the glass.

(Glass Separation Apparatus) The glass separation method of the present invention can be carried out using the following glass separation apparatus.
That is, a laser source for generating a laser, a glass body formed of a glass that transmits the laser, and a fixing member that is fixed to the glass and absorbs the laser and has a melting point higher than that of the glass, from the glass side. Laser irradiation means for irradiating the fixing member with the laser to heat the fixing interface between the glass and the fixing member to melt the glass in the vicinity of the fixing interface; and glass melted by laser irradiation by the laser irradiation means. A glass separating device comprising: a separating member that separates the fixing member and the glass, which are embrittled during resolidification.

In the present invention, the transparency and the absorptivity of the glass and the fixing member with respect to the laser are relative, and it is sufficient that the transparency and the absorptivity are such that the present invention can be carried out. For example, even glass is unlikely to actually transmit 100% laser, and conversely, it is difficult for a fixing member to absorb 100% laser. What is important is that the laser irradiation heats the fixing interface, and the glass melts at that portion faster than the fixing member.

[0011]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION Next, the present invention will be described in more detail with reference to embodiments. It should be noted that what is described below applies to the glass separating method and the glass separating apparatus of the present invention as appropriate. (1) Laser Various lasers can be used, for example,
Various gas lasers, YAG lasers, semiconductor lasers (LD)
Etc. can be used. Further, the type of laser, wavelength, output, etc. may be appropriately selected in consideration of the material of the glass or the fixing member, laser irradiation width (or fixing width), workability, and the like. For example, the wavelength of the laser used varies depending on the composition of the glass and the fixing member, but when separating the black ceramic (fixing member) fixed to the glass for automobiles, for example, YAG laser 1000 to 1100 nm, semiconductor laser 800 Approximately 900 nm is preferable.

In this case, the laser output varies depending on the beam diameter (irradiation diameter), but the beam diameter is several meters.
If it is about m, the output may be about 200 to 400 W. Although it is related to the beam diameter and output of the laser, the focus of the laser does not necessarily have to be set on the fixed interface. Therefore, for example, it may be located deeper on the fixing member side than the fixing interface. Further, the irradiation width can be controlled by adjusting the focus. Further, it is necessary to continue to irradiate the laser to the fixed interface for at least a time such that the glass near the fixed interface is melted. However, except when the irradiation is started, the laser was continuously moved at an appropriate moving speed. Also, the glass can be melted along the locus. For example, when the above-mentioned glass for automobiles is irradiated with a laser (LD), the glass in the vicinity of the fixing interface can be sufficiently melted even if the moving speed is set to about 1 to 5 m / min. The irradiation angle of the laser is preferably from directly above the glass toward the fixing member, but is not limited thereto, and the laser may be irradiated from an oblique direction. When the laser is radiated from an oblique direction, even if there is an obstacle that blocks the laser just above the glass, the laser can be appropriately radiated to the fixed interface if only the refractive index is taken into consideration.

By the way, such a laser can be obtained from a laser generator (laser source) according to its type. The obtained laser can be focused by a lens through, for example, an optical fiber and irradiated to the fixed interface. The output of the laser to be irradiated can be adjusted by the laser adjusting unit provided in the laser generator or the like. In this case, the laser irradiating means in the present invention is composed of an irradiating section composed of the optical fiber and the lens and an adjusting section capable of adjusting the output and the like.

In many cases, the periphery of the glass having a fixing member is fixed to a fixing frame with an adhesive or the like. Therefore,
It is preferable that the laser irradiation means includes a moving means capable of automatically moving the irradiation position of the laser along the periphery of the fixing member. This moving means can be realized, for example, by causing the arm of the robot to hold the irradiation unit and move the irradiation unit according to a program input in advance. The moving method may be linear or zigzag. It may be determined based on the relationship between the width of the fixed interface and the laser irradiation width. Even if the fixed interface is wide, it is possible to improve the workability by linearly moving the laser irradiation part by increasing the number of laser beams. Further, the workability is further improved and the work time can be shortened by using a dedicated machine according to the form of the glass body or the work to which the glass body is attached.

