JP7365002B2 - Glass film manufacturing method and glass film manufacturing device - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a glass film manufacturing method and a glass film manufacturing apparatus, and more particularly to a technique for cutting a band-shaped glass film into a predetermined width dimension by laser cutting.

As is well known, plate glass used in the manufacture of flat panel displays (FPD) such as liquid crystal displays and organic EL displays, plate glass used in organic EL lighting, tempered glass that is a component of touch panels, etc. The current situation is that sheet glass used in solar cell panels and the like is being made thinner.

For example, Patent Document 1 discloses a plate glass (glass film) having a thickness direction dimension of several hundred μm or less. As described in the same document, this type of plate glass is generally continuously molded using a molding device that utilizes the so-called overflow down-draw method.

In this case, the long glass film that has been continuously formed by the overflow down-draw method is transported downstream by the horizontal transport section (horizontal transport section) of the transport device after converting its transport direction from vertical to horizontal. transported to. During this conveyance, both ends (thick parts) in the width direction of the glass film are cut and removed. Thereafter, the glass film is wound into a roll by a take-up roller to form a glass roll.

As a technique for cutting a glass film, Patent Document 1 discloses a cutting method using a laser. This cutting method is a so-called laser cutting method, in which the glass film is conveyed in its longitudinal direction and an initial crack is formed in the glass film using a crack forming means such as a diamond cutter, and then this part is irradiated with a laser and heated. Then, the heated portion is cooled by a cooling means. As a result, thermal stress is generated in the glass film, and the initial crack develops due to this thermal stress, so that the glass film is cut.

In addition, this type of laser cutting method is not only used to cut the thick parts located at both widthwise ends of a band-shaped glass film, but also to cut the glass film after the thick parts have been removed. Sometimes it is done. In this case, for example, as described in Patent Document 2, the glass film from which the thick portion has been removed by the first laser cutting is wound into a roll, and the glass film (glass roll) in the rolled state is then After being conveyed to the process, the glass film is pulled out from the glass roll and subjected to laser cutting again, thereby cutting the glass film again into a predetermined widthwise dimension. In the second laser cutting, the thick part (edge) created during molding has already been removed, so it is possible to cut the glass film to the specified width dimension with more precision than in the first laser cutting. becomes.

When cutting a glass film as described above, the glass film is cut by laser irradiation, and the belt-shaped glass film is conveyed along its longitudinal direction by a conveyor such as a belt conveyor and placed at a predetermined position. This is done by irradiating a laser beam vertically downward using a laser irradiation device. Here, when a belt conveyor is used as the conveyance device, the lower surface of the glass film may be contacted and supported by a single belt over the entire width direction of the glass film (see Patent Document 1), or the glass film may be A configuration has been proposed in which the lower surface of the film is contacted and supported by a plurality of belts disposed at predetermined intervals in the width direction (see Patent Document 2).

JP2012-240883A International Publication 2019/049646

By the way, as a form of cutting the glass film again after removing the thick part, as mentioned above, one glass film is cut out to a predetermined width direction dimension (cutting). In addition to the form (repair), it is possible to consider a form in which two or more glass films are each cut out to a predetermined width direction dimension from a single glass film. In this case, for example, by adjusting the widthwise position of the laser cutting device (laser irradiation device) according to the cutting position of the glass film, it is possible to respond to changes in the number of glass films to be cut out in one production line. However, since the belt conveyor is large, its position in the width direction cannot be easily changed like a laser irradiation device. Therefore, when multiple belt conveyors are arranged side by side in the width direction of the glass film as described above, depending on the number of sheets to be cut out and the width direction dimension of the cut glass film, one side of the cut glass film in the width direction may be There is a risk that the belt will come into contact with the belt at a position that is biased to the side, resulting in the glass film being cut skewed. This affects the cutting position of the glass film, making it difficult to obtain a glass film with stable cut quality.

In view of the above circumstances, the technical problem to be solved by the present invention is to avoid transport defects of the glass film due to changes in cutting conditions and to stably obtain a glass film of good quality.

The above-mentioned problem is achieved by the method for manufacturing a glass film according to the present invention. That is, this manufacturing method is a glass film manufacturing method that obtains one or more secondary glass films by cutting a belt-shaped primary glass film while conveying it in a predetermined direction with a conveying device, and in which the primary glass film is cut into one or more secondary glass films. The cutting is performed by irradiating the primary glass film with a laser in a predetermined cutting zone using a laser cutting device, and the conveying device includes an upstream conveyor located relatively upstream in the conveying direction of the primary glass film. , and a downstream conveyor that is located relatively downstream in the conveyance direction of the primary glass film and can convey the secondary glass film, and the downstream conveyor has a plurality of belts that can contact and support the secondary glass film. It is characterized by being composed of downstream belt conveyors, and the position of the belt of each downstream belt conveyor is configured to be adjustable in the width direction of the primary glass film. Note that the primary glass film referred to here includes not only the glass film that has been formed into a film and has not yet undergone the first cutting process, but also the glass film that has undergone the first cutting process but has not yet undergone the second cutting process. The glass film before being processed shall be included. In addition, the secondary glass film referred to here includes not only a glass film that undergoes further processing, but also a glass film whose final processing is the cutting process according to the present invention (i.e., a glass film that becomes a substantially final product). ) shall be included. Moreover, the width direction of the primary glass film here means a direction perpendicular to both the longitudinal direction and the thickness direction of the film.

As described above, in the method for producing a glass film according to the present invention, the conveying device includes an upstream conveyor located relatively upstream in the conveying direction of the primary glass film, and an upstream conveyor located relatively downstream in the conveying direction for the secondary glass film. and a downstream conveyor that can convey the secondary glass film, and the downstream conveyor is composed of a plurality of downstream belt conveyors that can contact and support the secondary glass film with the belt, and the position of the belt of each downstream belt conveyor is The primary glass film can be adjusted in the width direction. This makes it possible to freely set the contact support position with the belt in the width direction of the secondary glass film without changing the configuration of the upstream conveyor for conveying the primary glass film. Each downstream belt conveyor can be arranged at an appropriate widthwise position depending on the widthwise position or widthwise dimension of the glass film. Therefore, with the minimum necessary equipment changes, it is possible to avoid the situation where the belt comes into contact with the secondary glass film at a position that is biased to one side in the width direction, and to avoid skewing of the secondary glass film due to the bias of the contact position. It becomes possible to prevent transportation defects of the secondary glass film. Also, if the secondary glass film can be conveyed without being skewed, the cut surface (side edge surface) of one secondary glass film that is adjacent in the width direction will interfere with the cut surface (side edge surface) of the other secondary glass film. Since this situation can be avoided as much as possible, it becomes possible to obtain a glass film with good cutting quality.

Further, in the glass film manufacturing method according to the present invention, the laser cutting device may have a plurality of laser irradiation parts, and the position of each laser irradiation part may be configured to be adjustable in the width direction of the primary glass film. good.

With this configuration, the laser irradiation position on the primary glass film can be freely set in the width direction, so for example, by adjusting the widthwise distance between a pair of laser irradiation parts that are adjacent in the width direction, the required laser irradiation position can be set as desired. Even when the width direction dimension of the secondary glass film is changed, it becomes possible to accurately manage the width direction dimension after the change.

In addition, in the method for manufacturing a glass film according to the present invention, when obtaining a plurality of secondary glass films each having a predetermined width direction dimension by cutting a primary glass film, the width direction position of each secondary glass film is The position of the belt may be adjusted depending on the width direction dimension.

In this way, when cutting out a plurality of secondary glass films each having a predetermined width direction dimension, the belt width direction of the downstream belt conveyor is cut out according to the width direction position and width direction dimension of each secondary glass film. It is better to adjust the position. In this way, by setting the width direction position of the belt, it is possible to place the belt at a position suitable for the position and size of each secondary glass film to be cut out, so that all the secondary glass films to be cut out can be This makes it possible to avoid skewing and stably transport in the correct direction.

