KR101011777B1 - Nozzle module and Apparatus of vomiting liquid having the same - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention includes a liquid nozzle for dropping liquid on a substrate and an air nozzle provided outside the liquid nozzle to inject air, the liquid nozzle further protrudes in the direction of the substrate than the air nozzle, Provided is a nozzle module and a liquid discharge device having the same, wherein the nozzle module is formed to gradually decrease in diameter toward the end, or gradually decrease in diameter toward the end.

As such, the present invention prevents agglomeration of the liquid material around the nozzle, thereby minimizing downtime and input manpower of the equipment for wiping the liquid material formed around the nozzle, thereby improving productivity.

Liquid crystal, dropping, discharge, nozzle, injection

Description

Nozzle module and liquid ejecting apparatus having same {Nozzle module and Apparatus of vomiting liquid having the same}

The present invention relates to a nozzle module, and more particularly, to a nozzle module capable of quantitatively discharging a liquid substance and a liquid discharge device having the same.

Liquid crystal display is a display device that realizes an image by controlling the amount of light incident from a light source by using optical anisotropy of liquid crystal molecules and polarization characteristics of a polarizing plate, and can realize light weight, high resolution, and large screen. Due to its low power consumption, its application range is rapidly expanding.

The liquid crystal display includes an upper substrate on which a black matrix, a color filter, a common electrode, and the like are formed, a lower substrate on which a thin film transistor (TFT) and a pixel electrode are formed, and a liquid crystal layer interposed between the two substrates. The liquid crystal layer is driven by an electric field formed between the common electrode and the pixel electrode to control the light transmittance, thereby displaying an image.

On the other hand, as a method of interposing the liquid crystal between the upper substrate and the lower substrate, there is a vacuum injection method using a vacuum pressure and a liquid crystal dropping method using gravity. In the liquid crystal injection method using the vacuum pressure, a sealant is first formed on the edge of one of the two substrates to form a seal line, and then the seal lines are cured to bond the two substrates together. At this time, the two substrates are bonded to each other to maintain a predetermined space, that is, a cell gap. Subsequently, one side of the two bonded substrates is immersed in a container containing liquid crystal, and a vacuum is formed inside the sal gap through the other side, so that the liquid crystal is sucked into the relatively low pressure gap, and the liquid crystal is injected.

However, the vacuum injection method requires a process in which more liquid crystals are supplied to the inside of the cell gap than the desired liquid crystal amount, or the liquid crystals attached to the outer surfaces of the two substrates bonded together are separately washed. In order to solve this problem, a liquid crystal dropping method of dropping a liquid crystal onto one substrate and then bonding the two substrates has been proposed. In the above liquid crystal dropping method, first, a sealant is applied to the edge of one of two substrates to form a seal line, and then the liquid crystal is dropped in an area defined by the seal line. Subsequently, the remaining substrates on which liquid crystals are not dropped are arranged and aligned, and then the seal lines are cured to bond the two substrates together.

In the liquid crystal dropping method, dropping the quantitative liquid crystal onto the substrate through the nozzle is an important management element. However, the conventional liquid crystal dropping device has a problem in that the dropping amount of the liquid crystal is fluctuated due to a phenomenon in which a part of the liquid crystal discharged from the nozzle is bound together around the nozzle. That is, a portion of the liquid crystal discharged from the nozzle is not dropped due to dropping around the nozzle, so that the liquid crystal drops less than the fixed amount, or the liquid crystal formed around the nozzle is added dropwise to the next discharged liquid crystal so that the liquid crystal drops more than the fixed amount. Could be Therefore, in the related art, after discharging a predetermined number of liquid crystals, the operation was stopped and the liquid crystals formed around the nozzles had to be wiped out, resulting in a problem of low productivity.

It is proposed to solve the conventional problems of the present invention, and provides a nozzle module and a liquid discharge device having the same to prevent agglomeration of a liquid material around the nozzle.

In addition, the present invention is to prevent the liquid material is formed by agglomeration around the nozzle, to minimize the downtime and input manpower of equipment for wiping the liquid material formed around the nozzle and a nozzle module to improve productivity A liquid discharge device is provided.

