Rotary pump and coating device

Abstract

The present invention provides a rotary pump and coating apparatus that can suppress the mixing of air bubbles into the liquid. [Solution] The rotary pump 10 comprises a rotor 11, a case body 12 having a pump chamber 12A that houses the rotor 11, and a case cover 13 attached to the case body 12 and covering the pump chamber 12A. The case cover 13 has a recess 13A that houses the shaft end of the rotation shaft 11A of the rotor 11, and a through hole 13B that connects the space SP within the recess 13A to the outside.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a rotary pump and a coating apparatus.

Background Art

[0002] There is known a rotary pump in which a case cover covering a pump chamber for housing a rotor is formed with a recess for housing an axial end portion of the rotation shaft of the rotor (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0003]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0004] In the rotary pump described in Patent Document 1, air tends to remain in the recess of the casing cover, and there is a disadvantage that this air forms bubbles and mixes into the liquid.

[0005] An object of the present invention is to provide a rotary pump and a coating apparatus capable of suppressing the mixing of bubbles into a liquid.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0006] A rotary pump according to an aspect of the present invention includes a rotor, a case body having a pump chamber for housing the rotor, and a case cover attached to the case body and covering the pump chamber. The case cover includes a recess for housing an axial end portion of the rotation shaft of the rotor and a through hole for communicating a space in the recess with the outside.

[0007] The rotary pump according to an aspect of the present invention may include suction means connected to the through hole and communicating with a space in the recess through the through hole.

[0008] A rotary pump according to one aspect of the present invention may be connected to a supply port that communicates the space within the recess with the outside, and may include a supply means for supplying the liquid supplied by the rotary pump into the space within the recess.

[0009] A coating apparatus according to one aspect of the present invention comprises a rotary pump according to one aspect of the present invention and a coating means for applying a coating liquid supplied from the rotary pump to a substrate. [Effects of the Invention]

[0010] According to the present invention, the case cover of the rotary pump has a through hole that connects the space within the recess that accommodates the shaft end of the rotating shaft to the outside, so that air in the recess can be released to the outside through the through hole, thereby suppressing the mixing of air bubbles into the liquid. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0011] [Figure 1] An explanatory diagram of a coating apparatus equipped with a rotary pump according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 2] Diagram illustrating a rotary pump. [Figure 3] A section of the view taken along the line III-III in Figure 2. [Modes for carrying out the invention]

[0012] One embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. In this embodiment, the X, Y, and Z axes are orthogonal to each other. The X and Y axes are axes within a predetermined plane, and the Z axis is an axis perpendicular to the predetermined plane. Furthermore, in this embodiment, when directions are indicated based on a view from the front direction of Figure 1, which is parallel to the Y axis, "up" is the direction of the Z-axis arrow and "down" is the opposite direction, "left" is the direction of the X-axis arrow and "right" is the opposite direction, and "front" is the front direction in Figure 1, which is parallel to the Y axis and "back" is the opposite direction.

[0013] [Overall structure] In Figure 1, the rotary pump 10 is used in the coating device EA. The coating apparatus EA comprises a rotary pump 10, a coating means 20 such as a die coater or gravure coater for applying the coating liquid CL supplied from the rotary pump 10 to the substrate AB, a dispensing means 30 for dispensing the substrate AB, and a drying means 40 for drying the coating liquid CL applied to the substrate AB.

[0014] The rotary pump 10 supplies the coating liquid CL contained in the tank TA. The configuration of the rotary pump 10 will be described later.

[0015] The dispensing mechanism 30 includes a support roller 31 supported by the output shaft of a rotary motor 31A acting as a drive device and supporting a strip-shaped base material AB, a backup roller 32 supported by the output shaft of a rotary motor 32A acting as a drive device and facing the coating mechanism 20 across the base material AB, a guide roller 33 for guiding the sheet RS to which the coating liquid CL has been applied to the base material AB, and a recovery roller 34 supported by the output shaft of a rotary motor 34A acting as a drive device and serving as a recovery mechanism for recovering the sheet RS.

[0016] The drying means 40 includes heating equipment 41 such as an infrared heater or a coil heater.

[0017] [Rotary pump configuration] In Figures 2 and 3, the rotary pump 10 comprises a rotor 11, a case body 12 having a pump chamber 12A that houses the rotor 11, a case cover 13 attached to the case body 12 and covering the pump chamber 12A, an on-off valve 14 provided on a pipe 14A that communicates with a space SP inside the case cover 13, and a suction means 15 such as a pressure reducing pump or vacuum ejector connected to the pipe 14A.

