JP7171941B2 - discharge device - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a discharge device that discharges fluid from discharge holes.

An example of a discharge device that discharges a fluid from a discharge hole is described in the following patent document.

JP-A-2002-361881

An object of the present specification is to ensure proper ejection of fluid from the ejection holes.

In order to solve the above problems, the present specification provides a device body for discharging fluid from a discharge hole, a holder for slidably holding the device body, and a device body for biasing the device body in a predetermined direction. a first elastic body for sliding the device main body, a lock mechanism for locking the device main body at a predetermined position against the elastic force of the first elastic body, and a lock mechanism for locking the device main body at the predetermined position. When the discharge hole of the device main body is opened while the device body is locked in position, and the lock mechanism is released, the device main body slides by the elastic force of the first elastic body, thereby interlocking with the sliding of the device main body. and a shutter for shielding the ejection hole of the device main body.

In the present disclosure, a device main body that discharges fluid is slidably held by a holder, and the device main body is urged in a predetermined direction by an elastic body. Then, in a state in which the device main body is locked at a predetermined position by the lock mechanism, the discharge hole of the device main body is opened, and the lock mechanism is released so that the device main body slides due to the elastic force of the elastic body. In conjunction with the shutter, the shutter blocks the discharge hole of the apparatus main body. As a result, clogging of the ejection holes due to drying of the fluid or the like can be prevented, and appropriate ejection of the fluid from the ejection holes can be ensured.

It is a figure which shows a circuit formation apparatus. 3 is a block diagram showing a control device of the circuit forming device; FIG. FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view showing a circuit in which a resin laminate is formed; FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view showing a circuit in which wiring is formed on a resin laminate; FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view showing a head unit; FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view taken along line AA of FIG. 5; It is a perspective view which shows a shutter. FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view showing a head unit; FIG. 9 is a cross-sectional view taken along line BB of FIG. 8;

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings as modes for carrying out the present invention.

A circuit forming apparatus 10 is shown in FIG. The circuit forming apparatus 10 includes a conveying device 20, a first shaping unit 22, a second shaping unit 24, and a control device (see FIG. 2) 26. The conveying device 20 , the first shaping unit 22 and the second shaping unit 24 are arranged on the base 28 of the circuit forming device 10 . The base 28 has a generally rectangular shape, and in the following description, the longitudinal direction of the base 28 is the X-axis direction, the short side direction of the base 28 is the Y-axis direction, and both the X-axis direction and the Y-axis direction are perpendicular to each other. The direction will be referred to as the Z-axis direction for explanation.

The transport device 20 includes an X-axis slide mechanism 30 and a Y-axis slide mechanism 32 . The X-axis slide mechanism 30 has an X-axis slide rail 34 and an X-axis slider 36 . The X-axis slide rail 34 is arranged on the base 28 so as to extend in the X-axis direction. The X-axis slider 36 is held by an X-axis slide rail 34 so as to be slidable in the X-axis direction. Further, the X-axis slide mechanism 30 has an electromagnetic motor (see FIG. 2) 38, and by driving the electromagnetic motor 38, the X-axis slider 36 moves to any position in the X-axis direction. Also, the Y-axis slide mechanism 32 has a Y-axis slide rail 50 and a stage 52 . The Y-axis slide rail 50 is arranged on the base 28 so as to extend in the Y-axis direction and is movable in the X-axis direction. One end of the Y-axis slide rail 50 is connected to the X-axis slider 36 . A stage 52 is held on the Y-axis slide rail 50 so as to be slidable in the Y-axis direction. Furthermore, the Y-axis slide mechanism 32 has an electromagnetic motor (see FIG. 2) 56, and by driving the electromagnetic motor 56, the stage 52 moves to any position in the Y-axis direction. As a result, the stage 52 is moved to an arbitrary position on the base 28 by driving the X-axis slide mechanism 30 and the Y-axis slide mechanism 32 .

The stage 52 has a base 60 , a holding device 62 , a lifting device (see FIG. 2) 64 and a cooling device 66 . The base 60 is formed in a flat plate shape, and a substrate is placed on the upper surface thereof. The holding devices 62 are provided on both sides of the base 60 in the X-axis direction. Both edges of the substrate placed on the base 60 in the X-axis direction are sandwiched by the holding device 62, so that the substrate is fixedly held. The lifting device 64 is arranged below the base 60 and lifts the base 60 up and down. Furthermore, the cooling device 66 is arranged inside the base 60 and cools the base 60 to an arbitrary temperature.

