JP2004192924A - Manufacturing method of fluorescent lamp - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a manufacturing method of a fluorescent lamp capable of easily enclosing a certain quantity of mercury or a mercury alloy in a glass bulb at low cost. <P>SOLUTION: A winding part is formed at a part of the circumferential surface of a glass capsule by winding a metal wire. The attitude of an arc tube 10 is so kept as to position a narrow tube 30 above the glass bulb 11, and the glass capsule with the winding part is inserted from the tip of the narrow tube 30. By sealing the narrow tube 30, the glass capsule 1 is enclosed in the narrow tube 30. Air is exhausted from the narrow tube 40; a predetermined quantity of a rare gas is introduced from the narrow tube 40; and the root of the narrow tube 40 is chipped off. The attitude of the arc tube 10 is kept so as to position the narrow tube 30 on the vertically lower side of the arc tube 10, and in that state, the winding part 3 is induction-heated by a high-frequency coil 50 to open the glass capsule 1. The narrow tube 30 is chipped off. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2004,JPO&NCIPI

Description

[0001]
TECHNICAL FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a method for manufacturing a fluorescent lamp.
[0002]
[Prior art]
The fluorescent lamp of the fluorescent lamp is sealed with stems to which electrodes and thin tubes are attached at both ends of the glass bulb, and then exhausts impurity gas such as air from inside the glass bulb, and puts mercury and rare gas into the glass bulb. It is produced through a step of enclosing the.
In the process of filling mercury in a glass bulb, the amount of mercury to be filled must be above a certain standard required to meet the design life requirements of fluorescent lamps, while excessive use of mercury Since it is desirable to avoid the influence on the environment and the like, a technique for accurately filling a certain amount of mercury in a glass bulb is required.
[0003]
For example, as disclosed in Patent Document 1, a necked tube is attached to the end of a discharge lamp vessel, a metal capsule containing a certain amount of mercury is fixed in the tube, and after evacuation, the metal capsule is sealed. A method of opening the package by high-frequency induction heating is known.
According to this method, since mercury can be sealed in a metal capsule at a low temperature, a certain amount of mercury can be precisely sealed, and when the metal container is opened, a certain amount of mercury encapsulated therein is opened. Is released into the container.
[0004]
[Patent Document 1]
Japanese Patent Publication No. 60-253140
[Patent Document 2]
Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 9-185944
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
However, when a metal capsule is used, the cost is high for manufacturing the metal capsule. Further, there were cases where the metal capsule could not be reliably opened.
Further, as another method of enclosing mercury in a glass bulb, Patent Literature 2 discloses a method in which a mercury-enclosed glass capsule is provided at a portion of a discharge vessel that protrudes in a tubular shape, and the glass capsule is irradiated with a beam and heated. A method for opening the package is described.
[0007]
However, in this case, it is necessary to use glass having a high absorption coefficient for the beam as a material of the glass capsule, and thus there is a problem that the cost is increased. The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and has as its object to provide a method for manufacturing a fluorescent lamp capable of easily and inexpensively sealing a certain amount of mercury or a mercury alloy in a glass bulb.
[0008]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
In order to achieve the above object, in the method for manufacturing a fluorescent lamp according to the present invention, a glass capsule in which a predetermined amount of mercury or a mercury alloy is sealed inside and a metal wire is wound on the outer periphery is provided at each end. A holding step of holding the glass capsule having the first thin tube and the second thin tube in the first thin tube, a first sealing step of sealing a tip end side of a portion of the first thin tube where the glass capsule exists, An evacuation step of evacuating the second thin tube and thereafter sealing the second thin tube, and opening the glass capsule by high-frequency induction heating of the metal wire with the first thin tube positioned below the glass bulb. An opening step of introducing mercury into the glass bulb by means of the first step; and after the opening step, a part of the first capillary tube closer to the glass bulb than the part where the glass capsule remains. It provided a sealing step.
[0009]
According to the above manufacturing method, the winding portion formed by winding the metal wire around the outer periphery of the glass capsule is formed in a shape protruding from the outer peripheral surface of the glass capsule.
Then, in the holding step, the glass capsule is held in the first thin tube. However, as described above, the glass capsule is formed with the winding part protruding from the outer peripheral surface. It can be easily held by contacting the inner wall of one capillary.
