JP2000006073A - Hand for conveying substrate - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To meet a variety of substrates different in size and eliminate loss time at the time of tool change on a manufacturing line. SOLUTION: This hand 1, which is used in a robot conveying a substrate 4 while holding it horizontally, has a quadrangular shape with a V-shaped notch part 1a at its front end, and is provided with protrusions 8 holding the substrate 4 at a plurality of positions on both sides of the notch part 1a at the front end and along a central line from near the bottom of the notch part 1a, and suction cups 5 sucking the substrate 4 on the back side of the protrusions on both sides of the notch part 1a and on both sides of the mid-part of the hand 1.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

The present invention relates to a substrate transfer hand, and more particularly to a substrate transfer hand for transferring a glass substrate for a PDP (Plasma Display Panel) in a clean room.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art FIG. 9 is a perspective view of a cassette containing a plurality of glass substrates and the like. The cassette a horizontally supports both ends of the substrate b, and stores a plurality of (15 to 20) substrates at predetermined intervals in the vertical direction.

FIG. 10 is a plan view of a substrate transport robot. A substrate transfer robot c (articulated arm robot) is used to take out the substrate b from the cassette a. The articulated arm robot c has two articulated arms d
A thin hand e is provided at the tip of the joint arm d. This hand e is horizontally inserted between the substrates b of the cassette a, and is supported from the lower surface of the substrate b. It is designed to be lifted and taken out of the cassette a.

Until now, a thin substrate has been taken out of the cassette a in this way, and the liquid crystal production line is targeted.
Basically, substrates of one type are transported to one production line. In the future, large-size flat-panel TV lines, etc., which are expected to increase in number, will not be limited to single-size glass as in the conventional liquid crystal production line, but will be hybrid lines. It is expected that it will be transported.

[0005]

However, when substrates of different sizes are conveyed to one manufacturing line, a hand for each size is prepared in advance, and a hand for each size is prepared according to the size of the substrate to be conveyed. There is a problem that the hand must be replaced each time.

[0006] The present invention has been made in view of the various problems described above. In other words, the present invention eliminates the need to exchange hands every time even when many types of substrates having different sizes are conveyed to one production line, thereby reducing the time loss such as setup change of the production line. It is an object of the present invention to provide a substrate transfer hand that can be eliminated.

[0007]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In order to achieve the above object, the present invention relates to a hand used in a substrate transfer robot for horizontally holding and transferring a substrate, and has a V-shaped notch at the tip. A plurality of projections for supporting the substrate on both sides of the notch at the tip and near the bottom of the notch, and at a plurality of locations along the center line, and projections on both sides of the notch. The present invention provides a substrate transfer hand having suction cups that adsorb to a substrate on the near side of the hand and on both sides of an intermediate portion of the hand.

According to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the suction cup is provided in a concave portion on the upper surface of the hand, has a circular projection on a peripheral edge of an upper surface of a bottom plate, and has a bottomed cylindrical shape having a through hole in the center. A base receiving member and an elastic supporting member fixed to the lower surface of the bottom plate and having a through hole communicating with the through hole in the center and having a cup shape. An air suction passage communicating with the inside is provided.

According to another preferred embodiment of the present invention,
The protrusion is made of resin.

According to another preferred embodiment of the present invention,
An annular seal ring is fitted on the upper surface of the annular projection of the suction cup.

According to another preferred embodiment of the present invention,
Instead of providing projections at a plurality of locations along the hand center line, a plurality of projections are provided on the front side of the suction cups on both sides of the hand middle part.

Next, the operation of the present invention will be described. The hand has a notch at the tip, and the base is connected to the tip of the arm of the substrate transfer robot (articulated arm robot). The notch provided at the tip is provided so as not to interfere with the substrate supporting member supporting the substrate when removing the substrate from the cassette or mounting the substrate on an inspection table or the like. To remove the substrate from the cassette, operate the articulated arm robot, insert the hand under the substrate stored in the cassette, lift the hand slightly upward, and lift the suction cup provided in the recess of the hand. The lower surface of the substrate is supported by the annular projection. At this time, the suction cup protrudes slightly above the upper surface of the hand by an annular skirt which also serves as a spring and a seal of the elastic support member. After being supported by the protrusions of the suction cup, when air is sucked from the air suction passage communicating with the inside of the skirt of the elastic support member of the suction cup, the inside of the elastic support member becomes vacuum and the substrate is sucked and fixed by the suction cup. The articulated arm robot is operated while the substrate is fixed by the suction cup of the hand, and the substrate is taken out of the cassette and transferred to another place. When the substrate is transferred from the hand to another place, the suction of the air in the elastic supporting member is stopped by an operation opposite to the fixing of the substrate to release the fixing of the substrate. If an annular seal ring (O-ring) is provided on the upper surface of the annular protrusion of the suction cup, the space between the substrate and the suction cup can be made more airtight.

