TW202310936A - Droplet release device and droplet release method - Google Patents

Abstract

The invention provides a liquid droplet releasing device and a liquid droplet releasing method which can improve the cleaning performance of a liquid droplet releasing head in a maintenance step. The liquid droplet releasing device performs drawing by releasing liquid droplets of a functional liquid to a workpiece, and includes: a liquid droplet releasing head that releases the liquid droplets to the workpiece; a processing liquid supply unit that supplies a first cleaning liquid, which is a solvent for the functional liquid, or a second cleaning liquid, which is an alcohol, to the droplet releasing head; and a control unit that controls the processing liquid supply unit, the control unit being configured so as to be able to perform control such that the functional liquid filled in the droplet release head is replaced with either the first cleaning liquid or the second cleaning liquid, and then replaced with the other cleaning liquid.

Description

Droplet discharge device and droplet discharge method

The present disclosure relates to a droplet discharge device and a droplet discharge method.

Patent Document 1 discloses a droplet discharge device including a droplet discharge head and a wiper unit that presses a cleaning member on a nozzle surface of the droplet discharge head to perform a wiping operation on the nozzle surface. This liquid droplet discharge device includes a cleaning liquid supply mechanism for supplying cleaning liquid to a cleaning member by a wiping unit, a pressing mechanism for pressing the cleaning member against a nozzle surface, and a cleaning member sequentially impregnated with cleaning liquid. A control mechanism for the wiping operation of pressing the nozzle surface by the pressing mechanism and the wiping operation of pressing the dry cleaning member to the nozzle surface by the pressing mechanism. [Prior Art Literature] [Patent Document]

[Patent Document 1] JP-A-2005-022251

[Problem to be solved by the invention]

The technology disclosed herein improves the cleaning performance of the droplet discharge head during maintenance work. [means to solve the problem]

According to one aspect of the present disclosure, a droplet discharge device discharges and draws droplets of a functional liquid on a workpiece, and includes: a droplet discharge head that discharges droplets to the workpiece; and the droplet discharge head that supplies the aforementioned functions The solvent of the liquid is the processing liquid supply part of the first cleaning liquid or the alcohol-based second cleaning liquid; the control part for controlling the processing liquid supply part; the control part executes: Control of replacing the functional liquid with any one of the first cleaning liquid and the second cleaning liquid and then replacing it with another cleaning liquid. [Effect of the invention]

According to the present disclosure, the cleaning performance of the droplet discharge head during maintenance work is improved.

Conventionally, as an apparatus for drawing on a substrate using a functional liquid, an inkjet liquid droplet discharge device that discharges the functional liquid as droplets is known. Droplet discharge device, when manufacturing electro-optical devices (flat panel displays: FPD) such as organic EL devices, color filters, liquid crystal display devices, plasma displays (PDP devices), electron emission devices (FED devices, SED devices) etc. are widely used.

A general inkjet droplet discharge device includes a carriage having a droplet discharge head that discharges droplets of a functional liquid, a workpiece stage on which a workpiece is placed, and a moving mechanism that moves the workpiece stage along the printing direction. Next, the workpiece is drawn by moving the workpiece stage relative to the carrier while discharging the functional liquid from the droplet discharge head to the blocks formed in advance on the workpiece.

When the drawing process described above is repeated, solid matter may adhere to the discharge nozzles of the droplet discharge head due to precipitation of components of the functional fluid or the like. When solid matter adheres to the discharge nozzle, deflection of the discharged liquid droplet, clogging of the nozzle, etc. occur, and the functional fluid cannot be properly bounced to the block. Therefore, in the conventional droplet discharge apparatus, a wiping unit for wiping the nozzle surface of the droplet discharge head with a wiping sheet is provided, and the maintenance of the droplet discharge head is performed periodically.

In the droplet discharge device described in Patent Document 1, when performing maintenance of the droplet discharge head, the first wiping action of wiping the nozzle surface with a wiper sheet containing infiltrated cleaning solution and the first wiping operation with a wiper sheet not containing infiltrated cleaning solution are performed. The second wiping operation in which the wiping sheet wipes the nozzle surface. However, since it is difficult to remove solid matter in the discharge nozzle of the droplet discharge head only by wiping the nozzle surface, there is room for improvement from the viewpoint of cleaning performance of the droplet discharge head.

Therefore, the technique disclosed herein improves the cleaning performance of the droplet discharge head during maintenance work.

Hereinafter, the droplet discharge device and the droplet discharge method according to the present embodiment will be described with reference to the drawings. In addition, in this specification and drawing, about the element which has substantially the same functional structure, the same code|symbol is attached|subjected, and repeated description is abbreviate|omitted.

<Structure of droplet discharge device> First, the structure of the droplet discharge device according to this embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 and 2 . FIG. 1 is a schematic side view schematically showing the structure of a droplet discharge device 1 . FIG. 2 is a plan view schematically showing the outline of the structure of the droplet discharge device 1 . In addition, in the following, the main scanning direction of the workpiece W is referred to as the X-axis direction, the sub-scanning direction perpendicular to the main scanning direction is referred to as the Y-axis direction, and the vertical direction perpendicular to the X-axis direction and the Y-axis direction is referred to as the Z-axis direction. , The direction of rotation around the Z-axis direction is set as the θ direction.

The droplet discharge device 1 has an X-axis stage 10 extending in the main scanning direction (Y-axis direction) and moving the workpiece W in the main scanning direction, and an X-axis stage 10 that is erected across the X-axis stage 10 and moves in the sub-scanning direction (Y-axis direction). A pair of Y-axis stages 11, 11 extending in the direction of the axis. On the top of the X-axis stage 10, a pair of X-axis guide rails 12, 12 are extended in the X-axis direction, and an X-axis linear motor (not shown) is provided on each X-axis guide rail 12 . On the upper surface of the Y-axis stage 11, a Y-axis guide rail 13 is extended in the Y-axis direction, and a Y-axis linear motor (not shown) is provided on the Y-axis guide rail 13 .

