KR20070064548A - Application apparatus having cleaning mechanism, method for cleaning application apparatus and cleaning mechanism for use in application apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

An application apparatus (1) which comprises a cleaning mechanism (3) having a piping (12 to 14) in which an application fluid flows, a die head (9) provided in the piping (12 to 14) and a plurality of solvent tanks (22a to 22d) for storing solvents of types different from one another. The cleaning mechanism (3) supplies solvents stored in the above solvent tanks (22a to 22d) to the above piping (12 to 14), in such a manner that a solvent compatible with the above application fluid is first supplied and then it is gradually changed to a solvent having a higher detergency, to thereby clean the inside of the piping (12 to 14) and the inside (9a, 9b) of the die head (9).

Description

A coating apparatus having a cleaning mechanism, a cleaning method for the coating apparatus, and a cleaning apparatus to be used for the coating apparatus TECHNICAL FIELD

TECHNICAL FIELD This invention relates to the coating apparatus which has a washing | cleaning mechanism which wash | cleans the piping and die-head through which a coating liquid flows, and the washing | cleaning method which washes this coating apparatus. Moreover, this invention relates to the washing | cleaning mechanism which supplies a washing | cleaning solvent to this coating apparatus, when cleaning a coating apparatus.

In the case of coating using a conventional coating apparatus, various kinds of gravure coat, roll coat, slide coat, curtain coat, extrusion coat, etc. The method is used depending on the application. The extrusion coat, the curtain coat, and the slide coat can perform high-speed coating of relatively stable quality at high speed.

In the case of coating by these methods, a die head having a slit nozzle is used. The die head is connected to a storage tank in which a coating liquid is stored through a pipe. In the middle of the pipe, a pump for discharging the coating liquid toward the die head and a filter for filtering the coating liquid are provided. As the piping for the coating device, for example, a pipe made of resin, a pipe made of stainless steel, or a pipe made of metal having a resin-coated inner surface thereof is used.

When the viscosity of the coating liquid is changed or the coating liquid is changed to a new one, it is necessary to clean the die head or the inside of the pipe. In particular, in order to achieve uniformity in the width direction of the coating amount, it is necessary to clean and adjust complicated structural parts such as the open end of the slit nozzle and a manifold. In addition to these, piping for guiding the coating liquid stored in the storage tank to the die head is often wired through a complicated path while having a small inner diameter. Therefore, the cleaning work of the die head and the piping is performed carefully for a long time.

When the coating liquid is replaced or periodically cleaned, a method of removing the coating liquid and then cleaning the inside of the pipe with a solvent has been adopted. As another example, a method of exchanging a coating liquid by extrusion of a used coating liquid by a pressure feed using a coating liquid to be used next is known. In this case, the cleaning solvent or the next coating liquid is discharged in an appropriate amount depending on the volume inside the pipe, so that liquid replacement is performed. In addition, parts having a complicated structure such as the inside of the die head are dismantled by human hands every time, and cleaning by hand is performed.

In recent years, however, it is particularly desirable to shorten the replacement time of the coating liquid according to the diversification of the coating liquid. However, as mentioned above, since the inside of a piping and the inside of a die head are clean | cleaned, it requires a long time for replacement of a coating liquid. In addition, during the cleaning, solvent-shock occurs mainly due to mixing of different coating liquids or compatibility of the coating liquid and the solvent for cleaning. Solvent shock refers to a phenomenon in which coating liquid trash such as condensate or gel water due to the coating liquid by a cleaning solvent occurs.

As described above, various designs have been made to solve the problem of cleaning in the related art. For example, Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 7-132267 discloses a cleaning method capable of easily and efficiently cleaning the interior of an application head (so-called die head) having a slit nozzle.

Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication No. 2003-10767 discloses a slit nozzle cleaning method and a cleaning mechanism capable of completely removing the solidified coating liquid remaining at the end of the slit nozzle of the die head without causing a decrease in work efficiency.

Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 9-85153 discloses a die-coater paint cleaning apparatus using a pig, a mass of metal, for pipe cleaning. In this apparatus, the pigment is moved by the compressed gas to move the inner wall of the pipe to extrude the paint. As a result, paint loss during pipe cleaning is reduced, and cleaning is efficiently performed in a short time with a small amount of cleaning solvent.

In addition, Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 63-256163 discloses a cleaning method of an inner wall of a paint conveying pipe that performs flushing-processing. In this method, when cleaning the inner wall of the pipe, the inner wall of the pipe is first treated with a paint remover, and then treated with an acid, and then flushed. Then, the number substitution process is further executed.

In the method disclosed in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 7-132267, the cleaning liquid is supplied into the coating head from a coating liquid supply pipe connected to the coating head in cleaning the inside of the slit head. At the same time, the cleaning liquid is "bubble flow" by blowing an inert gas such as nitrogen gas or argon gas into the cleaning liquid passing through the coating liquid supply pipe. By this bubble, the agitation effect increases, and the residual coating liquid adhering to a micro clearance etc. can be wash | cleaned. However, there is a problem that solvent shock occurs when a cleaning liquid having poor compatibility with the coating liquid is used.

The method disclosed in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2003-10767 is to dry-remove the remaining cleaning liquid by injecting air from the injection port of the cleaning nozzle at the end of the slit nozzle. In this method, it is difficult to clean inside the pipe, inside the manifold of the die head, or inside the slit nozzle.

According to Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 9-85153, it is described that the paint is cleaned by moving the inner wall of the pipe with the compressed gas. However, as described above, if the pipe is a resin pipe or a pipe made of a metal coated with a fluorine resin or a silicone resin on its inner surface, the coating surface may be damaged by the pig or irregularities may occur on the resin surface. There is a problem that the coating solution is more easily attached. In addition, when the slit width (slit-gap) of the slit nozzle is narrow, there is a problem that the pig is clogged in the slit portion. The device is not suitable for internal cleaning of the die head.

According to Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 63-256163, the inner wall of a pipe is treated with a paint remover when cleaning the inner wall of the paint conveying pipe. Subsequently, after processing the piping inner wall using acid, the flushing process is performed and the piping inner wall is wash | cleaned again by the water substitution process.

However, depending on the paint, the compatibility between the paint remover used as the treatment agent first and the solvent used for the paint to be cleaned may be poor. In this case, occurrence of solvent shock cannot be avoided. In addition, since the water substitution process is finally performed, there is a problem that it takes time for drying and the like.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is to obtain a coating apparatus, a cleaning method for a coating apparatus, and a cleaning apparatus for use in a coating apparatus, which can suppress generation of solvent shock and can perform a good cleaning with a small dispersion of cleaning in a short time.

In order to achieve the above object, a coating apparatus of one embodiment of the present invention includes a pipe through which a coating liquid flows, a die head provided in the pipe, and a plurality of solvent tanks storing different types of solvents. And the solvent stored in the solvent tank is sequentially supplied from the solvent having high compatibility with the coating liquid to the solvent having higher cleaning ability than the solvent (that is, the solvent having low compatibility with the coating liquid). Thus, a cleaning mechanism for cleaning the inside of the pipe and the inside of the die head is provided.

A cleaning method according to one aspect of the present invention is a cleaning method for cleaning a coating apparatus including a pipe through which a coating liquid flows and a die head provided in the piping, wherein the plurality of solvent tanks connected to the piping are different from each other. The solvent is stored, and the solvent stored in the solvent tank is changed from a solvent having high compatibility with the coating liquid to a solvent having higher cleaning ability than the solvent (that is, a solvent having low compatibility with the coating liquid). It is characterized in that the inside of the pipe and the inside of the die head is cleaned by supplying the.

