JP2012026031A - Apparatus for manufacturing thin film laminate and method of operating the same - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an apparatus for manufacturing a thin film laminate, the apparatus reducing a compressive force and a deviation of carrying height accompanying switching of a carrying direction and striking a balance between quality improvement and reduction of production cost.SOLUTION: The apparatus includes: a roll core-driving device drivable in both forward and reverse directions for uncoiling from a roll/winding into a roll a flexible substrate 1 at an end part of a carrying path; rotatable grip rollers 61-69 holding an edge part of the substrate and applying an extensive force corresponding to the compressive force to the edge part; detectors S1-S9 detecting the carrying height of the substrate at a film deposition unit 30; and a carrying height control device 73 controlling the compressive force of the grip roller based on the detected value of the detector, wherein the carrying height control device has a holding unit holding an initial value of the compressive force of each grip roller, and the compressive force of each of the grip rollers 61-69 can be reset based on the initial value when the carrying direction of the substrate is switched.

Description

  The present invention relates to a thin film laminate manufacturing apparatus and a method for operating the thin film laminate manufacturing apparatus for manufacturing a thin film laminate such as a thin film photoelectric conversion element by forming a plurality of thin films on a strip-like flexible substrate.

  A rigid substrate is usually used as a substrate for a thin film laminate such as a semiconductor thin film. However, a flexible substrate such as a plastic film is used for the purpose of improving productivity and reducing costs due to the convenience of handling through a roll. May be used. For example, in Patent Documents 1 to 3, the strip-shaped flexible substrate (polyimide film) supplied from the unwinding roll is intermittently transported at a predetermined pitch, and arranged in the transport direction of the flexible substrate. An apparatus for manufacturing a thin film laminate is disclosed in which a plurality of thin films having different properties are stacked on a flexible substrate by a plurality of film forming units and wound as a product roll.

  Such a thin film laminate manufacturing apparatus includes a type in which a film is formed while being transported in a horizontal position, that is, a width direction of the strip-shaped flexible substrate, and a vertical position, that is, a width direction of the strip-shaped flexible substrate. There is a type in which film formation is performed while transporting in the vertical direction. The latter has the advantage that the installation area is smaller than the former and the substrate surface is less likely to be contaminated, etc., but if the conveyance span becomes long, it becomes difficult to keep the conveyance height constant against gravity, The tendency that wrinkles occur on the surface of the flexible substrate or the flexible substrate hangs down becomes significant.

  Therefore, in Patent Documents 1 to 3, a pair of grip rollers for sandwiching the upper and lower edges of the flexible substrate is provided between the film forming units constituting the thin film laminate manufacturing apparatus, and the edges of the flexible substrate are arranged. An upward and downward extending tension is applied to the portion so that the conveyance height can be adjusted while the flexible substrate is extended in the vertical width direction. The tension applied to the flexible substrate by the grip roller pair can be controlled by the clamping force of the grip roller pair. Patent Document 4 includes a pull rod that applies a clamping pressure to the grip roller via a spring and a mechanism, an actuator that drives the pull rod to advance and retract, and a load cell that detects a load (strain) applied to the pull rod. A control device is disclosed that drives the actuator back and forth to displace the grip roller based on the detected value of the load cell.

JP 2009-38276 A JP 2009-38277 A JP 2009-57632 A International Publication No. 2009/122836

  The above apparatus is advantageous in extending the flexible substrate up and down and controlling the conveyance height of the flexible substrate, but for a reciprocal film forming process including conveyance of the flexible substrate in the reverse direction. Not immediately applicable. When the flexible substrate is transported in the reverse direction, since the developing tension according to the tilt angle of the grip roller acts in the reverse direction, it is necessary to reverse the tilt angle of the grip roller. In addition, when the rotation direction of the drive roll that applies the transport tension to the belt-like flexible substrate is reversed, there is a case where the tension balance changes, and the proper transport height control cannot be performed with the setting before the reversal. Needless to say, the configuration of the apparatus is asymmetric in the transport direction. However, even if the configuration of the apparatus is symmetrical, the surface density and rigidity of the flexible substrate are not so small as the flexible substrate is transported and thin films are laminated. Although there are changes, the physical conditions of the flexible substrate are not necessarily uniform in the transport direction.

  For the reasons described above, if there is a deviation in the clamping pressure of each grip roller installed at intervals in the conveyance direction of the flexible substrate through the control before switching the conveyance direction, such clamping pressure May not be suitable for transport height control after switching the transport direction. As a result, even if it is temporary, there is a possibility that deviation may occur in the clamping pressure in each grip roller and the conveyance height of the flexible substrate. Furthermore, when the conveyance direction is switched, if the deviation in the conveyance height of the flexible substrate or the meandering component remains, there is a concern that the amount of deviation or deviation may accumulate as the reciprocating film forming process proceeds.

  When carrying out reciprocal film formation including conveyance in the reverse direction of the flexible substrate, the number of film formation units arranged in parallel in the conveyance direction can be reduced and the scale of the apparatus as compared with the case of performing conveyance in only one direction. As well as the advantage that the conveyance span in the film forming section can be shortened. Therefore, in this respect, the configuration is advantageous also for the conveyance height control. However, unless the above-mentioned problem associated with the switching of the forward / reverse conveyance direction is solved, the advantage of such an apparatus configuration is also due to the conveyance in the vertical posture. The film formation advantage cannot be enjoyed.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above points, and the object thereof is to form a thin film on the surface of the substrate while reciprocating the belt-like flexible substrate in the vertical position in the horizontal direction and in the forward and reverse directions. In the thin film laminate manufacturing apparatus, the deviation of the clamping pressure and the conveyance height accompanying the switching of the conveyance direction is reduced, and both the quality improvement and the production cost reduction are achieved.

In order to solve the above problems, the present invention provides:
A thin film laminate manufacturing apparatus for transporting a strip-shaped flexible substrate in a vertical orientation in a horizontal direction, and forming a thin film on the surface of the substrate by a film forming unit installed along a transport path of the substrate. ,
A roll core driving device capable of driving in both forward and reverse directions for unwinding / winding the substrate from a roll at each end of the transport path;
A grip roller that is rotatably supported so as to sandwich the edge of the substrate and apply a tension to the edge according to the clamping pressure;
Detecting means for detecting the transport height of the substrate in the film forming section;
A transport height control device that controls the clamping pressure of the grip roller based on a detection value of the detection means,
The transport height control device includes a holding unit that retains an initial value of the gripping pressure of the grip roller, and the gripping force of the grip roller is determined based on the initial value when the transport direction of the substrate is switched. It is in a thin film laminate manufacturing apparatus that can be reset.

