JP2006287030A - Cassette for substrate - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a cassette for substrate which is capable of changing the size of width efficiently in a short time in response to the change of size of the substrate. <P>SOLUTION: A column shape abutting member 501 is provided so as to bridge between the front side frame 1a of an upper frame 1 and the front side frame 2a of a lower frame 2 as a substrate width specifying member 500A. Piece members 501c, 501g are attached to the upper and lower ends of the column member 501. The front side frame 1a of the upper frame 1 is provided with an acceptance region 520, and the front side frame 2a of the lower frame 2 is provided with another acceptance region 522. The acceptance regions 520, 522 are provided with guide grooves 532 with a slit groove unit 532a and a wide width notched region unit 532b formed thereon. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2007,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a substrate cassette for storing a substrate for a display screen such as a liquid crystal display device, a plasma display device, and an electroluminescence display device.

  Unlike a cathode ray tube display device, a flat flat screen is used for a liquid crystal display device or a plasma display device, and it is easy to increase the screen size without increasing the thickness of the display device. For this reason, many sizes of flat panel display devices are manufactured from various portable terminals to personal computers, televisions, and large display devices.

  Various substrates are used for these flat panel display devices. For the substrate, transparent glass, transparent ceramics, a transparent resin plate, or the like is used, and it is required that the substrate has no warpage or distortion and has good thickness accuracy. In addition, after depositing a silicon film or the like, heat treatment and chemical treatment are performed in many treatment steps, so that it is necessary to have excellent heat resistance and corrosion resistance. In order to form a display device by processing a substrate, it is necessary to go through many film forming processes, etching processes, heat treatment processes, and the like in a clean room. For this reason, careful handling is required when handling the substrate.

Patent Documents 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5 listed below disclose the structure of a substrate cassette for storing such a substrate. In particular, in Patent Document 5, in the means for regulating the width direction of a substrate to be stored, the storage width of the substrate can be easily changed by one substrate cassette according to the width of the substrate to be stored. Possible mechanism is adopted.
Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 06-247483 Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 09-036219 Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 11-035089 JP 2001-102437 A JP 2004-134464 A

  In the known substrate cassette, there is a problem that it is necessary to have a dedicated substrate cassette for each type of substrate to be stored. SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is to provide a substrate cassette provided with a mechanism capable of increasing the types of width sizes of substrates to be stored and changing the width size efficiently and in a short time.

  In order to achieve the above object, in one aspect of the substrate cassette according to the present invention, a substrate cassette for supporting and storing substrates in a horizontal and stacked state, a frame constituting an outer frame, A support member provided on the frame for supporting the substrate from the lower surface side and a length in the width direction of the substrate to be supported and stored in the substrate cassette are sandwiched from the width direction. Board width defining means provided on the frame.

  The substrate width defining means includes a first width defining member including an abutting member that abuts on one side surface of the substrate, and a second width defining member including an abutting member that abuts on the other side surface of the substrate. And at least one of the first width defining member and the second width defining member includes a position variable fixing mechanism that is slidable in the width direction of the substrate with respect to the frame. .

  Further, the position variable fixing mechanism is provided in the frame and extends along the width direction of the substrate, a first state provided in the contact member and fixed in the guide groove, A second state which is lifted upward from the first state and is not fixed to the guide groove, and is provided so as to be selectable, and has a substantially cone-shaped piece member whose outer diameter gradually decreases downward. The guide groove is provided with a slit groove having a predetermined width and a width wider than the slit groove when the piece member is in the first state, and can accommodate a maximum outer diameter portion located at the upper end of the piece member. And a wide notch region.

  In order to achieve the above object, in another form of the substrate cassette, the contact member is arranged so as to bridge between the upper and lower sides of the frame.

  In order to achieve the above object, in another embodiment of the substrate cassette, the contact member may be operated by rotating the contact member, sliding up and down, and sliding the substrate in the width direction. Simultaneous operation of each of the above-described variable position fixing mechanisms provided in the upper and lower end region of each other is enabled.

  In order to achieve the above object, in another embodiment of the substrate cassette, the substrate width defining means are provided on the front side and the rear side of the frame, respectively, and the corresponding substrate width defining means between the front and rear are Are interconnected.

