TWI717518B - Method for manufacturing resin precursor for printing, method for manufacturing flexographic printing plate, and method for manufacturing liquid crystal display element - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention provides a method for manufacturing a resin original plate for printing and a flexographic printing plate with good productivity by using a roughened sheet without fisheyes to suppress the occurrence of defects. The method of manufacturing a flexographic printing plate includes the following steps: contacting a layer of a photosensitive resin composition with a mold surface of a roughened sheet having a surface layer, the surface layer including a cured product formed by curing an ultraviolet curable resin by irradiating ultraviolet rays , And the surface is made into a roughened mold surface, in this state, the layer is cured by irradiating actinic rays and then peeled off, and the rough surface shape is transferred on the surface of the layer that contacts the mold surface , The surface is made into a roughened plate surface. The method of manufacturing a liquid crystal display element includes a step of forming a liquid crystal alignment film using the flexographic printing plate.

Description

Method for manufacturing resin precursor for printing, method for manufacturing flexographic printing plate, and method for manufacturing liquid crystal display element

The present invention relates to a method for manufacturing a printing resin precursor used as a raw material for a flexographic printing plate, a manufacturing method for manufacturing a flexographic printing plate from the printing resin precursor, and a manufacturing method of a liquid crystal display element using the flexographic printing plate method.

In order to form a thin liquid crystal alignment film that is as uniform as possible, free of pin holes, etc., on the electrode forming surface of the substrate constituting the liquid crystal display element, and requires high coating quality, flexible printing with good printing characteristics is used law. In the flexographic printing method, a flexographic printing plate is used. The flexographic printing plate includes a flexible resin sheet and the surface of the flexographic printing plate is made into a plate surface, that is, in a state where ink (ink) that becomes a raw material for a liquid crystal alignment film is supported The electrode formation surface and the like are in contact with the printed surface, and the ink is transferred to the printed surface.

For the surface of the flexographic printing plate, in order to improve the wettability of the ink, the ink can be well retained, and the retained ink can be well transferred to the printed surface. The surface of the plate is usually made a predetermined The roughness of the surface roughness. Patent Document 1 describes a method of manufacturing a resin original plate for printing, that is, on a roughened sheet having a roughened mold surface, the resin sheet (resin original plate for printing) The photosensitive resin composition of the raw material is coated in a layer, and in this state, it is cured by irradiating actinic rays such as ultraviolet rays, and then the roughened sheet is peeled from the sheet formed by curing, thereby The rough surface shape is transferred to the surface of the sheet that is in contact with the mold surface, and the surface is made into a roughened plate surface.

According to the manufacturing method described above, it is possible to manufacture a resin precursor for printing in which the entire plate surface is roughened with good productivity and low cost. Regarding the roughened sheet, for example, as described in Patent Document 1, the following roughened sheet, etc., is used. The roughened sheet includes a mold surface that can be molded due to its high affinity or wettability with the photosensitive resin composition. The rough surface shape is well transferred to the urethane-based thermoplastic elastomer (Thermoplastic elastomer, TPE) sheet on the plate surface of the printing resin original plate, and is opposite to the mold surface side On the surface of the laminate, for example, a polyethylene terephthalate (PET) film is laminated as a reinforcing film.

Regarding the roughened sheet, for example, TPE is extruded into a sheet shape, and the outer peripheral surface is formed together with the reinforcing film into a rough surface shape corresponding to the rough surface shape of the mold surface of the roughened sheet. After continuously passing between the roughening roll of the die surface and the pair of rolls, the roughened sheet is manufactured by cutting it out in a predetermined size as necessary. That is, the TPE sheet and the reinforced film are laminated with each other by the pressure when passing through, and the rough surface shape of the master mold surface is transferred to the surface of the sheet to make the surface rough. The mold surface.

However, the aforementioned roughened sheet material has the following problem: when synthesizing TPE, a part of jelly called fish eye is produced. If the fish eye is sandwiched between the reinforcing film and the If local protrusions are generated on the mold surface, depressions caused by the protrusions are generated on the plate surface of the resin precursor for printing formed using the roughened sheet, and the flatness of the plate surface is impaired.

From the perspective of the synthesis mechanism of TPE, it is difficult to completely eliminate fish eyes. The roughened sheet after lamination and before cutting must contain a lot of fish eyes. Therefore, when manufacturing a roughened sheet, after confirming the position where fisheyes are generated, it is necessary to select and cut out areas where the fisheyes are not generated, which increases the waste of materials.

In addition, the part of the jelly that forms the fish eyes is basically the same composition as TPE, and the color or appearance is almost the same. Therefore, the position confirmation during the cutting or the inspection of the roughened sheet after the cutting requires a lot of labor. and time. Therefore, there is a problem that these conditions complement each other and the productivity of the roughened sheet decreases.

In addition, for example, if a roughened sheet that has missed fisheyes during inspection is used to manufacture a resin precursor for printing, as described above, dents may occur on the surface of the plate, resulting in defective products that cannot be used for printing. The defect rate of the resin precursor for printing and further the flexographic printing plate increases, the productivity decreases, and finally the productivity of the liquid crystal display element also decreases. [Prior Art Document] [Patent Document]

[Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent No. 5427225 [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent No. 5427225

[Problems to be Solved by the Invention] The object of the present invention is to provide a method for manufacturing resin precursors for printing and flexographic printing plates with good productivity by using a roughened sheet without fisheyes to suppress the occurrence of defects method. In addition, an object of the present invention is to provide a manufacturing method for manufacturing a liquid crystal display element using the flexographic printing plate with better productivity than the current situation and at a lower cost. [Technical means to solve the problem]

The present invention is a method of manufacturing a resin original plate for printing, which includes the steps of forming a layer of a photosensitive resin composition and a mold having a roughened sheet having a surface layer having a roughened mold surface. Surface contact, in this state, the layer is cured by irradiating actinic rays, and then peeled from the mold surface, thereby transferring the rough surface shape of the mold surface to the surface of the layer in contact with the mold surface Above, the surface is made into a roughened plate surface, and for the roughened sheet, a sheet in which the surface layer contains a cured product formed by curing an ultraviolet curable resin by irradiating ultraviolet rays is used.

