JP4729852B2 - Droplet discharge apparatus and method for manufacturing the same - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a droplet discharge device and its manufacturing how.

  In recent years, with the development of electronic devices such as computer displays and large televisions, the use of liquid crystal display devices, particularly color liquid crystal display devices, has increased. In this type of liquid crystal display device, a color filter is usually used to color a display image. In the color filter, for example, R (red), G (green), and B (blue) inks are ejected in a predetermined pattern onto a glass substrate, and the ink is dried on the substrate to form a colored layer. There is something. As a method for ejecting ink onto such a substrate, for example, an ink jet type droplet ejecting apparatus is employed.

  When an ink jet type droplet discharge device is employed, a predetermined amount of ink is discharged from an ink jet head onto a glass substrate and landed. In this case, for example, an apparatus of a type in which a glass substrate is mounted on an XYθ stage that is movable in two orthogonal directions (X direction and Y direction) and is rotatable about an arbitrary rotation axis, and an inkjet head is fixed. Can be used. In this type of device, after the glass substrate is positioned at a predetermined position with respect to the inkjet head by driving the XYθ stage, the glass substrate is ejected from the inkjet head while scanning the glass substrate in the X and Y directions. The ink is landed at a predetermined position on the substrate.

An example of a color filter manufacturing apparatus using this type of droplet discharge apparatus is disclosed in Patent Document 1 below. The color filter manufacturing apparatus disclosed in this document can draw colored layers of three colors of R, G, and B, respectively, on the side of the main transport line that transports the substrate to be processed from the previous process to the subsequent process. Three coloring devices (droplet discharge devices) are provided. Further, a supply conveyor for supplying uncolored glass substrates to each coloring device and a discharge conveyor for discharging colored glass substrates from each coloring device are provided between each coloring device and the main conveyance line. In addition, a robot for transferring the glass substrate between the main conveyor line and the supply conveyor and the discharge conveyor is provided between the conveyors.
JP 2001-33614 A

However, the following problems exist in the conventional technology as described above.
In recent years, large liquid crystal televisions of 30 to 60 inches are being offered to the market. In order to manufacture a large color filter that can be adapted to this, the introduction of a head unit in which a larger number of droplet discharge heads are arranged has been studied. If such a head unit is used, ink can be ejected to the entire surface of the glass substrate at a stretch during the conveyance of the large glass substrate. Thereby, the tact time required for processing one glass substrate can be shortened.

However, when the number of droplet discharge heads is increased in accordance with the increase in the size of the substrate, the length of the head unit having these many heads is increased. Normally, in a droplet discharge device, in order to prevent ink drying, the head nozzle surface (ink discharge surface) is covered to prevent ink drying, or the nozzle surface is sucked to fill the head with ink. Attached devices such as the capping unit used and the wiping unit for wiping the nozzle surface are connected to the droplet discharge device main body, and when these accessory devices become longer as the head unit becomes longer, When the accessory device is connected, the length becomes considerable. Therefore, the transportation means for transporting the droplet discharge device to the customer is limited, such as using a large trailer.
Also, when the droplet discharge device is carried in, there is a possibility that the building needs to be modified depending on the layout of the building where the droplet discharge device is installed.

  On the other hand, when the number of droplet discharge heads increases, it is difficult to form a head unit by accurately arranging a large number of droplet discharge heads. In particular, when a large number of droplet discharge heads are sequentially fixed, positional deviations of the respective droplet discharge heads are accumulated, so that such a problem appears remarkably, and it becomes difficult to ensure drawing accuracy by the discharged droplets.

  The present invention has been made in consideration of the above points, and even when the number of droplet discharge heads increases and the length of the device increases, the droplet discharge device can be easily transported and carried in. It is an object of the present invention to provide an electro-optical device and an electronic apparatus manufactured by using the droplet discharge device.

  Another object of the present invention is to provide a liquid droplet discharge head that can be accurately placed even when the number of liquid droplet discharge heads is increased and the length of the apparatus is increased, and drawing accuracy is easily ensured. It is an object to provide a discharge device, a manufacturing method thereof, an electro-optical device and an electronic apparatus manufactured by the droplet discharge device.

In order to achieve the above object, the present invention employs the following configuration.
A droplet discharge device according to the present invention includes a droplet discharge device main body that discharges a liquid material onto a substrate by a plurality of liquid-liquid discharge heads, and a processing device that performs processing associated with droplet discharge on the droplet discharge head with the door, the droplet ejection device main body which is divided respectively and said processing device is assembled in a coordinated state, the plurality of droplet ejection head, the liquid each of which the liquid droplet ejection heads by a predetermined number supported It is mounted on a plurality of carriages that move independently between the droplet discharge device main body and the processing device, and a frame that supports the moving carriage is assembled so as to be divided and integrated , and the plurality of carriages are provided side by side along the extending direction of the frame, at least one of the processing apparatus, the same number as the plurality of carriages, the Rukoto provided side by side along the extending direction intended, characterized That.

The method for manufacturing a droplet discharge device according to the present invention includes a step of manufacturing a droplet discharge device main body that discharges a liquid material onto a substrate by a plurality of liquid-liquid discharge heads, A step of manufacturing a processing apparatus that performs processing associated with discharge, and a step of assembling the droplet discharge apparatus main body and the processing apparatus, which are separately manufactured, in cooperation with each other, and the plurality of droplet discharges head, respectively are mounted on a plurality of carriages to move independently between the droplet said ejection head to a predetermined number supporting and the droplet ejection device main unit, supporting the carriage to be moved to mount is assembled freely divided and integrated, wherein the plurality of carriages are provided side by side along the extending direction of the frame, at least one of the processing apparatus, the same number as the plurality of carriages, prior to Is characterized in Rukoto provided side by side along the extending direction.

