JP5071628B2 - Protective sheet supply device - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to an improvement in a glass substrate packaging technique in which a glass substrate and a protective sheet are alternately stacked on a pallet for packaging.

  As is well known, various glass substrates including glass substrates for flat panel displays (hereinafter referred to as FPD) such as liquid crystal displays, plasma displays, electroluminescence displays, and field emission displays are placed on pallets for storage and transportation. It is customary that the glass sheets are stacked and packed in a vertical posture (substantially vertical posture) or a horizontal posture (substantially horizontal posture) with a protective sheet such as a slip sheet interposed between the glass substrates (for example, , See Patent Document 1 below).

  And when packing such a glass substrate, it is customary to place a protective sheet, which has been waiting in advance at a predetermined position (hereinafter referred to as a protective sheet standby position), on the glass substrate after being sucked and held by, for example, a suction pad. is there.

  At this time, since the protective sheets are sequentially taken out from the protective sheet standby position by the suction pad or the like, it may be necessary to supply the protective sheet to the protective sheet standby position while the glass substrate is being packed.

  As a supply method of this protective sheet, it is conceivable to stack a plurality of protective sheets in advance in a horizontal posture at a protective sheet standby position (see, for example, Patent Document 2 below), The laminated protective sheets are bonded to each other by static electricity or the like, and the work of taking out the protective sheet from the protective sheet standby position is forced to be troublesome and complicated.

Therefore, for example, as in the method disclosed in Patent Document 3 below, the protective sheet is supplied to the protective sheet standby position while being conveyed one by one, as in the case where the protective sheet is laminated as described above. A situation where the protective sheets are bonded to each other can be prevented. More specifically, the same document discloses a method in which a long protective sheet is cut into a predetermined length, folded in half, and then guided to a protective sheet standby position with a guide plate to wait. . When the protective sheet is placed on the glass substrate, the protective sheet is taken out from the protective sheet standby position.
JP-A-62-180836 Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2005-75482 JP 2006-8192 A

  By the way, as a protective sheet used for packaging of a glass substrate, for example, a relatively thin sheet having a thickness of about 0.5 mm is often used, which easily causes wrinkles. In particular, with the recent increase in size of glass substrates, the size of the protective sheet is also increased, so that wrinkles appear more prominently. And when the glass sheet and the protective sheet are alternately laminated on the pallet in a state where wrinkles are generated in the protective sheet in this way, the thickness of the protective sheet is increased by the amount of wrinkles of the protective sheet. Therefore, in the state where the glass substrate and the protective sheet are alternately stacked, the dimension in the stacking direction increases, and the number of the glass substrates stacked on the pallet is unduly reduced. Further, in this case, due to the wrinkles of the protective sheet, an inappropriate gap is generated between the glass substrate and the protective sheet. Therefore, the glass substrate is bent, and the glass substrate is damaged. May occur.

  The problem of wrinkles generated in such a protective sheet is not a problem unless wrinkles are generated on the protective sheet placed on the glass substrate, but it is extremely difficult to remove the wrinkles generated on the protective sheet afterwards. It becomes difficult. Therefore, it is important to prevent a situation in which wrinkles occur in the protective sheet even at the protective sheet standby position, which is the supply starting point of the protective sheet placed on the glass substrate.

However, in the method disclosed in Patent Document 3 above, the protective sheet located on the protective sheet standby position, only been simply placed horizontally on the guide plate, from the viewpoint of suppressing the occurrence of wrinkles The fact is that no measures have been taken.

  This invention makes it a technical subject to suppress the situation that a wrinkle arises in the protective sheet in a protective sheet standby position as much as possible in view of the above situation.

In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, the present invention is to transport a protective sheet interposed between glass substrates in a predetermined transport direction when a plurality of glass substrates are stacked and packed on a pallet. A protective sheet supply device that sequentially supplies to a predetermined protective sheet standby position,
Tension applying means for applying tension to the protective sheet in a state where the protective sheet at the protective sheet standby position is held is provided , and the tension applying means is arranged in the transport direction in the peripheral edge of the protective sheet. A pair of holdings that hold only two sides of the protective sheet facing each other in a plurality of holding regions along each side or a continuous line-like holding region along the side, and are relatively movable in and out of the conveying direction. It has a part, while holding the protective sheet in the pair of holding portions, thereby separating the pair of holding portions, the protective sheet, characterized in Rukoto to apply tension to the conveying direction.

According to such a configuration, since tension is applied to the protective sheet at the protective sheet standby position by the tension applying means, the protective sheet at the position can be stretched, and the protective sheet Occurrence of wrinkles can be suppressed. Further, at this time, in a pair of holding portions that are relatively movable toward and away from each other, the opposing two sides of the protective sheet are a plurality of regions that are intermittent along each side, or continuous line-like shapes along each side. Since the tension is applied to the protective sheet in the conveying direction by separating the pair of holding parts in the conveying direction of the protective sheet while being held in the region, the protective sheet is not locally applied to the protective sheet. Tension is uniformly applied to the entire surface. Therefore, the protective sheet can be uniformly stretched as a whole, and as a result, generation of wrinkles can be more reliably suppressed.

