JP2001259543A - Substrate cleaning system - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a substrate cleaning system capable of effectively utilizing a resticted factory space. SOLUTION: A substrate feed-in and -out part A, a substrate standby part B, a substrate transfer part C and a substrate cleaning part D are successively and continuously arranged in series from the side facing to an operator zone O and a substrate treatment route is constituted so that a wafer W is passed through the forward path from the operator zone O to the opposite side of the operator zone to be subjected to cleaning treatment and again passed through a return path to be fed out of the operator zone O. By this constitution, compact constitution requiring the operator zone O only on the single side of the substrate cleaning system is established and the arranging space of the system can be contracted.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a substrate cleaning system, and more particularly, to a substrate cleaning system for performing a cleaning process on a plurality of thin substrates such as a semiconductor substrate and a liquid crystal glass substrate.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art A general structure of a substrate cleaning system of this kind, for example, a conventional cleaning system for a semiconductor substrate (hereinafter, referred to as a "wafer") has a plurality of cleaning tanks arranged in a row in a horizontal direction. The substrate carrying-in section is provided at one end side, and the substrate carrying-out section is provided at the other end side, and the substrate transfer processing device can be moved in the arrangement direction of the cleaning tank in parallel with the cleaning tank. It is supposed to be.

Further, a plurality of wafers (for example, about 25 wafers) are supplied from the previous process to the substrate loading section.
Are housed as a set in a single carrier carrier cassette, and are transferred to the substrate transport processing apparatus in the substrate loading section. As the structure of the substrate transfer processing apparatus, there are a cassette type in which the wafer is stored in a processing carrier cassette for cleaning, and a cassetteless type in which the wafer is directly held and cleaned. In order to increase the cleaning efficiency of the wafer and prevent contamination of the cleaning liquid, the latter cassetteless type is becoming popular.

In this cassetteless type substrate cleaning system, the wafers transferred from the transport carrier cassette to the substrate transport processing device in the substrate loading section are sequentially transferred to the cleaning tank by the substrate transport processing device. After being immersed and cleaned, the substrate is again stored in the carrier cassette for transport at the substrate unloading section and is unloaded to the next step.

[0005]

However, such a conventional configuration has the following problems, and further improvements have been demanded.

That is, a structure in which a substrate loading section and a substrate unloading section are provided on both sides of a substrate cleaning section in which a plurality of cleaning tanks are arranged in a row in the horizontal direction, that is, operator zones are required on both sides of the cleaning system. Therefore, it is necessary to secure a large installation space for the system. For this reason, it is not possible to install the apparatus in a narrow factory space, in combination with the necessity of securing an installation space for peripheral equipment such as a loading / unloading equipment for a cassette storing wafers to the substrate cleaning system.

Further, the empty carrier cassette after the wafer is taken out is manually transferred from the substrate carry-in section to the substrate carry-out section in parallel with the wafer cleaning process. Since a plurality of cleaning tanks arranged in a row are arranged on the opposite side, the distance between them, that is, the transfer distance is relatively long, and this transfer operation is performed in parallel with the wafer cleaning processing step. There must be. For this reason, the worker spends a lot of work on transporting the empty carrier cassette, and it has been difficult to perform an efficient operation.

Further, since it is difficult to efficiently transport the empty carrier cassette in synchronization with the wafer cleaning process, the empty carrier cassette must be made to wait in advance in the substrate unloading section prior to the wafer cleaning process. For example, it is necessary to secure a storage space for the carrier cassette, and the whole system is enlarged. In this respect, a large installation space is required and the cost of the apparatus is increased.

The present invention has been made in view of such a conventional problem, and a main object of the present invention is to provide a substrate cleaning system capable of effectively utilizing a limited factory space. .

A further object of the present invention is to provide a substrate cleaning system in which the cleaning process can be fully automated and the process history management of the wafer can be automatically and reliably performed.

[0011]

In order to achieve this object, a substrate cleaning system according to the present invention performs a cleaning process on wafers housed in a carrier cassette from a previous process and carried in batch without a cassette. A substrate cleaning system of a type in which wafers stored in a carrier cassette are again carried out to the next process, wherein a substrate loading / unloading section for loading / unloading a wafer stored in the carrier cassette and a carrier cassette of the substrate loading / unloading section are temporarily provided. A substrate standby unit that temporarily waits, a substrate cleaning unit that collectively performs a cleaning process on a plurality of wafers without using a cassette, and a carrier cassette that is disposed between the substrate standby unit and the substrate cleaning unit. And a substrate transfer unit for transferring a wafer between the substrate cleaning unit and the substrate loading / unloading unit, the substrate standby unit, the substrate transfer unit, and the substrate cleaning unit. The substrate processing path is sequentially arranged in series from the side facing the pererator zone, whereby the substrate processing path is subjected to the cleaning processing through the outward path from the operator zone side to the opposite side of the operator zone, and then the return path is performed again. Through the operator zone.

As a preferred embodiment, there is provided a control unit for controlling the driving of the substrate carry-in / out unit, the substrate standby unit, the substrate transfer unit, and the substrate cleaning unit in synchronization with each other.
A series of wafers stored in the carrier cassette from the previous process and carried in are transferred to the above-described substrate transfer processing device, and are subjected to a cleaning process without a cassette, and are returned to the same carrier cassette as the time of carrying in again and carried out to the next process. It is configured to perform a cleaning step.

Further, the configuration of each of the above components is a compact design. Specifically, for example, the substrate loading / unloading unit includes a substrate loading unit into which the wafers stored in the carrier cassette from the previous process are loaded, and a wafer loaded with the cleaning process in the carrier cassette and transports the wafers to the next process. The substrate unloading section is arranged in parallel with the operator zone. The substrate standby section includes a three-dimensional cassette stocker in which a plurality of cassette mounting sections for mounting the carrier cassette are vertically stacked, a cassette mounting section of the cassette stocker, and the substrate loading / unloading section. Alternatively, a transfer robot for transferring the carrier cassette to and from the substrate transfer section is provided. In addition, the substrate cleaning unit includes a cleaning tank row including a plurality of cleaning tanks, and a substrate transfer processing device that is movable along the cleaning tank row and directly grips a plurality of wafers without a cassette. In addition, the substrate cleaning unit includes a plurality of substrate transfer processing devices, and the plurality of substrate transfer processing devices can be moved on the same moving guide portion that extends horizontally in the direction in which the cleaning tank is disposed. , And are controlled so as not to interfere with each other's moving operations.