  Therefore, in the droplet discharge device and the manufacturing method thereof according to the present invention, the length of the device can be shortened by releasing the cooperation state and dividing / separating the droplet discharge device main body and the processing device. It becomes possible to easily carry in at the installation site without requiring transportation from the place and remodeling of the building. Further, at the installation site, the droplet discharge device main body and the processing device can be assembled in a cooperative state to function as a droplet discharge device.

  It is preferable that the droplet discharge device main body and the processing device are individually integrated. As a result, in the present invention, it is possible to carry out operations such as accuracy improvement for each divided apparatus, and it is possible to easily perform accuracy improvement after cooperation.

A configuration in which a buffer material is interposed between the droplet discharge device main body and the processing device can also be suitably employed. Accordingly, in the present invention, it is possible to suppress the vibration generated in the processing apparatus from being transmitted to the droplet discharge device main body and adversely affecting the droplet discharge accuracy.
Further, in order to prevent vibration generated in the processing apparatus from being transmitted to the droplet discharge apparatus main body, a configuration in which the droplet discharge apparatus main body and the processing apparatus are arranged in a non-contact manner can be suitably employed.

  A configuration in which the droplet discharge device main body has higher rigidity than the processing device is also preferable. In this case, when a load is applied to the droplet discharge device main body and the processing device, the deformation of the droplet discharge device main body that causes many deformations in the processing device is reduced. Therefore, in the present invention, it is possible to suppress adverse effects on the accuracy of droplet discharge.

In the droplet discharge device of the present invention, the plurality of carriages are provided side by side along the extending direction of the gantry, and at least one of the processing devices has the same number as the plurality of carriages and the extending direction. It is characterized by being provided side by side along .
Therefore, in the present invention, by moving and positioning each of the plurality of carriages, even when a large number of droplet discharge heads are used, it is possible to accurately arrange each predetermined number, and drawing accuracy by droplet discharge Can be easily secured.

The predetermined number of droplet discharge heads are preferably mounted on the carriage via a sub-carriage provided detachably on the carriage.
As a result, in the present invention, the sub-carriage is detached from the carriage, and another sub-carriage is attached to the carriage, so that the droplet discharge head can be easily replaced via the sub-carriage.

As the carriage, a structure driven by a moving coil type linear motor can be suitably employed.
Accordingly, in the present invention, since the stator of the linear motor suspended between the droplet discharge device main body and the processing device is constituted by a plurality of magnetized elements, it can be easily divided. Become.

On the other hand, an electro-optical device of the present invention is characterized by being manufactured using the above-described droplet discharge device.
According to another aspect of the invention, there is provided an electronic apparatus including the above-described electro-optical device.
As a result, in the present invention, it is possible to obtain a high-quality electro-optical device and electronic apparatus with excellent drawing accuracy.

Hereinafter, embodiments of a droplet discharge device, a manufacturing method thereof, an electro-optical device, and an electronic apparatus according to the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. In each drawing used for the following description, the scale of each member is appropriately changed to make each member a recognizable size.
[First Embodiment]
First, a first embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS.

[Color filter manufacturing equipment]
FIG. 1 is a schematic configuration diagram of a color filter manufacturing apparatus according to the present embodiment, which is an apparatus for manufacturing a color filter having three colored layers of R, G, and B.
As shown in FIG. 1, the color filter manufacturing apparatus 1 of the present embodiment includes an ink receiving layer forming apparatus 2, an R colored layer forming apparatus 3, a G colored layer forming apparatus 4, a B colored layer forming apparatus 5, and a book from the upstream side. A firing device 6 (heating device) is arranged, and these devices are connected via an arbitrary conveying device (not shown). The color filter manufacturing apparatus 1 is supplied with a transparent substrate (substrate) made of glass, plastic, or the like on which partition walls (also referred to as banks) for partitioning the patterns of the R, G, and B colored layers are formed. The ink receiving layer forming apparatus 2 is an apparatus for forming an ink receiving layer made of a resin composition as a base layer in a region partitioned by partition walls. The R colored layer forming apparatus 3, the G colored layer forming apparatus 4, and the B colored layer forming apparatus 5 are apparatuses for applying a liquid material composed of R, G, and B inks that will be colored layers later. The main baking apparatus 6 is an apparatus for heating and baking a liquid material composed of R, G, and B inks after coating. Among these devices, the ink receiving layer forming device 2, the R colored layer forming device 3, the G colored layer forming device 4, and the B colored layer forming device 5 include the droplet discharge device (ink jet device) of the present invention. Is used.

[Droplet discharge device]
Here, the R colored layer forming apparatus 3 will be described as an example. The R colored layer forming apparatus 3 includes a material supply unit 61, a surface modification unit 62, a drawing unit 63, an inspection unit 64, a temporary firing unit 65, and a material removal from the upstream side to the downstream side (from the right side to the left side in FIG. 1). A portion 66 is provided. As a rough flow of processing, a lyophilic process and a liquid repellent process are performed in the surface modification unit 62 on the undrawn substrate supplied from the material supply unit 61, and a predetermined partition partitioned by a partition in the drawing unit 63. R ink is ejected and drawn in this area. Next, the drawing state is inspected by the inspection unit 64, the ink is temporarily baked by the temporary baking unit 65, and then the substrate after drawing is discharged by the material removal unit 66. In the present apparatus, these units are arranged linearly along the flow direction of the substrate. The material supply part 61 and the material removal part 66 can be comprised by arbitrary board | substrate conveyance means, for example, a roller conveyor, a belt conveyor, etc. are used. The surface modification unit 62 includes a plasma processing chamber, and as a lyophilic process, a plasma process using oxygen as a reactive gas (O ₂ plasma process) is performed in an air atmosphere. Lyophilic. As the liquid repellent treatment, a plasma treatment (CF ₄ plasma treatment) using tetrafluoromethane (carbon tetrafluoride) as a reactive gas is performed in an air atmosphere, and the upper surface of the partition walls is made liquid repellent.

