U.S. patent number RE41,853 [Application Number 11/808,252] was granted by the patent office on 2010-10-26 for scribing head, and scribing apparatus and scribing method using the scribing head.
This patent grant is currently assigned to Mitsuboshi Diamond Industrial Co., Ltd.. Invention is credited to Keiko Hayashi, Junichi Matsumoto, Yoshitaka Nishio, Toshiyuki Sakai, Haruo Wakayama.
United States Patent |
RE41,853 |
Wakayama , et al. |
October 26, 2010 |
Scribing head, and scribing apparatus and scribing method using the
scribing head
Abstract
A scribing head 1 of this invention raises and lowers a scribing
cutter by rotation of a servomotor 3. As a scribe pressure, a
rotational torque of the servomotor 3 is transmitted to the
scribing cutter. To form a scribe line across another scribe line
which is formed earlier, the scribe pressure is raised temporarily
when the scribing head passes the scribe line which is formed
earlier. The rotational torque of the servomotor 3 is controlled at
any of preset limits while the position of a cutter 6 of the
scribing head shifts on the brittle substrate. The servomotor 3 is
driven under position-control mode.
Inventors: |
Wakayama; Haruo (Osaka,
JP), Sakai; Toshiyuki (Osaka, JP), Hayashi;
Keiko (Osaka, JP), Nishio; Yoshitaka (Osaka,
JP), Matsumoto; Junichi (Osaka, JP) |
Assignee: |
Mitsuboshi Diamond Industrial Co.,
Ltd. (Osaka, JP)
|
Family
ID: |
19052370 |
Appl.
No.: |
11/808,252 |
Filed: |
July 18, 2002 |
PCT
Filed: |
July 18, 2002 |
PCT No.: |
PCT/JP02/07320 |
371(c)(1),(2),(4) Date: |
January 14, 2004 |
PCT
Pub. No.: |
WO03/011777 |
PCT
Pub. Date: |
February 13, 2003 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
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Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
Issue Date |
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Reissue of: |
10483716 |
Jan 14, 2004 |
06901670 |
Jun 7, 2005 |
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Foreign Application Priority Data
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Jul 18, 2001 [JP] |
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2001-218146 |
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Current U.S.
Class: |
33/18.1 |
Current CPC
Class: |
C03B
33/10 (20130101); B28D 5/022 (20130101); C03B
33/027 (20130101); C03B 33/07 (20130101); B28D
1/225 (20130101); B28D 5/0011 (20130101); Y10T
83/0333 (20150401); Y10T 83/0341 (20150401); Y02P
40/57 (20151101) |
Current International
Class: |
C03B
33/02 (20060101); B43L 13/00 (20060101) |
Field of
Search: |
;33/18.1-45 |
References Cited
[Referenced By]
U.S. Patent Documents
Foreign Patent Documents
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0 700 877 |
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Mar 1996 |
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EP |
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10-158022 |
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Jun 1998 |
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JP |
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2000-247667 |
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Sep 2000 |
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JP |
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2000-280234 |
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Oct 2000 |
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JP |
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2001-1019452 |
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Jan 2001 |
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JP |
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2001-206727 |
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Jul 2001 |
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JP |
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2001-206727 |
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Jul 2001 |
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JP |
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2001-328833 |
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Nov 2001 |
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JP |
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Other References
Supplementary European Search Report for the Application No. EP 02
74 9321 dated Dec. 27, 2007. cited by other .
International Search Report for PCT/JP02/07320 mailed on Dec. 3,
2002. cited by other .
International Preliminary Examination Report for PCT/JP02/07320
completed on Nov. 10, 2003. cited by other.
|
Primary Examiner: Fulton; Christopher W
Attorney, Agent or Firm: Cheng Law Group, PLLC
Claims
What is claimed is:
1. A scribing head equipped with a scribing cutter for forming a
scribe line on a brittle substrate, the scribing cutter being
positioned by a servomotor which is driven under position-control
mode so as to raise and lower the scribing cutter, wherein when the
scribing cutter deviates from a position set by the servomotor, the
driving torque is limited while it acts to reposition the scribing
cutter to the position set by the servomotor, and a driving torque
is transmitted to the scribing cutter as a scribe pressure.
2. A scribing head according to claim 1, wherein .[.transfer
movement of the servomotor is converted to vertical movement
through a gear, and.]. the driving torque is applied as a scribe
pressure.
3. A scribing head according to claim 1, wherein a scribe line is
formed across another scribe line which is formed earlier, with the
scribe pressure being raised temporarily when the scribing head
passes the scribe line which is formed earlier.
4. A scribing head according to claim 1, wherein the driving torque
of the servomotor is controlled at any of present limits while the
position of the cutter of the scribing head shifts on the brittle
substrate.
5. A scribing head according to claim 1, wherein the servomotor
sets the position of the scribing head so as to locate below a top
surface of the brittle substrate, and substantially at the same
time as the start of a scribing action, the thus set position is
lowered further to a predetermined position.
6. A scribing head according to claim 1, comprising: a scribing
head body which runs on a brittle substrate; a tip holder mounted
on the scribing head body via a support shaft which extends
parallel to a surface of the brittle substrate, the tip holder
being freely swingable around the axis of the support shaft; and a
cutter wheel tip attached to the tip holder via a rotation shaft
which extends parallel to the surface of the brittle substrate, the
cutter wheel lip being freely rotatable around the axis of the
rotation shaft.
7. A scribing head according to claim 6, wherein the tip holder is
mounted via a turning shaft which extends orthogonally to the
surface of the brittle substrate, the tip holder being freely
swingable around the axis of the turning shaft.
8. A scribing head according to claim 7, wherein the rotation shaft
is offset from the axis of the turning shaft toward the support
shaft.
9. A scribing head according to claim 6, wherein the axis of the
support shaft locates on or above a vector line of a reaction force
which derives from the brittle substrate and which is exerted on
the cutter wheel tip during the scribing action.
10. A scribing apparatus for scribing a brittle substrate by moving
a scribing head which is equipped with a scribing cutter for
forming a scribe line on the brittle substrate, wherein the
scribing apparatus is equipped with a scribing head according to
any one of claims 1 to 4, 5, 6 or 9.
11. A method for scribing a brittle substrate, using a scribing
head which comprises: a scribing head body according to any one of
claims 1 to 4, 5 or 6 to 9, which runs on the brittle substrate; a
tip holder mounted on the scribing head body via a support shaft
which extends parallel to a surface of the brittle substrate, the
tip holder being freely swingable around the axis of the support
shaft; and a cutter wheel lip attached to the tip holder via a
rotation shaft which extends parallel to the surface of the brittle
substrate, the cutter wheel tip being freely rotatable around the
axis of the rotation shaft, wherein the scribing head forms a
scribe line on the surface of the brittle substrate by running on
the brittle substrate, with the support shaft locating behind the
cutter wheel tip.
12. A method for scribing a brittle substrate according to claim
11, wherein the tip holder is mounted via a turning shaft which
extends orthogonally to the surface of the brittle substrate, the
tip holder being freely swingable around the axis of the turning
shaft.
13. A method for scribing a brittle substrate according to claim
12, wherein the rotation shaft is offset from the axis of the
rotation shaft toward the support shaft.
14. A method for scribing a brittle substrate according to claim
11, wherein a reaction force which derives from the brittle
substrate and which is exerted on the cutter wheel tip during the
scribing action, is oriented along a line which connects the origin
of the reaction force and the axis of the support shaft, or
oriented nearer to the brittle substrate relative to the line.