  In the above configuration, when the pair of holding portions hold two sides of the protective sheet facing in the transport direction in a plurality of holding regions along each side, at least both corners of each side. A holding region located on the side is configured to be able to move toward and away relatively in a direction perpendicular to the transport direction, and is configured to be able to move toward and away while the protective sheet is held by the pair of holding portions. It is preferable that the holding area is separated to further apply tension to the protective sheet in a direction orthogonal to the transport direction.

  If it does in this way, since tension will also be given to the direction which intersects perpendicularly with the conveyance direction to a protection sheet, it will become more desirable from a viewpoint of controlling the occurrence of wrinkles.

  In the above tension applying means, a pair of second holding portions that hold two sides facing the direction orthogonal to the conveyance direction of the protective sheet and are relatively movable away from each other in the direction orthogonal to the conveyance direction. In a state where the protective sheet is held by the pair of second holding portions, the pair of second holding portions are separated from each other, and tension is applied to the protective sheet in a direction perpendicular to the transport direction. You may make it do.

  Said structure WHEREIN: It equips with the original material cutting | disconnection means which cuts the elongate sheet-shaped original material conveyed along the said conveyance direction to a predetermined dimension, and produces the protection sheet, The said tension | tensile_strength provision means is the said original material It is preferable that the protective sheet produced by the cutting means is held and conveyed to the protective sheet standby position.

  In this way, the protective sheet produced by the base material cutting means is conveyed to the protective sheet standby position while being held by the tension applying means, so that the posture of the protective sheet at the protective sheet standby position is stable. Can be maintained. Therefore, it is possible to apply an appropriate tension to the protective sheet at the protective sheet standby position.

  Said structure WHEREIN: You may make it hold | maintain the attitude | position which inclined the protection sheet with respect to the horizontal surface by the said tension | tensile_strength provision means in the said protection sheet standby position.

  In this way, it is advantageous when it is required that the glass substrate and the protective sheet are alternately stacked in a vertical posture and packed on the pallet. That is, if the protective sheet is held in an inclined posture at the protective sheet standby position, it can be advantageously placed on the glass substrate loaded on the pallet without greatly changing the posture of the protective sheet. It becomes. From such a viewpoint, the posture of the protective sheet held by the tension applying means is made to be substantially the same as the posture of the protective sheet loaded on the pallet, that is, the posture of the glass substrate stacked on the pallet. It is preferable.

  Said structure WHEREIN: It is preferable that a protective sheet has a stretching property.

  In this way, since the protective sheet is appropriately stretched in the process of applying tension, displacement such as displacement is hardly generated between the tension applying means, and thus appropriate tension is applied to the protective sheet. It becomes possible.

  Here, examples of the protective sheet having elasticity include a resin sheet and a foamed resin sheet. And, when such a resin sheet or a foamed resin sheet is used as a protective sheet, foreign matter such as dust adheres to the glass substrate from the protective sheet as compared with the case where paper or the like is used as the protective sheet. Can be prevented, and the cleanliness of the glass substrate can be maintained well. Furthermore, when a foamed resin sheet is used, a good cushioning property can be obtained as compared with paper or the like, and the impact acting on each glass plate during transportation can be appropriately mitigated.

As described above, according to the present invention, tension is applied to the protective sheet at the protective sheet standby position by the tension applying means, so that the protective sheet at the position can be stretched, The generation of wrinkles on the protective sheet can be suppressed as much as possible.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

  FIG. 1 is a perspective view schematically showing a configuration example of a glass substrate packaging system in which a protective sheet supply apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention is incorporated. As shown in the figure, this glass substrate packaging system 1 loads a glass substrate supply device 2, a protective sheet supply device 3, and a glass substrate 4 supplied by the glass substrate supply device 2 onto a substantially L-shaped pallet 5. A glass substrate loading device 6 and a protective sheet loading device 8 for loading the protective sheet 7 supplied by the protective sheet supply device 3 onto the pallet 5 are provided, and the glass substrate loading device 6 and the protective sheet loading device 8 On the pallet 5, the glass substrate 4 and the protective sheet 7 are each automatically stacked alternately in a vertical posture and packed. In this embodiment, the glass substrate 4 is a glass substrate for FPD, and has a side dimension of 1000 to 2500 mm and a thickness of 0.5 to 0.7 mm. Further, the protective sheet 7 is a foamed resin sheet (for example, a foamed polyethylene sheet), which is about 100 to 180 mm larger in length and width than the glass substrate 4 and has a thickness of 0.5 to 0.6 mm.

