KR20140148173A - Method of hole making for strengthened glass - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to a method of forming a hole in a tempered glass, and more particularly, to a method of forming a hole in a glass by forming a first scribing line along an outline of a hole to be formed (S1); (S2) forming at least one second scribing line connecting one point and another point of the first scribing line into the hole area; And (S3) forming a hole along the first scribing line by applying pressure to a hole region to be formed, whereby the strength of the hole forming portion and the breakage of the substrate into an unintended shape can be suppressed And capable of forming holes with less force, and capable of significantly improving process time and yield.

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention [0001]

The present invention relates to a method of forming a hole in a tempered glass.

Glass products are regarded as essential components in a wide range of technologies and industries such as monitors, cameras, VTRs, mobile phones, video and optical equipment, automobile transportation equipment, various tableware, and building facilities. A glass having various physical properties is manufactured and used.

Touch screen is one of the key components of video equipment. A touch screen is a display and input device which is installed in a monitor for a terminal and inputs various data such as a simple touch, a character or a picture by using an auxiliary input means such as a finger or a pen, Such a touch screen is becoming increasingly important as a core component for various digital devices that transmit or exchange information to one or both of a mobile communication device such as a smart phone, a computer, a camera, a certificate, and the like, The range is expanding rapidly.

Among the components constituting such a touch screen, the upper transparent protective layer, which is directly contacted by the user, is mainly composed of plastic organic materials such as polyester or acrylic. These materials have poor heat resistance and mechanical strength, Or scratches are generated or broken. Therefore, the upper transparent protective layer of the touch screen is being gradually replaced by a chemically strengthened thin plate glass excellent in heat resistance, mechanical strength and hardness from the conventional transparent plastic. In addition, chemically reinforced thin plate glass is used as transparent protection window for LCD or OLED monitor in addition to touch screen. The strengthening of glass is mainly a physical reinforcing method and a chemical strengthening method which are referred to as air cooling strengthening applied to automobile safety glass. In particular, the chemical reinforcing method is a technique that can be applied to laminated glass having a complicated shape or a thickness of about 2 mm or less .

This chemical strengthening technique is a technique for exchanging alkali ions (mainly Na ions) having a small ionic radius existing in the glass with large alkali ions (mainly K ions) under a predetermined condition, and a large compressive stress And strength and hardness are increased. Thin glass for chemical strengthening mainly used for touch screen is composed of alkali metal oxide (Na ₂ O, K ₂ O) and soda containing SiO ₂ , alkaline earth metal oxide (MgO, CaO etc.) and a little Al ₂ O ₃ Lime silicate glass, and recently, alkali alumina silicate glass for chemical strengthening containing a large amount of Al ₂ O ₃ has been introduced (http://www.corning.com/gorillaglass/index.aspx). The conventional method for chemical strengthening is to ion-exchange both sides of the glass by immersing the glass in a salt solution containing K ions at a predetermined temperature lower than the transition temperature of the glass, and the diffusion rate and depth by ion exchange (S. Karlsson, B. Jonson, C. Stalhandske, The technology of chemical glass strengthening-a review, Glass Technology: European Journal of Glass Science and Technology Part A, 2010, 51, 2, 41-54).

On the other hand, chemically tempered glass is not intended, due to the large compressive stress existing on the surface when cutting, and when breakage occurs due to chaotic fragments, or if it is cut into intended shape, The compressive stress of the region is lost and the strength is lowered. Therefore, once strengthened, it is difficult to cut into a desired size or shape irrespective of the composition of the glass.

In addition, when the reinforced glass is used as a transparent protective layer of a device such as a smart phone, it is necessary to form a hole in a portion corresponding to a position of a speaker, a camera, and a button on a glass substrate. And the like. However, such a method is time consuming, which causes problems such as a decrease in process efficiency, a reduction in the strength of the processed portion, and a breakage in an unintended shape.

Korean Patent No. 693942 discloses a hole forming method and a hole forming apparatus for glass, but fails to provide an alternative to the above problem.

Korean Patent No. 693942

It is an object of the present invention to provide a reinforced glass hole forming method capable of suppressing the strength of the hole forming portion and the breakage of the substrate into an unintended shape.

It is an object of the present invention to provide a method of forming a hole in a tempered glass in which process yield is remarkably improved.

1. (S1) forming a first scribing line along an outline of a hole to be formed; (S2) forming at least one second scribing line connecting one point and another point of the first scribing line into the hole area; And (S3) applying a pressure to a hole region to be formed to form a hole along the first scribing line.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein at least two of the second scribing lines are formed and intersect in an area within the hole.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the first and second scribing lines are formed on at least one side of the tempered glass.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the first and second scribing lines are formed by mechanical or optical methods.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the step of applying pressure is performed by introducing a device for grinding the inner surface of the hole.

6. The method of claim 4, wherein the optical method is performed using a laser.

INDUSTRIAL APPLICABILITY The present invention can suppress the strength of the hole forming portion and the breakage of the substrate in an unintended manner.

