TWI549758B - Method of supplying liquid crystal to liquid-crystal dispenser - Google Patents

Description

Method for supplying liquid crystal to liquid crystal coater

The present invention relates to a method of supplying liquid crystal to a liquid-crystal dispenser.

1 is a side view schematically showing a liquid crystal coater and a liquid-crystal-supply unit.

As shown in FIG. 1, a liquid crystal coater is mounted, and then a cover frame B is attached to cover the liquid crystal coater. The liquid crystal supply unit is mounted outside the cover frame B.

The liquid crystal coater includes a main frame 100, a stage 200 mounted on the main frame 100, and a first guide unit G1 coupled to the main frame 100 and disposed on both sides of the platform 200. a dispensing-head-unit-support frame 400 coupled to the first guiding unit G1, a first driving unit (not shown) for moving the coating head unit support frame 400 a second guiding unit G2 provided on the coating head unit support frame 400, a plurality of dispensing-head-units 500 coupled to the second guiding unit G2, and a moving coating head unit 500 The second drive unit (not shown).

Each of the coating head units 500 includes a support assembly 510 that connects the second guiding units G2. A bottle-insertion member 520 is coupled to the support assembly 510. The bottle 530 is inserted into the bottle insert member 520. A cap 540 is coupled to the mouth of the bottle 530 to close the inlet of the bottle 530. A nozzle unit 550 is provided at a lower portion of the support assembly 510. Further, a nozzle connection tube 560 is connected through the cap 540, thereby supplying the liquid crystal in the bottle 530 to the nozzle unit 550. The cap 540 has an injection passage H. The nozzle unit 550 includes a nozzle 551. Sensors (not shown) are provided on the upper and lower portions of the side surface of the bottle 530, respectively.

The liquid crystal supply unit includes a liquid-crystal tank 620 installed in a base plate 610, a pressure-supply unit 630 that supplies a pressure to the liquid crystal tank 620, a connection liquid crystal tank 620, and a pressure supply unit. a connection pipe 640 of 630, a liquid-crystal-injection unit 700 connected to the side wall of the cover frame B, a tube 650 connecting the liquid crystal cell 620 and the liquid crystal injection unit 700, and A valve 800 of the tube 650. The valve member 800 controls the flow of the liquid crystal to the tube 650.

The liquid crystal injection unit 700 includes a base member 720 coupled to the wall of the cover frame B. An actuator 730 is coupled to the base 720. A guide rail (not shown) is coupled to the actuator 730. A sliding member 740 slidably couples the rail and connects the actuator 730. A holder 750 is fixedly coupled to the slider 740. A tube support pipe 710 is coupled through the holder 750. One end of the tube 650 is connected through the tube support tube 710, and the other end of the tube 650 is connected to the liquid crystal tank 620.

The liquid crystal coater and the liquid crystal supply unit operate as follows.

The substrate is placed on the platform 200 of the liquid crystal coater. The first driving unit and the second driving unit move the coating head unit 500 from an initial position to a liquid crystal coating position.

The first driving unit and the second driving unit move the coating head unit 500 according to preset data. When the coating head unit 500 moves, a predetermined amount of liquid crystal is applied to the substrate through the nozzles 551 of the respective coating head units 500. The substrate is divided into unit panels, and a predetermined amount of liquid crystal is applied to each unit panel. The sum of the amounts of liquid crystals applied to the individual unit panels is equal to a predetermined amount of liquid crystal applied to the substrate.

After applying a predetermined amount of liquid crystal to the substrate, the first driving unit and the second driving unit move the coating head unit 500 to an initial position.

The substrate placed on the platform 200 is replaced with a new one.

After the new substrate is placed on the platform 200, the first driving unit and the second driving unit move the coating head unit 500 to the liquid crystal coating position to apply liquid crystal to the substrate.

The first driving unit and the second driving unit move the coating head unit 500 according to the preset data. When the coating head unit 500 moves, a predetermined amount of liquid crystal is applied to the substrate through the nozzles 551 of the respective coating head units 500.

After applying a predetermined amount of liquid crystal to the substrate, the coating head unit 500 is moved to the initial position. The substrate placed on the stage 200 is replaced with a new one.

The above procedure is repeated, and a predetermined amount of liquid crystal is applied to a plurality of substrates.

After the liquid crystal coater applies a predetermined amount of liquid crystal to each substrate, the amount of liquid crystal applied through the nozzle 551 of the coating head unit 500 is measured. In general, after applying a predetermined amount of liquid crystal to each of 20 or 25 substrates, the amount of liquid crystal applied through the nozzle 551 of the coating head unit 500 is measured. The amount of liquid crystal is measured by a measuring unit 110 mounted on a liquid crystal coater. After each of the coating head units 500 is moved to the position where the measuring unit 110 is mounted, the nozzles 551 of the coating head unit 500 apply liquid crystal to the measuring unit 110, and the amount of liquid crystal is measured.

