KR101408766B1 - Air Knife - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to an air knife for uniformly injecting fluid. Particularly, the present invention relates to an air knife for uniformly injecting fluid which can uniformly inject the fluid to a predetermined distance through an air gap and can control the distance of the air gap. An air knife includes a pressure control space (112) which is formed in a body (11); an injection guide (113) which is connected to the pressure control space (112) and is extended along one side of the body; a cover (12) which is combined with one side of the body (11); an injection gap (13) which is formed by one side of the cover (12) and the injection guide (113); and a connector for receiving the fluid. The injection guide (113) is connected to one side of the pressure control space (112). The flow path of the fluid received through the connector is changed in the pressure control space (112). The fluid is injected through the injection gap (13) by the pressure of the pressure control space (112).

Description

Air knife for uniform jetting of flow rate {Air Knife}

More particularly, the present invention relates to an air knife for uniformly injecting a fluid, which is capable of uniformly injecting a fluid sprayed through an air gap to a predetermined distance, and at the same time, To an air knife.

Fine particles or foreign substances present on the surface during the manufacturing process of the semiconductor substrate or the LCD substrate may cause defects of the whole product. Therefore, it is necessary to remove particles corresponding to foreign substances present on the surface during manufacturing of a display device such as a semiconductor product, an LCD, or a camera module. The manufacture of such foreign materials is required in the manufacturing process of various products of the product and various cleaning related technologies are being developed.

In general, chemicals, distilled water or air may be used for cleaning, and air knives may be used for removing foreign matter or for drying using the injection of air. Air knives having various structures are applied to a cleaning or drying process.

Prior art related to the air knife is Patent Publication No. 2003-0070172 'Air knife for manufacturing PDP'. It is an object of the present invention to provide an air knife for manufacturing a PDP capable of realizing an air knife nozzle gap up to 0.02 mm as well as maintaining a uniform flow rate and pressure distribution of compressed air ejected from an air knife as a whole. In order to achieve the above-mentioned object, the prior art has a body formed of a top plate and a bottom plate and having a space formed therein, an air inlet formed at one of the top plate and the bottom plate, and a fine gap at one end between the top plate and the bottom plate, A concave groove formed around the space except for a portion where the nozzle is formed in any one of the upper plate and the lower plate; a packing member coupled to the concave groove; and an edge of the body to fasten the upper plate and the lower plate. And a control member which is fastened to one end of the body to finely adjust the gap of the nozzle.

Another prior art related to the air knife is disclosed in Korean Patent Publication No. 2005-0006332 'Air knife structure of LCD panel drying apparatus'. In the prior art, the uniformity of the air sprayed through the discharge port of the air knife is improved in the drying apparatus of the LCD panel which dries by the air spraying method, and the uniformity of the spray air and the uniformity And it is an object of the present invention to provide an air knife structure of an LCD panel drying apparatus which minimizes loss of air. For this purpose, the prior art is provided with an air inflow pipe at both ends for introducing compressed air supplied from a compressor, a plurality of outflow holes formed on a lower surface thereof for discharging inflow air, An air inlet block having a rectangular shape having an air inlet block and an air injection block having one end connected to the air inlet block and a spray hole formed at the other end of the air inlet block to eject cleaning liquid and particles on the surface of the LCD panel The present invention relates to an air knife structure for a panel drying apparatus, and more particularly, to an air knife structure for a panel drying apparatus, which includes a plurality of air induction passages connected to an outflow hole of an air inflow block in the air injection block, Forming an edge-formed orifice path and injecting the end of the orifice path An air knife of an LCD panel drying apparatus in which a ball is formed is disclosed.

