JP2008043915A - Liquid droplet jetting device - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a liquid droplet jetting device which can inhibit a change in the temperature of a functional fluid to be jetted without complicating its structure. <P>SOLUTION: This liquid droplet jetting device comprises a carriage with at least, not less than one discharge head for jetting a liquid droplet composed of a functional fluid and a movement mechanism which keeps the carriage and a base arranged face to face. In addition, the discharge head draws a pattern by jetting the liquid droplet composed of the functional liquid to the base from a discharge head, synchronously with the relative movement of the carriage and the base. Further, the device is equipped with a cooling mechanism for cooling the heat generating part of the carriage arranged at least in a drawing position by the movement mechanism. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2008,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a droplet discharge device that draws a pattern by discharging droplets of a functional liquid.

As an apparatus for drawing a pattern on a substrate, a droplet made of a liquid functional material or a liquid containing a functional material (hereinafter referred to as “functional liquid”) is referred to as a droplet discharge head (hereinafter referred to as “discharge head”). .) Is a droplet discharge device that completes the pattern through steps such as discharge and drying. Complex and large area patterns can be drawn at a relatively low cost.
One of the important things when forming a pattern with a droplet discharge device is viscosity management. The reason is that if the viscosity changes, the weight of the ejected droplets will be affected, or the flying pattern of the droplets will change due to the change in viscosity, resulting in variations in landing points, etc., making it impossible to form precise patterns. Because it becomes. In general, the viscosity of a functional liquid is easily affected by temperature. For example, the viscosity of the functional liquid can be lowered by heating (Patent Document 1). However, the temperature rise due to heating also affects the piezoelectric elements and electronic circuit components that are components of the ejection head, leading to malfunction of the electronic circuit and a decrease in ejection stability due to characteristic changes, and destruction of the electronic circuit itself. There was also a risk of failure. Therefore, in Patent Document 1, an apparatus for cooling the electronic circuit of the ejection head is presented.

JP 2005-111446 A

  In Patent Document 1, the discharge head is positively heated. Even when the discharge head is not positively heated, there are heat generation sources such as a circuit board and a drive motor in the vicinity of the discharge head. There was a problem that the ejection of droplets was not stable due to fluctuations and changes in the viscosity of the functional liquid. Further, in Patent Document 1, cooling is performed in order to suppress the temperature rise, but the cooling device of this aspect is attached to the ejection head, and the necessary piping or the like must be moved in accordance with the movement of the ejection head. However, there was a problem that the structure was complicated.

In order to solve the above-described problems, a droplet discharge device of the present invention includes a carriage on which at least one discharge head that discharges droplets made of a functional liquid is mounted, and a moving mechanism that disposes the carriage and the substrate opposite to each other. A droplet discharge device for drawing a pattern by discharging droplets of the functional liquid from the discharge head toward the substrate in synchronization with relative movement between the carriage and the substrate, The carriage has a heat generating part in the vicinity of the ejection head, and includes a cooling mechanism for cooling the heat generating part of the carriage disposed at least at a pattern drawing position by the moving mechanism.
By cooling the heat generating portion, it is possible to suppress the discharge head and the functional liquid filled in the discharge head from being heated by the radiant heat of the heat generating portion. And since the said heat generating part is cooled when the said discharge head and the said heat generating part are arrange | positioned in a pattern drawing position, it is not necessary to move a cooling mechanism with the said carriage, and it can fix with respect to the said droplet discharge apparatus. it can. Accordingly, the droplet discharge device having such a configuration can suppress a change in viscosity due to a temperature change of the functional liquid without complicating the structure, and can draw a highly accurate pattern.

In the droplet discharge device of the present invention, the cooling mechanism is fixed so as to correspond to the carriage at the drawing position.
According to the present invention, the apparatus is not complicated by fixing the cooling mechanism without mounting it on the carriage.