  With the above configuration, an initial value of the grip roller clamping pressure corresponding to each conveyance direction of the flexible substrate is held in advance in the holding unit, and when the conveyance direction is switched, the grip roller clamping pressure is set based on the initial value. By resetting, the deviation of the pinching pressure is immediately eliminated, and a tension tension suitable for the conveying direction can be obtained. Further, even if there is a deviation in the conveyance height of the flexible substrate through the control before switching the conveyance direction, it can be quickly converged, and the residual and cumulative meandering component and deviation can be prevented. As a result, contaminants do not accumulate on the flexible substrate, and space-saving, such as the conveyance form that conveys the flexible substrate in a vertical position, as well as the reduction in the number of film forming units and further reduction in the device scale, Advantages of reciprocal film formation including conveyance in both forward and reverse directions can be obtained.

  In the present invention, the grip roller is disposed at a plurality of locations along the transport path, and at least one of the grip rollers can control the clamping pressure by the transport height control device and based on the initial value. It is preferred that the clamping pressure can be reset, and otherwise only the clamping pressure can be preset.

  In this aspect, the number of grip rollers that are actively controlled is kept to a minimum, and other than that, the negative control by the preset value is kept, so that the cost required for the control is reduced and stable control is performed. be able to.

  In the present invention, a plurality of the grip rollers can control the clamping pressure and can reset the clamping pressure, and the holding means holds an initial value of the clamping pressure for each of these controllable grip rollers. It is possible that when the substrate transport direction is switched, it is preferable that the controllable gripping force of each controllable grip roller can be individually reset based on each initial value.

  In this aspect, it is possible to immediately reset the grip roller clamping pressure which varies depending on the position in the transport direction while reducing the control cost and stabilizing the control as described above. It is advantageous when the number is large.

  In the present invention, each of the roll core driving devices includes a second detection unit that detects the height of the substrate between each of the rolls and a roll adjacent thereto, and a detection value of the second detection unit. A roll position control device for displacing the axial position of each roll based on the second position, and the roll position control device has a second holding means for holding an initial value of the axial position of each roll. It is preferable that the axial position of each roll can be reset based on the initial value when the transport direction of the substrate is switched.

  With the above configuration, the flexible substrate on which the film has been formed can be taken up without causing winding deviation in the take-up roll on the downstream side in the conveyance direction, and when the take-up ends, axial displacement is applied to the take-up roll. Even if it occurs, the flexible substrate can be unwound at the optimal position by resetting the axial displacement to the initial value when the conveyance direction is switched, and the deviation of the conveyance height and the accumulation of the meandering component can be accumulated. It is advantageous in preventing.

Such resetting of the axial position of the roll can be performed independently of resetting the grip roller. That is, the present invention
A thin film laminate manufacturing apparatus for transporting a strip-shaped flexible substrate in a vertical orientation in a horizontal direction, and forming a thin film on the surface of the substrate by a film forming unit installed along a transport path of the substrate. ,
A roll core driving device capable of driving in both forward and reverse directions for unwinding / winding the substrate from a roll at each end of the transport path;
A grip roller that is rotatably supported so as to sandwich the edge of the substrate and apply a tension to the edge according to the clamping pressure;
Detecting means for detecting the transport height of the substrate in the film forming section;
A transport height control device that controls the clamping pressure of the grip roller based on a detection value of the detection means,
Each of the roll core driving devices is based on the detection value of the second detection means, the second detection means for detecting the height of the substrate between the rolls and the roll adjacent to the rolls, respectively. A roll position control device for displacing the axial position of each roll, and the roll position control device has holding means for holding an initial value of the axial position of each roll, The present invention is also intended for a thin film laminate manufacturing apparatus that can reset the axial position of each roll based on the initial value at the time of switching.

  In each of the aspects of the present invention, it is preferable that the second detection means also serves as a means for detecting an initial value of an axial position of each roll.

  With this configuration, it is possible to reduce the apparatus cost compared to the case where a separate detection unit is installed, and to obtain a highly reliable initial value by detecting the initial value by the detection unit that performs control during normal operation. be able to.

  In the present invention, a drive roll capable of driving in both forward and reverse directions disposed between the film forming unit and each roll core drive device, and each drive roll and the film forming unit, respectively. The conveyance tension detecting means for the substrate, the driving rolls and the roll core driving devices are synchronized, and the conveyance tension, the conveyance speed and the conveyance amount corresponding to the normal and reverse conveyance directions of the substrate are controlled. And a control device.

  With this configuration, in each forward and reverse transport direction, for example, the transport amount and transport speed are controlled based on the drive roll positioned on the downstream side, and the detected value of the transport tension detecting means is set on the drive roll positioned on the upstream side. By controlling to be constant, it is possible to stably control the transport tension, transport speed and transport amount corresponding to each forward and reverse transport direction, and to easily and stably switch the transport direction. Can do.

  In the present invention, it is preferable that each of the grip rollers is provided between each of the driving rolls and each of the roll core driving devices positioned on the same side of the film forming unit.

  With this configuration, it is possible to prevent the displacement and tension of the flexible substrate between each driving roll and each roll core driving device, and the flexible substrate is stretched on the upstream side of the winding unit and the position in the width direction is By being held, the roll misalignment prevention control by the roll position control device can be more effectively performed.

The present invention provides a thin film laminate manufacturing method in which a belt-like flexible substrate is transported in a vertical orientation in a lateral direction, and a thin film is formed on the surface of the substrate by a film forming unit installed along a transport path of the substrate. An apparatus operating method, wherein the thin film laminate manufacturing apparatus is capable of driving in both forward and reverse directions for unwinding / winding the substrate from a roll at each end of the transport path. And a grip roller that is rotatably supported so as to sandwich the edge of the substrate and apply a developing tension according to the clamping pressure to the edge, and detects a transport height of the substrate in the film forming unit And a conveyance height control device that controls the clamping pressure of the grip roller based on a detection value of the detection device, and each of the roll core driving devices is adjacent to each of the rolls, respectively. Between the rolls A second detecting means for detecting the height of the serial board, in the case of having a roll position control device for displacing the axial position of each roll on the basis of the detected value of said second detecting means,
At the time of switching the transport direction of the substrate, the axial position of each roll by the respective roll position control devices is reset to an initial value in a state where the substrate is stopped, and then the clamping pressure of the grip roller is set to the initial value. There is also an operation method of the thin film laminate manufacturing apparatus, which is reset to the initial value.

  In the thin film laminate manufacturing apparatus according to the present invention described above, it is preferable that the transport height control device further includes means for detecting the clamping pressure of the grip roller.

  In this aspect, it is possible to eliminate individual differences in urging force such as a spring that applies a clamping pressure to the grip roller and the influence of a mechanical system error that transmits the urging force to the grip roller, resulting in unstable conveyance height control. In addition, since the steady deviation is eliminated, the film forming quality can be stabilized and the cost can be reduced.

  The apparatus of the present invention further comprises a support member that supports the grip roller so as to be rotatable and capable of contacting and separating from each other, and an urging means for generating the clamping pressure on the grip roller via the support member, It is preferable that the clamping pressure detection means includes at least one strain sensor attached to the base of the support member.

