JP2016084877A - Solenoid valve, coating device and coating method - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a solenoid valve having superior responsiveness in discharge and stop of discharge of fluid by switching valve closing and valve opening.SOLUTION: A solenoid valve includes a main body portion having a valve chamber and an inflow channel for allowing a fluid to flow into the valve chamber, a valve element accommodated in the valve chamber, a valve seat member having at least one or more valve seats on one end portion, having a discharge hole for discharging the fluid on the other end portion, and disposed in the valve chamber in a state of directing the valve seat to the valve element, and a driving portion for switching contact and separation of the valve element to the valve seat by presence or absence of supply of electromagnetic force to the valve element. A cross-sectional area of the discharge hole in a face orthogonal to a discharging direction to discharge the fluid from the discharge hole, is smaller than a contact region formed by bringing the valve element into contact with the valve seat, a plurality of fluid introduction ports are formed at one end portion of the valve seat member in the contact region, and the valve seat member has a plurality of communication holes respectively communicating the plurality of fluid introduction ports to the discharge hole to circulate the fluid to the discharge hole when the valve element is separated from the valve seat.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

  The present invention controls the application of a coating liquid to a substrate by switching between the discharge and stop of discharge of a gas from a gas nozzle using the solenoid valve that switches between contact and separation of the valve body with respect to the valve seat. It relates to coating technology. Examples of the substrate include a semiconductor substrate, a photomask glass substrate, a liquid crystal display glass substrate, a plasma display glass substrate, an FED (Field Emission Display) substrate, an optical disk substrate, a magnetic disk substrate, and a magneto-optical disk. Various substrates (hereinafter, simply referred to as “substrates”).

  Solenoid valves are used in various technical fields. For example, in the apparatus described in Patent Document 1, for example, the flow of glue (corresponding to the “coating liquid” of the present invention) discharged from a glue nozzle is used. The flow of glue is controlled by jetting pressurized air from gas discharge noise in a direction orthogonal to the above. A solenoid actuated valve (corresponding to the “solenoid valve” of the present invention) is used to switch between ejection of pressurized air and ejection stop.

  As this solenoid actuated valve (solenoid valve), for example, the device described in Patent Document 2 can be adopted. In the device described in Patent Document 2, a solenoid is provided as a drive unit that drives the valve body. In addition, a valve seat is provided at the solenoid side end of both ends of the valve seat cylinder having a cylindrical shape and an opening is provided to the valve seat, whereas a discharge hole is provided at the end opposite to the solenoid side. Provided, and the opening and the discharge hole communicate with each other. Further, an iron valve element is detachably attached to the valve seat, and while the energization to the solenoid is stopped, the valve element contacts the valve seat and the electromagnetic valve is closed. On the other hand, an electromagnetic force is generated from the solenoid by energizing the solenoid, whereby the valve body moves to the solenoid side and the solenoid valve is opened.

Japanese Utility Model Publication No. 62-183854 (FIGS. 4 and 5) Japanese Patent No. 3797766

  By the way, in the solenoid valve described in Patent Document 2 (hereinafter referred to as “conventional solenoid valve”), the fluid passing through the opening of the valve seat by the valve opening is discharged in the discharge direction via the discharge hole. The cross-sectional area of the discharge hole in the plane perpendicular to the discharge direction reaches a value close to the cross-sectional area of the valve seat cylinder, and the discharge hole has a relatively large internal volume. For this reason, there is a problem in that the response to switching between opening and closing of the solenoid valve is slow, and it is difficult to discharge the fluid flow in a pulsed manner by alternately repeating the opening and closing as described later. . Due to such factors, conventionally, it has been difficult to apply the coating liquid satisfactorily by blowing a gas flow against the flow of the coating liquid.

  This invention is made in view of the said subject, and makes it the 1st objective to provide the solenoid valve excellent in the responsiveness of the discharge of the fluid by switching of valve closing and valve opening, and a discharge stop.

  A second object of the present invention is to provide a coating technique for satisfactorily coating the coating liquid on the substrate by switching the spraying and stopping of the gas flow with respect to the flow of the coating liquid by the electromagnetic valve.

  1st aspect of this invention is an electromagnetic valve, Comprising: The main-body part which has an inflow flow path into which a fluid flows in into a valve chamber and a valve chamber, The valve body accommodated in a valve chamber, At least 1 is provided in one end part It has the above-mentioned valve seat and has a discharge hole for discharging fluid at the other end, the valve seat member is provided in the valve chamber with the valve seat facing the valve body, and whether or not electromagnetic force is supplied to the valve body A drive unit that switches between contact and separation of the valve body with respect to the valve seat, and the cross-sectional area of the discharge hole in a plane perpendicular to the discharge direction for discharging the fluid from the discharge hole is such that the valve body comes into contact with the valve seat. A plurality of fluid introduction ports provided at one end of the valve seat member in the contact region, and the valve seat member has the plurality of fluid introduction ports as discharge holes, respectively. A plurality of communication units that communicate and allow fluid to flow through the discharge holes when the valve element is separated from the valve seat. It is characterized by having a hole.

  According to a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided a coating apparatus that applies a coating liquid onto a surface of a substrate by moving the substrate relative to a coating liquid nozzle that discharges the coating liquid from a coating liquid discharge port. A gas nozzle disposed on the downstream side in the relative movement direction of the substrate, gas is supplied to the gas nozzle, gas is ejected from the gas nozzle, and the gas is applied to the flow of the coating liquid discharged from the coating liquid nozzle A gas supply unit that blows a flow and a gas supply control unit that controls gas supply by the gas supply unit, the gas supply unit supplies gas to the gas nozzle via the electromagnetic valve, and the gas supply control unit It is characterized in that a pulse drive voltage is applied to the drive portion of the electromagnetic valve to repeatedly switch the contact and separation of the valve body and supply the gas to the gas nozzle in pulses.

  Furthermore, a third aspect of the present invention is a coating method, wherein the substrate is moved relative to a coating solution nozzle that discharges the coating solution from a coating solution discharge port, and the coating solution is applied to the surface of the substrate. The gas is supplied from the coating liquid discharge port of the coating liquid nozzle by supplying a pulsed gas to the gas nozzle disposed on the downstream side in the relative movement direction of the substrate with respect to the coating liquid nozzle. And a gas supply step for supplying a pulsed gas flow with respect to the flow of the coating liquid to be applied.

  According to the present invention, when no electromagnetic force is supplied to the valve body, the valve body comes into contact with the valve seat to form a contact area. Here, when there is one valve seat, the contact area is formed only by the contact surface where the valve seat and the valve body are in contact, and when there are a plurality of valve seats, the number of valve seats There are the same number of contact surfaces, and a contact region is formed by all of the plurality of contact surfaces. A plurality of fluid inlets are provided at one end of the valve seat member in the contact region, but the plurality of fluid inlets are blocked by the valve body coming into contact with the valve seat as described above. Thus, the solenoid valve is closed. On the other hand, when the valve element is separated from the valve seat by supplying electromagnetic force to the valve element, the fluid flowing into the valve chamber through the inflow passage is discharged through the plurality of fluid inlets and the plurality of communication holes. It distribute | circulates to a hole and is discharged from the said discharge hole. As described above, the fluid discharge from the discharge hole and the discharge stop are switched by the contact and separation of the valve body with respect to the valve seat. In the present invention, the discharge in the plane orthogonal to the discharge direction of discharging the fluid from the discharge hole is performed. Since the cross-sectional area of the hole is smaller than the area of the contact area, the responsiveness of the switching can be improved.

  Further, by using such an electromagnetic valve having excellent responsiveness, it is possible to supply the pulsed gas flow to the flow of the coating liquid and to satisfactorily apply the coating liquid to the substrate.

It is a figure which shows 1st Embodiment of the solenoid valve concerning this invention. It is a perspective view which shows a part of component group which comprises the solenoid valve shown in FIG. It is a perspective view which shows some components which comprise 2nd Embodiment of the solenoid valve concerning this invention. It is a figure which shows the external appearance of one Embodiment of the coating device equipped with the solenoid valve concerning this invention. FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view taken along line AA of the coating liquid discharging apparatus shown in FIG. 4 and parallel to the paper surface of FIG. FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view of the coating liquid discharge device shown in FIG. 4 taken along line BB. It is a figure which shows typically the discharge control operation | movement in the coating liquid discharge apparatus shown in FIG. It is a figure which shows the structure of a gas discharge apparatus typically. It is a timing chart which shows an example of operation | movement of the coating device shown in FIG. It is a timing chart which shows the other example of operation | movement of the coating device shown in FIG. It is a figure which shows embodiment of the coating device equipped with the solenoid valve concerning this invention. It is a figure which shows the example of the photovoltaic cell formed using the coating device of FIG. It is a figure which shows typically the mode of finger electrode formation by the apparatus of FIG. It is a flowchart which shows the pattern formation process by this embodiment.

