JP2000095305A - Article handing device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an article handling device capable of placing articles in certain attitude in a horizontal plane to the moving direction of a carrying device even when the articles are placed on the carrying device moving in different directions. SOLUTION: An article handling device has a plurality of put-in and -out stations 12, 13 on different side faces 15 for delivering cassettes 5 to a linear carriage 4, whereby the cassettes 5 are delivered from the warehousing-delivery stations in which the cassettes 5 are carried to other warehousing-delivery stations 13, 12. Transfer devices 8, 9 are provided in the respective warehousing- delivery stations 12, 13 for transferring the cassettes 5 in certain attitude in a horizontal plane to the moving direction of the linear carriage 4.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention has a plurality of loading / unloading stations on different sides for transferring an article to a transport apparatus, and unloads the article from the loading / unloading station that has loaded the article to another loading / unloading station. The present invention relates to an article processing apparatus.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art For example, in a semiconductor manufacturing line, a transfer system 101 as shown in FIG. 6 is used. In order to absorb a difference in lead time in a plurality of processing steps such as printing and etching, each processing step is performed. A stocker 1 for storing a cassette 102 containing a plurality of completed works.
03 are provided in large numbers. Many processing devices are arranged in each processing step. The cassette 102 is transported between the processing devices and between the processing device and the stocker 103 by an unmanned carrier 104 traveling on the floor provided with a robot hand, and between the stockers 103 along a travel rail 106 laid on the ceiling. The cassette 102 is transported by the linear transport vehicle 105 that travels. Linear carrier 105
Is adapted to go around the loop-shaped traveling rail 106 in one direction.

[0003] The stocker 103 has a crane provided with a slide fork for loading and unloading the cassette 102, and its traveling path 107 is parallel to the forward path 108 and the backward path 109 of the traveling rail 106 of the linear carrier 106. And a loading / unloading station 110 is provided at one end of the traveling path 107 of the crane so as to face the outward path 108 and the return path 109 of the traveling rail 106. The loading / unloading station 110 has cassettes 1 at both ends.
02 is rotated by 180 degrees at the center of the arm, so that the linear carrier 1
Transfer device 111 for transferring the cassette 102 between the transfer device 111 and the transfer device 111
Is provided. In the transport system 101, when the cassette 102 is transported between the stockers 103 or the like,
Loading / unloading station 1 on the outbound path 108 side of the cassette 102
10 or the return to the entry / exit station 110 on the return path 109 side, the linear transport vehicle 1
05 can be shortened, and the cycle time of cassette conveyance can be shortened.

In the transport system 101, the traveling direction of the linear transport vehicle 105 is different by 180 degrees between the entrance / exit station 110 on the outward path 108 side of the traveling rail 106 and the entrance / exit station 110 on the return path 109 side. When the cassette 102 received from the entrance / exit station 110 on the outward path 108 is retrieved from the entrance / exit station 110 on the return path 109, the posture of the cassette 102 retrieved from the stocker 103 is the same as before entering the stocker 103 in the horizontal plane. Orientation, so that
The linear carrier 105 is placed in a state where the posture is different by 180 degrees with respect to the traveling direction.

[0005]

As described above, if the direction of the cassette 102 mounted on the linear transport vehicle 105 is different from the traveling direction, in the next processing step, the direction of the transported cassette 102 is changed. Was checked, and if necessary, the orientation had to be changed.

[0006] The present invention has been made by focusing on such problems existing in the prior art. The challenge is
It is an object of the present invention to provide an article processing apparatus capable of placing articles in a constant posture in a horizontal plane with respect to the traveling direction of the transport apparatus even when the articles are transferred to transport apparatuses having different traveling directions. .

[0007]

In order to achieve the above object, according to the first aspect of the present invention, a plurality of loading / unloading stations for transferring an article to a transporting device are provided on different sides, and the article is provided. An article processing apparatus for unloading articles from a loading / unloading station to another loading / unloading station, wherein the articles are transferred to each of the loading / unloading stations in a fixed position in a horizontal plane with respect to the traveling direction of the transport apparatus. A loading device is provided.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the first aspect of the present invention, the carry-in / out station is provided on a side different by 180 degrees, and one of the carry-in / out stations and the other carry-in / out station are provided with a traveling device. The direction is different by 180 degrees, and one loading / unloading station is provided with a transfer device that transfers the articles without changing the posture of the article with the transport device, and the other loading / unloading station is provided with a transport device. A transfer device is provided for transferring an article by rotating the article by 180 degrees in a horizontal plane.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the first aspect of the present invention, the carry-in / out station is provided on a side surface which is different by 180 degrees, and one of the carry-in / out stations and the other carry-in / out station are provided with a transfer device. The direction is different by 180 degrees, and each loading / unloading station is provided with a transfer device for transferring the article by rotating the posture of the article by 90 degrees in a horizontal plane with respect to the transport apparatus.