In the present invention, the substrate processing path is configured so that the wafer is subjected to a cleaning process through the outward path from the operator zone side to the opposite side of the operator zone, and is then unloaded from the operator zone side through the return path. Thus, the cleaning system has a compact configuration that requires an operator zone only on one side of the cleaning system, and the installation space of the system is reduced.

Further, while the wafer is being cleaned by the substrate transfer processing apparatus, the empty carrier cassette from which the wafer has been taken out waits in the substrate standby section, and the wafer having been subjected to the cleaning processing is loaded again. It is stored in the used carrier cassette and carried out to the next step. This allows
The carrier cassette is efficiently used, and the required number thereof is reduced and the storage space for the carrier cassette is reduced.

Further, the substrate loading / unloading section, the substrate standby section,
A control unit that controls the drive of the substrate transfer unit and the substrate cleaning unit in synchronization with each other is provided. The wafer stored in the carrier cassette from the previous process and loaded is transferred to the above-mentioned substrate transfer processing apparatus, and cassette-less cleaning is performed. A series of cleaning steps for carrying out the processing and returning to the same carrier cassette as that at the time of carrying in and carrying out to the next step are completely automated, so that the process history management and the like of the wafer are automatically and reliably performed.

Further, by making the configuration of each component part compact as described above, the cleaning system itself can be reduced in size and simplified.

[0018]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the drawings.

1 to 3 show a substrate cleaning system according to the present invention. This substrate cleaning system is of a batch type in which a plurality of (for example, 52) wafers W, W,. Things. The substrate cleaning system is mainly composed of a substrate loading / unloading section A, a substrate standby section B, a substrate transfer section C, a substrate cleaning section D, and a control device (control section) E. , The substrate standby unit B, the substrate transfer unit C, and the substrate cleaning unit D are arranged in series from the side facing the operator zone O.

The substrate loading / unloading portion A is a portion where the wafers W, W,... Stored in the carrier cassette 1 are loaded and unloaded.
Specifically, the substrate loading section 2 into which the wafers W, W,... Stored in the carrier cassette 1 from the previous process are loaded, and the wafers W, W,.
And the substrate unloading section 3 to be unloaded and transported to the next process are arranged in parallel to face the operator zone O.

The substrate loading section 2 is disposed on the substrate loading side of the substrate loading / unloading section A, and as shown in FIG. 1, a tact feeding mechanism 2a for feeding the carrier cassette 1 in a takt manner and a horizontal direction of the carrier cassette 1. Is provided.

Although not specifically shown, the tact feeding mechanism 2a includes, for example, a traveling rack provided in a horizontal direction as described in JP-A-6-252126 and a rack for traveling. A drive motor is provided on the top so as to be capable of self-running via a pinion, and a cylinder device provided upward on the drive motor. Also,
The turntable mechanism 2b includes a turntable on which the carrier cassette 1 is mounted, and a drive motor for horizontally rotating the turntable.

Then, the carrier cassette 1 carried in from the carry-in entrance 2c of the substrate carry-in section 2 is pushed up by the cylinder device and rises, and in this state, the drive motor moves by itself in the direction of the arrow (1). After being tact-fed, it is lowered again by the cylinder device and supplied and mounted on the turntable of the turntable mechanism 2b, and the horizontal rotation of the turntable causes the carrier cassette 1, that is, the wafer W stored therein. , W,... Are horizontally rotated by 90 degrees from the carry-in posture to the cleaning posture, the postures thereof are changed, and the transfer to the substrate waiting portion B is awaited. In the present embodiment, one carrier cassette 1
, 26 wafers W, W,... Are stored.

On the other hand, the substrate carrying-out section 3 is disposed on the substrate carrying-out side of the substrate carrying-in / out section A, and, like the substrate carrying-in section 2, has a tact feeding mechanism 3 a for tact-feeding the carrier cassette 1.
And a turntable mechanism 3b for changing the horizontal direction of the carrier cassette 1. The specific configuration of these mechanisms is the same as that of the substrate loading section 2.

Then, the carrier cassette 1 transferred and mounted from the substrate standby section B, which will be described later, onto the turntable of the turntable mechanism 3b, changes its horizontal orientation by the horizontal rotation of the turntable, and changes from the cleaning attitude to the loading attitude. 9
After being horizontally rotated by 0 degrees and changed in posture, it is pushed up by the cylinder device of the tact feeding mechanism 3a and rises,
In this state, the tactile feed is performed in the direction of the arrow (4) by the self-propelled drive motor, and then lowered again by the cylinder device, supplied and placed at the unloading position, and transferred from the unloading port 3c to the next process. Wait for unloading.

The substrate standby section B is a section of the substrate loading / unloading section A where the carrier cassette 1 is temporarily on standby, and is specifically composed of a cassette stocker 5 and a transfer robot 6 as main parts.

The cassette stocker 5 is of a three-dimensional type in which a plurality of cassette mounting sections 7 for mounting the carrier cassette 1 are vertically arranged in a plurality of layers, and in the illustrated embodiment, the substrate loading section 2 side And two unloading side stocker units 5B, 5B provided adjacent to the substrate unloading unit 3 side.

The loading and unloading side stocker sections 5A, 5B
, Except for whether the stock target is the carrier cassette 1 that stores the unprocessed wafers W, W,... Or the empty carrier cassette 1 that stores the processed wafers W, W,. Have the same structure.

For example, as shown in FIG. 4, the loading-side stocker unit 5A includes a cassette mounting unit 7 for mounting the carrier cassette 1 storing the unprocessed wafers W, W,. The cassette mounting section 7 at the lowermost position is arranged one layer higher than the mounting height of the carrier cassette 1 in the substrate loading / unloading section A. Further, the loading-side stocker unit 5A on the side closer to the substrate loading / unloading unit A side (the left side in FIG. 4) is stacked and arranged at a position above the turntable of the turntable mechanism 2b, so that the plane installation space is as small as possible. Configuration. The unloading side stocker unit 5B has the same configuration.

The transfer robot 6 transfers the carrier cassette 1 between the cassette mounting portion 7 of the cassette stocker 5 and the substrate carry-in / out portion A or the substrate transfer portion C. Are three transfer robots, that is, as shown in FIG. 1, a first transfer robot 6A for transferring a carrier cassette 1 containing wafers W, W,... Before processing, and a transfer robot 6A after processing. A second transfer robot 6 for transferring the carrier cassette 1 containing the wafers W, W,...
B, and a third process of transferring the carrier cassette 1 between the cassette mounting portion 7 of the cassette stocker and the substrate transfer portion.
Transfer robot 6C.

