JP6651408B2 - Heat treatment equipment - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a heat treatment apparatus.

  2. Description of the Related Art A heat treatment apparatus for performing heat treatment on an object to be processed such as a semiconductor substrate is known (for example, see Patent Document 1). As an example of the heat treatment apparatus, the heat treatment apparatus described in Patent Literature 1 includes a heater surrounded by a heat insulating material, and a quartz tube surrounded by the heater. Further, a pipe penetrating the heat insulating material is connected, and a blower is connected to this pipe.

  After the object to be processed in the quartz tube is heat-treated by the heating of the heater, the cooling air is guided to the quartz tube by operating the blower. Thereby, the quartz tube and the object to be processed are cooled. At this time, the control unit that controls the blower controls the output of the heater and the air volume of the blower so that the deviation between the actual temperature of the quartz tube and the target temperature becomes zero. Thus, a configuration using a blower for forced cooling of a quartz tube is known.

Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 1-282619

  By the way, in a configuration in which a vessel such as a quartz tube is forcibly cooled using a blower, a configuration using a plurality of dampers can be considered. For example, in this configuration, the pipe connected to the blower has a plurality of branched pipes. A damper is connected to each branch pipe. The plurality of dampers supply cooling air from the blower to a plurality of locations along the longitudinal direction of the container, for example. The opening of each damper is adjusted, for example, by a manual operation by an operator. Then, the cooling air passes through the corresponding damper from the blower and is then applied to the container to cool the container. The operator manually adjusts the degree of opening of each damper so that the cooling rate of the container becomes as uniform as possible in each part of the container.

  On the other hand, the content and quantity of the object to be heat treated in the container are not always the same. That is, the total heat capacity of the objects in the container is not always the same. Further, the target cooling temperature and the cooling area of the container (the object to be processed) are not always the same every time. Furthermore, the frequency of the blower motor that drives the blower (for example, the rotation speed of the blower motor) may also differ depending on the condition of the power supply. As described above, when the opening degree of each damper is not adjusted when the cooling condition is different, the cooling speed of each part of the container varies.

  On the other hand, it is preferable from the viewpoint of performing a uniform heat treatment that the entire container and the plurality of objects to be processed are cooled as uniformly as possible regardless of the difference in cooling conditions. Therefore, the operator manually adjusts the opening degree of each damper according to the cooling condition. Thereby, the flow rate of the cooling air applied to the container from each damper is adjusted, and more uniform cooling of the container and the object to be processed is realized.

  As described above, it is preferable that an automatic adjustment operation is realized for a configuration in which the opening degree adjustment operation of each damper is performed manually.

  In view of the above circumstances, the present invention can more uniformly change the temperature of the processing target even when the temperature control condition changes, and can adjust the temperature of the processing target more uniformly. An object of the present invention is to provide a heat treatment apparatus capable of automatically performing an operation.

(1) In order to solve the above problem, a heat treatment apparatus according to an aspect of the present invention is configured to supply a container for accommodating the object to be processed and a medium for temperature adjustment to the container during heat treatment of the object. a medium supply portion including the reference valve and sub-valve, based on the opening degree of the reference valve, and a control unit for controlling the opening of the sub-valve, the control unit, the opening degree of the reference valve The opening degree of the sub-valve is controlled in a state where is constant, and the temperature at a location where the medium is supplied from the reference valve in the container, and the medium is supplied from the sub-valve in the container. to reduce the deviation between the temperature at the point that, that controls the degree of opening of the sub valve.

  According to this configuration, the control unit controls the manner in which the sub-valve supplies the medium. Thus, when a change occurs in the temperature control condition of the workpiece, the supply mode of the medium by the sub-valve can be changed. As a result, even when the temperature control condition of the object changes, the object can be cooled more uniformly. Further, as a result of controlling the medium supply mode by the sub-valve based on the medium supply mode by the reference valve, it is possible to more reliably suppress the divergence of the sub-valve control calculation. Therefore, more accurate temperature control for the object to be processed is realized. In addition, since the sub-valve is controlled by the control unit, there is no need to manually adjust the sub-valve. As described above, according to the present invention, even when a change occurs in the temperature control condition, the temperature of the object to be processed can be changed more uniformly, and an adjusting operation for changing the temperature of the object to be processed more uniformly can be performed. Can be realized automatically.

Furthermore , the control unit does not need to change the opening of the reference valve in the opening control of the sub-valve, so that the calculation required for controlling the sub-valve can be simplified. Further, in the opening control of the sub-valve, the occurrence of hunting can be suppressed more reliably.

( 2 ) The control unit is configured to control a flow rate of the medium supplied from the sub-valve to the container based on a temperature at a location in the container where the medium is supplied from the reference valve. May be.

  According to this configuration, the degree of temperature change of the container due to the medium supplied from the sub-valve to the container can be made more equal to the degree of temperature change of the container due to the medium supplied to the container from the reference valve.

( 3 ) A plurality of the sub-valves are provided, and the control unit may control each of the sub-valves so that one sub-valve and another sub-valve perform different operations.

  According to this configuration, the temperature of a wider area of the container can be uniformly changed by the operation of the plurality of sub-valves. Further, the temperature of each region of the container can be controlled more finely.

( 4 ) The control unit is configured to control each of the sub-valves using proportional control, and sets a control gain of one of the sub-valves and a control gain of another of the sub-valves to different values. May be.

  According to this configuration, the one sub-valve can further increase the response speed for realizing the target medium supply mode. On the other hand, the other sub-valves can lower the response speed for realizing the target medium supply mode. In this way, by combining the sub-valves having different response speeds to the target, it is possible to cause a more uniform temperature change in the container in which the heat tends to be biased.

( 5 ) The medium is a cooling medium for cooling the container, and a position where the cooling medium is supplied from one of the sub-valves to the container is the cooling medium from another sub-valve to the container. May be set higher than the position at which the sub-valve is supplied, and the control unit may set the control gain for one of the sub-valves larger than the control gain for the other sub-valve.

