JPH07294946A - Liquid crystal injecting method and its device therefor - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To eliminate the need for an operation to clean the inside of a pressure chamber and cells, to decrease the man-hours for operation at the time of defoaming or to integrate defoaming stages to one stage, and further to prevent degradation in quality and a decrease in the yield of products by injection of undesired liquid crystals in coexisting by surely preventing splashing of liquid crystals at the time of defoaming. CONSTITUTION:This liquid crystal injecting device has a magazine 7 holding the cells 3, a liquid crystal storage tank 9 storing the liquid crystals, an attaching and detaching means for attaching and detaching the contact surfaces of the liquid crystals relatively to and from injection ports 6 of the cells 3, a pressure acting chamber for acting a vacuum pressure on the cells 3 and the liquid crystals and a pressure control means for changing the magnitude of the vacuum pressure. The liquid crystal injecting device described above is provided with a cover 10 capable of covering and opening an aperture 9a of the liquid crystal storage tank 9. A filter 11 which has air permeability and regulates the flow of the liquid crystals is disposed at this cover 10.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a liquid crystal injecting method and apparatus for degassing liquid crystal and injecting the liquid crystal into a cell by using vacuum pressure. The present invention relates to a technique for shortening time, simplifying cleaning work, and improving quality of liquid crystal products.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art As is well known, a liquid crystal cell of a liquid crystal display device is constructed by enclosing liquid crystal in an empty container-shaped cell in which two glass plates are opposed to each other with a minute gap. Then, this liquid crystal cell performs display according to the pattern of the transparent electrodes by energizing the transparent electrodes formed on both inner surfaces of the two glass plates.

In order to inject liquid crystal into the above empty container-like cell in the production of this type of liquid crystal cell, first, the constituent elements shown in FIG. After only the liquid crystal boat 51 storing the liquid crystal 50 at the 6th to 8th minutes is carried in, the inside of the pressure action chamber C is evacuated to degas the liquid crystal 50. in this case,
The reason why the liquid crystal 50 is not filled in the liquid crystal boat 51 is that the liquid crystal 50 overflows from the liquid crystal boat 51 if the liquid crystal is filled with the liquid crystal and degassing is performed in a short time.

Next, the pressure action chamber C is opened to the atmosphere, and the liquid crystal 50 is additionally introduced until the surface of the liquid crystal 50 swells due to surface tension as shown in the figure. After that, the pressure action chamber C is gently evacuated to degas the liquid crystal 50 again. In this case, the vacuum is gently drawn because the liquid crystal 50 overflows if the vacuum is suddenly drawn.

After that, the pressure action chamber C is again opened to the atmosphere, and a plurality of cells 52 shown in FIG.
Is carried in by the holding means 54 such as a magazine so as to face downward, and is carried into the pressure action chamber C. An adhesive 52a is applied between the two glass plates constituting each cell 52 so as to surround the display area, and the liquid crystal is sealed in the display area by the adhesive 52a. Gap is formed and the adhesive 52
The discontinuous portion of a is the injection port 53.

Then, when the loading of the magazine or the like holding the cells 52 is completed, the liquid crystal boats 51 are
Is located below the inlet 53 of each cell 52. Under such a state, the pressure action chamber C is evacuated to sufficiently discharge the air in each cell 52.

Next, the inlet 53 of each cell 52 is brought into contact with the liquid surface of the liquid crystal 50 stored in the liquid crystal boat 51 by lowering the holding means 54 or the like.
After that, by increasing the pressure in the pressure action chamber C, the liquid crystal 50 is separated by the differential pressure from the pressure in the cell 52 and the capillary phenomenon between the two glass plates forming the cell 52. It is injected into the cell 52.

After that, the cells 52 are moved to the pressure chamber C.
Is carried out and the same work as above is executed again,
Before the execution, the remaining amount of the liquid crystal 50 in the liquid crystal boat 51 becomes small. Therefore, after the liquid crystal 50 is introduced into the liquid crystal boat 51 again from the 6th minute to the 8th minute, the first defoaming is performed by the rapid vacuuming, and the surface is swelled due to the surface tension. After the additional introduction of the liquid crystal 50, the second defoaming is performed by gentle evacuation.

