JP2006013282A - Remote-control maintenance system and remote-control maintenance method of semiconductor manufacture inspection device - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide the remote-control maintenance system for a semiconductor manufacturing inspection device excellent in handling convenience capable of requesting maintenance by the will of a user employing the semiconductor manufacturing inspection device, in accordance with the state of an error in addition that the request of maintenance can be determined in conformity with the error maintenance request agreement. <P>SOLUTION: The error maintenance request agreement determines whether the maintenance request of error is effected/canceled to the side of a maintenance center, a free warranty term and terms comprising a maintenance charge. A selecting means is provided with configuration capable of selecting whether the maintenance request for error is canceled or carried out by the judgement of the user side employing the semiconductor manufacturing inspection device, when the generated error is selected to the side to require the maintenance of error in the error maintenance request determining terms by a terminal machine for the manufacturing inspection device, and the maintenance is determined so as to be the object of payment of maintenance charge in reference to the terms of charged/free of maintenance charge and in/out of the free warranty. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2006,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to a remote maintenance method and system for a semiconductor manufacturing inspection apparatus, and in particular, within a range where a user of the semiconductor manufacturing inspection apparatus permits information on the semiconductor manufacturing inspection apparatus through communication technology such as e-mail and voice mail. The present invention relates to a remote maintenance method and system that can be actively utilized and maintained.

  Conventionally, it has been proposed that a manufacturer's semiconductor manufacturing inspection apparatus is connected to a maintenance center of an apparatus supply vendor via the Internet, and the semiconductor manufacturing inspection apparatus is maintained remotely from the maintenance center. Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 11-15520 (Patent Document 1) also proposes a remote maintenance system using the Internet, and if this system is used, the semiconductor manufacturing apparatus inspection can be performed regardless of the installation area of the semiconductor manufacturing apparatus inspection apparatus. Equipment maintenance can be performed.

  Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 11-175139 (Patent Document 2) relates to a plant such as steel, rolling, and power generation. When an event such as an abnormality or an accident occurs, an event transmission destination is set according to each occurrence event. It is to be selected. This is because the transmission destination of the transmission data corresponding to each occurrence event is set in advance as the event-specific transmission destination setting section, so that the transmission destination corresponding to the occurrence event is automatically selected.

Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 11-15520 JP 11-175139 A

  In the semiconductor manufacturing apparatus inspection apparatus, when an error or trouble occurs that cannot be dealt with only by the user of the semiconductor manufacturing apparatus inspection apparatus, maintenance by the apparatus supply vendor is required. However, if an error actually occurs, whether or not maintenance by the equipment supplier is required to resolve the error, the contents of the maintenance contract (paid / free period and fee), and the user side of the semiconductor manufacturing inspection equipment There are many cases that vary depending on the ability to respond.

  In other words, even if the same error occurs in a semiconductor manufacturing inspection device of the same model, it is exchanged between a user who uses the semiconductor manufacturing inspection device and an equipment supply vendor (which often serves as a maintenance center) that supplies the semiconductor manufacturing inspection device. Depending on the contents of the maintenance contract and the ability of the user of the semiconductor manufacturing inspection apparatus, maintenance by the equipment supplier may or may not be necessary. For this reason, even when the same error occurs in the same type of semiconductor manufacturing inspection apparatus, it is necessary to notify or not notify the maintenance center of the equipment supply vendor.

  In addition, in a semiconductor manufacturing inspection apparatus with a built-in computer, it is possible to store device information representing an operation history of the semiconductor manufacturing inspection apparatus in each semiconductor manufacturing inspection apparatus. Such device information is useful for identifying the cause of an error, and is very valuable information for maintenance.

  For example, if it is possible to refer to device information indicating what program is executed when, how each part of the semiconductor manufacturing inspection apparatus changes state, and what processing result is obtained, the cause of the error is It is possible to grasp whether it is in the contents, whether it is in the execution order of the program, whether it is in a specific part of the device or not, and whether the processing result is desired. it can. In order to identify the cause of the error, it is important to acquire this device information.

  However, the amount of device information of a semiconductor manufacturing inspection apparatus that performs complicated processing is enormous, and it is difficult to send all device information to the maintenance device of the maintenance center. In addition, device information that is useful for actually investigating the cause of an error differs depending on the type of error. Depending on the content of the error, it may not be possible to determine which device information data is required at first, and the cause of the error is analyzed. However, there are cases where necessary device information data is searched and the cause is investigated. Further, the device information includes information that cannot be obtained unless the program is actually executed on the semiconductor manufacturing inspection apparatus. Therefore, it is necessary to specify and acquire necessary device information from the maintenance side.

  In addition, when an error occurrence report / notification can only be sent to one terminal of the maintenance center of the equipment supplier, there is no maintenance person who constantly monitors the terminal screen (display unit). As a result, the discovery of the error occurred was delayed and maintenance could be sent. For this reason, the maintenance staff near the maintenance center terminal is notified of the error by sound and lamp, and reports to multiple locations such as maintenance staff and customers' mobile phones and mobile terminals, even when not in the vicinity. There was a need to be able to.

  In addition, since minor errors can be handled by the user (user) of the semiconductor manufacturing inspection equipment, reporting only to the user terminal, reporting severe errors to all notification destinations, or depending on the type of error It was necessary to change the notification destination.

