JP2011016047A - Liquid discharge apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a liquid discharge apparatus which can surely perform switching to a different chemical in a short period of time and in which the quantity of a waste liquid chemical in switching is small.SOLUTION: The liquid discharge apparatus 10 includes liquid supply parts 1-3, a discharge part 5 for discharging the liquid to the outside, a multi-way valve 4 for connecting the liquid supply parts 1-3 and the discharge part 5 and a controller 6 for controlling opening and closing of the multi-directional valve 4. The controller 6 selectively communicate the liquid supply parts 1-3 with the discharge part 5 by controlling the opening and the closing of the valves H-I of the multi-way valve 4. In switching from the supply of the liquid chemical by the liquid supply part 1 to the supply of the liquid chemical by the liquid supply part 2, the liquid in a flow path from the multi-way valve 4 to the discharge port of the discharge part 5 is replaced by a cleaning liquid supplied from the liquid supply part 3 and the liquid chemical supplied from the liquid supply part 2 in order.

Description

  The present invention relates to a liquid ejection device that ejects liquid onto an object.

  2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, a spinless coating apparatus (hereinafter simply referred to as “coating apparatus”) as described in Patent Document 1 is known as an apparatus for applying a chemical solution to a substrate. Generally, a coating apparatus includes a storage container filled with a chemical solution, an application unit that applies liquid, and a liquid feed pump that supplies the chemical solution in the storage container to the application unit. The application device may be provided with an air vent tank, a filter housing, or the like. Each of these component devices is connected by piping.

  When the chemical solution to be applied by such an application device is switched to another chemical solution, it is necessary to discard all the chemical solutions remaining in each component device and pipe and to replace the inside with another chemical solution.

JP 2008-119607 A

  However, the switching / replacement operation of the chemical solution as described above requires a long time and is very complicated. In addition, when the chemical solution is not completely replaced and different chemical solutions are mixed, there is a possibility that a quality defect of a product manufactured by applying the chemical solution may be caused. On the other hand, in order to reliably perform replacement, it is necessary to discard a large amount of expensive chemicals.

  Therefore, when an operation for applying a plurality of types of chemical solutions is required, it is common to use the necessary number of dedicated coating devices for each chemical solution instead of switching and applying a plurality of types of chemical solutions with a single coating device. Is. However, in this case, the number of coating apparatuses to be prepared increases, leading to an increase in equipment costs.

  Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide a liquid ejection device that can switch between different chemical liquids in a short time, has a small amount of waste chemical liquid at the time of switching, and does not mix different chemical liquids after switching. To do.

  The liquid ejection apparatus according to the present invention includes a first liquid supply unit that supplies a first liquid, a second liquid supply unit that supplies a second liquid, and a third liquid supply unit that supplies a cleaning liquid. , A multi-way valve having first to third inlets connected to the first to third liquid supply units, and an outlet, and a liquid connected to the outlet and supplied through the multi-way valve to the outside. A discharge unit for discharging, and a control unit for controlling opening and closing of the multi-way valve so that one of the first to third inlets and the outlet are selectively communicated with each other.

  In the liquid ejection device according to the present invention, when the chemical solution to be supplied is switched, only the flow path from the multi-way valve to the discharge port of the discharge unit needs to be replaced with the chemical solution, so that the chemical solution can be switched in a short time and reliably. This makes it possible to reduce the amount of waste liquid during the replacement process.

1 is a block diagram showing a schematic configuration of a liquid ejection apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. Schematic diagram of the multi-way valve shown in FIG.

  FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a schematic configuration of a liquid ejection apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram of the multi-way valve shown in FIG.

  A liquid discharge apparatus 10 according to the present embodiment includes a liquid supply unit 1 that supplies a chemical liquid A, a liquid supply unit 2 that supplies a liquid B, a liquid supply unit 3 that supplies a cleaning liquid, a multi-way valve 4, and a discharge unit. 5 and a control device 6.

  The liquid supply unit 1 is connected to a storage container 11 for storing the chemical liquid A, a pipe 13 and a pressure pipe 15 connected to the storage container 11, and a pipe 13, and sucks the chemical liquid A and sends it to the multi-way valve 4. And a pipe 14 that connects the pump 12 and the multi-way valve 4. The pressurizing pipe 15 is for feeding the internal chemical liquid A to the pump 12 through the pipe 13 by introducing pressurized gas into the storage container 11 and pressurizing the inside of the storage container 11. However, instead of the pressurizing pipe 15, a separate pump for sucking the chemical solution A in the storage container 11 and feeding it to the pump 12 may be provided on the pipe 13.

  Similarly, the liquid supply unit 2 is connected to the storage container 16 for storing the chemical liquid B, the pipe 18 and the pressure pipe 20 connected to the storage container 16, and the pipe 18, and sucks the chemical liquid B to the multi-way valve 4. And a pump 17 for sending out, and a pipe 19 connecting the pump 17 and the multi-way valve 4. The pressurizing pipe 20 is for feeding the internal chemical B to the pump 17 through the pipe 18 by introducing pressurized gas into the storage container 16 and pressurizing the inside of the storage container 11. However, instead of the pressurizing pipe 20, a separate pump for sucking the chemical solution B in the storage container 16 and feeding it to the pump 17 may be provided on the pipe 18.

  The third liquid supply unit 3 includes a pipe 22, a blower pipe 23, a multi-way valve 7 connected to the pipe 22 and the blower pipe 23, and a pipe 24 that connects the multi-way valve 7 and the multi-way valve 4. The pipe 22 is connected to a storage container or a liquid feeding device (not shown) and constitutes a cleaning liquid supply unit for feeding the supplied cleaning liquid to the multi-way valve 7. Further, the blower pipe 23 is connected to a blower or the like (not shown) and constitutes an air supply unit for supplying the chemical purge gas (air etc.) to the multi-way valve 7. Here, it is desirable that the cleaning liquid is a solvent of the chemical liquids A and B or a solvent compatible with the chemical liquids A and B.

  As schematically shown in FIG. 2A, the multi-way valve 7 includes two inlets 26 and 27, one outlet 28, and a flow path that branches from the outlet 28 to the inlets 26 and 27. , And valves L and K provided corresponding to the inlets 26 and 27, respectively. The valves L and K are opened and closed independently by the control device 6 of FIG. 1, and selectively connect any one of the inflow ports 26 and 27 with the outflow port 28. The air blowing pipes 23 and 22 are connected to the inflow ports 26 and 27, respectively. A pipe 24 connected to the multi-way valve 4 is connected to the outlet 28.

  As schematically shown in FIG. 2B, the multi-way valve 4 includes three inflow ports 31 to 33, one outflow port 34, and a flow path that branches into three from the outflow port 34 to the inflow ports 31 to 33. And valves J, I, and H provided corresponding to each of the inflow ports 31 to 33 are integrally configured (manifold structure). The multi-way valve 4 is connected to a control device 6 that independently controls the opening and closing of the valves H to J. As the multi-way valve 4, for example, an air operated valve that can switch between opening and closing of the valves H to J using air pressure (for example, shuts off the valve and the outlet when the driving air to the valve is OFF) is used. Available. In this case, the inner diameter (orifice) of the air operated valve is preferably 4 to 6 mm.

  The pipes 14, 19 and 24 are connected to the inlets 31, 32 and 33 of the multi-way valve 4, respectively. Further, the discharge part 5 is connected to the outlet 34 via a pipe 25.

  The discharge part 5 is for discharging (application | coating) the liquid supplied through the multiway valve 4 with respect to objects, such as a board | substrate, The shape is not specifically limited.

  Here, a chemical liquid switching method in the liquid ejection apparatus 10 according to the present embodiment will be described.

  Table 1 summarizes the operations of the valves H to L and the pumps 12 and 17 in the process of switching from the supply state of the chemical solution A to the supply state of the chemical solution B.

<1. When supplying chemical solution A>
While the chemical solution A is being supplied from the liquid supply unit 1 to the discharge unit 5, the control unit 6 controls the multi-way valve 4 so that only the valve J is opened. In this state, by operating the pump 12 of the liquid supply unit 1, the chemical liquid A in the storage container 11 is discharged through the multi-way valve 4 and the discharge unit 5 (step 1 in Table 1).

<2. Switching process from Chemical A to Chemical B>
When switching the liquid supplied to the discharge unit 5 from the chemical solution A to the chemical solution B, the control unit 6 controls the valves H and L to be opened after the valve J is closed (step 2). By this control, air is supplied from the blower pipe 23 to the discharge part 5 through the multi-way valve 7 and the multi-way valve 4 for a predetermined time, and the chemical solution A existing in the flow path from the multi-way valve 4 to the discharge port of the discharge part 5 is purged. The

  Next, the controller 6 controls the valve L to a closed state and controls the valve K to an open state (step 3). By this control, the cleaning liquid is discharged from the discharge part 5 through the multi-way valve 7 and the multi-way valve 4 for a predetermined time, and the flow path from the multi-way valve 4 to the discharge port of the discharge part 5 is cleaned.

  Next, the controller 6 controls the valve K to a closed state and controls the valve L to an open state (step 4). By this control, air is supplied from the blower pipe 23 to the discharge unit 5 through the multi-way valve 7 and the multi-way valve 4 for a predetermined time, and the cleaning liquid existing in the flow path from the multi-way valve 4 to the discharge port of the discharge unit 5 is purged. .

  Next, the control unit 6 controls the valves I and H to open, and then controls the valve I to open (step 5). In this state, when the pump 17 of the liquid supply unit 2 operates, the chemical solution B in the storage container 12 is discharged through the multi-way valve 4 and the discharge unit 5, and the flow path from the multi-way valve 4 to the discharge port of the discharge unit 5. Is replaced with the chemical solution B.

<3. When supplying chemical B>
Thereafter, while supplying the chemical liquid to the discharge unit 5, the control unit 6 maintains only the valve I in the open state. In this state, according to the operation of the pump 12 of the liquid supply unit 1, the chemical liquid A in the storage container 11 is discharged through the multi-way valve 4 and the discharge unit 5 (step 6).

  When the chemical liquid supplied to the discharge unit 5 is actually switched according to the above steps 1 to 6, the chemical liquid B is not mixed with the chemical liquid A, the cleaning liquid, or the like, and the liquid ejection device prepared for the chemical liquid B is used. Similar performance (chemical solution coating quality) was obtained. Compared with the case where the chemical solution is switched in one liquid ejection device, the operation time required for the switching is shortened to about 25%, and the amount of waste liquid during the replacement operation can be reduced to about 33%.

  Note that switching from the supply state of the chemical solution B to the supply state of the chemical solution A is the same as in Steps 1 to 6 described above, and thus the repeated description thereof is omitted here.

  As described above, in the liquid ejection device 10 according to the present embodiment, the chemical liquid is switched using the multi-way valve 4, and therefore, only the flow path from the multi-way valve 4 to the discharge port of the discharge unit 5 is used during the switching. Replace with. Therefore, it is possible to reduce the time required for the chemical solution replacement operation in the flow path performed when the chemical solution is switched and the amount of the chemical solution discarded during the replacement operation.

  In addition, since the multi-way valve 4 is connected to the liquid supply unit 3 that supplies a cleaning liquid that is compatible with a plurality of chemical solutions, the flow from the multi-way valve 4 to the discharge port of the discharge unit 5 is switched when the chemical solution is switched. The chemical solution in the path is reliably removed, and mixing of different chemical solutions is prevented. Further, since this cleaning operation only needs to be performed on the flow path from the multi-way valve to the discharge port of the discharge unit, the amount of cleaning liquid required and the time required for the cleaning operation can be reduced.

  Furthermore, in this embodiment, before changing the kind of liquid supplied to the discharge unit 5 (chemical solution and cleaning solution), air is introduced from the blower pipe 23 to the multi-way valve 4 so that the multi-way valve 4 The liquid in the flow path leading to the discharge port is discharged. As a result, the amount of liquid in the flow path from the multi-way valve 4 to the discharge port of the discharge unit 5 can be extremely reduced, so that the amount of liquid and time required for the replacement work can be further reduced.

  In addition, in said embodiment, the apparatus structure of a discharge part 5, a use, a shape, a function, etc. are not specifically limited. Moreover, the chemical | medical solution to apply | coat is arbitrary according to the use of the liquid discharge apparatus 10. FIG.

  In the above embodiment, the example in which the liquid supply unit 3 is configured by connecting the pipe 22 for supplying the cleaning liquid and the air supply pipe 23 for supplying the air with the multi-way valve 7 has been described. Alternatively, the pipe 22 and the blower pipe 23 may be connected to the pipe 24 branched.

  Further, in the above-described embodiment, an example in which the multi-way valves 4 and 7 are controlled by the common control device 6 has been described, but a control device may be provided separately for each of the multi-way valves 4 and 7.

  Furthermore, in the above embodiment, it is possible to further increase the number of branches (inlet ports) of the multi-way valve 4 and connect four or more liquid supply units.

  The liquid feeding device according to the present invention can be used as a device for discharging or applying a liquid to an object, such as a printing machine or a chemical liquid coating device.

1, 2, 3 Liquid supply unit 4 Multi-way valve 5 Discharge unit 6 Control device 7 Multi-way valve 10 Liquid discharge device 31, 32, 33 Inlet 34 Outlet

Claims (3)

A liquid ejection device comprising:
A first liquid supply section for supplying a first liquid;
A second liquid supply section for supplying a second liquid;
A third liquid supply section for supplying a cleaning liquid;
A multi-way valve having first to third inlets connected to the first to third liquid supply units, respectively, and an outlet;
A discharge unit connected to the outlet and discharging liquid supplied through the multi-way valve to the outside;
A chemical discharge apparatus comprising: a control unit that controls opening and closing of the multi-way valve so that one of the first to third inlets and the outlet are selectively communicated with each other. The multi-way valve includes first to third valves provided corresponding to the first to third inlets,
The controller is
When supplying the first liquid from the first liquid supply unit to the discharge unit, only the first valve is opened,
When supplying the second liquid from the second liquid supply unit to the discharge unit, only the second valve is opened,
In the process of switching between the supply of the first liquid by the first liquid supply unit and the supply of the second liquid by the second liquid supply unit, only the third valve is opened. The liquid ejection apparatus according to claim 1.   The third liquid supply unit includes a cleaning liquid supply unit that supplies the cleaning liquid and an air supply unit that supplies air, and when the third valve transitions from a closed state to an open state, a predetermined time is elapsed. The liquid discharge apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the cleaning liquid is supplied from the cleaning liquid supply unit to the discharge unit after only supplying air from the air supply unit to the discharge unit.

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