KR20200049465A - Conveyance apparatus, film forming apparatus, manufacturing system and manufacturing method of organic el device - Google Patents

Abstract

In a returning apparatus used for a film forming system or the like, the returning apparatus returns a subject in the same plate shape as a glass substrate without causing a position to be distorted or causing damage or deformation. The substrate (31) is possessed and supported by using a substrate prop (3) on an upper surface of a hand and a substrate gripping hook (15) which operates on the same. A first driving instrument (351) moves the substrate gripping hook (15) between an upper position of the substrate prop (3) and a withdrawing position on a more outer side of the hand. A second driving instrument drives to lower or reversely elevate the substrate gripping hook (15) from an upper side towards the substrate prop (3). In the possessing and supporting motion, the substrate gripping hook (15) is moved from a withdrawing position to an upper position of the substrate (31) mounted on the substrate prop (3), and then is lowered, so that the substrate (31) is possessed and supported by the substrate gripping hook (15) and the substrate prop (3). In a releasing motion, the substrate gripping hook (15) is elevated to an upper position of the substrate (31), and is moved from an upper position of the subject to a withdrawing position.

Description

A conveying apparatus, a film forming apparatus, a manufacturing system of an organic EL element, and a manufacturing method of an organic EL element {CONVEYANCE APPARATUS, FILM FORMING APPARATUS, MANUFACTURING SYSTEM AND MANUFACTURING METHOD OF ORGANIC EL DEVICE}

The present invention relates to a transport apparatus, a film forming apparatus, a manufacturing system for an organic EL element, and a method for manufacturing an organic EL element.

Conventionally, in a deposition apparatus, for example, a system for producing an organic EL element by sequentially laminating a lower metal electrode, an organic thin film, an upper transparent electrode, etc. on a glass substrate, in a manufacturing system of an organic EL element, the glass substrate is conveyed A conveying device is used. This type of conveying apparatus is constituted by, for example, a horizontal multi-joint robot having a hand for holding a substrate, and for example, conveys the substrate between a plurality of film-forming chambers having different processes.

A substrate of this kind is, for example, a glass substrate having a very thin thickness, and cannot be held and conveyed by applying a large gripping force with a hand or gripper. Therefore, in order to convey a board | substrate without damage or a deformation | transformation, the conveying apparatus operates a hand to lift a board | substrate, and conveys the board | substrate mounted on the hand. From such a form of lifting holding, the hand of the conveying device may be called, for example, a fork.

In the form of conveyance by lifting and holding, there is a possibility that the position of the substrate is shifted during conveyance, causing damage such as dropping or breaking of the substrate. In addition, when a large substrate misalignment is detected on the holding portion through a camera or the like, it may be necessary to perform a substrate recovery operation or the like.

Therefore, in the holding portion for lifting and holding, the individual tip portions of the forks are configured as inclined portions, and anti-skid pads are disposed on the inclined portions of the fork tip portions, or further provided with a deformable projecting piece at the tip of the fork. The configuration has been proposed (Patent Document 1 below).

Japanese Patent Publication No. 2017-208451

The configuration of Patent Document 1 uses strain stress or frictional force generated by the pad or the protruding piece in contact with the edge of the substrate, and does not actively regulate the position of the substrate by applying a gripping force. Such a configuration may function satisfactorily if the substrate size and weight are not very large. However, in an environment in which the substrate is large in size and a high-speed conveyance is required as in these days, the inertia force and centrifugal force accompanying the substrate conveyance tend to increase, and there is a possibility that the substrate is misaligned with a few micron orders.

Therefore, an object of the present invention is to enable a plate-shaped object such as a glass substrate to be conveyed without causing positional deviation and without causing damage or deformation in a conveying apparatus used in a film forming system or the like.

In order to solve the said subject, in this invention, in the conveyance apparatus which mounts and conveys a plate-shaped object on a hand, it is movable with respect to the holding | maintenance part fixedly attached to the upper surface of the structural member of the said hand, and the said holding | maintenance part The movable holding support arranged so as to be arranged, and the first driving mechanism for driving the movable holding support to move between an upper position of the holding support and a retracted position outside the hand from the holding support, and the movable And a second driving mechanism for driving the holding portion to descend from the upper position of the holding portion toward the holding portion, or to move up and away from the holding portion and toward the upper position of the holding portion. , The movable holding portion is moved from the retracted position by the first driving mechanism. After moving to the upper position of the object placed on the holding part, the movable holding part is lowered from the upper position of the object toward the object by the second driving mechanism, and the movable holding part and the holding part After the holding operation for holding the object by the above, the movable holding portion is raised to the upper position of the object by the second driving mechanism, and then the movable holding part is moved above the object by the first driving mechanism. A configuration in which a release operation is performed to move from a position to the evacuation position is employed.

