CN118284501A

CN118284501A - Sheet dividing method

Info

Publication number: CN118284501A
Application number: CN202280076349.6A
Authority: CN
Inventors: 篠崎贵博; 菅野敏广; 平田聪; 仲井宏太
Original assignee: Nitto Denko Corp
Current assignee: Nitto Denko Corp
Priority date: 2021-12-16
Filing date: 2022-11-21
Publication date: 2024-07-02
Also published as: TW202330222A; JP2023089634A; WO2023112612A1

Abstract

The purpose of the present invention is to prevent cracking from occurring on the parting surface of a brittle material layer when a sheet having the brittle material layer is parted. The sheet dividing method of the present invention comprises: a step of preparing a sheet (11) having a brittle material layer (2) formed with a brittle line (4) extending in a first direction; and a step of dividing the sheet (11) along the line of weakness (4) by applying a pressing force to a portion of the sheet (11) corresponding to the line of weakness (4) while applying a tensile force to the sheet (11) in a second direction, which is a direction orthogonal to the first direction.

Description

Sheet dividing method

Technical Field

The present invention relates to a method of dividing a sheet having a brittle material.

Background

On the outermost surface side of an image display device used in televisions and personal computers, a protective material for protecting the image display device is often disposed. As the protective material, for example, a sheet such as glass is used. Examples of the sheet include a sheet obtained by laminating a brittle material layer such as glass which functions as a protective layer and a resin layer such as a polarizing film which functions as an optical layer. The sheet needs to be divided into a predetermined shape and a predetermined size according to the application.

Patent document 1 discloses the following: the brittle material substrate with the scribing line is placed on the upper surface of the flexible stabilizing pad, and the pressing movement rolling part moves along the lower surface of the flexible stabilizing pad, so that the brittle material substrate is divided along the scribing line.

Patent document 2 discloses the following: the substrate on which the scribe line is formed is placed on the placement member in a state where the placement member is stretched with a predetermined stretching force, and the substrate is pressed by the pressing member, whereby the substrate is divided along the scribe line.

[ Prior Art literature ]

[ Patent literature ]

[ Patent document 1] Japanese patent publication No. 6274756

[ Patent document 2] Japanese patent application laid-open No. 2021-50121

Disclosure of Invention

In general, when two divided pieces are formed by dividing a brittle material layer such as glass, fine cracks may occur on the divided surfaces (end surfaces of the divided pieces).

In the above-described dividing method of the patent document, there is a possibility that cracks generated in the dividing surface cannot be sufficiently prevented.

[ Problem to be solved by the invention ]

The purpose of the present invention is to provide a method for dividing a sheet having a brittle material layer, which can prevent cracking from occurring on the dividing surface of the brittle material layer.

[ Means for solving the technical problems ]

The inventors of the present invention studied the cause of the occurrence of cracks in the dividing plane in detail. When a sheet having a brittle material layer formed with a line of weakness extending in a first direction is pressed to be divided along the line of weakness, the sheet is divided into two divided pieces with opposite dividing surfaces. The opposed dividing surfaces are generated while the sheet is divided. In this division, the opposed division surfaces interfere with each other, and as a result, it was found that cracks were generated in the division surfaces. Under this knowledge, if a gap is formed between the dividing surfaces of the two divided pieces while dividing the sheet, the dividing surfaces can be prevented from interfering with each other. Specifically, when dividing a sheet having a brittle material layer formed with a line of weakness extending in a first direction, by applying a tensile force in a second direction (the second direction is a direction orthogonal to the first direction) to the sheet, two divided pieces can be pulled apart at the instant when the sheet is divided to generate the two divided pieces, and interference of the divided faces can be prevented. The present inventors have completed the present invention under such an idea.

The sheet dividing method according to the first aspect of the present invention includes: a step of preparing a sheet having a brittle material layer formed with a brittle line extending in a first direction; and a step of dividing the sheet along the line of weakness by applying a pressing force to a portion of the sheet corresponding to the line of weakness while applying a tensile force to the sheet in a second direction, which is a direction orthogonal to the first direction.

In the method for dividing a sheet according to the second aspect of the present invention, in the step of dividing in the first aspect, the sheet is placed on a surface of an elastic body, and the elastic body is stretched in the second direction to be elongated, whereby a stretching force is applied to the sheet in the second direction.

In the method for dividing a sheet according to the third aspect of the present invention, in the method for dividing a sheet according to the second aspect, the elastic body is stretched and elongated in the second direction while the sheet is adsorbed on the surface of the elastic body.

In the method for dividing a sheet according to the fourth aspect of the present invention, in the method for dividing a sheet according to the third aspect, the elastic body is a rubber sheet having a thickness of 0.1mm or more and 3mm or less.

In a fifth aspect of the present invention, in the third or fourth aspect of the present invention, the elastic body is stretched so that the elongation speed of the elastic body is in a range of 5 mm/sec to 150 mm/sec.

In a sixth aspect of the present invention, in the dividing step of the dividing method according to any one of the first to fifth aspects, a pressing force is applied to a portion of the sheet corresponding to the line of weakness by bringing a rod-shaped pressing member having an axis extending in the first direction into contact with the sheet and relatively moving the pressing member in the second direction.

In a seventh aspect of the present invention, in the method of the sixth aspect, the rod-shaped pressing member is a roller having a rotation axis, and the roller is brought into contact with the sheet and relatively moved in the second direction while rotating the roller about the rotation axis.

In the method for dividing a sheet according to an eighth aspect of the present invention, in the method for dividing a sheet according to any one of the first to seventh aspects, the line of weakness is a groove formed on one surface side of the brittle material layer and continuously extends in the first direction, and in the dividing step, the side of the sheet on which the groove is formed is placed on a surface of an elastic body, and the elastic body is stretched in the second direction to extend the elastic body, whereby the sheet is divided along the line of weakness by applying a pressing force to a portion corresponding to the line of weakness from the opposite side of the surface on which the groove is formed while applying a stretching force to the sheet in the second direction.

A ninth aspect of the present invention provides the method for dividing a sheet according to any one of the first to eighth aspects, wherein the sheet includes the brittle material layer, a resin layer laminated on the brittle material layer, and a defective portion partially having no resin layer, the defective portion extending in the first direction so as to overlap the line of weakness.

[ Effect of the invention ]

According to the method of the present invention, it is possible to effectively prevent cracks from occurring at the dividing surface when dividing the sheet having the brittle material layer.

Drawings

Fig. 1 is a perspective view showing a first example of a sheet before division.

Fig. 2 is a sectional view taken along line II-II of fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is a perspective view showing a second example of a sheet before division.

Fig. 4 is a sectional view taken along line IV-IV of fig. 3.

Fig. 5 is a perspective view showing a third example of a sheet before division.

Fig. 6 is a perspective view showing a fourth example of a sheet before division.

Fig. 7 is a sectional view taken along line VII-VII of fig. 6.

Fig. 8 is a perspective view showing a fifth example of a sheet before division.

Fig. 9 (a) is a cross-sectional view showing a brittle material removing step, and (b) is a cross-sectional view showing a resin removing step.

Fig. 10 is a reference explanatory diagram schematically illustrating an example of a method of setting the focal point of the laser light oscillated from the ultrashort pulse laser light source shown in fig. 9.

Fig. 11 is a plan view showing a first example of the dividing apparatus.

Fig. 12 is a cross-sectional view taken along line XII-XII of fig. 11.

Fig. 13 is a reference perspective view of the dividing apparatus.

Fig. 14 is a plan view showing a state in which a sheet is placed on a stage portion of the dividing apparatus.

Fig. 15 is a cross-sectional view showing a process of dividing a sheet by moving a roller (rod-like pressing member).

Fig. 16 is a reference side view showing a state when the sheet is divided.

Fig. 17 is a cross-sectional view showing a second example of the dividing apparatus.

Fig. 18 is a cross-sectional view showing a third example of the dividing apparatus.

Fig. 19 (a) is a top view of the sheet used in the example, (b) is a side view of the sheet of the example viewed from the XIXa direction, and (c) is a side view of the sheet of the example viewed from the XIXb direction.

