JP5346656B2 - Coating device - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE: A coating apparatus and a test coating method are provided to prevent the insertion of flowable materials into the lower side of a tape through the end portion at the main scanning direction of the tape. CONSTITUTION: A coating apparatus comprises the following: a stage to put on a substrate; a nozzle extruding flowable materials to the upper side of the substrate; a transporting unit moving the nozzle to the main scanning direction along to the upper side of the stage; and a test coating unit spreading the flowable materials extruded from the nozzle. The test coating unit includes a tape(712) including a test coating surface to coat the flowable materials, and a curving unit(716) to curve the tape.

Description

  The present invention relates to a coating apparatus for applying a fluid material to various substrates such as a glass substrate for organic EL display devices, a glass substrate for liquid crystal display devices, a glass substrate for PDP, a semiconductor wafer, and a glass / ceramic substrate for magnetic / optical disks. .

  In the manufacturing process of the substrate, a coating apparatus that applies various fluid materials to the upper surface of the substrate is used. For example, in the manufacturing process of an organic EL display device, a coating device that applies an organic EL liquid to the upper surface of a glass substrate for the organic EL display device is used. A conventional coating apparatus includes a nozzle that discharges a fluid material toward the upper surface of a substrate, and a moving mechanism that moves the nozzle relative to the substrate. The coating device applies the fluid material to the upper surface of the substrate by moving the nozzle along the upper surface of the substrate while discharging the fluid material from the nozzle.

  In addition, some conventional coating apparatuses include a test application unit that applies a fluid material on a trial basis in order to confirm the discharge state of the fluid material from the nozzle. For example, Patent Document 1 discloses a conventional coating apparatus including a test coating unit.

JP 2008-229565 A

  In the test application part of patent document 1, a fluid material is apply | coated to the upper surface of the resin tape mounted in the tape adsorption | suction part. However, when the fluid material is applied while moving the nozzle, the fluid material penetrates from the end of the resin tape to the lower surface side of the resin tape, and the fluid material adheres between the tape adsorbing portion and the resin tape. There was a risk of it. In particular, when a semi-dry liquid pool is formed at the tip of the nozzle, the above problem becomes more serious because the liquid pool tends to adhere to the lower surface of the resin tape.

  The fluid material adhering to the lower surface of the resin tape becomes a resistance when the resin tape is fed to the tape adsorbing portion, and may cause a winding failure of the resin tape. Further, depending on the material of the resin tape, when measuring the state of the fluid material applied to the upper surface of the resin tape, a measurement error due to the fluid material adhering to the lower surface of the resin tape may occur.

  This invention is made in view of such a situation, and provides the coating device which can suppress the penetration | invasion of the fluid material from the edge part of the main scanning direction of a tape to the lower surface side of a tape in a test application part. With the goal.

In order to solve the above-mentioned problem, the invention according to claim 1 is a coating apparatus for applying a fluid material to the upper surface of a substrate, the stage on which the substrate is placed, and the upper surface of the substrate placed on the stage. A nozzle that discharges the fluid material toward the substrate, a moving mechanism that moves the nozzle in the main scanning direction along the upper surface of the stage, and a nozzle that moves in the main scanning direction when not applied to the substrate. A test application part to which the fluid material is applied, the test application part having a test application surface to which the fluid material discharged from the nozzle is applied, and a tape in the main scanning direction of the tape. the ends, possess a bending means for bending downward, and a tape base for mounting the tape main mounting scanning direction dimensions smaller surface than the tape, the bending means, said tape The upper side to the side of The abutting member having an inclined surface that abuts, wherein the abutting member has an eaves portion covering an upper surface of a portion located on the placement surface of the tape, and the bending means includes the placement surface. the sides of the tape protruding in the main scanning direction is curved downward from and wherein Rukoto.

The invention according to claim 2 is the coating apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the test application part, further a feed means for feeding in the sub-scanning direction orthogonal to the tape on the tape base, the main scanning direction It is characterized by having.

The invention according to claim 3 is the coating apparatus according to claim 1 or 2 , wherein the bending means abuts on both sides of the tape protruding from the placement surface to both sides in the main scanning direction. It includes a pair of contact members.

Region invention according to claim 4, a coating apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the curved section, one of the sides of the tape, the flowable material is applied It includes a pair of abutting members that abut on both side portions of the.

