JP5023565B2 - Coating apparatus and coating method, and display member manufacturing method and manufacturing apparatus - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention is used, for example, in the manufacturing field of color filters for color liquid crystal displays and array substrates, plasma display panels, optical filters, and the like. Specifically, a coating solution is applied to the surface of a member to be coated such as a glass substrate. In this case, a coating apparatus and a coating method capable of efficiently discharging minute air mixed in a slot die, which is a die coater applicator that is preferably used, and a display member manufacturing apparatus and manufacturing using the same It relates to an improvement of the method.

  A color liquid crystal display is composed of a color filter, an array substrate, and the like. Both the color filter and the array substrate are coated with a low-viscosity liquid material on the surface of a glass substrate as a member to be coated, and dried. Many manufacturing processes to be formed are included. For example, in a color filter manufacturing process, a black photoresist material coating film is formed on a glass substrate, and the coating film is processed into a lattice shape by a photolithographic method, and then red, blue, and green photoresist materials are formed between the lattices. These coating films are sequentially formed by the same method. In addition, after applying a photoresist material to form a coating film, it can be used as a column for forming a space for liquid crystal injected between the color filter and the array substrate, or the surface irregularities on the color filter can be smoothed. There is also a manufacturing process for forming an overcoat coating film.

  Conventionally, spinners, bar coaters, etc. have been used as coating devices for this coating film formation. However, it is difficult to reduce the consumption of coating liquid and power consumption, and to increase the size of the device due to the increase in the size of the coating substrate. For some reasons, the use of die coaters (for example, Patent Document 1) has increased in recent years.

  When this type of die coater is used to apply to a sheet-like application member such as a glass substrate, air may be mixed inside the slot die. The cause of this is air intrusion from the pipe connection member and pump sliding member through which the coating liquid flows to the slot die, air bubbles dissolved in the coating liquid inside the slot die, Examples include air suction by opening / closing operation of a valve for supply, foaming due to volume change, and air suction from a slot die outlet. When air is mixed into the slot die in this way, a delay occurs in the rise of the discharge pressure at the start of coating, and the film thickness at the coating start portion becomes thin, or air is discharged from the discharge port to the coated member. There arises a problem that application defects such as pinholes and vertical stripes occur.

Therefore, when air enters the inside of the slot die, before such a problem occurs, the slot die is reversed and air is discharged from the discharge port (for example, Patent Document 2), or the slot die is provided with an air discharge port. It is provided to discharge air (for example, Patent Documents 3 to 5).
JP-A-6-339656 (5th column, 18th line to 9th column, 13th line, FIG. 1) JP-A-9-253556 (7th column 12th line to 11th column 35th line, FIG. 6) Japanese Patent No. 2557582 (third column 39th line to sixth column 15th line, FIG. 4) JP-A-2001-334197 (first column 48th line to fourth column 27th line, FIG. 5) JP-A-2005-144376 (6th column 13th line to 20th column 3rd line, FIG. 8)

However, among the means of the invention described above, the method of inverting the slot die of Patent Document 2 and discharging the air after turning the discharge port upward temporarily interrupted the coating production work and inverted the slot die. In order to discharge the coating solution in a state, an operator needs to directly wipe the coating solution adhering to the slot die after the air is discharged or to rotate the slot die. However, since it takes a lot of time and labor to manually clean a slot die that is long and large in order to cope with the recent increase in the size of the substrate, the coating production work is interrupted. At the same time, the operating rate for coating is extremely reduced, and the tact time cannot be shortened, so that productivity is remarkably lowered. In addition, rotating a large-sized slot die requires a high-precision and high-output rotating mechanism, and there is a problem that the cost of the apparatus is increased.
On the other hand, as disclosed in Patent Documents 3 to 5, in the method of discharging air from the air discharge port provided in the slot die, the buoyancy of air acting due to the inclination angle of the manifold upper surface inside the slot die and the supply from the supply port Since the air inside the slot die is moved to the air discharge port using the force that pushes the air of the coating liquid by the liquid, it is discharged. Even when the outlet is downward, it can be discharged efficiently and reliably, and the problems associated with discharging the air by inverting the slot die can be solved.
However, in any of the methods, the buoyancy and the force to push the coating liquid are very small. For example, if minute air having a diameter of less than 1 mm is mixed in the slot die, the moving speed of the air to the air discharge port is extremely high. In particular, the longer the slot die becomes, the more difficult it is to discharge minute air. Moreover, since none of Patent Documents 3 to 5 describes a method for efficiently discharging such minute air from the slot die, when minute air is mixed into the interior, The only solution is to increase the feeding speed and feeding time of the coating liquid. For this reason, even if minute air can be discharged, a large amount of coating liquid and time are required for that purpose. Therefore, in order to discharge minute air whose diameter is less than 1 mm, it is extremely difficult from the viewpoint of cost to apply the systems of Patent Documents 3 to 5 to a very expensive coating liquid for liquid crystal display manufacturing. In addition, there are cases where minute air cannot be completely discharged depending on the case, and there is a problem that minute air is irregularly discharged from the discharge port to the member to be coated, resulting in application defects such as pinholes and vertical stripes. Yes.
The present invention has been made to solve the above-described problems. The object of the present invention is to ensure that even if minute air is mixed into the slot die, it can be reliably and quickly consumed with a small amount of coating liquid consumed. A coating apparatus and a coating method capable of forming a coating film with high productivity and high quality by realizing means for discharging to the outside of the slot die, and a display member manufacturing apparatus and manufacturing method using the same Is to provide.

The object of the present invention is achieved by the means described below.
A supply port for supplying the coating liquid to the applicator, a manifold for widening the coating liquid in one direction, a discharge port extending in one direction for discharging the coating liquid, a slit communicating the manifold and the discharge port, And an applicator having a liquid discharge port, a liquid discharge path having an opening / closing means connected to the liquid discharge port for discharging / discharging the coating solution to be circulated / blocked, and an applicator In a coating apparatus comprising: a liquid supply unit that supplies a coating liquid to a liquid supply path; a holding unit that holds a member to be coated; and a moving unit that relatively moves at least one of the applicator and the holding unit. The gas supply path for supplying gas to the applicator is connected to at least one of the applicator, liquid supply path, or liquid discharge path, and the inlet of the gas supply path is open to the atmosphere. As used pressurized gas supply source, characterized in that it has a flow regulating valve in the gas supply path.

A display member manufacturing apparatus according to the present invention is characterized in that a display member is manufactured using the coating apparatus described above.