In addition, the present invention is a method of manufacturing a flexographic printing plate, which includes the following steps: thermally cutting the corresponding part of the resin original plate for printing manufactured by the manufacturing method of the present invention to form it for mounting on a printing press The title contains the department and the card hole. Furthermore, the present invention is a method for manufacturing a liquid crystal display element, which includes the steps of forming a liquid crystal alignment film by flexographic printing using the flexographic printing plate manufactured by the manufacturing method of the present invention. [Effects of the invention]

According to the present invention, it is possible to provide a method for manufacturing a resin original plate for printing and a flexographic printing plate with good productivity by using a roughened sheet without fisheyes to suppress the occurrence of defects. In addition, according to the present invention, it is possible to provide a manufacturing method for manufacturing a liquid crystal display element using the flexographic printing plate with better productivity than the current situation and at a low cost.

<Roughened sheet> Fig. 1 is an enlarged cross-sectional view showing the layer structure of an example of a roughened sheet used for manufacturing the resin precursor for printing of the present invention. 1, the roughened sheet 1 of this example is formed by forming a very thin plasma layer 3 in the form of plasma treatment on one side of the PET film (the upper surface in the figure) as the reinforcing film 2, and then laminate the surface layer The surface layer 4 includes a cured product obtained by curing an ultraviolet-curable resin by irradiating ultraviolet rays, and the exposed surface of the surface layer 4 is made into a roughened mold surface 5.

As described above, the surface layer 4 includes a cured product obtained by curing an ultraviolet-curing resin by irradiating ultraviolet rays. The curing by ultraviolet irradiation includes ultraviolet curing that is applied to the raw material of the surface layer 4 before curing. The entire surface of the precursor layer of the type resin is uniformly performed, so there is no fish-eye problem like the previous surface layer containing the TPE sheet. Therefore, the occurrence of various defects caused by the fish eyes of the roughened sheet 1 can be suppressed, and the resin precursor for printing and the flexographic printing plate can be produced with good productivity.

FIG. 2 is a diagram for explaining an example of a step of manufacturing the roughened sheet of the example in FIG. 1 (hereinafter referred to as "Ultraviolet (UV) print mold"). Referring to Figures 1 and 2, in the steps of this example, first prepare a roll-shaped version body 7 whose outer peripheral surface has been formed to correspond to the rough surface (die surface 5) formed on the surface layer 4 The rough surface of the original mold surface6. In addition, around the version body 7, the following parts are sequentially arranged along the rotation direction of the version body 7 indicated by the solid arrow in FIG.・The coating roller 10 coats the liquid ultraviolet curable resin 8 in a layer with a predetermined thickness on the master mold surface 6 to form a precursor layer 9 which becomes the raw material of the surface layer 4.・The adhesive roll 11 allows the precursor layer 9 and the long reinforcing film 2 to continuously pass between the adhesive roll 11 and the master mold surface 6, so that the surface of the reinforced film 2 on which the plasma layer 3 is formed and the precursor layer 9 Continuously close. The ultraviolet lamp 12 irradiates the precursor layer 9 with ultraviolet rays through the reinforcement film 2 and the plasma layer 3 adhered thereon, as shown by the hollow arrow in the figure, to harden the ultraviolet curable resin 8 forming the precursor layer 9.・The peeling roller 13 peels the cured precursor layer 9 together with the reinforcing film 2 from the master mold surface 6 to form the surface layer 4 with a roughened surface.

Furthermore, by rotating the version body 7 in the direction indicated by the solid arrow in FIG. 2 while passing through the respective parts, a long reinforcing film 2 can be continuously supplied as indicated by a dotted chain arrow in the figure. On the surface on which the plasma layer 3 is formed, the surface layer 4 containing the cured product of the ultraviolet curable resin 8 is continuously formed, and the roughened sheet 1 having the layer configuration shown in FIG. 1 is continuously and efficiently manufactured.

In addition, the manufactured roughened sheet 1 can be further cut into a predetermined length, a predetermined width, etc., as necessary, and used for manufacturing a resin original plate for printing. Regarding the ultraviolet curable resin 8 forming the surface layer 4, for example, it can be used in a liquid form under the operating environment of the step in the example of FIG. 2, and can be cured by irradiating ultraviolet rays of any wavelength, and it can also be used as a roughened sheet after curing. Various UV-curing resins with moderate flexibility and strength required for the surface layer 4 of the material 1. In addition, as the ultraviolet curable resin 8, various polymerizable ultraviolet curable resins such as radical polymerization type and cationic polymerization type can be used.

The radically polymerizable ultraviolet curable resin can be prepared by blending, for example, radically polymerizable oligomers or monomers, radical photopolymerization initiators, sensitizers, various additives, and the like in arbitrary ratios. Among them, radical polymerizable oligomers include, for example, epoxy acrylate oligomer, polyester acrylate oligomer, silicone acrylate oligomer, urethane acrylate oligomer, acrylic acid One type or two or more types such as acrylate oligomer.

