JP4137894B2 - Observation window with operation hole and environmental test equipment. - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to an observation window with an operation hole provided in an environmental test apparatus or the like. The present invention also relates to an environmental test apparatus such as a constant temperature and humidity chamber.

  2. Description of the Related Art An environmental test apparatus that tests a durability or the like by exposing a device under test to a high temperature environment or a low temperature environment is known. Some environmental test apparatuses have an observation window made of glass so that the state of the DUT can be visually observed. Furthermore, an environmental test apparatus having an operation hole for inserting a hand into an observation window so that the device under test can be operated without opening the door of the apparatus is also known.

  By the way, the environmental test apparatus changes the internal temperature and humidity over a wide range. Therefore, depending on the temperature and humidity conditions inside the apparatus, the observation window may become cloudy or the observation window may be frosted. Therefore, in order to prevent fogging and frosting of the glass surface due to the internal temperature and humidity conditions, the environmental test equipment uses a glass with a conductive film such as tin oxide as the observation window glass. Yes. In the above-described measures, electrode portions are provided at both ends of the observation window, the conductive film is energized through the electrode portions, and the conductive film is heated to prevent fogging and frosting on the glass surface.

However, if the observation window having the operation hole is provided with a glass with a conductive film as described above and a power supply electrode, the current density around the operation hole will be different from other parts, and it will be excessively locally. There has been a problem that the glass is distorted due to an increase in temperature, or a part where the temperature rise is insufficient is generated, resulting in incomplete defrosting. That is, since the conductive film cannot be provided at the operation hole portion, no current is supplied to the operation hole portion. Therefore, the current flows away from the operation hole, and the current density in the vicinity of the operation hole increases locally. In addition, two operation holes are usually provided to insert both hands, but current hardly flows between one operation hole and the other operation hole, and the current density is lowered. For this reason, the temperature between the operation holes is insufficient and the fogging is incomplete.
Therefore, the present applicant completed the invention for solving this problem and filed the following patent application.

Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 9-86965

FIG. 10 is a front view of the observation window with an operation hole disclosed in Patent Document 1. FIG. FIG. 11 is an enlarged view of the vicinity of the operation hole of FIG.
In the invention disclosed in Patent Document 1, linear auxiliary electrodes 101 and 102 are provided on both sides of the operation hole 100, and the auxiliary electrodes 101 and 102 are connected to each other by a resistance wire 103. According to the structure described in Patent Document 1, since the auxiliary electrode 101 on one side of the operation hole 100 is electrically connected to the auxiliary electrode 102 on the other side, electricity is supplied also in the vicinity of the operation hole 100 in the same manner as other parts. As a result, the current density in other parts becomes uniform, and the temperature distribution in the observation window becomes uniform.

However, in the observation window with an operation hole disclosed in Patent Document 1, since the auxiliary electrodes 101 and 102 are linear, a large gap is generated between the auxiliary electrodes 101 and 102 and the operation hole 100, and the temperature of the part is increased. There was dissatisfaction that adjustment was not possible. That is, the operation hole 100 is generally circular or elliptical and has a circular tone, whereas the auxiliary electrodes 101 and 102 are straight, so that the shape of the auxiliary electrodes 101 and 102 does not follow the operation hole 100, There is a gap between the two. That is, a large gap is generated in the hatched portion in FIG. And since the space | gap part which attached | subjected hatching cannot flow an electric current, temperature control cannot be performed but it becomes cloudy or frosted.
Although the area ratio of the hatched portion is small from the area of the entire observation window, the portion is a position closest to the operation hole 100 and is a hand portion for the operator, so the portion is cloudy. And the operation of the DUT will be hindered.

  Then, this invention makes it a subject to provide the observation window with an operation hole which does not fog or frost also in the immediate vicinity part of an operation hole.

  In order to solve the above problems, the invention of claim 1 excludes a transparent base material provided with operation holes, a main electrode part provided on both end sides of the transparent base material, and operation holes of the transparent base material. In an observation window with an operation hole that includes a conductive heat generating layer provided at a site and energizes the conductive heat generating layer through the main electrode portions on both ends, and generates heat in the conductive heat generating layer, an arcuate portion around the operation hole An observation window with an operation hole, characterized in that an auxiliary electrode having a gap is provided, and the main electrode portion side of the operation hole is conducted through the auxiliary electrode.

