JP2012000553A - Apparatus and method for inkjet coating - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an apparatus and a method for inkjet coating, capable of performing precise and even coating in width and height directions.SOLUTION: Respective coating heads 15 are arrayed in the X-axis direction and form one group by four coating heads. In the same group, each of the coating heads 15 has a different position in the Y-direction. Then, among groups, one of the coating heads is in every group at the same position in the Y-axis direction. The coating heads 15, one of which is in every different group at the same position in the Y-axis direction, are mounted on the same Z-axis-retaining plate 20bc. Each of the coating heads 15 has a micromotion Z-axis driving means 20a, and individually can move in the Z-axis direction. Further, an individual Z-axis driving means 20bis disposed in each Z-axis-retaining plate 20bc, and thereby, the Z-axis-retaining plate 20bc individually can move in the Z-axis direction. Furthermore, a common Z-axis driving means 30 is disposed, and thereby, all Z-axis-retaining plates 20bc can move, and therefore, all coating heads 15 can move in the Z-axis direction at the same time.

Description

  The present invention relates to application of a coating material to a smooth member by an inkjet method, and more particularly, to an inkjet coating apparatus and method capable of stably performing uniform coating.

  The ink jet method is a method in which ink droplets as a coating material are ejected little by little with high accuracy from an ink jet coating head using bubbles or a piezoelectric element as a coating head. An ink jet coating apparatus is a device that applies a process for applying ink droplets to a member to be coated by highly accurate ejection of the ink droplets. This has attracted attention in recent years as an apparatus that can realize high-definition ink application, and is not limited to printing on paper. is there.

  A plurality of nozzles are provided at a predetermined pitch at the tip of the lower surface of the coating head, and a discharge interval of droplets that are coating materials is determined by the pitch of the nozzles. Fortunately, if the desired droplet application interval is greater than the nozzle pitch, the objective can be achieved by selecting the nozzle to eject. On the contrary, if the desired droplet application interval is smaller than the nozzle pitch, some device is necessary for the operation of the application head to reduce time waste. Some suggestions have been made.

  As an example, for example, using a coating head in which a plurality of nozzle modules each having the same plurality of nozzle holes provided at equal intervals is arranged in parallel, the plurality of nozzle modules are arranged in the moving direction (y direction) of the coating substrate. By tilting the nozzle module and shifting the nozzle modules in the arrangement direction of the nozzle holes, the intervals in the direction (y) perpendicular to the moving direction of the coating substrate of all the nozzle holes of the nozzle modules can be changed. A technique has been proposed in which the substrate can be rotated and the coating image on the substrate can be applied in the same y direction even if the coating image is composed of images in a plurality of different directions. (For example, refer to Patent Document 1).

  In the technique described in Patent Document 1, an application image is divided into an edge image representing the edge and an internal image inside the image. First, application of the edge image (edge application) is performed, and the applied edge image is dried. After that, the internal image is applied (internal application). For the edge image, adjacent scanning is performed using two nozzle holes adjacent in the y-axis direction in the nozzle holes of all nozzle modules. Edge coating is performed along the lines, and internal coating is performed using all necessary nozzle holes.

  As described above, in edge coating, two nozzle holes adjacent in the Y direction are used, so that the amount of liquid droplets discharged from one nozzle hole is smaller than in edge coating using one nozzle hole. The coating line width can be reduced, the applied edge image can be dried quickly, and wetting and spreading can be suppressed. It is connected to the image and does not spread outside the edge image.

  Further, in order to keep the distance between the color filter substrate and the TFT substrate of the liquid crystal display panel, a spacer is provided on the color filter substrate. Ink dissolved in the solvent is applied from the inkjet head to the color filter substrate. Have been introduced (see, for example, Patent Document 2).

  According to the technique described in Patent Document 2, the inkjet head is provided with a plurality of nozzles at a predetermined pitch, and the ink application position on the color filter substrate is the black matrix on the color filter substrate. The inkjet head is rotated so that the nozzle pitch is smaller than the pitch of the ink application position and the nozzle pitch can be adjusted to the pitch of the ink application position. Thus, the arrangement direction of the nozzles is changed, and the color substrate can be rotated in the direction opposite to the rotation direction of the inkjet head.

  Furthermore, in order to form spacer particles for providing a predetermined space between the array substrate and a predetermined position on the color filter substrate of the liquid crystal cell, a technique using an ink jet method has been proposed (for example, (See Patent Document 3).

  According to the technique described in Patent Document 3, a spacer particle dispersion liquid in which spacer particles are dispersed in a dispersion medium is discharged to a predetermined position (a position of a black matrix) on a color filter substrate by an inkjet method. As the spacer particle dispersion, water and a low-boiling alcohol solvent are used. After discharging, the solution is dried under reduced pressure at room temperature. Further, the color filter substrate is heated to volatilize the solvent, and the spacer particles are placed in a predetermined position (color filter). It is fixed to a position on the black matrix of the substrate. This is a coating method in which the pressure is reduced once after coating, and then dried by heating as the next step.

JP 2005-246248 A JP 2010-20144 A JP 2007-47524 A

  As in the techniques described in Patent Documents 1 to 3, in the past, in order to obtain high coating position accuracy and film thickness uniformity in inkjet coating, the relative relationship between the target coating interval and the nozzle pitch of the coating head. The particular positional relationship has attracted particular attention. This is a positional relationship in the XY plane and is two-dimensional.

  However, when using inkjet coating in various fields, the physical properties of the coating material, such as the viscosity and surface tension of the coating material, the effect of the surface condition of the object to be coated, and the substrate, film, etc. It has been found that the management of the distance between the coating object and the nozzle of the coating head is also important due to the increase in the size of the coating object. It is becoming difficult to perform highly accurate and uniform application only by managing the application position only in the XY plane.

  That is, if the distance between the coating object and the nozzle of the coating head is too large, an error occurs in the accuracy of the direction of ejection of droplets of the coating material from the nozzle, thereby causing a landing position shift. Conversely, if the distance between the coating object and the nozzle of the coating head is too small, undulation will occur due to the swell of the enlarged coating object, and there will be a part that protrudes in a part of the coating object with a large area. The coating head may collide with the coating object at this location.

  In addition, ink jet coating has an advantage that the coating material can be used efficiently without waste, but on the other hand, since the discharge amount per one time is a very small amount, or by further reducing the interval between the coating positions, further fine coating is required. Therefore, it is necessary to perform a plurality of coating operations. At this time, it becomes a problem how to suppress the spread of the coating material that has previously adhered among the plurality of coatings on the coating object.