The invention according to claim 5 is the coating apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 4 , wherein the liquid formed at the tip of the nozzle before the nozzle moves to the test application unit. It further comprises a removing means for removing the pool.

According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, in the coating apparatus according to any one of the first to fifth aspects, the nozzle is an organic EL liquid in which a light emitting substance for an organic EL display device and a predetermined solvent are mixed. Alternatively, the hole transport material forming the hole transport layer of the organic EL display device is discharged as a fluid material.

According to the first to sixth aspects of the present invention, the test application portion has a bending means for bending the end portion of the tape in the main scanning direction downward. For this reason, it can suppress that a fluid material penetrate | invades from the edge part of the main scanning direction of a tape to the lower surface side of a tape.
Moreover, it can suppress that a fluid material penetrate | invades between a tape stand and a tape.
Further, the side of the tape can be easily bent.
Further, the tape can be prevented from floating on the mounting surface.

In particular, according to the second aspect of the invention, the portion of the tape to which the fluid material is applied can be changed.

In particular, according to the invention described in claim 3 , it is possible to suppress the intrusion of the flowable material into the lower surface side of the tape on both sides of the tape.

In particular, according to the fourth aspect of the present invention, the portion to which the fluid material on the side of the tape is applied can be favorably curved while preventing the fluid material from adhering to the contact member. it can.

In particular, according to the fifth aspect of the present invention, since the liquid pool can be removed from the tip of the nozzle, it is possible to more reliably prevent the flowable material from entering the lower surface side of the tape.

In particular, according to the invention described in claim 6 , it is possible to prevent the organic EL liquid or the hole transport material from entering the lower surface side of the tape.

It is a top view of a coating device. It is a top view of a coating device. It is sectional drawing which looked at the coating device from the III-III position of FIG. It is sectional drawing which looked at the coating device from the IV-IV position of FIG. It is the figure which showed the detailed structure of the nozzle part vicinity. It is a longitudinal cross-sectional view of a tape unit. It is a longitudinal cross-sectional view of a tape unit. It is an enlarged vertical sectional view of the contact member and the vicinity thereof. It is a horizontal sectional view of a tape unit. It is the block diagram which showed the connection structure between a control part and each part in an apparatus. It is the flowchart which showed the flow of the coating process with respect to a board | substrate. It is the flowchart which showed the flow of the operation | movement at the time of test application | coating. It is a longitudinal cross-sectional view of the tape unit which concerns on a modification.

  Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. In addition, in each figure referred in the following description, in order to clarify the positional relationship and operation direction of each member, the common XYZ orthogonal coordinate system is attached | subjected.

<1. Configuration of coating device>
1 and 2 are top views of a coating apparatus 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 1 shows a state when a coating process is performed on the substrate 9. FIG. 2 shows a state when the nozzle unit 30 performs test application on the test application unit 70. 3 is a cross-sectional view of the coating apparatus 1 as viewed from the position III-III in FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view of the coating apparatus 1 as viewed from the position IV-IV in FIG.

  The coating apparatus 1 is an apparatus for applying an organic EL liquid to the upper surface of a rectangular glass substrate (hereinafter simply referred to as “substrate”) 9 in a process of manufacturing an organic EL display device. As shown in FIGS. 1 to 4, the coating apparatus 1 mainly includes a stage 10, a stage moving mechanism 20, a nozzle unit 30, a nozzle moving mechanism 40, a standby pod 50, a collection tray 60, a test coating unit 70, and an imaging unit. 80 and a control unit 90.

  The stage 10 has a flat outer shape, and is a holding unit that places and holds the substrate 9 in a horizontal posture on the upper surface thereof. A plurality of suction holes (not shown) are formed on the upper surface of the stage 10. For this reason, when the substrate 9 is placed on the stage 10, the substrate 9 is fixedly held on the upper surface of the stage 10 by the suction pressure of the suction holes. On the upper surface of the substrate 9 placed on the stage 10, a number of parallel grooves 9a are formed in advance at positions where the organic EL liquid is applied. The substrate 9 is placed on the stage 10 so that these grooves 9a face the main scanning direction (X-axis direction).

