JPH08192356A - Automatic polishing equipment - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE: To detect a polishing protrusion and to assure the finishing of a polishing-completed polished member by providing a detecting means for detecting the location of the protrusion on the polished member by a grasping polishing means. CONSTITUTION: In a polishing work part 16, prior to surface polishing for a color filter 20 by means of a polishing unit 104, the surface of the color filter 20 is inspected by means of a surface inspecting unit 230 arranged at the upstream side of the polishing unit 104 in the polishing table moving direction, detecting the location of a protruded part. The polishing unit 104 is operated based on the inspection result from the surface inspecting unit 230. In addition, the presence or absence of the protruded part on the surface of the color filter 20 is again inspected when a polishing table 68 passed under the polishing unit 104 passes under a surface inspecting unit 280.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an automatic polishing apparatus for polishing a member to be polished such as a color filter formed on the surface of a glass substrate used for LCD or the like.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art A liquid crystal display (hereinafter, "LCD") that displays an image according to an electric signal.
In the above, a deflecting film is provided on the surface side of the liquid crystal, and an image is displayed by forming light and dark depending on whether light transmitted through the liquid crystal passes through the deflecting film. LC like this
In D, for example, a color filter formed by arranging each color component of red, green, and blue in a minute mosaic pattern is arranged, and each color component can be given to light passing through the deflection film to display a color image. There is.

By the way, if a projection, a foreign substance, or the like is attached to the surface of the color filter, a gap is created between the deflecting film and the color filter, and a clear color image cannot be displayed. Therefore, it is necessary to carry out polishing to remove the protrusions from the surface of the color filter so that the protrusions and the like on the surface of the color filter fall within an allowable range (for example, about 4 μm).

By the way, since the surface of the color filter used for the LCD is soft, it is necessary to pay close attention not to apply an external force unnecessarily when polishing the color filter.

Therefore, when removing protrusions, foreign matters, etc. adhering to the surface of the color filter, the irregularities on the surface of the color filter are measured by a laser length measuring instrument or the like, and protrusions having a protrusion amount exceeding the allowable range and The position is calculated, or the image information photographed by a CCD image sensor or the like is arithmetically processed to obtain the position of the protrusion beyond the allowable range,
The position on the color filter obtained by arithmetic polishing is rubbed with a polishing member to remove protrusions and the like from the surface of the color filter.

[0006]

However, the apparatus for performing such polishing has a precise and complicated structure and is very expensive. Therefore, in general, an operator visually inspects the surface of the color filter for protrusions, and if there are protrusions, foreign matter, etc. that are considered to be above the allowable range, polish the tape or the like with abrasive particles added. The members are used to be removed by polishing them by hand little by little while paying close attention. Therefore, it is an extremely inefficient operation, and it is extremely difficult to confirm whether or not all the protrusions that need to be removed have been completely removed, especially when the inspection is performed manually.

The present invention has been made in consideration of the above facts, and it is needless to say that the position of a protrusion on the surface of a member to be polished such as a color filter is detected by a simple structure and is precisely polished and removed. An object of the present invention is to provide an automatic polishing device capable of confirming the presence or absence of a protrusion after polishing.

[0008]

According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided an automatic polishing apparatus in which a container for storing a plurality of members to be polished is loaded, and a container for storing the polished members is loaded. Provided between the loading section and the discharging section, a discharging section, a moving table that mounts the member to be polished at a predetermined position and moves from the loading section side to the discharging section side by a predetermined amount of movement. Polishing means for facing and polishing a polishing member at an arbitrary position of the member to be polished on the moving table, and each of them is closely arranged along a direction orthogonal to the moving direction of the moving table. Detecting the position of the projection on the member to be polished from the position of the contact that is provided with a large number of contacts and sandwiches the polishing means, and contacts the protrusion on the surface of the member to be polished and the amount of movement of the moving table. First and second detection means Polishing control means for operating the polishing means by moving the polishing member according to the detection result of the first detection means provided on the loading section side of the polishing means and the movement amount of the moving table. It is characterized by

An automatic polishing apparatus according to a second aspect is the automatic polishing apparatus according to the first aspect, further comprising a reading means for reading at least the identification code of the container loaded in the discharge part and the identification code of each color filter, and the first polishing means. Recording means for recording the position of the protrusion on the surface of the member to be polished based on the detection results of the first and second detecting means, and the protrusion recorded on the recording means together with the identification codes of the container and the member to be polished. Output means for writing and outputting the position of a predetermined recording medium,
It is characterized by including.

[0010]

The automatic polishing apparatus of the present invention comprises first and second detecting means sandwiching the polishing means, and the member to be polished placed on the moving table is the first detecting means, the polishing means, It passes through the position facing the second detecting means in order. The first and second detecting means respectively inspect the surface of the member to be polished, and determine which of the closely arranged contacts comes into contact with a protrusion on the surface of the member to be polished and the amount of movement of the moving table. Specify the position of the protrusion.

The polishing control means can carry out polishing by facing the protrusion detected by the first detecting means to the polishing member, and inspect the finish of the polished object member by the second detecting means.

As a result, the automatic polishing apparatus not only automatically polishes the surface of the member to be polished in accordance with the inspection result of the first detecting means having a simple structure in which the contacts are closely arranged, but also the first polishing means. It is possible to judge from the inspection result of the second detecting means having the same configuration as the detecting means of No. 1 above whether or not the protrusion remains on the surface of the member to be polished after polishing.

According to another aspect of the automatic polishing apparatus of the present invention,
And the detection result of the second detecting means is recorded on a predetermined recording medium together with an identification code for identifying the member to be polished and an identification code for identifying the container containing the member to be polished. From the data recorded on this recording medium, it is possible to accurately determine that the member to be polished contained in each container is the one that has been polished and has no protrusions remaining.
It is possible to prevent erroneous use of a member to be polished having protrusions on the surface in the next step.

The identification code of the container and the member to be polished may be given in advance or may be given by an automatic polishing apparatus. Also, the identification code for identifying the container loaded in the loading section may be recorded together on the recording medium, which enables the judgment of the history until the member to be polished is loaded into the automatic polishing device. Becomes

[0015]

EXAMPLE FIG. 1 and FIG. 2 show an automatic polishing apparatus 10 applied to this example.

