JP2013043194A - Laser beam machining system and method of manufacturing solar panel - Google Patents

Abstract

An object of the present invention is to efficiently remove machining debris generated during machining by controlling the flow of airflow in the vicinity of laser machining.
A laser processing apparatus performs predetermined processing on a workpiece by irradiating the workpiece while moving a laser beam relative to the workpiece. The temperature-controlled room is provided so as to cover the processing area of the laser processing apparatus. The temperature-controlled room includes an air supply unit that supplies constant-temperature air from the upper side toward the lower processing area, and an air exhaust unit that exhausts air from the processing area side to the outside of the temperature-controlled room. A constant temperature chamber is provided to cover the processing area, and constant temperature air is made to flow from the top to the bottom to bring the constant temperature air into contact with the workpiece surface, and the machining debris can be efficiently removed by the lateral flow from the workpiece surface. It was made to remove from the surface.
[Selection] Figure 5

Description

  The present invention relates to a laser processing system and a solar panel manufacturing method for processing a thin film on a substrate using a laser beam, and more particularly to a laser processing system and a solar panel capable of efficiently removing debris generated during laser processing. It relates to a manufacturing method.

Conventionally, in a solar panel manufacturing process, a transparent electrode layer, a semiconductor layer, and a metal layer are sequentially formed on a translucent substrate (glass substrate), and each layer is processed into a strip shape with laser light in each step after the formation. A solar panel module has been completed. When manufacturing a solar panel module in this manner, scribe lines are formed on a thin film on a glass substrate with laser light at a pitch of about 10 mm, for example. The scribe line has a line width of about 30 μm, and is composed of three lines such that the distance between the lines is about 30 μm. When forming a scribe line with a laser beam, the laser beam is usually irradiated onto a glass substrate that moves at a constant speed. As a result, it was possible to form a scribe line having a stable depth and line width.
On the other hand, when laser processing is performed, it is known that processing debris such as droplets and processing residues that are re-solidified after the thin film material that is to be processed melts or evaporates, or scatters as a solid is generated. Therefore, conventionally, a dust collector is provided in the vicinity of the processing portion for the purpose of removing such processing debris during laser processing. As described above, a dust collector as described in Patent Document 1 is known.

JP 2004-1114075 A Japanese Patent No. 4231538

  The laser processing apparatus described in Patent Document 1 is configured to supply the gas supplied from the gas supply unit to the dust collecting unit from the intake port, and exhaust the gas through the exhaust port by the exhaust operation of the exhaust unit. . This dust collector creates a gas flow from the intake port to the exhaust port inside the dust collection unit, and draws the processed debris near the processing unit into the dust collection unit. Are discharged from. The laser processing apparatus described in Patent Document 2 is provided with a blow nozzle that blows gas obliquely upward from below the substrate, on both sides of the dust collection nozzle, and efficiently collects dust generated during processing. It suppresses scattering and reattachment to the work surface. However, the laser processing apparatus described in Patent Document 1 or 2 appropriately adjusts the flow rate of the gas blown or exhausted from the intake port of the inert gas supply unit to the processing unit according to the mode of laser processing. However, it is not possible to adjust the angle of the inert gas blown to the processing part, and the opening area of the slit part blown from the gas supply means or the blowing nozzle is fixed. The effect of removing debris is relatively low, and there is a part that cannot control the overall air flow near the laser processing, so the temperature unevenness that occurs in the optical system and atmosphere in this part. There is a problem that the laser processing becomes unstable due to the difference in the beam intensity distribution at the focal plane of the laser beam due to the refraction of the laser beam and the thermal lens effect caused by the laser beam. It was.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above points, and a laser processing system and a solar panel manufacturing method capable of efficiently removing processing debris generated during processing by controlling the flow of airflow in the vicinity of laser processing The purpose is to provide.

  A first feature of the laser processing system according to the present invention is that laser processing means for performing predetermined processing on the work by irradiating the work while moving the laser beam relatively to the work, and the laser processing means in the laser processing means. A temperature-controlled room means provided so as to cover a processing area where predetermined processing is performed by laser light irradiation, and a constant temperature so as to go from at least above the temperature-controlled room means to the processing area in the temperature-controlled room means below. There is provided an air supply means for supplying air and an air exhaust means for exhausting the constant temperature air in the temperature-controlled room means from the processing area to the outside of the temperature-controlled room means. This is because a constant temperature means is provided so as to cover the processing area, and constant temperature air is made to flow from the upper side to the lower side to bring the constant temperature air into contact with the workpiece surface. It is intended to be removed from the workpiece surface.

  According to a second aspect of the laser processing system of the present invention, in the laser processing system according to the first feature, the air supply means includes supply duct means provided at a plurality of locations on the upper surface of the temperature-controlled room means. The plurality of supply duct means are selected corresponding to the movement of the processing area and the constant temperature air is supplied to the processing area in the constant temperature room means. In this case, a plurality of supply duct means for supplying constant temperature air in accordance with movement of the processing area can be selected as appropriate, and constant temperature air can be efficiently supplied to the processing area.

  According to a third aspect of the laser processing system of the present invention, in the laser processing system according to the first or second feature, an air purge / residue suction unit for air purging / suctioning residue generated from the processing area of the workpiece is provided. Be prepared. The processing of the second scribe line P2 and the third scribe line P3 by the laser light is performed by irradiating the laser light substantially perpendicularly on the work surface to process the thin film on the back side of the work. When the second scribe line P2 and the third scribe line P3 are processed, a processing residue is generated from the processing portion from the thin film surface, so that the processing surface does not reattach to the film surface (the work surface back side). The air is purged and the residue is removed by suction.

  According to a fourth aspect of the laser processing system of the present invention, in the laser processing system according to the first, second, or third feature, the laser processing means includes a plurality of branching means including a half mirror and a reflection mirror. The object is to irradiate the workpiece with a plurality of laser beams branched into laser beams. In this method, the laser beam is split into four or eight branches by a branching means including a half mirror and a reflection mirror so that laser processing can be performed efficiently.

  A fifth feature of the laser processing system according to the present invention is that, in the laser processing system according to the fourth feature, the air purge / residue suction means is provided for each of the plurality of laser beams. This is because the residue (debris) can be efficiently removed by providing an air purge / residue suction means for each laser beam branched by the branching means.

  According to a sixth aspect of the laser processing system of the present invention, in the laser processing system according to any one of the first to fifth features, the surface of the workpiece is processed when a predetermined processing is performed on the workpiece. A first air knife means for purging dust or the like on the surface of the workpiece by blowing air onto a location is provided. This is because air knife means is provided in the vicinity of the workpiece that moves relatively during laser processing, and air is blown onto the surface of the workpiece during the laser processing to purge dust and the like on the workpiece surface, thereby efficiently removing the dust and the like. It is what I did. The air knife means may be an air ejection nozzle.

  According to a seventh feature of the laser processing system of the present invention, in the laser processing system according to the sixth feature, when the work is transported to the processing area, air is blown onto the surface of the work. A second air knife means for purging dust on the surface is provided. In this method, air is blown from the air knife means when the work is carried into the laser processing position, and dust or the like adhering to the work surface is purged to efficiently remove the dust or the like.

  An eighth feature of the laser processing system according to the present invention is the laser processing system according to any one of the first feature to the seventh feature, wherein the laser processing means holds the workpiece on both sides. Is moved to the preparation position of the processing place by the laser beam while air is levitated, and is moved relatively while the air is levitated in a state where the workpiece is held, and the laser beam is irradiated to the workpiece to perform predetermined laser processing The workpiece subjected to the laser processing is moved to the discharge preparation position while being air-lifted and carried out.

  A ninth feature of the laser processing system according to the present invention is the laser processing system according to any one of the first to eighth features, wherein the laser processing is performed in the second and subsequent processing by the laser light. The laser processing is performed following the shape change portion of the formed glass substrate. This is because the scribe line formed by the second and subsequent laser processing is performed by performing the copying while detecting the shape change portion (scribe line P1) formed on the workpiece by the first laser processing by a method such as tracking. The intervals between P2 and P3 can always be constant with the scribe line P1, and the plurality of processing lines do not overlap and intersect with each other, so that optimum laser processing can be performed.

  The solar panel manufacturing method according to the present invention is characterized in that a solar panel is manufactured using the laser processing system according to any one of the first to ninth characteristics. This is a solar panel manufactured using any one of the laser processing systems.

  According to the present invention, there is an effect that machining debris generated during machining can be efficiently removed by controlling the flow of airflow in the vicinity of laser machining.

