JP2019039583A - Dryer and drying method - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a drying device and a drying method capable of improving the processing efficiency when continuously processing a single-wafer-shaped work by keeping a part of a cover open at all times. SOLUTION: A drying device 1 has a mounting portion 10 on which a sheet-shaped work is placed, a cover 20 arranged so as to cover the mounting portion 10, and a single-leaf shape mounted on the mounting portion 10. The airflow section 30 that sends gas toward the work, the exhaust section 40 for exhausting the gas inside the cover 20, and the airflow inside the cover 20 so as to guide the gas sent from the blower section 30 toward the exhaust section 40. The air flow adjusting unit 50 for adjusting the above is provided. Further, the cover 20 is provided with an opening 22 for inserting and removing the sheet-fed work from the outside to the inside of the cover 20, and the opening 22 always communicates between the internal space and the external space of the cover 20. It has become like. [Selection diagram] Fig. 1

Description

  The present invention relates to a drying apparatus for drying a sheet-like workpiece and a method for drying a sheet-like workpiece by such a drying apparatus.

  2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, there is a substrate processing apparatus as disclosed in Patent Document 1, for example, as a drying apparatus for drying a sheet-like workpiece such as a substrate or a sheet. In this substrate processing apparatus, a substrate to be dried is sealed in the substrate container, and then the substrate container is filled with a gas such as an inert gas, thereby drying the substrate. More specifically, the substrate container is provided with a supply port for supplying a gas such as an inert gas and an exhaust port for exhausting the gas supplied from the supply port. In addition, by diffusing inert gas supplied from the supply port inside the substrate container, the organic solvent volatilized when the substrate is dried (that is, harmful gas, etc.) is replaced with inert gas, etc. The substrate is dried by the negative pressure generated by exhausting the substrate container. In addition, since the drying process is performed in a state where the substrate is sealed, it is possible to prevent harmful gases such as a volatile organic solvent from leaking outside the substrate container of the apparatus.

JP 2004-47582 A

  However, the substrate processing apparatus disclosed in Patent Document 1 has a problem that the processing efficiency when continuously drying a plurality of substrates is poor. More specifically, in the case of continuously processing a substrate using the substrate processing apparatus disclosed in Patent Document 1, after the substrate is dried in the substrate container, the sealing of the substrate container is released. (Specifically, lift the lid), take out the dried substrate, put the substrate to be dried next, and seal the substrate container for each substrate, it takes time and effort End up. In addition, this substrate processing apparatus uses gas diffusion rather than adjusting the airflow in the substrate container when replacing harmful gases such as volatilized solvents with inert gases, etc. There is a problem that it takes time to replace the volatilized solvent or the like present in the substrate with an inert gas or the like.

  Further, when the substrate is dried and the substrate is taken out after confirming that the volatile solvent discharged into the substrate processing container is sufficiently exhausted, the processing efficiency of the substrate is further deteriorated. There is a problem that it ends up.

  The present invention has been made in consideration of such points, and adjusts the airflow inside the cover even when harmful gases such as organic solvents are generated when a single-wafer workpiece is dried. Therefore, it is possible to efficiently exhaust such harmful gases, and to improve the processing efficiency when continuously processing a single-wafer workpiece by always opening a part of the cover. An object of the present invention is to provide a drying apparatus and a drying method that can perform the above-described process.

  The drying device of the present invention is a drying device for drying a sheet-like workpiece, a placement unit on which the sheet-like workpiece is placed, a cover arranged to cover the placement unit, A blower that sends gas toward the single-wafer workpiece placed on the placement unit, an exhaust for exhausting the gas inside the cover, and the gas sent from the blower toward the exhaust An airflow adjusting unit that adjusts the airflow inside the cover so as to guide the cover, and the cover is provided with an opening for taking in and out the single-wafer-shaped workpiece from the outside to the inside of the cover. Thus, the interior space of the cover and the exterior space are always in communication with each other.

  According to such a drying device, even when harmful gas such as organic solvent is generated when drying the single-wafer workpiece placed on the placement portion, by adjusting the air flow inside the cover, Such harmful gases can be efficiently exhausted, and the single-wafer workpieces are continuously removed by inserting and removing the single-wafer workpieces through an opening that constantly communicates the space inside the cover and the external space. The processing efficiency at the time of processing automatically can be improved.

