JP2023181290A - Sheet material manufacturing method, coating film forming method, sheet material manufacturing device, and coater - Google Patents

Abstract

To provide a sheet material manufacturing method, a coating film forming method, a sheet material manufacturing device and a coater, which can suppress generation of a gauge band.SOLUTION: A sheet material manufacturing method according to the present invention is a method involving: measuring a thickness of a sheet material under conveyance in a direction orthogonal or approximately orthogonal to a conveyance direction of the sheet material or a direction parallel or approximately parallel to a long-side direction of a T-die or a parallelly moving unit; and controlling the T-die and/or the parallelly moving unit on the basis of actual measurement values obtained by the measurement. A sheet material manufacturing device according to the present invention is also similar. A coating film forming method according to the present invention is a method involving: forming a coating film on a surface of a sheet material under conveyance by coating means; measuring a thickness of the coating film on the surface of the sheet material under conveyance in a direction orthogonal or approximately orthogonal to a conveyance direction of a sheet material or a direction parallel or approximately parallel to the coating means; and controlling the coating means on the basis of the actual measurement values obtained by the measurement. A coater according to the present invention is also similar.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

The present invention relates to a method for manufacturing molded optical films and various metal foils (hereinafter collectively referred to as "sheet materials"), a method for forming a coating film on sheet materials, an apparatus for manufacturing sheet materials, and a coating method for coating sheet materials. The present invention relates to a coater that forms a film.

Resin films such as PET film and TAC film, and metal foils such as copper foil and aluminum foil are used for battery collector plates and fuel cell electrodes installed in electronic devices such as smartphones and LCD TVs, and hybrid vehicles. is used. These sheet materials are required to have as uniform a thickness as possible, since non-uniform thickness may cause product defects.

However, it is not easy to completely eliminate unevenness in the thickness of the sheet material, and a convex band (so-called gauge band) may occur when the sheet material is wound up by a winding device. When a gauge band occurs, a larger load is applied to that part than other parts, which can cause damage to the sheet material.

Conventionally, techniques for suppressing the occurrence of gauge bands have been proposed by a method of adjusting the discharge amount from a T-die (Patent Document 1) and a method of swinging an oscillating device (Patent Document 2). The methods disclosed in both documents measure the thickness by scanning the sheet material in the width direction with a thickness measuring device, and control the T-die and oscillating device based on the estimated value calculated from the measured value. It is.

Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 3-286829 Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2002-87690

However, since the values used for control in the methods of Patent Documents 1 and 2 are estimated values and not actual measured values, it is not possible to accurately control the T-die or oscillation device, and the generation of gauge bands cannot be effectively controlled. It was difficult to say that it could be suppressed.

The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and an object to be solved is to provide a sheet material manufacturing method, a coating film forming method, a sheet material manufacturing device, and a coater that can more easily suppress the occurrence of gauge bands than conventional techniques. It's about doing.

[Sheet material manufacturing method]
The sheet material manufacturing method of the present invention is a method of manufacturing a sheet material using a sheet material manufacturing apparatus equipped with a T-die and/or a parallel movement unit, and the sheet material is Measure the thickness in a direction perpendicular or substantially perpendicular to the direction, or in a direction parallel or substantially parallel to the longitudinal direction of the T-die or the parallel movement unit, and based on the actual measurement value obtained by the measurement, A method of controlling a die and/or a translation unit.

[Coating film formation method]
The coating film forming method of the present invention is a method of forming a coating film on the surface of a sheet material using a coater equipped with a coating means, the coating film being formed on the surface of the sheet material during conveyance by the coating means. The thickness of the coating film formed on the surface of the sheet material during transport is measured in a direction perpendicular or substantially perpendicular to the transport direction of the sheet material, or in a direction parallel or substantially parallel to the coating means. , a method of controlling the coating means based on the actual value obtained by the measurement.

[Sheet material manufacturing equipment]
The sheet material manufacturing device of the present invention is a sheet material manufacturing device equipped with a T-die and/or a parallel movement unit, in which the sheet material is transported in a direction perpendicular or substantially perpendicular to the transport direction of the sheet material, Or, based on a thickness measuring device that measures the thickness in a direction parallel or substantially parallel to the longitudinal direction of the T-die or the parallel movement unit, and an actual value obtained by measurement with the thickness measuring device, The apparatus further includes a control means for controlling the T-die and/or the parallel movement unit.

[Coater]
The coater of the present invention measures the thickness of the sheet material being transported in a direction perpendicular or substantially perpendicular to the transport direction of the sheet material, or in a direction parallel or substantially parallel to the longitudinal direction of the coating means. The apparatus includes a thickness measuring device and a control means for controlling the coating means based on the actual measurement value obtained by the measurement with the thickness measuring device.