The transfer robot 6 (6A, 6B, 6)
C), the first and second transfer robots 6A and 6B
As shown in FIG. 5, each of them comprises a single-axis robot 10 capable of moving up and down and a SCARA robot 11 for transferring the carrier cassettes 1 one by one. .

The SCARA type robot 11 has a
A horizontal axis type in which two arms 12a and 12b are drivingly connected to 1a, and a chucking portion 13 for chucking the carrier cassette 1 is attached to a distal end of the arm 11b. The chucking portion 13 includes a pair of chuck arms 13 a, 13 a that grip both sides of the carrier cassette 1 in a sandwiching manner, and the chuck arms 13 a.
a, 13a for opening and closing (chucking operation) the chuck cylinder 13b.

As shown in FIG. 4, the third transfer robot 6C mounts a scalar on a moving device 14 that reciprocates linearly in the horizontal direction (in the directions of arrows (1) and (4) in FIG. 1). The mold robot 11 is integrally combined, and is movable by the moving device 14 between the carry-in side stocker section 5A and the carry-out side stocker section 5B of the cassette stocker 5.

Then, the first transfer robot 6A chucks and holds the carrier cassette 1 containing the unprocessed wafers W, W,... Waiting on the turntable of the turntable mechanism 2b of the substrate loading section 2. Are transferred onto one of the cassette mounting portions 7 of the loading-side stocker portion 5A, and the unprocessed wafers W, W,... Initially stored in the loading-side stocker portion 5A are stored. The cassette 1 is chucked and held, and is transferred to the transfer position to the third transfer robot 6C.

On the other hand, the second transfer robot 6B chucks and holds the empty carrier cassette 1 waiting at the transfer position from the third transfer robot 6C, and sends the empty carrier cassette 1 to one of the unloading side stocker sections 5B. The carrier cassette 1 containing the processed wafers W, W,... Which is transferred onto the cassette mounting portion 7 and also waits at the transfer position, is
After chucking and holding, the wafer is transferred onto the turntable of the turntable mechanism 3b of the substrate unloading section 3.

The third transfer robot 6C chucks and holds the carrier cassette 1 containing the unprocessed wafers W, W,... Waiting at the transfer position and transfers the carrier cassette 1 to the substrate transfer section C. On the other hand, the carrier cassette 1 or the processed wafers W, W,
Are held by chucking and transferred to the delivery position.

The substrate transfer section C transfers wafers W between the carrier cassette 1 of the substrate standby section B and the substrate transfer processing apparatus 20 of the substrate cleaning section D. And between the substrate cleaning section D.

Although not specifically shown, the substrate transfer section C includes a cassette table 15 on which two carrier cassettes 1 are mounted in parallel, and a carrier cassette 1 on the cassette table 15. And two substrate push-up mechanisms 16 and 17 for raising and lowering the wafers W, W,.
The wafers W stored in the two carrier cassettes 1, 1
.. (52 in the illustrated embodiment) are collectively transferred to the substrate transfer processing apparatus 20.

The push-up mechanisms 16 and 17 are provided in FIG.
When the wafers W, W,... Are transferred between the carrier cassette 1 and the substrate transfer processing device 20 of the substrate cleaning unit D, the wafers cooperate with the substrate chuck arms 21 of the substrate transfer processing device 20. . Also functions as an array conversion means for changing the array direction of the wafers W, W,. That is,
When transferring the wafers W, W,..., The push-up mechanism 16 transfers the wafers W, W,. And the cleaning direction in which the back surface is arranged to face each other.

For this purpose, the push-up mechanism 16,
Reference numeral 17 denotes one carrier cassette 1 as shown in FIG.
Are provided with holding grooves for holding the 26 wafers W, W,... Accommodated from below, from the lower side. , And can be moved in the arrangement direction of the wafers W, W,.

In connection with this, as shown in FIG. 9, the substrate chuck arms 21, 21 of the substrate transfer processing apparatus 20 have holding grooves for holding 52 wafers W, W,. 21a and 21b, and the adjacent holding grooves 21a and 21b have a sectional structure as shown in FIGS. 9 (a) and 9 (b), respectively. In other words, these holding grooves 21a and 21b are used as the substrate chuck arms 21 and 21.
The chucking operation of the wafer W (chucking (wafer holding) and chucking release (wafer can be passed up and down)) is performed by the rotation operation position of.

Then, in a state where the substrate transfer processing device 20 is positioned at the position above the substrate transfer section C and is in a standby state, the process before the processing from the two carrier cassettes 1 and 1 to the substrate transfer processing device 20 is performed in the following manner. The wafers W, W,... Are transferred (see FIGS. 6A to 6G).

(1) As shown in FIG. 6A, when the holding grooves 21a and 21b of the substrate chuck arms 21 and 21 are released from the chucking state, one carrier cassette 1 on the cassette table 15 is The substrate holding portion 18 of the substrate push-up mechanism 16 moves up, and from the carrier cassette 1,
The wafers W are held up from below and pushed up. This allows all 26 wafers W, W,... To pass upward between the substrate chuck arms 21.

(2) When the wafers W, W,... Are pushed up to an upper position where they do not interfere with the substrate chuck arms 21 and 21, as shown in FIG.
The holding grooves 21a of the arms 21 and 21 are turned into a chucking (wafer holding) state while the other holding grooves 21 are rotated.
b holds the release of chucking (wafer can pass up and down).

(3) In this state, when the substrate holding portion 18 of the substrate push-up mechanism 16 is lowered, as shown in FIG. 6C, thirteen wafers W, W,. .. Remain on the holding grooves 21a, 21a,... Of the substrate chuck arms 21, 21 and thirteen fall down through the holding grooves 21b, 21b,.

(4) As shown in FIG. 6D, the substrate holder 18 of the substrate push-up mechanism 16 is horizontally rotated by 180 degrees,
The upper and lower surfaces of the 13 wafers W, W,...

(5) The substrate holding portion 18 rises again,
.., And 13 held on substrate chuck arms 21
.. Are pushed up. This gives 2
All the six wafers W, W,.
It is pushed up to an upper position where it does not interfere with 1, 1 and stands by at this position (see FIG. 6 (e)).

