WO2006074624A1 - Pumping duct of a longitudinally extending vacuum coating assembly - Google Patents

Abstract

The invention relates to a pumping duct of a longitudinally extending vacuum coating assembly through which a substrate that is to be coated can be moved in a direction of travel on a substrate plane. At least one of the outer walls of the housing of said vacuum coating assembly is provided with at least one hole that can be closed by means of a cover. The pumping channel is formed by the lateral outer housing walls and at least two tunnel-forming elements which run parallel to each other on both sides of the substrate plane. The aim of the invention is to create a pumping duct for longitudinally extending vacuum coating assemblies which can be configured variably in the assembly with a minimum of effort while ensuring full and immediate access to the substrate plane. Said aim is achieved by the fact that a tunnel-forming element is mounted on a cover and at a distance from said cover and can be removed from the assembly housing through the hole which is closed by the cover.

Description

 Pumping channel of an elongated Vakuuinbeschichtungsanläge

The invention relates to a pumping channel of a longitudinally extended vacuum coating apparatus, through which a substrate to be coated in a transport direction is movable in a substrate plane and which has at least one openings closable with a lid in at least one of its housing outer walls. The pump channel is formed from the lateral housing outer walls of the vacuum coating systems and at least two tunnel-forming elements arranged in parallel and on both sides of the substrate plane.

The relevant vacuum coating systems serve the one or both sides coating of flat substrates. By means of intermediate walls, which protrude on one or both sides of the substrate almost to the substrate in the interior of the system, the vacuum coating system is divided into at least two in the transport direction successive compartments. While a coating compartment with one-sided coating on one side of the substrate or simultaneously realized double-sided coating on both sides of the substrate magnetrons including their magnetron environment as coating sources sources. The coating compartments can either be evacuated directly via an existing vacuum pump connection or indirectly via a suction opening in the intermediate wall. In indirect evacuation, one or more suction chambers are divided in an adjacent pump compartment by the transport space, in which the substrate is moved through the system, separated by a horizontal partition of the suction chamber, which has at least one vacuum pump. Usually, a pump compartment evacuates upstream and downstream in the direction of transport Coating compartment and is divided into two separate, consecutive in the transport direction suction chambers.

The number and sequence of the various compartments within the vacuum deposition system will vary according to the layer or layer systems to be made. In a complex layer system whose individual layers are to be applied under significantly different coating parameters and coating atmospheres, the complete separation of the various coating atmospheres by means of so-called gas separation is a prerequisite for ensuring the layer properties.

For this purpose, in the pump compartment, the transport space in which the substrate is moved through the system, divided from the suction chamber by two in the vicinity of the substrate and approximately parallel to the substrate arranged partitions. In one-sided coating systems, one of the partitions can also be replaced by a housing outer wall. In the area of the substrate, a tunnel-like space, the pumping channel, is formed in this way, which represents a flow resistance due to its cross section and the low and in particular the comparable gas pressure of the compartments which adjoin the pumping channel on both sides. By appropriate dimensioning of the flow resistance, a maximum passive gas separation between these two adjacent compartments can be ensured.

To separate the pumping channel, the dividing walls are placed and fixed in the currently known vacuum coating systems, for example fixedly mounted in the system frame or on holding devices, which are mounted on the stationary partitions. In the Vakuumbeschichtungsanläge, which is described in German Patent 197 33 940, the horizontal partitions (shelves) are firmly connected to the stationary, serving as partitions transverse bulkhead. In the case of maintenance of the entire coating area or in the event of substrate transport disruptions and glass breakage, however, it is necessary to open the plant areas affected by the fault as quickly as possible and completely. In order to open a pumping channel, the vacuum pump connections or the vacuum pumps themselves are always first to be removed and then, as far as possible, the tunnel construction to be dismantled manually or, if the tunnel construction is made compact in further installations, with a hoist altogether from the installation to remove . In any case, access to the pumping channel is associated with considerable, long downtime and costly installation effort, especially since each operation inside the system is time consuming and involves impurities in the coating atmosphere which become more stable in an extension of the start-up phase to setting Reflect coating parameters.

