KR100987865B1 - Robot arm for carrying cassette - Google Patents

Abstract

Robot arm of the present invention is configured to eliminate the problem caused by disconnection of the cable by configuring the sensor unit for the presence or absence of the cassette sensor (sensing) without the cable, the main body; A hand part fastened to the main body and driven; A plate installed at an end of the hand part; Reflection parts installed on both sides of the plate; And a sensing unit formed in the main body at a position facing each of the reflecting units.

Stalker, Cassette, Glass, Robot Arm

Description

Robot arm for cassette transfer {ROBOT ARM FOR CARRYING CASSETTE}

1 is a cross-sectional view schematically showing the structure of a typical stocker.

2 is a schematic representation of a conventional robot arm.

3 is an exemplary view schematically showing a robot arm according to an embodiment of the present invention.

4A and 4B are perspective views showing the reflecting unit of the cassette unit presence / absence confirmation sensor unit installed in the robot arm shown in FIG.

FIG. 5 is a side view showing in detail the reflector of the sensor unit shown in FIGS. 4A and 4B.

6A and 6B are exemplary views schematically illustrating a method of confirming whether cassettes are present or not on a robot arm by using a cassette unit having no cassettes or not, according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

** Description of symbols for the main parts of the drawing **

170: main body 171: first hand part

172: second hand portion 173: joint portion

175: Plate 180, 180A, 180B: Reflector

183: reflector plate 185A, 185B: sensing unit

The present invention relates to a robot arm, and more particularly, to a cassette transport robot arm for loading, unloading or transferring a cassette containing glass, which is a product of a liquid crystal display, to a stocker. It is about.

Recently, with increasing interest in information display and increasing demand for using a portable information carrier, a lightweight flat panel display (FPD), which replaces a conventional display device, a cathode ray tube (CRT), is used. The research and commercialization of Korea is focused on. In particular, the liquid crystal display (LCD) of the flat panel display device is an image representing the image using the optical anisotropy of the liquid crystal, is excellent in resolution, color display and image quality, and is actively applied to notebooks or desktop monitors have.

Hereinafter, the liquid crystal display device will be described in detail.

A general liquid crystal display device includes a liquid crystal display panel including a driving circuit unit, a backlight unit disposed under the liquid crystal display panel to emit light to the liquid crystal display panel, and the backlight unit and the liquid crystal display panel. It consists of a mold frame (case) and a case (supporting).

In particular, the liquid crystal display panel is largely composed of a color filter substrate and an array substrate and a liquid crystal layer formed between the color filter substrate and the array substrate.                         

In this case, the color filter substrate may include a black matrix that distinguishes between a color filter including a sub color filter (red, green, blue) that implements color and the sub color filter, and blocks light transmitted through the liquid crystal layer. And a transparent common electrode applying a voltage to the liquid crystal layer.

In addition, the array substrate is a thin film transistor (TFT) which is a switching element formed in a cross region of the gate line and the data line, the plurality of gate lines and data lines arranged vertically and horizontally on the substrate to define a plurality of pixel areas. ) And a pixel electrode formed on the pixel region.

The array substrate and the color filter substrate configured as described above are joined to face each other by sealants formed on the outer side of the image display area to form a liquid crystal display panel, and the bonding of the two substrates is formed on the array substrate or the color filter substrate. Is done through the key.

The manufacturing process of the liquid crystal display panel can be largely divided into an array process of forming a switching element on an array substrate, a color filter process of forming a color filter on a color filter substrate, and a cell process. The place to be maintained should be kept very clean, so that the substrates (eg, glass) for manufacturing the liquid crystal display panel are stored in a cassette for inter-process movement or temporary storage. It will be stored inside the stocker.

Hereinafter, the stocker storing the cassettes in this way will be described in detail.

1 is a cross-sectional view schematically showing the structure of a typical stocker.                         

As shown in the drawing, the stocker 10 has a box-shaped stocker body 15 having a passage 25 in a predetermined space in the front and rear directions of the stocker 10, and is provided at both sides of the passage 25. A plurality of shelves 16 are provided in which cassettes 30 containing substrates are stacked.

At this time, a device called a stacker (20) is located in the passage (25) to move the cassette (30) to the shelf (16) or to draw and transport the cassette (30) stored on the shelf (16) I can do it. In addition, the stacker 20 includes driving units 21 and 22 for traveling of the stacker 20 and transporting the cassette 30.

Although not shown in the drawing, the stacker 20 is provided with a robot arm for loading or unloading the cassette 30 and transferring it to each process step.

On the other hand, the upper ceiling (ceil) of the stocker main body 15 including the passage 25 (Fan filter unit (FFU) to purify the air and supply the inside of the stocker main body (FFU) ( 40) is installed, the rear of the shelf 16 is provided with an air inlet control shutter (shutter) 70 for adjusting the amount of air flowing in.