  2 is a schematic configuration perspective view showing only the vicinity of the drawing unit 63, and FIG. 3 is a left side view of FIG. In the drawing unit 63, a droplet discharge device 72 that performs drawing on the substrate S is installed. The droplet discharge device 72 includes a drawing device (droplet discharge device main body) B that performs drawing by discharging droplets (liquid material) onto the substrate S, and a maintenance unit 80 connected to the + Y side of the drawing device. And a drive unit 172 that drives (drives) a droplet discharge head 34, which will be described later, between the drawing apparatus B and the maintenance unit 80.

  As shown in FIG. 3, the drawing apparatus B includes a base 150 that is movable in the X direction, which is the transport direction, a table 70 that is placed on the base 150 and holds the substrate S to be drawn, and a lower surface side. A head unit that includes a plurality of droplet discharge heads and extends in the Y direction (a direction perpendicular to the transport direction of the substrate S) to discharge ink droplets (droplets) from the nozzles of each droplet discharge head to the lower substrate S. 71. On the base 150, a θ driving device 151 that drives the table 70 in the θZ direction (direction around the Z axis), and a flushing unit that is located on the + X side of the table 70 and that performs preliminary discharge (flushing) from the droplet discharge head. 152 is provided. These drawing apparatuses B are installed in an integrated state on the base 170.

  The head unit 71 includes a plurality of (for example, seven) carriages 153 arranged in the Y direction that move independently of each other. FIG. 4 is a view of the carriage 153 as viewed from the nozzle side (substrate S side, lower side) of the droplet discharge head 34. Each carriage 153 includes a rectangular plate 74 extending in the X direction, a head carriage (sub-carriage) 73 that holds (supports) a plurality of (predetermined number; here, 12) droplet discharge heads 34, and a head carriage. The head carriage 153 includes a θ driving device 154 (see FIG. 3) that drives the head 73 in the θZ direction with respect to the plate 74, and a lifting device 155 (see FIG. 3) that lifts and lowers the head carriage 73 in the Z direction. Is detachably attached to the plate 74 via a θ drive device 154 and an elevating device 155.

  The drive unit 172 guides the guide rails 157 provided on the frame 156 arranged in parallel so as to extend in the Y direction on both sides in the X direction across the maintenance unit 80, and each plate 74 (that is, the carriage 153). Mainly composed of a shaft type linear motor 158 driven along a rail 157, an ink cable connected to the droplet discharge head 34 and a linear motor 158 (movable element thereof) are connected to each mount 156. A case 171 for accommodating a power supply line or the like is installed along the Y direction.

  Linear guides 75, 75 are provided on both sides of the plate 74 in the X direction, and are movable in the Y direction along the guide rails 157. The linear motor 158 is arranged along the Y direction across the cylindrical movable element 159 provided on both sides of each plate 74, the drawing apparatus B, and the maintenance unit 80, and the movable element 159 of each plate 74 is respectively connected to the linear motor 158. And a stator 160 to be inserted. In the present embodiment, a moving coil type linear motor 158 in which the mover 159 is formed of a coil body and the stator 160 is formed of a magnet generator is used, and the current supplied to each mover 159 is adjusted. The position of each carriage 153 can be controlled independently.

  Each droplet discharge head 34 has a plurality of droplet discharge nozzles arranged in an array. The droplet discharge heads 34 are fixed to the head carriage 73 such that the arrangement direction of the nozzle rows coincides with the Y direction. In addition, each droplet discharge head 34 is arranged in a stepped manner in a state of being sequentially shifted in the Y direction. Thereby, the droplet discharge nozzles are arranged at an equal pitch over the entire width of the head unit 71. With this configuration, the head unit 71 can eject ink droplets at a predetermined pitch over a long dimension of, for example, several meters in the direction (Y direction) orthogonal to the transport direction of the substrate S. Then, by ejecting ink droplets while transporting the substrate S in a direction orthogonal to the arrangement direction of the droplet ejection heads 34, R ink can be drawn in a desired pattern shape over the entire surface of the substrate S.

  Before the drawing apparatus B performs drawing, it is necessary to first adjust the alignment of the drawing unit. In order to adjust the alignment, first, pre-drawing flushing (preliminary droplet discharge) is performed from each nozzle of each head. This pre-drawing flushing is performed on the droplet discharge region on the substrate S before the table 70 on which the substrate S is placed is moved. Next, the droplet discharged onto the substrate S is photographed by the CCD 78, and the discharge position and the discharge area are calculated. Based on the calculation result of the discharge position, alignment adjustment of the drawing apparatus B is performed. The alignment in the X direction is performed by adjusting the droplet discharge timing of each nozzle. The alignment in the Y direction is performed by adjusting the position of each plate 74 by the linear motor 158. As described above, in the head unit of the present embodiment, since a plurality of heads are mounted on different head carriages for each group, the alignment of the drawing unit can be easily adjusted. Note that pre-drawing flushing and drawing flushing other than alignment are performed on the flushing unit 152.

[Droplet ejection head]
FIG. 5A is an explanatory diagram of the structure of the droplet discharge head, and FIG. 5B is a front sectional view. The droplet discharge head 34 compresses the liquid chamber by, for example, a piezo element and discharges the liquid with the pressure wave. As described above, the droplet discharge head 34 has a plurality of nozzles 18 arranged in one or a plurality of rows. . An example of the structure of the droplet discharge head 34 will be described. As shown in FIG. 5A, the droplet discharge head 34 includes a nozzle plate 12 and a diaphragm 13 made of, for example, stainless steel, and both are divided into partition members. (Reservoir plate) 14 are joined together. A plurality of spaces 15 and a liquid reservoir 16 are formed between the nozzle plate 12 and the diaphragm 13 by the partition member 14. Each space 15 and the liquid reservoir 16 are filled with ink, and each space 15 and the liquid reservoir 16 communicate with each other via a supply port 17. The nozzle plate 12 has nozzles 18 for ejecting ink from the space 15. On the other hand, a hole 19 for supplying ink to the liquid reservoir 16 is formed in the vibration plate 13.

