Sheet supply device and sheet supply method

Abstract

To provide a sheet supply device and a sheet supply method that can prevent the occurrence of a work of removing peeled off adhesive sheets.SOLUTION: A sheet supply unit EA includes: feed means 10 for feeding out an original sheet RS having a peeled sheet RL to one side of which an adhesive sheet AS is temporarily attached; peeling means 20 that folds the peeled sheet RL of the original sheet RS fed out by the feed means 10 at a peeling edge 21A, peels the adhesive sheet AS from the peeled sheet RL at a folded portion RL1 of the folded peeled sheet RL, and supplies the peeled sheet RL; and slack forming means 30 for slackening the original sheet RS around the peeling edge 21A so that the adhesive sheet AS is not peeled off from the peeled sheet RL by the peeling means 20 when the original sheet RS is fed out by the feed means 10.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a sheet feeding device and a sheet feeding method.

Background Art

[0002] A sheet feeding device is known that feeds out a web in which an adhesive sheet is temporarily attached to a release sheet, and peels and supplies the adhesive sheet from the release sheet (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0003]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0004] In the double-sided adhesive tape affixing device (sheet feeding device) described in Patent Document 1, after setting a web tape T (web) in which a long carrier tape ct (release sheet) is bonded to a long double-sided adhesive tape t (adhesive sheet), the web is fed out and pre-operation adjustments such as meandering adjustment of the web and stop position adjustment of the adhesive sheet are performed. At that time, if the state where the release sheet is folded back at the tip (peeling edge) of the knife edge 14 (peeling means) is maintained, the adhesive sheet will be peeled from the release sheet, resulting in the inconvenience of having to remove the peeled adhesive sheet.

[0005] An object of the present invention is to provide a sheet feeding device and a sheet feeding method that can prevent the occurrence of the operation of removing the peeled adhesive sheet.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0006] The present invention employs the configuration described in the claims.

Effects of the Invention

[0007] According to the present invention, the raw material is loosened around the release edge so that the adhesive sheet is not peeled off the release sheet by the peeling means, thereby preventing the need to remove the peeled adhesive sheet. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0008] [Figure 1] (A) is an explanatory diagram of a sheet application device equipped with a sheet supply device according to one embodiment of the present invention. (B) and (C) are explanatory diagrams of the operation of the sheet application device. [Modes for carrying out the invention]

[0009] One embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. In this embodiment, the X, Y, and Z axes are orthogonal to each other. The X and Y axes are axes within a predetermined plane, and the Z axis is an axis perpendicular to the predetermined plane. Furthermore, in this embodiment, when directions are indicated based on a view from the front direction in Figure 1(A) parallel to the Y axis, "up" is the direction of the Z-axis arrow and "down" is the opposite direction, "left" is the direction of the X-axis arrow and "right" is the opposite direction, "front" is the front direction in Figure 1(A) parallel to the Y axis and "back" is the opposite direction.

[0010] The sheet supply device EA includes a feeding means 10 that performs a feeding process of feeding out a roll RS with an adhesive sheet AS temporarily attached to one side of a release sheet RL; a peeling means 20 that performs a peeling process of folding back the release sheet RL of the roll RS fed out by the feeding means 10 at the peeling edge 21A, and peeling off the adhesive sheet AS from the release sheet RL at the folded portion RL1 of the folded release sheet RL and supplying it; a slack forming means 30 that performs a slack forming process to loosen the roll RS around the peeling edge 21A so that the adhesive sheet AS is not peeled off the release sheet RL by the peeling means 20 when the roll RS is fed out by the feeding means 10; a spraying means 40 that performs a spraying process to separate the release sheet RL from the peeling edge 21A by spraying a gas such as air or gas onto the release sheet RL; and a posture stabilization means 50 that performs a posture stabilization process to stabilize the posture of the roll RS at the peeling means 20 when the spraying means 40 sprays gas onto the release sheet RL. In this embodiment, the sheet supply device EA consists of a pressing roller 60, which serves as a pressing means for pressing and attaching the adhesive sheet AS to the adherend WK, and the sheet application device EA1 is located near the support means 70 that supports the adherend WK.

[0011] The feeding mechanism 10 includes a base plate 11 that directly or indirectly supports the components constituting the feeding mechanism 10, a support roller 12 that supports the raw material RS, a guide roller 13 that guides the raw material RS, a drive roller 14 supported on the output shaft (not shown) of a rotary motor 14A as a drive device, which grips the raw material RS with a pinch roller 14B upstream of the peeling mechanism 20 in the feeding direction of the raw material RS, a drive roller 15 supported on the output shaft (not shown) of a rotary motor 15A as a drive device, which grips the release sheet RL with a pinch roller 15B downstream of the peeling mechanism 20 in the feeding direction of the raw material RS, and a recovery roller 16 supported on the output shaft of a drive device (not shown), which constantly applies a predetermined tension to the release sheet RL between itself and the pinch roller 15B while the sheet application device EA1 is in automatic operation, and recovers the release sheet RL.

[0012] The peeling means 20 includes a peeling plate 21 having a peeling edge 21A and a guide surface 21B that guides the raw material RS upstream of the peeling edge 21A in the raw material feeding direction.

[0013] In this embodiment, the slack-forming means 30 is also used as the feeding means 10 and includes a drive roller 14, a rotating motor 14A, and a pinch roller 14B.

[0014] The spraying means 40 includes a gas supply means 42, such as a pressurizing pump or turbine, which communicates with a gas ejection hole 41 formed in the guide surface 21B of the release plate 21 via piping 42A.

[0015] The posture stabilization means 50 includes a linear motor 51 as a drive device and a pressing roller 52 that is rotatably supported on the output shaft 51A of the linear motor 51 and presses the raw material RS against the guide surface 21B of the release plate 21.

[0016] The support means 70 includes a linear motor 71 as a drive device and a table 72 supported by a slider 71A of the linear motor 71, and having a support surface 72A that can be held by suction using a depressurization means (holding means) not shown, such as a depressurization pump or a vacuum ejector.

[0017] The operation of the sheet application device EA1, which is equipped with the sheet supply device EA described above, will now be explained. First, the user of the sheet application device EA1 (hereinafter simply referred to as "user") sets the raw material RS as shown in the figure, with each component positioned in the initial position shown by the solid line in Figure 1(A). Then, a signal to start checking the feed of the raw material RS is input via an operating means (not shown), such as an operation panel or a personal computer. The slack-forming means 30 then drives the rotary motor 14A to feed out the raw material RS to a predetermined length and slacken the raw material RS around the release edge 21A. Next, the posture stabilization means 50 drives the linear motor 51 and lowers the pressing roller 52 as shown by the dashed line in Figure 1(A), pressing the raw material RS against the guide surface 21B of the release plate 21. After that, the spraying means 40 drives the gas supply means 42 and starts spraying gas from the gas ejection hole 41 onto the release sheet RL, separating the release sheet RL from the release edge 21A.

[0018] Next, the feeding mechanism 10 drives the rotary motors 14A and 15A to rotate the drive rollers 14 and 15 at the same speed, performing a feeding confirmation operation in which the raw material RS is fed out to a predetermined length while remaining slack. As a result, if it is necessary to perform pre-operation adjustments such as adjusting the meandering of the raw material RS or adjusting the stopping position of the adhesive sheet AS, the user adjusts the mounting angle and position of each roller, such as the guide roller 13, drive rollers 14 and 15, and pinch rollers 14B and 15B, to eliminate the meandering of the raw material RS, or adjusts the sensor (not shown) and stopping timing that detects the adhesive sheet AS and stops the feeding of the raw material RS, so that the adhesive sheet AS stops at the appropriate position. At this time, as shown in Figure 1(B), the release sheet RL is slack and does not fold back at the release edge 21A, so the adhesive sheet AS is not peeled off from the release sheet RL. Then, once pre-operation adjustments are complete and the user inputs a signal indicating the completion of the feed-out confirmation of the raw material RS via an operating means (not shown), the posture stabilization means 50 drives the linear motor 51 to return the pressing roller 52 to its initial position, and then the spraying means 40 stops driving the gas supply means 42, stopping the spraying of gas from the gas ejection holes 41 onto the release sheet RL. In addition, the feed-out means 10 drives the rotary motor 15A to eliminate any slack in the raw material RS so that the release sheet RL is folded back at the release edge 21A of the release plate 21. Next, when the user inputs a signal to start automatic operation via an operating means (not shown), the feeding means 10 drives the rotary motors 14A and 15A to feed out the raw material RS. As shown in Figure 1(C), when the leading end of the adhesive sheet AS in the feeding direction after feeding confirmation is peeled off by a predetermined length at the folded portion RL1 of the release sheet RL, which is folded back at the release edge 21A of the release plate 21, the driving of the rotary motors 14A and 15A is stopped.

[0019] Thereafter, when the user or conveying means (not shown) such as a multi-joint robot or a belt conveyor places the adherent WK at a predetermined position on the support surface 72A, the support means 70 drives a decompression means (not shown) to start adsorbing and holding the adherent WK on the support surface 72A. Next, the support means 70 drives the linear motor 71 to move the table 72 to the left. When the table 72 reaches a predetermined position, the feeding means 10 drives the rotation motors 14A and 15A to feed out the raw sheet RS in accordance with the moving speed of the table 72. As a result, the leading adhesive sheet AS is peeled off from the peeling sheet RL at the folded-back portion RL1 of the peeling sheet RL, and the adhesive sheet AS peeled off from the peeling sheet RL is pressed against the adherent WK by the pressing roller 60 and affixed thereto, as shown by the two-dot chain line in FIG. 1(C).

[0020] When the entire adhesive sheet AS is affixed to the adherent WK and the leading end portion in the feeding direction of the next adhesive sheet AS following the leading adhesive sheet AS is peeled off by a predetermined length at the folded-back portion RL1 of the peeling sheet RL, the feeding means 10 stops driving the rotation motors 14A and 15A. Then, when the table 72 reaches a predetermined position to the left of the pressing roller 60, the support means 70 stops driving the linear motor 71, and then stops driving the decompression means (not shown) to release the adsorption and holding of the adherent WK on the support surface 72A. Next, when the user or conveying means (not shown) conveys the adherent WK with the adhesive sheet AS affixed thereto to the next process, the support means 70 drives the linear motor 71 to return the table 72 to the initial position, and thereafter the same operations as described above are repeated.

[0021] According to the above-described embodiment, in order to prevent the peeling sheet RL from being slackened around the peeling edge 21A so that the non-supplied adhesive sheet AS does not peel off from the peeling sheet RL, it is possible to prevent the occurrence of the operation of removing the peeled adhesive sheet AS.

[0022] As described above, the best configuration, method, etc. for implementing the present invention are disclosed in the above description, but the present invention is not limited thereto. That is, although the present invention has been particularly illustrated and described mainly with respect to specific embodiments, without departing from the scope of the technical idea and purpose of the present invention, those skilled in the art can make various modifications to the above-described embodiments in terms of shape, material, quantity, and other detailed configurations. In addition, the descriptions limiting the shape, material, etc. disclosed above are exemplified for the purpose of facilitating the understanding of the present invention and do not limit the present invention. Therefore, the description using the names of members with some or all of the limitations on those shapes, materials, etc. removed is included in the present invention.

[0023] For example, the feeding means 10 may feed out a web RS in which a belt-shaped adhesive sheet base material temporarily attached to a belt-shaped release sheet RL has a closed-loop or a cut formed in the entire short-width direction, and a predetermined area partitioned by the cut is used as the adhesive sheet AS. Alternatively, a belt-shaped adhesive sheet web in which a belt-shaped adhesive sheet base material is temporarily attached to a belt-shaped release sheet RL may be adopted. During the feeding of the belt-shaped adhesive sheet web, a closed-loop or a cut formed in the entire short-width direction is formed in the adhesive sheet base material by a cutting blade as a cutting means, and a web RS in which a predetermined area partitioned by the cut is used as the adhesive sheet AS may be fed out. Alternatively, the web RS may be fed out without being wound, for example, from a fan-folded web RS. Alternatively, without winding, a recovery means may be adopted to recover the release sheet RL by, for example, fan-folding, cutting with a shredder, or randomly accumulating. Alternatively, a recovery means may not be adopted. When a signal indicating the end of the confirmation of the feeding of the web RS is input, the web RS may be wound in the direction of the support roller 12, and the adhesive sheet AS fed out in the direction of the recovery roller 16 after passing the peeling edge 21A without being peeled from the release sheet RL may be moved upstream of the web feeding direction from the peeling edge 21A.

[0024] The slack-forming means 30 may be equipped with a drive roller 15, a rotation motor 15A, and a pinch roller 15B instead of or in combination with the drive roller 14, the rotation motor 14A, and the pinch roller 14B, and the release sheet RL may be sent toward the release plate 21 side to slacken the release sheet RL around the release edge 21A. The slack-forming means 30 does not necessarily have to be used in conjunction with the feeding means 10. In this case, for example, it may be equipped with a linear motor as a drive device that supports the release plate 21 on the output shaft, and the linear motor may be driven to separate the release plate 21 from the release sheet RL, thereby causing the release sheet RL to slacken around the release edge 21A.

[0025] The spraying means 40 may, in place of or in combination with the gas ejection hole 41, spray gas onto the release sheet RL from the guide surface 21B in an upward, downward, or parallel direction to the guide surface 21B. Alternatively, it may be configured independently of the release plate 21 and include a gas spraying member such as a nozzle or spraying pipe that communicates with the gas supply means 42 via the piping 42A, and spray gas onto the release sheet RL from the gas spraying member.

[0026] The posture stabilization means 50 may stabilize the posture of the raw material RS by, instead of or in combination with the linear motor 51 and the pressing roller 52, by blowing gas onto the raw material RS with a gas blowing member such as a nozzle or a blowing pipe to press the raw material RS against the guide surface 21B of the release plate 21, by sucking the raw material RS with a suction hole provided in the guide surface 21B of the release plate 21, or by pressing the raw material RS against the guide surface 21B of the release plate 21 with a plate-shaped member.

[0027] The pressing means may include a linear motor as a drive device and a holding member supported on the output shaft of the linear motor, which can be held by suction using a depressurizing means (not shown), such as a depressurizing pump or a vacuum ejector, and the adhesive sheet AS held by the holding member may be pressed and attached to the adherend WK. Alternatively, it may be arranged upside down or horizontally together with the sheet supply device EA to press and attach the adhesive sheet AS to the bottom surface or side of the adherend WK. Alternatively, a drive device may be used as a means for bringing the pressing roller 60 closer to and further away from the adherend WK to prevent stress on or damage to the adherend WK. The sheet supply device EA and sheet attaching device EA1 of the present invention may or may not be provided, and if not provided, the adhesive sheet AS may be pressed and attached to the adherend WK using another device.

[0028] The support means 70 may be a table 72 that cannot be held by suction on the support surface 72A, or it may be provided in the sheet supply device EA or sheet application device EA1 of the present invention, or it may not be provided, and if it is not provided, the object to be attached WK may be moved by another device.

[0029] The sheet supply device EA may supply the adhesive sheet AS peeled from the release sheet RL to means other than the pressing means, for example, a printing device that prints on the adhesive sheet AS, an inspection device that checks the condition of the adhesive sheet AS, or the user. Alternatively, when performing the feed confirmation operation, the device may drive only the rotating motor 14A without driving the rotating motor 15A, and feed out a predetermined length of raw material RS to further loosen the loosened raw material RS.

[0030] The material, type, shape, etc., of the adhesive sheet AS and the adherend WK are not particularly limited. For example, the adhesive sheet AS and adherend WK may be circular, elliptical, polygonal (triangle, square, etc.), or have other shapes. The adhesive sheet AS may also have pressure-sensitive or heat-sensitive adhesive properties. If a heat-sensitive adhesive sheet AS is used, it can be bonded by an appropriate method, such as providing a suitable heating means, such as a suitable coil heater or the heating side of a heat pipe, to heat the adhesive sheet AS. Furthermore, such an adhesive sheet AS may be any type, such as a single layer of adhesive only, a two-layer sheet with a substrate and an adhesive layer laminated together, a three-layer or three-or-more-layer sheet with one or more intermediate layers laminated between the substrate and the adhesive layer, a three-layer or three-or-more-layer sheet with one or more cover layers laminated on the upper surface of the substrate, a sheet in which the substrate, intermediate layer, or cover layer is peelably provided, a single-layer double-sided adhesive sheet consisting only of an adhesive layer, or a double-sided adhesive sheet with adhesive layers laminated on both outermost surfaces of one or more intermediate layers. Furthermore, the adherend WK may be a single object such as food, a resin container, a semiconductor wafer such as a silicon semiconductor wafer or a compound semiconductor wafer, a circuit board, an information recording substrate such as an optical disc, a glass plate, a steel plate, a ceramic, a wooden board, or a resin, or it may be a composite object formed from two or more of these, and any form of component or article can also be included. Note that the adhesive sheet AS may be replaced with any sheet, film, tape, etc., such as an information label, decorative label, protective sheet, dicing tape, die attach film, die bonding tape, or recording layer forming resin sheet, based on its functional or functional reading.

[0031] The means and processes in the present invention are not limited in any way as long as they can perform the operations, functions, or processes described for those means and processes, and are certainly not limited at all to the components or processes of a single embodiment shown in the above-mentioned embodiments. For example, the dispensing means can be any means that dispenses a roll of material with an adhesive sheet temporarily attached to one side of a release sheet, and is not limited in any way as long as it is within the scope of the common technical knowledge at the time of filing (the same applies to other means and processes).

[0032] The drive equipment in the above embodiment can be electric equipment such as rotary motors, linear motors, single-axis robots, articulated robots with two or more axes, actuators such as air cylinders, hydraulic cylinders, rodless cylinders, and rotary cylinders, or a combination of these directly or indirectly. In the above embodiment, if a rotating member such as a roller is used, a drive device for rotating the rotating member may be provided, the surface of the rotating member or the rotating member itself may be made of a deformable material such as rubber or resin, the surface of the rotating member or the rotating member itself may be made of a non-deformable material, other members such as rotating or non-rotating shafts or blades may be used instead of rollers, and if a means or member for pressing the object to be pressed, such as a pressing roller or pressing head, is used, in addition to the examples given above, a means of blowing gas such as air or gas may be used, in addition to rollers, round bars, blade materials, brush-like members, or a means of blowing gas may be used, and the pressing material may be made of a deformable material such as rubber, resin, or sponge, or it may be made of a non-deformable material such as metal or resin, and if a means or member for peeling the object to be peeled, such as a peeling plate or peeling roller, is used, in addition to the examples given above, In combination, plate-shaped members, round bars, rollers, and other members may be used, the material to be peeled off may be made of a deformable material such as rubber or resin, or a non-deformable material, and if a support (holding) means or support (holding) member or other means for supporting (holding) the supported member (held member) is used, a configuration in which the supported member is supported (held) by gripping means such as mechanical chucks or chuck cylinders, Coulomb force, adhesive (adhesive sheets, adhesive tapes), adhesive agents (adhesive sheets, adhesive tapes), magnetic force, Bernoulli adsorption, suction adsorption, drive equipment, etc. may be used, and if a cutting means or cutting member or other means for cutting the member to be cut or forming cuts or cutting lines in the member to be cut is used, instead of or in combination with the examples above, a cutter blade, laser cutter, ion beam, thermal power, heat, water pressure, electric heating wire, spraying of gas or liquid, etc. may be used, or the material to be cut may be moved by combining appropriate drive equipment to perform the cutting. [Explanation of symbols]

[0033] EA... Sheet supply device 10… Dispensing mechanism 20... means of peeling 21A…Peeling edge 30...Method for creating slack 40... Spraying method 50…Posture stabilization means AS...Adhesive sheet RL...Release sheet RS…Raw fabric WK...Adherend

Claims

1. A feeding mechanism for feeding out a roll of material on which an adhesive sheet is temporarily attached to one side of a release sheet, The system includes a peeling means that folds back the release sheet of the raw material roll fed out by the feeding means at the peeling edge, and peels off the adhesive sheet from the release sheet at the folded portion of the folded release sheet and supplies it, A sheet supply device characterized by comprising a slack-forming means for slackening the raw material around the release edge so that the adhesive sheet is not peeled off the release sheet by the release means when the raw material is fed out by the feeding means.

2. The sheet supply device according to claim 1, further comprising a spraying means for spraying gas onto the release sheet to separate the release sheet from the release edge.

3. The sheet supply device according to claim 2, characterized in that it is provided with a posture stabilization means for stabilizing the posture of the raw material in the release means when the release means sprays gas onto the release sheet.

4. A feeding process in which a roll of material with an adhesive sheet temporarily attached to one side of a release sheet is fed out, The process involves folding the release sheet of the raw material unfed in the aforementioned unfed process at the release edge, and then peeling and supplying the adhesive sheet from the release sheet at the folded portion of the folded release sheet. A sheet supply method characterized by performing a slack-forming step to loosen the raw material around the peeling edge so that the adhesive sheet is not peeled off the release sheet by the peeling step when the raw material is unfed in the unfed step.

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