WO2012068745A1

WO2012068745A1 - Double arm type mechanical arm and method for conveying plate thereof

Info

Publication number: WO2012068745A1
Application number: PCT/CN2010/079448
Authority: WO
Inventors: 李彦泽; 贺成明
Original assignee: 深圳市华星光电技术有限公司
Priority date: 2010-11-25
Filing date: 2010-12-06
Publication date: 2012-05-31
Also published as: CN102129963A; CN102129963B

Abstract

Disclosed is a method for conveying plates using a double arm type mechanical arm. Firstly，a first mechanical arm (11) and a second mechanical arm (12) enter into a processing facility (20) simultaneously; After that, when the second mechanical arm (12) takes out a second plate (40) from the processing facility (20), the first mechanical arm (11) can make a stability process and a process of removing fixing suction force to a first plate (30) carried by the first mechanical arm (11) at the same time; next, lower the first mechanical arm (11) to place the first plate (30) in the processing facility (20). The method can avoid the crack of the first plate (40) during the placement and save the processing time needed for the first mechanical arm (11) to wait for stability and to remove the fixing suction force. Also disclosed is a double arm type mechanical arm using the said method.

Description

Two-arm type mechanical arm and method for transporting the same

Technical field

The present invention relates to a dual-arm type mechanical arm and a method for transporting the same, and more particularly to a dual-arm type mechanical arm and a method for transporting the same.

Background technique

In the current manufacturing process of the liquid crystal display panel, it can be roughly divided into an Array process, a middle cell process, and a rear module process. The matrix process of the previous stage is to produce a thin film transistor (TFT) substrate and a color filter (CF) substrate. The middle-stage box-forming process is responsible for combining the TFT substrate with the CF plate, and injecting liquid crystal between the two to cut the panel of the product size. The rear-end modular process is responsible for the assembly process of the assembled panel with the backlight module, the panel drive circuit, and the outer frame.

In the front-end matrix process, after the glass substrate is first cleaned, the film of the target is coated thereon, and the target material is a metal (such as aluminum chrome) or a semiconductor film (such as indium tin oxide ITO) as a conductive material. The substrate of the circuit is then uniformly coated with photoresist on the film, and exposed by a photomask that has been photolithographically photographed, and the desired conductive line is obtained when the photoresist completes the exposure/development process. Then, the unnecessary etching metal or semiconductor film can be removed by using the etching solution, leaving only the conductive circuit film protected by the photoresist, and finally removing the photoresist of the surface by using the stripping liquid, and repeating the above procedure about 5 to 8 times ( The thin film transistor substrate can be completed after each metal or semiconductor film.

However, in the above-mentioned front-end matrix process, the substrate must be processed by a variety of different equipment, such as: cleaning equipment, exposure machine, developing line, photoresist coating line machine, sealant printing equipment, glass assembly Equipment, thermocompression equipment and spraying equipment, etc., and generally use the robotic arm to pick up and place processed and unprocessed substrate semi-finished products. An existing double-arm type mechanical arm performs the operation of exchanging a substrate semi-finished product as follows: elongating the mechanical arm to a processing device to take out a processed substrate, and then retracting the lower mechanical arm away from the processing device for performing Reset. While the lower arm is retracted away from the processing equipment, the upper arm is extended into the processing equipment. Then, the upper mechanical arm is lowered to place the substrate to be processed in the processing device, thus completing a one-cycle operation of taking the substrate. When the machine is in motion, the robot arm needs to stay in stability until the next action is taken. During the operation, the upper and lower robots use a vacuum nozzle to fix the substrate, and the upper robot needs to wait for the upper arm to stabilize (from the moving state to the stationary state) to break the vacuum to release the substrate. Therefore, the upper robot arm needs to wait for a certain period of time before releasing the substrate, and after being stabilized and not shaking, it is lowered and the vacuum is broken at the same time. Therefore, in the conventional method, since it is necessary to particularly stabilize the upper robot arm for a certain period of time, the total time for the dual-arm type robot to pick up and place the substrate is increased.