In addition, examples of radical polymerizable monomers include acrylate monomers. Examples of the radical photopolymerization initiator include various radical photopolymerization initiators such as benzophenone, acetophenone, and thioxanthone. The sensitizer includes tertiary amine and the like.

Furthermore, examples of additives include thermal polymerization inhibitors, various fillers, colorants (dye, pigment, etc.), leveling agents, fluidity regulators, defoamers, plasticizers, and the like. In addition, the cationically polymerizable ultraviolet curable resin can be prepared by blending, for example, cationically polymerizable oligomers or monomers, cationic photopolymerization initiators, various additives, and the like in arbitrary ratios.

Among them, the cationically polymerizable oligomer includes, for example, one or two or more of vinyl ether oligomers, alicyclic epoxy resins, and glycidyl ether epoxy resins. In addition, examples of cationically polymerizable monomers include vinyl ether monomers. Examples of the cationic photopolymerization initiator include various cationic photopolymerization initiators such as sulfonium series and iodonium series.

Furthermore, as in the case of radical polymerization type ultraviolet curable resins, additives include, for example, thermal polymerization inhibitors, various fillers, colorants (dye, pigment, etc.), leveling agents, fluidity regulators, and defoaming agents. Agent, plasticizer, etc. Particularly preferred is a radical polymerization type ultraviolet curable resin. The reinforcing film 2 not only has a reinforcing function such as improving the tensile strength of the overall roughened sheet 1 and other characters, but also serves to correct the warping of the roughened sheet 1 due to shrinkage when the ultraviolet curable resin 8 is cured. Music and function.

As described above, a PET film is suitable for the reinforcement film 2. The PET film is excellent in functions and the like as the reinforcing film 2. Particularly preferred is a PET film having transmittance of the transmittance of ultraviolet rays for curing the ultraviolet curable resin 8 or the transmittance of actinic rays used for the production of a resin precursor for printing. Plasma treatment is not limited to the plasma layer 3, and it can be applied to make the liquid ultraviolet curable resin 8 and the surface layer 4 containing the cured product of the ultraviolet curable resin 8 adhere well to the reinforcing film 2 such as the PET film. Various plasma treatments on the surface.

The plasma treatment includes, for example, one or two or more of corona discharge treatment, flame treatment, ozone treatment, ultraviolet irradiation treatment, sandblasting treatment, and solvent treatment. In addition, as the plasma layer 3, for example, a layer containing various materials excellent in affinity and adhesion with PET forming the reinforcing film 2, or ultraviolet curable resin 8 or a cured product thereof.

Specific examples of the coating agent used as the raw material of the plasma layer 3 include, for example, in order to improve the adhesion with the ultraviolet curable resin 8, it is blended in the two-component hybrid polyester urethane resin for lamination Coating agent for methacrylate and photopolymerization initiator, etc. However, depending on the combination of the ultraviolet curable resin 8 and the reinforcing film 2, even if the plasma layer 3 is omitted, good adhesion may be ensured. In this case, the plasma layer 3 may be omitted.

Among the various layers, the thickness of the surface layer 4 is preferably 0.009 mm or more, particularly preferably 0.018 mm or more, and preferably 0.06 mm or less, and among them, it is preferably 0.05 mm or less, and particularly preferably 0.03 mm or less. For example, although it also depends on the size of the uneven shape of the master mold surface 6 of the version body 7, etc., a liquid ultraviolet curable resin 8 is applied to the master mold surface 6 to form a precursor layer 9 and then cured However, it is not easy to form the thin and continuous precursor layer 9 or the surface layer 4 in the above-mentioned steps of forming the surface layer 4 with a thickness smaller than the above range. Furthermore, for example, the surface layer 4 after hardening may become discontinuous or uneven in thickness, or the unevenness of the mold surface 5 as the surface of the surface layer 4 may easily appear uneven.

On the other hand, when the thickness of the surface layer 4 exceeds the above-mentioned range, the liquid ultraviolet curable resin 8 may be coated on the master mold surface 6 to form the precursor layer 9 when the coating thickness is uneven, or the coating thickness may not be large. The ultraviolet curable resin 8 is uniformly cured in the entire precursor layer 9. In addition, although it also depends on the thickness of the reinforcing film 2, the weight of the roughened sheet 1 increases, and it is difficult to bend or roll up the roughened sheet 1. Therefore, for example, the strips before cutting are roughened The sheet 1 is wound into a roll shape, or the roughened sheet 1 manufactured by cutting is used to manufacture a resin original plate for printing, or the handleability at the time of winding or processing for storage or the like may be reduced.

On the other hand, by setting the thickness in the above range to suppress these problems, it is possible to form a surface layer 4 having a uniform thickness, no unevenness in the uneven shape, and excellent handling properties, and a roughened sheet. 1. The thickness of the reinforcement film 2 is preferably 0.10 mm or more, particularly preferably 0.12 mm or more, and preferably 0.25 mm or less, particularly preferably 0.20 mm or less.

If the thickness of the reinforcement film 2 is less than this range, the following problems may occur: during the above-mentioned processing, the reinforcement film 2 and the roughened sheet 1 are easily bent, and if bending occurs, the die surface 5, Furthermore, the rough surface shape of the flexographic printing plate causes bending defects, for example, it is impossible to form a uniform and continuous liquid crystal alignment film. On the other hand, when the thickness of the reinforcement film 2 exceeds the above range, the weight of the roughened sheet 1 increases, and it is difficult to bend or roll up the roughened sheet 1, so the treatment described above Sex etc. may decrease.

