Abstract:
There is provided a laminating apparatus laminating an object to be laminated by introducing a fluid into an upper chamber demarcated by a diaphragm and sandwiching and pressing the object to be laminated placed on a heater panel by the diaphragm expanded by the introduced fluid, the apparatus including: a tank part in which the fluid to be introduced into the upper chamber is stored; and a heating mechanism heating the fluid stored in the tank part.

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     1. Field of the Invention 
     The present invention relates to a laminating apparatus particularly suitable for producing a laminated object in a thin plate shape such as a solar battery module. 
     2. Description of the Related Art 
     In recent years, various developments have been made on solar batteries with the aim of effective use of solar energy. Further, beside crystal type solar batteries using single crystal silicon or polycrystalline silicon, various types of solar batteries have been contrived, such as amorphous solar batteries using amorphous silicon (noncrystalline silicon). However, since silicon itself in any of these crystalline and amorphous types is subject to chemical change and has low resistance against a physical impact, a solar battery module in which silicon is laminated with a transparent vinyl film, tempered glass, heat-resistant glass, or the like is generally used. 
     Further, for use as building materials, an integrated module and the like in which an exterior wall material or a roof material is integrated with a solar battery module have come to be produced in recent years. A method to laminate a solar battery module is to interpose strings (solar battery cells) between a vinyl film or glass and a back sheet via a filler such as, for example, EVA (ethylene vinyl acetate) resin, and melt the filler by temperature given by heating under vacuum. 
     Conventionally, as a laminating apparatus for producing such solar battery modules and the like, there has been known a laminating apparatus which laminates an object to be laminated in a laminating part having a diaphragm on an upper side and a heater panel on a lower side, by melting a filler inside the object to be laminated and pressing the object to be laminated sandwiched between the diaphragm and the heater panel. Regarding such a laminating apparatus, the present applicant has disclosed “a laminating apparatus” in Japanese Patent Publication No. 3655076. In such a laminating apparatus, a solar battery module is placed on a heater panel in a pressure-reduced state and the atmosphere is introduced into an upper chamber above a diaphragm, whereby the solar battery module is sandwiched and pressed between an upper surface of the heater panel and a lower surface of the diaphragm. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     However, when the sandwiched solar battery module is pressed in the above-described manner, the room-temperature atmosphere is introduced into the upper chamber, and therefore, there has been a concern that an upper surface of the solar battery module might be cooled via the diaphragm. Further, during the laminating treatment, the temperature of the upper surface of the solar battery module which is in contact with the diaphragm is low and the temperature of a lower surface of the solar battery module which is in contact with the heater panel is high, and therefore, there has been a concern that the product might warp due to the temperature difference. Moreover, since conditions of a laminator in winter and in summer differ due to difference in the temperature of the atmosphere introduced into the upper chamber depending on seasons, there has been a concern about unstable quality of the products. 
     The present invention was made in view of the aforesaid problems, and its object is to provide a laminating apparatus capable of preventing an upper surface of a solar battery module from being cooled during laminating treatment and thus capable of producing products with stable quality irrespective of seasons. 
     To solve the aforesaid problems, according to the present invention, there is provided a laminating apparatus laminating an object to be laminated by introducing a fluid into an upper chamber demarcated by a diaphragm and sandwiching and pressing the object to be laminated placed on a heater panel by the diaphragm expanded by the introduced fluid, the apparatus including a tank part in which the fluid to be introduced into the upper chamber is stored; and a heating mechanism heating the fluid stored in the tank part. 
     The heating mechanism is, for example, a heater heating the fluid in the tank part while circulating the fluid. Further, the heating mechanism is, for example, a heater attached to the tank part. 
     The tank part may be disposed adjacent to the upper chamber. The laminating apparatus may further include a lift mechanism lifting up/down the object to be laminated between a position on the heater panel and a position apart upward from the heater panel. The object to be laminated is, for example, a solar battery module. 
