JP2002164417A - Method for detecting substrate and its apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a technique of grasping a stored state of substrates in a storing cassette, in a method for detecting a substrate and its apparatus. SOLUTION: A reflecting sensor 10 is installed on a shutter member 5 for closing a passage opening 12a of a partition 12. The reflecting sensor 10, which is lowered in one with the shutter member 5 with the lowering of a cover 1b releasably fitted to an opening 1c of a cassette 1, detects the substrates W in the cassette 1 successively. A data processing part 11 collects the detected information on the substrates W. On the other hand, a position detecting means detects the position of the reflecting sensor 10 by means of information sent from an encoder 13a provided to an up-down mechanism 7. A processing part 14 can grasp the state of the substrates W in the cassette 1 from the detected information of the substrates W and the position of the reflecting sensor 10.

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 detecting a substrate for detecting the presence or absence of a substrate stored in a substrate storage container, and more particularly to a technique for grasping the storage state of the substrate in the substrate storage container.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, as a substrate processing apparatus provided with this type of detecting device, there is one disclosed in, for example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 3-297156.

In this substrate processing apparatus, a cassette called an open cassette is used as a cassette for storing a plurality of substrates. An opening for taking out and storing a substrate is provided on the front side of the open cassette (hereinafter, simply referred to as a “cassette”), and an opening smaller than the opening is provided on the back side of the cassette. I have. Grooves for holding the substrate substantially horizontally are formed in multiple stages on the inner wall of the cassette. The substrates are accommodated one by one in this groove, and as a result, a plurality of substrates are accommodated in the cassette.

A substrate processing apparatus performs a predetermined process on a substrate taken out from a specific groove in a cassette, and again grasps a storage state of the substrate in the cassette in order to store the substrate in the specific groove again. . The storage state of the substrate is grasped by a detecting means provided on the mounting portion. This detecting means is a transmission type sensor composed of a light projecting element and a light receiving element which are opposed to each other so as to sandwich the cassette from front and rear. This transmission type sensor detects the presence or absence of a substrate by determining whether or not light transmission between a light emitting element and a light receiving element is interrupted. By moving the transmission type sensor vertically from the uppermost groove to the lowermost groove in the cassette, the presence or absence of the substrate stored in each groove of the cassette, that is, the storage state of the substrate in the cassette is determined. I know.

[0005]

However, with the recent increase in the size of substrates, new standards have been established for cassettes for storing the substrates. Cassettes conforming to this standard are FOUP (Front Open Unified Po
d) It is called a cassette. This FOUP cassette has only a single opening for taking out and storing a substrate, and has a configuration in which a detachable lid is attached to this opening. When removing and storing the board, the FO
The UP cassette is used with the lid removed and the opening opened, but since it has only a single opening,
There is a problem that the presence or absence of a substrate accommodated in each groove of the cassette cannot be detected by the transmission type sensor that sandwiches the cassette from the front and rear as in the related art.

The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and an object of the present invention is to provide a method and an apparatus for detecting a substrate capable of grasping the state of storage of a substrate in a substrate storage container. I do.

[0007]

The present invention has the following configuration in order to achieve the above object. That is, according to the first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a substrate detection method for detecting the presence or absence of a substrate stored substantially horizontally in a substrate storage container having an opening for taking out and storing a substrate and a lid attached to the opening. A method for opening and closing a passage provided in a partition that separates a mounting unit for mounting the substrate storage container and a processing unit that removes the substrate from the substrate storage container and performs a predetermined process on the substrate. And lowering the detection means for detecting the presence or absence of the substrate stored in the substrate storage container while lowering the lid integrally, thereby detecting the presence or absence of the substrate.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided a substrate detecting apparatus for detecting presence or absence of a substrate stored substantially horizontally in a substrate storage container having an opening for taking out and storing a substrate and a lid attached to the opening. A detection device, which opens and closes a passage port provided in a partition that separates a mounting section for mounting the substrate storage container and a processing section that removes the substrate from the substrate storage container and performs a predetermined process on the substrate. When the shutter and the lid are integrally lowered, they are lowered together with them,
A detection means for detecting the presence or absence of a substrate stored in the substrate storage container is provided.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the apparatus for detecting a substrate according to the second aspect, the detecting means includes a light projecting element disposed toward an end face of the substrate near an opening of the substrate storage container. This is a reflection type sensor including a light receiving element.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the apparatus for detecting a substrate according to the second aspect, the detecting means is disposed so as to face the substrate in the substrate storage container so as to sandwich the substrate near an opening. And a light-receiving element.

