JP2005254799A - Wiping method of functional liquid droplet discharging head, wiping device, liquid droplet discharging apparatus with this, manufacturing method for electro-optic apparatus, electro-optic apparatus and electronic apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a wiping method of a functional liquid droplet discharging head which can suppress useless consumption of a wiping sheet as much as possible without the wiping capability of a nozzle face damaged, and to provide a wiping device. <P>SOLUTION: The wiping device 233 wipes nozzle faces 87 of a plurality of functional liquid droplet discharging heads 72 at a time by a wiping sheet 281by moving the functional liquid droplet discharging heads 72 each having a large number of discharging nozzles arrayed in a sub scanning direction relatively to a head unit 41 installed on a head plate 73 shifted in both the sub scanning direction and a main scanning direction . The device is further provided with a lateral moving mechanism 283 for laterally moving the wiping sheet 281 in the main scanning direction relatively to the head unit 41. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2005,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to a wiping method of a functional liquid droplet ejection head, a wiping apparatus, and a liquid droplet ejection apparatus provided with the same, wherein the nozzle surfaces of a plurality of functional liquid droplet ejection heads mounted on a head plate are collectively wiped with a wiping sheet. The present invention also relates to a method for manufacturing an electro-optical device, an electro-optical device, and an electronic apparatus.

As a conventional wiping method and wiping device, one mounted on an ink jet type droplet discharge device used for manufacturing an organic EL device or a color filter is known (for example, see Patent Document 1). This droplet discharge device reciprocates a substrate, which is a workpiece, in the main scanning direction, and moves a head unit having twelve functional droplet discharge heads mounted on a sub-carriage (head plate) in the sub-scanning direction. It is composed of a drawing device that draws on the substrate by discharging the functional liquid from each functional droplet discharge head in conjunction with the movement, and a maintenance device that includes a suction device and a wiping device attached to the drawing device.
The wiping device feeds the wiping sheet wound in a roll, and then moves the wiping roller up and down so that the wiping sheet is wound around the nozzle surface of the functional liquid droplet ejection head. And a moving mechanism for moving the wiping device main body in the main scanning direction as a whole. On the other hand, each nozzle row of the 12 functional liquid droplet ejection heads mounted on the head unit has a large number of ejection nozzles arranged in the sub-scanning direction.
In this wiping device, the head unit is fixed, the wiping sheet is pressed against the nozzle surface of the functional liquid droplet ejection head via the wiping roller, and the entire wiping device body is moved in the main scanning direction while feeding the wiping. Perform wiping operation. That is, a wiping sheet is sent to the nozzle row of the functional liquid droplet ejection head in a direction perpendicular to the nozzle row to perform a wiping operation.
JP 2000-212479 A

  In such a conventional wiping device, the wiping sheet is sent in a direction perpendicular to the nozzle row and the nozzle surface is wiped by so-called lateral wiping, so that only a part (short distance) of the wiping sheet is contaminated. There is a problem that the wiping sheet is wasted without being attached. Therefore, if this is used as vertical wiping, it is considered that useless consumption of the wiping sheet is alleviated. However, if this is done, the disposition pitch in the main scanning direction is rough between the plurality of functional liquid droplet ejection heads, so that the dirt on the wiping sheet becomes a striped pattern. In this case as well, the wiping sheet is consumed wastefully. It is assumed that

  The present invention relates to a method of wiping a functional liquid droplet discharge head, a wiping device, a liquid droplet discharge device including the same, and an electro-optical device capable of suppressing wasteful consumption of the wiping sheet as much as possible without impairing the wiping property of the nozzle surface. It is an object of the present invention to provide a device manufacturing method, an electro-optical device, and an electronic apparatus.

  In the wiping method of the functional liquid droplet ejection head according to the present invention, a plurality of functional liquid droplet ejection heads each having a large number of ejection nozzles arranged in the sub scanning direction are displaced in the sub scanning direction and the main scanning direction, respectively. Functional droplets that wipe the nozzle surfaces of a plurality of functional droplet ejection heads collectively with a wiping sheet while moving in the sub-scanning direction relative to the head unit mounted on the head plate in a predetermined arrangement pattern A method of wiping an ejection head, wherein a wiping sheet is placed in a main scanning direction with respect to a head unit so that the wiping position of the head unit in the main scanning direction differs between any one wiping process and the next wiping process. It is characterized by relatively moving horizontally.

  In the functional liquid droplet ejection head wiping device of the present invention, a plurality of functional liquid droplet ejection heads each having a large number of ejection nozzles arranged in the sub scanning direction are displaced in the sub scanning direction and the main scanning direction, respectively. Functional droplets that wipe the nozzle surfaces of a plurality of functional droplet ejection heads collectively with a wiping sheet while moving in the sub-scanning direction relative to the head unit mounted on the head plate in a predetermined arrangement pattern A wiping device for an ejection head, comprising a lateral movement mechanism for moving the wiping sheet relative to the head unit in the main scanning direction.

When mounting multiple functional droplet ejection heads on the head plate, the arrangement pitch of the functional droplet ejection heads in the main scanning direction is limited by the shape of the functional droplet ejection head, the position of the head substrate, etc. The interval between the nozzle surfaces of the functional liquid droplet ejection head to be opened is larger than the head width. When such a head unit is wiped in the sub-scanning direction (vertical wiping), the wiping sheet is contaminated with a striped pattern (stripe), and the gap between the patterns is not used for the wiping process.
According to the above configuration, the wiping sheet can be moved laterally relative to the head unit in the main scanning direction, so that the wiping area of the wiping sheet can be used evenly by moving the wiping sheet laterally for each wiping process. Thus, the nozzle surface can be wiped off. Thereby, useless consumption of the wiping sheet can be suppressed as much as possible. In this wiping process, feeding of the wiping sheet may be stopped, or feeding may be performed. However, when the wiping sheet is fed, it is necessary to reversely feed the wiping sheet every time the wiping process is performed. In addition to a configuration in which the wiping sheet is moved laterally, a configuration in which the head unit is moved laterally in the main scanning direction (or a configuration in which both are moved laterally) may be used.

  In this case, it is preferable that the lateral movement mechanism relatively moves the wiping sheet by about a half of the arrangement pitch of the plurality of functional liquid droplet ejection heads in the main scanning direction.

  According to this configuration, the wiping process using the wiping area of the wiping sheet can be performed by simple control, and wasteful consumption of the wiping sheet can be suppressed. This configuration is particularly useful for a head unit in which the gap between the nozzle surfaces in the main scanning direction is configured to be about the width of the nozzle surface.

  In these cases, it is preferable that the apparatus main body includes a wiping sheet and a sheet feeding mechanism that sends the wiping sheet in its extending direction, and the lateral movement mechanism moves the wiping sheet laterally through the apparatus main body.

  According to this configuration, the wiping sheet can be moved laterally with a simple structure with certainty and accuracy. That is, the lateral movement mechanism can have a simple configuration.

  In this case, it is preferable to perform the wiping process in a state where the sheet feeding of the wiping sheet by the sheet feeding mechanism is stopped.

  According to this configuration, the wiping sheet feed control can be simplified. In addition, it is preferable to adjust the relative feed speed of the wiping sheet in the wiping process by the feed speed in the sub-scanning direction of the functional liquid droplet ejection head.

  In these cases, it is preferable that the apparatus main body further includes a cleaning liquid spraying mechanism for spraying and applying a cleaning liquid for dissolving the functional liquid onto the wiping sheet.

  According to this configuration, the wiping property of the wiping sheet can be improved by spraying and applying the cleaning liquid that dissolves the functional liquid on the wiping sheet. Further, the cleaning liquid can be uniformly applied to the wiping region of the wiping sheet by spraying the cleaning liquid, and the wiping property of the wiping sheet can be improved in this respect as well.

  In these cases, it is preferable to further include a dirt detecting unit that detects dirt accompanying the wiping process of the wiping sheet, and the sheet feeding mechanism preferably feeds the wiping sheet based on the detection result of the dirt detecting unit.

  According to this structure, the wiping area | region of a wiping sheet can be used very effectively in area and the frequency | count of wiping, and the wasteful consumption of a wiping sheet | seat can be suppressed further.

  In addition, there are a plurality of head units, and the plurality of head units are continuously wiped, and the moving means moves the wiping sheet so that the wiping positions of the head units in the main scanning direction are different from each other. It is preferable to move laterally.

  According to this configuration, when the plurality of head units are continuously wiped, it is possible to suppress wasteful consumption of the wiping sheet and to shorten the time required for the wiping process.

  The droplet discharge device of the present invention includes the above-described wiping device for a functional droplet discharge head, a drawing device that performs drawing by discharging a functional liquid onto the workpiece while moving the head unit relative to the workpiece, It is provided with.

  According to this configuration, wasteful consumption of the wiping sheet is suppressed, so that the wiping sheet replacement frequency can be reduced as much as possible. Therefore, the tank time for workpiece processing can be shortened.

  A method for manufacturing an electro-optical device according to the present invention is characterized in that a film-forming unit made of functional droplets is formed on a workpiece using the above-described droplet discharge device.

  An electro-optical device according to the present invention is characterized in that a film forming unit using functional droplets is formed on a workpiece using the above-described droplet discharge device.

  According to these configurations, since it is manufactured using a droplet discharge device capable of performing drawing processing on a workpiece in an extremely short time, it is possible to manufacture a highly reliable electro-optical device. As the electro-optical device (flat panel display), a color filter, a liquid crystal display device, an organic EL device, a PDP device, an electron emission device, and the like are conceivable. The electron emission device is a concept including a so-called FED (Field Emission Display) 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 method for manufacturing the electro-optical device or the above-described electro-optical device.

  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.

  Hereinafter, a drawing system to which the present invention is applied will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings. The drawing system of the present embodiment is incorporated in a so-called flat panel display production line such as a liquid crystal display device, and is a colored layer of a color filter composed of three colors of R (red), G (green), and B (blue) ( The details will be described later).

  FIG. 1 is a schematic plan view of the drawing system. As shown in the drawing, the drawing system 1 is composed of three sets of drawing units 2. Each drawing unit 2 corresponds to each color of R, G, and B. By sequentially introducing the workpiece W (substrate) into each drawing unit 2, a colored layer can be formed on the workpiece W by one color. It is like that.