Further, the coating method according to the present invention uses a coating device having a manifold for widening the coating solution in one direction and a discharge port extending in one direction and a liquid discharge port for discharging the coating solution. In a coating method in which at least one of the coated member and the applicator is relatively moved while discharging the coating liquid from the discharge port, the coating liquid is applied to the surface of the coated member . A gas is supplied to the upper portion , then a coating liquid is supplied, then a part of the gas and the coating liquid is discharged from the liquid discharge port, and then the coating liquid is applied to the surface of the member to be coated.
Moreover, the manufacturing method of the member for a display which concerns on this invention manufactures the member for a display using the coating method as described above.

By using the coating apparatus and the coating method according to the present invention, the gas supply path having the gas supply means is connected to at least one of the slot die, the liquid supply path, and the liquid discharge path, and a certain amount is supplied from the gas supply means. The gas having the above volume is supplied to the inside of the slot die, thereby integrating the minute air into the gas region formed inside, and defoaming the minute air. Since the air is discharged to the outside, the minute air can be discharged to the outside efficiently and reliably in a short time.
Therefore, it is easy to shorten the tact time even if minute air is discharged, and because the minute air is discharged, it does not waste a very expensive coating liquid for liquid crystal display manufacturing. Productivity can be greatly improved.
In addition, due to this excellent air discharge performance, since the rise time of the discharge pressure at the start of coating is short, it is possible to reach a steady film thickness in a short section, and furthermore, coating defects such as pinholes and vertical stripes caused by minute air It is possible to completely eliminate problems such as In addition, since a slot die rotation mechanism for discharging air with the slot die discharge port facing upward is unnecessary, it is possible to easily cope with an increase in the size of the substrate.

  According to the display member manufacturing apparatus and method according to the present invention, since the display member is manufactured by using the above-described excellent coating apparatus and coating method, an excellent coating quality display member can be manufactured at low cost. And it becomes possible to manufacture with a high yield rate.

Hereinafter, an example of a preferred embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.
FIG. 1 is a schematic configuration diagram of a die coater 1 which is a coating apparatus according to the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a front view of a slot die 20 which is a coating device of the die coater 1, and a gas supply path 87 and liquid discharge paths 83A and 83B. The arrangement of the is shown. 3 is a side sectional view at the position of the supply port 80 of the slot die 20, and FIG. 4 is a side sectional view at the end position of the manifold 24 of the slot die 20. FIG. 5 is a schematic front sectional view showing a state in which the air inside the slot die 20 is discharged in the coating liquid filling operation, and FIG. 6 is a diagram showing the air inside the slot die 20 mixed during the coating operation. FIG. 7 is a schematic front sectional view showing a situation where minute air inside the slot die 20 is defoamed by the gas supplied to the slot die 20.

Referring to FIG. 1, a die coater 1 of the present invention is shown. The die coater 1 includes a base 2 on which a pair of guide rails 31 are provided. A stage 29 is installed on the guide rail 31. The stage 29 is driven by a linear motor 30 and can freely reciprocate in the X direction shown in FIG. The upper surface of the stage 29 is a vacuum suction surface made up of a plurality of suction holes (not shown), and can hold the substrate 4 as a member to be coated by suction. The base 2 is provided with a gate-shaped support 3. A pair of lifting device units 10 capable of reciprocating up and down are provided on both sides of the support column 3, and a slot die 20, which is an applicator for coating the lifting device unit 10, has its discharge port 27. It is mounted face down.
One lifting device unit 10 that moves the slot die 20 up and down is provided at both ends (left and right) in the longitudinal direction of the slot die 20, and the lifting table 12 that lifts the holding table 21 that holds the slot die 20. , A guide 14 that guides the elevator 12 in the vertical direction, a motor 11, and a ball screw 13 that converts the rotational motion of the motor 11 into linear motion of the elevator 12. Since the lifting device unit 10 can operate independently at both ends (left and right) in the longitudinal direction of the slot die 20, the inclination angle of the slot die 20 with respect to the horizontal in the longitudinal direction can be arbitrarily set. As a result, the discharge port surface 26 of the slot die 20 and the substrate 4 that is the member to be coated can be placed in parallel with the longitudinal direction of the slot die 20, so that the surface of the substrate 4 and the discharge port surface 26 of the slot die 20 The gap, that is, the clearance can be provided in any size and parallel to the longitudinal direction of the slot die 20.

The slot die 20 is configured by superimposing a front lip 22 and a rear lip 23 extending in the longitudinal direction in the X direction and integrally connecting them with a plurality of connecting bolts (not shown).
A manifold 24 is formed inside the slot die 20 and extends in the longitudinal direction in the same manner as the front lip 22 and the rear lip 23. A slit 25, which is a gap between the front lip 22 and the rear lip 23, is formed under the manifold 24 so as to communicate therewith, and the slit 25 also extends in the longitudinal direction. The lower end of the slit 25 is the discharge port 27 of the slot die 20. The discharge port 27 is in the discharge port surface 26 which is the lower end surface of the slot die 20.

  Furthermore, a wiping unit 40 is provided on the base 2. Similar to the stage 29, the wiping unit 40 can reciprocate freely on the guide rail 31 in the X direction. The wiping unit 40 includes a wiping head 43, a wiping head driving device 42, a head holder 41, a tray 44, and a wiping unit holding base 45. The wiping head 43 has a shape that matches the shape of the lower end portion of the slot die 20, and it is preferable to use an elastic body such as a synthetic resin.

  When wiping is performed using the wiping unit 40, the wiping unit 40 is moved to the lower part of the slot die 20 in the X direction, the slot die 20 is lowered by the lifting device unit 10, and the wiping head 43 is moved to the slot die 20. Contact the lower end. Then, the remaining wiping head 43 brought into contact with the lower end portion of the slot die 20 can be removed by sliding the wiping head 43 in contact with the longitudinal direction of the slot die 20 by the wiping head driving device 42. . These residual coating liquid, particles, and the like are received by a tray 44 installed under the wiping head 43 and are collected in a waste liquid tank (not shown) through a waste liquid path (not shown). The tray 44 also collects the coating liquid 53 and the solvent discharged from the discharge port 27 in order to change the type of the coating solution 53 and prevent the discharge port surface 26 that is the lower end of the slot die 20 from drying. Can be used.