  FIG. 1 is a view showing a first embodiment of an electromagnetic valve according to the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing a part of a part group constituting the electromagnetic valve shown in FIG. This solenoid valve 1A has a function of switching between discharge and stoppage of compressed air from, for example, a gas nozzle (reference numeral 120 in FIG. 4). This electromagnetic valve 1 </ b> A has a main body 2 and a port holding part 3. As shown in FIG. 1, a valve chamber 21 is provided at the end of the main body 2 on the (+ Z) direction side, while holding the port with respect to the end of the main body 2 on the (−Z) direction side. The part 3 is attached from the (−Z) direction side.

  The port holding unit 3 has an input port 31 that can be connected to a compressed air source (not shown). In addition, inflow channels 32 and 22 are formed in the port holding portion 3 and the main body portion 2, respectively. These inflow channels 32 and 22 communicate with each other in a state where the main body 2 and the port holding unit 3 are integrated. In addition, the inflow channel 32 communicates with the input port 31 and the inflow channel 22 communicates with the valve chamber 21. For this reason, the air pressure-fed from the compressed air source is sent to the valve chamber 21 via the input port 31 and the inflow channels 32 and 22.

  In the (+ Z) direction side region of the valve chamber 21, the valve body 4 is disposed so as to be movable in the Z direction. The valve body 4 is composed of a metal plate. In the valve chamber 21, the valve seat member 5 has four valve seats 51 at the (+ Z) direction side end portion and a discharge hole 52 for discharging compressed air at the (−Z) direction side end portion. The seat 51 is disposed toward the valve body 4. As shown in FIG. 2, the valve seat member 5 has an axisymmetric structure that is symmetric about the symmetry axis AX extending in the Z direction, that is, a rotationally symmetric shape about the symmetry axis AX. The body of the valve seat member 5 is provided with a male screw 53 and screwed with a female screw 23 engraved in a female screw hole provided in the main body 2 on the (−Z) direction side of the valve chamber 21. Thus, the valve seat member 5 is held while being positioned in the Z direction with respect to the main body portion 2 so that the valve seat 51 of the valve seat member 5 is positioned in the valve chamber 21. Although not shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, two annular O-ring grooves are provided on the side surface of the valve seat member 5, and an O-ring is attached to each O-ring groove. The above positioning is performed in the state.

  These four valve seats 51 have a substantially fan shape in plan view from the (+ Z) direction, are symmetrical about the symmetry axis AX, and are separated from each other via a substantially cross-shaped groove portion 54 in the plan view. Is provided. The upper surfaces of the valve seats 51 are finished to be flush with each other, and one fluid introduction port 55 is provided at a substantially central portion of each surface. A plurality of (four in this embodiment) fluid introduction ports 55 formed in this way are arranged symmetrically about the symmetry axis AX. When the valve body 4 moves in the (−Z) direction, the valve body 4 uniformly abuts against the four valve seats 51 to form the abutment surface 61 and close the fluid introduction port 55. In this embodiment, when the valve body 4 abuts on the valve seat 51, four abutment surfaces 61 are formed, and the four abutment surfaces 61 are collectively referred to as “abutment region 62”. That is, if the area of each contact surface 61 is “A61”, the area of the contact region 62 is the total area A62 of the contact surface 61 (= A61 × 4). In the present embodiment, the area A54 of the fluid inlet 55 is set to (1/3) or less of the area A61 of the contact surface 61. For this reason, as shown in FIG. 1A, when the valve body 4 comes into contact with the valve seat 51, the fluid introduction port 55 is tightly blocked and the air that has been pumped into the valve chamber 21 is fluidized. It is reliably prevented from flowing into the introduction port 55.

  Further, by providing the groove portion 54 as described above, as shown in FIG. 1B, when the valve body 4 is separated in the (+ Z) direction side with respect to the valve seat 51, it is pumped into the valve chamber 21. The air that has been spread spreads uniformly in the valve chamber 21 through the groove 54, and is sent from each fluid introduction port 55 to the discharge hole 52 through the communication hole 56. Each connection hole 56 is provided straight from the fluid introduction port 55 toward the end on the (+ Z) direction side of the discharge hole 52, and the compressed air flowing through the connection hole 56 is collected at the discharge hole 52 (− Z) is discharged in the direction.

  In this embodiment, the cross-sectional area A52 of the discharge hole 52 in the plane orthogonal to the discharge direction (-Z) of the compressed air is significantly smaller than the area A62 of the contact region 62, and the internal volume of the discharge hole 52 is A discharge hole 52 is provided so as to be significantly smaller than a conventional solenoid valve. More specifically, the cross-sectional area A52 of the discharge hole 52 is set to a value substantially equal to the total area (= A54 × 4) of the fluid introduction port 55, and is (1/3) of the area A62 of the contact region 62. It is as follows.

  The compressed air discharged from the discharge holes 52 is supplied to an external device, for example, a gas nozzle (not shown) of the coating device via the output port 7 held by the port holding unit 3.

  In this embodiment, in order to switch contact and separation of the valve body 4 with respect to the valve seat 51 depending on whether electromagnetic force is supplied to the metal valve body 4, the solenoid 8 is provided on the (+ Z) direction side of the main body 2. Although arranged, the configuration and the switching operation of contact and separation are basically the same as those of the conventional solenoid valve. That is, in the solenoid 8, the suction coil 82 is provided inside the solenoid body 81, and the above switching operation is performed by supplying power to the suction coil 82 and stopping the power supply. When power supply to the adsorption coil 82 is stopped and the adsorption coil 82 is demagnetized, the pressure in the valve seat member 5 is lower than the pressure in the valve chamber 21 as shown in FIG. Is sucked and moved to the valve seat 51 side, and the compressed air sent into the valve chamber 21 via the inflow passage 22 acts on the upper surface of the valve body 4 to bias the valve body 4 in the (−Z) direction. Then, it contacts the valve seat 51. As a result, the electromagnetic valve 1A is closed and the discharge of compressed air from the output port 7 is blocked.

  On the other hand, when the attracting coil 82 is excited by supplying power to the attracting coil 82, a magnetic field is formed between the valve bodies 4, and the valve body 4 is attracted to the solenoid 8 side by supplying electromagnetic force to the valve body 4. . Since this suction force is adjusted in advance so as to be larger than the pressure of the air that urges the valve body 4 to the valve seat 51, the valve body 4 is (+ Z) as shown in FIG. It moves in the direction and contacts the end of the solenoid 8 on the (−Z) direction side. Thereby, the valve body 4 leaves | separates from the valve seat 51, and 1A of solenoid valves are opened. For this reason, the compressed air sent into the valve chamber 21 via the inflow passage 22 flows into each fluid introduction port 55 directly or via the groove portion 54, passes through the communication hole 56, and is collected in the discharge hole 52. . Then, compressed air is discharged from the electromagnetic valve 1 </ b> A from the discharge hole 52 via the output port 7. Thus, the solenoid 8 functions as the “drive unit” of the present invention.

  As described above, according to the present embodiment, the discharge of the compressed air from the discharge hole 52 and the discharge stop are switched by the contact and separation of the valve body 4 with respect to the valve seat 51. The internal volume is increased. That is, the cross-sectional area A52 of the discharge hole 52 in the plane orthogonal to the discharge direction (-Z) for discharging the compressed air from the discharge hole 52 (the plane perpendicular to the paper surface of FIG. 1) is the contact area 62 (FIG. 2). The inner volume of the discharge hole 52 is significantly smaller than the inner volume of the discharge hole 52 in the conventional solenoid valve. As a result, the responsiveness of the switching is enhanced.

  Moreover, the electromagnetic valve 1A according to the first embodiment has an advantageous effect with respect to the conventional electromagnetic valve. Hereinafter, description will be made in comparison with a conventional solenoid valve. In a conventional solenoid valve, a valve seat is provided at a solenoid side end portion of both end portions of a cylindrical valve seat cylinder, and a relatively large opening is provided with respect to the valve seat. Therefore, when the valve body comes into contact with the valve seat (that is, when the electromagnetic valve is closed), the contact area between the valve seat and the valve body is narrow, and it is difficult to suppress the leak amount. Therefore, when the electromagnetic valve is applied to a coating apparatus to be described later, compressed air flows out from the gas nozzle in spite of stopping energization of the solenoid and closing the electromagnetic valve, and this discharges the coating liquid. Cause clogging of the nozzle.

  On the other hand, in the electromagnetic valve 1A according to the first embodiment, the area A54 of the fluid introduction port 55 is set to (1/3) or less of the area A61 of the contact surface 61, and the fluid introduction port 55 is set to the valve seat 51. Is provided at a substantially central portion. For this reason, the distance from the peripheral part of the valve seat 51 to the fluid introduction port 55 is more than double that of the conventional solenoid valve, and the fluid introduction port 55 is firmly attached by the contact of the valve body 4 with the valve seat 51. It is possible to reliably prevent the air that has been blocked and pumped into the valve chamber 21 from flowing into the fluid introduction port 55, and to reduce the leak amount to about 1/10. As a result, by using the electromagnetic valve 1A for gas control of a coating apparatus to be described later, it is possible to satisfactorily apply the coating liquid while reliably suppressing clogging of the coating liquid nozzle.