On the other hand, by setting the thickness of the reinforcing film 2 in the above-mentioned range, the occurrence of bending and the like can be suppressed as much as possible, and the handling properties of the roughened sheet can be improved. In addition, when the plasma layer 3 is formed by plasma treatment on one surface of the enhancement film 2, in the present invention, the thickness of the enhancement film 2 is set to the total thickness of the enhancement film 2 and the plasma layer 3.

Regarding the overall thickness of the roughened sheet 1, in consideration of improving the handling properties described above, it is preferably 0.31 mm or less, and particularly preferably 0.24 mm or less. In addition, in consideration of suppressing the occurrence of bending as much as possible, the overall thickness of the roughened sheet 1 is preferably 0.10 mm or more, and particularly preferably 0.20 mm or more within the above-mentioned range. <The manufacturing method of a printing resin precursor and a flexographic printing plate> Figures 3(a) to 3(c) show the steps of manufacturing a printing resin plate by the manufacturing method of the present invention using the roughened sheet of the example in Figure 1 A cross-sectional view of an example. In addition, FIGS. 4(a) to 4(c) are cross-sectional views showing an example of steps following FIGS. 3(a) to 3(c).

3(a), in the method of manufacturing a resin original plate for printing in this example, a support substrate 14 is first prepared. The support substrate 14 contains hard resins such as glass or acrylic resin, polycarbonate resin, and polyester resin. It is also a material that is transparent to actinic rays such as ultraviolet rays. Then, for the roughened sheet 1 including the three layers of the reinforcement film 2, the plasma layer 3, and the surface layer 4, the mold surface 5 as the surface of the surface layer 4 faces upward and the reverse surface 16 as the surface of the reinforcement film 2 faces downward. In this way, the reverse surface 16 is brought into contact with the surface 15 of the support substrate 14, and the surface 15 is gradually overlapped from one end to the other end as shown by a dotted arrow in the figure, for example, to roughen the surface. The sheet 1 is detachably fixed to the upper surface 15 of the support substrate 14 in the figure.

Regarding the roughened sheet 1, in order to prevent it from being caused by the shear force when the liquid photosensitive resin composition is spread on the roughened sheet 1, or the shrinkage force when the photosensitive resin composition is cured, etc. The roughened sheet 1 is displaced relative to the support substrate 14 and can be easily replaced after use. For example, it is preferably detachably fixed to the surface of the support substrate 14 by any of the following methods (i) to (iii) 15 on.

(I) Adhesively fixes detachably through the weak adhesive layer, and the weak adhesive layer includes a material that is transparent to actinic rays. (Ii) A suction groove is formed in the surface 15 of the support substrate 14, and vacuum suction is performed through the suction groove, thereby detachably sucking and fixing. (Iii) The roughened sheet 1 is opened between a pair of chuck jigs with a larger interval than the dimension of the support substrate 14 in the surface direction, and in this state, it is detachably press-bonded and fixed.

Among them, the weak adhesion layer used for the adhesion and fixation of (i) can be any layer containing various adhesives that have weak adhesion to the support substrate 14 and the PET film as the reinforcing film 2 and that are transparent to actinic rays. The weak adhesive layer is formed by applying the adhesive on at least one of the surface 15 of the support substrate 14 and the reverse surface 16 of the roughened sheet 1 by various coating methods such as spray coating.

After the weak adhesion layer is formed, as shown by the one-dot chain arrow in Fig. 3(a), the roughened sheet 1 is placed with the reverse side 16 facing downwards, while paying attention not to mix air in the middle, from the supporting substrate 14 One end of the surface 15 gradually overlaps to the other end, and the roughened sheet 1 is fixed on the surface 15 by the adhesive force of the weak adhesive layer. In addition, when the fixed roughened sheet 1 is removed from the surface 15, for example, contrary to the arrow in FIG. 3(a), the adhesive force of the weak adhesive layer is resisted from the other end of the support substrate 14 to one end. The roughened sheet 1 and the like may be gradually peeled on one side.

When performing the suction fixation of (ii), the surface 15 of the support substrate 14 is finished to be smooth, and a suction groove is formed on substantially the entire surface of the surface 15. The suction tank is connected to a vacuum system including a vacuum pump and the like. Then, the roughened sheet 1 is superimposed on the surface 15 of the support substrate 14 with the reverse side 16 facing down, and the vacuum system is operated in this state, or the vacuum system that has been operated first is connected to the suction tank and passed through The suction groove performs vacuum suction to fix the roughened sheet 1 on the surface 15.

When removing the fixed roughened sheet 1 from the surface 15, it is only necessary to stop the vacuum system or block the connection between the vacuum system and the suction groove. 3(b), in the manufacturing method of this example, the mold surface 5 of the roughened sheet 1 fixed on the surface 15 of the support substrate 14 is supplied with a predetermined raw material for a resin precursor for printing A quantity of liquid photosensitive resin composition 17.

Then, the supplied photosensitive resin composition 17 is sandwiched between the roughened sheet 1 and the reinforcing sheet 18 that constitutes the resin precursor for printing together with the photosensitive resin composition 17, as shown in FIG. 3 (B) As shown by the one-dot chain arrow, from one end of the surface 15 of the support substrate 14 to the other end while being careful not to mix in air, the surface is gradually spread on the mold surface 5 of the roughened sheet 1 to form The layer 19 of the photosensitive resin composition 17 and the reinforcing sheet 18 are laminated thereon.