The first modeling unit 22 is a unit that models wiring on a substrate (see FIG. 3) 70 placed on the base 60 of the stage 52, and has a first printing section 72 and a drying section 74. ing. The first printing section 72 has a head unit (see FIG. 2) 75 . The head unit 75 will be described in detail later, but the head unit 75 has an inkjet head 76 and an auto capping mechanism 77 as shown in FIG. 5 and FIG. is doing. The inkjet head 76 ejects metal ink from nozzle holes 78 by, for example, a piezo method using piezoelectric elements, and linearly ejects the metal ink onto the substrate 70 placed on the base 60 . The metal ink is obtained by dispersing fine metal particles in a solvent. The auto-capping mechanism 77 is a mechanism that opens the nozzle holes 78 of the inkjet head 76 when the pump (see FIG. 2) 79 is operating, and blocks the nozzle holes 78 of the inkjet head 76 when the pump 79 is stopped. be.

The drying section 74 has an infrared irradiation device (see FIG. 2) 80 . The infrared irradiation device 80 is a device for irradiating the metal ink discharged onto the substrate 70 with infrared rays, and the metal ink is dried by the irradiation of the infrared rays. At this time, the drying of the metal ink evaporates the solvent, and the metal fine particles come into contact with each other or agglomerate to form a metal wiring.

The second modeling unit 24 is a unit that models a resin layer on the substrate 70 placed on the base 60 of the stage 52, and has a second printing section 84 and a curing section 86. . The second printing unit 84 has an inkjet head (see FIG. 2) 88 and ejects ultraviolet curing resin onto the substrate 70 placed on the base 60 . The inkjet head 88 may be, for example, a piezo system using piezoelectric elements, or a thermal system in which resin is heated to generate bubbles and ejected from nozzles.

The curing section 86 has a flattening device (see FIG. 2) 90 and an irradiation device (see FIG. 2) 92 . The flattening device 90 flattens the upper surface of the ultraviolet curable resin ejected onto the substrate 70 by the inkjet head 88. For example, the surface of the ultraviolet curable resin is smoothed and the surplus resin is removed by a roller or the like. By scraping off with a blade, the thickness of the UV curable resin is made uniform. Further, the irradiation device 92 has a mercury lamp or an LED as a light source, and irradiates the ultraviolet curing resin discharged onto the substrate 70 with ultraviolet rays. As a result, the ultraviolet curable resin discharged onto the substrate 70 is cured to form a resin layer.

The control device 26 also includes a controller 120 and a plurality of drive circuits 122, as shown in FIG. The plurality of drive circuits 122 includes the electromagnetic motors 38 and 56, the holding device 62, the lifting device 64, the cooling device 66, the inkjet head 76, the pump 79, the infrared irradiation device 80, the inkjet head 88, the flattening device 90, and the irradiation device 92. It is connected to the. The controller 120 includes a CPU, ROM, RAM, etc., is mainly a computer, and is connected to a plurality of drive circuits 122 . Accordingly, the controller 120 controls the operations of the conveying device 20 , the first modeling unit 22 , and the second modeling unit 24 .

In the circuit forming apparatus 10, a circuit pattern is formed on the substrate 70 with the configuration described above. Specifically, the substrate 70 is set on the base 60 of the stage 52 , and the stage 52 is moved below the second modeling unit 24 . Then, in the second modeling unit 24, the resin laminate 130 is formed on the substrate 70, as shown in FIG. The resin layered body 130 is formed by repeating the ejection of the ultraviolet curable resin from the inkjet head 88 and the irradiation of the ultraviolet ray by the irradiation device 92 to the ejected ultraviolet curable resin.

Specifically, in the second printing section 84 of the second modeling unit 24 , the inkjet head 88 ejects the ultraviolet curable resin onto the upper surface of the substrate 70 in the form of a thin film. Subsequently, when the ultraviolet curable resin is discharged in the form of a thin film, the ultraviolet curable resin is flattened by the flattening device 90 in the curing section 86 so that the film thickness of the ultraviolet curable resin becomes uniform. Then, the irradiation device 92 irradiates the thin film-like ultraviolet curable resin with ultraviolet rays. As a result, a thin resin layer 132 is formed on the substrate 70 .

Subsequently, the inkjet head 88 ejects a thin film of ultraviolet curable resin onto the thin resin layer 132 . Then, the flattening device 90 flattens the thin film of ultraviolet curable resin, and the irradiation device 92 irradiates the ultraviolet curable resin discharged in the thin film with ultraviolet rays, thereby forming a thin film on the resin layer 132 . A thin film resin layer 132 is laminated. In this way, the resin layered body 130 is formed by repeating the ejection of the ultraviolet curable resin onto the thin resin layer 132 and the irradiation of the ultraviolet rays to laminate a plurality of resin layers 132 .