A carriage unit 20 and an imaging unit 30 are provided on a pair of Y-axis stages 11 and 11 . A workpiece stage 40 , a flushing unit 50 , and a discharge inspection unit 60 are provided on the X-axis stage 10 . The workpiece stage 40, the flushing unit 50, and the discharge inspection unit 60 are arranged sequentially in the X-axis direction. A maintenance unit 80 is provided between the pair of Y-axis stages 11 , 11 on the outer side of the X-axis stage 10 (the Y-axis negative direction side). Hereinafter, each unit will be described in detail.

A plurality of carriage units 20 , for example ten, are provided on the Y-axis stage 11 . Each carrier unit 20 has a carrier plate 21 , a carrier rotating mechanism 22 , a carrier 23 , and a droplet discharge head 24 .

The carrier plate 21 is installed on the Y-axis guide rail 13 , and can move freely in the Y-axis direction by a Y-axis linear motor provided on the Y-axis rail 13 . In addition, it is also possible to move the plurality of carrier plates 21 in the Y-axis direction as a whole.

A carrier rotating mechanism 22 is provided at the center of the lower surface of the carrier plate 21 , and a carrier 23 is detachably attached to the lower end of the carrier rotating mechanism 22 . The carrier 23 is rotatable in the θ direction by the carrier rotating mechanism 22 . In addition, a carrier alignment camera (not shown) of an imaging carrier 23 is provided on the workpiece carrier 40 . Then, based on the image captured by the camera aligned with the carrier, the position of the carrier 23 in the θ direction is corrected by the carrier rotating mechanism 22 .

On the lower surface of the carriage 23, a plurality of droplet discharge heads 24 are arranged side by side in the X-axis direction. In this embodiment, for example, three droplet discharge heads 24 are provided in the X-axis direction and two are provided in the Y-axis direction, that is, a total of six droplet discharge heads 24 are provided. A plurality of discharge nozzles (not shown) are formed on the lower surface of the droplet discharge head 24 (that is, the nozzle surface 24 a ), and droplets of the functional liquid are discharged from the discharge nozzles.

The functional liquid discharged to the droplet discharge head 24 is supplied from the processing liquid supply unit 25 . The processing liquid supply unit 25 has a functional liquid supply source 26a for supplying a functional liquid such as ink, a functional liquid supply tube 26b serving as a flow path of the functional liquid, and a solvent supply source 27a for supplying a solvent of the functional liquid as the first cleaning liquid. , a solvent supply pipe 27b serving as a flow path for the solvent, an alcohol supply source 28a for supplying an alcohol-based cleaning liquid as a second cleaning liquid, and an alcohol supply pipe 28b serving as a flow path for the alcohol-based cleaning liquid. In addition, as the alcohol-based cleaning solution, for example, a solution containing one or two or more organic solvents selected from ethanol, n-propanol, and isopropanol is preferably used.

Each of the functional liquid supply pipe 26 b , the solvent supply pipe 27 b , and the alcohol supply pipe 28 b is connected to a confluence pipe 29 . To the confluent pipe 29, the valves of the respective pipes 26b, 27b, and 28b are suitably opened and closed by the control unit 150 described later to supply any one of the functional liquid, the solvent of the functional liquid, and the alcohol-based cleaning liquid. The junction pipe 29 is connected to the carrier unit 20 so as to be able to supply the processing liquid to the carrier 23 . In addition, the structure of the processing liquid supply part 25 is not particularly limited. For example, the joint piping 29 is not provided, and each piping of the functional liquid supply pipe 26b, the solvent supply pipe 27b, and the alcohol supply pipe 28b may be directly connected to the carrier unit 20.

The imaging unit 30 has a discharge inspection camera 31 as an imaging unit for discharge inspection, and a drawing inspection camera 32 as an imaging unit for drawing inspection. The discharge inspection camera 31, the drawing inspection camera 32, and the clamping carriage 23 (droplet discharge head 24) are arranged facing each other in the X-axis direction. The discharge inspection camera 31 is arranged on the side in the positive direction of the X-axis (that is, on the side of the washing unit 50 ) with respect to the carriage 23 . The drawing inspection camera 32 is arranged on the X-axis negative direction side (that is, on the workpiece stage 40 side) with respect to the carriage 23 .

The discharge inspection camera 31 and the imaging discharge inspection unit 60 inspect the impact point of the discharged liquid droplet on the inspection sheet 62 described later. The discharge inspection camera 31 is supported by a base 33 provided on the side surface of the Y-axis stage 11 on the positive X-axis direction side among the pair of Y-axis stages 11 , 11 . A movement mechanism (not shown) for moving the discharge inspection camera 31 is provided on the base 33, and the discharge inspection camera 31 is movable in the Y-axis direction. Next, when the discharge inspection unit 60 is guided right under the trajectory where the discharge inspection camera 31 moves in the Y-axis direction, the discharge inspection camera 31 can photograph the inspections arranged in the discharge inspection unit 60 by moving in the Y-axis direction. Sheet 62 bounces off the droplet.

