JP5551482B2 - Substrate bonding apparatus and method for manufacturing bonded substrate - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a substrate bonding apparatus and a substrate bonding method for bonding an upper substrate and a lower substrate.

  In the manufacture of a liquid crystal display panel, two substrates (glass substrates) are bonded together under a vacuum state via a sealing agent that is an adhesive (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

JP 2000-66163 A

  In such a bonding apparatus, the upper and lower two substrates are bonded by the following operation.

  First, an upper substrate and a lower substrate are supplied and held on an upper stage and a lower stage which are arranged vertically with the respective substrate holding surfaces facing each other in the vacuum chamber. In this state, the inside of the vacuum chamber is reduced to a predetermined vacuum pressure. If the inside of the vacuum chamber is depressurized, the positioning marks formed on the upper substrate and the lower substrate are imaged by the imaging camera, and the relative positional deviation in the horizontal direction of the upper and lower substrates is based on the captured images of the marks. Is calculated. Next, in order to eliminate the calculated misalignment, the horizontal relative position between the upper stage and the lower stage is adjusted, and then the upper stage is lowered to lower the lower substrate via a sealant applied to the lower substrate. To overlay. Thereafter, the inside of the vacuum chamber is returned to the atmospheric pressure, a pressurizing force is applied to the stacked upper and lower substrates due to a difference between the internal and external pressures, and the upper and lower substrates are bonded together.

  In the conventional substrate bonding apparatus described above, the position adjustment of the upper and lower substrates is performed using the positioning marks formed on both the upper substrate and the lower substrate. However, a liquid crystal display panel in which a positioning mark is formed only on one of the upper substrate and the lower substrate may be used from the viewpoint of cost reduction. In such a case, since position adjustment using an imaging camera cannot be performed, it is necessary to improve the accuracy of the position (supply position) at which the substrate is supplied to the stage by the transfer robot. However, there is a limit to improving the accuracy of the supply position due to, for example, shaking during operation of the transfer robot, and often exceeds the allowable deviation of the supply position (usually 0.2 mm). On the other hand, although it is conceivable to use a transfer robot with less vibration during operation, the cost increases. In addition, it is possible to improve the accuracy of the supply position by lowering the transfer speed of the transfer robot, but there is a problem that time efficiency is lowered.

  This invention is made in view of such a situation, and provides the board | substrate bonding apparatus and board | substrate bonding method which can perform the position adjustment of the horizontal direction of an upper board | substrate and a lower board | substrate appropriately. .

The substrate bonding apparatus according to the present invention aligns a rectangular upper substrate and a lower substrate for manufacturing a display panel in a horizontal direction based on respective positional information, and then forms a frame shape on at least one substrate. A substrate laminating apparatus for laminating via a sealant applied in a pattern of
For both the upper substrate and the lower substrate, an edge detection device that detects a side of the substrate;
A control device that obtains position information of the upper substrate and the lower substrate based on positions of sides of the upper substrate and the lower substrate detected by the edge detection device,
When the control device detects the side of one of the upper substrate and the lower substrate, the side of the other substrate is removed from the detection area of the edge detection device that detects the side of the one substrate. The relative position of the upper substrate and the lower substrate is adjusted.

Further, in the substrate bonding apparatus according to the present invention, the edge detection device detects two locations apart on one side of the substrate for both the upper substrate and the lower substrate, and detects the two locations. It can be set as the structure which detects one location on the side orthogonal to the made side.

Further, the substrate bonding apparatus according to the present invention aligns a rectangular upper substrate and a lower substrate for manufacturing a display panel in a horizontal direction based on respective position information, and then on at least one substrate. A substrate laminating apparatus for laminating via a sealant applied in a frame-shaped pattern,
An edge detection device for detecting a side of one of the upper substrate and the lower substrate;
A positioning mark is formed on the other substrate of the upper substrate and the lower substrate,
A mark detector for detecting the marks formed on the other substrate,
The position information of the one substrate is obtained based on the position of the side of the one substrate detected by the edge detection device, and the position of the other substrate is determined based on the position of the mark detected by the mark detection device. And a control device for obtaining information.

