KR20070067996A - Turn-diverter conveyor - Google Patents

Abstract

A turn-diverter conveyor is provided to perform both functions of a turn conveyor to change the entry angle and of a diverter conveyor to change a traveling direction of the glass substrate at one conveyor. A turn-diverter conveyor includes a plurality of first rollers(52), a plurality of second rollers(53), a second movement section(54), a rotation frame(56), a drive section(55), and a frame(51). The plurality of first rollers is formed in a plurality of first shafts respectively to convey a glass substrate in a first direction. The plurality of second rollers are formed in a plurality of second shafts disposed vertically to the first axes respectively to convey the glass substrate in a second direction perpendicular to the first direction. The second movement section moves the plurality of second shafts upward or downward or rotates the second shafts. The rotation frame rotates the glass substrate while moving upward and downward. The drive section moves the rotation frame upward and downward or rotates the rotation frame. The frame supports the first shafts, the second shafts, and the drive section.

Description

Turn-Diverter Conveyor

1 and 2 are views showing a state in which a glass substrate is transferred to each process equipment using conventional conveyors.

Figure 3 is a configuration diagram of one embodiment of a conventional turn conveyor.

Figure 4 is a configuration diagram of one embodiment of a conventional diverter conveyor.

5 is a perspective view of a turn-diverter conveyor according to the present invention;

6 is a cross-sectional view of the turn-diverter conveyor according to the invention shown in FIG. 5.

7 and 8 are views showing a state of transferring the glass substrate to each process equipment by using a turn-diverter conveyor according to the present invention.

<Explanation of symbols for main parts of the drawings>

15 turn conveyor 16 diverter conveyor

50: turn-diverter conveyor 51: frame

52: first roller 52-1: first axis

53: second roller 53-1: second axis (53-1)

54: second moving part 54-1: motor

55 drive unit 56 rotating frame

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a conveyor for transferring a glass substrate used in a manufacturing process of a liquid crystal display, and more particularly, to a turn-diverter conveyor capable of changing an entrance angle or a moving direction of a glass substrate.

In general, a liquid crystal display (hereinafter referred to as "LCD") is a typical flat panel display that displays an image by adjusting an amount of light beam transmission to correspond to an image signal. In particular, LCDs are in a trend of widening their application range due to features such as light weight, thinness, and low power consumption. According to this trend, LCDs are being applied as display devices for office automation devices and notebook computers. In addition, LCDs are progressing toward larger screens and lower power consumption in response to user demands.

On the other hand, the liquid crystal panel of the liquid crystal display device is a thin film transistor substrate (TFT substrate) (hereinafter referred to simply as a TFT substrate) receiving a driving signal, a color filter substrate (C / F substrate) including a color filter layer (hereinafter, Simply referred to as a 'C / F substrate' and a liquid crystal layer interposed between the TFT substrate and the C / F substrate.

The manufacturing process of the liquid crystal display device having the above structure is largely divided into three processes, a substrate manufacturing process, a cell manufacturing process, and a module process.

First, the substrate manufacturing process is divided into a process of manufacturing a TFT substrate using a cleaned glass substrate and a process of manufacturing a C / F substrate, each of which comprises a signal line and a plurality of thin films on the lower glass substrate. Refers to a process for manufacturing a transistor and a pixel electrode, and a C / F substrate manufacturing process refers to a process for sequentially manufacturing a black matrix, a color filter layer, and a common electrode (ITO) on an upper glass substrate.

Next, the cell process refers to a process of manufacturing a liquid crystal panel of a liquid crystal display device by bonding a TFT substrate and a C / F substrate and injecting liquid crystal therebetween.

Finally, the module process refers to a process of connecting the liquid crystal panel and the signal processing circuit part.

Meanwhile, the glass substrate manufacturing process may further include a thin film process for coating a thin film on a glass substrate using PECVD and sputtering, a photo process for forming the thin film into a desired pattern, and an etching process for etching the thin film according to the pattern. The thin film transistor substrate and the color filter substrate may be manufactured by repeatedly performing the above processes.