It is a figure which shows schematic structure of the laser processing system which concerns on one embodiment of this invention. It is a figure which shows an example of the gripper part of an air grip system employ | adopted by this invention, and is the side view which looked at the gripper part of FIG. 1 from the process area part side. It is a perspective view which shows the relationship between the glass substrate hold | maintained at the gripper part of FIG. 2 with the air floating stage of a laser processing station. It is the figure which expanded and showed a part (part enclosed with the dotted-line circle | round | yen of FIG. 3) of the gripper part. It is the external appearance perspective view which looked at the process area part and alignment part of FIG. 1 which process a scribe line from diagonally upward. It is the perspective view which abbreviate | omitted the temperature-controlled room and the duct from FIG. 5, and showed the detailed structure of the process area part and the alignment part. It is a figure which shows the detailed structure of the optical system member of FIG. It is sectional drawing which shows the detailed structure of the drive mechanism for focus adjustments of FIG. It is the perspective view which extracted and showed a part of drive mechanism for focus adjustment. It is a schematic diagram which shows the structure of an alignment camera apparatus, a 1st detection optical system member, a 2nd detection optical system member, and the structure of the air purge means of a substrate surface. It is a figure which shows an example in case a process line is bent and formed by distortion and twist (swelling etc.) of the glass substrate which is a workpiece | work. It is a figure which shows typically the insulator of the airflow in the temperature-controlled room of FIG. It is a block diagram which shows the detail of a process of the control apparatus of FIG. It is a figure which shows an example of operation | movement of the pulse missing determination means of FIG. It is a figure which shows an example of the waveform output from the high-speed photodiode of FIG. It is a figure which shows an example of operation | movement of the process line detection means of FIG. It is a figure which shows an example of the system which tracks the process line P1 by a 3 division | segmentation spot using a grating. It is a figure which shows an example of the board | substrate detection camera system provided in the alignment part of FIG. It is a figure which shows another Example of the solar panel manufacturing apparatus which concerns on this invention. It is the side view which looked at the process area part of FIG. 19 from the horizontal direction. It is a figure which shows schematic structure of an air purge and a residue suction part. It is a flowchart figure which shows an example of operation | movement of the solar panel manufacturing system using the laser processing system which concerns on one embodiment of this invention.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a schematic configuration of a laser processing system according to an embodiment of the present invention. This laser processing system performs a laser beam processing (laser scribing) process of a solar panel manufacturing apparatus. In the laser processing system according to the present invention, alignment portions for performing the alignment processing are provided at two positions on both sides of the laser processing station, and the alignment processing is performed simultaneously during the laser processing processing. In addition, the large substrate can be moved at high speed, and the flow of air near the laser processing is controlled to efficiently remove processing debris generated during processing. In other words, the scribe line can be processed.

  The solar panel (photoelectric conversion device) manufacturing apparatus using the laser processing system according to the embodiment of the present invention shown in FIG. 1 employs a return method. This solar panel manufacturing apparatus includes a carry-in / out robot station 141 and a laser processing station 101. The roller conveyor 121 sequentially conveys the glass substrates 1x to 1z between a film forming apparatus (not shown) and a manufacturing apparatus that performs laser scribing processing. The carry-in / out robot station 141 carries in and temporarily holds the glass substrate 1x formed by the previous film forming apparatus (not shown) conveyed on the roller conveyor 121 as a glass substrate 1m, and the glass substrate. A front / back reversing mechanism 143 that reverses the front and back of 1 m is provided so that the contents of laser processing (scribe line P1 processing, P2 processing or P3 processing) and the glass substrate 1m bend downward (warp). The glass substrate 1m is turned upside down and conveyed to the laser processing station 101.

  At this time, the loading / unloading robot station 141 transports the glass substrate 1m that has been turned upside down or not turned upside down to the laser processing station 101 as well as the glass substrate 1m that has been turned upside down or not turned upside down. The roller is conveyed to the right end position of 101 and then conveyed to the laser processing station 101. The loading / unloading robot station 141 directly receives the glass substrate processed by the laser processing station 101 by the front / back reversing mechanism unit 143 or receives the glass substrate 1r received at the right end position of the laser processing station 101 up to the front / back reversing mechanism unit 143. The glass substrate after the roller processing or air levitation conveyance and laser processing by the front / back reversing mechanism unit 143 is carried out to the roller conveyor 121 with the front / back reversed or the front / back reversed.

  The laser processing station 101 forms scribe lines on the thin film on the glass substrate carried in from the carry-in / out robot station 141, and includes alignment units 102 and 104, gripper units 106 to 109, gripper support drive units 110 and 111, A processing area 112 is provided. The alignment unit 102 receives the glass substrate 1m on the front / back reversing mechanism unit 143 of the carry-in / out robot station 141, aligns the received glass substrate 1n to a predetermined position, and performs a scribing process in the processing area unit 112. The glass substrate 1n is carried out to the front / back reversing mechanism unit 143 of the carry-in / out robot station 141. On the other hand, the alignment unit 104 receives a glass substrate 1r that is a glass substrate that has been turned upside down or not turned upside down by the front / back reversing mechanism unit 143 of the carry-in / out robot station 141 and that has been conveyed by roller or air floating up to the right end. The received glass substrate is aligned at a predetermined position, and the glass substrate 1 q that has been subjected to the scribing process in the processing area unit 112 is carried out to the right end position of the loading / unloading robot station 141.

  The gripper unit 106 holds one side of the side along the transport direction of the glass substrate 1o aligned by the alignment unit 102 (the lower side of the glass substrate 1o in FIG. B), and the gripper unit 107 holds the same glass substrate 1o. The other side of the side along the transport direction (the upper side of the glass substrate 1o in FIG. B) is held. The gripper unit 108 holds one side (the lower side of the glass substrate 1q in FIG. B) along the conveyance direction of the glass substrate 1q aligned by the alignment unit 104, and the gripper unit 107 has the same glass substrate 1q. The other side of the side along the conveying direction (the upper side of the glass substrate 1q in FIG. B) is held. The gripper support driving units 110 and 111 synchronize the glass substrates 1o and 1q held by the gripper units 106 and 107 or the gripper units 108 and 109 with the laser light of the processing area unit 112, and It is moved between the dotted glass substrate 1p. In synchronism with this movement, the processing area portion 112 irradiates the glass substrates 1o and 1q held by the gripper portions 106 and 107 or the gripper portions 108 and 109 and air-carrying and irradiating them with laser light to process predetermined scribe lines. I do. FIG. B shows a state in which a predetermined scribe line processing is performed while moving the glass substrate 1o held by the grippers 106 and 107 in a state where the glass substrate 1p is floated to the position of the glass substrate 1p indicated by a dotted line. .

  FIG. 2 is a view showing an example of an air grip type gripper portion employed in the present invention, and is a side view of the gripper portions 106 and 107 of FIG. 1 as viewed from the processing area portion 112 side. 3 is a perspective view showing the relationship between the glass substrate held by the grippers 106 and 107 in FIG. 2 and the air floating stage 101a of the laser processing station 101. As shown in FIG. 4 is an enlarged view of a part of the gripper unit 107 (a portion surrounded by a dotted circle in FIG. 3). 2 to 4, the illustration of the configuration other than the portion related to the gripper portion is omitted.

  The gripper unit 106 includes a gripping (clamping) plate unit 1061, an air cylinder unit 1062, a gripper body unit 1063, and a guide rail unit 1064. The gripping (clamping) plate unit 1061 presses the glass substrate 1o toward the upper surface (downward (−Z) direction in the drawing) of the gripper main body unit 1063 and holds (holds) the glass substrate 1o. In the gripping (clamping) plate portion 1061, a resin coating is applied to a portion that comes into contact with the glass substrate 1o. As a result, the glass substrate 1o is held (held) and fixed to the gripper portion 106. The guide groove provided on the lower side of the gripper main body portion 1063 is movable along the guide rail portion 1064, and a drive system by a linear motor is configured between the gripper main body portion 1063 and the guide rail portion 1064. Yes. Accordingly, the gripper main body 1063 is driven and controlled along the guide rail 1064.

  The gripper portion 107 includes an air plate portion 1071, an air plate support portion 1072, a gripper main body portion 1073, and a guide rail portion 1074. The air plate portion 1071 includes a plurality of air outlets for ejecting air from the glass substrate 1o toward the upper surface of the gripper body portion 1073 (downward (-Z) direction in the figure). The air plate portion 1071 is ejected from the air outlet. The glass substrate 1o is pressed against the upper surface of the gripper main body 1073 and held (held) by an air jet having a flow as indicated by a downward arrow in FIG. The gap between the air plate portion 1071 and the glass substrate 1o is about 0.05 to 0.2 [mm]. The air plate support portion 1072 functions to supply air to the air plate portion 1071 and to maintain a gap between the air plate portion 1071 and the glass substrate 1o at a predetermined value. Note that the air plate support portion 1072 may be configured by the air cylinder portion 1062, and may be held by being pressed to a predetermined pressure by the air cylinder portion 1062 while jetting air from the air plate portion 1071. In addition, what is necessary is just to change and set suitably about the magnitude | size and number of air blowing openings according to the magnitude | size of the glass substrate 1o, etc. FIG. Since the air plate portion 1071 may also come into contact with the glass substrate 1o, it is desirable to apply a resin coating to that portion. A guide groove provided on the lower side of the gripper main body 1073 is movable along the guide rail 1074, and a linear motor drive system is configured between the gripper main body 1073 and the guide rail 1074. Also good. The guide groove of the gripper portion 107 and the guide rail portion 1074 may be slidable, and a driven structure that can move freely according to the driving force of the gripper portion 106 may be used.