  In order to achieve the above object, in another aspect of the substrate cassette according to the present invention, a substrate cassette for supporting and storing substrates horizontally and in a stacked state, a frame constituting an outer frame, A support member provided on the frame for supporting the substrate from the lower surface side and a length in the width direction of the substrate to be supported and accommodated in the substrate cassette are sandwiched from the width direction. Board width defining means provided on the frame.

  The substrate width defining means includes a first width defining member including an abutting member that abuts on one side surface of the substrate, and a second width defining member including an abutting member that abuts on the other side surface of the substrate. And at least one of the first width defining member and the second width defining member includes a position variable fixing mechanism that is slidable in the width direction of the substrate with respect to the frame. .

  Furthermore, the position variable fixing mechanism is provided in the frame and extends along the width direction of the substrate. The guide groove is connected to the contact member and is accommodated in the guide groove. A second state that moves upward or downward from one state and is not accommodated in the guide groove is selectably provided, and has a first width region and a second width region that is larger than the first width region. And a piece member.

  Further, the guide groove receives the first width region and allows continuous sliding of the piece member when the first direction is selected in the piece member when the piece member is in the first state. And a plurality of fixing grooves that receive the second width region and do not allow the piece member to slide when the second direction is selected by rotating the groove member by a predetermined angle from the first direction.

  According to one aspect of the substrate cassette according to the present invention, by moving the piece member upward, the piece member is detached from the wide notch region portion and moved in the lateral direction at the slit groove portion of the piece member. Is possible. Thereby, the first width defining member and the second width defining member can be easily moved in the width direction. In positioning the first width defining member and the second width defining member, the first width defining member and the second width defining member can be easily inserted by inserting a piece member into the wide notch region appropriately provided in the slit groove. The positioning of the member can be realized.

  Further, according to another embodiment, the abutting member is arranged so as to bridge between the upper and lower sides of the frame, whereby the vertical positioning positions can be matched.

  According to another aspect, based on the operation of one abutting member, it is possible to simultaneously operate each position variable fixing mechanism provided in the upper and lower end regions of the abutting member. It is possible to simplify the distance adjusting operation between the first width defining member and the second width defining member.

  According to another aspect, the substrate width defining means is provided on each of the front side and the rear side of the frame, and the corresponding substrate width defining means in the front and rear are connected to each other. As a result, it is possible to prevent positional displacement between the front and rear width defining members and simplify the positioning operation.

  According to another aspect of the substrate cassette according to the present invention, when positioning the first width defining member and the second width defining member in the width direction, the slide is performed when the first direction is selected in the piece member. Since the first width region of the piece member is received in the groove, the contact member can be smoothly moved along the slide groove. Further, by providing a plurality of fixing grooves in the guide groove, the piece member is rotated, and the second width region of the piece member is received in the fixing groove, thereby fixing the piece member to the fixing groove. It becomes possible to make it. As a result, the distance (the width of the substrate to be stored) between the first width defining member and the second width defining member can be fixed.

  Further, by selecting the shape of the second width region of the piece member and the shape of the fixed groove corresponding thereto, it becomes possible to provide the fixed grooves at a fine pitch, and to accommodate substrates of various size widths. .

  Hereinafter, a substrate cassette in each embodiment based on the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

(Embodiment 1)
First, the configuration of the substrate cassette 100 according to the first embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 is an overall perspective view showing the configuration of the substrate cassette 100 in the present embodiment, and FIG. 2 is a partially enlarged view showing the configuration of the position variable fixing mechanism employed in the substrate cassette 100 in the present embodiment. FIG. 3 is a first partial enlarged perspective view showing a part of the configuration of the position variable fixing mechanism in the present embodiment, and FIG. 4 is a part of the configuration of the position variable fixing mechanism in the present embodiment. It is a 2nd partial expansion perspective view which shows this.

(Overall structure of substrate cassette 100)
As shown in FIG. 1, a substrate cassette 100 according to the present embodiment is for a substrate for supporting and storing display screen substrates such as a liquid crystal display device, a plasma display device, and an electroluminescence display device in a horizontal and stacked state. As a frame that constitutes a cube-shaped outer frame, the cassette includes an upper frame 1 and a lower frame 2 having a rectangular outer shape, and a plurality of connecting frames 3 that connect the upper frame 1 and the lower frame 2. .