Moreover, the washing | cleaning mechanism which concerns on one form of this invention is a washing | cleaning mechanism used for the coating apparatus which has a piping through which a coating liquid flows, and the die head provided in the said piping, A plurality of solvent tanks which store different kinds of solvents, And supplying the solvent stored in the solvent tank from the solvent having high compatibility with the coating liquid to the solvent having higher cleaning ability than the solvent (that is, the solvent having low compatibility with the coating liquid). It is characterized by including the solvent supply pipe.

According to these aspects, the cleaning operation is performed while sequentially changing from a solvent having high compatibility with the coating solution to a solvent having high cleaning performance (that is, a solvent having low compatibility with the coating solution). Therefore, generation | occurrence | production of a solvent shock can be suppressed and favorable washing | cleaning with little washing | cleaning nonuniformity with a small amount of solvent can be performed in a short time.

According to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the cleaning mechanism includes a drying unit for drying the inside of the pipe washed with the solvent and the inside of the die head. According to such a structure, since the cleaned place is dried, the new coating liquid used after washing does not mix with the cleaning solvent. Therefore, generation of solvent shock can be suppressed more reliably.

In one form of this invention, it is preferable to further comprise the flowmeter which measures the flow volume of the solvent which flows in a washing | cleaning mechanism, and the flow control valve which controls the flow volume of the solvent which flows in a washing | cleaning mechanism based on this measurement result. . According to such a structure, a piping and a die head can be wash | cleaned favorably using a small amount of solvent.

In one form of this invention, it is preferable to provide a solvent tank on the load cell which measures the weight of the solvent stored by this solvent tank. According to such a structure, the flow volume of a solvent can be monitored using a load cell. Therefore, piping and a die head can be efficiently cleaned using a small amount of solvent. A coating liquid means what consists of an organic solvent and a pigment here. The pigment particles are in a dispersed state in an organic solvent. And "high compatibility with coating liquid" means that it is easy to mix with a coating liquid, without destroying the dispersion state of the pigment in a coating liquid. In addition, "high washing | cleaning" means that the solubility is strong enough to destroy the dispersion | distribution state of the pigment in a coating liquid, and the effect which removes the pigment adhered to a wall surface is high.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS It is a figure which shows the washing | cleaning time of the coating apparatus which has a washing | cleaning mechanism which concerns on one Embodiment of this invention.

It is a schematic diagram which shows the coating time of the coating apparatus which has a washing | cleaning mechanism shown in FIG.

3 is a front view of the die head embedded in the coating apparatus having the cleaning mechanism shown in FIG. 1.

4 is a cross-sectional view of the die head along line F4-F4 of FIG.

It is a schematic diagram which shows the washing | cleaning time of the coating apparatus which has a washing | cleaning mechanism shown in FIG.

EMBODIMENT OF THE INVENTION Hereinafter, embodiment of this invention is described with reference to drawings.

1 to 5 disclose a coating system 1 according to one embodiment of the present invention. This coating system 1 is suitable for coating of members requiring high precision and high precision coating, such as color filters, liquid crystal materials, thermal recording materials, and transdermal absorbent preparations, for example.

As shown in FIG. 2, the coating system 1 is equipped with the coating apparatus 2 and the washing | cleaning mechanism 3. As shown in FIG. The washing | cleaning mechanism 3 is equipped with the washing | cleaning part 4 and the drying part 5. The coating device 2 includes a storage tank 6, a filter 7, a feed pump 8, a die head 9, a support plate 10, a waste liquid tank 11, and first to third pipes 12 to 12. 14) On the other hand, the piping 14 may not be provided. In such a case, the die head is connected to the end of the pipe 13.

The storage tank 6 stores a coating liquid to be used for coating. This storage tank 6 is connected to the inlet port of the feed pump 8 via the first pipe 12. The filter 7 is installed in the middle of the first pipe 12. The discharge port of the feed pump 8 is connected to the die head 9 via the second pipe 13.

