JP2001338782A - Lighting device for lighting - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an illumination light source device capable of ensuring illumination of high reliability. SOLUTION: The current, brightness, color temperature, lighting time or the like of a lamp 201 is monitored at all times by a lighting monitoring unit 203 it is decided that life time is over or abnormality for the lamp, the lamp 201 to be replaced is replaced with a spare lamp 205 inside a lamp buffer 206 by a lamp replacement part 204.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a light source for illumination incorporated in, for example, a production line for semiconductor devices or liquid crystal displays, and incorporated in a substrate inspection apparatus for inspecting glass substrates of these semiconductor devices or liquid crystal displays or various measuring apparatuses. Related to the device.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Recently, automation of a substrate inspection apparatus such as a glass substrate of a liquid crystal display (hereinafter, abbreviated as a substrate) has been promoted. Inspection of defects such as adhesion of dust is automatically performed.

[0003] Therefore, it is required that the illumination light source device used in such an inspection device always provide stable illumination.

Therefore, conventionally, as this kind of illumination light source device, a sensor for detecting a state is provided near the light source as disclosed in Japanese Utility Model Laid-Open No. 15391/1993, and the bulb is cut off by a detection signal of this sensor. One that automatically replaces the light bulb when it detects a is considered.

FIG. 6 is a configuration diagram of an illumination light source device applied to a measuring device such as a measuring microscope and an inspection device. Illumination light emitted from the illumination device 10 is transmitted by a light transmitter 11 and is incident on a beam splitter 12, reflected by the beam splitter 12, and irradiated on a substrate 14 as a subject by an objective lens 13. The illumination light reflected on the substrate 14 passes through the beam splitter 12 from the objective lens 13 as measurement light, and is placed on the optical axis (optical axis of the measurement device and the inspection device) p of the objective lens 13 and the beam splitter 12. The light enters the arranged image processing detector 15. The image processing detector 15 converts the incident measurement light into an electric signal, performs an arithmetic process, and measures the shape of the substrate 14. Note that the substrate 14 is mounted on the XY stage 17.

In such a light source device for illumination, the substrate 14
Prior to the measurement inspection, the light amount of the illumination light irradiated upward is adjusted by manually operating the volume of the illumination device 10 in advance.

In recent years, automation of measurement microscopes has become mainstream, and the illumination device 10 has a host computer 1
In some cases, the light amount is set in advance from 6 or the like. In such a measuring device, the light amount is insufficient due to a decrease in the light amount of the lighting device 10, and the light source (for example, a lamp) of the lighting device 10 is used without replacement until the image processing detector 15 cannot measure.

Further, the measuring device and the inspection device are often incorporated in a production line, and when exchanging the light source of the illumination device 10, the production line is stopped once.

[0009]

However, in the apparatus disclosed in Japanese Utility Model Application Laid-Open No. 5-15391, when the disconnection of the bulb is detected, the bulb is automatically replaced. Even if the color temperature has deteriorated,
Until the bulb is cut, the lighting will continue in this poor situation.

[0010] This is because when the board inspection is performed automatically, the board inspection can be continued while the brightness and color temperature of the bulb are deteriorated. However, there is a problem that the inspection efficiency is remarkably reduced, for example, the inspection failure occurs, and these need to be inspected again.

In the illumination light source device shown in FIG.
The light source of the illumination device 10 deteriorates with time due to its use, that is, the light quantity decreases due to the life of the light source, and finally the optimal measurement light does not enter the image processing detector 15, and even if the measurement is possible, the accuracy is high. High measurement and inspection cannot be performed.

In such a case, when the light source of the illuminating device 10 is replaced, the production line is not stopped in the same manner as described above, so that measurement and inspection are affected, and wasteful time is wasted. .

The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and an object of the present invention is to provide an illumination light source device which can ensure highly reliable illumination.

