JP2011173141A - Laser beam machining position alignment method, laser beam machining method, laser beam machining apparatus, and method for manufacturing solar panel - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To execute the machining so that a plurality of machining lines do not overlap or cross each other without providing any alignment mark on a workpiece. <P>SOLUTION: When the first machining treatment by laser beam is completed, an image of a part including a shape-changed part (a scribe line P1) formed by the machining treatment is acquired, and the image is used for the machining position alignment treatment before the treatment of the second and subsequent machining (scribe lines P2, P3). Further, images of a plurality of parts including the shape-changed part of the workpiece are acquired, and the alignment treatment is executed based on the acquired images of the plurality of parts so as to facilitate the image recognition processing. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2011,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a laser processing position alignment method, a laser processing method, a laser processing apparatus, and a solar panel manufacturing method for processing a thin film or the like on a substrate using a laser beam, and particularly without using an alignment mark on the substrate. The present invention relates to a laser processing position alignment method, a laser processing method, a laser processing apparatus, and a solar panel manufacturing method that can perform processing accurately.

  Conventionally, in a solar panel manufacturing process, a transparent electrode layer, a semiconductor layer, and a metal layer are sequentially formed on a translucent substrate (glass substrate), and each layer is processed into a strip shape using laser light in each step after the formation. The solar panel module has been completed. In performing each of these steps, the glass substrate must be accurately aligned in the laser processing apparatus. As a method for aligning a glass substrate, a method as described in Patent Document 1 is known.

JP 2000-353816 A

  In the device described in Patent Document 1, an alignment mark is formed at a corner of a glass substrate with a laser beam, and alignment processing is performed with reference to the alignment mark. When manufacturing a panel, a processing line is formed on a thin film on a glass substrate with a pitch of about 10 mm, for example, and the processing line has a line width of about 30 μm and a line-to-line spacing of about 30 μm. It consists of The substrate processing apparatus irradiates a laser beam while transporting the substrate using air levitation, a roller, or the like to form a linear processing line between alignment marks. However, along with the increase in the size of the glass substrate (for example, 1400 [mm] × 1100 [mm]), the processing line is bent due to distortion or twist (swell) of the substrate itself at the time of conveyance, so that the linear processing line becomes It becomes difficult to form, and in the worst case, there is a problem that adjacent processing lines overlap or intersect. In addition, when an alignment mark is formed on a glass substrate as in Patent Document 1, the portion cannot be used as a solar module, which is also a problem from the viewpoint of increasing the efficiency of a solar panel.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above points, and laser processing position alignment capable of performing laser processing so that a plurality of processing lines do not overlap or intersect without providing an alignment mark on the substrate. It is an object to provide a method, a laser processing method, a laser processing apparatus, and a solar panel manufacturing method.

The first feature of the laser processing position alignment method according to the present invention is that the laser processing is performed when the workpiece is subjected to predetermined laser processing by irradiating the workpiece while moving the laser beam relative to the workpiece. In the laser processing position alignment method for performing alignment processing at a predetermined position, in the second and subsequent processing by the laser beam, based on the image of the location including the shape change portion of the workpiece formed by the laser processing, Alignment processing is performed.
As processing for irradiating a workpiece with laser light, a metal layer, a semiconductor layer, and a transparent electrode layer are sequentially formed on a translucent workpiece (glass substrate), and each layer is formed into a strip using laser light in each step after formation. For example, solar panel manufacturing that creates a solar panel by processing into a shape. In laser processing for creating such a solar panel, alignment processing is performed in each step. In the present invention, when performing a processing process of irradiating the workpiece with laser light, an image of the first processing line is acquired, and when performing the second and subsequent processing processes, the alignment processing during the laser processing is performed based on the image. To do. For example, in the case of solar panel manufacturing, an image of the processing line P1 formed by the first processing process irradiated with laser light is acquired, and the processing position alignment is performed before the second and subsequent laser processing processes based on the acquired image. It was made to process. Since the acquired image includes an image of the processing position change portion of the first processing line P1, by performing alignment processing based on this image, a plurality of processing lines are provided without providing an alignment mark on the workpiece. Laser processing can be performed so that P1 to P3 do not overlap or intersect each other.

  According to a second feature of the laser processing position alignment method according to the present invention, in the laser processing position alignment method according to the first feature, an image of a plurality of locations including a shape change portion of the workpiece is acquired, and the acquired Further, the alignment process is performed based on images at a plurality of locations. The present invention has an effect of facilitating the image recognition process because it acquires images at a plurality of locations including the shape change portion of the workpiece.

  A third feature of the laser processing position alignment method according to the present invention is the laser processing position alignment method according to the first feature, wherein the laser processing is performed for the second and subsequent times by the laser light following the shape change portion of the workpiece. There is in processing. According to the present invention, copying is performed while detecting a shape change portion (scribe line P1) formed on the workpiece by the first laser processing by a method such as tracking. As a result, the scribe lines P2 and P3 formed by the second and subsequent laser processing can always have a constant distance from the scribe line P1, and the plurality of processed lines do not overlap or intersect with each other. Optimal laser processing can be performed.

  A first feature of the laser processing method according to the present invention is a laser processing method for performing predetermined processing on a workpiece by irradiating a laser beam while moving the laser beam relative to the workpiece. In the subsequent processing, the alignment processing is performed when the laser processing is performed based on the image of the portion including the shape change portion of the workpiece formed by the laser processing. This is an invention of a laser processing method using the laser processing position alignment method described in the first feature.

  A second feature of the laser processing method according to the present invention is that in the laser processing method according to the first feature, images of a plurality of locations including a shape change portion of the workpiece are acquired, and the acquired plurality of locations are obtained. The alignment process is performed based on the image. This is an invention of a laser processing method using the laser processing position alignment method described in the second feature.

  A third feature of the laser processing method according to the present invention is that in the laser processing method according to the first feature, the laser processing is performed for the second and subsequent times by the laser light following the shape change portion of the workpiece. It is in. This is an invention of a laser processing method using the laser processing position alignment method described in the third feature.