If the amount of liquid crystal measured by the measuring unit 110 is within the reference range, the coating head unit 500 is moved to the liquid crystal coating position to apply liquid crystal to the substrate. Meanwhile, if the amount of liquid crystal measured by the measuring unit 110 is not within the reference range, the outflow amount is adjusted such that the amount of liquid crystal applied through the nozzle 551 of the coating head unit 500 is within the reference range, and then the coating head is applied. Unit 500 is moved to the liquid crystal coating position.

At the same time, if the liquid crystal contained in the bottle 530 is lowered to some extent, the display unit provided to the liquid crystal coater displays an alarm. When an alarm is displayed, the process of applying liquid crystal to the substrate through the nozzle 551 of the coating head unit 500 is stopped.

Next, the coating head unit 500 is moved to a position where the liquid crystal is supplied.

When the coating head unit 500 is moved to the liquid crystal supply position, the liquid crystal supply unit supplies the liquid crystal to the bottle 530 of the coating head unit 500.

The liquid crystal supply unit supplies the liquid crystal to the bottle 530 of the coating head unit 500 by the following procedure.

First, the actuator 730 moves the slider 740 forward. When the slider 740 moves forward, the holder 750 coupling the slider 740, the tube support tube 710 coupling the holder 750, and the tube 650 move forward, and the tube 650 is inserted into the bottle cap of the bottle 530. Injection channel H of 540.

The valve member 800 is opened and the pressure supply unit 630 supplies pressure to the inside of the liquid crystal cell 620, so that the liquid crystal stored in the liquid crystal cell 620 flows through the tube member 650. The liquid crystal stored in the liquid crystal cell 620 is supplied to the bottle 530 through the injection passage H of the tube member 650 and the cap 540 by the pressure supplied to the inside of the liquid crystal cell 620.

When the liquid crystal supplied to the bottle 530 reaches a predetermined level, the pressure supply unit 630 stops the supply pressure to the liquid crystal cell 620, and the valve member 800 is closed, thereby stopping the supply of the liquid crystal through the tube 650 stored in the liquid crystal cell 620 to the bottle 530.

Actuator 730 moves slider 740 rearward. When the slider 740 moves backward, the holder 750 coupled to the slider 740, the tube support tube 710 coupled to the holder 750, and the tube 650 move backward, and the tube 650 is removed from the cap 540 of the bottle 530. The injection channel H is removed.

When the liquid crystal is supplied to the bottle 530 of the coating head unit 500, the coating head unit 500 is moved to the liquid crystal coating position.

As a result, if the amount of liquid crystal supplied to the bottle 530 of the coating head unit 500 is lowered to some extent, the coating head unit 500 is moved to the liquid crystal supply position, so that the liquid crystal supply unit supplies the liquid crystal to the coating head unit 500.

However, the liquid crystal coater and the liquid crystal supply unit which operate as described above have the following problems. That is, when the amount of liquid crystal contained in the bottle 530 of the coating head unit 500 is lowered to some extent, the liquid crystal supply unit supplies the liquid crystal to the bottle 530. Therefore, if the coating head unit 500 moves according to the preset data and applies a predetermined amount of liquid crystal to the substrate through the nozzle 551 of the coating head unit 500, the amount of liquid crystal contained in the bottle 530 is reduced to a certain extent, and then the coating is performed. The nozzle 551 of the cloth head unit 500 stops coating the liquid crystal to the substrate, and then the coating head unit 500 is moved to the liquid crystal supply position, and the liquid crystal is supplied to the coating head unit 500. Therefore, since liquid crystal is supplied to the bottle 530 on the way of applying a predetermined amount of liquid crystal to the substrate, it takes a long time to apply a predetermined amount of liquid crystal to the substrate.

Accordingly, the present invention has been made in view of the problems occurring in the prior art, and an object of the present invention is to provide a method of supplying liquid crystal to a liquid crystal coater which does not need to stop coating for supplying liquid crystal during a process of applying liquid crystal to a substrate. liquid crystal.

In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides a method for supplying a liquid crystal to a liquid crystal coater, comprising: (a) placing a substrate on which a liquid crystal has not been applied onto a stage; and (b) passing a coating head unit having a bottle for storing liquid crystal, Coating a predetermined amount of liquid crystal to the substrate; and (c) replacing the substrate to which the predetermined amount of liquid crystal has been applied with the substrate not coated with the liquid crystal, wherein steps (a) to (c) are repeated, and in step (a) or step (c) Supply the liquid crystal to the bottle.

