KR20030076079A - Apparatus and method of dispensing efficiently liquid crystal - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:An apparatus for dispensing liquid crystal and a method for dispensing liquid crystal capable of efficiently dispensing the liquid crystal are provided to prevent waste of expensive liquid crystal and improve liquid crystal dropping speed. CONSTITUTION:If a TFT(Thin Film Transistor) substrate is manufactured, the TFT substrate goes through an examination for detecting the inferiority(S301-S302). If a color filter substrate is manufactured, the color filter substrate goes through an examination for detecting the inferiority(S303-S304). The results of the inspection are inputted to a TFT substrate information input unit and a color filter substrate information input unit(S305). If the inferiority of a panel area of the TFT substrate is detected, dispensing of liquid crystal is stopped(S306,S310,S311). If the inferiority of a panel area of the color filter substrate is detected, dispensing of liquid crystal is stopped(S307,S310,S311). Otherwise, the substrates are judged as normal and the liquid crystal is dropped(S308-S309).

Description

Liquid crystal dropping device and dropping method for efficient liquid crystal dropping {APPARATUS AND METHOD OF DISPENSING EFFICIENTLY LIQUID CRYSTAL}

The present invention relates to a liquid crystal dropping apparatus and a method, and in particular, by dropping a liquid crystal in only a panel region in which a defect does not occur in a panel when the substrate is bonded on the basis of the inspection result of the panel region of the first substrate and the second substrate. The present invention relates to a liquid crystal dropping device and a method for quickly dropping liquid crystals and efficiently using expensive liquid crystals.

Recently, with the development of various portable electronic devices such as mobile phones, PDAs, and notebook computers, there is a growing demand for flat panel display devices for light and thin applications. Such flat panel displays are being actively researched, such as LCD (Liquid Crystal Display), PDP (Plasma Display Panel), FED (Field Emission Display), VFD (Vacuum Fluorescent Display), but mass production technology, ease of driving means, Liquid crystal display devices (LCDs) are in the spotlight for reasons of implementation.

LCD is a device for displaying information on the screen using the refractive anisotropy of the liquid crystal. As shown in FIG. 1, the LCD 1 is composed of a lower substrate 5 and an upper substrate 3 and a liquid crystal layer 7 formed between the lower substrate 5 and the upper substrate 3. The lower substrate 5 is a drive element array substrate. Although not shown in the drawing, a plurality of pixels are formed on the lower substrate 5, and a driving element such as a thin film transistor (hereinafter referred to as TFT) is formed in each pixel. 3) is a color filter substrate, and a color filter layer for realizing color is formed. In addition, a pixel electrode and a common electrode are formed on the lower substrate 5 and the upper substrate 3, respectively, and an alignment film for aligning liquid crystal molecules of the liquid crystal layer 7 is coated.

The lower substrate 5 and the upper substrate 3 are bonded by a sealing material 9, and a liquid crystal layer 7 is formed therebetween by a driving element formed on the lower substrate 5. Information is displayed by controlling the amount of light passing through the liquid crystal layer by driving the liquid crystal molecules.

The manufacturing process of the liquid crystal display device can be largely divided into a driving element array substrate process of forming a driving element on the lower substrate 5, a color filter substrate process of forming a color filter on the upper substrate 3, and a cell process. However, the process of the liquid crystal display will be described with reference to FIG. 2.

First, a plurality of gate lines and data lines arranged on the lower substrate 5 to define a pixel region are formed by a driving element array process, and the gate line and the data are formed in each of the pixel regions. A thin film transistor which is a driving element connected to the line is formed (S101). In addition, the pixel electrode is connected to the thin film transistor through the driving element array process to drive the liquid crystal layer as a signal is applied through the thin film transistor.

In addition, the upper substrate 3 is formed with a color filter layer and a common electrode of R, G, B to implement the color by the color filter process (S104).

Subsequently, an alignment layer is applied to the upper substrate 3 and the lower substrate 5, respectively, and then the alignment control force or surface fixing force (ie, the liquid crystal molecules of the liquid crystal layer formed between the upper substrate 3 and the lower substrate 5). In order to provide a pretilt angle and an orientation direction, the alignment layer is rubbed (S102 and S105). Subsequently, a spacer is disposed on the lower substrate 5 to maintain a constant cell gap, and a sealing material 9 is applied to an outer portion of the upper substrate 3, and then the lower substrate 5 is disposed. And the upper substrate 3 by applying pressure (S103, S106, S107).