  As shown in FIG. 1, each drawing unit 2 includes a droplet discharge device 3 for forming a colored layer, a workpiece carry-in / out device 4 that is arranged in parallel with the droplet discharge device 3 and carries a workpiece W in and out, And a control device 5 that is connected to each device and controls the entire drawing unit 2. Further, as shown in the figure, the droplet discharge device 3 is accommodated in a chamber device 6. The chamber device 6 is a so-called thermal chamber, and accommodates the entire droplet discharge device 3 under temperature control so that droplet discharge (drawing) on the workpiece W is performed under a constant temperature condition. The chamber device 6 is a box-shaped chamber body 11 that accommodates the entire droplet discharge device 3, a control panel (not shown), and air for temperature management so that the temperature in the chamber body 11 is constant. And a harmony device 12. Although not shown in the drawing, an opening / closing door serving as a work loading / unloading opening is formed in front of the right side surface of the chamber body 11, and when the work W is introduced into the droplet discharge device 3, the opening / closing door is used. Thus, the droplet discharge device 3 accommodated in the chamber body 11 can be accessed.

  The droplet discharge device 3 includes a functional droplet discharge head 72 (not shown), and a functional liquid in which a functional material (filter material) corresponding to any one of R, G, and B is dissolved in a functional liquid solvent. Is introduced into a functional liquid droplet ejection head 72 (not shown), and drawing with functional liquid droplets is performed on the workpiece W. The workpiece carry-in / out device 4 includes a robot arm 15 for transferring the workpiece W. The workpiece W that has not yet been processed (before drawing) is carried into the drawing unit 2 via the robot arm 15 and is dropped into a droplet. While being introduced into the discharge device 3, the processed (drawn) workpiece W is collected from the droplet discharge device 3 and carried out of the drawing unit 2. The robot arm 15 can access the droplet discharge device 3 in the chamber main body 11 from the opening / closing door, and the introduction / recovery of the workpiece W to / from the droplet discharge device 3 is performed by moving the robot arm 15 from the opening / closing door to the chamber main body. 11 is performed. The control device 5 is configured by a personal computer or the like, and includes a monitor display and various drives such as a CD drive and a DVD drive in addition to the device main body.

  In addition, the code | symbol 18 shown in the figure is an installation space for installing a drying apparatus, and the drying apparatus for drying the functional liquid solvent of the functional liquid discharged to the workpiece | work W according to a condition (vaporization). It can be installed in the drawing unit 2.

  Next, the droplet discharge device 3 that is a main part of the present invention will be described. As shown in FIGS. 2 to 5, the droplet discharge device 3 includes a large common gantry 21 installed on the floor, and a device main body 22 widely disposed on the common gantry 21. As shown in the figure, a stone base plate 31 and an angle base 32 are disposed on a common base 21, and a pair of support stands 33 each consisting of two sets of four stands 34a and 34b are erected. ing.

  As shown in FIGS. 2 to 5, the apparatus main body 22 includes a head unit 41 having a functional liquid droplet ejection head 72 and a set table 101 that is directly installed on the stone surface plate 31 and sets a workpiece W. A work moving means 42 (X-axis table) for moving the work W in the X-axis direction (main scanning) via the table 101 and a pair of support stands 33 are arranged, and the head unit 41 is moved in the Y-axis direction (sub-scanning). Head moving means 43 (Y-axis table) that moves in the direction), and the main part thereof is disposed on the set table 101. When the work W is discharged from the set table 101, the work W is lifted up and the work W A work discharging means 44 for discharging static electricity, a functional liquid supplying means 45 for supplying a functional liquid to the head unit 41 (functional liquid droplet ejection head 72), A main part on Le cradle 32 is disposed, and a maintenance unit 46 for maintaining the head unit 41 (functional liquid droplet ejection heads 72), a.

  Although not shown in the drawings, the apparatus main body 22 supplies liquid to each means and collects liquid supply / recovery means for collecting unnecessary liquid (functional liquid and cleaning liquid) and compression for driving / controlling each means. Air supply means for supplying air, air suction means for setting (suction) the workpiece W, and the like are provided. The workpiece W introduced into the droplet discharge device 3 is a transparent substrate (glass substrate) measuring 1800 mm × 1500 mm set horizontally on the set table 101, and a pixel region (to be described later) on which a colored layer is formed in advance. Is built).

  In the droplet discharge device 3, the functional droplet discharge head 72 is driven in synchronization with the drive of the workpiece moving means 42, thereby discharging the functional liquid into the pixel area of the workpiece W and drawing processing ( Droplet discharge process). That is, the head unit 41 and the work moving means 42 constitute drawing means. On the other hand, at the time of non-drawing processing such as work exchange, the head moving unit 43 is driven so that the head unit 41 faces the maintenance unit 46 (via a carriage 75 to be described later). 72 maintenance processing is performed. As described above, the droplet discharge device 3 is accommodated in the chamber device 6, and most processing including a series of drawing processing and maintenance processing is performed in the chamber device 6.

  As shown in FIG. 3, the movement trajectory of the workpiece W by the workpiece moving means 42 and the movement trajectory of the head unit 41 by the head moving means 43 intersect, but it is a drawing area 51 where drawing processing is performed. A region facing the maintenance unit 46 on the movement trajectory of the head unit 41 by the head moving unit 43 is a maintenance area 52 in which maintenance processing is performed. The maintenance area 52 also serves as a head replacement area for replacing the head unit 41. Further, the area on the near side of the workpiece moving means 42 is a workpiece loading / unloading area 53 for loading / unloading (in / out) the workpiece W with respect to the droplet discharge device 3, facing this workpiece loading / unloading area 53. The above-described workpiece carry-in / out device 4 is installed.

  Next, each component of the droplet discharge device 3 will be described. As shown in FIGS. 2 to 5, the stone surface plate 31 is formed in a substantially rectangular parallelepiped shape and extends in the X-axis direction. Further, the stone surface plate 31 has a projecting portion 31a projecting from the center to the left and right in the Y-axis direction, and is configured in a “ten” shape deformed in plan view. The angle gantry 32 is configured by assembling angle members in a square shape, and is arranged side by side with the stone surface plate 31 (the overhanging portion 31a) in the Y-axis direction.

  As shown in these drawings, the pair of support stands 33 are arranged side by side in the X-axis direction (front and rear) so as to sandwich the angle base 32. Each support stand 33 extends in the Y-axis direction over the range in which the stone surface plate 31 and the angle frame 32 are disposed, and includes two sets of four support columns 61 and four support columns aligned in the Y-axis direction. And a columnar support member 62 that spans 61. That is, the pair of support stands 33 includes four sets of eight support columns 61 and two columnar support members 62. The two sets of support columns 61 of each support stand 33 have different lengths. And so that two sets of four columns 61 are at the same height, one set of shorter columns is erected on the overhanging portion 31a of the stone surface plate 31, and one set of longer columns is a common frame 21 is erected.

  The columnar support member 62 is composed of two blocks 63a and 63b having the same end surface. Both blocks 63a and 63b are made of stone. The block 63a is installed between two struts 61a erected on the stone surface plate 31 so as to be parallel to the Y-axis direction. Similarly, the block 63b is constructed such that two columns 61b erected on the common platform 21 are parallel to the Y-axis direction. That is, the stand 34a is configured by the two columns 61a and the block 63a, and the stand 34b is configured by the two columns 61b and the block 63b. Both the blocks 63a and 63b are connected in a state where the end faces are in contact with each other with respect to the Y-axis direction, and are fixed on the support columns 61a and 61b. And the columnar support member 62 is comprised by the block 63a * b arranged in parallel by the Y-axis direction. Note that a height adjustment plate 66 may be interposed between each column 61 and the columnar support member 62 to adjust the height of the columnar support member 62 (the upper end surface thereof) (see FIG. 5).

  Next, each means of the apparatus main body 22 will be described. As shown in FIG. 6, the head unit 41 is composed of a plurality (seven) of divided head units 71 arranged in alignment in the Y-axis direction. As shown in FIGS. 5, 6, and 8, each divided head unit 71 includes 12 functional liquid droplet ejection heads 72, a head plate 73 that supports the 12 functional liquid droplet ejection heads 72, and each function. Twelve head holding members 74 for fixing the droplet discharge head 72 to the head plate 73 and a carriage 75 supported by the head moving means 43 and supporting the head plate 73 are provided.

  That is, the carriage 75 and the head plate 73 supported by the carriage 75 constitute a carriage unit. The carriage unit is suspended from a bridge plate 141 (described later) of the head moving unit 43, and the seven carriage units can be individually moved with respect to the Y-axis direction (one direction) by the head moving unit 43. It is configured.

  As shown in FIG. 7, the functional liquid droplet ejection head 72 has a so-called double structure, a functional liquid introduction part 81 having two connection needles 82, and a dual head substrate that is continuous with the functional liquid introduction part 81. 83, and a head main body 84 that is connected to the lower side of the functional liquid introducing portion 81 and has an in-head flow path filled with the functional liquid therein. The connecting needle 82 is connected to a functional liquid tank 201 (described later) that is not shown, and supplies the functional liquid to the flow path in the head of the functional liquid droplet ejection head 72. The head main body 84 includes a cavity 85 (piezoelectric element) and a nozzle plate 86 having a nozzle surface 87 with an ejection nozzle 88 opened. On the nozzle surface 87, two nozzle rows each including a large number (180) of discharge nozzles 88 are formed. When the functional droplet discharge head 72 is driven to discharge, the functional droplet is discharged from the discharge nozzle 88 by the pump action of the cavity 85.

  As shown in FIGS. 6 and 8, the head plate 73 is formed of a thick plate having a substantially parallelogram shape in plan view and made of stainless steel or the like. Twelve functional liquid droplet ejection heads 72 are positioned on the head plate 73, and 12 mounting openings (not shown) for fixing the respective functional liquid droplet ejection heads 72 from the back side through the head holding member 74. ) Is formed. The twelve mounting openings formed in each head plate 73 are arranged in a row in a state of being displaced in the X-axis direction and the Y-axis direction. Thereby, each functional liquid droplet ejection head 72 is fixed so that the nozzle row is parallel to the Y-axis direction, and the 12 functional liquid droplet ejection heads 72 constitute a single liquid droplet ejection head group. Then, with respect to the head plate 73, the nozzle rows are arranged stepwise so that a part of the nozzle row overlaps (in the Y axis direction). That is, one divided drawing line (partial drawing line) is configured by the nozzle row (discharge nozzle 88) of the droplet discharge head group (12 functional droplet discharge heads 72) mounted on each divided head unit 71. Is done.

  As shown in FIG. 5, the carriage 75 is attached to the carriage main body 91 that detachably supports the head plate 73 and the upper surface of the carriage main body 91, and θ for correcting the position in the θ direction (the head plate 73). The carriage main body 91 is suspended through the rotation mechanism 92 and the θ rotation mechanism 92, and the appearance “I” -shaped suspension member 93 fixed and supported by the head moving means 43 is provided.

