JP2009249210A - Heating unit for molding and molding apparatus for optical element - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To heat optical elements having various shapes simply at a low cost while keeping a desired temperature distribution. <P>SOLUTION: A pair of heater units 2 are arranged in a cylindrical heating chamber 7a of a heating unit 7 for molding, which chamber is connected to a molding chamber through a conveying line 12, so that the pair of heater units are opposed to each other while interposing a conveying route of the optical element 1 to be conveyed by a conveyance arm 5 between them. Each heater unit 2 is composed of a plurality of heater segments 2a-2d which are arranged like concentric circles to be moved independently and vertically. Each of heater segments 2a-2d is moved vertically by a heater segment drive source 4 through a drive arm 4a and the relative positions of the heater segments 2a-2d to the optical element 1 are changed according to the shape or objective temperature distribution of the optical element 1, so that the optical elements having various shapes can be heated while keeping the desired temperature distribution. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2010,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a molding heating apparatus and an optical element molding apparatus, and relates to a technique that is effective when applied to, for example, heating before molding an optical material such as glass.

Conventionally, in an optical element molding apparatus, as an optical material heating apparatus used for heating an optical material before molding, for example, a technique disclosed in Patent Document 1 is known.
That is, a heating device in which a heating heater is provided in a cylindrical shape on the inner circumference of a cylindrical heat insulating member coaxial with the conveyance path is arranged in the conveyance path of the optical material in front of the entrance of the molding chamber, and molding is performed through the conveyance path. The optical material being transported to the chamber is temporarily stopped inside the heating device and heated to a predetermined temperature with a heater for heating, and then carried into the molding chamber for molding.

  However, in the configuration of the heating device as in Patent Document 1, it is arranged in a cylindrical shape so as to surround the path of the conveyance path of the optical material, and the central axis of the optical material such as a substantially disk shape to be inserted and heated is Because the optical material is perpendicular to the central axis of the heating device, the optical material is heated from the outer peripheral side (radial direction) in addition to heating from the molding surface side (thickness direction). On the other hand, the closer to the outer periphery, the closer to the heater for heating, the higher the temperature, and the higher the temperature is, the more asymmetric temperature distribution occurs with respect to the central axis. For this reason, there has been a technical problem that circumferential asses and sink marks are generated in the molded optical element.

  Therefore, in Patent Document 2, a heater is arranged in a spiral shape in both end faces of a cylindrical optical material heating device whose axial direction is orthogonal to the conveyance path to the molding chamber. A technique that solves the technical problem described in Patent Document 1 by heating from both sides in the thickness direction is disclosed.

  However, in the optical material heating apparatus disclosed in Patent Document 2 described above, the heating heater is arranged in a planar and spiral manner on both end faces of the cylindrical space, so that the heated optical material Although the temperature distribution is circular with respect to the central axis of the optical material, the heater is fixedly installed, so the shape of the molding surface on both sides of the optical material is asymmetric There is a technical problem that the temperature distribution of the optical material is not concentric with the central axis of the optical material.

That is, in the technique of Patent Document 2, when it is desired to heat various shapes of optical material with a desired temperature distribution, the optical material heating device has a different shape for each time the shape of the optical material changes. There is a technical problem that a complicated process that requires a long time such as replacement is required and the cost is increased.
JP-A-62-182120 JP-A-7-267657

  An object of the present invention is to provide a technique capable of heating optical materials having various shapes with a desired temperature distribution at a simple and low cost.

A first aspect of the present invention is a molding heating apparatus for heating a thermoplastic optical material provided to an optical element molding apparatus,
A plurality of heating means movable independently of each other;
A position control mechanism for controlling the position of each of the plurality of heating means;
There is provided a heating apparatus for molding comprising:

The second aspect of the present invention includes a molding part provided with a molding die for molding a thermoplastic optical material, and a heating part for heating the optical material provided to the molding part,
The heating unit is
A plurality of heating means movable independently of each other;
A position control mechanism for controlling the position of each of the plurality of heating means;
An optical element molding apparatus is provided.

  According to the present invention, it is possible to provide a technique capable of heating optical materials having various shapes with a desired temperature distribution at a simple and low cost.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.
[Embodiment 1]
FIG. 1 is a schematic cross-sectional view showing an example of the configuration of a molding heating apparatus and an optical element molding apparatus including the molding heating apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 2 shows an embodiment of the present invention. It is a conceptual diagram which shows an example of a structure of the heater part which comprises a certain heating apparatus for shaping | molding.