  Further, between the upper frame 1 and the lower frame 2, it extends in the vertical direction as a support member for supporting the substrate from the lower surface side, and the upper and lower ends are connected to the upper frame 1 and the lower frame 2. A plurality of support frames 4 and a plurality of support pins 5 that extend in the horizontal direction from the support frames 4 and support the substrate in a stacked state are arranged at predetermined intervals in the vertical direction.

  In the present embodiment, a configuration is adopted in which the substrates can be accommodated in two rows (A1 direction carry-in, A2 direction carry-in). In the case of the present embodiment, the dimensions of the outer frame are about 1000 mm in height, 840 mm in width, and 950 mm in depth. Further, as a material for the frame or the like, resin, aluminum, an aluminum alloy, stainless steel, or the like can be used. In addition, it is preferable to use a resin in the contact portion with the substrate in order to suppress dust generation. Further, the substrate is repeatedly charged and discharged because it repeatedly contacts and leaves many members. If discharge occurs, the substrate may be damaged. Therefore, in order to prevent charging that causes the discharge, it is preferable to make the resin conductive and to ground the charged electricity through the frame. Note that the configuration is not limited to two rows, and a one-row structure or a structure of three or more rows can be employed.

  Further, as a characteristic configuration of the substrate cassette 100 in the present embodiment, a substrate width defining means 200 for defining the width dimension (width direction length) W of the substrate 1000 to be accommodated is provided. . In the present embodiment, since a configuration in which two rows of substrates 1000 are accommodated is adopted, two sets of substrate width defining means 200 are provided.

(Configuration of the substrate width defining means 200)
Hereinafter, the configuration of the substrate width defining means 200 will be described with reference to FIG. As described above, in the present embodiment, as the substrate width defining means 200, the first width defining member 200A that abuts on one side surface (left side surface) of the substrate 1000 and the other side surface (right side surface) of the substrate 1000. And a second width defining member 200 </ b> B that abuts on the surface. The basic configurations of the substrate width defining members 200A and 200B are the same, and are provided on the substrate carry-in entrance side (front side) and the rear side of the substrate cassette 100. From the viewpoint of matching the positioning positions, the upper side is connected by a space bar 210 extending in the front-rear direction and also serving as a connecting bar, and the lower side is also connected by a space bar 211 extending in the front-rear direction and also serving as a connecting bar. .

  Next, a specific configuration of the substrate width defining members 200A and 200B will be described with reference to FIGS. Since the basic configurations of the substrate width defining members 200A and 200B are all the same, the substrate width defining member 200A located on the leftmost front side as viewed from the substrate carry-in entrance side (front side) will be described as a representative example.

  First, referring to FIG. 2, this board width defining member 200 </ b> A is a columnar contact member 201 arranged so as to bridge between the front frame 1 a of the upper frame 1 and the front frame 2 a of the lower frame 2. Is provided. As shown in FIG. 3, the columnar member 201 includes a body portion 201a and a shaft portion 201b that extends coaxially from the upper and lower ends of the body portion 201a and has a diameter smaller than that of the body portion 201a. . A coil spring 201d is fitted on the outer peripheral surface of the shaft portion 201b located at the top, and a substantially hexagonal piece member 201c is attached to the tip portion of the shaft portion 201b. Further, a pin 201e that is orthogonal to the axial direction of the shaft portion 201b and penetrates to the opposite side is fixed to a region in the vicinity of the body portion 201a of the shaft portion 201b located at the lower portion. Further, a piece member 201c having the same outer shape as that provided in the upper part is attached to an intermediate region of the shaft portion 201b. In the shaft portion 201b located at the lower portion, the shaft portion 201b is provided so as to penetrate partly downward from the piece member 201c. The specific shape of the piece member 201 will be described later.

  Next, referring to FIG. 4, in a predetermined region of the front frame 1 a of the upper frame 1, a receiving region 220 formed to be thinner than other regions is provided, and the receiving region 220 includes the substrate. A through long hole 221 extending in the lateral direction corresponding to the moving direction of the width defining member 200A is provided. A plate member 230 that is detachably attached to the receiving area 220 is disposed on the upper surface side of the receiving area 220. The plate member 230 has a main body 231 and a guide groove 232 that penetrates the main body 231 at a position corresponding to the through long hole 221. The specific shape of the guide groove 232 will be described later together with the shape of the piece member 201.

