JP2005230801A - Wiping method, wiping apparatus, plotting apparatus provided with the same, method for manufacturing optoelectronic apparatus, optoelectronic apparatus and electronic equipment - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a wiping method by which a minute bound generated between a functional liquid droplet discharging head and a wiping sheet to be pressed to the functional liquid droplet discharging head can be absorbed and to provide a wiping apparatus, a plotting apparatus provided with the wiping apparatus, a method for manufacturing an optoelectronic apparatus, the optoelectronic apparatus and electronic equipment. <P>SOLUTION: The wiping sheet 111 to be fed to one direction is pressed to the surface 47 of a nozzle of the functional liquid droplet discharging head 31 by using a wiping roller 151 and a shock absorbing mechanism 154 capable of absorbing the shock to be given to the wiping roller 151 so that the wiping sheet is caused to wipe the surface 47 of the nozzle. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2005,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to a wiping method for wiping a nozzle surface of a functional liquid droplet ejection head that ejects functional liquid droplets with a wiping sheet sprayed with a cleaning liquid, a wiping device, a drawing apparatus including the same, a method for manufacturing an electro-optical device, The present invention relates to an optical device and an electronic device.

  A conventional wiping device includes a supply reel that pays out a wiping sheet, a take-up reel that takes up the supplied wiping sheet, a wiping roller that rotates the supplied wiping sheet, and a take-up that rotates the take-up reel. And a motor. Then, the winding motor is driven, and the wiping roller is pressed against the nozzle surface of the functional liquid droplet ejection head while feeding the wiping sheet, so that the wiping sheet is slidably contacted with the nozzle surface to perform a wiping operation.

In this case, the pressing force (wiping pressure) of the wiping sheet against the nozzle surface of the wiping roller is closely related to the quality of wiping, and in order to properly maintain the functional liquid droplet ejection head, appropriate wiping is required. Wiping with pressure is necessary. In this wiping device, the wiping roller during wiping acts to press the nozzle surface of the functional liquid droplet ejection head from below, and the pressing force (wiping pressure) of the wiping sheet against the nozzle surface is the height of the nozzle surface. It is defined by the upper end position of the wiping roller relative to the position. Therefore, conventionally, the upper end position of the wiping roller is adjusted to a predetermined height position on the basis of the height position of the nozzle surface, and the wiping roller is constituted by a rubber roller so that the wiping pressure is applied uniformly and uniformly. Like that.
JP 2003-127405 A

  In such a case, there is a problem that an extremely high mounting accuracy is required for the wiping roller in order to control the wiping pressure with high accuracy. In addition, when a rubber roller is used as the wiping roller, the repulsive force causes a minute reaction (bound) with the nozzle surface, and there is a problem that good wiping cannot be performed such as meniscus destruction.

  In view of the above, the present invention provides a wiping method, a wiping apparatus, and a drawing apparatus provided with the wiping method that can absorb a minute response (bound) generated between a functional liquid droplet ejection head and a wiping sheet pressed against the functional liquid droplet ejection head. It is an object of the present invention to provide an electro-optical device manufacturing method, an electro-optical device, and an electronic apparatus.

  The wiping method of the present invention uses a cushioning mechanism that can cushion the impact received by the wiping roller, and presses the wiping sheet that is sent in one direction against the nozzle surface of the functional liquid droplet ejection head by the wiping roller to perform a wiping operation. It is characterized by.

  The wiping apparatus according to the present invention includes a wiping sheet for wiping the nozzle surface of the functional liquid droplet ejection head, a sheet feeding mechanism for feeding the wiping sheet, a wiping unit for pressing the wiping sheet against the nozzle surface and performing a wiping operation, and a wiping unit for the nozzle An advance / retreat mechanism for advancing / retreating with respect to the surface, and a buffer mechanism interposed between the wiping unit and the advance / retreat mechanism are provided.

  According to this structure, the shock (response) generated in the wiping operation performed by bringing the wiping sheet into contact with the nozzle surface can be absorbed by the buffer mechanism. For this reason, it can adjust with a buffer mechanism so that the wiping pressure of the wiping sheet with respect to a nozzle surface may become uniform and predetermined pressure.

  In this case, the wiping unit is a freely rotatable wiping roller that rolls against the wiping sheet and presses it against the nozzle surface, a bearing frame that rotatably supports the wiping roller, and a bearing frame that guides the bearing frame so as to be able to advance and retract. A pair of advancing and retracting guides, and each advancing and retracting guide is preferably disposed on both outer sides in the axial direction of the wiping roller.

  According to this configuration, since the pair of advance / retreat guides are arranged on both outer sides in the axial direction of the wiping roller, the advance / retreat of the bearing frame can be guided in a well-balanced manner. In particular, when the bearing frame is advanced and retracted by the buffer mechanism, the pressure received by the wiping roller is uniformly distributed to the pair of advance and retract guides via the bearing frame, so that the bearing frame can be stably guided. Therefore, the wiping roller can be pressed uniformly against the nozzle surface, and the wiping pressure can be accurately controlled.

  In this case, the advance / retreat mechanism and the buffer mechanism are preferably disposed between the pair of advance / retreat guides.

  According to this configuration, the advance / retreat mechanism and the buffer mechanism are disposed between the pair of advance / retreat guides, and the space between the pair of advance / retreat guides can be effectively used to make the apparatus compact. .

  In this case, it is preferable that the buffer means is composed of an air suspension.

  According to this configuration, since the buffer means is composed of an air suspension, the wiping pressure can be easily controlled by adjusting the pressure of the compressed air supplied to the buffer means. And since an air suspension adjusts the wiping pressure of a wiping roller, absorbing the response (impact) which a wiping roller receives at the time of wiping, it can keep wiping pressure constant.

  In this case, the advance / retreat mechanism has an actuator, a movable plate fixed to the movable part of the actuator, and a plate guide for guiding the movable plate so as to advance and retract, and the cylinder of the air suspension is fixed to the lower surface of the movable plate. The piston rod of the air suspension preferably passes through the movable plate and is fixed to the wiping unit.

  According to this configuration, the space below the movable plate can be used more effectively than the configuration in which the cylinder of the air suspension is disposed on the upper surface of the movable plate, and the gap between the movable plate and the bearing frame is reduced. It is possible to reduce the size of the apparatus.

  A drawing apparatus of the present invention includes any one of the above-described wiping devices and a functional liquid droplet ejection head, and moves the functional liquid droplet head while moving the functional liquid droplet ejection head relative to the workpiece. By drawing and driving the discharge head, drawing with functional droplets on the work is performed.

  According to this configuration, the functional liquid droplet ejection head is maintained by the wiping device that can appropriately adjust the wiping pressure of the wiping sheet. Therefore, it is possible to maintain the function by appropriately maintaining the functional liquid droplet ejection head.

  A method of manufacturing an electro-optical device and an electro-optical device according to the present invention are characterized in that a film forming unit is formed by functional droplets on a workpiece using the above drawing apparatus.

  According to this configuration, since the electro-optical device is manufactured using the drawing apparatus that can appropriately maintain the functional liquid droplet ejection head and perform drawing with high accuracy, efficient production becomes possible. Examples of the electro-optical device (device) include a liquid crystal display device, an organic EL (Electro-Luminescence) device, an electron emission device, a PDP (Plasma Display Panel) device, and an electrophoretic display device. The electron emission device is a concept including a so-called FED (Field Emission Display) device or SED (Surface-Conduction Electron-Emitter Display) device. Further, as the electro-optical device, devices including metal wiring formation, lens formation, resist formation, light diffuser formation, and the like are conceivable.

  An electronic apparatus according to an aspect of the invention includes the electro-optical device manufactured by the above-described electro-optical device manufacturing method or the electro-optical device described above.

  In this case, the electronic apparatus corresponds to various electric products in addition to a mobile phone and a personal computer equipped with a so-called flat panel display.

  As described above, the wiping method and the wiping device of the present invention can adjust the wiping pressure of the wiping sheet to a uniform and predetermined pressure by providing the buffer mechanism. That is, since the mechanical tolerance and mounting error of the wiping roller can be offset by the buffer mechanism, it is not necessary to strictly align the upper end position of the wiping roller, and the workability during assembly can be improved. .

  In the drawing apparatus of the present invention, since the functional liquid droplet ejection head is properly maintained by the wiping device, the function of the functional liquid droplet ejection head can be recovered and the function can be maintained, and the drawing can be performed with high accuracy. be able to. In addition, since the shock when the wiping sheet is brought into contact with the nozzle surface can be absorbed by the buffer mechanism, the functional liquid droplet ejection head (nozzle surface thereof) is not damaged by the wiping operation. Since the method and apparatus for manufacturing an electro-optical device according to the present invention uses the above drawing apparatus, they can be efficiently manufactured.

  Hereinafter, a drawing apparatus to which the present invention is applied will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings. This drawing apparatus is incorporated into a so-called flat display production line, and by a droplet discharge method using a functional droplet discharge head, a color filter of a liquid crystal display device, a light emitting element that becomes each pixel of an organic EL device, or the like Is formed.

  As shown in FIG. 1 and FIG. 2, the drawing apparatus 1 includes a machine base 2 and a functional liquid droplet ejection head 31, and a liquid droplet ejection apparatus 3 widely placed on the entire area of the machine base 2, and a liquid A functional liquid supply device 4 connected to the droplet discharge device 3 and a head maintenance device 5 placed on the machine base 2 so as to be attached to the droplet discharge device 3 are provided. The drawing device 1 is provided with a control device 6 (not shown). In the drawing device 1, the droplet discharge device 3 is supplied with the functional liquid by the functional liquid supply device 4, and is controlled by the control device 6. The droplet discharge device 3 performs a drawing operation on the workpiece W, and the head maintenance device 5 appropriately performs a maintenance operation (maintenance) for the functional droplet discharge head 31.

  The droplet discharge device 3 includes an X / Y moving mechanism 11 including an X-axis table 12 for moving the workpiece W in the main scan (moving in the X-axis direction) and a Y-axis table 13 orthogonal to the X-axis table 12. The main carriage 14 is movably attached to the main carriage 14, and the head unit 15 is mounted on the main carriage 14 and is mounted with the functional liquid droplet ejection head 31.

  The X-axis table 12 has an X-axis motor (not shown) driven X-axis slider 21 that constitutes a drive system in the X-axis direction, and a set table 24 including a suction table 22 and a θ table 23 can be moved on the X-axis slider 21. It is configured on board. Similarly, the Y-axis table 13 has a Y-axis slider 25 for driving a Y-axis motor (not shown) that constitutes a drive system in the Y-axis direction, and the main carriage 14 that supports the head unit 15 is mounted on the Y-axis slider 25. It is configured to be movable in the axial direction. The X-axis table 12 is disposed in parallel with the X-axis direction and is directly supported on the machine base 2. On the other hand, the Y-axis table 13 is supported by left and right columns 26 erected on the machine base 2 and extends in the Y-axis direction so as to straddle the X-axis table 12 and the head maintenance device 5 (see FIG. 1).