  An example of the operation of the return type solar panel manufacturing apparatus of FIG. 1 will be described. First, the glass substrate 1x transported from the film forming apparatus of the previous stage via the roller conveyor 121 is temporarily held as a glass substrate 1m on the front / back reversing mechanism unit 143 by the carry-in / out robot station 141, where the front / back is reversed. Or reversed. The glass substrate 1m that has been turned upside down or display-inverted is temporarily held as a glass substrate 1n in the laser processing station 101, conveyed to the alignment unit 102, and subjected to alignment processing there. The glass substrate 1o that has been subjected to the alignment processing is held by the gripper portions 106 and 107, and is moved to the air as the glass substrates 1o and 1p in the processing area portion 112, and processing of a predetermined scribe line is performed. On the other hand, at the time of alignment processing of the alignment unit 102 and processing of the processing area unit 112, the next glass substrate 1 y conveyed via the roller conveyor 121 is placed on the front / back reversing mechanism unit 143 by the loading / unloading robot station 141. It is temporarily held as the substrate 1m, and is turned upside down or not turned upside down. The glass substrate 1m that has been turned upside down or not turned upside down is conveyed as a glass substrate 1r to a right end position corresponding to the alignment unit 104 of the laser processing station 101. The glass substrate 1r is temporarily held as the glass substrate 1q in the laser processing station 101, held in the grippers 108 and 109, and waits until the processing of the glass substrates 1o and 1p is completed.

  When the laser processing for the glass substrates 1o and 1p held by the grippers 106 and 107 is finished, the glass substrate 1o held by the grippers 106 and 107 is moved from the position of the glass substrate 1n via the alignment unit 102. It is temporarily held as a glass substrate 1m on the front / back reversing mechanism 143, and is transported onto the roller conveyor 121 in order to be transported to the next-stage film forming apparatus without being reversed front / back. On the other hand, when the glass substrate 1o held by the grippers 106 and 107 floats on the alignment unit 102 as the glass substrate 1n, the glass substrate 1q held by the grippers 108 and 109 is transferred to the alignment unit 104. Then, the alignment process is performed, and the glass substrates 1o and 1p are air-lifted and moved to the processing area portion 112, and a predetermined scribe line processing process is performed. As described above, in the return type solar panel manufacturing apparatus of FIG. 1, the above-described processing is alternately repeated to significantly reduce the waiting time or the like due to the alignment processing. Further, even if any one of the alignment units fails, the process can be continued by the other alignment unit.

  FIG. 5 is an external perspective view of the processing area portion and the alignment portion of FIG. As shown in FIG. 5, the processing area portion 112 is entirely covered with a temperature-controlled room 1121 and is housed therein. A constant temperature air supply duct 1122 to 1124 for supplying constant temperature air into the constant temperature chamber 1121 is attached to the upper portion of the constant temperature chamber 1121. Three constant temperature air supply ducts 1122 to 1124 are provided along the Y direction of the processing area portion 112. This is to form a uniform air flow from the upper side to the lower side in any region in the Y direction of the processing area portion 112. In addition, this number is an example and it cannot be overemphasized that there may be more than three. Further, an appropriate constant temperature air supply duct may be selected from a plurality in association with the processing area. Two exhaust ducts 1125 and 1126 are provided in the vicinity of the processing area where laser processing is actually performed and on the lower side of the left and right lateral surfaces of the temperature-controlled room 1121. In FIG. 5, the exhaust duct on the back side of the drawing is not denoted by reference numerals. The constant temperature air supplied from the constant temperature air supply ducts 1122 to 1124 is regularly exhausted from the exhaust ducts 1125 and 1126 on the lower side of the lateral surface while moving from the upper side to the lower side in the constant temperature chamber 1121. The exhaust duct may be provided on the lower surface side of the temperature-controlled room 1121 in association with the temperature-controlled air supply ducts 1122 to 1124. At that time, the exhaust duct may be selected in association with the constant temperature air supply duct for supplying constant temperature air.

  FIG. 6 is a perspective view showing a detailed configuration of the processing area portion and the alignment portion, omitting the temperature-controlled room and the duct from FIG. The processing area portion 112 is configured by the X-axis driving means 20, the gripper portions 106 and 107, the laser generator 40, the optical system member 50, the linear encoder 70, the control device 80, the detection optical system member, and the like. The alignment unit 104 includes alignment frames 1041 and 1042, substrate detection cameras 65 to 68, positioning pins (not shown), and the like.

  The X-axis drive means 20 is provided on the base 10 and controls movement of the gripper portions 106 and 107 (not shown gripper portions 108 and 109) in the X direction. The X-axis drive means 20 uses a ball screw, a linear motor or the like, but these are not shown. On the upper side of the X-axis driving means 20, the glass substrate 1 to be laser processed is held by gripper portions 106 and 107. On the pedestal 10, the slide frame 30 that slides in the Y-axis direction while holding the optical system member 50 and the alignment frames 1041 and 1042 that slide-drive in the Y-axis direction while holding the substrate detection cameras 65 to 68. Is provided. The X-axis drive unit 20 may be configured to be rotatable in the θ direction about the Z axis as a rotation axis. Note that if the slide frame 30 can sufficiently secure the amount of movement in the Y-axis direction, the X-axis drive unit 20 may be configured to only move in the X-axis direction. In this case, the X-axis drive means 20 may be configured as an X-axis table.

  The slide frame 30 is attached to a movable table provided at four corners on the base 10. The slide frame 30 is controlled to move in the Y direction by this moving table. A vibration isolation member (not shown) is provided between the base plate 31 and the moving table. On the base plate 31 of the slide frame 30, a laser generator 40, various optical system components and optical system members 50, and a control device 80 are installed. The optical system member 50 is configured by a combination of a mirror and a lens, and laser light generated by the laser generator 40 is introduced into the optical system member 50 by various optical systems. The optical system member 50 divides the introduced laser beam into four lines and guides it onto the glass substrate 1 on the X-axis driving means 20. Note that the number of divisions of the laser light is not limited to four, but may be two or more.

  The linear encoder 70 includes a scale member provided on the side surface of the X-axis moving table of the X-axis driving unit 20 and a detection unit (not shown) attached to the gripper units 106 and 107. The detection signal of the linear encoder 70 is output to the control device 80. The control device 80 detects the moving speed (moving frequency) of the gripper units 106 and 107 in the X-axis direction based on the detection signal from the linear encoder 70, and controls the output (laser frequency) of the laser generator 40.

  The optical system member 50 is provided on the side surface of the base plate 31 as illustrated, and is configured to move in the Y-axis direction along the side surface of the base plate 31. The tip of the optical system member 50 is rotatable around the Z axis. A galvanometer mirror 33 for guiding laser light emitted from the laser generator 40 to the optical system member 50 is provided on the base plate 31. The galvanometer mirror 33 uses two motors (rotary encoders) to scan the XZ two-dimensional area with laser light. The galvanometer mirror 33 is constituted by a two-axis type (X, Z), and is constituted by two motors and a mirror attached to the motor. The galvano control device 331 includes a driver and a power source for moving the motor, a microcomputer for controlling them, and the like.

  The mirrors 34 and 35 are provided on the optical system member 50 and are interlocked with the slide movement of the optical system member 50. The laser light emitted from the laser generator 40 is reflected toward the mirror 34 by the galvano mirror 33, and the laser light toward the mirror 34 is reflected toward the mirror 35 by the mirror 34. The mirror 35 guides the reflected laser light from the mirror 34 into the optical system member 50 through a through hole provided in the base plate 31. The laser beam emitted from the laser generator 40 may have any configuration as long as the laser beam is configured to be introduced into the optical system member 50 from the upper side through the through hole provided in the base plate 31. There may be. For example, the laser generator 40 may be provided on the upper side of the through hole, and the laser beam may be directly guided to the optical system member 50 through the through hole.

  The beam sampler 332 is provided on the optical system member 50 between the galvanometer mirror 33 and the reflection mirror 34 so as to move along with the sliding movement of the optical system member 50. The beam sampler 332 is an element that samples a part of the laser beam (for example, about 10% of the laser beam or less) and branches and outputs it to the outside. The quadrant photodiode 333 is arranged so as to receive a part of the laser beam (sampling beam) branched by the beam sampler 332 in the vicinity of the center of the light receiving surface. Four types of output signals corresponding to the intensity of the laser light detected by the quadrant photodiode 333 are output to the galvano control device 331. The galvano control device 331 controls the two motors 33xy and 33yz of the galvano mirror 33 in real time according to the four types of output signals from the four-division photodiode 333. The motor 33xy controls the reflected laser beam of the galvanometer mirror 33 to rotate in a plane parallel to the upper surface (XY plane) of the base plate 31, and the motor 33zy controls the reflected laser beam of the galvanometer mirror 33 to the base plate 31. Is controlled in real time so as to rotate and move in a plane parallel to a plane (YZ plane) orthogonal to the upper surface of the.

