JP2004079614A - Work processing method and its processing apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a work processing method which can be efficiently processed even when a work is an easy-to-break one such as a large-sized glass substrate. <P>SOLUTION: In the processing method for performing prescribed processing to a plurality of rectangular flat plate-like works 2 conveyed by a conveyor 3, a plurality of working devices 4 for performing the processing out of a conveying route of the conveyor 3 are arranged. The plurality of works 2 are successively taken out of the conveyor 3 to deliver them to the working device 4 in a working wait state. The works 2 are returned from the working device 4 completing working to the conveyor 3. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2004,JPO

Description

[0001]
TECHNICAL FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a method and an apparatus for processing a workpiece for cleaning an edge of a color filter substrate.
[0002]
[Prior art]
When a pattern is formed on a glass substrate of a color filter used for a display device such as a liquid crystal display using a photolithography process, a resist film is formed on the substrate prior to transfer of the pattern to the substrate side. . Although the resist film should be formed to have a uniform thickness by nature, the thickness of a specific portion on the substrate may be larger than other portions due to restrictions due to the method of applying the resist agent. For example, when a spin coating method in which a resist is applied by rotating a substrate is used, the thickness of the peripheral portion of the substrate increases due to the effect of centrifugal force accompanying the rotation. When coating is performed using a die coater, a relatively large amount of the resist agent is supplied at the coating start position and the coating end position, and the film thickness of those portions increases. However, in the development process after exposure, the processing time and the like are determined based on the normal film thickness, and thus the resist film cannot be completely removed in the specific portion having a large film thickness as described above. However, if a part of the remaining resist film is left, the uniformity of the subsequently formed resist film may be affected, or the remaining resist film may be peeled off in a subsequent process, which may become a foreign substance and cause a defect. .
[0003]
Therefore, prior to the development of the pattern, a developing solution is applied in advance to a specific portion having a large film thickness to sufficiently swell the developing solution in the resist film in that portion, and the resist film in the specific portion is also surely developed by developing the pattern thereafter. There has been proposed a method of cleaning a substrate and a cleaning apparatus therefor. For example, in a cleaning apparatus described in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 7-27917, a substrate is temporarily stopped in the middle of a line for transporting a substrate in a direction parallel to one side of the substrate, and is perpendicular to the transport direction of the stopped substrate. A developer application roller is brought into contact with the two sides, and the roller is moved in a direction perpendicular to the transport direction to apply the developer to the two sides. After that, the substrate is transported from the stop position to the downstream side, and another developer application roller is brought into contact with two sides parallel to the substrate transport direction during the transportation to apply the developer to the remaining two sides. .
[0004]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
In the cleaning apparatus described in the above-mentioned publication, when applying the developing solution to the side of the substrate in a direction orthogonal to the transport direction, the substrate cannot be held at a fixed position by the rollers of the transport line. I support it. However, the position where the stage supports the substrate is limited because it is necessary to avoid interference with the rollers of the transport line. For this reason, the substrate cannot be supported at an appropriate position depending on the size of the substrate, which may cause some inconvenience. For example, if the end of the substrate cannot be supported, the glass substrate may be damaged by the pressing force of the developer application roller.
[0005]
As the size of the display device in which the color filter is incorporated increases, the size of the glass substrate of the color filter also increases as one side greatly exceeds 1 m. On the other hand, the thickness of the substrate has been reduced due to the demand for weight reduction. If the glass substrate is broken on the line, the fragments are scattered over a wide area, and it takes a great deal of trouble to clean up. Therefore, great care must be taken in supporting the substrate, and actions that cause distortion of the substrate must be eliminated as much as possible.
[0006]
Further, in the apparatus described in the above publication, the transport line needs to be stopped while at least two sides are coated with the developer. Such a stoppage of a substrate on a production line is a major factor in reducing production efficiency. When the applied roller is returned to the original position while the substrate is stopped, and the movement of the substrate is resumed after the completion of the application, the efficiency reduction accompanying the stop of the line is more serious.
[0007]
Therefore, the present invention eliminates the need to perform the processing while supporting the work at a fixed position of the transfer device, and can efficiently process even a work that is easily damaged such as a large glass substrate. And an apparatus.
[0008]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
Hereinafter, the present invention will be described. In addition, in order to facilitate understanding of the present invention, reference numerals in the accompanying drawings are added in parentheses, but the present invention is not limited to the illustrated embodiment.
