JPH11204811A - Laminating apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a laminating apparatus which can prevent a filler melting from a laminated body from depositing to a diaphragm sheet when laminated, without increasing the work load. SOLUTION: In a laminating apparatus 1 which melts a filler in a body P to be laminated and squeezes it to do the lamination by a laminating part 2 having a diaphragm above and heater board below, a release sheet 41 is freely insertably provided between a body P carried in the laminating part 2 and diaphragm, and removing means 46 is provided for removing the filler deposited to the release sheet 41 outside the laminating part 2.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a laminating apparatus particularly suitable for producing a thin plate-shaped object to be laminated such as a solar cell module.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In recent years, in order to utilize solar energy,
Various developments have been made on solar cells. Various types of solar cells have been devised, such as crystalline solar cells using single crystal silicon or polycrystalline silicon, and amorphous solar cells using amorphous silicon (amorphous silicon). ing. However, in both the crystalline and amorphous types, silicon itself is liable to undergo chemical changes and is also vulnerable to physical shock. Therefore, silicon is generally converted to a transparent vinyl film, tempered glass, heat-resistant glass, or the like. Laminated solar cell modules are used. In recent years, integrated modules that integrate solar cell modules with outer wall materials and roof materials, which are used for building materials, etc., have also been manufactured. Laminating a solar cell module involves sandwiching a string (solar cell) between a vinyl film or glass and a backsheet with a filler such as EVA (ethylene vinyl acetate) resin, and heating under vacuum to increase the temperature. This is done by melting the filler.

[0003] Conventionally, as a laminating apparatus for manufacturing such a solar cell module or the like, a laminating unit having an upper diaphragm and a lower heater panel melts a filler inside a body to be laminated. 2. Description of the Related Art A laminating apparatus that performs lamination by clamping is known. Regarding such a laminating apparatus, the applicant of the present application discloses a "laminating apparatus" disclosed in Utility Model Registration No. 3017231. This laminating apparatus includes an upper chamber having a diaphragm which can expand downward, and an upper chamber having a heater panel. Then, the upper chamber and the lower chamber are closed and the pressure is reduced while the object to be laminated is placed on the heater panel provided in the lower chamber, and then the object to be laminated is heated and the atmosphere is introduced into the upper chamber. The laminated body is sandwiched between the upper surface of the heater panel and the diaphragm and laminated.

[0004]

By the way, when a solar cell module is manufactured in the above-described laminating apparatus, when the solar cell module is heated on a heater panel, EVA, which is a filler, flows out, and a diaphragm or the like is formed. There is a problem that it adheres to a heater panel or the like. The EVA attached to the diaphragm, the heater panel, and the like in this manner causes the solar cell module to be next laminated to become dirty.

Therefore, conventionally, a release sheet made of a glass cloth sheet impregnated with Teflon or the like is covered on the solar cell module carried into the laminating section, so that EVA melted from the solar cell module does not adhere to the diaphragm sheet or the like. I have to. Work to cover such a release sheet and EVA attached to the release sheet
The work to remove the dust is performed by the worker's hand, which causes an increase in the work load.

Accordingly, the present invention relates to an EVA melted when a body to be laminated such as a solar cell module is laminated.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a laminating apparatus capable of preventing a filler such as the like from adhering to a diaphragm sheet or the like without increasing a work load.

[0007]

In order to achieve the above object, according to the present invention, there is provided a laminating section having an upper diaphragm and a lower heater panel. In a laminating apparatus for laminating by melting and pinching, a release sheet is provided between the upper surface of the object to be laminated carried into the laminating section and the diaphragm so as to be freely enterable,
A removing means for removing a filler adhered to the release sheet outside the laminating section is provided.

In the laminating apparatus of the first aspect, since the release sheet is interposed between the upper surface of the body to be laminated carried into the laminating section and the diaphragm,
It is possible to prevent the filler melted out when the object to be laminated is laminated from being attached to the diaphragm sheet. In this case, the filler melted out of the laminated body may adhere to the release sheet, but the filler adhered to the release sheet can be removed by the removing means outside the laminating section. Therefore, there is no fear of soiling the object to be laminated next.