(6) Next, the substrate holding portion 18 of the substrate push-up mechanism 17 and the left and right substrate chuck arms 21 and 21 hold the wafers W in the other carrier cassette 1 on the cassette mounting table 15. The operations of (1) to (5) are performed sequentially (FIG. 6
(See (a)-(e)).

In this case, the substrate holding portion 18 of the substrate pushing-up mechanism 17 pushes up and holds the wafers W, W,... In the carrier cassette 1 and then approaches the substrate holding portion 18 of the substrate pushing-up mechanism 16. , 52 wafers W, W,... Are arranged at a predetermined arrangement pitch (for example, 6.35 mm pitch), and then the above operations (1) to (5) are performed.

(8) As shown in FIG. 6 (f), the left and right substrate chuck arms 21 and 21 rotate by a predetermined angle in the direction of the arrow, and the holding grooves 21a and 2 of both arms 21 and 21 are rotated.
1b is in a chucking (wafer holding) state.

(9) In this state, the substrate push-up mechanisms 16, 1
7, the 52 wafers W, W,... Are all placed on the holding grooves 21a, 21b,... Of the substrate chuck arms 21, 21 as shown in FIG. It is placed and held.

By the above-described series of operations, the 52 wafers W, W,... Of the two carrier cassettes 1, 1 are arranged in the transfer arrangement direction in which the wafers W, W,. The arrangement direction is changed to the cleaning arrangement direction in which the front surface and the front surface, the back surface and the back surface are arranged facing each other,
Substrate chuck arms 21 and 21 of substrate transfer processing apparatus 20
Will be transferred above.

The substrate transfer section C is, conversely,
The wafers W, W,... After the processing are transferred from the substrate transfer processing device 20 to the two empty carrier cassettes 1, 1.
This series of transfer operations is performed in a manner reverse to the above. In this case, these empty carrier cassettes 1, 1 are the same as those in which the unprocessed wafers W, W,.

The substrate cleaning section D includes 52 wafers W, W,
Are collectively cleaned in a cassette-less manner. In a cleaning chamber maintained in a high cleanliness atmosphere, a cleaning tank array 25 including a plurality of cleaning tanks and a side portion of the cleaning tank array 25 are disposed. The above-described substrate transfer processing device 20 is provided as a main part.

As shown in FIG. 1, the cleaning tank row 25 extends linearly from the side facing the operator zone O to the side opposite to the operator zone O. That is, the processing path of the wafers W, W,... Is the outward path from the end of the operator zone O to the end opposite to the operator zone O (in the direction of the arrow (2)).
After the cleaning process, the return route (arrow)
(3) direction) and is carried out from the end of the operator zone O side.

Correspondingly, the substrate cleaning section D of the illustrated embodiment includes two substrate transfer processing apparatuses, namely, a substrate transfer processing apparatus 20A for cleaning the substrate and a substrate transfer processing apparatus 20B for unloading the substrate. And As will be described later, the substrate transfer processing apparatus 20A for cleaning the substrate transfers the wafers W, W,... Received at the substrate transfer section C in the direction of the arrow (2), and cleans the cleaning tank 25a of the cleaning tank row 25. And transfer processing between 25b
On the other hand, the substrate transfer processing device 20B for unloading the substrate transfers the wafers W, W,. Further, the wafer W is transferred in the direction of the arrow (3), and functions to transfer the wafers W, W,.

These two substrate transfer processing devices 20A, 20B
Have the same structure, and as shown in FIGS. 7 to 9, are horizontally and linearly moved by the moving mechanism 26 in the direction in which the cleaning tanks of the cleaning tank row 25 are arranged (the directions of arrows (2) and (3)). Are movable on the same movement guide section 27 (see FIG. 1) extending to the right side, and are driven and controlled so as not to interfere with each other's movement operations.

More specifically, as shown in FIG. 1, at the end of the movement guide section 27 on the operator zone O side, the substrate transfer processing apparatus 20A for cleaning the substrate is moved by the third transfer robot 6C of the substrate standby section B. It is possible to move to a position opposite to. Thereby, the substrate transfer processing apparatus 20 for unloading the substrate
B can be moved to a position facing the substrate transfer section C. On the other hand, at the end of the movement guide section 27 opposite to the operator zone O, the substrate transfer processing device 2
OB is movable to a position facing the drying section 25d of the cleaning tank row 25. As a result, the substrate transfer processing apparatus 20A for cleaning the substrate can be moved to a position facing the chuck cleaning tank 25c in the cleaning tank row 25.

These two substrate transfer processing devices 20A, 20B
Has a pair of substrate chuck arms 21 and 21 having a structure for directly holding 52 wafers W, W,... Without a cassette, as described above.

The pair of substrate chuck arms 21 and 2
1 is rotated by the opening / closing mechanism 28 around its axis in synchronization with each other, and in addition to the above-described substrate transfer operation in cooperation with the substrate push-up mechanisms 16 and 17 of the substrate transfer section C, will be described later. The transfer operation of the wafers W, W,... In cooperation with the substrate holding unit 30 of the cleaning tanks 25a, 25b of the cleaning tank row 25, and the transfer operation of the wafers W, W,. Is performed.

The cleaning tank array 25 includes a plurality of cleaning tanks. As described above, the two cleaning tanks 25a and 25b are provided, and the substrate chuck of the substrate transfer processing apparatus 20 is connected to the cleaning tanks. A chuck cleaning tank 25c for cleaning the arm 21 and a drying unit 25d for drying the wafers W are provided.

In the illustrated embodiment, the cleaning tank 2
5a is SPM (H_TwoSO _Four+ H_TwoO_Two+ H_Two
O) A cleaning tank using a liquid, and the cleaning tank 25b is a chemical liquid.
APM (NH_FourOH + H_TwoO_Two+ H_TwoO) Use liquid
Cleaning tank. These washing tanks 25a and 25b are not needed
In this case, the chemical liquid overflows from the top of the tank and forms an upward flow
It is in the form of an overflow tank, and after chemical treatment,
Rinsing the wafers W, W,... With pure water instead of
Have been.

Further, the cleaning tanks 25a, 25b are provided with a substrate holding section 30 for receiving and holding the wafers W, W,... From the substrate transfer processing apparatus 20. As shown in FIGS. 10 and 11, the substrate holding section 30 arranges lower portions of the wafers W, W,.
(35 mm pitch), and the cleaning tank 25a or 25b
It can move up and down in the tank, and receives and holds wafers W, W,... From the substrate transfer processing apparatus 20.