Therefore, according to the first aspect of the invention, by providing the carry-in / out stations on different sides, articles can be carried out in a direction different from the carry-in source. And
Even if the traveling direction of the transfer device is different between the carry-out source and the carry-out destination, the article is transferred by the transfer device in a constant posture in a horizontal plane with respect to the travel direction of the transfer device.

According to the second aspect of the present invention, in addition to the operation of the first aspect, the loading / unloading station is set at 180
Since it is provided on different sides, for example, an article carried in from the forward path side of the transport apparatus can be delivered to the transport apparatus on the return path side. Then, the traveling direction of the transport device changes by 180 degrees, but the one transfer device carries in the posture of the article before and after the transfer, and the other transfer device rotates the position of the article by 180 degrees in the horizontal plane. By carrying out and carrying out, the posture of the article can be changed by 180 degrees between the carry-in source and the carry-out destination, and the article is transferred in a constant posture in the horizontal plane with respect to the traveling direction of the transport device.

According to the third aspect of the present invention, in addition to the operation of the first aspect, the loading / unloading station is set at 180
Since it is provided on different sides, for example, an article carried in from the forward path side of the transport apparatus can be delivered to the transport apparatus on the return path side. Then, although the traveling direction of the transfer device changes by 180 degrees, the transfer direction of the article is changed by 9 degrees before and after the transfer of the posture of the article.
The product is rotated by 0 ° and carried in, and the other transfer device is further rotated by 90 ° in the horizontal plane to carry out the product. The posture of the article can be changed by 180 degrees with the previous one, and the article is transferred in a constant posture in the horizontal plane with respect to the traveling direction of the transport device.

[0013]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS A transport system 2 using a stocker (article processing apparatus) 1 according to the present embodiment will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a plan view showing the entire transport system 2 of the present embodiment. The transport system 2 of the present embodiment is used, for example, in a semiconductor manufacturing line in a clean room, and has a loop-shaped traveling rail 3 laid near the ceiling and a linear traveling traveling clockwise along the traveling rail 3. The vehicle includes a transport vehicle 4 (transport device) and a stocker 1 (article processing device) for storing a cassette 5 (article) containing a plurality of works. The loop-shaped traveling rail 3 is laid so as to have a slender, substantially rectangular shape in plan view, and its long side is the forward path 31 and the return path 32, and the short side is a fold connecting both ends of the forward path 31 and the return path 32. Department. In each processing step, a large number of processing apparatuses are installed, and an unmanned transport vehicle 6 equipped with a robot hand transports the cassette 5 between the processing apparatuses.
The cassette 5 that has completed each processing step is transported to the stocker 1 by the automatic guided vehicle 6, and after adjusting the lead time by the stocker 1, the stocker near the processing device where the next processing step is performed by the linear transport vehicle 4. 1 and is conveyed to an intended processing apparatus by an automatic guided vehicle 6 via the stocker 1.

As shown in FIG. 2, the traveling rail 3 is a cylindrical rail having an opening on the upper surface, and is suspended near the ceiling. The linear carrier 4 exposes only a mounting table 41 for mounting the cassette 5 above the traveling rail 3, and a main body 42 having wheels (not shown) moves in the traveling rail 3. . Therefore, the traveling rail 3
The dust generated by the friction between the wheel and the wheels is prevented from leaking out of the traveling rail 3. The mounting table 41 is provided with a stopper (not shown) for restricting the movement of the cassette 5, so that two cassettes 5 can be mounted in the traveling direction.

