Powder-surface treatment apparatus

A powder-surface treatment apparatus, the apparatus comprising:

• a housing defining an internal space having a portion that may be sealed-up, wherein the housing comprises an upper room and a lower room that are sealable in a state where internal spaces of the upper room and lower room are each filled with inert gas;
• a main chamber installed in the internal space in the housing and defining an accommodation space in which a surface treatment process is performable using atomic layer deposition, wherein the accommodation space in the main chamber extends in an upward-downward direction;
• an injection unit provided on a first end portion of the main chamber in such a manner that gas may be injected into the accommodation space in the main chamber through the injection unit;
• a plurality of sub-chambers arranged in a stack on top of each other in a multi-step configuration along the accommodation space in the main chamber in a state where an internal space in each of the plurality of sub-chambers is filled with a powder, wherein the plurality of sub-chambers is configured in such a manner that the gas injected in the accommodation space in the main chamber may pass through the plurality of sub-chambers;
• a discharging unit provided on a second end portion of the main chamber in such a manner that the gas passing through the plurality of sub-chambers may be discharged from the accommodation space in the main chamber through the discharging unit;
• a loading apparatus configured to load a new sub-chamber into the accommodation space in the main chamber, in the sealed-up internal space in the housing that is filled with the inert gas, wherein the new sub-chamber loaded by the loading apparatus is inserted into the accommodation space through a first opening that is a lower-end opening of the main chamber and wherein the loading apparatus and the first opening in the main chamber are positioned in the internal space in the lower room;
• and
• an unloading apparatus configured to unload at least one of the plurality of sub-chambers arranged to be stacked on top of each other in the accommodation space in the main chamber, from the accommodation space, and to discharge the at least one unloaded sub-chamber to the outside, wherein the sub-chamber undergoing the surface treatment process is discharged and unloaded, by the unloading apparatus, through a second opening that is an upper-end opening in the main chamber and wherein the unloading apparatus and the second opening in the main chamber are positioned in the internal space in the upper room.

A powder-surface treatment apparatus, the apparatus comprising:

• a housing defining an internal space having a portion that may be sealed-up;
• a main chamber installed in the internal space in the housing and defining an accommodation space in which a surface treatment process is performable using atomic layer deposition, wherein the accommodation space in the main chamber extends in an upward-downward direction;
• an injection unit provided on a first end portion of the main chamber in such a manner that gas may be injected into the accommodation space in the main chamber through the injection unit;
• a plurality of sub-chambers arranged in a stack on top of each other in a multi-step configuration along the accommodation space in the main chamber in a state where an internal space in each of the plurality of sub-chambers is filled with a powder, wherein the plurality of sub-chambers is configured in such a manner that the gas injected in the accommodation space in the main chamber may pass through the plurality of sub-chambers;
• a discharging unit provided on a second end portion of the main chamber in such a manner that the gas passing through the plurality of sub-chambers may be discharged from the accommodation space in the main chamber through the discharging unit;
• a loading apparatus configured to load a new sub-chamber into the accommodation space in the main chamber, in the sealed-up internal space in the housing that is filled with inert gas, wherein the new sub-chamber loaded by the loading apparatus is inserted into the accommodation space through a first opening that is a lower-end opening of the main chamber;
• and
• an unloading apparatus configured to unload at least one of the plurality of sub-chambers arranged to be stacked on top of each other in the accommodation space in the main chamber, from the accommodation space, and to discharge the at least one unloaded sub-chamber to the outside, wherein the sub-chamber undergoing the surface treatment process is discharged and unloaded, by the unloading apparatus, through a second opening that is an upper-end opening in the main chamber;
• wherein the main chamber comprises a chamber main body in which the accommodation space is defined and having the first opening that is the lower-end opening and the second opening that is the upper-end opening, a first end cap configured to open and close the first opening in the chamber main body, a second end cap configured to open and close the second opening in the chamber main body, and cap moving mechanisms configured to open and close the first end cap and the second end cap, respectively;
• wherein, in a state where the second end cap closes the second opening in the chamber main body, among the plurality of sub-chambers arranged to be stacked on top of each other in the multi-step configuration along the accommodation space in the main chamber, an uppermost sub-chamber is positioned in an internal space in the second end cap;
• and
• in a state where ascension of the second end cap opens the second opening in the chamber main body, the unloading apparatus is configured to unload the uppermost sub-chamber exposed outside of the chamber main body through the second opening.