JPH0720480A - Method and device for injecting liquid crystal and method and device for sealing liquid crystal - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To provide a liquid crystal injecting which can prevents a cell gap from becoming wide at method the time of liquid crystal injection in the manufacture of a liquid crystal panel. CONSTITUTION:The surfaces of the 1st substrate and 2nd substrate of the structure body 21 formed by sticking the 1st substrate 11 and 2nd substrate 13 together with a seal material 19 while a specific gap 15 is maintained between those substrates are brought into contact with the gas atmosphere in a pressurized chamber 103 which is settable to optional pressure. Liquid crystal 23 is injected into the gap 15 while the pressure in the pressurized chamber 103 is controlled to pressure which can stops the widening of the interval between both the substrates 11 and 13 due to the injection of the liquid crystal 23 into the gap 15 and holds the interval at a permissible value.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a method for manufacturing a liquid crystal display device, and more particularly to a liquid crystal injection method and a device suitable for use therein, a liquid crystal sealing method and a device suitable for use therein.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art A liquid crystal panel is widely used as a simple display device and is expected as one of the promising candidates for a display device to replace a CRT (cathode ray tube). As a conventional general method for manufacturing such a liquid crystal panel, for example, Document I (“Latest Liquid Crystal Technology” Industrial Research Group (1984.
1) pp. 156-167). Figure 7
(A)-(D) is a figure offered for the description. In particular, it is a diagram showing a liquid crystal injection step and a step of sealing a liquid crystal injection hole in this conventional method.

In this method, a first substrate 11 and a second substrate 13 for a liquid crystal panel, in which an electrode, a liquid crystal driving element, an alignment film (all not shown), etc. are formed on a glass substrate, The sealing material 19 is used to bond the substrates in a state in which the predetermined space 15 is maintained (generally, the space 15 forms the space 15). As a result, the structure 21 to be the liquid crystal injection target is obtained (FIG.
(A)). However, the liquid crystal injection hole 21a is formed in a part of the structure 21 by, for example, providing a portion where the sealing material is not applied in the step of applying the sealing material. The above-mentioned pasting is performed by the method disclosed in the above-mentioned Document I or, for example, the document “Electronic Materials” published by the Industrial Research Institute of the applicant of this application, December 1992, pp. 57-5
This can be performed by the method called the optical pressing method disclosed in 8). The latter uses an ultraviolet curing adhesive as the sealing material 19,
In this method, the sealing material 19 is cured by irradiating ultraviolet rays while pressing the first and second substrates 11 and 13 with a pressure plate (one pressure plate is a quartz plate).

Next, the void 1 of the structure 21 to be injected with the liquid crystal.
The inside of 5 and the liquid crystal 23 prepared to be injected into this space are vacuum-degassed by the exhaust means 25 (FIG. 7 (A)). In FIG. 7A, 23 a is a tank for containing the liquid crystal 23, and 27 is a processing chamber for injecting the liquid crystal 23 into the void 15 of the structure 21. After that, the structure body 21 to be injected with the liquid crystal is moved so that the liquid crystal injection hole 21 a thereof comes into contact with the liquid crystal 25 ((B)). The evacuation of the processing chamber 27 is ended at an appropriate time. Liquid crystal injection hole 21a
When it comes into contact with liquid crystal 3, the liquid crystal is injected into the void 15 to some extent according to the capillary phenomenon (FIG. 7 (B)).

Next, a sufficiently dried inert gas such as argon gas or nitrogen gas is introduced into the processing chamber 27 from the gas supply means 29, and the pressure of this inert gas is utilized to make the first and second substrates. The space 15 is filled with liquid crystal (FIG. 7C).

Thereafter, the liquid crystal injection hole 21a is closed (sealed) by a suitable sealing material 19a (FIG. 7).
(D)). This completes the liquid crystal injection and the liquid crystal injection hole sealing.

By the way, in the above-mentioned liquid crystal injection method, when the liquid crystal is injected into the space between the first and second substrates, these substrates are not specially pressed, so that the first and second liquid crystal are injected. The distance between the second substrates may become wider than the allowable value (indicated by a broken line in FIG. 7C).
This is particularly noticeable when STN type liquid crystal is used as the liquid crystal. If the liquid crystal injection hole is sealed while the distance between the first and second substrates is wider than the permissible value, a liquid crystal panel in which the substrate distance is deviated from the permissible value is produced and the desired characteristics cannot be obtained. The risk of becoming extremely high. In order to prevent this, conventionally, after the liquid crystal injection is completed and before the liquid crystal injection hole is sealed, the sample (a laminated body when a plurality of the samples are laminated with a spacer) is used for the first and second samples. There is a method in which pressure is applied from the substrate surface with a pressure plate such as a pressure roller to correct the distance between the first and second substrates, remove excess liquid crystal from the void, and then seal the liquid crystal injection hole. (For example, a fully automatic pressure sealing device K-STF- which is already commercially available by the applicant of this application.
Refer to the catalog of 1).