[0009]

By the way, in the above-mentioned conventional operation of injecting the liquid crystal 50 into the cell 52, since the liquid crystal 50 has to be defoamed twice in total,
This defoaming usually requires a long time of 30 to 60 minutes, resulting in deterioration of work efficiency.

The first defoaming is performed in the pressure action chamber C.
Due to the sudden vacuuming inside, a large amount of firing and defoaming phenomenon occur in the liquid crystal 50 in a short time, and as a result, the liquid crystal 50 scatters in the pressure action chamber C and is wiped off. Cleaning work is required to remove it. This cleaning work
For example, since it has to be performed every time the type of the liquid crystal 50 injected into the cell 52 changes, it becomes troublesome and complicated, and there is a problem that the burden and labor during the injection work increase.

In order to avoid the above problems, it is conceivable that the first defoaming and the second defoaming are performed at the same time by gently evacuating the pressure action chamber C. If adopted, the cell 52 and the liquid crystal boat 51 should be carried into the pressure chamber C at the same time.

However, in such a method, since the defoaming work is generally performed by a gentle vacuuming, the time until the defoaming of all the liquid crystals 50 filled in the liquid crystal boat 51 is completed is as described above. The drawback is that it will be even longer than in the case. In order to avoid this, if the defoaming work is performed by abrupt vacuuming, the liquid crystal scattered due to the defoaming may adhere to the cells 52 in the pressure action chamber C.

In consideration of such an actual situation, conventionally, it has been necessary to defoam the liquid crystal 50 twice without carrying the cell 52 into the pressure action chamber C as described above. is there.

Therefore, as described above, not only the workability is deteriorated at the time of defoaming, but also when the cell 52 is carried into the pressure action chamber C or when the liquid crystal 50 is additionally introduced, the pressure in the vacuum state is applied. The inside of the working chamber C has to be opened to the atmosphere each time, and the vacuum must be evacuated again, which unnecessarily increases the number of times the vacuum pump or the like is started, and there is a problem that the control of the start and stop thereof becomes complicated.

Further, the liquid crystal scattered in the pressure action chamber C as described above is injected when it remains at the next liquid crystal injection work due to the improper cleaning work or the like. This causes a problem that the previous liquid crystal mixes into the new liquid crystal that should be used, which causes poor quality.

Further, the amount of air mixed in the liquid crystal is
Since it is not always constant and varies, the degree of volume expansion and the degree of scattering of the liquid crystal at the time of defoaming also differ from work to work. Therefore, each condition for preventing the liquid crystal from overflowing and scattering from the liquid crystal boat 51 at the time of defoaming is not fixed uniformly, which is a great obstacle to automation.

As a solution to the problem of liquid level control, which is the basic problem of the liquid crystal injection means shown in FIG.
According to the publication, a liquid crystal injecting means having a structure as shown in FIG. 6 is disclosed.

The liquid crystal injecting means has a schematic structure in which a sucking member 56 composed of glass plates 55 having a good wettability and arranged in multiple rows with a predetermined gap therebetween so as to generate a capillary phenomenon, A felt-like flat plate-shaped moisture absorbent 57 made of ceramic fiber or the like is provided above the suction member 56. The liquid crystal 50 in the liquid crystal tank 58
Is the flat plate-shaped hygroscopic material 57 through the suction member 56.
The liquid crystal 50 wetted by the hygroscopic material 57 is evacuated under vacuum with the inlet 53 of each cell 52 in contact with the hygroscopic material 57.
Are injected into the cells 52.

However, even if such liquid crystal injecting means is used, it is not possible to prevent the liquid crystal from scattering at the time of defoaming. Therefore, the pressure working chamber C needs to be cleaned and the pressure working chamber C is required. If the liquid crystal 50 is defoamed while the cell 52 is loaded therein, the liquid crystal 50 may scatter and adhere to the cell 52. As a result, the liquid crystal injection means of FIG. The problem similar to the case will arise.

