JP2008250206A - Camera holder and spacer inspection system - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a camera holder capable of easily adjusting the direction of a camera to a base even after fixing the camera and having excellent operability. <P>SOLUTION: The camera holder (18) for fixing the camera (17) on an installation member (12) includes a fixing part (20) fixed on the installation member (12), a movable part (21) for supporting the camera (17) and an adjustment mechanism (52). A ball-shaped joint (41) is fixed on either one of the fixing part (20) and the movable part (21), and an engagement part (28) with which the ball-shaped joint (41) is slidably engaged is formed on the other part. The adjustment mechanism (52) fixedly determines relative positional relation between the fixing part (20) and the movable part (21) by releasably clamping the ball-shaped joint (41) with the engagement part (28) and changes the direction of the movable part (21) to the fixing part (20) around the ball-shaped joint (41) by releasing the clamping of the ball-shaped joint (41). <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2009,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a camera holding device for holding a camera for photographing a distribution state of spacers dispersed on a glass substrate for a liquid crystal display panel. Furthermore, this invention relates to the spacer test | inspection apparatus which optically test | inspects whether the spacer spread on the glass substrate has a lump.

  In the liquid crystal display panel, two glass substrates are stacked with a space between each other, and a liquid crystal is filled in a gap between the glass substrates. In order to form a gap between the glass substrates, conventionally, after dispersing a particulate spacer on one glass substrate, the other glass substrate is overlaid on one glass substrate.

  This type of spacer needs to be evenly distributed evenly on the glass substrate. However, depending on the state of application, the spacer may be agglomerated at a specific position on the glass substrate. It is known that the lump of spacers is one factor that reduces the translucency of the liquid crystal display panel.

  As a countermeasure, conventionally, after dispersing spacers on one glass substrate, the distribution of the spacers is inspected, and the glass substrate in which spacer aggregation is recognized is removed from the production line as a defective product. ing.

For example, Patent Document 1 discloses a spacer inspection apparatus that monitors a distribution state of spacers using a plurality of cameras. In this spacer inspection apparatus, a plurality of cameras are arranged on a conveyance path for conveying a glass substrate on which spacers are dispersed. An image signal sent from the camera is sent to an image processing unit having a computer. The image processing unit determines the distribution state of the spacers by processing the image signal, and sorts the glass substrate into a defective product and an appropriate product based on the determination result.
JP-A-8-304227

  According to the conventional spacer inspection apparatus, each camera images a predetermined inspection area on the glass substrate. For example, when photographing a glass substrate in a line shape using a plurality of cameras, the cameras are individually fixed to a mounting member extending in a direction orthogonal to the conveyance direction of the glass substrate.

  In this case, in order to capture the entire surface of the glass substrate uniformly with high accuracy, the interval between adjacent cameras is reduced as much as possible, and a predetermined inspection area on the glass substrate is positioned in the field of view of each camera. It is necessary to adjust the orientation of each camera.

  In the conventional camera, the orientation with respect to the glass substrate is adjusted, and then firmly fixed to the installation member using an adhesive or a dedicated belt. However, with this fixing method, once the camera is fixed to the installation member, it is very difficult to finely adjust the posture of each camera. In particular, when the interval between adjacent cameras is narrow, when the direction of one camera is forcibly adjusted, it cannot be denied that this camera comes into contact with the adjacent camera and the direction of the adjacent camera goes wrong.

  In addition, when the orientation of one camera is readjusted, it is necessary to match the adjacent fields of view, so that it is necessary to readjust the orientation of adjacent cameras. As a result, all the cameras need to be readjusted.

  Therefore, if you want to fine-tune the camera orientation again after fixing the camera, you must unfix all the cameras and then start the camera fixing operation from the beginning. There is a problem that a great deal of labor and labor is required for the adjustment work.

  An object of the present invention is to obtain a camera holding device that can easily adjust the orientation of the camera with respect to a substrate even after the camera is fixed, and is excellent in workability.