According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, in the apparatus for detecting a substrate according to the third or fourth aspect, the apparatus further comprises: an opening for opening the substrate storage container when detecting the presence or absence of the substrate. An advancing / retracting drive mechanism is provided for driving the detecting means forward to a position close thereto and for driving the detecting means backward when the detection is completed.

According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, in the substrate detecting apparatus according to the second aspect, the detecting means is an imaging means for imaging the inside of the substrate storage container.

According to a seventh aspect of the present invention, in the apparatus for detecting a substrate according to the second aspect, the detecting means is connected to an optical fiber attached to the shutter and the optical fiber. Imaging means for imaging the inside of the substrate storage container.

[0014]

The operation of the first aspect of the invention is as follows. When removing the substrate from the substrate storage container, the detection means is lowered while the lid and shutter of the substrate storage container are integrally lowered, and it is determined whether or not the substrate is stored from the top to the bottom of the substrate storage container. Detect sequentially.

According to the second aspect of the present invention, when removing the substrate from the substrate storage container, when the lid of the substrate storage container and the shutter are integrally lowered, the detection means is lowered together with them. The opening of the substrate storage container is opened by the lowering of the lid, and the detecting means detects the presence or absence of the substrate in the opened substrate storage container.

According to the third aspect of the present invention, the light projected from the light emitting element of the reflection type sensor is reflected at the end face of the substrate when the substrate is in the substrate storage container, and the light is received. The light is received by the element. On the other hand, when there is no substrate, the emitted light is not received by the light receiving element. The presence or absence of the substrate in the substrate storage container is detected based on the presence or absence of light reception by the light receiving element.

According to the fourth aspect of the invention, when a substrate is present in the substrate storage container, light emitted from the light emitting element of the transmission sensor is blocked by the substrate in the substrate storage container. Therefore, the light is not received by the light receiving element. On the other hand, when there is no substrate, the emitted light is received by the light receiving element. The presence or absence of the substrate in the substrate storage container is detected based on the presence or absence of light reception by the light receiving element.

According to the fifth aspect of the invention, when detecting the presence / absence of a substrate in the substrate storage container, the advance / retreat mechanism drives the detection means forward to near the opening of the substrate storage container. In this state, the detecting means detects the presence or absence of the substrate near the opening of the substrate storage container. When the detection of the substrate has been completed for all the substrates in the substrate storage container, the advance / retreat mechanism drives the detection unit to move backward.

According to the invention described in claim 6, the imaging means detects the presence or absence of the substrate in the substrate storage container by imaging the inside of the substrate storage container as the shutter moves down.

According to the invention described in claim 7, the image pickup means takes an image of the inside of the substrate storage container through the optical fiber attached to the shutter as the shutter moves down, so that the substrate in the substrate storage container is imaged. Detect presence / absence.

[0021]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a plan view showing a schematic configuration of a main part of a substrate processing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a side view thereof. The substrate processing apparatus of this embodiment is
This is a substrate processing apparatus corresponding to a cassette called an OUP (Front Open Unified Pod) cassette in which a lid is attached to an opening for taking out and storing substrates.