Note that "substantially perpendicular to the conveying direction of the sheet material" does not have to be perpendicular in a strict sense, but it does mean that a slight error may occur as a result of intending to measure the thickness in the orthogonal direction.

According to the present invention, the T-die, parallel movement unit, and coating means are controlled based on the actual measurement values obtained by the thickness measurement device, so the control accuracy is higher than in the conventional method using estimated values. , the generation of gauge bands can be suppressed more effectively than conventional methods.

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram showing an example of a sheet material manufacturing device. 2 is a side view of the sheet material manufacturing apparatus shown in FIG. 1. FIG. (a) is a side view which shows an example of T-die, (b) is a front view which shows an example of T-die. FIG. 1 is an exploded schematic diagram showing an example of a thickness measuring device. (a) is an explanatory diagram of the operation of the thickness measuring device in the present application, and (b) is an explanatory diagram of the measurement locus in the thickness measuring device in the present application. FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram showing an example of a coater. FIG. 6 is a schematic diagram showing another example of the coater. An explanatory diagram of a measurement trajectory with a conventional thickness measuring device.

(Embodiment 1)
An example of an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. As an example, the sheet material manufacturing apparatus shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 is a sheet material manufacturing apparatus that manufactures a resin film (sheet material S). 1 and 2, 11 is an extruder, 12 is a T-die, 13 is a cooling roll, 14 is a casting roll, 15 is a conveyance roll, 16 is a thickness measuring device, 17 is a parallel movement unit, and 18 is a winding device It is. The configuration shown here is the main configuration of the sheet material manufacturing apparatus, and the sheet material manufacturing apparatus also includes other configurations.

The extruder 11 is a device that melts resin pellets and extrudes them to a T-die 12, and includes as main components a melting section for melting the resin pellets and a hopper for guiding the resin pellets to the melting section.

The T-die 12 spreads the molten resin extruded from the extruder 11 in the width direction and discharges it. As an example, the T-die 12 shown in FIGS. 3(a) and 3(b) includes a resin inflow path 12a into which the molten resin that has flowed from the extruder 11 flows, and a manifold that disperses the molten resin that has flowed in from the resin inflow path 12a in the width direction. 12b, and a lip 12c for discharging the molten resin that has flowed in from the manifold 12b. The molten resin in the T-die 12 is kept in a molten state by a heater (not shown).

The lip 12c is composed of opposing parts that are spaced apart from each other. Each opposing part includes a plurality of divided parts provided along the longitudinal direction. Each divided part is provided with an interval adjuster 12d for adjusting the interval between the opposing divided parts. The spacing adjustment tool 12d is operated by an actuator (not shown), and the thickness of the sheet material S can be adjusted by controlling the actuator to adjust the spacing (lip spacing) between both opposing parts of the spacing adjustment tool 12d. It is set as. The configuration of the T-die 12 shown here is an example, and the T-die 12 may have a configuration other than this.

The cooling roll 13 is a roll that rapidly cools and solidifies the molten resin supplied from the T-die 12, the casting roll 14 is a roll that forms the sheet material S into a sheet while uniformizing the temperature, and the conveyance roll 15 is a roll that forms the sheet material S into a sheet shape. The conveying roll and winding device 18 is a device that winds up the formed sheet material S into a roll shape. Existing cooling rolls 13, casting rolls 14, conveying rolls 15, and winding devices 18 can be used.

The thickness measuring device 16 is a device that measures the thickness of the sheet material S in the manufacturing process before (upstream) the winding device 18. As an example, the thickness measuring device 16 shown in FIG. 4 includes a cross-direction actuator 16b provided on the upper surface side of the base 16a, a transport direction actuator 16c provided on the cross-direction actuator 16b, and a transport direction actuator 16c provided on the transport direction actuator 16c. It is equipped with measuring means 16d to 16h.

The base 16a is a flat platform on which the transport direction actuator 16c, the cross direction actuator 16b, etc. are mounted. The cross-direction actuator 16b is attached to the upper surface of the base 16a on the rear side in the conveyance direction along a direction intersecting the conveyance direction of the sheet material S.

The cross-direction actuator 16b moves the conveyance direction actuator 16c in a direction crossing the conveyance direction. An existing linear guide or the like can be used for the cross-direction actuator 16b. The cross-direction actuator 16b of this embodiment includes a cross-direction guide 16i provided in a direction crossing the conveyance direction, and a cross-direction slider 16j that moves along the cross-direction guide 16i.

A conveyance direction actuator 16c (specifically, a conveyance direction guide 16k to be described later) is attached to the cross direction slider 16j. The cross-direction slider 16j is configured to be able to reciprocate along the cross-direction guide 16i by a drive source (not shown).