  In the apparatus of the present invention, the transport height control device further includes an actuator that displaces the urging means, and the holding means can hold an initial value of the clamping pressure as a displacement amount of the actuator, The control amount of the actuator output according to the deviation between the detection value of the transport height detection means and the reference value is compared with the detection value of the strain sensor, and the actuator is adjusted so that the difference is minimized. It is preferable to be configured to perform feedback control.

  Furthermore, it is preferable that the initial value of the clamping pressure is held in the holding unit after the displacement amount of the actuator is corrected based on a signal from the strain sensor constituting the clamping pressure detecting unit. .

  In the apparatus of the present invention, the deviation between the detected value of the transport height detecting means and the reference value and the control amount of the actuator output in accordance therewith are stored in the transport height control device in advance as a control function or a data table. It is preferable that the actuator is feedback-controlled so that the difference between the control amount via the control function or the data table and the detection value of the strain sensor is minimized.

  In the device according to the present invention, it is preferable that the strain sensor constituting the clamping pressure detecting means is detachably attached to a base portion of the support member.

  In other words, calibration by the clamping pressure detection means (strain sensor) is performed at the initial installation, and the control amount of the actuator is optimized, so that the detection value of the clamping pressure detection means can be flexibly fed back during actual operation. By controlling the transport height of the conductive substrate, it is not necessary to consider the environment resistance when the grip roller is installed in a high temperature or in a vacuum, and the cost can be reduced.

  In a preferred aspect of the present invention, the conveyance height control device for controlling the clamping pressure of the grip roller is a support mechanism that supports the biasing force of the spring that generates the clamping pressure so that the grip roller can be contacted and separated. A transmission member that transmits torque; and an actuator that angularly displaces a support point of the spring around a connection point with the transmission member.

  In a preferred aspect of the present invention, the grip roller is a conical roller having a circumferential surface inclined with respect to the axial direction, and the small-diameter side of the conical roller is located on the center side in the width direction of the substrate and the substrate is sandwiched. The substrate is rotatably supported so that the rotation direction on the surface is the same as the substrate transfer direction.

  As described above, the present invention provides a thin film laminate manufacturing apparatus that stacks and forms a thin film on the surface of a substrate while reciprocating the strip-like flexible substrate in the vertical orientation in the horizontal direction and in the forward and reverse directions. This is advantageous for producing a high-quality thin film laminate by reducing the deviation of the clamping pressure and the conveyance height associated with the switching.

It is a schematic plan view which shows the thin film laminated body manufacturing apparatus of embodiment of this invention. It is a side view which shows the one end part of the thin film laminated body manufacturing apparatus of this invention embodiment. It is a schematic perspective view which shows the grip roller which concerns on 1st Embodiment of this invention, and its control system. It is the front view seen from the conveyance direction which shows the grip roller installed in the upper and lower sides of a conveyance path | route. It is a schematic perspective view which shows the grip roller which concerns on 2nd Embodiment of this invention, and its control system. It is the front view (a) and side view (b) which were seen from the conveyance direction which shows the grip roller installed in the upper part of a conveyance path | route. It is a circuit block diagram of the clamping pressure detection sensor (strain sensor) of a grip roller. It is a graph which shows the relationship between the angular displacement of a drive arm, and pinching pressure. It is a principal part perspective view which shows the grip roller which concerns on 3rd Embodiment of this invention.

  DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings, taking as an example the case where the present invention is implemented in a thin film laminate manufacturing apparatus that constitutes a thin film photoelectric conversion element for a solar cell.

(First embodiment)
1 and 2 show a basic configuration of a thin film laminate manufacturing apparatus 100 according to the present invention, and FIGS. 3 and 4 are schematic perspective views showing a grip roller and a control system thereof according to a first embodiment of the present invention. is there. In FIG. 1, the thin film laminate manufacturing apparatus 100 includes first and second core accommodating units 10 and 50 disposed at respective ends in the longitudinal direction, and film forming units 30 disposed at intermediate portions in the longitudinal direction. The first and second transfer units 20 and 40 interposed between the core housing units 10 and 50 and the film forming unit 30, and the individual chamber structures (10 to 50) constituting these units are mutually connected. The inside is connected airtightly and the inside thereof is maintained at a predetermined degree of vacuum, and the common vacuum chamber 80 is configured as a whole.

  In the first and second core housing portions 10 and 50, core support members (chucks, not shown) that can be driven and rotated in both forward and reverse directions by motors M1 and M5 connected via powder clutches C1 and C5. The roll core drive device (11, 51) provided, the tension detection rolls 12, 52 provided with the tension detection sensors T1, T5, and the guide rolls 13, 53 are disposed, and the roll cores 11, 51 of the guide rolls 13, 53 are provided. On the side, sensors S3 and S6 that detect the conveyance height (upper edge position) of the flexible substrate 1 in the portion are arranged.

  The roll core driving device (11, 51) is mounted on the movable part of the roll position control device 14, 54 that can be displaced in the axial direction (vertical direction) by the actuators A3, A6. The movable portion (movable frame) is guided by a linear guide mechanism such as a shaft or a rail so as to be movable in the vertical direction, and a counterweight (not shown) for canceling the weight of the roll cores 11 and 51 is connected thereto. The actuators A3 and A6 include a motor and a feed screw mechanism that converts the rotation of the motor into a linear reciprocating motion.

  The first and second transport units 20 and 40 include drive rolls 21 and 41 that can be rotated in both forward and reverse directions by motors M2 and M4, and tension detection rolls 22 and 42 provided with tension detection sensors T2 and T4. It is arranged. Two guide rolls are wound around the driving rolls 21 and 41 at a predetermined angle, and the flexible substrate 1 is brought into pressure contact with the peripheral surfaces of the driving rolls 21 and 41 to drive force (conveyance). A nip roll is attached to enable transmission of tension. In addition, guide rolls for winding the flexible substrate 1 at a predetermined angle are also provided before and after the tension detection rolls 22 and 42.

  A plurality of film forming units 33 are arranged in the film forming unit 30 at regular intervals along the transfer path of the flexible substrate 1 between the transfer units 20 and 40. In the illustrated example, six film forming units 33 are provided. The membrane unit 33 is arranged in parallel. The chamber structure of the film forming unit 30 is divided for each film forming unit 33 and communicated with each other by a slit through which the flexible substrate 1 can pass.

  Each film forming unit 33 is configured by a vacuum vapor deposition unit for performing chemical vapor deposition (CVD) such as plasma CVD or physical vapor deposition (PVD) such as sputtering. For example, in the case of plasma CVD, each film forming unit 33 includes electrodes 31 (high-frequency electrodes having a large number of source gas ejection holes on the surface) disposed opposite to each other across the conveyance path of the flexible substrate 1, and Each electrode is composed of a ground electrode 32 with a built-in heater, and each is housed in an openable / closable chamber that opens toward the flexible substrate 1. The film forming operation including the opening / closing operation of each film forming unit 33 is controlled by the main control unit 70 of the thin film laminate manufacturing apparatus 100 in synchronization with the transfer control unit 71 that controls the step transfer of the flexible substrate 1. .

