Heater unit for heat treatment furnace

Abstract

The invention discloses a heater unit of a heat treatment furnace. The heater unit of the present invention may comprise: an upper plate having a built-in heating element that generates heat by a resistor to heat a substrate; a lower plate disposed to face the upper plate and spaced apart from the upper plate by a predetermined interval, the lower plate having a heat generating body built therein to thermally expand and contract together with the upper plate; and a gas supply and discharge pipe portion disposed in a gap between the upper plate and the lower plate to supply and discharge a process gas.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a heater unit of a heat treatment furnace, which is installed in a chamber of the heat treatment furnace, and makes a substrate to be heat-treated reach a high temperature and heats it uniformly by radiant heat. Background Art

[0002] The glass substrates constituting the display devices (especially organic light-emitting display devices and LCDs, etc.) are manufactured by means of a heat treatment furnace (or a heat treatment oven). When the substrate is heat-treated by means of a heat treatment furnace, in order to meet the conditions required by each process, the heat treatment furnace is designed to prevent the influence of external air and to minimize the heat discharge from the chamber to the outside, so as to prevent performance degradation and reduce the defective rate of the product. In addition, in order to improve the yield rate of the finished product, the smaller the in-plane deviation of the substrate during heat treatment, the more the yield rate can be expected to be improved, so the performance improvement of the heat treatment furnace is ongoing. On the other hand, in the process of manufacturing the substrate by means of a heat treatment furnace, since an organic layer is formed on the surface of the substrate, which may contain a certain amount of moisture, a heating and drying process is performed to evaporate the moisture by means of hot air from a heater to manufacture the substrate. Among them, the heater unit of the heat treatment furnace used is constructed to have a heating wire (heating coil) that generates heat through resistance and a plate-shaped heating plate is set at the upper and lower parts to heat and dry the substrate in the chamber of the heat treatment furnace. However, in order to maintain the quality of the heat-treated substrate of good quality, not only high temperature performance is required, but also the temperature uniformity in rapid heating and cooling needs to be precisely maintained, but there are structural limitations that are difficult to cope with. That is, the heater unit of the existing heat treatment furnace is designed to be used in a normal temperature state without continuous heating and cooling in terms of function, and the structure meets the continuous maintenance and management of the target temperature for heat treatment. Therefore, there is a problem that it cannot fully cope with the recent changes in trends in various substrate manufacturing processes. Therefore, the present invention provides a heater unit for a heat treatment furnace, which can quickly perform the heating required for rapid processing process temperature, can cope with thermal expansion when heating to the process target temperature while enhancing the process cooling capability to improve production capacity, can cope with particle generation caused by thermal expansion and contraction during heating and cooling, can conveniently replace and repair the heater, and can effectively cope with various substrate manufacturing processes by manufacturing a standard heater of a single shape and retaining only minimum space.

[0003] Prior art literature

[0004] Patent Literature

[0005] Patent Document 1: Korean Patent No. 10-1238560 (published on February 28, 2013)

[0006] Patent Document 2: Korean Patent No. 10-0722154 (published on May 28, 2007)

[0007] Patent Document 3: Korean Patent Publication No. 10-2013-0028322 (published on March 19, 2013) Summary of the invention

[0008] Problem that the invention aims to solve

[0009] One of the technical problems to be solved by the present invention is to provide a heater unit for a heat treatment furnace, which is installed in a chamber of the heat treatment furnace, so that a substrate to be heat treated reaches a high temperature and is uniformly heated by radiant heat.

[0010] One of the technical problems to be solved by the present invention is to provide a heater unit for a heat treatment furnace, which can quickly perform the temperature increase required for the heat treatment process temperature of a rapid treatment substrate.

[0011] One of the technical problems to be solved by the present invention is to provide a heater unit of a heat treatment furnace, which can cope with the thermal expansion when the temperature is raised to the target temperature of the heat treatment process of the substrate.

[0012] One of the technical problems to be solved by the present invention is to provide a heater unit of a heat treatment furnace, which can improve the production capacity by enhancing the temperature reduction capability of the heat treatment process of the substrate.

