JPH1062791A - Liquid crystal injection device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To eliminate the unequal injection of liquid crystals into a liquid crystal cell by including feeding and sucking devices capable of freely switching the feeding or sucking of the liquid crystals in an injection chuck and a discharge chuck. SOLUTION: The feeding and sucking device 25 comprises a changeover trap 18, a vacuum pump 19 and a liquid feeding pump 20. The feeding and sucking device 26 comprises a changeover trap 21, a vacuum pump 22 and a liquid feeding pump 23. When the average of the output of a sensor is lower or higher than the output voltage of a specified range, the vacuum pump 19 and the injection chuck 15 are connected by operating the changeover valve of the changeover trap 18 and a liquid feed pump 23 and the discharge chuck 16, 16 are connected by operating the changeover valve of the changeover trap 21, by which the liquid crystals are fed from the liquid feed pump 23 to the liquid crystal discharge ports 12, 12 and the suction operation from the liquid crystal injection port 15 by the vacuum pump 19 is executed.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a liquid crystal injection device capable of uniformly injecting liquid crystal into a gap between substrates arranged opposite to each other in a liquid crystal cell.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art FIG. 6 shows a piping system of a conventional device for injecting a liquid crystal into a gap between substrates arranged opposite to each other in a liquid crystal cell. FIGS. 7 and 8 show the arrangement of a liquid crystal injection part with respect to the liquid crystal cell. The liquid crystal cell shown in FIG. 6 and denoted by reference numeral 1 is a liquid crystal cell configured by arranging a pair of transparent substrates 2 and 3 to face each other as shown in FIG.

[0003] The liquid crystal cell 1 is constructed by integrating the substrates 2 and 3 in a facing state by a sealing material 7 shown in FIG. It is arranged in a horizontally elongated standing state, and a portion of the sealing material around the substrates 2 and 3 where the sealing material is not arranged at one side (the right side in FIGS. 6 and 8) is provided. A liquid crystal injection port 4 is formed, and liquid crystal discharge ports 5 and 6 are formed on the other side (the left side in FIGS. 6 and 8) at the upper and lower portions without a sealing material. Are respectively formed.

A U-shaped injection chuck 8 for preventing leakage of liquid crystal is attached to the outside of the liquid crystal injection port 4, and a similar U-shaped discharge chuck 9 is also provided outside the liquid crystal discharge ports 5 and 6. , 10 are attached respectively. As shown in FIG. 7, these chucks 8, 9, and 10 have a block shape having a concave portion a which can sandwich the end of the liquid crystal cell 1, and a liquid crystal injection port is formed inside the concave portion a. Then, the recess a is attached to the periphery of the liquid crystal inlet or the periphery of the liquid crystal outlet of the liquid crystal cell 1, so that the inlet and the liquid crystal inlet 4 inside the recess a or the inlet and the liquid crystal outlet 5,
6 can be connected. In FIGS. 6 and 8, these chucks 8, 9, and 10 are shown as flat plates for simplification.

A pumping device 11 and a liquid crystal tank 12 are connected to the injection chuck 8, a vacuum pump 13 is connected to the pumping device 11 and the liquid crystal tank 12, and a pressure regulator 15 is connected to the liquid crystal tank 12. Have been.
A vacuum pump 16 is connected to the discharge chucks 9 and 10 of the liquid crystal discharge ports 5 and 6. Further, the liquid crystal cell 1
7, a sensor 17 for detecting a liquid crystal injection state around the liquid crystal injection port 4 is attached to the side of the injection chuck 8, as shown in FIG. The sensor 18 for detecting passage of liquid crystal
Is attached.

In order to inject liquid crystal into the liquid crystal cell 1 using the liquid crystal injection device having the above-described structure, first, the inside of the liquid crystal cell 1 is depressurized by operating the vacuum pump 16 and the pressure is applied from the regulator 15 to the liquid crystal tank 12. And the liquid crystal is sent to the pumping device 11, and the injection chuck 8 is
And liquid crystal is injected into the liquid crystal cell 1 through the liquid crystal injection port 4. Here, the distance between the substrates 2 and 3 of the liquid crystal cell 1 is very small, a few μm, and the liquid crystal 20 injected into the liquid crystal cell 1 gradually becomes liquid crystal as shown by an alternate long and short dash line in FIG. The liquid is injected so as to expand from the inlet 4 to the liquid crystal outlets 5 and 6. Also, at the start of injection, the sensor 1
7 and 18 are operated, the state where the liquid crystal 20 is injected into the liquid crystal cell through the liquid crystal injection port 4 by the sensor 17 is monitored, and the liquid crystal 20 injected by the sensor 18 is changed to the liquid crystal discharge port 5. , 6 are monitored, and when the liquid crystal 20 is filled in the liquid crystal cell 1 and discharged from the liquid crystal discharge ports 5, 6, liquid crystal injection is completed.