Preferably, the heat generating unit is at least one circuit board that drives the ejection head, and the cooling mechanism is arranged to cool the circuit board.
By cooling the circuit board that is most likely to generate heat during pattern drawing, the discharge head and the functional liquid filled in the discharge head can be further suppressed from being heated. Therefore, a pattern with higher accuracy can be drawn by the droplet discharge device having such a configuration.

In order to solve the above problems, a droplet discharge device according to the present invention includes a carriage on which at least one discharge head for discharging droplets made of a functional liquid is mounted, and a movement in which the carriage and the substrate are arranged to face each other. A droplet discharge device that draws a pattern by discharging droplets of the functional liquid from the discharge head toward the substrate in synchronization with relative movement between the carriage and the substrate, A cooling mechanism in which the carriage has a heat generating portion in the vicinity of the ejection head, and cools a heated portion that is heated by receiving radiation heat from the heat generating portion of the carriage arranged at least at a pattern drawing position by the moving mechanism. It is provided with.
Since the heated portion can be directly cooled with the droplet discharge device having such a configuration, the influence of radiant heat from the heat generating portion can be suppressed. Therefore, a highly accurate pattern can be formed.

In the droplet discharge device of the present invention, the cooling mechanism is fixed so as to correspond to the carriage at the drawing position.
According to the present invention, the apparatus is not complicated by fixing the cooling mechanism without mounting it on the carriage.

Preferably, the heat generating unit is at least one circuit board that drives the discharge head, and the cooling mechanism cools at least one of the functional liquid pipe as the heated portion and the discharge head. It is characterized by being arranged in.
With the droplet discharge device having such a configuration, the portion filled with the functional liquid can be directly cooled. Therefore, it can suppress effectively that the said functional liquid is heated and a change arises in a viscosity, and can draw a pattern with much higher precision.

In order to solve the above problems, a droplet discharge device according to the present invention includes a carriage on which at least one discharge head for discharging droplets made of a functional liquid is mounted, and a movement in which the carriage and the substrate are arranged to face each other. A droplet discharge device that draws a pattern by discharging droplets of the functional liquid from the discharge head toward the substrate in synchronization with relative movement between the carriage and the substrate, The carriage has at least one circuit board that drives the ejection head in the vicinity of the ejection head, cools the circuit board of the carriage that is disposed at least at a pattern drawing position by the moving mechanism, and the circuit board. And a cooling mechanism for cooling the discharge pipe and the piping of the liquid material heated by the radiant heat.
With the droplet discharge device having such a configuration, both the portion that generates radiant heat and the portion that is filled with the functional liquid are cooled, so that the viscosity change due to the temperature change of the functional liquid can be further suppressed. . In addition, the cooling mechanism is not arranged on the carriage, but the carriage arranged at the pattern drawing position is cooled, so that the cooling mechanism does not need to be moved together with the carriage and is fixed to the droplet discharge device. Can do. Therefore, it is possible to draw a pattern with higher accuracy without complicating the structure of the droplet discharge device.

In the droplet discharge device of the present invention, the cooling mechanism is fixed so as to correspond to the carriage at the pattern forming position.
According to the present invention, the apparatus is not complicated by fixing the cooling mechanism without mounting it on the carriage.

Preferably, the apparatus includes a chamber that manages at least a temperature around the carriage when the carriage is disposed at the pattern drawing position, and the cooling mechanism has a temperature of a portion to be cooled that is within a temperature management range of the chamber. It cools so that it may become.
With the droplet discharge device having such a configuration, the temperature of the portion filled with the functional liquid can be made constant by keeping the temperature in the chamber constant. Therefore, a highly accurate pattern can be drawn at a lower cost.

