KR20060086882A - Substrate assembling apparatus, substrate assembling decision method and substrate assembling method - Google Patents

Abstract

Under a vacuum atmosphere, the substrates 31 and 32 to be bonded act to release gas and lower the degree of vacuum in the chamber 1. When the sealing compound 6 coated in the shape of the mold properly bonds the upper and lower substrates 31 and 32, the gas discharged from the substrate surface surrounded by the sealing agent 6 does not diffuse into the chamber, so that the chamber 1 The pressure inside is drastically lowered, and the pressure is changed to high vacuum. Therefore, this invention provides the sensor (pressure detector) 12 which detects the vacuum degree in the chamber 1, and the controller 7 identifies the inflection point P at which the pressure in the chamber 1 changes abruptly. Thus, the sealing agent 6 detects that the two substrates 31 and 32 are appropriately bonded over the entire region. Therefore, by the simple structure, the unnecessary pressure drop of the upper board | substrate 31 at the time of bonding can be skipped, and the tact time of a bonding process can be shortened.

Description

Substrate bonding apparatus, substrate bonding determination method, and substrate bonding method {SUBSTRATE ASSEMBLING APPARATUS, SUBSTRATE ASSEMBLING DECISION METHOD AND SUBSTRATE ASSEMBLING METHOD}

1 is a configuration diagram showing an embodiment of a substrate bonding apparatus according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a diagram showing the degree of vacuum in the chamber and the characteristics of the gas released from the substrate in the apparatus shown in FIG. 1.

3 is a diagram of vacuum degree characteristics in a chamber illustrating the operation of the apparatus shown in FIG. 1.

4 is a flow chart showing the operation of the apparatus shown in FIG.

This invention relates to the board | substrate bonding apparatus, board | substrate bonding determination method, and board | substrate bonding method which are suitable for employ | adopting for manufacture of a liquid crystal display panel.

The liquid crystal display panel is manufactured by encapsulating a liquid crystal between glass substrates, and there are injection and dropping methods for encapsulating the liquid crystal.

A liquid crystal display panel of a liquid crystal drop type uses a bonding process of two substrates via a sealing agent in a reduced pressure chamber represented by a vacuum atmosphere, and an internal and external pressure difference by returning the pressure in the chamber after the bonding to atmospheric pressure. It is produced through the formation of a predetermined substrate gap, that is, a gap formation process.

In the substrate bonding process in the former vacuum atmosphere, two substrates are bonded through a sealing agent applied in a frame shape with adhesive properties, and if a non-contact portion or a sealing agent is formed between the sealing agent and the substrate, If a portion having insufficient spread exists, there is a fear that an appropriate display surface may not be formed in a subsequent gap forming step.

That is, in the gap forming process, in order to return the inside of the chamber to atmospheric pressure, air or an inert gas is supplied into the chamber. If there is a non-contact portion or the like between the sealing agent and the substrate and the bonding state is not proper, the air is supplied into the chamber. The back enters into the display area surrounded by the sealing agent from the non-contact portion, and it becomes bubbles, causing the failure.

Then, the board | substrate bonding apparatus which measures the gap between two board | substrates joined by a distance measuring device, detects that the distance measurement value fell in the prescribed range, and determines that two board | substrates were bonded appropriately is proposed (patent document) 1).

In this board | substrate bonding apparatus, when the gap between two board | substrates does not fall in the prescribed range, gap control is performed so that it may fall in the prescribed range based on the gap detection signal.

(Patent Document 1) Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2002-229471

As mentioned above, in the conventional board | substrate bonding apparatus, when joining two board | substrates through the sealing compound apply | coated in the frame shape, the space | interval between two board | substrates is measured by a distance measuring device, and it detects that the measured value fell in the prescribed range. When it did, it determined so that the upper and lower board | substrates were suitably bonded by the sealing compound, and it was comprised so that it might transition to gap formation by returning the subsequent chamber pressure to atmospheric pressure.

However, the larger the substrate, the longer the coating length of the sealing agent becomes, so it is not easy to accurately detect the gap between the two substrates within the prescribed range over the entire coating area of the sealing agent.