  Although not shown, the carriage body 91 is provided with a positioning mechanism for positioning the head plate 73. As a result, in the head unit 41, the seven divided head units 71 are aligned in the Y-axis direction (see FIG. 6). That is, in the Y-axis direction, each functional liquid droplet ejection head 72 of each divided head unit 71 is arranged so as to be aligned with the other six functional liquid droplet ejection heads 72 in the corresponding positional relationship (same arrangement position). Is done. In other words, when the head plate 73 is positioned, the functional liquid droplet ejection head rows composed of the seven functional liquid droplet ejection heads 72 having the corresponding positional relationship are arranged in 12 rows, They are arranged in a state of being displaced in the axial direction.

  When the seven divided head units 71 are arranged and arranged, the seven divided drawing lines of each divided head unit 71 are continuous in the Y-axis direction to form one drawing line corresponding to the drawing width of the workpiece W. Each head plate 73 is supported in a positioned state. That is, the divided drawing lines are obtained by dividing one drawing line into seven and arranging the divided drawing lines in each divided head unit 71. When the seven divided head units 71 are aligned, the head plate 73 is aligned, One drawing line composed of one divided drawing line (12 × 7 nozzle rows of the functional liquid droplet ejection head 72) is formed. One drawing line is set corresponding to the length of the long side of the workpiece W so as to be able to correspond to the vertical and horizontal placement of the workpiece W, and is 1800 mm. The head unit 41 (all divided head units 71) faces the drawing area 51, and the position where one drawing line is formed is the drawing home position of the head unit 41, and the drawing process of the workpiece W is performed at this position. Done.

  If the nozzle rows (discharge nozzles 88) of the respective functional liquid droplet discharge heads 72 mounted on the head plate 73 can continuously form divided drawing lines in the Y-axis direction, the functions in the head plate 73 are achieved. The arrangement method of the droplet discharge head 72 can be arbitrarily set. In this embodiment, twelve functional liquid droplet ejection heads 72 are arranged on the head plate 73 so that a part of the nozzle rows overlaps in the Y-axis direction. Twelve functional liquid droplet ejection heads 72 may be arranged so that one drawing line is constituted by all the ejection nozzles 88 of the functional liquid droplet ejection head 72. Further, as shown in FIG. 9, it is also possible to arrange the twelve functional liquid droplet ejection heads 72 in two (in a plurality of rows). Thus, if the plurality of functional liquid droplet ejection heads 72 are divided and arranged in a plurality of rows, the width of the head plate 73 in the X-axis direction can be reduced. Similarly, if one drawing line can be formed, the arrangement of the divided head units 71 can be arbitrarily set. As a matter of course, the number of functional liquid droplet ejection heads 72 mounted on each divided head unit 71, the number of divided head units 71, and the like can be arbitrarily set according to the actual situation.

  2 to 5, the workpiece moving means 42 includes a set table 101 for setting the workpiece W, an X-axis air slider 102 for slidably supporting the set table 101 in the X-axis direction, and an X-axis direction. A pair of left and right X-axis linear motors 103 that extend and move the workpiece W in the X-axis direction via the set table 101, and a pair that are arranged in parallel to the X-axis linear motor 103 and guide the movement of the X-axis air slider 102 X-axis guide rails (not shown) and an X-axis linear scale 104 (not shown) for grasping the position of the set table 101 are provided.

  As shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, the set table 101 is obtained by stacking a suction table 112 for sucking and setting a work W on a θ table 111 supported by an X-axis air slider 102. The θ table 111 supports the θ fixing portion 121 (table base) fixed to the X-axis air slider 102 and the suction table 112, and is supported by the θ fixing portion 121 so as to be rotatable (in the θ axis direction). The rotating portion 122 (rotating table) is provided, and the θ position of the workpiece W is finely adjusted (corrected) by rotating the workpiece W in the θ-axis direction via the suction table 112. The θ fixing portion 121 supports a flushing unit 231 of maintenance means 46 described later.

  The suction table 112 is fixed to the table main body 131 for sucking and setting the work W, the three sets of table support members 132 for supporting the table main body 131, and the θ table 111. The table main body 131 is fixed via the table support member 132. And a support base 133 to support. The table main body 131 is formed of a thick plate-shaped stone and is formed in a substantially square shape in plan view. One side of the table main body 131 is formed to be 1800 mm in accordance with the length of the long side of the work W, and the work W can be set in any orientation, either vertically or horizontally. As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, a plurality of suction grooves 134 for sucking the workpiece W are formed on the surface of the table main body 131. Each suction groove 134 is formed with a suction hole (not shown) connected to the above air suction means so that a sufficient suction force can be applied to the workpiece W via the suction groove 134. It has become.

  The three sets of table support members 132 support the table body 131 at three points so that the rotation axis (θ axis) of the θ table 111 and the center of gravity of the table body 131 coincide. Although details will be described later, the suction table 112 incorporates a lift-up mechanism 161 and a pre-alignment mechanism 171 of the workpiece discharge means 44. The support base 133 is provided with the main parts of the lift-up mechanism 161 and the pre-alignment mechanism 171, and the table main body 131 is used for passing a plurality of lift-up pins 162 of the lift-up mechanism 161. The through holes 135 are formed in alignment.

  The X-axis linear motor 103, the pair of X-axis guide rails, and the X-axis linear scale 104 are directly placed on the stone surface plate 31 described above. When the pair of X-axis linear motors 103 are driven (synchronized), the X-axis air slider 102 is moved in the X-axis direction while using the pair of X-axis guide rails as guides, and the workpiece W set on the set table 101 is moved. Move in the X-axis direction. In addition, an X-axis linear scale 104 is provided between the pair of X-axis guide rails, and the discharge timing of the functional liquid droplet discharge head 72 is measured based on the X-axis linear scale 104. Note that the pair of X-axis linear motors 103, the pair of X-axis guide rails, and the X-axis linear scale 104 are accommodated in a pair of X-axis accommodation boxes 105.

  As shown in FIGS. 2 to 5, the head moving unit 43 bridges the drawing area 51 and the maintenance area 52 and moves the head unit 41 between the drawing area 51 and the maintenance area 52. The head moving means 43 includes seven bridge plates 141 that support the above-described seven divided head units 71 one by one, and seven sets that support the seven bridge plates 141 with both ends so that the seven bridge plates 141 are aligned in the Y-axis direction. Y-axis slider 142, a pair of Y-axis linear motors 143 extending in the Y-axis direction and moving seven bridge plates 141 in the Y-axis direction via seven sets of Y-axis sliders 142, and in the Y-axis direction A pair of Y-axis guide rails 144 (LM guides) that extend and guide the movement of the seven bridge plates 141, and Y that detects the movement position of the head unit 41 (functional liquid droplet ejection head 72) via the carriage 75 An axis linear scale 146 (not shown).

  As shown in FIG. 5, the bridge plate 141 is formed with an insertion opening (not shown) for positioning the carriage 75, and the bridge plate 141 allows the carriage 75 (the suspension member 93) to pass through the insertion opening, This is fixed. On each bridge plate 141, a head electrical unit 145 for driving the functional liquid droplet ejection head 72 of the corresponding divided head unit 71 is mounted (see FIGS. 2 and 3). The seven head electrical units 145 are arranged in a staggered manner so that the head electrical units 145 of the adjacent bridge plates do not interfere with each other, so that the bridge plates 141 can be efficiently disposed.

  The pair of Y-axis linear motors 143 and the pair of Y-axis guide rails 144 are directly installed one by one on the columnar support members 62 of the pair of support stands 33 described above. The Y-axis linear scale 146 is directly disposed on one of the pair of columnar support members 62. In the head moving means 43 of the present embodiment, a pair of Y-axis linear motors 143 are driven, and seven sets of Y-axis sliders 142 are simultaneously moved in the Y-axis direction, thereby forming a head unit composed of seven divided head units 71. 41 can be moved in the Y-axis direction (with one drawing line formed). On the other hand, by selectively driving the pair of Y-axis linear motors 143, the seven sets of Y-axis sliders 142 can be moved independently, and each divided head unit 71 can be moved individually in the Y-axis direction. It is like that.

  As shown in FIG. 5, each columnar support member 62 has a pair of brackets 151 fixed outward on its side surfaces, and a Y-axis accommodation box 152 is supported by the pair of brackets 151. . That is, a pair of Y-axis accommodation boxes 152 are arranged alongside the pair of columnar support members 62. The pair of Y-axis accommodation boxes 152 correspond to the seven divided head units 71 that can be independently moved, and the tubes and cables connected to the divided head units 71 (head electrical unit 145) are connected to the divided head units 71, respectively. Seven Y-axis cable carriers 153 (cable bear: registered trademark) accommodated so as to be able to follow the movement of the two are accommodated in half. In this case, it is preferable that the seven Y-axis cable carriers 153 are divided into two (four and three) corresponding to the seven head electrical units 145 arranged in half.

  Here, a series of drawing processes will be described. Prior to the drawing process, first, the head moving means 43 is driven to move the head unit 41 to the drawing area 51 (drawing home position). On the other hand, an unprocessed work W is introduced into the set table 101 located in the work carry-in / out area 53 using the work carry-in / out apparatus 4. When the workpiece W is set on the set table 101, the workpiece moving means 42 is driven to move the workpiece W forward in the main scanning (X-axis) direction. In synchronism with the forward movement of the workpiece W, the functional liquid droplet ejection head 72 is selectively driven, and the functional fluid is selectively ejected (drawing process) onto the workpiece W.

  As described above, since one drawing line of the head unit 41 is formed in accordance with the length of the long side of the workpiece W, regardless of whether the workpiece W is placed vertically or horizontally, The drawing process for one workpiece W can be completed. After the forward movement of the workpiece W, the workpiece moving means 42 is continuously driven to move the workpiece W backward and move the drawing workpiece W to the workpiece carry-in / out area 53. Then, the processed work W is collected from the set table 101 by the work carry-in / out device 4.

  In the present embodiment, the workpiece W is directly moved with respect to the head unit 41. However, the head unit 41 may be moved with respect to the fixed workpiece W. Further, not only when the workpiece W is moving forward, but also when the workpiece W is moving backward, the ejection of the functional liquid droplet ejection head 72 may be performed, and the drawing process may be completed by one reciprocating motion. Furthermore, it is possible to perform the drawing process using the head unit 41 in which one drawing line is configured to be shorter than one side (drawing width) of the work W. In this case, drawing processing is performed by alternately performing main scanning for drawing one drawing line while moving the work W and sub-scanning for moving the head unit 41 in the Y-axis direction by one drawing line after the main scanning. Can be done.

  As described above, the X-axis linear motor 103, the X-axis guide rail, and the X-axis linear scale 104 of the work moving means 42 are directly supported on the stone surface plate 31. The Y-axis linear motor 143, the Y-axis guide rail 144, and the Y-axis linear scale 146 of the head moving unit 43 are directly supported by a columnar support member 62 made of stone. Thus, the work W and the head unit 41 can be moved with high accuracy by installing the main parts of the head moving means 43 and the work moving means 42 on a stone material that is easy to obtain flatness and has a low coefficient of thermal expansion. The drawing process can be performed on the workpiece W with high accuracy.