Hereinafter, a droplet discharge apparatus to which the present invention is applied will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings. The droplet discharge device according to the present embodiment discharges a functional liquid onto a substrate from an discharge head mounted on a carriage.
The droplet discharge device of the present invention can be used for manufacturing various devices such as organic EL elements, color filter substrates, alignment films used in liquid crystal display devices, formation of liquid crystal layers, wiring substrates, and microlenses. it can.
(Droplet discharge device)

FIGS. 1-2 is a figure explaining the droplet discharge apparatus 10 used by each embodiment.
FIG. 1 is a schematic perspective view of the droplet discharge device 10. 2A is a plan view and FIG. 2B is a front view. This apparatus is installed in a room kept at a constant temperature or in a chamber kept at a constant temperature provided in the room. As will be described later, in some embodiments of the present invention, the temperature of the functional liquid is maintained at a constant value by blowing the ambient air maintained at a constant temperature to a drawing unit 104 (see FIG. 1) described later. Therefore, the ambient air and the temperature of the functional liquid can be efficiently maintained at a constant value by using the chamber.

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the apparatus includes an X-axis guide rail 108 and a Y-axis guide rail 110 that are orthogonal to each other. The X-axis guide rail 108 moves the set table 102 as a moving mechanism for placing the substrate 106 that is the pattern formation object in the X-axis direction. The Y-axis guide rail 110 moves the drawing unit 104 that forms a pattern by discharging droplets made of functional liquid in the Y-axis direction.
The set table 102 moves along the X-axis guide rail 108 by driving a built-in drive motor (not shown) according to a command from the control unit 118. The drawing unit 104 is moved along the Y-axis guide rail 110 by a driving motor (not shown). The set table 102 is a plate-like member having an extremely flat upper surface, and sucks and fixes the substrate 106.

As will be described later, the drawing unit 104 is provided with a carriage 30 including a plurality of ejection heads 306, and ejects droplets made of functional liquid onto the substrate 106 according to a command from a control unit 118 described later. A plurality of carriages 30 may be arranged in the Y-axis direction and individually movable in the Y-axis direction. The drawing unit 104 preferably does not move in the Y-axis direction during drawing (during pattern formation) in order to reduce the influence of vibration and inertia during movement on the functional liquid, and the substrate 106 moves in the X-axis direction. A pattern is formed at a desired position on the substrate by discharging droplets in synchronization with the above.
In addition to the set table 102 and the drawing unit 104, a weight measuring unit 112, a wiping unit 114, and a discharge head maintenance unit group of a cap unit 116 are arranged along the Y-axis guide rail 110. As long as each unit of the discharge head maintenance unit group is along the Y-axis guide rail 110, the arrangement order may be changed. A control unit 118 for controlling each unit of the discharge head maintenance unit group is disposed at a position away from both guide rails.

The control unit 118 is connected to each unit of the discharge head maintenance unit group via the connection line 120. In particular, the drawing unit 104 gives an instruction to a circuit board described later, and drives the discharge head 306 described later to function liquid. A droplet made of is discharged.
The weight measuring unit 112 confirms the weight of the functional liquid that is actually discharged by the discharge head 306. The weight of the functional liquid discharged by the instruction from the control unit 118 is measured with an electronic balance, the weight of the functional liquid calculated by the control unit 118 is compared with the weight of the functional liquid actually discharged, and the drawing unit It is confirmed whether 104 is functioning normally.
The wiping unit 114 removes foreign matters and dirt on the nozzle surfaces (see FIG. 4) of the plurality of ejection heads 306. The cap unit 116 covers the nozzle surface when the drawing unit 104 is not used, and suppresses drying of the nozzle surface, adhesion of foreign matters, and the like.

FIG. 2 is a plan view and a front view of the droplet discharge device according to the present invention. The control unit and connection lines are not shown.
The set table 102 continuously moves in the X-axis direction and passes under the drawing unit 104 while droplets are dropped on the surface from the unit. The drawing unit 104 can move continuously, but when droplets are ejected, it does not move on the rails but ejects droplets onto the substrate passing underneath. The cap unit 116 can simultaneously cover the nozzle surfaces of all the ejection heads 306 arranged in the drawing unit 104, but the wiping unit 114 wipes the nozzle surfaces for each individual ejection head 306 (wiping). The weight measuring unit 112 measures the weight of the discharged droplet for each individual discharge head 306.