Therefore, it is necessary to provide a method for handling a panel by a dual-arm type robot to solve the problems of the prior art.

technical problem

The main object of the present invention is to provide a method for handling a panel by a dual-arm type robot, wherein the first robot arm and the second robot arm are simultaneously guided into the processing device, and when the second robot arm is to be processed in the processing device While the two plates are removed, the first robot arm can perform a stable operation at the same time and perform a de-fixing suction operation on the previously carried first plate member, so the present invention can prevent the first plate member from being broken when placed. The risk and save the working time required for the first robot arm to wait for stability and vacuum to release the fixed suction, and further reduce the total time, and relatively increase the productivity and yield.

A secondary object of the present invention is to provide a dual-arm type robotic arm in which the first robot arm can simultaneously perform stable operations and previously carried the second plate member while the second mechanical arm takes out the second plate member in the processing apparatus. The first plate is subjected to the unfixing suction operation, so that the speed of lowering and placing the first plate member can be relatively increased under the premise that the yield rate is not affected, so as to further reduce the movement of the double-arm type mechanical arm handling plate. Time, thus increasing overall capacity.

Technical solution

To achieve the above object, the present invention provides a method for transporting a panel of a dual-arm type robot arm, which is applied to a manufacturing process of a liquid crystal display panel, the method comprising the following steps:

(a) preparing a first robot arm and a second robot arm, and carrying a first plate member by the first robot arm;

(b) simultaneously projecting the first robot arm and the second robot arm into a processing device, wherein the second robot arm reaches below a working position, and a second plate member is placed at the working position ;

(c) lifting the second robot arm to carry the second plate member;

(d) moving the second robot arm and the second plate to exit the processing device;

(e) lowering the first robot arm and placing the first panel on the working position;

(f) moving the first robot arm to exit the processing device;

Wherein during the step (c) to the step (d), the first robot arm performs a stable operation at the same time.

In an embodiment of the invention, after the first robot arm performs a stabilization operation, the method further includes: performing a lifting and holding operation on the first panel.

In an embodiment of the invention, the upper surface of the first robot arm is provided with at least one vacuum nozzle, and the first plate member is fixed by the at least one vacuum nozzle respectively providing a fixed suction force.

In an embodiment of the invention, the upper surface of the second robot arm is provided with at least one vacuum nozzle, and the second plate member is fixed by the at least one vacuum suction nozzle respectively.

In an embodiment of the invention, during step (c) to step (d), at least one vacuum nozzle of the first robot arm is vacuumed to complete the unfixing of the first plate member. Suction work.

In an embodiment of the invention, the second robot arm is lowered while the first robot arm is lowered.

In an embodiment of the invention, the first robot arm is raised while the second robot arm is raised.

Furthermore, the present invention further provides a dual-arm type mechanical arm comprising:

a first mechanical arm for carrying the first plate member and extending into a processing device, the processing device comprising a working position for carrying the second plate member, placing the first plate member at the working position, and exiting the processing device;

a second robot arm for simultaneously extending into the processing device with the first robot arm, and carrying a second plate member of the processing device, and exiting the processing device after being carried to the second plate member; The first robot arm is further configured to perform a stabilization operation during the second mechanical arm carrying the second plate and exiting the processing device.

In an embodiment of the invention, the first robot arm is further configured to perform a lifting and holding operation on the first panel after performing the stabilizing operation.

In an embodiment of the invention, the first robot arm and the second robot arm have a fork-shaped carrying platform.

In an embodiment of the invention, at least one vacuum nozzle of the first robot arm is vacuumed during the process of the second mechanical arm carrying the second plate and exiting the processing device. , to complete the lifting of the suction work on the first plate.

Beneficial effect

Compared with the prior art robot arm, the method of exchanging the substrate is particularly difficult because the upper mechanical arm is required to wait for a period of time to break the vacuum, thereby increasing the total time for the robot arm to pick up and place the substrate. And during the lowering of the mechanical arm, the substrate is damaged due to incomplete vacuum. A method for carrying a panel of a dual-arm type robot arm of the present invention, by simultaneously extending the first robot arm 11 and the second robot arm 12 into the processing device 20, and in the second robot arm 12, when the second plate member 40 in the processing device 20 is taken out, the first robot arm 11 can perform a stable operation at the same time and perform a lifting and holding operation on the previously carried first plate member 30. (breaking vacuum). Therefore, the present invention can prevent the risk of the first plate member 30 from being broken when placed, and save the working time required for the first robot arm 11 to wait for stabilization and vacuum to release the fixed suction force, thereby further reducing the total time, and Relatively increase productivity and yield.