On the other hand, the lower substrate 5 and the upper substrate 3 is made of a large area glass substrate. In other words, a plurality of panel regions are formed on a large area glass substrate, and a TFT and a color filter layer, which are driving elements, are formed in each of the panel regions. Must be processed (S108). Thereafter, the liquid crystal is injected into the liquid crystal panel processed as described above through the liquid crystal inlet, and the liquid crystal inlet is encapsulated to form a liquid crystal layer. .

The liquid crystal is injected through the liquid crystal inlet formed in the panel. At this time, the injection of the liquid crystal is made by the pressure difference. 3 shows an apparatus for injecting liquid crystal into the liquid crystal panel. As shown in FIG. 3, a container 12 filled with liquid crystal is provided in a vacuum chamber 10, and a liquid crystal panel 1 is positioned on an upper portion thereof. The vacuum chamber 10 is connected to a vacuum pump to maintain a set vacuum state. In addition, although not shown in the drawing, an apparatus for moving the liquid crystal panel is installed in the vacuum chamber 10 to move the liquid crystal panel 1 from the upper part of the container 12 to the container, and thus the injection hole 16 formed in the liquid crystal panel 1. ) Is brought into contact with the liquid crystal 14 (this method is referred to as a liquid crystal dipping injection method).

As described above, when nitrogen (N ₂ ) gas is supplied into the vacuum chamber 10 while the injection port 16 of the liquid crystal panel 1 is in contact with the liquid crystal 14, the vacuum degree of the chamber 10 is reduced. The liquid crystal 14 is injected into the panel 1 through the injection hole 16 by the pressure difference between the pressure inside the liquid crystal panel 1 and the vacuum chamber 10 and the liquid crystal is completely filled in the panel 1. The liquid crystal layer is formed by sealing the injection hole 16 with a sealing material (this method is called vacuum injection of liquid crystal).

However, the method of forming the liquid crystal layer by injecting liquid crystal through the injection hole 16 of the liquid crystal panel 1 in the vacuum chamber 10 as described above has the following problems.

First, the liquid crystal injection time to the panel 1 is long. In general, the distance between the driving element array substrate and the color filter substrate of the liquid crystal panel is very narrow, such as several μm, so that only a very small amount of liquid crystal is injected into the liquid crystal panel per unit time. For example, when manufacturing a liquid crystal panel of about 15 inches takes about 8 hours to completely inject the liquid crystal, the liquid crystal panel manufacturing process is lengthened by the long-term liquid crystal injection, the manufacturing efficiency is lowered.

Second, the liquid crystal consumption rate is high in the liquid crystal injection method as described above. Of the liquid crystals 14 filled in the container 12, the amount injected into the liquid crystal panel 1 is a very small amount. Meanwhile, when the liquid crystal is exposed to the atmosphere or a specific gas, the liquid crystal not only deteriorates by reacting with the gas, but also deteriorates due to impurities introduced upon contact with the liquid crystal panel 1. Therefore, even when the liquid crystal 14 filled in the container 12 is injected into the plurality of liquid crystal panels 1, the liquid crystal 14 remaining after the injection must be discarded. This leads to an increase in manufacturing cost.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made in view of the above, and an object thereof is to provide a liquid crystal dropping device and a liquid crystal dropping method for directly dropping a liquid crystal onto a large area glass substrate including at least one liquid crystal panel.

Another object of the present invention is to inspect the two panel regions formed on the thin film transistor substrate and the color filter substrate to form a liquid crystal panel, and to prevent liquid crystal waste by dropping the liquid crystal only when no abnormality occurs in both panel regions. It is to provide a liquid crystal dropping device and a liquid crystal dropping method that can proceed quickly to dropping.

In order to achieve the above object, the liquid crystal dropping apparatus according to the present invention includes liquid crystal dropping means for directly dropping liquid crystal onto a first substrate filled with liquid crystal and including a plurality of panel regions, and a liquid crystal to be dropped onto the first substrate. Calculates the loading amount of the first substrate and is formed on the first substrate and the second substrate to be bonded to the first substrate, and joins the first substrate and the second substrate to the inspection result of the corresponding panel region defining the liquid crystal panel. It is comprised by the control part which determines the dripping of the liquid crystal based on this.