[0010]
Here, it is preferable that a convex portion is formed in advance on the inner wall of the first thin tube so that the winding portion is easily caught on the inner wall of the first thin tube.
In the evacuation step, the evacuation is performed from the second thin tube separate from the first thin tube in which the glass capsule is held, so that the evacuation is not hindered by the glass capsule.
[0011]
In the opening step, the glass capsule is opened by high-frequency induction heating of the metal wire. That is, when an eddy current flows through the metal wire by high-frequency induction, the metal wire is heated to a high temperature by Joule heat, and the portion of the glass capsule that contacts the metal wire is intensively heated and softened, and the glass capsule is opened. You.
If the metal wire is wound under tension while being wound, the glass capsule is easily opened in this opening step.
[0012]
In the opening step, the mercury sealed in the glass capsule is introduced into the glass bulb. However, since the mercury is opened with the first thin tube positioned below the glass bulb, the opened glass capsule is opened. No debris falls into the glass bulb.
Then, after the opening step, in the second sealing step, the glass capsule fragments are left in the glass bulb by sealing the portion closer to the glass bulb than the portion where the glass capsule remains in the first thin tube. Completely separated.
[0013]
In the first sealing step and the second sealing step, the portion to be sealed of the second thin tube can be easily sealed by intensively heating with a burner or the like.
According to the present invention described above, a certain amount of mercury or a mercury alloy can be easily and inexpensively sealed in a glass bulb without using a metal capsule.
[0014]
BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION
Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.
(Configuration of arc tube with thin tube)
First, in the method for manufacturing a fluorescent lamp according to one embodiment of the present invention, an arc tube with a capillary used in a mercury filling and evacuation step will be described.
[0015]
FIG. 1 is an external perspective view of an arc tube with a thin tube used in this step, and FIG. 2 is a top view of the arc tube before mercury and a rare gas are sealed.
The arc tube 10 has a configuration in which four cylindrical glass bulbs 11 to 14 are arranged in parallel and connected by bridge portions 15 to 17 to form one long discharge path inside. A protective film and a phosphor layer (not shown) are sequentially laminated on the inner peripheral surface of each of the cylindrical glass bulbs 11 to 14.
[0016]
Specifically, a pair of cylindrical glass bulbs 11 and 12 are connected by a tubular bridge portion 15 to form an H-shaped valve body, and a pair of glass bulbs 13 and 14 are formed by a bridge portion 17 and H-shaped. To form an H-shaped valve body, and the two H-shaped valve bodies are connected by a tubular bridge portion 16. As a result, the glass bulb 11, the bridge 15, the glass bulb 12, the bridge 16, the glass bulb 13, the bridge 17, and the glass bulb 14 are connected in this order, and a meandering discharge path is formed inside the arc tube 10. I have.
[0017]
The size of each of the cylindrical glass bulbs 11 to 14 is, for example, a tube outer diameter of 12.5 mm and a wall thickness of 1 mm.
In the arc tube 10, ends located at both ends of the discharge path are sealed with stem glasses 11a and 14a having electrodes 21, 22 and a thin tube 30.
The conductive lines 23 and 24 are for supplying power to the electrodes 21 and 22 from outside.
[0018]
Among the ends of the cylindrical glass bulbs 11 to 14, other than the above-mentioned ends are closed by glass lids 12a and 13a having no electrodes or by heating and melting the glass bulb material itself, The internal space of the arc tube 10 communicates with the outside only through the small tubes 30 and 40.
The thin tube 30 is a thin tube for introducing mercury, and has an inner diameter into which the glass capsule 1 can be inserted. On the other hand, the thin tube 40 is used for exhaust, and has an inner diameter that allows smooth exhaust. However, the diameter of the thin tubes 30, 40 is smaller than the diameter of the glass bulbs 11 to 14.
[0019]
The size of the thin tubes 30, 40 is, for example, a tube diameter of 4.1 mm and a wall thickness of 0.38 mm.
A convex portion 31 is formed on the inner wall of the thin tube 30.
The function of the projection 31 will be described later in detail, but is for holding the glass capsule as shown in FIG. The convex portion 31 can be formed by partially heating a straight glass tube, which is a material of the thin tube 30, by using a burner so that the diameter of the thin tube becomes thin.
[0020]
(Glass capsule with winding part)
Next, a glass capsule with a winding portion used in the mercury filling step will be described.