In the laminating apparatus according to the first aspect,
As described in claim 2, a release sheet is further provided between the lower surface of the object to be laminated carried into the laminating section and the heater panel, and the object to be laminated is separated by the release sheet. It is preferable to adopt a configuration for carrying in and out of the laminating unit. Then, the filler melted out of the laminated body does not adhere to the heater panel.
Further, as described in claim 3, the object to be laminated is, for example, a solar cell module.

[0010]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Hereinafter, a preferred embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to a laminating apparatus 1 suitable for laminating a solar cell module P as an example of an object to be laminated.
It will be described based on. FIG. 1 is a front view of a laminating apparatus 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention.

As shown in FIG. 1, a laminating apparatus 1 includes a supply conveyor 3 for supplying a solar cell module P to be laminated to the laminating section 2 to both sides of a laminating section 2 and a laminating section 2. The configuration is such that an unloading conveyor 4 for unloading the solar cell module P, which has already been subjected to the laminating process, from the laminating unit 2 is arranged. In the illustrated example, the supply conveyor 3 is on the right side.
Are arranged, and the unloading conveyor 4 is arranged on the left side. Then, the solar cell module P is transported leftward in FIG. 1 while delivering the supply conveyor 3, the laminating unit 2, and the unloading conveyor 4 in this order.

The laminating section 2 is constituted by an upper chamber 11 provided below the inside of the upper case 10 and a lower chamber 13 provided above the inside of the lower case 12. The lower case 12 is attached via brackets 18 to columns 17 erected at four corners of a base 16 which can travel on the floor via casters 15.
The height of 2 is supported so as not to change. On the other hand, the upper case 10 is provided with a guide portion 2 that is movable along a support 17.
The upper case 10 is attached via a bracket 21 fixed to the lower case 12 so that the upper case 10 can move up and down above the lower case 12 while maintaining a posture parallel to the lower case 12.

A cylinder 22 is mounted on the upper surface of the bracket 18 fixed to the lower case 12, and a tip of a piston rod 23 of the cylinder 22 is attached to the upper case 1.
It is connected to the lower surface of the bracket 21 fixed to zero.
Therefore, when the piston rod 23 is extended by the operation of the cylinder 22, the upper case 10 is lifted away from the upper surface of the lower case 12, thereby lowering the upper chamber 11 inside the upper case 10 and the lower upper part inside the lower case 12. Chamber 1
The laminating section 2 constituted by 3 is opened. On the other hand, when the piston rod 23 is shortened by the operation of the cylinder 22, the upper case 1 is brought into close contact with the upper surface of the lower case 12.
As a result, the laminating section 2 composed of the upper chamber 11 inside the upper case 10 and the lower chamber 13 inside the lower case 12 is closed.

As shown in FIG. 2, a diaphragm 30 is mounted so as to partition the inside of the upper case 10 horizontally, and a space surrounded by the diaphragm 30 and the inner wall surface of the upper case 10 defines the upper chamber 11. Make up. The diaphragm 30 is made of, for example, heat resistant rubber such as Viton (fluoro rubber). The side of the upper case 10 is connected to the upper chamber 11 so as to communicate with the upper and lower chambers 11.
1, the inside of the upper chamber 11 is evacuated through the intake / exhaust port 31, and the atmospheric pressure can be introduced into the upper chamber 11 through the intake / exhaust port 31.

A heater panel 35 is arranged in the lower chamber 13 provided above the lower case 12 so as to be able to move up and down. The heater panel 35 is composed of, for example, a sheathed heater panel made of aluminum. By the operation of a lifting mechanism (not shown), the heater panel 35 is lowered into the lower chamber 13 as shown by a solid line 35 in FIG. It is configured to be in a state of being raised upward in the inside. As the elevating mechanism, known elevating means such as an air cylinder, a ball nut, a rack and pinion, and an air tube are appropriately used.

A suction / exhaust port 37 is provided on a side surface of the lower case 12 so as to communicate with the lower chamber 13, and the inside of the lower chamber 13 is evacuated via the suction / exhaust port 37. The lower chamber 1 is connected via the suction port 37.
3 is configured to be able to introduce atmospheric pressure.

In the laminating section 2, between the upper case 10 and the lower case 12, a release sheet 41 supplied by a release sheet supply means 40 described below and a transport belt 51 of a transport sheet 50 can enter. It has become.