At the same time, there is an increasing demand from operators of vacuum coating equipment to make existing equipment adaptable on site in accordance with the various layer systems to be produced therewith and their ongoing development. For this purpose, the internals in the vacuum coating system and here in particular the intermediate and partition walls must be very flexible and easy to assemble, allow short changeover times and, on the other hand, ensure stable coating atmospheres during short start-up phases.

The invention is therefore based on the object of specifying a pump channel for longitudinally extended vacuum coating systems, which is variable form with minimal effort in the system and thereby ensures a complete and short-term access to the substrate level.

This object is achieved in that the first tunnel-forming element mounted on a lid and at a distance to this cover and through the opening, which the lid closes, can be removed from the plant housing.

By connecting the tunnel forming member to the lid it is possible to pre-assemble a fully equipped lid, to sink the assemblies on the lid through the openings in the housing outer wall in coating equipment and then close the opening with the lid tightly. Thus, the assembly work for the formation of the pumping channel completely outside the plant are possible and also the preparatory work to minimize the opening times of the system during retrofitting.

The expansion of the tunnel-forming elements in the transport direction, which may also extend to those, the Vakuumbeschichtungs- investment in compartments subdividing, stationary or removable partitions, and the distance between the two tunnel-forming elements to each other and to the substrate determine the flow resistance. It is sufficient to ensure a stable and differentiable Beschichtungsatmo- sphere when the tunneling element abuts the boundary surfaces, as well as at these contact edges, the principle of flow resistance is available or a small additional inflow into a suction chamber is not disturbing.

The manner in which the attachment of the tunnel-forming element takes place on the lid, depends on which opening in the housing outer wall of the system, the tunnel-forming element is coupled. With the introduction of the element through an upper opening, a flexible suspension from the lid is possible as well as a rigid connection. The prerequisite in any case is that the cross section of the tunnel that sets the flow resistance and thus the distance of the two tunnel-forming elements remains constant during the ongoing coating process. However, only a rigid connection is possible for mounting the element on a cover for an opening in a lateral or lower housing wall. While in systems that allow only a one-sided coating of the substrate, the pumping channel is usually formed by the lower housing outer wall or a stationary horizontal partition below the transport system and only a tunneling EIe- ment by this element through a lateral or upper opening in the coating system is sunk, with simultaneous top and bottom coating of the substrate two, on the top and bottom side of the substrate to be arranged tunnel-forming elements according to the invention are required.

The task with regard to the variable system conditioning on site, the pump channel according to the invention is justified by the fact that the attachment of a tunnel-forming element on the lid is independent of the other structures on the lid executable. So it is also possible to convert a universal cover according to the requirements or to provide special, even prefabricated cover for special system configurations. In each case, however, it proves to be advantageous if the tunnel-forming element is detachably mounted on the lid.

Particularly useful it turns out, if the distance between the see tunnel forming element and the lid is adjustable, since in this way the cross section of the pumping channel and thus the flow resistance is adjustable. This embodiment ensures the adaptation of the pumping channel to the most diverse requirements with regard to the coating atmosphere.

If a further, particularly advantageous embodiment of the invention according to the cover, on which the tunneling element is mounted, also has one or possibly more vacuum pump connections, is a complete pump compartment with the known and described above

Subdivision into a suction chambers and a pumping channel executable only by the installation of a preassembled outside the plant cover. With this pumping compartment, the preceding and subsequent coating compartments can be evacuated as well their gas separation can be realized.

If the suction chamber is to be subdivided further, so that each coating compartment can be evacuated via a separate suction chamber, a further embodiment according to the invention provides that an intermediate wall, which extends from the lid to the tunnel-forming end, is mounted perpendicular to the substrate plane on the lid Element extends.