  To give specific numerical examples, in the case of multiple chamfering on a glass substrate of a liquid crystal panel, there should be no coating interference with other surfaces from the consideration of display performance, and the linearity of the outer peripheral pattern is roughly ± A spread of 0.1 mm or less to ± 0.5 mm or less is required. Further, in the height direction, the display performance of the liquid crystal panel becomes a problem unless the unevenness is about 0.1 mm to 0.3 mm after application.

  Thus, it is extremely important to suppress variation in the spread in the width direction and height direction of the coating material after coating.

  An object of the present invention is to provide an ink jet coating apparatus and method capable of solving such problems and performing uniform coating with high accuracy in the width and height directions.

   In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides means for individually rotating a plurality of coating heads, so that a coating object such as a substrate or a film is tilted with respect to the transport direction with respect to the transport direction. Means for enabling rotation. Furthermore, Z-axis moving means is provided that makes it possible to adjust the height direction position of the plurality of coating heads. Furthermore, means for heating the application object at the same time as the application operation is provided.

  According to the present invention, it is possible to perform three-dimensional position management by providing a Z-axis moving means that is not only in the XY plane but also in the height direction, and by applying the coating object while heating it. High-precision and uniform application is possible.

It is a perspective view which shows schematic structure in one Embodiment of the inkjet coating apparatus and method by this invention. It is a perspective view which shows a specific example of the coating head in FIG. 1, and its installation state. It is a figure which shows an example of the arrangement | sequence of the some nozzle provided in the coating head in FIG. It is the top view which looked at the whole structure of embodiment shown in FIG. 1 from upper direction. It is a figure which shows the specific example of the Z-axis direction drive of the coating head in FIG. FIG. 5 is a plan view showing a specific example of a state when the application head is rotated in the arrangement state of the application heads shown in FIG. 4. It is a figure which shows the state of a coating head in case the application | coating locus | trajectory in the application | coating area of a film becomes narrower than the space | interval P of the arrangement direction of the discharge nozzle in a coating head. It is a block diagram which shows one specific example of the control part of the inkjet application | coating in embodiment shown in FIG. 2 is a flowchart showing a specific example of the flow of operations when coating on a film with the interval in the X-axis direction of the discharge nozzle of the coating head in the embodiment shown in FIG.

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

  The embodiment described below is a flexible application of a polyimide thin film or an electrophoretic method that has been rubbed to control the alignment of liquid crystal molecules on a glass substrate used in a flat panel display as a coating target. -There are a wide variety of applications such as flexible electronic paper called displays. In this embodiment, a film-like flexible member is used as an example of an object to be coated. For example, an ink jet method is used on a solar cell film on which a non-silicon-based semiconductor material (for example, a CIGS thin film) is applied. A film such as an electrode or an insulating film is formed by applying an electrode material or an insulating material with this coating head. According to the ink jet method, there are merits that the cost for preparing the plate can be reduced and the coating material can be used efficiently, and the application of the ink jet method is being expanded. The CIGS thin film is a thin film of a semiconductor material made of Cu (copper), In (indium), Ga (gallium), and Se (selenium), and “CIGS” is an acronym for these materials. .

  FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a schematic configuration in one embodiment of an inkjet coating apparatus and method according to the present invention, wherein 1 is a laminated film for solar cells (hereinafter simply referred to as a film), 2 is an unwinding side film roll, 3 is a take-up film roll, 4 and 5 are guide rolls, 6 and 7 are elevating guide rolls, 8 and 9 are suction bars, 10 is a suction table, 11 is a take-out side shaft motor, and 12 is a take-up side shaft motor. , 13, 14 are film pressing bars, 15 is a coating head, 16 is an unwinding portion, 17 is a coating portion, 18 is a winding portion, 19 is an imaging camera, 20a is a fine Z-axis driving means, and 21 is a θ-axis driving means. , 22 are rubber heaters, and 23 is a roller heater.

  In this figure, the longitudinal direction (moving direction) of the film 1 is the X-axis direction, and the space along the X-axis direction is divided into an unwinding portion 16, an application portion 17, and a winding portion 18. The unwinding section 16 is provided with an unwinding-side film roll 2 that is rotationally driven by the unwinding-side shaft motor 11, an upstream guide roll 4, a lifting guide roll 6, and a suction bar 8 that are sequentially arranged in the X axis direction. In the winding unit 18, the downstream suction bar 9, the lifting guide roll 7, the guide roll 5, and the winding side film roll 3 are sequentially arranged in the X-axis direction.

  Here, it is assumed that the winding unit 18 is installed immediately after the coating unit 17. However, a decompression unit and a drying unit are provided between the coating unit 17 and the winding unit 18, and the film 1 is thereby formed. You may provide the area which evaporates the solvent of the coating material (not shown) adhering to the film 1 immediately after application | coating.

  In the unwinding part 16, the strip | belt-shaped film 1 used as the application | coating part of an electrode material or an insulating material by the application part 17 is wound around the unwinding side film roll 2 at roll shape. The film 1 is unwound from the unwinding film roll 2, passes through the coating unit 17, and is wound on the winding side film roll 3 by the winding unit 18. A roller heater 23 is built in the unwinding film roll 2 as a heating means, so that the film 1 to be unwound to the coating unit 17 in a temperature range of 20 to 80 ° C. can be preheated.

  The coating unit 17 is provided with a suction table 10, a coating head 15, and film pressing bars 13 and 14, and the position of the film 1 is fixed on the suction table 10 by vacuum suction. The coating head 15 is provided with a photographing camera 19, fine movement Z-axis drive means 20 a, θ-axis drive means 21, and the like to form a head portion. When the suction table 10 is attracted to the lower surface of the film 1, the sides of the film 1 may curl up from the surface of the suction table 10 due to curling. The film pressing bars 13 and 14 press the suction table 10 from above. Thereby, the curl of the film 1 is corrected. The suction operation of the suction table 10 and the film pressing bars 13 and 14 is performed by a vacuum valve using a vacuum pump as a vacuum source, and the suction and fixing of the film 1 is performed.

  A rubber heater 22 is affixed to the lower surface of the suction table 10, and as a result, the entire suction table 10 is constantly heated in the temperature range of 50 to 100 ° C., including during the operation of applying to the film 1. Along with this, the film 1 sucked on the suction table 10 is also heated. In this manner, the coating material discharged from the discharge nozzle (not shown) of the coating head 15 and adhered to the film 1 is evaporated in a short time by the heating during the coating, and the coating material on the film 1 is heated. Wetting spread can be suppressed.