  In the drying apparatus of the present invention, the air flow adjusting unit has a blower mechanism for sending out gas, and the gas sent from the blower unit toward the sheet-like workpiece is sent out from the blower mechanism. The gas may be guided toward the exhaust part.

  In this case, the exhaust part may be disposed below the blower mechanism.

  Further, in the drying apparatus of the present invention, the velocity of the gas sent out by the blowing mechanism is larger than the velocity of the gas sent from the blowing section toward the sheet-like workpiece placed on the placement section. It may be.

  Moreover, the said ventilation part may send out gas toward the sheet-like workpiece | work from the ventilation port extended linearly.

  In the drying apparatus of the present invention, the cover has a ceiling portion and side portions extending in a direction substantially perpendicular to the horizontal plane, and the ceiling portion faces upward from the upper end of the side portion. Inclined portions that are disposed to face each other so as to be inclined may be included, and the air blowing port may be disposed so as to extend along a portion where the inclined portions are connected to each other.

  In the drying apparatus of the present invention, the air blowing mechanism may be disposed in the vicinity of a location where the ceiling portion and the side portion are connected.

  The height level of the lower end of the opening may be substantially the same as the height level of the placement surface of the placement unit.

  The drying method of the present invention is a drying method for drying a sheet-like workpiece, wherein an opening for taking in and out the sheet-like workpiece is provided, and the inner space and the outer space are always communicated by the opening. Adjusting the flow of the gas sent toward the single-wafer workpiece, the step of placing the single-wafer workpiece inside the cover, the step of sending gas toward the single-wafer workpiece placed And a step of exhausting the gas sent toward the sheet-like workpiece.

  According to such a drying method, when drying a sheet-like workpiece placed inside the cover through an opening that always communicates the space inside the cover and the outside space, such as an organic solvent Even when harmful gas is generated, it is possible to efficiently exhaust such harmful gas by adjusting the air flow inside the cover, and processing when continuously processing single-wafer workpieces Efficiency can be improved.

  According to the drying apparatus and the drying method of the present invention, the gas inside the cover can be efficiently exhausted by adjusting the air flow inside the cover, and a part of the cover is always opened, The processing efficiency at the time of processing a leaf-shaped workpiece | work continuously can be improved.

It is a front view which shows schematic structure of the drying apparatus of embodiment of this invention. It is a side view which shows the schematic structure of the drying apparatus shown in FIG. It is a top view which shows the schematic structure of the drying apparatus shown in FIG. It is a top view for demonstrating an example of the structure at the time of drying a sheet-like workpiece | work using the drying apparatus shown in FIG. It is a top view which shows the structure of the other example of the drying apparatus of this Embodiment. It is a side view which shows roughly the structure of the drying apparatus of the example shown in FIG. It is a top view which shows the structure of the further another example of the drying apparatus of this Embodiment. It is a side view which shows roughly the structure of the drying apparatus of the example shown in FIG. It is a top view which shows the structure of the further another example of the drying apparatus of this Embodiment.

  Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. 1 to 9 are drawings for explaining a drying apparatus and a drying method according to the present embodiment. Among these, FIG. 1 is a front view showing a schematic configuration of the drying apparatus of the present embodiment, and FIGS. 2 and 3 are a side view and a top view showing a schematic configuration of the drying apparatus shown in FIG. FIG. FIG. 4 is a top view for explaining an example of a configuration when a sheet-like workpiece is dried using the drying apparatus shown in FIG. 5 and 6 are a top view and a side view showing the configuration of another example of the drying apparatus of the present embodiment. 7 and 8 are a top view and a side view showing the configuration of still another example of the drying apparatus of the present embodiment. FIG. 9 is a top view showing a configuration of still another example of the drying apparatus of the present embodiment. In FIG. 1 to FIG. 9, a sheet-like workpiece is indicated by a reference symbol W. In FIG. 4, the operator is indicated by a reference symbol M. In addition, in FIGS. 3, 4, 5, 7, and 9 including a top view showing a schematic configuration of the drying device of the present embodiment, an understanding of the arrangement of each component of the drying device is understood. For ease of illustration, the ceiling is not shown.