15. A scribing head according to any one of claims 1 to 4, 5, or 6
to 9 wherein the scribing head raised and lowers in a direction
perpendicular to a major surface of the brittle substrate.
16. A method for scribing a brittle substrate, equipped with a
scribing cutter for forming a scribe line on the brittle substrate,
the scribing cutter being positioned by a servomotor which is
driven under position-control mode so as to raise and lower the
scribing cutter, the brittle substrate being scribed with a driving
torque of the servomotor which is transmitted to the scribing
cutter as a scribe pressure, wherein when the scribing cutter
deviates from a position set by the servomotor, the driving torque
is limited while it acts to reposition the scribing cutter to the
position set by the servomotor.
17. A method for scribing a brittle substrate according to claim
16, wherein transfer movement of the servomotor is converted to
vertical movement through a gear, and the driving torque is applied
as a scribe pressure.
18. A method for scribing a brittle substrate according to claim
16, wherein a scribe line is formed across another scribe line
which is formed earlier, with the scribe pressure being raised
temporarily when the scribing head passes the scribe line which is
formed earlier.
19. A method for scribing a brittle substrate according to claim
16, wherein the driving torque of the servomotor is controlled at
any of preset limits while the position of the scribing cutter of
the scribing head shifts on the brittle substrate.
20. A method for scribing a brittle substrate according to claim
16, wherein the servomotor sets the position of the scribing head
so as to locate below a top surface of the brittle substrate, and
substantially at the same time as the start of a scribing action,
the thus set position is lowered further to a predetermined
position.
21. A method for scribing brittle substrate according to any one of
claims 16 to 20, wherein transfer movement of the servomotor is
converted to vertical movement through a gear, and the driving
torque is applied as a scribe pressure.
.Iadd.22. A scribing head equipped with a scribing cutter, the
scribing cutter being movable toward and away from a surface of a
brittle substrate and forming a scribe line on the brittle
substrate by applying a pressure on the surface of the brittle
substrate, the scribing head comprising: a servomotor for moving
the scribing cutter toward and away from the surface of the brittle
substrate and biasing the scribing cutter onto the surface of the
brittle substrate. .Iaddend.
.Iadd.23. A scribing head according to claim 22, further
comprising: a controller which outputs a position command signal
for moving the scribing cutter to a predetermined position, and a
torque command signal for determining a torque limit of a
rotational torque generated by the servomotor; and a servo
amplifier which outputs a drive signal to the servomotor, the drive
signal being such that the servomotor is driven in a rotation
direction of a rotation shaft of the servomotor by a rotational
torque not higher than the torque limit, wherein the rotation
direction of the rotation shaft corresponds to a direction of
moving the scribing cutter to the predetermined position indicated
by the position command signal. .Iaddend.
.Iadd.24. A scribing apparatus comprising: a scribing head
according to claim 22, means for holding the brittle substrate; and
means for moving the scribing cutter relative to the brittle
substrate in a direction along the surface of the brittle
substrate. .Iaddend.
.Iadd.25. A scribing apparatus comprising: a scribing head
according to claim 23, means for holding the brittle substrate; and
means for moving the scribing cutter relative to the brittle
substrate in a direction along the surface of the brittle
substrate. .Iaddend.
.Iadd.26. A scribing apparatus according to claim 25, wherein the
predetermined position of the scribing cutter indicated by the
position command signal is a position closer to a second surface of
the brittle substrate rather than a position where the scribing
cutter contacts a first surface of the brittle substrate, the
torque limit includes a first torque limit, a second torque limit
and a third torque limit, the first torque limit and the third
torque limit being smaller than the second torque limit, and as the
torque command signal the controller outputs the first torque limit
when the scribing cutter rides on the brittle substrate, outputs
the second torque limit when the scribing cutter moves on the
surface of the brittle substrate, and outputs the third torque
limit when the scribing cutter comes out of the surface of the
brittle substrate, based on a position and a movement direction of
the scribing cutter relative to the brittle substrate.
.Iaddend.
.Iadd.27. A scribing apparatus according to claim 25, wherein the
torque limit includes a second torque limit and a fourth torque
limit that is greater than the second torque limit, and the
controller outputs the second torque limit when the scribing cutter
moves on a part of the surface of the brittle substrate which does
not contain another scribe line, and outputs the fourth torque
limit when the scribing cutter moves across another scribe line.
.Iaddend.
.Iadd.28. A method for scribing a brittle substrate, wherein a
scribe line is formed on a brittle substrate with use of a scribing
cutter which is movable toward and away from a surface of the
brittle substrate and which forms the scribe line on the brittle
substrate by applying a pressure on the surface of the brittle
substrate, the method comprising the steps of: moving, by
controlling a servomotor, the scribing cutter toward and away from
the surface of the brittle substrate so as to bring the scribing
cutter to a predetermined position, and applying a pressure to the
brittle substrate via the scribing cutter by setting a rotational
torque of the servomotor at a predetermined torque limit.
.Iaddend.
.Iadd.29. A method for scribing a brittle substrate according to
claim 28, wherein the predetermined position of the scribing cutter
is a position closer to a second surface of the brittle substrate
rather than a position where the scribing cutter contacts a first
surface of the brittle substrate, and the torque limit includes a
first torque limit, a second torque limit and a third torque limit,
the first torque limit and the third torque limit being smaller
than the second torque limit, the method comprising the steps of:
setting the torque limit at the first torque limit so as to move
the scribing cutter onto the brittle substrate, setting the torque
limit at the second torque limit so as to move the scribing cutter
along the surface of the brittle substrate and form a scribe line,
and setting the torque limit at the third torque limit after
formation of the scribe line, so as to move the scribing cutter out
of the surface of the brittle substrate. .Iaddend.
.Iadd.30. A method for scribing a brittle substrate according to
claim 28, wherein the torque limit includes a second torque limit
and a fourth torque limit that is greater than the second torque
limit, and the torque limit is set at the second torque limit when
a scribe line is formed on a part of the surface of the brittle
substrate which does not contain another scribe line, and is set at
the fourth torque limit when the scribing cutter moves across
another scribe line..Iaddend.
Description
TECHNICAL FIELD
This invention relates to a scribing head for forming a scribe line
on a brittle substrate such as plate glass, semiconductor wafer,
ceramic, etc., and also relates to a scribing apparatus and a
scribing method using the scribing head.
BACKGROUND ART
FIG. 16 shows a structure of a conventional scribing head 50, and
FIG. 17 is a side view thereof. A tip holder 52 permits rotation of
a cutter wheel tip 51. This tip holder 52 can swing freely via a
vertical shaft bearing 55 which is accommodated in a holder carrier
54. Accordingly, when the scribing bead 50 moves (to the right in
FIG. 16), the tip holder 52 swings to align with the direction of
this movement.
A scribing unit 56 is disposed above the holder carrier 54, with a
small gap G. On the right side of the holder carrier 54, a bearing
57 is embedded at a predetermined position, orthogonally to the
drawing sheet. A center shaft 57a of the bearing 57 is integrated
with the scribing unit 56. On the left side, the bottom end of the
holder carrier 54 is checked by a stopper 53. Accordingly, the
holder carrier 54 pivots about the bearing 57, within a range
permitted by the gap G.
The scribing unit 56 contains an air cylinder chamber 58 which
extends vertically and in which a piston 59 is inserted. The bottom
end of the piston 59 has a recess for keeping a bearing 60 in a
loose-fit manner. Its center shaft 60a is held by the piston 59.
Accordingly, the peripheral body of the bearing 60 rotates freely,
with its bottom end touching the top part of the holder carrier 54.