  FIG. 7 is a diagram showing a detailed configuration of the optical system member 50 of FIG. Although the actual configuration of the optical system member 50 is complicated, the illustration is simplified here for the sake of simplicity. FIG. 7 is a view of the inside of the optical system member 50 as viewed from the −X axis direction of FIG. 6. As shown in FIG. 7, the base plate 31 has a through hole 37 for introducing the laser beam reflected by the mirror 35 into the optical system member 50. A phase type diffractive optical element (DOE) 500 that converts laser light having a Gaussian intensity distribution into laser light having a top hat intensity distribution is provided directly below the through hole 37.

  The laser light converted into laser light having a top hat intensity distribution (top hat beam) by the DOE 500 is branched into a reflected beam and a transmitted beam by the half mirror 511, and the reflected beam is transmitted toward the right half mirror 512. Advances toward the reflective mirror 524 in the downward direction. The beam reflected by the half mirror 511 is further branched into a reflected beam and a transmitted beam by the half mirror 512, and the reflected beam travels toward the lower reflecting mirror 522, and the transmitted beam travels toward the right reflecting mirror 521. The beam that has passed through the half mirror 512 is reflected by the reflection mirror 521, and is irradiated onto the glass substrate 1 through the condensing lens 541 in the downward direction. The beam reflected by the half mirror 512 is reflected by the reflection mirrors 522 and 523 and is irradiated onto the glass substrate 1 through the condensing lens 542 in the downward direction. The beam transmitted through the half mirror 511 is reflected by the reflection mirror 524 and travels in the left direction. The beam reflected by the reflection mirror 524 is branched into a reflection beam and a transmission beam by the half mirror 513, the reflection beam proceeds toward the reflection mirror 526 in the downward direction, and the transmission beam proceeds toward the reflection mirror 528 in the left direction. The beam reflected by the half mirror 513 is reflected by the reflecting mirrors 526 and 527 and is irradiated onto the glass substrate 1 through the condensing lens 543 in the downward direction. The beam that has passed through the half mirror 513 is reflected by the reflection mirror 528, and is irradiated onto the glass substrate 1 through the condensing lens 544 in the downward direction.

  The top hat beam converted by the DOE 500 is transmitted and reflected by the above-described half mirrors 511 to 513 and the reflection mirrors 521 to 528 and guided to the condenser lenses 541 to 544. At this time, the optical path lengths from the DOE 500 to the condenser lenses 541 to 544 are set to be equal. That is, the optical path length from when the beam reflected by the half mirror 511 is transmitted through the half mirror 512 and reflected by the reflection mirror 521 to reach the condenser lens 541, and the beam reflected by the half mirror 511 is the half mirror 512 and the reflection mirror. The optical path length until each beam is reflected by 522 and 523 and reaches the condenser lens 542, and the beam transmitted through the half mirror 511 is reflected by the reflection mirror 523, the half mirror 513, and the reflection mirrors 526 and 527, respectively, and the condenser lens 543. The optical path length until the beam that has passed through the half mirror 511 is reflected by the reflection mirror 523, is transmitted through the half mirror 513, is reflected by the reflection mirror 528, and reaches the condenser lens 544. Each is an equal distance. As a result, even if the DOE 500 is disposed immediately before the beam is branched, the laser light having the top hat intensity distribution can be similarly guided to the condenser lenses 541 to 544. In the embodiment of FIG. 7, the case where the optical path lengths are completely matched has been described. However, the optical path lengths can be slightly different as long as the top hat intensity distribution of the laser light can be maintained.

  The shutter mechanisms 531 to 534 block the emission of laser light when the laser light emitted from the condenser lenses 541 to 544 of the optical system member 50 is detached from the glass substrate 1. The length measuring systems 52 and 54 are configured by a detection light irradiation laser and an autofocus photodiode (not shown), and are reflected from the surface of the glass substrate 1 in the light irradiated from the detection light irradiation laser. Light is received, and the distance between the lower end of the optical system member 50 and the surface of the glass substrate 1, that is, the height of the optical system member 50 is adjusted according to the amount of reflected light.

  The optical system including the above-described half mirrors 511 to 513 and the reflection mirrors 521 to 528 transmits and reflects the processing laser beam having a wavelength of 1064 [nm] generated from the laser generator 40 to collect the condensing lens 541. To 544, that is, to each processing position.

  A processing state detection optical system for observing the processing state at each processing position is provided on the optical axis of each condensing lens 541 to 544 and above each reflecting mirror 521, 523, 527, 528. Yes. The processing state detection optical system includes illumination lasers 551 to 554, parallel light conversion lenses 561 to 564, optical components 571 to 574, condensing lenses 581 to 584, and monitor devices 591 to 594.

  The illumination lasers 551 to 554 generate inspection light for processing state observation with a wavelength of 685 [nm], and are applied to the optical components 571 to 574 from positions away from the optical axis of the condenser lenses 541 to 544. In contrast, laser light is emitted. The parallel light conversion lenses 561 to 564 convert the laser light emitted from the illumination lasers 551 to 554 into parallel rays and introduce the parallel light into the optical components 571 to 574. The optical components 571 to 574 are arranged on the extension of the optical axis of the condenser lenses 541 to 544, respectively, and the laser light emitted from the illumination lasers 551 to 554 is substantially matched with the optical axis of the processing laser light, And it reflects so that it may go to the condensing lenses 541-544. The optical components 571 to 574 have a transmittance of 50 percent and a reflectance of 50 percent for light with a wavelength of 685 [nm], and have a transmittance of 0 percent and a reflectance of 100 for light with a wavelength of 1064 [nm]. Percent (total reflection) part.

  On the other hand, the condensing lenses 581 to 584 condense the laser beams from the illumination lasers 551 to 554 reflected by the optical components 571 to 574 and irradiate the processed portions as illumination light. That is, the laser light from the illumination lasers 551 to 554 reflected by the optical components 571 to 574 passes through the condensing lenses 581 to 584, the reflecting mirrors 521, 523, 527, and 528 and the condensing lenses 541 to 544. Irradiates each processing point.

  Accordingly, the laser beams from the illumination lasers 551 to 554 reflected by the optical components 571 to 574 are condensed by the two lenses of the condenser lenses 541 to 544 and the condenser lenses 581 to 584. . The processing points irradiated by the laser beams from the illumination lasers 551 to 554 are imaged on the imaging surfaces of the monitor devices 591 to 594 by the condenser lenses 541 to 544 and the condenser lenses 581 to 584, and the imaging information thereof. Is output to the control device 80. The control device 80 detects the processing state of the glass substrate 1 by the laser light generated by the laser generator 40 based on the imaging information from the monitor devices 591 to 594, analyzes problems such as processing defects and processing conditions, The machining state is controlled by feeding back to the output conditions of the laser generator 40, the ambient temperature, and the like.

  The focus adjustment drive mechanisms 46 to 49 individually perform control in the height direction (focus) and the Y direction (following direction) of the condenser lenses 541 to 544 with respect to the glass substrate 1. FIG. 8 is a cross-sectional view showing a detailed configuration of the focus adjustment drive mechanism of FIG. 7, and FIG. 9 is a perspective view showing a part of the focus adjustment drive mechanism. In the figure, the focus adjustment drive mechanism 46 includes a drive unit main body 461, a drive unit cover 462, magnet holding units 463a to 463d, magnets 464a to 464d, a movable unit 465, a vertical drive force generating coil group 466, and a horizontal drive force generating coil. And a group 467. In FIG. 9, the drive unit main body 461 is omitted.

  In FIG. 8, the movable portion 465 holds the condenser lens 541 and is wound with a vertical driving force generating coil group 466 and horizontal driving force generating coil groups 467 and 468. The vertical driving force generating coil group 466 is wound around the lower end portion of the movable portion 465 so as to have a substantially square shape (rectangular shape). The magnet holding portions 463a to 463d are substantially U-shaped, and hold the rectangular parallelepiped magnets 464a to 464d on the inner inner wall surfaces, respectively. As shown in FIG. 9, the vertical driving force generating coil group 466 wound in a substantially square shape is inserted into the gap between the magnet holding portions 463a to 463d and the magnets 464a to 464d, and is inserted into the driving portion main body 461. Stored. On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 9, the horizontal driving force generating coil groups 467 and 468 are wound so as to cross the opposing top sides of the movable portion 465 so that the magnet holding portions 463c and 463d and the magnet 464c and It is inserted in the gap between 464d. Accordingly, the movable portion 465 is driven and controlled in the vertical direction (Z direction) in accordance with the current flowing through the vertical driving force generating coil group 466, and the movable portion 465 is horizontally driven in accordance with the current flowing in the horizontal driving force generating coil groups 467 and 468. Drive controlled in the direction (Y direction).

