JP2002210686A - Semiconductor container conveying device and method, and suction pad used in the same - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a semiconductor container conveying device (handier) capable of easily coping with the conveying of a semiconductor container (tray) in the handler without replacing and adjusting a jig in changing the kind or the like. SOLUTION: A suction hand 5 is composed of a suction pad 4 mounted to place a suction port at a center of a square elastic body, and a spring 6 for pressing the suction pad 4, The suction pad 4 is abutted on an upper face of the circumference of an IC pocket of the tray, moves the suction hand 5 to a position to sealing the shielded IC pocket 2, and sucks the tray. The suction hand is mounted on a robot of variable position setting. Whereby high suction force can be obtained even to a member of complex surface shape such as the tray, regardless of a suction diameter, and only the position setting of the robot is changed without executing the mechanical adjustment and the replacement of the jig when the kind of a sucked member is changed.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an apparatus and method for transporting a semiconductor storage container and a suction pad used therefor, and more particularly, to an apparatus and a method for transporting a semiconductor storage container having a structure for transporting a storage container of a semiconductor package and to a method for using the same. It relates to a suction pad.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art A conventional semiconductor storage container transfer device (hereinafter, referred to as a "container transfer device")
Semiconductor handler (hereinafter referred to as “handler”).
The transfer method of the tray) is roughly classified into a mechanical hand method and a suction hand method.

As shown in FIG. 4, in the mechanical hand system, in order to separate the stacked trays 1, a notch provided at the outer end of the tray is gripped by a gripping hand and each sheet is conveyed. It is.

In the suction hand system, a tray is provided with a flat portion capable of sucking, and a suction device in which a suction pad is incorporated in the flat portion performs suction gripping and transport. FIG.
FIG. 2 is a sectional view of a suction pad system. The suspension force is determined by the pad diameter of the suction pad 7, and the position of the suction pad 7 must be adjusted for each type of tray 1 or the entire hand needs to be replaced.

[0005]

In the prior art mechanical hand system, a notch is formed at the outer end of the tray so that the tip of the gripping hand can be inserted so that the stacked trays can be separated one by one. Must. In addition, since the shapes and positions of the cutout portions of the trays are different from each other, there is a problem that the work time for exchanging jigs at the time of changing types is increased, and the cost of manufacturing individual jigs is increased.

On the other hand, in the suction hand system of the prior art, an opening is originally provided in an IC package storage portion (hereinafter, referred to as an IC pocket) of the tray. The opening of the IC pocket is shielded. However, since the position of the IC pocket that covers the opening may differ depending on the type of tray, the jig needs to be replaced when the type of IC is changed, and there is a problem that the work time for replacing the jig increases. Was.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is to provide a semiconductor package transfer apparatus and a suction pad used for the same, which can easily handle a tray transfer by such a handler without exchanging jigs and adjusting jigs by switching types. Is to do.

[0008]

In order to achieve the above object, a semiconductor container transporting apparatus according to the present invention comprises a suction pad having an opening serving as a suction port substantially at the center thereof, and a suction pad for transferring a semiconductor tray. The tray includes a suction hand having a spring for pressing the suction pad.

Further, in addition to the above configuration, the suction pad has a suction surface that is larger than the area of the IC pocket of the tray.

Further, in addition to any one of the above constitutions, the suction pad is characterized by using a soft elastic body.

Preferably, the soft elastic body is silicon sponge or silicon rubber.

In the method for transporting a semiconductor storage container according to the present invention, the upper surface of the tray around the IC pocket of the tray is suctioned.

[0013] Further, the present invention provides a suction pad used in the semiconductor container transporting device of the present invention, wherein the suction pad is made of a soft elastic material.

The suction pad is characterized in that an opening is formed substantially at the center.

[0015]

By using the above-mentioned means, the suction can be performed without sucking the flat portion of the tray.

The suction pad can be closely attached without being affected by the surface shape of the IC pocket.

The suspension force can be ensured by a suction pad capable of sealing one or a plurality of IC pockets.

[0018]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An embodiment according to the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 is a sectional view showing a state where a suction hand 5 for sucking and conveying the tray 1 is sucking the tray 1. Reference numeral 3 denotes an opening of an IC pocket for checking whether or not the IC of the tray located below is stored when the trays are stacked, and for reducing the weight of the tray.

The suction hand 5 comprises a suction pad 4 arranged so that a suction port is located at the center of a rectangular elastic body, and a spring 6 for pressing the suction pad 4.