According to the said structure, in the conveyance apparatus used by the film-forming system etc., plate-shaped objects, such as a glass substrate, can be conveyed without causing a position shift and without causing damage or deformation.

[Fig. 1] Fig. 1 is a top view of the hand of the conveying apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention.
[Fig. 2] Fig. 2 is a front view showing main parts of a main shaft and a sub shaft of a conveying apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.
[Fig. 3] Fig. 3 is a front view showing a driving mechanism for lifting and lowering the movable holding portion of the transport apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention.
[Fig. 4] Fig. 4 is a front view showing a driving mechanism for horizontally moving the movable holding portion of the conveying apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention.
5 is a plan view of the drive mechanism shown in FIGS. 3 and 4.
[Fig. 6] An explanation showing the operation of horizontally moving the movable holding member using a form showing the state viewed from the side of the driving mechanism shown in Figs. 3 and 4 arranged at different positions on the ground. It is.
It is explanatory drawing which showed the operation | movement which moves up and down a movable holding | maintenance part using the style which shows the state seen from the side of the drive mechanism shown in FIG. 3 and FIG. 4 in a position different in height on the ground.
[Fig. 8] Fig. 8 is a perspective view from above of the hand of the transport apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention.
9 is a perspective view showing a main portion of the drive mechanism shown in FIGS. 3 and 4 from above.
It is explanatory drawing which showed the dynamic action in the hand of the conveyance apparatus which concerns on embodiment of this invention.
It is a top view of the conveyance apparatus concerning the embodiment of this invention, and the film-forming system using this conveyance apparatus.
It is a top view which shows an example of the whole structure of the conveyance apparatus which concerns on embodiment of this invention, and the film-forming system using this conveyance apparatus.

EMBODIMENT OF THE INVENTION Hereinafter, the form for implementing this invention is demonstrated with reference to attached drawing. In addition, the structure shown below is an example to the last, and for example, the detailed structure can be changed suitably by those skilled in the art in the range which does not deviate from the meaning of this invention. In addition, the numerical value handled by this embodiment is a reference value, and does not limit this invention.

Below, the structure of the robot arm and its hand used as a conveying apparatus in the film-forming system which forms an organic thin film is illustrated. Here, first, the configuration example of the film-forming system containing the conveyance apparatus of this embodiment is shown in FIG. This film-forming system is, for example, a film-forming system for forming an organic thin film on a glass substrate, and constitutes a part of a system for manufacturing an organic EL element using the same substrate to produce an organic EL element. In the film forming system of FIG. 11, the film forming chamber 100, the film forming chamber 101, the film forming chamber 102, the transfer chamber 235, and the transfer path 103 are connected to each other through a gate valve 234.

In the film forming system (film forming apparatus) of FIG. 11, the film forming chamber 100, the film forming chamber 101, and the film forming chamber 102 are provided with organic materials to the substrate 31 while the inside thereof is maintained at a predetermined vacuum. It is a film forming means for depositing an organic thin film to deposit, and the basic configuration of each chamber is the same. Moreover, a film-forming system may be configured such that each film-forming chamber forms the same type of organic material, or each film-forming chamber may be configured to film different kinds of organic materials.

The transfer chamber 235 is provided with a robot arm 104, and the substrate 31 is carried from the transfer path 103 into each film forming chamber by the robot arm 104, or the transfer path 103 is transferred from each film forming chamber. As a result, the substrate 31 can be taken out. The robot arm 104 is provided with a hand 233 for holding the substrate 31, and the operation of bringing the substrate 31 into or out of the deposition area 232 in which film formation is performed in each deposition chamber is performed. Do it. Therefore, the robot arm 104 is configured to control the position and / or posture of the hand 233 relative to the substrate. The structure of the link and the joint of the robot arm 104 may be any type of mechanism as long as it can stably handle the substrate 31 in a vacuum device. A configuration example of the hand 233 will be described in detail below.

11 shows that the gate valve 234 connecting the deposition area 232 of the deposition chamber 100 to the transfer chamber 235 is opened, and the robot arm is handed to the substrate 31 in which the outline is indicated by a broken line ( 233) schematically shows the state of carrying (carrying in or taking out) in the mounted state. In addition, X, Y, and Z in the figure indicate the direction of the three-dimensional coordinate axis (as in the drawings to be described later).

The transport path 103 is a load lock chamber capable of putting the substrate 31 in and out of the atmosphere, or a transport path for transporting the substrate 31 to another film forming system. In addition, in FIG. 11, a film deposition chamber or a transport path is arranged on four surfaces around the transport chamber 235, but the form of the film deposition system need not be limited to this configuration, for example, around the transport chamber and around 6 You may arrange a film forming chamber or a conveyance path on the surface or the 8th surface. In addition, the robot arm as a transport device for the substrate 31 is not limited to a single arm, and a multi-arm configuration may be used.

