KR20020009070A - Cutting method of non-metal material and cutting apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE: Provided is a method for cutting nonmetallic materials, especially glasses, completely by forming a crack through two times heating and quenching processes using heating beam and quencher. CONSTITUTION: The cutting method comprises the steps of: forming an initial crack on the edge of a nonmetallic material, glass(11), by cracker(12); heating the glass by irradiating a cutting line with a first heating beam(14) from a first optical instrument comprising laser source(10.6micrometer CO2 laser), mirror and lens; primary quenching to form a crack by a first quencher(15), wherein the quenching materials with high specific heat and thermal capacity are He, N2, He+H2O, and H2O+air; irradiating both sides of a scribe line(18) with a first break beam(17); heating the glass by irradiating the scribe line with a second heating beam(19) from a second optical instrument; secondary quenching by a second quencher(151); irradiating both sides of the scribe line with a second break beam(171); blowing air under the glass to cut the glass completely by lifting the glass.

Description

CUTTING METHOD OF NON-METAL MATERIAL AND CUTTING APPARATUS}

The present invention relates to a method of cutting nonmetallic materials, in particular glass, and apparatus thereof.

Recently, in manufacturing a TFT-LCD display module, it is necessary to cut the glass of the original plate to fit the size of each module after the sealing process of the cell process. Recently, many methods for using a laser beam have been attempted to cut such glass.

A conventional glass cutting method using such a laser beam will be described.

1 shows such a conventional apparatus and method.

In the figure, 1 is the glass to be cut, and 2 is the initial cracker for making the scribe line 8 in the desired direction by drawing a micro-crack at the end of the glass 1, ie where the scribe line 8 begins. (initial cracker).

3 is an optical mechanism for irradiating the heating beam 4 to the glass 1. 5 is a quencher, which is a refrigerant injector for injecting cold water or the like to rapidly cool a portion heated by the heating beam 4. 6 is an optical mechanism for irradiating a pair of facing brake beams 7.

The method of cutting the glass 1 using the above apparatus will be described.

The glass 1 placed on the work table on the mechanism in the conveyance mechanism (not shown) is moved in the direction of the arrow in the drawing, that is, to the right by the drive mechanism of the work bench.

First, the initial cracker 2 descends to the position where the glass 1 is placed and scratches the place where the scribe line 8 of the glass 1 starts to generate micro cracks. On the other hand, the optical apparatus 3 is positioned above the glass 1 to irradiate the heating beam 4 continuously at a predetermined position of the glass 1 to heat the glass 1. The quencher 5 is positioned at a predetermined distance from where the heating beam 4 is irradiated to inject a coolant or the like into the glass 1 heated by the heating beam 4.

Since the glass 1 in which the refrigerant is injected by the quencher 5 is heated and then rapidly cooled, so-called vertical cracks are generated in the glass 1 to generate a scribe line 8. This scribe line 8 is created along the direction of the microcracks generated by the initial cracker 2.

Behind the quencher 5, an optical device 6 such as 3 is positioned to irradiate a pair of brake beams 7 on both sides of the scribe line 8 to heat the glass 1, thereby expanding the glass 1 by the expansion force. Cut off.

The cracks ie the scribe lines 8 are cut in the glass 1, but the scribe lines 8 are not complete or the cracks are not so deep that the glass is cut well. The cutting line of the glass 1 by) was not complete or was cut even if it was cut. In addition, in order to completely cut the glass 1, the glass 1 was often cut by applying a physical force from the outside.

When the glass 1 is cut by applying such an external physical force, a mechanism for applying a force is required, and an enlargement of the cutting device is inevitable.

In addition, since the glass 1 is cut by applying a physical force, the cut surface of the glass 1 is not constant, and thus the cut glass 1 cannot be used as a product, which is a factor in lowering the yield.

As such, the cutting of the conventional glass has low reliability and the productivity of the TFT-LCD is much lower than that of the conventional mechanical scribing method.

Accordingly, the present invention is to solve the above problems, to provide a method and apparatus for cutting a non-metallic material completely.

