TW202236389A - Heat treatment apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

The object of the present invention is to provide a heat treatment apparatus that delivers an object to be treated to a heat treatment furnace and does not generate thermal shock to the component to be treated when it is supported on the supporting material. [Solution] A heat treatment apparatus is equipped with: a heat treatment furnace forming a heat treating space; a supporting material disposed in the heat treating space; a delivering device allowing the supporting material to support the object to be treated after delivering the object to be treated from the outside of the heat treating space to the inside of the heat treating space; and a temperature detecting device which detects the temperature of the object to be treated which is delivered into the heat treatment apparatus by the delivering device. The delivering device is configured to, based on the treated temperature by the temperature detecting device, determine the timing of allowing the supporting material to support the treated object delivered into the heat treatment apparatus by the delivering device.

Description

Heat treatment device

The present invention relates to a heat treatment device having a mechanism for carrying in and out a to-be-processed object into and out of a heat treatment furnace by means of a transport rod.

In the heat treatment apparatus for carrying the object into the heat treatment furnace for heat treatment, the object to be processed is transported from outside the heat treatment furnace, and the object to be processed is supported by a support member in the heat treatment furnace before heat treatment is performed.

For example, in Patent Document 1, a preparation chamber 40 is provided through a shutter at the loading/unloading port (opening portion) of the furnace body for loading the processed object. The object to be processed is supported by the supporting mechanism in the preparation chamber 40, and then transported into the furnace body by the arm. And, the object to be processed is handed over to the supporting material in the furnace body. If such a preparatory chamber is provided, there is an advantage that the structure of the heat treatment apparatus can be simplified and miniaturized.

In addition, in the structure shown in Patent Document 2, the object to be processed is conveyed from outside the heat treatment furnace, and the substrate to be processed is lowered in the heat treatment container and placed on the processing table. At this time, since the object to be processed is low temperature, sufficient fall time is ensured so that the temperature difference between the processing stage and the substrate becomes small. In this way, the temperature difference between the processing table and the substrate is eliminated, and the peeling of the film deposited on the processing table can be reduced. [Prior Art Literature] [Patent Document]

Patent Document 1: Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2017-117850 Patent Document 2: Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2001-250782

(Problem to be solved by the invention)

However, in any of the heat treatment apparatuses described above, when the object to be processed transported into the heat treatment furnace is supported by the supporting material in the furnace, thermal shock may occur.

For example, in the heat treatment apparatus described in Patent Document 1, when the object to be processed is supported in the furnace, the temperature difference between the support material and the object to be processed is not considered. Therefore, if the temperature difference between the two is large, there is a possibility that a thermal shock will be generated when the support member contacts the object to be processed.

In addition, in the heat treatment apparatus described in Patent Document 2, when the substrate to be processed is lowered in the heat treatment container and placed on the processing table, a sufficient time for falling is ensured so that the temperature difference between the processing table and the substrate is reduced, but it is considered that The lift pins 14 supporting the substrate to be processed within the heat treatment vessel have been heated. Therefore, when the object to be processed is mounted on the lift pin 14, the temperature difference between the front end portion of the lift pin 14 and the object to be processed increases, and thermal shock occurs in this portion.

In this way, in the conventional heat treatment apparatus, if the object to be processed is conveyed from the outside and supported by the support material in the heat treatment furnace, the object to be processed that has not become a high-temperature state in the furnace is supported by a high-temperature support material. The treated object produces heat damage. As a result, cracks or breakage (fragmentation) occur in the object to be processed.

An object of the present invention is to provide a heat treatment device that does not cause a thermal shock to the object when the object is transported into the heat treatment furnace and supported by a supporting material. (technical means to solve the problem)

The heat treatment device of the present invention has: A heat treatment furnace, which forms a heat treatment space, and performs heat treatment on the object to be treated in the heat treatment space; a support material, which is arranged in the above-mentioned heat treatment space; and A transport device that supports the object on the support member after transporting the object to be processed from outside the heat treatment space into the heat treatment space.

In addition, it is provided with a temperature detection device for detecting the temperature of the object to be processed transported into the heat treatment device by the transport device, The conveying device determines a timing at which the supporting member supports the object to be processed conveyed into the heat treatment device by the conveying device based on the temperature detected by the temperature detecting device.

In addition, in the present invention, the term "to-be-processed object" refers to a work to be heat-treated, but also includes a concept of a pallet supporting the work (hereinafter, the same).

After the object to be processed is transported into the heat treatment space from outside the heat treatment space, it is supported by a support member installed in the heat treatment space. Also, the timing of the support can be adjusted. That is, the above-mentioned timing is adjusted by the temperature detection device according to the temperature of the object to be processed transported into the heat treatment device.

By controlling in this way, the object to be processed that is conveyed into the heat treatment apparatus can be heated in the heat treatment space and then supported by the support material. Therefore, when the object to be processed is supported by the support material, the temperature difference between the two does not increase, and thermal shock does not occur to the object to be processed.

When the temperature detected by the temperature detecting device is higher than the damage temperature, the conveying device supports the object to be processed which is conveyed into the heat treatment device by the conveying device on the supporting member. The so-called damage temperature refers to the temperature at which the treated object is cracked or broken by thermal shock. The temperature at which the above-mentioned treated object is damaged.

In addition, the temperature detection device detects the temperature of the processed object without contacting the processed object. Such a temperature detection device is usually a radiation thermometer. (compared to the effect of previous technology)

According to the present invention, when the object to be processed is transported into the heat treatment furnace and supported by the supporting material, the object to be processed is set to be supported after it reaches a certain high temperature, so that the object to be processed can be prevented from being subjected to thermal shock. And the damage situation.