  Further, a piezoelectric element (piezo element) 20 is joined to the surface of the diaphragm 13 opposite to the surface facing the space 15 as shown in FIG. The piezoelectric element 20 is configured such that a piezoelectric material is sandwiched between a pair of electrodes 21, and the piezoelectric material contracts when the pair of electrodes 21 are energized. The diaphragm 13 to which the piezoelectric element 20 is bonded in such a configuration is bent integrally with the piezoelectric element 20 at the same time so that the volume of the space 15 is increased. It is going to increase. Therefore, ink corresponding to the increased volume in the space 15 flows from the liquid reservoir 16 through the supply port 17. Further, when energization to the piezoelectric element 20 is released from such a state, both the piezoelectric element 20 and the diaphragm 13 return to their original shapes. Accordingly, since the space 15 also returns to the original volume, the pressure of the ink inside the space 15 rises, and the ink droplet L is ejected from the nozzle 18 toward the substrate.

  The ink jet system of the droplet discharge head 2 may be a system other than the piezo jet type using the piezoelectric element 20, for example, a system using an electrothermal transducer as an energy generating element. .

[Maintenance unit]
As shown in FIG. 2, a maintenance unit 80 is provided in the + Y direction of the head unit 71 (drawing apparatus B).
FIG. 6 is a plan view of the maintenance unit 80. Adjacent to the maintenance unit 80 are a cap unit (capping unit) 81 that covers the ink discharge surface of each droplet discharge head and a wiper unit (wiping unit) 90 that wipes the ink discharge surface of each droplet discharge head. Is formed.

  The cap unit 81 includes a plurality of cap carriages 83 arranged in the Y direction corresponding to the head carriage. Each cap carriage 83 is movable in the Z direction. In each cap carriage 83, a plurality of caps 82 are arranged stepwise corresponding to the droplet discharge heads. The cap 82 functions as a moisturizing cap that covers the ink ejection surface of the droplet ejection head and prevents the ink in the nozzles in the head from drying (drying prevention processing) as a process accompanying the droplet ejection.

  The cap 82 is used with its upper surface in contact with the ink ejection surface 12a (see FIG. 4) of the droplet ejection head 34. Therefore, a recess is formed on the upper surface of the cap 82. This recess is formed in a size that can contain all the nozzles 18 formed in the droplet discharge head 34. As a result, contact between the nozzles 18 of the droplet discharge head 34 and the upper surface of the cap 82 is avoided, and the meniscus of ink formed in the openings of the nozzles 18 is maintained. Further, the upper surface of the cap 82 surrounding the recess is formed with high surface accuracy. Accordingly, each nozzle 18 formed on the ink discharge surface 12a of the droplet discharge head 34 can be hermetically sealed.

  The cap disposed on the carriage 83a closest to the drawing apparatus B functions as a suction cap 82a capable of sucking ink in the nozzles of the droplet discharge head 34. The suction cap 82a is connected to an external pump from the recess, and by operating the pump, the air in the recess is sucked so that the ink in each nozzle 18 can be sucked.

FIG. 7 is a front view of FIG.
As shown in this figure, in the maintenance unit 80, a cap unit 81 and a wiper unit 90 are integrally attached to a base 161. In each cap unit 81, the lifting / lowering device 162 that lowers the cap carriage 83 according to the operation of moving the droplet discharge head 34 upward, and the operation of measuring the weight of the droplet discharged from the droplet discharge head 34. Thus, there is a three-stage lifting system provided with a lifting device 163 that lifts and lowers the cap carriage 83 and a lifting device 164 that lifts and lowers the cap carriage 83 according to maintenance such as head replacement.

  On the other hand, the wiper unit 90 is provided with a wiping sheet 92 made of, for example, a polyester woven fabric. The wiping sheet 92 is formed with a width equal to or greater than that of the droplet discharge head group mounted on the head carriage 73. Further, the wiper unit 90 is provided with a feeding roller 93 and a winding roller 96 for the wiping sheet 92. The winding roller 96 can be driven to rotate by a motor or the like (not shown). A guide roller 94 is disposed above the wiper unit 90, and a tension roller 95 is disposed between the feeding roller 93 and the guide roller 94. The rollers 93, 94, 95 and 96 are arranged in parallel, and the wiping sheet 92 is wound around the take-up roller 96 from the feed roller 93 via the tension roller 95 and the guide roller 94. The wiping sheet 92 disposed at the upper end portion of the guide roller 94 comes into contact with the ink ejection surface 12a of the droplet ejection head 34.

  A cleaning liquid application unit (not shown) for the wiping sheet 92 is provided between the tension roller 95 and the guide roller 94. The cleaning liquid application unit is formed so that the cleaning liquid can be applied over the entire width of the wiping sheet 92. The wiper unit 90 is attached to the ink discharge surface 12a by wiping the ink discharge surface 12a of the droplet discharge head 34 with the wiping sheet 92 coated with the cleaning liquid as a process accompanying the droplet discharge. The ink 54a is removed. Therefore, it is desirable to use a cleaning liquid that has a good affinity with ink and that easily volatilizes from the ink discharge surface 12a. Specifically, the solvent of the ink ejected by the droplet ejection head 34 can be used as the cleaning liquid.

  In the wiper unit 90, there are an elevating device 165 for lowering the guide roller 94 according to the movement of the droplet discharge head 34 upward, and an elevating device 166 for elevating the wiper unit 90 according to maintenance such as head replacement. Each is a two-stage lifting system.