The present invention is capable of forming holes with less force, and can significantly improve process time and yield.

The present invention can also easily cut a tempered glass by using a laser.

Fig. 1 shows an embodiment of a first scribing line and a second scribing line formed according to the hole forming method of the present invention.
Fig. 2 schematically shows an embodiment of a scribing line forming method according to the present invention.
Figure 3 schematically illustrates an embodiment of the step of forming holes along a scribing line according to the present invention.
4 schematically illustrates various embodiments of a method of forming a second scribing line according to the present invention.

(S1) forming a first scribe line along an outline of a hole to be formed; (S2) forming at least one second scribing line connecting one point and another point of the first scribing line into the hole area; And (S3) forming a hole along the first scribing line by applying pressure to a hole region to be formed, whereby the strength of the hole forming portion and the breakage of the substrate into an unintended shape can be suppressed And capable of forming holes with less force, and capable of significantly improving process time and yield.

Hereinafter, the present invention will be described in detail.

A method of forming a hole in a reinforced glass of the present invention is provided.

Conventionally, glass was etched slightly from the surface at the time of forming a hole of the reinforced glass to cut the glass. However, these methods are time-consuming and cause problems such as a decrease in process efficiency, a decrease in strength of a processed portion, and breakage in an unintended shape.

However, according to the present invention, the first scribing line is formed along the outline of the hole to be formed, and further the second scribing line is formed, thereby suppressing the strength of the hole forming portion and the breakage of the substrate into an unintended shape It is possible to form a hole with a small force, and the time required for the process can be remarkably reduced, thereby improving the process efficiency.

Hereinafter, the hole forming method of the present invention will be described in more detail with reference to the drawings.

First, a first scribing line is formed along the outline of a hole to be formed (S1).

FIG. 1 shows an embodiment of a first scribing line and a second scribing line formed according to the hole forming method of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 1, the first scribing line and the second scribing line are formed in a portion corresponding to a position of a speaker, a camera, The first scribing line 11 is formed in a straight line or a curved line along the outline of the hole.

An example of a method for forming a scribing line according to the present invention is schematically shown in FIG. 2. A scribing line 10 is a scribing line for cutting a glass, (cracks). The scribing line 10 provides a cutting path. In the present invention, the formation of the scribing line 10 merely generates cracks, and even if the formation of the scribing line 10 is completed, The resulting glass is not cut.

The scribing line 10 may be formed on at least one side of the unitary glass product 100, that is, on one or both sides, and it is preferable that the scribing line 10 is formed on both sides in consideration of curving processing of the cutting side.

The crack depth of the scribing line 10 is set to a depth at which a hole can be stably formed by applying pressure to a certain point on a portion corresponding to the hole later.

By forming such a first scribing line 11, the machining time can be remarkably reduced as compared with the conventional erosion method from the glass surface, and the process efficiency is remarkably improved.

As a method of forming the scribing line 10, for example, a mechanical method or an optical method can be used, and a mechanical method uses a cutting tool having a stronger strength than that of the cutting tool. For example, There is a method of forming a scribing line on the surface of a glass substrate by contacting a diamond blade formed on the circumference of the original plate having a slit on a glass plate along a cutting path, . Among these methods, an optical method using a laser is preferable.

Hereinafter, a method of using a laser will be described as an example.

Specific examples of the laser usable in the present invention include a carbon dioxide laser, a UV laser, and a YAG laser. Preferably, a UV laser or a YAG laser can be used. The UV laser or YAG laser is more advantageous for curve cutting because of fine adjustment.

The specific form of the laser beam to be irradiated can be appropriately selected in consideration of the specific kind of reinforced glass. For example, the major axis and the major axis length of the shape formed in the glass to which the laser beam is irradiated and strengthened may be 0.001 to 40 mm, respectively.

Thereafter, at least one second scribing line connecting one of the first scribing lines and the other of the first scribing lines to the inside of the hole area is formed (S2).

4 schematically illustrates various embodiments of the method of forming the second scribing line 12 according to the present invention, wherein the second scribing line 12 is formed by the first scribing line 12, At least one line connecting one point and the other point to the inside of the hole region, and preferably two or more lines are formed on the side for forming a smooth hole, more preferably two or more lines are formed in the hole inner region ≪ / RTI >

By forming the second scribing line 12 in this way, the first scribing line 11 can be cut in the step of cutting along the first scribing line 11 by applying pressure to the hole region to be formed later It is possible to form the hole with less force than when it is formed, and it is possible to significantly reduce the strength of the hole forming portion and the possibility of breakage of the substrate into an unintended shape.

Next, a hole is formed along the first scribing line by applying pressure to the hole region to be formed (S3).

The portion to which the pressure is applied is not particularly limited as long as it is in the hole region, but it can be any portion, preferably, the point where the second scribing line intersects.

