Heater unit of heat-treating furnace

Abstract

To provide a heater unit of a heat-treating furnace.SOLUTION: A heater unit 300a of a heat-treating furnace of the invention includes: an upper plate 302 which incorporates a heating element 301 which generates heat by electric resistance to heat a substrate; a lower plate 303 which is provided at a position facing the upper plate while forming a predetermined gap therebetween and incorporates a heating element so as to expand or contract thermally with the upper plate; and an air supply / exhaust duct part 304 which is disposed between the upper plate and the lower plate and supplies and exhausts a process gas.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 4

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a heater unit for a heat treatment furnace that is mounted in a chamber of the heat treatment furnace to bring a substrate to a high temperature and uniformly heat-treat the substrate by radiant heat. [Background technology]

[0002] Glass substrates (especially OLEDs and LCDs) that constitute display devices are manufactured using a heat treatment furnace. When heat treating substrates using a heat treatment furnace, the heat treatment furnace is designed to prevent the influence of outside air and minimize the discharge of heat from the chamber to the outside, thereby preventing performance degradation and reducing product defect rates, in order to meet the requirements for each process. In addition, in order to improve the yield of finished products, the smaller the in-plane deviation of the substrate during heat treatment, the higher the yield is expected, so the performance of the heat treatment furnace is continuously improved. Meanwhile, in the substrate manufacturing process using a heat treatment furnace, an organic layer is formed on the surface of the substrate, which can contain a certain amount of moisture, so a heating and drying process is performed to evaporate the moisture using hot air from a heater to manufacture the substrate. The heater unit of the heat treatment furnace used here is configured to perform the heating and drying process on the substrate in the chamber of the heat treatment furnace by incorporating a heating wire (heating coil) that generates heat by electrical resistance and installing plate-shaped heating plates on the upper and lower parts, but in order to maintain the quality of the heat-treated substrate of a good quality, it is necessary to precisely maintain the temperature uniformity during rapid temperature rise and fall as well as high temperature performance, but there is a structural limit that makes it difficult to meet this requirement. That is, the heater unit of the conventional heat treatment furnace is functionally configured to be used by setting it to a room temperature state rather than constantly raising and lowering the temperature, and structurally designed to be satisfied with constantly maintaining and managing the target temperature for heat treatment, and there is a problem that it cannot fully meet the recent trend changes in various substrate manufacturing processes. Therefore, the present invention proposes a heater unit for a heat treatment furnace that can quickly perform heating required for rapid processing of a process temperature, prepare for thermal expansion when heating to a process target temperature, increase the process temperature drop capacity to improve production capacity, prepare for generation of particles due to thermal expansion and contraction when heating and lowering, provide convenience in heater replacement and maintenance, and occupy a minimum space by making it into a standard heater of a single shape, thereby efficiently dealing with various substrate manufacturing processes. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Korean Patent No. 10-1238560 [Patent Document 2] Korean Patent No. 10-0722154 [Patent Document 3] Korean Patent Publication No. 10-2013-0028322 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] One of the technical problems to be solved by the present invention is to provide a heater unit for a heat treatment furnace that is mounted in a chamber of the heat treatment furnace to bring a substrate to a high temperature and uniformly heat-treat the substrate by radiant heat.

[0005] One of the technical problems to be solved by the present invention is to provide a heater unit for a heat treatment furnace that can rapidly increase the temperature required for rapid processing of the temperature in a heat treatment process of a substrate.

[0006] One of the technical problems to be solved by the present invention is to provide a heater unit for a heat treatment furnace that provides for thermal expansion when a substrate is heated to a target temperature in a heat treatment process.

[0007] One of the technical problems to be solved by the present invention is to provide a heater unit for a heat treatment furnace that increases the temperature lowering capacity in a heat treatment process of a substrate, thereby improving productivity.

[0008] One of the technical problems to be solved by the present invention is to provide a heater unit for a heat treatment furnace that prevents generation of particles due to thermal expansion and contraction when the temperature of a substrate is increased and decreased during the heat treatment process.