     According to the present invention, since the pre-heated fluid in the tank part is introduced into the upper chamber when the sandwiched object to be laminated such as a solar battery module is pressed, the object to be laminated is not cooled. Therefore, no temperature difference occurs in the object to be laminated, which enables the production of products with stable quality. Further, the introduction of the heated fluid into the upper chamber makes it possible to shorten the time taken to increase the temperature of the object to be laminated, resulting in a reduction in the time of the laminating treatment. This enables a reduction in the treatment time, resulting in improved production efficiency. Further, according to the present invention, since the temperature of the fluid introduced into the upper chamber can be constant irrespective of seasons, conditions of a laminator in winter, summer, and so on are constant, resulting in stable quality of the products. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1  is a plane view of a laminating apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention; 
         FIG. 2  is a side view of the laminating apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention; 
         FIG. 3  is a sectional view taken along the arrows A-A in  FIG. 1 , and shows a state where an upper case is lifted up to open a laminating part; 
         FIG. 4  is a sectional view taken along the arrows A-A in  FIG. 1 , and shows a state where the upper case is lowered to hermetically close the laminating part; 
         FIG. 5  is a plane view of a heater panel; 
         FIG. 6  is an enlarged fragmentary view of the heater panel, and shows the structure of a support part in an enlarged manner; 
         FIG. 7  is an explanatory perspective view of the structure of a conveying sheet moving mechanism; 
         FIG. 8  is a plane view of a solar battery module; 
         FIG. 9  is an enlarged sectional view of the solar battery module M; 
         FIG. 10  is an explanatory view of a tank part with heaters attached to its outer surface; 
         FIG. 11  is an explanatory view of an upper case with a tank part provided adjacent to an upper chamber; 
         FIG. 12  is a graph showing temperature changes of the solar battery modules during the laminating treatment, according to an example of the present invention; and 
         FIG. 13  is a graph showing temperature changes of solar battery modules during the laminating treatment, according to a comparative example. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
     Hereinafter, a preferred embodiment of the present invention will be described based on a laminating apparatus  1  suitable for laminating a solar battery module M as an example of an object to be laminated. In the specification and the drawings, elements having substantially the same functions and structures will be denoted by the same reference numerals, and redundant description thereof will be omitted. 
     As shown in  FIG. 1  and  FIG. 2 , the laminating apparatus  1  includes a laminating unit  3  which has therein a laminating part  2 . In the shown example, the laminating part  2  is capable of simultaneously laminating a plurality of (for example, three) objects to be laminated. Further, for example, the laminating part  2  is formed large enough to laminate an object to be laminated which is about 2150 wide in a right and left direction and about 4000 mm wide in a front and rear direction, at the maximum. 
     The laminating apparatus  1  includes a conveying sheet  5  conveying, for example, three solar battery modules M placed thereon into the laminating unit  3 , and conveying, out of the laminating unit  3 , the solar battery modules M which have been laminated. On the right of the laminating unit  3 , provided is a supply conveyor  6  from which the solar battery modules M to be laminated are conveyed toward the laminating unit  3 . On the left of the laminating unit  3 , provided is an unloading conveyor  7  to which the solar battery modules M are unloaded out of the laminating unit  3 . The solar battery modules M are conveyed leftward in  FIG. 1  and  FIG. 2  as they are transferred to the supplier conveyor  6 , the conveying sheet  5 , and the unloading conveyor  7  in sequence. 
     As shown in  FIG. 2 , the laminate unit  3  includes an upper case  10  and a lower case  12 . An upper chamber  13  is formed inside the upper case  10 , and a lower chamber  15  is formed inside the lower case  12 . The laminating part  2  is constituted of the upper chamber  13  and the lower chamber  15 . 
     The lower case  12  is fixedly supported on an upper side of a base  16 . Brackets  21  are provided to be movable along support pillars  17  erected on a front side and a back side (a near side and a far side in  FIG. 2 ) of the base  16 , and a front side and a back side of the upper case  10  are fixed to the brackets  21 . This structure allows the upper case  10  to move up/down along the support pillars  17 , and to move up/down above the lower case  12  while kept parallel with the lower case  12 . 
     Hydraulic cylinders  22  are provided on sides of the respective support pillars  17 , and tips of piston rods  23  of the cylinders  22  are connected to lower surfaces of the brackets  21  fixed to the upper case  10 . Accordingly, when the piston rods  23  extend by the operation of the cylinders  22 , the upper case  10  moves up to separate from an upper surface of the lower case  12 , so that the laminating part  2  constituted of the upper chamber  13  and the lower chamber  15  becomes open. On the other hand, when the piston rods  23  contract by the operation of the cylinders  22 , the upper case  10  moves down to come into close contact with the upper surface of the lower case  12 , so that the laminating part  2  is hermetically closed. 