  In the drawing apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment, the area where the X axis table 12 and the Y axis table 13 intersect is the drawing area 27 where the workpiece W is drawn, and the area where the Y axis table 13 and the head maintenance device 5 intersect is the functional liquid droplet ejection head. The head unit 15 faces the drawing area 27 when drawing on the work W and the maintenance area 28 when drawing the function. It has become.

  The head unit 15 includes a plurality (12 pieces) of functional liquid droplet ejection heads 31 and a head plate 32 on which the functional liquid droplet ejection heads 31 are mounted via a head holding member (not shown). The head plate 32 is detachably supported by the support frame 33, and the head unit 15 is mounted on the main carriage 14 in a positioned state via the support frame 33. In addition, although mentioned later for details, the valve unit 34 and the tank unit 35 of the functional liquid supply apparatus 4 are supported by the support frame 33 along with the head unit 15 (refer FIG. 2 and FIG. 3).

  As shown in FIG. 4, the functional liquid droplet ejection head 31 has a so-called double structure, a functional liquid introduction part 42 having two connection needles 41, and a double head substrate continuous with the functional liquid introduction part 42. 43, and a head main body 44 which is connected to the lower side of the functional liquid introducing portion 42 and has an in-head flow path filled with the functional liquid therein. The connection needle 41 is connected to the functional liquid supply device 4 (not shown), and supplies the functional liquid to the flow path in the head of the functional liquid droplet ejection head 31. The head main body 44 is composed of a cavity 45 (piezoelectric element) and a nozzle plate 48 having a nozzle surface 47 with an ejection nozzle 46 opened. On the nozzle surface 47, two nozzle rows composed of a large number (180) of discharge nozzles 46 are formed. Although not shown, a shallow groove is formed on the nozzle surface 47 so as to surround the nozzle row, and the nozzle opens in this shallow groove. When the functional droplet discharge head 31 is driven to discharge, the functional droplet is discharged from the discharge nozzle 46 by the pump action of the cavity 45.

  The head plate 32 is composed of a rectangular thick plate made of stainless steel or the like. The head plate 32 is formed with twelve mounting openings (not shown) for positioning the twelve functional liquid droplet ejection heads 31 via the head holding member from the back side. The twelve mounting openings are divided into six groups of two, and the mounting openings of each group are arranged in a direction perpendicular to the nozzle row of the functional liquid droplet ejection head 31 (head plate so that a part thereof overlaps). 32 in the longitudinal direction). That is, the twelve functional liquid droplet ejection heads 31 are divided into six groups of two, and the nozzle rows of each functional liquid droplet ejection head 31 constitute one drawing line in the direction orthogonal to the nozzle rows. Therefore (partially overlapped), they are arranged in a stepped shape (see FIG. 3).

  Note that the two nozzle rows formed in each functional liquid droplet ejection head 31 are each composed of a large number (180) of ejection nozzles 46 arranged with a pitch of 4 dots. The nozzle rows are arranged so as to be displaced by 2 dots in the row direction. That is, each functional liquid droplet ejection head 31 has a two-dot pitch drawing line formed by two nozzle rows. On the other hand, two adjacent functional liquid droplet ejection heads 31 of the same set are arranged such that each drawing line (with a 2-dot pitch) is displaced by one dot in the column direction, and one functional liquid droplet is set. The ejection head 31 forms a 1-dot pitch drawing line. That is, the two functional liquid droplet ejection heads 31 of the same set are arranged so that the nozzle rows of 1/4 resolution are displaced from each other, and together with the other 5 groups 10 functional liquid droplet ejection heads 31, A high resolution nozzle row of one drawing line is configured.

  The main carriage 14 is attached to the exterior “I” -shaped suspension member 51 fixed to the Y-axis table 13 from below, and the lower surface of the suspension member 51, and corrects the position of the head unit 15 in the θ direction. And a carriage main body 53 attached so as to be suspended below the θ rotation mechanism 52. The carriage main body 53 supports the head unit 15 via the support frame 33. It is like that. (See FIG. 2). Although not shown, the carriage main body 53 is formed with a rectangular opening for loosely fitting the support frame 33 and a positioning mechanism for positioning the support frame 33. It can be fixed in a positioned state.

  As shown in FIGS. 1 to 3, the functional liquid supply device 4 is mounted on the support frame 33 together with the head unit 15 and includes a plurality of (12) functional liquid tanks 61 that store the functional liquid. A plurality of (12) functional liquid supply tubes 62 connecting the unit 35, each functional liquid tank 61 and each functional liquid droplet ejection head 31, and a plurality (12) of plural functional liquid supply tubes 62. And a valve unit 34 composed of a pressure regulating valve 63.

  As shown in FIG. 3, the support frame 33 is formed in a substantially rectangular frame shape, and the head unit 15, the valve unit 34, and the tank unit 35 are mounted in this order in the longitudinal direction. Although not shown, the support frame 33 is provided with a head positioning mechanism for positioning the head unit 15 (head plate 32) attached from below. The head positioning mechanism has three positioning pins (not shown) projecting downward from the support frame 33. By bringing these three positioning pins into contact with the end surface of the head plate 32, the head unit 15 is It can be positioned and mounted with high accuracy. The support frame 33 has a pair of handles 64 attached to the long side portion thereof, and the support frame 33 can be detachably inserted into the main carriage 14 using the pair of handles 64 as a hand-held part. ing.

  As shown in FIG. 3, the tank unit 35 includes twelve functional liquid tanks 61 and twelve set portions 76 for positioning these, and a tank plate 72 that supports the twelve functional liquid tanks 61, And a tank setting jig 73 for mounting (setting) each functional liquid tank 61 on each setting portion 76. The functional liquid tank 61 is of a cartridge type in which a functional liquid pack 75 obtained by vacuum-packing a functional liquid in a resin cartridge case 74 is accommodated. Note that the functional liquid stored in the functional liquid pack 75 has been degassed in advance, and the amount of dissolved gas is substantially zero.

  The tank plate 72 is a thick plate made of stainless steel or the like and is formed in a substantially parallelogram. The tank plate 72 is provided with twelve set portions 71 having the same arrangement as the twelve functional liquid droplet ejection heads 31 mounted on the head plate 32. In each set unit 71, each functional liquid tank 61 is detachably set in a vertical position, and twelve functional liquid tanks 61 are installed following the arrangement of the functional liquid droplet ejection heads 31. (See FIG. 3). The tank setting jig 73 is configured to slide the functional liquid tank 61 forward and set it in the set portion 71 by pushing the rear surface of the functional liquid tank 61 forward (valve unit side). A pressing lever 76 that pushes out and a support member 77 that supports the pressing lever 76 are provided.

  The functional liquid supply tube 62 includes a tank side tube 81 that connects each functional liquid tank 61 and each pressure adjustment valve 63, and a head side tube that connects each pressure adjustment valve 63 and each pressure adjustment valve 63. 82. Although not shown, the functional liquid supply device 4 of the present embodiment is provided with a connection tool for connecting the functional liquid supply tube 62 so that these can be reliably connected via the connection tool. It has become.

  The valve unit 34 includes twelve pressure regulating valves 63, twelve valve supporting members 83 that support the twelve pressure regulating valves 63, and valves that support the twelve pressure regulating valves 63 via the valve supporting members. And a plate 84 (see FIG. 3).

  As shown in FIG. 5, the pressure regulating valve 63 includes a primary chamber 92 connected to the functional liquid tank 61, a secondary chamber 93 connected to the functional liquid droplet ejection head 31, a primary chamber 92, and a valve housing 91. A communication channel 94 communicating with the secondary chamber 93 is formed. A diaphragm 95 is provided on one surface of the secondary chamber 93 so as to face the outside, and the communication channel 94 is opened and closed by the diaphragm 95. An operating valve body 96 is provided. The functional liquid introduced from the functional liquid tank 61 into the primary chamber 92 is supplied to the functional liquid droplet ejection head 31 through the secondary chamber 93. At this time, the diaphragm 95 uses the atmospheric pressure as the adjustment reference pressure. The pressure of the secondary chamber 93 is adjusted by opening and closing the valve body 96 provided in the communication flow path 94, and the functional fluid pressure in the secondary chamber 93 is held at a slightly negative pressure. In addition, the code | symbol 97 shown to Fig.5 (a) is an attachment plate for attaching the pressure regulation valve 63 to a flame | frame etc. (this embodiment valve support member 83) in the vertical installation state in which the diaphragm 95 becomes vertical.

  By interposing such a pressure regulating valve 63 between the functional liquid tank 61 and the functional liquid droplet ejection head 31, the function of the functional liquid droplet ejection head 31 is not affected by the head of the functional liquid tank 61. It becomes possible to supply the liquid stably. That is, the supply pressure of the functional liquid is determined by the height difference between the position of the functional liquid droplet ejection head 31 (nozzle surface 47) and the position of the pressure adjustment valve 63 (center of the diaphragm 95). By setting the value (95 mm in this embodiment), the supply pressure of the functional liquid can be maintained at a predetermined pressure. The primary chamber 92 and the secondary chamber 93 are cut off when the valve body 96 is closed, and the pressure regulating valve 63 is a damper function that absorbs pulsation and the like generated on the functional liquid tank side (primary side). have.

  The valve plate 84 is formed of a thick plate such as stainless steel. The valve plate 84 is provided with twelve valve support members 83 in accordance with the arrangement of the functional liquid droplet ejection head 31, and the twelve pressure adjustment valves 63 are displaced in the short side direction of the support frame 33. (See FIG. 3).

  As shown in FIG. 1, the head maintenance device 5 is placed on the machine base 2 and extends in the X-axis direction, a suction unit 102 placed on the movement table 101, and a suction unit 102. And a wiping unit 103 disposed on the moving table 101. The moving table 101 is configured to be movable in the X-axis direction, and is configured to appropriately move the suction unit 102 and the wiping unit 103 to the maintenance area 28 during maintenance of the functional liquid droplet ejection head 31. In addition to the above units, a discharge inspection unit for inspecting the flight state of the functional liquid droplets ejected from the functional liquid droplet ejection head 31 and the weight of the functional liquid droplets ejected from the functional liquid droplet ejection head 31 are measured. It is preferable to mount a weight measuring unit or the like to the head maintenance device 5.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the suction unit 102 is supported by the cap stand 104 and the cap stand 104, and is brought into close contact with the nozzle surface 47 of the functional liquid droplet ejection head 31 (12 corresponding to the arrangement of the functional liquid droplet ejection head 31). A plurality of caps 105, a single suction pump 106 capable of sucking (12) functional liquid droplet ejection heads 31 via each cap 105, and each cap 105 and a suction pump 106 (not shown) are connected. A suction tube (not shown). Although not shown, the cap stand 104 incorporates a cap lifting mechanism 108 that lifts and lowers each cap 105 by driving a motor, and each functional liquid droplet ejection head 31 of the head unit 15 facing the maintenance area 28. In contrast, the corresponding cap 105 can be separated.