  By the way, as described above, the roller heater 23 built in the unwinding side film roll 2 is used in advance in a temperature range of 20 to 80 ° C. while the film 1 is wound around the unwinding side film roll 2. Although it is heated, this causes the filter 1 to be conveyed in a heated state from the unwinding side film roll 2 to the suction table 10, so that the film 1 is in a heated state from the start of its application. Even if the coating operation is started immediately after the film 1 is sucked onto the suction table 10, it is possible to suppress the wetting and spreading of the coating material coated on the film 1. Further, since the film 1 is already heated by the roller heater 23 and softened to some extent when the film 1 is conveyed onto the suction table 10, the film 1 is restrained to the surface of the suction table 10 by the film pressing bars 13, 14. Will be carried out smoothly.

  It is to be noted that the set temperature of the roller heater 23 in the unwinding film roll 2 is lower than the set temperature in the rubber heater 22 or is set to the same level in terms of deformation of the film 1 and positioning accuracy. However, it is not limited to this.

2 is a perspective view showing a specific example of the coating head 15 and its installation state in FIG. ₁ , wherein 20a ₁ is a fine movement drive unit, 20a ₂ is a Z-axis holding plate, 20bc is a Z-axis holding plate, and 24 is X Axial driving means, 25 is a laser distance meter, 26 is a coating material, 27 is a head part, and 28 is a gantry. The parts corresponding to those in FIG.

  In the figure, a head part holding plate (not shown) is fixed on a holding plate 20bc elongated in the X-axis direction in which the film 1 moves, and a head part 27 is placed on the head part holding substrate. The holding plate 20bc constitutes individual Z-axis driving means and common Z-axis driving means, which will be described later.

Furthermore, fine movement Z-axis driving means 20a is composed of a fine movement Z-axis drive portion 20a ₁ and the Z-axis holding plate 20a ₂ Prefecture.

The head unit 27 includes an application head 15, a fine movement Z-axis drive unit 20 a, a θ-axis drive unit 21, an X-axis drive unit 24, a laser rangefinder 25, and the like. The Z-axis holding plate 20a ₂ is attached to the head 15 and is finely driven in the Z-axis direction (direction perpendicular to the surface of the suction table 10) by the fine-motion Z-axis drive means 20a ₁ of the fine-motion Z-axis drive means 20a. Is attached. Accordingly, by driving the fine movement Z-axis drive unit 20a ₁ , the coating head 15 and the laser distance meter 25 are finely moved in the Z-axis direction, that is, finely moved in the vertical direction with respect to the surface of the film 1 sucked on the suction table 10. .

  The θ-axis driving means 21 is provided above the coating head 15, the laser distance meter 25, and the fine Z-axis driving means 20a. By rotating these in the θ-axis direction, the head 15 is moved in the X-axis direction. Change direction.

  The X-axis driving unit 24 moves the coating head 15, the laser distance meter 25, the fine Z-axis driving unit 20a, and the photographing camera 19 in the X-axis direction on a head unit holding plate (not shown) to which the head unit 27 is attached. Thereby, the position of the coating head 15 in the X-axis direction is adjusted.

  As will be described later, the gantry 28 constitutes a later-described Y-axis drive unit. The gantry 28 moves in the Y-axis direction, and the holding plate 20bc also moves in the Y-axis direction. The film 1 sucked on the suction table 10 moves in the Y-axis direction.

  As will be described later, the holding plate 20bc constitutes Z-axis driving means (individual Z-axis driving means and common Z-axis driving means) different from the fine movement Z-axis driving means 20a and moves in the Z-axis direction. Even when the holding plate 20bc moves in the Z-axis direction, the head portion 27 moves in the Z-axis direction and the coating head 15 moves up and down.

  The imaging camera 19 photographs a mark (not shown) indicating a reference position provided on the film 1 sucked on the suction table 10, and the position of the film 1 is adjusted based on the photographing result. The

  Note that a discharge nozzle (not shown) is provided on the lower end surface of the coating head 15 (the surface facing the surface of the film 1 sucked on the suction table 10), and is sucked onto the suction table 10. When applying to the film 1, the coating material 26 is discharged from the discharge nozzle and applied onto the film 1.

  FIG. 3 is a view showing a specific example of an arrangement of a plurality of nozzles provided in the coating head 15, where 15 a is a lower end surface of the coating head 15 and 15 b is a discharge nozzle.

  In the figure, a lower end surface 15a of the coating head 15 has an elongated shape, and a plurality of discharge nozzles 15b are arranged in a line along the longitudinal direction of the lower end surface 15a. The longitudinal direction of the lower end surface 15a of the coating head 15 is a direction along the X-axis direction when the coating head 15 is not rotated by the θ-axis driving means 21 (initial rotation state). When the coating head 15 is rotated by the θ-axis driving unit 21, the arrangement direction of the discharge nozzles 15b is inclined with respect to the X-axis direction by an angle corresponding to the rotation amount.

4 is a plan view of the overall configuration of the embodiment shown in FIG. 1 as viewed from above, in which 20b is an individual Z-axis drive means, 20b ₁ is an individual Z-axis drive section, 20c is a common Z-axis drive means, and 20c ₁ Is a common Z-axis drive unit, 20c ₂ is a guide, 29a and 29b are linear rails, and 30 is a Y-axis drive unit, and the same reference numerals are given to portions corresponding to FIGS. .

  In the same figure, the application unit 17 is provided with a plurality of ink jet type application heads 15, here, eight, and each application head 15 is controlled by the fine movement Z-axis driving means 20 a as described above. It can be moved up and down individually. Four coating heads 15 form one group, and two groups are provided here. However, there may be three or more groups.

  A gantry 28 is installed across two linear rails 29a and 29b parallel to the direction (Y-axis direction) across the suction table 10, and four Z-axis holdings are provided between the linear rails 29a and 29b. Plates 20bc are provided parallel to each other in the X-axis direction and at a predetermined interval from each other.

  In the four Z-axis holding plates 20bc, the first, second, third, and fourth Z-axis holding plates 20bc are sequentially arranged from the gantry 28 side, and the group on the linear rail 31a side is the first group, the linear Assuming that the group on the rail 31b side is the second group, one coating head 15 of each of the first and second groups is arranged at a first predetermined interval on the first Z-axis holding plate 20bc. On the second Z-axis holding plate 20bc, the other coating heads 15 in the first and second groups are arranged at the same first predetermined interval and on the first Z-axis holding plate 20bc. The coating head 15 is disposed at a second predetermined interval in the X-axis direction, and each of the other coatings of the first and second groups is applied on the third Z-axis holding plate 20bc. F Are disposed at the same first predetermined interval and at the second predetermined interval in the same X-axis direction as the coating head 15 disposed on the second Z-axis holding plate 20bc. On the Z-axis holding plate 20bc, the remaining one coating head 15 of the first and second groups is arranged at the same first predetermined interval and on the third Z-axis holding plate 20bc. The coating head 15 is arranged at the second predetermined interval in the same X-axis direction.