     As shown in  FIG. 3 , an expandable diaphragm  25  is fitted so as to horizontally partition the inside of the upper case  10 , and a space enclosed by the diaphragm  25  and an inner wall surface of the upper case  10  constitutes the upper chamber  13 . Further, as shown in  FIG. 4 , while the laminating part  2  is hermetically closed by the upper case  10  being lowered, a space enclosed by the diaphragm  25  and an inner wall surface of the lower case  12  constitutes a lower chamber  15 . As the diaphragm  25 , an elastic material such as a silicon diaphragm, a butyl diaphragm, or the like is used, for instance. An inlet/outlet port  26  is provided in an upper surface of the upper case  10  to communicate with the upper chamber  13 . 
     A vacuum pump  28  and a tank part  31  are connected to the inlet/outlet port  26  via a valve  27  and via a valve  30  respectively. With the vacuum pump  28 , it is possible to evacuate the inside of the upper chamber  13  and to introduce air into the upper chamber  13  from the tank part  31 . 
     An air supply port  32  for taking in outside air into the tank part  31  is formed in a side surface of the tank part  31 . Further, a heater  34  is connected to the tank part  31  via a valve  33 . The heater  34  is constituted by, for example, a hot-wind fan or the like. When the valve  33  is opened, air in the tank part  31  circulates by the heater  34 , and the air heated by the heater  34  is stored in the tank part  31 . 
     A heater panel  35  is provided in the lower case  12 . The heater panel  35  is structured such that heaters (not shown) are provided inside a metal plate made of, for example, aluminum. An inlet/outlet port  37  is provided in a lower surface of the lower case  12  so as to communicate with the lower chamber  15 . A vacuum pump  39  is connected to the inlet/outlet port  37  via a valve  38 . With the vacuum pump  39 , it is possible to evacuate the inside of the lower chamber  15  and to introduce air into the lower chamber  15  from the inlet/outlet port  37 . 
     When an internal pressure of the upper chamber  13  and an internal pressure of the lower chamber  15  are made different so that the former becomes higher than the latter, in a state where the laminating part  2  is hermetically closed by the upper case  10  being lowered and in close contact with an upper surface of the lower case  12  as shown in  FIG. 4 , the diaphragm  25  bulges out from the state shown by the two-dot chain line  25   a  in  FIG. 4  to the state shown by the solid line  25   b  in  FIG. 4  and pushes the object to be laminated M against the heater panel  35 , so that the sandwiched object to be laminated M is pressed. 
     As shown in  FIGS. 5 and 6 , on an upper surface of the heater panel  35 , support parts  51  of a lift mechanism  50  lifting up/down the solar battery module M via a conveying sheet  5  are provided to be movable up/down. The lift mechanism  50  includes the plural support parts  51 , and when the support parts  51  are simultaneously lifted up/down, the solar battery module M placed on the upper surface of the heater panel  35  via the conveying sheet  5  can be lifted up/down between a position on the heater panel  35  and a position apart upward from the heater panel  35 . 
     Each of the support parts  51  of the lift mechanism  50  has a shape which is long in a loading/unloading direction X of the solar battery module M. On the upper surface of the metal plate  35 , recessed portions  55  in which the respective lowered support parts  51  are housed are formed. The support parts  51  are supported by shafts  57  vertically passing through the heater panel  35 , and lower ends of the shafts  57  are supported on a horizontal support plate  60  moving up/down under the heater panel  35 . The plural support parts  51  included in the lift mechanism  50  are all placed on the common support plate  60 , and the up/down movement of the support plate  60  by a driving mechanism such as, for example, an air cylinder (not shown) enables the simultaneous up/down movement of all the plural support parts  51 . Alternatively, the support parts  51  may be coupled to the support plate  60 . 
     As shown in  FIG. 7 , when the support plate  60  is in a lowered state, the support parts  51  are at a down position D and are housed in the recessed portion s 55 , and the upper surfaces of the support parts  51  are substantially flush with the upper surface of the heater panel  35 . In this case, the solar battery module M placed on the conveying sheet  5  comes into thermal contact with the heater panel  35  via the conveying sheet  5 . On the other hand, when the support plate  60  is in a raised state, the support parts  51  are at an up position U and protrude upward from the upper surface of the heater panel  35 . In this case, the solar battery module M placed on the conveying sheet  5  is lifted up and is not in thermal contact with the heater panel  35 . 