  However, while we want to exchange information freely with the semiconductor manufacturing inspection equipment as described above, the equipment information indispensable for investigating the cause of errors is confidentiality regarding the manufacturing plans and product specifications of products manufactured by the semiconductor manufacturing inspection equipment. Since information is often included, device information is rarely disclosed via the Internet that can be used by third parties, and it is not always easy to quickly acquire device information to deal with errors. It wasn't. For this reason, in the remote maintenance system using the Internet, how to obtain the device information safely and use it for maintenance has been a big problem. Therefore, a communication method with a higher security level is required, and it is necessary to prevent leakage of information to a third party by encryption or the like.

  In addition, the amount of device information that is indispensable for investigating the cause of errors tends to increase, and depending on the restriction of the communication path, a large amount of device information may not be sent in one communication.

  In many cases, semiconductor manufacturing / inspection apparatuses are operated jointly in relation to each other, and it is necessary to control or stop the counterpart apparatus depending on an error state. For example, when there is a system for manufacturing a product by passing a product from the semiconductor manufacturing inspection apparatus A to the semiconductor manufacturing inspection apparatus B, when the semiconductor manufacturing inspection apparatus B is stopped due to an error, the semiconductor manufacturing inspection apparatus A is not stopped. In some cases, the semiconductor manufacturing / inspection apparatus or the product may be broken in an attempt to pass the product from the semiconductor manufacturing / inspection apparatus A to the semiconductor manufacturing / inspection apparatus B. In such a case, an error occurred in the semiconductor manufacturing apparatus inspection apparatus B, so that means for stopping the semiconductor manufacturing inspection apparatus A was necessary.

  In many cases, a plurality of semiconductor manufacturing / inspection apparatuses are moving in a related manner, and there is a case where the other party cannot be controlled only by own state. In such a case, a system that monitors the state of each semiconductor manufacturing inspection apparatus with a host computer and controls the entire system is required. To control the entire system as a system, statistics and results of the state of each semiconductor manufacturing inspection apparatus are required. It was necessary to have a function of counting and controlling each semiconductor manufacturing inspection device.

  Normally, when an error that can be easily recovered occurs, the operator on the user side can perform the operation for recovery, and can recover the error. Maintenance by a maintenance center is required. In some cases, the error itself does not occur, for example, when the program stops. In such a case or when the operator determines that maintenance is necessary, it is necessary to easily perform a maintenance request.

  Conventionally, in order to remotely maintain semiconductor manufacturing inspection equipment, maintenance using communication technology such as socket communication using the Internet has been considered, but in order to actually carry out, installation of telephone lines and maintenance of the Internet environment The current situation is that it has not been widely used. Therefore, high security communication technology using the existing environment was necessary.

  On the other hand, recent semiconductor manufacturing and inspection apparatuses are often connected via a LAN, and electronic mail can be easily connected in many cases. Up to now, e-mail has been an information transmission means from person to person, but if this communication means can be adopted as a means for communicating information between semiconductor manufacturing inspection equipment and semiconductor manufacturing inspection equipment or semiconductor manufacturing inspection equipment and maintenance equipment. In particular, high-security remote maintenance can be performed only in the existing environment without installing communication equipment for new communication.

  Maintenance equipment for performing remote maintenance is usually information processing equipment such as a personal computer, and is usually installed in an office of a maintenance center. Even if the maintenance request is displayed on the display unit), if the maintenance device screen is not constantly monitored, the maintenance request is not immediately understood, and the maintenance is delayed. Therefore, it has been necessary to understand the maintenance request by some means without looking at the screen of the maintenance device.

  In addition, it is necessary to transfer and communicate a maintenance request to a mobile phone, a portable terminal, etc. during a maintenance person's holiday or on the go, and to notify the maintenance person that the maintenance request has been made.

  In addition, as mentioned at the beginning, when an error occurs in the semiconductor manufacturing inspection device, it is necessary to notify the maintenance device of the occurrence of the error or not to set it. It is difficult to do every time, it is necessary to carry out in a lump on the maintenance equipment side, reject the report contents on the maintenance equipment side, or send the setting contents to the semiconductor manufacturing inspection equipment, and report according to the setting contents was there.

  There are usually paid maintenance and free maintenance, and paid maintenance needs to be performed after confirming with the user. In addition, due to the expiration of the warranty period, there was a case where it was changed to a paid service from the time when maintenance was initially free.

  In view of the above-described problems, the present invention determines whether or not to request maintenance of an error in accordance with a pre-arranged agreement, and in addition, depending on the intention of the user who uses the semiconductor manufacturing inspection apparatus according to the error status. An object of the present invention is to provide a remote maintenance system for a semiconductor manufacturing inspection apparatus which can be requested for maintenance.

  According to the present invention, a manufacturing facility provided with a semiconductor manufacturing inspection device, a maintenance center for supporting recovery of errors occurring in the semiconductor manufacturing inspection device of the manufacturing facility, error information related to errors and recovery support information related to recovery support are manufactured as described above. A communication means including the Internet used to communicate between the facility and the maintenance center, and a terminal for a manufacturing inspection apparatus for managing an error maintenance request arrangement item for requesting error recovery. In the remote maintenance system of a semiconductor manufacturing inspection apparatus in which the manufacturing inspection apparatus terminal determines an error maintenance request in accordance with the maintenance request arrangement items, the error maintenance request arrangement items are stored on the maintenance center side for each error type. Items including maintenance request, free warranty period, maintenance fee are defined, and the error that occurred is Payment of maintenance fee in light of the above-mentioned items related to the charge / free of maintenance fee and the inside / outside of the free warranty period. It is characterized in that a selection means is provided that can select whether to cancel a maintenance request or execute an error maintenance request at the judgment of the user using the semiconductor manufacturing inspection apparatus when it is determined as a target.

