JP2002200583A - Transfer arm - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To carry a semiconductor substrate or the like with high accuracy, cope with the use under a condition of a high temperature, and secure further high durability. SOLUTION: A one end of an arm 11 of a first parallel link 10 out of the first parallel link 10 and a second parallel link 20 connected with a sharing short joint 16 is a rotary driving shaft R1. A linear guide 32 is provided in an orthogonal direction to an axial direction of the short joint 13 including the rotary driving shaft R1. An arm end 22a extended from a one arm 22 of the second parallel link 20 is rotatably connected to a slider 31 running linearly on the linear guide 32. As a result of a turning motion given by the rotary driving shaft R1, a parallelogram formed of the arms 11, 12 of the first parallel link 10 and the arms 21, 22 of the second parallel link 20 is deformed, and a carrier table 50 provided on a free end of the second parallel link is moved on a predetermined track.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

The present invention relates to a transfer arm,
The present invention relates to a transfer arm that is mounted on a semiconductor manufacturing apparatus or the like, can transfer a substrate or the like with high accuracy, and can achieve a long life with high durability.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Generally, a semiconductor manufacturing apparatus is provided with a substrate transfer device for moving a substrate such as a wafer in a predetermined operation sequence. This type of substrate transfer apparatus is required to have a high-precision operation and a clean operation environment free from dust and the like.

FIG. 19 is a schematic diagram showing the structure and operation of a transfer arm of a conventional substrate transfer apparatus (see Japanese Patent No. 2880826). In the transfer arm shown in the figure, a substrate (not shown) is linearly reciprocated in the axial direction by bending and stretching operations of two sets of parallel links connected by shared short bars. Further, the arms are arranged so as to form a pair symmetrically with respect to the axis by changing the installation height so as not to interfere, so that the substrate can be continuously transferred.

As shown in FIG. 19, in the conventional mechanism, the arms 520 and 530 are arranged symmetrically with respect to the center axis C, and the respective arms 520 and 530 are connected to links 541 and 54, respectively.
A parallel link 540 having a long link 2 and a link 55
It comprises a link mechanism in which two gears 570 and 572 meshing with a parallel link 550 having long links 1 and 552 are shared as short links. In these gears, a gear 570 is fixed to a link 542, and a gear 572 is fixed to a link 552. The opposite end of the link mechanism shared by the links 541 and 542 is a short link and is attached to a swivel table 510 that is a swing drive, and the link 551 and the link 551.
A substrate holding unit 600 is attached to the opposite end of 552. In the transfer arm having such a configuration, the parallel link 550 turns by the same turning angle in the opposite direction to the parallel link 540, and while increasing the included angle of the V-shaped link,
The substrate holder 600 is linearly moved in the direction of arrow A along the central axis C.

At this time, the two gears 5 constituting the short link
Two sets of parallel links 540,550 instead of 70,572
As shown in the figure, a pulley belt, a wire, or the like can be applied as an alternative mechanism for bending and stretching.

[0006]

However, the gears to be meshed are designed with a predetermined backlash, so that the linkage is likely to rattle. For this reason, there is a problem that the transport accuracy is reduced and high-precision positioning cannot be expected. There is also a problem that abrasion powder is generated due to slippage between teeth generated at the meshing portion. On the other hand, there has been proposed a conventional example in which a steel belt or a wire is wound around a pulley to synchronize the rotation angles. However, because the belt or wire is repeatedly bent when it is wound on the pulley,
Fatigue failure may occur early. In addition, since the life of the belt or the wire is determined by the tension and the bending radius in a state of being stretched, it may be possible to increase the diameter of the pulley to be used. In that case, the diameter of the pulley becomes large, and it is difficult to reduce the size of the mechanism.

Further, when a substrate or the like is processed under high-temperature processing conditions, the belt and the wire are deformed and deteriorated at an early stage, so that there is a problem in durability.

Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to solve the above-mentioned problems of the prior art, to achieve high-accuracy substrate transfer under high-temperature substrate processing conditions, and to minimize member wear and the like. Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide a transfer arm capable of obtaining high durability.