The transport direction actuator 16c moves the measuring means 16d to 16h in the transport direction. An existing linear guide or the like can be used as the transport direction actuator 16c. The conveyance direction actuator 16c of this embodiment includes a conveyance direction guide 16k provided along the conveyance direction, and a conveyance direction slider 16m that moves along the conveyance direction guide 16k. A mounting table 16n for mounting the measuring means 16d to 16h is attached to the transport direction slider 16m.

The measuring means 16d to 16h measure the thickness of the sheet material S. As the measuring means 16d to 16h, in addition to a sensor using optical interference such as a spectral interference film thickness meter, an infrared sensor such as an infrared film thickness measurement sensor, or an existing sensor such as a displacement sensor can be used. When the sheet material S is made of an opaque material, a sensor using β-rays, X-rays, etc. can also be used.

In this embodiment, five measuring means 16d to 16h are used as an example, but the number of measuring means 16d to 16h may be more or less than five. The five measuring means 16d to 16h of this embodiment are provided at intervals in the longitudinal direction on the upper surface of the mounting table 16n which is long in the cross direction. Although there is no particular limitation on the installation interval of the measuring means 16d to 16h, it can be set to, for example, about 100 mm, 150 mm, 200 mm, 250 mm, or 300 mm. The measuring means 16d to 16h can be installed at wider or narrower intervals.

As shown in FIG. 5(b), in this embodiment, when the sheet material S is virtually divided into five regions in the width direction, the first measuring means 16d measures the first region S1 of the sheet material S. The thickness of the second region S2 of the sheet material S is determined by the second measuring means 16e, and the thickness of the third region S3 of the sheet material S is determined by the third measuring means 16f. The thickness of the fourth region S4 of the sheet material S is measured by 16g, and the thickness of the fifth region S5 of the sheet material S is measured by the fifth measuring means 16h.

The thickness measuring device 16 can be established by itself, but in this embodiment, a lower cross-direction actuator 16p, a lower transport direction actuator 16r, and a counterweight 16s are provided as a counter unit on the lower surface side of the base 16a. There is. The counter unit is a mechanism for canceling or attenuating vibrations caused by the operations of the cross direction actuator 16b, the transport direction actuator 16c, and the measuring means 16d to 16h.

The lower cross-direction actuator 16p corresponds to the cross-direction actuator 16b provided on the upper surface side of the base 16a, and moves along a lower cross-direction guide 16t similar to the cross-direction actuator 16b and a lower cross-direction guide 16t. A slider equipped with a lower cross-direction slider 16u is used. The lower cross-direction actuator 16p is provided in an orientation and position that is symmetrical with respect to the cross-direction actuator 16b.

The lower conveyance direction actuator 16r corresponds to the conveyance direction actuator 16c provided on the upper surface side of the base 16a, and moves along the same lower conveyance direction guide 16v and the lower conveyance direction guide 16v as the conveyance direction actuator 16c. A device equipped with a lower conveyance direction slider 16w is used. The lower transport direction actuator 16r is provided in an orientation and position that is symmetrical with respect to the transport direction actuator 16c.

In this embodiment, the lower cross-direction actuator 16p and the lower conveyance direction actuator 16r are arranged point-symmetrically with the cross-direction actuator 16b and the conveyance direction actuator 16c, but depending on the performance of the actuators, the asymmetrical direction and It can also be provided at any position.

The counterweight 16s is for balancing the measuring means 16d to 16h and the mounting table 16n provided on the upper surface side of the base 16a, and is a weight having the same weight as the measuring means 16d to 16h and the mounting table 16n. is used.

As shown in FIG. 5(a), the thickness measuring device 16 of this embodiment moves the measuring means 16d to 16h in a direction intersecting the conveying direction using the cross-direction actuator 16b, and moves the measuring means 16d to 16h using the conveying direction actuator 16c. The thickness of the sheet material S is measured while moving the sheets 16d to 16h in the conveying direction. The measuring means 16d to 16h can also be configured to move only in either the transport direction or a direction intersecting the transport direction.

It is preferable that the conveying speed of the measuring means 16d to 16h in the conveying direction is equal to or approximately equal to the conveying speed of the sheet material S in the conveying direction. When the conveying speed of the measuring means 16d to 16h in the conveying direction is set to be the same speed or approximately the same speed as the conveying speed of the sheet material S, the measurement trajectory when measuring while moving the measuring means 16d to 16h in the cross direction is , the locus is perpendicular or substantially perpendicular to the sheet material S as shown in FIG.

