JP7580967B2 - Abrasive jetting device, abrasive jetting method, and article manufacturing method - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to an abrasive injection device, an abrasive injection method, etc. More specifically, the present invention relates to a suction-type abrasive injection device and an abrasive injection method that mix a driving flow such as compressed air with an abrasive in a mixing tube and inject the abrasive onto a workpiece.

Blasting machines have been known for some time, as they process workpieces by spraying abrasives along with compressed air. Blasting machines are used for a variety of purposes, including surface cleaning processes such as removing rust and coatings, shaping processes such as deburring, roughening processes such as matte finishes, and polishing processes to flatten the surfaces of wafers and substrates.

In blast processing, for example, the amount of processing (amount of grinding) is adjusted by controlling the movement speed of the jet nozzle or the distance between the jet nozzle and the workpiece (piece to be processed). The former is called residence time control, and is a method in which the movement speed of the jet nozzle is slowed down to increase the residence time at positions on the workpiece where it is desired to increase the amount of grinding, and the movement speed of the jet nozzle is increased to decrease the residence time at positions where it is desired to decrease the amount of grinding. The latter is a method in which the distance between the jet nozzle and the workpiece is decreased at positions on the workpiece where it is desired to increase the amount of grinding, and increased the distance between the jet nozzle and the workpiece at positions where it is desired to decrease the amount of grinding.

In recent years, there has been a demand to improve the processing accuracy of blast processing, and when spraying abrasives from a spray nozzle, there is a demand to stabilize the amount of abrasive sprayed per unit time. Whether controlling the residence time of the spray nozzle or controlling the distance between the spray nozzle and the workpiece, if the amount of abrasive sprayed varies over time, the amount of grinding will be excessive or insufficient, resulting in reduced processing accuracy.

Patent Document 1 discloses an abrasive supply device in which metering holes are provided at equal intervals on a rotating disk that rotates horizontally inside an abrasive tank in order to stabilize the amount of abrasive supplied from the abrasive tank to an abrasive transport path. The abrasive supply device described in Patent Document 1 is a device for steadily supplying abrasive to a suction-type abrasive jet nozzle. Here, a suction-type abrasive jet nozzle refers to an abrasive jet nozzle that sucks abrasive into an abrasive introduction chamber under negative pressure, mixes the abrasive with a driving flow such as compressed air in a mixing tube, and jets it toward the workpiece. Hereinafter, when the term abrasive jet nozzle is used, it refers to a suction-type abrasive jet nozzle unless otherwise specified.

On the other hand, in recent years, the range of applications for blast processing has expanded, with workpieces (objects to be processed) of various sizes and shapes. In blast processing equipment, the processing position is changed by changing the relative positions of the injection nozzle and the workpiece, and this can be done by either fixing the injection nozzle and moving the workpiece, fixing the workpiece and moving the injection nozzle, or moving both. If the workpiece is small, it is fine to fix the injection nozzle and move the workpiece, but if the workpiece is large, moving the injection nozzle is more advantageous in terms of making the blast processing equipment smaller.

Patent document 2 describes a device that has a structure that allows the sandblasting nozzle to be moved arbitrarily in the X and Y axis directions, and moves the sandblasting nozzle parallel to the substrate holder when processing a large substrate with a diagonal length of 500 mm or more.

JP 2008-264912 A JP 2004-359544 A

Patent document 2 describes that the sandblasting nozzle has a structure that allows it to move freely in the X and Y axis directions, but does not disclose any specifics about the nozzle structure or the method of supplying abrasives to the nozzle.

When configuring the abrasive jet nozzle to be movable, the method of supplying the abrasive to the abrasive jet nozzle becomes an issue. Theoretically, it is possible to move the abrasive tank that stores the abrasive together with the abrasive jet nozzle, but moving the abrasive tank, which is heavy and voluminous, together with the abrasive jet nozzle is not a realistic device configuration.

Therefore, an abrasive tank, which is heavy and voluminous, is fixed, and the abrasive tank and the abrasive jet nozzle are connected by a flexible tube, and the abrasive jet nozzle is moved while the abrasive is supplied from the abrasive tank to the abrasive jet nozzle via the tube.
In such an apparatus, it is also possible to apply the method disclosed in Patent Document 1 to stabilize the amount of abrasive supplied from the abrasive tank to the pipe (abrasive transport path).