The present invention was devised under the above circumstances, and reliably prevents the liquid crystal from scattering at the time of defoaming, thus eliminating the need for cleaning the pressure action chamber and the cell. In addition to automating the injection work, the number of work steps during defoaming was reduced or the defoaming process was unified to shorten the defoaming time and improve workability. The problem is to prevent the deterioration of quality and the reduction of product yield due to the injection into the inside.

[0021]

In order to solve the above problems, the present invention takes the following technical means.

That is, in the method according to the invention described in claim 1 of the present application, the defoaming step of defoaming by exposing the liquid crystal stored in the liquid crystal storage tank to the vacuum atmosphere, and the injection port are formed. An evacuation step of exposing the cell to a vacuum atmosphere to evacuate the sealing gap, a contact step of bringing the inlet of the cell into contact with the liquid crystal in the vacuum atmosphere, and a pressure of the vacuum atmosphere while maintaining the contact. And a liquid crystal injecting method, in which the liquid crystal is injected into the sealing gap of the cell, using a cover provided with a filter that has air permeability and regulates the flow of the liquid crystal, Under the condition that the opening of the liquid crystal storage tank is covered, while performing the defoaming step, the defoaming step and the exhausting step,
It is performed as a simultaneous process, and thereafter, the contact step is executed under a state where the cover is retracted from the opening of the liquid crystal storage tank, and then the injection step is executed. I am trying.

Further, in the apparatus according to the invention described in claim 2 of the present application, the holding means for holding the cell, the liquid crystal storage tank for storing the liquid crystal, and the contact surface of the liquid crystal for the inlet of the cell are formed. Contact surface forming means, contacting and separating means for relatively approaching and separating the contact surface of the liquid crystal with respect to the inlet of the cell, a pressure action chamber for applying a vacuum pressure to the cell and the liquid crystal, A liquid crystal injecting device comprising: a pressure control unit that changes the magnitude of the vacuum pressure; and a cover that can cover and open the opening of the liquid crystal storage tank and that has a breathability. In addition, a filter for restricting the flow of liquid crystal is provided.

In this case, it is preferable that the filter, which is a constituent feature of the invention described in claim 2, is formed by using a material having water repellency (claim 3).

[0025]

According to the liquid crystal injection method according to the invention described in claim 1, a state in which the opening of the liquid crystal storage tank in which the liquid crystal is stored is covered by the cover when the defoaming step is performed. Underneath, the liquid crystal is exposed to a vacuum atmosphere. The cover is provided with a filter that has air permeability and restricts liquid crystal flow.

Therefore, when the liquid crystal storage tank is exposed to a vacuum atmosphere, the vacuum pressure acts on the liquid crystal through the filter of the cover, and the liquid crystal scatters due to foaming and defoaming in the liquid crystal, The scattered liquid crystals are prevented from leaking to the outside due to the flow restricting action of the cover. As a result, even if the atmosphere around the liquid crystal storage tank is suddenly evacuated, the situation in which the liquid crystal is scattered to the outside cannot occur, the defoaming time can be greatly shortened, and the cleaning work is not required. It is possible to improve work efficiency.

Further, when the liquid crystal is degassed, even if there is a cell in the vicinity of the liquid crystal, scattered liquid crystal cannot adhere to the cell, and accordingly, in the liquid crystal sealing gap of the cell. The evacuation step for bringing the liquid crystal into a vacuum state and the defoaming step of the liquid crystal can be simultaneously performed in a vacuum atmosphere. As a result, the working time of the above-mentioned two types of processes is shortened, and the number of times a vacuum atmosphere state is generated, that is, the number of times switching between the atmosphere open state and the vacuum state is reduced, which reduces the number of times the vacuum pump is driven and It is possible to eliminate wasteful driving force and simplify the vacuum pressure control.