  Another object of the present invention is to provide a camera holding device that can easily adjust the orientation of individual cameras with respect to a substrate when a plurality of cameras are fixed in a row on an installation member, and the spacer distribution state can be accurately and accurately determined. It is an object of the present invention to obtain a spacer inspection device that can be inspected.

In order to achieve the above object, a camera holding device according to one aspect of the present invention includes:
A camera holding device for fixing a camera that shoots a substrate on which granular spacers are dispersed to an installation member,
A fixed portion fixed to the installation member; a movable portion that supports the camera; a ball-shaped joint provided on one of the fixed portion and the movable portion; and the fixed portion and the movable portion. The ball-shaped joint is slidably fitted to the fitting portion, and the ball-shaped joint is releasably tightened between the fitting portion and the fixing portion and the fitting portion. Adjustment that fixedly determines the relative positional relationship with the movable part and changes the orientation of the movable part with respect to the fixed part around the ball-shaped joint by releasing the tightening of the ball-shaped joint. And a mechanism.

In order to achieve the above object, a spacer inspection apparatus according to one aspect of the present invention includes:
This is a spacer inspection apparatus that optically inspects the distribution state of the spacers by photographing a substrate on which granular spacers are scattered with a plurality of cameras arranged in a line in a direction intersecting the substrate transport direction. And an installation member on which the camera is installed, and a plurality of camera holding devices for individually fixing the camera to the installation member.
The camera holding device includes a fixed portion fixed to the installation member, a movable portion that supports the camera, a ball-shaped joint provided on one of the fixed portion and the movable portion, and the fixed portion. And the other of the movable parts, the ball-shaped joint is slidably fitted to the fitting part, and the ball-shaped joint is releasably tightened between the fitting part. The movable portion with respect to the fixed portion is centered on the ball-shaped joint by fixing the relative positional relationship between the fixed portion and the movable portion in a fixed manner and releasing the tightening of the ball-shaped joint. And an adjusting mechanism for changing the direction of the head.

  According to the present invention, by releasing the tightening of the ball-shaped joint by the adjusting mechanism, the movable portion that supports the camera can be freely moved in any direction around the ball-shaped joint. For this reason, the orientation of the camera can be easily adjusted so that the inspection region on the substrate determined for each camera is located in the field of view of the camera. Therefore, the workability when fixing the camera to the installation member is improved, and the distribution state of the spacers scattered on the substrate can be accurately and accurately inspected.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS.

  In FIG. 1 and FIG. 2, the code | symbol 1 has shown the conveying apparatuses like the rail or conveyor which comprise the manufacturing line of a liquid crystal display panel. The transport device 1 is for transporting a glass substrate 2 for a liquid crystal display panel in one direction, and is disposed horizontally.

  A spacer inspection device 4 is disposed in the middle of the transport device 1. The spacer inspection device 4 is for inspecting the distribution state of a large number of particulate spacers 5 (see FIG. 6 or FIG. 7) dispersed on the upper surface of the glass substrate 2. It is appropriate that the spacers 5 are evenly distributed over the entire upper surface of the glass substrate 2, but depending on the state of dispersion, as shown in FIG. It is possible that the spacers 5 are agglomerated and aggregated.

  As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the spacer inspection device 4 includes a pedestal 7 and a frame 8. The pedestal 7 has a pair of first support columns 9 (only one is shown) and a pair of second support columns 10 (only one is shown). The first and second support columns 9 and 10 stand from the base 7 and are separated from each other in the conveyance direction of the glass substrate 2.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the frame 8 has a pair of side plates 11 a and 11 b and an installation member 12. The side plates 11a and 11b face each other with the conveying device 1 in between. The installation member 12 is disposed horizontally so as to straddle between the side plates 11 a and 11 b above the conveyance device 1 and to be orthogonal to the conveyance direction of the glass substrate 2.