  Also, above the stage 10, mask plates 11 and 12 that cover the −X side and + X side sides of the substrate 9 are arranged. The mask plates 11 and 12 prevent the organic EL liquid discharged from the nozzle unit 30 described later from being applied to the −X side and + X side sides of the substrate 9, and the organic EL liquid in the main scanning direction. It plays a role in defining the application range. The mask plates 11 and 12 are fixedly attached to the stage 10 or the substrate 9 via a predetermined connecting member (not shown).

  The stage moving mechanism 20 is a mechanism for moving the stage 10 in the sub-scanning direction (Y-axis direction). The stage moving mechanism 20 has a pair of guide rails 21 extending along the sub-scanning direction on the floor surface, and a pair of movers 22 fixed on the lower surface side of the stage 10. The pair of moving elements 22 can slide in the sub-scanning direction on the guide rail 21 by, for example, a driving force of a linear motor. When the stage moving mechanism 20 is operated with the substrate 9 placed on the stage 10, the stage 10, the mask plates 11 and 12, and the substrate 9 move together in the sub-scanning direction.

  The nozzle unit 30 is a discharge unit that discharges the organic EL liquid toward the upper surface of the substrate 9 placed on the stage 10. The nozzle unit 30 includes three nozzles 31, 32, and 33 that discharge red, green, and blue organic EL liquids. The organic EL liquid is a liquid obtained by mixing a light emitting substance and a predetermined solvent, and is an example of the fluid material of the present invention.

  FIG. 5 is a diagram showing a detailed configuration in the vicinity of the nozzle unit 30. As shown in FIG. 5, minute (for example, a diameter of about 5 to 70 μm) discharge holes 31 a, 32 a, and 33 a are formed at the lower ends of the nozzles 31, 32, and 33. Further, pipes 31b, 32b, and 33b are connected to the nozzles 31, 32, and 33, respectively, and red, green, and blue organics are respectively connected to upstream ends of the pipes 31b, 32b, and 33b. Organic EL liquid supply sources 31c, 32c, and 33c for supplying the EL liquid are connected. Valves 31d, 32d, and 33d are inserted in the middle of the paths of the pipes 31b, 32b, and 33b, respectively.

  When the valves 31d, 32d and 33d are opened, the organic EL liquid is supplied from the organic EL liquid supply sources 31c, 32c and 33c to the nozzles 31, 32 and 33 via the pipes 31b, 32b and 33b. 33, red, green, and blue organic EL liquids are discharged downward from the discharge holes 31a, 32a, 33a. The organic EL liquid discharged from each nozzle 31, 32, 33 forms a thin liquid column (for example, a diameter of about 100 μm) below each nozzle 31, 32, 33.

  As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the three nozzles 31, 32, 33 of the nozzle unit 30 are arranged at a predetermined interval (for example, a pitch of several mm) in the main scanning direction, while being positioned in the sub-scanning direction. Are also shifted slightly. The difference between the positions of the nozzles 31, 32, and 33 in the sub-scanning direction corresponds to the pitch width of the grooves 9a formed on the upper surface of the substrate 9 to be processed. For this reason, the nozzle part 30 can apply organic EL simultaneously to three adjacent grooves on the substrate 9 by simultaneously discharging organic EL liquid from the three nozzles 31, 32 and 33. .

  Thus, the coating apparatus 1 can apply the organic EL liquid on the substrate 9 in three rows using the three nozzles 31, 32, and 33. For this reason, the organic EL liquid can be efficiently applied to the upper surface of the substrate 9. Further, since the positions of the three nozzles 31, 32, and 33 in the main scanning direction and the sub-scanning direction are all different, the nozzles 31, 32, and 33 themselves are narrowly spaced without being extremely miniaturized. The organic EL liquid can be applied by the above.

  The nozzle moving mechanism 40 is a mechanism for moving the nozzle unit 30 in the main scanning direction. As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the nozzle moving mechanism 40 includes a support portion 41 for supporting the nozzle portion 30 and a moving portion 42 for moving the support portion 41 in the main scanning direction. Yes. The moving unit 42 is configured by, for example, a mechanism that combines a motor and a ball screw, or a mechanism that uses a linear motor. The nozzle moving mechanism 40 can move the nozzle unit 30 in the main scanning direction between any positions between the upper position of the standby pod 50 and the upper position of the collection tray 60 on the + X side.