  The drying device 1 according to the present embodiment is a device for drying, for example, a sheet-like workpiece such as a resin having ink attached to its surface. As shown in FIGS. 1 to 3, the drying device 1 is disposed so as to cover a placement unit 10 for placing a sheet-like workpiece (indicated by reference symbol W in FIG. 1), and the placement unit 10. Cover 20, and a blower unit 30, an exhaust unit 40, and an airflow adjustment unit 50 disposed inside the cover 20. Moreover, the mounting surface of the mounting part 10 is a plane along a horizontal plane, and two sheet-like workpieces to be dried can be mounted side by side. The cover 20 includes a side portion 28 that extends perpendicular to a horizontal plane (that is, a surface parallel to the placement surface of the placement portion 10), and a ceiling portion 24. In more detail, the side part 28 is comprised from the four plate-shaped members extended perpendicularly | vertically with respect to a horizontal surface. In addition, the ceiling portion 24 is inclined with respect to a horizontal plane and an inclined portion 25 (see FIG. 1) that faces each other so as to incline upward from the upper ends of a pair of opposing plate-like members of the side portion 28. And includes a vertically extending side portion 26 (see FIG. 2). Moreover, the connection location 25a to which the inclined portions 25 are connected extends along the depth direction of the drying apparatus 1 (that is, the left-right direction in FIG. 2). Moreover, the connection location 25a is located in the location of the center vicinity in the width direction (namely, the left-right direction in FIG. 1) of the cover 20. As shown in FIG. Moreover, in the drying apparatus 1 shown in FIG. 1, each inclination part 25 inclines at the same angle, respectively with respect to a horizontal surface.

  Further, one of the four plate-like members constituting the side portion 28 is provided with a substantially rectangular opening 22 for allowing the space inside the cover 20 to communicate with the outside space. More specifically, the opening 22 is formed at a position where the height level of the lower end portion thereof and the height level of the placement surface of the sheet-like workpiece in the placement portion 10 are substantially the same. Further, the opening 22 always communicates the space inside the cover 20 with the outside space. In other words, the drying apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment is not provided with a lid member or the like that can selectively close the opening 22, and the opening 22 can always be viewed from the outside of the drying apparatus 1. It can be done. Further, since the operator always inserts and removes the sheet-like workpiece from the inside of the cover 20 through the opening 22 exposed to the outside, the operator inserts and removes the sheet-like workpiece through the opening 22. It can be done efficiently. More specifically, there is no need to perform operations such as opening and closing the lid member when the sheet-like workpiece is taken in and out of the cover 20, and the sheet-like workpiece can be grasped and taken out with both hands. Therefore, the processing efficiency at the time of drying a sheet-like workpiece can be improved. The operator may be configured to hold and carry the sheet-like workpiece with one hand.

  Further, the blower unit 30 is configured to send gas toward the single-wafer workpiece placed on the placement unit 10. More specifically, the blower unit 30 includes a blower port 32 that extends in a straight line shape (specifically, the left-right direction in FIG. 2), and a sheet-like sheet placed on the placement unit 10 from the blower port 32. Gas is sent toward the workpiece (see arrow shown in FIG. 1). As described above, since the gas is sent from the blower port 32 extending in a straight line, the gas can be sent substantially uniformly toward the sheet-like workpiece, and thus the ink adhering to the sheet-like workpiece is uniformly distributed. To be able to dry.

  More specifically, the air blowing port 32 is arranged in the vicinity of the connection location 25a where the inclined portions 25 of the cover 20 are connected. In other words, as shown in FIG. 1, the ceiling portion 24 of the cover 20 has no corners other than the vicinity of the location where the air outlet 32 is disposed (that is, the corner other than the connection location 25 a). It is possible to suppress the gas sent toward the sheet-like workpiece from returning to the side of the air blowing port 32 due to convection inside the cover 20. More specifically, when the cover 20 has a shape that is substantially rectangular when viewed from the side (that is, the direction orthogonal to the paper surface in FIG. 1), The gas sent toward the work stays in the vicinity of the upper corner portion of the substantially rectangular shape due to convection inside the cover 20, thereby hindering efficient discharge of such gas. There's a problem. On the other hand, the cover 20 in the present embodiment has a substantially pentagonal shape when viewed from the side (that is, the direction orthogonal to the paper surface in FIG. 1), and thus gas remains in the vicinity of the corner. This can be prevented, and thus such a problem can be solved. For this reason, the gas sent from the blower port 32 is directed toward the exhaust unit 40 (described later) after being directed to the single-wafer workpiece placed on the placement unit 10. .