[0013] One of the technical problems to be solved by the present invention is to provide a heater unit for a heat treatment furnace, which can cope with the generation of particles caused by thermal expansion and contraction during heating and cooling of a substrate in a heat treatment process.

[0014] One of the technical problems to be solved by the present invention is to provide a heater unit for a heat treatment furnace, which can provide convenience for replacement and maintenance of the heater.

[0015] One of the technical problems to be solved by the present invention is to provide a heater unit of a heat treatment furnace, which can cope with various processes by manufacturing a standard heater of a single shape and retaining only a minimum space.

[0016] Means used to solve problems

[0017] The purpose can be achieved by a heater unit of a heat treatment furnace according to the present invention, the heater unit of the heat treatment furnace includes: an upper plate, which has a heating element that generates heat through resistance to heat a substrate; a lower plate, which is arranged to be opposite to the upper plate and separated from the upper plate by a predetermined interval, and has a heating element built in the lower plate to expand and contract thermally together with the upper plate; and an exhaust pipe portion, which is arranged in the interval between the upper plate and the lower plate to supply and exhaust process gas.

[0018] According to an embodiment of the present invention, the upper plate and the lower plate may be respectively provided with a receiving space for a built-in heating element.

[0019] According to an embodiment of the present invention, the reference capacity of the heat generating body installed in the upper plate and the lower plate may be set to the same capacity so that the upper plate and the lower plate undergo the same thermal expansion and contraction.

[0020] According to an embodiment of the present invention, the heat generating elements installed in the upper plate and the lower plate may be configured such that the heat generating elements in the upper plate and the lower plate are symmetrically arranged so that the upper plate and the lower plate undergo the same thermal expansion and contraction.

[0021] According to an embodiment of the present invention, the heater unit may include a shell that combines an upper plate and a lower plate into one body; in the shell, a guide channel for guiding the flow of process gas may be provided between the upper plate and the lower plate; and an exhaust pipe portion may be provided in the guide channel.

[0022] According to an embodiment of the present invention, the air supply and exhaust pipe portion can be composed of an air supply pipe and an exhaust pipe. The air supply pipe is arranged on one side of the interior of the shell, introduces the process gas supplied from the outside into the interior of the shell and supplies gas through a guide channel, the process gas is used to increase the heating rate of the upper plate and the lower plate and discharge particles generated by the thermal expansion and contraction of the upper plate and the lower plate, and the exhaust pipe is arranged on the other side of the interior of the shell opposite to the air supply pipe and discharges the process gas flowing along the guide channel.

[0023] According to an embodiment of the present invention, a rolling bearing unit having rolling performance may be provided at one end of the housing, and the rolling bearing unit supports the housing at a free end to suppress friction generated as the temperature rises.

[0024] Effects of the Invention

[0025] The present invention provides a heater unit for a heat treatment furnace. The heater unit is installed in a chamber of the heat treatment furnace to make a substrate to be heat treated reach a high temperature and to heat the substrate uniformly by radiant heat.

[0026] In addition, a heater unit for a heat treatment furnace is provided. The heater unit for the heat treatment furnace can quickly perform the heating required for rapid heating treatment in the substrate manufacturing process, can cope with the thermal expansion when the temperature is raised to the process target temperature while enhancing the process cooling capability to improve production capacity, can cope with the generation of particles caused by thermal expansion and contraction during heating and cooling, can provide convenience for replacement and maintenance of the heater, and can effectively cope with various substrate manufacturing processes by manufacturing a standard heater of a single shape and retaining only minimum space. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0027] Figure 1 is an example showing a heat treatment furnace.

[0028] Figure 2 : is an example showing the front side of a heat treatment furnace.

[0029] Figure 3 FIG. 1 is an example of a plane showing a heater unit arranged inside a chamber of a conventional heat treatment furnace.

[0030] Figure 4 2 is an example showing a heater unit of a heat treatment furnace according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0031] Figure 5 1 is an example showing a flow state of a process gas in a heater unit of a heat treatment furnace according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0032] Figure 6 As an example of illustrating a planar structure in which heater units of a heat treatment furnace according to an embodiment of the present invention are combined and arranged, an example showing a flow state of a process gas is shown.

