JP2006010268A - Heat treatment device - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a heat treatment device capable of suppressing produced gas generated following heat treatment of an object to be heated, and leakage of the so-called sublimates generated by cooling the produced gas. <P>SOLUTION: The heat treatment device has a conversion part 6 for taking in and out a substrate from a heat treatment chamber 12. Air nozzles 65 and 66 capable of jetting clean air are arranged above and below a through hole 44c of a shielding plate 44 composing a boundary portion of the conversion part 6 and the heat treatment chamber 12. When air is jetted from the air nozzles 65 and 66, an air curtain C is formed in the boundary portion of the conversion part 6 and the heat treatment chamber 12. Consequently, leakage of the produced gas and the sublimates generated in the heat treatment chamber 12 to the outside of the heat treatment device 1 is prevented even when the conversion part 6 is opened and closed. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2006,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to a heat treatment apparatus for heat-treating an object to be heated such as a substrate with hot air.

Conventionally, a heat treatment apparatus as disclosed in the following Patent Document 1 is a flat panel display (FPD: Flat Display) such as a liquid crystal display (LCD), a plasma display (PDP), and an organic EL display. Panel display). The heat treatment apparatus accommodates in a heat treatment chamber a solution obtained by previously applying a specific solution to a substrate such as a glass plate (object to be heated) and drying it, and is exposed to hot air of a predetermined temperature introduced into the heat treatment chamber. This is an apparatus for heat treatment (firing).
Japanese Patent No. 2971771

  The heat treatment apparatus of the prior art has openings and gaps for taking in and out the object to be heated and is not completely sealed, and the vicinity of the openings and gaps tends to be relatively low in temperature. Therefore, the generated gas generated by vaporizing a specific solution or the like applied on the substrate with the heat treatment is cooled and solidified in the vicinity of the opening or the gap to become a so-called sublimation product. The sublimated material is in the form of particles or tar, which not only contaminates the inside of the heat treatment apparatus and degrades the quality of the heated object, but also leaks out of the heat treatment apparatus when the heated object is taken in and out. There was a problem that. In addition, when the product gas flows out from the opening, the product gas is cooled outside the heat treatment apparatus to become a so-called sublimate, which contaminates the surrounding environment of the heat treatment apparatus.

  Usually, the heat treatment apparatus is installed in a clean room having a relatively high cleanliness. Therefore, when the sublimate leaks from the heat treatment apparatus as in the conventional heat treatment apparatus, there is a problem that the cleanliness of the clean room is also lowered.

  In view of the above problems, in the heat treatment apparatus disclosed in Patent Document 1, air and product gas in the heat treatment apparatus leak to the outside by maintaining the inside of the heat treatment apparatus at a pressure slightly lower than the installation atmosphere pressure of the heat treatment apparatus. It is set as the structure which prevents doing. In such a configuration, there is a certain effect on the problem that the sublimate is discharged from the heat treatment apparatus to the outside, but it is somewhat due to the influence of the air flowing in through the openings and gaps for taking in and out the object to be heated. There was a possibility that the sublimated product would be generated.

  Further, the heat treatment apparatus disclosed in Patent Document 1 may cause temperature unevenness in the heat treatment chamber due to the influence of air flowing into the apparatus. For this reason, in the heat treatment apparatus disclosed in Patent Document 1 described above, the generated gas that tends to leak from the heat treatment chamber side to the outside in the vicinity of the opening for taking in and out the object to be heated and the flow from the outside to the heat treatment chamber side. There is a problem that a mechanism for sucking and collecting air must be provided separately, which complicates the apparatus configuration.

  Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide a heat treatment apparatus capable of suppressing leakage of a generated gas generated by heat treatment of an object to be heated and a so-called sublimate generated by cooling the generated gas.

  Accordingly, the invention according to claim 1, which is provided to solve the above-described problem, includes hot air supply means for supplying hot air and hot air generated in the hot air supply means, and heats an object to be heated by the hot air. A heat treatment chamber and a replacement part for taking in and out the object to be heated in the heat treatment room, and from both sides of the two regions divided by the object to be heated as the object to be heated is taken in and out through the replacement part. A gas flow that forms a gas flow by ejecting a gas toward the boundary between the two regions, and the gas flow can separate the region inside the heat treatment chamber from the gas flow and the region outside the region. Means for heat treatment is provided.

  In the heat treatment apparatus of the present invention, the inner region of the heat treatment chamber is separated from the outer region by the gas flow formed by the gas jetting means. Therefore, in the heat treatment apparatus of the present invention, the gas (generated gas) generated with the heating of the object to be heated in the heat treatment chamber and the so-called sublimate generated when the gas is cooled do not leak from the heat treatment chamber.

  In the heat treatment apparatus of the present invention, outside air, dust, or the like cannot enter from the outside of the heat treatment chamber to the inside due to the gas flow formed by the gas ejection means. For this reason, in the heat treatment apparatus of the present invention, temperature fluctuations in the heat treatment chamber due to inflow of outside air or the like into the heat treatment apparatus and contamination in the heat treatment chamber due to the entry of dust or the like hardly occur. Further, in the heat treatment apparatus of the present invention, since the outside air hardly enters the heat treatment chamber, the generated gas existing in the heat treatment chamber is maintained at a high temperature. For this reason, in the heat treatment apparatus of the present invention, the amount of so-called sublimates generated when the product gas is cooled is small.

  Further, as described above, the gas flow formed by the gas ejection means is such that the boundary portion between these two regions is divided from both of the two regions divided by the object to be heated when the object to be heated is taken in and out via the replacement unit. It is formed by ejecting gas toward For this reason, even if the object to be heated is taken in and out of the heat treatment chamber, the gas flow is maintained without crossing the portion other than the portion through which the object to be heated passes. Therefore, in the heat treatment apparatus of the present invention, even if the object to be heated is taken in and out of the heat treatment chamber, no gas or sublimate flows out of the heat treatment chamber.

  In the heat treatment apparatus according to the first aspect of the present invention, the object to be heated can be taken in and out in a direction intersecting the flow direction of the hot air flowing through the heat treatment chamber, and the movement of the gas ejected from the gas ejection means The pressure may be equal to or higher than the static pressure of the hot air flowing in the heat treatment chamber. (Claim 2)

  According to such a configuration, the inside and outside of the heat treatment chamber can be reliably separated. Therefore, according to the present invention, the gas containing the generated gas generated in the heat treatment chamber, the sublimate, etc. leaks to the outside through the replacement part, or the outside air, dust etc. existing outside the heat treatment chamber flows into the heat treatment chamber. Can be prevented.

  In the heat treatment apparatus according to the first or second aspect, the gas ejection means may be capable of ejecting gas in a direction intersecting with a flow direction of hot air introduced into the heat treatment chamber. (Claim 3)

  Further, the heat treatment apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 3 may be configured such that the gas ejection means can eject gas in a direction along a flow direction of hot air introduced into the heat treatment chamber. (Claim 4)

  According to such a configuration, the inner region and the outer region on the heat treatment chamber side can be separated, and the entry and exit of gas, sublimates, dust, and the like between the two regions can be reliably prevented.

