JPS62188978A - Pattern checker for conductive thin film - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To enable a quick and accurate pattern inspection, by checking a pattern on a glass plate with measuring pins in contact with the pattern. CONSTITUTION:A glass plate being conveying by a conveying device 21 is stopped with a stopper 37 and the glass plate is placed on a stage 23 as separated from the device 21. The glass plate is positioned at a specified checking position by pressing it on the stage 23 on reference rollers 44-46 with a gauging 47. After positioned, the glass plate is sucked securely on the stage 23 and a measuring pin 52 provided on a measuring head 24 is brought into contact with the pattern on the glass plate to check. Therefore, the measuring pin 52 contacts a pattern at a point to reduce the checking time of the pattern substantially. This can also make the contact pressure of the measuring pin 52 the same thereby stabilizing measurement.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION [Object of the Invention] (Industrial Application Field) The present invention relates to a pattern checking device for conductive thin films used in the manufacturing process of glass substrates for liquid crystal displays and the like.

(Prior art) A glass substrate for a liquid crystal display has an IJ on a glass plate.
? A stripe-like pattern is formed using an iR thin film. These patterns can be roughly divided into strip-like patterns with a narrow spacing of 0.3 mm to 0.4 ae+ and a large number of 200 to 640 lines, and relatively wide patterns with a few layers of spacing between patterns and a small number of 20 to 200 lines. It can be divided into

On such a glass substrate, a so-called pattern check is performed to inspect the conduction (disconnection) state of each pattern and the insulation state between each pattern. This pattern check has conventionally been performed as shown in FIG. 17 because the spacing between patterns is narrow and the number of patterns is large.

That is, first, the glass plate 12 on which the striped pattern 11 of a conductive thin film is formed is positioned on the fixing table 13 in alignment with the guide 14 and fixed by suction. After this, the measuring head 16 with several tungsten measuring needles 15 is used to measure the above! The tip of 115 is glass plate 1
Move it in the direction of the arrow while lightly touching the surface of 2.

With this movement, the tip of the measurement button 15 passes over each pattern 11 in sequence, thereby testing insulation between adjacent patterns 11 and continuity (disconnection) within the same pattern.

(Problems to be Solved by the Invention) However, according to the pattern check described above, adjustment of the contact pressure of the measuring needle 15 using tungsten is difficult and causes scratches on the pattern 11 made of the IJ conductive thin film. If you make this scratch, this will cause the coating to come off in that area and lli! Defects such as i occur. Also, pattern 1
1, it is extremely difficult to adjust the contact position of the measuring needle 15, and it is necessary to adjust the position each time the glass plate 12, which is the symbol of the pattern 11, is to be inspected, or to prepare another inspection machine. However, automation was difficult.

The purpose of the present invention is to be able to accurately inspect a pattern in a short time by point contact without causing scratches caused by a measuring needle, and to be able to easily handle a wide variety of glass substrates with multiple bevels. Another object of the present invention is to provide a pattern checking device for conductive thin films that can be automated.

[Structure of the invention]

(Means for Solving the Problems) The present invention provides a pattern checking device for a conductive thin film that inspects the continuity and insulation state of a pattern formed on the surface of a glass plate, in which the glass plate is moved in a predetermined direction. a conveying device that conveys the glass plate, a stopper that is retractably provided on the conveyance path of the conveying device and that stops the glass plate by coming into contact with the glass plate when the glass plate is protruded; a stage for supporting the glass plate at a position separated from the conveyance device when the glass plate is raised; and a positioning stage for abutting the peripheral portion of the glass plate supported on the stage and positioning the glass plate at a predetermined check position. llIm, a suction unit provided on the stage to attract the glass plate onto the stage on the condition that the glass plate is positioned at the predetermined pickup position, and a measuring pin for pattern checking. are arranged so as to face the pattern on the glass plate adsorbed on the stage, and are movable relative to the stage along the vertical movement direction so that the pattern and the measurement pin can come into contact with each other. It is equipped with a measuring head provided with a.