As shown in FIG. 3, the glass capsule 1 is a glass capsule in which a fixed amount of pure mercury 2 is sealed in a short glass tube having both ends sealed. As a material of the glass capsule 1, a low melting point glass softening at a relatively low temperature, specifically, a lead glass or a soda glass is preferable. The size of the glass capsule is, for example, a tube diameter of 2 mm, a wall thickness of 0.3 mm, and a length of 10 mm, and the amount of enclosed mercury is, for example, 4 mg.
[0021]
The glass capsule 1 can be easily manufactured by weighing a certain amount of mercury into a glass tube having one end sealed, and then sealing the other end of the glass tube with a burner.
A winding part 3 is formed on a part of the outer peripheral surface of the glass capsule 1 by winding a metal wire a plurality of times. Since the winding portion 3 is formed on a part of the outer peripheral surface of the glass capsule 1, it is convex with respect to the outer peripheral surface.
[0022]
As the material of the metal wire, a ferromagnetic material which is a material having heat resistance and is easily heated by high frequency induction is preferable.
As a preferable material, Ni or a Ni alloy, specifically, a Ni wire having a wire diameter of 0.4 mm is used.
The details of the winding part 3 will be described later.
[0023]
(Procedure of mercury filling and exhausting process)
The process of sealing mercury into the arc tube and evacuating it using the above-mentioned glass capsule with a winding portion will be described in order with reference to FIGS.
(1) Step of Holding the Glass Capsule 1 in the Capillary Tube 30 The posture of the arc tube 10 is maintained such that the capillaries 30 are positioned above the glass bulb 11 (in FIG. 3, the capillaries 30 face upright). However, the glass capsule may be turned obliquely upward.) Then, a glass capsule is inserted from the tip of the thin tube 30.
[0024]
The glass capsule falls inside the thin tube 30 and is held in the middle of the thin tube 30, for example, at the center, by the winding portion 3 being locked by the convex portion 31. That is, when the outer diameter of the glass capsule 1 is larger than the inner diameter of the thin tube 30 at the portion where the convex portion 31 is formed, the glass capsule 1 itself cannot be passed through and is held. On the other hand, when the outer diameter of the glass capsule 1 is smaller than the inner diameter at the portion where the convex portion 31 of the thin tube 30 is formed, as shown in FIG. 3, the glass capsule 1 itself tries to pass therethrough. The projection 31 is hooked and held.
[0025]
{Circle around (2)} Step for Sealing the Capillary Tube 30 With the posture of the luminous tube 10 maintained such that the tubule 30 is positioned above the luminous tube 10, the tip side of the portion of the tubule 30 where the glass capsule 1 exists. Is sealed.
This sealing can be performed by heating and melting the portion of the thin tube 30 to be sealed with a chip burner.
[0026]
Thereby, the glass capsule 1 is sealed in the thin tube 30.
(3) Evacuation step As shown in FIG. 5A, exhaust is performed from the thin tube 40 and a predetermined amount of rare gas is introduced from the thin tube 40. As the rare gas to be filled, for example, an argon gas is used.
[0027]
Then, as shown in FIG. 5B, the root of the thin tube 40 is heated and melted by a chip burner and cut off (chip off).
5 (a) and 5 (b) show the posture in which the thin tube 30 is located above the arc tube 10, but what is the posture of the arc tube 10 when exhausting and chipping off. It does not matter if the posture is different.
[0028]
(4) Capsule opening step After that, as shown in FIG. 5C, the posture of the arc tube 10 is maintained so that the thin tube 30 is positioned vertically below the arc tube 10, and in this state, the thin tube 30 is opened. The high-frequency coil 50 is set, and a high frequency is applied thereto. As a result, an eddy current flows through the winding portion 3 to generate Joule heat, and the winding portion 3 is heated to a high temperature. Along with this, the vicinity of the winding portion 3 in the glass capsule 1 is also heated to a high temperature and softened, and the glass capsule 1 is opened.
[0029]
When the glass capsule 1 is opened, mercury sealed in the glass capsule 1 is released into the thin tube 30 and further diffuses into the arc tube 10.
Here, if the thin tube 30 is heated in a heating furnace to evaporate the mercury to forcibly diffuse into the arc tube 10, mercury is diffused into the arc tube 10 with almost no remaining in the thin tube 30. You.