(2) Glass In the present invention, various kinds of glass can be used.
A typical example thereof is glass for automobiles. There are many types of automotive glass, for example, laminated glass used for windshields, tempered glass used for quarter windows, heat-absorbing glass used for sunroofs, and rear windows. Conductive glass is used. As described above, glass having a large number of types and shapes is more difficult to dispose of in a lump, and therefore, the value of enhancing the recyclability using the present invention is great. This is especially true when there are many expensive materials such as automobile glasses. Of course, the glass referred to in the present invention is not limited to glass for automobiles, but may be glass used for rail cars, airplanes, and the like. Further, it is not limited to the window glass of the moving body, but may be a fixed window glass of a building or the like.

(3) Fixing member The fixing member is fixed to the glass and absorbs the laser to generate heat at the fixing interface. Since the melting point of the fixing member is higher than the melting point of the glass, the fixing member does not melt even if the glass melts. As a result, when the glass is melted and then re-solidified, stress acts on the fixing member to embrittle the fixing member. As such a fixing member, for example, a layered black ceramic printed on a glass for automobiles can be mentioned. The black ceramic masks the adhesive that adheres the glass to the window frame (fixed frame) to improve the appearance of the automotive glass, and also shields the ultraviolet rays to prevent the adhesive from deteriorating. ing. The component of the black ceramic is mainly composed of glass frit and ceramics such as bismuth oxide and zinc oxide, which are colored black by adding a pigment or ink thereto. As the name suggests, black ceramics are generally black, but the color is not a problem as long as the present invention can be implemented. That is, as long as the fixing member can absorb the laser at the fixing interface and generate heat to melt the glass, its strict color does not matter.

(4) Others The glass body of the present invention may be in a state of being detached from the fixed frame or in a state of being fixed to the fixed frame. If you want to separate the glass and the fixing member from the glass body that has already been removed from the fixed frame,
The embrittled fixing member may be scraped off with a scraper or the like (separation step, separation means). Of course, if the fixing members are separated from the glass, they can be separated more easily and cleanly. Also, if the glass body is in a state of being adhered and fixed to the fixed frame, remove the glass from the adhesive or the fixed frame from the fixed interface part after the fixing member at the fixed interface is embrittled by laser irradiation. Can be done (removal process).

Incidentally, such removal can be carried out individually by manual work, or can be carried out automatically by a machine. For example, after the laser irradiation step, the glass may be removed (separation step) and conveyed by adsorbing the suction cup (separation means) attached to the arm tip of the general-purpose robot onto the glass. Of course, not only a general-purpose robot but also a dedicated machine can be similarly removed. The suction cup is
It is preferable to provide an opening of an air suction pipe (or a discharge pipe) inside so that suction and desorption of glass can be switched by controlling the atmospheric pressure inside the suction cup.

As an example, a case of separating an automobile glass adhered and fixed to a window frame (wind pillar) with an adhesive and a black ceramic which is interposed between the adhesive and the glass and spread on the glass are separated. Think As such an adhesive, a resin-based adhesive such as urethane (including a reactive agent such as a primer) is often used. This urethane-based adhesive firmly adheres the glass body to the window frame by a urea bond, etc., but when heated above a prescribed temperature, it causes cohesive failure near the adhesive interface, and the window frame or black There is no adhesion between the ceramic and the adhesive. Then, once the interface destruction occurs, the temperature is lowered and the adhesive force is not recovered.

Here, when the black ceramic on the adhesive is irradiated with laser as in the present invention, the adhesive itself is also heated and the adhesive loses the adhesive force as described above. As a result, not only the black ceramic and the glass can be separated, but also the adhesive and the window frame can be easily separated. In particular, when the glass is to be removed from the window frame as described above, it is possible to do so at the same time.

The separation of the glass and the fixing member in the present invention is effective not only when the automobile is disassembled and each component is recycled, but also when the automobile is repaired. In addition, the present invention is effective not only in the case where it is carried out in a large-scale dedicated facility such as an automobile dismantling plant but also in the case where it is carried out in a small scale such as an automobile repair plant.