  Further, as a liquid supply means, a coating liquid supply device unit 50 that supplies the coating liquid 53 to the slot die 20 includes a coating liquid tank 52 that stores the coating liquid 53, a syringe pump 51 that pushes the coating liquid 53, a coating liquid tank 52, and the like. A pump supply path 54 that connects the syringe pump 51 and a die supply path 63 that is a liquid supply path that connects the syringe pump 51 and the slot die 20 are provided. Here, the coating liquid 53 is supplied to the syringe pump 51 through a pump supply path 54 and a suction opening / closing valve 55 connected downstream of the coating liquid tank 52. The coating liquid 53 supplied to the syringe pump 51 is sent to the manifold 24 from the supply port 80 of the slot die 20 via the discharge opening / closing valve 62 and the die supply path 63.

The syringe pump 51 includes a syringe 61, a piston 60, a piston holding table 56 that holds the piston 60, a piston lifting guide 59 that guides the piston holding table 56 in the vertical direction, and a syringe pump that is a vertical drive source for the piston holding table 56. The syringe motor 58 and the syringe pump motor 58 are composed of a syringe pump ball screw 57 that converts the rotational motion of the syringe pump motor 58 into the linear motion of the piston holding table 56. The syringe pump 51 having this configuration fills the syringe 61 with the coating liquid 53 from the coating liquid tank 52 through the internal passage of the piston 60, and pushes it out by the piston 60, so that the substrate 4 is placed in the slot die 20. This is a constant capacity pump that supplies only the coating area.
When filling the inside of the syringe 61 with the coating liquid 53, the suction on-off valve 55 attached upstream of the syringe 61 is “opened”, and the discharge on-off valve 62 attached downstream of the syringe 61 is “closed”. The piston 60 is lowered in the state of "." When the coating liquid 53 inside the syringe 61 is fed toward the slot die 20, the piston 60 is moved with the suction opening / closing valve 55 closed and the discharge opening / closing valve 62 opened. Raise. Therefore, the coating liquid 53 fed from the syringe pump 51 is supplied to the slot die 20.

  Next, referring to FIG. 2, in the slot die 20 of this embodiment, the supply port 80 communicating with the die supply path 63 is located in the center in the application width direction of the manifold 24, and a liquid is disposed above the supply port 80. A pair of liquid discharge ports 81B are provided at both ends of the discharge port 81A in the application width direction of the manifold 24, respectively. As shown in FIG. 3, the supply port 80 and the liquid discharge port 81 </ b> A are connected via a liquid discharge internal channel 84 </ b> A provided so as to include the upper part of the supply internal channel 85 connected to the supply port 80. It is preferable. Further, as shown in FIG. 4, the manifold 24 and the liquid discharge port 81 </ b> B are preferably connected via a liquid discharge internal flow path 84 </ b> B communicating with the upper portion of the manifold 24.

In the present invention, the position of the supply port 80 is not particularly limited, but when it is at the center in the application width direction of the manifold 24 as in this embodiment, the application liquid is applied in the application width direction even when the slot die 20 is elongated. This is preferable because the length of the flow path for widening the width can be shortened. Further, the number and positions of the liquid discharge ports are not particularly limited, but the air 100 entering from the die supply path 63 before reaching the manifold 24 is provided above the supply port 80 in terms of improving the air discharge efficiency of the present embodiment. It is preferable to provide the liquid discharge port 81A above the supply port 80 so that the liquid can be discharged. Further, providing a pair of liquid discharge ports 81B at both ends of the manifold 24 in the coating width direction is foaming inside the slot die 20. It is preferable because air 100 accumulated in the manifold 24 due to air or suction from the discharge port 27 can be discharged along the flow of the coating liquid widened by the manifold 24. Further, the liquid discharge internal flow paths 84A and 84B may be in the vertical direction, but as shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the air 100 is discharged by taking a route connected to the liquid discharge ports 81A and 81B in the horizontal direction. This is preferable because the discharge amount of the coating liquid 53 necessary for this is not reduced by the head difference.
Referring to FIG. 2 again, liquid discharge paths 83A and 83B and discharge open / close valves 82A and 82B are connected to the liquid discharge ports 81A and 81B, respectively, and the air 100 discharged from the liquid discharge ports 81A and 81B and The waste liquid 88 is discharged to the liquid discharge tanks 89A and 89B through the discharge open / close valves 82A and 82B and the liquid discharge paths 83A and 83B. In order to discharge the air 100 from the liquid discharge ports 81A and 81B, suction may be performed by connecting mechanical suction means such as a pump to the liquid discharge paths 83A and 83B, but the system becomes complicated. It is preferable to discharge the air 100 using the force of the flow of the coating liquid 53 flowing from the supply port 80.
Here, in order to quickly isolate the air 100 discharged from the liquid discharge ports 81A and 81B from the inside of the slot die 20, the discharge opening / closing valves 82A and 82B are preferably provided in the immediate vicinity of the liquid discharge ports 81A and 81B. It is preferable to provide at least 100 mm from the liquid discharge ports 81A and 81B. The liquid discharge paths 83A and 83B may be made of any metal or synthetic resin pipe, but since it is connected to the slot die 20 that moves up and down, a flexible plastic resin pipe is used. It is preferable to do. Furthermore, the liquid discharge paths 83A and 83B extend from the liquid discharge ports 81A and 81B in a direction within θ = ± 30 ° with respect to the horizontal line and are substantially at the same height as the centers of the liquid discharge ports 81A and 81B, or It is preferable to arrange at a lower position. Here, substantially the same height is from the center of the liquid discharge ports 81A and 81B to 50 mm above. When θ is smaller than −30 °, the air 100 is less likely to be discharged from the liquid discharge ports 81A and 81B to the liquid discharge paths 83A and 83B due to the buoyancy of the air 100. When θ is larger than + 30 °, or when the liquid discharge paths 83A and 83B are arranged at a position higher by 50 mm from the center of the liquid discharge ports 81A and 81B, the coating liquid necessary for flushing the air 100 due to the head difference Since the discharge amount of 53 falls and, as a result, the discharge efficiency of the air 100 falls, it is not preferable. Further, if the outlets 97A and 97B located at the most downstream side of the liquid discharge paths 83A and 83B are directly opened to the atmosphere, when the air discharge operation is stopped, the outside air is sucked from the outlets 97A and 97B, thereby drying the air. Solidified matter is generated and clogging occurs. In order to prevent this, the outlets 97A and 97B of the liquid discharge paths 83A and 83B are preferably immersed in the waste liquid 88 collected in the liquid discharge tanks 89A and 89B. Thus, when the outlets 97A and 97B of the liquid discharge paths 83A and 83B are immersed in the waste liquid 88, the upper surface position of the waste liquid 88 in the liquid discharge tanks 89A and 89B is the atmosphere of the liquid discharge paths 83A and 83B. Since this is the open position, this is the substantial outlet of the liquid discharge paths 83A and 83B.
In order to defoam the minute air 101 inside the slot die 20 that cannot be easily discharged from the liquid discharge ports 81A and 81B, the die coater 1 of this embodiment includes a discharge opening / closing valve 82A of the liquid discharge path 83A. A gas supply path 87 for supplying gas to the inside of the slot die 20 connected to the downstream side is provided. The gas supply path 87 includes a gas supply opening / closing valve 86A and an inlet 96 opened to the atmosphere upstream of the gas supply opening / closing valve 86 as gas supply means. Although this atmospheric pressure gas can be supplied into the slot die 20 by this gas supply means, the gas supply is performed so that the coating liquid 53 in the liquid discharge path 83A does not flow backward when the gas supply opening / closing valve 86 is opened. It is preferable that at least a part of the path 87 is disposed at a position higher than the liquid discharge path 83A. In addition to using atmospheric pressure gas as a gas supply source by opening the inlet 96 to the atmosphere, a gas pressurized by a pump or a pressurized air source may be used as a gas supply source. If the gas supply speed is too high, the coating liquid 53 inside the slot die 20 may foam during gas-liquid replacement, and conversely, the generation of minute air 101 may occur. It is necessary to provide a flow rate adjusting valve or the like so that gas can be supplied slowly. In addition, when using the gas pressurized with a pump, a pressurized air source, etc. as a gas supply source, arrangement | positioning of the gas supply path 87 may be any. Any material such as metal or synthetic resin can be used as the material of the pipe used as the gas supply path 87, but synthetic resin is preferable in consideration of ease of handling.

