JP2006053582A - System for manufacturing bonded substrate - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a system for manufacturing a bonded substrate with which defective manufacture of a bonded substrate is reduced. <P>SOLUTION: When the pressure in a vacuum chamber 71 is at the atmospheric level, upper and lower flat plates 72a, 72b respectively suck and hold substrates W1, W2 through vacuum suction. When the vacuum chamber 71 is depressurized, a voltage is applied to the respective flat plates 72a, 72b so as to make them electrostatically suck and hold the associated substrates. In switching from the atmospheric pressure to the reduced pressure, the back pressure for sucking and holding the substrates W1, W2 is made to be equal to the pressure in the vacuum chamber 71. This prevents the substrates W1, W2 from falling or from moving and defective bonding of the substrates W1, W2 to each other is reduced. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2006,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to a bonded substrate manufacturing system for bonding two substrates such as a liquid crystal display (LCD).

  In recent years, the area of a panel such as an LCD has increased with the expansion of the display area. In addition, the number of pixels per unit area is increasing for fine display. For this reason, in the bonding apparatus which manufactures the panel which bonded two board | substrates, while handling a big board | substrate, exact alignment is requested | required.

  FIG. 35 is a partial plan view of a liquid crystal display panel, and shows a part of an upper surface of an active matrix liquid crystal display panel using TFTs (thin film transistors) as switching elements when viewed from the color filter substrate side.

  In the liquid crystal display panel 10, a plurality of pixel regions 12 arranged in a matrix are formed on the array substrate 11 side, and a TFT 13 is formed in each pixel region 12. The plurality of pixel areas 12 constitute an image display area 14. Although not shown in detail, the gate electrode of the TFT 13 in each pixel region 12 is connected to the gate line, the drain electrode is connected to the data line, and the source electrode is connected to the pixel electrode formed in the pixel region 12. It is connected. The plurality of data lines and gate lines are connected to a terminal portion 15 formed on the outer periphery of the array substrate 11 and connected to a drive circuit (not shown) provided outside.

  A color filter (CF) substrate 16 that is formed to be smaller than the array substrate 11 by the area of the terminal portion 15 is provided so as to face the array substrate 11 by sealing the liquid crystal with a predetermined cell thickness (cell gap). Yes. The CF substrate 16 includes a common electrode (common electrode; not shown), a color filter (indicated by letters R (red), G (green), and B (blue) in the drawing) and Cr (chrome). A light shielding film (black matrix: BM) 17 using a film or the like is formed. The BM 17 is used to define a plurality of pixel regions 12 in the display region 14 to increase the contrast, and to shield the TFTs 13 and prevent the occurrence of light leakage current. Further, the BM frame portion 18 is provided to shield unnecessary light from the outside of the display area 14. The array substrate 11 and the CF substrate 16 are bonded together with a sealing material 19 containing a thermosetting resin.

  By the way, the manufacturing process of the liquid crystal display device is roughly classified into an array process for forming a wiring pattern, a switching element (in the case of an active matrix type) and the like on a glass substrate, an alignment process, arrangement of spacers, and an opposing glass substrate. It consists of a cell process for enclosing liquid crystal in between and a module process for mounting a driver IC, mounting a backlight, and the like.

  Among these, in the liquid crystal injection process performed in the cell process, for example, the array substrate 11 on which the TFT 13 is formed and the CF substrate (counter substrate) 16 facing the array substrate 11 are bonded together via the seal material 19, and then the seal material 19 is attached. Harden. Next, the liquid crystal and the substrates 11 and 16 are placed in a vacuum chamber, and an injection port (not shown) opened in the sealing material 19 is immersed in the liquid crystal. And a method of sealing the injection port (vacuum injection method) has been used.

  On the other hand, in recent years, for example, a prescribed amount of liquid crystal is dropped on the substrate surface in the frame of the sealing material 19 formed in a frame shape around the array substrate 11, and the array substrate 11 and the CF substrate 16 are bonded together in a vacuum. Attention has been focused on the dropping injection method in which liquid crystal is sealed. Compared with the vacuum injection method, this dripping injection method has advantages such as drastically reducing the amount of liquid crystal material used and shortening the liquid crystal injection time, which can reduce the manufacturing cost of the panel and improve the mass productivity. It has sex.

By the way, the manufacturing apparatus by the conventional dripping method has the following problems.
[1: Substrate deformation, display failure, and suction failure]
The substrate is held by using a vacuum chuck, an electrostatic chuck, or a mechanical chuck.

  In the substrate holding by the vacuum chuck, the substrate is placed on the suction surface on the parallel surface plate, and the back surface of the substrate is vacuumed and fixed. For example, the array substrate is held by this holding method, and an appropriate amount of liquid crystal is dropped onto the surface of the array substrate on which a sealing material is formed in a frame shape by a dispenser or the like. Next, the CF substrate is positioned in a vacuum atmosphere and bonded to the array substrate.

  However, when the substrate is held by a vacuum chuck, if the degree of vacuum is increased to some extent, the vacuum chuck will not function, so that the degree of vacuum in the processing chamber during substrate bonding cannot be sufficiently increased. Accordingly, it becomes impossible to apply a sufficient bonding pressure to both the substrates, and it becomes difficult to uniformly bond both the substrates. This causes a display defect.

  Further, in the mechanical chuck, since the substrate is held using a claw or a ring, stress is applied only to the holding portion, thereby causing deformation such as warpage or deflection in the substrate. For this reason, it becomes impossible to hold both substrates in parallel when bonding the substrates after dropping the liquid crystal. When the two substrates are bonded together in a deformed state, the positional deviation increases, causing problems such as a decrease in the aperture ratio of each pixel and light leakage from the light shielding portion.

  The substrate holding by the electrostatic chuck is performed by applying a voltage between the electrode formed on the parallel surface plate and the conductive film formed on the glass substrate to generate a Coulomb force between the glass and the electrode. To adsorb. In this method, glow discharge occurs in the middle of depressurization from atmospheric pressure to two types of substrates (glass substrate and CF substrate) held facing each other for bonding the substrates, thereby causing a circuit on the substrate and There exists a problem that a TFT element is damaged and a defect occurs. In addition, air may remain between the electrostatic chuck and the substrate, and the substrate may be detached from the electrostatic chuck in the process of reducing the pressure from the atmospheric pressure.

[2: Liquid crystal degradation and substrate misalignment]
In the conventional vacuum injection method and drop injection method, a photocuring resin or a light + thermosetting resin is used for the sealing material in order to cure the sealing material in a short time. For this reason, the liquid crystal display device has a problem in that display unevenness occurs when the sealing material and the liquid crystal are in contact with each other. One of the causes is that the liquid crystal in the vicinity of the sealing material is irradiated with UV light irradiated to cure the sealing material.

  In the manufacturing process, the injected liquid crystal comes into contact with the uncured sealing material. The uncured sealing material may elute its components and contaminate the liquid crystal material. For this reason, when strong UV light is irradiated to quickly cure the sealing material, the liquid crystal is irradiated with UV light diffused by the substrate or the like.

  In general, when the liquid crystal material is irradiated with UV light, the characteristics of the liquid crystal, particularly the specific resistance, tend to decrease, and the high voltage holding ratio required for LCDs using TFTs cannot be maintained. Thereby, since the driving voltage of the liquid crystal cell is different from that of the portion not irradiated with UV light (the center portion of the panel), display unevenness occurs. This display unevenness is particularly noticeable in halftone display.

  In order to prevent contact between the liquid crystal and the uncured sealing material, it is conceivable to provide a frame-like spacer 20 on the periphery of the substrates 11 and 16 as shown in FIGS. However, in this structure, when liquid crystal 21 having an amount larger than the amount satisfying the frame spacer 20 is dropped at the time of liquid crystal injection, excess liquid crystal protrudes from the frame spacer 20 as shown in FIG. In contact with the uncured sealing material 19.

  In the panel provided with the frame-like spacer 20, when the processing chamber is opened to the atmosphere after the substrates are bonded, the atmospheric pressure acts uniformly on the entire surface of the substrate. For this reason, the center of the substrate 16 is recessed, and as a result, the frame spacer 20 is lifted, and the liquid crystal 21 comes into contact with the sealing material 19. Note that “·” in FIG. 37 indicates the dropping position of the liquid crystal 21.

  In addition, stress due to waviness or warpage inherent to the substrate tends to remain during curing. For this reason, when light + thermosetting resin is used as the sealing material, if the substrate is heat-treated after being cured by light, the stress is released at that time and the substrate is displaced.

  Also, two substrates facing each other due to changes in environment, changes in the state of the substrate, or instability of the substrate posture during gap formation after the substrate is bonded in vacuum and released to the atmosphere. Misalignment due to bonding or substrate distortion occurs between the substrates, or a gap defect occurs. For this reason, it has the problem that it is difficult to make a stable product.

[3: Cell thickness variation and effect on substrate]
In order to disperse the liquid crystal uniformly in both substrate surfaces in the dropping injection process, it is necessary to drop liquid crystal on the substrate surface by using a dispenser or the like. However, the amount of liquid crystal dropped per surface of the substrate is very small. When the dropping positions are dispersed at many points, an extremely small amount of liquid crystal must be dropped accurately. However, environmental changes such as temperature at the time of dropping cause changes in the viscosity and volume of the liquid crystal, or variations in the performance of the dropping device (dispenser), and thereby the liquid crystal dropping amount fluctuates. As a result, the cell thickness varies between the two substrates.

  FIG. 38 is a cross-sectional view taken in a direction perpendicular to the liquid crystal panel surface, and shows an example of variation in cell thickness. FIG. 38A shows a state in which a desired cell thickness is obtained by optimal liquid crystal dropping. In FIG. 38, the array substrate 11 and the CF substrate 16 are bonded together by a sealing material 19, and a predetermined cell thickness is secured by beads 23 as spacers.

  However, when the amount of liquid crystal dripping increases, as shown in FIG. 38B, the sealing material 19 cannot be pressed to the target gap due to excess liquid crystal, and display unevenness occurs around the panel (around the frame portion). End up. Further, when the liquid crystal dripping amount increases, as shown in FIG. 38 (c), the phenomenon that the center portion of the panel swells more than the sealing material causing the press failure occurs, resulting in display unevenness on the entire surface. Produce.

[4: Poor contact during bonding]
In the drip injection bonding operation in vacuum, if the mutual alignment mark is not captured in the same field of view of the camera without touching the liquid crystal dropped on one substrate, the liquid crystal is dragged during alignment alignment, Contact with the sealing material will occur.

  In general, the bonding accuracy of a liquid crystal display panel requires high alignment accuracy on the order of several μm, and a micron-sized alignment mark is formed on the substrate. A lens having a long focal length is necessary to simultaneously capture the images of the alignment marks formed on the two substrates that are separated from each other, but such a lens has a complicated structure and cannot be easily realized. This makes it difficult to perform stable bonding in a vacuum and causes a substrate defect.

[5: Uneven press pressure]
In a bonding process in which pressure is applied while ensuring a stable cell thickness, maintaining parallelism between opposing substrates and equal load pressing are important management factors. Although dripping injection bonding, which is actually attracting attention, is performed in a vacuum processing chamber, since an apparatus such as a hydraulic cylinder for pressing is outside the processing chamber, that is, in the atmosphere, the atmospheric pressure corresponding to the introduction cross-sectional area thereof is high. Join the press surface. For this reason, when the pressure to be pressed is controlled by a value obtained in advance by experiments (for example, the relative value of the push-in amount and the force), the same pressure cannot be applied to the substrate due to deterioration or change in equipment, and reproducibility. There is a problem that press failure occurs due to disappearance.

  The present invention has been made to solve the above problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide a bonded substrate manufacturing system that can reduce manufacturing defects of bonded substrates.

  In order to achieve the above object, according to the first aspect of the present invention, in order to carry in the first and second substrates in a bonded substrate manufacturing system in which the first and second substrates are bonded together in a reduced pressure processing chamber. A first preliminary vacuum chamber including the first gate valve, and the processing chamber connected to the first preliminary vacuum chamber via a second gate valve.

  According to a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided a fourth gate valve that is connected to the processing chamber via a third gate valve and includes a fourth gate valve for carrying out the first and second substrates after bonding. Further provided are two preliminary vacuum chambers.

According to a third aspect of the invention, there is further provided a loading robot for loading the first and second substrates into the first preliminary vacuum chamber.
According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, pretreatment is performed on the first and second substrates carried in the first preliminary vacuum chamber.

In the invention according to claim 5, the pretreatment is at least one of gas treatment, heat treatment, and plasma treatment.
According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, in order to bond the first and second substrates to the first preliminary vacuum chamber, a liquid is dropped on at least one of the first and second substrates. Liquid dropping means is provided.

In a seventh aspect of the invention, the second preliminary vacuum chamber is provided with substrate curing means for irradiating and curing the sealing materials of the bonded first and second substrates.
In the invention according to claim 8, a plurality of the first preliminary vacuum chambers are provided in parallel.

In a ninth aspect of the present invention, a seal drawing device is provided on the input side of the first preliminary vacuum chamber to apply a sealant to the first or second substrate.
According to a tenth aspect of the present invention, in the bonded substrate manufacturing system in which the first and second substrates are bonded together in a reduced pressure processing chamber, the first preliminary vacuum chamber having the first gate and the second gate is provided, The first and second substrates after bonding from the processing chamber are loaded into the first preliminary vacuum chamber via the first gate, and the second gate is connected to the first preliminary vacuum chamber. It is carried in through.

  According to an eleventh aspect of the present invention, the apparatus further includes a second preliminary vacuum chamber including a third gate for carrying the first and second substrates into the input side of the processing chamber, The first and second substrates are carried out into the processing chamber through a fourth gate.

In a twelfth aspect of the present invention, the apparatus further includes a loading robot for unloading the first and second substrates from the first preliminary vacuum chamber.
In a thirteenth aspect of the present invention, the first preliminary vacuum chamber is provided with substrate curing means for irradiating and curing the sealing materials of the bonded first and second substrates.

  According to the fourteenth aspect of the present invention, in the bonded substrate manufacturing system in which the first and second substrates are bonded together in the decompressed processing chamber, the image of the first or second substrate and the reference image captured by the imaging device To measure the amount of deviation of the first or second substrate, correct the position of the first or second substrate based on the amount of deviation, and adjust the first or second substrate. It is carried into the processing chamber.

In the invention according to claim 15, the shift amount is a shift in the in-plane rotational direction which is a horizontal direction in the transport direction.
In the invention described in claim 16, the deviation amount is corrected on a stage.

In the invention described in claim 17, the correction of the deviation amount is performed in a transport device that transports the first or second substrate.
In the invention described in claim 18, the amount of deviation is output to a conveyance device that conveys the first or second substrate, and the conveyance device carries the substrate at a transfer distance corresponding to the amount of deviation.

  According to the present invention, it is possible to reduce manufacturing defects of a bonded substrate.

Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS.
FIG. 1 is a schematic configuration diagram of a bonded substrate manufacturing apparatus that performs a liquid crystal injection and bonding process in a cell process among the manufacturing processes of a liquid crystal display device.

  The bonded substrate manufacturing apparatus manufactures a liquid crystal display panel by sealing a liquid crystal between two types of supplied substrates W1 and W2. The liquid crystal display panel created by the apparatus of the present embodiment is an active matrix liquid crystal display panel. The first substrate W1 is an array substrate on which TFTs are formed, the second substrate W2 is a color filter, This is a color filter substrate on which a light shielding film or the like is formed. These substrates W1 and W2 are created and supplied by respective processes.

