JPH11326913A - Method and device for scattering gap material - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To improve the precision of a cell gap and to reduce the consumption of a gap material by transferring the gap material sucked to each of plural suction holes to a substrate to scatter the gap material on the substrate. SOLUTION: A pressure in a pressure reducing chamber 632 is reduced by an evacuation device A and a gap material 41 is sucked from a gap material storage chamber 640 toward each of suction holes 69 of a suction head plate 68 and the gap material 41 is sucked to each of the suction holes 69 one by one. Then, a gap material supply box 64 falls and a gap material scattering head 63 is moved up to a position just above a large-sized substrate 100 along guide shafts 61 and 62. Thereafter, a three-way cock 66 is switched to disconnect the evacuation device A with the reducing chamber 632 and the reducing chamber 632 is opened to the air. As the result, the gap material 41 sucked to the suction holes 69 of the suction head plate 68 releases from the suction holes 69 and is dropped to the large-sized substrate 100 by its own weight as t is. Thus, the gap material 41 is scattered only in prescribed positions on the large- sized substrate 100.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

The present invention relates to an apparatus for manufacturing a liquid crystal display device. More specifically, the present invention relates to a technique for dispersing a gap material on a substrate, among techniques for manufacturing a liquid crystal display device.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In a liquid crystal display device, after a gap material is sprayed on a substrate surface of a first substrate on which pixel electrodes are formed or on a substrate surface of a second substrate on which a counter electrode is formed, the gap material is dispersed. A cell gap for sealing liquid crystal is formed between the substrates by bonding the substrates together. Conventionally, in such a configuration, the gap material is dispersed in a solvent, and after the dispersion liquid is sprayed on the substrate, the solvent is evaporated and removed. A dry method is used in which a gap material is sprayed on the top.

[0003]

However, in any of the conventional methods of spraying the gap material, no matter how much the spraying conditions are controlled, the dispersion between the substrates is large, the repetition stability of the number of sprayed pieces is lacking, and the inter-spraying apparatus is not used. Since many gap materials adhere to the inner wall of the liquid crystal panel and the non-display area on the substrate of the liquid crystal display device, the gap material is scattered several hundred times the amount that should be scattered on the substrate. Since the amount of wasted gap material increases and the distribution of scatter is generated, if a small (low density) portion is set to an appropriate value,
In a large (high density) portion, the value is several times the proper value, and in a state where the proper value is scattered several times, there is a problem that the display quality is deteriorated.

Also, terminals for inputting various signals are formed on the two substrates. When a gap material is sprayed on such a substrate by a conventional method, the gap material is also spread on these terminals. Would. In such a state, it is difficult to connect the wiring to the terminals. Therefore, conventionally, a time-consuming operation of spraying the gap material, cleaning the terminal portion and removing the gap material therefrom has been performed. . Further, in the conventional method, a large amount of the gap material is sprayed, and the spray area cannot be strictly limited. Therefore, it is impossible to prevent the gap material from adhering to the inner wall of the processing chamber of the gap material spraying apparatus. Therefore, conventionally, it is necessary to frequently perform a troublesome operation of removing the gap material from the inner wall of the processing chamber so that the lump of the gap material does not fall from the inner wall of the processing chamber and adhere to the substrate. Further, since the diameter of the gap material differs depending on the type of the liquid crystal display device, when switching to a different type of gap material, it is necessary to always perform an operation of removing the gap material attached to the inner wall of the processing chamber.

[0005] In view of the above problems, an object of the present invention is to provide:
Spreading the gap material on the substrate at a predetermined density and only at the required places to improve the cell gap accuracy and stabilize the display quality, reduce the amount of gap material used,
Another object of the present invention is to provide a gap material spraying device capable of improving productivity.

[0006]

According to the present invention, there is provided a gap material spraying apparatus for spraying a gap material defining a gap between a pair of substrates on at least one of the substrates. In dispersing the gap material, after the gap material is sucked into each of the plurality of suction holes formed in the suction head, the substrate is opposed to the suction head at a position below the suction head. The gap material is transferred from the suction head onto the substrate by releasing the suction of the gap material in the suction hole.