  FIG. 3 shows the carriage 30 constituting the drawing unit 104. FIG. 4 shows the arrangement of the ejection head 306 and nozzles on the lower surface of the carriage 30. The drawing unit 104 includes a carriage 30. The carriage 30 includes a carriage housing 302, a circuit board 304 disposed in the housing, a discharge head 306 regularly disposed in a lower portion of the housing, and the like. Consists of.

One discharge head 306 includes a plurality of nozzles 402 arranged in two rows, and each discharge head 306 is regularly shifted on the lower surface of the carriage so that the nozzle surface faces the surface on which the substrate of the set table 102 is placed. Two rows are arranged side by side. A functional liquid supplied from a functional liquid tank (not shown) via a functional liquid pipe (hereinafter referred to as “piping”) 308 is discharged in accordance with an instruction from the circuit board 304 transmitted through the head wiring 310. (Part of the head wiring is not shown.)
Each nozzle 402 communicates with a pressure chamber filled with the functional liquid, and the discharge head 306 applies pressure to the ink in the pressure chamber to discharge the functional liquid from the nozzle 402 in a droplet state. The pressure chamber is pressurized by a piezoelectric vibrator that converts electrical energy into mechanical energy. Since the current required for the above-described conversion flows while drawing a pattern on the circuit board 304, the amount of heat generation increases. The generated radiant heat from the circuit board 304 heats the ejection head 306 and the pipe 308 to increase the temperature of the filled functional liquid.

  Further, when the drawing unit 104 is moved or when the drawing unit 104 is held so as not to move, the drive motor generates heat due to the current flowing to energize the drive motor, and the radiant heat from the drive motor is also generated by the discharge head 306 and It can be considered that the pipe 308 is affected. As described above, the increase in the temperature of the functional liquid changes the viscosity of the functional liquid and can affect the accuracy of the drawn pattern. Furthermore, the heat generated by the drive motors of the circuit board 304 and the drawing unit 104 may affect the surroundings other than the discharge head 306 and the pipe 308, and the peripheral members are mechanically accurate due to expansion and deformation due to heat. It is also possible to cause an error. In particular, when a plurality of ejection heads are mounted, the distance between the heads may fluctuate. Therefore, the influence is great when high accuracy is required.

In the present invention, a cooling device is disposed in the vicinity of the drawing unit 104, and air is supplied to the periphery of the drawing unit 104 to cool the unit, thereby suppressing the influence of the radiant heat of the circuit board 304 and the drive motor. The temperature of the functional liquid at the time of discharge from the nozzle 402 is kept constant, and the accuracy of the drawn pattern is improved. Each embodiment will be described below.
(First embodiment)

5 and 6 show a first embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 5 shows an arrangement of the air supply unit 50 as a cooling mechanism in the plan view and the front view of the droplet discharge device 10 according to the present embodiment. FIG. 6 schematically shows each element constituting the carriage, and also shows a portion cooled by the air supply of the unit.
As shown in FIG. 5, in the droplet discharge device 10 according to the present embodiment, an air supply unit 50 as a cooling mechanism is arranged along the Y-axis guide rail. As shown in FIG. 6A, the position of the air supply unit 50 in the height direction (Z-axis direction) is substantially the same position as the circuit board 304, and gas is supplied in the direction indicated by the arrow, that is, in the X-axis direction. Blow out. As a result, the region in the circle of FIG. 6B, that is, the circuit board 304 is cooled.

  The air supply unit 50 of the present embodiment blows out a gas at room temperature (or chamber temperature) and cannot be lowered below that temperature, but is heated to room temperature (or chamber temperature) or higher by energization. The temperature of 304 can be lowered. As a result, the temperature of the pipe 308 and the discharge head 306 can be prevented from rising due to radiant heat from the circuit board 304, and the accuracy of the pattern drawn on the board can be improved. The air supply unit 50 is connected to a control unit 118 (see FIG. 1) by an air supply unit control line 78, and can blow air only when necessary. Moreover, since it does not fall below room temperature as mentioned above, gas can always be blown out without considering supercooling.