  When sucking the functional liquid droplet ejection head 31, the cap lifting mechanism 108 is driven to bring the cap 105 into close contact with the nozzle surface 47 of the functional liquid droplet ejection head 31 and drive the suction pump 106. Thereby, a suction force can be applied to the functional liquid droplet ejection head 31 via the cap 105, and the functional liquid is forcibly discharged from the functional liquid droplet ejection head 31. The suction of the functional liquid is performed in order to eliminate / prevent clogging of the functional liquid droplet ejection head 31, and also functions when the drawing apparatus 1 is newly installed or when the head of the functional liquid droplet ejection head 31 is replaced. This is performed to fill the functional liquid flow path from the liquid tank 61 to the functional liquid droplet ejection head 31 with the functional liquid.

  Note that the cap 105 has a function of a flushing box that receives the functional liquid ejected by the discarding (preliminary ejection) of the functional liquid droplet ejection head 31, and drawing on the workpiece W as when the workpiece W is replaced. The function liquid of the regular flushing performed when stopping temporarily is received. In the discard discharge (flushing operation), the cap lifting mechanism 108 moves the cap 105 (the upper surface) from the nozzle surface 47 of the functional liquid droplet discharge head 31 to a position slightly separated.

  The suction unit 102 is also used to store the functional liquid droplet ejection head 31 when the drawing apparatus 1 is not in operation. In this case, the head unit 15 faces the maintenance area 28 and the cap 105 is brought into close contact with the nozzle surface 47 of the functional liquid droplet ejection head 31. As a result, the nozzle surface 47 is sealed, the functional liquid droplet ejection head 31 (ejection nozzle 46) is prevented from being dried, and the nozzle clogging of the ejection nozzle 46 can be prevented.

  The wiping unit 103 is configured to feed the roll-shaped wiping sheet 111 from the nozzle surface 47 of each functional liquid droplet ejection head 31 that is contaminated by the functional liquid adhering to the functional liquid droplet ejection head 31 by suction (cleaning). Wipe using (wiping).

  As shown in FIGS. 6 to 9, the wiping unit 103 includes a device base 112 made up of a substantially rectangular thick plate, and a table-like device frame 113 that stands on the device base 112 and supports the main component device. And a unit stand 114 that is erected on the apparatus base 112 side by side with the apparatus frame 113 in the left and right directions (Y-axis direction) and supports a cleaning liquid spray unit 118 described later. A sheet supply unit 115 that supplies a wiping sheet 111 is supported on the inside of the apparatus frame 113, and a nozzle surface 47 of the functional liquid droplet ejection head 31 is disposed on the apparatus frame 113 via the wiping sheet 111. A wiping unit 116 for wiping is supported. Further, these units 115 and 116 which are main components are covered with a box-shaped cover box 117 (details will be described later). The unit stand 114 has a cleaning liquid spraying head 202 and supports a cleaning liquid spraying unit 118 for spraying and applying the cleaning liquid onto the wiping sheet 111 before wiping the nozzle surface 47. Although omitted in these drawings, the wiping unit 103 is provided with an air supply facility (see FIG. 12) 119 for supplying compressed air to the wiping unit 116 and the cleaning liquid spraying unit 118.

  The apparatus frame 113 is directly fixed on the apparatus base 112 and supports a lower wiping frame 121 that supports the sheet supply unit 115, and an upper wiping frame 122 that is placed on the lower wiping frame 121 and supports the wiping unit 116; It consists of The lower wiping frame 121 is erected on the apparatus base 112 and has a pair of left and right column frames 123 formed in a columnar shape, a connection support frame 124 spanned between the upper ends of the pair of left and right column frames 123, and a sheet supply unit 115. A pair of front and rear piece frames supported between a thick plate-like back support frame 125 facing the pair of left and right support frame 123 and an inner side surface of the connection support frame 124 and an upper right end portion of the back support frame 125, respectively. 126. Although details will be described later, the back support frame 125 also serves as a part (side plate) of the cover box 117. The upper wiping frame 122 has a horizontal support frame 127 that spans between the upper ends of the connection support frame 124 and the back support frame 125, and a pair of front and rear L-shaped frames 128 that are erected on the horizontal support frame 127. ing. For convenience of explanation, the X-axis direction is the front-rear direction and the Y-axis direction is the left-right direction here.

  As shown in FIG. 9, the sheet supply unit 115 is loaded with a roll-shaped wiping sheet 111, and the feeding reel 131 on the right side in the figure for feeding the wiping sheet 111, and the winding on the left side in the figure for winding the fed wiping sheet 111. A reel 132, a winding motor 133 that winds and rotates the winding reel 132, a power transmission mechanism (not shown) that transmits the power of the winding motor 133 to the winding reel 132, and a winding speed of the wiping sheet 111 ( A speed detection roller 135 for detecting the feed speed), a first intermediate roller 136 for feeding the wiping sheet 111 from the supply reel 131 to the speed detection roller 135, and a wiping sheet 111 from the speed detection roller 135 to the wiping unit 116. A second intermediate roller 137. Although details will be described later, a part of the lower cover 263 constituting the cover box 117 (bottom cover 291: described later) so as to horizontally partition the supply reel 131 and the take-up reel 132 from the take-up motor 133. ) And a cleaning liquid pan 294 is disposed on the upper surface of the bottom cover 291.

  The supply reel 131 and the take-up reel 132 are cantilevered by the back support frame 125 and are rotatably supported. Further, the supply reel 131 and the take-up reel 132 are configured to be detachable in the axial direction, and when the wiping sheet 111 is replaced, both the reels 131 and 132 are detached. A torque limiter (not shown) that rotates against the take-up motor 133 is provided at the shaft end of the supply reel 131 that is positioned outside the back support frame 125, and the supplied wiping sheet 111 is provided. A constant tension can be applied to the. The winding motor 133 is a geared motor, and is fixed to the lower part of the back support frame 125. The power transmission mechanism is incorporated in a belt box 142 that is fixed to the outside of the back support frame 125, and a drive pulley that is fixed to the output end of the take-up motor 133 and a driven pulley that is fixed to the shaft end of the take-up reel 132 ( Each of which is not shown) and a timing belt (not shown) spanned between both pulleys, and when the winding motor 133 is driven, the timing belt travels through its own reduction gear train, Power is transmitted to the take-up reel 132.

  The speed detection roller 135 is pivotally supported by the above-described pair of piece frames 126 and freely rotates, and a speed detector (encoder: see FIG. 12) 143 provided at the shaft end of the roller main body 135a. , Is composed of. The speed detector 143 detects the feed speed of the wiping sheet 111, and the drive of the winding motor 133 is controlled based on the detection result. The first intermediate roller 136 and the second intermediate roller 137 are also free rotation rollers, and are pivotally supported on both the upper and lower sides of the pair of piece frames 126 so as to be rotatable. The first intermediate roller 136 is disposed almost directly below the speed detection roller 135 so that the feeding path of the wiping sheet 111 is substantially perpendicular to the position of the speed detection roller 135, and the second intermediate roller 137 is a wiper. It is disposed obliquely above the speed detection roller 135 so that the feeding path of the wiping sheet 111 toward the take-off unit 116 is in the vertical direction. That is, the first intermediate roller 136 suppresses the slip of the wiping sheet 111 with respect to the speed detection roller 135 (the rolling contact area is large), and the second intermediate roller 137 has the wiping sheet 111 perpendicular to the spray head 202. The feeding path of the wiping sheet 111 is changed so as to confront the above. A sheet detection sensor 144 that detects the presence or absence of the wiping sheet 111 fed between the first intermediate roller 136 and the speed detection roller 135 is provided (see FIG. 7).

  The wiping unit 116 is composed of a free rotating roller, and a wiping roller (see FIG. 9) 151 that makes the wiping sheet 111 contact the nozzle surface 47 of the functional liquid droplet ejection head 31 and a roller that supports the wiping roller 151. A support frame 152 (bearing frame), a roller lifting mechanism 153 (advancing / retracting mechanism) fixed to the upper wiping frame 122 and moving the wiping roller 151 up and down via the roller support frame 152, and the roller support frame 152 and the roller lifting mechanism And a buffer mechanism 154 that is interposed between 153 and maintains a constant wiping pressure (pressing force) of the wiping roller 151 against the nozzle surface 47. The wiping roller 151 in this case has a length in the axial direction corresponding to the width of the wiping sheet 111, and has flexibility and elasticity in order to prevent damage to the nozzle surface 47 of the functional liquid droplet ejection head 31. It is preferable to comprise rubber. Reference numeral 204 in the drawing is a sheet receiving member (described later) of the cleaning liquid spraying unit 118.

  The roller support frame 152 includes a pair of front and rear bearing stands 161 that rotatably support the wiping roller 151, and an inverted “U” -shaped portal frame 162 that supports the pair of front and rear bearing stands 161. ,have. The bearing stand 161 supports the wiping roller 151 so that the upper end of the wiping roller 151 slightly protrudes from the upper end surface thereof, and the bearing stand 161 damages the nozzle surface 47 of the functional liquid droplet ejection head 31 during the wiping operation. Considered not to.

  The gate-shaped frame 162 includes a pair of horizontal frames 163 each having a substantially rectangular thick plate shape with a part of the long side cut away so as to escape the sheet feeding path of the wiping sheet 111, and a pair of hangs from both ends of the horizontal frame 163. And a vertical frame 164. A pair of bearing stands 161 are screwed to the portal frame 162 so that the longitudinal direction (front-rear direction) and the axis of the wiping roller 151 coincide with each other, and the wiping sheet 111 passing through the wiping roller 151 is notched. (Refer to FIG. 8 etc.). On the other hand, each vertical frame 164 engages with an elevating guide 166 (advance / retreat guide) provided inside the above-described back support frame 125 so as to be movable up and down. That is, the wiping roller 151 is configured to be movable up and down via a roller support frame 152 guided by a pair of lifting guides 166.

  A pair of front and rear fixed support blocks 167 are fixed to the left end surface of the portal frame 162, and the above-described cover box 117 (upper left cover 271: described later) is attached to the pair of fixed support blocks 167. Two sets of four spacer rods 168 are attached. Further, the portal frame 162 is formed with a pair of front and rear loose insertion holes 169 into which a pair of guide shafts 178 described later are loosely inserted.

  The roller elevating mechanism 153 is disposed between the pair of vertical frames 164, and supports the roller elevating plate 171 (movable plate) that supports the roller support frame 152 via the buffer mechanism 154 and the roller elevating plate 171. A roller lift cylinder 172 (return cylinder: actuator) that lifts and lowers the roller, a roller lift guide 173 (plate guide) that guides the lift of the roller lift plate 171, and a lift that regulates the lift end position of the roller lift plate 171. A position regulating mechanism 174. Similarly to the horizontal frame 163, the roller elevating plate 171 is also formed with a notch in accordance with the sheet feeding path. The horizontal frame 163 is formed with a U-shaped notch 175 into which a joint piece 176 of a roller lifting cylinder 172 described later is fitted from the front.