  A first feature of the laser processing apparatus according to the present invention is that a holding unit that holds a workpiece, a laser beam irradiation unit that irradiates the workpiece with a laser beam to perform a predetermined processing, and a processing by the laser beam irradiation unit. An image acquisition unit that acquires an image of a part including a shape change portion of the workpiece formed by the process, and an alignment process when performing a second laser processing process based on the image acquired by the image acquisition unit And a control means for controlling. This is an invention of a laser processing apparatus corresponding to the laser processing method described in the first feature.

  According to a second feature of the laser processing apparatus according to the present invention, in the laser processing apparatus according to the first feature, the image acquisition unit acquires images of a plurality of locations including a shape change portion of the workpiece, The control means corrects the image acquired by the image acquisition means, and controls the alignment process based on the corrected image. This is an invention of a laser processing apparatus corresponding to the laser processing method described in the second feature.

  According to a third aspect of the laser processing apparatus of the present invention, in the laser processing apparatus according to the first aspect, the control unit performs the second and subsequent lasers using the laser light following the shape change portion of the workpiece. It is to perform processing. This is an invention of a laser processing apparatus corresponding to the laser processing method described in the third feature.

  The solar panel manufacturing method according to the present invention is characterized by the laser processing position alignment method according to the first, second or third feature, the laser processing method according to the first, second or third feature, Alternatively, a solar panel is manufactured using the laser processing apparatus according to the first, second, or third feature. In this method, a solar panel is manufactured by using any one of the laser processing position alignment method, the laser processing method, and the laser processing apparatus described above.

  According to the present invention, there is an effect that a plurality of processing lines can be processed so as not to overlap or intersect without providing an alignment mark on the substrate.

It is a figure which shows schematic structure of the laser processing apparatus which concerns on one embodiment of this invention. It is a figure which shows the detailed structure of the process area part of FIG. 1 which performs the process of a scribe line. It is a figure which shows the detailed structure of the optical system member of FIG. FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view showing a detailed configuration of the focus adjustment drive mechanism of FIG. 3. FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing a part of the focus adjustment drive mechanism of FIG. 3 in an extracted manner. It is a schematic diagram which shows the structure of an alignment camera apparatus, a 1st detection optical system member, and a 2nd detection optical system member. It is a figure which shows the case where a process line is bent and formed by distortion and twist (swelling etc.) of the glass substrate which is a workpiece | work. It is a block diagram which shows the detail of a process of the control apparatus of FIG. It is a figure which shows an example of operation | movement of the pulse missing determination means of FIG. It is a figure which shows an example of the waveform output from the high-speed photodiode of FIG. It is a figure which shows an example of operation | movement of the process line detection means of FIG. It is a figure which shows an example of the system which tracks the process line P1 using a grating.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a schematic configuration of a laser processing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. This laser processing apparatus performs a laser beam processing (laser scribing) process of a solar panel manufacturing apparatus. The laser processing apparatus according to the present invention is configured so that alignment sections for performing alignment processing are provided at two positions on both sides of the laser processing station, and the alignment processing can be performed simultaneously during the laser processing to shorten the waiting time. is there.

  FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a schematic configuration of a solar panel (photoelectric conversion device) manufacturing apparatus using a laser processing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention, and shows an example of a return method. This manufacturing apparatus includes a carry-in / out robot station 141 and a laser processing station 10. The roller conveyor 121 sequentially conveys the glass substrates 1x to 1z between a film forming apparatus (not shown) and a manufacturing apparatus that performs laser scribing processing. The carry-in / out robot station 141 carries in and temporarily holds the glass substrate 1x formed by the previous film forming apparatus (not shown) conveyed on the roller conveyor 121 as a glass substrate 1m, and the glass substrate. A front / back reversing mechanism 143 that reverses the front and back of 1 m is provided so that the contents of laser processing (scribe line P1 processing, P2 processing or P3 processing) and the glass substrate 1m bend downward (warp). The glass substrate 1m is turned upside down and conveyed to the laser processing station 10. At this time, the loading / unloading robot station 141 transports the glass substrate 1m that has been turned upside down or not turned upside down to the laser processing station 10 as it is, and the glass substrate 1m that has been turned upside down or not turned upside down. The roller is conveyed to the right end position of 10 and then conveyed to the laser processing station 10. The carry-in / out robot station 141 directly receives the glass substrate processed by the laser processing station 10 by the front / back reversing mechanism unit 143 or receives the glass substrate 1r received at the right end position of the laser processing station 10 up to the front / back reversing mechanism unit 143. The glass substrate after the roller processing or air levitation conveyance and laser processing by the front / back reversing mechanism unit 143 is carried out to the roller conveyor 121 with the front / back reversed or the front / back reversed.

  The laser processing station 10 forms scribe lines on the thin film on the glass substrate carried in from the carry-in / out robot station 141, and includes alignment units 102 and 104, gripper units 106 to 109, gripper support driving units 110 and 111, A processing area 112 is provided. The alignment unit 102 receives the glass substrate 1m on the front / back reversing mechanism unit 143 of the carry-in / out robot station 141, aligns the received glass substrate 1n to a predetermined position, and performs a scribing process in the processing area unit 112. The glass substrate 1n is carried out to the front / back reversing mechanism unit 143 of the carry-in / out robot station 141. On the other hand, the alignment unit 104 receives a glass substrate 1r that is a glass substrate that has been turned upside down or not turned upside down by the front / back reversing mechanism unit 143 of the carry-in / out robot station 141 and that has been conveyed by roller or air floating up to the right end. The received glass substrate is aligned at a predetermined position, and the glass substrate 1 q that has been subjected to the scribing process in the processing area unit 112 is carried out to the right end position of the loading / unloading robot station 141.

