JP2011125940A - Polishing device - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a polishing device detecting any inclination of a polishing head on the real-time basis even before or during the polishing process so as to confirm the levelness of the polishing head. <P>SOLUTION: A plurality of detection means 80, each consisting of a sensor 81 and a detecting object 82, are provided at a plurality of parts. The sensor 81 is fixed to a frame, and not vertically moved by the elevating/lowering motion of a polishing head 20, and the object 82 is fixed to the position to be vertically moved associated with the elevating/lowering motion of the polishing head 20. When the polishing head 20 is lowered and a polishing plate 21 is pressed against an object A' to be polished, presence/absence of any inclination of the polishing head is checked by comparing the results of detection at the plurality of parts. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2011,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a belt conveyance polishing apparatus.

  This polishing apparatus can be suitably used, for example, when polishing and removing projections on the surface of a color filter substrate used in a color liquid crystal display device, and photoresist residues and aggregates.

  As an object to be polished, a color filter substrate used in a color liquid crystal display device will be described as an example. FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view showing an example of a color filter substrate A used in a color liquid crystal display device. The color filter substrate A includes a light shielding film 12, a red pixel 13R, a green pixel 13G, a blue pixel 13B, a transparent electrode 14, and a photo spacer (hereinafter referred to as PS) 15 arranged in a matrix on a glass substrate 11. , Vertical Alignment (hereinafter referred to as VA) 16 is sequentially formed.

  As a method for manufacturing the color filter substrate A having the above structure, a photolithography method, a printing method, and an ink jet method are known. In the photolithography method, the color filter substrate A is manufactured through the following steps. That is, first, the light shielding film 12 is formed on the glass substrate. Next, a colored photoresist is applied, exposed and developed, and then cured to form pixels of each color. This pixel formation step is performed for each of the red pixel 13R, the green pixel 13G, and the blue pixel 13B. Then, the transparent electrode 14 is formed, and finally the photo spacer 15 and the vertical alignment 16 are formed, and the color filter substrate A is manufactured.

  FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an intermediate product A ′ in which red pixels 13R, green pixels 13G, and blue pixels 13B are formed. (In this specification, this intermediate product A ′ is referred to as a “color filter.”) Each color pixel 13 is provided in the opening of the light shielding film 12, but white due to the gap between the light shielding film 12 and each colored pixel 13. In order to avoid omission, it is common to have a structure in which the end of the colored pixel 13 is placed on the light shielding film 12. For this purpose, the end of the colored pixel 13 has a protrusion 17 or a film thickness of each colored pixel. A step d due to non-uniformity occurs.

  When the color filter A 'having such protrusions and steps is assembled in a liquid crystal color display device, it causes light leakage due to poor alignment of the liquid crystal. For this reason, a method of providing an overcoat layer covering these colored pixels 13 has been adopted, but a method of polishing the surface of the color filter A ′ is expected in order to avoid an increase in cost due to the overcoat layer.

  As a method for polishing the color filter A ′, for example, there is a method in which the color filter A ′ is placed on a circular table of a flat plate polishing machine, the polishing pad is brought into pressure contact, and the circular table is rotated for polishing. However, as the area of the color filter A ′ is increased, a method of using a belt conveyance polishing apparatus that does not need to rotate the color filter A ′ has been proposed (Patent Document 1).

FIG. 3 is an explanatory plan view showing the belt conveyance polishing apparatus in relation to the previous process. That is, the roller conveyor B that transports the color filter A ′ using the color filter A ′ as an object to be polished from the left front process (process for forming colored pixels) along the transport direction X in the drawing. A polishing liquid supply unit C and a polishing apparatus main body E are provided to the right rear process (water washing process). In the figure, D is a belt type conveying device, and the belt D1 is stretched over rolls provided at both ends in the traveling direction. The color filter A ′ is conveyed to the polishing position by the belt D1. In the figure, E is a polishing apparatus main body arranged at a polishing position. The polishing apparatus E is mounted with a rectangular polishing head 20 having a short side in the conveying direction of the color filter A ′ in plan view. For this reason, in FIG. The shape is shown. Reference numeral 60a denotes the position of the rotating shaft 60 of the polishing head 20. A plurality of polishing head rotating shafts 60 are arranged along the long axis of the polishing head 20, and therefore the polishing head 20 revolves without changing its orientation, that is, without rotating, as will be described later. can do. Note that the long side of the polishing head 20 in plan view is configured to be larger than the width of the color filter A ′, so that polishing unevenness does not occur due to the revolution of the polishing head 20.