1 and 2 are views showing a state of transferring a glass substrate to each process equipment using conventional conveyors, in order to put the glass substrate loaded in the loader into the various process equipment as described above, The glass substrate is conveyed through conventional conveyors.

At this time, Figure 1 and Figure 2 shows the working environment is composed of the process equipment in the form of In-line sheet. In other words, the single-leaf in-line configuration means that all the process equipment 17 is connected through the various conveyors 13 to 16 as shown in the drawing, the glass substrate that has completed the process in each process equipment is separate It is not loaded on another transport equipment (eg, an unmanned transport vehicle (AGV) or robot arm, etc.) but is transferred to another process equipment through a conveyor.

The conveyor used at this time may be as follows.

First, the alignment conveyor 13 performs a function of aligning the glass substrate carried by the robot arm 12 on the conveyor. That is, the glass substrate is placed at an angle by the specific rollers of the alignment conveyor.

Next, the standard conveyor 14 refers to a basic conveyor for simply moving the glass substrate.

Next, the turn conveyor 15 performs a function of changing the glass substrate at a predetermined angle. That is, the turn conveyor 15 rotates the entrance angle of the glass substrate, which has been transferred, to a predetermined angle (for example, 180 °), and then performs the transfer.

Lastly, the diverter conveyor 16 changes the traveling direction from which the glass substrate is transferred to a predetermined angle of 90 ° to perform the transfer.

Meanwhile, an example of a glass substrate transfer method using the conveyors described above will be described with reference to FIG. 1. At this time, Figure 1 is for explaining the function between the conveyor can be variously configured according to the arrangement and structure of the process equipment.

That is, FIG. 1 shows a state in which the robot arm 12 moves the glass substrate mounted on the loader 11 to the alignment conveyor 13. At this time, the loader 11 and the alignment conveyor 13 is in a one-to-one relationship, and the alignment conveyor 13 aligns the glass substrate and then transfers it to the standard conveyor 14.

Thereafter, the standard conveyor 14 transfers the glass substrate to the turn conveyor 15, and the turn conveyor 15 rotates the entrance angle of the glass substrate to 180 ° and then transfers the glass substrate to the diverter conveyor 16. do. That is, the turn conveyor 15 rotates the glass substrate 180 ° so that one glass substrate can be used in two process equipments having different entrance angles of the glass substrate.

In addition, the diverter converter 16 may change the moving direction of the glass substrate to 90 ° as shown in FIG. 1, and the transferred glass substrate is finally aligned on the alignment conveyor and then moved to the robot arm 12. Is input to the process equipment (17). At this time, the entrance angle of the glass substrate does not change, but the direction of travel thereof is changed.

Meanwhile, FIG. 2 illustrates a state in which the glass substrates mounted on the two loaders 11 are moved by the two robot arms 12 to one diverter conveyor 16.

At this time, the glass substrate is transferred to the turn conveyor 15 with the traveling direction changed by 90 ° by the diverter conveyor 16, and the turn conveyor 15 has the entry angle of the glass substrate for the above reason. Will rotate 180 °.

The glass substrate with the entry angle rotated is then aligned on the alignment conveyor 13 and then transferred to the diverter conveyor 16 by the standard conveyor 14.

Thereafter, the diverter conveyor 16 rotates the traveling direction of the glass substrate by 90 ° and transfers it, and the alignment conveyor 13 aligns the glass substrate.

Finally, the robot arm 12 will put the aligned glass substrate in each of the process equipment (17).

In the functions of the conveyors as described above, the turn conveyor 15 and the diverter conveyor 16 are for changing the entrance angle or the moving direction of the glass substrate, and perform a similar function, but by individually configuring the process line By placing them on the floor, there is a problem that the workspace cannot be used efficiently and that a large amount of money must be spent on the purchase.

Figure 3 is a configuration diagram of one embodiment of a conventional turn conveyor, Figure 4 is a configuration diagram of an embodiment of a conventional diverter conveyor.

