Dispenser

Abstract

To provide a dispenser configured so that followability (responsiveness) in rotary motion of a lever member to high-speed driving of an actuator can be improved.SOLUTION: A dispenser comprises: a nozzle; a supply passage through which liquid materials are supplied to the nozzle; a tappet 34 whose tip part reciprocates in a vertical direction in the supply passage; a displacement enlarging mechanism 14 that imparts displacement to the tappet 34; and an actuator 15. The displacement enlarging mechanism 14 includes a fulcrum member 141, and a lever member 142 which has a fulcrum part 142a, an action point part 142b and a force point part 142c, which further comprises a first energizing member 342 that elastically energizes the tappet 34 upward, a second energizing member 143 that elastically energizes an end part at the opposite side of the action point part 142b of the lever member 142 downward, and a third energizing member 144, arranged just below the force point part 142C of the lever member 142, which elastically energizes the lever member 142 upward.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 3

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a dispenser that dispenses a liquid material. [Background technology]

[0002] Dispensers that dispense liquid materials such as water, oil, and resin are used in various fields, including semiconductor processing and the medical field. In semiconductor processing in particular, dispensers are often used in the underfill process, and also for filling the inside of semiconductor element packages with resin. In the manufacturing process of LED elements, dispensers are used in the process of applying fluorescent liquid, which is a mixture of fluorescent material and resin, to LED chips.

[0003] Known dispensers for dispensing liquid material include those that dispense the liquid material from a nozzle by the reciprocating motion of a tappet. Patent Document 1 discloses a dispenser (liquid application device) that includes a nozzle for dispensing the liquid material, a supply flow path that supplies the liquid material to the nozzle, a tappet (plunger) whose tip reciprocates up and down within the supply flow path, a displacement magnification mechanism that applies displacement to the tappet (plunger), and an actuator that applies displacement to the displacement magnification mechanism. Patent Document 1 also discloses a so-called lever mechanism that has a fulcrum member and a lever member as the displacement magnification mechanism. Patent Document 1 also discloses a configuration in which an elastic body is connected to the tappet (plunger), and the tappet (plunger) is brought into contact with the application point of the lever member by the tensile or compressive force of the elastic body. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0004] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2019-30865 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] However, through testing and investigation by the inventors, it was found that in order to drive the actuator at high speed to rotate the lever member at high speed in order to reciprocate the tappet (plunger) at high speed, it is not enough to simply have the tappet (plunger) contact the point of application of the lever member using the tensile or compressive force of an elastic body. In other words, it was found that the above-mentioned configuration of Patent Document 1 alone does not provide sufficient follow-up (responsiveness) of the rotational movement of the lever member in response to the high-speed driving of the actuator.

[0006] An object of the present invention is to provide a dispenser that can improve the followability (response) of the rotational movement of the lever member in response to high-speed driving of the actuator. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] In order to solve the above problems, the inventors conducted extensive testing and research and discovered that in order to improve the followability (responsiveness) of the rotational movement of the lever member in response to high-speed driving of the actuator, it is essential to ensure close contact between the lower end of the actuator and the force application portion of the lever member. Based on this discovery, the inventors came up with a configuration in which a biasing member that elastically biases the lever member upward is located directly below the force application portion of the lever member, and completed the present invention.

[0008] That is, according to one aspect of the present invention, there is provided the following dispenser. A dispenser comprising: a nozzle that ejects a liquid material; a supply flow path that supplies the liquid material to the nozzle; a tappet whose tip reciprocates vertically within the supply flow path; a displacement magnifying mechanism that applies a displacement to the tappet; and an actuator that applies a displacement to the displacement magnifying mechanism, the displacement magnifying mechanism includes a fulcrum member and a lever member having a fulcrum portion in contact with the fulcrum member, an application point portion in contact with an upper end portion of the tappet, and a force point portion in contact with a lower end portion of the actuator, the force point portion is located between the fulcrum portion and the action point portion, The dispenser further comprises a first biasing member that elastically biases the tappet upward, a second biasing member that elastically biases the end of the lever member opposite the application point portion downward, and a third biasing member that is arranged directly below the application point portion of the lever member and elastically biases the lever member upward. [Effects of the Invention]

[0009] According to the present invention, by disposing a biasing member that elastically biases the lever member upward directly below the application point of force of the lever member, the lower end of the actuator and the application point of force of the lever member are reliably brought into close contact with each other, thereby improving the followability (responsiveness) of the rotational movement of the lever member in response to high-speed driving of the actuator, and therefore enabling the tappet to reciprocate at higher speeds than before. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0010] [Figure 1] 1 is a perspective view of a dispenser according to an embodiment of the present invention, viewed from one side; [Figure 2A] FIG. 2 is a side view of a main part of the dispenser of FIG. 1. [Figure 2B] FIG. 2 is a longitudinal cross-sectional view of a main part of the dispenser of FIG. 1. [Figure 3] FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram showing the relationship between a tappet, a displacement magnifying mechanism, and an actuator. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0011] Fig. 1 shows a perspective view of a dispenser according to one embodiment of the present invention as seen from one side, and Fig. 2A and Fig. 2B show a side view and a vertical cross-sectional view, respectively, of the main part of the dispenser shown in Fig. 1. The dispenser X of this embodiment includes a dispenser body 1 and a nozzle block 3 that is detachably attached to the dispenser body 1.

[0012] The dispenser body 1 has a shape in which both sides of the main frame 11 are covered with covers 111, and various components described below are installed inside the covers 111. The top surface of the main frame 11 is provided with a power supply terminal 12 for supplying power to the various components installed inside the main frame 11, as well as an air inlet 13A and an air outlet 13B for introducing and discharging cooling air into and from the main frame 11.

[0013] The nozzle block 3 is detachably attached to the underside of the main frame 11. The nozzle block 3 includes a block body 31, a nozzle 32 that ejects the liquid material, a supply flow path 33 that supplies the liquid material to the nozzle 32, and a tappet 34 whose tip reciprocates up and down within the supply flow path 33. The nozzle 32 is attached to the nozzle attachment portion 311 on the lower surface side of the block body 31 by a nozzle nut 321 . The supply flow path 33 is formed in the block body 31 so as to communicate between the nozzle 32 and a liquid material inlet 312 provided on the upper surface of the block body 31. The liquid material is introduced into the liquid material inlet 312 from a tank (not shown) that stores the liquid material. The tappet 34 is held by a tappet holder 341, and the tappet holder 341 holding this tappet 34 is attached to a tappet attachment hole 112 provided on the underside of the main frame 11 of the dispenser body 1, with the upper end of the tappet 34 held by the tappet holder 341 protruding into the main frame 11. Also, a first biasing member 342 is incorporated into the tappet holder 341 to elastically bias the tappet 34 upward. A compression coil spring can typically be used as the first biasing member 342.

[0014] As shown in Fig. 2B, the dispenser body 1 further includes, in the main frame 11, a displacement magnifying mechanism 14 that applies a displacement to the tappet 34, and an actuator 15 that applies a displacement to the displacement magnifying mechanism 14. Here, Fig. 3 schematically shows the relationship between the above-mentioned tappet 34, displacement magnifying mechanism 14, and actuator 15. As shown in FIGS. 2B and 3, the displacement magnification mechanism 14 includes a fulcrum member 141 and a lever member 142. The fulcrum member 141 is cylindrical and fixed to the main frame 11. The lever member 142 has a fulcrum portion 142a that contacts the fulcrum member 141, an application point portion 142b that contacts the upper end of the tappet 34, and a force point portion 142c that contacts the lower end of the actuator 15. The fulcrum portion 142a is a concave curved surface with a radius of curvature larger than that of the fulcrum member, and the force point portion 142c is located between the fulcrum portion 142a and the application point portion 142b. A second biasing member 143 is disposed at the end of the lever member 142 opposite the application point portion 142b, elastically biasing this end downward. A compression coil spring can typically be used as the second biasing member 143. 3, a third biasing member 144 that elastically biases the lever member 142 upward is disposed directly below the force point 142c of the lever member 142. A compression coil spring can typically be used as the third biasing member 144. Note that the third biasing member 144 is not shown in FIG. 2B. In this way, the displacement magnifying mechanism 14 is a "lever mechanism" and has the function of magnifying the vertical displacement of the tappet 34 more than the vertical displacement of the actuator 15. The radius of curvature of the fulcrum portion (concave curved surface) 142a may be approximately the same as the radius of curvature of the fulcrum member 141.

[0015] On the other hand, the actuator 15 is used as a drive source for applying a vertical displacement to the displacement magnification mechanism 14, thereby causing the tappet 34 to reciprocate vertically, and can be configured to include a motor, air, a piezoelectric element, etc. In this embodiment, the actuator 15 is configured to include a piezoelectric element. A piezoelectric element is particularly preferable because it can be driven (expanded and contracted) at high speed.

[0016] In this configuration, in this embodiment, in addition to the first biasing member 342 that elastically biases the tappet 34 upward, there are provided a second biasing member 143 that elastically biases the end of the lever member 142 opposite to the application point portion 142b downward, and a third biasing member 144 that is disposed directly below the force point portion 142c of the lever member 142 and elastically biases the lever member 142 upward. This ensures that the lower end of the actuator 15 and the force point portion 142c of the lever member 142 are in close contact with each other, thereby improving the followability (responsiveness) of the rotational movement of the lever member 142 in response to high-speed driving of the actuator 15. This makes it possible to reciprocate the tappet 34 at a higher speed than before. The absolute values ​​of the biasing forces exerted by the first biasing member 342, the second biasing member 143, and the third biasing member 144 are set appropriately in consideration of the amount of vertical displacement of the actuator 15, the size of the lever member 142, and the positional relationship between the fulcrum portion 142a, the application point portion 142b, and the force point portion 142c of the lever member 142.

[0017] Next, the operation of the dispenser X will be described. When the tip of the tappet 34 moves upward in the supply flow path 33, which is filled with the liquid material introduced through the liquid material introduction portion 312, the liquid material is supplied to the vicinity of the nozzle 32. At this time, an appropriate back pressure is applied to the liquid material introduced into the liquid material introduction portion 312 in accordance with the properties of the liquid material, such as its viscosity. When the tip of the tappet 34 moves in the supply flow path 33 in a direction approaching the nozzle 32, that is, in a downward direction, the pressure of the liquid material in the vicinity of the nozzle 32 increases, causing the liquid material to be discharged. Thereafter, when the tip of the tappet 34 moves upward within the supply flow path 33, the liquid material is again supplied near the nozzle 32, and when the tip of the tappet 34 moves further downward within the supply flow path 33, the liquid material is ejected from the nozzle 32. In this way, the tip of the tappet 34 moves back and forth up and down within the supply flow path 33, causing the liquid material to be ejected intermittently from the nozzle 32.

[0018] As described above, in this embodiment, in addition to the first biasing member 342, the second biasing member 143 and the third biasing member 144 are provided, and therefore, during the above-described operation, the lower end of the actuator 15 and the force point portion 142c of the lever member 142 are reliably brought into close contact with each other. This improves the followability (responsiveness) of the rotational operation of the lever member 142 in response to high-speed driving of the actuator 15, and makes it possible to reciprocate the tappet 34 at a higher speed than before.

[0019] In this embodiment, the nozzle block 3 is detachably attached to the dispenser body 1, but the configuration of the nozzle block 3 may be incorporated into the dispenser body 1 and integrated. [Explanation of symbols]

[0020] X Dispenser 1 Dispenser body 11 Mainframe 111 Cover 112 Tappet mounting hole 12 Power terminal 13A Air intake 13B Air exhaust section 14 Displacement magnification mechanism 141 Support member 142 Lever member 142a Fulcrum part (concave curved surface) 142b Point of action 142c Force point 143 second biasing member 144 third biasing member 15 Actuators 3 Nozzle Block 31 Block body 311 Nozzle mounting part 312 Liquid material introduction section 32 nozzles 321 Nozzle nut 33 Supply channel 34 Tappet 341 Tappet holder 342 first biasing member

Claims

1. A dispenser comprising: a nozzle that ejects a liquid material; a supply flow path that supplies the liquid material to the nozzle; a tappet whose tip reciprocates vertically within the supply flow path; a displacement magnifying mechanism that applies a displacement to the tappet; and an actuator that applies a displacement to the displacement magnifying mechanism, the displacement magnifying mechanism includes a fulcrum member and a lever member having a fulcrum portion in contact with the fulcrum member, an application point portion in contact with an upper end portion of the tappet, and a force point portion in contact with a lower end portion of the actuator, the force point portion is located between the fulcrum portion and the action point portion, The dispenser further comprises a first biasing member that elastically biases the tappet upward, a second biasing member that elastically biases the end of the lever member opposite the application point portion downward, and a third biasing member that is arranged directly below the force point portion of the lever member and elastically biases the lever member upward.

2. The dispenser of claim 1 , wherein the actuator comprises a piezoelectric element.

3. 3. The dispenser according to claim 1, wherein the first biasing member, the second biasing member, and the third biasing member are all formed of compression coil springs.

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