Hereinafter, a heat treatment apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. 1(A) and 1(B) are side views showing a schematic configuration of a heat treatment apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. In FIG. 1(A) and FIG. 1(B), the transfer chamber and the heat treatment furnace are shown in cross-sectional views. In addition, FIG. 1(A) shows the situation where the object to be processed is in the transfer chamber, and FIG. 1(B) shows the situation where the object to be processed is in the heat treatment furnace. Fig. 2 is a plan view of the front end (first end) of the transport rod. 3(A) is a side view, FIG. 3(B) is a top view of the front end (first end) of the transport rod, FIG. 3(C) is an end view, and FIG. 3(D) is an external perspective view. Fig. 4 is a diagram showing the positional relationship between the object to be processed and the support in the z direction of the heat treatment space.

Hereinafter, the height direction is referred to as the z direction, the moving direction of the transport rod is referred to as the x direction, and the direction perpendicular to the x direction is referred to as the Y direction.

(Overall configuration of heat treatment device 10) 1(A), FIG. 1(B), and FIG. 2, the heat treatment apparatus 10 includes a heat treatment furnace 20, a transfer chamber 30, a transfer rod 41, a transfer rod 42, a transfer device 50, and a switching device 60.

The heat treatment furnace 20 and the transfer chamber 30 are arranged so as to line up in one direction (x direction in FIG. 1(A) and FIG. 1(B) ). The heat treatment furnace 20 is connected to the transfer chamber 30 .

The heat treatment furnace 20 has a heat treatment space (inner space) 200 for heat-treating an object to be processed. The heat treatment furnace 20 is constituted by using a chamber capable of maintaining the ambient gas of the heat treatment space 200 . The heat treatment furnace 20 is provided with a gas introduction part (not shown) in the upper wall structure, and a predetermined ambient gas (heat treatment gas) is introduced into the heat treatment space 200 from the gas introduction part.

Supports 230 to 233 and a heat source 240 for supporting the object to be processed WK are arranged in the heat treatment space 200 . The supports 230 to 233 are made of rod-shaped ceramics with tapered ends, and are held by a holding member (not shown) in the heat treatment space 200 so as to extend in the z direction. As shown in FIG. 4, the four support members 230-233 are arranged so that two are arranged in the x direction and two are arranged in the y direction. The front ends of the supports 230 to 233 are positioned higher than the upper ends of the transport rod 41 and the transport rod 42 .

The heat sources 240 are respectively arranged at positions close to the upper wall and the lower wall of the heat treatment space 200 . But it is not limited thereto, and the heat source 240 can also be disposed on the side of the heat treatment space 200 . The heat source 240 only needs to be able to uniformly heat the object to be processed WK supported by the supports 230 to 233.

An opening 201 is formed in one side wall (front wall 21 ) of the walls constituting the heat treatment furnace 20 . The opening 201 runs through the front wall 21 . The heat treatment space 200 of the heat treatment furnace 20 is connected to the transfer space (inner space) 300 of the transfer chamber 30 through the opening 201 .

A hole is opened in the center of the other wall (upper wall) constituting the heat treatment furnace 20 . In addition, in the heat source 240 provided in the position close to another wall (upper wall), another hole is also provided in the position corresponding to the said hole. A radiation thermometer 250 as a temperature detection device is disposed through a window in the two holes. As will be described later, the radiation thermometer 250 detects the temperature of the object to be processed WK conveyed into the heat treatment furnace. The window portion can be made of a window glass that does not absorb the wavelength (several μ to less than 10 μ) emitted by the radiation thermometer 250 .

The transfer chamber 30 has a transfer space 300 . An opening 301 and an opening 302 are formed in one side wall (front wall 31 ) of the walls constituting the transfer chamber 30 (see FIG. 5 ). Openings 301 , 302 run through the front wall 31 . Through these openings 301, 302, the conveyance rod 41 and the conveyance rod 42 can advance and retreat.

The transfer chamber 30 is provided with a heat insulating wall 32 . The heat insulating wall 32 is arranged near the end portion of the transfer chamber 30 on the side of the heat treatment furnace 20 . The heat insulating wall 32 is movable to switch the isolation and communication between the space connected to the opening 201 and the space connected to the opening 301 in the transfer space 300 .

The conveyance rod 41 and the conveyance rod 42 are rod-shaped (column-shaped in this case) extending in one direction. The material of the conveyance rod 41 and the conveyance rod 42 is made of stainless steel (SUS) which is not easily corroded.

The direction in which the transfer rod 41 and the transfer rod 42 extend is parallel to the direction in which the heat treatment furnace 20 and the transfer chamber 30 are arranged. The conveyance rod 41 and the conveyance rod 42 are arranged in parallel with a predetermined distance therebetween. The direction in which the conveyance rod 41 and the conveyance rod 42 are arranged is a direction perpendicular to the x direction and the z direction (the y direction in FIG. 1(A) and FIG. 1(B) ). In consideration of the lengths of the support member 412 and the support member 422 described later, it is preferable that the distance Ws (see FIG. 2 ) between the transfer rod 41 and the transfer rod 42 be greater than the dimension in the y direction of the supports 230 to 233.

The transfer rod 41 and the transfer rod 42 are inserted through the second opening formed in the front wall 31 of the transfer chamber 30 . The first end 4111 of the extending direction of the conveying rod 41 and the first end 4211 of the extending direction of the conveying rod 42 (see FIG. The end portion 4112 and the second end portion 4212 (see FIG. 6 ) in the extending direction of the transport rod 42 are arranged outside the transport chamber 30 .

