TWI484531B - Valve assembly and valve - Google Patents

Description

Valve assembly and valve

This invention relates to a valve, and more particularly to a vacuum valve that is expandable and suitable for use in large sizes.

The application of valves is becoming more and more widespread in the current electronics industry such as LCD panel manufacturing and thin film solar panel manufacturing. In order to reduce costs, the size of the substrate used in the process has also continued to increase with advances in technology. Accordingly, as the size of the substrate increases, the size of the valve must also increase correspondingly. In general, for the 5.5 generation (Gen 5.5) glass, the substrate size is 1400x1100 mm ² , and the valve size used is at least 1.1 m long and 10 cm wide to facilitate substrate access. The current glass has been developed to 8 generations (Gen 8) (substrate size 2160x2460 mm ² ), and is moving towards the development of the 10th generation (Gen 10) line. At this time, if the valve is applied to the 8th generation (Gen 8) substrate in a conventional design, the size of the valve can be imagined to be enormous. Moreover, the larger the valve size, in addition to the valve processing, control is not easy, the power required to push the valve will be quite amazing, because the pressure difference multiplied by the area equals the force.

In the solar panel process, most of the steps in the process such as chemical vapor deposition (CVD) such as plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition (PECVD) or organometallic chemical vapor deposition Metal organic chemical vapor deposition (MOCVD), physical vapor deposition (physical vapor deposition) Deposition, PVD), such as sputtering or evaporation, must be carried out in a vacuum environment, that is, such a machine must be equipped with a vacuum chamber and a vacuum valve. In terms of the structure of a vacuum valve that is currently in common use, it is mainly divided into a gate valve for a straight-through opening and closing operation and a pendulum valve for a rocker-type opening and closing operation. If it is necessary to use it in large size, in order to avoid the deformation caused by the internal and external pressure difference, the thickness of the above valve must be increased, and the force of the valve increases as the pressure difference between the inside and the outside of the valve increases, and the rigidity of the valve must be increased three times with the thickness. . Therefore, the conventional valve structure increases the rigidity of the structure in a non-equal ratio as long as the size is increased. When the valve has to be made thick, the equipment that drives the valve must also be replaced with a drive device with a larger power output, which makes the valve structure costly. Moreover, the known valve construction generally allows a pressure differential of less than 30 mbar (about 22.5 torr). Therefore, the conventional valve structure has the disadvantages of being too thick and not well controlled, and the manufacturing cost is too high, if it is to be used in a large-sized, especially multi-piece process.

In view of this, the present invention provides a valve assembly having an expandable function.

The present invention provides a valve suitable for mounting in a valve assembly for a vacuum module of a large-sized substrate and having an expandable function.

The invention provides a valve assembly comprising a cavity, a valve, an electromagnetic actuator and a pneumatic actuator. The cavity has a plurality of channels disposed on the side of the cavity such that the cavity communicates with the outside through the channels, wherein the side The side has a first side opposite the body and a second side exposed to the outside of the cavity. The electromagnetic actuating member is disposed on a side of the cavity and is adapted to adsorb the valve such that the sub-valve is correspondingly closed to the passage.

In an embodiment of the invention, the valve valve further has a plurality of connecting members staggered with the sub-valves, wherein the sub-valves respectively correspond to the passages, and each of the sub-valves is detachably connected to each of the connecting members.

In an embodiment of the invention, the valve assembly further includes a pneumatic actuator disposed between the pneumatic actuator and the second side of the side of the cavity. The pneumatic actuator is adapted to drive the valve to move toward the cavity such that the subvalve correspondingly covers the passage.

In an embodiment of the invention, the pneumatic actuator has a plurality of pneumatic ports corresponding to the sub-valves.

In an embodiment of the invention, each of the connecting members has at least one engaging portion disposed at an edge of the connecting member to engage with the sub-valves.

In an embodiment of the invention, the valve further has at least one push rod adapted to urge the valve to displace and retract the passage.

In an embodiment of the invention, the valve assembly further includes an elastic member coupled to the valve to assist the valve from exiting the cavity.