Moreover, in the conventional board | substrate bonding apparatus, in order to detect whether two board | substrates were bonded properly via the sealing compound, it is necessary to provide many distance measuring machines along the outer periphery of a bonded substrate, and the complexity of a structure is avoided. Could not.

Then, an object of this invention is to provide the board | substrate joining determination method which can determine correctly and timely whether two board | substrates were properly bonded through a sealing compound.

Moreover, this invention is the board | substrate joining which can determine correctly and timely with the simple structure whether the two board | substrates were properly bonded via the sealing compound, and can shorten the tact time in a bonding process by this. It is an object to provide an apparatus and a substrate bonding method.

According to a first aspect of the present invention, two opposing substrates are housed in a chamber capable of reducing pressure, the holding means of each substrate is moved relatively close to each other, and a sealing compound applied in at least one substrate in a frame shape is opened. In the substrate bonding apparatus which joins the said 2 board | substrate in a pressure-reduced atmosphere, the sensor which detects the pressure in the said chamber, and the sensor connected to the said sensor, based on the signal from the said sensor, of relative approach movement of the holding means And a controller for obtaining a stop timing, wherein the controller stops the relative approach movement of the holding means at the stop timing.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, there are provided a first holding means for holding one substrate, second holding means for holding the other substrate in an opposing state with the one substrate, and the first holding means and the second holding means. And a moving means for relatively moving the means, and a pressure-sensitive chamber for storing one substrate held by the first holding means and the other substrate held by the second holding means. A substrate joining apparatus for joining two substrates under a reduced pressure atmosphere through a sealing agent applied in a frame shape to at least one substrate by a relative approach movement between the first holding means and the second holding means, wherein the chamber And a sensor for detecting the internal pressure, and a controller connected to the sensor and controlling the moving means based on the signal from the sensor.

 According to a third aspect of the present invention, a bonding state when two substrates are disposed in a pressure-sensitive chamber and the two substrates are bonded under a reduced pressure atmosphere via a sealing agent applied in at least one substrate in a frame shape. A substrate joining determination method for determining a difference, characterized in that the transition of the pressure in the chamber is detected at least in the bonding process, and the determination is performed based on the detected transition.

4th aspect of this invention is a joining state when the two board | substrates are opposedly arrange | positioned in the chamber which can pressure-reduce, and the said two board | substrates were bonded under reduced pressure atmosphere via the sealing compound apply | coated to at least one board | substrate in frame shape. A substrate joining determination method for determining a thickness, wherein at least in the joining process, an inflection point occurs in the transition of the pressure in the chamber, so that the two substrates are judged to be properly bonded via the sealing agent. do.

According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, by placing two substrates in a chamber capable of depressurizing and narrowing the distance between both substrates, the two substrates are subjected to a reduced pressure atmosphere via a sealing agent applied to at least one substrate in a frame shape. In the substrate joining method of joining below, at least in the joining process, it is characterized by detecting a change in the pressure in the chamber and further narrowing the interval between the two substrates when the inflection point is not detected in the pressure change.

The board | substrate bonding apparatus, board | substrate joining determination method, and board | substrate joining method of this invention focus on what gas is discharge | released from a board | substrate, the sealing compound apply | coated to this board | substrate, etc., when bonding a board | substrate in a reduced pressure atmosphere.

When joining two substrates through a sealing compound applied in a frame shape, gas is released from the substrate surface exposed in the chamber, and the released gas is reduced so as to reduce the degree of vacuum in the chamber that forms a reduced pressure atmosphere by exhaust. Works.

However, in the joining of two substrates, when two substrates approach and are properly bonded through a sealing agent applied in a frame shape, thereafter, the generation of gas in the region surrounded by the sealing agent disappears or Since it becomes extremely small, the decrease in the degree of vacuum in the chamber due to the discharge gas stops or stalls.

That is, when observing the change in the pressure in the chamber, the two substrates are formed at the inflection point and the bent portion at the boundary of the time when the two substrates are properly bonded through the sealing agent. It can be determined whether or not it is properly bonded.