  The bonded substrate manufacturing apparatus 30 includes a control device 31, a seal drawing device 32, a liquid crystal dropping device 33, a bonding device 34, and an inspection device 35 that are controlled by the control device 31. The laminating device 34 includes a press device 36 and a curing device 37, and the devices 36 and 37 are controlled by the control device 31.

  Moreover, the bonded substrate manufacturing apparatus 30 includes transport devices 38a to 38d that transport the supplied substrates W1 and W2. The control device 31 controls the transfer devices 38a to 38d and the transfer robot, and transfers the substrates W1 and W2 and the bonded substrate manufactured thereby.

  The first and second substrates W1 and W2 are supplied to the seal drawing device 32. The seal drawing device 32 applies a seal material in a frame shape to a predetermined position along the periphery on the upper surface of one of the first and second substrates W1, W2 (for example, the glass substrate W1). As the sealing material, an adhesive containing at least a photo-curable adhesive is used. The substrates W1 and W2 are supplied to the transport device 38a, and the transport device 38a transports the substrates W1 and W2 to the liquid crystal dropping device 33 as a set.

  The liquid crystal dropping device 33 drops liquid crystal to a plurality of predetermined predetermined positions on the upper surface of the substrate W1 coated with the sealing material among the conveyed substrates W1 and W2. The substrate W1 and the substrate W2 onto which the liquid crystal has been drip are transported to the press device 36 by the transport device 38b.

  The press device 36 includes a vacuum chamber, and a chuck that holds the substrates W1 and W2 by suction is provided in the chamber. The press device 36 sucks and holds the loaded substrates W1 and W2 on the lower chuck and the upper chuck, respectively, and then evacuates the chamber. The press device 36 supplies a predetermined gas into the chamber. The supplied gas is a replacement gas containing a reactive gas such as an excitation gas for a plasma display panel (PDP) and an inert gas such as nitrogen gas. With these gases, pretreatment is performed in which impurities and products adhering to the surface of the substrate and the display element are exposed to a reaction gas and a replacement gas for a certain period of time.

  This treatment maintains and stabilizes the properties of the bonding surface that cannot be opened after bonding. As for the 1st and 2nd board | substrates W1 and W2, films | membranes, such as an oxide film, generate | occur | produce on those surfaces, or the suspended | floating matter in air adheres, and the surface state changes. Since the change in this state is different for each substrate, a stable panel cannot be manufactured. Therefore, these processes suppress film formation and adhesion of impurities, and process the adhered impurities to suppress changes in the state of the substrate surface, thereby stabilizing the panel quality.

  Next, the press device 36 optically aligns both the substrates W1 and W2 using the alignment mark (without bringing the lower surface of the substrate W2 into contact with the sealing material and the liquid crystal on the upper surface of the substrate W1). Do. Thereafter, the pressing device 36 applies a predetermined pressure to both the substrates W1 and W2 to press them to a predetermined cell thickness. Then, the press device 36 opens the inside of the vacuum chamber to the atmosphere.

  The control device 31 monitors the passage of time from the loading of the first and second substrates W1 and W2, and exposes the first and second substrates W1 and W2 to the gas supplied into the press device 36. (Time from loading to pasting) is controlled. Thereby, the property of the bonding surface which cannot be opened after bonding is maintained and stabilized.

  The transport device 38 c takes out the bonded liquid crystal panel from the press device 36 and transports it to the curing device 37. At this time, the control device 31 monitors the elapse of time after pressing the liquid crystal panel, and when the predetermined time elapses, drives the conveyance device 38c to supply the substrate to the curing device 37. The curing device 37 irradiates the conveyed liquid crystal panel with light having a predetermined wavelength to cure the sealing material.

  That is, the bonded liquid crystal panel is irradiated with light for curing the sealing material after a predetermined time has passed since the press. This predetermined time is obtained in advance by experiments based on the diffusion rate of the liquid crystal and the time required to release the stress remaining on the substrate by pressing.

  The liquid crystal sealed between the substrates W1 and W2 by the pressing device 36 is diffused by pressing and opening to the atmosphere. The diffusion of the liquid crystal is completed, that is, before the liquid crystal diffuses to the seal material, the seal material is cured.

  Further, the substrates W1 and W2 are deformed by pressurization or the like in a press. Since the liquid crystal panel being transported by the transport device 38c is not cured, the stress remaining on the substrates W1 and W2 is released. Accordingly, since the residual stress is small when the sealing material is cured, the positional deviation is suppressed.

  The liquid crystal panel on which the sealing material is cured is transported to the inspection device 35 by the transport device 38d. The inspection device 35 measures the positional deviation (the direction of deviation and the amount of deviation) of the substrates W1 and W2 of the conveyed liquid crystal panel, and outputs the measured value to the control device 31.

  The control device 31 corrects the alignment in the press device 36 based on the inspection result of the inspection device 35. That is, the positional deviation of the next manufactured liquid crystal panel is prevented by shifting in advance the amount of deviation of both the substrates W1, W2 in the liquid crystal panel in which the sealing material is cured.

Next, the configuration and control of the devices 33 to 37 and the transfer devices 38a to 38d will be described.
First, the configuration of the conveying devices 38a and 38b will be described with reference to FIG.
The transport device 38a includes a slider 41, and is configured to transport the tray 42 containing the substrates W1 and W2 along the transport direction. Each substrate W1, W2 is formed with electrodes on one surface together with TFTs, color filters, etc., and is stored in the tray 42 with the surface on which the electrodes are formed facing up to protect them. Further, identification information (for example, barcodes) I1 and I2 for distinguishing types is attached to both the substrates W1 and W2.

  Thus, the production efficiency is improved by transporting the two types of substrates W1 and W2 as a set. Since the substrates W1 and W2 are supplied through different processes, in the state where only one of the substrates is supplied, each process in the bonding process is interrupted, resulting in poor production efficiency. For this reason, the required substrates W1 and W2 are supplied as a set, so that the processing efficiency is improved without interruption of processing.

  The transport device 38 b includes a slider 43 that transports the tray 42 and transport robots 44 and 45. The transport device 38b transports the tray 42 along a predetermined transport direction by the slider 43, and receives both the substrates W1 and W2 by the transport robots 44 and 45. Further, the transfer robot reverses the top of either one of the substrates W1 and W2 (the substrate W2 to which the sealing material is not applied in this embodiment), and opposes the surface on which the electrodes of both the substrates W1 and W2 are formed. Let Then, the transfer robots 44 and 45 carry the opposed substrates W1 and W2 into the press device 36.

  The control device 31 includes ID readers 46 and 47, a transport side controller 48, and a robot side controller 49. When both the substrates W1 and W2 are transported, their identification information is read by the ID readers 46 and 47 and transmitted to the controller 48. The controller 48 determines the substrate that needs to be reversed based on the respective identification information, and transmits the determination result to the robot-side controller 49.

  The robot-side controller 49 receives the substrates W1 and W2 by the transfer robots 44 and 45, respectively, and drives the transfer robot 45 that has received the substrate W2 based on the determination result received from the controller 48 to invert the substrate W2. Let Further, the controller 49 carries the substrates W1 and W2 opposed to each other by driving and controlling the transfer robots 44 and 45 into the press device 36.

Next, the liquid crystal dropping device 33 will be described with reference to FIGS.
FIG. 3 is a plan view showing a schematic configuration of the liquid crystal dropping device 33.
The liquid crystal dropping device 33 includes a dispenser 51, a moving mechanism 52, a control device 53, and a measuring device 54. The dispenser 51 is supported by a moving mechanism 52 so as to be horizontally movable, and is filled with liquid crystal.

  The control device 53 accurately drops the liquid crystal on the substrate W1 transported in response to the control signal from the control device 31 of FIG. More specifically, the control device 53 controls the liquid crystal in the dispenser 51 at a constant temperature. The control device 53 controls the moving mechanism 52 to move the dispenser 51 to a plurality of predetermined positions on the upper surface of the substrate W1, which is transported, and injects liquid crystal onto the substrate W1. In addition, the control device 53 controls the moving mechanism 52 to move the dispenser 51 onto the measuring device 54 and to drop liquid crystal on the measuring device 54. The measuring device 54 measures the weight of the dropped liquid crystal and outputs the measurement result to the control device 53. Based on the measurement result, the control device 53 adjusts the control amount of the dispenser 51 so that a certain amount of liquid crystal is dropped. Thereby, while suppressing the temperature change of a liquid crystal and adjusting the control amount of the dispenser 51 according to the change of an environment, a fixed amount of liquid crystal is always dripped.

FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram for explaining the configuration of the dispenser 51.
As shown in FIG. 4A, the dispenser 51 includes a substantially cylindrical syringe 55 filled with the liquid crystal LC, and the control device 53 of FIG. A predetermined amount of liquid crystal LC is dropped from the nozzle 57 at the tip.

  The dispenser 51 is provided with a heater 58 for heating the liquid crystal LC filled in the syringe 55. The heater 58 is formed in a substantially annular shape along the outer shape of the syringe 55. In the syringe 55, a thermocouple 59 for measuring the temperature of the liquid crystal LC is provided near the tip. The heater 58 and the thermocouple 59 are connected to a temperature controller 60 provided in the control device 53 of FIG. The temperature controller 60 controls the heater 58 so as to keep the temperature of the liquid crystal LC constant based on the temperature of the liquid crystal LC measured based on the signal from the thermocouple 59.

  The syringe 55 is provided with a rotary valve 61. The rotary valve 61 includes a rotating body 61a provided so as to be vertically rotatable along a plane passing through an axis of the syringe 55 (a vertical center line in the drawing). As shown in FIG. 4B, a communication hole 61b having an inner diameter substantially the same as the inner diameter of the syringe 55 is formed in the rotating body 61a. The rotary position of the rotary valve 61 is controlled by the control device 53 shown in FIG.

  That is, the control device 53 rotates the rotating body 61a so that the center line of the communication hole 61b coincides with that of the syringe 55, so that the upper portion and the distal end portion of the syringe 55 are substantially straight pipes (the inner wall is linearly continuous). Tube). Thereby, the pressure of the plunger 56 is transmitted to the tip of the syringe 55 without loss, and the liquid crystal LC is dropped from the nozzle 57 at the tip by the pressure.

  In addition, the control device 53 rotates the rotating body 61 a so that the center line of the communication hole 61 b is substantially orthogonal to that of the syringe 55, for example, so that the upper portion and the distal end portion of the syringe 55 do not communicate with each other. This prevents air from entering the syringe 55 from the nozzle 57 at the tip when the pressure by the plunger 56 is decreased or the plunger 56 is raised. Thereby, the liquid crystal LC from which bubbles are completely removed can be dropped.

  Further, the rotary valve 61 enables automatic supply of the liquid crystal LC. That is, one of the pipes is connected between the plunger 56 and the rotary valve 61, and the other pipe is connected to a container filled with liquid crystal. When the rotary valve 61 is closed and the plunger 56 is raised, the liquid crystal LC is supplied from the container into the syringe 55. Therefore, by closing the rotary valve 61, bubbles can be prevented from entering from the nozzle 57 at the tip, and the liquid crystal LC can be automatically supplied. Thereby, continuous operation becomes possible.

  In place of the rotary valve 61, a valve configured to move a valve body in which a through-hole having an inner diameter substantially the same as the inner diameter of the syringe 55 is formed in a vertical direction may be used. Good.

  Further, an air nozzle 62 and a suction port 63 are provided in the vicinity of the nozzle 57 of the syringe 55 so as to face each other with the nozzle 57 interposed therebetween. The air nozzle 62 is connected to a compressor or the like, and is formed long in the lateral direction so as to form an air curtain perpendicular to the discharge direction of the liquid crystal LC. By this air nozzle 62, the liquid crystal LC adhering to the vicinity of the tip of the nozzle 57 is blown off. As a result, the liquid crystal LC to be ejected drops is prevented from adhering to the periphery of the tip and impairing subsequent ejection accuracy.

  The suction port 63 is connected to a vacuum pump or the like and is formed so as to collect air ejected from the air nozzle 62. The liquid crystal LC that has been ejected by air is collected through the suction port 63. This prevents the liquid crystal LC from adhering to the ejection surface (the upper surface of the substrate W1).

  The controller 53 remains in the vicinity of the tip of the nozzle 57 by the air nozzle 62 and the suction port 63 during the dropping of the liquid crystal LC (during dropping of the liquid crystal LC at a predetermined position and then moving to the next dropping position). Collect the liquid crystal LC. In this way, it is possible to prevent contamination of the discharge surface and control the discharge amount with high accuracy.

In addition, it is good also as a structure which provides only the suction inlet 63 in the dispenser 51, and also in such a structure, the precision of the contamination prevention of a discharge surface and discharge amount control can be improved.
FIG. 5 is an explanatory diagram for explaining the configuration of the measuring device 54.

  The measuring device 54 is, for example, an electronic balance, measures the weight of the liquid crystal LC dropped from the dispenser 51, and outputs the measured value to the control device 53. The control device 53 includes a CPU 64, a pulse oscillator 65, and a motor driver 66.

  The CPU 64 outputs a control signal corresponding to the amount of liquid crystal LC dropped from the dispenser 51 to the pulse oscillator 65, and the pulse oscillator 65 outputs a pulse signal generated in response to the control signal to the motor driver 66. The motor driver 66 generates a drive signal for the motor 67 in response to the input pulse signal. For example, a pulse motor is used as the motor 67, and the plunger 56 is moved downward or upward in response to the drive signal in response to the pulse of the drive signal. The liquid crystal LC is dropped by moving the plunger 56 downward. That is, the dropping amount of the liquid crystal LC corresponds to the movement amount of the plunger 56.

  Therefore, the CPU 64 inputs the measurement value of the measuring device 54 and thereby calculates the dropping amount of the liquid crystal LC. Then, the CPU 64 corrects the control signal supplied to the pulse oscillator 65 so that the dropping amount is constant. This prevents the discharge state and amount from becoming unstable due to fluctuations in the liquid crystal LC state (viscosity, etc.) and the amount of movement of the plunger 56 (sliding resistance, tone of the motor 67, etc.), and automatically and continuously. Liquid crystal discharge becomes possible.

Next, loading of the substrates W1 and W2 into the press device 36 will be described.
FIG. 6 is an explanatory view of board loading.
The press device 36 includes a vacuum chamber 71. The vacuum chamber 71 is divided into upper and lower parts, and includes an upper container 71a and a lower container 71b. The upper container 71a is supported by an activation mechanism (not shown) so as to be movable in the vertical direction.

  In the chamber, an upper flat plate 72a and a lower flat plate 72b are provided for adsorbing the substrates W1 and W2, and the upper flat plate 72a is supported by a moving mechanism (not shown) so as to be vertically movable. On the other hand, the lower flat plate 72b is supported by a moving mechanism (not shown) so as to be movable in the horizontal direction (XY axis direction) and supported so as to be capable of horizontal rotation (θ direction).

  The press device 36 is provided with lift pins 73 supported so as to be movable up and down. The substrate W1 carried in by the transport robot 44 is received by the lift pins 73 that have been lifted. Then, the lift pins 73 are lowered to place the substrate W1 on the lower flat plate 72b. Then, the substrate W1 is sucked and fixed to the lower flat plate 72b by a method described later.

  The press device 36 is provided with a delivery arm 74. The substrate W2 carried in by the transport robot 45 is once delivered to the delivery arm 74. The substrate W2 is adsorbed and fixed to the upper flat plate 72a by a method described later.