  In the first embodiment, since the four valve seats 51 are provided symmetrically about the symmetry axis AX, the contact with the valve body 4 can be stabilized. Such a configuration greatly contributes to the reduction of the leak amount. Further, since the fluid inlet 55 is also provided symmetrically about the symmetry axis AX, the valve body 4 can be stably adsorbed in the closed state, and the same effect as described above can be obtained.

  In the first embodiment, the communication hole 56 is provided for each fluid introduction port 55 to guide the compressed air to the discharge hole 52. However, the communication hole 56 is a straight line extending from the fluid introduction port 55 to the discharge hole 52. It consists of a through-hole. Therefore, the communication hole 56 can be provided in the valve seat member 5 using a general processing device such as a drill. As a result, the electromagnetic valve 1A can be easily manufactured, the dimensional accuracy can be improved, and the manufacturing cost can be reduced. In addition, although the constituent material of the valve seat member 5 is arbitrary, it is preferable to use polyetheretherketone (PEEK) from the viewpoint of ensuring machinability and strength. In addition, the valve seat member 5 made of the material is effective in improving the accuracy of the flatness and surface roughness of the upper surface of the valve seat 51 (the surface in contact with the valve body 4).

  The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and various modifications other than those described above can be made without departing from the spirit of the present invention. For example, in the first embodiment, four valve seats 51 having a substantially fan shape in plan view from the (+ Z) direction are provided, but the shape of the valve seat 51 is not limited to this, Is optional. For example, in the electromagnetic valve 1B according to the second embodiment shown in FIG. 3, a valve seat 51 having a circular shape in a plan view from the (+ Z) direction is provided. In the electromagnetic valve 1 </ b> B having such a valve seat 51, compressed air easily flows between the valve seats 51, that is, through the groove portion 54, and the air inflow into each fluid inlet 55 becomes more uniform.

  Further, in the first embodiment (FIG. 2) and the second embodiment (FIG. 3), the plurality of valve seats 51 are arranged symmetrically about the axis of symmetry AX. Is optional. Further, the number of valve seats 51 is not limited to “4”, and is arbitrary. For example, a plurality of fluid inlets 55 may be provided for one valve seat 51. In this case as well, as in the first and second embodiments, these fluid inlets 55 are also centered on the axis of symmetry AX. It is desirable to provide them symmetrically. Further, when a plurality of valve seats 51 are provided, each valve seat 51 may be provided with one or more fluid introduction ports 55, or some valve seats 51 may be provided with one or more fluid introduction ports 55. A plurality of fluid introduction ports 55 may be provided in the entire contact area 62.

  By the way, the electromagnetic valves 1A and 1B configured as described above can be used to control the opening and closing of a flow in a flow path for passing a fluid such as air or liquid, for example, a pipe. Since it has the characteristic that the response of switching between discharge and discharge stop is extremely high as described above, the above-described electromagnetic valve 1A, 1B is adopted for the coating apparatus described below. Play. Hereinafter, the configuration and operation of a coating apparatus equipped with the electromagnetic valve 1A will be described with reference to the drawings.

  FIG. 4 is a view showing an appearance of an embodiment of a coating apparatus equipped with the electromagnetic valve according to the present invention, wherein FIG. 4 (a) is a perspective view and FIG. 4 (b) is a side view. The coating apparatus 100 is an apparatus that coats a substrate with a coating liquid containing a material for forming a pattern, such as an electrode paste. For example, a wiring pattern is formed on a substrate having a photoelectric conversion surface to form a photoelectric conversion device. Applicable to manufacturing technology.

  The coating apparatus 100 includes a stage moving mechanism (reference numeral 101 in FIG. 8) that moves the substrate W in the X direction, and a coating liquid discharge that discharges four coating liquids linearly toward the substrate W that moves in the X direction. The apparatus 102 and the gas discharge apparatus 103 which supplies an air flow with respect to the flow of each coating liquid are provided. Then, while the stage moving mechanism 101 moves the substrate W in the X direction at a predetermined moving speed, the coating liquid discharge device 102 discharges the coating liquid at a discharge speed equal to the above moving speed to provide a maximum of four pieces on the substrate W. A line pattern can be formed. Hereinafter, after describing the configuration of the coating liquid ejection device 102 and the gas ejection device 103, the operation of the coating device 100 will be described.

  The coating liquid discharge device 102 includes a multiple nozzle block 300 that integrally holds four coating liquid nozzles 200. That is, in this multiple nozzle block 300, four coating liquid nozzles 200 are arranged in a row, and the coating liquid discharge ports 210 of each coating liquid nozzle 200 are arranged in a row on the outer surface of the multiple nozzle block 300. Exposed. Further, a coating liquid discharge control unit 400 that controls the discharge of the coating liquid from the coating liquid discharge port 210 is provided for each coating liquid nozzle 200, and these four coating liquid discharge control units 400 operate independently of each other. The discharge of the coating liquid fed from the coating liquid supply unit 800 from each coating liquid discharge port 210 can be controlled. In this embodiment, the arrangement direction of the coating liquid nozzles 200 is referred to as “arrangement direction P”, and the discharge direction of the coating liquid from each coating liquid discharge port 210 is referred to as “discharge direction Q”. A crossing direction that intersects the ejection direction Q at a right angle is referred to as a “crossing direction R”.

  5 is a cross-sectional view taken along line AA of the coating liquid discharge apparatus shown in FIG. 4 and parallel to the paper surface of FIG. 4B. FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view of the coating liquid discharge apparatus shown in FIG. FIG. FIG. 7 is a diagram schematically showing a discharge control operation in the coating liquid discharge apparatus shown in FIG. The coating liquid discharge device 102 supports a multiple nozzle block 300 that integrally holds four coating liquid nozzles 200, four coating liquid discharge control units 400, and a rotation drive unit 410 of the coating liquid discharge control unit 400. Supporting block 500, upper holder 600 that holds and holds components of coating liquid discharge controller 400 mounted on multiple nozzle block 300 from the upper side (+ R direction side), and coating liquid discharge controller 400. And a lower holder 700 that holds and holds the components from below (−R direction side).

  In the multiple nozzle block 300, as shown in FIG. 6, a rectangular parallelepiped space extending in the arrangement direction P is provided at the (−Q) side end, and this rectangular parallelepiped space is provided at the lower end of the support block 500. It functions as the coating liquid storage part 220 which temporarily stores the coating liquid pumped from the coating liquid supply part 800 (FIG. 4) through the introduced hole 510. Four coating liquid nozzles 200 having the same shape from the coating liquid storage section 220 are arranged in a line at an equal pitch in the arrangement direction P (in this embodiment, an interval of 2 [mm]). Each coating liquid nozzle 200 extends in the discharge direction, that is, the (+ Q) direction, and the tip thereof is connected to the (+ Q) side end surface of the multiple nozzle block 300 to form a coating liquid discharge port 210. Therefore, a cylindrical space having a substantially elliptical cross section from the rectangular parallelepiped space 220 to the coating liquid discharge port 210 inside the coating liquid nozzle 200 functions as the coating liquid flow path 230 and is stored in the coating liquid storage section 220. The coating liquid is guided to the coating liquid discharge port 210. As described above, in the present embodiment, the coating liquid stored in the coating liquid storage unit 220 is distributed and guided to the four coating liquid nozzles 200.

  In each coating liquid nozzle 200, as shown in FIG. 5, one opening 240 is formed on the upper side (+ R direction side) and the lower side (−R direction side) at an intermediate position of the coating liquid flow path 230. . In the present embodiment, in order to prevent the coating liquid discharge controllers 400 adjacent to each other from interfering with each other, the position where the opening 240 is provided is divided into two stages. That is, as shown in FIG. 6, for the coating liquid nozzle 200 with the nozzle number “1” and the nozzle number “3” located on the most (+ P) side, the opening 240 is provided at a position close to the coating liquid reservoir 220. The coating liquid nozzles 200 having the nozzle number “4” and the nozzle number “2” located on the most (−P) side are provided at positions close to the coating liquid discharge port 210. Thus, the openings 240 formed in each of the two coating liquid nozzles 200 adjacent to each other are formed at different positions in the ejection direction Q perpendicular to the arrangement direction P. A through-hole 310 is provided in the multiple nozzle block 300 from the upper opening 240 of the coating liquid nozzle 200 upward (+ R direction) and from the lower opening 240 downward (−R direction). These through holes 310 are for installing various components (rotary shaft 420, seal members 430 and 440 and ball bearings 450 and 460) of the coating liquid discharge control unit 400 described below, and the inner diameter thereof is from the opening 240. Is also widely set. Each opening 240 has the same dimension as the diameter (shaft diameter) of the rotating shaft 420 of the coating liquid discharge control unit 400 and is set wider than the width of the coating liquid flow path 230 in the arrangement direction P.

