Liquid crystal filling device

Abstract

The utility model discloses a liquid crystal filling device. The liquid crystal filling device comprises a device body, a clamp, a filling groove, an air exhaust mechanism, an air inflation mechanism and an ultrasonic bubble sensor. The device body is provided with a vacuum cavity, the clamp and the filling groove are arranged in the vacuum cavity, the clamp is used for fixing a liquid crystal box, and the filling groove is used for storing liquid crystal. The air exhaust mechanism is arranged outside the vacuum cavity and communicated with the vacuum cavity so that the vacuum cavity and the liquid crystal box fixed in the vacuum cavity can be vacuumized. And the clamp and the filling groove can be lifted relatively, so that the liquid crystal suction hole in the bottom of the liquid crystal box is in contact with and sucks the liquid crystal in the filling groove after vacuumizing. The ultrasonic bubble sensor is arranged in the vacuum cavity, is arranged on the side wall of the filling groove and is used for sensing whether bubbles appear in the liquid crystal in the filling groove or not; the inflation mechanism is arranged outside the vacuum cavity and communicated with the vacuum cavity, so that when the ultrasonic bubble sensor senses bubbles, gas is inflated to eliminate the bubbles, idle work of the device is avoided, and smooth liquid crystal filling operation is guaranteed.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention belongs to the field of optoelectronic display technology, and specifically relates to a liquid crystal injection device. Background Art

[0002] To study the optical properties of liquid materials, the material is generally injected into a box consisting of two substrates (usually made of glass), and then the box is heated or exposed to light to solidify the material inside in order to study the optical properties of the material.

[0003] The previous filling method was to manually suck up the material with a straw, and then squeeze it out towards the open side of the glass box. Under the action of capillary force, the glass box sucked in the extruded material. After that, the opening of the glass box was sealed with glue, and the glass box filled with material was completed. However, this filling method is inefficient, the material between the glass sheets is difficult to distribute evenly, and there are many human interference factors, which is not conducive to batch production. Later, someone designed a crystal filling machine that can avoid manual operation, but the addition of materials is still done manually. Adding too much will waste materials, and adding too little will affect the crystal filling; in addition, when defoaming the liquid crystal material, a fixed time is set for defoaming. It often happens that the machine is defoaming when there are no bubbles, and the machine does not defoam when bubbles appear, resulting in crystal filling failure. Utility Model Content

[0004] The present solution aims to overcome at least one defect in the prior art and provide a liquid crystal filling device that performs defoaming only when bubbles appear in the liquid crystal material, thereby helping to increase the success rate of crystal filling and improve the efficiency of crystal filling.

[0005] In order to solve the above technical problems, the following technical solutions are adopted:

[0006] A liquid crystal filling device includes a device body, a clamp, a filling tank and an exhaust mechanism. The device body is provided with a vacuum chamber, the clamp and the filling tank are arranged in the vacuum chamber, the clamp is used to fix a liquid crystal box, and the filling tank is used to store liquid crystal. The exhaust mechanism is arranged outside the vacuum chamber and connected to the vacuum chamber, so as to evacuate the vacuum chamber and the liquid crystal box fixed in the vacuum chamber. The clamp and the filling tank can be relatively lifted and lowered, so that after evacuation, the liquid crystal suction hole at the bottom of the liquid crystal box contacts and sucks the liquid crystal in the filling tank. The liquid crystal filling device also includes an ultrasonic bubble sensor and an air filling mechanism, the ultrasonic bubble sensor is arranged in the vacuum chamber and on the side wall of the filling tank, and is used to sense whether bubbles appear in the liquid crystal in the filling tank; the air filling mechanism is arranged outside the vacuum chamber and connected to the vacuum chamber, so that when the ultrasonic bubble sensor senses bubbles, gas is filled to eliminate the bubbles.

[0007] This solution uses the synergistic effect of the ultrasonic bubble sensor and the inflation mechanism to enable the device to perform defoaming only when bubbles appear in the liquid crystal, thereby achieving accurate defoaming. This not only avoids the device from doing useless work (defoaming when there are no bubbles), but also ensures the smooth progress of the liquid crystal filling operation, which is conducive to continuous operation and improves the crystal filling efficiency.

[0008] The ultrasonic bubble sensor can be set outside or inside the filling tank, and its transmitter and receiver are respectively set on the opposite side walls of the filling tank. Under normal circumstances, the high-frequency sound waves generated by the transmitter pass through the filling tank containing liquid crystal and are received by the receiver. When the liquid crystal boils and generates bubbles, there is a large difference in acoustic impedance between the side wall of the filling tank or the liquid crystal and the gas. This large impedance mismatch will form an acoustic mirror, reflecting the ultrasonic wave back to the direction of the transmitter, so that the receiver cannot receive the sound wave, thereby indicating the presence of bubbles in the liquid crystal.

[0009] The liquid crystal perfusion device may further include a material box, which is disposed in the vacuum chamber and connected to the filling tank, and is used to replenish the liquid crystal for the filling tank, so as to ensure that the liquid crystal suction hole of the liquid crystal box can always be closed by the liquid crystal in the filling tank during the perfusion process, thereby preventing gas from entering the liquid crystal box and generating bubbles, thereby ensuring the smooth progress of the perfusion process.

[0010] The liquid crystal filling device may also include a tray and a quality sensor, which are arranged in the vacuum chamber. The tray is used to support the filling tank. The quality sensor is arranged between the filling tank and the tray, and is used to sense the remaining liquid crystal in the filling tank, so that the material box can replenish the liquid crystal for the filling tank in a timely and appropriate manner, thereby avoiding waste of liquid crystal material due to excessive replenishment and insufficient replenishment affecting the crystal filling process, which is conducive to continuous operation and further improves the crystal filling efficiency.

[0011] The device body may include a base and a vacuum cover, which is buckled on the top of the base, and the two together form a vacuum chamber. The top of the base constitutes the bottom of the vacuum chamber, and the vacuum cover constitutes the top and side walls of the vacuum chamber. Observation windows may be provided on the top and side walls of the vacuum cover so that the operator can check the liquid crystal perfusion during the operation of the device. Both the exhaust mechanism and the inflation mechanism may be provided in the base, and connected to the vacuum chamber through a pipe penetrating the top of the base.

[0012] The fixture can be fixedly mounted on the top of the base, and the filling tank can be lifted and lowered between the fixture and the top of the base. Specifically, a first driving mechanism is provided in the base. If the liquid crystal filling device includes a tray, the first driving mechanism is connected to the tray, otherwise it is connected to the filling tank, so as to drive the filling tank to move up and down. The first driving mechanism and the tray or the filling tank can also be connected through a first lifting mechanism. The two ends of the first lifting mechanism are respectively connected to the first driving mechanism and the tray (or the filling tank). Under the driving action of the first driving mechanism, the first lifting mechanism drives the tray (or the filling tank) to move up and down, and then the filling tank moves up and down with the tray, so as to realize the relative lifting and lowering of the fixture and the filling tank. The opposite sides of the fixture are respectively connected with brackets, and the two brackets are respectively fixed on the top of the base and are respectively located on both sides of the filling tank and the tray. A guide groove can be provided on the side of the bracket facing the filling tank and the tray, and a slider cooperating with the filling tank or the tray facing the bracket can be provided. Through the cooperation of the guide groove and the slider, the lifting and lowering guidance of the filling tank or the tray can be realized. The slider can be set as a roller, and the roller is rotatably installed on the side of the filling tank or the pallet through the installation shaft, which helps to improve the lifting and lowering smoothness of the filling tank or the pallet.

[0013] The vacuum cover can be arranged on the top of the base in a liftable manner. When the vacuum cover rises relative to the base, the vacuum chamber opens, exposing the fixture, filling tank, etc. arranged therein, as well as the entire top of the base, so that the upper surface of the top of the base can be used as an operating table, which is convenient for the operator to install the liquid crystal box, add liquid crystal to the material box, etc. Specifically, a second driving mechanism is arranged in the base, and the second driving mechanism is connected to the vacuum cover so as to drive the vacuum cover to perform lifting and lowering movements.

[0014] Compared with the prior art, this solution has the following beneficial effects: through the synergistic effect of the ultrasonic bubble sensor and the inflation mechanism, the device can perform defoaming work only when bubbles appear in the liquid crystal, thereby achieving accurate defoaming, which not only avoids the device doing useless work (defoaming when there are no bubbles), but also ensures the smooth progress of the liquid crystal filling operation, which is conducive to continuous operation and improves the crystal filling efficiency. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0015] The drawings are for illustrative purposes only and should not be construed as limitations on the present invention. In order to better illustrate the present invention, some parts of the drawings may be omitted, enlarged, or reduced, and do not represent the size of actual products. For those skilled in the art, it is understandable that some well-known structures and their descriptions in the drawings may be omitted.

[0016] Figure 1 It is a schematic diagram of the structure of the liquid crystal perfusion device when the vacuum chamber is sealed.

[0017] Figure 2 It is a schematic diagram of the structure of the liquid crystal perfusion device when the vacuum chamber is opened.

[0018] Figure 3 yes Figure 2 Enlarged view of part A in the middle.

[0019] Figure 4 It is a schematic diagram of the internal structure of the liquid crystal perfusion device.

[0020] Figure 5 It is a structural diagram of the tray and the bracket.

[0021] Figure 6 It is a schematic diagram of the structure of the left rear side of the liquid crystal perfusion device.

[0022] Explanation of the reference numerals: device body 100, base 110, vacuum cover 120, observation window 121, clamp 200, bracket 210, guide groove 211, slider 212, filling tank 300, ultrasonic bubble sensor 310, tray 320, sponge 330, first driving mechanism 411, first lifting mechanism 412, second driving mechanism 430, liquid crystal box 001. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0023] In order to enable those skilled in the art to better understand the present solution, the present solution is further described in detail below in conjunction with specific embodiments.

[0024] Figures 1 to 6 An embodiment of a liquid crystal injection device is shown in FIG. The device uses an immersion injection method to inject liquid crystal, and can produce optical elements such as volume holographic gratings and liquid crystal display panels. Figures 1 to 3 As shown, the liquid crystal filling device includes a device body 100, a fixture 200, a filling tank 300, an ultrasonic bubble sensor 310, an air extraction mechanism (not shown in the figure) and an air filling mechanism (not shown in the figure). The device body 100 is provided with a vacuum chamber, and the fixture 200, the filling tank 300 and the ultrasonic bubble sensor 310 are all arranged in the vacuum chamber. The fixture 200 is mounted above the filling tank 300 to fix the liquid crystal box 001; the filling tank 300 is used to store liquid crystal; the ultrasonic bubble sensor 310 is arranged on the side wall of the filling tank 300 to sense whether bubbles appear in the liquid crystal in the filling tank 300. The air extraction mechanism is arranged outside the vacuum chamber and connected to the vacuum chamber so as to evacuate the vacuum chamber and the liquid crystal box 001 fixed in the vacuum chamber. The air filling mechanism is also arranged outside the vacuum chamber and connected to the vacuum chamber so as to fill gas to eliminate bubbles when the ultrasonic bubble sensor 310 senses bubbles. The fixture 200 and the filling tank 300 can be relatively lifted and lowered so that the liquid crystal suction hole at the bottom of the liquid crystal box 001 can contact and suck the liquid crystal in the filling tank 300 after vacuuming.

[0025] During the operation of the device, the vacuum chamber needs to be evacuated first, and the gas in the liquid crystal box 001 is extracted from the liquid crystal suction hole at the bottom thereof; then the liquid crystal suction hole is brought into contact with the sponge 330 adsorbed with liquid crystal in the filling tank 300, and the liquid crystal is slowly injected from the filling tank 300 into the liquid crystal box 001. At the same time, an inert gas such as dry argon or nitrogen is filled into the vacuum chamber, and the liquid crystal is completely absorbed into the liquid crystal box 001 by the pressure of the inert gas and the capillary phenomenon, completing the liquid crystal perfusion. During the vacuuming process, the pressure in the vacuum chamber gradually decreases, and the liquid crystal stored in the filling tank 300 is prone to boiling, thereby generating bubbles. If the bubbles are not eliminated and are absorbed into the liquid crystal box 001 during the perfusion process, the liquid crystal perfusion will fail. An ultrasonic bubble sensor 310 is arranged on the side wall of the filling tank 300, which can sense bubbles in time and fill gas into the vacuum chamber through the inflation mechanism. Under the pressure of the filled gas, the bubbles are eliminated, thereby accurately defoaming, which not only avoids the device doing useless work (defoaming when there are no bubbles), but also ensures the smooth progress of the liquid crystal filling operation.

[0026] Specifically, the ultrasonic bubble sensor 310 is arranged outside the filling tank 300, and its transmitter and receiver are respectively arranged on the opposite side walls of the filling tank 300. The working principle of the ultrasonic bubble sensor 310 is based on the propagation characteristics of ultrasonic waves in liquids. It uses an active piezoelectric element as a transmitter to generate high-frequency sound waves. This sound wave first passes through the sensor wall, then propagates into the filling tank 300 in contact with the sensor wall, and then passes through the liquid crystal in the filling tank 300 to reach the opposite sensor wall and is received by a passive piezoelectric element on the other side. The ultrasonic bubble sensor 310 can detect whether there are bubbles, mainly because there is a large difference in acoustic impedance between the side wall of the filling tank 300 or the liquid crystal and the gas. This large impedance mismatch will form an acoustic mirror, which can reflect ultrasonic waves back to the direction of the transmitter, and the sound waves cannot reach the receiving end. When the sensor detects this situation, it will indicate the presence of bubbles. In addition, the ultrasonic bubble sensor 310 can also be arranged in the filling tank 300, and its transmitter and receiver are also respectively arranged on the opposite side walls of the filling tank 300.

[0027] During the liquid crystal filling process, as the liquid crystal is gradually absorbed into the liquid crystal box 001, the liquid crystal in the filling tank 300 gradually decreases. A material box (not shown in the drawings) storing liquid crystal and connected to the filling tank 300 is arranged in the vacuum chamber, so that the liquid crystal can be replenished to the filling tank 300 in time, ensuring that the filling tank 300 can continuously provide liquid crystal to the liquid crystal box 001, and avoiding the gas from entering the liquid crystal box 001 to form bubbles due to the interruption of liquid crystal supply. A tray 320 for supporting the filling tank 300 is arranged in the vacuum chamber, and a quality sensor (not shown in the drawings) is arranged between the filling tank 300 and the tray 320, which can sense the residual amount of liquid crystal in the filling tank 300, so that the material box can replenish the liquid crystal to the filling tank 300 in time and appropriately, thereby avoiding excessive replenishment causing waste of liquid crystal materials and insufficient replenishment affecting the crystal filling process.

[0028] The contact between the liquid crystal suction hole and the liquid crystal is achieved by the relative lifting of the clamp 200 and the filling tank 300. Specifically, the device body 100 is provided with a first driving mechanism 411 and a first lifting mechanism 412. Figure 4 As shown, the two ends of the first lifting mechanism 412 are respectively connected to the first driving mechanism 411 and the tray 320. Under the driving action of the first driving mechanism 411, the first lifting mechanism 412 drives the tray 320 to move up and down, thereby causing the filling tank 300 to move up and down along with the tray 320, and the fixture 200 is fixedly mounted in the vacuum chamber, thereby realizing the relative lifting of the fixture 200 and the filling tank 300. It can be understood that if the device is not provided with a mass sensor, the tray 320 can be omitted, and the first lifting mechanism 412 can be connected to the bottom of the filling tank 300. Under the driving action of the first driving mechanism 411, the first lifting mechanism 412 directly drives the filling tank 300 to move up and down. In addition, the two ends of the first lifting mechanism 412 can also be connected to the first driving mechanism 411 and the clamp 200 respectively. Under the driving action of the first driving mechanism 411, the first lifting mechanism 412 drives the clamp 200 to move up and down, and the tray 320 or the filling tank 300 is fixedly arranged in the vacuum chamber, and the relative lifting and lowering of the clamp 200 and the filling tank 300 can also be achieved. Among them, the first driving mechanism 411 can be a servo motor, and the output shaft of the servo motor can be connected to the first lifting mechanism 412 through a reducer. The first lifting mechanism 412 can be a ball screw mechanism that converts the rotary motion of the servo motor into a linear motion, and the input end of the ball screw mechanism and the reducer can be connected through a belt (not shown in the drawings) for transmission.

[0029] The fixture 200 can be fixedly mounted on the bottom of the vacuum chamber by means of a bracket 210. Specifically, the brackets 210 are connected to the opposite sides of the fixture 200, such as Figure 2~3 As shown, two brackets 210 are respectively fixed to the bottom of the vacuum chamber and are respectively located on both sides of the filling tank 300 and the tray 320. Figure 5As shown, a guide groove 211 may be provided on one side of the bracket 210 facing the filling tank 300 and the tray 320, and a slider 212 cooperating therewith may be provided on one side of the filling tank 300 or the tray 320 facing the bracket 210. The lifting and lowering guidance of the filling tank 300 or the tray 320 may be achieved through the cooperation between the guide groove 211 and the slider 212. The slider 212 may be provided as a roller, which is rotatably mounted on the side of the filling tank 300 or the tray 320 through a mounting shaft, which helps to improve the lifting and lowering smoothness of the filling tank 300 or the tray 320.

[0030] like Figure 1 As shown, the device body 100 may include a base 110 and a vacuum cover 120. The vacuum cover 120 is buckled on the top of the base 110 and encloses the top of the base 110 to form a closed vacuum chamber. The top of the base 110 constitutes the bottom of the vacuum chamber, and the vacuum cover 120 constitutes the top and side walls of the vacuum chamber. The top and side walls of the vacuum cover 120 may be provided with observation windows 121 so that the operator can check the liquid crystal perfusion during the operation of the device.

[0031] The vacuum cover 120 and the base 110 can be raised and lowered relative to each other. Specifically, the vacuum cover 120 can be raised and lowered on the top of the base 110. When the vacuum cover 120 rises relative to the base 110, the vacuum chamber opens, exposing the clamp 200, the filling tank 300, etc., and the entire top of the base 110, so that the upper surface of the top of the base 110 can be used as an operating table, which is convenient for the operator to install the liquid crystal box 001, add liquid crystal to the material box, etc. More specifically, the device body 100 is provided with a second driving mechanism 430, such as Figure 4 As shown, the output end of the second driving mechanism 430 is connected to the vacuum cover 120, as shown in FIG. Figure 6 As shown, the vacuum cover 120 moves up and down under the driving action of the second driving mechanism 430. The second driving mechanism 430 can be a cylinder.

[0032] The air extraction mechanism, the air filling mechanism, the first lifting mechanism 412, the first driving mechanism 411 and the second driving mechanism 430 can all be arranged in the base 110. The air extraction mechanism and the air filling mechanism can be connected to the vacuum chamber through pipelines, one end of the pipeline is located in the base 110, connected to the air extraction mechanism or the air filling mechanism, and the other end passes through the top of the base 110 to communicate with the vacuum chamber; the input end of the first lifting mechanism 412 is located in the base 110, connected to the first driving mechanism 411 also located in the base 110, and the output end passes through the top of the base 110 and is connected to the tray 320; the main body of the second driving mechanism 430 is located in the base 110, and its output end passes through the top of the base 110 and is connected to the vacuum cover 120.

[0033] Obviously, the above embodiments of the present invention are merely examples for clearly illustrating the present invention, and are not intended to limit the implementation methods of the present invention. For those skilled in the art, other different forms of changes or modifications can be made based on the above description. It is not necessary and impossible to list all implementation methods here. Any modifications, equivalent substitutions, and improvements made within the spirit and principles of the present invention shall be included in the protection scope of the claims of the present invention.

Claims

1. A liquid crystal filling device, comprising a device body, a fixture, a filling tank and an exhaust mechanism, wherein the device body is provided with a vacuum chamber, the fixture and the filling tank are arranged in the vacuum chamber, the fixture is used to fix the liquid crystal box, the filling tank is used to store the liquid crystal, the exhaust mechanism is arranged outside the vacuum chamber and communicates with the vacuum chamber, so as to evacuate the vacuum chamber and the liquid crystal box fixed in the vacuum chamber, the fixture and the filling tank can be relatively lifted and lowered, so as to make the liquid crystal suction hole at the bottom of the liquid crystal box contact and suck the liquid crystal in the filling tank after evacuation; characterized in that The liquid crystal filling device also includes an ultrasonic bubble sensor and an inflation mechanism. The ultrasonic bubble sensor is arranged in the vacuum chamber and on the side wall of the filling tank, and is used to sense whether bubbles appear in the liquid crystal in the filling tank. The inflation mechanism is arranged outside the vacuum chamber and connected to the vacuum chamber, so that gas can be filled to eliminate the bubbles when the ultrasonic bubble sensor senses bubbles.

2. The liquid crystal filling device according to claim 1, characterized in that: The ultrasonic bubble sensor is arranged outside / inside the filling tank, and its transmitter and receiver are respectively arranged on two opposite side walls of the filling tank.

3. The liquid crystal filling device according to claim 1, characterized in that: The liquid crystal filling device also includes a material box, which is arranged in the vacuum chamber and connected to the filling tank, and is used to replenish the liquid crystal for the filling tank.

4. The liquid crystal filling device according to claim 3, characterized in that: The liquid crystal filling device also includes a tray and a quality sensor, which are arranged in the vacuum chamber. The tray is used to support the filling tank. The quality sensor is arranged between the filling tank and the tray to sense the remaining liquid crystal in the filling tank so that the material box can replenish the liquid crystal for the filling tank in a timely and appropriate manner.

5. The liquid crystal filling device according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that: The device body comprises a base and a vacuum cover, wherein the vacuum cover is buckled on the top of the base, and the two together form the vacuum chamber.

6. The liquid crystal filling device according to claim 5, characterized in that: The clamp is fixedly mounted on the top of the base, and the filling tank is liftably arranged between the clamp and the top of the base.

7. The liquid crystal filling device according to claim 6, characterized in that: A first driving mechanism is disposed in the base. If the liquid crystal filling device includes a tray, the first driving mechanism is connected to the tray, otherwise it is connected to the filling tank so as to drive the filling tank to move up and down.

8. The liquid crystal filling device according to claim 5, characterized in that: The vacuum cover is arranged on the top of the base in a liftable manner.

9. The liquid crystal filling device according to claim 8, characterized in that: A second driving mechanism is arranged in the base, and the second driving mechanism is connected to the vacuum cover so as to drive the vacuum cover to perform lifting movement.

10. The liquid crystal filling device according to claim 5, characterized in that: The vacuum mechanism is disposed in the base and is connected to the vacuum chamber via a pipe penetrating the top of the base; and / or The inflation mechanism is arranged in the base and is connected to the vacuum chamber through a pipeline penetrating the top of the base.

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