In the liquid crystal dropping means, the liquid crystal is filled and the gas is supplied to drop the liquid crystal onto the substrate on which at least one liquid crystal panel is formed through the nozzle under the pressure of the gas.The needle is moved up and down by the magnetic force of the solenoid coil installed therein and the tension of the spring. The discharge hole connected to the nozzle is moved and opened to close the liquid crystal drop to adjust the amount of liquid crystal dropping, the power supply unit for supplying power to the solenoid coil, and the gas supply unit for supplying gas to the liquid crystal drop.

The controller may include an input unit to which inspection information of the first and second substrates is input, a substrate defect determining unit to determine a defect of a substrate based on the input substrate information, and a determination result input from the substrate defect determining unit. And a panel failure determining unit for determining whether the liquid crystal panel to be manufactured is defective, and a dropping determining unit for determining a drop in the panel area corresponding to the liquid crystal panel to be manufactured according to the determination result of the panel defective determining unit.

In addition, the liquid crystal dropping method according to the present invention comprises the steps of inputting an inspection result for each panel region of the first substrate and the second substrate including a plurality of panel region in which the element is formed, and based on the input inspection result Determining whether two panel regions formed on the first substrate and the second substrate corresponding to each other to produce a liquid crystal panel are defective, and determining that the liquid crystal panel to be manufactured is defective when the corresponding panel region is defective. Stopping the dropping and dropping the liquid crystal when a failure does not occur in the corresponding two panel regions.

The liquid crystal panel is judged to be a panel failure even if a defect exists in only one panel region among the two panel regions to be bonded, and the liquid crystal is dropped only when both panels have no defect.

1 is a cross-sectional view of a general liquid crystal display device.

2 is a flowchart showing a conventional method for manufacturing a liquid crystal display device.

3 is a view showing liquid crystal injection of a conventional liquid crystal display device.

4 is a view showing a liquid crystal display device manufactured by the liquid crystal dropping method according to the present invention.

5 is a flowchart illustrating a method of manufacturing a liquid crystal display device by the liquid crystal dropping method.

6 is a view showing a basic concept of the liquid crystal dropping method.

Figure 7 is a view showing the structure of the liquid crystal dropping apparatus according to the present invention, Figure 7 (a) is a view of the liquid crystal dropping and Figure 7 (b) is a view of the liquid crystal dropping.

8 is a block diagram illustrating a control unit of FIG. 7.

9 is a flow chart showing a liquid crystal dropping method according to the present invention.

Fig. 10 (a) is a diagram showing a test result of a panel region formed on a TFT substrate.

Fig. 10B is a diagram showing the inspection result of the panel region formed on the color filter substrate.

Explanation of symbols on the main parts of the drawings

101: panel area 103,105: substrate

107: liquid crystal 120: liquid crystal dropping device

122: case 124: liquid crystal container

128: spring 130: solenoid coil

132: magnetic rod 134: gap adjustment unit

136: Needle 143: Needle Sheet

146: outlet 150: power supply

152: gas supply unit 154: flow control valve

160: control unit 161,162: input unit

164: substrate failure determination unit 166: panel failure determination unit

167: dropping judgment

In order to overcome the shortcomings of the conventional liquid crystal injection method such as the liquid crystal dipping method or the liquid crystal vacuum injection method, a method proposed in recent years is a liquid crystal layer forming method by the liquid crystal dropping method. In the liquid crystal dropping method, the liquid crystal is not injected by the pressure difference between the inside and the outside of the panel, but the liquid crystal is dropped and dispensed directly into the panel region of the substrate, and the liquid crystal dropped by the bonding pressure of the substrate is applied to the panel region. The liquid crystal layer is formed by uniformly distributing the whole. Since the liquid crystal dropping method directly drops the liquid crystal onto the substrate for a short time, the liquid crystal layer formation of the large area liquid crystal display device can be performed very quickly, and only the required amount of liquid crystal is directly dropped onto the substrate. Since it is possible to minimize the consumption of the liquid crystal display device has the advantage that can significantly reduce the manufacturing cost.

4 is a view showing a basic concept of the liquid crystal dropping method. As shown in the figure, in the liquid crystal dropping method, before the lower substrate 105 and the upper substrate 103 on which the driving element and the color filter are formed, respectively, the liquid crystal 107 is droplet-shaped on the lower substrate 105. Dropping The liquid crystal 107 may be dropped on the substrate 103 on which the color filter is formed. In other words, the substrate to be the liquid crystal dropping method in the liquid crystal dropping method can be either a TFT substrate or a CF substrate. However, when the substrates are bonded, the substrate on which the liquid crystal is dropped must be placed at the bottom.

