JPH0921839A - Socket for inspecting display panel - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To enhance reliability of contact between a electrode of a display panel and a wiring pattern on a contact film. SOLUTION: A wiring pattern 14a brought into contact with an electrode on a base board 2 of a display panel 1 is formed in the upper surface of a contact film 14 disposed on a socket main body 11. The display panel 1 is pressed against the contact film 14 by a panel pressing member 20 slidably provided in the socket main body when it moves to the upper surface of the display panel 1 mounted on the contact film 14. When the panel pressing member 20 pushes the upper surface of the display panel 1, a flexible shutter 21 is interposed between the panel pressing member 20 and the display panel 1. The panel pressing member 20 has a metal-made clamper 25 of a lateral U-shaped cross section which has elasticity and is installed in the socket main body 11 so as to vertically holding the socket main body 11 and the display panel 1 therebetween and a plastic-made sliding piece 26 mounted on the under surface of an upper side tip part over the nearly total length of an upper side tip part 25a of the clamper 25 and brought into slidable contact with the upper surface of the shutter 21 and the display panel 1.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

The present invention relates to a liquid crystal display panel,
The present invention relates to a display panel inspection socket which can be suitably used for inspection of display quality of electroluminescence panels, plasma display panels and the like.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Generally, in a manufacturing process of a liquid crystal display panel or the like, a display quality and the like for detecting a display defect portion are inspected for a display panel before connecting peripheral circuits such as a driving IC tab. Therefore, in this type of inspection,
2. Description of the Related Art A contact device including a contact member that comes into contact with electrodes arranged on a substrate of a display panel is used. For example, as disclosed in Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 6-08034, as a contact member to be brought into contact with an electrode of a display panel, conventionally, a contact member composed of a needle-shaped or wire-shaped probe, flexibility and insulation are used. It is known that a contact film is formed by forming a wiring pattern for contact on a base film that has the property of contact, but due to the high density and fine pitch of the electrode, the reliability of contact with the electrode and easy handling The contact film tends to be adopted from the viewpoints of productivity, manufacturing cost and the like.

When a contact film is used, a film pressing member for pressing the back surface of the contact film and a display panel of the display panel in order to bring the wiring pattern on the contact film and the electrodes on the substrate of the display panel into contact with each other with a required contact pressure. A panel pressing member that presses the back surface of the substrate is required. For example, in Japanese Patent Application No. 7-64731 by the present applicant, a film pressing member made of an elastic member such as rubber, a panel pressing member made of a metal having a substantially U-shaped cross section and having springiness, and the panel pressing member are displayed. When moving from the retracted position where the panel mounting area is opened to the pressing position where the upper surface of the display panel is pressed, the panel pressing is performed by moving from the retracted position where the display panel mounting area is opened to the covering position where the display panel is covered. A display panel inspection socket including a flexible shutter interposed between a member and a display panel is disclosed. The metal panel pressing member is slidably mounted on the socket body so as to sandwich the socket body between the upper and lower sides, and when the movable body is moved to the upper surface of the display panel mounted on the contact film, the flexible shutter is opened. It is configured to press the display panel against the contact film via the contact panel.

[0004]

DISCLOSURE OF INVENTION Problems to be Solved by the Invention The above-described metal panel pressing member having a substantially U-shaped cross section is liable to be distorted when formed by press working or the like. Since waviness and warpage easily occur along the arrangement direction of the display panel, it becomes difficult to uniformly press the top surface of the display panel, and the reliability of contact between the electrode on the display panel substrate and the wiring pattern on the contact film is impaired. Cause. Further, when the panel pressing member and the shutter are both made of metal, metal abrasion powder may be generated due to sliding of the metals, and adheres to the wiring pattern on the contact film to prevent contact between the electrode and the wiring pattern. Cause.

Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide a display panel inspection socket which can improve the reliability of contact between the electrodes on the substrate of the display panel and the wiring patterns on the contact film.

[0006]

In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, the invention according to claim 1 has a contact provided with a wiring pattern arranged on the socket body and in contact with electrodes on the display panel on the upper surface. A film, a panel pressing member provided on the socket body so as to be slidable so as to press the display panel against the contact film when moved to the upper surface of the display panel mounted on the contact film, and the panel pressing member. Comprises a flexible shutter interposed between the panel pressing member and the display panel when pressing the upper surface of the display panel, and the panel pressing member sandwiches the socket body and the display panel vertically. A spring-shaped metal clamper having a U-shaped cross section and having a spring property, and a tip of the upper piece over substantially the entire length of the upper piece of the clamper. To provide a display panel test sockets, characterized in that comprising a plastic sliding piece which is attached to the lower surface is in sliding contact with the upper surface of the shutter and a display panel.

In the display panel inspection socket having the above structure, a metal clamper having a U-shaped cross section is apt to be distorted when it is formed by press working or the like. Therefore, electrodes are arranged on the upper part of the clamper. Waviness and warpage are likely to occur along the direction. However, since a plastic sliding piece that is easy to secure high dimensional accuracy is attached to the lower surface of the top end of the clamper over almost the entire length of the top part of the clamper, undulations and warps are applied to the top part of the clamper. If a problem occurs, it can be corrected. Further, even if some undulations or warps remain on the upper part of the clamper, the sliding piece made of plastic can easily ensure the linearity in the electrode arrangement direction. Through this, the upper surface of the display panel can be pressed uniformly. Therefore, the reliability of contact between the electrodes of the display panel and the wiring pattern on the contact film can be improved.

[0008]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

1 to 9 show an embodiment in which the present invention is applied to a socket for inspecting a liquid crystal display panel. FIG. 1 is a schematic plan view of the socket in an assembling state, and FIG. 5 is a vertical sectional view taken along the line AA in FIG. 5 showing a state where the panel pressing member of the socket is in the pressing position, and FIG. 3 is a vertical sectional view similar to FIG. 2 showing a state where the panel pressing member of the socket is in the open position. 4 is a vertical sectional view similar to FIG. 2 showing a state where the panel pressing member of the socket and the shutter are in the retracted position, and FIG. 5 is a partially cutaway perspective view of the main part of the socket.
6A, 6B, and 6C are plan views, bottom views, and enlarged side views of the support plate, FIG. 7 is a plan view of the shutter, and FIGS. 8A, 8B, and 8C are FIG. 9 is a bottom view, a plan view and a side view of the clamper of the panel pressing member.
(A), (b), (c), (d), (e) is a bottom view, a rear view, a plan view, a front view and a right side view of a sliding piece attached to a clamper of a panel pressing member, respectively. .

First, referring to FIGS. 1 to 5, a liquid crystal display panel 1 having a substantially rectangular shape in plan view has an insulating substrate 2 made of, for example, glass, and the insulating substrate 2 is provided on the lower surface of the insulating substrate 2.
A plurality of transparent electrodes are arranged in parallel along each of the long side and the short side. A liquid crystal display panel inspection socket 10 according to an embodiment of the present invention includes a socket body 11 made of metal or plastic and having a substantially rectangular shape in a plan view. The socket body 11 includes a reference engaging piece 11a that engages with a corner portion of the insulating substrate 2 of the liquid crystal display panel 1, and the socket body 11 is diagonally opposed to the reference engaging piece 11a.
The insulating substrate 2 of the liquid crystal display panel 1 is used as the reference engaging piece 11a.
A pressing means 12 for pressing toward is provided. The pressing means 12 includes a movable engaging piece 12a that engages with a corner portion of the insulating substrate 2, and the movable engaging piece 12a.
And a coil spring (not shown) that biases in the direction of 1a,
The spring force of the coil spring is set to a strength that allows the dimensional change of the insulating substrate 2 due to the linear expansion of the transparent electrodes of the insulating substrate 2 in the arrangement direction.

First, referring to FIGS. 1 and 2, the side of the insulating substrate 2 is formed on the upper surface of the socket body 11 corresponding to the side of the insulating substrate 2 of the liquid crystal display panel 1 on which the transparent electrode is formed. A recessed groove 11b extending parallel to is formed. An insulating material having substantially the same linear expansion coefficient as that of the insulating substrate 2, for example, a film mounting plate 15 made of the same material as the insulating substrate 2 is housed in each groove 11b so as to be slidably displaced in its longitudinal direction. A plurality of contact films 14 are fixed to the upper surface of the film mounting plate 15 with an adhesive or the like. On the upper surface of the contact film 14, a wiring pattern 14a that is in contact with the transparent electrode of the liquid crystal display panel 1 is formed. In this embodiment, eight contact films 14 corresponding to the transparent electrode groups on the long side of the liquid crystal display panel 1 are arranged in parallel on the film mounting plate 15 for the long side, and the liquid crystal display panel is also provided. Two contact films 14 are juxtaposed on the film mounting plate 15 for the short side corresponding to the transparent electrode group of the short side.

Mounting plate positioning means 16 for positioning one end of the film mounting plate 15 on the same reference plane as one end of the insulating substrate 2 is provided at one end of each groove 11b. The mounting plate positioning means 16 is used for the film mounting plate 1.
5 has an abutment piece 16a abutting against one end of the No. 5 and an adjusting screw 16b for adjusting the position of the abutment piece. The other end of the groove 11b is brought into contact with the other end of the film attachment plate 15 to attach the film attachment plate 15 to the attachment plate positioning means 16
Is provided with a coil spring 17 as a mounting plate end pressing means for pressing against the contact piece 16a of the film. The spring force of the coil spring 17 is the dimension of the film mounting plate 15 due to linear expansion in the arrangement direction of the lead pattern. The strength is set to allow changes.

As shown in FIGS. 2 and 5, the socket body 11 is provided with a film pressing member 18 for pressing the lower surface of the front end portion of the contact film 14. The film pressing member 18 is made of an elastic body such as rubber. Further, the socket 10 has a socket body 11 that presses the insulating substrate 2 of the liquid crystal display panel 1 against the contact film 14 when the socket 10 moves to the upper surface of the insulating substrate 2 of the liquid crystal display panel 1 mounted on the contact film 14. And a panel pressing member 20 slidably provided between the panel pressing member 20 and the insulating substrate 2 of the liquid crystal display panel 1 when the panel pressing member 20 presses the insulating substrate 2 of the liquid crystal display panel 1. And a flexible shutter 21.

A spring 22 (see FIGS. 1 and 2) for urging the rear end of the shutter 21 forward is attached to the socket body 11, and the front end 21a of the shutter 21 is displayed by a liquid crystal display by the urging force of the spring 22. The front end 21a can be moved from a retracted position (see FIG. 4) that opens the panel mounting area to a covering position (see FIG. 2) that covers the insulating substrate 2 of the liquid crystal display panel 1. A support plate 23 that covers the contact film 14 and extends along the side of the insulating substrate 2 of the liquid crystal display panel 1 is fixed to the socket body 11 with screws 24, and the shutter 21 supports the support plate 23. It is slidably supported on the top.

As shown in FIGS. 3, 5, 8 and 9.
The panel pressing member 20 is mounted on the socket body 11 so as to sandwich the socket body 11 and the liquid crystal display panel 1 in the vertical direction.
5 and a sliding piece 26 made of plastic, which is attached to the lower surface of the upper piece portion 25a over substantially the entire length of the upper piece portion 25a of the clamper 25 and is in sliding contact with the upper surface of the shutter 21. In this embodiment, the sliding piece 26 is attached to the clamper 25 with a screw (not shown), but it may be fixed to the clamper 25 by caulking or an adhesive. Sliding piece 2
The plastic material used in 6 is preferably a material having a good slipperiness such as polytetrafluoroethylene.

Therefore, the panel pressing member 20 of this embodiment can vertically clamp the insulating substrate 2 of the liquid crystal display panel 1 and the socket body 11 at the pressing position by the spring force of the clamper 25. The electrodes of the liquid crystal display panel 1 and the wiring patterns 14a of the contact film 14 can be brought into contact with each other with a required contact pressure. Further, since the plastic sliding piece 26, which can easily secure high dimensional accuracy, is attached to the lower surface of the upper piece 25a of the clamper 25 over substantially the entire length thereof, the upper piece of the clamper 25 is attached. Even if the swell or warp occurs in 25a, it can be corrected. Further, even if a slight undulation or warp remains on the upper piece 25a of the clamper 25, the plastic sliding piece 26 can easily ensure the linearity in the arrangement direction of the electrodes of the liquid crystal display panel 1. The sliding piece 26 can uniformly press the upper surface of the insulating substrate 2 of the liquid crystal display panel 1 through the shutter 21. Therefore, the reliability of contact between the electrode of the liquid crystal display panel 1 and the wiring pattern 14a on the contact film 14 can be improved. Further, since the sliding piece 26 is made of plastic, even if the shutter 21 is made of metal, it is possible to prevent the generation of metal abrasion powder.

As shown in FIGS. 3 and 9, the sliding piece 26 has a protruding portion 26a which forms the tip pressing portion of the panel pressing member 20. In addition, the sliding piece 26 has an open position (see FIG. 2) that opens the liquid crystal display panel mounting area from a press position (see FIG. 2) where the tip pressing portion 26a of the panel pressing member 20 presses the insulating substrate 2 of the liquid crystal display panel 1. 3)) to engage with the engaging portion 21b of the shutter 21 when it moves backward
b is provided. When the panel pressing member 20 moves further backward than the open position, the shutter 21 moves to the engaging portion 2
6b moves from the covering position to the retracted position against the biasing force of the spring 22.

As shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, the upper surface of the support plate 23 is in contact with the lower surface of the front end of the panel pressing member 20 when the panel pressing member 20 moves between the open position and the retracted position. A guide portion 23 a is provided so as to project the panel pressing member 20 away from the upper surface of the contact film 14. Further, a plurality of boss portions 23b through which the screws 24 are inserted are provided on the upper surface of the support plate 23 so as to project. The guide portion 23a and the boss portion 23b of the support plate 23 are slidably engaged with the long holes 21c and 21d (see FIGS. 5 and 7) formed in the shutter 21. Shutter 21
Is the boss 2 of the support plate 23 at the rear end of the long hole 21d.
By making contact with 3b, it is possible to move forward to the covering position.

Further, the upper surface of the support plate 23 has a side edge portion of the insulating substrate 2 of the liquid crystal display panel 1 at a tip 23c close to the side edge portion of the insulating substrate 2 of the liquid crystal display panel 1 mounted on the contact film 14. It has substantially the same height as the upper surface, and the upper surface of the support plate 23 is gently inclined downward from the vicinity of the tip of the support plate 23 toward the tip 23c.

Further, in this embodiment, as shown in FIGS. 2 to 4, an upward projecting portion 25c is formed by bending at the tip of the lower piece portion 25b of the clamper 25, and the lower surface of the socket body 11 is formed. Is a recess 11 that elastically engages with the protrusion 25c of the clamper 25 when the panel pressing member 20 is in the pressing position (FIG. 2) and the retracted position (FIG. 4), respectively.
c and 11d are formed. Therefore, the panel pressing member 20 can be stably locked in the pressing position and the retracted position, respectively. The slide operation of the clamper 25 is preferably performed using a jig (not shown).

In the liquid crystal display panel inspection socket 10 having the above structure, the liquid crystal display panel 1 can be pressed onto the contact film 14 by the sliding operation of the panel pressing member 20, so that the entire socket can be made lighter and more compact. It is possible. Further, when the panel pressing member 20 moves further backward than the open position, the panel pressing member 2
The engagement portion 26b of 0 resists the urging force of the spring 22 and moves the shutter 21 from the covering position (FIGS. 2 and 3) to the retracted position (FIG. 4).
Since the liquid crystal display panel 1 is moved up to, it is possible to prevent the panel pressing member 20 and the shutter 21 from becoming an obstacle when mounting or removing the liquid crystal display panel 1. Further, when the panel pressing member 20 is moved from the retracted position (FIG. 4) to the pressed position (FIG. 2) after the liquid crystal display panel 1 is mounted, the panel pressing member 20 moves from the retracted position to the intermediate open position (FIG. 3)
The shutter 21 moves from the retracted position (FIG. 4) to the covering position (FIG. 3) covering the insulating substrate 2 of the liquid crystal display panel 1 by the biasing force of the spring 22 while moving to the panel. Pressing member 20 is in open position (Fig. 3)
From the to the pressing position (FIG. 2), the lower surface of the front end of the panel pressing member 20 slides on the upper surface of the shutter 21 restricted to the covering position. Therefore, since the panel pressing member 20 does not directly contact the upper surface of the liquid crystal display panel 1, it is possible to prevent the upper surface of the liquid crystal display panel 1 from being scratched by the panel pressing member 20. Further, the panel pressing member 20 slides by sliding on the upper surface of the shutter 21 restricted to the covering position,
It is possible to prevent the liquid crystal display panel 1 from being pushed and moved in the same direction as the sliding direction by the panel pushing member 20. Therefore, it is possible to prevent the positional deviation between the electrode of the liquid crystal display panel 1 and the wiring pattern 14a on the contact film 14. Further, since the shutter 21 can be moved to the outside of the liquid crystal display panel mounting area by its sliding operation and it is not necessary to cause a large warp in the shutter 21, the durability of the shutter 21 is improved and the liquid crystal display panel is improved. There is no risk of the shutter 21 being inadvertently deformed when the No. 1 is attached or detached.

Further, in the socket 10 having the above-mentioned structure, when the panel pressing member 20 moves between the open position (FIG. 3) and the retracted position (FIG. 4), the shutter 21 operates in conjunction with the panel pressing member 20. While moving between the covering position and the retracted position, the support plate 2 is moved while the shutter 21 is moving.
3 is provided on the panel pressing member 20.
Since the panel pressing member 20 is separated from the upper surface of the contact film 14a by contacting the lower surface of the front end of the shutter 21, the shutter 21 can be easily slid without applying the pressing force of the panel pressing member 20 to the shutter 21. .