(Function) In the present invention, a glass plate conveyed by a conveyance device is stopped by a stopper, this glass plate is placed on a stage in a state separated from the conveyance device, and the glass plate on this stage is moved by a positioning mechanism. After positioning the glass plate at the predetermined position, the glass plate is fixed on the stage by suction.
A measurement pin provided on a measurement head is brought into contact with a pattern on a glass plate to check the pattern.

(Example) Hereinafter, an example of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

In FIG. 1, reference numeral 21 denotes a conveying device that conveys the glass plate 12 shown in FIG. 2 in a predetermined direction. 22 is a type-specific device, a conveyor! Glass plate 12 conveyed by 21
The type of pattern 11 formed in the image is determined. Reference numeral 23 denotes an inspection stage that supports the glass plate 12 transported by the transport device 21, and after positioning, which will be described later, brings the pattern 11 on the glass plate 12 into contact with a measuring head 24 disposed above. A measuring device 25 determines whether the pattern 11 is conductive (broken) or insulated based on a signal from the measuring head 24. Reference numeral 26 denotes a branching unit which, after the pattern check, separates the glass plates 12 transported by the transport device Z21 into non-defective products and defective products according to the measurement results of the measuring device 25. Each of the above parts will be explained in detail below.

First, a glass substrate whose pattern is checked by the apparatus of the present invention will be explained with reference to FIG. This glass substrate has a striped pattern 11 made of a conductive thin film formed on a glass plate 12 as in the conventional case, and a stripe-like pattern 11 is formed on a glass plate 12 in the direction of conveyance by the conveyance device 21 shown in FIG. A type discrimination pattern 28 is provided. Also,
A reference point A for positioning is set on a side portion of the glass plate 12 that is spaced by a dimension a from the front end in the conveyance direction. Further, on the front edge of the glass plate 12, a base point B is set at a position spaced apart from the side edge by a dimension, and a reference point C is set at a position spaced a dimension C away from the side edge. Each of these reference points A, B,
The position of C, that is, the dimensions a, b, and c, are the same for all types.

Further, the width dimension d of the glass plate 12 is also the same for all types.

Next, in FIG. 3, reference numeral 21a denotes a first conveyor constituting the conveying device 21, which is driven by a speed control motor 30 and carries the glass plate 12 placed in the stirrup on the loading side (right side in the figure). Transport to the direction. 3
Reference numeral 1 denotes a stopper, which is provided so as to be able to appear and retract on the conveyance path of the glass plate 12 by the conveyor 21a by an air cylinder 32, and when protruding (when rising), it touches the front end of the glass plate 12 conveyed by the conveyor 21a. abutting,
Stop this. The discrimination device 22 has a pin head 33.
and its vertical movement 8!1834, and the pin head 33
There are several pins with spring action tips 3.
5 is provided. Then, the pin head 33 is lowered by the vertical movement mechanism 34 with respect to the type discrimination pattern 28 of the glass plate 12 stopped by the stopper 31, and the several pins 35 are pressed onto the type discrimination pattern 28. The type is determined by the conduction pattern between them. If the determined product type is different from the expected product type, this pattern check is not performed and the product is treated as defective.

Next, the portion where the pattern check is performed will be explained with reference to FIGS. 4 and 5. Reference numeral 21b denotes a second conveyor of the conveying device 21, which receives the glass plate 12 sent by the first conveyor 21a and conveys it to the left in the figure. Reference numeral 37 denotes a stopper, which is provided so as to be able to appear and disappear on the conveyance path of the glass plate 12 by the conveyor 21b, and when protruding onto the conveyance path, comes into contact with the front end of the glass plate 12 being conveyed by the conveyor 21b and stops it. let