  Between each core accommodating part 10 and 50 and each conveyance part 20 and 40 which were comprised as mentioned above, between each conveyance part 20 and 40 and the film-forming part 30, and each film-forming of the film-forming part 30 Between the units 33, in order to control the vertical position of the flexible substrate 1 and maintain the conveyance height constant, the flexible substrate 1 is flexible in order to extend in the width direction, that is, the vertical direction. Nine grip rollers 61 to 69 that sandwich the upper and lower edges of the conductive substrate 1 are disposed.

  Of these, the five grip rollers 61, 62, 65, 68, 69 to which the actuators A1, A2, A5, A8, A9 are attached are active types that can positively control the clamping pressure Px. The four grip rollers 63, 64, 66, and 67 are preset types that can only be adjusted in advance. FIG. 4 shows a pair of upper and lower grip rollers 68 and 68 ′ disposed between the film forming unit 30 and the transport unit 40, but as illustrated, grip rollers disposed above and below the transport path. Of (68, 68 '), only the upper side (68) is an active type grip roller, and the lower side (68') is a preset type grip roller. The same applies to the other grip rollers 61, 62, 65, 69.

  3 and 4, the grip roller 68 includes a pair of conical rollers (81, 82) that sandwich the upper edge of the flexible substrate 1, and the conical rollers (81, 82) can rotate and contact each other. A support mechanism (83-86) for releasable support, a spring 92 for applying a clamping pressure to the conical rollers (81, 82) via the support mechanism, and a biasing force of the spring 92 are transmitted as torque to the support mechanism. The driving member 91 and the actuator A8 are configured to angularly displace the supporting point (91b) of the transmission member (87 to 89) and the spring 92 around the connection point (89a) with the transmission member (87 to 89).

  The pair of conical rollers 81 and 82 constituting the grip roller 68 is such that the small-diameter side is positioned on the width direction center side (lower side in the figure) of the flexible substrate 1 and the rotation direction on the clamping surface is the flexible substrate. The support shafts 81a and 82a are pivotally supported by the support members 83 and 84 so as to be in the same direction as the one transport direction (F, R). With this configuration, when the flexible substrate 1 is transported in the forward direction F (or the reverse direction R) by the transport force of the drive roll 41 (or the drive roll 21), each of the conical rollers 81 and 82 is flexible. The edge of the flexible substrate 1 is guided to the large-diameter side of each of the conical rollers 81 and 82, and the flexible substrate 1 is expanded in the width direction. The

  Since the developing tension Qx applied by the grip roller 68 (81, 82) is transmitted to the flexible substrate 1 as a frictional force, it is proportional to the clamping pressure Px of the grip roller 68. Therefore, the upper grip roller 68 can adjust the sandwiching pressure Px and the spreading tension Qx in accordance with the biasing force of the spring 92 with respect to the lower gripping roller 68 ′ in which the clamping pressure P and the spreading tension Q are fixed. The upper end position (conveyance height) of the flexible substrate 1 can be adjusted by adjusting the balance between the developing tensions Qx and -Q.

  Of the support members 83, 84 that support the grip roller 68 (81, 82), one support member 84 is a fixed support member fixed to the bracket 86, and the bracket 86 is located above the vacuum chamber 80. The other support member 83 is attached to the shaft portion 85a of the extension arm 85 that is rotatably supported by the bearing portion 86a of the bracket 86, while being fixed to the structural element (the upper portion of the opening 80b). This is a movable support member that can swing integrally with the arm 85. The upper end portion of the extension arm 85 is engaged with the distal end portion of the second arm 87 a fixed to the lower end of the rotation shaft 87.

  The rotating shaft 87 is a transmission member that transmits the urging force of the spring 92 disposed outside the vacuum chamber 80 as a torque into the vacuum chamber 80, and is attached to the ceiling portion (atmosphere blocking flange 88 b) of the vacuum chamber 80. It is airtightly and rotatably supported through a magnetic seal bearing 88 provided. A first arm 89 as an input unit is fixed to the upper end of the rotation shaft 87 located outside the vacuum chamber 80.

  A connecting pin 89 a is rotatably supported at the tip of the first arm 89, and one end of a spring 92 is connected to the connecting pin 89 a, and the other end of the spring 92 is connected to a drive arm via an adjustment screw 93. It is connected to 91 support pins 91b. The spring 92 is stretched between the connecting pin 89a and the support pin 91b in a previously extended state, and the initial tension of the spring 92 can be adjusted by rotating the adjusting screw 93.

  The actuator A8 is a rotary actuator such as a servo motor with a built-in encoder A8e, and is attached to the upper part of the housing 90 installed on the ceiling of the vacuum chamber 80 with the drive shaft facing downward. The drive shaft of the actuator A8 (the rotation shaft of the drive arm 91) is the same axis as the connecting pin 89a of the first arm 89 at the rotation origin of the first arm 89 with which the grip rollers 68 (81, 82) abut each other. It is arranged on the line.

  With the above configuration, according to the angular displacement between the minimum clamping pressure position where the drive arm 91 is aligned with the first arm 89 and the maximum clamping pressure position (91 ′) perpendicular to the first arm 89, An orthogonal component of the tension of the spring 92 is applied to the connecting pin 89a as an urging force that rotates the first arm 89 counterclockwise in the drawing. This urging force is transmitted as torque to the second arm 87a via the rotating shaft 87, and is transmitted to the movable roller 81 via the extension arm 85 and the supporting member 83 integral therewith, and the movable roller 81 is attached to the above-mentioned force. The roller is pressed against the fixed roller 82 with a pinching pressure Px obtained by multiplying the force by the lever ratio.

  The actuator A8 is controlled based on position information acquired by the transport height control unit 73 from the sensor S8 that detects the upper end position of the flexible substrate 1 on the upstream side of the grip roller 68 in the transport direction. For example, the sensor S8 is composed of two sensors SA and SD arranged so as to be shifted in the transport direction. From these detected values, the grip roller 68 is simultaneously formed with the upper end position (transport height) of the flexible substrate 1. The conveyance height control unit 73 detects a deviation between the detected value and the reference value, and based on this, the drive arm 91 is angled to the actuator A8. Displacement is performed, and the clamping pressure Px of the grip roller 68 is adjusted. As the sensor S8, an optical sensor that detects the upper end position of the flexible substrate 1 in a non-contact manner can be used.

  The initial value of the angular displacement of the actuator A8 (A1, A2, A5, A9) corresponding to the initial value of the clamping pressure Px of the grip roller 68 (61, 62, 65, 69) is the holding means of the transport height controller 73. (ROM, etc.), and at the time of switching the transport direction, which will be described later, the angular displacement of the actuator A8 (A1, A2, A5, A9) can be reset to the initial value based on the held initial value. It is configured.