  Moreover, the drying apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment has a temperature adjustment mechanism (not shown) that adjusts the temperature of the gas sent from the blower 30 toward the sheet-like workpiece. For this reason, the efficiency at the time of drying the ink adhering to the surface of this sheet-like workpiece | work is improved by raising the temperature of the gas sent toward the sheet-like workpiece | work from the ventilation part 30 by the temperature adjustment mechanism, for example. It can be made to.

  As shown in FIGS. 1 to 3, the exhaust part 40 is arranged in the vicinity of the end part in the width direction of the cover 20 (that is, the left-right direction in FIG. 3), and the gas inside the cover 20 is moved outside the cover 20. It is designed to exhaust. More specifically, the exhaust unit 40 is connected to a gas processing facility (not shown), and the gas exhausted from the inside of the cover 20 by the exhaust unit 40 is processed by this gas processing facility. . For this reason, the gas containing the component of the volatilized solvent etc. is not exhausted in the vicinity of the drying apparatus 1. Further, the exhaust unit 40 has a substantially rectangular exhaust port 42 extending in the depth direction of the cover 20 (that is, the vertical direction in FIG. 3). Moreover, the exhaust part 40 mainly exhausts the gas sent toward the sheet-like workpiece | work from the ventilation part 30, and the gas sent out from the ventilation mechanism 52 (after-mentioned) of the airflow adjustment part 50. Yes. Further, the exhaust unit 40 is disposed at a position where the height level of the upper end portion of the exhaust port 42 in the exhaust unit 40 is substantially the same as the height level of the mounting surface of the mounting unit 10. (See FIG. 1). Thereby, the gas sent out from the ventilation port 32 of the ventilation part 30 and the ventilation mechanism 52 of the airflow adjustment part 50 can be exhausted efficiently.

  In addition, the exhaust part 40 may be arrange | positioned in the position where the height level of the upper end part of the exhaust port 42 becomes slightly lower than the height level of the mounting surface of the mounting part 10. FIG. Further, the exhaust unit 40 may be arranged in the vicinity of the back side of the placement unit 10 inside the cover 20 (that is, the side having the upper end in FIG. 3).

  Further, the airflow adjusting unit 50 adjusts the airflow inside the cover 20 so as to guide the gas sent from the blower unit 30 toward the sheet-like workpiece toward the exhaust unit 40. Moreover, the airflow adjustment part 50 has the ventilation mechanism 52 for sending out gas, and the ventilation mechanism 52 is provided above the exhaust port 42 of the exhaust part 40 (refer FIG. 1). In other words, the exhaust part 40 is disposed below the blower mechanism 52. Further, the blower mechanism 52 sends out gas from a blower port extending in the same direction as the exhaust port 42 of the exhaust unit 40 (that is, in the vertical direction in FIG. 3). The gas sent from the blower port 32 of the blower unit 30 toward the single-wafer workpiece is guided toward the exhaust unit 40 by the gas sent from the blower port of the blower mechanism 52.

  In the drying apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment, the gas sent from the blower port 32 of the blower unit 30 toward the sheet-like workpiece and the gas sent from the blower mechanism 52 of the airflow adjusting unit 50 collide with each other. The speed of the gas sent from the blower mechanism 52 is higher than the speed of the gas sent from the blower port 32 toward the sheet-like workpiece. Thus, the gas sent from the blower port 32 of the blower unit 30 toward the sheet-like workpiece can be guided more efficiently toward the exhaust unit 40 by the gas sent from the blower port of the blower mechanism 52. become able to. More specifically, the gas sent out from the blower opening of the blower mechanism 52 is guided toward the exhaust part 40 so as to entrap the gas sent from the blower opening 32 of the blower part 30 toward the sheet-like workpiece. It is supposed to be.

  In addition, the air blower 30, the exhaust unit 40, and the airflow adjustment unit 50 include a flow rate per unit time obtained by totaling the respective gases sent out from the air outlet 32 of the air blower 30 and the air blower mechanism 52 of the airflow adjustment unit 50, and the exhaust unit. The flow rate per unit time of the gas exhausted by 40 is configured to be substantially the same. As a result, it is possible to suppress the gas sent out from the air blowing port 32 of the air blowing unit 30 and the air blowing mechanism 52 of the air flow adjusting unit 50 from leaking to the outside of the cover 20 through the opening 22. Yes. In other words, the drying apparatus 1 can suppress the gas inside the cover 20 from leaking to the outside of the cover 20.