The stopper 37 is provided at the front end (left end in the figure) of the stage 23 so that it can be rotated, and is rotated by an air cylinder (not shown) or the like. It moves in and out of the conveyance path. The stage 23 is provided below the glass plate 12 stopped by a stopper 37 so as to be movable up and down. That is, the stage 23 is moved up and down by two drive operations by a stage up and down movement mechanism 39 provided on the base 38. The stage vertical movement 1!1lli39 is composed of a cam plate 40 having an inclined side and a two-drive air cylinder 41 that moves the cam plate 40 forward and backward. Then, the air cylinder 41 pushes the cam plate 40 to the middle of its inclined side, thereby raising the stage 23 by one step to a separation position l from the conveyor 21b. Furthermore, the cam plate 40 is
By pushing in, a two-drive operation is performed to raise it to the pattern check position, which will be described later.

Next, the positioning mechanism 43 for positioning the glass plate 12 at a predetermined check position on the stage 23 will be explained.

Reference numerals 44 and 45 designate first reference rollers, which are provided at positions corresponding to reference points B and C on the glass plate 12 shown in FIG. 2 at the front end of the stage 23 (on the left in the figure). 46 is a second reference row, which is a reference point A on the glass plate 12 shown in FIG.
It is installed on a dowel on the base 38 corresponding to the base 38, and is configured to be movable toward the side of the glass plate 12. 4
Reference numeral 7 denotes a first gauging, which is movably provided at the rear of the stage 23 (on the right side in the figure) and presses the glass plate 12 against the reference rollers 44 and 45 during operation. Reference numeral 48 denotes a second gauging, which is disposed on the base 38 so as to face the second reference roller 46, and is configured to be able to advance and retreat toward the side portion of the glass plate 12. The plate 12 is pressed against the second reference roller 46. Reference numeral 49 denotes stage movement ms, which is provided along the conveyance direction of the conveyor 21b and consists of a ball screw 49a screwed into the stage 23 side and a pulse motor 49b that drives this.The stage 23 is conveyed by rotation of the pulse motor 49b. conveyor 2
1b in the transport direction.

Here, when performing positioning, first, the protruding position of the second reference roller 46 is set so that the side part is in contact with this reference row 546, and the reference points B and C shown in FIG. The rollers are set to match the reference rollers 44 and 45 of .

Further, the front end of the glass plate 12 is connected to the first reference roller 44.
45, the position of the stage 23 is set so that the reference point A shown in FIG. 2 coincides with the second reference row 546. In this way each reference roller 44.45.4
6, the glass plate 12 is moved to each of the reference rollers 44, 45, . , 46, the glass plate 12 can be swiftly positioned at a predetermined check position.

Reference numeral 50 denotes a suction section, which is provided as a slit hole on the stage 23, and suctions the glass plate 12 onto the stage 23 by vacuum on the condition that the above-mentioned positioning is completed. Incidentally, this suction section 50 performs air blowing in the opposite manner during the above-described positioning, so that the glass plate 12 is slightly lifted to facilitate positioning.

In FIG. 5, the measuring head 24 has a number of measuring pins 52.
A pinboard 53 made of an insulating material and provided with a pin board 53 is supported above the stage 23 by a pedestal 54. Reference numeral 55 denotes a micro head which aligns the pin board 53 so that the measurement pins 52 face each pattern 11 on the glass plate 12 which is suctioned and fixed on the stage 23. Further, each measurement pin 52 has a spring action at its tip, and comes into contact with the pattern 11 on the glass plate 12 when the stage 23 is raised two steps by the stage up and down mechanism 39.

Here, the measuring pins 52 are provided in a staggered manner with respect to the pin board 53 as shown in FIG. 6, and are brought into contact with the pattern 11 on the glass plate 12 as shown in FIG. 7 or 8. do. Figure 7 shows the case of checking the insulation of each pattern 11, measuring pin (A-1) - (a-1) (B
-1) (b-1), (B-1) -('a-1) (b
-1) Check the continuity between adjacent measurement pins 52 as shown in (C-1) and (c-1). Also,
Figure 8 shows the case of checking for disconnection within the same pattern 11, between measuring pins (8-1) and (a-1), and between (B-2).
-(b-2), the continuity of the measurement pins 52 in the same pattern 11 is checked as shown.