Therefore, since the board | substrate bonding apparatus and board | substrate bonding method of this invention provided the sensor which detects the pressure in a chamber, and the controller was comprised so that the bonding of two board | substrates can be controlled based on the signal from the sensor, two board | substrates are used. It is possible to determine accurately and timely with a simple configuration whether or not bonding is properly performed through this sealing agent, whereby the tact time in the bonding step can be shortened.

Moreover, since the board | substrate bonding determination method of this invention determines whether two board | substrates in a chamber were bonded properly via the sealing compound based on the signal from the pressure detection sensor in a chamber at least, bonding is appropriately performed. Whether or not it is performed, that is, the bonding state of the two substrates can be determined accurately and timely.

Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to FIGS. 1 to 4.

That is, FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing an embodiment of a substrate bonding apparatus according to the present invention.

The substrate bonding apparatus shown in FIG. 1 is employed in the manufacture of a liquid crystal display panel, and the upper stage 21 and the lower stage 22 face each other in the chamber 1 including the upper chamber 1A and the lower chamber 1B. It is arrange | positioned, and it is comprised so that the upper substrate 31 and the lower substrate 32 which are made of glass are hold | maintained by the electrostatic chuck etc. in this upper stage 21 and the lower stage 22, respectively. Here, the upper stage 21 constitutes a first holding means, and the lower stage 22 constitutes a second holding means.

Of the two substrates 31 and 32 facing each other, the liquid crystal 4 is dropped on the display surface of the lower substrate 32 in advance, and a spacer (not shown) is provided, and ultraviolet curing is performed so as to close and surround the display surface. The sealing compound 6 which consists of a member and has adhesiveness is apply | coated in frame shape.

The chamber 1 is provided with a vertical movement mechanism 8 incorporating a motor. This vertical movement mechanism 8 is connected to the controller 7 and enables the upper stage 21 to be moved up and down by the control of the controller 7.

Position recognition cameras 91 and 92 are disposed below the chamber 1. When the cameras 91 and 92 align the two substrates 31 and 32 in the chamber 1, the cameras 91 and 92 image an alignment mark applied to the upper and lower substrates 31 and 32, and the imaging is performed. It is configured to supply a signal to the controller 7. In Fig. 1, reference numerals 22a and 1a both indicate through-holes and light-transmitting glass windows provided in the lower stage 22 and the lower chamber 1B for alignment mark photographing, and the lower stage 22 is the lower side. The stage 22 is connected on the XY-θ moving mechanism 10 which is movable and adjustable in the horizontal direction.

In addition, the vacuum pump 11 is connected to the chamber 1 via the exhaust pipe 11a, and the opening / closing valve 11b provided in the exhaust pipe 11a is comprised so that opening and closing control by the controller 7 may be carried out.

In addition, the chamber 1 is provided with a pressure detector (sensor) 12 connected to the controller 7 to detect the pressure in the chamber 1, and inert gas such as nitrogen gas is supplied through the pipe 13a. The filled inert gas supply source 13 is connected, and the opening / closing valve 13b provided in the piping 13a is comprised so that opening and closing control by the controller 7 may be carried out.

The operation | movement of the board | substrate bonding apparatus of the said structure is demonstrated below.

First, the controller 7 opens and closes the opening / closing valve 11b to exhaust the inside of the chamber 1 in which the closing space is formed by the vacuuming by the vacuum pump 11, and the substrate inside the chamber 1 Control to reach a degree of vacuum at a pressure suitable for joining (31, 32).

By the way, the evacuation in the chamber 1 by the vacuum pump 11 reduces the pressure in the chamber 1 with the passage of time, and the degree of vacuum rises. However, as the high vacuum in the chamber 1 progresses, the chamber ( 1) Gas is discharged | emitted from the sealing compound 6 and the liquid crystal 4 which were dripped on the two board | substrates 31 and 32 and the lower board | substrate 32 arrange | positioned in the inside. In addition, in the following description, the gas discharged | emitted from a board | substrate, a sealing compound, a liquid crystal, etc. is named generically "gas from a board | substrate etc .."