  Furthermore, in this embodiment, the gas supply path 87 is connected to the liquid discharge path 83A connected to the liquid discharge port 81A. However, the liquid discharge path 83B connected to the liquid discharge port 81B at the end of the manifold 24, and the slot die 20 It may be connected to any location as long as gas can be supplied into the manifold 24, such as the die supply path 63 connected to the supply port 80, and is separate from the supply port 80 and the liquid discharge ports 81A and 81B connected to the manifold 24. A plurality of holes may be provided in the front lip 22 or the rear lip 23 and directly connected to the slot die 20. Further, a plurality of gas supply paths 87 may be connected to a plurality of gas supply locations of the slot die 20.

  Next, the waste liquid 88 discharged to the liquid discharge tanks 89A and 89B and accumulated in a certain amount or more is sucked by the suction pumps 92A and 92B through the waste liquid opening / closing valves 91A and 91B and the waste liquid discharge paths 90A and 90B. To be discharged. Here, in the liquid discharge tanks 89A and 89B, suction is stopped by the Hi-side sensors 94A and 94B that detect that a predetermined amount of waste liquid that starts suction by the suction pumps 92A and 92B has accumulated, and the suction pumps 92A and 92B. Low side sensors 95A and 95B for detecting the amount of waste liquid are provided, and the height difference between the Hi side sensors 94A and 94B and the Low side sensors 95A and 95B is preferably 200 mm or less, and more preferably 100 mm or less. Further, the waste liquid 88 flows out from the liquid discharge tanks 89A and 89B when a certain amount of the waste liquid 88 is accumulated without intermittently discharging the waste liquid 88 using the Hi side sensors 94A and 94B and the Low side sensors 95A and 95B. The waste liquid 88 may be discharged so that the liquid levels in the liquid discharge tanks 89A and 89B are constant. Further, in FIG. 2, two liquid discharge tanks 89A and 89B are provided. However, the liquid discharge tanks 89A and 89B may be integrated into one, or provided by the number of liquid discharge paths 83A and 83B. Or either.

  Further, when the air 100 remaining inside the slot die 20 is discharged, the air 100 may be discharged from the liquid discharge ports 81A and 81B using a mechanical suction means such as a pump, but this is expensive with a simple system. It is preferable to use a siphon phenomenon that provides a discharge efficiency. Here, when the siphon phenomenon is used, the outlets 97A and 97B of the liquid discharge paths 83A and 83B are preferably arranged at a position lower than the discharge port 27. More preferably, it is open to the atmosphere at a position lower than the discharge port 27 and at the lowest part of the liquid discharge paths 83A and 83B. However, if the height difference H between the top positions of the waste liquids 88 of the discharge ports 27 and the liquid discharge tanks 89A and 89B is too large, the ratio of the coating liquid 53 discharged from the liquid discharge ports 81A and 81B due to the head difference is It will become too large with respect to the supply amount sent to the inside of the die | dye 20. FIG. As a result, a part of the inside of the manifold 24 becomes negative pressure, and a phenomenon in which outside air is sucked from the discharge port 27 occurs. Therefore, the flow resistance determined by the size of the height difference H, the diameters of the liquid discharge ports 81A and 81B, the pipe diameters and the pipe lengths of the liquid discharge paths 83A and 83B, and the arbitrary positions of the liquid discharge paths 83A and 83B are adjusted. It is necessary to provide a flow rate adjusting valve to balance the supply amount into the slot die 20 and the discharge amount to the liquid discharge ports 81A and 81B. Here, the ratio Q2 / Q1 of the discharge amount Q2 from the liquid discharge ports 81A and 81B with respect to the supply amount Q1 fed into the slot die 20 is preferably 0.5 to 0.95, more preferably 0.7. -0.9. If it is larger than this range, it will be easy to suck outside air from the discharge port 27, and if it is smaller than this range, the amount of the coating liquid 53 to be discharged will increase and the air 100 cannot be discharged efficiently. Further, it is preferable that the liquid discharge paths 83A and 83B have an inner diameter with which a discharge flow rate is obtained so that the air 100 does not stay inside. In order to realize this, the height difference H between the atmosphere opening portion serving as the outlet of the liquid discharge paths 83A and 83B and the discharge port 27 is 800 mm or less, the inner diameter of the liquid discharge ports 81A and 81B is 10 mm or less, and the liquid discharge paths 83A and 83B. The pipe diameter is preferably 10 mm or less in inner diameter, and the height difference H between the atmosphere opening portion serving as the outlet of the liquid discharge paths 83A and 83B and the discharge port 27 is 500 mm or less, and the inner diameter of the liquid discharge ports 81A and 81B is 6 mm or less. The pipe diameters of the discharge paths 83A and 83B are more preferably 6 mm or less.

  The linear motor 30, the motor 11, and the coating liquid supply unit 50 including the syringe pump motor 58 for driving the piston 60 of the syringe pump 51, the discharge on / off valves 82A and 82B, the gas supply on / off valve 86, etc. , All operate with the control signal of the control device 70. Then, a predetermined operation is performed by transmitting a control command signal to each device in accordance with an automatic operation program incorporated in the control device 70. In addition, if it is necessary to change each operation condition, if a change parameter is appropriately input to the operation panel 71, the change parameter is transmitted to the control device 70, and the driving operation can be changed.