In an embodiment of the invention, when the valve is closed to the cavity, there is a pressure difference between the cavity and the outside, and the pressure difference is between zero and one atmosphere (1 atm or 760 torr).

In an embodiment of the invention, the cavity further has a plurality of sub-cavities, and the sub-cavities correspond to the channels.

In an embodiment of the invention, the cavity has a plurality of seals The components are arranged around each channel.

In an embodiment of the invention, the material of the valve comprises a metal.

The invention further provides a valve suitable for use in a valve assembly. The valve is adapted to close one of the chambers of the valve assembly. The cavity has a plurality of channels disposed on one side of the cavity such that the cavity communicates with the outside by the channels, wherein the side has a first side opposite to the cavity and a second side exposed to the outside of the cavity . The valve includes a plurality of sub-valves.

In an embodiment of the invention, the valve further includes a connector, wherein each of the sub-valves corresponds to each channel. Each connector is staggered with each sub-valve. Each connector has at least one engaging member disposed on the edge, and the sub-valve is detachably coupled to the connecting member by the engaging member.

In an embodiment of the invention, the valve assembly further includes an electromagnetic actuating member disposed on a side of the cavity and adapted to adsorb the valve to close the sub-valves to the passage.

In an embodiment of the invention, the valve assembly further includes a pneumatic actuator, the valve is located between the pneumatic actuator and the second side of the side of the cavity, and the pneumatic actuator is adapted to drive the valve to move toward the cavity. So that the sub-valve covers the channel correspondingly.

In an embodiment of the invention, the pneumatic actuator has a plurality of pneumatic ports corresponding to the sub-valves.

In an embodiment of the invention, the valve further includes at least one push rod adapted to urge the valve to displace and disengage the passage.

In an embodiment of the invention, the valve assembly further includes a bullet A member is attached to the valve to assist the valve from exiting the cavity.

In an embodiment of the invention, when the valve is closed to the cavity, there is a pressure difference between the cavity and the outside, and the pressure difference is between zero and one atmosphere (1 atm or 760 torr).

In an embodiment of the invention, the material of the valve comprises a metal.

Based on the above, the valve assembly of the present invention is suitable for processes requiring a large-sized valve, such as a large-sized solar module process, by having a plurality of sub-valves and a detachable combination of a plurality of connecting members. The valve assembly of the present invention has an expandable function by a modularly designed valve. In other words, when the valve of the present invention is applied to the process of a multi-piece substrate, the user can combine the sub-valve and the connecting member by itself according to the number of the substrates corresponding to the number of channels of the cavity. Moreover, since each sub-valve corresponds to one passage, when the passage is increased, the sub-valve can be correspondingly increased, and since the force is the product of the differential pressure and the area, and the valve size is increased, only the number of sub-valves is required. Increase, and the area of each sub-valve does not change, so the force that each sub-valve will not increase due to the increase in the size of the valve. Compared to conventional one-piece valves, the traditional valve size must increase as the number of substrates increases as the number of substrates increases, resulting in a very large cavity and valve volume. Therefore, when the valve assembly of the present invention is applied to a large-sized process, the thickness of the valve only needs to increase the size of one substrate, and the size of the passage and the sub-valve can be correspondingly increased. Since the thickness of the single-piece substrate is large enough and a multi-piece process is required, the thickness of the valve is not considered for the structure of the conventional integrated valve and its driving and control considerations. The law increases without limit. Therefore, the advantages of the present invention are more apparent in the process of large-sized and multi-piece substrates. Accordingly, the valve assembly of the present invention has the advantages of simple structure, light weight, low cost, and the like.

The above described features and advantages of the present invention will be more apparent from the following description.