  The standby pod 50 is a part for allowing the nozzle unit 30 to stand by on the side of the stage 10 on the −X side. As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the standby pod 50 is formed with three openings 51, 52 and 53. When the nozzle unit 30 is moved to a position above the standby pod 50, the three nozzles 31, 32, and 33 are arranged above the three openings 51, 52, and 53, respectively. The standby pod 50 supplies the cleaning liquid to the nozzles 31, 32, 33 from the three openings 51, 52, 53, and sucks the supplied cleaning liquid, thereby discharging the discharge holes 31 a of the nozzles 31, 32, 33. 32a and 33a are washed.

  The three nozzles 31, 32, and 33 of the nozzle unit 30 discharge the organic EL liquid in a liquid column shape when normal. However, due to drying or the like, there may be a state where a pool of organic EL liquid (semi-dried liquid droplets) is attached to the tip of each nozzle 31, 32, 33. The standby pod 50 can remove the liquid pool from the nozzles 31, 32, 33 by performing the above-described cleaning.

  The collection tray 60 is a container for collecting the organic EL liquid discharged from the nozzle unit 30 on the + X side and the −X side of the stage 10. The collection tray 60 is disposed at a position below the moving path of the nozzle unit 30 on the −X side of the stage 10 (between the stage 10 and the standby pod 50) and the + X side of the stage 10. The collection tray 60 is arranged so as to partially overlap the mask plates 11 and 12 in the main scanning direction. For this reason, the organic EL liquid discharged from the nozzle unit 30 on the side of the stage 10 is continuously collected in the mask plates 11 and 12 and the collection tray 60.

  The test application part 70 is a part where the organic EL liquid is applied on a trial basis in order to confirm the discharge state of the organic EL liquid from the nozzle part 30 when not applied to the substrate 9. The test application unit 70 has two tape units 71 arranged on the + Y side of the stage 10. The two tape units 71 are separated from each other in the main scanning direction and are disposed at substantially the same position in the sub scanning direction. Each tape unit 71 is fixed to the stage 10 via a connection member 72.

  6 and 7 are longitudinal sectional views of the tape unit 71 along the YZ plane and the XZ plane, respectively. 6 corresponds to a longitudinal sectional view seen from the VI-VI position in FIG. 7, and FIG. 7 corresponds to a longitudinal sectional view seen from the VII-VII position in FIG. As shown in FIGS. 6 and 7, the tape unit 71 mainly includes a tape base 711, a tape 712, a tape feeding mechanism 713, and a housing 714.

  The tape 712 is a belt-like member formed of a resin such as PPS (polyphenylene sulfite). At the time of test application, the organic EL liquid is applied to the upper surface 712a of the portion of the tape 712 located on the tape base 711. That is, the upper surface 712a of the part located on the tape base 711 of the tape 712 becomes a test application surface for applying the organic EL liquid on a test basis.

  The tape feeding mechanism 713 includes a drum-shaped feeding portion 713a to which the + Y side end of the tape 712 is connected, and a drum-shaped winding portion 713b to which the −Y side end of the tape 712 is connected. ing. The tape feeding mechanism 713 can feed the tape 712 to the -Y side on the tape base 711 by rotating the feeding portion 713a and the winding portion 713b. Thereby, the part located on the tape stand 711 of the tape 712 is changed.

  A suction hole (not shown) for vacuum-adsorbing the tape 712 is formed on the upper surface 711a of the tape base 711. The tape base 711 adsorbs the tape 712 to the upper surface 711a by generating a negative pressure in the suction hole during the test application. The upper surface 712 a of the tape 712 adsorbed on the upper surface 711 a of the tape base 711 has substantially the same height as the upper surface of the substrate 9 placed on the stage 10. Further, when the tape 712 is fed by the tape feeding mechanism 713, the suction of the tape 712 to the upper surface 711a of the tape base 711 is released.

  The housing 714 is a housing that accommodates the tape base 711, the tape 712, and the tape feeding mechanism 713 inside. The housing 714 has an opening 714 a above the tape base 711. The organic EL liquid ejected from the nozzles 31, 32, and 33 at a position above the housing 714 is applied to the upper surface of the tape 712 on the tape base 711 through the opening 714a. Further, as shown in FIG. 7, a test collection tray 73 is provided on the + X side and the −X side of the tape base 711. During the test application, the organic EL liquid discharged from the nozzle unit 30 on the + Y side and the −Y side of the tape 712 is collected in the test collection tray 73.