As will be described later, the conveyance rod 41 and the conveyance rod 42 are each rotated by 45 degrees. The state of 0 degrees is referred to as rod state A, and the state of rotation of 45 degrees is referred to as rod state B. As will be described later in detail, the following steps are repeated for the transport rod 41 and the transport rod 42 .

Conveying with rod 41 and conveying with rod 42, is (Procedure 1) In the transfer chamber 30, the processed object WK is received from above in the rod state B. FIG. And the processed object WK is set.

(Step 2) Advance in the rod state B, and move the first end portions 4111 and 4211 into the heat treatment furnace 20 .

(Step 3) When the temperature of the object WK to be processed rises to a predetermined temperature, the rod state A is set. Whether it has risen to a predetermined temperature is judged by the output of the radiation thermometer 250 . At this time, the object to be processed WK is placed and supported on the four supports 230 to 233 . Heat treatment is performed on the object to be processed WK.

(Step 4) Move backward in the rod state A, and move the first end portions 4111 and 4211 into the transfer chamber 30 .

(Step 5) When the heat treatment of the object to be processed WK is completed, the first end portions 4111 and 4211 are advanced in the rod state A and moved into the heat treatment furnace 20 .

(Step 6) Set to the rod state B. At this time, the object to be processed WK is picked up from the supports 230 to 233 and supported.

(Step 7) Move backward in the rod state B, and move the first end portions 4111 and 4211 into the transfer chamber 30 .

(Step 8) In the rod state B, the processed object WK is taken out to the outside.

The first end 4111 of the extending direction of the conveying rod 41 in the x direction is at the same position as the first end 4211 of the extending direction of the conveying rod 42, and the second end 4112 of the extending direction of the conveying rod 41 is It is the same as the second end portion 4212 in the extending direction of the transport rod 42 .

The transfer device 50 is arranged on the opposite side to the side connected to the heat treatment furnace 20 with the transfer chamber 30 as a reference. That is, the transfer device 50 is arranged outside the transfer chamber 30 and the heat treatment furnace 20 . The conveying device 50 is connected to the conveying rod 41 and the conveying rod 42 via a rod holding member 51 . The conveyance rod 41 and the conveyance rod 42 are held by the rod holding member 51 in a rotatable state (rod state A and rod state B) in a direction along each side surface.

The conveyance device 50 moves in the x direction which is the front-rear direction. By the movement of the conveying device 50, the conveying rod 41 and the conveying rod 42 also move in the front-rear direction, that is, the x direction. Thereby, as shown in FIG. 1(A), when the conveying device 50 is located at the first end of the moving range, the part of the first end 4111 of the conveying rod 41 and the part of the first end 4211 of the conveying rod 42 A part is arranged in the transfer space 300 of the transfer chamber 30 . On the other hand, as shown in Figure 1 (B), when the conveying device 50 is positioned at the second end of the moving range, the part of the first end 4111 of the conveying rod 41 and the first end 4211 of the conveying rod 42 Part of it is arranged in the heat treatment space 200 of the heat treatment furnace 20 .

Since the transfer device 50 is arranged at a position away from the heat treatment furnace 20 outside, the transfer device 50 does not require heat countermeasures. The conveying device 50 can be constituted by cheap general-purpose products.

As described above, in the transfer chamber 30, the heat treatment apparatus 10 is placed on the portion of the first end portion 4111 of the transfer rod 41 and the portion of the first end portion 4211 of the transfer rod 42 through the opening 201. The processed object WK is carried into the heat treatment furnace 20 (FIG. 1(A)→FIG. 1(B)). The processed object WK carried into the heat treatment furnace 20 has a low temperature, but when the heat treatment furnace 20 rises to a predetermined temperature, it becomes the rod state B→rod state A, and is supported by the supporting members 230 to 233. At this time, since the temperature of the object to be processed WK is sufficiently heated, no thermal shock to the object to be processed WK occurs when it is supported by the supports 230 to 233 .

The thermal shock to the object WK to be processed depends on the thermal shock temperature characteristic of the material of the object WK to be processed. Thermal shock temperature characteristics are temperature characteristics that can withstand rapid temperature changes. For example, the thermal shock temperature of alumina in ceramics is about 200°C.

Therefore, when the object to be processed WK is supported by the supports 230 to 233, the temperature difference between the object to be processed WK and the supports 230 to 233 is controlled so as to be within the thermal shock temperature. For example, when the vicinity of the supported point of the object to be processed WK is alumina, the object to be processed WK is heated until the above-mentioned temperature difference becomes within 200°C. Specific examples of thermal control are as follows.

Assume that the temperature inside the heat treatment furnace 20 is kept at 1300°C. Immediately before the object WK is carried into the heat treatment furnace 20, the temperature of the object WK is normal temperature. When the object to be processed WK is carried into the heat treatment furnace 20, the object to be processed WK is heated. At this time, since the object to be processed WK is supported by the transport rods 41 and 42 in the rod state B, there is no thermal shock to the object to be processed WK. When the temperature of the object WK to be processed rises to 1100° C. or higher, the conveyance rods 41 and 42 are set to the rod state A. At this time, although the object to be processed WK is supported by the supports 230 to 233, the temperature difference between them is 200° C. or less. Therefore, thermal shock does not occur to the object WK to be processed. The so-called damage temperature in the present invention means that in this example, the temperature difference between the two is not less than 200°C and not more than 1100°C.