  Accordingly, in the arrangement of the eight coating heads 15 as viewed in the X-axis direction, the respective coating heads 15 are arranged with their positions shifted in the X-axis direction. The first and second predetermined intervals are set so that the intervals in the X-axis direction are equal. More specifically, as shown in FIG. 3, each coating head 15 includes a plurality of ejection nozzles 15 b arranged in a straight line, but the ejection nozzles 15 b of all eight coating heads 15. The first and second predetermined intervals are set so that all the positions in the X-axis direction are equally spaced.

  A predetermined interval is provided between the Z-axis holding plates 20bc, and each coating head 15 is held by the Z-axis holding plate 20a2 of the fine movement Z-axis driving means 20a as shown in FIG. Thus, the entire arrangement of the discharge nozzles 15 b on the lower end surface 15 a of the coating head 15 directly faces the surface of the film 1.

A common Z-axis drive unit 20c ₁ forming a common Z-axis drive unit 20c is attached to the gantry 28 on the linear rail 31a side, and four individual Z-axis drive units 20b are attached to the common Z-axis drive unit 20c _1. four individual Z-axis driving part 20b ₁ is attached to form a. A Z-axis holding plate 20bc is attached to each of the four individual Z-axis drive units 20b ₁ . End of the linear rail 31b side of the Z-axis holding plate 20bc is supported by the guide 20c _2.

Therefore, Z-axis holding plate 20bc, together with such common Z-axis drive unit 20c _1, constitutes a common Z-axis driving means 20c, also with such individual Z-axis driving section 20b _1, constituting an individual Z-axis driving means 20b . Then, by driving the common Z-axis drive unit 20c _1, all Z shaft holding plate 20bc is to move up and down in the Z axis direction by the same distance at the same time, so that all of the coating head 15 the same distance at the same time Z Moves up and down in the axial direction. Also, by either driving the four individual Z-axis driving section 20b _1, will be Z-axis holding plate 20bc are attached to the individual Z-axis driving part 20b ₁ is vertically moved in the Z axis direction, which Thus, the coating heads 15 of the first and second groups attached to the Z-axis holding plate 20bc move up and down in the Z-axis direction by the same distance at the same time.

In FIG. 2, when the fine movement Z-axis drive unit 20a ₁ provided in the coating head 15 is driven, only the coating head 15 moves up and down in the Z-axis direction.

  Thus, in this embodiment, the fine movement Z-axis drive means 20a, the individual Z-axis drive means 20b, and the common Z-axis drive means 20c are provided as the Z-axis drive means, whereby one designated coating head 15 is provided. The two coating heads 15 provided on the designated Z-axis holding plate 20bc can be moved up and down at the same distance simultaneously, and all the coating heads 15 can be moved at the same distance at the same time. Therefore, any driving in the Z-axis direction can be selected and performed according to the situation at the time of application on the film 1.

  Here, when the coating operation is performed on the film 1 sucked on the suction table 10, the laser distance meter 25 (FIG. 2) determines the distance between the surface of the film 1 and the discharge nozzle 15b (FIG. 3) of the coating head 15. The fine movement Z-axis driving means 20a performs a driving operation to move the coating head 15 in the Z-axis direction so that the distance between the film 1 and the discharge nozzle 15b is a predetermined distance. The distance between the film 1 and the discharge nozzle 15b is adjusted, but when the distance between the film 1 and the discharge nozzle 15b exceeds the range that can be adjusted by the driving operation of the fine movement Z-axis drive means 20a, and cannot be adjusted, Next, the individual Z-axis driving means 20b starts a driving operation to adjust the distance between the film 1 and the discharge nozzle 15b. In this case, even if the distance between the film 1 and the discharge nozzle 15b can be adjusted by one application head 15 on the Z-axis holding plate 20bc to be driven, the distance between the film 1 and the discharge nozzle 15b can be adjusted by the other application head 15. When the distance deviates from a predetermined distance, fine movement Z-axis driving means 20a performs a driving operation to adjust the distance between the film 1 of the coating head 15 and the discharge nozzle 15b.

  When there is a coating head 15 in which the distance between the film 1 and the discharge nozzle 15b cannot be adjusted even by the driving operation of the individual Z-axis driving unit 20b, the common Z-axis driving unit 20c performs the driving operation. The common Z-axis drive means 20c is also used to initially set the distance between the film 1 of the coating head 15 and the discharge nozzle 15b when the film 1 is sucked onto the suction table 10 and the coating operation is started. It is done.

  FIG. 5 is a diagram showing a specific example of driving of the coating head 15 in FIG. 2 in the Z-axis direction, and the same reference numerals are given to the portions corresponding to the above-mentioned drawings, and redundant explanations are omitted.

In the figure, the film 1 has a step d ₁ due to the curl of the film 1 as viewed in the width direction (Y-axis direction), a convex portion of the step d ₂ due to a circuit or the like being formed in advance, a step It is assumed that a concave portion d ₃ is generated. Here, d ₁ > d ₂ , d _3, and D is a specified distance between the film 1 and the discharge nozzle 15 b of the coating head 15.

As described above, the fine movement Z-axis driving means 20a absorbs mechanical attachment errors of the respective coating heads 15 and eliminates apparent mounting errors of the coating heads 15; Depending on the presence of the circuit formed on the film 1, there may be a convex portion of the step d _{2 and} a concave portion of the step d _{3 on} the film 1, and the film 1 and the discharge nozzle of the coating head 15 are also in the concave and convex portions. The fine movement Z-axis driving means 20a is such that the distance between them becomes the specified distance D.

Further, the film 1 may be curled in the width direction. Although the curl of the film 1 is corrected by pressing both sides of the film 1 with the film press bars 13 and 14, the sides of the film 1 bulge upward at the step d ₁ as shown in the figure. May cause swells. Although this undulation is likely to occur in the width direction of the film 1, it is difficult to occur in the longitudinal direction of the film 1 and the fine movement Z-axis driving means 20a often cannot cope with this, so the individual Z-axis driving means 20b Two coating heads 15 arranged in the X-axis direction along this undulation so that the distance between the film 1 and the discharge nozzle 15b of the coating head 15 does not vary due to the undulation in the width direction of the film 1; That is, the distance between the discharge nozzles 15b of the two coating heads 15 attached to the same Z-axis holding plate 20bc and the film 1 is adjusted so that the prescribed distance is D.