  As described above, according to the present invention, in addition to being able to determine a maintenance request in accordance with an error maintenance request agreement, a maintenance request can be made according to the intention of the user who uses the semiconductor manufacturing inspection apparatus according to the error status. An easy-to-use remote maintenance system for semiconductor manufacturing and inspection equipment can be provided.

  Embodiments of the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the drawings.

  This embodiment is a remote maintenance system and a remote maintenance method of a semiconductor manufacturing apparatus inspection apparatus to which the present invention is applied. This system ensures that the equipment information accumulated in each semiconductor manufacturing inspection device is safe for maintenance personnel within the scope permitted by the user of the semiconductor manufacturing inspection device when a trouble or error occurs on the semiconductor manufacturing inspection device. It is possible to quickly return from an error.

  The error includes not only an error displayed on the display of the terminal of the semiconductor manufacturing inspection apparatus but also a large error such as a system down in which the entire semiconductor manufacturing inspection apparatus stops.

  The semiconductor manufacturing / inspection apparatus that can be handled by the present invention is not limited except that it has a built-in computer. Assume various devices and systems used for semiconductor manufacturing such as a developing device, a heat treatment device, an assembly device, and an inspection device.

  Hereinafter, these devices and systems are collectively referred to as semiconductor manufacturing inspection devices. In addition, the device information that can be handled by the present invention is not limited except that it is data representing the state and history of the semiconductor manufacturing inspection apparatus, but in the description of this embodiment, the program execution history, sensor state history, wafer Is assumed as device information. Hereinafter, data representing these pieces of information is collectively referred to as device data.

  First, an outline of a remote maintenance system for a semiconductor manufacturing inspection apparatus will be described with reference to FIG.

  Reference numeral 100 denotes a maintenance center of a company that supplies semiconductor manufacturing and inspection equipment (hereinafter referred to as equipment supply vendor). Reference numeral 200 denotes a manufacturing factory (manufacturing facility) of a company that manufactures semiconductor devices using a semiconductor manufacturing inspection apparatus (hereinafter referred to as a semiconductor manufacturer).

  Although one manufacturing facility 200 is shown in the system shown in FIG. 1, there may actually be two or more manufacturing facilities 200. The manufacturing facility 200 may be a factory belonging to different semiconductor manufacturers or a factory belonging to the same semiconductor manufacturer.

  A plurality of semiconductor manufacturing inspection apparatuses 201 are connected to the manufacturing facility 200 via an intranet 203. A mail server 202 and a host computer 205 are connected to the intranet 203. The intranet 203 is connected to the Internet 300 via the firewall / gateway 204 and is connected to the maintenance center 100 side via the Internet 300.

  The maintenance center 100 includes one or more maintenance devices 101 for maintaining the semiconductor manufacturing inspection apparatus, a mail server 102 for sending and receiving e-mails in the maintenance center, an intranet 103 in the maintenance center, and the Internet 300. And a firewall / gateway 104 for connection.

  Each device of the maintenance center 100 is connected via the intranet 103. Further, the maintenance device 101 is connected to a buzzer notification / lamp notification 105 for notifying maintenance personnel that a maintenance request e-mail has arrived.

  The firewall / gateway 104 provided in the maintenance center 100 and the firewall / gateway 204 provided in the manufacturing factory 200 are connected via the Internet 300.

  The semiconductor manufacturing inspection apparatus 201 has a semiconductor manufacturing inspection apparatus main body 210 and a terminal 220 for semiconductor manufacturing inspection apparatus. The terminal 220 includes a CPU 221, a management data table 222, an input unit 223, a display unit 224, and a communication unit 225. Various arithmetic processes are performed by the CPU 221. The management data table 222 stores error maintenance request agreement items and the like. The input unit 223 includes a keyboard, a mouse, and the like, and inputs operation signals such as input and switching. The display unit 224 displays an error occurrence, a charge, a charge, and the like. The communication unit 225 exchanges information with the semiconductor manufacturing / inspection equipment main body 210 and the intranet 203.

  FIG. 3 (a) shows the error maintenance request agreement items.

  This error maintenance request agreement relates to the maintenance of errors occurring in the semiconductor manufacturing inspection apparatus by the user who uses the semiconductor manufacturing inspection apparatus and the company (equipment equipment supplier or maintenance center) that supplies the semiconductor manufacturing inspection apparatus. It is a contract to tie.

  Error maintenance request agreement items are divided into items such as the type of error that has occurred, maintenance request, free warranty period, maintenance fee, and report destination. The maintenance request is made for each error, the term of the free warranty, the amount of the maintenance fee, and the destination of the maintenance request are decided on the user side and the maintenance center side. The data is stored in the management data table 222 of the terminal 220.

  Also, depending on the type of error that has occurred, there are cases in which the maintenance request has two contents. In (1), the maintenance request is (not), but in (2) (requested when self-recovery is not possible). This should be able to be restored by the operation staff on the user side, but there are cases where the original restoration cannot cope with the failure of parts or the like. For errors that are expected to occur, (2) is reserved. Also, since there is no operation staff, it is possible to conclude an arrangement to receive the same treatment as in an emergency where self-recovery is not possible (request when self-recovery is not possible).

  Processing of errors that occur along FIG. 5 will be described.

  This processing flow corresponds to (1) in (a) of FIG.