  Since the auxiliary electrode employed in the observation window with an operation hole of the present invention has an arcuate portion, the auxiliary electrode follows the operation hole. Therefore, according to the configuration of the present invention, the gap between the auxiliary electrode and the operation hole is small, and the temperature can be adjusted also in the vicinity of the operation hole. Therefore, the observation window with an operation hole of the present invention does not cloud the operator's hand, and the object under test can be operated while viewing the object under test.

  The invention according to claim 2 is the observation window with an operation hole according to claim 1, wherein the auxiliary electrode surrounds the operation hole in an annular shape.

  In the invention according to claim 2, since the auxiliary electrode surrounds the operation hole in an annular shape, no blind spot is generated in the vicinity of the operation hole.

  According to a third aspect of the present invention, the auxiliary electrode is composed of one side auxiliary electrode piece facing the main electrode portion on one end side and the other side auxiliary electrode piece facing the main electrode portion on the other side, and the one side auxiliary electrode 2. The observation window with an operation hole according to claim 1, wherein the piece and the other auxiliary electrode piece are electrically connected by a conductive means.

  In the observation window with an operation hole according to the present invention, the auxiliary electrode is constituted by one side auxiliary electrode piece and the other side auxiliary electrode piece, and the two are connected by the conduction means. Therefore, energization is allowed from the one side auxiliary electrode piece to the other side or the opposite direction, and as a result, the main electrode portions can be energized to supply power to the conductive heat generating layer.

  According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the observation window with an operation hole according to the third aspect, the conducting means has an electrical resistance.

  In the observation window with an operation hole of the present invention, since the conduction means has a resistance value, the electric resistance in the vicinity of the operation hole can be brought close to the resistance value of other regions, and variation in heat generation in each region can be reduced.

  The invention according to claim 5 is provided in a portion excluding the transparent substrate provided with operation holes, the main electrode portion provided on both ends of the transparent substrate, and the operation holes of the transparent substrate. In the observation window with an operation hole that is provided with a conductive heat generating layer and energizes the conductive heat generating layer through the main electrode portions on both end sides to generate heat, an auxiliary electrode that surrounds the operation hole in an annular shape is provided. The observation window with an operation hole is characterized in that the main electrode portions of the operation hole are electrically connected to each other through the auxiliary electrode.

  In the present invention, since the auxiliary electrode surrounds the operation hole in an annular shape, no blind spot is generated in the vicinity of the operation hole.

  The invention according to claim 6 further includes a temperature detection unit and a temperature control unit, wherein the temperature detection unit detects a temperature of the transparent base material or the conductive heating layer, and the temperature control unit detects the temperature within a predetermined range. The observation window with an operation hole according to claim 1, wherein power supplied to the conductive heat generation layer is controlled so that

  In the observation window with an operation hole of the present invention, since the temperature of the transparent base material can be controlled, there is no problem that the temperature of the transparent base material is too high to cause burns, or conversely, the temperature is too low to become cloudy. .

  The invention described in claim 7 has an environmental test chamber capable of controlling the internal environment, and the observation window with an operation hole according to any one of claims 1 to 6 is provided in a part of the environmental test chamber. This is an environmental test apparatus characterized by that.

  Since the environmental test apparatus of the present invention has an observation window with an operation hole, it can be operated while observing the DUT. In the environmental test apparatus of the present invention, the observation window is not fogged.

  According to the first to seventh aspects of the present invention, the observation window is not clouded even in the vicinity of the operation hole, and no blind spot is formed at the operator's hand. Therefore, the observation window with an operation hole of the present invention or the environmental test apparatus provided with the same is convenient.

  FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an environmental test apparatus including an observation window with an operation hole according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a front view of an observation window with an operation hole employed in the environmental test apparatus shown in FIG. FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line AA of FIG.