Alternatively, when the position of the laser irradiation part is configured to be adjustable as described above, in the method for manufacturing a glass film according to the present invention, by cutting a primary glass film, a plurality of secondary glass films each having a predetermined width direction dimension are formed. When obtaining a glass film, the position of the belt and the position of the laser irradiation unit may be adjusted depending on the width direction position and width direction dimension of each secondary glass film.

In addition, if the position of the laser irradiation part can be adjusted, the position of the belt of the downstream belt conveyor and the position of the laser irradiation part should be adjusted according to the width direction position and width direction dimension of each secondary glass film. It is better to do so. In this way, by setting the widthwise position of the belt and the laser irradiation part, the belt can be placed at a position suitable for the position and size of each secondary glass film to be cut, and the laser can be placed at a position suitable for laser cutting. An irradiation section can be arranged. Therefore, it is possible to stably transport all of these secondary glass films in accurate directions while cutting each secondary glass film into accurate widthwise dimensions.

Further, when obtaining a plurality of secondary glass films as described above, in the method for manufacturing a glass film according to the present invention, the position of the belt may be adjusted according to the center position in the width direction of each secondary glass film. good. Alternatively, the position of the belt may be adjusted depending on the positions of both ends in the width direction of each secondary glass film.

As described above, according to the method for manufacturing a glass film according to the present invention, the position of the belt can be appropriately set depending on the transport mode required for the cut out secondary glass film. For example, if the main purpose is to suppress fluctuations such as flapping during conveyance of the secondary glass film, the position of the belt can be adjusted according to the positions of both ends of the secondary glass film in the width direction. The glass film can be stably supported in contact with both sides in the width direction. Therefore, it becomes possible to suppress the above-mentioned fluctuations and transport the secondary glass film stably. Alternatively, as will be described later, if the main purpose is to avoid contact between the cut surfaces of any pair of secondary glass films that are adjacent in the width direction, the By adjusting the belt, it is possible to contact and support the secondary glass film at the center side in the width direction. In this case, the secondary glass film is curved and deformed into a shape in which both ends in the width direction are drooping (a shape that is convex upward) compared to the center in the width direction, so that the cut surfaces of the secondary glass film immediately after cutting are It becomes possible to convey each secondary glass film to the downstream side while avoiding contact.

Moreover, in the method for manufacturing a glass film according to the present invention, at least a portion of the plurality of downstream belt conveyors may be configured to be capable of adsorbing the secondary glass film toward the belt.

By configuring the secondary glass film so that it can be attracted toward the belt in this manner, the contact support form of the secondary glass film with respect to the belt can always be maintained in a constant state. Therefore, it becomes possible to transport the secondary glass film more stably. However, as will be described later, if consideration is given to avoiding contact between the cut surfaces of the secondary glass films immediately after cutting, for example, as will be described later, one side of the secondary glass film that is close to each other in the width direction It is also possible to adopt a configuration in which either one of the belt supporting the side and the belt supporting the other side in the width direction of the other secondary glass film is adsorbed, and the other is not adsorbed.

Further, in the method for manufacturing a glass film according to the present invention, the upstream conveyor is configured of a plurality of upstream belt conveyors that can contact and support the primary glass film with a belt, and among the plurality of upstream belt conveyors, the primary glass film An upstream belt conveyor located at the center in the width direction of the film may be configured to be able to attract the primary glass film toward the belt.

The glass film (primary glass film) before laser cutting still allows for variations in dimensions after molding, and because of its huge size, it is often transported in a state with deformations such as warping. Therefore, when attempting to transport the primary glass film of the above-mentioned form by adsorbing it with multiple belts, the difference in longitudinal dimension between the left and right sides (difference in longitudinal dimension between one end and the other end in the width direction) occurs. , there is a problem that wrinkles are likely to occur. From the viewpoint of suppressing the occurrence of wrinkles, as mentioned above, the upstream belt conveyor located at the center in the width direction of the primary glass film among the plurality of upstream belt conveyors attracts the primary glass film toward the belt. It is better to configure it so that it is possible. By conveying the primary glass film with only the center in the width direction being sucked, it is possible to supply the primary glass film to the laser cutting zone while suppressing the occurrence of wrinkles.

In addition, when obtaining a plurality of secondary glass films by cutting a primary glass film, in the method for manufacturing a glass film according to the present invention, a widthwise gap is formed between any pair of secondary glass films adjacent in the width direction. A gap forming section for forming the gap may be provided on the downstream side in the conveyance direction of the primary glass film rather than the downstream conveyor.

By providing the gap forming section downstream of the downstream conveyor in the transport direction of the primary glass film, it is possible to create a predetermined widthwise gap between the secondary glass films without complicating the structure of the downstream conveyor. can be formed. Here, since the secondary glass film has a continuous form from its base end (located in the cutting zone) toward the downstream side, it is difficult to However, it is possible to relatively easily form a predetermined widthwise gap between the secondary glass films immediately after cutting.

Further, when providing a gap forming part as described above, in the method for manufacturing a glass film according to the present invention, the gap forming part has a width such that each secondary glass film is curved and deformed in an upwardly convex direction. It is also possible to have the same number of barrel-shaped support rollers as the number of secondary glass films, the diameter of which is largest at the center of the direction.

In this way, by configuring the gap forming part to have a barrel-shaped support roller whose diameter is largest at the center in the width direction, for example, when winding up the secondary glass film downstream of the support roller, The portion of the secondary glass film that passes over the support roller of the gap forming portion is curved and deformed in an upwardly convex direction. Therefore, with a simple configuration, it is possible to avoid contact between the secondary glass films and safely transport each secondary glass film.

Further, according to the method for manufacturing a glass film according to the above explanation, it is possible to prevent poor conveyance of the glass film due to the position of supporting and conveying the glass film being biased to one side in the width direction due to a change in the number of sheets to be cut out, thereby achieving good quality. It becomes possible to stably obtain a glass film of. Therefore, for example, by winding up the secondary glass film obtained by the above method into a roll with a winding device located downstream of the downstream conveyor in the conveying direction to obtain a glass roll, the secondary glass film can be cut out. Regardless of the number or widthwise dimension, it is possible to prevent misalignment during winding and to stably obtain a glass roll of good quality.

Moreover, the solution to the above problem is also achieved by the glass film manufacturing apparatus according to the present invention. That is, this manufacturing device is a glass film manufacturing device for obtaining one or more secondary glass films by cutting a belt-shaped primary glass film while conveying it in a predetermined direction. A conveying device capable of conveying the primary glass film in the direction of It is composed of an upstream conveyor located on the upstream side in the film conveyance direction, and a downstream conveyor located relatively downstream in the conveyance direction of the primary glass film and capable of conveying the secondary glass film. It is characterized in that it is composed of a plurality of downstream belt conveyors that can contact and support the secondary glass film with their belts, and that the position of the belt of each downstream belt conveyor is adjustable in the width direction of the primary glass film. Can be attached.

As described above, in the glass film manufacturing apparatus according to the present invention, the conveyor is divided into an upstream conveyor located on the upstream side in the conveyance direction of the primary glass film and a secondary glass conveyor located on the downstream side in the conveyance direction. The downstream conveyor is configured with a downstream conveyor that can convey the film, and the downstream conveyor is configured with a plurality of downstream belt conveyors that can contact and support the secondary glass film with the belt, and the belt position of each downstream belt conveyor is adjusted. , the primary glass film can be adjusted in the width direction. This makes it possible to freely set the contact support position with the belt in the width direction of the secondary glass film without changing the configuration of the upstream conveyor for conveying the primary glass film. Each downstream belt conveyor can be arranged at an appropriate widthwise position depending on the widthwise position or widthwise dimension of the glass film. Therefore, with the minimum necessary equipment changes, it is possible to avoid the situation where the belt comes into contact with the secondary glass film at a position that is biased to one side in the width direction, and to avoid skewing of the secondary glass film due to the bias of the contact position. It becomes possible to prevent transportation defects of the secondary glass film. Additionally, if the secondary glass film can be conveyed without being skewed, it is possible to avoid as much as possible the situation where the cut surfaces of one of the adjacent secondary glass films in the width direction interfere with the cut surfaces of the other secondary glass film. Therefore, it is possible to obtain a glass film with good cutting quality.

