KR101056345B1 - Nanofiber inspection and repair device and method - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention provides a nanofiber inspection and repair apparatus including a defect detection unit for detecting a defect of a nanofiber membrane in which nanofibers are laminated, and a repair unit for repairing a defect detected by the defect detection unit by electrospinning. The present invention also provides a nanofiber inspection and repair method comprising a defect detection step of detecting a defect occurring in the nanofiber membrane, and a repair step of repairing the defect detected in the defect detection step by electrospinning. do.

Nanofiber, Electrospinning

Description

Nanofiber inspection and repair device and method thereof {APPARATUS AND METHOD OF CHECKING DEFECT OF NANOFIBER AND REPAIRING THE DEFECT}

The present invention relates to a nanofiber inspection and repair apparatus and method thereof, and more particularly, to detect defects of a nanofiber membrane made by laminating nanofibers and to repair the defects in real time and automatically. The present invention relates to a nanofiber inspection and repair apparatus and a method thereof.

In general, the spinning method of nanofibers includes various processes such as melt spinning, dry spinning, wet spinning, wet spinning, and electrospinning. Among these, the electrospinning process has recently attracted attention as an optimal process for filters and separators because it can produce ultrafine fibers having a high specific surface area using various polymer solutions.

Hereinafter, the above-described electrospinning process will be briefly described.

In the electrospinning process, the web of nanofibers is exposed to high voltage while being dropped onto the focusing belt by high pressure, and then the solvent is evaporated and fiberized. Typically, the web is formed by the contact of finely divided fibers, resulting in the formation of thick webs stacked in parallel in several layers over time.

However, the nanofiber membrane completed by the electrospinning process has a problem that a plurality of perforated defects (falling defects) caused by the fall of the solvent does not completely evaporate. 1 is a view showing an example of a defect of a conventional nanofiber membrane.

These defects adversely affect the permeation and filtration performance of the nanofiber web, and the necessity of inspecting and analyzing the defects of the finished nanofiber membranes and repairing them automatically has emerged.

At present, there are no attempts to repair the defects of such nanofiber membranes. In addition, when using a general nozzle, the nanofibers radiated from the nozzle of the electrospinning apparatus spread out immediately. Repairing the defect site was fundamentally impossible.

This is because the existing electrospinning apparatus is used to make the spinning liquid radiated from the nozzles spread well and evenly distributed in the nanofiber membrane, not the electrospinning apparatus for repairing a specific defect site. As a result, in the repair using the existing electrospinning apparatus, the defective portion was not repaired, and the portions other than the defective portion were more often radiated.

The present invention, which was devised to solve the above problems, not only detects defects of the nanofiber membrane, but also easily detects defects of the nanofiber membrane by spinning the nanofibers with the electrospinning apparatus on the defect site in real time and automatically. It is an object of the present invention to provide an apparatus and method for detecting and repairing the same.

In order to achieve the above object, according to an embodiment of the present invention, the nanofiber inspection including a defect detection unit for detecting a defect of the nanofiber membrane, and a repair unit for repairing the defect detected by the defect detection unit through electrospinning and Provide a maintenance device.

In addition, the defect detection unit, the illumination unit for illuminating by focusing on a specific line of the upper surface or the lower surface of the nanofiber membrane on the upper or lower portion of the nanofiber membrane, and the illumination unit with respect to the line where the illumination unit illuminates Alternatively, the image input unit photographed from the opposite side may include a defect calculation unit that processes the photographing result of the image input unit and finds the location of the defect, the size of the defect, and the stack thickness.

The defect detection unit includes a first roll wound around the nanofiber membrane, a first guide roller taken out from the first roll and guided toward the image input unit and the illumination unit, and a rear end of the image input unit and the illumination unit. In the above, the second guide roller for guiding the nanofiber membrane, and may further include a second roll for winding the nanofiber membrane guided by the second guide roller.

In addition, the maintenance unit, a nozzle for spinning the spinning liquid by electrospinning, a collector in which the solution radiated from the nozzle is integrated into the nanofiber membrane in the form of fiber yarn, and a predetermined potential difference is provided to the nozzle and the collector In order to include a voltage applying unit for applying a voltage to the main electrode of the nozzle, it is preferable that the repair unit repairs the defect using the result value of the defect calculation unit.

The nozzle may further include an auxiliary electrode which is open in the longitudinal direction of the nozzle and is spaced apart from the nozzle to surround the outer circumference of the nozzle in the longitudinal direction.

