JPH09196817A - Handling device for color filter board - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a handling device appropriate for an inspecting system by providing appropriate side bases, a carrying mechanism, a board curve preventing mechanism and a positioning and supporting mechanism to a color filter board. SOLUTION: A space between a right and a left side bases 3A, 3B is set corresponding to the size of a CF board. Each roller of a carrying mechanism 4 can be elevated, and loaded with a board in each inclined surface at a raised position. Each rectangular pipes 51a, 51b of each rectangular pipe of a board curve preventing mechanism 5 always jets air upward over the whole area of each pipe, and the generation of curve in a placed board is prevented by air, which is jetted to the back surface of the board. Each positioning tool 61a, 61b of a positioning and supporting mechanism 6 elastically pushes both side surfaces of the board, of which curve is prevented, in the direction Y for positioning, and the each supporting tool abuts on both the side surfaces of the positioned board for support, and a fault of the surface of the board, in which the generation of curve is prevented and which is formed flat, is inspected by each inspecting optical system.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a handling device provided corresponding to a color filter substrate inspection device.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art A color filter substrate will be described with reference to FIG. In (a), the color filter (CF) substrate 1 is
The glass substrate 11 is used as the material, and the surface has three minute primary colors (R
GB) pixels 12 are alternately arranged in a matrix. In order to streamline production, as shown in (b),
Each pixel 12 is formed on the entire surface of a large glass substrate 11, and is cut into, for example, four CF (1) to CF (4) for use. Regarding the size standard of the large glass substrate 11, the maximum size is 560 mm in height H and 700 mm in width W, which is equivalent to almost two pages of newspaper. There are various types such as those below this. On the other hand, the thickness d standard is 0.55, 0.
The size is 7, 1.1 mm, etc., and in any case, it is very thin compared to the size, so it is easily bent, and if handled improperly, there is a risk of breakage.

The CF substrate 1 has foreign matter, protrusions,
Since the quality deteriorates if there are various defects such as pinholes, the presence or absence of defects is inspected by an inspection device.
For the small CF substrate 1, a method for detecting these defects has been devised, and respective inspection devices have been put to practical use. However, when each inspection device is separately applied to the large CF substrate 1 before cutting, the inspection requires a long time and is not efficient. Therefore, by consolidating the inspection devices and inspecting different portions of the same CF substrate 1 in parallel, it is possible to shorten the inspection time as a whole and improve the inspection efficiency. FIG. 7 shows an example of an inspection system for performing such parallel inspection. The inspection system shown in FIG. 7 is composed of integrated inspection devices and a handling device provided on the lower side thereof. For example, an uninspected CF substrate 1 is supplied to the handling device by the left robot hand RH, Various defects are respectively inspected by reciprocating movements by the respective inspection devices, and when all the inspections are completed, the CF substrate 1 is moved to the right end and taken out by the right RH.

The conditions required for the above handling device are summarized below. (a) Being able to flexibly accommodate various sizes of large CF substrates. (b) To stably receive the substrate supplied by the robot hand. (c) Prevent bending so that the board is not scratched. (d) Precisely position and securely support the board. (e) Being able to reciprocate the board and inspect various defects with each inspection device. And so on.

[0005]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is to provide a handling device which satisfies the above-mentioned various conditions.