  In the upper flat plate 72a and the lower flat plate 72b, the surfaces for adsorbing and fixing the substrates W2 and W1 are processed to have a flatness of 100 μm or less. Further, the parallelism of the suction surfaces of the flat plates 72a and 72b is adjusted to 50 μm or less.

Next, a configuration for adsorbing and fixing the substrates W1 and W2 will be described.
FIG. 7 is a schematic configuration diagram illustrating an adsorption mechanism of the press device 36.
The upper flat plate 72a includes a rear holding plate 75a and an electrostatic chuck portion 76a attached to the lower surface thereof. Further, the upper flat plate 72a is formed with a suction conduit 77a for vacuum suction of the substrate W2. The suction pipe line 77a includes a plurality of suction holes formed on the lower surface of the electrostatic chuck portion 76a, a horizontal pipe line communicating with the suction holes formed in the rear holding plate 75a along the horizontal direction, and a horizontal pipe line. It is comprised from the several exhaust passage extended upwards. The adsorption pipe line 77a is connected to a vacuum pump 79a via a pipe 78a. A pipe 80 a is provided in the middle of the pipe 78 a, and the valve 80 a is connected to the control device 84.

  The piping 78a is connected to an isobaric piping 81a that communicates the inside of the piping 78a and the chamber 71, and the isobaric piping 81a is provided with a valve 82a. Further, a pressure sensor 83 a for measuring the pressure in the pipe 78 a is provided in the pipe 78 a, and the pressure sensor 83 a is connected to the control device 84.

  Similarly, the lower flat plate 72b includes a rear holding plate 75b and an electrostatic chuck portion 76b attached to the lower surface thereof. Further, an adsorption pipe line 77b for vacuum adsorbing the substrate W2 is formed on the lower flat plate 72b. The suction pipe line 77b includes a plurality of suction holes formed on the lower surface of the electrostatic chuck portion 76b, a horizontal pipe line communicating with the suction holes formed in the rear holding plate 75b along the horizontal direction, and a horizontal pipe line. It is comprised from the several exhaust path extended below. The adsorption pipe line 77b is connected to a vacuum pump 79b via a pipe 78b. A pipe 80 b is provided in the middle of the pipe 78 b, and the valve 80 b is connected to the control device 84.

  The piping 78b is connected to an isobaric piping 81b that communicates the inside of the piping 78b and the chamber 71, and the isobaric piping 81b is provided with a valve 82b. Further, a pressure sensor 83b for measuring the pressure in the pipe 78b is provided in the pipe 78b, and the pressure sensor 83b is connected to the control device 84.

  The chamber 71 is connected to a vacuum pump 86 via a pipe 85 for evacuating the chamber 71, and a valve 87 is provided in the middle of the pipe 85. The valve 87 is controlled to be opened and closed by the control device 84, thereby evacuating the chamber 71 or opening it to the atmosphere. A pressure sensor 88 for measuring the pressure in the chamber 71 is provided in the chamber 71, and the pressure sensor 88 is connected to the control device 84.

  The controller 84 drives the vacuum pumps 79a and 79b and opens the valves 80a and 80b, thereby evacuating the suction pipes 77a and 77b and the pipes 78a and 78b, and vacuum-adsorbing the substrates W2 and W1. The control device 84 electrostatically attracts the substrates W2 and W1 by a Coulomb force generated by applying a voltage described later to the electrostatic chuck portions 76a and 76b.

  The control device 84 switches and controls vacuum suction and electrostatic suction according to the pressure (degree of vacuum) in the chamber 71. More specifically, the controller 84 divides the chamber 71 as shown in FIG. 6 when receiving the substrates W1 and W2. Therefore, the pressure in the chamber 71 is atmospheric pressure.

  Next, the control device 84 controls the vacuum pump 86 and the valve 87 to supply voltages to the electrostatic chuck portions 76a and 76b to generate a Coulomb force and to bond the substrates W1 and W2 in a vacuum atmosphere. Then, the chamber 71 is evacuated. When the pressure in the chamber 71 becomes lower than the pressure in the pipes 78a and 78b based on the signals from the pressure sensors 83a, 83b, and 88, the control device 84 sets the pipes 78a and 78b for vacuum exhaust. The valves 80a and 80b are closed, and the valves 82a and 82b of the isobaric pipes 81, a and 81b are opened. As a result, the pressure in the pipes 78a and 78b and the suction pipes 77a and 77b for evacuation becomes equal to the pressure in the chamber 71, thereby preventing the substrates W2 and W1 from falling off and being displaced.

  This is because, when the substrates W1 and W2 are adsorbed and held only by the vacuum chuck, if the chamber is evacuated, the gas in the piping is reduced when the chamber pressure becomes lower than the pressure in the piping for evacuation. It flows into the chamber from the suction port. This is because the inflow of the gas causes the substrate to fall off the chuck on the upper flat plate and the substrate to move on the lower flat plate.

  As shown in FIGS. 8A and 8B, a plurality of suction grooves 89 are formed on the suction surface side of the electrostatic chuck portion 76a. The plurality of suction grooves 89 are formed in a region that sucks the substrate W2. In the present embodiment, the suction groove 89 is formed so that the depth is ½ of the width with respect to the width.

  Thus, by forming the adsorption groove 89, it is possible to prevent the gas from remaining between the adsorption surface and the substrate W2, thereby preventing the substrate W2 from dropping and moving under reduced pressure as described above. .

The plurality of suction grooves 89 are formed along a predetermined direction. Thereby, compared with the case where the suction grooves are formed in a lattice shape, the substrate W2 can be prevented from undulating due to vacuum suction.
Further, by forming the plurality of suction grooves 89 on the suction surface, the contact area of the substrate W2 is reduced. When the adsorption groove 89 is not formed, when the substrate W2 is closely adsorbed on the surface and pressed, the substrate W2 contracts and stress is accumulated due to the balance with the adsorption force. This accumulated stress causes a random shift when the applied pressure is released (the substrate W2 is peeled off after being bonded). For this reason, by forming the suction groove 89, it is possible to prevent expansion and contraction in a certain direction while reducing the contact area, and to perform bonding processing with a small amount of displacement.

Although not shown in the drawing on the attracting surface of the electrostatic chuck portion 76b in FIG. 7, a groove is formed in the same manner as the electrostatic chuck portion 76a, thereby preventing the substrate W1 from dropping, moving, and deforming.
Next, electrostatic adsorption will be described in detail.

FIG. 9A is a schematic circuit diagram for applying a voltage to the electrostatic chuck portion 76a.
The electrostatic chuck portion 76a is composed of a plurality (four in the figure) of dielectric layers 91a to 91d, and electrodes 92a to 92d are embedded in the dielectric layers 91a to 91d at a predetermined depth from the surface. The electrodes 92a to 92d are embedded so that the thickness of the dielectric layer from the adsorption surface to the electrodes 92a to 92d is 1 mm or more.

  The electrodes 92a to 92d of the dielectric layers 91a to 91d are alternately connected to the first and second power sources 93a and 93b. That is, the electrodes 92a and 92c of the first and third dielectric layers 91a and 91c are connected to the first power source 93a, and the electrodes 92b and 92d of the second and fourth dielectric layers 91b and 91d are connected to the second power source 93b. Yes.

  The control device 84 in FIG. 7 controls the first and second power sources 93a and 93b to apply positive and negative voltages alternately to the adjacent electrodes 92a to 92d of the dielectric layers 91a to 91d, thereby generating a high potential difference. Cause it to occur. Further, the control device 84 increases or decreases the attracting force stepwise by forming the electrostatic chuck portion 76a with such a structure. Thereby, adsorption | suction and peeling of the board | substrate W2 become easy.

  Conductors 94a and 94b are connected to the horizontal end face of the electrostatic chuck portion 76a, specifically the end face of the first dielectric layer 91a and the end face of the fourth dielectric layer 91d, respectively. The conductor 94a is connected to the switching power supply 95a, and the conductor 94b is connected to the switching power supply 95b via the changeover switch 96.

  The changeover switch 96 has a common terminal connected to the conductor 94b, a first connection terminal connected to the frame ground FG, and a second connection terminal connected to the switching power supply 95b.

  The control device 84 in FIG. 7 controls the output voltages of the switching power supplies 95a and 95b stepwise according to the applied voltage. Thereby, the electric charge generated by the electrostatic adsorption force is activated. More specifically, the controller 84 stops application of voltage when the substrate W2 is peeled off, and controls the changeover switch 96 to connect the conductor 94b to the frame ground FG, or from the switching power supply 95b to the conductor 94b, A current is passed toward the switching power supply 95b through the dielectric layers 91d to 91a and the conductive material 94a. As a result, it is possible to forcibly remove the charge accumulated during the electrostatic adsorption on each of the dielectric layers 91a to 91d. This prevents peeling electrification (discharge) caused by a sudden increase in voltage (potential difference) generated by the charge accumulated with the change in the gap distance when the substrate W2 is peeled from the adsorption surface. Thereby, it is possible to prevent damage to circuit elements such as TFTs and patterns formed on the substrate W2 (and the substrate W1) by discharge and to prevent occurrence of defects.

  FIG. 10A is an equivalent circuit diagram of the dielectric layers 91a to 91d, the substrate W2, and their contact surfaces. Here, although the circuit diagram is difficult to consider when the substrate is a substance close to an insulator such as glass, the inventors have confirmed that the constituent substrate of the LCD liquid crystal display device can be adsorbed based on the principle of this circuit. ing. As a result, it was shown that resistance and capacitor components exist even in the case of an insulator such as glass.

FIG. 10B shows a diagram for explaining the electrostatic chuck adsorption principle in the same manner as the equivalent circuit of FIG. In the figure, V is an applied voltage, Vg is a voltage contributing to the adsorption of the substrate, Rf is a film resistance of the dielectric layer, Rs is a contact resistance between the dielectric layer and the substrate, and C is a capacitance between the substrate and the chuck surface. And the voltage Vg is
Vg = (Rs / (Rf + Rs)) × V
It becomes.

FIG. 9B is a diagram showing another example of a configuration for preventing peeling charging, and is an enlarged view of a portion surrounded by a broken line in FIG. 9A.
The dielectric layer 91a is an adsorption layer of an electrostatic chuck, and a conductive material 97 that contacts the substrate W2 is provided on the surface (adsorption surface) thereof. The conductive material 97 is provided along the outer periphery of the substrate W2. In addition, the width and the formation position of the conductive material 97 are set so as to overlap with the element formation region (region where elements and wirings are formed) of the substrate W2. The conductive material 97 is connected to the frame ground FG via the switch 98.

  When the substrate W2 is peeled off, the control device 84 in FIG. 7 controls the switch 98 to connect the conductive material 97 to the frame ground FG. Accordingly, the charges accumulated on the dielectric layer 91a and the substrate W2 during electrostatic attraction are released to the frame ground FG, thereby facilitating the peeling of the substrate and preventing the peeling electrification to damage the substrate W2 (element, wiring, etc.) Damage) can be prevented.

  The switch 98 may be connected to the switching power supply 99 instead of the frame ground FG. The control device 84 causes a current to flow through the conductive material 97 so as to erase the charge accumulated in the dielectric layer 91a and the substrate W2 by the power source 99 via the switch 98. Even in this case, the charges accumulated on the dielectric layer 91a and the substrate W2 at the time of electrostatic attraction are released to the frame ground FG, thereby facilitating the peeling of the substrate W2 and preventing the peeling charging. Damage to elements, wiring, etc.) can be prevented.

  Further, the conductive material 97 is connected to a contact pin or the like via the switch 100, and the contact pin is brought into contact with the wiring formed on the substrate W2. By electrostatic attraction, the front surface (upper surface in the figure) of the substrate W2 is charged positive (or negative), and the back surface (lower surface) is charged negative (or positive). Accordingly, the charges accumulated on both surfaces of the substrate W2 are turned off by turning on the switch 100, thereby facilitating the peeling of the substrate W2 and preventing the peeling charging to break the substrate W2 (damage of elements, wiring, etc.). Can be prevented.

  Furthermore, the switch 98 is a changeover switch, and as shown in the figure, the conductive material 97 is configured to be switched and connectable to the frame ground FG or the power source 99, the contact pin is configured to be connected to the frame ground FG, and so on. In addition, the above-described configurations may be combined as appropriate.

  FIG. 11 is a waveform diagram showing stepwise control of the voltage supplied to the electrostatic chuck 76. In this waveform diagram, the solid line indicates the waveform of the voltage applied to the dielectric layers 91a to 91d by the power sources 93a and 93b of FIG. 9A, and is indicated by the left axis (unit: kV). The two-dot difference line indicates the waveform of the voltage applied by the switching power supplies 95a and 95b, and is indicated by the right axis (unit: V).

  When adsorbing the substrate, the control device 84 in FIG. 7 applies a voltage necessary for electrostatic attraction by the power supplies 93a and 93b. Next, when the preparation for peeling is started, the controller 84 lowers the voltages of the power supplies 93a and 93b and supplies a lower voltage than the switching power supplies 95a and 95b. And when peeling a board | substrate, the control apparatus 84 controls the applied voltage to a negative voltage, and makes the voltage supplied by switching power supply 95a, 95b high. The time for supplying the negative voltage is a time required for activating the charges accumulated in the dielectric layer 91a and the substrate W2, and is obtained in advance by experiments or the like. In this way, the substrate W2 can be easily separated by time management without detecting the charges accumulated in the dielectric layer 91a and the substrate W2.

  In this way, an abrupt voltage change is suppressed and electric charges are prevented from remaining on the dielectric layers 91a to 91d and the substrate W2, thereby facilitating the peeling of the substrate W2 and preventing the peeling charging and damaging the substrate W2. (Damage of elements, wiring, etc.) can be prevented.

Although not shown in the drawing, the electrostatic chuck portion 76b of FIG. 7 is configured in the same manner as the electrostatic chuck portion 76a described above, and is similarly applied with a voltage controlled by the control device 84 of FIG.
FIG. 12 is an explanatory diagram for explaining a peeling method of the upper flat plate (electrostatic chuck) 72a.

  As shown in FIG. 12 (a), at the time of pressing, the control device 84 of FIG. 7 uses the power supplies 102a and 102b via the switches 101a and 101b turned on to the electrostatic chuck portions 76a and 76b of the upper flat plate 72a and the lower flat plate 72b. Voltage is applied.

  Next, when the preparation for peeling is started, as shown in FIG. 12B, the control device 84 turns off the switch 101a connected to the electrostatic chuck portion 76a of the upper flat plate 72a to stop the voltage application.

  Then, as shown in FIG. 12C, the control device 84 raises the upper flat plate 72a. At this time, the control device 84 keeps the switch 101b connected to the electrostatic chuck portion 76b of the lower flat plate 72b turned on and applies a voltage from the power source 102b. Accordingly, the substrates W1 and W2 are attracted to the lower flat plate 72b, thereby preventing the substrates W1 and W2 from being displaced and facilitating the separation (peeling) of the upper flat plate 72a.

  Thus, after separating the upper flat plate 72a, the inside of the chamber 71 in FIG. 7 is opened to the atmosphere (under atmospheric pressure). At this time, since the bonded substrates W1 and W2 are attracted and held by the lower flat plate 72b, deformation of the substrates W1 and W2 when released to the atmosphere can be suppressed.