  Next, the workpiece discharge means 44 will be described. The workpiece discharge means 44 is for setting (introducing) the unprocessed workpiece W loaded into the workpiece loading / unloading area 53 into the set table 101 and collecting the processed workpiece W from the set table 101. , A lift-up mechanism 161, a pre-alignment mechanism 171, and a static elimination means 181.

  As shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, the lift-up mechanism 161 is arranged in alignment in the X-axis direction and the Y-axis direction, and a plurality of lift-ups that appear and disappear from through-holes 135 formed in the suction table 112 (table body 131). A pin 162 is provided. When placing an unprocessed workpiece W on the set table 101, the lift-up pins 162 are projected from the suction table 112, and the workpiece W is removed from the robot arm 15 of the workpiece loading / unloading device 4 described above. After receiving, the lift-up pin 162 is immersed in the suction table 112. On the other hand, when the workpiece W is collected from the suction table 112, the lift-up pin 162 immersed in the suction table 112 is raised to lift up (separate) the workpiece W from the suction table 112. The robot arm 15 faces the lifted workpiece W from below, and the workpiece W is collected from the suction table 112.

  As shown in FIGS. 2 to 5, the pre-alignment mechanism 171 positions (pre-aligns) the unprocessed workpiece W placed on the suction table 112 by the lift-up mechanism 161 with respect to the table body 131. Yes, an X-axis positioning unit 172 that positions the workpiece W in the front-rear direction (X-axis direction) by sandwiching the front and rear ends of the workpiece W with a pair of X clamping members (not shown), and two sets of Y clamping members ( And a Y-axis positioning unit 174 that positions the workpiece W in the left-right direction (Y-axis direction) by sandwiching the left and right ends of the workpiece W.

  The static elimination means 181 removes static electricity peeled off and charged on the back surface of the workpiece W by irradiating with soft X-rays, and is composed of, for example, an ionizer. The static elimination means 181 is arranged facing the workpiece carry-in / out area 53, and faces the workpiece W to be moved from the robot arm 15 to the lift-up mechanism 161 and the workpiece W lifted up (separated) from the suction table 112 to improve efficiency. Thus, static electricity of the workpiece W can be removed.

  Next, the functional liquid supply unit 45 will be described. The functional liquid supply means 45 includes seven functional liquid supply units 190 corresponding to the seven divided head units 71, and each functional liquid supply unit 190 supplies the functional liquid to the corresponding divided head unit 71 ( 2 and 3). Each functional liquid supply unit 190 is connected to a tank unit 191 having a plurality (12) of functional liquid tanks 201 for storing functional liquid, and a plurality (12) of each functional liquid tank 201 and each functional liquid droplet ejection head 72. ) And a valve unit 192 having a plurality of (twelve) pressure regulating valves 211 interposed between the plurality of functional liquid supply tubes 193.

  As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the tank unit 191 is installed on the bridge plate 141 so as to face the head electrical unit 145 across the insertion opening. The twelve functional liquid tanks 201 provided in the tank unit 191 are respectively connected to twelve functional liquid droplet ejection heads 72 mounted on the divided head unit 71 (through twelve functional liquid supply tubes 193). The The functional liquid tank 201 is a cartridge type in which a functional liquid pack 206 in which functional liquid is vacuum-packed is housed in a resin cartridge case 205, and the functional liquid degassed in advance is contained in the functional liquid pack. It is stored (see FIG. 10).

  As shown in FIG. 6, the valve unit 192 includes twelve pressure adjusting valves 211 and twelve valve fixing members 212 that fix the twelve pressure adjusting valves 211 to the head plate 73 described above. Yes. As shown in FIG. 10, the pressure regulating valve 211 communicates the primary chamber 221 connected to the functional liquid tank 201, the secondary chamber 222 connected to the functional liquid droplet ejection head 72, the primary chamber 221 and the secondary chamber 222. The communication channel 223 is formed in the valve housing 224. A diaphragm 225 is provided on one surface of the secondary chamber 222 so as to face the outside, and a valve body 226 that is opened and closed by the diaphragm 225 is provided in the communication channel 223. The functional liquid introduced from the functional liquid tank 201 into the primary chamber 221 is supplied to the functional liquid droplet ejection head 72 via the secondary chamber 222. At this time, a predetermined adjustment reference pressure (here, atmospheric pressure) is supplied. Accordingly, the diaphragm 225 is displaced. Thereby, the valve body 226 provided in the communication flow path 223 is opened and closed, and the pressure in the secondary chamber 222 is adjusted so that the functional fluid pressure in the secondary chamber 222 becomes slightly negative.

  By interposing such a pressure adjusting valve 211 between the functional liquid tank 201 and the functional liquid droplet ejection head 72, the function of the functional liquid droplet ejection head 72 is not affected by the water head of the functional liquid tank 201. 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 72 (nozzle surface 87) and the position of the pressure adjustment valve 211 (center of the diaphragm 225). By setting the value, the supply pressure of the functional liquid can be maintained at a predetermined pressure. The primary chamber 221 and the secondary chamber 222 are cut off when the valve body 226 is closed, and the pressure regulating valve 211 is a damper function that absorbs pulsation and the like generated on the functional liquid tank side (primary side). have.

  As shown in FIG. 6, the twelve valve fixing members 212 follow the functional liquid droplet ejection head 72 of the divided head unit 71 that is displaced in the Y-axis direction and are displaced in the Y-axis direction on the head plate 73. It is arranged. Thus, by arranging the pressure adjustment valve 211 following the arrangement of the functional liquid droplet ejection head 72, the length of the functional liquid supply tube 193 between the functional liquid droplet ejection head 72 and the pressure adjustment valve 211 is made constant. The functional liquid having substantially the same supply pressure can be supplied to each functional liquid droplet ejection head 72.

  In the present embodiment, the tank unit 191 is disposed on the bridge plate 141, but may be mounted on the head plate 73. In this case, the length of the functional liquid supply tube 193 (functional liquid flow path) from the functional liquid tank 201 to the functional liquid droplet ejection head 72 can be shortened, and the functional liquid can be used efficiently. Further, the installation position of the valve unit 192 is not limited to the position on the head plate 73, and can be provided on the bridge plate 141 according to the actual situation.

  Next, the maintenance means 46 will be described. The maintenance means 46 is mainly intended for maintenance of the functional liquid droplet ejection head 72, and includes a flushing unit 231, a suction unit 232, a wiping unit 233, and a unit lifting mechanism 235. As shown in FIG. 5, the flushing unit 231 is juxtaposed with the set table 101. The suction unit 232, the wiping unit 233, and the unit lifting mechanism 235 are supported by the angle mount 32 (see FIGS. 2 to 4, 11, and 12).

  In addition to the above units, the maintenance means 46 includes a discharge inspection unit that inspects the flight state of the functional liquid droplets discharged from the functional liquid droplet discharge head 72, and a functional liquid discharged from the functional liquid droplet discharge head 72. It is preferable to provide a weight measuring unit or the like for measuring the weight of the droplet.

  The flushing unit 231 is for receiving the functional liquid ejected by the flushing operation, that is, preliminary ejection (disposal ejection) of the functional liquid droplet ejection head 72, and in particular, ejection performed immediately before the functional liquid is ejected to the workpiece W. For pre-flushing. As shown in FIG. 5, the flushing unit 231 is disposed along the set table 101 and is fixed to the flushing box 241 that receives the functional liquid and the θ fixing portion 121 of the θ table 111 described above, and supports the flushing box 241. And a box support member 242 to be configured.

  The flushing box 241 is formed in a rectangular box shape in plan view, and an absorbent material (not shown) that absorbs the functional liquid is laid on the bottom surface thereof. The short side of the flushing box 241 is formed corresponding to the length of the head unit 41 in the X-axis direction, and the long side of the flushing box 241 is the length of one side of the table body 131 (the length of one drawing line). It is formed to match. That is, the flushing box 241 is configured to include the head unit 41 and configured to receive the flushed functional liquid from the all-function liquid droplet ejection head 72 mounted on the head unit 41 at a time. Yes.

  The box support member 242 supports the flushing box 241 along a side of the set table 101 (suction table 112) that is orthogonal to the X-axis and is located on the opposite side (rear in the drawing) to the workpiece loading / unloading area 53 described above. ing. That is, since the flushing box 241 is disposed along the side of the suction table 112 that is on the tip side when the workpiece moves forward, the head unit 41 moves forward when the workpiece W moves forward in the X-axis direction. Will face the workpiece W after facing the flushing unit 231. Therefore, it is not necessary to move the head unit 41 only for pre-discharge flushing, and pre-discharge flushing can be performed immediately before facing the workpiece W. Further, when the workpiece W is introduced / recovered with respect to the set table 101, the flushing box 241 is located on the rear side of the workpiece carry-in / out area 53, and therefore does not interfere with the introduction / recovery of the workpiece W. . When the set table 101 faces the work carry-in / out area 53, the flushing box 241 is supported so as to face the drawing area 51, and is positioned directly below the head unit 41 (see FIG. 5 and the like).

  Further, the box support member 242 supports the flushing box 241 so that the upper end surface of the flushing box 241 is substantially flush with the surface of the workpiece W set on the suction table 112. In this way, by supporting the flushing box 241 substantially flush with the suction table 112, the flushing box 241 does not interfere with the head unit 41, and the functional liquid discharged by the flushing is efficiently received by the flushing box. Be able to.

  As described above, the present embodiment has a configuration in which the functional liquid droplet ejection head 72 is driven to eject only when the work W is moved forward. However, when the functional liquid droplet ejection head 72 is ejected even when the work W is moved backward, Preferably, a pair of flushing boxes are provided, and these are arranged along two sides of the set table 101 perpendicular to the X axis. As a result, flushing can be performed immediately before the ejection drive accompanying the reciprocating motion of the workpiece W.

  In addition to the pre-discharge flushing described above, the flushing operation includes regular flushing that is performed when drawing on the workpiece W is temporarily stopped, such as when the workpiece W is replaced. In this embodiment, the regular flushing operation is performed. The functional liquid ejected by is received by a suction unit 232 described later.

  The suction unit 232 sucks the functional liquid droplet ejection head 72 and forcibly discharges the functional liquid from the functional liquid droplet ejection head 72. The suction of the functional liquid droplet ejection head 72 by the suction unit 232 is performed in order to eliminate / prevent nozzle clogging of the functional liquid droplet ejection head 72, and when the liquid droplet ejection device 3 is newly installed, or the functional liquid droplet ejection head This is performed to fill the functional liquid into the functional liquid flow path from the functional liquid tank 201 to the functional liquid droplet ejection head 72 when the head 72 is replaced.