In this automatic polishing apparatus 10, a loading section 14 is provided on both sides in a casing 12 having a substantially U-shaped outer planar shape.
The discharging unit 18 is arranged, and the polishing working unit 16 is arranged between the loading unit 14 and the discharging unit 18. The casing 12 is tightly surrounded by an outer wall material such as a vinyl chloride plate that has been subjected to antistatic treatment, and has a clean room inside. The casing 12 is provided with a circulation duct equipped with an air cleaning device (not shown),
The internal air is circulated at a predetermined timing to remove dust and dirt. Further, the casing 12 is provided with an operation panel 13 (see FIG. 2) for performing a polishing operation in the automatic polishing apparatus 10.

As shown in FIG. 1, the color filter 20 as the member to be polished is housed in a container 22. The container 22 has a rectangular shape and is in the shape of a box with one surface open, and the color filters 20 are layered in the container 22 at regular intervals.

As shown in FIG. 3, the color filter 2
0 is, for example, green, blue, on the surface of the thin glass substrate 20A.
A filter layer 20B in which a minute red color component is arranged is formed, and an identification code 20C (for example, a manufacturing number or the like) given to each color filter 20 is written on the peripheral portion of the glass substrate 20A. .

As shown in FIG. 2, the automatic polishing apparatus 10
The casing 12 is provided with a loading port 24 on the loading unit 14 side and the discharging unit 18 side, and the container 22 is inserted into the casing 12 from the loading port 24.

As shown in FIG. 1, the loading section 14 and the discharging section 18 are provided with a base 28 on which a container 22 is loaded, and the loading section 14 has a container 22 containing a color filter 20. The empty container 22 that does not house the color filter 20 is loaded in the discharge section 18. An identification code (not shown) is written at a predetermined position on each container 22 so that each container 22 can be identified.

A base 28 is provided at the loading section 14 and the discharging section 18.
The transfer robots 30 and 32 are arranged on the further back side.
In this embodiment, the transfer robots 30 and 32 have the same structure, one transfer robot 30 will be described, and description of the other transfer robot 32 will be omitted.

The transfer robot 30 has a columnar base 34.
The arm portion 36 is disposed on the upper part of the arm, and the holding plate 38 is provided at one end of the arm portion 36 in the longitudinal direction. As shown in FIG. 4, the transfer robot 30 includes a servo motor 4 for lifting and lowering the arm 36.
0, a rotary encoder 42 for rotating the arm portion 36 within a predetermined range, a servo motor 44 for expansion and contraction for expanding and contracting the arm portion 36 to move the holding plate 38, and a suction hole (not shown) provided on the surface of the holding plate 38. A solenoid valve 46 for supplying negative pressure is provided,
These are connected to the control unit 48.
Further, the control unit 48 is connected to the control unit 50 of the automatic polishing apparatus 10.

Therefore, the transfer robot 30 has the control unit 5
It is possible to raise, lower, rotate, and extend the arm portion 36 in response to a signal from 0 to accurately translate the holding plate 38 in a horizontal state in parallel to an arbitrary position, and to suck and hold the color filter 20 on the holding plate 38 for conveyance. You can do it.

Further, an elevating motor 52 and a detection sensor 54 provided adjacent to the base 28 of the loading section 14 are connected to the control section 50. As the detection sensor 54, for example, a photoelectric sensor having a light emitting element and a light receiving element can be used. The photoelectric sensor is housed in the container 22 while being raised along the open surface of the container 22 by the operation of the lifting motor 52. It is only necessary to be able to detect the color filter 20 in the lowermost stage.

Further, the control unit 50 is provided with code readers 140 and 142 for reading the identification codes of the containers 22 loaded in the loading unit 14 and the discharging unit 18, respectively. When loaded, the identification code of the container 22 is read by the code leads 140 and 142 prior to the polishing operation. As the code readers 140 and 142, for example, a bar code reader may be used when the identification code is displayed as a bar code, and a CCD sensor or the like may be used when the identification code is displayed as characters.

In the automatic polishing apparatus 10, when the detection sensor 54 detects the lowermost color filter 20 contained in the container 22, the transfer robot 30 is operated in accordance with this height, and the holding plate 38 sucks and holds it. Then, it is taken out and conveyed to the polishing work unit 16. The transport robot 32 of the discharge unit 18 takes out the color filter 20 from the polishing work unit 16 and inserts it into the container 22 in order and stores it. At this time, the color filter 20 is inserted according to the position taken out from the loading unit 14, that is, the height detected by the detection sensor 54, and the color filter 20 is overlapped in the same order before and after the polishing work. Are housed in the container 22.

On the other hand, the control section 50 is connected to the input / output section 60 provided on the operation panel 13 together with the operation switch section 56 and the display section 58. In this input / output unit 60,
An IC card 62 is mounted as a recording medium. This IC
The card 62 is provided corresponding to, for example, the container 22 loaded in the loading unit 14 or the discharging unit 18, and the control unit 50 uses the identification codes of the containers 22 of the loading unit 14 and the discharging unit 18 as the IC. Record on card 62,
Which container 2 is the color filter 20 to be polished later
It is possible to clearly discriminate whether or not it is taken out from 2.

The recording medium is an IC card 62.
However, various general recording media that can store data magnetically and optically, such as a floppy disk and an MO disk, can be used. It may correspond to the container 22.

As shown in FIG. 1, the polishing work section 16 is provided with a base 64 between the loading section 14 and the discharging section 18, and a polishing table 66 is provided on the upper surface of the base 64. ing. In the polishing table 66, a rectangular polishing table 68 and a base plate 70 are integrally connected by a plurality of spacers 72.

A pair of guide rails 74 are provided on the upper surface of the base 64 in parallel with each other from the supply section 14 to the discharge section 18, and between the guide rails 74, one end is connected. A ball screw 78 that rotates by the drive of the main scanning motor 76 is provided. 6 and 8
As shown in FIG. 7, a base plate 70 of the polishing table 66 is provided with a slider 74A slidably engaged with each of the pair of guide rails 74 and a ball nut 78A meshed with a ball screw 78.