The parallel movement unit 17 is a device that adjusts the winding thickness of the sheet material S by oscillating (swinging) the formed sheet material S before the winding device 18. As an example, the parallel movement unit 17 shown in FIG. 1 includes a rotating body 17a, a frame 17b attached to the rotating body 17a, and two guide rolls 17c and 17d held on the frame 17b with an interval in the vertical direction. ing.

In this embodiment, a drive device including a rotating body 17a (turntable) that can be horizontally rotated by a motor is used as the rotating body 17a. The rotating body 17a is rotated in forward and reverse directions by a motor.

The frame 17b holds the guide rolls 17c and 17d, and is attached to the rotating body 17a. As an example, the frame 17b shown in FIG. 1 is an upwardly U-shaped member having a cross member fixed to the rotating body 17a and vertical members rising from both longitudinal ends of the cross member. Two guide rolls 17c and 17d are provided at intervals in the vertical direction.

The guide rolls 17c and 17d are rolls that guide the sheet material S toward the winding device 18. In this embodiment, as the guide rolls 17c and 17d, rolls that can guide the sheet material S in a non-contact state, specifically, cylindrical rolls having a plurality of air ejection holes on the outer peripheral surface, are used.

Although not shown, an air supply pipe is connected to one end side of both guide rolls 17c and 17d, and air can be supplied into the guide rolls 17c and 17d from an air supply device (not shown) to which the air supply pipe is connected. It's like this. The guide rolls 17c and 17d shown here are just an example, and other rolls such as existing rolls that guide the sheet material S in a contacting state may also be used.

In the parallel movement unit 17 of this embodiment, the rotating body 17a swings in forward and reverse directions while conveying the sheet material S, and when the sheet material S is wound up by the winding device 18, the thickness of the sheet material S is It is designed to minimize the occurrence of gauge bands (convex bands that appear when wound) caused by unevenness.

In this embodiment, the T-die 12 and the parallel movement unit 17 are controlled based on the measurement results by the measurement means 16d to 16h. The thickness measuring device 16 and the T-die 12 described here function as one device (lip interval control device), and the thickness measuring device 16 and the parallel movement unit 17 function as one device (parallel movement device).

For example, when controlling the T-die 12 based on the measurement results by the measuring means 16d to 16h, if the third region S3 in FIG. 5(b) is measured to be thicker than other parts by the measuring means 16f, , the gap between the lips 12c of the T-die 12 in the portion corresponding to the third region S3 is narrowed, and the gap in the portion of the lip 12c corresponding to the third region S3 of the sheet material S discharged from the T-die 12 thereafter is narrowed. The thickness can be made thinner than before.

On the contrary, if the measuring means 16f determines that the third region S3 is thinner than the other portions, the gap between the lips 12c of the T-die 12 in the portion corresponding to the third region S3. can be made wider so that the thickness of the portion corresponding to the third region S3 of the sheet material S discharged from the T-die 12 thereafter becomes thicker than before.

Further, when controlling the parallel movement unit 17 based on the measurement results by the measuring means 16d to 16h, for example, when the measuring means 16d detects thickness unevenness of the sheet material S, the rotation of the rotating body 17a ( Specifically, by changing the rotation speed, rotation direction, etc., it is possible to control the winding thickness to be uniform (to prevent gauge bands from occurring).

If the sheet material S has uneven thickness, a gauge band will occur when it is wound up by the winding device 18, and a larger load will be applied to that part than other parts, which may cause damage to the sheet material S. be. Since damage to the sheet material S is a cause of product defects, it is desirable that the sheet material S has as little unevenness in thickness as possible.

In this regard, since the sheet material manufacturing apparatus of this embodiment can measure the thickness of the sheet material S with high precision, the lip 12c of the T-die 12 and the parallel movement unit 17 can be controlled with high precision, and as a result, the thickness of the sheet material S can be measured with high precision. A sheet material S with less unevenness can be manufactured.

(motion)
Next, the operation of the sheet material manufacturing apparatus of this embodiment will be explained. In the sheet material manufacturing apparatus of this embodiment, the supplied resin pellets are heated and melted by the extruder 11 and supplied to the T-die 12, and the supplied molten resin is spread in the width direction by the T-die 12 and discharged. . The molten resin discharged from the T-die 12 is cooled by a cooling roll 13 and formed into a sheet shape, and after its temperature is adjusted by a casting roll 14, it is transported forward by a transport roll 15 while being stretched in the vertical and horizontal directions. It is wound up by the winding device 18.

In this embodiment, the thickness of the sheet material S is measured by the thickness measuring device 16 during the manufacturing process of the sheet material S. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 5(b), the thickness of the first region S1 of the sheet material S is determined by the first measuring means 16d, and the thickness of the second region S2 of the sheet material S is determined by the second measuring means 16e. The thickness of the third region S3 of the sheet material S is determined by the third measuring means 16f, and the thickness of the fourth region S4 of the sheet material S is determined by the fourth measuring means 16g. At 16h, the thickness of the fifth region S5 of the sheet material S is measured.