The drawing inspection camera 32 images the drawing state of the workpiece W by the liquid droplets discharged. The drawing inspection camera 32 is supported by a base 34 provided on the side surface of the Y-axis stage 11 on the negative side of the X-axis direction among the pair of Y-axis stages 11 , 11 . A movement mechanism (not shown) for moving the drawing inspection camera 32 is provided on the base 34, and the drawing inspection camera 32 can move freely in the Y-axis direction. Next, when the workpiece stage 40 is guided directly under the track where the discharge inspection camera 31 moves in the Y-axis direction, the drawing inspection camera 32 moves in the Y-axis direction, and the liquid discharged to the workpiece W on the workpiece stage 40 can be photographed. Drawing status of patterns etc. caused by drops.

The workpiece stage 40 is, for example, a vacuum suction stage, and places the workpiece W by suction. The workpiece stage 40 is rotatably supported in the θ direction by a stage rotation mechanism 41 provided on the lower surface side of the workpiece stage 4 . In addition, on the negative X-axis side of the Y-axis stage 11 , above the workpiece stage 40 , a workpiece alignment camera (not shown) that captures the alignment marks of the workpiece W on the workpiece stage 40 is installed. Next, based on the image captured by the workpiece alignment camera, the position of the workpiece W placed on the workpiece stage 40 in the θ direction is corrected by the stage rotation mechanism 41 .

The workpiece stage 40 and the stage moving mechanism 41 are supported by a first X-axis slider 42 provided on the lower surface side of the stage rotating mechanism 41 . The first X-axis slider 42 is attached to the X-axis guide rail 12 , and is movable in the X-axis direction by an X-axis linear motor provided on the X-axis guide rail 12 . Next, the workpiece stage 40 (workpiece W) is also movable in the X-axis direction along the X-axis guide rail 12 by the first X-axis slider 42 provided therein.

The flushing unit 50 is a unit that receives discarded discharge from the droplet discharge head 24 . In the rinse unit 50, a plurality of (for example, ten) rinse recovery stations 51 are arranged in line in the Y-axis direction. The number of the flushing recovery stations 51 is the same as the number of the carriers 23 .

The flush recovery station 51 has an opening on its upper surface, and when it is guided to directly below the carrier 23 corresponding to the flush recovery station 51, a droplet is ejected (rinsed) from the droplet discharge head 24 of the carrier 23, and the droplet is caught and released. Take it in. That is, before the workpiece W is drawn with liquid droplets, a rinsing operation is performed, and the liquid droplets resulting from the rinsing are recovered by the rinsing recovery station 51 .

The discharge inspection unit 60 is a unit that receives inspection discharge from the droplet discharge head 24 . An inspection table 61 extending in the Y-axis direction is provided on the discharge inspection unit 60 . On the upper surface of the inspection table 61, an inspection piece 62 on which a thin film coating is applied is disposed. The inspection piece 62 disposed on the inspection table 61 bounces the liquid droplets discharged from the liquid droplet discharge heads 24 when the inspection table 61 is guided directly under the liquid droplet discharge heads 24 .

The flushing unit 50 and the discharge inspection unit 60 are mounted on the second X-axis slider 70 . The second X-axis slider 70 is attached to the X-axis guide rail 12 , and is movable in the X-axis direction by an X-axis linear motor provided on the X-axis guide rail 12 . Next, the flushing unit 50 and the discharge inspection unit 60 are also freely movable in the X-axis direction along the X-axis guide rail 12 by the second X-axis slider 70 .

The maintenance unit 80 performs maintenance of the droplet discharge head 24 and resolves a discharge failure of the droplet discharge head 24 . The maintenance unit 80 includes a wiping unit 90 as a wiping unit for wiping the nozzle surface 24 a of the droplet discharge head 24 , and a suction unit 110 as a suction unit for suctioning the droplet discharge head 24 . The wiping unit 90 and the suction unit 110 are sequentially arranged in the Y-axis direction from the X-axis stage 10 side. In addition, the wiping unit 90 and the suction unit 110 are arranged below the carriage 23 .

The wiping unit 90 is a unit for wiping the nozzle surface 24 a of the plurality of discharge nozzles formed in the droplet discharge head 24 . The wiping unit 90 has a wiping roller 91 . Next, when the carriage 23 is guided above the wiping unit 90 , the wiping roller 91 comes into contact with the nozzle surface 24 a of the droplet discharge head 24 of the carriage 23 to wipe the nozzle surface 24 a.

The configuration of the wiping unit 90 is described in more detail herein. FIG. 3 is a schematic side view schematically showing the structure of the wiping unit 90. The wiping unit 90, as a wiping mechanism for wiping the nozzle surface 24a of the droplet discharge head 24, has a delivery reel 93 for sending out the dried wiping sheet 92, a guide roller 94, the aforementioned wiping roller 91, and a winding for the wiping sheet 92. Scroll 95. The wiping sheet 92 is, for example, a sheet or cotton cloth formed of polyester fibers or polypropylene fibers, or a sheet formed of fibers having a laminated structure of polyester fibers and polyamide. In addition, the wiping member used for wiping the nozzle surface 24a is not limited to a sheet-like member such as the wiping sheet 92 .

The wiping roller 91 is provided so as to be able to move up and down with respect to the nozzle surface 24 a of the droplet discharge head 24 . When wiping the nozzle surface 24a, the wiping roller 91 rises with respect to the nozzle surface 24a, presses the wiping piece 92 on the nozzle surface 24a, and wipes the nozzle surface 24a. In addition, when wiping the nozzle surface 24 a , the nozzle surface 24 a may be pressed against the wiping sheet 92 by lowering the carrier 23 . That is, the structure of the wiping mechanism which brings the nozzle face 24a and the wiping sheet 92 into contact with each other is not particularly limited, and a known structure may be applied, for example.