DRAWINGS

1 to 6 are schematic views showing the operation of a dual-arm type mechanical arm handling plate member according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention.

Figure 7 is a flow chart of a method for handling a panel of a dual-arm type mechanical arm in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention.

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION

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

The method for transporting a panel of a double-arm type mechanical arm of the present invention is mainly applied to a manufacturing process of a liquid crystal display panel, in particular, in a front-end matrix process of a liquid crystal display panel, by using a mechanical arm to pick up and place a substrate in a plurality of Different processing equipment. Regarding the front-end matrix process of the liquid crystal display panel, please refer to the description in the background art, and will not be repeated here.

Referring to FIG. 1, FIG. 1 is a schematic view showing the operation of a dual-arm type mechanical arm handling plate member according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 1 , a dual-arm type mechanical arm 10 has a substantially cylindrical body. The dual-arm mechanical arm 10 mainly includes a first mechanical arm 11 and a second mechanical arm 12 . The first robot arm 11 and the second robot arm 12 are independently operated by a plurality of joints and servo mechanisms (generally controlled by computer software). The first robot arm 11 and the second robot arm 12 have a fork-shaped carrying platform and are operated by a method similar to the stacker: the fork-shaped carrying platform is extended below the article and then raised Carrying items, or uninstalling items in reverse action.

In addition, at least one vacuum nozzle (not shown) is respectively disposed on the upper surfaces of the first robot arm 11 and the second robot arm 12, and can be fixed by vacuum adsorption of the at least one vacuum nozzle. Items.

Furthermore, in the method of the double-arm type mechanical arm carrying plate member according to the preferred embodiment of the present invention, in addition to the double-arm type mechanical arm 10, a processing device 20, a first plate member 30, and a first a two-plate member, which may be a closed (closed) or non-closed (closed) processing device, for example, a cleaning device, an exposure machine, a developing line, a photoresist coating line used in a matrix process of a front panel of a liquid crystal display panel Machine, frame glue printing equipment, glass assembly equipment, hot pressing equipment or spraying equipment.

In addition, the processing device 20 includes at least one open side (not labeled) and a working position 21, and the open side can be fixed or temporarily opened for the first robot arm 11 and the second robot arm 12 The work is carried out within the processing equipment 20. The work position 21 is a bottom hollow and a top portion that is vacant, and the first mechanical arm 11 or the second mechanical arm 12 can be extended or withdrawn from the side, or moved up and down. The way passes through the working position 21. The present invention mainly takes out the second plate member 40 in the processing device 20 by placing the second robot arm 12 of the dual-arm type robot arm 10 and the first robot arm 11 and placing the first A plate 30.

1 to FIG. 7 , FIG. 1 to FIG. 6 are schematic diagrams showing a continuous operation of a dual-arm type mechanical arm handling plate member according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention; FIG. 7 is a view of a preferred embodiment of the present invention. A flow chart of a method for handling a panel with a double arm type mechanical arm. As shown in FIG. 7, a method for carrying a panel of a dual-arm type mechanical arm according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention comprises the following steps:

(a) The first robot arm 11 and the second robot arm 12 are prepared, and the first plate member 30 is carried by the first robot arm 11 (step S01). At this time, the second robot arm 12 is idle, and the vacuum nozzle on the upper surface of the first robot arm 11 can fix the first plate member 30 by activating a vacuum.

(b) Inserting the first robot arm 11 and the second robot arm 12 into the processing device 20 simultaneously, wherein the second robot arm 12 reaches below the working position 21, and the working position 21 is placed There is the second panel (step S02). At this time, the first mechanical arm 11 carries the first plate member 30 and is located at an appropriate distance above the working position 21.

(c) The second robot arm 12 is lifted to carry the second plate member 40 (step S03). At this time, the vacuum nozzle on the upper surface of the second robot arm 12 can fix the second plate member 40 by starting a vacuum. At the same time, the first robot arm 11 can perform a stable operation, and the vacuum nozzle starts to perform a lifting and holding operation on the previously carried first plate member 30 after the first robot arm 11 is stabilized. .

While lifting the second robot arm 12, the first robot arm 11 can be lifted together, and while the second robot arm carries the second plate member 40, the first robot arm 11 can perform a stable operation. It can be understood that while the second robot arm 12 is raised, the first robot arm 11 can also be kept in the horizontal position, and the first robot arm 11 and the second body need only be adjusted before the step (b). There is a sufficient height difference between the robot arms.