[0008]

However, it is inefficient to provide the step of pressurizing the sample after the liquid crystal injection and before sealing the liquid crystal injection hole. In addition, since excess liquid crystal overflowing from the voids due to pressure adheres to the periphery of the liquid crystal injection hole, it is necessary to remove it, which is also not preferable. It also causes the liquid crystal to be wasted. As a method of preventing this, for example, the structure 21 shown in FIG. 7 is injected with a liquid crystal while being pressed by a plate material (not shown) so as to sandwich the first substrate 11 and the second substrate 13. A method can be considered. In addition, if a large amount of processing is considered, a large number of the structures 21 shown in FIG. 7 may be directly laminated or may be laminated via spacers and pressed from both ends of this laminated body (not shown) with, for example, a plate material. A method of injecting liquid crystal into the voids 15 of each structure 21 in this state is conceivable. However, in the method of pressing the first and second substrates of the structure with a solid member such as a plate material, the process of laminating a large number of structures 21 becomes complicated, especially when considering a large amount of processing, and further, each structure It is considered difficult to pressurize the body uniformly.

On the other hand, it is not possible to inject the liquid crystal in a state where the structure 21 is pressed by, for example, a plate material so as to sandwich the first substrate 11 and the second substrate 13, and the liquid crystal injection hole is formed after the liquid crystal is injected. If the sample is pressed before sealing and the inter-substrate spacing is corrected or excess liquid crystal is removed, the conventional method in which pressure is applied by a solid member such as a plate material or a roller is used especially for a large number of samples. When the treatments are performed at one time, a large number of structures 21 are stacked and pressed. Therefore, there are problems that the process is complicated and it is difficult to uniformly press each structure 21.

This application has been made in view of such a point, and therefore, an object of the first invention of this application is to maintain the spacing between the first and second substrates while allowing the injection of the liquid crystal at an allowable value. Another object of the present invention is to provide a liquid crystal injection method which can be performed by an industrial method. The second invention of this application is to provide a liquid crystal injection device suitable for carrying out the first invention. In addition, the third invention of this application is to make correction of this sample more easily and industrially than before when a sample with a liquid crystal injected has a widened substrate gap (cell bulge). It is to provide a method capable of sealing. A fourth invention of this application is to provide a liquid crystal sealing device suitable for carrying out the third invention.

[0011]

In order to achieve this object, according to the liquid crystal injection method of the first invention of this application, the first substrate and the second substrate are maintained with a predetermined gap between these substrates. Injecting liquid crystal into the voids of the structure formed by bonding with a sealing material in a state through a liquid crystal injection hole provided in a part of the structure, the first contact with the outer surface of the structure At least one of the substrate and the second substrate surface is brought into contact with a gas atmosphere which can be set to an arbitrary pressure and constitutes an independent system, and the pressure of the gas atmosphere causes the liquid crystal to flow in the gap. The liquid crystal is injected while controlling the pressure so as to prevent the expansion of the space between the first and second substrates due to the injection and maintain the space at an allowable value. And

In the embodiment of the first invention, in the case where one of the first substrate surface and the second substrate surface is brought into contact with a gas atmosphere, the other substrate surface is a plate material (such as a wall of the pressurizing chamber). (Including also)) is used. However, it is considered preferable to bring both the first substrate surface and the second substrate surface into contact with the gas atmosphere because the advantage of using a gas can be more easily obtained (see the following The same in the second to fourth inventions).

Further, according to the second invention of this application, the gap of the structure constituted by bonding the first substrate and the second substrate with a sealing material while maintaining a predetermined gap between these substrates. In a device for injecting liquid crystal through a liquid crystal injection hole provided in a part of the structure, the void is provided in at least one of the first substrate and the second substrate surface which is an outer surface of the structure. Means for contacting a gas atmosphere exhibiting a pressure that prevents the expansion of the first and second substrate gaps due to the injection of liquid crystals into them and maintains the gaps at an acceptable value (hereinafter It may be abbreviated as "gas atmosphere contacting means").