A nozzle module according to an aspect of the present invention, a liquid nozzle for dropping a liquid on a substrate; And an air nozzle provided outside the liquid nozzle to inject air; It includes, wherein the liquid nozzle is more protruded in the direction of the substrate than the air nozzle, the liquid nozzle is formed so that the diameter gradually decreases toward the end, or the diameter gradually decreases toward the end and grows again.

Preferably, the air nozzle has a spray passage in which a single hole penetrating the top and bottom of the body is connected in one circumferential direction to surround the outside of the liquid nozzle.

Preferably, the air nozzle includes a spray passage in which a plurality of holes penetrating the top and bottom of the body are spaced apart from each other along the circumferential direction to surround the outside of the liquid nozzle.

According to the present invention, the substrate mounting portion is placed; A liquid nozzle for dropping liquid on the substrate; And an air nozzle provided outside the liquid nozzle to inject air; It includes, wherein the liquid nozzle is more protruded in the direction of the substrate than the air nozzle, the liquid nozzle is preferably formed so that the diameter gradually decreases toward the end, or the diameter gradually decreases toward the end and increases again.

Preferably, the air nozzle has a spray passage in which a single hole penetrating the top and bottom of the body is connected in one circumferential direction to surround the outside of the liquid nozzle.

It is preferable that the air nozzle has a spray passage in which a plurality of holes penetrating the top and bottom of the body are spaced apart from each other along the circumferential direction to surround the outside of the liquid nozzle.

The substrate seating part may include a plate on which the substrate is seated; And a stage for moving the plate. It is preferable to have a.

The present invention forms a nozzle to gradually decrease the diameter toward the end to prevent the liquid material discharged from the nozzle end to spread around the nozzle due to gravity, by dropping the liquid material on the side wall of the nozzle by using pneumatic pressure Therefore, it is possible to prevent the liquid from condensing around the nozzle.

In addition, the present invention forms a nozzle so that the diameter gradually decreases toward the end and then increases again to prevent the liquid material discharged from the nozzle end easily climbs up the side wall of the nozzle, the liquid material is raised up the side wall of the nozzle By dropping by using pneumatic pressure, it is possible to prevent the liquid from condensing around the nozzle.

In addition, the present invention is to prevent the liquid material is formed by agglomeration around the nozzle, it is possible to improve the productivity by minimizing the downtime and input manpower of equipment for wiping the liquid material formed around the nozzle.

Hereinafter, with reference to the accompanying drawings will be described an embodiment according to the present invention in more detail. It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that the present invention may be embodied in many different forms and should not be construed as limited to the embodiments set forth herein. Rather, these embodiments are provided so that this disclosure will be thorough and complete, It is provided to let you know. Like reference numerals in the drawings refer to like elements.

<First Embodiment>

1 is a perspective view showing a liquid crystal dropping device according to a first embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 1, the liquid crystal dropping apparatus includes a substrate seating part 100 on which a substrate (not shown) is placed, nozzle parts 210, 220, 230, 240; 200 for dropping liquid crystal onto the substrate, and the substrate seating part ( 100) and a frame 300 for supporting the nozzle unit 200 so that the nozzle unit 200 is positioned on the top. Here, the substrate mounting portion 100 and the frame 300 may be manufactured in one piece or separate type. In addition, in order to identify the upper and lower sides, the left and right sides, and the front and rear sides, it is preferable that any one corner of the substrate has a cutout in a diagonal direction or a separate identification mark is formed so as to be distinguished from other corners formed at right angles.

The substrate seating part 100 serves to move the substrate to a desired position while supporting the lower surface of the substrate so that the liquid crystal can be dropped at a desired position on the upper surface of the substrate. To this end, the plate (110) on which the substrate is seated, the stage (120) for moving the plate 110, the alignment column 130 and the alignment sensor 140 for position alignment of the substrate It is provided.

The stage 120 is installed to be positioned below the liquid crystal nozzles 220, and includes a moving unit 150 to move forward, backward, left, and right. In the stage 120 of the present embodiment, a lower stage 122 that is movable in the Y-axis direction is installed on the fixed bottom stage 121, and an upper stage that is movable in the X-axis direction on the upper stage 122. The stage 123 is installed. In addition, the moving unit 150 of the present embodiment is installed to penetrate the body of the Y-axis rail 151 and the upper stage 123 installed to penetrate the body of the lower stage 122 in the Y-axis direction. It is configured to include an X-axis rail 152. The stage 120 is moved back and forth and left and right along the X-axis rail 152 and the Y-axis rail 151 to move the substrate to a desired position.

