JP2002110763A - Method for transferring substrate, and apparatus thereof - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To maintain a space between a substrate and rollers to be constant, and reduce the time required until completion of transfer of the substrate. SOLUTION: A carry- and carry-out transfer controller transfers the substrate 2 into a space between a pair of rollers 3, so as to be in a perpendicularly state the substrate with a drive roller chucks 1a and driven roller chucks 1b installed at prescribed positions of the lower part of an apparatus, and the driven roller chucks installed at the prescribed positions of upper part of the apparatus and in vertically movable manner with a hoisting and lowering mechanism.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a method and an apparatus for transporting a substrate, and more particularly, to a predetermined gap between a roller which is rotated in one direction to define a flow direction of pure water containing ice particles. The present invention relates to a novel method for loading and unloading a substrate into and out of a substrate cleaning apparatus that cleans a substrate by directly facing the substrate, and an apparatus therefor.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, a substrate cleaning apparatus for cleaning a substrate using pure water containing ice particles has been proposed (Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. Hei.
267261, JP-A-11-151467).

A substrate cleaning apparatus described in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 5-267261 grasps a single substrate with a pair of fingers from the left and right, and in this state, ejects fine frozen particles from an ejection nozzle to the substrate. It sprays.

In the substrate cleaning apparatus described in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. H11-151467, a screw is arranged so as to be close to the surface of a substrate, and a liquid for supplying pure water or a mixture of pure water and a chemical to the screw. A supply nozzle and a snow / ice supply nozzle for supplying snow and ice are arranged, and pure water or a mixture of pure water and a chemical solution and snow and ice are rotated by a screw and pressed against the surface of the substrate to clean the surface of the substrate. is there.

[0005]

However, as a substrate cleaning apparatus for cleaning a substrate using pure water containing ice particles, a roller is disposed at a predetermined gap from the substrate, and in this state, the ice particles are removed. There is no proposal at all for a substrate cleaning apparatus for supplying pure water containing.

Therefore, there has been no proposal at all for a substrate transfer apparatus for loading and unloading a substrate into and from such a substrate cleaning apparatus.

[0007]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention is directed to a substrate cleaning method for cleaning a substrate by directing the substrate at a predetermined gap to a roller which is rotated in one direction to define the flow direction of pure water containing ice particles. It is an object of the present invention to provide a method for loading and unloading a substrate to and from a device and a device therefor.

[0008]

According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method for transporting a substrate, wherein the substrate is directly opposed to a roller which is rotated in one direction to define a flow direction of pure water containing ice particles. A method of loading and unloading a substrate into and out of a substrate cleaning apparatus for cleaning a substrate, wherein the substrate is positioned at an upper edge and a lower edge relative to a position corresponding to a roller. And moving the substrate in a direction parallel to the central axis of the roller while maintaining the substrate holding state.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, the substrate is washed by directing the substrate at a predetermined gap with respect to a roller which is rotated in one direction to define a flow direction of pure water containing ice particles. An apparatus for loading and unloading a substrate to and from a substrate cleaning apparatus, wherein the substrate holding means holds the substrate at an upper edge and a lower edge based on a position corresponding to a roller. And moving means for moving the substrate in a direction parallel to the central axis of the roller while maintaining the substrate holding state.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the substrate transfer apparatus, the substrate holding means is provided on a U-shaped frame for preventing interference with a roller, and is provided on a lower side member of the frame, and the lower portion of the substrate is provided. A lower roller chuck that supports the edge portion of the substrate in a housed state, and an upper roller chuck that is provided on the upper edge member of the frame and supports the upper edge portion of the substrate in a housed state. is there.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, the substrate transfer apparatus further includes an elevating mechanism for reciprocating the upper roller chuck between a state in which the upper edge of the substrate is supported in a housed state and a state in which the upper edge is separated from the substrate. It is a thing.

[0012]

According to the first aspect of the present invention, the substrate is confronted at a predetermined gap with respect to a roller which is rotated in one direction to define the flow direction of pure water containing ice particles. In loading and unloading the substrate from and to the substrate cleaning apparatus for cleaning, the substrate is held at an upper edge portion and a lower edge portion with respect to a position corresponding to the roller, and the substrate is held. Since the substrate is moved in a direction parallel to the central axis of the roller while maintaining the state, there is no need to change the arrangement position of the roller, and the gap between the substrate and the roller can be kept constant, The time required for completing the substrate transfer can be reduced.

According to the second aspect of the present invention, the substrate is confronted at a predetermined gap with respect to a roller which is rotated in one direction to define the flow direction of pure water containing ice particles. In loading and unloading a substrate to and from the substrate cleaning apparatus for cleaning, the substrate holding means holds the substrate at an edge located above and an edge located below with reference to a position corresponding to the roller. The moving means can move the substrate in a direction parallel to the central axis of the roller while maintaining the substrate holding state.