[0009] One of the technical problems to be solved by the present invention is to provide a heater unit of a heat treatment furnace that can provide convenience in replacement and maintenance of the heater.

[0010] One of the technical problems to be solved by the present invention is to provide a heater unit of a heat treatment furnace that can be used for various processes by making a standard heater of a single shape and occupying only a minimum space. [Means for solving the problem]

[0011] According to the present invention, the above object can be achieved by a heater unit for a heat treatment furnace, which includes an upper plate having a built-in heating element that generates heat by electrical resistance and heats a substrate, a lower plate that is spaced apart from the upper plate at a position facing the upper plate at a predetermined distance and has a built-in heating element that thermally expands and contracts together with the upper plate, and an intake and exhaust duct section that is located between the upper and lower plates and supplies and exhausts process gas.

[0012] According to an embodiment of the present invention, the upper plate and the lower plate may each be configured to have an accommodating space for mounting a built-in heating element.

[0013] According to an embodiment of the present invention, the heating elements mounted on the upper and lower plates may be arranged with the reference capacitance of the heating elements set to the same capacitance in order to induce the upper and lower plates to have the same thermal expansion and contraction.

[0014] According to an embodiment of the present invention, the heating elements mounted on the upper and lower plates may be configured by symmetrically arranging each heating element located on the upper and lower plates in order to induce the upper and lower plates to undergo the same thermal expansion and contraction.

[0015] According to an embodiment of the present invention, the heater unit includes a casing that integrally combines an upper plate and a lower plate, the casing having an induction path that induces the flow of process gas between the upper plate and the lower plate, and the induction path may have an intake and exhaust duct section.

[0016] According to an embodiment of the present invention, the air supply and exhaust duct section can be composed of an air supply duct arranged on one side within the casing to introduce process gas supplied from the outside into the interior of the casing and supply it through an induction path in order to increase the temperature rise rate of the upper and lower plates and to exhaust particles generated due to thermal expansion and contraction of the upper and lower plates, and an exhaust duct arranged opposite to the other side of the air supply duct within the casing and exhausting the process gas flowing along the induction path.

[0017] According to one embodiment of the present invention, a rolling bearing unit having rolling performance can be installed at one end of the casing so as to support the casing at a free end in order to suppress friction that occurs as the temperature rises. Effect of the Invention

[0018] The present invention has an effect of providing a heater unit for a heat treatment furnace which is mounted in a chamber of the heat treatment furnace to bring a substrate to a high temperature for heat treatment and uniformly heat-treat the substrate by radiant heat.

[0019] In addition, the present invention provides an effect of providing a heater unit for a heat treatment furnace that can quickly perform a temperature rise required for a rapid temperature rise process during a substrate manufacturing process, prepares for thermal expansion when the temperature rises to a process target temperature, increases the process temperature drop capacity to improve production capacity, prepares for the generation of particles due to thermal expansion and contraction when the temperature rises and falls, provides convenience in heater replacement and maintenance, and occupies a minimum space by making it into a standard heater of a single shape, thereby efficiently dealing with various substrate manufacturing processes. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0020] [Figure 1] 1 is an example showing a heat treatment furnace. [Diagram 2] 1 is an example showing the front of a heat treatment furnace. [Diagram 3] 1 is a diagram illustrating a plan view of a heater unit disposed in a chamber of a conventional heat treatment furnace. [Figure 4] 1 is an example showing a heater unit of a heat treatment furnace according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Diagram 5] 4 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. [Figure 6] 1 is a schematic diagram showing a planar structure in which heater units of a heat treatment furnace according to an embodiment of the present invention are combined and arranged, illustrating a flow state of a process gas; DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0021] Hereinafter, a "heater unit for a heat treatment furnace" according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention will be described.

[0022] Prior to describing the present invention, a heater unit of a heat treatment furnace will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 to 3. FIG.