Between the wiping roller 91 and the guide roller 94 , a cleaning liquid supply part 96 for supplying cleaning liquid to the wiping sheet 92 is provided. The cleaning liquid supply unit 96 has a solvent supply source 97a for supplying a solvent as a functional liquid of the first cleaning liquid, a solvent supply pipe 97b serving as a flow path of the solvent, and an alcohol-based cleaning solution for supplying the second cleaning liquid. Alcohol supply source 98a for liquid, alcohol supply pipe 98b for the flow path of the alcohol-based cleaning solution, water supply source 99a for supplying cleaning solution having water as the main component as the third cleaning solution, and the The water supply pipe 99b is a flow path of the cleaning liquid whose main component is water. In addition, as the alcohol-based cleaning liquid, the same as the alcohol-based cleaning liquid supplied to the droplet discharge head 24, for example, one or more selected from ethanol, n-propanol, and isopropanol is used. A solution in an organic solvent is preferred. As the cleaning solution mainly composed of water, for example, pure water is preferably used.

Each of the solvent supply pipe 97 b , the alcohol supply pipe 98 b , and the water supply pipe 99 b is connected to a confluence pipe 100 . To the confluent piping 100, any one of the solvent of the functional liquid, the alcohol-based cleaning liquid, and the cleaning liquid mainly composed of water is supplied by appropriately opening and closing the valves of the above-mentioned piping 97b, 98b, and 99b by the control unit 150 described later. detergent for the patient. The junction pipe 100 is connected to a cleaning liquid discharge nozzle 101 that discharges cleaning liquid to the wiper sheet 92 . Cleaning liquid discharge nozzles 101 are provided in plural in the X-axis direction, and the entire area in the X-axis direction of the wiping sheet 92 fed to the wiping roller 91 can be wetted by the cleaning liquid discharged from each cleaning liquid discharge nozzle 101 .

In addition, the structure of the cleaning liquid supply part 96 is not particularly limited. For example, the pipes of the solvent supply pipe 97b, the alcohol supply pipe 98b, and the water supply pipe 99b are directly connected to the cleaning liquid discharge nozzle 101 without providing the confluent pipe 100. Can. Also, for example, the cleaning liquid discharge nozzles 101 may discharge the cleaning liquid at different timings for each nozzle. Thereby, wiping with the cleaning liquid can be performed on only some of the droplet discharge heads 24 among the plurality of droplet discharge heads 24 .

The suction unit 110 is a unit for suctioning the processing liquid from the droplet discharge head 24 . In the suction unit 110, a plurality of (for example, 10) divided suction units 111 are arranged in line in the Y-axis direction. The number of the divided suction units 111 is the same as the number of the carriages 23 . Each divided suction unit 111 sucks the liquid droplet discharge head 24 of the corresponding carrier 23 and forcibly discharges the processing liquid from the discharge nozzles (not shown) of the liquid droplet discharge head 24 . Further, each divided suction unit 111 is in close contact with the nozzle surface 24a of the droplet discharge head 24 to suppress drying of the treatment liquid when the droplet discharge device 1 is in a stopped state.

In addition, when the droplet discharge head 24 sucks the functional liquid filled, the valves of the functional liquid supply pipe 26b and the alcohol supply pipe 28b shown in FIG. 1 are closed, and only the valve of the solvent supply pipe 27b is opened. During suction, the solvent is sucked into the droplet discharge head 24 . Thereby, the droplet discharge head 24 is filled with a solvent, and the functional liquid filled in the droplet discharge head 24 before suction can be replaced with the solvent. Similarly, when suction is performed with the valves of the functional liquid supply pipe 26b and the solvent supply pipe 27b closed and only the valve of the alcohol supply pipe 28b opened, the solvent filled in the droplet discharge head 24 can be replaced with alcohol. In addition, such replacement of the treatment liquid may be realized by using other means instead of suction by the suction unit 110 .

The control unit 150 is provided in the above-mentioned droplet discharge device 1 . The control unit 150 is, for example, a computer including a CPU and a memory, and has a data storage unit (not shown). The data storage unit stores, for example, drawing data (bit-mapped data) for drawing a predetermined pattern on the workpiece W by controlling liquid droplets discharged on the workpiece W, and the like. In addition, the control unit 150 has a program storage unit (not shown). The program storage unit stores programs for controlling various processes in the droplet discharge device 1 , programs for controlling the operation of the drive system, and the like. In addition, the above-mentioned program is recorded in a computer-readable storage medium, and may be installed to the control unit 150 from the storage medium. Memory media can be either temporary memory media or non-transitory memory media. A part or all of the program may be realized by dedicated hardware (circuit board).

<Workpiece handling in droplet discharge device> Next, the workpiece processing performed by the droplet discharge apparatus 1 configured as above will be described. In the following description, on the X-axis stage 10, the area on the negative side of the X-axis direction relative to the Y-axis stage 11 is referred to as the carry-in/out area A1, and the area between the pair of Y-axis stages 11 and 11 is referred to as For the processing area A2, the area on the positive X-axis direction side of the Y-axis stage 11 is referred to as a standby area A3. Also, the area between the pair of Y-axis stages 11 and 11 on the Y-axis negative direction side of the X-axis stage 10 is referred to as a maintenance area A4.

First, a workpiece stage 40 is arranged in the loading and unloading area A1 , and the workpiece W carried into the droplet discharge device 1 by a transport mechanism (not shown) is placed on the workpiece stage 40 . Next, the alignment mark of the workpiece W on the workpiece stage 40 is photographed by a workpiece alignment camera (not shown in the figure). Next, based on the imaged image, the position of the workpiece W placed on the workpiece stage 40 in the θ direction is corrected by the stage rotation mechanism 41 to perform alignment of the workpiece W (step S1 ).