[0006]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention is a color filter (CF) substrate handling device that solves the above problems, and is arranged on both sides of a main base so as to be movable in the Y direction (hereinafter simply referred to as Y movement). The left and right side bases are provided so that the mutual distance can be set according to the size of the CF substrate. A transport mechanism that is fixed to both side bases and that has a plurality of rollers that mounts a substrate supplied by a robot hand and moves in X, the inside of each roller of the side bases on both sides, and the central portion in the Y direction of the main base. In addition, the substrate curving prevention mechanism composed of a plurality of square pipes fixed in the X direction, and arranged in the X direction outside each roller of the side bases on both sides, move independently in the Y direction, and both are in the X direction. It is composed of a positioning support mechanism having a plurality of positioning tools and a plurality of support tools moving to (1) each roller of the transport mechanism is a conical shape having a slope,
The substrates are arranged so as to face each other in the X direction so that they can be moved up and down, and the substrate is placed on each slope at the raised position. (2) Each square pipe of the substrate bending prevention mechanism constantly jets air upward over the entire area of each square pipe. The substrate placed on the inclined surface of each roller is prevented from being bent by the air blown on the back surface. In addition, each square pipe is divided into a plurality of parts to form a plurality of gaps with respect to the inspection optical system. (3) Each positioning tool of the positioning support mechanism elastically presses and positions both side surfaces in the Y direction of the substrate on which bending is prevented, and each support tool contacts and supports both side surfaces of the positioned board. Then, the inspection optical system inspects for defects existing on the surface of the substrate which has been flattened by X-reciprocating movement to prevent bending. It has the characteristics of the above items.

[0007]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION In the above-described handling device, the left and right side bases are moved in the opposite directions by Y and the distance therebetween is set according to the size of the substrate. That is, the above-mentioned condition (a) is satisfied. The plurality of rollers of the transport mechanism have a conical shape having an inclined surface, are arranged in the X direction so as to face each other, and can be moved up and down. The substrate supplied by the robot hand is stably placed on the slopes of the raised rollers, so that the condition (b) is satisfied.

The plurality of square pipes of the substrate curving prevention mechanism constantly inject air upward toward the entire area of each square pipe,
The substrate placed on the inclined surface of each roller is prevented from being bent by the air blown on the back surface. In this case, since an air gap is created between the back surface of the substrate and the top surface of each square pipe, they do not contact each other, the back surface is not scratched, and dust is not scattered and adhered by the air ejection force. (c) is satisfied.

In the positioning support mechanism, the plurality of positioning tools move in the Y direction to elastically press both side surfaces in the Y direction of the substrate in which the bending is prevented, and the substrate is accurately positioned.
Then, the plurality of supporting members move in Y and come into contact with the positioned both side surfaces to surely support the substrate.
(d) is satisfied. The supported substrate moves back and forth in the X direction, and defects present on the surface of the substrate that has been flattened by preventing bending are detected and inspected by inspection optical systems arranged in a plurality of gaps of each square pipe. Condition (e) is satisfied.
When the inspection is completed, the substrate is placed on each roller of the transport mechanism again, moved X and stopped at the terminal, and is taken out of the apparatus by the robot hand.

[0010]

1 to 5 show one embodiment of the present invention,
1 is a perspective view of the handling device 10, FIG. 2 is a configuration diagram of the transfer mechanism 3, FIG. 3 is a configuration diagram of the substrate bending prevention mechanism 4, and FIG.
Is a configuration diagram of the positioning support mechanism 5, and FIG. 5 is a supplementary diagram with respect to FIG. In FIG. 1, the handling device 10 is
Main base 2 and left and right side bases 3 (A), 3
(B), the transport mechanism 4, the substrate curving prevention mechanism 5, and the positioning support mechanism 6. Both side bases 3 (A) and 3 (B) are arranged on both sides of the main base 2 in the Y direction, and both are connected to a screw rod 31, and are rotated in the opposite directions along the guide rail 33 by the rotation of the handle 32. The Y-movement is performed, and with reference to the scale M, the intervals are set to be suitable for various sizes of the CF substrate 1. As the size of the substrate 1,
For example, the range is from the large glass substrate 11 which is not cut as shown in FIG.

In FIG. 2, the transport mechanism 4 comprises the same transport units 41a and 41b facing each other, both of which are supporting plates 411 fixed to both side bases 3 (A) and 3 (B) in the X direction.
And a plurality of conical rollers arranged on a supporting plate 411, coupled by a belt 412, and rotated by a motor 413.
The support plate 411 has both ends supported by bearings 415 and is driven by an air cylinder 416 so that it can be moved up and down. The substrate 1 is conveyed by the robot hand from the processing device at the preceding stage and is supplied to the first both rollers 414 of the supporting plates 411 on both sides of which the tip end portion is raised, and then the rollers 414 are provided.
The substrate 1 is moved in the X direction by the rotation of and is stopped at the position shown by the alternate long and short dash line. In this case, even if the substrate 1 is slightly displaced in the Y direction, both side surfaces of the substrate 1 gradually move along the slopes of the rollers 414, and the center thereof coincides with the center between the rollers 414. It is stably placed on a plurality of rollers 414 and moves in the X direction.