  Each coating liquid discharge control unit 400 has a rotation shaft 420 extending in the intersecting direction R. In this embodiment, a stainless steel rod having a shaft shape with a diameter of 1 [mm] is used as the rotating shaft 420. The tip of the rotating shaft 420, that is, the (−R) side end, is inserted into the through hole 310 and further penetrates the coating liquid nozzle 200 through both openings 240.

A portion (hereinafter, referred to as “flow rate adjusting unit 421”) located between the two openings 240 in the tip portion of the rotating shaft 420 is inserted into the coating liquid flow path 230 of the coating liquid nozzle 200. As shown in FIG. 6, since the diameter of the flow rate adjusting unit 421 is wider than the width of the coating liquid channel 230 in the arrangement direction P, the flow rate adjusting unit 421 causes the coating liquid channel 230 to be downstream from the upstream channel 230U. It is divided into a side flow path 230D. However, a notch 423 is formed in the flow rate adjusting unit 421 by notching the side surface of the rotating shaft 420, and the coating liquid can be guided in the (+ Q) direction by the notch 423. More specifically, as shown in FIG. 5, the notch portion 423 is equal to or higher than the height H1 of the coating liquid channel 230 in the direction (axial direction R) in which the rotation shaft 420 intersects the coating solution channel 230. It has a low height H2. Further, in the width direction P orthogonal to the axial direction R and the flow path direction Q, the following dimensional relationship is obtained. That is, as shown in FIG. 7A, the distance between the “upstream intersection CPu” and the “downstream intersection CPd” is “W1”. Further, the outer diameter of the rotating shaft 420 in the width direction P is “W2”. And the width Wn of the notch 423 is
W1 <Wn <W2
Then, it can be turned ON / OFF every 90 ° rotation. For this reason, by rotating the rotating shaft 420, the communication state of the upstream flow path 230U and the downstream flow path 230D can be controlled in multiple stages.

  FIG. 7A shows a state in which the rotary shaft 420 is positioned in a state where the notch portion 423 faces the downstream flow path 230D. Here, the portion where the notch portion 423 is not provided, that is, the non-notch portion 424 faces the upstream flow path 230U and closes the coating liquid flow path 230. For this reason, the upstream flow path 230U and the downstream flow path 230D are blocked, and the coating liquid discharge from the coating liquid discharge port 210 is turned off. When rotating counterclockwise in this figure from the state, the coating liquid flow passage 230 is blocked up to a certain angle, but if it is exceeded, the upstream flow passage 230U and the downstream flow passage 230D are in communication with each other. Then, the coating liquid flows through the coating liquid flow path 230 and is discharged from the coating liquid discharge port 210 (see FIG. 6) (ON state). When the rotating shaft 420 is further rotated, the communication ratio gradually increases. When the rotation angle reaches 90 °, the communication ratio becomes maximum as shown in FIG.

  Further, when the rotary shaft 420 is further rotated counterclockwise on the paper surface of the figure, the communication ratio gradually decreases, and the upstream flow path 230U and the downstream flow path 230D are again blocked, and the coating liquid discharge port 210 The coating liquid discharge is turned off. For example, when the rotary shaft 420 is rotated by 180 ° from the state of FIG. 7A, the notch portion 423 faces the upstream flow path 230U, and the non-notch portion 424 faces the downstream flow path 230D. The flow path 230 is closed (for example, (c) in the figure). For this reason, the upstream flow path 230U and the downstream flow path 230D are blocked, and the coating liquid discharge from the coating liquid discharge port 210 is turned off. When the sheet is further rotated counterclockwise in this figure, the coating liquid flow path 230 is blocked up to a certain angle. However, when the rotation is exceeded, the upstream flow path 230U and the downstream flow path 230D communicate with each other. The coating liquid flows through the coating liquid flow path 230 and is discharged again from the coating liquid discharge port 210 (ON state). When the rotating shaft 420 is further rotated, the communication rate gradually increases. When the rotating shaft 420 is rotated by 270 ° from the state of FIG. 7A, the communication rate is again as shown in FIG. Maximum. Thus, by rotating the rotating shaft 420 by 90 °, the OFF state and the ON state can be switched alternately. Of course, the discharge amount can be adjusted in multiple stages by controlling the rotational position.

  As described above, in this embodiment, it is possible to control the discharge and stop of discharge of the coating liquid from the coating liquid discharge port 210 by rotating the rotation shaft 420, and further, the discharge amount can be multistaged by controlling the rotation position. It is possible to adjust with. Of course, the same discharge control can be performed even if a through hole is provided instead of the notch. In order to stably rotate the rotating shaft 420 while preventing the coating liquid from leaking from the rotating portion, the present embodiment is configured as follows.

  As shown in FIG. 5, in the through hole 310, a pair of seal members 430 and 440 are provided so as to sandwich the coating liquid nozzle 200 from the vertical direction (R direction). That is, on the upper side of the coating liquid nozzle 200, that is, in the (+ R) direction side, the annular seal member 430 is disposed in the vicinity of the position where the rotation shaft 420 and the upper opening 240 intersect. Further, an annular seal member 440 is disposed near the position where the rotation shaft 420 and the lower opening 240 intersect on the lower side of the coating liquid nozzle 200, that is, on the (−R) direction side. Further, in the through hole 310, a rolling bearing, for example, a ball bearing 450, which rotatably supports the rotary shaft 420 is provided above the seal member 430, that is, in the (+ R) direction side. The same applies to the seal member 440 side, that is, a ball bearing 460 that rotatably supports the rotary shaft 420 is provided below the seal member 440, that is, on the (−R) direction side. With these two ball bearings 450 and 460, the rotation shaft 420 is rotatable in the through hole 310.

  As described above, the seal members and the ball bearings are arranged above and below the coating liquid nozzle 200. In this embodiment, the seal members 430 and 440 are not in direct contact with the rotary shaft 420. The seal members 430 and 440 are provided with relief portions so as to be in contact with the outer rings of the ball bearings 450 and 460, respectively, and to have a gap with the inner ring. Instead of the seal members 430 and 440, O-rings made of fluororubber or the like may be used depending on conditions such as chemical resistance and sealability.

  The lower seal member 440 and the ball bearing 460 configured as described above are pressed and held by a lower holder 700 made of stainless steel via a PTFE spacer 470. Here, the lower holder 700 also functions as a contact surface of the shaft end of the rotation shaft 420 and regulates the movement of the rotation shaft 420 in the axial direction.

  The upper seal member 430 and the ball bearing 450 are pressed and held by the upper holder 600. As shown in FIG. 5, the upper holder 600 has a lid member 610 and a cylindrical member 620 extending downward from the lower surface of the lid member 610, and is made of, for example, a stainless material. The lid member 610 is formed with a through hole through which the rotary shaft 420 is inserted. The cylindrical member 620 is finished so as to be freely inserted into the through-hole 310. When the cylindrical member 620 is inserted into the through-hole 310, only the outer ring of the ball bearing 450 is pressed downward at the lower end surface of the cylindrical member 620, and the ball bearing 450 and the seal are sealed. The member 430 is held.

  As shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, the upper end of each rotating shaft 420, that is, the (+ R) side end, is cupped on the rotation driving unit 410 supported by the upper end having an inverted L-shaped cross section of the support block 500. It is connected via a ring. Each rotation drive unit 410 includes a micro electric motor (for example, a micro motor SLB series manufactured by Namiki Seimitsu Jewel Co.) 411, a speed reducer 412, and an encoder 413. The rotating shaft of the micro electric motor 411 is connected to the rotating shaft 420 via the speed reducer 412. When the micro electric motor 411 is operated, the rotation of the rotating shaft of the micro electric motor 411 is reduced to, for example, 1/30 by the speed reducer 412 and then transmitted to the rotating shaft 420.

  Further, in this embodiment, a horizontal hole is formed near the micro electric motor 411 through which light passes, and a pulse signal is output each time the horizontal hole is detected by a transmission photoelectric sensor. The approximate angle of the rotation axis can be detected. Further, the pulse signal is output once from the encoder 413 every time the rotating shaft of the micro electric motor 411 rotates once. By using these signals to accurately determine the origin and controlling the rotation position of the through hole 422 formed in the rotation shaft 420 with respect to the coating liquid nozzle 200, the discharge amount can be controlled as described above. It has become.

  Next, the configuration of the gas discharge device 103 will be described with reference to FIGS. 4 and 8. FIG. 8 is a diagram schematically showing the configuration of the gas discharge device. This gas discharge device 103 is connected to each gas nozzle 120 via a nozzle holder 110 connected to the upper holder 600, four gas nozzles 120 supported by the nozzle holder 110, and an electromagnetic valve 132d having the same configuration as the electromagnetic valve 1A. A gas supply unit 130 that supplies compressed air and a valve control unit 140 that controls air supply from the gas supply unit 130 to the gas nozzle 120 by opening and closing the electromagnetic valve 132d are provided.