  As shown in FIG. 8, air supply portions 461 a and 461 b are provided on the side surface of the drive portion main body 461. Air supplied from the air supply units 461a and 461b is introduced into the drive unit main body 461 via the air flow paths 461c and 461d. The air flow paths 461c and 461d are branched at the end portion in a Y-shape, and one of the Y-shaped branch paths toward the upper oblique direction blows air to the inclined portion (taper portion) of the movable portion 465. The other of the Y-shaped branching paths and directed in the horizontal direction introduces air into the drive unit main body 461. The air blown to the inclined portion of the movable portion 465 avoids contact between the movable portion 465 and the drive portion main body 461, and restricts the amount of movement of the movable portion 465 in the horizontal direction (Y direction). The air blown to the inclined portion of the movable portion 465 functions as a counter balance that sets the initial position of the movable portion 465. On the other hand, the air introduced into the drive unit main body 461 is used as cooling and purging air for the condenser lens 541. Although not shown, spring members extending in the X direction (the front-rear direction in the drawing) are attached to the inner wall surface of the drive unit main body 461 at the upper four corners of the movable portion 465. This spring member provides a restoring force for returning the movable portion 465 to the initial position.

  FIG. 10 is a schematic diagram showing the configuration of the alignment camera device, the first detection optical system member and the second detection optical system member, and the configuration of the air purge means on the substrate surface. The alignment camera device 60 is provided on the side surface of the optical system member 50 as described above, acquires an image of the scribe line P1 processing line applied on the glass substrate 1, and outputs the information to the control device 80. It is used for the alignment process at the time of processing the scribe lines P2 and P3 for the second and subsequent times, that is, the focus positions and Y-direction positions of the condenser lenses 541 to 544. The alignment camera device 60 is provided corresponding to the number of divisions of laser light. In this embodiment, four series of alignment camera devices 60 are provided.

  FIG. 11 is a diagram illustrating an example in which a processing line is bent and formed due to distortion or twist (swell or the like) of a glass substrate that is a workpiece. When the scribe line P1 that is the first processing line is curved (meandering) as shown in FIG. 11 due to distortion or twist (swell) of the glass substrate 1, in this embodiment, the scribe lines P2 and P3 are The scribe line P1 is processed following the curved (meandering) line. In this embodiment, the width of the scribe lines P1 to P3 is about 30 [μm], the distance between the scribe lines P1 and P2, and the distance between P2 and P3 is about 40 [μm], and follows the scribe line P1. Laser processing of the scribe lines P2 and P3 is performed.

  As shown in FIG. 10, the first detection optical system member is composed of a CCD camera 28 for laser light state inspection. The laser light state inspection CCD camera 28 receives laser light through the glass substrate 1 from a gap (not shown) formed in the air levitation stage 101a. The laser light state inspection CCD camera 28 is provided so as to be located on the back side of the glass substrate 1 on the stage surface from a gap (not shown) formed in the air floating stage 101a. The CCD camera 28 for inspecting the laser beam condition is installed so that the sky side of the air levitation stage 101a can be seen. An image captured by the laser light state inspection CCD camera 28 is output to the control device 80. The control device 80 determines whether or not the spot diameter, shape, output, and the like of the laser light emitted from the condenser lenses 541 to 544 are appropriate. That is, the laser light state inspection CCD camera 28 can directly observe the laser light emitted from the respective condensing lenses 541 to 544 of the optical system member 50. By imaging the laser light, the control device 80 For each of the branched laser beams, the characteristics of the laser beam at the processing location can be measured. Further, when each optical system related to the laser light such as the laser generator 40 and the optical system member 50 is replaced, the images before and after the replacement are acquired and digitized, so that the focus and optical axis after the replacement are obtained. Adjustment and the like can be easily performed. Furthermore, by obtaining and digitizing the images of the respective laser beams output from the respective optical heads, it is possible to appropriately adjust the variations of the respective optical heads.

  As shown in FIG. 10, the second detection optical system member includes beam samplers 91 and 93, a high-speed photodiode 94, and an optical axis inspection CCD camera 96. The beam samplers 91 and 93 are provided in the optical path of laser light introduced into the optical system member 50. In this embodiment, it is provided between the laser generator 40 and the galvanometer mirror 33. The beam samplers 91 and 93 are elements that sample a part of the laser beam (for example, about 0.4% of the laser beam or less) and branch and output it to the outside. The high-speed photodiode 94 is disposed so as to receive a part (sampling beam) of the laser beam branched and output by the beam sampler 91 near the center of the light receiving surface. An output signal corresponding to the intensity of the laser light detected by the high speed photodiode 94 is output to the control device 80. The optical axis inspection CCD camera 96 is arranged so as to receive a part (sampling beam) of the laser beam branched and output by the beam sampler 93 near the center of the light receiving surface. The image captured by the optical axis inspection CCD camera 96 is output to the control device 80. The optical axis inspection CCD camera 96 may capture an image indicating the position of the laser light irradiated to the high-speed photodiode 94 and output the image to the control device 80.

  The control device 80 detects the moving speed (moving frequency) of the gripper units 106 and 107 in the X-axis direction based on the detection signal from the linear encoder 70, controls the output (laser frequency) of the laser generator 40, and performs high speed operation. Based on the signals output from the photodiode 94 and the optical axis inspection CCD camera 96, the missing pulse of the laser light emitted from the laser generating device 40 is detected, or the laser generating device is determined based on the optical axis deviation amount of the laser light. The emission conditions of 40 are controlled, and the arrangement of the galvano mirror 33 and the reflection mirrors 34 and 35 for introducing the laser light in the optical system member 50 is feedback controlled.

  At the time of laser scribing by this solar panel manufacturing apparatus, scribing marks are generated from the thin film. The vapor of this thin film may be scattered in the atmosphere and adhere to the glass substrate 1, which causes poor laser scribe. Further, the presence of various dusts attached to the surface of the glass substrate 1 causes a laser scribe failure. Therefore, in this embodiment, air knives 97 and 98 are used on the surface of the glass substrate 1 to purge dust or the like adhering to the surface of the glass substrate 1 with air, thereby removing the dust or the like. That is, in this embodiment, dust or the like on the surface of the glass substrate 1 is removed using the air knife device 97 immediately before laser scribing of the glass substrate 1 that moves in the + X axis direction (right direction in the drawing) during laser processing. The air knife device 98 is used to purge dust generated during processing. Note that when the glass substrate 1 moves in the −X axis direction (left direction in the drawing), the air knife devices 97 and 98 may be configured to be reversed with the laser beams 41 to 44 as target lines. Another air knife device may be provided at an inverted position of the devices 97 and 98. Further, by providing a similar air knife device at the reversing position of the air knife device 98 during processing, air can be blown so as to intersect the processing location, and the effect of air purge can be improved.

  FIG. 12 is a diagram schematically showing an insulator of the air flow in the temperature-controlled room of FIG. In FIG. 12, the reference numerals of the components in the optical system member 50 are omitted. The constant temperature air supplied from the constant temperature air supply ducts 1122 to 1124 (not shown in FIG. 12) provided on the upper side of the constant temperature chamber 1121 moves from the upper part to the lower part of the constant temperature room 1121 as shown by the dotted line in FIG. From the exhaust ducts 1125 and 1126 provided on the left and right sides of the temperature-controlled room 1121, flowing in the lateral direction along the surface of the glass substrate 1 and in contact with the surface of the glass substrate 1 that floats on the air levitation stage 101 a. Discharged. On the other hand, the air ejected from the air levitation stage 101a is blown onto the lower surface of the glass substrate 1, flows in the lateral direction, and is discharged from the exhaust ducts 1125 and 1126 provided on the left and right sides of the temperature-controlled room 1121. In the temperature-controlled room 1121, an air flow as indicated by a dotted line is stably generated, and the purged dust or the like is efficiently scattered from the exhaust ducts 1125 and 1126 by the air flow without being scattered in the atmosphere. It is also possible to prevent the evaporated film from adhering to the optical system. It should be noted that the optical system member 50 may be configured by a frame frame so that an air flow is also stably generated in the optical system member 50, or the top surface and the lower surface side of the optical system member 50 are provided with a ceiling. It is good also as a structure that constant temperature airflow passes the inside of the optical system member 50, without providing a board and a floor board.

  FIG. 13 is a block diagram showing details of processing of the control device 80 of FIG. The control device 80 includes a branching unit 81, a pulse missing determining unit 82, an alarm generating unit 83, a reference CCD image storage unit 84, an optical axis deviation measuring unit 85, a laser controller 86, an irradiation laser state inspection unit 89, and an irradiation laser adjustment unit. 8A, a processing state inspection unit 8B, a processing condition adjustment unit 8C, a processing line detection unit 8D, and a copying processing adjustment unit 8E.