This substrate processing apparatus, as shown in FIG.
A processing unit 20 that takes out a substrate W from the cassette 1 and performs a predetermined process on the substrate W and a mounting unit 3 on which the cassette 1 is mounted are separated by a partition wall 12. A plurality of cassettes 1 (4 in this embodiment) on which the cassette 1 is
) Cassette stages 2 are provided.

As shown in FIG. 3, the FOUP cassette 1
(Hereinafter, referred to as “cassette 1”) includes a container 1a for storing the substrate W, and a lid 1b removably fitted into an opening 1c provided in the container 1a. A multistage groove 1d is provided on the inner wall of the container 1a so as to face the groove. The substrate W is accommodated in each groove 1d in a state of being held substantially horizontally. The lid 1b has embedded therein a fixing mechanism 1e for fixing the lid 1b to the container 1a when the lid 1b is fitted into the opening 1c of the container 1a. The fixing mechanism 1e includes two lock members 1f each having a rack engraved on a base end thereof, and a rotatable pinion 1g that meshes with the rack. By rotating a pinion 1g near the center of the lid 1b by a locking mechanism 6 provided in a shutter member 5 described later, the locking member 1f is raised to fix the lid 1b to the opening 1c of the container 1a. .

The cassette stage 2 is provided with a cassette detecting means (not shown) such as a reflection sensor on the mounting surface of the cassette 1 for detecting that the cassette 1 is mounted. The cassette stage 2 is configured to be able to move forward and backward in the direction of the partition wall 12 (Y direction) by a cassette driving mechanism 4 provided below the cassette stage 2.

The cassette driving mechanism 4 is constituted by a so-called screw feed mechanism that drives a screw shaft 4b screwed to a convex portion 2a provided on the lower surface of the cassette stage 2 by an electric motor 4a. When the cassette 1 is placed on the cassette stage 2, the electric motor 4 a rotates the screw shaft 4 b forward to advance the cassette stage 2 toward the partition 12. When the processing of all the substrates W in the cassette 1 is completed, the electric motor 4a rotates the screw shaft 4b in the reverse direction to move the cassette stage 2 backward.

The partition wall 12 is provided with a passage opening 12a of substantially the same size as the cassette 1 at a position facing the cassette 1. The passage opening 12a is for taking out and storing the substrate W from the cassette 1. When the cassette 1 is not mounted, the processing unit 20 and the mounting unit 3
Is closed by the shutter member 5 to shield the atmosphere.

As shown in FIG. 4, the shutter member 5
It is composed of a convex portion 5a fitted into the passage opening 12a of the partition wall 12, and a support plate portion 5b provided with the convex portion 5a. An electric motor (not shown) and a connecting member 6a connected to an output shaft of the electric motor are embedded in the protrusion 5a.

As the cassette stage 2 is driven forward, the lid 1b of the cassette 1 is moved to a position close to the projection 5a of the shutter member 5, so that the pinion 1g of the lock mechanism 1e provided on the lid 1b. Are connected to the connecting member 6a. In this state, the shutter member 5
The lock mechanism 6 provided in the device 1 rotates the electric motor to release the lock between the lid 1b and the container 1a, thereby enabling the lid 1b to be detached from the container 1a.

The support plate 5b is provided with an "L" -shaped arm 5c extending downward (FIG. 2).
reference). The shutter member 5 is moved forward and backward and moved up and down by a shutter drive mechanism 7 attached to the base end of the arm 5c.

The shutter driving mechanism 7 includes an elevating mechanism 7a for elevating and lowering the shutter member 5 in the Z direction and an advancing / retracting mechanism 7b for advancing and retreating in the Y direction. Lifting mechanism 7a
Is constituted by a so-called screw feed mechanism in which a screw shaft screwed to the base end of the arm 5c is driven by an electric motor. An encoder 13a is provided above the elevating mechanism 7a, and detects the position of the shutter member 5 in the Z direction by detecting the rotation amount of the electric motor. The reciprocating mechanism 7b includes a lifting mechanism
It is constituted by a screw feed mechanism for moving a in the Y direction. The shutter member 5 can move forward and backward and move up and down by the lifting mechanism 7a and the moving mechanism 7b. Hereinafter, FIG.
The operation of the shutter member 5 will be specifically described with reference to (a) and (b).

