Suction plate and method of manufacturing the same

Abstract

To provide a suction plate capable of stabilizing negative pressure of a suction surface and improving suction performance without leaving a suction mark, and to provide a method of manufacturing the same.SOLUTION: A suction plate 1 includes a ventilation portion 11 having air permeability and a non-ventilation plate-like portion 12 joined to the periphery of the ventilation portion 11, and is sandwiched between a suction head for sucking an object and the object to be sucked.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a suction plate and a method for manufacturing the same. [Background technology]

[0002] Conventionally, when precision cutting, precision machining, or transporting glass plates for liquid crystal displays or semiconductor wafers, it is necessary to securely fix the workpiece so that it does not shift position. In such cases, a vacuum suction device that uses negative pressure is generally used as a workpiece fixing device.

[0003] Incidentally, since a vacuum suction device must stably and reliably fix the workpiece as described above, the suction surface plays an important role, and nonwoven fabric suction plates (see, for example, Patent Document 1 below) have been proposed as a way to prevent suction marks, chips, suction stains, etc. from being generated on the workpiece. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0004] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2012-61556 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] However, the nonwoven fabric suction plate proposed above has a porous nonwoven fabric whose outer periphery is formed by a fused portion fused by heat pressing, and whose central portion is formed by a non-fused portion, forming the suction surface. Because the fused portion around the suction surface is formed by heat pressing the nonwoven fabric, it is not a completely airtight material, and air can easily enter the non-fused portion when negative pressure is applied. Therefore, the non-fused portion, which must securely hold the workpiece, has the disadvantage that the suction surface cannot maintain a stable negative pressure state.

[0006] The present invention addresses the above-described situation and aims to provide a suction plate and a manufacturing method thereof that stabilizes the negative pressure on the suction surface and improves suction performance without leaving any suction marks. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] In other words, the suction plate of the present invention, which is suitable for the above-mentioned purpose, comprises a breathable ventilation portion and a non-breathable plate-shaped portion joined around the ventilation portion, and is sandwiched between the suction head that sucks up the object and the object to be sucked up.

[0008] According to the above-described configuration of the present invention, the suction plate comprises a breathable ventilation portion and a non-breathable plate-shaped portion (hereinafter simply referred to as the "plate-shaped portion") arranged around the ventilation portion, and only the ventilation portion functions as the suction surface. [Effects of the Invention]

[0009] According to the above-described configuration of the present invention, the negative pressure in the suction section can be stabilized, and suction performance can be improved without leaving any suction marks. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0010] [Figure 1] FIG. 3 is a plan view showing an example of a suction plate in the first embodiment. [Figure 2] 2 is a cross-sectional view taken along line XX in FIG. 1 showing the suction plate according to the first embodiment. [Figure 3] FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view showing a state in which the suction plate is used in the first embodiment. [Figure 4] 5 is a flowchart showing a method for manufacturing a suction plate according to the first embodiment. [Figure 5] 10 is a flowchart showing a method for manufacturing a suction plate according to a second embodiment. [Figure 6] 10 is a flowchart showing a method for manufacturing a suction plate according to a third embodiment. [Figure 7] 10 is a flowchart showing a method for manufacturing a suction plate according to a fourth embodiment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0011] First Embodiment A first embodiment of a suction plate and a manufacturing method thereof according to the present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the drawings. It should be noted that the suction plate of the present invention is not limited to the following description and can be modified as appropriate within the scope of the present invention.