[0033] Description of Reference Numerals

[0034] 100: Heat treatment furnace 200: Chamber

[0035] 300a: heater unit 301: heating element

[0036] 302: Upper board 303: Lower board

[0037] 304: air supply and exhaust pipe 304a: air supply pipe

[0038] 304b: Exhaust pipe 305, 306: Accommodation space

[0039] 307: Shell 308: Channel

[0040] 309: Rolling bearing unit. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0041] Hereinafter, a “heater unit for a heat treatment furnace” according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention will be described.

[0042] Before describing the present invention, first refer to Figures 1 to 3 The heater unit of the heat treatment furnace will be described.

[0043] Figure 1 This is an example showing the overall configuration of a heat treatment furnace. Figure 2 : is an example showing the front side of a heat treatment furnace. Figure 3 1 is an example of a plane showing a heater unit arranged inside a chamber of a heat treatment furnace.

[0044] Figures 1 to 3 The overall structure of the heat treatment furnace 100 is shown as an example in which a plurality of heater units 300 are disposed in multiple layers inside the chamber 200 .

[0045] like Figures 1 to 3 As shown in the figure, in order to perform heat treatment on a substrate, a substrate (not shown) to be a heat treatment object is placed in each layer set in the chamber 200 of the heat treatment furnace 100, or in order to take out the substrate that has completed the heat treatment process from the chamber 200, the heat treatment furnace 100 can be constructed in the form of a furnace door portion 110 provided in the rear portion and a baffle portion 120 provided in the front portion.

[0046] In addition, the heat treatment furnace 100 is configured to be provided with a gas supply port (not shown) for introducing a fluid including a process gas into one side of the chamber 200 and an exhaust port (not shown) for exhausting the fluid in the chamber 200 .

[0047] In addition, the heat treatment furnace 100 is configured to be provided with a chamber 200 for accommodating a substrate to be heated or dried, and a plurality of heater units 300 formed of a heat generating body are installed in the chamber 200, and the heat generated by the heater units 300 is used to heat the substrate or evaporate and dry moisture.

[0048] In addition, although it differs according to specifications, generally, the heat treatment furnace 100 is configured to be provided with an upper plate 310 to surround a heat generating body (not shown) constituting the heater unit 300 and perform a substrate heating process occurring within the chamber 200 .

[0049] Figures 1 to 3 In the figure, unspecified reference numerals “210” and “220” are “inner shell” and “outer shell” of the chamber 200. In addition, unspecified reference numeral “230” is a “cooling jacket”, which forms a cooling airflow in the chamber 200 and cools the chamber to a uniform temperature distribution through a cooling airflow guide channel provided in the interior of the chamber 200.

[0050] In addition, if Figure 3As shown, a heater power supply device 240 is provided to supply power to the heater unit 300. The heater power supply device 240 protrudes a plurality of power supply conductors 241 to the outside of the chamber 200, and supplies power to the inside of the chamber 200.

[0051] In addition, a plurality of busbars 242 are provided at one end of the chamber 200 to supply electricity to the upper plate 310 constituting the heater unit 300 .

[0052] That is, a conductive plate is provided on the busbar 242 , and after the current flowing from the feed conductor 241 is transferred to the busbar 242 , power is supplied through the conductive plate.

[0053] For reference, Figures 1 to 3 As shown in the figure, the basic known structures constituting the heat treatment furnace, such as the structure of the chamber and the supply and exhaust systems of the process gas, have no direct relevance to the present invention. In addition, the basic corresponding structures of the heat treatment furnace have nothing to do with the gist of the present invention and are already known structures, so they are omitted from the structure and operation description of the present invention.

[0054] In addition, the conventional heater unit 300 disposed in the chamber of the heat treatment furnace and used disposes a heat generating element on a plate-shaped heating plate in a built-in type to perform a heating and drying process on a substrate in the chamber of the heat treatment furnace.

[0055] In addition, in order to maintain good quality of heat-treated substrates in terms of performance, the heater unit not only needs high temperature performance, but also needs to precisely maintain temperature uniformity under rapid heating and cooling, but existing heater units have limitations that are difficult to cope with.