Thereafter, the workpiece stage 40 is moved from the carry-in/out area A1 to the processing area A2 by the first X-axis slider 42 . In the processing area A2 , liquid droplets are discharged from the droplet discharge head 24 to the workpiece W that has moved below the droplet discharge head 24 . Next, as shown in FIG. 4 , the workpiece stage 40 is moved to the standby area A3 side so that the entire surface of the workpiece W passes under the droplet discharge head 24 . Next, the workpiece W is moved back and forth in the X-axis direction, and the carrier unit 20 is moved in the Y-axis direction as appropriate to draw a predetermined pattern on the workpiece W (step S2).

Thereafter, as shown in FIG. 5 , the workpiece stage 40 is moved from the standby area A3 to the loading and unloading area A1 . During the movement of the workpiece stage 40, the drawing inspection camera 32 is appropriately moved in the Y-axis direction, and the entire surface of the workpiece W on the workpiece stage 40 is captured by the drawing inspection camera 32 (that is, the portion of the workpiece W ejected is imaged). drawing state of the pattern caused by the droplet). The captured video is output to the control unit 150 , and the control unit 150 checks for defects in the drawing state, such as iris spots, based on the captured video. As a result of this inspection, if it is determined that the drawing state is poor, for example, feedback control is performed on the discharge of liquid droplets from the liquid droplet discharge head 24 (step S3 ).

After the workpiece stage 40 moves to the loading and unloading area A1 , the workpiece W whose drawing process has been completed is carried out from the droplet discharge device 1 . Next, the next workpiece W is carried into the liquid droplet discharge device 1, and the alignment of the workpiece W in the above-mentioned step S1 is performed (step S4).

In this way, during the inspection of the drawing state in step S3 and the loading and unloading of the workpiece W in step S4, as shown in FIG. 50 and the discharge inspection unit 60 move from the standby area A3 to the processing area A2. In the processing area A2, the inspection sheet 62 of the discharge inspection unit 60 is arranged below the droplet discharge head 24, and the droplet is inspected and discharged from the droplet discharge head 24 on the inspection sheet 62 (step S5)

Afterwards, as shown in FIG. 6 , the washing unit 50 and the discharge inspection unit 60 are moved to the positive side of the X-axis, the inspection piece 62 of the discharge inspection unit 60 is arranged below the discharge inspection camera 31 , and the rinse unit 50 is recovered. The stage 51 is arranged below the droplet discharge head 24 .

Next, the discharge inspection camera 31 is appropriately moved in the Y-axis direction, and the impact point of the discharged liquid droplet is inspected on the inspection sheet 62 by the discharge inspection camera 31 . The captured video is output to the control unit 150 , and the control unit 150 checks for a discharge failure of the discharge nozzles in the droplet discharge head 24 based on the captured video. In this inspection result, for example, when it is determined that the nozzle of the droplet is missing or the ejection of the flight curve is defective, the maintenance unit 80 performs maintenance of the droplet discharge head 24 . Specifically, suction processing by the suction unit 110 and wiping processing by the wiping unit 90 are performed. Also, for example, when it is determined that the diameter and position of the impact point of the droplet are not good, the bit map data is corrected, and the droplet discharge from the droplet discharge head 24 is feedback-controlled.

Further, when the imaging processing by the discharge inspection camera 31 and the discharge failure inspection by the control unit 150 are performed in this way, the droplet is discarded and discharged from the droplet discharge head 24 to the rinse recovery station 51 (step S6).

Steps S1 to S6 are performed for each workpiece W as described above, and a series of workpiece processing ends.

Moreover, in addition to the normal processing of the workpiece W in steps S1 to S6, maintenance of the droplet discharge head 24 by the maintenance unit 80 is also suitably performed. In the following description, first, an outline of the maintenance process will be described.

As shown in FIG. 7 , when performing maintenance of the droplet discharge head 24 , the carriage unit 20 is moved from the processing area A2 to the maintenance area A4 . In the maintenance area A4 , first, each droplet discharge head 24 is disposed above the divided suction unit 111 of the suction unit 110 , and the functional fluid is sucked from the droplet discharge head 24 by the divided suction unit 111 .

Thereafter, as shown in FIG. 8 , the carriage unit 20 is moved in the positive Y-axis direction, and the droplet discharge head 24 is arranged above the wiping roller 91 of the wiping unit 90 . Next, the carriage unit 20 is moved to the Y-axis positive direction side, and at the same time, the wiper roller 91 is brought into contact with the nozzle surface of the droplet discharge head 24 to wipe the nozzle surface.

Thereafter, the carriage unit 20 having completed the suction processing by the suction unit 110 and the wiping processing by the wiping unit 90 moves from the maintenance area A4 to the processing area A2, and the maintenance of the droplet discharge head 24 is completed.

Next, details about the maintenance process will be described. FIG. 9 is a diagram showing an example of a control flow in a maintenance process. In the example shown in FIG. 9, the functional liquid is ink, the first cleaning liquid is ink solvent, the second cleaning liquid is isopropyl alcohol (hereinafter "IPA"), and the third cleaning liquid is pure water.

First, the carriage unit 20 is moved to the suction unit 110, and the droplet discharge head 24 is suctioned. At this time, the valves of the functional liquid supply pipe 26b and the alcohol supply pipe 28b of the treatment liquid supply part 25 ( FIG. 1 ) are closed, and only the valve of the solvent supply pipe 27b is opened for suction. Thereby, the ink filled in the droplet discharge head 24 is replaced with the solvent (step S100). By displacing the ink with the solvent, among the solids adhering to the discharge nozzles of the liquid droplet discharge head 24 , the solids that are easily dissolved in the solvent can be discharged out of the discharge nozzles while being dissolved.

