JP2910061B2 - Firing furnace - Google Patents

Description

Description: TECHNICAL FIELD The present invention relates to a firing furnace used for firing a substrate, a film formed on the substrate, and the like.

2. Description of the Related Art As shown in FIGS. 10 and 11, heaters 42 are provided above and below a tunnel-shaped furnace chamber 41 to indirectly heat the inside of the furnace chamber 41 and to form the furnace chamber 41, as shown in FIGS. An inert gas introduction pipe 43 is connected to a substantially central portion so as to make an inert gas atmosphere in the furnace chamber 41, and a transport means such as a mesh conveyor 45 or a chain conveyor for transporting the work 44. Is a furnace room
It is arranged through 41.

Problems to be Solved by the Invention However, in the above-described firing furnace, since both ends of the furnace chamber 41 are open, a large amount of inert gas such as nitrogen gas is required to make the inside of the furnace chamber 41 an inert atmosphere. It requires gas, and the mesh conveyor 45 that transports the workpiece 44 is constantly exposed to high temperatures with tension applied. In the case where both surfaces of the work 44 are simultaneously fired, a mesh conveyor for transporting the work 44 is provided on the lower surface side.
Since 45 mag is present, there is a problem that it is difficult to secure temperature uniformity on the front and back.

The present invention has been made in view of the above-described conventional problems, and provides a firing furnace which can reduce the consumption of inert gas, can be easily maintained, can reduce costs, and can uniformly heat the front and back surfaces of a work. The purpose is to:

Means for Solving the Problems In order to achieve the above object, a baking furnace of the present invention is provided with a heating means and an inert gas introduction means, and has a tunnel-like shape in which a loaded work is pushed and conveyed by a subsequent work. Furnace chamber, carrying-in means provided at an inlet end of the furnace chamber, and carrying-out means provided at an outlet end of the furnace chamber, wherein the carrying-in means and carrying-out means have a furnace chamber and an external space on both sides. A main body having an opening with respect to the main body and a work storage space opened only on one side are formed, and the work storage space is rotatably disposed in the main body so as to selectively pass through any of the openings of the main body. The delivery means is provided with a push-out means for pushing out the work in the work storage space into the furnace chamber, and the carry-out means stores the work pushed out from the outlet of the furnace chamber in the work-out means. In space A pull-in means for pulling in to the device.

According to the present invention, the carrying-in means and the carrying-out means provided at the inlet end and the outlet end at both ends of the furnace chamber receive the work between the work storage space and the external space with the opening of the transfer body facing the external space. The delivery chamber is rotated so that the delivery body is rotated, the opening of the delivery body is directed toward the furnace chamber, and the work in the work storage space is extruded and retracted. The workpiece can be loaded and unloaded in a state where the furnace chamber is inactive, the leakage of the inert gas introduced to make the furnace chamber an inert atmosphere can be suppressed and its consumption reduced, and the workpiece can be transported in the furnace chamber. Is
Since the carried-in work is pressed by the succeeding work, there is no need to provide a separate conveying means such as a conveyor, and maintenance is extremely easy since the cross-sectional shape of the furnace chamber space is simple.

Embodiment An embodiment of the firing furnace according to the present invention will be described below with reference to FIGS.

In FIGS. 1 and 2, reference numeral 1 denotes a tunnel-shaped furnace chamber having a uniform rectangular cross section over the entire length, and a plurality of heaters 2 are arranged substantially equally above and below the furnace chamber. Also,
A pair of inert gas introduction pipes 3a and 3b are connected to the central portion of the upper wall of the furnace chamber 1 in the longitudinal direction at an appropriate interval so as to supply an inert gas such as nitrogen gas into the furnace chamber 1. Have been. Reference numeral 4 denotes a substrate as a work to be carried into the furnace chamber 1 and subjected to firing, and as shown in FIG. 3, is made of stainless steel having a rectangular frame shape and supporting projections 5a formed at four corners thereof. It is housed and held in a jig 5. The jig 5 has a cross section of substantially the same size as the internal space of the furnace chamber 1, and has an inert gas passage opening 5b formed on the front and rear walls facing the transport direction. A loading means 6 for a jig 5 containing and holding a substrate 4 is provided at an inlet end of one end of the furnace chamber 1, and a jig 5 is provided at an outlet end of the other end of the furnace chamber 1.
Are respectively provided.