[0023] Fig. 1 is an example showing the overall configuration of a heat treatment furnace. Fig. 2 is an example showing the front of the heat treatment furnace. Fig. 3 is an example showing a plan view of a heater unit disposed inside a chamber of the heat treatment furnace.

[0024] 1 to 3 show the overall structure of a heat treatment furnace 100, which is an example in which a plurality of heater units 300 are installed in a chamber 200 in a multi-layered manner.

[0025] As shown in Figures 1 to 3, the heat treatment furnace 100 can be configured with a door section 110 at the rear and a shutter section 120 at the front, for loading substrates (not shown) to be heat-treated into each stage provided in the chamber 200 and for unloading substrates that have completed the heat treatment process from the chamber 200.

[0026] In addition, the heat treatment furnace 100 is configured to include an air inlet (not shown) for introducing a fluid containing a process gas into one side of the chamber 200, and an exhaust port (not shown) for exhausting the fluid within the chamber 200.

[0027] The heat treatment furnace 100 also includes a chamber 200 for accommodating a substrate that requires heating or drying, and is configured to mount a plurality of heater units 300 made of heat generating elements within the chamber 200 so as to heat the substrate or evaporate and dry the substrate by using heat generated by the heater units 300.

[0028] Although this varies depending on the specifications, in normal cases, the upper plate 310 is disposed so as to encase the heating element (not shown) that constitutes the heater unit 300, so that the substrate heating process can be performed within the chamber 200.

[0029] 1 to 3, unexplained reference characters "210" and "220" denote "inner and outer casings" of the chamber 200. And, unexplained reference character "230" denotes a "cooling jacket" that forms a cooling airflow in the chamber 200 and cools the chamber to a uniform temperature distribution via a cooling airflow guide path configured inside the chamber 200.

[0030] 3, a heater power supply device 240 is configured to supply power to the heater unit 300. The heater power supply device 240 is configured to have a number of feedthroughs 241 protruding to the outside of the chamber 200, thereby supplying power to the inside of the chamber 200.

[0031] In addition, a number of bus bars 242 are provided at one end of the chamber 200 so as to pass electricity through the upper plate 310 constituting the heater unit 300 .

[0032] That is, a conductive plate is provided on the bus bar 242, and the current passing through the feedthrough 241 is passed to the bus bar 242, and then electricity is supplied via the conductive plate.

[0033] For reference, the basic, ordinary, and well-known configuration of a heat treatment furnace, such as the chamber structure and the process gas supply and exhaust systems, as shown in Figures 1 to 3, is not directly related to the present invention. Furthermore, since the basic configuration of a heat treatment furnace is well-known and has no relation to the gist of the present invention, it will be omitted from the description of the configuration and operation of the present invention.

[0034] Meanwhile, a typical heater unit 300 that is installed and used within the chamber of a heat treatment furnace is configured to perform heating and drying processes on a substrate within the chamber of the heat treatment furnace by installing a heating element built into a plate-shaped heating plate.

[0035] In addition, in terms of performance, in order to maintain the quality of heat-treated substrates, the heater unit needs to have not only high temperature performance but also precise temperature uniformity during rapid heating and cooling. Conventional heater units have limitations that make it difficult to meet this requirement.

[0036] In other words, the heater units of conventional heat treatment furnaces are not functionally capable of constantly increasing and decreasing the temperature, but are set to be used at room temperature, and are structurally designed to be satisfied with constantly maintaining and controlling a target temperature for heat treatment. This causes a problem in that they are unable to adequately respond to recent changes in various trends in substrate manufacturing processes.

[0037] Thus, the present invention provides a heater unit for a heat treatment furnace that is mounted in a chamber of the heat treatment furnace to bring a substrate to a high temperature for uniformly heating the substrate by radiant heat.

[0038] The present invention also provides a heater unit for a heat treatment furnace that can quickly increase the temperature required for rapid processing of the temperature in a substrate manufacturing process and can prepare for thermal expansion when the temperature is increased to a process target temperature.

