JP3006177B2 - Work cleaning device - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a cleaning apparatus for cleaning a work such as a printed circuit board, a liquid crystal panel, and a semiconductor wafer.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Halogen-based cleaning agents such as chlorine-based cleaning agents and fluorine-based cleaning agents that are widely used for cleaning works such as printed circuit boards, liquid crystal panels, and semiconductor wafers.
The problem of environmental destruction calls for a quick alternative. Therefore, various types of cleaning agents are being studied as alternative cleaning agents, but all of these cleaning agents are compared with halogen-based cleaning agents in terms of overall cleaning properties, such as cleaning performance, material price, and wastewater treatment. Therefore, these disadvantages need to be compensated for in terms of the cleaning apparatus. For example, a conventionally known cleaning method for increasing the cleaning power of a cleaning agent is a method of removing attached matter on the surface of a suspended workpiece by spraying a cleaning liquid on the suspended workpiece.
The work cleaned by this method is rinsed using pure water, and the wastewater is treated by a wastewater treatment device. However, in this method, in order to spray the cleaning liquid evenly on the surface of the work, a mechanism for changing the direction of spraying the cleaning liquid on the work is required. Further, since the cleaning liquid sprayed from the nozzle is scattered to parts other than the work, the cleaning efficiency is low in proportion to the usage amount of the cleaning liquid. Furthermore, when the scattered cleaning liquid is flammable or has a strong odor, a mechanism for collecting the scattered cleaning liquid is required. Since a large amount of water is used to remove the detergent from the cleaned work, the wastewater treatment requires a large-scale facility and involves high running costs.

In view of such a point, the applicant of the present application has disclosed a work cleaning apparatus in which a work is immersed in a cleaning liquid tank storing a cleaning liquid and a jet of the cleaning liquid is blown against the immersed work. Has been proposed. According to this cleaning device, since the jet of the cleaning liquid is formed in the stored cleaning liquid, the cleaning liquid does not scatter to the outside,
Good collection efficiency of cleaning liquid. In addition, a vortex is formed in the cleaning liquid stored by the jet, and the vortex hits a portion of the work surface to which the jet does not directly hit, so that there is an advantage that the cleaning efficiency is improved. Furthermore, it has been proposed to circulate and use pure water to minimize the amount of drainage in a cleaning device, particularly in a preliminary rinsing section for removing a cleaning agent attached to a workpiece.

[0004]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is to efficiently clean a work by using this novel work cleaning method, and to regenerate pure water and use it in a circulating manner to reduce the amount of wastewater. An object of the present invention is to realize a work cleaning apparatus capable of efficiently washing off a cleaning liquid attached to a work after cleaning without increasing the work.

[0005]

In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, a work cleaning apparatus according to the present invention comprises a work cleaning section, a preliminary rinsing section, and, for example, a first rinsing section and a second rinsing section. It has a configured rinsing part. A work cleaning unit configured to store a work cleaning liquid, a first work transfer unit for moving the work into and out of the work tank;
A first jet forming means such as a nozzle for jetting a cleaning liquid to a work immersed in the cleaning tank is provided. The preliminary rinsing section includes a pure water tank storing pure water, and a pure water tank. And a second work transport means for taking in and out of the work. The first rinsing unit has the same configuration as the work cleaning unit, and the first rinsing unit stores pure water .
Of the deionized water tank, and a third workpiece conveying means for loading and unloading the workpiece into the first pure water tank, a second such Noruzu for injecting pure water against dipped work within the first deionized water tank And a jet forming means. On the other hand, the second rinsing unit has a configuration including a second pure water tank storing pure water and a fourth work transport means for taking in and out the work with respect to the pure water. The second jet forming means,
Pump and pure water pumped from this pump
It can be composed of nozzles that blow out.

In the first rinsing section and the second rinsing section, a common collecting tank for collecting pure water overflowing from each of the pure water tanks is provided, and the second jet forming means and the second jet forming means are provided. A pure water tank circulating means for regenerating and circulating pure water used in the pure water tank and a pure water tank regenerating means. So
Then, the discharge side of the pump communicates with the first pure water tank.
A bypass passage is provided, and a water passage is provided in the first pure water tank.
When the workpiece is immersed, it is closed and the workpiece is being transported.
In the case of, the circuit is open.

Here, as the pure water regenerating means, for example, activated sludge treatment means, activated carbon, ultrafiltration membrane,
Filtration means using a reverse osmosis membrane is used.

Further, it is preferable that the work cleaning section has a liquid removing means for blowing a gas such as air to the work in order to remove a cleaning liquid attached to the work pulled up from the cleaning tank. Similarly, in the second rinsing section, it is preferable to have a draining means for blowing air or the like to the work in order to remove pure water attached to the work pulled up from the pure water tank.

The first jet forming means in the above-mentioned work cleaning section can be constituted by, for example, a pump and a nozzle which blows out the cleaning liquid fed from the pump toward the work. Similarly, the above-mentioned cleaning liquid removing means and draining means can be constituted by a pump and a nozzle which blows air pumped from the pump toward the work.

The above-mentioned work transfer means can be constituted by a work lifting mechanism for lifting and lowering the work, and a horizontal transfer mechanism for transferring the work toward the next stage. Instead of this, for example, a transport unit can be configured using a transport belt. In this case, the work transfer path by the transfer belt passes through the cleaning liquid tank and the pure water tank,
What is necessary is just to set the conveyance path.

On the other hand, a work to be cleaned by the apparatus of the present invention is typically a plate-like work such as a printed circuit board or a liquid crystal panel. In the case of cleaning such a work, the work can be cleaned in a so-called batch system using a carrier that holds a large number of works in an aligned state.

As a cleaning liquid used in the apparatus of the present invention, for example, a polyethylene glycol ether-based cleaning liquid containing polyethylene glycol monoalkyl ether as a cleaning agent is used to remove solder flux residue adhering to the circuit board surface. Cleaning device. In this case, the cleaning solution is diluted and used to suppress the degree of contamination of the pure water in each rinsing part, to increase the flash point of the cleaning solution and to ensure safety.
It is preferable to mix water at a concentration of wt% and further mix a metal sequestering agent in order to prevent the hydroxide or salt of metal ions from adhering to the work by mixing the water.