1 and 8 show a configuration example of the hand 233 of the above-described robot arm 104 shown in FIG. 11. As shown in FIG. 1 and FIG. 8, this hand 233 is provided with two main frames 37 extending from the wrist side of the hand 233 to the fingertip side. In the main frame 37, seven sub frames 1, left and right, respectively, protrude in the direction intersecting the main frame 37, and are provided.

At the leading end of each sub-frame 1, a substrate holder 3 is arranged. Furthermore, the substrate holding units 35 (35A, 35B, 35C, 35D) as a holding mechanism are disposed at the leading end of the subframe 1 corresponding to the four corners of the substrate mounting area of the hand 233. The substrate gripping unit 35 (35A, 35B, 35C, 35D) includes a substrate gripping groove 15 (FIG. 3) as a movable holding portion movably disposed with respect to the substrate holder 3. The substrate holder 3 is a holding portion fixedly mounted on the upper surface of the component member of the hand, and the substrate holding units 35; 35A, 35B, 35C, and 35D, as described later, substrate holding grooves as movable holding portions (15) can be approached and separated from the substrate holder (3). The substrate gripping units 35 (35A, 35B, 35C, 35D) are provided by the substrate holder 3 and the substrate gripping groove 15 from the vertical direction around the four corners of the substrate 31 placed on the hand 233. Grip.

Further, sub frames 1 on the wrist side and the fingertip side are provided with sub frames 311 and 311, which extend in parallel with the main frame 37, respectively, and the substrate holder 3 is also disposed at the distal ends thereof. , The trailing edge and leading edge of the substrate 31 are supported by these substrate holders 3, 3 ....

The substrate holding unit 35 (35A, 35B, 35C, 35D) includes a first driving mechanism for horizontally operating the substrate gripping groove 15 and a second driving mechanism for lifting and moving the substrate gripping groove 15 (up and down). To be equipped. These drive mechanisms include two main shafts 33 and 33 (FIGS. 1, 2, and 4) disposed on the main frames 37 and 37, respectively, and a subframe 1 on which the substrate gripping unit 35 is installed. ) Is driven by four sub-shafts (17) disposed on.

As shown in Fig. 2, the main shafts 33 and 33 are rotatably supported on the main frames 37 and 37 via bearings 32 and 32 (...). These main shafts 33 and 33 are rotationally driven by a driving source (not shown) such as a stepping motor or a servo motor disposed on the wrist side of the hand 233, respectively. Thereby, for example, the rotation position of the eccentric cam 34 provided with the elliptical cam surface as shown can be selected.

The rear end of the sub shaft 17 stacked on the bearings 36, 36 (...) contacts the eccentric cam 34 and reciprocates on the sub frame 1, whereby the tip end of the sub shaft 17 By operating the mechanism described later, the substrate gripping ribs 15 are operated in the horizontal and vertical directions. The substrate gripping units 35 (35A, 35B, 35C, 35D) of the present embodiment operate the substrate gripping ribs 15 in two directions, horizontal and vertical, by horizontal linear motion of the subshaft 17. . The substrate gripping units 35 (35A, 35B, 35C, 35D) can be configured by a linear guide, a pan cam, a spring, a coupling sling, and the like, as follows.

In the substrate gripping operation, the substrate gripping unit 35 firstly positions the substrate gripping groove 15 as an upper position of the substrate 31 placed on the substrate holder 3 and is outside the substrate 31. Move horizontally to intrude horizontally from the position. Subsequently, at the set stroke position, the substrate gripping groove 15 is lowered substantially perpendicular to the substrate surface, so that the substrate gripping groove 15 touches the substrate 31, the substrate gripping groove 15 and the substrate receiving (3) The substrate 31 is gripped. In the substrate opening operation, the substrate gripping unit 35 first raises and separates the substrate gripping groove 15 from the substrate surface, and then horizontally moves the sky above the substrate 31 to the evacuation position outside the substrate contour. To move.

Hereinafter, the configuration and operation of the substrate holding unit 35 (35A, 35B, 35C, 35D) will be described in detail with reference to FIGS. 1 to 10. Of these drawings, FIG. 4, which has not been mentioned, shows a first drive mechanism 351 for horizontally moving the substrate holding rib 15 as the movable holding portion, and FIG. 3 is a substrate as the moving holding portion. The second drive mechanism 352 for elevating the gripping furrow 15 is shown. Moreover, FIG. 5 shows the 1st, 2nd drive mechanism which horizontally moves or raises and lowers the substrate gripping groove 15 from an upper surface. 6 and 7, the first and second drive mechanisms of FIGS. 3 and 4, which are originally arranged at substantially the same height, are lateral to different positions on the ground to facilitate understanding of the operation of the mechanism. It is shown using the form arranged in a state viewed from, and FIG. 6 corresponds to the released state of the substrate 31, and FIG. 7 corresponds to the gripped state of the substrate 31. In addition, FIG. 9 shows the first and second driving mechanisms for driving the substrate gripping furrow 15 in a perspective view. In addition, FIG. 10 relates to the requirements of the operation and arrangement of the substrate gripping unit 35, and shows the interaction of the substrate holder 3 and the substrate from the lateral direction of the substrate.