As shown in FIG. 4, the main scanning motor 76
Is connected to the control unit 50, and the polishing table 66 is controlled by the control unit 50 to load the loading unit 14 and the discharging unit 18.
It is designed to move between. At this time, the polishing table 6
6, that is, the amount of movement of the polishing table 68 is determined by the main scanning motor 7
It is possible to accurately obtain it from the driving amount of 6.

As shown in FIGS. 6 and 8, a plurality of suction holes 80 are formed on the upper surface of the polishing table 68. As shown in FIG. 4, the control unit 50 has a suction hole 8
A solenoid valve 82 that supplies a negative pressure to 0 is provided. For this reason, the color filter 2 is attached to the polishing table 68.
The color filter 20 is suction-held on the polishing table 68 by opening the solenoid valve 82 when 0 is mounted.

Further, as shown in FIG.
A rectangular frame 84 is provided between the polishing table 68 and the base plate 70. The support shafts 8 supported by the slide bearings 90 are provided at the four corners of the frame 84.
8 is projected upward. Also, the frame 84
Is attached to the lower surface of the polishing table 68 at the center of
The drive shaft of an air cylinder 86 that is operated by the air supplied from the control unit 50 (see FIG. 4) is connected.

Therefore, the frame 84 moves up and down by the drive of the air cylinder 86, and the support shaft 88 is moved.
The tip portion 88A of the tip of the above is projected and retracted above the polishing table 68. In the polishing work unit 16, the tip portion 88A of the support shaft 88 is projected above the polishing table 68 to receive the color filter 20 from the transport robot 30 and float above the polishing table 68 to support it.

As shown in FIGS. 6 and 7, the base 64
On the loading section 14 side of the
2 is projected. At the tip of these columns 92,
A substantially U-shaped bracket 94 is attached. An air cylinder 96 is attached to each bracket 94. When driven, each air cylinder 96 moves between the brackets 94 in the arrow Y direction (main scanning direction).

Each air cylinder 96 is provided with air cylinders 98 and 99. A holding block 100 for positioning is attached to the tip of the drive shaft of each of the air cylinders 98 and 99, and the holding blocks 100 are driven in a direction in which they come in contact with and separate from each other along the arrow X direction (arrow X direction). It is like this. In addition, a positioning plate 102 is provided so as to project from the end of each bracket 94 on the loading section 14 side. As shown in FIG. 4, these air cylinders 96, 98, 99
Is operated by the air supplied from the control unit 50.

As shown in FIG. 7, the sandwiching block 100 for positioning faces the end surface of the color filter 20 supported by the tip portion 88A of the support shaft 88 and drives the air cylinder 98 to drive one of them. Holding block 1
00 is projected to a predetermined position, the other air cylinder 99 is driven to press and move the color filter 20 by the holding block 100 so as to hold the color filter 20.
Positioning is performed in the direction of the arrow X of 0. Further, the air cylinder 96 brings the color filter 20 sandwiched by the sandwiching block 100 into contact with the positioning plate 102 and positions the color filter 20 along the arrow Y direction.

When the positioning of the color filter 20 on the polishing table 68 is completed, the controller 50 releases the support shaft 88 while releasing the holding by the holding block 100 and supplying a negative pressure to the suction hole 80. , The color filter 20 is placed and held on the polishing table 68 without causing displacement.

As shown in FIG. 4, the control unit 50 includes
A code reader 144 for reading the identification code 20C of the color filter 20 is provided, and the identification code 20C of the color filter 20 positioned and held on the polishing table 68 is read prior to polishing.

In the color filter 20 thus positioned and placed on the polishing table 68, for example, an intermediate portion in the width direction of the end portion on the loading portion 14 side is set as an origin P, and the following polishing work is performed at this origin. With P as a reference, for example, an arbitrary position on the color filter 20 is expressed as x, y coordinates with this origin P as a reference (origin) to perform the work.

In addition, in the polishing table 68, a urethane rubber having a hardness of 60 ° which is polished and finished is attached to the upper surface on which the color filter 20 is placed, and the flatness of the upper surface is set to 0.
The support shaft 88 has a tip 88A.
Is smoothly curved, and the supported color filter 20 can be smoothly moved horizontally without being damaged.
Further, the sandwiching block 100 is exchanged according to the size of the color filter 20 so that a fixed position can be positioned at the origin P regardless of the size of the color filter 20.

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 5, the base 64
The polishing unit 104 is disposed above the center of the
Surface inspection units 230 and 280, which are first and second detection means, are provided on the loading unit 14 side and the discharging unit 18 side with the polishing unit 104 interposed therebetween. The polishing table 68 on which the color filter 20 is mounted includes the surface inspection unit 230, the polishing unit 104, and the surface inspection unit 2.
The lower part 80 is sequentially passed to reach the discharge part 18 side.

In this embodiment, the surface inspection unit 2
The same configuration is used as 30, 280. Below, the configuration of the surface inspection unit 230 will be mainly described, and the description of the surface inspection unit 280 will be omitted.

As shown in FIG. 9, on the base 64, leg portions 204 are erected on both sides of the base 64 along the arrow X direction, and the surface inspection unit 2 is provided between the leg portions 204.
30 are provided. In this inspection unit 230,
A pair of side plates 232 are respectively arranged along the leg portions 204, and a top plate 234 is bridged between these side plates 232 and fixed by screws 236.

As shown in FIG. 10, a shaft 240 is spanned between the side plates 232, and support rollers 238 pivotally supported by the shaft 240 are provided near the side plates 232. These support rollers 2
38 is provided so as to face the non-filter layer on the periphery of the color filter 20 held on the polishing table 68.

The central portion of the shaft 240 in the axial direction is inserted into a cylindrical support portion 270A at the tip of a bracket 270 attached to the top plate 234, thereby preventing bending of the intermediate portion of the shaft 240. And holds it straight.

Further, a substantially L-shaped bracket 242 is attached to the outer surface of the side plate 232, and a space between the substantially L-shaped brackets 244 of the leg portion 204 provided facing the bracket 242 is provided. The headed pins 246 are connected to each other so as to be relatively movable in the vertical direction. A compression coil spring 248 is provided in an intermediate portion of the headed pin 246, that is, between the brackets 242 and 244. The compression coil spring 248 receives the load of the surface inspection unit 230, and the support roller 238 causes the color filter 20. The load acting on the color filter 20 when it comes into contact with the surface of is reduced.