[0012] [About the configuration of the suction plate] FIG. 1 shows a plan view of a suction plate 1 of this embodiment. FIG. 2 shows a cross-sectional view of the suction plate 1 of this embodiment taken along line XX in FIG. 1. As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the suction plate 1 of this embodiment includes a ventilation portion 11 and a plate-shaped portion 12. The ventilation portion 11 is breathable, and the plate-shaped portion 12 is non-breathable. The ventilation portion 11 is made of nonwoven fabric. The plate-shaped portion 12 is made of a synthetic resin plate. The ventilation portion 11 is circular. The plate-shaped portion 12 is annular. The plate-shaped portion 12 is joined to the periphery of the ventilation portion 11. The suction plate 1 has an overall disk shape. The suction plate 1 is used in the suction head of a vacuum suction device that suctions workpieces such as paper, film, glass plates, and metal plates by vacuum suction. The above shapes of the ventilation portion 11 and the plate-shaped portion 12 of the suction plate 1 are merely examples, and the suction plate 1 can have any suitable shape that matches the shape of the suction head, without being limited to a circular shape.

[0013] In this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 2, the ventilation portion 11 and the plate-like portion 12 are flush with each other on both side surfaces A and B in the thickness direction.

[0014] In this embodiment, the nonwoven fabric used to manufacture the ventilation part 11 is preferably made of fibers with a fineness of 2.2 dtex to 72 dtex. 2 ~500g / m 2 " is preferable.

[0015] In this embodiment, the ventilation portion 11 is made of one or more sheets of nonwoven fabric. The nonwoven fabric constituting the ventilation portion 11 is preferably made of, for example, polyethylene, polypropylene, or polyethylene terephthalate fibers. The ventilation portion 11 is heat-pressed. The heat-pressing temperature is preferably set in the range of "110°C to 250°C." The heat-pressing pressure is preferably set in the range of "0.1 MPa to 5.0 MPa." The heat-pressing time is preferably set in the range of "5 minutes to 30 minutes." The thickness of the ventilation portion 11 is preferably determined in the range of "0.5 mm to 5.0 mm."

[0016] In this embodiment, the ventilation portion 11 has an air permeability of 30 cm according to JIS L 1096A method. 3 / (sec cm 2 ) or more. This breathability can be set by the fineness and basis weight of the ventilation part 11.

[0017] In this embodiment, the plate-shaped portion 12 has a thickness of "0.5 mm to 5.0 mm" similar to the ventilation portion 11. The plate-shaped portion 12 is made of a resin material. This resin material is preferably, for example, polyethylene, polypropylene, nylon, or polyethylene terephthalate. The plate-shaped portion 12 is usually insulating. When the plate-shaped portion 12 is insulating, the resistance value between the front and rear surfaces of the plate-shaped portion 12 is "10 10 The resistance value between the front and rear surfaces of the plate-shaped portion 12 is in the range of "10 Ω to ∞ Ω". In addition, the plate-shaped portion 12 may be made conductive or semi-conductive. For example, the plate-shaped portion 12 can be made conductive or semi-conductive by blending a conductive agent such as graphite particles into the resin. 3 Ω~10 9 The resistance value between the front and rear surfaces of the plate-shaped portion 12 when conductive is "10 3 Ω~10 6 The resistance value between the front and rear surfaces of the plate-shaped portion 12 in the case of semiconductivity can be set in the range of "10 6 Ω~10 9 The melting point of the plate-like portion 12 is preferably set in the range of 110°C to 250°C. The ventilation portion 11 may be made semiconductive.

[0018] [Examples of using suction plates] FIG. 3 is a schematic cross-sectional view showing the suction plate 1 of this embodiment in use. As shown in FIG. 3, the suction plate 1 is attached to the suction port 22 of the suction head 21 of a vacuum suction device when in use. During use, the suction plate 1 is sandwiched between the suction head 21, which sucks the target workpiece, and the workpiece to be sucked. The upper surface of the ventilation section 11 of the suction plate 1 is attached to the suction port 22 via a perforated plate 23. In this state of use, the suction head 21 applies negative pressure to its negative pressure port 24, causing negative pressure to act on the ventilation section 11 of the suction plate 1, thereby suction-fixing the workpiece.