  The gripper unit 106 holds one side (the lower side of the glass substrate 1o in FIG. 1) along the conveyance direction of the glass substrate 1o aligned by the alignment unit 102, and the gripper unit 107 holds the same glass substrate 1o. The other side of the side along the transport direction (the upper side of the glass substrate 1o in FIG. 1) is held. The gripper unit 108 holds one side (the lower side of the glass substrate 1q in FIG. 1) along the conveyance direction of the glass substrate 1q aligned by the alignment unit 104, and the gripper unit 107 has the same glass substrate 1q. The other side of the side along the conveyance direction (the upper side of the glass substrate 1q in FIG. 1) is held. The gripper support driving units 110 and 111 synchronize the glass substrates 1o and 1q held by the gripper units 106 and 107 or the gripper units 108 and 109 with the laser light of the processing area unit 112, and It is moved between the dotted glass substrate 1p. In synchronism with this movement, the processing area portion 112 irradiates the glass substrates 1o and 1q held by the gripper portions 106 and 107 or the gripper portions 108 and 109 and air-carrying and irradiating them with laser light to process predetermined scribe lines. I do. FIG. 1 shows a state in which predetermined scribe line processing is performed while moving the glass substrate 1o held by the grippers 106 and 107 in a state where the glass substrate 1o is floated to the position of the glass substrate 1q indicated by a dotted line.

  An example of the operation of the return type solar panel manufacturing apparatus of FIG. 1 will be described. First, the glass substrate 1x transported from the film forming apparatus of the previous stage via the roller conveyor 121 is temporarily held as a glass substrate 1m on the front / back reversing mechanism unit 143 by the carry-in / out robot station 141, where the front / back is reversed. Or reversed. The glass substrate 1m that has been turned upside down or not displayed is transferred to the alignment unit 102 of the laser processing station 10, where it is subjected to alignment processing. The alignment-treated glass substrate 1n is held by the gripper portions 106 and 107, and air-lifted to the processing area portion 112 as the glass substrates 1o and 1p, and processing of a predetermined scribe line is performed. On the other hand, at the time of alignment processing of the alignment unit 102 and processing of the processing area unit 112, the next glass substrate 1y conveyed through the roller conveyor 121 is transferred onto the front / back reversing mechanism unit 143 by the loading / unloading robot station 141. It is temporarily held as the substrate 1m, and is turned upside down or not turned upside down. The glass substrate 1m that has been turned upside down or not turned upside down is conveyed as a glass substrate 1r to a right end position corresponding to the alignment unit 104 of the laser processing station 10. The glass substrate 1r is transported to the alignment unit 104 of the laser processing station 10 where it is aligned. The glass substrate 1q that has been subjected to the alignment processing is held by the gripper portions 108 and 109, and waits until the processing of the glass substrate that is held by the gripper portions 106 and 107 and is air-lifted and conveyed is completed.

  When the laser processing for the glass substrates held by the grippers 106 and 107 is completed, the glass substrate 1o held by the grippers 106 and 107 is turned over from the position of the glass substrate 1n via the alignment unit 102. It is temporarily held as a glass substrate 1m on the section 143, and is transferred onto the roller conveyor 121 in order to be transferred to the next-stage film formation apparatus with the front and back reversed or without being reversed. On the other hand, when the glass substrate 1o held by the grippers 106 and 107 floats on the alignment unit 102 as the glass substrate 1n, the glass substrate 1q held by the grippers 108 and 109 becomes the glass substrate 1o, As 1p, the air is floated and moved to the processing area 112, and processing of a predetermined scribe line is performed. In the return-type solar panel manufacturing apparatus of FIG. 1, the waiting time and the like due to the alignment processing are greatly reduced by alternately repeating the above processing. Further, even if any one of the alignment units fails, the process can be continued by the other alignment unit. In this embodiment, the alignment units 102 and 104 perform alignment processing at the time of processing the first scribe line P1 for irradiating the glass substrate with laser light, and at the time of processing the scribe lines P2 and P3 for the second time and later, an alignment camera described later. An alignment process using the apparatus and the focus adjustment drive mechanism is performed.

  FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a detailed configuration of the processing area portion of FIG. 1 that performs the processing of the scribe line. The processing area portion includes the laser processing station 10, the air floating stage 20, the gripper portions 106 and 107, the laser generator 40, the optical system member 50, the alignment camera device 60, the linear encoder 70, the control device 80, the detection optical system member, and the like. It is configured.

  In FIG. 1, an air levitation stage 20 is provided in most of the laser processing station 10 along the X direction. In FIG. 2, only a part thereof is shown. On the upper side of the air levitation stage 20, the glass substrate 1 to be laser processed is held and controlled by the grippers 106 and 107 so as to be movable in the X-axis direction. A slide frame 30 that slides in the Y-axis direction while holding the optical system member 50 is provided on the laser processing station 10. The air levitation stage 20 is configured to be rotatable in the θ direction about the Z axis as a rotation axis. Note that when the amount of movement in the Y-axis direction can be sufficiently secured by the slide frame 30, the air levitation stage 20 may be configured to move only in the X-axis direction. In this case, the air levitation stage 20 may be configured as an X-axis table. In FIG. 2, the alignment units 102 and 104 are not shown.

  The slide frame 30 is attached to a moving table provided at four corners on the laser processing station 10. The slide frame 30 is controlled to move in the Y-axis direction by this moving table. A vibration isolation member (not shown) is provided between the base plate 31 and the moving table. A laser generator 40, an optical system member 50, and a control device 80 are installed on the base plate 31 of the slide frame 30. The optical system member 50 is constituted by a combination of a mirror and a lens, and divides the laser beam generated by the laser generator 40 into four lines and guides it onto the glass substrate 1 on the air levitation stage 20. Note that the number of divisions of the laser light is not limited to four, but may be two or more.

  The alignment camera device 60 performs alignment processing for the second and subsequent scribe lines P2 and P3, and is provided on the side surface of the optical system member 50 by the number corresponding to the number of divisions of the laser light. Images of four series of processing lines (scribe lines P1 and / or P2) on the glass substrate 1 are obtained. An image acquired by the alignment camera device 60 is output to the control device 80. The control device 80 uses the image from the alignment camera device 60 for alignment processing at the time of processing the scribe lines P2 and P3 for the second and subsequent times of the glass substrate 1.