Detailed Description

In this specification, the first direction and the second direction refer to directions orthogonal to each other in the plane of the sheet or the elastic body. In the present specification, "substantially" is meant to include an allowable range in the technical field to which the present invention belongs. In the present specification, "planar view" means that a surface of a sheet or the like is viewed from the vertical direction.

In the present specification, when a plurality of numerical ranges are respectively described, such as a range from a lower limit to an upper limit, and a range from a lower limit to an upper limit is selected, a numerical range from a lower limit to an upper limit is set.

Note that the sizes, scales, shapes, and the like of layers, portions, and members shown in each figure are sometimes different from those of actual ones.

In the sheet dividing method according to the present invention, a pressing force is applied to a portion of the sheet corresponding to a frangible line extending in a first direction while a tensile force is applied to the sheet having the frangible material layer formed with the frangible line in a second direction. The pressed sheet is divided into two pieces (two divided pieces are produced) as a result of being divided along the line of weakness. By dividing the sheet while the tensile force acts on the sheet in this way, it is possible to obtain a divided sheet in which cracks in the dividing surface are suppressed as much as possible.

Hereinafter, a method of dividing a sheet according to the present invention (hereinafter, may be abbreviated as "dividing method") will be specifically described.

[ Sheet ]

The sheet to be cut has a brittle material layer having a brittle line formed thereon, and may further have any layer such as a resin layer, if necessary.

For example, a sheet has a brittle material layer and a resin layer laminated to the brittle material layer. For example, the sheet is composed of only a brittle material layer.

In manufacturing a sheet having a brittle material layer and a resin layer, for example, the brittle material layer and the resin layer are laminated by any suitable method. For example, the brittle material layer and the resin layer may be laminated in a so-called roll-to-roll manner. That is, the brittle material layer and the resin layer can be laminated by bonding the brittle material layer and the resin layer to each other so that the longitudinal directions of the brittle material layer and the resin layer coincide with each other while conveying the brittle material layer in the longitudinal direction. The obtained long composite material is cut into a predetermined shape in plan view to form a line of weakness or the like, thereby obtaining a sheet. For example, a sheet is obtained by cutting a brittle material layer and a resin layer into a predetermined shape in plan view, then stacking the cut brittle material layer and the resin layer to obtain a composite material in a sheet form, and then forming a line of weakness or the like.

Examples of the brittle material forming the brittle material layer include glass, single crystal silicon, and polycrystalline silicon.

As the glass, soda lime glass, boric acid glass, aluminosilicate glass, quartz glass, and sapphire glass can be exemplified according to classifications based on compositions. In addition, alkali-free glass and low alkali glass can be exemplified according to the classification based on alkali components. The content of the alkali metal component (e.g., na ₂O、K₂O、Li₂ O) in the glass is preferably 15 wt% or less, more preferably 10wt% or less.

The thickness of the brittle material layer is not particularly limited, but is preferably 200 μm or less, more preferably 150 μm or less, further preferably 120 μm or less, and particularly preferably 100 μm or less. On the other hand, the thickness of the brittle material layer is preferably 5 μm or more, more preferably 20 μm or more, and still more preferably 30 μm or more.

In the case where the brittle material forming the brittle material layer is glass, the light transmittance of the brittle material layer at a wavelength of 550nm is preferably 85% or more. In the case where the brittle material forming the brittle material layer is glass, the refractive index of the brittle material layer at a wavelength of 550nm is preferably 1.4 or more and 1.65 or less. In the case where the brittle material forming the brittle material layer is glass, the density of the brittle material layer is preferably 2.3g/cm ³ or more and 3.0g/cm ³ or less, more preferably 2.3g/cm ³ or more and 2.7g/cm ³ or less.

In the case where the brittle material forming the brittle material layer is glass, a commercially available glass plate may be used as it is as the brittle material layer, or may be used after being ground to a desired thickness. Examples of commercially available Glass sheets include "7059", "1737" or "EAGLE 2000" manufactured by Corning, "AN 100" manufactured by Asahi Glass, "NA-35" manufactured by NH Techno Glass, "OA-10" manufactured by Japanese electric Glass, and "D263" or "AF45" manufactured by Shot.

The resin layer has a resin film layer, and may have a bonding layer or the like as required. The resin layer having the bonding layer is laminated and bonded to the brittle material layer via the bonding layer. As the bonding layer, any suitable bonding layer may be used, but typically, an adhesive agent, or the like containing a resin material is used. The adhesive may be an acrylic adhesive, a urethane adhesive, a silicone adhesive, or the like, and the adhesive may be an acrylic adhesive, an epoxy adhesive, or the like.

Examples of the resin material forming the resin film layer include acrylic resins such as polyethylene terephthalate (PET), polyethylene (PE), polypropylene (PP), polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA), cyclic Olefin Polymers (COP), cyclic Olefin Copolymers (COC), polycarbonate (PC), polyurethane resins, polyvinyl alcohol (PVA), polyimide (PI), polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE), polyvinyl chloride (PVC), polystyrene (PS), triacetyl cellulose (TAC), polyethylene naphthalate (PEN), ethylene-vinyl acetate (EVA), polyamide (PA), silicone resins, epoxy resins, liquid crystal polymers, and various resin foams.

The resin film layer may be a single layer or may be a multilayer composed of a plurality of layers of the same kind or different kinds. In the case where the resin film layer is composed of a plurality of layers, the layers may be bonded directly or may be bonded via a bonding layer.

The resin film layer preferably includes a film that performs an optical function. Examples of the film that exhibits an optical function include a polarizing film, a surface protective film, and a retardation film. The thickness of the resin film layer is not particularly limited, and is, for example, 10 μm or more and 400 μm or less.

The resin layer may have an adhesive layer or an adhesive layer containing the above-described adhesive or adhesive on the surface opposite to the surface on which the brittle material layer is laminated.

The resin layer may have a conductive inorganic film such as Indium Tin Oxide (ITO), ag, au, or Cu on the surface opposite to the surface on which the brittle material layer is laminated.

The thickness of the resin layer is not particularly limited, and is, for example, 20 μm or more and 500 μm or less.

The sheet to be cut is, for example, a single sheet. The sheet has a planar shape of, for example, a substantially rectangular shape such as a substantially rectangular shape or a substantially square shape. The planar shape of the sheet is not limited to a substantially rectangular planar shape, and may be, for example, a substantially polygonal shape such as a substantially circular shape, a substantially elliptical shape, a substantially triangular shape, or a substantially hexagonal shape.

A frangible line extending in a first direction is formed in the brittle material layer of the sheet. In order to facilitate the cutting of a part of the brittle material layer (the part where the frangible line is formed), the frangible line is formed by processing the brittle material layer. The line of weakness may be a groove, a perforation line, or the like. The groove is not penetrated in the thickness direction of the brittle material layer, and a notch obtained by carving one surface of the brittle material layer to a middle part in the thickness direction is continuously connected and extends. The grooves extending in the first direction are grooves in which the slits extend continuously in the first direction. The perforation lines are small through holes intermittently arranged through the brittle material layer. The perforation lines extending in the first direction are formed by arranging a plurality of the through holes continuously at minute intervals in the first direction.

Further, at least one line of weakness extending in the first direction may be formed in the sheet. Accordingly, two or more lines of weakness extending in the first direction may be formed in the sheet at a distance, or one or more lines of weakness extending in the first direction may be formed in the sheet at a distance, and one or more lines of weakness extending in a direction (direction different from the first direction) at an acute angle to the second direction and/or the first direction may be formed in the sheet at a distance.

In the case where the sheet has a resin layer, the resin layer at the portion corresponding to the line of weakness is defective. That is, a defective portion of the resin material in which the resin layer is not present is formed locally in the surface of the resin layer. The partially resin layer-free defective portion overlaps the line of weakness and extends in a first direction (i.e., the direction in which the line of weakness extends).

Fig. 1 and 2 show a first example of a sheet (as a dividing object) before dividing.