As shown in FIG. 3, the release sheet supply means 4
0, the rotating rolls 42 on both ends of the release sheet 41,
43 are arranged respectively. The release sheet 41 is attached to the diaphragm 30 in the laminating section 2 as described later.
In order to avoid the adhesion of the filler which has protruded from the solar cell module P when being pinched by the filler, the filler does not easily adhere, and the adhered filler can be easily peeled off. It is made of a material having excellent releasability such as a glass cloth sheet. The rotating roll 42
3, the release sheet 41 is moved in the right direction 42 'in the figure. The rotating roll 43 is driven to rotate clockwise in FIG. 3, whereby the release sheet 41 can be moved leftward 43 ′ in the drawing. Thus, by rotating one of the rotary rolls 42 and 43, the release sheet 41 can be moved in a desired direction.

A guide roll 4 is provided below the rotating roll 42.
5 is rotatably arranged, and the release sheet 41 changes its direction upward along the peripheral surface of the guide roll 45 and is then wound around the rotary roll 42 and
The release sheet 41 drawn out from 2 is changed in the horizontal direction along the peripheral surface of the guide roll 45 and then wound around the rotating roll 43. As shown in FIG. 1, by disposing the rotating roll 43 and the guide roll 45 at the same height on the left and right outer sides of the laminating unit 2, the release sheet 41 is provided between the upper case 10 and the lower case 12.
Are supplied in a horizontal position.

In the release sheet supply means 40,
The removing roll 46 is brought into contact with the lower surface of the release sheet 41 moving between the guide roll 45 and the rotating roll 43.
Is arranged. The removal roll 46 is made of, for example, a nylon brush or the like so as to be able to scrape a filler or the like attached to the lower surface side of the release sheet 41, as described later.

The transport sheet 50 has a transport belt 51 wound between a driving pulley 52 and a driven pulley 53 disposed on the left and right sides of the laminating section 2.
As shown in FIG. 4, the drive pulleys 52
And driven pulleys 53, 53 are mounted on both ends of a driven shaft 55, and a pair of transport belts 51, 51 are wound between the driving pulley 52 and the driven pulley 53, respectively. The transport belts 51 and 5
A plurality of (two in the illustrated example) flexible sheets 57 are attached between the two. The surface of the sheet 57 is coated with a material having excellent releasability, such as a fluororesin, for example, in order to avoid the attachment of the filler protruding from the solar cell module P when the sheet 57 is pressed by the diaphragm 30 in the laminating section 2. Have been.

Then, the sheet 57 is intermittently moved in the direction of the arrow in FIG. 4 by the rotation of the drive pulley 53, so that the solar cell module P to be subjected to a laminating process is loaded into the laminating section 2 as described later. At the same time, the solar cell modules P laminated in the laminating unit 2 are sequentially carried out of the laminating unit 2 while being placed on the sheet 57. Further, above the solar cell module P loaded on the sheet 57 of the transport sheet 50 and carried into the laminating section 2, the release sheet 41 supplied by the release sheet supply means 40 described above is provided with the diaphragm. 30, and below the solar cell module P, a sheet 57 enters between the heater panel 35.

Next, FIGS. 5 and 6 are a plan view and a side view showing a solar cell module P as an example of an object to be laminated suitably manufactured by the laminating apparatus 1 of the present invention. In the example shown in the figure, the solar cell module P has a configuration in which a string 64 is sandwiched between a transparent cover glass 60 disposed on the lower side and a protective material 61 disposed on the upper side via fillers 62 and 63. . As the protective material 61, a transparent material such as a PE resin is used, for example. EVA (ethylene vinyl acetate) resin or the like is used for the fillers 62 and 63, for example. The string 64 includes the electrode 6
5 and 66, a solar cell 67 is connected via a lead wire 68.

The solar cell module P as an object to be laminated configured as described above is manufactured by the laminating apparatus 1 according to the embodiment of the present invention in accordance with the following steps.