[0039] The present invention also provides a heater unit for a heat treatment furnace that can increase the temperature-lowering capacity of a substrate manufacturing process to improve production capacity, and can effectively discharge particles generated due to thermal expansion and contraction of the heater unit during temperature rise and fall, thereby preventing deterioration of substrate quality due to particles.

[0040] In addition, the present invention provides a heater unit for a heat treatment furnace that provides convenience in heater replacement and maintenance, and occupies a minimum space by making a standard heater of a single shape, thereby enabling efficient use of various substrate manufacturing processes.

[0041] Hereinafter, main components constituting the heater unit of the heat treatment furnace according to the embodiment of the present invention will be specifically described with reference to FIGS.

[0042] Fig. 4 is a diagram showing an example of a heater unit of a heat treatment furnace according to an embodiment of the present invention, and Fig. 5 is a diagram 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.

[0043] The heater unit 300a of the heat treatment furnace according to one embodiment of the present invention can be implemented in the chamber 200 of the heat treatment furnace 100 having the chamber 200 for accommodating a substrate for heating and drying the substrate, as shown in Figures 4 and 5, and configured to heat or dry the substrate by heat generated from the heater unit 300a.

[0044] The heater unit 300a of the heat treatment furnace according to the present invention may include an upper plate 302 having a built-in heating element 301 that generates heat by electrical resistance and heats a substrate.

[0045] The heater 301 may also be disposed in a built-in manner on a lower plate 303 that is spaced apart from the upper plate 302 at a predetermined distance L1 so as to face the upper plate 302 and to thermally expand and contract together with the upper plate 302.

[0046] The apparatus can also include an intake and exhaust duct section 304 that is disposed in the space L1 between the upper plate 302 and the lower plate 303 and that supplies and exhausts the process gas.

[0047] Further, the heater unit 300a of the heat treatment furnace according to the present invention can be configured to have the upper plate 302 and the lower plate 303 each having the accommodation spaces 305, 306 in which the heating element 301 is mounted as a built-in type.

[0048] Here, the accommodation spaces 305, 306 formed in the upper plate 302 and the lower plate 303, respectively, are secured with sufficient space to accommodate various types of heating elements 301 in a built-in manner, so that various types of heating elements 301 can be freely received and stored.

[0049] Preferably, the heating element 301, which is mounted in the respective housing spaces 305, 306 of the upper plate 302 and the lower plate 303 as a built-in type, can be selected from various heat sources such as a sheathed heater, an MI heater (Mineral Insulated Heater), and a TF heater (Thick Film Heater).

[0050] For example, a suitable heating element is one in which a heating wire (heating coil) that generates heat by electrical resistance is embedded in a pipe (metallic protective tube) and magnesium oxide (MgO), which is an insulating powder, is filled in together to insulate the heating wire from the pipe. In this case, it can be manufactured to be long and thin, so it can be effectively applied to the heater unit 300a according to the present invention.

[0051] Furthermore, the heater unit 300a of the heat treatment furnace according to the present invention can be configured with the reference capacity of the heating element 301 mounted on the upper plate 302 and the lower plate 303 set in advance.

[0052] That is, in order to induce the upper plate 302 and the lower plate 303 to have the same thermal expansion and contraction, it is preferable to set the reference capacitance of the heating element 301 to the same capacitance and arrange them.

[0053] In this way, when the reference capacity of the heating element 301 mounted on the upper plate 302 and the lower plate 303 is adjusted in advance to have the same heat amount, uneven thermal contraction and expansion caused by the difference in heat amount between the upper plate 302 and the lower plate 303 can be effectively controlled, thereby enhancing the durability of the heater and minimizing the generation of particles.

[0054] In addition, the heater unit 300a of the heat treatment furnace according to the present invention can be configured by symmetrically arranging each heating element 301 located on the upper plate 302 and the lower plate 303 so that the heating elements 301 mounted on the upper plate 302 and the lower plate 303 correspond to each other in order to induce the upper plate 302 and the lower plate 303 to undergo the same thermal expansion and contraction.