Furthermore, the support members 230-233 can also be formed by using other members only at the front end. According to such a structure, even if a front-end|tip part is damaged, it can replace easily. In addition, it is also possible to change the front end according to the characteristics of the object WK to be processed. For example, the front end portion may be attached to the main body portion by a screw structure.

Next, the switching device 60 and the conveyance rods 41 and 42 will be described.

The switching device 60 is connected to the second end portion 4112 of the transport rod 41 and the second end portion 4212 of the transport rod 42 . The switching device 60 is provided with a rotation assisting mechanism which rotates the conveying rod 41 and the conveying rod 42 in directions along respective side surfaces to maintain either the rod state A or the rod state B.

A support member 412 for supporting the workpiece WK is disposed on the transport rod 41 , and a support member 422 is disposed on the transport rod 42 .

As shown in FIG. 2 , there are two support members 412 , and the two support members 412 are connected to the vicinity of the first end 4111 of the transport rod 41 (part of the first end 4111 of the transport rod 41 ). The two support members 412 are arranged at intervals LS412 in the direction in which the rod 41 for conveyance extends. This interval LS412 is determined by the size of the object WK to be processed supported during conveyance in the x direction or the size of the object WK to be processed, and is determined so that the two supporting members 412 are in contact with the back surface of the object WK to be processed. Decide.

The two support members 412 are connected to the side surface 411 of the rod 41 for conveyance. The two support members 412 protrude from the side surface 411 to the rod 42 side for conveyance. The protrusion amount L412 of the two supporting members 412 is determined by the movement amount in the height direction of the object WK to be processed.

As shown in Fig. 3 (A) ~ Fig. 3 (D), two supporting members 412 are round rods, and have an outer peripheral end 413 at the front end. Thereby, when the object to be processed WK is supported, the outer peripheral end 413 abuts against the back surface of the object to be processed WK. That is, the supporting member 412 can support the processed object WK at points. Therefore, the support member 412 can minimize contact with the object to be processed WK. Thereby, for example, it is possible to suppress the influence of heat such as deformation of the workpiece WK caused by a local temperature difference generated in the workpiece WK due to heat dissipation through the support member 412 in contact with the workpiece WK. Furthermore, by arranging the two support members 412 in the x direction, the object WK to be processed can be stably supported.

As shown in FIG. 2 , there are two support members 422 , and the two support members 422 are connected to the vicinity of the first end 4211 of the transport rod 42 (part of the first end 4211 of the transport rod 42 ). The two supporting members 422 are arranged at intervals LS422 in the direction in which the rod 42 for conveyance extends. This interval LS422 is determined by the size of the object WK supported during conveyance along the x direction, and is determined so that the two supporting members 422 are in contact with the back surface of the object WK.

The two support members 422 are connected to the side surface 421 of the rod 42 for conveyance. The two support members 422 protrude from the side surface 421 to the rod 41 side for conveyance. The protrusion amount L422 of the two support members 422 is determined by the movement amount in the height direction of the object WK to be processed.

Fig. 5(A) and Fig. 5(B) are diagrams showing the movement of the transport rod and the supporting member. Fig. 5(A) is rod state B, and Fig. 5(B) is rod state A.

Like the two support members 412, the two support members 422 are circular rods and have an outer peripheral end 423 at the front end (see FIG. 5). Thereby, in the lever state B, when the workpiece WK is supported, the outer peripheral end 423 abuts against the back surface of the workpiece WK. That is, the supporting member 422 can support the processed object WK at points. Therefore, the support member 422 can minimize contact with the object to be processed WK. Thereby, for example, it is possible to suppress the influence of heat such as deformation of the workpiece WK caused by a local temperature difference generated in the workpiece WK due to heat dissipation through the support member 422 in contact with the workpiece WK.

In addition, by arranging the two support members 422 in the x direction, the object WK to be processed can be stably supported. Here, although an example in which the support members 411 and 422 are round rods is illustrated, they are not limited thereto, as long as they are triangular or polygonal rods, or rods with a hemispherical tip, etc., are handled by point contact support. Things can be.

(Operation of the transport rods 41, 42 and the supporting members 412, 422) As described above, the conveyance rod 41 and the conveyance rod 42 are rotated by the switching device 60 . Thereby, the support member 412 and the support member 422 can take the posture of the rod state B (rotated 45 degrees) shown in FIG. 5(A) and the posture of the rod state A shown in FIG. 5(B).

In the rod state B, the front end of the support member 412 is located above the upper end of the transport rod 41 , and the front end of the support member 422 is located above the upper end of the transport rod 42 . And, as shown in FIG. 5(A), in the rod state B, the workpiece WK supported by the front ends of the support member 412 and the support member 422 is arranged above the upper ends of the supports 230-233.

Rod state A (rotation 0 degrees) is a state in which the front end of the support member 412 is lower than the upper end of the transport rod 41 , and the front end of the support member 422 is lower than the upper end of the transport rod 42 .

Therefore, by utilizing this switching, the object to be processed WK is placed on the support member 412 and the support member 422 in the rod state B in the transfer chamber 30, and then transferred into the heat treatment furnace 20 while maintaining this state, whereby the object to be processed WK is transported to the top of supporting material 230～233.

When the processed object WK is heated to a predetermined temperature, it switches to the rod state A, and the processed object WK is released from the support by the supporting member 412 and the supporting member 422 and is supported by the supporting materials 230-233.

After the object WK is heat-treated in the heat treatment space 200, if the transfer rods 41, 42 are inserted into the heat treatment furnace 20 in the rod state A, the transfer rods 41, 42 are arranged below the object WK. That is, the transport rods 41 and 42 are arranged in the heat treatment furnace 20 without colliding with the workpiece WK.