(d) The second robot arm 12 and the second plate member 40 are moved to exit the processing device 20 (step S04). During this process, the vacuum nozzle of the first robot arm 11 can complete the vacuum breaking.

(e) The first robot arm 11 is lowered and the first plate member 30 is placed at the work position 21 (step S05). The second robot arm 12 can also be lowered while the first robot arm 11 is lowered.

(f) moving the second robot arm to exit the processing device (step S06).

As described in steps (a) to (f), since the first robot arm 11 and the second robot arm 12 simultaneously protrude into the processing apparatus 20, in steps (c) to (d) During the process, when the second robot arm 12 takes out the second plate member 40 in the processing device, the first robot arm 11 simultaneously performs a stable operation (from the moving state to the stationary state) and The first plate member 30 previously carried carries out a de-fixing suction operation. Therefore, before the step (e) is performed, that is, the first robot arm 11 is lowered, and the first plate member 30 is placed before the working position 21, the vacuum on the first robot arm 11 The suction nozzle has completed a vacuum breaking to complete the unfixed suction operation. Therefore, the present invention can prevent the risk of the first plate member 30 from being broken when placed, and save the working time required for the first mechanical arm 12 to wait for stability and vacuum to release the fixed suction force, thereby further reducing the total time, and Relatively increase productivity and yield.

In addition, in the conventional method for transporting the plate by the robot arm, the vacuuming action is performed during the lowering process, and if the mechanical arm output value is too large (decreased faster), the vacuum suction of the upper mechanical arm may be caused when the substrate is placed. The vacuum of the mouth is not complete (the substrate is still sucked by the suction of the residual vacuum nozzle). As a result, when the substrate is placed on the working position of the processing equipment (such as the bracket), the substrate may collide with the working position. The damage is broken, which greatly affects the yield of processing. In the method for transporting a panel of the dual-arm type mechanical arm of the present invention, since the first panel 30 is placed before the working position 21, the vacuum nozzle on the first robot arm 11 has been completed. Break the vacuum. Therefore, it is also possible to increase the output value of the first plate member 30 by lowering the first mechanical arm 11 (speed) to further reduce the time for the double-arm type robot to transport the panel and relatively increase the productivity.

Furthermore, the first robot arm 11 of the present invention is preferably located above the second robot arm 12. However, the present invention is not limited thereto, and the user can also configure the relative positions and distances of the first robot arm 11 and the second robot arm 12 according to actual needs.

In addition, the method of the dual-arm type robot arm transporting plate member of the present invention is preferably applied to the substrate in the front-end matrix manufacturing process of the liquid crystal display panel, and thus the first mechanical arm 11 and the second mechanical arm 12 of the present invention are It is preferred to have a carrier platform that is forked. However, the present invention is not limited thereto, and the method of the dual-arm type robot arm carrying plate member of the present invention is also applicable to other manufacturing processes of the liquid crystal display panel, and the first robot arm 11 and the second robot arm 12 are The carrier platform can also be of other types.

In summary, the method of exchanging the substrate compared to the existing robot arm requires a special time for the upper arm to wait for a period of time to break the vacuum, thereby increasing the total time for the robot to pick up and place the substrate. And during the lowering of the mechanical arm, the substrate is damaged due to incomplete vacuum. A method for carrying a panel of a dual-arm type robot arm of the present invention, by simultaneously extending the first robot arm 11 and the second robot arm 12 into the processing device 20, and in the second robot arm 12, when the second plate member 40 in the processing device 20 is taken out, the first robot arm 11 can perform a stable operation at the same time and perform a lifting and holding operation on the previously carried first plate member 30. (breaking vacuum). Therefore, the present invention can prevent the risk of the first plate member 30 from being broken when placed, and save the working time required for the first robot arm 11 to wait for stabilization and vacuum to release the fixed suction force, thereby further reducing the total time, and Relatively increase productivity and yield.

The present invention has been described by the above related embodiments, but the above embodiments are merely examples for implementing the present invention. It must be noted that the disclosed embodiments do not limit the scope of the invention. Rather, modifications and equivalent arrangements are intended to be included within the scope of the invention.