As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the die head 9 has a manifold 9a leading to the second pipe 13 and a slit nozzle 9b that opens to the lower side of the manifold 9a. have. The slit width a of the slit nozzle 9b is smaller than the diameter of the manifold 9a. The support plate 10 is disposed below the die head 9 so as to receive the coating liquid falling from the die head 9. The die head 9 and the support plate 10 are connected to the waste liquid tank 11 via the third pipe 14.

As the first to third pipes 12, 13 and 14, for example, a pipe made of resin, a pipe made of stainless steel or a pipe made of metal coated with resin on the inner surface can be used.

According to such a coating device 2, the coating liquid stored in the storage tank 6 is driven from the storage tank 6 through the first pipe 12 and the second pipe 13 by the driving of the feed pump 8. Supplied to the head. The coating liquid passes through the filter 7 in the course of flowing the first pipe 12. As a result, the foreign matter such as garbage mixed in the coating liquid is removed by the filter 7. The coating liquid supplied to the die head 9 flows from the slit nozzle 9b in the form of a curtain. The excess coating liquid supplied to the die head 9 and the coating liquid not used for the coating flowing out from the die head 9 are returned to the waste liquid tank 11 through the third pipe 14.

As shown in FIG. 2, the coating apparatus 2 is connected to the washing | cleaning mechanism 3 via the washing | cleaning piping 20. As shown in FIG. In the present embodiment, the downstream end of the cleaning pipe 20 is connected to the second pipe 13 via the switching valve 21. In other words, the switching valve 21 is located between the die head 9 and the feed pump 8.

The position of the switching valve 21 is not limited between the die head 9 and the feed pump 8. For example, as shown in FIG. 1, a switching valve at either the position P1 between the feed pump 8 and the filter 7 or the position P2 between the filter 7 and the storage tank 6. 21 may be provided.

The washing | cleaning part 4 of the washing | cleaning mechanism 3 has several, for example, four solvent tanks 22a, 22b, 22c, 22d. However, the number of solvent tanks is not limited to four, of course. The solvent tanks 22a, 22b, 22c, and 22d are connected in parallel to the upstream portion of the solvent supply pipe 24 via the three-way cocked switching valves 23a, 23b, 23c, and 23d, respectively.

The solvent tanks 22a, 22b, 22c, and 22d contain different first to fourth solvents. Specifically, as the first to fourth solvents are transferred from the solvent tank 22d located at the most upstream side to the solvent supply pipe 24 to the solvent tank 22a located at the downstream side, the first to fourth solvents are compatible with the coating liquid. The castle is getting higher. In other words, as the first to fourth solvents move from the solvent tank 22a located on the downstream side with respect to the solvent supply pipe 24 to the solvent tank 22d located on the upstream side, the cleaning property is increased. Therefore, the 1st solvent accommodated in the 1st solvent tank 22a has the highest compatibility with coating liquid, and the 4th solvent accommodated in the 4th solvent tank 22d has the highest washability.

The switching valves 23a, 23b, 23c, and 23d are respectively provided at positions corresponding to above the solvent tanks 22a, 22b, 22c, and 22d. By opening / closing the switching valves 23a, 23b, 23c, and 23d, the first to fourth solvents can be selected and supplied to the solvent supply pipe 24. That is, the 1st-4th solvent to supply to the solvent supply pipe 24 can be changed into the thing with high washability sequentially from the thing with high compatibility with coating liquid.

The switching valves 23a, 23b, 23c, and 23d may be operated automatically by an operation signal from the outside, or may be operated artificially. At this time, it is a coating as to whether to use the switching valves 23a, 23b, 23c, 23d which operate with the operation signal from the outside, or to use the switching valves 23a, 23b, 23c, 23d which operate by an artificial operation. It is appropriately selected based on the specifications of the system 1.