The transfer (transfer) of the wafers W, W,... From the substrate transfer processing apparatus 20 in the cleaning tanks 25a, 25b is performed by the substrate transfer processing apparatus 20.
a and 25b (see FIG. 12 (a)), the lifting and lowering operation of the substrate holding unit 30 and the substrate transfer processing device 2 are performed.
The operation is performed in the following manner by cooperation with the rotation operation of the substrate chuck arms 21 and 21 (see FIGS. 12B to 12D).

(1) As shown in FIG. 12 (b), the substrate holding section 30 is lifted and the wafers W, W,... Held in the holding grooves 21a, 21b of the substrate chuck arms 21, 21 are lowered. Hold and lift from the side.

(2) When the wafers W, W,... Are lifted to an upper position where they do not interfere with the substrate chuck arms 21 and 21, the left and right substrate chuck arms 21 and 21 are moved in the directions of arrows as shown in FIG. By rotating by a predetermined angle, the holding grooves 21a and 21b of the arms 21 and 21 are released from the chucking state (allowing the wafer to pass up and down).
Is immersed in the chemical solution in the cleaning tanks 25a and 25b.

When the cleaning process of the wafers W, W,... In the cleaning tanks 25a, 25b is completed, the wafers W, W,. Transfer (see FIG. 12D) is performed, and this series of transfer operations is performed in a manner reverse to the above.

The drying section 25d specifically includes the wafer W,
W,... Are spun and dried while centrifuging water.

The spin dryer 25d of the illustrated embodiment
Is a horizontal axis type having a structure as shown in FIG. 15, in which a rotor 32 rotating at high speed is housed in a substantially cylindrical chamber 31 capable of being closed.

The HEPA filter 33 is provided in the chamber 31.
Inlet 3 which is openly communicated with the outside of the chamber 31 through the
1a, and an exhaust port 31b communicating with a factory exhaust system through a negative pressure source (not shown) is provided. Clean air introduced into the chamber 31 through the HEPA filter 33 and the intake port 31a is: The exhaust port 31b is configured to be forcibly exhausted to a factory exhaust facility.

The rotor 32 is rotatably supported in the chamber 31 in a horizontal state and is rotatably connected to a drive motor (not shown). The rotor 32 has
A substrate holder 35 for directly holding the wafers W, W,... Is provided.
.. Are formed with a comb-shaped holding groove for holding W at a predetermined arrangement pitch.

After the inside of the chamber 31 has been sealed, the wafers W, W,. Spin drying is performed.

Further, a substrate loading / unloading section 36 for loading / unloading wafers W, W,... With respect to the substrate holding section 35 of the rotor 32 is provided at the bottom of the chamber 31.

The substrate loading / unloading section 36 includes a wafer W,
The substrate holding portion 37 for holding W,. Like the substrate holding portion 35 of the rotor 32, the substrate holding portion 37 has a pair of holding rods 37a, having a comb-shaped holding groove for holding the lower portions of the wafers W, W,.
37a.

The substrate holding part 37 is opened and closed from the bottom of the chamber 31 by an elevating mechanism 38.
Can be raised and lowered to the upper outside of the chamber 31 via the substrate transfer processing device 20 to receive and hold the wafers W, W,.

The transfer (transfer) operation of the wafers W, W,... From the substrate transfer processing device 20 in the spin dryer 25d is performed in a state where the substrate transfer processing device 20 is positioned above the spin dryer 25d ( 16 (a), the raising / lowering operation of the substrate holding unit 37 and the substrate transfer processing apparatus 2
The operation is performed in the following manner by the cooperative action with the rotation operation of the substrate chuck arms 21 and 21 (see FIGS. 16B and 16C).

(1) As shown in FIG. 16 (a), the substrate holding section 37 is raised above the spin dryer 25d, and the wafer W held in the holding grooves 21a, 21b of the substrate chuck arms 21, 21 is moved. , W,... Are lifted while being held from below.

(2) When the wafers W, W,... Are lifted to an upper position where they do not interfere with the substrate chuck arms 21 and 21, the left and right substrate chuck arms 21 and 21 move in the directions of arrows as shown in FIG. By rotating by a predetermined angle, the holding grooves 21a and 21b of the arms 21 and 21 are released from the chucking state (allowing the wafer to pass up and down).
Is carried into the chamber 31 of the spin dryer 25d, and is transferred to and held by the substrate holding unit 35 of the rotor 32.

When the spin drying process of the wafers W, W,... In the spin drier 25d is completed, the spin drier 25d reverses
Are carried out and transferred to 0, and this series of transfer operations is performed in a manner reverse to that described above.

The cleaning tank 25b and the spin dryer 25
13d, the chuck cleaning tank 25c disposed between
As shown in FIG. 14, a cleaning section 40 for cleaning the substrate chuck arm 21 of the substrate transfer processing apparatus 20 is provided.
As shown in FIG. 1, the cleaning unit 40 has a concave shape that covers both the left and right sides of the substrate chuck arm 21, and a plurality of injection nozzles 41 that spray cleaning liquid to the substrate chuck arm 21 are provided. ing.

In the illustrated embodiment, as shown in FIGS. 13 and 14, five injection nozzles are used to inject the cleaning liquid into all the holding grooves 21a, 21b,. The injection nozzle row 42 composed of a set of 41, 41,.
That is, a total of 20 (5 × 4 = 20) injection nozzles 41,
41,... Are provided.

The cleaning section 40 can be moved up and down in the chuck cleaning tank 25c by the elevating mechanism 43, and the holding grooves 21a and 21a of the rotating substrate chuck arm 21 are rotated.
With respect to b,..., a cleaning liquid is sprayed while moving up and down, and cleaning is performed at the same time.
In practice, this cleaning step is performed by a pair of substrate chuck arms 2.
1 and 21, respectively.

The control unit (control unit) E includes the substrate loading / unloading unit A, substrate standby unit B, substrate transfer unit C, and substrate cleaning unit D.
Are controlled in synchronism with each other, and the following cleaning processing steps are automatically performed by the control device E from the time when the wafers W, W,.

I. Loading of wafers W, W,... (1) The wafers W, W,... Which have been subjected to the preceding process are stored in the carrier cassette 3, and are automatically loaded into an unillustrated automatic guided vehicle (AGV) or a loading conveyor. The board loading / unloading section 2 of the board loading / unloading section A is manually operated by means or an operator.
It is carried in.