The method of applying the pressure is not particularly limited, and any means conventionally used in the art can be used, but preferably, the apparatus can be carried out by inputting a device for grinding the inner surface of the hole.

3 schematically illustrates an embodiment of a step of forming a hole along a first scribing line using a polishing apparatus 110. As shown in FIG.

Since the inner surface of the hole is not uniform after the formation of the hole, the polishing process is required. When the apparatus for polishing the inner surface of the hole 110 is inserted and pressure is applied, the polishing process can be performed immediately after the hole is formed, The efficiency can be improved.

The pressure can be applied to one or both sides of the hole area.

Through such a process, a unit glass product in which a hole is formed in a portion corresponding to a position of a speaker, a camera, a button, and the like can be obtained.

The object to which the glass product according to the present invention is applied is not particularly limited and can be applied, for example, as a window substrate to a touch screen panel or the like.

When a glass product is applied to a touch screen panel as a window substrate, a laminated structure including electrode patterns may be formed on one side thereof.

Such a laminated structure can be adopted without limitation for the lamination structure known in the art depending on the specific use of the touch screen panel and the like. For example, at least one or more layers of an electrode pattern, an insulating layer, a BM, an index matching layer (transparent dielectric layer), a protective layer, and a scattering prevention layer may be used to form a stacked structure in various order. no.

The electrode pattern detects the static electricity generated by the human body and connects it to the electric signal when the finger is brought into contact with the display part which is the touch area of the image sensor.

The conductive material used for forming the electrode pattern is not particularly limited and examples thereof include indium tin oxide (ITO), indium zinc oxide (IZO), zinc oxide (ZnO), indium zinc tin oxide (IZTO), cadmium tin oxide ), PEDOT (poly (3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene)), carbon nanotubes (CNT), and metal wires. These may be used alone or in combination of two or more.

The metal used for the metal wire is not particularly limited, and examples thereof include silver (Ag), gold, aluminum, copper, iron, nickel, titanium, tellurium, chromium and the like. These may be used alone or in combination of two or more.

An electrode pattern circuit may be formed on the non-display portion corresponding region of the electrode pattern. The electrode pattern circuit serves to transmit an electrical signal generated in the electrode pattern to the FPCB, an IC chip or the like by touching the window substrate display portion. The electrode pattern circuit can be formed by the same method using the same material as the electrode pattern.

The insulating layer prevents electrical shorting of the electrode. The material is not particularly limited and may be formed of, for example, a metal oxide such as silicon oxide, a metal oxide, a polymer, an acrylic resin, or the like.

The BM (nonconductive pattern) forms an opaque decorative layer on the non-display portion of the edge of the window substrate so that the display portion, which is the touch region, is partitioned at the center of the window substrate so as not to see the substrate, wiring and the like inside the device.

The nonconductive pattern may be formed of a conventionally used composition for forming a nonconductive pattern including a binder resin, a polymerizable compound, a polymerization initiator, a pigment, a solvent and the like.

The composition for forming a nonconductive pattern may further comprise a nonconductive metal, a nonconductive oxide or a mixture thereof.

The kind of the nonconductive metal is not particularly limited, and examples thereof include tin or a silicon aluminum alloy.

The kind of the nonconductive oxide is not particularly limited, and examples thereof include titanium dioxide (TiO ₂ ), silicon dioxide (SiO ₂ ), and mixtures thereof.

The index matching layer may be formed comprising niobium oxide, silicon oxide, or mixtures thereof.

The protective layer serves to prevent contamination and breakage of the laminated structure including the electrode pattern from the outside.

The anti-scattering layer protects each of the patterns and prevents scattering of the window substrate when the window substrate ruptures.

The material of the anti-scattering film provides durability and is not particularly limited as long as it is a transparent material, and may be, for example, PET (polyethylen terephthalate).

The method of forming the anti-scattering film is not particularly limited, and examples thereof include a spin coating method, a roll coating method, a spray coating method, a dip coating method, a flow coating method, a doctor blade method, inkjet printing, screen printing, pad printing, gravure printing, offset printing, flexography printing, stencil printing, imprinting, and the like.

10: scribing line 11: first scribing line
12: Second scriber line 100: Tempered glass
110: Polishing apparatus

Claims (6)

(S1) forming a first scribe line along an outline of a hole to be formed;
(S2) forming at least one second scribing line connecting one point and another point of the first scribing line into the hole area; And
(S3) applying pressure to a hole region to be formed to form a hole along the first scribing line;
≪ / RTI >
The method according to claim 1, wherein at least two of the second scribing lines are formed and intersect in the region of the hole.
The method of claim 1, wherein the first and second scribing lines are formed on at least one side of the tempered glass.
The method of claim 1, wherein the first and second scribing lines are formed by a mechanical or optical method.
The method according to claim 1, wherein the applying step is performed by introducing a device for polishing the inner surface of the hole.
5. The method of claim 4, wherein the optical method is performed using a laser.

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