Next, alignment of the substrates W1 and W2 will be described with reference to FIGS.
FIG. 13 is a schematic diagram showing the configuration of the alignment device 36a.
The alignment device 36a includes an imaging device 111, first and second moving mechanisms 112 and 113, and a control device 114, and the imaging device 111 includes first and second camera lenses 115 and 116. The first and second camera lenses 115 and 116 are selected and attached with different magnifications, and the first camera lens 115 can capture a wider field of view than the second camera lens 116 (the magnification is Low). Accordingly, the first camera lens 115 has a deeper depth of focus (depth of field) than the second camera lens 116 due to lens characteristics.

  The first moving mechanism 112 supports the upper flat plate 72a and supports the imaging device 111 above the upper flat plate 72a. The first moving mechanism 112 has a mechanism that moves the upper flat plate 72a and the first and second camera lenses 115 and 116 up and down while keeping their vertical distances constant. Accordingly, the relative positions of the first and second camera lenses 115 and 116 and the upper flat plate 72a do not change. The distance between the first and second camera lenses 115 and 116 and the upper flat plate 72a is focused on the substrate W2 sucked and held on the upper flat plate 72a and is focused on the substrate W1 sucked and held on the lower flat plate 72b. Is set.

  The first and second camera lenses 115 and 116 are arranged in the horizontal direction at a predetermined interval. The first moving mechanism 112 is a mechanism for horizontally moving the imaging device 111 so that the first and second camera lenses 115 and 116 are switched and arranged coaxially with the transmission hole 117 formed in the vertical direction on the upper flat plate 72a. Have.

The second moving mechanism 113 has a mechanism for supporting the lower flat plate 72b and moving it in the horizontal direction (X and Y directions) and a mechanism for rotating it horizontally (θ direction).
On the substrates W1 and W2, alignment marks M1 and M2 are provided at corresponding positions, respectively. In the present embodiment, the first alignment mark M1 of the substrate W1 is a black circle, and the second alignment mark M2 of the substrate W2 is a double circle.

  The control device 114 performs the rough alignment in a state where the substrates W1 and W2 are separated from each other by using the first camera lens 115 having a deep focal depth, and the substrate that is brought close to the substrate by using the second camera lens 116 having a shallow focal depth. Align W1 and W2 precisely.

  Specifically, the control device 114 first controls the first moving mechanism 112 to set the distance between the upper flat plate 72a and the lower flat plate 72b to the first vertical distance A. At this time, as shown in FIG. 14, in the field of view 118a of the first camera lens 115, the centers of the first mark M1 and the second mark M2 appear to be shifted. The control device 114 controls the second moving mechanism 113 so that the centers of the first and second marks M1 and M2 coincide (field of view 118b). At this time, the second mark M2 is actually a double circle, but it looks like a single circle depending on the magnification of the first camera lens 115 and the line spacing.

  The first vertical distance A is a distance that ensures that the first and second marks M1 and M2 of the transported substrates W1 and W2 are within the field of view, and is obtained in advance through experiments or the like. When the substrates W1 and W2 are transported, a shift occurs in the transport position due to an error in their outer dimensions, and the amount of the positional shift is obtained by experiment or test operation. Thus, even when the position is shifted, the first vertical distance A and the field of view (magnification of the first camera lens 115 are set so that the first and second marks M1 and M2 are in the field of view of the first camera lens 115. ) Is preset.

  Next, the control device 114 controls the first moving mechanism 112 to move the upper flat plate 72a and the imaging device 111 downward to a second vertical distance B shorter than the first vertical distance A, so that the second camera The imaging device 111 is moved horizontally so as to use the lens 116. As a result, the centers of the first mark M1 and the second mark M2 appear to be shifted from the visual field 119a of the second camera lens 116. The control device 114 controls the second moving mechanism 113 so that the centers of the first and second marks M1 and M2 coincide (field of view 119b).

  Next, the control device 114 controls the first moving mechanism 112 to move the upper flat plate 72a and the imaging device 111 downward to a third vertical distance C shorter than the second vertical distance B. The third vertical distance C at this time is set to a distance at which the sealing material applied to the substrate W2 and the substrate W1 and the liquid crystal (not shown) do not contact each other. As a result, the centers of the first mark M1 and the second mark M2 appear to be shifted in the field of view 120a of the second camera lens 116. The control device 114 controls the second moving mechanism 113 so that the centers of the first and second marks M1, M2 are aligned (field of view 120b).

  Even if the centers of the first and second marks M1 and M2 in the visual field 120b coincide with each other by the third vertical distance C, the positions of the substrate W1 and the substrate W2 may actually be misaligned. However, this deviation amount is within an allowable range, and the third vertical distance C is set as such.

  In this way, by using the first and second camera lenses 115 and 116 having different fields of view, the vertical distances of the substrates W1 and W2 are adjusted according to the focal depths of the lenses 115 and 116, and the substrates W1 and W2 are adjusted. Positioning can be performed within the allowable range of deviation while W2 is not in contact.

Next, the press mechanism will be described.
FIG. 15 is a schematic view of a mechanism for applying pressure to the substrates W1 and W2 when bonded, as viewed from the side.

  The press mechanism includes a support frame 121 formed in a gate shape and fixed at a predetermined height, and linear rails 122a and 122b are attached to both sides of the support frame 121 on both sides, thereby linear guides. 123a and 123b are supported to be movable up and down. Plates 124 a and 124 b are spanned between the linear guides 123 a and 123 b on both sides, and the upper plate 124 a is suspended by a support plate 126 that moves up and down by a motor 125 attached to the upper portion of the support frame 121.

  More specifically, a ball screw 127 is connected to the output shaft of the motor 125 so as to be integrally rotatable, and a female screw portion 128 formed on the support plate 126 is screwed to the ball screw 127. Accordingly, the support plate 126 moves up and down by driving the motor 125 and rotating the ball screw 127 forward and backward.

  The support plate 126 is formed in a U shape, and the female screw portion 128 is formed on the upper plate. A load cell 129 is attached to the upper surface of the lower plate of the support plate 126, and the lower surface of the upper plate 124 a is in contact with the load cell 129.

  An upper flat plate 72a provided in the chamber 71 is suspended from the lower plate 124b. Specifically, the lower plate 124b has a plurality of (four in the present embodiment) holes penetrating in the vertical direction at predetermined positions, and the pillars 130 are inserted into the holes. The support 130 is formed so that the upper end is enlarged in diameter so that it does not fall downward, and the upper flat plate 72a is attached to the lower end.

  A level adjustment unit 131 is provided between the upper end of the column 130 and the lower plate 124b. The level adjusting unit 131 is, for example, a nut that is screwed with a screw formed on the support 130, and rotating the support 130 raises or lowers the support 130 to adjust the horizontal level of the upper flat plate 72a. As shown in FIG. 16, the level adjustment unit 131 adjusts the parallelism between the lower flat plate 72b and the upper flat plate 72a to 50 μm or less.

  A cylinder 132 for attaching a processing pressure to the upper flat plate 72a is attached to the lower surface of the support plate 126. The cylinder 132 is provided such that its piston 133 protrudes downward, and the tip of the piston 133 is brought into contact with a pressure member 135 attached to the upper flat plate 72a via a coupling material 134. ing. The coupling material 134 is formed in a cylindrical shape, and is configured to allow an axial shift between the pressing direction of the cylinder 132 (the axial direction of the cylinder 132) and the moving direction of the upper flat plate 72a.

  The load cell 129 measures the pressure applied by the upper plate 124 a and outputs the measurement result to the controller indicator 136. The pressure is determined by the weight (self-weight) of the members (upper plate 124 a, linear guides 123 a and 123 b, lower plate 124 b, column 130, upper flat plate 72 a and cylinder 132) supported by the support plate 126, and the upper flat plate 72 a by the cylinder 132. The processing pressure applied to the pressure and the pressure due to atmospheric pressure.

  When the chambers 71a and 71b are evacuated, an atmospheric pressure of 1 kg / cm 2 (square centimeter) is applied to the upper flat plate 72a via the support column 130. The atmospheric pressure is reduced by the lower plate 124b, the linear guides 123a and 123b, and The load cell 129 is added via the upper plate 124a. Accordingly, the load cell 129 detects the sum (= A + B + C) of the dead weight A, the processing pressure B, and the atmospheric pressure C. The total pressure applied to the load cell 129 is reduced by the reaction force D caused by the substrates W1 and W2 when the substrates 125 and W2 are bonded together by driving the motor 125 and lowering the support plate 126. Therefore, by providing the load cell 129 in this way and reducing the measured value (total value), it is possible to know the load load at that time actually applied to the substrate.

  The controller indicator 136 outputs the pressure measured by the load cell 129 to a CPU (controller) 137. An electropneumatic regulator 138 is connected to the CPU 137. The CPU 137 receives the measurement result of the pressure applied to the substrates W1 and W2 (not shown) to be bonded between the upper flat plate 72a and the lower flat plate 72b from time to time by the load cell 129. Then, the CPU 137 outputs, to the electropneumatic regulator 138, a signal generated so as to apply a constant pressure to the substrates W1 and W2 (not shown) based on the measurement result. The electropneumatic regulator 138 is a variable pressure control regulator, and adjusts the air pressure supplied to the cylinder 132 in response to an electrical signal from the CPU 137. In this way, by controlling the air pressure supplied to the cylinder 132 based on the measurement result of the load cell 129, the substrates W1 and W2 (not shown) that always attach a constant pressure between the upper flat plate 72a and the lower flat plate 72b. It is configured to be added to.

  Further, external factors such as the parallelism of the upper flat plate 72a and the lower flat plate 72b, the inclusion of foreign matter, and mechanical displacement reduce the total pressure (self-weight A) applied to the load cell 129 as with the reaction force D. Therefore, by reducing the measurement value (total value) of the load cell 129 in this way, it is possible to know the load load at that time actually applied to the substrate. Therefore, the CPU 137 can always apply a constant pressure to the upper plate 72a regardless of the influence of external factors by controlling the electric signal output to the electropneumatic regulator 138 in accordance with the measurement value of the load cell 129. .

  In addition, a motor pulse generator 139 is connected to the CPU 137, and a signal generated to move the upper flat plate 72a up and down is output to the generator 139. The motor pulse generator 139 outputs a pulse signal generated in response to the signal from the CPU 137 to the motor 125, and the motor 125 is driven to rotate in response to the pulse signal.

  Although the cylinder 132 is used as means for applying the processing pressure, the processing pressure may be applied to the upper flat plate 72a using another actuator such as a motor. Moreover, you may comprise so that a pressurizing force may be applied using a hydraulic cylinder.

Further, the lower flat plate 72b may be configured such that the parallelism with respect to the upper flat plate 72a can be adjusted.
Further, as long as a sufficient pressure is applied to the substrates to be bonded by the weight (self-weight) of the member supported by the support plate 126, the means for applying the processing pressure such as the cylinder 132 may be omitted. In that case, the load cell 129 receives the weight A of the upper flat plate 72a and the member supporting the upper plate 72a and the atmospheric pressure C applied by reducing the pressure in the chamber 71. Therefore, the CPU 137 can know the pressure applied to the substrates W1 and W2 from time to time as the total pressure (= A + C) applied to the load cell 129 decreases due to the reaction force D from the substrates W1 and W2.

  FIG. 17 is a schematic view of a transport device 38 c that transports the panel from the press device 36 of FIG. 1 to the curing device 37. The upper part of the figure shows the mechanism for transporting the panel, and the lower part shows the processing of the control device 31 of FIG.

  The transfer device 38 c includes a transfer arm 141, and a panel P <b> 1 composed of the substrates W <b> 1 and W <b> 2 bonded by the press device 36 is vacuum-sucked to the transfer arm 141 to be received from the lower flat plate 72 b and carried out of the chamber 71. As shown in FIG. 6, since the chamber 71 is provided with lift pins 73, the panel P1 may be separated from the lower flat plate 72b and scooped out from the lower side to be carried out. Further, when the substrates W2 and W1 are peeled off from the upper flat plate 72a and the lower flat plate 72b, the lower flat plate 72b may be peeled off, the panel P1 may be lifted by the upper flat plate 72a, and then picked up from the lower side and transported.

  The transport device 38 c includes a plurality of transport flat plates 142 a to 142 z and a lift mechanism 143. The transport flat plates 142a to 142z are sequentially mounted on a lift mechanism 143 installed at the transfer position, and the lift mechanism 143 lifts the transport flat plates 142a to 142z to a height for mounting the panel P1. And the conveying apparatus 38c mounts the panel P1 on the flat plates 142a-142z for conveyance.

  The transport flat plates 142a to 142z include a smooth plate 144a and a vacuum holding mechanism 144b provided on the lower surface of the smooth plate 144a. In the figure, only the smooth plate 124z is assigned a reference numeral.

  The smooth plate 144a and its upper surface are processed to have a flatness of 100 μm or less. Further, the smooth plate 144a is formed with a plurality of suction holes 145 as shown in FIGS. The vacuum holding mechanism 144b incorporates a check valve and is configured to hold the panel P1 placed on the upper surface of the smooth plate 144a after vacuum suction.

  That is, when the transport flat plates 142a to 142z are attached to the lift mechanism 143, the suction hole 145 of FIG. 9C is connected to an exhaust device such as a vacuum pump (not shown), and thereby the panel P1 is vacuum-sucked. Thereafter, when the transport flat plates 142a to 142z are detached from the lift mechanism 143, the backflow of gas is prevented by the check valve of the vacuum holding mechanism 144b, whereby the panel P1 adsorbed on the upper surface of the smooth plate 144a is held in that state. The

  The suction hole 145 is a round hole, and the diameter thereof is set to 2 mm or less. Thereby, like the upper flat plate 72a and the lower flat plate 72b of the press device 36, the adsorbed panel P1 is prevented from being deformed (wavy).

  The transport device 38c carries the transport flat plates 142a to 142z holding the panel P1 by suction into the curing device 37. At this time, the control device 31 in FIG. 1 manages the time from the completion of the vacuum bonding for each of the transport flat plates 142a to 142z, and carries the transport flat plate after a predetermined time into the curing device 37.

  In each of the substrates W1 and W2 of the panel P1 bonded by the press device 36, the stress due to the bonding process remains, and this stress is relaxed according to the time until the sealing material of the panel P1 is cured. Therefore, managing the time until it is carried into the curing device 37 is substantially equal to managing the relaxation of the stress remaining in the panel P1. That is, the transfer device 38c relaxes the stress remaining on the panel P1 by waiting the transfer flat plates 142a to 142z holding the panel P1 by suction for a certain period of time. Thereby, the stress which remains after hardening of a sealing material decreases, and the defect rate of panel P1 is reduced.

  Moreover, the stress of each panel P1 is relieved to the same extent by making each panel P1 wait for a fixed time before hardening. Therefore, the deformation amounts of the substrates W1 and W2 in each panel P1 are uniform, and variations in each panel P1 are reduced. Thereby, high reproducibility and stability of processing can be obtained.

  The curing device 37 includes a UV lamp 146, and thereby irradiates the panel P1 with light having a predetermined wavelength. The wavelength of the light emitted from the UV lamp 146 is controlled so as to leave a region where the sealing material is cured. The panel P1 is bonded with the substrate W2, which is a color filter substrate on which a color filter, a light-shielding film, and the like are formed, facing upward, and light is irradiated from above. Therefore, it is possible to reduce deterioration of the liquid crystal by irradiating light having a wavelength that has little influence on the liquid crystal and preventing light from being directly irradiated.

  The panel P1 on which the sealing material has been cured is conveyed from the curing device 37 to the inspection device 35 by the conveying device 38d (see FIG. 1). The inspection device 35 is a device that performs the alignment inspection process, inspects the positional deviation of the substrates W1 and W2 constituting the panel P1, and outputs the deviation amount to the control device 31 of FIG.