As described above, according to the present invention, it is possible to avoid poor transportation of the glass film due to changes in cutting conditions, and to stably obtain a glass film of good quality.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS It is a side view which shows the whole structure of the manufacturing apparatus of the glass film based on 1st embodiment of this invention. FIG. 2 is a plan view of the conveyance device shown in FIG. 1. FIG. FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view of the conveying device taken along the line AA in FIG. 2. FIG. FIG. 3 is a plan view of the first fixed plate shown in FIG. 2; FIG. 5 is a sectional view of the first fixed plate taken along the line BB in FIG. 4; FIG. 6 is a sectional view of the first fixed plate taken along the line CC in FIG. 5; FIG. 3 is a plan view of the second surface plate shown in FIG. 2; 8 is a cross-sectional view of the second surface plate taken along the line DD in FIG. 7. FIG. FIG. 9 is a sectional view of the second surface plate taken along the line EE in FIG. 8; 3 is a conceptual diagram for explaining the action of the support roller shown in FIG. 2. FIG. FIG. 7 is a plan view of a conveying device according to a second embodiment of the present invention. It is a top view of the conveyance device concerning a third embodiment of the present invention.

Hereinafter, a first embodiment of the method for manufacturing a glass film according to the present invention will be described based on FIGS. 1 to 10. In addition, below, the case where a glass film is wound up into a roll shape and a glass roll is finally obtained is demonstrated taking as an example.

As shown in FIG. 1, a glass film (glass roll) manufacturing apparatus 1 according to the first embodiment of the present invention includes a molding section 2 that molds a strip-shaped base glass film G, and a molding unit 2 that molds a strip-shaped base glass film G, and A direction changing unit 3 that changes the direction from the lower vertical direction to the horizontal direction, a first conveying unit 4 that transports the base glass film G in the horizontal direction after changing the direction, and cutting both ends of the base glass film G in the width direction. and a first winding part 6 that winds up the glass film (hereinafter referred to as the first glass film) G1 from which both ends in the width direction have been removed into a roll shape to obtain a first glass roll GRL1. Equipped with. Note that in this embodiment, the vertical direction is the vertical direction, and the horizontal direction is the horizontal direction.

The glass roll manufacturing apparatus 1 also includes a drawer section 7 that pulls out the first glass film G1 from the first glass roll GRL1, and a second transport section that transports the first glass film G1 pulled out from the drawer section 7 in the lateral direction. 8, a second cutting part 9 that cuts a part of the first glass film G1, and a glass film G2 cut by the second cutting part 9 (hereinafter referred to as a second glass film) G2, which is wound into a roll. It further includes a second winding section 10 that takes the glass rolls GRL2a and GRL2b to obtain the second glass rolls GRL2a and GRL2b.

Note that the first glass film G1 in this embodiment corresponds to the primary glass film according to the present invention, and the second glass film corresponds to the secondary glass film according to the present invention. Therefore, the first glass roll GRL1 corresponds to a glass roll formed by winding the primary glass film according to the present invention into a roll shape, and the second glass roll GRL2 corresponds to a glass roll formed by winding the secondary glass film according to the present invention into a roll shape. It corresponds to the glass roll that you take.

Further, the second winding section 10 in this embodiment corresponds to a winding device according to the present invention, the second cutting section 9 corresponds to a laser cutting device according to the present invention, and the second conveying section 8 corresponds to a conveying device according to the present invention. Each corresponds to a device.

The molding section 2 includes a molded body 11 having a generally wedge-shaped cross section with an overflow groove 11a formed in the upper end thereof, and an edge disposed directly below the molded body 11 that sandwiches the molten glass GM overflowing from the molded body 11 from both the front and back sides. It has a roller 12 and an annealer 13 disposed directly below the edge roller 12.

The molding section 2 causes the molten glass GM overflowing from the overflow groove 11a of the molded body 11 to flow down along both side surfaces and join together at the lower end to form a film. The edge roller 12 regulates the width direction shrinkage of this molten glass GM and adjusts the width direction dimension of the base material glass film G. The annealer 13 is for performing strain removal processing on the base material glass film G. The annealer 13 has annealer rollers 14 arranged in multiple stages in the vertical direction.

A support roller 15 is disposed below the annealer 13 to sandwich the base glass film G from both the front and back sides. Tension is applied between the support roller 15 and the edge roller 12 or between the support roller 15 and any one of the annealer rollers 14 in order to promote thinning of the base material glass film G. .

The direction changing section 3 is provided below the support roller 15. In the direction changing section 3, a plurality of guide rollers 16 for guiding the base material glass film G are arranged in a curved shape. These guide rollers 16 guide the base material glass film G, which is being conveyed in the vertical direction, in the lateral direction.

The first conveyance section 4 is arranged in front (downstream side) of the direction conversion section 3 in the traveling direction. The first conveyance section 4 conveys the base material glass film G that has passed through the direction changing section 3 to the downstream side along its longitudinal direction by driving a drive section having a support conveyance surface. Note that the first conveyance section 4 can have any configuration, for example, it can be configured with one or more belt conveyors. In this case, the drive unit having a supporting conveyance surface is a belt, and by driving this belt, the base material glass film G can be conveyed in the above-described manner. Of course, the first conveyance section 4 is not limited to the above-mentioned configuration, but may also use a roller conveyor or other various conveyance devices.

The first cutting section 5 is arranged above the first conveying section 4 . In this embodiment, the first cutting section 5 is configured to be able to cut the base material glass film G by laser cutting. Specifically, the first cutting section 5 includes a pair of laser irradiation devices 17a and a pair of cooling devices 17b arranged downstream of the laser irradiation devices 17a. The first cutting section 5 heats a predetermined portion of the base glass film G to be transported by irradiating the laser beam L from each laser irradiation device 17a, and then releases the refrigerant R from the cooling device 17b to heat the heated portion. Cooling.

The first winding section 6 is installed downstream of the first conveying section 4 and the first cutting section 5. The first winding unit 6 winds up the first glass film G1 into a roll by rotating the winding core 18. The first glass roll GRL1 obtained in this way is conveyed to the position of the drawer section 7. The drawer section 7 pulls out the first glass film G1 from the first glass roll GRL1 obtained by the first winding section 6 and supplies it onto the second conveyance section 8 .

The second conveyance section 8 conveys the first glass film G1 pulled out from the first glass roll GRL1 in the drawer section 7 along the lateral direction (hereinafter referred to as the conveyance direction X). Here, the second conveyance section 8 is composed of two conveyors 19 and 20, as shown in FIGS. 2 and 3. In this case, the support and conveyance surface of the second conveyance section 8 is divided at the cutting zone 21 (the area surrounded by the dashed line in FIG. 2) of the first glass film G1 by the second cutting section 9. Thereby, the second conveyance unit 8 includes an upstream conveyor 19 located upstream of the cutting zone 21 in the conveyance direction of the first glass film G1, and a downstream conveyor 20 located downstream of the cutting zone 21 in the conveyance direction. The structure is divided into two parts.