The amount of gas discharged from the substrate or the like decreases the pressure in the chamber 1 while keeping the two substrates 31 and 32 dropped as shown in FIG. For example, a curve as indicated by the dashed-dotted line B in FIG. 2 is drawn.

On the other hand, the solid line A shown in FIG. 2 assumes that there is no gas discharge from the substrates 31, 32, etc., the controller 7 controls the opening / closing valve 11b to be opened, and the chamber 1 This is an example of the characteristic curve which shows the degree of vacuum in the chamber 1 with respect to the elapsed time T when vacuuming.

That is, the substrates 31 and 32 are actually disposed in the chamber 1, and in the chamber 1 to be evacuated, gas from the substrates 31 and 32 or the like is discharged (the dashed-dotted line in FIG. 2). Considering B)), the vacuum degree in the chamber 1 changes along the characteristic curve shown by the dashed-dotted line C in FIG.

By the way, in this embodiment, when the pressure reduction in the chamber 1 advances and the vacuum degree suitable for joining (for example, about 1 Pa) is reached, the upper stage 21 is moved by the drive control of the vertical movement mechanism 8. By lowering a predetermined amount, the upper and lower substrates 31 and 32 are brought close to each other, and the two substrates are aligned.

This alignment is performed by the controller 7 driving control of the XY-θ moving mechanism 10 based on the imaging signals supplied from the position recognition cameras 91 and 92, and the upper and lower substrates 31, 32) by controlling to perform the alignment between the two.

On the other hand, in this positioning step, the upper substrate 31 and the sealing agent 6 are in a state of not being in contact.

After aligning the upper substrate 31 and the lower substrate 32, the controller 7 controls the vertical movement mechanism 8 to further lower the upper stage 21, and the sealing agent 6 is interposed. Joining is performed.

In the whole area | region of the sealing compound 6 of frame shape by this joining, in the state which the sealing compound 6 contacted the lower surface of the upper board | substrate 31, the area | region enclosed by the sealing compound 6 (closed space) Since the pressure in the chamber 1 does not work, generation of gas from the upper and lower substrates 31 and 32 and the like in the area surrounded by the sealing agent 6 is eliminated or extremely small.

That is, when two board | substrates 31 and 32 are bonded together properly through the sealing compound 6, the gas into the chamber 1 from the closed space enclosed by the sealing compound 6 after the joining time point. Since it is not discharged, the degree of vacuum in the chamber 1 temporarily changes suddenly high.

The solid line D shown in FIG. 3 is an example of the characteristic curve which shows the change of the vacuum degree in the chamber 1 actually.

That is, in FIG. 3, the solid line D shows the alignment operation for joining in the vacuum atmosphere in the elapsed time T1 after the vacuum of the chamber 1 is started by the opening operation To of the opening-closing valve 11b. In this case, the elapsed time T2 indicates that the entire region of the applied sealing agent 6 has reached the point where the two substrates 31 and 32 are properly bonded by contacting the lower surface of the upper substrate 31. do.

At the boundary of the elapsed time T2, after that, the gas discharge from the upper and lower substrates 31 and 32 in the space surrounded by the sealant 6 disappears to the chamber 1, so that the degree of vacuum in the chamber 1 Temporarily rises rapidly, and as a result, the solid line D transitions to form an inflection point P near the elapsed time T2.

Accordingly, when the alignment of the two substrates 31 and 32 is completed, the controller 7 drives the vertical movement mechanism 8 to further lower the upper stage 21 holding the upper substrate 31. By introducing a signal from the pressure detector 12 and grasping the inflection point P of the pressure trend, the upper stage 21 is stopped immediately or at a time when the upper stage 21 is further lowered by a predetermined distance.

Here, the grasp method of the inflection point P is demonstrated. When the alignment of the two substrates 31 and 32 is completed, the controller 7 advances the pressure detection signal in the chamber 1 by the pressure detector 12 at each preset time interval Δt. The difference ΔL between the pressure detection value detected at the acquisition timing and the pressure detection value detected this time is obtained. Then, the time point at which the difference ΔL exceeds the preset reference value R is determined as the inflection point P. FIG.