In addition, since the scattered liquid crystals are all collected in the liquid crystal storage tank due to the presence of the filter-equipped cover, for example, the liquid crystals that have scattered to the outside last time and the foreign substances attached to the liquid crystals are injected this time. In such a situation, the liquid crystal will not be mixed in with the liquid crystal, and the quality will be improved and the product yield will be improved. In addition, even if the amount of air dissolved in the liquid crystal is different for each defoaming work, there is a cover that prevents the liquid crystal from scattering outward,
There will be no hindrance to changes in the degree of fire and defoaming and the degree of scattering.

After the liquid crystal defoaming step and the cell evacuation step are completed as described above, the filter-equipped cover is retracted from the opening of the liquid crystal storage tank, and the opening is opened. . As a result, the liquid crystal that has been degassed is exposed, and under such a condition, the injection port of the cell is brought into contact with the liquid crystal. In this case, the contact portion of the liquid crystal with which the injection port of the cell comes into contact may be the surface of the liquid crystal bulged by the surface tension as shown in FIG. 5, but is preferably the above-mentioned. As shown in FIG. 6, the inlet of the cell is brought into contact with the liquid crystal that has been wetted by the hygroscopic material via the wicking body.

Under such a condition that the injection port of the cell is in contact with the liquid crystal, the vacuum pressure is increased by opening the periphery of the cell to the atmosphere and the differential pressure generated at this time, that is, the liquid crystal filling in the cell. The liquid crystal is injected into the cell by the pressure difference between the pressure in the working gap and the pressure outside it.

On the other hand, according to the liquid crystal injection device according to the invention described in claim 2, a holding means for holding the cell is provided, and the injection port of the cell is brought into contact with the liquid crystal. As specific means, there is provided a contacting / separating means for relatively moving the cell and the liquid crystal closer to and away from each other, and further, a pressure action chamber for applying a vacuum pressure to the cell and the liquid crystal, and the vacuum pressure thereof. Pressure control means for controlling the value.

It goes without saying that with such a configuration, the same operational effect as the invention described in claim 1 can be obtained. Then, a fully automated device for performing such an operation is realized. In addition to shortening the time of the defoaming process and unifying the defoaming process and the exhausting process, the number of times for creating a vacuum state is reduced, so that the cost of this device can be reduced. It becomes possible to plan.

Considering the complete automation of this apparatus, it is preferable to cover and open the opening of the liquid crystal storage tank with the cover using a mechanical means by electrical control, but manually. It is also possible to do by.

Further, as in the invention described in claim 3, if the filter of the cover is formed by using a material having water repellency, the liquid crystal scattered in the liquid crystal storage tank and reaching the filter is formed. The filter is immediately collected in the liquid crystal storage tank without adhering to the filter, the filter is not clogged, and the liquid crystal collection efficiency is improved.

As the material having water repellency, it is preferable to use a tetrafluoroethylene resin, for example, a product name "Polyflon" manufactured by Daikin Industries, Ltd. as a raw material for its strength, durability and water repellency. It is preferable to consider the above. However, it is also possible to form the filter by using another material having water repellency.

[0036]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS The preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described below.
A specific description will be given with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of parts disassembled arrangement showing a main part of a liquid crystal injection device according to the present invention.

The component indicated by reference character A in the figure is a plurality of rectangular strip-shaped cell substrate pieces 1, and each cell substrate piece 1 is
It has a plurality (three in the illustrated example) of cells 3 surrounded by a dividing line 2. More specifically, in each cell 3, two glass plates 1a and 1b are bonded to each other with a band-shaped resin 4 interposed therebetween, whereby a liquid crystal-filled gap 5 that is a narrow gap is formed. There is. The band-shaped resin 4 is bent so as to surround the display area, and a liquid crystal injection port 6 is formed by providing a discontinuity in a part of the resin 4. A predetermined transparent electrode is formed on the inner surface of each of the glass plates 1a and 1b.