The droplet discharge device 10 according to the present embodiment measures the wiping position and the weight by providing the wiping unit 114 in the apparatus without disposing the air supply unit 50 that is a cooling mechanism on the carriage that moves in the apparatus. The unit 112 is fixed and arranged at a position where it does not move with the carriage along the Y-axis guide rail 110 at the weight measurement position where the unit 112 is provided and at the drawing position (pattern formation position) where the droplet is ejected to form the pattern. Yes. With this configuration, when the carriage has moved to predetermined positions such as a wiping position, a weight measurement position, and a drawing position, air is supplied from the air supply units arranged at each location so as to correspond to the carriage. As a result, it is possible to keep the viscosity of the functional liquid at a constant value without arranging a flow path of refrigerant or the like on the carriage, and the accuracy of the pattern to be drawn can be improved without complicating the apparatus.
Further, since the circuit board 304 as a heat generating part is cooled, the influence of radiant heat can be suppressed, and the temperature and viscosity fluctuations of the functional liquid filled in the ejection head 306 and the like can be efficiently suppressed.

  In this embodiment, the air supply unit 50 is arranged in accordance with the positions of the drawing unit 104, the weight measuring unit 112, and the wiping unit 114. The rise in the liquid temperature can be suppressed, and the effects of the present invention can be obtained. It is also preferable to arrange the drawing unit 104 and the weight measuring unit 112 at two positions. Since a large amount of functional liquid is discharged during weight measurement, the energization amount increases, but by starting the air supply during the measurement and suppressing the temperature rise, it is more reliable than starting the air supply when moving to the drawing position. Further, the temperature rise of the functional liquid filled in the pipe 308 and the discharge head 306 can be suppressed. In addition to this, it is possible to reduce the difference between the temperature of the functional liquid at the time of pattern drawing and the temperature of the functional liquid at the time of weight measurement, thereby enabling weight measurement reflecting the actual pattern drawing time. .

FIG. 10 shows the configuration of the air supply unit 50 of the above embodiment. FIG. 10A shows a fan-type air supply unit that supplies the surrounding atmosphere with a fan. An air-supply unit housing 1002, a filter 1004, an electric motor 1008, a fan (rotary blades) 1006, and a power supply line are provided. The air supply unit control line 78 also serves as an air supply unit. The ambient atmosphere is sucked into the housing 1002 through the filter 1004, and is again fed in the direction of the arrow through the filter by the fan 1006 driven by the electric motor 1008. The electric motor 1008 is ON / OFF controlled by the air supply unit control line 78 and can supply air only when necessary.
This unit only supplies the ambient air and cannot supply cold air (gas having a temperature lower than room temperature) alone, but the circuit board 304 heated by energization can be cooled so as to approach room temperature. It is possible to prevent the discharge liquid 306 and the like from being heated by the radiant heat and the functional liquid temperature from rising. Further, since the surrounding atmosphere is supplied, it is not supercooled until the temperature becomes room temperature or lower, and a mode in which the supply is always performed is also possible.

What is shown in FIG. 10B is a pressurized air supply unit that blows out pressurized gas using a pressure supply source, and communicates with an air supply unit housing 1022 and a pressure supply source such as a high-pressure cylinder (not shown). The gas supply pipe 1028, the nozzle 1024 for blowing out gas, the electromagnetic valve 1026, the valve and the control unit 118 (see FIG. 1) are connected, and the air supply unit control line 78 which also serves as a power line is formed. Air can be supplied only when necessary by opening and closing the electromagnetic valve. Further, by cooling the pressure supply source, it is possible to blow cool air without adding much equipment in the vicinity of the droplet discharge device 10, and the circuit board 304 heated by energization can be effectively cooled.
(Second Embodiment)