First, as shown in FIG. 3, the turn conveyor 15 includes a plurality of rollers 21 for transporting a glass substrate, a frame 22 for supporting the plurality of rollers, and a 180 ° rotation with a glass substrate mounted thereon. And a driving unit 24 for rotating the rotating frame. When the glass substrate is placed on the rotating frame 23, the driving unit 24 is rotated by the rotating frame 23. Will rotate 180 °.

Also, as shown in FIG. 4, the diverter conveyor 16 includes a first roller 31 for transferring the glass substrate in the first direction and a 90 ° direction for transferring the glass substrate in the 90 ° direction with respect to the first direction. It comprises a second roller 32 and a frame 33 for supporting the first roller and the second roller, the glass substrate conveyed through the first roller 31 is the second roller ( 32) the direction of travel is changed by 90 ° and is conveyed.

In this case, as described above, the turn conveyor 15 and the diverter conveyor 16 perform a similar function as changing the entrance angle or the traveling direction of the glass substrate, but each is configured as a separate device in the process line. As it is arranged, there is a problem that does not effectively use the workspace.

Accordingly, an object of the present invention for solving the above problems is to provide a turn-diverter conveyor capable of simultaneously performing the function of the turn conveyor and the function of the diverter conveyor.

A turn-diverter conveyor according to the present invention for achieving the above objects comprises: a plurality of first rollers formed on each of a plurality of first shafts for conveying a glass substrate in a first direction; A plurality of second rollers formed on each of the plurality of second shafts arranged in a direction perpendicular to the first axis, for transporting the glass substrate in a second direction perpendicular to the first direction; A second moving part for moving or rotating the plurality of second axes up and down; A rotation frame arranged to not overlap with the first axis, the second axis, the first roller, and the second roller to rotate the glass substrate while moving up and down; A driving unit for moving or rotating the rotating frame up and down; And a frame for supporting the first axes, the second axes, and the driving part.

In addition, in the present invention, the first shaft for rotating the first roller is characterized in that formed in the intermediate layer of the second axis and the rotating frame.

In addition, in the present invention, the second moving part is characterized in that formed on the left and right frames supporting the second axes.

Further, in the present invention, the upper surface of the second roller is formed at a position lower than the upper surface of the first roller, but is higher than the upper surface of the first roller by the rising of the second moving part. Characterized in that is moved to.

In the present invention, the diameter of the first roller is smaller than the diameter of the second roller.

Further, in the present invention, the rotating frame is located on the upper portion of the first shaft and at a lower position than the upper surface of the first roller, and is moved to a position higher than the upper surface of the first roller by the drive unit. And rotated in an elevated state.

In addition, in the present invention, the first roller, the second moving part and the driving part are driven by a control device that manages the transfer of the glass substrate.

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

Hereinafter, exemplary embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

5 is a perspective view of a turn-diverter conveyor according to the present invention. FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view of the turn-diverter conveyor according to the present invention shown in FIG. 5 and shows a cross section cut along the line AA ′ of FIG. 5.

First, the turn-diverter conveyor according to the present invention, as shown in Figure 5, the frame 51 constituting the overall appearance, a plurality of formed on each of the plurality of first shafts in order to transfer the glass substrate in the first direction A first roller 52, a plurality of second rollers 53 formed on each of a plurality of second shafts arranged in a direction perpendicular to the first axis, and a second moving part for moving the plurality of second shafts up and down ( 54), the rotation frame 56 for rotating the glass substrate while moving up and down and disposed so as not to overlap with the first axis, the second axis, the first roller, the second roller, and to move or rotate the rotation frame up and down It comprises a drive unit 55 for making.

In this case, the first shaft for rotating the first roller is formed in the middle layer of the second shaft and the rotating frame.

That is, the second shaft 53-1 for rotating the second roller 53 is lower than the first shaft 52-1 for rotating the first roller 52, as shown in FIG. 6. In the state formed in the portion, it is rotated while being moved up and down by the second moving part 54.