[0009]

In order to achieve the above object, according to the present invention, of the first parallel link and the second parallel link connected by a shared short bar, the arm end of the first parallel link is rotated. A drive shaft, and a turning operation imparted by the rotary drive shaft deforms a parallelogram formed by the arms of the first parallel link and the arms of the second parallel link to form the second parallel link.
In a transfer arm configured to move a transfer table provided at a free end of a parallel link along a predetermined trajectory, a linear guide is provided in a direction orthogonal to an axial direction of a short section including the rotation drive shaft, and the linear guide is provided on the linear guide. An arm end obtained by extending one arm of the second parallel link is rotatably connected to a slider that travels in a straight line.

[0010] It is preferable that the end of the linear guide is fixed to the base plate serving as the common short bar.

The end of the linear guide is the first guide.
Preferably, it is fixed to an intermediate plate in the parallel link that is parallel to the short bar.

According to another aspect of the present invention, the other end of a link arm having one end connected to a rotary drive shaft is connected to an intermediate position of one arm of a parallel link, and the link is turned by a turning operation provided by the rotary drive shaft. A transfer arm configured to deform a parallelogram formed by the arm of the parallel link via an arm to move a support arm provided on one short node of the parallel link in a predetermined transfer direction; A linear guide is provided in a direction perpendicular to the conveying direction of the parallel link, and a slider that linearly travels on the linear guide and a part of a short section opposite to the support arm of the parallel link are integrated.

At this time, it is preferable that the link arm length is 1/2 of the arm length of the parallel link, and the link arm is connected to a central position of the entire length of the arm of the parallel link.

[0014] Of the first parallel link and the second parallel link connected by the shared short bar, the arm end of the first parallel link is used as a rotation drive shaft, and the turning operation given by the rotation drive shaft causes the arm to rotate. The parallelogram formed by the arm of the first parallel link and the arm of the second parallel link is deformed to form the second parallel link.
In a transfer arm configured to move a transfer table provided at a free end of a parallel link along a predetermined trajectory, the transfer arm is mirror-symmetric with respect to the rotation drive shaft in a direction orthogonal to an axial direction of a short section including the rotation drive shaft. A linear guide is provided, and one end of a guide arm having one end connected to an intermediate position of the second parallel link is rotatably connected to one slider that linearly travels on the linear guide, and is connected to another slider. The end of the arm connected to the intermediate position of the guide arm and parallel to the arm of the second parallel link is rotatably connected, mirror-symmetric with respect to the rotation drive shaft, the rotation drive shaft having a common vertex, and the linear guide. Is provided with an isosceles triangular link whose base is.

Further, instead of the above isosceles triangle link,
A linear guide is provided in a direction orthogonal to the axial direction of the short section including the rotary drive shaft, and a slider that linearly travels on the linear guide has a guide arm having one end connected to a part of the arm of the second parallel link. The other end is rotatably connected, and a constituent side includes the guide arm and a part of the arm of the first parallel link, and a joint including the rotary drive shaft and a rotary portion of the slider are opposed to each other. It is also preferable to provide a rhombus link as a vertex.

[0016]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS [First Transfer Arm]
An embodiment of a transfer arm according to the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings. FIG. 1 is a plan view showing the entire transfer arm 1 supported on rotation axes R ₁ and R ₂ of a base plate 2 mounted on a main body 3 of a transfer device represented by a substrate transfer device or the like. The transfer arm 1 is composed of two sets of parallel links 10 and 20, which operate by connecting and sharing short bars, similarly to a known transfer arm using two sets of parallel links.

That is, the transfer arm 1 drives one joint 14 so that the base plate 2 integrally supporting the axial ends of the two parallelly arranged arms 11 and 12 becomes a short bar 13. R ₁ and the other joint 15 as a driven rotation axis R ₂ ,
A first parallel link 10 for rotating the arms 11 and 12 with respect to the respective rotation axes R ₁ and R ₂ by rotation of the drive rotation axis R ₁ , and another short plate 16 facing the short bar 13;
Two arms 2 arranged in parallel with joints 27 and 28 so as to share this short plate 16 with the first parallel link 10.
A second parallel link 20 to which the first and second links 22 are connected and one arm 22 of the second parallel link 20 are extended, and a slider 31 rotatably attached to a tip of the second parallel link 20 is moved in a direction orthogonal to the short plate 16. A linear guide 32 on which a guide rail 30 for linearly guiding is formed, and a transfer table 5 integrally attached to the short plate 23 on the opposite side of the short arm 28 of the second parallel link 20. Carrier 5
The object to be transported (S) such as a substrate can be placed at the tip.