  In the substrate bonding apparatus according to the present invention, the edge detection device detects a side of the upper substrate, and the mark detection device detects a positioning mark formed on the lower substrate. be able to.

  Furthermore, in the substrate bonding apparatus according to the present invention, the control device corrects the position information of the substrate based on a horizontal position of the edge detection device detected by using the mark detection device. be able to.

In the method for manufacturing a bonded substrate according to the present invention, an upper substrate and a lower substrate having a rectangular shape for manufacturing a display panel are aligned in the horizontal direction on the basis of the respective positional information, and thereafter, on at least one substrate. A method for manufacturing a bonded substrate to be bonded through a sealant applied in a frame-shaped pattern,
For both the upper substrate and the lower substrate, an edge detection step of detecting a side of the substrate with an edge detection device ;
The upper substrate and the lower substrate are aligned using position information of the upper substrate and the lower substrate obtained based on the positions of the sides of the upper substrate and the lower substrate detected by the edge detection step. A position adjusting step,
In the edge detection step, when the side of one of the upper substrate and the lower substrate is detected, the side of the other substrate is removed from the detection area of the edge detection device that detects the side of the one substrate. Further, the relative position of the upper substrate and the lower substrate is adjusted.

Moreover, in the method for manufacturing a bonded substrate board according to the present invention, the edge detection step detects two locations apart on one side of the substrate for both the upper substrate and the lower substrate , and the two locations. It can be set as the structure which detects one location on the edge | side orthogonal to the edge | side in which "is detected".

  According to the present invention, by detecting the side of at least one of the upper substrate and the lower substrate, even if the positioning mark is not formed on the one substrate, the position of the side is detected. The position information of one substrate can be obtained, and furthermore, the horizontal position adjustment of the upper substrate and the lower substrate can be appropriately performed based on the specified position information.

It is a figure which shows the structure of the board | substrate bonding apparatus which concerns on embodiment of this invention. It is a flowchart which shows the bonding operation | movement of an upper board | substrate and a lower board | substrate. It is a figure which shows the state of the board | substrate bonding apparatus at the time of upper board | substrate carrying-in. It is a figure which shows typically an example of the detection of the edge | side by an optical sensor. It is a figure which shows the state of the board | substrate bonding apparatus at the time of the adsorption | suction support of an upper board | substrate and a lower board | substrate.

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

  FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a configuration of a substrate bonding apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. A substrate bonding apparatus 100 shown in FIG. 1 bonds an upper substrate 151 and a lower substrate 152 which are glass substrates. A sealing agent is applied to the lower substrate 152 in a rectangular frame pattern along the vicinity of the outer edge of the upper surface, and liquid crystal is dropped in a region surrounded by the sealing agent. The substrate bonding apparatus 100 includes a vacuum chamber 101, a substrate receiving mechanism 102, a lower stage 103, an upper stage 105, a support column 106, a support column 108a, a support column 108b, a transfer robot 110, a camera 113, an optical sensor 114, an elevating drive mechanism 131, A horizontal drive mechanism 132 and a control device 140 are included.

  The vacuum chamber 101 is for performing the bonding of the upper substrate 151 and the lower substrate 152 in a vacuum, and at the time of bonding, an internal gas is sucked by a suction mechanism (not shown) to be in a vacuum state.

  In the vacuum chamber 101, a lower stage 103 is disposed on the lower side, an upper stage 105 is disposed on the upper side, and the lower stage 103 and the upper stage 105 are disposed to face each other vertically. The lower stage 103 sucks and holds the lower substrate 152 on which positioning marks are formed at the four corners, and the upper stage 105 sucks and holds the upper substrate 151 on which the positioning marks are not formed. The upper stage 105 is supported at its upper portion by a support column 106, and this support column 106 passes through the upper portion of the vacuum chamber 101 in an airtight manner and is connected to the lifting drive mechanism 131. The upper stage 105 moves up and down by the drive of the lifting drive mechanism 131. The lower stage 103 is supported and fixed on a horizontal drive mechanism 132 disposed at the bottom of the vacuum chamber 101, and driven by the horizontal drive mechanism 132, the arrow X direction, the horizontal Y direction orthogonal to the X direction, and the XY direction Is moved in the θ (rotation) direction about the rotation axis.

