TWI510750B - Heat treatment apparatus - Google Patents

Description

Heat treatment device

The present invention relates to a heat treatment device that airtightly seals a furnace mouth of a furnace body by opening and closing a door when a workpiece such as a glass substrate for a liquid crystal panel is carried in and discharged.

In the heat treatment apparatus, in order to maintain the temperature distribution inside the furnace body in a desired state, it is most important to improve the sealing property of the furnace body. Conventionally, in order to improve the sealing property of the furnace body, there is a heat treatment device in which a sealing member is provided around the furnace opening constituting the opening portion of the furnace body and the furnace cover.

However, since the periphery of the furnace mouth is in a high temperature state, the sealing member is hardened to cause abrasion, and dust is easily generated, and as a result, the problem of the cleanliness in the furnace is lowered.

Therefore, in the conventional heat treatment apparatus, a technique of improving the heat resistance of the sealing member to prevent the dust of the sealing member is employed (for example, refer to Japanese Patent No. 3614748). This technique is as shown in FIG. 1. A metal sealing member 130 is provided around the furnace mouth of the furnace body 12, and the furnace body 12 and the door are maintained by pressing the sealing portion 140 provided on the door 200 against the sealing member 130. Air tightness between 200. Specifically, FIG. 1 is a configuration in which a heat-resistant resin sheet 144 configured to cover a support member 142 having heat resistance and elasticity is pressed against the metal sealing member 130.

However, in the technique of the above-mentioned Japanese Patent No. 3614748, there is a problem that the strength of the side panel of the door 200 is lowered, the flatness is deteriorated, and the weight is increased. In the technique of the above Patent Document 1, since the heat-resistant resin sheet 144 is provided in the complicated structure such as the rotary door 200, it is easy to use it. There is a problem that the strength of the baffle is lowered, the flatness is deteriorated, and the weight is increased.

Further, the hardness of the sealing member 130 (metal) and the heat-resistant resin sheet 144 is greatly different, and since the contact area of the sealing member 130 and the heat-resistant resin sheet 144 is small, the wear speed is made faster, and as a result, the sealing member 130 and the heat-resistant resin are obtained. Dust is easily generated between the sheets 144.

On the other hand, in the configuration shown in FIG. 1, even if the metal sealing member 130 of the furnace body 12 is simply replaced with a resin sealing member, the resin sealing member may be corroded by the gas generated in the furnace, or It is hard to be heated and the like, and as a result, it is difficult to maintain the airtightness between the furnace mouth and the door for a long time.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is to provide a heat treatment apparatus which can simplify the structure of a door side shutter and can effectively prevent dust from being generated by a seal which maintains airtightness between a furnace mouth and a door, and can maintain the furnace mouth and the door for a long time. The airtightness between.

The heat treatment apparatus of the present invention is provided with a furnace body and a door. The furnace body is configured to house a workpiece to be heat-treated, and has a furnace port for carrying in and carrying out the workpiece. Further, the furnace body is provided with a first sealing portion surrounding the furnace opening.

The door has a second sealing portion disposed at a position corresponding to the first sealing portion, and passes through the first sealing portion and the second sealing portion, and is configured to hermetically seal the furnace opening.

The first sealing portion includes a first resin member having heat insulating properties and elasticity, and a resin sheet having heat resistance and covering the first resin member. Examples of the first resin member material include a foamed Weidong synthetic rubber (viton) or a fluorine synthetic rubber (fluoroelastomer). In addition, the resin sheet is a material having excellent chemical resistance and temperature resistance, and preferably has a low friction coefficient and good slidability. Examples of the material thereof include a fluororesin such as polytetrafluoroethylene. Or polyimine.

Further, the second sealing portion is provided with a plate-shaped second resin member having heat resistance. A configuration example of the second resin member is a resin block composed of a fluororesin such as polytetrafluoroethylene.

In the above configuration, the first sealing portion made of a resin material having a hardness lower than that of metal or the like is provided on the furnace body side, and the second sealing portion made of a resin material is also provided on the door side, so that between the furnace body and the door The seal is difficult to produce wear.

Moreover, since the second sealing portion has a plate shape, it faces the resin sheet forming surface of the first sealing portion, and the contact area can be increased. Further, since the resin sheet can be stably fixed to the furnace body, the resin sheet is not displaced by the operation of the door, and the external force acting on the resin sheet or the like can be suppressed to the minimum necessary.