  The control device 31 manages the received shift amount as processing information unique to each of the transport flat plates 142a to 142z. Then, the control device 31 feeds back the deviation amount managed for each of the conveyance flat plates 142 a to 142 z to the alignment in the press device 36. More specifically, the upper surface of the smooth plate 144a of each of the transport flat plates 142a to 142z is processed substantially uniformly, but there is still a difference in the flatness of the upper surface of the smooth plate 144a for each of the transport flat plates 142a to 142z. This difference causes a difference in the amount of deviation in the positional deviation of the substrates W1 and W2 until they are put into the curing device 37 for each of the transport flat plates 142a to 142z. And the conveyance flat plate which adsorbs and fixes the panel P1 to be bonded next by the press device 36 is arranged at the transfer position (in this embodiment, it is attached to the lift mechanism 143 provided at the transfer position). Thus, it is known which transport flat plate is attracted and fixed. For this reason, the amount of deviation in the transport flat plates 142a to 142z to which the panel P1 is sucked and fixed is shifted as the correction value and aligned.

  As shown in the lower left side of FIG. 17, the control device 31 stores processing information 147 managed for each of the transport flat plates 142a to 142z. For example, the control device 31 stores (X: +1, Y: −1) as processing information for the transport flat plate 142a. Based on this, the control device 31 adds, for example, (X: -1, Y: +1) to the movement amount at the time of vacuum bonding when the panel P1 to be sucked and fixed to the transport flat plate 142a is bonded. Thus, by feeding back the inspection result in the inspection device 35 to the alignment, the panel P1 with a smaller positional deviation can be manufactured.

FIG. 18 is a schematic diagram for explaining the configuration of the curing device 37.
The curing device 37 includes a light source 148, an illuminance meter 149, a controller 150, and an up / down mechanism 151. The light source 148 includes a UV lamp 146 and first and second reflectors 152 and 153 provided to irradiate the entire surface of the panel P1 with light emitted from the UV lamp 146 substantially evenly. In the absence of the first reflector 152, the amount of light radiated to the center of the panel P1 is greater than that in the surrounding area. While preventing this and suppressing deterioration of the liquid crystal, it is configured to give almost equal energy to the entire surface of the panel P1.

  The conveying flat plate 142 a carried into the curing device 37 is supported by the vertical mechanism 151. The illumination flat plate 142a is provided with an illuminance sensor 154, and the illuminance sensor 154 outputs a signal having a value (for example, voltage) corresponding to the amount of light irradiated to the panel P1 to the illuminometer 149. In addition, the illuminance sensor 154 is similarly provided in each of the transport flat plates 142b to 142z in FIG.

  The illuminance meter 149 outputs the illuminance amount of light irradiated on the panel P1 to the controller 150 based on the input signal. The controller 150 outputs a control signal generated based on the input illuminance amount to the vertical mechanism 151. For example, the controller 150 generates a control signal so that the amount of illuminance is constant. Note that the controller 150 may generate a control signal so as to change the illuminance amount with time.

  The vertical mechanism 151 moves the transport flat plate 142a up and down in response to the control signal. In this way, the distance from the light source 148 to the transport flat plate 142a is changed. With this configuration, even if the amount of light emitted from the light source 148 changes (for example, deterioration or replacement of the UV lamp 146 or changes in the reflecting surfaces of the first and second reflecting plates 152 and 153), the panel P1 is reached. Therefore, it is possible to easily control the amount of irradiation light, suppress uneven curing of the sealing material, and reduce the occurrence of defects.

  The curing device 37 may include a second light source 155 configured similarly to the light source 148 on the lower side of the transport plate 142a. By irradiating the panel P1 with light from the transport flat plate 142a side by the second light source 155, the curing time of the sealing material can be shortened. Further, the vertical mechanism 151 may be configured to move the first and second light sources 148 and 155 up and down relatively with respect to the transport flat plate 142a.

  The controller 150 may control the drive voltage or drive current of the light source 148 (155) so that the illuminance amount of the substrates W1, W2 is substantially constant based on the illuminance amount. Further, an illuminance sensor 156 may be provided on the transport flat plate 142a, and the controller 150 may control the driving voltage or driving current of the light source 148 (, 155) according to the illuminance amount detected by the illuminance sensor 156. Thereby, even if irradiation equipment deteriorates and irradiation intensity falls, the hardening failure of a sealing material can be suppressed.

As described above, according to the present embodiment, the following effects can be obtained.
(1) When the inside of the chamber 71 is under atmospheric pressure, the substrates W1 and W2 are sucked and held by the upper flat plate 72a and the lower flat plate 72b, respectively, and when the inside of the chamber 71 is under reduced pressure, a voltage is applied to the flat plates 72a and 72b. Then, each of them is attracted and held by electrostatic attraction. The back pressure for adsorbing and holding the substrates W1 and W2 at the time of switching from the atmospheric pressure to the reduced pressure is made equal to the pressure in the chamber 71. As a result, it is possible to prevent the electrostatically attracted substrates W1 and W2 from dropping and moving, and to reduce the bonding failure of the substrates W1 and W2.

  (2) A groove 89 for applying back pressure to the substrate W2 is formed on the attracting surface of the electrostatic chuck portion 76a so as to extend along a predetermined direction. As a result, the adsorbed substrate W2 can be prevented from undulating.

  (3) The electrostatic chuck portion 76a is composed of dielectric layers 91a to 91d, and applies a voltage to the electrodes 92a to 92d embedded in the dielectric layers 91a to 91d at a predetermined depth from the adsorption surface to adsorb the substrate W2. A conductor 94a is connected to the side surface of the dielectric layer 91a, and a voltage for peeling is supplied to the dielectric layer 91a through the conductor. As a result, the adsorbed substrate W2 can be safely peeled off.

  (4) The sealing material is an adhesive containing at least a photocurable adhesive, and includes a curing device that irradiates the sealing material with light from at least one of the upper and lower sides of the substrates W1 and W2 and cures the light. In the apparatus, the amount of light applied to the substrates W1 and W2 is measured by an illuminance sensor, and the distance between the light source and the substrates W1 and W2 is controlled based on the measurement result. As a result, the amount of light irradiated to the sealing material can be controlled and cured, and unevenness of the sealing material can be suppressed and the occurrence of defects can be reduced.

  (5) A liquid crystal dropping device for dropping the liquid crystal LC sealed between the substrates W1 and W2 onto the substrate W1 is provided. The liquid crystal dropping device includes a syringe 55 that applies pressure to the filled liquid crystal LC and discharges it from the nozzle, and the temperature of the liquid crystal LC filled in the syringe 55 is controlled. As a result, a very small amount of liquid crystal LC can be dropped without being affected by the outside air temperature. In addition, it is possible to defoam the liquid crystal LC to suppress the fluctuation of the dropping amount.

  (6) The imaging device 111 includes first and second camera lenses 115 and 116 having different fields of view, and switches between the camera lenses 115 and 116 and supports the camera lenses 115 and 116 that use the distance between the substrates W1 and W2. And changed the position. As a result, the substrates W1 and W2 can be aligned without contact. Further, by changing the field of view and bringing the substrates W1 and W2 close to each other, alignment can be performed more precisely.

  (7) The load cell 129 detects the total weight of the upper plate 72 a and the weight of the member that supports the upper plate 72 a so as to move up and down, the atmospheric pressure C received by reducing the pressure in the chamber 71, and the processing pressure B applied by the cylinder 132. By reducing the total value, it is possible to know the actual load applied to the substrate. Therefore, the CPU 137 can always apply a constant pressure to the upper plate 72a regardless of the influence of external factors by controlling the electric signal output to the electropneumatic regulator 138 in accordance with the measurement value of the load cell 129. .

  (8) When adsorbing the upper surface of the substrate W2 to the upper flat plate 72a, the adhering substrate W2 is lifted to correct the deflection. As a result, the substrate W2 can be reliably adsorbed to the upper flat plate 72a. Further, the substrate W2 can be adsorbed without causing a positional shift.

In addition, you may change the said embodiment into the following aspects.
In general, the surface (element formation surface) on which the elements and the like of the substrates W1 and W2 are formed is shown in FIG. 20A in order to prevent the area where the elements are formed from being contaminated or damaged. The peripheral accessible region 162 excluding the region 161 where the back surface of the formation surface is adsorbed or the element is formed is held by the holding member 163 (the transfer arm 74 in FIG. 6). Then, as shown in FIG.20 (b), the board | substrate W2 bends according to the magnitude | size. This bending of the substrate W2 causes a shift in the holding position at the time of suction by the upper flat plate 72a, or causes suction failure. The misregistration affects the substrate misalignment. In order to eliminate this influence, the press apparatus may be provided with a bending correction mechanism 165 as shown in FIGS. 19 (a) and 19 (b).

  The deflection correcting mechanism 165 is a lifting mechanism that lifts the central portion of the substrate W2 upward, and includes a suction pad 166, an arm 167 that holds the suction pad 166, and a vertical mechanism (not shown) that moves the arm 167 up and down. The control device (for example, the control device 84 in FIG. 7) corrects the deflection of the substrate W2 by the deflection correcting mechanism 165 when the substrate W2 is vacuum-sucked by the upper flat plate 72a.

  That is, the control device 84 corrects the bending of the substrate W2 as shown in FIG. 21B by the bending correction mechanism 165 with respect to the substrate W2 bent as shown in FIG. Next, as shown in FIG. 21C, the control device 84 lowers the upper flat plate 72a, and adsorbs the substrate W2 to the upper flat plate 72a by vacuum suction. Next, as shown in FIG. 21D, the upper flat plate 72a is raised, and the deflection correcting mechanism 165 and the holding member 163 are retracted. Thereby, as shown in FIG. 21E, the substrate W2 can be reliably adsorbed to the upper flat plate 72a. Further, there is no positional deviation, and reproducible substrate adsorption can be performed.

  Although the suction pad 166 is used in FIGS. 19 and 20, any configuration may be used as long as the deflection can be corrected, and the deflection may be corrected in a non-contact manner, and the same effect as described above can be obtained. Can do.

  In the above embodiment, the substrates W1 and W2 are transferred into the chamber 71 by the transfer robots 45 and 45 as shown in FIG. 6, but the substrates W1 and W2 are transferred using the table 171 as shown in FIG. You may make it convey simultaneously. In the table 171, the upper holding member 172 formed so as to hold the upper substrate W2 with the bonding surface (element forming surface) down, and the lower substrate W1 with the bonding surface up A lower holding member 173 configured to hold is provided. The upper holding member 172 is configured to hold the second substrate W2 at a position corresponding to the outside of the sealing material drawn on the upper surface of the first substrate W1. The substrate W2 transferred in this manner is directly sucked and held by the upper flat plate 72a, and the first substrate W1 is once picked up by the lift pins 73 and then sucked and held by the lower flat plate 72b.

  When the table 171 configured in this way is used, the two substrates W1 and W2 can be simultaneously loaded into the press device 36, so that the time required for conveyance can be shortened. In addition, compared with the case where the two substrates W1 and W2 are carried into the processing chamber 71 by the transfer robots 44 and 45 of the first embodiment, handling of the second substrate W2 held on the upper side becomes easier. The time required for conveyance (carrying in) can be shortened. In addition, since the substrates W1 and W2 are aligned in advance, and the two substrates W1 and W2 can be transported simultaneously while maintaining the relative positions of the substrates W1 and W2, the alignment time in the press device 36 can be increased. Can be shortened (or omitted).

  In the above embodiment, as shown in FIG. 13, the lower flat plate 72b is supported by the moving mechanism 113, but the lower flat plate 72b may be configured to be detachable. FIG. 23 is a schematic configuration diagram of the alignment device 36b. The moving mechanism 113 of the alignment device 36b supports the stage 175, and a positioning pin 176 provided on the stage 175 is inserted into a positioning hole 177 formed in the lower flat plate 72b so that the lower flat plate 72b is horizontally placed on the stage 175. Attach relative immovable. By thus forming the lower flat plate 72b so as to be detachable, the bonded substrates W1 and W2 can be transported to the curing device 37 by the transport device 38c of FIG. 1 without being peeled from the lower flat plate 72b. Accordingly, as shown in FIG. 17, it is not necessary to transfer the panel P1 on which the substrates W1 and W2 are bonded by the sealing material before curing, so that a more stable panel P1 can be manufactured.

  In the above embodiment, the suction groove 89 is formed on the suction surface of the electrostatic chuck portion 76a (see FIGS. 8A and 8B). However, as shown in FIGS. An exhaust groove 178 may be formed to make the back surface of the peripheral portion of 89 and the substrate W2 the same as the atmosphere of the substrate W2.

  The exhaust groove 178 is formed along the same direction as the formation direction of the adsorption groove 89. Further, the exhaust groove 178 is formed by cutting out a side so as to extend from the region where the substrate W2 is attracted to the end face of the electrostatic chuck portion 76a. By this exhaust groove 178, it is possible to prevent the substrate W2 from moving or dropping due to bubbles remaining at the peripheral contact interface of the substrate W2.

Further, by forming the exhaust groove 178, the contact area of the substrate W2 is further reduced as compared with the above embodiment. Thereby, it is possible to perform a laminating process with a smaller amount of displacement.
As described in the above embodiment, the suction groove 89 and the exhaust groove 178 are similarly formed on the suction surface of the electrostatic chuck portion 76b, so that the movement or dropping of the substrate W1 can be prevented.

Further, the exhaust groove 178 only needs to have the same pressure on the back surface of the peripheral portion of the substrate W2 as the atmosphere (pressure) in the chamber 71, and it is not necessary to cut out the end surface of the electrostatic chuck portion 76a.
In the above-described embodiment, the alignment apparatus that performs alignment of the substrates W1 and W2 before carrying the substrates W1 and W2 into the press device 36 (for example, before dropping the liquid crystal) is provided. This alignment apparatus includes an image recognition camera and a stage that can move in the X-axis and θ-direction (the X-axis is a direction orthogonal to the transport direction and the θ-direction is the rotation direction). The image recognition camera includes a lens having a lower magnification than the first camera lens 115 of FIG. Therefore, the bonded substrate manufacturing apparatus provided with this alignment apparatus has at least two sets of lenses having a lower magnification than the second camera lens 116 (see FIG. 13) that performs fine alignment.

  The alignment device stores a reference image, and compares the images of the substrates W1 and W2 captured by the camera with the reference image, thereby shifting the X, Y and θ axes of the transferred substrates W1 and W2. Measure (X, Y, θ). Then, the position deviation in the X-axis direction and the deviation in the θ-axis are corrected by the stage, and the Y-axis deviation amount is output as a correction value to the transport device that transports the substrates W1 and W2 to the press device 36 in FIG. The transport device adds the shift amount in the Y-axis direction received as the correction value to transport the substrates W1 and W2. If the alignment device and the transport device are configured in this way, the alignment time in the alignment device is shortened by correcting the deviation in the Y-axis direction during transport, and the loaded substrates W1 and W2 are carried into the press device 36. The production time can be improved by shortening the time required for the process.

  Note that the reference image stored in the alignment apparatus is conveyed in such a manner that the substrates W1 and W2 aligned in the alignment apparatus (see FIG. 13) of the pressing apparatus 36 are flown back to the alignment apparatus in the conveyance direction, and the conveyed substrate W1. , W2 are images captured by an image recognition camera.