Further, in the socket 10 having the above structure, as described above, the upper surface of the support plate 23 has substantially the same height as the upper surface of the side portion of the liquid crystal display panel 1 at the tip 23c thereof, and is supported. Since the upper surface of the plate 23 is gently inclined downward from the vicinity of the tip of the support plate 23 toward the tip 23c, the panel pressing member 2
When the 0 is moved forward from the open position to the pressing position, the upper surface of the support plate 23 that is gently inclined and the upper surface of the shutter 21 that covers the upper surfaces of the side portions of the liquid crystal display panel 1 are formed by the lower surface of the tip of the panel pressing member 20. The panel pressing member 20 can be smoothly moved forward while pressing.

Further, in the socket 10 having the above-described structure, the socket body 11 is provided with the film pressing member 18 which extends in the arrangement direction of the wiring patterns 14a of the contact film 14 and elastically supports the lower surface of the tip end portion of the contact film 14 from below. Therefore, when the insulating substrate 2 of the liquid crystal display panel 1 is pressed by the lower surface 26a of the tip portion of the panel pressing member 20, a part of each wiring pattern 14a on the contact film 14 is pressed by the film from the lower surface side of the contact film 14. The member 18 can surely press the electrode on the insulating substrate 2. Therefore, the liquid crystal display panel 1
Electrode and contact film 14 wiring pattern 14a
The electrical connection with can be made more reliable.

Although the embodiments shown in the drawings have been described above, the present invention is not limited to the embodiments described above, and various changes may be made to the form, number, etc. of each constituent element of the invention described in the claims. Can be added. For example, as disclosed in Japanese Patent Application No. 7-64731, the shutter 21 is separated from the upper surface of the substrate 2 of the liquid crystal display panel 1 by an upward warp and is moved to the outside of the liquid crystal display panel mounting area. It may be one. Further, in the above-described embodiment, the engaging portion 26b that engages with the engaging portion 21b of the shutter 21 is provided integrally with the sliding piece 26, but instead of being provided on the sliding piece 26, it is similar to the metal clamper 25. The engaging portion may be cut and raised. Furthermore, the present invention can be applied to not only liquid crystal display panels but also inspection sockets such as electroluminescence panels and plasma display panels.

[0026]

As is apparent from the above description, according to the present invention, it is possible to improve the reliability of the contact between the electrode on the substrate of the display panel and the wiring pattern on the contact film. A socket can be provided.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic plan view of a socket in the middle of assembly showing an embodiment in which the present invention is applied to a liquid crystal display panel inspection socket.

2 is a vertical cross-sectional view taken along the line AA in FIG. 5 showing a state where a panel pressing member of the socket of FIG. 1 is in a pressing position.

3 is a vertical sectional view similar to FIG. 2, showing a state where a panel pressing member of the socket of FIG. 1 is in an open position.

4 is a vertical sectional view similar to FIG. 2, showing a state where a panel pressing member and a shutter of the socket of FIG. 1 are in a retracted position.

5 is a partially cutaway perspective view of a main part of the socket of FIG. 1. FIG.

6 (a), (b) and (c) are a plan view, a bottom view and an enlarged side view of a support plate, respectively.

FIG. 11 is a plan view of a shutter.

8A, 8B, and 8C are a bottom view, a plan view, and a side view, respectively, of the clamper of the panel pressing member.

9 (a), (b), (c), (d), and (e) are a bottom view, a rear view, a plan view, a front view, and a right side of a sliding piece attached to a clamper of a panel pressing member, respectively. It is a side view.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Liquid crystal display panel 2 Insulating substrate 10 Socket for liquid crystal display panel inspection 11 Socket body 14 Contact film 14a Wiring pattern 18 Film pressing member 20 Panel pressing member 21 Shutter 23 Support plate 25 Clamper 25a Upper half 25b Lower edge 26 Sliding piece

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A contact film provided on a socket body and having a wiring pattern on its upper surface for contacting an electrode on the display panel, and when moved to the upper surface of the display panel mounted on the contact film. A panel pressing member slidably provided on the socket body so as to press the display panel against the contact film, and between the panel pressing member and the display panel when the panel pressing member presses the upper surface of the display panel. And a flexible shutter interposed therebetween, wherein the panel pressing member is mounted on the socket body so as to sandwich the socket body and the display panel in the vertical direction, and has a spring-like lateral U-shaped cross-section made of a metal clamper, and the clamper. The upper piece is attached to the lower surface of the tip of the upper piece over substantially the entire length and is slidably contacted with the upper surface of the shutter. Display panel socket for inspection, characterized by comprising a click made sliding piece.