  The linear encoder 70 includes a scale member provided on the side surface of the X-axis moving table of the air levitation stage 20 and a detection unit attached to the gripper units 106 and 107. The detection signal of the linear encoder 70 is output to the control device 80. The control device 80 detects the moving speed (moving frequency) of the gripper units 106 and 107 in the X-axis direction based on the detection signal from the linear encoder 70, and controls the output (laser frequency) of the laser generator 40.

  As illustrated, the optical system member 50 is provided on the side surface side of the base plate 31 and is configured to move in the Y-axis direction along the side surface of the base plate 31. The tip of the optical system member 50 is rotatable about the Z axis. A galvanometer mirror 33 for guiding laser light emitted from the laser generator 40 to the optical system member 50 is provided on the base plate 31. The galvanometer mirror 33 uses two motors (rotary encoders) to scan the XZ two-dimensional area with laser light. The galvanometer mirror 33 is composed of a two-axis type (X, Z), and is composed of two motors and a mirror attached to the motor. The galvano control device 331 includes a driver and a power source for moving the motor, a microcomputer for controlling them, and the like.

  The mirrors 34 and 35 are provided on the optical system member 50 and are interlocked with the slide movement of the optical system member 50. The laser light emitted from the laser generator 40 is reflected toward the mirror 34 by the galvano mirror 33, and the laser light toward the mirror 34 is reflected toward the mirror 35 by the mirror 34. The mirror 35 guides the reflected laser light from the mirror 34 into the optical system member 50 through a through hole provided in the base plate 31. The laser beam emitted from the laser generator 40 may have any configuration as long as the laser beam is configured to be introduced into the optical system member 50 from the upper side through the through hole provided in the base plate 31. There may be. For example, the laser generator 40 may be provided on the upper side of the through hole, and the laser beam may be directly guided to the optical system member 50 through the through hole.

  The beam sampler 332 is provided on the optical system member 50 between the galvanometer mirror 33 and the reflection mirror 34 so as to move along with the sliding movement of the optical system member 50. The beam sampler 332 is an element that samples a part of the laser beam (for example, about 10% of the laser beam or less) and branches and outputs it to the outside. The quadrant photodiode 333 is arranged so as to receive a part of the laser beam (sampling beam) branched by the beam sampler 332 in the vicinity of the center of the light receiving surface. Four types of output signals corresponding to the intensity of the laser light detected by the quadrant photodiode 333 are output to the galvano control device 331. The galvano control device 331 controls the two motors 33xy and 33yz of the galvano mirror 33 in real time according to the four types of output signals from the four-division photodiode 333. The motor 33xy controls the reflected laser beam of the galvanometer mirror 33 to rotate in a plane parallel to the upper surface (XY plane) of the base plate 31, and the motor 33zy controls the reflected laser beam of the galvanometer mirror 33 to the base plate 31. Is controlled in real time so as to rotate and move in a plane parallel to a plane (YZ plane) orthogonal to the upper surface of the.

  FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating a detailed configuration of the optical system member 50. Although the actual configuration of the optical system member 50 is complicated, the illustration is simplified here for the sake of simplicity. FIG. 3 is a view of the inside of the optical system member 50 as viewed from the −X axis direction of FIG. 2. As shown in FIG. 3, the base plate 31 has a through hole 37 for introducing the laser beam reflected by the mirror 35 into the optical system member 50. A phase type diffractive optical element (DOE) 500 that converts laser light having a Gaussian intensity distribution into laser light having a top hat intensity distribution is provided directly below the through hole 37.

  The laser light converted into laser light having a top hat intensity distribution (top hat beam) by the DOE 500 is branched into a reflected beam and a transmitted beam by the half mirror 511, and the reflected beam is transmitted toward the right half mirror 512. Advances toward the reflective mirror 524 in the downward direction. The beam reflected by the half mirror 511 is further branched into a reflected beam and a transmitted beam by the half mirror 512, and the reflected beam travels toward the lower reflecting mirror 522, and the transmitted beam travels toward the right reflecting mirror 521. The beam that has passed through the half mirror 512 is reflected by the reflection mirror 521, and is irradiated onto the glass substrate 1 through the condensing lens 541 in the downward direction. The beam reflected by the half mirror 512 is reflected by the reflection mirrors 522 and 523 and is irradiated onto the glass substrate 1 through the condensing lens 542 in the downward direction. The beam transmitted through the half mirror 511 is reflected by the reflection mirror 524 and travels in the left direction. The beam reflected by the reflection mirror 524 is branched into a reflection beam and a transmission beam by the half mirror 513, the reflection beam proceeds toward the reflection mirror 526 in the downward direction, and the transmission beam proceeds toward the reflection mirror 528 in the left direction. The beam reflected by the half mirror 513 is reflected by the reflecting mirrors 526 and 527 and is irradiated onto the glass substrate 1 through the condensing lens 543 in the downward direction. The beam that has passed through the half mirror 513 is reflected by the reflection mirror 528, and is irradiated onto the glass substrate 1 through the condensing lens 544 in the downward direction.

  The top hat beam converted by the DOE 500 is transmitted and reflected by the above-described half mirrors 511 to 513 and the reflection mirrors 521 to 528 and guided to the condenser lenses 541 to 544. At this time, the optical path lengths from the DOE 500 to the condenser lenses 541 to 544 are set to be equal. That is, the optical path length from when the beam reflected by the half mirror 511 passes through the half mirror 512 and is reflected by the reflection mirror 521 to reach the condenser lens 541, and the beam reflected by the half mirror 511 is the half mirror 512 and the reflection mirror 522. , 523, the optical path length until reaching the condenser lens 542, and the beam transmitted through the half mirror 511 are reflected by the reflection mirror 523, the half mirror 513, the reflection mirrors 526 and 527, respectively, and enter the condenser lens 543. The optical path length until the beam reaches the condensing lens 544 is reflected by the reflection mirror 523, reflected by the reflection mirror 523, reflected by the reflection mirror 528, and reaches the condenser lens 544, respectively. Are equal distances. As a result, even if the DOE 500 is disposed immediately before the beam is branched, the laser light having the top hat intensity distribution can be similarly guided to the condenser lenses 541 to 544. In the embodiment of FIG. 3, the case where the optical path lengths are completely matched has been described. However, the optical path lengths can be slightly different as long as the top hat intensity distribution of the laser light can be maintained.