When the controller 7 thus grasps the inflection point P based on the signal from the pressure detector 12, the stop timing of the upper stage 21 is obtained based on the grasped timing. The stop timing may be the stop timing at which the inflection point P is identified, or the stop timing at which the upper stage 21 is lowered by a predetermined distance from the time at which the inflection point is identified.

The controller 7 stops the lowering of the upper stage 21 by the vertical movement mechanism 8 at the stop timing thus obtained, and the joining is completed. On the other hand, in order to more accurately grasp the inflection point P from the pressure trend in the chamber 1, as shown in Fig. 1, the two substrates 31 and 32 at the time of aligning the pressure detector (sensor) 12. It is good to set it as close as possible to the position where it exists.

In addition, in this specification, after completion of the alignment of the two substrates 31 and 32, the process until completion of bonding is called a "bonding process."

In the gap forming process subsequent to the bonding process of the substrate, the controller 7 closes and controls the opening / closing valve 11b, releases the upper substrate 31 by the upper stage 21, and at the same time, the upper stage ( 21) to the home position. Then, the on / off valve 13b provided in the pipe 13a is closed-controlled, and inert gas such as nitrogen gas is supplied into the chamber 1 from the inert gas supply source 13, and the upper chamber 1A is opened in the state of reaching atmospheric pressure. It raises, the chamber 1 is opened, and the two board | substrates 31 and 32 which were joined were carried out.

In addition, when returning the inside of the chamber 1 to atmospheric pressure, between the joined board | substrates 31 and 32 is pressed by receiving the pressure difference inside and outside, and the predetermined cell gap (space | interval) is formed through a spacer.

Both substrates 31 and 32 having finished the above-described substrate bonding and filling the liquid crystal 4 on the display surface to form a cell gap are subjected to a sealant curing step so as to cure the sealing agent 6 by ultraviolet irradiation. Is returned.

As mentioned above, although the operation | movement of the board | substrate bonding apparatus of this embodiment shown in FIG. 1 was demonstrated, the procedure of a board | substrate bonding method is further demonstrated with reference to the flowchart shown in FIG.

That is, the stages 21 and 22 facing each other in the chamber 1 first hold the supplied substrates 31 and 32 by an electrostatic chuck or the like (step 4a).

Next, the controller 7 reduces the pressure in the chamber 1 by vacuuming to form a high vacuum atmosphere, and simultaneously controls the vertical movement mechanism 8 to lower the upper stage 21 by a predetermined amount. The upper substrate 31 is brought close to the lower substrate 32 (step 4b). At this time, the upper substrate 31 and the sealing agent 6 do not come into contact with each other.

The controller 7 controls to drive the XY-θ moving mechanism 10 to perform alignment between the upper and lower substrates 31 and 32 based on the image pickup signals from the position recognition cameras 91 and 92. (Step 4c).

Subsequently, the controller 7 receives the supply of the pressure data in the chamber 1 from the pressure detector (sensor) 12 and simultaneously drives the vertical movement mechanism 8 to lower the upper stage 21 gradually. The upper substrate 31 is slowly lowered (step 4d).

At this time, the controller 7 which has received the supply of the pressure data in the chamber 1 from the pressure detector 12, for each preset time interval Δt, the pressure detected value detected at the previous acquisition timing and the pressure detected this time. The difference [Delta] L of the detected values is obtained sequentially (step 4e).

Next, the process proceeds to step 4f to determine whether or not the difference ΔL has exceeded the preset reference value R.

In step 4f, when it is determined that the difference ΔL has exceeded the preset reference value R (YES), the controller 7 obtains the falling stop timing of the upper stage 21, and the upper stage 21 at that timing. At the same time, the drop of) is stopped, and the adsorption holding to the upper substrate 31 of the upper stage 21 is released, and then the upper stage 21 is lifted back. In addition, the on-off valve 11b is closed-controlled and the on-off valve 13b is opened-controlled to supply an inert gas such as nitrogen gas into the chamber 1 to return to atmospheric pressure, and subsequently raise the upper chamber 1A to raise the chamber ( 1) The inside is opened, and the bonded substrate is carried out from the inside of the chamber 1, and it returns to the next process, for example, the sealing compound hardening process by ultraviolet irradiation (step 4g), and completes.