As shown in FIG. 3, the stocker 1 has a pair of shelves 11 for storing the cassettes 5 and a loading / unloading station (transporting / unloading station) for transferring the cassettes 5 between the stocker 1 and the linear transport vehicle 4. ) 12a, 12b, 13
a, 13b, the shelf 11, and the loading / unloading station 12a, 1
A crane 7 for taking the cassette 5 in and out of the cassettes 2b, 13a, and 13b, for temporarily storing the cassette 5 in order to absorb a difference in lead time between the processing steps. The stockers 1 are arranged in a plurality of rows inside the loop-shaped traveling rail 3 such that the longitudinal direction thereof is orthogonal to the outward path 31 and the return path 32, and the stocking stations 12a, 12b, 13a of the adjacent stockers 1 are arranged. , 1
The distance between 3b is shorter than the case where the longitudinal direction is arranged so as to be parallel to the forward path 31 and the backward path 32. Each of the pair of shelves 11 has an outbound path 31 and an inbound path 3
2 are arranged at predetermined intervals so as to be orthogonal to 2
Between them, the rail 14 (travel path) of the crane 7 is arranged so that both ends thereof face the outward path 31 and the return path 32. Entry / exit stations 12a and 12b are provided above the side surface 15a of the stocker 1 facing the outward path 31, and entry / exit stations 13a and 13b are provided above the side surface 15b opposite the return path 32. Each of the storage stations 12a and 13a has a transfer device 8 dedicated to storage.
Are provided, and each of the delivery stations 12b and 13b is provided with a transfer device 9 dedicated to delivery. 16
Is a station for transferring the cassette 5 to the automatic guided vehicle 6.

At one end of the stocker 1, two transfer devices 8,
9 is provided, one of which is dedicated to entry and the other is dedicated to exit. In addition to improving the efficiency of entry and exit operations, for example, due to a shift in transfer timing of a transfer command, etc.
The linear transport vehicle 4 on which the cassette 5 to be loaded is placed arrives at the transfer devices 8 and 9 in which the cassette 5 to be unloaded is already set by the crane 7, so that neither the loading nor the unloading can be performed, and the transport system 2 stops. This is to prevent them from doing so. Also, one transfer device 8, 9 (each of the loading / unloading stations 12a, 12a, 12b) is provided so that loading and unloading operations can be performed at two cassette loading positions on the loading table 41, respectively.
(b, 13a, 13b), two stop positions of the linear carrier 4 are set.

Even in the same stocker 1, the traveling direction of the linear carrier 4 is different by 180 degrees between the entrance / exit stations 12a, 12b on the outbound path 31 side and the entrance / exit stations 13a, 13b on the return path 32 side. Loading device 8,
9 changes the attitude of the cassette 5 to the same direction in the horizontal plane with respect to the traveling direction of the linear transport vehicle 4 (for example,
When the cassette 5 entered from the outbound path 31 side is unloaded to the return path 32 side, the direction of the cassette 5 is set to 1 in the horizontal plane.
(Rotated by 80 degrees). Therefore, in the stocker 1 according to the present embodiment, the transfer device 8 for storing should not change its direction before and after the delivery of the cassette 5, and the transferring device 9 for storing should be oriented before and after the transfer of the cassette 5. Is changed by 180 degrees.

As the transfer device 8, a scalar type arm is used as shown in FIG.
A first arm 83 whose one end is rotatably supported,
One end of the first arm 83 is supported by a rotating shaft 84 at a free end, and the second arm 85 pivots in the opposite direction to the first arm 83.
And a receiving table 87 supported on a rotating shaft 86 at a free end of the second arm 85.
However, the pulleys p2 and p3 are attached to the rotating shaft 84, and the rotating shaft 86
Are provided with pulleys p4, respectively.
Endless belts 88 and 89 are stretched between p2 and between p3 and p4.

By setting the speed ratio between the pulleys p1 and p2 to 1: 2 and the speed ratio between the pulleys p3 and p4 to 2: 1, the loading table 41 of the linear carrier 4 and the loading / unloading stations 12, 1 are set.
When the cassette 5 is transferred between the first arm 83 and the third arm 3, the cradle 87 is not rotated while the first arm 83 is rotated by 180 degrees.

As the transfer device 9, the rotary shaft 86 and the pulley p4 are eliminated, and the second arm 8 of the transfer device 8 is used.
By fixing the cradle 87 to the free end of 5,
Mounting table 41 of linear carrier 4 and loading / unloading station 1
When the cassette 5 is transferred between the second arm 13 and the second arm 13, the cradle 87 is rotated by 180 degrees while the first arm 83 is rotated by 180 degrees.