Therefore, it is not necessary to change the arrangement position of the rollers, the gap between the substrate and the rollers can be kept constant, and the time required for completing the substrate transfer can be shortened.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, as the substrate transfer device, the substrate holding means is provided on a U-shaped frame for preventing interference with a roller, and is provided on a lower side member of the frame. A lower roller chuck that supports the lower edge of the substrate in a housed state, and an upper roller chuck that is provided on the upper side member of the frame and supports the upper edge of the substrate in a housed state. Therefore, it is possible to stably hold the substrate and to achieve the same effect as the second aspect.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, there is provided the substrate transfer apparatus, wherein the upper roller chuck reciprocates between a state in which the upper edge portion of the substrate is supported in a housed state and a state in which the upper edge is separated from the substrate. Since it further includes, it is possible to easily supply and take out the substrate to and from the substrate holding means, and it is possible to achieve the same operation as the third aspect.

[0017]

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a substrate transfer method and apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 1 is a schematic side view showing a substrate cleaning apparatus to which an embodiment of the substrate transfer apparatus according to the present invention is applied, and FIG. 2 is a schematic front view thereof.

This substrate cleaning apparatus is provided with a drive roller chuck 1a and a driven roller chuck 1b provided at predetermined positions of a lower side member of a U-shaped frame 1, and a vertically movable mechanism 1e at a predetermined position of an upper side member. A pair of rollers 3 are opposed to each surface of the substrate 2 supported vertically by the driven roller chuck 1c with a predetermined gap h, and the center axis of the roller 2 is oriented horizontally. Is provided. Here, it is preferable to reduce the gap h (for example, about 5/100 to 1 mm), to reduce the required amount of a mixed solution of pure water containing ice particles and a substrate cleaning chemical solution, and to improve the cleaning performance. Can be.

A surrounding member (stator) 4 is provided so as to surround most of the outer surface of the roller 3 except for a portion close to the substrate 2, and pure water containing ice particles is supplied to a predetermined position of each stator 4. Cleaning liquid supply port 4a for supplying a roller cleaning chemical liquid at a predetermined position upstream of the pure water supply port 4a.
b is provided.

A substrate cleaning chemical supply nozzle 5 is provided at a predetermined position above the gap between the roller 3 and the substrate 2.

1d is a motor for driving the drive roller chuck 1a, 6 is a chemical supply source, and 7 is a pure water supply source for supplying pure water containing ice particles.

The direction of rotation of the roller 3 is set in a direction (see arrows in FIG. 1) in which pure water containing ice particles and each chemical can be guided vertically downward along the surface of the substrate 2.

The gap between the roller 3 and the stator 4 downstream of the pure water supply port 4a is
Is set to be smaller than the gap h.

The elevating mechanism 1e may be operated by air pressure, hydraulic pressure or the like, or may be operated by magnetic force or the like. Then, in response to an external instruction, the ascent operation and the descending operation may be performed, but only the ascent operation is performed in response to the external instruction,
It may be one that descends by gravity in response to the lifting operation state being released.

The U-shaped frame 1 is reciprocated by the carry-in / carry-out controller 8 to carry the substrate 2 in and out of the cleaning position.

The operation of the above-structured substrate cleaning apparatus is as follows.

By moving the U-shaped frame 1, the substrate 2 is positioned between the pair of rollers 3. In this state, the substrate 2 is rotated and the pair of rollers 3 is rotated in the direction of the arrow. Then, pure water containing ice particles is supplied from the pure water supply port 4a, and a substrate cleaning chemical (alcohol, ammonia water, etc.) is supplied from the substrate cleaning chemical supply nozzle 5. In this case, since the position of the pair of rollers 3 does not change at all, the gap h between the substrate 2 and the rollers 3 can be accurately reproduced. Further, as compared with the case where the roller 3 is moved, the time required until the start of the cleaning operation can be reduced, and the number of substrates processed per fixed time can be increased.

As a result, a mixed solution of pure water containing ice particles and a substrate cleaning chemical flows vertically downward through the gap between the substrate 2 and the roller 3, thereby uniformly cleaning the entire surface of the substrate 2. be able to. Further, since the mixed solution of pure water containing ice particles and the chemical solution for cleaning the substrate flows only in one direction, there is no possibility that particles will be reattached. Therefore, the cleaning performance of the substrate 2 can be improved.

Next, the substrate transfer operation will be described with reference to FIGS. In each of the drawings, (A) shows a cross-sectional plan view, and (B) shows a front view.