[0022]

EXAMPLES Next, the present invention will be described more specifically with reference to examples. (Glass Separation Method) First, the glass separation method according to the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 and 2. Figure 1
[Fig. 3] schematically shows how a glass body is irradiated with laser from the glass side (laser irradiation step). This glass body is, in particular, an automobile windshield glass in which a black ceramic is printed around the glass. More specifically, an interlayer film made of polyvinyl butyral (thickness: 0.5 mm) is made of two pieces of glass (thickness: 1.9 m).
It is a laminated glass (total thickness: 4.5 mm) which is sandwiched between m and 2.1 mm and pressure-bonded.

The black ceramic is a known one having a width of 30 to 60 mm and a thickness of 0.03 mm , which is a mixture of glass frit, bismuth oxide, zinc oxide, pigment and ink. The melting point of this black ceramic is sufficiently higher than that of the glass (650 to 700 ° C.).
℃ . The irradiated laser is a semiconductor (diode) laser and has a wavelength of 808 nm (up to 940 nm). Further, the focal point was adjusted so that the laser beam diameter was 4 mm on the fixed interface which was the boundary between the glass and the black ceramic. Furthermore, the moving speed of the laser is 2m
/ Min, the laser was irradiated in a linear section of 50 mm. In addition, the output of the laser in the range of 150 ~ 300W,
Each test was performed by changing every 50 W.

The test results thus obtained are shown in FIG. As can be seen from FIG. 2, in the case of this embodiment, the laser output is 20.
It was revealed that the black ceramic became brittle at 0 W or more (bonding member embrittlement step). In FIG. 2, the X mark indicates that the glass did not melt or the black ceramic did not become brittle. The mark Δ indicates that the black ceramic became brittle and cracked, but it did not lead to peeling. However, even in this case, the embrittled black ceramic was easily peeled off from the glass with a force of scratching with a nail (separation step). The ∘ mark indicates that the glass has melted or that the black ceramic has peeled off from the fixed interface of the glass. Needless to say, the laser output is 2
It was confirmed that the black ceramics were easily and cleanly peeled off from the glass of 50 W or more by applying a natural force or a light force (separation step).

(Glass Separating Apparatus) Next, FIG. 3 shows a glass removing apparatus 200 which is an embodiment of the glass separating apparatus according to the present invention. The glass removing device 200 is a dedicated device for removing the automobile window glass 230 from the wind frame 250 (fixed frame) of the body 251. The glass removing device 200 has a steel frame pedestal 260 through which a steel plate body 251 placed on a carriage 261 can be inserted. Further, a multi-axis joint type robot 210 (moving means) having a base fixed on a pedestal 212 is arranged on the side of the pedestal 260. Arm tip part 2 of this robot 210
A laser irradiation unit 220 (laser irradiation means) for irradiating the laser L is attached to 11. Further, a flexible exhaust duct 223 is provided so as to cover the laser irradiation section 220. The exhaust duct 223 is fixed to the slider 224 that slides on the rail of the gantry 260 and the arm of the robot 210. The exhaust duct 223 guides and processes gas and smoke generated by heating by laser irradiation to the outside.

A flexible optical fiber 222 extending from a semiconductor laser generator 225 (laser source) is connected to the laser irradiation section 220, and the slider 2
It is held at 24. According to this glass removing device 200, the laser irradiation process can be automatically and efficiently performed. In addition, the robot 21 can obtain glass data for each of a plurality of vehicle types.
If it is stored in the controller 0, the laser irradiation unit 220
It is also possible to automatically change the locus of according to the vehicle type.

Next, the glass removing step after the laser irradiation step can be carried out by using a removing means as shown in FIG. 4, for example. In this system, a suction cup 213 is attached to the arm tip portion 211 of the robot 210 (glass removing means) so that the automobile window glass 230 can be removed and transported. The suction cup 213 has therein an opening of a suction pipe connected to a negative pressure generator (not shown). Then, by controlling the air pressure inside thereof, it is possible to switch between adsorption and desorption of the automobile window glass 230.

In addition, an apparatus as shown in FIG. 5 may be used as the glass removing means. This is a slider 266 that can move on a rail 265 that traverses the cradle 260.
In addition, four suction cups 267 are attached. Also in this case, the suction and desorption of the automobile window glass 230 may be performed by controlling the atmospheric pressure inside the suction cup 267. Finally, the fixed relationship between the automobile window glass 230 and the window frame 250 will be described with reference to FIG. The automobile window glass 230 shown in FIG. 6 has a black ceramic 232 printed on the lower layer of the glass 231. The window glass 230 for an automobile is adhered and fixed onto the wind frame 250 (fixed frame) made of a steel plate via an adhesive layer 240 made of an adhesive.

