This application claims the benefit under 35 U.S.C. 119(a) to Japanese Patent Application No. JP 2019-002872, filed Jan. 10, 2019, the entire disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.
The present invention relates to a flow down type surface treating apparatus, and more particularly to prevention of liquid splashing into an adjacent treatment chamber.
FIG. 10 of Patent Document 1 discloses a flow down type surface treating apparatus in which an antiscattering member is provided under a work.
[Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2014-88600 (JP 2014-88600 A)
As antiscattering members of Patent Document 1, a sponge, a filter, and a fibrous material (“Kasen Rock™” manufactured by Toyo Cushion Co., Ltd.) are disclosed (paragraph 0085 of Patent Document 1). However, these are not always sufficiently effective since droplets hitting the surface of the antiscattering member are reflected as they are. When such reflection occurs, liquid may be mixed into an adjacent treatment chamber.
In order to solve such a problem, a size of a carry-in opening between the treatment chambers may be made substantially the same as that of a substrate to be carried in. However, in that case, even a slight shake of the substrate makes the substrate hit the carry-in opening to stop the carry-in operation.
The present invention is aimed for solving the above-described problem and providing a flow down type surface treating apparatus that enables certain carry-in operation without the liquid being mixed into the adjacent treatment chamber.
The present invention is also aimed for providing the flow down type surface treating apparatus that can prevent the substrate from shaking even if it is a thin substrate that is susceptible to air flow.
A surface treating apparatus according to the present invention includes: a first treatment chamber in which a sheet-like treatment object is carried in a vertically held state; a first processing solution flow down mechanism, provided in the first treatment chamber, for squirting a first processing solution to flow down from an upper portion of the carried treatment object over a surface region of the vertically held treatment object; a second treatment chamber adjacent the first treatment chamber in which the treatment object is carried in the vertically held state; a second processing solution flow down mechanism, provided in the second treatment chamber, for squirting a second processing solution to flow down from the upper portion of the carried treatment object over a surface region of the vertically held treatment object; a partition wall, provided between the first treatment chamber and the second treatment chamber, having a carry-in opening that enables the treatment object to be carded in through the carry-in opening in the vertically held state; and a film forming mechanism provided between the first processing solution flow down mechanism in the first treatment chamber and the second processing solution flow down mechanism in the second treatment chamber, that forms a thin layered liquid film along a direction of gravity on a plane orthogonal to a direction in which the treatment object is carried.
This makes it possible to provide the flow down type surface treating apparatus that enables downsizing without the liquid being mixed into the adjacent treatment chamber.
A state defined by the term “flow down from the upper portion to the lower portion” is not limited as long as it results in a state of the processing solution flowing down from the upper portion to the lower portion of the treatment object, and it includes a case where the processing solution is directly squirted toward the treatment object to flow down and a case where the processing solution is indirectly applied to flow down through a holding part that holds the treatment object.
Features, other objectives, uses, effects, and the like of the present invention will become apparent by referring to the embodiments and the drawings.
First, a structure of a surface treating apparatus 300 of the present invention will be described with reference to
As shown in
Further, the surface treating apparatus 300 includes the transport hanger 16 for transporting the plate-like work 10 in a horizontal direction which is clamped by clamps 15 (
After the plate-like work 10 is attached at a load section 302, the transport mechanism 18 starts to move in the horizontal direction X, thereby the plate-like work 10 pass through inside of each tank (electroless copper plating tank 200, etc.). Eventually, the transport mechanism 18 stops at the unload section 316, and the plate-like work 10 that plating has been performed is detached from the transport hanger 16.
The electroless copper plating tank 200 shown in
For performing a process on the plate-like work 10, a liquid squirting part 4 which has a squirt port 6 is arranged inside of each tank such as the electroless copper plating tank 200. As shown in
Therefore, the processing solution Q (electroless copper plating solution) is attached to the upper side of the plate-like work 10 which is clamped by the transport hanger 16 inside of the tank body 2. Accordingly, it becomes possible to attach the processing solution Q to the surface of the plate-like work 10 while the processing solution Q is running down the plate-like work 10. In addition, the structure of the liquid squirting part 4 will hereinafter be described in detail.
Thus, a system is employed that circulated processing solution Q runs down the plate-like work 10 without dipping the plate-like work 10 into stored processing solution Q. Therefore, it becomes possible to reduce the total amount of the processing solution Q used for the surface treating apparatus 300 in whole as compared with a dipping type.
An antiscattering member 60 is held by a support part 62 made of a net material. A configuration of the antiscattering member 60 will be described later.
The transport mechanism 18 includes the guide rails 12, 14, a support member 20, and the transport rollers 22, 24 shown in
As shown in
Also, a plural of magnets 21 are embedded at a predetermined location on the guide rails 12, 14 shown in
This allows the transport hanger 16 transported into the electroless copper plating tank 200 to stop at a predetermined location (for example, at the center position of the electroless copper plating tank 200 shown in
As shown in
The tank body 2 includes side walls 2a, 2b and bottom 2c, and is formed by assembling these materials such as PVC (polyvinyl chloride) with the use of processing, adhesion, etc., in one united body. The processing solution attached to the plate-like work 10 is received on a downward bottom 2c of the tank body 2. In addition, the tank body 2 of the same shape is also used for each tank shown in
Also, a slit 8 as a cutout is formed so as to extend in a vertical direction on the side wall 2b of the tank body 2 shown in
Therefore, it is required to adjust the supplied amount of the processing solution Q so that the liquid level H (
[Structure of the Liquid Squirting Part 4]
As shown in
As shown in
As shown in
In this embodiment, the squirt angle θ is designed so that the processing solution Q squirted at squirt current velocity V can hit against the plate-like work 10 at the vertex Z of the parabola under a condition that the liquid squirting part 4 (radius r) is separated at a predetermined distance D from the plate-like work 10. It becomes possible to inhibit bubbling at the vertex Z of the parabola shown in
In addition, as the liquid current hits perpendicular to a surface of the plate-like work 10, the processing solution Q attached to the plate-like work 10 spreads on the surface concentrically and uniformly. Further, it is possible to hit the vicinity of the vertex Z, i.e., forward or backward from the vertex Z by a predetermined distance.
If the processing solution Q is squirted in a horizontal direction or below than the horizontal direction without squirting obliquely upward to the horizontal plane L, the vertical component of velocity Vy of the processing solution Q continues to increase, and the synthesized velocity V also continues to increase by an amount corresponding to it. Accordingly, bubbles occur easily because the processing solution Q attached to the plate-like work 10 scatters in y direction.
As the mentioned above, the occurrence of bubbles when striking the work can be suppressed by squirting the processing solution obliquely upward to the horizontal plane L. This makes it possible to prevent from increasing the amount of the dissolved oxygen in the processing solution Q.
In addition, as shown in
If the redirection member 40 is used, the area of liquid flow (section area shown in
That is to say, ideally, it is possible uniformize the liquid flow like a liquid flow squirted through a slit (a long hole) shown in
1.2 Each Processing in the Surface Treating Apparatus 300
Referring to
At first, at the load section 302 shown in
Then, as the operator push a transport switch (not shown), the transport hanger 16 moves into the 1st water-washing tank 304 along the guide rails 12, 14. That is, the PLC 30 controls the transport rollers 22, 24 so as to move forward by switching on the motor 28.
Next, at the 1st water-washing tank 304, water-washing a process is performed by applying water to the plate-like work 10 from both sides. The transport hanger 16 stops at the 1st water-washing tank 304 for a predetermined time, then, moves into the desmear tank 306.
For example, after receiving a signal from the magnetic sensor 19 that indicates an arrival at the center of the water-washing tank 304, the PLC 30 controls the motor 28 so as to stop for one minute. Then, the PLC 30 controls the transport rollers 22, 24 so as to move forward by switching on the motor 28. Also, a similar control is performed at the 2nd water-washing tank 308, the 3rd water-washing tank 312, and the 4th water-washing tank 314.
At the desmear tank 306, the transport hanger 16 stops for a predetermined time (for example, 5 minutes), and desmear processing solution (swelling conditioner, resin etching solution, and neutralizing solution, etc.) is applied to the plate-like work 10 from both sides. Here, the desmear process is a process to remove smear (resin) which remains on the plate-like work 10 upon machining such as making a hole, etc.
For example, after receiving a signal from the magnetic sensor 19 that indicates an arrival at the center of the desmear tank 306, the PLC 30 controls the motor 28 so as to stop for five minutes. Then, the transport rollers 22, 24 move forward by switching on the motor 28. A similar process is performed at the pre-treatment tank 310.
Next, at the 2nd water-washing tank 308, water-washing process is performed by applying water to the plate-like work 10 from both sides. The transport hanger 16 stops at the 2nd water-washing tank 308 for a predetermined time (for example, 1 minute), then, moves into the pre-treatment tank 310.
At the pre-treatment tank 310, the transport hanger 16 stops for a predetermined time (for example, for 5 minutes), and the pre-treatment solution is applied to the plate-like work 10 from both sides.
Next, at the 3rd water-washing tank 312, water-washing process is performed by applying water to the plate-like work 10 from both sides. The transport hanger 16 stops at the 3rd water-washing tank 312 for a predetermined time (for example, 1 minute).
Then, until arriving at the electroless copper plating tank 200 (
For example, after receiving a signal which indicates that the magnet 21 shown in
The transport hanger 16 stops for a predetermined time in the electroless copper plating tank 200, and electroless copper plating solution is applied to the plate-like work 10 from both sides.
For example, the PLC 30 brings the motor 28 to a halt for 5 minutes after receiving a signal from the magnetic sensor 19 that indicates the arrival at the center of the electroless copper plating tank 200. Then, the transport rollers 22, 24 move forward by switching on the motor 8.
Then, at the 4th water-washing tank 314, a water-washing process is performed by applying water to the plate-like work 10 from both sides. The transport hanger 16 stops at the 4th water-washing tank 314 for a predetermined time (for example, 1 minute), after that, it is transferred to the unload section 316.
At last, the transport hanger 16 transferred to the unload section 316 stops. For example, the PLC 30 brings the motor 8 to a halt after receiving a signal from the magnetic sensor 19 that indicates the arrival at the unload section 316. After that, the plate-like work 10 is unloaded by the operator, etc. In this way, a series of the electroless plating process will be completed.
In the above embodiments, the surface treating apparatus 300 includes a plural of tanks (Such as the 1st water-washing tank 304, the desmear tank 306, the pre-treatment tank 310, and the electroless copper plating tank 200 shown
In the above embodiments, electroless copper plating is performed on the plate-like work 10 in the surface treating apparatus 300. However, the other electroless plating may be performed on the plate-like work 10 (for example, electroless nickel plating, electroless tin plating, electroless gold plating, etc.).
The antiscattering member 60 will be described with reference to
With such a honeycomb member, it is possible to reduce the reflection of the droplets splashed on the surface of the processing solution Q. This is due to the following reason. The droplet that have passed through a through-hole (not shown) of the antiscattering member 60 is partly reflected by the surface of the processing solution Q. At this time, a part of the reflected droplet is reflected obliquely and thus collides with an inner wall of the through-hole of the antiscattering member 60. This is because the amount of the reflected droplets passing through the through-holes reversely is reduced by such a mechanism.
In case of using a conventional sponge or fibrous material and the like, scattering after passing through the antiscattering member can be prevented, but there remains a problem that scattering on the surface of the antiscattering member is large. The antiscattering member 60 can reduce such scattering on the surface.
Note that some scattering occurs on the surface of the antiscattering member 60. In order to prevent such scattering, a film forming mechanism 110 may be employed on an inlet side and an outlet side of each treatment chamber as shown in
Herein, the film forming mechanism 110 will be described. As shown in
Then, the film forming mechanism 110a will be described. Although shown in
As shown in
In
The liquid ejected from the film forming mechanism 110a and the film forming mechanism 110b prevents the droplets reflected on the surface of the antiscattering member 60 from splashing and entering the adjacent treatment chamber.
In the present embodiment, the film forming mechanism 110 is employed on the inlet side and the outlet side of each treatment chamber, but either one may be employed.
In the present embodiment, the distance d11 can be made smaller than a width d12 of the slit 8. This is because, when the plate-like work 10 is shaken larger than the distance d11 to collide with a film formed by the film forming mechanism 110, the film flows down along the plate-like work 10 since the film is liquid. This also has an effect of converging the shaking of the plate-like work 10.
Moreover, the film reduces the air flow in a transport direction in each process chamber. This is because the opening can be made narrower than the width d12 of the slit, and accordingly, the air flowing into the treatment chamber from the outside can be prevented.
In the present embodiment, the film forming mechanism 110 is employed in order to prevent scattering on the surface of the anti scattering member 60. However, the film forming mechanism 110 can be applied not only to a case that another antiscattering member is employed but also to a surface treating apparatus that includes no scattering prevention mechanism. The latter includes, for example, a surface treating apparatus having no scattering prevention mechanism in which the droplets splash on the surface of the processing solution Q stored under the plate-like work 10, and a surface treating apparatus having no scattering prevention mechanism in which the droplets splash on the bottom surface.
A surface treating apparatus 410 having a mechanism for flowing air downwards in the treatment chamber will be described with reference to
In the present embodiment, a tray 80 having a shape as shown in
As shown in
The shape of the tray 80 will be described with reference to
In the present embodiment, a width d1 of the slit 81a between the two slopes 84 is about 2 mm. Such width may be determined so that an allowable amount that the vertical pipe member 81 can suck per unit time becomes larger than an amount of liquid collected by the tray 80 per unit time. However, if the width d1 is made too large, flow velocity decreases when the suction air flow rate (amount Q=opening area A*flow velocity V) remains constant, so it is desirable to set the width d1 to 5 mm or less.
A vertical pipe member 81 is connected to the lower end of the slope 85. As shown in
In the present embodiment, suction is performed by a pump 92 provided at an end of a pipe 93 so that a chamber 94 is kept in a negative pressure state.
An air intake 95 is provided in an upper part of the treatment chamber. Therefore, the air taken in from the air intake 95 by the suction flows from the through-holes 61 of the antiscattering member 60 through the slopes 84 and 85 to the vertical pipe member 81 and the horizontal pipe member 88. Then, together with the collected liquid, the air is discharged from the horizontal pipe member 88 to the chamber 94.
As shown in
In this embodiment, the tray 80 is provided under the antiscattering member 60, but a member other than the antiscattering member 60 may be used. Also, the tray 80 may be provided without the antiscattering member 60.
The tray 80 may have a different shape as long as the air easily flows on the side surfaces of the plate-like work 10 in the vertical direction.
In the present embodiment, the slit 81a is formed by the pair of lids 81b, but other methods such as adopting a pipe which is partly formed to have the shape of the slit 81a may be used.
By mounting the lids 121a and 121b on the tray 80, the slopes 84 and 85 and the slopes 123 are combined and held together, and the vertical pipe member 81 is partially blocked by the semicircular part 125. Also, the antiscattering member 60 is divided into two, and a gap having the width d1 between the side walls 122 is formed on the vertical pipe member 81. Thereby, since a suction port can be located closer to the plate-like work 10, suction force can be enhanced. Moreover, since the suction port can be narrowed, the flow velocity of the air below the plate-like work 10 can be increased. Thereby, the splash of droplets can be reduced.
Note that the problem of droplets being accumulated in the tray 80 by the lids 121a and 121b can be solved by providing the through-holes 122a. A position and number of the through-holes 122a may be designed according to the amount of the liquid accumulated in the tray 80.
In
Depending on the shape of the plate-like work 10, a distance between the plate-like work 10 and the tray 80 may vary. In this case, as shown in
In the present embodiment, controlled air velocity in the treatment chamber is kept to be from 0.2 to 0.5 m/s by adjusting the suction by the pump 92. By setting the air velocity to this extent, the splash on the surface of the anti scattering member 60 can be reduced while stabilizing the posture of the plate-like work 10.
Note that the controlled air velocity in the treatment chamber is not limited to the above-described range.
The air intake 95 and the pump 92 may be provided in each treatment chamber. Accordingly, there remains almost no air flow in a direction of an arrow R in
Further, a lower end surface of the frame 52 is located lower than the processing solution Q. Therefore, communication of air to the chamber 94 is performed through the vertical pipe member 81 and the horizontal pipe member 88.
Note that if the substrate is thinner than 40 μm, even if there exists a downward air flow in the treatment chamber, the substrate may be shaken if there exists an air flow in a direction perpendicular thereto. Such a problem occurs at a position where exposure to the processing solution from a liquid squirting part 4 does not take place. However, in the present embodiment, since the air flow in the direction perpendicular to the downward air flow in the treatment chamber can be reduced, even such a thin substrate can be stably transported.
As in the second embodiment, in the case where the air flow is controlled to be substantially vertical in each treatment chamber, by using the film forming mechanism 110, the air flow in a direction parallel to a proceeding direction of the substrate flowing in from the slit 8 can be reduced. Therefore, even the thin plate-like work can be stably transported in each treatment chamber.
By providing such a kind of liquid film curtain, the area of the opening can be reduced, and an effect of push-pull exhaust in the vertical direction is enhanced, so that the suction of outside air and the shaking of the thin plate-like work can be hardly allowed. Furthermore, there is an effect that mist in the treatment chamber is hardly leaked to the outside.
In the above-described embodiment, the case where the film forming mechanism 110 is provided in each treatment chamber has been described. However, in the third embodiment, as illustrated in
An arrangement position of the film forming mechanism 110 in the front tank 303 is shown in
The arrangement position of the film forming mechanism 110 in the rear tank 315 is shown in
In this way, the inside of the load section 302 and the inside of the unload section 316 are provided with a thin layered liquid film along the direction of gravity on a plane orthogonal to a direction in which the plate-like work 10 is carried, so that the suction of outside air can be prevented.
In each of the above-described embodiments, the film forming mechanism 110 is provided substantially horizontally. In this case, as the formed liquid films 113a and 113b move downwards, their widths are narrowed toward their center lines due to an influence of surface tension of a free-falling liquid (see
In this case, corresponding to the inclination, gaps are formed between the outer edges of the liquid films 113a and 113b and the side walls of the tank body. Therefore, guiding plates 121 may be provided to fill the gaps (see
In the first and second embodiments, two film forming mechanisms 110 are arranged in the vicinity of the inlet and the outlet in each treatment chamber. However, as shown in
In addition, when the film forming mechanism 110 is provided outside the treatment chamber, water recovery is required separately. To solve this problem, for example, the water ejected from all the film forming mechanisms may be circulated together.
In each of the above-described embodiments, the film forming mechanism 110 is arranged at substantially the same height as the clamp 15. Although it is more preferable to arrange the film forming mechanism 110 slightly higher than the clamp 15, the film forming mechanism 110 may be also arranged higher or lower than the clamp 15. The same applies to positional relationship with the liquid squirting part 4.
For example, in each of the above-described embodiments, the pair of film forming mechanisms 110a and 110b are arranged with a width that allows the clamp 15 holding the film forming mechanism 110 to pass through. However, the width can be narrowed by arranging the film forming mechanism 110 (higher or lower) to avoid interference with the clamp 15.
In the surface treating apparatus according to the present invention, the film forming mechanism is provided in the vicinity of the carry-in opening, in the first treatment chamber or in the second treatment chamber. This makes it possible to provide the flow down type surface treating apparatus that enables downsizing without the liquid being mixed into the adjacent treatment chamber.
The surface treating apparatus according to the present invention includes an air flow rate control mechanism that controls air to flow in a vertical direction along two planes of the sheet-like treatment object. The film forming mechanism reduces air flowing in from the carry-in opening that collides with the air flow in the vertical direction.
In the surface treating apparatus according to the present invention, the liquid film is composed of the same liquid that is squirted to flow down over the sheet-like treatment object in the relevant treatment chamber. This makes it possible to collect the liquid by using a same collecting mechanism in the treatment chamber.
In the surface treating apparatus according to the present invention, the liquid film has a film opening narrower than the carry-in opening. This makes it possible to reduce the air flowing in from the carry-in opening that collides with the air flow in the vertical direction.
In the surface treating apparatus according to the present invention, the film opening is wider than a width of a holding part that holds the sheet-like treatment object. This makes it possible to arrange the film forming mechanism avoiding the holding part that holds the sheet-like treatment object.
In the surface treating apparatus according to the present invention, thickness of the sheet-like treatment object is 40 μm or less. This makes it possible to stably transfer even such a substrate that is susceptible to the air flow.
In the surface treating apparatus according to the present invention, the film opening is formed by arranging a pair of discharge parts apart from each other. This makes it possible to secure a space for transportation when transporting the sheet-like treatment object by a suspension system.
In the surface treating apparatus according to the present invention, the pair of discharge parts discharges the liquid obliquely so as to face the film opening. This makes it possible to prevent the liquid film from moving away each other as going downward due to surface tension.
The surface treating apparatus according to the present invention includes a guiding plate that is spaced wider than the carry-in opening and guides the liquid film. This makes it possible to facilitate the formation of the liquid film.
In the surface treating apparatus according to the present invention, the air flow rate control mechanism includes an air suction port and a height adjustment mechanism that adjusts a distance between the air suction port and the treatment object. This makes it possible to adjust the distance between the suction port and the treatment object according to the size of the treatment object.
In the surface treating apparatus according to the present invention, a plurality of treatment chambers are arranged in series in which the sheet-like treatment object is carried in the vertically held state via the carry-in openings, and in each of the treatment chambers, a predetermined processing solution is squirted to flow down from an upper portion of a surface area of the vertically held treatment object that is carried in so that a predetermined surface treatment is applied to the surface of the treatment object. Among the treatment chambers, the film forming mechanisms are provided on the inside of the carry-in opening of the treatment chamber on the inlet side and/or the inside of the carry-in opening of the treatment chamber on the outlet side, wherein the film forming mechanism forms a thin layered liquid film along a direction of gravity on a plane orthogonal to a direction in which the treatment object is carried. This makes it possible to reduce the air flowing into each treatment chambers. Thereby, the posture of the sheet-like treatment object is stabilized.
In the surface treating apparatus according to the present invention, each of the treatment chambers includes an air flow rate control mechanism for controlling the air to flow in the vertical direction along two planes of the sheet-like treatment object. This makes it easier to stabilize the posture of the sheet-like treatment object.
Although the present invention has been described as a preferred embodiment in the foregoing, it has been used not for purposes of limitation but for purposes of illustration. Therefore, changes can be made within the scope of the claims without surpassing the scope and the spirit of the present invention.
Number | Date | Country | Kind |
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JP2019-002872 | Jan 2019 | JP | national |
Number | Name | Date | Kind |
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20140053774 | Hotta | Feb 2014 | A1 |
20140116334 | Hotta et al. | May 2014 | A1 |
20180087140 | Utsumi | Mar 2018 | A1 |
20180100237 | Utsumi | Apr 2018 | A1 |
20180110128 | Utsumi | Apr 2018 | A1 |
20180117618 | Utsumi | May 2018 | A1 |
Number | Date | Country |
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2014-088600 | May 2014 | JP |
Entry |
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Notification of Reasons for Refusal (Including Translation) for corresponding Japanese Patent Application No. 2019-002863, dated Sep. 7, 2020. |
Notification of Reasons for Refusal (Including Translation) for corresponding Japanese Patent Application No. 2019-002872, dated Sep. 7, 2020. |
Number | Date | Country | |
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20200224315 A1 | Jul 2020 | US |