The sheet 11 of the first example shown in fig. 1 and 2 includes a brittle material layer 2 and a resin layer 3 including a resin film layer 31 and a bonding layer 32. One surface of the brittle material layer 2 and the resin film layer 31 are bonded via a bonding layer 32 containing an adhesive or the like.

A groove 41 (line of weakness 4) extending in the first direction is formed in one surface of the brittle material layer 2. The groove 41 (the line of weakness 4) extends from an end edge on one side of the brittle material layer 2 in the first direction to an end edge on the opposite side of the first direction. The groove 41 (the line of weakness 4) is formed substantially linearly in a plan view. The line of weakness 4 is not limited to a substantially straight line in plan view, and may be a substantially curved line in plan view or the like.

A defect portion 5 is formed in the surface of the resin layer 3. The defect portion 5 is formed at a position overlapping the groove 41 (the line of weakness 4) in the thickness direction. Therefore, the resin layer 3 is not covered with the groove 41 when viewed from one surface side, and the groove 41 is opened (opened) at one surface side. In the illustrated example, the top view of the defective portion 5 is substantially the same as the top view of the groove 41. The width of the defect portion 5 is substantially the same as or slightly larger than the width of the groove 41.

In the sheet 11 of the first example, one surface side of the brittle material layer 2 is a side where the groove 41 is formed, and the opposite surface side is a side where the groove 41 is not formed. Hereinafter, the side on which the grooves 41 are formed may be referred to as a "formed side", and the side on which the grooves 41 are not formed may be referred to as a "non-formed side".

Fig. 3 to 8 show other examples (second to fifth examples) of the sheet before division. In the descriptions of fig. 3 to 8, the same structure as the sheet 11 of the first example may be omitted.

The sheet 12 of the second example shown in fig. 3 and 4 is the same as the sheet 11 of the first example described above, except that the groove 41 is formed on the opposite surface (surface opposite to the one surface) of the brittle material layer 2. In the sheet 12 of the second example, the opposite surface side of the brittle material layer 2 is the formation side, and one surface side thereof is the non-formation side. In this case, the groove 41 is opened (opened) on the opposite surface side.

The sheet 13 of the third example shown in fig. 5 is the same as the sheet 11 of the first example described above, except that grooves 41 are provided on one surface and the opposite surface of the brittle material layer 2. In this case, the two grooves 41 are arranged so as to overlap in the thickness direction. In the sheet 13 of the third example, both the one surface side and the opposite surface side of the brittle material layer 2 are the formation sides.

The sheet 14 of the fourth example shown in fig. 6 and 7 is identical to the sheet 11 of the first example described above, except that a perforation line 42 is formed as the weakened line 4. The perforation line 42 is constituted by a collection of small through holes 421 penetrating the brittle material layer 2, and the plurality of through holes 421 are arranged in the first direction with a space therebetween. In the sheet 14 of the fourth example, both the one surface side and the opposite surface side of the brittle material layer 2 are the formation sides.

The sheet 15 of the fifth example shown in fig. 8 is the same as the sheet 11 of the first example described above, except that it is composed of only the brittle material layer 2.

In the sheet 15 composed only of the brittle material layer 2, the grooves 41 (not shown) may be formed on both one surface and the opposite surface as in the third example, or the perforation lines 42 (not shown) may be formed instead of the grooves 41.

In addition, although not particularly shown, when the brittle material layer forms a line of weakness extending in the second direction, the line of weakness extends from an end edge on one side of the brittle material layer in the second direction to an end edge on the opposite side of the brittle material layer in the second direction. In addition, in the case where the brittle material layer forms a line of weakness extending in a direction that is acute with respect to the first direction, the line of weakness extends from an end edge on one side of the brittle material layer in the first direction or the second direction to an end edge on the opposite side of the first direction or the second direction.

[ Preparation step of sheet having brittle line

The preparation step is a step of preparing a sheet material having a line of weakness extending in the first direction.

The sheet of the above examples is obtained by forming a brittle line in a brittle material layer.

For example, a method for manufacturing the sheet 11 of the first example shown in fig. 1 and 2 will be specifically described.

The sheet 11 provided with the groove 41 and the defect portion 5 as in the first example is obtained by performing a brittle material removing step and a resin removing step on a composite material in which a brittle material layer and a resin film layer are bonded via a bonding layer.

< Brittle Material removal Process >

As shown in fig. 9 (a), in the brittle material removing step, the laser (ultrashort pulse laser) L1 oscillated (pulse-oscillated) from the ultrashort pulse laser source 64 is irradiated from the brittle material layer 2 side along the planned dividing line of the composite material 10 to remove the brittle material forming the brittle material layer 2, thereby forming the grooves 41 integrally connected along the planned dividing line DL.

Fig. 9 illustrates an example in which a straight line extending in the Y direction out of two orthogonal directions (X direction and Y direction) in the plane of the composite material 10 (XY two-dimensional plane) is a division scheduled line DL. The planned dividing line DL may be actually drawn on the composite material 10 as a visually recognizable display, or the coordinates thereof may be input in advance to a control device (not shown) that controls the relative positional relationship between the laser light L1 and the composite material 10 on the XY two-dimensional plane. The line DL shown in fig. 9 is a virtual line whose coordinates are input to the control device in advance and which is not actually drawn on the composite material 10.

As a method of irradiating the laser light L1 along the planned dividing line DL of the composite material 10 (a method of scanning the laser light L1), for example, it is conceivable to place and fix (for example, suction fix) the composite material 10 in a single sheet form on an XY biaxial mount (not shown), and drive the XY biaxial mount by a control signal from a control device to change the relative position of the composite material 10 with respect to the laser light L1 on the XY two-dimensional plane. Further, it is also possible to change the position of the laser beam L1 irradiated onto the composite material 10 on the XY two-dimensional plane by deflecting the laser beam L1 oscillated from the ultra-short pulse laser light source 64 using a galvano mirror or a polygon mirror driven by a control signal from the control device, in consideration of fixing the position of the composite material 10. Further, both scanning of the composite material 10 using the XY biaxial stage and scanning of the laser beam L1 using a galvanometer mirror or the like may be used.

The brittle material forming the brittle material layer 2 is removed by utilizing a filamentation phenomenon of the laser light L1 oscillated from the ultra-short pulse laser light source 64, or by applying a multi-focal optical system (not shown) or a bessel beam optical system (not shown) to the ultra-short pulse laser light source 64.

In addition, regarding the phenomenon of wire formation by using an ultrashort pulse laser or the application of a multifocal optical system or a bessel beam optical system to an ultrashort pulse laser light source, it is described in "glass cutting (GLASS CUTTING USING ULTRASHORT PULSED BESSEL BEAM S) using an ultrashort pulse bessel beam", [ online ], 2015, international Congress on Applications of Lasers & Electro-Optics (ICALEO), [ order and 7, 17, search ], and internet (URL：https://www.researchgate.net/publication/284617626_GL ASS_CUTTING_USING_ULTRASHORT_PULSED_BESSEL_BEAM S), in addition to the literature (John lopez). In addition, products related to glass processing are sold by Trumpf corporation of germany in which a multifocal optical system is applied to an ultra-short pulse laser light source. The phenomenon of filament formation by an ultrashort pulse laser is well known, and thus a further detailed description thereof will be omitted here.

The wavelength of the laser light L1 oscillated from the ultrashort pulse laser light source 64 is preferably 500nm or more and 2500nm or less, which exhibits high light transmittance in the case where the brittle material forming the brittle material layer 2 is glass. In order to effectively cause nonlinear optical phenomenon (multiphoton absorption), the pulse width of the laser light L1 is preferably 100 picoseconds or less, more preferably 50 picoseconds or less. The pulse width of the laser light L1 is set to, for example, 350 to 10000 femtoseconds. The oscillation mode of the laser light L1 may be a single pulse oscillation or a burst mode multipulse oscillation.

The focal point of the laser light L1 oscillated from the ultra-short pulse laser light source 64 is set near the interface of the resin layer 3 and the brittle material layer 2. Thus, the groove 41 formed in the brittle material removing step is opened on the resin layer 3 side and does not penetrate the brittle material layer 2 (is not opened on the side opposite to the resin layer 3 side).

