KR20100058706A - Apparatus for transferring a substrate - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE: A substrate transport apparatus is provided to decrease the area required for substrate processing by transporting a steeply angled substrate using a transport belt. CONSTITUTION: A substrate transport apparatus comprises a conveyor belt(110), driving pulleys(120), a driving unit, and idle rollers. The conveyor belt supports and transports an angled flat substrate(G). The driving pulleys are connected to the conveyor belt. The driving pulleys rotate the conveyor belt to transport the substrate. The driving unit is connected to the driving pulleys. The driving unit provides torque for rotating the conveyor belt. The idle rollers are arranged along one direction of the substrate and are supported by the conveyor belt. The idle rollers support the substrate during transport.

Description

Apparatus for transferring a substrate}

The present invention relates to a substrate transfer apparatus, and more particularly, to an apparatus for transferring the substrate in a state where the flat substrate has an inclination angle.

In general, a flat panel display device is widely used for displaying processed information, and representative examples of the flat panel display device include a liquid crystal display (LCD), a plasma display (PDP), and an organic light emitting display (OLED). .

The flat panel display apparatus is manufactured by repeatedly performing unit processes such as a deposition process, an etching process, a photolithography process, a cleaning process, and an inspection process for forming a circuit pattern on the flat substrate.

Among the unit processes, an etching process, a cleaning process, and the like process the plate-type substrate using a liquid treatment material. As described above, when the flat substrate is processed using a liquid treatment material, the flat substrate is disposed to be inclined at a predetermined angle (about 6 ° angle), and a method of performing a processing process while transferring is generally used. That is, the rotating shafts and the rotating rollers for transferring the flat substrate are inclined so that the flat substrate is transferred in an inclined state, thereby performing a processing process on the flat substrate.

Recently, as the area of the flat substrate is gradually increased due to the demand for enlargement of the display device, the size of the processing equipment for the substrate is gradually increased. Therefore, the space use efficiency of another clean room may be reduced in the installation space of the substrate processing equipment. Accordingly, the inclination of the substrate may be increased in order to reduce the area occupied by the substrate processing equipment in order to increase space use efficiency of the clean room.

However, there is a limit to increase the inclination of the substrate in the roller transfer substrate currently applied.

One object of the present invention for solving the above problems is to provide a substrate transfer apparatus that can increase the inclination of the substrate in the transfer of the flat substrate.

In order to achieve the above object of the present invention, a substrate transfer apparatus according to the present invention includes a transfer belt for supporting and transferring a plate-type substrate disposed such that the transfer belt has an inclination angle, and is connected to the transfer belt and transfers the substrate. Drive pulleys for rotating the transfer belt, a drive unit connected to the drive pulleys to provide a rotational force for rotating the transfer belt, and disposed in one plane direction of a substrate supported by the transfer belt, It may include idle rollers for supporting the substrate so that it does not fall down during the transfer of the substrate.

Here, according to one embodiment, the transport belt may be provided with a slit-shaped mounting groove formed along the rotation direction on the outer surface of the belt on which the substrate is supported for stable support of the substrate.

According to another embodiment, guide members for preventing the transfer belt from being detached may be provided at both sides of the outer circumferential surface of the driving pulleys.

According to another embodiment, the transfer belt is provided with a first synchronous pattern formed in a convex pattern or a concave pattern on the inner surface of the belt for the synchronous drive, the drive pulleys are formed on the outer peripheral surface corresponding to the first synchronous pattern 2 sync patterns may be provided.

According to another embodiment, the substrate transfer apparatus may further include idle pulleys disposed on both sides of the driving pulleys and connected to the inside of the transfer belt and configured to adjust the tension of the transfer belt. have.

According to another embodiment, the inclination angle of the substrate may range from 60 ° to 80 °.

According to another embodiment, the driving unit may include a power providing unit for providing the rotational force, and a power transmission unit connected between the power providing unit and the driving pulleys to transmit the rotational force.