  The process here starts in step S501. If an error occurs in the semiconductor manufacturing inspection apparatus 201, it is recognized that an error has occurred (step S502), and an error is displayed on the display unit 224 of the terminal 220 (step S503). At the same time, according to the item of the error maintenance request agreement item stored in the management data table 222, the generated error is compared with the error maintenance request agreement item (step S504). If it is determined that the maintenance request is not made, the process ends in step S510 at the end of the process.

  If it is determined that the maintenance request is made, it is determined whether the maintenance fee is paid or not (step S505). If it is determined that the maintenance fee is free, a maintenance request is transmitted (step S509), and the process ends at step S510.

  If it is determined in step S505 that the maintenance fee is charged, it is further determined whether the free warranty period is inside or outside (step S507). If it is determined that it is within the free warranty period, a maintenance request is transmitted (step S509), and the process ends at step S510.

  If it is determined that the period is outside the free warranty period, the maintenance fee is displayed on the display unit 224 of the terminal 220 (step S506).

  The user determines whether or not to request maintenance in consideration of the amount of the maintenance fee displayed on the display unit 224 (step S508), and uses the input unit 223 (selection unit) of the terminal 220 to request the maintenance request. Select either cancel or request error maintenance. When the selection means executes selection of the person not making the maintenance request, the process ends in step S510 at the end of the process. When the selection means selects and executes the maintenance request, the maintenance request is transmitted (step S509), and the process ends at step S510.

  As described above, the maintenance request for the error that has occurred is determined in accordance with the error maintenance request agreement items provided in the terminal. In addition to this, when it is determined by the person requesting the maintenance of the error and is subject to payment of the maintenance fee in light of the above-mentioned items regarding the charge / free of the maintenance fee and the inside / outside of the free warranty period, the final judgment is semiconductor manufacturing. Required by the user using the inspection device. In the final judgment that requires a maintenance fee, the user's intention is reflected, and usability is improved.

  Another process of the error that occurred along FIG. 6 will be described.

  This processing flow corresponds to (2) in (a) of FIG.

  The process of FIG. 6 has much in common with the process of FIG. Common parts are denoted by the same reference numerals as those in FIG.

  If it is determined in step S503 that the maintenance request is not made, the execution is reserved if the maintenance request is not made. In this reserved state, the first voluntary recovery execution (step S601) is performed. When the error is recovered by this self-recovery, the process ends at step S510 at the end of the process.

  When the error does not recover, the second self-recovery execution (step S602) is performed. When the error is recovered, the process ends at step S510 at the end of the process. When the error does not recover, the third self-recovery execution (step S603) is performed.

  When the error is recovered by the third self-recovery execution (step S603), the process ends at step S510 at the end of the process. When the error does not recover, the user is requested to make a determination by making a maintenance request or not (step S604). If it is determined in step S604 that the maintenance request is not made, the process ends in step S510 at the end of the process. If it is determined in step S604 that the maintenance request is selected, the flow proceeds to the flow that receives the determination in step S505 described above, and the flow follows the processing flow described above.

  The self-recovery course 601 including the steps (S601.S602.S603) and the maintenance request determination step 606 by the user including the steps (S604.S508) are selected according to the intention of the user. This selection operation is performed using the input unit 223 (selection unit) of the terminal 220 as described above.

  According to this processing flow, since a self-recovery course can be performed and a maintenance request can be made to the maintenance center when it cannot be restored, both the maintenance cost saving and the maintenance request can be realized for the user side. improves.

  The maintenance request is sent from the terminal 220 of the semiconductor manufacturing inspection apparatus 201 and enters the mail server 202 via the intranet 203. Thereafter, the maintenance request is sent again from the mail server 202 via the intranet 203 through the firewall / gateway 204 on the manufacturing facility 200 side to the Internet 300. The maintenance request flows through the Internet 300 and reaches the maintenance center 100 side.

  The maintenance request passes through the firewall / gateway 104 of the maintenance center 100 and enters the intranet 103, and then enters the mail server 102. Thereafter, the maintenance request reaches the maintenance device 101 from the mail server 102 via the intranet 103. The maintenance apparatus 101 may read the presence / absence of a maintenance request from the mail server 102 at any time.

  The maintenance request arrives at a predetermined location because the report destination of the maintenance device is determined in advance according to the error maintenance request agreement items as shown in FIG. The contents of the maintenance request are displayed in the e-mail display format shown in FIG.

  In addition, the maintenance request is displayed on the display of the terminal 220 of the semiconductor manufacturing inspection apparatus 201 as shown in FIG. 3B, and (maintenance request) and (maintenance request) on this display are displayed. Any of these can be selected and executed by clicking on an icon including the (No) button.

  The information including this maintenance request is designed to be protected.

  Since the transmission / reception of information including the maintenance request exchanged between the manufacturing facility 200 and the maintenance center 100 is performed via the Internet 300, there is a possibility that the information may be intercepted from the third.

  Therefore, confidentiality can be protected by encrypting and sending messages and device data including the contents of maintenance requests. In addition, when the maintenance request body encrypted on the maintenance device side is received, the encryption key at the time of encryption is separate from the maintenance request body mail so that it can be restored (hereinafter referred to as key mail). Send it in. The mail server 202 sends an intranet 203, a firewall / gateway 204, an Internet 300, a firewall / It is sent through the gateway 104 and the intranet 103 in order.

  The maintenance apparatus 101 provided in the maintenance center 100 reads from the mail server 102 whether there is a maintenance request from the semiconductor manufacturing apparatus inspection apparatus 201, and the maintenance apparatus 101 receives the maintenance request, device data, and key mail. At this time, the maintenance request text and device data encrypted by the key mail are restored. In this way, security is measured.