According to the present invention, the gap material is sprayed on the substrate by transferring the gap material sucked into each of the plurality of suction holes formed in the suction head to the first or second substrate. Therefore, the gap material is scattered only at the position corresponding to the position where the suction hole is formed. For this reason, if the suction holes are formed uniformly in the suction head, the gap material can be evenly spread on the substrate, and if the suction holes are formed in the suction head with a predetermined density distribution, the substrate is formed according to this density distribution. Gap material can be sprayed on top. Therefore, the accuracy of the cell gap can be improved. Further, the gap material is not scattered. Therefore, it is sufficient to spray the gap material by an actually necessary amount, so that the usage amount of the gap material can be reduced. Further, since the gap material can be strictly limited, the gap material is not sprayed on the terminals on the substrate. Therefore, after the gap material is sprayed, the terminal portion is washed and the gap material is removed therefrom. It is not necessary to carry out the step described above. Furthermore, since the gap material does not adhere to the inner wall of the processing chamber of the gap material spraying device, even when switching the type of the gap material, there is no need to remove the gap material from the inner wall of the processing chamber. Can be enhanced. Further, all the gap material sucked in the suction holes of the suction head is transferred to the substrate side and does not remain on the suction head, so that the setup work when switching the type of the gap material can be simplified.

[0008] It is preferable that a gap material accommodating portion is provided for accommodating the gap material adsorbed in the suction hole in an ionized air so as to be stored in a destaticized state. With this configuration, even if the gap material is made of resin, the gap materials do not stick to each other due to static electricity and harden, so that the gap material can be reliably sucked into the suction holes of the suction head.

In the present invention, it is preferable that the apparatus further comprises a vibration applying means for applying vibration to the suction head when the gap material is transferred from the suction head onto the substrate. When the suction and holding of the gap material in the suction hole is stopped, the gap material that has been suctioned until then is surely detached from the suction hole by the vibration and falls toward the substrate.

In the present invention, it is preferable that the suction hole has a conical surface whose diameter increases downward. With such a configuration, the gap member is guided by the conical surface and is securely held in the back of the suction hole, and does not drop on the way. In addition, if the suction hole has a conical surface, the gap material is reliably sucked into the suction hole even if the particle size of the gap material changes.

Preferably, the surface of the suction hole is coated with a resin. Thereby, the friction between the gap member and the suction hole is reduced, and the gap member can be more reliably dropped.

The gap material accommodating portion for accommodating the gap material has a plurality of gap material accommodating regions separated from each other, and each gap material accommodating region accommodates a different gap material. Is preferred.

[0013] This makes it possible to dispose a different gap material on the substrate at the same time.

Further, the suction head comprises a plurality of suction head blocks in which the arrangement density of the suction holes is different from each other.

With this arrangement, the gap material can be arranged on the substrate by changing the arrangement density. For example, by changing the arrangement density of the gap material between the outer peripheral portion of the substrate and the central portion of the substrate, the gap between the substrates can be properly adjusted. Things.

Further, the method for distributing the gap material according to the present invention comprises:
A gap material that defines a gap between a pair of substrates, in a gap material spraying method of spraying on at least one of the substrates, a step of sucking the gap material into each of a plurality of suction holes formed in a suction head; A step of causing the substrate to face the suction head at a position below the suction head, and in this state, transferring the gap material from the suction head onto the substrate by releasing suction of the gap material in the suction hole. And a step.

Thus, the gap material is sprayed only at the position corresponding to the position where the suction hole is formed. For this reason, if the suction holes are formed uniformly in the suction head, the gap material can be evenly spread on the substrate, and if the suction holes are formed in the suction head with a predetermined density distribution, the substrate is formed according to this density distribution. Gap material can be sprayed on top. Therefore, the accuracy of the cell gap can be improved. Further, the gap material is not scattered. Therefore, it is sufficient to spray the gap material by an actually necessary amount, so that the usage amount of the gap material can be reduced.

[0018]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

[Overall Structure] FIGS. 1 and 2 show, respectively,
MIM as an example of a liquid crystal display device to which the present invention is applied
1 is a schematic configuration diagram of a liquid crystal display device using a (Metal Insulator Metal) element, and a cross-sectional view schematically illustrating the configuration.