[0013]

In the present invention, a jet of the cleaning liquid is blown onto the work in the cleaning liquid in the cleaning step or the work cleaning section. When a jet of the cleaning liquid is formed in the cleaning liquid, the jet forms a vortex in the cleaning liquid in each direction. As a result, the adhering matter is efficiently removed from the portion of the work directly hit by the jet of the cleaning liquid due to the chemical action of the cleaning liquid and its blowing force. Also,
A swirl of the cleaning liquid is applied to a part of the work to which the cleaning liquid jet does not directly hit, and similarly, the attached matter is efficiently removed by the chemical action and the physical action of the cleaning liquid. Further, since the cleaning liquid jet is formed in the cleaning liquid, the sprayed cleaning liquid does not scatter into the atmosphere unlike the case where the cleaning liquid is sprayed on the workpiece in the atmosphere.

[0014] The work from which the deposits have been removed in the cleaning liquid is then washed away in the preliminary rinsing section, and then, for example, in the first rinsing section.
It is immersed in pure water, and a jet of pure water is blown in this state. Also in this case, similarly to the case where the cleaning liquid jet is sprayed, the pure water jet is sprayed on the work, and the pure water jet is formed on the part of the work not directly hit by the pure water jet. The eddy current hits. As a result, the cleaning liquid adhering to the work is reliably washed off.
Thereafter, in the second rinsing step or the second rinsing section, the work is immersed again in pure water or sprayed with pure water. As a result, the cleaning liquid adhering to the workpiece is completely washed away.

Here, since the pure water regenerating means is disposed in the preliminary rinsing tank in which the pure water is most likely to be contaminated, the concentration of the detergent in the pure water can be kept low, and the first and second rinsing sections in the subsequent stages can be maintained. Of pure water can be prevented, so that the cleaning liquid attached to the work is more reliably washed off and the pure water is circulated for use. it can. In particular, in the present invention, the first
The discharge side of the pump for forming a jet in the rinsing section
From the first pure water tank to the first pure water tank
Is closed when the workpiece is being immersed.
And a bypass passage that is in an open state. others
The workpiece in the first pure water tank
Sometimes the jet stops, so the jet may hit a part of the workpiece.
As a result, the workpiece is not damaged,
The descent can be performed stably. Also, the first pure water tank
Spontaneously generated by the jet flow for the workpiece lifted from
Spray droplets can be prevented from re-adhering, and the pure water in the first
Water can be prevented from being transported to the second pure water tank and becoming dirty.
You. Further, during the transfer of the work, the circulation of the pure water in the first pure water tank is performed.
Instead of stopping, continue through the bypass passage
Circulating. That is, the pure water overflowing from the first pure water tank
Is recycled by the pure water tank regeneration means through the recovery tank and the pure water tank circulation means.
And the regenerated pure water is supplied to a second pure water tank.
The pure water that overflows while purifying the pure water tank with priority
And then purify the recovery tank, and
Pure water is supplied to the first pure water tank via the bypass passage
Thereby, the first pure water tank is finally purified. Wah
The first pure water tank can be used even in idle time
Pure water can be used, preventing contamination of the entire rinse area with pure water.
Can be stopped, the replacement work of pure water is reduced, and the use of pure water as a whole
The amount can be greatly reduced.

[0016]

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

(Overall Configuration) FIG. 1 schematically shows the overall configuration of a work cleaning apparatus according to this embodiment. The apparatus of this example is suitable for cleaning a printed circuit board for an electronic circuit, and has a configuration in which a plurality of works (printed circuit boards to which solder flack residue is attached) W are washed by using the carrier 2. . As shown in FIG.
Are the cleaning unit 3 and the first
, A second preliminary rinsing unit 5, a first rinsing unit 6, a second rinsing unit 7, and a drying unit 8 are arranged. In the cleaning section 3, a cleaning liquid containing a cleaning agent for printed circuit boards, in this example, a polyethylene glycol ether-based cleaning liquid mixed with polyethylene glycol monoalkyl ether as the cleaning agent is sprayed on the work in the liquid. Wash the work. In the first and second preliminary rinsing units 4 and 5, the work is immersed in water containing no impurities such as a cleaning agent, that is, pure water, and is swayed up and down, so that the work is attached to the work. Wash off the cleaning solution.

Here, the pure water in the first preliminary rinsing section 4 is as follows:
The ultrafiltration unit (filtration means / pure water regeneration means) 413 circulates while being regenerated, and the pure water of the second preliminary rinsing section 5 is filtered using activated carbon (filtration means / pure water regeneration means) 513. Is circulated while being reproduced. In the first rinsing section 6, cleaning water or the like is washed off the work by injecting pure water into the work in pure water. In the second rinsing section 7, as in the case of the first or second preliminary rinsing section described above, the work is immersed in pure water and swung up and down so that the cleaning water or the like adhering to the work is removed. Wash off. Here, the first
The pure water in the second rinsing section 7 is circulated while being regenerated by a pure water regenerator (filtering means / pure water regenerating means) 627. Finally, in the drying section 8, the work is exposed to a high-temperature atmosphere to remove pure water remaining there. On the other hand, in the apparatus of the present embodiment, the cleaning unit 3, the first preliminary rinsing unit 4 and the second rinsing unit 7 inject air into the cleaning liquid or the work pulled up from pure water, respectively. An air blowing unit 9 for blowing down the cleaning liquid or pure water from the work is arranged.

Next, the structure of the carrier 2 for carrying the work W used in the apparatus of this embodiment will be described. As shown in FIG. 5, the carrier 2 includes rectangular frames 21 and 22 disposed at both ends.
To four work support rods 23, 24, 2
5, 26 and two notched rods 27, 28 formed with notches for attaching the work are connected. On the inner surface of the notched bars 27, 28,
Notches 271 and 281 at regular intervals along the material axis direction
Are formed, and between the corresponding notches 271 and 281, one work W can be inserted from above. In addition, these notched bars 27, 28
Can change the interval, and can carry works W having different widths. Further, handles 29, 29 (only one is shown in the figure) are attached to the upper surfaces of the rectangular frames 21, 22, so that handling of the carrier is easy.