Further, the present invention provides an illumination light source device capable of judging whether or not a light source has a life due to aging deterioration, always maintaining an optimal illumination state, and ensuring highly reliable illumination. The purpose is to:

[0015]

According to the present invention, a lamp for illuminating an object to be illuminated, at least one or more spare lamps, and a lighting state of the lamp for illuminating the object to be illuminated are monitored. A lamp monitoring means for detecting that the lighting of the lamp does not satisfy a predetermined use condition; and automatically detecting the spare use lamp by detecting that the use condition of the lamp is no longer satisfied by the lamp monitor means. An illumination light source device comprising: a lamp replacement unit for replacement.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the illumination light source device according to the first aspect, there is provided a light amount control unit for controlling a light amount of the lamp, and the lamp monitoring unit sets the lamp use condition as a use condition of the lamp. When it is detected that the light amount of the lamp has become equal to or less than a predetermined value, the light amount of the lamp can be readjusted to an appropriate light amount by the light amount control means.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the illuminating light source device according to the first or second aspect, a plurality of the spare lamps are prepared and display means for displaying the remaining number of the spare lamps is provided. It is characterized by the following.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the illumination light source device according to any one of the first to third aspects, a plurality of the spare lamps are prepared and the remaining number of the spare lamps is reduced. It is characterized by having an alarm means for issuing a warning when a predetermined value is reached.

According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, in the illumination light source device according to the first aspect, the lamp replacement means includes:
The spare lamp is turned on before turning off the lamp that no longer satisfies the use condition.

According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, in the illuminating light source device according to the first aspect, the lamp replacement means includes:
A plurality of the lamps, light transmitting means for emitting light emitted from each of the lamps and emitting the light from one optical path, and light detecting means for detecting reflected light from the illuminated body; And a light source calculation judging unit for turning off the lamp which no longer satisfies the use condition based on the light amount detected by the light detecting unit and turning on the spare lamp.

According to a seventh aspect of the present invention, in the illumination light source device according to the sixth aspect, the light source calculation determining means adjusts the amount of light emitted from the lamp based on the amount of light detected by the light detecting means. Even when the use condition is no longer satisfied, the spare lamp is turned on before turning off the lamp that does not satisfy the use condition.

[0022]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS (1) A first embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 shows an example in which the present invention is applied to a substrate inspection apparatus for a liquid crystal substrate. In the figure, reference numeral 1 denotes a board inspection apparatus main body, which includes an illumination unit 2, an illumination control device 3 for managing control of the illumination unit 2, a central control device 4 for managing control of the entire board inspection apparatus, and an entire apparatus. It has a display unit 5 and an alarm device 6 for displaying an operation state, an error state, and the like.

The illumination section 2 has a lamp 201 for illuminating a substrate (not shown) as a subject. The lamp 201 is connected to the lighting control device 3, and the lighting, the turning off, the light amount, and the like are controlled by an instruction from the lighting control device 3.

An illumination monitoring unit 203 is provided near the lamp 201. This lighting monitoring unit 203
Is to constantly monitor at least one of the current, light quantity, color temperature, lighting time, etc. of the lamp 201 with various sensors, and detect that the usage conditions necessary for board inspection are no longer satisfied due to lamp life or abnormality. Thus, a life detection signal or an abnormality detection signal is output to the illumination control device 3 and the central control device 4 according to the detection results. In this case, the illumination control device 3 may monitor the voltage from the lamp 201 to detect a lamp life or a state leading to a lamp abnormality.

The lamp replacement unit 204 is a lamp replacement unit that receives a lamp replacement instruction from the illumination control device 3.
1 is automatically replaced with a normal spare lamp 205. In this case, the spare lamp 205 is stored in the lamp buffer 206.

The lamp buffer 206 has, for example, a rotating turret structure in which a plurality of lamps are arranged concentrically or a slider structure in which a plurality of lamps are arranged in a straight line, and has a remaining number counter 208 of the spare lamp 205. ing. Here, the used lamp 207 has been replaced with the spare lamp 205 and is stored until a new spare lamp (normal lamp) 205 is refilled. The remaining number counter 208 counts the remaining number of the spare lamps 205, and outputs this count value to the illumination control device 3 and the central control device 4.