At this time, the suction pad 4 is connected to the IC of the tray.
IC that is in contact with the upper surface around pocket 2 and is shielded
The suction hand 5 is moved to a position where the pocket 2 is sealed, and the tray is sucked.

FIG. 2 is a bird's-eye view of the tray 1. An opening 3 like an IC pocket 2 is provided to confirm whether or not the IC of the tray located below is stored when the trays are stacked, and to reduce the weight of the trays. A partially shielded IC pocket 2 is provided. The position of the shielded IC pocket 2 differs depending on the type.

In the semiconductor package transport device according to the present invention, the shielded IC pocket 2 is placed around the shielded IC pocket 2 as shown in FIG. The upper surface of the tray contacts the suction pad 4 so that the suction port of the suction pad can be placed at a position where the shielded IC pocket 2 can be sucked.

At this time, a soft elastic body which can be brought into close contact with the tray 1 by the pressing force of the spring 7 of the suction hand 5 for sucking and transporting the tray 1 is used for the suction pad 4. As the soft elastic body, for example, a silicone sponge or soft silicone rubber may be used.

The size of the suction pad 4 is suitably large enough to seal the largest IC pocket size A among various types of trays. The reason is that the suction pad according to the present invention obtains the suction force from the number of shielded IC pockets and its internal volume while the conventional suction pad obtains the suction force from its suction area, and therefore the IC pocket size This is because it is necessary to have a size capable of sealing the largest A. For example, in the case of an IC package having a side of 40 mm, the size A of the suction pad 4 is approximately 55 mm because the IC pocket size A is approximately 45 mm.

The thickness of the silicon sponge is
The thickness is preferably about 10 mm because it depends on the pressing force of the spring 6 and the elasticity of the silicon sponge.

When the dimension B between adjacent IC pockets is small and there is no suction area enough to obtain a hanging force capable of sucking and conveying the tray 1, for example, the dimension B between adjacent IC pockets is reduced to about 5 mm. Then, as shown in FIG. 5, the suction pad is arranged so as to spread over a plurality of IC pockets. At this time, the suction diameter C of the suction pad 4
About 8 mm is suitable.

[0028]

According to the suction pad of the present invention, even a tray having a complicated surface shape such as a tray can obtain a large suction force regardless of the suction diameter.

Further, when changing the type, mechanical adjustment and jig replacement can be eliminated only by changing the position setting of the robot. For this reason, in the handler adopting the suction pad according to the present invention, it is possible to reduce the operation time at the time of product type switching.

Further, even if the size between adjacent IC pockets is small and there is no suction area enough to obtain a suspending force capable of sucking and transporting the tray 1, the suction pad is provided in a plurality of IC pockets as shown in FIG. In addition, since the IC pockets are arranged so as to be attracted, a large attraction force can be obtained from the surface area of the plurality of IC pockets.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view illustrating a state in which a suction hand 5 that suctions and conveys a tray 1 sucks a tray 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a bird's-eye view of a tray.

FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view of a conventional suction pad system.

FIG. 4 is a bird's-eye view of a conventional mechanical hand system.

FIG. 5 is a diagram showing an embodiment of the present invention, in which the size of the space between adjacent IC pockets is small and there is no suction area enough to obtain a hanging force capable of sucking and conveying the tray, It is sectional drawing which showed the place which adsorb | sucks a tray.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Tray 2 ... Shielded IC pocket 3 ... Opening of IC pocket 4, 7 ... Suction pad 5 ... Suction hand 6 ... Spring

Claims (7)

[Claims] 1. A suction hand comprising a suction pad having an opening serving as a suction port substantially at the center thereof, and a spring for pressing the suction pad against the semiconductor tray when the tray is being transported. Semiconductor storage container transfer device. 2. The semiconductor container transport device according to claim 1, wherein the suction pad has a suction surface that is larger than an area of an IC pocket of the tray. 3. The device according to claim 1, wherein the suction pad is made of a soft elastic material. 4. The semiconductor container transporting device according to claim 3, wherein said soft elastic body is silicon sponge or silicon rubber. 5. A method for transporting a semiconductor storage container for transporting a tray for a semiconductor package, wherein the upper surface of the tray around an IC pocket of the tray is sucked. 6. A suction pad for use in a semiconductor storage container transfer device, wherein the suction pad is made of a soft elastic material. 7. The suction pad according to claim 6, wherein the suction pad has an opening formed substantially at the center.