[0007]

In the liquid crystal injection device having the above structure, only the portions near the liquid crystal injection port 4 and the intermediate positions near the liquid crystal discharge ports 5, 6 are monitored by the sensors 17 and 18. For this reason, there is a problem that it is not possible to detect whether or not liquid crystal injection unevenness occurs. Further, even if the sensor 17 or 18 detects that the injection unevenness has occurred, there has been a problem that it is not possible to take measures for eliminating the injection unevenness.

The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and it is possible to prevent the occurrence of uneven injection of liquid crystal into a liquid crystal cell, and to take measures for eliminating the uneven injection even if the uneven injection occurs. It is an object of the present invention to provide a liquid crystal injection device capable of performing the following.

[0009]

In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, the present invention provides an injection chuck connected to a liquid crystal injection port formed on one side of a liquid crystal cell, and a liquid crystal discharge port formed on the other side of the liquid crystal cell. A discharge chuck connected to the injection chuck, a liquid suction device connected to the injection chuck and capable of switching between liquid supply and suction to the injection chuck, and a liquid crystal connected to the discharge chuck and And a suction device that can switch between sending and sucking liquid. With such a configuration, the liquid crystal can be repeatedly injected from one side of the liquid crystal cell or from the other side as needed.

In the above configuration, sensors for detecting a liquid crystal injection state may be provided at each of the four corners and the center of the liquid crystal cell. Thereby, injection unevenness in a plurality of portions of the liquid crystal cell can be detected. Further, one liquid crystal injection port may be formed at the center of one side of the liquid crystal cell, and a liquid crystal discharge port may be formed at each of two corners on the other side of the liquid crystal cell. . With this configuration, injection unevenness can be reduced as much as possible. Also, at least one of the periphery of the injection port of the injection chuck and the periphery of the discharge port of the discharge chuck, when the injection chuck is connected to the liquid crystal cell, contacts the periphery of the liquid crystal injection port or the periphery of the liquid crystal discharge port of the liquid crystal cell. A configuration in which a sealing member in contact with each other may be provided. By connecting the injection chuck or the discharge chuck to the liquid crystal cell, the liquid crystal can be connected from the connection part between the injection port of the injection chuck and the liquid crystal cell or from the connection part between the discharge port of the discharge chuck and the discharge port of the liquid crystal cell. A liquid crystal injection operation or a liquid crystal discharge operation can be performed without causing leakage.

[0011]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below in detail. In FIG. 1, reference numeral 10 denotes a liquid crystal cell into which liquid crystal is injected by the injection device according to the present invention. The liquid crystal cell 10 of this embodiment is a conventional liquid crystal cell described above with reference to FIG. It has the same structure as the liquid crystal cell 1 into which liquid crystal is injected by the device. That is, a liquid crystal cell 10 is formed by arranging a pair of rectangular substrates made of transparent glass or the like to face each other with a desired cell gap, and joining and integrating their peripheral portions with a sealing material. Numeral 10 is a horizontally elongated standing state as shown in FIG. 1 and is supported by a supporting device (not shown). In addition, in this example, the liquid crystal cell 1 is supported in a horizontally long standing state, but the arrangement of the liquid crystal cell 1 is arbitrary, and it is needless to say that the liquid crystal cell 1 may be installed vertically, diagonally, or horizontally.

A liquid crystal injection space K surrounded by a pair of substrates and a sealing material is formed inside the liquid crystal cell 10, and no sealing material is provided at a central portion on the right side of the liquid crystal cell 10. A liquid crystal injection port 11 composed of portions is formed, and a liquid crystal cell 10 is formed.
The liquid crystal outlets 12 and 12 are formed at the upper and lower portions on the left side of the liquid crystal display, respectively. Next, an injection chuck 15 is detachably connected to a portion around the liquid crystal inlet 11 of the liquid crystal cell 10, and a discharge chuck 16 is detachably connected to a portion around the liquid crystal outlet 12. These chucks 15, 16 and 16 are respectively installed on support members for horizontal movement, and these support members are connected to a cylinder device for horizontal movement, and are applied to the liquid crystal cell 10 by expansion and contraction of a piston of the cylinder device. It is possible to switch between connection and connection or separation from the liquid crystal cell 10.

FIG. 5 shows an example of the mechanism for moving the chucks 15 and 16 described above. In this example, the injection chuck 15 supported by a support member 81 having a column shape is provided on one side of the liquid crystal cell 1 which is installed in a horizontally long standing state on the gantry 80, and a columnar shape is formed on the other side. The upper and lower discharge chucks 16 and 16 are respectively supported by the support member 82, and the support member 82 is provided by a rail member (not shown) so as to be able to approach and separate from the liquid crystal cell along the horizontal direction. A cylinder device 84 is provided on a side of the support member 82, and the support member 82 is configured to be horizontally movable by movement of a piston rod 85 of the cylinder device 84. That is, the discharge chucks 16 and 16 are moved by the operation of the cylinder device 84 to the liquid crystal discharge ports 12 and 12 of the liquid crystal cell 1.
It is designed to be attached to and detached from. The injection chuck 1
Similarly, the support member 81 of the liquid crystal device 5 is horizontally movable by the piston rod 87 of the cylinder device 86, and the injection chuck 15 is detachably attached to the injection port 11 of the liquid crystal cell 1. With the above configuration, the chucks 15, 16, 16 can be pressed against the liquid crystal cell 1 by bringing the support members 81, 82 closer to the liquid crystal cell 1, and
By separating the support members 81 and 82 from the liquid crystal cell 1, the chucks 15, 16 and 16 can be separated from the liquid crystal cell 1.

Next, the chucks 15 and 16 have substantially the same configuration as the chucks 8, 9 and 10 described above with reference to FIG. 7, and have concave portions into which the ends of the liquid crystal cell 10 can be fitted. It has a block shape, and can be freely fitted into the end of the liquid crystal cell 10.

Next, as shown in FIG. 1, the injection chuck 15 is connected to a vacuum pump 19 and a liquid feed pump 20 via a switching trap 18 having a flow path switching valve, and the discharge chucks 16 and 16 are connected. Is connected to a vacuum pump 22 and a liquid sending pump 23 via a switching trap 21 having a flow path switching valve. In this example, the switching trap 1
8, a vacuum pump 19 and a liquid sending pump 20 constitute a suction device 25, and a switching trap 21 and a vacuum pump 22
And the liquid sending pump 23 constitute a suction device 26.

Sensors A, B, C, D, and E are arranged at the corners of the liquid crystal injection region K inside the corners of the liquid crystal cell 10, respectively. The liquid crystal injection state in the region K is configured to be grasped. That is, these sensors A, B, C, D, and E are, for example, R
(Red), a specified first voltage is generated, and G
(Green), a specified second voltage is generated, and B
When a (blue) is detected, a prescribed third voltage is generated. Of these first to third voltages, (first voltage)
If the relationship of <(second voltage) <(third voltage) is satisfied, the output voltage range when the liquid crystal is completely injected into the detection area of each sensor in the liquid crystal cell 10 is checked in advance, and conversely, The state of liquid crystal injection can be grasped by the magnitude of the output voltage of these sensors. In addition,
R, using sensors A, B, C, D, E as described above,
In addition to the control based on the output values of G and B, a glossiness discrimination sensor that can discriminate the color, gloss, shading, and the like can be installed and used at each position. The glossiness determination sensor is a sensor that inputs a color value (set value) of a work as a reference to a sensor and determines ON (conformity) or OFF (nonconformity) based on comparison with the color of a measured object. .

In order to inject liquid crystal into the liquid crystal cell 10 using the liquid crystal injection device having the above-described configuration, first, the liquid supply pump 20 and the injection chuck 1 are operated by operating the flow path switching valve of the switching trap 18.
5 and operating the flow path switching valve of the switching trap 21 to connect the discharge chucks 16 and 16 to the vacuum pump 22, and the liquid crystal from the liquid sending pump 20 to the liquid crystal inlet 11 as shown in FIG.
And the vacuum pump 2
2, a suction operation is performed from the liquid crystal discharge ports 16 and 16 as shown by an arrow (2) in FIG. The liquid crystal can be injected into the injection space K of the liquid crystal cell 10 by these operations.
Next, when the injection space K of the liquid crystal cell 10 is filled with the liquid crystal by the above-described liquid crystal injection operation, each of the sensors A, B,
The output voltages of C, D, and E are measured, and the injection state of the liquid crystal is inspected. By this inspection, all sensors A, B, C,
If D and E indicate output voltages in the specified range, the injection operation is completed.