[0055] In this manner, when the built-in heating elements 301 mounted on the upper plate 302 and the lower plate 303 are symmetrically arranged so as to correspond to each other, uneven thermal contraction and expansion caused by the difference in heat between the upper plate 302 and the lower plate 303 can be effectively controlled, thereby enhancing the durability of the heater and minimizing the generation of particles.

[0056] Further, the heater unit 300a of the heat treatment furnace according to the present invention can be configured to include a casing 307 that combines the upper plate 302 and the lower plate 303 together.

[0057] Here, the casing 307 is provided with a guide path 308 for guiding the flow of the process gas between the upper plate 302 and the lower plate 303 , and the guide path 308 can be configured to include an intake and exhaust duct portion 304 .

[0058] The supply and exhaust duct section 304 is arranged on one side within the casing 307 in order to increase the rate at which the upper plate 302 and the lower plate 303 are heated and to exhaust particles generated due to the thermal expansion and contraction of the upper plate 302 and the lower plate 303, and can be configured by arranging an air supply duct 304a that introduces process gas supplied from the outside into the inside of the casing 307 and supplies it via an induction path 308.

[0059] In addition, an exhaust duct 304b is disposed so as to face the other side of the intake duct 304a inside the casing 307, and exhausts the process gas flowing along the induction path 308.

[0060] Here, the process gas flowing into the casing 307 and flowing along the induction path 308 may be various process gases that can accelerate and raise the temperature of the heat generated from the heating element 301 to the target temperature range more quickly. This allows the temperature rise rate to be increased quickly to the target temperature.

[0061] As a result, when the device is mounted in the chamber of a heat treatment furnace, the substrate to be heat-treated can be rapidly heated to a high temperature, and the substrate can be uniformly and effectively heated using radiant heat from the process gas.

[0062] The process gas flowing into the casing 307 and along the guide path 308 not only accelerates and raises the temperature of the heat generated by the heating element 301 to the target temperature range more quickly, but also easily discharges various particles such as dust and dirt that are generated during the thermal contraction and expansion process between the upper plate 302 and the lower plate 303 via the exhaust duct 304b through which the process gas is exhausted.

[0063] This allows the yield degradation of the substrate to be effectively controlled, and allows high quality substrates to be effectively manufactured.

[0064] Referring to FIG. 5, a process is diagrammatically shown in which process gas that has flowed into air supply duct 304a along process gas guide path 308 in casing 307 flows in the direction of arrow "a1" and is exhausted from exhaust duct 304b.

[0065] Meanwhile, FIG. 6 is a schematic diagram showing a planar structure in which heater units of a heat treatment furnace according to an embodiment of the present invention are combined and arranged, and is an example showing a flow state of a process gas.

[0066] In the heater unit 300a of the heat treatment furnace according to the present invention, when multiple heater units 300a are combined and arranged as shown in FIG. 6, the flow of the process gas can be controlled so that the process gas is supplied and flows in the direction of the arrow "a1" and exhausted in the direction of the arrow "a2".

[0067] Furthermore, as shown in FIG. 6, the heater unit 300a of the heat treatment furnace according to the present invention can be configured by installing a rolling bearing unit 309 having rolling performance at one end of the casing 307 so as to support the casing 307 at its free end in order to suppress friction that occurs as the temperature rises.

[0068] In this manner, when the rolling bearing unit 309 is installed at one end of the casing 307, the friction of the heater unit 300a can be suppressed, and the amount of particles generated during the friction process can be significantly reduced. In addition, deformation of the overall shape of the heater unit 300a can be prevented, and a decrease in durability can be effectively prevented.

[0069] In this way, when the heater unit of the heat treatment furnace according to the present invention is installed in the chamber of the heat treatment furnace and operated, it has the advantage of quickly bringing the substrate to a high temperature for heat treatment and uniformly and effectively heating the substrate using radiant heat from the process gas.