In this embodiment, the lip 12c of the T-die 12 and the parallel movement unit 17 are controlled based on the measurement result by the thickness measuring device 16. By controlling the lip interval of the T-die 12 based on the measurement results, the thickness of the sheet material S is adjusted in the manufacturing process of the sheet material S, and the parallel movement unit 17, more specifically, is adjusted based on the measurement results. By controlling the rotation speed and rotation direction of the parallel movement unit 17, gauge bands are less likely to occur.

(Embodiment 2)
Other examples of embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. As an example, the coater shown in FIG. 6 is a device that forms a coating film on the surface of a resin film (sheet material S), and is equipped with the thickness measuring device 30 of the present application. In FIG. 6, 21 is a feeding device, 22 is a winding device, 23 is a conveyance roll, 24 is an impression roll, 25 is a container for coating liquid, 26 is a gravure roll, 27 is a blade, 28 is a touch roll, and 29 is a dryer. A furnace, 30 is a thickness measuring device, and 31 is a translation unit.

The feeding device 21 is a device that feeds out the sheet material S wound into a roll, and the winding device is a device that winds up the sheet material S. Existing devices can be used for the feeding device 21 and the winding device 22. A plurality of transport rolls 23 for transporting the sheet material S are arranged between the feeding device 21 and the winding device 22.

A coating means including an impression roll 24, a coating liquid container 25, a gravure roll 26, and a blade 27 is provided ahead of the feeding device 21. The coating means is a means for applying a coating liquid to the surface of the sheet material S. Existing ones can be used for the impression roll 24, the coating liquid container 25, the gravure roll 26, and the blade 27.

The coating means shown here is an example, and the coating means may have a structure other than this. For example, as shown in FIG. 7, an impression roll 24 and a slot die 32 can be used as the coating means. An existing slot die 32 can be used. Note that the other configurations in FIG. 7 are similar to those of the coater in FIG. 6, so the same configurations are denoted by the same reference numerals, and detailed description thereof will be omitted.

A drying oven 29 for drying the coating liquid applied to the sheet material S to form a coating film is provided ahead of the coating means. An existing drying oven 29 can be used.

A thickness measuring device 30 for measuring the thickness of the coating film on the surface of the sheet material S is provided in front of the drying oven 29, and a parallel movement device for swinging the sheet material S is provided in front of the thickness measuring device 30. A unit 31 is provided.

The configurations of the thickness measurement device 30 and the translation unit 31 are similar to those of the thickness measurement device 16 and the translation unit 17 of the first embodiment, respectively. However, the thickness measuring device 30 of this embodiment is upside down from the thickness measuring device 16 of the first embodiment so that it can measure the thickness of the coating film of the sheet material S passing under the thickness measuring device 30. ing.

The coating means of this embodiment is controlled by a control means (not shown). Specifically, the coating means and the parallel movement unit 31 are controlled based on the actual value obtained by measurement with the thickness measuring device 30. For example, if the thickness (actual value) of the coating film measured by the thickness measuring device 30 is uneven, the angle and interval of the impression roll 24 and the gravure roll 26, the pressing force of the blade 27, etc. are controlled.

Similarly, the parallel movement unit 31 of this embodiment is also controlled by a control means (not shown). Specifically, the rotation of the parallel movement unit 31 (specifically, the rotation speed, rotation direction, etc.) is changed based on the actual measurement value obtained by measurement with the thickness measurement device 30, so that the winding thickness is uniform. (so that gauge bands do not occur).

In addition, in this embodiment, the case where both the coating means and the parallel movement unit 31 are controlled by the control means is taken as an example, but it is possible to control only one of the coating means and the parallel movement unit 31. You can also.

(motion)
In the coater shown in FIG. 6, when the sheet material S fed out from the feeding device 21 passes between the impression roll 24 and the gravure roll 26, the coating liquid in the coating liquid container 25 is picked up by the gravure roll 26. , the coating liquid is applied (transferred) onto the surface of the sheet material S.

The sheet material S coated with the coating liquid is transported forward and passes through a drying oven 29 . The coating liquid applied to the surface of the sheet material S is dried in the drying oven 29 to form a coating film.