First, a solar cell module P to be laminated is positioned and supplied to a supply conveyor 3 disposed on the right side of the laminating section 2 in FIG. 1 by means such as a robot (not shown). When the laminating apparatus 1 is supplied to the supply conveyor 3, the laminating apparatus 1 is placed in such a position that the protective material 61 shown in FIGS. Then, the solar cell modules P thus supplied to the supply conveyor 3 are carried in by the operation of the supply conveyor 3 while being placed on the transport sheet 50 in the laminating unit 2 as shown in FIG. Thus, the solar cell module P
Is inserted, the upper case 10 is lifted to bring the laminate section 2 into an open state. The operation of lifting the upper case 10 is performed by the cylinder 22 described with reference to FIG.
It is performed by the extension operation of. In addition, the heater panel 35 provided in the lower chamber 13 inside the lower case 12 is lowered by the operation of a lifting mechanism (not shown).

Further, while the solar cell module P is carried into the laminating section 2 as described above, the rotating roll 43 is driven to rotate by the peeling sheet supply means 40, and the peeling sheet 41 pulled out from the rotating roll 42 is moved to the solar cell module. It is supplied above P. As a result, in the laminating section 2, the release sheet 41 enters between the solar cell module P and the diaphragm 30 above the solar cell module P, and the sheet 57 below the solar cell module P includes the heater panel 35.
It is in a state of entering between.

Next, as shown in FIG. 8, by lowering the upper case 10, the laminate section 2 is closed. The operation of lowering the upper case 10 is performed by the shortened operation of the cylinder 22 described with reference to FIG. Then, the inside of the upper chamber 11 and the lower chamber 1 are
3 is simultaneously evacuated.

As described above, the heater panel 35 in the lower chamber 13 may be heated in advance while the insides of the chambers 11 and 13 are evacuated. If the heater panel 35 is lowered to be separated from the solar cell module P and the heating of the heater panel 35 is started in a state where the pressure in the lower chamber 13 is reduced, the heat insulating effect is extremely high. There is little worry about being transmitted. Then, the inside of the upper chamber 11 and the inside of the lower chamber 13 are respectively, for example, 0.7 to 1.0 To.
After evacuating to rr, as shown in FIG. 9, the heater panel 35 is raised by operating an unillustrated elevating mechanism inside the lower chamber 13. As a result, the solar cell module P placed on the sheet 57 of the laminate conveyor 50 comes into thermal contact with the upper surface of the heater panel 35 inside the lower chamber 13, and the solar cell module P is heated. By this heating, the chemical reaction of the EVA resin as the fillers 62 and 63 in the solar cell module P is promoted, and crosslinking is performed. Then, in this state, as shown in FIG. 9, the atmospheric pressure is introduced into the upper chamber 11 through the intake / exhaust port 31, and the diaphragm 30 is expanded downward in the laminating section 2, whereby the solar cell module P is moved. , Between the upper surface of the heater panel 35 and the diaphragm 30. At this time, filler 6
Although EVA 2,63 may flow out from the end of the solar cell module P, the release sheet 41 is provided above the solar cell module P as described above.
EV that has flowed out
There is no fear that A adheres to the diaphragm 30.

In this manner, the laminating process is completed by heating and clamping, and after the solar cell module P is manufactured, the atmospheric pressure is introduced into the lower chamber 13 through the intake / exhaust port 37. Then, by operating a lifting mechanism (not shown), the heater panel 35 is lowered as shown in FIG. Further, by lifting up the upper case 10, the laminate section 2 is opened. The operation of lifting the upper case 10 is performed by the extension operation of the cylinder 22 described with reference to FIG.

When the laminating unit 2 is thus opened, the rotating roll 42 is driven to rotate by the releasing sheet supply means 40, and the releasing sheet 41 that has entered above the solar cell module P is drawn out of the laminating unit 2. , And is wound up by the rotating roll 42. When moving between the guide roll 45 and the rotating roll 43, the filler adhering to the lower surface side of the release sheet 41 is scraped off by the removal roll 46. Thereafter, when the solar cell module P for performing the next lamination is carried into the laminating unit 2, the rotating roll 43 is driven to rotate by the peeling sheet supply means 40, and the peeling sheet 41 pulled out from the rotating roll 42 is filled with the filler. In a state where it is not attached, it is supplied again above the solar cell module P.