According to another embodiment, the power transmission unit may include a first power transmission unit and a second power transmission unit. The first power transmission unit includes a timing belt connected to the power supply unit, a plurality of drive gears connected to the timing belt, a plurality of first drive shafts coupled to the drive gears, and ends of the first drive shafts. And may include first magnetic gears disposed in and including permanent magnets. The second power transmission unit includes second magnetic gears disposed to face the first magnetic gears, respectively, and including permanent magnets, and second driving shafts connecting between the second magnetic gears and the driving pulleys. can do. Here, the rotational force transmission between the first and second power transmission portion is characterized by the magnetic force acting between the permanent magnets of the first and second magnetic gears.

According to another embodiment, the first and second magnetic gears may be disposed to face each other with one sidewall of the chamber for processing the substrate therebetween.

According to another embodiment, the driving pulleys may have a rotation axis in a direction perpendicular to the inclination angle such that the transfer belt is disposed perpendicular to the inclination angle.

The substrate transfer apparatus according to the present invention configured as described above greatly reduces the installation area for processing the substrate by transferring the substrate in a state having a high inclination angle using a transfer belt for processing a next-generation flat substrate having a large area. You can.

In addition, the substrate transfer apparatus may reduce the processing facility area of the substrate as the substrate is transferred to a high inclined state, thereby greatly improving the space usage efficiency of the clean room where the substrate processing facility is installed.

Hereinafter, a substrate transfer apparatus according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

As the inventive concept allows for various changes and numerous embodiments, particular embodiments will be illustrated in the drawings and described in detail in the text. However, this is not intended to limit the present invention to the specific disclosed form, it should be understood to include all modifications, equivalents, and substitutes included in the spirit and scope of the present invention. In describing the drawings, similar reference numerals are used for similar elements. In the accompanying drawings, the dimensions of the structures are enlarged to illustrate the invention, and are actually shown in a smaller scale than the actual dimensions in order to explain the schematic configuration. The terms first, second, etc. may be used to describe various components, but the components should not be limited by the terms. The terms are used only for the purpose of distinguishing one component from another. For example, without departing from the scope of the present invention, the first component may be referred to as the second component, and similarly, the second component may also be referred to as the first component.

The terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing particular example embodiments only and is not intended to be limiting of the present invention. Singular expressions include plural expressions unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. In this application, the terms "comprise" or "have" are intended to indicate that there is a feature, number, step, action, component, part, or combination thereof described on the specification, and one or more other features. It is to be understood that the present invention does not exclude the possibility of the presence or the addition of numbers, steps, operations, components, parts, or combinations thereof.

On the other hand, unless otherwise defined, all terms used herein, including technical or scientific terms, have the same meaning as commonly understood by one of ordinary skill in the art. Terms such as those defined in the commonly used dictionaries should be construed as having meanings consistent with the meanings in the context of the related art and shall not be construed in ideal or excessively formal meanings unless expressly defined in this application. Do not.

Example

FIG. 1 is a schematic configuration diagram illustrating a substrate transfer apparatus according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a schematic side view illustrating the substrate transfer apparatus illustrated in FIG. 1, and FIG. 3 is a driving unit illustrated in FIG. 1. FIG. 4 is a schematic view for explaining the transfer belt shown in FIG. 1.

 1 to 4, the substrate transfer apparatus 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention transfers the substrate G in one direction in a processing process on a flat substrate G such as a glass substrate. Can be used.

Examples of the plate-type treatment process include an etching process for removing a film or impurities on the substrate G, a cleaning process for removing impurities on the substrate G, a rinse treatment for rinsing the substrate G after etching or cleaning. A process, a drying process for drying the board | substrate G, etc. are mentioned. Although not shown, in order to perform the treatment process as described above, the chemical liquid or the treatment for the treatment of the substrate (G) at a position facing the front and / or rear surface of the substrate to be transferred by the substrate transfer apparatus 100 Nozzles, air knife or shower knife, etc. that provide gas or the like can be arranged.