[0020] With reference to the carrier transport system FIGS. 2 to 5 (Structure of each part), the structure of the device 1 of this embodiment mainly in carrier transport system.

As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the apparatus 1 of this embodiment has a loader 11 connected to an upstream side of the main body 12 in the direction of transporting the work W, and an unloader 13 at a downstream side of the workpiece transport direction. It has a connected configuration. The cleaning unit, the first and second preliminary rinsing units, and the first and second rinsing units described above are arranged in the main body unit 12.
An opening / closing lid 1 is provided on the front side of the case 121 of the main body 12.
22 are formed. By opening the opening / closing lid 122 as shown by the imaginary line in FIG. 4, it is possible to access the inside of the case. Inside the case, the cleaning liquid tank 31 of the cleaning section, the pure water tank 41 of the first preliminary rinsing section, and the pure water tank 5 of the second preliminary rinsing section 5 are arranged in this order from the upstream side in the work transfer direction.
1. A pure water tank 61 of a first rinsing section and a pure water tank 71 of a second rinsing section are arranged in a line.

The roller sliders 32, 42, 52, and 52 are positioned above the tanks so as to straddle the adjacent tanks.
62 are arranged in a line at a fixed interval. Between the upstream side of the roller slider 32, the downstream side of the roller slider 62, and between the roller sliders, the work supporting portions 33, 43, 53, 63, each of which is also a roller slider,
73 are arranged. These work support parts are lift mechanisms 34, 4 arranged on the back side of each tank in the case.
4, 54, 64, 74 can be moved up and down.

As shown in FIG. 4, the elevating mechanism 34 of the cleaning section
A lifting guide rod 341 attached to the case so as to be vertical on the back side of the cleaning liquid tank 31, a sliding portion 342 slidably attached to the outer periphery of the rod 341;
It is composed of a chain 343 for raising and lowering the sliding portion 342, a drive motor 344, and an L-shaped arm 345 attached to the sliding portion. The above-mentioned work supporting portion 33 is supported at the tip of this arm. Elevating mechanism 3 of this configuration
4, the work W supported by the work supporting portion is completely removed from the cleaning liquid tank 31 at least from the upper limit position (see FIG. 2) at the same height as the roller sliders 32, 42, 52, 62. It can be moved up and down to the lower limit position (see FIG. 4) of the height at which it is immersed inside. The other structures of the elevating mechanisms 44, 54, 64, and 74 are the same as those of the elevating mechanism 34, and a description thereof will be omitted.

Next, a carrier introduction port 123 is formed on the end face of the main body case 121 on the upstream side in the transport direction.
The transport belts 111 constituting the loader 11 are arranged so as to extend in a row at the same height position as the internal roller slider. This transport belt 111
Are supported on the electrical box 202 by the support legs 112. The transport belt 111 can be driven by a drive mechanism (not shown). In this example, a carrier engaging claw (not shown) is attached to the chain forming the transport belt 111 at a constant pitch, and the carrier is driven at a constant pitch by a driving mechanism. The transport belt 111 in the present example can simultaneously mount three carriers 2 at a constant pitch, and the portion on which the leading carrier 2 is mounted is located in the main body case as can be seen from FIG. Are located in

A carrier outlet 124 is formed at the downstream end face of the main body case 121, and is penetrated therethrough.
The roller sliders 131 constituting the unloader 13 are arranged in a line at the same height position as the internal roller sliders. This slider is also supported on the floor F by the support legs 132. In this example, three carriers 2 can be mounted on the unloader 13.
And when these three carriers are integrated,
That fact can be automatically displayed. Since such a display mechanism can be easily configured, further description is omitted here.

On the other hand, in each of the processing units 3 to 7, the pushers 35, 45, 45, 45, 55, 65 and 75 are arranged. A pusher 115 is also arranged inside the carrier entrance 124. These pushers are supported by a pusher drive mechanism 36 arranged on the front side of each tank in parallel with the carrier horizontal transport path. The drive mechanism 36 allows each pusher to reciprocate from the initial operation position shown in FIG. 2 to the position of the adjacent pusher on the downstream side. Further, this pusher drive mechanism 36 supports each pusher so as to be pivotable from a position shown by a solid line to a retracted position shown by an imaginary line, as shown in FIG. As will be described later, the carriers 2 are sequentially conveyed laterally toward the next processing unit by these pushers.

The supply system of the cleaning solution and pure water Next, referring mainly to the piping system of the apparatus of the present embodiment shown in FIG. 6,
The structure of each of the processing units 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 will be described.

The cleaning liquid tank 31 of the cleaning section 3 comprises a substantially cubic cleaning liquid main tank 311 having an open upper part, and an overflow tank 312 formed so as to surround the outer periphery thereof. A work cleaning liquid 313 containing polyethylene glycol monoalkyl ether is stored in the main body tank 311.

Here, polyethylene glycol monoalkyl ether has a high detergency against solder flux residues. The work cleaning liquid 313 contains about 5 wt.
A sequestering agent for a metal ion, for example, a Sn ion, is blended together with at least% of water. As a result, the flash point of the cleaning liquid is raised to about 100 ° C. or higher, and the cleaning agent of the cleaning liquid is diluted to prevent contamination of the subsequent pure water and reduce the load of drainage treatment. Prevents metal hydroxide and the like from adhering.

The cleaning liquid 3 stored in the main body tank 311
13 is maintained at a constant temperature, for example, 60 ° C. by a bar-shaped heater 315 disposed in the tank. A plurality of nozzles capable of injecting the cleaning liquid are arranged in the main body tank 311. In this example, as shown in FIG. 6 and FIG. 7, two rows of nozzle groups 316a and 316b are arranged horizontally on one side, and at a different height position from these nozzle groups on the other side. Two rows of nozzle groups 316c and 316d are arranged horizontally. As these nozzles, full-cone type nozzles having a jet angle of 60 degrees can be used. These nozzle groups are
Through the cleaning liquid circulation path 317, the overflow tank 31
2 communicates with the bottom surface.