As shown in FIGS. 4 to 6, the carrying-in means 6 includes a main body 8 having openings 8a and 8b which open to the outside space and the inside of the furnace chamber 1 on both sides, and a longitudinal axis inside the main body 8. The delivery body 9 is configured to be rotatable around the center. The transfer body 9 has a work storage space 10 opened only on one side, and is rotated so that the opening 10a of the work storage space 10 selectively communicates with one of the openings 8a and 8b of the main body 8. It is configured to be possible. The delivery body 9 includes a large-diameter cylindrical portion 9a and small-diameter cylindrical portions 9b above and below the large-diameter cylindrical portion 9a.
It is rotatably supported by a holding hole 11 formed in the hole.
Seal members 12 are provided at sliding contact portions between the openings 8a and 8b on both sides of the main body 8 and the outer peripheral surface of the large-diameter cylindrical portion 9a. The width l of the opening 10a of the work storage space 10 is set to be smaller than the width L between the sealing members 12, 12, so that the gas in the furnace chamber 1 does not leak to the external space through the work storage space 10. Have been.

A through hole 13 is formed in the back wall of the work storage space 10 on the opposite side of the opening 10a, and a guide hole 14 is formed through the through hole 13 in a vertical direction. A blocking plate 15 for blocking the through hole 13 is inserted and arranged to be vertically movable. An opening hole 16 is formed in a substantially central portion of the blocking plate 15 so as to coincide with the through hole 13 and open the through hole.
Engaging recesses for positioning on the upper and lower sides of one side of the blocking plate 15
The guide hole 14 is provided with a click stop 18 for positioning the blocking plate 15 corresponding to the engagement recesses 17. Also, on the upper part of the outer space side end of the main body 8,
A blocking cylinder device 19 that pushes down the blocking plate 15 to block the through hole 13 is provided, and an opening cylinder device 20 that pushes up the blocking plate 15 to open the through hole 13 is provided below.

As shown in FIG. 1, an extruding cylinder device 21 is provided at a position spaced apart from the through-hole 13 by a predetermined distance on an extension of the through-hole 13, and between the transfer body 9 and the extruding cylinder device 21,
A work supply lifter 22 for sequentially positioning the jigs 5 storing and holding the substrate 4 at the same height position as the work storage space 10 is provided. The push-out cylinder device 21 includes a first projecting position in which the piston rod 21a pushes the jig 5 on the work supply lifter 22 to house the jig 5 in the work storage space 10 of the transfer body 9, and a jig in the work storage space 10. 5 is configured to be able to move out and back between a second projecting position for pushing the 5 through the through-hole 13 and pushing it into the furnace chamber 1 and a retreating position.

7 and 8, similarly to the carrying-in means 6, the carrying-out means 7 has a main body 8 having openings 8a and 8b which open to the external space and the inside of the furnace chamber 1, respectively. 8, a transfer body 9 rotatably arranged about a vertical axis is provided. Corresponding components are denoted by the same reference numerals and description thereof is omitted. The work storage space 10 is provided with a transfer means 23 for drawing in or sending out the jig 5 holding and holding the substrate 4. This transfer means 23
A pair of endless chains 24 on both sides
The driving shaft 17 is fixed to the driving shaft 30a of the motor 30 installed at the lower part of the transfer body 9 through the bevel gear 29 by winding the rotating shaft 28 to which the driving tooth wheel 17 is fixed is formed by being wound in a T-shape by the two gear wheels 26 and 27. It is configured to drive forward and reverse. As shown in FIG. 1, optical sensors 31 each comprising a light emitter and a light receiver are disposed above and below the unloading means 7, and the jig 5 and the substrate 4 are inserted into the work storage space 10 from the exit end of the furnace chamber 1. When is pushed out, the light from the projector is detected by being blocked. Therefore, a light transmitting hole 32 is formed in the main body 8 and the transfer body 9.

In the above configuration, first, the operation of loading the jig 5 into the furnace chamber 1 will be described. In the carrying-in means 6, the transfer body 9 is positioned at a receiving position where the opening 10a of the work storage space 10 communicates with the opening 8a of the main body 8 on the outer space side, and the pushing cylinder device 21 is moved to the first projecting position. By performing the extension operation, the jig 5 on the work supply lifter 22 is inserted into the work storage space 10. Next, the transfer body 9 is driven to rotate so that the opening 10a of the work storage space 10 is located at the pushing position where the opening 10a communicates with the opening 8b of the main body 8 on the furnace chamber 1 side. Next, as shown in FIG. 6 (a), the blocking plate 15 is pushed up by the opening cylinder device 20, and the opening hole 16 is made to coincide with the through hole 13 to open the through hole 13. Then, as shown in FIG. As shown in b), the jig 5 in the work storage space 10 is pushed out and carried into the furnace chamber 1 by extending the pushing cylinder device 21 toward the second projecting position. Then, the sixth
As shown in FIG. 3 (c), the push-out cylinder device 21 is retracted to the retracted position, and the shut-off cylinder device 21 is moved.
At 19, the blocking plate 15 is pushed down to block the through hole 13. Next, the transfer body 9 is rotationally driven to be positioned at the above-described receiving position, and waits until the next loading operation of the jig 5 is started.

Substrate 4 held and held by jig 5 carried into furnace chamber 1
Is heated to 900 ° C. by the heater 2 in an inert gas atmosphere having an O ₂ concentration of about 5 to 10 PPM, for example. Also this jig 5
Is pushed by the jig 5 carried in subsequently and is sequentially conveyed in the furnace chamber 1 toward the outlet end. In this way, the film formed on the substrate 4 is baked while being transported in the furnace chamber 1.
The jig 5 arriving at the outlet end in the furnace chamber 1 is delivered to the unloading means 7 and discharged to the external space with the next loading operation of the jig 5.

In the unloading means 7, the delivery body 9 is on standby with the opening 10 a of the work storage space 10 positioned at the retracted position facing the furnace chamber 1, and the jig 5 is pushed out of the furnace chamber 1. When it comes, the optical sensor 31 detects this and operates the transfer means 23 to completely draw the jig 5 into the work storage space 10. Therefore, the jig 5 extruded from the furnace chamber 1
The transfer body 9 does not rotate and the jig 5 does not interfere with the main body 8 without being completely stored in the work storage space 10. Next, the transfer body 9 is rotationally driven to the delivery position, the jig 5 is discharged to the external space by the transfer means 23, and then the transfer body 9 is rotated back to the retracted position.

In the carrying-in means 6 and the carrying-out means 7 of the above-described embodiment, the columnar transfer body 9 is exemplified, but may be spherical. or,
The push-out means provided in the carry-in means 6 and the pull-in means provided in the carry-out means 7 are not limited to the means used in the above-described embodiment, but may be variously configured. For example, a cylinder device may be built in the transfer body 9 to push or pull in the work.

In the above-described embodiment, the furnace chamber 1 has a rectangular cross section, and the substrate 4 is accommodated in the jig 5 and is transported. However, as shown in FIG. A guide groove 33 is formed at the center in the height direction of both side walls of the first substrate 1, and both sides of the substrate 4 are fitted into the guide grooves 33 to support the substrate 4, and the rear edge of the substrate 4 is connected to the subsequent substrate. 4 may be directly pushed and conveyed.

According to the present invention, the carrying-in means and the carrying-out means provided at the inlet end and the outlet end at both ends of the furnace chamber rotate the transfer body having the work storage space opened only on one side to rotate the transfer chamber between the furnace chamber and the outside. By being configured to transfer the work to and from the space, it is possible to carry in and carry out the work with the furnace chamber closed to the external space, and it is possible to suppress the leakage of inert gas. In addition, since the work is transported in the furnace chamber by pressing the loaded work with the subsequent work, there is no need to provide a separate conveyor or other transport means, and the furnace chamber Since the space has a simple cross-sectional shape, maintenance such as cleaning is extremely easy, and the cost can be significantly reduced.

[Brief description of the drawings]

1 to 8 show an embodiment of a firing furnace according to the present invention. FIG. 1 is a vertical front view, FIG. 2 is a vertical side view of a furnace chamber, and FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a jig for holding a substrate. FIG. 4, FIG. 4 is a vertical sectional front view of the loading means, FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional plan view of the same, FIGS. 6 (a) to 6 (c) are vertical sectional front views showing the operating state of the loading means, and FIG. 8, FIG. 8 is a vertical side view of the same furnace, FIG. 9 is a vertical side view of a furnace chamber of another embodiment, FIG. 10 is a vertical front view of a conventional firing furnace, and FIG. It is a vertical side view of a room. DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Furnace chamber, 2 ... Heater, 3a, 3b ... Inert gas introduction pipe, 4 ... Substrate (work), 6 ... Carry-in means, 7 ... Carry-out means, 8 ... Main body, 8a, 8b ...... Opening part, 9 ... Transfer body, 10 ... Work storage space, 10a ... Opening, 21 ... Cylinder device for extrusion, 23 ... Transfer means.

──────────────────────────────────────────────────の Continued on the front page (72) Inventor Yasuo Izumi 1006 Kadoma Kadoma, Osaka Prefecture Inside Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd. (56) References JP-A-63-127073 (JP, A) JP-A-56-105796 (JP, U) (58) Fields investigated (Int. Cl. ⁶ , DB name) F27B 9 / 00-9 / 40 F27D 7/06

Claims (1)

(57) [Claims] 1. A tunnel-shaped furnace chamber provided with a heating means and an inert gas introduction means, and a carried work is conveyed;
It has a carrying-in means provided at the entrance end of the furnace chamber and a carrying-out means provided at the exit end of the furnace chamber, and the carrying-in means and carrying-out means have openings on both sides to the furnace chamber and the external space. A delivery body formed with a main body and a work storage space opened only on one side, and rotatably disposed in the main body such that the work storage space selectively communicates with any opening of the main body; And the pushing-in means is provided with pushing-out means for pushing out the work in the work storage space into the furnace chamber, and the work-out means is drawn into the work storage space with the work pushed out from the outlet of the furnace chamber. A firing furnace provided with a drawing means.