In addition, when it is determined in step 4f that the difference ΔL does not exceed the preset value R (NO), the process returns to step 4e and the upper stage 21 by driving the vertical movement mechanism 8 is continued. Descent continues.

As explained above, according to the board | substrate bonding apparatus of this embodiment, the whole sealing compound is detected by detecting the change of the pressure in a chamber in the bonding process by the pressure detector (sensor) 12 which detects the pressure in the chamber 1. The inflection point P formed by the large change in the pressure in the chamber is detected at the point of contact with the substrate over the entire region, that is, the time when the two substrates 31 and 32 are properly bonded. Since the bonding of the two substrates is controlled based on the detection result, it is possible to accurately and timely determine whether the two substrates are properly bonded through the sealing agent, thereby making the upper substrate more than necessary. It is possible to prevent the pressing of the 31 against the sealing compound 6, shorten the processing time required for bonding the substrates 31 and 32, and shorten the tact time and enable efficient bonding.

In addition, since the time point at which the sealing compound 6 is in contact with the upper substrate 31 over the entire area is performed by detecting the change in the pressure in the chamber 1, the quality of the simple configuration of the addition of the pressure detector 12 is further increased. There is an advantage in that this good liquid crystal display panel can be efficiently produced.

In addition, as described above, since it is possible to prevent the upper stage 21 from falling more than necessary at the time of bonding, the falling distance (stroke length) of the upper stage 21 at the time of bonding can be suppressed to the minimum necessary. Can be. Thereby, the position shift with respect to the lower board | substrate 32 of the upper board | substrate 31 which may arise due to the lowering of the upper stage 21 can be prevented as much as possible, and the joining precision of the upper and lower board | substrates 31 and 32 can be prevented. Can be improved.

Moreover, since the two board | substrates 31 and 32 detect the time point where the bonding was appropriately performed through the sealing agent 6 based on the pressure change in the chamber 1, for example, the sealing compound apply | coated on the lower board | substrate 32 Even when there is a deviation in the height of (6), the timing at which the entire region of the sealing agent 6 contacts the upper substrate 31 can be reliably detected. Therefore, it is possible to prevent bubbles from mixing into the region (in the display region) surrounded by the sealing agent 6 due to the presence of the non-contact portion of the sealing agent 6 and the upper substrate 31, thereby improving the quality. It becomes possible to manufacture a good liquid crystal display panel.

In addition, in the above-mentioned embodiment, when detecting the inflection point P in the transition of the pressure in the chamber 1, the difference (ΔL) between the pressure detection value detected at the previous acquisition timing and the pressure detection value detected at this acquisition timing. ), But the present invention is not limited thereto. For example, the inflection point P is detected by comparing the pressure detection value detected at the current acquisition timing with the pressure characteristic curve previously stored in the storage unit or the like. You may also

This is, for example, a chamber in which the pressure in the chamber 1 is lowered while maintaining the data of the characteristic curve C shown in FIG. 2, that is, the two substrates 31 and 32 in the state shown in FIG. 1. The pressure characteristic curve, which is the relationship between the internal pressure and the passage of time, is obtained in advance by an experiment or the like and stored in the storage unit. When the substrate is actually bonded, the pressure in the chamber is detected at a predetermined time interval using a pressure detector, and the detected pressure value is compared with the pressure value at the corresponding time timing in the stored pressure characteristic curve. do. As a result of the comparison, the point in time at which the difference between them becomes larger than the preset reference value is determined as the inflection point P. FIG.

