JP2002217263A - System for carrying substance to be processed and method thereof - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a system for carrying a substance to be processed such as a wafer, capable of surely passing the substance to be processed one by one between an automatic carrying device and a plurality of semiconductor manufacturing devices and shortening the turn-around time of the substance to be processed, and a method thereof. SOLUTION: A system E for carrying a wafer W has a plurality of probers 2 and an AGV 3 for automatically carrying the wafer W by a carrier. The probers 2 and the AGV 3 have an adapter and a pair of tweezers that pass the wafers W one by one, a group controller 5 and an AGV controller 4 that control these, and PIO communications interfaces 11A, 11B for sending and receiving the control signals of these controllers 5, 4 as optical signals.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a system for transporting an object to be processed and a method for transporting an object to be processed. The present invention relates to a system for transporting an object and a method for transporting the object.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art For example, in a semiconductor device inspection process, a prober is widely used as an inspection device for a semiconductor wafer (hereinafter, simply referred to as "wafer"). The prober usually includes a loader chamber and a prober chamber, and performs an electrical characteristic test of the device in a wafer state. The loader chamber includes a carrier mounting portion on which a plurality of (for example, 25) wafers are stored and a wafer transfer mechanism (hereinafter referred to as an "arm mechanism") for transferring wafers one by one from the carrier mounting portion. ), And a pre-alignment mechanism (hereinafter, referred to as “sub-chuck”) for performing pre-alignment of the wafer transferred via the arm mechanism. The prober chamber has a mounting table (hereinafter, referred to as “main chuck”) on which a wafer is mounted and moves in the X, Y, Z, and θ directions.
An alignment mechanism for aligning a wafer in cooperation with the main chuck, a probe card disposed above the main chuck, and a test head interposed between the probe card and the tester are provided.

Therefore, when inspecting a wafer, first, an operator places a carrier containing a plurality of wafers in lot units on a carrier placement portion in a loader room. Next, when the prober is driven, the arm mechanism takes out the wafers in the carrier one by one, performs pre-alignment via the sub chuck, and delivers the wafer to the main chuck in the prober chamber via the arm mechanism. In the loader chamber, the main chuck and the alignment mechanism cooperate to perform wafer alignment. While the indexed wafer is fed through the main chuck through the main chuck, the wafer is brought into electrical contact with the probe card to perform a predetermined electrical characteristic test. When the inspection of the wafer is completed, the wafer on the main chuck is received by the arm mechanism of the loader chamber, returned to the original position in the carrier, and the inspection of the next wafer is repeated as described above. When the inspection of all wafers in the carrier is completed, the operator replaces the next carrier and repeats the above inspection for a new wafer.

However, when the diameter of a wafer is increased, for example, to a 300 mm wafer, the carrier containing a plurality of wafers is extremely heavy, and it is almost impossible for an operator to carry the carrier. Even if it can be carried, it is heavy and dangerous to carry alone.

Therefore, in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. Hei 10-303270, a carrier is transported using an automatic transport vehicle (hereinafter, referred to as "AGV"), and wafers of the same lot are transferred between process equipment and the carrier. A possible transport method has been proposed. If this transport method is used, the transport of the carrier by the operator is automated, and the above problem can be solved.

[0006]

However, the number of devices formed on a single wafer has increased dramatically due to the recent increase in diameter and ultra-miniaturization of the wafer. It takes a long time to finish,
As described above, even if wafers of the same lot can be transferred to a semiconductor manufacturing apparatus such as an inspection apparatus in a carrier unit via an AGV, it takes a considerable time to process the wafers transferred by the carrier in a lot unit. During that period, even processed wafers will be kept in the semiconductor manufacturing equipment,
As a result, there is a problem that the time required to transfer a wafer in a lot unit to a subsequent process is correspondingly delayed, and as a result, it is difficult to reduce TAT (Turn-Around-Time).

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made to solve the above-mentioned problems, and it is intended to surely transfer an object such as a wafer between an automatic transfer device and a plurality of semiconductor manufacturing apparatuses in a unit of a single wafer. It is an object of the present invention to provide a system for transporting an object to be processed and a method for transporting an object to be processed, which can reduce the TAT of the object to be processed by performing parallel processing on the object using the semiconductor manufacturing apparatus.

[0008]

According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a system for transporting an object to be processed, comprising a plurality of semiconductor manufacturing apparatuses for performing a predetermined process on the object to be processed, and An automatic transfer device that automatically transfers the object to be processed in a carrier unit in order to deliver the object to be processed one by one in response to each request. First and second transfer mechanisms for transferring workpieces one by one, a control device for controlling the first and second transfer mechanisms, and an optical coupling parallel I / O for transmitting and receiving control signals of the control device as optical signals / O communication interface.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided a system for transporting an object to be processed, wherein the first transfer mechanism comprises a vertically movable holder for supporting the object to be processed. And a first vacuum suction mechanism for vacuum-sucking the object to be processed on the holder, and a second transfer mechanism includes:
An arm for transferring the objects to be processed one by one, and a second vacuum suction mechanism for vacuum-sucking the objects to be processed on the arm are provided.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, there is provided a system for transporting an object to be processed, wherein the optical coupling parallel I / O communication interface comprises a first and a second interface. And a signal port for transmitting and receiving an optical signal for controlling the vacuum suction mechanism.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method for transporting an object to be processed, wherein the optical communication is performed via an optical coupling parallel I / O communication interface to automatically transport the object to and from the first transfer mechanism of the semiconductor manufacturing apparatus. A method for transferring objects to be processed one by one with a second delivery mechanism of an apparatus, wherein first and second delivery mechanisms prepare for delivery of the object to be processed; Accessing a first delivery mechanism for delivery of the object to be processed,
A step of transferring the object to be processed between the first and second transfer mechanisms, and a step of retreating the second transfer mechanism from the first transfer mechanism and terminating the transfer of the object to be processed. It is a feature.