As shown in FIGS. 9 and 10, a shaft 250 is hung from each of the four corners of the top plate 234 of the surface inspection unit 230, and the inspection base 252 is hung on the lower end of the shaft 250. , Is mounted parallel to the top plate 234.

As shown in FIG. 10, the inspection base 25
Two circular hole grooves 254 are formed in 2 along the longitudinal direction (arrow X direction). In each of these circular hole grooves 254, a plurality of rectangular holes 256 are formed at equal intervals. In this embodiment, as an example, the two circular hole grooves 254 are provided.
Seven rectangular holes 256 are provided in a zigzag pattern between the two.

A filler 258, which is a contactor for detecting a protrusion 20D attached to or protruding from the surface of the color filter 20, is inserted through each rectangular hole 256.

The filler 258 is thin-walled and cut into a substantially T-shape, and the bent shoulder 158A at the upper end is spanned over the rectangular hole 256 and supported in the circular hole groove 254, and the tongue at the lower end is formed. 158B is projected below the inspection base 252. As shown in FIG. 11A, these fillers 258 are formed on the mirror surface portion 25 extending from the shoulder portion 258A.
8C is balanced so that it is horizontal, and
The mirror surface portion 258C is tilted by the swinging movement of the tongue portion 258B (see FIG. 11).
(B)).

The wall thickness of the filler 258 is
It is about 0.1 to 0.2 mm, is formed and attached accurately using a metal such as stainless steel or titanium, and the upper surface of the mirror surface portion 258C is mirror-finished. Further, the tongue portions 258 of all the fillers 258 are in a state in which the support roller 238 is in contact with the peripheral edge of the color filter 20.
The front end (lower end) of B is arranged so that a predetermined space (4 μm in this embodiment) is formed between the front end (lower end) and the filter layer 20B of the color filter 20.

Further, in this embodiment, the width dimension of the tongue portion 258B is set to 10 mm, and the tongue portion 258B is arranged in the one circular hole groove 254 at a pitch of 19 mm. The offset of the filler 258 viewed from above, that is, the offset amount is set to 9.5 mm. As a result, the filler 258
Are arranged at equal intervals in a state of overlapping by 0.5 mm (see FIG. 9).

On the other hand, the photoelectric sensor 260 is provided on the top plate 234 so as to face the mirror surface portions 258C of the respective fillers 258.
Is provided. These photoelectric sensors 260 are connected to the control unit 50 (see FIG. 4).

As shown in FIG. 11A, the photoelectric sensor 260 irradiates the light from the light projecting portion 260A toward the upper surface of the shoulder portion 258A of the filler 258, and reflects the light reflected on the upper surface of the mirror surface portion 258C. The light receiving section 260B receives light (light receiving state).

Here, as shown in FIG.
The tongue portion 258B of the filler 258 is the color filter 20.
It abuts on the protrusion 20D on the surface of the and swings, and the shoulder 258A
When the upper surface of the optical sensor 260 tilts, the reflection direction of the light emitted from the light projecting section 260A of the photoelectric sensor 260 changes, and the light receiving section 260B
Can no longer be detected in (non-light receiving state).

In the control unit 50, these photoelectric sensors 26
When the light receiving state of 0 changes, that is, when the light receiving state changes,
The presence and position of the protrusion 20D on the surface of the color filter 20 is calculated. That is, in the control unit 50, the number indicating the position of each photoelectric sensor 260 and the main scanning motor 7 are displayed.
The position of the protrusion 20D on the color filter 20 with respect to the surface inspection unit 230 is specified from the driving amount of 6, and the position of the protrusion 20D is calculated as (x, y) coordinates with the origin P as a reference. Since the fillers 258 are overlapped in two rows, the fillers 2
When 58 moves back and forth to detect the protrusion 20D, the middle of the two fillers 258 is calculated as the position of the protrusion 20D.

In the control unit 50, the surface inspection unit 230
The IC mounted in the input / output unit 60 together with the identification code 20D of the color filter 20 read by the code reader 144 is stored by storing the position of the protrusion 20D detected by
The card 62 is recorded as the protrusion 20D that needs to be polished by the polishing unit 104. This makes it possible to accurately determine the individual positions of the protrusions 20D existing on the respective color filters 20.

Further, in the controller 50, the polishing unit 10
4 detects the protrusion 20D on the surface of the color filter 20, the surface inspection unit 280 provided on the downstream side of No. 4 does not finish polishing by the polishing unit 104 and the protrusion 20D remains and its position is determined by IC. The data is recorded on the card 62.

On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 1 and FIG. 5, the polishing unit 104 has a guide portion which is extended between a pair of leg portions 106 standing from the base 64 along the arrow X direction. It is attached to 108.

As shown in FIG. 5, in the guide portion 108, a pair of guide rails 112 and a ball screw 114 are arranged in a box-shaped casing 110. The base 116 of the polishing unit 104 includes a pair of guide rails 112.
Sliders 112 slidably engaged with each of the
A and a ball nut 114A meshing with the ball screw 114 are attached and supported by the guide portion 108. The ball screw 114 has one end with the sub-scanning motor 1.
18 (see FIG. 4) is connected, the drive amount is accurately controlled by the control unit 50, and the polishing unit 10 is rotated.
4 is moved in a direction orthogonal to the moving direction of the polishing table 68 (direction of arrow X, front-back direction of paper surface of FIG. 5). Accordingly, the polishing unit 104 can be opposed to any position of the color filter 20 on the polishing table 68.

The polishing unit 104 has a base plate 120 extending vertically downward from the base 116. A tape roll 124 is provided on the base plate 120. The polishing tape 122 is wound into a roll. The polishing tape 122 pulled out from the tape roll 124 is attached to the polishing head 1 at the lower end of the base plate 120.
It is wound around 26, and the front end is wound around the winding roll 128. Tape roll 124 and take-up roll 12
8 is driven at a predetermined speed by the tape running means 130 (see FIG. 4) to direct the polishing tape 122 from the tape roll 124 to the take-up roll 128.
It is designed to be moved in the direction opposite to the moving direction of 8.