  In the invention according to claim 5, hot air supplying means for supplying hot air, hot air generated in the hot air supplying means is introduced, and a heat treatment chamber for heating an object to be heated by the hot air flows in the heat treatment chamber. A replacement part capable of taking in and out the object in a direction intersecting the flow direction of hot air, and a gas jetting means capable of jetting gas in a direction along the flow direction of hot air introduced into the heat treatment chamber, In the heat treatment apparatus, the dynamic pressure of the gas ejected from the gas ejection means is equal to or higher than the static pressure of the hot air flowing in the heat treatment chamber.

  In the heat treatment apparatus of the present invention, the dynamic pressure of the gas ejected from the gas ejection means in the direction along the flow direction of the hot air is higher than the static pressure of the hot air flowing in the heat treatment chamber. Therefore, the heat processing apparatus of this invention is isolate | separated into the area | region inside the heat processing chamber, and the area | region outside this by the gas flow which generate | occur | produces by ejecting gas from a gas ejection means. Therefore, in the heat treatment apparatus of the present invention, even if some kind of gas (generated gas) is generated in the heat treatment chamber, or what is called a sublimate is generated by cooling this gas, these hardly leak out to the outside. .

  Further, in the heat treatment apparatus of the present invention, the gas flow formed by the gas jetting means prevents the outside air and dust existing outside the apparatus from entering. Therefore, in the heat treatment apparatus of the present invention, even if the object to be heated is taken in and out, temperature fluctuations in the heat treatment chamber due to the inflow of outside air and contamination in the heat treatment chamber due to entry of dust and the like hardly occur.

  Here, when the inventors communicate the exchange part and the heat treatment chamber for taking in and out the object to be heated, outside air flows from the outside to the inside of the heat treatment chamber on the upstream side of the exchange part, and the exchange part It was found that air and product gas existing inside the heat treatment chamber in the vicinity of the downstream side of the gas tended to flow out to the outside through the replacement part.

  Accordingly, the invention according to claim 6 provided on the basis of such knowledge is that the gas ejection means can eject gas from the downstream side in the flow direction of the hot air introduced into the heat treatment chamber toward the upstream side. The heat treatment apparatus according to claim 4 or 5, characterized in that

  When gas is ejected from the gas ejection means, the region closer to the gas ejection means has a higher gas dynamic pressure, and the inside and outside of the heat treatment chamber can be reliably separated. The heat treatment apparatus of the present invention is configured to eject gas from the downstream side in the direction of hot air flow to the upstream side, where it is assumed that the gas containing the generated gas generated in the heat treatment chamber and the sublimate are likely to leak to the outside. It is. For this reason, in the heat treatment apparatus of the present invention, leakage of product gas and sublimate hardly occurs.

  The heat treatment apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 6 has a gas supply pipe for supplying gas to the gas ejection means, and the gas flowing through the gas supply pipe is heated by heat exchange with hot air flowing through the heat treatment chamber. It may be done. (Claim 7)

  In the heat treatment apparatus of the present invention, the gas supplied to the gas ejection means is preheated. Therefore, in the heat treatment apparatus of the present invention, the thermal stress acting on the object to be heated when the object to be heated is taken in and out of the heat treatment chamber is small.

  In the heat treatment apparatus of the present invention, the gas supplied to the gas jetting means is preheated by heat exchange with the hot air flowing in the heat treatment chamber, so that the thermal energy of the hot air flowing in the heat treatment chamber can be effectively used. Further, since the heat treatment apparatus of the present invention heats the gas supplied to the gas jetting means by heat exchange with hot air, the gas jetted from the gas jetting means becomes excessively hot or the atmosphere of the heat treatment chamber It does not become excessively lower than the temperature. Therefore, according to the present invention, the gas ejection temperature can be adjusted to about the atmospheric temperature of the heat treatment chamber, and thermal stress acting on the object to be heated can be reduced as the object to be heated is taken in and out.

  The heat treatment apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 7 may be configured such that the gas ejection means ejects gas at a boundary portion between the replacement part and the heat treatment chamber. (Claim 8)

  According to such a configuration, it is possible to reliably solve the problem that the generated gas, sublimate, etc. generated in the heat treatment chamber leak to the outside.

  The heat treatment apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 8, wherein the exchange part has an opening communicating with the heat treatment chamber, and the flow of hot air flowing through the heat treatment chamber is guided around the opening in a direction away from the exchange part side. It may be characterized in that guiding means is provided. (Claim 9)

  In the invention according to claim 10, provided based on the same knowledge, hot air supplying means for supplying hot air and hot air generated in the hot air supplying means are introduced, and the object to be heated is heated by the hot air. It has a heat treatment chamber and a replacement portion for taking in and out the object to be heated in the heat treatment chamber, the replacement portion has an opening communicating with the heat treatment chamber, and the flow of hot air flowing in the heat treatment chamber is replaced around the opening. A heat treatment apparatus characterized in that guidance means for guiding in a direction away from the section side is provided.

  As described above, when the guiding means is provided around the opening of the replacement part, the gas containing the generated gas generated in the heat treatment chamber is moved away from the replacement part, and the gas flow rate in the region near the opening of the replacement part is reduced. Depending on the situation, there is almost no wind Therefore, in the heat treatment apparatus of the present invention, the gas containing the generated gas generated in the heat treatment chamber hardly flows into the region near the opening of the replacement part, and the generated gas and sublimate generated in the heat treatment chamber do not leak.

  In the heat treatment apparatus according to claim 9 or 10, the guiding means is arranged at a position adjacent to both the upstream side and the upstream side and the downstream side in the flow direction of the hot air with respect to the opening of the replacement part. It may have an inclined surface that separates from the replacement part side toward the heat treatment chamber side as it approaches the opening side from the upstream and downstream sides in the hot air flow direction. (Claim 11)

  According to this configuration, the generated gas and hot air flowing through the heat treatment chamber can be smoothly guided toward the inside of the heat treatment chamber.

  In the heat treatment apparatus according to an eleventh aspect, the guiding means may have a separation surface that is continuous with the inclined surface and extends in a direction along the flow direction of the hot air. (Claim 12)

  According to such a configuration, it is possible to prevent turbulence from occurring in the flow of hot air or product gas induced inside the heat treatment chamber by the inclined surface of the guiding means. Therefore, according to the present invention, it is possible to reliably prevent leakage of hot air and product gas flowing in the heat treatment chamber.

  The heat treatment apparatus according to any one of claims 9 to 12, wherein the guide means has a blocking surface that spreads in a direction intersecting the inclined surface and shields a space formed between the guide means and the replacement part. You may have. (Claim 13)

  According to such a configuration, it is possible to prevent the hot air or the generated gas guided along the inclined surface from flowing around to the back side of the guiding means, and to suppress the turbulence of the air flow in the heat treatment chamber. Therefore, according to the present invention, the vicinity of the replacement part can be maintained in a state closer to no wind as compared with the region inside the heat treatment chamber, and leakage of hot air and generated gas flowing through the heat treatment chamber can be reliably prevented.

  In the heat treatment apparatus according to any one of claims 9 to 13, the guiding means is preferably curved. (Claim 14)

  According to such a configuration, the turbulence of the airflow formed by the hot air and generated gas flowing in the heat treatment chamber can be suppressed to the minimum, and the leakage of the hot air and generated gas to the outside can be prevented.