[0056] That is, the heater unit of the existing heat treatment furnace is designed to be used in a normal temperature state without continuous heating and cooling, and is structurally designed to meet the continuous maintenance and management of the target temperature for heat treatment. Therefore, there is a problem that it cannot fully cope with the recent changes in trends in various substrate manufacturing processes.

[0057] Therefore, the present invention proposes a heater unit for a heat treatment furnace, which is installed in a chamber of the heat treatment furnace, and makes a substrate to be heat-treated reach a high temperature, and uniformly heats the substrate by radiant heat.

[0058] Furthermore, the present invention provides a heater unit of a heat treatment furnace, which can quickly perform a temperature increase required for rapidly processing a substrate manufacturing process temperature and can cope with thermal expansion when the temperature is increased to a process target temperature.

[0059] In addition, the present invention proposes a heater unit for a heat treatment furnace, which can improve production capacity by enhancing the cooling capability of the substrate manufacturing process, and can effectively discharge particles generated by thermal expansion and contraction of the heater unit during heating and cooling to cope with the degradation of substrate quality caused by the particles.

[0060] In addition, the present invention proposes a heater unit of a heat treatment furnace, which can provide convenience for replacement and maintenance of a heater and effectively cope with various substrate manufacturing processes by manufacturing a standard heater of a single shape and retaining only a minimum space.

[0061] Below, refer to Figures 4 to 6 , main components of the heater unit constituting the heat treatment furnace according to the embodiment of the present invention are described in detail.

[0062] Figure 4 2 is an example showing a heater unit of a heat treatment furnace according to an embodiment of the present invention. Figure 5 1 is an example showing a flow state of a process gas in a heater unit of a heat treatment furnace according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0063] like Figures 4 to 5 As shown in , for heating and drying of a substrate, a heater unit 300a of a heat treatment furnace according to an embodiment of the present invention may be configured to be installed in a chamber 200 of a heat treatment furnace 100 provided with a chamber 200 for accommodating a substrate, so that the substrate is heated or dried by the heat generated by the heater unit 300a.

[0064] The heater unit 300 a of the heat treatment furnace according to the present invention may be configured to include an upper plate 302 in which a heating body 301 generating heat by resistance is built to heat a substrate.

[0065] Furthermore, the heater unit may be configured to include a lower plate 303 disposed opposite to and spaced apart from the upper plate 302 by a predetermined interval L1, in which the heat generating body 301 is built to thermally expand and contract together with the upper plate 302.

[0066] In addition, the heater unit may be configured to include a supply and exhaust pipe portion 304 that may be disposed in a space L1 between the upper plate 302 and the lower plate 303 to supply and exhaust the process gas.

[0067] In addition, in the heater unit 300 a of the heat treatment furnace according to the present invention, an accommodation space 305 for the built-in heat generating body 301 is provided in the upper plate 302 and an accommodation space 306 for the built-in heat generating body 301 is provided in the lower plate 303 .

[0068] Among them, the accommodation space 305 formed in the upper plate 302 and the accommodation space 306 formed in the lower plate 303 ensure sufficient space to accommodate various heating elements 301 in a built-in type, so various forms of heating elements 301 can be freely accommodated.

[0069] Preferably, the heating element 301 built in the accommodation space 305 of the upper plate 302 and the accommodation space 306 of the lower plate 303 can be applied by selecting various heat sources from among a sheathed heater, a mineral insulated heater, and a thick film heater.

[0070] For example, preferably, a heating element in the form of a heating wire (heating coil) that generates heat by resistance is built into a tube (metal protection tube) and is filled with insulating powder, i.e., magnesium oxide (MgO), to insulate the heating wire and the tube is suitable. In this case, since it can be manufactured in a slender shape, it can be effectively applied to the heater unit 300a according to the present invention.

[0071] In addition, the heater unit 300 a of the heat treatment furnace according to the present invention may be configured to set a reference amount of the heat generating body 301 installed in the upper plate 302 and the lower plate 303 in advance.

[0072] That is, preferably, the reference capacity of the heat generating body 301 is set to the same capacity so that the upper plate 302 and the lower plate 303 undergo the same thermal expansion and contraction.