The substrate transfer apparatus 100 supports the substrate G in a state having an inclination angle, and transfers the transfer belt 110 to transfer in one direction, and the transfer belt 110 to transfer the substrate G. Drive pulleys 120 to rotate, the drive unit 130 is connected to the drive pulleys 120 to provide a rotational force for rotating the transfer belt 110, and the substrate supported by the transfer belt 110 (G) may include idle rollers 160 to support the fall.

The transfer belt 110 is disposed in the chamber 102 for processing the substrate G. The transfer belt 110 supports the substrate G disposed in a state having an inclination angle, and the transfer belt 110 transfers the substrate G in the state having the inclination angle through rotation. Accordingly, the substrate G is disposed in the longitudinal direction of the transfer belt 110, and the transfer direction of the substrate G becomes the rotation direction of the transfer belt 110.

The transfer belt 110 may have a flat or v-shaped cross section, but is not limited thereto and may have various shapes. However, it is preferable that the outer surface of the transfer belt 110 has a planar shape to support the substrate G. In addition, the transfer belt 110 may have a slit-mounting groove 112 formed along the rotational direction (eg, the length direction of the belt) on the outer surface on which the substrate G is supported. The mounting groove 112 may have a width corresponding to the thickness of the substrate G, and may have a width slightly larger than the thickness of the substrate G. The seating groove 112 is formed at the center portion of the width of the transfer belt 110, which is eccentric due to the load applied from the substrate G when the substrate (G) is supported through the seating groove 112 This does not happen. In contrast, the seating groove 112 may be formed to be biased to one side within the width of the transfer belt (110).

On the other hand, the transfer belt 110 may be disposed to have a rotation axis perpendicular to the inclination angle of the substrate (G). This is to support the substrate G more stably because the substrate G is supported by the transfer belt 110 in a state having an inclination angle. That is, since the transfer belt 110 and the substrate G are disposed perpendicular to each other, the substrate G may be supported more stably. In contrast, the transfer belt 110 may be disposed to have a horizontal rotation axis, and the substrate G may be supported and transferred to have an inclination angle with respect to an upper surface of the transfer belt 110.

The driving pulleys 120 are disposed in the chamber 102 together with the transfer belt 110, and are configured to interlock with the transfer belt 110. For example, the transfer belt 110 is caught on the outer circumferential surface of the drive pulleys 120, and the transfer belt 110 is rotated by the friction force between the drive pulleys 120 and the transfer belt 110. The driving pulleys 120 are provided with guide members 122 on both sides of the outer circumferential surface to prevent the transfer belt 110 from slipping off during rotation. The diameter of the guide member 122 has a diameter larger than the diameter of the central portion of the drive pulleys 120, and has a structure to cover the transfer belt 110 on both sides. The driving pulleys 120 may be disposed to have a rotation axis perpendicular to the inclination angle of the substrate G, through which the transfer belt 120 may have a rotation axis perpendicular to the inclination angle of the substrate G. Have it.

The driving unit 140 may include a power providing unit 150 for generating the rotational force and a power transmission unit 160 for transmitting the rotational force.

The power providing unit 150 may include a motor (not shown) for providing rotational force and a speed reducer (not shown) for adjusting the rotational force and rotational speed of the motor. In addition, it may include a pinion gear 151 rotated by the motor (not shown).

The power transmission unit 160 may include a first power transmission unit 170 disposed outside the chamber 102 and a second power transmission unit 180 disposed inside the chamber 102.

The first power transmission unit 170 may include a timing belt 171 and a plurality of driving gears 172. The driving gears 172 are arranged in parallel with the transfer direction of the substrate G and are coupled to the first driving shafts 173. The first drive shafts 173 are supported by the first support member 174 outside the chamber 102. The first support member 174 may be disposed on a bracket (not shown) mounted on one side wall 102a of the chamber 102, and may have various shapes for smooth rotation of the first drive shafts 173. May include bearings.

The timing belt 171 may constantly transmit the rotational force to all of the first driving shafts 173 by connecting the pinion gear 151 of the power providing unit 150 and the driving gears 172.