Next, referring to FIG. 3( c ), the facing surface 21 of the facing substrate 20 is brought into contact with the reinforcing sheet 18. Then, while maintaining the opposing surface 21 in parallel with the surface 15 of the support substrate 14 at a certain interval, the opposing substrate 20 faces the support substrate 14 as shown by the black arrow in FIG. 3(c) By pressing in the direction, the layer 19 is press-bonded to the mold surface 5 of the roughened sheet 1.

Then, in this state, as shown by the solid arrow in FIG. 3(c), actinic rays are irradiated to the layer 19 through the support substrate 14 and the roughened sheet 1 to make the photosensitive resin composition forming the layer 19 17 hardened. At this time, the distance between the surface 15 of the supporting substrate 14 and the facing surface 21 of the facing substrate 20 is set to maintain the following dimension, that is, the thickness of the resin precursor for printing to be manufactured plus the thickness of the roughened sheet 1 size of.

In addition, the counter substrate 20 can be formed of any material such as metal, glass, and hard resin. In particular, the opposing substrate 20 may be formed of the same material that is transparent to actinic rays as the support substrate 14, and the reinforcing sheet 18 may also be formed of a material that is transparent to actinic rays. One side also irradiates the layer 19 with actinic rays to harden the photosensitive resin composition 17.

In addition, for example, when at least one of the layers 2 to 4 forming the roughened sheet 1 includes a material that does not transmit actinic rays, and the roughened sheet 1 does not transmit actinic rays Next, the layer 19 may be irradiated with actinic rays only from the side facing the substrate 20 to harden the photosensitive resin composition 17 forming the layer 19. 4(a) and 4(b), the laminate 23 of the reinforcing sheet 18, the layer 22 formed by curing the photosensitive resin composition 17 and the roughened sheet 1 is removed from the support substrate 14 It is taken out from the counter substrate 20, turned upside down, and placed on the console 24 with the reinforcing sheet 18 facing downward.

Then, as shown by the one-dot chain arrow in FIG. 4(b), the roughened sheet 1 is gradually peeled from one end to the other end of the laminate 23, and the upper surface side of the layer 22 in the figure is transferred with thick The uneven shape of the die surface 5 of the surfaced sheet 1 is made into a roughened plate surface 25, and the resin precursor 26 for printing shown in FIG. 4(c) is completed. The photosensitive resin composition 17 can be arbitrarily used as various resin compositions, which can be cured by irradiating actinic rays such as ultraviolet rays, and after curing, the following cured products can be formed. The cured products are suitable for Appropriate flexibility or rubber elasticity for flexographic printing, etc., and excellent solvent resistance to solvents contained in inks used for printing or solvents used for cleaning printing plates.

The photosensitive resin composition is not limited to this, and examples thereof include: a prepolymer having a 1,2-butadiene structure and an ethylenic double bond at the end, an ethylenically unsaturated monomer, and a photopolymerization initiator Composition etc. The photopolymerization initiator is preferably benzoin alkyl ether. In addition, the reinforcing sheet 18 can be used, for example, including thermoplastic resins such as polyethylene (PE), polypropylene (Polypropylene, PP), PET, tetrafluoroethylene-hexafluoropropylene copolymer (FEP), etc. Preferred is a sheet that is transparent to actinic rays as described above.

After that, although not shown, the four sides of the resin original plate 26 for printing are cut to adjust the overall planar shape to a rectangle. As shown in FIG. 5, the layers 22 near the two parallel sides are processed by, for example, laser processing. It is cut off thermally to form a holding portion 27 for holding by a vice of a printing press (not shown) or a hole 28 for inserting a pin (pin), etc., and then printing as necessary A predetermined printing pattern is formed on the surface 25, whereby the flexographic printing plate 29 is completed.

In addition, in the example shown in the figure, the engaging portion 27 covers the entire sides of the two sides of the flexographic printing plate 29, and is formed to have a certain width by sandwiching a groove 30 with a certain width between the flexographic printing plate 29 and the plate surface 25. In addition, the engaging holes 28 are formed at a plurality of locations (5 locations in the figure) in the longitudinal direction of the engaging portion 27 at equal intervals. <Method of Manufacturing Liquid Crystal Display Element> The present invention is a method of manufacturing a liquid crystal display element, including the steps of forming a liquid crystal alignment film by flexographic printing using the flexographic printing plate manufactured by the manufacturing method of the present invention.

According to the present invention, the productivity of the liquid crystal display element can also be improved by using a flexographic printing plate with a small defect rate and excellent productivity, which is produced using the roughened sheet of the present invention described above. The other steps of the manufacturing method of the present invention can be implemented in the same manner as before. That is, after a transparent electrode layer corresponding to a predetermined matrix pattern is formed on the surface of a transparent substrate such as a glass substrate, a liquid crystal alignment film is formed by flexographic printing using the flexographic printing plate, and then passed The surface of the liquid crystal alignment film is oriented by rubbing or the like to prepare a substrate.

Then, two pieces of this substrate are prepared, while the respective transparent electrode layers are aligned, the liquid crystal material is sandwiched therebetween and fixed to each other to form a laminate, and then polarized lights are arranged on both outer sides of the laminate as necessary. Panel, thereby manufacturing a liquid crystal display element. The structure of the present invention is not limited to the above-described illustrations. For example, with regard to the roughened sheet, from the viewpoint of improving the productivity of the roughened sheet, it is preferable to use the apparatus of the example in FIG. 2 to be continuously manufactured, but the structure of the apparatus for manufacturing the roughened sheet It is not limited to the configuration of FIG. 2.