  Even if this swell can be dealt with by driving the fine movement Z-axis driving means 20a, the measurement result of the laser distance meter 25 may be substantially the same with the same Z-axis holding plate 20bc. In this case, the individual Z-axis drive means 20b can simultaneously move these coating heads 15 in the Z-axis direction.

  In a maintenance operation such as when the thickness of the film 1 is changed due to changeover or when an operation called discarding is performed to prevent nozzle clogging, all the coating heads 15 are moved up and down collectively. In this case, driving in the Z-axis direction is performed by the common Z-axis driving means 20c.

  The role of each of the above Z-axis driving means 20a to 20c is main, and is not limited to this, and the three types of Z-axis driving means can be utilized with slightly different purposes.

  Returning to FIG. 4, the linear rails 29a and 29b are provided with Y-axis drive means 30 for moving the gantry 28 in the Y-axis direction. By driving the Y-axis drive means 30, the gantry 28 moves in the Y-axis direction, and accordingly, the individual Z-axis drive means 20b and the common Z-axis drive means 20c move in the Y-axis direction. The holding plate 20bc moves in the Y-axis direction while maintaining a distance from each other. Therefore, as a result, all the coating heads 15 simultaneously move in the Y-axis direction at the same speed.

  When application on the film 1 is not performed, the application head 15 is set so that the arrangement direction of the discharge nozzles 15b (FIG. 3) is parallel to the X-axis direction. Depending on the application status of 26 (FIG. 2), it may be necessary to change the arrangement direction of the discharge nozzles 15b. In such a case, the coating head 15 is rotated by the θ-axis drive means 21 shown in FIG.

  FIG. 6 is a plan view showing such a state, in which parts corresponding to those in the previous drawings are given the same reference numerals and redundant description is omitted.

  In the figure, the application head 15 is rotated by an angle α by driving the θ-axis drive means 21, and the arrangement direction of the discharge nozzles 15 b of these application heads 15 is only an angle α with respect to the X-axis direction. It is in a shifted state. Thus, when the coating head 15 is rotated by the angle α, the interval along the X-axis direction of the discharge nozzle 15b is reduced to cos α times. Accordingly, when the application is simultaneously performed in the Y-axis direction by the plurality of discharge nozzles 15b of the application head 15, the interval between the application trajectories of the discharge nozzles 15b is cosα times that of the state before the application head 15 is rotated. This can be used when coating is performed with a narrower track interval.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 4, each coating head 15 is parallel to the X-axis direction (that is, α = 0 degrees, and the arrangement direction of the discharge nozzles 15b in the coating head 15 shown in FIG. In the direction parallel to the X-axis), the ends of the coating heads 15 are partially overlapped in the X-axis direction, whereby all the coating heads in all the coating heads of the first and second groups The discharge nozzles 15b are all equally spaced in the X-axis direction. For example, as shown in FIG. 3, if the interval in the arrangement direction of the discharge nozzles 15b (hereinafter referred to as the arrangement interval) is P, the discharge nozzle at the right end (or the left end) of a certain coating head 15 in the state shown in FIG. The distance in the X-axis direction between the discharge nozzle 15b at the left end (or the right end) of the other application head 15 arranged on the right side (or left side) of the application head 15 is also the discharge nozzle 15b in the application head 15. And the interval P is equal.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 6, the same applies when the respective coating heads 15 are rotated by an angle α, and the interval between the discharge nozzles 15b in the coating head 15 is P · cos α. However, between the discharge nozzle 15b at the right end (or left end) of a certain coating head 15 and the discharge nozzle 15b at the left end (or right end) of another coating head 15 arranged on the right side (or left side) of this coating head 15. The interval in the X-axis direction is also set to P · cos α. This is achieved by moving the coating head 15 in the X-axis direction so as to approach each other in the X-axis direction by driving the X-axis driving means 24 (FIG. 2) as the coating head 15 rotates. is there.

  When applying the coating material 26 (FIG. 2) in the region of the film 1 sucked on the suction table 10 by the coating head 15, the coating may be performed simultaneously using a plurality of coating heads 15. In such a case, by narrowing the interval between the application trajectories by the respective discharge nozzles 15b in this region, uniform application is possible as a whole. In some cases, it may be necessary to make the interval P smaller than the interval P in the arrangement direction. In such a case, as shown in FIG. This is to match the interval of the application trajectory.

  In addition, the rotatable range of the coating head 15 by the θ-axis driving means 21 (FIG. 2) is set, and even if the coating head 15 rotates within this rotatable range, the ejection at the lower end surface 15a of the coating head 15 is performed. The arrangement of the nozzles 15b is located between the Z-axis holding plates 20bc as a whole and directly faces the surface of the film 1.

  FIG. 7 is a diagram showing the state of the coating head 15 when the coating locus is narrower than the interval P in the arrangement direction of the discharge nozzles 15b in the coating head 15 as shown in FIG. The top view which shows a part of upper film 1, The same figure (b) is a top view which expands and shows the relationship between the part of A in the same figure (a), and the discharge nozzle 15b in each coating head 15, Reference numeral 31 denotes an application area, 32 denotes an edge portion, and 33 denotes an application locus. In addition, the same code | symbol is attached | subjected to the part corresponding to previous drawing, and the overlapping description is abbreviate | omitted.

  In FIG. 2A, when the film 1 is positioned on the suction table 10 in the application FIG. 17 (FIG. 1), a predetermined number of rectangular application areas 31 are set. The coating material 26 is applied to the rectangular frame-shaped edge portion 32 using a predetermined coating head 15 (the coating material 26 of the edge portion 32 is heated and fixed by the rubber heater 22 (FIG. 1)). Next, the coating material 26 is applied to the inside of the edge portion 32 in each application area 31. Thus, when forming the edge part 32 of rectangular frame shape, the coating head 15 is moved to the Y-axis direction by the Y-axis drive means 30 in the part along the Y-axis direction of this edge part 32, and is specified. The coating material 26 is applied by a specific discharge nozzle 15 b of the coating head 15.

