JP7653285B2 - Manufacturing method of protrusion holder and manufacturing device of protrusion holder - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a method for manufacturing a protrusion holder and a manufacturing device for a protrusion holder.

The technology for manufacturing a protrusion holder having needle-shaped protrusions is publicly known (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

JP 2019-170795 A

In the manufacturing technology for the protrusion holder disclosed in Patent Document 1, after pressing thermoplastic resin 3 (plastic material) against an intaglio plate 2 (support member) to form a microneedle (protrusion holder), if the protrusion 11 (protrusion) cannot be smoothly removed from the recess of the support member when separating the protrusion holder from the support member, the protrusion will break or become damaged, resulting in the inconvenience that it is not possible to form a protrusion holder of the desired shape.

The object of the present invention is to provide a method and device for manufacturing a protrusion holder that allows the protrusion to be smoothly removed from the recess.

The present invention employs the configuration described in the claims.

According to the present invention, the support member is curved to widen the opening distance of the recess, so that the protrusion can be smoothly removed from the recess.

1A to 1F are explanatory views of a manufacturing apparatus for a protrusion holder according to an embodiment of the present invention and an explanatory view of the operation of the same apparatus.

Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.
In this embodiment, the X-axis, Y-axis, and Z-axis are mutually orthogonal, the X-axis and Y-axis are axes in a predetermined plane, and the Z-axis is an axis perpendicular to the predetermined plane. Furthermore, in this embodiment, the view from the front direction in FIG. 1 parallel to the Y-axis is used as a reference, and when a direction is indicated without specifying the figure, "up" is the direction of the Z-axis arrow, "down" is the opposite direction, "left" is the direction of the X-axis arrow, "right" is the opposite direction, "front" is the front direction in FIG. 1 parallel to the Y-axis, and "rear" is the opposite direction. Note that all of FIG. 1(B) to (H), (J) without arrows indicating directions are views from the same direction as FIG. 1(A).

The protrusion holder manufacturing apparatus (hereinafter also simply referred to as the "manufacturing apparatus") EA of the present invention is an apparatus for carrying out a manufacturing method of a protrusion holder CB having a protrusion portion CV formed thereon, and includes material transport means 10 for carrying out a material transport step of transporting a base material BM containing a plastic material PM, material support means 20 for carrying out a material support step of supporting the base material BM with a support member 22 having a support surface 22A on which recesses 22B corresponding to the protrusion portions CV are formed, pressing means 30 for carrying out a pressing step of pressing the base material BM in a direction toward the support surface 22A to fill the recesses 22B with the plastic material PM, and forming the protrusion portions CV from the plastic material PM to form the protrusion holder CB, and a heating step of heating the plastic material PM. the heating means 40 for applying a heating force to the plastic material PM, a positioning means 50 for performing a positioning process for positioning the support sheet BS relative to the support surface 22A, a separating means 60 for performing a separating process for separating the protrusion holder CB from the support member 22, a cooling means 70 for performing a cooling process for cooling the plastic material PM, a leaching means 80 for performing a leaching process for making the plastic material PM into a porous body by immersing the plastic material PM in water WT as a leaching medium, and an opening expansion means 90 for performing an opening expansion process for bending the support member 22 to widen the opening spacing 22C of the recess 22B (see the enlarged view in Figure 1 (D)), and is located in the vicinity of a base material supply means PS for performing a base material supply process for supplying the base material BM.
In addition, the base material BM is a plastic material PM laminated on one side of the support sheet BS. In addition, the support sheet BS of this embodiment is composed of paper as a transparent member having permeability that allows at least one of liquid and gas to pass through. Furthermore, the plastic material PM has thermoplasticity by being mainly composed of polylactic acid (PLA), and contains polyethylene glycol PG (see the enlarged view of FIG. 1(F)) as a leaching material that leaches into water WT. The plastic material PM of this embodiment is a mixture of two components, polylactic acid and polyethylene glycol PG, and the ratio of these components is 5:5 by weight.