In carrying out the second aspect of the present invention, the means for bringing at least one of the first and second substrate surfaces into contact with a gas atmosphere is a pressurizing chamber capable of arbitrarily setting an internal pressure, The liquid crystal injection hole is preferably a pressure chamber for accommodating the structure in a state of being connected to the outside of the pressure chamber (the liquid crystal injection hole itself may be outside the pressure chamber).

Further, according to the liquid crystal sealing method of the third invention of this application, the first substrate and the second substrate are pasted together by a sealing material while maintaining a predetermined gap between these substrates, Liquid crystal is injected into the void through the liquid crystal injection hole,
Then, in the method of sealing the liquid crystal injection hole, at least one of the first substrate and the second substrate surface, which is the outer surface of the structure in which liquid crystal has been injected, is placed in a gas atmosphere in which an arbitrary pressure can be set. The expansion of the gap between the first and second substrates brought into contact with each other when the liquid crystal is injected is corrected by the pressure of the gas atmosphere, and then the liquid crystal injection hole is sealed.

According to the fourth invention of this application, the liquid crystal injection hole used for the liquid crystal injection of the structure in which the liquid crystal is injected into the space provided between the first substrate and the second substrate is sealed. In the liquid crystal sealing device, a pressurizing chamber for pressurizing at least one of the first substrate surface and the second substrate surface, the internal pressure can be set arbitrarily, and the liquid crystal injection hole is A pressure chamber for accommodating the structure in a state of being connected to the outside of the pressure chamber is provided.

[0017]

According to the structure of the first aspect of the present invention, one or both of the first and second substrates are pressed from their respective outer surfaces with gas so that the distance between the substrates becomes an allowable value, and Since the liquid crystal is injected into the void, a sample in which the distance between the substrates is set to an allowable value and the liquid crystal injection amount is appropriate at the time when the injection is finished can be obtained. Therefore, it is not necessary to provide a pressurizing step for adjusting the distance between the substrates after the liquid crystal is injected. Further, since the pressurizing step after the liquid crystal is injected is unnecessary, the risk of the liquid crystal adhering to the vicinity of the liquid crystal injection hole is reduced.

Further, in the first aspect of the present invention, since the substrate surface is pressurized by the gas, it is considered that the pressure control at the time of pressurization and the pressure release can be performed delicately as compared with the case of pressing the substrate surface with the solid material. It is considered that the uniformity of pressurization is further increased. Further, when a large number of samples are pressurized, for example, these samples may be placed in the pressurizing chamber and the liquid crystal injection holes of each sample may be connected to the outside of the pressurizing chamber (the liquid crystal injection holes themselves may be outside the pressurizing chamber). ), It is possible to easily pressurize at once by storing, so that it is easy to process a large amount.

According to the structure of the second invention, the liquid crystal injection method of the first invention can be easily carried out.

Further, according to the structure of the third invention, the gap between the substrates of the sample, which has been widened due to the liquid crystal injection after the liquid crystal injection is completed, is caused by the gas pressure. Will be fixed. Further, the liquid crystal excessively injected into the void is pushed out of the void by the above correction by the gas pressure. Also, since the gas pressure is used, it is considered that pressure control during pressurization and pressure release can be performed delicately compared to the case where the distance between the substrates is corrected by a pressure plate or a pressure roller, and the pressurization It is considered that the uniformity is enhanced. Further, when a large number of samples are pressurized, for example, these samples may be placed in the pressurizing chamber and the liquid crystal injection holes of each sample may be connected to the outside of the pressurizing chamber (the liquid crystal injection holes themselves may be outside the pressurizing chamber). ), It is possible to easily pressurize at once by storing, so that it is easy to process a large amount.

According to the structure of the fourth invention, the liquid crystal sealing method of the third invention can be easily carried out.

[0022]

Embodiments of the first and second inventions and embodiments of the third and fourth inventions will be described below with reference to the drawings. However, the drawings used for the description schematically show the shapes, dimensions, and arrangement relationships of the respective constituents to the extent that these inventions can be understood. In addition, in each of the drawings used in the following description, the same components are denoted by the same reference numerals. In addition, redundant description of those similar components may be omitted. In each of the following embodiments, an example is shown in which both the first and second substrates are pressed from their outer side surfaces.

1. Description of Embodiments of First and Second Inventions 1-1. First Embodiment of First and Second Inventions FIGS. 1A to 1C and 2A to 2C are diagrams for explaining a first embodiment of the first and second inventions. . Specifically, it is a process diagram showing the states of the sample and the liquid crystal injection device in the main steps of the step of injecting liquid crystal by the method of the first invention.