  The upper part of FIG. 25 shows the position 181 of the substrate that has been aligned by the press device 36, the position 182 of the substrate that has been transferred to the liquid crystal dropping device 33, and the position 183 of the substrate that has been transferred to the loading position (alignment device). Indicates. Images of the substrates W1 and W2 transported to the substrate position 183 are stored as reference images.

  Next, the substrates W1 and W2 are transported from the right side of the lower stage of FIG. That is, the center positions of the loaded substrates W1 and W2 are shifted from the center position of the position 183. The deviation amounts (X, Y, θ) of these center positions are calculated by comparing the reference image with images obtained by photographing the substrates W1, W2. Then, the deviation in the X-axis direction and the deviation in the θ direction are corrected on the stage, and the deviation amount in the Y-axis direction is output as a correction value to the transport device. The transport device adds the correction value to the transport amount and transports the substrates W1 and W2 to the liquid crystal dropping device 33. At this time, the positions of the transported substrates W1 and W2 substantially coincide with the upper position 182. Further, the substrates W1 and W2 are transported from the liquid crystal dropping device 33 to the press device 36 by the transport device. The positions of the transferred substrates W1 and W2 at this time substantially coincide with the upper position 181.

  Thus, by configuring the alignment device and the transport device, the time required to transport the substrates W1 and W2 to the press device 36 can be shortened. Further, the positions of the substrates W1 and W2 conveyed to the press device 36 are substantially coincident with the position 181 of the substrate that has been aligned by the press device 36. For this reason, the time for performing the complicated alignment in the press device 36 is shortened.

  Furthermore, since the alignment apparatus performs alignment based on the images of the substrates W1 and W2 captured by the image recognition camera, the alignment device does not contact the end surfaces of the substrates W1 and W2. Thereby, the dust generation which generate | occur | produces by the contact with the board | substrate with a bad end surface state can be suppressed.

  Furthermore, by previously transporting the substrates W1 and W2 from the press device 36 to the alignment device, the Y axis of the press device 36 and the Y axis of the alignment device can be substantially matched. Thus, the carried substrates W1 and W2 may be transported along one axis (Y-axis), and the configuration and control of the transport device can be simplified, and other processing devices can be moved during transport to the press device 36. Can be easily incorporated.

  The above embodiment is embodied in a bonded substrate manufacturing apparatus for manufacturing a liquid crystal display panel, but other bonded substrates such as a PDP (Plasma Display Panel), an EL display (Electroluminescence Display) panel, an organic EL display panel, etc. The present invention may be embodied in an apparatus for manufacturing.

In the above embodiment, the lower flat plate 72b is used as a reference in the press device 36, but the upper plate 72a may be used as a reference.
In the above embodiment, the UV lamp 146 is used to cure the sealing material in the curing device 37, but a curing device that performs a curing method based on a temperature change may be used.

  In the above embodiment, the transport plates 142a to 142z are separated from the lift mechanism 143 and transported in FIG. 17, but may be transported together with the lift mechanism 143.

  In the above embodiment, the valves 82a and 82b are opened and closed in FIG. 7 to make the back pressure of the substrates W1 and W2 the same as the pressure in the chamber 71. However, in order to prevent the substrates W1 and W2 from dropping and moving, The pressure may be equal to or lower than the pressure in the chamber 71. For that purpose, the configuration and control may be changed as appropriate. For example, the controller 84 opens the valves 80a and 80b for vacuum adsorption when the chamber 71 is brought into a reduced pressure atmosphere. Even in this case, it is possible to prevent the substrates W1 and W2 from dropping and moving.

  In the above embodiment, the steps other than pressing are performed at atmospheric pressure, but a part of the steps may be performed in a reduced pressure atmosphere. For example, a bonded substrate manufacturing apparatus 201 shown in FIG. 26 is used. The apparatus 201 includes a seal drawing device 32, a loading robot 202, a first preliminary vacuum chamber 203, a bonding processing chamber 204, a second preliminary vacuum chamber 205, a carry-out robot 206, an inspection device 35, and a control device 207.

  The first preliminary vacuum chamber 203 is provided with a first gate valve 211 for carrying in the first and second substrates W1, W2. The first preliminary vacuum chamber 203 is partitioned by a bonding processing chamber 204 and a second gate valve 212, and the bonding processing chamber 204 is partitioned by a second preliminary vacuum chamber 205 and a third gate valve 213. The second preliminary vacuum chamber 205 is provided with a fourth gate valve 214 for carrying out a panel on which two substrates W1 and W2 are bonded.

  The control device 207 controls the substrate bonding process. For example, the control device 207 controls the opening and closing of the gate valves 211 to 214, the atmosphere control (reduced pressure and atmospheric pressure) in the first and second preliminary vacuum chambers 203 and 205, and the atmosphere control in the bonding processing chamber 204. The carry-in robot 202 and the carry-out robot 206 are controlled.

  A sealing material is drawn on the upper surface of the first substrate W1 by the seal drawing device 32, and the first substrate W1 is carried into the first preliminary vacuum chamber 203 by the carry-in robot 202. The second substrate W <b> 2 passes through the seal drawing process and is carried into the first preliminary vacuum chamber 203 by the carry-in robot 202.

  The control device 207 performs pretreatment on the first and second substrates W1 and W2 carried into the first preliminary vacuum chamber 203. The pretreatment is gas treatment, which is a treatment in which impurities and products adhering to the surface of the substrate or the display element are exposed to a reaction gas or a replacement gas for a certain period of time. The reaction gas is an excitation gas or the like for PDP (Plasma Display Panel). The replacement gas is an inert gas such as nitrogen gas.

  Note that a pretreatment device may be provided in the first preliminary vacuum chamber 203 to perform at least one of the gas treatment, the heat treatment, and the plasma treatment. The heat treatment is performed to heat the first and second substrates W1 and W2 to perform surface modification, activation of the bonding surface, moisture removal, and the like. The plasma treatment is performed to treat a product on a substrate that cannot be activated by gas replacement, gas reaction, or heat treatment with generated plasma.

  These treatments maintain and stabilize the properties of the bonded surface that cannot be opened after bonding. As for the 1st and 2nd board | substrates W1 and W2, films | membranes, such as an oxide film, generate | occur | produce on those surfaces, or the suspended | floating matter in air adheres, and the surface state changes. Since the change in this state is different for each substrate, a stable panel cannot be manufactured. Therefore, these processes suppress film formation and adhesion of impurities, and process the adhered impurities to suppress changes in the state of the substrate surface, thereby stabilizing the panel quality. Furthermore, according to this bonded substrate manufacturing apparatus 201, a separate pre-processing apparatus is not required, so that a high productivity can be obtained by requesting a response in the apparatus 201.

  When the sealing material drawn on the substrate W1 is affected by the plasma treatment, the sealing material is masked or plasma is generated in a portion other than the sealing material. In the case of manufacturing a liquid crystal display panel, the first preliminary vacuum chamber 203 is provided with the liquid crystal dropping device 33 shown in FIG.

The first and second substrates W1 and W2 that have been subjected to the pretreatment are transferred from the first preliminary vacuum chamber 203 to the bonding treatment chamber 204.
The laminating processing chamber 204 is provided with the press device 36 shown in FIG. 1, and the press device 36 includes an alignment device 36a shown in FIG. 13 (or an alignment device 36b shown in FIG. 23).

The control device 207 controls pressure control in the bonding process chamber 204 and gas supply control to the process chamber. The gas to be supplied is the above reaction gas or replacement gas.
The control device 207 performs alignment and bonding of the first and second substrates W1 and W2 that are carried in. The control device 207 monitors the passage of time from the loading of the first and second substrates W1 and W2, and exposes the first and second substrates W1 and W2 to the gas supplied into the bonding processing chamber 204. Control the time (time from loading to pasting). Thereby, the property of the bonding surface which cannot be opened after bonding is maintained and stabilized.

  The bonded first and second substrates W 1 and W 2 (panel) are transferred from the bonding processing chamber 204 to the second preliminary vacuum chamber 205. The second preliminary vacuum chamber 205 is provided with a transport device 38c and a curing device 37 shown in FIG. The controller 207 first depressurizes (vacuates) the inside of the second preliminary vacuum chamber 205, and then transports the first and second substrates W 1 and W 2 into the preliminary vacuum chamber 205. Then, the control device 207 controls the curing device 37 to cure the sealing material between the first and second substrates W1 and W2 carried into the second preliminary vacuum chamber 205 in a reduced pressure atmosphere. In this way, by curing the sealing material, displacement due to airflow and pressure distribution when opening to the atmosphere is prevented.

  In addition, you may actualize in the bonded substrate manufacturing apparatus provided only with any one of the 1st and 2nd preliminary | backup vacuum chamber 203,205. A plurality of first preliminary vacuum chambers 203 may be arranged in parallel. The first and second substrates W1 and W2 pretreated in the first preliminary vacuum chambers 203 are sequentially carried into the bonding processing chamber 204, and a bonding process is performed. With this configuration, the manufacturing time per set of substrates W1, W2 can be shortened.

  In the above embodiment, the position (position in the field of view) of the mark (positioning mark) provided for bonding the first and second substrates W1 and W2 captured in the field of view of the imaging device 111 in FIG. It may be stored in advance, and the imaging device 111 may be moved horizontally by the difference (coordinate difference) between the alignment mark provided on the conveyed substrate and the position within the field of view.

  First, a reference substrate is conveyed, and the first camera lens 115 captures an alignment mark provided on the substrate. Since the reference substrate is corrected and conveyed by the method shown in FIG. 25, even if a conveyance error occurs, the alignment mark of the substrate does not deviate from the field of view and does not deviate from the field of view. The magnification is preset. Then, the control device 114 in FIG. 13 stores the in-field position (coordinate values (X, Y)) of the mark M0 imaged in the imaging field F1 by the first camera lens 115 shown in FIG. The position of the mark M0 at this time is a position where the mark M0 can be captured in the field of view by the second camera lens 116 that is switched by moving the imaging device 111 by a predetermined distance.

  Next, the substrate (which will be described using the first substrate W1 here) is transported, and the first camera lens 115 images the alignment mark M1 provided on the substrate W1. Then, the control device 114 calculates the in-field position (coordinate values (x, y)) of the mark M1 in the imaging field F2 shown in FIG. 27B, and the coordinate difference between the position and the stored in-field position. Thus, as shown in FIG. 27C, the first camera lens 115 is moved to match the position in the field of view of the mark M1 in the new imaging field of view F2a with that of the mark M0. This makes it possible to reliably capture the mark M1 in the field of view when switching to the second camera lens 116 next time.

Note that the amount of movement by which the imaging device 111 is moved to switch from the first camera lens 115 to the second camera lens 116 may be corrected based on the calculated coordinate difference.
The alignment performed by storing the position in the field of view is applied to a substrate on which a mark captured by the low-power first camera lens 115 and a mark captured by the high-power second camera lens 116 are separately provided. it can. As shown in FIG. 28, on the third substrate W3 (the first substrate W1 or the second substrate W2), a mark (hereinafter, coarse mark) Ma captured by the first camera lens 115 and the second camera lens 116 are displayed. Marks (hereinafter referred to as fine marks) Mb captured at 1 are provided at positions (for example, four corners) suitable for alignment of the substrate W3. The coarse mark Ma and the fine mark Mb are provided at a predetermined interval. For a substrate to be aligned with the third substrate W3 (for example, when the coarse mark Ma and the fine mark Mb are provided on the first substrate W1, the second substrate W2 corresponds to it). Alignment marks corresponding to the coarse mark Ma and the fine mark Mb are provided.

  As shown in FIG. 29A, the distance between the central axes of the first camera lens 115 and the second camera lens 116 is fixed. A field-of-view image (FIG. 29 (b)) in which the coarse mark Ma is captured by the first camera lens 115, a field-of-view image (FIG. 29 (c)) in which the fine mark Mb is captured by the second camera lens 116, and the coarse mark The relative coordinates of the position of the imaging device 111 that captured Ma and the position of the imaging device 111 that captured the fine mark Mb are recorded in the control device 114.

  The alignment device 36a shown in FIG. 13 first captures the coarse mark Ma with the first camera lens 115 (FIG. 29D), and moves the imaging device 111 to capture the coarse mark Ma at the reference position. Calculate the amount. In other words, the alignment device 36a determines the distance and angle (X, Y, θ) necessary for moving the imaging device 111 from the position in the field of view of the coarse mark Ma captured by the first camera lens 115 and the position in the field of view stored in advance. Is calculated. Then, the alignment device 36a moves the imaging device 111 by the calculated distance and angle.

  Next, the alignment device 36a moves the imaging device 111 to switch from the first camera lens 115 to the second camera lens 116. The moving distance of the imaging device 111 moved at this time is the moving distance when images are registered by the first and second camera lenses 115 and 116, and is stored. Accordingly, when the substrate W3 is not moved, the amount of deviation of the position of the fine mark Mb captured in the field of view of the second camera lens 116 can be predicted from the position of the coarse mark Ma captured by the first camera lens 115.

  Thereby, the deviation (conveyance error) caused by the conveyance with respect to the visual field of the first and second camera lenses 115 and 116 can be absorbed, and the fine mark Mb can be reliably captured in the visual field at the time of bonding processing ( FIG. 29 (e)). Since the position of the moving amount of the imaging device 111 can be managed by a pulse or the like, the calibration can be corrected even when alignment is performed based on the relative distance between the first and second camera lenses 115 and 116, and the target can be adjusted. Never lose sight. Therefore, since it is possible to use a mark of a ratio that cannot normally be carried in the field of view, it is possible to realize alignment recognition with a high probability of determination for a high resolution field of view.

  The first camera lens 115 and the second camera lens 116 may be mounted on different cameras, and the distance between the cameras (the optical axis distance between the first camera lens 115 and the second camera lens 116) may be fixed. Good.

  Further, the number, position, and shape of the coarse mark Ma and the fine mark Mb may be appropriately changed as long as the displacement (X axis, Y axis, θ direction) of the substrates W1 and W2 can be detected. For example, in FIG. 27, there are two rough marks Ma, and the positions are near the center of the upper and lower sides in the figure. Further, the coarse mark Ma, the fine mark Mb, and the mark in each of the above forms may be changed to a shape other than a circle (for example, a square shape or a cross shape). Furthermore, the shape of a plurality of marks provided on one substrate may be different, and the direction of the base can be easily confirmed.

  The coarse mark Ma may be used for alignment performed before the substrate is carried into the press device 36. FIG. 30 is a diagram schematically showing steps from the alignment device 221 to the press device 36 for performing alignment before carrying in. The press device 36 is provided with an alignment device 36a shown in FIG. FIG. 30 shows the main part of the press device 36 (alignment device 36a).

  The alignment device 221 includes an imaging device 222, a moving mechanism 223 for moving the imaging device 222, a control device 224 for controlling the moving mechanism 223, and a flat plate 225 for sucking and holding the substrate W in the X-axis, Y-axis, and θ directions ( The X-axis is a direction parallel to the transport direction, the Y-axis is a direction orthogonal to the transport direction, and a stage (not shown) is moved. The imaging device 222 includes a lens (third camera lens) 226 having a lower magnification than the first camera lens 115. For example, the first camera lens 115 has a magnification x6, the second camera lens 116 has a magnification x10, and the third camera lens 226 has a magnification x2. In FIG. 30, fields of view F11, F12, and F12 show a state in which the coarse mark Ma is captured by the first camera lens 115, the second camera lens 116, and the third camera lens 226, respectively. Therefore, the bonded substrate manufacturing apparatus provided with the alignment device 221 has at least two sets of lenses having a lower magnification than the second camera lens 116 that performs fine alignment. A plurality of alignment devices 221 are provided, and are installed at positions corresponding to the coarse marks Ma.