  The side plates 11a and 11b of the frame 8 are interposed between the upper ends of the first and second support columns 9 and 10. One end of each of the side plates 11 a and 11 b is supported on the upper end portion of the first support column 9 via the pivot shaft 13. Therefore, the frame 8 can swing in the direction approaching or moving away from the transport device 1 around the pivot shaft 13. Fixing screws 14 are attached to the side plates 11 a and 11 b of the frame 8. The fixing screw 14 serves as a guide when the frame 8 swings, and after adjusting the swing position of the frame 8, the side plates 11 a and 11 b of the frame 8 are fixed to the second column 10.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the installation member 12 has a bar shape with a square section having a flat installation surface 12a. The installation surface 12 a of the installation member 12 faces the glass substrate 2 conveyed along the conveyance device 1 and is inclined downward as it proceeds downstream along the conveyance direction of the glass substrate 2.

  The installation member 12 holds a plurality of cylindrical cameras 17. The camera 17 is for optically photographing the distribution state of the spacers 5 dispersed on the upper surface of the glass substrate 2, and is arranged in a line in a direction orthogonal to the conveyance direction of the glass substrate 2.

  The cameras 17 are individually fixed to the installation member 12 via the camera holding device 18. The camera holding device 18 has not only a function of fixing the camera 17 to the installation member 12 but also the orientation of the camera 17 so that an inspection region on the glass substrate 2 determined for each camera is located in the field of view of each camera 17. It has a function to adjust.

  As shown in FIGS. 3 to 5, the camera holding device 18 includes a fixed portion 20 and a movable portion 21. The fixed portion 20 and the movable portion 21 each have a square block shape and are made of a metal material such as an aluminum alloy.

  The fixing portion 20 includes a first surface 23a that is abutted against the installation surface 12a of the installation member 12, and a second surface 23b that is located on the opposite side of the first surface 23a. The first and second surfaces 23a and 23b are flat and parallel to each other.

  A cylindrical support portion 24 and a pair of screw holes 25a and 25b are formed on the first surface 23a of the fixed portion 20. The support portion 24 protrudes vertically from the center of the first surface 23 a and is inserted into a through hole 26 opened in the installation member 12. The tip of the support portion 24 protrudes above the installation member 12. The support part 24 has a guide hole 27 along the axial direction. The guide hole 27 is located on the axis O <b> 1 of the support portion 24. The screw holes 25a and 25b are distributed and arranged on both sides with the support portion 24 interposed therebetween.

  A recess 28 and a pair of screw holes 29a and 29b are formed in the second surface 23b of the fixing portion 20. The concave portion 28 is an example of a fitting portion, and has a cylindrical shape coaxial with the axis O1 of the support portion 24. As shown in FIG. 5, the recess 28 includes an opening 30 located in the center of the second surface 23 b, a termination surface 31 where the guide hole 27 opens, and a periphery between the termination surface 31 and the opening edge of the opening 30. And a peripheral surface 32 connecting the two. The screw holes 29a and 29b are arranged separately on both sides of the opening 30 of the recess 28 therebetween.

  The fixing part 20 is fixed to the installation member 12 via a pair of bolts 33. The bolt 33 passes through the installation member 12 and is screwed into the screw holes 25 a and 25 b of the fixed portion 20. By this screwing, the first surface 23 a of the fixing portion 20 is abutted against the installation surface 12 a of the installation member 12.

  On the other hand, the movable portion 21 includes a first surface 35a facing the fixed portion 20, a second surface 35b located on the opposite side of the first surface 35a, one end of the first surface 35a, and a second surface 35b. And a fourth surface 35d connecting the other end of the first surface 35a and the other end of the second surface 35b.

  The first surface 35a is flat, and a screw hole 36 is formed at a position slightly shifted to one end side from the center. The third surface 35c extends in the vertical direction so as to be orthogonal to the first surface 35a, and a lens tube 37 is attached to the center of the third surface 35c. The lens cylinder 37 accommodates a plurality of lenses (not shown) and projects vertically from the third surface 35c.