[0018] The rotor 11 includes a shaft insertion portion 11B through which a rotary shaft 11A rotated by a driving device is inserted, and blade portions 11C provided on the shaft insertion portion 11B. The rotor 11 is fixed to the rotary shaft 11A by screwing a rotor retaining nut 11D to the shaft end portion of the rotary shaft 11A in a state where the rotary shaft 11A is inserted through the shaft insertion portion 11B.

[0019] The case body 12 includes a pump chamber 12A, an inlet 12B that communicates with the pump chamber 12A and through which the coating liquid CL flows in, and an outlet 12C that communicates with the pump chamber 12A and through which the coating liquid CL is discharged.

[0020] The case cover 13 includes a recess 13A that houses the shaft end portion of the rotary shaft 11A of the rotor 11, and a through hole 13B that communicates the space SP inside the recess 13A with the outside. The nut 11D is housed in the recess 13A together with the shaft end portion of the rotary shaft 11A. The through hole 13B extends upward from the recess 13A and opens upward.

[0021] The suction means 15 is connected to the through hole 13B via a pipe 14A and communicates with the space SP inside the recess 13A via the through hole 13B.

[0022] [Operation and effects] The operation of the above coating device EA will be described. First, the user of the coating apparatus EA (hereinafter simply referred to as "user") sets the substrate AB as shown in the Figure 1, with each component positioned in the initial position indicated by the solid line in the Figure 1. Then, the user opens the on-off valve 14 and inputs a signal to start the air removal operation via an operating means (not shown), such as an operation panel or personal computer. The rotary pump 10's drive mechanism and suction means 15 are then activated, causing the rotor 11 to rotate and the coating liquid CL to flow into the pump chamber 12A from the inlet 12B, while the suction means 15 sucks the air from the recess 13A of the case cover 13. As a result, the air in the recess 13A is released to the outside and removed, and the recess 13A is filled with the coating liquid CL that has flowed in through the gap in the rotary pump 10. The coating liquid CL that flows into the rotary pump 10 and out to the discharge port 12C during the air removal operation is discharged through a drain pipe (not shown).

[0023] Next, after the user closes the on / off valve 14 and inputs a signal to start automatic operation via the operating means, the drying means 40 drives the heating device 41 and maintains the heating device 41 at a predetermined temperature while the coating device EA is in automatic operation. Subsequently, the rotary pump 10 supplies the coating liquid CL to the coating means 20, and the dispensing means 30 drives the rotary motors 31A, 32A, and 34A to apply the coating liquid CL to the dispensed substrate AB to form a sheet RS. The sheet RS is then heated and dried by the heating device 41 and wound onto the recovery roller 34.

[0024] According to the above embodiment, the case cover 13 of the rotary pump 10 is provided with a through hole 13B that connects the space SP within the recess 13A that accommodates the shaft end of the rotating shaft 11A to the outside. Therefore, air in the recess 13A can be released to the outside through the through hole 13B, and the mixing of air bubbles into the coating liquid CL can be suppressed.

[0025] Furthermore, since the rotary pump 10 is equipped with a suction means 15 that communicates with the space SP within the recess 13A via the through hole 13B, it can suck in the air within the recess 13A and quickly release it to the outside.

[0026] Furthermore, since the coating device EA is equipped with a rotary pump 10, no air bubbles are mixed into the coating liquid CL supplied from the rotary pump 10, and a bubble-free coating liquid CL can be applied to the substrate AB.

[0027] As described above, the best configurations, methods, etc., for carrying out the present invention are disclosed in the above description, but the present invention is not limited thereto. That is, although the present invention is mainly illustrated and described in relation to specific embodiments, those skilled in the art can make various modifications to the embodiments described above in terms of shape, material, quantity, and other detailed configurations without departing from the scope of the technical idea and objectives of the present invention. Furthermore, the descriptions of shapes, materials, etc. disclosed above are illustrative to facilitate understanding of the present invention and do not limit the present invention, so descriptions of components with some or all of those limitations removed are included in the present invention. Furthermore, the means and processes in the present invention are not limited in any way as long as they can perform the operations, functions, or processes described for those means and processes, and are certainly not limited at all to the components or processes of a single embodiment shown in the above-mentioned embodiments. For example, the coating means can be anything that applies a coating liquid supplied from a rotary pump to a substrate, and is not limited in any way as long as it is within the scope of the art in light of the common technical knowledge at the time of filing (the same applies to other means and processes).

[0028] The rotary pump 10 may be equipped with a supply means 16, such as a pressurized pump or turbine, which supplies the coating liquid CL supplied by the rotary pump 10 to the space SP in the recess 13A, as shown by the dashed line in Figure 3, in place of or in combination with the suction means 15. The supply means 16 is connected to a supply hole 13C that connects the space SP in the recess 13A to the outside, and supplies the coating liquid CL to the space SP in the recess 13A through the supply hole 13C. As a result, the recess 13A is quickly filled with the coating liquid CL, so that the air in the recess 13A can be sucked out and quickly released to the outside. The rotary pump 10 only needs to have a case cover 13 provided with a recess 13A for accommodating the shaft end of the rotating shaft 11A, and may be, for example, a gear pump, a Roots pump, or a vane pump. The rotary pump 10 may be used for purposes other than coating device EA.