  Here, an example in which the gas supply path 87 and the gas supply opening / closing valve 86 are applied to an apparatus configuration that discharges the air 100 using the flow force of the coating liquid 53 has been described, but the liquid discharge port 81A, The present invention may be applied to any apparatus configuration that discharges the air 100 using the force of buoyancy by providing 81B on the top of the manifold 24.

  Next, an example of a method for discharging air from the inside of the slot die 20 using the die coater 1 will be described.

  First, with reference to FIGS. 2 and 5, a description will be given of an air discharge method before a coating production operation in which the coating liquid 53 is not present inside the slot die 20 and the coating liquid 53 is filled from a completely empty state. First, the coating solution 53 is filled from the coating solution tank 52 shown in FIG. Next, the piston 60 of the syringe pump 51 is raised in a state where all of the discharge open / close valves 82A and 82B and the gas supply open / close valve 86 are "closed", and the coating liquid 53 filled in the syringe 61 is slotted. Supply to die 20. As a result, the coating liquid 53 flows from the supply port 80 into the manifold 24 as shown in FIG. Further, when the coating liquid 53 is supplied from the syringe pump 51, the coating liquid 53 spreads over the coating width direction of the manifold 24 and the slit 25 as shown in FIG. And discharged from the discharge port 27. When the coating liquid 53 is continuously supplied, the coating liquid 53 spreads over the entire width range of the slit 25 and is discharged from the discharge port 27 as shown in FIG. The air 100 is confined in the upper part of the both ends of 24, so that it can no longer be discharged from the discharge port 27. Here, while supplying the coating liquid 53 from the syringe pump 51 and keeping the gas supply opening / closing valve 86 "closed" and the discharge opening / closing valves 82A, 82B being "open", the inside of the slot die 20 is confined. The air 100 thus discharged is discharged from the liquid discharge ports 81A and 81B together with the coating liquid 53. Then, as shown in FIG. 5D, when the air 100 is discharged and the inside of the slot die 20 is filled with the coating liquid 53, the coating liquid filling operation is completed. Such a discharge operation of the air 100 may be completed while the supply of the coating liquid 53 of the syringe pump 51 is operated only once, or may be performed while repeating the supply operation.

  Next, with reference to FIGS. 2 and 6, an air discharge method during the coating production operation performed when the air 100 is mixed into the slot die 20 filled with the coating liquid 53 will be described.

  As shown in FIG. 6A, the air 100 mixed in the slot die 20 during the coating production operation is accumulated at a plurality of locations of the manifold 24 and the upper portion of the supply port 80. In order to discharge the air 100, the discharge opening / closing valves 82A and 82B are opened while the coating liquid 53 is being supplied from the syringe pump 51 while the gas supply opening / closing valve 86 is in the closed state. As shown in FIG. 6B, a part of the air 100 accumulated inside the slot die 20 is discharged from the liquid discharge ports 81A and 81B together with the coating liquid 53. Then, as shown in FIG. 6C, when the air 100 from the inside of the slot die 20 is completely discharged and filled with the coating liquid 53 again, the air mixed into the slot die 20 during the coating production operation. 100 discharging operations are completed. While supplying the coating liquid 53 from the syringe pump 51 to the slot die 20, the air discharging operation for opening the opening / closing valves 82A and 82B for discharging may be performed only once or repeatedly.

  By the way, as shown in FIG. 7A, when the minute air 101 having a diameter less than 1 mm, for example, is mixed in the slot die 20 filled with the coating liquid 53, the volume of the minute air 101 is very large. The small air buoyancy and the small buoyancy are difficult to move by the liquid supply alone when adhering to the wall surface, so the air discharge method during the above-described coating production operation may not be able to discharge the minute air 101 in some cases. At that time, the minute air 101 is discharged by the minute air discharging method during the coating production work described below.