  The branching unit 81 branches the detection signal (clock pulse) of the linear encoder 70 and outputs it to the laser controller 86 at the subsequent stage. The pulse missing determination means 82 receives an output signal (diode output) corresponding to the laser light intensity from the high-speed photodiode 94 and a detection signal (clock pulse) output from the branching means 81, and based on this, the laser light Determine missing pulses. FIG. 14 is a diagram showing an example of the operation of the missing pulse determination means 82 of FIG. 14A is an example of a detection signal (clock pulse) output from the branching means 81, and FIG. 14B is an output signal corresponding to the laser light intensity output from the high-speed photodiode 94 (diode). FIG. 14C shows an example of an alarm signal output when the missing pulse determination means 82 detects a missing pulse.

  As shown in FIG. 14, the pulse missing determining means 82 determines whether or not the diode output value is equal to or higher than a predetermined threshold Th using the falling edge of the clock pulse from the branching means 81 as a trigger signal. When the diode output value is smaller than the threshold value Th, a high level signal is output to the alarm generating means 83. The alarm generating unit 83 notifies the outside of the alarm indicating that a pulse missing has occurred when the signal from the pulse missing judging unit 82 changes from a low level to a high level. The alarm is notified by various methods such as image display and pronunciation. The occurrence of an alarm allows the operator to recognize that a pulse drop has occurred. If this alarm occurs frequently, it means that the performance of the laser generator has deteriorated or has reached the end of its life.

  The reference CCD image storage means 84 stores a reference CCD image 84a as shown in FIG. The reference CCD image 84a shows an image in a state where the laser beam is received at the center of the light receiving surface of the CCD camera 96 for optical axis inspection. The optical axis inspection CCD camera 96 outputs an inspection image 85a as shown in FIG. The optical axis deviation amount measuring means 85 captures the inspected image 85a from the optical axis inspection CCD camera 96, compares it with the reference CCD image 84a, measures the optical axis deviation amount, and calculates the deviation amount by the laser. Output to the controller 86. For example, when an image such as the inspected image 85a shown in FIG. 13 is output from the optical axis inspection CCD camera 96, the optical axis deviation measuring means 85 compares the X axis and the Y axis. The amount of direction deviation is measured and output to the laser controller 86. The laser controller 86 introduces the laser beam into a device related to the optical axis of the laser beam, that is, the emission condition of the laser generator 40 and the optical system member 50 so that the inspected image 85a and the reference CCD image 84a coincide. The arrangement and the like of the galvanometer mirror 33 and the reflection mirrors 34 and 35 are adjusted by feedback.

  The irradiation laser state inspection means 89 captures the image 89a from the laser light state inspection CCD camera 28, measures the characteristics (spot diameter, shape, output, etc.) of the laser light based on the image 89a, and uses the measured value as the irradiation laser. Output to the adjusting means 8A. For example, when an image 89a as shown in FIG. 13 is output from the CCD camera for laser beam state inspection, the irradiation laser state inspection unit 89 has a circular outline 89b (the condensing lenses 541 to 541 in the image 89a). The position of the focus circle 89c (the small circle in the image 89a) is detected with reference to the outer edge of 544), and the optical axis is determined based on whether or not the focus circle 89c is located at the approximate center of the contour 89b. Is measured in the X-axis and Y-axis directions, and is output to the irradiation laser adjusting means 8A. The irradiation laser state inspection unit 89 measures the size (spot diameter / irradiation area) of the focus circle 89c and outputs the focus position based on the size to the irradiation laser adjustment unit 8A. Further, the irradiation laser state inspection unit 89 outputs a laser beam output based on the luminance level of the focus circle 89c to the irradiation laser adjustment unit 8A. The irradiation laser adjusting means 8A is based on the signals corresponding to the optical axis deviation, the focus position, and the light output from the irradiation laser state inspection means 89, and the half mirrors 511 to 513 and the reflection mirror 521 in the optical system member 50. The arrangement and the like of .about.528 are fed back and adjusted, and the emission conditions and the like of the laser generator 40 are controlled via the laser controller 86. The irradiation laser adjustment unit 8A may be omitted, and the laser controller 86 may have these functions.

  The processing state inspection means 8B takes in the imaging information from the monitor devices 591 to 594, and based on this, detects the processing state of the glass substrate 1 by the laser light, that is, whether or not processing defects have occurred, and The analysis result is output to the machining condition adjusting means 8C. Based on the analysis result from the processing state inspection unit 8B, the processing condition adjusting unit 8C feeds back the output conditions of the laser generator 40, which are laser processing conditions, the ambient temperature, and the like to the laser controller 86 so as to appropriately set the laser processing state. Control. The processing condition adjusting means 8C may be omitted and the laser controller 86 may have these functions.

  In the above-described embodiment, the optical axis misalignment measuring means 85 at the time of laser processing (scribing) detects the optical axis misalignment of the laser beam, the pulse missing determining means 82 detects the pulse missing, and the machining state inspection means 8B indicates the machining state. Although the case of inspecting each has been described, the pulse state of the laser light may be inspected based on the output waveform from the high-speed photodiode 94 as shown in FIG. For example, in FIG. 15, the pulse width and pulse height of the laser beam are measured, and if an abnormality occurs in these, an alarm may be generated, or the processing state detected by the processing state inspection means 8B An alarm may be generated based on the above. The pulse width of the laser beam is normal when the period during which the output waveform from the high-speed photodiode 94 is equal to or greater than a predetermined value is within a predetermined range, and when it is larger or smaller than this range, the pulse width is abnormal. And outputs an alarm. The pulse height of the laser beam is normal when the maximum value of the output waveform from the high-speed photodiode 94 is within the allowable range, and when it is larger or smaller than this allowable range, the pulse height is abnormal. Judge and output an alarm. As described above, since the laser light is always sampled, the quality of the laser light such as the pulse width and the pulse height (power) can be managed in real time. If the above-described pulse omission occurs frequently, it can be determined that the laser generator 40 is deteriorated or has a lifetime.

  In the above-described embodiment, only the occurrence of missing pulses is observed, but by acquiring and storing the coordinate data (position data) of the location where the missing pulses have occurred, it is possible to perform a scribe line repair process. It becomes. In the above-described embodiment, a part of the laser beam (sampling beam) branched and output by the beam sampler 93 is directly received using the CCD camera 96 for optical axis inspection, and the optical beam is processed by image processing. The case where the deviation is inspected has been described. An image showing a state where the laser beam is received at the center of the light receiving surface of the high-speed photodiode 94 is acquired as an inspection image by the CCD camera 96 for optical axis inspection or the split type photodiode. Thus, the optical axis deviation may be inspected. In the above-described embodiment, the case of inspecting the optical axis deviation and the missing pulse of the laser beam has been described. However, the state of the laser beam is inspected by appropriately combining the optical axis deviation, the missing pulse, the pulse width, and the pulse height. You may make it do.

  In FIG. 13, the processing line detection unit 8 </ b> D performs image recognition processing of the processing line P <b> 1 based on the image from the alignment camera device 60. FIG. 16 is a diagram illustrating an example of the operation of the machining line detection unit 8D of FIG. As shown in FIG. 16A, the metal layer on the glass substrate 1 is irradiated with laser light in a state where the glass substrate 1 is placed, and a scribe process (scribe line P1 processing) is executed. As a result of the initial scribing process, processed lines are formed on the glass substrate 1 with a pitch of about 10 mm. In FIG. 16, only one processed line 90 of the plurality of processed lines P1 is shown. The line 100 is an expected line when the processing line 90 is processed into a straight line. The alignment camera device 60 acquires a plurality of points on the expectation line 100, that is, images 61a to 64a in the vicinity of the shooting points 61 to 64 as shown in FIG. As can be seen from the images 61a to 64a, the image of the actual processing line 90 is included in the image. Based on the difference between each of the images 61a to 64a and the expected line 100, the bending state of the processing line 90 can be recognized.

  The copying process adjusting unit 8E compares the images 61a to 64a with the expected line 100 according to the image processing result of the processed line detection unit 8D, performs alignment processing, and outputs the result to the laser controller 86. The laser controller 86 drives and controls the focus adjustment driving mechanisms 46 to 49 so that the laser beam is irradiated to a position about 30 μm away from the previous processing line 90 based on the result of the alignment processing of the copying processing adjusting unit 8E. Then, the height direction (focus) and the Y direction of each of the condenser lenses 541 to 544 are adjusted, and the scribing process (scribing line P2 processing) is executed. As a result, as shown in FIG. 16C, a processing line 92 is formed at a position separated from the processing line 90 by about 30 μm. When this scribing process (scribe line P2 processing) is completed, a process for forming a transparent electrode layer on the semiconductor layer is performed by another apparatus. Again, the glass substrate 1 is carried into the laser processing system, the same alignment process as before is performed, and the glass substrate 1 is similarly subjected to a scribing process (scribing line P3 processing) using laser light. As a result, three processed lines P1 to P3 as shown in FIG. 11 are formed on the glass substrate 1.