First idle gears 175 may be disposed between the first driving gears 172 to improve transmission efficiency of the rotational force, and the pinion gear 151 of the power providing unit 150 may be disposed. A second idle gear 176 (see FIG. 3) for adjusting the tension of the timing belt 171 may be disposed at a position adjacent to the second belt.

Meanwhile, the first driving shafts 173 extend toward the side wall 102a of the chamber 102, and the first magnetic gears 177 are coupled to ends of the first driving shafts 173, respectively. do.

The second power transmission unit 180 may include the second magnetic gears 181 disposed to face the first magnetic gears 177, the second magnetic gears 181, and the driving pulleys, respectively. The second driving shafts 182 may be connected to each other.

The first and second magnetic gears 177 and 181 respectively include a plurality of permanent magnets, and are applied to the magnetic force acting by the permanent magnets between the first and second magnetic gears 177 and 181. By this, rotational force transmission is achieved. Specifically, each of the first and second magnetic gears 177 and 181 includes a plurality of permanent magnets disposed radially with respect to its center, and the magnets are arranged to alternate in polarity in the circumferential direction.

In addition, the first and second magnetic gears 177 and 181 may face each other with one sidewall of the chamber 102 interposed therebetween, and may be spaced apart from one sidewall of the chamber 102 by a predetermined distance. Vibration generated by the driving of the power supply unit 150 and the first power transmission unit 180 may be prevented from being transmitted to the transfer belt 110.

As a result, the rotational force provided from the power supply unit 150 may include the timing belt 171, the driving gears 172, the first driving shafts 173, the first magnetic gears 177, and the second magnetic gears. 181, the second driving shafts 182 and the driving pulleys 120 are transmitted to the transfer belt 110. As described above, since the rotational force may be uniformly transmitted to each of the driving pulleys 120 from the power supply unit 150, the transfer belt 110 may rotate smoothly.

The second drive shafts 182 may be supported by second support members 183 provided in the chamber 102, and the second support members 183 may be supported by the second drive shafts 182. It can include a variety of bearings for smooth rotation of the. Here, the second drive shafts 182 function as a rotation axis of the drive pulleys 120 and have an inclination angle as mentioned above. The inclination angle of the second driving shafts 182 is perpendicular to the inclination angle of the substrate G. Thus, the second support members 183 support the second drive shafts 182 in an inclined state.

Referring to FIG. 4, the driving pulleys 120 are arranged in a line along the transfer direction of the substrate G such that the transfer belt 110 extends in the transfer direction of the substrate G. Referring to FIG. In particular, the driving pulleys 120 are disposed at the same height so that the height of the conveying belt 110 may be the same.

A plurality of idle pulleys 124 may be disposed at both sides of the driving pulleys 120 in the transfer direction of the substrate G for the purpose of tension control and quiet operation of the transfer belt 110. As shown, although a plurality of idle pulleys 124 having a diameter smaller than the driving pulleys 120 are disposed at both sides of the driving pulleys 120, the idle pulleys 124 may be formed. The size may vary.

For example, a pair of idle pulleys having a diameter larger than that of the driving pulleys 120 may be disposed at both sides of the driving pulleys 120. In addition, each of the idle pulleys may have the same size as the driving pulleys 120 and may have a structure similar to the driving pulleys 120. In addition, like the driving pulleys 120, the idle pulleys 124 may be provided with guides for preventing the transfer belt 110 from being separated from both sides of the outer circumferential surface. In addition, the arrangement number of the idle pulleys 124 may be variously changed, and the arrangement position of the lower portion of the driving pulleys 120 and the driving pulleys 120 may also be variously changed.

Referring to FIG. 3, the idle rollers 130 do not fall down when the substrate G is supported and transported to the transfer belt 110 in a state where the substrate G is disposed to have a predetermined inclination angle. It serves to support the substrate (G) to maintain. Accordingly, the idle rollers 130 are disposed in one plane direction of the substrate G having the inclination angle and have a rotation axis perpendicular to the transport direction of the substrate G. Accordingly, the idle rollers 130 may extend in a direction perpendicular to the transfer direction of the substrate G, and may have a structure provided in the shafts 132 having the same inclination angle as that of the substrate G. Can be. The shafts 132 may be disposed in parallel with the substrate G, and each of the shafts 132 may include a plurality of idle rollers 130 along the length direction. In addition, the shafts 132 may be disposed at equal intervals in parallel to each other in the transport direction of the substrate G.