1 is a view showing a device for cutting conventional non-metal,

2 shows an apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention;

3 is a view showing the shape of a brake beam and a heating beam according to an embodiment of the present invention;

4 is a view showing the pneumatic means according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Explanation of symbols on the main parts of the drawings

1, 11 glass 2, 12 initial cracker

3, 6: optical mechanism 4, 14, 19: heating beam

5, 15, 151: quencher

7, 17, 171: brake beams 8, 18: scribe lines

The present invention to solve the above problems,

Where the cutting of nonmetallic materials such as glass is started, an initial crack is formed in the desired direction of cutting, the primary heating beam is irradiated along the line to be cut to heat the nonmetallic material, and the portion heated by the primary beam The first quenching (quenching) to generate a crack, and irradiated with the second heating beam to the portion where the crack is generated to heat the non-metallic material, the second secondary quenching to the portion heated by the second heating beam Characterized in that.

In addition, if the brake beam is irradiated to both sides of the line where the crack is generated after the first quenching, cutting is more effective.

Further, the brake beam may be irradiated to both sides of the line where the crack is generated after the second secondary quenching.

On the other hand, when the brake beam after the first quenching is irradiated by the same optical mechanism as the secondary heating beam, the apparatus is simple and the heating efficiency is good.

As a final step of the cutting, pneumatic pressure is applied from the bottom along the cutting line of the non-metal material, which has been scribed and braked, so that the non-metal material may be bent approximately to the shape of a mountain, thereby completely cutting the cutting.

In addition, the present invention is to form an initial crack in the desired direction of cutting where the cutting of the non-metal material such as glass, and to heat the non-metallic material by irradiating a heating beam along the line to be cut, the heating by the heating beam Quenching (quenching) to the cracked portion to generate a crack, it characterized in that the pneumatic pressure is applied from below to the cracked portion.

This makes it possible to cut efficiently with a simple device.

Irradiation of the brake beam after quenching is more efficient.

In addition, the quenching material is left in the non-metallic material by quenching, which adversely affects the post-processing, so that the quenching material may be removed after each quenching.

In addition, each of the quenching is characterized by consisting of a mixture of He, N ₂ or He and water.

In addition, the present invention, the initial cracker to form a micro-cracks coincident with the cutting direction on the edge portion of the non-metallic material, such as glass to be cut, and irradiating the first heating beam along the line to be cut to heat the nonmetallic material A first primary quencher which firstly quenchs a portion heated by the first primary heating optics, a portion heated by the first primary heating optics, and a second secondary portion at the portion where the crack is generated; Provided is a non-metallic material cutting device comprising a second heating optics for irradiating a heating beam to heat a nonmetallic material, and a second quencher for performing second quenching on a portion heated by the second heating beam.

In addition, the brake optics for irradiating the brake beam to both sides of the cracked line after the first quenching, or the brake optics for irradiating the brake beam to both sides of the line where the crack is generated after the second quenching are more efficient. It is a cutting device for nonmetal materials.

In addition, if the brake optical mechanism after the first quenching and the second heating optical mechanism are the same, the whole apparatus becomes compact and the heating efficiency is improved.

In addition, as a device for completing the cutting, a pneumatic means for applying the pneumatic pressure from the bottom along the cutting line of the scribe and brake treatment to bend the non-metallic material into approximately a mountain shape is more effective. It becomes a material cutting device.

In addition, the apparatus of the present invention, the initial cracker to form an initial crack in the direction to be cut where the cutting of the non-metal material begins, a heating optics for heating the non-metallic material by irradiating a heating beam along the line to be cut; Provided is a non-metallic material cutting device comprising a quencher for quenching a portion heated by the heating beam to generate a crack, and pneumatic means for applying pneumatic pressure from below to the portion where the crack has been generated.

It is also conceivable to further comprise brake optical means for irradiating the brake beam after quenching in the apparatus.

In addition, if the quenching material remover is further provided to remove the quenching material after each quenching, the post process may be more easily performed.

In addition, for mass cutting, each of the above devices can be arranged one above and one above the glass stacked on a double table. By doing so, the processing of the glass above and below can be made at the same time, thereby improving the speed of cutting and improving productivity.

(Example)

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

2 is a view showing one device according to the present invention.

In FIG. 12, an initial cracker is a device for generating micro cracks in an edge portion of glass to be separated. The reason for creating the microcracks in the edge portion is to advance the microcracks in the desired direction. In glass cutting using a laser, the stress field at the edge is very complicated. Therefore, if microcracks are first generated at the edge portion, the cracks are advanced along the direction based on the microcracks. As a result, the desired straight line can be cut. The initial cracker 12 is composed of a tungsten wheel or a diamond wheel for generating the initial crack and a driving mechanism (Motor, Cylinder) for moving it in the Z direction. Tungsten wheels or diamond wheels generate microcracks at the edges of the glass 11, and the drive mechanism drives the wheels only to contact the edges of the glass 11 only at the beginning of the process in which the glass 11 is conveyed. After the generation process of the microcracks, the wheel is spaced apart from the glass 11.

The primary heating beam 14 is irradiated by an optical apparatus, and is generally elliptical centered on the scribe line 18 for heating efficiency, but is not necessarily limited to elliptical.

On the other hand, the optical device for irradiating the primary heating beam 14 is composed of a laser source (mirror source), a mirror (Mirror) and a lens. The choice of laser source should be determined by the properties of the material to be separated. In general, glass has a property of absorbing 100% of the laser in the 10.6 탆 near infrared wavelength range. Therefore, in the case of glass, a CO 2 laser of 10.6 mu m is used as the laser source. In addition, the laser operation model TEM00 mode is used to make the profile of the laser beam a perfect Gaussian.

On the other hand, the lens uses a lens of 10.6㎛ wavelength band to implement the desired beam shape. In this case, an element of a DACLE-Double Asymmetric Cylinder lens may be used to easily form a desired beam shape.

On the other hand, there is a need for a drive system for controlling the movement of the work table and the optical apparatus on which the glass 11 is placed. Operation is basically computer controlled. Various driving forms can be taken to achieve the desired functionality. One way is to fix the optics (lenses, mirrors, etc.) and move the workbench (TFT-LCD glass) to X, Y, θ.

Another method is to fix the workbench (TFT-LCD glass) and move the optics to X, Y, θ.

In addition, the glass can be separated by moving the working table in the X, θ-axis direction and the optical mechanism in the Y-axis direction in the form of a compromise between the two methods.

In addition, the cutting speed can be improved by mounting a plurality of laser optical instruments that play the same role.

For example, when two sheets of the glass 11 are stacked and cut, the optical apparatuses 3 and 6 and the quencher 15 and 51 may be arranged under the work table, and the upper and lower glass 11 may be cut from both sides. Cutting at the same time can increase the processing speed.

15 in the figure is a first quencher.

The laser beam patterned by the lens is absorbed by the glass 100%. At this time, the temperature of the glass rises up to the thermal strain point. If the temperature rises rapidly, the glass generates high thermal gradient due to a sudden temperature difference. The first quencher 15 is used to generate such a sudden temperature difference. The first quencher 15 is usually implemented in the form of a nozzle.

In addition, as the quenching material injected from the first quencher 15, He, He + water, N 2, water + air and the like may be used. These materials are materials with relatively large specific heat values and heat capacities.

On the other hand, the quenching material sprayed by the primary quencher 15 should be completely removed from the glass surface after performing the role. The reason is that in the TFT-LCD glass, the quenching substance remains as foreign matter on the glass surface may be a fatal defect in the process of the TFT-LCD glass. Therefore, a quench material remover is needed to remove the residue of the quench material. At this time, the physical force that can be used as a remover may be generated by pneumatic (vaccum, dry air, etc.). That is, the residue of the quenching material may be removed by a blower or vacuum adsorption.

17 is a brake beam irradiated by the optical mechanism. The optical mechanism is the same as that of the optical apparatus 3 described above. The primary brake beam 17 irradiates beams on both sides of the scribe line 18 to heat the glass 11. The heated glass 11 expands and a scribe in which cracks are formed by the expansion force. The glass 11 splits around the line 18.

19 is a secondary heating beam similar to the primary heating beam 14. However, the shape is substantially fan-shaped unlike the first heating beam 14. This is adjusting the shape of both beams so as to irradiate the glass 11 with the primary brake beam 17 and the secondary heating beam 19 simultaneously by one optical device. In other words, the primary brake beam 17 and the secondary heating beam 19 are adjusted to have a substantially annular shape. The beam coming from the laser source forms a predetermined shape through the lens to irradiate the glass 11. However, not all beam shapes can be processed with lenses alone. Therefore, a mask is needed to block part of the beam and transmit part of the beam to form a constant shape. However, as shown in FIG. 3, when the shapes of the primary brake beam 17 and the secondary heating beam 19 are adjusted, the shape of the mask may be simplified, and thus the manufacturing may be easy.

If both beams are irradiated simultaneously as described above, one optical device can be used and not only a mask can be simply used, but also heating efficiency is better than that of a separate one.

151 serves as a second quencher with the same mechanism as the primary quencher 15.

171 serves as the secondary brake beam and plays the same role as the primary brake beam 17.

On the other hand, when the above scribing and braking process is finished and the glass 11 is removed from the workbench, when air or the like is injected from the bottom of the workbench as shown in FIG. 4, the glass 11 is lifted and the scribe line 18 is centered. The tension is created to separate more completely. It is also easy to lift the glass 11 from the work table by the injection of air.

The cutting method of the glass by the cutting device which has the above structure is demonstrated.

First, the glass 11 to be cut is placed on the workbench. The robot etc. which are not shown are used for this mounting work.

The worktable on which the glass 11 is mounted is moved in a straight line to the right in FIG. 2 by a drive mechanism (not shown). When the work table, that is, the glass 11 starts to move, the initial cracker 12 is lowered by a driving mechanism (not shown) so that the wheel of the initial cracker 12 touches the edge portion of the glass 11 so that the edge portion of the glass 11 is moved. This creates a> -shaped flaw or microcracks.

Subsequently, the primary heating beam 14 irradiated by the optical instrument heats the glass 11 about the cutting line.

In this way, the glass 11 is sprayed with water, He, etc. from the first quencher 15, and is rapidly cooled to form cracks. This crack is formed while forming a certain direction under the influence of the micro crack by the initial cracker 12 and the temperature difference formed by the beam and the quencher.

The primary brake beam 17 is irradiated to both sides of the scribe line 18 having the cracks formed thereon. The glass 11 irradiated with the primary brake beam 17 expands, and this force causes the crack to be completely formed or at least a deeper crack.

Subsequently, the secondary heating beam 19 is irradiated along the scribe line 18. The glass 11 heated by the second heating beam 19 is rapidly cooled by a coolant such as cold water jetted by the second quencher 151, thereby forming secondary cracks. That is, deeper cracks are formed, which makes cutting easier.

On the other hand, the secondary heating beam 19 may be irradiated simultaneously with the primary brake beam 17. Irradiation at the same time is carried out by one optical device, which simplifies the whole apparatus and is advantageous in terms of heating efficiency.

The glass 11 in which the secondary crack is formed by the secondary quencher 151 continues to be irradiated with the secondary brake beam 171 so that the brake is completely completed.

In addition, when lifting the glass 11 made of the above scribe and brake on the workbench, the air is injected from the bottom of the workbench to blow up the glass 11 so that the glass is completely cut about the scribe line 18. .

On the other hand, in the method of cutting the glass 11, it is not necessary to necessarily adopt all the above processes.

That is, the method of initial cracking-1st heating-1st quenching-2nd heating-2nd quenching is also good, and it is also possible to add a primary brake to the said method. It is also good to use only the secondary brake, and in some cases, add a primary brake.

In addition, pneumatic separation may be added as the final sequence of cutting, or pneumatic separation may be added to the existing methods of initial cracking-primary heating-primary quenching-brake.

In addition, the said cutting method may be made not only about the upper surface of the glass 11 but the lower surface. In other words, when two pieces of glass 11 are stacked and cut on a workbench, the two pieces of glass can be cut in one step by scribing and breaking from below. Therefore, twice as much glass can be processed at the same time.

As mentioned above, since this invention performs heating and quenching over 2 times, glass can be cut reliably. That is, cracks formed only by the primary heating and quenching were generated over 20 to 80% of the cross section of the glass, but the glass was completely cut due to the secondary heating and quenching.

In addition, since the primary brake beam and the secondary heating beam are irradiated simultaneously, the entire apparatus and the mask can be simplified and the heating efficiency can be improved.

In addition, the present invention has the effect of injecting air from the bottom when lifting the glass from the workbench to lift the glass to completely cut the glass around the scribe line and at the same time easy to lift the glass.

In addition, when the cutting operation is performed on the upper and lower surfaces of the double stacked glass, there is an excellent effect that the glass can be cut twice as much at the same time.

Claims (20)

Where the beginning of the cutting of the non-metallic material begins to form an initial crack in the desired direction The primary heating beam is irradiated along the line to be cut to heat the nonmetallic material, The first quenching (quenching) to the portion heated by the primary beam to generate cracks, The second heating beam is irradiated to the cracked portion to heat the nonmetallic material, Second quenching on the portion heated by the second heating beam Non-metallic material cutting method characterized in that. The method of claim 1, After the first quenching, the brake beam is irradiated to both sides of the cracked line. Non-metallic material cutting method characterized in that. The method of claim 1, After the second quenching, the brake beam is irradiated to both sides of the cracked line. Non-metallic material cutting method characterized in that. The method of claim 2, After the second quenching, the brake beam is irradiated to both sides of the cracked line. Non-metallic material cutting method characterized in that. The method according to claim 2 or 4, The brake beam after the first quenching is irradiated by the same optical mechanism as that of the secondary heating beam. Non-metallic material cutting method characterized in that. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 5, Pneumatics are applied from the bottom along the cutting line of the scribe and brake treatment to bend the nonmetallic material into a roughly mountain shape. Non-metallic material cutting method characterized in that. Where the beginning of the cutting of the non-metallic material begins to form an initial crack in the desired direction The non-metallic material is heated by irradiating a heating beam along the line to be cut, Quenching (quenching) the portion heated by the heating beam to generate a crack, Pneumatic from below to the part where the crack occurred Non-metallic material cutting method characterized in that. The method of claim 7, wherein Irradiating brake beam after quenching Non-metallic material cutting method characterized in that. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 8, Removing the quenching material after each quenching Non-metallic material cutting method characterized in that. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 8, Each quench consists of He or N ₂ or a mixture of He and water Non-metallic material cutting method characterized in that. An initial cracker which forms a microcracks in the edge portion of the nonmetallic material to be cut to match the cutting direction, A first heating optical apparatus for heating a nonmetallic material by irradiating a first heating beam along a line to be cut; A first quencher for generating cracks by first quenching the portion heated by the first heating optical instrument; A second heating optical apparatus for heating a non-metallic material by irradiating a second heating beam to a portion where the crack is generated; As a second secondary quencher for performing secondary secondary quenching on the portion heated by the secondary heating beam. Non-metal material cutting device, characterized in that made. The method of claim 11, Brake optics for irradiating the brake beam to both sides of the cracked line after the first quenching Non-metal material cutting device characterized in that it further comprises. The method of claim 11, Brake optics for irradiating brake beams on both sides of the cracked line after the second quenching Non-metal material cutting device characterized in that it further comprises. The method of claim 12, Brake optics for irradiating brake beams on both sides of the cracked line after the second quenching Non-metal material cutting device characterized in that it further comprises. The method according to claim 12 or 14, wherein The brake optics after the first quench and the secondary heating optics are the same optics. Non-metal material cutting device, characterized in that. The method according to any one of claims 11 to 15, Pneumatic means for applying a pneumatic pressure from the bottom along the cutting line of the scribe and brake treatment to bend the non-metallic material into a roughly mountain shape Non-metal material cutting device characterized in that it further comprises. An initial cracker that forms an initial crack in the direction of cutting where the cutting of the non-metallic material begins; Heating optics for heating non-metallic materials by irradiating a heating beam along a line to be cut, A quencher which generates a crack by quenching the heated portion by the heating beam; Pneumatic means for applying pneumatic pressure from below to the cracked portion Non-metal material cutting device, characterized in that made. The method of claim 17, Brake optical means for irradiating the brake beam after quenching Non-metallic material cutting method further comprising. The method according to any one of claims 11 to 18, A quenching material remover for removing the quenching material after each quenching Non-metal material cutting device characterized in that it further comprises. The method according to any one of claims 11 to 19, Each of the above devices is placed on top of and below the glass placed on a double table so that the processing of the glass above and below is performed simultaneously. Non-metal material cutting device, characterized in that.