     As shown in  FIG. 7 , the conveying sheet  5  conveying the solar battery module M into/out of the laminating part  2  while placing the solar battery module M thereon alternately circulates above and under the lower case  12  of the laminating unit  3  by the operation of a conveying sheet moving mechanism  70 . The conveying sheet moving mechanism  70  is structured such that endless chains  80  are wound around a driving pulley P 1  and driven pulleys P 2  to P 4  which are arranged in pairs outside the laminating part  2  on the right and left thereof. Each of these driving pulley P 1  and driven pulleys P 2  to P 4  includes a pair of pulleys on whose outer circumferential surfaces sprockets engaged with the endless chains  80  are formed. 
     The driving pulley P 1  and the driven pulley  3  are provided at the same height, and thereunder, the driven pulley P 2  and the driven pulley P 4  are provided at the same height. The driven pulley P 2  is provided under the driving pulley P 1 , and the driven pulley P 4  is provided under the driven pulley P 3 . Between the right and left endless chains  80 ,  80 , four crossbeam members  83   a  to  83   d  in a flat plate shape are provided at predetermined intervals. These crossbeam members  83   a  to  83   d  are fixed in such a manner that their both end portions have, for example, a hook shape and are hooked to the endless chains  80 ,  80 . The conveying sheets  5  are provided at two positions, i.e., between the crossbeam member  83   a  and the crossbeam member  83   b  and between the crossbeam member  83   c  and the crossbeam member  83   d . With this structure, the two conveying sheets  5  alternately move above and under the heater panel  35  by the intermittent circulation movement of the endless chains  80 . Since the crossbeam members  83   a  to  83   d  can be fixed with their both end portions hooked to the endless chains  80 ,  80 , it is possible to easily exchange the conveying sheets  5 . 
     The surface of each of the conveying sheets  5  is preferably formed of a material excellent in removability to which the filler does not easily attach and from which the attached filler can be easily removed, in order to prevent the filler squeezed out of the solar battery modules M from adhering to the surface when the solar battery module M in the sandwiched state is pressed by the diaphragm  25  in the laminating part  2 . A heat-resistant glass cloth sheet or the like coated with, for example, Teflon® (fluorocarbon resin) is preferably used as the conveying sheet  5 . Alternatively, the surface of the conveying sheet  5  may be coated with a material excellent in removability such as fluorocarbon resin, for example. 
       FIGS. 8 and 9  show the solar battery module M as one example of the laminated object which is favorably produced by the laminating apparatus  1  according to the embodiment of the present invention. The solar battery module M is formed in a rectangular thin plate shape. 
     The solar battery module M is structured such that strings  94  are sandwiched between a transparent cover glass  90  disposed on a lower side and a protective material  91  disposed on an upper side, via fillers  92  and  93 . As the protective material  91 , a transparent material such as PE resin is used, for instance. As the fillers  92  and  93 , EVA (ethylene vinyl acetate) resin or the like is used, for instance. Each of the strings  94  includes solar battery cells  97  which are connected between electrodes  95  and  96  via lead wires  98 . Front surfaces (light receiving surfaces) and back surfaces of the solar battery cells  97  are covered with the cover glass  90  on the lower side and with the protective material  91 , respectively. 
     The solar battery module M as the laminated object structured as above is produced by the laminating apparatus  1  of the embodiment of the present invention according to the following procedure. 
     First, the solar battery module M to be laminated is positioned on and supplied to the supply conveyor  6  which is disposed on the right of the laminating part  2  in  FIG. 1 , by means such as a robot not shown. The solar battery module M is supplied to the supply conveyor  6  of the laminating apparatus  1 , with the protective material  91  shown in  FIGS. 8 and 9  facing upward. 
     By the operation of the supply conveyor  6 , the solar battery module M supplied to the supply conveyor  6  is placed on the conveying sheet  5  which is set in advance on the right of the laminating part  2 . Then, the driving pulley P 1  of the conveying sheet moving mechanism  70  is driven, so that the solar battery module M is conveyed into the laminating part  2  together with the conveying sheet  5 . The heater panel  35  of the laminating part  2  is kept at a constant temperature (for example, 150° C. or 160° C.) by the built-in heaters (not shown), enabling uniform heating on the upper surface of the heater panel  35 . 