First, a structure constituted by adhering a first substrate and a second substrate with a sealing material while maintaining a predetermined space between these substrates, that is, a structure for liquid crystal injection is prepared. This manufacturing method is not particularly limited. For example, as described in the section of the related art, the structure 21 to be the liquid crystal injection target is manufactured by the method disclosed in Document I or Document II (FIG. 1A).

Next, the outer surfaces of the first substrate 11 and the second substrate 13, which are the outer surfaces of the structure 21 to be injected with liquid crystal, are set in a gas atmosphere in which an arbitrary pressure can be set, and independent systems are formed. Contact with the constituent gas atmosphere. This
In this embodiment, a pressurizing means 101, a pressurizing chamber 103 connected to the pressurizing means 101, and a pressure adjusting mechanism provided between the pressurizing means 101 and the pressurizing chamber 103 and capable of arbitrarily setting the internal pressure of the pressurizing chamber 103. Gas atmosphere contacting means 1 composed of 105
09 (see FIG. 1A). However, in this case, the pressurizing chamber 103 is a trunk-like box body that can be opened / closed (an example of a large number is shown in FIG. 3), and liquid crystal injection of the first and second substrates 11 and 13 is performed. The box body 103b has a notch 103a for exposing the end on the side where the hole 21a is provided, and an airtight holding member (packing) 103c provided in the notch 103a. In the configuration of the pressure chamber 103 in this case, the liquid crystal injection hole 21a is exposed to the outside of the pressure chamber 103. The gas atmosphere contact means 107 is one component of the liquid crystal injection device 109 (see FIG. 1B) of the second embodiment of the invention. The liquid crystal injection device 109 according to this embodiment includes a tank 23a for containing liquid crystal, a processing chamber 27, an exhaust unit 25 for exhausting the processing chamber, a gas supply unit 29 for supplying gas into the processing chamber, and the above gas atmosphere. The contact means 107 is provided. However, the configuration of the liquid crystal injection device 109 is merely an example. Further, the configuration of the pressurizing chamber 103 is not limited to this example. For example, the pressurizing chamber is a structure 2 to which liquid crystal is injected.
1 may be completely housed inside, and the liquid crystal injection hole 21a may be connected to the outside of the pressurizing chamber by a suitable connecting member.

Next, the void 1 of the structure 21 to be injected with the liquid crystal.
In order to evacuate the inside of the chamber 5 and the liquid crystal 23 under vacuum, the inside of the processing chamber 27 is exhausted by the exhaust means 25 (FIG. 1 (B)). In addition,
This exhaust may be performed under conditions such that the void 15 has a predetermined negative pressure suitable for liquid crystal injection and the liquid crystal 23 is degassed as desired. Next, the structure body 21 to which the liquid crystal is injected is moved so that the liquid crystal injection hole 21a contacts the liquid crystal 23 (FIG. 1C). The evacuation of the processing chamber 27 ends at an appropriate time. When the liquid crystal injection hole 21a is brought into contact with the liquid crystal, the liquid crystal is injected into the void 15 to some extent according to the capillary phenomenon (FIG. 1 (C)).

Next, as shown in FIG. 2A, a sufficiently dried inert gas such as argon gas or nitrogen gas is introduced into the processing chamber 27 from the gas supply means 29. The liquid crystal 23 is pressurized by the pressure of this inert gas, while the inside of the void 15 of the structure body 21 to which the liquid crystal is injected is negative pressure.
The liquid crystal is efficiently injected into the void 15. However, in the present invention, the pressurizing means 101 is operated to pressurize the inside of the pressurizing chamber 103 at an appropriate time when the inert gas is introduced.
Naturally, the pressure in the pressurizing chamber 103 is caused by the liquid crystal being injected into the space 15 and the first and second substrates 11 and 13.
The liquid crystal is injected while being controlled by the pressure adjusting mechanism 105 so that the pressure is such that the expansion of the interval is prevented and the interval can be maintained at the allowable value (FIG. 2A). The profile for controlling the pressure during injection is determined according to the design of the liquid crystal panel. After the liquid crystal 23 is injected into the gap 15 by a predetermined amount, the processing chamber 27 and the pressurizing chamber 103 are balanced, though not limited thereto, while balancing the gas pressure of the gas supply means 29 and the internal pressure in the pressurizing chamber 103.
It is better to return the internal pressure to atmospheric pressure.