In FIGS. 1 and 3, the substrate curving prevention mechanism 5 includes rollers for both side bases 3 (A) and 3 (B).
Inside the 411, square pipes 51a and 51d fixed in the X direction,
At the center of the main base 2 in the Y direction, square pipes 51b and 51c fixed in the X direction are provided. A large number of air injection holes e are formed on the upper surface of each square pipe 51, and the air is continuously jetted upward from the whole area of each square pipe 51. In the YZ cross section of FIG. 3, the substrate 1 placed on each of the rollers 414, 414 on both sides is prevented from being bent by the air blown to many points on the back surface thereof. Further, each square pipe 51 is divided into a plurality of pieces, for example, five pieces in the X direction as shown in the drawing, and gaps G _{1 to} G ₄ are formed between them, and as shown in the XZ section, G _{1 to} G ₃ are formed. An inspection optical system is provided at each position of, and a marking mechanism is provided at the position of G ₄ .

1 and 4, the positioning support mechanism 6 is composed of positioning support units 61a and 61b arranged in the X direction outside each roller 414 on both sides.
A movable plate 612 provided on the upper surface of the T-shaped support member 611 and moved in the X direction by the motor 613, and a plurality of positioning tools 614 arranged in the movable plate 612, each independently Y-moved, and X-moved together. Support 616. Each positioning tool 612 has a pressing rod 6141 that presses the side surface of the substrate 1, and is driven by an air cylinder 615 to move in Y along the sliding plate 6142. Each supporting tool 616 supports the substrate 1 by supporting rods 6161. It is driven by the air cylinder 617 and moves in Y along the sliding plate 6162.

With respect to the substrate 1 placed on the rollers 414 on both sides and stopped at the position indicated by the alternate long and short dash line, each positioning tool 614 and each support tool 616 move in X to correspond to the substrate 1. . First, the respective positioning tools 614 on both sides move inward with respect to each other, and the respective pressing rods 6141 elastically press the both side surfaces of the substrate 1 to position them in the Y direction, and then the respective supporting tools on both sides.
616 move inward with respect to each other, and the respective support rods 6161 abut on both side surfaces to support the substrate 1. Then each positioning tool
After moving 614 outward and lowering both support plates 411 of the transport mechanism 4 to separate each pressing rod 6141 and each roller 414 from the substrate 1, each support 616 moves in X direction to support the substrate. 1
Is made to correspond to each inspection optical system, and further X reciprocating movement is performed to detect defects existing on the surface for inspection. When each inspection is completed, a quality mark according to the quality class of the inspection result is imprinted on a predetermined portion of the substrate 1 by the marking mechanism.
Thereafter, the substrate 1 is released from each support 616, transferred to each roller 414 that has moved up, moved to the terminal, chucked by the robot hand, taken out from the apparatus 10, and passed to the next processing apparatus.

In the above-mentioned positioning, it is necessary to determine a reference position for each inspection device, and in order to elastically press both side surfaces of the substrate 1 to move them smoothly,
It is desirable to use some kind of aid. FIG. 5 shows an example of the pressing aid 618, which includes a pressing piece 6181 and a spring 61.
82 and support ring 6183. This is provided for the positioning tool 614 on the right side, for example, and the air cylinder 61
7, and the upper end of the support ring 6183 is brought into contact with the back surface of the substrate 1. When the tip of the pressing rod 6141 of the left positioning tool 614 is used as a reference point K and the air cylinder 617 is operated to elastically press the pressing piece 6181 by the spring 6182, the right pressing rod 6141 moves the right side surface of the substrate 1. Since the support ring 6183 pushes this to the left due to the frictional force with the back surface, the substrate 1 moves smoothly to the left due to both, and the left side surface contacts the tip of the pressing rod 6141 and becomes the reference. Positioned at point K.