When the number of times of repeating steps (a) through (c) is repeated a predetermined number of times, the liquid crystal may be supplied to the bottle at step (a) or step (c).

When the number of times of repeating steps (a) to (c) is not equal to the preset number of times, if it is detected that the liquid crystal stored in the bottle is a preset amount or less than the preset amount, the liquid crystal is in step (a). Or step (c) is supplied to the bottle.

In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides a method for supplying a liquid crystal to a liquid crystal coater, comprising: (a) placing a substrate on which a liquid crystal has not been applied onto a stage; and (b) passing a coating head unit having a bottle for storing liquid crystal, Coating a predetermined amount of liquid crystal to the substrate; and (c) replacing the substrate to which the predetermined amount of liquid crystal has been applied into a substrate on which the liquid crystal has not been applied, wherein steps (a) to (c) are repeated, and in step (a) or step (c), when measuring the amount of liquid crystal applied through the nozzle, the liquid crystal is supplied to the bottle.

When the number of times of repeating steps (a) to (c) is repeated equal to the preset number of times, in step (a) or step (c), the liquid crystal may be supplied to the bottle when measuring the amount of liquid crystal applied through the nozzle. .

When the number of times of repeating steps (a) to (c) is not equal to the preset number of times, if it is detected that the liquid crystal stored in the bottle is a preset amount or less than the preset amount, the liquid crystal may be in step (a). Or step (c) is supplied to the bottle.

In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides a method for supplying a liquid crystal to a liquid crystal coater, comprising: (a) placing a substrate on which a liquid crystal has not been applied onto a stage; and (b) passing a coating head unit having a bottle for storing liquid crystal. Applying a predetermined amount of liquid crystal to the substrate; and (c) replacing the substrate to which the predetermined amount of liquid crystal has been applied into the substrate on which the liquid crystal has not been applied, wherein steps (a) to (c) are repeated, and step (a) is repeated During the step (c), when the number of times of repeating steps (a) to (c) is equal to the preset mth time, the liquid crystal is supplied to the bottler in the step (a) or the step (c); and in the repeating step ( a) to the step (c), when the number of repetitions is equal to the preset nth time, when the amount of liquid crystal applied through the nozzle is measured in the step (a) or the step (c), the liquid crystal is supplied to the bottle.

When the mth time is equal to the nth time, the liquid crystal may be supplied to the bottler in step (a) or step (c), or may be measured in step (a) or step (c) when the amount of liquid crystal applied through the nozzle is measured. Supply the liquid crystal to the bottle.

If the coating head unit having the bottler comprises a plurality of coating head units, and the liquid crystal supply unit supplying the liquid crystal to the bottler comprises a plurality of liquid crystal supply units, each time the liquid crystal supply units supply liquid crystals to the bottles, each The liquid crystal supply units may each supply liquid crystals to one of the bottles.

If the coating head unit having the bottler comprises a plurality of coating head units, and the liquid crystal supply unit supplying the liquid crystal to the bottler comprises a plurality of liquid crystal supply units, each of the liquid crystal supply units supplies liquid crystals to the bottles, The liquid crystal supply unit alternately supplies liquid crystals to the bottlers.

The liquid crystal supply unit can supply the liquid crystal to the bottle of the coating head unit, and the liquid crystal supply unit can include a liquid crystal tank for storing the liquid crystal. The liquid crystal cell may have a measuring unit, and the measuring unit may measure the amount of liquid crystal remaining in the liquid crystal cell to determine whether the liquid crystal cell should be replaced with a new liquid crystal cell.

Hereinafter, a method of supplying a liquid crystal to a liquid crystal coater according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

First, a liquid crystal coater and a liquid crystal supply unit will be described with reference to FIG.

A liquid crystal coater is installed, and then the cover frame B is attached to cover the liquid crystal coater. The liquid crystal supply unit is mounted outside the cover frame B.

The liquid crystal coater includes a main frame 100, a platform 200 mounted on the main frame 100, a first guiding unit G1 coupled to the main frame 100 and disposed on both sides of the platform 200, and a coating of the first guiding unit G1. a head unit support frame 400, a first driving unit (not shown) for moving the coating head unit support frame 400, a second guiding unit G2 provided to the coating head unit support frame 400, and a second guiding unit A plurality of coating head units 500 of G2, and a second driving unit (not shown) for moving the coating head unit 500. The measuring unit 110 is provided to a liquid crystal coater to measure the amount of liquid crystal applied through the nozzle of the coating head unit 500.