7 (a) and 7 (b) show a second embodiment of the present invention. FIGS. 7A and 7B schematically show the arrangement positions of the elements constituting the carriage and the air supply unit 50 in the same manner as FIGS. 6A and 6B. The part to be cooled is shown.
The droplet discharge device 10 of the present embodiment is that the air supply unit 50 is arranged in accordance with the positions of the drawing unit 104, the weight measuring unit 112, and the wiping unit 114. It is the same. The ON / OFF control from the control unit via the air supply unit control line 78 is the same as in the droplet discharge device 10 according to the first embodiment. And the position of the air supply unit 50 in the height direction, that is, the Z-axis direction is different. As shown in FIG. 7A, the air supply unit 50 is arranged at a height that matches the position of the pipe 308 and the position of the discharge head 306. In FIG. Gas is blown out to the discharge head 306.

Since the gas is directly blown onto the pipe 308 and the discharge head 306 that are heated by radiation from the circuit board 304, the cooling can be effectively performed. In addition, since heat generation caused by energizing an actuator that pressurizes the functional liquid in the ejection head 306 can be suppressed, the functional liquid temperature can be made closer to room temperature.
(Third embodiment)

FIG. 7C shows a third embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 7C schematically shows the arrangement positions of the elements constituting the carriage and the air supply unit 50 in the same manner as in FIGS. 6A and 7A.
In the droplet discharge device 10 of the present embodiment, the air supply unit 50 connected to the control unit by the air supply unit control line 78 is arranged in accordance with the positions of the drawing unit 104, the weight measuring unit 112, and the wiping unit 114. This point is the same as that of the droplet discharge device 10 according to the first and second embodiments, except that three air supply units 50 are used. That is, three air supply units 50 are arranged in the Z-axis direction, and air is supplied to three locations of the circuit board 304, the pipe 308, and the discharge head 306. In order to suppress heating to room temperature or higher by supplying air to all parts that generate heat and emit radiant heat when energized, and parts filled with functional liquid, the functional liquid temperature can be made even closer to room temperature. it can.
Further, an air supply unit may be arranged to supply air to the drive motor and its surroundings.
(Fourth embodiment)

  FIG. 8 shows a fourth embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 8 schematically shows the arrangement positions of the elements constituting the carriage, the air supply unit, and the cooling unit. The three air supply units 50 connected to the control unit 118 by the air supply unit control lines 78 are arranged in the Z-axis direction and sprayed to three places of the circuit board 304, the pipe 308, and the discharge head 306. Although it is the same as that of the said 3rd Embodiment, the points by which the cooling unit 80 is attached to each air supply unit 50 differ.

The air supply unit 50 of the present embodiment is a fan-type air supply unit, and a cooling unit 80 is disposed on the back side (the side opposite to the air supply direction). A temperature sensor (not shown) is attached to the circuit board 304, the pipe 308, and the discharge head 306, and is connected to the control unit 118 through a sensor control line 82. (In this figure, only one set of piping 308 and discharge head 306 is shown, but in actuality, they are attached to all of the 12 sets of piping 308 and discharge head 306 shown in the figure.) Cooling unit 80 Is connected to the control unit by a cooling unit control line 84 and is controlled separately from the air supply unit 50.
FIG. 11 shows an outline of the cooling unit 80. The cooling unit housing 1102 has a cooling coil 1104 having a large number of fins 1106, and the surface in contact with the air supply unit 50 and the facing surface thereof are open surfaces. Since air supplied via the cooling coil 1104 and the filter 1108 is supplied to the air supply unit 50, air having a temperature lower than room temperature can be blown onto the circuit board 304 or the like.