A component indicated by reference symbol B in the figure is a magazine 7 for holding the plurality of cell substrate pieces 1 in an upright state. The magazine 7 has a substantially rectangular frame shape in plan view. A plurality of guide grooves 8 extending in the vertical direction are formed on the opposing left and right side walls 7a and 7b. Then, by inserting the cell substrate pieces 1 into these guide grooves 8, each cell substrate piece 1 maintains its lower end supported by the bottom surface portion of the guide groove 8. In this case, the magazine 7 has an inlet 6 for each cell 3 of the cell substrate piece 1.
Are held so that they are directed downward. The lower surface of the magazine 7 is in an open state.

The component indicated by reference character C in the figure is a cover 10 for covering an upper opening 9a of a liquid crystal storage tank 9 which will be described later. The cover 10 has a filter 11 formed by using a tetrafluoroethylene resin, which is a water-repellent material, for example, a product name "Polyflon" manufactured by Daikin Industries, Ltd. as a raw material, for example, a product name "Advantech" manufactured by Advantech Co. A filter such as "is spread.
The filter 11 is a fibrous body that has air permeability and regulates the flow of liquid crystal, and the material itself of the fibrous body is formed of the above-mentioned water-repellent material. If necessary, the fibrous material may be formed of another material that does not have water repellency, and the fibrous material may be coated with the material having the water repellency to obtain the filter. It is also possible to form 11.

The component designated by the symbol D in the figure is a liquid crystal storage tank 9 for storing liquid crystals. Inside the liquid crystal storage tank 9, three linearly extending liquid crystal contact surface members 12 are arranged. Has been done. The liquid crystal contact surface material 12 is a felt-like hygroscopic material made of a fibrous material such as the above-mentioned tetrafluoroethylene resin or glass, and the surface thereof is the contact surface of the liquid crystal to each of the inlets 6. Become. Therefore, the disposition intervals of the three liquid crystal contact surface members 12 coincide with the disposition intervals of the injection ports 6 in the cell substrate piece 1. When the above-mentioned tetrafluoroethylene resin is used as a raw material for the liquid crystal contact surface material 12, the liquid crystal can flow through the gaps between the fibers of the fibrous body formed thereby. It needs to be sized.

Each of the liquid crystal contact surface members 12 is fixed to the upper ends of a plurality of (two in the illustrated example) suction members 13, 13 which are vertically fixed to the bottom surface 9b of the liquid crystal storage tank 9. . In this case, a small gap necessary to cause a capillary phenomenon, for example, 0.2 to 0.4, is provided between the respective suction members 13, 13 corresponding to one liquid crystal contact surface member 12.
A gap of about mm is formed. As the suction member, it is preferable to use a plate-shaped body obtained by coating the above-mentioned tetrafluoroethylene resin on stainless steel, but it is not limited to this, and other materials such as a glass plate may be used. It may be a strip, a large number of cord-shaped members, or a felt-shaped block.

The cover 10 is attachable to and detachable from the upper opening 9a of the liquid crystal storage tank 9. The cover 10 can be detached from the liquid crystal storage tank 9 completely. The opening 9a may be opened, or the opening 10a may be opened and closed by connecting one side edge of the cover 10 to the liquid crystal storage tank 9 by a hinge connection or the like. In this case, for the operation of covering and retracting the cover 10 with respect to the opening 9a of the liquid crystal storage tank 9, a fluid cylinder such as an air cylinder or a hydraulic cylinder (not shown), or a screw drive type mechanism is used. .

On the other hand, the lifting mechanism 14 for vertically moving the liquid crystal storage tank 9 has an upper lift table 15 as shown in FIG.
The lower lift base 16 and the lower lift base 16 are connected to each other at four corners of the support base 17 via guide rods 18 which are vertically slidably held, and the liquid crystal storage tank 9 is mounted on the upper surface of the upper lift base 15. The cam surface 19a of the circumferential cam 19 is in contact with the lower surface of the lower lift table 16.