  The shutter mechanisms 531 to 534 block the emission of laser light when the laser light emitted from the condenser lenses 541 to 544 of the optical system member 50 is detached from the glass substrate 1. The length measuring systems 52 and 54 are configured by a detection light irradiation laser and an autofocus photodiode (not shown), and are reflected from the surface of the glass substrate 1 in the light irradiated from the detection light irradiation laser. Light is received, and the distance between the lower end of the optical system member 50 and the surface of the glass substrate 1, that is, the height of the optical system member 50 is adjusted according to the amount of reflected light.

  The focus adjustment drive mechanisms 46 to 49 individually perform control in the height direction (focus) and the Y direction (following direction) of the condenser lenses 541 to 544 with respect to the glass substrate 1. 4 is a cross-sectional view showing a detailed configuration of the focus adjustment drive mechanism shown in FIG. 3, and FIG. 5 is a perspective view showing a part of the focus adjustment drive mechanism. In the figure, the focus adjustment drive mechanism 46 includes a drive unit main body 461, a drive unit cover 462, magnet holding units 463a to 463d, magnets 464a to 464d, a movable unit 465, a vertical drive force generating coil group 466, and a horizontal drive force generating coil. And a group 467. In FIG. 5, the drive unit main body 461 is omitted.

  In the figure, the movable portion 465 holds the condenser lens 541 and is wound with a vertical driving force generating coil group 466 and horizontal driving force generating coil groups 467 and 468. The vertical driving force generating coil group 466 is wound around the lower end portion of the movable portion 465 so as to have a substantially square shape (rectangular shape). The magnet holding portions 463a to 463d are substantially U-shaped, and hold the rectangular parallelepiped magnets 464a to 464d on the inner inner wall surfaces, respectively. As shown in FIG. 5, the vertical driving force generating coil group 466 wound in a substantially square shape is inserted into the gap between the magnet holding portions 463a to 463d and the magnets 464a to 464d, and is inserted into the driving portion main body 461. Stored. On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 5, the horizontal driving force generating coil groups 467 and 468 are wound so as to cross each other so that the opposing top sides of the movable portion 465 are connected to each other, and the magnet holding portions 463c and 463d and the magnets 464c and 464c, It is inserted in the gap between 464d. Accordingly, the movable portion 465 is driven and controlled in the vertical direction (Z direction) in accordance with the current flowing through the vertical driving force generating coil group 466, and the movable portion 465 is horizontally driven in accordance with the current flowing in the horizontal driving force generating coil groups 467 and 468. Drive controlled in the direction (Y direction).

  As shown in FIG. 4, air supply portions 461 a and 461 b are provided on the side surface of the drive portion main body 461. Air supplied from the air supply units 461a and 461b is introduced into the drive unit main body 461 via the air flow paths 461c and 461d. The air flow paths 461c and 461d are branched at the end portion in a Y-shape, and one of the Y-shaped branch paths toward the upper oblique direction blows air to the inclined portion (taper portion) of the movable portion 465. The other of the Y-shaped branching paths and directed in the horizontal direction introduces air into the drive unit main body 461. The air blown to the inclined portion of the movable portion 465 avoids contact between the movable portion 465 and the drive portion main body 461, and restricts the amount of movement of the movable portion 465 in the horizontal direction (Y direction). The air blown to the inclined portion of the movable portion 465 functions as a counter balance that sets the initial position of the movable portion 465. On the other hand, the air introduced into the drive unit main body 461 is used as cooling air for the condenser lens 541. Although not shown, spring members extending in the X direction (the front-rear direction in the drawing) are attached to the inner wall surface of the drive unit main body 461 at the upper four corners of the movable portion 465. This spring member provides a restoring force for returning the movable portion 465 to the initial position.

  FIG. 6 is a schematic diagram illustrating configurations of the alignment camera device, the first detection optical system member, and the second detection optical system member. The alignment camera device 60 is provided on the side surface of the optical system member 50 as described above, acquires an image of the scribe line P1 processing line applied on the glass substrate 1, and outputs the information to the control device 80. It is used for the alignment process at the time of processing the scribe lines P2 and P3 for the second and subsequent times, that is, the focus positions and Y-direction positions of the condenser lenses 541 to 544.

  FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating an example in which a processing line is bent and formed by distortion or twisting (swelling or the like) of a glass substrate that is a workpiece. When the scribe line P1 which is the first processing line is curved (meandering) as shown in FIG. 7 due to distortion or twist (swell) of the glass substrate 1, in this embodiment, the scribe lines P2 and P3 are The scribe line P1 is processed following the curved (meandering) line. In this embodiment, the width of the scribe lines P1 to P3 is about 30 [μm], the distance between the scribe lines P1 and P2, and the distance between P2 and P3 is about 40 [μm], and follows the scribe line P1. Laser processing of the scribe lines P2 and P3 is performed.