  In the preset type lower grip roller 68 ', as shown in FIG. 4, the extension arm 85 and the like are omitted, and an adjustment screw 95 is provided between the movable side support member 83 and the fixed side support member 84 (bracket 84b). A spring 94 is stretched through the adjustment screw 95, and the clamping pressure P can be set by the adjustment screw 95. The same applies to other grip rollers of the preset type.

  Further, the grip roller 68 (61, 62, 65, 69) provided with a pressurizing mechanism by the drive arm 91 and the spring 92 separates the movable roller 81 during the introduction work and maintenance work of the flexible substrate 1. A release mechanism that can be maintained in a state is provided. In FIG. 3, when the drive arm 91 is angularly displaced to the toggle position 91t indicated by the two-dot chain line by the actuator A8, the first arm 89 and the second arm integrated with the first arm 89 via the rotation shaft 87 are provided. 87a can rotate in the direction opposite to the pressurizing direction indicated by the broken-line arrow in the figure against the bias of the spring 92.

  In this state, if the operator tilts the extension arm 85 and moves the movable side roller 81 away from the fixed side roller 82, the movable side roller 81 is held in the separated state by the biasing force of the spring 92 functioning as a toggle spring. Then, an operation of introducing the flexible substrate 1 can be performed. If the extension arm 85 is returned to its original position after the flexible substrate 1 is introduced, the movable roller 81 is immediately brought into pressure contact with the fixed roller 82 by the biasing force of the spring 92.

  Next, in the thin film laminate manufacturing apparatus 100 configured as described above, when a photoelectric conversion layer of a thin film solar cell is laminated on the surface of the flexible substrate 1, as shown in FIG. 1 (and FIG. 2). The flexible substrate 1 is set as the roll 1a wound around the core 11 in the roll core driving device (11) of the first core housing portion 10, and the distal end portion of the flexible substrate 1 unwound from the roll 1a is The first transfer unit 20, the film forming unit 30, and the second transfer unit 40 are inserted into the empty core 51 of the second core housing unit 50, and are wound up under tension.

  The roll position control devices 14 and 54 in the core housing units 10 and 50 position the cores 11 and 51 at the axial reference position, and the upper end position (conveying height) of the flexible substrate 1 in the initial state. ) Is detected by the sensors S3 and S6, and is held in a holding means (ROM or the like) of the roll position controller 72 as an initial value of the axial position of the cores 11 and 51.

  After such preparatory work, the flexible substrate 1 is transferred in the forward direction from the roll 1a on the unwinding side to the roll 1b on the winding side through the film forming unit 30 at a predetermined pitch corresponding to each film forming unit 33. Step transport to F, and perform the film forming process in each stop period.

  During step conveyance of the flexible substrate 1, the conveyance control unit 71 simultaneously activates the four motors M1, M2, M4, and M5. 30 is controlled by the speed and rotation amount of the driving roller 41 (motor M4) of the second transport unit 40 located downstream in the transport direction F. The drive roll 21 (motor M2) of the first transport unit 20 located upstream in the transport direction F of the film forming unit 30 is set so that the detected value of the tension detection roll 22 (tension detection sensor T2) on the same side becomes a predetermined value. Torque is controlled. By such control, the transport tension, transport amount, and transport speed of the flexible substrate 1 in the film forming unit 30 are controlled.

  The unwinding core 11 (motor M1) is torque-controlled so that the detection value of the tension detection roll 12 (tension detection sensor T1) becomes a predetermined value, whereby the flexible substrate 1 is moved from the roll 1a with a predetermined tension. It is unwound. Further, the winding-side core 51 (motor M5) is subjected to torque control so that the detection value of the tension detection roll 52 (tension detection sensor T5) becomes a predetermined value, thereby forming a flexible film with a predetermined tension. The substrate 1 is wound on the roll 1b.

  Further, the grip rollers 61, 62, 65, 68, 69 are activated by the transport height control unit 73, and the corresponding actuators A1, A2, A5 are based on the detection values of the sensors S1, S2, S5, S8, S9. , A8, A9 controls the clamping pressure of the grip rollers 61, 62, 65, 68, 69, and the film forming section 30 (62-68), the unwinding section (61) and the winding section (69) are flexible. Control is performed so that the transport height of the substrate 1 is constant.

  In addition, the roll position control unit 72 activates the roll position control device 54 on the winding side, and the axial direction (vertical direction) position of the core 51 is controlled by the actuator A6 based on the detection value of the sensor S6. The winding deviation of the core 51 due to a conveyance error or the like on the downstream side of the section 30 is prevented. The roll position control device 14 on the unwinding side is held in a state where the core 11 is at a predetermined axial position.

  When the film forming process is performed while stepping the flexible substrate 1 in the forward direction F through the control as described above and the roll 1b on the winding side is fully wound, each film forming unit 33 in the film forming unit 30 is After the gas type is switched, the roll position controllers 14 and 54 and the grips are gripped as follows before switching the transport direction of the flexible substrate 1 to the reverse direction R and performing the next film forming step. The rollers 61, 62, 65, 68, and 69 are initialized.

  First, the current conveyance height of the flexible substrate 1 at the corresponding part is detected by the sensors S3 and S6 of the core accommodating units 10 and 50, and a deviation from the initial value held in the roll position control unit 72 is detected. The Based on this deviation, the actuators A3 and A6 are driven, and the axial positions of the roll cores 11 and 51 by the roll position control devices 14 and 54 are reset. Next, the angular displacements of the actuators A1, A2, A5, A8, and A9 are reset based on the initial values held in the transport height control unit 73, and the grip rollers 61, 62, 65, 68, and 69 are sandwiched. The pressure Px is reset to the initial value.

  After carrying out the initialization operation as described above, the rotation direction of the four motors M1, M2, M4, and M5 is reversed by the conveyance control unit 71 to be in an operating state, and the drive roll 21 (motor) of the first conveyance unit 20 is activated. The transport amount and transport speed are controlled by M2), and the detection value of the tension detection roll 42 (tension detection sensor T4) on the same side of the drive roller 41 (motor M4) of the second transport unit 40 becomes a predetermined value. By controlling the torque in this way, step conveyance in the reverse direction R of the flexible substrate 1 is performed in a state in which the conveyance tension, the conveyance amount, and the conveyance speed are controlled. A film forming process is performed.

  At that time, contrary to the conveyance in the forward direction F, the core 51 (motor M5) on the unwinding side is torque-controlled so that the detection value of the tension detection roll 52 (tension detection sensor T5) becomes a predetermined value. Thus, the flexible substrate 1 is unwound from the roll 1b with a predetermined tension, and the core 11 (motor M1) on the winding side has a detection value of the tension detection roll 12 (tension detection sensor T1) at a predetermined value. The torque control is performed so that the flexible substrate 1 having been formed with a predetermined tension is wound around the roll 1a.