  Next, the flow of the operation of drying the sheet-like workpiece by the drying apparatus 1 according to this embodiment described above will be described with reference to FIGS. Further, in the following description, the drying device 1 is used for semi-drying the ink adhering to the sheet-like workpiece (specifically, drying a part of the ink adhering to the sheet-like workpiece). And Further, the drying apparatus 1 was semi-dried by the printing apparatus 200 having a discharge unit (not shown) from which a sheet-like workpiece with the ink in an undried state attached on one side is discharged, and the drying apparatus 1. It is assumed that it is arranged between the drying table 300 for completely drying the ink.

  First, the operator (indicated by reference symbol M in FIG. 4), before the sheet-like workpiece is semi-dried by the drying device 1 (that is, before being placed on the placement unit 10), the blower 30 and the exhaust By driving the unit 40 and the airflow adjustment unit 50, the air is supplied to the inside of the cover 20 by the blower unit 30 and the airflow adjustment unit 50, and the gas inside the cover 20 is exhausted by the exhaust unit 40. Next, one sheet-like workpiece to which ink that has not been dried is attached from the discharge portion of the printing press 200 is lifted and placed on the placement portion 10 through the opening 22. More specifically, the single-wafer workpiece is semi-dried by placing the single-wafer workpiece in, for example, a region on the right side of the air blowing port 32 in the placement section 10 (see FIG. 4). As described above, the gas sent from the air blowing port 32 of the blower unit 30 toward the sheet-like workpiece passes through the vicinity of the ink of the sheet-like workpiece, thereby drying the ink. Further, the gas containing the component in which the solvent or the like is volatilized discharged when the ink is dried flows so as to flow toward the place where the exhaust part 40 is located along the surface of the sheet-like workpiece and the placement part 10. In addition, it is guided to the exhaust unit 40 by the gas sent out from the blower mechanism 52 of the airflow adjusting unit 50.

  Then, while the first sheet-shaped workpiece is semi-dried, the sheet-shaped workpiece to which the ink that has not been dried is attached from the discharge unit of the printing press 200 (that is, the second sheet-shaped workpiece is The workpiece is newly lifted and placed on a place where the placement unit 10 is open (for example, a region on the left side of the air blowing port 32 in the placement unit 10). The ink adhering to the second sheet-like workpiece is also dried by the gas sent from the blower 30 as in the case of the ink adhering to the first sheet-like workpiece.

  Then, a predetermined time (for example, several tens of seconds) elapses after the first sheet-like workpiece is placed on the placement unit 10, and the ink attached to the first sheet-like workpiece is semi-dried. Then, the sheet-like workpiece is taken out of the cover 20 through the opening 22 and placed on the drying table 300. Then, a sheet-shaped workpiece (that is, a third sheet-shaped workpiece) to which ink that has not been dried adheres is newly lifted from the discharge section of the printing press 200, and the placement section is opened through the opening 22. The third sheet-like workpiece is placed on the place where the first sheet-like workpiece is placed in the position 10. Thereafter, when a predetermined time elapses after the second workpiece is placed on the placement portion 10 and the ink attached to the second sheet-like workpiece is semi-dried, the second workpiece is removed. It is taken out of the cover 20 through the opening 22 and placed on the drying table 300. Then, a sheet-like workpiece (that is, the fourth sheet-like workpiece) to which ink that has not been dried is attached is newly lifted from the discharge unit of the printing press 200, and the drying apparatus 1 is loaded through the opening 22. Place on the placement unit 10. As described above, the operation of taking out the sheet-like workpiece after semi-drying from the inside of the cover 20 and continuously putting the sheet-like workpiece to which the ink in the dry state is attached into the cover 20 is performed. Thereby, the ink adhering to the sheet-like workpiece can be dried continuously and efficiently.