Another prior art related to air knives is International Publication No. WO 2006/053115 'Air knife'. The prior art is directed to a fluid ejection device for generating an air curtain comprising a body member having an air inlet chamber and an air outlet chamber for the purpose of providing a fluid ejection device for generating an air curtain, The body member being in fluid communication with the inlet chamber and forming a discharge orifice through which fluid is discharged from the body, the outlet orifice being in fluid communication with the air outlet chamber, the air outlet chamber having a pair of opposed sidewalls, Each sidewall having an angled side wall portion that is disposed to converge toward each other as it extends in a downstream direction toward the discharge orifice to form a generally V-shaped inlet portion for guiding and directing fluid toward the discharge orifice, The discharge orifice is formed by the first and second edges, It has been formed by the extension wall extending in a downstream direction past the second edge to the start of the fluid discharge device to form a fluid outlet for deflection surface extending beyond the discharge orifice.

The prior art has a problem that it is difficult to control the air gap and the air is not discharged due to the internal pressure, so that uniform air injection is difficult. On the other hand, there is a problem in that it is impossible to spray various fluids such as air or water as needed by adjusting the air gap.

The present invention has been made to solve the problems of the prior art and has the following purpose.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is an object of the present invention to provide an air knife for forming a double space so that the fluid can be uniformly injected by a uniform pressure therein and the air gap can be adjusted.

According to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the air knife comprises a pressure control space formed inside the body; An injection guide connected to the pressure control space and extending along one side of the body; A cover coupled to one side of the body; An injection gap formed by one side of the injection guide and the cover; And a connector for introducing the fluid, wherein the injection guide is connected to one surface of the pressure control space, the fluid introduced through the connector is changed in the pressure control space, and the injection gap 13).

According to another preferred embodiment of the present invention, the extension length of the cover relative to the direction of injection of the fluid is larger than the extension length of the body.

According to another preferred embodiment of the present invention, a gap control slit is provided between the body and the cover.

The air knife according to the present invention has an advantage that a uniform space can be formed by forming a double space to inject a fluid. In addition, the air knife according to the present invention has an advantage that air or water can be sprayed through the adjustment of the air gap and thus can be used as a drying device or a cleaning device. In addition, the air knife according to the present invention has an advantage that the flow rate and the spray distance can be controlled by adjusting the air gap, and the object to be cleaned can be protected through various types of injection control according to various materials.

1A and 1B show an embodiment of a body, a cover and a gap control slit of an air knife according to the present invention.
2 shows an embodiment of an air knife according to the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Hereinafter, the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the embodiments shown in the accompanying drawings, but the present invention is not limited thereto. Well-known elements in the description of the embodiments are not described unless they are briefly described or are not required for an understanding of the invention. It should be understood, however, that such elements are not excluded from the scope of the present invention.

1A and 1B show an embodiment of a body, a cover and a gap control slit of an air knife according to the present invention.

1A and 1B, an air knife according to the present invention includes a pressure control space 112 formed inside a body 11; An injection guide 113 connected to the pressure control space 112 and extending along one side of the body 11; A cover (12) coupled to one side of the body (11); A jetting gap 13 formed by one side of the jetting guide 113 and the cover 12; And a connector for introducing the fluid. The injection guide 113 is connected to one surface of the pressure control space 112, and the fluid introduced through the connector is changed in the pressure control space 112, Is injected through the injection gap (13) by the pressure of the control space (112).

The air knife according to the present invention may be applied to any process requiring cleaning or drying in the manufacturing process, such as, but not limited to, an LCD substrate, for removal of foreign substances or micro-entities present on the surface of the panel. The air knife may include an apparatus for spraying or drying any fluid including air, and may include a device for cleaning by, for example, spraying distilled water. Therefore, the fluid ejected from the air knife is not limited to air.

The air knife may, for example, include an ionizer and may be used in connection with a dust collector. For example, the air knife according to the present invention may be attached to a dust collecting apparatus or a dust collecting apparatus may be installed at one end of the air knife. The device according to the invention is therefore not limited by the installation of additional devices.

The air knife may consist of the body 11 and the cover 12 and the compressed air or distilled water introduced into the body 12 may have a jet gap 13 formed between the faces of the body 11 and the cover 12 facing each other ). ≪ / RTI > And a gap control slit 16 may be arranged to adjust the size of the gap between the body 11 and the cover 12 as required. For example, the size of the gap for ejecting air and the size of the gap for ejecting distilled water may be different from each other, and the size of the gap can be adjusted by the gap control slit 16.