The material transport means 10 is composed of multiple arms and is equipped with a so-called articulated robot 11 as a driving device that can displace what is supported by the tip arm 11A, which is the working part, to any position and any angle within its working range, and a holding plate 12 supported by the tip arm 11A and having a holding surface 12A that can be adsorbed and held by a pressure reduction means (holding means) such as a pressure reduction pump or vacuum ejector (not shown), and is configured to place the base material BM on the support member 22 by abutting the plastic material PM against the support surface 22A.

The material support means 20 includes a base 21 having a step 21A formed thereon, and a support member 22 that is fitted and supported within the step 21A and has a recess 22B formed in the support surface 22A. The support member 22 is made of resin, which is a bendable material.

The pressing means 30 includes a linear motor 31 as a driving device and a pressing member 32 supported by its output shaft 31A. In this embodiment, the pressing member 32 is made of a transparent material.

The heating means 40 includes a heating device 41, such as a coil heater or the heating side of a heat pipe, arranged inside the base 21.

The positioning means 50 is composed of imaging means such as a camera or a projector, and various sensors such as optical sensors and ultrasonic sensors, and includes a detection device 51 supported on the pressing member 32 via a bracket 51A, an XY table 52 as a driving device, and a rotary motor 53 as a driving device supported on the output base 52A of the XY table 52 and supporting the base 21 with an output shaft 53A, and is configured to move the support member 22 linearly or curvedly within the XY plane and to rotate the support member 22 within the XY plane.

The separation means 60 is made up of multiple arms and includes a so-called articulated robot 61 as a driving device that can displace what is supported by the tip arm 61A, which is the working part, to any position and any angle within its working range, a bracket 62 supported by the tip arm 61A, a linear motor 63 as a driving device supported by the bracket 62, and a holding plate 64 supported by the output shaft 63A and having a holding surface 64A that can be adsorbed and held by a decompression means (holding means) such as a decompression pump or vacuum ejector (not shown). The holding plate 64 is made of resin, which is an elastically deformable material.

The cooling means 70 includes a cooling device 71 that is configured from a Peltier element or the cooling side of a heat pipe provided inside the holding plate 64.

The leaching means 80 includes water WT and a container 81 for receiving the water WT.

The opening expansion means 90 includes an articulated robot 61 and a bracket 62 shared with the spacing means 60, a linear motor 91 supported by the bracket 62 as a driving device, a suction pad 92 supported by the output shaft 91A of the linear motor 91 via an arm 92A and capable of being suctioned and held by a pressure reducing means (holding means) such as a pressure reducing pump or a vacuum ejector (not shown), and a curved member 93 having a curved surface 93A. The linear motor 91 functions as a tensioning means for carrying out a surface tensioning process that applies tension to the support member 22 so that the outer edges of the support member 22 are spaced apart from each other.

The operation of the above-mentioned manufacturing apparatus EA for a projection holder will now be described.
First, a user of the manufacturing equipment EA (hereinafter, simply referred to as "user") or a conveying means (not shown), such as an articulated robot or a belt conveyor, supplies a base material BM onto a base material supplying means PS as shown in the figure, for the manufacturing equipment EA in which each member is arranged at an initial position shown by a solid line in Fig. 1(A), and then the user inputs a signal to start automatic operation via an operating means (not shown), such as an operation panel or a personal computer. Then, the material conveying means 10 drives the articulated robot 11 and the decompression means (not shown), moves the holding plate 12 to bring the holding surface 12A into contact with the support sheet BS, and holds the base material BM by suction with the holding surface 12A. As shown by a two-dot chain line in Fig. 1(A), the base material BM is placed on the support surface 22A of the support member 22, and then the driving of the decompression means (not shown) is stopped to return the holding plate 12 to its initial position. Next, the pressing means 30 drives the linear motor 31 to lower the pressing member 32, and as shown in FIG. 1B, the pressing member 32 presses the base material BM in the direction toward the support surface 22A, filling the recess 22B with the plastic material PM. At this time, the heating means 40 drives the heating device 41 to heat and soften the plastic material PM, making it easier to fill the recess 22B with the plastic material PM. Thereafter, the positioning means 50 drives the detection device 51 to detect the position of the support sheet BS, and based on this detection result, the positioning means 50 drives the XY table 52 and the rotary motor 53 to move the support member 22 so that the recess 22B (protrusion CV) is located at a predetermined position of the support sheet BS. As a result, the protrusion CV and the base FD supporting the protrusion CV are formed from the plastic material PM, and the protrusion holder CB with the protrusion CV formed on the support sheet BS is formed. Next, the pressing means 30 drives the linear motor 31 to return the pressing member 32 to the initial position, and then the heating means 40 stops driving the heating device 41 .