  Further, an adsorption mechanism 107a such as an electrostatic chuck for attracting and holding the upper substrate 151 is provided below the upper stage 105, and an electrostatic chuck or the like for attracting and holding the lower substrate 152 is provided on the lower stage 103. The suction mechanism 107b is provided.

  The substrate receiving mechanism 102 is provided in the vacuum chamber 101 so as to penetrate the upper stage 105. At the lower end of the substrate receiving mechanism 102 is provided a suction pad 115 that sucks the upper substrate 152 carried into the vacuum chamber 101 by vacuum force, electrostatic force or the like. Further, the substrate receiving mechanism 102 is supported by support columns 108 a and 108 b attached to the upper portion, and the support columns 108 a and 108 b are connected to a lifting drive mechanism 131. The suction pad 115 attached to the support columns 108a and 108b moves up and down by the driving of the elevating drive mechanism 131. That is, the elevating drive mechanism 131 can elevate and lower the upper stage 105 and the suction pad 115 individually or integrally.

  A lid 109 is provided on the side wall of the vacuum chamber 101. The lid 109 is opened when the upper substrate 151 and the lower substrate 152 are carried in, or when the bonded substrate obtained by bonding the upper substrate 151 and the lower substrate 152 is carried out. Further, the lid 109 is closed to maintain the vacuum state in the vacuum chamber 101 when the upper substrate 151 and the lower substrate 152 are bonded together.

  A transfer robot 110 is disposed on the horizontal extension of the lid 109. This transfer robot 110 is for carrying the upper substrate 151 into the vacuum chamber 101, and has two arm portions 111 extending in the horizontal direction. In FIG. 1, two arm portions 111 are arranged in the direction perpendicular to the paper surface. These arm portions 111 support the upper substrate 151 by suction. When the upper substrate 151 is carried in, the arm 111 is inserted into the vacuum chamber 101 with the upper substrate 151 being sucked and supported. At this time, the suction pad 115 of the substrate receiving mechanism 102 moves downward to suck the upper substrate 151.

  The camera 113 images the positioning mark of the lower substrate 152 held by the lower stage 103. That is, the lower stage 103 is held by the lower substrate 152, has openings larger than the positioning marks at respective locations facing the positioning marks on the lower substrate 152, and has through holes that vertically penetrate the lower stage 103. Prepare. In the present embodiment, one positioning mark is formed at each of the four corners of the lower substrate 152, so that the through holes are provided corresponding to the four corners of the lower substrate 152. Further, a transparent window 120 made of glass or the like is provided at a position at the bottom of the vacuum chamber 101 and directly below each through hole of the lower stage 103. The camera 113 is arranged on the lower side of the vacuum chamber 101 so as to face each transparent window 120 so that the positioning mark of the lower substrate 152 can be imaged through the through hole of the transparent window 120 and the lower stage 103. The camera 113 is an imaging device such as a two-dimensional (area) image sensor represented by a CCD camera.

  The optical sensor 114 detects the side of the upper substrate 151 held by the upper stage 105, and includes an irradiation unit that irradiates parallel laser light downward and a light receiving unit that receives reflected light of the parallel laser light. The side of the substrate is detected based on the intensity of the light received by the light receiving unit. The optical sensor 114 detects three sides of the upper substrate 151 at a total of three locations, two locations on one side of the upper substrate 151 and one location on the side orthogonal to the one side. Provided. In the present embodiment, the optical sensor 114 is lowered from the vicinity of the corner of the upper substrate 151, specifically, from the position on the upper substrate 151 facing the mark of the lower substrate 152 to the detection target side. The side is detected at a position where the vertical line intersects the side. In other words, the upper stage 105 includes through holes at respective locations facing three locations on the side to be detected in the upper substrate 151 while holding the upper substrate 151. In addition, a transparent window 121 made of glass or the like is provided in the upper part of the vacuum chamber 101 and directly above the through holes of the upper stage 105. The optical sensor 114 is disposed above the vacuum chamber 101 so that the side of the lower substrate can be detected through the transparent window 121 and the through hole of the upper stage. The optical sensor 114 is a one-dimensional (linear) image sensor represented by a line sensor, but may be a two-dimensional image sensor.