The substrate is placed on the hand such that the center of the substrate to be handled coincides with the center of the square formed by the four suction cups. The minimum size of the substrate that can be handled is slightly larger than the square formed by the suction cup, and the maximum size is such that the length of each side is approximately twice that of each side of the above-described square. The projections are provided on the outside in the longitudinal direction of the square formed by the suction cup and in the vicinity of the center of the quadrilateral, and support the substrate so as to reduce the droop of the substrate when supported by the suction cup. The height of the projection is the same as the height of the suction cup at the time of suction. Since the suction cups and the projections are arranged in such a manner, it is possible to cope with various types of substrates having different sizes, and it is possible to eliminate a loss time for exchanging hands according to the size of the substrate.

[0014]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS A preferred embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a side view of a substrate transfer hand of the present invention, FIG.
FIG. 3 is a plan view of the substrate transfer hand, and FIG. 4 is a BB of FIG.
FIG. 5 is a side sectional view of the suction cup of FIG. 3, FIG. 6 is a side sectional view of the protrusion of FIG. 3, and FIG. 7 is a sectional view of a part of FIG.

1 to 7, reference numeral 1 denotes a substrate transfer hand. The hand 1 has a V-shaped notch 1a at the tip.
(FIGS. 3 and 4). Hand 1
1d is a concave portion 1d in which a predetermined portion is hollowed out and a lower portion is opened.
And the recess 1d is closed by the hand cover 3 from below to reduce the weight. Reference numeral 4 denotes a substrate supported on the hand 1 (virtual lines in FIGS. 3 to 6). Reference numeral 2 denotes a connection portion provided at the base of the hand 1, which is connected to a tip of an arm of a substrate transfer robot (articulated arm robot) not shown.

Numeral 5 denotes a suction cup provided on the hand 1, as shown in FIGS. A total of four recesses 1b are provided in the recess 1b whose upper part is open. As shown in FIG. 5, the suction cup 5 has an annular projection 6b at the periphery of the upper surface of the bottom plate 6a and a through hole 6c at the center.
And a through-hole 7a fixed to the lower surface of the bottom plate 6a and communicating with the through-hole 6c at the center.
And an elastic support member 7 in a shape covered with a cup. Reference numeral 7b denotes an annular skirt that also serves as a spring and a seal for the elastic support member 7. The suction cup 5 is an annular suction cup holding plate 1
2 is provided on the hand 1 so as to be able to move up and down slightly.

An air suction passage 1e communicating with the inside of the elastic support member 7 is provided at the bottom of the concave portion 1b of the hand 1 (FIG. 5). Reference numeral 13 denotes a closing plate for forming the air suction passage 1e, which is fixed so that the lower surface of the closing plate 13 is covered by the hand cover 3 (FIG. 7).

Reference numeral 8 denotes a projection made of PEEK (polyether ether ketone) resin for supporting the substrate 4. The projection 8 is provided at the center of the projection fixing plate 9 so as to project slightly above the upper surface of the hand 1. As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, a total of five protrusions 8 are provided at three locations along the center line from both sides of the notch 1a at the tip of the hand 1 and near the bottom of the notch 1a. As shown in FIG. 6, the hand 1 is fixed in a concave portion 1c having an open upper part.

Instead of providing the projections 8 at a plurality of locations along the center line of the hand 1 as described above, a plurality of projections 8 may be provided on the front side of the suction cup 5 on both sides of the intermediate portion of the hand.

An optical sensor 10 is provided in the middle of the hand 1 and detects whether or not the substrate 4 is on the hand 1 (FIGS. 3 and 4).

FIG. 8 is a side sectional view of the suction cup according to the fourth aspect. An annular seal ring (O-ring) 14 is fitted to the upper surface of the annular protrusion 6b of the suction cup 5 shown in FIG. The other configuration is the same as that of the suction cup 5 shown in FIG. 5, and a duplicate description will be omitted.