  Moreover, in the part along the X-axis direction of the edge part 32, application | coating is performed as follows. That is, since each coating head 15 is disposed on a different Z-axis holding plate 20bc, its position is sequentially shifted in the Y-axis direction. For this reason, when each coating head 15 is moved in the Y-axis direction, each coating head 15 reaches portions of the edge portion 32 along the X-axis direction in order at different timings. Therefore, the coating material 26 is ejected from the ejection head 15b of the coating head 15 that has reached the portion along the X-axis direction of the edge portion 32, so that the portion along the X-axis direction of the edge portion 32 is sequentially turned by each coating head 15. Thus, the edge portion 32 in the X-axis direction to which the coating material 26 is applied is formed.

  By the way, as will be described with reference to FIG. 7B, in the coating area 31, each coating head 15 performs coating in the Y-axis direction, and each coating head is spaced at intervals of the coating locus 33 along the Y-axis direction. In order to make the intervals along the X-axis direction of the 15 discharge nozzles 15b coincide with each other, each coating head 15 is rotated by a predetermined angle α. In such a case, even if the same coating head 15 is used, the arrangement direction of the discharge nozzles 15b is inclined by the angle α with respect to the X-axis direction, so the coating head 15 is moved in the Y-axis direction. In this case, the timing at which each discharge nozzle 15b of the same coating head 15 coincides with the portion of the edge portion 32 along the X-axis direction is different. Thus, when the coating head 15 is tilted by the angle α as described above, the discharge nozzle 15 b that coincides with the portion along the X-axis direction of the edge portion 32 of the coating head 15 discharges the coating material 26. To. As a result, the plurality of ejection heads 15 b arranged in each coating head 15 sequentially ejects the coating material 26 onto the portion of the edge portion 32 along the X-axis direction.

  Thus, even when the arrangement of the discharge nozzles 15b of the coating head 15 is inclined with respect to the X-axis direction, the coating material 26 is applied along the portion of the edge portion 32 along the X-axis direction. become.

  Next, application of the coating material 26 in the edge portion 32 will be described with reference to FIG.

  In the edge portion 32, it is assumed that application is performed uniformly along the application locus 33 parallel to the Y-axis direction. In this case, assuming that the interval between the application trajectories 33 is Q and the inside of the edge portion 32 is applied simultaneously using a plurality of application heads 15, the arrangement interval P of the discharge nozzles 15 b of each application head 15 is the application trajectory 33. Is larger than the interval Q, the respective coating heads 15 are rotated by an angle α satisfying Q = P · cos α by the θ-axis drive means 21, and the entire coating heads 15 are as described above. The position of each coating head 15 in the X-axis direction is adjusted by the X-axis driving means 24 so that the interval between the discharge nozzles 15b is uniformly equal to the interval Q of the coating locus 33.

  By setting such a state with each coating head 15, the plurality of coating heads 15 are moved in the Y-axis direction, and the discharge nozzle 15 b of these coating heads 15 is included in the width of the coating area 31 in the X-axis direction. The application material 26 can be applied simultaneously along all the application trajectories 33 in the application area 31 by the discharge nozzle 15b. Accordingly, the application area 31 can be applied by one movement of the application head 15 in the Y-axis direction. In this case, of course, since each coating head 15 is inclined with respect to the Y-axis direction, it goes without saying that the application start timing and the application end timing of each discharge nozzle 15b of each application head 15 are made different according to the inclination. Nor. If the entire application area 31 cannot be applied by one movement, the film 1 may be displaced in the Y-axis direction and the application head 15 may be moved in the direction opposite to the Y-axis from the first movement.

  Further, if the interval of the discharge nozzle 15b in the X-axis direction does not become the interval Q of the application locus 33 even when the application head 15 is rotated to the maximum possible range, the X-axis direction of the application head 15 is further increased. Are adjusted so that the adjacent coating heads 15 partially overlap each other in the Y-axis direction, and one of the two overlapping coating heads 15 in the X-axis direction of the discharge nozzle 15 b of one coating head 15. By making the position of the discharge nozzle 15b of the other application head 15 in the X-axis direction within the interval, the interval in the X-axis direction of the discharge nozzle 15b of the entire application head 15 can be reduced. The discharge nozzles 15b of the coating head 15 can be aligned with the coating locus 33 having a narrow interval. However, in this case, the width of the region to be applied simultaneously is reduced by one movement of the coating head 15 in the Y-axis direction, and it is necessary to repeat the movement of the coating head 15 in the Y-axis direction two or more times. .

  Conventionally, depending on the type of application object, as shown in FIG. 7, when it is necessary to apply with a small application locus by the discharge nozzle 15 b of the application head 15, the application is performed by movement in the Y-axis direction. Next, it has already been proposed to move the coating head 15 in the X-axis direction to the next coating start position, and again move the coating head 15 in the Y-axis direction from this position to perform coating in the coating area. However, the processing time is several times inefficient.

  On the other hand, in this embodiment, the interval between the discharge nozzles 15b of the coating head 15 in the X-axis direction is changed by rotating the coating head 15 by the θ-axis driving unit 21 and tilting it with respect to the X-axis direction. Thus, the interval can be made equal to the interval of the application trajectory 33 in the application area 31, and the plurality of discharge nozzles 15b and the plurality of discharge nozzles 15b of the plurality of application heads 15 can be connected simultaneously. A coating operation can be used, and the coating work efficiency is greatly improved.

  In this embodiment, the fine Z-axis driving means 20a, the individual Z-axis driving means 20b, the common Z-axis driving means 20c, the X-axis driving means 24, the Y-axis driving means 30, and the θ-axis driving means 21 are used in this embodiment. The drive source is a servo motor, and linear operation is performed by a linear guide via power transmission means such as a ball screw. However, it is necessary to prevent a decrease in the degree of air cleanliness due to the scattering of lubricant from the ball screw. In this case, these drive sources may be linear motors.

  Further, in this embodiment, as means for positioning the film 1 on the suction table 10, the film rolls 2, 3 are moved up and down with the unwinding section 16 and the winding section 18 for positioning the film 1 in the X-axis direction. Each means such as guide bars 6 and 7 is provided with an X-axis driving means for the film 1, and further, an X-axis driving means 24, a Y-axis driving means 30, and a θ-axis driving means 21 as positioning means for the coating head 15 with respect to the film 1 And Z axis driving means 20a to 20c, and adjusts the coating head 15 with respect to the film 1 in the three axis directions of the X, Y and Z axes. And as a Z-axis drive means, three types of Z-axis drive means 20a-20c are provided, and any one of the Z-axis drive means 20a-20c according to the position of the coating head 15 with respect to the film 1 in the Z-axis direction. Will operate.