  As shown in FIGS. 2 to 4, 11, and 12, the suction unit 232 is disposed adjacent to the wiping unit 233 in the Y-axis direction and faces the maintenance area 52. The suction unit 232 is configured to correspond to the seven divided head units 71 constituting the head unit 41. That is, the suction unit 232 includes seven divided suction units 251 that perform suction in units of the divided head unit 71. The seven divided suction units 251 are arranged in an aligned manner in the Y-axis direction following the arrangement of the seven divided head units 71 constituting the head unit 41.

  As shown in FIG. 13 and FIG. 14, the seven divided suction units 251 are supported by the above-described lifting mechanism 351 (described later) of the unit lifting mechanism 235 so as to be individually liftable. As shown in these drawings, each of the divided suction units 251 faces the divided head unit 71 from below and has a cap unit 252 having a cap 261 that is in close contact with the nozzle surface 87 of the functional liquid droplet ejection head 72, and a cap. Cap support member 253 that supports unit 252, cap lift mechanism 254 that is incorporated in cap support member 253 and moves cap unit 252 up and down via cap support member 253, and functional liquid droplet discharge through closely-attached cap 261 And suction means (not shown) for applying a suction force to the head 72.

  As shown in FIGS. 13 and 14, the cap unit 252 has twelve caps 261 arranged on the cap base 262 in correspondence with the functional liquid droplet ejection heads 72 mounted on the divided head unit 71. is there. That is, 12 × 7 (84) caps 261 are arranged in the suction unit 232 in accordance with the arrangement pattern of the functional liquid droplet ejection heads 72 in the head unit 41, and all the functional liquid droplets in the head unit 41 are arranged. The corresponding cap 261 can be brought into close contact with the ejection head 72. Although not shown in the drawings, each cap 261 is provided with an air release valve. By opening the air release valve at the final stage of the suction operation, the functional liquid remaining in the cap 261 can be sucked. It has become.

  As shown in FIGS. 13 and 14, the cap support member 253 includes a cap support plate 265 that supports the cap unit 252, a cap stand 266 that slidably supports the cap support plate 265 in the vertical direction, and a cap stand 266. And a cap support base 267 for supporting. A pair of air cylinders 268 for opening and closing an air release valve (not shown) of the cap 261 is fixed to the lower surface of the cap support plate 265.

  As shown in FIG. 14, the cap lifting mechanism 254 is disposed on the upper side of the cap stand 266, and a first lifting cylinder 271 that supports the cap unit 252 to be lifted and lowered via a cap support plate 265, and the cap stand 266. And a second elevating cylinder 272 that supports the cap unit 252 through the first elevating cylinder 271 so as to be movable up and down. The first elevating cylinder 271 and the second elevating cylinder 272 are composed of air cylinders having different strokes, and the stroke of the second elevating cylinder 272 is configured to be longer than the stroke of the first elevating cylinder 271. Then, by selectively driving the first and second elevating cylinders 271 and 272, the raised position of the cap unit 252 is changed from the first position where the cap 261 comes into close contact with the functional liquid droplet ejection head 72 and the first position. Is switched to one of the second position slightly lower (about 2 to 3 mm). Specifically, when the first elevating cylinder 271 is driven, the cap unit 252 can be moved from a predetermined lower end position to the first position, and when the second elevating cylinder 272 is driven, the cap unit 252 is moved to the second position. It can be moved to a position.

  The suction means includes a single ejector that applies a suction force to the twelve functional liquid droplet ejection heads 72 of the divided head unit 71, and a suction tube that connects the twelve caps 261 and the ejector. (All are not shown). The ejector is connected to the above air supply means via an air supply tube (not shown). One suction tube connected to the ejector branches into a plurality of (12) branch suction tubes (not shown) via a header pipe (not shown) and is connected to each cap 261. The suction tube is provided with a reuse tank (described later) of the liquid supply / recovery means, and the functional liquid sucked by the ejector is stored in the reuse tank. Although omitted in the figure, in the vicinity of the cap 261 of each branch suction tube, in the order from the cap 261 side, a liquid sensor 276 that detects the presence or absence of functional liquid, and a pressure sensor that detects the pressure in each branch suction tube 277 (both refer to FIG. 18) and suction valves for opening and closing each branch suction tube are provided.

  The suction operation of the divided suction unit 251 will be described. Prior to the suction operation, the head moving means 43 is driven to move the head unit 41 to the maintenance area 52 and to make one of the divided head units 71 face the divided suction unit 251. Subsequently, the cap lifting mechanism 254 is driven to move the cap unit 252 to the first position. As a result, the corresponding cap 261 comes into close contact with the all-function liquid droplet ejection head 72 of the divided head unit 71 facing the divided suction unit 251. Next, compressed air is supplied from the air supply means to the ejector, and the functional liquid droplet ejection head 72 is sucked through the cap 261. When a certain amount of functional liquid is sucked from each functional droplet discharge head 72, the supply of compressed air to the ejector is stopped. When the suction of the functional liquid droplet ejection head 72 is completed, the cap lifting mechanism 254 is driven to move the cap unit 252 to the lowered end position, and the cap 261 is separated from the functional liquid droplet ejection head 72.

  During the suction of the functional liquid, the suction operation is monitored based on the detection signals of the liquid sensor 276 and the pressure sensor 277 so that a suction failure of each cap 261 can be detected. Further, by opening and closing the suction valve based on the detection results of the liquid sensor 276 and the pressure sensor 277, the amount of functional liquid sucked from each functional liquid droplet ejection head 72 can be made substantially constant, It is possible to prevent the functional liquid from being excessively sucked by the suction operation.

  The suction unit 232 is configured not only to be used for the suction of the functional liquid droplet ejection head 72 as described above but also to receive a functional liquid for periodic flushing. That is, each cap 261 of the suction unit 232 also serves as a flushing box, and the functional liquid ejected by each functional liquid droplet ejection head 72 during regular flushing is received by the corresponding cap 261. In this case, the cap lifting mechanism 254 is driven to raise the cap unit 252 to the second position. As a result, the cap 261 is supported in a state of being slightly spaced (2 to 3 mm) from the nozzle surface 87 of the functional liquid droplet ejection head 72, so that the functional liquid for periodic flushing can be efficiently received by the cap 261. ing.

  The suction unit 232 can also be used for storing the functional liquid droplet ejection head 72 during the non-drawing process of the liquid droplet ejection apparatus 3 or the like. In this case, after the head unit 41 faces the maintenance area 52, the cap lifting mechanism 254 is driven to move the cap unit 252 to the first position. As a result, the cap 261 is brought into close contact with the nozzle surface 87 of the functional liquid droplet ejection head 72, the nozzle surface 87 is sealed (capped), and the functional liquid droplet ejection head 72 (ejection nozzle 88) is prevented from drying.

  Next, the wiping unit 233 will be described. The wiping unit 233 uses the wiping sheet 281 to wipe (wipe) the nozzle surfaces 87 of the respective functional liquid droplet ejection heads 72 that are contaminated with the functional liquid by suction or the like of the functional liquid droplet ejection heads 72. is there. As shown in FIGS. 2 to 4, 11, and 12, the wiping unit 233 is arranged between the drawing area 51 and the suction unit 232 of the unit lifting mechanism 235, that is, on the drawing area 51 side of the maintenance area 52. Has been. With such an arrangement, the wiping unit 233 can finish the suction process and sequentially face the head unit 41 (divided head unit 71) moving to the drawing area 51, and can perform the wiping process on the functional liquid droplet ejection head 72. It is like that.

  As shown in FIGS. 15 and 16, the wiping unit 233 includes a unit main body 282 in which main parts are disposed, and a lateral movement mechanism 283 that supports the unit main body 282 slidably in the X-axis direction. . The unit main body 282 faces the sheet supply unit 291 that winds and winds the wiping sheet 281 wound in a roll shape from the lower side of the functional liquid droplet ejection head 72, and wipes the nozzle surface 87 with the wiping sheet 281. The cleaning liquid supply unit 293 for spraying the cleaning liquid onto the wiping sheet 281 that has been fed out, and the wiping frame 294 that supports them. The cleaning liquid supplied to the wiping sheet 281 is a solvent having a relatively high volatility, and the functional liquid adhering to the nozzle surface 87 of the functional liquid droplet ejection head 72 can be efficiently removed. Yes.

  The wiping frame 294 includes a rectangular wiping base 301 and a pair of side frames 302 erected on the wiping base 301 so as to be parallel to the X-axis direction. A sheet supply unit 291 is disposed on the left side (drawing region side) of the pair of side frames 302, and a wiping unit 292 is disposed on the right side (suction unit 232 side). The cleaning liquid supply unit 293 is supported on the side frame 302 so as to face the wiping sheet 281 fed from the sheet supply unit 291 to the wiping unit 292.

  As shown in FIGS. 15 and 16, the sheet supply unit 291 is loaded with a roll-shaped wiping sheet 281, and feeds the wiping sheet 281 (in its extending direction) to the upper drawing reel 311, and the wiping fed out. A lower take-up reel 312 that winds up the sheet 281, a take-up motor 313 that takes up and rotates the take-up reel 312, a power transmission mechanism 314 that transmits the power of the take-up motor 313 to the take-up reel 312, An intermediate roller 315 for feeding the wiping sheet 281 from the supply reel 311 to the wiping unit 292.

  A torque limiter 316 that brakes and rotates against the take-up motor 313 is provided at one of the shaft ends of the supply reel 311 located outside the side frame 302, and a constant tension is applied to the supplied wiping sheet 281. Can be granted. The winding motor 313 is a geared motor and is fixed to the side frame 302. The power transmission mechanism 314 includes a drive pulley 317 fixed to the output end of the take-up motor 313, a driven pulley 318 fixed to the shaft end of the take-up reel 312, and a timing belt 319 spanned between the pulleys 317 and 318. ,have. When the take-up motor 313 is driven, the timing belt 319 travels through its own reduction gear train, and power is transmitted to the take-up reel 312. A speed detector 320 (see FIG. 18) is provided at the shaft end of the intermediate roller 315 to detect the feed speed of the wiping sheet 281. The supply reel 311, the take-up reel 312, and the intermediate roller 315 are both supported by the side frame 302 and rotatably supported so that the axes thereof are parallel to the X-axis direction that is the width direction of the wiping sheet 281. Has been. That is, the wiping sheet 281 is fed out in a direction orthogonal to the width direction (X-axis direction) of the wiping sheet 281.

