Brittle plate processing device and brittle plate processing method

Abstract

To provide a brittle plate processing device which can save time and effort for manually aligning a processing wheel to a brittle board after replacement of a processing wheel, and has high efficiency for processing the brittle plate as a whole, and a brittle board processing method.SOLUTION: A processing device 1 for a brittle plate 2 comprises: a table 4 for holding a brittle board 2; a processing head 7 having a processing wheel 6 which processes an outer peripheral edge 5 of the brittle plate 2 held on the table 4; a measurement part 8 which measures a positional deviation amount of the processing wheel 6 to the brittle plate 2 in an axial direction; and a control part 9 which corrects positional deviation of the processing wheel 6 in a Z direction on the basis of the positional deviation amount of the processing wheel 6 in the axial direction that has been measured by the measurement part 8, and causes the processing wheel 6, of which positional deviation has been corrected, to process the outer peripheral edge 5 of the brittle plate 2.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a brittle plate processing device and a brittle plate processing method for grinding or polishing, or grinding and polishing (hereinafter referred to as processing), the outer peripheral edge of, for example, a rectangular brittle plate for use in automobiles, liquid crystal panels such as liquid crystal televisions, solar cells, furniture, construction, and the like. [Background technology]

[0002] 2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, for example, a grinding device for a glass plate grinds the glass plate by, for example, bringing a grinding wheel into contact with the peripheral edge of the glass plate while rotating the grinding wheel by the operation of an electric motor. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] JP 2010-58265 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] In the glass plate grinding device disclosed in Patent Document 1, a method of aligning the glass grinding position and the grinding wheel position when replacing the grinding wheel involves manually adjusting the dimension from the grinding wheel mounting surface to the reference position of the grinding wheel groove when the grinding wheel is manufactured. However, this method can result in slight deviations in the processed shape when the glass plate is processed, so the grinding wheel position must be adjusted again after checking the processed shape of the glass plate the first time. This takes time to align the grinding wheel with the glass plate, making the glass plate less efficient overall.

[0005] The present invention has been made in consideration of the above-mentioned points, and an object of the present invention is to provide an apparatus and method for processing brittle plates that automatically measures the amount of misalignment of a processing wheel before processing a brittle plate, automatically corrects the misalignment of the processing wheel based on the amount of misalignment, and has the processing wheel with the misalignment of the processing wheel corrected process the outer edge of the brittle plate, without having to repeatedly test the manual alignment of the brittle plate with the processing wheel groove, thereby reducing the effort and time required for manually aligning the processing wheel with respect to the brittle plate after replacing the processing wheel, and thereby achieving high efficiency in processing of brittle plates overall.

[0006] Another object of the present invention is to provide an apparatus and method for processing brittle plates which automatically measure the amount of positional deviation of a processing wheel before processing a brittle plate, automatically correct the positional deviation of the processing wheel based on the amount of positional deviation, and automatically correct the positional deviation of the processing wheel with greater accuracy by alternately repeating these measurements and corrections multiple times, and have the processing wheel with the positional deviation of the processing wheel corrected process the outer edge of the brittle plate, thereby reducing the effort and time required for manually aligning the processing wheel with respect to the brittle plate after replacing the processing wheel, and thereby achieving high efficiency in processing brittle plates overall. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] A first feature of the present invention for solving the above problem is that a brittle plate processing device comprises a table for holding a brittle plate, a processing head having a processing wheel for processing the outer edge of the brittle plate held on the table, a measuring unit for measuring an amount of positional deviation of the processing wheel in the axial direction relative to the brittle plate, and a control unit for correcting the positional deviation of the processing wheel in the axial direction based on the amount of positional deviation of the processing wheel in the axial direction measured by the measuring unit, and for causing the processing wheel whose positional deviation has been corrected to process the outer edge of the brittle plate.

[0008] As an example of the brittle plate processing device of the present invention having the first feature, the measuring unit includes a mounting plate, a movable stage that is provided so as to be movable relative to the mounting plate in a first direction perpendicular to the axis of the processing wheel, a moving means that moves the movable stage in the first direction, and a rotating means that is provided on the movable stage and has a shaft member with a tip portion, the measuring unit rotates the shaft member in a first rotational direction about its axis to bring the tip portion into contact with the processing surface of the processing wheel, measures a first position where the tip portion rotates in the first rotational direction and contacts the processing surface of the processing wheel, rotates the shaft member in a second rotational direction that is opposite to the first rotational direction to bring the tip portion into contact with the processing surface of the processing wheel, and measures a second position where the tip portion rotates in the second rotational direction and contacts the processing surface of the processing wheel, The control unit calculates a first distance in the axial direction of the processing wheel from a predetermined processing reference position to the first position, calculates a second distance in the axial direction of the processing wheel from the predetermined processing reference position to the second position, calculates an amount of positional deviation in the axial direction of the processing wheel based on the first distance and the second distance, corrects the positional deviation in the axial direction of the processing wheel based on the amount of positional deviation in the axial direction of the processing wheel, and causes the processing wheel with the positional deviation corrected to process the outer peripheral edge of the brittle plate.

[0009] In another example of the brittle plate processing apparatus of the present invention having the first feature, the brittle plate processing apparatus alternately repeats multiple times the measurement of a first position and a second position by the measurement unit and the correction of the positional deviation in the axial direction of the processing wheel by the control unit, and causes the processing wheel whose positional deviation has been corrected multiple times to process the outer peripheral edge of the brittle plate.

[0010] In another example of the brittle plate processing apparatus of the present invention having the first feature, the rotating means is a servo motor that controls torque.

[0011] As another example of the brittle plate processing apparatus of the present invention having the first characteristic, the measuring unit includes a mounting plate, a movable stage that is provided so as to be movable relative to the mounting plate in a first direction perpendicular to the axis of the processing wheel, a moving means that moves the movable stage in the first direction, and a laser measuring means that is provided on the movable stage and irradiates a laser onto the processing surface of the processing wheel to measure the processing surface, The control unit calculates the amount of positional deviation from a predetermined processing reference position in the axial direction of the processing wheel based on the measurement values ​​obtained by the laser measurement means, corrects the positional deviation in the axial direction of the processing wheel based on the amount of positional deviation from the predetermined processing reference position in the axial direction of the processing wheel, and causes the processing wheel with the positional deviation corrected to process the outer peripheral edge of the brittle plate.

[0012] As another example of the brittle plate processing device of the present invention having the first characteristic, the laser measurement means measures the processing surface of the processing wheel by irradiating the processing surface of the processing wheel with a laser, and at least one of the processing wheel and the laser measurement means moves from one side to the other in the axial direction of the processing wheel, The control unit calculates the amount of positional deviation in the axial direction of the processing wheel based on the position at which the distance from the laser measuring means to the processing surface of the processing wheel in the first direction measured by the laser measuring means is maximum and a predetermined processing reference position, corrects the positional deviation in the axial direction of the processing wheel based on the amount of positional deviation in the axial direction of the processing wheel, and causes the processing wheel with the positional deviation corrected to process the outer peripheral edge of the brittle plate.

[0013] As another example of the brittle plate processing device of the present invention having the first feature, the laser measurement means measures the processing surface of the processing wheel by irradiating a laser to a predetermined area or the entire area of ​​the processing surface in the axial direction of the processing wheel, The control unit calculates the amount of positional deviation in the axial direction of the processing wheel based on the position at which the distance from the laser measuring means to the processing surface of the processing wheel in the first direction measured by the laser measuring means is maximum and a predetermined processing reference position, corrects the positional deviation in the axial direction of the processing wheel based on the amount of positional deviation in the axial direction of the processing wheel, and causes the processing wheel with the positional deviation corrected to process the outer peripheral edge of the brittle plate.

[0014] A second feature of the present invention for solving the above problem is a method for processing a brittle plate using a processing device for a brittle plate, the method including: a table for holding a brittle plate; a processing head having a processing wheel for processing an outer peripheral edge of the brittle plate held on the table; a measuring unit for measuring an amount of positional deviation in an axial direction of the processing wheel relative to the brittle plate; and a control unit for correcting a positional deviation in the axial direction of the processing wheel based on the amount of positional deviation in the axial direction of the processing wheel measured by the measuring unit, and causing the processing wheel whose positional deviation has been corrected to process the outer peripheral edge of the brittle plate, The processing method of the brittle plate is as follows: a measuring step of measuring an amount of positional deviation of the processing wheel relative to the brittle plate in an axial direction; a correction step of correcting a positional deviation in an axial direction of the processing wheel based on the amount of positional deviation measured in the measurement step; and a processing step of processing the outer peripheral edge of the brittle plate with the processing wheel in which the positional deviation has been corrected after the correction step.