After the liquid crystal has been injected as described above, the structure 121 to be sealed is obtained (FIG. 2 (B)). The structure body 121 to be sealed thus obtained has a predetermined distance between the first and second substrates (no bulging of cells) and an appropriate amount of liquid crystal in the voids. become.

The pressure applied to the first and second substrates 11 and 13 of the structure to which the liquid crystal is to be injected (pressurization chamber 103)
Internal pressure) is controlled in this case in a range of higher pressures including atmospheric pressure. However, since the pressure when pressurizing the first and second substrates 11 and 13 is controlled in consideration of the relationship with the pressure in the void 15, it is controlled from the negative pressure side in some cases. It is thought that there are cases.
In that case, the gas atmosphere contacting means is further provided with means (not shown) for making the inside of the pressurizing chamber 103 a negative pressure.
The internal pressure of 3 may be controlled from the negative pressure side. Further, the control of the pressure of the processing chamber 27 and the pressurizing chamber 103 in a series of processes for injecting liquid crystal can be performed by a common control device such as a computer (not shown). Also, the control device
It is also possible to input a suitable pressure control program in advance or each time and operate based on this.

Next, the sealing material 19a for sealing is applied to the liquid crystal injection hole 21a using the sealing material supplying means 19x to seal the liquid crystal injection hole 21a. As a result, the desired liquid crystal panel 111 is obtained (FIG. 2 (C)).

1-2. Second Embodiment of First and Second Inventions In the above-mentioned first embodiment, the first and second inventions have been explained by the example of producing one liquid crystal panel. However, these inventions can also be applied to the case of producing a plurality of liquid crystal panels. This second embodiment is such an example. 3 and 4 are diagrams provided for the description. In particular, FIG. 3 is an explanatory view of the pressurizing chamber 103 in the case of a large number of pieces, and FIG. 4 is an explanatory view of a liquid crystal injection device in the case of a large number of pieces.

The pressurizing chamber in the case of taking a large number of units is shown in FIG.
As shown in, the trunk-shaped box body 10 of the required size
Notches 103a are provided on the bottom surface of 3b according to the number of panels to be processed, and the airtight holding member 1 is provided at the notches.
03c may be provided. Each notch 1
03a includes a liquid crystal injection hole 21a of the structure 21 to be injected with liquid crystal.
These structures 21 can be set in the pressurizing chamber 103 by inserting the side end portions. Of course, the structure of the pressure chamber is not limited to this. Further, as shown in FIG. 4, the liquid crystal injecting device is configured such that the tank 23a for containing the liquid crystal and the processing chamber 27 are made large according to the number of panels to be processed. The liquid crystal injection process may be performed by the procedure of the first embodiment. Even when a large amount of processing is performed in this way, since the first and second substrates 11 and 13 of each structure 21 can be pressurized with gas, each structure can be uniformly pressurized at once. Further, it is easy to set each structure in the pressurizing chamber.

2. Description of Embodiments of Third and Fourth Inventions Next, embodiments of the third and fourth inventions will be described. Here, the third and fourth inventions are suitable as measures against the bulge of the cell after the liquid crystal is injected by the conventional liquid crystal injection method without using the first and second inventions. . FIGS. 5A to 5E are process diagrams used for the description. The sealing device of the fourth aspect of the invention can be configured with the gas atmosphere contacting means 107 described in the second aspect of the invention, so this embodiment does so.

As described in the section of the prior art, in the conventional liquid crystal injection method, the gap between the first and second substrates of the structure in which the liquid crystal has been injected may be widened due to the liquid crystal injection. is there. Therefore, in the third and fourth embodiments of the present invention, the liquid crystal is injected into the pressurizing chamber 103 by introducing the structure 21x (see FIG. 5A) to be sealed in a state where the liquid crystal injection is completed and the substrate interval is widened. The hole is set outside the pressure chamber (see FIG. 5A).

Next, the pressurizing means 101 is operated. At this time, the pressure adjusting mechanism controls the pressure in the pressurizing chamber 103 so that the pressure within the pressurizing chamber 103 becomes appropriate to correct the expansion of the gap between the first and second substrates. The liquid crystal excessively injected into the void is pushed out of the void by the above pressure (FIG. 5 (B)).

The extruded liquid crystal is wiped off automatically or manually (FIG. 5 (C)). Then, for example, the pressure in the pressurizing chamber is reduced at an appropriate rate to return the pressure in the pressure chamber 103 to, for example, atmospheric pressure. Next, the sealing material 19a for sealing is applied to the liquid crystal injection hole using the sealing material supplying means 19x (FIG. 5D), and the liquid crystal injection hole 21a is sealed. As a result, the desired liquid crystal panel 111 is obtained (FIG. 5 (E)).