In this case, a sealing material 109 is applied to the outer region of the upper substrate 103 to apply pressure to the upper substrate 103 and the lower substrate 105 so that the upper substrate 103 and the lower substrate 105 are bonded together. At the same time, droplets of the liquid crystal 107 are spread out by the pressure to form a liquid crystal layer having a uniform thickness between the upper substrate 103 and the lower substrate 105. In other words, the biggest feature of the liquid crystal dropping method is that the liquid crystal 107 is previously dropped on the lower substrate before the panel 101 is bonded, and then the panel is bonded by the sealing material 109.

The liquid crystal display device manufacturing method to which the above liquid crystal dropping method is applied is shown in FIG. 5. As shown in the figure, TFT and color filter layers, which are driving elements, are formed on the lower substrate 150 and the upper substrate 103 through the TFT array process and the color filter process (S201 and S202). The TFT array process and the color filter process are the same as those of the conventional manufacturing method shown in FIG. 2 and are collectively performed on a large-area glass substrate on which a plurality of panel regions are formed. In particular, since the liquid crystal dropping method is applied in the manufacturing method, it can be usefully used in a larger glass substrate, for example, a large area glass substrate having an area of 1000 × 1200 mm ² or more, compared with the conventional manufacturing method.

Subsequently, after the alignment film is applied to the lower substrate 105 on which the TFT is formed and the upper substrate 103 on which the color filter layer is formed, rubbing is performed (S202 and S205), the liquid crystal panel region of the lower substrate 105 is formed. 107 is dropped and a sealing material 109 is applied to the liquid crystal panel outer region of the upper substrate (S203, S206).

Thereafter, pressure is applied while the upper substrate 103 and the lower substrate 105 are aligned, and the upper substrate 105 and the lower substrate 103 are bonded together by a sealing material 109 and at the same time the application of pressure is applied. The liquid crystal 107 dropped by this is spread evenly over the whole panel (S207). Through this process, a plurality of liquid crystal panels having a liquid crystal layer are formed on glass substrates (lower substrates and upper substrates) having a large area. The glass substrates are processed and cut, separated into a plurality of liquid crystal panels, and each liquid crystal panel is separated. By inspecting, a liquid crystal display device is produced (S208, S209).

Comparing the difference between the method of manufacturing the liquid crystal display device to which the liquid crystal drop method shown in FIG. 5 is applied and the method of manufacturing the liquid crystal display device to which the conventional liquid crystal injection method shown in FIG. 2 is applied, the difference between the vacuum injection and the liquid crystal drop of the liquid crystal and In addition to the difference in the processing time of the large-area glass substrate it can be seen that there are other differences. That is, in the method of manufacturing a liquid crystal display device to which the liquid crystal injection method shown in FIG. 2 is applied, the injection hole must be sealed by an encapsulant after the liquid crystal is injected through the injection hole. This eliminates the need for sealing of these inlets. In addition, although not shown in FIG. 2, in the manufacturing method to which the liquid crystal injection method is applied, since the substrate contacts the liquid crystal when the liquid crystal is injected, the outer surface of the panel is contaminated by the liquid crystal. In the manufacturing method in which the liquid crystal dropping method is applied, since the liquid crystal is directly dropped on the substrate, the panel is not contaminated by the liquid crystal, and as a result, the cleaning process is unnecessary. As described above, the manufacturing method of the liquid crystal display device by the liquid crystal dropping method is made of a simple process by the manufacturing method by the liquid crystal injection method, so that not only the manufacturing efficiency can be improved but also the yield can be improved.

In the manufacturing method of the liquid crystal display device in which the liquid crystal dropping method is introduced as described above, the most important factors for accurately forming the liquid crystal layer to a desired thickness are the position of the liquid crystal to be dropped and the amount of liquid crystal dropping. In particular, since the thickness of the liquid crystal layer has a close relationship with the cell gap of the liquid crystal panel, the accurate dropping position and the dropping amount of the liquid crystal are very important factors for preventing defects of the liquid crystal panel. Therefore, there is a need for a device for dropping the correct amount of liquid crystal at the correct position, the present invention provides such a liquid crystal dropping device.

