JP2003163179A - Dicing apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a dicing apparatus capable of improving a availability factor by shortening the period of time required for a blade detector to detect the position of the front edge of a rotary blade, while preventing degradation in machining accuracy due to the detection of the position of the front edge of the rotary blade. <P>SOLUTION: A blade detector 50 is installed so that the laser output from a light emitting section 50A travels on the Y axis in a perpendicular plane containing the rotation axis of a rotary blade 22 and enters a light receiving section 50B, and then a spindle 24 is moved in the Z direction. When the blade detector 50 detects that the lowest end portion of the front edge of the rotary blade 22 blocks the laser, a Z-coordinate that indicates the contact point of the rotary blade 22 and a work table 30 is determined (cutter set) by the processing of a data processing means 32 and the control of a control means 34. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2003,JPO

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a dicing apparatus for grooving or cutting a workpiece such as a semiconductor or electronic component material, and more particularly to a dicing apparatus equipped with a blade detector for detecting the tip position of a rotary blade.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In a dicing device for grooving or cutting a work such as a semiconductor or an electronic component material, the work is processed by applying cutting water with a thin grindstone called a blade that rotates at high speed. In this dicing device, it is important that the uncut amount of the work is precisely matched with the set value. To this end, the Z-axis coordinate indicating the contact point between the rotary blade and the work table is determined (cutter set) with high accuracy, and the position raised by a certain amount from this Z-axis coordinate is used as the tip position of the rotary blade during machining. By setting as, the uncut amount is set. Further, it is necessary to constantly correct the amount of wear of the rotating blade. Therefore, when a preset number of lines are machined on the workpiece, the blade detector that detects the tip position (blade edge position) of the rotary blade detects the tip position of the rotary blade, and the blade tip of the rotary blade is always at the same height. The Z axis is controlled so as to keep it. An optical non-contact detector is used for this blade detector.

[0003]

However, in the conventional dicing apparatus, the blade detector is provided at a position apart from the work table. The position of the blade detector is such that it does not interfere with the largest one of the work tables to be replaced according to the size of the work. When detecting the tip position of the rotating blade, the spot diameter of the detection light is controlled by combining the LED and the lens with the blade detector, and the lowermost end of the tip of the rotating blade is aligned with the spot diameter position. To detect.

The cutter set is carried out by moving the rotating blade to the installation position of the blade detector. Especially when the work size is small, the cutting site and the blade detector are separated from each other, so that the number of lines set in advance in the work is reduced. Each time it is machined, the rotary blade needs to be moved extra in the X and Y directions. Therefore, there was a problem that the whole processing time becomes long and the operation rate of the dicing machine is lowered. Further, the rotary blade is once separated from the work processing line, and the tip position is detected by the blade detector. For this reason, after the detection of the tip position, the rotary blade needs to be repositioned for machining, and there is a problem that the accuracy of the dicing device is reduced.

The present invention has been made in view of such circumstances, and it is possible to shorten the time for the blade detector to detect the tip position of the rotating blade and improve the operating rate. It is an object of the present invention to provide a dicing device which does not cause deterioration of processing accuracy for detecting the tip position.

[0006]

The invention according to claim 1 is
In order to achieve the above object, a rotary blade that is index-fed in the Y direction and a cut feed in the Z-direction relative to a work, and a X-direction relative to the rotary blade on which the work is placed. And a work table to which the cutting feed is applied, in a dicing device that performs groove processing and cutting processing of the work by the rotating blade, is installed in the Y direction in a vertical plane including the rotation axis of the rotating blade, A light emitting unit that emits a laser and a light receiving unit that converts the received laser into an electric signal, and a blade detector that detects the tip position of the rotating blade, and based on the tip position of the rotating blade detected by the blade detector. Data processing means for determining the Z-axis coordinate indicating the contact point between the rotating blade and the work table, and a work with a predetermined uncut amount from the determined Z-axis coordinate. And a control means for determining the position of the rotary blade in the Z direction when processing the blade.