1 is a schematic illustration of a valve assembly in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. Referring to FIG. 1 , the valve assembly 100 of the present embodiment includes a cavity 110 , a valve 120 , an electromagnetic actuator 130 , and a pneumatic actuator 140 . The cavity 110 has a plurality of channels 112 located at one side 114 of the cavity 110 such that the cavity 110 communicates with the outside through the channels 112, wherein the side of the side 114 relative to the cavity 110 is defined as One side 114a and the side exposed to the outside of the cavity 110 are defined as a second side 114b. In the present embodiment, the cavity 110 is used as an object (not shown) for performing a certain process. For example, a glass substrate (not shown) of a solar module (not shown) can be placed in the cavity 110 for the solar substrate process. The valve 120 has a plurality of sub-valves 122 and a plurality of connectors 124. In the present embodiment, as shown in FIG. 1, the sub-valve 122 and the connecting member 124 are connected in a staggered manner, wherein the sub-valves 122 correspond to the passages 112, respectively. Further, the sub-valve 122 and the connecting member 124 are detachably connected to each other. For example, each of the connecting members 124 has at least one engaging portion 124a disposed at an edge of the connecting member 124. In the present embodiment, each of the connecting members 124 is provided with two engaging portions 124a to be engaged with the sub-valves 122. However, this issue The connection between the connector 124 and the sub-valve 122 is not limited, and the sub-valve 122 may have a function of being detachably assembled with the connector 124.

In the present embodiment, as shown in FIG. 1, the cavity 110 has four channels 112 as an example. Since the sub-valve 122 of the present embodiment corresponds to the passage 112, four sub-valves 122 are correspondingly disposed between the connecting members 124. In other embodiments, when the valve 120 is applied to a process where the number of substrates needs to be increased, the user only needs to increase the number of the sub-valve 122 and the connecting member 124 correspondingly, and combines a valve 120 that meets the requirements, without adding a valve. thickness of. It should be noted that the sub-valve 122 of the present embodiment corresponds to the size of the passage 112, and therefore, the compressive stress experienced by the sub-valve 122 is not changed by the increase in the size of the valve 120. Accordingly, in the multi-piece process, it is only necessary to correspondingly increase the number of sub-valves 122, and the compressive stress experienced by the sub-valves 122 does not change. Therefore, the number of the sub-valves 122 can be increased correspondingly to be applied to the multi-piece process, so that the structure of the valve assembly 100 of the present embodiment becomes thin and simple, and the manufacturing cost can be further saved.

As shown in FIG. 1, the valve assembly 100 of the present embodiment further has a case 150 for arranging the valve 120, the pneumatic actuator 130 and the electromagnetic actuator 140 in the case 150, but the invention is not limited thereto. The pneumatic actuator 130 is used as a drive valve 120 to move toward the cavity 110. In the present embodiment, the valve 120 is located between the pneumatic actuator 130 and the side 114 of the cavity 110. When the pneumatic actuator 130 is actuated, the valve 120 will be driven to move toward the cavity 110 such that each sub-valve 122 correspondingly covers each pass. Road 112. In the present embodiment, the pneumatic actuator 130 can be a pneumatically driven device (not shown), but the invention is not limited thereto. The pneumatic actuator 130 has a plurality of pneumatic ports 132 corresponding to the sub-valves 122, respectively. Moreover, when these pneumatic ports 132 are simultaneously driven by the pneumatic drive, each sub-valve 122 will be driven by each pneumatic port 132 to provide a more uniform kinetic energy to the valve 120. In addition, the user can select a single-acting drive, a double-acting drive or a median stop drive to drive the valve 120 to move toward the cavity 110, and then close the channel 112 to make the cavity 110 and A pressure difference is formed between the outside world. In the present embodiment, the pressure difference formed between the cavity 110 and the outside is in the range of zero to one atmosphere (1 atm or 760 torr).

Unlike the conventional conventional valve configuration, this embodiment configures an electromagnetic actuator 140 at the side 114 of the cavity 110. In this embodiment, the electromagnetic actuator 140 is disposed on the first surface 114a of the side edge 114. However, the present invention is not limited thereto. In other embodiments not shown, the electromagnetic actuator 140 may also be used according to the designer's requirements. It is disposed anywhere in the cavity 110, such as a second side 114b that can be disposed on the side 114 of the cavity 110. FIG. 2A to FIG. 2D respectively illustrate the electromagnetic actuator of the valve assembly of FIG. 1 and the state of the valve when the pneumatic actuator is actuated, and only one sub-valve 122 is illustrated as an example.