According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method of transporting an object to be processed, wherein the optical communication is performed via an optical coupling parallel I / O communication interface to automatically transport the object to and from the first transfer mechanism of the semiconductor manufacturing apparatus. A method for transferring objects to be processed one by one to and from a second transfer mechanism of the apparatus, wherein when the transfer of the objects to be processed is started between the first and second transfer mechanisms, the automatic transfer device is used. And a step of notifying the semiconductor manufacturing apparatus of the fact that the second transfer mechanism is accessible based on the presence / absence of the object in the first transfer mechanism. A step of notifying that the object is transferred, and a step of notifying the semiconductor manufacturing apparatus from the automatic transfer apparatus when the transfer and transfer of the object to be processed between the first and second transfer mechanisms are performed. Delivery of 2 When confirming the retractable second delivery mechanism based on the presence or absence of the object to be processed in the system,
A step of notifying the automatic transfer device from the semiconductor manufacturing apparatus to that effect, and a step of retreating the second transfer mechanism from the first transfer mechanism and confirming the completion of the transfer and transfer of the object to be processed. And a step of notifying the semiconductor manufacturing apparatus of the fact from the apparatus.

According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, in the method for transporting an object to be processed, in the invention according to the fifth aspect, the presence or absence of the object to be processed is determined by using the vacuum suction mechanism of the first transfer mechanism. Through the process.

According to a seventh aspect of the present invention, in the method for transporting an object to be processed, in the invention according to the fifth or sixth aspect, the confirmation of completion of the delivery of the object is performed by the second delivery. The process is performed through a vacuum suction mechanism of the mechanism.

[0015]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS The present invention will be described below with reference to the embodiments shown in FIGS. Automated material handling system according to the present embodiment
(AMHS)) As shown in FIGS. 1A and 1B, E is a host computer 1 for controlling production of an entire factory including an inspection process of a wafer (not shown) as an object to be processed, and A plurality of semiconductor manufacturing apparatuses, for example, an inspection apparatus (for example, a prober) 2 for performing an electrical characteristic inspection of a wafer under the control of the host computer 1, and one wafer is automatically sent to each of the probers 2 in accordance with each request. A plurality of automatic transfer devices (hereinafter, referred to as “AGV”) 3 for transferring and a transfer control device (hereinafter, “AGV”) for controlling these AGVs 3.
V controller ". ) 4). The prober 2 and the AGV 3 have a parallel I / O (hereinafter, referred to as “PIO”) communication interface optically coupled based on SEMI standards E23 and E84, and perform the PIO communication between the two to remove the wafer W. They are handed over one by one. The prober 2 is configured as a single-wafer type prober 2 for receiving wafers W one by one and performing inspection. Hereinafter, the single wafer type prober 2 will be described simply as the prober 2. AGV controller 4
Is the host computer 1 and SECS (Semiconductore Q
uipment Communication Standard) is connected via a communication line, controls the AGV 3 through wireless communication under the control of the host computer 1, and manages the wafer W in lot units.

As shown in FIG. 1, a plurality of probers 2 are connected to a host computer 1 via a group controller 5 via an SECS communication line, and the host computer 1 is connected to a plurality of probers 2 via a group controller 5. Is managing. The group controller 5
It manages information on inspection of the prober 2, such as recipe data and log data. A tester 6 is connected to each prober 2 via a SECS communication line, and each prober 2 individually executes a predetermined test according to a command from each tester 6. These testers 6 are tester host computers (hereinafter, referred to as “tester hosts”).
The host computer 1 is connected to the host computer 1 via the SECS communication line via the host computer 7, and manages a plurality of testers 6 via the tester host 7. Further, a marking device 8 for performing a predetermined marking based on the inspection result of the wafer is connected to the host computer 1 via a marking instruction device 9. Marking instruction device 9
Is a marking device 8 based on the data of the tester host 7
Is instructed for marking. Further, a stocker 10 for storing a plurality of carriers C is connected to the host computer 1 via an SECS communication line. The stocker 10 stores and sorts wafers before and after inspection in a carrier unit under the control of the host computer 1, and Loading and unloading of wafers is performed in units of carriers.

The prober 2 has a loader chamber 21 and a prober chamber 22 as shown in FIG. The loader chamber 21 has an adapter 23, an arm mechanism 24, and a sub chuck 25, and is configured according to a conventional prober except for the adapter 23. Adapter 23 is AG
It is configured as a first transfer mechanism for transferring wafers W one by one to and from V3. Details of the adapter 23 will be described later. The arm mechanism 24 has upper and lower two-stage arms 241, and each of the arms 241 holds the wafer W by vacuum suction and releases the vacuum suction to transfer the wafer to and from the adapter 23 and receive the wafer. The transferred wafer W is transferred to the prober chamber 22. The sub chuck 25 transports the wafer W by the arm mechanism 24. The prober chamber 22 has a wafer chuck 26, an alignment mechanism 27, and a probe card 28. The main chuck 26 is X,
It moves in the X and Y directions via the Y table 261 and moves in the Z and θ directions via a lifting mechanism and a θ rotation mechanism (not shown). The alignment mechanism 27 includes an alignment bridge 271 and a CCD camera 272 as conventionally known.
The alignment between the wafer W and the probe card 28 is performed in cooperation with the main chuck 26. The probe card 28 has a plurality of probes 28A.
A and the wafer on the main chuck 26 come into electrical contact,
It is connected to a tester 6 (see FIG. 1A) via a test head (not shown). Since the arm mechanism 24 has upper and lower arms 241, the upper arm is described as an upper arm 241 </ b> A and the lower arm is described as a lower arm 241 </ b> B as necessary.

The adapter 23 is a device unique to the present embodiment. As shown in FIG. 2B, the adapter 23 includes an adapter body 231 formed in a flat cylindrical shape and having a tapered surface, and a sub chuck 232 that moves up and down at the center of the bottom surface of the adapter body 231. When the wafer W is transferred to or from the arm mechanism 24, the sub chuck 232 moves up and down and holds the wafer W by suction. The adapter 23 is detachably provided, for example, on a carrier table (not shown), and moves up and down via an indexer (not shown) of the carrier table. Therefore, when transferring the wafer W, the adapter 2
3 rises through the indexer and (b) of FIG.
The sub chuck 232 ascends to the transfer position of the wafer W, and after receiving the wafer W, descends to the position shown by the two-dot chain line in FIG. The carrier table is also configured so that carriers can be arranged, has a discrimination sensor (not shown) for discriminating the carrier or the adapter 23, and can be used in the same manner as the conventional prober 2.