As shown in FIG. 12, the polishing head 12
6 is provided on the swing arm 150. 14
As also shown in the figure, the swing arm 150 is provided on a fixed shaft 152 that is projected from the base plate 120 at right angles in the direction of the arrow X and in parallel with the upper surface of the polishing table 68. A pair of support arms 154 are attached to the fixed shaft 152.
4 includes a support shaft 1 that is substantially parallel to the fixed shaft 152.
56 are hung.

As shown in FIG. 14, the support arm 15
4 is attached to each of the fixed shaft 152 and the support shaft 156 via a bearing 188. For this reason,
As shown in FIGS. 12 and 13, the swing arm 1
In 50, the support shaft 156 is rotatable about the fixed shaft 152 in the arrow A direction and the arrow B direction. Further, the end of the support arm 154 on the support shaft 156 side can be separately swung due to the shift of the center of rotation that occurs within the allowable range of the bearing 188, so that the support shaft 156 can be inclined with respect to the horizontal direction. It is possible to swing. It should be noted that a self-aligning bearing capable of having a large allowable range of displacement of the rotary shaft may be used as the bearing 188, and the swing amount of the support shaft 156 in the horizontal direction may be set to be relatively large.

As shown in FIGS. 13 to 15, the support shaft 156 is provided with a polishing roller 158 serving as the polishing head 126 and a pair of guide rollers 160. The polishing roller 158 and the guide roller 160 have substantially the same outer dimensions, and the polishing tape 122 is wound around the polishing roller 158 at the center. The polishing roller 158 is made slightly thinner than the width of the polishing tape 122, and the edge of the polishing tape 126 has the color filter 20.
To prevent contact with the surface of.

On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 14, an eccentric portion 156A, which is eccentric with respect to both ends, is formed at an intermediate portion of the support shaft 156, and the polishing roller 158 is provided on the eccentric portion 156A. Guide rollers 160 are rotatably mounted on both sides of the roller 158 via bearings 189, respectively. That is, the guide roller 1
60 is eccentrically attached to the polishing roller 158. The polishing roller 158 and the guide roller 1
As the bearing 189 for receiving 60, it is more preferable to use an angular bearing whose displacement of the rotation center is small.

As shown in FIGS. 12 and 13, a rotary lever 162 is attached to the support shaft 156 at the tip portion protruding from one support arm 154. The rotation lever 162 extends along the support arm 154 on the opposite side of the support shaft 156, and has an arc-shaped elongated hole 168 substantially coaxial with the support shaft 156 at the end. The rotary lever 162 is fixed by screwing a thumbscrew 170 inserted at an arbitrary position of the elongated hole 168 into a screw hole (not shown) provided in the support arm 154.

By rotating the support shaft 156 between the polishing roller 158 and the guide roller 160,
The amount of step difference between the peripheral surfaces facing the lower polishing table 68 is changed. This step difference is between the color filter 20 and the polishing roller 158 when the support shaft 156 is rotated around the fixed shaft 152 and the peripheral surface of the guide roller 160 is brought into contact with the color filter 20 on the polishing table 68. Is the gap between the color filter 20 and the polishing tape 122 wound around the polishing roller 158. By fixing the rotary lever 162 to a desired position, this step difference can be made substantially constant. You can do it.

Therefore, by rotating the support shaft 156 together with the rotating lever 162, the polishing tape 12
The protrusion 2 on the surface of the color filter 20 which is polished by 2
The size of 0D can be adjusted, and the thickness of the polishing tape 122 can be adjusted when the tape roll 124 is replaced. For example, when the thickness of the polishing tape 122 is about 30 μm, the allowable range of protrusions on the surface of the color filter 20 (for example, about 3 to 4 μm) is added to this thickness.
It may be adjusted so as to be the sum of m).

As shown in FIG. 12, the rotating lever 16
A pointer 172 is provided at the tip of the support arm 154.
A scale 174 corresponding to the pointer 172 is engraved on the. In this embodiment, the rotary lever 162 is rotated to move the pointer 172 by one graduation so that the step amount between the polishing roller 158 and the guide roller 160 is 1 μm.
It is set to change only. A notch 190 is formed in a part of the outer periphery of the guide roller 160, and the end opposite to the notch 190 is balanced so as to be located substantially below the step, and the step due to the rotation of the guide roller 160 is formed. The length of one-time polishing is narrowed so that the change in the amount is suppressed and the notch 190 does not come into contact with the surface of the color filter 20.

A bracket 176 is attached to the tip of each support arm 154 on the side of the support shaft 156 and extends obliquely upward and the tip is bent in a substantially horizontal direction. One end of a coil spring 178 is connected to the vicinity of the tip of the bracket 176. The other end of each coil spring 178 has a base plate 1
It is connected to 20. The coil spring 178 prevents the surface of the color filter 20 from being unnecessarily loaded when the guide roller 160 is brought into contact with the surface of the color filter 20. In this embodiment, the load applied to the color filter 20 when the guide roller 160 is brought into contact with the color filter 20 is about 200.
It is set to about g so that the surface of the soft color filter 20 is not damaged.

A small roller 182 is rotatably arranged on one of the brackets 176, and an eccentric cam 184 protruding from the base plate 120 faces the peripheral surface of the small roller 182. . This eccentric cam 184 is
The swing motor 186 connected to the control unit 50 is driven to rotate eccentrically, and the swing arm 150 is vertically moved together with the bracket 176. When the swing arm 150 moves upward, the polishing head 126 is separated from the surface of the color filter 20,
When moved downward, the guide roller 160 of the polishing head 126 comes into contact with the surface of the color filter 20.

As shown in FIGS. 12 and 13, a reflecting plate 192 is provided at the tip of these brackets 176, and the reflecting plate 192 has a base plate 120.
The laser detector 194 provided in the is opposed. The laser detector 194 is connected to the control unit 50 (see FIG. 4) and irradiates the reflection plate 192 to irradiate the reflection plate 1.
The laser light reflected back to 92 is detected, and the position of the reflector 192 is detected from the optical path length of the laser light.