In FIG. 1, in a liquid crystal display device 1 using an MIM element, two transparent substrates 10 and 20 (glass substrates) are bonded so as to face each other with a gap of several μm therebetween. 30 is enclosed.
The ends of the first and second substrates 10 and 20 are in a state of protruding from the ends of the other substrate, and the protruding portions are used to connect the flexible printed wiring to the ends of the first substrate 10. Terminals 39 for connection to a substrate (not shown) and for mounting a semiconductor element are formed.

A large number of scanning lines 11 are formed on the lower substrate 10 (first substrate) in parallel with each other.
On the other hand, the MIM elements 12 (non-linear elements) and the pixel electrodes 13 connected to the MIM elements 12 are arranged in a matrix at a constant pitch. Color filter 2
The substrate 20 (second substrate) on the side where 1 is configured includes:
A transparent signal line (data line) is configured as a strip-shaped counter electrode 22. Color filter 21 and counter electrode 2
Regarding the positional relationship with 2, any of them may be the upper layer or the lower layer. In some cases, signal lines (data lines) are formed on the lower substrate 10, and scanning lines 11 are formed on the substrate 20 on which the color filters 21 are formed.

In the liquid crystal display device 1 configured as described above,
The scanning line 11 and the counter electrode 22 (signal line) are substantially intersected, and the liquid crystal cell 31 is interposed between the pixel electrode 13 and the counter electrode 22 for each pixel corresponding to the intersection.
Is configured.

The polarizing plates 19, 2 are provided outside the substrates 10, 20.
9 are optically orthogonally arranged, of which the polarizing plate 29 functions as an analyzer. A backlight unit of a direct type or an edge light type is disposed below the polarizing plate 19, and as shown in the drawing, in the case of an edge light type backlight unit 70, it is disposed at a position corresponding to a side of the substrate 10. A fluorescent lamp 71; a light guide plate 72 for guiding light from the fluorescent lamp 71 toward the substrate 10;
And a diffusion plate 73 with respect to. In the edge light type backlight unit 70, the substrate 10
The fluorescent lamps 71 may be arranged at respective positions corresponding to the two opposite sides.

In the liquid crystal display device 1 configured as described above,
As shown in FIG. 2, a gap material 41 made of plastic beads is interposed between the two substrates 10 and 20, and the gap material 41 is crushed by the two substrates 10 and 20. However, the cell gap between the two substrates 10 and 20 is defined to be uniform in the plane. Such a state is held by the cured sealing material 50. A liquid crystal 30 is sealed inside the sealing material 50, and a liquid crystal cell 31 is formed between the pixel electrode 13 and the counter electrode 22. The liquid crystal is, for example, a TN-type liquid crystal that is aligned with a predetermined twist angle and a pretilt angle by an alignment process such as rubbing.

[Structure of MIM Substrate] FIGS. 3A and 3B
3A and 3B are a cross-sectional view and a plan view of the MIM element, respectively.

As shown in FIG. 3A, the MIM element 12
A tantalum electrode 121 (lower electrode) is formed on the surface of a transparent substrate 10 such as glass on which a base protective film (not shown) such as a tantalum oxide film is formed, and the tantalum oxide film is formed on the surface by anodic oxidation. 122 (anodized film / insulating film) are formed. IT on the surface of the substrate 10
A pixel electrode 13 composed of an O electrode is also formed. A chrome electrode 123 (upper electrode) is formed on the surface of the tantalum oxide film 122. The chrome electrode 123 and the tantalum electrode 121 face each other with the tantalum oxide film 122 interposed therebetween.
The IM element 12 is configured. The chrome electrode 123 is electrically connected to the pixel electrode 13, and the MIM element 12
The liquid crystal cell 31 corresponding to the pixel electrode 13 is addressed, and information can be written in the liquid crystal cell 31. In addition,
As shown in FIG. 3B, the tantalum electrode 121 is formed as a part of the scanning line 11, and is formed by laminating a wiring made of a chromium film on the surface side.

[Manufacturing Method of Liquid Crystal Display Device] FIG. 4 is a plan view showing a method of manufacturing a liquid crystal display device, in which a plurality of substrates are formed on a large substrate in a so-called multi-unit method. .

