KR20070015343A - Vacuum/exhaust and getter tube - Google Patents

Abstract

A vacuum/exhaust and a getter tube are provided to simplify a tip-off process by forming an integrated structure of a conventional vacuum/exhaust tube and a conventional getter tube. A tube includes a top open part and a bottom open part. A getter(27) is inserted into the tube. The tube includes a first tube, a second tube, and a first neck part. The first tube includes a top open part and a bottom open part. The second tube includes a top open part and a bottom open part. The getter is inserted into the second tube. The first neck part is formed between the first and second tubes. The width of the first neck is narrower than the width of the first tube and the width of the second tube. A flow path is formed between the first and second tubes.

Description

Vacuum / Exhaust and Getter Tubes {Vacuum / Exhaust and Getter Tube}

1 is a cross-sectional view showing a conventional surface light emitting lamp, vacuum / exhaust pipe and getter tube.

Figure 2 is a cross-sectional view showing a surface light emitting lamp, vacuum / exhaust and getter tube according to an embodiment of the present invention.

3 is a perspective view showing in detail the structure of the vacuum / exhaust and getter tube by partially cutting the vacuum / exhaust and getter tube shown in FIG.

<Description of Symbols for Main Parts of Drawings>

11, 21: front glass substrate 12, 22: rear glass substrate

13, 23: electrode 14, 24: partition wall

15, 25: phosphor 16: vacuum / exhaust pipe

17: getter tube 18, 27: getter

19, 28: plasma discharge channel 26: vacuum / exhaust and getter tube

The present invention relates to a vacuum / exhaust and getter tube which is intended to prevent the problem of tip-off difficulties resulting from separating the exhaust and getter tubes, respectively.

Cold Cathode Fluorescent Lamp (CCFL) is mainly used as a lamp used in various lighting devices and display devices. The cold cathode light emitting lamp has an internal electrode lamp in which electrodes are installed in a glass tube sealed with discharge gas and vaporized mercury according to the electrode installation position, and a phosphor is formed on the inner surface of the glass tube, and electrodes are installed outside the glass tube and inside the glass tube. It is divided into external electrode lamps in which phosphors are formed on the surface.

When a high voltage AC signal is applied to the internal electrodes of the internal electrode lamp, an electric field is applied between the electrodes to generate a plasma discharge, and the generated electrons excite mercury to generate ultraviolet rays. The phosphor is excited and transitioned by the ultraviolet rays to generate visible light.

On the other hand, when a high voltage AC signal is applied to the external electrodes of the external electrode lamp, plasma discharge is generated between both electrodes in the glass tube to generate electrons, and mercury is excited by the electrons to emit phosphors. The external electrode lamp has a merit that the wall charge is formed on the surface of the glass tube near the electrode in the glass tube by the plasma discharge, and the plasma discharge is generated at a relatively low voltage by using the wall charge. Since it is very small, there is an advantage that a plurality of external electrode lamps can be driven by one inverter.

On the other hand, the liquid crystal display device displays an image by adjusting the light transmittance of the liquid crystal cells according to the video signal. In an active matrix type liquid crystal display, switching elements are formed in each liquid crystal cell, which is advantageous for displaying a moving image. As the switching device, a thin film transistor (hereinafter referred to as "TFT") is mainly used.

Since the LCD is not a self-light emitting device, a separate backlight unit is required. As the backlight unit of the liquid crystal display, an edge-linght method for converting light of a lamp installed at one end into a surface light source using a light guide plate and irradiating the liquid crystal display panel, There is a direct light method for irradiating light to the liquid crystal panel using lamps.

Recently, research and development of surface emitting lamps having high luminous efficiency, luminous brightness, and uniformity of luminance are being actively conducted compared to existing edge light or direct-light methods.