  The first detection optical system member is composed of a CCD camera 28 for inspecting the laser beam state. The laser light state inspection CCD camera 28 receives laser light from the gap formed in the air levitation stage 20 through the glass substrate 1. The laser light state inspection CCD camera 28 is provided so as to be located on the back side of the glass substrate 1 on the stage surface from the gap formed in the air floating stage 20. The laser camera for inspecting the laser beam condition 28 is installed so that the sky side of the air levitation stage 20 can be seen. An image captured by the laser light state inspection CCD camera 28 is output to the control device 80. The control device 80 determines whether or not the spot diameter, shape, output, and the like of the laser light emitted from the condenser lenses 541 to 544 are appropriate. That is, the laser light state inspection CCD camera 28 can directly observe the laser light emitted from the respective condensing lenses 541 to 544 of the optical system member 50. By imaging the laser light, the control device 80 For each of the branched laser beams, the characteristics of the laser beam at the processing location can be measured. Further, when each optical system related to the laser light such as the laser generator 40 and the optical system member 50 is replaced, the images before and after the replacement are acquired and digitized, so that the focus and optical axis after the replacement are obtained. Adjustment and the like can be easily performed. Furthermore, by obtaining and digitizing the images of the laser beams output from the optical heads, it is possible to appropriately adjust the variations of the optical heads.

  The second detection optical system member includes beam samplers 91 and 93, a high-speed photodiode 94, and an optical axis inspection CCD camera 96. The beam samplers 91 and 93 are provided in the optical path of laser light introduced into the optical system member 50. In this embodiment, it is provided between the laser generator 40 and the galvanometer mirror 33. The beam samplers 91 and 93 are elements that sample a part of the laser beam (for example, about 0.4% of the laser beam or less) and branch and output it to the outside. The high-speed photodiode 94 is disposed so as to receive a part (sampling beam) of the laser beam branched and output by the beam sampler 91 near the center of the light receiving surface. An output signal corresponding to the intensity of the laser light detected by the high speed photodiode 94 is output to the control device 80. The optical axis inspection CCD camera 96 is arranged so as to receive a part (sampling beam) of the laser beam branched and output by the beam sampler 93 near the center of the light receiving surface. The image captured by the optical axis inspection CCD camera 96 is output to the control device 80. The optical axis inspection CCD camera 96 may capture an image indicating the position of the laser light irradiated to the high-speed photodiode 94 and output the image to the control device 80.

  The control device 80 detects the moving speed (moving frequency) of the gripper units 106 and 107 in the X-axis direction based on the detection signal from the linear encoder 70, controls the output (laser frequency) of the laser generator 40, and performs high speed operation. Based on the signals output from the photodiode 94 and the optical axis inspection CCD camera 96, the missing pulse of the laser light emitted from the laser generating device 40 is detected, or the laser generating device is determined based on the optical axis deviation amount of the laser light. The emission conditions of 40 are controlled, and the arrangement of the galvano mirror 33 and the reflection mirrors 34 and 35 for introducing the laser light in the optical system member 50 is feedback controlled.

  FIG. 8 is a block diagram showing details of processing of the control device 80 of FIG. The control device 80 includes a branching unit 81, a pulse missing determining unit 82, an alarm generating unit 83, a reference CCD image storage unit 84, an optical axis deviation measuring unit 85, a laser controller 86, an irradiation laser state inspection unit 89, and an irradiation laser adjustment unit 8A, a processing line detection unit 8C, and a copying processing adjustment unit 8E.

  The branching unit 81 branches the detection signal (clock pulse) of the linear encoder 70 and outputs it to the laser controller 86 at the subsequent stage. The pulse missing determination means 82 receives an output signal (diode output) corresponding to the laser light intensity from the high-speed photodiode 94 and a detection signal (clock pulse) output from the branching means 81, and based on this, the laser light Determine missing pulses. FIG. 9 is a diagram showing an example of the operation of the missing pulse determination means 82 of FIG. 9A is an example of a detection signal (clock pulse) output from the branching means 81, and FIG. 9B is an output signal corresponding to the laser light intensity output from the high-speed photodiode 94 (diode). FIG. 9C shows an example of an alarm signal output by the missing pulse determination means 82 when a missing pulse is detected.

  As shown in FIG. 9, the pulse missing determining means 82 determines whether or not the diode output value is equal to or greater than a predetermined threshold value Th by using the falling edge of the clock pulse from the branching means 81 as a trigger signal. When the diode output value is smaller than the threshold value Th, a high level signal is output to the alarm generating means 83. The alarm generating unit 83 notifies the outside of the alarm indicating that a pulse missing has occurred when the signal from the pulse missing judging unit 82 changes from a low level to a high level. The alarm is notified by various methods such as image display and pronunciation. The occurrence of an alarm allows the operator to recognize that a pulse drop has occurred. If this alarm occurs frequently, it means that the performance of the laser generator has deteriorated or has reached the end of its life.

  The reference CCD image storage means 84 stores a reference CCD image 84a as shown in FIG. The reference CCD image 84a shows an image in a state where the laser beam is received at the center of the light receiving surface of the CCD camera 96 for optical axis inspection. The optical axis inspection CCD camera 96 outputs an inspection image 85a as shown in FIG. The optical axis deviation amount measuring means 85 captures the inspected image 85a from the optical axis inspection CCD camera 96, compares it with the reference CCD image 84a, measures the optical axis deviation amount, and calculates the deviation amount by the laser. Output to the controller 86. For example, when an image such as the inspected image 85a shown in FIG. 8 is output from the optical axis inspection CCD camera 96, the optical axis deviation measuring means 85 compares the X axis and the Y axis. The amount of direction deviation is measured and output to the laser controller 86. The laser controller 86 introduces the laser beam into a device related to the optical axis of the laser beam, that is, the emission condition of the laser generator 40 and the optical system member 50 so that the inspected image 85a and the reference CCD image 84a coincide. The arrangement and the like of the galvanometer mirror 33 and the reflection mirrors 34 and 35 are adjusted by feedback.