The auxiliary electrode is formed to be spaced apart from the nozzle to surround the outer circumference of the nozzle in the longitudinal direction, and closer to the nozzle toward the discharge side end of the nozzle. The auxiliary electrode is spaced apart from the nozzle. It is formed to surround the outer periphery in the longitudinal direction, the distance to the nozzle in the longitudinal direction of the nozzle is a constant shape, and is spaced apart from the nozzle is formed to surround the outer periphery in the longitudinal direction of the nozzle, The auxiliary electrode has a shape which protrudes more than the discharge side end of the nozzle, or has a length in the longitudinal direction with the discharge side end of the nozzle; The same shape or the discharge end of the nozzle protrudes more than its auxiliary electrode It is preferable to have any one shape which is an on shape.

On the other hand, according to another embodiment of the present invention, a nanofiber inspection comprising a defect detection step of detecting a defect of the nanofiber membrane and a repair step of repairing the defect detected in the defect detection step by electrospinning And a repair method.

In addition, the defect detection step, the illumination step in the upper or lower portion of the nanofiber membrane to illuminate by focusing on a specific line of the upper or lower surface of the nanofiber membrane and illuminating the illumination, using the image input unit, in the illumination unit And an image input unit photographing step of photographing the lighting line on the opposite side or the opposite side of the illumination line, and a defect calculation step of processing the photographing result of the image input unit to find the location of the defect, the size of the defect, and the stacking thickness. have.

In addition, the defect detection step, the step of taking out the nanofiber membrane from the first roll wound the nanofiber membrane; A first guide step of guiding the extracted nanofiber membrane with a first guide roller toward the image input unit and the illumination unit; A second guide step of guiding the nanofiber membrane at a rear end of the image input unit and the lighting unit by using a second guide roller; The method may further include winding the nanofiber membrane guided by the second guide roller.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, an electrospinning apparatus for not only optically detecting the position and size of defects such as thickness variation or holes and lamination thickness with respect to nanofibre membranes, but also real time and automatically It is possible to provide an apparatus and a method for easily detecting and repairing defects in nanofiber membranes by spinning with a.

In particular, the nozzle of the water retaining part is open in the longitudinal direction of the nozzle (the discharge side end, that is, the needle side), and in some cases, both the upper and the lower sides of the nozzle in the longitudinal direction are opened, and the nozzle is spaced apart from the nozzle. Further comprising an auxiliary electrode formed to surround the outer periphery in the longitudinal direction, so that the spinning liquid emitted from the nozzle can be concentrated in one place, that is, the defect location, thereby maximizing the effect of repairing the defect of the nanofiber membrane .

The defect detection unit may further include a first roll wound around the nanofiber membrane, a first guide roller taken out from the first roll and guided toward the image input unit and the illumination unit, and at a rear end of the image input unit and the illumination unit, And further comprising a second guide roller for guiding the nanofiber membrane and a second roll for winding the nanofiber membrane guided by the second guide roller to automatically perform defect detection while transferring the nanofiber membrane. It is possible.

Hereinafter, exemplary embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. Prior to this, terms or words used in the present specification and claims should not be construed as being limited to the common or dictionary meanings, and the inventors should properly explain the concept of terms in order to best explain their own invention. Based on the principle that it can be defined, it should be interpreted as meaning and concept corresponding to the technical idea of the present invention.

Therefore, the embodiments described in the specification and the drawings shown in the drawings are only the most preferred embodiment of the present invention and do not represent all of the technical idea of the present invention, various modifications that can be replaced at the time of the present application It should be understood that there may be equivalents and variations.

2 is a view schematically showing a nanofiber inspection and repair apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. 3 is a diagram showing the case of using the auxiliary electrode and the case of not using the auxiliary electrode in the nanofiber inspection and repair apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. 4 is a view showing various examples of the auxiliary electrode used in the nanofiber inspection and repair apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.

The nanofiber inspection and repair apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention includes a defect detection unit for detecting a defect of the nanofiber membrane and a repair unit for repairing the defect detected by the defect detection unit through electrospinning.

Here, the nanofiber membrane is a concept encompassing the lamination of nanofibers to form a buoy fabric or a filter. Defects in nanofiber membranes are the electrospinning process, when the nanofibers are spun, when the solvent of the nanofibers that are spun does not evaporate completely, and the perforated defects or nanofibers are deposited on the nanofiber membranes. The thickness error that occurs.