[0015] A third feature of the present invention for solving the above-mentioned problems is a method for processing a brittle plate using a brittle plate processing device including a table for holding a brittle plate, a processing head having a processing wheel for processing an outer peripheral edge of the brittle plate held on the table, a measurement unit for measuring an amount of positional deviation of the processing wheel in an axial direction relative to the brittle plate, and a control unit for correcting a positional deviation of the processing wheel in the axial direction based on the amount of positional deviation in the axial direction of the processing wheel measured by the measurement unit and causing the processing wheel whose positional deviation has been corrected to process the outer peripheral edge of the brittle plate, the measurement unit including an attachment plate, a movable stage provided so as to be movable relative to the attachment plate in a first direction perpendicular to the axial direction of the processing wheel, a moving means for moving the movable stage in the first direction, and a rotating means provided on the movable stage and having a shaft member with a tip portion, The processing method of the brittle plate is as follows: an alignment step of aligning the shaft member to a predetermined position; a first measuring step of rotating the shaft member in a first direction about its axis to bring the tip portion into contact with the processing surface of the processing wheel and measuring a first position on the processing surface of the processing wheel where the tip portion comes into contact; a second measuring step of rotating the shaft member in a second rotational direction opposite to the first rotational direction to bring the tip portion into contact with the processing surface of the processing wheel, and measuring a second position on the processing surface of the processing wheel where the tip portion comes into contact; a calculation process of calculating a first distance in the axial direction of the processing wheel from a predetermined processing reference position to the first position, calculating a second distance in the axial direction of the processing wheel from the predetermined processing reference position to the second position, and calculating a positional deviation amount in the axial direction of the processing wheel based on the first distance and the second distance; a correction step of correcting the axial positional deviation of the processing wheel based on an amount of the axial positional deviation of the processing wheel; and a processing step of causing the processing wheel, the positional deviation of which has been corrected after the correction step, to process the outer peripheral edge of the brittle plate.

[0016] As an example of the brittle plate processing apparatus of the present invention having the third feature, a brittle plate processing method includes repeating the first measurement step, the second measurement step, the calculation step, and the correction step multiple times, and having a processing wheel whose position deviation has been corrected multiple times process the outer peripheral edge of the brittle plate.

[0017] A fourth feature of the present invention for solving the above-mentioned problems is a method for processing a brittle plate using a brittle plate processing device including a table for holding a brittle plate, a processing head having a processing wheel for processing an outer peripheral edge of the brittle plate held on the table, a measurement unit for measuring an amount of positional deviation of the processing wheel in an axial direction relative to the brittle plate, and a control unit for correcting a positional deviation in the axial direction of the processing wheel based on the amount of positional deviation in the axial direction of the processing wheel measured by the measurement unit and causing the processing wheel whose positional deviation has been corrected to process the outer peripheral edge of the brittle plate, the measurement unit including an attachment plate, a movable stage provided so as to be movable relatively to the attachment plate in a first direction perpendicular to the axial direction of the processing wheel, a moving means for moving the movable stage in the first direction, and a laser measurement means provided on the movable stage and for measuring the processing surface by irradiating a laser on the processing surface of the processing wheel, The processing method of the brittle plate is as follows: an alignment step of aligning the laser measurement means to a predetermined position; a measuring step of measuring the machining surface of the machining wheel by irradiating the machining surface of the machining wheel with a laser beam from a laser measuring means; a calculation step of calculating a positional deviation amount in an axial direction of the processing wheel based on a measurement value obtained by a laser measurement means; a correction step of correcting a positional deviation of the processing wheel in an axial direction based on an amount of positional deviation of the processing wheel in an axial direction; and a processing step of causing the processing wheel, the positional deviation of which has been corrected after the correction step, to process the outer peripheral edge of the brittle plate.

[0018] As an example of the brittle plate processing apparatus of the present invention having the fourth feature, the measurement step includes measuring the processing surface of the processing wheel by moving at least one of the processing wheel and the laser measurement means from one side to the other in the axial direction of the processing wheel while the laser measurement means irradiates the processing surface of the processing wheel with a laser, The calculation step calculates the amount of positional deviation in the axial direction of the processing wheel based on the position at which the distance from the laser measuring means to the processing surface of the processing wheel in the first direction measured by the laser measuring means is maximum and a predetermined processing reference position.

[0019] As another example of the brittle plate processing apparatus of the present invention having the fourth feature, the measurement step includes measuring the processing surface of the processing wheel by irradiating a laser to a predetermined area or the entire area of ​​the processing surface in the axial direction of the processing wheel with the laser measurement means, The calculation step calculates the amount of positional deviation in the axial direction of the processing wheel based on the position at which the distance from the laser measuring means to the processing surface of the processing wheel in the first direction measured by the laser measuring means is maximum and a predetermined processing reference position. Effect of the Invention

[0020] According to the brittle plate processing apparatus having the first characteristic, the measuring unit measures the amount of positional deviation of the processing wheel in the axial direction relative to the brittle plate, and the control unit corrects the positional deviation of the processing wheel in the axial direction based on the amount of positional deviation of the processing wheel in the axial direction measured by the measuring unit, and causes the processing wheel with the positional deviation corrected to process the outer edge of the brittle plate.This makes it possible to reduce the effort and time required for manually aligning the processing wheel with respect to the brittle plate after replacing the processing wheel without repeatedly testing the manual alignment of the brittle plate with the processing wheel groove, and overall provides a brittle plate processing apparatus that is highly efficient in processing brittle plates.

[0021] According to one brittle plate processing apparatus having a first characteristic, the control unit calculates a first distance in the axial direction of the processing wheel from a predetermined processing reference position to the first position, calculates a second distance in the axial direction of the processing wheel from the predetermined processing reference position to the second position, calculates an amount of positional deviation in the axial direction of the processing wheel based on the first distance and the second distance, corrects the axial deviation of the processing wheel based on the amount of positional deviation in the axial direction of the processing wheel, and processes the outer peripheral edge of the brittle plate with the processing wheel whose positional deviation has been corrected. Therefore, it is possible to reduce the effort and time required for manually aligning the processing wheel with respect to the brittle plate after replacing the processing wheel without repeatedly testing the manual alignment of the brittle plate with the processing wheel groove, and it is possible to provide a brittle plate processing apparatus that is highly efficient in processing brittle plates overall.

[0022] According to another brittle plate processing apparatus having the first feature, by alternately repeating the measurement of the first position and the second position by the measuring unit and the correction of the positional deviation of the processing wheel in the axial direction by the control unit multiple times, the positional deviation of the processing wheel is automatically corrected with even greater accuracy, and the processing wheel in which the positional deviation of the processing wheel has been corrected is used to process the outer edge of the brittle plate. This reduces the effort and time required to manually align the processing wheel with respect to the brittle plate after replacing the processing wheel, and overall provides a brittle plate processing apparatus that is highly efficient in processing brittle plates.

[0023] According to another brittle plate processing device having the first feature, the rotating means is a servo motor that controls torque, so that the rotation (angle) of the rotating means can be controlled and reliably stopped at the position where the tip of the shaft member contacts the processing surface, thereby making it possible to more accurately measure the amount of positional deviation of the processing wheel and accurately correct the positional deviation of the processing wheel.

[0024] According to another brittle plate processing apparatus having the first feature, the control unit calculates the amount of positional deviation of the processing wheel from a predetermined processing reference position in the axial direction based on the measurement value measured by the laser measurement means, corrects the positional deviation of the processing wheel in the axial direction based on the amount of positional deviation from the predetermined processing reference position in the axial direction of the processing wheel, and causes the processing wheel with the positional deviation corrected to process the outer edge of the brittle plate.This makes it possible to reduce the effort and time required for manually aligning the processing wheel with respect to the brittle plate after replacing the processing wheel without repeatedly testing the manual alignment of the brittle plate with the processing wheel groove, and overall provides a brittle plate processing apparatus that is highly efficient in processing brittle plates.

[0025] According to another brittle plate processing device having the first characteristic, the laser measurement means irradiates the processing surface of the processing wheel with a laser, and at least one of the processing wheel and the laser measurement means moves from one side to the other in the axial direction of the processing wheel to measure the processing surface of the processing wheel, and the control unit calculates the amount of positional deviation of the processing wheel in the axial direction based on the position at which the distance from the laser measurement means to the processing surface of the processing wheel in the first direction measured by the laser measurement means is maximum and a predetermined processing reference position, corrects the positional deviation of the processing wheel in the axial direction based on the amount of positional deviation of the processing wheel in the axial direction, and causes the processing wheel with the positional deviation corrected to process the outer peripheral edge of the brittle plate. Therefore, it is possible to reduce the effort and time required for manually aligning the processing wheel with respect to the brittle plate after replacing the processing wheel, without repeatedly testing the manual alignment of the brittle plate and the processing wheel groove, and it is possible to provide a brittle plate processing device that is highly efficient in processing brittle plates overall.