  The control device 140 detects a positioning mark formed on the lower substrate 152 based on image data obtained by photographing with the camera 113. Further, the control device 140 calculates the horizontal center position and rotation angle of the lower substrate 152 based on the detected position of the positioning mark. The control device 140 calculates the horizontal center position and rotation angle of the upper substrate 151 based on the three positions on the side of the upper substrate 151 detected by the optical sensor 114. Further, the control device 140 calculates the horizontal movement amount and rotation angle of the lower stage 103 necessary for overlaying the upper substrate 151 and the lower substrate 152 on the basis of these calculation results, and the movement amount and rotation. Based on the angle, the driving of the horizontal driving mechanism 132 is controlled to move and rotate the lower stage 103 in the horizontal direction.

  Further, the control device 140 controls the driving of the elevating drive mechanism 131 so as to move the substrate receiving mechanism 102 and the upper stage 105 up and down. When the upper stage 105 moves downward with the upper stage 105 adsorbing and supporting the upper substrate 151 and the lower stage 103 adsorbing and supporting the lower substrate 152, the upper substrate 151 contacts the lower substrate 152 via the sealant. , These are superimposed.

  Hereinafter, the bonding operation of the upper substrate 151 and the lower substrate 152 will be described with reference to a flowchart. FIG. 2 is a flowchart showing the bonding operation between the upper substrate 151 and the lower substrate 152. In the following, it is assumed that the upper substrate 151 and the lower substrate 152 are square or rectangular with the same main surface.

  In a state where the cover 109 of the vacuum chamber 101 is opened, the transfer robot 110 inserts the two arm portions 111 holding the upper substrate 151 onto the lower surface thereof into the vacuum chamber 101. Next, the elevation drive mechanism 131 is driven under the control of the control device 140, and the substrate receiving mechanism 102 moves downward. When the substrate receiving mechanism 102 moves downward, the suction pad 115 at the tip comes into contact with the upper substrate 151 through the two arms 111 and sucks the upper substrate 151. After that, the arm unit 111 releases the upper substrate 151 and moves slightly upward, and further retreats from the vacuum chamber 101 to a state shown in FIG. Next, the elevation drive mechanism 131 is driven under the control of the control device 140, and the substrate receiving mechanism 102 moves upward. When the suction pad 115 moves to the position of the lower surface of the upper stage 105, the upper substrate 151 sucked and supported by the suction pad 115 comes into contact with the suction mechanism 107a and is sucked and held by the suction mechanism 107a (S101).

  When the upper substrate 151 is sucked and held on the upper stage 105, the optical sensor 114 detects the side of the upper substrate 151 sucked and held on the upper stage 105 (S102). Here, the optical sensor 114 detects two places on one side of the upper substrate 151 and also detects one place on a side orthogonal to the side. The detection result of each edge is output to the control device 140.

  FIG. 4 is a diagram schematically illustrating an example of edge detection by the optical sensor 114. In FIG. 4, two locations (positions A and B) on one side (side along the X direction) of the upper substrate 151 are detected, and sides orthogonal to the side including the positions A and B (Y One place (position C) in the direction along the direction) is detected.

  Based on the position of the side detected by the optical sensor 114, the control device 140 calculates the horizontal center position of the upper substrate 151 and the horizontal rotation angle with respect to the reference position (S103).