Fig. 10 is a reference explanatory diagram schematically illustrating an example of a method of setting the focal point of the laser light L1 oscillated from the ultra-short pulse laser light source 64.

In the example shown in fig. 10, a multi-focal optical system is applied to the ultra-short pulse laser light source 64. Specifically, the multifocal optical system shown in fig. 10 is composed of 3 axicon lenses 62a, 62b, 62 c. As shown in fig. 10, if the spatial intensity distribution of the laser light L1 oscillated from the ultra-short pulse laser light source 64 is assumed to be gaussian, the laser light L1 oscillated in the range from the point a to the point B where the intensity is relatively high is converged at the focal point AF along the optical path shown by the broken line in fig. 10. The focal point set near the interface of the resin layer 3 and the brittle material layer 2 is a focal point AF at which the laser light L1 oscillated in a range from the point a to the point B having a high intensity is converged. The range from the point a to the point B is, for example, a range of intensities which is 90% or more of the maximum intensity of the spatial intensity distribution of the laser light L1.

The positional relationship between the focal point AF and the composite material 10 is adjusted so that the focal point AF of the laser light L1 is located near the interface between the resin layer 3 and the brittle material layer 2, specifically, at a distance H from the interface. The distance H is preferably set to 0 μm or more and 20 μm or less, more preferably set to 0 μm or more and 10 μm or less. The spot diameter of the laser beam L1 in the focal point AF is preferably set to 5 μm or less, more preferably set to 3 μm or less.

In addition, in the case of using the filamentation phenomenon of the laser light L1, when the laser light L1 transmits the brittle material layer 2, it self-converges due to the kerr effect, so that the spot diameter becomes smaller as it travels. When the laser beam L1 is converged to the energy threshold at which ablation (abrasion) occurs in the brittle material layer 2, the brittle material of the brittle material layer 2 is removed to form the groove 41. As described above, by setting the position (corresponding to the focal point AF) at which the laser light L1 is converged to the energy threshold value at which ablation occurs in the vicinity of the interface between the resin layer 3 and the brittle material layer 2, the groove 41 that is open on the resin layer 3 side and does not penetrate the brittle material layer 2 can be formed.

By adjusting the power of the laser beam L1 oscillated from the ultra-short pulse laser light source 64, the intensity of energy (the intensity of the range from the point a to the point B) for forming the groove 41 (removing the brittle material) can be adjusted. Thereby, the depth of the groove 41 can be adjusted.

The smaller the depth of the groove 41 is, the more a sheet 11 having a sufficient bending strength can be obtained, whereas if the depth of the groove 41 is too small, it is difficult to divide the sheet 11. In view of this, the depth of the groove 41 is preferably 3 μm or more and 50 μm or less. The lower limit is more preferably 5 μm or more, still more preferably 10 μm or more. The upper limit is more preferably 30 μm or less, still more preferably 20 μm or less, still more preferably 18 μm or less, still more preferably 16 μm or less. The depth of the groove 41 is preferably 3 μm or more and 20 μm or less when the thickness of the brittle material layer 2 is small (for example, when the thickness is 50 μm or less).

The depth of the groove 41 is preferably 10% to 50% of the thickness of the brittle material layer 2. The lower limit is more preferably 15% or more. The upper limit is more preferably 35% or less.

< Resin removal Process >

The resin removal step is performed, for example, after the brittle material removal step.

As shown in fig. 9 (b), in the resin removing step, the laser beam L2 oscillated from the laser light source 65 is irradiated to the resin layer along the line DL for dividing the composite material 10, and the resin forming the resin layer is removed. Thereby, the defect portion 5 along the planned dividing line DL is formed.

As a method of irradiating the laser beam L2 along the line DL to be divided (a method of scanning the laser beam L2), the same method as the method of irradiating the laser beam L1 along the line DL to be divided described above can be adopted, and therefore, a detailed description thereof will be omitted here.

As the laser light source 65, a CO ₂ laser light source whose wavelength of the laser light L2 oscillated is 9 μm or more and 11 μm or less in the infrared region can be used. As the laser light source 65, a CO laser light source having a wavelength of 5 μm of the laser light L2 to be oscillated may be used. As the laser light source 65, a visible light and Ultraviolet (UV) pulse laser light source can be used. Examples of the visible light and UV pulse laser light sources include laser light sources that oscillate laser light L2 having a wavelength of 532nm, 355nm, 349nm or 266nm (higher harmonic of a solid-state laser light source with Nd: YAG, nd: YLF or YVO4 as a medium), excimer laser light sources that oscillate laser light L2 having a wavelength of 351nm, 248nm, 222nm, 193nm or 157nm, and F2 laser light sources that oscillate laser light L2 having a wavelength of 157 nm.

As the laser light source 65, a pulse laser light source having a wavelength of the laser light L2 that oscillates outside the ultraviolet region and a pulse width of the order of femtoseconds or picoseconds may be used. If the laser light L2 oscillated from the pulsed laser light source is used, ablation processing based on a multiphoton absorption process can be induced.

As the laser light source 65, a semiconductor laser light source or a fiber laser light source having a wavelength of the laser light L2 to be oscillated in the infrared region may be used.

As described above, in the present embodiment, the CO ₂ laser light source is used as the laser light source 65, and therefore, the laser light source 65 will be hereinafter referred to as "CO ₂ laser light source 65".

The CO ₂ laser source 65 may oscillate in a pulsed or continuous manner. The spatial intensity distribution of the laser light L2 may be gaussian, or may be shaped into a flat-top distribution using a diffraction optical element (not shown) or the like in order to suppress damage of the laser light L2 to the brittle material layer 2 outside the removal object. The polarization state of the laser light L2 is not limited, and may be any of linearly polarized light, circularly polarized light, and randomly polarized light.

By irradiating the resin layer 3 (the resin film layer 31 and the adhesive layer 32 as the joining layer) with the laser light L2 along the line DL for dividing the composite material 10, a local temperature rise accompanying the absorption of infrared light of the resin (the portions of the resin film layer 31 and the adhesive layer 32 to which the laser light L2 is irradiated) of the resin material forming the resin layer 3 is generated, and the resin is scattered, whereby the resin is removed from the composite material 10, and the defect portion 5 is formed in the composite material 10. In order to prevent the scattered matters of the resin material removed from the composite material 10 from adhering again to the composite material 10, it is preferable to provide a dust collecting mechanism in the vicinity of the predetermined dividing line DL. In order to suppress the width of the defect portion 5 from becoming large, the laser beam L2 is preferably condensed so that the spot diameter of the irradiation position of the resin layer becomes 300 μm or less, and more preferably the laser beam L2 is condensed so that the spot diameter becomes 200 μm or less.

In addition, in the case of the method of removing the resin material based on the principle of the local temperature rise of the resin irradiated with the laser light L2 accompanying the absorption of the infrared light, the input energy required for forming the defect portion 5 can be estimated approximately from the thickness of the resin layer 3, regardless of the type of the resin and the layer structure of the resin layer. Specifically, the input energy represented by the following formula (1) required for forming the defect portion 5 can be estimated by the following formula (2) based on the thickness of the resin layer.

Input energy [ mJ/mm ] = average power of laser L2 [ mW ]/processing speed [ mm/sec ] … (1)

Energy [ mJ/mm ] =0.5×thickness [ μm ] … (2) of resin layer 3

The actually set input energy is preferably set to 20% to 180% of the input energy estimated by the above formula (2), and more preferably set to 50% to 150%. The reason why the margin is set for the estimated input energy is that the difference in input energy required for forming the defective portion 5 is considered due to the difference in thermal properties such as the light absorptivity (light absorptivity at the wavelength of the laser beam L2) of the resin material forming the resin layer 3, the melting point of the resin, and the decomposition point. Specifically, for example, a sample of the composite material 10 to which the dividing method of the present embodiment is applied may be prepared, and preliminary tests for forming the defect portion 5 in the resin layer of the sample may be performed with a plurality of input energies within the above-described preferable range, and an appropriate input energy may be determined.