A sensing unit is provided to the bottle 530 to detect the amount of liquid crystal contained in the bottle 530. The sensing unit includes a first sensor (not shown) provided on a side surface of the lower portion of the bottle 530, a second sensor (not shown) provided on a side surface of the intermediate portion of the bottle 530, and a bottle provided A third sensor (not shown) of the side surface of the upper portion of 530.

The liquid crystal supply unit includes a liquid crystal cell 620 mounted on the bottom plate 610, a pressure supply unit 630 that supplies pressure to the liquid crystal cell 620, a connection pipe 640 that connects the liquid crystal cell 620 and the pressure supply unit 630, and a liquid crystal injection unit that is connected to the side wall of the cover frame B. 700, a tube member 650 connecting the liquid crystal cell 620 and the liquid crystal injection unit 700, and a valve member 800 provided to the tube member 650.

Preferably, a plurality of liquid crystal supply units are provided.

The sensing unit is provided in the liquid crystal cell 620 to detect the amount of liquid crystal stored in the liquid crystal cell 620 of the liquid crystal supply unit. The sensing unit may be selected from an electronic scale, an ultrasonic sensor, and a flow meter.

The liquid crystal injection unit 700 includes a base member 720 that couples the walls of the single frame B. The actuator 730 is coupled to the base member 720. A guide rail (not shown) is coupled to the actuator 730. The slider 740 slidably couples the rail and connects the actuator 730. The holder 750 is fixedly coupled to the slider 740. The tube support tube 710 is coupled through the holder 750. One end of the tube 650 is connected through the tube support tube 710, and the other end of the tube 650 is connected to the liquid crystal tank 620.

2 is a flow chart showing a method of supplying a liquid crystal to a liquid crystal coater according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIGS. 3, 4, and 5 are plan views showing a procedure of supplying a liquid crystal to a liquid crystal coater according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to Figures 2, 3, 4, and 5, a method of supplying a liquid crystal to a liquid crystal coater in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention will be described.

Referring to FIG. 3, the substrate S to which the liquid crystal has not been applied is placed on the stage 200 of the liquid crystal coater. The first driving unit and the second driving unit move the coating head unit 500 to a liquid crystal coating position.

As shown in FIG. 4, the first driving unit and the second driving unit move the coating head unit 500 according to the preset data. When the coating head unit 500 moves along a preset course, a predetermined amount of liquid crystal is applied to the substrate S through the nozzles 551 of the respective coating head units 500. The substrate S is divided into unit panels A, and the coating head unit 500 applies a predetermined amount of liquid crystal to each unit panel A. The sum of the amounts of liquid crystals applied to the individual unit panels A is equal to a predetermined amount of liquid crystal applied to the substrate S.

After coating a predetermined amount of liquid crystal to the substrate S, the substrate S disposed on the stage 200 shown in FIG. 5 is conveyed out of the stage 200, and another substrate S not shown in FIG. 3 to which the liquid crystal is not applied is placed on the stage 200.

In detail, the operation of replacing the substrate S with another substrate means that the liquid crystal-coated substrate S is conveyed out of the stage 200, and the substrate S to which the liquid crystal has not been applied is transferred to the stage 200 before the substrate S is placed on the stage 200.

This procedure is repeated for each substrate S to which a liquid crystal is to be applied. During the repetition of the program, the first driving unit and the second driving unit move the coating head unit 500 to the liquid crystal supply position. The liquid crystal supply unit supplies the liquid crystal to the coating head unit 500 that has moved to the liquid crystal supply position.

After the predetermined amount of liquid crystal has been applied to the substrate S, when the substrate S disposed on the stage 200 is replaced with the new substrate S and the replaced substrate S is placed on the stage 200, or the nozzle passing through the coating head unit 500 is measured When the amount of liquid crystal applied is 551, an operation of supplying liquid crystal from the supply unit to the coating head unit 500 can be performed.

First, after the predetermined amount of liquid crystal has been applied to the substrate S disposed on the stage 200, and then the substrate S on the stage 200 is replaced with the new substrate S, when the replaced substrate S is being placed on the stage 200, each is coated. The cloth head unit 500 is moved to the liquid crystal supply position, so that the liquid crystal supply unit supplies the liquid crystal to the bottle 530.

After the predetermined amount of liquid crystal has been applied to the substrate S disposed on the stage 200, and then the liquid crystal-coated substrate S is replaced with another substrate S, the liquid crystal supply unit is being placed when the replaced substrate S is being placed on the stage 200 The liquid crystal is supplied to the bottle 530 of each of the coating head units 500. If the liquid crystal supplied to the bottle 530 of the coating head unit 500 reaches a predetermined level, the supply of the liquid crystal is terminated. If the liquid crystal supplied to the bottle 530 is not yet reached a predetermined level when the replaced substrate S is placed on the stage 200, the liquid crystal may be additionally supplied for a period of time until the liquid crystal supplied to the bottle 530 reaches a predetermined level, or the substrate S is replaced. The supply of the liquid crystal can be terminated when placed on the platform 200.