  As shown in FIGS. 15 and 16, the wiping unit 292 has an axial length corresponding to the width of the wiping sheet 281, and abuts the wiping sheet 281 on the nozzle surface 87 of the functional liquid droplet ejection head 72. A wiping roller 321 to be supported, a pair of bearing members 322 that support the wiping roller 321 with both ends, a roller lifting mechanism 323 that lifts and lowers the wiping roller 321 via the pair of bearing members 322, and supports these. And a pair of “L” -shaped bearing frames 324 fixed to the side frames 302. The wiping sheet 281 fed out from the feeding reel 311 passes through the intermediate roller 315, rotates around the wiping roller 321, and is taken up by the take-up reel 312.

  The wiping roller 321 is a free rotating roller, and is rotatably supported by the pair of bearing members 322 in a state where the axis line coincides with the X-axis direction. That is, the wiping roller 321 is supported so as to be orthogonal to the nozzle row of the functional liquid droplet ejection head 72 mounted on the head unit 41, and wipes the nozzle surface 87 in the nozzle row direction (with vertical wiping). It is like that. In this case, in order to prevent the nozzle surface 87 of the functional liquid droplet ejection head 72 from being damaged, it is preferable that the wiping roller 321 is made of rubber having flexibility and elasticity. The roller elevating mechanism 323 has a pair of roller elevating cylinders 325 (air cylinders) fixed on the pair of side frames 302, and supports the pair of bearing members 322 so as to be movable up and down. That is, when the roller raising / lowering cylinder 325 is driven, the wiping roller 321 moves up and down to a predetermined wiping height position at which the wiping roller 321 can contact the nozzle surface 87 of the functional liquid droplet ejection head 72 of the head unit 41 via the bearing member 322. To do.

  As shown in FIGS. 15 and 16, the cleaning liquid supply unit 293 includes spray nozzles, spans a plurality of cleaning liquid nozzles 331 connected to a cleaning liquid tank to be described later, and a pair of side frames 302. And a nozzle support member 332 that supports 331. The nozzle support member 332 is provided between the intermediate roller 315 and the wiping roller 321 and is supported by the pair of side frames 302 so as to be parallel to the X-axis direction (the width direction of the wiping sheet 281). ing. The plurality of cleaning liquid nozzles 331 are arranged facing the wiping sheet 281 sent from the intermediate roller 315 to the wiping roller 321. In this case, it is preferable to arrange the plurality of cleaning liquid nozzles 331 evenly in the X-axis direction so that the cleaning liquid is sprayed evenly over the entire width of the wiping sheet 281. In this embodiment, a plurality of cleaning liquid nozzles 331 are provided to supply the cleaning liquid to the entire width of the wiping sheet 281, but a nozzle moving mechanism for moving the cleaning liquid nozzle 331 in the width direction of the wiping sheet 281 is provided. Accordingly, the cleaning liquid nozzle 331 can be configured as a single unit.

  The lateral movement mechanism 283 is for moving the entire wiping sheet 281 in the width direction (X-axis direction) via the unit main body 282. As described above, the functional liquid droplet ejection head 72 is attached to the head plate 73 via the head holding member 74, and there is a gap between the functional liquid droplet ejection heads 72 adjacent to each other in the X-axis direction orthogonal to the nozzle row. (See FIG. 8). Therefore, when the functional liquid droplet ejection head 72 is wiped along the nozzle row direction, the wiping sheet 281 is contaminated with stripes (see FIG. 17A). That is, a portion corresponding to the gap between the functional liquid droplet ejection heads 72 is not used for wiping, and only a part of the wiping sheet 281 is used for wiping. Therefore, a wiping position of the wiping sheet 281 with respect to the functional liquid droplet ejection head 72 is provided by providing a lateral movement mechanism 283 and moving the wiping sheet 281 once wiped and contaminated in stripes in the X-axis direction. Thus, the wiping sheet 281 in the gap portion described above can be used effectively (see FIG. 17B). The same effect can be obtained by providing a mechanism for moving the head unit 41 (divided head unit 71) in the X-axis direction instead of the lateral movement mechanism 283 and moving the head unit 41 with respect to the wiping sheet 281. Can do.

  As shown in FIGS. 15 and 16, the lateral movement mechanism 283 includes two sets of four horizontal movement sliders 343 and two sets of four horizontal movement sliders 343 that support the unit main body 282 so as to be slidable in the X-axis direction. A lateral movement ball screw 342 that moves in the X-axis direction, a lateral movement motor 341 that rotates the lateral movement ball screw 342 forward and reverse, and a pair of lateral movements that extend in the X-axis direction and guide the movement of the lateral movement slider 343 A guide 344 and a lateral movement base 345 that is fixed to and supports the unit elevating mechanism 235 (base plate 352) described above are provided. When the lateral movement motor 341 is driven, the lateral movement slider 343 moves in the X axis direction (forward / reverse) via the lateral movement ball screw 342, and the unit main body 282 moves in the X axis direction with respect to the lateral movement base 345. .

  In this embodiment, the gap between the functional liquid droplet ejection heads 72 adjacent to each other in the X-axis direction is about one short side of the functional liquid droplet ejection head 72 orthogonal to the nozzle row. The distance to be moved laterally is set to one short side of the functional liquid droplet ejection head 72. That is, a half pitch of the arrangement pitch of the functional liquid droplet ejection heads 72 in the X-axis direction is moved. However, this value can be changed according to the type of the functional liquid and the wiping sheet 281, the arrangement pitch of the functional liquid droplet ejection heads 72 in the X-axis direction, and the like. Note that the lateral movement mechanism 283 of the present embodiment slides the unit main body 282 by motor drive, but instead of motor drive, it may be an air drive type using a rodless cylinder or the like.

  Here, a series of operations of the wiping unit 233 will be described. First, the cleaning liquid supply unit 293 is driven to spray the cleaning liquid from the cleaning liquid nozzle 331 and supply the cleaning liquid to the wiping sheet 281. On the other hand, the roller lifting cylinder 325 is driven to raise the wiping roller 321 to the wiping height position. Next, the winding motor 313 is driven, and the wiping sheet 281 impregnated with the cleaning liquid is sent to the wiping roller 321. When the wiping sheet 281 impregnated with the cleaning liquid is sent to the wiping roller 321, the driving of the winding motor 313 is stopped and the feeding of the wiping sheet 281 is stopped. Subsequently, the head moving means 43 is driven. Accordingly, the head unit 41 moves in the maintenance area 52 in a state where the nozzle surface 87 of the mounted functional liquid droplet ejection head 72 is in contact (pressed) with the wiping sheet 281 impregnated with the cleaning liquid. That is, the nozzle surface of the functional liquid droplet ejection head 72 slides on the wiping sheet 281, and the nozzle surface 87 of the functional liquid droplet ejection head 72 is wiped by the wiping sheet 281.

  Although details will be described later, in the present embodiment, wiping is performed in units of divided head units 71. By dividing the seven divided head units 71 one by one into the wiping unit 233 in order, the divided heads are arranged. The functional droplet discharge head 72 mounted on the unit 71 is continuously wiped. Therefore, in this wiping unit 233, after wiping a predetermined number of divided head units 71 with an unused wiping sheet 281, the lateral movement mechanism 283 is driven to move the wiping sheet 281 in the X-axis direction. Further, after a predetermined number of divided head units 71 are wiped, the winding motor 313 is driven to send the used wiping sheet 281.

  Next, the unit elevating mechanism 235 will be described. The maintenance area 52 described above is not only used for maintenance of the functional liquid droplet ejection head 72 but also for maintenance of the suction unit 232 and the wiping unit 233 and replacement of the head plate 73 mounted on the carriage 75 (head replacement). It also serves as a work area. Therefore, the unit elevating mechanism 235 lowers the suction unit 232 and the wiping unit 233 from a predetermined maintenance position (access position) for maintaining the functional liquid droplet ejection head 72 to a predetermined retracted position. A work area is secured on the wiping unit 233.

  As shown in FIGS. 11 and 12, the unit elevating mechanism 235 includes eight elevating mechanisms 351 that support any one of the seven divided suction units 251 and the wiping units 233 of the suction unit 232. Can be moved up and down independently between the maintenance position and the retracted position. As shown in FIGS. 13 to 16, the elevating mechanism 351 is a unit plate that is fixed to the base plate 352 spanning the angle pedestal 32 and fixed to the base plate 352, and supports the divided suction unit 251 or the wiping unit 233 so as to be movable up and down. A cylinder 353 (air cylinder) and a pair of unit elevating guides 354 for guiding the elevating movement of the divided suction unit 251 or the wiping unit 233 are provided.

  The unit elevating cylinder 353 passes through the base plate 352, the cylinder body is fixed at the center of the lower surface of the base plate 352, and the piston rod is fixed to the divided suction unit 251 or the wiping unit 233. The lifting stroke by the unit lifting cylinder 353 is set to 200 mm to 400 mm. The unit elevating guide 354 passes through the base plate 352 and has a pair of guide shafts 355 fixed at the upper end (guided) to the divided suction unit 251 or the wiping unit 233, and slidably engaged with the pair of guide shafts 355. , And a pair of flanged linear bushes 356 fixed to the base plate 352. The pair of guide shafts 355 are arranged symmetrically with the unit lifting cylinder 353 as the center so that the lifting and lowering of the divided suction unit 251 or the wiping unit 233 can be stably guided.

  Normally, the unit lifting mechanism 235 supports the suction unit 232 and the wiping unit 233 at the maintenance position, and lowers them to the retracted position only when the suction unit 232 and the wiping unit 233 and the head are replaced.

  The liquid supply / recovery means includes a waste liquid recovery system for recovering waste liquid from the flushing unit 231 of the maintenance means 46 in a waste liquid tank, and a functional liquid sucked by the suction unit 232 and a functional liquid discharged to the suction unit 232 to a reuse tank. The system includes a functional liquid recovery system to be recovered and a cleaning liquid supply system that has a cleaning liquid tank and supplies the cleaning liquid to the wiping unit 233 (both not shown). The apparatus main body 22 is provided with a tank cabinet for collectively storing a waste liquid tank for a waste liquid recovery system, a reuse tank for a functional liquid recovery system, and a cleaning liquid tank for a cleaning liquid supply system.

  Next, the main control system of the droplet discharge device 3 will be described with reference to FIG. As shown in the figure, the droplet discharge device 3 includes a drawing unit 361 having a head unit 41 (functional droplet discharge head 72) and a work moving unit 42, and a head moving unit 362 having a head moving unit 43. , A workpiece discharge unit 363 having a workpiece discharge unit 44, a maintenance unit 364 having a maintenance unit 46, a detection unit 365 having various sensors and performing various detections, a drive unit 366 for driving each unit, and each unit , And a control unit 367 (control device 5) that controls the entire droplet discharge device 3.

  The control unit 367 has an interface 371 for connecting each means, a storage area that can be temporarily stored, a RAM 372 that is used as a work area for control processing, and various storage areas. ROM 373 for storing control programs and control data, and hard disk 374 for storing drawing data for drawing on the workpiece W, various data from each means, and programs for processing various data A CPU 375 that performs arithmetic processing on various data according to programs stored in the ROM 373 and the hard disk 374 and a bus 276 that connects them to each other are provided.