In this state, the rod state B is switched by rotating the conveyance rods 41 and 42 by 45 degrees. Then, the object WK to be processed is switched from being supported by the supports 230 to 233 to being supported by the supporting member 412 and the supporting member 422 . Thereby, the object to be processed WK is separated from the supports 230 to 233. Then, conveyance is performed in this state, and the object WK to be processed is carried out from the heat treatment furnace 20 to the conveyance chamber 30 .

Thus, by using the configuration of this embodiment, the object WK to be processed is transferred from the transfer chamber 30 to the heat treatment furnace 20 without changing the positions of the transfer rods 41 and 42 in the height direction, and the object WK is heated. After being processed to a predetermined temperature, it is supported by supporting materials 230-233. Then, heat treatment is performed on the object to be processed WK, and the object to be processed WK is lifted from the supports 230 to 233 and transferred from the heat treatment furnace 20 to the transfer chamber 30 .

Thereby, the height of the opening 201 can be the height from the lower end of the conveying rods 41 and 42 to the upper surface of the workpiece WK. Therefore, the opening area of the opening 201 can be reduced, and the heat of the heat treatment furnace 20 and the filled gas can be suppressed from leaking to the transfer chamber 30 through the opening 201 . That is, it is possible to suppress changes in the temperature of the heat treatment furnace 20 and the ambient gas due to the presence of the opening 201 . However, in a preferred embodiment, the cooling gas P is set to be the same gas as the gas in the heat processing space 200 so that the ambient air of the heat processing space 200 and the transfer space 300 become the same. Alternatively, the main components of both are set to be the same. Thereby, even if the opening 201 is repeatedly opened and closed by the heat insulating wall 32 , the atmospheres of the heat treatment space 200 and the transfer space 300 can be kept at the same level.

In addition, the driving device including the switching device 60 and the conveying device 50 is installed outside the heat treatment furnace 20 and the conveying chamber 30 and away from them. Therefore, the switching device 60 and the conveying device 50 do not need to be components corresponding to high temperatures, and can be formed by inexpensive general-purpose components.

Moreover, the height of the transfer chamber 30 can be reduced by using the structure of this embodiment. Thereby, the volume of the transfer chamber 30 can be reduced, thereby reducing the amount of gas used for the transfer chamber 30 , and also reducing the replacement time of the ambient gas in the transfer chamber 30 .

In addition, by using the configuration of this embodiment, the opening areas of the openings 301 and 302 can be reduced. Fig. 6 is a view showing an opening formed in the front wall of the transfer chamber and a transfer rod.

As mentioned above, in the heat processing apparatus 10, the rods 41 and 42 for conveyance are moved only in the x direction, and do not move in the z direction. Therefore, the openings 301, 302 only need to be of a size that only the transport rods 41, 42 can pass through. The shapes of 41 and 42 can be used. For example, the openings 301 and 302 may be circular openings having the same shape and substantially the same size as the cross-sectional shape of the transport rods 41 and 42 .

301，只要與搬送用桿41之直徑

41大致相同且較其大即可。此時，開口301之直徑

301越接近搬送用桿41之直徑

41越佳。再者，開口301之直徑

301只要短於在支撐構件412之第一態樣中之搬送用桿41之下端與支撐構件412之上端的距離H41即可。 More specifically, the diameter of the opening 301

301, as long as it is the same as the diameter of the conveying rod 41

41 is roughly the same and bigger than it. At this time, the diameter of the opening 301

301 is closer to the diameter of the conveying rod 41

41 is better. Furthermore, the diameter of the opening 301

301 may be shorter than the distance H41 between the lower end of the transport rod 41 and the upper end of the supporting member 412 in the first aspect of the supporting member 412 .

302，只要與搬送用桿42之直徑

42大致相同且較其大即可。此時，開口302之直徑

302越接近搬送用桿42之直徑

42越佳。再者，開口302之直徑

302只要短於在支撐構件422之第一態樣中之搬送用桿42之下端與支撐構件422之上端的距離H42即可。 Similarly, the diameter of the opening 302

302, as long as it is the same as the diameter of the conveying rod 42

42 is roughly the same and bigger than it. At this time, the diameter of the opening 302

302 is closer to the diameter of the conveying rod 42

42 is better. Furthermore, the diameter of the opening 302

302 may be shorter than the distance H42 between the lower end of the transport rod 42 and the upper end of the supporting member 422 in the first aspect of the supporting member 422 .

With this configuration, the opening areas of the openings 301, 302 can be reduced. Thereby, the area of communication between the transfer chamber 30 and the outside through the openings 301 and 302 can be reduced. Therefore, the influence of the external temperature and ambient air on the internal temperature and ambient air of the transfer chamber 30 can be reduced. Furthermore, the influence of the temperature and ambient gas inside the heat treatment furnace 20 via the transfer chamber 30 can be reduced.

In addition, the switching device 60 which rotates the lever 41 and 42 for conveyance is realized by the structure shown in FIG.7(A) and FIG.7(B), for example. Figure 7(A) and Figure 7(B) are diagrams showing an example of the configuration of the switching device, Figure 7(A) corresponds to the lever state B in Figure 5(A), and Figure 7(B) corresponds to Figure 5(B) ) rod state A.

As shown in FIG. 7(A) and FIG. 7(B), the switching device 60 includes a shaft 611 , a shaft 621 , a sliding plate 612 , a sliding plate 622 , a coupling plate 63 , a shaft member 601 , and an actuator 602 .