By rotating the circumferential cam 18 by a driving mechanism (not shown), the lift bases 15 and 16 are moved up and down with respect to the support base 17, and accordingly, the liquid crystal storage tank 9 is moved. Also goes up and down. The lifting mechanism 14 is not limited to the illustrated configuration,
For example, a fluid cylinder such as an air cylinder or a hydraulic cylinder may be used, or a screw drive type mechanism or the like may be adopted. Further, instead of moving the liquid crystal storage tank 9 up and down, the magazine 7 holding the cell substrate piece 1 is
You may make it raise / lower up and down using the raising / lowering mechanism similar to the above-mentioned various structures.

Further, as shown in FIG. 3, the liquid crystal injecting apparatus is provided with a pressure acting chamber 20 capable of accommodating the above-listed constituent elements. A negative pressure generation source 22 such as a vacuum pump is connected to the pressure action chamber 20 via a valve 21 for opening to the atmosphere.

Next, a method of injecting liquid crystal into each cell 3 of the cell substrate piece 1 using the liquid crystal injecting device having the above-mentioned structure will be described.

First, as a preliminary step, an appropriate amount of the liquid crystal 25 is poured into the liquid crystal storage tank 9, but the pouring amount may be within the range of the sixth to eighth minutes of the liquid crystal storage tank 9 as an upper limit, If the cover 10 can close the upper side of the opening 9a of the liquid crystal storage tank 9 to a predetermined height position (see FIG. 3).
Alternatively, the liquid crystal storage tank 9 may be filled with the liquid crystal 25. The liquid crystal 2 thus poured into the liquid crystal storage tank 9
No. 5 rises in the gap between the suction members 13, 13 by the capillary phenomenon and is wetted by the liquid crystal contact surface material 12 at the upper end thereof.

Under such a condition, the liquid crystal storage tank 9 is
After covering the upper opening 9a of the above with a cover 10 provided with a filter 11, the liquid crystal storage tank 9 is carried into the pressure action chamber 20. On the other hand, above the liquid crystal storage tank 9, FIG.
As shown in, a magazine 7 holding a plurality (several tens) of cell substrate pieces 1 is set.

After that, the inside of the pressure working chamber 20 is evacuated by the operation of the negative pressure generating source 22, and the internal pressure is adjusted to the degree of vacuum (0.1 to 0.01 T) necessary for the subsequent liquid crystal injection work.
orr). As a result, the cell substrate piece 1
At the same time as the inside of the liquid crystal sealing gap 5 of each cell 3 is appropriately evacuated to a negative pressure state, the liquid crystal 25 stored in the liquid crystal storage tank 9 is defoamed.

In this case, the filter 11 of the cover 10 is
Since it has air permeability, vacuum pressure or negative pressure can act on the liquid crystal 25 through the filter 11, and the above defoaming is appropriately performed. Further, since the filter 11 can prevent the liquid crystal from flowing,
The liquid crystal scattered in the liquid crystal storage tank 9 at the time of defoaming is prevented from leaking outward by the action of the filter 11. Further, since the filter 11 has water repellency, the scattered liquid crystal does not adhere to the filter 11, and therefore, almost all the scattered liquid crystal is stored in the liquid crystal storage tank 9.
It falls inside and is collected.

Next, as shown in FIG.
Is retracted from the upper opening 9a of the liquid crystal storage tank 9 to open the upper opening 9a, and thereafter the liquid crystal storage tank 9 is raised by the operation of the elevating mechanism 14. The magazine 7 may be lowered. Due to such approaching movement of the both, each liquid crystal contact surface member 1 in the liquid crystal storage tank 9
The injection port 6 of each cell 3 in the plurality of cell substrate pieces 1 contacts the surface of 2.

Thereafter, the valve 21 is actuated to open the inside of the pressure action chamber 20 to the atmosphere, thereby forming each cell 3 and the differential pressure between the inside and outside of the liquid crystal enclosing gap 5 of each cell 3. Liquid crystal is injected into each cell 3 from the liquid crystal contact surface material 12 through the injection port 6 in accordance with a synergistic action with the capillary phenomenon that occurs between the two glass plates 1a and 1b.