Among these, the upstream conveyor 19 has a plurality of upstream belt conveyors 22. All of these plurality of upstream belt conveyors 22 are configured to be able to contact and support the first glass film G1 in the same direction with a belt (hereinafter referred to as the first belt 23) and to be able to convey it downstream. Here, each of the first belts 23 is, for example, an endless belt-shaped belt, and each of the first belts 23 is arranged in the same height direction so as to hold the first glass film G1 in a substantially horizontal posture over the entire area in contact with the first glass film G1 in the longitudinal direction. set to the position. As a result, a pass line PL (see FIG. 5, etc. described later) of the first glass film G1 along the horizontal direction is formed on the surface 23a of each first belt 23, which serves as a supporting and conveying surface for the first glass film G1. Ru.

Here, as shown in FIG. 3, each upstream belt conveyor 22 includes the above-mentioned endless belt-shaped first belt 23, and the first belt 23 is arranged at a predetermined position while applying tension to the first belt 23. It has a plurality of pulleys 24 for moving the pulleys 24 and a support body 25 that supports the plurality of pulleys 24. The support body 25 is fixed to the floor surface. Further, a drive source 26 such as a motor is connected to a predetermined pulley 24 (drive pulley 24a) among the plurality of pulleys 24 (see FIG. 2), and this drive source 26 applies a driving force to the drive pulley 24a. By providing the first belt 23 of each upstream belt conveyor 22, it is possible to drive the first belt 23 in a predetermined direction.

Further, the plurality of upstream belt conveyors 22 having the above configuration are each installed at a predetermined position in the width direction. Here, assuming that a plurality of types of first glass films G1 having different widthwise dimensions are conveyed on the upstream conveyor 19, contact support is provided at both ends of the assumed first glass films G1 in the widthwise direction. The width direction position of each first belt 23 is set so as to. Moreover, in this embodiment, the upstream belt conveyor 22 is arranged so that all the first glass films G1 can be contacted and supported at the center position in the width direction, regardless of the size of the width direction dimension. (See FIG. 2), this upstream belt conveyor 22 is configured to be able to adsorb the first glass film G1 onto the surface 23a of the first belt 23, which serves as its supporting and conveying surface. In this embodiment, a plurality of holes 23b are formed on the surface 23a of the first belt 23, and by sucking air through the holes 23b, the first glass film G1 can be attracted to the surface 23a.

The downstream conveyor 20 includes a plurality of downstream belt conveyors 27. Each of these plurality of downstream belt conveyors 27 contacts and supports the first glass film G1, that is, the second glass films G2a and G2b after being cut in the same direction with a belt (hereinafter referred to as the second belt 28). Constructed so that it can be transported downstream. Here, each of the second belts 28 is, for example, an endless belt-shaped belt, and each of the second belts 28 has the same height so as to hold the second glass films G2a, G2b in a substantially horizontal posture over the entire area in contact with each other in the longitudinal direction. The horizontal position is set. As a result, the surface 23a of each first belt 23 that serves as a support conveyance surface for the first glass film G1 and the surface 28a of each second belt 28 that serves as a support conveyance surface for the second glass films G2a and G2b in the horizontal direction. The pass line PL before and after cutting the first glass film G1 along the line, that is, the pass line PL by the second conveyance unit 8 is configured.

Here, as shown in FIG. 3, each downstream belt conveyor 27 includes the endless belt-shaped second belt 28 described above, and the second belt 28 is placed at a predetermined position while applying tension to the second belt 28. It has a plurality of pulleys 29 for moving the pulleys 29 and a support body 30 that supports the plurality of pulleys 29. Further, a drive source 31 such as a motor is connected to a predetermined pulley 29 (drive pulley 29a) among the plurality of pulleys 29 (see FIG. 2), and the drive source 31 applies driving force to the drive pulley 29a. By doing so, the second belt 28 of each downstream belt conveyor 27 can be driven in a predetermined direction. This drive source 31 is provided separately and independently from the drive source 26 of the upstream belt conveyor 22. Therefore, it is possible to control the driving of each of the drive sources 26 and 31, as well as the upstream belt conveyor 22 and the downstream belt conveyor 27, individually without interlocking.

Further, the plurality of downstream belt conveyors 27 can be installed at predetermined positions in the width direction, and the position of each second belt 28 is configured to be adjustable in the width direction of the first glass film G1. Specifically, below each downstream belt conveyor 27, a rail portion 32 extending in the width direction of the first glass film G1 is provided. A slide portion 33 that is movable relative to the rail portion 32 is attached to the lower part of the support body 30 that constitutes each downstream belt conveyor 27. As a result, the slide portion 33 of each support body 30 slides in the width direction with respect to the rail portion 32, so that the plurality of pulleys 29 supported by each support body 30 and the second belt 28 supported by these pulleys 29 can be slid together in the width direction. The drive pulleys 29a of each downstream belt conveyor 27 are supported by a common shaft 34 so as to be slidable in the width direction. Therefore, while freely changing the position in the width direction with respect to the shaft 34, it is possible to receive the driving force from the drive source 31 and drive at any position in the width direction.

In this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 2, each second glass film G2a, G2b, which is the first glass film G1 after cutting, is arranged so that the pair of second belts 28 are located near both ends in the width direction. The widthwise position of the two belts 28 (each of the downstream belt conveyors 27) is adjusted. Note that, as in this embodiment, when cutting out two second glass films G2a and G2b from this one first glass film G1 while cutting off both ends in the width direction of the first glass film G1, the downstream Since one side belt conveyor 27 is not required, it is preferable to move the downstream belt conveyor 27 located at the outermost position in the width direction to the evacuation space 35, for example. As a result, the two second glass films G2a, G2b are removed by each two downstream belt conveyors 27 while reliably avoiding a situation where the unnecessary downstream belt conveyor 27 interferes with the second glass films G2a, G2b. At the same time, each downstream belt conveyor 27 supports and conveys the widthwise ends of the cut first glass film G1. In this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 2, the second belts 28 of all the downstream belt conveyors 27 are configured to be capable of adsorbing the second glass films G2a and G2b on their surfaces 28a, which serve as supporting and conveying surfaces. ing. In this embodiment, a plurality of holes 28b are formed on the surface 28a of the second belt 28, and by sucking air through the holes 28b, the second glass films G2a and G2b can be attracted to the surface 28a.

The second cutting section 9 is arranged above a region of the second conveyance section 8 located between the upstream conveyor 19 and the downstream conveyor 20 (see FIGS. 1 and 3). In this embodiment, the second cutting section 9 is configured to be able to cut the first glass film G1 by laser cutting, and includes a plurality of laser irradiation devices 36 and a cooling device 37 arranged downstream of each laser irradiation device 36. and has. In this case, the same number of cooling devices 37 as laser irradiation devices 36 are arranged. In this embodiment, since the cutting zones 21 of the first glass film G1 by the second cutting section 9 are provided at three locations in the width direction (see FIG. 2), three laser irradiation devices 36 and three cooling devices 37 are provided. will be placed. The second cutting section 9 configured as described above heats a predetermined portion of the first glass film G1 to be transported by irradiating the laser beam L from each laser irradiation device 36, and then releases the refrigerant R from the cooling device 37 to heat the predetermined portion of the first glass film G1. It is configured to be able to cool the heated area. Details will be described later.

In addition, in the present embodiment, as shown in FIG. A first fixed plate 38 capable of contacting and supporting is provided. To be precise, the first fixed plate 38 is disposed at a position corresponding to the center side in the width direction of the first glass film G1 (second glass films G2a, G2b) after cutting. In this embodiment, since the two second glass films G2a and G2b are cut out from one first glass film G1, they are positioned in the width direction with respect to the cutting zone 21, and each of the second glass films G2a and G2b A first fixed plate 38 is disposed at a position corresponding to the center in the width direction. Although not shown, these first fixed plates 38 are installed and fixed on the floor and are always in a stationary state.