After interrupting and stopping the supply of the liquid crystal to the bottle 530 of each of the coating head units 500, the first driving unit and the second driving unit move the coating head unit 500 to the liquid crystal coating position.

The first driving unit and the second driving unit move the coating head unit 500 according to the preset data. When the coating head unit 500 moves along the preset path, a predetermined amount of liquid crystal is applied to the substrate S through the nozzles 551 of the respective coating head units 500. After a predetermined amount of liquid crystal has been applied to the substrate S, the substrate S disposed on the stage 200 is replaced with another substrate S, and the replaced substrate S is placed on the stage 200. During the replacement of the substrate S, the first driving unit and the second driving unit move the coating head unit 500 to a position where the liquid crystal supply unit supplies the liquid crystal.

By repeating the above procedure, a predetermined amount of liquid crystal can be applied to each of the plurality of substrates, and liquid crystal can be supplied to the bottle 530 of each of the coating head units 500.

At the same time, the time during which the liquid crystal is supplied to the bottle 530 of each of the coating head units 500 can be variably set by the user.

First, each time the liquid crystal-coated substrate S is replaced with another substrate S and placed on the stage 200, the liquid crystal can be supplied to the bottle 530 of each coating head unit 500. That is, the liquid crystal supply time can be set such that when a predetermined amount of liquid crystal has been applied to the substrate S, and the substrate S is replaced with another substrate S and placed on the stage 200, liquid crystal is supplied to each of the coating head units 500.

The liquid crystal supply time may also be set to be during the repeating of the above procedure, after the liquid crystal is applied to the substrate S disposed on the stage 200 at the mth time, and when the substrate S is replaced with another substrate S and placed on the stage 200, the liquid crystal is supplied. To each of the coating head units 500, where m is a multiple of a particular integer preset by the user, such as a particular integer of 2 or 3, or any number (eg, 3, 5, 7...) that may be determined by the user.

If the mth time preset by the user is a multiple of 3, for example, when the third, sixth, ninth, etc., the substrate S that has been coated on the platform 200 and the liquid crystal has been applied is replaced with another new substrate S and When placed on the platform 200, a liquid crystal to bottle 530 can be supplied. Meanwhile, if the liquid crystal is being applied to the substrate S disposed on the stage 200 not multiples of 3 (for example, the substrate S disposed on the platform 200 for the 4th or 5th time), the sensor or the like detects the bottle When the liquid crystal stored in 530 is a preset amount or less than a preset amount, it is preferable to supply the liquid crystal to the bottle 530 when the related substrate S is replaced with another substrate S and placed on the stage 200.

Next, a case in which the respective coating head units are moved to the liquid crystal supply position and the liquid crystal supply unit supplies the liquid crystal to the bottle 530 when measuring the amount of liquid crystal applied through the nozzles 551 of the coating head unit 500 will be described.

The substrate S to which the liquid crystal has not been applied is placed on the stage 200 of the liquid crystal coater. As shown in FIG. 6, after a predetermined amount of liquid crystal is applied to the substrate S by the liquid crystal coater, the coating head unit 500 is moved over the measuring unit 110 to measure the coating through the nozzle 551 of each coating head unit 500. The amount of liquid crystal. Preferably, each of the measuring units 110 is installed below a position where the liquid crystal is supplied to the coating head unit 500. The measurement unit 110 starts measuring the amount of liquid crystal applied through the nozzle 551 of the coating head unit 500. When the amount of liquid crystal applied through the nozzle 551 of the coating head unit 500 is measured by the measuring unit 110, the liquid crystal supply unit supplies the liquid crystal to the bottle 530 of the coating head unit 500. Here, in addition to the operation of measuring the amount of liquid crystal applied through the nozzle 551 of the coating head unit 500 after a predetermined amount of liquid crystal has been applied to the substrate S, the substrate S on which the liquid crystal has been applied may be replaced with another substrate. S operation.

After the amount of liquid crystal applied through the nozzle 551 of the coating head unit 500 has been measured, the first driving unit and the second driving unit move the coating head unit 500 to the liquid crystal coating position.

The first driving unit and the second driving unit move the coating head unit 500 according to the preset data. When the coating head unit 500 moves along the preset path, a predetermined amount of liquid crystal is applied to the substrate S through the nozzles 551 of the respective coating head units 500.

After applying a predetermined amount of liquid crystal to the substrate S, the first driving unit and the second driving unit move the coating head unit 500 over the measuring unit 110, and replace the substrate S disposed on the stage 200 with another new substrate. S.