  In the above, the example in which the text is encrypted and restored by the semiconductor manufacturing inspection apparatus 201 and the maintenance apparatus 101 is shown, but the text is encrypted by the mail server 202, and the text and the key mail are transmitted to different destinations. The server itself may be provided with an encryption mechanism, for example, the mail server 102 restores the text and the key mail after reception.

  When receiving the information including the maintenance request, the maintenance device performs processing as shown in FIG.

  The maintenance device is usually a kind of information processing device such as a personal computer or a terminal. This maintenance device does not need to store the error maintenance request agreement, but here the error maintenance request agreement is stored, and instead the error maintenance request agreement is not provided in the terminal of the semiconductor manufacturing inspection device. Will be described as an example.

  Since the terminal of the semiconductor manufacturing inspection apparatus does not store the error maintenance request arrangement items, it is assumed that all errors generated by the semiconductor manufacturing inspection apparatus are sent to the maintenance apparatus.

  The maintenance apparatus 101 starts processing in step S801. In step S802, the information coming to the maintenance device 101 is determined by (a) maintenance request, (b) information request reply, and (c) other classification.

  If it is determined in step S802 that (c) otherwise, the process ends in step S807 at the end of the process. (B) When it is determined to reply to an information request (to be described in detail later), a buzzer notification that a buzzer sounds is performed in step S804, a lamp notification that the lamp is lit is performed in step S805, and a maintenance staff in step S806. Is notified to mobile phones and mobile terminals. As a result, the maintenance staff can know that (b) the information request has been returned, not only when he / she is standing by at the maintenance apparatus 101 but also when he / she is away from the maintenance apparatus 101. The maintenance staff can check the contents of the reply to the information request and the contents of the device data by operating the maintenance device.

  If it is determined in step S802 that (a) a maintenance request is made, the process proceeds to step S803. In step S803, a maintenance request error is compared with an error maintenance request agreement item. If the error is outside the error maintenance request agreement item, it is determined that the maintenance request does not apply, and the process ends. In step S807, the process ends.

  In contrast, if it is determined that the maintenance request is applicable, the maintenance staff issues a maintenance request in step S804 (buzzer notification), step S805 (lamp notification), and step S806 (notification to the maintenance person's mobile phone or portable terminal). know. The maintenance staff can check the contents of the maintenance request and the contents of the device data by operating the maintenance device. After the notification in step S806, the process ends in step S807.

  The data included in the maintenance request includes a device ID indicating an identifier of the semiconductor manufacturing apparatus inspection device, and an error code and message indicating a trouble symptom. The device data includes an operation history of the semiconductor manufacturing apparatus inspection apparatus. The maintenance request also includes data indicating the date and time when the trouble occurred, data indicating the identifier of the semiconductor manufacturing factory, data indicating the type of the semiconductor manufacturing apparatus inspection apparatus, and the like.

  Describes what to do when the maintenance device does not understand the cause of trouble or error and how to deal with it.

  When the maintenance request and the contents of the device data alone are insufficient, and the cause of the error and the coping method cannot be understood, the device data required for investigating the cause of the error is sent from the semiconductor manufacturing inspection apparatus 201. This request is made using electronic mail. A message indicating a request for information sent from the maintenance device 101 (hereinafter referred to as an information request) is sent from the maintenance device 101 to the mail server 102. In addition, a program for collecting information on the semiconductor manufacturing inspection apparatus 201 (hereinafter referred to as a collection program) may be attached to the information request. By encrypting and sending this information request text and collection program, confidentiality can be protected. In addition, when a maintenance request text or a collection program encrypted by the semiconductor manufacturing inspection apparatus 201 is received, the key mail is sent as a mail different from the information request text so that it can be restored. The mail server 102 sends the information request, collection program, and key mail sent from the maintenance apparatus 101 to the mail server 202 where the semiconductor manufacturing / inspection apparatus 201 is a destination, the intranet 103, the firewall / gateway 104, the Internet 300, the firewall / The messages are sent through the gateway 204 and the intranet 203 in order. The semiconductor manufacturing inspection apparatus 201 provided in the manufacturing factory 200 reads from the mail server 202 whether there is an information request from the maintenance apparatus 101, and receives the information request, the collection program, and the key mail to the semiconductor manufacturing inspection apparatus 201. At this time, the information request text and the collection program encrypted by the key mail are restored.

  Information collection on the semiconductor manufacturing / inspection apparatus side in response to the information request of the maintenance apparatus will be described with reference to FIG.

  Information collection of the semiconductor manufacturing inspection apparatus 201 is performed by the terminal 220.

  The information collection process is started in step S701. If it is determined in step S702 that there is no information request from the maintenance device, the process ends in step S709.

  If it is determined in step S702 that there is an information request from the maintenance device, the process proceeds to step S703. In step 703, the information request contents are decoded and grasped.

  In response to a request related to acquisition of designated device information (S704), a file related to the request is disclosed, and information corresponding to the request is collected (S707). Further, in response to a request related to the execution of the control operation (S705), the requested information is collected (S705) by performing the corresponding control operation. Further, in response to a request relating to execution of the collection program (S706), request information is collected (S707) using the collection program sent from the maintenance device.

  The information collected in this way is returned to the maintenance apparatus in step (S708), and the process ends in step S709. The reply to the maintenance device in this step (S708) corresponds to the reply of (b) information request in FIG.

  On the maintenance equipment side, (b) various information based on the response to the information request sent from the semiconductor manufacturing inspection equipment, and by examining the cause of the error and the countermeasures, the correct error recovery solution to restore the semiconductor manufacturing inspection equipment Can find a way.

  The user side can recover the error of the semiconductor manufacturing inspection apparatus using this error recovery solution.

  The joint operation operation of the semiconductor manufacturing inspection apparatus will be described along the processing flow shown in FIG.

  This processing flow shows how to deal with errors that occur during operations in which a plurality of semiconductor manufacturing and inspection apparatuses are operating together for manufacturing inspection.

  Processing starts in step S901. When (A) an error occurs in the semiconductor manufacturing inspection apparatus during the joint operation operation of (A) the semiconductor manufacturing inspection apparatus and (B) the semiconductor manufacturing inspection apparatus (S902), the operation operation is stopped by itself. At the same time, the operation stop instruction (S903) is also given to the (B) semiconductor manufacturing inspection apparatus which is the joint operation partner, and the process ends (S904).

  In this way, when one semiconductor manufacturing / inspection apparatus is stopped, the other semiconductor manufacturing / inspecting apparatus does not move, and it is possible to prevent a product being inspected or a semiconductor manufacturing / inspection apparatus from being damaged.

  The overall operation management of a plurality of semiconductor manufacturing inspection apparatuses will be described along the processing flow of FIG.

  Processing starts in step S1001. (C) When an error occurs in the semiconductor manufacturing inspection apparatus 201 (step S1002), the host computer 205 that manages overall operation management of the plurality of semiconductor manufacturing inspection apparatuses 201 determines the importance of the error generated in step S1003. . If the importance of the error is determined to be (large), an operation stop instruction (step S1004) of another semiconductor manufacturing inspection apparatus is issued. In step S1006, the process ends.

  If the importance of the error is determined to be (small), an operation continuation instruction (step S1005) of another semiconductor manufacturing inspection apparatus is issued. In step S1006, the process ends.

  The host computer 205 grasps and manages the overall operation status of the semiconductor manufacturing inspection apparatus operating at the manufacturing facility 200. The semiconductor manufacturing / inspection apparatus creates data such as analysis, tabulation, and statistics for various errors that occur, and the host computer 205 performs overall operation management of the semiconductor manufacturing / inspection apparatus in consideration of these data.

  By determining the importance of the contents of errors occurring in the semiconductor manufacturing inspection apparatus in this way, overall operation maintenance management of the semiconductor manufacturing inspection apparatus operating in the manufacturing facility can be performed well.

  I mentioned earlier that the management of error maintenance request arrangements is to be done on the terminal side of the semiconductor manufacturing inspection equipment or on the maintenance equipment side.

  Here, the merits of managing error maintenance request arrangement items on the maintenance device side without managing them on the terminal side of the semiconductor manufacturing inspection apparatus will be described.

  The maintenance device is usually a kind of information processing equipment such as a personal computer or a terminal. As described above, the maintenance device is usually an information processing device such as a personal computer or a terminal, but mainly handles information related to maintenance. Since this maintenance device is responsible for maintenance of a plurality of semiconductor manufacturing inspection devices, it is provided with a management data table for individually managing the error maintenance request arrangement items for each semiconductor manufacturing inspection device.

  Replacement of data into the management data table related to additional changes in maintenance errors and changes in maintenance fees, etc. is performed by maintenance equipment that is familiar with that, so the semiconductor manufacturing and inspection equipment must be used to that. There is no. This is a service for users who use the semiconductor manufacturing inspection apparatus, and there is no data replacement mistake.

  The amount of information related to maintenance requests and information requests is large and cannot be sent by e-mail at once. It will be sent in many pieces. Re-creating this information into a single piece of information is performed by the semiconductor manufacturing inspection apparatus and the maintenance apparatus or by the mail servers, so that information necessary for error recovery can be sufficiently transmitted.

  The update and change of the error maintenance request agreement managed on the terminal side of the semiconductor manufacturing inspection apparatus will be described.

  Additional maintenance error changes and changes to maintenance request arrangements related to maintenance fees, etc. are performed by the maintenance device. The changed error maintenance request agreement item is sent to the semiconductor manufacturing inspection apparatus side by e-mail, and replaced with the error maintenance request agreement item stored in the management data table of the terminal.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a schematic block diagram of a remote maintenance system for a semiconductor manufacturing inspection apparatus in which a manufacturing facility and a maintenance center are connected to the Internet according to an embodiment of the present invention. 1 is a block diagram illustrating an outline of a semiconductor manufacturing and inspection apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. The figure which concerns on embodiment of this invention, shows the figure which summarizes the breakdown of an error maintenance request arrangement item in a table | surface, and the figure of the error displayed on the display of a terminal. It is an electronic mail text showing the content of an error maintenance request sent to the maintenance center side according to the embodiment of the present invention. It is a flowchart which concerns on embodiment of this invention and shows the process of the error which generate | occur | produced in the semiconductor manufacturing inspection apparatus. It is another flowchart which concerns on embodiment of this invention and shows the process of the error which generate | occur | produced in the semiconductor manufacturing inspection apparatus. It is a flowchart which shows the process of the information request | requirement requested | required from the maintenance center side concerning the embodiment of this invention. It is a flowchart concerning the embodiment of the present invention, and shows a flow in which the maintenance apparatus processes device information including a maintenance request sent from the semiconductor manufacturing inspection apparatus side. The flowchart which concerns on embodiment of this invention, and shows the flow of the instruction | indication which also stops an operation | movement also to the other party's semiconductor manufacturing inspection apparatus, when an error generate | occur | produces while two or several semiconductor manufacturing inspection apparatuses operate | move jointly. It is. It is a flowchart which shows the flow which concerns on embodiment of this invention, determines the importance of the error which generate | occur | produced in the semiconductor manufacturing inspection apparatus of a manufacturing facility, and instruct | indicates the operation stop / continuation of another semiconductor manufacturing inspection apparatus.