The environmental test apparatus 1 shown in FIG. 1 is mainly composed of an environmental test chamber 2 composed of a constant temperature and humidity chamber. The environmental test chamber 2 itself is not different from the publicly known one, and the internal environment such as temperature and humidity can be arbitrarily changed and maintained. An open / close door 3 is provided in front of the environmental test chamber 2. The open / close door 3 is provided with an observation window 5 with operation holes.
In the present embodiment, the observation window 5 with an operation hole occupies most of the area of the open / close door 3.

  The observation window with operation hole 5 is made of a transparent substrate 6 so that the inside of the environmental test chamber 2 can be observed. In the present embodiment, the transparent substrate 6 is a so-called pair glass, in which a glass body 10 on the front side (outer surface side) and a tempered glass 11 on the environmental test chamber 2 side are stacked via a spacer 12.

  The transparent substrate 6 is provided with operation holes 15 and 16. The operation holes 15 and 16 are round holes and are slightly below the center of the transparent substrate in the height direction, and the heights of the two operation holes 15 and 16 are equal. The operation holes 15 and 16 are located in the center in the lateral direction. In the present embodiment, the observation window with operation hole 5 also functions as a glove box, and in this case, the operation holes 15 and 16 described above function as glove ports. When used as a glove box, a glove (not shown) is attached to the operation holes 15 and 16, and the operator puts his hand in the glove and operates the object to be tested in the environmental test chamber 2.

In addition, a conductive heat generating layer 20 is formed on the back side of the glass body 10, that is, on one side of the glass body 10 and facing the tempered glass 11. The conductive heat generating layer 20 is made of, for example, an ITO film [(SnO ₂ + In ₂ O ₃ ) film], a zinc oxide film doped with aluminum or the like, or a narrow conductive film called a normal conductive film, such as a tin oxide film. It is composed of a commonly used membrane called an ordinary EC membrane. In the present embodiment, an EC film is employed as the conductive heat generating layer 20. The EC film employed in the present embodiment is a uniform film having a constant thickness t, and its resistance value is, for example, 202Ω / m ² .
In the present embodiment, the conductive heat generating layer 20 is provided in the entire area excluding the operation hole. The conductive heat generating layer 20 is not necessarily provided over the entire area.

  In addition, bus bars (main electrodes) 21 and 22 are provided on both the left and right ends of the transparent substrate 6 on the same surface as the conductive heat generating layer 20. That is, the one end side bus bar 21 is provided on one end side of the transparent base material, and the other end side bus bar 22 is provided on the other end side. Each bus bar 21, 22 extends in the vertical direction over the entire area of the left and right ends of the transparent base 6, is provided over the entire area of each side, and is in contact with the conductive heat generating layer 20. Accordingly, the buses 21 and 22 are electrically connected to the conductive heat generating layer 20.

Auxiliary electrodes 25 and 26 are provided in the vicinity of the operation holes 15 and 16. The auxiliary electrodes 25 and 26 are also in contact with the conductive heat generating layer 20 and are electrically connected to each other.
Since the auxiliary electrodes 25 and 26 belonging to the two operation holes 15 and 16 have the same structure, the structure of the auxiliary electrode 25 belonging to the operation hole 15 on the left side of the drawing will be described as a representative, and the other auxiliary electrode 26 is shown in the drawing. The same numbers are assigned and explanations are omitted.

  In the present embodiment, the auxiliary electrode 25 belonging to the operation hole 15 is constituted by one side auxiliary electrode piece 27 and the other side auxiliary electrode piece 28. The above-described auxiliary electrode pieces 27 and 28 on the one side and the other side are symmetrical and both have an arc shape. The two auxiliary electrode pieces 27 and 28 are both concentrically arranged with respect to the operation hole 15, and the two auxiliary electrode pieces (one side and the other side) 27 and 28 are perpendicular to the operation hole 15. It arrange | positions in the symmetrical position with respect to the central axis (not shown). Therefore, the convex side of the one side auxiliary electrode piece 27 faces the bus bar 21 side on one end side, and the other side auxiliary electrode piece 28 faces the bus bar 22 side on the other end side. In the present embodiment, the two operation holes 15 and 16 are horizontally arranged, and the bus bars 21 and 22 as the main electrodes are provided on the left and right sides of the transparent substrate 6, so that one operation hole 15 and 16 is provided. Note that one of the auxiliary electrode pieces 27 and 28 on one side or the other side directly faces the buses 21 and 22, and the other auxiliary electrode pieces 27 and 28 belong to the adjacent operation holes 15 and 16. Facing the pieces 27 and 28.