Then, the opening widening means 90 drives the multi-joint robot 61 and the pressure reducing means (not shown) to move the suction pad 92, and as shown in FIG. 1(C), the suction pad 92 sucks and holds the support member 22, and then, as shown in FIG. 1(D), the support member 22 is pressed against the curved surface 93A of the curved member 93. As a result, the support member 22 is curved, and as shown in the enlarged view of FIG. 1(D), the opening interval 22C of the recess 22B is widened to form a gap CL between the recess 22B and the protrusion CV, making it easier to remove the protrusion CV from the recess 22B. At this time, the opening widening means 90 drives the linear motor 91 to widen the mutual interval between the suction pads 92, and by applying tension to the support member 22 so that the outer edges of the support member 22 are separated from each other, the opening interval 22C can be further widened. Next, the separating means 60 and the cooling means 70 drive the linear motor 63 and the cooling device 71, and as shown by the two-dot chain line in FIG. 1D, the holding plate 64 is brought into contact with the protrusion holder CB to cool the plastic material PM. This causes the plastic material PM to shrink and the gap CL to further expand. At this time, the separating means 60 pressurizes the plastic material PM with the holding plate 64 while the cooling means 70 cools the plastic material PM, thereby improving the adhesion between the plastic material PM and the support sheet BS. After that, when the cooling means 70 stops driving the cooling device 71 and finishes cooling the plastic material PM, the separating means 60 drives the linear motor 63 and the decompression means (not shown), adsorbs and holds the protrusion holder CB with the holding surface 64A, and then returns the holding plate 64 to its initial position, and as shown in FIG. 1E, the protrusion CV is removed from the recess 22B. Next, the separation means 60 drives the articulated robot 61, returns the support member 22 to its initial position, stops driving the pressure reducing means (not shown), and after detaching the suction pad 92 from the support member 22, the protrusion holder CB is immersed in water WT as shown in FIG. 1(F). As a result, the polyethylene glycol PG contained in the plastic material PM seeps into the water WT, and as shown in the enlarged view of FIG. 1(F), holes HL are formed in the areas where the polyethylene glycol PG was present, making them hollow, and the plastic material PM becomes porous. Then, the separation means 60 drives the articulated robot 61, transports the protrusion holder CB with the holes HL formed to the next process (not shown), stops driving the pressure reducing means (not shown), detaches the holding plate 64 from the protrusion holder CB, returns the detached holding plate 64 to its initial position, and the above-mentioned operations are repeated.

According to the above embodiment, the support member 22 is curved to widen the opening interval 22C of the recess 22B, so that the protrusion CV can be smoothly removed from the recess 22B.

The means and steps of the present invention are not limited in any way as long as they can perform the operations, functions or steps described for those means and steps, and are in no way limited to the components and steps of a single embodiment shown in the above embodiment. For example, the pressing step may be any step that presses the base material in a direction toward the support surface to fill the recesses with a plastic material, and forms protrusions from the plastic material to form a protrusion holder, and is not limited in any way as long as it is within the technical scope in light of the common general technical knowledge at the time of filing (the same goes for the other means and steps).

The material transport means 10 may be configured to transport the base material BM by sharing the articulated robot 61 with the separating means 60 and the opening widening means 90 without using the articulated robot 11, or may use a suction pad or the like in place of or in combination with the holding plate 12, and may or may not be included in the manufacturing device EA of the protrusion holder of the present invention. If it is not included, the base material BM can be transported by other equipment or by hand.

