JPH03211276A - Vacuum treating device - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To continuously treat a work in a vacuum state by providing a means for detecting a slit-shapes sealing spacing, etc., and utilizing the attraction force of an electromagnet by the signal from this means, by which the slit spacing can be adjusted. CONSTITUTION:This vacuum treating device is disposed with prevacuum chambers 2, 3 on the front and rear sides of a vacuum treating chamber 1. The treating device is sealed continuously from the outside by a sealing device 13 at the time when the work F is transported. The means 6 for detecting the film thickness of the work is provided on the feed side and the thickness of the work F is detected. A control means is operated by the detection signal thereof and the spacing of the above-mentioned sealing device 13 is adjusted by the attraction force of the electromagnet 15. A position detecting means 14 which detects the spacing of this sealing device is provided and the spacing is so controlled that always the prescribed seal spacing is attained.

Description

[Detailed description of the invention] [Industrial application field] The present invention is applicable to plastic molded products, for example.

The present invention relates to a sealing device for an apparatus that continuously performs plasma processing on objects to be processed such as PET films and synthetic fibers in a vacuum state.

[Conventional technology]

The conventional device is disclosed in Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 62-4866 and Japanese Patent Application No. 1983.
As described in Japanese Patent Application No. 0-141506, a seal plate in a seal box is raised and lowered by a stepping motor via a rotary drive shaft to open and close a cast.

[Problem to be solved by the invention]

In order to prevent deterioration of the surface properties of the workpiece, a non-contact sealing method is required, and the seal gap should be as small as possible.

As a method of controlling this seal gap, the thickness of the object to be processed is detected on the loading side, and a stepping motor is rotated based on the signal to control the gap between the sealing devices.

In systems that use a stepping motor, the equipment is large in order to secure space to install the stepping motor, and the column integrated with the seal block is moved up and down via a ball screw and nut to remove the cast. Although adjustments were made, it took a lot of time to ensure the perpendicularity of the seal block and column, and to assemble the ball screw and nuts.

[Means to solve the problem]

The above object is to provide a detection means for detecting the thickness of an object to be processed and a detection means for detecting a slit-shaped seal gap, a control means for controlling the gap between the slits based on a signal from the detection means, and a control means for controlling the gap between the slits based on a signal from the detection means. This is achieved by using the suction force of an electromagnet as a means for moving the slit gap in response to a signal from the slit.

[Effect]

To detect the thickness of the workpiece, a non-contact means for detecting the thickness of the workpiece is provided on the front side of the sealing device, and a control means that levitates the seal block based on the signal controls the gap between the slit-shaped sealing devices.

An electromagnet is used as a control means to levitate this seal block.

Further, the position of the seal block is detected by the gap detection means of the slit-shaped seal device, and the gap is controlled so that the gap is always the optimum gap, which is the sum of the signal from the gap detection means and a predetermined optimum seal gap.

As a result, the gap between the slit-shaped sealing devices becomes optimal according to the thickness of the workpiece, and it becomes possible to transport workpieces of various thicknesses.

〔Example〕

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

In FIG. 4, reference numeral 1 denotes a vacuum equipment chamber in which a workpiece F is subjected to continuous plasma processing in a vacuum state, and 2 denotes a plurality of preliminary vacuum chambers arranged at the front side of the vacuum processing chamber 1.

Reference numeral 3 designates a plurality of pre-vacuum chambers arranged at the rear of the vacuum processing chamber 1, and the vacuum processing chamber is evacuated via an exhaust conduit 4 to maintain a vacuum pressure of approximately 10-3 Torr by a vacuum pump connected to the vacuum processing chamber. Exhausted.

The preliminary vacuum chambers 2 and 3 are connected to the vacuum pumps 5 through which the exhaust conduits 6 are maintained to maintain a vacuum that is slightly higher than the vacuum pressure in the vacuum processing chamber 1 and gradually lowers than the atmospheric pressure.
It is evacuated through.

The workpiece F is sent out from the unwinding shaft 7 and sent to the front preliminary vacuum chamber 2 via a guide roll 8 that controls the tension of the workpiece in the front preliminary vacuum chamber. At the entrance of the front preliminary vacuum chamber 2, the thickness of the object to be processed is detected by a thickness detecting means 1b provided therein.

Thereafter, the object to be processed F is sent to the vacuum processing chamber 1 via the front preliminary vacuum chamber 2, where it is subjected to plasma processing. The plasma-treated workpiece F passes through the preliminary vacuum chamber 3 on the rear side,
The film is wound up on a winding shaft 10 via a guide roll 9 that controls the tension in the rear preliminary vacuum chamber.