However, when the abrasive jet nozzle is moved relative to the workpiece, if the orientation (posture) of the pipe connecting the abrasive jet nozzle to the abrasive tank is changed, the state of the abrasive jetted from the abrasive jet nozzle changes. In other words, by moving the position of the abrasive jet nozzle, the grinding rate (amount of processing per unit time) for the workpiece changes, resulting in a problem of reduced controllability and accuracy of the blast process.

Therefore, there was a desire to develop an abrasive injection device that would keep the abrasive injection state from the abrasive injection nozzle stable even when the abrasive injection nozzle was moved relative to the workpiece, and would suppress fluctuations in the grinding rate.

A first aspect of the present invention is an abrasive injection device comprising: an abrasive supply unit which supplies an abrasive; a pipeline capable of transporting the abrasive from the abrasive supply unit to an introduction pipe of a spray nozzle and which is deformable when the spray nozzle moves relative to the abrasive supply unit; an introduction chamber; an introduction pipe which connects the introduction chamber and the pipeline; and a mixing chamber which mixes the abrasive introduced into the introduction chamber with an air flow; and an injection nozzle which is supported movably relative to the abrasive supply unit, wherein the introduction pipe has a first bent portion connected to the introduction chamber, a second bent portion connected to the pipeline, and a straight region which connects the first bent portion and the second bent portion, and when the straight region is defined as a second straight region, the first bent portion is connected to the introduction chamber via the first straight region, and the second bent portion is connected to the pipeline via a third straight region .

In a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method for spraying an abrasive, comprising moving an injection nozzle having an inlet pipe for introducing an abrasive supplied from an abrasive supply unit through a deformable pipeline into an introduction chamber, and a mixing chamber for mixing the abrasive introduced into the introduction chamber with an air flow, relative to the abrasive supply unit, and spraying the abrasive from the injection nozzle, wherein the inlet pipe has a first bent portion connected to the introduction chamber, a second bent portion connected to the pipeline, and a straight region connecting the first bent portion and the second bent portion, and when the straight region is defined as a second straight region, the first bent portion is connected to the introduction chamber via the first straight region, and the second bent portion is connected to the pipeline via a third straight region .

In a third aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method for manufacturing an article, which comprises moving an injection nozzle having an introduction pipe for introducing an abrasive supplied from an abrasive supply unit through a deformable pipeline into an introduction chamber, and a mixing chamber for mixing the abrasive introduced into the introduction chamber with an air flow, relative to the abrasive supply unit, and injecting the abrasive from the injection nozzle toward a workpiece, wherein the introduction pipe has a first bent portion connected to the introduction chamber, a second bent portion connected to the pipeline, and a straight region connecting the first bent portion and the second bent portion, and when the straight region is defined as a second straight region, the first bent portion is connected to the introduction chamber via the first straight region, and the second bent portion is connected to the pipeline via a third straight region .

According to the present invention, even when the abrasive injection nozzle is moved relative to the workpiece, the abrasive injection state from the abrasive injection nozzle is stable, and an abrasive injection device can be realized in which fluctuations in the grinding rate are suppressed.

1 is a schematic diagram showing a schematic configuration of a blast processing device equipped with an abrasive injection device according to an embodiment. FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a configuration of an abrasive jet nozzle according to an embodiment. FIG. 2 is a diagram for explaining rigid piping of an abrasive jet nozzle according to an embodiment. FIG. 13 is a schematic diagram showing a schematic configuration of a blast processing device used for comparison. 11A and 11B are diagrams showing the results of an experiment comparing the blast processing device according to the embodiment with a comparative blast processing device. 5A to 5C are schematic diagrams for explaining the behavior of an abrasive in an abrasive jet nozzle according to the embodiment. FIG. 11 is a schematic diagram for explaining the behavior of an abrasive in an abrasive jet nozzle as a comparison example. 4 is a table showing an example of main specifications of an abrasive jet nozzle according to an embodiment.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS A blast processing apparatus and the like equipped with an abrasive injection device according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.
In the drawings referred to in the following description of the embodiments and examples, elements denoted by the same reference numbers have the same or similar functions unless otherwise specified.

With reference to FIG. 1, a schematic configuration of a blast processing apparatus equipped with an abrasive jetting device according to this embodiment will be described.
The blast processing device 50 includes an abrasive jet nozzle 10 that jets an abrasive to process a workpiece 100, and an abrasive supply device 20 that supplies an abrasive to the abrasive jet nozzle 10. The abrasive jet nozzle 10 is movably supported by a moving means (not shown) that enables relative movement with respect to the workpiece 100 and the abrasive supply device 20. The moving means may have any configuration, but a mechanism that enables the abrasive jet nozzle 10 to move in some or all of the X direction, Y direction, Z direction, and θ direction can be employed.