  The glass substrate loading device 6 includes an arm portion 9 and a glass substrate holding means 10 attached to the tip of the arm portion 9 so as to be rotatable and swingable. The arm portion 9 is rotatably mounted on a slider 12 that is slidably mounted on the base portion 11. Further, the glass substrate holding means 10 has a comb-teeth shape, and a plurality of suction pads 13 for sucking the glass substrate 4 by a negative pressure action are disposed on each comb tooth portion. And in this glass substrate holding means 10, a space is formed between adjacent comb teeth portions.

  The protective sheet loading device 8 includes an arm portion 14 and a protective sheet holding means 15 that is rotatably attached to the tip of the arm portion 14 and that holds only the peripheral edge portion of the protective sheet 7. The arm part 14 is rotatably mounted on a slider 16 slidably mounted on the base part 11. The protective sheet holding means 15 includes an upper side portion 17 and a pair of side side portions 18a and 18b extending downward from both ends of the upper side portion 17, and has a U-shape with the lower portion opened as a whole.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the pair of side portions 18 a and 18 b are in contact with substantially the entire area of both sides in the width direction of the protective sheet 7. A plurality of suction holes X are formed in the contact surfaces of the side portions 18a and 18b in the direction along both sides in the width direction of the protective sheet 7, and a negative pressure is applied to the protective sheet 7 from each suction hole X. By acting, both sides in the width direction of the protective sheet 7 are sucked and held by a plurality of regions along the sides (regions corresponding to the respective suction holes X).

  Furthermore, one side part 18a is fixed to the upper side part 17, the other side part 18b is attached to the upper side part 17 so as to be slidable in the longitudinal direction, and the other side part 18b is attached to one side part. It can be moved toward and away from the portion 18a. And the direction which separates the other side part 18b from one side part 18a in the state which hold | maintained the width direction both sides of the protection sheet 7 with these pair of side parts 18a and 18b (width direction of the protection sheet 7) The tension is applied to the protective sheet 7 in the width direction by sliding the protective sheet 7.

  On the other hand, the upper side portion 17 includes a plurality of chuck mechanisms 19 a, 19 b, a plurality of chuck mechanisms 19 a, 19 b that hold the upper side of the protective sheet 7 in an auxiliary manner (in the illustrated example, a central position of the upper side of the protective sheet 7 and both side positions thereof) 19c is attached. And as already stated, since the other side part 18b is configured to be movable toward and away from the one side part 18a, the protective sheet 7 generated when the side part 18b is separated. The chuck mechanism 19b at the center and the chuck mechanism 19c on the other side portion 18b are attached to the upper side portion 17 so as to be slidable in the longitudinal direction. Specifically, in this embodiment, when the other side portion 18b slides, for example, xmm with respect to one side portion 18a so that the width of the protective sheet 7 is uniform in the width direction, At the same time and in the same direction, the chuck mechanism 19c on the other side portion 18b side is set to slide xmm, and the center chuck mechanism 19b is set to slide x / 2mm. In this embodiment, since the extension of the protective sheet 7 is small on the side portion 18 a side, the chuck mechanism 19 a is fixed to the upper side portion 17.

  As shown in FIG. 3, the glass substrate supply device 2 is arranged in parallel with the transport direction of the glass substrate 4 with a space in a direction orthogonal to the transport direction of the glass substrate 4 (arrow A direction in the figure). Are provided with a plurality of transport mechanisms 20. An interval between adjacent transport mechanisms 20 is set to an interval at which a glass substrate holding means 10 (shown by a one-dot chain line in the drawing) having a comb-like shape can be inserted. The glass substrate 4 is intermittently conveyed by the glass substrate supply device 2 and stopped when it reaches the glass substrate standby position on the conveyance mechanism 20.

  Each transport mechanism 20 is provided with a plurality of transport rollers 21 on which the glass substrate 4 is actually placed, and the transport rollers 21 rotate synchronously. More specifically, the rotational driving force from the motor 22 is transmitted to the plurality of pulleys 24 by the counter belt 23 so that the rotating shafts 25 connected to the pulleys 24 are synchronously rotated. Further, a plurality of bevel gears 26 are intermittently fixed in the axial direction of each rotary shaft 25, and the bevel gears 26 are meshed with bevel gears 27 fixed to the conveyance roller 21. Thereby, the rotational driving force of the motor 22 is transmitted to each conveyance roller 21 and each conveyance roller 21 rotates synchronously.

  As shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, the protective sheet supply device 3 cuts a base material supply means 29 that supplies a long sheet-like base material 28 and a base material 28 that is supplied from the base material supply means 29. The base material cutting means 30 for producing the protective sheet 7 is provided.