  The roller elevating cylinder 172 is fixed upward on the horizontal support frame 127, and the tip of the piston rod 172 a is fixed to the horizontal frame 163 via a joint piece 176. An air supply facility 119 is connected to the cylinder body 172b of the roller lifting cylinder 172 via an air tube (not shown). The roller lifting guide 173 is fixed to a pair of guide shafts 178 standing on the horizontal support frame 127 and the roller lifting plate 171 so as to sandwich the roller lifting cylinder 172, and is slidably engaged with each guide shaft 178. And a pair of linear bushings 179 with flanges for the purpose. Accordingly, when the roller lifting cylinder 172 is driven, the roller lifting plate 171 is moved up and down while being maintained in a horizontal posture, being guided by the pair of guide shafts 178. The upper end portion of the guide shaft 178 is loosely inserted into the loose insertion hole 169 of the horizontal frame 163 described above.

  The lift position restricting mechanism 174 has a pair of restricting plates 181 having a substantially “L” shape in side view for restricting the position of the roller lift plate 171 and the rising end position of the roller lift plate 171 via the pair of restricting plates 181. And a pair of descending end regulating members that abut the roller elevating plate 171 from below through the pair of regulating end plates 181 and regulate the descending end position via the pair of regulating plates 181. 183.

  The restricting plate 181 is suspended from both end portions of the roller lifting plate 171, and a restricting portion 181 a extending horizontally outward is formed at the lower portion thereof. A third intermediate roller 185 is rotatably supported between the pair of regulating plates 181 via a pair of bearing brackets 184. The third intermediate roller 185 is configured such that the sheet feeding path is deviated from the left side portion of the horizontal support frame 127 and the wiping sheet 111 from the wiping roller 151 is fed to the take-up reel 132 (see FIG. 9).

  Each rising end restricting member 182 is configured by a micrometer head fixed to the L-shaped frame 128 so as to face the restricting portion 181a of the restricting plate 181, and the spindle 182a hits the upper end surface of the restricting portion 181a. Thus, the rising end position of the roller lifting plate 171 is regulated. Each descending end regulating member 183 also hits the lower end surface of the regulating portion 181 a to regulate the descending end position of the roller lifting plate 171, supported by the horizontal support frame 127, and opposed to the rising end regulating member 182. And an adjustment member 187 that is screwed to the upper end of the adjustment screw and contacts the restricting portion 181a. The rising end position of the wiping roller 151 is set in advance based on the height position of the nozzle surface 47 of the functional liquid droplet ejection head 31 (a position slightly higher than the nozzle surface). Thus, the rising end of the wiping roller 151 is adjusted to a predetermined height.

  When the roller elevating cylinder 172 is driven and the piston rod 172a is moved forward, the roller elevating plate 171 rises while being guided by the roller elevating guide 173. As a result, the wiping roller 151 rises toward the nozzle surface 47 of the functional liquid droplet ejection head 31 via the buffer mechanism 154 and the roller support frame 152. When the roller elevating plate 171 reaches the ascending end position, the ascending end regulating member 182 restricts the movement of the roller elevating plate 171 and stops the wiping roller 151 from ascending. Similarly, when the piston rod 172a is moved backward, the roller elevating plate 171 moves downward while being guided by the roller elevating guide 173 until it is regulated by the descending end regulating member 183, and accordingly the wiping roller 151 is moved. Descend.

  The buffer mechanism 154 is an air suspension including a suspension cylinder 191 and a piston rod 191a, and is connected to the above air supply equipment. As shown in FIG. 10, the suspension cylinder 191 is fixed to the lower surface of the roller lifting plate 171, and the piston rod 191 a protrudes from an opening formed in the roller lifting plate 171, and is attached to the horizontal frame at the tip thereof via the mounting member 193. It is fixed to the lower surface of 163. In the wiping operation of the functional liquid droplet ejection head 31, a slight impact applied to the wiping roller 151 is transmitted to the buffer mechanism 154 through the roller support frame 152 and absorbed by the buffer mechanism 154. For this reason, the wiping sheet 111 pressed against the nozzle surface 47 of the functional liquid droplet ejection head 31 is pressed uniformly and softly against the nozzle surface 47. Therefore, the wiping operation of the nozzle surface 47 can be performed with an appropriate pressing force without destroying the meniscus.

  By providing such a buffer mechanism 154, the pressing force on the nozzle surface 47 can be made constant, and it is not necessary to precisely align the rising end position of the wiping roller 151, and the wiping unit 103 is assembled. Workability at the time can be improved. Further, since the buffer mechanism 154 can cancel the mounting error and mechanical crossing of the wiping roller 151, an appropriate wiping operation can be performed.

  As shown in FIGS. 7, 9, and 11, the cleaning liquid spray unit 118 includes a cleaning liquid tank 201 that supplies the cleaning liquid, a single spray head 202 that supplies the wiping sheet 111 with the cleaning liquid from the cleaning liquid tank 201, and A cleaning liquid supply tube 203 (cleaning liquid conduit) that connects the spray head 202 and the cleaning liquid tank 201 and a sheet receiver that guides the feeding of the wiping sheet 111 in the vertical direction and keeps the distance between the spray head 202 and the wiping sheet 111 constant. A member 204, a head carriage 205 that supports the spray head 202, and a head moving mechanism 206 that moves the spray head 202 horizontally in the width direction of the wiping sheet 111 via the head carriage 205. The head moving mechanism 206 is placed on the unit stand 114 described above.

  As shown in FIG. 9, the wiping sheet 111 is sent from the supply reel 131 to the second intermediate roller 137 through the first intermediate roller 136 and the speed detection roller 135. Then, it is sent from the second intermediate roller 137 upward in the vertical direction, goes around the wiping roller 151, passes through the third intermediate roller 185, and is taken up on the take-up reel 132. On the other hand, the cleaning liquid spraying unit 118 causes the spraying head 202 to face the wiping sheet 111 fed vertically from the second intermediate roller 137, and sprays the cleaning liquid onto the wiping sheet.

  The cleaning liquid tank 201 is a closed tank (pressurized tank). The cleaning liquid tank 201 is configured so that compressed air having a constant pressure is introduced from the air supply equipment 119 and the cleaning liquid in the tank is pressurized and fed. As the cleaning liquid, a solvent that dissolves the functional liquid, for example, a solvent of the functional liquid is used, and the functional liquid stains can be efficiently removed. The cleaning liquid supply tube 203 connected to the cleaning liquid tank 201 is provided with a flow rate adjusting valve 207 so that the amount of cleaning liquid supplied to the spray head 202 can be controlled.

  As shown in FIG. 9 and FIG. 11, the spray head 202 is configured by a spray nozzle 211 incorporated on the front end side, a nozzle holder 212 that holds this, and a joint 213 provided on the tail end side, A cleaning liquid supply tube 203 is connected to the joint 213. Then, the cleaning liquid is pumped to the spray head 202, whereby fine cleaning droplets are sprayed and applied to the wiping sheet 111. Although the spray form of the spray nozzle applied to the spray head 202 can be arbitrarily set according to the actual situation, in order to efficiently spray the cleaning liquid onto the wiping sheet 111 sent upward, in the present embodiment, a vertically long oval ( An oval nozzle is used to spray the cleaning liquid.

  The sheet receiving member 204 is positioned immediately above the second intermediate roller 137 and is screwed to the portal frame 162 in a vertical posture. The sheet receiving member 204 is disposed on the upper right surface of the pair of front and rear guide portions 221 and the pair of guide portions 221. It has an upper plate 222 that spans and a lower plate 223 that spans the lower left portion of the pair of guide portions 221. The upper plate 222 and the lower plate 223 are spaced apart in the vertical direction, and a slit 224 is formed. The wiping sheet 111 sent upward from the second intermediate roller 137 is guided by the pair of guide portions 221 and the lower plate 223, and after being sprayed with the cleaning liquid, is sent to the wiping roller 151. The upper end position of the sheet receiving member 204 is substantially the same height as the upper end position of the bearing stand 161, and is slightly lower than the upper end position of the wiping roller 151.

  The head carriage 205 includes a base portion 231 fixed to a slider 251 (described later) of the head moving mechanism 206, and an arm portion extending in an “L” shape from the base portion 231 toward the wiping unit 116 in the Y-axis direction. 232 and a head support portion 233 that is fixed to the tip of the arm portion 232 (on the wiping unit 116 side) and horizontally supports the spray head 202 at a position where the spray head 202 faces the wiping sheet 111. The head support portion 233 is formed with a long hole 233a for fixing the nozzle holder 212 so that the height can be adjusted. The head support portion 233 supports the spray head 202 horizontally, and the spray head 202 sprays the cleaning liquid from the horizontal direction on the wiping sheet 111 fed in the vertical direction (see FIG. 9).

  A nozzle angle adjustment mechanism (not shown) that can adjust the spray angle of the spray nozzle 211 is interposed between the head support portion 233 and the nozzle holder 212 so that the spray direction of the spray nozzle 211 can be adjusted. Is preferred.

  The base portion 231 includes an upper base portion 234 that supports the arm portion 232, and a lower base portion 235 that supports the upper base portion 234, and there is a Y-axis between the upper base portion 234 and the lower base portion 235. A separation distance adjusting mechanism 241 for adjusting the front-rear position of the spray head 202 in the direction, that is, the separation distance of the spray head 202 from the wiping sheet 111 is interposed. The separation distance adjustment mechanism 241 has a rack and pinion (not shown) that moves the cleaning liquid nozzle forward and backward through the arm portion 232, and a separation distance adjustment screw 242 fixed to the pinion. When the separation distance adjusting screw 242 is rotated, the pinion relatively moves on the rack, and the spray head 202 moves back and forth.

  As described above, the head carriage 205 supports the height position and the separation distance of the spray head 202 so as to be adjustable, and the wiping sheet is applied to the wiping sheet 111 so that the cleaning liquid is appropriately sprayed from the spray head 202. The position of the spray head 202 with respect to 111 can be adjusted.

  As shown in FIGS. 7 and 11, the head moving mechanism 206 has the base portion 231 of the head carriage 205 fixed, and supports the head carriage 205 slidably in the X-axis direction (that is, the width direction of the wiping sheet 111). A slider 251, a ball screw (not shown) that extends in the X-axis direction and moves the slider 251, and a slide guide (not shown) that extends parallel to the ball screw and guides the movement of the slider 251. And a moving motor 253 for rotating the ball screw forward and backward. When the movement motor 253 is driven, the ball screw rotates forward and backward, and the head carriage 205 (spray head 202) moves in the X-axis direction via the slider 251. Note that the rear side in the figure is the home position of the spray head 202. Reference numeral 254 in the drawing is a casing of the head moving mechanism 206, and reference numeral 255 is an exhaust pipe for exhausting dust generated in the casing 254.

  As described above, in the cleaning liquid spray unit 118 of this embodiment, the cleaning liquid is sprayed onto the wiping sheet 111 while the spray head 202 is moved (scanned) in the width direction of the wiping sheet 111. The cleaning liquid can be uniformly applied to a certain area 111 (wiping area). The spraying of the cleaning liquid is preferably performed in a state where the feeding of the wiping sheet 111 is stopped. After spraying, the wiping area of the wiping sheet 111 is sent to the position of the wiping roller 151, and the nozzle surface of the functional liquid droplet ejection head 31. Wipe off. Instead of the motor-driven head moving mechanism 206, an air-driven rodless cylinder or the like may be used.