3A and 3B are schematic cross-sectional views showing an example of the operation of the molding heating apparatus of the present embodiment.
The optical element molding apparatus 100 according to the present embodiment includes a molding chamber 6 (molding unit) and a molding heating device 7 disposed in the middle of a conveyance path 12 connected to the molding chamber inlet 11 of the molding chamber 6. ing.

In the molding chamber 6, there are an upper mold 9 and a lower mold 10, and a molding mold for press-molding the optical material 1 is provided on the same axis so as to be opposed to each other vertically.
The molding chamber 6 is provided with a molding chamber entrance 11 for carrying the optical material 1 between the upper die 9 and the lower die 10 and carrying out the optical molding after the press molding. A conveyance path 12 such as is attached.

A molding heating device 7 is provided at a position near the molding chamber 6 in the middle of the conveyance path 12.
In this case, the molding heating device 7 includes a substantially cylindrical heating chamber 7a (heating unit) whose axial direction is perpendicular to the transport path 12 in the up-down direction, and a transport path is provided on both upper and lower end surfaces of the heating chamber 7a. A pair of planar heater units 2 are provided so as to face each other across the conveyance path of the optical material 1 at 12.

  As illustrated in FIG. 2, each heater unit 2 includes a plurality of heater segments 2a (heating means), heater segments 2b (heating means), heater segments 2c (heating means), which are arranged concentrically independently. Each of the heater segments 2a to 2d is individually covered with a heat insulating member 3 on the back side.

  Each heater unit 2 is provided with a heater segment drive source 4 (position control mechanism), and this heater segment drive source 4 includes a plurality of drive arms 4a that support each of the heater segments 2a to 2d. Yes.

  Then, the heater segment drive source 4 of each heater unit 2 expands and contracts each of the drive arms 4a, so that each of the heater segments 2a to 2d arranged concentrically is connected to that of the pair of heater units 2. It can be displaced independently in the facing direction.

  Inside the conveyance path 12, a conveyance arm 5 having a conveyance tray support part 13 at the tip is provided. In the transport tray support section 13, the optical material 1 placed on the transport tray 8 is in a posture in which the central axis S is in the vertical direction, that is, the molding surfaces 1a that are opposite to each other of the optical material 1 are in the vertical direction. And it can be installed.

  The transfer arm 5 is moved in the transfer path 12 in the left-right direction in FIG. 1 by a driving source (not shown) such as an air cylinder, and the center of the heating device 7 for molding (details) is controlled by a control device (not shown). Is the center of the heater unit 2 provided in the heating chamber 7a of the molding heating device 7) and the central axis of the optical material 1 with respect to each of the opposing axis lines of the upper mold 9 and the lower mold 10 in the molding chamber 6 at the back thereof. The movement of the optical material 1 is controlled so that the optical material 1 can be transported to a position where S matches and can be stopped at that position for a required time.

[Action]
Hereinafter, an example of the operation of the present embodiment will be described.
As shown in FIGS. 1, 3A and 3B, first, the optical material 1 is placed on the transport tray 8 in a posture in which the molding surface 1a is in the vertical direction, and the transport tray support portion provided at the tip of the transport arm 5 is used. 13 and supported by the transfer arm 5.

  Next, the transport arm 5 is moved in the transport path 12 toward the molding heating device 7, and the transport tray 8 on which the optical material 1 is placed is transported into the molding heating device 7. Then, the conveyance of the optical material 1 by the conveyance arm 5 is stopped at the position where the center axis S of the optical material 1 and the center of the heater unit 2 coincide.

  Then, for example, as shown in FIG. 3A or FIG. 3B, each heater segment 2a of the heater unit 2 is used by using the heater segment drive source 4 so that the optical material 1 has a target temperature distribution according to its shape and the like. The heater segment 2d is moved up and down to position the heater segment 2a to the heater segment 2d, and then heated for a desired time to soften the optical material 1 to a formable state.

In addition, you may displace each of the heater segment 2a-the heater segment 2d suitably as needed during the heating of this optical raw material 1. FIG.
Thereafter, the transport arm 5 in the transport path 12 is further advanced, the optical material 1 placed on the transport tray 8 is carried into the molding chamber 6, and the central axis S of the heated and softened optical material 1 is set to the upper mold 9. And the lower mold 10 are positioned on opposite axes, and the molding surface 9a of the upper mold 9 and the molding surface 10a of the lower mold 10 sandwich the upper and lower molding surfaces 1a of the heat-softened optical material 1 to form the molding. An optical element having a desired shape is formed from the optical material 1 by forming the shape of the surface 9a and the forming surface 10a so as to be transferred to the forming surface 1a.