Likewise, the arrangement of a plurality of partitions is possible, in particular if no stationary intermediate walls are provided for subdividing into the various compartments in the coating system for a great variability of the system configuration. In this case, for example, a front and a rear intermediate wall viewed in the transport direction could, together with the tunnel-forming element adjoining both intermediate walls, divide the pumping channel and above the tunnel-forming element a suction space. In order to evacuate one or both of the adjacent coating compartments, an intermediate wall in this case has one or more suction openings. In addition, according to a further embodiment, this suction space can be divided into two separate suction chambers by means of a further, more favorable central partition.

By the one or possibly also the other intermediate walls are detachable on the lid, in turn, the variability of the design of the vacuum coating system is improved by the operator of the system on site.

By means of a further embodiment according to the invention, which provides that the first tunnel-forming element has a suction opening, an active gas separation can also be realized. For this purpose, the pumping channel is evacuated through the suction opening or suction openings in the tunnel-forming element and an adjoining suction space, instead of the adjacent atmospheres only by a flow resistance to separate within the pumping channel.

According to the invention, the pumping channel and also the suction chambers do not have a permanent design for individual gas ducts for evacuation. Rather, the gas supply is variably within an existing system, made possible by cost-saving and time-consuming conversion by closability of individual or even all the suction openings in the tunnel-forming elements and the intermediate walls.

In special applications, it is also useful that the width of the first tunnel-forming element and / or the width of the intermediate wall are adjustable. This tunneling elements and partitions can also be introduced through smaller openings in the outer wall of the Vakuumbeschichtungsanläge and then be extended to the required width and / or length. This extension and its fixation are possible by means of various suitable constructions, for example by telescopically assembled items or by their connection by means of joints, whereby a Auseinanderklappen can take place within the plant.

The invention will be explained in more detail with reference to an embodiment. The accompanying drawing shows in

Fig. 1 is a schematic representation of a pump channel according to the invention in a pump compartment and

Fig. 2 is a schematic representation of a portion of a Vakuumbeschichtungsanläge with pumping channel.

The pumping channel 1 according to the invention of an elongate vacuum coating system is shown in FIG. The pumping channel 1 is divided off in a pumping compartment 2 of a vacuum coating system coated on both sides by a first 3 and a second tunneling element 4 within the pumping compartment 2. The pumping compartment 2 is formed by a horizontal lower 5 and a parallel extending upper and lower ren outer wall 6, two, in Fig. 1, lateral outer walls arranged parallel and perpendicular to one another, and two intermediate walls 9 arranged successively and spaced apart in the direction of the substrate 7 (transport direction 8) moving through the vacuum coating units. The intermediate walls 9 have passages 10 in the region of the substrate 7, which serve the substrate transport through the plant. Through these passages 10, a substrate 7 is moved on a transport system 11 in the transport direction 8 through the vacuum coating systems.

Both in the lower outer wall 5, as well as the upper outer wall 6 openings 12 are provided, which are executed in the embodiment of the same size and at equal intervals. Each of these openings 12 is sealed by a lower 14 or upper lid 13.

The upper cover 13, which close the openings 12 in the upper outer wall 6 in the illustrated section of the Vakuumbeschichtungs- anläge are alternately with a Magnetronkathode 15, including the magnetron environment, not shown, and with two vacuum pumps 16 or depending on the available space two Vacuum pump connections carried out so that pumping and coating compartments 2, 17 alternate. If reference is made in the following to vacuum pumps 16, the possibility is also always included that for space or analgetic reasons, instead of the vacuum pumps, only the connections for vacuum pumps can be present. In the illustrated embodiment, the magnetron cathodes 15 are always arranged above the substrate 7. However, such structures of the upper 13 or lower cover 14 are also possible, with which the magnetron cathodes 15 can be arranged opposite the underside of the substrate 7.