In the resin removing step of the present embodiment, the laser beam L2 oscillated from the laser beam source 65 is irradiated from the resin layer side to the resin layer. In the example shown in fig. 9 (a) and (b), the CO ₂ laser light source 65 is disposed on the lower side in the Z direction with respect to the composite material 10 so as to face the resin layer 3, and the ultrashort pulse laser light source 64 is disposed on the upper side in the Z direction with respect to the composite material 10 so as to face the brittle material layer 2. In the brittle material removing step, after the groove 41 is formed by the laser beam L1 oscillated from the ultra-short pulse laser light source 64, the oscillation of the laser beam L1 is stopped, and in the resin removing step, the defect portion 5 is formed by the laser beam L2 oscillated from the CO ₂ laser light source 65. In addition to this, for example, the following method may be employed: the ultrashort pulse laser source 64 and the CO ₂ laser source 65 are disposed on the same side (upper side or lower side in the Z direction) with respect to the composite material 10, and in the brittle material removing step, the brittle material layer 2 is opposed to the ultrashort pulse laser source 64, and in the resin removing step, the composite material 10 is turned upside down so that the resin layer is opposed to the CO ₂ laser source 65.

< Others >

The sheets 12 and 13 of the second and third examples shown in fig. 3 to 5 can be obtained by forming the groove 41 and the defect portion 5 in the composite material 10 according to the method for manufacturing the sheet 11 of the first example. The sheet 14 of the fourth example shown in fig. 6 and 7 can be obtained by the method described in WO 2019/138967 applied by the present inventors. The sheet 15 shown in fig. 8 can be obtained by a conventionally known method using an ultrashort pulse laser light source.

In addition, the sheet of the present invention is not limited to the case of being manufactured by a method using a laser light source. For example, conventionally known machining methods such as cutting the composite material 10 or the brittle material layer 2 with a cutter wheel or the like may be used to obtain the sheet materials of the above-described various examples.

< Dividing apparatus >

Fig. 11 is a plan view showing a first example of a sheet dividing apparatus, fig. 12 is a cross-sectional view of the dividing apparatus cut along a second direction, and fig. 13 is a reference perspective view of the dividing apparatus. In fig. 13, a winding roller and the like are omitted.

The dividing device 61 shown in fig. 11 to 13 includes: an elastic body 71 as an extension member that engages with the sheet 11 as a dividing object to apply a tensile force to the sheet 11; a stretching device for stretching the elastic body 71; an adsorption portion for engaging the elastic body 71 with the sheet 11; a stage portion 69 on which the sheet 11 is placed; and a pressing member for pressing the sheet 11 placed on the stage 69. In the present embodiment, the stage portion 69 is formed by a region of the surface of the elastic body 71.

The elastic body 71 is sheet-shaped, and typically, a rubber sheet 71 can be used as the elastic body 71. The rubber sheet 71 is formed by forming a conventionally known rubber (rubber includes an elastomer) into a sheet shape. Examples of the rubber include synthetic rubbers such as Butadiene Rubber (BR), isoprene Rubber (IR), and Chloroprene Rubber (CR); natural Rubber (NR); copolymer rubbers such as Styrene Butadiene Rubber (SBR), styrene Butadiene Styrene Rubber (SBSR), nitrile Butadiene Rubber (NBR), styrene isoprene copolymer (SIR), butyl rubber (IIR), and the like; an olefin elastomer; styrene-based elastomers such as styrene butadiene styrene elastomer (SBS), styrene isoprene styrene elastomer (SIS), styrene ethylene butylene Styrene Elastomer (SEBS), and hydrogenated styrene-based elastomer; urethane-based elastomers; an ester-based elastomer; a fluorine-based elastomer; polyamide-based elastomers, and the like. They may be used singly or in combination of 1 or more than 2. Since the rubber sheet 71 made of NBR is excellent in mechanical properties such as elongation and abrasion resistance, it is preferable to use the rubber sheet.

The thickness of the rubber sheet 71 is not particularly limited, but if it is too small, the sheet 11 placed on the stage portion 69 may become unstable, and if it is too large, it may be difficult to flex when the sheet 11 is pressed. From this viewpoint, the thickness of the rubber sheet 71 is, for example, 0.1mm to 3mm, preferably 0.2mm to 2.5mm, more preferably 0.3mm to 2 mm.

The tensile strength of the rubber sheet 71 is not particularly limited, and is, for example, 10MPa or more, preferably 20MPa or more. The upper limit of the tensile strength of the rubber sheet 71 is not particularly limited, and is, for example, 40MPa or less.

The elongation of the rubber sheet 71 is not particularly limited, and is, for example, 600% or more, preferably 700% or more. The upper limit of the elongation of the rubber sheet 71 is not particularly limited, and is, for example, 1200% or less. The elongation is the elongation (elongation at break) at which the rubber sheet 71 is stretched and broken, and is obtained from the length at break/the original length. The tensile strength and elongation of the rubber sheet 71 can be measured by JISK 6251.

A plurality of through holes 72 are formed in the surface of the rubber sheet 71. The through hole 72 penetrates in the thickness direction of the rubber sheet 71. The plurality of through holes 72 are provided in at least a region of the rubber sheet 71 constituting the stage portion 69. Therefore, the plurality of through holes 72 may be formed only in the region of the rubber sheet 71 constituting the stage portion 69, the plurality of through holes 72 may be formed in the region of the rubber sheet 71 constituting the stage portion 69 and the periphery of the region, or the plurality of through holes 72 may be formed in the entire rubber sheet 71.

The arrangement of the plurality of through holes 72 can be set appropriately. As described later, when the sheet 11 is placed on the stage portion 69, the line of weakness 4 of the sheet 11 is preferably not overlapped with the through holes 72, and therefore, the arrangement of the plurality of through holes 72 is preferably set in consideration of the line of weakness 4 of the sheet 11.

The rubber sheet 71 is placed on the housing 73.

The housing 73 is formed of a concave body having a bottom surface portion 731 and an upper surface opening type of a frame wall portion 732 rising from the periphery of the bottom surface portion 731. A vent hole penetrating the inside and outside of the housing 73 is formed in a part of the frame wall 732. In addition, holes are not formed in the bottom surface 731 and the frame wall 732 except for the vent holes. A tube 733 is connected to the vent hole, and an air aspirator (not shown) is connected to the tube 733.

The rubber sheet 71 is placed in contact with the top surface 732a of the frame wall 732. When the air suction device is operated to suck air, the space 734 defined by the rear surface of the rubber sheet 71 and the housing 73 is negative pressure, and the sheet 11 facing the through hole 72 is sucked.

The suction portion of the partitioning device 61 is constituted by the housing 73, the air aspirator, the rubber sheet 71, and the through-holes 72 thereof.

The second-direction end of the rubber sheet 71 is connected to a stretching device.

The stretching device includes, for example, a preliminary sheet 74, a winding roller 75 that winds the preliminary sheet 74, and a guide roller 76 that is disposed between the winding roller 75 and one end of the rubber sheet 71 in the second direction.

The end portion of the rubber sheet 71 on the second direction opposite side is fixed. Hereinafter, an end portion of the rubber sheet 71 on the second direction side is referred to as a "one end portion", and an end portion of the rubber sheet 71 on the second direction opposite side is referred to as an "opposite end portion". One end portion of the rubber sheet 71 is fixed to the outer surface of the frame wall portion 732 of the housing 73 by, for example, a pressing rod 771 and a fastener 772 (a bolt or the like).

One end of the rubber sheet 71 is connected to an end of the preliminary sheet 74 via a connecting rod 741. For example, a flexible sheet having no stretchability is used as the preliminary sheet 74, and a synthetic resin sheet is used. The opposite end of the preliminary sheet 74 is attached to a winding roller 75. The winding roller 75 is rotatable by a driving device (not shown) such as a motor, and the backup sheet 74 is wound around the winding roller 75. When the preliminary sheet 74 is wound around the winding roller 75, one end portion of the rubber sheet 71 is stretched to the second direction side, and the rubber sheet 71 is elongated in the second direction. In fig. 12, thick arrows indicate the stretching direction of the rubber sheet 71 (hereinafter, the same applies to other drawings).

The winding roller 75 can also rotate in the opposite direction, and when the winding roller 75 rotates in the opposite direction, the backup sheet 74 is released, and the stretched rubber sheet 71 returns to the original length.

In the above, the preliminary sheet 74 is interposed between the rubber sheet 71 and the winding roller 75, but one end of the rubber sheet 71 may be directly attached to the winding roller 75.

The stretching device of the dividing device 61 is constituted by the rubber sheet 71 and the winding roller 75.

The stage portion 69 is constituted by a region of the surface of the rubber sheet 71 on which the sheet 11 is placed.

Specifically, as described above, the rubber sheet 71 is placed in contact with the top surface 732a of the frame wall 732, and the region of the rubber sheet 71 in contact with the top surface 732a does not flex in the thickness direction, but the rubber sheet 71 flexes in the thickness direction in the region surrounded by the frame wall 732 (i.e., the region corresponding to the space 734 of the housing 73).

The region surrounded by the frame wall portion 732 having the flexibility in the rubber sheet 71 is the stage portion 69. A plurality of through holes 72 are formed in at least a region surrounded by the frame wall portion 732 in the rubber sheet 71.

The pressing member presses the sheet 11 placed on the stage 69.

The pressing member illustrated in the drawing is a rod-shaped pressing member 78 having an axis extending in the first direction and having an arc-shaped surface. In the present embodiment, as the rod-shaped pressing member, a roller 78 having an axis 781 extending in the first direction is used. Preferably, the roller 78 has a rotation shaft 781 extending in the first direction, and a roller capable of rotating around the rotation shaft 781 is used. The material of the roller 78 is not particularly limited as long as it has strength enough not to deform itself when pressed. For example, as the roller 78, a roller made of metal such as stainless steel, synthetic resin, rubber, or the like can be used, and a roller covered with rubber around a core material such as metal, a roller covered with synthetic resin around a core material such as metal, or the like can be used.

The diameter of the roller 78 is not particularly limited, and is, for example, 5mm to 50mm, preferably 10mm to 30 mm. The length of the roller 78 (length in the first direction) may be set appropriately within a range that is longer than the length of the sheet 11 in the first direction and does not protrude from the stage portion 69.

Both ends of the shaft 781 of the roller 78 are supported by a frame 79 or the like, and the frame 79 is coupled to a moving device (not shown).

The roller 78 is configured to move from the second direction opposite side to the second direction side while being in contact with the surface of the stage portion 69 by a moving device (not shown). In fig. 12, the outline arrow indicates the moving direction of the pressing member (hereinafter, the same applies to other figures). When the roller 78 is rotatable about the rotation shaft 781, the roller 78 is rotated while being in contact with the surface of the stage 69 and moves in the second direction. The roller 78 (rod-shaped pressing member) moves while maintaining the shaft 781 thereof substantially parallel to the first direction.

As shown in fig. 12, the roller 78 (rod-like pressing member) is preferably pressed against the stage portion 69 to such an extent that the rubber sheet 71 as the stage portion 69 is slightly deflected in the thickness direction (lower side of the paper in the drawing).

< Sheet separation >

Next, a process of dividing the sheet 11 by the dividing device 61 will be described.

Fig. 14 shows a state before the sheet is placed on the stage portion and the roller (rod-shaped pressing member) is moved, and fig. 15 shows a state in which the roller is moved on the sheet.

As shown in fig. 14, the sheet 11 having the line of weakness 4 extending in the first direction is placed on the stage portion 69 of the dividing device 61.

At this time, as shown in fig. 14 and 15, the sheet 11 is preferably placed so that the weakened line 4 does not overlap with the through hole 72 of the rubber sheet 71, and in particular, the sheet 11 is more preferably placed so that the through hole 72 of the rubber sheet 71 is located in the vicinity of the weakened line 4. With this arrangement, the portion of the weakened line 4 is not firmly adhered to the rubber sheet 71, and when a pressing force is applied by the pressing member, the sheet 11 is smoothly divided.

Further, it is preferable that the sheet 11 is pressed by a pressing member from the non-forming side of the sheet 11 with the forming side facing the surface of the rubber sheet 71 as the stage portion 69. In this way, the sheet 11 can be reliably and easily divided along the weakened line 4 by placing the forming side of the sheet 11 on the surface of the stage portion 69 (rubber sheet 71) and pressing the sheet from the opposite side, that is, the non-forming side.

Fig. 15 illustrates a case where the sheet 11 (the sheet 11 having the brittle material layer 2 and the resin layer 3) of the first example shown in fig. 1 and 2 is placed on the stage portion 69. In fig. 15, the bonding layer is omitted.

Instead of the sheet 11, the sheets 12, 13, 14, 15 of the second to fifth examples and the like may be subjected to division. As shown in fig. 5 to 7, the sheets 13 and 14 each having one surface side and the opposite surface side of the brittle material layer 2 as forming sides may be placed on the stage portion 69.

The air suction device of the suction portion is operated, and the surface of the sheet 11 on the formation side is sucked onto the surface of the rubber sheet 71 through the through-hole 72 of the rubber sheet 71.

Next, the stretching device is operated to draw one end of the rubber sheet 71 toward the second direction side. By stretching one end portion of the rubber sheet 71, the rubber sheet 71 is elongated in the second direction. Further, since the opposite end portions of the rubber sheet 71 are fixed, the elongation of the rubber sheet 71 increases toward one end portion side thereof. Since the sheet 11 is adsorbed to the rubber sheet 71, a tensile force acts on the sheet 11 in the second direction by the extension of the rubber sheet 71 in the second direction. Further, since the sheet 11 itself does not elongate, the stretched rubber sheet 71 is offset little by little along the surface of the sheet 11 while adsorbing the sheet 11 and extends in the second direction.

The degree of stretching of the rubber sheet 71 (elastomer) is not particularly limited. For example, the rubber sheet 71 (elastic body) may be stretched so that the elongation speed of the rubber sheet 71 (elastic body) is in the range of 5 mm/sec to 150 mm/sec. The rubber sheet 71 (elastic body) is preferably stretched so that the elongation speed is in the range of 5 mm/sec to 100 mm/sec, and more preferably the rubber sheet 71 (elastic body) is stretched so that the elongation speed is in the range of 5 mm/sec to 50 mm/sec. By stretching the rubber sheet 71 (elastomer) in such a range, a moderate stretching force can be applied to the sheet 11.

While the sheet 11 is being sucked to the rubber sheet 71 and the rubber sheet 71 is being elongated in the second direction, even when a tensile force acts on the sheet 11 in the second direction, a pressing force is applied to a portion of the sheet 11 corresponding to the line of weakness 4. In the present embodiment, the roller 78 is moved in the second direction while being in contact with the stage portion 69. In the rotatable roller 78, when the roller 78 is moved while being in contact with the stage portion 69, the roller 78 rotates about the rotation shaft 781. By moving the roller 78 while rotating, cracks are less likely to occur on the dividing surface.

When the roller 78 is moved from the position shown in fig. 14 to the second direction side, as shown in fig. 15, the roller 78 moves on the sheet 11 while being in contact with the sheet 11 and applying a pressing force thereto, and after reaching a portion corresponding to the line of weakness 4 (in the example of the figure, a portion corresponding to the line of weakness 4 is a portion overlapping in the thickness direction with the line of weakness 4 and opposite to the side on which the line of weakness 4 is formed), moves further to the second direction side while being in contact with the sheet 11. When the roller 78 reaches a portion corresponding to the line of weakness 4 and applies a pressing force to the portion, the sheet 11 is divided along the line of weakness 4.

Further, the roller 78 may be moved from one side to the opposite side in the second direction. In addition, when the dividing process is repeated, the roller 78 may be moved from the second direction opposite side to the first direction, the roller 78 may be left at the position, and after the sheet 11 is replaced or the orientation of the sheet 11 is changed, the roller 78 may be moved from the position from the second direction opposite side to the first direction.