In addition, for example, in the manufacturing method of a flexographic printing plate, instead of pressing the layer of the photosensitive resin composition toward the supporting substrate through the opposing substrate, it may be spread out with a roll-shaped roughened sheet or the like to make the thickness constant. , While roughening its surface. In addition, various changes can be implemented within a range that does not deviate from the gist of the present invention. [Example]

<Example 1> (Roughened sheet) Regarding the reinforcement film 2, a PET film including a plasma layer 3 formed on one surface and having a thickness T2 of 0.100 mm was used. The plasma layer 3 is made of two-component hybrid polyester urethane resin for lamination [AD-335A/CAT-10L manufactured by Toyomorton (stock)] which is blended with methacrylate and light It is formed by the coating agent of polymerization initiator.

In addition, as the ultraviolet curable resin for the surface layer 4, a liquid radical polymerizable ultraviolet curable resin is used. The version body 7 of the manufacturing device of FIG. 2 is rotated at a certain speed in the direction indicated by the solid arrow in the figure, and at the same time, the coating roller 10 is used to layer the original mold surface 6 of the version body 7 in a predetermined thickness. The ultraviolet-curable resin 8 is coated in a pattern to form a precursor layer 9 which becomes a raw material for the surface layer 4.

Next, the long PET film as the reinforcement film 2 is continuously passed between the master mold surface 6 and the adhesion roll 11 so that the plasma layer 3 side is in contact with the precursor layer 9, thereby making it contact with the precursor layer 9 The precursor layer 9 on the master mold surface 6 is continuously in close contact. Then, the precursor layer 9 is continuously cured by irradiating ultraviolet light from the ultraviolet lamp 12, and then continuously peeled off from the master mold surface 6 together with the reinforcing film 2 by the peeling roller 13 to form a roughened mold surface 5 For the surface layer 4, the roughened sheet 1 of the laminated structure shown in FIG. 1 is continuously manufactured.

The thickness T4 of the surface layer 4 is 0.010 mm, and the overall thickness T1 of the roughened sheet 1 is 0.110 mm. (Flexible printing plate) Using the roughened sheet 1, the resin precursor plate 26 for printing is manufactured through the steps of FIGS. 3(a) to 3(c) and 4(a) to 4(c).

Regarding the photosensitive resin composition used as the raw material of the resin original plate 26 for printing, NK resin manufactured by Sumitomo Rubber Industries Co., Ltd. was used. In addition, for the reinforcing sheet 18, a BF/CF laminated film manufactured by Sumitomo Rubber Industries Co., Ltd. was used. Then, after cutting the four sides of the produced resin original plate 26 for printing to adjust the overall planar shape to a rectangle, the layer 22 near the two parallel sides is thermally cut off by laser processing to form the engaging portion 27 and the card hole 28 and the groove 30, the flexographic printing plate 29 shown in FIG. 5 is manufactured.

The conditions of laser processing are the output of carbon dioxide laser: 400 W×2 beam, beam diameter: 20 μm, feed pitch: 60 μm, and feed speed 140 cm/sec. <Example 2> The thickness T2 of the PET film as the reinforcement film 2 was set to 0.125 mm, and the coating thickness of the ultraviolet curable resin 8 was adjusted to set the thickness T4 of the surface layer 4 to 0.020 mm. Other than that, the same as the example 1 The roughened sheet 1 was produced in the same manner, and the resin precursor 26 for printing and the flexographic printing plate 29 were produced in the same manner as in Example 1 except that the roughened sheet 1 was used.

The overall thickness T1 of the roughened sheet 1 is 0.145 mm. <Example 3> The thickness T2 of the PET film as the reinforcement film 2 was set to 0.188 mm, and the coating thickness of the ultraviolet curable resin 8 was adjusted to set the thickness T4 of the surface layer 4 to 0.030 mm. Other than that, the same as the example 1 The roughened sheet 1 was produced in the same manner, and the resin precursor 26 for printing and the flexographic printing plate 29 were produced in the same manner as in Example 1 except that the roughened sheet 1 was used.

The overall thickness T1 of the roughened sheet 1 is 0.218 mm. <Example 4> The thickness T2 of the PET film as the reinforcement film 2 was set to 0.188 mm, and the coating thickness of the ultraviolet curable resin 8 was adjusted to set the thickness T4 of the surface layer 4 to 0.045 mm. Other than that, the same as the example 1 The roughened sheet 1 was produced in the same manner, and the resin precursor 26 for printing and the flexographic printing plate 29 were produced in the same manner as in Example 1 except that the roughened sheet 1 was used.

The overall thickness T1 of the roughened sheet 1 is 0.233 mm. <Example 5> The thickness T2 of the PET film as the reinforcement film 2 was set to 0.250 mm, and the coating thickness of the ultraviolet curable resin 8 was adjusted to set the thickness T4 of the surface layer 4 to 0.060 mm. Other than that, the same as the example 1 The roughened sheet 1 was produced in the same manner, and the resin precursor 26 for printing and the flexographic printing plate 29 were produced in the same manner as in Example 1 except that the roughened sheet 1 was used.