It should be noted that an automatic wiping mechanism for wiping off the extruded liquid crystal and an automatic supply means of the sealing material for sealing can be included as a component of the present sealing device. Further, in the above description, the internal pressure of the pressurizing chamber 103 is returned to the atmospheric pressure before the sealing material 19a for sealing is applied. Control of chamber pressure can be changed according to design. For example, the pressure in the pressurizing chamber may not necessarily be returned to atmospheric pressure. As an example thereof, a sealing material 19a for sealing the liquid crystal injection hole is formed in a state where the pressure in the pressurizing chamber is set to be higher than atmospheric pressure to some extent.
Alternatively, the internal pressure of the pressurizing chamber 103 may be returned to the atmospheric pressure. By doing so, the sealing material for sealing 1
It is expected that the effect of drawing 9a into the liquid crystal injection hole can be expected.

Although the above-described embodiment described with reference to FIG. 5 is an example in the case of the sealing work of one liquid crystal panel, the third and the third cases are also performed in the case of sealing a large number of liquid crystal panels. The fourth invention can be applied. In that case, the pressurizing chamber is, for example, as shown in FIG.
The configuration and the configuration described with reference to FIG. 5 and the other procedures and configurations described with reference to FIG.

According to the third and fourth aspects of the invention, since the pressure on the substrate surface for correcting the distance between the substrates is applied by using the pressure of the gas, compared with the case where the pressure is applied by the solid member, for example, In addition, it is possible to delicately apply pressure for correction, and it is possible to simultaneously correct many substrate intervals of the structure to be sealed with liquid crystal.

3. Description of Preferred Example of Bonding First and Second Substrates In the case of manufacturing the above-described liquid crystal injection target structure 21, it has been already described that each method disclosed in Document I or Document II can be used. It is more preferable to bond the two substrates by the method described in 1. At least one surface side of the outer surface of each of the first substrate and the second substrate in the bonding target structure in which the first and second substrates are opposed to each other with a sealing material interposed therebetween is optional. And a first substrate, which is in contact with a gas atmosphere that can be set to a first pressure,
A void surrounded by the second substrate and the sealing material is connected to a gas atmosphere which is isolated from the gas atmosphere set to the first pressure and which can be set to any second pressure lower than the first pressure. Then, by adjusting both or one of the first pressure and the second pressure, the first and second substrates are pressurized, and the sealing material is cured in the pressurized state. An example of such a bonding method, in which both the outer surfaces of the first substrate and the second substrate are brought into contact with a gas atmosphere of a first pressure, is disclosed in Japanese Patent Application No. -96266 (April 22, 1993)
Japanese application) issue. Hereinafter, a specific example using this method will be described. FIGS. 6A and 6B are process drawings used for the description.

In this embodiment, the first and second chambers 7
Prepare 1, 73. Each of the chambers 71 has a structure in which the box body is split in half. Further, it is preferable that the wall of at least one of these chambers is made of a material having ultraviolet transparency (details will be described later). Furthermore, these chambers 71 and 73 are
The airtight holding member 75 is provided. Furthermore, these chambers 7
3, 75 are pressurizing means 5 each equipped with a pressure adjusting mechanism.
It is connected to 1a via a pipe 51b. Further, the first and second substrates to be bonded are set in a predetermined relationship between the chambers 71 and 73 as described later,
For the convenience of aligning both boards, when aligning, as shown in FIG.
The second chamber 75 located thereabove is configured to be able to move to a region outside the region facing the first chamber 71. In FIG. 6A, a part of the second chamber 75 and the pipe is shown by a broken line in order to show that the second chamber 75 is moved. In addition, the first chamber 7 located at the lower side in FIG.
1 has a structure in which a first substrate 11 having a sealing material 19 and a spacer 17 thereon can be set. FIG. 6A shows a state in which such a first substrate 11 is placed on the first chamber 71 via an airtight holding member 75.

Next, the second substrate 13 is replaced with the first substrate 11
After being aligned so as to be in a predetermined position, the first substrate 11 is stacked. Then, the second chamber 73 is placed on the second substrate 13 with the airtight holding member 75 interposed therebetween. Then, the first chamber 71 and the second chamber 73, for example, such that the edges of the walls of these chambers are in good contact with the first substrate 31 or the second substrate 33 via the airtight holding member 75, for example, It is fixed by a band-shaped fixing means 77.