As described above, the temperature of the carriage component such as the circuit board 304 is detected by the temperature sensor and transmitted to the control unit 118 by the sensor control line 82. Therefore, the control unit 118 can operate the cooling unit 80 as necessary to rapidly cool the circuit board 304 and the like. In some cases, the control unit 118 does not operate the cooling unit 80 and can generate atmospheric air having substantially the same temperature as the room temperature. By spraying, it can suppress that it is cooled more than necessary.
(Fifth embodiment)

  FIG. 9 shows a fifth embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 9 schematically shows the elements constituting the carriage and the arrangement positions of the air supply unit 50 and the cooling unit 80. The air supply unit 50 connected to the control unit by the three control lines 78 is arranged in the Z-axis direction, and air is supplied to the circuit board 304, the pipe 308, and the discharge head 306 at the fourth point. This embodiment is the same as the fourth embodiment, but is different from the fourth embodiment in that the cooling unit 80 is attached only to the air supply unit 50 corresponding to the circuit board 304. With this configuration, the circuit board 304 can be blown with a cooled atmosphere lower than room temperature (or chamber temperature). Similarly to the droplet discharge device 10 of the first to third embodiments, air having substantially the same temperature as room temperature (or chamber temperature) is blown onto the pipe 308 and the discharge head 306.

Since only one cooling unit is arranged, the circuit board 304 having the largest temperature rise at the time of pattern drawing is effectively cooled without complicating the droplet discharge device 10 more than necessary. A decrease in pattern accuracy due to a change can be effectively suppressed.
In addition, even when the air supplied through the cooling unit 80 to the pipe 308 and the discharge head 306 is partially cooled to a temperature of room temperature or less, the pipe 308 and the discharge head 306 are supplied with air at substantially the same temperature as the room temperature. By spraying, on the contrary, it can suppress that it raises temperature and is overcooled. Therefore, even when the circuit board 304 and the piping 308 are close to each other, the circuit board 304 can be sufficiently cooled, and a decrease in pattern accuracy due to a change in the viscosity of the functional liquid can be effectively suppressed.
The air supply unit 50 is connected to the control unit 118 via the air supply unit control line 78, and the cooling unit 80 is connected to the control unit 118 via the cooling unit control line 84. The point of being independently controlled is the same as in the fourth embodiment.
(Modification 1)

In the first to fifth embodiments, ventilation holes can be provided in the ejection head to improve the circulation of the cooling air. Even if the piping is cooled, the actuator in the discharge head generates heat and the temperature of the functional liquid may rise inside the head. However, with the above configuration, the viscosity of the functional liquid can be further stabilized by effectively cooling. . As a result, a pattern with higher accuracy can be drawn.
(Modification 2)

A mode in which a heater made of a heating wire or the like is arranged in the piping and the discharge head can also be implemented. When the circuit board is cooled to room temperature or lower using the cooling unit, the discharge head and the like arranged near the circuit board may be supercooled. In that case, the viscosity of the functional liquid fluctuates as in the case of overheating by radiant heat, and the accuracy of the pattern to be drawn is lowered. Therefore, it is possible to improve the accuracy of the pattern to be drawn by disposing the heater in the discharge head or the like and suppressing the cooling more than necessary.
(Modification 3)

  A mode in which only the moving range of the set table as a moving mechanism is accommodated in the chamber instead of accommodating the entire droplet discharge device 10 in the chamber is also possible. Since the region kept at a constant temperature can be reduced, the temperature and viscosity of the functional liquid can be kept constant at a low cost, and the accuracy of the pattern to be drawn can be improved.

The schematic perspective view of a droplet discharge device. (A) is a top view of a droplet discharge device, (b) is a front view of a droplet discharge device. FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating a carriage that constitutes a drawing unit. FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating an arrangement of ejection heads and nozzles on a lower surface of a carriage. The figure which shows arrangement | positioning of the air supply unit in the droplet discharge apparatus concerning 1st Embodiment. The figure which shows the 1st Embodiment of this invention. (A), (b) is a figure which shows the 2nd Embodiment of this invention, (c) is a figure which shows the 3rd Embodiment of this invention. The figure which shows the 4th Embodiment of this invention. The figure which shows the 5th Embodiment of this invention. The figure which shows the air supply unit of embodiment of this invention. The figure which shows the cooling unit of embodiment of this invention.

Explanation of symbols

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 ... Droplet discharge apparatus, 30 ... Carriage, 50 ... Air supply unit as a cooling mechanism, 78 ... Air supply unit control line, 80 ... Cooling unit, 82 ... Sensor control line, 84 ... Cooling unit control line, 102 ... Movement Set table as mechanism 104 ... Drawing unit 106 ... Substrate 108 ... X-axis guide rail 110 ... Y-axis guide rail 112 ... Weight measuring unit 114 ... Wiping unit 116 ... Cap unit 118 ... Control unit 302 ... Carriage housing, 304 ... Circuit board, 306 ... Discharge head, 308 ... Functional liquid piping, 310 ... Head wiring, 402 ... Nozzle, 1002 ... Air supply unit housing, 1004 ... Filter, 1008 ... Electric motor, 1006 ... Fan (Rotating feathers) 1022 ... Air supply unit casing, 1024 ... Nozzle, 1026 Electromagnetic valve, 1028 ... gas supply pipe, 1102 ... cooling unit housing, 1104 ... cooling coils, 1106 ... fins, 1108 ... filter.

Claims (9)

A carriage on which at least one ejection head that ejects droplets of functional liquid is mounted; and a moving mechanism that disposes the carriage and the substrate opposite to each other, in synchronization with the relative movement between the carriage and the substrate. A droplet discharge device for drawing a pattern by discharging droplets of the functional liquid from the discharge head toward the substrate;
The carriage has a heat generating portion in the vicinity of the ejection head;
A droplet discharge device comprising: a cooling mechanism that cools at least the heat generating portion of the carriage arranged at a pattern drawing position by the moving mechanism.   The droplet discharge device according to claim 1, wherein the cooling mechanism is fixed to correspond to the carriage at the drawing position.   3. The droplet discharge according to claim 1, wherein the heat generating unit is at least one circuit board that drives the discharge head, and the cooling mechanism is arranged to cool the circuit board. 4. apparatus. A carriage on which at least one ejection head that ejects droplets of functional liquid is mounted; and a moving mechanism that disposes the carriage and the substrate opposite to each other, in synchronization with the relative movement between the carriage and the substrate. A droplet discharge device for drawing a pattern by discharging droplets of the functional liquid from the discharge head toward the substrate;
The carriage has a heat generating portion in the vicinity of the ejection head;
A droplet discharge apparatus comprising: a cooling mechanism that cools a heated portion that is heated by receiving radiation heat from the heat generating portion of the carriage disposed at least at a pattern drawing position by the moving mechanism.   The heat generating unit is at least one circuit board that drives the discharge head, and the cooling mechanism is arranged to cool at least one of the functional liquid piping and the discharge head as the heated portion. The droplet discharge device according to claim 3, wherein   6. The droplet discharge device according to claim 4, wherein the cooling mechanism is fixed so as to correspond to the carriage at the drawing position. A carriage on which at least one ejection head that ejects droplets of functional liquid is mounted; and a moving mechanism that disposes the carriage and the substrate opposite to each other, in synchronization with the relative movement between the carriage and the substrate. A droplet discharge device for drawing a pattern by discharging droplets of the functional liquid from the discharge head toward the substrate;
The carriage has at least one circuit board for driving the ejection head in the vicinity of the ejection head;
A cooling mechanism that cools at least the circuit board of the carriage arranged at a pattern drawing position by the moving mechanism, and that cools the liquid piping and the discharge head that are heated by radiant heat from the circuit board; A droplet discharge apparatus characterized by the above.   8. The droplet discharge device according to claim 7, wherein the cooling mechanism is fixed so as to correspond to the carriage at the pattern forming position. A chamber for managing at least the temperature around the carriage when the carriage is disposed at the pattern drawing position;
9. The droplet discharge device according to claim 1, wherein the cooling mechanism performs cooling so that a temperature of a portion to be cooled falls within a temperature management range of the chamber.

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