  As shown in FIG. 4, the base material supply means 29 cuts a pair of base material rolls 31 a and 31 b around which the base material 28 is wound, and the base material 28 drawn from the base material rolls 31 a and 31 b. A pair of cutters 32a and 32b are provided, and the base material 28 drawn from one of the base material rolls 31a and 31b is supplied to the base material cutting means 30, and the remaining amount of the base material roll 31a (31b) is a predetermined amount. At the stage where the number of the base material 28 is less than that, the base material 28 drawn from the base material roll 31a (31b) is cut by the cutter 32a (32b), and the end portion of the cut base material 28 and the other base material are cut. The tip of the base material 28 drawn out from the roll 31b (31a) is connected.

  Specifically, in the illustrated example, of the pair of base material rolls 31a and 31b, the base material roll 31a is used, and the base material 28 continuous to the base material roll 31a in use is It is sandwiched between a pair of nip rollers 33a and 33b. As the nip rollers 33a and 33b rotate, the base material 28 is pulled out from the base material roll 31a in use and supplied to the base material cutting means 30 (on the inclined surface 41a of the base 41 described later). ing.

  Further, the suction plate 34a stands by on the back side of the surface facing the base material 28 slightly pulled out from the standby base material roll 31b on the side of the base material roll 31a in use in a state of being spaced apart. ing. The suction plate 34a is attached to the front end side of the cylinder 35a so as to be rotatable about the fulcrum A1. The base end side of the cylinder 35a is supported so as to be rotatable about the fulcrum A2. Further, between the suction plate 34a and the base material roll 31a, a cutting plate 36a to which a cutter 32a is attached, and an engagement plate 37a to be engaged with the cutting plate 36a when the base material 28 is cut by the cutter 32a. Is arranged.

  A double-sided tape 38 is previously attached to the front end portion of the base material 28 that is continuous with the base material roll 31b that is in standby, on the side of the surface facing the base material 28 drawn from the base material roll 31a in use. The back side is sucked and held by the suction plate 34b. The suction plate 34b is disposed in an inclined state with respect to the suction plate 34a so that the distance between the suction plate 34a and the suction plate 34a is gradually increased toward the base material rolls 31a and 31b, and the cylinder 35b. It is attached to the front end side of the shaft so as to be rotatable about the fulcrum B1. The base end side of the cylinder 35b is supported so as to be rotatable about the fulcrum B2. Further, between the suction plate 34b and the base material roll 31b, a cutting plate 36b to which a cutter 32b is attached, and an engagement plate 37b that engages with the cutting plate 36b when the base material 28 is cut by the cutter 32a. Is arranged.

  Then, when it is detected that the remaining amount of one of the base material rolls 31a is less than a predetermined amount determined in advance by a sensor (not shown), the base material 28 drawn from the base material roll 31a is sucked to the suction plate. The cutting plate 36a and the engagement plate 37a are engaged with each other and the base material 28 is cut by the cutter 32a. Thereafter, by extending the cylinder 35a and superimposing the suction plate 34a attached to the tip of the cylinder 35a on the standby suction plate 34b, the end portion of the base material 28 after cutting continuous to the nip rollers 33a and 33b is obtained. A double-sided tape 38 is connected to the leading end portion of the base material 28 drawn from the standby base material roll 31b. At this time, the suction plate 34a and the cylinder 35a rotate around the fulcrums A1 and A2, and the suction plate 34a overlaps the suction plate 34b while drawing an arcuate locus (arrow B in the figure). .

  In addition, a guide roller 39 and a dancer roller 40 are disposed on a path from the base material roll 31a drawn from the base material roll 31a to the nip rollers 33a and 33b. , 40 is wound around a part. In the illustrated example, when the nip rollers 33a and 33b are not rotated, the dancer roller 40 is moved downward, and when the nip rollers 33a and 33b are rotated, the dancer roller 40 is moved upward, so that the base material 28 maintains a constant tension. On the other hand, the nip rollers 33a and 33b are supplied on a regular scale.

  As shown in FIG. 5, the base material cutting means 30 cuts the base 41 having the inclined surface 41a and the base material 28 drawn on the inclined surface 41a of the base 41 by the pair of nip rollers 33a and 33b. A cutting mechanism 42. Note that the inclination angle α of the inclined surface 41a of the base 41 with respect to the horizontal plane coincides with or substantially coincides with the inclination angle of the glass substrate 4 loaded on the pallet 5 in the vertical posture with respect to the horizontal plane.

  The cutting mechanism 42 includes a pressing plate 43 that presses the base material 28 drawn out by the nip rollers 33a and 33b against the inclined surface 41a of the base 41, and the original material 28 that is pressed against the inclined surface 41a by the pressing plate 43. And a cutter 44 that cuts in a direction (hereinafter, referred to as a width direction) perpendicular to the conveyance direction (the direction of arrow C in the drawing). The pressing plate 43 has a plate-like body that is longer than the width direction dimension of the base material 28, and is configured to be movable toward and away from the inclined surface 41 a of the base 41. Note that a space for running the cutter 44 in the width direction is formed at the intermediate position in the vertical direction of the pressing plate 43 over the width direction.