  FIG. 8 is a block diagram showing a specific example of the control unit for inkjet application in the embodiment shown in FIG. 1, wherein 34 is a control unit, 34a is a microcomputer, 34b is an external interface, 34c is an application head controller, 34d. Is an image processing controller, 34e is a motor controller, 34f is a data communication bus, 35 is a USB (Universal Serial Bus) memory, 36 is a hard disk, 37 is a monitor, 38 is a keyboard, 39 is a vacuum pump, 40 is a vacuum valve unit, 41 Is an air cylinder, 42 is a valve unit, 43 is a regulator, 44X is an X-axis driver, 44Y is a Y-axis driver, 44θ is a θ-axis driver, and 44Za to 44Zc are Z-axis drivers.

  In the figure, the control unit 34 includes a microcomputer 34a, an external interface 34b connected thereto via a data communication bus 34f, a coating head controller 34c, an image processing controller 34d, and a motor controller 34e. Each unit connected to the data communication bus 34f is controlled under the management of the microcomputer 34a.

  Further, a USB memory 35 and a hard disk 36 as an external memory of the microcomputer 34a, a monitor 37 as a data display output unit, and a keyboard 38 as an operation unit are connected to the control unit 34 via an external interface 34b.

  The external interface 34b is further connected with an air driving device such as the regulator 43, the valve unit 42, and the air cylinder 41, the unwinding side shaft motor 11, the winding side shaft motor 12, and other roll motors, and the microcomputer 34a. These are driven and controlled under the control. Further, a vacuum pump 39 serving as a vacuum source for vacuum-sucking the film 1 with the suction bars 8, 9 and the suction table 10 and a vacuum valve unit 40 for switching from the vacuum pump 39 are connected to the external interface 34b. The rubber heater 22 and the roller heater 23 for heating are also connected to the external interface 34b, and are driven or controlled ON / OFF under the control of the microcomputer 34a.

  The application head controller 34c controls whether or not the application material 26 (FIG. 2) is discharged for each discharge nozzle 15b of the application head 15 under the control of the microcomputer 34a.

  The image processing controller 34d calculates the position in the field of view of the imaging camera 19 that images a positioning mark or the like on the film 1 under the control of the microcomputer 34a, and outputs the output of the imaging camera 19 by image processing. It is.

  The motor controller 34e controls the X-axis driver 44X and the Y-axis drive means 25 that drive the X-axis drive motor of the X-axis drive means 24 (FIG. 2) attached to the coating head 15 under the control of the microcomputer 34a. The Y-axis driver 44Y that drives the linear motor or the drive motor and the θ-axis driver 44θ that drives the θ-axis drive motor of the θ-axis drive means 24 are controlled. Further, the Z-axis driver 44Za of the fine Z-axis drive means 20c, the Z-axis driver 44Zb of the individual Z-axis drive means 20b, and the Z-axis driver 44Zc of the common Z-axis drive means 20c are similarly controlled by the motor controller 34e. The

  The movement control of the coating head 15 that moves integrally with the laser distance meter 25 and the imaging camera 19 in the XYθ-axis direction and the Z-axis direction is performed by the microcomputer 34a via the motor controller 34e. It knows the current position and the next target position. Furthermore, the microcomputer 34a grasps and manages the timing of the measurement operation by the laser distance meter 25 and the discharge timing of the coating material 26 for each discharge nozzle 15b of the coating head 15 from the management of the operation sequence.

  FIG. 9 shows a specific example of the flow of operation when coating the film 1 with the interval in the X-axis direction of the discharge nozzle 15b of the coating head 15 equal to the interval Q of the coating locus 31, as shown in FIG. It is a flowchart which shows. Hereinafter, description will be given with reference to the above drawings.

  First, the roller heater 23 in the unwind film roll 2 and the rubber heater 22 integrated with the suction table are operated to start heating (step 101). Next, the film 1 is stopped at the position of the suction table 10 and temporarily positioned (step 102). The mark position on the film 1 is imaged by the imaging camera 19 of the coating head 15 selected and specified, and the relative positional deviation between the film 1 in the temporarily positioned state and the gantry 28 to which the coating head 15 is attached is calculated by image processing. (Step 103). Based on the calculated relative displacement amount, the movement of the X-axis driving means 24 and the application start point position and the application end point position for each discharge nozzle 15b of the application head 15 are calculated (step 104).

  Next, all the coating heads 15 are moved in the Y-axis direction by the Y-axis driving means 25, and the outer peripheral pattern that becomes the edge portion 32 is applied among the coating patterns to be finally applied (step 105). This outer peripheral pattern is the outer peripheral portion of the application area 31 and has a square shape in FIG. Here, the film 1 is preheated by the roller heater 23 in the unwinding film side roll 2, and more reliably by the rubber heater 22 integrated with the suction table or at a temperature higher than this preheating. In the coating material 26 applied to the outer periphery of the square shape of the film 1, the solvent evaporates and dries in a short time, and the edge portion 32 is accurately formed. become.

  Next, the pattern inside the application area 31 is applied at a finer pitch Q of the discharge nozzles 15b.

  That is, each coating head 15 is rotationally moved by the θ-axis driving means 21, and the rotation angle α is set so that the projection pitch on the X-axis becomes the target value Q (step 106). In this state, all the application heads 15 are moved in the Y-axis direction by the Y-axis driving means 25 and applied simultaneously along the application trajectories 33 (step 107).

  Here, by rotating each coating head 15 by the θ-axis driving means 21 as shown in FIG. 6, the coating interval in the X-axis direction, that is, the discharge nozzle 15b of each coating head 15 in the X-axis direction. Although it is possible to reduce the interval, if it is desired to further reduce the application interval in the X-axis direction, it is determined whether or not pitch-shifted application is necessary (step 108), and then the application is further performed. If application with a small interval is required ("Y" in step 108), the pitch is shifted in the X-axis direction by the X-axis drive means 24, and all the application heads 15 are moved in the Y-axis direction by the Y-axis drive means 25. Then, application is performed along the application trajectory 33 by the respective discharge nozzles 15b, and an internal pattern is drawn (step 109).

  Further, when it is desired to apply by reducing the application interval in the Y-axis direction ("N" in step 108), it is determined whether or not application with a shifted pitch is necessary (step 110), and the interval is further increased. If small coating is required (“Y” in step), the pitch is shifted in the Y-axis direction and the coating start point in the Y-axis direction is changed. Then, the internal pattern is applied (step 111).

  It is determined whether all of the pitch-shifting applications have been completed. If completed (“Y” in step 112), all the application heads 15 are rotated in the opposite direction by the θ-axis drive means 21 to restore the original. Returning to the state (ie, the state shown in FIG. 4) (step 113), the operation of the roller heater 23 and the rubber heater 22 is stopped (step 114), and the operation is terminated.