  The nozzle holder 110 is made of, for example, aluminum, and is attached to the upper holder 600 by two attachment screws (not shown) on the (+ Q) direction side of the upper holder 600. The nozzle holder 110 is provided with a through hole for inserting and fixing the gas nozzle 120 for each gas nozzle 120. In the present embodiment, as shown in FIG. 4, in order to arrange the tips of the gas nozzles 120 at a pitch of 2 [mm], the four through holes are staggered and provided at different inclination angles. .

  Each gas nozzle 120 has a cylindrical shape, and the tip of each gas nozzle 120 is cut obliquely. More specifically, in this embodiment, the tip end of a stainless steel pipe having an outer diameter of Φ1 / 16 [inch] and a hole diameter of Φ0.5 [mm] is manufactured obliquely. The four gas nozzles 120 are respectively inserted into the corresponding through holes, and the gas discharge ports of the gas nozzle 120 are arranged in a row in the same manner as the discharge port row of the coating liquid nozzle 200 at a pitch of 2 [mm]. Each gas nozzle 120 is fixed to the nozzle holder 110 with a push screw (not shown). Further, the position and angle of each gas nozzle 120 can be adjusted so that the arrangement relationship described below is satisfied by the push screw.

  The four gas nozzles 120 fixed to the nozzle holder 110 are arranged as follows in a one-to-one correspondence with the four coating liquid nozzles 200. That is, the gas nozzle 120 is disposed downstream of the coating liquid nozzle 200 in the moving direction X of the substrate W, and injects the air flow AF into the coating liquid flow CF. Specifically, when compressed air is supplied from the gas supply unit 130 to the gas nozzle 120, air is supplied from the gas nozzle 120 to the substrate W in the substrate movement direction X with respect to the supply position P <b> 1 (see FIG. 8). Sprayed toward the upstream substrate surface, an air flow AF is blown against the coating liquid flow CF in the middle between the coating liquid discharge port 210 of the coating liquid nozzle 200 and the surface of the substrate W. In particular, in the present embodiment, the coating liquid nozzle 200 is arranged with the coating liquid discharge port 210 facing the supply position P1 on the upstream side (left hand side in FIG. 8) in the substrate movement direction X with respect to the coating liquid supply position P1. The coating liquid is discharged in the discharge direction D2 inclined with respect to the surface normal of the substrate W. On the other hand, the air injected from the gas nozzle 120 is injected in the injection direction D3 orthogonal to the discharge direction D2. The jetting direction D3 is not limited to this, and 0 ° (direction parallel to the substrate surface) and 90 ° (substrate parallel) on a virtual plane (paper surface in FIG. 8) including the coating liquid flow CF and the air flow AF. You may set between the direction orthogonal to the surface.

  In the gas supply unit 130, a pulse blow system 132 that supplies compressed air to the gas nozzle 120 in a pulsed manner is provided for each gas nozzle 120. The basic configuration of the pulse blow system 132 includes a pipe 132a, a regulator 132b, a needle valve 132c, and an electromagnetic valve 132d. One end of the pipe 132 a is connected to a gas supply source that generates compressed air, and the other end is connected to the gas nozzle 120. A regulator 132b, a needle valve 132c, and an electromagnetic valve 132d are inserted into the pipe 132a, and perform pressure adjustment, flow rate adjustment, and supply control, respectively. That is, after adjusting the pressure of the compressed air supplied from the gas supply source by the regulator 132b, the air flow rate is further adjusted by the needle valve 132c. In order to enable pulse blow, an electromagnetic valve 132d having the same configuration as that of the electromagnetic valve 1A shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 is used. By applying a high-speed pulse drive voltage with a pulse width of about 500 [μsec] to the electromagnetic valve 132d, the solenoid of the electromagnetic valve 132d is instantaneously operated to obtain a sharp air pulse. When air pulses are injected in this way, it is desirable to instantaneously inject air with a flow rate higher than the scattering limit flow rate, and here, for example, it is set to about 200 [NmL / min]. The “scattering limit flow rate” means a flow rate at which the line pattern LP on the substrate is not scattered. The solenoid valve 132d is closed while the high-speed pulse driving voltage is not output from the pulse driving unit 150 in response to the closing command from the valve control unit 140, thereby stopping the supply of compressed air to the gas nozzle 120, The injection of air from the gas nozzle 120 is stopped.

FIG. 9 is a timing chart showing the operation of the coating apparatus shown in FIG. 4. FIG. 9 (a) shows the operation when forming a line pattern when air injection, that is, no air blow is performed, while FIG. ) Shows an operation of forming a line pattern while performing air blowing in response to the start and stop of discharge of the coating liquid. When air blow is not performed, a ball-shaped deformed portion is generated at the start end of the line pattern LP, and a tail (thread drawing) of the coating liquid is generated at the end. In particular, in order to form a wiring pattern, it has a relatively high viscosity, for example, a viscosity of several tens [Pa · s (Pascal second)] to several hundred [Pa · s] at a shear rate of 1 [s ⁻¹ ]. Electrode paste may be used, and these are important issues.

  Of these, one of the main factors is a wind generated between the substrate W and the coating liquid nozzle 200 due to the relative movement of the substrate W with respect to the coating liquid nozzle 200 as a ball generation factor. That is, it is considered that the flow CF of the coating liquid immediately after the discharge is wound up by the generation of the wind, and this causes the generation of a ball. In addition, tail generation is considered to occur in the following process. That is, immediately after the discharge of the coating liquid is stopped, the coating liquid located in the vicinity of the coating liquid discharge port 210 of the coating liquid nozzle 200 is stretched and then cut off and falls onto the surface of the substrate W, and this exists as a tail.

  Therefore, in this embodiment, the gas nozzle 120 is provided as described above, and the valve control unit 140 outputs an opening command at a timing slightly earlier than the coating liquid discharge start time (timing T1) as shown in FIG. 9B. To do. Then, the pulse driving unit 150 that has received the opening command generates a high-speed pulse driving voltage having a pulse width of about 500 [μsec] and applies it to the electromagnetic valve 132d. In response to this, the electromagnetic valve 132d operates in a pulse manner to start injection of the pulsed air flow AF. Then, the pulse blow is continued beyond the timing T1, and the discharge of the coating liquid is started at the timing T1. For this reason, the effect of suppressing the generation of balls and the effect of suppressing the variation in the starting end position are obtained.

  As a result of analyzing the pulse blow corresponding to the start of the discharge of the coating liquid, the present inventor considers as follows. In other words, the pulsed airflow AF before and after the timing T1 momentarily presses only the beginning of the line pattern LP to prevent winding of the coating liquid, and even if a ball is generated, the pulse blow pushes it. Crush to form a flat shape. Therefore, the effect of suppressing both the ball generation and the variation in the starting end position can be obtained.

  After a while from the timing T1, the valve control unit 140 outputs a close command and stops the injection of the airflow AF. This is to prevent the cross-sectional shape of the line pattern LP from being affected by the pressure applied to the line pattern LP by air blow. In particular, in the case of pulse blowing, although air instantaneously, a flow rate exceeding the scattering limit flow rate is given to the line pattern LP, it is preferable to stop the pulse blow at timings other than the start and stop of discharge of the coating liquid. It is.

  When approaching the end of the line pattern LP, the valve control unit 140 again outputs an opening command at a timing slightly earlier than the coating liquid discharge stop timing (timing T2), and after starting the pulse blow, the coating liquid is discharged at timing T2. Supply is stopped. Thereby, the effect of suppressing the occurrence of tails can be obtained.

  As a result of analyzing the pulse blow corresponding to the discharge stop of the coating liquid, the inventor of the present application considers as follows. That is, the aesthetic appearance of the line pattern LP is improved by the pulsed airflow AF immediately before the timing T2 forming the rear end of the line pattern LP into a flat shape. Further, the pulsed airflow AF after the timing T2 cuts the tail and erases it.

  As described above, the gas nozzle 120 is disposed downstream of the coating liquid nozzle 2 in the substrate movement direction X, and the gas nozzle 120 is directed toward the substrate surface upstream of the substrate movement direction X with respect to the coating liquid supply position P1. Air is ejected from 120, and the air flow AF can be supplied to the flow CF of the coating liquid between the discharge port 21 of the coating liquid nozzle 2 and the surface of the substrate W. Then, pulse blow is performed in response to the start and stop of discharge of the coating liquid. For this reason, the supply of the air flow AF acts in the direction in which the coating solution is pressed against the substrate, and the variation of the starting end position is suppressed while preventing the starting end of the line pattern LP from being deformed into a ball shape without scattering the coating solution. In addition, it is possible to suppress the tail from occurring at the end of the line pattern LP.

  In the present embodiment, the electromagnetic valve 132d has the same configuration as the electromagnetic valve 1A and opens and closes with excellent responsiveness, so that high-speed pulse blow can be performed. This is because the compressed air can be supplied and stopped at shorter intervals than when a conventional electromagnetic valve, for example, a pulse jet valve PJ series manufactured by CKD, is used as the electromagnetic valve 132d. Application to a desired shape is possible.