Referring to FIG. 1 and FIG. 2 simultaneously, the electromagnetic actuator 140 of the present embodiment is, for example, an electromagnetically driven device, that is, a solenoid valve (not shown), and is adapted to adsorb the valve 120 on the side 114 of the cavity 110 so that The sub-valve 122 correspondingly closes the passage 112. The pressure in the cavity 110 is shown in FIG. 2A as being directed toward the direction of the arrow in the cavity 110 to be less than the pressure outside the sub-valve 122. Figure 2B The pressure in the cavity 110 is greater than the pressure outside the sub-valve 122 in the direction of the arrow toward the outside of the cavity 110. When the solenoid valve is actuated, the valve 120 is attached to the side 114 of the cavity 110 by electromagnetic force. The electromagnetic actuator 140 can attach the valve 120 to the cavity 110 regardless of the pressure condition of FIG. 2A or FIG. 2B. Side 114. This is an advantage that conventional pneumatic actuators cannot achieve.

When neither the pneumatic actuator 130 nor the electromagnetic actuator 140 is active (i.e., when the valve 120 is open), the valve 120 leaves the chamber 110 and is in an open state (Fig. 2C). When the pneumatic actuator 130 is actuated, the valve 120 will move toward the side 114 of the cavity 110. At this point, the electromagnetic actuator 140 can be activated to attract the valve 120 to the side 114 of the cavity 110, that is, to close the valve. Status (Figure 2D).

In other words, when the pneumatic actuator 130 is actuated, the valve 120 will be pushed to move toward the cavity 110, and each sub-valve 122 will correspondingly close each channel 112. At this time, the electromagnetic actuator 140 is driven such that the solenoid valve increases the degree of closeness between the sub-valve 122 and the passage 112 by the electromagnet magnetic force. In the present embodiment, in order to correspond to the electromagnetically driven device, the material of the valve 120 includes metal or other material suitable for functioning with the electromagnetically driven device, and the present invention is not limited thereto. When the valve 120 of the valve assembly 100 is to be opened, the electromagnet magnetic force between the valve 120 and the cavity 110 is stopped to cause the valve 120 to exit the cavity 110.

In the present embodiment, in order to make the cavity 110 more sealed, the cavity 110 further has a plurality of sealing elements 116 disposed around the respective channels 112. In this embodiment, an O-ring is disposed in each channel 112 to make the gas When the actuating member 130 and the electromagnetic actuating member 140 are actuated, leakage between the sub-valve 122 and the passage 112 of the cavity 110 is prevented from coming into contact with each other.

The valve assembly 100 of the present embodiment further includes an elastic member 160 coupled to the valve 120 to assist the valve 120 to exit the cavity 110. In more detail, the elastic member 160 is used to reset the valve 120 when the valve 120 is to be opened. As shown in FIG. 1, the elastic member 160 of the present embodiment is a return spring disposed near the pneumatic port 132 of the pneumatic actuator 130 and connected to the valve 120.

Referring to FIG. 1, the valve assembly 100 also has at least one push rod 170 adapted to urge the valve 120 to displace and disengage the passage 112. The push rod 170 may be integrated with the pneumatic actuator 130, or the push rod 170 may be disposed in one of the sub-valves 122. The invention is not limited thereto, as long as the push rod 170 can displace the valve 120 to allow The passage 112 is provided to facilitate the entry and exit of the substrate. In the present embodiment, the push rod 170 is integrated with the air pressure actuating member 130, that is, the air pressure actuating member 130 is disposed on the push rod 170.

Figure 3 illustrates the valve assembly that can be used to shift the valve to release the passage. Referring to FIG. 1 and FIG. 3 simultaneously, in the embodiment, the push rod 170 is disposed on each side of the air pressure actuating member 130, and the push rod 170 is adapted to generate a displacement between the valve 120 and the cavity 110 (the valve 120 is oriented) The direction of the arrow in Fig. 3 is moved to allow the passage 112 to facilitate the entry and exit of the substrate. In addition, the user can push the push rod 170 open using a manual, pneumatic drive or motor to cause the sub-valve 122 to clear out of the passage.