The material support means 20 may not have a step portion 21A on the base 21, may be provided with a pressure reduction means such as a vacuum pump or vacuum ejector that holds the support member 22, or a support member holding means such as a chuck motor, or may not have the base 21 and may be composed only of the support member 22.
The support member 22 may be any bendable material such as metal, resin, silicone, rubber, wood, paper, etc., the number of recesses 22B may be one or more, and a release-improving material such as fluorine or silicone may be coated, applied, or laminated on the support surface 22A or recesses 22B to make it easier to separate the protrusion holder CB from the support member 22.

The pressing means 30 may move the support member 22 without or while moving the pressing member 32, and may press the base material BM in a direction toward the support surface 22A to form the protrusion CV, the pressing member 32 may be translucent or not transparent, the articulated robot 11 and the holding plate 12 may be shared with the material conveying means 10 without adopting the linear motor 31 and the pressing member 32, or the articulated robot 61, the bracket 62, the linear motor 63 and The holding plate 64 may be shared with the separation means 60, and the base material BM may be pressed in the direction toward the support surface 22A via the holding plate 12 or the holding plate 64 to form the protrusion CV. Alternatively, the articulated robot 11 may be shared with the material transport means 10 without using the linear motor 31, or the articulated robot 61 may be shared with the separation means 60 or the opening expansion means 90 instead of the linear motor 31, and the base material BM may be pressed in the direction toward the support surface 22A via the pressing member 32 to form the protrusion CV.

The heating means 40 may be disposed outside the base 21, inside the support member 22, or inside the pressing member 32, may heat the plastic material PM before pressing with the pressing means 30, may heat the plastic material PM while pressing with the pressing means 30, or may heat the plastic material PM after pressing with the pressing means 30, and may or may not be provided in the manufacturing apparatus EA for the protrusion holder of the present invention.

The positioning means 50 may move at least one of the support member 22 and the pressing member 32 in a straight line or curved line or rotational movement within the XY plane; for example, it may move the support member 22 in a straight line or curved line in the X direction (or Y direction) and move the pressing member 32 in a straight line or curved line in the Y direction (X direction); it may move the support member 22 or the pressing member 32 in a straight line or curved line in a direction other than the X or Y direction; it may simply move the support member 22 or the pressing member 32 in a straight line or curved line within the XY plane; or it may simply move the support member 22 or the pressing member 32 in a rotational movement within the XY plane.
The detection device 51 may be a single unit or two or more units, and may detect the position of the support sheet BS relative to the support surface 22A from the side of the pressing member 32, or the base 21 and the support member 22 may be made of transparent or semi-transparent materials so that the position of the support sheet BS relative to the support surface 22A can be detected by looking through the base 21 and the support member 22, or the detection device 51 may not be supported by the pressing member 32.
The positioning means 50 may position the plastic material PM relative to the support surface 22A, or may position both the support sheet BS and the plastic material PM relative to the support surface 22A, and may or may not be provided in the protrusion holder manufacturing apparatus EA of the present invention.

The separation means 60 may be configured to move the holding plate 64 by a driving device or the like independent of the opening expansion means 90, without sharing the multi-joint robot 61 or the like with the opening expansion means 90, to separate the protrusion holder CB from the support member 22, or may be configured to share the multi-joint robot 11 with the material conveying means 10 without adopting the multi-joint robot 61, to separate the protrusion holder CB from the support member 22, or may be configured to attach a peeling tape to the protrusion holder CB and apply tension to the peeling tape to separate the protrusion holder CB from the support member 22, or may be configured to use a vibrator or an ultrasonic device. A vibration means such as an ultrasonic vibration device may be used to vibrate the protrusion holder CB to make it easier to separate the protrusion holder CB from the support member 22, the protrusion holder CB may be centrifuged, the protrusion holder CB may be moved or vibrated when immersed in water WT to make it easier to leach the polyethylene glycol PG into the water WT, the curved support member 22 may be transported to a recovery position (not shown), and a new support member 22 may be transported from a support member stocker (not shown) and the new support member 22 may be fitted into the step 21A of the base 21. This may or may not be included in the manufacturing device EA of the protrusion holder of the present invention, and if it is not included, the protrusion holder CB may be separated from the support member 22 by other equipment or manually.