The plate 110 is installed to be fixed above the stage 120 and moves together with the stage 120. The plate 110 is preferably formed to correspond to the shape of the substrate. For example, the plate 110 of the present embodiment is manufactured to have a square plane corresponding to a glass substrate having a rectangular shape so as to be suitable for a liquid crystal display panel. In addition, the plate 110 is preferably formed with a cutout portion 111 having a predetermined length penetrating up and down and extending from one side end to the other side end. At this time, the shape, length and number of the cutouts 111 are conveying means for transferring the substrate to the plate 110, for example, a robot arm (not shown) through the cutouts 111. It is preferable that it is formed so that it can go in and out. In addition, although not shown, a groove portion providing a step on the upper surface of the plate 110 to minimize friction between the substrate and the plate 110 generated when the substrate is finely moved through the alignment means 130 and 140 of the substrate. Can be prepared.

Four pairs of alignment pillars 130 protruding to a predetermined height from the top surface of the plate 110 are provided at the corners of the four points formed by the plate 110. At this time, one pair 131 of the four pairs of alignment pillars 131 and 132 is installed to be fixed at a predetermined position to serve as a fixed pillar 131 to align the reference point of the substrate, and the remaining three pairs 132 are in a horizontal direction. It is preferable to serve as a moving pillar 132 that is installed to be movable to push the side of the substrate so that one side edge of the substrate is located at the alignment reference point. Therefore, the position of the fixed pillar 131 is set in advance according to the size of the substrate to be seated to determine a point where one side edge of the substrate is to be positioned, that is, an alignment reference point, and then sidewalls forming one side edge of the substrate are in contact with the fixed pillar 131. The moving pillars 132 may be moved finely to allow the substrate to be seated at a desired position. Thus, even if the size of the substrate is changed there is an advantage that can be used without changing the structure of the plate (110).

In addition, two of the four edges formed by the plate 110 opposite to each other in the diagonal direction are two substrate sensors for recognizing whether the substrate is in contact with each other in order to identify the top, bottom, left, and front sides of the substrate. First and second substrate sensors') 141 and 142 may be installed. For example, if the substrate should not be in contact with the first substrate sensor 141, that is, if the substrate is in contact with the second substrate sensor 142 or if the substrate is in contact with the first and second substrate sensors 141, 142, respectively. When the substrate is in contact with the substrate, it can be known that the mounting of the substrate is incorrect. Therefore, it is possible to prevent the liquid crystal injection process from continuing while the substrate is incorrectly mounted. If an identification mark is formed on the substrate 10, it may be preferable to use a sensor that recognizes the identification mark.

The frame 300 supports the liquid crystal nozzle 220 such that at least one liquid crystal nozzle 220 is positioned on the substrate seated on the plate 110. To this end, the lower end is fixed to the bottom stage 121, the upper end is provided on the four frames 300 for supporting the nozzle unit 200. Of course, the frame 300 may be changed to any structure as long as it can stably support the nozzle unit 200 in the upper region of the substrate seating unit 100.

The nozzle unit 200 includes at least one liquid crystal nozzle 220 for discharging a liquid crystal, a moving unit 210 for moving the liquid nozzle 220, and a monitoring unit 230 for monitoring a discharge state of the liquid crystal. do. In this case, for the efficiency of the liquid crystal injection process, a plurality of liquid crystal nozzles 220 are installed in one moving means 210, but only a single nozzle may be installed.

The liquid crystal nozzles 220 are each supplied with a liquid crystal from an external liquid crystal supply device (not shown), and move, stop, and discharge to move to a desired position and discharge the liquid crystal at a desired position. The detailed structure of such a liquid crystal nozzle 220 is mentioned later.

The moving means 210 moves the left and right moving means 211 and the liquid crystal nozzles 220 to move the liquid crystal nozzles 220 back and forth, respectively. It consists of a vertical moving means 213 for moving to, and operates according to a pre-entered program. Since one nozzle unit 200 is provided with one moving unit 210 and a plurality of liquid crystal nozzles 220 installed in the moving unit, each liquid crystal nozzle 220 has the same trajectory by the moving unit 210. And move.