As shown in FIGS. 1 (b) and 2 (a) and 2 (b), the AGV 3 is disposed at one end of the apparatus main body 31 and has the carrier C mounted thereon. A carrier mounting portion 32, a mapping sensor 33 for detecting a storage position of a wafer in the carrier, an arm mechanism 34 for transporting a wafer in the carrier C, a sub chuck 35 for performing pre-alignment of the wafer W, Pre-alignment sensor 36 (see FIG. 11) and the ID of the wafer W
Optical character reader (O) for reading codes (not shown)
A carrier (C) 37 and a battery (not shown) serving as a driving source, and transports the carrier C by self-running between the stocker 10 and the prober 2 or between the plurality of probers 2 via wireless communication with the AGV controller 4. Then, the wafers 2W of the carrier C are distributed one by one to the plurality of probers 2 via the arm mechanism 34.

The arm mechanism 34 is a wafer transfer mechanism mounted on the AGV3. The arm mechanism 34 is configured to be able to rotate and move up and down when transferring the wafer W. In other words, as shown in FIGS. 2A and 2B, the arm mechanism 34 has an upper and lower two-stage arm 341 for vacuum-sucking the wafer W.
, A forward / reversely rotatable base 342 for supporting the arms 341 so as to be able to move back and forth, and a drive mechanism (not shown) housed in the base 342. When the wafer W is transferred, the upper and lower arms 341 individually move forward and backward on the base 342 via the driving mechanism, and the base 342 rotates forward and backward in the direction of transferring the wafer W. In the following, the upper arm is described as an upper arm 341A, and the lower arm is described as a lower arm 341B, as necessary.

However, the compressor which can be mounted on the AGV 3 uses the mounted battery as a power source. However, as described above, only a battery having a low capacity of, for example, about 25 V can be mounted, and thus the vacuum suction of the arm mechanism 34 is performed. The air flow is insufficient for use as a mechanism. That is, the air is directly ejected from the ejector 347 by the small compressor 344 using the battery mounted with the AGV 3 as a power source.
Even if the air is exhausted from A, the air flow in the compressor 344 is small, so that the air in the exhaust passage 341C of the arm 341 cannot be sufficiently sucked and exhausted, and the wafer W cannot be vacuum-adsorbed on the arm 341. Therefore, the following measures are taken for the vacuum holding device 38 to compensate for the insufficient flow rate.

That is, the vacuum holding device 38 of the present embodiment
As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, two upper and lower arms 341 for holding the wafer W by suction, and an exhaust path 341C formed in these arms 341 and opened at the suction surface of the wafer W.
And a vacuum suction mechanism 343 connected to the exhaust path 341C via a pipe 344A, and driven under the control of the AGV controller 4.

The vacuum suction mechanism 343 includes a compressor 344 driven by a mounted battery, and the compressor 344.
The air pumped from is supplied to a predetermined pressure (for example, 0.45M
Pa) an air tank 345 for storing compressed air.
An air adjusting mechanism 346 for adjusting the pressure of the compressed air flowing out of the air tank 345;
347 for ejecting compressed air supplied from the
A. Further, the vacuum suction mechanism 343 is provided between the gas pressure adjusting mechanism 346 and the ejector 347A and opens and closes a pipe 344A.
1 and an ejector 347A and a pipe 344A
Check valve 348 with pilot for opening and closing
1 and a pressure sensor 349 that is disposed between the pilot check valve 348 and detects the pressure in the exhaust path 341C. The arm 341 holds and releases the wafer W.

The compressor 344 pumps air and temporarily stores compressed air in the air tank 345 at a predetermined pressure.
Even if the air flow rate of the small compressor 344 using the battery mounted with the AGV 3 as a power source is small, the wafer W is temporarily stored in the air tank 345 with a predetermined amount of compressed air.
The air flow rate required for vacuum suction of can be secured.
That is, by using the compressed air stored in the air tank 345, an air flow rate necessary for vacuum suction of the wafer W can be secured. The gas pressure adjusting mechanism 346 is configured as shown in FIG.
As shown in the figure, the air filter 346A and the pressure reducing valve 346
B, and has a pressure gauge 346C, stores compressed air in the air tank 345, and exhausts compressed air from the ejector 347A to the outside at a constant flow rate required for vacuum suction of the wafer W. The shaded portion of the pipe 344A in FIG. 3 is a decompression portion.

The switching valve 347 is constituted by a solenoid valve as shown in FIG. 4. When the solenoid is energized, the gas pressure adjusting mechanism 346 and the arm 341 communicate with each other. It is disconnected from the arm 341. Therefore, air at a constant pressure flows from the gas pressure adjusting mechanism 346 to which the switching valve 347 is energized, and the ejector 347
A and exhaust air from the arm 341
Air is sucked from 1C and exhausted. At this time, the arm 34
1 holds the wafer W, the opening of the exhaust path 341C of the arm 341 is closed by the wafer W. Therefore, the exhaust path 341C (in FIG.
41C) is in a reduced pressure state, and the wafer W is vacuum-sucked on the arm 341. The degree of vacuum at this time is detected by the pressure sensor 349, and the ON / OFF of the solenoid valve 347A is controlled based on the detected value. In addition, since the air in the air tank 345 is consumed, the compressor 3 based on the detection value of the pressure gauge 346C is used.
44 is turned on and off. When the solenoid is energized, the check valve 348 with the pilot
The exhaust path 341C communicates with the ejector 347A side to suck air from the exhaust path 341C, and when the solenoid is no longer in a biased state, the check valve 348 with the pilot
1C is closed to maintain a predetermined degree of reduced pressure. When the vacuum suction by the arm 341 is released, the check valve 34 with the pilot is used.
The solenoid 8 may be energized to make the exhaust path 341C communicate with the ejector 347A to open the exhaust path 341C to the atmosphere.