Moreover, since the first resin member provided on the furnace body side is covered with the resin sheet, it is possible to prevent the first resin member from being corroded by the gas generated in the furnace and being hardened by heat. Further, since the resin sheet is disposed on the furnace side rather than the door side, the baffle structure on the door side can be simplified, and the flatness of the baffle can be improved and the weight can be reduced.

According to the present invention, the configuration of the door side baffle can be simplified, the dust of the seal which maintains the airtightness between the furnace mouth and the door can be effectively prevented, and the gap between the mouth and the door can be maintained for a long time. Air tightness.

Fig. 2 is a schematic view showing a multi-layer IR (infrared radiation) furnace 10 of a one-piece type clean sintering furnace according to an embodiment of the present invention. In the following embodiments, the IR furnace 10 is described as an example of the heat treatment apparatus of the present invention. However, the scope of application of the present invention is not limited to the use of an infrared heater, and the present invention can also be applied to a hot air circulation heating method or a heating plate heating. A heat treatment device of other heating methods such as a method.

As shown in FIG. 2, the upper portion of the IR furnace 10 has a furnace body 12 for housing the workpiece 15 to be heat-treated. In the present embodiment, the glass substrate for liquid crystal display is used as the workpiece 15, but the workpiece 15 is not limited thereto. Below the furnace body 12, a control unit 16 that houses the drive system substrate of the IR furnace 10 and the control system substrate is disposed. The control unit 16 is configured to collectively control the operation of the IR furnace 10.

A plurality of heat treatment portions 14 arranged in a plurality of layers are disposed inside the furnace body 12. Each of the heat treatment sections 14 has a heater unit 18 that is configured to heat the workpiece 15 at a set temperature. Further, as shown in FIGS. 3A to 3C, a door 20 configured to open and close when the workpiece 15 passes is provided on the front side of each heat treatment portion 14. The door 20 is provided at a position corresponding to each of the heat treatment portions 14, and when the workpiece is carried into the corresponding heat treatment portion 14, and the workpiece is carried out from the corresponding heat treatment portion 14, the structure is open.

As shown in FIG. 3B, the door 20 is provided with a baffle 26, a main frame 22, and a drive unit 28. The baffle 26 is configured to block heat conduction between the inside and the outside of the furnace body 12. The main frame 22 is configured to support the baffle 26, which has a function of ensuring the strength of the door 20. Here, the baffle 26 is configured by a steel plate container and a ceramic fiber heat insulating material housed inside the container, and the main frame 22 is made of aluminum, but the baffle 26 and the main frame 22 are made of a material. Not limited to this.

The drive unit 28 is fixed to the main frame 22 through the connector 24. Further, as shown in FIG. 3C, the drive unit 28 is connected to the main frame 22 via the arm 285, and rotationally drives the rotary shaft 280 disposed in the horizontal direction. The rotating shaft 280 supports a bearing 284 provided with a door support body 282 disposed at a predetermined position near the opening, which is coupled to the rotary actuator 288 via a coupling 286. In this configuration, as shown in FIG. 3B, the rotary actuator 288 is rotated by about 90 degrees to open and close the door 20. However, the configuration described here merely shows an example of the configuration of the drive unit 28, and the configuration of the drive unit 28 is not limited to the configuration shown in FIG. 3C.

Next, the seal between the furnace body 12 and the door 20 will be described using FIG. An annular first sealing portion 40 and an annular second sealing portion 30 are disposed between the baffle 26 and the furnace body 12. Here, the second sealing portion 30 is composed of a resin block 32. The resin block 32 is attached to the shutter 26 by a screw equal to the replaceable state. Examples of the material of the resin block 32 include a fluororesin such as polytetrafluoroethylene. Among them, the resin block 32 corresponds to the second resin member of the present invention.

The first seal portion 40 is provided with a support member 42, a resin sheet 44, and a sheet metal 45. The support member 42 is disposed in the annular baffle seal receiving groove 122 formed around the opening portion outside the furnace body 12. Examples of the material of the support member 42 include a foamed Weidong synthetic rubber or a fluorine synthetic rubber (the heat resistance temperature is about 230 ° C), but are not limited thereto. Further, the support member 42 here corresponds to the first resin member of the present invention.