In the control section 50, this laser detector 194
It is possible to determine whether or not the surface of the color filter 20 is normally polished from the detection result of 1. For example, the protrusion 20D on the surface of the color filter 20
When the polishing tape 158 is hard and cannot be polished by the polishing tape 122, the polishing roller 158 rides on the protrusion 20D to raise the swing arm 150,
The control unit 50 detects the swing of the swing arm 50 from the detection value of the laser detector 194 based on whether or not at least one of the reflection plates 192 is lifted upward, and the corresponding protrusion 20D can be removed. It is decided that there is no such thing (unpolished). In this embodiment, it is determined that the polishing failure has occurred when any one of the reflection plates 192 moves up by about 2 μm or more.

That is, in the polishing working unit 16, while the polishing table 68 is moved from the loading unit 14 side to the discharging unit 18, the protrusion 20D on the color filter 20 detected by the surface detection unit 230 is below the polishing unit 104. When passing through, the polishing head 126 is moved to a position facing the protrusion 20D, and polishing with the polishing tape 122 is performed. When the color filter 20 passes below the surface inspection unit 280, the polishing unit 10
A finish inspection of the surface of the color filter 20 after polishing by 4 is performed.

In the polishing work section 16, when the polishing table 68 on which the color filter 20 is mounted reaches the predetermined position on the discharge section 18 side, the air cylinder 86 is driven and the support shaft 88 causes the color filter 20 to move. Lift up. At this time, the supply of the negative pressure to the suction holes 80 is released, the holding plate 38 of the transfer robot 32 is inserted below the lifted color filter 20, and the transfer robot 32 lifts the color filter 20. To be

The transport robot 32 that has lifted the color filter 20 stores the color filter 20 in a predetermined position of the container 22 loaded in the discharge section 18.

In the polishing work unit 16, for example, the polishing unit 126 has an image pickup unit 196 such as a camera (see FIG. 4).
Is provided so that the state of the polishing work can be displayed on the display unit 58 or the like.

The operation of this embodiment will be described below. In the automatic polishing apparatus 10, the container 22 containing the color filter 20 for polishing is loaded in the loading section 14, the empty container 22 is loaded in the discharging section 18, and the polishing is performed when a start switch (not shown) is operated. Start.

The flow chart shown in FIG. 16 shows an example of the outline of the polishing work performed by the automatic polishing apparatus 10.

This flowchart is executed when the polishing operation is started. In the first step 300, the loading unit 1
4 and the respective containers 22 loaded in the discharge part 18
Is read by the code readers 140 and 142, and then the read identification code of the container 22 is recorded in the IC card 62 loaded in the input / output unit 60 (step 302).

Thereafter, in step 304, the detection sensor 54 detects the lowermost color filter 20 in the container 22 loaded in the loading unit 14, and the color filter 20 is taken out by the transfer robot 30 to perform the polishing work unit. It is conveyed to 16 polishing tables 68.

Next, in the polishing work section 16, the transfer robot 3
The color filter 20 conveyed by 0 is received, positioned and held on the polishing table 68 (step 306), and the identification code 20C of the color filter 20 is read by the code reader 144 (step 20).
8). After that, in the polishing work unit 16, the main scanning motor 76
Is started to start the movement of the polishing table 68 to polish and polish the surface of the color filter 20 (step 31).
0). In the polishing work unit 16, prior to the surface polishing of the color filter 20 by the polishing unit 104, the surface inspection unit 230 arranged on the upstream side of the polishing unit 104 in the polishing table moving direction is used to remove the color filter 2.
The surface of 0 is inspected to detect the position of the protrusion 20D.
The polishing unit 104 is operated based on the inspection result of the surface inspection unit 230. Further, the polishing unit 10
When the polishing table 68 that has passed below 4 passes below the surface inspection unit 280, the presence or absence of the protrusion 20D on the surface of the color filter 20 is again inspected.

The flowchart shown in FIG. 17 shows an example of the surface inspection of the color filter 20, and this flowchart is executed when the polishing table 68 starts moving.

First Step 32 of this Flowchart
At 0, each memory M for recording the position of the protrusion 20D to be polished is cleared and the variable I for the memory address is set.
Is set to "1", and in the next step 322, the protrusion on the surface of the color filter 20 is determined based on the detection result of the photoelectric sensor 260, that is, whether the filler 258 is swung and the photoelectric sensor 260 is in the non-light receiving state. It is determined whether or not 20D is detected.

That is, as shown in FIG. 11A, the surface of the color filter 20 has a predetermined amount or more (about 4 μm in this embodiment).
When there is no protrusion 20D of m), the mirror surface portion 158C of the filler 158 maintains the horizontal state, and the photoelectric sensor 160
Becomes a light receiving state. Here, if a projection 20D larger than a predetermined size is formed on the surface of the color filter 20, the projection 20D contacts the tongue 158B of any one of the fillers 158 when passing below the surface inspection unit 230. The filler 158 is swung (see FIG. 11B). Due to the swing of the filler 158, the upper surface of the mirror surface portion 158C is tilted, and the photoelectric sensor 160 that has been in the light receiving state becomes the non-light receiving state. When any one of the photoelectric sensors 160 is in the non-light receiving state, the control unit 50 determines that the projections 20D of a predetermined size or more are formed on the surface of the color filter 20.

In the next step 324, the coordinate value (x) of the position of the protrusion 20D with reference to the origin P is determined from the number indicating the position of the photoelectric sensor 260 in the non-light receiving state and the driving amount of the main scanning motor 76. _I , y _I ) and record it in the memory M (memory M _I ) at the address corresponding to the set variable I (step 326). Next step 3
In step 28, the variable I is incremented (“1” is added), the process returns to step 322, and when the protrusion 20D is detected next, the position is recorded in the memory M of a new address.

As a result, the memory M has a protrusion 20.
It is recorded in order along the y coordinate indicating the position of D. In addition,
In the surface inspection unit 230, since the fillers 158 are provided in a zigzag manner, when a new protrusion 20D is detected, the positions of the protrusions 20D previously detected and recorded are compared with each other, and if necessary. The rearrangement is performed, and the protrusion 20D close to the origin P along the y coordinate axis is the last (latest) memory M.
Will be recorded in.

The inspection of the protrusions 20D on the surface of the color filter 20 by the filler 258 and the photoelectric sensor 260 is repeated, and in step 330, the surface inspection unit 230.
When it is detected from the driving amount of the main scanning motor 76 that the origin P of the color filter 20 has passed below (in the affirmative determination), the surface inspection is ended.