[0026] According to another brittle plate processing device having the first feature, the laser measurement means measures the processing surface of the processing wheel by irradiating a laser onto a predetermined area or the entire area of ​​the processing surface in the axial direction of the processing wheel, and the control unit calculates the amount of positional deviation of the processing wheel in the axial direction based on the position at which the distance from the laser measurement means to the processing surface of the processing wheel in the first direction measured by the laser measurement means is maximum and a predetermined processing reference position, corrects the positional deviation of the processing wheel in the axial direction based on the amount of positional deviation in the axial direction of the processing wheel, and causes the processing wheel with the positional deviation corrected to process the outer peripheral edge of the brittle plate. Therefore, it is possible to reduce the effort and time required for manually aligning the processing wheel with respect to the brittle plate after replacing the processing wheel without repeatedly testing the manual alignment of the brittle plate with the processing wheel groove, and it is possible to provide a brittle plate processing device that is highly efficient in processing brittle plates overall.

[0027] According to the second feature of the brittle plate processing method, the brittle plate processing method includes a measurement step of measuring the amount of positional deviation of the processing wheel in the axial direction relative to the brittle plate, a correction step of correcting the axial deviation of the processing wheel based on the amount of positional deviation measured in the measurement step, and a processing step of using the processing wheel in which the positional deviation has been corrected after the correction step to process the outer edge of the brittle plate.This makes it possible to reduce the effort and time required for manually aligning the processing wheel with the brittle plate after replacing the processing wheel without repeatedly testing the manual alignment of the brittle plate with the processing wheel groove, and therefore provides a brittle plate processing method that is highly efficient overall in processing the brittle plate.

[0028] According to a third feature of the brittle plate processing method, the brittle plate processing method includes an alignment step of aligning the shaft member to a predetermined position, a first measurement step of rotating the shaft member in a first rotational direction about its axis to bring the tip portion into contact with the processing surface of the processing wheel, and measuring a first position on the processing surface of the processing wheel where the tip portion comes into contact, a second measurement step of rotating the shaft member in a second rotational direction that is opposite to the first rotational direction to bring the tip portion into contact with the processing surface of the processing wheel, and measuring a second position on the processing surface of the processing wheel where the tip portion comes into contact, and a second measurement step of calculating a first distance in an axial direction of the processing wheel from a predetermined processing reference position to the first position, The method includes a calculation step of calculating a second distance in the axial direction of the processing wheel from the first position to the second position, and calculating an amount of positional deviation in the axial direction of the processing wheel based on the first distance and the second distance; a correction step of correcting the positional deviation in the axial direction of the processing wheel based on the amount of positional deviation in the axial direction of the processing wheel; and a processing step of having the processing wheel, the positional deviation of which has been corrected after the correction step, process the outer peripheral edge of the brittle plate.This makes it possible to reduce the effort and time required for manually aligning the processing wheel with respect to the brittle plate after replacing the processing wheel without repeatedly testing the manual alignment of the brittle plate with the processing wheel groove, and provides a method for processing a brittle plate that is highly efficient overall.

[0029] According to a brittle plate processing method having a third feature, the brittle plate processing method repeats the first measurement step, the second measurement step, the calculation step, and the correction step multiple times, thereby automatically correcting the positional misalignment of the processing wheel with greater accuracy, and the processing wheel whose positional misalignment has been corrected multiple times is used to process the outer edge of the brittle plate. This reduces the effort and time required for manually aligning the processing wheel with respect to the brittle plate after replacing the processing wheel, and overall provides a brittle plate processing method that is highly efficient in processing brittle plate.

[0030] According to the fourth feature of the brittle plate processing method, the brittle plate processing method includes an alignment step of aligning the laser measurement means to a predetermined position, a measurement step of measuring the processing surface of the processing wheel by irradiating the laser light of the laser measurement means onto the processing surface of the processing wheel, a calculation step of calculating the amount of positional deviation in the axial direction of the processing wheel based on the measurement value measured by the laser measurement means, a correction step of correcting the positional deviation in the axial direction of the processing wheel based on the amount of positional deviation in the axial direction of the processing wheel, and a processing step of having the processing wheel, the positional deviation of which has been corrected after the correction step, process the outer periphery of the brittle plate. Therefore, it is possible to reduce the effort and time required for manually aligning the processing wheel with respect to the brittle plate after replacing the processing wheel without repeatedly testing the manual alignment of the brittle plate with the processing wheel groove, and it is possible to provide a brittle plate processing method that is highly efficient in processing the brittle plate overall.

[0031] According to a fourth feature of the method for processing a brittle plate, the measurement step includes measuring the processing surface of the processing wheel by moving at least one of the processing wheel and the laser measurement means from one side to the other in the axial direction of the processing wheel while the laser measurement means irradiates the processing surface of the processing wheel with a laser. The calculation step calculates the amount of positional deviation in the axial direction of the processing wheel based on the position at which the distance from the laser measurement means to the processing surface of the processing wheel in the first direction measured by the laser measurement means is maximum and a predetermined processing reference position. Therefore, it is possible to reduce the effort and time required for manually aligning the processing wheel with the brittle plate after replacing the processing wheel without repeatedly testing the manual alignment of the brittle plate with the processing wheel groove, and it is possible to provide a brittle plate processing method that, overall, processes brittle plate with high efficiency.

[0032] According to another method for processing a brittle plate having a fourth feature, the measurement step includes measuring the processing surface of the processing wheel by irradiating a laser to a predetermined area or the entire area of ​​the processing surface in the axial direction of the processing wheel with the laser measurement means, The calculation step calculates the amount of positional deviation in the axial direction of the processing wheel based on the position at which the distance from the laser measurement means to the processing surface of the processing wheel in the first direction measured by the laser measurement means is maximum and a predetermined processing reference position. Therefore, it is possible to reduce the effort and time required for manually aligning the processing wheel with the brittle plate after replacing the processing wheel without repeatedly testing the manual alignment of the brittle plate with the processing wheel groove, and it is possible to provide a brittle plate processing method that, overall, processes brittle plate with high efficiency. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0033] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a front view of an example of a brittle plate processing device. [Diagram 2] FIG. 2 is a plan view of the brittle plate processing apparatus shown in FIG. 1 with some parts omitted. [Diagram 3] FIG. 3 is a left side view of the brittle plate processing apparatus shown in FIG. 1 with some parts omitted. [Figure 4] FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram of the processing head of the brittle plate processing apparatus shown in FIG. [Diagram 5] FIG. 5 is a flow chart showing a method for processing a brittle plate using the brittle plate processing apparatus shown in FIG. [Figure 6] FIG. 6 is an explanatory diagram of the operation of the measuring unit of the brittle plate processing apparatus shown in FIG. [Figure 7] FIG. 7 is an explanatory view of the operation of the shaft member of the brittle plate processing apparatus shown in FIG. [Figure 8] FIG. 8 is an explanatory diagram of a measuring operation of a shaft member of the brittle plate processing apparatus shown in FIG. [Figure 9] FIG. 9 is a front view of another example of a brittle plate processing apparatus. [Figure 10] FIG. 10 is a flow chart showing a method for processing a brittle plate using the brittle plate processing apparatus shown in FIG. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0034] Hereinafter, the embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. In each drawing, the same or corresponding components are denoted by the same or corresponding reference numerals, and the description thereof will be omitted. Note that the present invention is not limited to these embodiments.

[0035] The details of the brittle plate processing apparatus according to the present invention will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings such as Fig. 1, which is a front view of the brittle plate processing apparatus 1 shown as an example. Fig. 2 is a partially omitted plan view of the brittle plate processing apparatus 1, Fig. 3 is a partially omitted left side view of the brittle plate processing apparatus 1, Fig. 4 is an explanatory view of the processing head 7 of the brittle plate processing apparatus 1, and Fig. 5 is a flow chart showing a brittle plate processing method using the brittle plate processing apparatus 1. Fig. 6 is an explanatory diagram of the operation of the measuring section 8 of the brittle plate processing apparatus 1, Fig. 7 is an explanatory diagram of the operation of the shaft member 97 of the brittle plate processing apparatus 1, and Fig. 8 is an explanatory diagram of the measurement operation of the shaft member 97 of the brittle plate processing apparatus 1. In Fig. 1, the upstream side of the brittle plate processing apparatus 1, for example, the brittle plate loading section, scribing section, and folding section are omitted, in Fig. 2, the horizontal support frame 13 of the base 3 and the processing head 7 are omitted, and in Fig. 3, the table 4 and the processing head 7 are omitted. In Fig. 1, the transport direction of the brittle plate 2 is indicated as the X-axis direction, the up-down direction is indicated as the Z-axis direction, and the direction perpendicular to the X-axis direction and the Z-axis direction is indicated as the Y-axis direction.

[0036] 1 to 3, an example of a brittle plate processing device 1 is provided with a base 3, a table 4 that is provided on the base 3 and holds a rectangular flat brittle plate 2 having a predetermined area defined by the XY plane from below, a processing head 7 having a processing wheel 6 that processes the outer edge 5 of the brittle plate 2 held on the table 4, a measurement unit 8 that measures a positional deviation Δ in the Z-axis direction, which is the axial direction of the processing wheel 6 relative to the brittle plate 2 and perpendicular to the XY plane, and a control unit 9 that corrects the positional deviation of the processing wheel 6 in the Z-axis direction based on the positional deviation Δ of the processing wheel 6 in the Z-axis direction measured by the measurement unit 8, and causes the processing wheel 6 with the positional deviation corrected to process the outer edge 5 of the brittle plate 2.

[0037] In this example, the brittle plate 2 may be, for example, a plate having brittleness for use in automobiles, liquid crystal panels such as liquid crystal televisions, solar cells, furniture, and construction, and there are many different types of brittle plate 2, and the brittle plate 2 may be a glass plate, a silicon carbide plate, a silicon substrate, etc.

[0038] In this example, the brittle plate 2 is a rectangular flat plate, but instead, the brittle plate 2 may be any shape such as an ellipse, a circle, a polygon, a square, a rectangle, etc., and the brittle plate 2 may have any shape as long as it has a specified area and a specified thickness.

[0039] The base 3 comprises a main body 11 placed on the ground 10, a pair of gate-shaped frames 12 erected on both ends of the upper surface of the main body 11 in the X-axis direction, which is the transport direction of the brittle plate 2, and a lateral support frame 13 mounted on the pair of gate-shaped frames 12 and extending in the X-axis direction.

[0040] A table 4 is provided on the upper surface of the main body 11, a measuring unit 8 is provided on one gate-shaped frame 12A of a pair of gate-shaped frames 12, and a processing head 7 is provided on the lateral support frame 13.

[0041] The table 4 includes a plurality of suction cups 21 which are suction-held from the underside of the brittle plate 2, a suction cup base 22 on which the plurality of suction cups 21 are placed, a Y-axis moving means 23 which guides and moves the suction cup base 22 in the Y-axis direction perpendicular to the X-axis direction, and a Cablebear (registered trademark) 24 which is electrically connected to the Y-axis moving means 23.

[0042] In this example, the brittle plate 2 is supported by a plurality of suction cups 21, but alternatively, the brittle plate 2 may be supported by a single suction cup 21.

[0043] The Y-axis moving means 23 includes two guide rails 25 extending in the Y-axis direction and laid parallel to each other in the Y-axis direction, a slide block 26 mounted on each of the guide rails 25 so as to be freely movable in the Y-axis direction and attached to the underside of the suction cup base 22, a feed screw 27 screwed into a nut (not shown) fixed to the underside of the suction cup base 22 and provided between the pair of guide rails 25, and a Y-axis control motor (not shown) that rotates the feed screw 27.

[0044] The suction cup base 22 moves in the Y-axis direction as the feed screw 27 is rotated by the operation of the Y-axis control motor.

[0045] The processing head 7 will be described in detail with reference to Fig. 4(a) to Fig. 4(c). Fig. 4(a) is a partially omitted front view of the processing head 7, Fig. 4(b) is a partially omitted side view of the processing head 7, and Fig. 4(c) is a partially omitted plan view of the processing head 7.

[0046] The processing head 7 is equipped with a pencil edge type processing wheel 6 for processing the outer peripheral edge 5 of the brittle plate 2, a rotating means 31 to which the processing wheel 6 is attached at its lower end in the Z-axis direction and which has an output rotating shaft for rotating the processing wheel 6 around the axis C1, a cutting amount adjustment means 32 for adjusting the cutting amount of the processing wheel 6 into the brittle plate 2, an X-axis moving means 33 for moving the processing wheel 6 in the X-axis direction, a Z-axis moving means 34 for moving the processing wheel 6 in the Z-axis direction, a rotating means 36 having a pivot 35 for rotating the processing wheel 6 around the axis C2, and a base 39 attached to a pivot holder 38 at the lower end 37 of the pivot 35 of the rotating means 36.

[0047] The processing wheel 6 includes a disk-shaped main body 41 and a processing surface 42 containing diamond abrasive grains or the like. The processing wheel 6 grinds or polishes, or grinds and polishes (hereinafter referred to as processing) the brittle plate 2 with the processing surface 42.

[0048] The processing head 7 and the brittle plate 2 are numerically controlled by the control unit 9 to move in the XY plane coordinate system, and the processing wheel 6 moves around the outer periphery of the brittle plate 2 while being angle-controlled so that it always faces normal to the outer peripheral edge 5 of the brittle plate 2, and processes the outer peripheral edge 5 of the brittle plate 2.

[0049] The rotation means 31 is a spindle motor having an output rotation shaft 46 to which the machining wheel 6 is attached at its lower end 45 in the Z-axis direction, and by driving the spindle motor, the machining wheel 6 is rotated in the R1 direction around the axis of the rotation axis C1 of the output rotation shaft 46, centered on the rotation axis C1.

[0050] The cutting amount adjustment means 32 comprises two cutting slides 51 attached to the base 39, extending in the X-axis direction and laid parallel to each other, an X-axis direction slide table 52 attached to each of the cutting slides 51 so as to be freely movable relative to each other in the X-axis direction, a feed screw 54 screwed into a nut 53 fixed to the X-axis direction slide table 52, a cutting gear 55 attached to the feed screw 54, and a cutting servo motor 58 having a cutting gear 56 that meshes with the cutting gear 55 and attached to the base 39 via a bracket 57 for adjusting the cutting amount.

[0051] The control unit 9 activates the cutting servo motor 58 to rotate the feed screw 54 via the cutting gears 55 and 56, and moves the X-axis direction slide table 52 in the X-axis direction to adjust the cutting amount of the processing wheel 6 into the brittle plate 2.

[0052] The cutting wheel 6 is adapted so that its peripheral end surface (cutting surface 42) coincides with the rotation axis C2 of the pivot shaft 35 by adjustment of the cutting depth adjustment means 32.

[0053] The X-axis moving means 33 comprises an X-axis moving table 61 on which the machining head 7 is attached, a pair of guide rails 63 extending parallel to the X-axis direction and attached to the side surface 62 of the horizontal support frame 13, a slider (not shown) slidably fitted into the pair of guide rails 63 and fixed to the back surface of the X-axis moving table 61, a nut (not shown) attached to the X-axis moving table 61, a feed screw 64 provided between the pair of guide rails 63 and with the nut screwed into it, and an X-axis servo motor 67 having an output rotating shaft 66 to which the feed screw 64 is connected via a bearing 65.

[0054] The machining head 7 is moved linearly in the X-axis direction together with the X-axis moving table 61 by the X-axis moving means 33. The linear movement of the X-axis moving table 61 in the X-axis direction is achieved by driving the X-axis servo motor 67 to rotate the feed screw 64 via a bearing 65, thereby moving the X-axis moving table 61 in the X-axis direction.

[0055] The Z-axis moving means 34 includes two guide rails 71 attached to the X-axis slide table 52, extending in the Z-axis direction and laid parallel to each other, a Z-axis slide table 72 movably attached to each of the guide rails 71 and attached so as to be movable relative to the X-axis slide table 52 in the Z-axis direction, a feed screw 74 screwed into a nut 73 fixed to the X-axis slide table 52, a gear box 75 connected to the feed screw 74, and a Z-axis servo motor 77 having an output rotating shaft 76 connected to the gear box 75, which adjusts the position in the Z-axis direction of the machining wheel 6.

[0056] The control unit 9 actuates the Z-axis servo motor 77 to rotate the feed screw 74, move the Z-axis slide base 72 in the Z-axis direction, and move the processing wheel 6 in the Z-axis direction.

[0057] The Z-axis moving means 34 is adjusted to correct the positional deviation of the processing wheel 6 in the axial direction.

[0058] The rotating means 36 includes a rotating servo motor 81 that rotates the machining head 7 around the axis C2, a gear box 82 connected to the output rotating shaft of the rotating servo motor 81, a rotating shaft 35 having a rotating gear 84 meshed with the rotating gear 83 of the gear box 82, and a bearing case 85 that holds the rotating shaft 35 rotatably.

[0059] The rotating means 36 is attached to an X-axis moving stage 61 that moves along the X-axis, and the rotating shaft 35 is assembled so that its axis C 2 is perpendicular to the XY plane coordinate system, that is, perpendicular to the upper surface of the brittle plate 2 .

[0060] The machining head 7 is attached to the pivot shaft 35 of the pivot means 36 via a base 39, and rotates horizontally integrally with the pivot shaft 35 around the axis C2 of the pivot shaft 35 while the angle is controlled in the direction R2 around the axis C2.

[0061] The measurement unit 8 includes a mounting plate 91 attached to a side of one of the frames 12A of the pair of frames 12, a Z-axis moving stage 92 attached to the mounting plate 91 so as to be freely movable in the Z-axis direction, a Z-axis moving means 93 for moving the Z-axis moving stage 92 in the Z direction, an X-axis moving stage 94 attached to the mounting plate 91 so as to be freely movable in the X-axis direction, an X-axis moving means 95 for moving the X-axis moving stage 94 in the X-axis direction which is a first direction perpendicular to the axis C1 of the machining wheel 6, a rotating means 98 provided on the X-axis moving stage 94 and having an axis member 97 with a tip portion 96, and a position measurement sensor 99 for measuring the position of the machining surface 44 of the machining wheel 6.

[0062] The Z-axis movable stage 92 comprises a base 101, a plate 104 attached to the base 101 and having a flange portion 103 extending in the Y-axis direction from one end 102 in the Z-axis direction, and a plate portion 107 having a groove 106 into which a tip portion 105 of the flange portion 103 in the Y-axis direction fits.

[0063] In this example, the plate 104 has a flange portion 103 integrally formed at one end 102 in the Z-axis direction.

[0064] The Z-axis movement means 93 comprises a single guide rail (not shown) extending in the Z-axis direction and laid parallel to each other, a slide block (not shown) mounted on each guide rail (not shown) so as to be freely movable in the Z-axis direction and attached to the Z-axis movement table 92, a feed screw (not shown) screwed into a nut (not shown) fixed to the underside of the Z-axis movement table 92, and a Z-axis control motor 108 which rotates the feed screw.

[0065] The X-axis moving platform 94 is formed from a plate portion 111 having a predetermined area extending in the X-axis direction, and a cable bear attachment plate 113 for attaching a cable bear 112 is attached to the plate portion 111.

[0066] X-axis moving means 95 comprises a rodless air cylinder 123 having a slider 121 attached to one surface 109 of plate portion 107 in the Y-axis direction and movable in the X-axis direction, a rodless air cylinder connection plate 124 connected to slider 121 and to plate portion 111, a guide rail 125 extending in the X-axis direction laid on the other surface 110 of plate portion 107 in the Y-axis direction, and a guide block 126 mounted on guide rail 125 so as to be movable in the X-axis direction and attached to one surface 115 of plate portion 111 in the Y-axis direction.

[0067] The X-axis moving means 95 moves the plate portion 111 in the X-axis direction by driving the rodless air cylinder 123 via a rodless air cylinder connection plate 124 connected to the slider 121 .

[0068] The rotation means 98 includes a servo motor 133 for controlling torque having an output rotating shaft 132, which is attached to the other surface 116 of the plate portion 111 in the Y-axis direction via a bracket 131, a shaft member 97 having a tip portion 96, a coupling 134 for connecting the output rotating shaft 132 and the shaft member 97, and a bearing case 135 for supporting the shaft member 97 so as to be freely rotatable, which is attached to the other surface 116 of the plate portion 111 in the Y-axis direction.

[0069] In this example, the axis of the shaft member 97 and the axis of the output rotation shaft 132 of the servo motor 133 are arranged coaxially on the axis C3.

[0070] The rotating means 98 rotates the shaft member 97 around the axis C3 in the R3 direction via the coupling 134 by being driven by the servo motor 133.

[0071] The shaft member 97 comprises a shaft body 141 extending in the X-axis direction, a notch portion 143 provided at one end 142 of the shaft body 141 in the X-axis direction, a tip portion 96 inserted into and clamped in the notch portion 143, and a fixing means 144 for fixing the tip portion 96 to the shaft body 141.

[0072] The tip portion 96 is formed from a hard material and comprises a rectangular tip portion body 152 having a through hole 151, and a tip portion cutout portion 154 formed at an end portion 153 of the tip portion body 152 in the direction of the axis C3.

[0073] The tip portion 96 may be made of any hard material, and in this example, the tip portion 96 is made of a hard stainless steel material.

[0074] The fixing means 144 is formed of a screw body 161 having a male thread portion (not shown) formed on its outer peripheral surface, and a head portion 162 provided at one end of the screw body 161. The through hole 151 of the shaft member 97 has a female thread portion (not shown) formed on its inner peripheral surface that defines the through hole 151. The fixing means 144 fixes the tip portion 96 to the shaft member 97 by having the screw body 161 pass through the through hole 151 and the male thread portion screw into the female thread portion of the through hole.

[0075] The position measurement sensor 99 includes a contact sensor 172 attached to the other surface 116 in the Y-axis direction of the plate portion 111 via a bracket 171, and a stopper 174 attached to the other surface 116 in the Y-axis direction of the plate portion 111 via a bracket 171 and in contact with one side surface 173 in the Y-axis direction of the flange portion 103.

[0076] In the X1 direction, which is one direction in the X-axis direction caused by the rodless air cylinder 123, the contact sensor 172 first comes into contact with the side surface 173 of the flange portion 103, and then, as the X-axis moving table 94 moves further in the X1 direction, the stopper 174 comes into contact with the side surface 173 of the flange portion 103, and the movement in the X1 direction is stopped.

[0077] X-axis moving stage 94 is biased in the X1 direction by elastic force due to air pressure from rodless air cylinder 123 with contact sensor 172 and stopper 174 in contact with side surface 173 of flange portion 103 .

[0078] The contact sensor 172 is connected to the control unit 9, and the control unit 9 moves the X-axis moving stage 94 in the X2 direction by moving the machining head 7 in the X2 direction. The control unit 9 stops the movement of the machining head 7 in the X1 direction when the movement of the X-axis moving stage 94 in the X2 direction reaches a movement amount preset in the contact sensor 172.

[0079] In this example, the contact sensor 172 is a contact type sensor, but instead of this, for example, it may be a digital dial gauge that detects displacement electrically or optically, a laser displacement sensor, or a non-contact sensor.

[0080] The distance by which the stopper 174 contacts the side surface 173 of the flange portion 103 can be adjusted by adjusting the amount by which the stopper 174 protrudes from the bracket 171 in the X1 direction.

[0081] The control unit 9 includes a processing means 181 such as a CPU (Central Processing Unit) and a memory means 182 such as a flash memory. For example, the control unit 9 may be a computer such as a microprocessor, or may be a virtual server constructed in a cloud or a physical computer installed in a machine room or the like. The control unit 9 may be configured by a single computer, may be configured by multiple computers that cooperate with each other, or may be configured by a cloud that is a collection of computer resources.

[0082] The control unit 9 is connected to the table 4, the processing head 7, the measuring unit 8, and the motors, rodless air cylinders, cable bears, etc., required for driving the brittle plate processing device 1, and controls these via pre-programmed numerical control commands. Such a control unit 9 is well known, so a detailed description thereof will be omitted.

[0083] The storage means 182 is a storage medium including a ROM (Read Only Memory), a RAM (Random Access Memory), a hard disk drive, etc. The storage means 182 stores in advance a program to be executed by the control unit 9. The storage means 182 may be provided outside the brittle plate processing apparatus 1, in which case data may be exchanged between the storage means 182 and the control unit 9 via a network.

[0084] In this example, the table 4, the processing head 7 and the measuring unit 8 are each independently numerically controlled, and the table 4, the processing head 7 and the measuring unit 8 may each be synchronously numerically controlled.

[0085] Next, a brittle plate processing method for processing a brittle plate 2 using the brittle plate processing apparatus 1 will be described with reference to Fig. 5 to Fig. 8. The following operations of the brittle plate processing apparatus 1 are controlled by a control unit 9. Fig. 5 is a flow chart showing a brittle plate processing method for processing a brittle plate 2 using the brittle plate processing apparatus 1 of this embodiment.

[0086] As shown in FIG. 5, the processing method for the brittle plate includes an alignment step S101 of aligning the shaft member 97 to a predetermined position, a first measurement step S102 of rotating the shaft member 97 in an R4 direction, which is a first rotation direction in the R3 direction around the axis C3, to bring the tip portion 96 into contact with the processing surface 42 of the processing wheel 6, and measuring a first position A on the processing surface 42 of the processing wheel 6 where the tip portion 96 has come into contact, and a third measurement step S102 of rotating the shaft member 97 in an R5 direction, which is a second rotation direction opposite to the R4 direction, which is the first rotation direction in the R3 direction around the axis C3, to bring the tip portion 96 into contact with the processing surface 42 of the processing wheel 6, and measuring a second position B on the processing surface 42 of the processing wheel 6 where the tip portion 96 has come into contact. The method includes a second measuring step S103, a calculation step S104 for calculating a first distance D3 in the Z-axis direction of the processing wheel 6 from a predetermined processing reference position B1 to a first position A, calculating a second distance D4 in the Z-axis direction of the processing wheel 6 from the predetermined processing reference position B1 to a second position B, and calculating a positional deviation amount Δ of the processing wheel 6 in the Z-axis direction relative to the brittle plate 2 based on the first distance D3 and the second distance D4, a correction step S105 for correcting the positional deviation of the processing wheel 6 in the Z-axis direction based on the positional deviation amount Δ of the processing wheel 6 in the Z-axis direction, and a processing step S106 for processing the outer peripheral edge 5 of the brittle plate 2 with the processing wheel 6 after the correction step.

[0087] First, in the positioning step S101, the brittle plate 2 to be processed is placed on the table 4, and the brittle plate 2 is supported by vacuum suction with the suction cups 21 of the table 4 to be positioned.

[0088] The Z-axis moving stage 92 is moved in the Z-axis direction by the Z-axis moving means 93, and the axis C3 of the shaft member 97 is aligned with a predetermined reference processing position B1. In this example, the predetermined reference processing position B1 is a position that divides the brittle plate 2 in half in the Z-axis direction (the thickness direction of the brittle plate 2).

[0089] As shown in Figures 6(a) and 6(b), by driving X-axis moving means 95, X-axis moving table 94 is moved in the X1 direction, shaft member 97 after being aligned with processing reference position B1 is moved in the X1 direction, contact sensor 172 is brought into contact with side surface 173 of flange portion 103, X-axis moving table 94 is moved further in the X1 direction, and stopper 174 is brought into contact with side surface 173 of flange portion 103, thereby stopping (limiting) the movement of X-axis moving table 94 in the X1 direction.

[0090] As shown in Figures 6(b) and 6(c), when the contact sensor 172 is in contact with the side surface 173 of the flange portion 103, the stopper 174 is in contact with the side surface 173 of the flange portion 103, and the movement of the X-axis moving table 94 in the X1 direction is stopped (restricted), the X-axis moving means 33 moves the machining wheel 6 in the X2 direction, and the machining surface 42 of the machining wheel 6 gradually approaches the shaft member 97.

[0091] The control unit 9 gradually moves the processing wheel 6 in the X2 direction, brings the processing surface 42 of the processing wheel 6 into contact with the end 153 of the tip body 152, and further moves the processing wheel 6 in the X2 direction with an opposing force in the X2 direction that is opposite to the air pressure of the rodless air cylinder 123 in the X1 direction.

[0092] The processing wheel 6 moves in the X2 direction with the end 153 of the tip body 152 in contact with the processing surface .

[0093] The control unit 9 stops the movement of the processing wheel 6 in the X2 direction when the horizontal distance D1 by which the contact sensor 172 is moved in the X2 direction from the side surface 173 of the flange portion 103 by the processing wheel 6 reaches a movement amount preset in the contact sensor 172.

[0094] At this time, the processing surface 42 of the processing wheel 6 and the end 153 of the tip body 152 maintain contact with each other. The horizontal distance D1 that the contact sensor 172 moves in the X2 direction is equal to the horizontal distance D2 that the processing wheel 6 moves in the X2 direction.

[0095] After the movement of the processing wheel 6 in the X2 direction is stopped, the processing wheel 6 is moved in the X1 direction based on a movement amount preset in the contact sensor 172 while maintaining the processing surface 42 of the processing wheel 6 in contact with the end 153 of the tip body 152.

[0096] In this way, the control unit 9 measures the position where the processing surface 42 contacts the end 153 of the tip body 152, and obtains position information.

[0097] The processing wheel 6 is further moved in the X1 direction so that the processing surface 42 of the processing wheel 6 and the end 153 of the tip portion body 152 face each other with a predetermined gap S1 therebetween.

[0098] 7, in this example, the predetermined gap S1 may be such that the end 153 of the tip body 152 does not come into contact with the processing surface 42 of the processing wheel 6, and preferably, the gap S1 may be about 0.1 mm to 0.5 mm, and more preferably, 0.3 mm. The gap S1 may be changed depending on the shape of the processing surface 42.

[0099] An end 153 of the tip body 152 is located within an annular space S2 defined by the outer contour of the processing wheel 6 in the radial direction and the processing surface 42.

[0100] Next, the measurement operation of the shaft member 97 will be described in detail with reference to Figures 8(a1) to (a3) ​​and 8(b1) to (b3). Figures 8(a1) to (a3) ​​are cross-sectional views of the shaft member 97 with some parts omitted, and Figures 8(b1) to (b3) are side views of the tip portion 96 with some parts omitted.

[0101] As a first measurement step S102, as shown in Figures 8(a1) and (a2) and Figures 8(b1) and (b2), the measurement unit 8 rotates the shaft member 97 in the R4 direction to bring the end 153 of the tip body 152 into contact with the machining surface 42 of the machining wheel 6, and measures the position coordinates of the first position A where the end 153 of the tip body 152 rotates in the R4 direction and comes into contact with the machining surface 42 of the machining wheel 6.

[0102] Next, as shown in FIGS. 8(a3) and 8(b3), as the second measurement step S103, the measurement unit 8 rotates the shaft member 97 in the R5 direction to bring the end portion 153 of the tip body 152 into contact with the machining surface 42 of the machining wheel 6, and measures the position coordinates of the second position B where the end portion 153 of the tip body 152 rotates in the R5 direction and contacts the machining surface 42 of the machining wheel 6.

[0103] Next, as the calculation step S104, the control unit 9 calculates a first distance D3 in the Z-axis direction of the machining wheel 6 from a predetermined machining reference position B1 to the first position A, and calculates a second distance D4 in the Z-axis direction of the machining wheel 6 from the predetermined machining reference position B1 to the second position B. For example, the first distance D3 is calculated from the angle θ1 formed by the tip body 152 and the machining reference position B1 and the length h1 of the tip body 152 in the Y-axis direction, and the second distance D4 is calculated from the angle θ2 formed by the tip body 152 and the machining reference position B1 and the length h1 of the tip body 152 in the Y-axis direction. Also, the angles θ1 and θ2 may be calculated from the servo motor 133.

[0104] Based on the first distance D3 and the second distance D4, a displacement amount Δ in the Z-axis direction of the machining wheel 6 with respect to the brittle plate 2 is calculated.

[0105] The calculation of the displacement amount Δ is performed by the arithmetic processing means 181. In the calculation by the arithmetic processing means 181, the displacement amount Δ (correction amount) is obtained, for example, when D3 < D4, by Δ (correction amount) = ((D3 + D4) / 2 - D3).

[0106] Next, as the correction step S105, the control unit 9 drives the Z-axis moving means 34 based on the displacement amount Δ in the arithmetic processing means 181, moves the machining wheel 6 in the Z2 direction (upward), which is the other direction in the Z-axis direction, and corrects the displacement in the Z-axis direction of the machining wheel 6 (the displacement from the predetermined machining reference position B1 of the brittle plate 2 to the position B2 that bisects the machining surface 42 of the machining wheel 6 in the Z-axis direction).

[0107] Next, in a machining step S106, the machining wheel 6 whose positional deviation has been corrected is caused to machine the outer peripheral edge 5 of the brittle plate 2.

[0108] According to the method for processing a brittle plate in this example, a shaft member 97 having a tip portion 96 of a rotating means 31 is inserted into the annular space S2 on the processing surface 42 of the processing wheel 6, and the shaft member 97 is rotated in the R4 direction and the R5 direction to measure the position coordinates (first position A and second position B) where the tip portion 96 comes into contact with the processing surface 42 of the processing wheel 6, respectively. Based on the position coordinates, the control unit 9 automatically calculates the positional deviation amount Δ of the processing wheel 6 in the Z-axis direction from the processing reference position B1, and the positional deviation of the processing wheel 6 in the Z-axis direction can be automatically corrected. Therefore, for example, manual alignment of the processing wheel 6, which is performed every time the processing wheel 6 is replaced, can be automated, and the effort and time required for manual alignment of the processing wheel 6 with respect to the brittle plate 2 after replacing the processing wheel 6 can be shortened, and the efficiency of processing of the brittle plate can be improved overall.

[0109] According to another example of this embodiment, the method for processing a brittle plate can make the positional deviation amount Δ of the processing wheel 6 in the Z-axis direction relative to the brittle plate 2 approach 0 as much as possible by repeating the first measurement step S102, the second measurement step S103, the calculation step S104, and the correction step S105 multiple times in order, thereby eliminating the positional deviation of the processing wheel 6 in the Z-axis direction, and bringing the processing surface 42 of the processing wheel 6 corrected multiple times into contact with the brittle plate 2 with high precision, thereby performing high-precision processing of the brittle plate 2. In another example of this embodiment, the method for processing a brittle plate can preferably repeat each step from the first measurement step S102 to the correction step S105 in order two to five times, and more preferably repeat the steps from the first measurement step S102 to the correction step S105 in order three times, thereby making it possible to make the positional deviation amount Δ of the processing wheel 6 in the Z-axis direction relative to the brittle plate 2 approach 0 as much as possible. Furthermore, in order to reduce the positional deviation of the machining wheel 6 relative to the brittle plate 2 in the Z-axis direction, the first measuring step S102, the second measuring step S103, the calculating step S104, and the correcting step S105 may be further repeated in this order.