  The irradiation laser state inspection means 89 captures the image 89a from the laser light state inspection CCD camera 28, measures the characteristics (spot diameter, shape, output, etc.) of the laser light based on the image 89a, and uses the measured value as the irradiation laser. Output to the adjusting means 8A. For example, when an image 89a as shown in FIG. 8 is output from the CCD camera for laser beam state inspection, the irradiation laser state inspection unit 89 has a circular outline 89b (condensing lenses 541 to 541 in the image 89a. The position of the focus circle 89c (the small circle in the image 89a) is detected with reference to the outer edge of 544), and the optical axis is determined based on whether or not the focus circle 89c is located at the approximate center of the contour 89b. Is measured in the X-axis and Y-axis directions, and is output to the irradiation laser adjusting means 8A. The irradiation laser state inspection unit 89 measures the size (spot diameter / irradiation area) of the focus circle 89c and outputs the focus position based on the size to the irradiation laser adjustment unit 8A. Further, the irradiation laser state inspection unit 89 outputs a laser beam output based on the luminance level of the focus circle 89c to the irradiation laser adjustment unit 8A. The irradiation laser adjusting means 8A is based on the signals corresponding to the optical axis deviation, the focus position, and the light output from the irradiation laser state inspection means 89, and the half mirrors 511 to 513 and the reflection mirror 521 in the optical system member 50. The arrangement and the like of .about.528 are fed back and adjusted, and the emission conditions and the like of the laser generator 40 are controlled via the laser controller 86. The irradiation laser adjustment unit 8A may be omitted, and the laser controller 86 may have these functions.

  In the above-described embodiment, the case where the optical axis misalignment measuring unit 85 inspects the optical axis misalignment of the laser beam and the missing pulse determining unit 82 inspects the missing pulse during laser processing (scribe processing) has been described. As shown in FIG. 6, the pulse state of the laser beam may be inspected based on the output waveform from the high-speed photodiode 94. For example, in FIG. 10, the pulse width and pulse height of the laser beam may be measured, and an alarm may be generated when an abnormality occurs in these. The pulse width of the laser light is normal when the period during which the output waveform from the high-speed photodiode 94 is equal to or greater than a predetermined value is within a predetermined range, and when it is larger or smaller than this range, the pulse width is abnormal. And outputs an alarm. The pulse height of the laser beam is normal when the maximum value of the output waveform from the high-speed photodiode 94 is within the allowable range, and when it is larger or smaller than this allowable range, the pulse height is abnormal. Judge and output an alarm. As described above, since the laser light is always sampled, the quality of the laser light such as the pulse width and the pulse height (power) can be managed in real time. If the above-described pulse omission occurs frequently, it can be determined that the laser generator 40 is deteriorated or has a lifetime.

In the above-described embodiment, only the occurrence of missing pulses is observed, but by acquiring and storing the coordinate data (position data) of the location where the missing pulses have occurred, it is possible to perform a scribe line repair process. It becomes.
In the above-described embodiment, a part of the laser beam (sampling beam) branched and output by the beam sampler 93 is directly received using the CCD camera 96 for optical axis inspection, and the optical beam is processed by image processing. The case where the deviation is inspected has been described. An image showing a state where the laser beam is received at the center of the light receiving surface of the high-speed photodiode 94 is acquired as an inspection image by the CCD camera 96 for optical axis inspection or the split type photodiode. Thus, the optical axis deviation may be inspected.
In the above-described embodiment, the case of inspecting the optical axis deviation and the missing pulse of the laser beam has been described. However, the state of the laser beam is inspected by appropriately combining the optical axis deviation, the missing pulse, the pulse width, and the pulse height. You may make it do.

  The processing line detection unit 8 </ b> C performs image recognition processing of the processing line P <b> 1 based on the image from the alignment camera device 60. FIG. 11 is a diagram illustrating an example of the operation of the machining line detection unit 8C. As shown in FIG. 11A, the metal layer on the glass substrate 1 is irradiated with laser light in a state where the glass substrate 1 is placed, and a scribe process (scribe line P1 processing) is executed. As a result of the initial scribing process, processed lines are formed on the glass substrate 1 with a pitch of about 10 mm. In FIG. 11, only one processed line 90 of the plurality of processed lines P1 is shown. The line 100 is an expected line when the processing line 90 is processed into a straight line. The alignment camera device 60 acquires a plurality of points on the expectation line 100, that is, images 61a to 64a in the vicinity of the shooting points 61 to 64 as shown in FIG. As can be seen from the images 61a to 64a, the image of the actual processing line 90 is included in the image. Based on the difference between each of the images 61a to 64a and the expected line 100, the bending state of the processing line 90 can be recognized.

  The copying process adjusting unit 8E compares the images 61a to 64a with the expected line 100 in accordance with the image processing result of the processed line detection unit 8C, performs alignment processing, and outputs the result to the laser controller 86. The laser controller 86 drives and controls the focus adjustment driving mechanisms 46 to 49 so that the laser beam is irradiated to a position about 30 μm away from the previous processing line 90 based on the result of the alignment processing of the copying processing adjusting unit 8E. Then, the height direction (focus) and the Y direction of each of the condenser lenses 541 to 544 are adjusted, and the scribing process (scribing line P2 processing) is executed. As a result, as shown in FIG. 11C, a processing line 92 is formed at a position separated from the processing line 90 by about 30 μm. When this scribing process (scribe line P2 processing) is completed, a process for forming a transparent electrode layer on the semiconductor layer is performed by another apparatus. Again, the glass substrate 1 is carried into the laser processing apparatus, the same alignment process as the previous time is performed, and the glass substrate 1 is similarly subjected to a scribing process (scribing line P3 processing) by laser light. As a result, three processed lines P1 to P3 as shown in FIG.