Next, pressurizing means 51a having a pressure adjusting mechanism.
Is operated to bring the pressure in the first and second chambers 71 and 73 to a predetermined pressure equal to or higher than the first pressure, in this case, atmospheric pressure. On the other hand, the gap 15 between the first and second substrates is in a state where it is open to the atmosphere, which is a second pressure lower than the first pressure. Then, a difference occurs between the pressure inside the chambers 71 and 73 and the pressure inside the void 15 in the structure to be bonded.
The first and second substrates 11 and 13 in the structure to be bonded can be pressurized with gas. Also, the chamber 71,
By adjusting the pressure in 73, the distance between both substrates can be adjusted.

The sealing material 19 is cured under this pressure. When an ultraviolet curable adhesive is used as the sealing material 19, the sealing material 19 can be cured by irradiating ultraviolet rays from an ultraviolet lamp. In the example of FIG. 6B, the first chamber 71 is made of an ultraviolet-transparent material, an ultraviolet lamp 79 is provided outside the chamber 71, and the ultraviolet rays of the ultraviolet lamp 79 are applied to the sealing material 19. An example of curing the sealing material 19 is shown.

In the bonding method of this embodiment, since the first and second substrates can be pressed at a predetermined pressure through gas (that is, in the state where the pressure plate required by mechanical press is removed), electrostatic It is effective as a countermeasure. In addition, after aligning the first and second substrates, these substrates are sandwiched by an appropriate jig to be temporarily fixed to obtain a structure to be bonded, and a large number of these structures are placed in a pressure chamber ( However, the void 15 is connected to the outside of the pressurizing chamber.) If the internal pressure of the pressurizing chamber is increased, a large number of objects to be bonded can be bonded at the same time. In addition, in the example of FIGS. 6A and 6B, an example of pressurizing the outer surfaces of both the first and second substrates with the gas of the first pressure is shown, but instead of the first chamber 71 A plate-like body (not shown) is provided on the plate, one of the first and second substrates is placed on this plate-like body, and only the outer surface of the other substrate is pressurized with the gas at the first pressure. You can Also in this case, one substrate surface can be pressurized with the pressure of gas.

Although the embodiments of the first to fourth inventions of this application have been described above, these inventions are not limited to the above-mentioned embodiments.

For example, in the gas atmosphere contact means 107 described in the embodiments of the second and fourth inventions, a valve is provided between the pressure adjusting mechanism 105 and the pressurizing chamber 103, and on the pressure adjusting mechanism 105 side of this valve. Pressure adjusting mechanism 105
The pressure chamber 103 may be separated from the pressure chamber 103. By doing so, lot processing can be performed in units of the pressurizing chamber 103.

[0048]

As is apparent from the above description, according to the configuration of the first invention, at least one of the first and second substrates is provided with a permissible value between the substrates by the gas from the outer surface. The liquid crystal can be injected into the space between these substrates while applying pressure. Therefore, when the injection is completed, a sample is obtained in which the distance between the substrates is set to an allowable value and the liquid crystal injection amount is set to an appropriate value. Therefore, it is not necessary to provide a pressurizing step for adjusting the distance between the substrates after the liquid crystal is injected. Also,
Since the pressurizing step after the liquid crystal injection is unnecessary, the risk of liquid crystal adhering near the liquid crystal injection hole is reduced. Further, in the first aspect of the present invention, since the pressurization of each of the first and second substrates is performed by the gas, it is considered that the uniformity of pressurization is higher than in the case of pressurizing the substrate surface with a solid member. It is considered that each sample can be uniformly pressed for the same reason when pressurizing. Therefore, it is easy to process a large amount.

According to the structure of the second invention, the liquid crystal injection method of the first invention can be easily carried out.

Further, according to the structure of the third invention, the gap between the substrates of the sample, in which the gap between the first and second substrates has expanded due to the liquid crystal injection after the liquid crystal injection is completed, is caused by the gas pressure. Can be fixed. Further, the liquid crystal excessively injected into the void is pushed out of the void by the above correction by the gas pressure. Also, since the gas pressure is used, it is considered that pressure control during pressurization and pressure release can be performed delicately compared to the case where the distance between the substrates is corrected by a pressure plate or a pressure roller, and the pressurization It is considered that the uniformity is enhanced. Further, when a large number of samples are pressurized, for example, these samples may be placed in the pressurizing chamber and the liquid crystal injection holes of each sample may be connected to the outside of the pressurizing chamber (the liquid crystal injection holes themselves may be outside the pressurizing chamber). ), It is possible to easily pressurize at once by storing, so that it is easy to process a large amount.