The body 11 may have a polygonal rod shape as a whole and may extend to a certain length but may have any shape. The pressure control space 112 may be formed in which the air or distilled water flowing from the outside is retained in the body 11 to form a pressure space. The pressure control space 112 may be formed longitudinally inside the body 11 and may be formed to have a certain volume, for example, with a circular or rectangular cross-section. The fluid such as air or water flowing from the outside is once filled in the pressure control space 112 and thus the pressure control space 112 can be maintained at a constant pressure due to the fluid flowing from the outside.

The pressure control space 112 forms an empty space inside the body 11 and forms a space in which the external fluid flows to stay therein. The fluid in the pressure control space 112 can be discharged at a constant pressure along the injection guide 113.

The injection guide 113 may extend along a part of the front surface 111 of the body 11 and form a gap or gap small enough as compared with the pressure control space 112. [ 1A, the front surface 111 may have a planar shape and the jetting guide 113 may have a structure that extends a predetermined length along the front surface 111 while forming a gap from one edge of the pressure control space 112 Lt; / RTI > Specifically, the pressure control space 112 may have a polygonal cross-section with an open surface facing the front surface 111 and extend along the longitudinal direction of the body 11. The injection guide 113 extends along the one side of the opening surface by a predetermined length while forming a groove in the front surface 111. A flow connection surface 113a may be formed at the interface between the pressure control space 112 and the injection guide 113 so as to make the fluid flow as required. In this structure, the pressure control space 112 and the jetting guide 113 form a connection space while forming a common opening surface as a whole. However, the width or height of the surface on which the fluid is moved is sufficiently larger than that of the injection guide 113 in the pressure control space 112. For example, the height in the flow direction of the fluid in the pressure control space 112 may be 8 to 15 mm, and the height in the injection guide 113 may be 1.0 to 3.0 mm, but is not limited thereto. On the other hand, the flow connection surface 113a has a curved surface or a curved surface so that the boundary surface between the pressure control space 112 and the jetting guide 113 is inclined at an angle other than a right angle. For example, the flow connection surface 113a and the pressure control space 112 or the flow connection surface 113a and the injection guide 113 may be approximately 135 占 but are not limited thereto. For example, the flow connection surface 113a may be a curved surface.

The width of the spray guide 113 or the length extending along the front face 111 can affect the spray width or spray distance of the air knife. For example, the fluid to be sprayed must be able to reach a predetermined plane and need to have a predetermined spray width. To this end, the extension length of the injection guide 113 may be 6.0 to 7.0 mm from the boundary surface of the pressure control space 112 and the remaining length of the front surface 111 from which the fluid is guided from the injection guide 113 may be 6.5 - 7.5 mm. The dimensions provided are exemplary and various dimensions may be applied to the air knife according to the invention depending on the application of the air knife or the amount of fluid introduced and the invention is not limited to the embodiments shown.

An inclined surface 111a may be formed on the opposite surface of the body 11 facing the front surface 111. [ The inclined surface 111a is for forming a jetting gap 13 through which the fluid is discharged. The jetting gap 13 may be formed in front of the jetting guide 113 and may be formed by coupling the cover 12 to the body 11 as described below.

The cover 12 may be coupled to the front surface 111 of the body 11 by appropriate fastening means B1 and B2 to form the injection gap 13. [

The cover 12 shown in FIG. 1B can be coupled to the front surface 111 of the body 11 and can have a generally plate-like shape. The opposite surface 121 of the cover 12 is spaced apart from the front surface 111 by a predetermined distance, and the spaced gaps form a jetting gap 13. And the spacing can be controlled, for example, by a gap control slit 16, described below, or other suitable means.