When air is fed to this air cylinder chamber 58 at a prearranged
pressure, the piston 59 and the bearing 60 are pressed down to
apply a predetermined scribe pressure (scribe load) to the cutter
wheel tip 51. Even when the holder carrier 54 is tilted, the
bearing 60 transmits the pressure from the piston 59 straight down
to the holder carrier 54 without fail.
Turning to FIG. 17, the scribing head 50 is disposed movably along
a horizontal guide rail 67 of the scribing apparatus 66. The
scribing head 50 can also move upwardly and downwardly when driven
by an up-down cylinder or motor 65. Descent of the scribing head 50
causes the cutter wheel tip 51 to abut on a glass plate W. After
that, the holder carrier 54 pivots about the bearing 57, creating a
clearance between the holder carrier 54 and the stopper 53. On
detection of this clearance, descent of the scribing head 50 slops.
Then, the scribing head 50 descends again by a predetermined cut-in
depth. Thereafter, a predetermined scribe pressure is set to the
air cylinder chamber 58.
FIG. 18 shows a plate glass scribing apparatus 20 which is
disclosed in Japanese Patent Laid-open Publication No. H8-225333.
This apparatus has a detection unit 24 which employs a
piezoelectric device for detecting up-down movement of a glass
cutter 38 and a desired scribe pressure. A detection signal from
the piezoelectric device is processed through an amplification unit
39 and a process unit 26, and a control unit 28 controls a linear
motor 22.
Having said that, the scribing head 50 of FIG. 16 requires complex
mechanisms such as a motor for lowering the cutter wheel tip 51 to
a certain level, and an electric-pneumatic converter for setting a
desired scribe pressure. Likewise, the apparatus of FIG. 18 needs
the detection unit 24 and a circuit for processing a detection
signal from this unit, thus complicating the scribing head
mechanism. Further, because the movable members have large inertia,
the apparatus shows poor responsivity and has difficulty in
stabilizing the scribing quality.
Incidentally, to produce square glass chips which are used as an
electric parts material, a base material of a large glass plate is
scribed and broken into square glass pieces in the following
manner. In the beginning, a cutter wheel tip is made to run in one
direction on a surface of the base material. To form parallel
scribe lines, this operation is repeated for predetermined times,
with the start position displaced after each run. Next, to form
scribe lines which intersect mutually, the running direction of the
cutter wheel tip is changed so as to cross the previous running
direction. After this cross-scribing operation, the base material
is transferred to a breaking machine. The breaking machine imposes
a certain pressure on the base material and applies a bending
moment along the scribe lines formed on the base material.
Eventually, the base material is broken along the scribe lines to
give intended square glass chips.
As known, this scribing operation can be performed, for example,
with an apparatus illustrated in FIG. 19. In the following
description, the lateral directions in this drawing are taken as X
directions and the directions orthogonal to the drawing sheet are
taken as Y directions.
This scribing apparatus comprises: a worktable 70 which can rotate
horizontally and on which a glass plate GL is laid and fixed by a
vacuum suction means; a pair of guide rails 71, 71 which support
the worktable 70 movably in Y directions; a ball screw 72 which
displaces the worktable 70 along the guide rails 71, 71; a guide
bar 73 which is constructed above the worktable 70 along X
directions; a scribing head 76 which is attached to the guide bar
73 and slidable in X directions; a motor 74 for sliding the
scribing head 76; a lip holder 77 which is swingably attached at
the bottom of the scribing head 76 and which is movable upwardly
and downwardly; a cutter wheel tip 78 which is rotatably mounted at
the bottom end of the tip holder 77; and a pair of CCD cameras 75
which locate above the guide bar 73 in order to recognize alignment
marks on the glass plate GL laid on the worktable 70.
While the scribing head is running, various factors, such as
inevitable microscopic unevenness on the surface of the glass plate
GL, may cause distortion of a scribe line. Hence, an
anti-distortion measure is incorporated into the scribing head of
the scribing apparatus of this structure. As specifically shown in
FIG. 20, the tip holder 77 is mounted to the scribing head body 76A
via a turning shaft 79 which extends orthogonally to the surface of
the glass plate GL, such that the tip holder 77 can swing freely
around the axis of the turning shaft 79. In addition, the cutter
wheel tip 78 is attached to the tip bolder 77 at the position
Q.sub.2 which is offset from the axis Q.sub.1 of the turning shaft
79 toward the opposite direction to the running direction
(direction of Arrow S in the drawing). As a result, while the
scribing head is running, the cutter wheel tip 78 follows the
scribing head body 76A. Hence, the cutter wheel tip 78 gains
stability in straight movement, which serves to prevent distortion
of a scribe line.
This scribing apparatus operates without problem as far as scribe
lines are formed on a glass plate only in one direction. On the
other hand, referring to FIG. 21, a cross-scribing operation tends
to fail near the points where the cutter wheel tip 78 crosses and
passes the former scribe lines L.sub.1-L.sub.3, because the
apparatus does not make the latter scribe lines L.sub.4-L.sub.6 at
those points, or it "skips" the intersections. If intersections are
skipped on a scribed glass plate, the glass plate is not broken
precisely along the scribe lines in the breaking operation using
the above-mentioned breaking machine. Eventually, the scribing
apparatus yields a volume of defective products and shows an
extremely poor productivity.
The reason for this problem is understood as follows: a scribing
force which is applied from the scribing head to the glass plate
surface is cancelled when the cutter wheel tip crosses and passes
existing scribe lines, by latent internal stresses on both sides of
these scribe lines.
As a solution to this problem, the applicant proposed a scribing
method, a scribing head and a scribing apparatus (Japanese Patent
Application No. 2000-142969). The scribing head comprises: a
scribing head body which runs on a brittle substrate; a tip holder
mounted on the scribing head body via a turning shaft which extends
orthogonally to a surface of the brittle substrate, the tip holder
being freely swingable around the axis of the turning shaft; a
cutter wheel tip attached to the tip holder at a position which is
offset from the axis of the turning shaft toward the opposite
direction to the running direction. This scribing head is used to
provide scribe lines which cross each other on the surface of the
brittle substrate. During the scribing operation, the swing range
of the tip holder is controlled at greater than 0.degree. but not
greater than 2.degree.. FIG. 22 shows a front view of an embodiment
of this scribing head, and FIG. 23 is its bottom view.
The scribing head has a scribing head body 80, a bearing housing
81, a tip holder 82, a cutter wheel tip 83, and a bias means
84.
The bottom of the scribing head body 80 is cut away to form a notch
85 which accommodates the bearing housing 81. An end of the bearing
housing 81 is joined, via a bearing 87, with a horizontal support
shaft 86 which is inserted in the scribing head body 80. The other
end abuts on a stopper shaft 88 which is contained within the
scribing head body 80 and which extends parallel to the support
shaft 86. Hence, the bearing housing 81 pivots around the axis of
the support shaft 86 until it is stopped by the stopper shaft
88.
The tip holder 82 is mounted to the bearing housing 81 via a
turning shaft 89 which extends orthogonally to the surface of the
brittle substrate, the tip holder being freely swingable around the
axis of the turning shaft 89. A bearing 40 is set between the
turning shaft 89 and the bearing housing 81. The bias means 84
which locates above the turning shaft 89 is arranged to apply a
biasing force to the cutter wheel tip 83, through the turning shaft
89 and the tip holder 82.
The cutter wheel tip 83, attached to the tip holder 82, is offset
from the axis of the turning shaft 89 toward the opposite direction
to the running direction S of the scribing head (offset to the left
in FIG. 22).