FIG. 4 shows that nine substrates 10 are taken from the large substrate 100. That is, as described below, the MIM element 1
After forming 2 and the like,
Another large substrate on which the opposing electrode 22 and the like are formed is attached, and then the two large substrates are cut into strips along the alternate long and short dash line to enclose the liquid crystal 30, and then the substrate is formed into the shape shown in FIG. 10 and 20 are cut, and in this case, 9 this liquid crystal display device is manufactured.

(Method of Forming MIM) First, the large substrate 10
After a tantalum thin film having a thickness of about 1500 angstroms is formed on the front surface of the tantalum electrode 121, the tantalum thin film is patterned by photolithography.
And the scanning line 11 is left. For example, a tantalum thin film
The power supply unit 120 is also left along the upper side of the large substrate 100, and the power supply unit 120 is in a state of being electrically connected to each scanning line 11.

Next, the large substrate 100 is immersed in an anodic oxidation bath containing phosphoric acid or the like except for the power supply section 120, and anodic oxidation is performed in this oxidizing bath. As a result, a tantalum oxide film 122 having a thickness of about 500 angstroms is formed on the surface of the tantalum electrode 121. A tantalum oxide film is also formed on the scanning line 11. Annealing is performed on the tantalum oxide film 122 under a temperature condition of 300 ° C. to 400 ° C.

Next, a thickness of 80
After forming a chromium film of about 0 Å, patterning is performed by photolithography to form a chrome electrode 123 and a black matrix 125.

Next, after an ITO film is formed on the surface of the large-sized substrate 100, patterning is performed by a photolithography technique to leave the pixel electrodes 13 made of the ITO film in a matrix.

Here, an ITO film may be used instead of forming the second electrode using the chromium electrode. In this case, the pixel electrode can also be formed integrally, and a part of the manufacturing process can be omitted.

The sealing material 50 is attached to the large substrate 100.
(See FIG. 2).

(Gap material spraying step) Next, the large substrate 1
For 00, a gap material 41 made of plastic beads is sprayed. In the present embodiment, in the step of spraying the gap material 41, a novel gap material spraying apparatus shown in FIG. 5 is used. FIG. 5 is a schematic configuration diagram of a gap material spraying apparatus used in the gap material spraying step of the present embodiment.

The gap material spraying device 60 shown in FIG.
Two guide shafts 61 and 62 extending in the axial direction, a gap material spraying head 63 (suction head) movable on the guide shafts 61 and 62 (screw shaft) in the Y-axis direction, and Z
The gap material supply box 64 configured on an axial elevating device (not shown) and the large substrate 100 are moved in the X-axis direction and Y-axis direction.
And a table 65 for moving in the axial direction and the Z-axis direction. The gap material dispersing head 63 and the gap material supply box 64 are electrically connected to each other, and antistatic (antistatic measures) when the resin gap material 41 is used.

The lower portion of the gap material spraying head 63 is a decompression chamber 632 having a depth of about 5 mm to which a pipe 631 from a vacuum device (shown by an arrow A) is connected. A three-way cock 66 that switches the flow path according to a command from a control unit (not shown) that controls the entire gap material spraying device 60 is inserted at an intermediate position of the pipe 631.
The three-way cock 66 connects the decompression chamber 632 to the evacuation device A.
Are connected to each other and the decompression chamber 632 is opened to the atmosphere via the pipe 633. In the upper half of the gap material spraying head 63, in addition to mechanical parts for mechanically connecting the gap material spreading head 63 to the guide shafts 61 and 62,
A small vibrator 67 is also built in. Decompression chamber 63
2 is constituted by a detachable suction head plate 68 having a thickness of about 0.5 mm.
As shown in a vertical section of the suction head plate 68 in FIG. The positions where these suction holes 69 are formed are limited to the area on the first substrate 10 cut out from the large-sized substrate 100, where the gap material 41 is to be sprayed. Therefore, the suction holes 69 are not formed in the first substrate 10 in a region corresponding to the position of the terminal 39 (see FIG. 1) formed at the end. Here, in addition to the case where the suction hole 69 is formed as a straight hole as shown in FIG. 6 (A), as shown in FIG.
The upper half may have a conical surface 692 whose diameter is increased downward from the straight hole 691 in some cases. In this example, as shown in FIG.
A suction hole 69 of 3 μm is formed. This suction hole 69
Is formed such that the inner diameter of the portion for receiving the gap material 41 is about の of the outer diameter of the gap material 41 to be used. As a method for forming such fine suction holes 69 in a predetermined pattern, etching using a photolithography technique is suitable. Also, when performing a wet etching by forming a resist mask on the lower surface 688 side of the suction head plate 68 when performing such etching, the etching proceeds in the lateral direction on the lower surface 688 side of the suction head plate 68. Conical surface 6 as shown in B)
The suction holes 69 having the holes 92 can be easily formed. Suction hole 6
In the formation of 9, it goes without saying that conventional fine mechanical drilling and chamfering may be used.