The cover 12 may have an outer surface if it has the opposing face 121 and the inclined face 122 and the width of the opposing face 121 may be larger than the width of the front face 111 of the body 11. The width of the front face 111 of the body 11 is 40 to 45 mm and the width of the opposed face 121 is 43 to 50 mm so that the opposed face 121 in the direction of the jetting gap 13 Can be protruded. The protruding length may be, for example, 2.8 to 4.0 mm. The protruding length may have a function of guiding the fluid, and if the protruding length is smaller than the prescribed length, the jetting angle may be increased or the straightness may be lowered. In contrast, if the protruding length is larger than the suggested length, the distance that the fluid contacts the surface increases, and the flow rate may be reduced due to the frictional force.

The dimensions given above are to be understood as relative and may be suitably adjusted according to the amount or pressure of the gas flowing into the body 11. The inclined surface 122 formed on the cover 12 is for forming the injection gap 13 similar to the inclined surface 111a of the body 11. [

The fluid can be jetted out through the jetting gap 13 through a gap or gap formed between the body 11 and the cover 12. [ The jetting gap 13 may be formed by various methods and the method of forming the jetting gap 13 may be determined by the method of joining the body 11 and the cover 12, Or by inserting an appropriate control slit between the front surface 111 and the opposing surface 121. [0051] As shown in FIG.

A gap control slit 16 may be inserted between the body 11 and the cover 12, as shown in the lower portion of Fig.

The gap control slit 16 may include a blocking body 161 and side fixing units 162a and 162b which are formed to have a sufficiently small thickness while being extended in the same direction as the body 11. [ The blocking body 161 allows fluid to be directed in the direction of the jetting gap 13 by preventing fluid from flowing in the backward direction of the body 11 while maintaining an appropriate thickness.

The side surface fixing units 162a and 162b may have the function of preventing the fluid from flowing to both sides of the air knife and may be formed to have the same or similar width or height as the body 11. [ The width or height of the blocking body 161 may be smaller than the width or height of the body front surface 111. The width or height of the blocking body 161 may be formed to be equal to or similar to the length of the lower portion of the pressure control space 122 or the portion opposite to the portion where the jetting gap 13 is formed in the front surface 111. [ For example, if the width or height of the lower portion of the pressure control space 112 is 18 to 20 mm, the width or height of the blocking body 161 may be 16 to 20 mm, but is not limited thereto.

The gap of the gap through which the fluid is ejected by the gap control slit 16 can be determined. On the other hand, depending on the kind of the fluid or the object to which the air knife is applied, the gap between the gaps needs to be appropriately adjusted. The thickness of the injection gap 13 can be determined by the thickness of the gap control slit 16 and the thickness of the gap control slit 16 is, for example, from 0.01 mm to 0.5 mm, preferably 0.03 to 0.3 mm and most preferably 0.05 To 0.25 mm.

The gap control slit 16 may be formed to be adjustable in thickness. It may be contemplated to replace the gap control slit 16, for example of a different thickness, for thickness control. In such a case, the gap control slit 16 can be interlocked or detachably coupled to the body 11 and the cover 12 by fastening means B3 and B4. Alternatively, the blocking body 161 may be formed of an elastic material and may be formed to vary in thickness according to the applied pressure. Alternatively, the blocking body 161 itself may be formed to have a different thickness in the width or height direction, and the gap control slit 16 may be formed such that the insertion length is adjusted in the direction of the ejection gap 13.

The thickness of the gap control slit 16 can be controlled in various ways and the present invention is not limited to the embodiments shown.

The body 11, the cover 12 and the gap control slit 16 may be formed in various structures and joined by the fixing means B1, B2, B3, B4, and the present invention is not limited to the embodiments shown.

The process of jetting fluid from the air knife according to the present invention will be described below.

2 shows an embodiment of an air knife according to the present invention.

The upper part of Fig. 2 shows the front and side of the air knife 10 respectively, and the lower part shows the rear side.