First, the supply of the coating liquid 53 from the syringe pump 51 to the slot die 20 is stopped in order to eliminate the minute air 101 accumulated in the manifold 24 and the upper portion of the supply port 80 shown in FIG. The gas supply opening / closing valve 86 and the discharge opening / closing valves 82A, 82B are all opened. As a result, as shown in FIG. 7B, the supply gas 102 is supplied to the gas supply path 87, the liquid discharge path 83A, and the liquid discharge port by the amount that the coating liquid is discharged from the discharge port 27 and the liquid discharge ports 81A and 81B. The gas is supplied from the supply port 80 to the inside of the manifold 24 through 81A. By this gas-liquid replacement, the gas space of the supply gas 102 is formed in the upper part of the manifold 24 while spreading in the coating width direction around the supply port 80. . When the gas space is formed up to the position where the minute air 101 exists, as shown in FIG. 7C, the minute air 101 is integrated or absorbed into the gas space by buoyancy and defoamed. As shown in FIG. 7D, when the gas space by the supply gas 102 is formed at least over the entire width of the upper portion of the manifold 24, the gas supply opening / closing valve 86 and the discharge opening / closing valves 82A, 82B are all closed. When the supply of the supply gas 102 is stopped and the air discharge operation during the above-described normal coating production operation is performed, all of the supply gas 102 inside the slot die 20 is easily discharged and the coating liquid 53 is placed inside the slot die 20. Will be charged. As a result, the original minute air 101 is also discharged, and the minute air discharging operation is completed.
The opening / closing operation of the discharge opening / closing valves 82A and 82B in the above air discharge method is performed by the application by the syringe pump 51 as described above in order to prevent the suction of the air 100 from the discharge port 27 and the backflow from the liquid discharge ports 81A and 81B. It is preferable to carry out the operation while the liquid 53 is being delivered, and the liquid delivery by the syringe pump 51 is stopped after the discharge on-off valves 82A and 82B are always “closed”. Further, in the above-described embodiment example, the discharge on / off valves 82A and 82B are all “open” at the same time, but the open / close operation of each of the discharge on / off valves 82A and 82B may be independently operated sequentially. The operation may be performed according to a predetermined combination pattern. In this case, there is no particular restriction on the opening / closing sequence, but the discharge opening / closing valve 82A at the position of the supply port 80 is first provided so that the air 100 collected in the vicinity of the supply port 80 is efficiently discharged without flowing into the manifold 24. “Open” is preferred. In addition, the minute air discharge method during the coating production operation is to open all of the gas supply opening / closing valve 86 and the discharge opening / closing valves 82A and 82B in order to quickly supply the supply gas 102 into the manifold 24. However, even if the gas supply opening / closing valve 82B of the liquid discharge path 83B to which the gas supply path 87 is not connected remains “closed” and the gas supply opening / closing valve 86 is “opened”, the supply gas 102 is supplied to the manifold 24. Can be supplied inside.
Furthermore, here, in order to discharge the air 100 inside the slot die 20, the minute air 101, the supply gas 102 and the coating liquid 53 from the liquid discharge ports 81 </ b> A and 81 </ b> B, the coating liquid 53 is supplied to the slot die 20 by the syringe pump 51. Although the liquid is fed, the liquid feeding means is not limited to this, and pressure feeding or another known pump can be used.
As described above, the air 100, the minute air 101, the supply gas 102, and the coating liquid 53 discharged from the inside of the slot die 20 are supplied to the liquid discharge tanks 89A and 89B through the liquid discharge paths 83A and 83B. It is discharged and the coating liquid 53 is stored as a waste liquid 88. Here, when the waste liquid 88 is detected by the Hi-side sensors 94A and 94B installed in the liquid discharge tanks 89A and 89B as accumulated in the height Q4 or more as shown in FIG. 2, the suction pumps 92A and 92B are operated. The waste liquid on-off valves 91A and 91B are opened, and the waste liquid 88 is sucked through the waste liquid discharge paths 90A and 90B and discharged to a waste liquid path (not shown). When the waste liquid 88 is discharged and the low-side sensors 95A and 95B detect that the remaining waste liquid in the liquid discharge tanks 89A and 89B has dropped to the height Q3 or less, the waste liquid on-off valves 91A and 91B are closed and suctioned. The pumps 92A and 92B are stopped, and the suction / discharge operation of the waste liquid 88 is ended. Here, if the suction pumps 92A and 92B are operated during the air discharge operation from the slot die 20, the discharge amount of the coating liquid 53 from the liquid discharge ports 81A and 81B changes, and the air discharge amount cannot be controlled. Therefore, the suction pumps 92A and 92B are preferably operated when the air discharge operation is not performed, that is, when the discharge open / close valves 82A and 82B are “closed”.
Here, although an example in which the method of defoaming the minute air 101 with the supply gas 102 is applied to the method of discharging the air 100 using the flow force of the coating liquid 53 has been described, the liquid discharge path 83A, A method of discharging the air 100 by connecting a mechanical suction means such as a pump to the 83B, or using the buoyancy force by providing the liquid discharge ports 81A and 81B at the upper portion of the manifold 24, etc. You may apply to either.

  Next, an example of a method of applying to the substrate 4 using the die coater 1 according to the present invention will be described.

  First, when the origin return of each movable part in the die coater 1 is performed, each movable part moves to a preset standby position. It should be noted that the parameters for realizing the target application conditions up to this point have been input to the operation panel 71. Further, the discharge of the air 100 inside the slot die 20 performed before the coating production work is also completed by the above-described air discharging method before the coating production work, and the coating liquid 53 is transferred from the coating liquid tank 52 to the inside of the slot die 20. Already charged. At this time, the discharge open / close valves 82A and 82B and the gas supply open / close valve 86 are all closed, and the wiping unit 40 is located away from the slot die 20. When the above preparation operation is completed, the wiping unit 40 is first moved directly below the slot die 20.

  Subsequently, a plurality of lift pins (not shown) are raised on the surface of the stage 29, and the substrate 4 is loaded on the lift pins from an unloader (not shown). Then, the lift pins are lowered, the substrate 4 is placed on the upper surface of the stage 29, the substrate 4 is positioned by a centering device (not shown), and the substrate 4 is sucked and held by a plurality of suction holes (not shown). In parallel with this, the coating liquid supply device unit 50 is operated to discharge a small amount of the coating liquid 53 from the slot die 20 toward the tray 44. Then, the slot die 20 is lowered by the lifting device unit 10, the lower end of the slot die 20 is brought into contact with the wiping head 43, and the wiping head 43 is slid in the longitudinal direction of the slot die 20. When the periphery of the discharge port surface 26 of the slot die 20 is cleaned by the slidable contact of the wiping head 43, the slot die 20 is raised by the lifting device unit 10, and the wiping unit 40 is moved away from the lower portion of the slot die 20 in the substrate traveling direction. Returned to the home position.

Next, the stage 29 holding the substrate 4 starts to move, and the thickness of the substrate 4 is measured by a sensor (not shown). Thereafter, the application start position of the substrate 4 moves to a position just below the discharge port of the slot die 20 and the stage 29 is stopped. Then, on the basis of the thickness of the substrate 4 measured by a sensor (not shown), the lifting device unit 10 is operated to set a gap amount between the discharge port surface 26 of the slot die 20 and the surface of the substrate 4, that is, a clearance. The slot die 20 is lowered so that the value becomes the same.
When the lowering of the slot die 20 is completed, the coating liquid supply device unit 50 is driven, and the coating liquid 53 filled in the syringe 61 is pushed out by the piston 60 to form the bead 28, and after a predetermined time, the substrate 4 is removed. The held stage 29 is started to move by the linear motor 30. As a result, the coating liquid 53 is discharged from the discharge port 27 of the slot die 20 onto the surface of the moving substrate 4 to form a coating film. Thereafter, when the coating end portion of the substrate 4 comes to the position of the discharge port 27 of the slot die 20, the piston 60 is stopped to stop the supply of the coating liquid 53, and then the lifting device unit 10 is driven to drive the slot die 20. To raise. By this operation, the bead 28 formed between the substrate 4 and the slot die 20 is completely cut off, and the application is completed. After that, the stage 29 continues to move and stops at a position where the substrate 4 is unloaded. In parallel with this, the slot die 20 is returned to the vertical origin position. Then, the suction of the substrate 4 on the stage 29 is released, the lift pin (not shown) is lifted, the substrate 4 is lifted, the unloader holds the substrate 4, and the substrate 4 is transported to the next process.
Next, the stage 29 is returned to the origin position, the piston 60 of the coating liquid supply device unit 50 is lowered, and the syringe 61 is filled with a new coating liquid 53. Thereafter, the wiping unit 40 is moved again to the lower part of the slot die 20, and the same operation is repeated after waiting for the next substrate 4 to be transferred.
Here, during the coating operation, the air 100 enters from the coating liquid supply unit 50, the air 100 dissolved in the coating liquid 53 is foamed, and the suction opening / closing valve 55 and the discharging opening / closing valve 62 are opened / closed. The air 100 may be mixed into the slot die 20 due to the suction of the air 100 or the suction of the air 100 from the discharge port 27 of the slot die 20. When the air 100 is mixed, the rise of the discharge pressure at the start of application is delayed and the film thickness of the application start part becomes thin, or the air 100 is discharged from the discharge port 27 to the member to be coated. There arises a problem that application defects such as stripes occur. Therefore, by using the air discharge method during the above-described coating production work, the air discharge operation is repeated only under preset conditions, and the air 100 mixed during the coating operation is discharged from the inside of the slot die 20, and in this state the substrate is discharged. Resume application to 4. However, if the air discharge method during the coating production operation cannot eliminate the problem of the occurrence of coating defects, minute air 101 may be mixed inside the slot die 20. Therefore, if the minute air discharging method during the above-described coating production operation is performed, the minute air inside the slot die 20 can be discharged, and problems such as thinning of the coating start portion and occurrence of coating defects can be eliminated. These air discharge operations may be performed after the film thickness becomes unstable or a coating defect occurs, or may be performed every time a certain number of coating operations are performed on the substrate 4, or for some reason. It may be carried out before resuming the coating operation after temporarily interrupting the coating operation.