At this time, since the upper surface of the second roller 53 is formed at a position lower than the upper surface of the first roller 52, the glass substrate transferred to the turn-diverter conveyor is preferentially the first roller. It is conveyed while being placed on the upper surface of 52. To this end, as shown in FIG. 6, the diameter of the first roller 52 should be smaller than the diameter of the second roller 53.

As described above, the second roller 53 is rotated or moved up and down by the second shaft 53-1, and the second shaft 53-1 is provided at both sides of the frame 51 of the turn-diverter conveyor. It is shown in Figure 6 to move up or down or rotate by the second moving part 54 formed in the interior.

The second moving part 54 is for moving the second shaft 53-1 up or down, and may be configured in various forms. The second moving part 54 may also move up and down or rotate by the motor 54-1. 6 is shown.

At this time, when the control signal for the rising or rotating is transmitted from the control device (not shown) for controlling the overall operation of the turn-diverter conveyor, the motor 54-1 moves the second by moving the raising or rotating. The portion 54 is raised or rotated, so that the second shaft 53-1 is raised or rotated.

In addition, as shown in Figure 6, the rotating frame 56 is formed on the upper portion of the first shaft (52-1), while moving up and down by the drive unit 55 to increase the entry angle of the glass substrate. Will be changed.

That is, when the glass substrate placed on the first roller 52 is to be rotated by 90 ° or 180 °, the rotating frame 56 is lifted by the driving unit 55, so that the first roller 52 is rotated. The glass substrate is lifted, and then the glass substrate is changed to a predetermined angle by the rotational force of the driving unit 55.

In this case, the driving unit 55 may be configured by, for example, a motor, and when the control signal for the rising or rotation is transmitted from a control device (not shown) that controls the overall operation of the turn-diverter conveyor, Alternatively, the rotary frame 56 is raised or rotated by the rotary motion.

The drive unit 55 may be configured in various forms, but in FIGS. 5 and 6, the drive unit 55 is shown to be formed on a frame crossing the turn-diverter conveyor of the frame 51.

Meanwhile, an example of the operation of the turn-diverter conveyor according to the present invention having the above configuration will be described with reference to FIGS. 5 and 6.

First, the glass substrate transferred from the conventional conveyor disposed in the 'B' direction is transferred by the first roller 52 to be aligned at the position where the rotary frame 56 is disposed.

At this time, when it is necessary to change the entry angle of the glass substrate, the drive unit 55 is operated by the rising and rotating signals transmitted from the control device not shown. That is, the driving unit 55 raises the rotating frame 56, and thus the glass substrate placed on the upper surface of the first roller 52 is placed on the upper surface of the rotating frame 56. After that, the rotary frame 56 is rotated together with the rotation frame 56 by the rotation operation of the driving unit 55 to change its entry angle.

Then, when the glass substrate is to be transferred to another conventional conveyor or processing equipment placed in the 'C' direction, the glass frame is lowered on the upper surface of the first roller 52 while the rotating frame 56 is lowered. The glass substrate is transferred in the 'C' direction by the rotation of the first roller 52.

However, if the glass substrate is to be transferred to another conventional conveyor or processing equipment placed in the 'D' direction, after the rotary frame 56 is lowered or lowered to its original position, the second The moving part 54 is raised, whereby the second roller 53 is raised so that the glass substrate is placed on the upper surface of the second roller 53. At this time, the second roller 53 is rotated, so that the glass substrate is conveyed in the 'D' direction is changed by 90 ° with respect to the original traveling direction in a state of 90 ° from the initial entry angle.

On the other hand, in the operation of the turn-diverter conveyor as described above, the rotation operation of the first roller 52, the rotation or raising / lowering operation of the second roller 53 and the rotation of the rotating frame 56 or The raising / lowering operation is performed by a program set in a control device (not shown) that controls the overall operation of the turn-diverter conveyor as described above.

As described above, the turn-diverter conveyor according to the present invention has a feature that a change in the advancing direction and the entry angle of the glass substrate may be performed in combination.

7 and 8 are views showing a state of transferring the glass substrate to each process equipment using a turn-diverter conveyor according to the present invention. At this time, the arrangement of the conveyors and the process equipment shown in Figures 7 and 8 is for explaining the function of the turn-diverter conveyor according to the present invention, it can be variously configured in each process line.