  In the above-described embodiment, the case where the copying process is performed by image processing using the alignment camera device 60 has been described. However, the processing lines P2 and P3 may be processed by tracking the scribe line P1. FIG. 17 is a diagram illustrating an example of a method of tracking the machining line P1 using a grating. In the figure, one laser beam is divided into three using a grating and irradiated to a processing line P1 of the glass substrate 1 as laser beams 123-125. The four-divided sensors 126 to 128, which are reflected light detection sensors, receive the reflected lights of the laser beams 123 to 125 as shown in FIG. Since the film surface reflection intensity is high at locations other than the processing line P1, it is detected whether the laser beams 123 to 125 are accurately tracking the processing line P1 according to the outputs from the four-divided sensors 126 to 128. can do. The tracking laser light and reflected light detection sensors are fixedly provided on the focus adjustment drive mechanisms 46 to 49, and the processing line P1 is accurately tracked to accurately track the processing line P1. P3 can be formed. FIGS. 17B and 17C show a case where the tracking laser light and the reflected light detection sensor are displaced laterally (Y direction) with respect to the processing line P1. As described above, when the laser beams 123 to 125 are deviated with respect to the processing line P1, the balanced state of the output signals from the four-divided sensor that is the reflected light detection sensor is lost, so that the focus adjustment drive mechanisms 46 to 49 collect light. It is possible to process the processing lines P2 and P3 that follow the processing line P1 by driving and controlling the lenses 541 to 544 in the ± Y direction and performing tracking control so that the relationship of FIG. Become.

  In the above-described embodiment, the case where the processing line (groove) is formed on the thin film by irradiating the laser beam from the surface of the glass substrate 1 on which the thin film is formed has been described. Then, a processing line may be formed on the thin film on the surface of the glass substrate. Moreover, although the above-mentioned embodiment demonstrated the case where the image containing the first process line formed on the glass substrate 1 was acquired as a result of the first process process, the 2nd scribe process (scribe line P2 process) As a result of processing, an image including two processed lines (scribe lines P1, P2) formed on the glass substrate 1 is acquired, and the two scribe lines P1 and / or scribe lines P2 in the image are obtained. It may be used to perform alignment processing.

  FIG. 18 is a diagram illustrating an example of the substrate detection camera system provided in the alignment units 102 and 104 in FIG. FIG. 18A is a side view showing the relationship between the glass substrate and the substrate detection camera, and FIG. 18B is a top view thereof. The alignment units 102 and 104 are provided with a substrate detection camera system and an alignment camera system to detect a glass substrate and perform alignment processing thereof. The substrate detection cameras 65 to 68 acquire images near the four corners of the glass substrate 1 from the upper side when the glass substrate 1 that is airborne and conveyed is placed on the alignment units 102 and 104. In FIG. 18, the state immediately before the glass substrate 1 is placed on the alignment units 102 and 104, held by the gripper units 106 to 108, floats in the X-axis direction, and is introduced into the laser processing station 10. Show. Images 65 a to 68 a shown in FIG. 18B are images near the four corners of the glass substrate 1 acquired by the substrate detection cameras 65 to 68. Since the relative positional relationship between the substrate detection cameras 65 to 68 is a known value set in advance, as shown in the images 65 a to 68 a, the vertexes at the four corners of the glass substrate 1 that are not bent or warped are the substrate detection camera 65. It is set so as to be located near the center of the imaging range of .about.68. Therefore, when the positions of the vertices are deviated in the images 65a to 68a, the bending (warping) of the glass substrate 1 can be detected based on the deviation amount. Further, it is possible to detect a chip near the four corners of the glass substrate 1 based on the images 65a to 68a. Note that chipping of each side of the glass substrate 1 can be detected by moving the substrate detection cameras 65 to 68 along the respective sides of the glass substrate 1.

  FIG. 19 is a diagram showing another embodiment of the solar panel manufacturing apparatus according to the present invention. FIG. 20 is a side view of the processing area portion 112 of FIG. 19 viewed from the lateral direction. In FIG. 19, since the same code | symbol is attached | subjected to the thing of the same structure as FIG. B, the description is abbreviate | omitted. This manufacturing apparatus is different from that of FIG. B in that air plate portions 1121 and 1122 are provided on both sides of the processing portion (optical system member 50) of the processing area portion 112 of the laser processing station 101 of the manufacturing apparatus of FIG. The bend (warp) of the glass substrate 1o is corrected by an air jet having a flow as indicated by 20 downward arrows. That is, the glass substrate 1o is caused by an air jet from the air levitation stage 101a (flow as indicated by the upward arrow in FIG. 20) and an air jet from the air plate portions 1121 and 1122 (flow as indicated by the downward arrow in FIG. 20). The bend and warp are corrected.

  FIG. 21 is a diagram showing a schematic configuration of an air purge / residue suction unit. In the step of processing the second and third scribe lines P2 and P3 at the laser processing station 101, laser light is incident from the front surface (glass surface) of the glass substrate 1 and is applied to the film surface existing on the back surface of the glass substrate 1. And scribing. During this processing, as shown in FIG. 21, a processing residue 610 is generated from the processing portion. In order to prevent the processing residue 610 from reattaching to the film surface, the air purge / residue suction unit 60 a performs air purge 62 from the back surface (film surface) side of the glass substrate 1 and sucks these residues 610 from the suction unit 63. It has been removed. At this time, the residue 610 that cannot be sucked and removed by the suction unit 63 is efficiently removed from the exhaust ducts 1125 and 1126 without being scattered into the atmosphere by the air flow in the temperature-controlled room 1121.

  FIG. 22 is a flowchart showing an example of the operation of the solar panel manufacturing system using the laser processing system according to one embodiment of the present invention. In the substrate carrying-in process in step S1, as shown in FIG. 1 or FIG. 19, the glass substrate 1x formed by the film forming apparatus (not shown) and conveyed on the roller conveyor 121 is loaded by the loading / unloading robot station 141. It is carried into the front / back reversing mechanism 143 as a glass substrate 1m. Here, the case where the substrate carry-in process is performed by the carry-in / out robot station 141 is shown, but it may be carried in by roller conveyance.

  In the substrate receiving process in step S <b> 2, a process is performed in which the glass substrate 1 m that has been reversed by the front / back reversing mechanism unit 143 or the glass substrate 1 m that has not been reversed is transported to the laser processing station 101. At this time, in the loading / unloading robot station 141, when the glass substrate 1m that has been turned upside down by the front / back turning mechanism 143 or the glass substrate 1m that has not been turned upside down is transported to the laser processing station 101, the glass substrate 1m is transferred to the laser processing station. In some cases, the roller may be conveyed to the right end position of 101, or may be conveyed to the laser processing station 101 as it is.

  In the substrate alignment process in step S3, the glass substrate 1n conveyed from the front / back reversing mechanism unit 143 of the carry-in / out robot station 141 is conveyed to the alignment unit 102, and the alignment unit 102 performs alignment processing at a predetermined position. Further, the glass substrate 1q conveyed from the right end position of the laser processing station 101 is conveyed to the alignment unit 104, and the alignment unit 104 performs an alignment process as shown in FIG.

  In the reference side gripper restraining process of step S4, as shown in FIGS. 1 to 3 and FIG. 19 with respect to the glass substrate 1o aligned at a predetermined position by the alignment process of the previous step S3, the reference side gripper unit 106 is used. Restrains one side of the side along the conveying direction. On the other hand, when the glass substrate 1q is aligned at a predetermined position by the alignment process of the previous step S3, the gripper portion 108 on the reference side is disposed on the glass substrate 1q as shown in FIGS. Restrains one side of the side along the conveying direction.

  In the driven side gripper restraining process in step S5, as shown in FIGS. 1 to 3 and 19, the other side of the side restrained by the gripper portion 106 by the reference side gripper restraining process in the previous step S4 is set as the driven gripper. The part 107 is restrained. On the other hand, when the glass substrate 1q is restrained by the gripper portion 108 by the reference-side gripper restraining process in the previous step S4, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 19, the other side of the glass substrate 1q is set as the driven side. The gripper unit 109 is restrained.

  In the processing preparation position moving process in step S6, the glass substrate 1o constrained on both sides in the previous steps S4 and S5 is moved to a predetermined processing preparation position while being restrained by the grippers 106 and 107. On the other hand, when the glass substrate 1q is restrained in the previous steps S4 and S5, the glass substrate 1q is moved to a predetermined processing preparation position while being restrained by the grippers 108 and 109.