As shown in FIG. 5A, the cassette 1 mounted on the cassette stage 2 (see FIG. 2) is driven forward by the cassette driving mechanism 4 (see FIG. 2). At this time, the shutter member 5 blocks the passage opening 12a. As shown in FIG. 5B, when the cassette 1 moves to a position close to the shutter member 5, the shutter member 5 is locked by the locking mechanism 6 (see FIG. 4) of the lid 1b of the cassette 1. And release this lid 1
hold b. Next, after the shutter member 5 is driven backward by the shutter drive mechanism 7, the shutter member 5 is driven downward to a retreat position which does not hinder the taking out of the substrate W from the cassette 1 and storage. It waits at the evacuation position until the processing of all the substrates W in the cassette 1 is completed. When the processing of all the substrates W in the cassette 1 is completed, the shutter member 5
Is driven forward, and then driven forward, so that the passage opening 12a
And the lid 1b is attached to the cassette 1.

As shown in FIG. 4, the above-mentioned shutter member 5 has a light-emitting element 1 above a support member 5b.
Sensor 1 composed of a light receiving element 10a and a light receiving element 10b
0 is attached. When the shutter member 5 descends, the light emitting element portion 10a and the light receiving element portion 10b
Point P on the end face of substrate W stored in groove 1d of cassette 1
It is attached to face. Therefore, the light emitted from the light emitting element unit 10a is
The light is reflected at a point P on the end surface of the substrate W accommodated in d, and the reflected light is received by the light receiving element 10b and converted into an electric signal. That is, by detecting whether or not an electric signal is generated in the light receiving element portion 10b, the substrate W accommodated in the groove 1d is detected.
Can be known.

As shown in FIG. 6, the reflection type sensor 10 comprises:
It is connected to the data collection unit 11. Data collection unit 11
Collects an electric signal photoelectrically converted based on the reflected light received by the light receiving element unit 10b of the reflective sensor 10.
The data collection unit 11 collects electric signals while the shutter member 5 is being driven downward. The position detection unit 13
The position of the reflection type sensor 10 attached to the shutter member 5 is detected based on the rotation amount signal of the electric motor sent from the encoder 13a attached to the elevating mechanism 7a of the shutter drive mechanism 7. The processing unit 14 includes: a position of the reflection sensor 10 detected by the position detection unit 13;
The presence or absence of the substrate W in each groove in the cassette 1 is determined from the electric signals collected in the data collection unit 11 and the presence or absence of the substrate W in each groove position of the cassette 1 is stored in the memory 15.

Specifically, when the lowering of the shutter member 5, that is, the lowering of the reflection type sensor 10 starts, the data collection unit 11 emits light from the light emitting element unit 10 a of the reflection type sensor 10 and receives light. The collection of electric signals generated in the element section 10b is started. First, when the reflective sensor 10 comes to the front position of the uppermost groove 1d of the cassette 1 due to the lowering of the reflective sensor 10, when the substrate W is stored in the uppermost groove 1d, the substrate W On the end face of
Light emitted from the light emitting element unit 10a is reflected. In the light receiving element 10b, the received reflected light is photoelectrically converted to generate an electric signal. Further, since the reflection type sensor 10 descends, next, when the reflection type sensor 10 comes to the front position of the second stage groove 1d in the cassette 1, the second stage groove 1d
When the substrate W is not stored in the light receiving element portion 10b, the reflected light is not received by the light receiving element portion 10b and no electric signal is generated. The data collection unit 11 continues collecting these electric signals until the lowering of the reflection type sensor ends. This data collection unit 11
FIG. 7 (a) is a schematic diagram showing the relationship between the electric signal collected in the step and the passage of time. In the figure, reference numeral 70 indicates each signal when the substrate W is detected.