[0009]
The method for processing a workpiece according to the present invention is a processing method for performing a predetermined process on a plurality of rectangular flat workpieces (2) transported by a transport device (3), wherein the transport path of the transport device is provided. A plurality of work devices (4) for performing the processing are disposed outside, and the plurality of works are sequentially taken out from the transfer device and transferred to a work device in a work waiting state. And returning the work to
[0010]
According to the present invention, since the work is taken out of the transfer path of the transfer device and processed by the work device, there is no restriction on the support of the work being processed by the transfer device. Therefore, it is possible to perform the processing while supporting the workpieces of various sizes under appropriate conditions, respectively, and it is possible to eliminate a possibility that the workpiece may be undesirably distorted due to a defective supporting position. Since the processing is performed by any one of the plurality of working devices provided outside the transfer device, it is not necessary to stop the transfer device until the processing is completed each time the work is processed, thereby improving the production efficiency. Since multiple working devices are prepared, even if some working devices become unavailable due to failure or maintenance, processing can be continued using other working devices, and until the working device is restored There is no need to stop the transport device.
[0011]
In the processing method of the present invention, the work may be a substrate for a color filter on which a resist film is formed. In this case, the developer of the resist film may be applied to the peripheral portion (2a) of the work by the working device. When the resist film is a positive type, the working device may expose the peripheral portion of the work to the resist film. According to these aspects, it is possible to efficiently perform exposure and application of the developer on the peripheral portion of the work, and there is no possibility that the work is damaged due to a defective support position during the processing.
[0012]
A work processing apparatus (1) of the present invention is arranged side by side with a transfer device (3) for a rectangular flat work (2) outside a transfer path of the transfer device, and performs the same processing on the substrate. And a transfer device (5) for transferring a substrate between the plurality of working devices (4) for performing the transfer and each of the working devices of the transfer device.
[0013]
According to this processing apparatus, the work conveyed by the transfer apparatus is transferred to the work apparatus in a waiting state by the transfer apparatus, and the work is returned from the work apparatus after the work to the transfer apparatus. Can be realized.
[0014]
In the processing apparatus of the present invention, the work may be a substrate for a color filter on which a resist film is formed, and the working device may be a developing device that applies a developer for the resist film to a peripheral portion of the work. A liquid application device may be arranged. When the resist film is of a positive type, an exposure device for exposing the resist film to the periphery of the substrate may be provided as the working device.
[0015]
BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION
FIG. 1 shows an example of a work processing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. The processing apparatus 1 is for performing exposure and cleaning of a peripheral portion of a glass color filter substrate (work) 2 incorporated in a liquid crystal display device, and includes a transport device 3 and a working device 4. 4, a transfer device 5, and a control device 6 for controlling the operation of each device. The transport device 3 transports the substrate 2 linearly. For example, a roller conveyor that transports the substrate 2 while supporting the substrate 2 from below with a transport roller 10 is used as the transport device 3.
[0016]
At a specific position P of the transfer device 3, a lifting device 7 for lifting the substrate 2 is attached. As shown in FIG. 2, the elevating device 7 causes the plurality of pins 11... 11 to protrude and retract from the gap between the transport rollers 10. Although not shown in FIG. 1, a resist film forming apparatus for forming a resist film on the substrate 2 and a predetermined pattern are formed on the resist film on the upstream side (upper side in FIG. 1) in the transport direction of the lifting device 7. A pattern exposure device for transferring is installed, and the substrate 2 after the pattern is exposed is guided to the elevating device 7.
[0017]
The working devices 4 all have the same configuration. As an example, the working device 4 has a configuration for performing a process of exposing the resist film to the peripheral portion 2a of the substrate 2 and a process of applying a developing solution to the peripheral portion 2a. Exposure to the peripheral portion 2a is performed, for example, by rotating a pair of irradiating portions 12, 12 arranged so as to sandwich the substrate 2 in the vertical direction as shown in FIG. 3A around the substrate 2 along the peripheral portion 2a. The irradiation is performed by irradiating ultraviolet rays from the irradiation unit 12 during that time. As shown in FIG. 3B, the peripheral portion 2a of the substrate 2 is vertically moved by a pair of developer applying rollers 13 containing a developer for the resist film. And the rollers 13 are rotated around the substrate 2 along the peripheral portion 2a.
[0018]
The exposure of the peripheral portion 2a is required when the resist film on the substrate 2 is made of a positive resist. When a positive resist is used, the exposed portion is removed in a later development process. Therefore, it is necessary to sufficiently expose the peripheral portion 2a of the substrate 2 unless a pattern is formed. However, due to the size of the substrate 2 and the like, there are actually quite a few exposure machines that cannot perform sufficient exposure on the periphery of the substrate 2. When such an exposing machine is used, it is necessary to irradiate the end of the substrate 2 with ultraviolet rays separately from the pattern transfer by the exposing machine. Therefore, when a negative type resist is used, the components required for exposure in the working device 4 may be omitted.