During the scribing operation, the swing range A of the tip holder
82 is controlled at greater than 0.degree. but not greater than
2.degree., by means of a groove 41 which is formed in the bottom
surface of the bearing housing 81. Namely, the tip holder 82 has
its upper end accommodated in the groove 41 of the bearing housing
81. When the tip holder 82 swings to the maximum limit of its swing
range, either pair of opposing corners 42, 45 (43, 44) at its upper
end arc arranged to abut on interior walls 46, 47 of the groove 41.
Owing to this arrangement, the swing range A of the tip holder 82
can be adjusted in the defined range, by adjustment of clearances
between the interior surfaces 46, 47 of the groove 41 and the side
faces 48, 49 at the upper end of the tip holder 82. It is readily
understood that the clearances are set greater in order to expand
the swing range A, whereas the clearances are set smaller for a
narrower swing range.
These arrangements ensure the operation of the scribing head
proposed by the applicant, by securing the swing action of the tip
holder to such a degree as to keep straight movement of the cutter
wheel tip, and also by suppressing the influence of latent internal
stresses near the intersections. Consequently, even if a pressure
is applied by the scribing head at a fixed level, the
cross-scribing operation does not experience skipping of
intersections nor missing of a scribe line at the starting end of
scribing. Thus, the applicant's scribing head achieves the desired
objects.
In this scribing head, the cutter wheel tip, attached to the tip
holder, is offset from the axis of the turning shaft toward the
opposite direction to the running direction. During the scribing
operation, the scribing head runs with the support shaft side
ahead. Hence, the cutter wheel tip is caused to jump up when the
scribing head crosses existing scribe lines, or passes an undulated
or warped part of a glass or an uneven part on a glass surface. In
this connection, the tip holder tends to pivot about the support
shaft and to bounce over the glass surface. The schematic view of
FIG. 13 illustratively explains this phenomenon, wherein the sign
GL designates glass, 83 indicates the cutter wheel tip, and 86
indicates the support shaft.
Namely, when the scribing head runs (in the direction of Arrow S in
the drawing) with the support shaft 86 ahead and with the cutter
wheel tip 83 being pressed against a surfact of the glass GL by the
bias means 84, the point of contact between a blade ridge 83A of
the cutter wheel tip 83 and the surface of the glass GL is given as
the point P. At this point P, a reaction force R is generated
toward the center of the cutter wheel tip 83, against a resultant
force of a horizontal scribing force component M and a vertical
scribing force component N, wherein the scribing force components M
and N represent a horizontal component and a vertical component,
respectively, of a scribing force which is required to scribe the
glass GL by the cutter wheel tip 83. The reaction force R acts on
the cutter wheel tip 83, as a turning moment around the support
shaft 86. Consequently, the cutter wheel tip 83 is caused to jump
up. In this connection, the tip holder (not shown) tends to pivot
about the support shaft 86 and to bounce over the glass surface
GL.
If the tip holder bounces in this manner, the pressure to the
cutter wheel tip 83 is cancelled by the reaction force R. In this
situation, formation of a deep vertical crack is less likely.
Incidentally, let us describe a mechanism of how the cutter wheel
tip creates a vertical crack on the glass. For a start, a load
imposed on the blade edge causes elastic deformation on the glass
surface, at a part where the blade edge touches the glass surface.
With an increase of the load on the blade edge, this part undergoes
plastic deformation. When the blade edge load becomes so great as
to exceed the critical limit of plastic deformation, brittle
fracture occurs, and a vertical crack begins to grow in the glass
thickness direction. Growth of the vertical crack terminates once
the leading end of the crack reaches a certain depth (a distance
from the surface of the brittle substrate) which depends on the
amount of blade edge load, glass composition, glass thickness, etc.
In this case, provided that the composition and the thickness of
the glass are the same, the depth of the leading end of the
vertical crack (hereinafter mentioned as "vertical crack
propagation depth") is controllable only by the load on the blade
edge. In other words, with an increase of the blade edge load, the
blade edge of the cutter wheel tip cuts deeper into the glass
surface and gives a greater energy to generate a vertical crack, so
that the vertical crack propagation depth becomes longer. However,
once the blade edge load exceeds a certain level, a comparatively
deep vertical crack is obtained, but at the same time, internal
distortion which has accumulated near the glass surface reaches
saturation. Such an excessive blade edge load results in growth of
a so-called horizontal crack in a direction totally different from
the growing direction of the vertical crack. The horizontal crack
causes generation of a large amount of undesirable chips.
The inventors investigated the above-mentioned mechanism in more
detail and discovered a relationship between the blade edge load
and the vertical crack propagation depth, as given in FIG. 14. As
seen in the graph of FIG. 14, the vertical crack propagation depth
is related with three stages: an initial stage (Stage A) where the
depth gently increases with increment of the blade edge load; an
intermediate stage (Stage B) where the depth sharply increases with
increment of the blade edge load; and a final stage (Stage C) where
the depth hardly increases despite increment of the blade edge
load. While a horizontal crack is not observed in Stage A and Stage
B, Stage C showed drastic increase of horizontal cracks.
Based on this knowledge, the inventors discovered that a deep
vertical crack is obtainable without generation of a horizontal
crack, when a scribing operation is performed with a blade edge
load in Stage B, where the propagation depth increases sharply with
increment of the blade edge load.
Nevertheless, due to the extreme narrowness of the range of the
blade edge load in Stage B, it turned out to be difficult to
achieve a stable scribing operation in Stage B alone as far as
adjustment of the blade edge load is done as in a usual scribing
operation. In particular, as discussed above, prior art cannot
prevent a bounce of the tip holder, permitting the pressure to the
cutter wheel tip to be cancelled by the reaction force R. Under
such circumstances, it is awfully difficult to adjust the blade
edge load within the extremely narrow Stage B.
Also as mentioned earlier, the cross-scribing operation involves a
task of preventing skipping of intersections. For this purpose, the
blade edge load for formation of second scribe lines should be much
greater than the load for formation of first scribe lines. In this
case, the blade edge load often falls into Stage C, inevitably
causing increase of horizontal cracks and associated generation of
a large volume of chips.
In addition to the problems mentioned above, a scribing operation
using a conventional cutter wheel is also affected by some external
factors such as an undulated or warped glass, an uneven glass
surface, and wearing of the tip holder which holds the cutter wheel
tip or of the scribing head which carries the tip holder. In this
case, formation of stable scribe lines is often hampered.
This invention is made to solve these problems. A first object of
the invention is to provide a scribing head, and a scribing
apparatus and a scribing method using this scribing head, in which
the scribing head has a simple mechanism and is suitably adaptable
to various scribe conditions. A second object of the invention is
to provide a scribing head, and a scribing apparatus and a scribing
method using this scribing head, in which the scribing head
prevents not only skipping of intersections during a cross-scribing
operation but also a bounce of the tip holder. As a consequence, a
pressure imposed on the cutter wheel tip is efficiently applied to
a brittle substrate, realizing a vertical crack which is much
deeper than the one obtained in a conventional manner.
DISCLOSURE OF THE INVENTION
In order to achieve the above-mentioned objects, a scribing head of
the invention is equipped with a scribing cutter for forming a
scribe line on a brittle substrate, the scribing cutter being
raised and lowered by rotation of a servomotor, and as a scribe
pressure, a rotational torque of the servomotor is transmitted to
the scribing cutter.