On the upper cover 13 of the in Fig. 1 pumping unit 2 is further a sheet metal as inventive, first tunnel-forming element 3 is suspended such that it extends with a small distance parallel to the substrate 7 from one intermediate wall 9 to the next. The sectionally flexible suspension 18 makes it possible to introduce the first tunnel-forming element 3, which is wider than the opening 12, by corresponding pivoting through the opening 12 in the system. Likewise, with such a suspension 18, a telescopic connection of the first tunnel-forming element 3 subdivided into two parts can be carried out, so that its insertion into the system in the pushed-together state and within the system can be pushed apart to the respective boundary walls of the compartment ,

The lower cover 14, which close the openings 12 in the lower outer wall 5, have only in the pump compartment 2 constructions, in the illustrated embodiment, two vacuum pumps 16. The lower cover 14 of the adjacent coating compartments 15 serve only the closure of the openings 12. Der lower cover 14 of the pumping compartment 2 has, in addition to the vacuum pumps 16, a second tunneling element 4, which is also parallel to the substrate 7 and with respect to the transport system 11 minimum distance to the substrate 7 from one, the pump compartment 2 bounding intermediate wall 9 to the other extends. Also, the second tunneling element 4 is designed in the form of a sheet. To adjust the distance to the substrate 7, the second tunnel-forming element 4 is mounted on rigid spacers 19 on the lower cover 14.

Thus, the pump channel 1, which passively separates the coating atmospheres of the previous coating compartment 17 considered in the transport direction 8 from the following, is delimited parallel to the substrate 7 by the first 3 and second tunneling element 4 and in the transport direction 8 by the two intermediate walls 9 , The flow resistance existing in the pump channel 1 is determined by the distance between the two tunneling elements 3, 4. In order to enable the introduction of the second tunneling element 4 through a smaller opening 12 into the vacuum coating systems, it is subdivided into three sections, which are connected to joints 20 in such a way that the lateral sections can be pivoted 90 ° in the direction of the spacers 19.

The spaces of the pump compartment 2, which are divided above the first tunnel-forming element 3 and below the second tunnel-forming element 4, serve in each case as a suction chamber 21, by means of the vacuum pump 16, which are connected to the upper 13 and the lower cover 14, the Suction chambers 21 and indirectly the respective adjacent coating component 17 can be evacuated by the suction openings 22 present in the intermediate walls 9.

The section of a vacuum coating installation, which is shown in FIG. 2, unlike the section in FIG. 1, has no permanently installed partitions 9. The subdivision of the vacuum coating system in its longitudinal extent is carried out only by superstructures, which are mounted on the individual lower 14 and upper lids 13.

In this vacuum coating system too, pumping and coating compartments 2, 17 alternate with one another, since a magnetron cathode 15 including the magnetron environment (not shown in detail) and two vacuum pumps 16 are mounted alternately on the successive upper covers 13.

On the upper cover 13 of the illustrated pump compartment 2, which also has the vacuum pumps 16, in each case three equally long and evenly spaced, perpendicular to the upper outer wall 6 and the transport direction 8 in the Anlagengehäu- se projecting partitions 9 are mounted, which almost to extend to the substrate 7. The last intermediate wall 9 of the upper lid 13 located in front of the magnetron cathode 15 and the first intermediate wall 9 behind it in this way border the outgoing -und the subsequent coating compartment 17 to the pump compartment 2 down from.

At their end facing the substrate 7, the three intermediate walls 9 arranged on an upper cover 13 are connected to one another by a first tunnel-forming element 3, which as a result is arranged parallel to the upper cover 13 and to the substrate 7. The three intermediate walls 9, the upper cover 13, the first tunnel-forming element 3 and the lateral outer walls of the plant housing thus form two separate suction chambers 21, via which by means of existing in the two outer partitions 9 suction openings 22, the preceding and the subsequent coating compartment 17th are indirectly evacuated.

In the pump compartment 2, an active gas separation 23 is formed below the substrate 7 by two further partitions 9 are mounted perpendicular to the lower 5 and lateral outer wall and perpendicular to the transport direction 8 with a maximum distance to each other on the lower lid 14, which also extends almost to the Substrate 7 extend. Arranged parallel to the substrate 7 and at such a distance from the substrate 7 that the unimpeded function of the transport system 11 is ensured, a second tunnel-forming element 4 connects both intermediate walls 9. Both these two intermediate walls 9 and the second tunnel-forming element 4 have suction openings 22, wherein the suction openings 22 of the intermediate walls 9 are closed and those of the second tunnel-forming element 4 are open.

By means of a vacuum pump 16, which is also mounted on this lower lid 14 j edoch outside of the plant housing, the suction chamber formed by the two intermediate walls 9, the second tunneling element 4 and the lateral outer walls 21 and indirectly the pump channel 1, also in this Embodiment divide the first 3 and the second tunnel-forming element 4, evacuated and thus an active GasSeparation 23 between the two adjacent coating compartments 16 are realized.

The intermediate walls 9 and the tunnel-forming elements 3, 4, which are respectively mounted on the upper 13 and the lower cover 14, in this embodiment form compact boundaries of the suction chambers 21, whose base areas are slightly smaller than the openings 12, through which these outside the Vakuumbeschichtungsanläge fully pre-assembled structures are to be introduced into the plant.

Pumping channel of an elongated vacuum coating system

LIST OF REFERENCE NUMBERS

1 pump channel

2 pump compartment

3 first tunneling element

4 second tunneling element

5 lower outer wall

6 upper outer wall

7 substrate

8 transport direction

9 intermediate wall

10 passage

11 transport system

12 opening

13 upper lid

14 lower lid

15 coating source, magnetron cathode

16 vacuum pump or vacuum pump connection

17 coating compartment

18 suspension

19 spacers

20 joint

21 suction chamber

22 suction opening

23 gas separation

Claims

5 pumping channel of an elongate vacuum coating system Patent claims 1. pumping channel of a longitudinally extending vacuum coating system, through which in a substrate plane to be coated 10 substrate in a transport direction is movable and which has at least one closable with at least one of its housing outer walls openings, wherein the pump channel of the lateral housing outer walls and at least two parallel and on both sides to the substrate plane ^■ 15 arranged, tunnel-forming elements is formed, characterized in that the first tunnel-forming element (3) on a cover (13, 14) and with a distance to this cover (13, 14) mounted and through the opening (12), which the lid (13, 14) closes, from the plant housing 20 is removable. Second pumping channel of a longitudinally extending vacuum coating system according to claim 1, characterized in that the first tunneling element (3) on the lid (13, 14) is detachably mounted. 25 3. pumping channel of a longitudinally extending vacuum coating system according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the distance between the tunneling element (3, 4) and the lid (13, 14) is adjustable. 4. pumping channel of an elongated vacuum coating system 30 according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that. that the first tunneling element (3) on a lid (13, 14) is mounted, which also has a Vakuumpumpenan- circuit (16). 5. pumping channel of a longitudinally extending vacuum coating system according to one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that on the cover (13, 14) perpendicular to the substrate plane, an intermediate wall (9) is mounted, which from the de- diskel (13, 14) to to the tunneling element (3, 4). 6. pumping channel of a longitudinally extending vacuum coating system according to claim 5, characterized in that the intermediate wall (9) on the cover (13, 14) is detachably mounted. 7. pumping channel of a longitudinally extending vacuum coating system according to claim 5 or 6, characterized in that the intermediate wall (9) has a suction opening (22). 8. pump channel of a longitudinally extending vacuum coating system according to one of claims 1 to 7, characterized in that the first tunnel-forming element (3) has a further suction opening (22). 9. pump channel of a longitudinally extending vacuum coating system according to claim 7 or 8, characterized in that at least one suction opening (22) is closable. 10. pumping channel of a longitudinally extending vacuum coating system according to one of claims 1 to 9, characterized in that the width of the first tunnel-forming element (3) and / or the width of the intermediate wall (9) is adjustable.