The abrasive supply device 20 and the abrasive jet nozzle 10 are connected by a flexible pipe 30 and a rigid pipe 14 connected in series, and the abrasive is supplied from the abrasive supply device 20 to the abrasive jet nozzle 10 via these pipes. The flexible pipe 30 and the rigid pipe 14 are connected in series, with the flexible pipe 30 being provided on the abrasive supply device 20 side and the rigid pipe 14 being provided on the abrasive jet nozzle 10 side, integral with the abrasive jet nozzle 10. The rigid pipe 14 can be considered as part of the abrasive jet nozzle 10.

Here, flexible piping means piping that can be flexibly deformed and can transport abrasives without blocking the pipeline even when deformed, and refers to piping that uses a tube made of resin such as urethane or nylon. In order to prevent the abrasives from becoming charged when they flow through the tube, the flexible piping 30 may be made of a conductive tube. The material, inner diameter, thickness, length, etc. of the flexible piping 30 are appropriately set so that the pipeline is maintained without being blocked when the abrasive jet nozzle 10 moves through the processing area of the workpiece 100, and the elastic reaction force and inertial weight are not excessive, and the flexible piping 30 is durable against repeated deformation. For example, even in a device that processes a large workpiece 100 of meter size, a flexible piping 30 that is flexible and has a high degree of freedom in routing can be set.

The term "rigid piping" refers to a piping made of a highly rigid material, and has sufficient rigidity to not substantially deform even when it receives a force from the flexible piping 30 as the abrasive jet nozzle 10 moves. As long as it has the necessary rigidity, it can be made using metal materials such as copper and brass, or resin materials. The present invention is characterized by the shape of the rigid piping, which will be described in detail later.

The abrasive supply device 20, which serves as the abrasive supply section, includes a tank 21 that stores the abrasive 1, a screw 22 that sends the abrasive 1 toward the abrasive discharge section 24, and a motor 23 that rotates the screw 22. By rotating the screw 22 using the motor 23, the abrasive 1 stored in the tank 21 can be pushed out to the abrasive discharge section 24. The abrasive pushed out to the abrasive discharge section 24 is supplied (transported) to the abrasive injection nozzle 10 through the flexible piping 30 and the rigid piping 14.

It is desirable for the abrasive supply device 20 to be able to supply the abrasive at a constant supply rate, but various control means can be provided to improve control accuracy. For example, the tank 21 may be provided with a powder level meter capable of measuring the position of the top surface of the abrasive, and the device may have a function of controlling various parameters according to the measurement value of the powder level meter. Here, the various parameters include, for example, the rotation speed of the motor 23 and the pressure of the compressed gas supplied to the driving flow injection pipe 12 of the abrasive injection nozzle 10. Note that the abrasive supply device 20 is not limited to the screw rotation type described above, and may be of other types such as a belt feeder type equipped with a measuring function.

Next, the abrasive injection nozzle 10 will be described in detail with reference to FIG. 2. The abrasive injection nozzle 10 includes an abrasive introduction chamber 11, a driving flow injection pipe 12, a mixing pipe 13 as a mixing chamber, and a rigid pipe 14 as an introduction pipe.

As described above, the rigid pipe 14 is a pipe that has enough rigidity to not substantially deform even when it receives a force from the flexible pipe 30 when the abrasive jet nozzle 10 moves. The rigid pipe 14, which serves as an introduction pipe, has one end connected to the flexible pipe 30 and the other end fixed to the main body of the abrasive jet nozzle 10 so that the opening faces the abrasive introduction chamber 11.

One end of the driving flow injection pipe 12 is connected to an air tube (not shown), and the other end is inserted into the abrasive introduction chamber 11, and is fixed to the body of the abrasive injection nozzle 10 so that its tip is a predetermined distance away from the mixing tube 13. The air tube is flexibly deformable like the flexible pipe 30, and is a pipe that does not become blocked even when deformed. The air tube is connected to a compressed gas supply source (not shown), and the driving flow injection pipe 12 has the function of ejecting an air flow toward the abrasive introduction chamber 11.