The lighting control device 3 causes the alarm device 6 to output a warning prompting replenishment of a new spare lamp 205 based on the count value of the remaining number counter 208. In this case, when the count value reaches a predetermined value (for example, the remaining number is 1), the alarm device 6 keeps outputting the warning until the used lamp 207 is replaced with the spare lamp 205. In addition, a warning lamp such as an LED may be provided for each used lamp 207, and when the spare lamp 205 is replaced, a warning by turning on or blinking the warning lamp may be released.

The central control unit 4 includes a lighting monitoring unit 20
3, the board inspection procedure is changed according to the timing at which the life detection signal or the abnormality detection signal is generated or the lamp replacement timing by the lamp replacement unit 204. For example, during the board inspection, the illumination monitoring unit 20
When an abnormality detection signal due to a cause such as the lamp 201 being cut off is generated from Step 3, the inspection is temporarily stopped, and the lamp replacement unit 204 replaces the lamp. Thereafter, when the inspection is restarted, the substrate being inspected is returned to the position before the inspection or to the cassette, and the inspection is performed again.
The life detection signal is generated when all of the boards stored in a predetermined number of cassettes (for example, 20 sheets) reach an allowable level range that can be safely inspected. Care is taken not to replace the lamp on the way. In this way, if the lamp life is detected during the board inspection, the inspection is continued as it is,
Upon completion of the inspection for at least one cassette, the lamp is automatically replaced. In this case, since the lamp life differs depending on various conditions such as the use condition and the use environment of the lamp, and the allowable level of the lamp life differs depending on the inspection standard of the production line, the allowable level of the lamp life can be set arbitrarily. Is preferable.

Next, the operation of the embodiment configured as described above will be described.

In this case, the operation according to the flowchart shown in FIG. 2 is performed. First, in step S0, the lamp 201 put in the illumination position for substrate inspection is turned on. Next, in step S1, the illumination monitoring unit 203
Monitor the current, light quantity, color temperature, lighting time, etc. of the lamp 201, and determine in step S2 whether the light quantity of the lamp 201 is below a predetermined value and the light quantity is insufficient. Here, if it is determined that the light amount is not insufficient, the process proceeds to step S3, and other abnormalities, for example, abnormalities such as the color temperature of the lamp 201 are determined. If no abnormality is detected here, the process proceeds to step S4, and it is determined whether the lighting time has reached a predetermined time as the lamp life. If the lamp life is not detected here, the process returns to step S1, and the above-described operation is performed periodically (for example, the substrate 1
Is repeated for each sheet or for each lot).

On the other hand, if it is determined in step S2 that the light amount of the lamp 201 is insufficient, the process proceeds to step S5, in which the illumination control device 3 controls the lamp voltage and the like so that the light amount of the lamp 201 satisfies the inspection condition. It is determined whether there is room for recovery above the value. And this step S
If it is determined in step S5 that there is room for light amount recovery, in step S6, the light amount of the lamp 201 is appropriately adjusted by the illumination control device 3, and the process returns to step S1. Step S
If it is determined in 5 that there is no room for light quantity recovery,
For example, when the lamp 201 is severely deteriorated and there is no room for light quantity recovery, or when it is determined that the lamp 201 is out, the process proceeds to step S7.

If it is determined in step S3 that the lamp is abnormal, for example, an abnormality such as the color temperature of the lamp 201, the process proceeds to step S7.

In step S7, the board inspection of the board under inspection is temporarily stopped according to the instruction from the central control unit 4, and in the next step S8, the lamp control unit 3 sends a lamp exchange instruction to the lamp exchange unit 204. Output. Upon receiving the lamp replacement instruction, the lamp replacement unit 204 replaces the lamp 201 to be replaced with the spare lamp 205 in the lamp buffer 206. Then, when the lamp replacement is completed, a lamp replacement end signal is output to the illumination control device 3.

Next, in step S9, the illumination control device 3
Instructs the lamp driving unit 202 to turn on a new lamp 201. Then, in step S10, confirmation of lamp lighting is performed. Here, if the lighting of the new lamp 201 cannot be confirmed, a signal indicating that the lamp replacement has failed is output to the central control device 4 and the process proceeds to step 11.

In step S11, an alarm is generated by the alarm device 6 via the illumination control device 3, and an error is displayed on the display unit 5. The error display in this case can specifically display which spare lamp 205 in the lamp buffer 206 corresponds to.
Then, the process returns to step S8, and again the lighting control device 3
The lamp replacement instruction is output to the lamp replacement unit 204, and the lamp 201 to be replaced is stored in the lamp buffer 20.
Replace with the spare lamp 205 in 6.

On the other hand, in step S10, a new lamp 2
If the lighting of 01 is confirmed, the process proceeds to step S12. In step S12, the suspended board inspection is restarted. In this case, the inspection is resumed and the board under inspection is returned to the position or cassette before the inspection and the inspection is performed again.

Next, in step S13, the remaining count value of the spare lamp 205 of the remaining counter 208 after the lamp replacement is sent to the illumination control device 3 and the central control device 4.
Then, the central controller 4 causes the display unit 5 to display the remaining number of the spare lamps 205 in the lamp buffer 206 based on the count value of the remaining number counter 208. A warning prompting replenishment is output to the alarm device 6. In this case, the display unit 5 may display the number of used lamps.

In step S14, it is determined whether the count value of the remaining number counter 208 has reached a predetermined value (for example, the remaining number is 1 or 0). Then, the remaining number counter 20
If the count value of 8 is a predetermined value, in step S15,
Until all the used lamps 207 are replaced with the spare lamps 205, the alarm device 6 continues to output a warning, and issues a maintenance instruction to the administrator. In this case, in consideration of the occurrence of an abnormal situation such as the order of the lamp or the burnout of the lamp, it is preferable to prepare at least two spare lamps 205 for replacement, and to always leave one spare lamp 205 after lamp replacement. When it is easy to arrange the spare lamp 205, one spare lamp for replacement is prepared, and the spare lamp 20 is replaced.
A warning may be issued when 5 runs out.

On the other hand, if the count value of the remaining number counter 208 is equal to or larger than the predetermined value, the process returns to step S1 to repeat the above operation.

On the other hand, in the lamp life inspection in step 4, if the lighting time reaches a predetermined time and the lamp life is detected in a state where there is no problem with the light amount, step S16 is performed.
Proceed to. In step S16, one cassette (one rod)
It is determined whether the inspection of the substrate has been completed. If the substrate inspection for one cassette has not been completed, step S
Returning to 1, the above operation is repeated. Then 1
When the substrate inspection for the cassette is completed, the process proceeds to step S17.

In step S17, while the cassette is replaced with the next cassette in accordance with the instruction of the central control unit 4, in the next step S18, the lamp control unit 3 outputs a lamp replacement instruction to the lamp replacement unit 204. Upon receiving the lamp replacement instruction, the lamp replacement unit 204 causes the lamp 20 to be replaced.
1 is replaced with a spare lamp 205 in the lamp buffer 206. Then, when the lamp replacement is completed, a lamp replacement end signal is output to the illumination control device 3. Lamp replacement can be performed without stopping the operation of the line.

Next, in step S19, the lighting control device 3
Instructs the lamp driving unit 202 to turn on a new lamp 201. Then, in step S20, confirmation of lamp lighting is performed. Here, if the lighting of the new lamp 201 cannot be confirmed, a signal indicating that the lamp replacement has failed is output to the central control device 4, and the process proceeds to step 11;
As described above, the alarm device 6 via the lighting control device 3
A more alarm is generated, and an error is displayed on the display unit 5. Then, returning to step S18, the lamp replacement instruction is again sent from the lighting control device 3 to the lamp replacement unit 20.
4, the lamp 201 to be replaced is replaced with the spare lamp 205 in the lamp buffer 206.

On the other hand, in step S20, a new lamp 2
If the lighting of 01 has been confirmed, the process proceeds to step S21. In step S21, the board inspection for the next cassette is restarted, and then the operation proceeds to step S13 and subsequent steps.

Accordingly, in this way, the state of the lamp 201 is constantly monitored by the illumination monitoring unit 203,
When the necessity of lamp replacement is determined, lamp replacement is performed automatically, so that board inspection is not continued with poor lighting conditions. High lighting can be secured.

When it is determined that the lamp light quantity is insufficient, if there is room for the light quantity of the lamp 201 to be restored to an appropriate light quantity by the light control by the illumination control device 3, the lamp 201
Is readjusted and the lamp 201 is continued to be used, so that there is no inconvenience of unnecessarily replacing a lamp that can still be used, which is economically advantageous.

Further, for a lamp abnormality such as a lamp burnout or a change in color temperature during the inspection, the sample inspection is temporarily stopped, the lamp is replaced, and then the sample inspection is restarted. At the same time, since the substrate under inspection is returned to the position before the inspection or to the cassette and the inspection is performed again, occurrence of inspection failure can be avoided, and a highly accurate substrate inspection can be performed.

Further, when the lamp life is detected, 1
It is possible to replace the lamp by using the time to replace the next cassette after completing the substrate inspection for the cassette, so that there is no need to stop the substrate inspection work and the production line unnecessarily, improving work efficiency. Can be achieved.

Further, the remaining number of the spare lamps 205 is displayed on the display unit 5, and when the remaining number of the spare lamps 205 reaches a predetermined value, a warning to that effect is issued to the alarm device 6. The inconvenience that the lamp 205 is cut off and cannot be replaced can be avoided, which can greatly contribute to stabilization of the board inspection.

In the above-described embodiment, the inspection apparatus for a liquid crystal substrate has been described as an object. However, a line manufacturing process such as an inspection apparatus for a semiconductor wafer, or a manufacturing operation in which an unmanned operation is performed for a long time and illumination is indispensable. Needless to say, the present invention can be applied to an apparatus, an inspection apparatus, or a measurement apparatus.

(2) Next, a second embodiment of the present invention will be described. The same parts as those in FIG. 6 are denoted by the same reference numerals, and detailed description thereof will be omitted.

FIG. 3 is a configuration diagram of an illumination light source device applied to a measuring device such as a measuring microscope and an inspection device. The lighting device 20 includes a plurality of (two in the illustrated example) light source units 21 and 2.
2 is provided. Each of the light source units 21 and 22 uses a lamp as a light source.

The light quantity control section 23 controls the quantity of illumination light emitted from the light source sections 21 and 22, respectively, and has a function of controlling the quantity of light by varying the power supply voltage supplied to the light source sections 21 and 22. Have.

The light transmission section 24 receives illumination light emitted from the light source sections 21 and 22 and emits the light from one optical path, and is made of, for example, an optical fiber. The light transmitting section 24 is a fiber section 26 in which an entrance 25 for receiving illumination light emitted from the light source section 21 is formed.
And a fiber section 28 in which an entrance 27 for receiving illumination light emitted from the second light source section 22 is formed, and these fiber sections 26 and 28 are integrated to make their respective optical paths common to each other. And a fiber section 30 in which two emission ports 29 are formed.

The beam splitter 12 that divides the optical path is disposed at the intersection of the optical path of the illumination light emitted from the light transmitting section 24 and the optical axis p of the measuring device and the inspection device. Further, a beam splitter 31 is arranged on the optical axis p from the beam splitter 12 to the image processing detector 15 side. The beam splitter 31 reflects a part of the reflected light from the substrate 14, and a photodetector 32 is disposed on the reflected light path.

The photodetector 32 has a function of entering a part of the reflected light from the substrate 14 via the beam splitter 31 and converting it into a voltage signal corresponding to the amount of incident light.

The light amount calculation judging section 33 of the illumination device 20
Receives a voltage signal output from the photodetector 32, compares the voltage signal with the optimal illumination light voltage previously input and stored from the computer 34, and determines that the voltage signal is lower than the optimal illumination light voltage. For example, it has a function of sending a command to increase the light source voltage to the light source control unit 23, and sending a command signal to lower the light source voltage to the light source control unit 23 if the voltage signal is higher than the optimum illumination light voltage.

Further, the light amount calculation judging section 33 includes a light detector 32.
Is compared with a voltage signal output from the light source unit and a pre-stored optimum illumination light amount voltage to adjust the light amount of the illumination light emitted from one of the light source units 21 and 22 to the optimum illumination light amount. If the illumination light amount cannot be adjusted to the optimum illumination light amount even if the execution is performed, that is, if it is determined that the use conditions of the light source unit 21 in use are no longer satisfied, it is determined that the light source unit 21 in use has reached the end of its life (or abnormal). And a spare light source unit 2
2 has a function of sending to the light source control unit 23 a command signal for turning off the light source unit 21 that has been determined to be end of life.

The light quantity calculation judging section 33 has a function of sending the judgment result to the exchange notifying section 35 when judging that the used light source section 21 or 22 has reached the end of its life.

The exchange notifying section 35 includes a light amount calculation judging section 3
It has a function of receiving the determination result of No. 3 and notifying by turning on a warning lamp such as an LED, for example. In addition, the method of notifying the light source unit 21 or 22 that has reached the end of its life is not limited to the turning on of the warning lamp, but may be notified by sound or by both the warning lamp and sound.

Next, the operation of the embodiment configured as described above will be described with reference to the light source replacement flowchart shown in FIG.

First, in step # 1, the light source control unit 23 supplies a light source voltage to only one of the light source units 21 to perform a lighting operation. The illuminating light emitted from the light source unit 21 in use enters from the entrance 25 of the light transmitter 24, is transmitted into the light transmitter 24, and is emitted from the exit 29. Then, the illumination light enters the beam splitter 12, is reflected by the beam splitter 12, and is
3 irradiates the substrate 14.

The illumination light reflected on the substrate 14 passes through the beam splitter 12 and the beam splitter 31 from the objective lens 13 as measurement light,
Optical axis p of beam splitter 12 and beam splitter 31
The light enters the image processing detector 15 disposed above. The image processing detector 15 converts the incident measurement light into an electric signal, performs an arithmetic process, and measures the shape of the substrate 14.

At the same time, part of the illumination light reflected on the substrate 14 is reflected by the beam splitter 31 and enters the photodetector 32.

The photodetector 32 performs photoelectric conversion into a voltage signal corresponding to the amount of incident light in step # 2, and sends the voltage signal to the light amount calculation determination unit 33.

The light amount calculation determination section 33 determines in step # 3
, A voltage signal output from the photodetector 32 is input, and this voltage signal is compared with a previously stored optimal illumination light amount voltage. As a result of this comparison, if the voltage signal substantially matches the optimal illumination light amount voltage, the light amount calculation determination unit 33
Returns to step # 1.

However, as a result of the above comparison, the photodetector 32
If the voltage signal output from is lower or higher than the optimum illumination light amount voltage, the light amount calculation determination unit 33 proceeds to step # 4.
The command signal is sent to the light source control unit 23 so that the voltage signal output from the photodetector 32 substantially matches the optimum illumination light voltage. That is, the light amount calculation determination unit 33 sends a command to increase the light source voltage to the light source control unit 23 if the voltage signal is lower than the optimum illumination light amount voltage, and lowers the light source voltage if the voltage signal is higher than the optimum illumination light amount voltage. Is transmitted to the light source control unit 23.

The light source control unit 23 receives a command signal from the light amount calculation determination unit 33 and controls the light source voltage supplied to the first light source unit 21 in step # 5. Thereby, the amount of illumination light emitted from the first light source unit 21 is adjusted to an optimal amount of illumination light for performing measurement and inspection of the substrate 14.

Such adjustment of the amount of illumination light is performed, for example, when measurement and inspection are performed on a plurality of substrates 14 having different reflectivities, each time these substrates 14 are exchanged. Is adjusted to the optimal illumination light amount.

However, in step # 3, the light amount calculation / determination unit 33 compares the voltage signal output from the photodetector 32 with the optimal illumination light amount voltage stored in advance to determine whether the light source unit 21 is in use. The light amount of the emitted illumination light is adjusted to the optimum illumination light amount. If the adjustment operation does not result in the optimum illumination light amount, that is, if the use condition of the light source unit 21 in use is not satisfied, the process proceeds to step #. 6, it is determined that the first light source unit 21 has reached the end of its life, and in the next step # 7, a command signal for turning on the spare light source unit 22 and a command signal for turning off the light source unit 21 in use are transmitted to the light source. It is sent to the control unit 23.

Thus, in step # 8, the light source control unit 23 supplies the light source voltage to the spare light source unit 22 to turn on the light source unit 22, and then turns off the light source unit 21 determined to have reached the end of its life. The illumination light emitted from the light source unit 22 enters the entrance 27 of the light transmitter 24, exits from the exit 29, is reflected by the beam splitter 12, and is reflected by the objective lens 13.
Irradiates the substrate 14.

When the light amount calculation determining section 33 determines in step # 9 that the used light source section 21 has reached the end of life in step # 9 together with the execution of step # 7, the determination result is sent to the exchange notifying section 35. .

In step # 10, the exchange notification unit 35 receives the determination result of the light amount calculation determination unit 33, turns on the warning lamp corresponding to the light source unit 21 which has reached the end of its life, notifies the warning lamp by sound, or notifies the lamp by sound. Notify by both.

Therefore, in such an apparatus, the illumination light emitted by turning on one of the plurality of light sources 21 and 22 is mounted on the measuring device and the inspection device through the light transmitter 24. The light is irradiated onto the substrate 14, the reflected light from the substrate 14 is detected by the photodetector 32, and the light source unit 21 or 22 in use which no longer satisfies the use conditions is turned off based on the detected light amount, Spare normal light source unit 22 or 2
Since 1 is turned on, it can be determined whether or not the light source unit 21 or 22 in use has reached the end of its life due to deterioration with time.
It is possible to always maintain an optimal lighting condition and to secure highly reliable lighting.

Thus, the light source unit 21 or 22 in use is
Even if the light quantity decreases due to the life of the light source, it is necessary to adjust the light quantity to maintain the optimal lighting condition necessary for measurement and inspection, and to replace the light source part that has been judged to be dead or abnormal with a spare normal light source part. Also without affecting the measurement and inspection without stopping the production line.

Note that in the second embodiment,
As the light transmitting means, for example, an optical transmitter 24 made of an optical fiber is used. However, the present invention is not limited to this. For example, a beam splitter 36 is disposed on the optical path of the illumination light emitted from the first light source unit 21 as shown in FIG. Then, a mirror 37 is arranged on the optical path of the illumination light emitted from the second light source unit 22, and the respective reflection optical paths of the beam splitter 36 and the mirror 37 are made to coincide with each other so that the illumination light enters the beam splitter 12. It may be.

In the second embodiment, 2
Although the case where a plurality of light source units are used has been described, a plurality of light source units such as three or four light source units may be provided. In this case, for example, the optical transmitter 24 composed of an optical fiber is composed of an optical fiber formed with a plurality of entrances for receiving light emitted from a plurality of light source units and one exit for emitting the respective light. Becomes

The present invention is not limited to the above-described first and second embodiments, and can be variously modified in the implementation stage without departing from the gist of the invention.

Further, the above embodiments include inventions at various stages, and various inventions can be extracted by appropriately combining a plurality of disclosed constituent requirements. For example, even if some components are deleted from all the components shown in the embodiment, the problem described in the column of the problem to be solved by the invention can be solved, and the problem described in the column of the effect of the invention can be solved. In the case where the effect is obtained, a configuration from which this configuration requirement is deleted can be extracted as an invention.