[0019]
In the example of FIG. 3, the irradiation unit 12 and the developer application roller 13 are both arranged above and below the substrate 2. However, when there is no risk that the resist film will go around the lower surface of the substrate 2, the irradiation unit 12 and the developing The liquid application roller 13 can be omitted. However, when the developer application roller 13 is provided only on the upper surface side of the substrate 2, it is desirable to support the substrate 2 from the lower surface side at the contact position of the developer application roller 13. For example, in FIG. 3B, a support member such as a roller for supporting the substrate 2 may be provided instead of the developer application roller 13 provided on the lower surface side of the substrate 2.
[0020]
In the example of FIG. 3, each side of the substrate 2 is processed in order, but two or more sides may be processed in parallel by the plurality of irradiation units 12 and the developer application roller 13. The irradiation unit 12 and the developing solution applying roller 13 may be installed at fixed positions, and the substrate 2 may be moved to perform exposure of the peripheral portion 2a and application of the developing solution. Further, the processing performed by the work device 4 is not limited to the above, and various processes may be performed by the work device 4.
[0021]
As shown in FIG. 1, the transfer device 5 is configured as a robot hand having a pair of mutually parallel arms 15,15. Transfer is achieved by appropriately combining the longitudinal movement of the arm 15 in the longitudinal direction, the vertical movement of the arm 15 with respect to the base 16, and the horizontal turning movement of the arm 15 about the base 16. The device 5 can transfer the substrate 2 between the specific position P and each working device 4.
[0022]
Next, the overall operation of the processing apparatus 1 will be described.
[0023]
The substrate 2 having been subjected to the pattern exposure on the resist film is transported to a specific position P by the transport device 3. At this time, the pin 11 waits below the transport roller 10 as shown in FIG. When the loading of the substrate 2 to the specific position P is detected by the sensor 18 (FIG. 1), the control device 6 instructs the elevating device 7 to raise the pins 11, thereby causing the pins 11 to move as shown in FIG. And the substrate 2 is lifted from the transport roller 10 as shown in FIG. Thereafter, the control device 10 instructs the transfer device 5 to carry out the substrate 2. In response to this, as shown in FIG. 2C, the transfer device 5 inserts the arms 15, 15 into the lower surface side of the substrate 2 lifted by the pins 11, and then raises the arm 15 to move the arms 15 out of the pins 11. The substrate 2 is received. Then, the received substrate 2 is transferred to one of the working devices 4 in a work waiting state.
[0024]
The control device 6 monitors the work status of each work device 4, and when the work on the substrate 2 is completed in any of the work devices 4, the control device 6 transfers the work device 4 having completed the work to the transfer device 4. Instruct 5. In response to this, the transfer device 5 receives the substrate 2 from the instructed working device 4 and moves the substrate 2 above the pins 11 of the transfer device 3. After that, the transfer device 5 lowers the arm 15 to transfer the substrate 2 to the pins 11, and then pulls out the arm 15 from below the substrate 2 to notify the control device 6 that the loading of the substrate 2 has been completed. Thereafter, the control device 6 instructs the elevating device 7 to lower the pins 11, and in response, the elevating device 7 lowers the pins 11 as shown in FIG. As a result, the substrate 2 on which the exposure of the peripheral portion 2a and the application of the developing solution are completed is returned to the transport device 3. The substrate 2 is transported by the transport device 3 to a pattern developing device arranged on the downstream side (lower side in FIG. 1). On the other hand, with the transport of the substrate 2 to the downstream side of the specific position P, the next substrate 2 is transported to the specific position P. Thereafter, in the same manner, every time the substrate 2 is transported to the specific position P, the substrate 2 is transferred to the work device 4 in a work waiting state. Then, the substrate 2 processed by the work device 4 is returned to the transfer device 3 so as to replace the substrate 2 newly transferred to the work device 4 side. By repeating such processing, the substrate 2 flowing through the transport device 3 is sequentially processed by the working device 4 and sent to the pattern developing machine.