When the above procedure is repeated for each substrate S to which the liquid crystal is to be applied, the liquid crystal coater applies a predetermined amount of liquid crystal to each of the plurality of substrates S. The amount of liquid crystal applied through the nozzle 551 of the coating head unit 500 is measured during the repeating process. When the amount of liquid crystal is measured, the liquid crystal is supplied to the bottle 530 of the coating head unit 500.

At the same time, the amount of liquid crystal applied through the nozzle 551 of the coating head unit 500, and the operation of supplying the liquid crystal to the bottle 530 of the coating head unit 500 when measuring the amount of liquid crystal, can be applied at a predetermined amount each time. The liquid crystal is performed after the substrate S, or may be performed only after the predetermined amount of liquid crystal has been applied to the substrate S that the user presets to be placed on the platform 200 for the mth time.

Even after a predetermined amount of liquid crystal has been applied to the substrate S disposed on the stage 200 that is not preset by the user, the amount of liquid crystal applied through the nozzle 551 of the coating head unit 500 can be measured if necessary. Operation. In this case, liquid crystal is not supplied to the bottle 530 of the coating head unit 500 when the liquid crystal amount is equivalently measured.

Meanwhile, if the liquid crystal is being applied to the substrate S disposed on the platform 200 that is not preset by the user, the sensor or the like detects that the liquid crystal stored in the bottle 530 is a preset amount or less. At a predetermined amount, it is preferred to supply the liquid crystal to the bottle 530 after a predetermined amount of liquid crystal has been applied to the relevant substrate S.

After a predetermined amount of liquid crystal is applied to the substrates by the liquid crystal coater, the liquid crystal coater is inspected and repaired. When the liquid crystal coater is inspected and repaired, the substrate S is not supplied to the liquid crystal coater under inspection and maintenance, but is supplied to the liquid crystal coater at the next position.

When the liquid crystal coater is repaired, the liquid crystal supply unit can supply the liquid crystal to the bottle 530 of the coating head unit 500.

After the liquid crystal coater has been repaired, the substrate S is placed on the stage 200. The first driving unit and the second driving unit move the coating head unit 500 to a liquid crystal coating position.

The first driving unit and the second driving unit move the coating head unit 500 according to the preset data. When the coating head unit 500 moves along the preset path, a predetermined amount of liquid crystal is applied to the substrate S through the nozzles 551 of the respective coating head units 500.

The liquid crystal coater is inspected and repaired whenever a predetermined amount of liquid crystal has been applied to a plurality of substrates. That is, the liquid crystal coater can be inspected and repaired periodically.

At the same time, the liquid crystal supply unit supplies the liquid crystal to the bottle 530 of the coating head unit 500 by the following procedure.

First, the actuator 730 moves the slider 740 forward. When the slider 740 moves forward, the holder 750 coupling the slider 740, the tube support tube 710 coupling the holder 750, and the tube 650 move forward, and the tube 650 is inserted into the bottle cap of the bottle 530. Injection channel H of 540.

The valve member 800 is opened and the pressure supply unit 630 supplies pressure to the inside of the liquid crystal cell 620, so that the liquid crystal stored in the liquid crystal cell 620 flows through the tube member 650. The liquid crystal stored in the liquid crystal cell 620 is supplied to the bottle 530 through the injection passage H of the tube member 650 and the cap 540 by the pressure supplied to the inside of the liquid crystal cell 620.

When the liquid crystal supplied to the bottle 530 reaches a predetermined level, the pressure supply unit 630 stops the supply pressure to the liquid crystal cell 620, and the valve member 800 is closed, thereby stopping the supply of the liquid crystal transmission tube 650 stored in the liquid crystal cell 620 to the bottle 530.

Actuator 730 moves slider 740 rearward. When the slider 740 moves backward, the holder 750 coupled to the slider 740, the tube support tube 710 coupled to the holder 750, and the tube 650 move backward, and the tube 650 is removed from the cap 540 of the bottle 530. The injection channel H is removed.

The number of liquid crystal supply units may be equal to or different from the number of coating head units 500. If the number of liquid crystal supply units is equal to the number of the coating head units 500, each liquid crystal supply unit supplies liquid crystals to a corresponding coating head unit 500 each time the coating head unit 500 is moved to the liquid crystal supply position. That is, a liquid crystal supply unit supplies liquid crystals to the bottle 530 of a coating head unit 500.