The shaft 611 has a shape extending from the conveyance rod 41 toward the conveyance rod 42 side. The first end portion of the shaft 611 is fixed to the second end portion 4112 of the transport rod 41 . The second end of the shaft 611 is connected to the sliding plate 612 . At this time, a groove 613 extending in the y direction is formed on the sliding plate 612, and the second end of the shaft 611 is slidably connected by fitting a pin 614 disposed at the second end into the groove 613. to slide plate 612.

The shaft 621 has a shape extending from the conveyance rod 42 toward the conveyance rod 41 side. The first end portion of the shaft 621 is fixed to the second end portion 4212 of the transport rod 42 . The second end of the shaft 621 is connected to the sliding plate 622 . At this time, a groove 623 extending in the y direction is formed on the sliding plate 622, and the second end of the shaft 621 is slidably connected by fitting the pin 624 disposed at the second end into the groove 623. to slide plate 622.

The sliding plate 612 and the sliding plate 622 are fixed to the coupling plate 63 . More specifically, the sliding plate 612 is fixed at the first end portion in the y direction in the coupling plate 63 , and the sliding plate 622 is fixed at the second end portion in the y direction in the coupling plate 63 .

A first end portion of the shaft member 601 extending in the z direction is connected to the center of the coupling plate 63 in the y direction. The second end of the shaft member 601 is connected to an actuator 602 .

In such a configuration, the length of the shaft member 601 is changed by the actuator 602, thereby changing the positions of the coupling plate 63, the sliding plate 612, and the sliding plate 622 in the z direction. With this change, the pin 614 moves (slides) in the groove 613 , and the pin 624 moves (slides) in the groove 623 . Then, the shaft 611 rotates with the movement of the pin 614 , and the shaft 621 rotates with the movement of the pin 624 . By the rotation of the equiaxes 611, 621, the transport rods 41, 42 rotate.

By using such a configuration for the switching device 60, the rotation of the transport rod 41 and the rotation of the transport rod 42 can be synchronized. Therefore, it is possible to stably perform lifting of the workpiece WK and the like.

Furthermore, the heat treatment apparatus 10 having the above configuration can perform heat treatment of the object to be processed WK by, for example, performing the processes shown in FIGS. 8 and 9 .

8(A), FIG. 8(B), FIG. 8(C), FIG. 8(D), and FIG. 8(E) are diagrams showing the steps from feeding the object WK from outside the heat treatment apparatus to heat treatment. 9(A), FIG. 9(B), FIG. 9(C), and FIG. 9(D) are diagrams showing steps from the heat treatment of the object WK to the removal of the object WK to the outside of the heat treatment apparatus. . In addition, FIG. 10 is a flowchart showing the steps shown in FIG. 8 and FIG. 9 .

First, as shown in FIG. 8(A), in the state where the first ends 4111, 4211 of the transport rods 41, 42 are located in the transport chamber 30, the processed object WK is input from the input port 39 (ST1). At this time, the support members 412 and 422 are in the rod state B, and the object to be processed WK is placed on the support members 412 and 422 . In this state, the heat insulating wall 32 is provided so as to partition the transfer space 300 of the transfer chamber 30 into the side where the transfer rods 41 and 42 exist and the side connected to the opening 201 . This prevents the inlet 39 from being directly connected to the opening 201 . As described above, after the object to be processed WK is loaded, the input port 39 is brought into a closed state. Then, when the object to be processed WK is loaded into the transfer chamber 30 , the replacement process of the transfer chamber 30 is performed in order to remove outside air mixed in from the inlet 39 . This replacement process is performed by supplying flushing gas such as nitrogen gas into the transfer chamber 30, and the air in the transfer chamber 30 is driven out by the flushing gas. Thereby, the ambient gas in the transfer chamber 30 is replaced with the ambient gas of an inert gas such as nitrogen gas.

Next, as shown in FIG. 8(B), in a state where the inlet 39 is closed, the heat insulating wall 32 moves upward. Thereby, the conveyance rods 41 and 42 and the workpiece WK can be carried into the heat treatment furnace 20 through the opening 201 .

Next, as shown in FIG. 8(C), the first ends 4111, 4211 of the transport rods 41, 42 are inserted into the heat treatment furnace 20 by the transport device 50 moving the transport rods 41, 42 (ST2). Thereby, the object WK to be processed is conveyed above the supports 230-233.

In this state, the temperature of the object to be processed WK is heated. The temperature of the object to be processed WK is measured by the radiation thermometer 250, and it waits until the temperature reaches a predetermined temperature (ST3, ST4).

When the temperature of the processed object WK reaches a predetermined temperature, the timing for supporting the processed object WK by the support members 230 to 233 is determined. As shown in FIG. In state A, the object to be processed WK is supported by the supports 230 to 233 (ST5).

Next, as shown in FIG. 8(E), the first ends 4111, 4211 of the transport rods 41, 42 are retracted into the transport chamber 30 by the transport device 50 moving the transport rods 41, 42 (ST6). In this state, the heat insulating wall 32 moves downward, and partitions the transfer space 300 of the transfer chamber 30 into the side where the transfer rods 41 and 42 exist and the side connected to the opening 201 . In other words, the heat insulating wall 32 has a structure that closes the opening 201 to form a sealed space.

Then, in this state, the heat treatment furnace 20 is controlled to a predetermined temperature and the atmosphere, and heat treatment is performed on the object WK for a predetermined time (ST7).

After heat-processing the object WK, as shown in FIG. 9(A), the heat shield 32 moves upward. Then, the transport rods 41, 42 are moved so that the first ends 4111, 4211 of the transport rods 41, 42 reach below the workpiece WK in the heat treatment furnace 20 (ST8). At this time, since the supporting members 412, 422 are in the rod state A, even if the first ends 4111, 4211 of the transport rods 41, 42 approach the processed object WK, they do not collide with the processed object WK.