In the above embodiment, after the two substrates 31 and 32 are aligned, the lowering of the upper stage 21 is stopped or the inflection point P is detected after the inflection point P is detected. Furthermore, it was comprised so that it may stop on the point which dropped predetermined distance. However, in the case where the lowering distance of the upper stage 21 after the alignment is set in advance, and the upper stage 21 is lowered and joined by this set distance, the inflection point (when lowering the upper stage 21 by this set distance) Depending on whether or not P) is detected, the controller 1 may determine whether the joining is performed properly. In this case, when the inflection point P is not detected, it is determined that proper bonding is not performed, and when the inflection point P is detected, it is determined that proper bonding is performed. In the case where the inflection point P is not detected, the notification device such as an indicator, a buzzer, or the like separately installed may be operated, or the inflection point P as in the previous embodiment, which further lowers the upper stage 21 only by a predetermined amount. The gap between the two substrates may be further narrowed in such a manner that the lowering of the upper stage 21 is continued until) is detected.

Moreover, in the case of the structure which lowers the upper stage 21 by static pressure by the up-down movement mechanism 8, it becomes difficult to spread by the viscosity change of the liquid crystal or sealing agent arrange | positioned between two board | substrates, While lowering the upper stage 21 by the distance set by the moving mechanism 8, the lowering force of the upper stage 21 by the up and down moving mechanism 8 is disturbed by the liquid crystal and the sealing agent which are difficult to spread, and the upper side 21 is lowered. After the board | substrate 31 contacts these sealing agents and a liquid crystal, it may become impossible to descend | fall. In this case, the elapsed time after the start of the joining process is measured, and when the inflection point P is not detected even after a predetermined time elapses, the driving torque of the vertical movement mechanism 8 is controlled to increase the descending force. You can do that. By doing in this way, even if there exist a fluctuation | variation of the viscosity of a liquid crystal or a sealing compound, the processing time required for adhesion can be prevented from increasing unsuitably, and efficient adhesion can be performed. When the inflection point P is detected due to the increase in the lowering force, a stop timing is obtained based on the detection signal, and when the downward movement of the vertical movement mechanism 8 is stopped at that timing, a pressing force equal to or greater than the pressing force set on the two substrates to be joined is obtained. This can be prevented from being applied, and the substrate can be protected from damage such as damage caused by improperly applying a large pressing force to the substrate.

In addition, the example in which the upper substrate and the lower substrate are aligned while the upper substrate is in close proximity to the sealing agent or liquid crystal on the lower substrate is described. When the height of the liquid crystal is higher than the height of the sealing agent, the upper substrate is brought into contact with the liquid crystal. The upper substrate and the lower substrate may be aligned in the state.

In addition, the time interval for acquiring the pressure detection signal of the pressure detector is, when the sealing agent on the lower substrate is in contact with the upper substrate 31 over the entire area, the degree of vacuum in the chamber rises firstly, and the time length required for this increase. It is preferable to set longer than.

In addition, when joining two board | substrates 31 and 32, although the upper stage 21 which hold | maintains the upper board | substrate 31 was made to descend | fall, you may raise the lower stage 22 side.

In addition, although the pressure detector (sensor) 12 was used to detect the change of the pressure in the chamber in the bonding process, it may be detected from the time when vacuuming in the chamber is started.

In addition, the sealing compound may be applied to any one of the upper and lower substrates.

In addition, the upper and lower chambers were closed to form a hermetically sealed chamber, and the vacuuming by the vacuum pump was continued until the two substrates 31 and 32 were properly bonded in this chamber. Alternatively, the present invention is also applicable to the case where the vacuuming by the vacuum pump is stopped when the degree of vacuum higher than the degree of vacuum required for bonding is reached.

In this case, for example, referring to FIG. 3, the vacuuming by the vacuum pump is stopped at the elapsed time T1. After stopping the vacuum by the vacuum pump, the pressure in the chamber gradually rises by the release of the gas from the substrate or the like. And since the discharge | emission of a gas from a board | substrate etc. disappears at the time (the elapsed time T2) when the upper board | substrate 31 and the lower board | substrate 32 were bonded together through the sealing compound, the chamber is near this elapsed time T2. The rise in the pressure is stopped or relaxed. Therefore, when the change of the pressure in a chamber is observed, a bend part arises in the vicinity of elapsed time T2. Therefore, in the same manner as in the detection of the inflection point P in the above-described embodiment, the bent portion may be detected to obtain the stop timing of the upper stage 21.