In the dicing apparatus according to a second aspect of the present invention, the blade detector is provided with an openable and closable shutter that protects the light emitting portion and the light receiving portion from contamination by machining liquid or machining waste, and the shutter is used for cutting work. It is characterized in that it sometimes operates downward to cover the light emitting portion and the light receiving portion.

According to the present invention, since the blade detector is installed on the Y-axis so that the laser beam is output to the lowermost position of the tip of the rotary blade, the X-axis of the rotary blade is maintained even during the cutting operation.
The contact point between the rotating blade and the work table is determined from the change in the amount of light received by the laser only by operating the rotating blade in the Z direction regardless of the position in the Y direction.
The cutter set of the rotary blade can be easily performed.

[0009]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS A preferred embodiment of a dicing apparatus 10 according to the present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

FIG. 1 shows a dicing apparatus 10 according to the present invention.
FIG. As shown in FIG. 1, the dicing apparatus 10 according to the present invention mainly includes an operation / display unit 11,
Microscope unit 12, CRT monitor 13, and controller 1
5, the processing section 20, the mist cover 40 and the like. Each operation of the dicing device 10 is centrally controlled by the controller 15 stored inside the gantry.

The mist cover 40 is provided so as to cover the processing portion 20, and the upper end portion is rotatably supported by the main body of the dicing device 10 via a hinge means (not shown), and is rotated vertically to open and close. To be done.

FIG. 2 shows a dicing apparatus 10 according to the present invention.
3 is a detailed view of the processing portion 20 of FIG. 3, and FIG. 3 is a front view of the processing portion 20 when FIG. 2 is viewed from the arrow A direction.

As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the processing section 20 includes a rotary blade 22 for grooving and cutting the workpiece W.
It is attached to a spindle 24 having an air bearing structure in which a high-frequency motor (not shown) is installed,
While rotating at a high speed of rpm to 60,000 rpm, a feed mechanism (not shown) performs index feed in the Y direction and cut feed in the Z direction (vertical direction).
A linear scale (not shown) is provided in the Z-axis direction to control the position of the rotary blade 22 in the Z direction. The rotary blade 22 is formed in a thin disk shape, and the periphery thereof is covered by a flange cover (not shown) whose front side and lower side are open. The rotary blade 22 is, for example, an electrodeposition blade in which diamond abrasive grains, CBN abrasive grains are electrodeposited with nickel, or a resin blade in which resin is bonded.

A cutting water nozzle (not shown) is provided on the flange cover to supply cutting water to the rotary blade 22 and the work W.
And supply it to the processing point. The cleaning water nozzle 27 is provided in the vicinity of the rotary blade 22, and supplies the cleaning water to the work W during the cutting work. The oil pan 25 is the processing unit 2
It is fixedly installed on the machine base No. 0 and receives the waste water of the cutting water or the cleaning water supplied from the cutting water nozzle or the cleaning water nozzle 27 and discharges it to the outside of the device.

The X table 26 is an X guide (not shown).
And is conveyed in the X direction by the drive mechanism. The θ table 28 placed on the X table 26
Is connected to the work table 30 and is configured to rotate clockwise and counterclockwise. The work W processed by the processing unit 20 is held on the upper surface of the work table 30 by vacuum suction or the like, rotated in the θ direction by the θ table 28, and cut and fed in the X direction by the X table 26. ing.

As shown in FIG. 2, the blade detector 50 comprises a light emitting section 50A, a light receiving section 50B, a data processing means 32, etc., and the light emitting section 50A and the light receiving section 50B are fixed to the oil pan 25. It is installed in the Y direction in a vertical plane including the rotation axis of the rotary blade 22. Light emitting unit 50A
From, a laser (semiconductor laser, helium neon laser, etc.) is emitted, travels on the Y axis, and is received by the light receiving section 50B. The light receiving section 50B converts a change in the amount of light received by the laser into an electric signal and outputs the electric signal to the data processing means 32. The data processing unit 32 determines the Z-axis coordinate indicating the contact point between the rotary blade 22 and the work table 30 from the input electric signal, and transmits the data to the control unit 34 in the controller 15 of the dicing device 10. The control unit 34 determines the position of the rotary blade 22 in the Z direction when processing the work W with a predetermined uncut amount from the determined Z axis coordinate.

The operation / display unit 11 includes a dicing device 10
A switch, a display unit, and the like are provided for operating each unit of the. The microscope section 12 is provided adjacent to the processing section 20, and is connected to an illumination device (not shown), a CCD camera, and the like. The CRT monitor 13 is installed on the upper part of the dicing device 10, and the alignment of the work W and the evaluation of the processing state are performed by displaying the image captured by the microscope unit 12. The indicator lamp 14 is mounted at a high position so that the operator can see it from a distance, and displays the dicing apparatus 10 in operation, in standby, and in an abnormal warning.

The operation of the dicing apparatus 10 of the present embodiment configured as described above is as follows.

First, the operator rotates the mist cover 40 upward to open it, sets the rotary blade 22 on the spindle 24 of the processing section 20, and rotates the mist cover 40 downward to close it. At this time, the work table 30 is located below the microscope section 12 so as not to hinder the attachment of the rotary blade 22. Next, the tip position of the rotary blade 22 is detected and the cutter setting operation is performed. This cutter setting operation will be described later. Next, the work W is placed on the work table 30 and vacuum-adsorbed.
Next, the pattern formed on the surface of the work W is picked up by the microscope section 12, and the image is taken by the CRT monitor 1.
It is projected on 3. Here, the operator is the CRT monitor 1
The work W is aligned by operating the switch of the operation / display unit 11 while looking at the image displayed on the screen 3. The work W that has completed the alignment is carried into the processing unit 20 by the movement of the X table 26, and grooved or cut by the rotary blade 22 that rotates at a high speed and the cutting movement by the X table 26. During processing, cutting water is supplied from the cutting water nozzle to the processing points of the rotary blade 22 and the workpiece W, and cleaning water is supplied from the cleaning water nozzle 27. When the processing of the work W is completed by one line, the rotary blade 22 is index-fed in the Y direction to be positioned on the next processing line, and the next line is also processed by the cutting movement of the X table 26. When the above operation is repeated and the processing of the work W is completed for all lines in one direction, the θ table 28 rotates the work W by 90 degrees, and the rotary blade 22 is positioned on a line orthogonal to the line processed previously. This orthogonal line is processed. When all processing is completed, the work W is transported to the position of the microscope section 12,
The lamp of the indicator lamp 14 which informs the completion of processing blinks. Here, the operator uses the microscope unit 12 to perform work W as necessary.
The processed part is imaged to observe the processed state.

Next, details of the cutter setting operation by detecting the tip position of the rotary blade 22 will be described.

As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, when the rotary blade 22 held by the spindle 24 is gradually lowered from directly above the blade detector 50, the lowermost end of the tip of the rotary blade 22 receives the output laser. Block. The light receiving section 50B converts the change in the amount of light received by the laser at this time into an electric signal and outputs it to the data processing means 32. The data processing means 32 is
The Z-axis coordinate indicating the contact point between the rotary blade 22 and the work table 30 is determined from the input electric signal to perform cutter setting. Position H of laser in Z direction and work table 3
The position h of the upper surface in the Z direction is known in advance. Therefore, by detecting the position where the tip of the rotary blade 22 shields the laser, the position shifted by (H−h) from the position is defined as the tip of the rotary blade 22. It can be obtained as the Z-axis coordinate of the position in contact with the work table 30.

The control means 34 determines the position of the rotary blade 22 in the Z direction when processing the work W with a predetermined uncut amount d from the Z axis coordinates thus obtained.

Further, as shown in FIG. 4, a mechanical shutter 60 including a shutter 62 and a motor 64 is attached to the light emitting section 50A. Mechanical shutter 6
0 can be freely opened and closed, and the shutter 62 is normally in the raised state. During the cutting work, the shutter 62
It is driven by the motor 64 and operates in the downward direction of the arrow B to cover the light emitting opening of the laser of the light emitting unit 50A. By covering the light emitting port of the laser with the shutter 62, the light emitting unit 50A is protected from contamination by the working liquid and the processing waste.
There is no need to wash with air or water. In addition, before the cutting work, the rotary blade 22 is held with the shutter 62 raised.
Perform the cutter set of. Similarly, in the light receiving unit 50B,
A mechanical shutter 60 including a shutter 62 and a motor 64 is attached.

Furthermore, in the present embodiment, an example in which the blade detector 50 is fixed to the oil pan 25 has been described, but the invention is not limited to this, and it may be fixed to another portion of the dicing device 10.

Further, the mechanical shutter 60 that covers the blade detector 50 is not limited to a circular shape, and may have another shape.

Further, the method of covering the light emitting portion 50A with the mechanical shutter 60 is not limited to the operation of the shutter 62 in the downward direction, and another operation method may be used.

[0027]

As described above, according to the dicing apparatus of the present invention, the blade detector is installed on the Y-axis so that the laser is output to the lowermost end of the tip of the rotary blade, so that the cutting operation can be performed during the cutting operation. Regardless of the position of the rotary blade in the XY directions, the contact point between the rotary blade and the work table can be determined from the change in the amount of light received by the laser simply by moving the rotary blade in the Z direction. This makes it possible to easily perform cutter setting of the rotating blade by moving the rotating blade in the Z direction without moving in the X direction or the Y direction, improving the operating rate of the dicing device, and improving the processing accuracy. Does not cause a decline.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is an external perspective view of a dicing device according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a detailed view of a processing portion of the dicing device according to the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a front view of a processed portion as viewed in the direction of arrow A in FIG.

FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an operation of a mechanical shutter.

[Explanation of symbols]

W ... Work, 10 ... Dicing device, 20 ... Processing part, 2
2 ... Rotating blade, 30 ... Work table, 32 ... Data processing means, 34 ... Control means, 50 ... Blade detector,
50A ... Light emitting part, 50B ... Light receiving part, 60 ... Mechanical shutter

Continued front page    (72) Inventor Kazuya Fukuoka             9-7 Shimorenjaku, Mitaka City, Tokyo Stocks             Company Tokyo Seimitsu (72) Inventor Takayuki Asano             9-7 Shimorenjaku, Mitaka City, Tokyo Stocks             Company Tokyo Seimitsu

Claims (2)

[Claims] 1. A rotary blade for performing index feed in the Y direction and cut feed in the Z direction relative to a work, and a cutting feed in the X direction relative to the rotary blade on which the work is placed. In a dicing device that performs groove processing and cutting processing of the work by the rotary blade, the work table is provided, and the laser beam is emitted in a Y direction in a vertical plane including a rotation axis of the rotary blade. Consisting of a light emitting unit for converting the received laser into an electric signal, and a blade detector for detecting the tip position of the rotating blade, and based on the tip position of the rotating blade detected by the blade detector, rotation is performed. Data processing means for determining the Z-axis coordinate indicating the contact point between the blade and the work table, and machining the workpiece with a predetermined uncut amount from the determined Z-axis coordinate. When dicing apparatus characterized by comprising a control means for determining the position in the Z direction of the rotary blade. 2. The blade detector is provided with a shutter that can be opened and closed to protect the light emitting unit and the light receiving unit from contamination by machining liquid or machining chips, and the shutter operates during cutting work to operate the light emitting unit. The dicing device according to claim 1, wherein the dicing device covers the light receiving unit.