CN219404297U - Wafer handling assembly, robot and transmission device - Google Patents

Abstract

The utility model discloses a wafer carrying assembly, a robot and a transmission device, wherein the wafer carrying assembly comprises a body and M end effectors, wherein the end effectors are provided with end fingers, and the number of the end fingers arranged in each end effector is different; m is an integer greater than 1. The end effector with the tail fingers of different numbers is integrated, the wafer handling device can be suitable for carrying wafers of different numbers, the application range of the wafer handling assembly is enlarged, the wafer handling device can be matched and applied to gluing, developing, photoresist removing and other process equipment in the fields of semiconductor production, high-end packaging, MEMS, LED and the like, and meanwhile, the wafer handling efficiency is improved.

Description

Wafer handling assembly, robot and transmission device

Technical Field

The present utility model relates to the field of wafer handling, and in particular, to a wafer handling assembly, a robot, and a transfer device.

Background

With the rapid development of the semiconductor industry, end customers have put higher demands on the capacity and process diversity of process equipment applied to the field.

As an integrated subsystem of the whole system of the semiconductor process equipment, the vacuum transmission platform transmission system is a bridge connecting the material handling system and the wafer processing system, and can ensure that the wafer is rapidly and efficiently transmitted under the vacuum environment and the condition of no pollution. The vacuum transmission platform transmission system is widely applied to the semiconductor front-end high-end equipment, is suitable for the wafer transmission system of the high-capacity semiconductor processing equipment, can flexibly carry one to a plurality of process chambers according to the process requirements of clients, and can be provided with one to a plurality of work stations. The vacuum transfer platform system is generally composed of main components such as a vacuum robot, a transfer chamber, a process chamber, a Load Lock chamber, and the like.

At present, the vacuum platform transmission system in the industry is mainly divided into a single station and a double station according to the types of the process chambers, the single station process chambers are adopted, the center line of the valve opening of the process chamber needs to pass through the center of the vacuum robot body in the transmission chamber, and the appearance of the transmission chamber needs to be changed along with the increase of the number of the single station process chambers, so that the vacuum platform transmission system is often applied to occasions with low requirements on productivity and occupied area utilization rate. The transmission system adopting the double-station process chamber has high requirement on productivity, and the vacuum robot is required to be capable of simultaneously taking, putting and conveying two wafers in the double-station process chamber, so that the butterfly hand vacuum robot such as Brooks Mag8Q, yaskawa Gekko-VD31HQF and the like is often applied to the transmission system, and compared with the vacuum transmission platform of the single-station process chamber type, the vacuum transmission platform has the advantages of high productivity, high occupied area utilization rate, small wafer pollution risk and the like.

However, as the diversity of the process requirements of customers increases, the requirements of a vacuum platform transmission system formed by combining a single-station process chamber and a double-station process chamber are more and more strong, and the vacuum platform transmission system not only requires a vacuum robot to simultaneously pick and place two wafers in the double-station process chamber, but also requires the vacuum robot to simultaneously pick and place one wafer in the single-station process chamber, so that the vacuum platform transmission system of each manufacturer on the market cannot simultaneously carry the single-station process chamber and the double-station process chamber, and the common vacuum robot cannot overcome the conveying function.

Disclosure of Invention

The present utility model is directed to solving, at least to some extent, one of the problems in the related art. Therefore, the utility model aims to provide a wafer carrying assembly, a robot and a transmission device, which expand the application range of the wafer carrying assembly and improve the wafer carrying efficiency.

In order to achieve the above purpose, the present application adopts the following technical scheme: the wafer carrying assembly comprises a body and M end effectors, wherein end fingers are arranged in the end effectors, and the number of the end fingers arranged in each end effector is different; m is an integer greater than 1.

Further, a body is included, the end effector being coupled to the body by a large arm and a small arm.

Further, when M is 2, the handling assembly includes a left large arm, a right large arm, a left small arm, and a right small arm, and the end effector includes a left end effector and a right end effector;

the left end effector is connected to a left forearm, the left forearm is connected to a left big arm, and the left big arm is connected to the top end of the body; the right end effector is connected to a right forearm, which is connected to the top end of the body.

Further, the front end of the left end effector is provided with one end finger, and the front end of the right end effector is provided with two end fingers.

Further, the left end effector and the right end effector are located in different planes; the left and right large arms are located in different planes, and the left and right small arms are located in different planes.

A wafer handling robot comprising a wafer handling assembly as described above.

A wafer transfer apparatus includes a wafer handling assembly as described above.