As described above, in the present embodiment, when the cavity 110 needs to be closed, the pneumatic actuator 130 drives the valve 120 to move toward the cavity 110, so that the sub-valve 122 is correspondingly closed with the passage 112, and the electromagnetic actuator 140 is activated. Valve The door 120 is attracted to cause the valve 120 to be in close contact with the cavity 110. When the valve 120 needs to leave the cavity 110, the electromagnetic actuator 140 stops to act to stop the electromagnet magnetic force between the valve 120 and the cavity 110, and the valve 120 returns to the undriven position due to the reset of the elastic member 160. That is, the valve 120 leaves the cavity 110 and returns to the undriven position. The user can further use the push rod 170 to further displace the valve 120 from the cavity 110 to allow the passage 112 to enter and exit the substrate.

It should be noted that, in other embodiments, the valve 120 can also be configured as shown in FIG. 3. The sub-valve 122 is directly disposed on the pneumatic actuator 130 and the elastic member 160, and each sub-valve 122 corresponds to each. A channel 112.

In addition, the valve 120 of the present embodiment is also applicable to the cavity 110 having a plurality of sub-cavities (not shown), and these sub-cavities respectively correspond to the channels 112. At this time, the pressures between the sub-cavities may be equal or unequal, and the present invention is not limited thereto.

In summary, the valve assembly of the present invention is suitable for a process requiring a large-sized and multi-piece valve by a valve having a plurality of sub-valves and a detachable combination between a plurality of connecting members, for example, a large size and a large number Chip solar module process. The valve assembly of the present invention has an expandable function by a modularly designed valve. In other words, when the valve of the present invention is applied to the process of a multi-piece substrate, the user can combine the sub-valve and the connecting member by itself according to the number of the substrates corresponding to the number of channels of the cavity. Moreover, since each sub-valve corresponds to one passage, when the passage is increased, the sub-valve can be correspondingly increased, and the force is the product of the differential pressure and the area, and the valve size When increasing, only the number of sub-valves needs to be increased, and the area of each sub-valve is constant, so the force that each sub-valve will not increase due to the increase in the size of the valve. Compared to conventional one-piece valves, the traditional valve size must increase as the volume of the chamber increases as the number of substrates increases, resulting in a very large cavity and valve volume. Therefore, when the valve assembly of the present invention is applied to a large-sized and multi-piece process, the thickness of the valve only needs to be increased corresponding to the size of one substrate, and the size of the passage and the sub-valve can be correspondingly increased. Since the size of the single-piece substrate is already large enough and a multi-piece process is required, the thickness of the valve cannot be increased without limitation for the structure of the conventional integrated valve and its driving and control considerations. Therefore, the advantages of the present invention are more apparent in the process of large-sized and multi-piece substrates. Accordingly, the valve assembly of the present invention has the advantages of simple structure, light weight, low cost, and the like. In addition, the use of the electromagnetically driven device also enhances the effect of the valve of the valve assembly of the present invention closing the passage of the cavity.

Although the present invention has been disclosed in the above embodiments, it is not intended to limit the invention, and any one of ordinary skill in the art can make some modifications and refinements without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. The scope of the invention is defined by the scope of the appended claims.

100‧‧‧ valve assembly

110‧‧‧ cavity

112‧‧‧ channel

114‧‧‧ Side

114a‧‧‧ first side

114b‧‧‧ second side

116‧‧‧ sealing element

120‧‧‧ valve

122‧‧‧Child valve

124‧‧‧Connecting parts

124a‧‧‧With the Ministry

130‧‧‧Pneumatic actuating parts

132‧‧‧ pneumatic port

140‧‧‧Electromagnetic actuators

150‧‧‧ box

160‧‧‧Flexible parts

170‧‧‧Put

1 is a schematic illustration of a valve assembly in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention.

2A to 2D respectively illustrate the pneumatic actuator of the valve assembly of FIG. 1 and the state of the valve when the electromagnetic actuator is actuated.

Figure 3 illustrates the valve assembly that can be used to shift the valve to release the passage.