Use of a servomotor simplifies the scribing head mechanism and
realizes a scribing head and a scribing apparatus which are
available at a lower price. Besides, the zero position can be
detected on software, without relying on a conventional contact
mechanism. Further, owing to good responsivity of the scribe
pressure generation mechanism, various scribe conditions can be
flexibly adopted.
In this arrangement, rotational movement of the servomotor may be
converted to vertical movement through a gear, and the rotational
torque may be applied as a scribe pressure.
To form a scribe line across another scribe line which is formed
earlier, the scribe pressure may be raised temporarily when the
scribing head passes the scribe line which is formed earlier.
Preferably, the rotational torque of the servomotor is controlled
at any of preset limits while the position of the cutter of the
scribing head shifts on the brittle substrate. Also preferably, the
servomotor is driven under position-control mode. If this is the
case, it is preferable that the servomotor sets a position of the
scribing head so as to locate below a top surface of the brittle
substrate, and substantially at the same time as the start of a
scribing action, the thus set position is lowered further.
This arrangement can prevent the cutter wheel tip from jumping up
when it crosses a raised scribe trace formed in a previous scribing
action. This is an effective measure against "skipping of
intersections".
Another scribing head of the invention comprises: a scribing head
body which runs on a brittle substrate; a tip holder mounted on the
scribing head body via a support shaft which extends parallel to a
surface of the brittle substrate, the tip holder being freely
swingable around the axis of the support shaft; and a cutter wheel
tip attached to the tip holder via a rotation shaft which extends
parallel to the surface of the brittle substrate, the cutter wheel
tip being freely rotatable around the axis of the rotation
shaft.
This second scribing head may incorporate the arrangements for the
scribing head mentioned earlier.
Concerning any scribing head of the invention, it is preferable
that the tip holder is mounted via a turning shaft which extends
orthogonally to the surface of the brittle substrate, the tip
holder being freely swingable around the axis of the turning
shaft.
The rotation shaft may be offset from the axis of the turning shaft
toward the support shaft.
The axis of the support shaft may locate on or above a vector line
of a reaction force which derives from the brittle substrate and
which is exerted on the cutter wheel tip during the scribing
action.
A scribing apparatus of the invention is for scribing a brittle
substrate by moving a scribing head which is equipped with a
scribing cutter for forming a scribe line on a brittle substrate.
This scribing apparatus is equipped with any of the scribe heads
mentioned above.
A method of the present invention for scribing a brittle substrate
uses a scribing head which comprises: a scribing head body which
runs on a brittle substrate; a tip holder mounted on the scribing
head body via a support shaft which extends parallel to a surface
of the brittle substrate, the tip holder being freely swingable
around the axis of the support shaft; and a cutter wheel tip
attached to the tip holder via a rotation shaft which extends
parallel to the surface of the brittle substrate, the cutter wheel
tip being freely rotatable around the axis of the rotation shaft.
The scribing head forms a scribe line on the surface of the brittle
substrate by running on the brittle substrate, with the support
shaft being behind the cutter wheel tip.
In this arrangement, it is preferable that the tip holder is
mounted via a turning shaft which extends orthogonally to the
surface of the brittle substrate, the tip holder being freely
swingable around the axis of the turning shaft.
The rotation shaft may be offset from the axis of the turning shaft
toward the support shaft.
The scribing method of the invention may be performed while
maintaining a state where a reaction force which derives from the
brittle substrate and which is exerted on the cutter wheel tip
during the scribing action, is oriented along a line which connects
the origin of the reaction force and the axis of the support shaft,
or oriented nearer to the brittle substrate relative to the
line.
Owing to these features, the scribing head of claims 7-11 and the
scribing method of claims 12-15 acquire a following effect. While
the scribing head runs (in the direction of Arrow T in FIG. 13)
with the support shaft 99 behind and with the cutter wheel tip 95
being pressed against a surface of the glass GL by the bias means
96, the point of contact between a blade ridge 95A of the cutter
wheel tip 95 and the surface of the glass GL is given as the point
E in FIG. 13. At this point E, a reaction force X is generated
against a resultant force of a horizontal scribing force component
V and a vertical scribing force component W, wherein the scribing
force components V and W represent a horizontal component and a
vertical component, respectively, of a scribing force which is
required to scribe the glass GL by the utter wheel tip 95. The
reaction force X, which is directed to the support shaft 99, does
not act as a turning moment which causes the cutter wheel tip 95 to
jump up from the glass GL. In this situation, the tip holder does
not bounce in the manner mentioned above, and the pressure to the
cutter wheel tip 95 is not cancelled by the reaction force X. As a
consequence, the pressure applied to the cutter wheel tip 95 acts
efficiently on the glass (brittle substrate), realizing a vertical
crack which is much deeper than the one obtained
conventionally.
In this connection, the tip holder may be mounted via a turning
shaft which extends orthogonally to the surface of the brittle
substrate, and may be freely swingable around the axis of the
turning shaft. This arrangement can enhance the follow-up ability
of the tip holder in the scribe head running direction.
Further, the rotation shaft may be offset from the axis of the
turning shaft toward the support shaft. This arrangement can also
enhance the follow-up ability of the tip holder in the scribe head
running direction.
The scribing method and the scribing head as above are preferred to
maintain a state where a reaction force which derives from the
brittle substrate and which is exerted on the cutter wheel tip
during the scribing action, is oriented along a line which connects
the origin of the reaction force and the axis of the support shaft,
or oriented nearer to the brittle substrate relative to the line.
This arrangement can eliminate, with a greater reliability,
generation of a turning moment which causes the tip holder to
bounce as explained earlier.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
FIG. 1 is a side view of a scribing head according to Embodiment 1
of the invention.
FIG. 2 is a front view of its principal part.
FIG. 3 illustrates a control system for the scribing head according
to the invention.
FIG. 4 illustrates movement of the cutter wheel tip during a
scribing operation, the cutter wheel tip being attached to the
scribing head according to Embodiment 1.
FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating an orthogonal scribe operation
across an existing scribe line.
FIG. 6 depicts a scribing head according to another embodiment of
the invention.
FIG. 7 is a flowchart for one scribing operation, concerning how to
control the scribing head according to the invention.
FIG. 8 is a timing chart of this control method for one scribing
operation, concerning changes in X-axis operation, Z-axis operation
and Z-axis torque.
FIG. 9 is a front view of a scribing head according to Embodiment 2
of the invention.
FIG. 10 is a bottom view thereof.
FIG. 11 is a front view showing a principal part of a scribing head
according to Embodiment 3 of the invention.
FIG. 12 is a front view of a different embodiment of the scribing
head attached to the scribing apparatus shown in FIG. 11.
FIG. 13 is a schematic illustration for explaining a turning moment
generated at the cutter wheel tip.
FIG. 14 is a graph which represents a relationship between the
blade edge load and the vertical crack, in the case of a
conventional scribing method.
FIG. 15 is a graph which represents a relationship between the
blade edge load and the vertical crack, in the case of the present
invention.
FIG. 16 is a sectional view of a conventional scribing head.
FIG. 17 is a side view thereof.
FIG. 18 is a configuration diagram for another conventional
scribing head.
FIG. 19 is a schematic front view of a conventional scribing
apparatus.
FIG. 20 is a schematic view of yet another conventional scribing
head.
FIG. 21 is an illustrative description of a phenomenon of skipping
intersections.
FIG. 22 is a front view of still another conventional scribing
head.
FIG. 23 is a bottom view thereof.
BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION
Referring to the drawings, embodiments of the invention are
described below.
<Embodiment 1>
FIG. 1 is a side view of a scribing head 1, as the first embodiment
of the invention. FIG. 2 is a front view of its principal part.