Further, the vacuum conveying device further comprises a conveying chamber, a vacuum storage chamber and a process chamber, wherein the conveying assembly is positioned inside the conveying chamber, and the vacuum storage chamber and the process chamber are positioned on the side edge of the conveying chamber.

Further, the process chambers include single-station process chambers and dual-station process chambers.

Further, the distance between the two stations inside the dual station process chamber is equal to the distance between the two end fingers in the end effector.

Compared with the prior art, the technical scheme provided by the embodiment of the application has the following advantages: the wafer carrying assembly comprises a body and M end effectors, wherein end fingers are arranged in the end effectors, the number of the end fingers arranged in each end effector is different, when a wafer is placed in one position, the end effectors with one end finger are used for carrying wafers, when the wafer is placed in two positions, the end effectors with two end fingers are used for carrying wafers, and when the wafer is placed in more than two positions, the end effectors with the corresponding number of the end fingers are used for carrying wafers. According to the end effector, one wafer carrying can be achieved, two wafers are carried and more than two wafers are carried, the number of specific carried wafers is determined according to the number of the wafer placing positions, that is, the end effector with the tail fingers of different numbers is integrated, the end effector can be suitable for carrying wafers of different numbers, the application range of the wafer carrying assembly is enlarged, the end effector can be matched to be applied to process equipment such as gluing, developing and photoresist removing in the fields of semiconductor production, high-end packaging, MEMS (micro electro mechanical systems), LEDs and the like, and meanwhile, the wafer carrying efficiency is improved.

Drawings

The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated in and constitute a part of this specification, illustrate embodiments consistent with the utility model and together with the description, serve to explain the principles of the utility model.

In order to more clearly illustrate the embodiments of the utility model or the technical solutions of the prior art, the drawings which are used in the description of the embodiments or the prior art will be briefly described, and it will be obvious to a person skilled in the art that other drawings can be obtained from these drawings without inventive effort.

In the accompanying drawings:

FIG. 1 is a schematic view of the overall structure of a wafer handling assembly of the present application;

FIG. 2 is a schematic side view of the wafer handling assembly of the present application;

FIG. 3 is a top view of the right end effector of the wafer handling assembly of the present application in an extended position;

FIG. 4 is an isometric view of a right end effector of the wafer handling assembly of the present application in an extended position;

FIG. 5 is a top view of the left end effector of the wafer handling assembly of the present application in an extended position;

FIG. 6 is an isometric view of a left end effector extended position in the wafer handling assembly of the present application

FIG. 7 is a first top view of the wafer transfer device of the present application;

FIG. 8 is a second top view of the wafer transfer device of the present application;

reference numerals: 1. a body; 2. a right large arm; 3. a left large arm; 4. a right forearm; 5. a left forearm; 6. a left end effector; 7. a right end effector; 8. a distal finger; 9. a transfer chamber; 10. a single-station process chamber; 11. a double-station process chamber; 12. a vacuum storage chamber; 13. a wafer;

Detailed Description

For a clearer understanding of technical features, objects and effects of the present utility model, a detailed description of embodiments of the present utility model will be made with reference to the accompanying drawings. In the following description, it should be understood that the directions or positional relationships indicated by "front", "rear", "upper", "lower", "left", "right", "longitudinal", "transverse", "vertical", "horizontal", "top", "bottom", "inner", "outer", "head", "tail", etc. are configured and operated in specific directions based on the directions or positional relationships shown in the drawings, and are merely for convenience of describing the present utility model, not to indicate that the mechanism or element referred to must have specific directions, and thus should not be construed as limiting the present utility model.

It should also be noted that unless explicitly stated or limited otherwise, terms such as "mounted," "connected," "secured," "disposed," and the like are to be construed broadly and may be, for example, fixedly connected, detachably connected, or integrally formed; can be mechanically or electrically connected; can be directly connected or indirectly connected through an intermediate medium, and can be communicated with the inside of two elements or the interaction relationship of the two elements. When an element is referred to as being "on" or "under" another element, it can be "directly" or "indirectly" on the other element or one or more intervening elements may also be present. The terms "first," "second," "third," and the like are used merely for convenience in describing the present utility model and are not to be construed as indicating or implying a relative importance or implicitly indicating the number of technical features indicated, whereby features defining "first," "second," "third," etc. may explicitly or implicitly include one or more such features. The specific meaning of the above terms in the present utility model can be understood by those of ordinary skill in the art according to the specific circumstances.