As shown in FIG. 4, the pressure sensor 349 has a first pressure switch 349A and a second pressure switch 349B, and detects different pressures. The first pressure switch 349A is a sensor for detecting the presence or absence of the wafer W on the arm 341. The first pressure switch 349A detects a pressure in the exhaust path 341C, for example, 25 kPa lower than the atmospheric pressure, and determines whether or not the wafer W exists based on the detected value. To inform. Also,
The second pressure switch 349B is a sensor that detects a pressure leak in the exhaust path 341C. The second pressure switch 349B detects a pressure in the exhaust path 341C that is 40 kPa lower than the atmospheric pressure, for example, and detects a pressure leak when the internal pressure becomes higher than this detection value. That there is. When the second pressure switch 349B detects a pressure leak, that is, when the pressure in the exhaust path 341C increases (when the degree of vacuum decreases), the solenoid valve 347 is energized based on the detection result of the second pressure switch 349B and the pilot Check valve 348 is opened to supply compressed air to the ejector 34.
7A, the pressure in the exhaust path 341C is reduced, and the pressure of the second pressure switch 349B becomes 4
When the pressure reaches 0 kPa or lower, the solenoid valve 34
7 is turned off, and the check valve with pilot 348 is closed to maintain the reduced pressure state. When the value of the pressure gauge 346C falls below a predetermined value, the compressor 344 is driven to replenish the compressed air into the air tank 345.

The AGV 3 has the wafer W of the prober 2
, The arm mechanism 34 is driven in the AGV 3 to take out the wafers W in the carrier C one by one. However, the grooves C ₁ of the inner surface of the carrier C such as 25 stages in the vertical direction is formed as shown in FIG. 5, it is accommodated horizontally by inserting the wafer W for each of these grooves C _1. Therefore, the wafer W is placed in the groove C ₁ in the carrier C.
After the wafer W is taken out of the carrier C using the arm mechanism 34, the centering needs to be performed using, for example, an optical sensor. However, in the present embodiment, the centering of the wafer W is performed using the carrier C.

That is, as shown in FIG.
Side toward the back on the back of the carrier C is gradually narrows inclined surface C ₂ are formed symmetrically. Therefore, use of this inclined surface C ₂ when performing centering of the wafer W. For example, as shown in FIG. 5, the arm mechanism 34 is driven, the vacuum suction mechanism 343 is turned off, and the arm 3 is turned off.
41 is inserted into the cassette C from below the predetermined wafer W. During this time, the arm mechanism 34 rises slightly and the arm 34
The wafer W is placed on the wafer 1. When the arm 341 is further inserted into the back of the carrier C in this state, against the position indicated by a broken line wafer W in the figure via the arm 341 and the inclined surface C ₂ of the left and right of the carrier C while moving the back those The arm 341 enters the back while stopping. At this time, the inclined surface C ₂ of the left and right is in the symmetrical arm mechanism 341
Pushes wafer W into carrier C while arm 341
Contacting the wafer W above the left and right inclined surfaces C ₂ can be automatically centered by. After centering, the vacuum suction mechanism 343 is driven to hold the wafer W by the arm 341. In this state, the arm 341 retreats from inside the carrier C, and takes out the wafer W from the carrier C. When taking out one wafer W from the carrier C as described above, the arm mechanism 34 rotates 90 ° and delivers the wafer W to the adapter 23 of the prober 2. As described above, since the centering of the wafer W can be performed in the AGV 3, the main chuck 2 in the prober chamber 22 is moved from the AGV 3.
When the wafer W is directly transferred to the wafer 6, there is no need to perform the alignment of the wafer W again. In other words, the centering of the wafer W in the AGV 3 performs the positioning when the wafer W is directly transferred from the AGV 3 to the main chuck 26 in the prober chamber 22.

When the arm mechanism 34 of the AGV 3 transfers the wafer W to and from the adapter 23 of the prober 2, the optical coupling PI between the prober 2 and the AGV 3 as described above.
O communication is performed. Therefore, the AGV 3 and the prober 2 are provided with PIO communication interfaces 11A and 11B (see FIGS. 1 and 7), respectively, so that one wafer W can be transferred accurately using PIO communication with each other.
Since the AGV 3 has the arm mechanism 34 which has not existed in the related art, the AGV 3 controls the signal line for controlling the vacuum suction mechanism 343 of the arm mechanism 34 and the arm 341 in addition to the communication line defined by the conventional SEMI standard. Signal lines.

The prober 2 is connected to the wafer W as described above.
One adapter (hereinafter, also referred to as a “load port” as necessary) 23 is provided as a load port for the transfer of the data. However, load port 23
In the case of one, the prober 2 cannot insert the next wafer W until the inspected wafer W is taken out,
There was a limit to throughput improvement. Therefore, in the present embodiment, as shown in FIG. 6, at least one virtual load port 23V is set in the prober 2 separately from an actual load port (hereinafter, referred to as an "actual load port") 23 by software. They are handled as if there are multiple load ports. That is, the AGV 3 transfers the wafer W through the software when performing the PIO communication using the optical signal L even if the inspected wafer W exists in the prober 2 as shown in FIG. By switching the load port numbers of the signal lines of the PIO communication interfaces 11A and 11B shown in (1), a new wafer W can be inserted even if a wafer W exists in the prober 2.

When the virtual load port 23V is designated to the prober 2 via the PIO communication between the AGV 3 and the prober 2, the inspected wafer W is not returned to the actual load port 23, for example, the unload arm 241 or the unload A table (not shown) functions as a virtual load port 23V, which can hold the inspected wafer W, leave the adapter 23 open, and wait for the next wafer W. By providing the virtual load port 23V in this manner, the unload arm 241 and the unload table (not shown) can be fully utilized, the throughput can be improved, and the extra real load port can be achieved. It is not necessary to provide a device, and an increase in footprint and an increase in cost of the apparatus can be prevented.

Incidentally, the transport system E of the present embodiment
As shown in FIG. 7, a unique PIO communication interface 11A and a unique PIO communication interface 11A are used to accurately transfer the wafer W between the arm mechanism 34 of the AGV 3 and the adapter 23 of the prober 2.
1B. These PIO communication interfaces 11A and 11B are each configured as an 8-bit interface having eight ports as shown in FIG. 7, and the signals shown in FIG. Bit port of the sub-chuck 232 of the adapter 23 and the arm mechanism 3 of the AGV 3
4 is assigned for an optical signal (AENB signal, PENB signal, etc., which will be described later).

Therefore, the PIO communication interface 11
FIGS. 8 to 1 show a method of transferring a wafer W between the AGV 3 and the prober 2 using PIO communication via A and 11B.
This will be described with reference to FIG. 8 to 12 show a method of loading a wafer W from the AGV 3 to the prober 3, and FIG.
3 shows a flow of the wafer W in the prober 2, and FIGS. 14 to 16 show a method of unloading the wafer W from the prober 2 to the AGV 3.

First, the wafer W is transferred from the AGV 3 to the prober 2.
A method of loading a transferred wafer will be described. When the host computer 1 transmits a transfer command of the wafer W to the AGV controller 4 via the SECS communication, the AGV 3 moves to the front of the prober 2 (wafer transfer position) under the control of the AGV controller 4 as shown in the flowchart of FIG. Move (step S1). When the AGV 3 reaches the prober 2 as shown in FIG. 10A, the mapping sensor 33 detects the carrier C as shown in FIG.
The arm mechanism 34 moves up and down, and the wafer W in the carrier C is mapped via the mapping sensor 33 while the arm mechanism 34 moves up and down. Then, as shown in FIG. Upper arm 341A
Moves forward and enters the carrier C from slightly below a predetermined wafer W. During this time, the centering of the wafer W is performed via the upper arm 341A and the carrier C as shown in the flowchart of FIG. 8 (step S2). That is, as shown in FIG. 10C, while the upper arm 341A enters the innermost part of the carrier C, the arm mechanism 34 slightly rises and places the wafer W on the upper arm 341A. 341A reaches the innermost part. During this time, the upper arm 34
1A performs centering of the wafer W by contacting the wafer W to the inclined surface C ₂ symmetric carrier C. Next, after the vacuum suction mechanism 343 of the arm mechanism 34 is driven to vacuum suction the wafer W by the upper arm 341A,
A retreats from carrier C and wafer W after centering
From the carrier C (step S2). Since the alignment of the wafer W with respect to the main chuck 26 is automatically performed by this centering process, the wafer W can be directly delivered from the AGV 3 to the main chuck 26.

Wafer W is transferred to carrier C by upper arm 341A.
10D, the sub chuck 35 moves up to receive the wafer W from the arm 341 as shown in FIG. 10D, and then the wafer W is pre-aligned via the pre-alignment sensor 36 while the sub chuck 25 rotates. Perform alignment. Subsequently, as shown in FIG. 10E, the sub chuck 35 stops rotating and then descends, and while returning the wafer W to the upper arm 341A, the arm mechanism 34 rises and the OCR 3
After the ID code attached to the wafer W is read in step 7 to identify the lot of the wafer W, the arm mechanism 34 rotates 90 degrees as shown in FIG. The orientation is adjusted to the state shown in FIG. I of wafer W identified by OCR 37
The D code is notified from the AGV 3 to the host computer via the AGV controller 4, and further from the host computer 1 to the prober 2.

Next, as shown in FIG. 8 and FIG.
PIO communication interface 11A between the
PIO communication is started via 11B. First, as shown in FIGS. 8 and 9, AGV3 is high with respect to prober 2.
After transmitting the CS_0 signal in the state, the VA in the high state
Transmit the LID signal. If the CS_0 signal is in the High state, the VALID signal is maintained in the High state, and it is confirmed whether the adapter (load port) 23 of the prober 2 is in a state capable of receiving the wafer W (step S).
3). Upon receiving the VALID signal, the prober 2 sets the L_REQ signal of the prober 2 to the high state as shown in FIG. 9 and transmits the signal to the AGV 3 to notify that the wafer can be loaded.

The AGV 3 determines whether or not the L_REQ signal has been received as shown in FIG. 8 (step S4).
When the prober 3 determines that the L_REQ signal has not been received, the prober 2 transmits the L_REQ signal to the AGV 3 (step S5). When the AGV 3 determines that the L_REQ signal has been received, the AGV 3 is started to load the wafer W.
Then, the TR_REQ signal is set to the High state to set the prober 3
To the AGV (step S6).
Reference numeral 3 notifies the prober 2 that the wafer W is ready to be transferred. The prober 2 has a TR_REQ as shown in FIG.
When the signal is received, the READY signal is set to the High state, and the READY signal is transmitted to the AGV 3 to notify the AGV 3 that the load port 23 is accessible.

The AGV 3 determines whether a READY signal has been received from the prober 2 (step S7).
Determines that no READY signal has been received, the prober 2 transmits a READY signal to the AGV 3 (step S8), and notifies that access is possible. AGV3 is R
When it is determined that the EASY signal has been received, the AGV 3 sets the BUSY signal to the high state and transmits the signal to the prober 3 (step S9), as shown in FIG. 9, to start the transfer of the wafer W to the prober 2. Notice.

Next, as shown in FIG. 8, the AGV 3 determines whether or not it has received the AENB signal from the prober 2 (step S10). When it is determined that the AGV 3 has not received the AENB signal, as shown in FIG. Prober 2 is AE
The NB signal is set to the high state and transmitted to the AGV 3 (step S11), and the fact that the arm 341A is accessible is notified. The AENB signal is a signal that is transmitted to the AGV 3 when the prober 2 receives the BUSY signal from the AGV 3 in the High state and is defined for the transfer of the wafer W in the present invention. That is, the AENB signal is transmitted to the sub chuck 232 of the adapter 23 when the wafer W is loaded.
Is in the lowered position, does not hold the wafer W, and enters a high state in a state in which the wafer W can be loaded (accessible state of the upper arm 341A). At the time of unloading, the sub chuck 232 is in the raised position and the wafer W is removed. When the wafer W is held and the wafer W can be unloaded (the upper arm 341A can be accessed), the wafer W enters a high state. In addition, when the wafer W is detected by the sub chuck 232 of the adapter 23 at the time of loading and the loading of the wafer W is confirmed, the AENB signal becomes a low state.
In a state where the wafer W has not been detected and the unloading of the wafer W has been confirmed in step 2, the AENB signal goes to a low state.

Thus, in step S10, AGV3
Determines that the AENB signal has been received in the High state, the transfer (loading) of the wafer W from the AGV 3 is started (step S11), and the upper arm 341A of the arm mechanism 34 is moved from the state shown in FIG. Then, the wafer W is advanced toward the second adapter 23, and the wafer W is transferred to a position right above the load port 23 as shown in FIG.

Next, AGV3 sends PENB to prober 2.
A signal is transmitted (step S12), the wafer W is detected by the prober 2, and the AENB signal is in a low state and L_RE
It is determined whether or not the Q signal is in a low state (step S
13) When the prober 2 determines that the sub chuck 232 does not hold the wafer W at the lowered position and the wafer W is accessible in a state where any signal is High, the sub chuck 232 is raised as shown in FIG. 11C. With arm mechanism 3
The vacuum suction mechanism 343 releases the vacuum suction. PEN
The B signal is a signal defined in the present invention. When loading, the vacuum suction mechanism 343 is turned off and the wafer W is released from the upper arm 341A to be in a high state, and the upper arm 341A returns to the AGV 3 side to load the wafer W. When the loading is completed, the state becomes Low. In addition, the PENB signal is in a high state when the vacuum suction mechanism 343 is turned on at the time of unloading and the wafer W is sucked by the lower arm 341B, and when the lower arm 341B returns to the AGV3 side and the unloading of the wafer W is completed. It becomes Low state.

As described above, the upper arm 341A is connected to the wafer W
Is released, the sub chuck 23 in the load port 23 is released.
2 receives the wafer W by performing vacuum suction as shown in FIG. 9 (step S14). Subsequently, as shown in FIG. 9, the prober 2 sets the AENB signal to a low state and sets the AGV3
The sub-chuck 323 transmits a signal indicating that the wafer W is held by the sub chuck 323 (step S15). At the same time, the prober 2 sets the L_REQ signal to a low state and transmits the signal to the AGV 3 (step S16).
Notify the AGV3 of the end of loading.

Thereafter, returning to step S13, the prober 2 detects the wafer W again to determine whether the AENB signal is in the low state and the L_REQ signal is in the low state, and all the signals are in the low state. When it is determined that the loading is completed, the upper arm 341A is connected to the load port 23.
To AGV3 (step S17). In AGV3, when the upper arm 341A returns, the TR_REQ signal, BUSY
Both the signal and the PENB signal are set to the Low state, and the respective signals are transmitted to the prober 2 to notify that the loading of the wafer W has been completed (step S18).

Next, in AGV3, as shown in FIG.
After transmitting the OMPT signal to the High state to the prober 2 to notify that the transfer operation of the wafer W has been completed (step S19), the AGV 3 determines whether the READY signal has been received from the prober 2 in the Low state (step S19). Step S
20), if the AGV 3 determines that the READY signal has not been received,
The EADY signal is sent to the AGV 3 in a low state to notify that the series of transport operations has been completed (step S2).
1). When the AGV 3 determines that the READY signal has been received in the Low state, the AGV 3 uses the CS_ signal as shown in FIG.
0 signal and VALID signal to Low state
(Step S22), the transfer operation of the wafer W is completed, and the arm mechanism 34 is rotated 90 ° in the reverse direction as shown in FIG. Then, the next wafer W is ready to be delivered.

In the prober 2, as shown in FIG. 11 (e), the sub chuck 232 having received the wafer W in the adapter 23 once descends to perform centering of the wafer W in the adapter 23, and thereafter, as shown in FIG. As shown in (f), the adapter 23 is lowered to the position where the wafer W is transferred to and from the arm mechanism 24, and the sub chuck 232 is raised to rise above the adapter body 231. In this state, the upper arm 241A of the arm mechanism 24 advances to the adapter 23 side as shown in FIG. 7 (g), the sub chuck 231 of the adapter 23 descends, and the upper arm 241A vacuum sucks and receives the wafer W. .

When the wafer W is received by the upper arm 241A, the arm 241 turns to the direction of the main chuck 26 in the prober chamber 22 as shown in FIG. After that, similarly to the conventional prober, after the arm mechanism 24 and the sub chuck 25 perform the pre-alignment of the wafer W in cooperation with each other as shown in FIG. Then, the wafer W is delivered to the main chuck 26.
Further, as shown in FIG.
After the alignment is performed, the wafer W and the probe 28A of the probe card 28 are brought into electrical contact with each other while the indexing of the main chuck 26 is performed as shown in FIG. Perform an inspection.
In FIGS. 12B and 12C, 26A is the wafer W.
Lifting pins.

The above-described AGV 3, which has finished delivering the wafer W while the prober 2 receiving the wafer W is performing the inspection, transfers the wafer W of the same lot under the control of the host computer 1 to a plurality of other probers 2. According to the request of
After transferring the wafer W to and from the other plurality of probers 2 in the above-described manner, the same inspection can be performed in each of the probers 2 in parallel.

When the inspection of the electrical characteristics of the wafer W by the prober 2 is completed, the lift pins 26A of the main chuck 26 move up to lift the wafer W from the main chuck 26 as shown in FIG. (B) of FIG.
The lower arm 241B of the arm mechanism 24 advances to the main chuck 26 to receive the wafer W as shown in (1), and rotates the arm mechanism 24 by 90 ° as shown in (c) of FIG.
After the distal end is directed to the adapter 23, the arm mechanism 24 advances to the adapter 23 as shown in FIG. 4D, and the sub chuck 2 in the adapter 23 as shown in FIG.
32 rises to receive the wafer W from the lower arm 241B. Thereafter, the AGV 3 moves before the prober 2 under the control of the AGV controller 4 as shown in FIG. When AGV3 confronts prober 2, adapter 23
Rises from the position shown by the two-dot chain line to the solid line position for transferring the wafer W as shown in FIG.

As shown in FIG. 14 and FIG.
When moving before the predetermined prober 2 based on an instruction from the GV controller 4 (step 31), PIO communication between the AGV 3 and the prober 2 is started. After transmitting the CS_0 signal to the prober 2, the AGV 3 transmits a VALID signal (step S32). Prober 2 is VAL
Upon receiving the ID signal, the prober 2 sets the U_REQ signal to a high state and transmits the signal to the AGV 3 to instruct transfer to unload the wafer W as shown in FIG.