Reference numeral 50 in the drawing indicates an access floor of a clean room in which the stocker 10 is installed.

As described above, the glass stacking cassette of the liquid crystal display device is an essential mechanism for carrying out necessary processes while moving a plurality of glasses by a robot, and there are various kinds according to the characteristics and size of the manufacturer and the glass. It is generally manufactured in the form of a square box, and the glass of the upper and lower parts is configured to accommodate multiple stages.

On the other hand, the cassette is stored in the stocker and shipped from the stocker by the robot arm, when the robot arm loads and unloads the cassette, a sensor is installed to check whether there is a cassette on the arm, it will be described in detail with reference to the drawings Explain.

Figure 2 is a schematic view showing a conventional robot arm for cassette transfer.

As shown in the figure, the main body 70 of the robot arm is installed on the plate 60 of the stacker, and the first hand part 71 and the second hand part 72 are connected to the joint part 73. It is fastened to the said robot arm main body 70 by the fixing bolt (not shown).

At this time, the end of the first hand portion 71 is provided with a plate 75 on which the cassette is seated, and the plate 75 has a cassette on the arm when the robot arm loads and unloads the cassette. A pin 76 and a sensor (not shown) for confirming are installed.

When the cassette is placed on the plate 75, the pin 76 moves downward to detect a sensor installed under the plate 75. When the cassette is not on the plate 75, the pin 76 is disposed. Is moved to the original position to check the presence or absence of the cassette.

In this case, a cable 77 is used to supply power to the sensor, and the cable 77 wears due to wear for a long time when the hand parts 71 and 72 of the robot arm are extended and folded. Is occurring.                         

In this way, check whether the cassette is seated properly on the plate of the robot arm, or when the robot arm returns after an error, the interlock (other operations are not started until the end of the operation currently being processed by any machine or device). In order to prevent the use of the sensor, a sensor is required, but there is a problem that damage occurs that the cable is worn and broken by repeated driving of the robot arm.

The present invention is to solve the above problems, to provide a cassette transfer robot arm that can eliminate the problem caused by the disconnection of the cable by configuring the sensor unit for detecting the presence or absence of the cassette without the cable There is a purpose.

Further objects and features of the present invention will be described in the configuration and claims of the invention which will be described later.

In order to achieve the above object, the robot arm of the present invention is a main body, a hand part coupled to the main body to drive, a plate installed on the end of the hand portion, the reflecting portions provided on both sides of the plate and the respective reflections It includes a sensing unit formed in the main body of the position facing the corresponding.

In this case, the hand part may include a first hand part and a second hand part, and the reflecting part may include a body, a pin positioned on the upper part of the body, and a reflecting plate inclined at a predetermined angle according to the vertical movement of the pin. .

In this case, when the cassette is placed on the plate, the reflector's pin may protrude above the upper surface of the plate to move downward until the cassette is placed on the pin to be flush with the upper surface of the plate. The reflector's pin may further include an elastic device such as a spring to move upward from the pressed position to the original position when the cassette on the plate is removed.

The sensing unit may further include a light emitting device and a light receiving device to send light to the reflecting plate of the reflecting unit and receive light reflected by the reflecting plate.

In addition, the reflector may be connected to the pin to be inclined at a predetermined angle in conjunction with the pin of the reflector moving up and down depending on the cassette on the plate.

Hereinafter, with reference to the accompanying drawings will be described in detail a preferred embodiment of the robot arm according to the present invention.

3 is an exemplary view schematically showing a robot arm according to an embodiment of the present invention.

As shown in the figure, the main body 170 of the robot arm is installed on the plate 160 of the stacker, and the first hand part 171 and the second hand part 172 are joint parts 173 and fixing bolts. It is fastened to the said robot arm main body 170 by not shown.

In this case, the robot arm including two pairs of hand parts 171 and 172 of the first hand part 171 and the second hand part 172 is shown as an example, but the present invention is not limited thereto. An appropriate number of hand parts may be installed depending on the size of the cassette to be conveyed and the manner of conveying.

On the other hand, the end of the first hand portion 171 is provided with a plate 175 on which the cassette is seated, and on both sides of the plate 175 the cassette is placed on the arm when the robot arm loads and unloads the cassette. Reflecting portions 180A and 180B of the sensor unit for checking whether or not there are are provided.

The reflectors 180A and 180B are integrated with the sensing units 185A and 185B installed in the main body 170 of the robot arm to form a sensor unit. The cassette is placed on the plate 175 using light such as a laser. You will check the existence and absence of. In this case, a cable is not connected between the reflecting units 180A and 180B of the sensor unit and the sensing units 185A and 185B, and the sensing units 185A and 185B are installed on the main body 170 of the robot arm to be mounted on the robot. Since it is not affected by the driving of the hand parts 171 and 172 of the arm, the problem of abrasion and breakage of the cable as in the prior art does not occur.

