KR100688968B1 - Gate valve - Google Patents

Abstract

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a gate valve that isolates the atmosphere in the chamber of a vacuum processing apparatus that processes an object such as a large liquid crystal substrate (LCD substrate) from the outside. The gate valve according to the present invention includes a housing having a front surface having a first opening, and a rear surface having a second opening connected to the opening and the movement path of the object along with the first opening; A support member positioned within the housing to be elevated; A door assembly supported by the support member; A first driving member for vertically moving the support member; And a second driving member for moving the door assembly back and forth from the support member. This invention has the advantage of very excellent workability according to the O-ring replacement. In addition, since the structure of the present invention is simpler than the link driving or cam driving method, the failure rate is low, particle generation is low, and the opening can be tightly sealed. In addition, by minimizing the introduction of particles generated in the drive member into the opening, it is possible to prevent particle contamination of the vacuum chamber.

Description

Gate valve {GATE VALVE}

1 is an external view of a gate valve according to an embodiment of the present invention;

2 shows an interior of a gate valve according to an embodiment of the invention;

3 is a front view of a gate valve according to an embodiment of the present invention;

4 is a side view of a gate valve according to an embodiment of the present invention;

5 is a plan view of a gate valve according to an embodiment of the present invention;

6 is an enlarged plan view of a main portion of a gate valve according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention;

7 to 8 are views for explaining the operation of the gate valve according to an embodiment of the present invention.

<Description of Symbols for Major Parts of Drawings>

110: housing

120: first driving member

130: support member

140: second driving member

150: Particle Blocker

160: door assembly

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a gate valve, and more particularly, to a gate valve that isolates an atmosphere in a chamber of a vacuum processing apparatus for processing an object such as a large liquid crystal substrate (LCD substrate) from the outside.

Until now, a cathode ray tube monitor has been mainly used as a display device, but in recent years, with the rapid development of semiconductor technology, the use of a flat panel display which is light and occupies small space is rapidly increasing. There are various types of flat panel displays, and among them, liquid crystal displays having low power consumption and volume and low voltage driving type are widely used. Recently, due to the increasing trend of large-area display LCD processing facilities, the current trend is to shift from the 5th and 6th generation mass production facilities to the 7th generation due to the increasing demand for process facilities.

As described above, as the liquid crystal display device is enlarged, the gate valve installed in the vacuum chamber is also enlarged. However, the drive method of the conventional gate valve has a disadvantage in that the structure is complicated because the link mechanism or the cam mechanism is used, and the sealing property of sealing the opening of the vacuum chamber is weak. In particular, the existing gate valve has a problem that the drive unit for driving the door is installed to be biased to the lower side of the door, the space utilization is very low. In addition, the existing gate valve is inconvenient, such as having to remove the entire heavy door in order to replace the O-ring installed in the door.

The present invention is to solve such a conventional problem, the object of the present invention is to simplify the existing complicated structure to minimize the generation of particles, and to prevent the particles from entering the opening of the vacuum chamber of a new type To provide a gate valve. Another object is to provide a new type of gate valve that is easy to replace the O-ring.

A gate valve according to the present invention for achieving the above object comprises a housing having a front surface having a first opening, and a rear surface connected to the opening and having a second opening which is connected to the opening and becomes a movement path of the object. and; First driving members installed in the housing; A support member lifted by the first driving member; Second driving members installed on the support member; And a closure supported by the support member and moved to a closing height capable of closing the opening by the lifting operation of the support member by the first driving member and in close contact with the opening by the second driving member. A door assembly moved into position.

A gate valve according to the present invention for achieving the above object comprises a housing having a front surface having a first opening, and a rear surface connected to the opening and having a second opening which is connected to the opening and becomes a movement path of the object. and; A support member positioned within the housing to be elevated; A door assembly supported by the support member; A first driving member for vertically moving the support member; And a second driving member for moving the door assembly back and forth from the support member.

According to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention, the gate valve further includes particle blocking plates for preventing particles generated during driving of the first driving member from moving to a space in which the second opening is located. The particle blocking plate is installed between a space in which the first driving member is installed and a space in which the second opening is located.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, the first driving member includes a cylinder body and a first cylinder having a sliding table that moves up and down on the cylinder body, wherein the first cylinders are respectively installed on both sides of the housing and the Both ends of the support member are fixed to the sliding table.

According to an embodiment of the invention, the gate valve further comprises a guide shaft which is installed perpendicular to both sides of the housing and guides the lifting movement of the support member by the first cylinder.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, the gate valve further includes a guide member for supporting the door assembly from the support member and guiding forward and backward movement by the second driving member.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, the door assembly includes a back plate supported by the guide member; And a front plate detachably installed from the front of the back plate and having an O-ring installed at the front.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, the gate valve is formed on one side of the housing and a position sensing sensor for detecting the lifting operation of the first driving member, the gauge is raised and lowered together with the first driving member and the It further comprises a confirmation window is located in the end of the gauge is elevated with the first drive member.

Advantages of the present invention over prior art will become apparent from the detailed description and claims with reference to the accompanying drawings. In particular, the present invention is well pointed out and claimed in the claims. However, the present invention may be best understood by reference to the following detailed description in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. Like reference numerals in the drawings denote like elements throughout the various drawings.

1 is an external view of a gate valve according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention. 2 is a view showing the interior of the gate valve according to an embodiment of the present invention. 3 to 5 are front, side and plan views of the gate valve according to the embodiment of the present invention. 6 is an enlarged plan view of main parts of a gate valve according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

1 to 5, the gate valve 100 according to the present invention has a large object to be processed (hereinafter, referred to as a substrate) such as a large LCD substrate (a size of about 2.2 m * 1.8 m in the case of a 7th generation LCD substrate). And opening and closing the opening 12 of the vacuum chamber (hereinafter referred to as vacuum chamber) 10 to be carried out.

The gate valve 100 includes a housing 110, a first driving member 120, a support member 130, a second driving member 140, a particle blocking plate 150, and a door assembly 160.

The housing 110 is formed in the shape of a rectangular box and is installed on the front surface (the surface having the opening) of the vacuum chamber 10. The housing 110 has a first opening 112a at a front surface thereof, and a second opening 112b at a rear surface thereof, which serves as a movement path of the substrate together with the first opening. The second opening 112b is connected to the opening 12 of the vacuum chamber.

The first driving member 120 is installed on both sides of the housing, respectively. The first drive member 120 is a rodless type cylinder including a cylinder body 122 installed perpendicular to the side of the housing, and a sliding table 124 moved up and down on the cylinder body 122. Is made of. Although not shown, the piston embedded in the cylinder body 122 is provided integrally with the sliding table 124 by a connecting member. For reference, the first driving member 120, which is a rodless type cylinder, can be reduced in stroke compared with the cylinder to which the rod is connected. Therefore, the area occupied by the first driving member 120 is small and easy to operate. In addition, the first driving member can prevent the dust from entering the interior compared to the rod connecting cylinder. As a result, a high positioning action is possible.

In order to move up and down the support member 130, the first driving member 120 is disposed on both sides of the housing 110, and both ends of the support member 130 are provided on the sliding table 124. Each is fixed.

Both ends of the support member 130 are fixed to the sliding table 124 of the first driving member and are moved by vertical slides of the sliding table 124. The lifting movement of the support member is moved more stably by the two guide shafts 128.

As shown in FIG. 6, the door assembly 160 has a back plate 162 supported by the guide member 170 and a front plate 164 detachably installed from the front surface of the back plate 162. O-ring 166 is installed on the front surface of the front plate 164. As such, according to the present invention, since the O-ring replacement operation only needs to replace the O-ring 166 after separating the front plate 164 from the back plate 162 without having to completely remove the door assembly. According to the workability is very good.

Referring back to FIG. 6, the door assembly 160 is supported by two guide members 170 installed on the support member 130.

The guide member 170 is a flange type bushing housing 172 installed in the hole formed in the support member 130, and the pin is fixed to the door assembly and one end is inserted into the bushing housing 172 to move back and forth 174 and a bellows 176 covering the exposed portion of the pin 174.

Seven of the second driving members 140 are installed between the door assembly 160 and the support member 130. The second driving member 140 is composed of a cylinder body 142 having a rod 144, the cylinder body 142 is fixed to the back plate 162 of the door assembly, the cylinder rod 144 is It is located in the hole formed in the support member 130. Of course, the cylinder body 142 and the cylinder rod 144 may be installed in reverse. The door assembly 160 is moved back and forth by the driving of the second driving member 140. The forward and backward movement by the second driving members 140 is stably guided by the guide member 170.

The door assembly 160 has a closing height capable of closing the opening 12 by the lifting and lowering of the support member 130 by the first driving member 120 in the standby state of FIG. 8. After being moved, it is moved forward by the second driving members (shown in FIG. 7). Whether the first driving member 120 is lifted up and down correctly is checked by a sensor (not shown) installed in the first driving member. The detection sensor may be installed at the upper and lower portions of the guide shaft to detect a supporting member moving along the guide shaft. In particular, the gate valve 100 of the present invention is formed on one side of the gauge 192, the housing 110, and the elevating with the first driving member 120, together with the first driving member 120 It has a confirmation window 194 in which the end of the gauge 192 is elevated. Therefore, the operator can easily check the gauge 192 positioned in the confirmation window 194 whether the first driving member 120 is correctly lifted and operated from the outside.

In addition, the door assembly 160 is moved forward to the closed position in close contact with the opening 12 by the second driving member 140 (see FIG. 7). As described above, the gate valve 100 of the present invention having a double cylinder driving method has a simpler structure than the link driving or cam driving method, and thus has a low failure rate, less particle generation, and tightly seals the opening. There is an advantage to this.

On the other hand, the gate valve 100 of the present invention may generate particles during the lifting and lowering of the support member 130 and the front and rear movement of the door assembly 160, the particles are vacuum chamber through the opening 12 In order to minimize the inflow to the inside of the housing is installed a particle blocking plate 150. Particles are generated a lot from the first driving member 120, the guide shaft 128, the guide member 170 and the like. The particle blocking plate 150 supports and guides the drive of the first driving member 120, the movement of the support member 130 that is elevated along the guide shaft 128, and the forward and backward movement of the door assembly 160. To prevent particles generated from the member 170 from moving toward the opening (or the second opening), a space in which the first driving member 120, the guide shaft 128, and the guide member 170 are installed. And a space in which the second opening (or the front plate of the door assembly) is located. The particle blocking plate 150 is partially cut for the movement of the support member and the movement of the door assembly. As described above, the gate valve of the present invention can suppress particle inflow into the vacuum chamber by maximally isolating a region where a lot of particles are generated by the particle blocking plate.

As such, the gate valve of the present invention is applied to a large processing apparatus for processing a 6th generation LCD substrate (1500 × 1850 mm) and a 7th generation (1870 × 2200 mm) substrate, rather than a small processing apparatus for processing a semiconductor wafer. It is preferable.

The foregoing detailed description illustrates the present invention. In addition, the foregoing description merely shows and describes preferred embodiments of the present invention, and the present invention can be used in various other combinations, modifications, and environments. And, it is possible to change or modify within the scope of the concept of the invention disclosed in this specification, the scope equivalent to the written description, and / or the skill or knowledge in the art. The above-described embodiments are for explaining the best state in carrying out the present invention, the use of other inventions such as the present invention in other state known in the art, and the specific fields of application and uses of the present invention. Various changes are also possible. Accordingly, the detailed description of the invention is not intended to limit the invention to the disclosed embodiments. Also, the appended claims should be construed to include other embodiments.

As described in detail above, the present invention has a very excellent workability according to the O-ring replacement. The present invention has the advantage of lowering the failure rate, generating fewer particles, and more tightly sealing the opening than the link driving or cam driving method. In addition, by minimizing the introduction of particles generated in the drive member into the opening, it is possible to prevent particle contamination of the vacuum chamber.

Claims (9)

delete In the gate valve for opening and closing the opening of the processing apparatus to be carried in and taken out of the object: A housing including a front surface having a first opening and a rear surface connected to the opening and having a second opening which is connected to the opening and becomes a movement path of the object to be treated; A support member positioned within the housing to be elevated; A door assembly supported by the support member; A first driving member for vertically moving the support member; A second driving member for moving the door assembly back and forth from the support member; And And a particle blocking plate for preventing particles generated during driving of the first driving member from moving to a space in which the second opening is located. The method of claim 2, The particle blocking plate is installed between the space in which the first driving member is installed and the space in which the second opening is located. In the gate valve for opening and closing the opening of the processing apparatus to be carried in and taken out of the object: A housing including a front surface having a first opening and a rear surface connected to the opening and having a second opening which is connected to the opening and becomes a movement path of the object to be treated; A support member positioned within the housing to be elevated; A door assembly supported by the support member; A first driving member for vertically moving the support member; A second driving member for moving the door assembly back and forth from the support member; The first driving member is A first cylinder having a cylinder body and a sliding table moved up and down on the cylinder body, The first cylinder is installed on both sides of the housing, the gate valve, characterized in that both ends of the support member is fixed to the sliding table. The method of claim 4, wherein The gate valve And a guide shaft installed perpendicular to both sides of the housing and guiding the lifting movement of the support member by the first cylinder. delete In the gate valve for opening and closing the opening of the processing apparatus to be carried in and taken out of the object: A housing including a front surface having a first opening and a rear surface connected to the opening and having a second opening which is connected to the opening and becomes a movement path of the object to be treated; A support member positioned within the housing to be elevated; A door assembly supported by the support member; A first driving member for vertically moving the support member; A second driving member for moving the door assembly back and forth from the support member; And And a guide member supporting the door assembly from the support member and guiding forward and backward movement by the second driving member; The door assembly includes a back plate supported by the guide member; And a front plate removably installed from the front of the back plate and having an O-ring installed at the front. delete In the gate valve for opening and closing the opening of the processing apparatus to be carried in and taken out of the object: A housing including a front surface having a first opening and a rear surface connected to the opening and having a second opening which is connected to the opening and becomes a movement path of the object to be treated; A support member positioned within the housing to be elevated; A door assembly supported by the support member; A first driving member for vertically moving the support member; A second driving member for moving the door assembly back and forth from the support member; A gauge which is elevated together with the first driving member; And And a confirmation window formed on one side of the housing and positioned at an end of the gauge which is elevated with the first driving member.

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