[0019] [About the function and effect of the suction plate] According to the configuration of the suction plate 1 of this embodiment described above, the plate-shaped portion 12 of the suction plate 1 is non-air permeable, so only the ventilation portion 11 functions as the suction surface. This stabilizes the negative pressure on the suction surface of the ventilation portion 11, improving suction performance without leaving any suction marks. Furthermore, because the ventilation portion 11 is made of nonwoven fabric and the plate-shaped portion 12 is made of a resin material, the suction plate 1 can be manufactured inexpensively.

[0020] According to the configuration of this embodiment, the ventilation portion 11 and the plate-like portion 12 arranged around it are flush with each other on both sides in the thickness direction, and no steps are formed. Therefore, even if the suction surface of the ventilation portion 11 comes into contact with the workpiece, it is possible to prevent suction marks or wrinkles from being formed on the workpiece, as would occur when a rubber suction pad is used.

[0021] According to the configuration of this embodiment, the ventilation portion 11 can obtain a necessary and sufficient degree of air permeability on the adsorption surface of the ventilation portion 11 by setting the fineness and basis weight thereof.

[0022] According to the configuration of this embodiment, the ventilation part 11 can obtain the necessary and sufficient durability as the ventilation part 11 due to the configuration of the nonwoven fabric.

[0023] According to the configuration of this embodiment, the ventilation section 11 can apply a necessary and sufficient negative pressure to the ventilation section 11 by setting the degree of air permeability.

[0024] According to the configuration of this embodiment, the plate-shaped portion 12 can withstand abrasion from the workpiece and make the workpiece less susceptible to damage. Furthermore, if the plate-shaped portion 12 and the ventilation portion 11 are conductive or semi-conductive, sparks due to static electricity generated between the workpiece and the suction plate 1 can be prevented, and damage to the workpiece due to sparks can be prevented.

[0025] [About the manufacturing method of the suction plate]

[0026] Next, a method for manufacturing the above-mentioned suction plate 1 will be described with reference to the flowchart shown in FIG.

[0027] To manufacture this suction plate 1, first, in steps S1 and S2 shown in Fig. 4, a nonwoven fabric laminate that will become the ventilation portion 11 and a plate material that will become the plate-like portion 12 are manufactured, respectively. The nonwoven fabric laminate is a molded body made by laminating one or more sheets of nonwoven fabric.

[0028] Next, in the temporary assembly step of step S3, the plate material that will become the plate-like portion 12 produced in step S2 is arranged around the nonwoven fabric laminate that will become the ventilation portion 11 produced in step S1 and temporarily assembled.

[0029] Then, in the heat pressing process of step S4, the nonwoven fabric laminate that will become the ventilation portion 11 and the plate that will become the plate-like portion 12 are heat pressed. More specifically, the temperature is raised to weld the nonwoven fabric laminate and the plate. The temperature after heating is set to a temperature higher than room temperature but within a range that does not melt the nonwoven fabric laminate and the plate. This temperature is, for example, about 110°C to 250°C. In the heated state, the nonwoven fabric laminate and the plate are pressed in the thickness direction. The pressing pressure is such that the nonwoven fabric laminate and the plate are not crushed. This pressure is, for example, about 0.1 MPa to 5.0 MPa. The pressing time is about 5 minutes to 30 minutes. The thicknesses of the nonwoven fabric laminate and the plate are adjusted by pressing. Here, the thicknesses of the nonwoven fabric laminate and the plate are slightly reduced by pressing, thereby slightly stretching the nonwoven fabric laminate and the plate in the plane direction. As a result, the outer periphery of the nonwoven fabric laminate and the inner periphery of the plate material are pressed against each other. Therefore, even if the temperature rise is such that the nonwoven fabric laminate and the plate material do not melt, they will melt at the butted area. In this way, the woven fabric laminate and the plate material are welded together. In this way, the outer periphery of the nonwoven fabric laminate and the inner periphery of the plate material are joined together, integrating the nonwoven fabric laminate and the plate material.