  A resistor 30 is provided between the auxiliary electrode pieces 27 and 28 belonging to the operation hole 15, and the auxiliary electrode pieces 27 and 28 and the resistor 30 are connected by a conducting wire 31. The resistance value of the resistor 30 is selected to be close to the resistance value of the area when it is assumed that an EC film is provided in the area surrounded by the auxiliary electrode pieces 27 and 28.

  The transparent substrate 6 is provided with a temperature sensor 32. The attachment position of the temperature sensor 32 may be on the glass body 10 or the conductive heat generating layer 20.

  The environmental test apparatus 1 of the present embodiment includes a temperature adjustment device (temperature control means) 35 for the transparent substrate 6 as shown in FIG. 2, separately from the temperature adjustment device in the environmental test chamber 2. Then, the signal of the temperature sensor 32 is input to the temperature adjustment device 35. Further, power is supplied from the temperature control device 35 to the buses 21 and 22 which are main electrodes. The electric power supplied from the temperature adjustment device 35 to the buses 21 and 22 is controlled by the temperature detected by the temperature sensor 32. Specifically, the supplied power is on / off controlled so that the temperature detected by the temperature sensor 32 falls within a certain range.

  In the environmental test apparatus 1 of the present embodiment, power is supplied to the conductive heat generating layer 20 through the buses 21 and 22 at both ends, as in the prior art, and the conductive heat generating layer 20 generates heat to cause fogging and frosting on the glass body 10 and the like. To prevent. The current flow at this time will be described with reference to FIG. 2. For ease of explanation, the observation window 5 with operation holes is provided with the area b where the operation holes 15, 16 exist and the operation holes 15, 16. The areas a and c will be described separately.

In areas a and c where the operation holes 15 and 16 do not exist, power is supplied to the entire area of the conductive heat generating layer 20 through the buses 21 and 22, and the areas generate heat to prevent the occurrence of fogging or the like.
For the area b where the operation holes 15 and 16 are present, for example, assuming that a current flows from the bus bar 21 on the left side of the drawing to the bus bar 22 on the right side, the area d in FIG. A current flows through the conductive heat generating layer 20 in a region sandwiched between the pieces 27. As a result, the conductive heat generating layer 20 provided in the region sandwiched between the bus bar 21 and the one side auxiliary electrode piece 27 generates heat and removes fogging and the like.

  Here, in the present embodiment, the one side auxiliary electrode piece 27 has an arc shape and is disposed concentrically with respect to the operation hole 15. Therefore, the one-side auxiliary electrode piece 27 is provided along the operation hole 15, and the distance between the one-side auxiliary electrode piece 27 and the operation hole 15 is the same at any position, and the gap between them is small. Therefore, in the present embodiment, the conductive heat generating layer 20 is also present at the position just before the operation hole 15, and the conductive heat generating layer 20 in the portion is energized to generate heat. Therefore, the observation window 5 with an operation hole according to the present embodiment hardly forms a blind spot just before the operation hole 15.

Furthermore, a current flows from the one-side auxiliary electrode piece 27 to the other-side auxiliary electrode piece 28 through the conducting wire (conduction means) 31. In the present embodiment, since the resistor 30 is interposed between the one side auxiliary electrode piece 27 and the other side auxiliary electrode piece 28, a predetermined electric resistance exists between them.
2 from the other side auxiliary electrode piece 28 (region sandwiched between the other side auxiliary electrode piece 28 belonging to the operation hole 15 and the one side auxiliary electrode piece 27 belonging to the operation hole 16) in FIG. Current flows through
As a result, the conductive heat generating layer 20 in the part (f area) generates heat and removes fogging and the like. The auxiliary electrode pieces 28 and 27 adjacent to the area f are also arc-shaped and are arranged concentrically with respect to the operation holes 15 and 16, so that the auxiliary electrode pieces 28 and 27 and the operation holes 15 and 16 are arranged. The distance between them is the same at any position, and the gap between them is small. Therefore, it is difficult to make a blind spot just before the operation holes 15 and 16.