A pump 318 is disposed in the circulation path 317, and a strainer 319 is disposed between the pump and the overflow tank. A cleaning liquid replenishing tank 322 is connected to a circulation path upstream of the strainer 319 via an automatic opening / closing valve 321. Automatic on-off valve 3
21 is controlled to be opened and closed by a three-foot liquid level gauge 323 attached to the overflow tank 312, whereby the cleaning liquid is automatically supplied into the circulation path. The nozzle group and the cleaning liquid circulation path 317 are connected via automatic open / close valves 324 and 325. These open / close valves are automatically opened when the carrier 2 is detected, and are closed otherwise.
When these automatic on-off valves are closed, the pump 31
The cleaning liquid discharged from 8 is returned to the cleaning liquid main tank 311 via a bypass passage 327 in which an automatic opening / closing valve 326 performing an opening / closing operation reverse to the above-mentioned automatic opening / closing valve is inserted. An on-off valve 328 is interposed on the pump discharge side, and dirty cleaning liquid is turned into an industrial waste liquid.
And is discharged toward a predetermined processing unit via the.

The cleaning liquid main tank 311 is connected to a pure water supply system 330 and a pure water recovery system 329 via an on-off valve. In the pure water supply system 330, a pure water device 331 including an ion exchanger and a filter is inserted.

Next, the first and second preliminary rinsing sections 4,
5 is provided with pure water tanks 41 and 51 storing pure water,
The pure water stored in these is circulated through circulation paths 411 and 511. Pumps 412 and 512 for refluxing pure water, an ultrafiltration unit 413 as a pure water filtration unit, and a filtration unit 513 using activated carbon are interposed in these circulation paths 411 and 511.
The 51 pure water is circulated while being regenerated.

Here, the pumps 412 and 512, the ultrafiltration unit 413, and the filtration unit 51 using activated carbon
Between 3, the on-off valves 414, 514 are interposed,
When the opening / closing valve 414 of the first preliminary rinsing section is opened, the pure water in the pure water tank 41 can be discharged as a single drain through this. On the other hand, when the on-off valve of the second preliminary rinsing section is opened, the circulating water on the side of the second preliminary rinsing section becomes the first rinsing water.
Is supplied into the pure water tank 41 of the preliminary rinsing section. here,
A rod-shaped heater 5 is provided in the pure water tank 51 of the second preliminary rinsing section.
15 are arranged, and the pure water tank 4 is
The temperature of the pure water in the first and the 51 is set to a predetermined temperature, for example, 60 ° C.
To be held. On the other hand, the pure water tanks 41 and 51 in the first and second preliminary rinsing sections are connected to a pure water supply system 330 via automatic open / close valves 416 and 516. Opening / closing of these automatic opening / closing valves 416, 516 is controlled by float switches 417, 517 attached to the pure water tanks 41, 51. The pure water tanks 41 and 51 are connected to the pure water recovery system 3 via an on-off valve.
29, and the pure water recovery system 329 is connected to a wastewater treatment facility (not shown).

Next, the structure of the first and second rinsing portions 6 and 7 will be described. The pure water tanks 61 and 71 of these rinse parts
Are formed by partitioning the inside of a common case 611 having a rectangular parallelepiped shape with an open top. That is, as shown in FIG. 8, the inside of the common case 611 is completely divided into two by the partition plate 612, and the compartment 613 on the narrower side is made into the second
As a pure water tank 71 in the rinsing section. On the other hand, by disposing a slightly smaller rectangular cylindrical partition plate 615 in the compartment 614 on the wider side, the pure water tank 61 of the first rinsing part and the pure water recovery tank surrounding it are provided. 616
Is formed. Here, a separate partition plate 617 is further disposed in a portion 616 a of the pure water recovery tank 616 located between the pure water tank 61 and the pure water tank 71.
As a result, the upper half portion of the portion 616a is divided into the first rinse portion side and the second rinse portion side, and the lower half portion remains in communication. In this pure water recovery tank 616,
A rod-shaped heater 618 is provided, and the pure water tanks 61 and 7 are provided.
1 is maintained at a predetermined temperature, for example, 60 ° C.

In the pure water tank 61 of the first rinsing section 6, a plurality of nozzles are arranged. In this example, the nozzle groups 621a, 6
21b and nozzle groups 621c and 621d horizontally arranged in two rows on the side facing these. The arrangement shape of the nozzles is the same as that in the cleaning liquid tank of the cleaning unit 3 described above. The nozzle groups on both these sides are connected to the pump 624 via the automatic on-off valves 622 and 623, respectively.
The suction side of the pump is connected to the strainer 6
25 is connected to the pure water recovery tank 616. The automatic opening / closing valves 622 and 623 are automatically opened when the carrier 2 is detected, and are otherwise kept closed. When these are in a closed state, the pure water discharged from the pump is supplied to the bypass passage 62 in which the automatic opening / closing valve 626 for performing the opening / closing operation opposite to the above automatic opening / closing valve is inserted.
The water is returned to the pure water tank 61 through 7.

Here, the pure water recovery tank 616 communicates with the pure water tank 71 of the second rinsing section 7 via a pure water regenerator 627. The pure water regenerator 627 includes a pump 627a having a suction side connected to a pure water recovery tank, and a filter 627b, an ion exchanger 627c, an ion exchanger 627d, and a filter 62 using activated carbon sequentially connected to a discharge side of the pump.
7e, and the pure water regenerated by the pure water regenerator is returned to the pure water tank 71.

On the other hand, the pure water tank 71 of the second rinsing section is connected to a pure water supply system 330 via an automatic opening / closing valve 711. The opening / closing operation of the automatic opening / closing valve 711 is controlled by a float switch 628 attached to a pure water recovery tank. On the other hand, both of the pure water tanks 61 and 71 are connected to a pure water recovery system 329 via on-off valves.