  In the coating apparatus 100, the discharge port of the gas nozzle 120 is directed to the vicinity of the coating solution discharge port 210 of the coating solution nozzle 200. For this reason, the leakage flow rate at the closing of the electromagnetic valve 132d, that is, the leakage amount may be affected, and the reduction of the leakage amount becomes one of the major problems. In this regard, in the present embodiment, since the electromagnetic valve 1A is used as the electromagnetic valve 132d, the amount of leakage can be suppressed to 1/10 or less of the prior art, while the electromagnetic valve 132d is closed. It is possible to prevent the compressed air from being discharged from the discharge port of the gas nozzle 120 due to leakage from the electromagnetic valve 132d. As a result, the coating liquid discharge port 210 of the coating liquid nozzle 200 can be effectively prevented from being clogged.

  In the coating apparatus 100 according to the above embodiment, the pulse interval is constant as shown in FIG. 9B, but the pulse interval is appropriately changed in consideration of the effect of the pulse blow. For example, FIG. As shown, FM modulation (frequency modulation) may be performed. That is, in order to increase the pressure-bonding force and increase the ball generation suppression effect, it is only necessary to increase the pressure of the air flow AF applied to the coating liquid flow CF with a narrow pulse interval after the timing T1. In order to further suppress the scattering of the coating liquid at the time of tail improvement, the pulse interval after timing T2 may be widened to weaken the pressure of the air flow AF applied to the coating liquid flow CF by pulse blowing. Thus, the effect of the pulse blow can be adjusted by FM modulating the pulse blow waveform. Of course, the modulation method is not limited to the FM modulation, and various modulation methods such as PWM (pulse width modulation) may be used.

  In the coating apparatus 100 described above, the present invention is applied to a so-called four-channel coating apparatus having four coating liquid nozzles 200, but the number of nozzles is not limited to this. Moreover, although the several coating liquid nozzle 200 is provided in the multiple nozzle block 300 and integrated, this invention is applicable also to the coating device which provided the several coating liquid nozzle independently, respectively.

  Moreover, in the said embodiment, although this invention is applied with respect to the coating device 100 which provided the coating liquid discharge control part 400 with respect to all the coating liquid nozzles 200, among these, at least 1 or more coating liquid nozzles The electromagnetic valve according to the present invention may be applied to a coating apparatus provided with a coating liquid discharge controller only for the second embodiment (second embodiment). Hereinafter, the details of the embodiment of the coating apparatus equipped with the electromagnetic valve 1 </ b> A will be described with reference to FIGS. 11 to 14.

  FIG. 11 is a view showing an embodiment of a coating apparatus equipped with an electromagnetic valve according to the present invention. The coating apparatus 1000 is an apparatus that applies a coating liquid containing a material for forming a pattern on a substrate and cures the coating liquid. For example, the coating apparatus 1000 forms a wiring pattern on a substrate having a photoelectric conversion surface to form a photoelectric conversion device. It is applicable to the technology for manufacturing. Then, from the following technical background, only a part of the coating liquid nozzles is provided with a coating liquid discharge control unit and a gas discharge device. That is, the shape of the substrate on which the pattern is to be formed by the coating apparatus 1000 varies. For example, as a single crystal silicon substrate used as a substrate of a solar battery cell, there is an octagonal shape obtained by cutting off four corners of a square. This is for effectively utilizing the area of the circular single crystal silicon wafer. Therefore, the length of the pattern to be formed at positions corresponding to the four corners is different from the length of the pattern to be formed at other positions.

  Therefore, in the coating apparatus 1000, the above-described coating liquid discharge control unit is provided for the coating liquid nozzle that discharges the coating liquid at positions corresponding to the four corners. More specifically, the coating liquid discharge control unit is provided only for the three most upstream sides and the three most downstream sides in the arrangement direction among the 26 nozzles arranged in a line in the arrangement direction. Therefore, it is possible to efficiently form a pattern on a non-rectangular substrate (hereinafter referred to as a “deformed substrate”) by controlling the discharge and stoppage of the application liquid being pumped. Yes.

  In this coating apparatus 1000, a stage moving mechanism 2000 is provided on a base 7100, and a stage 3000 that holds the substrate W can be moved in the XY plane shown in FIG. 11 by the stage moving mechanism 2000. A frame 7210 is fixed to the base 7100 so as to straddle the stage 3000, and a coating head unit 5000 is attached to the frame 7210.

  The stage moving mechanism 2000 includes an X-direction moving mechanism 2100 that moves the stage 3000 in the X direction, a Y-direction moving mechanism 2200 that moves the stage 3000 in the Y direction, and a θ rotation mechanism 2300 that rotates around an axis that faces the Z direction. The X-direction moving mechanism 2100 has a structure in which a ball screw 2120 is connected to a motor 2110 and a nut 2130 fixed to the Y-direction moving mechanism 2200 is attached to the ball screw 2120. A guide rail 2140 is fixed above the ball screw 2120. When the motor 2110 rotates, the Y-direction moving mechanism 2200 moves smoothly along the guide rail 2140 in the X direction along with the nut 2130.

  The Y-direction moving mechanism 2200 also has a motor 2210, a ball screw mechanism, and a guide rail 2240. When the motor 2210 rotates, the θ rotation mechanism 2300 moves in the Y direction along the guide rail 2240 by the ball screw mechanism. The θ rotation mechanism 2300 rotates the stage 3000 by the motor 2310. The center of rotation is the Z direction axis. With the above configuration, the relative moving direction and orientation of the coating head unit 5000 with respect to the substrate W can be changed. Each motor of the stage moving mechanism 2000 is controlled by a control unit 6000 that controls the operation of each part of the apparatus.

  Further, a stage elevating mechanism 2400 is provided between the θ rotation mechanism 2300 and the stage 3000. The stage elevating mechanism 2400 elevates the stage 3000 in accordance with a control command from the control unit 6000 and positions the substrate W at a specified height (Z direction position). As the stage elevating mechanism 2400, for example, a mechanism using an actuator such as a solenoid or a piezoelectric element, a mechanism using a gear, a mechanism using a wedge meshing, or the like can be used.

  In the base 5100 of the coating head unit 5000, there is a coating liquid supply unit 5200 that stores a liquid (paste-like) coating solution inside and discharges the coating solution toward the substrate W in accordance with a control command from the control unit 6000. Is provided. The coating liquid supply unit 5200 includes a syringe pump 5210 that is hollow inside and stores the coating liquid, and a plunger 5240 that is inserted into the internal space of the pump 5210. The plunger 5240 is driven up and down by an actuator such as a motor, a solenoid or the like driven or controlled by the control unit 6000, or compressed air, and pressurizes the coating liquid stored in the internal space of the syringe pump 5210.

  A multiple nozzle block 5500 is attached to the lower part of the coating liquid supply unit 5200. The multiple nozzle block 5500 is an integrated unit of 26 coating liquid nozzles (not shown) for discharging the coating liquid toward the substrate W, and the coating liquid nozzles are arranged in a line in the Y direction. That is, in the coating apparatus 1000, the Y direction is the direction in which the coating liquid nozzles are arranged. Although not shown in FIG. 11, each coating solution nozzle is connected to the coating solution supply unit 5200, and the coating solution pumped from the coating solution supply unit 5200 is provided along the coating solution channel provided inside. It is possible to discharge from the discharge port 5510. Among these 26 coating liquid nozzles, the coating liquid discharge control unit 5600 is attached to the three upstreammost coating liquid nozzles and the three downstreammost coating liquid nozzles in the Y direction, and the remaining central side 20 A coating liquid discharge controller is not provided for the coating liquid nozzle. Therefore, when the syringe pump 5210 is operated by the operation of the plunger 5240, the coating liquid is pumped toward the respective coating liquid nozzles provided in the multiple nozzle block 5500, and the central side where the coating liquid discharge control unit 5600 is not provided. While the coating liquid is discharged as it is from the 20 coating liquid nozzles, the rotational axes (not shown) of the respective coating liquid discharge control units 5600 are used for a total of six coating liquid nozzles, ie, the three most upstream and the three most downstream. ) Is turned on / off individually for each discharge port 5510. The basic configuration of the coating liquid discharge control unit 5600 is the same as that adopted in the coating liquid discharging apparatus 102. Further, a gas discharge device 8000 is provided corresponding to the coating liquid nozzle provided with the coating liquid discharge control unit 5600. The basic configuration of the gas discharge device 8000 is the same as that adopted in the gas discharge device 103.

  A light irradiation unit 5300 that irradiates UV light (ultraviolet rays) toward the substrate W is attached to the base 5100 of the coating head unit 5000. The light irradiation unit 5300 is connected to a light source unit 5320 that generates ultraviolet rays via an optical fiber 5310. Although not shown, the light source unit 5320 has a shutter that can be freely opened and closed at its light emitting portion, and the on / off of the emitted light and the amount of light can be controlled by the opening and closing and the opening degree. The light source unit 5320 is controlled by the control unit 6000.