Similarly to the auxiliary electrode 25 belonging to the operation hole 15 described above, also in the auxiliary electrode 26 belonging to the right operation hole 16, a current flows from the one side auxiliary electrode piece 27 to the other side auxiliary electrode piece 28 through the conductor 31. Further, current flows from the other side auxiliary electrode piece 28 to the h area (a region sandwiched between the other side auxiliary electrode piece 28 belonging to the operation hole 16 and the right bus 22), and the conductive heat generating layer 20 in the region generates heat.
In this way, current also flows in the area b where the operation holes 15 and 16 exist, and the conductive heating element 20 in the area generates heat to prevent fogging and the like. Further, the auxiliary electrode pieces 27 and 28 belonging to the operation holes 15 and 16 are both arc-shaped, and are arranged concentrically with respect to the operation holes 15 and 16. The conductive heat generating layer 20 is present, and the conductive heat generating layer 20 at that portion is also energized to generate heat, so that it is difficult to form a blind spot between the operation holes 15 and 16.
Therefore, the environmental test apparatus 1 of the present embodiment is easy to use.

Next, another embodiment of the present invention will be described.
In the embodiment described above, the resistor 30 is interposed between the one side auxiliary electrode piece 27 and the other side auxiliary electrode piece 28. This configuration can balance the resistance value with the region where the operation holes 15 and 16 do not exist, and is a recommended configuration, but the resistor 30 is not necessarily essential. Further, if the auxiliary electrodes 27 and 28 themselves have a considerable electric resistance, no additional resistance is required. Further, the auxiliary electrodes 27 and 28 may have electric resistance and generate heat by the action thereof. That is, the auxiliary electrodes 27 and 28 may be heaters such as a silicon heater.

FIG. 4 is a front view showing an observation window with an operation hole according to another embodiment of the present invention. In this embodiment, resistance is omitted.
In addition, since another structure is the same as previous embodiment, it attaches | subjects the same number to the same member and replaces it with detailed description.

  In the previous embodiment, the operation holes 15 and 16 are surrounded by two auxiliary electrode pieces and the two are connected by a conductive wire or the like, but the auxiliary electrodes 40, 41, 52, and 53 shown in FIGS. An annular thing can also be adopted. That is, FIG. 5 and FIG. 6 are front views showing the vicinity of the operation hole of an observation window with an operation hole according to another embodiment of the present invention.

The auxiliary electrode 40 shown in FIG. 5A has an annular shape. When the above-described annular structure auxiliary electrode is employed, it is desirable to provide a resistance value to the auxiliary electrode 40 itself so as to balance the resistance value with a region where the operation holes 15 and 16 do not exist. The same applies to the following embodiments.
That is, the auxiliary electrode 40 does not have a separate resistance, but the auxiliary electrode 40 itself has a resistance value. On the other hand, two auxiliary electrodes 51 shown in FIG. 2B have two resistors 52 inserted in the middle.

  In the embodiment shown in FIG. 6A, the operation hole 43 has a quadrangular shape, and the auxiliary electrode 41 has a quadrangular annular shape corresponding to this. In the present embodiment, the auxiliary electrode 41 has no resistance. On the other hand, two auxiliary electrodes 53 shown in FIG. 2B have two resistors 52 inserted in the middle.

7, 8, and 9 are front views showing the vicinity of the operation hole of the observation window with the operation hole according to still another embodiment of the present invention.
That is, as a shape of the auxiliary electrode, a horseshoe shape as shown in FIG. 7 can be considered (auxiliary electrode 44).
Further, as shown in FIG. 8, when the operation hole 45 has a long hole shape, an auxiliary electrode 46 having a straight portion and an arc-shaped portion may be employed. In the auxiliary electrode shown in FIG. 8, the arc-shaped portion constitutes an arc-shaped portion.
Furthermore, it may be a waveform like the auxiliary electrode 47 shown in FIG. In the auxiliary electrode 47 shown in FIG. 9, the whole comprises the arc-shaped part.
In the above-described embodiment, all of the conductive heat generating layers are spread in a planar shape, but may be extended in a linear shape.