  The control unit 367 inputs various data from each means through the interface 371 and causes the CPU 375 to perform arithmetic processing according to a program stored in the hard disk 374 (or sequentially read by a CD-ROM drive or the like). The entire apparatus is controlled by outputting the processing result to each means.

  With reference to FIGS. 19 to 21, the control of the droplet discharge device 3 will be described by taking as an example a case where maintenance of the head unit 41 is performed. For maintenance of the head unit 41, in order to maintain and recover the function of the mounted functional liquid droplet ejection head 72, periodic maintenance performed periodically when the workpiece W is replaced, and the head plate 73 of the divided head unit 71 are provided. Head replacement to be replaced, and here, after describing the control flow for regular maintenance, the control flow for head replacement will be described. For convenience of explanation, the seven divided head units 71 of the head unit 41 are referred to as first to seventh divided head units 71a to 71g from the left side in the drawing. Similarly, the seven divided suction units 251 of the suction unit 232 are also designated as first to seventh divided suction units 251a to 251g from the left side in the drawing.

  In the periodic maintenance, the all-function droplet discharge head 72 of the head unit 41 is sucked using the suction unit 232 and then wiped using the wiping unit 233. As shown in FIG. 19B, in the control flow for regular maintenance, first, the head moving means 43 is driven to move all seven divided head units 71 constituting the head unit 41 to the maintenance area 52. Are respectively exposed to the divided suction units 251. Next, the seven cap raising / lowering mechanisms 254 are driven to move the seven cap units 252 to the first position, and the corresponding cap 261 is brought into close contact with the all-function liquid droplet ejection head 72 of the head unit 41. Subsequently, compressed air is supplied to the ejectors of the all-divided suction unit 251 to suck the all-function liquid droplet ejection head 72 of the head unit 41.

  When the suction of all the functional liquid droplet ejection heads 72 is completed, the cap lifting mechanism 254 of the first divided suction unit 251a is driven to separate the cap 261 from the functional liquid droplet ejection head 72 of the first divided head unit 71a. Subsequently, the head moving means 43 is driven to move the first divided head unit 71a to the drawing area 51 side, and the wiping unit 233 is driven to drive the all-function liquid droplet ejection head 72 of the first divided head unit 71a. Wiping is performed. Meanwhile, the second to seventh divided head units 71b to 71g wait in a state where the mounted functional liquid droplet ejection head 72 is sealed (capped) by the cap 261 of the second to seventh divided suction units 251b to 251g. ing. Thereby, it is possible to prevent the standby functional liquid droplet ejection head 72 (the ejection nozzle 88) from being dried and clogged.

  When wiping with respect to the first divided head unit 71a is almost finished, the cap lifting mechanism 254 of the second divided suction unit 251b is driven to remove the cap 261 from the functional liquid droplet ejection head 72 of the second divided head unit 71b in standby. Separate. Then, when the wiping of the first divided head unit 71a is completed, the driving of the head moving unit 43 is controlled to move the first divided head unit 71a to the drawing area 51 and to drive the lateral movement mechanism 283 of the wiping unit 233. Then, the wiping sheet 281 is moved in the X-axis direction. Subsequently, the second divided head unit 71b is moved to the drawing area 51 side, and the second divided head unit 71b is wiped (see FIG. 19C).

  Immediately before the end of wiping of the second divided head unit 71b, the cap lifting mechanism 254 of the third divided suction unit 251c is driven to separate the cap 261 from the waiting third divided head unit 71c. When the wiping of the second divided head unit 71b is completed, the driving of the head moving unit 43 is controlled to move the second divided head unit 71b to the drawing area 51, and the sheet supply unit 291 (winding motor) of the wiping unit 233 is moved. 313) is driven to feed out the wiping sheet 281 and supply the unused wiping sheet 281 impregnated with the cleaning liquid to the wiping unit 292 (wiping roller 321).

  Then, the head moving means 43 is driven to perform wiping of the third divided head unit 71c. Thereafter, the same operation is repeated for the waiting fourth to seventh divided head units 71d to 71g, and wiping and movement to the drawing area 51 are performed by the fourth to seventh divided head units 71c to 71g. Done in order.

  On the other hand, until the wiping of all the divided head units 71 is completed, the functional liquid droplet ejection head 72 of the divided head unit 71 sent to the drawing area 51 (waiting) is periodically ejected at a predetermined interval. Driven to perform a flushing operation. At this time, the set table 101 faces the work carry-in / out area 53 for exchanging the work, and the divided head unit 71 waiting in the drawing area 51 performs flushing by facing directly above the flushing box 241.

  In the present embodiment, the divided head unit 71 before wiping is kept in a capped state, but is periodically flushed at predetermined intervals toward the cap 261 (while flushing inside the cap). It may be configured to wait for this. In this case, when the cap 261 is separated from the first divided head unit 71a, the cap lifting mechanism 254 of the second to seventh divided suction units 251b to 251g is driven, and the second to seventh divided suction units 251b to 251g are driven. The cap 261 is moved to the second position.

  However, when the standby time for wiping has little effect on the discharge performance of the functional liquid droplet discharge head 72, as in the case of using a functional liquid with extremely low volatility, capping or in-cap flushing during standby is performed. Is not necessary. In this case, since it is not necessary to perform capping or in-cap flushing while waiting for wiping, the suction unit 232 may be configured with less than seven divided suction units 251. In particular, when the frequency of regular maintenance is low, the reduction in the divided suction unit 251 has little influence on the overall tact time, and the suction unit 232 can be configured by a single divided suction unit 251. is there. On the other hand, when frequent periodic maintenance is performed, the waiting time for wiping affects the overall processing time. Therefore, a plurality of wiping units 233 may be provided to reduce this waiting time. .

  Further, as shown in FIG. 19, in the present embodiment, the divided head unit 71 before wiping does not move while waiting for wiping and remains in the position where the suction is performed, but the divided head performed first. Each time the wiping of the unit 71 is completed, the cap 71 may be sequentially moved to the adjacent divided suction unit 251 located on the drawing area 51 side (wiping unit 233 side).

  This will be specifically described with reference to FIG. As shown in FIG. 5A, when the first divided head unit 71a (facing the first divided suction unit 251) moves to the wiping unit 233, the second to seventh divided head units 71b to 71g are moved to the first to first divided head units 71b to 71b. Move to sixth divided suction units 251a-f. Then, as shown in FIG. 4B, when the wiping of the first divided head unit 71a is finished and the second divided head unit 71b facing the first divided suction unit 251 moves to the wiping unit 233, the third to third The seven-divided head units 71c to 71g are moved to the first to fifth divided suction units 251a to 251f. Also in this case, the divided head unit 71 that has finished wiping moves to the drawing area 51. In this way, by moving the divided head unit 71 on standby to the adjacent wiping unit 233 side in accordance with the movement of the divided head unit 71 (wiping first) to the wiping unit 233, The time required for wiping the head unit 41 (all divided head units 71) can be shortened.

  Furthermore, in this embodiment, when the wiping of one divided head unit 71 is completed, the wiping sheet 281 is moved laterally, but the timing of the lateral movement is set appropriately according to the actual situation (type of functional liquid, etc.). Is possible. For example, after wiping the two divided head units 71, the wiping sheet 281 may be moved laterally, and after further wiping the two divided head units 71, the wiping sheet 281 may be fed out. Further, the head plate 73 of each divided head unit 71 is provided with a dirt detecting means (not shown) for detecting the degree of dirt on the wiping sheet 281, so that the wiping sheet 281 is changed according to the degree of dirt on the wiping sheet 281. It is also possible to feed horizontally. In this case, the dirt detection means may be configured by a reflection type photosensor, a camera, or the like.

  In the regular maintenance, suction / wiping is performed on all the divided head units 71 constituting the head unit 41. However, suction / wiping can be performed only on any one divided head unit 71. Needless to say. In this case, the head moving means 43 may be driven so that the divided head unit 71 to be sucked and wiped faces the first divided suction unit 251a.

  Next, the control flow for head replacement will be described. In this embodiment, the upper part of the wiping unit 233, that is, the upper part of the maintenance area 52 closest to the drawing area 51 is a head replacement area for head replacement. First, the head moving unit 43 is driven. Then, the divided head unit 71 that performs head replacement is moved to the wiping unit 233. And the raising / lowering mechanism 351 of the unit raising / lowering mechanism 235 which supports the wiping unit 233 is driven, and this is moved to the above-mentioned retracted position. As a result, a work space is generated above the wiping unit 233 so that the head can be exchanged efficiently. When the head replacement is completed, the lifting mechanism 351 described above is driven again, and the wiping unit 233 and the first divided suction unit 251 are raised to the maintenance position. In order to secure a working space more effectively, it is preferable to move the first divided head unit 71 adjacent to the wiping unit 233 to the retracted position.

  A series of flow of head replacement will be specifically described by taking as an example the case of replacing the head plate 73 of the fifth divided head unit 71. As shown in FIG. 21B, first, the head moving unit 43 is driven to move the fifth to seventh divided head units 71e to 71g to the maintenance area 52, and the fifth divided head unit 71e is moved to the wiping unit 233. And the sixth and seventh divided head units 71f and g are made to face the second and third divided suction units 251b and c. And as shown in FIG.21 (c), the raising / lowering mechanism 351 is driven and the wiping unit 233 and the 1st division | segmentation suction unit 251 are moved to a retracted position. The moving positions of the sixth and seventh divided head units 71f · g are not limited to this, and for example, even if they are moved so as to face the sixth and seventh divided suction units 251f · g, Good (see FIG. 21 (c ′)).

  In order to prevent drying and clogging of the functional liquid droplet ejection head 72 of the divided head unit 71 outside the work during the head replacement work, the divided head unit 71 outside the work is subjected to capping or (periodic) flushing. Done. That is, the cap lifting mechanism 254 of the divided suction unit 251 (here, the second and third divided suction units 251b and c) facing the sixth and seventh divided head units 71f and g is driven, and the cap unit 252 is moved to the first position. Or move to the second position. In the first to fourth divided head units 71a to 71d, flushing is performed facing the flushing box 241, while in the sixth and seventh divided head units 71f and g, capping or in-cap flushing is performed.

  When the head replacement operation is completed, the cap lifting mechanism 254 of the divided suction unit 251 facing the sixth and seventh divided head units 71f and g is driven, and the cap unit 252 at the first position or the second position is moved to the lowered end position. At the same time, the lifting mechanism 351 is driven, and the wiping unit 233 and the first divided suction unit 251 are raised to the maintenance position.