As described above, a plurality of subframes 1 (seven left and right in this example) are disposed in two main frames 37, respectively. At least at the front end of each sub-frame 1, a substrate receiver 3 is arranged. The substrate holder 3 is formed of, for example, a material made of fluorine rubber or the like, for example, in a shape in which the front end side of the subframe 311 is raised, etc. (the substrate holder 310 in FIG. 10) Reference). In the sub-frame 1 in which the substrate holding unit 35 is not disposed, the substrate 31 is simply supported from below while being placed on the substrate holder 3. At the distal end of the subframe 1, which corresponds to the four corners of the hand 233, a substrate holder 3 supported by the base 2 is provided (Fig. 3). In addition, a substrate gripping unit 35 (35A, 35B, 35C, 35D) for vertically and horizontally moving the substrate gripping rib 15 as the movable holding portion is disposed as described above.

In this embodiment, the substrate gripping units 35 (35A, 35B, 35C, 35D) are disposed at the tip of the subframe 1 corresponding to the four corners of the hand 233, but a larger number of substrate gripping units 35 ) May be arranged in any sub-frame 1. The substrate gripping units 35 (35A, 35B, 35C, 35D) are operated by the rotational driving force of the common main shafts 33, 33, as described later, and the substrate gripping units (in addition to the four corners of the hand 233) It is easy to add 35).

Hereinafter, with reference to Figs. 3 to 5 and 9, a configuration example of the first and second drive mechanisms 351 and 352 of the substrate holding unit 35 of the present embodiment will be described. The first drive mechanism 351 is provided with an L-shaped base 20 supported by the first linear guide 21 so as to be linearly moved in a direction parallel to the sub-shaft 17, as shown in FIG. . That is, the L-shaped base 20 is supported by the first linear guide 21 at a position that can contact the distal end of the reciprocating subshaft 17.

In FIGS. 4, 5, and 9, the bracket 22 of the rear end of the L-shaped base 20 is provided with a compression spring installed to be pressed against the compression spring guide 25 between the bracket 26 and the compression spring. By (24) (first pressing means), the front end of the base 20 is pressed so as to come into contact with the front end of the sub shaft 17.

In the state of FIG. 4, the highest cam surface of the eccentric cam 34 abuts on the rear end of the sub shaft 17. In this state, the substrate gripping rib 15 is horizontally moved to the evacuation position outside the substrate 31. When the eccentric cam 34 is rotated from the solid state in FIG. 4 in a dashed line state, the sub shaft 17 retracts with respect to the L-shaped base 20 or the pan cam 18 as shown by the arrow. Thereby, the substrate gripping rib 15 moves horizontally to enter the substrate 31.

That is, the main shaft 33 is rotationally driven, and by the driving force transmitted to the sub shaft 17 via the eccentric cam 34, the sub shaft 17 reciprocates along the sub frame 1, and the sub shaft The first drive mechanism 351 or the second drive mechanism 352 is driven through the front end of (17).

When the sub-shaft 17 is retracted, the L-shaped base 20 and the pan cam 18 are pressed by the compression spring 24 and horizontally move in the same arrow direction while in contact with the eccentric cam 34. The limit positions of the horizontal movement of the base 20 and the pan cam 18 in the direction of entry over the substrate 31 are the stopper adjustment screw 29 and the stopper provided on the L-shaped base 20. (19) is regulated by contact. The stop position of the stopper adjustment screw 29 can be adjusted by the amount of screw insertion into the bracket 30 disposed on the sub frame 1. The locking position of the base 20 by the stopper adjusting screw 29 is adjusted to a predetermined position inside the edge of the substrate 31 for lifting and lowering the substrate gripping rib 15.

As shown in Figs. 5 and 9, the pan cam 18 is fixed to the side surface of the L-shaped base 20. The plate cam 18 is intended to control the lifting of the substrate gripping groove 15 in cooperation with the cam follower 7 of the second drive mechanism 352. The camshaft surface of the flat cam 18 has a high side of the subshaft 17, and the rising height (retreat height) of the substrate gripping groove 15 is determined by this portion of the cam surface. The portion corresponding to the rear of the L-shaped base 20 of the cam surface of the plate cam 18 is an inclined surface for lowering the substrate gripping groove 15. In this embodiment, the cam faces of the pan cam 18 are all linear, and the pan cam 18 is a trapezoidal shape as a whole, but these cam faces can obtain an arbitrary lifting timing or lifting trajectory of the substrate gripping groove 15. It may be any shape considered.