  ADVANTAGE OF THE INVENTION According to this invention, the heat processing apparatus which can suppress the leakage of the produced gas and sublimate which generate | occur | produced with the heat processing of a board | substrate when taking in / out a to-be-heated material with respect to a heat processing chamber can be provided.

  Next, a heat treatment apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a front view showing a heat treatment apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a cutaway perspective view showing the internal structure of the heat treatment apparatus shown in FIG. FIG. 3 is a plan view showing the internal structure of the heat treatment apparatus shown in FIG. FIG. 4 is a conceptual diagram showing an outline of gas ejection means in the heat treatment apparatus shown in FIG. FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view showing the vicinity of the front side of the heat treatment apparatus shown in FIG. FIG. 6A is a front view showing the shielding plate, and FIG. 6B is a perspective view schematically showing how the substrate is taken in and out through the insertion hole of the shielding plate. FIG. 7 is an enlarged view of a portion A in FIG. FIG. 8 is a cutaway perspective view showing the structure near the replacement part of the heat treatment apparatus shown in FIG. FIG. 9 is a cutaway perspective view showing the structure in the vicinity of the replacement part of the heat treatment apparatus shown in FIG. 1 as observed from the heat treatment chamber side. FIG. 10 is a conceptual diagram schematically showing the state of airflow in the vicinity of the substrate when the substrate is taken in and out in the heat treatment apparatus shown in FIG. 11 is a cutaway perspective view showing a modification of the structure in the vicinity of the replacement part of the heat treatment apparatus shown in FIG. 1 as observed from the heat treatment chamber side. FIG. 12 is a cutaway perspective view showing another modification of the structure in the vicinity of the replacement part of the heat treatment apparatus shown in FIG. 1 as observed from the heat treatment chamber side.

  In FIG. 1, 1 is the heat processing apparatus of this embodiment. The heat treatment apparatus 1 has a configuration in which a device housing portion 3 is provided below a metal box-shaped main body case 2 and a substrate processing portion 5 is provided above the device housing portion 3. The device housing unit 3 includes a power supply device (not shown) that supplies power to the substrate processing unit 5, a control device (not shown) that controls the operation of the substrate processing unit 5, and the like.

  As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the substrate processing unit 5 has a heat treatment chamber 12 at the center and is surrounded by an air adjusting unit 11. The air adjusting unit 11 is surrounded on four sides by peripheral walls 13a to 13d made of a heat insulating material. The air adjusting unit 11 heats air to a predetermined temperature and blows it into the heat treatment chamber 12 and circulates the air discharged from the heat treatment chamber 12 upstream.

  More specifically, the air adjusting unit 11 is roughly divided into hot air supply means 14, a duct 17, and an equipment room 18, as shown in FIGS. The hot air supply means 14 has a heating function for heating air or the like, and a blowing function for sending the heated air or the like into the heat treatment chamber 12. Further, the hot air supply means 14 has a filter 21 for purifying air or the like at the boundary portion with the heat treatment chamber 12. The duct 17 is an air flow path arranged so as to surround the heat treatment chamber 12, and forms an air flow path for returning the air discharged from the heat treatment chamber 12 to the hot air supply means 14.

  The heat treatment chamber 12 is a space surrounded by the upstream wall 20 a and the partition walls 41 and 43 that form a boundary with the hot air supply means 14. As shown in FIG. 1 and FIG. 2, on the front side of the heat treatment chamber 12, a replacement unit 6 is provided on the front side for loading and unloading the substrate W (object to be heated) by a transfer device such as a robot arm (not shown). ing. More specifically, in the peripheral wall 13b provided on the front side of the heat treatment chamber 12, four openings 40 are formed in the vertical direction as shown in FIG. In addition, the partition wall 41 arranged in parallel to the peripheral wall 13b is provided with an opening 50 at a position facing the opening 40 of the peripheral wall 13b. A shielding plate 44 is fixed on the rear surface side of the partition wall 41, that is, on the heat treatment chamber 12 side. The shielding plate 44 is a plate-like member that shields a part of the opening 50, and is arranged at a boundary portion between the replacement unit 6 and the heat treatment chamber 12. As shown in FIG. 6, the shielding plate 44 is provided below the substrate insertion hole 44 a and the substrate insertion hole 44 a that are long in the width direction of the heat treatment chamber 12 (lateral direction in FIG. 1), like the opening 40 and the opening 50. The two hand insertion holes 44b and 44b are provided with an insertion hole 44c. The insertion hole 44c is present at the most heat treatment chamber 12 side among the openings connecting the heat treatment chamber 12 and the replacement section 6.

  The substrate insertion hole 44a is an opening for taking the substrate W into and out of the heat treatment chamber 12 as shown in FIG. 6B, and is an opening that is slightly larger than the width and thickness of the substrate W. The hand insertion holes 44b and 44b are openings for inserting and removing the robot arm 42 that supports the substrate W from below when the substrate W is put in and out. The shielding plate 44 is fixed to the partition wall 41 so that the substrate insertion hole 44a is positioned at a substantially central position in the vertical direction of the opening 40 and the opening 50.

  As shown in FIGS. 5 and 7, partition walls 47 a and 47 b are fixed between the peripheral wall 13 b and the partition wall 41. The partition walls 47a and 47b are fixed so as to bridge the peripheral wall 13b and the partition wall 41, respectively. Thereby, on the front side of the heat treatment apparatus 1, a replacement portion 6 that is connected to the opening 50 from the opening 40 and is isolated from the duct 17 formed between the peripheral wall 13 b and the partition wall 41 is formed.

  A shutter 10 that operates in conjunction with the operation of the air cylinder 8 is attached to the opening 40 of the peripheral wall 13b. The shutter 10 is appropriately selected from those that slide up and down and those that open toward the inside or outside.

  As shown in FIGS. 5, 7, 9, etc., the inside of the replacement unit 6, more specifically, a position adjacent to the heat treatment chamber 12 side of the shielding plate 44 and adjacent to the upper and lower sides of the insertion hole 44 c. Air nozzles 65 and 66 (gas jetting means) are provided at the positions where these are performed. The air nozzles 65 and 66 are nozzles for ejecting clean air as shown in FIG. 4, and are each connected to an air supply source (not shown) disposed outside the heat treatment chamber 12 via the branch pipe 69. It is connected to the air pipe 68.

  An air pipe 68 for supplying air from the air supply source to the air nozzles 65 and 66 is routed into the heat treatment chamber 12 as shown in FIGS. More specifically, the air pipe 68 rises from the bottom surface on the back side of the heat treatment chamber 12 and on the most downstream side of the hot air flowing in the heat treatment chamber 12, and branches into four flow paths 68a to 68d. The branch flow paths 68 a to 68 d of the air pipe 68 each cross the most downstream side of the heat treatment chamber 12, are further branched by a branch pipe 69 on the front side of the heat treatment chamber 12, and are connected to air nozzles 65 and 66.

  As described above, since the air pipe 68 is routed into the heat treatment chamber 12, the air supplied from the air supply source is heat-exchanged and heated while flowing in the air pipe 68. Further, since the air pipe 68 is arranged so as to cross the most downstream side of the heat treatment chamber 12, the air flowing inside can be heated by effectively utilizing the exhaust heat of the airflow after the heat treatment of the substrate W. In the heat treatment apparatus 1 of the present embodiment, when the inside of the heat treatment chamber 12 reaches a predetermined firing temperature, clean air having a temperature similar to the air flowing in the heat treatment chamber 12 or the generated gas is supplied to the air nozzles 65 and 66. .

