JPH112789A - Method for positioning insurative substrate for liquid crystal display device and insurative substrate transfer device for liquid crystal display device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a method for positioning an insurative substrate for a liquid crystal display device and an insurative substrate transfer device for the liquid crystal display device precisely positioning the insurative substrate without causing a crack on it. SOLUTION: Sensors 6a, 6b detecting without contacting two places of one side of the insurative substrate 1 in the direction parallel to the take-out direction of the insurative substrate 1 are moved together with a fitting base 7a in the state that the insurative substrate 1 is housed in a cassette 2, and the relative position of the insurative substrate 1 for a cassette set-up part 3 is detected. Then, a cassette set-up stage 4 is moved based on the calculation result of the position and the tilt of the insurative substrate 1, and the cassette 2 is position corrected, and the insurative substrate 1 is positioned precisely. In such a manner, after the insurative substrate 1 is positioned, the insurative substrate 1 is taken out from the cassette 2 one by one by a transfer robot 12, and is transferred to lift pins 14 of a processor side transfer position 13, and the lift pins 14 are lowered, and then, the insurative substrate 1 is transferred on the processor side transfer position.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a positioning method and a transfer apparatus for transferring an insulating substrate for a liquid crystal display device from a cassette to a transfer position, and particularly to performing various processes on the insulating substrate. The present invention relates to a positioning method and a transfer device when transferring to a processing device.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art As shown in FIGS. 6 and 7, an insulating substrate 51 made of glass or the like constituting a liquid crystal display device is insulated when transported between processing devices for performing various processes. The substrate 51 is accommodated in a cassette 52 capable of accommodating a large number of substrates and is transported.

A portion of the cassette 52 for storing the insulating substrate 51 has a width of 5 mm on both sides with respect to the width of the insulating substrate 51.
It is formed to a large extent. Therefore, when the cassette 52 is transported, the insulating substrate 51 can move freely in the cassette 52, and the position and inclination of each insulating substrate 51 vary in the cassette 52.

When the insulating substrate 51 is transferred to each processing apparatus, the cassette 52 is transported to a cassette mounting section 53 and a cassette positioning guide 54 is used to eliminate variations in the position and inclination of each insulating substrate 51. After the positioning of the cassette 52, the insulating substrate 51 is positioned by pressing the insulating substrate positioning guide 55 against the insulating substrate 51 while the insulating substrate 51 is housed in the cassette 52. I have.

Then, the insulating substrate 5 is transferred by the transfer robot 56.
1 are taken out of the cassette 52 one by one and transferred to the lift pins 58 at the transfer position 57 on the processing apparatus side.
By lowering 8, the transfer of the insulating substrate 51 to the transfer position 57 on the processing apparatus side is completed.

The insulating substrate positioning guide 55 performs positioning by pressing against two sides of the insulating substrate 51 positioned in a direction parallel to the direction in which the insulating substrate 51 is taken out, or in addition to the two sides described above. In some cases, positioning is performed by pressing against one side on the take-out side orthogonal to the two sides.

When the insulating substrate 51 is transferred from the cassette 52 by the positioning by the insulating substrate positioning guide 55, the insulating substrate 51 hits the cassette 52 or the transfer position 57 on the processing apparatus side of the transfer destination. And insulating substrate 51
Can be prevented from being greatly shifted.

[0008]

However, in the contact type insulating substrate positioning method using the insulating substrate positioning guide, positioning is performed by mechanically pressing the insulating substrate positioning guide against the insulating substrate. There is a possibility that a crack may occur in a portion of the insulating substrate against which the insulating substrate positioning guide is pressed.

[0009] Cracks generated in the insulating substrate have a problem that the insulating substrate is broken during repeated transportation.
In addition, since it comes into contact with the insulating substrate, dust may be generated from the insulating substrate positioning guide, and if this dust adheres to the insulating substrate, it may be used in the subsequent processing of the insulating substrate.
A defect is caused by entering the photoresist or between the bonded insulating substrates. That is, these cracks and dust generation cause a decrease in the yield of the liquid crystal display device.