[0110] According to another example of the present embodiment, in the processing method for a brittle plate, in the processing wheel 6 in which the positional deviation in the Z-axis direction after the correction step S105 has been corrected or in which the steps from the first measurement step S102 to the correction step S105 have been repeated multiple times in order to correct the positional deviation multiple times, the control unit 9 drives the X-axis moving means 95 to move the X-axis moving table 94 in the X1 direction, moves the shaft member 97 in the X1 direction after being aligned with the processing reference position B1, brings the contact sensor 172 and the stopper 174 into contact with the side surface 173 of the flange portion 103, and moves the X-axis moving table 94 in the X1 direction. In a state where the movement in the X1 direction of the X-axis moving table 94 is stopped (limited), the X-axis moving means 33 moves the processing wheel 6 in the X2 direction, gradually bringing the processing surface 42 of the processing wheel 6 closer to the shaft member 97 (moving it), bringing the processing surface 42 of the processing wheel 6 into contact with the end 153 of the tip body 152, and further moving the processing wheel 6 in the X2 direction with a counterforce in the X2 direction opposite to the air pressure in the X1 direction of the rodless air cylinder 123, and the sensor 172 is moved in the X2 direction from the side surface 175 of the flange portion 103. When the moved horizontal distance D1 reaches the movement amount preset in the contact sensor 172, the movement of the processing wheel 6 in the X2 direction is stopped, and after the movement of the processing wheel 6 in the X2 direction is stopped, the processing wheel 6 is moved in the X1 direction based on the movement amount preset in the contact sensor 172 while maintaining the state in which the processing surface 42 of the processing wheel 6 and the end 153 of the tip body 152 are in contact with each other. In this way, the control unit 9 measures the position where the processing surface 42 of the processing wheel 6, whose positional deviation in the Z axis direction has been corrected, comes into contact with the end 153 of the tip body 152, and outputs position information. and based on this position information and preset information in the control unit 9, such as the dimensions of the processing wheel 6, the shaft member 97, and the tip portion 96, the processing surface 42 of the processing wheel 6 can be brought into precise contact with the outer peripheral edge 5 of the brittle plate 2. Therefore, in the processing method for the brittle plate, precise incisions can be made into the brittle plate 2 by the processing wheel 6 whose positional deviation in the Z-axis direction has been corrected after the correction step S105, or the processing wheel 6 whose positional deviation has been corrected multiple times by repeating each of the steps from the first measurement step S102 to the correction step S105 multiple times in order.

[0111] The details of the brittle plate processing apparatus 200 according to the present invention will be described below with reference to the attached drawings such as Fig. 9 which is a front view of the brittle plate processing apparatus 200 shown as another example. Fig. 10 is a flow chart showing a brittle plate processing method of the brittle plate processing apparatus 200. The brittle plate processing apparatus 200 shown in Fig. 9 is different from that of Fig. 1 in that a laser measurement means 201 is used instead of the rotation means 98 and the position measurement sensor 99. Since the other configurations of the brittle plate processing apparatus 200 are the same as those of the brittle plate processing apparatus 1 of Fig. 1, the same reference numerals as those in Fig. 1 are used and the description of Fig. 1 is used to omit detailed description of the other configurations of the brittle plate processing apparatus 1.

[0112] The laser measuring means 201 is provided on the X-axis moving stage 94 and measures the processing surface 42 of the processing wheel 6 by irradiating the processing surface 42 with a laser.

[0113] The measurement range of laser measurement means 201 differs depending on the type of laser measurement means 201, but for example, the measurement range of the KEYENCE CL-3000 series mid-range type (CL-L070 / CL-P070) is 70mm±10mm, the measurement range of the LJ-G5000 series mid-range type (LJ-G080) is 80mm±23mm, and the measurement range of the LJ-G5000 series high precision (LJ-G030) is 80mm±23mm. Also, the type of laser measurement means 201 is not particularly limited to these, but may be appropriately selected and used depending on the application.

[0114] In addition, the laser measurement means 201 can perform a variety of measurements, such as height (peak height, bottom height, average height), width, position, step, angle, intersection, shape, cross-sectional area, and shape comparison, and can instantly measure a specified area or the entire area. In this example, it can measure the position at which the distance in the X-axis direction from the laser measurement means 201 to the processing surface 42 of the processing wheel 6 is maximum.

[0115] The control unit 9 calculates the position at which the distance in the X-axis direction from the laser measuring means 201 to the processing surface 42 of the processing wheel 6 is maximum based on the measurement values ​​obtained by the laser measuring means 201, calculates the amount of positional deviation Δ of the processing wheel 6 in the Z-axis direction based on the position at which the distance from the laser measuring means 201 to the processing surface 42 of the processing wheel 6 is maximum (the center B2 of the processing wheel 6 in the Z-axis direction) and the processing reference position B1, corrects the positional deviation of the processing wheel 6 in the Z-axis direction based on the amount of positional deviation Δ of the processing wheel 6 in the Z-axis direction, and causes the processing wheel 6 with the positional deviation corrected to process the outer peripheral edge 5 of the brittle plate 2.

[0116] Next, a brittle plate processing method for processing a brittle plate 2 by the brittle plate processing apparatus 200 of this embodiment will be described with reference to Fig. 10. The following operations of the brittle plate processing apparatus 200 are controlled by the control unit 9. Fig. 10 is also a flow chart showing a brittle plate processing method for processing a brittle plate 2 by using the brittle plate processing apparatus 200 of this embodiment.

[0117] As shown in FIG. 10, the processing method for a brittle plate includes an alignment process S201 for aligning a laser measurement means 201 to a predetermined position, a measurement process S202 for measuring the processing surface 42 of the processing wheel 6 by irradiating the processing surface 42 of the processing wheel 6 with laser light from the laser measurement means 201, a calculation process S203 for calculating a positional deviation amount Δ of the processing wheel 6 in the Z-axis direction based on the measurement value by the laser measurement means 201, a correction process S204 for correcting the positional deviation of the processing wheel 6 in the Z-axis center direction based on the positional deviation amount Δ of the processing wheel 6 in the Z-axis direction, and a processing process S205 for processing the outer peripheral edge 5 of the brittle plate 2 with the processing wheel 6 after the correction process.

[0118] First, in the positioning step S201, the brittle plate 2 to be processed is placed on the table 4, and the brittle plate 2 is supported by vacuum suction with the suction cups 21 of the table 4 to be positioned.

[0119] In order to position the machining surface 42 of the machining wheel 6 within a range where it can be measured by the laser measurement means 201, the Z-axis moving means 93 is driven to adjust the position of the Z-axis moving stage 92 in the Z-axis direction, and the X-axis moving means 95 is driven to move the X-axis moving stage 94 in the X1 direction, so that the laser measurement means 201 is brought close to the machining wheel 6 within the measurement range of the laser measurement means 201.

[0120] Next, in a measurement step S202, the laser measurement means 201 irradiates the processing surface 42 of the processing wheel 6 with laser light to measure the processing surface 42 of the processing wheel 6.

[0121] Next, in a calculation step S203, the control unit 9 calculates the positional deviation amount Δ of the processing wheel 6 in the Z-axis direction based on the measurement value measured by the laser measurement means 201.

[0122] The positional deviation amount Δ is calculated by the arithmetic processing means 181 .

[0123] Next, in a correction step S204, the control unit 9 drives the Z-axis moving means 34 based on the positional deviation amount Δ in the arithmetic processing means 181 to correct the positional deviation of the processing wheel 6 in the Z-axis direction.

[0124] Next, in the machining step S205, the machining wheel 6 whose Z position deviation has been corrected is caused to machine the outer peripheral edge 5 of the brittle plate 2.

[0125] According to this other example of the brittle plate processing method, the laser measurement means 201 can easily and automatically calculate the positional deviation amount Δ of the processing wheel 6 in the Z-axis direction, and the positional deviation of the processing wheel 6 in the Z-axis direction can be automatically corrected. Therefore, for example, manual alignment of the processing wheel 6, which is performed every time the processing wheel 6 is replaced, can be automated, and the effort and time required for manually aligning the processing wheel 6 with respect to the brittle plate 2 after replacing the processing wheel 6 can be reduced, and the overall efficiency of processing the brittle plate can be increased.

[0126] According to one example of this other example, in the measurement process S202, while the laser measurement means 201 irradiates the machining surface 42 of the machining wheel 6 with a laser, at least one of the machining wheel 6 and the laser measurement means 201 moves relatively from one side to the other in the Z-axis direction, thereby shortening the time required to measure the machining surface 42 of the machining wheel 6.Therefore, for example, manual alignment of the machining wheel 6 with respect to the brittle plate 2, which is performed every time the machining wheel 6 is replaced, can be automated, and the time required to align the machining wheel 6 with respect to the brittle plate 2 can be significantly shortened.

[0127] According to another example of this other example, in the measurement step S202, the laser measurement means 201 can measure the machining surface 42 of the machining wheel 6 by irradiating at least one predetermined area, multiple predetermined areas, or the entire area of ​​the machining surface 42 of the machining wheel 6 in the Z-axis direction with a laser, and the time required for measuring the machining surface 42 of the machining wheel 6 can be shortened, so that, for example, manual alignment of the machining wheel 6 performed every time the machining wheel 6 is replaced can be automated, and the time required for alignment of the machining wheel 6 can be significantly shortened. The predetermined area may be the irradiation width of the laser on the machining surface 42 of the machining wheel 6 in the Z-axis direction, and may be an area having one width or an area having multiple widths.

[0128] According to another example of this other example, the measurement process S202 can simultaneously measure the machining surface 42 of the machining wheel 6 by simultaneously irradiating a laser onto a predetermined area of ​​the machining surface 42 of the machining wheel 6 in the Z-axis direction, for example, any eight locations on the machining surface 42 of the machining wheel 6 in the Z-axis direction, and the measurement process S202 can simultaneously measure the machining surface 42 of the machining wheel 6 by simultaneously irradiating a laser onto the entire area of ​​the machining surface 42 of the machining wheel 6 in the Z-axis direction.

[0129] In the examples of the brittle plate processing apparatus 1 and the brittle plate processing apparatus 200, the measuring unit 8 is equipped with a Z-axis moving stage 92 that is freely attached to the mounting plate 91 in the Z-axis direction, and a Z-axis moving means 93 that moves the Z-axis moving stage 92 in the Z direction, so as to move in the Z-axis direction; however, instead, the measuring unit 8 may be attached immovably in the Z-axis direction while being aligned to the frame 12A in the Z-axis direction, without being equipped with the Z-axis moving stage 92 and the Z-axis moving means 93. [Explanation of symbols]

[0130] 1 Brittle plate processing equipment 2 Brittle plate 3. Foundation 4 Tables 5 Outer rim 6 Processing Wheel 7 Processing head 8 Measuring part 9. Control Unit 10 ground 11 Main unit 12 slots 12A frame 13 Horizontal support frame 21 Sucker 22 Suction cup stand 23 Y-axis movement means 24 Cablebear 25 Guide rail 26 Slide Block 27 Lead screw 31 Rotation means 32 Cutting depth adjustment means 33 X-axis movement means 34 Z-axis movement means 35 Swivel Axis 36 Rotation means 37 Lower end 38 Swivel holder 39 Foundation 41 Main unit 42 Machining surface 45 Bottom end 46 Output shaft 51 Notched Slide 52 X-axis direction slide table 53 Nut 54 Lead screw 55 Cutting gear 56 Cutting gear 57 Bracket 58 Cutting servo motor 61 X-axis moving table 62 Side 63 Guide Rail 64 Lead screw 65 Bearings 66 Output rotating shaft 67 X-axis servo motor 71 Guide rail 72 Z-axis direction slide table 73 Nut 74 Lead screw 75 Gearbox 76 Output shaft 77 Z-axis servo motor 81 Swivel servo motor 82 Gearbox 83 Rotating Gear 84 Rotating Gear 85 Bearing case 91 Mounting stand 92 Z-axis moving table 93 Z-axis movement means 94 X-axis moving table 95 X-axis movement means 96 Tip 97 Shaft member 98 Rotation means 99 Position Measurement Sensor 101 Foundation 102 one end 103 Flange part 104 Plate 105 Tip 106 Groove 107 Board part 108 Z-axis control motor 109 sides 110 sides 111 Board part 112 Cablebear 113 Cable carrier mounting plate 113 115 sides 116 sides 121 Slider 123 Rodless Air Cylinder 124 Rodless air cylinder connection plate 125 Guide rail 126 Guide block 131 Bracket 132 Output shaft 133 Servo motor 134 Coupling 135 Bearing case 141 Shaft body 142 End 143 Notch 144 Fixing means 151 Through hole 152 Tip body 153 End 154 Tip notch 161 Screw body 162 Head 171 Bracket 172 Contact Sensor 173 Side 174 Stopper 181 Processing means 182 Memory means 200 Brittle plate processing equipment 201 Laser measurement means

Claims

1. The apparatus includes a table for holding a brittle plate, a processing head having a processing wheel for processing the outer peripheral edge of the brittle plate held on the table, a measuring unit for measuring an amount of positional deviation in an axial direction of the processing wheel relative to the brittle plate, and a control unit for correcting a positional deviation in the axial direction of the processing wheel based on the amount of positional deviation in the axial direction of the processing wheel measured by the measuring unit, and for causing the processing wheel whose positional deviation has been corrected to process the outer peripheral edge of the brittle plate, the measuring unit includes a mounting plate, a movable stage that is movable relative to the mounting plate in a first direction perpendicular to the axis of the processing wheel, a moving means that moves the movable stage in the first direction, and a rotating means that is provided on the movable stage and has a shaft member with a tip portion; the measuring unit rotates the shaft member in a first rotational direction about its axis to bring the tip portion into contact with the processing surface of the processing wheel, measures a first position where the tip portion rotates in the first rotational direction and contacts the processing surface of the processing wheel, rotates the shaft member in a second rotational direction that is opposite to the first rotational direction to bring the tip portion into contact with the processing surface of the processing wheel, and measures a second position where the tip portion rotates in the second rotational direction and contacts the processing surface of the processing wheel, The control unit calculates a first distance in the axial direction of the processing wheel from a predetermined processing reference position to the first position, calculates a second distance in the axial direction of the processing wheel from the predetermined processing reference position to the second position, calculates an amount of positional deviation in the axial direction of the processing wheel based on the first distance and the second distance, corrects the positional deviation in the axial direction of the processing wheel based on the amount of positional deviation in the axial direction of the processing wheel, and causes the processing wheel with the positional deviation corrected to process the outer peripheral edge of the brittle plate.

2. The brittle plate processing apparatus according to claim 1, characterized in that the measurement of the first position and the second position by the measuring unit and the correction of the positional deviation in the axial direction of the processing wheel by the control unit are alternately repeated multiple times, and the processing wheel whose positional deviation has been corrected multiple times is used to process the outer peripheral edge of the brittle plate.

3. 3. The brittle plate processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the rotating means is a servo motor that controls torque.

4. A brittle plate processing device includes a table for holding a brittle plate, a processing head having a processing wheel for processing an outer peripheral edge of the brittle plate held on the table, a measurement unit for measuring an amount of positional deviation of the processing wheel in an axial direction relative to the brittle plate, and a control unit for correcting a positional deviation of the processing wheel in the axial direction based on the amount of positional deviation in the axial direction of the processing wheel measured by the measurement unit and causing the processing wheel whose positional deviation has been corrected to process the outer peripheral edge of the brittle plate, wherein the measurement unit includes an attachment plate, a movable stage provided so as to be movable relatively to the attachment plate in a first direction perpendicular to the axial direction of the processing wheel, a moving means for moving the movable stage in the first direction, and a rotating means provided on the movable stage and having a shaft member with a tip portion, an alignment step of aligning the shaft member to a predetermined position; a first measuring step of rotating the shaft member in a first direction about its axis to bring the tip portion into contact with the processing surface of the processing wheel and measuring a first position on the processing surface of the processing wheel where the tip portion comes into contact; a second measuring step of rotating the shaft member in a second rotational direction opposite to the first rotational direction to bring the tip portion into contact with the processing surface of the processing wheel, and measuring a second position on the processing surface of the processing wheel where the tip portion comes into contact; a calculation process of calculating a first distance in the axial direction of the processing wheel from a predetermined processing reference position to the first position, calculating a second distance in the axial direction of the processing wheel from the predetermined processing reference position to the second position, and calculating a positional deviation amount in the axial direction of the processing wheel based on the first distance and the second distance; a correction step of correcting the axial positional deviation of the processing wheel based on an amount of the axial positional deviation of the processing wheel; a machining step of machining the outer edge of the brittle plate with the machining wheel in which the positional deviation after the correction step has been corrected.

5. The method for processing a brittle plate according to claim 4, characterized in that the first measuring step, the second measuring step, the calculation step, and the correction step are repeated multiple times, and the processing wheel whose position deviation has been corrected multiple times is used to process the outer peripheral edge of the brittle plate.

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