  Furthermore, the protective sheet supply apparatus 3 includes a tension applying unit 45 that applies tension to the protective sheet 7 produced by the base material cutting unit 30 as a characteristic configuration. The tension applying means 45 has a pair of holding portions 46 and 47 that hold two sides facing the conveying direction of the protective sheet 7 (the same direction as the conveying direction of the base material 28) in a plurality of regions along each side. In this embodiment, the holding portion 47 is configured to be movable toward and away from the holding portion 46.

  More specifically, the holding unit 46 located on the upstream side in the transport direction includes a plurality of (three in the illustrated example) suction plates 46a, 46b, and 46c that suction and hold the upper side of the protective sheet 7, and each suction plate. A plurality of suction holes for applying a negative pressure to the protective sheet 7 are formed in 46a, 46b, and 46c. Further, the suction plates 46 a and 46 c at both ends are configured to be movable toward and away from each other in the width direction of the protective sheet 7.

  On the other hand, the holding unit 47 located on the downstream side in the transport direction includes a plurality of (four in the illustrated example) chuck mechanisms 47a, 47b, 47c, and 47d that hold the lower side of the protective sheet 7 therebetween. Each chuck mechanism 47 a, 47 b, 47 c, 47 d is attached to a slide bar 48 that moves up and down along the inclined surface 41 a of the base 41. Of these, the chuck mechanisms 47 a, 47 d at both ends are the width of the protective sheet 7. It is configured to move relative to and away from the direction. Further, when the chuck mechanisms 47a, 47b, 47c, 47d are moved up and down along the inclined surface 41a of the base 41 together with the slide bar 48, the movement of the chuck mechanisms 47a, 47b, 47c, 47d is not hindered. A concave portion 49 is formed on the inclined surface 41a in a region corresponding to the travel path of each chuck mechanism 47a, 47b, 47c, 47d. Further, the elevating plate 50 is accommodated in the recesses 49 corresponding to the chuck mechanisms 47a and 47d at both ends.

  Next, a method for packing the glass substrate 4 by the glass substrate packing system 1 configured as described above will be described, and the operation of the protective sheet supply device 3 according to the present embodiment will be described.

  The packaging method by the glass substrate packaging system 1 of the present embodiment includes a glass substrate supply process for supplying the glass substrate 4 from the glass substrate supply device 2 to the glass substrate loading device 6, and a protective sheet loading from the protection sheet supply device 3. The protective sheet supply step for supplying the protective sheet 7 to the apparatus 8 and the glass substrate loading device 6 and the protective sheet loading device 8 alternately stack the glass substrate 4 and the protective sheet 7 on the pallet 5 in a vertical posture. It is divided roughly into the lamination process.

  As shown in FIG.1 and FIG.3, in a glass substrate supply process, first, the glass substrate 4 is intermittently conveyed on the some conveyance mechanism 20 arranged in parallel from the upstream. Thereafter, the glass substrate 4 is also intermittently transported by the transport mechanisms 20 and stops when the glass substrate standby position is reached. Thereafter or at the previous stage, the glass substrate holding means 10 (shown by a one-dot chain line in FIG. 3) having a comb-like shape is inserted into a space between adjacent transport mechanisms 20. In this state, the glass substrate holding means 10 is raised, the suction pad 13 of the glass substrate holding means 10 is brought into contact with the lower surface of the glass substrate 4 at the glass substrate standby position, and the lower surface of the glass substrate 4 is sucked and held. Thereafter, the glass substrate holding means 10 rises above the conveyance surface from the space between the conveyance mechanisms 20, the glass substrate 4 is separated from the conveyance mechanism 20, and the glass substrate 4 is supplied to the glass substrate holding means 10. Complete. In this way, the glass substrate 4 can be easily and reliably removed from the transport mechanism 20 with only the ineffective surface (lower surface) of the glass substrate 4 being sucked and held without touching the effective surface (upper surface) of the glass substrate 4. Can be supplied.

  The protective sheet supply step is performed in parallel with the glass substrate supply step. As shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, in the protective sheet supply step, first, the base material 28 is removed from either one of the pair of base material rolls 31a and 31b (the base material roll 31a in the illustrated example) by the nip rollers 33a and 33b. A predetermined dimension is pulled out and supplied to the base material cutting means 30. In this state, the base material cutting means 30 cuts the base material 28 pulled out by a predetermined dimension, and the protective sheet 7 is produced.

