JP2834096B2 - Spraying device for LCD panel spacers - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a device for spraying a spacer for a liquid crystal panel, and more particularly to a device for spraying a spacer for a liquid crystal panel which enables automatic cleaning.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In a liquid crystal display panel, it is necessary to secure a certain gap between two substrates in order to secure a space for accommodating liquid crystal. As a method, spacers are dispersed. As such a spacer, for example, a gap material made of fine true spherical beads (hard plastic balls) is used. After dispersing such a gap material on the surface of one of the substrates, the other substrate is overlaid to ensure a constant gap between them. Here, a method of spraying the gap material on the panel substrate surface of the liquid crystal display panel is disclosed in, for example, JP-A-64-88430, in which a compressed gas is ejected from a nozzle, and a negative pressure generated at that time is used. Is disclosed, and a spacer is sprayed on a substrate from a jet port. Further, as the structure for receiving the substrate at this time, a conductive flat plate 15 fixed in a spray chamber 42 shown in JP-A-4-223443 (FIG. 4) or JP-A-3-293326 is disclosed. (For example, a flat plate with a guard ring and a ground electrode).

[0003]

The first problem is that, when the spraying operation is continued, the flat plate fixed in the spraying chamber accumulates spacers on the flat plate and adheres to the back surface of the substrate, and the substrate is stacked in the next step. This leads to uneven gaps during alignment. The reason is that the spacers enter the gaps between the substrate and the flat plate, so that the spacers are unevenly accumulated on the flat plate and thus are unevenly attached to the back surface of the substrate.

An object of the present invention is to hardly attach the spacer, which often adheres to the surface of the substrate opposite to the surface on which the spacers are dispersed. Therefore, reliability, operability, productivity, and maintainability can be improved.

[0005]

According to the present invention, there is provided an apparatus for applying a spacer for a liquid crystal panel, comprising: a substrate transport line for transporting the substrate in a transport direction of the substrate on which the spacer is to be scattered; A flat plate, a substrate loading unit for loading the substrate on the transport flat plate, a spacer dispersing unit for scattering the spacer on the substrate loading unit, a substrate detaching unit for removing the substrate from the transport flat plate, A flat cleaning unit that cleans the separated spacers of the transport flat plate, and a transport path that returns from the substrate release unit to the substrate stacking unit through the flat plate cleaning unit.

Alternatively, the transfer flat plate is fixed to a spacer spreading unit, a flat plate cleaning unit is arranged on a side portion of the spacer spread unit, and a spray nozzle for applying a spacer to a substrate loaded on the transfer flat plate. After applying the spacer to the substrate disposed on the side of the spacer dispersing unit, the transport flat plate from which the substrate has been removed is cleaned by the flat plate cleaning unit.

According to the present invention, the spacers on the flat plate are removed each time spraying is performed, so that it is possible to prevent the spacers from adhering from the flat plate to the back surface of the substrate. Uniform causes can be eliminated.

[0008]

Embodiments of the present invention will now be described with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 is a plan view of a liquid crystal panel spacer dispersing apparatus according to a first embodiment of the present invention.
(B) is the side view of the flat plate for conveyance of FIG. 1, and its top view. In the liquid crystal panel spacer dispersing apparatus according to the first embodiment of the present invention, as shown in FIG.
As shown in (a), the substrate 18 is overlaid on the transport flat plate 15. Subsequently, the spacers are sprayed on the substrate 18 by the spacer spraying unit 11, and subsequently, are sent to the substrate detaching unit 14. In the substrate detaching unit 14, the substrate 1
8 and the transfer flat plate 15, and the substrate 18 is moved to the next step.
The transport flat plate 15 is sent to the flat plate cleaning unit 16.
The transport flat plate 15 repeats a cycle in which the spacer attached by the spacer spreading unit 11 is removed by the flat plate cleaning unit 16, sent to the substrate stacking unit 13 again, and waits for the next substrate 18. At this time, the flat plate cleaning unit 1
6 removes the spacer with a US cleaner or a rotating brush. The transfer flat plate 15 has the configuration shown in FIG. 2 (b), and one or two board shift prevention pins 23 are provided on each of four sides so that the board 18 and the transfer flat plate 15 do not shift. The height is preferably about the thickness of the substrate 18. In addition, the notch 24 for separating the flat plate for transporting the substrate is provided as shown in FIG.
Substrate loading unit 13 and substrate release unit 14 shown in FIG.
In the above, when the substrate 18 and the transfer flat plate 15 are separated, the substrate 18 is grasped.

FIG. 3 is a side view of a spacer distribution unit of a liquid crystal panel spacer distribution apparatus according to a second embodiment of the present invention. In the liquid crystal panel spacer spraying apparatus according to the second embodiment of the present invention, as shown in FIG. 3, the transport flat plate 15 is fixed in the spacer spraying unit, and the flat plate cleaning unit 34 is provided in the spacer spraying unit. The configuration is the same as that of the liquid crystal panel spacer spraying apparatus of the first embodiment except that the upper surface of the transport flat plate 15 is moved.

[0011]

The first effect is to prevent the spacer from adhering to the back surface of the substrate. As a result, it is possible to prevent gap nonuniformity due to the attachment of the spacer to the back surface of the substrate. The reason is that, since the flat plate is automatically cleaned each time it is sprayed, it is possible to prevent a spacer from adhering from the front surface of the flat plate to the back surface of the substrate.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a plan view of a liquid crystal panel spacer spraying apparatus according to a first embodiment of the present invention.

2 (a) and 2 (b) are a side view and a plan view of the transport flat plate of FIG.

FIG. 3 is a side view of a spacer distribution unit of a liquid crystal panel spacer distribution apparatus according to a second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view of an example of a conventional liquid crystal panel spacer distribution device.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 11 Spacer dispersion unit 12 Substrate transfer line 13 Substrate loading unit 14 Substrate removal unit 15 Transfer flat plate 16 and 34 Flat plate cleaning unit 17 Flat plate transfer line 18 Substrate 23 Substrate shift prevention pin 24 Substrate transfer flat plate separation notch 31 Spray nozzle 42 Scattering room 43 grid

Claims (2)

(57) [Claims] 1. A substrate transport line for transporting a substrate in a transport direction of a substrate on which spacers are scattered, a transport flat plate transported to the substrate transport line, and a substrate loading unit for laminating the substrate on the transport flat plate. And a spacer spraying unit for spraying the spacer on the substrate loading unit;
A substrate detaching unit for removing the substrate from the transfer flat plate, and a flat plate cleaning unit for cleaning a spacer of the transfer flat plate from which the substrate has been separated; and A coating device for a spacer for a liquid crystal panel, comprising a transport path returning to a loading unit. 2. A spray nozzle for fixing the transfer flat plate to a spacer spreading unit, a flat plate cleaning unit disposed on a side portion of the spacer spread unit, and applying a spacer to a substrate stacked on the transfer flat plate. 2. The flat plate cleaning unit according to claim 1, wherein after disposing the spacer on the substrate disposed on a side portion of the spacer spreading unit, the transfer flat plate from which the substrate is removed is cleaned by the flat plate cleaning unit. 3. Liquid crystal panel spacer coating device.