6 is a view showing the basic concept of dropping the liquid crystal 107 on the substrate (large area glass substrate) 105 using the liquid crystal dropping apparatus 120 according to the present invention. As shown in the figure, the liquid crystal dropping device 120 is provided above the substrate 105. Although not shown in the drawing, the liquid crystal is filled in the liquid crystal dropping device 120 to fill a predetermined amount on the substrate.

Typically, the liquid crystal is dropped onto the substrate in the form of droplets. Since the substrate 105 moves at a set speed in the x and y directions, and the liquid crystal dropping device discharges the liquid crystal at a set time interval, the liquid crystal 107 dropped on the substrate 105 at regular intervals in the x and y directions. Is placed. Of course, the liquid crystal dropping substrate 105 may be fixed and the liquid crystal dropping apparatus 120 may move in the x and y directions to drop the liquid crystal at a predetermined interval. However, in this case, since the droplet-shaped liquid crystals are shaken by the movement of the liquid crystal dropping device 120, an error may occur in the dropping position and the dropping amount of the liquid crystal. Therefore, the liquid crystal dropping device 120 is fixed and the substrate 105 is moved. It is desirable to.

7 is a view showing a liquid crystal dropping apparatus according to the present invention, Figure 7 (a) is a cross-sectional view of the liquid crystal dropping and Figure 7 (b) is a cross-sectional view of the liquid crystal dropping.

As shown in the figure, in the liquid crystal dropping device 120, a cylindrical liquid crystal container 124 is accommodated in the case 122. The liquid crystal container 124 is made of polyethylene and the liquid crystal 107 is filled therein, and the case 122 is made of stainless steel so that the liquid crystal container 124 is formed therein. It is stored. In general, polyethylene is mainly used as the liquid crystal container 124 because it is easy to form a container having a desired shape because of its excellent moldability and does not react with the liquid crystal when the liquid crystal 107 is filled. However, since the polyethylene is weak in strength, it is easy to be deformed by a weak external shock. In particular, when polyethylene is used as the liquid crystal container 124, the container 124 may be deformed to drop the liquid crystal 107 in the correct position. Since it is not present, the case 122 is made of stainless steel having high strength. The gas supply pipe 153 connected to the external gas supply unit 152 is formed on the upper portion of the liquid crystal container 124. Gas such as nitrogen is supplied from the external gas supply unit 152 through the gas supply pipe 153 to apply pressure to the liquid crystal so that the liquid crystal is dropped by filling the gas into a region where the liquid crystal is not filled in the liquid crystal container 124. .

The liquid crystal container 124 may be formed of a metal such as stainless steel. In this case, since the liquid crystal container 124 is not deformed by an external impact, the outer case 122 is not necessary. Therefore, the manufacturing cost of the liquid crystal dropping device 120 can be reduced. As such, when the liquid crystal container 124 is formed of metal, it is preferable to apply a fluorine resin film therein to prevent the filled liquid crystal 107 from causing a chemical reaction with the metal.

An opening (not shown) is formed at the lower end of the case 122. A protrusion (not shown) formed at the lower end of the liquid crystal container 124 when the liquid crystal container 124 is accommodated in the case 122. ) Is inserted into the opening to allow the liquid crystal container 124 to be coupled to the case 122. In addition, the protrusion is coupled to the first coupling portion 141. As shown in the figure, the protrusion is formed with a nut and a bolt is formed on one side of the first coupling portion 141, the protrusion and the first coupling portion 141 is fastened by the nut and the bolt.

Although not shown in detail in the drawing, a nut is formed at the other end of the first coupling part 141, and a bolt is formed at one end of the second coupling part 142 to couple the second coupling part 141 to the second coupling part. The part 142 is fastened. In this case, a needle sheet 143 is positioned between the first coupling part 141 and the second coupling part 142. The needle seat 143 is inserted into the nut of the first coupling part 141 and the first coupling part 141 and the second coupling part 142 when the bolt of the second coupling part 142 is inserted and fastened. Are coupled between. A discharge hole (not shown) is formed in the needle sheet 143 so that the liquid crystal 107 filled in the liquid crystal container 124 is discharged through the discharge hole through the coupling part 142.

In addition, a nozzle is coupled to the second coupling part 142. The nozzle is for dropping a small amount of the liquid crystal 107 filled in the liquid crystal container 124, the bolt is coupled to the nut of one end of the second coupling portion 142 to couple the nozzle to the second coupling portion 142. It comprises a support portion 147 and a discharge port 146 protruding from the support portion 147 to drop a small amount of liquid crystal on the substrate in a drop shape.