On the other hand, in the polishing unit 104, the color filter 2 is based on the inspection result of the surface inspection unit 230.
0 surface is polished. An example of the operation of the polishing unit 104 will be described with reference to the flowchart shown in FIG.

This flowchart shows the polishing table 68.
Is executed as the movement begins, and the first step 340
Then, the variable J for the address of the memory M is set to "1", and in the next step 342, it is judged whether or not data is recorded in the memory M (M _J ) of the set address.

Here, the surface inspection unit 230 detects the protrusion 20D, and the position of this protrusion 20D is stored in the memory M.
When the data is recorded in the memory (YES in step 342), the data in the memory M is sequentially read (step 346).

At the next step 348, the sub-scanning motor 1
18 is driven to move the polishing unit 104 to the x coordinate position among the coordinates (x, y) recorded in the memory M.
To move. Next, from the drive amount of the main scanning motor 76,
The protrusion 20D is formed on the polishing head 126 of the polishing unit 104.
Is approached to a predetermined position (affirmative determination), step 34
8, the polishing unit 104 is operated.

The operation of the polishing unit 104 drives the elevating motor 186 to lower the polishing head 126 to bring the guide roller 160 into contact with the surface of the color filter 20 for a predetermined time and move the polishing tape 122 to the color filter 20. Drive in the opposite direction. As a result, the polishing tape 122 scrapes off the protrusion 20D of the color filter 20 when the protrusion 20D of the color filter 20 passes below the polishing head 126.
To remove from the surface.

On the other hand, in the polishing unit 104, the laser head 194 causes the polishing head 126 to move the protrusion 2
It detects whether or not the vehicle has climbed up to 0D and climbed. That is, in the polishing unit 104, when the surface of the color filter 20 is rubbed with the polishing tape 122, the polishing tape 122 is forcibly pressed and not polished, and the protrusion 20D
When the particles are hard or firmly attached, the polishing head 126 is allowed to escape upward. by this,
The protrusion 20D is prevented from being forcibly rubbed to damage the surface of the color filter 20.

In the next step 352, the polishing unit 1
Each time the operation of 04 is completed, the laser detector 194
The determination of the polishing result by is recorded according to the memory M in which the position of the corresponding protrusion 20D is recorded. As a result, the polishing result of each protrusion 20D is recorded in the memory M together with the coordinate data representing the position of the protrusion 20D. Next, the variable J representing the memory M is incremented (step 354), the process returns to step 342, and a new protrusion 20D is polished.

In the polishing by the polishing unit 104, the polishing of all the projections 20D recorded in the memory M is completed (negative determination in step 342), and the origin P of the color filter 20 passes below the polishing unit 104. This is detected from the drive amount of the main scanning motor 76 (step 356).
Affirmative determination) and ends.

During the surface inspection and polishing work, the color filter 2 is displayed on the display unit 58 provided on the operation panel 13.
Each time the surface inspection unit 230 detects the protrusion 20D, 0 is displayed, the position of the protrusion 20D is displayed in an overlapping manner, and laser detection is performed each time the protrusion 20D is polished by the polishing unit 104. When the polishing unit 104 operates without any problem, the polishing result detected and determined by the vessel 194 is indicated by “◯”.
When the polishing head 126 is raised during polishing, “×” may be further displayed to be superimposed.

That is, the display unit 58 displays the position every time the protrusion 20D is detected on the color filter 20,
Further, the polishing result may be displayed every time each of the protrusions 20D is polished. by this,
It is possible to clearly confirm the progress of the polishing operation of the color filter 20.

The color filter 20 on the polishing table 68 that has passed below the polishing unit 104 next passes below the surface inspection unit 280, and the presence or absence of the projection portion 20D left unpolished is inspected.

As shown in FIG. 19, the finish inspection of the surface of the color filter 20 by the surface inspection unit 280 is a memory N for recording the position of the protrusion 20D detected by the surface inspection unit 280 in the first step 360. After clearing, the variable K is set to "1" and then the operation is started.

In the next step 326, the protrusion 20D on the color filter 20 is detected. Here, when the photoelectric sensor 260 is in the non-light-receiving state (affirmative determination), it is determined that the filler 258 is in contact with the protrusion 20D and rocked, and the process proceeds to step 364, and the non-light-receiving state is set. The position of the protrusion 20D is calculated from the number indicating the position of the photoelectric sensor 260 and the driving amount of the main scanning motor 76,
The position of the protrusion 20D obtained by this calculation is stored in the memory N
_It is recorded in _K (step 366) and the variable K is incremented (step 368). This operation is repeated until the origin P of the color filter 20 on the polishing table 68 passes below the surface inspection unit 280 (positive determination in step 370).

As a result, when the protrusion 20D remains on the color filter 20 polished by the polishing unit 104, the position of the protrusion 20D is stored in the memory N.
Recorded in.

On the other hand, in this way, the polishing table 68
When the polishing of the one color filter 20 placed on is completed, the process proceeds to the flowchart shown in FIG.
At 12, the transfer robot 32 takes out the color filter 20 on the polishing table 68, stores it in the container 22 provided in the discharge unit 18, and removes the color filter 20 from the polishing table 68 to the original position (color position) on the loading unit 14 side. Return to the receiving position of the filter 20).

At the same time, in step 314, the identification code 20C for specifying the color filter 20 on the IC card 62 loaded in the input / output unit 60, the position of each protrusion 20D recorded in the memory M, and each protrusion. Part 2
When data is recorded in the memory N together with the polishing result for 0D, the data in the memory N is also recorded in the IC card 6.
It is recorded in 2. That is, when there is a protruding portion 20D that is left uninspected by the polishing unit 104, the position of the remaining protruding portion 20D is recorded and left on the IC card 62.

At the next step 316, it is confirmed whether or not all the polishing of the color filter 20 loaded in the loading portion 14 is completed. As a confirmation method, the detection sensor 54 facing the container 22 is raised to search for the color filter 20 in the container 22, and then the color filter 20 is detected.
Alternatively, it may be determined whether or not there is no.