The overall thickness T1 of the roughened sheet 1 is 0.310 mm. <Example 6> The thickness T2 of the PET film as the reinforcement film 2 was set to 0.075 mm, and the coating thickness of the ultraviolet curable resin 8 was adjusted to set the thickness T4 of the surface layer 4 to 0.008 mm. Other than that, the same as the example 1 The roughened sheet 1 was produced in the same manner, and the resin precursor 26 for printing and the flexographic printing plate 29 were produced in the same manner as in Example 1 except that the roughened sheet 1 was used.

The overall thickness T1 of the roughened sheet 1 is 0.083 mm. <Example 7> The thickness T2 of the PET film as the reinforcement film 2 was set to 0.188 mm, and the coating thickness of the ultraviolet curable resin 8 was adjusted to set the thickness T4 of the surface layer 4 to 0.100 mm. Other than that, the same as the example 1 The roughened sheet 1 was produced in the same manner, and the resin precursor 26 for printing and the flexographic printing plate 29 were produced in the same manner as in Example 1 except that the roughened sheet 1 was used.

The overall thickness T1 of the roughened sheet 1 is 0.288 mm. <Comparative Example 1> (Roughened sheet) The previous method was reused, that is, the sheet of urethane-based thermoplastic elastomer (TPU) and the reinforcing film were continuously placed between the roughened roll and the counter roll The mold surface was formed by passing through, and as the reinforcing film, a PET film with a thickness T2 of 0.125 mm was used.

In addition, as the TPU for the surface layer, ester-type TPU is used. The TPU is continuously extruded in the form of a sheet through the die of the extruder to form a surface layer. Before the surface layer is cooled and solidified, it is roughened with the reinforcing film continuously supplied The roller and the counter roller are continuously passed through and laminated integrally, and the rough surface shape of the original mold surface of the roughening roller is continuously transferred to the surface of the surface layer, and the surface is continuously made into a rough surface The roughened sheet of the modified mold surface.

Then, except that the roughened sheet was used, the printing resin original plate 26 and the flexographic printing plate 29 were produced in the same manner as in Example 1. Regarding the roughening roller, a roller including a silicone rubber in the outermost layer with the original mold surface was used. The thickness T4 of the surface layer is 0.010 mm, and the overall thickness T1 of the roughened sheet is 0.135 mm.

<Comparative example 2> Except that the thickness T2 of the PET film as the reinforcing film was 0.188 mm, and the slit width of the die was adjusted to set the thickness T4 of the surface layer to 0.050 mm, the same was continued as in Comparative Example 1 A roughened sheet was produced, and the resin precursor 26 for printing and the flexographic printing plate 29 were produced in the same manner as in Example 1 except that the roughened sheet was used.

The overall thickness T1 of the roughened sheet is 0.238 mm. <Comparative example 3> Except that the thickness T2 of the PET film as the reinforcement film was 0.250 mm, and the slit width of the die was adjusted to set the thickness T4 of the surface layer to 0.070 mm, the same was continued as in Comparative Example 1 except that A roughened sheet was produced, and the resin precursor 26 for printing and the flexographic printing plate 29 were produced in the same manner as in Example 1 except that the roughened sheet was used.

The overall thickness T1 of the roughened sheet is 0.320 mm. <Formability> The formability of the roughened sheet of each example produced by the UV printing mold was evaluated based on the following criteria. ⊚: In the manufacturing step shown in FIG. 1, no bleeding of the ultraviolet curable resin 8 in the lateral direction or the like occurs, and the roughened sheet 1 can be continuously manufactured.

○: Exudation in the lateral direction of the ultraviolet curable resin 8 is slightly permissible, but the roughened sheet 1 can be continuously produced. △: Defects or air bubbles are partially observed in the surface layer 4, but the roughened sheet can be continuously produced. ×: Defects or air bubbles are generated in a wide range of the surface layer, and the roughened sheet cannot be continuously produced.

In addition, the moldability of the roughened sheet of each comparative example produced by the extrusion method was evaluated based on the following criteria. ◎: No uneven thickness or TPU chips, etc., and the surface layer can be extruded continuously and uniformly. ○: The thickness is slightly uneven, but continuous extrusion molding is possible.

△: The thickness unevenness is larger than the above "○", but it can be continuously extruded. ×: The thickness unevenness may be larger than the above "△", or TPU fragments may be generated and continuous extrusion molding may not be possible. <Handleability evaluation> The long roughened sheet before cutting manufactured in each of the examples and comparative examples was continuously wound into a roll with the die surface facing outward, and the state at this time was visually observed. The following criteria are used to evaluate handleability.

◎: No wrinkles are produced, and it can be continuously wound up to 200 m. ○: Wrinkles are not generated in the range of 100 m or more and less than 200 m, and continuous winding is possible. △: Wrinkles are not generated in the range of 40 m or more and less than 100 m, and continuous winding is possible.

×: Wrinkles were generated within 40 m, which also affected the productivity of the roughened sheet 1. <Evaluation of the number of fisheyes> The roughened sheet produced in each of the Examples and Comparative Examples was observed, and the number of fisheyes per unit area (number/m ² ) was counted. Then, the number of fish eyes was evaluated according to the following criteria. ◎: The number of fisheyes is 0/m ² .

×: The number of fisheyes exceeds 0/m ² . <Evaluation of the number of bending defects> The long roughened sheet before cutting manufactured in each of the examples and comparative examples was wound into a roll, and then rewinded, per unit of bending defects generated at this time The number of areas (pieces/m2) is counted. Then, the bending defects were evaluated according to the following criteria.