FIG. 1 shows the main parts of the sealing device constituting the preliminary vacuum chambers 2 and 3 and the configuration of the sealing device system. FIG. 2 is a cross section taken along the line AA in FIG. 1.

11 is an upper case, 12 is a lower case, and 13 is a seal block guided by the lower case, and the workpiece F is conveyed between the slits formed by the upper case 11 and the seal block 13 without contacting them.

Reference numeral 15 denotes an electromagnet, and by controlling the electromagnetic force generated by the electromagnet, the seal block 13 is moved upward and downward.

Reference numeral 14 denotes a position detection means for indirectly measuring the slit gap formed between the upper case 11 and the seal block 13.

Guide rollers 20 and 21 guide the workpiece to the seal box with an appropriate tension depending on the thickness of the workpiece. 20' and 21' are pressure means for generating appropriate tension.

Signals from the slit gap detection means 14 formed by the thickness detection means 1b of the workpiece, the upper case 11 and the seal block 13, and the guide roller pressure means 20'21' are input to the computing unit 18 and sent to the controller 19. Power is outputted to the electromagnet via the amplifier 19 so as to provide the optimum sealing gap depending on the thickness of the object to be processed.

Regarding the structure of the electromagnet, the number of windings, etc. are determined so that the characteristics of the attraction force generated by the stroke of the seal gap and the excitation shown in FIG. 3 can be most easily controlled.

Next, the operation of the present invention will be explained.

Enter the required seal gap into the calculator, and enter the third seal gap into the controller.
Input the relationship between the absorption force generated by the excitation power and the seal gap, which is a characteristic of the electromagnet shown in the figure.

The thickness of the workpiece F conveyed from the unwinding shaft is measured by the detection means 1b located in front of the seal block, and the measured signal is sent to the computing unit 17.

At this point, the electromagnet is not energized and the seal block 13 has fallen downward.

The calculator 17 outputs a signal to the controller 18 so that the slit gap formed by the upper case 11 and the seal block 13 becomes the sum of the required seal gap and the thickness of the object to be processed, which have been input in advance. The device 18 is a power amplifier 19
Send excitation power to the electromagnet through the seal block 13
is floated by electromagnetic force to form the required seal gap.

The upper and lower seal gaps are controlled to be equal by sending an output signal from the controller 18 to guide roller positioning means 20' and 21'.

Changes in the seal gap due to changes in the thickness of the workpiece F, thermal expansion during operation, etc. are measured by the seal gap indirect detection means 14, and the signals are sent to the computer 172 and the controller 1.
8 and is controlled to always maintain a predetermined sealing gap.

With these, the delicate position of the seal block 13 is automatically set according to the thickness of the workpiece F so that the seal block 13 does not come into contact with the workpiece F and always maintains a predetermined sealing performance. becomes possible.

〔Effect of the invention〕

According to the present invention, compared to a method in which the slit gap of a slit-shaped seal device is adjusted using a stepping motor or the like, there is no need for a drive device that converts the rotational movement of the stepping motor into vertical linear movement of the seal block. The work is made easier and there is no need to seal the drive section, so the sealing performance of the vacuum device is significantly improved.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a longitudinal sectional view of a sealing device according to an embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a sectional view taken along line AA in FIG. FIG. 4 is a longitudinal sectional view of the vacuum continuous processing apparatus. F...Processed object, 11...Upper case, 12...Lower case, 13...Seal block, 15...Electromagnet, 14°16...Detection means, 17...Calculation means ,1
8... Control means, 19... Amplification means, 20.21.
...Guide rollers, 20', 21'...Guide roller positioning means.

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. In a vacuum continuous processing apparatus having at least one pre-vacuum chamber disposed on each side of the vacuum processing chamber at the front and rear sides thereof, and having a slit-shaped sealing device for transporting the workpiece and sealing the vacuum processing chamber from the outside, As a means of controlling the gap in a slit-shaped seal device,
A film thickness detection means for the processed material is provided on the carry-in side, and an electromagnet is provided as a means for controlling the gap of the slit-shaped sealing device based on a signal from the detection device, and the gap of the slit-shaped sealing device is controlled by the suction force of the electromagnet. A continuous vacuum processing apparatus characterized in that a position detection means is provided for adjusting and detecting a gap between the slit-shaped sealing devices.