Referring to FIG. 2, the defect detector includes an illumination unit 20, an image input unit 10, and a defect calculator 30.

Here, the lighting unit 20 is located above or below the nanofiber membrane, and in FIG. The lighting unit 20 illuminates the illumination light 110 by focusing on a specific line on the upper or lower surface of the nanofiber membrane.

In addition, the image input unit 10 is a component for photographing at any one of the illumination unit 20 side or the opposite side of the illumination unit 20 with respect to the specific line that the illumination unit 20 shines the illumination light. As an example of the video input unit 10, a line CCD camera or the like can be mentioned.

In addition, the defect calculation unit 30 is configured to process the photographing result of the image input unit 10 to find the location of the defect, the size of the defect, and the stacking thickness (thickness difference on the entire surface when the nanofibers are electrospun). Element. In FIG. 2, only the x and y coordinates are identified to determine their positions. That is, since the z-coordinate is a known value since it is a system for detecting defects while transferring only the z-coordinate of the same plane as the collector 100. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the embodiment can be changed by identifying the x, y, z coordinates and confirming the position thereof.

Also, referring to FIG. 2, the defect detection unit further includes a first roll, a first guide roller, a second guide roller, and a second roll, so as to quickly detect defects of the nanofiber membrane using a transfer system. It is also possible to detect the location and the size of the defect.

The 1st roll 40 is a roll which wound the nanofiber membrane. The first guide roller 50 is located at the rear end of the first roll 40, and is located in front of the second guide roller. The first guide roller 50 is a guide roller which takes out the nanofiber membrane from the first roll 40 and guides the image input unit 10 and the illumination unit 20 to the side.

In addition, the second guide roller 60 is a guide roller for guiding the nanofiber membrane to the second roll 70 to be described later, at the rear ends of the image input unit 10 and the illumination unit 20. The second roll 70 is a roll to rewind the nanofiber membrane on which defect detection is completed.

On the other hand, the repair unit includes a nozzle 80, a collector 100, and a voltage applying unit (not shown). The nozzle 80 emits spinning liquid from a spinning liquid tank (not shown) containing spinning liquid. More specifically, the nozzle 80 emits the spinning liquid for repairing the defect in real time using the result value of the defect calculator 30.

At this time, in order to provide a predetermined potential difference between the nozzle 80 and the collector 100 in which the spinning liquid radiated from the nozzle 80 is integrated on the surface in the form of fiber yarn, the main electrode of the nozzle 80 is connected to a voltage. Is applied from a voltage applying unit (not shown).

As shown in FIG. 2, the defect detection unit and the maintenance unit may be installed in one transport system and immediately repaired while detecting a defect. Of course, the defect detection unit and the maintenance unit can be installed in different positions.

Here, in the case of using the existing conventional electrospinning apparatus, the phenomenon of spreading within a short distance from the nozzle to cover the entire nanofiber membrane occurs. However, since the present invention intends to integrate the nanofibers in the form of fiber yarn only in the defect, such a conventional electrospinning device cannot be used.

Thus, various experiments have been developed to spin nanofibers only on the defect site.

Looking at this in more detail, apart from the main electrode of the nozzle 80, the upper side (the discharge end, that is, the needle side) in the longitudinal direction of the nozzle 80 (or upper and lower) is open, the nozzle Further comprising an auxiliary electrode spaced apart from the 80 to surround the outer periphery of the longitudinal direction of the nozzle 80, the phenomenon that the spinning liquid is radiated from the nozzle for a long time. Using this phenomenon, the system was developed to accurately repair the defect site.

3 is a diagram showing the case of using the auxiliary electrode and the case of not using the auxiliary electrode in the nanofiber inspection and repair apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. As can be seen in FIG. 3, the nozzle without the auxiliary electrode spreads out as soon as it exits the nozzle, but the nozzle with the auxiliary electrode is discharged in a long stem after exiting from the nozzle.

In this case, the voltage applying unit preferably applies the same voltage as the main electrode to the auxiliary electrode. Of course, it is also possible to apply different voltages, but it was confirmed that applying the same voltage was simple in construction and resulted in satisfactory results.