In addition, in order to reduce the number of checks on the software in the measuring device 25 shown in FIG.
The wiring may be grouped. That is, in the example of Fig. 6, the measurement pins ((A-1) (^-2) (A-3
) ), ((B-1) (B-2) (B-3) )...
..., ((a-1) (a-2) (a-3) ),
((b-1) (b-2) (b-3) ) ...
By connecting each group to reduce the number of wires to the measuring device 25, the measuring device 25 can be downsized and the measurement speed can be improved.

Next, referring to FIG. 9, the branching device 26 that separates good products and defective products after pattern checking will be explained.

Reference numeral 21c denotes a third conveyor for the conveying membrane 21, which receives the pattern-checked glass plate 12 conveyed by the second conveyor 21b and conveys it to the left in the figure. Reference numeral 57 denotes a stopper, which is provided so as to be able to protrude and retract from the conveyance path of the glass plate 12 by the conveyor 21c by means of an air cylinder 58, and when protruding onto the conveyance path, comes into contact with the glass plate 12 and stops it. . The branching device 2B
has a base 60 supported so as to be movable forward and backward by a pair of guide rods 59 disposed in a direction perpendicular to the conveyor 21C.

A bracket 61 stands up vertically from one side of the base 60, and a transfer table 62 along the horizontal direction is supported by this bracket 61 so as to be movable up and down. An air cylinder 63 moves the base 60 forward and backward along the guide rod 59, and an air cylinder 64 moves the transfer table 62 up and down along the bracket 61. 21d
is the fourth conveyor of the conveying device 21, which is provided in parallel to the side of the third conveyor 21C, and which handles the glass plates 12 transferred from above the third conveyor 21c by the branching device 26. (defective product) is transported to the left in the diagram. The conveyance destination of this fourth conveyor 21d includes the tenth
A cassette 67 for identifying defective products is provided which is held by the elevator i structure 66 shown in the figure. That is, the elevator mechanism 66 supports the lifting platform 70 in a vertically movable manner by means of a vertical guide rod 69 provided on a bracket 68, and vertically moves the lifting platform 70 by means of a ball screw 72 rotated by a motor 71. It is something that makes you The cassette 67 has guides 7 provided on the top surface of the four descending platforms 70 at its four corners.
3 and placed.

This cassette 61 stores glass plates 12 in stacks, and is empty until it reaches the lowest level. Each time a defective glass plate 12 is stored, it is lifted one by one by a motor 71. It will be done.

In the above configuration, the pattern check apparatus of the present invention shown in FIG.
6 and is used.

Glass plate 12 from the previous process conveyor or loader 75
is placed on the first conveyor 21a shown in FIG. 3 of the pattern checking device and conveyed. Then, the speed is decelerated before the stopper 31, and the stopper 31 first stops the motor at position 1PO3,1.

At this point, the type of pattern is determined by the type discriminator [22] at lPO3,1. Thereafter, the stopper 31 is retracted, and the glass plate 12 is conveyed again and passed onto the second conveyor 2Ib shown in FIG. 4. The glass plate 12 is conveyed in the same direction by the second conveyor 21b, decelerated before the stopper 37, and the stopper 37
Stopped at PO8,2. At this time, the stage up and down mechanism 39 operates at EPO8,2 to raise the stage 23 by one step, and the glass plate 12, which is stopped by the stopper 37, is separated from the conveyor 21b by several feet as shown in FIG. 40. Load it in position. Next, a small amount of air is blown from an adsorption section (slit hole) 50 provided on the stage 23 to lift the glass plate 12 slightly above the stage 23 and retract the stopper 37. Next, the second reference roller 46
advance to a preset reference position. After this, the first
gauging 47 presses the glass plate 12 against the first reference roller 44.45, and a second gauging 48 presses the glass plate 12 against the second reference roller 46;
Perform positioning.

After positioning the glass plate 12 on the stage 23 with good viscosity in this way, air blowing on the surface of the stage 23 is performed.
Stop and switch to vacuum. By this vacuum, the glass plate 12 is suctioned and fixed onto the stage 23 while being well gauged. After this, gauging 47.
48 is returned, and the second reference roller 46 is retreated to the retracted position, so that the stage 23 can be shifted along the conveyor 21b as described later.

In this state, the upper and lower stages 39 operate again to move the stage 23 to the second stage. This operation causes the pattern 1 on the glass plate 12 fixed on the stage 23 to
1 comes into contact with the measuring pin 52 of the measuring head 24 shown in FIG. 5 as shown in FIG. 7 or 8. As described above, the measuring device 25 shown in FIG. 1 detects insulation defects between patterns and 1 Jilil of patterns by checking continuity between each measuring pin 52.

Here, if the pattern 11 formed on the glass plate 12 is on only one surface as shown in FIG.
39, the second stage of the stage 23 is lowered, and the suction part 50
The vacuum is turned off and air 10- is applied to lift the glass plate 12 above the stage 23. After this, the first stage is lowered by stage up/down VA91.39. Due to this operation, the glass plate 12 is placed on the conveyor 2Ib,
It is transported to the downstream side.

On the other hand, if the pattern 11 formed on the glass plate 12 is multifaceted (three faces in the example shown) as shown in FIG.
After checking the pattern on the first surface as described above, the stage 23 is shifted to the measurement position for the next surface with the second stage lowered (Fig. 4, 0), and the second stage is raised again. Check the pattern. Furthermore, this shift is
The stage 23 is moved by a preset distance using a stage movement el1849 consisting of a pulse motor 49b and a ball screw 49a. In this way, the vertical movement of the second stage is repeated for each shift, and the pattern 11 formed on multiple surfaces is sequentially checked.

After the pattern check described above, the glass plate 12 is transported downstream by the second transport conveyor 21b, and then placed on the third transport conveyor 21c shown in FIG. Then, it is decelerated before the stopper 57, hits the stopper 57, and stops at 12PO8,3. At this position PO8,3,
Good products and defective products are separated by pattern-checked bundling. That is, the defective products are lifted from the third conveyor 21c by the transfer table 62 of the branching device 26, and
After moving along the guide rod 59, the transfer table 62 is lowered to move the first place on the fourth conveyor 21d! ! 2PO
Transferred to 8.4. And the fourth conveyor 21
d, one by one is stacked and stored in the cassette 67 shown in FIG. On the other hand, if the product is good, the stopper 57 is retracted, and the glass plate 12 is transferred to the post-process conveyor or unloader 76 in FIG. 12 by the third conveyor 21c.
transported to.

The pattern check device of the present invention is used as shown in FIG. 12, and as shown in FIG.
, 3 may be provided with a rotating device 78 for the glass plate 12. In this case, the glass plate 12 flows as shown in the figure, and the direction toward the glass plate storage cassette is always constant.

As the rotating device 78, one shown in FIG. 14 is used. In the figure, reference numeral 79 denotes a disc with a vacuum slit, which is attached to a rotary cylinder 80 that rotates the disc 79 by 180°.

The disk 79 is an air cylinder 81 capable of two-stage motion.
is driven in the vertical direction via the vertical slide mechanism 82.

In the above configuration, first, the air cylinder 81 raises the position 1PO3,1 or pos.

3, the glass plate 12 stopped at step 3 is slightly lifted off the top of the conveyor 21a or 21c. Next, the glass plate 12 is vacuum chucked onto the disk 79, and then the air cylinder 81 is used to raise the glass plate 12 to the second stage until it is sufficiently removed from the conveyor 21a or 21c. 12 to 180°
Rotate. After this, the disc 79 is returned from the second raised position to the first stage position, the vacuum chuck is stopped, the glass plate 12 is removed from the disc 79 by air blowing, and the disc 79 is returned to its original position. .