[0016]

As described above, the handling device of the present invention can be used in various sizes of CF regardless of size.
It can flexibly respond to the substrate, stably receives the CF substrate supplied by the robot hand, prevents its bending so that it will not be scratched, accurately positions it and reliably supports it, and further reciprocates it. It has a mechanism and a function for each so that a defect inspection can be performed by each inspection device, and is suitable for a CF substrate inspection system.
There are excellent effects that contribute to the efficiency of inspection.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a handling device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a configuration diagram of a transport mechanism.

FIG. 3 is a configuration diagram of a substrate bending prevention mechanism.

FIG. 4 is a configuration diagram of a positioning support mechanism.

FIG. 5 is a supplementary diagram with respect to FIG.

FIG. 6 is an explanatory view of a color filter substrate,
(a) is a vertical section and a plan view, (b) is an explanatory view of the size of a large color filter substrate.

FIG. 7 is a block diagram of an example of an inspection system for a large color filter substrate.

[Explanation of symbols]

1 ... Color filter substrate, 11 ... Glass substrate, 12 ... 3 primary color pixels, 2 ... Main base, 3 (A), 3 (B) ... Left and right side bases, 31 ... Screw rod, 32 ... Handle, 33 ... Guide Rails, 4 ... Transport mechanism, 41a, 41b ... Transport unit, 411
... Support plate, 412 ... Belt, 413 ... Motor, 414 ... Conical roller, 415 ... Bearing, 416 ... Air cylinder, 5 ... Substrate bending prevention mechanism, 51a to 51b ... Square pipe, 6 ... Positioning support mechanism, 61a, 61b ... Positioning support unit, 611 ... Support member, 6111 ... Sliding plate, 612 ... Moving plate, 613 ... Motor,
614 ... Positioning tool, 6141 ... Pressing rod, 6142 ... Sliding plate, 615
… Air cylinders, 616… Supports, 6161… Support rods, 6162…
Sliding plate, 617 ... Air cylinder, 618 ... Pressing aid, 6181
... Pressing piece, 6182 ... Spring, 6183 ... Support ring, e ...
Air injection hole, a gap that divides the G ₁ 1-G ₄ ... square pipe, K ... positioning reference point.

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A robot provided with left and right side bases which are arranged on both sides of a main base so as to be movable in the Y direction and whose mutual intervals can be set according to the size of a color filter substrate, and which are fixed to the both side bases. A transport mechanism having a plurality of rollers for placing the substrate supplied by a hand and moving in the X direction, inside each roller of the side bases on both sides, and in the central portion of the main base in the Y direction, respectively. A substrate curving prevention mechanism composed of a plurality of square pipes fixed in the X direction, and arranged in the X direction outside each roller of the side bases on both sides thereof, respectively moving in the Y direction and moving in the X direction together. A positioning support mechanism having a plurality of positioning tools and a plurality of support tools, and (1) each roller of the transport mechanism is a conical shape having an inclined surface. Then, the substrates are arranged so as to be opposed to each other in the X direction and can be raised and lowered, and the substrate is placed on each of the slopes at the raised position. (2) Each square pipe of the substrate bending prevention mechanism is Air is constantly jetted upward over the entire area, the substrate placed on the slope of each roller is prevented from being bent by the air jetted on the back surface, and each square pipe is divided into a plurality of pieces. A plurality of gaps with respect to the inspection optical system are formed, and (3) each positioning tool of the positioning support mechanism elastically presses and positions both side surfaces in the Y direction of the substrate in which the bending is prevented, The tool abuts and supports both side surfaces of the positioned substrate, and reciprocates in the X direction to detect defects present on the flattened surface of the substrate in which the bending is prevented, and the inspection optical systems The color filter group is characterized by being inspected by Handling device.