Next, the ink solvent is discharged from the cleaning liquid discharge nozzle 101 ( FIG. 3 ) of the wiping unit 90 , and the ink solvent is supplied to the wiping sheet 92 . Next, the carriage unit 20 is moved to the wiping unit 90, and the nozzle surface 24a of the droplet discharge head 24 is wiped with the wiping sheet 92 wetted with the ink solvent (step S101). Thereby, among the solid matter adhering to the nozzle surface 24a, it is possible to wipe off while dissolving the solid matter which is easily dissolved in the solvent of the ink.

Thereafter, the supply of the solvent from the cleaning liquid discharge nozzle 101 is stopped, and the solvent remaining on the nozzle surface 24 a is wiped off with the dry wiping sheet 92 (step S102 ).

Next, the carriage unit 20 is moved to the suction unit 110, and the droplet discharge head 24 is sucked again. At this time, the valves of the functional liquid supply pipe 26b and the solvent supply pipe 27b of the processing liquid supply unit 25 ( FIG. 1 ) are closed, and only the valve of the alcohol supply pipe 28b is opened to suction the droplet discharge head 24 . Thereby, the solvent filled in the droplet discharge head 24 is replaced with IPA (step S103). By substituting the solvent of the ink with IPA, among the solids adhering to the discharge nozzles of the droplet discharge head 24 , the solids that are easily dissolved in IPA can be discharged out of the discharge nozzles while being dissolved.

Next, IPA is discharged from the cleaning solution discharge nozzle 101 ( FIG. 3 ) of the wiping unit 90 , and the IPA is supplied to the wiping sheet 92 . Next, the carriage unit 20 is moved to the wiping unit 90, and the nozzle surface 24a of the droplet discharge head 24 is wiped with the wiping sheet 92 in a state wetted with IPA (step S104). Thereby, among the solid matter adhering to the nozzle surface 24a, the solid matter which dissolves easily in IPA can be wiped off, dissolving.

Thereafter, the supply of IPA from the cleaning liquid discharge nozzle 101 is stopped, and the IPA remaining on the nozzle surface 24a is wiped off with the dry wiping sheet 92 (step S105).

Next, the carriage unit 20 is moved to the suction unit 110, and the droplet discharge head 24 is sucked again. At this time, the valves of the functional liquid supply pipe 26b and the alcohol supply pipe 28b of the processing liquid supply unit 25 ( FIG. 1 ) are closed, and only the valve of the solvent supply pipe 27b is opened to suction the droplet discharge head 24 . Thereby, the IPA filled in the droplet discharge head 24 is replaced with the solvent (step S106).

Next, pure water is discharged from the cleaning liquid discharge nozzle 101 ( FIG. 3 ) of the wiping unit 90 , and the pure water is supplied to the wiping sheet 92 . Next, the carriage unit 20 is moved to the wiping unit 90, and the nozzle surface 24a of the droplet discharge head 24 is wiped with the wiping sheet 92 wetted with pure water (step S107). Thereby, among the solid matter adhering to the nozzle surface 24a, the solid matter which dissolves easily in pure water can be wiped off while dissolving.

Thereafter, the supply of pure water from the cleaning liquid discharge nozzle 101 is stopped, and the pure water remaining on the nozzle surface 24a is wiped off with the dry wiping sheet 92 (step S108).

Next, the carriage unit 20 is moved to the suction unit 110, and the droplet discharge head 24 is sucked again. At this time, the valves of the solvent supply pipe 27b and the alcohol supply pipe 28b of the treatment liquid supply unit 25 ( FIG. 1 ) are closed, and only the valve of the functional liquid supply pipe 26b is opened to suction the droplet discharge head 24 . Thereby, the solvent filled in the droplet discharge head 24 is replaced with ink (step S109).

Finally, the carriage unit 20 is moved to the wiping unit 90, and the remaining ink adhering to the nozzle surface 24a is wiped off with the dried wiping sheet 92 (step S110).

Through the above process, the maintenance process of the droplet discharge head 24 is completed.

In the droplet discharge device 1 of the present embodiment, the liquid droplet discharge head 24 is cleaned after replacing the functional liquid filled in the droplet discharge head 24 with a solvent and then with IPA. The solid matter adhering to the droplet discharge head 24 is produced due to various reasons such as the precipitation of ink components. It is estimated that each solid substance has different components and solubility to the treatment liquid, but in the droplet discharge device 1, Since cleaning liquids having different properties are supplied to the droplet discharge head 24, solid matter can be dissolved with any cleaning liquid. That is, according to the droplet discharge device 1 of the present embodiment, solid matter adhering to the discharge nozzles of the droplet discharge head 24 can be effectively removed. Thereby, the cleaning performance of the droplet discharge head 24 can be improved, and bending of the liquid droplets discharged from the droplet discharge head 24 and nozzle clogging can be suppressed.

As mentioned above, from the viewpoint of dissolving the solid matter adhering to the droplet discharge head 24 in the solvent or IPA of the ink, it is also possible to replace the functional liquid of the droplet discharge head 24 with IPA and then replace it with a solvent, but as shown in FIG. 9 It is better to replace the functional fluid with a solvent and then replace it with IPA. Most of the solids generated by the precipitation of ink components are easily dissolved in non-polar solvents, and the solids can be efficiently dissolved by sequentially replacing them with relatively less polar cleaning solutions. Furthermore, since the replacement of the cleaning solution is performed in the order of solvent and IPA, since the cleaning solution with relatively high surface tension is supplied from the rear, it is possible to make it difficult to generate air bubbles in the discharge nozzles of the droplet discharge head 24 .