In addition, as the outer size of the insulating substrate increases, the bending of the insulating substrate increases. Even if the insulating substrate is positioned by pressing the insulating substrate positioning guide, the insulating substrate is further bent. It is conceivable that the insulating substrate alone does not move and positioning cannot be performed.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned conventional problems, and it is an object of the present invention to provide an insulating device for a liquid crystal display device capable of performing high-accuracy positioning without causing cracks in an insulating substrate. It is an object of the present invention to provide a substrate positioning method and an insulating substrate transfer device for a liquid crystal display device.

[0012]

According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method for positioning an insulating substrate for a liquid crystal display device, comprising the steps of: In the method of positioning an insulating substrate for a liquid crystal display device performed when a substrate is transferred to a transfer position of a processing apparatus, the position and inclination of the insulating substrate in a state of being housed in the cassette are determined by a non-contact method. The position of the insulating substrate is determined by detecting the position and correcting the position of the cassette based on the detection result.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided a device for transferring an insulating substrate for a liquid crystal display device, comprising: a cassette setting section for setting a cassette accommodating the insulating substrate for a liquid crystal display device; and transferring the insulating substrate to a processing device. A transfer robot, comprising: a detecting means for detecting a position and an inclination of the insulating substrate in a non-contact manner while being accommodated in the cassette; and the detecting means. And a cassette setting stage for correcting the position of the cassette based on the position information from the cassette.

According to the method for positioning an insulating substrate for a liquid crystal display device of the present invention, the position and inclination of the insulating substrate are detected in a non-contact manner while being housed in a cassette, and based on the detection result. By positioning the insulating substrate by correcting the position of the cassette, the insulating substrate can be easily positioned even if the insulating substrate becomes large, and the insulating substrate may be cracked during positioning. Can be prevented from occurring. Further, since the insulating substrate is positioned without contact, no dust is generated.

According to the insulating substrate transfer device for a liquid crystal display device of the present invention, the detecting means for detecting the position and the inclination of the insulating substrate in a non-contact manner while being housed in the cassette, and the detecting means And a cassette setting stage that corrects the position of the cassette based on the position information of the substrate. It is possible to prevent the occurrence of cracks in the conductive substrate. In addition, since the insulating substrate is positioned without contact,
Does not generate dust.

[0016]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS.

(Embodiment 1) FIG. 1 is a plan view showing a positioning method for transferring an insulating substrate according to the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing a positioning method for transferring an insulating substrate according to the present invention. FIG. 3 is an explanatory view showing a method for measuring the position and inclination of the insulating substrate according to the present invention.

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, an insulating substrate 1 made of glass or the like constituting a liquid crystal display device is transported between processing devices for performing various processes. 1 is accommodated in a cassette 2 capable of accommodating a large number of sheets and is conveyed.

When transferring the insulating substrate 1 to each processing apparatus, the cassette 2 is conveyed to the cassette setting stage 4 on the cassette setting unit 3 in order to eliminate variations in the position and inclination of each insulating substrate 1. Then, the cassette 2 is positioned with respect to the cassette setting stage 4 by the cassette positioning guide 5. The positioning of the cassette 2 is performed, for example, by pressing a cassette positioning guide 5 driven by an air cylinder against the cassette 2.

In a state where the insulating substrate 1 is housed in the cassette 2, a sensor for detecting two points on one side of the insulating substrate 1 in a direction parallel to the direction in which the insulating substrate 1 is taken out in a non-contact manner. 6a and 6b are moved together with the mounting table 7a, and the relative position of the insulating substrate 1 with respect to the cassette installation section 3 is detected. The sensors 6a and 6b are installed in the cassette installation section 3 so as to be parallel to the direction in which the insulating substrate 1 is taken out, and the two sensors 6a and 6b move together. .

A method for measuring the position and inclination of the insulating substrate 1 by using the sensors 6a and 6b will be described with reference to FIG.

As shown in FIG. 3A, the mounting base 7a on which the sensors 6a and 6b are mounted is brought closer to the insulating substrate 1 housed in the cassette 2 from the side of the cassette 2. A indicates the center line in the direction in which the insulating substrate 1 is taken out.

Next, as shown in FIG.
The distance y1 from when a detects the insulating substrate 1 and the distance y2 from when the sensor 6a detects the insulating substrate 1 to when the sensor 6b detects the insulating substrate 1 are determined based on the position and the position of the insulating substrate 1. Center line A in the direction in which insulating substrate 1 is taken out
Is calculated.