(2) Carrier cassettes 1, 1, carried in
Are sequentially arrowed by the tact feed mechanism 2a as described above.
After being tact-fed in the path (1), the wafer W is horizontally rotated by the turntable mechanism 2b, and the horizontal attitude of the wafers W, W,. Wait for transfer.

(3) First transfer robot 6 in substrate standby section B
A, the carrier cassette 1 storing the unprocessed wafers W, W,... Waiting on the turntable mechanism 2 b
They are sequentially transferred onto any one of the cassette mounting sections 7 of the loading side stocker section 5A and stocked.

(4) Further, the carrier cassette 1 containing the unprocessed wafers W, W,..., Which is already initially stocked in the carry-in stocker section 5A, is moved by the first transfer robot 7A to the third place. Is transferred to the transfer position to the transfer robot 6C. The wafer W before processing at this transfer position,
The carrier cassette 1 containing W,... Is transferred to the substrate transfer section C by the third transfer robot 6C.

(5) When two carrier cassettes 1 are placed on the cassette table 15 of the substrate transfer section C, the push-up mechanism 1
According to 6, 17, the unprocessed wafers W, W,... Stored in the carrier cassettes 1, 1 are transferred to the substrate transport processing apparatus 20A for cleaning the substrate in the substrate cleaning section D in the manner described above. At this time, from the transfer arrangement direction in which all the wafers W, W,... Are arranged in the same direction, the cleaning arrangement in which the front and back surfaces, and the back and back surfaces of the adjacent wafers W, W are arranged to face each other. The array direction is converted to the direction.

(6) The empty cassettes 1, 1 from which the wafers W, W,... Have been taken out are again transferred to the transfer position by the third transfer robot 6C of the substrate standby section B.
Further, the second transfer robot 6B transfers and stocks any one of the cassette mounting sections 7 of the unloading side stocker section 5B.

II. Cleaning of wafers W, W,...: (7) The wafers W, W,... Held in the substrate transfer processing apparatus 20A for substrate cleaning without a cassette are the substrates of the two cleaning tanks 25a, 25b of the cleaning tank row 25. It is sequentially delivered to the holding unit 30 and is sequentially immersed in each of the chemicals to perform a cleaning process.

(8) The wafers W, W,..., Which have been subjected to the cleaning processing by the two cleaning tanks 25a, 25b, are transferred to the spin dryer 25d by the substrate transfer processing apparatus 20B for unloading the substrates, and delivered. For spin drying.

III. Unloading of Wafers W, W,... (9) The wafers W, W,... After the drying process are transferred again from the spin dryer 25d to the substrate transfer processing apparatus 20B for unloading the substrate. It is transported to the substrate transfer section C. At this time, the substrate transport processing apparatus 20A for cleaning the substrate has moved to a position facing the third transfer robot 6C in the substrate standby section B and has been retracted.

(10) Simultaneously or in advance, the wafers W, W,... Before processing are placed on the cassette table 15 of the substrate transfer section C by the third transfer robot 6C of the substrate standby section B.
The same empty carrier cassette 1, 1 that was stored at the time of loading is transferred.

(11) When two carrier cassettes 1 are placed on the cassette table 15, the push-up mechanisms 16 and 17 move the substrate chuck arm 2 of the substrate transfer processing apparatus 20B.
The processed wafers W, W,... Held in the two carrier cassettes 1, 1 are stored in the two carrier cassettes 1, 1 in the manner described above.
They are transferred and stored one by one. At this time, the arrangement direction of the wafers W, W,... Is such that all the wafers W, W,. The images are converted in the transport arrangement direction arranged in the same direction.

(12) Third transfer robot 6 in substrate standby section B
C, the carrier cassettes 1, 1 storing the processed wafers W, W,.
Are sequentially transferred to the delivery position.

(14) Carrier cassettes 1, 1 containing processed wafers W, W,... Transferred to this transfer position
Are sequentially transferred by the second transfer robot 6B to the turntable mechanism 3b of the substrate carrying-out section 3 of the substrate carrying-in / out section A.

(15) The carrier cassette 1 transferred to the turntable mechanism 2b is horizontally rotated by the turntable mechanism 2b, and the horizontal attitude of the wafers W, W,.
The posture is changed from the cleaning posture to the carry-out posture.

(16) Carrier cassette 1 whose posture has been changed
Are sequentially tact-fed along the path indicated by the arrow (4) by the tact feeding mechanism 3a as described above, and then conveyed to the next step by unloading means such as an AGV or unloading conveyor (not shown) from the unloading port 3c. Is done.

IV. Substrate chuck of substrate transfer processing device 20
Cleaning arm 21: substrate transfer processing device 20 for cleaning substrates
A and the substrate chuck arms 21 and 21 of the substrate transfer processing apparatus 20B for unloading the substrates are moved at predetermined intervals or appropriately to the chuck cleaning tank 25c when the wafers W, W,. The cleaning and drying process is performed by the cleaning unit 40.

In the present substrate cleaning system, the processing paths of the wafers W, W,... Extend linearly from the side facing the operator zone O to the side opposite to the operator zone O, as shown in FIG. Provided, the wafer W,
W,... From the operator zone O side to the operator zone O
After being subjected to the cleaning process through the outward route (in the direction of the arrow (2)) to the opposite side, it is again carried out from the operator zone O through the return route (in the direction of the arrow (3)). As a result, the present cleaning system has a compact configuration requiring the operator zone O on only one side thereof, and the installation space of the system is reduced,
There is no need to secure a large installation space for the system.
As a result, the limited washing room space can be effectively used, and installation in a small factory space is also possible.

The substrate transfer processing device 20 (20A, 2
0B), while the wafers W, W,... Are being cleaned, the carrier cassette 1 from which the wafers W, W,. The wafers W, W,... Are housed again in the carrier cassette 1 used at the time of carrying in, and carried out to the next step. As a result, the carrier cassettes 1 are efficiently used, and the required number thereof is reduced and the storage space for the carrier cassettes 1 is reduced.

Further, a substrate loading / unloading section A, a substrate standby section B,
Is provided with a control device E for controlling the drive of the substrate transfer section C and the substrate cleaning section D in synchronization with each other, so that the wafers W, W,... (20A, 20B), the cleaning process is performed without a cassette, and a series of cleaning processes of returning to the same carrier cassette 1 at the time of carrying in and carrying out to the next process are completely automated. Moreover, the carrier cassette 1 in which the wafers W, W,.
However, since the entire system is driven and controlled to be the same as that stored at the time of loading, the storage and management of the wafers W, W,... And the management of the process history thereof are automatically and reliably performed.