Next, as shown in FIG. 9(B), the support members 412, 422 are switched from the rod state A to the rod state B, and the object WK to be processed is lifted from the supports 230-233. And, the object to be processed WK is supported by the supporting members 412 and 422 ( ST9 ).

Next, as shown in FIG. 9(C), the first ends 4111, 4211 of the conveying rods 41, 42 are moved into the conveying chamber 30 by the conveying device 50 moving the conveying rods 41, 42 (ST10). Thereby, the object WK to be processed is carried out from the heat treatment furnace 20 into the transfer chamber 30 .

Next, as shown in FIG. 9(D), the heat shield 32 moves downward to divide the transfer space 300 of the transfer chamber 30 into the side where the transfer rods 41 and 42 exist and the side connected to the opening 201 . In this state, by opening the inlet 39, the object to be processed WK is taken out to the outside of the heat treatment apparatus 10 (ST11).

In such a heat treatment step, the opening 201 between the heat treatment furnace 20 and the transfer chamber 30 and the opening 301 between the transfer chamber 30 and the outside affect the maintenance of the atmosphere of the heat treatment furnace 20 and the transfer chamber 30 . However, by having the structure of this embodiment, the opening area of the opening 201 and the opening 301 can be reduced, and the influence on maintaining the atmosphere of the heat treatment furnace 20 and the transfer chamber 30 can be suppressed. That is, the loss caused by the openings 201 and 301 to maintain the atmosphere of the heat treatment furnace 20 and the transfer chamber 30 can be suppressed, and the maintenance of the atmosphere of the heat treatment furnace 20 and the transfer chamber 30 can be efficiently performed.

In addition, in ST4, the object to be processed WK is heated to a predetermined temperature and then supported by the supports 230 to 233. Therefore, no thermal shock occurs when the object to be processed WK is supported by the supports 230 to 233.

(Other examples of changing the form of the supporting member) In addition, in the said description, the aspect which changed the position of the front-end|tip of the support member 412,422 in the height direction (z direction) by rotating the lever 41,42 for conveyance was shown. However, the positions of the front ends of the support members 412 and 422 in the height direction may be changed by other configurations. 11(A) and 11(B) are diagrams schematically showing another example of the supporting member. Fig. 11(A) and Fig. 11(B) are views viewed from the first end side of the supporting member.

The support members 412, 422 have a rod state B protruding from the upper end of the transport rods 41, 42 shown in FIG. Inside the rod state A. The mechanism for making the support members 412, 422 protrude from the upper ends of the transport rods 41, 42 or accommodate them in the transport rods 41, 42 may be a mechanism that physically pushes or draws the support members 412, 422, or It is a mechanism for pushing out or drawing in the supporting members 412 and 422 using compressed air or the like. In addition, other organizations may also be used. Even with such a configuration, the same functional effect as that of the configuration using the mechanism for rotating the above-mentioned conveying rods 41 and 42 can be obtained.

In addition, in the above description, an example using a pair of conveying rods 41 and 42 was shown as the conveying rod, but the above-mentioned configuration is not limited thereto, and one conveying rod may also be used. In this case, the object WK to be processed can be carried into the heat treatment furnace 20 by moving one rod 41 for conveyance.

Fig. 12 is a partial plan view showing the configuration of a derivative example of the transport rod. For example, as shown in FIG. 12 , it is only necessary to divide one conveying rod 41 into a bifurcated shape at its front end, and arrange support members 412 and 422 at one end and the other end of the bifurcated portion, respectively. In addition, at this time, regarding the switching between the rod state B and the rod state A of the support members 412, 422, for example, the support members 412, 422 switches between the rod state B protruding from one end and the other end of the bifurcated portion and the rod state A received in one end and the other end of the bifurcated portion.

In addition, the above has shown an example in which the ambient gas furnace is used as the heat treatment furnace 20, but the above configuration is not limited to the ambient gas furnace, and can be applied to heat treatment furnaces of other specifications.

(Another example of rotating the transport rods 41 and 42) In the above description, although the switching device 60 including the actuator 602 was used to rotate the transport rods 41 , 42 , the motor 600 may be used to rotate the transport rods 41 , 42 .

FIG. 13 shows an embodiment in which a motor 650 is provided at the second end 4112 of the transport rod 41 and a motor 651 is provided at the second end 4212 of the transport rod 42 (see FIG. 7 ). The stators of the motor 650 and the motor 651 are fixed to the transport device 50 , and the rotating parts of the rotors of the motors are connected to the second end 4112 and the second end 4212 , respectively. The motor 650 and the motor 651 are preferably composed of stepping motors that rotate only by a predetermined angle. In addition, the motor 650 and the motor 651 are synchronized by a control circuit not shown in the figure, and are controlled so that their rotation angles are the same. In this way, by providing the motors 650 and 651 at the second end portion 4112 and the second end portion 4212 , the structure is simplified.

(Another example of rotating the transport rods 41 and 42) Fig. 14 shows another example of rotating the transport rods 41, 42.

In the present embodiment, the switching device 60 is configured to include a rack/pinion mechanism. The switching device 60 utilizes the rack/pinion mechanism 700 provided on the second end portion 4112 side of the transport rod 41 and the rack/pinion mechanism provided on the second end portion 4212 side of the transport rod 42. 800 constitute.