In the scribing head 1, a servomotor 3 is held inverted between a
pair of side walls 2. A holder carrier 4 with an L-shape profile is
attached to the lower parts of the side walls 2 via a support shaft
5, and is capable of turning freely. A tip holder 7 for rotatably
holding a cutter wheel tip 6 is mounted at the front part (in the
right in FIG. 2) of the holder carrier 4.
The tip holder 7 is mounted to the holder carrier 4, via a turning
shaft 17 provided at its top end and a bearing 12 in which the
turning shaft 17 extends. The tip holder 7 can turn about the axis
of the turning shaft 17.
The cutter wheel tip 6 is attached to the tip holder 7 via a
rotation shaft 13 which extends parallel to the surface of the
brittle substrate, and the cutter wheel tip can rotate freely
around the axis of the rotation shaft 13. Besides, the rotation
shaft 13 is offset from the axis of the turning shaft 17 of the tip
holder 7 toward the opposite side to the support shaft 5.
The rotation shaft of the servomotor 3 and the support shaft 5 are
equipped with bevel gears 8 which are in mesh with each other. In
response to forward and reverse rotation of the servomotor 3, the
holder carrier 4 pivots up and down about the support shaft 5,
thereby raising and lowering the cutter wheel tip 6. Incidentally,
the scribing head 1 as a whole is movable along the horizontal
guide rail 67 of the scribing apparatus 66. It should be noted that
the power transmission mechanism is not limited to bevel gears
8.
FIG. 3 illustrates a control system for the scribing head 1 of FIG.
1.
An encoder 9 detects the rotation state of the servomotor 3. A
servo amplifier 10 controls the servomotor 3, and sends a
predetermined drive signal to the servomotor 3, based on a feedback
signal from the encoder 9. A host controller 11 controls the action
of the scribing head, and provides the servo amplifier 10 with a
position command signal.
Now, the operation in the control system of FIG. 3 is described
with reference to FIG. 4 which illustrates actions of the cutter
wheel tip during a scribing operation.
With the movement of the scribing head 1 along the guide rail 67 of
the scribing apparatus 66, the cutter wheel tip 6 of the scribing
head 1 moves to the start point a in FIG. 4. Then, in response to a
command to descend to a cut-in position which is lower by x than
the zero position (the top surface of the glass plate W), the
cutter wheel tip 6 shifts to the designated height and stays at
that position.
Further, in order to set a scribe pressure P1 which is applied when
the cutter wheel tip 6 rides on the glass plate W, the rotational
torque (torque limit) of the motor 3 is changed to a ride-on torque
limit P1. The rotational torque P1 should be determined at a value
that does not cause damage to an edge of the substrate when the
blade edge rides on the glass plate W.
Next, the scribing head 1 moves parallel at a preset speed for
riding onto the glass plate W. After the cutter wheel tip 6 rides
on the glass plate W at the point b, the cutter wheel tip 6
advances from the point b by a preset distance (from b to c). At
the point c, the host controller 11 gives a command to change the
rotational torque (torque limit) to a press-in torque limit P2,
whereby a scribe pressure suitable for the composition of the glass
plate W and other factors is transmitted to the cutter wheel tip
6.
After the rotational torque P2 (>P1) and the desirable scribe
pressure to the cutter wheel tip 6 are set, the scribing head 1
moves at a preset scribe speed. The relationship between the
rotational torque and the scribe pressure is worked out in advance
and compiled in a conversion table.
When the cutter wheel tip 6 reaches the point d, the scribing head
1 slows down from the scribe speed to a preset speed for coming out
of the glass plate W. In addition, the rotational torque (torque
limit) is changed to a come-out torque limit P3 (<P2) which is
low enough to avoid damage to the edge of the glass, just as
mentioned for the ride-on action. In this state, the cutter wheel
tip 6 advances to the point e, where it comes out of the glass
plate W. At this moment, the rotational torque is changed to a
positioning torque, so that the height of the cutter wheel tip 6 is
kept at the cut-in position again. When the cutter wheel tip 6
moves as it is and reaches the point f, a series of scribing
processes is complete.
The rotational torques P1, P3 are smaller than the rotational
torque P2 for the scribing action. This is a measure to avoid
generation of unwanted cracks in a glass plate W, when the cutter
wheel tip 6 rides onto or comes out of the glass plate W. The
coordinate data at the points a-f are set in advance, according to
the size of the glass plate W.
As described above, the scribing head 1 of this embodiment involves
a mechanism for applying the rotational torque of the servomotor 3
directly as a scribe pressure. The resultant scribing head shows a
remarkable responsivity, and hence enables a scribing operation as
mentioned next.
FIG. 5 shows an orthogonal scribing operation across a glass plate
W which is already scribed. In crossing a raised scribe trace, the
cutter wheel tip 6 jumps up at this part and causes scribe failure
by interrupting a scribe line. To prevent this problem, it is known
to increase the scribe pressure temporarily while the scribe trace
is crossed.
This can be realized by the scribing head 1 of this embodiment
which is capable of changing the scribe pressure instantaneously.
To be specific, positional data of intersections where scribe lines
to be formed will cross are input in advance. While the scribing
head 1 is moving, the scribe pressure is adjusted momentarily every
time the scribing head passes an intersection.
When the servomotor scribing head as above is employed to scribe a
brittle substrate, the position-control of the servomotor scribing
head (the scribing head 1) is conducted in the manner as detailed
below.
FIG. 7 is a flowchart for one scribing operation, concerning how to
control the servomotor scribing head (the scribing head 1). FIG. 8
is a timing chart for one scribing operation, concerning changes in
X-axis operation (movement of the scribing head over the
substrate), Z-axis operation (action of the cutter wheel tip which
is attached to the scribing head) and Z-axis torque (rotational
torque of the servomotor), along with passage of time.
These drawings concern an example wherein the cutter moves from
left to right on the substrate (the positional data becomes greater
in this direction of movement), and a substrate is scribed in a
direction in which the positional data of the X-axis increases. A
feature of this embodiment resides in the control of Z-axis torque
based on X-axis positional data.
As the X-axis positional data to be set, there may be mentioned
X-axis operation start position and X-axis operation end position,
as well as intermediate positions therebetween: X-axis startup
position, X-axis cut-in position, X-axis press-in end position,
X-axis cut-in end position, and X-axis scribe end position. Between
the X-axis cut-in position and the X-axis press-in end position,
the In-Position signal from the servo amplifier which controls the
servomotor is detected to be in the OFF state, which confirms that
the cutter wheel tip has ridden on the substrate completely. The
X-axis cut-in position data represents a point on the X-axis where
the Z-axis (the cutter wheel tip) should shift to the cut-in
position during one scribing operation. The X-axis press-in end
position data represents a point on the X-axis where the Z-axis
(the cutter wheel tip) should shift from the press-in position back
to the cut-in position during one scribing operation. The X-axis
cut-in end position data represents a point on the X-axis where the
Z-axis (the cutter wheel tip) should shift from the cut-in position
to the standby position during one scribing operation. As the
limits to be set as Z-axis torque data, there may be mentioned
Z-axis ride-on torque limit, a torque limit when the cutter wheel
tip rides on a glass during a scribing operation; Z-axis come-out
torque limit, a torque limit when the cutter wheel tip comes out of
the glass during a scribing operation; Z-axis press-in torque
limit, a torque limit after the cutter wheel tip has completely
ridden on the substrate and until it finishes the press-in action;
and Z-axis positioning torque limit, a torque limit when the cutter
wheel tip is positioned.