If the number of liquid crystal supply units is smaller than the number of the coating head units 500, the liquid crystal supply unit alternately supplies the liquid crystals to the individual bottle stoppers 530 of the coating head unit 500. For example, as shown in FIG. 7, assuming that there are six coating head units 500 and three liquid crystal supply units, when the coating head unit 500 is moved to the first liquid crystal supply position, the three liquid crystal supply units supply liquid crystals to The bottle 530 of the odd coating head unit 500 is odd. Next, as shown in FIG. 8, when the coating head unit 500 is moved to the second liquid crystal supply position, the three liquid crystal supply units supply the liquid crystal to the bottle 530 of the even coating head unit 500.

At the same time, for example, after finally measuring the amount of liquid crystal applied through the nozzle, and then applying a predetermined amount of liquid crystal to the substrate S for the number of repetitions (for example, 20 or 25), the liquid crystal applied through the nozzle 551 of the coating head unit 500 is measured. the amount.

If the amount of liquid crystal measured by the measuring unit 110 is within the reference range, the coating head unit 500 is moved to the liquid crystal coating position to coat the liquid crystal to the substrate S. Meanwhile, if the amount of liquid crystal measured by the measuring unit 110 is out of the reference range, the outflow amount is adjusted so that the amount of liquid crystal applied through the nozzle 551 of the coating head unit 500 is within the reference range, and then the coating head is applied. Unit 500 is moved to the liquid crystal coating position.

When the liquid crystal supplied to the bottle 530 of the coating head unit 500 reaches a predetermined level, the sensor provided to the bottle 530 detects the amount of liquid crystal. The control unit causes the liquid crystal supply unit to stop supplying the liquid crystal.

If the liquid crystal stored in the liquid crystal cell 620 of the liquid crystal supply unit is lowered to some extent, the sensing unit performs measurement and displays an alarm to the display unit via the control unit. The administrator replaces the liquid crystal cell 620 with a new one.

Thereafter, the effect of supplying liquid crystal to the liquid crystal coater according to the present invention is as follows.

According to the present invention, when the substrate S disposed on the stage 200 is replaced with the new substrate S, the coating head unit 500 is moved to the liquid crystal supply position so that the liquid crystal is supplied from the liquid crystal supply unit to the bottle 530 of the coating head unit 500.

According to the present invention, each time the substrate S disposed on the stage 200 is replaced with a new substrate S, the liquid crystal can be supplied from the liquid crystal supply unit to the bottle 530 of the coating head unit 500. Furthermore, each time the substrate S placed corresponding to the preset number of times of the platform is replaced with a new substrate, the liquid crystal can be supplied when the substrate S is replaced.

According to the present invention, when the amount of liquid crystal applied through the nozzle 551 of the coating head unit 500 is equivalently measured, liquid crystal can be supplied from the liquid crystal supply unit to the bottle 530 of the coating head unit 500.

According to the present invention, when the liquid crystal coater is inspected and repaired, the liquid crystal supply unit can supply the liquid crystal to the bottle 530 of the coating head unit 500.

As a result, according to the present invention, when the substrate S placed on the stage 200 is replaced with a new substrate S, or when the amount of liquid crystal applied through the nozzle 551 of the coating head unit 500 is measured, or the liquid crystal coating machine is inspected and repaired At this time, the liquid crystal is supplied to the bottle 530 of the coating head unit 500.

Conventionally, if the liquid crystal of the bottle 530 is exhausted during the process of applying a predetermined amount of liquid crystal to the substrate S, the procedure of applying the liquid crystal to the substrate S must be stopped, and the liquid crystal coating process is delayed.

However, according to the present invention, the bottle 530 supplying the liquid crystal to the coating head unit 500 is during the inevitable stop of the liquid crystal coating process, for example, when the substrate S disposed on the stage 200 is replaced with a new substrate S, or measurement The amount of liquid crystal applied through the nozzle 551 of the coating head unit 500. Therefore, the bottle 530 always has a predetermined amount or more of liquid crystal, and the liquid crystal coating process is stopped in order to supply the liquid crystal to the bottle 530 when the liquid crystal is applied to the substrate S.

Therefore, the time required to apply a predetermined amount of liquid crystal to each substrate by the liquid crystal coater can be reduced.

As described above, the present invention provides a method of supplying a liquid crystal to a liquid crystal coater, when replacing a substrate disposed on a stage with a new substrate, or measuring a liquid crystal amount applied through a nozzle of the coating head unit, or When inspecting and repairing the liquid crystal coater, the liquid crystal is supplied to the bottle holder of the coating head unit. Therefore, the bottle holder always has a predetermined amount of liquid crystal, thereby avoiding stopping the liquid crystal coating process in order to supply the liquid crystal to the bottle when the liquid crystal is applied to the substrate through the nozzle of the coating head unit. Thereby, the time required for the liquid crystal coater to apply a predetermined amount of liquid crystal to each substrate is reduced.