The air nozzles 65 and 66 simultaneously eject the air pressure-fed from the air supply source as shown in FIGS. 7 and 9, and on the back side of the shielding plate 44 constituting the boundary portion between the replacement unit 6 and the heat treatment chamber 12. A so-called air curtain C is formed. That is, the air nozzles 65, 66 form an air flow in a curtain shape by blowing clean air against a virtual plane H that is assumed to pass through the substrate W inserted and removed from the replacement unit 6. It is for cutting off the exchange of air and gas. More specifically, in the present embodiment, about 1.8 × 10 ⁵ [liter / min] of air or generated gas flows in the heat treatment chamber 12, whereas about 1 in total from the air nozzles 65 and 66. Clean air is ejected at a flow rate of about 6 × 10 ^{2 to} 3.2 × 10 ² [liter / min]. Further, the dynamic pressure of the air ejected from the air nozzles 65 and 66 is higher than the static pressure of the air flowing through the heat treatment chamber 12 and the generated gas. Therefore, in the heat treatment apparatus 1, air or the like flowing in the heat treatment chamber 12 is reliably prevented from flowing into the replacement unit 6 by the air curtain C.

  Each of the air nozzles 65 and 66 is provided with a plurality of air ejection holes 67 in a pipe extending along the longitudinal direction of the substrate insertion hole 44 a of the shielding plate 44. The air ejection holes 67 are all arranged so as to face the substrate W side that enters and exits via the replacement unit 6. More specifically, the air ejection hole 67 of the air nozzle 65 disposed on the upper side of the replacement unit 6 is formed so that air can be ejected downward. Therefore, when air is ejected from the air nozzle 65, as shown by hatching in FIG. 7, an air curtain C1 is formed in which air flows from the region X above the substrate insertion hole 44a downward (to the virtual plane H side). . A part of the air constituting the air curtain C1 reaches the area below the virtual plane H.

  Moreover, the air ejection hole 67 of the air nozzle 66 arranged on the lower side of the replacement unit 6 is formed so that air can be ejected upward. Therefore, when air is ejected from the air nozzle 66, as shown by hatching in FIG. 7, an air curtain C2 is formed in which air flows from the region Y below the substrate insertion hole 44a upward (to the virtual plane H side). . A part of the air constituting the air curtain C2 reaches the upper region beyond the virtual plane H. Therefore, in the air curtain C, the air curtain C1 and the air curtain C2 overlap in the vicinity of the virtual plane H.

  As described above, the air curtain C includes the air curtain C1 formed above the board insertion hole 44a and the air curtain C2 formed below the board insertion hole 44a. The virtual plane H is configured to pass through the overlapping portion with the curtain C2. Therefore, when the substrate W passes through the substrate insertion hole 44a of the shielding plate 44 when the substrate W is taken in and out via the replacement unit 6, the front side (above the upper surface) and the back side of the substrate W The state in which the air curtains C1 and C2 are formed on both sides (lower than the lower surface) is maintained. That is, the air curtain C formed by the air ejected from the air nozzles 65 and 66 is not blocked even when the substrate W is taken in and out. Therefore, even if the flow of air or generated gas flowing in the heat treatment chamber 12 reaches a position away from the substrate W upward or downward as indicated by an arrow in FIG. 10, these flows are blocked by the air curtains C1 and C2. Is not leaked to the outside. Similarly, the outside air existing outside the heat treatment chamber 12 is blocked by the air curtains C <b> 1 and C <b> 2 and cannot enter the heat treatment chamber 12.

  Furthermore, in the heat treatment apparatus 1 of the present embodiment, when the substrate W reaches the air curtain C, the air flow ejected from the air nozzles 65 and 66 toward the substrate W as shown by arrows in FIG. It rebounds on the back side, and a vortex is generated near the front and back surfaces of the substrate W. Therefore, in the heat treatment apparatus 1, the density of air ejected from the air nozzles 65 and 66 is high in the vicinity of the front and back surfaces of the substrate W, and air and generated gas flowing out of the heat treatment chamber 12 flow out, or outside air flows into the heat treatment chamber 12. There is almost no room to enter. Therefore, the heat treatment apparatus 1 does not cause problems such as hot air containing generated gas flowing in the heat treatment chamber 12 leaking outside or outside air entering the heat treatment chamber 12 even when the substrate W is taken in and out. Further, in the heat treatment apparatus 1, the ambient temperature in the heat treatment chamber 12 becomes unstable due to the outside air flowing into the heat treatment chamber 12 through the replacement unit 6, or the generated gas existing in the heat treatment chamber 12 is cooled. It is difficult to generate sublimates.

  As shown in FIG. 2, a door 7 used for maintenance is provided on the back side of the heat treatment chamber 12. The partition wall 43 is fixed at a position corresponding to the door 7 and is configured to be removable as necessary when performing maintenance or the like.

  As shown in FIG. 3, a mounting shelf 70 for mounting a substrate is disposed at a substantially central portion of the heat treatment chamber 12. The mounting shelf 70 has a number of steps for mounting the substrate W in the same manner as that employed in a conventionally known heat treatment apparatus. The mounting shelf 70 is connected to a lifting device (not shown) and can move up and down in the heat treatment chamber 12 as necessary.

  As described above, in the heat treatment apparatus 1 of the present embodiment, clean air is ejected from the air nozzles 65 and 66, and the back surface side (heat treatment chamber 12 side) of the shielding plate 44 that is the boundary between the replacement unit 6 and the heat treatment chamber 12. Since the air curtain C is formed, the air-fuel mixture including the hot air flowing through the heat treatment chamber 12 and the generated gas generated by the heat treatment (firing) of the substrate W does not flow into the replacement unit 6. Therefore, even if the shutter 10 is opened and closed during the replacement operation of the substrate W, gas such as generated gas generated in the heat treatment chamber 12 does not leak into an installation area such as a clean room in which the heat treatment apparatus 1 is installed.

  Since the heat treatment apparatus 1 is configured to form the air curtain C at the boundary portion of the replacement unit 6, even if a sublimation product is generated in the heat treatment chamber 12 for some reason, the sublimation product does not leak from the heat treatment chamber 12.

  Further, the heat treatment apparatus 1 allows the air, generated gas, sublimates, and the like to enter and exit between the internal space of the heat treatment chamber 12 and the outside of the heat treatment apparatus 1 even if the exchange unit 6 is opened and closed when the substrate W is taken in and out. Absent. Therefore, in the heat treatment apparatus 1, even when the replacement unit 6 is frequently opened and closed for loading and unloading the substrate W, the internal temperature in the heat treatment chamber 12 varies little. Therefore, the heat treatment apparatus 1 consumes less energy to stabilize the internal temperature of the heat treatment chamber 12, and problems such as defective firing of the substrate W hardly occur. Furthermore, in the heat treatment apparatus according to the present embodiment, since the outside air hardly flows into the heat treatment chamber 12, the generated gas generated in the heat treatment chamber 12 is cooled by the outside air, and so-called sublimates are unlikely to be generated.