  The head moving mechanism 206 of the present embodiment is motor driven, but an air cylinder (return cylinder) may be used instead of the motor. Although not shown, in this case, a slide guide is provided in parallel with the air cylinder, and the piston rod of the air cylinder is fixed to the slider.

  Next, the cover box 117 will be described. The cover box 117 is for preventing the cleaning liquid sprayed by the spray head 202 from splashing to the outside. As shown in FIG. 6, the cover box 117 covers the main part of the wiping unit 116 and is attached to the bearing stand 161. The upper cover 262 is formed with a roller opening 261 that exposes the supported wiping roller 151 to the outside, and the lower cover 263 covers the main part of the sheet supply unit 115. The upper cover 262 and the lower cover 263 are respectively provided with exhaust ports 264a and 264b for connecting exhaust pipes (not shown) connected to an exhaust treatment facility (not shown) so as to exhaust the air inside the cleaning liquid. It has become. The exhaust pipe 255 described above is also connected to this exhaust pipe line.

  As shown in FIG. 6 and the like, the upper cover 262 is configured in a halved structure so as to divide the roller opening 261, and the upper left cover 271 covering the left side from the central axis of the wiping roller 151 and the center of the wiping roller 151 And an upper right cover 272 covering the right side from the shaft. The main part of the wiping unit 116 is accommodated in the upper left cover 271. On the upper surface of the upper left cover 271, the center of the right end is cut out in a square shape, and a left opening 273 of the roller opening 261 is formed. The upper left cover 271 is supported by the two sets of four spacer rods 168 so that the upper surface of the upper left cover 271 is slightly lower than the upper end surfaces of the pair of bearing stands 161. One spacer rod 168a of the two sets is fixed to the upper surface of the pair of fixed support blocks 167 and extends upward, and the other spacer rod 168b is fixed to the left side surface of the fixed support block 167 and leftward. As shown in FIGS. 8 and 9, the upper left cover 271 is in a state where the upper surface is in contact with the tip of one set of spacer rods 168a and the left side is in contact with the tip of one set of spacer rods 168b. Then, a set of spacer rods 168b is detachably screwed with a urea screw 274. That is, the upper left cover 271 is detached upward.

  As shown in FIGS. 6 to 9, the upper right cover 272 includes the wiping sheet 111 sent from the sheet supply unit 115 before wiping, the spray head 202 of the cleaning liquid spray unit 118, the head support portion 233, and the arm portion 232. Some are housed. As shown in the figure, a right opening 275 that forms a roller opening 261 together with the left opening 273 of the upper left cover 271 is formed on the upper left side of the upper right cover 272. Further, as described above, since the spray head 202 is configured to be scanned in the width direction of the wiping sheet 111 via the head carriage 205, the arm portion 232 is allowed to move on the right side surface of the upper right cover 272. Thus, a slit opening 276 is formed in accordance with the movement range of the arm portion 232.

  The roller opening 261 and the slit opening 276 are preferably provided with an air tight material that seals the gap with the wiping roller 151 and the gap with the arm portion 232, respectively. As the air tight material, for example, a brush type (mohair) material is used.

  The upper right cover 272 includes an upper right front cover 281 that covers the upper right part of the apparatus widely from the front, and an upper right rear cover 282 that covers the rear part. As shown in FIG. 11, the upper right rear cover 282 is formed in a box shape with an open front surface, and the left side surface extends to the near side and the front end is folded so as to face the rear surface. A bent portion 282a is formed. The right opening 275 is formed on the left side surface portion of the upper right rear cover 282, and 284 for allowing the wiping sheet 111 to go around the wiping roller 151 through the sheet receiving member 204 is formed. Has been. A rear opening groove 285 is formed in the right side surface portion of the upper right rear cover 282. The upper right rear cover 282 is screwed to the upper wiping frame 122 via a plurality of (five) cover fixing pieces 286. A tongue-shaped cleaning liquid receiver 287 that faces the above-described second intermediate roller 137 from below is provided on the bottom surface of the upper right rear cover 282 via the wiping sheet 111 that is fed. The cleaning liquid receiver 287 is formed in a substantially “L” cross-sectional shape, and receives the cleaning liquid sprayed away from the wiping sheet 111.

  The upper right front cover 281 widely covers the front portion of the upper right cover 272 so as to face the feeding path of the wiping sheet 111. A front opening groove 289 is formed in the right side surface portion of the upper right front cover 281. The upper right front cover 281 is detachably fixed to the upper right rear cover 282. Specifically, the upper right front cover 281 is arranged at a total of three locations, one at the bent portion 282a of the upper right rear cover 282, and two at the upper and lower rear cover 282 with the rear opening groove 285 up and down by the urea screw 290. It is screwed. When the upper right front cover 281 is fixed to the upper right rear cover 282, a slit opening 276 is formed by the front opening groove 289 and the rear opening groove 284 of the upper right rear cover 282 (see FIG. 11). Thereby, the upper right front cover 281 is detached in the front-rear direction.

  As shown in FIGS. 6 to 9, the lower cover 263 accommodates both reels 131 and 132 of the sheet supply unit 115 and rollers, and includes a bottom surface cover 291 that forms the bottom surface portion, a front surface portion, and a left surface. The left side cover 292 constituting the surface part, the right side cover 293 mainly constituting the right side part, and the rear support frame 125 of the lower wiping frame 121 constituting the rear side part are configured. As shown in these drawings, the bottom cover 291 is configured by a plate bent in a substantially inverted horizontal “L” shape, one end being fixed to the back support frame 125 and the other end being fixed to the apparatus base 112. . The horizontal surface portion 291 a of the bottom cover 291 partitions an upper reel accommodating space that accommodates both reels 131 and 132 of the sheet supply unit 115 and a lower motor accommodating space that accommodates the winding motor 133. Further, a cleaning liquid pan 294 is widely disposed on the horizontal surface portion 291 a so as to face directly below the reels 131 and 132, and receives the cleaning liquid that has come off from the wiping sheet 111 and the cleaning liquid dripping from the wiping sheet 111. ing. This prevents the sprayed cleaning liquid from adhering to the winding motor 133.

  The left side cover 292 is also composed of a plate bent in an “L” shape. As shown in FIG. 6 and the like, the left side cover 292 is screwed at one place on the left end face of the back support frame 125 and at two places on the left and right sides of the connection support frame 124 described above. The right side cover 293 covers the right side surface portion of the lower cover 263 and a part of the rear surface portion above the rear support frame 125 and is screwed to the right end surface of the connection support frame 124 at two front and rear positions. The left side cover 292 and the right side cover 293 are screwed with urea screws 295 and are detachably attached. In addition, when replacing the wiping sheet 111, the left side cover 292 is removed and the operation is performed.

  Thus, the cover box 117 is composed of a plurality of pieces, and most of the cover box 117 is detachably fixed by the urea screw. Accordingly, when the wiping sheet 111 is attached or detached, only necessary portions can be easily removed, and operability during maintenance can be ensured.

  Here, a series of wiping operations will be described. First, the moving table 101 is driven so that the wiping unit 103 faces the maintenance area 28. Next, supply of the cleaning liquid from the cleaning liquid tank 201 is started, and the cleaning liquid is sprayed from the spray head 202. At the same time, the head moving mechanism 206 is driven to move the spray head 202 at the home position forward according to the width of the wiping sheet 111 (spray scanning). Thereby, the cleaning liquid necessary for one wiping operation is supplied to the wiping area of the wiping sheet 111. Then, simultaneously with the end of the forward movement of the spray head 202, the spraying of the cleaning liquid from the spray head 202 is stopped. Note that the movement of the wiping unit 103 by the moving table 101 and the cleaning liquid spray scanning on the wiping sheet 111 may be overlapped.

  Next, compressed air is supplied to the roller lifting cylinder 172 and the suspension cylinder 191. As a result, the roller lifting plate 171 and the roller support frame 152 are raised, and the wiping roller 151 is raised to a predetermined height. Subsequently, the winding motor 133 is driven, and the wiping sheet 111 supplied with the cleaning liquid (impregnated with the cleaning liquid) is sent to the wiping roller 151. Then, the XY movement mechanism 11 (Y-axis table 13) is driven in synchronization with the drive of the winding motor 133. That is, while the wiping sheet 111 is fed, the head unit 15 is moved in synchronism with this, so that the nozzle unit 47 of the functional liquid droplet ejection head 31 is in contact with the wiping sheet 111 impregnated with the cleaning liquid. 15 moves toward the maintenance area 28, that is, the nozzle surface of the functional liquid droplet ejection head 31 slides relative to the wiping sheet 111. Wiping with the wiping sheet 111 is performed. The feeding speed of the wiping sheet 111 and the moving speed of the head unit 15 can be arbitrarily set in consideration of the type of functional liquid, the type of cleaning liquid, and the like.

  When the wiping operation is completed, the driving of the XY movement mechanism 11 and the take-up motor 133 is stopped, the movement of the head unit 15 is stopped in a state where it completely faces the maintenance area 28, and the wiping sheet 111 is fed. Stopped. Then, compressed air is supplied to the backward movement side of the roller lifting cylinder 172 and the suspension cylinder 191, and the wiping roller 151 is lowered to finish the wiping operation.

  The control device 6 is composed of a personal computer or the like. Although not shown, an input device such as a keyboard and a mouse, various drives such as an FD drive and a CD-ROM drive, and peripheral devices such as a monitor display are connected to the apparatus main body.

  Next, the main control system of the drawing apparatus 1 will be described with reference to FIG. The drawing apparatus 1 includes a droplet discharge unit 301 having a droplet discharge device 3, a head maintenance unit 302 having a head maintenance device 5, and various sensors of the droplet discharge device 3 and the head maintenance device 5. And a drive unit 304 that drives each unit, and a control unit 305 (control device 6) that is connected to each unit and controls the entire drawing apparatus 1.

  The control unit 305 has an interface 311 for connecting the droplet discharge device 3 and the head maintenance device 5, a storage area that can be temporarily stored, a RAM 312 that is used as a work area for control processing, ROM 313 for storing a control program and control data, drawing data for drawing on the workpiece W, various data from the droplet discharge device 3 and the head maintenance device 5, etc. Are provided with a hard disk 314 that stores a program for processing the data, a CPU 315 that performs arithmetic processing on various data in accordance with a program stored in the ROM 313 and the hard disk 314, and a bus 316 that connects them together.

  The control unit 305 inputs various data from the droplet discharge device 3 and the head maintenance device 5 via the interface 311 and is stored in the hard disk 314 (or sequentially read out by a CD-ROM drive or the like). Each means is controlled by causing the CPU 315 to perform arithmetic processing according to a program and outputting the processing result to the droplet discharge device 3, the head maintenance device 5 and the like via an interface. For example, the series of wiping operations described above are also performed according to control from the control unit 305.

  Next, as an electro-optical device (flat panel display) manufactured using the drawing device 1 of the present embodiment, a color filter, a liquid crystal display device, an organic EL device, a plasma display (PDP device), an electron emission device (FED device). The structure and the manufacturing method thereof will be described by taking an active matrix substrate and the like formed in these display devices as examples. Note that an active matrix substrate refers to a substrate on which a thin film transistor, a source line electrically connected to the thin film transistor, and a data line are formed.