Since the stretching force may be continuously applied to the sheet 11 at least at the time of dividing and before and after dividing, for example, the rubber sheet 71 may be stretched after the roller 78 (rod-shaped pressing member) is moved and before reaching the portion corresponding to the line of weakness 4. In addition, when the portion of the sheet 11 corresponding to the line of weakness 4 is pressed by the roller 78 (rod-shaped pressing member), the rubber sheet 71 needs to have a margin for extension.

The moving speed of the roller 78 is not particularly limited, but if it is too slow, the dividing process takes a long time, and if it is too fast, the sheet 11 may be damaged carelessly. From this viewpoint, the moving speed of the roller 78 is preferably in the range of 5 mm/sec to 150 mm/sec, more preferably in the range of 50 mm/sec to 120 mm/sec. In particular, by setting the moving speed of the roller 78 within the above range, cracking is less likely to occur on the dividing surface.

In the dividing step of the present invention, a pressing force is applied to the sheet 11 while a tensile force is applied to the sheet 11 in the second direction. As described above, since the rubber sheet 71 has a large elongation toward one end portion thereof, a large tensile force acts on the sheet 11 adsorbed to the rubber sheet 71 toward one end portion in the second direction. Therefore, as shown in fig. 16, at the moment when the sheet 11 is divided along the weakened line 4 to generate the two divided pieces 111, 112, one divided piece 111 is separated from the other divided piece 112. At the time of division, since one divided piece 111 is separated from the other divided piece 112, the divided surfaces 111a, 112a of each other do not come into contact, and therefore, occurrence of cracks in the divided surfaces 111a, 112a can be prevented.

Modification example

In the above embodiment, the pressing member is moved in the second direction while being in contact with the sheet 11, so that the pressing force is applied to the portion of the sheet 11 corresponding to the line of weakness 4, but the present invention is not limited thereto, and the pressing force may be applied by moving the pressing member in the thickness direction of the sheet 11.

For example, the pressing member of the dividing device 62 shown in fig. 17 is disposed above a portion of the sheet 11 corresponding to the line of weakness 4. The pressing member illustrated in the drawing is a rod-shaped pressing member 782 (not the roller 78) extending in the first direction and having an arcuate surface 782 a. The rod-shaped pressing member 782 is not particularly limited as long as it has strength such that it is not easily deformed, and may be made of a rod-shaped body made of metal such as stainless steel, synthetic resin, rubber, or the like, or may be made of a rod-shaped body having rubber provided at the tip end of a core material such as metal, a rod-shaped body having synthetic resin provided at the tip end of a core material such as metal, or the like.

In fig. 17, a rotatable roller, a non-rotatable roller, a cylindrical body made of metal, rubber, or the like may be used as the pressing member.

As shown in fig. 17, the rod-shaped pressing member 782 is movable in the up-down direction (thickness direction of the sheet 11), and presses a portion corresponding to the line of weakness 4 by moving downward, and moves upward to separate from the sheet 11.

In the above embodiment, the attractive force of air is used as a means for engaging the sheet 11 with the rubber sheet 71, but an adhesive having relatively weak adhesive force may be used instead of or in combination with this.

For example, the dividing device 63 shown in fig. 18 is provided with an adhesive portion 721 (for example, an adhesive tape or the like) having relatively weak adhesive force locally on the stage portion 69 of the rubber sheet 71. Since the sheet 11 is adsorbed to the adhesive portion 721, the sheet 11 is adsorbed to the rubber sheet 71 via the adhesive portion 721. In this case, the through-hole 72 may be formed in the rubber sheet 71, or the through-hole 72 may not be formed. In addition, an air aspirator or the like is not required.

Further, static electricity may be applied to the rubber sheet 71, and the sheet 11 may be attracted to the rubber sheet 71 (not shown) via the static electricity. Further, depending on the materials of the rubber sheet 71 and the sheet 11, when the frictional resistance of the contact surface between the two is large, the sheet 11 and the rubber sheet 71 can be engaged by the frictional force.

In the above embodiment, the pressing member is brought into direct contact with the sheet 11 to apply the pressing force to the sheet 11, but for example, as shown in fig. 18, the pressing member 783 may be pressed from the rubber sheet 71 side. In this case, the non-forming side of the sheet 11 is opposed to the surface of the rubber sheet 71. In order to prevent the sheet 11 from floating, it is preferable to fixedly provide the stoppers 784, 784 on both sides thereof with the line of weakness 4 interposed therebetween. Thus, the sheet 11 can be reliably and easily divided along the weakened line 4 by pressing the portion corresponding to the weakened line 4 from the non-forming side of the sheet 11 by the pressing member 783 via the rubber sheet 71.

In the above embodiment, the opposite end portions of the rubber seat 71 are fixed and the one end portions of the rubber seat 71 are stretched, but the one end portions of the rubber seat 71 may be fixed and the opposite end portions of the rubber seat 71 may be stretched, or the one end portions and the opposite end portions of the rubber seat 71 may be stretched. When one end portion and the opposite end portion of the rubber sheet 71 are stretched, a stretching force acts on the sheet 11 on the second direction side and the opposite side, respectively, and when dividing, one divided sheet is separated from the other divided sheet.

In the above embodiment, the roller 78 is moved in the second direction while being in contact with the sheet 11, but the roller 78 may be fixed and the housing 73 including the stage portion 69 may be moved in the second direction, or the housing 73 including the roller 78 and the stage portion 69 may be moved in the second direction in opposite directions to each other. That is, in the present specification, moving the roller 78 means relatively moving. Accordingly, as shown in fig. 17, in the case where the pressing member is moved in the thickness direction, the pressing member may be fixed, the housing 73 including the stage portion 69 may be moved in the thickness direction of the sheet 11, or both may be moved.

Examples (example)

The present invention will be described in further detail by way of examples and comparative examples. However, the present invention is not limited to the following examples.

[ Production of sheet ]

A composite material was prepared by laminating and bonding alkali-free glass (brittle material layer) having a thickness of 100 μm, an adhesive layer (bonding layer) having a thickness of 2 μm, and a polarizing film having a thickness of 150 μm. The composite material had a square shape with 1 side of 210mm in plan view.

In the composite material, two grooves (weakened lines) extending in the first direction and two grooves (weakened lines) extending in the second direction are formed in the alkali-free glass according to the above-described < brittle material removal step >, and further, a defect portion is formed in the resin layer corresponding to each groove according to the above-described < resin removal step >. In addition, all grooves were formed 40mm from the edge of the composite.

Thus, a sheet having grooves and defective portions as shown in fig. 19 was produced.

Example 1

The sheet shown in fig. 19 was cut by trying the cutting device 62 shown in fig. 17.

Specifically, as the rubber sheet 71 of the dividing device 62, a rubber sheet made of NBR (trade name "RBTMF 2.0.0-350-600" manufactured by Misumi Co.) having a thickness of 2mm was used, and as the rod-shaped pressing member 782, a cylindrical body having a diameter of 15mm (the axis of the cylindrical body is made substantially parallel to the groove of the sheet) in which rubber was coated around a core made of metal was used, and the cylindrical body was structured to move up and down.

A plurality of through holes are formed in the stage portion of the rubber sheet. The side (forming side) on which the groove is formed is opposed to the stage portion of the dividing device, and the sheet is placed on the stage portion so that the groove is located in the vicinity of the through hole. Then, the air aspirator is operated, and the sheet is sucked to the rubber sheet through the through hole. Then, the rubber sheet was stretched to the second direction side so that the elongation speed of the rubber sheet became 10 mm/sec, immediately after which the rod-like pressing member was moved downward at a movement speed of 10 mm/sec, and the sheet was divided along the grooves extending in the first direction. The other groove extending in the first direction is similarly configured such that the sheet is sucked to the rubber sheet and the rubber sheet is elongated, and the sheet is divided into three parts by pressing the sheet with the rod-shaped pressing member, thereby dividing the sheet along the other groove extending in the first direction.