  Specifically, the control device 140 determines the positions A and B based on the positions of the two locations A and B detected on one side and the separation distance of the optical sensor 114 that detects these positions A and B. A straight line (first straight line) is specified. Next, the control device 140, based on one position (position C) detected in the side orthogonal to the side where the positions A and B are detected, is orthogonal to the first straight line and passes through the position C ( 2nd straight line) is specified. Further, the control device 140 stores the length of each side of the upper substrate 151 stored in a built-in memory (not shown), the position of the intersection of the first straight line and the second straight line, and the first straight line. Based on the inclination, the horizontal center position (X in FIG. 4) of the upper substrate 151 and the horizontal rotation angle (θ in FIG. 4) with respect to the reference position (dotted line in FIG. 4) are calculated.

  If the center position and rotation angle of the upper substrate 151 are calculated, the lower substrate 152 is carried into the vacuum chamber 101, and the lower substrate 152 is sucked and supported by the lower stage 103 (S104). Here, the transfer robot 110 sucks and holds the lower substrate 152 on the upper surface of the arm unit 111 and carries the lower substrate 152 into the vacuum chamber 101. Thus, after the lower substrate 152 is supplied to the lower stage 103, the lid 109 of the vacuum chamber 101 is closed as shown in FIG. Thereafter, the gas in the vacuum chamber 101 is sucked, whereby the vacuum chamber 101 is in a vacuum state.

  After the vacuum chamber 101 is in a vacuum state or in the process of being in a vacuum state, the camera 113 images a positioning mark formed on the lower substrate 152 through the glass window 120 and the through hole of the lower stage 103. Image data obtained by imaging is output to the control device 140. The control device 140 detects the position of the positioning mark formed on the lower substrate 152 based on the image data obtained by imaging with the camera 113 (S105). Further, the control device 140 calculates a horizontal center position of the lower substrate 152 and a horizontal rotation angle with respect to the reference position by a mathematical calculation method based on the detected position of the positioning mark (S106). Here, the reference position is the same as the reference position used when calculating the rotation angle of the upper substrate 151 in S103.

  When the center position and rotation angle of the lower substrate 152 are calculated, the control device 140 is based on the center position and rotation angle of the upper substrate 151 and the center position and rotation angle of the lower substrate 152 calculated as described above. Then, the movement amount and the rotation angle of the lower stage 103 necessary for aligning the upper substrate 151 and the lower substrate 152 are calculated (S107). Specifically, the control device 140 calculates a positional shift in the X direction and the Y direction of the central position of the upper substrate 151 with respect to the central position of the lower substrate 152, and uses this positional shift as the correction movement amount of the lower stage 103. . Further, the control device 140 sets a deviation angle of the rotation angle of the upper substrate 151 with respect to the rotation angle of the lower substrate 152 as a corrected rotation angle of the lower stage 103.

  The control device 140 drives the horizontal drive mechanism 132 based on the corrected movement amount and corrected rotation angle of the lower stage 103 calculated as described above, and moves and rotates the lower stage 103. As a result, the lower stage 103 moves in the XY direction by a distance corresponding to the calculated correction movement amount and rotates by the calculated correction rotation angle (S108). As a result, the center positions of the upper substrate 151 and the lower substrate 152 are overlapped, and the sides are overlapped to enable bonding.

  Next, the control device 140 drives the lifting drive mechanism 131 to move the upper stage 105 downward. As a result, when the upper stage 105 moves downward, the upper substrate 151 sucked and held by the upper stage 105 comes into contact with the lower substrate 152 sucked and held by the lower stage 103 via the sealant, and these are superimposed. (S109).

  Thereafter, when the vacuum state in the vacuum chamber 101 is released and the pressure rises, a pressure difference is generated between the inside and outside of the upper and lower substrates 151 and 152 that are superimposed, and the upper and lower substrates 151 and 152 are added by the pressure difference between the inside and outside. The sealant is crushed and pasted together. After the inside of the vacuum chamber 101 is returned to the atmospheric pressure, the lid 109 is opened, and the bonded substrate is carried out of the vacuum chamber 101 by a transfer robot or the like (S110). Thereafter, when there are upper and lower substrates 151 and 152 to be bonded, the above-described operations of S101 to S110 are repeated until the substrates 151 and 152 disappear.