100. . . Main frame

110. . . Measuring unit

200. . . platform

400. . . Coating head unit support frame

500. . . Coating head unit

510. . . Support assembly

520. . . Bottle inserting member

530. . . Bottle

540. . . Cap

550. . . Nozzle unit

551. . . nozzle

560. . . Nozzle connecting tube

610. . . Bottom plate

620. . . LCD channel

630. . . Pressure supply unit

640. . . Connecting pipe

650. . . Pipe fittings

700. . . Liquid crystal injection unit

710. . . Pipe support tube

720. . . Base piece

730. . . Actuator

740. . . Slider

750. . . Supporter

800. . . Valve

A. . . Unit panel

B. . . Cover frame

G1. . . First guiding unit

G2. . . Second guiding unit

H. . . Injection channel

S. . . Substrate

The above and other objects, features and advantages of the present invention will become more apparent from

Figure 1 is a side view showing a liquid crystal coater and a liquid crystal supply unit;

2 is a flow chart showing a method of supplying a liquid crystal to a liquid crystal coater according to an embodiment of the present invention;

3, FIG. 4, and FIG. 5 are plan views showing a procedure of supplying a liquid crystal to a liquid crystal coater according to an embodiment of the present invention;

6 is a view showing a state in which liquid crystal is supplied to a bottle holder of a coating head unit when measuring the amount of liquid crystal applied through a nozzle of a coating head unit of a liquid crystal coater;

7 and 8 are plan views showing a procedure of supplying a liquid crystal to a bottler of a coating head unit of a liquid crystal coater.

Claims (8)

A method for supplying a liquid crystal to a liquid crystal coater, comprising: (a) placing a substrate on which a liquid crystal has not been coated onto a platform; and (b) applying a coating head unit having a bottle of liquid crystal storage, coating a predetermined And liquid crystal to the substrate; and (c) replacing the substrate to which the predetermined amount of liquid crystal has been applied into one substrate on which liquid crystal has not been applied, wherein steps (a) to (c) are repeated, and only step (a) Or step (c), when measuring the amount of liquid crystal applied through a nozzle, supplying liquid crystal to the bottle. The method of claim 1, wherein when the number of times of repeating steps (a) through (c) is repeated a predetermined number of times, in step (a) or step (c), measuring through the nozzle When the amount of the liquid crystal is applied, liquid crystal is supplied to the bottle. The method of claim 2, wherein when the number of times of repeating steps (a) to (c) is not equal to the preset number of times, if the liquid crystal stored in the bottle is detected as a preset The amount is less than the predetermined amount, and the liquid crystal is supplied to the bottler in step (a) or step (c). A method for supplying a liquid crystal to a liquid crystal coater, comprising: (a) placing a substrate on which a liquid crystal has not been coated onto a platform; and (b) applying a coating head unit having a bottle of liquid crystal storage, coating a predetermined And liquid crystal to the substrate; and (c) replacing the substrate to which the predetermined amount of liquid crystal has been applied into one substrate on which the liquid crystal has not been coated, Step (a) to step (c) are repeated, and during the repetition of steps (a) to (c), when the number of times of repeating steps (a) to (c) is equal to the preset mth time, only the step (a) or step (c) supplying liquid crystal to the bottle; and during repeating steps (a) through (c), when the number of repetitions is equal to the preset nth time, only in step (a) or In step (c), liquid crystal is supplied to the bottle while measuring the amount of liquid crystal applied through a nozzle. The method of claim 4, wherein when the mth time is equal to the nth time, the liquid crystal is supplied to the bottler in step (a) or step (c), or in step (a) or step ( c), when measuring the amount of liquid crystal applied through the nozzle, the liquid crystal is supplied to the bottle. The method of claim 1 or 4, wherein another coating head unit having another bottler, and a plurality of liquid crystal supply units for supplying liquid crystals to the bottles are provided, and each time When the liquid crystal supply unit supplies liquid crystals to the bottle holders, each of the liquid crystal supply units supplies liquid crystals to one of the bottle holders. The method of claim 1 or 4, wherein another coating head unit having another bottler, and a plurality of liquid crystal supply units for supplying liquid crystals to the bottles are provided, and each time When the liquid crystal supply units supply liquid crystals to the bottle holders, the liquid crystal supply units alternately supply liquid crystals to the bottle holders. The method of claim 1 or 4, wherein the liquid crystal supply unit supplies liquid crystal to the bottle of the coating head unit, and the liquid crystal supply unit package The liquid crystal cell comprises a liquid crystal cell, the liquid crystal cell has a sensing unit, and the sensing unit detects the amount of liquid crystal remaining in the liquid crystal cell to determine whether the liquid crystal cell should be replaced with a new liquid crystal cell.