  Here, the coating liquid 53 to which the present invention can be applied has a viscosity of 1 to 1000 mPa · s, more preferably 1 to 50 mPa · s, and is preferably a Newtonian in terms of coatability, but has a thixotropy. It can also be applied to the liquid 53. In particular, it is effective when the coating liquid 53 using a highly volatile solvent such as propylene glycol monomethyl ether acetate (PGMEA), butyl acetate, ethyl lactate or the like is applied. Specific examples of the coating solution 53 that can be applied include an RGB resist solution for color filters, a black matrix resist solution, a photospacer resist solution, an array substrate positive resist solution, and an overcoat material. Further, as the member to be coated, which is the substrate 4, a metal plate such as aluminum, a ceramic plate, a silicon wafer or the like may be used in addition to glass. Further, when the air discharging operation during the coating operation is performed for every predetermined number of coating sheets, it is preferably performed every 5 to 100 sheets, more preferably every 15 to 50 sheets. The minute air discharge operation during the coating operation is also preferably performed every 50 to 5000 sheets, more preferably every 100 to 1000 sheets, when it is performed every certain number of coated sheets. In addition, the amount of gas supplied to the inside of the slot die 20 and the supply time thereof in the minute air discharge operation are such that at least the upper part of the manifold 24 is gas-liquid in order to ensure that the minute air 101 accumulated in the manifold 24 is eliminated. The amount and time that can be replaced.

  Hereinafter, examples of the present invention will be described more specifically.

Example 1
A color filter was manufactured by directly applying the die coater shown in FIGS. As the slot die, a liquid discharge port having a discharge port gap of 100 μm, a longitudinal length of 1100 mm, and a diameter of 4 mm provided at a total of three locations of the supply port portion and both ends of the manifold was used. Here, the liquid discharge path connected to the slot die uses a Teflon (registered trademark) pipe having an inner diameter of 4 mm, and is connected to the liquid discharge port of the slot die in the horizontal direction, and the center of each liquid discharge port. This pipe was installed so as to pass through a position 20 mm lower. The gas supply path having the gas supply opening / closing valve uses a Teflon (registered trademark) pipe having an inner diameter of 6 mm and is connected between the outlet of the liquid discharge path connected to the supply port and the discharge opening / closing valve. The inlet of the gas supply path was installed at a position higher than the outlet of the slot die as an atmosphere opening. Further, the height difference H between the air release portion at the outlet of the liquid discharge path and the discharge outlet of the slot die is set to 400 mm, and the outlet of the liquid discharge path is set to be lower, and the discharge opening / closing valve is 50 mm from each liquid discharge opening. It was provided at a remote location. As the coating solution, black matrix, R color, G color, and B color coating solutions were prepared. The coating liquid for black matrix used carbon black as a light shielding material, acrylic resin as a binder, and propylene glycol monomethyl ether acetate (PGMEA) as a solvent, respectively, and adjusted the solid content concentration to 10% and the viscosity to 10 mPa · s. Similarly, the R color coating solution is an acrylic resin binder, PGMEA as a solvent, Pigment Red 177 as a pigment and mixed at a solid content concentration of 15%, and the viscosity is adjusted to 5 mPa · s. The G color coating solution is Pigment green 36 with R color coating solution and solid viscosity of 15% and viscosity adjusted to 5 mPa · s. B color coating solution with R color coating solution with pigment blue 15 solid The viscosity is adjusted to 5 mPa · s at a partial concentration of 15%. All of these coating liquids have photosensitive characteristics.

  First, in order to apply the black matrix coating solution, the tank was filled with the coating solution, and the inside of the slot die was filled with the coating solution. Here, as the air discharging operation at the time of filling the coating liquid, the liquid feeding speed is 5000 μl / sec, the liquid feeding amount is 40000 μl, and the liquid feeding time is 8 sec. After 1 second from the start of the liquid, the air discharge work cycle in which all of the opening and closing valves connected to the supply port and both ends are in the “open” state and all in the “closed” state after 7 seconds is repeated three times. The air inside the die was completely discharged. During the air discharge operation, the gas supply opening / closing valve was kept in a “closed” state all the time.

After the above coating liquid filling operation, a non-alkali glass substrate of 1100 × 1300 mm and a thickness of 0.7 mm is coated with a coating film thickness of 10 μm, a clearance between the slot die and the substrate of 100 μm, and a coating speed of 3 m / min. Applied. Here, the coating was performed on 300 glass substrates. During the coating operation, the intrusion of air from the supply system, the foaming of the air dissolved in the coating solution, the air from the discharge port of the slot die, In order to prevent the deterioration of film thickness accuracy and the occurrence of coating defects due to suction, etc., the coating production work is temporarily stopped as the air discharge work, the liquid feeding speed is 5000 μl / sec, the liquid feeding amount is 40000 μl, and the liquid feeding time is 8 sec. An air discharge operation cycle is performed once every 20 sheets to make all the opening and closing valves connected to the supply port and both ends “open” after 1 second from the start of the liquid, and to “close” all after 7 seconds. went. The gas supply opening / closing valve was kept in the “closed” state even during the air discharge work cycle. Further, in order to discharge minute air that is difficult to be discharged by the air discharging operation, the coating production operation is temporarily stopped as the minute air discharging operation, and the gas supply opening / closing valve and the discharging opening / closing valve are all turned on every 100 seconds for 30 seconds. After the air was supplied to the inside of the slot die and the fine air was removed, the air was discharged during the coating liquid filling operation.
The coated substrate is dried on a hot plate at 100 ° C. for 10 minutes, exposed, developed and peeled off, then heated and cured on a hot plate at 260 degrees for 30 minutes to form a black matrix pattern having a thickness of 1 μm. Created.