The mixing tube 13, which serves as a mixing chamber, constitutes the nozzle tip of the abrasive injection nozzle 10, and is a tube that mixes the abrasive introduced into the abrasive introduction chamber 11 from the rigid piping 14 and the air flow injected from the driving flow injection tube 12 inside the tube and injects it from the tip toward the workpiece 100. The mixing tube 13 is positioned so that its center line is aligned in the same line as the center line of the driving flow injection tube 12, and is fixed to the abrasive introduction chamber 11.

Returning to FIG. 1, when an airflow is injected from the driving flow injection pipe 12 toward the mixing pipe 13 arranged at a predetermined distance, the abrasive introduction chamber 11 becomes negative pressure. The abrasive discharge section 24 is connected to the abrasive introduction chamber 11 via the rigid pipe 14 and the flexible pipe 30, and when the abrasive introduction chamber 11 becomes negative pressure, air flows in from the opening OH of the abrasive discharge section 24, which is open to the atmosphere. As a result, an airflow is generated from the abrasive discharge section 24 toward the abrasive introduction chamber 11 through the flexible pipe 30 and the rigid pipe 14. This air flow transports the abrasive pushed into the abrasive discharge section 24 by the screw 22 toward the abrasive introduction chamber 11.

The abrasive introduced into the abrasive introduction chamber 11 from the abrasive supply device 20 through the flexible pipe 30 and the rigid pipe 14 is drawn into the mixing pipe 13 through the gap between the driving flow injection pipe 12 and the mixing pipe 13. The abrasive drawn into the mixing pipe 13 is mixed with the airflow injected from the driving flow injection pipe 12 and injected toward the workpiece 100, machining the workpiece 100.

Although not shown in FIG. 1, the blasting device 50 may be provided with a recovery and circulation mechanism consisting of a dust collector, classifier, etc., to recover the abrasive sprayed from the abrasive spray nozzle 10 and circulate it to the tank 21.

(Shape of rigid piping)
Next, the shape and function of the rigid pipe, which is a characteristic part of this embodiment, will be described. Fig. 3 is an enlarged view showing the abrasive jet nozzle 10 in order to explain the shape of the rigid pipe 14 according to this embodiment.

In the abrasive injection device according to the present invention, the rigid pipe has a bent portion in the pipe line, and the rigid pipe has a pipe shape such that the end (second opening) on the abrasive introduction chamber side cannot be seen from the end (first opening) on the soft pipe side. In other words, the rigid pipe has a pipe shape such that a line segment connecting any point on the first opening on the soft pipe side and any point on the second opening on the abrasive introduction chamber side always intersects with the pipe wall.

As shown in FIG. 3, the rigid pipe 14 according to this embodiment has a shape in which a first straight region, a first bend, a second straight region, a second bend, and a third straight region are connected in that order from the abrasive introduction chamber 11 side. A first opening 141 is provided at the end of the rigid pipe 14 on the soft pipe side as an inlet for the abrasive, and a second opening 142 is provided at the end on the abrasive introduction chamber side as an outlet for the abrasive.

In this embodiment, the first linear region is arranged so that, when its center line is extended, it intersects with the center line of the driving flow injection pipe 12 inside the abrasive introduction chamber 11. The second linear region is arranged so that, when its center line is extended, it intersects with the center line of the driving flow injection pipe 12 or an extension of the center line outside the abrasive introduction chamber 11. The third linear region is arranged so that its center line is parallel to the center line of the driving flow injection pipe 12.

As shown diagrammatically in FIG. 3, no matter what angle an observer looks at inside the pipe through the first opening 141, the line of sight is blocked by the pipe wall of the rigid pipe 14, so the observer cannot directly see the second opening 142. In other words, the inner diameter, number of bends, bending angle and radius of curvature of the bends, and length of the straight line region of the rigid pipe 14 are set so that any line segment CL connecting a point on the opening plane of the first opening 141 and a point on the opening plane of the second opening 142 always intersects with the pipe wall of the rigid pipe 14.

The inner diameter of the rigid piping 14 is desirably highly uniform along the piping in order to prevent the abrasive from accumulating locally within the piping. Specifically, it is desirably that the flow path cross-sectional area of any part throughout the straight and bent regions is 120% or less of the center value and 80% or more of the center value. The center value refers to the median value between the maximum and minimum values when the flow path cross-sectional area is measured through the piping of the rigid piping 14. In other words, the maximum value of the flow path cross-sectional area in the piping is 120% or less of the center value and the minimum value is 80% or more of the center value.