When the polishing of all the color filters 20 housed in the container 22 and loaded in the loading section 14 by the automatic polishing apparatus 10 is completed, the polished color filters 2 are finished.
The container 22 accommodating 0 is taken out from the ejecting section 18 and mounted on the input / output section 60.
With 2, it is carried to the next process.

As described above, in the color filter 20 which is housed in the container 22 loaded in the discharge section 18 and carried to the next step, the projection position before the polishing operation is recorded on the IC card 62, It is possible to clearly read in which position of each color filter 20 the protruding portion 20D is generated even after the polishing is completed.

Thus, the color filter 2 before polishing
Even if 0 is housed in the same container 22 having the same shape, it is possible to clearly identify whether or not the polishing of the color filters 20 housed in the respective containers 22 is completed, and the protrusion 20D is formed. It is possible to use only a uniform quality color filter 20 with no remaining
The quality of the product using the color filter 20 can be improved.

When the protrusion 20D remaining on the surface of the color filter 20 remains on the IC card 62, the position of the protrusion 20D is recorded, so the color filter 20 with the protrusion 20D left is used. It is possible to prevent the occurrence of such a problem.

The IC card 62 has an identification code 20C for distinguishing each color filter 20, a container 22 that was housed before polishing, and a projection 20D at any position of each color filter 20. Since it is recorded whether or not the color filter 20 has been recorded, it is possible to determine from these information whether the defect of the color filter 20 has occurred at the manufacturing stage or when the color filter 20 is contained in the container 22 and transported. It can be effectively used as information when managing.

In this embodiment, the surface inspection unit 2
Although only the finish inspection of the surface of the color filter 20 is performed by using 80, the polishing table 68 may be returned based on the inspection result of the surface inspection unit 280, and the polishing unit 104 may perform repolishing. Good.

In addition, the protrusion 2 recorded in the memories M and N
By comparing the 0D position, for example, it can be determined whether the surface inspection unit 230 is operating properly based on whether or not the x coordinate values of the protrusions 20D detected by the surface inspection unit 280 are substantially the same. It is possible to perform self-diagnosis between the surface inspection units 230 and 280 such as a detection failure. Also, the surface inspection units 230, 280
It is possible not only to perform self-diagnosis during this time but also to determine whether the operating state of the polishing unit 104 is appropriate. As a result, the automatic polishing apparatus 10 can maintain high polishing accuracy, and the surface of the color filter 20 can be polished accurately and reliably.

[0114]

As described above, according to the present invention, the simple and accurate first and second detecting means for detecting the protrusions on the surface of the member to be polished are provided by the polishing means. Since they are arranged with the sandwiched therebetween, it is possible to detect the projections to be polished and to confirm the finish of the member to be polished after polishing.

Further, in the present invention, since the inspection result after polishing and the inspection result after polishing are recorded in a predetermined recording medium,
It has an excellent effect that the polishing state in the next step can be judged extremely accurately.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a schematic configuration of an automatic polishing apparatus applied to this embodiment.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing an outer shape of an automatic polishing apparatus.

FIG. 3 is a schematic perspective view showing a color filter that is a member to be polished.

FIG. 4 is a schematic block diagram showing a control unit of the automatic polishing apparatus.

FIG. 5 is a front view showing a schematic configuration of a polishing work unit.

FIG. 6 is a schematic perspective view showing a polishing operation unit on the loading unit side.

FIG. 7 is a schematic plan view showing positioning of a color filter on a polishing table.

FIG. 8 is a schematic sectional view of the polishing table taken along the arrow Y direction.

FIG. 9 is a schematic view of the surface inspection unit viewed from the loading section side.

FIG. 10 is a perspective view showing a schematic configuration of a surface inspection unit.

11A and 11B are respectively 11-1 of FIG.
It is a schematic sectional drawing which followed the 1 line, (A) shows the normal state of a contact child, (B) shows the state which detected the protrusion part by the contact child.

FIG. 12 is a front view of relevant parts showing a schematic configuration of a polishing unit.

FIG. 13 is a perspective view of a main part showing a swing arm provided with a polishing head.

14 is a schematic cross-sectional view taken along line 14-14 of FIG.

FIG. 15 is a schematic view of the polishing head as seen from the loading section side.

FIG. 16 is a flowchart showing an outline of a polishing operation of the automatic polishing apparatus.

FIG. 17 is a flowchart showing an outline of inspection by a surface inspection unit.

FIG. 18 is a flowchart showing an outline of polishing by a polishing unit.

FIG. 19 is a flowchart showing an outline of reinspection of a color filter.

[Explanation of symbols]

 10 Automatic Polishing Device 14 Loading Section 16 Polishing Working Section 18 Ejecting Section 20 Color Filter 22 Container 50 Control Section 60 Input / Output Section 62 IC Card 68 Polishing Table 104 Polishing Unit 122 Polishing Tape 126 Polishing Head 140, 142, 144 Code Reader 150 Swing Arm 230,280 Surface inspection unit 258 Filler

Claims (2)

[Claims] 1. A loading section for loading a container capable of holding a plurality of members to be polished, a discharging section for loading a container for holding a polished member to be polished, and the member to be polished at a predetermined position. And a moving table that moves from the loading section side to the discharging section side by a predetermined moving amount, and the member to be polished on the moving table that is provided between the loading section and the discharging section and moves. Polishing means for facing the polishing member to an arbitrary position and polishing, and a plurality of contacts closely arranged along the direction orthogonal to the moving direction of the moving table are provided to sandwich the polishing means. First and second detecting means for detecting the position of the protrusion on the member to be polished from the position of the contactor in contact with the protrusion on the surface of the member to be polished and the amount of movement of the moving table; Provided on the loading section side of First detecting means for detecting a result an automatic polishing apparatus characterized by having a polishing control unit for actuating the grinding means by moving the polishing member in accordance with the movement amount of the moving tables. 2. A reading means for reading at least the identification code of the container loaded in the discharge section and the identification code of each color filter, and the surface of the member to be polished based on the detection results of the first and second detection means. Recording means for recording the positions of the protrusions, and output means for writing and outputting the positions of the protrusions recorded in the recording means together with the identification codes of the container and the member to be polished on a predetermined recording medium. The automatic polishing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein: