Vacuum coating apparatus
By adopting a sliding gate and slide rail design in the vacuum coating equipment, the problem of difficult operation caused by the excessive size and weight of the vacuum gate is solved, realizing convenient sliding of the gate and efficient breaking of the vacuum chamber.
Patent Information
- Authority / Receiving Office
- CN · China
- Patent Type
- Patents(China)
- Current Assignee / Owner
- ANHUI BETTER ELECTRONIC EQUIP CO LTD
- Filing Date
- 2023-06-02
- Publication Date
- 2026-07-21
AI Technical Summary
In existing vacuum coating equipment, the vacuum gate is too large and heavy, which poses a significant obstacle when breaking through and opening the vacuum chamber, making it difficult to effectively apply conventional rotary opening and closing structures and sliding door structures.
The gate is designed to slide in conjunction with a slide rail. By sliding along the width of the slide rail through the gap between the sliding base and the slide rail, a gap is created between the gate and the side wall of the vacuum chamber, which releases the negative pressure adsorption and enables the gate to slide in a labor-saving manner.
It enables convenient opening and closing of the vacuum gate, avoids the problem of difficulty in sliding caused by negative pressure adsorption, and improves operational efficiency.
Smart Images
Figure CN116837341B_ABST
Abstract
Description
Technical Field
[0001] This application relates to the field of coating, and in particular to vacuum coating equipment. Background Technology
[0002] In existing vacuum coating equipment, the main function of the vacuum gate is to isolate and connect the vacuum chamber with the outside world. When the coating process is underway, the vacuum gate closes the vacuum chamber to prevent external impurities from entering. When the process is complete and material needs to be loaded, unloaded, or for maintenance, the vacuum chamber is ventilated before the vacuum gate is opened.
[0003] However, existing vacuum gates are extremely large in size and weight, especially in vacuum roll coating equipment, where the gate height can reach more than 3 meters and the weight can reach more than 500 kg. Therefore, there are significant obstacles in the process of breaking through the vacuum chamber and opening the gate. For example, conventional rotary opening and closing structures are limited by their load-bearing capacity and cannot be well applied to gates. Another example is the existing sliding gate structure, but because the gate is sucked in by the vacuum chamber, sliding and opening is very difficult, so it cannot be directly applied to gates. Summary of the Invention
[0004] To solve the above-mentioned technical problems, this application provides a vacuum coating apparatus, comprising:
[0005] The vacuum chamber has inlet and outlet ports on its side walls;
[0006] A sliding gate, abutting the side wall, is used to close the inlet and outlet ports;
[0007] A slide rail is disposed above the inlet and outlet, and has a length direction and a width direction;
[0008] A hanging component connects the gate and hangs it on the slide rail. The hanging component includes a slide block that mates with the slide rail. When the gate is closed at the inlet / outlet, the slide block has a gap in the width direction between itself and the slide rail that allows the gate to disengage from the side wall of the vacuum chamber.
[0009] Several alternative methods are provided below, but they are not intended as additional limitations on the overall solution above. They are merely further additions or optimizations. Provided there are no technical or logical contradictions, each alternative method can be combined individually with respect to the overall solution above, or multiple alternative methods can be combined with each other.
[0010] Optionally, the slide rail has a groove that mates with the slide block, and the sidewall of the groove has a recess that forms the gap.
[0011] Optionally, the slide block has a guide wheel on its side that engages with the side wall of the slide groove.
[0012] Optionally, the recess is matched with the guide wheel.
[0013] Optionally, the sidewall of the chute is provided with a clearance groove that matches the guide wheel and is opposite to the recessed position.
[0014] Optionally, the slide block is provided with an angular contact bearing that slides in cooperation with the bottom surface of the slide groove.
[0015] Optionally, the slide rail has an extension that extends out of the vacuum chamber, and the bottom of the extension is provided with a reinforcing member for support.
[0016] Optionally, a guide strip for sliding cooperation with the bottom of the gate and a support member for supporting the bottom of the gate are provided below the inlet and outlet.
[0017] Optionally, the slide block is provided with a first magnetic switch, and the slide rail is provided with a second magnetic switch that is mutually induced by the first magnetic switch.
[0018] Optionally, the slide rail is provided with limiting elements at both ends to limit the extreme position of the hanging component's sliding.
[0019] Unlike existing rotary opening and closing structures and sliding door structures, this application first slides along the width direction of the slide rail through the gap between the slide block and the slide rail, so that a gap is created between the gate and the side wall of the vacuum chamber. Furthermore, the gate is no longer attracted to the side wall of the vacuum chamber, and the two can be easily separated, so that the gate can be slid open with less effort. Attached Figure Description
[0020] Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of this application;
[0021] Figure 2 for Figure 1 Schematic diagram of the middle sidewall;
[0022] Figure 3 for Figure 1 Schematic diagram of the middle gate structure;
[0023] Figure 4 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of the slide rail and the hanging component in some embodiments of this application;
[0024] Figure 4a for Figure 4 A magnified view of a section at point A in the middle;
[0025] Figure 4b for Figure 4 A magnified view of a section at point B in the middle;
[0026] Figures 5 to 8 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of the slide rail and slide block in some embodiments of this application.
[0027] The annotations in the figure are explained as follows:
[0028] 1. Vacuum chamber; 11. Inlet / outlet; 12. Side wall; 13. Guide bar; 14. Supporting component;
[0029] 2. Gate;
[0030] 3. Slide rail; 31. Slide groove; 32. Recess; 33. Clearance groove;
[0031] 4. Hanging component; 41. Slide; 411. Guide wheel; 411a. Guide wheel; 411b. Guide wheel; 411c. Guide wheel; 42. Clearance;
[0032] 5. Angular contact bearing; 6. Reinforcing member; 7. First magnetic switch; 8. Second magnetic switch; 9. Limiting element. Detailed Implementation
[0033] The technical solutions of the embodiments of this application will be clearly and completely described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. Obviously, the described embodiments are only some embodiments of this application, and not all embodiments. Based on the embodiments of this application, all other embodiments obtained by those skilled in the art without creative effort are within the scope of protection of this application.
[0034] It should be noted that when a component is said to be "connected" to another component, it can be directly connected to the other component or it can be connected to a component in between. When a component is said to be "set on" another component, it can be directly set on the other component or it may be set to a component in between.
[0035] Unless otherwise defined, all technical and scientific terms used herein have the same meaning as commonly understood by one of ordinary skill in the art to which this application belongs. The terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing particular embodiments only and is not intended to limit the scope of the application. The term "and / or" as used herein includes any and all combinations of one or more of the associated listed items.
[0036] refer to Figures 1 to 4 One embodiment of this application provides a vacuum coating equipment, including a vacuum chamber 1, a sliding gate 2, a slide rail 3, and a hanging component 4. The side wall 12 of the vacuum chamber is provided with an inlet / outlet 11 for feeding and discharging the workpiece to be coated. Especially when the workpiece to be coated is a large workpiece such as a roll, the length of the inlet / outlet 11 can be more than 1.5 meters and the width can be more than 3 meters, which is a very large size, in order to facilitate feeding and discharging.
[0037] The gate 2, abutting the side wall 12, is used to close the inlet / outlet 11. Given the large size of the inlet / outlet, the corresponding gate is also very heavy, weighing over 500 kg. If a conventional rotating opening and closing structure is installed, the connecting parts between the gate and the side wall cannot support the weight of the gate after it rotates, causing the gate to tilt and ultimately affecting the vacuum effect of the vacuum chamber. Therefore, in this embodiment, the gate is connected by sliding rails and hanging parts in a sliding manner.
[0038] The slide rail 3 is positioned above the inlet / outlet 11 and has both length and width directions, such as... Figure 1 The middle slide rail 3 is fixedly installed on the upper end of the side wall 12. Its length direction is the Y-axis direction in the figure, and its width direction is the X-axis direction in the figure.
[0039] The hanging component 4 is fixedly installed on the upper end of the gate 2. The hanging component is installed close to both ends of the gate. However, if the gate is too long, one or two additional hanging components can be installed in the middle of the gate. The gate is hung on the slide rail by the hanging component 4. The hanging component 4 includes a slide seat 41 that cooperates with the slide rail. Thus, when the vacuum chamber is not in operation and is in the open state, the gate can slide along the length direction of the slide rail (i.e., the Y-axis direction).
[0040] refer to Figures 4 to 8 The slide block 41 has a gap 42 in the width direction between itself and the slide rail 3, allowing the gate to detach from the side wall of the vacuum chamber. This can be understood as follows: when the gate is closed at the inlet and outlet, the vacuum chamber is in a vacuum environment. At this time, the gate is firmly adhered to the side wall due to the negative pressure in the vacuum chamber, or because the sealing ring on the gate is embedded in the side wall (i.e., as shown in the image). Figure 7 As shown), this prevents the gate from sliding directly. At this point, the slide block 41 slides within the gap 42 along the width direction, i.e., from... Figure 5 Slide to the position shown Figure 6 The position shown allows the gate to detach from the side wall of the vacuum chamber, breaking the complete seal of the vacuum chamber. Then, the gate can be slid open along the slide rail with minimal effort.
[0041] Therefore, unlike existing rotary opening and closing structures and sliding door structures, this application first slides along the width direction of the slide rail through the gap between the slide block and the slide rail, so that a gap is created between the gate and the side wall of the vacuum chamber, i.e., the vacuum chamber is broken. Furthermore, the gate is no longer attracted by the negative pressure, and the two separate, so that the gate can be slid open with less effort.
[0042] In some embodiments, the slide rail 3 has a groove 31 that mates with the slide block 41, and the sidewall of the groove has a recess 32 that forms a gap, such as Figure 4The slide sidewall shown has a partial recess 32 at the position corresponding to the slide 41 only when the gate is closed, allowing at least a part of the slide to enter. That is, the recess allows at least a part of the slide to slide in it along the recess depth direction, and the recess depth is sufficient to disengage the gate from the vacuum chamber sidewall.
[0043] In some embodiments, the side of the slide 41 has a guide wheel 411 that mates with the side wall of the slide groove 31, such as... Figure 4a , Figure 4b As shown, when the vacuum chamber is not being processed and is in the open state, the gate can slide smoothly along the length direction of the slide rail (i.e., the Y-axis direction) via the guide wheel 41.
[0044] In some embodiments, the recess 32 matches the guide wheel 411, and the recess is also generally an arcuate groove, allowing the guide wheel to slide within it along the width direction of the slide rail (i.e., the depth direction of the recess), such as... Figures 6-8 As shown, only a portion of the guide wheel on the slide needs to be able to slide within the recess along its depth direction, and the depth of the recess is sufficient to allow the gate to detach from the sidewall of the vacuum chamber. Thus, the length and depth dimensions of the recess can be designed to be relatively small, and the thickness of the slide sidewall does not need to be too thick while meeting the requirements of function and strength.
[0045] To facilitate the sliding of the gate, guide wheels are installed on both sides of the sliding block, for example... Figure 4 In the middle, on the side away from the vacuum chamber, the slide can be equipped with two guide wheels (i.e., guide wheel 411a and guide wheel 411b). Correspondingly, the sidewall of the slide is also provided with two recesses on this side, which are equivalent to positioning grooves.
[0046] The slide block is also equipped with a guide wheel, namely guide wheel 411c, on the side close to the vacuum chamber. Correspondingly, the slide block sidewall is also provided with a clearance groove 33 on this side. The clearance groove and the recess are located on both sides of the slide block, respectively, to provide positioning for the guide wheel. That is, when the guide wheel slides to the recess, it indicates that the gate has been closed in place. When the vacuum chamber is in a vacuum, the gate is attracted to the sidewall 12, and the clearance groove can also avoid the guide wheel.
[0047] In some embodiments, the slide block is provided with an angular contact bearing 5 that slides in cooperation with the bottom surface of the slide groove. Preferably, a double-row angular contact bearing can be used, so that the gate can not only move smoothly in the length direction of the slide rail, but also bear the load of radial movement when sliding along the width direction of the slide rail.
[0048] In some embodiments, the slide rail has an extension that extends out of the vacuum chamber, which provides a parking position for the gate after it leaves the side wall. Since the extension is located outside the vacuum chamber, in order to prevent the extension of the slide rail from being suspended, a reinforcing member 6 is provided at the bottom of the extension for support. The reinforcing member 6 can be fixedly installed on the side wall of the vacuum chamber. Preferably, the reinforcing member is triangular, with a simple and stable structure and good support effect.
[0049] In some embodiments, to facilitate the overall sliding gate, guide wheels are also installed at the bottom of the gate. A guide bar 13 and a support member 14 can be provided below the inlet / outlet. The guide bar acts as a guide rail, slidingly engaging with the guide wheel at the bottom of the gate. Additionally, a clearance groove can be provided on the guide bar to avoid the guide wheel when the gate is closed. A support member 14 can also be provided below the inlet / outlet to support the bottom of the gate.
[0050] Two handles are symmetrically arranged on the outer side of the gate to facilitate the operator to apply force to detach the gate from the side wall of the vacuum chamber.
[0051] In some embodiments, the slide block is provided with a first magnetic switch 7, and the slide rail is provided with a second magnetic switch 8 that is mutually induced by the first magnetic switch. When the first magnetic switch and the second magnetic switch are mutually induced and triggered, the vacuum chamber begins to be evacuated.
[0052] In some embodiments, limit elements 9 are provided at both ends of the slide rail to limit the extreme position of the hanging component. Preferably, the limit element can be a limit pneumatic switch, and when the gate slides to the extreme position at one end of the slide rail, activating the pneumatic switch can generate a force sufficient to block the gate from sliding.
[0053] More specifically, the operational steps of this application are as follows:
[0054] Open the gate and send the workpiece to be plated into the vacuum chamber 1 through the inlet / outlet 11;
[0055] Slide the gate along the slide rail toward the inlet and outlet. When the gate slides to the limit position, the limit pneumatic switch restricts the gate from moving further. At this time, multiple guide wheels are respectively facing the positions of the clearance groove 33 and the recess 32. At the same time, the first magnetic switch and the second magnetic switch sense each other and trigger, tighten the gate screws, and the vacuum chamber begins to be evacuated.
[0056] Once the vacuuming is complete, the guide wheel enters the clearance groove 33, and the gate is tightly pressed against the side wall 12 due to the negative pressure of the vacuum chamber.
[0057] After plating is completed, the vacuum chamber enters a vacuum-breaking state, but the gate is still attracted by the side wall of the vacuum chamber. The operator applies force to the handle on the gate and pulls the gate outward (i.e., away from the vacuum chamber). At this time, the slide on the hanging part slides outward in the width direction within the gap between the slide rail and the slide, that is, the guide wheel 411a and guide wheel 411b slide into the corresponding recess 32, and the sliding distance is sufficient to make the gate detach from the side wall of the vacuum chamber, thereby releasing the vacuum chamber's attraction to the gate.
[0058] Finally, slide the gate away from the inlet and outlet along the length of the slide rail to open the gate.
[0059] The technical features of the embodiments described above can be combined arbitrarily. For the sake of brevity, not all possible combinations of the technical features in the above embodiments are described. However, as long as the combination of these technical features does not contradict each other, it should be considered to be within the scope of this specification. When technical features of different embodiments are embodied in the same drawing, it can be regarded as the drawing also disclosing examples of combinations of the various embodiments involved.
[0060] The embodiments described above are merely examples of several implementation methods of this application, and while the descriptions are relatively specific and detailed, they should not be construed as limiting the scope of the patent application. It should be noted that those skilled in the art can make various modifications and improvements without departing from the concept of this application, and these modifications and improvements all fall within the protection scope of this application.
Claims
1. A vacuum coating equipment, characterized in that, include: The vacuum chamber has inlet and outlet ports on its side walls; A sliding gate, abutting the side wall, is used to close the inlet and outlet ports; A slide rail is disposed above the inlet and outlet, and has a length direction and a width direction; A hanging component connects the gate and hangs it on the slide rail. The hanging component includes a slide block that mates with the slide rail. When the gate is closed at the inlet / outlet, the slide block has a gap in the width direction between itself and the slide rail that allows the gate to disengage from the side wall of the vacuum chamber.
2. The vacuum coating equipment according to claim 1, characterized in that, The slide rail has a groove that mates with the slide block, and the sidewall of the groove has a recess that forms the gap.
3. The vacuum coating equipment according to claim 2, characterized in that, The slide block has guide wheels on its side that cooperate with the side wall of the slide groove.
4. The vacuum coating equipment according to claim 3, characterized in that, The recess matches the guide wheel.
5. The vacuum coating equipment according to claim 4, characterized in that, The sidewall of the chute is provided with a clearance groove that matches the guide wheel and is opposite to the recessed position.
6. The vacuum coating equipment according to claim 2, characterized in that, The slide block is equipped with an angular contact bearing that slides in conjunction with the bottom surface of the slide groove.
7. The vacuum coating equipment according to claim 1, characterized in that, The slide rail has an extension that extends out of the vacuum chamber, and a reinforcing member is provided at the bottom of the extension for support.
8. The vacuum coating equipment according to claim 1, characterized in that, Below the inlet and outlet, there is a guide strip for sliding cooperation with the bottom of the gate, and a support for supporting the bottom of the gate.
9. The vacuum coating equipment according to claim 1, characterized in that, The slide block is equipped with a first magnetic switch, and the slide rail is equipped with a second magnetic switch that is mutually induced by the first magnetic switch.
10. The vacuum coating equipment according to claim 1, characterized in that, The slide rail is equipped with limiting elements at both ends to limit the extreme position of the hanging component's sliding movement.