Here, the output voltage in the specified range is, for example,
As shown in FIG. 2, when the type of each sensor is placed at a predetermined interval on the horizontal axis with the vertical axis representing the sensor output (V), the output voltage of each sensor falls within the range shown by the oblique lines. Means The output voltage in the specified range is prepared in advance by preparing a plurality of liquid crystal cells which have been injected without unevenness, and sensors A, B, C, D, and E are attached to these liquid crystal cells and the sensor output of each liquid crystal cell is measured. In advance, it is determined from those measurement results.

Next, when the average of the output of the sensor is lower or higher than the output voltage in the specified range, the switching valve of the switching trap 18 is operated to connect the vacuum pump 19 and the injection chuck 15 and By operating the switching valve of the switching trap 21, the liquid sending pump 23 and the discharge chucks 16 and 16 are operated.
And the liquid crystal from the liquid feed pump 23 to the liquid crystal outlet 1
1 and 2 are sucked from the liquid crystal inlet 15 by the vacuum pump 19 as shown by the arrow (2 ') in FIG. With this operation, the liquid crystal in the liquid crystal cell 10 is partially sucked to the vacuum pump 19 side, and the liquid crystal can be again injected into the injection space K from the outlets 12, 12. If the output voltages of the sensors A, B, C, D, and E fall within the prescribed ranges shown in FIG. 2 by performing the injection operation, the injection operation of the liquid crystal is completed. If the average of all sensor outputs does not fall within the specified range even after this operation, the operation of injecting liquid crystal again from the liquid crystal inlet 11 and sucking it from the liquid crystal outlets 12, 12.
Liquid crystal is injected from the liquid crystal outlets 12 and 12, and the liquid crystal
The operation of discharging the liquid crystal from Step 1 is repeated a required number of times. As described above, the liquid crystal can be injected into the liquid crystal cell 10 without unevenness by changing the injection direction of the liquid crystal based on the output voltages of the sensors A to E and repeatedly performing the necessary number of injection operations.

In the structure of this embodiment, one liquid crystal inlet 11 and two liquid crystal outlets 12 are provided for the liquid crystal cell. However, the number and position of these liquid crystal cells are particularly limited. is not. Also, the shapes of the chucks 15 and 16 are not limited to those shown in the drawings, and it is a matter of course that a structure that does not leak liquid crystal at the opening portions of the inlet 11 and the outlet 12 may be appropriately used. It is.

FIG. 3A shows a modified example of the injection chuck.
Is a U-shape having a concave portion a similarly to the conventional chuck 8 shown in FIG. 7, but in the case of the injection chuck 30 of this example, a resin-made material is formed around the injection port 31 in the concave portion a. Are provided. In the injection chuck 30 of this example, the injection chuck 30 is connected to the liquid crystal cell 10 and the injection port 3 of the injection chuck 30 is connected to the liquid crystal injection port 11.
1 can be used so that the periphery of the liquid crystal injection port 11 can be sealed in a liquid-tight manner with sealing members 32. FIG. 3 (B)
Shows a modified example of the discharge chuck. The discharge chuck 40 of this example has a sealing member 4 around the discharge hole 41 in the concave portion a as in the case of the injection chuck 30 of the previous example.
.. Are provided to prevent liquid crystal leakage when connected to the outlet 12 of the liquid crystal cell 10.
The injection chuck 30 having the sealing member 32 as described above
And the use of the discharge chuck 40 having the seal member 42, it is possible to prevent both leakage of liquid crystal during liquid crystal injection into the liquid crystal cell 10 and discharge of liquid crystal.

Next, FIG. 4 shows two liquid crystal cells 10, 10 '.
Shows an example of the structure of a liquid crystal cell in which liquid crystal is simultaneously injected into the liquid crystal cells 10 and 10 'in the case where two liquid crystal cells 10 and 10' are incorporated in a transparent substrate facing each other as in this example. The injection chucks 15, 15 are connected to the injection ports 11, 11, respectively, and the discharge ports 12, 12, 12, 1, 1 are connected.
The injection work can be performed in the same manner as described above, by connecting the discharge chucks 16 to the discharge chucks 2 respectively. The liquid crystal cells 10, 1
0 ′ is divided after the liquid crystal is injected to form two liquid crystal cells. In addition, when injecting liquid crystal into a structure in which three or more liquid crystal cells are simultaneously formed on a substrate, the number of injection chucks and the number of discharge chucks may be adjusted according to the required number.