Each of the joints 14, 15, 27, and 28 is formed of a known ball bearing, and a predetermined angle is set in a movable area of each link in a plane parallel to the paper centering on the joint center indicated by + in the drawing. It can rotate with high accuracy. In addition,
In the description, it illustrates appropriate joint centers by the symbol J _i like. At this time, as shown in FIG. 2C, the first parallel link 10 and the second parallel link 20 do not interfere at the time of rotation by adjusting the bearing height. Also, as shown in FIG. 1, the shape of each arm is designed to have a predetermined amount of eccentricity from the center of rotation, so that the parallelogram becomes flat and the arms on the opposite sides of the parallel are sufficiently close to each other. However, interference between the arms is avoided.

Next, the operation of the transfer arm shown in FIG. 1 will be described with reference to FIGS. 2A, 2B and 2D. By rotating the rotation drive shaft R ₁ in the direction of the arrow θ, the first parallel link 10 is deformed, and the short plate 16 is moved in a direction parallel to the substrate transport direction C.
The slider 31 slides in the X direction. As a result, the second parallel link 20 is deformed in mirror symmetry with the deformation of the first parallel link 10, and the transfer table 5 integrated with the short plate 23 is moved. The sliding movement is performed in the substrate transfer direction C (a direction perpendicular to the linear guide installation direction X). In this case linear guide installation position on both sides of a region across the respective region (m), when defining the area (n), when the rotary drive shaft R ₁ further arrow θ direction slider on the guide rail of the top After reaching the far point, the first parallel link 10, the second
Both the parallel links 20 enter the area (n) from the area (m), the slider slides back toward the main body, and at the same time, the carrier 5 moves away from the main body in the direction C (FIG. 2 ( b)). Finally, the transfer table 5 can be linearly moved to the position (L) where the center of the transfer table is the farthest point from the linear guide (see FIG. 2D). It reverses the rotary drive shaft R ₁ from this state, it is possible to return the conveying table 5 in the opposite direction along the forward and on the same path (main direction) by rotating in the arrow direction - [theta]. Note that FIG.
(C) is a schematic side view showing an example of arrangement of the arms 11 and 12 in the height direction. As shown in the figure, by adjusting the installation positions 11 (12) and 21 (22) of the respective arms, the respective parallel link movements described above can be made possible.

[0020] Figures 3-5, the model of the transfer arm shown in FIG. 1, in the region (n) (see FIG. 2 (a)), the carrier table from the body along with the rotation of the rotary drive shaft R ₁ FIG. 4 is a state explanatory view showing an arm operation state until the furthest point position (L: see FIG. 2D) is reached. Figure 3 shows a state in which one of the joint centers J ₃ and the rotary drive shaft R ₁ are met for Tanfushi plate 23. At this time, the second parallel link 20
The slider 31 attached to the arm end 22a is located at the farthest point from the main body 3 on the linear guide 32. From the state of FIG. 3, as shown in FIG. 4, the rotary drive shaft R ₁ direction of the arrow θ
, The slider 3 slides back toward the main body, and at the same time, the carriage 5 moves away from the main body in the direction C. FIG. 4 shows a state where each member is located at a position substantially corresponding to the link mechanism diagram in FIG. 2B. Further by rotation of the rotary drive shaft R _1, eventually deformed to the position shown in FIG. 5, by the respective arms 11, 12, 21, 22 of the parallel link is a flat state immediately before interferes, arm Can be maximized.