  FIG. 12 is a diagram illustrating an example of a solar battery cell formed using the coating apparatus of FIG. The solar battery cell S is provided on the surface of the single crystal silicon substrate W (surface on which the photoelectric conversion surface and the antireflection film are provided) and a large number of finger wiring patterns F having a small width and provided so as to cross these. A wide bus wiring pattern B is provided. The finger wiring pattern F and the bus wiring pattern B are electrically connected at the intersection.

  Regarding the dimensions of each part, for example, the width and height of the finger wiring pattern F can be about 50 μm, the width of the bus wiring pattern B can be 1.8 mm to 2.0 mm, and the height can be 50 μm to 70 μm. It is not limited to numerical values.

  The silicon substrate W has an octagon that is line-symmetric with respect to the central axis C and is formed by cutting out four corners of a substantially square shape. This is because the wafer cut out from the single crystal silicon rod manufactured in a substantially cylindrical shape has a disk shape, and the shape is generated due to the necessity of making the substrate W by effectively using the surface area.

  For this reason, many finger electrodes F formed on the substrate W have a certain length in the rectangular region RR that can be regarded as a substantially rectangular shape at the center of the substrate W. Each one has a different length. Specifically, the plurality of electrodes Fr formed in the rectangular region RR all have the same length slightly shorter than the length of the substrate W, whereas the electrode Fe formed in the end region ER is The length changes as the end surface of the substrate W recedes, and the length is closer to the end of the substrate. In the example of FIG. 12, 20 electrode patterns Fr having the same length are formed in the rectangular region RR at the center of the substrate, and three electrode patterns Fe having different lengths are formed in the end regions ER at both ends of the substrate. Note that this is merely an example, and the number of patterns is not limited to these, but the number of coating liquid discharge control units 5600 must be set in accordance with the number of electrode patterns Fe provided in the end region ER. There is.

  In the conventional technique (for example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2011-60873) in which a large number of coating liquid nozzles whose discharge on / off is collectively controlled are integrally moved relative to the substrate, such a shape is used. It was not possible to cope with the substrate. In addition, a specific technique for individually controlling on / off of each coating liquid nozzle has not been put into practical use. On the other hand, the coating apparatus 1000 of this embodiment is provided with a coating liquid discharge control unit 5600 having the same configuration as that in FIG. 5, and each coating liquid discharge control unit 5600 controls the discharge and discharge stop of the coating liquid. Thus, it is possible to efficiently perform pattern formation on such a deformed substrate.

  FIG. 13 is a diagram schematically showing how the finger electrodes are formed by the apparatus of FIG. As shown in the figure, in this apparatus 1000, the stage 3000 on which the substrate W is placed is moved in the X direction, whereby the multiple nozzle block 5500 is relatively moved with respect to the surface of the substrate W in the (−X) direction. To scan. Twenty-six discharge ports 5510 are provided on the lower surface of the multiple nozzle block 5500, and these discharge ports 5510 are arranged at equal intervals in one row along the Y direction. The dimension of the multiple nozzle block 5500 in the Y direction is approximately the same as or larger than the dimension of the substrate W in the same direction. Therefore, the finger electrode patterns Fr and Fe can be formed on the entire surface of the substrate W only by scanning the multiple nozzle block 5500 once with respect to the substrate W.

  As the coating solution, a conductive paste, that is, conductive and photocurable, for example, a paste-like mixture containing conductive particles, an organic vehicle (a mixture of solvent, resin, thickener, etc.) and a photopolymerization initiator. A liquid can be used. The conductive particles are, for example, silver powder as a material of the electrode, and the organic vehicle contains ethyl cellulose as a resin material and an organic solvent. Further, the viscosity of the coating liquid is preferably, for example, 50 [Pa · s] or less before performing the curing process by light irradiation, and 350 [Pa · s] or more after performing the curing process.

  With respect to the coating liquid immediately after being ejected from the ejection port 5510 onto the surface of the substrate W, the light emitted from the light irradiation unit 5300 disposed behind the ejection port 5510 in the scanning movement direction (−X direction) of the coating liquid nozzle is Irradiated. As a result, the coating solution is cured while maintaining the cross-sectional shape immediately after discharge, and the electrode patterns Fr and Fe are formed. Patterns having various cross-sectional shapes can be formed by appropriately setting the shape of the discharge port 5510, the viscosity of the coating liquid, and the light irradiation conditions, and in particular, a pattern having a high ratio to the pattern width, that is, a high aspect ratio. Can be formed.

  FIG. 14 is a flowchart showing the pattern forming process according to the present embodiment. This process is executed using a multiple nozzle block 5500 having 26 discharge ports 5510 corresponding to the number of patterns to be formed. Among these discharge ports 5510, a coating liquid discharge controller 5600 is provided for the coating liquid nozzle connected to each of the three most upstream and three downstream most discharge ports 5510 in the Y direction. The discharge and stoppage of the coating liquid are controlled independently. For this reason, the coating liquid discharge controller 5600 pumps the coating liquid from the coating liquid supply unit 5200 toward the coating liquid nozzle in a state where the discharge from the three most upstream and three downstream ports 5510 is stopped. Then, the coating liquid is simultaneously discharged from the 20 discharge ports 5510 on the center side. Thereafter, the application liquid discharge controller 5600 can rotate the rotation shaft to individually control the discharge of the application liquid from each discharge port 5510. In addition, the codes P1 to P3 and P24 to P26 shown in FIG. 13 are codes for specifying the discharge port for applying the end region ER. That is, out of the 26 outlets, the outlets located on the outermost side are indicated by symbols P1, P26, the outlets located one inside are indicated by symbols P2, P25, and the outlets located further inside are indicated by symbols P3, P24. It represents as. The remaining 20 ejection ports excluding these are used to form the pattern Fr of the rectangular region RR. As will be described later, these discharge ports P1 to P3 and P24 to P26 are discharge ports that are uniquely controlled by the coating liquid discharge control unit 5600 at timings different from those of other discharge ports. This is referred to as a “control target discharge port”.

  In this process, first, the substrate W is carried into the coating apparatus 1000 and placed on the stage 3000 with the surface on which the pattern is to be formed facing upward (step S101). Further, the rotation axis of the coating liquid discharge controller 5600 is rotated around the axis to stop the discharge from the discharge ports P1 to P3 and P24 to P26 (step S102). Specifically, for example, similarly to the coating liquid nozzle of “nozzle number 1” in FIG. 6, the communication ratio between the upstream flow path and the downstream flow path is set to 0 [%].

  In this state, the stage 3000 is moved in the X direction by the stage moving mechanism 2000 (step S103), and the multiple nozzle block 5500 is relatively moved directly above the X direction end of the substrate W. Then, pressurization of the coating liquid by the syringe pump 5210 is started and the substrate W is moved in the X direction (step S104). As a result, the discharge of the coating liquid is started only from the 20 discharge ports 5510 located in the central portion. Thereby, formation of the pattern Fr of the rectangular region RR is started.

  Thereafter, the discharge outlets to be controlled are sequentially opened according to the following procedure (step S105). That is, after a predetermined time has elapsed from the start of pressurization of the syringe pump 5210, the discharge stop from the discharge ports P3 and P24 closest to the center among the discharge ports to be controlled is first released, and the coating liquid flow path is opened. Next, the discharge ports P2 and P25 adjacent to the outside are opened, and finally the outermost discharge ports P1 and P26 are opened. Thus, patterns Fe having different start positions are formed in the end region ER of the substrate W in accordance with the opening timing of the discharge ports. Further, similarly to the coating apparatus 100 shown in FIG. 4, the start of the electrode pattern (line pattern) is deformed into a ball shape by controlling the supply of the air flow from the gas ejection apparatus 800 in response to the start of the ejection of the coating liquid. Or the start position varies.

  By continuing the scanning movement of the multiple nozzle block 5500 with respect to the substrate W as it is, 26 electrode patterns parallel to each other are formed on the substrate W. After this state is continued until the substrate W reaches a predetermined position (step S106), the discharge ports P1 to P3 and P24 to P26 are sequentially closed in the reverse order of the opening order (step S107). That is, the outermost discharge ports P1 and P26 are closed, and thereafter, the discharge ports P2 and P25 adjacent thereto are closed. Further, the innermost discharge ports P3 and P24 are closed. As the discharge port is closed, the pattern formation by the coating liquid from the discharge port is sequentially completed with a little time difference. Therefore, the end positions of these patterns are also different. Similarly to the coating apparatus 100 shown in FIG. 4, the tail of the electrode pattern (line pattern) is generated by controlling the supply of the air flow from the gas ejection apparatus 800 in response to the stop of the coating liquid discharge. Suppress.

  When the pattern formation in the end region ER on the end side is completed in this way and the multiple nozzle block 5500 reaches the end of the rectangular region RR, the pressurization from the syringe pump 5210 is stopped (step S108). Thereafter, the movement of the stage 3000 is stopped (step S109), the substrate W on which the finger electrode pattern F (Fr, Fe) is formed is unloaded (step S110), and the process is completed.