On the other hand, based on the rotation amount of the electric motor sent from the encoder 13a provided in the elevating mechanism 7a, the position detecting unit 13 determines the initial position and the descending amount of the reflection type sensor 10 from the reflection type sensor 10a. Position can be grasped. The position detecting unit 13 detects a time during which the reflective sensor 10 passes through a position facing each groove 1d of the cassette 1. FIG. 7B is a schematic diagram showing the time required to pass the position facing the groove 1d. In the figure, reference numeral 7
Reference numeral 1 denotes a time during which the cassette 1 passes through a position facing the groove 1d. Reference numeral 72 indicates the number of the groove 1d.
This groove 1d is defined as a groove 1d which passes first is set to "1".
Subsequent grooves are "2", "3", ..., "25" in order.
It has become. Here, the cassette 1 has 25 substrates W
Can be stored, and the last number of the groove 1d is "25".

The processing unit 14 is based on the time of passing through the position facing each groove 1d detected by the position detecting unit 13 and the information on the presence / absence of the substrate W over time collected by the data collecting unit 11. Then, the presence or absence of the substrate W in each groove 1d is obtained by a logical operation at each time of each groove 1d. The processing unit 14 stores this result in the memory 15. In this manner, the storage state of the substrate W in the cassette 1 can be grasped.

The information on the presence or absence of the substrate W for each groove 1d stored in the memory 15 is used by a controller for controlling a substrate processing apparatus (not shown). For example, based on the information in the memory 15, the controller operates the substrate transport mechanism 9, which will be described later, and after the processing of the substrate W taken out from the specific groove of the cassette 1 is completed, It is used when returning and storing in a groove.

The substrate processing apparatus starts taking out and storing the substrates W from the cassette 1 by the substrate transport mechanism 9 after grasping the storage state of the substrates W in the cassette 1.

The substrate transfer mechanism 9 has an arm 9a for holding the substrate W. The holding arm 9a has a shape of a letter "I" as shown in FIG. 1, but may have a shape of a letter "U", for example. This arm 9a
Is provided with a plurality of support pins (not shown) that support the lower surface of the substrate W by point contact, and a member that is in point contact with the periphery of the substrate W in order to prevent the substrate W from dropping or being displaced during transportation is provided. ing.

The substrate transport mechanism 9 is configured as follows. As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the arm 9a is configured to be able to move forward and backward in a horizontal plane by a screw feed mechanism provided on the arm support 9b. Next, the arm support 9b is connected to and supported by the output shaft of an electric motor built in the arm turntable 9c. By the rotation of the electric motor, the arm 9a can rotate in a horizontal plane. Further, the arm turntable 9c is configured to be able to move up and down by an elevating mechanism 9d constituted by a screw feed mechanism. The elevating mechanism 9d is mounted on a slide drive mechanism 9e that can slide in the X direction in the horizontal plane.

With the above configuration, the arm 9a operates as follows. The slide moving mechanism 9 e
The arm 9a is slid to a position facing a predetermined cassette 1 placed on the arm. In order to take out the uppermost substrate W in the cassette 1, the arm 9a is raised, the arm 9a is further advanced to the lower surface of the substrate W, and after holding the substrate W on the arm 9a, the arm 9a is retracted. Then, the substrate W is taken out of the cassette 1. The slide moving mechanism 9e moves the arm 9a to near the center of the apparatus, and transfers the substrate W to a substrate transport robot (not shown) of the processing unit 20. When the processing of the substrate W in the processing unit 20 is completed, the substrate transport mechanism 9 receives the substrate W from the substrate transport robot of the processing unit 20, and stores the substrate W again in the cassette 1 from which the substrate W has been taken out. This process is performed for all the substrates W in the cassette 1.