  As described above, in the substrate bonding apparatus 100 of this embodiment, when the positioning mark is formed only on the lower substrate 152 and the positioning mark is not formed on the upper substrate 151, the edge of the upper substrate 151 is detected. Thus, the horizontal center position and rotation angle of the upper substrate 151 are derived, and further, the horizontal center position and rotation angle of the upper substrate 151 and the horizontal center position and rotation angle of the lower substrate 152 are determined. Based on the above, by moving the lower stage 103 in the X and Y directions and rotating, the center positions of the upper substrate 151 and the lower substrate 152 are aligned, and the sides are aligned and aligned so that they can be bonded together. Do.

  Therefore, when the positioning mark is not formed on the upper substrate 151, even if an expensive transfer robot that suppresses shaking during operation or the like is used as before, or the transfer speed by the transfer robot is not reduced, The position of the upper substrate 151 can be specified, and further, the horizontal position of the upper substrate 151 and the lower substrate 152 can be appropriately adjusted based on the specified position. Therefore, even when the positioning mark is not formed on the upper substrate 151, the upper and lower substrates 151 can be bonded with high accuracy, and the quality of the bonded substrate can be improved. As a result, the display quality is improved. Can provide a liquid crystal display panel having a good quality.

  In the present embodiment, the position (center position and rotation angle) of the upper substrate 151 is calculated based on the relative positional relationship with the optical sensor 114. Therefore, in order to accurately calculate the position of the upper substrate 151, it is necessary to accurately grasp the relative positional relationship between the optical sensor 114 and the upper stage 105. Therefore, the relative positional relationship between the optical sensor 114 and the upper stage 105 is obtained by the following procedure. Then, based on the obtained relative positional relationship, the mounting position of the optical sensor 114 with respect to the upper stage 105 is adjusted, or the detection result by the optical sensor 114 is corrected, so that the position detection accuracy of the upper substrate 151 is improved. Plan.

  The camera 113 is used to grasp the positional relationship of the optical sensor 114 with respect to the upper stage 105.

  As described above, the through hole of the lower stage 103 is provided in accordance with the positioning mark formed on the lower substrate 152. Further, the through hole of the upper stage 105 is provided in accordance with the edge of the upper substrate located corresponding to the positioning mark of the lower substrate 152. Therefore, the through hole of the lower stage 103 and the through hole of the upper stage 105 are positioned substantially concentrically. Therefore, the opening area of the through hole of the lower stage 103 is made larger than the opening area of the through hole of the upper stage 105. Specifically, both the through holes are cylindrical through holes, and the diameter of the through hole of the lower stage 103 is set larger than the diameter of the through hole of the upper stage 105. In this way, the camera 113 can image the through hole of the upper stage 105 and the optical sensor 114 through the through hole of the lower stage 103.

  First, the camera 113 images the through hole of the upper stage 105 and the optical sensor 114 through the through hole of the lower stage 103. The control device 140 obtains the positional deviation of the optical sensor 114 with reference to the through hole of the upper stage 105 based on the image captured by the camera 113. That is, since the through hole of the upper stage 105 is cylindrical, the image of the through hole is circular. When the state where the optical sensor 114 is located at the center of the circle is the ideal arrangement position of the optical sensor 114, the control device 140 obtains the positional deviation of the optical sensor 114 with respect to the center of the circle. The through hole of the upper stage 105 can be formed with high positional accuracy with respect to the upper stage 105 by machining.

  The relative position of the optical sensor 114 with respect to the upper stage 105 is calculated based on the positional deviation of the optical sensor 114 with respect to the through hole provided in the upper stage 105 thus obtained. Then, as described above, the attachment position of the optical sensor 114 with respect to the upper stage 105 is adjusted based on the calculated relative positional relationship of the optical sensor 114, and the detection result by the optical sensor 114 is corrected. In this way, the position of the upper substrate 151 can be accurately calculated by the optical sensor 114. As a result, the upper and lower substrates 151 and 152 can be bonded with higher accuracy, so that the quality of the manufactured display panel can be further improved.