The air blown unit Next, referring mainly to FIGS. 1 and 9, the structure of the air blowing unit 9.

The air blowing section 9 includes a compressed air supply source 91.
The compressed air supplied from the air blowers 93 and 94 is disposed via the filter and the regulator 92 in the cleaning section 3, the first preliminary rinsing section 4 and the second rinsing section 7, respectively. , 95. The air blowing section 93 of the cleaning section 3 is formed of two air blowing sections arranged in parallel at a position above a pair of opposing side surfaces in the cleaning liquid main body tank 311. The air blowing section 95 in the second rinsing section 7 has the same configuration. On the other hand, the air blowing section 94 in the first preliminary rinsing section 4 is composed of a single air blowing section. Each of the air blowing portions 93, 94, and 95 includes a manual on-off valve 931, 941, and 951 and an automatic on-off valve 93, respectively.
2, 942, 952 are connected to the compressed air supply source 91 side. Each automatic open / close valve is opened when the carrier is pulled out of the tank. A manual on-off valve is used for flow control.

[0041] Control system Figure 10 shows the principal part of a control system in the apparatus of the present embodiment. In this figure, reference numeral 201 denotes a controller for controlling the entire apparatus 1, which is mounted in an electrical box 202 arranged near the loader. Reference numeral 203 denotes a console panel, on which an input unit 203a composed of various input switches and a display unit 203b for displaying an operation state of each unit are arranged. On the input side of the controller 201, a gap detection sensor 204 for driving the pusher is connected, and an upper limit sensor 205, an upper limit approach detection sensor 206, a lower limit sensor 207, and a lower limit approach detection sensor 208 for driving the lifting mechanism are connected. ing. Further, a carrier detection sensor 209 used to control the cleaning liquid injection timing and the air injection timing in the cleaning unit 3, and a carrier detection sensor 21 used to control the air injection timing in the first preliminary rinsing unit 4.
1. Carrier detection sensor 212 used to control the injection timing of pure water in first rinse section 6 and carrier detection sensor 213 used to control the air injection timing in second rinse section 7 Etc. are connected.

The output side of the controller 201 is connected to each drive section constituting the carrier transport system. That is, the pusher driving unit 36, the elevating mechanisms 34, 44, 5
4, 64, 74, the loader drive mechanism 113, and the stoppers 37, 47, 57, 67, 77 for preventing the carrier from overrunning from the carrier support.

The controller output side includes automatic opening / closing valves 324 and 325 for controlling the injection of the cleaning liquid in the cleaning tank.
326 Connected to automatic open / close valves 622, 623, 626 for controlling the pure water injection in the first rinse section. Further, automatic opening / closing valves 932 and 9 for controlling air injection in the cleaning unit 3, the first preliminary rinsing unit 4, and the second rinsing unit 7.
42,952.

Cleaning Operation Next, the cleaning operation of the cleaning apparatus of this embodiment, which is performed under the control of the controller, will be described.

FIG. 11 is a timing chart of a one-cycle cleaning operation, and FIGS. 12 to 16 sequentially show states during each cleaning operation. Prior to driving, the carrier 2 on which a large number of printed circuit boards W, which are works, is placed on the transport belt 111 of the loader 11. Now, it is assumed that the cleaning cycle starts from the state shown in FIG. In this state, three carriers 2 (n), 2 (n + 1), and 2 (n + 2) are mounted on the loader 11, and the carriers are also mounted on the respective lifting mechanisms.

First, the transport operation is started from this state (time T1 in FIG. 11). That is, the pusher 115,
35, 45, 55, 65, and 75 are those transport mechanisms 36.
The carrier moves laterally by a predetermined distance, and each carrier moves the roller slider 32,
42, 52, and 62, and moves forward until it is placed on the carrier support portions 33, 43, 53, 63, and 73 of the next-stage lifting mechanism (time T1-T in FIG. 11).
2). FIG. 12 shows a state after the carrier 2 (n) on the loader 11 is laterally conveyed onto the carrier support 33 of the cleaning unit 3 in this manner. When the carrier 2 moves forward to a predetermined position, the carrier is detected by the carrier detection sensors 209 to 213 attached to each processing unit. Thereafter, each of the lifting mechanisms 34, 44, 54, 64, 7
4 is driven, and the carrier 2 descends into the tank. When the descending carrier reaches a position near the lower limit, this is detected by the lower limit approach detection sensor 208 (at time T in FIG. 11).
3). Thereafter, the carrier descends at a low speed. When the carrier reaches the lower limit position, this is detected by the lower limit sensor 207, and the lowering of the carrier by the lifting mechanism stops (time T4 in FIG. 11).

Here, during the above-described carrier lateral transport operation, the carrier 2 is supported by the support portions 33, 43,
In order not to overrun 53, 63, 73, stoppers 37, 47,
57, 67 and 77 are turned on. In addition, a carrier guide 38 (shown only in FIG. 12) is provided in each tank so that the carrier does not move from the carrier support portion when the carrier 2 is moved up and down and dipped in the tank. During the transport operation, the bypass passages 326 and 626 of the cleaning liquid and the pure water in the cleaning unit 3 and the first rinsing unit 6 are kept open.

After the transfer operation is completed, the stoppers 37, 4
7, 57, 67, 77 are turned off. Also, the cleaning unit 3
In the first rinsing section 6, the carrier detection sensors 209 and 212 are in the ON state, and the lower limit sensor 20
7 is turned on (time T4 in FIG. 11), the bypass passages 326 and 626 are closed, and the automatic on-off valves 324 and 32 are closed.
5 and 622 and 623 are opened, and the jetting operation of the cleaning liquid and the pure water are started. FIG. 13 shows a state in which the cleaning liquid is being sprayed onto the carrier 2 (n) in the cleaning section 3. In this example, the nozzle group 316 on one side
a, 316b and the other nozzle group 316c, 316d
The cleaning liquid is alternately sprayed from.