FIG. 6 is a link mechanism diagram showing an operation state of a transfer arm according to another embodiment. In this transfer arm, an intermediate plate 15 parallel to the short bar 13 of the first parallel link 10 and the short bar 16 facing the short bar 13 is connected in the first parallel link 10. The direction 15 perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the plate (X direction)
A linear guide 42 is fixed to the boss (see FIG. 6A). The linear guide 42 has the same structure as the linear guide 32 attached to the transfer arm 1 shown in FIG. 1, and allows the slider 43 to slide along the guide rail 41. The slider is pivotally attached to the extending end 22a of the arm 22 of the second parallel link 20, two parallel links to deform in accordance with the rotation of the rotary drive shaft R ₁ (first parallel link 10, the second The linear guide 42 slides along the guide rail 41 so as to regulate the operation of the arm end 22a extended from the parallel link 20) (see FIG. 6B). This allows
The short section of the second parallel link 20 is connected to a board transfer table (not shown) along the board transfer direction C in the same manner as shown in each of FIGS.
Is linearly moved to the position L (see FIG. 6D). As described above, in the present embodiment, as shown in FIG. 6C, the linear guide 4 is located at the intermediate plate position of the first parallel link 10.
2 is fixed, as compared with the case shown in each drawing of FIG.
The linear guide 42 having a short stroke can be used, and when the transfer arm 1 is mounted on a substrate transfer device or the like, the volume of the storage chamber can be reduced.

[Second Transfer Arm] An embodiment of the transfer arm according to the second invention will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. Figure 7 is a plan view showing the overall conveying arm 1 which is supported by the rotation shaft R ₁ of the main body 3 base plate 2 mounted on the conveying device represented by a substrate transfer apparatus or the like. The transfer arm 1 includes a link arm 61 swingably supported by a rotation axis R ₁ , and a parallel link 50 having the other end of the link arm 61 connected to a center point of the arm 51 via a pin joint. ing. Arm 5 of parallel link
One joint J ₈ is supported by a pin on the slider 31. The slider 31 is slidably supported by a linear guide 32 having a guide rail 30 extending in a direction (X) orthogonal to the transport direction C (substrate transport direction) of the transport target S such as a substrate. The slider 31 is integrated with a plate 54 extending in a direction perpendicular to the linear guide 32 (a direction parallel to the substrate transport direction C). The end portion 51a of the arm 51 and the end portion 52a of the arm 52 forming a parallel link with the arm 51 are pin-joined to the plate 54 to form a short section of the parallel link 50. The other ends 51b and 52b of the two parallel arms 51 and 52 are pin-joined to the substrate support arm 55. As described above, a portion 55b of the substrate support arm 55 is
1b, 52b and functions as a short bar of the parallel link 50. A transport object (S) such as a substrate is placed on the other end 55a. Incidentally, in order to display the rotation axis R ₁ in the figure, a portion of the substrate support arms 55 is shown cut away. In the present embodiment, the rotation axis R ₁ of the link arm 61 −the length of the joint J ₆ (side length: R
₁ J ₆ ), the length of both sides (J ₆ J) across the midpoint J _{6 of the} arm 51
₇ ), (J ₆ J ₈ ) and the relation are set as (R ₁ J ₆ ) = (J ₆ J ₈ ) = (J ₆ J ₇ ). Thus, the slider 31 with to the link arm 61 swings θ direction with respect to the rotation axis R ₁ slides the guide rail 30 on the X-direction, the joint J _7, i.e. the substrate support arms 55 a substrate conveying direction Make a strict linear motion in C. As a result, the transfer target S such as a substrate can be transferred to the substrate transfer position with high accuracy. When the required accuracy is such that an approximate linear motion is realized, the relationship between the side lengths is (R ₁ J ₆ ) :( J ₆ J ₈ ) = (J ₆ J ₈ ) :( J ₆ J ₇ )