  Specifically, the base material 28 is supplied to the inclined surface 41a of the base 41 by the nip rollers 33a and 33b, and hangs down along the inclined surface 41a. Thereafter or in the previous stage, the chuck mechanisms 47a, 47b, 47c, 47d rise integrally with the slide bar 48 along the inclined surface 41a of the base 41, and the chuck mechanisms 47a, 47b, 47c, 47d The lower side part of the material 28 is clamped. In this state, the base material 28 is further pulled out from the base material roll 31a by the nip rollers 33a and 33b and supplied onto the inclined surface 41a. In synchronization with the supply of the base material 28, the chuck mechanisms 46 a, 46 b, 46 c, 46 d are lowered along the inclined surface 41 a of the base 41 integrally with the slide bar 47. In this way, when the base material 28 having a size corresponding to the protective sheet 7 is supplied onto the inclined surface 41a by the nip rollers 33a and 33b, the rotation of the nip rollers 33a and 33b and the chuck mechanisms 47a, 47b, 47c and 47d. Descent stops.

  In this state, the pressing plate 43 is lowered, the original material 28 is pressed against the inclined surface 41a, the original material 28 is cut by the cutter 44, and the protective sheet 7 is produced. Then, after the upper portion of the protective sheet 7 is sucked by the suction plates 46 a, 46 b and 46 c, the pressing plate 43 is lifted away from the protective sheet 7. Thereafter, the chuck mechanisms 47a, 47b, 47c, 47d integrally with the slide bar 48 are further lowered along the inclined surface 41a, so that the protective sheet 7 is in the protective sheet standby position (the upper side of the protective sheet 7 is the upper side of the pressing plate 43). It is lowered to the position exposed from below). During this time, the upper portion of the protective sheet 7 is pulled down downward so as to slide on the suction plates 46a, 46b, and 46c while being supplementarily held by suction by the suction plates 46a, 46b, and 46c.

  Next, when the protective sheet 7 is pulled down to the protective sheet standby position (see FIG. 6), the suction plates 46a and 46c at both ends are separated from each other, and the chuck mechanisms 47a and 47d at both ends are separated to form the protective sheet 7. Tension is applied in the width direction. Further, the protective sheet 7 is pulled down by the chuck mechanisms 47a, 47b, 47c, 47d while sliding on the protective sheet 7 with its upper part being adsorbed by the adsorption plates 46a, 46b, 46c. Tension is also applied in the conveying direction. As a result, the protective sheet 7 at the protective sheet standby position is in a state of being stretched in the width direction and the conveying direction, so that the protective sheet 7 is supplied to the protective sheet loading device 8 (protective sheet holding means 15). Before, it is possible to reliably prevent a situation in which wrinkles occur in the protective sheet 7. Moreover, it becomes possible to accurately position the protective sheet 7 with respect to the protective sheet holding means 15 by applying tension in this way.

Then, as shown in FIG. 6, the side portions 18 a and 18 b of the protective sheet holding means 15 come into contact with the protective sheet 7 held in a state where tension is applied. In this state, the plurality of suction holes X provided in the side portions 18a and 18b of the protective sheet holding means 15 allow the widthwise sides of the protective sheet 7 to be a plurality of regions along the sides (regions corresponding to the suction holes X). ) And is held in a state where the upper side of the protective sheet 7 is clamped by the chuck mechanisms 19a, 19b, 19c of the upper side portion 17 (see FIG. 2). When the protective sheet 7 is sucked and held by the side portions 18a and 18b, the elevating plate 50 housed in the concave portion 49 of the base 41 rises to the same plane as the inclined surface 41a of the base 41, The side portions 18a and 18b of the protective sheet holding means 15 are brought into contact with the back side of the region where the protective sheet 7 is sucked and held.

  When the protection sheet 7 is completely held by the protection sheet holding means 15, the protection sheet 7 is held by the suction plates 46a, 46b, 46c and the chuck mechanisms 47a, 47b, 47c, 47d provided on the base 41. Is released, the protective sheet holding means 15 is separated from the inclined surface 41a of the base 41, and the supply of the protective sheet 7 to the protective sheet holding means 15 is completed. If it does in this way, since the protection sheet 7 is supplied to the protection sheet holding means 15 in the state to which tension | tensile_strength was given, the situation where a wrinkle arises in the protection sheet 7 at this supply stage can be prevented. . Further, as described above, the inclination angle α of the inclined surface 41a of the base 41 coincides with or substantially coincides with the inclination angle of the glass substrate 4 loaded on the pallet 5 in the vertical posture with respect to the horizontal plane. Similarly, the protective sheet 7 in the sheet standby position is substantially in the same posture as the glass substrate 4 on the pallet 5. Therefore, the protective sheet loading device 8 can load the protective sheet 7 on the pallet 5 in the same posture without changing the posture of the protective sheet 7. Therefore, the operation of the protective sheet loading device 8 can be simplified, and as a result, the loading operation of the protective sheet 7 can be speeded up.

  On the other hand, the protective sheet holding means 15 holds the protective sheet 7 in the above-described manner, and, as shown in FIG. 2, the other side part 18b and the chuck mechanisms 19b and 19c are moved from the one side part 18a. Simultaneously slide in the separating direction (width direction of the protective sheet 7), and tension is applied in the width direction of the protective sheet 7. If it does in this way, the width direction both sides of protection sheet 7 are held in the width direction to the held protection sheet 7 in the state where it was held in a plurality of fields along the edge (area corresponding to adsorption hole X). Since the tension is applied, the tension is uniformly applied to the entire protective sheet surface, not locally to the protective sheet 7. Therefore, the protective sheet 7 can have a uniform flat surface as a whole, and as a result, the protective sheet 7 substantially free of wrinkles is placed on the glass substrate 4 loaded on the pallet 5. can do. Further, when tension is applied to the protective sheet 7 by the side portions 18a and 18b as described above, the upper side of the protective sheet 7 is sandwiched by the chuck mechanisms 19a, 19b, and 19c. It is possible to suppress the occurrence of fluttering of the protective sheet 7 during the upward transfer, so that the posture of the protective sheet 7 can be stabilized and the conveyance speed of the protective sheet 7 can be increased.

  Further, during the execution of the protective sheet supply process as described above, when it is detected by a sensor (not shown) that the remaining amount of the original material roll 31a in use is less than a predetermined amount, the nip rollers 33a, 33b The rotation stops and the dancer roller 40 moves downward. Thereafter, the base material 28 drawn out from the base material roll 31a is sucked and held by the suction plate 34a, the cutting plate 36a and the engagement plate 37a are engaged, and the base material 28 is cut by the cutter 32a. From this state, the cylinder 35a extends, and the suction plate 34a attached to the tip of the cylinder 35a is overlapped with the standby suction plate 34b. A double-sided tape 38 is connected to the tip of the base material 28 drawn from the base material roll 31b. When the connection of the base material 28 is completed in this way, the suction plate 34a returns to the original position, and the base material roll to be used is transferred to the base material roll 31b. And while using the base material roll 31b, the base material roll 31a whose remaining amount is less than the predetermined amount is replaced with a new one, and the back surface side thereof is attached with the double-sided tape 38 attached to the front end portion. Is held by suction by the suction plate 34a. Thereby, at the time of replacement | exchange of the base material roll 31a, supply of the base material 28 can be continued by the other base material roll 31b. In addition, since the base material 28 drawn from the other base material roll 31b is connected to the base material 28 via the dancer roller 40, the nip roller is maintained while maintaining a constant tension in the base material 28 after connection. 33a and 33b can be supplied with predetermined dimensions. Furthermore, as already described, since the two suction plates 34a and 34b are disposed so that the interval between the two suction plates 34a and 34b gradually increases, the front end portion of the base material 28 of the standby base material roll 31b (32a) is placed. The double-sided tape 38 can be easily attached to the surface.

  The laminating process is performed after the glass substrate supplying process and the protective sheet supplying process as described above. As shown in FIG. 7A, in the laminating step, first, a peripheral portion is formed on the glass substrate 4 stacked in a vertical posture prior to the pallet 5 by the protective sheet holding means 15 of the protective sheet loading device 8. A protective sheet 7 on which only is held is placed. Thereafter, as shown in FIG. 7B, the non-effective surface side is placed on the glass substrate holding means 10 of the glass substrate loading device 6 on the protective sheet 7 with the peripheral edge held by the protective sheet holding means 15. The held glass substrate 4 is placed. Then, as shown in FIG. 7C, when the succeeding glass substrate 4 is placed on the protective sheet 7, the holding of the protective sheet 7 by the protective sheet holding means 15 is released. Thereafter, by repeating this operation, the glass substrate 4 and the protective sheet 7 are packed on the pallet 5 in a state where the glass substrates 4 and the protective sheets 7 are alternately stacked in a vertical posture. In this way, the protective sheet 7 placed on the glass substrate 4 loaded prior to the pallet 5 is protected until the subsequent glass substrate 4 is placed by the glass substrate loading device 6. Since the peripheral edge portion is held by the protective sheet holding means 15 of the sheet stacking device 8, the protective sheet 7 is displaced or wrinkled before the subsequent glass substrate 4 is placed. Can be prevented. Then, at the stage where the protection sheet 7 is released from the protection sheet holding means 15, the protection sheet 7 is already sandwiched between the preceding glass substrate 4 and the succeeding glass substrate 4. In particular, it is possible to prevent a situation where the protective sheet 7 is displaced or wrinkled. Therefore, in the state where the glass substrates 4 and the protective sheets 7 are alternately stacked, the dimension in the stacking direction does not unduly increase, and a predetermined number of glass substrates 4 are securely stacked and packed on the pallet 5. be able to. Moreover, since an unreasonable gap is not formed between the glass substrate 4 and the protective sheet 7, it is possible to suitably prevent a situation in which the glass substrate 4 is damaged. Since the protective sheet loading device 8 holds only the peripheral edge of the protective sheet 7 larger than the glass substrate 4, the glass substrate loading device 6 and the protective sheet loading device 8 interfere with each other. The glass substrate 4 is mounted by the glass substrate loading device 6 in the region excluding the holding portion of the protective sheet 7 by the protective sheet loading device 8 while the protective sheet loading device 8 holds the protective sheet 7 without any problem. Can be placed.