The monitoring means 230 may be configured as a CCD sensor. The CCD sensors 230 are installed in the nozzles 220, respectively, and monitor the positions of the nozzles 220 and whether the liquid crystals are discharged, and transmit them to a controller (not shown) separately provided.

 2 is a perspective view of the liquid crystal nozzle and the air nozzle vertically cut in the liquid crystal dropping apparatus of FIG. 1, and FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view of the liquid nozzle and the air nozzle horizontally cut in the liquid crystal dropping apparatus of FIG. 1. to be. 4 is a perspective view showing the liquid crystal nozzle and the air nozzle vertically cut in the modification of the liquid crystal dropping apparatus according to FIG. 1, and FIG. 5 is a liquid nozzle and air nozzle in a modification of the liquid crystal dropping apparatus according to FIG. 1. Is a cross-sectional view cut horizontally. 6 is a schematic diagram for explaining the operation of the liquid crystal nozzle and the air nozzle shown in FIG.

1 to 3, the nozzle unit 200 is installed outside the liquid crystal nozzle 220 to prevent liquid crystals from condensing around the liquid crystal nozzle 220. A nozzle 240 and an air supply unit (not shown) for supplying air to the air nozzle 240 is further provided. In this case, the liquid crystal nozzle 220 may be formed to protrude further in the substrate direction, that is, the lower direction, than the air nozzle 240 so that air flows along the end sidewall of the liquid crystal nozzle 220. Therefore, the air injected from the air nozzle 240 may travel along the sidewall of the liquid crystal nozzle 220 to blow down the liquid crystal formed around the liquid crystal nozzle 220, for example, on the lower sidewall. On the other hand, the injection flow path of the air nozzle 240, as shown in Figs. 2 and 3, a single hole 241 penetrating the upper and lower sides of the body is continued in one along the circumferential direction continuously to the outside of the liquid crystal nozzle 220 4 or 5, the plurality of holes 242 penetrating the top and bottom of the body are spaced apart from each other along the circumferential direction to partially surround the outside of the liquid crystal nozzle 220. Can be.

In particular, the liquid crystal nozzle 220 gradually decreases in diameter (or cross-sectional area) toward the end, thereby forming a conical tip. As a result, the sidewall of the liquid crystal nozzle 220 has a structure inclined downward toward the center of the end, that is, a reverse inclination structure, whereby the discharged liquid crystals L are gathered in one place by gravity and discharged. It spreads around the liquid crystal nozzle 220. Nevertheless, a portion of the liquid crystal L that is raised on the sidewall of the liquid crystal nozzle 220 is dropped by using pneumatic pressure, as shown in FIG. 6, whereby the liquid crystal L is bound together around the liquid nozzle 220. Can be prevented.

As such, the liquid crystal dropping apparatus according to the present embodiment can prevent the liquid crystals from condensing around the liquid crystal nozzles, thereby improving productivity by minimizing downtime and input manpower of equipment for wiping the liquid crystals formed around the nozzles. You can. In addition, since the drop amount of the liquid crystal does not change due to the liquid crystal formed around the liquid crystal nozzle, it is possible to always drop the quantitative liquid crystal onto the substrate.

&Lt; Embodiment 2 >

7 is a perspective view of the liquid nozzle and the air nozzle cut vertically in the liquid crystal dropping device according to the second embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 8 is a view for explaining the operations of the liquid nozzle and the air nozzle according to FIG. 7. It is a schematic diagram.

Referring to FIG. 7, the nozzle unit 500 is provided with an air nozzle 540 for injecting air to the outside of the liquid crystal nozzle 520 for discharging liquid crystal. In this case, it is preferable that the liquid crystal nozzle 520 is formed to protrude further in the substrate direction, that is, the lower direction, than the air nozzle 540 so that air flows along the end sidewall of the liquid crystal nozzle 520. Therefore, the air injected from the air nozzle 540 may travel along the sidewall of the liquid crystal nozzle 520 and blow down the liquid crystal formed around the liquid crystal nozzle 520, for example, the lower sidewall.