  Instead of the wiper unit 90 using the wiping sheet 92 as described above, or together with the wiper unit 90, a wiper unit using a rubber blade may be provided. This wiper unit is configured by standing a flexible rubber spatula on the upper surface of the maintenance unit 80. The rubber spatula is formed to have the same length as the head unit 71. Then, the rubber stick is pressed against the ink ejection surface of the droplet ejection head and moved in parallel with the ink ejection surface, whereby the ink attached to the ink ejection surface 12a can be removed. The wiper unit using the rubber spatula can be constructed at a lower cost than the wiper unit 90 using the wiping sheet 92. The maintenance unit 80 may be provided with maintenance means other than those described above.

[Drawer maintenance method]
Next, a method for maintaining the drawing apparatus using the maintenance unit 80 described above will be described.
In the pre-drawing flushing described above, since the ejection area is calculated in addition to the ejection position of the droplet, it is possible to detect nozzle clogging. Also, nozzle clogging may be detected in drawing state inspection, periodic flushing, and the like. And when nozzle clogging is detected, it is necessary to eliminate this. The clogging of the nozzle is eliminated by sucking the nozzle after capping the head.

  Specifically, by driving the linear motor 158, the head 34 in which nozzle clogging is detected is moved to above the suction cap 82a. As described above, each head carriage 73 can be independently moved in the Y direction. At this time, there is another head (carriage 153) closer to the maintenance unit 80 than the head 34 to be sucked. When doing so, these carriages 153 are also moved together. Next, the lift carriages 162 to 164 are driven to raise the cap carriage 83 on which the suction cap 82a is mounted, and the upper surface of the suction cap 82a mounted on the cap carriage 83 is set to the ink discharge surface 12a of the droplet discharge head 34. Opposite and abut. At that time, both of the nozzles 18 of the droplet discharge head 34 are positioned in advance so that they are contained in the recesses of the suction cap 82a. Thereby, all the nozzles 18 of the droplet discharge head 34 are hermetically sealed by the suction cap 82a.

Next, by operating the pump connected to the suction cap 82a, the air in the recess in each cap 82 is sucked, and the nozzle 18 of the droplet discharge head 34 is sucked. Thereby, the ink in the droplet discharge head 34 is introduced into each nozzle 18 and the nozzle clogging is eliminated. When the nozzle 18 of the droplet discharge head 34 is sucked, some ink leaks from the nozzle 18 into the recess. The leaked ink can be recovered and reused by a pump in a waste liquid tank (not shown).
At this time, other heads that are not suction targets are hermetically sealed with a suction cap 82 to prevent the ink solvent from evaporating and avoid a thickened state.

  When the nozzle 18 of the droplet discharge head 34 is sucked, ink leaking from the nozzle 18 may adhere to the ink discharge surface 12a of the droplet discharge head 34. Then, if ink is ejected from the droplet ejection head 34 with ink adhering to the vicinity of the opening of the nozzle 18 on the ink ejection surface 12a, there is a possibility that the flight of the ejected ink may be bent. Therefore, after the nozzle 18 of the droplet discharge head 34 is sucked, the ink discharge surface 12a is wiped in order to remove ink adhering to the ink discharge surface 12a.

  Specifically, the head 34 after ink suction is moved to above the wiper unit 90. Next, the winding roller 96 is rotated by a motor or the like (not shown), and the wiping sheet 92 is moved along each roller. Further, the cleaning liquid is applied to the wiping sheet 92 from the cleaning liquid applying means. Then, the wiper unit 90 is raised, and the wiping sheet 92 disposed at the upper end of the guide roller 94 is pressed against the ink discharge surface 12a. Then, the ink adhering to the ink discharge surface 12 a is absorbed by the wiping sheet 92 while being dissolved in the cleaning liquid applied to the wiping sheet 92. Further, since the wiping sheet 92 moves along the ink discharge surface 12a, the ink discharge surface 12a is always wiped by the fresh wiping sheet 92. The head carriage 73 may be moved in the direction opposite to the wiping sheet 92. As described above, the ink attached to the ink discharge surface 12a is removed.

  On the other hand, when replacing the droplet discharge head 34 that has become unusable, it may be replaced in units of the head carriage 73. Specifically, a head carriage 73 in which each head 34 is accurately arranged is prepared for repair in advance. Then, the droplet discharge head 34 that has become unusable is removed from the head unit 71 together with the head carriage 73. At this time, the head carriage 73 is moved onto the cap unit 81 and the cap carriage is lowered by driving the lifting device 164 to secure a work area, and then the head carriage 73 is removed. Next, the head carriage 73 prepared in advance is attached to the plate 74. This operation may be performed by a robot, but can also be performed manually if the head carriage is 73 units. Thereafter, the drawing unit may be aligned in the same manner as described above. As described above, in the head unit of the present embodiment, since the plurality of heads are mounted on different head carriages for each group, the droplet discharge head 34 that has become unusable can be easily replaced.

  Further, as described above, the droplet discharge device 72 according to the present embodiment has a configuration in which the drawing device B and the maintenance unit 80 including the cap unit 81 and the wiper unit 90 as a processing device are assembled in a cooperative state. However, the drawing apparatus B and the maintenance unit 80 are integrally linked after being manufactured in a state of being individually divided. That is, the droplet discharge device 72 includes a drawing device B, a maintenance unit, which are separately manufactured, a step of manufacturing the drawing device B, a step of manufacturing the maintenance unit 80, and a step of manufacturing the drive unit 172. 80 and the drive unit 172 are assembled through a process of assembling them in a linked state.