After that, the liquid crystal storage tank 9 is moved downward (or the magazine 7 by the operation of the elevating mechanism 14).
The liquid crystal storage tank 9 is refilled with liquid crystal 25 as needed, and then the upper opening 9a of the liquid crystal storage tank 9 is again covered with the cover 10 and a plurality of new cell substrate pieces 1 are placed in the magazine 7. After that, the same operation as above is performed thereafter.

By performing the above operation,
Not only the time required for defoaming the liquid crystal 25 is shortened, but the defoaming step of the liquid crystal 25 and the evacuation step of the cell 3 are simultaneously performed, so that the working time can be further shortened. Further, the liquid crystal in the liquid crystal storage tank 9 does not scatter to the outside, the cleaning work becomes unnecessary, and the liquid crystal does not become contaminated, so that the quality and the product yield can be improved. Further, the number of times the pressure working chamber 20 is evacuated is reduced, and the driving force of the negative pressure generating source 22 can be eliminated.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a component exploded array perspective view showing a main part of an embodiment of a liquid crystal injection device according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of essential parts showing a contacting / separating means (elevating mechanism) which is a component of the liquid crystal injection device according to the above-described embodiment.

FIG. 3 is a vertical cross-sectional front view showing a usage state of the liquid crystal injection device according to the embodiment.

FIG. 4 is a vertical sectional front view showing a usage state of the liquid crystal injection device according to the embodiment.

FIG. 5 is a vertical sectional front view showing an example of a conventional liquid crystal injection device.

FIG. 6 is a vertical sectional front view showing another example of a conventional liquid crystal injection device.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Cell substrate piece 3 Cell 5 Encapsulation gap 6 Injection port 7 Holding means (magazine) 9 Liquid crystal storage tank 9a Opening (upper opening) 10 Cover 11 Filter 12 Contact surface forming means (liquid crystal contact surface material) 13 Contact surface forming Means (sucking body) 14 Contact / separation mechanism (elevating mechanism) 20 Pressure action chamber 21 Pressure control means (valve) 22 Pressure control means (negative pressure generation source)

Claims (3)

[Claims] 1. A defoaming step of defoaming by exposing a liquid crystal stored in a liquid crystal storage tank to a vacuum atmosphere, and exposing a cell in which an injection port is formed to a vacuum atmosphere to exhaust a gap for filling the cell. And a contacting step of bringing the inlet of the cell into contact with the liquid crystal in a vacuum atmosphere, and increasing the pressure of the vacuum atmosphere while maintaining the contact to inject the liquid crystal into the sealing gap of the cell. In a liquid crystal injecting method, which comprises an injecting step, and a cover provided with a filter that has air permeability and regulates the flow of liquid crystal, under the condition that the opening of the liquid crystal storage tank is covered, While performing the defoaming step, the defoaming step and the exhausting step are performed as simultaneous processing,
Thereafter, the contact step is performed under a state where the cover is retracted from the opening of the liquid crystal storage tank, and thereafter,
Characterized in that the injection process is performed,
Liquid crystal injection method. 2. A holding means for holding the cell, a liquid crystal storage tank for storing the liquid crystal, a contact surface forming means for forming a contact surface of the liquid crystal with respect to the inlet of the cell, and an inlet of the cell. A contacting / separating means for relatively approaching and separating the contact surface of the liquid crystal, a pressure action chamber for applying a vacuum pressure to the cell and the liquid crystal, and a pressure control means for changing the magnitude of the vacuum pressure, A liquid crystal injecting apparatus including: a cover capable of covering and opening the opening of the liquid crystal storage tank, and having a filter that has air permeability and regulates the flow of liquid crystal in the cover. A liquid crystal injection device characterized by the following. 3. The liquid crystal injection device according to claim 2, wherein the filter is formed of a material having water repellency.