The resin sheet 44 is configured to cover the support member 42. Examples of the material of the resin sheet 44 include polybenzonitrile (heat resistant temperature is about 250 ° C), but are not limited thereto. The sheet metal 46 is fixed to the furnace body 12 through a fixing member to fix the resin sheet 44 to the furnace body 12 on both sides of the shutter seal receiving groove 122. Examples of the material of the sheet metal 46 include stainless steel (for example, the same as the steel material of the furnace body 12), but are not limited thereto.

According to the above configuration, since the first sealing portion 40 including the resin sheet 44 is attached to the furnace body 12 side, the configuration of the door 20 side shutter 26 can be simplified, so that the flatness of the shutter 26 can be improved. Increasing the strength of the baffle 26 further reduces the weight of the baffle 26.

Further, the resin block 32 is made of a heat resistant resin material having a hardness lower than that of the metal, and since the resin block 32 is brought into surface contact with the resin sheet 44, the friction between the resin sheet 44 and the resin block 32 can be remarkably reduced. As a result, dust generation can be suppressed and the maintenance cycle can be extended. Further, the resin sheet 44 is disposed in a state of being fixed to the side of the furnace body 12 instead of the unstable door 20 side, so that workability can be improved when the resin sheet 44 and the support member 42 are maintained.

In the above embodiment, an example in which the cleanliness, the yield, the maintenance period, and the maintenance workability in the one-piece clean sintering furnace are improved is described. However, the present invention is applicable to a continuous furnace or the like in addition to the one-piece type clean sintering furnace. The same effect and effect can be obtained in the case.

The above embodiments are all illustrative only and are not intended to limit the scope of the invention. The scope of the invention is defined by the scope of the claims rather than the embodiments described above. Further, the scope of the present invention is intended to cover all modifications within the scope and scope of the invention.

10. . . IR furnace

12. . . Furnace body

14. . . Heat treatment department

15. . . Workpiece

16. . . Control department

18. . . Heater unit

20. . . door

22‧‧‧Main frame

24‧‧‧Connecting parts

26‧‧‧Baffle

28‧‧‧Drive unit

30‧‧‧2nd seal

32‧‧‧ resin block

40‧‧‧1st seal

42‧‧‧Support members

44‧‧‧resin tablets

46‧‧‧Sheet sheet metal

122‧‧‧Ring baffle seal receiving groove

130‧‧‧ Sealing members

140‧‧‧ Sealing Department

142‧‧‧Support members

144‧‧‧heat resistant resin sheet

200‧‧‧

280‧‧‧Rotary axis

282‧‧‧door support

284‧‧‧ bearing

285‧‧‧arm

286‧‧‧Coupling

288‧‧‧Rotary actuator

Fig. 1 is a view showing a schematic configuration example of a conventional heat treatment apparatus.

Fig. 2 is a view showing a schematic configuration of an IR furnace according to an embodiment of the present invention.

3A to 3C are views showing a configuration example of a door used in an IR furnace.

Fig. 4 is a view showing an example of a configuration of a seal between a furnace body and a door.

12. . . Furnace body

26. . . Baffle

30. . . Second seal

32. . . Resin block

40. . . First seal

42. . . Support member

44. . . Resin sheet

46. . . Tablet gold

122. . . Annular baffle seal receiving groove

Claims (5)

A heat treatment apparatus comprising: a furnace body; a holder for carrying in heat treatment; a furnace opening for loading and unloading the workpiece; and a first sealing portion surrounding the furnace opening; and a door having a configuration The second sealing portion at a position corresponding to the first sealing portion can hermetically seal the furnace opening through the first sealing portion and the second sealing portion. The first sealing portion is provided with: first The resin member has heat insulating properties and elasticity; and the resin sheet has heat resistance and is configured to cover the first resin member; the second sealing portion includes a plate-shaped second resin member having heat resistance; and the first resin member It is disposed in a groove formed to surround the above-mentioned furnace opening. The heat treatment apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the resin sheet is fixed to both sides of the groove portion of the furnace body through a sheet metal. The heat treatment apparatus according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the second resin member is made of a resin block. The heat treatment apparatus according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the first resin member is composed of a foamed Weidong synthetic rubber (viton) or a fluoroelastomer, and the resin sheet is made of polyimine or fluorine. (fluororesin) resin. The heat treatment apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the first resin member is composed of a foamed Weidong synthetic rubber or a fluorine synthetic rubber, and the resin sheet is made of polyimide or fluororesin.