Moreover, although it demonstrated that the liquid crystal was interposed between two board | substrates as an application example to a liquid crystal display panel, this invention is applicable also to simply bonding two board | substrates through a sealing compound.

In addition, in the above-mentioned embodiment, the case where the present invention is applied to the manufacture of the liquid crystal display panel is described, and the sealing agent 6 applied to the lower substrate 32 is in contact with the upper substrate 31 over the entire area. It was assumed that two substrates were appropriately bonded through a sealing agent. In a liquid crystal display panel, since bubble mixing to a panel display area is very reluctant, it is necessary for the sealing compound 6 to contact the upper board | substrate 31 over the whole area | region, and to have no non-contact part. However, when simply bonding two board | substrates other than for liquid crystal display panels via a sealing compound, adequacy degree differs naturally according to the board | substrate to be bonded as the symmetric material, for example, the contact state set in advance is permissible. If it is in a range, it is applicable even if it is considered appropriate.

Therefore, the board | substrate bonding apparatus and board | substrate bonding determination method which concern on a present Example can be employ | adopted for manufacture of a liquid crystal display panel, for example, and a high quality liquid crystal display panel can be manufactured efficiently.

This configuration provides a substrate bonding determination method capable of accurately and timely determining whether two substrates are properly bonded through a sealing agent. Moreover, the board | substrate joining apparatus and board | substrate bonding which can determine correctly and timely with a simple structure whether the two board | substrates were properly bonded via the sealing compound, and can shorten the tact time in a bonding process by this. A method is provided.

Claims (5)

The two substrates arranged oppositely are accommodated in a pressure sensitive chamber, and the holding means of each board | substrate is moved relatively, and the said two board | substrates are carried out in a reduced pressure atmosphere via the sealing compound apply | coated to at least one board | substrate in frame shape. In the substrate bonding apparatus to bond, A sensor for detecting pressure in the chamber; And a controller connected to the sensor to obtain a stop timing of relative approach movement of the holding means, based on a signal from the sensor, And the controller stops the relative movement of the holding means at the stop timing. A first holding means for holding one substrate, a second holding means for holding the other substrate in an opposing state with the one substrate, and a movement for relatively moving the first holding means and the second holding means. Means and a pressure-sensitive chamber for accommodating one substrate held by said first holding means and the other substrate held by said second holding means, said first holding means and second holding means by said moving means. In the board | substrate bonding apparatus which bonds the said 2 board | substrates under reduced pressure atmosphere via the sealing compound apply | coated in at least one board | substrate to frame shape by the relative movement of a means, A sensor for detecting pressure in the chamber; And a controller connected to the sensor and controlling the moving means based on a signal from the sensor. In the board | substrate joining determination method which arrange | positions two board | substrates in the chamber which can pressure-reduce, and bonds the said two board | substrates together in a reduced pressure atmosphere via the sealing compound apply | coated in at least one board | substrate in a frame shape. In The substrate bonding determination method according to claim 12, wherein the transition of the pressure in the chamber is detected at least in the bonding process, and the determination is performed based on the detected transition. In the board | substrate joining determination method which arrange | positions two board | substrates in the chamber which can pressure-reduce, and bonds the said two board | substrates together in a reduced pressure atmosphere via the sealing compound apply | coated in at least one board | substrate in a frame shape. In At least in the bonding process, an inflection point occurs in the change of the pressure in said chamber, and it determines with the said two board | substrate having been suitably bonded through the said sealing agent. In a substrate bonding method in which two substrates are opposed to each other in a chamber that can be depressurized, and the two substrates are narrowed, and the two substrates are bonded under a reduced pressure atmosphere through a sealing agent applied to at least one substrate in a frame shape. , And at least in the bonding process, detecting the change in the pressure in the chamber, and narrowing the distance between the two substrates further when the inflection point is not detected by the pressure change.

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