First, FIG. 7 illustrates a state in which the robot arm 12 moves the glass substrate mounted on the loader 11 to the alignment conveyor 13. In comparison with the state diagram shown in FIG. It can be seen that the turn-diverter conveyor 50 according to the present invention performs the functions of the conveyors 15 and 16.

In this case, an example of the operation of the turn-diverter conveyor according to the present invention described with reference to FIGS. 5 and 6 may be applied in the state diagram shown in FIG. 7.

That is, the glass substrate that has been transferred through the standard conveyor 14 is transferred to the rotating frame 56 through the first roller 52 in the turn-diverter conveyor 50 according to the present invention, and then the rotating frame After the entry angle is changed by the rotation of the 56, the second roller 53 is transferred to the alignment conveyor 13 with the traveling direction changed by 90 degrees.

Meanwhile, FIG. 8 illustrates a state in which the two glass arms mounted on the two loaders 11 are moved by the two robot arms 12 to the turn-diverter conveyor 50 according to the present invention. In comparison with the state diagram shown in Fig. 2, it can be seen that the turn-verter conveyor 50 according to the present invention performs the functions of the two conveyors 15 and 16.

That is, the glass substrate mounted on the two loaders 11 is a turn-diverter conveyor 50 according to the present invention from the 'B' direction or the 'C' direction of FIG. 5 by the robot arm 12. Is placed on the rotating frame 56 by the first roller 52.

In this case, when the entrance angle of the glass substrate is to be changed, the rotating frame 56 is raised to rotate the glass substrate.

On the other hand, the glass substrate whose entry angle is changed by the rotation of the rotary frame 56 is placed on the upper surface of the second roller 53 to be raised, and then the first rotation by the rotation of the second roller 53 It is conveyed to the alignment conveyor 13 which is a direction changed by 90 degrees with respect to the direction of travel.

As described above, the present invention is to enable the function of the conventional turn conveyor to change the entrance angle of the glass substrate and the function of the conventional diverter conveyor to change the traveling direction of the glass substrate in one conveyor. Has characteristics.

The turn-diverter conveyor according to the present invention as described above integrates the functions of the turn conveyor and the diverter conveyor, which makes it possible to efficiently use the working space in the process line.

In addition, the present invention has the effect of reducing the individual purchase cost of the turn conveyor and diverter conveyor.

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 (7)

A plurality of first rollers formed on each of the plurality of first axes to convey the glass substrate in the first direction; A plurality of second rollers formed on each of the plurality of second shafts arranged in a direction perpendicular to the first axis, for transporting the glass substrate in a second direction perpendicular to the first direction; A second moving part for moving or rotating the plurality of second axes up and down; A rotation frame arranged to not overlap with the first axis, the second axis, the first roller, and the second roller to rotate the glass substrate while moving up and down; A driving unit for moving or rotating the rotating frame up and down; And And a frame for supporting the first axes, the second axes, and the drive unit. The method of claim 1, The first shaft for rotating the first roller, Turn-diverter conveyor, characterized in that formed on the intermediate layer of the second axis and the rotating frame. The method of claim 1, The second moving unit, Turn-diverter conveyor, characterized in that formed on the left and right frames supporting the second shaft. The method of claim 1, The upper surface of the second roller, It is formed at a position lower than the upper surface of the first roller, the turn-diverter conveyor, characterized in that moved to a position higher than the upper surface of the first roller by the rise of the second moving portion. The method of claim 1, The diameter of the first roller, Turn-diverter conveyor, characterized in that smaller than the diameter of the second roller. The method of claim 1, The rotating frame, A turn on the upper part of the first shaft and at a lower position than the upper surface of the first roller, and being rotated by the driving unit in a raised position above the upper surface of the first roller. Diverter conveyor. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 6, The first roller, the second moving part and the drive unit, Turn-diverter conveyor, characterized in that driven by a control device for managing the transfer of the glass substrate.

Images