  If all pitch shifting applications are not completed (“N” in step 112), the operation is repeated from the determination (step 108) again.

  Here, if the number of times of application by movement in the Y-axis direction accompanying the drive of the Y-axis drive means 25 is shifted by a half pitch, the initial application, one application repeatedly, and two applications in total, a quarter pitch. If the application is shifted, the application is performed four times in total, that is, the initial application and the repeated application three times. This shift amount can be determined in each of the X-axis direction and the Y-axis direction.

  As described above, in this embodiment, not only in the XY plane, but also by providing a Z-axis driving means that moves in the height direction, three-dimensional position management can be performed, and furthermore, the application target The object can be heated at the same time as the coating operation, which enables uniform coating with high accuracy.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Laminated film for solar cells 2 Unwinding side film roll 3 Winding side film roll 4,5 Guide roll 6,7 Lifting guide roll 8,9 Suction bar 10 Suction table 11 Unwinding side shaft motor 12 Winding side shaft motor 13 , 14 Film press bar 15 Coating head 15a Lower end surface 15b of coating head Discharge nozzle 16 Unwinding unit 17 Coating unit 18 Winding unit 19 Imaging camera 20a Fine movement Z-axis driving means 20a ₁ Fine movement Z-axis driving unit 20a ₂ Z-axis holding plate 20b Individual Z-axis drive unit 20b ₁ Individual Z-axis drive unit 20c Common Z-axis drive unit 20c ₁ Common Z-axis drive unit 20c ₂ Guide 20bc Z-axis holding plate 21 θ-axis drive unit 22 Rubber heater 23 Roller heater 24 X-axis drive Means 25 Laser distance meter 26 Coating material 27 Head part 28 Gantry 29a, 29b Linear array 30 Y-axis driving means 31 applied area 32 edge portion 33 application locus

Claims (10)

An adsorption table for adsorbing and holding an object to be applied, a plurality of application heads for applying an application material from an inkjet nozzle onto the surface of the application object adsorbed and held on the adsorption table, and the application head A gantry structure that moves in the Y-axis direction orthogonal to the X-axis direction, which is the conveyance direction of the application object, at a position above the object, and an X-axis that individually moves the application head in the X-axis direction Driving means, first Z-axis driving means for individually moving the coating head in the Z-axis direction perpendicular to the horizontal plane, and θ-axis driving for individually moving the coating head in the θ-axis direction parallel to the horizontal plane An inkjet coating apparatus in which the coating head is movable in space in the XYZθ axis direction.
The X-axis driving unit moves the coating head and the first Z-axis driving unit in the X-axis direction individually for each of the plurality of coating heads.
Further, the X-axis driving unit is rotated integrally with the coating head and the first Z-axis driving unit by the θ-axis driving unit. The inkjet coating apparatus according to claim 1, wherein
The application object is a band-shaped film,
The means for transporting the application object to the suction table includes an upstream film roll for unwinding and transporting the application object, and the application object at a position sandwiching the upstream film roll and the suction table. An inkjet coating apparatus comprising a downstream film roll that winds and conveys the film. The inkjet coating apparatus according to claim 2,
Each of the plurality of coating heads has a predetermined number of coating heads sequentially arranged in the X-axis direction to form a group, and in each group, the coating heads are arranged at different positions in the Y-axis direction. In addition, the position in the Y-axis direction of each coating head of each group is the same position,
A second Z-axis driving means for moving the groove in the Z-axis direction for each set of coating heads composed of the coating heads having the same position in the Y-axis direction of each groove;
An inkjet coating apparatus characterized in that all of the coating heads are simultaneously moved in the Y-axis direction by a gantry structure. The inkjet coating apparatus according to claim 2,
Each of the plurality of coating heads has a predetermined number of coating heads sequentially arranged in the X-axis direction to form a group, and in each group, the coating heads are arranged at different positions in the Y-axis direction. In addition, the position in the Y-axis direction of each coating head of each group is the same position,
A second Z-axis driving means for moving the groove in the Z-axis direction for each set of coating heads composed of the coating heads having the same position in the Y-axis direction of each groove;
Furthermore, it comprises third Z-axis drive means for moving all the second Z-axis drive means in the Z-axis direction,
An inkjet coating apparatus characterized in that all of the coating heads are simultaneously moved in the Y-axis direction by a gantry structure. The inkjet coating apparatus according to claim 2,
An inkjet coating apparatus, wherein the suction table for sucking and holding the coating object is provided with heating means for heating the coating object sucked on the suction table. The inkjet coating apparatus according to claim 5,
An inkjet coating apparatus, wherein the film roll is provided with heating means for preheating the object to be coated that is wound around the film roll. An upstream film roll that unwinds and conveys the coating object that is a belt-shaped film wound in a roll shape, a suction table that sucks and holds the wound coating object, and a position sandwiching the suction table A film roll on the downstream side that winds up and conveys the coating object, and a plurality of coating heads that apply the coating material while discharging the coating material from an inkjet nozzle onto the surface of the coating object that is sucked and held on the suction table; A gantry structure that moves the coating head in the Y-axis direction perpendicular to the X-axis direction, which is the transport direction of the coating object, at a position above the coating object, and the coating head in the X-axis direction. X-axis driving means for individually moving the coating head, first Z-axis driving means for individually moving the coating head in the Z-axis direction perpendicular to the horizontal plane, and the coating head individually parallel to the horizontal plane And a θ-axis driving means for moving the θ-axis direction, coating head is an ink jet coating method for an ink jet coating apparatus to be movable within the space XYZθ axis,
The X-axis driving unit moves the coating head and the first Z-axis driving unit in the X-axis direction individually for each of the plurality of coating heads.
Further, when the X-axis driving means is further rotated integrally with the coating head and the first Z-axis driving means by the θ-axis driving means, the X-axis driving means is projected in the X-axis direction or the Y-axis direction. An inkjet coating method, wherein a coating material is applied with a small interval between discharge nozzles of a coating head. The inkjet coating method according to claim 7,
The first application by the application head is to apply the outer periphery of the application pattern of the application material to the application object,
The application from the second time to the second and subsequent times applies the inside surrounded by the outer periphery of the application pattern, and the application region is divided into a plurality of areas and applied. The inkjet coating method according to claim 7,
An inkjet coating method, wherein the coating object adsorbed on the suction table is heated and applied to the coating object while being heated. The inkjet coating method according to claim 7,
An inkjet coating method, wherein the coating object wound around the film roll is preheated by a heating means.

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