  According to this configuration, since the heat of the container goes upward, the amount of heat in the upper portion of the container tends to be larger than the amount of heat in the lower portion of the container. Therefore, by increasing the control gain of one sub-valve for cooling the upper side of the container, more medium can be supplied more quickly toward the upper side of the container. Thereby, the upper side of the container in which heat is easily stored can be more reliably cooled. On the other hand, by making the control gain of the other sub-valve that cools the lower part of the container smaller, it is possible to suppress the sudden supply of excessive medium toward the lower part of the container. Thus, it is possible to prevent the lower side of the container from which heat is relatively easy to escape from being cooled earlier than the other parts of the container. As a result, each part of the container is cooled more evenly.

( 8 ) The container includes an opening that is open to the outside of the container, and a back portion that is closed with respect to the outside of the container, wherein the medium is a cooling medium for cooling the container. Wherein the position at which the cooling medium is supplied from one of the sub-valves to the container is set closer to the innermost portion of the opening and the innermost portion, and the other is provided from the sub-valve to the container. The position at which the cooling medium is supplied is set near the opening of the opening and the back, and the control unit sets the control gain for one of the sub-valves to another of the sub-valves. May be set to be larger than the above control gain.

  According to this configuration, since the heat of the container tends to stay in the back, the amount of heat in the back of the container tends to be larger than the amount of heat in the opening of the container. Therefore, by increasing the control gain of one sub-valve that cools the back side of the container, more medium can be supplied more quickly toward the back side of the container. As a result, it is possible to more reliably cool the inner side of the container in which heat is easily stored. On the other hand, by further reducing the control gain of the other sub-valve that cools the opening side of the container, it is possible to suppress the sudden supply of excessive medium toward the opening side of the container. Thereby, it can suppress that the opening part side of a container to which heat relatively easily escapes is cooled earlier than the other part of a container. As a result, each part of the container is cooled more evenly.

( 8 ) A plurality of the sub-valves may be provided, and the outlet position of the medium from the reference valve may be set between the outlet positions of the medium from the respective sub-valves.

  According to this configuration, the temperature of the wider area of the container can be more uniformly changed by the medium by the plurality of valves. Further, in a region of the container other than the position where the medium is supplied from the reference valve, the ratio of the medium disposed from the position where the medium is supplied from the reference valve can be increased. As a result, the temperature difference between the area where the medium is supplied from the reference valve and the area where the medium is supplied from the reference valve can be reduced over a wider area of the container.

  According to the present invention, even when a change occurs in the temperature control condition, the temperature of the object can be more uniformly changed, and the adjustment operation for uniformly changing the temperature of the object is automatically performed. And a heat treatment apparatus that can perform the heat treatment.

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram showing a cross section of a part of a heat treatment apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention, showing a state where the heat treatment apparatus is viewed from a side. It is a figure which expands and shows the principal part of the heat processing apparatus of FIG. It is sectional drawing of the damper provided in the refrigerant | coolant supply part of a heat processing apparatus, and has shown the state which looked at the damper from the side. It is a flowchart for explaining an example of the cooling operation in the heat treatment apparatus.

  Hereinafter, embodiments for carrying out the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. Note that the present invention can be widely applied as a heat treatment apparatus for heat treating an object to be treated.

  FIG. 1 is a schematic view showing a cross section of a part of a heat treatment apparatus 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention, and shows a state where the heat treatment apparatus 1 is viewed from a side. FIG. 2 is an enlarged view showing a main part of the heat treatment apparatus 1 of FIG. FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view of the damper 30 provided in the medium supply unit 7 of the heat treatment apparatus 1 and shows a state where the damper 30 is viewed from a side.

  Referring to FIG. 1, heat treatment apparatus 1 is configured to be capable of performing a heat treatment on workpiece 100. More specifically, the heat treatment apparatus 1 is configured to be capable of performing a heat treatment on the surface of the processing target 100 by supplying a heated gas toward the processing target 100. Further, the heat treatment apparatus 1 is configured to be able to forcibly cool the workpiece 100 using air as a medium as cooling air.

  The workpiece 100 is, for example, a glass substrate or a semiconductor substrate.

  The heat treatment apparatus 1 includes a base plate 2, a heater 3, a chamber 4 as a container, a boat 5, a lifting mechanism 6, and a medium supply unit 7.

  The base plate 2 is provided as a member that supports the heater 3 and the chamber 4. In the center of the base plate 2, a through hole 2a is formed. The heater 3 is arranged so as to close the through hole 2a from above.

  The heater 3 is, for example, an electric heater, and is configured to be able to heat a gas to, for example, about 600 ° C. The heater 3 is formed in a box shape as a whole. The heater 3 has a cylindrical side wall 3a extending in the vertical direction (vertical direction), and a top wall 3b closing an upper end of the side wall 3a. At the lower end of the side wall 3a, an opening that is opened downward is formed. The lower end of the side wall 3 a of the heater 3 is received by the base plate 2. A chamber 4 is arranged in a space surrounded by the heater 3.

  The chamber 4 is configured as a container for accommodating the object 100 when the object 100 is heat-treated. The chamber 4 is formed in a cylindrical shape as a whole. The upper end of the chamber 4 is closed. The chamber 4 is open downward. The lower end of the chamber 4 is received by the base plate 2. The space in the chamber 4 is opened to a space below the base plate 2 through the through hole 2 a of the base plate 2. As described above, the chamber 4 includes the opening 4 d opened to the outside of the chamber 4 and the back part 4 e having a shape closed to the outside of the chamber 4.

  At the time of the heat treatment operation in the heat treatment apparatus 1, the object to be processed 100 is arranged in the space inside the chamber 4. The processing object 100 is supported by the boat 5, for example, in a state where the processing object 100 is arranged horizontally.