[0030]
After the glass capsule 1 is opened, the residue (glass fragments and metal wires) remains in the thin tube 30, but since the thin tube 30 is located vertically below the arc tube 10, this residue Is suppressed from entering the arc tube 10.
FIG. 5C shows a state in which the capsule is opened in a state in which the thin tube 30 extends from the glass bulb 14 directly downward, but the same applies when the thin tube 30 is directed obliquely downward. It works.
[0031]
(5) Step of chipping off the thin tube 30 As shown in FIG. 5 (d), while keeping the light emitting tube 10 in a state where the thin tube 30 is located vertically below the light emitting tube 10, the chip burner 60 is used to cut off the thin tube 30. The cut position is heated and cut off.
Here, by sealing and cutting off the portion of the thin tube 30 closer to the root than the portion where the residue of the glass capsule 1 exists, this residue is also separated from the light emitting tube 10 together with the thin tube 30.
[0032]
As described above, a certain amount of mercury is sealed in the arc tube 10 by the mercury filling and evacuation process including the steps (1) to (5).
(Basic effects of the above manufacturing method)
By using the glass capsule with the winding portion as described above, the following effects can be obtained.
[0033]
The glass capsule with a winding part is similar to the metal capsule described in the related art in that it is held in a thin tube and can be opened by high-frequency induction heating, but can be manufactured more easily and at lower cost than a metal capsule. .
That is, in the above-mentioned glass capsule with a winding portion, the shape of the glass capsule itself is not deformed by using a glass processing process, but the metal wire is wound around the glass capsule, so that the portion protruding from the outer surface of the glass capsule. Is formed, it is possible to easily and inexpensively.
[0034]
Moreover, the winding part 3 can be easily formed only by winding a metal wire around the glass capsule 1, and can be firmly fixed to the glass capsule 1.
As shown in FIG. 4, the outer diameter of the glass capsule 1 can be set smaller than the inner diameter of the portion of the thin tube 30 where the convex portion 31 is formed. Can be easily inserted.
[0035]
Moreover, the above-mentioned glass capsule with a winding part is more reliably opened by high-frequency induction heating than a metal capsule.
That is, in the case of a metal capsule, the capsule is distorted mainly due to the high temperature of the capsule due to the high-frequency induction heating, and the capsule is opened by breaking a weak portion of the capsule. Therefore, unless the capsules are manufactured with high accuracy, the capsules may not be opened even when the capsules are heated to a high temperature. On the other hand, in the case of a glass capsule with a winding part, the glass capsule 1 is opened by softening with the high temperature of the winding part due to high-frequency induction heating. , Will almost certainly be opened.
[0036]
(Details of winding part 3)
The winding portion 3 may be formed at the end of the glass capsule 1, but in order to ensure that the glass capsule 1 is opened during high-frequency induction heating, as shown in FIG. 1 is preferably formed near the center. ,
The smaller the diameter of the metal wire used is, the more advantageous it is in that it is easily heated to a high temperature by high frequency induction.
[0037]
Also, if the metal wire is wound while applying tension when forming the winding portion 3, the tensioned metal wire bites into the softened glass capsule in the step of opening the glass capsule 1. , And the opening is more reliably performed. The projecting amount t of the winding portion 3 is within a range where the glass capsule 1 can be inserted into the thin tube 30, and when the glass capsule 1 is inserted into the thin tube 30, the winding portion 3 is securely connected to the convex portion 31. Set to catch on.
[0038]
The protrusion amount of the winding part 3 can be adjusted by the wire diameter and the number of laminations of the metal wires to be used.
In order to keep the protrusion amount t constant and maintain the tension of the metal wire, as shown in FIG. 4, it is preferable that the metal wires are wound in close contact with each other in a spiral shape.
In the example shown in FIG. 4, a wound portion 3 is formed by spirally winding one layer of a metal wire on the outer peripheral surface of the glass capsule 1. In this case, the protrusion amount t of the winding portion 3 is an amount corresponding to the wire diameter of the metal wire. However, if the winding portion 3 is wound in two or three layers, the protrusion amount can be increased.