  The control device 224 of the alignment device 221 stores a reference image obtained by capturing the coarse mark Ma with the third camera lens 226. The reference image is an image in which the substrate in a state where the fine mark Mb is captured by the second camera lens 116 is transported to the alignment device 221 by reverse feeding shown in FIG. 25 and the coarse mark on the substrate W is captured.

  Next, the first and second substrates W <b> 1 and W <b> 2 (the first substrate W <b> 1 is shown in the drawing) are carried into the alignment device 221. The alignment device 221 compares the image of the substrate W1 captured by the third camera lens 226 with the reference image, thereby shifting the X, Y, and θ axes of the conveyed substrate W (X, Y, θ) is measured. The amount of deviation is the relative coordinate position (deviation) of the position of the fine mark Mb with respect to the position of the second camera lens 116 when the transported substrate W is transported to the press device 36 as it is (not aligned). Amount). That is, this is equivalent to the prediction of the positional deviation of the substrate W in the alignment device 36a by the alignment device 221.

  The alignment device 221 corrects the positional deviation in the X-axis direction and the Y-axis direction and the angular deviation in the θ direction on the stage. The substrate W whose position has been corrected is transported by the transport device 227 and held by the upper holding member 172 and the lower holding member 173 of the table 171 (second substrate W2 and first substrate W1), and the press device 36. Carry in. Since the positions of the substrates W1 and W2 carried into the press device 36 are corrected by the alignment device 221, when the fine mark Mb is detected by the second camera lens 116, the center of the camera field of view (the lens optical axis). A fine mark Mb is captured in the approximate center). Thus, the fine mark Mb can be captured at the center of the optical axis of the second camera lens 116. Then, the fine mark Mb is brought near the optical axis of the second camera lens 116, so that the influence of image distortion can be reduced, and the alignment error can be reduced, that is, higher accuracy can be realized. In addition, since the reproducibility of the detection position of the fine mark Mb is improved, the fine mark Mb can be easily caught within the field of view, so that the time for searching for the position of the fine mark Mb can be shortened. Accordingly, it is possible to improve the manufacturing efficiency by shortening the time required to carry the loaded substrates W1 and W2 into the press device 36.

  The alignment of the substrate W (W1, W2) in the X axis, the Y axis, and the θ direction by the stage may be performed by other than the stage. For example, correction according to the shift in the transport direction (X-axis direction in FIG. 30) is added to the transport distance of the transport device 227 as in the transport method described in FIG. Further, the substrate W is received by tilting the arm of the transport device 227 in accordance with the angle shift with respect to the transport direction. Even in this case, the substrate W (first and second substrates W1 and W2) is transported so that the fine mark Mb (coarse mark Ma) falls within the field of view of the second camera lens 116 (first camera lens 115). can do.

  In the above embodiment, as shown in FIG. 15, the lower plate 72b provided in the vacuum chamber 71 is moved by the moving mechanism 113 so that the first and second substrates W1 and W2 are aligned. However, the chamber 71 may be moved together with the lower flat plate 72b.

  FIG. 31 is a schematic configuration diagram of the alignment device 230. The alignment device 230 includes a vacuum chamber 231 and a moving mechanism 232. The vacuum chamber 231 includes an upper container 231a and a lower container 231b. The vacuum chamber 231 is connected to a pump 236 via a pipe 233, a valve 234, and a pipe 235, and the inside of the vacuum chamber 231 can be decompressed by driving the pump 236 and opening / closing the valve 234.

  The upper container 231a is supported to be openable / closable with respect to the lower container 231b by an unillustrated opening / closing mechanism, and the lower container 231b is movable in the horizontal biaxial direction by the moving mechanism 232 around the bottom and rotated in the θ direction. Supported as possible.

  An upper flat plate 237a and a lower flat plate 237b are disposed in the vacuum chamber 231. The upper flat plate 237a is suspended and supported by a support plate 239 via a plurality of support columns 238, and the support plate 239 is fixed. A bellows 240 is provided between the support plate 239 and the upper container 231a so as to surround each column 238 and keep the chamber 231 airtight. The lower flat plate 237b is fixed to the inner bottom surface of the lower container 231b.

  An O-ring 241 and a temporary fixing pin 242 are provided at the opening of the vacuum chamber 231, that is, at a location where the upper container 231 a and the lower container 231 b abut. The O-ring 241 is provided to seal between the upper container 231a and the lower container 231b, and the temporary fixing pin 242 is provided to cause the upper container 231a to follow the movement of the lower container 231b by the moving mechanism 232. .

  The alignment apparatus 230 configured in this manner first holds the first and second substrates W1 and W2 loaded with the chamber 231 opened by suction on the lower flat plate 237b and the upper flat plate 237a, respectively. Next, the alignment device 230 closes the vacuum chamber 231, opens the valve 234, and drives the pump 236 to evacuate the chamber 231.

  The alignment device 230 aligns the first and second substrates W1 and W2. In this alignment, since the inside of the vacuum chamber 231 is depressurized, the entire vacuum chamber 231 moves. This configuration can significantly reduce the number of parts and suppress the generation of particles from the sealing material as compared to the two examples described later.

  The temporary fixing pin 242 has the same effect even if omitted because the upper chamber 231a and the lower vessel 231b are brought into close contact with each other by moving the vacuum chamber 231 by reducing the pressure in the vacuum chamber 231. However, the temporary fixing pin 242 can accurately align the upper container 231a and the lower container 231b.

32 and 33 are schematic configuration diagrams of first and second conventional examples with respect to FIG.
The vacuum chamber 251 of the alignment apparatus 250 of the first conventional example includes an upper container 251a and a lower container 251b, and the upper container 251a is opened and closed by a moving mechanism (not shown) with respect to the lower container 251b supported so as not to move. Supported as possible.

  An upper flat plate 252a and a lower flat plate 252b are arranged in the vacuum chamber 251. The upper flat plate 252a is suspended and supported by a support plate 254 via a plurality of support columns 253, and the support plate 254 is fixed. A bellows 255 is provided between the support plate 254 and the upper container 251a to surround each column 253 and keep the chamber 251 airtight.

  The lower flat plate 252b is connected to a support plate 257 via a plurality of support columns 256, and the support plate 257 is moved in the horizontal biaxial direction and rotated in the θ direction by a moving mechanism (not shown). Bellows 258 are provided between the support plate 257 and the lower container 251b so as to surround each support column and maintain airtightness in the chamber.

An O-ring 259 is provided at the opening of the vacuum chamber 251, that is, at a location where the upper container 251 a and the lower container 251 b abut.
Therefore, the first conventional example has a larger number of components than the alignment device 230 shown in FIG. In other words, the alignment device 230 in FIG. 31 can greatly reduce the number of parts compared to the first conventional example, and has good maintainability.

  The vacuum chamber 261 of the alignment apparatus 260 of the second conventional example is supported so as to be movable in two horizontal axes and rotatable in the θ direction by an upper container 261a supported so as not to move and a moving mechanism (not shown). A lower container 261b. An upper flat plate 262a is supported in the upper container 261a, and a lower flat plate 262b is supported in the lower container 261b so as not to move. An O-ring 263 is provided at the opening of the vacuum chamber 261, that is, at a location where the upper container 261a and the lower container 261b come into contact with each other.

  Therefore, the second conventional example is significantly reduced in the number of parts compared to the first conventional example, and is considered to be excellent in maintainability. However, since the lower container 261b moves relative to the upper container 261a in the alignment of the first substrate W1 and the second substrate W2, it is difficult to maintain and manage the seal component (O-ring 263) that holds the vacuum. It is. Further, the movement of the lower container 261b causes the lower container 261b and the upper container 261a to come into contact with each other to generate particles. The substrates W1 and W2 before bonding are not suitable for mass production apparatuses that operate for a long time because they dislike contamination. In other words, the alignment device 230 of FIG. 31 is easier to maintain and manage the O-ring 241 than the second conventional example, and is suitable for a mass production device that operates for a long time because no particles are generated.

-In the said embodiment, changing the structure of a hardening apparatus suitably. FIG. 34 is a schematic diagram for explaining the configuration of the curing device 270.
The curing device 270 includes a light source 271, a controller 273, and a cooling mechanism 274. The light source 271 is configured in the same manner as the light source 148 shown in FIG. 18, and the curing device 270 cures the sealing material between the first and second substrates W1 and W2 of the panel P1 adsorbed and held by the flat plate 275. Similar to the above-described embodiment, the curing device 270 may include a second light source 276 configured similarly to the light source 155 of FIG.

  The flat plate 275 that holds the panel P1 by suction is manufactured so as to suppress the amount of reflected light of the irradiated light to be low. For example, light is absorbed by making the surface black or the like. This is effective for keeping the curing time of the sealing material of the panel P1 within a certain range. That is, when the flat plate 275 reflects light, the sealing material of the panel P1 receives the irradiation light from the light source 148 and the reflected light from the flat plate 275. Therefore, since the sealing material is cured in a time shorter than the curing time by only the irradiation light, it is difficult to manage the curing time.

  The cooling mechanism 274 is provided to set the surface temperature of the flat plate 275 to a preset temperature. The reason why the surface temperature of the flat plate 275 is set to a predetermined temperature is to keep the curing time of the sealing material provided on the panel P1 within a certain range. More specifically, the sealing material provided on the panel P1 is cured by heat applied by the irradiated light. Accordingly, the surface temperature of the flat plate 275 increases due to light transmitted through the first and second substrates W1 and W2 constituting the panel P1 and heat conducted from the panel P1. Furthermore, since the flat plate 275 suppresses the amount of reflected light by absorbing light or the like, the temperature tends to rise.

  When the panel P1 conveyed from the press device is placed on the flat plate 275 whose surface temperature has risen, the sealing material of the panel P1 starts to be hardened by the heat conducted from the flat plate 275. Accordingly, the curing start time becomes unclear, and the curing time of the sealing material cannot be managed. Further, when light is irradiated to the flat plate 275 whose temperature has been increased for the same time as when the temperature of the flat plate 275 is low, elements such as the liquid crystal, driver IC, and transistor of the panel P1 are deteriorated or damaged by the temperature. There is.

  The cooling mechanism 274 includes a temperature detection mechanism 281 and a surface cooling mechanism 282. The temperature detection mechanism 281 includes a sensor 283 and a controller 273 for detecting the surface temperature, and the sensor 283 includes a sensor head 284 and a thermometer 285. The sensor head 284 detects the surface temperature of the flat plate 275 in a non-contact manner and outputs the detection signal. The thermometer 285 converts the detection signal of the sensor head 284 into temperature data. The controller 273 compares the temperature data from the thermometer 285 with preset temperature data stored in advance.

  The surface cooling mechanism 282 includes a controller 273, a compressor 286, a blower head 287, an intake head 288, and an intake pump 289. The controller 273 controls the compressor 286 based on the comparison result, and gas is applied to the surface of the flat plate 275 from the blower head 287 connected to the compressor 286. The flat plate 275 is cooled by this gas. An intake pump 289 is connected to the intake head 288, and the cooling efficiency is enhanced by sucking the gas discharged from the blower head 287 and blown to the flat plate 275 by driving the intake pump 289.