First, a method for manufacturing a color filter incorporated in a liquid crystal display device, an organic EL device or the like will be described. FIG. 13 is a flowchart showing the manufacturing process of the color filter, and FIG. 14 is a schematic cross-sectional view of the color filter 600 (filter base body 600A) of this embodiment shown in the order of the manufacturing process.
First, in the black matrix forming step (S11), a black matrix 602 is formed on a substrate (W) 601 as shown in FIG. The black matrix 602 is formed of metal chromium, a laminate of metal chromium and chromium oxide, or resin black. In order to form the black matrix 602 made of a metal thin film, a sputtering method, a vapor deposition method, or the like can be used. Further, when forming the black matrix 602 made of a resin thin film, a gravure printing method, a photoresist method, a thermal transfer method, or the like can be used.

Subsequently, in a bank formation step (S12), a bank 603 is formed in a state of being superimposed on the black matrix 602. That is, first, as shown in FIG. 14B, a resist layer 604 made of a negative transparent photosensitive resin is formed so as to cover the substrate 601 and the black matrix 602. Then, an exposure process is performed with the upper surface covered with a mask film 605 formed in a matrix pattern shape.
Further, as shown in FIG. 14C, the resist layer 604 is patterned by etching an unexposed portion of the resist layer 604 to form a bank 603. When the black matrix is formed from resin black, it is possible to use both the black matrix and the bank.
The bank 603 and the black matrix 602 below the bank 603 serve as partition wall portions 607b that partition each pixel region 607a, and the colored layers (film forming portions) 608R, 608G, When forming 608B, the landing area of the functional droplet is defined.

The filter substrate 600A is obtained through the above black matrix forming step and bank forming step.
In the present embodiment, as the material of the bank 603, a resin material whose surface is lyophobic (hydrophobic) is used. Since the surface of the substrate (glass substrate) 601 is lyophilic (hydrophilic), the droplets into each pixel region 607a surrounded by the bank 603 (partition wall portion 607b) in the colored layer forming step described later. The landing position accuracy is improved.

  Next, in the colored layer forming step (S13), as shown in FIG. 14D, the functional liquid droplets are ejected by the functional liquid droplet ejection head 31, and the pixel areas 607a surrounded by the partition wall portions 607b are disposed. Let it land. In this case, the functional liquid droplet ejection head 31 is used to introduce functional liquids (filter materials) of three colors of R, G, and B to eject functional liquid droplets. Note that the arrangement pattern of the three colors R, G, and B includes a stripe arrangement, a mosaic arrangement, a delta arrangement, and the like.

Thereafter, the functional liquid is fixed through a drying process (a process such as heating) to form three colored layers 608R, 608G, and 608B. If the colored layers 608R, 608G, and 608B are formed, the process proceeds to the protective film forming step (S14), and as shown in FIG. 14 (e), the substrate 601, the partition wall portion 607b, and the colored layers 608R, 608G, and 608B. A protective film 609 is formed so as to cover the upper surface.
That is, after the protective film coating liquid is discharged over the entire surface of the substrate 601 where the colored layers 608R, 608G, and 608B are formed, the protective film 609 is formed through a drying process.
Then, after forming the protective film 609, the color filter 600 proceeds to a film forming process such as ITO (Indium Tin Oxide) which becomes a transparent electrode in the next process.

  FIG. 15 is a cross-sectional view of a principal part showing a schematic configuration of a passive matrix liquid crystal device (liquid crystal device) as an example of a liquid crystal display device using the color filter 600 described above. By attaching auxiliary elements such as a liquid crystal driving IC, a backlight, and a support to the liquid crystal device 620, a transmissive liquid crystal display device as a final product can be obtained. Since the color filter 600 is the same as that shown in FIG. 14, the corresponding parts are denoted by the same reference numerals, and description thereof is omitted.

The liquid crystal device 620 is roughly constituted by a color filter 600, a counter substrate 621 made of a glass substrate, and a liquid crystal layer 622 made of an STN (Super Twisted Nematic) liquid crystal composition sandwiched between them. The filter 600 is arranged on the upper side (observer side) in the figure.
Although not shown, polarizing plates are disposed on the outer surfaces of the counter substrate 621 and the color filter 600 (surfaces opposite to the liquid crystal layer 622 side), and the polarizing plates positioned on the counter substrate 621 side are also provided. A backlight is disposed outside.

On the protective film 609 of the color filter 600 (on the liquid crystal layer side), a plurality of strip-shaped first electrodes 623 elongated in the left-right direction in FIG. 15 are formed at a predetermined interval. The color of the first electrode 623 A first alignment film 624 is formed so as to cover the surface opposite to the filter 600 side.
On the other hand, a plurality of strip-shaped second electrodes 626 elongated in a direction orthogonal to the first electrode 623 of the color filter 600 are formed on the surface of the counter substrate 621 facing the color filter 600 at a predetermined interval. A second alignment film 627 is formed so as to cover the surface of the two electrodes 626 on the liquid crystal layer 622 side. The first electrode 623 and the second electrode 626 are made of a transparent conductive material such as ITO.

The spacer 628 provided in the liquid crystal layer 622 is a member for keeping the thickness (cell gap) of the liquid crystal layer 622 constant. The sealing material 629 is a member for preventing the liquid crystal composition in the liquid crystal layer 622 from leaking to the outside. Note that one end portion of the first electrode 623 extends to the outside of the sealing material 629 as a lead-out wiring 623a.
A portion where the first electrode 623 and the second electrode 626 intersect with each other is a pixel, and the color layers 608R, 608G, and 608B of the color filter 600 are located in the portion that becomes the pixel.

  In a normal manufacturing process, patterning of the first electrode 623 and application of the first alignment film 624 are performed on the color filter 600 to create a portion on the color filter 600 side. Patterning of the electrode 626 and application of the second alignment film 627 are performed to create a portion on the counter substrate 621 side. Thereafter, a spacer 628 and a sealing material 629 are formed in the portion on the counter substrate 621 side, and the portion on the color filter 600 side is bonded in this state. Next, liquid crystal constituting the liquid crystal layer 622 is injected from the inlet of the sealing material 629, and the inlet is closed. Thereafter, both polarizing plates and the backlight are laminated.

  The drawing apparatus 1 of the embodiment applies, for example, the spacer material (functional liquid) that constitutes the cell gap, and before the portion on the color filter 600 side is bonded to the portion on the counter substrate 621 side, the sealing material 629 is used. Liquid crystal (functional liquid) can be uniformly applied to the enclosed area. In addition, the above-described sealing material 629 can be printed by the functional liquid droplet ejection head 31. Furthermore, the first and second alignment films 624 and 627 can be applied by the functional liquid droplet ejection head 31.

FIG. 16 is a cross-sectional view of a main part showing a schematic configuration of a second example of a liquid crystal device using the color filter 600 manufactured in the present embodiment.
The liquid crystal device 630 is significantly different from the liquid crystal device 620 in that the color filter 600 is arranged on the lower side (the side opposite to the observer side) in the figure.
The liquid crystal device 630 is generally configured by sandwiching a liquid crystal layer 632 made of STN liquid crystal between a color filter 600 and a counter substrate 631 made of a glass substrate or the like. Although not shown, polarizing plates and the like are provided on the outer surfaces of the counter substrate 631 and the color filter 600, respectively.

On the protective film 609 of the color filter 600 (on the liquid crystal layer 632 side), a plurality of strip-shaped first electrodes 633 elongated in the depth direction in the figure are formed at predetermined intervals, and the liquid crystal of the first electrodes 633 is formed. A first alignment film 634 is formed so as to cover the surface on the layer 632 side.
A plurality of strip-shaped second electrodes 636 extending in a direction orthogonal to the first electrode 633 on the color filter 600 side are formed on the surface of the counter substrate 631 facing the color filter 600 at a predetermined interval. A second alignment film 637 is formed so as to cover the surface of the second electrode 636 on the liquid crystal layer 632 side.

The liquid crystal layer 632 is provided with a spacer 638 for keeping the thickness of the liquid crystal layer 632 constant, and a sealing material 639 for preventing the liquid crystal composition in the liquid crystal layer 632 from leaking to the outside. Yes.
Similarly to the liquid crystal device 620 described above, a portion where the first electrode 633 and the second electrode 636 intersect with each other is a pixel, and the colored layers 608R, 608G, and 608B of the color filter 600 are located in the portion that becomes the pixel. Is configured to do.

FIG. 17 shows a third example in which a liquid crystal device is configured using a color filter 600 to which the present invention is applied, and is an exploded perspective view showing a schematic configuration of a transmissive TFT (Thin Film Transistor) type liquid crystal device. It is.
In the liquid crystal device 650, the color filter 600 is arranged on the upper side (observer side) in the drawing.

The liquid crystal device 650 includes a color filter 600, a counter substrate 651 disposed so as to face the color filter 600, a liquid crystal layer (not shown) sandwiched therebetween, and an upper surface side (observer side) of the color filter 600. The polarizing plate 655 is generally configured by a polarizing plate 655 and a polarizing plate (not shown) disposed on the lower surface side of the counter substrate 651.
A liquid crystal driving electrode 656 is formed on the surface of the protective film 609 of the color filter 600 (the surface on the counter substrate 651 side). The electrode 656 is made of a transparent conductive material such as ITO, and is a full surface electrode that covers the entire region where a pixel electrode 660 described later is formed. An alignment film 657 is provided so as to cover the surface of the electrode 656 opposite to the pixel electrode 660.

  An insulating layer 658 is formed on the surface of the counter substrate 651 facing the color filter 600, and the scanning lines 661 and the signal lines 662 are formed on the insulating layer 658 so as to be orthogonal to each other. A pixel electrode 660 is formed in a region surrounded by the scanning lines 661 and the signal lines 662. Note that in an actual liquid crystal device, an alignment film is provided over the pixel electrode 660, but the illustration is omitted.

  In addition, a thin film transistor 663 including a source electrode, a drain electrode, a semiconductor, and a gate electrode is incorporated in a portion surrounded by the cutout portion of the pixel electrode 660 and the scanning line 661 and the signal line 662. . The thin film transistor 663 is turned on / off by application of a signal to the scanning line 661 and the signal line 662 so that energization control to the pixel electrode 660 can be performed.

  The liquid crystal devices 620, 630, and 650 of the above examples have a transmissive configuration, but a reflective layer or a semi-transmissive reflective layer is provided to form a reflective liquid crystal device or a transflective liquid crystal device. You can also

  Next, FIG. 18 is a cross-sectional view of a main part of a display region of an organic EL device (hereinafter simply referred to as a display device 700).

The display device 700 is schematically configured with a circuit element portion 702, a light emitting element portion 703, and a cathode 704 laminated on a substrate (W) 701.
In this display device 700, light emitted from the light emitting element portion 703 to the substrate 701 side is transmitted through the circuit element portion 702 and the substrate 701 and emitted to the observer side, and the light emitting element portion 703 is opposite to the substrate 701. After the light emitted to the side is reflected by the cathode 704, the light passes through the circuit element portion 702 and the substrate 701 and is emitted to the observer side.