In this embodiment, the number of bends is two, with a first bend and a second bend, but this is not limited to the example, as long as the line segment connecting any point on the first opening on the flexible pipe side and any point on the second opening on the abrasive introduction chamber side intersects with the pipe wall of the rigid pipe. In other words, the number of bends may be one or three or more.

When a straight line is defined as a bending angle of 0 degrees, the bending angle of the bent portion is preferably 80 degrees or more and 100 degrees or less. If the bending angle is less than 80 degrees, the stirring effect described below will be reduced, and the fluctuation in the grinding rate when the abrasive injection nozzle is moved relative to the workpiece may not be sufficiently suppressed. Also, if the bending angle is 100 degrees or more, the loss of pressure to suck the abrasive will be large, the supply amount of the abrasive will be reduced, and the processing speed of the blast processing device will decrease. When bending portions are provided at multiple locations, the bending angle of at least one bending portion may be within the above angle range, and the bending angle of the other bending portions may be less than 80 degrees. This is to suppress excessive loss of suction pressure. In this embodiment, the bending angle of the second bending portion closer to the flexible pipe 30 is 90 degrees, and the bending angle of the first bending portion is 45 degrees.

The radius of curvature of the bent portion may be determined by taking into consideration manufacturing errors and within a range that ensures the uniformity of the cross-sectional area of the flow passage. Although it depends on the manufacturing method, the radius of curvature is set so that wrinkles are not formed on the inner circumference side and the thickness of the outer circumference side is not too thin.
The length of the straight region can be determined taking into consideration ensuring the strength of the connection with the flexible piping, ensuring the strength of the connection with the abrasive introduction chamber 11, making the abrasive injection nozzle 10 lighter and smaller, etc.

(Action of rigid piping)
The effect of the rigid pipe having the above-mentioned shape will be described with reference to the drawings. For ease of understanding, the description will be made in comparison with a blast processing device (comparison object) having a straight rigid pipe without a bent portion.

Figure 4 is a schematic diagram showing the general configuration of a blast processing device 1050 for comparison. Parts common to the blast processing device 50 shown in Figure 1 as an embodiment are shown with the same reference numbers in Figure 4, and detailed descriptions are omitted.

The comparative blast processing device 1050 has a different abrasive injection nozzle from the embodiment, specifically, the shape of the rigid pipe that introduces the abrasive into the abrasive introduction chamber is different. That is, the rigid pipe 1014 of the comparative abrasive injection nozzle 1010 is composed of only a straight pipe line and does not have a bent section. Therefore, when an observer observes the inside of the pipe through the first opening 10141 (abrasive inlet), there is always an observation position where the line of sight is not blocked by the pipe wall of the rigid pipe 1014 and the second opening 10142 (abrasive outlet) can be seen. In other words, there is always a line segment CL10 that can connect one point in the opening plane of the first opening 10141 and one point in the opening plane of the second opening 10142 without intersecting with the pipe wall of the rigid pipe 1014.

An experiment was conducted in which grinding processing was performed on workpieces of the same shape under the same conditions using the blast processing device 50 of the embodiment shown in Figure 1 and a comparative blast processing device 1050 shown in Figure 4. That is, an experiment was conducted in which the abrasive jet nozzle was scanned at a constant speed while maintaining a constant distance from the workpiece 100, and a predetermined processing area of the workpiece 100 was ground to a constant depth.

Figure 5 shows the experimental results, with the horizontal position on the graph indicating the scanning position of the abrasive jet nozzle relative to the workpiece; the further to the left the abrasive jet nozzle is located in Figure 1 or Figure 4, the further to the left it is plotted on the graph in Figure 5. The vertical axis of the graph indicates the rate of change in the grinding results relative to the target machining depth. The comparison is shown by a dotted line graph, and the embodiment is shown by a solid line graph.

For example, P1 at the left end of the dotted line graph for comparison shows the machining result when the abrasive jet nozzle is positioned at the left end of the machining area in Figure 4, and P2 at the right end of the dotted line graph shows the machining result when the abrasive jet nozzle is positioned at the right end of the machining area in Figure 4.
Similarly, EP1 at the left end of the solid line graph in the embodiment shows the processing result when the abrasive jet nozzle is positioned at the left end of the processing area in Figure 1, and EP2 at the right end of the solid line graph shows the processing result when the abrasive jet nozzle is positioned at the right end of the processing area in Figure 1.