In one scribing operation, the control method proceeds in the
manner given in FIG. 7. The Z-axis positioning torque limit is set
and output (STEP.1). Next, the cutter wheel tip is moved to the
Z-axis standby position (Z1 in FIG. 8) (STEP.2). If the X-axis
operation data is equal to or greater than the cut-in position
data, the cutter wheel tip is brought to the Z-axis cut-in position
(Z2 in FIG. 8) (STEP.3). Thereafter, the Z-axis ride-on torque
limit is set and output (STEP.4).
Incidentally, the Z-axis ride-on torque limit is set for the
following reason. When the cutter wheel tip rides onto a brittle
substrate, the cutter wheel tip deviates from the Z-axis cut-in
position. Therefore, even if the In-Position signal which is output
from the servo amplifier is ON, the servomotor attempts to
reposition the cutter wheel tip to the original Z-axis cut-in
position. In this situation, it is necessary to limit a
servomotor's repositioning torque, and thus to set a Z-axis ride-on
torque limit. The Z-axis ride-on torque limit is low enough to
avoid generation of chipping at an edge of the brittle substrate
when the cutter wheel tip rides onto the brittle substrate. Then,
if the In-Position signal which is output from the servo amplifier
is OFF, the Z-axis press-in torque limit is set and output
(STEP.5).
In the next step, the cutter wheel tip is brought to the Z-axis
press-in position (Z3 in FIG. 8) (STEP.6). Normally, the Z-axis
cut-in position is set 0.05 mm to 0.20 mm below the top surface of
the brittle substrate. When the In-Position signal which is output
from the servo amplifier turns OFF, it is confirmed that the cutter
wheel tip has ridden onto the brittle substrate. Then, the brittle
substrate is scribed at a torque which is set as the Z-axis
press-in torque limit. At this stage, if the Z-axis position
remains at the Z-axis cut-in position, the amount of displacement
is too small to give a press-in torque suitable for the scribing
action (the torque does not reach the Z-axis press-in torque
limit). Therefore, the Z-axis position is set to the Z-axis
press-in position which is below the top surface of the brittle
substrate and lower than the Z-axis cut-in position, so that the
Z-axis press-in torque limit suitable for scribing various brittle
substrates can be obtained in this manner.
Next, when the X-axis movement position data is equal to or greater
than the X-axis press-in end position data, the Z-axis come-out
torque limit is set and output so as to bring the Z-axis position
to the Z-axis cut-in position. The Z-axis come-out torque limit is
low enough to avoid generation of chipping at an edge of the
brittle substrate when the cutter wheel tip comes out of the
brittle substrate (STEP.7). Later, when the data of the scribing
head is equal to or greater than the X-axis cut-in end position
data, the Z-axis positioning torque limit is set and output
(STEP.8), and the cutter wheel tip is moved to the Z-axis standby
position (Z1 in FIG. 8) (STEP.9). Afterwards, when the X-axis
operation data becomes equal to or less than the cut-in position
data, the scribing operation data is stored and then reset to the
initial conditions (STEP.10), which marks the end of one scribing
operation.
As described, when the position set by the position-controlled
servomotor deviates, the rotational torque for recovering the
position set by the servomotor is limited in order to scribe a
brittle substrate. In addition, for the purpose of avoiding
chipping at an edge of the brittle substrate and forming
high-quality scribe lines, the Z-axis position which is set
previously should be lowered further below the top surface of the
brittle substrate, substantially at the same time as the start of
the scribing action.
Incidentally, the flowchart of FIG. 7 is described with a proviso
that the scribing head moves on the substrate in a direction in
which the positional data becomes greater. On the other hand, if
the scribing head moves in a direction in which the X-axis
positional data is diminished, the terms "equal to or greater than"
and "equal to or less than" should be understood in the opposite
sense. A series of these processes can be shown in the timing chart
of FIG. 8. Namely, when the scribing head starts up and locates at
the X-axis cut-in position, the cutter wheel tip which has been at
the standby position (Z1) moves to the Z-axis cut-in position (Z2),
with the Z-axis torque at the Z-axis positioning torque limit.
Until the In-Position signal from the servo amplifier turns OFF,
the Z-axis position remains at the Z-axis cut-in position (Z2), and
the Z-axis torque is maintained at the Z-axis ride-on torque limit.
After the In-Position signal from the servo amplifier turns OFF and
until the X-axis position reaches the X-axis press-in end position,
the Z-axis position is at the Z-axis press-in position (Z3), and
the Z-axis torque is maintained at the Z-axis press-in torque
limit. Thereafter, between the X-axis press-in end position and the
X-axis cut-in end position, the Z-axis position is at the Z-axis
cut-in position (Z2), and the Z-axis torque is maintained at the
Z-axis come-out torque limit. Beyond the X-axis scribe end
position, the Z-axis position and the Z-axis torque are reset to
the initial conditions.
As detailed above, the servomotor scribing head is controlled by
position-control mode. Consequently, it is possible to scribe a
brittle substrate by properly changing the preset rotational torque
limits in association with movement of the scribing head. Besides,
a control program can be quite simple.
As the power transmission mechanism, this embodiment employs the
bevel gears 8 in order to transmit power to the holder carrier 4
(see FIG. 1). Alternatively, as shown in FIG. 6, the rotation shaft
of the servomotor 3 may be directly joined with the holder carrier
4.
As a scribing cutter for scribing a glass plate (a brittle
substrate), the scribing head of this embodiment can be equipped
with a cutter wheel tip made of a hard metal alloy or diamond.
However, this cutter wheel tip should never limit the scribing
cutter. The scribing cutter to be mounted on the scribing head
includes any cutters for forming a scribe line on a brittle
substrate, such as a diamond point cutter, a round blade cutter in
which both sides of its blade ridge is processed in the shape of a
cone or a truncated cone, to name a few.
The next description and relevant drawings concern an embodiment of
a scribing head according to claims 7 to 9 and an embodiment of a
scribing method according to claims 13 to 16. Since the scribing
method of this invention is realized in association with the
scribing head, the embodiment of the scribing head is described in
combination with the embodiment of the scribing method.
<Embodiment 2>
FIG. 9 is a front view of a scribing head according to Embodiment 2
of the invention. FIG. 10 is a bottom view thereof.
Ascribing head 90 has a scribing head body 92, a bearing housing
93, a lip holder 94, a cutter wheel lip 95, and a bias means
96.
The bottom of the scribing head body 92 is cut away to form a notch
98 which accommodates the bearing housing 93. An end of the bearing
housing 93 is joined, via a bearing 900, with a horizontal support
shaft 99 which is inserted in the scribing head body 92. The other
end abuts on a stopper shaft 91 which is contained within the
scribing head body 92 and which extends parallel to the support
shaft 99. Hence, the bearing housing 93 pivots around the axis of
the support shaft 99 until it is stopped by the stopper shaft
91.
The tip holder 94 is mounted to the bearing housing 93 via a
turning shaft 97 which extends orthogonally to the surface of the
brittle substrate, the tip holder being freely swingable around the
axis of the turning shaft 97. A bearing 901 is set between the
turning shaft 97 and the bearing housing 93. The bias means 96
which locates above the turning shaft 97 is arranged to apply a
biasing force to the cutter wheel tip 95, through the turning shaft
97 and the tip holder 94.
The tip holder 94 is not necessarily swingable about the axis of
the turning shaft 97, but may be fixed to the bearing housing 93.
In this case, members necessary for swinging movement (e.g. the
bearing 901) can be omitted.