Here, as shown in FIG. 4, the first fixed plate 38 has a first support surface 39 that can contact and support the first glass film G1, and a first support surface 39 that can suction the first glass film G1 toward the first support surface 39. It has a first suction part 40.

The first fixed plate 38 is made of metal and has a substantially rectangular parallelepiped shape, for example. In this embodiment, the first support surface 39 is constituted by the surface of a sheet member 41 provided above the first fixed plate 38, as shown in FIG. This sheet member 41 is made of a material such as resin that has low resistance when it comes into contact with the first glass film G1, or a material that has good sliding properties with respect to the first glass film G1. In addition, in this embodiment, the first support surface 39 is formed by the surface of the sheet member 41, but of course, the first support surface 39 may be formed by the upper surface of the first fixed plate 38.

Moreover, the height direction position of the first support surface 39 may be the same position as the pass line PL of the first glass film G1, but for example, as shown in FIGS. It may be set higher (for example, within a range of 3 mm). Thereby, the first glass film G1 and the first support surface 39 can be brought into close contact with each other more reliably.

In this embodiment, the first suction unit 40 includes a first intake port 42 that opens to the first support surface 39, a communication space 43 that communicates with the first intake port 42, and a pump that exhausts the inside of the communication space 43. and a connecting pipe 45 (see FIG. 3 for both) that connects the communication space 43 and the exhaust section 44. In this embodiment, the first intake port 42 has a groove shape. Further, the groove-shaped first intake port 42 is formed on the first support surface 39 so as to extend along the longitudinal direction of the first glass film G1, that is, along the conveyance direction (see FIG. 4). The first intake port 42 is formed to penetrate the sheet member 41 and open on the upper surface of the first fixed plate 38 . Further, in this embodiment, both longitudinal ends of the first intake port 42 are open to the side surface of the first fixed plate 38 . Therefore, the openings 42a, 42a at both ends of the first intake port 42 are always open to the external space (outside air).

A plurality of through holes 42b are formed in the bottom surface of the first intake port 42, and are connected to a communication space 43 formed in a support member 46 that supports the first fixed plate 38. In this case, the through hole 42b is formed in the first fixed plate 38, and the communication space 43 is formed in the support member 46. Connecting pipe 45 is attached to support member 46 . For example, the exhaust section 44 is common, and one exhaust section 44 may be connected to the first fixed plate 38 by the same number of connecting pipes 45. Alternatively, a plurality of first fixed plates 38 may be supported by one support member 46 with the communication space 43 in common. In this case, one connecting pipe 45 is attached to one supporting member 46 . According to the first suction section 40 having the above configuration, when the exhaust section 44 is driven, air flows from the first intake port 42 that opens in the first support surface 39 and the both end openings 42a, 42a located at both longitudinal ends thereof. Inhale. Therefore, when the first glass film G1 is conveyed onto the first support surface 39 of the first fixed plate 38, the lower surface of the first glass film G1 is attracted to the first support surface 39 due to the suction operation. .

Moreover, in this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 2, the second surface plate 47 which can contact and support the first glass film G1 is arranged in the cutting zone 21 of the first glass film G1 mentioned above. In this embodiment, since the first glass film G1 is cut at three points in the width direction, three second surface plates 47 are arranged for each of the three cutting zones 21. There is. Although not shown, these second surface plates 47 are installed and fixed on the floor and are always in a stationary state.

Here, as shown in FIG. 7, the second surface plate 47 has a second support surface 48 that can contact and support the first glass film G1, and a second support surface 48 that can suction the first glass film G1 toward the second support surface 48. It has a second suction part 49.

The second surface plate 47 is made of metal and has a substantially rectangular parallelepiped shape, for example. In this embodiment, the second support surface 48 is constituted by the surface of a sheet member 50 provided above the second surface plate 47, as shown in FIG. This sheet member 50 is made of a material such as resin that has low resistance when it comes into contact with the first glass film G1, or a material that has good sliding properties with respect to the first glass film G1. In addition, in this embodiment, the second support surface 48 is formed by the surface of the sheet member 50, but of course, the second support surface 48 may be formed by the upper surface of the second surface plate 47.

Further, the height direction position of the second support surface 48 may be the same as the pass line PL of the first glass film G1, but as shown in FIGS. 8 and 9, for example, the height direction position may be slightly lower than the pass line PL. (for example, within a range of 3 mm). Thereby, the first glass film G1 and the second support surface 48 can be brought into close contact with each other more reliably.

In this embodiment, as shown in FIGS. 8 and 9, the second suction section 49 includes a second intake port 51 that opens to the second support surface 48, and a pair of second intake ports 51 located on both sides of the second intake port 51 in the width direction. , a communication space 53 that communicates with the second intake port 51 and the third intake port 52, 52, an exhaust section 54 such as a pump that exhausts the inside of the communication space 53, and the communication space 53. and a connecting pipe 55 connecting the exhaust section 54 and the exhaust section 54.

In the present embodiment, the second intake port 51 and the third intake port 52 are formed on the second support surface 48 so as to have an elongated hole shape extending along the transport direction X of the first glass film G1. There is. Here, the width direction dimension and longitudinal direction dimension of the second intake port 51 are set to appropriate sizes in consideration of the width direction dimension and longitudinal direction dimension of the third intake port 52. In other words, the size relationship between the above-mentioned dimensions, especially the various dimensions of the second intake port 51 and the various dimensions of the third intake port 52, depending on the required suction force (deformation force) for the first glass film G1. It is best to set it appropriately.

The second air intake port 51 and the pair of third air intake ports 52, 52 configured as described above are formed on the sheet member 50 and the second surface plate 47. These second intake ports 51 and third intake ports 52, 52 are formed to vertically penetrate the sheet member 50 and the second surface plate 47, respectively, and are support members that support the second surface plate 47 from below. It is connected to a communication space 53 formed in 56. In this case, a communication space 53 is formed in the support member 56, and the connecting pipe 55 is attached to the lower side of the support member 56. For example, the exhaust section 54 is common, and one exhaust section 54 may be connected to the second surface plate 47 by the same number of connecting pipes 55. Alternatively, a plurality of second surface plates 47 may be supported by one support member 56 with the communication space 53 in common. In this case, one connecting pipe 55 is attached to one supporting member 56. Further, in this embodiment, a slit portion 57 is formed between the support member 56 and the second surface plate 47, which opens in the width direction of the support member 56 and allows external air to be sucked.

According to the second suction section 49 having the above configuration, the intake air from the second intake port 51 and third intake ports 52, 52 and the slit section 57 which are opened in the second support surface 48 is removed by driving the exhaust section 54. conduct. Therefore, when the first glass film G1 is conveyed onto the second support surface 48 of the second surface plate 47, the lower surface of the first glass film G1 is attracted to the second support surface 48 due to the suction operation. .

Furthermore, when the first suction section 40 and the second suction section 49 are provided with independent exhaust sections 44 and 54 as in this embodiment, it becomes possible to control the suction force individually. For example, the suction force by each suction part 40, 49 is changed so that the suction force of the first glass film G1 by the first suction part 40 is smaller than the suction force of the first glass film G1 by the second suction part 49. It is also possible to individually adjust the exhaust amount by each exhaust section 44, 54. Of course, it is also possible to simplify the structure by using a common exhaust part for the first suction part 40 and the second suction part 49 (not shown).

The laser irradiation device 36 irradiates a predetermined portion of the first glass film G1 moving along the transport direction X with laser light L, thereby locally heating the portion. The laser irradiation device 36 has a plurality of laser irradiation sections 36a, as shown in FIG. Each laser irradiation section 36a is arranged above the second air intake port 51 of the second surface plate 47. Thereby, the laser irradiation unit 36a irradiates the laser beam L to a plurality of locations on the first glass film G1 passing through the second intake port 51 opened in the second support surface 48. The irradiation position O of the laser beam L from each laser irradiation unit 36a is set to be located on a straight line substantially parallel to the conveyance direction X of the first glass film G1.