AGV3 is U_REQ as shown in FIG.
It is determined whether a signal has been received (step S33).
When determining that the GV3 has not received the U_REQ signal, the prober 2 transmits a U_REQ signal to the AGV3 (step S34). Accordingly, when the AGV 3 determines that the U_REQ signal has been received in step S33,
AGV3 sets TR_RE to start transfer of wafer W.
The Q signal is set to the High state, and the signal is transmitted to the prober 3 (step S35).
Is notified.

Next, in AGV3, REV
It is determined whether an ADY signal has been received (step S3).
6) If the AGV3 determines that the READY signal is not received, the prober 2 sends the READY signal to the AGV3.
The signal is set to the high state and transmitted (step S3).
7). AGV3 receives the READY signal and sets prober 2
When it is determined that access to A is possible, as shown in FIG.
The GV3 sets the BUSY signal to the high state and transmits the signal to the prober 3 (step S38).
Transfer of the wafer W is started.

Next, the AGV 3 determines whether the AENB signal has been received from the prober 2 in a high state as shown in FIG. 14 (step S39).
When determining that the B signal has not been received, the prober 2 sets the AENB signal to a high state and transmits the signal, as shown in FIG. 15 (step S40). In step S39, A
The GV3 receives the AENB signal in the High state, detects the wafer W in the prober 2 and determines that the sub-chuck 232 in the load port 23 can be unloaded while in the raised state, as shown in FIG. Lower arm 3
41B moves from AGV3 to a position directly above adapter 23 (step S41).

Next, the AGV 3 turns on the vacuum suction mechanism 343 and sends a PENB signal to the prober 2 in a high state (step S42).
A is detected by the prober 2
ENB signal is low and U_REQ signal is low
It is determined whether or not the sub chuck 232 is in the accessible state (step S43).
(A), after the adapter 23 is raised and the sub chuck 232 is lowered, the lower arm 341B of the arm mechanism 34 vacuum sucks the wafer W and transfers the wafer W from the adapter 23 to the arm mechanism 34 (step). S4
4). When the prober 2 detects that the wafer W has been removed, it sets the U_REQ signal to a low state as shown in FIG. 15 and transmits the signal to the AGV 3 to notify the AGV 3 that the wafer W has been removed (step S4).
5). Subsequently, the prober 2 sets the AENB signal to Low.
State and send it to AGV3.
Is notified (step S46).

Thereafter, the flow returns to step S43, and the prober 2 determines whether the AENB signal is in the low state and the U_REQ signal is in the low state because there is no wafer W in the sub chuck 232 of the adapter 23, and both signals are low.
When it is determined that the unloading of the wafer W by the adapter 23 has been completed in the w state, the lower arm 341B sets the load port 2
3 returns to AGV3 (step S47). When the lower arm 341B returns, the AGV3 outputs the TR_REQ signal and the BUSY signal.
After setting both the signal and the PENB signal to the Low state, the respective signals are transmitted to the prober 2, and the completion of the unloading operation is notified to the prober 2 (step S4).
8), the AGV 3 sets the COMPT signal to a high state as shown in FIG. 15 and transmits the signal to the prober 2 to notify the completion of the unloading operation (step S49).

Next, AGV3 is sent from Prober 2 to Low.
It is determined whether the READY signal in the state has been received (step S50), and if the AGV 3 determines that the READY signal has not been received, as shown in FIG.
The EADY signal is transmitted in a low state (step S5).
1). When the AGV 3 determines that the READY signal in the Low state has been received, the AGV 3 performs the CS operation as shown in FIG.
The _0 signal and the VALID signal are set to the low state, and the respective signals are transmitted to the prober 3 (step S52), the transfer of the wafer W is completed, and the arm mechanism 34 is moved 90 degrees in the reverse direction as shown in FIG. After rotation, Figure 1
As shown in FIG. 6 (c), the sub chuck 35 moves up to receive the wafer W from the lower arm 341B, and the pre-alignment sensor 36 detects the orientation flat. Subsequently, as shown in FIG. 3D, the sub chuck 35 descends to return the wafer W to the lower arm 341B, and the arm mechanism 34 rises to read the ID code of the wafer W by the OCR 37. The lower arm 341B is stored in the original place in the carrier C as shown in FIG.

As described above, according to the present embodiment,
A plurality of probers 2 for inspecting electrical characteristics of the wafer W;
An AGV 3 for automatically transporting wafers W in a carrier unit in order to transfer wafers W one by one to these probers 2 in accordance with respective requests;
The GV 3 includes an adapter 23 and an arm mechanism 34 for transferring wafers W one by one to each other; a group controller 5 and an AGV controller 4 for controlling the adapter 23 and the arm mechanism 34;
And the PIO communication interfaces 11A and 11B for transmitting and receiving the control signal as an optical signal. Therefore, the optical communication is performed via the PIO communication interfaces 11A and 11B to control the adapter 23 and the arm mechanism 34 to control the AG.
The wafer W can be reliably transferred between the V3 and the plurality of probers 3 on a wafer-by-sheet basis, and the wafers W can be processed in parallel using the plurality of probers 3 to reduce the TAT of the wafer W. .

Further, according to the present embodiment, the adapter 23
Is a vertically movable sub-chuck 232 that supports the wafer W.
And a vacuum suction mechanism (not shown) for vacuum-sucking the wafer W on the sub chuck 232.
Is an upper and lower two-stage arm 34 for transferring wafers W one by one.
1A and 11B, and a vacuum suction mechanism 343 for vacuum-sucking the wafer W on these arms 341A and 11B.
The PIO communication interfaces 11A and 11B have signal ports for transmitting and receiving optical signals for controlling the vacuum suction mechanism 343 of each of the adapter 23 and the arm mechanism 34.
A, vacuum communication mechanism 3 by performing optical communication via 11B
The sub-chuck 232 or the arms 341A and 341B reliably suck and release the wafer W to accurately transfer the wafer W by controlling the drive of the wafer 43.

The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and the design can be changed as needed. For example, the prober 2 of the present embodiment can perform the inspection in the carrier unit as in the related art by simply making a simple change to the loader chamber. In the above embodiment, the prober 2 has been described as an example of a semiconductor manufacturing apparatus. However, the present invention can be widely applied to a semiconductor manufacturing apparatus that performs a predetermined process on an object to be processed such as a wafer.