In addition, in the example shown in FIG. 9 , in addition to the replacement of the filled processing liquid of the droplet discharge head 24, the nozzle surface 24a is also wiped by the wiper sheet 92, but the discharge nozzles of the above-mentioned droplet discharge head 24 are The effect of dissolving the solid matter inside is obtained by the replacement of the treatment liquid in the droplet discharge head 24 . In other words, from the viewpoint of obtaining this effect, for example, the wiping off in steps S101, S104, and S107 shown in FIG. 9 may not be performed. For another example, when there is little concern about contamination due to the mixing of cleaning solutions, the nozzle surface 24 a may not be wiped by the dry wiper sheet 92 . That is, the wiping off in steps S102, S105, and S108 shown in FIG. 9 may not be performed.

On the other hand, in addition to the effect of removing the solid matter in the discharge nozzle of the droplet discharge head 24, in order to obtain the effect of removing the solid matter adhering to the nozzle surface 24a, cleaning liquids having different characteristics are performed as shown in FIG. Wiping (wet wiping) of the nozzle surface 24a is also possible. At this time, the supply order of the cleaning liquid supplied to the wiping sheet 92 is not limited to the order of the solvent of the functional liquid, IPA, and pure water. For the same reason as the replacement of the processing liquid of the droplet discharge head 24, the order of the polarity is small. It is better to supply the cleaning solution sequentially.

In addition, when wiping the nozzle surface 24a, as in steps S101 and S104, it is preferable that the cleaning liquid supplied to the wiping sheet 92 is the same as the cleaning liquid filled in the droplet discharge head 24 . This prevents cleaning liquids having different properties from mixing on the nozzle surface 24a, thereby suppressing the generation of contamination.

In addition, when the solid matter adhering to the nozzle surface 24a can be sufficiently removed by wiping with a solvent and IPA, the wiping with pure water as in step S107 may be omitted.

Also, in the above embodiment, although the wiping unit 90 and the suction unit 110 are arranged on the outside of the X-axis stage 10 (Y-axis negative direction side), these wiping units 90 and the suction unit 110 are connected to the flushing unit 50 and the discharge unit. The inspection unit 60 is arranged together on the X-axis stage 10 and may be mounted on the second X-axis slider 70 . Specifically, on the second X-axis slider 70 , the flushing unit 50 , the wiping unit 90 , the discharge inspection unit 60 , and the suction unit 110 may be sequentially arranged in the X-axis direction from the workpiece stage 40 side. At this time, in the wiping unit 90 , a plurality of (for example, 10 as many as the carriage 23 ) wiping rollers 91 are arranged in a row in the Y-axis direction. In addition, one wiping roller 91 may be provided in the wiping off unit 90, and this wiping roller 91 may be movable freely in the Y-axis direction.

<Application example of droplet discharge device> The droplet discharge device 1 is applicable to, for example, a substrate processing system for forming an organic EL layer of an organic light emitting diode. Specifically, the droplet ejection device 1 is suitable for use as a coating device for coating an organic material for forming a hole injection layer on a glass substrate as a workpiece W, and for coating a glass substrate (hole injection layer) for forming a hole injection layer. An organic material coating device for the hole transport layer, and a coating device for coating an organic material for forming a light-emitting layer on a glass substrate (hole transport layer). In addition, in the substrate processing system, in addition to forming the hole injection layer, the hole transport layer, and the light-emitting layer of the organic light-emitting diode, when the electron transport layer and the electron injection layer are also formed, the droplet discharge device 1 can also be applied to Coating treatment of the electron transport layer and the electron injection layer.

Moreover, the droplet discharge device 1 is also applicable to the manufacture of color filters, liquid crystal display devices, plasma displays (PDP devices), electron emission devices, etc. (FED device, SED device) and other electro-optical devices (flat-panel display: FPD), or also suitable for manufacturing metal wiring formation, lens formation, photoresist formation, and light diffuser formation.

It should be noted that the embodiments disclosed this time are illustrations in all points and are not intended to be restrictive. The above-mentioned embodiments can be omitted, substituted, and changed in various forms without departing from the scope of the patent application and the gist thereof.

1: Droplet discharge device 24: Droplet discharge head 24a: Nozzle face 25:Processing liquid supply department 150: control department W: Workpiece

[ Fig. 1] Fig. 1 is a schematic side view schematically showing the structure of a liquid droplet discharge device according to an embodiment. [ Fig. 2] Fig. 2 is a schematic plan view schematically showing the structure of the droplet discharge device according to the embodiment. [ Fig. 3] Fig. 3 is a schematic side view schematically showing the structure of the wiping unit according to the embodiment. [ Fig. 4] Fig. 4 is an explanatory diagram for explaining processing operations in the droplet discharge device according to the embodiment. [ Fig. 5] Fig. 5 is an explanatory diagram for explaining processing operations in the droplet discharge device according to the embodiment. [ Fig. 6] Fig. 6 is an explanatory view for explaining processing operations in the droplet discharge device according to the embodiment. [ Fig. 7] Fig. 7 is an explanatory diagram for explaining processing operations in the liquid droplet discharge device according to the embodiment. [ Fig. 8] Fig. 8 is an explanatory diagram for explaining processing operations in the droplet discharge device according to the embodiment. [ Fig. 9 ] The control flow of the maintenance process of the embodiment.