The cooling device 37 is arranged downstream of the laser irradiation device 36 in the transport direction X of the first glass film G1. The cooling device 37 supplies the refrigerant R to a portion of the first glass film G1 that is locally heated by the irradiation with the laser beam L described above to cool the portion.

A gap forming section 58 is provided on the downstream side of the second conveyance section 8 for forming a widthwise gap between a pair of second glass films G2a and G2b that are adjacent in the widthwise direction. In this embodiment, the gap forming portion 58 is formed by a barrel-shaped support roller 59a having the largest diameter at the center in the width direction, so that the second glass films G2a and G2b are curved and deformed in an upwardly convex direction. 59b. In this embodiment, since two second glass films G2a and G2b are cut out, two support rollers 59a and 59b are provided. Further, in this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 10, a nozzle is provided for blowing gas such as air from above toward both ends in the width direction of each second glass film G2a, G2b supported by support rollers 59a, 59b. 60a and 60b are provided.

The second winding section 10 is arranged downstream of the second conveying section 8. Specifically, the second winding unit 10 obtains second glass rolls GRL2a, GRL2b by winding up the second glass films G2a, G2b transported by the second transport unit 8 using cores 61a, 61b. In this embodiment, two second glass films G2a and G2b are cut out, so by winding up these two second glass films G2a and G2b, respectively, two second glass rolls GRL2a and GRL2b are obtained. It will be done.

As the material of the second glass films G2a and G2b (first glass film G1) manufactured by the manufacturing apparatus 1 having the above configuration, silicate glass and silica glass are used, preferably borosilicate glass, soda lime glass, Aluminosilicate glass and chemically strengthened glass are used, and alkali-free glass is most preferably used. Here, alkali-free glass refers to glass that does not substantially contain alkali components (alkali metal oxides), and specifically, glass in which the weight ratio of alkali components is 3000 ppm or less. be. The weight ratio of the alkali component in the present invention is preferably 1000 ppm or less, more preferably 500 ppm or less, and most preferably 300 ppm or less.

Moreover, the thickness dimension of the second glass films G2a, G2b (first glass film G1) is 10 μm or more and 300 μm or less, preferably 30 μm or more and 200 μm or less, and most preferably 30 μm or more and 100 μm or less.

Hereinafter, a method for manufacturing the second glass films G2a, G2b (second glass rolls GRL2a, GRL2b in this embodiment) using the manufacturing apparatus 1 having the above configuration will be described. This method includes a forming step S1, a both end portion removal step S2, a first winding step S3, a drawing step S4, a cutting step S5, and a second winding step S6.

In the forming step S1, as shown in FIG. 1, the molten glass GM overflowing from the overflow groove 11a of the formed object 11 in the forming section 2 is caused to flow down along both side surfaces of the formed object 11, and are merged at the lower end. Form into a film. At this time, the shrinkage of the molten glass GM in the width direction is controlled by the edge rollers 12 to form the base material glass film G of a predetermined width. Thereafter, the base material glass film G is subjected to strain removal treatment by an annealer 13 (slow cooling step). Due to the tension of the support roller 15, the base material glass film G is formed to have a predetermined thickness.

In the both end portion removal step S2, as also shown in FIG. A part of the base material glass film G is irradiated with laser light L to heat it. After that, the coolant R is sprayed onto the heated region by the cooling device 17b. As a result, thermal stress is generated in the base material glass film G. Initial cracks are formed in the base material glass film G in advance, and these cracks are allowed to develop due to thermal stress. As a result, both ends in the width direction of the base material glass film G are removed, and the first glass film G1 is formed.

In the subsequent first winding step S3, as also shown in FIG. 1, the first glass film G1 is wound around the winding core 18 to obtain the first glass roll GRL1. Thereafter, the first glass roll GRL1 is transferred to the drawer section 7. In the drawing process S4, the first glass film G1 is drawn out from the first glass roll GRL1 transferred to the drawing part 7, and is transported by the second transporting part 8 to the cutting zone 21 on the second transporting part 8 (see FIGS. (see Figure 3).

In the cutting step S5, the portion of the first glass film G1 that passes through the cutting zone 21 on the second conveyance section 8 is irradiated with laser light L by the laser irradiation device 36, and the refrigerant R is sprayed on the irradiated area. Accordingly, the first glass film G1 is cut along the transport direction X. In addition, at this time, the first glass film G1 is transported by the upstream conveyor 19 in the direction along the transport direction (see FIG. 2). Here, by operating the exhaust section 44 of the first suction section 40 (by keeping it always operating), the first glass on the first support surface 39 is passed through the first intake port 42 opened in the first support surface 39. A downward suction force acts on the film G1, and the first glass film G1 is suctioned toward the first support surface 39. Thereby, the first glass film G1 is conveyed along the conveyance direction X while being supported in contact with the first support surface 39 while being subjected to a force (restraint force). Further, depending on the degree of suction force exerted by the first suction unit 40, the suctioned portion of the first glass film G1 is deformed (for example, as shown in FIG. 5, curved deformation in a downwardly convex direction).

Further, in this embodiment, since the second surface plate 47 is disposed in the cutting zone 21, the second surface plate 47 is placed at the same time as the first glass film G1 passes over the cutting zone 21 as described above. (see FIG. 2). Here, by operating the exhaust section 54 of the second suction section 49, the first air intake port on the second support surface 48 passes through the second air intake port 51 opened on the second support surface 48 and the pair of third air intake ports 52, 52. A downward suction force acts on the glass film G1, and the first glass film G1 is suctioned toward the second support surface 48. Thereby, the first glass film G1 is conveyed along the conveyance direction X while being supported in contact with the second support surface 48. Also, depending on the degree of suction force exerted by the second suction unit 49, the suctioned portion of the first glass film G1 may be deformed (for example, as shown in FIG. (curved deformation in the direction).

At this time, the suction force by the first suction section 40 can be adjusted as appropriate by, for example, adjusting the output of the exhaust section 44 and the shape and size of each opening (first intake port 42, both end openings 42a, 42a). Controlled by size. Similarly, the suction force by the second suction section 49 can be adjusted by adjusting the output of the exhaust section 54 and the shape and size of each opening (second intake port 51, third intake port 52, and slit section 57). It is controlled to an appropriate size.

In the adjustment of the suction force described above, when the suction force is increased, the amount of deformation of the first glass film G1 described above increases, while the width of vertical movement of the first glass film G1 tends to decrease. Conversely, when the suction force is decreased, the amount of deformation described above decreases, but the width of the vertical movement tends to increase. Therefore, it is preferable to make the amount of deformation as small as possible within the range of permissible vertical movement.

In the cutting step S5, as described above, the first glass film G1 is sucked onto the first support surface 39 of the first fixed plate 38 and the second support surface 48 of the second surface plate 47 while the second conveyance section 8 (upstream The first glass film G1 is transported in a predetermined transport direction X by the side conveyor 19), and the first glass film G1 is irradiated with a plurality of laser beams L from the laser irradiation section 36a of the laser irradiation device 36 (laser irradiation step). . The laser beam L is irradiated onto a portion of the first glass film G1 that passes over the second air intake port 51 of the second surface plate 47.

By irradiating the laser beam L as described above, the first glass film G1 is heated at the irradiation position O (see FIG. 7). Thereafter, when the heated portion of the first glass film G1 reaches directly below the cooling device 37 located downstream of the second air intake port 51, it is exposed to the refrigerant R injected downward from the cooling device 37. and cooled down. Thermal stress is generated in the first glass film G1 due to expansion due to local heating of the laser irradiation device 36 and contraction due to cooling of the cooling device 37. An initial crack is formed in advance in the first glass film G1 by a means not shown, and by making the initial crack develop using the above-mentioned thermal stress, the first glass film G1 is made continuous at a predetermined position in the width direction. It is cut (cleaved). In this embodiment, by performing the laser cutting described above at three locations in the width direction, both widthwise ends of the first glass film G1 are cut off, and two second glass films each having a predetermined widthwise dimension are cut off. G2a and G2b are cut out (see FIG. 2). These second glass films G2a, G2b are transported by a downstream conveyor 20 located downstream of the cutting zone 21 in the transport direction will be transported towards.