  A base protective film 706 made of a silicon oxide film is formed between the circuit element portion 702 and the substrate 701, and an island-like semiconductor film 707 made of polycrystalline silicon is formed on the base protective film 706 (on the light emitting element portion 703 side). Is formed. In the left and right regions of the semiconductor film 707, a source region 707a and a drain region 707b are formed by high concentration cation implantation, respectively. A central portion where no cation is implanted is a channel region 707c.

  In the circuit element portion 702, a transparent gate insulating film 708 covering the base protective film 706 and the semiconductor film 707 is formed, and a position corresponding to the channel region 707c of the semiconductor film 707 on the gate insulating film 708 is formed. For example, a gate electrode 709 made of Al, Mo, Ta, Ti, W or the like is formed. A transparent first interlayer insulating film 711 a and second interlayer insulating film 711 b are formed on the gate electrode 709 and the gate insulating film 708. Further, contact holes 712a and 712b are formed through the first and second interlayer insulating films 711a and 711b and communicating with the source region 707a and the drain region 707b of the semiconductor film 707, respectively.

A transparent pixel electrode 713 made of ITO or the like is patterned and formed on the second interlayer insulating film 711b in a predetermined shape, and the pixel electrode 713 is connected to the source region 707a through the contact hole 712a. .
A power line 714 is disposed on the first interlayer insulating film 711a, and the power line 714 is connected to the drain region 707b through the contact hole 712b.

  Thus, the driving thin film transistors 715 connected to the pixel electrodes 713 are formed in the circuit element portion 702, respectively.

The light emitting element portion 703 includes a functional layer 717 stacked on each of the plurality of pixel electrodes 713, and a bank portion 718 provided between each pixel electrode 713 and the functional layer 717 to partition each functional layer 717. It is roughly structured.
The pixel electrode 713, the functional layer 717, and the cathode 704 provided on the functional layer 717 constitute a light emitting element. Note that the pixel electrode 713 is formed by patterning in a substantially rectangular shape in plan view, and a bank portion 718 is formed between the pixel electrodes 713.

Bank unit 718, for example SiO, and SiO _2, the inorganic bank layer is formed of an inorganic material such as TiO _2, 718a (first bank layer), stacked on the inorganic bank layer 718a, an acrylic resin, such as polyimide resin It is composed of an organic bank layer 718b (second bank layer) having a trapezoidal cross section formed of a resist having excellent heat resistance and solvent resistance. A part of the bank portion 718 is formed on the peripheral edge of the pixel electrode 713.
Between each bank portion 718, an opening 719 that gradually expands upward with respect to the pixel electrode 713 is formed.

The functional layer 717 includes a hole injection / transport layer 717a formed on the pixel electrode 713 in a stacked state in the opening 719 and a light emitting layer 717b formed on the hole injection / transport layer 717a. Has been. Note that another functional layer having other functions may be further formed adjacent to the light emitting layer 717b. For example, it is possible to form an electron transport layer.
The hole injection / transport layer 717a has a function of transporting holes from the pixel electrode 713 side and injecting them into the light emitting layer 717b. The hole injection / transport layer 717a is formed by discharging a first composition (functional liquid) containing a hole injection / transport layer forming material. A known material is used as the hole injection / transport layer forming material.

  The light emitting layer 717b emits light in red (R), green (G), or blue (B), and discharges a second composition (functional liquid) containing a light emitting layer forming material (light emitting material). Is formed. As the solvent (nonpolar solvent) of the second composition, a known material insoluble in the hole injection / transport layer 717a is preferably used, and such a nonpolar solvent is used as the second composition of the light emitting layer 717b. By using the light emitting layer 717b, the light emitting layer 717b can be formed without re-dissolving the hole injection / transport layer 717a.

  The light emitting layer 717b is configured such that holes injected from the hole injection / transport layer 717a and electrons injected from the cathode 704 are recombined in the light emitting layer to emit light.

  The cathode 704 is formed so as to cover the entire surface of the light emitting element portion 703, and plays a role of flowing current to the functional layer 717 in a pair with the pixel electrode 713. Note that a sealing member (not shown) is disposed on the cathode 704.

Next, a manufacturing process of the display device 700 will be described with reference to FIGS.
As shown in FIG. 19, the display device 700 includes a bank part forming step (S21), a surface treatment step (S22), a hole injection / transport layer forming step (S23), a light emitting layer forming step (S24), It is manufactured through an electrode forming step (S25). In addition, a manufacturing process is not restricted to what is illustrated, and when other processes are removed as needed, it may be added.

First, in the bank part forming step (S21), as shown in FIG. 20, an inorganic bank layer 718a is formed on the second interlayer insulating film 711b. The inorganic bank layer 718a is formed by forming an inorganic film at a formation position and then patterning the inorganic film using a photolithography technique or the like. At this time, a part of the inorganic bank layer 718 a is formed so as to overlap with the peripheral edge of the pixel electrode 713.
When the inorganic bank layer 718a is formed, an organic bank layer 718b is formed on the inorganic bank layer 718a as shown in FIG. This organic bank layer 718b is also formed by patterning using a photolithography technique or the like, similarly to the inorganic bank layer 718a.
In this way, the bank portion 718 is formed. Accordingly, an opening 719 that opens upward with respect to the pixel electrode 713 is formed between the bank portions 718. The opening 719 defines a pixel region.

In the surface treatment step (S22), a lyophilic process and a lyophobic process are performed. The regions to be subjected to the lyophilic treatment are the first stacked portion 718aa of the inorganic bank layer 718a and the electrode surface 713a of the pixel electrode 713. These regions are made lyophilic by plasma treatment using, for example, oxygen as a treatment gas. Is done. This plasma treatment also serves to clean the ITO that is the pixel electrode 713.
In addition, the lyophobic treatment is performed on the wall surface 718s of the organic bank layer 718b and the upper surface 718t of the organic bank layer 718b, and the surface is fluorinated (treated to be liquid repellent) by plasma treatment using, for example, tetrafluoromethane. )
By performing this surface treatment process, when forming the functional layer 717 using the functional liquid droplet ejection head 31, the functional liquid droplets can be landed more reliably on the pixel area. It is possible to prevent the functioning liquid droplets from overflowing from the opening 719.

  The display device base 700A is obtained through the above steps. The display device base 700A is placed on the set table 24 of the drawing apparatus 1 shown in FIG. 1, and the following hole injection / transport layer forming step (S23) and light emitting layer forming step (S24) are performed.

  As shown in FIG. 22, in the hole injection / transport layer forming step (S23), the first composition containing the hole injection / transport layer forming material is removed from the functional liquid droplet ejection head 31 to each opening 719 that is a pixel region. Discharge inside. After that, as shown in FIG. 23, a drying process and a heat treatment are performed to evaporate the polar solvent contained in the first composition, and a hole injection / transport layer 717a is formed on the pixel electrode (electrode surface 713a) 713.

Next, the light emitting layer forming step (S24) will be described. In this light emitting layer forming step, as described above, in order to prevent re-dissolution of the hole injection / transport layer 717a, a hole injection / transport layer 717a is used as a solvent for the second composition used in forming the light emitting layer. A non-polar solvent insoluble in.
However, since the hole injection / transport layer 717a has a low affinity for the nonpolar solvent, the hole injection / transport layer 717a has a low affinity even if the second composition containing the nonpolar solvent is discharged onto the hole injection / transport layer 717a. There is a possibility that the injection / transport layer 717a and the light emitting layer 717b cannot be adhered to each other or the light emitting layer 717b cannot be applied uniformly.
Therefore, in order to increase the surface affinity of the hole injection / transport layer 717a with respect to the nonpolar solvent and the light emitting layer forming material, it is preferable to perform a surface treatment (surface modification treatment) before forming the light emitting layer. In this surface treatment, a surface modifying material which is the same solvent as the non-polar solvent of the second composition used in forming the light emitting layer or a similar solvent is applied on the hole injection / transport layer 717a, and this is applied. This is done by drying.
By performing such a treatment, the surface of the hole injection / transport layer 717a is easily adapted to the nonpolar solvent, and in the subsequent process, the second composition containing the light emitting layer forming material is added to the hole injection / transport layer. It can be uniformly applied to 717a.

  Then, as shown in FIG. 24, the second composition containing the light-emitting layer forming material corresponding to one of the colors (blue (B) in the example of FIG. 24) is used as a functional droplet as a pixel region ( A predetermined amount is driven into the opening 719). The second composition driven into the pixel region spreads on the hole injection / transport layer 717a and fills the opening 719. Even if the second composition deviates from the pixel region and lands on the upper surface 718t of the bank portion 718, the upper composition 718t is subjected to the liquid repellent treatment as described above, and thus the second composition An object is easy to roll into the opening 719.

  Thereafter, by performing a drying process or the like, the discharged second composition is dried, the nonpolar solvent contained in the second composition is evaporated, and as shown in FIG. 25, a hole injection / transport layer 717a is obtained. A light emitting layer 717b is formed thereon. In the case of this figure, a light emitting layer 717b corresponding to blue (B) is formed.

  Similarly, using the functional liquid droplet ejection head 31, as shown in FIG. 26, the same steps as in the case of the light emitting layer 717b corresponding to the blue (B) described above are sequentially performed, and other colors (red (R) and red (R) and A light emitting layer 717b corresponding to green (G) is formed. Note that the order in which the light-emitting layers 717b are formed is not limited to the illustrated order, and may be formed in any order. For example, the order of formation can be determined according to the light emitting layer forming material. Further, the arrangement pattern of the three colors R, G, and B includes a stripe arrangement, a mosaic arrangement, a delta arrangement, and the like.

  As described above, the functional layer 717, that is, the hole injection / transport layer 717 a and the light emitting layer 717 b are formed on the pixel electrode 713. And it transfers to a counter electrode formation process (S25).

In the counter electrode formation step (S25), as shown in FIG. 27, a cathode 704 (counter electrode) is formed on the entire surface of the light emitting layer 717b and the organic bank layer 718b by, for example, vapor deposition, sputtering, CVD, or the like. In the present embodiment, the cathode 704 is configured, for example, by laminating a calcium layer and an aluminum layer.
On top of the cathode 704, an Al film and an Ag film as electrodes, and a protective layer such as SiO ₂ and SiN for preventing oxidation thereof are provided as appropriate.

  After forming the cathode 704 in this way, the display device 700 is obtained by performing other processing such as sealing processing and wiring processing for sealing the upper portion of the cathode 704 with a sealing member.

Next, FIG. 28 is an exploded perspective view of a main part of a plasma display device (PDP device: hereinafter simply referred to as a display device 800). In the figure, the display device 800 is shown with a part thereof cut away.
The display device 800 includes a first substrate 801, a second substrate 802, and a discharge display portion 803 formed between the first substrate 801 and the second substrate 802, which are disposed to face each other. The discharge display unit 803 includes a plurality of discharge chambers 805. Among the plurality of discharge chambers 805, the three discharge chambers 805 of the red discharge chamber 805R, the green discharge chamber 805G, and the blue discharge chamber 805B are arranged to form one pixel.