  In this embodiment, a part of the divided head units 71 remains in the drawing area 51 when the head is replaced. However, a configuration in which all the divided head units 71 of the head unit 41 are moved to the maintenance area 52 may be adopted. In this case, the seven divided head units 71 are made to face the corresponding divided suction units 251. Then, the six divided head units 71 other than the divided head unit 71 (here, the fifth divided head unit 71e) that performs the work are capped or flushed within the cap.

  Further, when maintaining each divided suction unit 251 or wiping unit 233 of the suction unit 232, the maintenance unit itself is not saved, and the adjacent unit (each divided suction unit 251 or wiping unit 233) is removed. It is designed to move to the retreat position. In particular, when performing maintenance on the first to sixth divided suction units 251a to 251f, the units on both sides adjacent to the divided suction unit 251 that performs maintenance are moved to the retracted position (see FIG. 22).

  As described above, the control unit 367 performs various processes by controlling the respective units so as to cooperate with each other.

  Next, as an electro-optical device (flat panel display) manufactured using the droplet discharge device 3 of this embodiment, a color filter, a liquid crystal display device, an organic EL device, a plasma display (PDP device), an electron emission device ( FED devices, SED devices), and active matrix substrates formed in these display devices will be described as an example for their structures and manufacturing methods. 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. 23 is a flowchart showing the manufacturing process of the color filter, and FIG. 24 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 (S101), 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 (S102), a bank 603 is formed in a state of being superimposed on the black matrix 602. That is, first, as shown in FIG. 24B, 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.
Furthermore, as shown in FIG. 24C, 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 become partition wall portions 607b that partition each pixel region 607a, and in the subsequent colored layer forming step, the colored liquid 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 (S103), as shown in FIG. 24D, functional liquid droplets are ejected by the functional liquid droplet ejection head 72 and each pixel region 607a surrounded by the partition wall portion 607b is formed. Let it land. In this case, the functional liquid droplet ejection head 72 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 (S104), and as shown in FIG. 24 (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. 25 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. 24, 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. 25 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 droplet discharge device 3 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 The liquid crystal (functional liquid) can be uniformly applied to the region surrounded by 629. In addition, the above-described sealing material 629 can be printed by the functional liquid droplet ejection head 72. Furthermore, the first and second alignment films 624 and 627 can be applied by the functional liquid droplet ejection head 72.

FIG. 26 is a cross-sectional view of a principal part showing a schematic configuration of a second example of the 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. 27 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. 28 is a cross-sectional view of an essential part of a display region (hereinafter simply referred to as a display device 700) of the organic EL device.

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. 29, the display device 700 includes a bank part forming step (S111), a surface treatment step (S112), a hole injection / transport layer forming step (S113), a light emitting layer forming step (S114), and an opposing surface. It is manufactured through an electrode formation step (S115). 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 (S111), as shown in FIG. 30, 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 (S112), 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 the functional layer 717 is formed using the functional liquid droplet ejection head 72, 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 101 of the droplet discharge device 3 shown in FIG. 1, and the following hole injection / transport layer forming step (S113) and light emitting layer forming step (S114) are performed. .

  As shown in FIG. 32, in the hole injection / transport layer forming step (S113), the first composition containing the hole injection / transport layer forming material is transferred from the functional liquid droplet ejection head 72 to each opening 719 that is a pixel region. Discharge inside. Thereafter, as shown in FIG. 33, 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 (S114) 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.

  Next, as shown in FIG. 34, the second composition containing the light emitting layer forming material corresponding to any one of the colors (blue (B) in the example of FIG. 35) 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. 35, 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 72, as shown in FIG. 36, 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 (S115).

In the counter electrode forming step (S115), as shown in FIG. 37, 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. 38 is an exploded perspective view of an essential 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 droplet discharge device 3 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 process is performed with the first substrate 801 placed on the set table 101 of the droplet discharge device 3.
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 72. 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 liquid droplet ejection head 72, and corresponding. Land in the color discharge chamber 805.

Next, FIG. 39 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, as in 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 droplet discharge device 3 and each color. The phosphors 913R, 913G, and 913B can be formed using the droplet discharge device 3.

  The first element electrode 906a, the second element electrode 906b, and the conductive film 907 have the planar shape shown in FIG. 40A. 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, the first element electrode 906a and the second element electrode 906b were formed in the groove portion constituted by the bank portion BB (inkjet method using the droplet discharge device 3), and the solvent was dried to form a film. Thereafter, a conductive film 907 is formed (an ink jet method using the droplet discharge device 3). 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 above-described droplet discharge device 3 for manufacturing various electro-optical devices (devices), various electro-optical devices can be efficiently manufactured.

1 is a schematic plan view of a drawing system according to an embodiment of the present invention. 1 is an external perspective view of a droplet discharge device according to an embodiment of the present invention. It is a top view of a droplet discharge device concerning an embodiment of the present invention. It is a front view of the droplet discharge device concerning an embodiment of the present invention. 1 is a side view of a droplet discharge device according to an embodiment of the present invention. It is explanatory drawing of a head unit, and is the figure which showed the head plate periphery of the head unit. It is an external appearance perspective view of a functional droplet discharge head. It is explanatory drawing of the head plate of this embodiment, (a) is an external appearance perspective view of a head plate, (b) is the figure which looked at the head plate from the lower side. It is the figure explaining the modification of the head plate of this embodiment, (a) is the external appearance perspective view of a head plate, (b) is the figure which looked at the head plate from the lower side. It is explanatory drawing of a functional liquid supply means, (a) is explanatory drawing around a pressure regulating valve, (b) is sectional drawing of a pressure regulating valve. It is an external appearance perspective view around an angle stand. It is a rear view around an angle stand. It is an external appearance perspective view around a division | segmentation suction unit. It is a side view around a divided suction unit. It is an external appearance perspective view around a wiping unit. It is a side view around a wiping unit. It is explanatory drawing of a lateral movement mechanism, (a) is the figure which showed the positional relationship of a functional droplet discharge head and the wiping sheet after wiping and before a lateral movement mechanism drive, (b) is functional liquid FIG. 5 is a diagram showing a positional relationship between a droplet discharge head and a wiping sheet after wiping and driving a lateral movement mechanism. It is a block diagram explaining the main control system of the drawing apparatus. It is the figure explaining the positional relationship of the division | segmentation head unit and division | segmentation suction unit in a periodic maintenance. It is a figure explaining the modification of this embodiment in a periodic maintenance, (a) is at the time of wiping of the 1st division head unit, (b) is at the time of wiping of the 2nd division head unit, (c) is the first It is the figure explaining the positional relationship with the division | segmentation suction unit at the time of wiping of a 6 division | segmentation head unit. It is the figure explaining the positional relationship of the division | segmentation head unit in a head replacement | exchange, and a division | segmentation suction unit. It is the figure which showed the positional relationship of the division | segmentation suction unit at the time of the maintenance of a 5th division | segmentation head unit. 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

3 droplet discharge device, 5 control device, 41 head unit,
42 Work moving means, 43 Head moving means, 46 Maintenance means,
51 drawing area, 52 maintenance area, 71 split head unit,
72 function droplet discharge head, 73 head plate, 75 carriage,
87 nozzle surface, 88 discharge nozzle, 111 θ table,
112 suction table, 121 θ fixed portion, 122 θ rotating portion,
131 Table body, 133 Support base, 201 Functional liquid tank,
232 suction unit, 233 wiping unit,
235 unit lifting mechanism, 241 flushing box,
281 Wiping sheet, 283 lateral movement mechanism,
291 Sheet supply unit, 293 Cleaning liquid supply unit, W Workpiece

Claims (12)

A head unit mounted on a head plate in a predetermined arrangement pattern in which a plurality of functional liquid droplet ejection heads each having a large number of ejection nozzles arranged in the sub-scanning direction are displaced in the sub-scanning direction and the main scanning direction, respectively. Whereas
A wiping method for a functional liquid droplet ejection head, wherein the nozzle surfaces of the plurality of functional liquid droplet ejection heads are collectively wiped with a wiping sheet while relatively moving in a sub-scanning direction,
The wiping sheet is moved laterally relative to the head unit in the main scanning direction so that the wiping position of the head unit in the main scanning direction is different between any one wiping process and the next wiping process. A method of wiping a functional liquid droplet ejection head. A head unit mounted on a head plate in a predetermined arrangement pattern in which a plurality of functional liquid droplet ejection heads each having a large number of ejection nozzles arranged in the sub-scanning direction are displaced in the sub-scanning direction and the main scanning direction, respectively. Whereas
A wiping device for a functional liquid droplet ejection head that wipes the nozzle surfaces of the plurality of functional liquid droplet ejection heads collectively with a wiping sheet while moving relatively in the sub-scanning direction,
A wiping device for a functional liquid droplet ejection head, comprising: a lateral movement mechanism that moves the wiping sheet relative to the head unit in the main scanning direction.   3. The lateral movement mechanism relatively moves the wiping sheet laterally by approximately ½ of an arrangement pitch of the plurality of functional liquid droplet ejection heads in a main scanning direction. Functional droplet discharge head wiping device. An apparatus main body having the wiping sheet and a sheet feeding mechanism for feeding the wiping sheet in its extending direction;
The functional liquid droplet ejection head wiping apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the lateral movement mechanism laterally moves the wiping sheet via the apparatus main body.   5. The wiping device for a functional liquid droplet ejection head according to claim 4, wherein the wiping process is performed in a state where sheet feeding of the wiping sheet by the sheet feeding mechanism is stopped.   6. The functional liquid droplet ejection head according to claim 4, wherein the apparatus main body further includes a cleaning liquid spraying mechanism for spraying and applying a cleaning liquid for dissolving the functional liquid onto the wiping sheet. Wiping device. A dirt detecting means for detecting dirt associated with the wiping process of the wiping sheet;
The wiping apparatus for a functional liquid droplet ejection head according to claim 4, wherein the sheet feeding mechanism feeds the wiping sheet based on a detection result of the dirt detection unit. There are a plurality of the head units, and the plurality of head units are continuously wiped,
3. The wiping apparatus for a functional liquid droplet ejection head according to claim 2, wherein the moving means moves the wiping sheet laterally so that the wiping positions of the head units in the main scanning direction are different from each other. A wiping device for a functional liquid droplet ejection head according to any one of claims 2 to 8,
A droplet discharge device comprising: a drawing device that performs drawing by discharging a functional liquid onto the workpiece while moving the head unit relative to the workpiece.   10. A method for manufacturing an electro-optical device, wherein the droplet discharge device according to claim 9 is used to form a film forming portion with functional droplets on the workpiece.   An electro-optical device using the droplet discharge device according to claim 9, wherein a film forming portion using functional droplets is formed on the workpiece.   An electronic apparatus comprising the electro-optical device manufactured by the method for manufacturing the electro-optical device according to claim 10 or the electro-optical device according to claim 11.

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