FIG. 8 is a schematic front view of the droplet discharge device 72 as viewed from the −X side (note that the maintenance unit 80 is not shown in the drawing for easy understanding).
As shown in this figure, the gantry 156 has a structure in which the divided gantry 156A on the drawing device B side and the gantry 156B on the maintenance unit 80 side are assembled so as to be freely divided and integrated by a fastening member (not shown). It has become. Similarly, the frame 171A on the drawing device B side and the frame 171B on the maintenance unit 80 side which are divided are assembled so that the case 171 can be divided and integrated by a fastening member (not shown). Furthermore, the stator 160 of the linear motor 158 is configured as a single shaft by connecting a plurality of magnetism generators (magnets). In the present embodiment, the stator 160 is provided on the drawing device B side and the maintenance unit 80 side. It is divided and assembled integrally by a fastening member such as a mounting screw. Although it is difficult to divide the stator with a moving magnet type linear motor in which the stator is formed of a coil body, it is easy to divide because the stator is made of a magnet generator as in this embodiment.
In the above divided structure, since the guide rail 157 is formed for the mount 156, for example, a positioning hole is formed at a position opposite to the opposing surface of the mount 156A, 156B, and a positioning pin is fitted to both positioning holes. It is preferable to perform relative positioning by doing so.

In the above configuration, when the divided devices are assembled, when transporting the droplet discharge device 72, the drawing device B and the maintenance unit 80, which are divided and shortened in length, are combined. In addition to the individual conveyance, the cases 171A and 171B, the bases 156A and 156B, and the stator 160 are also conveyed with respect to the drive unit 172 in a divided state.
Then, in the installation destination factory or the like, the respective devices and units are carried in a divided state, and the respective devices and units are assembled and integrated at the installation location.
Therefore, it is possible to easily carry and carry the droplet discharge device without using a large trailer or remodeling the building at the installation destination.

  In the present embodiment, the carriage 153 that supports and mounts the plurality of droplet discharge heads 34 is divided into a plurality of portions, and the carriages 153 are movable independently of each other. The head 34 can be accurately arranged, and the drawing accuracy on the substrate S by droplet discharge can be easily ensured. Also, in this embodiment, since each device / unit is individually integrated, it is possible to carry out operations such as accuracy determination in each divided device unit, and after cooperation Accuracy can be easily implemented and work related to cooperation can be simplified.

  In the droplet discharge device 72, the rigidity required of the drawing device B is made higher than the rigidity of the maintenance unit 80 and the drive unit 172, so that the required accuracy can be obtained when a large load is applied to the droplet discharge device 72. The deformation of the relatively loose maintenance unit 80 and the drive unit 172 is increased, and the deformation of the drawing apparatus B with high required accuracy is reduced. That is, most of the load is absorbed by the maintenance unit 80 and the drive unit 172, and it is possible to prevent the drawing accuracy due to the droplet discharge from being adversely affected.

In the above embodiment, the drawing device B, the maintenance unit 80, and the drive unit 172 are directly connected and assembled. However, the present invention is not limited to this. For example, a cushioning material is interposed between the device and the unit. A configuration may be adopted. With this configuration, even when vibration is generated in the maintenance unit 80 and the drive unit 172, it is possible to suppress the vibration from being transmitted to the drawing apparatus B, and it is possible to prevent a reduction in drawing accuracy.
Furthermore, the structure arrange | positioned in a non-contact state by providing a micro clearance gap between apparatuses and units is also preferable. In this case, even when vibration occurs in the maintenance unit 80 and the drive unit 172, the vibration is not transmitted to the drawing apparatus B, and high-precision drawing can be performed. In this case, since it is difficult to dispose the stator 160 straddling the drawing device B and the maintenance unit 80 in a non-contact manner, both ends of the stator 160 may be supported by separate frames.

[Modified example of droplet discharge device]
Next, a modification of the droplet discharge device according to the first embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS.
FIG. 9 is an explanatory diagram of a first modification of the droplet discharge device. In the first modification, a plurality of maintenance units 180 are provided corresponding to each head carriage 173. Each maintenance unit 180 includes a cap unit 181 and a wipe unit 190, respectively. A replacement work area 160 for the head carriage 173 is provided between the maintenance units 180. According to this configuration, it is possible to shorten the maintenance time of each head. Further, the time from capping to wiping of the heads mounted on each head carriage 173 can be unified, and each head can be used in the same state.

  FIG. 10 is an explanatory diagram of a second modification of the droplet discharge device. In the second modification, a maintenance unit 280 is provided for each group of head carriages 273. For example, three cap carriages 283 are arranged in the first maintenance unit 280a, and two cap carriages 283 are arranged in the second maintenance unit 280b and the third maintenance unit 280c, respectively. In addition, each maintenance unit is provided with recesses 260a to 260c as work areas for replacement work (for maintenance work) of the head carriage 273, and a wipe unit 290, respectively. Also with this configuration, the maintenance time of each head can be shortened. In addition, the moving distance of the head carriage 273 can be shortened compared to the modification of FIG. 10, and the manufacturing cost of the droplet discharge device can be reduced.

  FIG. 11 is an explanatory diagram of a third modification of the droplet discharge device. In the third modification, the head carriages are arranged in two rows, and the maintenance unit can be shared between the rows. For example, three head carriages 373 are arranged in the first row, and four head carriages 373 are arranged in the second row. Note that the nozzles of each head are arranged at equal pitches in the Y direction by disposing the head carriages in the Y direction. In addition, one cap carriage is disposed at the intersection of the first maintenance unit 380a to the fourth maintenance unit 380d and the first row and the second row. Further, a wipe unit 390 is provided for each maintenance unit. Thereby, the head carriage 373 belonging to each row can share the maintenance unit. Also with this configuration, the maintenance time of each head can be shortened. In addition, the moving distance of the head carriage 373 can be shortened compared to the above modifications, and the manufacturing cost of the droplet discharge device can be reduced.

[Color filter manufacturing method]
Next, an example of a color filter manufacturing method using the color filter manufacturing apparatus 1 of the present embodiment will be described. FIG. 12 is an explanatory diagram of the color filter region 51 in the substrate S. FIG. The color filter manufacturing method using the color filter manufacturing apparatus can be applied when a plurality of color filter regions 51 are formed in a matrix on the rectangular substrate S from the viewpoint of increasing productivity. These color filter regions 51 can be used as individual color filters suitable for a liquid crystal display device which is an electro-optical device by cutting the substrate S later. In each color filter region 51, as shown in FIG. 12, R ink, G ink, and B ink are each formed in a predetermined pattern, in this example, a conventionally known stripe type. . In addition to the stripe type, the formation pattern may be a mosaic type, a delta type, or a square type.