  As described above, the clean air supplied to the air nozzles 65 and 66 is heated while flowing through the air pipe 68, and has a temperature comparable to the internal atmosphere of the heat treatment chamber 12. Therefore, fluctuations in the atmospheric temperature of the heat treatment chamber 12 due to the ejection of air from the air nozzles 65 and 66 are unlikely to occur, and the thermal stress acting on the substrate W inserted into and removed from the heat treatment chamber 12 is small.

  In the above embodiment, the air pipe 68 is a pipe having a flat surface, but the present invention is not limited to this, and the heat transfer area is increased by providing fins on the surface or using a bellows pipe. It may be increased. According to this configuration, the efficiency of heat exchange between the air flowing in the air pipe 68 and the hot air (air) or gas flowing in the heat treatment chamber 12 can be improved, and the air ejected from the air nozzles 65 and 66 can be surely supplied. The air pipe 68 can be shortened by heating.

  In the above embodiment, the air pipe 68 is exposed to the heat treatment chamber 12 to heat the air supplied from the external air supply source. However, the present invention is not limited to this. A heating source for heating the air ejected from the air nozzles 65 and 66 may be separately provided. According to such a configuration, the energy consumption required for a series of heat treatments is increased by the amount of a separately provided heat source, but the temperature of the air ejected from the air nozzles 65 and 66 can be adjusted accurately.

  Further, in the heat treatment apparatus 1 of the present embodiment, the air supplied to the air nozzles 65 and 66 is preheated in consideration of thermal stress acting on the substrate W, but the present invention is not limited to this. For example, it is good also as a structure which ejects the air of about room temperature as it is.

  In the above embodiment, the air nozzles 65 and 66 are disposed in the vicinity of the shielding plate 44 that is a boundary portion between the replacement unit 6 and the heat treatment chamber 12, and air having substantially the same temperature as the atmosphere temperature in the heat treatment chamber 12 is ejected to the air curtain. Since C is formed, thermal stress applied to the substrate W by passing through the air curtain C is small. Moreover, since the heat treatment apparatus 1 has the air nozzles 65 and 66 arranged on the back side of the shielding plate 44 closest to the heat treatment chamber 12 that is a generation source of the produced gas and the sublimate in the replacement unit 6, the produced gas. And sublimates hardly enter the replacement part 6, and the inside of the replacement part 6 can be kept clean.

  As described above, the air nozzles 65 and 66 are arranged at the boundary between the heat treatment chamber 12 and the replacement unit 6 in order to minimize the thermal stress acting on the substrate W inserted and removed through the replacement unit 6. It is desirable to do. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the air nozzles 65 and 66 are disposed along the partition wall 47a and the partition wall 47b provided to isolate the duct 17 and the replacement unit 6 as described above, for example. Alternatively, it may be arranged inside or outside the outer frame member 48 where the shutter 10 is arranged. Even in such a configuration, it is desirable to adjust the temperature of the air ejected from the air nozzles 65 and 66 so that the thermal stress acting on the substrate W withdrawn into and out of the heat treatment chamber 12 is minimized.

The heat treatment apparatus 1 forms the air curtain C by ejecting air from the air nozzles 65 and 66 at a flow rate of about 1.6 × 10 ^{2 to} 3.2 × 10 ² [liter / min]. The flow rate of the air ejected from the air nozzles 65 and 66 is not limited to this, and can be adjusted as appropriate. In order to prevent the generated gas and hot air generated by heating the substrate W in the heat treatment chamber 12 during the loading / unloading of the substrate W from being discharged to the outside, the number should be increased as much as possible without interfering with the loading / unloading of the substrate W. Is desirable.

  The above-described heat treatment apparatus 1 is configured to form the air curtain C by disposing the air nozzles 65 and 66 only in the vicinity of the shielding plate 44, but the present invention is not limited to this, and is installed in a plurality of places. A configuration corresponding to the air nozzles 65 and 66 may be provided to form a plurality of air curtains C. With such a configuration, although the apparatus configuration of the heat treatment apparatus 1 is slightly complicated, the generated gas generated by the heat treatment of the substrate W and the sublimates generated when the generated gas is cooled are discharged outside the heat treatment apparatus 1. Can be reliably prevented.

  In the said embodiment, although the example which forms air curtain C1, C2 in the upper and lower sides of the virtual plane H was illustrated, this invention is not limited to this, For example, the virtual plane H through which the board | substrate W withdrawn / inserted into the heat processing chamber 12 passes is shown. Is unevenly distributed on the lower end side of the replacement part 6, only the air nozzle 65 that ejects air downward from the upper part of the replacement part 6 is provided, and the air curtain C <b> 1 is formed only above the substrate W. Good. With such a configuration, it is possible to prevent air, product gas, sublimates, and the like from entering and leaving between the heat treatment chamber 12 and the outside of the heat treatment device 1 while simplifying the device structure of the heat treatment device 1.

  In the above embodiment, the air curtain C is formed by blowing air from above and below the virtual plane H by the air nozzles 65 and 66. However, the present invention is not limited to this, for example, As shown in FIG. 11, the air may be blown from the side of the imaginary plane H, that is, from one or both sides of the board insertion hole 44 a of the shielding plate 44.

  More specifically, the heat treatment apparatus 1 is provided with air nozzles 85 and 86 (gas ejection means) extending in the vertical direction on the back surface side (heat treatment chamber 12 side) of the shielding plate 44 as shown in FIG. 6, that is, in the direction along the flow of hot air flowing in the heat treatment chamber 12 as indicated by an arrow A in FIG. 11, to form an air curtain at the boundary portion between the heat treatment chamber 12 and the replacement portion 6. It is good also as a structure. Even in the case of such a configuration, it is possible to prevent the generated gas and hot air generated in the heat treatment chamber 12 from being leaked to the outside as the exchange unit 6 is opened and closed.

  Here, like the heat treatment apparatus 200 shown in FIG. 20, the conventional heat treatment apparatus is not provided with the air nozzles 65, 66 and the like, and the replacement unit 6 and the heat treatment chamber 12 communicate with each other. Therefore, when the replacement unit 6 is opened in the heat treatment chamber 12 of the heat treatment apparatus 200 in a state where an air flow is generated as indicated by an arrow A, air flowing in the heat treatment chamber 12 as indicated by an arrow B in FIG. There is a possibility that an outside air is entrained on the upstream side in the flow direction, and an air flow is generated on the downstream side that discharges the generated gas, sublimate, etc. existing in the heat treatment chamber 12 as indicated by an arrow C. Therefore, when it is assumed that such an air flow is generated, in order to prevent leakage of generated gas, sublimate, and the like in the heat treatment chamber 12, the flow direction of the hot air flowing through the heat treatment chamber 12 is lower than the upstream side. It is desirable to form an air curtain that shuts off the replacement unit 6 and the heat treatment chamber 12 in the vicinity of the side. Therefore, for example, when the air nozzles 85 and 86 are provided as described above, the pressure of the air flow ejected from the air nozzle 86 disposed on the downstream side is set higher than that of the air nozzle 85, or the air ejected from the air nozzle 86 side. By increasing the amount from the amount of air ejected from the air nozzle 85 side, it is possible to reliably prevent the air flowing in the heat treatment chamber 12 from leaking outside.