1: Droplet discharge device

10: X-axis stage

11: Y-axis stage

12: X-axis guide track

13: Y-axis guide track

20: Shelf unit

21: carrier plate

22: Carrier rotation mechanism

23: carrier

24: Droplet discharge head

24a: Nozzle face

25:Processing liquid supply department

26a: Functional fluid supply source

26b: Functional fluid supply pipe

27a: Solvent supply source

27b: Solvent supply tube

28a: Alcohol supply source

28b: Alcohol supply pipe

29: Confluent piping

30: camera unit

31: Spit inspection camera

32:Delineate inspection camera

33: base

34: base

40: Workpiece carrier

41: Stage rotation mechanism

42: 1st X-axis slider

50: flushing unit

51: Rinse recovery station

60: Spit out inspection unit

61: Examination table

62: Inspection piece

70: 2nd X-axis slider

150: control department

W: Workpiece

Claims (12)

A droplet discharge device, which discharges and draws droplets of a functional liquid on a workpiece, and has: a liquid drop discharge head for discharging liquid droplets to the aforementioned workpiece; A treatment liquid supply unit that supplies the solvent of the functional liquid, that is, the first cleaning liquid or the alcohol-based second cleaning liquid to the droplet discharge head; a control unit that controls the aforementioned treatment liquid supply unit; The control unit executes: replacing the functional liquid filled in the droplet discharge head with any one of the first cleaning liquid and the second cleaning liquid, and then replacing it with another cleaning liquid. control. The droplet discharge device according to claim 1, wherein the one cleaning liquid is the first cleaning liquid, and the other cleaning liquid is the second cleaning liquid. The droplet discharge device according to claim 1 or 2, comprising: a wiping unit for wiping the nozzle surface of the droplet discharge head; The aforementioned wiping unit has: Wipe components; a wiping mechanism for bringing the nozzle surface and the wiping member into contact with each other and wiping the nozzle surface; a cleaning solution supply unit that supplies the first cleaning solution or the second cleaning solution to the wiping member; The control unit controls the operation of the cleaning solution supply unit and the wiping mechanism, and executes: bringing the wiping member supplying any one of the first cleaning solution and the second cleaning solution into contact with the nozzle surface. And after wiping the nozzle surface, the control of wiping the nozzle surface is brought into contact with the wiping member supplied with another cleaning liquid. The droplet discharge device according to claim 3, wherein the cleaning liquid supplied to the wiping member is the same cleaning liquid as the cleaning liquid filled into the droplet discharge head when wiping the nozzle surface. The droplet discharge device according to claim 3, wherein the cleaning solution supply unit has a structure for supplying a third cleaning solution mainly composed of water to the wiping member; In the aforementioned control unit, execution control is carried out: A process of wiping the surface of the nozzle with the wiping member for supplying the first cleaning solution; A process of wiping the surface of the nozzle with the wiping member for supplying the second cleaning liquid; A process of wiping the nozzle surface with the wiping member supplying the third cleaning solution. The droplet discharge device as described in claim 5, wherein the aforementioned control unit executes the control sequentially: A process of replacing the functional liquid filled in the droplet discharge head with the first cleaning liquid; A process of wiping the surface of the nozzle with the wiping member for supplying the first cleaning solution; A process of replacing the first cleaning solution filled in the droplet discharge head with the second cleaning solution; A process of wiping the surface of the nozzle with the wiping member for supplying the second cleaning liquid; A process of replacing the second cleaning solution filled in the droplet discharge head with the first cleaning solution; A process of wiping the nozzle surface with the wiping member supplying the third cleaning solution. A droplet discharge method, which is to discharge droplets of functional liquid to a workpiece, having: The process of drawing the aforementioned functional fluid on the aforementioned workpiece; Process for performing maintenance of droplet discharge head; The aforementioned maintenance projects shall have: A process of replacing the functional liquid filled in the droplet discharge head with any one of the solvent of the functional liquid, that is, the first cleaning liquid or the second alcohol-based cleaning liquid; A process of replacing the one cleaning liquid with another cleaning liquid; a process of replacing the first cleaning liquid or the second cleaning liquid filled in the droplet discharge head with the functional liquid. The droplet discharge method according to claim 7, wherein the one cleaning solution is the first cleaning solution, and the other cleaning solution is the second cleaning solution. The droplet discharge method as described in Claim 7 or 8, wherein the process for performing the aforementioned maintenance includes: A process of bringing the wiping member supplying the first cleaning solution or the second cleaning solution into contact with the nozzle surface of the droplet discharge head and wiping the nozzle surface; Among the first cleaning solution and the second cleaning solution, the process of wiping the nozzle surface by bringing the wiping member supplying the cleaning solution not used in the process of wiping the nozzle surface into contact with the nozzle surface. The droplet discharge method according to claim 9, wherein the cleaning liquid supplied to the wiping member is the same cleaning liquid as the cleaning liquid filled into the droplet discharge head when wiping the nozzle surface. The liquid droplet discharge method as described in Claim 9, wherein the engineering for performing the aforementioned maintenance includes: A process of wiping the surface of the nozzle with the wiping member for supplying the first cleaning solution; A process of wiping the surface of the nozzle with the wiping member for supplying the second cleaning liquid; A process of wiping the surface of the nozzle with the wiping member supplied with the third cleaning solution mainly composed of water. The droplet discharge method as described in Claim 11, wherein the aforementioned maintenance works are performed sequentially: A process of replacing the functional liquid filled in the droplet discharge head with the first cleaning liquid; A process of wiping the surface of the nozzle with the wiping member for supplying the first cleaning solution; A process of replacing the first cleaning solution filled in the droplet discharge head with the second cleaning solution; A process of wiping the surface of the nozzle with the wiping member for supplying the second cleaning liquid; A process of replacing the second cleaning solution filled in the droplet discharge head with the first cleaning solution; A process of wiping the nozzle surface with the wiping member supplying the third cleaning liquid.

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