FIG. 8 to FIG. 10 show that the transfer arm shown in FIG. 7 moves the transfer object S from the main body 3 in the area (n) with the rotation of the rotary drive shaft R ₁ (L: FIG. 11 is an explanatory state diagram showing an arm operating state until the arm reaches the position shown in FIG. 10). FIG. 8 shows a state in which the link arm 61 has been rotated in the direction of the arrow from the starting point position, and has slightly exceeded the position parallel to the linear guide 32. The slider 31 is attached to the arm end 51a of the case parallel link 50 is in a position closer to the slight rotation drive shaft R ₁ from the farthest point from the main body 3 on the linear guide 32. From the state shown in FIG. 8, by rotating only θ rotary drive shaft R ₁ as shown in the arrow direction in FIG. 9, the slider 31 is the main body 3
, Slides on the linear guide 32 along the guide rail 30 so as to return in the direction of. Further by rotation of the rotary drive shaft R _1, and finally it is possible to arm 51 and 52 of the parallel link 50 to the position shown in FIG. 10 deforms flattened until immediately before interferes. Thereby, the substrate support arm 55 can be moved along the transport direction C to a position (L in the figure) farthest from the main body 3. At this time, the slider 31 is located at the nearest point on the linear guide 32 on the main body 3 side.

[Third Transfer Arm] FIGS. 11 to 15
The configuration of the transfer arm as the third invention, the parallel link and
Diagram and link mechanism for explaining the operation state of the slider and the slider
FIG. The transfer arm 100 has the configuration shown in FIG.
As shown in the mechanism diagram of FIG.
Similarly to the arm 1, one of the first parallel link 110
Rotation drive shaft R₁And this rotary drive shaft
R₁Two parallel links (1st flat
Row link 110, second parallel link 120)
In addition, two linear guides for guiding the operation of the parallel link mechanism
Guides 132 and 135 are provided.
35, the first parallel link arm 11
1 and 112 and a parallel guide arm 141 are connected.
You. This guide arm 141 is shown in FIGS.
As shown in FIG.
Dynamic axis R₁111 to which rotation is directly imparted by
And sides 142 and 143 parallel to the second parallel link 120
U and a parallel link.
a is extended, and on the first linear guide 135 at the arm end.
Are connected to a slider 136 that moves linearly. A
143 is the joint center J_FivePosition in the vertical Z-shape.
Formed as ranked arms 143U, 143L,
A second linear guide 132 is attached to the arm end 143a.
A slider 131 that moves linearly is connected. Two
Linear guide (first linear guide 135 and second linear guide 135)
The guide 137) is as shown in FIGS.
And the rotational drive shaft R ₁Are arranged in a straight line on the axis X passing through
Each end is fixed to a part of the main body 103. this
As a result, the first linear guide 135 and the
2 linear guides 137 each having a bottom side, and rotationally driven.
Axis R₁Mirror-symmetric isosceles triangle link with shared vertices
151 and 152 are formed. Each isosceles triangle link 1
51, 152 show the operation of the parallel link mechanisms 110, 120
Both are deformed while maintaining the congruent shape.

FIGS. 12 (b) and 12 (d) show the relationship between FIGS.
FIG. 9 is a mechanism diagram showing a state in which the arm of the parallel link reaches the farthest point position L from the main body in the area (m), similarly to the operation state with the link mechanism shown in (d). FIG.
In (d), further reverses the rotation drive shaft R ₁ from the farthest point position L, backward (body) along the conveying table 5 in the forward and on the same trajectory by rotating in the direction of the arrow (- [theta]) The starting state for returning to the normal state is shown. FIG. 12C is a schematic side view showing an example of the arrangement of the arms 111, 121, 141, 142, and 143 in the height direction. As shown in the figure, by adjusting the installation position of each arm and designing it, the above-described parallel link movement can be made possible.

[0026] FIGS. 13 to 15, in the model region (n) of the transfer arm shown in FIG. 11, the farthest point position from the main body of the transport stand with the rotation of the rotary drive shaft R ₁ (L: 12
(D) is a state explanatory diagram showing the arm operation state until it reaches (). FIG. 13 shows the short bar plate 12.
One joint centers J ₄ 3 and a rotary drive shaft R ₁ indicates a matched state. At this time, the axis of the guide arm 141a connected to the second parallel link 120 is vertically aligned on the same line as the axis X of the two linear guides. At this time 2
The sliders 136, 131 attached to the arm ends 141a, 143a respectively correspond to the linear guides 135, 1
32 at the farthest point from the body. In FIG. 13,
The axes of the arms coincide with each other in a state where the axes are vertically displaced. In order to understand this state, some arms are shown by broken lines.

As shown in FIG. 14 from the state of FIG.
By rotating the rotary drive shaft R ₁ in the direction of the arrow theta, 2
Sliders 131 of the linear guides 132, 135,
Both 136 slide in synchronization with the direction returning to the main body 103, and at the same time, the carrier 150 moves away from the main body 103 in the C direction. FIG.
Reference numeral 4 indicates a state where each member is at a position close to the position shown in the mechanism diagram of FIG. By further rotation of the rotary drive shaft R _1, each arm of the eventually parallel link to the position shown in FIG. 15 110 and 120 111,112,12
The arm can be extended as much as possible by making it in a flat state immediately before the interference of the arms 122. At this time, each slider 13 of the two linear guides 132 and 155
1, 136 is in the closest approach state.

FIGS. 16 and 17 are link mechanism diagrams showing a modification of the transfer arm shown in the link mechanism diagram of FIG. In these transport arms, two linear guides having two linear guides as bases are different from the transport arms shown in FIG.
Instead of equilateral triangular links, one rhombic link having one linear guide as the axis of symmetry is configured. In this transport arm, the guide arm and the auxiliary arm, which are arranged in parallel with the arms of the two parallel link mechanisms and operate in parallel with the corresponding arms of the parallel link mechanism, rotate the axis perpendicular to the substrate transport direction. The rotary drive shaft R is connected to a linear guide slider provided in a direction passing through the drive shaft R _1.
1 and the slider form a diamond-shaped link with the corresponding vertex,
A transport table (not shown) is moved by the deformation of the rhombic link.

In the transfer arm 100 shown in FIG. 16, the guide arm 141 is connected to the arm 121 of the second parallel link 120 so as to be parallel to the arm 111 of the first parallel link 110.
Is attached so as to connect the slider 136 with the intermediate position 121b. The operation of the guide arm 141 in order to regulate the intermediate arm 142 in parallel with the arm 121 is provided between the rotary drive shaft R ₁ and the arm intermediate position 141b further. The intermediate arm 142, the extension 141 a of the guide arm 141, the extension 111 a of the arm of the first parallel link 110, and the arm 145 form a rhombus link 150 having the rotation drive shaft R ₁ and the slider 136 facing each other at two vertices. 135 is formed. According to the transfer arm 100 having such a configuration, the integral operation of the parallel link mechanisms 110 and 120 can be regulated by using one linear guide 135 having a short stroke, and the transfer arm 100 can be made compact. I can do it.

In the transfer arm 100 shown in FIG. 17, a guide arm 141 provided so as to be parallel to the arm 111 of the first parallel link 110 has an end 121 a extending from the arm 121 of the second parallel link 120, and a slider 131. It is attached to connect with. In order to further restrict the operation of the guide arm 141, an intermediate arm 142 parallel to the arm 121 is provided with a slider 131 and an arm 111.
And an intermediate position 111b. The intermediate arm 142, the extension 141a of the guide arm 141,
Rhombic link 150 and two opposing vertices are formed on the linear guides 132 and a rotary drive shaft R ₁ and the slider 131 by a part and arm 146 of the first parallel link 110. According to the transfer arm 100 having such a configuration, since the single linear guide 132 having a short stroke can be disposed on the same side as the parallel link mechanisms 110 and 120, the transfer arm 100 can be further downsized.

Next, the operation of a modification of the parallel link will be described with reference to FIGS. FIG. 18A shows the state of FIG.
By the operation of the first parallel link 10 and the second parallel link 20 having the same configuration as the first transfer arm shown in each figure, a transfer table 50 for mounting a transfer target such as a substrate (not shown).
2 shows a configuration in which (corresponding to the transfer table 5 in FIG. 1) is linearly moved. In this transfer arm, the arms 11, 1 in the first parallel link 10 and the second parallel link 20 are used.
Since the lengths of 2, 21, and 22 are equal, the transfer table 50 moves along a linear trajectory along the virtual line C.

On the other hand, in FIG. 18B, in the transfer arm having the same link configuration, the arms 11 and 12 of the first parallel link 10 (shown by a single line for simplification of the drawing). For the arms 21 of the second parallel link 20,
22 (same as above) is set long so that both parallel links 10, 20 open and close at an equal angle with respect to a linear guide (not shown). As described above, the linear guide and the synchronization link (not shown) having the same configuration as that of FIG. 18A are provided, and by increasing the arm length of one of the parallel links, The attached carrier 50 can be moved along a predetermined curved locus. In addition, the arms 121 and 112 of the second parallel link 120 with respect to the arms 111 and 112 of the first parallel link 110 in the third transfer arm illustrated in FIG. 122 (same as above) is set long so that the parallel links 110 and 120 open and close symmetrically at equal angles with respect to a center line (not shown) that is parallel to the linear guide 132 and sandwiches the parallel links 110 and 120. However, it is possible to realize how the orbit moves. In FIG. 18, the sign of the parallel link of the third transfer arm is indicated by [n].

Similarly, in the first transfer arm and the third transfer arm, when the arm of the second parallel link 20120 is shortened as shown in FIG.
The transfer table 50 can be moved along a curved trajectory curved to the opposite side to (b). In this way, by making the arm lengths of the two connected parallel links different, the movement trajectory of the transfer table 50 can be appropriately set. Also,
Although the above description has been made on the assumption that each arm moves on a plane, for example, each arm is moved along a vertical plane, and the height of the transfer table 50 is raised and lowered along a movement locus. Application examples are also conceivable.

In the above description, the operation of the parallel link mechanism in only one transfer arm has been described. However, by arranging the linear guides close to each other in parallel and arranging the two transfer arms in parallel, a so-called double transfer arm is provided. It goes without saying that an arm function can be provided.

Of the above-described configuration, the linear guide 3
Various known structural types can be applied to 2, 132 and 135 according to required accuracy. Further, in the present embodiment, ball joints in which each joint can perform a given pivoting operation are shown, but various types of structures having a radial bearing structure can be used. Since a high temperature compatible member can be applied to each member, it is effective when used under high temperature conditions. Further, since a solid lubricated bearing can be used for a joint connecting the arms, it can be applied to use under an ultra-high vacuum condition.

[0036]

According to the transfer arm described above, the transfer of a substrate or the like can be performed with high precision, and since the movable portion is hardly worn, a clean environment can be maintained for a long time. Since each member is compatible with high temperatures, it can be applied to use under high temperature conditions. Further, by using a solid lubricated bearing for the joint connecting the arms, the effect can be obtained even under an ultra-high vacuum condition.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a plan view showing a configuration of an embodiment of a transfer arm according to a first invention.

FIG. 2 is a link mechanism diagram showing a link configuration and an operation state of the transfer arm shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a plan view showing the operation state of the transfer arm shown in FIG. 1 (when the arm is folded).

FIG. 4 is a plan view showing an operation state of the transfer arm shown in FIG. 1 (at the start of arm extension).

FIG. 5 is a plan view showing the operation state of the transfer arm shown in FIG. 1 (when the arm is fully extended).

FIG. 6 is a link mechanism diagram showing a configuration and an operation state of another embodiment of the transfer arm.

FIG. 7 is a plan view showing the configuration of an embodiment of the transfer arm according to the second invention (when the arm is folded).

FIG. 8 is a plan view showing the operation state of the transfer arm shown in FIG. 7 (at the start of arm extension).

FIG. 9 is a plan view showing an operation state of the transfer arm shown in FIG. 7 (arm extension process).

FIG. 10 is a plan view showing the operation state of the transfer arm shown in FIG. 7 (when the arm is fully extended).

FIG. 11 is a plan view showing the configuration of an embodiment of a transfer arm according to the third invention.

FIG. 12 is a link mechanism diagram showing a link configuration and an operation state of the transfer arm of FIG. 11;

FIG. 13 is a plan view showing the operation state of the transfer arm shown in FIG. 11 (when the arm is folded).

FIG. 14 is a plan view showing the operating state of the transfer arm shown in FIG. 11 (arm extension process).

FIG. 15 is a plan view showing the operation state of the transfer arm of FIG. 11 (when the arm is fully extended).

FIG. 16 is a link mechanism diagram showing a configuration and an operation state of another embodiment of the transfer arm.

FIG. 17 is a link mechanism diagram showing a configuration and an operation state of another embodiment of the transfer arm.

FIG. 18 is an arm operation diagram schematically showing a bending and extension operation of an arm in another embodiment of the transfer arm by a diagram.

FIG. 19 is a schematic configuration diagram illustrating an example of a conventional transfer arm.

[Explanation of symbols]

1,100 Transfer arm 2 Base plate 3 Main body 5 Transfer table 10,110 First parallel link 11,12,21,22 Arm 13,16,23,26 Short section 20,120 Second parallel link 30 Guide base 50 Parallel link 55 and the substrate support arms 61 link arm 31,131,136 slider 32,132,135 linear guides R ₁ drive-rotation shaft J _i i-th joint axis (joint)

Claims (7)

[Claims] 1. An arm end of the first parallel link of a first parallel link and a second parallel link connected by a shared short bar is used as a rotation drive shaft, and a turning operation given by the rotation drive shaft is used. Deforming the parallelogram formed by the arm of the first parallel link and the arm of the second parallel link,
In a transfer arm configured to move a transfer table provided at a free end of a parallel link along a predetermined track, a linear guide is provided in a direction orthogonal to an axial direction of a short section including the rotation drive shaft, and the linear guide is provided on the linear guide. A transfer arm, wherein an arm end obtained by extending one arm of the second parallel link is rotatably connected to a slider that moves linearly. 2. The transfer arm according to claim 1, wherein an end of the linear guide is fixed to the base plate serving as the common short bar. 3. An end of the linear guide, the end of which is the first guide.
The transfer arm according to claim 1, wherein the transfer arm is fixed to an intermediate plate provided at a position parallel to the short bar in the parallel link. 4. A link arm, one end of which is connected to a rotary drive shaft, the other end of which is connected to an intermediate position of one arm of a parallel link.
A transfer arm configured to deform a parallelogram formed by the arm of the parallel link via the link arm to move a support arm provided on one short node of the parallel link in a predetermined transfer direction; A linear guide is provided in a direction orthogonal to the transport direction of the support arm, and a slider that linearly travels on the linear guide and a part of a short section of the parallel link opposite to the support arm are integrated. arm. 5. The transfer arm according to claim 4, wherein the link arm length is half of the arm length of the parallel link, and the link arm is connected to a center position of the full length of the arm of the parallel link. 6. An arm end of the first parallel link of the first parallel link and the second parallel link connected by a shared short bar is used as a rotation drive shaft, and a turning operation given by the rotation drive shaft is used. Deforming the parallelogram formed by the arm of the first parallel link and the arm of the second parallel link,
A transfer arm configured to move a transfer table provided at a free end of a parallel link along a predetermined track, wherein the transfer arm is mirror-symmetric with respect to the rotary drive shaft in a direction orthogonal to an axial direction of a short section including the rotary drive shaft. A linear guide is provided, and one end of a guide arm having one end connected to an intermediate position of the second parallel link is rotatably connected to one slider that linearly travels on the linear guide, and is connected to another slider. The end of the arm connected to the intermediate position of the guide arm and parallel to the arm of the second parallel link is rotatably connected, mirror-symmetric with respect to the rotation drive shaft, the rotation drive shaft having a common vertex, and the linear guide. A transfer arm comprising an isosceles triangular link having a bottom as a base. 7. An arm end of the first parallel link of the first parallel link and the second parallel link connected by a shared short bar is used as a rotation drive shaft, and a turning operation given by the rotation drive shaft is used. Deforming the parallelogram formed by the arm of the first parallel link and the arm of the second parallel link,
In a transfer arm configured to move a transfer table provided at a free end of a parallel link along a predetermined trajectory, a linear guide is provided in a direction orthogonal to an axial direction of a short section including the rotary drive shaft, and a linear guide is provided on the linear guide. The other end of the guide arm, one end of which is connected to a part of the arm of the second parallel link, is rotatably connected to the linearly traveling slider, and the constituent sides of the guide arm and the arm of the first parallel link are connected. A transfer arm including a part, and a rhombus link having two vertices opposing a joint including the rotation drive shaft and a rotating portion of the slider.