According to the structure of the fourth invention, the liquid crystal injection method of the third invention can be easily carried out.

[Brief description of drawings]

1A to 1C are diagrams for explaining a first embodiment of the first and second inventions.

2A to 2C are views following FIG. 1 provided for explaining a first embodiment of the first and second inventions.

FIG. 3 is a diagram which is used for describing a second embodiment of the first and second inventions.

FIG. 4 is a view following FIG. 3 for explaining the second embodiment of the first and second inventions.

5 (A) to 5 (E) are diagrams for explaining the embodiments of the third and fourth inventions.

6A and 6B are explanatory views of a preferred example of a substrate bonding method.

7A to 7D are explanatory views of a conventional liquid crystal injection method and injection sealing method.

[Explanation of Codes] 11: First Substrate 13: Second Substrate 15: Void 17: Spacer 19: Sealing Material (for Sealing Edge of Substrate) 19a: Sealing Sealing Material 19x: Sealing Material Supplying Means 21 : Liquid crystal injection target structure 21a: Liquid crystal injection hole 21x: Sealing target structure (however, the cell is expanded) 23: Liquid crystal 23a: Liquid crystal storage tank 25: Exhaust means 27: Processing chamber 29: Gas supply means 51a: Pressurizing means 51b: Piping 71: First chamber 73: Second chamber 75: Airtight holding member 77: Fixing means 79: Ultraviolet lamp 101: Pressurizing means 103: Pressurizing chamber 103a: Notch Part 103b: Box 103c: Airtight holding member (packing) 105: Pressure adjusting mechanism 107: Gas atmosphere contact means 109: Liquid crystal injection device of the embodiment

Claims (5)

[Claims] 1. A structure formed by laminating a first substrate and a second substrate with a sealing material while maintaining a predetermined space between these substrates, and in a part of the structure. At the time of injecting the liquid crystal through the provided liquid crystal injection hole, at least one of the first substrate and the second substrate surface, which is the outer surface of the structure, is a gas atmosphere in which an arbitrary pressure can be set and is independent. The system is brought into contact with a gas atmosphere constituting the above-mentioned system, and the pressure of the gas atmosphere is prevented from widening the space between the first and second substrates due to the liquid crystal being injected into the void and maintaining the space. A liquid crystal injection method characterized by injecting liquid crystal while controlling the pressure so that it can be maintained at an allowable value. 2. A structure formed by laminating a first substrate and a second substrate with a sealing material while maintaining a predetermined space between these substrates, and a part of the structure. In a device for injecting liquid crystal through a liquid crystal injection hole provided, at least one of the first substrate and the second substrate surface, which is an outer surface of the structure, is caused by injecting liquid crystal into the void. A liquid crystal injection device comprising means for preventing the expansion of the gap between the first and second substrates and contacting with a gas atmosphere having a pressure capable of maintaining the gap at an allowable value. . 3. The liquid crystal injection device according to claim 2, wherein the means for bringing at least one of the first and second substrate surfaces into contact with a gas atmosphere has an internal pressure that can be arbitrarily set. A liquid crystal injection device, characterized in that the liquid crystal injection hole is a pressurization chamber for accommodating the structure in a state in which the liquid crystal injection hole is in communication with the outside of the pressurization chamber. 4. A first substrate and a second substrate are bonded together by a sealing material while maintaining a predetermined space between these substrates, and then liquid crystal is injected into the space through a liquid crystal injection hole, and thereafter, In the method of sealing the liquid crystal injection hole, at least one of the first substrate surface and the second substrate surface, which is the outer surface of the structure in which liquid crystal has been injected, is brought into contact with a gas atmosphere capable of setting an arbitrary pressure. The liquid crystal sealing method is characterized in that the expansion of the gap between the first and second substrates generated during the liquid crystal injection is corrected by the pressure of the gas atmosphere, and then the liquid crystal injection hole is sealed. 5. A liquid crystal sealing device for sealing a liquid crystal injection hole used for liquid crystal injection of a structure in which liquid crystal is injected into a space provided between a first substrate and a second substrate, wherein A pressurizing chamber for pressurizing at least one of the first substrate and the second substrate, which is an outer surface of the structure,
A liquid crystal sealing device, wherein an internal pressure can be arbitrarily set, and the liquid crystal injection hole includes a pressure chamber for accommodating the structure in a state of being connected to the outside of the pressure chamber.