Further, by making the configuration of each of the components A to D compact as described above, the size and simplification of the cleaning system itself can be achieved. In particular, the substrate standby unit B includes a three-dimensional cassette stocker 5 in which the cassette mounting units 7 are stacked in a plurality of layers in the vertical direction, and a single-axis robot 10 that can move up and down in the vertical direction. SCARA robot 11
Are configured as a main part with the transfer robot 6 integrated with the carrier cassettes 1, 1,
Can be temporarily stocked, and a continuous cleaning process can be performed, and the installation space for the carrier cassettes 1, 1,... Can be reduced, contributing greatly to downsizing of the entire cleaning system. I do.

The above-described embodiments are merely intended to show preferred embodiments of the present invention, and the present invention should not be construed as being limited thereto, and various designs may be made within the scope of the present invention. Can be changed.

For example, the specific structure of each component constituting the substrate cleaning system in the illustrated embodiment can be variously changed without being limited to the illustrated example.

The specific structure of the substrate cleaning section C is also variously changed, for example, the number of cleaning tanks is increased in accordance with the purpose and method of cleaning.

Further, in the illustrated embodiment, when the push-up mechanisms 16 and 17 transfer the wafers W, W,... Between the carrier cassette 1 and the substrate transfer processing device 20 of the substrate cleaning section D, In cooperation with the substrate chuck arms 21 of the transfer processing device 20, it also functions as an array conversion means for changing the array direction of the wafers W, W,.
In addition, it functions as pitch conversion means for converting the arrangement pitch of the wafers W, W,... Between the transfer arrangement pitch in the carrier cassette 1 and the cleaning arrangement pitch which is a half of the arrangement pitch. It is also possible to configure. With such a configuration, the substrate cleaning unit D can be designed to have a more compact (particularly in a plane space) structure.

[0108]

As described in detail above, according to the present invention,
A substrate loading / unloading section for loading / unloading wafers stored in a carrier cassette, a substrate standby section for temporarily holding the carrier cassette of the substrate loading / unloading section, and a batch cleaning of a plurality of wafers without a cassette; A substrate cleaning unit for processing, and a substrate transfer unit disposed between the substrate standby unit and the substrate cleaning unit, for transferring a wafer between the carrier cassette of the substrate standby unit and the substrate cleaning unit; The substrate loading / unloading section, the substrate standby section, the substrate transfer section, and the substrate cleaning section are sequentially arranged in series from the side facing the operator zone, whereby the substrate processing path is such that the wafer is moved from the operator zone side. After being subjected to the cleaning process on the outward route to the opposite side of the operator zone, it is carried out again from the operator zone side via the return route. Factory space was able to provide a substrate cleaning system capable of effective use of.

Further, a control unit for controlling the drive of the substrate loading / unloading unit, the substrate standby unit, the substrate transfer unit, and the substrate cleaning unit in synchronization with each other is provided. Is transferred to the above-mentioned substrate transfer processing apparatus, the cleaning process is performed without a cassette, and a series of cleaning processes of returning to the same carrier cassette as that at the time of loading and unloading to the next process are completely automated, so that the wafer process history Management and the like can be automatically and reliably performed.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic plan view showing a substrate cleaning system according to an embodiment of the present invention by partially cutting out the substrate cleaning system.

FIG. 2 is a front view showing the substrate cleaning system.

FIG. 3 is a side view showing the same substrate cleaning system.

FIG. 4 is a diagram showing a substrate standby unit of the substrate cleaning system of FIG. 2;
FIG. 4 is a sectional view taken along the line IV-IV.

FIG. 5 is a plan view showing a transfer robot of the substrate standby unit in a partial cross section.

FIG. 6 is a schematic explanatory view showing a transfer step in a substrate transfer section of the substrate cleaning system.

FIG. 7 is a side view showing, in partial cross section, a substrate transfer processing apparatus in a substrate cleaning section of the substrate cleaning system.

FIG. 8 is a plan view showing the same substrate transport processing apparatus in a partial cross section.

9A and 9B show a substrate chuck arm of the substrate transfer processing apparatus. FIG. 9A is a plan view, and FIG.
9B. FIG. 9C is an enlarged sectional view taken along line CC in FIG. 9A.

FIG. 10 is a side view, partially cut away, showing the relationship between the substrate transport processing apparatus and the cleaning tank in the substrate cleaning section of the substrate transport processing apparatus.

FIG. 11 is a plan view showing the relationship between the substrate transport processing apparatus and the cleaning tank in the substrate cleaning section of the substrate transport processing apparatus.

FIG. 12 is a schematic explanatory view showing a transfer step in a cleaning tank of a substrate cleaning section of the substrate cleaning system.

FIG. 13 is a side view partially cut away showing a relationship between a substrate transfer processing apparatus and a chuck cleaning tank in a substrate cleaning section of the substrate cleaning system.

FIG. 14 is a front view partially cut away showing the relationship between the substrate transport processing apparatus and the chuck cleaning tank in the substrate cleaning unit.

FIG. 15 is a front view in which a spin dryer in the substrate cleaning section of the substrate cleaning system is partially cut away.

FIG. 16 is a schematic explanatory view showing a transfer step in the spin dryer.

[Explanation of symbols]

 W Wafer A Substrate loading / unloading section B Substrate standby section C Substrate transfer section D Substrate cleaning section E Control device (control section) O Operator zone 1 Carrier cassette 2 Substrate loading section 3 Substrate unloading section 5 Cassette stocker 5A Loading side stocker section 5B Unloading-side stocker unit 6 Transfer robot 6A First transfer robot 6B Second transfer robot 6C Third transfer robot 7 Cassette mounting unit 10 Single-axis robot 11 SCARA robot 15 Cassette table 16, 17 Substrate protrusion Lifting mechanism (array conversion means) 18 Substrate holding unit 20 Substrate transfer processing device 21 Substrate chuck arm 21a, 21b Holding groove 25 Cleaning tank row 25a, 25b Cleaning tank 25c Chuck cleaning tank 25d Spin dryer (drying unit) 26 Moving mechanism 27 Moving Guide unit 30 Substrate holding unit 35 Substrate holding unit 36 Substrate carry-in / out unit 37 Plate holding unit 40 cleaning unit