As shown in FIG. 13, in the cleaning solution,
The cleaning liquid is sprayed on the printed circuit board W mounted on the carrier 2 (n). Therefore, the cleaning liquid does not fly into the atmosphere. Further, a vortex is formed in the cleaning liquid by injecting the cleaning liquid. Therefore, the portion of the printed circuit board not directly hit by the jet of the cleaning liquid is also washed by the formed vortex. Therefore, the printed circuit board is efficiently cleaned in the cleaning unit 3. Also in the first rinsing section 6, pure water is similarly sprayed onto the printed circuit board W, and the printed circuit board is efficiently washed in pure water. On the other hand, in the first and second preliminary rinsing sections 4, 5 and the second rinsing section 7, the carrier 2 is simply kept immersed in the pure water tank.

In synchronization with the start of the cleaning operation, the pushers 115, 35, 45, 55, 65 and 75 pivot upward (time T4 to T5 in FIG. 11).
It moves laterally to the original position and returns to the initial evacuation position (FIG. 11).
At time T5-T6). FIG. 14 shows this state. Thereafter, the loader 11 is driven, and the carriers 2 (n + 1) and 2 (n + 2) mounted thereon advance by one pitch (time T6-T7 in FIG. 11). FIG. 15 shows a state after the vehicle has advanced in this manner. After the carrier on the loader advances, the gap detecting sensor 20
4, when it is confirmed that a predetermined gap exists between the first carrier 2 (n + 1) on the loader and the next carrier 2 (n + 2), each pusher pivots downward, and Returns to the initial operating position (time T7-T8 in FIG. 11). FIG. 15 shows a state where the pusher 115 has returned to the initial operation position. After the pusher returns to the original position, the lifting mechanisms 34, 44, 5
4, 64 and 74 are driven, and the carrier 2 in each tank swings up and down for a certain period (time T8-T in FIG. 11).
9). Due to this swinging motion, the printed circuit board W mounted on the carrier is efficiently cleaned in each tank.

The swinging motion of the elevating mechanism stops after a certain time has elapsed. Then, the bypass passages 327 and 627 in the cleaning unit 3 and the first rinsing unit 6 are opened, and the automatic on-off valve 3 is opened.
24, 325, 622, and 623 are closed, and the injection of the cleaning liquid and the pure water is stopped (time T9 in FIG. 11). Next, each elevating mechanism is driven, and the carrier 2 is lifted from each tank. After the upper-limit approach detection sensor 206 detects that the carrier has approached the upper limit position, the ascending speed decreases (time T10 in FIG. 11). And the drive of each lifting mechanism stops.

The automatic opening / closing valves 932, 942, 9 of the air blowing section 9 are synchronized with the elevation of the carrier.
52 (see FIG. 9) opens. As a result, the compressed air is supplied to the air blowing section 93 of the cleaning tank 3, the air blowing section 94 of the first preliminary rinsing section 4, and the air blowing section 95 of the first rinsing section 6, and is blown out therefrom. Therefore, air is blown to the carrier 2 drawn out of the tank in each of the parts 3, 4, and 6. By this air blowing operation, the cleaning liquid or pure water adhering to the printed circuit board W mounted on the carrier is efficiently blown off.

That is, when the cleaning liquid or water adhering to the pulled-up carrier and the printed circuit board is allowed to fall naturally, the liquid or water remaining in the uneven portion of each of these parts is difficult to drop. If the liquid or water remains in such a portion and is sent to the next stage, the degree of contamination of the pure water stored in each tank is increased, and it is necessary to increase the frequency of pure water exchange. In addition, when a large amount of water adheres to the drying unit 8, the drying takes a long time, which is not preferable. However, in this example, by blowing air, the carrier or liquid or water accumulated in the uneven portion of the printed circuit board or the like is blown off,
Removed from these. Therefore, the degree of contamination of pure water is reduced, and the frequency of water replacement can be reduced. Also,
Drying in the drying section can be shortened. FIG.
FIG. 6 shows the carrier in a state where it is pulled up while blowing air.

Thereafter, the above operation is repeated, and each carrier 2 is carried out from the cleaning section 3 to the unloader 13 via the second rinsing section 7. The washed carrier carried out onto the unloader is conveyed to the next drying section 8 by a robot hand or manually, where pure water adhering thereto is dried and removed.

(Another Embodiment) The above example shows one embodiment of the present invention, and is not intended to limit the present invention to the above configuration.

For example, FIGS. 17 and 18 show another work cleaning apparatus to which the present invention is applied. The apparatus 300 of this example includes a cleaning unit 301, a preliminary rinsing unit 302, and a first
Rinsing unit 303, second rinsing unit 304 and drying unit 30
The reverse osmosis filtration unit 302a and the pump 302b are interposed in the circulation system of the preliminary rinsing unit 302, and the circulation system from the first rinsing unit 303 to the nozzle group 304a of the second rinsing unit 304 is provided. Is provided with a pure water regenerator 304b. The cleaning unit 301 is the cleaning unit 3 in the above example.
Similarly to the above, in the cleaning liquid containing the workpiece cleaning agent, the cleaning liquid is sprayed onto the workpiece from the nozzle 301a to clean the workpiece.

The preliminary rinsing section 302 has the same configuration as the first preliminary rinsing section 4 in the above example. The first rinsing section 304 is for cleaning the work by injecting pure water into the work in pure water, similarly to the first rinse section 6 in the above example. The second rinsing unit 304 is provided for the nozzle group 3 with respect to the workpiece in the atmosphere.
The workpiece is cleaned by injecting pure water from the nozzle 04a. On the other hand, the drying unit 305 has the same configuration as the drying unit 8 in the above example.

When using the work cleaning apparatus 300 of this embodiment, for example, as shown in FIG. 18, a cylindrical net basket 402 with a handle 401 can be used as a work carrier. As the transport mechanism 403 of the net basket 402, the hook part 40 for hanging the handle of the net basket 402 is used.
4, an arm 405 that supports the hook 404, and a moving unit 406 that moves the arm 405 in the horizontal and vertical directions. As a work that can be washed in the net basket 402,
Various plastic products and metal products can be mentioned.