[0029] The rotor 11 may have only one blade portion 11C, or it may have multiple blade portions 11C.

[0030] The case cover 13 may have only one through hole 13B for each recess 13A, or it may have multiple through holes 13B for each recess 13A.

[0031] The suction means 15 and the supply means 16 may or may not be provided in the rotary pump 10 or coating device EA of the present invention. Even if the suction means 15 and the supply means 16 are not provided, when the rotary pump 10 is driven, the coating liquid CL enters the recess 13A, so the air in the recess 13A is pushed out by the coating liquid CL and released to the outside through the through hole 13B.

[0032] The coating means 20 may apply the coating liquid CL to the substrate AB by any method such as bar coating, knife coating, roll coating, blade coating, die coating, casting, inkjet, spray, or printing, for example, a bar coater or a knife coater may be used.

[0033] The dispensing means 30 may dispense the base material AB from a base material AB that has been folded, for example, in a fanfold, without being wound, or it may dispense a single sheet of base material AB. The dispensing means 30 may or may not be provided in the coating apparatus EA of the present invention. If it is not provided, the substrate AB may be dispensed by another apparatus.

[0034] The drying means 40 may include a gas supply means such as a pressurized pump or turbine that supplies heated air or gas heated by the heating device 41, and a spraying means such as a spraying pipe or nozzle connected to the gas supply means via piping for spraying the heated gas, thereby drying the coating liquid CL by spraying the heated gas onto it. The drying means 40 may or may not be provided in the coating apparatus EA of the present invention, and if it is not provided, the coating liquid CL may be dried with another apparatus. The heating device 41 is not particularly limited and may, for example, be the heating side of a heat pipe.

[0035] The coating apparatus EA may be equipped with a curing means for irradiating the coating liquid CL with energy rays such as electron beams or ultraviolet rays.

[0036] The material, type, shape, etc., of the substrate AB and coating liquid CL in this invention are not particularly limited. For example, the substrate AB may be a single layer or a multi-layered material, or any other type. The coating liquid CL may form an adhesive or bonding layer, such as a tack or glue, or a coating layer, such as a print-receiving layer, a hard coat layer, or a release layer, or it may form another type of layer, such as a photoresist.

[0037] The drive equipment in the above embodiment may be electric motors such as rotary motors, linear motors, single-axis robots, and so-called articulated robots with two or three or more joints, or actuators such as air cylinders, hydraulic cylinders, rodless cylinders, and rotary cylinders, either individually or in combination directly or indirectly. Furthermore, the drive equipment may be capable of or incapable of torque control or speed control of the output section of the electric motors or actuators.

[0038] In the above embodiment, an object (hereinafter referred to as "object A") and an object moving relative to object A (hereinafter referred to as "object B"), that is, object A and object B moving relative to each other, may be object B moving relative to object A which does not move, object A which does not move, or both object A and object B which move, and either object A or object B may move as long as the result achieved by the movement is the same. If a rotating member such as a roller is used, a drive device for rotating the rotating member may be provided, the surface of the rotating member or the rotating member itself may be made of a deformable material such as rubber or resin, or the surface of the rotating member or the rotating member itself may be made of a non-deformable material, or other members such as a rotating or non-rotating shaft or blade may be used instead of a roller. [Explanation of symbols]

[0039] EA... Coating device 10… Rotary pump 11…Rotor 12…Case body 12A... Pump Room 13…Case cover 13A…recess 13B...Through hole 15...Suction means 20… Coating means AB…Base material CL…Coating liquid

Claims

1. It is a rotary pump, The rotor and, A case body having a pump chamber for housing the rotor, The case body is attached to the case cover that covers the pump chamber, The rotary pump is characterized in that the case cover has a recess for accommodating the end of the rotor's rotating shaft and a through hole that connects the space within the recess to the outside.

2. The rotary pump according to claim 1, characterized in that it is provided with a suction means connected to the through hole and communicating with the space in the recess via the through hole.

3. The rotary pump according to claim 1, characterized in that it is connected to a supply hole that communicates the space within the recess with the outside, and comprises a supply means for supplying the liquid supplied by the rotary pump into the space within the recess.

4. A rotary pump according to any one of claims 1 to 3, A coating apparatus characterized by comprising a coating means for applying a coating liquid supplied from the rotary pump to a substrate.

Images