100‧‧‧ valve assembly

110‧‧‧ cavity

112‧‧‧ channel

114‧‧‧ Side

114a‧‧‧ first side

114b‧‧‧ second side

116‧‧‧ sealing element

120‧‧‧ valve

122‧‧‧Child valve

124‧‧‧Connecting parts

124a‧‧‧With the Ministry

130‧‧‧Pneumatic actuating parts

132‧‧‧ pneumatic port

140‧‧‧Electromagnetic actuators

150‧‧‧ box

160‧‧‧Flexible parts

170‧‧‧Put

Claims (19)

A valve assembly includes: a cavity having a plurality of channels disposed on a side of the cavity such that the cavity communicates with the outside through the channels, wherein the side has a relative to the cavity a first surface and a second surface exposed to the outside of the cavity; a valve having a plurality of sub-valves, wherein the sub-valves respectively correspond to the channels; and an electromagnetic actuator disposed on the side of the cavity And adapted to adsorb the valve such that the sub-valves are correspondingly closed to the passages. The valve assembly of claim 1, wherein the valve further has a plurality of connecting members interleaved with the sub-valves, and each of the sub-valves is detachably coupled to each of the connecting members. The valve assembly of claim 1, further comprising a pneumatic actuator, the valve being located between the pneumatic actuator and the second side of the side of the cavity, the pneumatic actuator being adapted The valve is driven to move to the cavity such that the sub-valves cover the passages correspondingly. The valve assembly of claim 3, wherein the pneumatic actuator has a plurality of pneumatic ports respectively corresponding to the plurality of sub-valves. The valve assembly of claim 1, wherein each of the connecting members has at least one engaging portion disposed at an edge of the connecting member to engage with the sub-valves. The valve assembly of claim 1, wherein the valve further has at least one push rod coupled to one of the sub-valves. For example, the valve assembly described in claim 1 of the patent scope includes one An elastic member is coupled to the valve to assist the valve from exiting the cavity. The valve assembly of claim 1, wherein the valve has a pressure difference between the cavity and the outside when the valve is closed to the cavity, and the pressure difference is between zero and one atmosphere (1 atm or Between 760torr). The valve assembly of claim 1, wherein the cavity further has a plurality of sub-cavities, and each of the sub-cavities corresponds to each of the channels. The valve assembly of claim 1, wherein the cavity further has a plurality of sealing elements disposed around each of the channels. The valve assembly of claim 1, wherein the material of the valve comprises a metal. A valve suitable for use in a valve assembly, the valve being adapted to seal a cavity of the valve assembly, the cavity having a plurality of channels disposed on a side of the cavity such that the cavity is The channel is in communication with the outside, wherein the side has a first side opposite to the cavity and a second side exposed to the outside of the cavity, the valve includes: a plurality of sub-valves, respectively corresponding to the channels; and a plurality of connections And the plurality of sub-valves are staggered, and each of the connecting members has at least one engaging member disposed on the edge, and each of the sub-valves is detachably coupled to each of the connecting members by the engaging member. The valve of claim 12, wherein the valve assembly further comprises an electromagnetic actuating member disposed on the side of the cavity and adapted to adsorb the valve to close the sub-valves These channels. The valve of claim 12, wherein the valve assembly further comprises a pneumatic actuator, the valve being located at the pneumatic actuator and the valve Between the second faces of the sides of the cavity, the pneumatic actuator is adapted to drive the valve to move toward the cavity such that the sub-valves correspondingly cover the channels. The valve of claim 14, wherein the pneumatic actuator has a plurality of pneumatic ports respectively corresponding to the plurality of sub-valves. The valve of claim 12, further comprising at least one push rod connected to one of the sub-valves. The valve of claim 12, wherein the valve assembly further includes an elastic member coupled to the valve to assist the valve from exiting the cavity. The valve of claim 12, wherein the valve has a pressure difference between the cavity and the outside when the valve is closed to the cavity, and the pressure difference is between zero and one atmosphere (1 atm or 760 torr) between. The valve of claim 12, wherein the material of the valve comprises a metal.