When the processing of all the substrates W in the cassette 1 is completed and all the substrates W are stored in the cassette 1, the shutter member 5 is driven upward after being driven upward to close the passage opening 12a. By operating the lock mechanism 6, the lid 1b is fixed to the container 1a of the cassette 1. Container 1a with lid 1b
Is fixed, the cassette stage 2 is moved backward by the cassette driving mechanism 4 and moves to the cassette pick-up position.

In the above-described substrate processing apparatus, the reflection type sensor 10 serving as a detecting means is mounted on the upper portion of the shutter member 5 to detect the presence or absence of the substrate held in each groove 1d of the cassette 1 as the shutter member 5 moves down. Therefore, there is no need for a drive mechanism for raising and lowering only the detection means. Therefore, it is possible to minimize an increase in the manufacturing cost of the device due to the attachment of the detecting means. Also,
The detecting means can be easily attached using the configuration provided in the device.

The present invention can be modified as follows.

(1) In the above embodiment, in order to grasp the storage state of the substrate W in the cassette 1, each groove 1 of the cassette 1
Although the reflection type sensor is used as the detection means for detecting the presence or absence of the substrate W accommodated in d, the present invention is not limited to this. For example, instead of this reflection type sensor 10,
It is also possible to attach a transmission sensor having an advance / retreat drive mechanism. FIG. 8 shows a configuration in which the transmission type sensor is attached.

As shown in FIG. 8, on the upper part of the support plate 5b of the shutter member 5, an advance / retreat drive mechanism 81 and a transmission type sensor 80 attached to the advance / retreat drive mechanism 81 so as to be able to advance / retreat are provided. ing. The advancing / retracting drive mechanism 81 includes a screw shaft 81b screwed to the connecting member 81c and an electric motor 81a.
, A so-called screw feed mechanism.

The transmission sensor 80 has a light emitting element 8
A light projecting member 80a having a light receiving element 83
The light receiving member 80b includes a light receiving member 80b, and the base ends of the two members 80a and 80b are supported and fixed to the connecting member 81c. Further, the light projecting member 80a and the light receiving member 80b are slidably guided and supported by penetrating the fixed member 82a and the fixed member 82b, respectively, and are disposed so as to face each other with their height being shifted up and down. I have.

The operation when the transmission sensor 80 and the forward / backward drive mechanism 81 are attached to the shutter member 5 will be described below. When the transmission sensor 80 comes to the front position of the upper end of the cassette 1 due to the lowering of the shutter member 5, the advance / retreat drive mechanism 81 drives the electric motor 81a to advance the connecting member 81c. The light transmitting member 80a and the light receiving member 80 are integrated with the connecting member 81c.
b moves forward between the inner surface of the side wall of the cassette 1 and the substrate W. When the distal ends of the light projecting member 80a and the light receiving member 80b reach predetermined positions, the advance / retreat driving mechanism 81 stops driving the electric motor 81a. This position is a position where the substrate W blocks the optical axis of the transmission sensor 80 when the substrate W is present in the groove 1d of the cassette 1. In this state, the transmission sensor 80 sequentially holds each groove 1d of the cassette 1 as the shutter member 5 descends.
The presence / absence of the substrate W is detected. The detection timing of the substrate W is the same as in the above-described embodiment using the reflection type sensor.

When the transmission sensor 80 comes to the front of the lowermost part of the cassette 1, the advance / retreat drive mechanism 81 activates the electric motor 81.
is driven in the opposite direction to retract the connecting member 81c.
When the distal ends of the light projecting member 80a and the light receiving member 80b are retracted to the fixing members 82a and 82b, the advance / retreat driving mechanism 81
Stops the driving of the electric motor 81a. Light emitting member 80a
And the light receiving member 80b are retracted by the shutter member 5
This is to prevent the light projecting member 80a and the light receiving member 80b from being caught on the mounting portion 3 and the like when the camera is lowered.

By the above-described advance / retreat driving mechanism 81, the transmission type sensor 80 as the detecting means is brought close to the substrate W,
Can be detected, so that the detection accuracy can be improved. The reflection sensor described in the above embodiment may be moved forward and backward by the advance / retreat drive mechanism 81, and the presence or absence of the substrate may be detected by bringing the reflection sensor close to the substrate.

(2) The detecting means for detecting the presence or absence of the substrate W accommodated in each groove 1d of the cassette 1 is not limited to the reflection type sensor or the transmission type sensor. It may be a camera.

For example, as shown in FIG. 9, a CCD camera 90 is mounted on the support plate 5b of the shutter member 5. The CCD camera 90 continuously captures an image of the inside of the cassette 1 while the shutter member 5 moves down. Image data of the cassette 1 obtained by this imaging is collected by the data collection unit 11. The processing unit 14 performs a binarization process on the image data to grasp the storage state of the substrate W in the cassette 1. Note that the CCD camera 90 corresponds to an imaging unit in the present invention.

According to the above-described structure, the inside of the cassette 1 can be grasped as an image, so that the state of the substrate can be grasped in more detail.

(3) In the modification (2), the cassette 1
Although the CCD camera 90 was used to grasp the storage state of the substrate W in the inside, for example, as shown in FIG. 10, an optical fiber 95 was installed above the support plate 5b of the shutter member 5, The inside of the cassette 1 may be imaged by a CCD camera (not shown) connected to the end of the optical fiber 95.

According to the above-described configuration, the CCD camera can be installed in a vacant place in the apparatus, so that it is possible to prevent the apparatus from being enlarged by providing the detecting means. Further, since the optical fiber is light, it does not affect the operation of the shutter member 5. The above-mentioned CCD
The camera 90 and the optical fiber 95 are moved forward and backward by the forward / backward drive mechanism 81 as shown in FIG.
The inside of the cassette may be imaged.

[0056]

As is apparent from the above description, according to the first aspect of the present invention, the detection means is lowered together with the lowering of the lid and the shutter of the substrate. It is possible to sequentially detect the presence or absence of a substrate stored in all of the storage container from the uppermost portion to the lowermost portion, to grasp the storage state of the substrate in the substrate storage container, and to efficiently grasp the storage state of the substrate. .

According to the invention described in claim 2, according to claim 1
Since the method described in (1) is suitably implemented, the storage state of the substrate in the substrate storage container can be grasped. Further, since the detecting means is lowered together with the lowering of the lid and the shutter, the storage state of the substrate in the substrate storage container opened by the lowering of the lid can be grasped by only one lowering.

According to the third aspect of the present invention, since the reflection type sensor is used as the detecting means, the manufacturing cost of the apparatus can be reduced. Further, since the reflection type sensor is small, it can be easily attached to the shutter.

According to the fourth aspect of the invention, since the transmission type sensor is used as the detecting means, the presence or absence of the substrate in the substrate storage container can be accurately detected.

According to the fifth aspect of the present invention, since the advance / retreat driving mechanism moves the detecting means to near the opening of the substrate storage container, the detection means detects the substrate at a position closer to the substrate storage container. It is possible to do. Therefore,
The substrate in the substrate storage container can be detected more accurately.

According to the sixth aspect of the present invention, since the imaging means is used as the detection means, the state of storage of the substrate in the substrate storage container can be captured as an image. Therefore, the storage state of the substrate in the substrate storage container can be grasped more accurately.

According to the seventh aspect of the present invention, since the optical fiber connected to the imaging means is attached to the shutter, the installation location of the imaging means can be freely determined. Therefore, by installing the imaging means in a vacant place in the apparatus, the space of the apparatus can be saved.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a plan view illustrating a schematic configuration of a substrate processing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a side view showing a schematic configuration of the apparatus according to the embodiment.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing the FOUP cassette of the embodiment.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing a shutter member of the embodiment and a reflection type sensor attached to the shutter member.