  FIG. 13 is an explanatory diagram of a color filter manufacturing method. In order to form such a color filter region 51, first, a black matrix 52 is formed on one surface of a transparent substrate S as shown in FIG. When the black matrix 52 is formed, a non-light-transmitting resin (preferably a black resin) is applied to a predetermined thickness (for example, about 2 μm) by a method such as spin coating, and photolithography technology is used. Pattern. For the minimum display element surrounded by the grid of the black matrix 52, that is, the filter element 53, for example, the width in the X-axis direction is set to 30 μm and the length in the Y-axis direction is set to about 100 μm. This black matrix has a sufficient height and functions as a partition wall during ink ejection.

  Next, from the droplet discharge head of the ink receiving layer forming apparatus in the color filter manufacturing apparatus of this embodiment, as shown in FIG. ) Is discharged and landed on the substrate S. The amount of ink droplets 54 to be ejected is a sufficient amount in consideration of a decrease in ink volume in the heating process. Next, ink droplets are baked in the baking section of the ink receiving layer forming apparatus to form an ink receiving layer 60 as shown in FIG.

  Next, as shown in FIG. 13D, R ink droplets 54R (liquid material) are ejected from the droplet ejection head 34 of the R colored layer forming apparatus, and landed on the substrate S. The amount of ink droplets 54 to be ejected is a sufficient amount in consideration of a decrease in ink volume in the heating process. Next, the ink is temporarily fired in the temporary firing portion of the R colored layer forming apparatus to obtain an R colored layer 34R as shown in FIG. The above steps are repeated in the G colored layer forming apparatus and the B colored layer forming apparatus, and the G colored layer 34G and the B colored layer 34B are sequentially formed as shown in FIG. After all of the R colored layer 34R, the G colored layer 34G, and the B colored layer 34B are formed, these colored layers 34R, 34G, and 34B are collectively baked in the baking apparatus.

  Next, in order to planarize the substrate S and protect the colored layers 34R, 34G, and 34B, as shown in FIG. 13G, an overcoat film (protective film) that covers the colored layers 34R, 34G, and 34B and the black matrix 52 is formed. ) 56 is formed. In forming the overcoat film 56, a spin coating method, a roll coating method, a ripping method, or the like can be employed. However, a droplet discharge device is used as in the case of the colored layers 34R, 34G, and 34B. Is also possible.

  This color filter is manufactured by using the color filter manufacturing apparatus 1 of the present embodiment shown in FIG. 1, and a drawing unit is provided in the middle of a linear substrate transport line connecting the material supply unit 61 and the material removal unit 66. 63, and a pattern having a desired shape is formed by ejecting ink from a droplet ejection head arranged in a direction intersecting the transport direction of the substrate S. That is, since the substrate S before drawing is supplied from one end of the drawing unit 63 and the substrate S after drawing is discharged from the other end of the drawing unit 63, the substrate S is continuously flowed into the drawing unit 63. It is possible to perform drawing at once using a plurality of droplet discharge heads 34 during conveyance in only one direction. Therefore, the tact time required for processing one substrate can be shortened, and an apparatus with excellent productivity can be realized. In addition, since the material supply unit 61, the drawing unit 63, and the material removal unit 66 are arranged in a straight line, the space occupied by the apparatus can be reduced. Furthermore, since a transport device having a function of changing the transport direction of the substrate is not necessary, the device configuration can be simplified.

[Liquid Crystal Device]
Next, an embodiment of a liquid crystal device (electro-optical device) including the color filter will be described. FIG. 14 is a side sectional view of a passive matrix liquid crystal device, and reference numeral 30 in FIG. 14 denotes a liquid crystal device. The liquid crystal device 30 is of a transmissive type, and a liquid crystal layer 33 made of STN (Super Twisted Nematic) liquid crystal or the like is sandwiched between a pair of glass substrates 31 and 32.

  One glass substrate 31 has the color filter 55 formed on the inner surface thereof. The color filter 55 is configured by regularly arranging colored layers 34R, 34G, and 34B made of R, G, and B colors. A black matrix 52 is formed between the dye layers 34R (34G, 34B). An overcoat film (protective film) 56 is formed on the color filter 55 and the black matrix 52 in order to eliminate the step formed by the color filter 55 and the black matrix 52 and to flatten the same. . A plurality of electrodes 37 are formed in a stripe shape on the overcoat film 56, and an alignment film 38 is further formed thereon.

  On the other glass substrate 32, a plurality of electrodes 39 are formed in stripes on the inner surface so as to be orthogonal to the electrodes 37 on the color filter 55 side. On these electrodes 39, an alignment film 40 is formed. Is formed. The colored layers 34R, 34G, and 34B of the color filter 55 are disposed at positions where the electrodes 39 and 37 intersect on the glass substrates 32, respectively. The electrodes 37 and 39 are made of a transparent conductive material such as ITO (Indium Tin Oxide). Further, polarizing plates (not shown) are provided on the outer surface sides of the glass substrate 32 and the color filter 55, respectively, and the space (cell gap) between the substrates 31, 32 is kept constant between the glass substrates 31, 32. For this purpose, a spacer 41 is provided. Further, a sealing material 42 for enclosing the liquid crystal 33 is provided between the glass substrates 31 and 32.

  In the liquid crystal device 30 of the present embodiment, since the color filter 55 manufactured using the color filter manufacturing device is applied, a high-quality color liquid crystal display device with excellent drawing accuracy can be realized.

[Second Embodiment]
Next, a second embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 15 is a schematic configuration diagram of a color filter manufacturing apparatus according to the second embodiment. Note that detailed description of portions having the same configuration as in the first embodiment is omitted.