First, as shown in FIG. 3, the driven roller chuck 1c is raised by the elevating mechanism 1e, and in this state, the substrate 2 is supported by the drive roller chuck 1a and the driven roller check 1b.

Next, as shown in FIG. 4, the lifting mechanism 1e
Is released, and the driven roller 1c is lowered by its own weight, whereby the substrate 2 is securely held.

After the substrate 2 has been securely held, the frame 1 is moved to the substrate cleaning device by the carry-in / carry-out control unit 8 as shown in FIG.

In this state, as shown in FIG. 5, while rotating the driving roller chuck 1a to rotate the substrate 2 and rotating the roller 3, pure water containing ice particles is supplied between the substrate 2 and the roller 3. By feeding into the gap,
The surface of the substrate 2 is cleaned.

After the cleaning of the surface of the substrate 2 is completed, FIG.
As shown in (2), the loading / unloading control unit 8 moves the frame 1 in a direction away from the substrate cleaning apparatus, and unloads the substrate 2 from the substrate cleaning apparatus.

Thereafter, the driven roller chuck 1c is raised by the elevating mechanism 1e. In this state, as shown in FIG. 8, the substrate is taken out and prepared for the next substrate transport.

As can be seen from the above description, the roller 3 is not moved when the substrate 2 is carried in and out of the substrate cleaning apparatus.
Can be accurately secured. Further, since the movement of the roller 3 is not involved, the time required for starting the cleaning of the substrate 2 can be reduced.

[0038]

According to the first aspect of the present invention, there is no need to change the position of the roller, the gap between the substrate and the roller can be kept constant, and the time required for completing the substrate transfer can be reduced. It has a specific effect that it can be performed.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, there is no need to change the position of the rollers, the gap between the substrate and the rollers can be kept constant, and the time required to complete the substrate transfer can be shortened. It has a unique effect that it can be performed.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, the substrate is stably held,
In addition, the same effect as that of the second aspect is obtained.

According to the fourth aspect of the present invention, it is possible to easily supply and take out the substrate to and from the substrate holding means.
The same effect as the third aspect is achieved.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic side view showing a substrate cleaning apparatus to which an embodiment of a substrate transfer apparatus according to the present invention is applied.

FIG. 2 is a schematic front view of the same.

FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating a substrate loading operation for transporting a substrate.

FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating a substrate holding operation.

FIG. 5 is a view for explaining substrate transfer to a substrate cleaning unit.

FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating a substrate cleaning state.

FIG. 7 is a view for explaining substrate transfer from a substrate cleaning unit.

FIG. 8 is a view for explaining the unloading of a substrate from a substrate transport unit.

[Explanation of symbols]

 Reference Signs List 1 frame 1a drive roller chuck 1b, 1c driven roller chuck 1e lifting mechanism 2 substrate 3 roller 8 carry-in / carry-out controller

Claims (4)

[Claims] 1. A substrate (2) facing a roller (3) which is rotated in one direction to define a flow direction of pure water containing ice particles, with a predetermined gap therebetween. A substrate transport method for loading and unloading a substrate (2) to and from a substrate cleaning apparatus that performs the cleaning of (2), wherein the edge is located at an upper position with respect to a position corresponding to a roller (3) and is positioned at a lower position The edge of the substrate (2)
And transferring the substrate (2) in a direction parallel to the central axis of the roller (3) while maintaining the substrate holding state. 2. A substrate (2) facing a roller (3) which is rotated in one direction to define a flow direction of pure water containing ice particles, with a predetermined gap therebetween. A substrate transport device for loading and unloading a substrate (2) from and into a substrate cleaning device for performing the cleaning of (2), wherein the edge is located above and below the edge corresponding to the position corresponding to the roller (3). The edge of the substrate (2)
(1) (1a) (1b) (1)
c) and a moving means (8) for moving the substrate (2) in a direction parallel to the central axis of the roller (3) while maintaining the substrate holding state. 3. The substrate holding means (1) (1a) (1
b) (1c) is provided on a U-shaped frame (1) for preventing interference with the roller (3), and on a lower side member of the frame (1), and is provided on the substrate (2). Lower roller chucks (1a) and (1b) for supporting the lower edge portion in the accommodated state, and provided on the upper side member of the frame (1) and supporting the upper edge portion of the substrate (2) in the accommodated state. Upper roller chuck (1
3. The substrate transfer device according to claim 2, comprising: c). 4. An elevating mechanism for reciprocating the upper roller chuck (1c) between a state in which an upper edge of the substrate (2) is supported in a housed state and a state in which the upper edge is separated from the substrate (2). The substrate transfer apparatus according to claim 3, further comprising 1e).