  The boat 5 is provided for disposing the workpiece 100 in the chamber 4. The boat 5 has, for example, a plurality of slots arranged vertically, and a plurality of objects to be processed 100 are held in these slots. The boat 5 is supported by an elevating mechanism 6, and can be displaced in the vertical direction together with the workpiece 100 by the operation of the elevating mechanism 6. By the operation of the elevating mechanism 6, the workpiece 100 and the boat 5 are moved in and out of the chamber 4.

  In a state where the boat 5 and the workpiece 100 are arranged in the chamber 4, the lower end of the chamber 4 and the through hole 2 a of the base plate 2 are closed by the flange 8 connected to the boat 5. As a result, the workpiece 100 and the boat 5 are sealed in the chamber 4. In this state, the workpiece 100 is heated by the heater 3. After the heating of the object 100 by the heater 3 is completed, the object 100, the boat 5 and the chamber 4 are forcibly cooled by the cooling air supplied from the medium supply unit 7.

  The medium supply unit 7 forcibly supplies cooling air as a cooling medium for temperature adjustment to a space 10 formed between the heater 3 and the chamber 4, so that the chamber 4 and the workpiece 100 are cooled. Is configured to cool. The space 10 is a space formed between the base plate 2, the chamber 4 disposed on the base plate 2, and the heater 3. This space 10 surrounds the outer periphery of the chamber 4 over the entire periphery. The space 10 is a space that covers the upper end of the chamber 4 from above. In FIG. 1, the flow of the cooling air is schematically shown by an arrow A1. In the present embodiment, the medium supply unit 7 is configured to control the supply mode of the cooling air to the space 10 by electronic control.

  The medium supply unit 7 includes a blower unit 11, a supply pipe 12, a manifold 13, a damper unit 14, an exhaust pipe 15, an exhaust cooler 16, a sensor unit 17, and a control unit 18. .

  The blower unit 11 is provided to take in air existing outside the heater 3 and supply the air to the supply pipe 12 as cooling air.

  The blower unit 11 has a blower 21 and a blower motor 22 for driving the blower 21.

  The blower 21 is, for example, a centrifugal blower, and is configured to suck air existing outside the heater 3, pressurize the air, and output the compressed air as cooling air. The blower 21 has an impeller (not shown). The impeller is connected to an output shaft of the blower motor 22 and operates by driving the blower motor 22. The blower motor 22 is an electric motor in the present embodiment. The blower motor 22 generates an output according to the frequency of the applied power.

  The air sucked into the blower 21 may be at room temperature or may be cooled in advance by a cooler (not shown). One end of the supply pipe 12 is connected to a discharge port of the blower 21.

  The supply pipe 12 is a pipe that extends substantially straight. The supply pipe 12 may be a rigid metal pipe or an elastically deformable flexible pipe. The other end of the supply pipe 12 is connected to the manifold 13.

  The manifold 13 is provided for distributing cooling air to each of a plurality of dampers 30 described later of the damper unit 14. The manifold 13 is formed using, for example, a cylindrical metal tube having a predetermined diameter. In the present embodiment, both ends of the manifold 13 are closed. In the present embodiment, the manifold 13 extends in a direction substantially orthogonal to the direction in which the supply pipe 12 extends.

  More specifically, in the present embodiment, the manifold 13 extends in the up-down direction and is arranged along a direction parallel to the longitudinal direction of the chamber 4. The manifold 13 is arranged on the side of the heater 3 (in other words, on the side of the chamber 4).

  In the present embodiment, the supply pipe 12 is connected to the outer peripheral portion of the upper end of the manifold 13. With the above configuration, the cooling air that has passed through the supply pipe 12 enters the manifold 13 and then proceeds downward in the manifold 13. Then, the cooling air is sent to the damper 30 of the damper unit 14.

  The damper unit 14 is provided to supply the cooling air sent to the manifold 13 to each of the upper part 4a, the middle part 4b, and the lower part 4c of the chamber 4. In the present embodiment, the damper unit 14 is disposed between the manifold 13 and the heater 3.

  The damper unit 14 has a plurality of dampers 30. In the present embodiment, as the plurality of dampers 30, a reference damper 32 and a first sub-damper 31 and a second sub-damper 33 as a plurality of sub-dampers are provided. Note that the dampers 31, 32, and 33 are collectively referred to as a damper 30.

  The reference damper 32 is provided as a reference valve for supplying cooling air to the chamber 4. The sub dampers 31 and 33 are provided as sub valves for supplying the cooling air to the chamber 4. The first sub damper 31 is an example of the “one sub valve” of the present invention. The second sub damper 33 is an example of the “other sub valve” of the present invention. Each damper 30 is configured such that the opening can be adjusted. That is, the flow rate of the cooling air passing through each damper 30 can be adjusted.

  The first sub damper 31 is configured to supply cooling air toward the upper part 4a of the chamber 4. The reference damper 32 is configured to supply cooling air toward the intermediate portion 4b of the chamber 4. The second sub-damper 33 is configured to supply cooling air toward the lower part 4c of the chamber 4.

  The first sub-damper 31, the reference damper 32, and the second sub-damper 33 are arranged in this order along a vertical direction which is a longitudinal direction of the chamber 4. That is, the reference damper 32 is disposed below the first sub damper 31. Further, a second sub-damper 33 is arranged below the reference damper 32.

  With reference to FIGS. 1 to 3, the damper 30 (that is, each of the reference damper 32 and the sub dampers 31 and 33) includes an inlet pipe 41, a valve box 42, a support shaft 43, a valve body 44, and a damper motor 45. And outlet pipes 46 and 47.

  In the present embodiment, an example in which the reference damper 32 is an electric damper including the damper motor 45 will be described as an example, but this is not essential. For example, the reference damper 32 may be a damper that is not provided with the damper motor 45 and that is a manually-operated opening adjustment type that can be fixed manually and that can fix the opening of the valve body 44.

  The inlet pipe 41 is connected to the manifold 13 and the valve box 42, and is configured to introduce cooling air from the manifold 13 into the valve box 42. The inner diameter of the inlet pipe 41 is set smaller than the inner diameter of the manifold 13. One end of the inlet pipe 41 is connected to the outer peripheral portion of the manifold 13.