On the other hand, the second drive mechanism 352 is provided with a bracket 9 supported by the base 10 so as to be able to move linearly in a direction parallel to the sub shaft 17 by the second linear guide 11. do. The substrate holding rib 15 is fixed to the front end of the bracket 6 as shown in FIGS. 3 and 9. 3 and 9, the shape of the bracket 6 and the shape of the rotation of the cam follower 7 are different, but the mechanical functions of these structures are equivalent. In particular, as shown in these drawings, the cam follower 7 is, for example, a roller type cam follower, and is considered to be able to follow the cam surface of the plate cam 18 with a small frictional resistance.

The bracket 6 is attached to the bracket 9 via a linear guide 8 so that it can move in the vertical direction. The bracket 6 is pressed downward by the tension spring 16 provided so as to be pressurizable between the bracket 9. The elevation height of the bracket 6 and the substrate gripping rib 15 is determined by the height of the cam surface of the plate cam 18 in contact with the cam follower 7 mounted on the bracket 6.

Interlocking in the horizontal direction parallel to the subshaft 17 of the first and second drive mechanisms 351 and 352 is a tension spring 13 and stoppers 27 and 28 configured as engaging slits that can be coupled to each other (FIG. 5) ). The tension spring 13 (second pressing means) is installed so as to be pressurizable between the arm 14 protruding from the rear end of the bracket 9 and the bracket 23 of the L-shaped base 20. And press them in the direction to bring them closer. In addition, the force relationship between the tension spring 13 and the compression spring 24 is set as, for example, (recovery force of the compression spring 24)> (tensile force of the tension spring 13).

As shown in FIG. 5, a stopper 27 protrudes from the brackets 9 to 6 of the second drive mechanism 352, and a stopper 28 protrudes from the L-shaped base 20 of the first drive mechanism 352. Is installed. In the state shown in Fig. 5, the stoppers 27 and 28 are stopped, and in the horizontal direction, the L-shaped base 20 of the first driving mechanism 352 is pressed by the pressing force of the tension spring 13, and 2 The brackets 9 to 6 of the drive mechanism 352 are integrally movable.

However, the horizontal movement position in the direction in which the bracket 9 of the second drive mechanism 352 is toward the sub shaft 17 is adjusted by the stopper supported by the bracket 5 disposed in the sub frame 1. It is regulated by the screw 4 and the stopper 12 (FIG. 3) coming into contact. The restricting position of this bracket 9 can be adjusted by the stopper adjusting screw 4. And, as shown in FIGS. 5 to 7, when the tip of the sub shaft 17 is used as a reference, the position of the stopper adjustment screw 4 on the sub frame 1 is the stopper adjustment screw described above. It is farther than the position of (29).

In the above configuration, as shown in Figs. 5 and 6, after the bracket 9 comes into contact with the stopper adjusting screw 4, the brackets 9 and 6 of the second driving mechanism 352, the substrate gripping grooves (15) cannot move horizontally to the right of a predetermined lifting position inside the outer edge of the substrate 31. From this state, when the sub shaft 17 is further retracted, only the L-shaped base 20 of the first drive mechanism 351 moves to the right by the pressing force of the compression spring 24. At this time, the stoppers 27 and 28 are separated, and the horizontal position of the bracket 9 (the lifting position of the substrate gripping groove 15) is brought into contact with the stopper adjusting screw 4 by the tension spring 13 It is maintained by being pressed. In the state of Figs. 5 and 6, the cam follower 7 is in contact with the position of the horizontal high cam surface of the plate cam 18, and the substrate gripping groove 15 is still mounted on the substrate holder 3 It does not descend to the edge of (31).

When the sub-shaft 17 is further retracted from the state of Figs. 5 and 6, only the L-shaped base 20 of the first drive mechanism 351 is stopped by the pressing force of the compression spring 24 9 ) To the right. As a result, as shown in FIG. 7, the cam follower 7 pressed by the tension spring 16 descends along the slope of the cam surface of the plate cam 18, whereby the substrate gripping groove 15 descends, It is in contact with the upper surface of the edge portion of the substrate 31 placed on the substrate receiver 3.

As described above, in the four corner substrate gripping units 35 (35A, 35B, 35C, 35D), the edge portions of the substrate 31 are vertically moved by the substrate gripping groove 15 and the substrate holder 3 The holding operation to be held from is performed. Further, in this holding state, by selecting the dimensions of the substrate gripping groove 15 and the substrate holder 3 (for example, all made of fluorine rubber, etc.), the thickness of the substrate 31, and the like, the cam follower ( 7) is set so that an appropriate gap is generated between the pan cam 18. This is due to the repulsive force of elastic members such as fluorine rubber constituting the substrate gripping groove 15 and the substrate receiving 3, and the appropriately selected pressing force of the tension spring 16 applied to the substrate gripping groove 15. The substrate 31 can be held with a light holding force. Thereby, the board | substrate 31 can be hold | maintained reliably, without damaging and deforming the board | substrate 31, and without causing the placement position shift to the hand 233.