  Also in the step conveyance in the reverse direction R and the film formation process, the conveyance height of the flexible substrate 1 is controlled to be constant by the grip rollers 61, 62, 65, 68, 69 as described above. Before and after the transfer direction is switched, the upper edge of the flexible substrate 1 is held between the grip rollers 61 to 69, and the upper end position is maintained. Since the gripping pressures of the grip rollers 61, 62, 65, 68, 69 are reset to the initial values, the gripping pressures Px, -P of the grip rollers 61, 62, 65, 68, 69 and thereby flexible The developing tensions Qx and -Q applied to the substrate 1 act in a direction to converge the transport height of the flexible substrate 1 to the initial value.

  In addition, prior to the control of the conveying height by the grip rollers 61, 62, 65, 68, 69, the axial position of the roll core (51) of the roll position control device (54) on the unwinding side is reset to the initial value. And since it is hold | maintained, the fluctuation | variation factor of conveyance height does not propagate to the film-forming part 30 side from the unwinding roll (1b).

  In the above-described embodiment, the transport units 20 and 40, the film forming unit 30, and the nine grip rollers 61 to 69 are arranged symmetrically in the transport directions F and R. However, the device layout is not necessarily limited. It does not have to be symmetrical in the transport directions F and R. In addition, the distribution and the number of installations of the active type grip rollers and the preset type grip rollers are not limited to those in the embodiment, and active type grip rollers can be installed above and below the conveyance path.

  In the first embodiment, the actuator A8 (A1, A2, A5, A9) controls the angular displacement of the drive arm 91 corresponding to the clamping pressure Px of the grip roller 68 (61, 62, 65, 69). Although the initial value of the angular displacement is held in the transport height control unit 73 and reset based on the initial value, the grip roller pinching pressure Px is directly applied as in the second embodiment described below. Can also be detected.

(Second Embodiment)
As shown in FIG. 5, in the second embodiment, a clamping pressure detection sensor SG is attached to the base portion of the support member 84 on the fixed side of the grip roller 68 (81, 82). This pinching pressure detection sensor SG is composed of at least one strain sensor that detects a minute strain generated in the base portion of the support member 84 due to the pinching pressure Px applied to the grip rollers 81 and 82 via the support member 83 on the movable side. Has been. As such a strain sensor (strain gauge), for example, a resistance wire strain sensor, a semiconductor strain sensor, a piezoelectric strain sensor, or the like can be used.

  In the example shown in FIG. 6, the clamping pressure detection sensor SG includes two strain sensors G1 and G2 attached to the outer surface 84a of the support member 84 (the surface opposite to the pair of support members 83), and the inner surface 84b. It is composed of two strain sensors G3 and G4 attached to the paired support member 83 side surface. These four strain sensors G1 to G4 can detect a minute change in resistance value by configuring a bridge circuit as shown in FIG. 7, and a power source 97 (AC or DC) is connected to the input side of the bridge circuit. Power source) is connected, and the output side is connected to the transport height controller 73 via the amplifier 98.

  5 and 6, when a bending moment due to the clamping pressure Px acts on the base portion of the support member 84, compressive strain is generated on the outer side surface 84a, and tensile strain (elongation strain) is generated on the inner side surface 84b. Since the resistance values of the strain sensors G1 to G4 decrease on the compression side (G1, G2) and increase on the expansion side (G3, G4), a current corresponding to the resistance difference is generated and amplified by the amplifier. And output to the conveyance height control unit 73.

  Based on the above configuration, first, the presetting is performed as follows. The relationship between the angular displacement of the driving arm 91 and the pinching pressure Pxc obtained by calculation in advance (theoretical value in FIG. 8), and the angle when the driving arm 91 is actually reciprocated to the 90 ° position shown by 91 ′ in FIG. Based on the displacement and the clamping pressure Pxc (measured value B in FIG. 8) detected by the clamping pressure detection sensor SG, the initial displacement of the spring 92 is adjusted with the adjusting screw 93 in FIG. 5 so that the mutual error is minimized. To do. As a result, the actual measurement value A shown in FIG. 8 is obtained, but it is difficult to completely match the theoretical value in the entire angular displacement region of the drive arm 91 only by this operation.

  Therefore, the relationship between the angular displacement of the drive arm 91 and the pinching pressure Pxc according to the actual measurement value A in FIG. 8 obtained by final adjustment with the grip roller actually attached is previously determined as the conveyance height control shown in FIG. Stored in the holding means (ROM or the like) of the unit 73 and detected by the reference height and the sensor based on the detection values of the sensors S1, S2, S5, S8, and S9 when the flexible substrate 1 is transported. The necessary clamping pressure Px is calculated based on the deviation from the height, the angular displacement of the driving arm 91 is determined from the stored relationship between the angle of the driving arm 91 and the clamping pressure Pxc, and the necessary clamping pressure Px is obtained. In addition, the angular displacement of the drive arm 91 is controlled by the actuators A1, A2, A5, A8, and A9, and the flexible substrate in the film forming section 30 (62 to 68), the unwinding section (61), and the winding section (69). 1 transport height is constant Unisuru.

  At that time, the angular displacement of the drive arm 91 is changed to the actuators A1, A2, A5, A8, so that the deviation between the set pressure command value Px0 and the pinching pressure Px actually obtained from the pinching pressure detection sensor SG is minimized. Control with A9. When the movable roller 81 is brought into pressure contact with the fixed roller 82 with a clamping pressure Px obtained by multiplying the biasing force of the spring 92 according to the angular displacement by the lever ratio, the clamping pressure Px detected by the clamping pressure detection sensor SG is detected. The signal is amplified by the amplifier 98 and fed back to the conveyance height control unit 73. As a result, mechanical system errors such as errors in the mechanism part from the first arm 89 to the support member 83 via the extension arm 85 are compensated, and the accuracy of transport height control can be improved.

  In the above control, the flexible substrate 1 estimated from the deviation between the reference height and the heights detected by the sensors S1, S2, S5, S8, and S9 and the difference between the detection values of the two adjacent sensors SA and SD. Is stored in the memory as a control function or a data table in advance, so that the deviation can be quickly converged by storing the relationship between the inclination and the control amount to be output to the actuators A1, A2, A5, A8, and A9 based on them. , Stable height control can be performed.

  Also in the second embodiment, as in the case of the first embodiment described above, when switching from the forward direction F transfer / film formation process of the flexible substrate 1 to the reverse direction R transfer / film formation process, The angular displacements of the actuators A1, A2, A5, A8, A9 are reset based on the initial values held in the transport height controller 73, and the clamping pressures of the grip rollers 61, 62, 65, 68, 69 are set. Px is reset to the initial value. In addition to the initial value obtained at this time being acquired by the process reflecting the detection value of the clamping pressure detection sensor SG described above, the clamping pressure detection sensor SG is reset to the reset value. The detected clamping pressure Px can be fed back to the transport height control unit 73 to correct the deviation from the initial value.