5, it can be seen that in the comparative example, the machining depth is −11.2% at the position P1 and +7.5% at the position P2. On the other hand, in the embodiment, it can be seen that the change in the machining depth is suppressed to within ±1%.
As shown in the graph, in the embodiment, even if the position of the abrasive jet nozzle is moved, the change in the grinding depth is extremely small, but in the comparative example, the grinding depth changes significantly when the position of the abrasive jet nozzle is moved. In other words, when comparing the embodiment and the comparative example, when the abrasive jet nozzle is moved relative to the workpiece, the spray state of the abrasive sprayed from the abrasive jet nozzle toward the workpiece is more stable in the embodiment, and the fluctuation of the grinding rate is suppressed.

In the embodiment and the comparison example, the layout of the flexible pipe 30 should be the same as long as the abrasive jet nozzle is in the same position. Nevertheless, differences in the fluctuations in the grinding rate occur because the behavior of the abrasive after it flows into the rigid pipe is different between the embodiment and the comparison example abrasive jet nozzle, and the state of the jet sprayed from the nozzle tip toward the workpiece is different.

Figure 6 is a schematic diagram for explaining the behavior of the abrasive in an abrasive jet nozzle according to the embodiment, with the state corresponding to EP1 in the graph of Figure 5 shown on the left, and the state corresponding to EP2 in the graph of Figure 5 shown on the right. Also, Figure 7 is a schematic diagram for explaining the behavior of the abrasive in a comparative abrasive jet nozzle, with the state corresponding to P1 in the graph of Figure 5 shown on the left, and the state corresponding to P2 in the graph of Figure 5 shown on the right.

When the abrasive injection nozzle moves relative to the workpiece and the tank 21 (abrasive supply section), the layout of the flexible pipe 30 changes, the flow state of the abrasive in the flexible pipe 30 changes, and the distribution of the abrasive in the cross section of the flow path when passing through the first opening of the rigid pipe changes. The lower part of the graph in FIG. 5 shows a schematic distribution of the abrasive in the cross section of the flow path when passing through the first opening of the rigid pipe. For example, at the position P1 in the embodiment and the position EP1 in the comparison, the abrasive flows in more by passing through the side of the first opening farther from the abrasive introduction chamber 11. On the other hand, at the position P2 in the embodiment and the position EP2 in the comparison, the abrasive flows in more by passing through the side of the first opening closer to the abrasive introduction chamber 11. And, at the intermediate position between the two, the layout direction of the flexible pipe 30 becomes straight with the pipe direction of the introduction part of the rigid pipe, so the abrasive flows in by passing through almost the entire surface of the cross section of the flow path of the first opening.

In the comparative abrasive injection nozzle, the rigid pipe 1014 does not have a bent portion, so the abrasive is introduced into the abrasive introduction chamber 11 with the distribution in the flow path cross section when it passes through the first opening 10141 of the rigid pipe 1014. Therefore, as shown in FIG. 7, the distribution state of the abrasive in the abrasive introduction chamber 11 is significantly different at positions P1 and P2, and there is a difference in the way the abrasive is injected from the abrasive introduction chamber 11 to the mixing tube 13. At position P1, the abrasive is unevenly distributed on the left side of FIG. 7 in the jet sprayed from the mixing tube 13 toward the workpiece, and at position P2, the abrasive is unevenly distributed on the right side of FIG. 7 in the jet sprayed toward the workpiece. In this way, the state of the jet sprayed from the mixing tube 13 toward the workpiece differs depending on the position of the abrasive injection nozzle, so that in the comparative abrasive injection nozzle, the processing rate fluctuates depending on the position.

In contrast, the rigid pipe 14 of the abrasive injection nozzle of the embodiment has the bent shape described above, which creates an action of stirring the flow within the rigid pipe. Therefore, the abrasive is introduced into the abrasive introduction chamber 11 in a state that is more uniform than the distribution within the flow path cross section when it passes through the first opening 141. As shown in Figure 6, when the abrasive passes through the second bend with a bend angle of 90 degrees, a stirring effect is created by the airflow, and the distribution (uneven distribution) of the abrasive within the flow path cross section is significantly reduced.

Therefore, even if the position of the abrasive injection nozzle moves from EP1 to EP2, as shown in the figure, the change in the spatial distribution of the abrasive introduced from the rigid piping 14 into the abrasive introduction chamber 11 is extremely small, and the way in which the abrasive is injected from the abrasive introduction chamber 11 into the mixing tube 13 is constant. Therefore, the state of the jet sprayed from the mixing tube 13 toward the workpiece is constant and does not depend on the position of the abrasive injection nozzle. For this reason, in this embodiment, even if the position of the abrasive injection nozzle is moved, the fluctuation in the processing rate is extremely small.