A discharge pipe extending from the discharge hole of the needle sheet 143 is formed in the support part 147, and the discharge pipe is connected to the discharge hole 146. Typically, the outlet 146 of the nozzle has a very small diameter (to adjust the fine liquid crystal dropping amount) and protrudes from the support 147.

The needle 136 is inserted into the liquid crystal container 124 so that one end thereof contacts the needle sheet 143. In particular, since the end of the needle 136 in contact with the needle sheet 143 has a conical shape, the end is inserted into the discharge hole of the needle sheet 143 to block the discharge hole.

In addition, a spring 128 is mounted at the other end of the needle 136 positioned in the upper case 126 of the liquid crystal dropping device 120, and a magnetic rod 132 having a gap adjusting unit 134 attached thereon. ) Is installed. The magnetic rod 132 is made of a ferromagnetic material or a soft magnetic material, the outside of the cylindrical solenoid coil 130 is installed. The solenoid coil 130 is connected to the power supply unit 150 and is supplied with power. As the power is applied, magnetic force is generated in the magnetic rod 132.

The needle 136 and the magnetic rod 132 are provided at regular intervals (x). When power is supplied from the power supply unit 150 to the solenoid coil 130 to generate a magnetic force on the magnetic rod 132, the needle 136 contacts the magnetic rod 132 by the magnetic force. When the supply is stopped, it is restored to its original position by the elasticity of the spring 128 installed at the end of the needle 136. The discharge hole formed in the needle sheet 143 is opened or closed by the vertical movement of the needle 136. The end of the needle 136 and the needle seat 143 is repeatedly contacted as power is supplied to the solenoid coil 130 and stopped. Due to such repeated contact, the end of the needle 136 and the needle seat 143 are exposed to a constant impact, so there is a possibility of breakage. Therefore, it is preferable that the end of the needle 136 and the needle sheet 143 is formed of a material resistant to impact, for example, cemented carbide, to prevent breakage due to impact.

As shown in FIG. 7 (b), as the discharge hole of the needle sheet 143 is opened, the gas (ie, nitrogen gas) supplied to the liquid crystal container 124 pressurizes the liquid crystal so that the liquid crystal 107 is released from the nozzle. It begins to be loaded. At this time, the amount of the liquid crystal 107 is dropped depends on the time that the discharge hole is opened and the pressure applied to the liquid crystal, the open time is the interval (x) of the needle 136 and the magnetic rod 132, the solenoid coil It is determined by the magnetic force of the magnetic rod 132 generated by the 130 and the tension of the spring 128 provided on the needle 136. The magnetic force of the magnetic rod 132 may be adjusted according to the number of windings of the solenoid coil 130 installed around the magnetic rod 132 or the size of the power applied to the solenoid coil 130, and the needle 136 and the magnetic rod ( The interval x of the 132 can be adjusted by the gap adjusting unit 134 provided at the end of the magnetic rod 132.

The flow rate control valve 154 is provided in the gas supply pipe 153 for supplying gas from the gas supply unit 152 to the liquid crystal container 124. The flow control valve 154 controls the pressure in the liquid crystal 107 of the liquid crystal container 124 by supplying gas into the liquid crystal container 124 according to a control signal applied from the controller 160. According to the control of the pressure, the amount of the liquid crystal 107 dropped on the substrate can be controlled. The power supply unit 150 is connected to the solenoid coil 130 to supply power set to the solenoid coil 130 according to a control signal of the controller 150.

After the dropping is completed by the liquid crystal dropping apparatus 120 as described above, the substrate is bonded to the corresponding substrate and processed to complete the liquid crystal panel. In FIG. 5, when the liquid crystal panel is manufactured using the liquid crystal dropping method, the substrate in which the liquid crystal is dropped is limited to and described with a TFT substrate. However, the liquid crystal may be dropped onto the color filter substrate as well as the TFT substrate.

On the other hand, the liquid crystal panel is completed by bonding the TFT substrate and the color filter substrate together. Although not shown in FIG. 5, each panel region of the substrate where the TFT array process and the color filter process are completed is inspected for abnormalities in the elements formed in the region. If an abnormality occurs in the elements of the panel region formed on the TFT substrate and the color filter substrate by this inspection, the panel region produced by joining the panel regions becomes defective. Therefore, the dropping of the liquid crystal in the panel region forming the liquid crystal panel which becomes defective not only wastes expensive liquid crystal but also makes it impossible to drop the liquid crystal quickly.

In the liquid crystal dropping method of the present invention, especially when such an element abnormality occurs, the liquid crystal dropping is possible by not dropping the liquid crystal in the panel region. In other words, the liquid crystal is dropped only in the panel region where no device abnormality occurs. In particular, in the present invention, it is determined whether the liquid crystal is dropped into the panel region based on the inspection result of the inspection process after the TFT array process and the color filter process.

This determination is made by the controller 160 shown in FIG. As shown in FIG. 8, the control unit 160 includes a TFT substrate information input unit 161 for inputting a test result of a panel region included in a TFT substrate manufactured in a TFT process, and a color filter manufactured in a color filter process. A color filter substrate information input unit 162 for inputting an inspection result for the panel region included in the substrate; a substrate defect determination unit 164 for determining a defect of each panel region based on the input inspection result; and the substrate The panel defect determining unit 166 and the panel defect determining unit 166 determine whether the TFT substrate and the color filter substrate are bonded together to form a liquid crystal panel according to the result of the defect determining unit 164. According to the determined result, the dropping determining unit 167 determines whether to drop the liquid crystal into the panel region of the substrate, and when the liquid crystal is dropped into the panel region, the power supply unit 150 is controlled to supply power corresponding to the dropping amount. Solenoid Coil ( When it is determined that the liquid crystal is dropped into the panel region and the power supply control unit 168 supplied to the 130, the flow rate control valve 154 is controlled to supply a gas having a flow rate corresponding to the dropping amount from the gas supply unit 152. And a flow rate control unit 169 supplied to 124.

The panel failure determining unit 166 determines whether or not the defect is based on the inspection result of two panel regions respectively formed on the TFT substrate and the color filter substrate to be one liquid crystal panel when the substrate is bonded. The reason why the inspection results of the panel regions corresponding to each other (bonding to form the liquid crystal panel) is necessary is that the entire liquid crystal panel becomes defective even if only one substrate in the liquid crystal panel is defective when the actual liquid crystal panel is manufactured. .

Hereinafter, the actual liquid crystal dropping method using the liquid crystal dropping device will be described in detail with reference to FIGS. 9 and 10.

As shown in FIG. 9, first, when the TFT substrate and the color filter substrate are manufactured by the TFT array process and the color filter process, defect inspection is performed for each panel formed on each substrate (S301, S302, S303, S304). The inspection result is input to the TFT substrate information input unit 161 and the color filter substrate information input unit 162. The defect inspection of the TFT substrate and the color filter substrate is performed on a different line from the liquid crystal drop line, and is performed on a separate line. Accordingly, the inspection result is transmitted by wire or wirelessly and input to the TFT substrate information input unit 161 and the color filter substrate information input unit 162 of the liquid crystal dropping device 120 (S305).

FIG. 10 is a diagram schematically illustrating a test result input to the TFT substrate information input unit 161 and the color filter substrate information input unit 162. As shown in the drawing, the TFT substrate 105 and the color filter substrate 103 each have a plurality of panels, strictly speaking, a panel area 101 (nine panel areas are formed in the drawing), but the number is limited. There is no need), and each panel region 101 is formed by combining the TFT substrate 105 and the color filter substrate 103 to form one liquid crystal panel (the panel regions of the same number are bonded to the liquid crystal panel). To form). In the drawing, 'OK' of each panel region means that there is no defect in the corresponding panel region, and 'defect' means that a defect is detected. In this way, inspection results of all panel regions 101 formed on the substrates 103 and 105 are input.

Subsequently, if a defect occurs in the panel region of the TFT substrate based on the input test result (panel regions 1 and 5 in the drawing), it is determined that the defect has occurred in the liquid crystal panel to be manufactured, and the dropping of the liquid crystal is stopped. S306, S310, S311, and when the panel region 101 of the TFT substrate is not defective, check whether the panel region 101 of the color filter substrate is defective or not. Also, it is determined that a defect has occurred in the liquid crystal panel 101, and the dropping of the liquid crystal is stopped (S307, S310, and S311).

On the other hand, when no defect occurs in the panel area of the TFT substrate 105 and the panel area of the color filter substrate 103 (No. 1, No. 2, No. 3, No. 4, No. 7, No. 8, No. 9 panel area). A liquid crystal is dropped by confirming that the panel to be manufactured is a good panel (S308 and S309).

As described above, in the present invention, only one panel region of the panel regions 101 forming one liquid crystal panel, that is, the panel region of the TFT substrate 105 and the panel region of the color filter substrate 103 corresponding to each other, is formed. Even if a defect occurs, the dropping of the liquid crystal is stopped, thereby preventing the waste of expensive liquid crystal, and the dropping speed of the entire substrate can be also quickly obtained.

In the detailed description, a liquid crystal dropping device having a specific structure for performing such a liquid crystal dropping is shown, but the liquid crystal dropping device having the above structure is merely an example for explaining the present invention and is not intended to limit the present invention. The present invention is not characterized by the structure of the liquid crystal dropping device itself, but the dropping is performed only when no defect occurs in both the panel region of the TFT substrate and the panel region of the color filter substrate which are bonded to form one liquid crystal panel. It is in the liquid crystal dropping apparatus and method. Therefore, various liquid crystal dropping apparatuses and methods having such a function can be easily devised by applying the concept of the present invention to those skilled in the art.

As described above, in the present invention, the liquid crystal dropping portion is determined by whether the input panel region is defective or not. Therefore, since the liquid crystal is not dropped in the panel area where defects may occur when the liquid crystal panel is manufactured, not only the expensive liquid crystal needlessly be wasted but also the liquid crystal dropping speed is improved.

Claims (7)

Liquid crystal dropping means filled with liquid crystal and dropping the liquid crystal directly on the first substrate including a plurality of panel regions; And Computing the amount of the liquid crystal to be dropped on the first substrate, and included in the first substrate and the second substrate bonded to the first substrate to define the liquid crystal panel by the bonding of the first substrate and the second substrate A liquid crystal dropping device comprising a control unit for determining dropping of liquid crystal based on inspection results of panel regions corresponding to each other. According to claim 1, wherein the liquid crystal dropping means, The liquid crystal is filled, the gas is supplied, and the liquid crystal is dropped onto the substrate on which the at least one liquid crystal panel is formed through the nozzle under the pressure of the gas.The needle moves up and down by the magnetic force of the solenoid coil and the tension of the spring. A liquid crystal drop which opens and closes a connected discharge hole to control a drop amount of the liquid crystal; A power supply unit supplying power to the solenoid coil; And Liquid crystal dropping device comprising a gas supply unit for supplying gas to the liquid crystal dropping. The method of claim 1, wherein the control unit, An input unit to which inspection information of the first substrate and the second substrate is input; A substrate defect determining unit that determines a defect of a substrate based on the input substrate information; A panel failure determiner for determining whether a liquid crystal panel to be manufactured is defective according to a determination result input from the substrate defect determiner; And And a dropping determining portion configured to determine a dropping portion in the panel region corresponding to the liquid crystal panel to be manufactured according to the determination result of the panel failure determining unit. The liquid crystal dropping apparatus of claim 3, wherein the first and second substrate information input to the input unit is transmitted by wire or wirelessly from the first substrate manufacturing line and the second substrate manufacturing line. The method of claim 2, wherein the liquid crystal Liquid crystal filling means for filling a liquid crystal and supplying gas to the upper portion to apply pressure to the liquid crystal; A needle sheet mounted below the liquid crystal filling unit and having a discharge hole through which liquid crystals of the liquid crystal filling unit are discharged; A needle inserted into the liquid crystal filling means so as to be movable upward and downward, and having a spring installed at one end thereof and a discharge hole of the needle sheet opened and closed as the other end contacts the discharge hole of the needle sheet and moves up and down; A solenoid coil and a magnetic rod mounted on an upper portion of the needle to generate a magnetic force to move the needle to an upper portion when power is applied; And And a nozzle mounted under the liquid crystal filling means to drop the liquid crystal of the liquid crystal container onto a substrate including at least one panel. Inputting a test result for each panel region of the first substrate and the second substrate including a plurality of panel regions in which elements are formed; Determining whether two panel regions, which are formed on the first substrate and the second substrate and corresponding to each other on which the liquid crystal panel is to be manufactured, are defective on the basis of the input test result; Stopping the liquid crystal dropping by determining that the liquid crystal panel to be manufactured is defective when a failure occurs in the corresponding panel region; And And dropping liquid crystal when a defect does not occur in the corresponding two panel regions. 7. The liquid crystal dropping method according to claim 6, wherein the liquid crystal panel to be manufactured is determined to be a panel defect even if a defect exists in only one of the two panel regions.