After the resin laminate 130 is formed by the procedure described above, the stage 52 is moved below the first modeling unit 22 . Then, in the first printing unit 72, as shown in FIG. 4, the inkjet head 76 linearly ejects the metal ink 134 onto the upper surface of the resin laminate 130 according to the circuit pattern. Next, in the drying section 74 of the first modeling unit 22, the infrared irradiation device 80 irradiates the metal ink 134 with infrared rays. This dries the metal ink 134 and forms the wiring 136 on the resin laminate 130 .

Thus, in the circuit forming apparatus 10 , the resin laminate 130 is formed by curing the ultraviolet curable resin, and the wiring 136 is formed by drying the metal ink, thereby forming the circuit pattern on the substrate 70 . However, as described above, the metal ink contains a solvent, and when the solvent evaporates, the metal fine particles come into contact with each other or agglomerate. Therefore, if the inkjet head 76 that ejects the metal ink is left in a non-operating state, the solvent of the metal ink may evaporate in the nozzle holes 78 and the metal fine particles may aggregate. In such a case, ejection failure of the metal ink occurs due to nozzle clogging. Therefore, it is conceivable to dispose a device for covering the nozzle holes 78 of the inkjet head 76 at a predetermined position of the base 28 . If such a device is provided, nozzle clogging can be prevented by covering the nozzle holes 78 with the device when the inkjet head 76 is not in operation. However, if an abnormality or the like occurs in the conveying device 20, the inkjet head 76 cannot be moved to that device, and the nozzle holes 78 cannot be covered. Therefore, in such a case, there is a high possibility that ejection failure will occur due to nozzle clogging after recovery of the conveying device 20 . Further, even after moving the inkjet head 76 to the device, the device cannot cover the nozzle holes 78 if the power supply to the device is cut off. Even in such a case, there is a high possibility that ejection failure will occur due to nozzle clogging after the power supply is restored.

Therefore, in the circuit forming apparatus 10, a head unit 75 composed of an inkjet head 76 and an auto capping mechanism 77 is used. The automatic capping mechanism 77 automatically closes the nozzle holes 78 of the inkjet head 76 regardless of whether power can be supplied. Specifically, the auto capping mechanism 77 has a slider 150, a housing 152, and a pair of shutters 154, as shown in FIGS.

The slider 150 is composed of a body portion 160 and a flange portion 162 . The body portion 160 has a rectangular tubular shape penetrating in the vertical direction, and the inner dimension of the rectangular tubular body portion 160 is substantially the same as the outer dimension of the inkjet head 76 in the circumferential direction. The inkjet head 76 is fixedly fitted inside the body portion 160 . The lower end surface of the inkjet head 76 fitted inside the main body portion 160 is at the same height as the lower end surface of the main body portion 160, and the upper end surface of the inkjet head 76 is at the same height as the upper end surface of the main body portion 160. Become. Also, the flange portion 162 extends outward from the upper end portion of the body portion 160 .

The housing 152 is generally box-shaped, and the inner circumferential dimension of the housing 152 is slightly larger than the outer circumferential dimension of the flange portion 162 of the slider 150 . The slider 150 is arranged inside the flange portion 162 so that the flange portion 162 is in sliding contact with the inner wall surface of the housing 152 in the circumferential direction. This allows the slider 150 to slide vertically inside the housing 152 . In other words, the inkjet head 76 is held inside the housing 152 via the slider 150 and is slidable in the vertical direction. The lower surface of the housing 152 is formed with an opening 166 large enough to expose the entire body portion 160 of the slider 150 .

The interior of the housing 152 is partitioned into two spaces by the flange portion 162 of the slider 150 . In the lower space, two coil springs 168 are arranged in a compressed state between the flange portion 162 and the bottom surface of the housing 152 so as to extend vertically at both ends in the X direction. ing. As a result, the slider 150 is urged upward inside the housing 152 by the elastic force of the coil spring 168, and rises as shown in FIGS. 9 is a cross-sectional view taken along line BB in FIG. A stopper 170 is provided above the flange portion 162 , and the stopper 170 restricts the slider 150 from rising.

A pump (see FIG. 2) 79 is connected to a space above the two spaces partitioned by the flange portion 162 inside the housing 152 , and this space functions as an air chamber 176 . When operated, the pump 79 supplies compressed air to the air chamber 176 to move the slider 150 downward against the elastic force of the coil spring 168 as shown in FIGS. A stopper 178 is provided below the flange portion 162, and the stopper 178 restricts the slider 150 from descending. In addition, when the slider 150 is lowered until it is regulated by the stopper 178 , that is, when the slider 150 is in the lowest state inside the housing 152 , the lower end surface of the main body portion 160 of the slider 150 , that is, the lower end surface of the inkjet head 76 . and the lower end surface of the housing 152 are at the same height.