FIG. 5 is a schematic side view illustrating the operation of the shutter member according to the embodiment.

FIG. 6 is a block diagram showing a main part of the embodiment.

FIG. 7 is a schematic diagram illustrating detection of a substrate and groove positions of a cassette according to the embodiment.

FIG. 8 is a perspective view showing a state in which a transmission sensor according to a modification (1) is attached to a shutter member.

FIG. 9 is a perspective view showing a state in which a CCD camera according to a modification (2) is attached to a shutter member.

FIG. 10 is a perspective view showing a state where an optical fiber according to a modification (3) is attached to a shutter member.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Cassette 2 ... Cassette stage 3 ... Placement part 4 ... Cassette drive mechanism 5 ... Shutter member 6 ... Lock mechanism 7 ... Shutter drive mechanism 9 ... Substrate transfer mechanism 10 ... Reflective sensor 11 ... Data collection part 12 ... Partition wall 12a ... Opening 13 ... Position detecting unit 14 ... Processing unit 15 ... Memory 80 ... Transmissive sensor 81 ... Advancing / retracting drive mechanism 90 ... CCD camera 95 ... Optical fiber W ... Substrate

Continuing on the front page (72) Inventor Jun Shibukawa 322 Hashizushi Furukawa-cho, Fushimi-ku, Kyoto-shi, Kyoto F-term (reference) in Nippon Screen Manufacturing Co., Ltd. Rakusai Office 3E096 AA04 BA16 BB03 CA02 DA13 DC02 FA26 FA31 GA07 5F031 CA02 DA08 DA17 EA12 EA14 FA01 FA11 GA36 GA43 GA47 GA48 GA49 JA04 JA05 JA06 JA13 JA23 JA25 LA09 LA10 PA18

Claims (7)

[Claims] 1. A substrate detection method for detecting the presence or absence of a substrate stored substantially horizontally in a substrate storage container having an opening for taking out and storing a substrate and a lid attached to the opening, the method comprising: A shutter that opens and closes a passage provided in a partition that separates a mounting unit for mounting a substrate storage container and a processing unit that takes out the substrate from the substrate storage container and performs a predetermined process on the substrate, and the lid. A method for detecting a substrate, comprising: lowering detection means for detecting the presence or absence of a substrate stored in the substrate storage container while integrally lowering the substrate, thereby detecting the presence or absence of the substrate. 2. A substrate detection device for detecting the presence or absence of a substrate stored substantially horizontally in a substrate storage container having an opening for taking out and storing a substrate and a lid attached to the opening, A shutter that opens and closes a passage provided in a partition that separates a mounting unit for mounting a substrate storage container and a processing unit that takes out the substrate from the substrate storage container and performs a predetermined process on the substrate, and the lid. A substrate detecting device, comprising: detecting means for detecting the presence or absence of a substrate accommodated in the substrate accommodating container when descending integrally therewith. 3. The substrate detecting apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the detecting unit includes a light emitting element and a light receiving element arranged toward an end surface of the substrate near an opening of the substrate storage container. A substrate detection device that is a reflection type sensor. 4. The apparatus for detecting a substrate according to claim 2, wherein the detecting means includes a light-emitting element and a light-receiving element which are opposed to each other so as to sandwich the substrate in the substrate container near an opening. A substrate detection device which is a transmission type sensor. 5. The substrate detecting apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the apparatus further comprises: detecting a presence or absence of the substrate, up to a position close to an opening of the substrate storage container. An apparatus for detecting a substrate, comprising: an advancing / retracting drive mechanism for driving the detecting means forward while driving the detecting means backward when the detection is completed. 6. The substrate detection apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the detection unit is an imaging unit that captures an image of the inside of the substrate storage container. 7. The substrate detecting apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the detecting means is connected to an optical fiber attached to the shutter and the optical fiber, and captures an image of the inside of the substrate storage container through the optical fiber. A substrate detection device configured with an imaging unit that performs the operation.