  In the above-described example, the positioning mark of the lower substrate 152 and the position detected by the optical sensor 114 on the side of the upper substrate 151 are not close to each other, and the optical sensor 114 and the camera 113 are arranged at the opposing positions. If not, the camera 113 is provided so as to be movable between the imaging position of the positioning mark and the imaging position of the optical sensor 114, and a through-hole is provided at the corresponding location of the lower stage 105. Good. With this configuration, when imaging the positioning mark, it is performed through the through hole formed corresponding to the positioning mark, and when imaging the optical sensor 114, it is performed through the through hole formed corresponding to the optical sensor 114. Can do.

  Further, the correction of the mounting position shift of the optical sensor 114 with respect to the upper stage 105 may be performed as follows.

  That is, one set or a plurality of sets of upper and lower substrates 151 and 152 are bonded together in the above-described procedure of S101 to S110. Then, the positional deviation between the upper and lower substrates 151 and 152 is measured for the bonded substrate that has been bonded. As a result of the measurement, if a positional deviation has occurred between the upper and lower substrates 151 and 152, the lower stage 103 for aligning the upper substrate 151 and the lower substrate 152 in S107 described above using the positional deviation as a correction value. Is added to the amount of movement and the rotation angle. Note that, when the positional deviation is measured for a plurality of bonded substrates, an average value of the positional deviations may be used as a correction value.

  In the above-described embodiment, only the lower stage 103 is moved so that the upper substrate 151 and the lower substrate 152 can be bonded together, but only the upper stage 105 or the lower stage 103 and the upper stage 105 are moved. Both of them may be moved.

  In the above-described embodiment, the case where the positioning mark is formed only on the lower substrate 152 and the positioning mark is not formed on the upper substrate 151 has been described. However, the present invention can be similarly applied to the case where the positioning mark is formed only on the upper substrate 151 and the positioning mark is not formed on the lower substrate 152. In this case, in FIG. 1, an optical sensor is arranged at the position of the camera 113 so that the edge of the lower substrate 152 can be detected, and the camera is arranged at the position of the optical sensor 114 to be formed on the upper substrate 151. What is necessary is just to make it possible to detect the positioning mark.

Alternatively, the positions of both the upper and lower substrates 151 and 152 may be detected by detecting edges. In this case, a configuration similar to that of the upper stage 105 and the optical sensor 104 arranged for the upper stage 105 in the above-described embodiment may be applied to the lower stage 103. When the edges of the upper and lower substrates 151 and 152 are detected using the optical sensor 114, if the substrates 151 and 152 are held on both the upper stage 105 and the lower stage 103, both the substrates 151 and 152 are detected. It is conceivable that the edges of the substrates 151 and 152 cannot be accurately detected due to overlapping or close proximity of the edge positions. Therefore, when detecting the edges of the substrates 151 and 152, the lower stage 103 is moved in the horizontal direction by the horizontal driving mechanism 132 , and the edges of the upper substrate 151 and the lower substrate 152 detect the respective edges. It is preferable to adjust the relative positions of the upper and lower substrates 151 and 152 so that they are outside the detection area of the optical sensor 114. In this case, the optical sensor 114 provided corresponding to the lower stage 103 is preferably attached integrally with the lower stage 103 in the vacuum chamber 101.

  In the above-described embodiment, the optical sensor 114 is disposed outside the vacuum chamber 101. However, the optical sensor 114 may be provided integrally with the upper stage 105 in the vacuum chamber 101.

  Further, after detecting (calculating) the position of the upper substrate 151 held by suction on the upper stage 105 using the optical sensor 114, the lower substrate 152 is supplied to the lower stage 103. However, the position detection of the upper substrate 151 and the position detection of the lower substrate 152 may be sequentially performed after the substrates 151 and 152 are supplied to the upper and lower stages 103 and 105, respectively. In this case, when the edge of the upper substrate 151 is detected by the optical sensor 114, the lower stage 103 may be moved so that the edge of the lower substrate 152 on the lower stage 103 is removed from the detection area of the optical sensor 114.

  The substrate bonding apparatus and the substrate bonding method according to the present invention can appropriately adjust the horizontal position of the upper substrate and the lower substrate, and are useful as a substrate bonding apparatus and a substrate bonding method. .