Next, in FIG. 19, using a transport belt,
An example in which a work transfer system is configured is shown. In this figure, parts corresponding to the respective parts in FIG. 17 are given the corresponding numbers. The apparatus of this example is configured to be able to wash a plate-shaped workpiece W while continuously transporting the same.

As described above, in any of the embodiments, the pure water tank of the preliminary rinsing section is provided with pure water regenerating means utilizing a filtering function, and the pure water in each of the pure water tanks is equal to or higher than a certain level. In this case, the concentration of the detergent is not increased.

For example, when a cleaning solution having a cleaning agent concentration of about 90 wt% is used and the number of operating days and the cleaning agent concentration in each pure water tank are measured in each cleaning apparatus, the cleaning agent concentration in the pure water in the preliminary rinsing section is as follows. It becomes constant at a low concentration (40 wt% or less). On the other hand, the first and second rinsing sections carry in the work in a state in which most of the cleaning agent has been washed off, and a pure water regenerator is installed. Pure water is kept almost free of detergent. Therefore, from the pure water tank of the preliminary rinsing part and the pure water tank of the rinsing part, it is not necessary to wastefully drain and supply water, and pure water can be circulated and used. Therefore, a small-sized pure water sampling device for supplying pure water to a treatment facility and a device for treating wastewater from the device is sufficient, and its running cost is low.

As the pure water regeneration means, activated sludge treatment using living organisms may be used in addition to filtration means using activated carbon, an ultrafiltration membrane, or a reverse osmosis membrane. You may use together.

[0063]

As described above, the work cleaning apparatus of the present invention performs the cleaning by spraying the cleaning liquid onto the work in the cleaning liquid containing the cleaning agent, and then in the preliminary rinsing section in pure water. The cleaning agent is washed off the work, and thereafter, the rinse is performed in the rinsing section. Rinse part is pure water
Pure water from the first pure water tank, which has stored
Receive the cleaned work and place it in the pure water tank.
A third work transport means for taking in and out the
The state of being placed in the first pure water tank by the work transfer means
Of a pure water jet against the workpiece
A first rinsing section provided with a jet forming means, and a pure water storing section;
Water from the second pure water tank and the first rinsing section.
Received the cleaned work, and the second pure water tank
A fourth work transport means for taking in and out the work is provided.
A second rinsing portion. A first pure water tank and
A pure water collecting pure water overflowing from each of the second pure water tanks
It has a water recovery tank. The second jet forming means is a work
At least one pure water injection nozzle arranged toward
And the pure water collected in the pure water recovery tank to each of the nozzles
And a pump for pumping the water. Second rinsing part
Circulates pure water to a second pure water tank through a pure water recovery tank.
Pure water circulation means, and a second pure water circulation means formed by the means.
Located in the pure water circulation path to the water tank and included in the circulating pure water
It has a pure water regenerating means for removing impurities contained therein .

In particular, in the present invention, the first rinsing portion
From the discharge side of the pump for forming a jet at the first
Is immersed in the first pure water tank
When the workpiece is being transported, it is closed.
The workpiece has a bypass passage that
The jet stops when sinking or lifting in the pure water tank
So that the jets hit a part of the work
Stable lifting and lowering of the workpiece without damage
It can be carried out. In addition, we raised from the first pure water tank
Divergent mist droplets naturally generated by the jet flow are reattached to the work
Can be suppressed, and the pure water in the first pure water tank is replaced with the second pure water.
It is possible to prevent the dirt from being transported to the tank and increasing. In addition,
The circulation of pure water in the first pure water tank is stopped during transport
Instead, they continue to circulate through the bypass
You. That is, the pure water overflowing from the first pure water tank is collected by the recovery tank,
Regenerated by pure water tank regeneration means via water tank circulation means,
The regenerated pure water is supplied to the second pure water tank and the pure water tank
Tank with the overflowing pure water
Then, the pure water in the recovery tank is
Is supplied to the first pure water tank through the water passage,
Finally, the first pure water tank is also purified. After the work immersion period
The first pure water tank can be deionized even when it's outside idle time.
Therefore, the pure water contamination of the entire rinsing section can be prevented as much as possible.
Replacement work has been reduced, and overall consumption of pure water has been significantly reduced.
Can be reduced.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic configuration diagram schematically showing an overall configuration of a work cleaning apparatus according to one embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a schematic elevation view showing a specific configuration of the apparatus shown in FIG.

FIG. 3 is a schematic plan view showing a specific configuration of the device shown in FIG.

FIG. 4 is a schematic sectional view showing a portion cut along a line IV-IV in FIG. 2;

FIG. 5 is a perspective view showing the carrier of FIG. 1;

FIG. 6 is a piping diagram showing a piping system of a cleaning liquid and pure water in the apparatus shown in FIG.

FIG. 7 is a plan view showing a state in which the cleaning liquid tank shown in FIG. 1 is viewed from above.

FIG. 8 is a plan view showing the pure water tank in the first and second rinsing units shown in FIG. 1 as viewed from above.

FIG. 9 is a configuration diagram illustrating a configuration of an air blowing unit illustrated in FIG. 1;

FIG. 10 is a schematic block diagram showing a main part of a control system of the apparatus shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 11 is a timing chart showing a cleaning operation of the apparatus of FIG. 1;

FIG. 12 is an explanatory diagram showing the operation of the device of FIG. 1;

FIG. 13 is an explanatory diagram showing the operation of the device of FIG. 1;

FIG. 14 is an explanatory diagram showing the operation of the device of FIG. 1;

FIG. 15 is an explanatory diagram showing the operation of the device of FIG. 1;

FIG. 16 is an explanatory diagram showing the operation of the device in FIG. 1;

FIG. 17 is an overall configuration diagram showing another embodiment of the present invention.

18 is a schematic diagram showing a work carrier used in the example shown in FIG. 17 and a transport system thereof.

FIG. 19 is a modification of the embodiment shown in FIG. 17, and is an overall configuration diagram showing an example in which a work transfer system is formed using a transfer belt.