[0070] In addition, the heater unit of the heat treatment furnace according to the present invention has the advantage that the temperature rise required for rapidly processing the heat treatment process temperature of the substrate can be controlled quickly by effectively supplying the process gas.

[0071] In addition, the heater unit of the heat treatment furnace according to the present invention effectively responds to thermal expansion when the substrate is heated to a target temperature for the heat treatment process, preventing deformation and deterioration of durability, and thus has the advantage of being able to extend the usable lifespan compared to conventional heaters.

[0072] Furthermore, the heater unit of the heat treatment furnace according to the present invention has an advantageous advantage of increasing the temperature lowering capacity in the heat treatment process of the substrate, thereby improving the productivity.

[0073] Furthermore, the heater unit of the heat treatment furnace according to the present invention has an advantage in that it can effectively prevent generation of particles due to thermal expansion and contraction when the temperature of the substrate increases and decreases during the heat treatment process.

[0074] In addition, the heater unit of the heat treatment furnace according to the present invention has an advantage that it can provide convenience in replacement and maintenance of the heater.

[0075] In addition, the heater unit of the heat treatment furnace according to the present invention has an advantage that it is possible to provide a heater unit capable of handling various processes by making it into a standard heater of a single shape and occupying only a minimum space.

[0076] The present invention has been described above with reference to one embodiment shown in the drawings, but is not limited to this embodiment and can be modified and altered without departing from the gist of the present invention, and such modified and altered implementations are also included in the technical spirit of the present invention. [Explanation of symbols]

[0077] 100 Heat treatment furnace 200 Chamber 300a heater unit 301 Heating element 302 Upper Plate 303 Lower plate 304 Air supply and exhaust duct 304a Air supply duct 304b Exhaust duct 305, 306 Storage space 307 Casing 308 Taxiway 309 Rolling Bearing Unit

Claims

1. an upper plate that heats the substrate by arranging a built-in heating element that generates heat by electrical resistance; a lower plate disposed at a position facing the upper plate at a predetermined distance and having a built-in heating element disposed therein so as to thermally expand and contract together with the upper plate; a supply and exhaust duct portion disposed between the upper plate and the lower plate for supplying and exhausting a process gas.

2. 2. The heater unit of claim 1, wherein the upper plate and the lower plate each have an accommodation space for mounting a built-in heating element.

3. 2. The heater unit of a heat treatment furnace according to claim 1, wherein the heating elements mounted on the upper plate and the lower plate are arranged with their reference capacities set to the same capacity in order to induce the upper plate and the lower plate to undergo the same thermal expansion and contraction.

4. 2. The heater unit of claim 1, wherein the heating elements mounted on the upper plate and the lower plate are configured by symmetrically arranging each heating element on the upper plate and the lower plate to induce the same thermal expansion and contraction of the upper plate and the lower plate.

5. 2. The heater unit of a heat treatment furnace as described in claim 1, characterized in that the heater unit includes a casing that integrally combines an upper plate and a lower plate, the casing having an induction path that induces the flow of process gas between the upper plate and the lower plate, and the induction path having an intake and exhaust duct section.

6. 6. The heater unit of a heat treatment furnace according to claim 5, wherein the air supply and exhaust duct section is arranged on one side within the casing to introduce process gas supplied from the outside into the inside of the casing and supply it through an induction path in order to increase the temperature rise rate of the upper and lower plates and to exhaust particles generated due to thermal expansion and contraction of the upper and lower plates, and is composed of an air supply duct and an exhaust duct arranged opposite to the other side of the air supply duct within the casing and exhausts the process gas flowing along the induction path.

7. 6. The heater unit of a heat treatment furnace according to claim 5, wherein a rolling bearing unit having rolling performance is installed at one end of the casing to support the casing at a free end in order to suppress friction generated as the temperature rises.

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