  The housing 714 is fixed to the stage 10 via the connection member 72. A slider 715 is fixed to the lower surface of the housing 714. The slider 715 is attached to the guide rail 21 so as to be slidable in the sub-scanning direction. When the stage moving mechanism 20 is operated, the pair of tape units 71, the pair of connection members 72, and the test collection tray 73 are moved together with the stage 10 in the sub-scanning direction.

  As shown in FIG. 7, the dimension d1 in the main scanning direction of the upper surface 711a of the tape base 711 is smaller than the dimension d2 in the main scanning direction of the tape 712. The tape base 711 is provided with a contact member 716 that bends the side of the tape 712 protruding from the upper surface 711a of the tape base 711 in the main scanning direction.

  FIG. 8 is an enlarged longitudinal sectional view along the XZ plane of the contact member 716 and the vicinity thereof. As shown in FIG. 8, the abutting member 716 includes an inclined portion 716 a extending obliquely with respect to the X axis and the Z axis, and an eave portion extending horizontally from the upper end of the inclined portion 716 a toward the inside of the tape base 711. 716b.

  The inclined portion 716a has an inclined surface 716c that comes into contact with the side 712b of the tape 712 protruding from the upper surface 711a of the tape base 711 from the upper surface side. When the inclined surface 716c of the inclined portion 716a comes into contact with the side 712b of the tape 712, the side 712b of the tape 712 is curved downward. The angle θ of the inclined surface 716c with respect to the horizontal plane may be about 100 ° to 150 °, for example. The eaves portion 716 b covers the upper surface of the portion of the tape 712 that is placed on the upper surface 711 a of the tape base 711, thereby preventing the central portion of the tape 712 from floating from the upper surface 711 a of the tape base 711.

  As described above, the tape base 711 of the present embodiment is provided with the contact member 716 that curves the side 712b of the tape 712 downward. At the time of test application, the nozzle portion 31 passes the upper portion of the tape 712 while discharging the organic EL liquid. However, since the side 712b of the tape 712 is curved downward, the side 712b of the tape 712 is changed to the tape 712. Intrusion of the organic EL liquid into the lower surface side of is suppressed. For this reason, invasion of the organic EL liquid between the tape base 711 and the tape 712 is also suppressed, and the winding failure of the tape can be prevented.

  The contact member 716 can be formed of a metal material such as aluminum, for example. However, the contact member 716 may be formed of other materials as long as it has higher rigidity than the tape 712.

  FIG. 9 is a horizontal sectional view of the tape unit 71 viewed from the position IX-IX in FIG. As shown in FIG. 9, two contact members 716 are provided at the + X side end and the −X side end of the tape base 711. The two abutting members 716 provided at the + X side end abut against the side 712 b of the tape 712 protruding from the upper surface 711 a of the tape base 711 to the + X side. Further, the two contact members 716 provided at the end portion on the −X side are in contact with the side 712 b of the tape 712 protruding from the upper surface 711 a of the tape base 711 to the −X side. As a result, both side edges 712b of the tape 712 are bent downward. For this reason, invasion of the organic EL liquid from the both sides 712b of the tape 712 to the lower surface side of the tape 712 is suppressed.

  As shown in FIG. 9, the two contact members 716 provided at the + X side end of the tape base 711 are disposed on the + Y side and the −Y side of the region 712c to which the organic EL liquid is applied. . In addition, the two contact members 716 provided at the −X side end of the tape base 711 are also arranged on the + Y side and the −Y side of the region 712c to which the organic EL liquid is applied. For this reason, the four contact members 716 are in contact with the portions on both sides of the region 712c to which the organic EL liquid is applied, on the side 712b of the tape 712. Therefore, the side edges 712b of the tape 712 can be curved while preventing the organic EL liquid from adhering to the contact member 716 itself.

  Returning to FIGS. The photographing unit 80 is a mechanism for photographing the upper surface 712a of the tape 712 after the test application. The imaging unit 80 has a pair of cameras 81 positioned above the pair of tape units 71 in the state of FIG. In the present embodiment, the pair of cameras 81 are fixed at fixed positions that do not move with the stage 10 and the test application unit 70. The pair of cameras 81 captures the upper surface 712 a of the tape 712 from the upper position of the tape unit 71. The image data acquired by the pair of cameras 81 is transmitted to the control unit 90 and used for analyzing the application state of the organic EL liquid (application / non-application, application width, application pitch, etc.).

  The control unit 90 is a processing unit for controlling the operation of each unit in the coating apparatus 1. FIG. 10 is a block diagram illustrating a connection configuration between the control unit 90 and each unit in the coating apparatus 1. As shown in FIG. 10, the control unit 90 is electrically connected to the stage moving mechanism 20, the valves 31 d, 32 d and 33 d, the nozzle moving mechanism 40, the standby pod 50, the pair of tape units 71, and the pair of cameras 81. To control these operations. The control unit 90 is configured by a computer having, for example, a CPU and a memory, and controls the operation of each unit as the computer operates in accordance with a program installed in the computer and an operation input from a user.

<2. Operation of coating apparatus>
<2-1. Operation during application processing to the substrate>
Next, an operation when the organic EL liquid is applied to the upper surface of the substrate 9 using the coating apparatus 1 will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG.

  When performing a coating process on the substrate 9 in the coating apparatus 1, first, the operator places the substrate 9 on the upper surface of the stage 10 (step S11). The substrate 9 is placed on the stage 10 so that the plurality of grooves 9a formed on the upper surface thereof face the main scanning direction. Then, when an operator performs a predetermined start operation in the control unit 90 of the coating apparatus 1, operation control of each part of the apparatus by the control unit 90 is started.

  First, the coating apparatus 1 operates the stage moving mechanism 20 to move the stage 10 to the start position (position in FIG. 1) (step S12). As a result, the three grooves 9 a to which the organic EL liquid is first applied on the substrate 9 are positioned below the movement path of the nozzle unit 30.

  The nozzle unit 30 of the coating apparatus 1 is waiting in advance at a position above the standby pod 50. When the start operation is performed, first, the cleaning liquid is supplied to the nozzles 31, 32, and 33 from the three openings 51, 52, and 53 of the standby pod 50, and the cleaning liquid is sucked after the supply. Thereby, the discharge holes 31a, 32a, 33a of the nozzles 31, 32, 33 and the surroundings are washed (step S13).

  When the cleaning of the nozzles 31, 32, and 33 is completed, the coating apparatus 1 starts to discharge the organic EL liquid from the nozzles 31, 32, and 33 (step S14). Specifically, by opening the valves 31d, 32d, and 33d, red light is supplied from the organic EL liquid supply sources 31c, 32c, and 33c to the nozzles 31, 32, and 33 through the pipes 31b, 32b, and 33b. Green and blue organic EL liquids are supplied. Then, the organic EL liquid is discharged from the discharge holes 31a, 32a, 33a of the nozzles 31, 32, 33.

  Subsequently, the coating apparatus 1 moves the nozzle unit 30 to the + X side by operating the nozzle moving mechanism 40. The nozzle unit 30 moves along the upper surface of the substrate 9 while discharging the organic EL liquid from the nozzles 31, 32, and 33. As a result, the organic EL is applied onto the three grooves 9 a on the substrate 9. When the coating device 1 moves the nozzle portion 30 to the upper part of the mask plate 12 on the + X side, the stage 10 is then moved by the coating width of the three nozzles 31, 32, 33 (that is, three rows of the grooves 9a). Then, the substrate 9 is moved in the sub-scanning direction. Then, while continuing to discharge the organic EL liquid from the nozzles 31, 32, and 33, the nozzle unit 30 is moved to the −X side. As a result, the organic EL liquid is applied to the next three grooves 9 a on the substrate 9.

  As described above, the coating apparatus 1 repeats the application of the organic EL liquid in the main scanning direction a predetermined number of times while shifting the substrate 9 in the sub-scanning direction by the coating width of the nozzle unit 30, and all the grooves 9 a on the substrate 9. An organic EL solution is applied on the top (step S15).