Next, the operation of the embodiment of the present invention will be described. The hand 1 has a notch 1a at the tip, and the base is connected to the tip of the arm of the substrate transfer robot (articulated arm robot). Notch 1a provided at the tip
When the substrate 4 is taken out from the cassette or when the substrate 4 is placed on an inspection table or the like, it is provided so as not to interfere with the substrate supporting member supporting the substrate 4. To take out the substrate 4 from the cassette, the multi-joint arm robot is operated to insert the hand 1 below the substrate 4 stored in the cassette, and the hand 1 is lifted slightly upward and the concave portion 1b of the hand 1 is lifted. The lower surface of the substrate 4 is supported by the annular projection 6 of the suction cup 5 provided therein. At this time, the suction cup 5 is provided with a hand 1 by an annular skirt 7b which also serves as a spring and a seal of the elastic support member.
Projecting slightly above the upper surface of the. After being supported by the projections 6b of the suction cup 5, the air suction passage 1 communicates the inside of the skirt 7b of the elastic support member 7 of the suction cup 5 with the inside of the skirt 7b.
When air is sucked from d, the inside of the elastic support member 7 becomes vacuum, and the substrate 4 is sucked and fixed by the sucker 5. With the substrate 4 fixed by the suction cup 5 of the hand 1, the articulated arm robot is operated to take out the substrate 4 from the cassette and transfer it to another place. When the substrate 4 is transferred from the hand 1 to another place, the suction of the air in the elastic support member 7 is stopped by the operation opposite to the fixing of the substrate 4 to release the fixing of the substrate 4. When an annular seal ring (O-ring) 14 is fitted on the upper surface of the annular projection 6a of the suction cup 5, the space between the substrate 4 and the suction cup 5 can be made more airtight.

The substrate 4 is placed on the hand 1 such that the center of the substrate 4 to be handled coincides with the center of the square formed by the four suction cups 5. The minimum size of the substrate 4 that can be handled is slightly larger than the square formed by the suction cup 5, and the maximum size is that the length of each side is approximately twice that of each side of the square. is there. The protrusions 8 are provided outside the longitudinal direction of the quadrilateral formed by the suction cup 5 and near the center of the quadrilateral, and support the substrate 4 so as to reduce the droop of the substrate 4 when supported by the suction cup 5. The height of the projection 8 is the same as the height of the suction cup 5 at the time of suction. Since the suction cups 5 and the projections 8 are arranged as described above, it is possible to cope with various types of substrates 4 having different sizes, and it is possible to eliminate a loss time for changing the hand 1 according to the size of the substrates 4. .

It should be noted that the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, but can be variously modified without departing from the gist of the present invention.

[0025]

According to the above-described substrate transfer hand of the present invention, even when many types of substrates having different sizes are transferred to one manufacturing line, the hand is not replaced each time. Excellent effects can be achieved, such as eliminating a loss time such as a change in the setup of a production line.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a side view of a substrate transfer hand according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a view taken along the line AA of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a plan view of the substrate transfer hand of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a view taken in the direction of arrows BB in FIG. 1;

FIG. 5 is a side sectional view of the suction cup.

FIG. 6 is a side sectional view of a protrusion.

FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view of a part a in FIG.

FIG. 8 is a side sectional view of another embodiment of the suction cup.

FIG. 9 is a perspective view of a cassette.

FIG. 10 is a plan view of a substrate transport robot.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Hand 1a Notch 1b, 1c, 1d Depression 1e Suction air passage 2 Connection 3 Hand cover 4 Substrate 5 Suction cup 6 Substrate receiving member 7 Elastic support member 8 Projection 9 Projection fixing plate 10 Optical sensor 12 Suction cup suppression plate 13 Air passage Closure plate 14 Seal ring (O-ring)

 ────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continuing on the front page (72) Inventor Shuji Hoshino 3-1-1, Toyosu, Koto-ku, Tokyo Ishikawajima-Harima Heavy Industries Co., Ltd. 5C012 AA09 5C040 EE06

Claims (5)

[Claims] 1. A hand used for a substrate transfer robot for horizontally holding and transferring a substrate, wherein the hand has a rectangular shape having a V-shaped notch at a tip thereof, and a notch at a tip. Protrusions for supporting the substrate are provided at both sides of the notch and at a plurality of points along the center line from the vicinity of the bottom of the notch, and the substrate is suctioned to the near side of the protrusions on both sides of the notch and both sides of the middle part of the hand. A substrate transfer hand, comprising: 2. A bottomed cylindrical substrate receiving member which is provided in a concave portion of the upper surface of the hand, has an annular projection on the upper surface peripheral portion of the bottom plate, and has a through hole in the center. It has a through hole fixed to the lower surface and has a through hole communicating with the through hole at the center, and is made of an elastic support member having a cup shape. An air suction passage communicating with the inside of the support member is formed at the bottom of the concave portion on the upper surface of the hand. The substrate transfer hand according to claim 1, wherein the substrate transfer hand is provided. 3. The substrate transfer hand according to claim 1, wherein the projection is made of resin. 4. The substrate transfer hand according to claim 1, wherein an annular seal ring is fitted on an upper surface of the annular protrusion of the suction cup. 5. The substrate transfer hand according to claim 1, wherein a plurality of projections are provided on the front side of the suction cups on both sides of the middle portion of the hand, instead of providing the projections at a plurality of locations along the center line of the hand. .