Therefore, the disk 79 returns onto the conveyor 21a or 21C.

In this way, by changing the direction of the glass plate 12 using the rotating device @78, it is also possible to check the pattern according to the flow as shown in FIG.

In the above embodiment, the stage 23 is raised two steps at position 1HPO3,2, and the pattern 1 of the glass plate 12 is
1 is brought into contact with the measuring pin 52, but the present invention is not limited to this, and the stage 23 is only raised by one step for positioning, and the pattern 1 on the glass plate 12 in this state is
1, the measuring head 24 side is lowered, and the measuring pin 52
may be brought into contact with each other.

That is, the measurement head 24 is provided in a movable relationship relative to the stage 23 along the vertical movement direction thereof.

In addition, when checking the pattern of a different type of glass substrate with a different pattern, it can be easily handled by simply replacing the measuring head, making it possible to automate both small-lot production and high-volume production.

〔Effect of the invention〕

As described above, according to the present invention, the contact of the measurement pin to the pattern formed by the conductive thin film is a point contact, so that it is possible to prevent the occurrence of scratches and the resulting pattern disconnection as in the prior art. In addition, since point contact is used, pattern checking time for a large number of patterns is shortened, and the contact pressure of each measurement pin can be made the same, which contributes to stable measurement. Therefore, by connecting an automatic loading and unloading device, high-speed automated processing becomes possible. Furthermore, for different types of products, all you have to do is replace the measuring head, and the contact pressure of the measuring needle can be adjusted as before. 7 There is no need to make difficult adjustments, and preparation time is shortened.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

FIG. 1 is an overall perspective view showing an embodiment of an electroconductive thin film pattern checking device according to the present invention, FIG. Fig. 3 is a perspective view showing the type discrimination part in Fig. 1, Fig. 4 @ (c) is a perspective view and partial front view showing the pattern check part in Fig. 1, and Fig. 5 is the measuring head in Fig. 1. FIG. 6 is a diagram showing how the measuring pin is attached to the measuring head in FIG. 5, and FIGS. 7 and 8 are diagrams showing the contact state between the measuring pin and the pattern in FIG. 6. , FIG. 9 is a perspective view showing the branching device part in FIG. Fig. 13 is a diagram showing the usage state of the device of the present invention, Fig. 14 is a perspective view showing an example of the configuration of the rotating device used in Fig. 13, and Figs. 15 and 16 show the types of male glass plates. 17 is a perspective view of a conventional pattern checking device. 11. Contest pattern, 12. Glass plate, 21. Conveying device, 23. Stage, 24. Measuring head, 37. Stopper. 43・Positioning mechanism, 50・Adsorption part, 52・
・Measuring pin. $4v Fresh

Claims (2)

[Claims] (1) A conductive thin film pattern checking device that inspects the conductivity and insulation state of a pattern formed on the surface of a glass plate, including a conveying device that conveys the glass plate in a predetermined direction; A stopper is provided so as to be retractable on the conveyance path and comes into contact with the glass plate to stop it when it is projected; and a stopper is provided so as to be movable up and down below the glass plate stopped by the stopper so that the glass plate can be moved up and down by the conveyance device. a stage supported at a separate position from the glass plate; a positioning mechanism that abuts the peripheral portion of the glass plate supported on the stage and positions the glass plate at a predetermined check position; It has a suction unit that suctions the glass plate onto the stage on the condition that the glass plate is positioned at the predetermined check position, and a measurement pin for pattern checking, and this measurement pin is used to attach the glass plate to the stage. a measuring head disposed to face the pattern and movable relative to the stage along the vertical movement direction of the stage so that the pattern and the measuring pin can come into contact with each other; A conductive thin film pattern checking device featuring: (2) As a stage, a stage is used which moves while holding the glass plate by suction so that a plurality of patterns formed on the glass plate face the measuring head. A pattern checking device for a conductive thin film as described in 1.