4 is a view showing various examples of the auxiliary electrode used in the nanofiber inspection and repair apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. As described above, in the type 1 of FIG. 4, the discharge side end side, that is, the needle side, of the upper nozzle 80 in the longitudinal direction of the nozzle is opened and the lower side is opened, and the nozzle is spaced apart from the nozzle 80 ( It is formed to surround the outer periphery of the longitudinal direction of the 80, and toward the discharge side end of the nozzle 80, the auxiliary electrode is closer to the nozzle. The type 2 has an open top and bottom in the longitudinal direction of the nozzle, is formed to surround the outer periphery of the longitudinal direction of the nozzle 80 spaced apart from the nozzle 80, and the nozzle 80 in the longitudinal direction of the nozzle The distance is a constant shape. In the type 3, the top and bottom of the nozzle in the longitudinal direction are open, and are spaced apart from the nozzle 80 so as to enclose the outer periphery of the nozzle 80 in the longitudinal direction, and the auxiliary electrode moves toward the discharge side end of the nozzle. It is a shape away from the side. In Type 4, the upper and lower portions of the nozzle in the longitudinal direction are open and are formed to be spaced apart from the nozzle 80 so as to surround the outer circumference of the nozzle 80 in the longitudinal direction. In this type 5, the discharge-side end of the nozzle 80, on the contrary, is larger than the auxiliary electrode.

Next, a description will be given of the nanofiber inspection and repair method according to another embodiment of the present invention.

And a defect detecting step (S100) of detecting a defect of the nanofiber membrane, and a repairing step (S200) of repairing the defect detected in the defect detecting step by electrospinning.

In addition, the defect detection step S100 may include an illumination step in which the illumination unit 20 illuminates the illumination light 110 by focusing on a specific line on the top or bottom surface of the nanofiber membrane at the top or the bottom of the nanofiber membrane. .

In addition, using the image input unit 10, the image input unit photographing step for taking a picture from the lighting unit 20 side or the opposite side of the lighting unit 20 with respect to the line of the illumination light from the lighting unit 20.

The method may further include a defect calculation step of processing the photographing result of the image input unit 10 to find a defective position or the size of the defect.

In addition, the defect detection step (S100), the step of taking out the nanofiber membrane from the first roll wound the nanofiber membrane; A first guide step of guiding the extracted nanofiber membrane with the first guide roller toward the image input unit 10 and the illumination unit 20; A second guide step of guiding the nanofiber membrane at a rear end of the image input unit 10 and the lighting unit 20 by using a second guide roller; And winding the nanofiber membrane guided by the second guide roller, and may be automated using a transfer system.

The descriptions already described in the foregoing nanofiber defect detection and repair apparatus will be omitted here.

On the other hand, the above-described nanofiber membrane may be manufactured by various processes such as melt spinning, dry spinning, wet spinning, wet and wet spinning, in the manufacturing process, if a defect occurs in the nanofiber membrane, the present invention again Through the proposed apparatus or method, the size and location of the defect can be detected and the defect can be repaired.

As described above, although the present invention has been described by way of limited embodiments and drawings, the present invention is not limited thereto and is intended by those skilled in the art to which the present invention pertains. Of course, various modifications, changes and variations are possible within the scope of the claims to be described.

1 is a view showing an example of a defect of a conventional nanofiber membrane.

2 is a view schematically showing a nanofiber inspection and repair apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.

3 is a diagram showing the case of using the auxiliary electrode and the case of not using the auxiliary electrode in the nanofiber inspection and repair apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.

4 is a view showing various examples of the auxiliary electrode used in the nanofiber inspection and repair apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.

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

10 Video input section

20 lighting

30 defect calculation

40 first roll

50 1st guide roller

60 2nd guide roller

70 second roll

80 Nozzle of Electrospinning Device

90 Nanofibers Spun from Nozzle of Electrospinning Device

100 collector

Illumination light focused on a specific line from 110 lighting units

Claims (12)