In the second winding step S6, the second glass films G2a and G2b are wound up by the winding cores 61a and 61b arranged at predetermined positions, respectively. Second glass rolls GRL2a, GRL2b are obtained by winding up the second glass films G2a, G2b of a predetermined length.

Further, in this embodiment, since the support rollers 59a and 59b as the gap forming section 58 are disposed between the downstream conveyor 20 and the second winding section 10, passing over each support roller 59a and 59b The second glass film G2 is conveyed to the downstream side while being deformed (in this case, curved in an upwardly convex direction) following the shape of the outer peripheral surface of the support rollers 59a and 59b. As a result, a predetermined gap in the width direction is formed between the second glass films G2a and G2b immediately after cutting (see FIG. 10), so that interference between the cut surfaces is avoided and the respective second winding portions 10 Can be transported.

As explained above, in the method for manufacturing a glass film (second glass films G2a, G2b) according to the present embodiment, the second transport section 8 as a transport device is relatively moved in the transport direction X of the first glass film G1. The upstream conveyor 19 is located on the upstream side of It is composed of a plurality of downstream belt conveyors 27 that can contact and support the second glass films G2a and G2b with two belts 28, and the position of the second belt 28 of each downstream belt conveyor 27 is adjusted in the width direction of the first glass film G1. It can be adjusted to Thereby, the contact support position with the second belt 28 in the width direction of the second glass films G2a, G2b can be freely set without changing the configuration of the upstream conveyor 19 for conveying the first glass film G1. Each downstream belt conveyor 27 can be disposed at an appropriate widthwise position depending on the widthwise position or widthwise dimension of the second glass films G2a, G2b to be obtained by laser cutting. Therefore, with the minimum necessary equipment changes, it is possible to avoid the situation where the second belt 28 comes into contact with a position that is biased to one side in the width direction of the second glass films G2a, G2b, and to prevent the It is possible to prevent poor conveyance of the second glass films G2a, G2b, such as skewing of the glass films G2a, G2b. Moreover, if the second glass films G2a and G2b can be conveyed without being skewed, the cut surface (side end surface) of one of the second glass films G2a adjacent to each other in the width direction will be the cut surface (side end surface) of the other second glass film G2b. Since it is possible to avoid as much as possible the situation of interference with the end surface), it is possible to obtain the second glass films G2a, G2b with good cutting quality.

Moreover, in this embodiment, when obtaining a plurality of second glass films G2a and G2b each having a predetermined width direction dimension by cutting the first glass film G1, the width direction of each second glass film G2a and G2b is The position of the second belt 28 is adjusted depending on the position and width direction dimension. As a result, the second belt 28 can be placed at a position suitable for the position and size of each of the second glass films G2a, G2b to be cut out, so that the skew movement of all the second glass films G2a, G2b to be cut out can be prevented. This makes it possible to stably transport the objects in an accurate direction. In particular, in this embodiment, since the position of the second belt 28 is configured to be adjustable according to the positions of both ends in the width direction of each of the second glass films G2a and G2b, the second glass films G2a and G2b are It can be stably supported by contact. Therefore, it becomes possible to stably transport the second glass films G2a, G2b while suppressing fluctuations such as flapping during transport of the second glass films G2a, G2b.

In addition, in this embodiment, a gap forming part 58 (here, support rollers 59a, 59b) for forming a widthwise gap between any pair of second glass films G2a, G2b adjacent in the widthwise direction, It was arranged to be provided downstream of the downstream conveyor 20 in the conveying direction of the first glass film G1. As a result, the portions of the second glass films G2a and G2b that pass over the support rollers 59a and 59b of the gap forming portion 58 are curved and deformed in an upwardly convex direction. Therefore, even if both ends of the second glass films G2a, G2b in the width direction are supported in contact with each other by the downstream belt conveyor 27 as described above, contact between the second glass films G2a, G2b immediately after cutting can be avoided. It becomes possible to transport each second glass film G2a, G2b safely.

Although the first embodiment of the glass film manufacturing method and manufacturing device according to the present invention has been described above, the manufacturing method and manufacturing device can naturally take any form within the scope of the present invention.

FIG. 11 shows a second embodiment of the method for manufacturing a glass film according to the present invention. That is, in the first embodiment described above, the configuration is illustrated in which the present invention is applied when cutting out two second glass films G2a and G2b from one first glass film G1, but in this embodiment, , illustrates a configuration in which the present invention is applied when cutting out three second glass films G2a, G2b, and G2c from one first glass film G1. That is, in this embodiment, in the manufacturing apparatus 1 shown in FIG. 11, the widthwise position of the downstream belt conveyor 27 is adjusted according to the widthwise position and widthwise dimension of the second glass films G2a to G2c to be cut out. There is. That is, as shown in FIG. 11, the plurality of downstream belt conveyors 27 are configured to be slidable in the width direction along the rail portion 32, and for example, depending on the positions of both widthwise ends of the second glass films G2a to G2c. Thus, the positions of the second belts 28 of the plurality of downstream belt conveyors 27 are adjusted in the width direction.

Further, in this embodiment, the number and widthwise positions of the first fixed plate 38 and the second platen 47 are adjusted according to the widthwise position and widthwise dimension of the second glass films G2a to G2c. Furthermore, the number and widthwise positions of the laser irradiation devices 36 and the cooling devices 37 are adjusted depending on the widthwise positions and widthwise dimensions of the second glass films G2a to G2c. That is, although not shown, the laser irradiation device 36 and the cooling device 37 are arranged on each second surface plate 47 after position adjustment.

In addition, when providing the gap forming part 58 between the downstream conveyor 20 and the second winding part 10, as shown in FIG. Accordingly, support rollers 59a to 59c with appropriate widthwise dimensions are arranged at appropriate widthwise positions.

In this way, by adjusting the position of the downstream belt conveyor 27 in the width direction according to the width direction position and width direction dimension of the second glass films G2a to G2c, the second glass film G2a can be spread evenly in the width direction. It can be supported and transported in position. Therefore, even if the number of second glass films G2a to G2c to be cut out or the width direction dimensions are changed, the situation where the second belt 28 comes into contact with a position biased to one side in the width direction can be avoided and the corresponding It is possible to prevent poor conveyance of the second glass films G2a to G2c, such as skewing of the second glass films G2a to G2c due to uneven contact positions.

Further, in the embodiment described above, the positions of the plurality of downstream belt conveyors 27 are set in the width direction so that the second glass films G2a and G2b cut out from the first glass film G1 can be contacted and supported near both ends in the width direction. Although the case of adjustment has been illustrated (see FIGS. 2 and 11), it is of course possible to adopt other arrangement modes. FIG. 12 shows an example (third embodiment of the present invention). In this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 12, the plurality of downstream belt conveyors 27 are configured to be slidable in the width direction along the rail portion 32, and at least part of the second glass films G2a to G2c is The positions of the second belts 28 of the two corresponding pairs of downstream belt conveyors 27 are adjusted in the width direction according to the widthwise center positions of the second glass films G2a, G2c.

By adjusting the position of the downstream belt conveyor 27 in the width direction in this way, the corresponding second glass films G2a and G2c can be supported in contact with each other at the center position in the width direction. In this case, since the second glass films G2a and G2c are curved and deformed into a shape (a shape that is convex upward) with both ends in the width direction hanging down compared to the center in the width direction, the second glass films G2a (G2c ), it becomes possible to convey each of the second glass films G2a to G2c downstream while avoiding contact between the cut surfaces of G2b.