[0025]
As is clear from the above description, according to the processing apparatus 1 of the present embodiment, the substrate 2 is once taken out from the transfer apparatus 3 and the working unit 4 performs exposure of the peripheral portion 2a and application of the developer. In addition, there is no restriction of the transfer device 3 on the support condition of the substrate 2 when performing these processes. Therefore, various types of processing can be performed while appropriately supporting the substrates 2 of various sizes under conditions suitable for each, and it is possible to eliminate the possibility that undesired distortion may occur in the substrate 2 due to a defective support position. Since the processing is performed by any of the plurality of working devices 4 provided outside the transfer device 3, it is not necessary to stop the transfer device 3 until the processing is completed each time the substrate 2 is processed, thereby improving work efficiency.
[0026]
Even if it is necessary to stop the transfer device 3 while transferring the substrate 2 between the transfer device 3 and the transfer device 5, the time required to perform the exposure and the application of the developer to each substrate 2 is sufficient. The time is much shorter than the time, and the stop time of the transport device 3 is shortened, so that the production efficiency is greatly improved. Even if the processing time in the working device 4 is long, if a sufficient number of working devices 4 are prepared, at least one of the working devices can be used when one substrate 2 is transferred from the transfer device 3 to the working device 4. 4, a relationship in which the work is completed can be established, and as long as such a relationship is maintained, in the transfer device 3, the removal of the substrate 2 before processing and the return of the processed substrate 2 are constantly repeated. And the loss due to the stoppage of the transport device 3 can be minimized. Furthermore, since a plurality of working devices 4 are prepared, even when some working devices 4 become unusable due to failure or maintenance, the processing itself can be continued using other working devices 4, There is no need to stop the transport device 3 until the work device 4 is restored.
[0027]
The present invention is not limited to the above embodiment, but may be implemented in various forms. For example, the work is not limited to a glass substrate, but can be suitably processed by the present invention if the work is thin and it is necessary to avoid the occurrence of distortion. The processing for the work is not limited to the exposure of the resist film or the application of the developing solution, and various processing may be performed by the working apparatus of the present invention. The processing position is not limited to the peripheral part of the work. The working devices need not all have the same configuration. The present invention is included in the scope of the present invention as long as there are a plurality of working devices capable of executing at least one type of processing.
[0028]
【The invention's effect】
As described above, according to the present invention, since the work is taken out of the transfer path of the transfer device and the processing is performed by the work device, there is no restriction on the support of the work being processed by the transfer device. Therefore, it is possible to perform the processing while supporting the workpieces of various sizes under appropriate conditions, respectively, and it is possible to eliminate a possibility that the workpiece may be undesirably distorted due to a defective supporting position. Since the processing is performed by any one of the plurality of working devices provided outside the transfer device, it is not necessary to stop the transfer device until the processing is completed each time the work is processed, thereby improving the production efficiency. Therefore, it is possible to efficiently process even a work that is easily damaged, such as a large glass substrate.
[0029]
Since multiple working devices are prepared, even if some working devices become unavailable due to failure or maintenance, processing can be continued using other working devices, and until the working device is restored There is also an effect that it is not necessary to stop the transport device.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a plan view showing a substrate processing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a portion that moves a substrate up and down with respect to a transfer device.
FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating an outline of a process performed by a working device.
[Explanation of symbols]
1 processing equipment 2 substrate (work)
2a Peripheral part 3 Transport device 4 Work device 5 Transfer device 6 Control device 10 Transport roller 11 Pin 12 Irradiation unit 13 Developer coating roller

Claims (6)

A processing method for performing a predetermined process on a plurality of rectangular plate-shaped workpieces transported by the transport device,
Arranging a plurality of working devices for performing the processing outside the transport path of the transport device,
A method for processing a work, comprising: sequentially taking out the plurality of works from the transfer device, transferring the work to a work device that is in a work waiting state, and returning the work from the work device that has completed the work to the transfer device. 2. The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the work is a substrate for a color filter on which a resist film is formed, and a developer of the resist film is applied to a peripheral portion of the work by the working device. 3. Method. The work according to claim 1, wherein the work is a substrate for a color filter on which a positive resist film is formed, and the work device exposes the resist film to a peripheral portion of the work. Processing method. A transfer device for a rectangular flat work,
A plurality of working devices arranged side by side outside the transfer path of the transfer device and performing the same processing on each of the substrates,
A transfer device for transferring a substrate between each working device of the transfer device,
A processing device for a work, comprising: The work is a substrate for a color filter on which a resist film is formed, and as the working device, a developer application device that applies a developer for the resist film to a peripheral portion of the work is arranged. The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 4. The work is a substrate for a color filter on which a positive resist film is formed, and an exposure device that exposes the resist film to a peripheral portion of the substrate is disposed as the working device. Item 5. A workpiece processing apparatus according to Item 4.

Images