  In FIG. 3A described above, the central heater segment 2a of the heater unit 2 is projected so as to be closest to the optical material 1, and the heater segments 2b to 2d around it gradually increase in distance from the optical material 1 toward the outside. The case where it positions and heats so that it does is illustrated.

The arrangement of the heater unit 2 illustrated in FIG. 3A is an example in which the heating temperature at the center of the molding surface 1a of the optical material 1 is relatively increased.
The arrangement of the heater unit 2 illustrated in FIG. 3B is arranged such that the plurality of heater segments 2a and the heater segments 2d of the pair of heater units 2 are substantially equidistant from the optical material 1, In this example, the entire optical material 1 is uniformly heated.

  3A and 3B illustrate the case where the heater segments 2a to 2d of the pair of heater units 2 are arranged substantially symmetrically in the vertical direction with respect to the molding surface 1a of the optical material 1. When the shapes of the upper and lower molding surfaces 1a of the optical material 1 are asymmetric, the arrangement of the heater segments 2a to 2d of the upper and lower heater units 2 may be asymmetric according to the respective shapes.

  As described above, in the present embodiment, the heater segments 2a to heaters that can independently displace each of the pair of heater units 2 arranged in a plane on the upper and lower end surfaces of the cylindrical heating chamber 7a of the heating device 7 for molding. The segment 2d is configured so that the heater segment 2a to the heater segment 2d are moved up and down on the central axis S of the optical material 1 by the heater segment drive source 4, for example, the shape of the molding surface 1a of the optical material 1 Since the position of the heater segment 2a to the heater segment 2d of the heater unit 2 can be adjusted so that the heat is evenly applied even if the optical material 1 is asymmetric, the optical material 1 is heated so as to have an even temperature distribution. Can do.

In addition, the optical material 1 can be intentionally heated to have an arbitrary temperature distribution.
That is, the optical material 1 having various shapes can be heated with a desired temperature distribution easily and at low cost without requiring a complicated and expensive operation such as replacing the molding heating device 7. it can.
[Embodiment 2]
FIG. 4 is a schematic cross-sectional view showing an example of the configuration of a molding heating apparatus and an optical element molding apparatus having the same according to another embodiment of the present invention, and FIGS. 5A and 5B show the present embodiment. It is a schematic sectional drawing which shows an example of an effect | action of the heating apparatus for shaping | molding.

  The molding heating device 71 provided in the optical element molding device 101 according to the second embodiment is configured so that each of the pair of heater units 20 facing each other in the vertical direction across the optical material 1 held by the transport arm 5 is concentrically arranged. A plurality of heater segments 20a (heating means), a heater segment 20b (heating means), a heater segment 20c (heating means), a heater segment 20d (heating means), and a heat insulating member 3 that holds these individually. However, the difference from the first embodiment is that each of the heater segments 20a to 20d is independently movable in the horizontal direction orthogonal to the opposing direction of the pair of heater units 20. Since other configurations are the same as those of the first embodiment, the same components are denoted by the same reference numerals and description thereof is omitted.

  In this case, each of the heater segments 20a to 20d constituting each of the pair of heater units 20 is supported by the heater segment drive source 40 (position control mechanism) via the drive arm 40a, and independently in the horizontal direction. The position can be controlled.

  Thereby, for example, as illustrated in FIG. 5A or FIG. 5B, the positions of the heater segments 20 a to 20 d of the pair of heater units 20 can be set.

  In the second embodiment, after confirming the shape of the optical material 1, each of the heater segments 20 a to 20 d constituting each of the pair of heater units 20 is perpendicular to the central axis S of the optical material 1. By adjusting the arrangement by moving in the direction, for example, the positions of the heater segments 20a to 20d are adjusted so as to avoid the place where the heat is most likely to be applied to the optical material 1 and to apply heat to the place where the heat is not easily applied. Therefore, even if the shape of the optical material 1 changes variously, the optical material 1 can be heated so as to have a uniform temperature distribution.