  Next, coating was continuously performed on 300 substrates on which the black matrix was formed with a die coater under exactly the same conditions as the coating liquid for black matrix except that the coating thickness for the R color was changed to 13 μm. . The coated substrate is dried on a hot plate at 90 ° C. for 10 minutes, then exposed, developed, and peeled off, leaving an R-color coating film with a thickness of 2 μm only on the R pixel portion, and heated on a 260 ° hot plate for 30 minutes. Then, it was cured.

  Next, the coating solution for G color is continuously applied to 300 substrates on which the black matrix and the R pixel portion are formed by a die coater under exactly the same conditions as the coating solution for R color except that the coating film thickness is 20 μm. The coating was performed. The coated substrate is dried on a hot plate at 100 ° C. for 10 minutes, and then exposed, developed, and peeled off, leaving a 2 μm thick G coating film only on the G pixel portion, and heated on a 260 ° hot plate for 30 minutes. Then, it was cured.

  Further, the B color coating solution was continuously applied to 300 substrates on which the black matrix, the R pixel portion, and the G pixel portion were formed using a die coater under exactly the same conditions as the G color coating solution. The coated substrate was also cured under exactly the same conditions as the G color coating solution.

  In the application of each color coating liquid, the film thickness was measured in the state before the pattern formation after drying. For all the coated substrates, the target in both the substrate running direction and the width direction was obtained except for 10 mm at the end. The film thickness accuracy was ± 3% or less. In parallel, the coating unevenness was also inspected, but the coating quality was very good for all the coated substrates, and it was generated when the air inside the slot die was discharged from the discharge port to the coated member. There were no air-borne coating defects such as pinholes or vertical stripes.

  Finally, ITO was deposited by sputtering to produce 300 color filters. All of the obtained color filters satisfied the film thickness accuracy and had no coating defects, and were satisfactory in quality. In addition, since the work for filling the coating liquid and discharging the air inside the slot die and the minute air mixed during the coating operation could be performed quickly, the production efficiency was very high.

Comparative Example 1
A color filter was prepared under exactly the same conditions as in the example, except that the gas supply path and the gas supply opening / closing valve were not provided and minute air was not discharged every 100 sheets. As a result, the minute air inside the slot die was not sufficiently discharged, so that out of 300 sheets became defective due to the deterioration of film thickness accuracy and coating defects, and a good quality color filter was obtained. I couldn't.

  In addition, in order to find out the conditions for discharging minute air inside the slot die after 300 sheets of coating have been completed, liquid feeding conditions that can completely discharge minute air have been examined. It was found that could not be discharged.

It is a schematic block diagram of the die-coater which is a coating device which concerns on this invention It is a front view of the slot die which is an applicator of a die coater. It is side surface sectional drawing in the position of the supply port of a slot die. It is side surface sectional drawing in the edge part position of the manifold of a slot die. FIG. 6 is a schematic front sectional view showing a state in which air inside the slot die is discharged in the coating liquid filling operation. It is a schematic front sectional view showing a situation where air inside the slot die mixed during the coating operation is discharged. It is a schematic front sectional view showing a situation where minute air inside the slot die is defoamed by the gas supplied to the slot die.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Die coater 2 Base 3 Support | pillar 4 Board | substrate 10 Lifting device unit 11 Motor 12 Lifting table 13 Ball screw 14 Guide 20 Slot die 21 Holding stand 22 Front lip 23 Rear lip 24 Manifold 25 Slit 26 Discharge port surface 27 Discharge port 28 Bead 29 Stage 30 Linear motor 31 Guide rail 40 Wiping unit 41 Head holder 42 Wiping head driving device 43 Wiping head 44 Tray 45 Wiping unit holding base 50 Coating liquid supply unit 51 Syringe pump 52 Coating liquid tank 53 Coating liquid 54 Pump supply path 55 For suction Open / close valve 56 Piston holding base 57 Ball screw for syringe pump 58 Motor for syringe pump 59 Piston lift guide 60 Piston 61 Syringe 62 Discharge open / close bar Lub 63 Die supply path 70 Control device 71 Control panel 80 Supply port 81A, 81B Liquid discharge port 82A, 82B Discharge open / close valve 83A, 83B Liquid discharge channel 84A, 84B Liquid discharge internal channel 85 Supply internal channel 86 For gas supply Open / close valve 87 Gas supply path 88 Waste liquid 89A, 89B Liquid discharge tank 90A, 90B Waste liquid discharge path 91A, 91B Waste liquid open / close valve 92A, 92B Suction pump 94A, 94B Hi side sensor 95A, 95B Low side sensor 96 Inlet 97A, 97B Outlet 100 Air 101 Micro air 102 Supply gas

Claims (4)

A supply port for supplying the coating liquid to the applicator, a manifold for widening the coating liquid in one direction, a discharge port extending in one direction for discharging the coating liquid, a slit communicating the manifold and the discharge port, And an applicator having a liquid discharge port, a liquid discharge path having an opening / closing means connected to the liquid discharge port for discharging / discharging the coating solution to be circulated / blocked, and an applicator In a coating apparatus comprising: a liquid supply unit that supplies a coating liquid to a liquid supply path; a holding unit that holds a member to be coated; and a moving unit that relatively moves at least one of the applicator and the holding unit. The gas supply path for supplying gas to the applicator is connected to at least one of the applicator, liquid supply path, or liquid discharge path, and the inlet of the gas supply path is open to the atmosphere. As used pressurized gas supply source, a coating apparatus characterized in that it has a flow regulating valve in the gas supply path. A display member manufacturing apparatus that manufactures a display member using the coating apparatus according to claim 1. Using a coating device having a manifold for widening the coating solution in one direction and a discharge port extending in one direction and a liquid discharge port for discharging the coating solution, while discharging the coating solution from the discharge port of the coating device In a coating method in which at least one of a member to be coated and an applicator is moved relatively to apply a coating liquid onto the surface of a member to be coated, gas is supplied to the upper part of the manifold filled with the coating liquid, and then the manifold is supplied to the manifold. A coating method comprising: supplying a coating liquid, then discharging a part of the gas and the coating liquid from a liquid discharge port, and thereafter coating the coating liquid on the surface of a member to be coated. A display member is manufactured using the coating method according to claim 3, wherein the display member is manufactured.

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