  In the second embodiment, the case where the pinching pressure detection sensor SG is configured by four strain sensors G1 to G4 has been described. However, one strain sensor is provided on each of the outer surface 84a and the inner surface 84b. It is also possible to provide one or two strain sensors only on either the outer surface 84a or the inner surface 84b. In these cases, it is advantageous to configure the bridge circuit by replacing the corresponding strain sensor with a fixed resistor. Further, the sandwiching pressure detection sensor SG (strain sensors G1 to G4) can be attached to the movable support member 83, but the fixed support member 84 is advantageous in terms of wiring and detection accuracy.

  Moreover, when it is assumed that the installation site | part of a grip roller becomes high temperature, the surface of the strain sensors G1-G4 which comprise the clamping pressure detection sensor SG can also be covered with a heat insulating material. Alternatively, the clamping pressure detection sensor SG can be removed after performing an initial setting and holding the initial value of the clamping pressure Px in the transport height control unit 73.

  In that case, the strain sensors G1 to G4 are affixed to a test piece made of a material having an elastic modulus comparable to or lower than that of the support member 84, and the test piece is attached to the outer surface 84a and / or the support member 84. You may make it remove the whole test piece, after attaching to the inner surface 84b and performing a preset. In this case, a fitting shape in which the mutual movement in each direction (vertical direction in the illustrated example) is constrained to the mounting surface of the test piece and the support member 84 so that the assumed compression or tensile strain is transmitted. It is preferable that it is detachably attached (for example, type I).

(Third embodiment)
In the first and second embodiments, the pair of conical rollers 81 and 82 is used as the grip roller for sandwiching the flexible substrate 1, but it is possible as in the third embodiment shown in FIG. Cylindrical rollers 281 that are rotatably supported by support members 283 and 284 so that the rotation direction on the sandwiching surface of the flexible substrate 1 has a deviation angle θ (inclination angle) toward the edge in the width direction with respect to the transport direction. 282 can also be used. In that case, when the conveyance directions F and R of the flexible substrate 1 are switched, reversing means (such as a link mechanism and an actuator for operating the same) that reverses the deflection angles θ of the grip rollers 281 and 282 at the same time The support member 284 or the bracket 286 is attached.

  In the example shown in FIG. 9, the bracket 286 is a swinging bracket supported so as to be swingable about a shaft 286 a orthogonal to the conveyance surface of the flexible substrate 1, and an actuator (not shown) connected to the bracket 286. The reversing operation may be carried out by the above, or a toggle spring that is stabilized at each swing end may be connected to the bracket 286 so that the reversing operation is manually performed. The swing range of the bracket 286 is regulated by the stopper 286b on each side. The stopper 286b is constituted by, for example, a screw screwed to a bracket (not shown), and the swing range of the bracket 286 can be set by adjusting the screwing position.

  When the gripping position of the flexible substrate 1 by the grip rollers 281 and 282 is deviated from the swing center (286a) of the bracket 286, the gripping positions of the grip rollers 281 and 282 are changed in the transport directions F and R by the reversing operation. Will be moved to. However, in addition to the fact that the grip rollers 281 and 282 can rotate, the deflection angle θ of the grip rollers 281 and 282 is extremely small, 0.5 to 2 degrees (about 1 degree in a practical example). By performing such initialization of the clamping pressure Px, the influence of the reversal operation is only a negligible level.

  Although several embodiments of the present invention have been described above, the present invention is not limited to the above embodiments, and various modifications and changes can be made based on the technical idea of the present invention in addition to the above. Is possible.

  For example, in each of the above-described embodiments, the thin film laminate manufacturing apparatus that forms the film during the stop period while step-transporting the flexible substrate 1 has been described. The present invention can also be applied to a thin film laminate manufacturing apparatus that forms a film while continuously transporting the film. Further, the grip roller and the control system of the second and third embodiments can also be implemented for a thin film laminate manufacturing apparatus that forms a film while stepping or continuously transporting a flexible substrate in one direction. . Furthermore, the present invention can also be implemented in an apparatus for manufacturing a thin film laminate other than a solar cell, such as an organic EL semiconductor thin film.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Flexible board | substrate 10, 50 Core accommodating part 11, 51 Core 12, 52 Tension detection roll 13, 53 Guide roll 14, 54 Roll position control apparatus 20, 40 Transport part 21, 41 Drive roll 22, 42 Tension detection roll 30 Deposition unit 33 Deposition unit 61, 62, 65, 68, 69 Grip roller (active type)
63, 64, 66, 67 Grip roller (preset type)
70 Main control unit 71 Conveyance control unit 72 Roll position control unit 73 Conveyance height control unit 80 Vacuum chamber 81, 82 Conical rollers 83, 84 Support member 85 Extension arm 87 Rotating shaft 87a Second arm 88 Magnetic seal bearing 89 First Arm 89a Connecting pin 91 Drive arm 91b Support pin 92, 94 Spring 93, 95 Adjustment screw 268 Grip roller (active type)
281,282 Cylindrical rollers 283,284 Support member 286 Bracket A1-A9 Actuator A8e Encoder C1, C5 Powder clutch G1-G4 Strain sensor M1, M2, M4, M5 Motor S1, S2, S3, S5, S6, S8, S9 Sensor (Conveyance height detection sensor)
SA, SD sensor (conveyance height detection sensor)
SG Nipping pressure detection sensor T1, T2, T4, T5 Tension detection sensor

Claims (18)