  Here, the conventional drying apparatus (base processing apparatus) has a problem that the processing efficiency when continuously drying a plurality of substrates is poor. More specifically, after a certain substrate is dried in the substrate container, the substrate container is then unsealed (specifically, the lid is lifted), the dried substrate is taken out, and the substrate to be dried There is a problem in that it takes time and effort to close the substrate container and to repeat the procedure for each substrate. In addition, when replacing harmful gases such as volatilized solvents with inert gases, etc., gas diffusion is used instead of adjusting the air flow, etc., so volatilized solvents present around the substrate are inactive. There was a problem that it took time to replace the gas with gas. On the other hand, as described above, the drying apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment can efficiently exhaust the volatilized solvent and the like existing around the substrate by adjusting the airflow inside the cover 20. It can be done. In addition, the cover 20 is provided with an opening 22 for taking in and out a sheet-like workpiece from the outside of the cover 20 to the inside, and the space inside the cover 20 and the outside space always communicate with each other through the opening 22. Therefore, the efficiency at the time of continuously drying the sheet-like workpiece can be improved.

  In the above description, the drying device 1 is used for semi-drying the ink adhering to the sheet-like workpiece, but the use of the drying device 1 is not limited to such a mode. The drying device 1 may be used to completely dry the ink adhering to the sheet-like workpiece. That is, the drying device 1 according to the present embodiment can semi-dry the ink attached to the sheet-like workpiece by adjusting the time for drying the sheet-like workpiece, or completely dry the ink. You can also.

  The drying apparatus 1 for drying a sheet-like workpiece (for example, a sheet of resin or the like to which ink is attached) having the above-described configuration includes a placement unit 10 on which the sheet-like workpiece is placed, A cover 20 arranged to cover the placement unit 10, a blower unit 30 for sending gas toward the sheet-like workpiece placed on the placement unit 10, and an exhaust unit 40 for exhausting the gas inside the cover 20. And an airflow adjusting unit 50 that adjusts the airflow inside the cover 20 so as to guide the gas sent from the blower unit 30 toward the exhaust unit 40. In addition, the cover 20 is provided with an opening 22 for taking in and out a sheet-like workpiece from the outside of the cover 20 to the inside, and the space inside the cover 20 and the outside space always communicate with each other through the opening 22. Therefore, even when harmful gases such as organic solvents are generated when drying a sheet-like workpiece, such harmful gases can be made efficient by adjusting the airflow inside the cover 20. Can be exhausted. Further, since part of the cover 20 is always opened, the processing efficiency when continuously drying the sheet-like workpiece can be improved.

  Further, in the drying apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment, as described above, the air flow adjusting unit 50 has the air blowing mechanism 52 for sending out the gas, and the air feeding unit 30 sends the air toward the sheet-like workpiece. The gas sent from the blower mechanism 52 is guided toward the exhaust part 40 by the gas sent out from the blower mechanism 52, so that the gas sent from the blower part 30 toward the sheet-like workpiece is efficiently exhausted 40. You will be guided towards. The exhaust unit 40 is disposed below the air blowing mechanism 52. Moreover, since the speed of the gas sent out by the blower mechanism 52 is larger than the speed of the gas sent toward the single-wafer-shaped workpiece placed on the placement unit 10 from the blower 30, the single-wafer from the blower 30. The gas sent toward the workpiece is guided toward the exhaust part 40 so as to be involved.

  Moreover, in the drying apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment, as described above, the air blowing unit 30 is configured to send gas from the air blowing port 32 that extends linearly toward the single-wafer-shaped workpiece. The ink adhering to the workpiece can be dried more uniformly. The cover 20 has a ceiling portion 24 and side portions 28 extending in a direction substantially perpendicular to the horizontal plane. The ceiling portion 24 is inclined so as to be inclined upward from the upper end of the side portion 28. The air outlet 32 includes the inclined portions 25 arranged to face each other, and the air outlet 32 is arranged so as to extend along a place where the inclined portions are connected to each other (specifically, the connecting place 25a). The gas sent toward the single-wafer-shaped workpiece is allowed to flow through the inside of the cover 20 efficiently.

  Further, in the drying apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment, as described above, since the air blowing mechanism 52 is disposed in the vicinity of the place where the ceiling portion 24 and the side portion 28 are connected, the air blowing mechanism 52 is sent out. The gas thus discharged is directed to the exhaust part 40 along the inner side surface (that is, the side part 28) of the cover 20. Further, the height level of the lower end of the opening 22 and the height level of the mounting surface of the mounting unit 10 are substantially the same (that is, between the lower end of the opening 22 and the mounting surface of the mounting unit 10). Therefore, the operator can smoothly put in and out the sheet-like workpiece through the opening 22.