[0073] In this way, when pre-adjustment is made so that the reference capacity of the heating element 301 built into the upper plate 302 and the lower plate 303 has the same heat and is applied, the uneven thermal contraction and expansion caused by the heat difference between the upper plate 302 and the lower plate 303 can be effectively controlled, so that the durability of the heater can be enhanced while suppressing the generation of particles to the greatest extent.

[0074] In addition, the heater unit 300a of the heat treatment furnace according to the present invention can be constructed so that the heating elements 301 located in the upper plate 302 and the lower plate 303 are symmetrically arranged in a mutually corresponding manner so that the upper plate 302 and the lower plate 303 undergo the same thermal expansion and contraction.

[0075] In this way, when the heating elements 301 built into the upper plate 302 and the lower plate 303 are symmetrically arranged in a manner corresponding to each other, the uneven thermal contraction and expansion caused by the heat difference between the upper plate 302 and the lower plate 303 can be effectively controlled, thereby enhancing the durability of the heater while minimizing the generation of particles.

[0076] In addition, the heater unit 300a of the heat treatment furnace according to the present invention may be configured to include a housing 307 that combines the upper plate 302 and the lower plate 303 into one body.

[0077] In the shell 307 , a guide channel 308 for guiding the flow of process gas is provided between the upper plate 302 and the lower plate 303 , and an exhaust pipe portion 304 is provided in the guide channel 308 .

[0078] The air supply and exhaust pipe portion 304 may be configured to be provided with an air supply pipe 304a, which is arranged on one side of the interior of the shell 307, and introduces the process gas supplied from the outside into the interior of the shell 307 and supplies gas through the guide channel 308. The process gas is used to increase the heating rate of the upper plate 302 and the lower plate 303 and to discharge particles generated by the thermal expansion and contraction of the upper plate 302 and the lower plate 303.

[0079] In addition, the supply and exhaust pipe part 304 may be configured to be provided with an exhaust pipe 304 b which is arranged at the other side of the inside of the housing 307 opposite to the supply pipe 304 a and exhausts the process gas flowing along the guide passage 308 .

[0080] Among them, the process gas flowing into the shell 307 and flowing along the guide channel 308 can be various process gases that can accelerate the temperature of the heat generated by the heating element 301 to the target temperature zone more quickly, and the process gas increases the heating rate to quickly reach the target temperature.

[0081] Therefore, when the heat treatment target substrate is installed in a chamber of a heat treatment furnace and used, the heat treatment target substrate can be quickly brought to a high temperature, and the substrate can be uniformly and efficiently heated by the radiation heat of the process gas.

[0082] In addition, the process gas flowing into the shell 307 and flowing along the guide channel 308 can not only accelerate the temperature of the heat generated by the heating element 301 to the target temperature zone more quickly, but also can simply discharge various dust or other particles generated between the upper plate 302 and the lower plate 303 during the thermal contraction and expansion process through the exhaust pipe 304b used to discharge the process gas.

[0083] Thus, the reduction in the yield rate of the substrate can be effectively controlled, and high-quality substrates can be efficiently manufactured.

[0084] Reference Figure 5 , the figure shows a process in which the process gas flowing into the gas supply pipe 304a along the internal process gas guide channel 308 of the shell 307 flows in the direction of the arrow, that is, the direction of "a1" and is discharged to the exhaust pipe 304b.

[0085] in addition, Figure 6As an example of illustrating a planar structure in which heater units of a heat treatment furnace according to an embodiment of the present invention are combined and arranged, an example showing a flow state of a process gas is shown.

[0086] like Figure 6 As shown, according to the heater unit 300a of the heat treatment furnace of the present invention, when a plurality of heater units 300a are combined and configured, a process gas is supplied and flowed in the direction of arrow "a1", and the flow of the process gas can be controlled so that it can be discharged in the direction of arrow "a2".

[0087] In addition, if Figure 6 As shown, the heater unit 300a of the heat treatment furnace according to the present invention may be configured to be provided with a rolling bearing unit 309 having rolling performance, which supports the housing 307 at a free end to suppress friction caused by temperature increase.

[0088] When the rolling bearing unit 309 is set at one end of the shell 307 like this, not only can the friction of the heater unit 300a be suppressed to significantly reduce the amount of particles generated during the friction process, but also the overall shape of the heater unit 300a can be prevented from being deformed and its durability can be effectively prevented from being reduced.