The sheet divided into 3 pieces was rotated by 90 degrees and replaced on the table portion, and similarly, the sheet was pressed by the rod-like pressing member while being adsorbed to the rubber sheet and stretched with respect to the groove extending in the second direction, the sheet was divided along the groove extending in the second direction, and the sheet was divided along the other groove extending in the second direction. Thus, square-shaped divided pieces having 4 divided surfaces as end surfaces and 130mm on 1 side were produced.

In addition, when the sheet is pressed by the rod-shaped pressing member at the time of dividing along any one of the grooves, the rubber sheet is not fully elongated (that is, the rubber sheet leaves room for elongation), and after dividing the sheet, the rubber sheet is elongated.

Example 2

A square divided piece having a side of 130mm was produced in the same manner as in example 1 except that the rubber sheet was changed to an NBR rubber sheet having a thickness of 1mm (trade name "RBTMF 1.0.0-350-600" manufactured by Misumi).

Example 3

A square divided sheet having a 1-side of 130mm was produced in the same manner as in example 1, except that the rubber sheet was changed to an NBR rubber sheet having a thickness of 1mm (trade name "RBTMF 1.0.0-350-600" manufactured by Misumi company) and the moving speed of the rod-like pressing member was changed to 100 mm/sec.

Example 4

A square divided sheet having a side of 130mm was produced in the same manner as in example 1, except that the rubber sheet was changed to an NBR rubber sheet having a thickness of 0.5mm (trade name "RBTMF 0.5.5-350-600" manufactured by Misumi).

Example 5

A square divided sheet having a1 side of 130mm was produced in the same manner as in example 1, except that the rubber sheet was changed to an NBR rubber sheet having a thickness of 0.5mm (trade name "RBTMF 0.5.5-350-600" manufactured by Misumi company), and a weakly adhesive part (provided at the same place as the place where the through hole was formed) was provided locally on the stage part of the rubber sheet instead of air suction.

Comparative example 1

A square shaped divided sheet having a side of 130mm was produced in the same manner as in example 1 except that the rubber sheet was changed to a polyethylene terephthalate film (trade name "E-MASK RP 207" manufactured by nito electric Co., ltd.). However, the polyethylene terephthalate film of comparative example 1 did not elongate even when stretched.

[ Observation of the divided pieces ]

The square divided pieces obtained in examples 1 to 5 and comparative example 1 were visually observed for the divided surfaces (4 end surfaces), and further observed with an optical microscope (trade name "VHX-2000" manufactured by KEYENCE, inc.) to obtain the results shown in table 1.

In table 1, in comparative example 1, a film was used without using a rubber sheet and the film was not stretched, and therefore these bars were empty bars.

A to C of the state of the dividing plane are as follows.

A: excellent. No cracks or chipping was confirmed, or cracks or chipping within 50 μm at 1 or 2 was confirmed.

B: good. The cracks and the gaps are all within 200 mu m.

C: poor quality. Cracks or defects exceeding 200 μm were confirmed.

TABLE 1

Example 6

The sheet shown in fig. 19 is cut by a cutting device 61 shown in fig. 11 to 13.

Specifically, as the rubber sheet 71 of the dividing device 61, an NBR rubber sheet (trade name "RBTMF 0.5.5-350-600" manufactured by Misumi corporation) having a thickness of 0.5mm was used, and as the pressing member, a roller having a diameter of 15mm in which rubber was coated around a metal core material was used. The roller is capable of freely rotating about a rotation axis. A plurality of through holes are formed in the stage portion of the rubber sheet. The side (forming side) on which the groove is formed is opposed to the stage portion of the dividing device, and the sheet is placed on the stage portion so that the groove is located in the vicinity of the through hole. Then, the air aspirator is operated, and the sheet is sucked to the rubber sheet through the through hole. Then, the rubber sheet was stretched to the second direction side so that the elongation speed of the rubber sheet became 10 mm/sec, and then the roller was moved to the second direction side at a movement speed of 100 mm/sec while being in contact with the sheet, and the sheet was divided into three pieces along two grooves extending in the first direction.

The sheet divided into 3 pieces was rotated by 90 degrees and replaced on the stage portion, and similarly, the sheet was sucked to the rubber sheet and the rubber sheet was elongated with respect to the grooves extending in the second direction, and the roller was moved to divide the sheet along the 2 grooves extending in the second direction. Thus, square-shaped divided pieces having 4 divided surfaces as end surfaces and 130mm on 1 side were produced.

In addition, when the sheet is pressed by the roller at the time of dividing along any one of the grooves, the rubber sheet is not fully elongated (that is, a margin for extending the rubber sheet is left), and the rubber sheet is also elongated after dividing.

Example 7

A square divided sheet having a1 side of 130mm was produced in the same manner as in example 1, except that the rubber sheet was changed to an NBR rubber sheet having a thickness of 0.5mm (trade name "RBTMF 0.5.5-350-600" manufactured by Misumi company) and the moving speed of the rod-shaped pressing member was changed to 100 mm/sec.

Example 8

A square divided piece having a side of 130mm was produced in the same manner as in example 6 except that the elongation speed of the rubber sheet was changed to 100 mm/sec.

Example 9

A square divided piece having a side of 130mm was produced in the same manner as in example 6 except that the moving speed of the roller was changed to 10 mm/sec.

In the same manner as in example 1 and the like, the divided surfaces (4 end surfaces) of each square-shaped divided piece obtained in examples 6 to 9 were observed with a visual and optical microscope. The results are shown in Table 2.

TABLE 2

[ Description of reference numerals ]

11. 12, 13, 14, 15 Sheets

2. Brittle material layer

3. Resin layer

4. Line of weakness

61. 62, 63 Dividing device

69 Table parts

71 Rubber sheet (elastomer)

Claims

1. A sheet dividing method includes:

a step of preparing a sheet having a brittle material layer formed with a brittle line extending in a first direction; and

And a step of dividing the sheet along the line of weakness by applying a pressing force to a portion of the sheet corresponding to the line of weakness while applying a tensile force to the sheet in a second direction, which is a direction orthogonal to the first direction.

2. The method for dividing a sheet according to claim 1, wherein,

In the dividing step, the sheet is placed on the surface of an elastic body, and the elastic body is stretched in the second direction to be elongated, whereby a stretching force is applied to the sheet in the second direction.

3. The method for dividing a sheet according to claim 2, wherein,

The elastic body is stretched and elongated in the second direction while the sheet is adsorbed on the surface of the elastic body.

4. The method for dividing a sheet according to claim 3, wherein,

The elastic body is a rubber sheet with a thickness of 0.1mm or more and 3mm or less.

5. The method for dividing a sheet according to claim 3 or 4, wherein,

Stretching the elastic body in such a manner that the elongation speed of the elastic body is in the range of 5 mm/sec to 150 mm/sec.

6. The method for dividing a sheet according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein,

In the dividing step, a rod-shaped pressing member having an axis extending in the first direction is brought into contact with the sheet and relatively moved in the second direction, whereby a pressing force is applied to a portion of the sheet corresponding to the line of weakness.

7. The method for dividing a sheet according to claim 6, wherein,

The rod-shaped pressing member is a roller having a rotation axis,

The roller is relatively moved in the second direction while being brought into contact with the sheet while rotating the roller around the rotation axis.

8. The method for dividing a sheet according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein,

The line of weakness is a groove formed on one side of the layer of brittle material and extending continuously in a first direction,

In the dividing step, a side of the sheet on which the groove is formed is placed on a surface of an elastic body, and the elastic body is stretched in the second direction to be elongated, whereby a stretching force is applied to the sheet in the second direction, and a pressing force is applied to a portion corresponding to the line of weakness from a side opposite to a side on which the groove is formed, thereby dividing the sheet along the line of weakness.

9. The method for dividing a sheet according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein,

The sheet has the brittle material layer, a resin layer laminated on the brittle material layer, and a defective portion having no part of the resin layer,

The defect portion extends in a first direction overlapping the line of weakness.