Referring again to FIG. 5, the gap material supply box 64 has a box shape with the upper surface open, and the inside thereof forms a gap material storage chamber 640. A pipe 641 from an ionized air supply device (indicated by an arrow B) is connected to the gap material storage chamber 640.

The gap material spraying device 6 configured as described above
When spraying the gap material 41 on the large-sized substrate 100 using 0, the large-sized substrate 100 is first placed on the table 65. The gap material 41 is charged into the gap material storage chamber 640 of the gap material supply box 64, and ionized air is supplied to the gap material chamber 640 via a pipe 641. For this reason, in the gap material storage chamber 640, even if the gap material 41 is made of resin, the static electricity has been removed, so that the gap material 41 is separated one by one.

In order to spray the gap material 41 from this state, first, the gap material supply box 64 is raised, and the upper surface opening thereof is set to the suction head plate 6 of the gap material spray head 63.
8. In this state, the three-way cock 66
And the pressure in the decompression chamber 632 is reduced by the evacuation device A. As a result, the gap material 41 is sucked from the gap material storage chamber 640 toward each suction hole 69 of the suction head plate 68, and one gap material 41 is inserted into each of the suction holes 69.
It is absorbed one by one.

Next, as the gap material supply box 64 moves down, the gap material distribution head 63 moves along the guide shafts 61 and 62 to a position directly above the large substrate 100. During this time, the decompression chamber 632 remains depressurized by the evacuation device A, and the gap member 41 remains adsorbed in the suction holes 69 of the suction head plate 68. And
The table 65 raises the large substrate 100 until the large substrate 100 approaches the suction head plate 68 at a position below the suction head plate 68 and confronts the large substrate 100.
To stop.

In this state, the three-way cock 66 is switched,
The connection between the evacuation device A and the decompression chamber 632 is cut off, and the decompression chamber 632 is opened to the atmosphere. As a result, the suction of the gap material 41 in the suction holes 69 of the suction head plate 68 is released. Further, in the gap material spraying head 63, the vibrator 67 built therein operates for a short time, and transmits an extremely light vibration to the suction head plate 68 for about one second. As a result, the gap material 41 that has been sucked in the suction holes 69 of the suction head plate 68 is detached from the suction holes 69 and falls as it is toward the large-sized substrate 100 by its own weight. As a result, the gap material 41 is scattered only at a predetermined position on the large-sized substrate 100 corresponding to the position where the gap material 41 has been sucked toward the suction head plate 68 until then.

Here, the suction head plate may be divided into a plurality of regions and formed. For example, when it is desired that the arrangement density of the gap material be different between the outer peripheral side of the substrate and the central portion of the substrate, a plurality of suction head plates having different arrangement densities of the suction holes can be used in combination.

If the surface of the suction hole 69 is covered with a resin, it is possible to promote the fall of the gap material.

Further, the inside of the gap material supply box is provided with a partition wall to divide the space into a plurality of areas to accommodate gap materials of different materials and gap materials of different diameters, and to simultaneously supply a plurality of different types of gap materials. You may do so.

In FIG. 5, after the dispersion of the gap material 41 is completed, the large substrate 100 waits at the same position, but the gap material dispersion head 63 is guided by the guide shafts 61 and 6.
It returns to the position directly above the gap material supply box 64 along 2. Then, by repeating the above operation, the new gap member 41 is sucked into the suction holes 69 of the suction head plate 68. In the meantime, the table 65 moves in the X-axis direction or the Y-axis direction, and the large-sized substrate 100 moves so that the gap material 41 is scattered in another area of the large-sized substrate 100 (another substrate 10). And repeat the above operation,
The gap material 41 is similarly sprayed from the gap material spray head 63 to a new area of the large-sized substrate 100.