[0030] Thereafter, in the cooling step of step S5, the ventilation portion 11 and the plate-shaped portion 12 are cooled to room temperature of "20°C to 40°C". The required time for the temperature drop is "5 minutes to 30 minutes". This allows the ventilation portion 11 and the plate-shaped portion 12 to cool and harden. In the cooling step, cold air may be blown onto the ventilation portion 11 and the plate-shaped portion 12, or they may simply be left in the air.

[0031] Through this series of steps, the suction plate 1 is completed.

[0032] [About the function and effect of the manufacturing method of the suction plate] According to the manufacturing method of the suction plate 1 of this embodiment described above, the ventilation portion 11 and the plate-like portion 12 arranged around it can be integrated by welding them together using a heat press, and then hardened by cooling.

[0033] Second Embodiment Next, a second embodiment of the suction plate according to the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

[0034] In the following description, the same components as those in the first embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals and the description thereof will be omitted, and the following description will focus on the differences.

[0035] This embodiment differs from the first embodiment in the content of the manufacturing method of the suction plate 1. Figure 5 is a flowchart showing the manufacturing method.

[0036] As shown in FIG. 5, this embodiment differs from the first embodiment in that an adhesive layering step S100 is provided between steps S3 and S4.

[0037] In step S100, an adhesive sheet is superimposed on one or both sides of the pre-assembled nonwoven fabric laminate and plate material. The adhesive sheet is a sheet using a fibrous hot melt adhesive. The sheet may be made of nonwoven fabric or a spider web-like material. In step S4, the adhesive sheet is subjected to heat pressing together with the nonwoven fabric laminate and plate material. During the heat pressing, the nonwoven fabric laminate and plate material are joined by the adhesive melted from the adhesive sheet.

[0038] In this embodiment, the ventilation portion 11 and the plate-like portion 12 can be bonded together by an adhesive sheet during heat pressing.

[0039] Third Embodiment Next, a third embodiment of the suction plate according to the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

[0040] This embodiment differs from the previous embodiments in the method of manufacturing the suction plate 1. Figure 6 is a flowchart showing this manufacturing method.

[0041] As shown in FIG. 6, this embodiment differs from the above-described embodiments in that an adhesive supplying step S200 is provided between steps S3 and S4.

[0042] That is, in this embodiment, after the preliminary assembly step of step S3 and before the heat pressing step of step S4, an adhesive is supplied to the joint between the nonwoven fabric laminate and the plate material in an adhesive supply step of step S200. The adhesive may be a liquid adhesive or a solid hot-melt adhesive. For example, an adhesive made of at least one of epoxy, acrylic, urethane, and nitrocellulose, or a cyanoacrylate-based instant adhesive may be used.

[0043] In this embodiment, the ventilation portion 11 and the plate-like portion 12 can be bonded together by the adhesive supplied in the adhesive supplying step.

[0044] In this embodiment, the heat pressing step S4 and the cooling step S5 are performed after the adhesive supplying step S200. However, a liquid adhesive can be used as the adhesive supplied in the adhesive supplying step S200. In this case, the heat pressing step S4 and the cooling step S5 can be omitted.

[0045] <Fourth embodiment> Next, a fourth embodiment of the suction plate according to the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

[0046] This embodiment differs from the first embodiment in the manufacturing method of the suction plate 1. Roughly speaking, in this embodiment, no plate material is used in the manufacturing process of the suction plate 1, and a plate-like portion 12 is formed around the periphery of the nonwoven fabric laminate. Figure 7 shows a flowchart of this manufacturing method.

[0047] As shown in FIG. 7, in this embodiment, the resin that will become the plate-shaped portion 12 is melted in step S300 instead of step S2.

[0048] Next, instead of steps S3 and S4, in the molding process of step S400, molten resin is poured into a mold in which the nonwoven fabric laminate is set, forming a plate-like portion 12 around the nonwoven fabric laminate, and bonding the outer periphery of the nonwoven fabric laminate to the inner periphery of the plate-like portion 12.

[0049] Then, after the temperature of the plate-shaped portion 12 is lowered in the cooling step of step S5, the molded product is removed from the mold and the runners are cut in step S500, completing the product.