  In the above-described embodiment, the case where the copying process is performed by image processing using the alignment camera device 60 has been described. However, the processing lines P2 and P3 may be processed by tracking the scribe line P1. FIG. 12 is a diagram illustrating an example of a method of tracking the processing line P1 using a grating. In the figure, one laser beam is divided into three using a grating and irradiated to a processing line P1 of the glass substrate 1 as laser beams 123-125. The four-divided sensors 126 to 128 serving as reflected light detection sensors receive the reflected lights of the laser beams 123 to 125 as shown in FIG. Since the film surface reflection intensity is high at locations other than the processing line P1, it is detected whether the laser beams 123 to 125 are accurately tracking the processing line P1 according to the outputs from the four-divided sensors 126 to 128. can do. The tracking laser light and reflected light detection sensors are fixedly provided on the focus adjustment drive mechanisms 46 to 49, and the processing line P1 is accurately tracked to accurately track the processing line P1. P3 can be formed. 12B and 12C show a case where the tracking laser light and the reflected light detection sensor are displaced laterally (Y direction) with respect to the processing line P1. As described above, when the laser beams 123 to 125 are deviated with respect to the processing line P1, the balanced state of the output signals from the four-divided sensor that is the reflected light detection sensor is lost. By driving and controlling the lenses 541 to 544 in the ± Y direction and performing tracking control so as to have the relationship of FIG. 12A, it is possible to process the processing lines P2 and P3 following the processing line P1. Become.

In the above-described embodiment, the case where the processing line (groove) is formed on the thin film by irradiating the laser beam from the surface of the glass substrate 1 on which the thin film is formed has been described. Then, a processing line may be formed on the thin film on the workpiece surface. Moreover, although the above-mentioned embodiment demonstrated the case where the image containing the first process line formed on the glass substrate 1 was acquired as a result of the first process process, the 2nd scribe process (scribe line P2 process) As a result of processing, an image including two processed lines (scribe lines P1, P2) formed on the glass substrate 1 is acquired, and the two scribe lines P1 and / or scribe lines P2 in the image are obtained. It may be used to perform alignment processing.
In the above-described embodiment, the solar panel manufacturing apparatus has been described as an example. However, the present invention can also be applied to an apparatus that performs laser processing, such as an EL panel manufacturing apparatus, an EL panel correction apparatus, and an FPD correction apparatus.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Glass substrate 1x, 1y, 1m-1r ... Glass substrate 10 ... Laser processing station 100 ... Expectation line 102, 104 ... Alignment part 106,107,108,109 ... Gripper part 110 ... Gripper support drive part 112 ... Processing area part 121 ... Roller conveyors 126 to 128 ... 4-part sensor 141 ... Loading / unloading robot station 143 ... Front / back reversing mechanism unit 20 ... Air floating stage 28 ... CCD camera 30 for laser light state inspection ... Slide frame 31 ... Base plate 33 ... Galvano mirror 331 ... Galvano control device 332 ... Beam sampler 333 ... 4 divided photodiodes 33xy and 33yz ... Motors 34 and 35 ... Reflection mirror 37 ... Through hole 40 ... Laser generator 46 ... Focus adjustment drive mechanism 461 ... Drive unit body 461a, 461a ... Air supply unit 46 c, 461d, air flow path 462, drive unit covers 463a to 463d, magnet holding units 464a to 464d, magnet 465, movable unit 466, vertical driving force generation coil group 467, horizontal driving force generation coil group 50, optical system member 500 ... Phase type diffractive optical element (DOE)
511-513 ... Half mirror 52 ... Measuring system 521-528 ... Reflection mirror 531-534 ... Shutter mechanism 541-544 ... Condensing lens 60 ... Alignment camera device 61 ... Shooting point 70 ... Linear encoder 80 ... Control device 81 ... Branch Means 82 ... Missing pulse judgment means 83 ... Alarm generation means 84 ... Reference CCD image storage means 85 ... Optical axis deviation measurement means 86 ... Laser controller 89 ... Irradiation laser state inspection means 8A ... Irradiation laser adjustment means 8C ... Processing line detection means 8E: Processing adjustment means 90, 92 ... Processing lines 91, 93 ... Beam sampler 94 ... High-speed photodiode 96 ... CCD camera for optical axis inspection

Claims (10)

A laser processing position alignment method for aligning the workpiece at a predetermined position of the laser processing when performing a predetermined laser processing on the workpiece by irradiating while moving the laser beam relative to the workpiece,
A laser processing position alignment method, wherein the alignment processing is performed based on an image of a part including a shape change portion of the workpiece formed by the laser processing in the second and subsequent processing by the laser light.   The laser processing position alignment method according to claim 1, wherein images of a plurality of locations including a shape change portion of the workpiece are acquired, and the alignment processing is performed based on the acquired images of the plurality of locations. Laser processing position alignment method.   2. The laser processing position alignment method according to claim 1, wherein a laser processing process for the second and subsequent times by the laser beam is performed following the shape change portion of the workpiece. A laser processing method for performing predetermined processing on a workpiece by irradiating while moving the laser beam relative to the workpiece,
In the second and subsequent processing by the laser beam, an alignment process is performed when the laser processing is performed based on an image of a portion including a shape change portion of the workpiece formed by the laser processing. Processing method.   5. The laser processing method according to claim 4, wherein images of a plurality of locations including a shape change portion of the workpiece are acquired, and the alignment processing is performed based on the acquired images of the plurality of locations. Method.   5. The laser processing method according to claim 4, wherein the laser processing is performed for the second and subsequent times by the laser light following the shape change portion of the workpiece. Holding means for holding the workpiece;
Laser light irradiation means for irradiating the workpiece with laser light to perform a predetermined processing;
Image acquisition means for acquiring an image of a location including a shape change portion of the workpiece formed by processing by the laser light irradiation means;
A laser processing apparatus comprising: control means for controlling an alignment process when performing a second or subsequent laser processing based on the image acquired by the image acquisition means.   The laser processing apparatus according to claim 7, wherein the image acquisition unit acquires images at a plurality of locations including a shape change portion of the workpiece, and the control unit corrects the image acquired by the image acquisition unit. A laser processing apparatus that controls the alignment process based on the processed and corrected image.   8. The laser processing apparatus according to claim 7, wherein the control means performs a second and subsequent laser processing using the laser light following the shape change portion of the workpiece.   A solar panel using the laser processing position alignment method according to claim 1, 2 or 3, the laser processing method according to claim 4, 5 or 6, or the laser processing apparatus according to claim 7, 8 or 9. The solar panel manufacturing method characterized by manufacturing.

Images