Next, as shown in FIG. 3C, the position of the cassette 2 is corrected by moving the cassette installation stage based on the calculation result of the position and the inclination θ of the insulating substrate 1. Thus, positioning can be performed on the side parallel to the direction in which the insulating substrate 1 is taken out.

As shown in FIG. 2, the cassette installation section 3
A direct drive motor 8 for rotating the cassette setting stage 4, a ball screw 9 for moving the cassette 2, a stepping motor 10, and a linear guide 11 are provided for moving the cassette setting stage 4 to correct the position of the cassette 2. I have.

The position of the cassette 2 with respect to the inclination θ of the insulating substrate 1 is corrected by the direct drive motor 8, and the position of the cassette 2 with respect to the position of the insulating substrate 1 is corrected by the ball screw 9 and the stepping motor 10. The linear guide 11 is for accurately guiding the cassette installation stage 4 that has been linearly moved.
With these configurations, the position of the cassette installation stage 4 can be accurately corrected, and the insulating substrate 1 can be accurately positioned.

After positioning the insulating substrate 1 in this manner, the insulating substrate 1 is taken out of the cassette 2 one by one by the transfer robot 12 and transferred to the lift pins 14 at the transfer position 13 on the processing apparatus side. By lowering the lift pins 14, the transfer of the insulating substrate 1 to the transfer position 13 on the processing apparatus side is completed.

The configuration for correcting the position of the cassette 2 in the present invention is not limited to the configuration described in the present embodiment. Further, the sensors 6a and 6b do not need to be installed at positions completely parallel to the direction in which the insulating substrate is taken out. In this case, when calculating the position and the inclination θ of the insulating substrate, two sensors are used. What is necessary is just to correct the deviation of the sensors 6a and 6b.

(Embodiment 2) FIG. 4 is an explanatory view showing another method for measuring the position and inclination of an insulating substrate according to the present invention. The description of the same parts as in the first embodiment is omitted.

As shown in FIG. 4A, in addition to the sensors 6a and 6b described in the first embodiment, with the insulating substrate 1 stored in the cassette 2, the insulating substrate 1 is taken out. The sensor 6c for detecting one side on the take-out side in a direction perpendicular to the direction without contact is movable together with the mounting base 7b.

As shown in FIG. 4B, the distance y1 until the sensor 6a detects the insulating substrate 1,
From the distance y2 from when a detects the insulating substrate 1 until the sensor 6b detects the insulating substrate 1 and the distance x1 from when the sensor 6c detects the insulating substrate 1, the position and the insulation of the insulating substrate 1 are determined. Is calculated with respect to the center line A in the direction of taking out the conductive substrate 1.

Next, as shown in FIG. 4C, the position of the cassette 2 is corrected by moving the cassette installation stage based on the calculation result of the position and the inclination θ of the insulating substrate 1. Thereby, positioning can be performed on the side parallel to the take-out direction of the insulating substrate 1 and the side perpendicular thereto.

The cassette installation section in the present embodiment is
In addition to a mechanism for correcting the position of a side parallel to the take-out direction of the insulating substrate 1, it is necessary to include a ball screw and a stepping motor for correcting the position of a side orthogonal to the side. They must be orthogonal.

The insulating substrate 1 according to the present embodiment
The procedure for detecting the position and inclination θ is not particularly limited. Either of the mounting tables 7a and 7b may be driven first, and after positioning one side of the insulating substrate 1, The position may be detected by detecting the position of the side.

(Embodiment 3) FIG. 5 is a plan view showing another positioning method for transferring an insulating substrate according to the present invention. The description of the same parts as in the first embodiment is omitted.

As shown in FIG. 5, the present embodiment has a configuration in which a cassette positioning guide is not provided in the configuration of the first embodiment. In the present embodiment, the cassette 2 is transported to the cassette installation stage 4 on the cassette installation section 3,
In a state where the insulating substrate 1 is stored in the cassette 2 without positioning the cassette 2, two positions on one side of the insulating substrate 1 in a direction parallel to the direction in which the insulating substrate 1 is taken out are not contacted. The sensors 6a and 6b to be detected are moved together with the mounting table 7a to detect the relative position of the insulating substrate 1 with respect to the cassette installation section 3.