Then, the transport sheet 50 and the unloading conveyor 4
By the operation of, the solar cell module P for which lamination processing has been completed is carried out onto the carry-out conveyor 4 arranged on the left side of the laminating unit 2 in FIG. Then, the solar cell module P is removed from the unloading conveyor 4 by means such as a robot (not shown) and transported to the next step. The solar cell module P, which has been subjected to the lamination process, may be carried out onto the carry-out conveyor 4 and, at the same time, the solar cell module P for performing the next lamination may be carried into the laminating section 2.

Thus, by repeating the above steps, it is possible to prevent the filler such as EVA melted out during lamination from adhering to the diaphragm sheet 30, and to continuously manufacture the solar cell module 20 having good properties. It becomes possible. As an example of the object to be laminated,
Although the manufacturing of the solar cell module has been described, the laminating apparatus of the present invention can perform a laminating process on various other devices, and is particularly suitable for manufacturing a thin plate-shaped object to be laminated. Further, the laminating apparatus of the present invention can cope with a change in the thickness of an object to be laminated, and is an integrated module in which a solar cell module is integrated with an outer wall material or a roof material for building materials, which has recently attracted attention. It can also be used for manufacturing. Furthermore, the laminating apparatus of the present invention can be used not only for solar cell modules but also for manufacturing laminated glass and decorative glass.
Further, the configuration in which the upper case 10 is moved up and down along the four columns 17 has been described. For example, two columns (columns) are arranged before and after the lower case 12, and along the two columns. The upper case 10 may be moved up and down. In this case, as a mechanism for moving the upper case 10 up and down, the upper case 10 can be lifted using a chain or the like by driving a motor instead of the cylinder 22. In addition, in the lower chamber 13 provided above the inside of the lower case 12, a heater panel 35 is provided.
Has been described, but support pins are provided to support the solar cell module P carried into the lower chamber 13 above the heater panel 35, and the solar cell module P is moved downward by the support pins. It may be configured to make contact with the upper surface of 35. Then, the heater panel 35 can be fixed in the lower chamber 13. Further, in the illustrated embodiment, the configuration in which the release sheet supply means 40 moves the release sheet 41 between the rotating rolls 42 and 43 has been described. , A plurality of sheets may be attached to the belt, and the sheet may enter above the solar cell module P by the peripheral movement of the belt.

[0033]

According to the laminating apparatus of the present invention, there is no fear that the filler melted out when laminating the object to be laminated such as a solar cell module adheres to the diaphragm sheet or the heater panel, etc. To be laminated can be prevented. The filler attached to the release sheet can be removed by a removing means outside the laminating section. For this reason, according to the present invention, the lamination of the object to be laminated can be continuously performed unattended.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a front view of a laminating apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a longitudinal sectional view of a laminating section.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a release sheet supply unit.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of a laminating section conveyor.

FIG. 5 is a plan view of a solar cell module.

FIG. 6 is a side view of the solar cell module.

FIG. 7 is an explanatory diagram of a state in which a solar cell module is carried into a laminating unit.

FIG. 8 is an explanatory diagram of a state where a solar cell module is carried into a laminating unit.

FIG. 9 is an explanatory diagram of a state in which the solar cell module is heated and pressed.

FIG. 10 is an explanatory view showing a state where each laminating section is opened after manufacturing.

[Explanation of symbols]

 P Solar cell module 1 Laminating device 2 Laminating unit 3 Supply conveyor 4 Unloading conveyor 11 Upper chamber 13 Lower chamber 30 Diaphragm 35 Heater board 41 Release sheet 46 Removal roll

Claims (3)

[Claims] 1. A laminating apparatus for laminating by filling and melting a filler inside an object to be laminated in a laminating section having a diaphragm on an upper side and a heater panel on a lower side, and carrying the laminate into the laminating section. A release sheet is provided between the upper surface of the laminated body and the diaphragm so as to be freely inserted, and a removing means for removing a filler attached to the release sheet outside the laminating section is provided. Laminating equipment. 2. The apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a release sheet provided between the lower surface of the object to be laminated carried into the laminating section and the heater panel so as to enter the laminating section. The laminating apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the laminating apparatus is configured to output. 3. The laminating apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the object to be laminated is a solar cell module.