  The polishing apparatus main body E has a configuration as shown in the front explanatory view of FIG. That is, the polishing apparatus main body E is provided with a lower surface plate 50 that is disposed below the belt D1 and supports the workpiece A '.

  The polishing apparatus main body E includes a polishing head 20 that presses and polishes the surface of the color filter A ′. On the lower surface of the polishing head 20, a polishing plate 21 that contacts the surface of the color filter A ′ is provided. It is attached. Further, the polishing head 20 incorporates an elastic body, and the polishing plate 21 is pressed against the surface of the color filter A ′ by the elastic body. In the illustrated example, the elastic body is constituted by a pressure tube 22.

  The polishing head 20 is connected to a spindle 40 via a polishing head rotating shaft 60, and the spindle 40 is driven to rotate the polishing head 20. As shown in the figure, the polishing head rotating shaft 60 has an arm 61 at the tip thereof and is connected to the polishing head 20 via this arm 61, so that the polishing head 20 revolves around the rotating shaft 60. To do. Also, as shown in FIG. 3, a plurality of polishing head rotation shafts 60 are provided, and the plurality of polishing head rotation shafts 60 rotate synchronously, so that the polishing head 20 does not change its orientation. That is, it revolves without rotating.

  Further, the polishing apparatus main body E is provided with an elevating mechanism 30 at the uppermost portion thereof, and by driving the elevating mechanism 30, the spindle 40 and the polishing head 20 are lowered, and the polishing plate 21 is moved to the color filter A ′. The surface can be contacted. The polishing apparatus main body E includes a seat 70 in order to optimize the lowered position. The seating 70 is connected to a frame (not shown) of the polishing apparatus main body E, and is composed of a seating male part 72 indicating the height thereof, and a seating female part 71 connected to the spindle 40. The position where the seat 40 is lowered and the seating female part 71 reaches the seating male part 72 is regarded as an appropriate position.

  This belt conveying polishing apparatus is used as follows. That is, while the color filter A ′ is conveyed by the roller conveyor B, the polishing liquid is dropped on the surface of the polishing liquid supply unit C. Next, the color filter A 'to which the polishing liquid has been dropped is conveyed to the polishing position by the belt D1. At the polishing position, the elevating mechanism 30 is driven to lower the spindle 40 and the polishing head 20 and stop at the position where the seating female portion 71 and the seating male portion 72 are in contact. This height is an appropriate position. The pressure tube 22 elastically presses the polishing plate 21 on the lower surface of the polishing head 20 against the surface of the color filter A ′. Then, after the lifting mechanism 30 is cut off, the polishing head 20 is rotated about the polishing head rotating shaft 60 as a rotation center to polish the surface of the color filter A ′.

Note that through this polishing step, the color filter A ′ is conveyed at a constant speed by the belt D1, so that the entire surface of the color filter A ′ can be uniformly polished. Further, since the color filter A ′ is always conveyed at a constant speed from the left side to the right side in FIG. 3 by the roller conveyor B and the belt D1, there is no stagnation in this polishing step. This process can be performed in-line with the process (for example, the previous process for forming the colored pixels).

JP 2005-288649 A

  In this belt conveying polishing apparatus, the height of the polishing head 20 is adjusted by the seating female portion 71 and the seating male portion 72, and the position where the seating female portion 71 and the seating male portion 72 are in contact is the proper position. However, depending on this mechanism, it is impossible to detect whether the polishing head 20 is kept horizontal or has an inclination.

  As shown in FIG. 4, the seats 70 are provided at a plurality of positions. However, when the spindle 40 and the polishing head 20 are lowered by driving the elevating mechanism 30, the polishing head 20 is inclined due to the displacement. Sometimes. In addition, the polishing head 20 may be inclined due to vibration during the polishing process.

  Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide a polishing apparatus capable of detecting the inclination of the polishing head 20 in real time and confirming its level before and during the polishing process.

The invention according to claim 1 provides a polishing apparatus that solves the above-described problems, that is, a belt-type transfer device that transfers the object to be polished to a polishing position and discharges the polished object to be polished, and A polishing apparatus comprising: a lower surface plate located below a belt type conveying device at a polishing position; a polishing apparatus body including a polishing head facing the lower surface plate; and an elevating mechanism for moving the polishing head up and down. In a polishing apparatus that lowers the head and presses a polishing plate disposed on the lower surface of the polishing head against an object to be polished,
A polishing apparatus comprising a plurality of detecting means for indicating the height of the polishing plate.

  In this invention, since the detection means which shows the height of a grinding | polishing plate is provided in several places, if the height measured in these several places is the same, it turns out that a grinding | polishing plate is horizontal. On the other hand, if the heights measured at a plurality of locations are different, it can be seen that the polishing plate is inclined. As described above, according to the present invention, it can be confirmed whether or not the polishing plate is horizontal, and the surface of the object to be polished can be uniformly polished by correcting the inclination in advance. Moreover, not only when the polishing head 20 is lowered before the polishing operation and the seating female portion 71 and the seating male portion 72 are brought into contact with each other, the polishing head 20 is inclined even during the polishing operation. In this case, the inclination can be detected in real time.

  Next, the invention according to claim 2 is characterized in that the position of the detecting means is specified, that is, the detecting means is arranged at a plurality of positions aligned in the conveying direction of the object to be polished. The polishing apparatus according to claim 1.

According to the present invention, since the detecting means are arranged at a plurality of positions aligned in the conveyance direction of the object to be polished, when the polishing plate is inclined along the conveyance direction, the inclination can be detected. It becomes. That is, when the height of the polishing plate in front of the conveyance direction is different from the height in the rear of the conveyance direction, it can be seen that the polishing plate is inclined. For example, as shown in FIG. 3, in the case of having a rectangular polishing head 20 having a short side in the transport direction, it is possible to detect whether there is an inclination in the short side direction.

  Next, the invention according to claim 3 is the polishing apparatus according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the detecting means is arranged at a plurality of positions arranged in a direction intersecting a conveying direction of the object to be polished. It is. The direction intersecting the transport direction is, for example, a direction orthogonal to the transport direction. For example, as shown in FIG. 3, when a rectangular polishing head 20 having a short side in the transport direction is included, it is possible to detect whether or not there is an inclination in the long side direction.

  In order to detect the inclination of the polishing plate in any direction, it is desirable to arrange three or more detection means. Two of these three places are a plurality of positions arranged in the conveying direction of the object to be polished. Further, two places are a plurality of positions arranged in a direction intersecting with the conveying direction of the object to be polished. More desirably, the number is four or more.

  Next, the detection means comprises a sensor and a combination of objects to be detected by the sensor. And one of them needs to be fixed at a certain height to indicate the level. For example, if the detected object indicates this level, the plurality of detected objects arranged at a plurality of positions need to be fixed at the same height. For this reason, the object to be detected needs to be fixed to a frame or the like that does not move up and down by driving the lifting mechanism 30. Needless to say, the height needs to be adjustable by adjusting means provided independently of the lifting mechanism 30. In this case, the sensor needs to be mounted at a position that moves up and down as the polishing head moves up and down, and the distance from the polishing plate must be kept constant. That is, the plurality of sensors are all attached so that the distance from the polishing plate is the same.

  The invention according to claim 4 clarifies these points, in other words, the detection means comprises a combination of a sensor and an object to be detected, one of which is fixed at a fixed height position. The polishing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the other is attached to a position that moves up and down as the polishing head moves up and down.

  Next, the invention which concerns on Claims 5-7 specifies the said detection means.

  That is, the invention according to claim 5 is the polishing apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the sensor is a contact sensor, and the object to be detected can be detected by the contact sensor.