The sheet material S that has passed through the drying oven 29 passes below a thickness measuring device 30, and the thickness of the coating film on the surface of the sheet material S is measured by the thickness measuring device 30. Specifically, the thickness measuring device 30 measures the coating film on the surface of the sheet material S in a direction perpendicular or approximately perpendicular to the conveyance direction of the sheet material S, or in a direction perpendicular to or approximately perpendicular to the conveying direction of the sheet material S, or in a direction perpendicular to or approximately perpendicular to the conveyance direction of the sheet material S, or in a direction perpendicular to or approximately perpendicular to the conveyance direction of the sheet material S, or Specifically, the thickness in a direction parallel or substantially parallel to the longitudinal direction of the impression roll 24 or gravure roll 26 constituting the coating means is measured.

To measure the thickness of the coating film, the thickness measuring device 30 (specifically, the measuring means of the thickness measuring device 30) is operated at a speed equal to the conveying speed of the sheet material S in the same direction as the conveying direction of the sheet material S. It is preferable to perform this while moving at high speed or approximately constant speed. More preferably, the thickness of the coating film is measured while moving the measuring means of the thickness measuring device 30 in a direction perpendicular or substantially perpendicular to the conveyance direction of the sheet material S.

When the thickness of the coating film on the surface of the sheet material S is measured by the thickness measuring device 30, both or one of the coating means and the translation unit 31 is controlled based on the measured value. When the coating means is controlled, the thickness of the subsequently formed coating film is smoothed and the occurrence of gauge bands is suppressed. Similarly, when the parallel movement unit 31 is controlled, the occurrence of uneven winding in the winding device 22 is reduced, and the occurrence of gauge bands is suppressed.

The coater of this embodiment can be expected to have effects other than suppressing the occurrence of gauge bands. Generally, it is said that variations in the film thickness of the applied coating liquid lead to a decrease in the quality of the manufactured sheet material. For example, in the production of sheet materials in the field of optical systems, a coating liquid having a light transmitting function is applied to the surface of the sheet material in order to improve the light transmittance of the sheet material. At this time, if variations occur in the film thickness of the coating liquid, there is a possibility that the light transmittance may be partially inhibited.

To prevent this from occurring, uniformity is required for the coating film applied to the surface of the sheet material, but according to the coater in which the thickness measuring device 30 of the present application is installed, the accuracy of measuring the film thickness can be improved. Since the coating method can be controlled with higher precision than conventional coaters, it can be expected to have the effect that variations in coating liquid film thickness are less likely to occur.

In addition, depending on the coating application, it may be necessary to apply extremely thick coating liquid to a part of the sheet material, and in this case, the production line must be stopped every time the film thickness distribution of the coating liquid is measured. Since it is inefficient to check the coating liquid thickness in-line.

In this regard, the coater equipped with the thickness measuring device 30 of the present application can measure the film thickness of the coating liquid on the surface of the sheet material S while conveying it, in other words, can measure the film thickness of the coating liquid in-line. A sufficient effect can be expected even in cases where in-line control of coating liquid film thickness is desired.

(Other embodiments)
In the first embodiment, a counter unit is provided on the back side of the base 16a to cancel or attenuate vibrations generated by the operations of the cross-direction actuator 16b, the transport direction actuator 16c, and the measuring means 16d to 16h. However, the counter unit may be provided as needed, and can be omitted if unnecessary. The same applies to the second embodiment.

In the first embodiment, the thickness measuring device 16 is placed below the sheet material S (on the back side), and the thickness of the sheet material S is measured from the bottom side. It is also possible to arrange it on the upper side (front side) of the sheet material S and to measure the thickness of the sheet material S from the upper side. Also in the case of the second embodiment, the measurement direction can be set depending on the position where the coating film is formed.

In the first embodiment, as an example, the measuring means 16d to 16h of the thickness measuring device 16 measure the sheet material S from one side. It is also possible to use one that includes a device (for example, a light emitting section) placed on the upper side and a device (for example, a light receiving section) placed on the bottom side of the sheet material S. The same applies to the second embodiment.

In the first embodiment, the thickness of the sheet material S is measured while moving the measuring means 16d to 16h in a direction intersecting the conveyance direction of the sheet material S. However, by increasing the number of measuring means, In the case where the entire thickness of the sheet material S in the width direction can be measured without moving the measuring means, the measuring means does not need to be moved in the direction intersecting the conveyance direction of the sheet material S. The same applies to the second embodiment.

Similarly, by using one or more measuring means capable of measuring a wider range than the measuring means 16d to 16h of the first embodiment, the entire widthwise thickness of the sheet material S can be measured without moving the measuring means. Even when the width can be measured, the measuring means does not need to be moved in a direction intersecting the conveying direction of the sheet material S. The same applies to the second embodiment.

In the first embodiment, the case where the sheet material S is a resin film is exemplified, but the sheet material S may also include materials other than resin films such as metal foil. For example, when the sheet material S is metal foil, the T-die 12 is not used, so the measurement result of the thickness of the metal foil is not used to control the T-die 12. In this case, it is possible to control the rotation speed, rotation direction, etc. of the translation unit 17, more specifically, the rotating body 17a, based on the measurement result of the thickness of the metal foil. The same applies to the second embodiment.

The configurations of each of the embodiments described above are merely examples, and the present invention is not limited to the configurations of these embodiments. The present invention can be modified, such as omitting, replacing, adding, etc., to the configuration as long as the intended purpose can be achieved.

The sheet material manufacturing method and sheet material manufacturing device in the present application can be used as a manufacturing method and manufacturing device for various sheet materials including optical system films. The coating film forming method and coater in the present application can be used as a method and apparatus for forming various coating films on sheet materials.

11 Extruder 12 T-die 12a Resin inflow path 12b Manifold 12c Lip 12d Space adjuster 13 Cooling roll 14 Casting roll 15 Conveyance roll 16 Thickness measuring device 16a Base 16b Cross direction actuator 16c Conveyance direction actuator 16d (First) measuring means 16e (Second) measuring means 16f (Third) measuring means 16g (Fourth) measuring means 16h (Fifth) measuring means 16i Cross direction guide 16j Cross direction slider 16k Conveyance direction guide 16m Conveyance direction slider 16n Mounting Placement stand 16p Lower cross direction actuator 16r Lower conveyance direction actuator 16s Counterweight 16t Lower cross direction guide 16u Lower cross direction slider 16v Lower conveyance direction guide 16w Lower conveyance direction slider 17 Parallel movement unit 17a Rotating body 17b Frame 17c Guide roll 17d Guide roll 18 Winding device 21 Feeding device 22 Winding device 23 Conveyance roll 24 Impression roll 25 Coating liquid container 26 Gravure roll 27 Blade 28 Touch roll 29 Drying oven 30 Thickness measuring device 31 Parallel movement unit 32 Slot die S Sheet material S1 No. One area S2 Second area S3 Third area S4 Fourth area S5 Fifth area

Claims (22)

In a method of manufacturing a sheet material using a sheet material manufacturing device equipped with a T-die and/or a parallel movement unit,
Measuring the thickness of the sheet material being transported in a direction perpendicular or substantially perpendicular to the transport direction of the sheet material, or in a direction parallel or substantially parallel to the longitudinal direction of the T-die or the parallel movement unit,
controlling the T-die or/and the parallel movement unit based on the actual value obtained by the measurement;
A sheet material manufacturing method characterized by the following. In the sheet material manufacturing method according to claim 1,
The sheet material manufacturing device is equipped with a coating means,
Forming a coating film on the surface of the sheet material being transported by the coating means,
The thickness of the coating film on the surface of the sheet material being transported in a direction perpendicular or approximately perpendicular to the transport direction of the sheet material, or in a direction parallel or approximately parallel to the longitudinal direction of the parallel movement unit or the coating means. measure,
controlling the parallel movement unit and/or the coating means based on the actual value obtained by the measurement;
A sheet material manufacturing method characterized by the following. In the sheet material manufacturing method according to claim 1 or 2,
The sheet material manufacturing device is equipped with a winding device that winds up the sheet material,
Measuring the thickness of the sheet material or the coating film on the surface of the sheet material before being wound up with the winding device,
controlling the T-die or/and the parallel movement unit based on the measurement results;
A sheet material manufacturing method characterized by the following. In the sheet material manufacturing method according to any one of claims 1 to 3,
Measuring the thickness of the sheet material or the coating film on the surface of the sheet material while moving the thickness measuring device in the same direction as the conveying direction of the sheet material at the same speed or approximately the same speed as the conveying speed of the sheet material,
A sheet material manufacturing method characterized by the following. In the sheet material manufacturing method according to claim 4,
Measuring the thickness of the sheet material or the coating film on the surface of the sheet material while moving the thickness measuring device in a direction perpendicular or substantially perpendicular to the conveying direction of the sheet material,
A sheet material manufacturing method characterized by the following. In a method of forming a coating film on the surface of a sheet material using a coater equipped with a coating means,
Forming a coating film on the surface of the sheet material being transported by the coating means,
Measuring the thickness of the coating film on the surface of the sheet material being transported in a direction perpendicular or substantially perpendicular to the transport direction of the sheet material, or in a direction parallel or substantially parallel to the coating means,
controlling the coating means based on the actual value obtained by the measurement;
A coating film forming method characterized by: In the coating film forming method according to claim 6,
The coating film forming device is equipped with a parallel movement unit,
The thickness of the coating film on the surface of the sheet material being transported in a direction perpendicular or approximately perpendicular to the transport direction of the sheet material, or in a direction parallel or approximately parallel to the longitudinal direction of the parallel movement unit or coating means. measure,
controlling the parallel movement unit and/or the coating means based on the actual value obtained by the measurement;
A coating film forming method characterized by: In the coating film forming method according to claim 6 or 7,
The coater is equipped with a winding device that winds up the sheet material on which the coating film is formed.
Measuring the thickness of the sheet material before being wound up by the winding device,
controlling the coating means and/or the translation unit based on the measurement results;
A coating film forming method characterized by: In the coating film forming method according to any one of claims 6 to 8,
Measuring the thickness of the coating film on the surface of the sheet material while moving the thickness measuring device in the same direction as the conveyance direction of the sheet material at the same speed or approximately the same speed as the conveyance speed of the sheet material,
A coating film forming method characterized by: The coating film forming method according to claim 9,
Measuring the thickness of the coating film on the surface of the sheet material while moving the thickness measuring device in a direction perpendicular or substantially perpendicular to the conveying direction of the sheet material,
A coating film forming method characterized by: In a sheet material manufacturing apparatus equipped with a T-die and/or a parallel movement unit,
The thickness of the sheet material being transported in a direction perpendicular or substantially perpendicular to the transport direction of the sheet material, or in a direction parallel or substantially parallel to the longitudinal direction of the T-die or the parallel movement unit. a measuring device;
comprising a control means for controlling the T-die and/or the parallel movement unit based on the actual measurement value obtained by the measurement with the thickness measuring device;
A sheet material manufacturing device characterized by the following. The sheet material manufacturing apparatus according to claim 11,
Equipped with a coating means for forming a coating film on the surface of the sheet material,
The thickness measuring device measures the coating film on the surface of the sheet material being transported in a direction perpendicular or approximately perpendicular to the transport direction of the sheet material, or parallel or approximately parallel to the longitudinal direction of the parallel movement unit or the coating means. Measure the thickness in parallel direction,
The control means controls the parallel movement unit and/or the coating means based on the actual measurement value obtained by the measurement with the thickness measuring device.
A sheet material manufacturing device characterized by the following. In the sheet material manufacturing apparatus according to claim 11 or 12,
Equipped with a winding device that winds up sheet material,
The thickness measuring device is provided upstream of the winding device,
A sheet material manufacturing device characterized by the following. The sheet material manufacturing apparatus according to any one of claims 11 to 13,
comprising a first actuator that moves the thickness measuring device in the conveyance direction of the sheet material at a speed equal to or substantially constant than the conveyance speed of the sheet material;
A sheet material manufacturing device characterized by the following. The sheet material manufacturing apparatus according to claim 14,
comprising a second actuator that moves the first actuator in a direction intersecting the conveyance direction of the sheet material;
A sheet material manufacturing device characterized by the following. The sheet material manufacturing apparatus according to claim 15,
Equipped with a base,
A thickness measuring device, a first actuator, and a second actuator are provided on one side of the base,
A counter unit that cancels or damps vibrations caused by the thickness measuring device, the first actuator, and the second actuator is provided on the other side of the base.
A sheet material manufacturing device characterized by the following. In a coater equipped with a coating means,
a thickness measuring device that measures the thickness of the sheet material being transported in a direction perpendicular or substantially perpendicular to the transport direction of the sheet material, or in a direction parallel or substantially parallel to the longitudinal direction of the coating means;
comprising a control means for controlling the coating means based on the actual measurement value obtained by the measurement with the thickness measuring device;
A coater characterized by: The coater according to claim 17,
Equipped with a parallel movement unit that swings the sheet material,
The thickness measuring device measures the coating film on the surface of the sheet material being transported in a direction perpendicular or approximately perpendicular to the transport direction of the sheet material, or parallel or approximately parallel to the longitudinal direction of the parallel movement unit or coating means. Measure the thickness in parallel direction,
The control means controls the parallel movement unit and/or the coating means,
A coater characterized by: The coater according to claim 17 or 18,
Equipped with a winding device that winds up sheet material,
The thickness measuring device is provided upstream of the winding device,
A coater characterized by: The coater according to any one of claims 17 to 19,
comprising a first actuator that moves the thickness measuring device in the conveyance direction of the sheet material at a speed equal to or substantially constant than the conveyance speed of the sheet material;
A coater characterized by: The coater according to claim 20,
comprising a second actuator that moves the first actuator in a direction intersecting the conveying direction of the sheet material;
A coater characterized by: The coater according to claim 21,
Equipped with a base,
A thickness measuring device, a first actuator, and a second actuator are provided on one side of the base,
A counter unit that cancels or damps vibrations caused by the thickness measuring device, the first actuator, and the second actuator is provided on the other side of the base.
A coater characterized by:

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