In the following description, for purposes of explanation and not limitation, specific details are set forth such as the particular system architecture, techniques, etc., in order to provide a thorough understanding of the embodiments of the present utility model. It will be apparent, however, to one skilled in the art that the present utility model may be practiced in other embodiments that depart from these specific details. In other instances, detailed descriptions of well-known systems, mechanisms, circuits, and methods are omitted so as not to obscure the description of the present utility model with unnecessary detail.

Example 1

Referring to fig. 1-8, a wafer handling assembly provided in the present application includes a body 1 and M end effectors, wherein end fingers 8 are disposed in the end effectors, and the number of the end fingers 8 disposed in each end effector is different; m is an integer greater than 1.

The wafer handling assembly comprises a body 1 and M end effectors, wherein end fingers 8 are arranged in the end effectors, the number of the end fingers 8 arranged in each end effector is different, when one wafer is placed, the end effector with one end finger 8 is used for carrying wafers, when two wafers are placed, the end effectors with two end fingers 8 are used for carrying wafers, and when more than two wafers are placed, the end effectors with the corresponding number of the end fingers 8 are used for carrying wafers.

In this application, the end effector may implement one wafer handling, two wafer handling and more than two wafer handling, the number of specific handling wafers 13 is determined according to the number of wafer placing bits, that is, the end effectors with different numbers of end fingers 8 are integrated together, and the number of the end effectors specifically integrated needs to be determined according to site limitation, for example, when the number of the end effectors integrated in this application is 5, the number of the end fingers 8 set in the 5 end effectors is 1-5 respectively, and the method is applicable to wafer handling with 1-5 wafer placing bits. When the number of the end effectors integrated in the application is 3, the number of the end fingers 8 arranged in the 3 end effectors is 1-3, and the wafer handling device can be suitable for wafer handling of 1-3 wafer placing positions.

The wafer handling assembly can be suitable for wafer handling of different numbers, expands the application range of the wafer handling assembly, can be matched and applied to gluing, developing, photoresist removing and other process equipment in the fields of semiconductor production, high-end packaging, MEMS, LED and the like, and simultaneously improves the wafer handling efficiency.

Example 2

Referring to fig. 1-8, a wafer handling assembly provided in the present application includes a body 1 and M end effectors, wherein end fingers 8 are disposed in the end effectors, and the number of the end fingers 8 disposed in each end effector is different; m is an integer greater than 1.

The wafer handling assembly in this application further comprises a body 1, the end effector being connected to the body 1 by a large arm and a small arm.

In this embodiment, M is equal to 2, and when M is other values, the connection mode and the working principle are similar to those of this embodiment, and only the number of the end effectors needs to be extended.

As shown in fig. 1-8, when M is 2, the handling assembly includes a left large arm 3, a right large arm 2, a left small arm 5, and a right small arm 4, and the end finger 8 includes a left end effector 6 and a right end effector 7; the front end of the left end effector 6 is provided with one end finger 8, and the front end of the right end effector 7 is provided with two end fingers 8.

The left end effector 6 is connected to the left small arm 5, the left small arm 5 is connected to the left large arm 3, and the left large arm 3 is connected to the top end of the body 1; the right end effector 7 is connected to the right forearm 4, the right forearm 4 is connected to the right forearm 2, and the right forearm 2 is connected to the top end of the body 1.

Specifically, the right big arm 2 and the left big arm 3 are fixedly connected together and rotatably fixed at the top end of the body 1, the right small arm 4 is rotatably fixed on the right big arm 2, the right end effector 7 is rotatably fixed on the right small arm 4, and two end fingers 8 are fixed on the right end effector 7 through screws. The left forearm 5 is rotatably fixed to the left forearm 3, the left end effector 6 is rotatably fixed to the left forearm 5, and one end finger 8 is fixed to the left end effector 6 by a screw.

The wafer is carried by the left end effector 6 of one end finger 8 when the wafer is set to one position, and the wafer is carried by the left end effector 6 of two end fingers 8 when the wafer is set to two positions.

To facilitate a better integration of the two end effectors on the same body 1, the left end effector 6 and the right end effector 7 in this application lie in different planes; the left and right large arms 3, 2 are located in different planes, and the left and right small arms 5, 4 are located in different planes.

The application also provides a wafer handling robot comprising the wafer handling assembly as described above.

The robot mentioned in the present application is not limited to the vacuum robot for the semiconductor industry, but may be an atmospheric robot for the semiconductor industry or a robot similar in structural function for other industries.