On the other hand, from the gripping state of the substrate 31, the release operation of raising the substrate gripping rib 15 and moving it further to the evacuation position outside the edge portion of the substrate 31 is performed as follows. This release operation is an operation in the reverse direction and reverse order as described above from the state of FIG. 7 to the state of FIG. 6. From the state of FIG. 7, when the front end of the sub-shaft 17 is advanced to the left in the figure and the L-shaped base 20 is pressed through the leading edge of the pan cam 18 or the like, the cam follower 7 A rises along the slope of the cam surface of the pan cam 18. As a result, the substrate gripping ribs 15 are separated from the upper surface of the edge portion of the substrate 31 placed on the substrate holder 3. As shown in Fig. 5, the stoppers 27 and 28 are in a positional relationship in which the cam follower 7 comes into contact with each other when the slope of the cam surface of the pan cam 18 rises. Therefore, until the stoppers 27 and 28 abut, the brackets 9 to 6 of the second drive mechanism 352 come into contact with the stopper adjustment screw 4 through the pressing force of the tension spring 13. To maintain. Then, the cam follower 7 moves up the slope of the cam surface of the plate cam 18, and the substrate gripping groove 15 is separated from the upper surface of the edge portion of the substrate 31 as shown in FIG.

In addition, when the front end of the sub-shaft 17 is moved to the left in the figure, the stoppers 27 and 28 abut, and the L-shaped base 20 of the first drive mechanism 351 is brought into contact with these stoppers. The brackets 9 to 6 of the second drive mechanism 352 are moved to the left. As a result, the substrate gripping rib 15 is moved to an evacuation position outside the upper surface of the edge portion of the substrate 31 placed on the substrate holder 3.

As described above, in the substrate holding units 35 (35A, 35B, 35C, 35D) of the four corners of the L-shaped hand, the substrate gripping groove 15 is raised from the gripping state of the substrate 31 described above. Further, a release operation is performed to move the evacuation position outside the edge portion of the substrate 31. The holding and releasing operations of the above-described substrate gripping units 35 (35A, 35B, 35C, 35D) can be synchronously and interlocked by driving the main shafts 33, 33.

In addition, in the above, as shown in Figs. As described above, the number of arrangements of the substrate gripping units 35 may be greater than this, but on the contrary, a configuration in which the hand is placed at a smaller number of places is also conceivable.

In that case, in a hand having a basic structure of this kind, a configuration in which only two positions on the wrist side of the hand, for example, the substrate gripping units 35A and 35B are provided, is preferable. This configuration has a greater advantage in the following reasons than the configuration in which the substrate holding units 35A and 35B are omitted and only the fingertip-side substrate holding units 35C and 35D are provided (Fig. 10).

Fig. 10 shows a cross section along the line A-A 'in Fig. 1, and in Fig. 10, the upper side corresponds to the upper fingertip side in Fig. 1 and the lower side corresponds to the wrist side in Fig. 1 below. In Fig. 10, "311" is a subframe 311 disposed at a right angle to the subframe 1, and "310" is a fluorine rubber or the like disposed at the tip of the subframe 311. It shows a substrate receiving made of an elastic member. The substrate holder 310 has a structure equivalent to that of the substrate holder 3 described above, and its upper surface is formed, for example, in a shape in which the front end side of the subframe 311 is raised.

10, CF shows the direction of the centrifugal force exerted on the hand 233 and the substrate 31 held and held when the hand in FIG. 1 is operated with the robot arm 104. In FIG. In the configuration of the robot arm 104 composed of a plurality of links and joints, in many cases, when the hand portion is turned, a centrifugal force acts in the same direction as the CF. In addition, in many cases, the size of the centrifugal force CF is larger than the wrist side at the fingertip side at the top of the drawing.

Then, when the link of the robot arm 104 swings, and the centrifugal force CF acts, the substrate 31 deforms, for example, as a dash-solid line in the drawing, and the front edge thereof receives the substrate at the top of the drawing (fingertip side). It acts to dig into the slope of 310. On the other hand, the rear edge of the substrate 31 acts to slip away from the slope of the substrate holder 310 at the bottom (wrist side) of the drawing. Due to the above circumstances, when the link of the robot arm 104 is swung, the holding force of the substrate 31 is relatively high in the substrate holder 310 at the top of the drawing (finger side), and the substrate at the bottom of the drawing (wrist side). In the receiving 310, a tendency to be lower than that occurs.