In contrast, the idle rollers 130 may be rotatably supported by brackets (not shown), respectively. A configuration (eg, shaft or bracket) for supporting the idle rollers 130 may be installed, for example, on one side wall of the chamber 102.

It is preferable that the inclination angle of the substrate G during the transfer by the idle rollers 130 is about 60 ° to 80 °. When the inclination angle of the substrate G is less than about 60 °, the load of the substrate G applied to the idle rollers 130 may be increased, and in this case, the support of the large area substrate G may be very large. Quantity of idle rollers 1300 is required. In addition, it is not preferable because it is not possible to achieve a very large effect in terms of space efficiency compared to the conventional horizontal transfer. However, even if the inclination angle of the substrate (G) is less than 60 ° it is obvious that it may fall within the technical scope of the present invention.

As such, the substrate transfer device 100 is disposed such that the driving pulleys 120 rotated by the rotational force of the driving unit 140 rotate the transfer belt 110 to have a predetermined inclination angle on the transfer belt 110. The substrate G is transferred. At this time, the substrate G has an inclination angle of 60 ° to 80 °, and the substrate G having the inclination angle is transported while maintaining the inclination angle without falling down by the idle rollers 130.

Meanwhile, the driving unit 140 transmits power in a non-contact manner by using first and second magnetic gears 177 and 181 disposed to face each other with one side wall 102a of the chamber 102 interposed therebetween. As described. However, the driving unit 140 is not limited to the non-contact method described above. For example, the driving unit 140 has a structure in which the first driving shafts 173 are directly connected to the driving pulleys 120 disposed inside the chamber 102 through the one side wall of the chamber 102 to rotate. Can have In addition, although not shown, a member for cushioning may be disposed on the outer surface of the transfer belt 110, that is, the surface on which the substrate G is supported, or a material for buffering may be applied.

5 is a schematic view for explaining another embodiment of the transfer belt shown in FIG. 1.

According to another embodiment of the present invention, as shown in FIG. 5, the transfer belt 111 may have a structure for synchronous driving. That is, the transfer belt 111 may be provided with a first synchronization pattern 111a for synchronous driving on the inner surface of the belt. The first sync pattern 111a may be a convex pattern or a concave pattern, and may have a semicircular cross section. In contrast, the first sync pattern 111a may have various shapes such as a triangular shape, a quadrangular shape, a trapezoidal shape, a rhombus shape, and the like.

At this time, as the transfer belt 111 has the first synchronization pattern 111a, it will be apparent that the driving pulleys 121 have the second synchronization pattern 121a corresponding to the outer circumferential surface thereof. The second sync pattern 121a may be a concave pattern or a convex pattern, and the cross-section has a shape substantially the same as that of the first sync pattern 111a. For example, when the first synchronization pattern 111a provided in the transfer belt 111 has a semicircular convex pattern, the second synchronization pattern 111a provided in the driving pulleys 121 may have a semicircular shape. Has a concave pattern. Thus, the driving pulleys 121 may drive the transfer belt 111 synchronously. On the other hand, when the transfer belt 111 has a first synchronization pattern 111a, it is apparent that the idle pulleys 124 may have a second synchronization pattern in the same manner as the driving pulley 121.

As such, the transfer belt 111 and the driving pulleys 121 have the first synchronization pattern 111a and the second synchronization pattern 121a, respectively, so that mutual synchronization driving is possible. The belt 111 can be rotated more accurately at a predetermined speed. Therefore, the transfer belt 111 having the synchronous pattern 111a may be used to precisely control the transfer speed of the substrate G, thereby improving process efficiency and reliability.