As shown in FIG. 1, the surface emitting lamp includes the front glass substrate 11 having the exhaust hole 11a and the mercury injection hole 11b formed therebetween, the partition 14, and the plasma discharge channel 19 interposed therebetween. A rear glass substrate 12 which is sealed with a plurality of electrodes 13, a plurality of electrodes 13 formed on the rear glass substrate 12, and a partition 14 and glass substrates 11 and 12 in the plasma discharge channel 19. Phosphor 15 formed on the surface of the substrate.

In the vacuum / exhaust process of the surface light emitting lamp, the vacuum / exhaust pipe 16 is attached to the exhaust hole 11a with a sealant, and then the air in the plasma discharge channels 19 is exhausted to the outside by a vacuum pump. In the discharge gas injection process, the discharge gas including the inert gas is injected into the plasma discharge channels 19 through the vacuum / exhaust pipe 16.

In the mercury injection process of the surface emitting lamp, the getter tube 17 into which the getter 18 is inserted is attached to the mercury injection hole 11b with a sealant, and then an inductor is installed near the getter tube 17 and an alternating current is applied to the inductor. Mercury is injected into the plasma discharge channels 19 by applying an induced current to the getter 18 in the getter tube 17 to activate the getter 18.

After completing the vacuum / exhaust process, the discharge gas injection process and the mercury injection process, a tip-off for drawing the exhaust pipe 16 from the exhaust hole 11a and separating the gate tube 17 from the mercury injection hole 11b. After the off process is carried out, a process of finally sealing the exhaust hole 11a and the mercury injection hole 11b is performed.

By the way, the conventional manufacturing process of the surface light emitting lamp is cumbersome to separate the exhaust pipe 16 and the getter tube 17 in the tip-off process, and the exhaust hole 11a and the mercury injection hole 11b after the tip-off process ), There is a problem in that the need to seal each. In addition, the conventional surface light emitting lamp has a low luminance uniformity because the luminance is lower than that of the other effective light emitting surface near the exhaust hole 11a and the mercury injection hole 11b.

It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a vacuum / exhaust and getter tube which simplifies the tip-off process of the surface emitting lamp and increases the luminance uniformity.

In order to achieve the above object, the vacuum / exhaust and getter tube according to the present invention is the tube top and bottom open; And a getter inserted into the tube.

The tube may include a first tube having an upper end and an lower end; A second tube into which the getter is inserted and the upper and lower ends are opened; And a first neck portion formed between the first and second tubes to be narrower than the first and second tubes and providing a flow path between the first and second tubes.

The vacuum / exhaust and getter tubes further include a second neck portion formed at a lower end of the second tube than the second tube and providing a flow path between the second tube and the plasma discharge channel in the surface light emitting lamp.

The inner diameters of the first and second neck portions are smaller than the diameter of the getter.

Other objects and advantages of the present invention in addition to the above object will become apparent from the description of the preferred embodiment of the present invention with reference to the accompanying drawings.

Hereinafter, exemplary embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. 2 and 3.

2 and 3, a surface light emitting lamp according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention includes a front glass substrate 21, a partition wall 24, and a plasma discharge channel 28 having an exhaust / mercury injection hole 21a formed therebetween. The rear glass substrate 22, which is sealed with the front glass substrate 21, the plurality of electrodes 23 formed on the rear glass substrate 22, and the partition wall 24 and the glass in the plasma discharge channel 28. The phosphor 25 is formed on the surfaces of the substrates 21 and 22.

The partition 24 is formed with a hole for forming a flow path so that gas can move between the plasma discharge channels 28.

The vacuum / exhaust process of the surface light emitting lamp is performed by adhering the vacuum / exhaust and getter tube 26 into which the getter 27 is inserted into the exhaust / mercury injection hole 21a with a sealant, and then vacuum / exhaust and getter tube 26. Through the vacuum pump to exhaust the air in the plasma discharge channels 28 to the outside. In the discharge gas injection process, the discharge gas including the inert gas is injected into the plasma discharge channels 28 through the vacuum / exhaust and getter tubes 26. Subsequently, an inductor is installed near the vacuum / exhaust and getter pipes 26, and an alternating current is applied to the inductor so that an induction current is applied to the getters 27 in the vacuum / exhaust and getter pipes 26 so that the getter 27 Mercury is injected into the plasma discharge channels 28 by activating.