A thin film laminate manufacturing apparatus for transporting a strip-shaped flexible substrate in a vertical orientation in a horizontal direction, and forming a thin film on the surface of the substrate by a film forming unit installed along a transport path of the substrate. ,
A roll core driving device capable of driving in both forward and reverse directions for unwinding / winding the substrate from a roll at each end of the transport path;
A grip roller that is rotatably supported so as to sandwich the edge of the substrate and apply a tension to the edge according to the clamping pressure;
Detecting means for detecting the transport height of the substrate in the film forming section;
A transport height control device that controls the clamping pressure of the grip roller based on a detection value of the detection means,
The transport height control device includes a holding unit that retains an initial value of the gripping pressure of the grip roller, and the gripping force of the grip roller is determined based on the initial value when the transport direction of the substrate is switched. A thin film laminate manufacturing apparatus that can be reset.   The grip rollers are disposed at a plurality of locations along the transport path, and at least one of the grip rollers can control the sandwiching pressure by the transport height control device, and can reduce the sandwiching pressure based on the initial value. The thin film laminate manufacturing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the apparatus can be reset, and the others can only set the clamping pressure in advance.   A plurality of the grip rollers can control the clamping pressure and can reset the clamping pressure, and the holding means can hold an initial value of the clamping pressure for each of these controllable grip rollers, 3. The thin film laminate manufacturing apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the holding pressure of each controllable grip roller can be individually reset based on each initial value when the substrate transport direction is switched.   Each of the roll core driving devices is based on the detection value of the second detection means, the second detection means for detecting the height of the substrate between the rolls and the roll adjacent to the rolls, respectively. A roll position control device for displacing the axial position of each roll, and the roll position control device has a second holding means for holding an initial value of the axial position of each roll, The thin film laminated body manufacturing apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein an axial position of each of the rolls can be reset based on the initial value when the conveyance direction is switched. A thin film laminate manufacturing apparatus for transporting a strip-shaped flexible substrate in a vertical orientation in a horizontal direction, and forming a thin film on the surface of the substrate by a film forming unit installed along a transport path of the substrate. ,
A roll core driving device capable of driving in both forward and reverse directions for unwinding / winding the substrate from a roll at each end of the transport path;
A grip roller that is rotatably supported so as to sandwich the edge of the substrate and apply a tension to the edge according to the clamping pressure;
Detecting means for detecting the transport height of the substrate in the film forming section;
A transport height control device that controls the clamping pressure of the grip roller based on a detection value of the detection means,
Each of the roll core driving devices is based on the detection value of the second detection means, the second detection means for detecting the height of the substrate between the rolls and the roll adjacent to the rolls, respectively. A roll position control device for displacing the axial position of each roll, and the roll position control device has holding means for holding an initial value of the axial position of each roll, The thin film laminate manufacturing apparatus capable of resetting the axial position of each roll based on the initial value at the time of switching.   The thin film laminate manufacturing apparatus according to claim 4 or 5, wherein the second detection means also serves as means for detecting an initial value of an axial position of each roll.   A drive roll capable of driving in both forward and reverse directions disposed between the film forming unit and each roll core driving device, and each of the drive rolls disposed between the film forming unit and the drive roll. A transport control device for controlling the transport tension, transport speed, and transport amount corresponding to the forward and reverse transport directions of the substrate, by synchronizing the transport tension detecting means of the substrate, the driving rolls and the roll core driving devices; The thin film laminate manufacturing apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 6, further comprising:   The thin film laminate manufacturing apparatus according to claim 7, wherein the grip roller is provided between each of the driving rolls and each of the roll core driving devices located on the same side with respect to the film forming unit. Method of operating a thin film laminate manufacturing apparatus for transporting a strip-like flexible substrate in a vertical orientation in a horizontal direction, and forming a thin film on the surface of the substrate by a film forming unit installed along a transport path of the substrate The thin film laminate manufacturing apparatus is
A roll core driving device capable of driving in both forward and reverse directions for unwinding / winding the substrate from a roll at each end of the transport path;
A grip roller that is rotatably supported so as to sandwich the edge of the substrate and apply a tension to the edge according to the clamping pressure;
A detection unit that detects a conveyance height of the substrate in the film forming unit; and a conveyance height control device that controls the clamping pressure of the grip roller based on a detection value of the detection unit,
Each of the roll core driving devices is based on a detection value of the second detection means, a second detection means for detecting the height of the substrate between each of the rolls and a roll adjacent thereto, respectively. In the case of having a roll position control device for displacing the axial position of each roll,
At the time of switching the transport direction of the substrate, the axial position of each roll by the respective roll position control devices is reset to an initial value in a state where the substrate is stopped, and then the clamping pressure of the grip roller is set to the initial value. A method of operating a thin film laminate manufacturing apparatus, wherein the initial value is reset. A thin film laminate manufacturing apparatus for transporting a strip-shaped flexible substrate in a vertical orientation in a horizontal direction, and forming a thin film on the surface of the substrate by a film forming unit installed along a transport path of the substrate. ,
A roll core driving device capable of driving in both forward and reverse directions for unwinding / winding the substrate from a roll at each end of the transport path;
A grip roller that is rotatably supported so as to sandwich the edge of the substrate and apply a tension to the edge according to the clamping pressure;
Detecting means for detecting the transport height of the substrate in the film forming section;
A transport height control device that controls the clamping pressure of the grip roller based on a detection value of the detection means,
The transport height control device includes a means for detecting the clamping pressure of the grip roller and a holding means for holding an initial value of the clamping pressure, and is set to the initial value when the transport direction of the substrate is switched. The thin film laminate manufacturing apparatus capable of resetting the clamping pressure of the grip roller based on the above. A support member that rotatably supports the grip roller so as to be able to contact and separate from each other; and an urging unit that generates the clamping pressure on the grip roller via the support member,
The thin film laminate manufacturing apparatus according to claim 10, wherein the clamping pressure detection means includes at least one strain sensor attached to a base portion of the support member.   The transport height control device further includes an actuator that displaces the urging unit, and the holding unit is capable of holding an initial value of the clamping pressure as a displacement amount of the actuator, and the transport height detecting unit The control amount of the actuator that is output in accordance with the deviation between the detected value and the reference value is compared with the detected value of the strain sensor, and the actuator is feedback controlled so that the difference is minimized. The apparatus for manufacturing a thin film laminate according to claim 11, which is configured.   13. The thin film according to claim 12, wherein the initial value of the clamping pressure is held in the holding unit after the displacement amount of the actuator is corrected based on a signal from the strain sensor constituting the clamping pressure detecting unit. Laminate manufacturing equipment.   The deviation between the detected value of the transport height detection means and the reference value and the control amount of the actuator output in response thereto are stored in advance in the transport height control device as a control function or a data table, and the control The thin film laminate manufacturing apparatus according to claim 12, wherein the actuator is feedback-controlled so that the difference between a control amount via a function or a data table and a detection value of the strain sensor is minimized. .   The thin film laminate manufacturing apparatus according to claim 11, wherein the strain sensor constituting the clamping pressure detection means is detachably attached to a base portion of the support member. A thin film laminate manufacturing apparatus for transporting a strip-shaped flexible substrate in a vertical orientation in a horizontal direction, and forming a thin film on the surface of the substrate by a film forming unit installed along a transport path of the substrate. ,
A grip roller that is rotatably supported so as to sandwich the edge of the substrate and apply a tension to the edge according to the clamping pressure;
A support member for supporting the grip roller so as to be rotatable and mutually movable; and
Biasing means for generating the clamping pressure on the grip roller through the support member;
Detecting means for detecting the transport height of the substrate in the film forming section;
A transport height control device that controls the clamping pressure of the grip roller based on a detection value of the detection means,
The transport height control device includes an actuator that displaces the biasing unit, a unit that detects the clamping pressure of the grip roller, and a holding unit that holds an initial value of the clamping pressure as a displacement amount of the actuator. The control amount of the actuator output according to the deviation between the detection value of the transport height detection means and the reference value is compared with the detection value of the clamping pressure detection means, and the difference is minimized. Thus, the thin film laminated body manufacturing apparatus configured to feedback-control the actuator. A roll core driving device capable of driving in both forward and reverse directions for unwinding / winding the substrate from a roll at each end of the transport path;
The transport height control device further includes a holding unit that holds an initial value of the clamping pressure, and can reset the clamping pressure of the grip roller based on the initial value when the transport direction of the substrate is switched. The thin-film laminated body manufacturing apparatus of Claim 16 which is. The thin-film laminate manufacturing apparatus according to claim 17, wherein the clamping pressure detection means includes at least one strain sensor attached to a base portion of the support member.

Images