The load cell 25 is provided in the bottom part of each solvent tank 22a, 22b, 22c, 22d. The load cell 25 measures the weight of the 1st-4th solvent stored in the solvent tank 22a, 22b, 22c, 22d, respectively. Based on this measurement result, in order to eliminate the nonuniformity of washing | cleaning, weight control of the 1st-4th solvent is performed. The weight control of the solvent means controlling the amount of the solvent flowing within a predetermined time. Specifically, since the first to fourth solvents, which are generally used for cleaning the coating device 2, are expensive, the flow rate that flows within a predetermined time is limited. Therefore, the load cell 25 is used for monitoring the flow volume of the 1st-4th solvent.

The solvent supply pipe 24 is connected to the upstream end of the washing pipe 20. The flow control valve 27, the flow meter 28, and the solvent filter 29 are provided in the middle of the solvent supply pipe 24.

The flow control valve 27 controls the flow rates of the first to fourth solvents transferred from the solvent tanks 22a, 22b, 22c, 22d to the solvent supply pipe 24. By the presence of this flow control valve 27, the flow volume of the 1st-4th solvent is adjusted so that the nonuniformity of washing | cleaning can be eliminated.

The flow meter 28 is located downstream of the solvent supply pipe 24 rather than the flow control valve 27. The flowmeter 28 measures the flow rates of the first to fourth solvents flowing through the solvent supply pipe 24 and feeds them back to the flow control valve 27.

The solvent filter 29 is located downstream of the solvent supply pipe 24 rather than the flowmeter 28. The solvent filter 29 is for removing foreign substances such as garbage from the first to fourth solvents that have passed through the flow meter 28. The 1st-4th solvent filtered by the solvent filter 29 is supplied from the washing | cleaning piping 20 to the 2nd piping 13 of the coating apparatus 2 through the switching valve 21. FIG. The first to fourth solvents supplied to the coating device 2 are sequentially changed from the first solvent having high compatibility to the fourth solvent having high cleaning performance.

On the other hand, the drying unit 5 includes, for example, a drying gas tank 31, a gas supply pipe 32, a flow control valve 33, and a gas flow meter 34. The drying gas tank 31 stores a drying gas for drying the inside of the first to third pipes 12 to 14 of the coating device 2 and the inside of the die head 9. As the drying gas, for example, nitrogen is used. The gas supply pipe 32 connects between the drying gas tank 31 and the upstream end of the solvent supply pipe 24.

A switching valve 35 is provided at the connection portion between the gas supply pipe 32, the solvent supply pipe 24, and the cleaning pipe 20. The switching valve 35 is changed to any one of a first position for connecting between the solvent supply pipe 24 and the cleaning pipe 20 and a second position for connecting between the cleaning pipe 20 and the gas supply pipe 32. have. Therefore, when the switching valve 35 changes to the second position, the drying gas stored in the drying gas tank 31 passes from the gas supply pipe 32 to the coating device 2 through the switching valve 35 and the cleaning pipe 20. Is supplied to the second pipe (13).

Next, the method of washing the coating apparatus 2 is demonstrated.

This washing | cleaning method is divided into the washing | cleaning process using the 1st-4th solvent, and the drying process using a dry gas. The drying step is performed after the washing step.

The washing step is performed by supplying the first to fourth solvents stored in the first to fourth solvent tanks 22a, 22b, 22c, and 22d to the coating device 2. Specifically, first of all, the switching valve 23a corresponding to the first solvent tank 22a is opened to release the first solvent in the first solvent tank 22a to the solvent supply pipe 24.

The flow rate of the 1st solvent which flows through the solvent supply pipe 24 is measured by the flowmeter 28. Based on this measurement result, the operator operates the flow control valve 27 and adjusts the flow volume of the 1st solvent which flows through the solvent supply pipe 24 to the previously determined value. The operation of adjusting the flow rate of the first solvent may be automated by the feedback from the flow meter 28 by providing a control unit in the flow control valve 27.