  The inlet pipe 41 of the first sub damper 31 is connected to an upper part of the manifold 13. The inlet pipe 41 of the reference damper 32 is connected to an intermediate portion of the manifold 13. The inlet pipe 41 of the second sub damper 33 is connected to a lower part of the manifold 13. The inlet pipe 41 extends horizontally from the manifold 13 toward the corresponding valve box 42.

  The valve box 42 is formed in, for example, a hollow quadrangular prism shape. The other end of the inlet pipe 41 is connected to one side wall of the valve box 42. The cooling air that has passed through the inlet pipe 41 is guided into the valve box 42. The valve box 42 accommodates a support shaft 43 and a valve body 44.

  The support shaft 43 is supported by the valve box 42 and supports the valve body 44 so as to be able to swing around the support shaft 43. In the present embodiment, the support shaft 43 is connected to the valve body 44 so as to be integrally rotatable. The support shaft 43 extends, for example, in the horizontal direction, and is disposed adjacent to the inlet pipe 41. A part of the support shaft 43 passes through the valve box 42 and is connected to an output shaft 49 of the damper motor 45.

  The damper motor 45 is provided to set the valve opening of the damper 30 by swinging the valve body 44 around the support shaft 43.

  The damper motor 45 has a motor housing 48 and an output shaft 49 supported by the motor housing 48.

  The damper motor 45 is an electric motor such as a servomotor configured to be able to control the rotational position. The damper motor 45 is configured to receive a control signal from the control unit 18 and change the rotational position of the output shaft 49 of the damper motor 45.

  The motor housing 48 is fixed to the valve box 42, for example. The output shaft 49 of the damper motor 45 is connected to the support shaft 43 so as to be able to rotate in conjunction therewith. The output shaft 49 may be connected to the support shaft 43 so as to be integrally rotatable, or may be connected to the support shaft 43 via a speed reduction mechanism (not shown) so as to be able to rotate in conjunction therewith. With the above configuration, the rotational position of the output shaft 49 is set by driving the damper motor 45, and accordingly, the rotational position of the valve body 44 around the support shaft 43 (that is, the opening of the damper 30) is set.

  The valve body 44 is configured to open and close the other end of the inlet pipe 41. The valve body 44 is formed using, for example, a rectangular plate-shaped member. One edge of the valve body 44 is connected to the support shaft 43. The valve body 44 is arranged so as to close the inlet pipe 41 in a vertically upright posture, for example.

  The valve body 44 is disposed at the fully open position P2 by rotating, for example, several tens of degrees around the support shaft 43 from a vertically upright posture. That is, when the valve element 44 is at the fully closed position P1, which is the vertical position, the opening of the damper 30 is zero. When the valve element 44 is at the predetermined fully open position P2 rotated several tens of degrees from the vertical position, the opening degree of the damper 30 becomes 100%.

  The relationship between the rotational position of the valve body 44 and the opening of the damper 30 is determined according to the structure of the damper 30. Therefore, the relationship between the rotational position of the valve body 44 and the opening of the damper 30 may be linear or non-linear. In the present embodiment, the relationship between the rotational position of the valve body 44 and the rotational position of the damper 30 is stored in the control unit 18 in advance.

  When the valve body 44 opens the other end of the inlet pipe 41, the cooling air from the inlet pipe 41 is introduced into the valve body 44 and is further guided to outlet pipes 46 and 47.

  In the present embodiment, each of the dampers 31, 32, 33 is provided with two outlet pipes (ie, outlet pipes 46, 47). The outlet pipes 46 and 47 are provided for connecting a space in the corresponding valve box 42 and the space 10 formed in the heater 3. One end of each of the outlet pipes 46 and 47 is connected to one side wall of the corresponding valve box 42.

  The other ends of the outlet pipes 46 and 47 penetrate the side wall 3 a of the heater 3 and face the space 10. In each of the dampers 31, 32, and 33, the other end of the outlet pipe 46 and the other end of the outlet pipe 47 are arranged at equal intervals (in the present embodiment, at 180-degree intervals) in the circumferential direction of the side wall 3a of the heater 3. Are located.

  The other ends of the outlet pipes 46 and 47 of the first sub damper 31 are disposed so as to face the upper part 4 a of the chamber 4 horizontally. The other ends of the outlet pipes 46 and 47 of the reference damper 32 are disposed so as to face the intermediate portion 4b of the chamber 4 horizontally. The other ends of the outlet pipes 46 and 47 of the second sub damper 33 are disposed so as to face the lower part 4 c of the chamber 4 horizontally.

  With the above configuration, the position where the cooling air is supplied from the first sub-damper 31 to the chamber 4 (that is, the other end position of the outlet pipes 46 and 47 of the first sub-damper 31) is the position where the cooling air is supplied from the second sub-damper 33 to the chamber 4. (Ie, the other end positions of the outlet pipes 46 and 47 of the second sub-damper 33).

  The position where the cooling air is supplied from the first sub damper 31 to the chamber 4 is set closer to the inner part 4e of the opening 4d and the inner part 4e. The position at which the cooling air is supplied from the second sub-damper 33 to the chamber 4 is set closer to the opening 4d of the opening 4d and the back 4e.

  Further, between the other end positions of the outlet pipes 46 and 47 which are the outlets of the cooling air from the first sub damper 31, and the other end positions of the outlet pipes 46 and 47 which are the outlets of the cooling air from the second sub damper 33. The positions of the other ends of the outlet pipes 46 and 47 which are the outlets of the cooling air from the reference damper 32 are set.

  In the present embodiment, the other ends of the outlet pipes 46 of the dampers 31, 32, 33 are aligned in the circumferential direction of the chamber 4. Similarly, the other ends of the outlet pipes 47 of the dampers 31, 32, 33 are aligned in the circumferential direction of the chamber 4.

  With the above configuration, the cooling air that has passed through the first sub-damper 31 is supplied to the space 10 so as to head toward the upper part 4 a of the chamber 4. Further, the cooling air that has passed through the reference damper 32 is supplied to the space 10 so as to be directed to the intermediate portion 4 b of the chamber 4. Further, the cooling air that has passed through the second sub-damper 33 is supplied to the space 10 so as to go to the lower part 4 c of the chamber 4. The cooling air supplied to the space 10 flows toward the exhaust pipe 15 while absorbing heat from the chamber 4.

  The exhaust pipe 15 passes through the top wall 3b of the heater 3. One end of the exhaust pipe 15 faces the space 10. The exhaust pipe 15 guides the cooling air that has reached the upper end of the space 10 to the other end of the exhaust pipe 15. The exhaust pipe 15 is connected to an exhaust cooler 16 in a space outside the heater 3. The exhaust cooler 16 cools the cooling air that has absorbed the heat from the chamber 4. The cooling air cooled by passing through the exhaust cooler 16 is discharged to a space outside the heat treatment apparatus 1.

  With the above configuration, the cooling air reaches the space 10 from the blower 21 through the supply pipes 12 and the manifolds 13 and the corresponding dampers 31, 32, and 33, and further reaches the exhaust pipe 15 and the exhaust cooler 16 Through the heat treatment apparatus 1. The temperature of the chamber 4 at a position adjacent to the other ends of the outlet pipes 46, 47 of the dampers 31, 32, 33 is detected by the sensor unit 17.

  More specifically, the sensor unit 17 detects the temperature of the chamber 4 at a position facing the other end of the outlet pipe 46 of the first sub damper 31 and the temperature of the chamber 4 at a position facing the other end of the outlet pipe 46 of the reference damper 32. The temperature and the temperature of the chamber 4 at a position facing the other end of the outlet pipe 46 of the second sub damper 33 are detected.

  The sensor unit 17 has temperature sensors 51 to 53.

  The temperature sensors 51 to 53 are, for example, electric temperature sensors such as thermocouples, and are configured to output an electric signal specifying a detected temperature. The temperature sensors 51 to 53 are supported by the heater 3 at a position adjacent to the chamber 4, for example.

  The temperature sensor 51 is arranged adjacent to the outer peripheral surface of the upper part 4 a of the chamber 4, and is adjacent to the other end of the outlet pipe 46 of the first sub damper 31. The temperature sensor 51 detects the temperature of the upper part 4a of the chamber 4 horizontally facing the outlet pipe 46 of the first sub-damper 31 as a chamber upper part temperature T1.

  The temperature sensor 52 is disposed adjacent to the outer peripheral surface of the intermediate portion 4b of the chamber 4, and is adjacent to the other end of the outlet pipe 46 of the reference damper 32. The temperature sensor 52 detects the temperature of the intermediate portion 4b of the chamber 4 horizontally facing the outlet pipe 46 of the reference damper 32 as a chamber intermediate portion temperature T2.

  The temperature sensor 53 is arranged adjacent to the outer peripheral surface of the lower part 4 c of the chamber 4, and is adjacent to the other end of the outlet pipe 46 of the second sub damper 33. The temperature sensor 53 detects the temperature of the lower portion 4c of the chamber 4 horizontally facing the outlet pipe 46 of the second sub-damper 33 as a lower chamber temperature T3. The temperature detection results of the temperature sensors 51 to 53 are provided to the control unit 18.

  The control unit 18 is configured to control the supply mode of the cooling air by the sub dampers 31 and 33 based on the supply mode of the cooling air by the reference damper 32. The control unit 18 is formed using a PLC (Programmable Logic Controller) or the like. The control unit 18 may be formed using a computer including a CPU (Central Processing Unit), a ROM (Read Only Memory), and a RAM (Random Access Memory), or may be formed using a sequence circuit or the like. You may.

  The control unit 18 is connected to each of the temperature sensors 51 to 53, and receives an electric signal for specifying the chamber temperatures T1 to T3, which is the temperature detection result of the temperature sensors 51 to 53. The control unit 18 is connected to the blower motor 22, and controls the flow of the cooling air supplied from the blower 21 by controlling the drive of the blower motor 22.

  The control unit 18 is connected to the damper motor 45 of the first sub-damper 31, the damper motor 45 of the reference damper 32, and the damper motor 45 of the second sub-damper 33, and controls the operation of these motors 45 individually.

  In the present embodiment, the control unit 18 controls the respective opening degrees of the first sub-damper 31 and the second sub-damper 33 based on a state where the opening degree of the reference damper 32 is constant. More specifically, when the medium supply unit 7 starts the operation of cooling the chamber 4 and the workpiece 100, the control unit 18 first sets the opening of the reference damper 32.

  At this time, the opening degree of the reference damper 32 is set to, for example, 50%. As described above, the control unit 18 controls the damper motor 45 of the reference damper 32 so that the opening degree of the reference damper 32 is 50%, for example, the valve body 44 is disposed at a half position between the fully closed position P1 and the fully opened position P2. Drive. As described above, by setting the opening degree of the reference damper 32 to 50% between 0% and 100%, the adjustment width of the flow rate of the cooling air from each of the sub dampers 31 and 33 with respect to the flow rate of the cooling air from the reference damper 32 is adjusted. Can be made larger.

  The opening degree of the reference damper 32 depends on the heat capacity of the object 100 (specifically, the number, material, and volume of the object 100), the target cooling temperature of the object 100, the operating frequency of the blower motor 22, and the like. The setting may be appropriately set by the control unit 18 accordingly.

  Further, the control unit 18 supplies the chamber 4 from the outlet pipes 46 and 47 of the sub dampers 31 and 33 to the chamber 4 based on the chamber intermediate temperature T2 in the intermediate part 4b of the chamber 4 to which the cooling air is supplied from the reference damper 32. It is configured to control the flow rate of cooling air to be supplied. More specifically, the control unit 18 determines the temperature (chamber middle part temperature T2) at a location in the chamber 4 to which the cooling air is supplied from the reference damper 32 and the cooling air from the sub-dampers 31 and 33 in the chamber 4. The degree of opening of each of the sub-dampers 31, 33 is feedback-controlled so as to reduce the deviation from the supplied temperatures (upper chamber temperature T1, lower chamber temperature T3) in the upper part 4a and the lower part 4c.

  The control unit 18 is configured to individually control each of the dampers 31, 32, and 33 using proportional control. In the present embodiment, the control unit 18 individually controls the damper motors 45 of the dampers 31, 32, and 33 by PID control (Proportional Integral Differential Control), thereby controlling the dampers 31, 32, and 33. Control the opening degree. The control unit 18 may control each of the dampers 31, 32, and 33 by another control method such as PI control (Proportional Integral Control).

  The control unit 18 controls each sub-damper 31, 33 so that the first sub-damper 31 and the second sub-damper 33 perform different operations. Specifically, the control unit 18 sets the control gain kp1 of the first sub-damper 31 and the control gain kp2 of the second sub-damper 33 to different values. In the present embodiment, the control unit 18 sets the control gain kp1 of the first sub-damper 31 that supplies the cooling air to the upper part 4a of the chamber 4 to the control gain kp2 of the second sub-damper 33 that supplies the cooling air to the lower part 4c of the chamber 4. (Kp1> kp2).

  Next, an example of a cooling operation in the heat treatment apparatus 1 will be described. The cooling operation in the heat treatment apparatus 1 is performed, for example, after the heating operation of the heater 3 is stopped. FIG. 4 is a flowchart for explaining an example of the cooling operation in the heat treatment apparatus 1. When the description is made with reference to flowcharts, the description will be made with appropriate reference to figures other than the flowcharts.

  Referring to FIG. 4, at the start of the cooling operation, control unit 18 first operates cooling fan 22 to introduce cooling air into medium supply unit 7 (step S1).

  Next, the controller 18 controls the opening of the reference damper 32 (Step S2). That is, the control unit 18 sets the target opening of the reference damper 32, and further sets the opening of the reference damper 32 to a value corresponding to the target opening by driving the damper motor 45 of the reference damper 32. I do.

  Next, the control unit 18 measures the chamber middle part temperature T2 by referring to the chamber middle part temperature T2 (Step S3).

  Next, the controller 18 controls the opening of the first sub damper 31 (Step S4). That is, the control unit 18 sets the target opening of the first sub-damper 31 and drives the damper motor 45 of the first sub-damper 31 to set the opening of the first sub-damper 31 to a value corresponding to the target opening. Set the degree. At this time, the control unit 18 calculates a target temperature T1t based on the detected chamber middle temperature T2. Then, the control unit 18 controls the opening degree of the first sub damper 31 such that the deviation (T1t-T1) between the target temperature T1t and the chamber upper temperature T1 decreases.

  Further, the control unit 18 controls the opening degree of the second sub damper 33 (Step S5). That is, the control unit 18 sets the target opening degree of the second sub-damper 33, and further drives the damper motor 45 of the second sub-damper 33 to set the opening degree of the second sub-damper 33 to a value corresponding to the target opening degree. Set the degree. At this time, the control unit 18 calculates a target temperature T3t based on the detected chamber middle temperature T2. Then, the control unit 18 controls the opening degree of the second sub-damper 33 so that the deviation (T3t-T3) between the target temperature T3t and the lower chamber temperature T3 decreases.

  In addition, the order of the opening control of the first sub-damper 31 (step S4) and the opening control of the second sub-damper 33 (step S5) may be interchanged, or these steps S4 and S5 may be performed in parallel. Good.

  Next, the controller 18 measures the upper chamber temperature T1, the middle chamber temperature T2, and the lower chamber temperature T3 (step S6). Then, the control unit 18 determines whether or not these temperatures T1 to T3 have reached the target temperature Tft for completing the cooling operation (Step S7).

  When the temperatures T1 to T3 have reached the target temperature Tft (YES in step S8), the control unit 18 stops the operation of the blower motor 22 (step S8), and ends the cooling operation of the chamber 4 and the workpiece 100. .

  On the other hand, when the temperatures T1 to T3 have not reached the target temperature Tft at which the cooling operation has been completed (NO in step S8), the control unit 18 performs control after step S3 again.

  As described above, according to the present embodiment, the control unit 18 controls the supply mode of the cooling air by the sub dampers 31 and 33 based on the supply mode of the cooling air by the reference damper 32. According to this configuration, the supply mode of the cooling air by the sub dampers 31 and 33 is controlled by the control unit 18. Thereby, when a change occurs in the temperature control condition of the processing target 100 such as the number of the processing target 100, the supply mode of the cooling air by the sub dampers 31 and 33 can be changed. As a result, even when the temperature control condition of the object 100 changes, the object 100 can be cooled more uniformly. In addition, as a result of the control of the supply of cooling air by the sub-dampers 31 and 33 based on the supply of cooling air by the reference damper 32, the divergence of the control calculations of the sub-dampers 31 and 33 can be suppressed more reliably. Therefore, more accurate temperature control of the processing object 100 is realized. Further, since the sub dampers 31 and 33 are controlled by the control unit 18, there is no need to manually adjust the sub dampers 31 and 33. As described above, even when a change occurs in the temperature control condition, the temperature of the object 100 can be changed more uniformly, and the adjustment operation for changing the temperature of the object 100 more automatically is automatically performed. Can be realized.

  Further, according to the present embodiment, the control unit 18 controls the opening degrees of the sub dampers 31 and 33 based on the state where the opening degree of the reference damper 32 is constant. According to this configuration, the control unit 18 does not need to change the opening of the reference damper 32 in the opening control of the sub-damper 30, so that the calculation required for controlling the sub-dampers 31 and 33 can be simplified. Further, in the opening control of the sub dampers 31, 33, hunting can be more reliably suppressed.

  Further, according to the present embodiment, the control unit 18 controls the sub dampers 31 and 33 to control the temperature of the chamber 4 based on the temperature in the intermediate portion 4b of the chamber 4 to which the cooling air is supplied from the reference damper 32 (chamber intermediate portion temperature T2). It is configured to control the flow rate of the cooling air supplied to the air conditioner. According to this configuration, the degree of temperature change in the upper portion 4a and the lower portion 4c of the chamber 4 due to the cooling air supplied to the chamber 4 from the sub dampers 31, 33 is determined by the cooling air supplied to the intermediate portion 4b of the chamber 4 from the reference damper 32. It can be made more equal to the degree of temperature change of the intermediate portion 4b of the chamber 4.

  Further, according to the present embodiment, the control unit 18 determines the deviation (T2−T1) between the chamber intermediate temperature T2 and the upper chamber temperature T1, and the deviation (T2−T2) between the chamber intermediate temperature T2 and the lower chamber temperature T3. The opening degree of the sub dampers 31, 33 is controlled so as to reduce each of T3). According to this configuration, the temperature at the intermediate portion 4b of the chamber 4 to which the cooling air is supplied from the reference damper 32 (the chamber intermediate portion temperature T3), and the cooling air is supplied from the sub-dampers 31 and 33 of the chamber 4. The controller 18 can control the sub-dampers 31 and 33 so that the temperatures at the upper portion 4a and the lower portion 4c of the chamber 4 (the chamber upper temperature T1 and the chamber lower temperature T2) become more equal.

  Further, according to the present embodiment, the control unit 18 controls each sub-damper 31, 33 so that the first sub-damper 31 and the second sub-damper 33 perform different operations. According to this configuration, the temperature of a wider area of the chamber 4 can be uniformly changed by the operation of the plurality of sub-dampers 31 and 33. Further, the temperature of each region of the chamber 4 can be controlled more finely.

  Further, according to the present embodiment, the control unit 18 is configured to control each of the sub-dampers 31 and 33 using the proportional-integral-derivative control, and to control the control gain kp1 of the first sub-damper 31 and the control of the second sub-damper 33. The gain kp2 is set to a different value. According to this configuration, the first sub-damper 31 can increase the response speed for realizing the target cooling air supply mode (that is, the opening degree). On the other hand, the second sub-damper 33 can lower the response speed for realizing the target cooling air supply mode (that is, the opening degree). In this way, by combining the sub dampers 31 and 33 having different response speeds to the target opening, it is possible to cause a more uniform temperature change in the chamber 4 in which the bias of heat is likely to occur.

  More specifically, the position where the cooling air is supplied from the first sub damper 31 to the chamber 4 is set higher than the position where the cooling air is supplied from the second sub damper 33 to the chamber 4. The control unit 18 sets the control gain kp1 for the first sub-damper 31 to be larger than the control gain kp2 for the second sub-damper 33. According to this configuration, since the heat in the chamber 4 goes upward, the amount of heat in the upper portion 4a of the chamber 4 tends to be larger than the amount of heat in the lower portion 4b of the chamber 4. Therefore, by increasing the control gain kp1 of the first sub-damper 31 for cooling the upper part 4a side of the chamber 4, more cooling air can be supplied to the upper part 4a side of the chamber 4 more quickly. Thereby, the upper part 4a side of the chamber 4 in which heat is easily stored can be more reliably cooled. On the other hand, by making the control gain kp2 of the second sub-damper 33 for cooling the lower part 4c side of the chamber 4 smaller, it is possible to suppress the sudden supply of excessive cooling air toward the lower part 4c side of the chamber 4. . Thus, it is possible to prevent the lower portion 4c side of the chamber 4 from which heat is relatively easy to escape from being cooled before the other portions of the chamber 4 are cooled. As a result, each part of the chamber 4 is cooled more uniformly.

  The position where the cooling air is supplied from the first sub damper 31 to the chamber 4 is set closer to the inner part 4e of the opening 4d and the inner part 4e. The position at which the cooling air is supplied from the second sub-damper 33 to the chamber 4 is set closer to the opening 4d of the opening 4d and the back 4e. The control unit 18 sets the control gain kp1 for the first sub-damper 31 to be larger than the control gain kp2 for the second sub-damper 33. According to this configuration, since the heat of the chamber 4 tends to be trapped in the inner part 4e, the amount of heat in the inner part 4e tends to be larger than the amount of heat in the opening 4d. Therefore, by increasing the control gain kp1 relating to the first sub-damper 31 that cools the inner part 4e, more cooling air can be supplied more quickly toward the inner part 4e of the chamber 4. Thereby, the inner side 4e side of the chamber 4 in which heat is easily stored can be more reliably cooled. On the other hand, by making the control gain kp2 related to the second sub-damper 33 for cooling the side of the opening 4d of the chamber 4 smaller, it is possible to prevent excessive cooling air from being rapidly supplied toward the side of the opening 4d of the chamber 4. Can be suppressed. Accordingly, it is possible to prevent the opening 4 d side of the chamber 4 from which heat is relatively easy to escape from being cooled before the other parts of the chamber 4 are cooled. As a result, each part of the chamber 4 is cooled more uniformly.

  Further, between the other end positions of the outlet pipes 46 and 47 of the first sub damper 31 and the other end positions of the outlet pipes 46 and 47 of the second sub damper 33, the other end positions of the outlet pipes 46 and 47 of the reference damper 32 are provided. Is set. According to this configuration, the plurality of dampers 31, 32, and 33 allow the temperature of a wider area of the chamber 4 to be more uniformly changed by the cooling air. In addition, in a region other than the portion (intermediate portion 4b) of the chamber 4 to which the cooling air from the reference damper 32 is supplied, the proportion of the cooling air supplied from the reference damper 32 near the portion to be supplied is increased. Can be larger. As a result, the temperature difference between the cooling air from the reference damper 32 and the intermediate portion 4b can be reduced over a wider area of the chamber 4.

  Although the embodiments of the present invention have been described above, the present invention is not limited to the above embodiments. Various changes can be made to the present invention as long as they are described in the claims.

  (1) In the above embodiment, an example was described in which the opening degree of the reference damper 32 was constant while the opening degree control of each of the sub dampers 31 and 33 was being performed. However, this need not be the case. For example, while the opening control of each of the sub dampers 31 and 33 is being performed, the opening of the reference damper 32 may be periodically changed by the control unit 18 or human power.

  (2) In the above embodiment, an example in which the air volume of the blower 21 is constant has been described. However, this need not be the case. For example, the air volume of the blower 21 may be changed by the control unit 18 according to the temperature T1, T2, T3, etc. of each part of the chamber 4.

  (3) In the above-described embodiment, an example has been described in which the medium supply unit 7 starts the cooling process of the chamber 4 and the workpiece 100 after the heating operation of the heater 3 is completed. However, this need not be the case. For example, the medium supply unit 7 may be operated in cooperation with the heater 3 so that the cooling air may be supplied from the medium supply unit 7 to the chamber 4 during the stop operation of the heater 3.

  (4) In the above embodiment, an example in which two sub-dampers are provided has been described as an example. However, this need not be the case. For example, the number of sub-dampers may be one, or three or more.

  (5) In the above-described embodiment, an example in which the control unit 18 controls the opening degrees of the dampers 31, 32, and 33 has been described as an example. However, this need not be the case. For example, the control unit 18 may control other elements such as the pressure of the cooling air passing through the dampers 31, 32, and 33.

  (6) In the above embodiment, the damper has been described as an example of the valve member for controlling the cooling air. However, this need not be the case. For example, as the valve member for controlling the cooling air, another valve member having a configuration capable of adjusting the opening degree of the valve body, such as an electromagnetic valve, may be used.

  (7) In the above-described embodiment, the case where the present invention is applied to a furnace used for heating evaporation and the like has been described as an example. However, this need not be the case. For example, the present invention may be applied to a heat treatment apparatus having another furnace such as a hot air circulation furnace.

  (8) Also, in the above-described embodiment, an example in which air is used as the heat treatment medium has been described. However, this need not be the case. For example, a gas other than air may be used as the heat treatment medium, or a liquid such as water may be used. When a liquid is used as the heat treatment medium, a pump is used instead of a blower.

  (9) Further, in the above-described embodiment, an example has been described in which the coolant supply unit 7 cools the chamber 4 and the workpiece 100. However, this need not be the case. For example, the configuration of the present invention may be used when heating a container such as the chamber 4 and the object 100 to be processed. In this case, each of the dampers 31, 32, and 33 supplies a heat treatment medium such as heated air to the chamber 4.

  (10) In the above-described embodiment, an example in which the chamber 4 is a vertical furnace has been described. However, this need not be the case. For example, the present invention may be applied to a heat treatment apparatus having a horizontally arranged chamber.

  The present invention can be widely applied as a heat treatment apparatus.

1 heat treatment equipment 4 chamber (container)
4d Opening 4e Back 7 Medium supply 18 Control 31 First sub damper (sub valve; one sub valve)
32 Reference damper (reference valve)
33 Second sub damper (sub valve; other sub valve)
100 Workpiece T1 Chamber upper temperature (Temperature at location where medium is supplied from sub-valve in container)
T2 Chamber middle temperature (temperature at the point where the medium is supplied from the reference valve in the container)
T3 Chamber lower temperature (Temperature at the point where the medium is supplied from the sub-valve in the container)
kp1, kp2 control gain

Claims (7)

A container for accommodating the object at the time of heat treatment of the object,
A medium supply unit including a reference valve and a sub-valve for supplying a medium for temperature adjustment to the container,
Based on the opening degree of the reference valve, and a control unit for controlling the opening of the sub-valve,
Equipped with a,
The control unit controls the opening degree of the sub-valve in a state where the opening degree of the reference valve is constant, and the temperature of a portion of the container where the medium is supplied from the reference valve, and the container the medium is to reduce the deviation of the temperature and at a location to be supplied, characterized that you control the degree of opening of the sub-valve from the sub valve of the heat treatment apparatus. The heat treatment apparatus according to claim 1 ,
The control unit is configured to control a flow rate of the medium supplied from the sub-valve to the container based on a temperature at a location in the container where the medium is supplied from the reference valve. A heat treatment apparatus characterized by the above-mentioned. The heat treatment apparatus according to claim 1 or claim 2 ,
A plurality of the sub-valves are provided,
The heat treatment apparatus, wherein the control unit controls each of the sub-valves such that one sub-valve and another sub-valve perform different operations. The heat treatment apparatus according to claim 3 , wherein
The control unit is configured to control each of the sub-valves using proportional control, and sets a control gain of one sub-valve and a control gain of another sub-valve to different values. Characteristic heat treatment equipment. The heat treatment apparatus according to claim 4 , wherein
The medium is a cooling medium for cooling the container,
The position at which the cooling medium is supplied to the container from one of the sub-valves is set higher than the position at which the cooling medium is supplied to the container from the other sub-valve,
The heat treatment apparatus, wherein the control unit sets the control gain for one sub-valve larger than the control gain for another sub-valve. The heat treatment apparatus according to claim 4 or claim 5 ,
The container includes an opening that is open to the outside of the container, and a back portion having a shape closed with respect to the outside of the container,
The medium is a cooling medium for cooling the container,
The position at which the cooling medium is supplied from one of the sub-valves to the container is set closer to the inner part of the opening and the inner part, and the cooling is performed from the other sub-valve to the container. The position where the medium is supplied is set near the opening of the opening and the back,
The heat treatment apparatus, wherein the control unit sets the control gain for one of the sub-valves greater than the control gain for another of the sub-valves. The heat treatment apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 6 ,
A plurality of the sub-valves are provided,
The heat treatment apparatus, wherein an outlet position of the medium from the reference valve is set between outlet positions of the medium from each of the sub-valves.

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