  Further, the heat treatment apparatus 1 may have a configuration in which only one of the air nozzles 85 and 86 is provided. Here, when the replacement unit 6 is opened, if there is a concern that the entrainment of the outside air as occurs in the heat treatment apparatus 200 shown in FIG. 20 or the generated gas or sublimate generated in the heat treatment chamber 12 is discharged together with the hot air, By providing only the air nozzle 86 arranged on the downstream side in the flow direction of the hot air flowing in the chamber 12, it is possible to reliably prevent the generated gas and the sublimate from leaking out of the heat treatment chamber 12.

  As shown in FIG. 12, the heat treatment apparatus 1 is configured to combine air nozzles 65 and 66 and air nozzles 85 and 86, and to inject clean air from the four sides of the insertion hole 44c of the replacement unit 6 to form an air curtain. Also good. Further, the heat treatment apparatus 1 may be configured such that some of the air nozzles 65, 66, 85, and 86 are selected and combined and arranged around the insertion hole 44c. More specifically, the heat treatment apparatus 1 may have a configuration in which, for example, air nozzles 65, 66, and 86 are combined and arranged around the insertion hole 44c. Also with this configuration, it is possible to prevent the air, generated gas, sublimation, and the like from entering and leaving between the heat treatment chamber 12 and the replacement unit 6.

  Since the above-described heat treatment apparatus 1 has a configuration in which the mounting shelf 70 can move up and down in the heat treatment chamber 12, the substrate W is moved into and out of a predetermined stage of the mounting shelf 70 by moving the mounting shelf 70 up and down. It was something that could be done. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the heat treatment apparatus 1 may be configured such that the mounting shelf 70 does not move up and down in the heat treatment chamber 12.

  The heat treatment apparatus 1 may have a configuration in which a large number of replacement parts 6 are provided in accordance with the position of the stage for mounting the substrate W on the mounting shelf 70, and air nozzles 65 and 66 are arranged for each replacement part 6. Good. Further, the heat treatment apparatus 1 may be configured such that the replacement unit 6 moves up and down in accordance with the position where the substrate W should be taken in and out. In such a configuration, the air nozzles 65 and 66 move up and down in accordance with the vertical movement of the replacement unit 6, or the air nozzles 65 and 66 are arranged above and below the range in which the replacement unit 6 moves up and down. It is desirable to have a configuration.

  The heat treatment apparatus 1 described above forms an air curtain by disposing air nozzles 65 and 66 at the boundary portion between the replacement unit 6 and the heat treatment chamber 12 and suppresses the turbulence of the air flow accompanying the opening and closing of the replacement unit 6. 12 prevents the generated gas and sublimate generated in 12 from leaking out of the heat treatment chamber 12. However, the present invention is not limited to this. For example, like the heat treatment apparatus 100 shown in FIG. 13, hot air or generated gas that flows in the heat treatment chamber 12 in the shape of a blade at the boundary between the replacement unit 6 and the heat treatment chamber 12 is formed. It is good also as a structure which provided the guide plates 101 and 102 which guide the flow of this. Hereinafter, the heat treatment apparatus 100 will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. Since most of the heat treatment apparatus 100 has the same configuration as that of the heat treatment apparatus 1 described above, the same reference numerals are given to overlapping portions, and detailed description thereof is omitted.

  FIG. 13 is a plan view showing the internal structure of the heat treatment apparatus 100 according to the second embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 14 is a cutaway perspective view showing the structure in the vicinity of the replacement part of the heat treatment apparatus shown in FIG. 13 as observed from the heat treatment chamber side. FIG. 15A is a perspective view showing a guide plate adopted in the heat treatment apparatus shown in FIG. 13, and FIGS. 15B and 9C schematically show the relationship between the guide plate shown in FIG. FIG. FIG. 16 is a conceptual diagram schematically showing an air flow generated in the heat treatment apparatus shown in FIG. FIG. 17 is a plan view showing the internal structure of a heat treatment apparatus which is a modification of the heat treatment apparatus shown in FIGS. 1 and 13. 18 is a cutaway perspective view showing the structure in the vicinity of the replacement part of the heat treatment apparatus shown in FIG. 17 as observed from the heat treatment chamber side. FIG. 19 is a cross-sectional view showing a modification of the guide plate shown in FIG.

  The heat treatment apparatus 100 includes a replacement unit 6 having substantially the same configuration as the heat treatment apparatus 1 described above. As shown in FIGS. 13 and 14, the heat treatment apparatus 100 is arranged on the back side of the shielding plate 44 that forms the boundary between the replacement unit 6 and the heat treatment chamber 12 instead of the air nozzles 65 and 66 provided in the heat treatment apparatus 1 described above. The difference is that the guide plates 101 and 102 are provided.

  As shown in FIG. 15, the guide plates 101 and 102 are integrally formed with a fixed surface 103, a separating surface 105, a curved surface 106 (inclined surface), a blocking surface 107 and a brazing margin 108. The guide plates 101 and 102 are preferably made of a metal plate or a resin having heat resistance from the viewpoint of heat resistance or the like.

  The fixed surface 103 and the separation surface 105 are planar portions, respectively, and have a substantially parallel positional relationship. In the guide plates 101 and 102, a fixed surface 103 and a separation surface 105 are formed in a step shape via a curved surface 106. That is, there is a certain gradient between the fixed surface 103 and the separating surface 105. The curved surface 106 is a surface that gently connects the fixed surface 103 and the separation surface 105. The fixed surface 103 and the boundary portion between the separating surface 105 and the curved surface 106 are curved. The guide plates 101 and 102 have a substantially “S” cross-sectional shape in a portion extending from the fixed surface 103 to the curved surface 106 and the separating surface 105. That is, the guide plates 101 and 102 are streamlined by connecting the fixed surface 103, the curved surface 106, and the separating surface 105.

  The blocking surface 107 is a surface formed by folding the end portion of the separation surface 105 substantially vertically toward the fixed surface 103 side. As shown by the arrow B in FIG. 15B, hot air or generated gas that flows along the guide plate 101 wraps around the back surface of the separation surface 105 or the curved surface 106, or the blocking surface 107 has an arrow in FIG. As indicated by C, the hot air or generated gas flowing in the heat treatment chamber 12 is prevented from flowing into the separation surface 105 or the curved surface 106 of the guide plate 102. As a result, the hot air and generated gas flowing in the heat treatment chamber 12 flow along the surfaces of the guide plates 101 and 102 as shown by arrows A and D in FIGS. Here, in order to prevent the air or generated gas flowing in the heat treatment chamber 12 from flowing into the space behind the replacement unit 6, the width of the blocking surface 107, that is, the distance L between the fixed surface 103 and the separation surface 105 is set to In view of the size of the heat treatment chamber 12 and the like, it is desirable to make it as large as possible. A brazing margin 108 that is bent inward (to the curved surface 106 side) is provided at the end portion of the blocking surface 107.

  As shown in FIG. 14, the guide plates 101 and 102 are brazed so that the fixed surface 103 and the brazing margin 108 are in surface contact with the shielding plate 44. The guide plates 101 and 102 are fixed at positions adjacent to the left and right of the board insertion hole 44a. That is, the guide plates 101 and 102 are fixed at positions exposed in the heat treatment chamber 12. The guide plates 101 and 102 are fixed at positions adjacent to the upstream side and the downstream side, respectively, in the flow direction of hot air and product gas flowing in the heat treatment chamber 12 with respect to the substrate insertion hole 44a. Each of the guide plates 101 and 102 is fixed such that the fixed surface 103 faces the upstream or downstream side in the flow direction of the hot air containing the generated gas flowing in the heat treatment chamber 12 and the blocking surface 107 faces the replacement part 6 side. .

  As described above, the heat treatment apparatus 100 has the structure in which the guide plates 101 and 102 are provided, and is characterized by the flow of the generated gas generated by the hot air flowing in the heat treatment chamber 12 and the baking of the substrate W. More specifically, in the heat treatment apparatus 100, heated air is blown into the heat treatment chamber 12 from the blower unit 15 during the baking of the substrate W in the same manner as the heat treatment apparatus 1 described above. Therefore, an air flow is generated in the heat treatment chamber 12 from left to right as indicated by an arrow A in FIGS.

  The heat treatment apparatus 100 heats (fires) the substrate W by continuously taking it into and out of the heat treatment chamber 12. Therefore, in the heat treatment apparatus 100, as indicated by an arrow A in FIG. 16, the shutter 10 of the replacement unit 6 opens and closes while hot air flows in the heat treatment chamber 12, and the inside and outside of the heat treatment chamber 12 communicate with each other.

  Here, in the heat treatment apparatus 100, the airflow flowing upstream from the replacement unit 6 flows along the guide plate 101 as indicated by an arrow B in FIG. 16 and is guided in a direction away from the replacement unit 6. Further, the airflow guided by the guide plate 101 flows through a region where the flow changer 6 is provided on the downstream side of the position away from the changer 6 and reaches the guide plate 102 side. The airflow that has reached the guide plate 102 side flows along the surface of the guide plate 102. Therefore, in the heat treatment apparatus 100, as shown by hatching in FIG. 16, the replacement part 6 is in a substantially windless state.

  As described above, in the heat treatment apparatus 100, since the replacement unit 6 is in a state of almost no wind, even if the shutter 10 is opened and closed for taking in and out of the substrate W, turbulence of the air flow in the heat treatment chamber 12 hardly occurs. Therefore, the heat treatment apparatus 100 hardly causes problems such as entrainment of air from the outside to the inside of the heat treatment chamber 12 and leakage of gas such as air and sublimates in the heat treatment chamber 12.

  As described above, the curved surfaces 106 of the guide plates 101 and 102 move away from the replacement portion 6 as they approach the insertion hole 44 c from the upstream or downstream side in the hot air flow direction with respect to the insertion hole 44 c of the shielding plate 44. Inclined in the direction. Therefore, most of the hot air and generated gas flowing in the vicinity of the replacement section 6 are guided by the curved surface 106 and flow away from the replacement section 6.

  The guide plates 101 and 102 have a separating surface 105 that is continuous with the curved surface 106 and extends in a direction along the flow direction of the hot air flowing through the heat treatment chamber 12. Therefore, the flow of hot air and product gas is rectified by flowing along the separation surface 105. Further, since the guide plates 101 and 102 have the blocking surface 107, hot air and generated gas flowing along the curved surface 106 do not flow between the guide plates 101 and 102 and the shielding plate 44 of the replacement unit 6. For this reason, in the heat treatment apparatus 100 of the present embodiment, the vicinity of the replacement unit 6 is almost free of wind, and the generated gas, hot air, sublimation, etc. flowing in the heat treatment chamber 12 do not leak to the outside.

  As described above, the heat treatment apparatus 100 is provided with the guide plates 101 and 102 to suppress the turbulence of the airflow generated in the heat treatment chamber 12 as the shutter 10 of the replacement unit 6 is opened and closed. The invention is not limited to this. For example, air nozzles 65 and 66 and guide plates 101 and 102 are provided on the rear surface side (heat treatment chamber 12 side) of the shielding plate 44 as in the heat treatment apparatus 110 shown in FIGS. It may be arranged. According to such a configuration, even when the shutter 10 is opened and closed, it is possible to further reliably prevent a problem that hot air or sublimates containing generated gas flowing in the heat treatment chamber 12 leak to the outside.

  In the above embodiment, an example in which both the guide plates 101 and 102 are arranged on the back surface side of the shielding plate 44 is illustrated, but the present invention is not limited to this, for example, the flow of hot air flowing in the heat treatment chamber 12 The guide plate 102 disposed on the downstream side in the direction may be omitted.

  In each of the above embodiments, the air nozzles 65, 66, 85, 86 eject clean air, but the present invention is not limited to this, and the external air is ejected without particularly cleaning. It may be a thing, or may eject a gas different from air.

  Moreover, in the said embodiment, the air piping 68 which supplies clean air to the air nozzles 65 and 66 and the air nozzles 85 and 86 is branched into the branch flow paths 68a-68d on the back side of the heat processing chamber 12, and each is drawn around to the front side. Although the configuration is exemplified, the present invention is not limited to this. For example, the configuration is such that the air pipe 68 is routed to the front side of the heat treatment chamber 12 without branching and branched to the branch channels 68a to 68d on the front side. Also good. Moreover, in the said embodiment, although the structure which branches each of the branch flow paths 68a-68d by the branch pipe 69 was illustrated, this invention is not limited to this, The air piping 68 is provided in the upper and lower sides of the replacement part 6. FIG. The air nozzles 65 and 66 may be branched and connected thereto, or the air nozzles 65 and 66 may be configured as such. That is, an air ejection hole 67 may be provided in a pipe branched from the air pipe 68 on the front side of the heat treatment chamber 12, and this may be used as the air nozzles 65 and 66.

  The guide plates 101 and 102 exemplified in the above embodiment are each provided with the blocking surface 107 for preventing the air flowing in the heat treatment chamber 12 or the flow of the generated gas from flowing around to the back side. The present invention is not limited to this, and the blocking surface 107 may not be provided as shown in FIG. Further, the guide plates 101 and 102 may be configured not to have the separation surface 105 as shown in FIG. 19B, or may be configured not to include the fixed surface 103 and the separation surface 105 as shown in FIG. 19C. Good. Furthermore, it is good also as a structure which does not have the separation surface 105 in addition to the interruption | blocking surface 107 like FIG.19 (d).

  Moreover, although the said embodiment illustrated the structure which has arrange | positioned the guide plates 101 and 102 to both the upstream and downstream of the flow direction of the hot air which flows in the heat processing chamber 12, this invention is not limited to this. For example, the downstream guide plate 102 may be omitted.

  The heat treatment apparatuses 1, 100, and 110 of the above-described embodiment all take in and out the substrate W in a horizontal posture with respect to the heat treatment chamber 12, but the present invention is not limited to this, for example, the substrate It is good also as a structure which puts / removes W in the heat processing chamber 12 as the attitude | position which faces up and down. Also in the case of such a configuration, the air nozzles 65, 66, 85, 86 are provided as in the above embodiment, or the guide plate 101, 102 is provided to provide gas or sublimate when the shutter 10 of the replacement opening 6 is opened or closed. Etc. can be prevented from flowing out.