The cutter wheel tip 95 is attached to the tip holder 94 via a
rotation shaft 913 which extends parallel to the surface of the
brittle substrate, and can rotate freely around the axis of the
rotation shaft 913. Besides, the rotation shaft 913 is offset from
the axis of the turning shaft 97 toward the support shaft 99.
However, the positional relationship between the cutter wheel tip
95 and the turning shaft 97 is not limited to this one. For
example, the rotation shaft 913 of the cutter wheel tip 95 may
locate right below the axis of the turning shaft 97.
For the scribing operation using this scribing head 90, the
scribing head 90 is set to run on a brittle substrate, with the
support shaft 99 being behind the cutter wheel tip 95. Namely, the
scribing head 90 runs in the direction of Arrow T in FIG. 9. While
the scribing head runs (in the direction of Arrow T in FIG. 13)
with the support shaft 99 behind and with the cutter wheel tip 95
being pressed against a surface of the glass GL by the bias means
96, the point of contact between a blade ridge 95A of the cutter
wheel tip 95 and the surface of the glass GL is given as the point
E in FIG. 13. At this point E, a reaction force X is generated
against a resultant force of a horizontal scribing force component
V and a vertical scribing force component W, wherein the scribing
force components V and W represent a horizontal component and a
vertical component, respectively, of a scribing force which is
required to scribe the glass GL by the cutter wheel tip 95. The
reaction force X, which is directed to the support shaft 99, does
not act as a turning moment which causes the cutter wheel tip 95 to
jump up from the glass GL. In this situation, the tip holder does
not bounce in the manner mentioned above, and the pressure to the
cutter wheel tip 95 is not cancelled by the reaction force X.
Consequently, the pressure applied to the cutter wheel tip 95 acts
efficiently on the brittle substrate, realizing a vertical crack
which is much deeper than the one obtained conventionally.
In this regard, FIG. 13 depicts orientations of the reaction force
X which derives from the brittle substrate GL and which is exerted
on the cutter wheel tip 95 during the scribing operation. Namely,
the reaction force X is oriented along a line H which connects the
origin E of the reaction force X and the axis of the support shaft
99, or oriented nearer to the brittle substrate GL relative to the
line H (see dashed arrows X.sub.1, W.sub.1, V.sub.1 in FIG. 13).
With this arrangement, generation of the turning moment which
causes a bounce of the tip holder can be avoided with a greater
reliability. This state can be maintained by appropriate adjustment
of the scribe speed, the pressure to the cutter wheel tip 95, and
the relative positions of the cutter wheel tip 95 and the support
shaft 99.
<Embodiment 3>
Turning next to FIG. 11, the description moves to Embodiment 3 of
the invention.
FIG. 11 is a front view showing a principal part of the scribing
head. Its side view is similar to FIG. 1 and is therefore
omitted.
In this scribing head 1, a servomotor 3 is held inverted between a
pair of side walls 2. A holder carrier 4 with an L-shape profile is
attached to the lower parts of the side walls 2 via a support shaft
5, and is capable of turning freely. A tip holder 94 for rotatably
holding a cutter wheel tip 95 is mounted at the front part (in the
right in FIG. 11) of the holder carrier 4.
The tip holder 94 is mounted to the holder carrier 4, via a turning
shaft 17 provided at its top end and a bearing 12 in which the
turning shaft 17 extends. The tip holder 7 can turn about the axis
of the turning shaft 17.
Similar to Embodiment 2, the cutter wheel tip 95 is attached to the
tip holder 94 via a rotation shaft 13 which extends parallel to the
surface of the brittle substrate, and the cutter wheel tip can
rotate freely around the axis of the rotation shaft 13. The
rotation shaft 13 is offset from the axis of the turning shaft 17
for the tip holder 94, toward the support shaft 5.
The rotation shaft of the servomotor 3 and the support shaft 5 are
equipped with bevel gears 8 which are in mesh with each other. In
response to forward and reverse rotation of the servomotor 3, the
holder carrier 4 pivots up and down about the support shaft 5,
thereby raising and lowering the cutter wheel tip 95. Incidentally,
the scribing head as a whole is movable along the horizontal guide
rail 67 of the scribing apparatus 66 (see FIG. 1). It should be
noted that the power transmission mechanism is not limited to bevel
gears B.
As the power transmission mechanism, this embodiment employs the
bevel gears 8 in order to transmit power to the holder carrier 4.
Alternatively, as shown in FIG. 12, the rotation shaft of the
servomotor 3 may be directly joined with the holder carrier 4.
FIG. 13 depicts orientations of the reaction force X which derives
from the brittle substrate GL and which is exerted on the cutter
wheel tip 95 during the scribing action. Namely, the reaction force
X is oriented along a line H which connects the origin E of the
reaction force X and the axis of the support shaft 99, or oriented
nearer to the brittle substrate GL relative to the line H (see
dashed arrows X.sub.1, W.sub.1, V.sub.1 in FIG. 13). With this
arrangement, generation of the turning moment which causes a bounce
of the cutter wheel tip 95 can be avoided with a greater
reliability. This state can be maintained by appropriate adjustment
of the scribe speed, the pressure to the cutter wheel tip 95, and
the relative positions of the cutter wheel tip 95 and the support
shaft 99.
In the next description, glass was scribed according to the
scribing method of the invention and a conventional scribing
method, and depths of vertical cracks formed on the glass were
measured.
EXAMPLE
The scribing method of this invention was performed with the
scribing head illustrated in FIG. 12, under the following
conditions. Wheel diameter of the cutter wheel tip: 2.5 mm Wheel
thickness of the cutter wheel tip: 0.65 mm Blade edge angle of the
cutter wheel tip: 125.degree. Scribe speed: 300 mm/sec Blade edge
load: 1.1 kgf Glass composition: soda glass Glass thickness: 0.7 mm
Scribing head running direction: Arrow T in FIG. 12
Comparative Example
For comparison, the scribing head was made to run in the direction
of Arrow S in FIG. 12 as conventionally practiced. Otherwise, the
scribing method was performed under the same conditions as EXAMPLE
of the invention mentioned above. Incidentally, the orientation of
the tip holder 94 was reversed in order that the rotation shaft 913
of the cutter wheel tip 95 was located behind the turning shaft 97
while the scribe head was running.
(Measurement Result)
After the respective scribing operations, depths of vertical cracks
obtained by these methods were measured. The result was as
follows:
TABLE-US-00001 EXAMPLE 450 .mu.m-500 .mu.m COMPARATIVE EXAMPLE 110
.mu.m-120.mu.m
As apparent from this result, the scribing method and the scribing
head of the invention gave vertical cracks which were about four
times deeper than those obtained conventionally, when the blade
edge load was the same.
Industrial Applicability
Use of a servomotor simplifies the scribing head mechanism and
realizes a scribing head and a scribing apparatus which are
available at a lower price. Besides, the zero position can be
detected on software, without relying on a conventional contact
mechanism. Further, owing to good responsivity of the scribe
pressure generation mechanism, various scribe conditions can be
flexibly adopted.
Besides, there is no bounce of the tip holder, let alone skipping
of intersections in the cross-scribing operation. Hence, the
pressure to the cutter wheel tip is efficiently applied to the
brittle substrate, realizing vertical cracks which are much deeper
than those obtained conventionally. Therefore, in the breaking
operation which follows the cross-scribing operation, the glass
plate can be broken precisely along the scribe lines. Consequently,
it is possible to eliminate occurrence of defective products and to
enhance the productivity dramatically in comparison with the
conventional technology.
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