Hereinafter, a structure of the above-described reflector and a method of confirming the presence or absence of a cassette using the reflector and the sensing unit will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

4A and 4B are perspective views showing the reflecting portion of the cassette presence / absence sensor installed in the robot arm shown in FIG. 3, and FIG. 4A shows the position of the reflecting plate of the reflecting portion when there is no cassette on the plate, and FIG. 4B shows the plate. The position of the reflecting plate of the reflecting portion when the cassette is placed thereon is shown.

In addition, FIG. 5 is a side view illustrating in detail a reflector of the sensor unit illustrated in FIGS. 4A and 4B.                     

As shown in the figure, the reflection unit 180 of the sensor unit is located on the body 181 and the upper portion of the body 181, the pin 182 and the pin to move up and down according to the presence or absence of the cassette and the pin The reflective plate 183 is inclined at an angle according to the vertical movement of the stroke 182.

In this case, when the cassette is placed on the pin 182, the pin 182 is moved downward, and the upper portion of the reflector plate 183 caught by the pin is moved downward to move the reflector plate 183 at a predetermined angle. Tilt to.

In addition, when the cassette placed on the pin 182 is removed, the pin 182 moved downward is moved upward by the elastic force of the spring 184 installed inside the body, so that the reflector plate 183 is originally Will come to the position of. That is, the reflector plate 183 is positioned perpendicular to the plate 175 of the robot arm to maintain a parallel state with the sensing unit.

As described above, the sensing units 185A and 185B are attached to the body 170 of the robot arm, and the reflecting plate 183 is attached to the hand plate 175 to check the presence or absence of the cassette using light. When the unit is configured, the cables for transmitting signals can be removed by connecting the reflectors 180A and 180B and the sensing units 185A and 185B. Of course, a cable (not shown) for supplying power to the sensing units 185A and 185B is required, but when configured according to the present invention, the power unit cable is not affected by the driving of the robot arm, and thus, wear and tear of the cable as in the related art. The problem of breakage can be prevented.

6A and 6B are exemplary views schematically illustrating a method of confirming whether cassettes are present or not on a robot arm by using a cassette unit having or without a sensor according to an embodiment of the present invention.

First, as shown in FIG. 6A, when the cassette is not seated on the plate, the light emitted from the sensing unit 185 is reflected by the reflecting plate 183 so that the sensing unit 185 receives the presence or absence of the cassette. You will know.

In this case, the sensing unit 185 may include a light emitting device (not shown) and a light receiving device (not shown) to send light to the reflecting plate 183 of the reflecting unit and receive light reflected by the reflecting plate 183 again. .

In addition, as shown in FIG. 6B, when the cassette is seated on the plate, the reflection plate 183 is inclined so that light is not received.

Many details are set forth in the foregoing description but should be construed as illustrative of preferred embodiments rather than to limit the scope of the invention. Therefore, the invention should not be defined by the described embodiments, but should be defined by the claims and their equivalents.

As described above, the robot arm according to the present invention does not require a cable for sensing, so that a problem due to disconnection of the cable does not occur, thereby reducing the maintenance cost of the robot arm and requiring no spare parts for repair. This reduces the initial investment and running costs.

Claims (7)

main body; A hand part fastened to the main body and driven; A plate installed at an end of the hand part; Reflection parts installed on both sides of the plate; And Robot arm comprising a sensing unit formed in the main body of the position facing the respective reflecting unit. The robotic arm of claim 1, wherein the hand part comprises a first hand part and a second hand part. The robotic arm of claim 1, wherein the reflector comprises a body, a pin positioned at an upper portion of the body, and a reflecting plate inclined at an angle according to vertical movement of the pin. 4. The pin of claim 3, wherein the pin of the reflector is moved above the upper surface of the plate so that when the cassette is placed on the plate, the pin is also placed on the plate and moved downward until the cassette is placed at the same height as the upper surface of the plate. Robot arm, characterized in that protruding. The method of claim 3, wherein the pin of the reflector further comprises an elastic device such as a spring to move to the upper position from the pressed position to the original position when the cassette on the plate is removed Robotic arm. The robotic arm of claim 3, wherein the sensing unit further comprises a light emitting element and a light receiving element to send light to the reflecting plate of the reflecting unit and receive light reflected by the reflecting plate. The robotic arm of claim 3, wherein the reflecting plate is connected to the pin so that the reflecting plate is inclined at a predetermined angle in association with a pin of the reflecting unit moving up and down depending on the presence or absence of a cassette on the plate.

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