The 1st solvent in which the flow volume was adjusted passes through the solvent filter 29, and reaches the switching valve 35. FIG. In the washing step, the switching valve 35 is switched to the first position. Therefore, the 1st solvent is supplied from the solvent supply pipe 24 to the 2nd piping 13 of the coating apparatus 2 through the switching valve 21. FIG.

The coating liquid used at the time of coating remains in the manifold 9a inside the 1st and 2nd piping 13 and 14 of the coating apparatus 2, and the inside of the die head 9. As shown in FIG. The first solvent supplied to the second pipe 13 flows from the second pipe 13 toward the die head 9 and the first pipe 12 while extruding the coating liquid remaining in the coating device 2. At this time, the first solvent containing the coating liquid flows back toward the storage tank 6 in the first pipe 12. Therefore, in this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 1, the storage tank 6 was replaced by the waste container 15 before the washing | cleaning of the coating apparatus 2. As shown in FIG.

The 1st solvent which reached | attained the 1st piping 12 sends out the coating liquid which remains in the 1st piping 12 to the waste container 15. The first solvent reaching the die head 9 flows into the support dish 10 or the third pipe 14, and the coating solution remaining in the support dish 10 and the third pipe 14 is disposed in the waste tank 11. Export to This ends the first step of the cleaning process.

Subsequently, the switching valve 23a corresponding to the first solvent tank 22a is closed, and the switching valve 23b corresponding to the second solvent tank 22b is opened. As a result, the second solvent is supplied to the coating device 2 through the solvent supply pipe 24 and the cleaning pipe 20. The process of the flow of a 2nd solvent is the same as that of a 1st solvent. Therefore, the 2nd solvent supplied to the coating apparatus 2 sends out a 1st solvent to the waste liquid container 15 and the waste liquid tank 11. This completes the second step of the cleaning process.

Thereafter, the third step of the washing step using the third solvent in the third storage tank 22c and the fourth step of the washing step using the fourth solvent in the fourth storage tank 22d are continuously performed. The process of the flow of a 3rd and 4th solvent is the same as that of the said 1st solvent. Therefore, the 3rd solvent sends out the 2nd solvent to the waste container 15 and the waste tank 11. Similarly, the fourth solvent sends the third solvent to the waste container 15 and the waste tank 11.

The first solvent used in the first step of the washing step has high compatibility with the coating solution. Therefore, the coating liquid can be effectively extruded from the coating device 2. Thereby, generation | occurrence | production of a solvent shock can be suppressed. On the other hand, although the fourth solvent has low compatibility with the coating solution, the fourth solvent has higher cleaning performance than the first solvent. Therefore, the inside of the 1st-3rd piping 12-14 and the inside of the die head 9 can be wash | cleaned effectively. Therefore, a good washing | cleaning with little washing | cleaning nonuniformity can be performed in a short time using a small amount of 1st-4th solvent.

When the washing | cleaning process with a solvent is complete | finished, it transfers to a drying process. In the drying process, the switching valve 35 is changed from the first position to the second position. Therefore, the drying gas stored in the drying gas tank 31 is guided from the gas supply pipe 32 to the cleaning pipe 20 through the switching valve 35. Moreover, drying gas is supplied from the washing | cleaning piping 20 to the 2nd piping 13 of the coating apparatus 2 through the switching valve 21. FIG. The flow rate of the drying gas flowing through the gas supply pipe 32 is measured by the gas flow meter 34. Based on this measurement result, the operator operates the flow control valve 33 to adjust the flow rate of the drying gas flowing through the gas supply pipe 32 to a predetermined value. The operation of adjusting the flow rate of the drying gas may be automated by providing a control unit to the flow rate control valve 33.