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 100 Substrate bonding apparatus 101 Vacuum chamber 102 Substrate receiving mechanism 103 Lower stage 105 Upper stage 106, 108a, 108b Column 107a, 107b Suction mechanism 109 Lid 110 Transport robot 113 Camera 114 Optical sensor 115 Suction pad 120, 121 Glass window 131 Elevation Drive mechanism 132 Horizontal drive device 140 Control device 151 Upper substrate 152 Lower substrate

Claims (8)

After aligning a rectangular upper substrate and lower substrate for display panel manufacturing in the horizontal direction based on the respective positional information, a sealant applied in a frame-like pattern on at least one substrate is used. A substrate laminating apparatus for laminating
For both the upper substrate and the lower substrate, an edge detection device that detects a side of the substrate;
A control device that obtains position information of the upper substrate and the lower substrate based on positions of sides of the upper substrate and the lower substrate detected by the edge detection device,
When the control device detects the side of one of the upper substrate and the lower substrate, the side of the other substrate is removed from the detection area of the edge detection device that detects the side of the one substrate. A substrate laminating apparatus for adjusting a relative position between the upper substrate and the lower substrate.   The edge detection device detects two locations apart on one side of the substrate for both the upper substrate and the lower substrate, and detects one location on a side orthogonal to the side on which the two locations are detected. The substrate bonding apparatus according to claim 1, wherein detection is performed. After aligning a rectangular upper substrate and lower substrate for display panel manufacturing in the horizontal direction based on the respective positional information, a sealant applied in a frame-like pattern on at least one substrate is used. A substrate laminating apparatus for laminating
An edge detection device for detecting a side of one of the upper substrate and the lower substrate;
A positioning mark is formed on the other substrate of the upper substrate and the lower substrate,
A mark detector for detecting the marks formed on the other substrate,
The position information of the one substrate is obtained based on the position of the side of the one substrate detected by the edge detection device, and the position of the other substrate is determined based on the position of the mark detected by the mark detection device. And a control device for obtaining information. The edge detection device detects a side of the upper substrate,
4. The substrate bonding apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the mark detection device detects a positioning mark formed on the lower substrate.   5. The substrate bonding apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the control device corrects position information of the substrate based on a horizontal position of the edge detection device detected using the mark detection device. . After aligning a rectangular upper substrate and lower substrate for display panel manufacturing in the horizontal direction based on the respective positional information, a sealant applied in a frame-like pattern on at least one substrate is used. A method of manufacturing a bonded substrate,
For both the upper substrate and the lower substrate, an edge detection step of detecting a side of the substrate with an edge detection device ;
The upper substrate and the lower substrate are aligned using position information of the upper substrate and the lower substrate obtained based on the positions of the sides of the upper substrate and the lower substrate detected by the edge detection step. A position adjusting step,
In the edge detection step, when the side of one of the upper substrate and the lower substrate is detected, the side of the other substrate is removed from the detection area of the edge detection device that detects the side of the one substrate. And adjusting a relative position between the upper substrate and the lower substrate.   In the edge detection step, for both the upper substrate and the lower substrate, two separate locations on one side of the substrate are detected, and one location on a side perpendicular to the side where the two locations are detected is detected. It detects, The manufacturing method of the bonded substrate board of Claim 6 characterized by the above-mentioned. After aligning a rectangular upper substrate and lower substrate for display panel manufacturing in the horizontal direction based on the respective positional information, a sealant applied in a frame-like pattern on at least one substrate is used. A method of manufacturing a bonded substrate,
An edge detection step of detecting a side of one of the upper substrate and the lower substrate;
A mark detection step for detecting the mark formed on the other substrate is formed with a positioning mark on the other substrate of the upper substrate and the lower substrate;
The position information of the one substrate obtained based on the position of the side of the one substrate detected by the edge detection step and the other position obtained based on the position of the mark detected by the mark detection step. A position adjusting step for aligning the upper substrate and the lower substrate using position information of the substrate;
A method for producing a bonded substrate, comprising:

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