[0089] Thus, the heater unit of the heat treatment furnace according to the present invention has the advantage that, when installed in the chamber of the heat treatment furnace and used, it can quickly make the heat treatment target substrate reach a high temperature and heat the substrate uniformly and effectively through the radiation heat of the process gas.

[0090] In addition, the heater unit of the heat treatment furnace according to the present invention is advantageous in that the heater unit can be controlled by effectively supplying a process gas to perform a temperature increase required for rapidly processing a substrate heat treatment process temperature.

[0091] In addition, the heater unit of the heat treatment furnace according to the present invention has the advantage that when the substrate is heated to the target temperature of the heat treatment process, thermal expansion can be effectively coped with to prevent deformation and durability reduction, thereby extending the service life compared with existing heaters.

[0092] In addition, the heater unit of the heat treatment furnace according to the present invention is advantageously capable of improving the production capacity by enhancing the temperature reduction capability in the heat treatment process of the substrate.

[0093] In addition, the heater unit of the heat treatment furnace according to the present invention has the advantage of being able to effectively cope with the generation of particles caused by thermal expansion and contraction during temperature increase and temperature decrease in the heat treatment process of the substrate.

[0094] In addition, the heater unit of the heat treatment furnace according to the present invention is advantageous in that convenience of replacement and maintenance of the heater can be provided.

[0095] In addition, the heater unit of the heat treatment furnace according to the present invention is advantageously advantageous in that it is possible to provide a heater unit that can cope with various processes by manufacturing a standard heater of a single shape while leaving only a minimum space.

[0096] As described above, the present invention has been described with reference to the embodiments shown in the drawings, but is not limited to the embodiments, and modifications and variations may be made within the scope not departing from the gist of the present invention, and the modifications and variations are included in the technical idea of ​​the present invention.

Claims

1. A heater unit for a heat treatment furnace, wherein: include: An upper plate having a built-in heating element that generates heat through resistance to heat the substrate; a lower plate, arranged to be opposite to the upper plate and spaced apart from the upper plate by a predetermined interval, wherein a heat generating body is built in the lower plate so as to thermally expand and contract together with the upper plate; as well as The supply and exhaust pipe part is arranged in the space between the upper plate and the lower plate to supply and exhaust the process gas.

2. The heater unit of the heat treatment furnace according to claim 1, wherein: The upper plate and the lower plate are respectively provided with a receiving space for a built-in heating element.

3. The heater unit of the heat treatment furnace according to claim 1, wherein: The reference capacity of the heat generating body installed in the upper plate and the lower plate is set to the same capacity so that the upper plate and the lower plate undergo the same thermal expansion and contraction.

4. The heater unit of the heat treatment furnace according to claim 1, wherein: The heat generating elements installed in the upper plate and the lower plate are configured such that the heat generating elements located in the upper plate and the lower plate are symmetrically arranged so that the upper plate and the lower plate undergo the same thermal expansion and contraction.

5. The heater unit of the heat treatment furnace according to claim 1, wherein The heater unit includes a housing that integrates an upper plate and a lower plate; In the housing, a guide channel for guiding the flow of process gas is provided between the upper plate and the lower plate; The guide passage is provided with an air supply and exhaust pipe portion.

6. The heater unit of the heat treatment furnace according to claim 5, wherein: The air supply and exhaust pipe part is composed of an air supply pipe and an exhaust pipe. The gas supply pipe is arranged at one side of the interior of the shell, and introduces the process gas supplied from the outside into the interior of the shell and supplies the gas through the guide channel. The process gas is used to increase the temperature rise rate of the upper plate and the lower plate and discharge particles generated by thermal expansion and contraction of the upper plate and the lower plate. The exhaust pipe is disposed on the other side of the housing opposite to the gas supply pipe and exhausts the process gas flowing along the guide passage.

7. The heater unit of the heat treatment furnace according to claim 5, wherein: A rolling bearing unit having rolling performance is provided at one end of the housing, and the rolling bearing unit supports the housing at a free end to suppress friction generated as the temperature rises.

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