The cooling means 70 may be provided with a cooling device 71 inside or near the pressing member 32, and the plastic material PM may be cooled while the pressing member 32 is pressing the base material BM, or the plastic material PM may be cooled without pressing the base material BM, or may be provided outside the holding plate 64, or may be provided inside the base 21 or the support member 22, or may be configured to cool the plastic material PM by immersing it in a cooling medium such as water or a liquid mixture, an organic solvent such as ethanol or acetone, or an oil such as mineral oil or chemically synthesized oil, or may be configured to cool the plastic material PM by applying air or cold air to the plastic material PM, or may be configured to cool the plastic material PM by sharing water WT with the leaching means 80 without adopting a cooling device 71, or may be provided in the manufacturing apparatus EA of the protrusion holder of the present invention, or may not be provided.

The leaching means 80 may be any leaching medium capable of leaching out the leaching material contained in the base material BM, such as liquids such as water or a mixed liquid, organic solvents such as ethanol or acetone, or oils such as mineral oil or chemically synthetic oil. The leaching medium may be moved, circulated, vibrated, or stirred to facilitate leaching of the leaching material into the leaching medium, and may or may not be provided in the manufacturing apparatus EA for the protrusion holder of the present invention.

The opening expansion means 90 may be configured to hold the support member 22 with a chuck motor or chuck cylinder instead of or in combination with the suction pad 92, or may not be provided with a surface tension applying means. For example, the curved member 93 may be configured as a sphere or semisphere, and the curved surface 93A may be spherical, or the curved member 93 may be configured as a cylinder or semicylinder, and the curved surface 93A may be an arc surface, or the curved member 93 may be configured as a rod or point, and the support member 22 may be supported by lines or points rather than being supported by a surface, or an energy applying means may be adopted that applies energy such as heat or light that makes the support member 22 more easily deformed, taking into consideration the composition and material of the support member 22, and the energy may be applied to make it easier to widen the opening interval 22C of the recess 22B.

The base material supply means PS may be a simple table, a belt conveyor, a self-propelled transport table, etc., and may or may not be included in the manufacturing device EA of the protrusion holder of the present invention.

The manufacturing device EA for the protrusion holder may form the protrusion portion CV by pressing the base material BM in a direction toward the support surface 22A in a fluid atmosphere, such as a gas such as an elemental gas or a compound gas, a liquid such as water or a mixed liquid, an organic solvent such as ethanol or acetone, or an oil such as mineral oil or chemically synthesized oil.

The support sheet BS may be made of any material that is permeable to at least one of liquid and gas, such as cloth, nonwoven fabric, resin, mesh material, wood, etc., as well as metal, resin, silicone material, rubber material, wood, paper, ceramics, etc. with through holes formed therein, or may be made of material that is not permeable to liquid and gas (non-permeable material), such as metal, resin, silicone material, rubber material, wood, paper, ceramics, etc.

The plastic material PM is a material that deforms when energy such as heat or pressure is applied to it and does not return to its original shape thereafter. Examples of the plastic material PM include metal, clay, resin, etc. In the case of resin, it may be any material that has plasticity, such as PET, polypropylene, polyethylene, polyvinyl chloride, poly(lactide-co-glycolide) copolymer (PLGA), etc., and may be made of a single component or multiple components. It may be composed only of materials that have plasticity, or may be composed of materials that have plasticity and materials that do not have plasticity. It may not have thermoplasticity, it may not contain a leaching material, or a material that contains a thermoplastic resin may be used as a material that has thermoplasticity.
The ratio of the plastic material PM to the leaching material may be any ratio other than 5:5, such as 8:2 or 1:9, and the basis for these ratios may be any basis other than weight ratio, such as mass ratio, volume ratio, molar ratio, etc.
The leaching material can be anything that will leach into the leaching medium, such as, for example, sodium chloride, potassium nitrate, alum, polyvinyl alcohol, etc.
The base material BM may be composed only of the plastic material PM without the support sheet BS, or it may have other materials laminated thereon in addition to the support sheet BS and the plastic material PM, and the amount of the plastic material PM may be the same as the capacity of the recess 22B or may be greater than the capacity of the recess 22B.
The height of the protrusion CV may be 100 nm to 3 mm, or may be 100 nm or less, or may be 3 mm or more. In particular, when used as a so-called microneedle, the height of the protrusion CV is preferably 100 μm to 1.5 mm.
The tip of the projection CV may be sharp or blunt, may be rounded, may be arrowhead-shaped, or may be bifurcated or branched into three or more prongs.
The shape of the protrusion CV may be a cone, a pyramid, a cylinder, a prism, or a combination thereof.