Embodiments of the invention

Industrial applicability

Sequence table free content

Claims

A method for transporting a panel by a dual-arm type mechanical arm, characterized in that the method comprises the following steps:

(a) preparing a first robot arm and a second robot arm, and carrying a first plate member by the first robot arm;

(b) Simultaneously extending the first mechanical arm and the second mechanical arm into a processing device, wherein the second mechanical arm reaches a working position, and a second plate is placed at the working position;

(c) lifting the second robot arm to carry the second plate member;

(d) moving the second robot arm and the second plate to exit the processing device;

(e) lowering the first robot arm and placing the first panel on the working position;

(f) moving the first robot arm to exit the processing device;

Wherein during the step (c) to the step (d), the first robot arm performs a stable operation at the same time, and after the stabilization operation, performs a lifting suction operation on the first plate member, the first The upper surface of the robot arm is provided with at least one vacuum nozzle, and the first plate member is fixed by the at least one vacuum nozzle respectively providing a fixed suction force.
A method of handling a panel of a dual-arm type robot arm according to claim 1, wherein at least one vacuum nozzle of said first robot arm is broken during steps (c) through (d) A vacuum is applied to complete the unloading of the first panel.
The method according to claim 1 , wherein the upper surface of the second robot arm is provided with at least one vacuum nozzle, and one of the vacuum nozzles is respectively provided by the at least one vacuum nozzle. The second plate is fixed by a fixed suction.
A method for transporting a panel by a dual-arm type mechanical arm, characterized in that the method comprises the following steps:

(a) preparing a first robot arm and a second robot arm, and carrying a first plate member by the first robot arm;

(b) Simultaneously extending the first mechanical arm and the second mechanical arm into a processing device, wherein the second mechanical arm reaches a working position, and a second plate is placed at the working position;

(c) lifting the second robot arm to carry the second plate member;

(d) moving the second robot arm and the second plate to exit the processing device;

(e) lowering the first robot arm and placing the first panel on the working position;

(f) moving the first robot arm to exit the processing device;

Wherein during the step (c) to the step (d), the first robot arm performs a stable operation at the same time.
The method according to claim 4, wherein after the first robot arm performs a stabilization operation, the method further comprises: releasing a fixed suction force on the first plate member; operation.
The method according to claim 4, wherein the upper surface of the first robot arm is provided with at least one vacuum nozzle, and one of the vacuum nozzles is respectively provided by the at least one vacuum nozzle. The first plate is fixed by a fixed suction.
A method of handling a panel of a dual-arm type robot arm according to claim 6, wherein during the step (c) to the step (d), at least one vacuum nozzle of the first robot arm is broken A vacuum is applied to complete the unloading of the first panel.
The method according to claim 4, wherein the upper surface of the second robot arm is provided with at least one vacuum nozzle, and one of the vacuum nozzles is respectively provided by the at least one vacuum nozzle The second plate is fixed by a fixed suction.
The method of claim 4, wherein the second robot arm is lowered while the first robot arm is lowered.
The method of claim 4, wherein the first robot arm is raised while lifting the second robot arm.
A dual-arm type mechanical arm characterized by comprising:

a first mechanical arm for carrying the first plate member and extending into a processing device, the processing device comprising a working position for carrying the second plate member, placing the first plate member at the working position, and exiting the processing device;

a second robot arm for simultaneously extending into the processing device with the first robot arm, and carrying a second plate member of the processing device, and exiting the processing device after being carried to the second plate member;

The first robot arm is further configured to perform a stabilization operation during the second mechanical arm carrying the second plate and exiting the processing device.
The dual-arm type mechanical arm according to claim 11, wherein said first robot arm is further configured to perform a de-fixing suction operation on said first panel after said stabilizing operation.
The dual-arm type mechanical arm according to claim 11, wherein the upper surface of the first robot arm is provided with at least one vacuum suction nozzle, and the at least one vacuum suction nozzle respectively provides a fixed suction force to fix the The first board.
The dual-arm type robot arm according to claim 11, wherein the upper surface of the second robot arm is provided with at least one vacuum nozzle, and the at least one vacuum nozzle respectively provides a fixed suction force to fix the The second board.
The dual-arm type mechanical arm according to claim 11, wherein said first robot arm and said second robot arm have a fork-shaped carrying platform.
A dual-arm type robotic arm according to claim 13 wherein during said second mechanical arm carrying said second panel and exiting said processing apparatus, said first robotic arm At least one vacuum nozzle performs vacuum breaking to complete the unloading of the first panel.