  In the laser processing in step S7, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 19, the glass substrates 1o and 1q held by the gripper portions 106 and 107 or the gripper portions 108 and 109 are synchronized with the laser light of the processing area portion 112. The processing area portion 112 is held by the gripper portions 106 and 107 or the gripper portions 108 and 109 and is air-lifted and conveyed in synchronization with this movement between the glass substrate 1o and the dotted glass substrate 1p. A predetermined scribe line is processed by irradiating the glass substrates 1o and 1q with laser light. FIG. 1 shows a state in which a predetermined scribe line processing is performed while moving the glass substrate 1o held by the grippers 106 and 107 to the position of the glass substrate 1p indicated by a dotted line in a state of air floating. is there. After the processing of the scribe line P1, the glass substrate is moved in the Y direction by two scans (that is, the processing positions of the scribe lines P2 and P3), and the focus adjustment data of the focus adjustment drive mechanisms 46 to 49 is collected. Then, as shown in FIG. 16, the scribe lines P2 and P3 are copied based on the collected focus data. Further, when the laser processing station in FIG. 1 processes the scribe lines P2 and P3 for processing the thin film surface on the back surface of the glass substrate, a processing residue is generated from the processed portion from the thin film surface. The processing residue generated at the location is removed by suction with air purge / residue suction units 60a to 60d as shown in FIG.

  In the processing line confirmation processing in step S8, the processing state inspection means 8B takes in the imaging information from the monitor devices 591 to 594, and based on this, the processing state of the glass substrate 1 by the laser beam, that is, processing failure does not occur. And the analysis result is output to the processing condition adjustment unit 8C, and the processing condition adjustment unit 8C determines the output condition of the laser generator 40, which is the laser processing condition, the ambient temperature, and the like based on the analysis result. The laser processing state is appropriately controlled by feeding back to the laser controller 86. In addition, after processing the 1st scribe line P1 which irradiates a laser beam from the surface of the glass substrate 1 in which the thin film was formed, and forms a processed line (groove) in a thin film, a laser beam is irradiated on the surface (glass surface) of the glass substrate 1 When the second and third scribe lines P2 and P3 are subjected to scribe processing on the film surface existing on the back surface of the glass substrate 1, the processing state of the first scribe line P1 is changed to the glass substrate. Detected by using substrate detection cameras 65 to 68 constituting an alignment camera cassette positioned on the front surface side of 1, a laser positioned on the back surface side of the glass substrate 1 for processing states of the second and third scribe lines P <b> 2 and P <b> 3. You may make it detect using the CCD camera 28 for optical condition inspections.

  In the substrate discharge preparation process of step S9, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 19, the glass substrate 1n that has been subjected to the scribing process in the processing area part 112 is transferred to the front / back reversing mechanism part 143 of the carry-in / out robot station 141. Prepare for discharge. On the other hand, the glass substrate 1q that has been subjected to the scribe processing in the processing area portion 112 is prepared for discharge to be transported to the right end position of the carry-in / out robot station 141.

  In the discharging process of step S10, the carry-in / out robot station 141 directly receives the glass substrate processed by the laser processing station 101 by the front / back reversing mechanism unit 143 or receives the glass substrate 1r received at the right end position of the laser processing station 101. The roller is conveyed to the reversing mechanism unit 143 or is air levitation conveyed, and the front and back reversing mechanism unit 143 carries the laser processed glass substrate to the roller conveyor 121 with the front and back reversed or without being reversed. A predetermined laser processing is given to the glass substrate 1 through the above series of processes.

  In the above-described embodiment, the solar panel manufacturing apparatus has been described as an example. However, the present invention can also be applied to an apparatus that performs laser processing, such as an EL panel manufacturing apparatus, an EL panel correction apparatus, and an FPD correction apparatus.

1, 1m-1r, 1x, 1y ... glass substrate,
10 ... pedestal,
101 ... Laser processing station,
101a ... Air levitation stage,
102, 104 ... alignment unit,
1041 ... Alignment frame,
106, 107, 108, 109 ... gripper part 1061 ... gripping (clamping) plate part,
1062 ... Air cylinder part,
1063 ... gripper body,
1064 ... guide rail part,
1071 ... Air plate part,
1072 ... Air plate support,
1073: gripper body,
1074 ... guide rail part,
110 ... gripper support drive unit,
112 ... processing area part,
1121 ... constant temperature room,
1122 ... constant temperature air supply duct,
1125: exhaust duct,
121 ... roller conveyor,
123 to 125 ... laser light,
126-128 ... split sensor,
141 ... a loading / unloading robot station,
143 ... front and back reversing mechanism part,
20 ... X-axis drive means,
28 ... CCD camera for laser light condition inspection,
30 ... slide frame,
31 ... Base plate,
33 ... Galvano mirror,
331: Galvo control device,
332 ... Beam sampler,
333: 4-division photodiode,
33xy, 33zy ... motor,
34, 35 ... reflection mirror,
37 ... through hole,
40 ... Laser generator,
41 ... Laser light,
46 ... Focus adjustment drive mechanism,
461 ... Drive unit body,
461a ... Air supply unit,
461c ... Air flow path,
462 ... Driver cover,
463a, 463c ... magnet holder,
464a, 464c ... magnets,
465 ... movable part,
466 ... Vertical driving force generating coil group,
467 ... Horizontal driving force generating coil group,
50. Optical system member,
500 ... Phase type diffractive optical element (DOE)
511-513 ... half mirror,
52, 54 ... Length measuring system,
521 to 528 ... reflection mirror,
531 to 534 ... shutter mechanism,
541-544 ... Condensing lens,
551 ... Laser for illumination,
561 ... Parallel light conversion lens,
571: optical components,
581-584 ... Condensing lens,
591: Monitor device,
60 ... Alignment camera device,
60a: Air purge / residue suction part,
610 ... processing residue,
61-64 ... shooting points,
61a-64a ... image,
62 ... Air purge,
63 ... suction part,
65-68 ... substrate detection camera,
65a-68a ... image,
70: Linear encoder,
80 ... control device,
81 ... branching means,
82: Pulse missing judging means,
83 ... alarm generating means,
84: Reference CCD image storage means,
84a ... reference CCD image,
85 ... Optical axis deviation measuring means 85a ... Image to be inspected,
86 ... Laser controller,
89 ... Irradiation laser state inspection means,
89a ... Image,
89b ... contour line,
89c: Focus circle,
8A ... Irradiation laser adjustment means,
8B ... Processing state inspection means,
8C ... Processing condition adjusting means,
8D ... Machining line detection means,
8E: Processing adjustment means,
90, 92 ... processing lines 91, 93 ... beam sampler 94 ... high speed photodiode,
96 ... CCD camera for optical axis inspection,
97 ... Air knife device,
98 ... air knife device,
P1, P2, P3 ... scribe line

Claims (10)

Laser processing means for performing predetermined processing on the workpiece by irradiating the workpiece while moving the laser beam relatively to the workpiece;
Temperature-controlled room means provided so as to cover a processing area subjected to predetermined processing by irradiation of the laser beam in the laser processing means;
Air supply means for supplying constant temperature air so as to go from at least above the constant temperature room means to the processing area in the constant temperature room means below;
An air exhaust means for exhausting the constant temperature air in the temperature-controlled room means from the processing area to the outside of the temperature-controlled room means.   2. The laser processing system according to claim 1, wherein the air supply means includes supply duct means provided at a plurality of locations on an upper surface of the temperature-controlled room means, and the plurality of supply ducts correspond to movement of the processing area. A laser processing system characterized by selecting a means and supplying the constant temperature air to the processing area in the temperature-controlled room means.   3. The laser processing system according to claim 1, further comprising an air purge / residue suction means for air purging / suctioning residues generated from the processing area of the workpiece.   4. The laser processing system according to claim 1, wherein the laser processing unit irradiates the workpiece with a plurality of laser beams branched into a plurality of laser beams by a branching unit including a half mirror and a reflection mirror. A featured laser processing system.   5. The laser processing system according to claim 4, wherein the air purge / residue suction unit is provided for each of the plurality of laser beams.   6. The laser processing system according to claim 1, wherein when a predetermined processing is performed on the workpiece, air is blown to a processing portion on the surface of the workpiece to purge dust or the like on the surface of the workpiece. A laser processing system comprising a first air knife means.   The laser processing system according to claim 6, further comprising a second air knife means for purging dust or the like on the surface of the workpiece by blowing air onto the surface of the workpiece when the workpiece is transported to the processing area. A laser processing system characterized by   8. The laser processing system according to claim 1, wherein the laser processing means moves the workpiece held on both sides while air is levitated to a preparation position of a processing location by the laser beam, The workpiece is subjected to predetermined laser processing by irradiating the laser beam while relatively floating while air floating while holding the workpiece, and the workpiece subjected to the laser processing is levitated to a discharge preparation position. The laser processing system is characterized by being moved out while being carried out.   9. The laser processing system according to claim 1, wherein in the second and subsequent processing by the laser beam, the laser processing is performed following a shape change portion of the glass substrate formed by the laser processing. The laser processing system characterized by performing.   A solar panel manufacturing method, wherein a solar panel is manufactured using the laser processing system according to any one of claims 1 to 9.

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