The rack/pinion mechanism 700 utilizes a pinion 702 connected to the second end 4112 of the transport rod 41, a rod-shaped rack 703 engaged with the pinion 702, and an air cylinder that moves the rack 703 up and down. 701 constituted. Similarly, the rack/pinion mechanism 800 utilizes the pinion 802 connected to the second end portion 4212 of the transport rod 42, the rod-shaped rack 803 engaged with the pinion 802, and the rack 803 to be moved up and down. The moving cylinder 801 constitutes. In addition, a control unit (not shown) for controlling the cylinders 701 and 801 is provided. The control part controls the cylinders 701 and 801 synchronously so that the rack 703 and the rack 803 move up and down by the same amount. Figure 14(A) shows the situation where the rack 703 and the rack 803 move upward to become the rod state B, and Figure 14(B) shows the rack 703 and the rack 803 move downward from the rod state B to become the rod state A's situation.

In this way, even if the rack/pinion mechanism is provided in the switching device 60, the transfer rods 41 and 42 can be rotated by the same angle in a predetermined manner.

All the descriptions of the above-mentioned embodiments should be considered as illustrative and not restrictive. The scope of the present invention is defined by the scope of the patent application rather than the above-mentioned embodiments. In addition, the scope of the present invention includes the meaning equivalent to the scope of the patent application and all modifications within the scope.

10: Heat treatment device 20: Heat treatment furnace 21: front wall 30: transfer room 31: front wall 32: Insulation wall 39: input port 41: Transport rod 42: Transport rod 50: Conveying device 51: Rod holding member 60:Switch device 63: Combined board 200: heat treatment space 201: opening 230~233: support material 240: heat source 250: radiation thermometer 300: Moving space 301: opening 302: opening 411: the side of the transport rod 41 412: Support member 413: peripheral end 421: The side of the transport rod 42 422: support member 423: the outer peripheral end of the supporting member 422 601: shaft member 602: Actuator 611: Shaft 612: slide plate 613: the groove of sliding plate 612 614: pin 621: axis 622: slide plate 623: the groove of sliding plate 622 624: pin 650: motor 651: motor 700: rack/pinion mechanism 701: Cylinder 702: pinion gear 703: Rack 800: rack/pinion mechanism 801: Cylinder 802: Pinion 803: Rack 4111: the first end of the conveying rod 41 4112: the second end of the transport rod 41 4211: the first end of the transport rod 42 4212: the second end of the transport rod 42 H41: Distance H42: Distance L412: Protrusion amount L422: Protrusion amount LS412: Interval LS422: Interval WK: object to be processed Ws: distance

FIG. 1(A) and FIG. 1(B) are side views showing a schematic configuration of a heat treatment apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. Fig. 2 is a plan view of the front end (first end) of the transport rod. 3(A) is a side view, FIG. 3(B) is a top view of the front end (first end) of the transport rod, FIG. 3(C) is an end view, and FIG. 3(D) is an external perspective view. Fig. 4 is a diagram showing the positional relationship between the object to be processed and the support in the z direction of the heat treatment space. Fig. 5(A) and Fig. 5(B) are diagrams showing the movement of the transport rod and the supporting member. Fig. 6 is a view showing an opening formed in the front wall of the transfer chamber and a transfer rod. 7(A) and 7(B) are diagrams showing a configuration example of a switching device. FIG. 8(A), FIG. 8(B), FIG. 8(C), FIG. 8(D) and FIG. 8(E) are diagrams showing the steps from feeding the object to be processed from the outside of the heat treatment apparatus to heat treatment. 9(A), FIG. 9(B), FIG. 9(C) and FIG. 9(D) are diagrams showing the steps from the heat treatment of the object to the removal of the object to the outside of the heat treatment apparatus. Fig. 10 is a flowchart showing the overall operation. 11(A) and 11(B) are diagrams schematically showing another example of the supporting member. Fig. 12 is a partial plan view showing the configuration of a derivative example of the transport rod. Fig. 13(A) and Fig. 13(B) are diagrams showing the configuration of a derivative example in which the transport rod is rotated. Fig. 14(A) and Fig. 14(B) are diagrams showing the configuration of parts of other derivative examples in which the transport rod is rotated.

10: Heat treatment device

20: Heat treatment furnace

21: front wall

30: transfer room

31: front wall

32: Insulation wall

41: Transport rod

50: Conveying device

51: Rod holding member

60:Switch device

200: heat treatment space

201: opening

230~233: support material

240: heat source

250: radiation thermometer

300: Moving space

301: opening

411: the side of the transport rod 41

412: Support member

4111: the first end of the conveying rod 41

4112: the second end of the conveying rod 41

WK: object to be processed

Claims (3)

A kind of heat treatment device, it has: A heat treatment furnace, which forms a heat treatment space, and performs heat treatment on the object to be treated in the heat treatment space; a support material, which is arranged in the above-mentioned heat treatment space; a conveying device that supports the object on the support member after conveying the object from outside the heat treatment space into the heat treatment space; and A temperature detection device that detects the temperature of the object to be processed that is transported into the heat treatment device by the transport device; The conveying device determines a timing at which the supporting member supports the object to be processed conveyed into the heat treatment device by the conveying device based on the temperature detected by the temperature detecting device. The heat treatment device according to claim 1, wherein the damage temperature is caused by thermal shock caused by a temperature difference between the temperature of the object to be processed and the support material when the object to be processed is supported by the support material. The temperature of the above-mentioned treated object that is damaged by the object, When the temperature detected by the temperature detecting device is higher than the damage temperature, the conveying device supports the support member on the object to be processed conveyed into the heat treatment device by the conveying device. The heat treatment device according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the temperature detection device detects the temperature of the object to be processed without contacting the object to be processed.

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