A defect detector for detecting defects in the nanofiber membrane, Nanofiber inspection and repair apparatus comprising a repair unit for repairing the defect detected by the defect detection through the electrospinning. The method of claim 1, The defect detection unit, An illumination unit that illuminates the light by focusing on a specific line of the upper or lower surface of the nanofiber membrane on the upper or lower portion of the nanofiber membrane; An image input unit photographing the lighting unit on the opposite side or the opposite side with respect to the corresponding line illuminated by the lighting unit; And a defect calculating unit processing the photographing result of the image input unit to find a defective position, a size of the defect, and a stack thickness. The method of claim 2, The defect detection unit, A first roll wound around the nanofiber membrane, A first guide roller taken out from the first roll and guided toward the image input unit and the lighting unit; A second guide roller for guiding the nanofiber membrane at the rear end of the image input unit and the illumination unit; And a second roll winding the nanofiber membrane guided by the second guide roller. The method of claim 2, The repair part, A nozzle for spinning the spinning liquid by electrospinning, A collector in which the solution radiated from the nozzle is integrated in the nanofiber membrane in the form of fiber yarn; A voltage applying unit for applying a voltage to the main electrode of the nozzle to provide a predetermined potential difference between the nozzle and the collector; The nanofiber inspection and repair apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the repair unit repairs the corresponding defect using the result value of the defect calculator. The method of claim 4, wherein The nozzle, The nanofiber inspection and repair apparatus further comprises an auxiliary electrode which is open in the longitudinal direction of the nozzle and is spaced apart from the nozzle so as to surround an outer circumference of the nozzle in the longitudinal direction. The method of claim 5, The auxiliary electrode, Is formed so as to be spaced apart from the nozzle to surround the outer periphery in the longitudinal direction of the nozzle, the closer to the nozzle toward the discharge side end of the nozzle, Spaced apart from the nozzle to surround an outer periphery in the longitudinal direction of the nozzle, and having a constant distance from the nozzle in the longitudinal direction of the nozzle, and Is formed so as to be spaced apart from the nozzle to surround the outer periphery in the longitudinal direction of the nozzle, the shape toward the discharge side end of the nozzle away from the nozzle side, The auxiliary electrode, Has a shape which protrudes more than the discharge-side end of the nozzle, has the same length in the longitudinal direction as the discharge-side end of the nozzle, or the shape of the discharge-side end of the nozzle protrudes more than its auxiliary electrode. Nanofiber inspection and repair device, characterized in that. A defect detection step of detecting defects in the nanofiber membrane, Nanofiber inspection and repair method comprising a repair step of repairing the defect detected in the defect detection step through the electrospinning. The method of claim 7, wherein The defect detection step, An illumination step of illuminating the lighting unit by focusing on a specific line on the upper or lower surface of the nanofiber membrane at the top or the bottom of the nanofiber membrane; An image input unit photographing step of photographing from the lighting unit side or the opposite side with respect to the corresponding line illuminated by the lighting unit using the image input unit; And a defect calculation step of processing a photographing result of the image input unit to find a defective position, a size of the defect, and a stack thickness. The method of claim 8, The defect detection step, Extracting the nanofiber membrane from the first roll wound around the nanofiber membrane; A first guide step of guiding the extracted nanofiber membrane with a first guide roller toward the image input unit and the illumination unit; A second guide step of guiding the nanofiber membrane at a rear end of the image input unit and the lighting unit by using a second guide roller; The method of claim 1, further comprising winding up the nanofiber membrane guided by the second guide roller. The method of claim 8, The repair part, A nozzle for spinning the spinning liquid by electrospinning, A collector in which the solution radiated from the nozzle is integrated in the nanofiber membrane in the form of fiber yarn; A voltage applying unit for applying a voltage to the main electrode of the nozzle to provide a predetermined potential difference between the nozzle and the collector; And the voltage applying unit repairs the surface by applying a predetermined voltage to the main electrode of the nozzle to radiate the spinning liquid from the nozzle toward the collector to the defect position calculated in the defect calculation step. Repair method. 11. The method of claim 10, The nozzle, The nanofiber inspection and repair method according to claim 1, further comprising an auxiliary electrode which is open in the longitudinal direction of the nozzle and is spaced apart from the nozzle so as to surround an outer circumference of the nozzle in the longitudinal direction. The method of claim 11, The auxiliary electrode, Is formed so as to be spaced apart from the nozzle to surround the outer periphery in the longitudinal direction of the nozzle, the closer to the nozzle toward the discharge side end of the nozzle, Spaced apart from the nozzle to surround an outer periphery in the longitudinal direction of the nozzle, and having a constant distance from the nozzle in the longitudinal direction of the nozzle, and Is formed so as to be spaced apart from the nozzle to surround the outer periphery in the longitudinal direction of the nozzle, the shape toward the discharge side end of the nozzle away from the nozzle side, The auxiliary electrode, Has a shape which protrudes more than the discharge-side end of the nozzle, has the same length in the longitudinal direction as the discharge-side end of the nozzle, or the shape of the discharge-side end of the nozzle protrudes more than its auxiliary electrode. Nanofiber inspection and repair method, characterized in that.

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