(Final Step) In this way, the large substrate 10
After the dispersion of the gap material 41 is completed over the entire predetermined region of 0, another large substrate on which the counter electrode 22 and the like are formed is attached to the large substrate 100, and after the sealing material 50 is cured, A large substrate is cut into strips. Here, if a break is formed in the sealing material 50, the liquid crystal 30 is injected under reduced pressure into the inner region of the seal 50 from there, and then the liquid crystal 30 can be reliably sealed by closing the break. After the sealing of the liquid crystal 30 is completed, the discontinuous portions of the sealing material 50 are closed, and thereafter, the substrates 10 and 20 are cut into the shapes shown in FIG.

[Effects of the present embodiment] As described above, the gap members 41 sucked into the plurality of suction holes 69 formed in the suction head plate 68 are transferred to the first substrate 10 (large substrate 100). By changing, the first substrate 10
Spray the gap material 41 on the top. Therefore, the gap material 41 is scattered only at the position where the suction hole 69 is formed in the suction head plate 68. For this reason, if the suction holes 69 are formed uniformly in the suction head plate 68, the gap material 41 can be evenly dispersed, and if the suction holes 69 are formed in the suction head plate 68 with a predetermined density distribution, the density distribution is reduced. As described above, the gap 41 material can be sprayed. Therefore, the accuracy of the cell gap can be improved. Further, the gap material 41 is not scattered. Therefore, the gap material 41 may be sprayed by an actually necessary amount, so that the usage amount of the gap material 41 can be reduced. In addition, since the scatter area of the gap material 41 can be strictly limited, the terminal 3 of the first substrate 10
Since the gap material 41 is not sprayed on the upper surface 9, there is no need to wash the gap material 41 from the terminal 39 after the gap material 41 is sprayed. further,
Since the gap material 41 does not adhere to the inner wall of the processing chamber of the gap material spraying apparatus 60, even when the type of the gap material 41 is switched, the work of removing the gap material 41 from the inner wall of the processing chamber is unnecessary. , Can increase productivity. Further, all the gap materials 41 sucked in the suction holes 69 of the suction head plate 68 are transferred to the first substrate 10 side, and do not remain on the suction head plate 68.
The setup work for switching the type of the gap material 41 can be easily performed.

Further, in this embodiment, since the gap material 41 is dispersed in ionized air to be in a state of static elimination, even if the gap material 41 is made of a resin, the gap material 41 may stick together due to static electricity and solidify. Absent. Therefore, the gap material 4 is inserted into the suction hole 69 of the suction head plate 68.
1 can be reliably performed.

Further, when the suction of the gap material 41 in the suction hole 69 is released, the vibrator 67 vibrates the suction head plate 68 lightly, so that the suction of the gap material 41 in the suction hole 69 is stopped. At this time, the gap material 41 that has been sucked until then is surely removed from the suction hole 69 by the vibration, and all the gap materials 41 drop toward the first substrate 10.

Further, since the suction hole 69 has a conical surface 692 whose diameter increases toward the lower side, the gap member 41 is guided by the conical surface 692 and is securely held at the back of the suction hole 69. It does not fall on the way. Further, since the suction hole 69 is a conical surface 692, even if the particle size of the gap material 41 changes, the gap material 41 is reliably sucked into the suction hole 69. Therefore, when changing the spray pattern of the gap material 41, the suction head plate 68 is replaced.
If there is no change in the spray pattern of
Since the gap material 41 can be scattered using 8, the setup time can be shortened.

[Other Embodiments] In the above embodiment, the gap material spraying head 63 is configured to spray the gap material 41 for each of the first substrates 10. Is increased, the gap material 41 can be sprayed on the plurality of first substrates 10.

In the above embodiment, the liquid crystal display device 1 using the MIM element has been described as an example. However, a liquid crystal display device using a TFT as a switching element or a liquid crystal display using a method called a simple matrix without using a switching element is used. The present invention can be applied to a case where a gap material is sprayed on a substrate even in an apparatus.

[0054]

As described above, the gap material dispersing apparatus according to the present invention disperses the gap material on the substrate by transferring the gap material adsorbed to each of the plurality of suction holes to the substrate. . Therefore, since the gap material is sprayed on the substrate only at the position where the suction hole is formed in the suction head, according to the position of the suction hole and the density distribution,
A gap material can be sprayed on the substrate. Therefore, the accuracy of the cell gap can be improved. Further, the gap material may be sprayed by an actually necessary amount, and the amount of the gap material used can be reduced. Further, since the gap material can be strictly limited in the area to be scattered, the gap material is not scattered on the terminals on the substrate, so that it is not necessary to wash the gap material from the terminal portions. Further, since the gap material does not scatter around, even when switching the type of the gap material, there is no need to remove the gap scattered around, so that productivity can be improved. In addition, all the gap material sucked into the suction hole of the suction head is transferred to the substrate side and does not remain on the suction head.
The setup work for switching the type of the gap material can be easily performed.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic configuration diagram of a liquid crystal display device using an MIM element as an example of a liquid crystal display device to which the present invention is applied.

FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view schematically showing a configuration of a liquid crystal display device using the MIM element shown in FIG.

FIGS. 3A and 3B are a cross-sectional view and a plan view, respectively, of an MIM element used as a non-linear element of a liquid crystal display device.

FIG. 4 is a plan view of a large substrate showing a manufacturing process of a liquid crystal display device to which the present invention is applied.

FIG. 5 is a schematic configuration diagram of a gap material spraying device used in a gap material spraying step in a method of manufacturing a liquid crystal display device to which the present invention is applied.

6 (A), (B), and (C) are a vertical sectional view of a suction head plate, a vertical sectional view of another suction head plate, and a suction head used in the gap material spraying device shown in FIG. 5, respectively. It is a top view which shows arrangement | positioning of the suction hole formed in the board.

[Explanation of symbols]

 Reference Signs List 1 liquid crystal display device 10 substrate (first substrate) 11 scanning line 12 MIM element (non-linear element) 13 pixel electrode 20 substrate (second substrate) 22 counter electrode 30 liquid crystal 31 liquid crystal cell 39 terminal 60 gap material dispersing device 61 , 62 guide shaft 63 gap material scattering head 64 gap material supply box 65 table 66 three-way cock 67 vibrator 68 suction head plate 69 suction hole 640 gap material storage room 691 straight hole 692 conical surface

Claims (8)

[Claims] 1. A gap material spraying device for spraying a gap material defining a gap between a pair of substrates on at least one of the substrates, wherein when the gap material is sprayed, a plurality of suction heads formed on a suction head are sprayed. After the gap material is sucked into each of the holes, the substrate is opposed to the suction head at a position below the suction head, and in this state, the suction of the gap material in the suction hole is released to thereby perform the suction. A gap material spraying device, wherein the gap material is transferred from a head onto the substrate. 2. The gap according to claim 1, further comprising: a gap material storage section for storing the gap material adsorbed in the suction hole in an ionized air in a state where the charge is removed. Lumber spraying equipment. 3. The method according to claim 1, wherein when the gap material is transferred from the suction head to the substrate.
A gap material spraying device comprising: a vibration applying means for applying vibration to the suction head. 4. A gap material spraying apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said suction hole has a conical surface whose diameter increases downward. 5. The apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the surface of the suction hole is coated with a resin. 6. A gap material accommodating portion for accommodating the gap material according to claim 1, wherein a plurality of gap material accommodating regions separated from each other are provided inside, and each gap material accommodating region is provided with a different gap material. The gap material spraying device characterized by storing. 7. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said suction head comprises a plurality of suction head blocks having different arrangement densities of said suction holes. 8. A method of spraying a gap material defining a gap between a pair of substrates on at least one of the substrates, wherein the gap material is sucked into each of a plurality of suction holes formed in a suction head. Causing the substrate to face the suction head at a position below the suction head; and releasing suction of the gap material in the suction hole in this state to release the substrate from the suction head onto the substrate. And transferring the gap material.