Here, the adhesive layer 240 is composed of a primer 241 on the side of the window glass 230 for an automobile, a primer 242 on the side of the wind frame 250, and a urethane adhesive 243 (urethane type adhesive) interposed therebetween. . As the components of the primers 241, 242, appropriate ones are selected according to the components of the urethane adhesive 243. For example, when the urethane adhesive 243 is composed of a urethane prepolymer, isolamate and carbon, the primer 241 is composed of a silane coupling agent, MEK, ethyl acetate and carbon, and the primer 242 is composed of an isocyanate compound, ethyl acetate and carbon. . The components of the black ceramic 232 are as described above. When the laser L is irradiated from the glass 231 side to the black ceramic 232 on the automobile window glass 230, the fixing interface K between the glass 231 and the black ceramic 232 generates heat, and the surface of the lowermost layer of the glass 231 is melted. Then, when the irradiation of the laser L is stopped, the fixed interface K is cooled and the molten portion of the glass 231 is re-solidified. Even if the melting and re-solidification of the glass 231 occur only in an extremely narrow region near the fixed interface, the black ceramic 232 is sufficiently embrittled and can be easily separated.

When the above-described removal process is performed under such circumstances, the automobile window glass 230 will be removed from the wind frame 250 at the fixed interface K thereof. Here, even if the fixed interface K and the adhesive interface A are destroyed by irradiating the laser L, the adhesive interface B is not always destroyed. This is because the heat transfer coefficient of the adhesive layer 240 is generally low, and the adhesive interface B is not thermally broken. Therefore, if the laser irradiation conditions (irradiation energy, irradiation time, etc.) are set appropriately, the adhesive layer 2
It is also possible to remove only the glass 231 while leaving 40 on the wind frame 250. On the contrary, if the laser is strongly irradiated, not only the black ceramic 232 and the adhesive layer 240 are separated but also the adhesive layer 240 and the wind frame 250 are separated.
It is also possible to perform separation from and at the same time.

[0031]

According to the glass separating method and the apparatus therefor of the present invention, the fixing member can be easily and efficiently separated from the glass.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is an explanatory diagram of a glass separating method according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a result of a test when laser is irradiated with various outputs.

FIG. 3 is an overall configuration diagram showing a glass removing device according to the present embodiment.

FIG. 4 is a view showing an example of glass removing means used in the glass removing device.

FIG. 5 is a view showing another example of the glass removing means used in the glass removing device.

FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view showing a fixed relationship between an automobile window glass to be removed by using the glass removing device and a window frame to which the window glass is fixed.

[Explanation of symbols]

230 Wind glass for automobiles 231 glass 232 black ceramic 240 Adhesive layer 250 wind frame (fixed frame) L laser K fixed interface

Continuation of front page (51) Int.Cl. ⁷ Identification code FI theme code (reference) B60J 1/02 101Z

Claims (4)

[Claims] 1. A glass body comprising a glass which transmits laser and a fixing member which is fixed to the glass and absorbs the laser and has a melting point higher than that of the glass, and the laser is applied from the glass side to the fixing member. A laser irradiation step of irradiating to heat the fixing interface between the glass and the fixing member to melt the glass in the vicinity of the fixing interface, and to re-solidify the glass melted in the laser irradiation step to embrittle the fixing member. A glass separating method, comprising: a fixing member embrittlement step; and a separation step of separating the fixing member embrittled in the fixing member embrittlement step and the glass. 2. The glass separating method according to claim 1, wherein the fixing member embrittlement step is an embrittlement peeling step in which the fixing member becomes brittle and peels from the glass. 3. The glass separation according to claim 1, wherein the separating step is a removing step of removing the glass at the fixing interface from a fixing frame in which the glass is fixed by an adhesive through the fixing member. Method. 4. The method for separating glass according to claim 1, wherein the glass is glass for automobiles, and the fixing member is black ceramic.