[0059]

According to the first to sixth aspects of the present invention, an object to be processed such as a wafer is reliably transferred between an automatic transfer apparatus and a plurality of semiconductor manufacturing apparatuses in a unit of single wafer. In this case, it is possible to provide a system for transporting an object to be processed and a method for transporting the object to be processed, which can reduce the TAT of the object to be processed.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1A is a conceptual diagram illustrating an embodiment of a transport system for a workpiece according to the present invention, and FIG. 1B is a conceptual diagram illustrating a configuration of an AGV.

2A is a plan view conceptually showing a state of transferring a wafer between a prober and an AGV, and FIG. 2B is a cross-sectional view showing a main part of FIG.

FIG. 3 is a conceptual diagram showing a vacuum suction mechanism of an arm mechanism used in an AGV.

FIG. 4 is a circuit diagram showing a vacuum suction mechanism shown in FIG.

FIG. 5 is an explanatory diagram for explaining a wafer centering method using a carrier.

FIG. 6 is an explanatory diagram for explaining transfer of a wafer when a virtual load port is set in a prober.

7 is a configuration diagram showing a PIO communication interface used for PIO communication of the transport system shown in FIG.

8 is a flowchart showing a wafer loading method applied to the wafer transport method using the transport system shown in FIG.

9 is a timing chart of optical communication applied to the loading method shown in FIG.

FIGS. 10A to 10F are process diagrams showing a loading process corresponding to the flowchart shown in FIG. 8;

FIGS. 11A to 11G are process diagrams showing a loading process corresponding to the flowchart shown in FIG. 8;

FIGS. 12A to 12E are process diagrams showing a flow of a wafer in a prober.

FIGS. 13A to 13F are process diagrams showing a loading process corresponding to the flowchart shown in FIG. 8;

FIG. 14 is a flowchart showing a wafer unloading method in the wafer transfer method using the transfer system shown in FIG. 1;

15 is a timing chart of optical communication applied to the unloading method shown in FIG.

16 (a) to (e) are process diagrams showing an unloading process corresponding to the flowchart shown in FIG.

[Explanation of symbols]

 E Workpiece transport system C Carrier W Wafer (Workpiece) 2 Prober (Inspection equipment, Semiconductor manufacturing equipment) 3 AGV 4 AGV controller (Control equipment) 11A, 11B PIO communication interface 23 Adapter (First transfer mechanism) 232 Sub chuck (first vacuum suction mechanism) 34 Arm mechanism (second transfer mechanism) 341 Arm 343 Vacuum suction mechanism (second vacuum suction mechanism)

Continued on the front page F term (reference) 4M106 AA01 BA01 CA01 DD30 DJ02 DJ07 5F031 CA02 DA08 FA01 FA03 FA07 FA09 FA11 FA12 GA03 GA04 GA08 GA24 GA47 GA48 GA49 GA50 JA04 JA25 JA27 JA34 JA49 KA06 KA07 KA08 KA10 KA18 MA01 MA06 PA01 PA18

Claims (7)

[Claims] 1. A plurality of semiconductor manufacturing apparatuses for performing predetermined processing on an object to be processed, and a carrier for transferring the objects to be processed one by one to these semiconductor manufacturing apparatuses in accordance with respective requests. An automatic transfer device for automatically transferring the object to be processed in units, wherein the semiconductor manufacturing apparatus and the automatic transfer device transfer the object to be processed one by one with respect to each other;
It has a second delivery mechanism, a control device for controlling the first and second delivery mechanisms, and an optical coupling parallel I / O communication interface for transmitting and receiving a control signal of the control device as an optical signal. Transfer system for the object to be processed. A first delivery mechanism having a vertically movable holding member for supporting the object to be processed and a first vacuum suction mechanism for vacuum-sucking the object to be processed on the holding member; The second transfer mechanism includes an arm that transports the object to be processed one by one, and a second mechanism that vacuum-adsorbs the object to be processed onto the arm.
2. The transfer system for an object to be processed according to claim 1, further comprising a vacuum suction mechanism. 3. The optically coupled parallel I / O communication interface has a signal port for transmitting and receiving an optical signal for controlling the first and second vacuum suction mechanisms. 3. The transfer system for an object according to claim 1. 4. An optical communication is performed via an optically coupled parallel I / O communication interface, so that one object is processed between a first delivery mechanism of a semiconductor manufacturing apparatus and a second delivery mechanism of an automatic transport apparatus. A method in which first and second delivery mechanisms prepare for delivery of the object to be processed, and a method in which the second delivery mechanism performs first delivery for delivery of the object to be processed. Accessing the mechanism;
A step of transferring the object to be processed between the first and second transfer mechanisms, and a step of retreating the second transfer mechanism from the first transfer mechanism and terminating the transfer of the object to be processed. A method of transporting an object to be processed. 5. An optical communication is performed via an optically coupled parallel I / O communication interface, and one object is processed between a first delivery mechanism of a semiconductor manufacturing apparatus and a second delivery mechanism of an automatic carrier. A method of notifying the semiconductor manufacturing apparatus of the transfer of the object between the first and second transfer mechanisms when the transfer of the object is started between the first and second transfer mechanisms; A step of notifying the automatic transfer device to the automatic transfer device when the access of the second transfer mechanism is confirmed based on the presence or absence of the object to be processed in the mechanism, between the first and second transfer mechanisms; The step of notifying the semiconductor manufacturing apparatus from the automatic transfer device when the transfer and transfer of the object to be processed are performed in the second transfer mechanism based on the presence or absence of the object to be processed in the second transfer mechanism. received When confirming that the delivery mechanism can be evacuated,
A step of notifying the automatic transfer device from the semiconductor manufacturing apparatus to that effect, and a step of retreating the second transfer mechanism from the first transfer mechanism and confirming the completion of the transfer and transfer of the object to be processed. And a step of notifying the semiconductor manufacturing apparatus of the fact from the apparatus. 6. The method according to claim 5, wherein the confirmation of the presence or absence of the object is performed via a vacuum suction mechanism of the first transfer mechanism. 7. The method according to claim 5, wherein the completion of the transfer of the object is confirmed via a vacuum suction mechanism of the second transfer mechanism. .