According to the embodiment of the present invention as described above, a large inclination angle by rotating a transfer belt for supporting a substrate disposed in a state having a large inclination angle in the apparatus for transporting the substrate for the processing of a flat substrate having a large area It is possible to transfer the substrate in the state of having, so that the facility area for processing the substrate can be greatly reduced.

In addition, by reducing the area of the substrate processing equipment, the space usage efficiency of the clean room where the substrate processing equipment is installed can be greatly improved.

While the foregoing has been described with reference to preferred embodiments of the present invention, those skilled in the art will be able to variously modify and change the present invention without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as set forth in the claims below. It will be appreciated.

1 is a schematic block diagram showing a substrate transfer apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a schematic side view illustrating the substrate transport apparatus illustrated in FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram for describing the driving unit illustrated in FIG. 1.

FIG. 4 is a schematic view for explaining the transfer belt shown in FIG. 1.

5 is a schematic view for explaining another embodiment of the transfer belt shown in FIG. 1.

Explanation of symbols on the main parts of the drawings

100: substrate transfer device 102: chamber

110, 111: transfer belt 112: seating groove

120, 121: drive pulley 122: guide member

124, 125: children pulley 130: children roller

132: shaft 140: drive unit

150: power supply unit 152: pinion gear

160: power transmission unit 170: first power transmission unit

171: timing belt 172: drive gear

173: first drive shaft 174: first support member

175: first idler gear 176: second idler gear

177: first magnetic gear 180: second power transmission portion

181: second magnetic gear 182: second drive shaft

183: second support member G: substrate

Claims (10)

A conveyance belt for supporting and conveying a plate-shaped substrate arranged to have an inclination angle; Drive pulleys connected to the transfer belt and rotating the transfer belt to transfer the substrate; A driving unit connected to the driving pulleys and providing a rotational force for rotating the transfer belt; And And idle rollers disposed in one plane direction of the substrate supported by the transfer belt to support the substrate so that the substrate does not fall during the transfer of the substrate. The substrate transfer apparatus of claim 1, wherein the transfer belt has a slit-shaped mounting groove formed along the rotation direction on an outer surface of the belt on which the substrate is supported for stable support of the substrate. The substrate transfer apparatus of claim 1, wherein guide portions for preventing the transfer belt from being detached are provided at both sides of the outer circumferential surface of the driving pulleys. According to claim 1, The transfer belt is provided with a first synchronous pattern formed in a convex pattern or concave pattern on the inner surface of the belt for synchronous driving, The driving pulleys are substrate transport apparatus, characterized in that the outer peripheral surface is provided with a second synchronization pattern corresponding to the first synchronization pattern. The substrate transfer apparatus of claim 1, further comprising idle pulleys disposed on both sides of the driving pulleys and connected to an inner side of the transfer belt and configured to adjust tension of the transfer belt. . The substrate transfer apparatus of claim 1, wherein the inclination angle is in a range of 60 ° to 80 °. The method of claim 1, wherein the driving unit A power provider for providing the rotational force; And And a power transmission unit connected between the power providing unit and the driving pulleys to transmit the rotational force. The method of claim 7, wherein the power transmission unit A timing belt connected to the power supply unit, a plurality of driving gears connected to the timing belt, a plurality of first driving shafts coupled to the driving gears, and end portions of the first driving shafts, A first power transmission unit including first magnetic gears including; And A second power transmission unit disposed to face the first magnetic gears, each of the second magnetic gears including permanent magnets, and a second drive shaft connecting the second magnetic gears and the driving pulleys; Include, The transfer force of the rotational force between the first and second power transmission units is characterized by the magnetic force acting between the permanent magnets of the first and second magnetic gears. The substrate transport apparatus of claim 8, wherein the first and second magnetic gears are disposed to face each other with one sidewall of the chamber for processing the substrate interposed therebetween. The substrate transfer apparatus of claim 1, wherein the driving pulleys have a rotation axis perpendicular to the inclination angle such that the transfer belt is disposed perpendicular to the inclination angle.

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