For the above reasons, if the arrangement of the substrate gripping units 35 is limited to two places, two places on the wrist side of the hand 233, for example, the substrate gripping units 35C and 35D of Fig. 1 are omitted, A configuration in which only the substrate gripping units 35A and 35B are provided is preferable. Thereby, the weak holding force of the substrate holder 310 at the bottom (wrist side) of the drawing is supplemented, and the centrifugal force CF can be efficiently held on the smaller side, and the substrate can be surely held even with a small holding force. As described above, according to the configuration in which only the wrist-side substrate gripping units 35A and 35B are provided, it is possible to effectively prevent the substrate 31 from being displaced and to securely hold the substrate.

According to the above-mentioned embodiment, in the conveyance apparatus used for a film-forming system etc., plate-shaped objects, such as a glass substrate, can be conveyed without causing a position shift and without causing damage or deformation. In addition, although the object such as a thin glass substrate handled in a film-forming system or the like has been exemplified as the plate-like object, it is needless to say that the above-described basic configuration is useful in the same manner as described above in a conveying apparatus for conveying another plate-like object. none.

The present invention is not limited to the embodiments described above, and many modifications are possible within the technical spirit of the present invention.

For example, FIG. 12 shows an example of the overall configuration of a manufacturing system 300 for manufacturing an organic EL panel, in which the present invention is implemented. The manufacturing system 300 includes a plurality of film forming chambers 100, a transfer chamber 1101, a transfer chamber 1102, a transfer chamber 1103, a substrate supply chamber 1105, a mask stock chamber 1106, and a pass chamber 1107. ), A glass supply chamber 1108, a joining chamber 1109, a takeout chamber 1110, and the like. Each of the film forming chambers 100 differs in detail from differences in film forming materials and masks, but the basic structure (particularly a structure related to substrate transport and alignment) is almost common. In addition, one film forming chamber may be provided with a plurality of vapor deposition areas. In such a configuration, parallel deposition processing is possible in which the mask support portion is taken out and the undeposited substrate is carried out in the other deposition area, until deposition in one deposition area is completed. Do.

A robot arm 1120 serving as a transport mechanism is disposed in the transport chamber 1101, the transport chamber 1102, and the transport chamber 1103. The above-described hand 233 can be provided to the robot arm 1120, and the above-described configuration can accurately and reliably transport between the film-forming chambers 100, for example.

The plurality of film forming chambers 100 included in the manufacturing system 300 may be devices that form the same material with each other, or devices that form different materials. For example, a manufacturing system in which each film forming chamber deposits organic materials of different emission colors may be used. In the manufacturing system 300, an organic material is deposited on a substrate conveyed by the robot arm 1120, or a thin film of an inorganic material such as a metal material is formed, for example, by vapor deposition.

The substrate is supplied from the outside to the substrate supply chamber 1105. The mask stock chamber 1106 is used in each film forming chamber 100, and the mask on which the film is deposited is conveyed by the robot arm 1120. The mask can be cleaned by recovering the mask conveyed to the mask stock chamber 1106. In addition, the mask that has been cleaned can be stored in the mask stock chamber 1106 and set in the deposition chamber 100 by the robot arm 1120.

Glass material for sealing is supplied from the outside to the glass supply chamber 1108. In the bonding chamber 1109, an organic EL panel is produced by pasting a glass material for sealing onto a formed substrate. The produced organic EL panel is taken out from the take-out chamber 1110.

As described above, the robot arm 1120 equipped with the hand 233 as a conveying device employing the present invention can be preferably implemented in a manufacturing system or a manufacturing method for manufacturing an organic EL element. However, the conveying apparatus employing the present invention is not limited to an organic film, and can be suitably used for conveying an object such as a substrate in a film forming system in which various films are formed.

1: Sub frame
2: Base
5, 6, 9, 22, 23, 30: Bracket
3, 310: substrate receiving
4: Stopper adjustment screw
7: Cam Followers
8, 11, 21: Linear guide
13, 16: tension spring
15: substrate gripping
17, 18: Pancam
20: L-shaped base
24: compression spring
25: compression spring guide
27, 28: stopper
29: stopper adjustment screw
31: substrate
33: main shaft
34: eccentric cam
35: substrate gripping unit
37: main frame
100, 101, 102: deposition chamber
103: return route
104: robot arm
233: Hand
300: manufacturing system
351: first drive mechanism
352: second drive mechanism
1101, 1102, 1103: Transfer room
1105: substrate supply room
1106: mask stock room
1107: Pass room
1108: glass supply room
1109: Junction room
1110: take-out room
1120: robot arm

Claims (15)

