Patent ID: 7220377

Claim:
A method of manufacturing a spacer assembly, which has a substrate and a plurality of columnar spacers provided on the substrate and is used in a flat display device, comprising: preparing the substrate and a molding die having a plurality of through holes; forming an organic coating film by applying a parting agent at least to the respective inner surfaces of the through holes of the molding die, the parting agent containing an organic component which is dissipated by being decomposed or burned by heating at a given temperature; locating the molding die on the surface of the substrate so as to be intimately in contact therewith and then filling a spacer forming material into the through holes of the molding die; curing the filled spacer forming material and then heating the substrate and the molding die at a first temperature to decompose or burn at least the organic coating film on the respective inner surfaces of the through holes of the molding die, thereby removing the organic coating film; parting the molding die from the substrate after the organic coating film is removed; heating the spacer forming material at a second temperature higher than the first temperature, thereby removing a binder from the spacer forming material, after the molding die is parted; and firing the spacer forming material at a third temperature higher than the first and second temperatures, thereby forming the spacers integrally on the substrate, after the binder removing process.