  According to the pattern forming process as described above, in the rectangular region RR at the center of the substrate W, the patterns Fr parallel to each other and having the same length are formed. On the other hand, in the end regions ER at both ends of the substrate, the closer to the outside of the substrate W, the later the pattern formation starts and the earlier the formation ends. Since the substrate W and the multiple nozzle block 5500 move relative to each other at a constant speed, the difference in formation timing is reflected on the start and end positions of the pattern on the substrate W, and finally FIG. 12 and FIG. A finger electrode pattern F as shown in FIG. During this time, the scanning movement of the multiple nozzle block 5500 with respect to the substrate W is performed only once.

  Further, a coating liquid discharge control unit 5600 is provided for the coating liquid nozzle corresponding to each control target discharge port 5510, and the discharge from the discharge port 5510 and the discharge stop are individually controlled by the rotation of the rotation shaft. doing. For this reason, the start end position and the end position of the pattern can be made different from other patterns for a part of a large number of line-shaped patterns formed at a time by the scanning movement of the multiple nozzle block 5500. As a result, a pattern can be efficiently formed on the entire surface of the irregular substrate as shown in FIGS. Moreover, the supply of the air flow from the gas discharge device 800 is controlled in the same manner as the coating device 100 shown in FIG. 4 in response to the start and stop of discharge of the coating liquid. For this reason, a pattern can be formed in a favorable shape on the substrate W without contaminating the substrate W or the apparatus.

  In addition, the rotation axis of the coating liquid discharge control unit 400 is attached to the coating liquid nozzle having each control target discharge port 5510, and the discharge of the coating liquid from the discharge port 5510 is controlled by the rotation of the rotation shaft. Thus, there is no deformation of the component parts, and it is possible to stably perform the discharge control of the coating liquid with high accuracy.

  In addition, since the coating liquid discharge control unit 5600 is arranged at different positions in the direction orthogonal to the arrangement direction Y, that is, in a zigzag or zigzag manner, mutual interference of the coating liquid discharge control unit 400 is prevented. And the pitch of the coating solution nozzle can be reduced. As a result, the interval between patterns that can be formed by the coating apparatus 1000 can be reduced.

  Thus, in the above embodiment, the substrate movement direction X corresponds to the “relative movement direction of the substrate” of the present invention. The gas nozzle 120 corresponds to an example of the “gas nozzle” in the present invention. The air flow AF corresponds to an example of the “gas flow” in the present invention. The valve controller 140 corresponds to an example of the “gas supply controller” of the present invention. Furthermore, the operation of applying the coating liquid onto the substrate W by moving the substrate W relative to the coating liquid nozzle that discharges the coating liquid corresponds to an example of the “coating process” of the present invention, and the flow of the coating liquid CF The operation of injecting the air flow AF corresponds to an example of the “gas supply process” of the present invention.

  In the above embodiment, the electromagnetic valve 1A is used as the electromagnetic valve 132d for switching between discharging and stopping the discharge of compressed air. However, other electromagnetic valves according to the present invention such as the electromagnetic valve 1B may be used.

  Further, a plurality of through holes are staggered with respect to the nozzle holder 110 and provided at different inclination angles, and the gas nozzle 120 is disposed in each through hole. By adopting such an arrangement relationship, the pitch can be narrowed while preventing mutual interference of the gas nozzles 120, and it is possible to cope with narrowing of the pattern interval. However, the arrangement relationship of the gas nozzles 120 is not limited to this, and may be arranged in a row, for example.

  Further, in the above embodiment, the air injection from the gas nozzle is controlled corresponding to both the discharge start and discharge stop of the coating liquid, but the air injection control is performed only corresponding to the start of discharge of the coating liquid. Or, conversely, air injection control may be performed only in response to stopping the discharge of the coating liquid.

  In the above embodiment, the coating liquid nozzle and the gas nozzle are fixedly arranged, while the substrate W is moved in the X direction to apply the coating liquid onto the surface of the substrate W to form a line pattern. Alternatively, the coating liquid may be applied to the substrate W by integrally moving the gas nozzle in the X direction. That is, the present invention can be applied to all coating techniques in which the coating liquid is applied to the substrate W by moving the substrate W relative to the nozzle in the X direction.

  Moreover, in the said embodiment, although air is sprayed with respect to the flow CF of a coating liquid, as "gas" of this invention, it is not limited to this, For example, nitrogen gas is made into "gas" of this invention You may comprise so that it may inject from a gas nozzle.

  The present invention can be applied to all coating techniques that control the coating of a coating liquid onto a substrate by switching the ejection and stoppage of gas from a gas nozzle using an electromagnetic valve and an electromagnetic valve.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1A, 1B, 132d ... Solenoid valve 2 ... Main-body part 4 ... Valve body 5 ... Valve seat member 8 ... Solenoid (drive part)
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 21 ... Valve chamber 22 ... Inflow flow path 51 ... Valve seat 52 ... Discharge hole 54 ... Groove part 55 ... Fluid introduction port 56 ... Communication hole 61 ... Contact surface 62 ... Contact area 82 ... Adsorption coil (drive part)
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 100,1000 ... Coating apparatus 102 ... Coating liquid discharge apparatus 103,800 ... Gas discharge apparatus 120 ... Gas nozzle (gas nozzle)
140 ... Valve control unit (gas supply control unit)
200 ... coating liquid nozzle 210 ... coating liquid discharge port AF ... air flow AX ... axis of symmetry CF ... flow of coating liquid W ... substrate X ... substrate movement direction (relative movement direction)

Claims (9)

A main body having a valve chamber and an inflow channel for allowing fluid to flow into the valve chamber;
A valve body accommodated in the valve chamber;
A valve seat member having at least one valve seat at one end and a discharge hole for discharging the fluid at the other end, and provided in the valve chamber with the valve seat facing the valve body;
A drive unit that switches contact and separation of the valve body with respect to the valve seat depending on whether electromagnetic force is supplied to the valve body;
The cross-sectional area of the discharge hole in a plane orthogonal to the discharge direction for discharging the fluid from the discharge hole is smaller than the area of the contact region formed by the valve body contacting the valve seat,
In the contact region, a plurality of fluid inlets are provided at the one end of the valve seat member,
The valve seat member has a plurality of communication holes that respectively connect the plurality of fluid introduction ports to the discharge holes and allow the fluid to flow to the discharge holes when the valve body is separated from the valve seat. Characteristic solenoid valve. The electromagnetic valve according to claim 1,
The plurality of communication holes are electromagnetic valves that are linear through holes extending from the plurality of fluid introduction ports to the discharge holes, respectively. The solenoid valve according to claim 1 or 2,
The valve seat member has an axisymmetric structure with an imaginary line extending in a direction parallel to the discharge direction as an axis of symmetry,
The plurality of fluid inlets are electromagnetic valves provided to be symmetrical about the axis of symmetry. The solenoid valve according to claim 1 or 2,
A solenoid valve in which a plurality of the valve seats are provided apart from each other at the one end of the valve seat member. The electromagnetic valve according to claim 4,
The valve seat member has an axisymmetric structure with an imaginary line extending in a direction parallel to the discharge direction as an axis of symmetry,
The plurality of valve seats are electromagnetic valves arranged symmetrically with respect to the symmetry axis. The solenoid valve according to claim 4 or 5,
In any of the plurality of valve seats, an electromagnetic valve in which a total area of the fluid inlet provided in the valve seat is (1/3) or less of an area of the valve seat. A solenoid valve according to any one of claims 4 to 6,
In each of the plurality of valve seats, the fluid introduction port is provided at a central portion of the valve seat. A coating apparatus that applies the coating liquid onto the surface of the substrate by moving the substrate relative to a coating liquid nozzle that discharges the coating liquid from a coating liquid discharge port;
A gas nozzle disposed on the downstream side in the relative movement direction of the substrate with respect to the coating liquid nozzle;
A gas supply unit for supplying a gas to the gas nozzle, injecting the gas from the gas nozzle, and blowing a gas flow against the flow of the coating liquid discharged from the coating liquid nozzle;
A gas supply control unit that controls supply of the gas by the gas supply unit,
The gas supply unit supplies the gas to the gas nozzle via the electromagnetic valve according to any one of claims 1 to 7,
The gas supply control unit applies a pulse driving voltage to the driving unit of the electromagnetic valve to repeatedly switch the contact and separation of the valve body and supply the gas to the gas nozzle in a pulsed manner. Application device to do. An application step of applying the application liquid onto the surface of the substrate by moving the substrate relative to an application liquid nozzle for discharging the application liquid from an application liquid discharge port;
The gas is supplied in a pulsed manner through the electromagnetic valve according to any one of claims 1 to 7, with respect to a gas nozzle disposed downstream of the coating liquid nozzle in the relative movement direction of the substrate. And a gas supply step of supplying a pulsed gas flow to the flow of the coating liquid discharged from the coating liquid discharge port of the coating liquid nozzle.

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