──────────────────────────────────────────────────の Continued on the front page (51) Int.Cl. ⁷ Identification symbol FI Theme coat ゛ (Reference) H01L 21/68 H01L 21/68 D (72) Inventor Tatsuo Komori 3-9-1 Imai 3-chome, Ome-shi, Tokyo Inside SES Co., Ltd. (72) Inventor Naoto Isobe 3-9-1, Imai 3-chome, Ome-shi, Tokyo S-Etsu Co., Ltd. (72) Yasuyoshi Iida 3-9-1, Imai, Ome-shi, Tokyo No. 18 Inside S.E.S. Co., Ltd. (72) Inventor Kazunari Kobayashi 3-9-1-18 Imai, Ome-shi, Tokyo No. 18 Within S.E.S. Co., Ltd. (72) Inventor Takeshi Ueno 3 Imai, Ome-shi, Tokyo F-term (reference) No. 9-18 SSE Co., Ltd. 2H088 FA17 FA21 FA24 FA30 2H090 JC19 3B201 AA03 AB24 AB42 BB04 BB25 BB93 BB96 CB15 CC01 CC13 CD24 5F031 CA02 DA17 FA01 FA09 FA11 FA14 HA72 MA02 MA23

Claims (12)

[Claims] 1. A substrate cleaning system in which a substrate stored in a carrier cassette and carried in from a previous process is collectively cleaned without a cassette, and is again stored in a carrier cassette and carried out to a next process. A substrate loading / unloading unit for loading / unloading the substrates stored in the carrier cassette; a substrate standby unit for temporarily holding the carrier cassette in the substrate loading / unloading unit; And a substrate transfer unit disposed between the substrate standby unit and the substrate cleaning unit for transferring a substrate between the carrier cassette of the substrate standby unit and the substrate cleaning unit. In addition, the substrate carry-in / out unit, the substrate standby unit, the substrate transfer unit, and the substrate cleaning unit are sequentially and serially arranged from the side facing the operator zone, The substrate processing path is characterized in that the substrate is subjected to a cleaning process on the outward path from the operator zone side to the opposite side of the operator zone, and then is again discharged from the operator zone side through the return path. Substrate cleaning system. 2. The substrate loading / unloading section, wherein a substrate loading section into which a substrate stored in a carrier cassette from a previous process is loaded, and a substrate after a cleaning process is stored in a carrier cassette and transported to a next process. 2. The substrate cleaning system according to claim 1, wherein a substrate unloading section is arranged in parallel facing the operator zone. 3. 3. The three-dimensional cassette stocker comprising a plurality of vertically stacked cassette mounting portions for mounting the carrier cassette, and a substrate mounting portion of the cassette stocker. The substrate cleaning system according to claim 1, further comprising a transfer robot that transfers a carrier cassette between the substrate transfer unit and the substrate transfer unit. 4. 4. The cassette stocker includes a carry-in side stocker section in which a plurality of cassette mounting sections for mounting a carrier cassette accommodating substrates before processing are vertically stacked, and a substrate after processing. 4. The substrate cleaning system according to claim 3, wherein a cassette mounting portion for mounting an empty carrier cassette to be stored is provided with an unloading-side stocker portion which is vertically stacked in a plurality of stages. 5. The transfer robot according to claim 1, wherein the transfer robot is configured to transfer a carrier cassette storing the unprocessed substrates, and a second transfer robot is configured to transfer the carrier cassette storing the processed substrates. 5. The apparatus according to claim 3, further comprising a transfer robot, and a third transfer robot for transferring a carrier cassette between the cassette mounting portion and the substrate transferring portion of the cassette stocker. A substrate cleaning system according to item 1. 6. The transfer robot according to claim 1, wherein a SCARA robot that transfers the carrier cassettes one by one to a single-axis robot that can move up and down is integrally combined. 6. The substrate cleaning system according to any one of 3 to 5. 7. The substrate transfer section, when converting a plurality of substrates between the transfer arrangement pitch and the cleaning arrangement pitch, in a transfer arrangement direction in which all the substrates are arranged in the same direction. 2. The apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising an array direction changing unit configured to change an array direction between a front surface and a front surface of the adjacent substrates and a cleaning array direction in which the back surface and the back surface are arranged to face each other. Substrate cleaning system. 8. The substrate transfer section, when transferring a plurality of substrates between the carrier cassette and the substrate cleaning section, sets an arrangement pitch of the substrates to a transfer arrangement pitch in the carrier cassette and a half thereof. The substrate cleaning system according to claim 7, further comprising a pitch conversion unit configured to convert a pitch between the cleaning arrangement pitch and the pitch. 9. The cleaning apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the substrate cleaning unit includes a cleaning tank array including a plurality of cleaning tanks, and a substrate transfer processing apparatus that is movable along the cleaning tank row and directly grips a plurality of substrates without using a cassette. The substrate cleaning system according to claim 1, further comprising: 10. The substrate cleaning unit includes a plurality of substrate transfer processing devices, and the plurality of substrate transfer processing devices include:
10. The apparatus according to claim 9, wherein the apparatus is configured to be movable on the same moving guide portion extending horizontally in a direction in which the cleaning tank is arranged, and to be driven and controlled so as not to interfere with each other's moving operation. A substrate cleaning system according to item 1. 11. The cleaning tank includes a pair of substrate chuck arms that are horizontally movable in a direction in which the cleaning tank is disposed, and that perform a chucking operation by synchronous rotation about an axis. Is provided with a substrate holding portion that can be moved up and down in the tank and receives and holds a substrate from the substrate transfer processing device. The transfer operation of the substrate in the cleaning tank includes a rotation operation of a substrate chuck arm of the substrate transfer processing device. The substrate cleaning system according to claim 9, wherein the substrate cleaning system is configured to perform the operation in cooperation with an elevating operation of the substrate holding unit. 12. A control unit for controlling the driving of the substrate carry-in / out unit, the substrate standby unit, the substrate transfer unit, and the substrate cleaning unit in synchronization with each other, and the control unit is housed in a carrier cassette from a previous process. The transported substrate is transferred to the substrate transport processing apparatus, and is subjected to a cleaning process without a cassette, and a series of cleaning steps of returning to the same carrier cassette as that at the time of loading and transporting the substrate to the next process are performed. The substrate cleaning system according to any one of claims 1 to 11, wherein: