KR100739100B1 - Substrate transporting apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

A substrate transfer apparatus is provided to reduce a substrate holding time and to improve transfer efficiency of the substrate by performing continuously the up/down motion of a buffer hand using two support frames with a driving unit. A substrate transfer apparatus includes a substrate transfer unit, a buffer hand, two support frames, and a position transforming unit. The substrate transfer unit includes a plurality of transfer rollers spaced apart from each other to transfer a substrate. The buffer hand(2) is used for supplying/receiving the substrate to/from the transfer rollers through up/down motions. The two support frames(4) include a driving unit capable of performing the up/down motions of the buffer hand. The buffer hand is hinge-connected with the support frames through the position transforming unit(8), so that the buffer hand is capable of being rotated by using the hinge portion as a reference.

Description

Substrate transporting apparatus

1 is a view showing the overall structure of a substrate transfer apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a diagram for explaining an up / down movement operation of the buffer hand of FIG. 1.

3 is a view for explaining the support frame structure of FIG.

4 and 5 are views for explaining the structure of the posture converting means of the substrate transfer apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention.

6 and 7 are views showing a state before the down operation of the buffer hand during the substrate transfer operation of the substrate transfer apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.

8 and 9 are views illustrating a state after the down operation of the buffer hand during the substrate transfer operation of the substrate transfer apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention.

10, 11 and 12 are views for explaining the up operation state of the buffer hand after the substrate transfer of the substrate transfer apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 13 is a view for explaining another operation example of the posture converting means of FIG. 5.

14 is a view for explaining the structure of the substrate transfer apparatus according to another embodiment of the present invention.

[Description of Symbols for Main Parts of Drawing]

2: Buffer hand 4: Support frame 6: Up / down drive

8: posture converting means 10: interval adjusting means

The present invention relates to a substrate transfer apparatus, and more particularly, to a substrate transfer apparatus capable of continuously inserting and discharging a substrate in a substrate pass line of each process for manufacturing a substrate for a flat panel display device.

In general, a glass substrate (hereinafter referred to as a "substrate") for flat panel display devices is made through a series of manufacturing processes such as deposition, etching, stripping, cleaning, and rinsing, respectively.

In each of these manufacturing processes, a transfer apparatus is positioned to allow a corresponding operation to be carried out while sequentially transferring a plurality of substrates along a substrate pass line.

This conveying device is composed of a conventional roller conveyor structure in which a plurality of conveying rollers are spaced apart along a substrate pass line to allow movement with a substrate on the rollers.

In addition, the transfer device is installed in association with the buffer unit to enable the input and discharge of the substrate corresponding to the substrate pass line.

The buffer unit is located at the substrate input or discharge point of the substrate pass line, and the input and discharge of the substrate is performed by a buffering method of loading the substrate onto the transfer roller by an up / down operation or vice versa. It works to make it possible.

The buffer unit described above mainly has two types of buffering structures. In one of the two structures, the buffer unit includes a plurality of lift pins positioned between the transfer rollers for contacting and supporting the bottom surface of the substrate, and each of the pins receives power from the driving source to enable the up / down operation. consist of.

The other buffer unit is a robot arm, which is well known in the art, and an up / down operation for buffering a substrate is enabled while the arm is positioned between the transfer rollers.

However, in the conventional buffer units having the above structure, the up / down operation is performed while the lift pins or the robot arms are positioned between the transfer rollers of the respective transfer devices. Excessive holding time occurs during the buffering operation of the substrate because the substrate cannot be continuously moved up or down to insert or eject the next substrate due to the interference of the substrates while the substrate does not deviate from the input or discharge point of the substrate pass line. There is a problem.

In particular, the excessive holding time that occurs during the buffering operation for inputting or discharging the substrate in response to the substrate pass line is a major factor in decreasing productivity and work efficiency.

The present invention has been made to solve the conventional problems as described above, the object of the present invention is to facilitate the buffering operation of the substrate, in particular the continuous input and discharge of the substrate during the buffering operation is possible holding time It is to provide a substrate transfer apparatus that can significantly reduce the.

In order to realize the object of the present invention as described above,

A substrate transfer means for transferring a plurality of transfer rollers spaced apart from each other and having the substrate mounted on the rollers horizontally or inclinedly;

A buffer hand capable of mounting a substrate and for taking over the substrate from the transfer roller by up / down movement or for taking the substrate out of the transfer roller;

A support frame including driving means for up / down movement of the buffer hand and movably fixing the buffer hand in a state where a substrate can be taken over or taken over;

A posture converting means for connecting the buffer hand and the support frame by a hinge coupling and generating a rotational force so that the posture is changed while the buffer hand is rotated about the hinge point;

It provides a substrate transfer apparatus comprising a.

Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings. Embodiments of the present invention are described to the extent that those of ordinary skill in the art can practice the present invention.

Therefore, since the embodiments of the present invention may be modified in various other forms, the claims of the present invention are not limited to the embodiments described below.

1 is a cross-sectional view showing the overall structure of a substrate transfer apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention, 2 denotes a buffer hand, and the buffer hand 2 forms a pass line for transferring the substrate G. Is positioned above the conveying apparatus (F).

The conveying apparatus (F) is composed of a plurality of conveying rollers (R), so that when the rollers (R) are rotated under the rotational force of the motor (R1), the substrate (G) moves in a horizontal or inclined state. It consists of a conventional structure.

In addition, the conveying device (F) is positioned spaced apart from the support frame, such as in the figure from the bottom surface so rests on (F1), as shown in FIG. G. A conventional support frame for the, for example, 1.

Referring to FIG. 1, the buffer hand 2 serves as a kind of transport holder for taking over the substrate G on the transfer roller R, or vice versa, to take the substrate G from the transfer roller R. , It is composed of a plurality of hands, the plurality of hands on the upper side with the transfer roller (R) in between are placed in a pair.

Each of the buffer hands 2 and the respective rollers (R) to enable the up / down operation for the takeover or take over of the substrate (G) while passing between the spaced transfer roller (R) as shown in FIG. It is possible to mount the substrate G in a non-contact state.

Each of the buffer hands 2 includes a plurality of support pins P, which are arranged at least two or more points apart and are erected as shown in the figure. It is fixed to each side.

Each of the supporting pins P may be mounted so that the protruding end is in contact with the bottom surface of the substrate G and is mounted in a substantially horizontal state.

The supporting pins P are arranged in the buffer hand 2 and have an arrangement capable of suppressing the deflection of the substrate G when contacting the bottom surface of the substrate G.

The buffer hands 2 are respectively installed in the two support frames 4 as shown in FIG. 1, and take over of the substrate G by an up / down operation moving up and down along the frames 4. Or arguments are made possible. The up / down operation may be driven by one motor assembly to be simultaneously up / down in the up and down direction, and may also be up / down by a conventional power transmission method that may enable each operation.

Although not shown in the drawing, a part of a frame corresponding thereto is cut out so that the interference of the support frame F1 does not occur between the transfer rollers R when the buffer hand 2 is operated up / down. .

The two support frames 4 comprise up / down drive means 6 for generating power for the up / down operation of the buffer hand 2, for example the transfer device F as shown in FIG. Are positioned in an upright position as shown in the figure with the That is, the buffer hand 2 is fixed to the two support frame 4 side spaced apart in the direction crossing the transfer section of the substrate (G) to enable the up / down movement.

The up / down driving means 6 generates rotational power or linear power to enable the up / down movement of the buffer hand 2.

To this end, in this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 3, one end of the ball screw S1 erected in the vertical direction from the inside of the support frame 4 and the motor M1 shaft are connected, and the ball screw S1 penetrates by screwing. The transfer head S2 is configured to move the transfer head S2 in the up and down directions by the screw part during the forward and reverse rotation of the ball screw S1. It is possible to exercise.

The support frame (4) is provided with a passage (L) in the inner side as shown in Figure 4 to guide the up / down movement of the transfer head (S2) along the passage (L) the transfer head (S2) ) Is moved.

In the above, as an example, the up / down driving means 6 uses the motor M1 and the ball screw S1 for generating the rotational force, but the present invention is not limited thereto.

For example, although the transfer head S2 is not shown in the drawing, it may be connected to the piston rod of the cylinder to enable the up / down movement by the normal linear reciprocation of the rod.

On the other hand, the buffer hand 2 is fixed by the posture converting means 8 so that the fixed posture in the support frame 4 can be changed.

To this end, in this embodiment, as shown in Figs. 3 and 4, the drive source for connecting the connection point of the transfer head (S2) and the buffer hand (2) by a hinge coupling, and generates a rotational force to the hinge connection (H) An M2 is provided to allow the buffer hand 2 to receive a rotational force from the drive source M2 so that the buffer hand 2 can be rotated based on the hinge connection portion H.

The driving source M2 may be a well-known staff motor, a geared motor, a rotary cylinder, or the like, and the rotational force of these motors or cylinders may be connected to the buffer hand 2 through the hinge connection portion H. This buffer hand 2 is changed in a fixed posture in the vertical or horizontal direction as shown in FIG. 5 based on the hinge connection portion H. As shown in FIG.

The posture converting means 8 changes the fixed posture of the buffer hand 2 when taking over or taking over the substrate G as follows, so that the continuous input and discharge of the substrate G is possible.

First, when the substrate (G) is inserted, the buffer hand 2 is fixed to be horizontally positioned as shown in FIGS. 6 and 7. This horizontal posture moves on the transfer roller R as shown in FIGS. 8 and 9 when moving downward along the support frame 4 with the substrate G mounted on the buffer hand 2. You can inject while taking over).

After the substrate G is inserted, the attitude of the buffer hand 2 is rotated with respect to the hinge connection portion H as shown in FIG. This vertical posture allows the buffer hand 2 to move up to another substrate G1 as shown in FIG. A series of up / down operations for supplying the supplied substrate G1 may be continuously performed.

When discharging the substrate G, although not shown in the drawing, the buffer hand 2 is fixed to be positioned horizontally under the transfer roller R. This posture can be easily discharged by taking over the substrate G mounted on the transfer roller R when the buffer hand 2 is operated up.

After discharging the substrate G, the attitude of the buffer hand 2 is rotated with respect to the hinge connection part H, and converted to a vertical attitude. This vertical posture allows the buffer hand 2 to be down even when another substrate G enters the substrate G acquisition point of the transfer roller R, so that the substrate G can be taken over and discharged. A series of up / down operations can proceed sequentially.

Therefore, the posture of the buffer hand 2 is changed to the horizontal or vertical posture by the posture converting means 8 when the operation of inserting or discharging the substrate G as described above is performed. Thus, the substrate G can be continuously added or discharged.

In the above embodiment, when the posture of the buffer hand 2 is changed from the horizontal posture to the vertical posture by the posture converting means 8, the bottom of the hinge connecting portion H as shown in FIG. The vertical attitude while rotating along the radius of rotation is shown in the description and drawings as an example, but is not limited thereto.

For example, as shown in FIG. 13, the buffer hand 2 may be in a vertical position while rotating as shown in the figure along the upper rotation radius with respect to the hinge connection portion H. The rotation operation for changing the posture of the buffer hand 2 may be implemented in various forms as long as the continuous up / down operation is possible according to the working conditions.

Referring to Figure 14, the substrate transfer apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention may further comprise a gap adjusting means (10).

This means (10) is made to be able to adjust the interval between the two support frame (4) positioned with the transfer device (F) in between.

To this end, in the present embodiment, as shown in FIG. 14, the screw 12 for adjusting the spacing formed on both sides of the right screw portion T1 and the left screw portion T2 is connected to the two support frames 4 by screwing, The interval between the two support frames 4 is adjusted by the forward and reverse rotation of (12).

One end of the spacing adjusting screw 12 is connected to the shaft of the motor 14 generating the rotational force so as to transmit power and is rotated forward and reverse by receiving power from the motor 14.

In addition, the two support frames 4 may be installed on a conventional guide rail 16 such as an LM guide to facilitate movement at the bottom surface when the gap is adjusted.

 The gap adjusting means 10 having such a structure adjusts the space between the two support frames 4 to be narrowed or widened according to the size or shape of the substrate G when the substrate G is taken over or taken over. The mounting position of the buffer hand 2 provided in 4) can be easily changed in the horizontal direction.

In the above description, the distance between the two support frames 4 is adjusted by the space adjusting screw 12 having the right hand thread portion T1 and the left hand thread portion T2, but it is not limited thereto. .

For example, although not shown in the drawings, a piston rod of a cylinder is connected to each of the support frames 4 so that the spacing of the two support frames 4 can be narrowed or widened by the normal linear reciprocating motion of the piston rods. It may be.

As described above, the substrate transfer apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention,

The holding time that occurs immediately after the takeover / takeover operation of the substrate can be greatly reduced by continuously performing the up / down operation of the buffer hand for taking over the substrate to the substrate passline or vice versa. In addition, the transfer efficiency of the substrate can be increased to obtain further improved work efficiency and productivity.

Claims (7)

A substrate transfer means for transferring a plurality of transfer rollers spaced apart from each other and having the substrate mounted on the rollers horizontally or inclinedly; A buffer hand capable of mounting a substrate and for taking over the substrate from the transfer roller by up / down movement or for taking the substrate out of the transfer roller; Two support frames including driving means for moving the buffer hand up and down and spaced apart in a direction crossing the transfer section of the substrate to move the buffer hand in a state where the substrate can be taken over or taken over. ; A posture converting means for connecting the buffer hand and the support frame by a hinge coupling and generating a rotational force so that the posture is changed while the buffer hand is rotated about the hinge point; Substrate transfer device comprising a. The method according to claim 1, The posture converting means allows the buffer hand to be positioned in a parallel posture at the top or the bottom of the transfer roller during takeover / takeover of a substrate, And after the takeover / takeover of the substrate, the posture is changed so that the posture is positioned in a vertical posture which may escape the top or bottom of the transfer rollers. The method according to claim 1, And the posture converting means uses any one of a step motor, a geared motor, and a rotary cylinder as a driving source. The method according to claim 1, The up / down driving means is a substrate transfer device made to enable the up / down movement while the power generated from the screw or cylinder connected to the motor shaft is transmitted to the buffer hand side. The method according to claim 1, The posture converting means is a substrate transfer device, characterized in that for changing the posture while rotating the buffer hand along the upper or lower rotation radius relative to the hinge connection. The method according to claim 1, The substrate transfer apparatus further includes means for adjusting the two support frame intervals, This means is a substrate transfer device, characterized in that for generating and transmitting power so that the two support frame intervals can be narrowed or widened. The method according to claim 6, The means is a substrate transfer apparatus using any one of a screw or cylinder connected to the motor shaft as a drive source.

Images