  A cylindrical camera mounting hole 38 is formed in the movable portion 21. One end of the camera mounting hole 38 is open to the lens tube 37. The other end of the camera mounting hole 38 opens on the fourth surface 35 d of the movable portion 21. The axis O2 of the camera mounting hole 38 intersects the axis O3 of the lens tube 37 inside the movable portion 21. In the present embodiment, the axis O2 of the camera mounting hole 38 and the axis O3 of the lens cylinder 37 are inclined downward as they proceed to the downstream side along the conveyance direction of the glass substrate 2.

  As shown in FIG. 3, the camera 17 is fitted in the camera mounting hole 38 of the movable portion 21. The camera 17 is focused by moving in the axial direction of the camera mounting hole 38. Further, the camera 17 is fixed to the movable portion 21 at a focused position by tightening a pair of lock screws 39.

  A joint 41 is attached to the first surface 35 a of the movable portion 21. The joint 41 is made of a metal material such as stainless steel. The joint 41 includes a shaft portion 42 and a ball 43. The shaft portion 42 is screwed into the screw hole 36 opened in the first surface 35a of the movable portion 21, and protrudes vertically from the first surface 35a. The ball 43 is integrally formed at the tip of the shaft portion 42. The ball 43 is inserted into the concave portion 28 of the fixed portion 20 from below, and its outer peripheral surface is slidably in contact with the peripheral surface 32 of the concave portion 28.

  As shown in FIGS. 3 to 5, a holding plate 44 is attached to the second surface 23 b of the fixing portion 20. The holding plate 44 holds the ball 43 of the joint 41 in the recess 28 and is made of, for example, a metal material such as stainless steel.

  The holding plate 44 includes a first plate 45 and a second plate 46. A circular hole 47 is formed in the center of the first plate 45. The hole 47 has a smaller diameter than the concave portion 28, and an opening edge sharpened in an edge shape is located in the opening 30 of the concave portion 28. A long hole 48 is formed in the center of the second plate 46. The long hole 48 has an elongated opening shape extending along the conveyance direction of the glass substrate 2, and is located within the opening range of the hole 47 of the first plate 45.

  The first plate 45 and the second plate 46 are fixed to the fixing unit 20 via a pair of bolts 50. The bolt 50 passes through the first and second plates 45 and 46 and is screwed into the screw holes 29 a and 29 b of the fixing portion 20. By this screwing, the first and second plates 45, 46 are laminated together, and the first plate 45 is sandwiched between the second lower surface 23 b of the fixing portion 20 and the second plate 46. .

  In a state where the first and second plates 45 and 46 are fixed to the fixing portion 20, the shaft portion 42 of the joint 41 passes through the long hole 48 and the hole 47 and the opening edge of the hole 47 of the first plate 45 is The ball 43 is continuously in contact with the outer peripheral surface of the ball 43 in the circumferential direction. By this contact, the ball 43 is prevented from falling off from the recess 28, and the fixed portion 20 and the movable portion 21 are connected to each other.

  Further, the long hole 48 of the second plate 45 defines the rotation direction and rotation range of the shaft 42 so that the shaft portion 42 swings back and forth along the conveyance direction of the glass substrate 2.

  As shown in FIG. 3, the fixing unit 20 includes an adjustment mechanism 52. The adjustment mechanism 52 is for fixing the relative positional relationship between the fixed portion 20 and the movable portion 21 and adjusting the orientation of the movable portion 21 with respect to the fixed portion 20.

  The adjustment mechanism 52 includes a pressing plate 53, a pressing shaft 54, and a fixing member 55. The pressing plate 53 is interposed between the terminal surface 31 of the recess 28 and the ball 43. The pressing plate 53 has a disk shape, and an outer peripheral edge thereof is slidably in contact with the peripheral surface 32 of the recess 28. The pressing shaft 54 is inserted into the guide hole 27 of the support portion 24 so as to be slidable in the axial direction. One end of the pressing shaft 54 is in contact with the center of the pressing plate 53. The other end of the pressing shaft 54 is located in the guide hole 27.

  The fixing member 55 includes a screw shaft 56 and a nut 57. The screw shaft 56 is screwed into the upper end portion of the guide hole 27. One end of the screw shaft 56 abuts against the other end of the pressing shaft 54 in the guide hole 27. The other end of the screw shaft 56 protrudes above the support portion 24. The nut 57 is screwed into the other end of the screw shaft 56. The nut 57 is for fixing the screw shaft 56 to the guide hole 27. By loosening the nut 57, the screw shaft 56 can be rotated in the tightening direction or the loosening direction.

  A ring-shaped intermediate member 58 is interposed between the pressing plate 53 and the ball 43. The intermediate member 58 is made of brass that is softer than the ball 43, for example. The intermediate member 58 has an inner diameter smaller than that of the ball 43, and an inner peripheral edge sharpened like an edge of the intermediate member 58 is in contact with the outer peripheral surface of the ball 43.

  In the adjustment mechanism 52 having such a configuration, when the screw shaft 56 is screwed into the guide hole 27 with the nut 57 loosened, the pressing shaft 54 is pressed in the axial direction via the screw shaft 56. By this pressing, the pressing plate 53 and the intermediate member 58 are pressed toward the ball 43, and the inner peripheral edge of the intermediate member 58 continuously contacts the outer peripheral surface of the ball 43 in the circumferential direction.

  As a result, the ball 43 is sandwiched between the inner peripheral edge of the intermediate member 58 and the opening edge of the hole 47 of the first holding plate 45, the contact portion between the ball 43 and the intermediate member 58 and the ball 43 and the first holding member. Contact resistance is generated at each contact portion with the plate 45. Therefore, the free movement of the ball 43 in the recess 28 is restricted, the relative positions of the fixed portion 20 and the movable portion 21 are fixedly determined, and the camera 17 is held by the installation member 12.

  When the nut 57 is loosened, the ball 43 is in a state where it can freely move in the recess 28. For this reason, as shown by an arrow A in FIG. 3, the movable portion 21 can be rotated around the axis O1 of the support portion 24, and as shown by an arrow B in FIG. It can be rotated so as to swing its head back and forth along a direction perpendicular to the conveying direction of the glass substrate 2.

  As shown in FIG. 6, in a state where the camera 17 is fixed to the installation member 12 using the adjustment mechanism 52, the lens cylinder 37 of the camera 17 is inclined obliquely downward as it proceeds downstream in the conveyance direction of the glass substrate 2. Retained.

  A lighting fixture 60 is disposed below the camera 17. The illumination fixture 60 irradiates light toward the downstream side in the transport direction of the glass substrate 2 from the camera 17 as indicated by an arrow in FIG. The illuminating device 60 illuminates the glass substrate 2 horizontally long along a direction orthogonal to the transport direction, as indicated by a block B surrounded by a one-dot chain line in FIG. Light from the luminaire 60 is incident on the upper surface of the glass substrate 2 and the spacers 5 scattered on the upper surface at a predetermined angle, and is reflected toward the lens tube 37 here. This reflected light is guided to the camera 17 through the lens tube 37. An image photographed by the camera 17 is sent as an image signal to an image processing unit (not shown) having a monitor, and an image photographed by each camera 17 is displayed on the monitor.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 2, the cameras 17 are held by the installation member 12 in a line with the lens cylinders 37 oriented in the downstream direction in the transport direction of the glass substrate 2. In the case of the present embodiment, the arrangement interval L between adjacent cameras 17 is set to 14 mm or 13.5 mm, for example, in order to increase the accuracy of the image.

  In the spacer inspection device 4 having such a configuration, the orientations of the cameras 17 held in a line on the installation member 12 are adjusted so that a predetermined inspection region on the glass substrate 2 is positioned in each field of view. To do. This adjustment operation is executed as follows.

  First, the screw shaft 56 is screwed into the guide hole 27 with the nut 57 loosened, and the ball 43 of the joint 41 is sandwiched between the intermediate member 58 and the first holding plate 45, so that the ball 43 can move freely. to bound. In this state, the nut 57 is tightened to fix the screw shaft 56 to the support portion 24 of the fixing portion 20. Thereby, the movable part 21 is temporarily fixed to the fixed part 20.

  Next, the movable part 21 is rotated so that the orientation of each camera 17 is appropriate. This operation is performed based on an image displayed on a monitor (not shown). For example, when the field of view of a specific camera 17 is out of the inspection area on the glass substrate 2, the nut 57 is loosened to release the ball 43 between the first holding plate 45 and the intermediate member 58.

  Thereby, the movable part 21 holding the camera 17 can be rotated around the axis O <b> 1 and can be rotated so as to swing the head back and forth along the conveyance direction of the glass substrate 2. Therefore, the direction of the movable part 21 is adjusted so that the visual field of the camera 17 is positioned in a predetermined inspection region on the glass substrate 2 by holding the movable part 21 by hand.

  Next, the nut 57 is tightened, and the ball 43 is sandwiched between the first holding plate 45 and the intermediate member 58. Thereby, the direction of the movable part 21 with respect to the fixed part 20 is fixedly determined, and the camera 17 can be fixed in a normal posture.

  By performing such an operation for every camera 17, the fixing work of the camera 17 with respect to the installation member 12 is completed.

  According to such an embodiment of the present invention, in a state where a plurality of cameras 17 are arranged on the installation member 12 in a line at intervals, the movable portions 21 that hold the cameras 17 are individually arranged in arbitrary directions. Can be moved to. For this reason, the direction of each camera 17 can be easily adjusted so that a predetermined inspection region on the glass substrate 2 is positioned within the field of view of each camera 17.

  Therefore, although the plurality of cameras 17 are arranged in a line at a narrow interval, the degree of freedom when finely adjusting the orientation of each camera 17 is increased. Thereby, the workability at the time of fixing the camera 17 to the installation member 12 compared with the past improves markedly.

  At the same time, since the orientation of all the cameras 17 with respect to the glass substrate 2 is maintained appropriately, it is possible to accurately and accurately detect whether or not there is a lump in the spacer 5 dispersed on the upper surface of the glass substrate 2. Therefore, it is possible to provide the spacer inspection apparatus 4 that has high reliability and can improve inspection efficiency.

  Furthermore, according to the above embodiment, the intermediate member 58 that contacts the ball 43 in the recess 28 is made of brass that is softer than the ball 43. Therefore, even if the intermediate member 58 is pressed against the ball 43 by the pressing shaft 54, the outer peripheral surface of the ball 43 is hardly damaged, and there is an advantage that the joint 41 can be used continuously for a long time.

  Note that the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and can be variously modified and implemented without departing from the spirit of the invention.

  For example, in the above embodiment, a ball-shaped joint is provided in the movable part that holds the camera, and a fitting part in which the joint is fitted is provided in the fixed part that is fixed to the installation member. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and a joint may be provided on the fixed portion, and a fitting portion and an adjustment mechanism may be provided on the movable portion.

The side view of the spacer inspection apparatus which concerns on embodiment of this invention. The top view of the spacer test | inspection apparatus which concerns on embodiment of this invention. Sectional drawing of the camera holding | maintenance apparatus which concerns on embodiment of this invention. 1 is a perspective view of a camera holding device according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 6 is an exploded perspective view showing the positional relationship between the concave portion of the fixed portion of the camera holding device and the ball of the movable portion in the embodiment of the present invention. In embodiment of this invention, the side view which shows typically the positional relationship of the glass substrate with which the camera hold | maintained at the installation member, the lighting fixture, and the spacer were spread | dispersed. In embodiment of this invention, the top view of the glass substrate on which the spacer was spread | dispersed.

Explanation of symbols

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 2 ... Board | substrate (glass substrate), 5 ... Spacer, 12 ... Installation member, 17 ... Camera, 18 ... Camera holding device, 20 ... Fixed part, 21 ... Movable part, 28 ... Fitting part (concave part), 41 ... Ball shape Joint of 52, adjustment mechanism.

Claims (8)

A camera holding device for fixing a camera that shoots a substrate on which granular spacers are dispersed to an installation member,
A fixing portion fixed to the installation member;
A movable part for supporting the camera;
A ball-shaped joint provided on one of the fixed part and the movable part;
A fitting portion that is provided on the other of the fixed portion and the movable portion, and the fitting is slidably fitted;
By tightening the ball-shaped joint so as to be releasable with the fitting portion, the relative positional relationship between the fixed portion and the movable portion is fixedly fixed, and the ball-shaped joint is tightened. An adjustment mechanism that changes the direction of the movable part with respect to the fixed part by centering the ball-shaped joint by releasing the camera-holding device.   2. The camera holding device according to claim 1, further comprising a holding plate that holds a fitting state between the ball-shaped joint and the fitting portion.   3. The adjustment mechanism according to claim 2, wherein the adjusting mechanism includes a pressing plate that sandwiches the ball-shaped joint with the holding plate, a pressing shaft that presses the pressing plate toward the ball-shaped joint, and the pressing shaft. A camera holding device comprising: a fixing member that fastens and fixes a shaft to the fixed portion or the movable portion.   The ring-shaped intermediate member is interposed between the outer peripheral surface of the ball-shaped joint and the pressing plate, and the intermediate member is softer than the ball-shaped joint. Camera holding device. A camera holding device for fixing a camera that shoots a substrate on which granular spacers are dispersed to an installation member,
A fixing portion fixed to the installation member;
A movable part that supports the camera,
The movable part has a ball-shaped joint protruding toward the fixed part,
The fixing portion is configured such that the ball-shaped joint is slidably fitted to the fitting portion, and the ball-shaped joint is releasably tightened between the fixing portion and the movable portion. An adjustment mechanism that fixedly determines the relative positional relationship with the part and changes the orientation of the movable part relative to the fixed part around the ball-shaped joint by releasing the tightening of the ball-shaped joint; And a camera holding device.   6. The fitting portion according to claim 5, wherein the fitting portion is a recess that opens toward the movable portion, and the ball-shaped joint is held by the fitting portion on a surface of the fixed portion that the recess opens. A camera holding device having a holding plate attached thereto.   7. The ball-shaped joint according to claim 6, wherein the ball-shaped joint includes a shaft portion protruding from the movable portion and a ball positioned at a tip of the shaft portion, and the holding plate is an opening in contact with the outer peripheral surface of the ball. A first plate having a circular hole having an edge; and a second plate having a long hole that is laminated on the first plate and through which the shaft portion of the joint passes. Camera holding device. This is a spacer inspection apparatus that optically inspects the distribution state of the spacers by photographing a substrate on which granular spacers are scattered with a plurality of cameras arranged in a line in a direction intersecting the substrate transport direction. And
An installation member on which the camera is installed;
A plurality of camera holding devices for individually fixing the camera to the installation member,
The camera holding device is
A fixing portion fixed to the installation member;
A movable part for supporting the camera;
A ball-shaped joint provided on one of the fixed part and the movable part;
A fitting portion that is provided on the other of the fixed portion and the movable portion and the ball-shaped joint is slidably fitted;
By tightening the ball-shaped joint so as to be releasable with the fitting portion, the relative positional relationship between the fixed portion and the movable portion is fixedly fixed, and the ball-shaped joint is tightened. An adjustment mechanism that changes the direction of the movable part with respect to the fixed part around the ball-shaped joint by releasing the spacer.

Images