After the vacuum / exhaust process, the discharge gas injection process, and the mercury injection process are completed using the vacuum / exhaust and getter pipes 26, the vacuum / exhaust and getter pipes 26 are separated from the exhaust / mercury injection holes 21a. After the tip-off process is performed, a process of finally sealing the exhaust / mercury injection hole 21a is performed.

As a result, the manufacturing process of the surface emitting lamp according to the present invention simplifies the tip-off process since only one vacuum / exhaust and getter tube 26 is separated in the tip-off process, and one hole in the substrate 11 is provided. Since only 21a is formed, the luminance and the uniformity of the luminance can be increased.

The surface emitting lamp according to the present invention can be used as a light source of a non-light emitting device such as a general lighting device or a liquid crystal display device.

3 is a perspective view of the vacuum / exhaust and getter tube 26.

2 and 3, the vacuum / exhaust and getter tube 26 includes first and second glass tubes 26a and 26c connected between the first neck portion 26b and a second glass tube 26c. And a getter 27 inserted therein.

The first glass tube 26a is a cylindrical glass tube whose upper and lower ends are open to form a flow path between the outside and the plasma discharge channels 28 in the vacuum / exhaust process and the discharge gas injection process. The lower end of this first glass tube 26a is narrowly formed into an inner diameter smaller than the diameter of the getter 27.

The second glass tube 26c is a cylindrical glass tube having an inner diameter larger than the diameter of the getter 27 and opened at the top and bottom thereof, and a flow path between the outside and the plasma discharge channels 28 in the vacuum / exhaust process and the discharge gas injection process. And a flow path for allowing mercury from the getter 27 to be injected into the plasma discharge channel 28 upon activation of the getter 27. Each of the upper end and the lower end of the second glass tube 26c is narrowly formed into an inner diameter smaller than the diameter of the getter 27.

The first neck portion 26b connects the first and second glass tubes 26a and 26c, forms a flow path therebetween, and serves to restrain the getter 27 in the second glass tube 26c. The first neck portion 26b includes a lower end of the first glass tube 26a and an upper end of the second glass tube 26b, each having an inner diameter narrower than the diameter of the getter 27.

The second neck portion 26d corresponds to the lower end portion of the second glass tube 26c having an inner diameter smaller than the diameter of the getter 27 and passes through the second glass tube 26c and the plasma via the exhaust / mercury injection hole 21a. It forms a flow path between the discharge channels 28 and serves to restrain the getter 27 in the second glass tube 26c. The second neck portion 26b is adhered to the front glass substrate 21 near the exhaust / mercury injection hole 21a with a sealant.

As described above, the vacuum / exhaust and getter tubes according to the present invention simplify the tip-off process by integrating the existing vacuum / exhaust tubes and getter tubes into one tube, and the brightness of the surface emitting lamp and the uniformity of the luminance. Can increase.

Those skilled in the art will appreciate that various changes and modifications can be made without departing from the technical spirit of the present invention. Therefore, the technical scope of the present invention should not be limited to the contents described in the detailed description of the specification but should be defined by the claims.

Claims (4)

A tube having an upper end and an lower end; And a getter inserted into the tube. The method of claim 1, The tube, A first tube having an upper end and a lower end opened; A second tube into which the getter is inserted and the upper and lower ends are opened; And a first neck portion formed between the first and second tubes to be narrower than the first and second tubes and providing a flow path between the first and second tubes. The method of claim 2, And a second neck formed at a lower end of the second tube to be narrower than the second tube and providing a flow path between the second tube and the plasma discharge channel in the surface light emitting lamp. tube. The method of claim 3, wherein The inner diameter of the first and second neck portion is smaller than the diameter of the getter, vacuum / exhaust and getter tube.

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