In particular, it is preferable that the liquid crystal nozzle 520 is formed in an hourglass shape in which the diameter (or cross-sectional area) gradually decreases toward the end, and then increases, and the center thereof becomes narrow. As a result, the liquid crystal discharged from the end of the liquid crystal nozzle 520 is prevented from easily rising on the side wall of the liquid crystal nozzle 520. Nevertheless, a portion of the liquid crystal L that is raised on the side wall of the liquid crystal nozzle 520 is dropped by using pneumatic pressure, as shown in FIG. 8, whereby the liquid crystal L is bound together around the liquid crystal nozzle 520. Can be prevented.

In addition, the end sidewall of the liquid crystal nozzle 520 has a structure inclined downward toward the outside. For this reason, as shown in FIG. 8, the air injected from the air nozzle 540 travels in the outward direction of the liquid crystal nozzle 520 while hitting a downwardly inclined surface formed on the end sidewall of the liquid nozzle 520. The normal liquid crystal L discharged from the end is hardly affected by the pneumatic pressure. Therefore, even during the dropping process of the liquid crystal L, it is possible to prevent liquid crystals from condensing around the liquid crystal nozzle 520 by using pneumatic pressure from time to time, so that the liquid crystal L having a fixed quantity can always be accurately dropped at a desired point. .

Meanwhile, in the above-described first and second embodiments, the liquid crystal nozzles for discharging the liquid crystals for dropping the liquid crystals on the substrate have been described by way of example. However, the present invention is not limited thereto. Of course, it can also be used as a nozzle for discharging or spraying.

As mentioned above, although this invention was demonstrated with reference to the above-mentioned Example and an accompanying drawing, this invention is not limited to this, It is limited by the following claims. Therefore, one of ordinary skill in the art will appreciate that the present invention can be variously modified and modified without departing from the technical spirit of the following claims.

1 is a perspective view showing a liquid crystal dropping device according to a first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a liquid crystal nozzle and an air nozzle cut vertically in the liquid crystal dropping device of FIG. 1; FIG.

3 is a cross-sectional view of the liquid crystal nozzle and the air nozzle in a liquid crystal dropping apparatus according to FIG.

4 is a perspective view of a liquid crystal nozzle and an air nozzle cut vertically in a modification of the liquid crystal dropping apparatus according to FIG. 1.

FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view of a liquid crystal nozzle and an air nozzle cut out horizontally in a modification of the liquid crystal dropping apparatus according to FIG. 1. FIG.

6 is a schematic view for explaining the operation of the liquid crystal nozzle and the air nozzle according to FIG.

7 is a perspective view of the liquid crystal nozzle and the air nozzle cut vertically in the liquid crystal dropping apparatus according to the second embodiment of the present invention.

8 is a schematic view for explaining the operation of the liquid crystal nozzle and the air nozzle according to FIG.

<Description of the symbols for the main parts of the drawings>

100: substrate mounting portion 110: plate

120: stage 200: nozzle unit

220: liquid crystal nozzle 230: CCD sensor

240: air nozzle 300: frame

Claims (7)

A liquid nozzle for dropping liquid on the substrate; And An air nozzle provided outside the liquid nozzle to inject air; Including, The liquid nozzle protrudes more toward the substrate than the air nozzle, The nozzle nozzle is formed so that the diameter gradually decreases toward the end and then grows again. The method according to claim 1, The air nozzle, A nozzle module having a spray passage for enclosing the outside of the liquid nozzle, a single hole penetrating the top and bottom of the body in one along the circumferential direction. The method according to claim 1, The air nozzle, And a plurality of holes penetrating the upper and lower parts of the body and spaced apart from each other in the circumferential direction to have an injection passage surrounding the outside of the liquid nozzle. A substrate mounting portion on which the substrate is placed; A liquid nozzle for dropping liquid on the substrate; And An air nozzle provided outside the liquid nozzle to inject air; Including, The liquid nozzle protrudes more toward the substrate than the air nozzle, The liquid nozzle is formed so that the diameter gradually decreases toward the end of the liquid nozzle is formed to increase again. The method according to claim 4, The air nozzle, A liquid ejection apparatus comprising a spray passage in which a single hole penetrating the upper and lower portions of the body is connected in a circumferential direction to surround the outside of the liquid nozzle. The method according to claim 4, The air nozzle, And a plurality of holes penetrating the upper and lower parts of the body and spaced apart from each other along the circumferential direction to surround the outside of the liquid nozzle. The method according to claim 4, The substrate mounting portion, A plate on which the substrate is seated; And A stage for moving the plate; Liquid discharge apparatus having a.

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