Explanation of symbols

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 100 ... Maintenance center, 101 ... Maintenance apparatus, 102 ... Mail server, 103 ... Intranet, 104 ... Firewall / gateway, 105 ... Buzzer / lamp, 200 ... Manufacturing factory (manufacturing facility), 201 ... Semiconductor manufacturing inspection apparatus, 202 ... Mail Server 203 ... Intranet 204 ... Firewall / Gateway 300 ... Internet

Claims (20)

A manufacturing facility including a semiconductor manufacturing inspection device, a maintenance center responsible for recovery support of errors occurring in the semiconductor manufacturing inspection device of this manufacturing facility, error information related to errors and recovery support information related to recovery support to the manufacturing facility and the maintenance center Communication equipment including the Internet used for communication between the terminals, and a terminal for a manufacturing inspection apparatus for managing an error maintenance request arrangement item connected to request an error recovery. Accordingly, in the remote maintenance system of the semiconductor manufacturing inspection apparatus, the terminal determines an error maintenance request.
The error maintenance request arrangement items include items including a free warranty period and a maintenance fee, for each error type, whether or not to send an error maintenance request to the maintenance center.
The error that has occurred is selected by the terminal to request the maintenance of the error in the error maintenance request agreement, and maintenance is performed in accordance with the above items related to whether the maintenance fee is charged / free and within or outside the free warranty period. It is characterized in that there is provided a selection means for selecting whether to cancel a maintenance request or to execute an error maintenance request at the judgment of the user who uses the semiconductor manufacturing inspection apparatus when it is decided to pay the fee. Remote maintenance system for semiconductor manufacturing inspection equipment. In a remote maintenance system for a semiconductor manufacturing inspection apparatus for manufacturing or / and inspecting semiconductors,
The maintenance center, which is responsible for recovery support for errors occurring in the semiconductor manufacturing inspection apparatus, exchanges error information and recovery support information exchanged with the manufacturing facility side including the semiconductor manufacturing inspection apparatus using communication means including the Internet. In accordance with the error maintenance request arrangements that have been made,
The error maintenance request arrangement items include items including a free warranty period and a maintenance fee, for each error type, whether or not to send an error maintenance request to the maintenance center.
The error that has occurred is selected by the terminal to request the maintenance of the error in the error maintenance request agreement, and maintenance is performed in accordance with the above items related to whether the maintenance fee is charged / free and within or outside the free warranty period. It is characterized in that there is provided a selection means for selecting whether to cancel a maintenance request or to execute an error maintenance request at the judgment of the user who uses the semiconductor manufacturing inspection apparatus when it is decided to pay the fee. Remote maintenance system for semiconductor manufacturing inspection equipment. In the remote maintenance system of the semiconductor manufacturing inspection apparatus according to claim 2,
When the error that has occurred is selected by the terminal of the semiconductor manufacturing / inspection apparatus as the one that does not request the maintenance of the error in the error maintenance request agreement, the execution of the one that does not make the maintenance request is reserved,
While execution is reserved, the user using the semiconductor manufacturing inspection equipment performs voluntary error recovery operations,
A remote maintenance system for a semiconductor manufacturing inspection apparatus, wherein when the user cannot achieve error recovery, the user can select from the reservation to make a maintenance request for an error to the maintenance center. In the remote maintenance system of the semiconductor manufacturing inspection apparatus according to claim 2,
The terminal of the manufacturing inspection apparatus has a display unit,
A remote maintenance system for a semiconductor manufacturing inspection apparatus, wherein an error occurrence and a maintenance fee are displayed on the display unit. In the remote maintenance system of the semiconductor manufacturing inspection apparatus according to claim 2,
The error information includes an apparatus ID for identifying the semiconductor manufacturing inspection apparatus, an error code, error contents / operation status of the semiconductor manufacturing inspection apparatus, timing of error occurrence and operation history / type of semiconductor manufacturing inspection apparatus A remote maintenance system for semiconductor manufacturing and inspection equipment, characterized in that it contains equipment related information. In the remote maintenance system of the semiconductor manufacturing inspection apparatus according to claim 2,
The recovery support information includes a device information report request for requesting a semiconductor manufacturing inspection apparatus to provide operation related information and equipment related information of the semiconductor manufacturing inspection apparatus for recovery support. system. In the remote maintenance system of the semiconductor manufacturing inspection apparatus according to claim 6,
The apparatus information report request for the recovery support information includes recovery support information collection by an instruction trial operation of the semiconductor manufacturing apparatus inspection apparatus. In the remote maintenance system of the semiconductor manufacturing inspection apparatus according to claim 6,
The device information report request for the recovery support information includes information collection collected from the semiconductor manufacturing apparatus inspection apparatus by using a recovery support information collection program provided by a maintenance center, wherein the remote maintenance system for semiconductor manufacturing inspection apparatus is characterized in that . In the remote maintenance system of the semiconductor manufacturing inspection apparatus according to claim 2,
The manufacturing facility is provided with a plurality of the semiconductor manufacturing inspection devices, and the semiconductor manufacturing inspection devices are connected by an intranet,
A remote maintenance system for a semiconductor manufacturing inspection apparatus, wherein the semiconductor manufacturing inspection apparatus can deliver its error information to another semiconductor manufacturing inspection apparatus via an intranet. In the remote maintenance system of the semiconductor manufacturing inspection apparatus according to claim 2,