[0080]

As described above, according to the present invention, when the lamp in use no longer satisfies the predetermined operating conditions, the lamp can be promptly replaced with a spare lamp, so that a highly reliable illumination is always ensured. Can be. Further, the remaining number of the spare lamps is displayed, and a warning can be issued when the remaining number of the spare lamps reaches a predetermined value. Therefore, it is possible to avoid such a problem that the spare lamps are cut off and cannot be replaced.

Further, according to the present invention, even when the light source unit has a life due to aging deterioration, the optimum illumination state is always maintained, and the measurement and inspection can be performed without stopping the production line even when replacing the light source unit. Highly reliable lighting can be ensured without any influence.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic configuration diagram showing a first embodiment of an illumination light source device according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a flowchart illustrating an operation of the illumination light source device according to the first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a configuration diagram showing a second embodiment of the illumination light source device according to the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a flowchart illustrating an operation of the illumination light source device according to the second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a view showing a modification of the light transmitting means in the illumination light source device according to the second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a configuration diagram of a conventional illumination light source device.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1: apparatus main body 2: lighting unit 3: lighting control unit 4: central control unit 5: display unit 6: alarm device 201: lamp 203: lighting monitoring unit 204: lamp replacement unit 205: spare lamp 206: lamp buffer 207: use Completed lamp 208: Remaining number counter 12: Beam splitter 13: Objective lens 14: Substrate 15: Image processing detector 17: XY stage 20: Illumination device 21: Light source unit 22: Light source unit 23: Light amount control unit 24: Light transmission unit 26, 28, 30: fiber section 27: entrance port 29: exit port 31: beam splitter 32: photodetector 33: light quantity calculation determination section 34: computer 35: exchange notification section

 ────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continued on the front page F term (reference) 3K073 AA37 AA85 AA86 AA87 AB04 BA09 BA26 BA32 BA36 CD01 CD03 CE15 CF13 CF14 CF16 CG02 CG06 CG21 CJ01 CJ12 CJ22

Claims (7)

[Claims] 1. A lamp for illuminating an object to be illuminated and at least one or more spare lamps, and a lighting state of the lamp for illuminating the object to be illuminated is monitored. A lamp monitoring means for detecting that the lamp has run out; and a lamp replacement means for automatically replacing the spare lamp by detecting that the use condition of the lamp is no longer satisfied by the lamp monitoring means. Illumination light source device. 2. A light amount control means for controlling a light amount of the lamp, wherein the light amount control means detects that the light amount of the lamp has fallen below a predetermined position as a use condition of the lamp. 2. The illumination light source device according to claim 1, wherein the light amount of the lamp can be readjusted to an appropriate light amount. 3. The illumination light source device according to claim 1, wherein a plurality of the spare lamps are prepared and display means for displaying the remaining number of the spare lamps is provided. 4. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein a plurality of the spare lamps are prepared, and a warning means for issuing a warning when the remaining number of the spare lamps reaches a predetermined value is provided.
The illumination light source device according to claim 1. 5. The illumination light source device according to claim 1, wherein the lamp replacement unit turns on the spare lamp before turning off the lamp that no longer satisfies the use condition. 6. The lamp exchanging means includes: a plurality of the lamps; light transmitting means for receiving light emitted from each of the lamps and emitting the light from one optical path; Light detecting means for detecting reflected light; and light source calculation determining means for turning off the lamps that no longer satisfy the use conditions and lighting the spare lamp based on the amount of light detected by the light detecting means. The illumination light source device according to claim 1, wherein: 7. The light source calculation judging means, when adjusting the light amount emitted from the lamp based on the light amount detected by the light detecting means, no longer satisfies the use condition. 7. The illumination light source device according to claim 6, wherein the spare lamp is turned on before turning off the lamp that is no longer full.