  As described above, the observation window with an operation hole according to each embodiment of the present invention has an effect that a blind spot is not generated near the operator's hand, and the inside is easy to see and is easy to use.

It is a perspective view of the environmental test apparatus provided with the observation window with an operation hole of the embodiment of the present invention. It is a front view of the observation window with an operation hole employ | adopted with the environmental test apparatus shown in FIG. It is AA sectional drawing of FIG. It is a front view which shows the observation window with an operation hole of other embodiment of this invention. It is a front view which shows the operation hole vicinity of the observation window with an operation hole of other embodiment of this invention. It is a front view which shows the operation hole vicinity of the observation window with an operation hole of other embodiment of this invention. It is a front view which shows the operation hole vicinity of the observation window with an operation hole of further another embodiment of this invention. It is a front view which shows the operation hole vicinity of the observation window with an operation hole of further another embodiment of this invention. It is a front view which shows the operation hole vicinity of the observation window with an operation hole of further another embodiment of this invention. It is a front view of the observation window with an operation hole disclosed in Patent Document 1. It is an enlarged view of the operation hole vicinity of FIG.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Environmental test apparatus 2 Environmental test room 3 Opening / closing door 5 Observation window with operation hole 6 Transparent base material 15 and 16 Operation hole 20 Conductive heat generating layer 21 and 22 Bus (main electrode)
25, 26 Auxiliary electrode 27 One side auxiliary electrode piece 28 The other side auxiliary electrode piece 30, 52 Resistance 31 Conducting wire (conduction means)
32 temperature sensor 35 temperature control device (temperature control means)
40, 41 Auxiliary electrodes 43, 45 Operation holes 44, 46, 47 Auxiliary electrodes 51, 53 Auxiliary electrodes

Claims (7)

A transparent base material provided with operation holes, a main electrode part provided on both end sides of the transparent base material, and a conductive heat generating layer provided on a portion excluding the operation holes of the transparent base material, the both end sides In the observation window with an operation hole for energizing the conductive heat generating layer through the main electrode portion of the electrode and generating heat in the conductive heat generating layer, an auxiliary electrode having an arc-shaped portion is provided around the operation hole, and the operation is performed via the auxiliary electrode. An observation window with an operation hole, wherein the main electrode portions of the hole are electrically connected. The observation window with an operation hole according to claim 1, wherein the auxiliary electrode surrounds the operation hole in an annular shape. The auxiliary electrode is composed of one side auxiliary electrode piece facing the main electrode portion on one end side and the other side auxiliary electrode piece facing the main electrode portion on the other side. The one side auxiliary electrode piece and the other side auxiliary electrode piece are conductive. The observation window with an operation hole according to claim 1, wherein the observation window is electrically connected by means. The observation window with an operation hole according to claim 3, wherein the conduction means has an electrical resistance. A transparent base material provided with operation holes, a main electrode part provided on both end sides of the transparent base material, and a conductive heat generating layer provided on a portion excluding the operation holes of the transparent base material, the both end sides In the observation window with an operation hole for energizing the conductive heat generating layer through the main electrode portion and generating heat in the conductive heat generating layer, an auxiliary electrode surrounding the periphery of the operation hole is provided, and the operation hole is provided via the auxiliary electrode. An observation window with an operation hole, characterized in that the main electrode side of each other is electrically connected. A temperature detection unit and a temperature control unit, wherein the temperature detection unit detects the temperature of the transparent base material or the conductive heating layer, and the temperature control unit supplies the temperature to the conductive heating layer so that the temperature falls within a predetermined range; The observation window with an operation hole according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein electric power is controlled. An environmental test apparatus having an environmental test room capable of controlling an internal environment, wherein the observation window with an operation hole according to claim 1 is provided in a part of the environmental test room.

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