The maintenance center has a plurality of maintenance devices,
In the error maintenance request agreement, the maintenance device to be inquired is determined for each error type,
A remote maintenance system for a semiconductor manufacturing and inspection apparatus, wherein the maintenance apparatus for which maintenance is requested is selected according to the type of error that occurs. In the remote maintenance system of the semiconductor manufacturing inspection apparatus according to claim 2,
The semiconductor manufacturing method, wherein the error information and the recovery support information are encrypted at a transmission source, the encrypted encryption information and the encryption key are separately transmitted, and the reception source restores the encryption information using the encryption key. Remote maintenance system for inspection equipment. In the remote maintenance system of the semiconductor manufacturing inspection apparatus according to claim 2,
A remote maintenance system for a semiconductor manufacturing and inspection apparatus, wherein the error information and the recovery support information are divided and sent as needed, and restored when received. In the remote maintenance system of the semiconductor manufacturing inspection apparatus according to claim 2,
The manufacturing facility is provided with a plurality of the semiconductor manufacturing inspection devices, and the semiconductor manufacturing inspection devices are connected by an intranet,
When an error occurs during the joint operation of two or several semiconductor manufacturing inspection devices, the semiconductor manufacturing inspection device that caused the error stops itself and instructs the other semiconductor manufacturing inspection device to stop operating. A remote maintenance system for semiconductor manufacturing inspection equipment. In the remote maintenance system of the semiconductor manufacturing inspection apparatus according to claim 2,
The manufacturing facility includes a plurality of the semiconductor manufacturing inspection devices, and the semiconductor manufacturing inspection devices are connected by an intranet, and have a host computer connected to the intranet,
The host computer creates data such as analysis, aggregation, statistics, etc. for various errors occurring in the plurality of semiconductor manufacturing inspection apparatuses, and performs operation management of the entire semiconductor manufacturing inspection apparatus in consideration of these data. A remote maintenance system for semiconductor manufacturing inspection equipment. In the remote maintenance system of the semiconductor manufacturing inspection apparatus according to claim 2,
A remote maintenance system for a semiconductor manufacturing inspection apparatus, wherein an electronic mail or a voice mail is used as the communication means. In the remote maintenance system of the semiconductor manufacturing inspection apparatus according to claim 2,
A maintenance device is provided at the maintenance center, and when the maintenance request for an error arrives at the maintenance device, a notification means for notifying by a sound such as a buzzer or a sound or by lighting a lamp is provided in the maintenance device. A remote maintenance system for semiconductor manufacturing inspection equipment. In the remote maintenance system of the semiconductor manufacturing inspection apparatus according to claim 2,
A maintenance device is provided in the maintenance center, and when a maintenance request for an error arrives at the maintenance device, the maintenance request is also notified to a maintenance worker's mobile phone or mobile terminal. system. In a remote maintenance method of a semiconductor manufacturing inspection apparatus for manufacturing or / and inspecting a semiconductor,
The error information and the recovery support information generated in the semiconductor manufacturing inspection apparatus are exchanged between the manufacturing facility side where the semiconductor manufacturing inspection apparatus is provided and the maintenance center side through communication means including the Internet, and are connected to request error recovery. The terminal of the semiconductor manufacturing inspection apparatus that manages the error maintenance request arrangement items determines an error maintenance request in accordance with the error maintenance request arrangement items,
When the error that has occurred is selected by the terminal to be the maintenance request for the error in the error maintenance request agreement, and the maintenance fee is determined outside the free warranty period, the semiconductor manufacturing inspection apparatus is A remote maintenance method for a semiconductor manufacturing and inspection apparatus, characterized in that it is possible to select whether to cancel a maintenance request by a selection means or to execute an error maintenance request at the judgment of the user to use. In a remote maintenance method of a semiconductor manufacturing inspection apparatus for manufacturing or / and inspecting a semiconductor,
The maintenance center, which is responsible for recovery support for errors occurring in the semiconductor manufacturing inspection apparatus, exchanges error information and recovery support information exchanged with the manufacturing facility side including the semiconductor manufacturing inspection apparatus using communication means including the Internet. In accordance with the error maintenance request arrangements that have been made,
Error maintenance request agreement items are managed by the maintenance device, and the maintenance device side decides whether or not to accept a maintenance request for an error sent from the manufacturing facility side according to the error maintenance request agreement item Remote maintenance method for manufacturing inspection equipment. In a remote maintenance method of a semiconductor manufacturing inspection apparatus for manufacturing or / and inspecting a semiconductor,
The maintenance center, which is responsible for recovery support for errors occurring in the semiconductor manufacturing inspection apparatus, exchanges error information and recovery support information exchanged with the manufacturing facility side including the semiconductor manufacturing inspection apparatus using communication means including the Internet. In accordance with the error maintenance request arrangements that have been made,
Manage the error maintenance request arrangement items with the maintenance device and the terminal of the semiconductor manufacturing inspection device,
Perform the rework work with the update of the error maintenance request arrangement items in the maintenance device,
A remote maintenance method for a semiconductor manufacturing / inspection apparatus, wherein a revised error maintenance request agreement is sent from the maintenance device to the terminal and is replaced with a previous error maintenance request agreement.

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