◎: The number of bending defects is 0.02 pieces/m ² or less. ○: The number of bending defects exceeds 0.02 pieces/m ² and is 0.10 pieces/m ² or less. △: The number of bending defects exceeds 0.10/m ² and is 0.15/m ² or less. ×: The number of bending defects exceeds 0.15/m ² . <Comprehensive evaluation> The cases where all the evaluations are only ◎ and ○ and the number of ◎ is 3 or more are evaluated as A, the case where ◎ is 1 or 2 is evaluated as B, and only one is △ and the others are ◎ or ○ The case was evaluated as C, the case where Δ was two and the others were ⊚ or ○ was evaluated as D, and the case where there was × (even if it was one) was evaluated as E.

The above results are shown in Table 1 and Table 2.

[Table 1]

[Table 2]

From the results of the Examples and Comparative Examples in Table 1 and Table 2, it can be seen that by using a roughened sheet that has a surface layer, has no fish eyes, is excellent in formability and handling properties, and does not easily produce bending defects, The occurrence of defects is suppressed, and printing resin precursors and flexographic printing plates are manufactured with good productivity, wherein the surface layer includes a cured product formed by curing an ultraviolet curable resin by irradiating ultraviolet rays. In addition, from the results of Examples 1 to 7, it is found that, in consideration of further enhancing the effect, the thickness T4 of the surface layer is preferably 0.009 mm or more and 0.06 mm or less, and a roughened sheet is preferable The overall thickness is 0.31 mm or less, and the thickness of the reinforcement film is 0.10 mm or more and 0.25 mm or less.

1‧‧‧Roughened sheet material2‧‧‧Enhancement film3‧‧‧Plasma layer4‧‧‧Surface layer5‧‧‧Mold surface6‧‧‧Original mold surface7‧‧‧Version body8‧‧‧Ultraviolet Hardened resin 9‧‧‧Precursor layer 10‧‧‧Coating roller 11‧‧‧Adhesive roller 12‧‧‧Ultraviolet lamp 13‧‧‧Peeling roller 14‧‧‧Supporting substrate 15‧‧‧Surface 16‧‧‧Back surface 17 ‧‧‧Photosensitive resin composition 18‧‧‧Reinforced sheet 19‧‧‧Layer 20‧‧‧Opposite substrate 21‧‧‧Opposite surface 22‧‧‧Layer 23‧‧‧Laminate 24‧‧‧Operator 25 ‧‧‧Plate surface 26‧‧‧Resin original plate for printing 27‧‧‧Hatch part 28‧‧‧Card hole 29‧‧‧Flexible printing plate 30‧‧‧Groove

Fig. 1 is an enlarged cross-sectional view showing the layer structure of an example of a roughened sheet used for manufacturing the resin precursor for printing of the present invention. It is a figure explaining an example of the process of manufacturing the roughened sheet of the example of FIG. 3(a) to 3(c) are cross-sectional views showing an example of a process of manufacturing a resin plate for printing by the manufacturing method of the present invention using the roughened sheet of the example in FIG. 1. Figs. 4(a) to 4(c) are cross-sectional views showing an example of steps subsequent to Figs. 3(a) to 3(c). Fig. 5 is a perspective view showing an example of a flexographic printing plate manufactured by the manufacturing method of the present invention using the resin precursor for printing manufactured by the manufacturing method.

1‧‧‧Roughened sheet

2‧‧‧Enhanced film

3‧‧‧Plasma layer

4‧‧‧Surface

5‧‧‧Die surface

Claims (5)

A method of manufacturing a resin original plate for printing, comprising the steps of contacting a layer of a photosensitive resin composition with the mold surface of a roughened sheet having a surface layer having a roughened mold surface In the state, the layer is hardened by irradiating actinic rays, and then peeled from the mold surface, thereby transferring the rough surface shape of the mold surface on the surface of the layer in contact with the mold surface, The surface is made into a roughened plate surface, and for the roughened sheet, the surface layer contains a cured product formed by curing an ultraviolet-curable resin by irradiating ultraviolet rays, and a hardened product provided with a reinforcing film A laminate structure obtained by laminating the surface layer after plasma treatment is performed on one side of the surface layer, and the thickness of the surface layer is a sheet of 0.009 mm or more and 0.06 mm or less. The method for manufacturing a resin precursor for printing as described in the first item of the scope of patent application, wherein the roughened sheet has an overall thickness of 0.31 mm or less, and the thickness of the reinforcing film is 0.10 mm or more and 0.25 mm or less Sheet. The method for manufacturing a resin original plate for printing as described in item 1 or item 2 of the scope of patent application, wherein the following sheet material is used for the roughened sheet material, which is on the surface corresponding to the mold surface On the rough master mold surface, a layered coating liquid ultraviolet curable resin is used to form a precursor layer that becomes the raw material of the surface layer, and the plasma-treated surface of the reinforcement film is formed on the precursor layer In a tightly bonded state, after irradiating ultraviolet rays to cure the ultraviolet-curable resin, the surface layer formed by the curing is peeled off the surface of the original mold together with the reinforcing film, and the The surface of the surface layer that is in contact with the master mold surface is a mold surface roughened by transferring the rough surface shape of the master mold surface. A method for manufacturing a flexographic printing plate, which includes the following steps: aligning corresponding parts of the resin original plate for printing manufactured by the method for manufacturing a resin original plate for printing as described in any one of items 1 to 3 of the scope of patent application It is cut off thermally to form an engaging part and a card hole for installation on a printing machine. A method for manufacturing a liquid crystal display element includes the following steps: using a flexographic printing plate manufactured by the manufacturing method as described in item 4 of the scope of patent application to form a liquid crystal alignment film by flexographic printing.

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