The drying gas supplied to the coating device 2 flows from the second pipe 13 toward the first pipe 12, the die head 9, and the third pipe 14. As a result, the interior of the first to third pipes 12 to 14 and the interior of the die head 9 are dried. Therefore, after washing the coating apparatus 2, the new coating liquid to be used next and the 1st-4th solvent used at the time of washing | cleaning are not mixed. Therefore, generation of solvent shock can be further suppressed.

The present invention is not specific to the above embodiments, and various modifications can be made without departing from the main gist of the invention. For example, in the washing step, the drying gas and the first to fourth solvents are mixed and introduced into the coating apparatus 2 to clean the inside of the first to third pipes 12 to 14 and the inside of the die head 9. You may also do it.

In addition, the washing | cleaning solvent used for the coating system 1 which has a washing | cleaning mechanism of this invention is not specifically limited. Therefore, a good compatibility with the coating liquid is appropriately selected. For example, when the main solvent used in the coating liquid is a cyclohexanone solvent, PGMEA, PGMAC as a solvent having high compatibility with a resist (coating solution) (that is, a solvent having low cleanability) are used. Alternatively, solvents such as cyclohexanone can be washed at an extrusion pressure of 20 KPa to 100 KPa. Furthermore, as a solvent having low compatibility with a resist (coating solution) (that is, a solvent having high washability), such as acetone or 2-butanone, etc. The solvent can be used for washing at an extrusion pressure of 30 KPa to 100 KPa.

In the above embodiment, the storage tank 6 is replaced with the waste container 15 before the cleaning of the coating device 2, but the present invention is not limited thereto. For example, as shown in FIG. 1, the coating liquid valves 40, 41, 42 may be provided immediately before the storage tank 6, and cleaning may be performed by opening and closing the valves 40-42.

Specifically, first, the switching valve 21 is operated to open the washing pipe 20 and the second pipe 13. In this state, the cleaning solvent is sent to clean the die head 9 and the like.

Next, the switching valve 21 is operated to open the cleaning pipe 20 and the first pipe 12. It also opens the valves 41 and 42 and closes the valve 40. In this state, the cleaning solvent is sent to clean the filter 7, the feed pump 8, and the like. At this time, the cleaning solvent is recovered to the waste tank 11 after passing through the valve 41 or 42.

Finally, valve 40 is opened and valves 41 and 42 are closed. In addition, the storage tank 6 is replaced with a waste container 15. In this state, the cleaning solvent is sent to clean the first pipe. At this time, the cleaning solvent is recovered to the waste container 15 through the valve 40. Thereby, all the piping 12-14 of the coating apparatus 2 can be wash | cleaned.

On the other hand, also by this washing | cleaning method, the same effect can be achieved even if the switching valve 21 is in the position of P1 or P2.

As a practical example of the present invention, it can be widely used, for example, a processing machine or a processing machine or a related equipment that requires color change or material change such as a printing machine, an adhesive processing machine, or a pigment processing machine.

Claims (16)