  Further, the above-described drying method for drying a sheet-like workpiece is provided with an opening 22 for taking in and out the sheet-like workpiece, and the inner space and the outer space are always communicated by the opening 22. A step of placing a single-wafer workpiece inside the cover 20, a step of sending gas toward the single-wafer workpiece placed, and a flow of gas sent toward the single-wafer workpiece A process and a process of exhausting the gas sent toward the sheet-like workpiece. For this reason, even when harmful gases such as organic solvents are generated when drying a sheet-like workpiece, such harmful gases are efficiently exhausted by adjusting the airflow inside the cover 20. In addition, it is possible to improve the processing efficiency when continuously processing the sheet-like workpiece.

  In addition, the drying apparatus 1 by this Embodiment is not limited to the above aspects, A various change can be added.

  For example, the placement unit 10 in the drying apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment has a placement surface that is a plane along a horizontal plane, but the placement unit 10 is a member having a plurality of through holes (for example, a mesh) Member having a shape pattern). Also in this case, the sheet-like workpiece placed on the placement unit 10 can be dried. At this time, by additionally providing the exhaust part 40 below the member having the plurality of through holes, it is possible to further suppress the gas inside the cover 20 from leaking to the outside. .

  In addition, the blower unit 30, the exhaust unit 40, and the airflow adjustment unit 50 are configured such that the flow rate per unit time of the gas exhausted by the exhaust unit 40 is sent from the blower port 32 of the blower unit 30 and the blower mechanism 52 of the airflow adjustment unit 50. It may be configured to be larger than the flow rate per unit time obtained by adding up the respective gases. Also in this case, it is possible to suppress the gas sent out from the air blowing port 32 of the air blowing unit 30 and the air blowing mechanism 52 of the airflow adjusting unit 50 from leaking to the outside of the cover 20 through the opening 22.

  Moreover, the airflow adjustment part which adjusts the airflow inside the cover 20 is not limited to the structure which has the ventilation mechanism 52 which sends out gas. For example, as another example of the airflow adjusting unit, a member made of, for example, a plate-like member arranged to guide the gas sent from the blower unit 30 toward the sheet-like workpiece to the exhaust unit 40 is used. May be.

  Further, as another example of the drying apparatus according to the present embodiment, ones as shown in FIGS. 5 to 9 may be used. Below, the other example of a drying apparatus is demonstrated.

  The drying apparatus 1a shown in FIGS. 5 and 6 is different from the drying apparatus 1 shown in FIGS. 1 to 3 and the like in that an exhaust unit 40 and an airflow adjustment unit 50 are provided outside the cover 20 and in the vicinity of the opening 22. Each is provided additionally. Even in such a drying apparatus 1a, the gas inside the cover 20 can be efficiently exhausted by adjusting the air flow inside the cover 20, and a part of the cover 20 is always opened. Thereby, the processing efficiency at the time of processing a sheet-like workpiece | work continuously can be improved. In addition, when the additional exhaust unit 40 and the airflow adjustment unit 50 are provided, the gas containing the volatilized solvent or the like is exposed to the outside of the cover 20 through the opening 22 when a single-wafer workpiece is taken in or out. Even when the air leaks out, the air flow adjusting unit 50 can guide the exhausted gas to the exhaust unit 40 and exhaust the gas through the exhaust unit 40. In addition, each of the exhaust part 40 and the airflow adjustment part 50 does not need to be additionally provided, and only the exhaust part 40 may be additionally provided.

  Further, the drying device 1b shown in FIGS. 7 and 8 changes the extending direction of the air blowing port 32 in the drying device 1 shown in FIGS. An additional exhaust unit 40 and an airflow adjusting unit 50 are additionally provided in the vicinity. Even in such a drying device 1b, the gas inside the cover 20 can be efficiently exhausted by adjusting the air flow inside the cover 20, and a part of the cover 20 is always opened. The processing efficiency when continuously processing the sheet-like workpiece can be improved. Further, as shown in FIG. 8, the inclined portion 25 in the ceiling portion 24 of the cover 20 is inclined at different angles with respect to the horizontal plane (that is, the placement surface of the placement portion 10). More specifically, the inclination angle with respect to the horizontal plane of the inclined portion 25 (that is, the inclined portion 25 on the right side in FIG. 8) in the vicinity of the side portion 28 provided with the opening 22 is not provided with the opening 22. The angle of inclination of the inclined portion 25 in the vicinity of the side portion 28 (that is, the inclination on the left side in FIG. 8) with respect to the horizontal plane is smaller. Thus, even when the air blowing port 32 is arranged so as to extend in parallel with the direction in which the opening 22 extends (that is, the left-right direction in FIG. 7), the sheet-like workpiece can be efficiently dried. Become.