     Before the solar battery module M is conveyed into the laminating part  2  by the conveying sheet  5 , the laminating part  2  is opened by lifting up the upper case  10 . The operation of lifting up the upper case  10  is caused by the extension operation of the cylinders  22  described in  FIG. 1 . Further, the support parts  51  of the lift mechanism  50  are lifted up to be disposed at the up position U shown in  FIG. 6  before the conveying sheet  5  reaches the laminating part  2 . When entering the laminating part  2 , the conveying sheet  5  having the solar battery module M thereon is conveyed thereto while being lifted up so as to be apart from the upper surface of the heater panel  35  by the support parts  5  which have been positioned at the up position U. 
     After the loading is finished and the conveying sheet  5  having the solar battery module M thereon is disposed above the heater panel  35 , the upper case  10  is lowered to hermetically close the laminating part  2 . The operation of lowering the upper case  10  is caused by the contraction operation of the cylinders  22  described in  FIG. 1 . Then, the inside of the upper chamber  13  is evacuated by the vacuum pump  28  while the valve  27  is opened and the valve  30  is closed, and at the same time, the inside of the lower chamber  15  is evacuated by the vacuum pump  39  while the valve  38  is opened. In this manner, the inside of the upper chamber  13  and the inside of the lower chamber  15  are simultaneously evacuated via the inlet/outlet ports  26 ,  37 . 
     During or before this evacuation of the inside of the upper chamber  13  and the inside of the lower chamber  15 , the valve  33  is opened and the air in the tank part  31  is circulated by the heater  34 . Consequently, the air heated by the heater  34  is stored in the tank part  31 . 
     After the inside of the upper chamber  13  and the inside of the lower chamber  15  are evacuated to, for example, 0.7 Torr to 1.0 Torr, the support parts  51  of the lift mechanism  50  are lowered to the down position D shown in  FIG. 6  in the lower chamber  15 . Consequently, the conveying sheet  5  which has been lifted up comes into contact with the upper surface of the heater panel  35 , and the solar battery module M on the conveying sheet  5  is brought into thermal contact with the upper surface of the heater panel  35  to be heated. This heating promotes a chemical reaction of the EVA resin as the fillers  92 ,  93  in the solar battery modules M, causing bridging. 
     Then, in this state, the valve  27  is closed and the valve  30  is opened, so that the pre-heated air stored in the tank part  31  is introduced into the upper chamber  13  via the inlet/outlet port  26 . Consequently, the diaphragm  25  is expanded downward in the laminating part  2 , so that the solar battery module M is sandwiched and pressed between the upper surface of the heater panel  35  and the diaphragm  25 . 
     Incidentally, when the heated air in the tank part  31  is thus introduced into the upper chamber  13 , outside air is taken into the tank part  31  via the air supply port  32 . The air thus taken into the tank part  31  is circulated by the heater  34 , and the air heated by the heater  34  is stored in the tank part  31  again. 
     Then, after the laminating treatment is finished by heating and pressing in the laminating part  2  to produce the solar battery module M, atmospheric pressure is introduced into the lower chamber  15  via the inlet/outlet port  37 . Then, the upper case  10  is lifted up to open the laminating part  2 . The operation of lifting up the upper case  10  is caused by the extension operation of the cylinders  22  described in  FIG. 1 . 
     Then, after the support parts  51  of the lift mechanism  50  are lifted up to the up position U, the driving pulley P 1  is driven, so that the solar battery module M is conveyed out of the laminating part  2  together with the conveying sheet  5 . The conveying sheet  5  having the solar battery module M thereon is conveyed out of the laminating part  2  while being lifted up to the position above the heater panel  35  by the support parts  51  raised to the up position U. 
     The solar battery module M having undergone the laminating treatment is unloaded to the unloading conveyor  7  disposed on the left of the laminating part  2  in  FIG. 1 , by the operation of the conveying sheet  5  and the unloading conveyor  7 . Then, the solar battery module M is taken out from the unloading conveyor  7  by means such as a robot not shown and is conveyed to the next process. Incidentally, when the solar battery module M having undergone the laminating treatment is thus unloaded to the unloading conveyor  7 , a solar battery module M to be laminated next may be loaded into the laminating part  2  at the same time. 
     According to the above-described embodiment, the pre-heated air stored in the tank part  32  is introduced into the upper chamber  13 , and therefore, the solar battery module M is not cooled when sandwiched and pressed. This eliminates a temperature difference in the solar battery module M, which makes it possible to produce products with stable quality. Further, since the solar battery module M is prevented from being cooled, it is possible to quickly raise the temperature up to a reaction temperature of EVA resin or the like as the fillers  92 ,  93 . This can shorten the laminating treatment time, resulting in improved production efficiency. Further, since the temperature of the air introduced into the upper chamber  13  can be constant irrespective of seasons, conditions of a laminator are constant in winter, summer, and so on, resulting in stable product quality. 
     In addition, when the solar battery module M is loaded into the laminating part  2 , the solar battery module M placed on the conveying sheet  5  is lifted up to be apart from the heater panel  35 , which can prevent the solar battery module M from being heated by the heater panel  35  of the laminating part  2  before the completion of the loading of the solar battery module M. This can eliminate a difference in heating time among the solar battery module M loaded first and the solar battery modules M loaded later, in a case where, for example, the plural solar battery modules M are treated in the laminating part  2 , and thus enables heating of the plural solar battery modules M to uniform temperature. Further, it is possible to prevent the occurrence of bubbles in the solar battery module M which might be caused if the solar battery module M were heated before the laminating treatment, and accordingly, it is possible to produce higher quality solar battery modules M than was possible conventionally. 
     Hitherto, a preferred embodiment of the present invention has been described with reference to the attached drawings, but the present invention is not limited to such an example. It is obvious that those skilled in the art could reach various modification examples and corrected examples within the technical idea described in the claims, and it should be understood that these examples also belong to the technical scope of the present invention. 
     The above embodiment describes the case where the air in the tank part  31  is circulated by the heater  34  to be heated, but heaters  100  may be attached to the tank part  31  as shown in  FIG. 10 , and the air in the tank part  31  may be heated by the heat of the heaters  100 . In this case, as the heaters  100 , rubber heaters or the like are usable, for instance. 
     Further, the tank part  31  may be disposed adjacent to the upper case  10  constituting the upper chamber  13  as shown in  FIG. 11 . If the tank part  31  and the upper chamber  13  are disposed adjacent to each other as shown in  FIG. 11 , the upper case  10  is also heated together with the tank part  31 , which can more surely prevent the solar battery module M from being cooled when the sandwiched solar battery module M is pressed. 
     The number of the solar battery modules M simultaneously loaded to and treated in the laminating part  2  may be one, or any plural number. Further, the fluid introduced into the upper chamber  13  from the tank part  31  is not limited to air, but may be gas or the like such as inert gas, or may be a fluid other than gas, such as liquid. The interior content of the tank part  31  is preferably as large as that of the upper chamber  13  or more (for example, about twice as large as that of the upper chamber  13 ), so as to enable the introduction of a sufficient amount of the fluid into the upper chamber  13  from the tank part  31  during the laminating treatment. 
     Example 
     Solar battery modules were actually laminated in the laminating apparatus described with reference to  FIG. 1  and so on, with pre-heated air introduced into the upper chamber during the laminating treatment (example of the present invention), and with non-heated air (outside air) introduced into the upper chamber as it is (comparative example), and temperature changes of the solar battery modules during the laminating treatment in the both cases were studied. As a result, in the present invention ( FIG. 12 ), the temperature reached from 65° C. to a bridging temperature 140° C. during a period from the start of the laminating treatment (about 6 minutes 30 seconds) to about 9 minutes later (about 15 minutes 30 seconds). On the other hand, in the comparative example ( FIG. 13 ), the temperature reached from 55° C. to the bridging temperature 140° C. during a period from the start of the laminating treatment (about 7 minutes) to about 12 minutes later (about 19 minutes). When the temperature increase rates in the example of the present invention ( FIG. 12 ) and the comparative example ( FIG. 13 ) were compared, the former was about 8.3° C./min. and the latter was about 7° C./min. It is understood that the present invention can realize higher temperature increase rate and higher production ability than have conventionally been realized. 
     The present invention is especially useful as a laminating apparatus laminating an object to be laminated such as, for example, a translucent substrate, a filler, and a solar battery element to produce a solar battery module.