  In the above-described embodiment, the shielding plate 44 having the insertion hole 44c having the minimum size necessary for taking in and out of the substrate W is provided at the boundary between the replacement unit 6 and the heat treatment chamber 12, and adjacent to the insertion hole 44c of the shielding plate 44. The example which provided the air nozzles 65, 66, 85, 86 and the guide plates 101, 102 in the position to perform was illustrated. However, the present invention is not limited to this. For example, air nozzles 65, 66, 85, 86 and guide plates 101, 102 are provided at positions adjacent to the opening 50 of the partition wall 41 as a configuration without the shielding plate 44. It is good also as a structure. Further, the air nozzles 65, 66, 85, 86 and the guide plates 101, 102 may be provided at positions adjacent to the opening 40 of the peripheral wall 13d without forming the partition wall 41 and the duct 17.

It is a front view which shows the heat processing apparatus which is one Embodiment of this invention. It is a fracture | rupture perspective view which shows the internal structure of the heat processing apparatus shown in FIG. It is a top view which shows the internal structure of the heat processing apparatus shown in FIG. FIG. 4 is a conceptual diagram showing an outline of gas ejection means in the heat treatment apparatus shown in FIG. It is sectional drawing which shows the front side vicinity of the heat processing apparatus shown in FIG. (A) is a front view which shows a shielding board, (b) is the perspective view which showed typically the mode of the board | substrate taking in / out through the insertion hole of a shielding board. It is the A section enlarged view of FIG. It is a fractured perspective view which shows the structure of the replacement part vicinity of the heat processing apparatus shown in FIG. It is a fractured perspective view which shows the state which observed the structure of the exchange part vicinity of the heat processing apparatus shown in FIG. 1 from the heat processing chamber side. It is a conceptual diagram which shows typically the state of the airflow in the board | substrate vicinity at the time of putting in / out a board | substrate in the heat processing apparatus shown in FIG. It is a fracture | rupture perspective view which shows the state which observed the modification of the structure of the replacement | exchange part vicinity of the heat processing apparatus shown in FIG. 1 from the heat processing chamber side. It is a fracture | rupture perspective view which shows the state which observed another modification of the structure of the replacement | exchange part vicinity of the heat processing apparatus shown in FIG. 1 from the heat processing chamber side. It is a top view which shows the internal structure of the heat processing apparatus which is 2nd embodiment of this invention. It is a fracture | rupture perspective view which shows the state which observed the structure of the exchange part vicinity of the heat processing apparatus shown in FIG. 13 from the heat processing chamber side. (A) is a perspective view which shows the guide plate employ | adopted in the heat processing apparatus shown in FIG. 13, (b), (c) is a conceptual diagram which shows typically the relationship between the guide plate shown in (a), and an airflow. It is. It is the conceptual diagram which showed typically the air flow which generate | occur | produces in the heat processing apparatus shown in FIG. It is a top view which shows the internal structure of the heat processing apparatus which is a modification of the heat processing apparatus shown in FIG. 1 and FIG. It is the fracture | rupture perspective view which shows the state which observed the structure of the replacement part of the heat processing apparatus shown in FIG. 17 from the heat processing chamber side. It is sectional drawing which shows the modification of the guide plate shown in FIG. It is the conceptual diagram which showed typically the air flow which generate | occur | produces in the heat processing apparatus of a prior art.

Explanation of symbols

1, 100, 110, 200 Heat treatment apparatus 6 Replacement part 10 Shutter 12 Heat treatment chamber 14 Hot air supply means 40, 50 Opening 44 Shielding plate 44c Insertion hole 65, 66, 85, 86 Air nozzle (gas ejection means)
67 Air ejection hole 68 Air piping (gas supply piping)
101, 102 Guide plate 103 Fixed surface 105 Separating surface 106 Curved surface 107 Blocking surface X, Y region W Substrate (object to be heated)
H Virtual plane

Claims (14)

A hot air supply means for supplying hot air, a heat treatment chamber in which hot air generated in the hot air supply means is introduced and the object to be heated is heated by the hot air, and a replacement part for taking the object into and out of the heat treatment chamber Have
A gas flow is formed by ejecting a gas from both sides of the two regions divided by the heated object as the heated object passes through the exchange unit toward the boundary between the two regions. A heat treatment apparatus characterized by comprising gas jetting means capable of separating a region inside the heat treatment chamber from the gas flow and a region outside the region. The replacement part can take in and out the object to be heated in the direction intersecting the flow direction of the hot air flowing in the heat treatment chamber,
The heat treatment apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the dynamic pressure of the gas ejected from the gas ejection means is equal to or higher than the static pressure of the hot air flowing in the heat treatment chamber.   The heat treatment apparatus according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the gas jetting means is capable of jetting gas in a direction intersecting with a flow direction of hot air introduced into the heat treatment chamber.   The heat treatment apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the gas jetting means is capable of jetting gas in a direction along a flow direction of hot air introduced into the heat treatment chamber. Hot air supply means for supplying hot air, hot air generated in the hot air supply means is introduced, and a heat treatment chamber for heating the object to be heated by the hot air, and a direction intersecting the flow direction of the hot air flowing in the heat treatment chamber A replacement part capable of taking in and out the object to be heated, and a gas jetting means capable of jetting gas in a direction along a flow direction of hot air introduced into the heat treatment chamber,
A heat treatment apparatus, wherein the dynamic pressure of the gas ejected from the gas ejection means is equal to or higher than the static pressure of hot air flowing in the heat treatment chamber.   The heat treatment apparatus according to claim 4 or 5, wherein the gas jetting means is capable of jetting gas from the downstream side in the flow direction of the hot air introduced into the heat treatment chamber toward the upstream side.   7. A gas supply pipe for supplying gas to the gas jetting means, wherein the gas flowing through the gas supply pipe is heated by heat exchange with hot air flowing through the heat treatment chamber. The heat treatment apparatus as described.   The heat treatment apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 7, wherein the gas ejection means ejects gas at a boundary portion between the replacement part and the heat treatment chamber.   The replacement part has an opening communicating with the heat treatment chamber, and around the opening is provided guidance means for guiding the flow of hot air flowing in the heat treatment chamber in a direction away from the replacement part side. Item 9. The heat treatment apparatus according to any one of Items 1 to 8. A hot air supply means for supplying hot air, a heat treatment chamber in which hot air generated in the hot air supply means is introduced and the object to be heated is heated by the hot air, and a replacement part for taking the object into and out of the heat treatment chamber Have
The exchange part has an opening communicating with the heat treatment chamber, and around the opening is provided heat guiding means for guiding the flow of hot air flowing through the heat treatment chamber in a direction away from the exchange part side. apparatus. The guide means is arranged at a position adjacent to both the upstream side and the downstream side in the flow direction of the hot air with respect to the opening of the replacement part,
10. An inclined surface that separates from the replacement part side toward the heat treatment chamber side as it approaches the opening side from the upstream side and the downstream side in the hot air flow direction with respect to the opening of the replacement part. Or the heat treatment apparatus according to 10.   The heat treatment apparatus according to claim 11, wherein the guide means has a separation surface that is continuous with the inclined surface and spreads in a direction along a flow direction of the hot air.   The guide means has a blocking surface that extends in a direction intersecting the inclined surface and shields a space formed between the guide means and the replacement part. Heat treatment equipment.   The heat treatment apparatus according to claim 9, wherein the guiding means is curved.

Images