  As described above, according to the above-described embodiments of the present invention, the heater segments 2a to 2d constituting the heater unit 2 (heater unit 20) of the molding heating device 7 (molding heating device 71). Providing a molding heating apparatus that can adjust the heating state according to the shape of the optical material 1 by making the heater segments 20a to 20d moveable with respect to the central axis S of the optical material 1, for example. it can.

  Furthermore, by adjusting the positions of the heater segments 2a to 2d (heater segments 20a to 20d) constituting the heater unit 2 (heater unit 20) according to the shape of the optical material 1, for example, the optical material 1 Can be heated so as to create a uniform temperature distribution with respect to the central axis S of the lens, and can prevent circumferential astigmatism and sink marks generated in an optical element molded from the optical material 1 A heating device can be provided.

Needless to say, the present invention is not limited to the configuration exemplified in the above-described embodiment, and various modifications can be made without departing from the spirit of the present invention.
(Appendix)
In an optical element molding heating device in an optical element molding apparatus that heats and softens an optical material and pressurizes the optical material from the molding surface side with a molding die to mold the optical element. A heating device for molding an optical element, wherein the position of the heater can be adjusted.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a schematic cross-sectional view illustrating an example of a configuration of a molding heating device and an optical element molding device including the molding heating device according to an embodiment of the present invention. It is a conceptual diagram which shows an example of a structure of the heater part which comprises the heating apparatus for shaping | molding which is one embodiment of this invention. It is a schematic sectional drawing which shows an example of an effect | action of the heating apparatus for shaping | molding which is one embodiment of this invention. It is a schematic sectional drawing which shows an example of an effect | action of the heating apparatus for shaping | molding which is one embodiment of this invention. It is a schematic sectional drawing which shows an example of a structure of the heating apparatus for shaping | molding which is other embodiment of this invention, and an optical element shaping | molding apparatus provided with the same. It is a schematic sectional drawing which shows an example of an effect | action of the heating apparatus for shaping | molding which is one embodiment of this invention. It is a schematic sectional drawing which shows an example of an effect | action of the heating apparatus for shaping | molding which is one embodiment of this invention.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Optical raw material 1a Molding surface 2 Heater unit 2a Heater segment 2b Heater segment 2c Heater segment 2d Heater segment 3 Heat insulation member 4 Heater segment drive source 4a Drive arm 5 Carry arm 6 Molding chamber 7 Molding heating device 7a Heating chamber 8 Carrying dish 9 Upper mold 9a Molding surface 10 Lower mold 10a Molding surface 11 Molding chamber entrance 12 Transport path 13 Transport tray support 20 Heater unit 20a Heater segment 20b Heater segment 20c Heater segment 20d Heater segment 40 Heater segment drive source 40a Drive arm 71 For molding Heating device 100 Optical element molding apparatus 101 Optical element molding apparatus S Central axis

Claims (6)

A heating apparatus for molding that heats a thermoplastic optical material provided to an optical element molding apparatus,
A plurality of heating means movable independently of each other;
A position control mechanism for controlling the position of each of the plurality of heating means;
The heating apparatus for shaping | molding characterized by including. In the heating apparatus for shaping | molding of Claim 1,
The plurality of heating means are arranged concentrically facing the direction intersecting the transport path of the optical material carried into the optical element molding apparatus,
The molding heating apparatus, wherein the position control mechanism displaces each of the heating means in a facing direction. In the heating apparatus for shaping | molding of Claim 1,
The plurality of heating means are arranged concentrically facing the direction intersecting the transport path of the optical material carried into the optical element molding apparatus,
The position control mechanism displaces each of the heating means in a direction parallel to the transport direction of the optical material. A molding part including a molding die for molding a thermoplastic optical material, and a heating part for heating the optical material provided to the molding part,
The heating unit is
A plurality of heating means movable independently of each other;
A position control mechanism for controlling the position of each of the plurality of heating means;
An optical element molding apparatus comprising: The optical element molding apparatus according to claim 4, wherein
The plurality of heating means are arranged concentrically facing the direction intersecting the conveyance path of the optical material carried into the molding unit,
The said position control mechanism displaces each said heating means to an opposing direction, The optical element shaping | molding apparatus characterized by the above-mentioned. The optical element molding apparatus according to claim 4, wherein
The plurality of heating means are arranged concentrically facing the direction intersecting the conveyance path of the optical material carried into the molding unit,
The said position control mechanism displaces each said heating means to the direction parallel to the conveyance direction of the said optical raw material, The optical element shaping | molding apparatus characterized by the above-mentioned.