Address electrodes 806 are formed in stripes at predetermined intervals on the upper surface of the first substrate 801, and a dielectric layer 807 is formed so as to cover the address electrodes 806 and the upper surface of the first substrate 801. On the dielectric layer 807, partition walls 808 are provided so as to be positioned between the address electrodes 806 and along the address electrodes 806. The partition 808 includes one extending on both sides in the width direction of the address electrode 806 as shown, and one not shown extending in a direction orthogonal to the address electrode 806.
A region partitioned by the partition 808 is a discharge chamber 805.

  A phosphor 809 is disposed in the discharge chamber 805. The phosphor 809 emits red (R), green (G), or blue (B) fluorescence, and the red phosphor 809R is located at the bottom of the red discharge chamber 805R, and the green discharge chamber 805G. A green phosphor 809G and a blue phosphor 809B are disposed at the bottom and the blue discharge chamber 805B, respectively.

On the lower surface of the second substrate 802 in the figure, a plurality of display electrodes 811 are formed in stripes at predetermined intervals in a direction orthogonal to the address electrodes 806. A dielectric layer 812 and a protective film 813 made of MgO or the like are formed so as to cover them.
The first substrate 801 and the second substrate 802 are bonded so that the address electrodes 806 and the display electrodes 811 face each other in a state of being orthogonal to each other. The address electrode 806 and the display electrode 811 are connected to an AC power source (not shown).
When the electrodes 806 and 811 are energized, the phosphor 809 emits light in the discharge display portion 803, and color display is possible.

In the present embodiment, the address electrode 806, the display electrode 811, and the phosphor 809 can be formed using the drawing apparatus 1 shown in FIG. Hereinafter, a process of forming the address electrode 806 in the first substrate 801 will be exemplified.
In this case, the following steps are performed with the first substrate 801 placed on the set table 24 of the drawing apparatus 1.
First, a liquid material (functional liquid) containing a conductive film wiring forming material is landed on the address electrode formation region as a functional liquid droplet by the functional liquid droplet ejection head 31. This liquid material is obtained by dispersing conductive fine particles such as metal in a dispersion medium as a conductive film wiring forming material. As the conductive fine particles, metal fine particles containing gold, silver, copper, palladium, nickel, or the like, a conductive polymer, or the like is used.

  When the replenishment of the liquid material is completed for all the address electrode formation regions to be replenished, the address material 806 is formed by drying the discharged liquid material and evaporating the dispersion medium contained in the liquid material. .

By the way, although the formation of the address electrode 806 has been exemplified in the above, the display electrode 811 and the phosphor 809 can also be formed through the above steps.
In the case of forming the display electrode 811, as in the case of the address electrode 806, a liquid material (functional liquid) containing a conductive film wiring forming material is landed on the display electrode formation region as a functional droplet.
Further, in the case of forming the phosphor 809, a liquid material (functional liquid) containing a fluorescent material corresponding to each color (R, G, B) is ejected as droplets from the functional droplet ejection head 31, and corresponding. Land in the color discharge chamber 805.

Next, FIG. 29 is a cross-sectional view of an essential part of an electron emission device (also referred to as an FED device or an SED device: hereinafter simply referred to as a display device 900). In the figure, a part of the display device 900 is shown as a cross section.
The display device 900 is schematically configured to include a first substrate 901 and a second substrate 902 that are arranged to face each other, and a field emission display portion 903 formed therebetween. The field emission display unit 903 includes a plurality of electron emission units 905 arranged in a matrix.

  A first element electrode 906a and a second element electrode 906b constituting the cathode electrode 906 are formed on the upper surface of the first substrate 901 so as to be orthogonal to each other. In addition, a conductive film 907 having a gap 908 is formed in a portion partitioned by the first element electrode 906a and the second element electrode 906b. In other words, the first element electrode 906a, the second element electrode 906b, and the conductive film 907 constitute a plurality of electron emission portions 905. The conductive film 907 is made of, for example, palladium oxide (PdO), and the gap 908 is formed by forming after forming the conductive film 907.

  An anode electrode 909 facing the cathode electrode 906 is formed on the lower surface of the second substrate 902. A lattice-shaped bank portion 911 is formed on the lower surface of the anode electrode 909, and a phosphor 913 is disposed in each downward opening 912 surrounded by the bank portion 911 so as to correspond to the electron emission portion 905. Yes. The phosphor 913 emits fluorescence of any color of red (R), green (G), and blue (B), and each opening 912 has a red phosphor 913R, a green phosphor 913G, and a blue color. The phosphors 913B are arranged in the predetermined pattern described above.

  The first substrate 901 and the second substrate 902 configured as described above are bonded together with a minute gap. In this display device 900, electrons that jump out of the first element electrode 906a or the second element electrode 906b, which are cathodes, via the conductive film (gap 908) 907 are transferred to the phosphor 913 formed on the anode electrode 909 that is an anode. When excited, it emits light and enables color display.

  Also in this case, similarly to the other embodiments, the first element electrode 906a, the second element electrode 906b, the conductive film 907, and the anode electrode 909 can be formed using the drawing apparatus 1, and the fluorescence of each color can be formed. The bodies 913R, 913G, and 913B can be formed using the drawing apparatus 1.

  The first element electrode 906a, the second element electrode 906b, and the conductive film 907 have the planar shape shown in FIG. 30A. When these are formed, as shown in FIG. In addition, the bank portion BB is formed (photolithographic method), leaving portions where the first element electrode 906a, the second element electrode 906b, and the conductive film 907 are previously formed. Next, after forming the first element electrode 906a and the second element electrode 906b in the groove portion constituted by the bank part BB (inkjet method by the drawing apparatus 1), and drying the solvent, A conductive film 907 is formed (an ink jet method using the drawing apparatus 1). Then, after forming the conductive film 907, the bank portion BB is removed (ashing peeling process), and the process proceeds to the above forming process. As in the case of the organic EL device described above, it is preferable to perform a lyophilic process on the first substrate 901 and the second substrate 902 and a lyophobic process on the bank portions 911 and BB.

  As other electro-optical devices, devices such as metal wiring formation, lens formation, resist formation, and light diffuser formation are conceivable. By using the drawing apparatus 1 described above for manufacturing various electro-optical devices (devices), various electro-optical devices can be efficiently manufactured.

It is a plane schematic diagram of the drawing apparatus which concerns on embodiment of this invention. It is a front schematic diagram of the drawing apparatus which concerns on embodiment of this invention. It is a plane schematic diagram around a support frame. It is an external appearance perspective view of a functional droplet discharge head. It is explanatory drawing of a pressure regulating valve, (a) is an external appearance perspective view of a pressure regulating valve, (b) is a longitudinal cross-sectional view of a pressure regulating valve. It is an external appearance perspective view of a wiping unit. It is explanatory drawing of a wiping unit, and is an external appearance perspective view when a part of cover box is removed. It is explanatory drawing of a wiping unit, and is the external appearance perspective view seen from the left side, when removing a part of cover box. It is a front view of a wiping unit. It is a left side view around a wiping unit. It is an external perspective view around the upper right cover and the cleaning liquid spray unit. It is a block diagram explaining the main control system of the drawing apparatus. It is a flowchart explaining a color filter manufacturing process. (A)-(e) is a schematic cross section of the color filter shown to the manufacturing process order. It is principal part sectional drawing which shows schematic structure of the liquid crystal device using the color filter to which this invention is applied. It is principal part sectional drawing which shows schematic structure of the liquid crystal device of the 2nd example using the color filter to which this invention is applied. It is principal part sectional drawing which shows schematic structure of the liquid crystal device of the 3rd example using the color filter to which this invention is applied. It is principal part sectional drawing of the display apparatus which is an organic electroluminescent apparatus. It is a flowchart explaining the manufacturing process of the display apparatus which is an organic electroluminescent apparatus. It is process drawing explaining formation of an inorganic bank layer. It is process drawing explaining formation of an organic substance bank layer. It is process drawing explaining the process in which a positive hole injection / transport layer is formed. It is process drawing explaining the state in which the positive hole injection / transport layer was formed. It is process drawing explaining the process in which a blue light emitting layer is formed. It is process drawing explaining the state in which the blue light emitting layer was formed. It is process drawing explaining the state in which the light emitting layer of each color was formed. It is process drawing explaining formation of a cathode. It is a principal part disassembled perspective view of the display apparatus which is a plasma type display apparatus (PDP apparatus). It is principal part sectional drawing of the display apparatus which is an electron emission apparatus (FED apparatus). It is the top view (a) around the electron emission part of a display apparatus, and the top view (b) which shows the formation method.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Drawing apparatus 31 Functional droplet discharge head 47 Nozzle surface 111 Wiping sheet 115 Sheet supply unit 116 Wiping unit 151 Wiping roller 152 Roller support frame 153 Roller lifting mechanism 154 Buffer mechanism 166 Lifting guide 172 Roller lifting cylinder 171 Roller lifting plate 173 Roller lifting guide W Work

Claims (10)

Using a buffer mechanism that can buffer the impact received by the wiping roller,
A wiping method, wherein a wiping sheet sent in one direction is pressed against a nozzle surface of a functional liquid droplet ejection head by the wiping roller to perform a wiping operation. A wiping sheet for wiping the nozzle surface of the functional liquid droplet ejection head;
A sheet feeding mechanism for feeding the wiping sheet;
A wiping unit that presses the wiping sheet against the nozzle surface and performs a wiping operation;
An advancing and retracting mechanism for advancing and retracting the wiping unit with respect to the nozzle surface;
A wiping apparatus comprising a buffer mechanism interposed between the wiping unit and the advance / retreat mechanism. The wiping unit is a freely rotatable wiping roller that rolls against the wiping sheet and presses it against the nozzle surface;
A bearing frame that rotatably supports the wiping roller with both ends;
A pair of advancing and retracting guides for guiding the bearing frame so as to freely advance and retract,
The wiping apparatus according to claim 2, wherein each of the advancing / retreating guides is disposed on both outer sides in the axial direction of the wiping roller.   4. The wiping apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the advance / retreat mechanism and the buffer mechanism are disposed between the pair of advance / retreat guides.   The wiping device according to any one of claims 2 to 4, wherein the buffer means comprises an air suspension. The advance / retreat mechanism includes an actuator, a movable plate fixed to a movable part of the actuator, and a plate guide for guiding the movable plate so as to freely advance and retract.
The cylinder of the air suspension is fixed to the movable plate,
The wiping device according to claim 5, wherein a piston rod of the air suspension is fixed to the wiping unit. A wiping device according to any one of claims 2 to 6,
The functional liquid droplet ejection head,
A drawing apparatus characterized in that, by moving a functional liquid droplet ejection head relative to a workpiece, the functional liquid droplet ejection head is driven to eject the functional liquid droplet, thereby drawing the functional liquid droplet on the work.   8. A method of manufacturing an electro-optical device, wherein the drawing apparatus according to claim 7 is used to form a film forming portion with functional droplets on the workpiece.   An electro-optical device using the drawing apparatus according to claim 7, wherein a film forming portion is formed by functional droplets on the workpiece.   An electronic apparatus comprising the electro-optical device manufactured by the method for manufacturing the electro-optical device according to claim 8 or the electro-optical device according to claim 9.

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