The protrusion holder CB may be one in which only the protrusion portion CV is formed from a plastic material PM and is supported by a support sheet BS, as shown in FIG. 1(G), or one in which the protrusion portion CV and base FD are formed from a plastic material PM and the base FD is embedded (permeated) into the support sheet BS, as shown in FIG. 1(H), or one in which the protrusion portion CV and base FD are formed from a plastic material PM and are not supported by a support sheet BS, as shown in FIG. 1(J).

The driving equipment in the above-described embodiments may be electric equipment such as a rotary motor, a linear motor, a single-axis robot, or a multi-joint robot having joints on two or more axes, or an actuator such as an air cylinder, a hydraulic cylinder, a rodless cylinder, or a rotary cylinder, or a direct or indirect combination of these may also be used.
In the above-described embodiments, when a pressing means or pressing member such as a pressing roller or a pressing head is used to press an object to be pressed, a roller, a round bar, a blade material, a brush-like member, or a member using a gas such as air or a gas may be used instead of or in combination with the above-described examples. The pressing means may be made of a deformable material such as rubber, resin, sponge, or may be made of an indeformable material such as metal or resin. When a supporting (holding) means or a supporting (holding) member that supports (holds) a supported member (held member), a gripping means such as a mechanical chuck or a chuck cylinder, Coulomb force, an adhesive (adhesive sheet, adhesive tape), a pressure sensitive adhesive (adhesive sheet, adhesive tape), a magnetic force, Bernoulli adsorption, suction adsorption, a driving device, or the like may be used to support (hold) the supported member.

EA... Manufacturing device for protrusion holder 20... Material support means 22... Support member 22A... Support surface 22B... Recess 22C... Opening interval 30... Pressing means 80... Exuding means 90... Opening expansion means 91... Linear motor (surface direction tension applying means)
BM: Base material CB: Projection holder CV: Projection part PG: Polyethylene glycol (leaching material)
PM...Plastic material WT...Water (leaching medium)

Claims (3)

A method for manufacturing a projection holder having a projection formed thereon, comprising the steps of:
a material supporting step of supporting a base material including a plastic material with a supporting member having a supporting surface on which recesses corresponding to the protrusions are formed;
a pressing step of pressing the base material in a direction toward the support surface to fill the recess with the plastic material and form the protrusion from the plastic material to form the protrusion holder;
The support member is made of a bendable member,
A frontage expanding step is performed in which the support member is curved to widen the frontage interval of the recessed portion;
The plastic material comprises a leaching material that is leached into a leaching medium;
A method for manufacturing a protrusion-retaining body, comprising the steps of: immersing said plastic material in said leaching medium after said pressing step; thereby making said plastic material porous; and The method for manufacturing a protrusion holder according to claim 1, characterized in that in the width expansion process, a planar tension application process is carried out in which tension is applied to the support members so that the outer edges of the support members are spaced apart from each other. A manufacturing apparatus for a projection holder having a projection formed thereon,
a material supporting means for supporting a base material including a plastic material, the base material being a supporting member having a supporting surface on which recesses corresponding to the protrusions are formed;
a pressing means for pressing the base material in a direction toward the support surface to fill the recess with the plastic material and form the protrusion from the plastic material to form the protrusion holder;
The support member is made of a bendable member,
a width expanding means for expanding a width interval of the recess by bending the support member ,
The plastic material comprises a leaching material that is leached into a leaching medium;
a leaching means for immersing said plastic material in said leaching medium after the formation of said protrusion holder, thereby making said plastic material porous ;