[Explanation of symbols]

REFERENCE SIGNS LIST 1 work cleaning device 2 carrier 3 cleaning unit 4 first preliminary rinsing unit 5 second preliminary rinsing unit 6 first rinsing unit 7 second rinsing unit 8 drying unit 9 air blowing unit 302a reverse osmosis filtration unit (pure Water filtration means / pure water regeneration means) 304b Pure water regenerator (pure water filtration means / pure water regeneration means) 413 Ultrafiltration unit (pure water filtration means / pure water regeneration means) 513 Filtration unit (pure water filtration means / Pure water regeneration means) 627 Pure water regenerator (pure water filtration means / pure water regeneration means) W Work

──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continuation of the front page (56) References JP-A-63-315182 (JP, A) JP-A-63-133534 (JP, A) JP-A-62-282689 (JP, A) JP-A-49-49 119782 (JP, A) JP-A-53-60380 (JP, A) JP-A-53-130865 (JP, A) JP-A-1-120828 (JP, A) JP-A-49-14324 (JP, A) Japanese Utility Model Showa 62-152439 (JP, U) Japanese Utility Model Showa 63-174439 (JP, U) Japanese Patent Publication 62-31993 (JP, B2) Japanese Utility Model Showa 59-28714 (JP, Y2) (58) (Int.Cl. ⁷ , DB name) B08B 3/00-3/14

Claims (16)

(57) [Claims] 1. A cleaning liquid tank storing a cleaning liquid containing a work cleaning agent, and a cleaning liquid tank for putting a work into and out of the cleaning liquid tank .
A work cleaning unit comprising: a first work transfer means; and a first jet forming means for blowing a jet of a cleaning liquid onto the work in the cleaning liquid tank by the first work transfer means. Receiving a cleaned work from a pure water tank storing pure water, and the work cleaning unit,
At least one preliminary rinsing unit provided with a second work transfer unit for taking the work in and out of the pure water tank, and a rinsing unit, wherein the rinsing unit supplies pure water. The stored first pure water tank,
Receive the cleaned work with pure water from the rinsing unit,
A third work for taking the work in and out of the pure water tank.
Work transfer means and the third work transfer means.
Work in the first pure water tank
Second jet forming means for blowing a jet of pure water against
A first rinsing unit provided and a second pure water storing pure water
The tank and the first rinsing section have been washed with pure water
Receive the work, and put it in the second pure water tank.
A fourth workpiece transfer means for loading and unloading the workpiece;
2 rinse parts, and each of the first pure water tank and the second pure water tank
A pure water recovery tank for recovering the pure water overflowing, and the second jet forming means is arranged toward the workpiece.
At least one pure water injection nozzle and the pure water recovery tank
Pump the recovered pure water towards each of the nozzles
Pump, and the second rinsing section supplies pure water through the pure water recovery tank.
Means for circulating pure water to the second pure water tank,
Pure water circulation path to the second pure water tank formed by steps
To remove impurities contained in circulating pure water
Pure water regenerating means that communicates with the first pure water tank from the discharge side of the pump.
Closed state when the work is immersed in the first pure water tank
When the workpiece is being transported, the
A work cleaning device comprising an ipass passage . 2. The method according to claim 1, wherein said pure water regenerating means comprises:
A work cleaning apparatus comprising activated sludge treatment means utilizing biochemical oxidation. 3. The method according to claim 1, wherein the pure water regenerating means comprises:
A work cleaning apparatus comprising a filtration means for filtering pure water to separate impurities. 4. A work cleaning apparatus according to claim 3 , wherein said filtering means utilizes an action of adsorbing activated carbon. 5. The apparatus according to claim 4 , wherein said filtration means utilizes an ultrafiltration membrane. 6. The apparatus according to claim 5 , wherein said filtering means uses a reverse osmosis membrane. 7. The one of claims 1 to claim 6, by blowing gas to the workpiece is pulled up from the pure water tank of the rinse section, pay deionized water adhering to the workpiece A work cleaning apparatus comprising a draining means for dropping. 8. The apparatus for cleaning a workpiece according to claim 7 , further comprising a drying unit for drying and removing pure water adhering to the workpiece that has been drained by the draining unit. In any of the sections 9. claims 1 to 8, by blowing gas against the workpiece to be pulled up from the cleaning tank of the cleaning unit, shake off cleaning liquid attached to the work A work cleaning apparatus comprising a liquid drainer. 10. A any one of claims 7 through claim 9, wherein the draining means in the liquid cutting means and the rinsing section of the cleaning unit, the liquid level of the cleaning liquid stored in the cleaning tank or the deionized water tank A work cleaning apparatus, comprising: at least one air injection nozzle disposed above a surface of stored pure water; and an air pump for supplying compressed air to the air injection nozzle. In any of the sections 11. The method of claim 1 to claim 10, wherein the cleaning unit, pre-rinse unit, the workpiece conveying means in the rinsing section, the work for transporting laterally toward the workpiece to the next stage side A work cleaning apparatus comprising: a horizontal transfer mechanism; and a work elevating mechanism for moving a work received from the work horizontal transfer mechanism into and out of a cleaning liquid tank or a pure water tank. 12. A work carrier according to claim 11 , further comprising a work carrier capable of holding a plurality of plate-shaped works, said work carrier being capable of aligning and holding a plurality of works in a state of standing at predetermined intervals. A work cleaning apparatus, wherein the work carrier is carried by each of the work carrying means. 13. The work cleaning apparatus according to claim 12 , wherein the work lifting mechanism in each of the work transfer means is capable of swinging the work carrier up and down with a constant stroke. 14. The work according to claim 13 , wherein each of the work transfer means is constituted by a transfer belt means whose transfer path is partially immersed in the cleaning tank and the pure water tank. Cleaning equipment. 15. A cleaning liquid used in the workpiece cleaning apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 14 , wherein the cleaning liquid is a polyethylene glycol ether-based cleaning liquid containing polyethylene glycol monoalkyl ether as a cleaning agent. And work cleaning equipment. 16. The polyethylene glycol ether-based cleaning liquid as defined in claim 15 , wherein at least about 5 w
A work cleaning apparatus, wherein water having a concentration of t% and a sequestering agent are mixed.