The color filter manufacturing apparatus of the second embodiment has a drawing unit 63 on the side of the substrate S conveyance line, and draws the substrate S conveyed from the front process side to the rear process side from the main conveyance line 460. The drawing is performed, and the drawing is returned to the main transport line 460 after the drawing. Therefore, a switch P for switching the substrate transport direction by 90 ° is provided at a branch point from the main transport line 460 to the drawing unit 63. A surface modification unit 62 is provided between the switch P and the drawing unit 63. With the configuration of the present embodiment, it is possible to perform color filter drawing in the process of drawing the substrate S from the main transport line 460 and repair the drawing defect in the process of returning the substrate S to the main transport line 460 again.
The drawing unit 63 in the color filter manufacturing apparatus of the second embodiment can employ the same droplet discharge device as that of the first embodiment, and can achieve the same effects as those of the first embodiment. it can.

[Electronics]
Next, a specific example of an electronic apparatus provided with display means including the liquid crystal device will be described.
FIG. 16 is a perspective view showing an example of a liquid crystal television. In FIG. 16, reference numeral 500 denotes a liquid crystal television main body, and reference numeral 501 denotes a liquid crystal display unit including the liquid crystal device of the above embodiment. As described above, since the electronic apparatus illustrated in FIG. 16 includes the liquid crystal device of the above-described embodiment, an electronic apparatus having a color liquid crystal display excellent in display quality can be realized.

  The technical scope of the present invention is not limited to the above embodiment, and various modifications can be made without departing from the spirit of the present invention. For example, the specific configuration of details of the color filter manufacturing apparatus of the above embodiment can be changed as appropriate. Moreover, although the example which applies the drawing apparatus of this invention to manufacture of a color filter was given in the said embodiment, it can apply not only to a color filter but to device formation techniques, such as an organic EL element, or various wiring formation techniques. Is possible.

It is a schematic block diagram of the color filter manufacturing apparatus of 1st Embodiment. It is a schematic structure perspective view which shows only the vicinity of a drawing part. FIG. 3 is a left side view in FIG. 2. It is a bottom view of a head unit. It is explanatory drawing of a droplet discharge head. It is a top view of a maintenance unit. It is a front view of a maintenance unit. It is the schematic front view which looked at the droplet discharge device from the -X side. It is explanatory drawing of the 1st modification of the droplet discharge apparatus which concerns on 1st Embodiment. It is explanatory drawing of the 2nd modification of the droplet discharge apparatus which concerns on 1st Embodiment. It is explanatory drawing of the 3rd modification of the droplet discharge apparatus which concerns on 1st Embodiment. It is explanatory drawing of the color filter area | region in a board | substrate. It is explanatory drawing of the manufacturing method of a color filter. It is side surface sectional drawing of a passive matrix type liquid crystal device. It is the perspective view which showed an example of the liquid crystal television. It is a schematic structure perspective view which shows only the part of the drawing apparatus which is the principal part of the color filter manufacturing apparatus of 2nd Embodiment.

Explanation of symbols

B: Drawing device (droplet discharge device main body), S: Substrate, 30 ... Liquid crystal device (electro-optical device), 34 ... Droplet discharge head, 72 ... Droplet discharge device, 73 ... Head carriage (subcarriage), 81 ... Cap unit (processing device), 90 ... wiper unit (processing device), 153 ... carriage, 158 ... linear motor, 172 ... drive unit (processing device), 500 ... liquid crystal television main body (electronic device)

Claims (8)

A droplet discharge device main body for discharging a liquid material onto a substrate by a plurality of liquid-liquid discharge heads;
A processing apparatus that performs processing associated with droplet ejection on the droplet ejection head;
Each of the divided droplet discharge device main body and the processing device is assembled in cooperation with each other,
Wherein the plurality of droplet ejection heads are mounted on a plurality of carriages, each of which moves independently between the droplet said ejection head to a predetermined number supporting and the droplet ejection device main unit,
The platform that supports the moving carriage is assembled so that it can be divided and integrated ,
Said plurality of carriages are provided side by side along the extending direction of the frame, at least one of the processing apparatus, the same number as the plurality of carriages, characterized Rukoto provided side by side along the extending direction A droplet discharge device. The droplet discharge device according to claim 1,
The droplet discharge apparatus, wherein the droplet discharge apparatus main body and the processing apparatus are individually integrated. The droplet discharge device according to claim 1 or 2,
A liquid droplet ejecting apparatus, wherein a buffer material is interposed between the liquid droplet ejecting apparatus main body and the processing apparatus. In the droplet discharge device according to any one of claims 1 to 3,
The droplet discharge device main body has higher rigidity than the processing device. The droplet discharge device according to claim 1 or 2,
The droplet discharge device, wherein the droplet discharge device main body and the processing device are connected in a non-contact manner. The droplet discharge device according to claim 1 ,
The droplet ejection apparatus, wherein the predetermined number of droplet ejection heads are mounted on the carriage via a sub-carriage provided detachably on the carriage. The droplet discharge device according to claim 1 or 6 ,
The droplet discharge device, wherein the carriage is driven by a moving coil type linear motor. A step of manufacturing a droplet discharge device main body for discharging a liquid material onto a substrate by a plurality of liquid-liquid discharge heads;
Manufacturing a processing apparatus for performing processing associated with droplet ejection on the droplet ejection head;
A step of assembling the droplet discharge device main body and the processing device, which are separately manufactured, in a linked state,
Wherein the plurality of droplet ejection heads are mounted on a plurality of carriages, each of which moves independently between the droplet said ejection head to a predetermined number supporting and the droplet ejection device main unit,
The platform that supports the moving carriage is assembled so that it can be divided and integrated ,
Said plurality of carriages are provided side by side along the extending direction of the frame, at least one of the processing apparatus, the same number as the plurality of carriages, characterized Rukoto provided side by side along the extending direction A method for manufacturing a droplet discharge device.

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