[0039]
(Modification)
In the arc tube 10, mercury is introduced and exhausted using the thin tubes 30 and the thin tubes 40 attached to the stem glasses 11a and 14a located at the ends of the discharge path. The position does not have to be at the end of the discharge path, and the same operation can be performed by attaching a mercury introduction thin tube and an exhaust thin tube to the glass lid 12a or the glass lid 13a.
[0040]
In the thin tube 30, the convex portion 31 is formed on the inner wall to hold the glass capsule. However, even if the convex portion is not necessarily formed, when the glass capsule 1 is inserted into the thin tube 30, What is necessary is just to make the winding part 3 catch. For example, the inner wall may be formed in a tapered shape so that the inner diameter of the thin tube 30 becomes smaller on the base side.
[0041]
In the above embodiment, an example in which pure mercury is sealed in the arc tube 10 has been described. However, if a glass capsule 1 in which a mercury alloy such as zinc mercury is sealed is used, only mercury is similarly enclosed in the arc tube 10. Can be encapsulated. For example, in the case of zinc mercury, basically only mercury is sealed in the arc tube, and the remaining zinc is removed together with the residue of the capsule.
[0042]
Instead of winding the metal wire around the glass capsule 1 to form the winding part 3 as in the above embodiment, a ring-shaped metal member is produced and wound around the glass capsule 1. A protrusion can be formed, and mercury can be sealed in the arc tube 10 by using the protrusion.
However, according to the method of winding a metal wire as in the above-described embodiment, the method can be performed at a lower cost in that an existing metal wire can be used. It is also easy to adjust the shape of.
[0043]
【The invention's effect】
As described above, according to the method for manufacturing a fluorescent lamp of the present invention, a glass capsule in which a predetermined amount of mercury or a mercury alloy is sealed inside and a metal wire is wound around the outer periphery is provided at each end. A holding step of holding the glass capsule having the first thin tube and the second thin tube in the first thin tube, and a first sealing step of sealing a tip end side of a portion of the first thin tube where the glass capsule exists, An evacuation step of evacuating the second capillary and then sealing the second capillary, and opening the glass capsule by high-frequency induction heating of the metal wire with the first capillary positioned below the glass bulb. Opening step of introducing mercury into the glass bulb by using a second sealing method, and after the opening step, sealing the portion of the first thin tube closer to the glass bulb than the portion where the glass capsule remains. By providing a step, easily and inexpensively, a certain amount of mercury or mercury alloy can be enclosed in a glass bulb.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is an external perspective view of a light emitting tube with a thin tube used in a mercury filling and evacuation process in a method of manufacturing a fluorescent lamp according to an embodiment.
FIG. 2 is a top view of the arc tube with a thin tube.
FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view showing a state in which a glass capsule is held by an arc tube with a thin tube.
FIG. 4 is a partially enlarged view of FIG. 3;
FIG. 5 is a diagram showing a procedure of a mercury filling and exhausting step in the method of manufacturing a fluorescent lamp according to the embodiment.
[Explanation of symbols]
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Glass capsule 2 Mercury 3 Winding part 10 Arc tube 11-14 Glass bulb 15-17 Bridge part 21, 22 Electrode 23, 24 Conductive wire 30 Thin tube 31 Convex part 40 Small tube 50 High frequency coil

Claims (3)

A glass capsule in which a predetermined amount of mercury or a mercury alloy is sealed and a metal wire is wound on the outer periphery is placed inside the first thin tube in a glass bulb having a first thin tube and a second thin tube at each end. Holding step,
A first sealing step of sealing a tip end side of a portion of the first thin tube where a glass capsule is present;
An evacuation step of evacuating the second capillary and then sealing the second capillary;
An opening step of opening the glass capsule by high-frequency induction heating of the metal wire and introducing the mercury into the glass bulb in a state where the first thin tube is positioned below the glass bulb;
After the opening step,
A method of manufacturing a fluorescent lamp, comprising a second sealing step of sealing a portion of the first thin tube closer to the glass bulb than a portion where the glass capsule remains. The first capillary used in the holding step is
A convex part is formed on the inner wall,
In the holding step,
The method for manufacturing a fluorescent lamp according to claim 1, wherein the glass capsule is held in a state where the wound metal wire is locked to the projection. Before the holding step,
2. The method for manufacturing a fluorescent lamp according to claim 1, further comprising a winding step of winding a metal wire under tension on an outer periphery of the glass capsule.

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