[0023]

As described above, according to the present invention, when injecting a liquid crystal into a liquid crystal cell, the liquid crystal is injected into the liquid crystal cell and sucked from the liquid crystal discharge port so that the liquid crystal is injected into the liquid crystal cell. The liquid crystal can be injected into the liquid crystal cell from one or the other of the liquid crystal cells by switching between the operation of injecting the liquid crystal and the operation of injecting the liquid crystal from the liquid crystal outlet and sucking the liquid crystal from the liquid crystal inlet. Even if the injection unevenness occurs, the liquid crystal can be injected again by an injection operation from another direction, and the liquid crystal can be injected into the liquid crystal cell without unevenness. In particular, even if the injection unevenness occurs due to one injection, the injection operation of the liquid crystal can be repeated as many times as necessary by changing the injection direction to the liquid crystal cell, whereby the injection unevenness can be eliminated.

Next, sensors are provided at the corners and the center of the liquid crystal cell, and the liquid crystal injection unevenness is detected based on the output voltages of these sensors, and the liquid crystal injection direction is changed and the liquid crystal is injected again according to the detection of the injection unevenness. This can eliminate unevenness in liquid crystal injection. Further, by switching the suction means and the liquid sending pump for the inlet or the outlet by the suction device, the liquid crystal is injected into the liquid crystal cell from the inlet and sucked from the outlet or from the outlet. It is possible to reliably switch between injecting the liquid crystal and sucking it from the inlet side.

Further, a seal member is provided on the periphery of the injection port of the injection chuck, and a seal member is provided on the periphery of the discharge port of the discharge chuck, whereby the liquid crystal cell is connected to the injection chuck to inject the liquid crystal. In either case or when the discharge chuck is connected to the liquid crystal cell to discharge the liquid crystal, it is possible to prevent the liquid crystal from leaking from the connection portion.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a configuration diagram showing an example of a liquid crystal injection control device according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an output of a sensor provided in the liquid crystal injection control device shown in FIG.

FIG. 3A is a diagram showing another example of an injection chuck provided in the liquid crystal injection control device, and FIG. 3B is a diagram showing another example of a discharge chuck.

FIG. 4 is a diagram showing a state in which liquid crystal is simultaneously injected into a plurality of liquid crystal cells.

FIG. 5 is a diagram showing an example of a mechanism for attaching and detaching a liquid crystal cell and an injection chuck.

FIG. 6 is a diagram showing a piping path of a conventional liquid crystal injection device.

FIG. 7 is a view showing a connection portion of a conventional liquid crystal injection device with respect to a liquid crystal cell, and an installation position of a sensor.

FIG. 8 is a diagram showing a connection state of a conventional liquid crystal injection device to a liquid crystal cell.

[Explanation of symbols]

 A, B, C, D, E Sensor 10 Liquid crystal cell 11 Inlet 12 Outlet 15 Injection chuck 16 Discharge chuck 18, 21 Switching trap 19, 22 Vacuum pump (suction means) 20, 23 Liquid transfer pump 30 Injection chuck 40 Discharge Chuck 32, 42 Seal member

Claims (5)

[Claims] 1. An injection chuck connected to a liquid crystal injection port formed on one side of a liquid crystal cell, a discharge chuck connected to a liquid crystal discharge port formed on the other side of the liquid crystal cell, and an injection chuck connected to the injection chuck. A suction / suction device capable of switching between liquid supply and suction of liquid crystal to the chuck, and a suction / suction device connected to the discharge chuck and capable of switching between liquid supply and suction to the discharge chuck; A liquid crystal injection device characterized by comprising: 2. The liquid crystal injection device according to claim 1, further comprising a sensor for detecting a liquid crystal injection state provided at each of the four corners and the center of the liquid crystal cell. 3. A liquid crystal cell, wherein one liquid crystal injection port is formed in the center of one side of the liquid crystal cell, and a liquid crystal discharge port is formed in each of two corners on the other side of the liquid crystal cell. The liquid crystal injection device according to claim 1, wherein: 4. The liquid crystal injection device according to claim 1, wherein the suction device includes a suction device, a liquid supply pump, and a switching device for switching connection of an injection chuck or a discharge chuck to these devices. apparatus. 5. At least one of a peripheral portion of an inlet of the injection chuck and a peripheral portion of an outlet of the discharge chuck,
2. The liquid crystal injection device according to claim 1, further comprising a sealing member that is in contact with a peripheral edge of the liquid crystal injection port or a peripheral edge of the liquid crystal discharge port of the liquid crystal cell when the injection chuck or the discharge chuck is connected to the liquid crystal cell.