Example 3

The application provides a wafer transmission device, including the wafer handling subassembly in embodiment 2, still include transmission cavity 9, vacuum storage cavity 12 and process chamber, the handling subassembly is located transmission cavity 9 inside, vacuum storage cavity 12 and process chamber are located transmission cavity 9's side. The process chambers include a single-station process chamber 10 and a double-station process chamber 11. As shown in fig. 8 and 2, the distance LN between the two stations inside the double station process chamber 11 is equal to the distance LM between the two end fingers 8 in the right end effector 7.

The vacuum robot has arms similar to Brooks Mag8Q in motion, and when one arm is in extension motion, the other arm is fixed relative to the big arm to perform rotation motion together.

The transfer chamber 9 provides an arm movement space for the wafer handling assembly, the vacuum robot is installed inside the transfer chamber 9, the single-station process chamber 10 chamber and the double-station process chamber 11 chamber are fixedly installed on the side of the transfer chamber 9 through a gate valve, and the vacuum storage chamber 12 is fixedly installed on the side of the transfer chamber 9 through a gate valve.

When the robot is required to get and put a piece from the double-station process chamber 11, the right arm stretches out and draws back, the left arm rotates, and the right end effector 7 stretches out and retracts along the vertical direction of the valve opening of the double-station process chamber 11. Similarly, when the required single-station process chamber 10 is used for picking and placing a wafer, the left arm stretches out and draws back, the right arm rotates, and the left end effector 6 stretches out and retracts along the vertical direction of the valve opening of the single-station process chamber 10. The wafer 13 can be taken and placed by being matched with the robot to do lifting motion.

The right end effector 7 of the robot is not limited to the corresponding double-station process chamber 11, the process chambers corresponding to different stations can be realized by changing the number of the end fingers 8 in the right end effector 7, and likewise, the left end effector 6 is not limited to the corresponding single-station process chamber 10, and the process chambers corresponding to different stations can be realized by changing the number of the end fingers 8 in the left end effector 6.

The transfer device of the present application is not limited to the shape of the transfer chamber 9, the number and layout of single station process chambers 10, double station process chambers 11.

The application field of the transmission device is not limited to semiconductor production, and can be applied to other fields of general semiconductors, such as flat panel display, LEDs, MEMS, solar cells and the like.

The design of the transmission device and the layout of the functional units in the transmission device are not limited to the embodiments described in the present application, and other transmission systems realized based on the design theory of the present application are also included.

It is to be understood that the above examples only represent preferred embodiments of the present utility model, which are described in more detail and are not to be construed as limiting the scope of the utility model; it should be noted that, for a person skilled in the art, the above technical features can be freely combined, and several variations and modifications can be made without departing from the scope of the utility model; therefore, all changes and modifications that come within the meaning and range of equivalency of the claims are to be embraced within their scope.

Claims (10)

1. The wafer carrying assembly is characterized by comprising a body and M end effectors, wherein end fingers are arranged in the end effectors, and the number of the end fingers arranged in each end effector is different; m is an integer greater than 1.

2. The wafer handling assembly of claim 1, further comprising a body, the end effector being coupled to the body by a large arm and a small arm.

3. The wafer handling assembly of claim 2, wherein when M is 2, the handling assembly comprises a left large arm, a right large arm, a left small arm, and a right small arm, the end effector comprising a left end effector and a right end effector;

the left end effector is connected to a left forearm, the left forearm is connected to a left big arm, and the left big arm is connected to the top end of the body; the right end effector is connected to a right forearm, which is connected to the top end of the body.

4. A wafer handling assembly according to claim 3, wherein the front end of said left end effector is provided with one end finger and the front end of said right end effector is provided with two end fingers.

5. A wafer handling assembly according to claim 3, wherein said left and right end effectors are located in different planes; the left and right large arms are located in different planes, and the left and right small arms are located in different planes.

6. A wafer handling robot comprising a wafer handling assembly according to any of claims 1-5.

7. A wafer transfer apparatus comprising a wafer handling assembly according to any one of claims 1-5.

8. The wafer transfer device of claim 7, further comprising a transfer chamber, a vacuum storage chamber, and a process chamber, the handling assembly being located inside the transfer chamber, the vacuum storage chamber and the process chamber being located on sides of the transfer chamber.

9. The wafer transfer device of claim 8, wherein the process chamber comprises a single station process chamber and a dual station process chamber.

10. The wafer transfer device of claim 9, wherein a distance between two stations within the dual station process chamber is equal to a distance between two end fingers in an end effector.