  When the application of the organic EL liquid to the substrate 9 is completed, the coating apparatus 1 stops the discharge of the organic EL liquid from the nozzle unit 30 and returns the nozzle unit 30 to the position above the standby pod 50. Thereafter, the operator removes the substrate 9 after the coating process from the stage 10.

<2-2. Operation during test application>
Next, the operation at the time of test application of the application apparatus 1 will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG. This test application is a process executed in order to confirm the discharge state of the organic EL liquid from the nozzle unit 30 before and after the application process on the substrate 9.

  When performing test application, first, the stage moving mechanism 20 is operated so that the test application part 70 is positioned below the movement path of the nozzle part 30 (state shown in FIG. 2) (step S21). Further, each tape unit 71 feeds the tape 712 so that the unused portion of the tape 712 is positioned on the tape base 711, and adsorbs the tape 712 to the upper surface 711a of the tape base 711 (step S22).

  Next, the nozzle unit 30 waiting on the standby pod 50 is cleaned (step S23). Here, the cleaning liquid is supplied to the nozzles 31, 32, 33 from the three openings 51, 52, 53 of the standby pod 50, and the cleaning liquid is sucked after the supply. As a result, the liquid reservoir of the organic EL liquid that easily enters the lower surface side of the tape 712 is removed in advance from the tip of each nozzle 31, 32, 33.

  When the cleaning of the nozzles 31, 32, and 33 is completed, the nozzle unit 30 starts discharging the organic EL liquid from the nozzles 31, 32, and 33 (step S24). Specifically, by opening the valves 31d, 32d, and 33d, red light is supplied from the organic EL liquid supply sources 31c, 32c, and 33c to the nozzles 31, 32, and 33 through the pipes 31b, 32b, and 33b. Green and blue organic EL liquids are supplied. Then, the organic EL liquid is discharged from the discharge holes 31a, 32a, 33a of the nozzles 31, 32, 33.

  Subsequently, the coating apparatus 1 operates the nozzle moving mechanism 40 to move the nozzle unit 30 to the + X side. The nozzle unit 30 moves to the upper position of the + X side collection tray 60 through the upper position of the pair of tape units 71 while discharging the organic EL liquid from the nozzles 31, 32 and 33. As a result, the organic EL liquid is applied to the upper surface 712a of each tape 712 of the pair of tape units 71, and three organic EL liquid lines are formed on the upper surface 712a of the tape 712 (step S25). Further, the organic EL liquid discharged at a position other than the tape 712 is collected in the collection tray 60 and the test collection tray 73.

  In step S25, the nozzle unit 30 passes above the tape 712 in the main scanning direction while discharging the organic EL liquid. However, the side 712 b in the main scanning direction of the tape 712 is curved downward by the contact member 716. For this reason, the invasion of the organic EL liquid from the side 712b of the tape 712 to the lower surface side of the tape 712 is suppressed.

  Thereafter, the photographing unit 80 photographs the upper surface of each tape 712 with the pair of cameras 81 (step S26). Image data acquired by photographing is transmitted from each camera 81 to the control unit 90 and used for analyzing the application state of the organic EL liquid. Specifically, the coating apparatus 1 measures and adjusts the coating pitch of the organic EL liquid based on the image data acquired by each camera 81, confirms whether the organic EL liquid is ejected in a liquid column shape, the substrate Adjustment of the moving direction of the nozzle part 30 with respect to the direction of the nine grooves 9a is performed.

<3. Modification>
As mentioned above, although main embodiment of this invention was described, this invention is not limited to said example.

  In the above embodiment, the abutting member 716 is provided as a bending means for bending the end of the tape 712 in the main scanning direction. However, the end of the tape 712 may be bent by other methods. . For example, the end of the tape 712 may be curved by bringing a roller into contact with the end of the tape 712 from the upper surface side. Further, the end portion of the tape 712 may be curved by sucking the end portion of the tape 712 from the lower surface side. Further, the end portion of the tape 712 may be bent downward by fixing with an adhesive member. In addition, the contact member 716 of the above embodiment is preferable in that the end portion of the tape 712 can be easily bent without being fixed to another member.