  Further, the drying device 1c shown in FIG. 9 changes the extending direction of the air blowing port 32 in the drying device 1 shown in FIGS. Instead of providing the exhaust part 40 and the airflow adjustment part 50 at the end in the left-right direction), the exhaust part 40 and the back side of the cover 20 (that is, the side with the upper end in FIG. 9) and the front side of the cover 20 An airflow adjusting unit 50 is provided. More specifically, the exhaust part 40 and the airflow adjustment part 50 provided on the back side of the cover 20 are arranged inside the cover 20. On the other hand, the exhaust unit 40 and the airflow adjustment unit 50 provided on the front side of the cover 20 are arranged outside the cover 20. Even in such a drying apparatus 1c, the gas inside the cover 20 can be efficiently exhausted by adjusting the airflow inside the cover 20, and a part of the cover 20 is always opened. The processing efficiency when continuously processing the sheet-like workpiece can be improved. 9 has a configuration in which the exhaust unit 40 and the airflow adjustment unit 50 are installed only at one place inside the cover 20, the exhaust unit 40 and the airflow are provided at two locations inside the cover 20. The size of the cover 20 can be reduced as compared with the drying apparatuses 1, 1a, and 1b shown in FIGS. 1 to 8 that are configured to install the adjusting unit 50, and thus the drying apparatus 1c is made more compact. Will be able to.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1, 1a, 1b, 1c Drying apparatus 10 Mounting part 20 Cover 22 Opening 24 Ceiling part 25 Inclined part 25a Connection location 26 Side part 28 Side part 30 Blower part 32 Blower port 40 Exhaust part 42 Exhaust port 50 Airflow adjustment part 52 Blow Mechanism 200 Printing machine 300 Drying stand

Claims (9)

A drying device for drying a sheet-like workpiece,
A placement section on which a sheet-like workpiece is placed;
A cover arranged to cover the mounting portion, and
A blower unit that sends gas toward the sheet-like workpiece placed on the placement unit;
An exhaust part for exhausting the gas inside the cover;
An air flow adjusting unit that adjusts the air flow inside the cover so as to guide the gas sent from the blower unit toward the exhaust unit;
With
The cover is provided with an opening for taking in and out a sheet-like workpiece from the outside to the inside of the cover, and the opening allows the space inside the cover to communicate with the outside space at all times. Is a drying device. The air flow adjusting unit has a blower mechanism for sending out gas,
The drying apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the gas sent from the blower toward the sheet-like workpiece is guided toward the exhaust by the gas sent from the blower mechanism.   The drying apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the exhaust unit is disposed below the blower mechanism.   The drying apparatus according to claim 2 or 3, wherein a speed of gas sent out by the blower mechanism is higher than a speed of gas sent from the blower part toward the sheet-like workpiece placed on the placing part. .   The drying device according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the air blowing unit is configured to send gas from a blower port extending linearly toward a sheet-like workpiece. The cover has a ceiling portion and side portions extending in a direction substantially perpendicular to the horizontal plane,
The ceiling portion includes inclined portions arranged to face each other so as to be inclined upward from the upper end of the side portion,
The drying device according to claim 5, wherein the blower port is disposed so as to extend along a place where the inclined portions are connected to each other.   The drying device according to claim 6, wherein the air blowing mechanism is disposed in the vicinity of a place where the ceiling portion and the side portion are connected.   The drying apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 7, wherein a height level of a lower end of the opening and a height level of a placement surface of the placement portion are substantially the same. A drying method for drying a sheet-like workpiece,
A step of placing the sheet-like workpiece inside the cover in which an opening for taking in and out the sheet-like workpiece is provided, and the inner space and the outer space are always in communication with each other;
A process of sending gas toward the mounted sheet-like workpiece;
Adjusting the flow of the gas sent toward the sheet-like workpiece;
Exhausting the gas sent toward the sheet-like workpiece;
A drying method comprising:

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