When the cassette 5 is stored from the storage station 12a on the outward path 31, the first arm 8 of the transfer device 8
3 is rotated 180 degrees counterclockwise to transfer the cassette 5 on the linear transport vehicle 4 to the stocker 1 side, and the cassette 5 is rotated 180 degrees and delivered. This cassette 5
Is discharged from the exit station 12b on the outbound path 31 side, the cassette 5 rotated by 180 degrees by the crane 7 is moved counterclockwise by the first arm 83 of the transfer device 9 for 1 second.
After being turned by 80 degrees, the cassette 5 is transferred onto the linear transport vehicle 4 and delivered without rotating the attitude of the cassette 5. By doing so, the cassette 5 is placed on the linear transport vehicle 4 in the same attitude as when entering the warehouse (the opening portion faces the opposite side of the direction in which the linear transport vehicle 3 moves). This cassette 5
Is moved out of the exit station 13b on the return path 32 side, the cassette 5 having the same orientation as that received by the crane 7 is turned 180 degrees counterclockwise with the first arm 83 of the transfer device 9 to rotate linearly. While being transferred onto the transport vehicle 4, the cassette 5 is delivered without being rotated. By doing so, the cassette 5 is rotated by 180 degrees, and is placed on the linear transport vehicle 4 with the opening facing the opposite side of the traveling direction of the linear transport vehicle 3. Therefore,
Since the cassette 5 on the linear transport vehicle 4 is always transported with the opening facing the opposite side of the traveling direction of the linear transport vehicle 3,
It is possible to always supply the cassette 5 in the same posture to the next step (finally, a processing device that needs to take out the work from the cassette 5).

The transfer of the cassette 5 to and from the linear transport vehicle 4 and the loading / unloading stations 12 and 13 is performed by raising and lowering the entire scalar arm by a lifting mechanism (not shown) below the motor 81.

The crane 7 includes a movable carriage 71 that moves on a rail 14 laid on the floor inside the stocker 1, a mast 72 erected on the movable carriage 71, and a lift platform that moves up and down along the mast 72. 73. Further, the lifting table 73 is provided with a gripping device 74 for gripping the side surface of the cassette 5 at the tip of a telescopic arm as a transfer means. In the present embodiment, a mast 72 is erected on a turntable 75 provided on a movable cart 71 so that the cassette 5 can be transferred to the left and right shelves 11 sandwiching the rail 14. It turns.

In this embodiment, the stocker 1B shown in FIG.
From when the cassette 5 is transported to the stocker 1A. First, the ground controller that controls the entire transport system 2 selects, from an internal table, a combination of an entry / exit station that minimizes the transport route of the linear transport vehicle 4. In this example, the shortest route is a route that is transported from the entry / exit station 12b on the outward path 31 side of the stocker 1B to the entrance / exit station 12a on the outward path 31 side of the stocker 1A. Then, the ground controller gives a command to the crane 7 of the stocker 1B to release the cassette 5 to the transfer device 9 of the entrance / exit station 12b on the outward path 31 side. In this case, when there are a plurality of cassettes 5 to be unloaded in the stocker 1B, the unloading work can be performed efficiently by unloading the cassette 5 stored in the shelf 11 closest to the unloading station 12b. . Further, the ground controller selects a linear transport vehicle 4 on which the cassette 5 can be placed upstream of the stocker 1B, and moves the corresponding linear transport vehicle 4 to the loading / unloading station 12b of the stocker 1B.

When the linear transport vehicle 4 is in the loading / unloading station 12
When the vehicle arrives at b, the transfer device 9 operates to transfer the cassette 5 from the unloading station 12b to the linear transport vehicle 4. When the transfer is completed, the ground controller causes the linear transport vehicle 4 to travel to the storage station 12a of the stocker 1A. While the linear transport vehicle 4 is moving to the loading / unloading station 12a of the stocker 1A, the crane 7 of the stocker 1A is moved to the outward path 31 side. When the linear transport vehicle 4 arrives at the loading / unloading station 12a of the stocker 1A, the transfer device 8 operates to transfer the cassette 5 from the linear transport vehicle 4 to the loading / unloading station 12a. Then, the cassette 5 carried into the loading / unloading station 12a.
Is stored on the shelf 11 in the stocker 1A by the crane 7.
In this case, when there are a plurality of empty shelves in the stocker 1A, the loading operation can be performed efficiently by loading the cassette 5 into the shelf 11 closest to the loading / unloading station 12a.

In the present embodiment, the transfer device 8 dedicated to storage is used.
And the transfer device 9 dedicated to retrieval and retrieval are arranged at a distance from each other, and are respectively located at the retrieval and retrieval stations 12a, 12b, 13a and 13b.
However, the entrance / exit stations on the outbound path 21 side and the return path 22 side may be integrated. By making the interval between the transfer devices 8 and 9 correspond to the positions where the two cassettes 5 are placed on the linear transport vehicle 4, it is possible to carry out the warehousing work and the warehousing work in parallel, thereby further shortening the cycle time. it can.