  The invention according to claim 6 is the polishing apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the sensor is a non-contact type sensor, and an object to be detected can be detected by the non-contact type sensor. The invention according to claim 7 is the polishing apparatus according to claim 6, wherein the non-contact type sensor is an eddy current displacement sensor, and the object to be detected is a metal.

  According to the present invention, whether or not the polishing plate is horizontal can be confirmed in real time, and the surface of the object to be polished can be uniformly polished by correcting the inclination.

Cross-sectional illustration of color filter substrate Cross-sectional illustration of intermediate product (object to be polished) Plane explanatory drawing showing the conventional belt conveyance polishing device in relation to the previous process Front view of a conventional polishing machine body Front explanatory view of a polishing apparatus main body according to the present invention Plane explanatory view of the polishing apparatus showing an example of the position of the detection means Plane explanatory view of a polishing apparatus showing another example of the position of the detection means

  As described above, the polishing apparatus of the present invention is configured by installing a plurality of detection means in a conventional polishing apparatus. FIG. 5 is an explanatory front view of the polishing apparatus according to the present invention and is drawn corresponding to FIG. That is, the polishing apparatus shown in FIG. 5 is obtained by installing a plurality of detection means on the conventional polishing apparatus of FIG.

  This polishing apparatus is provided with two types of detection means.

  That is, first, the contact type detection means 80 configured by a combination of the contact type sensor 81 and the contacted portion 82 that can be detected by this sensor. The contact type sensor 81 is fixed to a frame (not shown) together with the seating male part 72, and therefore the height does not change even when the lifting mechanism 30 is driven. On the other hand, the contacted part 82 is attached to the spindle 40 together with the seating knife part 82 and moves up and down as the spindle 40 and the polishing head 20 are raised and lowered.

  And this contact-type detection means 80 is installed in the some position. In the front explanatory view of FIG. 5, the contact type detection means 80 are shown on the left and right sides, but as shown in the plan explanatory view of FIG. 6, the contact type detection means 80 are installed in a total of four places. That is, the contact type detection means 80 is installed at a plurality of positions (center positions of long sides) 80a and 80b aligned in the conveyance direction X of the object to be polished with respect to the rectangular polishing head 20 in plan view. Contact-type detection means 80 are also installed at a plurality of positions (short-side center positions) 80c and 80d arranged in a direction orthogonal to the conveyance direction X of the polished article.

  The four contact sensors 81 constituting the four contact detection means 80 are all fixed at the same height. That is, the height of the contact sensor 81 at the position 80a and the height of the contact sensor 81 at the position 80b are the same. Similarly, the height of the contact sensor 81 at the position 80c is also the same. The height of the contact sensor 81 at the position 80d is also the same.

  Further, the distance between the four contacted portions 82 and the polishing plate 21 is constant. That is, the distance between the contacted portion 82 and the polishing plate 21 at the position 80a and the distance between the contacted portion 82 and the polishing plate 21 at the position 80b are the same. Similarly, the distance between the contacted portion 82 and the polishing plate 21 at the position 80c is also the same. The distance between the contacted portion 82 and the polishing plate 21 at the position 80d is also the same.

  For this reason, it can be seen that the polishing plate 21 is horizontal when these four contact-type sensors 81 simultaneously contact and detect the four contacted portions 82.

Then, when the raising / lowering mechanism 30 is driven to lower the polishing head 20 and the seating female portion 71 and the seating male portion 72 are brought into contact with each other, the detection result at the long side center position 80a and the detection result at the position 80b are obtained. By comparing, it can be confirmed whether or not there is an inclination in the transport direction X. Further, by comparing the detection result at the short side center position 80c with the detection result at the position 80d, it is possible to confirm whether there is an inclination in a direction orthogonal to the transport direction X. As described above, when the polishing head 20 is lowered before the polishing operation and the seating female portion 71 and the seating male portion 72 are brought into contact with each other, the presence or absence of the tilt of the polishing head 20 can be detected. Even when the polishing operation is being performed, if the polishing head 20 is tilted, the tilt can be detected in real time.

