Tape Transfer Device with Air Dancer Tension Control
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing transfer devices for handling thin tape-shaped works face challenges in preventing looseness and contamination, particularly when handling wide tapes, and require complex setups with multiple accessory members, leading to issues with tension synchronization and compactness.
Innovation Solution
A transfer device that feeds a tape-shaped work in an upright position using a supply reel, take-up reel, and a mechanism with guide rollers and slack absorbers to adjust tension, while keeping the protective sheet separate to prevent contamination, and using absorbing holes to ensure precise alignment and feeding.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Stability of the object's composition
If a lateral transfer device is used to feed tape-shaped work, then the work can be handled stably, but the work is likely to be loosened due to its weight
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies the anti-weight principle by introducing a holding mechanism with pairs of rollers that pinch the work to counteract the loosening effect caused by gravity. The rollers apply upward force to balance the downward gravitational force on the thin tape-shaped work, preventing it from loosening during lateral transfer.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent uses an air dancer as an intermediary mechanism between the supply reel and the exposure stage. The air dancer adjusts the tension of the work by blowing air underneath it, creating an upward force that compensates for the work's weight and prevents loosening during the transfer process.
2Stability of the object's composition
If a holding mechanism with pairs of rollers is used to pinch the work, then the work tension can be adjusted, but the device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces an air dancer as an intermediary device that simplifies tension control compared to mechanical roller pinching mechanisms. The air dancer uses airflow to adjust work tension, eliminating the need for complex mechanical pinching components while achieving the same tension control objective.
3Object-affected harmful factors
If a protective sheet is put on the work, then contaminants can be prevented from adhering to the work surface, but the device complexity and size increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges the protective sheet with the work by winding them together on the supply reel and take-up reel. This integration allows the protective sheet to be automatically applied and removed without requiring separate handling mechanisms, thereby preventing contamination while avoiding additional device complexity.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent extracts the protective sheet from the work during the transfer process using a transfer device that separates the protective sheet from the work at the exposure stage. This extraction allows the work to be transferred without the protective sheet, preventing contamination during the critical exposure process while maintaining the protective function during storage and transport.
4Manufacturing precision
If the work is fed laterally for exposure, then the patterning resolution can be maintained, but the work is more likely to be loosened
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies the anti-weight principle by using the holding mechanism with pairs of rollers to counteract the gravitational force on the thin work during lateral transfer. The rollers pinch the work to provide upward support, preventing loosening while maintaining the lateral feeding necessary for high-resolution patterning.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent uses the air dancer as an intermediary to adjust work tension during lateral transfer. By blowing air underneath the work, the air dancer creates an upward force that compensates for gravity, keeping the work stable and preventing loosening during the lateral feeding process required for exposure.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The device stabilizes the work during transfer, prevents looseness, maintains balanced tension for both the work and protective sheet, and reduces the device's size and complexity, ensuring precise alignment and efficient processing.
Implementation Method 1
a transfer device equipped with an air dancer for adjusting a tension of a work
Implementation Method 2
each of the first and second transfer rollers has a roller main body with a plurality of absorbing holes formed in a surface of the roller main body
Data Source
AI summary
The present invention relates to a transfer device that can feed a work in a stable condition without applying it any excess loads. The transfer device for feeding a tape-shaped work to a process stage standing in an upright position, which is placed on one side of the process stage and which includes a supply reel, a take-up reel and a work feeding mechanism. Specifically, the supply reel, around which the work and a protective sheet are wound, is adapted to feed the work and the protective sheet therefrom. The take-up reel is adapted to wind the work and the protective sheet that have been fed from the supply reel, and it is located below the supply reel. The work feeding mechanism is adapted to forward the work from the supply reel to the take-up reel through the process stage.