Further, in the above embodiment, the second surface plate 47 is arranged in the cutting zone 21 of the first glass film G1, and the first fixed plate 38 is arranged at a position apart from the cutting zone 21 in the width direction. Although the example is given, it is of course not limited to this. If it does not seem to have a large effect on laser cutting, a third conveyor (not shown) may be arranged so that the supporting conveyance surface passes through the cutting zone 21, and the first platen 38 and the third conveyor At least one of the two surface plates 47 may be omitted.

Moreover, the support conveyance surface of the conveyance device (second conveyance unit 8) does not necessarily need to be divided at a position corresponding to the cutting zone 21 in the conveyance direction X. For example, the support conveyance surface of the second conveyance section 8 may be separated at a position shifted downstream from the cutting zone 21 in the conveyance direction X.

In addition, in the above description, the case where the upstream side conveyor 19 and the downstream side conveyor 20, which are formed by dividing the second conveying unit 8 as a conveying device in the cutting zone 21, are both configured as belt conveyors has been exemplified, but of course other cases are possible. It is also possible to take the form of For example, it is also possible to configure the upstream conveyor 19 with a roller conveyor or other various conveying devices.

In addition, in the above explanation, the case where two (or three) second glass films G2a, G2b (G2a to G2c) are cut out from one first glass film G1 is illustrated, but of course, the width direction dimension It is also possible to apply the present invention when cutting out one different second glass film G2a, and it is also possible to apply the present invention when cutting out four or more second glass films G2a...

In addition, in the above explanation, the case where the present invention is applied to the first glass film G1 obtained by cutting both ends in the width direction of the base material glass film G with the first cutting section 5 has been explained. The present invention may be applied to cutting the glass film G by the first cutting section 5. In this case, the present invention can be implemented by the first conveyance section 4 having the same configuration as the second conveyance section 8 shown in FIG. 2 and the like.

Further, in the above explanation, the case where the present invention is applied to the first glass film G1 having a band shape has been explained, but of course it is also possible to apply the present invention to the first glass film G1 having a shape other than this. . That is, although not shown, it is also possible to apply the present invention to sheet glass (glass film) in the form of rectangular or other sheets. Further, the second glass film G2a obtained by cutting does not necessarily have to be wound up into a roll. In other words, it is also possible to apply the present invention to the manufacturing process of the second glass film G2a without winding it up into a roll.

1 Manufacturing device 2 Molding section 3 Direction changing section 4 First conveying section 5 First cutting section 6 First winding section 7 Drawer section 8 Second conveying section 9 Second cutting section 10 Second winding section 11 Molded object 17a Laser Irradiation device 17b Cooling device 19 Upstream conveyor 20 Downstream conveyor 21 Cutting zone 22 Upstream belt conveyors 23, 28 Belts 26, 31 Drive source 27 Downstream belt conveyor 32 Rail section 33 Slide section 35 Evacuation space 36 Laser irradiation device 37 Cooling Device 38 First fixed plate 39 First support surface 40 First suction parts 41, 50 Sheet member 42 First intake ports 42a, 42a Both end openings 42b Through holes 43, 53 Communication spaces 44, 54 Exhaust parts 45, 55 Connection pipe 46, 56 Support member 47 Second surface plate 48 Second support surface 49 Second suction section 51 Second intake port 52 Third intake port 57 Slit section 58 Gap forming section 59a, 59b, 59c Support rollers 60a, 60b Nozzle G Mother Material glass film G1 First glass film G2a, G2b, G2c Second glass film GM Molten glass GRL1 First glass roll GRL2a, GRL2b, GRL2c Second glass roll L Laser light PL Pass line R Refrigerant

Claims (12)

A method for producing a glass film in which one or more secondary glass films are obtained by cutting a belt-shaped primary glass film while transporting it in a predetermined direction with a transport device, the method comprising:
The cutting of the primary glass film is performed by irradiating the primary glass film with a laser in a predetermined cutting zone using a laser cutting device, and
The conveyance device includes an upstream conveyor located relatively upstream in the conveyance direction of the primary glass film, and an upstream conveyor relatively located downstream in the conveyance direction of the primary glass film and capable of conveying the secondary glass film. It consists of a downstream conveyor,
The downstream conveyor is composed of a plurality of downstream belt conveyors that can contact and support the secondary glass film with a belt, and
The position of the belt of each of the downstream belt conveyors is configured to be adjustable in the width direction of the primary glass film so that each of the plurality of secondary glass films can be supported by a dedicated downstream belt conveyor. A method for producing a glass film, characterized in that: The laser cutting device has a plurality of laser irradiation parts,
The method for manufacturing a glass film according to claim 1, wherein the position of each of the laser irradiation parts is configured to be adjustable in the width direction of the primary glass film. Obtaining a plurality of secondary glass films each having a predetermined width direction dimension by cutting the primary glass film,
The method for manufacturing a glass film according to claim 1, wherein the position of the belt is adjusted depending on the widthwise position and widthwise dimension of each of the secondary glass films. Obtaining a plurality of secondary glass films each having a predetermined width direction dimension by cutting the primary glass film,
The method for manufacturing a glass film according to claim 2, wherein the position of the belt and the position of the laser irradiation section are adjusted depending on the width direction position and width direction dimension of each of the secondary glass films. The method for manufacturing a glass film according to claim 3 or 4, wherein the position of the belt is adjusted depending on the center position in the width direction of each of the secondary glass films. The method for manufacturing a glass film according to claim 3 or 4, wherein the position of the belt is adjusted depending on the positions of both ends in the width direction of each of the secondary glass films. A gap forming part for forming a widthwise gap between any one set of the secondary glass films adjacent in the width direction is provided on the downstream side of the downstream conveyor in the conveying direction of the primary glass film. The method for producing a glass film according to any one of claims 3 to 6. The gap forming section includes barrel-shaped support rollers having the largest diameter at the center in the width direction, in the same number as the secondary glass films, so that each of the secondary glass films is curved and deformed in an upwardly convex direction. The method for manufacturing a glass film according to claim 7. The method for manufacturing a glass film according to any one of claims 1 to 8, wherein at least a portion of the plurality of downstream belt conveyors is configured to be able to attract the secondary glass film toward the belt. The upstream conveyor is composed of a plurality of upstream belt conveyors that can contact and support the primary glass film with a belt, and among the plurality of upstream belt conveyors, the upstream conveyor is located at the center in the width direction of the primary glass film. The method for producing a glass film according to any one of claims 1 to 9, wherein the belt conveyor is configured to be able to attract the primary glass film toward the belt. A glass roll is obtained by winding up the secondary glass film obtained by the method according to any one of claims 1 to 10 into a roll using a winding device located downstream of the downstream conveyor in the conveying direction. A method of manufacturing a glass roll. A glass film manufacturing apparatus for obtaining one or more secondary glass films by cutting a belt-shaped primary glass film while conveying it in a predetermined direction,
a conveying device capable of conveying the primary glass film in a predetermined direction;
a laser cutting device capable of irradiating the primary glass film being transported by the transporting device with a laser and cutting it in a predetermined cutting zone;
The conveyance device includes an upstream conveyor located relatively upstream in the conveyance direction of the primary glass film, and an upstream conveyor relatively located downstream in the conveyance direction of the primary glass film and capable of conveying the secondary glass film. It consists of a downstream conveyor,
The downstream conveyor is composed of a plurality of downstream belt conveyors that can contact and support the secondary glass film with a belt, and
The position of the belt of each of the downstream belt conveyors is configured to be adjustable in the width direction of the primary glass film so that each of the plurality of secondary glass films can be supported by the dedicated downstream belt conveyor. A glass film manufacturing device characterized by:

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