  In the above embodiment, the tape 712 is fed in the sub-scanning direction in the tape unit 71. However, the tape 742 may be fed in the main scanning direction like the tape unit 74 in FIG. In the example of FIG. 13, the tape 742 is bent downward by a pair of rollers 743 and 744 on the + X side and the −X side of the tape base 741. That is, in the example of FIG. 13, the pair of rollers 743 and 744 serve as a bending unit that curves the end of the tape 742 in the main scanning direction downward. Even with such a configuration, the organic EL liquid can be prevented from entering from the end of the tape 742 to the lower surface of the tape 742 during test application.

  In the above embodiment, the liquid pool formed at the tip of the nozzles 31, 32, 33 is removed by washing the standby pod 50. However, the liquid pool may be removed by other methods. . For example, a cleaning mechanism or a suction mechanism may be provided below the movement path of the nozzle unit 30 in addition to the standby pod 50. Further, a scraper that scrapes off a liquid pool formed at the tip of the nozzles 31, 32, 33 may be provided below the movement path of the nozzle unit 30.

  In the above example, organic EL liquids for red, green, and blue are discharged from the three nozzles 31, 32, and 33 of the nozzle unit 30, but the three nozzles 31, 32, and 33 are The organic EL liquid for the same color may be discharged. In the above example, three nozzles 31, 32, and 33 are mounted on one nozzle unit 30, but the number of nozzles mounted on the nozzle unit 30 may be one or two. There may be four or more.

  In the above example, a large number of parallel grooves 9a are formed on the upper surface of the substrate 9, but the substrate coating apparatus of the present invention performs a coating process on a substrate on which such grooves are not formed. You may do it.

  Moreover, although the said coating apparatus 1 was an apparatus for apply | coating the organic EL material which forms the light emitting layer of an organic EL display apparatus on the upper surface of the board | substrate 9, the coating apparatus of this invention is another fluid material. May be applied to the upper surface of the substrate. For example, a device for applying a hole transport material forming a hole transport layer of an organic EL display device to the upper surface of the substrate may be used.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Application | coating apparatus 9 Substrate 10 Stage 20 Stage moving mechanism 30 Nozzle part 31,32,33 Nozzle 40 Nozzle moving mechanism 50 Standby pod 60 Collection tray 70 Test application part 71,72 Tape unit 80 Imaging part 90 Control part 711 Tape stand 712 Tape 713 Feed mechanism 714 Housing 715 Slider 716 Abutting member 716a Inclined portion 716b Eave portion

Claims (6)

An application device for applying a flowable material to the upper surface of a substrate,
A stage on which a substrate is placed;
A nozzle for discharging a flowable material toward the upper surface of the substrate placed on the stage;
A moving mechanism for moving the nozzle in the main scanning direction along the upper surface of the stage;
A test application unit to which a fluid material discharged from the nozzle moving in the main scanning direction is applied when not applied to the substrate;
With
The test application part is
A tape having a test application surface to which the flowable material discharged from the nozzle is applied;
Bending means for bending the end of the tape in the main scanning direction downward;
A tape base for placing the tape on a placement surface having a smaller dimension in the main scanning direction than the tape;
I have a,
The bending means includes an abutting member having an inclined surface that abuts on the side of the tape from the upper surface side,
The contact member has an eaves portion that covers an upper surface of a portion located on the mounting surface of the tape,
The bending means, coating apparatus according to claim Rukoto is curved sides of the tape protruding from the mounting surface in the main scanning direction downward.   The coating apparatus according to claim 1,
  The test application part is
    Feed means for feeding the tape on the tape table in the sub-scanning direction orthogonal to the main scanning direction
The coating apparatus further comprising:   The coating apparatus according to claim 1 or 2,
  The applicator characterized in that the bending means includes a pair of abutting members that abut on both sides of the tape protruding from the placement surface to both sides in the main scanning direction.   A coating apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 3,
  The said bending means contains a pair of contact member contact | abutted to the part of the both sides of the area | region where a fluid material is apply | coated among the said side edges of the said tape.   A coating apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein
  The coating apparatus further comprising a removing unit that removes a liquid pool formed at a tip of the nozzle before the nozzle moves to the test application unit.   In the coating device in any one of Claim 1- Claim 5,
  The nozzle discharges, as a fluid material, an organic EL liquid obtained by mixing a light emitting substance for an organic EL display device and a predetermined solvent, or a hole transport material that forms a hole transport layer of the organic EL display device. A coating apparatus characterized by:

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