Each of the pair of shutters 154 is composed of a bottom plate 180, side plates 182 and a pair of rib plates 184, as shown in FIG. The bottom plate 180 and the side plates 182 generally have the same plate shape, and the side plates 182 are fixed to the edges of the bottom plate 180 in the Y direction in an upright state. Also, a pair of rib plates 184 are fixed in an upright state to both edges of the bottom plate 180 in the X direction, and the end faces of each rib plate 184 in the Y direction are fixed to the side plates 182 . Also, the upper end surface of each rib plate 184 is formed as a tapered surface 188 that descends as the distance from the side plate 182 increases.

As shown in FIG. 5, the pair of shutters 154 having the above-described structure are arranged in the main body portion 160 of the slider 150 with the edge portion of the bottom plate 180 opposite to the side plate 182 facing the opening 166 in the bottom surface of the housing 152 . are arranged so as to sandwich the lower end surface of the in the Y direction. The lower end surface of the shutter 154 and the lower end surface of the housing 152 are at the same height. A tapered surface 190 having the same inclination as the tapered surface 188 of the rib plate 184 of the shutter 154 is formed on the lower end surface of the body portion 160 of the slider 150 . It is in close contact with the surface 190 .

Furthermore, a coil spring 200 is arranged in a compressed state between the side plate 182 of the shutter 154 and the inner wall surface of the housing 152 so as to extend in the Y direction. As a result, the shutter 154 is biased toward the body portion 160 of the slider 150 by the elastic force of the coil spring 200 at the opening 166 on the bottom surface of the housing 152 .

With such a structure, in the head unit 75, the nozzle holes 78 of the inkjet head 76 are automatically closed by the operation of the auto capping mechanism 77 regardless of whether power can be supplied. Specifically, when the inkjet head 76 operates, that is, when the metallic ink is ejected from the inkjet head 76 , the pump 79 operates to supply compressed air to the air chamber 176 . Therefore, compressed air supplied to the air chamber 176 causes the slider 150 to descend inside the housing 152 against the elastic force of the coil spring 168 as shown in FIGS. At this time, the tapered surface 188 of the shutter 154 is urged downward by the tapered surface 190 of the body portion 160 of the slider 150 , but the shutter 154 moves away from the body portion 160 due to the inclination of the tapered surface 188 . urged toward. As a result, the shutter 154 slides away from the body portion 160 against the elastic force of the coil spring 200 . As a result, the lower end surface of the inkjet head 76 fitted inside the body portion 160 is exposed at the opening 166 in the bottom surface of the housing 152 , and the metal ink is ejected from the nozzle holes 78 .

On the other hand, when the inkjet head 76 is not in operation, that is, when the metallic ink is not ejected from the inkjet head 76, the operation of the pump 79 is stopped and the supply of compressed air to the air chamber 176 is cut off. Therefore, the slider 150 rises inside the housing 152 due to the elastic force of the coil spring 168, as shown in FIGS. Then, as the slider 150 rises, each of the pair of shutters 154 slides toward the body portion 160 of the slider 150 due to the elastic force of the coil springs 200 . At this time, each shutter 154 slides until the ends of the pair of shutters 154 on the side opposite to the side plate 182 contact each other below the body portion 160 of the slider 150 . As a result, the lower end surfaces of the inkjet heads 76 fitted to the main body 160 are covered with the bottom plates 180 of the pair of shutters 154 . That is, the nozzle holes 78 of the inkjet head 76 are blocked by the bottom plates 180 of the pair of shutters 154 . In this way, by stopping the operation of the pump 79 in a state where electric power can be supplied, the automatic capping mechanism 77 operates based on the elastic force of the coil springs 168 and 200, and the ink jet head 76 is discharged. The nozzle hole 78 can be automatically closed.

Further, when the power supply to the pump 79 is cut off, the pump 79 cannot be operated, so compressed air is not supplied to the air chamber 176 . Therefore, even when the power supply to the pump 79 is cut off, the automatic capping mechanism 77 operates based on the elastic force of the coil spring 168 and the coil spring 200 to automatically close the nozzle hole 78. can be done. In this manner, the head unit 75 can automatically close the nozzle holes 78 of the inkjet head 76 regardless of whether power can be supplied. Moreover, since the auto capping mechanism 77 is built in the head unit 75 together with the inkjet head 76 , the nozzle holes 78 of the inkjet head 76 can be closed without relying on the operation of the conveying device 20 . This makes it possible to block the nozzle holes 78 of the inkjet head 76 even under various circumstances, such as when an abnormality occurs in the conveying device 20 or when the power supply is interrupted. Clogging can be properly prevented.