The various embodiments described above can be summarized as follows.
(Additional remark 1) In the bonded substrate manufacturing apparatus which carries in two 1st and 2nd board | substrates in a process chamber, pressure-reduces this process chamber, and bonds the said 1st and 2nd board | substrate,
Back pressure for adsorbing and holding the substrate on at least one of the first and second holding plates arranged to hold the first and second substrates at the time of switching from atmospheric pressure to reduced pressure Is the same pressure as the pressure in the processing chamber.
(Supplementary Note 2) When the processing chamber is under atmospheric pressure, the first and second substrates are adsorbed and held on the first and second holding plates by pressure difference adsorption, respectively. The bonded substrate manufacturing apparatus according to appendix 1, wherein a voltage is applied to the first and second holding plates and each is held by suction.
(Additional remark 3) The 2nd groove | channel which becomes the same pressure as the 1st groove | channel which applies a back pressure to the said board | substrate to the at least one adsorption surface of the said 1st and 2nd holding plate along a predetermined direction The bonded substrate manufacturing apparatus according to appendix 1 or 2, wherein the bonded substrate manufacturing apparatus is formed so as to extend.
(Appendix 4) The bonded substrate manufacturing apparatus according to appendix 3, wherein the second groove is formed so that the adsorbed substrate covers a part of the second groove.
(Supplementary Note 5) A dielectric layer for electrostatic adsorption is formed on the adsorption surface side of the first and second holding plates, and an electrode embedded in the dielectric layer at a predetermined depth from the adsorption surface. The bonded substrate manufacturing apparatus according to any one of supplementary notes 1 to 4, wherein a voltage is applied to adsorb the substrate.
(Additional remark 6) The bonded substrate manufacturing apparatus of Additional remark 5 characterized by connecting a conductor to the said dielectric layer side surface, and supplying the voltage for peeling to the said dielectric layer through this conductor.
(Appendix 7) A conductor is formed on the surface of the dielectric layer so as to overlap an element formation region of the substrate from the side of the substrate,
The bonded substrate manufacturing apparatus according to appendix 5 or 6, wherein when the substrate is peeled off, the conductor is grounded or a predetermined voltage is supplied to the conductor.
(Appendix 8) A conductor is formed on the surface of the dielectric layer so as to overlap an element formation region of the substrate from the side of the substrate,
The bonded substrate manufacturing apparatus according to appendix 5 or 6, wherein a terminal connected to the conductor is brought into contact with a conductor formed on the substrate when the substrate is peeled off.
(Additional remark 9) It isolate | separates from the 1st and 2nd board | substrate which bonded together any one of the said 1st and 2nd holding plate under pressure reduction, and the said 1st and 2nd board | substrate is carried out to the other holding plate. The bonded substrate manufacturing apparatus according to any one of appendices 1 to 8, wherein the processing chamber is opened to the atmosphere while being sucked and held.
(Additional remark 10) The said 1st and 2nd board | substrate made to face the said process chamber is carried in simultaneously, The bonded substrate manufacturing apparatus as described in any one of Additional remark 1-9 characterized by the above-mentioned.
(Supplementary Note 11) A first alignment device that aligns the first and second substrates sucked and held on the first and second holding plates, respectively, is provided.
The first alignment apparatus includes: an imaging apparatus in which the first and second substrates that are sucked and held by the first and second holding plates, respectively, are provided on one of the first and second substrates. 11. The bonded substrate manufacturing apparatus according to any one of appendices 1 to 10, wherein the alignment marks provided on the first and second substrates are imaged to align the substrates.
(Additional remark 12) The alignment mark provided in the same position as the said 1st and 2nd board | substrate on the 3rd board | substrate carried in to the said process chamber before the said 1st and 2nd board | substrate to the said imaging device The position of the alignment mark in the field of view is stored in advance, and the first position in the field of view and the coordinates of the second and field of view of the alignment mark imaged on the first and second substrates carried in are stored. The bonded substrate manufacturing apparatus according to any one of appendices 1 to 11, wherein the imaging device is moved according to a difference.
(Supplementary Note 13) At least two lenses having an imaging magnification lower than that at the time of bonding are used, and the first and second substrates are aligned step by step using the lenses of each magnification before being bonded. The bonded substrate manufacturing apparatus according to appendix 11 or 12, wherein:
(Additional remark 14) It has the 2nd alignment apparatus which aligns before carrying in the said 1st and 2nd board | substrate in the said process chamber, The sticking as described in any one of Additional remark 11-13 characterized by the above-mentioned. Laminated board manufacturing equipment.
(Supplementary Note 15) A first reference position of the first and second substrates to be aligned and a second reference position of the first and second substrates in the second alignment apparatus are stored, Correction according to the difference between the position of the first or second substrate carried into the second alignment apparatus and the second reference position is performed on the first or second substrate to the first reference position. The bonded substrate manufacturing apparatus according to appendix 13 or 14, wherein the bonded substrate manufacturing apparatus is added to conveyance.
(Additional remark 16) The said processing chamber is divided | segmented into two containers, The 1st and 2nd holding plate holding the said 1st and 2nd board | substrate is fixed to each container, One container is alignment. The bonded substrate manufacturing apparatus according to any one of appendices 11 to 15, wherein the bonded substrate manufacturing apparatus is attached to a mechanism that is movable at the time, and the other container moves together with the one container after decompression in the processing chamber.
(Supplementary Note 17) The adhesive for bonding the first and second substrates is an adhesive including at least a photo-curable adhesive, and the adhesive is provided on at least one side of the first and second substrates. A curing device that cures by irradiating light from a light source, the device measures the amount of light irradiated to the first and second substrates with an illuminance sensor, and based on the measurement result, the light source and the first And the distance with a 2nd board | substrate is controlled, The bonded substrate manufacturing apparatus as described in any one of Additional remarks 1-16 characterized by the above-mentioned.
(Additional remark 18) The adhesive agent which bonds the said 1st and 2nd board | substrate is an adhesive agent which contains a photocurable adhesive agent at least, Comprising: The adhesive agent was provided in the at least one side of the said 1st and 2nd board | substrate. A curing device that cures by irradiating light from a light source, the device measures the amount of light irradiated to the first and second substrates with an illuminance sensor, and based on the measurement result, the light source and the first And the bonded substrate manufacturing apparatus as described in any one of the supplementary notes 1-16 characterized by controlling so that the intensity | strength irradiated to a 2nd board | substrate may be kept constant.
(Additional remark 19) The said hardening apparatus contains the mechanism which cools the holding plate which adsorbs and hold | maintains the said 1st and 2nd board | substrate bonded together, The bonded substrate manufacturing apparatus of Additional remark 17 or 18 characterized by the above-mentioned.
(Supplementary note 20) The bonded substrate manufacturing apparatus according to supplementary note 19, wherein the holding plate is made of a material that hardly absorbs light.
(Supplementary Note 21) A support member provided outside the processing chamber for supporting the one holding plate provided in the processing chamber to be depressurized in a vertically movable manner,
A support plate for suspending the support member;
An actuator for moving the support plate up and down;
A load cell provided to add weight of the support member and the upper holding plate between the support plate and the support member;
The load cell outputs, as a measured value, a total value of the atmospheric pressure applied to the upper holding plate by depressurizing the processing chamber and the weight of the support member and the upper holding plate, and a value obtained by reducing the measured value. Is recognized as a pressure applied to the first and second substrates. The bonded substrate manufacturing apparatus according to any one of appendices 1 to 20, characterized in that:
(Supplementary Note 22) An actuator for applying a processing pressure to the upper holding plate is provided, and the actuator is provided on the support plate so that the processing pressure is applied to the load cell.
The load cell outputs a total value of the dead weight, the atmospheric pressure, and the processing pressure as a measurement value,
The bonded substrate manufacturing apparatus according to appendix 21, wherein a processing pressure of the actuator is controlled based on a value at which the measured value decreases.
(Additional remark 23) It has at least 1 sheet | seat for conveyance in which the surface which mounts the said 1st and 2nd board | substrate bonded together was formed smoothly, and the 1st and 1st after the said bonding to this sheet | seat for conveyance The bonded substrate manufacturing apparatus according to any one of appendices 1 to 22, wherein the substrate is transferred to a curing device for transferring the substrate and curing the adhesive.
(Supplementary note 24) The bonded substrate manufacturing apparatus according to supplementary note 23, wherein a time until the adhesive is irradiated with light in the curing device is managed.
(Supplementary Note 25) A plurality of transport flat plates in which the surfaces on which the bonded first and second substrates are placed are processed to a predetermined flatness;
The first and second substrates are transferred from the holding plate to the plurality of transfer flat plates, the time from pasting is managed for each transfer flat plate, and a predetermined time has elapsed. An apparatus for manufacturing a bonded substrate according to any one of appendices 1 to 22, further comprising: a transfer device that carries the conveying flat plate adsorbed and held into a device for curing the adhesive.
(Additional remark 26) It memorize | stores the positional offset of the 1st and 2nd board | substrate after the said adhesive hardening for every said each flat plate for conveyance as conveyance information, and shifts the said board | substrate based on this conveyance information, and performs alignment. The bonded substrate manufacturing apparatus according to any one of Supplementary notes 23 to 25, which is characterized by the following.
(Supplementary Note 27) An inspection apparatus that inspects the positional deviation of the first and second substrates after the adhesive is cured, and the first and second substrates are arranged according to the positional deviation amount detected by the inspection apparatus. 27. The bonded substrate manufacturing apparatus according to appendix 26, wherein the amount of misalignment that is shifted and aligned is corrected.
(Additional remark 28) The said test | inspection apparatus is arrange | positioned on the conveyance line of the said board | substrate, The bonded substrate manufacturing apparatus of Additional remark 27 characterized by the above-mentioned.
(Supplementary Note 29) The one holding plate is detachably provided, and the holding plate holding the first and second substrates after the attachment is attached and detached and transported to the next step. The bonded substrate manufacturing apparatus according to any one of appendices 1 to 28.
(Additional remark 30) The container formed so that pressure reduction formation is possible separately from the process chamber which performs the said bonding, The pre-process of bonding is performed with respect to at least one of the said 1st and 2nd board | substrate in this container. The bonded substrate manufacturing apparatus according to any one of Supplementary notes 1 to 29, wherein:
(Supplementary Note 31) A mechanism for drawing a seal that seals between the first and second substrates is provided, and the pretreatment is a treatment of exposing the first and second substrates after drawing the seal to a selected gas. The laminated substrate manufacturing apparatus according to supplementary note 30, characterized in that:
(Additional remark 32) The said pre-processing is the heat processing implemented with respect to at least one of the said 1st and 2nd board | substrate, The bonded substrate manufacturing apparatus of Additional remark 30 characterized by the above-mentioned.
(Additional remark 33) The said pre-processing is the plasma processing implemented with respect to the said 1st or 2nd board | substrate, The bonded substrate manufacturing apparatus of Additional remark 30 characterized by the above-mentioned.
(Additional remark 34) The container formed so that pressure reduction formation was possible separately from the processing chamber which performs the pasting together, the hardening processing of the seal, the conveyance processing to the hardening processing, and the first and second substrates after bonding 34. The bonded substrate manufacturing apparatus according to any one of appendices 30 to 33, wherein at least one of the processes of peeling from the first and second holding plates is performed in the container.
(Supplementary Note 35) A liquid dropping device that drops the liquid sealed between the first and second substrates onto the first or second substrate,
Any one of appendices 1 to 34, having a mechanism for automatically measuring the discharge amount of the liquid, wherein the application amount is fixedly controlled by calibrating the optimum drop amount before discharging onto the substrate. Bonded board manufacturing equipment.
(Supplementary Note 36) A liquid dropping device for dropping a liquid sealed between the first and second substrates onto the first or second substrate,
The liquid dripping device includes a syringe that applies pressure to the filled liquid and discharges the liquid from a nozzle, the syringe has an on-off valve capable of blocking the flow of the liquid, and a pipe in contact with the liquid changes the liquid. Regardless of the pressure, the apparatus for producing a bonded substrate according to any one of appendices 1 to 34, which has at least one of being equal to the pressure and controlling the temperature of the liquid.
(Supplementary note 37) The bonded substrate manufacturing apparatus according to supplementary note 36, wherein a suction port for sucking the liquid adhering to the nozzle is provided in the vicinity of the nozzle of the syringe.
(Additional remark 38) The bonded substrate manufacturing apparatus of Additional remark 37 characterized by providing the gas injection nozzle which injects gas at the said nozzle front-end | tip facing the said suction inlet.
(Supplementary Note 39) A measurement device that measures the amount of liquid dropped from the syringe is provided, and the amount of movement of the plunger that applies pressure to discharge the liquid is controlled based on the measurement result of the measurement device. The bonded substrate manufacturing apparatus according to any one of Supplementary Notes 35 to 38.
(Supplementary Note 40) The first and second substrates are manufactured in different processes, and include a transfer robot that simultaneously receives the first and second substrates and carries them into the process. Each of which is provided with recognition information, and the transfer robot flips the first or second substrate upside down based on the respective recognition information. Laminated board manufacturing equipment.
(Additional remark 41) It has a mechanism which corrects the bending of the said board | substrate to adsorb | suck when adsorb | sucking the said 1st or 2nd board | substrate to one holding plate, It is any one of the additional notes 1-40 characterized by the above-mentioned. Bonded board manufacturing equipment.

It is a schematic block diagram of the bonding apparatus. It is a schematic block diagram of a conveying apparatus. It is a schematic block diagram of a liquid crystal dropping apparatus. (A) (b) (c) (d) It is explanatory drawing of a dispenser. It is a schematic explanatory drawing of a dripping amount measurement part. It is explanatory drawing of board | substrate conveyance. It is the schematic for demonstrating the board | substrate adsorption | suction in a vacuum atmosphere. (A) (b) (c) (d) It is explanatory drawing of a flat plate. (A) (b) It is explanatory drawing of an electrostatic chuck. (A) (b) It is an equalization circuit diagram of an electrostatic chuck. It is a wave form diagram of the voltage applied to an electrostatic chuck. (A) (b) (c) It is explanatory drawing which shows the procedure of board | substrate peeling. It is a schematic block diagram of a position alignment apparatus. It is explanatory drawing of position control. It is a schematic block diagram of a press apparatus. It is a perspective view of an upper flat plate and a lower flat plate. It is the schematic of the conveying apparatus which conveys a board | substrate to a sealing material hardening apparatus. It is a schematic block diagram of a sealing material hardening device. (A) (b) It is a schematic block diagram of a board | substrate holding | maintenance apparatus. (A) (b) It is explanatory drawing of the bending generate | occur | produced in board | substrate conveyance and a board | substrate. (A) (b) (c) (d) (e) It is explanatory drawing explaining the procedure of board | substrate holding | maintenance. It is explanatory drawing of board | substrate conveyance. It is a schematic block diagram of a position alignment apparatus. (A) (b) (c) It is explanatory drawing of a flat plate. It is explanatory drawing of correction | amendment conveyance. It is a schematic block diagram of the bonded substrate manufacturing apparatus of another form. (A) (b) (c) It is explanatory drawing of the alignment mark. It is explanatory drawing of another position control. (A) (b) (c) (d) (e) It is explanatory drawing of another alignment control. It is explanatory drawing of another correction | amendment conveyance. It is a schematic block diagram of another chamber. FIG. 32 is a schematic configuration diagram of a conventional example with respect to FIG. 31. FIG. 32 is a schematic configuration diagram of a conventional example with respect to FIG. 31. It is a schematic block diagram of another sealing material hardening apparatus. It is sectional drawing of a bonding board | substrate (liquid crystal display panel). It is sectional drawing of another conventional bonding substrate. It is explanatory drawing of bonding by the conventional method. (A) (b) (c) It is sectional drawing of the bonding board | substrate by a conventional method.

Explanation of symbols

55 Syringe 71 Chambers 72a and 72b as processing chambers Upper and lower flat plates 76a and 76b as holding plates Electrostatic chuck portions constituting holding plates 89 Adsorption grooves 91a to 91d Dielectric layers 92a to 92d Electrodes 94a Conductors 111 Imaging devices 115, 116 Camera lens 129 Load cell 132 Cylinder as actuator 165 Deflection correction mechanism W1, W2 First and second substrates

Claims (18)

In a bonded substrate manufacturing system in which the first and second substrates are bonded together in a reduced processing chamber,
A first preliminary vacuum chamber comprising a first gate valve for carrying in the first and second substrates;
A bonded substrate manufacturing system comprising: the processing chamber connected to the first preliminary vacuum chamber via a second gate valve. A second preliminary vacuum chamber provided with a fourth gate valve connected to the processing chamber via a third gate valve and for carrying out the first and second substrates after bonding; The bonded substrate manufacturing system according to claim 1, wherein: The bonded substrate manufacturing system according to claim 1, further comprising a loading robot that loads the first and second substrates into the first preliminary vacuum chamber. The bonded substrate manufacturing system according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein a pretreatment is performed on the first and second substrates carried in the first preliminary vacuum chamber. The bonded substrate manufacturing system according to claim 4, wherein the pretreatment is at least one of gas treatment, heat treatment, and plasma treatment. The first preliminary vacuum chamber is provided with a liquid dropping means for dropping a liquid onto at least one of the first and second substrates in order to bond the first and second substrates. The bonded substrate manufacturing system according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein: The said 2nd preliminary vacuum chamber is equipped with the board | substrate hardening means which irradiates light to the sealing material of the said 1st and 2nd board | substrate bonded together, and is hardened | cured. Bonded substrate manufacturing system. The bonded substrate production system according to claim 1, wherein a plurality of the first preliminary vacuum chambers are provided in parallel. The bonded substrate according to any one of claims 1 to 8, further comprising a seal drawing device that applies a sealant to the first or second substrate on an input side of the first preliminary vacuum chamber. Manufacturing system. In a bonded substrate manufacturing system in which the first and second substrates are bonded together in a reduced processing chamber,
A first preliminary vacuum chamber having a first gate and a second gate;
The first and second substrates after bonding from the processing chamber are carried into the first preliminary vacuum chamber through the first gate,
The bonded substrate manufacturing system, wherein the first preliminary vacuum chamber is carried in via the second gate. A second preliminary vacuum chamber provided with a third gate for carrying the first and second substrates into the input side of the processing chamber;
11. The bonded substrate manufacturing system according to claim 10, wherein the first and second substrates are carried out from the second preliminary vacuum chamber to the processing chamber through a fourth gate. The bonded substrate manufacturing system according to claim 10 or 11, further comprising a loading robot for unloading the first and second substrates from the first preliminary vacuum chamber. The said 1st preliminary | backup vacuum chamber is equipped with the board | substrate hardening means which irradiates light to the sealing material of the said 1st and 2nd board | substrate bonded together, and hardens | cures any one of Claims 10-12 The bonded substrate manufacturing system according to one item. In a bonded substrate manufacturing system in which the first and second substrates are bonded together in a reduced processing chamber,
Comparing the image of the first or second substrate imaged by the imaging device with a reference image and measuring the amount of deviation of the first or second substrate;
A bonded substrate manufacturing system, wherein the position of the first or second substrate is corrected based on the shift amount, and the first or second substrate is carried into the processing chamber. The bonded substrate manufacturing system according to claim 14, wherein the shift amount is a shift in an in-plane rotational direction that is a horizontal direction in a transport direction. The bonded substrate manufacturing system according to claim 14, wherein the correction of the shift amount is performed on a stage. The bonded substrate manufacturing system according to claim 14, wherein the correction of the deviation amount is performed in a transport device that transports the first or second substrate. The deviation amount is output to a transport device that transports the first or second substrate,
The bonded substrate manufacturing system according to claim 14, wherein the transfer device performs transfer at a transfer distance corresponding to the shift amount.

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