In this manner, the position and the inclination of the insulating substrate 1 including the displacement when the cassette 2 is set on the cassette setting stage 4 can be measured, and the position of the cassette 2 can be measured based on the result. By performing the correction, the insulating substrate 1 can be positioned.

After the positioning of the insulating substrate 1 in this way, the insulating substrate 1 is taken out of the cassette 2 one by one by the transfer robot 12 and transferred to the lift pins 14 at the transfer position 13 on the processing apparatus side. By lowering the lift pins 14, the transfer of the insulating substrate 1 to the transfer position 13 on the processing apparatus side is completed.

According to the present embodiment, the transfer device can be simplified by omitting the cassette positioning guide, and the impact when the cassette positioning guide contacts the cassette 2 can be applied to the insulating substrate 1. Disappears.

[0040]

As described above, according to the method for positioning an insulating substrate for a liquid crystal display device of the present invention, the position and inclination of the insulating substrate in a state of being housed in a cassette can be determined in a non-contact manner. By detecting and correcting the position of the cassette based on the detection result, the insulating substrate is positioned, so that the insulating substrate can be easily positioned even when the insulating substrate is enlarged. Since cracks can be prevented from occurring in the insulating substrate at the time of positioning, cracking of the insulating substrate due to cracks at the time of positioning can be prevented. Also, since the positioning of the insulating substrate is performed in a non-contact manner, no dust is generated,
It is possible to reduce defects of the liquid crystal display device due to foreign matter.

According to the insulating substrate transfer device for a liquid crystal display device of the present invention, the detecting means for detecting the position and the inclination of the insulating substrate in a non-contact manner while being accommodated in the cassette, and the detecting means And a cassette setting stage that corrects the position of the cassette based on the position information of the substrate. Since cracks can be prevented from being generated in the non-conductive substrate, it is possible to prevent the insulating substrate from cracking due to the cracks during positioning. In addition, since the positioning of the insulating substrate is performed in a non-contact manner, dust is not generated, and defects of the liquid crystal display device due to foreign matter can be reduced.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a plan view showing a positioning method during transfer of an insulating substrate according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing a positioning method at the time of transferring an insulating substrate according to the present invention.

FIGS. 3A to 3C are explanatory diagrams showing a method for measuring the position and inclination of an insulating substrate according to the present invention.

FIGS. 4A to 4C are explanatory views showing another method for measuring the position and inclination of the insulating substrate according to the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a plan view showing another positioning method when transferring an insulating substrate according to the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a plan view showing a conventional positioning method when transferring an insulating substrate.

FIG. 7 is a perspective view showing a conventional positioning method when transferring an insulating substrate.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Insulating board 2 Cassette 3 Cassette installation part 4 Cassette installation stage 5 Cassette positioning guide 6a, 6b, 6c Sensor 7a, 7b Mounting stand 8 Direct drive motor 9 Ball screw 10 Stepping motor 11 Linear guide 12 Transport robot 13 Transfer to processing device side Position 14 Lift pin 51 Insulating substrate 52 Cassette 53 Cassette installation part 54 Cassette positioning guide 55 Insulating substrate positioning guide 56 Transfer robot 57 Processing device side transfer position 58 Lift pin

Claims (2)

[Claims] 1. A method of positioning an insulating substrate for a liquid crystal display device, which is performed when an insulating substrate for a liquid crystal display device stored in a cassette is transferred to a transfer position of a processing apparatus. A position and an inclination of the insulating substrate are detected by a non-contact method in a state where the cassette is in a position, and the position of the insulating substrate is determined by correcting the position of the cassette based on the detection result. A method for positioning an insulating substrate for a device. 2. An insulative substrate transfer device for a liquid crystal display device, comprising: a cassette setting part for setting a cassette accommodating an insulative substrate for a liquid crystal display device; and a transfer robot for transferring the insulative substrate to a processing device. In the apparatus, detecting means for detecting the position and inclination of the insulating substrate in a non-contact manner while being stored in the cassette, and a cassette for correcting the position of the cassette based on position information from the detecting means An insulating substrate transfer device for a liquid crystal display device, comprising: an installation stage.