[0050] In this embodiment, the nonwoven fabric laminate can be insert-molded into the plate-like part 12 made of resin. [Industrial Applicability]

[0051] The present invention can be applied to the suction head of a vacuum suction device such as a robot hand for transporting and fixing a workpiece. [Explanation of symbols]

[0052] 1 suction plate 11 Ventilation section 12 Plate-shaped part

Claims

1. With breathable ventilation, a non-air-permeable plate-shaped portion joined to the periphery of the ventilation portion, A suction plate is sandwiched between the suction head that sucks the object and the object being sucked.

2. 2. The suction plate according to claim 1, The suction plate has the ventilation portion and the plate-like portion that are flush with each other on both sides in the thickness direction.

3. The suction plate according to claim 1 or 2, The ventilation portion is It is made up of fibers with a fineness of 2.2 dtex to 72 dtex. Weight per unit area is 10g / m ２ ~500g / m ２ is Suction plate.

4. The suction plate according to claim 1 or 2, The ventilation portion is It is composed of one or more sheets of nonwoven fabric whose base fiber is at least one of polyethylene, polypropylene, and polyethylene terephthalate, The thickness is 0.5 mm to 5.0 mm. Suction plate.

5. The suction plate according to claim 1 or 2, The ventilation part has an air permeability of 30 cm according to JIS L 1096A method. ３ / (sec cm ２ ) or more Suction plate.

6. The suction plate according to claim 1 or 2, The plate-shaped portion is a resin member containing at least one of polyethylene, polypropylene, nylon, and polyethylene terephthalate; The thickness is 0.5 mm to 5.0 mm. Suction plate.

7. 7. The suction plate according to claim 6, The resistance between the front and rear surfaces of the plate-shaped portion is 10 ３ Omega to 10 ９ It is Omega Suction plate.

8. A method for manufacturing the suction plate according to claim 1, comprising the steps of: a circular plate member that will become the plate-shaped portion is disposed around the nonwoven fabric laminate that will become the ventilation portion; The outer periphery of the nonwoven fabric laminate and the inner periphery of the plate material are joined to integrate the nonwoven fabric laminate and the plate material. A method for manufacturing an adsorption plate.

9. A method for manufacturing an adsorption plate according to claim 8, comprising the steps of: The nonwoven fabric laminate and the plate material are integrated by applying pressure in the thickness direction while raising the temperature to a temperature higher than room temperature within a range in which the nonwoven fabric laminate and the plate material do not melt, Thereafter, the nonwoven fabric laminate and the plate material are cooled to room temperature. A method for manufacturing an adsorption plate.

10. A method for manufacturing an adsorption plate according to claim 9, comprising the steps of: When the plate material is arranged around the nonwoven fabric laminate, an adhesive sheet containing an adhesive component is superimposed on one or both sides of the plate material, The nonwoven fabric laminate and the plate material are subjected to heating and pressure together with the adhesive sheet. A method for manufacturing an adsorption plate.

11. A method for manufacturing an adsorption plate according to claim 9, comprising the steps of: After the plate material is arranged around the nonwoven fabric laminate, an adhesive is supplied between the nonwoven fabric laminate and the plate material before the temperature is increased and the pressure is applied. A method for manufacturing an adsorption plate.

12. A method for manufacturing an adsorption plate according to claim 8, comprising the steps of: After the plate material is placed around the nonwoven fabric laminate, adhesive is supplied between the nonwoven fabric laminate and the plate material. A method for manufacturing an adsorption plate.

13. A method for manufacturing the suction plate according to claim 1, comprising the steps of: supplying a molten resin that will form the plate-shaped portion around the nonwoven fabric laminate that will form the ventilation portion; Thereafter, the supplied molten resin is cooled to form the annular plate-like portion whose inner periphery is joined to the outer periphery of the nonwoven fabric laminate. A method for manufacturing an adsorption plate.

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