According to the abrasive jet nozzle of this embodiment, even if the abrasive jet nozzle is moved and the flexible piping is laid, fluctuations in the amount of grinding per unit time (grinding rate) are suppressed. Therefore, by controlling the movement speed of the abrasive jet nozzle and the distance between the abrasive jet nozzle and the workpiece (workpiece), it is possible to easily and precisely adjust the amount of processing (amount of grinding) for each location on the workpiece.

Figure 8 shows an example of the main specifications of the abrasive jet nozzle of this embodiment, and an example of the scanning conditions when controlling the dwell time. A blast processing device equipped with an abrasive jet nozzle whose main specifications are shown in Figure 8 can be used, for example, in a processing process to make the thickness of a wafer uniform. The thickness distribution of the wafer is measured in advance, and the amount of processing is increased in the thicker parts and decreased in the thinner parts, thereby making the wafer thickness uniform. The abrasive jet nozzle of this embodiment does not change the amount of processing per unit time even if the flexible piping is changed by moving on the wafer. Therefore, by changing the dwell time or moving speed for each position on the wafer, the amount of processing for each position can be adjusted with high precision, and the thickness of the wafer can be made uniform with high precision.

[Other embodiments]
The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and many modifications are possible within the technical concept of the present invention.

For example, it is desirable for the rigid piping to have enough rigidity so that it does not substantially deform even when it receives a force from the flexible piping when the abrasive jet nozzle moves, but deformation is not completely unacceptable. Even if the rigid piping deforms, it is acceptable as long as the shape is maintained such that a line segment connecting any one point on the cross section of the flow path at the inlet and any one point on the cross section of the flow path at the outlet always intersects with the pipe wall. Or, even if the rigid piping deforms, it is acceptable as long as the bending angle of at least one bend in the pipe is maintained within the range of 80 degrees or more and 100 degrees or less.

In addition, the blast processing device equipped with the abrasive jet nozzle according to the embodiment can be used not only for processing wafers, but also for processing large-area workpieces where the routing of flexible piping changes significantly. It can be used for manufacturing and processing a variety of items, such as surface cleaning processes such as removing rust and coatings, shaping processes such as removing burrs, roughening processes such as matte finishes, and polishing processes to flatten the surfaces of wafers and substrates.

1...Abrasive/10...Abrasive injection nozzle/11...Abrasive introduction chamber/12...Driven flow injection pipe/13...Mixing pipe/14...Rigid piping/20...Abrasive supply device/21...Tank/22...Screw/23...Motor/24...Abrasive discharge section/50...Blast processing device/100...Workpiece/141...First opening/142...Second opening/1014...Rigid piping/10141...First opening/10142...Second opening/CL...Line segment/CL10...Line segment/OH...Opening

Claims (17)

an abrasive supply unit that supplies an abrasive;
a conduit capable of transporting an abrasive from the abrasive supply unit to an introduction pipe of a jet nozzle, the conduit being deformable when the jet nozzle moves relative to the abrasive supply unit;
an introduction chamber, an introduction pipe connecting the introduction chamber and the pipeline, and a mixing chamber for mixing the abrasive introduced into the introduction chamber with an air flow; and a spray nozzle supported movably relative to the abrasive supply unit;
The introduction pipe is
a first bent portion connected to the introduction chamber; and a second bent portion connected to the pipeline;
a linear region connecting the first bent portion and the second bent portion,
When the linear region is a second linear region, the first bent portion is connected to the introduction chamber via the first linear region, and the second bent portion is connected to the pipeline via a third linear region.
1. An abrasive jetting device comprising: When a second center line of the second linear region is extended, the second center line intersects with a fourth center line of a driving flow injection pipe of the injection nozzle or an extension line of the fourth center line outside the introduction chamber,
When a first center line of the first linear region is extended, the first center line intersects with the fourth center line within the introduction chamber,
A third center line of the third linear region is disposed in a direction parallel to the fourth center line.
2. The abrasive jetting device according to claim 1 . The first bent portion or the second bent portion includes a bent portion having a bending angle of 80 degrees or more and 100 degrees or less.
3. The abrasive jetting device according to claim 1 or 2 . When the midpoint between the maximum and minimum values of the cross-sectional area of the flow path in the inlet pipe is taken as a central value, the maximum value is 120% or less of the central value, and the minimum value is 80% or more of the central value.
4. An abrasive jetting device according to claim 1, wherein the abrasive jetting device is a nozzle . The introduction pipe has a rigidity such that it does not deform when the injection nozzle moves relative to the abrasive supply unit.
5. An abrasive jetting device according to claim 1, wherein the abrasive jetting device is a nozzle . A method for spraying an abrasive, comprising: moving a spray nozzle having an introduction pipe for introducing an abrasive supplied from an abrasive supply unit through a deformable pipeline into an introduction chamber, and a mixing chamber for mixing the abrasive introduced into the introduction chamber with an air flow, relative to the abrasive supply unit, and spraying the abrasive from the spray nozzle, comprising:
The introduction pipe is
a first bent portion connected to the introduction chamber; and a second bent portion connected to the pipeline;
a linear region connecting the first bent portion and the second bent portion,
When the linear region is a second linear region, the first bent portion is connected to the introduction chamber via the first linear region, and the second bent portion is connected to the pipeline via a third linear region.
1. A method for spraying an abrasive material comprising the steps of: When a second center line of the second linear region is extended, the second center line intersects with a fourth center line of a driving flow injection pipe of the injection nozzle or an extension line of the fourth center line outside the introduction chamber,
When a first center line of the first linear region is extended, the first center line intersects with the fourth center line within the introduction chamber,
A third center line of the third linear region is disposed in a direction parallel to the fourth center line.
7. The method for blasting an abrasive according to claim 6 . The first bent portion or the second bent portion includes a bent portion having a bending angle of 80 degrees or more and 100 degrees or less.
8. The method for blasting an abrasive according to claim 6 or 7 . When the midpoint between the maximum and minimum values of the cross-sectional area of the flow path in the inlet pipe is taken as a central value, the maximum value is 120% or less of the central value, and the minimum value is 80% or more of the central value.
9. The method for blasting an abrasive according to claim 6 , wherein the abrasive is blasted onto the surface of the abrasive material. The introduction pipe has a rigidity such that it does not deform when the injection nozzle moves relative to the abrasive supply unit.
10. The method for jetting an abrasive according to claim 6 , wherein the abrasive is jetted to the substrate . A method for manufacturing an article, comprising the steps of: moving a spray nozzle having an introduction pipe for introducing an abrasive supplied from an abrasive supply unit through a deformable pipeline into an introduction chamber, and a mixing chamber for mixing the abrasive introduced into the introduction chamber with an air flow, relative to the abrasive supply unit, and spraying the abrasive from the spray nozzle toward a workpiece, the method comprising the steps of:
The introduction pipe has a first bent portion connected to the introduction chamber and a second bent portion connected to the pipeline;
a linear region connecting the first bent portion and the second bent portion,
When the linear region is a second linear region, the first bent portion is connected to the introduction chamber via the first linear region, and the second bent portion is connected to the pipeline via a third linear region.
A method for producing an article . When a second center line of the second linear region is extended, the second center line intersects with a fourth center line of a driving flow injection pipe of the injection nozzle or an extension line of the fourth center line outside the introduction chamber,
When a first center line of the first linear region is extended, the first center line intersects with the fourth center line within the introduction chamber,
A third center line of the third linear region is disposed in a direction parallel to the fourth center line.
The method of claim 11 . The first bent portion or the second bent portion includes a bent portion having a bending angle of 80 degrees or more and 100 degrees or less.
The method for manufacturing an article according to claim 11 or 12 . When the midpoint between the maximum and minimum values of the cross-sectional area of the flow path in the inlet pipe is taken as a central value, the maximum value is 120% or less of the central value, and the minimum value is 80% or more of the central value.
A method for manufacturing an article according to any one of claims 1 to 13 . The introduction pipe has a rigidity such that it does not deform when the injection nozzle moves relative to the abrasive supply unit.
A method for producing an article according to any one of claims 11 to 14 . When moving the injection nozzle, a residence time or a moving speed of the injection nozzle is controlled at each processing position of the workpiece to control a processing amount at each processing position.
A method for producing an article according to any one of claims 11 to 15 . When moving the injection nozzle, a distance between the injection nozzle and the workpiece at each processing position of the workpiece is controlled to control a processing amount at each processing position.
A method for producing an article according to any one of claims 11 to 16 .

Images