Piping (12-14) through which the coating liquid flows, A die head 9 provided in the pipes 12 to 14, It has a plurality of solvent tanks (22a to 22d) for storing different kinds of solvents, the solvent stored in the solvent tanks (22a to 22d) is more washable than the solvent in a solvent having high compatibility with the coating liquid It is provided with the washing | cleaning mechanism 3 which wash | cleans the inside of the said pipe 12-14 and the inside 9a, 9b of the said die head 9 by supplying it to the said pipe | tube 12-14 in order by switching with a solvent. The coating apparatus 1 characterized by the above-mentioned. The drying unit (5) according to claim 1, wherein the cleaning mechanism (3) dries an interior (9a, 9b) of the interior of the pipe (12-14) and the interior of the die head (9) cleaned with the solvent. The coating apparatus (1) characterized by the above-mentioned.  The coating device (1) according to claim 2, wherein the drying section (5) has a drying gas tank (31) for supplying a drying gas to the pipes (12-14).  The flow meter 28 which measures the flow volume of the said solvent which flows in the said washing | cleaning mechanism 3, and the inside of the said washing | cleaning mechanism 3 in any one of Claims 1-3. The coating apparatus (1) further equipped with the flow control valve (27) which controls the flow volume of the said solvent which flows. The said solvent tank 22a-22d is provided in the load cell 25 which measures the weight of the said solvent stored in the said solvent tank 22a-22d. The coating apparatus 1 characterized by the above-mentioned. The gas flow meter 34 which measures the flow volume of the said drying gas supplied to the said piping 12-14, and the said drying supplied to the said piping 12-14 based on this measurement result. A coating device (1), further comprising a control valve (33) for controlling the flow rate of the gas for use. The flow rate meter 28 which measures the flow volume of the said solvent which flows in the said washing | cleaning mechanism 3, and controls the flow volume of the said solvent which flows in the said washing | cleaning mechanism 3 based on this measurement result. Further provided with a flow control valve 27, The said solvent tank (22a-22d) is installed on the load cell (25) which measures the weight of the said solvent stored in the said solvent tank (22a-22d), The coating apparatus (1) characterized by the above-mentioned. As a washing | cleaning method which washes the coating apparatus provided with the piping 12-14 which a coating liquid flows, and the die head 9 provided in this piping 12-14, Different types of solvents are stored in the plurality of solvent tanks 22a to 22d connected to the pipes 12 to 14, The solvent stored in the solvent tanks 22a to 22d is sequentially changed from a solvent having high compatibility with the coating liquid to a solvent having a higher cleaning ability than the solvent, and then supplied to the pipes 12 to 14 to supply the pipes 12 to 14. 14) and the inside (9a, 9b) of the die head (9). 9. The inside of the pipes 12 to 14 and the die head (10) according to claim 8, wherein after the cleaning of the insides of the pipes 12 to 14 and the insides 9a and 9b of the die head 9 is finished. The inside 9a, 9b of 9) is dried, The cleaning method of the coating apparatus characterized by the above-mentioned. 10. The inside of the pipes 12-14 and the inside 9a, 9b of the die head 9 by supplying a drying gas from the drying gas tank 31 to the pipes 12-14. ), And the method for cleaning the coating device. As a washing | cleaning mechanism 3 used for the coating apparatus which has the piping 12-14 which a coating liquid flows, and the die head 9 provided in the said piping 12-14, A plurality of solvent tanks 22a to 22d for storing different kinds of solvents, Solvent supply pipe 24 for supplying the solvents stored in the solvent tanks 22a to 22d from the solvent having higher compatibility with the coating liquid to the solvent having higher cleaning ability than the solvent in turn and supplying the pipes 12 to 14. The cleaning mechanism (3) characterized by the above-mentioned. 12. The apparatus according to claim 11, further comprising a drying unit (5) for drying the interiors of the pipes (12 to 14) and the interiors (9a, 9b) of the die head (9) cleaned with the solvent. Washing mechanism 3 to be used. The cleaning mechanism (3) according to claim 12, wherein said drying section (5) has a drying gas tank (31) for supplying a drying gas to said pipes (12-14). 13. The drying unit (5) according to claim 12, wherein the drying unit (5) includes a gas flow meter (34) for measuring a flow rate of the drying gas supplied to the pipes (12-14), and the pipes (12) based on the measurement result. And a flow rate control valve (33) for controlling the flow rate of the drying gas supplied to the 14). The flow rate meter 28 which measures the flow volume of the said solvent which flows in the said solvent supply pipe 24, and controls the flow volume of the said solvent which flows in the said solvent supply pipe 24 based on this measurement result. The washing | cleaning mechanism (3) characterized by further equipped with the flow control valve (27). 12. The cleaning mechanism (3) according to claim 11, wherein the solvent tanks (22a to 22d) are provided on a load cell (25) for measuring the weight of the solvent stored in the solvent tanks (22a to 22d). .

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