  In addition, this invention is not limited to said embodiment, A various deformation | transformation is possible. In the above embodiment, the case where a foamed resin sheet is used as the protective sheet 7 has been described. However, a resin sheet or the like may be used as the protective sheet.

  In the above embodiment, the case where the glass substrate 4 to be packaged is a glass substrate for FPD has been described as an example. However, the glass substrate 4 to be packaged is a base for forming various electronic display functional elements and thin films. It may be a glass substrate used as a material.

It is a perspective view showing typically one example of composition of a glass substrate packing system in which a protection sheet supply device concerning an embodiment of the present invention was incorporated. It is a perspective view which shows typically the protection sheet holding means of the protection sheet loading apparatus of FIG. It is a top view which shows typically the glass substrate supply apparatus of FIG. It is a side view which shows typically the original material supply means of the protection sheet supply apparatus of FIG. It is a perspective view which shows typically the base material cutting | disconnection means of the protection sheet supply apparatus of FIG. It is a side view which shows typically the state of the last stage of a protection sheet supply process. (A) is the perspective view which shows the state of the early stage of a lamination process, (b) is the state of the middle stage, (c) is the state of the final stage, respectively.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Glass substrate packing system 2 Glass substrate supply apparatus 3 Protection sheet supply apparatus 4 Glass substrate 5 Pallet 6 Glass substrate loading apparatus 7 Protection sheet 8 Protection sheet loading apparatus 9 Arm part 10 Glass substrate holding means 11 Base part 12 Slider 13 Adsorption Pad 14 Arm 15 Protective sheet holding means 16 Slider 17 Upper side 18a, 18b Side 19a, 19b, 19c Chuck mechanism 20 Transport mechanism 21 Transport roller 22 Motor 23 Counter belt 24 Pulley 25 Rotating shaft 26, 27 Bevel gear 28 Original material 29 Original material supply means 30 Original material cutting means 31a, 31b Original material rolls 32a, 32b Cutters 33a, 33b Nip rollers 34a, 34b Adsorption plates 35a, 35b Cylinders 36a, 36b Cutting plates 37a, 37b Engaging plates 38 Double-sided tape 39 Id roller 40 Dancer roller 41 Base 41a Inclined surface 42 Cutting mechanism 43 Press plate 44 Cutter 45 Tension applying means 46 Holding portions 46a, 46b, 46c Suction plate 47 Holding portions 47a, 47b, 47c, 47d Chuck mechanism 48 Slide bar 49 Recess 50 Elevating plate X Suction hole

Claims (5)

Protection that sequentially supplies a protective sheet interposed between glass substrates to a predetermined protective sheet standby position while transporting them in a predetermined transport direction when stacking multiple glass substrates and packing them on a pallet A sheet feeding device,
In a state where the protective sheet at the protective sheet standby position is held, a tension applying means for applying tension to the protective sheet is provided ,
The tension applying means holds only two sides of the protective sheet facing the conveying direction in a peripheral portion of the protective sheet with a plurality of holding regions along each side or continuous linear holding regions along the side. And having a pair of holding portions relatively movable in the transport direction.
Wherein a pair of state of holding the protective sheet holding unit, by separating the pair of holding portions, the protective sheet, protective sheet supply apparatus characterized that you apply tension to the conveying direction. The pair of holding portions hold two sides of the protective sheet facing in the transport direction in a plurality of holding regions along each side, and holding regions located at least at both corners of each side It is configured to be relatively close to and away from the direction perpendicular to the transport direction,
In a state where the protective sheet is held by the pair of holding portions, the holding region configured to be movable toward and away from the moving member is separated to further apply tension to the protective sheet in a direction perpendicular to the transport direction. The protective sheet supply apparatus according to claim 1 . A base material cutting means for preparing a protective sheet by cutting a long sheet-shaped base material transported along the transport direction into a predetermined dimension,
Said tensioning means, while holding the protective sheet made by the original material cutting means, according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that it is configured to convey to the protective sheet standby position Protection sheet supply device. Wherein the tensioning means, the protective sheet supply apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that holding in a posture inclined a protective sheet with respect to a horizontal plane in the protective sheet standby position. The protective sheet supply device according to any one of claims 1 to 4 , wherein the protective sheet has elasticity.

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