Incidentally, in the above embodiments, the head unit 75 is an example of an ejection device. The inkjet head 76 is an example of an apparatus body. The nozzle hole 78 is an example of a discharge hole. Pump 79 is an example of a locking mechanism. Slider 150 is an example of a side cover. Housing 152 is an example of a holder. Shutter 154 is an example of a shutter. Coil spring 168 is an example of a first elastic body. The tapered surface 188 is an example of a shutter-side tapered surface. Tapered surface 190 is an example of a cover-side tapered surface. Coil spring 200 is an example of a second elastic body.

It should be noted that the present invention is not limited to the above embodiments, and can be implemented in various modes with various modifications and improvements based on the knowledge of those skilled in the art. For example, in the above embodiment, the shutter 154 is slid by the elastic force of the coil spring 200. However, the shutter 154 and the slider 150 are connected via a conversion mechanism such as a link, a ball screw, etc., and the vertical movement of the slider 150 is controlled. It may be converted into a slide of the shutter 154 .

In the above-described embodiment, the nozzle hole 78 is opened and closed by sliding the shutter 154 in the horizontal direction. may be opened and closed. Further, in the above-described embodiment, the shutter 154 is interlocked with the vertical sliding of the slider 150 to open and close the nozzle hole 78. , the shutter 154 may be interlocked to open and close the nozzle hole 78 .

In the above embodiment, the inkjet head 76 is locked at a predetermined position by compressed air supplied from the pump 79 to the air chamber 176. 76 may be locked in place. Furthermore, a notch mechanism, a ratchet mechanism, or the like may be used to lock the inkjet head 76 at a predetermined position without using a drive source.

Further, in the above embodiment, the inkjet head 76 is slidably held by the housing 152 via the slider 150, but the inkjet head 76 may be directly slidably held by the housing 152. FIG.

In addition, although the coil springs 168 and 200 are used as the elastic bodies in the above-described embodiments, various materials such as springs and rubber can be used as long as they can exhibit elastic force.

Further, in the above embodiment, the present invention is applied to the inkjet head 76 that ejects metal ink, but the present invention may be applied to the inkjet head 88 that ejects ultraviolet curable resin. Furthermore, the present invention is not limited to inkjet heads, and may be applied to various ejection devices such as dispensers.

In the above-described embodiment, the present invention is applied to the circuit forming apparatus 10 for forming circuits, but the present invention is also applied to apparatus for forming three-dimensional objects such as figures, printers for printing on printing paper, and the like. may apply.

75: Head unit (ejection device) 76: Ink jet head (apparatus body) 78: Nozzle hole (ejection hole) 79: Pump (lock mechanism) 150: Slider (side cover) 152: Housing (holder) 154: Shutter 168: Coil Spring (first elastic body) 188: Tapered surface (tapered surface on shutter side) 190: Tapered surface (tapered surface on cover side) 200: Coil spring (second elastic body)

Claims (6)

a device main body that discharges a fluid from a discharge hole;
a holder that slidably holds the device body;
a first elastic body that slides the device body by urging the device body in a predetermined direction;
a locking mechanism that locks the apparatus main body at a predetermined position against the elastic force of the first elastic body;
The ejection hole of the device body is opened while the device body is locked at the predetermined position by the lock mechanism, and the device body is slid by the elastic force of the first elastic body when the lock mechanism is released. and a shutter that blocks the ejection holes of the device main body in conjunction with the sliding of the device main body. The holder is
holding the apparatus main body so as to be slidable in the vertical direction;
The first elastic body is
2. The ejection device according to claim 1, wherein the device main body is lifted by urging the device main body upward. The ejection device is
comprising a second elastic body that biases the shutter in a direction to shield the ejection hole of the device body;
The shutter
3. The ejection device according to claim 1, wherein the ejection hole of the device body is shielded by the elastic force of the second elastic body in conjunction with the sliding of the device body. The ejection device is
A side cover fixedly arranged on a side surface of the device main body,
The holder is
4. The ejection device according to claim 3, wherein the device main body is held via the side cover. The shutter
3. The shutter-side tapered surface formed on the shutter and the cover-side tapered surface formed on the side cover are arranged in close contact with each other, and open and close the discharge hole as the apparatus main body slides. 5. The ejection device according to 4. The locking mechanism is
6. The ejection device according to claim 1, wherein the device main body is locked at the predetermined position against the elastic force of the first elastic body by air pressure.

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