Further, in the present embodiment, the transfer device 9 dedicated to unloading is changed by 180 degrees before and after the transfer of the cassette 5, and the transfer device 8 dedicated to storage is changed before and after the transfer of the cassette 5. As shown in FIG. 5, as shown in FIG. 5, the cassettes 5 entered from the outward path 21 are unloaded to the return path 22 by rotating the cassettes 5 by 90 degrees with the transfer device 8 and the transfer device 9, respectively. In this case, the cassette 5 may be rotated by a total of 180 degrees so that the attitude of the cassette 5 is the same as the traveling direction of the linear carrier 4. In this case, the transfer devices 8, 9
Is the speed ratio between the pulleys p1 and p2 in FIG.
2. The speed ratio between the pulleys p3 and p4 may be 3: 2, and when the transfer devices 8, 9 rotate the first arm 83 by 180 degrees, the cradle 87 rotates by 90 degrees.

Further, in the stocker 1 of the present embodiment, the loading / unloading stations 12a, 12b, 13a, 13b are provided on the side surfaces 15a, 15b opposite to the forward path 31 and the return path 32, but they are not necessarily in the traveling direction of the transfer device. Is not limited to the outward path 31 and the return path 32, which are different by 180 degrees, and may be provided on the side surface corresponding to the transport path of the transport device. Further, the number of side surfaces provided with the loading / unloading stations is not limited to two.

In this embodiment, the article processing apparatus is a stocker 1 for temporarily storing articles. However, the article processing apparatus is not limited to the stocker. You may apply to the apparatus which carries out.

[0030]

Since the present invention is configured as described above, it has the following effects.

According to the first aspect of the present invention, the transfer device transfers the article in a constant attitude in the horizontal plane with respect to the traveling direction of the transport apparatus, thereby changing the attitude of the article to be transported to the next step. The direction can be set to one direction, and even if the orientation of the article poses a problem, the processing time in the next step can be reduced.

According to the invention described in claim 2, according to claim 1
In addition to the effects of the invention described in, the loading / unloading station is
Since they are provided on different sides by 80 degrees, the transfer efficiency of the transfer device can be improved. Then, one of the transfer devices carries in the posture of the article before and after the transfer, and the other transfer device rotates the posture of the article 180 degrees in the horizontal plane and carries it out, so that the traveling direction of the transfer device is changed. Can be carried out as the angle changes by 180 degrees.

According to the invention described in claim 3, according to claim 1
In addition to the effects of the invention described in, the loading / unloading station is
Since they are provided on different sides by 80 degrees, the transfer efficiency of the transfer device can be improved. Then, one of the transfer devices is rotated by 90 degrees before and after delivery of the article, and is carried in.
By rotating the other transfer device by rotating the posture of the article further 90 degrees in the horizontal plane and carrying out the same, the carried-in article can be carried out as the traveling direction of the transfer device changes by 180 degrees.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a plan view showing an entire transport system in which a stocker according to an embodiment is used.

FIG. 2 is a front view showing a transport system in which the stocker according to the embodiment is used.

FIG. 3 is a plan view showing a stocker according to the present embodiment.

FIG. 4 is a front view of a main part of the transfer device used in the present embodiment.

FIG. 5 is a plan view showing a stocker according to another embodiment.

FIG. 6 is a plan view showing the entire conventional transport system.

[Explanation of symbols]

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Stocker (article processing apparatus) 4 Linear transport vehicle (transport apparatus) 5 Cassette (article) 12a, 12b Entry / exit station (carry-in / out station) 13a, 13b Entry / exit station (carry-in / out station) 8 Transfer device 9 Transfer device

 ──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continued on the front page F term (reference) 3F022 AA08 BB09 CC02 EE05 FF01 JJ09 KK05 KK18 KK20 LL12 LL19 MM13 MM26 MM35 MM44 NN31

Claims (3)

[Claims] 1. An article processing apparatus having a plurality of loading / unloading stations on different sides for transferring an article to a transport apparatus, and unloading the article from another loading / unloading station to which the article has been loaded. An article processing apparatus, wherein a transfer device for transferring an article in a constant posture in a horizontal plane with respect to the traveling direction of the transport apparatus is provided at each loading / unloading station. 2. The transfer station has a carry-in / out station on a side surface which is different by 180 degrees, and the traveling direction of the carrying device is different by 180 degrees between one carry-in / out station and the other carry-in / out station. A transfer device that transfers the product without changing the posture of the article between it and
2. The article processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the other loading / unloading station is provided with a transfer apparatus for transferring the article by rotating the article by 180 degrees in a horizontal plane with respect to the transport apparatus. 3. The transfer station has a carry-in / out station on a side surface which is different by 180 degrees, and the traveling direction of the transfer device is different by 180 degrees between one carry-in / out station and the other carry-in / out station. The article processing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a transfer device that transfers the article by rotating the article by 90 degrees in a horizontal plane.