Referring to FIG. 2, a fluid such as air or water may be supplied into the body of the air knife 10 through the connector 21, and the supplied fluid may be supplied to the pressure control space 112. The pressure control space 112 can be maintained at a constant pressure as the entire space is filled with fluid due to the supply of the fluid. The fluid in the pressure control space 112 can be supplied through the injection guide 113 at a constant pressure with respect to the longitudinal direction with a constant width. The fluid may be injected through the injection gap 13 formed between the front face 111 of the body 11 and the opposed face 121 of the cover 12 and connected to the injection guide 113. The spacing of the ejection gaps 13 can be adjusted by the gap control slit 16, as described above. The fluid ejected through the jetting gap 13 can be ejected out of the air knife 10 as a whole with a thin cloth-like shape.

The gap control slit 16 can be replaced or the depth of insertion of the gap control slit 16 in the direction of the injection gap 13 can be adjusted if the gap of the injection gap 13 needs to be adjusted. The body 11 and the cover 12 may be coupled to each other by various fixing means B4, B5 and B6 and the gap control slit 16 may be detachably coupled.

2, the cover 12 may protrude to the outside by a predetermined length relative to the body 11 at a position where the injection gap 13 is formed, and the inclined face 111a of the body 11, The sharp end of the injection gap 13 can be formed by the inclined surface 122 of the nozzle 12. The projecting portion of the cover 12 and the sharp end portion of the air knife 10 allow the fluid to be injected to a predetermined position with a predetermined width.

The air knife 10 according to the present invention allows the foreign substance of the LCD substrate, the wafer or the like substrate to be cleaned by air or distilled water. On the other hand, the air knife 10 according to the present invention can be applied to air drying. Ionizers can be applied together as needed and dust collectors can be used together. The air knife 10 according to the present invention can be applied for various purposes and the present invention is not limited by the embodiments shown.

The air knife according to the present invention has an advantage that a uniform space can be formed by forming a double space to inject a fluid. In addition, the air knife according to the present invention has an advantage that air or water can be sprayed through the adjustment of the air gap and thus can be used as a drying device or a cleaning device. In addition, the air knife according to the present invention has an advantage that the flow rate and the spray distance can be controlled by adjusting the air gap, and the object to be cleaned can be protected through various types of injection control according to various materials.

While the present invention has been particularly shown and described with reference to exemplary embodiments thereof, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited to the disclosed embodiments, but, on the contrary, . The invention is not limited by these variations and modifications, but is limited only by the claims appended hereto.

11; Body 12: Cover
13: injection gap 16: gap control slit
111: front side 112: pressure control space
113: injection guide 113a: flow connection surface
121: facing surface 122: inclined surface

Claims (3)

A pressure control space 112 formed in the longitudinal direction inside the body 11;
An injection guide 113 connected to the pressure control space 112 and extending along one side of the body 11;
A cover (12) coupled to one side of the body (11);
A jetting gap 13 formed between the front face 111 of the body 11 and the opposed face 121 of the cover 12 and connected to the jetting guide 113; And
And a connector (21) for introducing fluid into the interior of the body (11)
A flow connection surface 113a is formed on the boundary surface between the pressure control space 112 and the injection guide 113 as a curved surface or a bent surface and the pressure control space 112 has a larger volume space than the injection guide 113 The injection guide 113 extends from the interface between the injection guide 113 and the pressure control space 112 so as to have a large height with respect to the front face 111 as compared with the injection gap 13, The fluid in the pressure control space 112 is guided to the injection guide 113 at a uniform pressure and is guided to the injection guide 113, The remaining length of the front surface 111 from which the fluid leading from the end of the injection guide 113 to the injection gap 13 is guided is 6.5 to 7.0 mm from the boundary surface of the pressure control space 112, To 7.5 mm Wherein the air knife is for spraying uniformly the flow rate. delete The apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a gap control slit (16) between the body (11) and the cover (12) and consisting of a blocking body (161) and side fixing units (162a, 162b) Is formed of elastic material which changes according to the applied pressure or is formed so as to have different thicknesses in the width or height direction and to adjust the insertion length in the direction of the jetting gap (13). The air knife .

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