In the conveying apparatus for placing a plate-shaped object on the hand and conveying it,
A holding portion fixedly mounted on the upper surface of the component member of the hand;
A movable holding portion movably disposed with respect to the holding portion,
A first drive mechanism for driving the movable holding portion to move between an upper position of the holding portion and a retracted position outside the hand than the holding portion;
A second drive mechanism for driving the movable holding portion to descend from the upper position of the holding portion toward the holding portion, or to move up and away from the holding portion to move toward the upper position of the holding portion.
Equipped with,
After the movable holding part is moved from the retracted position to the upper position of the object placed on the holding part by the first driving mechanism, the movable holding part is moved from the upper position of the object by the second driving mechanism. , A holding operation for descending toward the object and holding the object by the movable holding part and the holding part,
After the second driving mechanism raises the movable holding portion to the upper position of the object, a release operation for moving the movable holding portion from the upper position of the object to the retracted position by the first driving mechanism
The conveying apparatus which performs. According to claim 1,
The hand includes a main frame extending from the wrist side to the fingertip side, and a sub frame mounted on the main frame and extending in a direction intersecting the main frame, as the constituent member, the holding portion, and the movable The said 1st drive mechanism which drives a holding | maintenance part, and the said 2nd drive mechanism are mounted in the said sub frame. According to claim 2,
A plurality of the sub-frames are mounted to the main frame, the holding portions are fixedly mounted on the upper surfaces of the plurality of sub-frames, and the sub-frames mounted on the wrist side of the hand, in addition to the holding portions , The said movable holding | maintenance part is arrange | positioned. According to claim 3,
The conveying apparatus in which the said movable holding | maintenance part is arrange | positioned with respect to the said holding | maintenance part with respect to the said sub frame on the fingertip side of the hand. The method according to any one of claims 2 to 4,
The main shaft is rotatably supported and rotationally driven by the main frame, and a sub shaft that reciprocates along the subframe by the rotational driving force of the main shaft and drives the first drive mechanism or the second drive mechanism. The conveying apparatus provided. The method of claim 5,
The cam mounted on the main shaft contacts the rear end of the sub shaft, and the main shaft is rotationally driven, and the sub shaft reciprocates along the sub frame by a driving force transmitted through the cam to the sub shaft. The conveying apparatus which moves and drives the said 1st drive mechanism or the said 2nd drive mechanism through the front end of the said sub-shaft. The method of claim 6,
The first drive mechanism includes a base supported on a first linear guide at a position accessible to a tip of the sub-shaft reciprocating, a flat cam having an inclined surface mounted on the base, and the first linear guide on the sub It has a first pressing means for pressing in the direction in contact with the tip of the shaft, and a locking means for stopping the base when the movable holding portion is in an upper position of the holding portion,
The second drive mechanism includes a bracket supporting the movable holding portion, a second linear guide supporting the bracket, and a second linear guide disposed in parallel with the first linear guide, and a coupling sling capable of engaging the base, A second follower for urging the second linear guide in a direction in which the engaging ribs and the base are engaged; and a cam follower in contact with the plate cam to determine a lift position of the movable holding support,
In the holding operation, the sub-shaft retracts, the base moves, and the bracket is moved through the engaging ribs until the movable holding portion reaches an upper position of the holding portion, and then the cam A follower descends along the inclined surface of the pan cam to contact the movable holding portion to the object,
In the releasing operation, after the sub-shaft advances, the base moves, and the cam follower rises along the inclined surface of the plate cam to separate the movable holding portion from the object, and then further movable holding The conveying device which moves the bracket through the coupling sling until an additional portion moves from the upper position of the holding portion to the retracted position. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 7,
A conveying device, wherein the holding portion is constituted by an elastic member. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 8,
The conveying apparatus in which the said movable holding | maintenance part is comprised with the elastic member. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 9,
And a robot arm for controlling the position and / or posture of the hand relative to the object. The conveying device according to any one of claims 1 to 10,
A film forming chamber for forming a film on the glass substrate as the object
It is equipped with, the film-forming apparatus. The conveying device according to any one of claims 1 to 10,
A film forming chamber for forming an organic thin film on a glass substrate conveyed as the object by the conveying device
Equipped with,
An organic EL device manufacturing system, wherein an organic EL device is manufactured by using the glass substrate on which an organic thin film is formed by the film forming chamber. A conveying process for bringing in or taking out a glass substrate as the object to a film forming chamber for forming an organic thin film by the conveying device according to any one of claims 1 to 10,
A film forming step of forming an organic thin film on the glass substrate by the film forming chamber
Including,
A method of manufacturing an organic EL device using the glass substrate to manufacture an organic EL device. A manufacturing system comprising a plurality of film forming apparatuses according to claim 11. A system for manufacturing an organic EL panel comprising a plurality of film forming apparatuses according to claim 11, wherein at least one of the film forming apparatuses deposits an organic thin film on a glass substrate conveyed as the object.

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