JP2008049256A - Light irradiation device - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a light irradiation device capable of accurately measuring an accumulated light volume of a workpiece. <P>SOLUTION: The UV irradiation device is provided with a lamp unit, a stage 20 that loads the workpiece, and a scanning mechanism that scans the stage 20 with respect to the lamp unit. The stage 20 is configured by mutually dividing and providing a loading section 22 as a loading area of the workpiece and a light volume detecting section 30 as the disposing area of a light volume detecting means in the scanning direction. The accumulated light volume of the UV light received by the workpiece is measured by a sensor head 31 provided on the section 30. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2008,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a light irradiation apparatus.

  Light irradiation is a technique that is widely used in the manufacturing process of various industrial products. For example, Patent Document 1 discloses that a nozzle plate forming a nozzle forming surface of a droplet discharge head has a surface of the original plate of the nozzle plate. There is a description of performing ultraviolet irradiation in the treatment. Further, as a light irradiation apparatus for performing light irradiation, an apparatus that irradiates light in a scanning manner using a belt conveyor as described in Patent Document 2 is known.

JP 2003-318515 A JP 11-337698 A

  By the way, the intensity of light emitted from the light source (light irradiating means) may fluctuate due to deterioration of the light source over time, etc. Therefore, in order to guarantee the processing quality of the work, the integration of the light applied to the work It is necessary to manage the light intensity properly. However, in the above-described light irradiation apparatus, there is no way to appropriately measure the integrated light quantity with respect to the work, and quality control is difficult.

  The present invention has been made to solve the above-described problems, and an object thereof is to provide a light irradiation apparatus capable of accurately measuring an integrated light amount with respect to a workpiece.

The light irradiation apparatus of the present invention is disposed on the stage, a light irradiation unit, a stage for placing a workpiece, a scanning unit that scans the stage relative to the light irradiation unit, and And a light amount detecting means.
According to the light irradiation apparatus of the present invention, since the light amount detecting means is disposed on the stage on which the workpiece is placed, the integrated light amount can be measured with high accuracy under substantially the same conditions as the irradiation to the workpiece. .

Preferably, the light irradiation device is configured such that a light receiving surface of the light amount detecting means is included in substantially the same plane as the mounting surface of the stage.
According to the light irradiation apparatus of the present invention, since the distance from the light irradiation means to the light receiving surface is substantially equal to the distance from the light irradiation means to the work, the integrated light quantity with respect to the work can be measured with high accuracy.

Preferably, the light irradiation device is provided with a plurality of light amount detection means so as to detect light amounts at different positions on the stage in a direction orthogonal to the scanning direction.
According to the light irradiation apparatus of the present invention, since the plurality of light amount detection means detect the ultraviolet rays at different positions in the direction orthogonal to the scanning direction, the difference in the integrated light amount due to the difference in the work placement position is appropriately managed. can do.

Preferably, in the light irradiation apparatus, an arrangement area of the light amount detection unit and a placement area of the work are provided separately in the scanning direction on the stage.
According to the light irradiation apparatus of the present invention, the arrangement area of the light quantity detection means and the work placement area are divided and provided in the scanning direction. Can be efficiently performed according to the purpose.

Further preferably, in the light irradiation device, the first operation mode in which the stage is scanned in a scanning range corresponding to the light irradiation to the work placement area, and the light irradiation to the arrangement area of the light amount detection means. And a second operation mode in which the stage is scanned in a corresponding scanning range.
According to the light irradiation apparatus of the present invention, by measuring the scanning mode, it is possible to efficiently measure the integrated light amount and irradiate the workpiece according to the purpose.

DESCRIPTION OF EXEMPLARY EMBODIMENTS Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.
Note that the embodiments described below are preferred specific examples of the present invention, and thus various technically preferable limitations are given. However, the scope of the present invention is particularly limited in the following description. Unless otherwise stated, the present invention is not limited to these forms. In the drawings referred to in the following description, the vertical and horizontal scales of members or portions may be represented differently from actual ones for convenience of illustration.

(Configuration of UV irradiation device)
First, the configuration of the ultraviolet irradiation apparatus according to the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. 1, FIG. 2, and FIG. FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a main configuration of an ultraviolet irradiation device. FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing a schematic configuration of the stage. FIG. 3 is a functional block diagram of the ultraviolet irradiation device.

  An ultraviolet irradiation device 100 as a light irradiation device shown in FIG. 1 is used for a surface modification process in manufacturing a nozzle plate forming a nozzle forming surface of a droplet discharge head. That is, in order to perform a process of irradiating an original plate of a metal nozzle plate having a plasma polymerized film (for example, a polymerized film of dimethylpolysiloxane) having an alkyl group as a terminal, and replacing the alkyl group with an oxygen atom. belongs to. The terminal oxygen atom is hydroxylated in the atmosphere, and the surface is once rendered hydrophilic. After that, a long-chain polymer containing fluorine (for example, alkoxysilane) is further bonded to the terminal hydroxyl group and subjected to a condensation reaction. Thus, a nozzle plate having a liquid-repellent surface can be obtained.

  The ultraviolet irradiation device 100 includes a base 1, a lamp unit 10 as a light irradiation means (a support frame of the lamp unit 10 is not shown), a stage 20 for placing a workpiece, and the stage 20 as a lamp unit 10. And a scanning mechanism 2 for scanning.

  The scanning mechanism 2 includes a pair of guide rails 3 and 3 extending in the X-axis direction, a ball screw 4 extending in the X-axis direction between the guide rails 3 and 3, and a drive motor for driving the ball screw 4 to rotate. And 5. The stage 20 is screwed with the ball screw 4 at the bottom thereof, and moves along the guide rail 3 by the rotational drive of the ball screw 4. The stage 20 is scanned in the X-axis direction while being irradiated with ultraviolet rays from the lamp unit 10, and the workpiece placed on the placement surface 21 is uniformly irradiated with ultraviolet rays in the scanning direction (X-axis direction). The

  The lamp unit 10 includes three arc tubes 11 extending in a direction perpendicular to the scanning direction (Y-axis direction), a cooling mechanism (not shown) for the arc tube 11, and nitrogen gas in the casing. A circulation mechanism (not shown) and a translucent irradiation plate 12 provided on the side facing the stage 20 are provided. In the present embodiment, an Xe excimer lamp that emits ultraviolet light having a wavelength of 172 nm is used as the arc tube 11.

  Such a short wavelength ultraviolet ray needs to be handled with care since it exhibits a remarkable attenuation characteristic due to oxygen in the atmosphere. For example, a nitrogen gas circulation mechanism in the housing is provided to prevent ultraviolet light from decaying in the housing. Further, the distance between the surface of the irradiation plate 12 and the mounting surface 21 of the stage 20 is in a very close state (3 mm in this embodiment), and further varies in the distance between the surface of the irradiation plate 12 and the workpiece surface. In order to prevent the occurrence of the problem, the mounting surface 21 is also devised as described later.

  Oxygen in the irradiation atmosphere brings about the necessity of the above-described countermeasures for the attenuation of ultraviolet rays, but is also indispensable in the surface treatment of the workpiece. This is because the active oxygen generated by the ultraviolet irradiation acts on the surface of the work to cause a cleaning effect and a reforming effect. Therefore, in order to suitably perform surface treatment on the workpiece uniformly, it is preferable to aim at an appropriate air circulation in the irradiation atmosphere in order to stabilize the concentration of (active) oxygen near the surface of the workpiece. The device 100 is devised in various ways as will be described later.

  The ultraviolet irradiation device 100 includes an air supply tube 6 that is installed on the side of the lamp unit 10 and above the scanning locus of the stage 20. The air supply tube 6 is configured to blow out air from a blowout port (not shown in the drawing direction) formed at a position obliquely downward toward the lamp unit 10, thereby favoring the irradiation atmosphere. Air circulation is planned.

  The stage 20 and its scanning means, and the lamp unit 10 and a part of the air supply tube 6 are accommodated in a processing chamber 7 partitioned by a partition indicated by a virtual line. This is to protect workers from harmful ozone generated by ultraviolet irradiation. In addition, the base 1 is provided with an exhaust port 8 for exhausting the air in the processing chamber 7 to the exhaust draft, preventing the outflow of ozone to the outside of the processing chamber 7 and suitable air in the irradiation atmosphere. Circulation is planned.

  The workpiece is transferred between the inside and outside of the processing chamber 7 by a workpiece transfer device 41 (see FIG. 3) through an introduction portion 9 which is an opening formed in the wall material of the processing chamber 7. The workpiece transfer device 41 according to the present embodiment is configured to include a mechanism for removing / feeding material to / from the workpiece storage rack and an arm robot having a vacuum suction pad. The introduction unit 9 is opened only when the workpiece is transferred by the introduction unit opening / closing device 42 (see FIG. 3), and consideration is given to preventing the airtightness of the processing chamber from being lowered unnecessarily.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the stage 20 includes a placement unit 22 as a workpiece placement region and a light amount detection unit 30 as a placement region of the light amount detection unit, which are divided in the scanning direction (X-axis direction). It is the composition provided. The placement unit 22 has a smooth placement surface 21 for placing and placing a workpiece in parallel with the XY plane. In the present embodiment, two placement units 22 in the scanning direction (X-axis direction), A total of 10 workpieces can be placed side by side in a direction orthogonal to the scanning direction (Y-axis direction).

  The placement surface 21 is provided with a suction port 23 and a groove portion 24 corresponding to the placement area of each workpiece. The suction port 23 communicates with a suction pump through a vent pipe (not shown) extending from the lower side of the stage 20 and plays a role of adsorbing the workpiece onto the placement surface 21. Further, the groove portion 24 is formed in a region corresponding to the outer edge of the workpiece on the placement surface 21, and avoids interference between the portion and the placement surface 21 when the outer edge of the metal workpiece is bent. It plays a role in preventing the surface from rising. Thus, the work is placed in a state of being preferably in close contact with the placement surface 21, and the distance from the irradiation plate 12 of the lamp unit 10 to the work surface is defined with high accuracy, so that variation in the amount of light to be irradiated is suitable. Can be suppressed.

  Further, the mounting surface 21 communicates with a suction pump (which can be replaced with an air supply fan or can be omitted) via a vent pipe (not shown) extending from the lower side of the stage 20, and further exhausted. An exhaust port 25 leading to the draft is provided. This exhaust port 25 is for forcibly exhausting the surrounding air, and is provided on the mounting surface 21 that is irradiated with ultraviolet rays. Therefore, in a state where the work on the mounting surface 21 is irradiated with ultraviolet rays, The air circulation (ventilation) of the irradiation atmosphere can be effectively performed. Moreover, the outflow of the ultraviolet rays generated in the irradiation atmosphere to the outside of the processing chamber 7 can be effectively suppressed.

  The light quantity detection unit 30 includes three sensor heads 31 as light quantity detection means capable of detecting the quantity of ultraviolet light, an attachment guide 33 for attaching the sensor head 31, and a detection capable of opening and closing the detection part 32 of the sensor head 31. And a part opening / closing mechanism 34. The sensor head 31 of the present embodiment uses a diamond thin film type, and can detect ultraviolet rays having a short wavelength as described above with high accuracy and stability.

  The three sensor heads 31 are juxtaposed in the Y-axis direction, and each sensor head 31 measures the amount of light at different positions in the direction orthogonal to the scanning direction (Y-axis direction). The amount of ultraviolet light emitted from the lamp unit 10 has a certain distribution in the Y-axis direction due to the shape of the arc tube 11 and the temperature difference due to the structure of the cooling mechanism. With this configuration, it is possible to appropriately manage the difference in the amount of light due to the difference in the workpiece placement position.

  The sensor head 31 is attached so that the light receiving surface 32a of the detection unit 32 is substantially the same height as the placement surface 21 (included in substantially the same plane). In view of the fact that the intensity of ultraviolet rays is significantly attenuated in the irradiation atmosphere, the measurement error due to the influence of such attenuation is detected by detecting the amount of light at substantially the same position (distance from the irradiation plate 12) as the workpiece surface. This is intended to reduce this.

  The detection unit opening / closing mechanism 34 includes a shutter 35 made of a thin plate-shaped light-shielding member (metal plate or the like) having a size capable of shielding the detection unit 32, and a connecting rod that extends in the Y-axis direction and connects a plurality of shutters 35. 36 and an air cylinder 37 having one end coupled to the connecting rod 36.

  When the air cylinder 37 is not driven, the detection unit 32 of the sensor head 31 is shielded by the shutter 35 (the state shown in FIG. 1). When the air cylinder 37 is driven, the connecting rod 36 moves in the Y-axis direction along a guide (not shown), the shutter 35 slides, and the detection unit 32 of each sensor head 31 is exposed (opened). ) (The state shown in FIG. 2).

  Although the detection unit 32 needs to be exposed when performing the light amount detection, if it is irradiated with ultraviolet rays until when the light amount detection is not performed, it is a cause of unnecessarily reducing the life of the sensor head 31. Become. In view of such circumstances, the detection unit opening / closing mechanism 34 is provided to switch whether or not the detection unit 32 can be irradiated with ultraviolet rays as necessary. That is, when the workpiece is irradiated with ultraviolet rays (surface treatment), the detection unit 32 is shielded by the shutter 35, and only when the amount of light is measured, the shutter 35 is opened and the detection unit 32 is irradiated with ultraviolet rays. It has become.

  As shown in FIG. 3, the ultraviolet irradiation device 100 includes an output adjuster 43 for adjusting the output of the lamp unit 10 and a light amount display unit 44 for displaying the light amount (integrated light amount) detected by the sensor head 31. And a control computer 40 as control means for controlling the driving of the scanning mechanism 2, the detection unit opening / closing mechanism 34, the work transfer device 41, and the introduction unit opening / closing device 42.

  The control computer 40 can switch and execute the surface treatment of the workpiece (first operation mode) and the detection of the integrated light quantity (second operation mode) according to an instruction from the operator via the interface. Yes. With respect to the detection result of the integrated light amount displayed on the light amount display unit 44, the operator operates the output adjuster 43 to adjust the irradiation intensity of ultraviolet rays or change the scanning speed of the stage 20 related to irradiation. Or can be dealt with as needed.

(Operation of the UV irradiation device)
Next, the operation of the ultraviolet irradiation device will be described with reference to FIGS. FIG. 4 is a side view showing the position of the stage in the process of the first operation mode. FIG. 5 is a side view showing the position of the stage in the process of the second operation mode.

  In the first operation mode for performing the surface treatment of the workpiece, the detection unit opening / closing mechanism 34 (see FIG. 2) is not driven, and the detection unit 32 is shielded by the shutter 35 (see FIG. 2). The control computer 40 (see FIG. 3) performs movement control (scanning control) of the stage 20 as described below.

  FIG. 4A shows the initial position of the stage 20, and the workpiece is transferred through the introduction unit 9 at this initial position. After the work is placed on the placement part 22 of the stage 20, the stage 20 is moved to the position shown in FIG. 4B, that is, the position before the placement part 22 is applied to the effective irradiation region of ultraviolet rays. The moving speed at this time can be sufficiently higher than the scanning speed related to ultraviolet irradiation described later, and the processing time can be shortened.

  When the stage 20 reaches the position shown in FIG. 4B, the control computer 40 scans the stage 20 in the positive direction side of the X axis at a predetermined scanning speed (10 mm / s in the present embodiment), and the placement unit 22 The work on 22 is irradiated with ultraviolet rays. When the stage 20 reaches the position shown in FIG. 4C, the direction of movement is reversed, and the workpiece is irradiated with ultraviolet rays while the stage 20 is scanned to the position shown in FIG. 4B.

  Here, the reversal of the scanning direction is not performed immediately after the placement unit 22 passes through the effective irradiation range, but at a timing after the placement unit 22 (work) is scavenged by the air blown out from the air supply tube 6. It is like that. The purpose of this is to suitably perform the surface treatment related to the backward scanning by sufficiently replacing the air near the surface of the workpiece.

  Finally, the stage 20 is moved to the initial position shown in FIG. 4A, and the workpiece is transferred from the placement unit 22 to the storage rack (which is different from the one in which the workpiece before processing is stored). This completes the operation. Such a series of operations is repeatedly executed as long as the workpiece supply continues or until there is an interruption command from the operator.

  The stage 20 has a configuration in which a placement unit 22 and a light amount detection unit 30 for placing a workpiece are divided from each other in the scanning direction (X-axis direction). In the first operation mode, paying attention only to the mounting portion 22, a scanning range related to ultraviolet irradiation (a range from the position in FIG. 4B to the position in FIG. 4C) is set. Thereby, compared with the case where the sensor head 31 (refer FIG. 2) is provided in the center of the mounting part 22, for example, the scanning range required in order to pass the effective irradiation range about the mounted workpiece | work is increased. Since it can be narrowed, the processing time can be shortened.

  In the above-described embodiment, the work is irradiated with ultraviolet rays by reciprocating scanning of the stage 20, but this is because the work transfer device 41 (see FIG. 3) is in the scanning direction (X-axis direction). This is due to restrictions on the apparatus configuration because it is provided on one side, and it is also possible to perform unidirectional scanning after the work transfer devices 41 are provided on both sides in the X-axis direction. In the case of reciprocating scanning, the number of reciprocations can be increased to 2 times and 3 times.

  The second operation mode for detecting the integrated light quantity is periodically executed, for example, at the start-up inspection of the apparatus. In this mode, the shutter 35 is opened by driving the detection unit opening / closing mechanism 34 and the detection unit 32 is exposed. The control computer 40 (see FIG. 3) performs movement control (scanning control) of the stage 20 as described below.

  First, the stage 20 is moved from the initial position shown in FIG. 5A to the position shown in FIG. 5B, that is, the position just before the light amount detection unit 30 is applied to the effective irradiation region of ultraviolet rays. The moving speed at this time is sufficiently higher than the scanning speed for ultraviolet irradiation, thereby shortening the time required for detecting the amount of light.

  When the stage 20 reaches the position shown in FIG. 5B, the control computer 40 causes the stage 20 to scan in the positive direction side of the X axis at the same scanning speed as the scanning speed according to the first operation mode, and causes the detection unit 32 to Irradiate with ultraviolet rays. Then, when the stage 20 reaches the position shown in FIG. 5C, that is, the position where the light quantity detection unit 30 deviates from the effective irradiation region of ultraviolet rays, the direction of movement is reversed, and the stage reaches the position shown in FIG. 5B. 20 is scanned. Finally, the stage 20 is returned to the initial position shown in FIG. 5A, and a series of operations is completed.

  Thus, in the second operation mode, the integrated light quantity is measured by the sensor head 31 under the same scanning speed as the ultraviolet irradiation of the work, and the result is displayed on the light quantity display section 44 (see FIG. 3). Thereby, the integrated light quantity with respect to a workpiece | work can be managed with high precision, and stabilization of quality can be achieved regarding the liquid repellency of the nozzle plate obtained through the surface treatment by ultraviolet irradiation.

  Further, the scanning range of the ultraviolet irradiation (the range from the position of FIG. 5B to the position of FIG. 5C) according to the second operation mode is set by paying attention only to the light amount detection unit 30. It is narrower than the scanning range (range from the position of FIG. 4B to the position of FIG. 4C) related to one operation mode. Thereby, compared with the case where light quantity detection is performed by the same scanning control as in the first operation mode, the integrated light quantity can be efficiently measured with a reduced time.

The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment.
For example, the light irradiated from the light irradiation apparatus of the present invention is not limited to the ultraviolet rays as described above, and can be applied to visible light, infrared light, X-rays, and the like.
Moreover, although the above-mentioned light irradiation apparatus was a structure provided with a movable stage, it shall be set as the apparatus structure which scans by a light irradiation means (lamp unit) moving with respect to a fixed stage. You can also.
Moreover, each structure of embodiment can combine these suitably, can be abbreviate | omitted, or can combine with the other structure which is not shown in figure.

The perspective view which shows the principal part structure of an ultraviolet irradiation device. The perspective view which shows schematic structure of a stage. The functional block diagram of an ultraviolet irradiation device. (A)-(c) is a side view which shows the position of the stage in the process of a 1st operation mode. (A)-(c) is a side view which shows the position of the stage in the process of a 2nd operation mode.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 2 ... Scanning mechanism as a scanning means, 3 ... Guide rail, 4 ... Ball screw, 5 ... Drive motor, 9 ... Introduction part, 10 ... Lamp unit as light irradiation means, 20 ... Stage, 21 ... Mounting surface, 22 ... Placement part as a work placement area, 30... Light quantity detection part as an arrangement area of the light quantity detection means, 31... Sensor head as light quantity detection means, 32 ... Detection part, 32 a. Control computer as means, 100... UV irradiation device as light irradiation device.

Claims (5)

Light irradiation means;
A stage for placing the workpiece;
Scanning means for scanning the stage relative to the light irradiation means;
And a light amount detection unit disposed on the stage.   The light irradiation apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the light receiving surface of the light amount detection unit is configured to be included in substantially the same plane as the mounting surface of the stage.   The light irradiation apparatus according to claim 2, wherein a plurality of the light amount detection units are arranged so that light amounts at different positions on the stage in a direction orthogonal to a scanning direction can be detected.   4. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein an arrangement area of the light amount detection unit and a placement area of the workpiece on the stage are provided separately in the scanning direction. Light irradiation device. A first operation mode in which the stage is scanned in a scanning range corresponding to light irradiation on the work placement area, and a scanning in the scanning range corresponding to light irradiation in the light amount detecting unit is provided. The light irradiation apparatus according to claim 4, comprising control means having a second operation mode.

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