  The installation position of the contact detection unit 80 is not limited to that shown in FIG. FIG. 7 is an explanatory plan view showing another installation position. That is, in this example, they are installed at the positions of the four apexes 80e, 80f, 80g, and 80h of the rectangular polishing head 20 in plan view. And the presence or absence of the inclination of the conveyance direction X can be confirmed by comparing the detection result in the position 80e, and the detection result in the position 80f. In addition, it is also possible to confirm the presence or absence of the inclination in the transport direction X by comparing the detection result at the position 80g and the detection result at the position 80h. Further, by comparing the detection result at the position 80e with the detection result at the position 80g, it is possible to confirm whether there is an inclination in a direction orthogonal to the transport direction X. By comparing the detection result at the position 80f and the detection result at the position 80h, it is also possible to confirm the presence or absence of an inclination in a direction orthogonal to the transport direction X.

  Next, the polishing apparatus shown in FIG. 5 is provided with a non-contact detection means 90 configured by a combination of an eddy current displacement sensor 91 and a metal 92 detected by the eddy current displacement sensor 91. That is, the eddy current displacement sensor 91 is attached to the polishing head 20 and moves up and down as the polishing head 20 moves up and down. Further, the metal 92 is fixed to a frame (not shown) at a position beside the belt D1, and the height does not change even when the lifting mechanism 30 is driven.

  The number of the non-contact type detection means 90 and the installation position in plan view are the same as those of the contact type detection means 80.

  The eddy current displacement sensor 91 has a built-in coil, and a high frequency current is caused to flow through the coil to generate a high frequency magnetic field. The eddy current is generated in the metal 92 by the high frequency magnetic field, and the impedance of the coil due to the eddy current is generated. Therefore, unlike the contact-type detection means, it is possible to measure the distance between the eddy current displacement sensor 91 and the metal 92 even if they are separated from each other. The detection accuracy may be 0.1 mm or less. As such an eddy current displacement sensor 91, for example, an eddy current displacement sensor manufactured by Keyence Corporation, an eddy current displacement sensor manufactured by SUNX Corporation, or the like can be used. As the metal 92, for example, aluminum, iron, stainless steel, or the like can be used.

A Color filter substrate A 'Workpiece (intermediate product of color filter substrate)
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 11 Glass substrate 11a Edge part of glass substrate 12 Light-shielding film 13 Pixel 13R Red pixel 13G Green pixel 13B Blue pixel 14 Transparent electrode 15 Photospacer 16 Vertical alignment 17 Protrusion d Step B Roller C Polishing liquid supply part D Belt type conveyance device D1 Belt E Polishing device body 20 Polishing head 21 Polishing plate 22 Pressure tube 30 Elevating mechanism 40 Spindle 50 Lower surface plate 60 Polishing head rotating shaft 61 Arm 70 Seating 71 Seating female part 72 Seating male part 80 Contact type detection means 81 Contact sensor 82 Contacted part 90 Non-contact detection means 91 Eddy current displacement sensor 92 Metal

Claims (7)

A belt-type conveying device that conveys the object to be polished to the polishing position and discharges the polished object to be polished, a lower surface plate located below the belt-type conveying device at the polishing position, and the lower surface plate. A polishing apparatus comprising a polishing apparatus main body having a polishing head and an elevating mechanism for raising and lowering the polishing head, wherein the polishing head is lowered and a polishing plate disposed on the lower surface of the polishing head is pressed against an object to be polished In a polishing apparatus for polishing
A polishing apparatus comprising a plurality of detecting means for indicating the height of the polishing plate.   The polishing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the detection means is arranged at a plurality of positions aligned in the conveyance direction of the object to be polished.   The polishing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the detection means is arranged at a plurality of positions arranged in a direction intersecting a conveyance direction of the object to be polished.   The detection means comprises a combination of a sensor and an object to be detected, one of which is fixed at a certain height, and the other is mounted at a position that moves up and down as the polishing head moves up and down. The polishing apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 3.   The polishing apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the sensor is a contact type sensor, and the object to be detected can be detected by the contact type sensor.   5. The polishing apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the sensor is a non-contact type sensor, and an object to be detected is detectable by the non-contact type sensor.   The polishing apparatus according to claim 6, wherein the non-contact sensor is an eddy current displacement sensor, and the object to be detected is a metal.

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