  A through hole 210h for slidably receiving the shaft portion 201b of the abutting member 201 is provided at a position corresponding to the through long hole 221 of the space bar 210 located below the upper frame 1.

  The predetermined area of the front frame 2a of the lower frame 2 is provided with a receiving area 222 that is thinner than the other areas. The receiving area 222 corresponds to the moving direction of the substrate width defining member 200A. A through hole 223 extending in the lateral direction is provided. A plate member 230 that is detachably attached to the receiving area 222 is disposed on the upper surface side of the receiving area 222. The plate member 230 has the same shape as the plate member 230 described above.

  A through hole 210h for slidably receiving the shaft portion 201b of the contact member 201 is provided at a position corresponding to the through long hole 223 of the space bar 211 located above the lower frame 1. In addition, a shallow groove 211s communicating with the through hole 210h is provided on the upper surface portion of the space bar 211 so as to extend in the direction extending to the space bar 211 and intersect the through hole 210h. The above-described pin 201e can be accommodated in the groove 211s.

  Referring to FIG. 2 again, in the normal state (fixed state), on the front frame 1a side of the upper frame 1, the coil spring 210d is located between the lower surface of the space bar 210 and the upper end surface of the trunk portion 201a. It is arranged as follows. Further, the shaft portion 201 b is disposed so as to penetrate the through hole 210 h provided in the space bar 210 and the through hole 221 provided in the front frame 1 a, and the piece member 201 is placed in the guide groove 232 of the plate member 230. It arrange | positions so that it may be located.

  Further, on the front frame 2a side of the lower frame 2, the upper surface of the space bar 211 and the lower end surface of the body portion 201a are disposed so as to contact each other. At this time, the pin 201e is received in the groove 211s provided on the upper surface of the space bar 211. The shaft portion 201 b is disposed so as to penetrate the through hole 211 h provided in the space bar 211, and the piece member 201 is disposed so as to be positioned in the guide groove 232 of the plate member 230. Further, the shaft portion 201b extending downward from the piece member 201 is accommodated in a through long hole 223 provided in the front frame 2a.

  Here, the shape of the piece member 201c and the shape of the guide groove 232 provided in the plate member 230 will be described with reference to FIGS. 5 is a plan view showing a first state showing the shape relationship between the piece member 201c and the guide groove 232, and FIG. 6 shows a second state showing the shape relationship between the piece member 201c and the guide groove 232. FIG. First, the piece member 201 has a hexagonal shape, a first width region W1 composed of a length region between the oppositely arranged sides, and is orthogonally disposed with respect to the first width region W1. And a second width region W2 having a length between the apexes of the triangular protrusions. The second width region is set to a size that is larger than the first width region W1.

  On the other hand, the guide groove 232 has a sawtooth-like uneven surface 231c regularly arranged on both side surfaces thereof, and the concave shape is such that a part of the triangular protrusion of the piece member 201c is formed on both sides as shown in the figure. It has a shape that can be received simultaneously on the surface. In addition, the distance G1 between the projecting tip ends of the concavo-convex surface 231c is set to be larger than the size of the first width region W1 and larger than the size of the second width region W2, and the piece member 201c is shown in FIG. When the state shown in FIG. 6 is selected, the piece member 201c can move in the slide groove 232a defined by the distance G1. In addition, the distance G2 between the concave bottom portions facing the concave / convex surface 231c is set to a dimension slightly larger than the dimension of the second width region W2. A plurality of fixing grooves 232b are defined by the distance G2. However, in the relationship between the distance G2 and the dimension of the second width region W2, since it is necessary to prevent the occurrence of “backlash” of the first width defining member 200A, a strict dimensional tolerance is set. It is what is done.

  As described above, the upper position variable fixing mechanism and the lower position variable fixing mechanism are configured by the configurations provided above and below the contact member 201. Next, operations of the upper position variable fixing mechanism and the lower position variable fixing mechanism will be described with reference to FIGS. 7 to 11 are first to fifth operation state diagrams showing operations of the upper position variable fixing mechanism and the lower position variable fixing mechanism.

  First, referring to FIG. 7, the state shown in this figure is the same as the state shown in FIG. 2, and a triangle that defines the second width region W <b> 2 of the piece member 201 c provided above and below the contact member 210. The protrusion is engaged with the concavo-convex surface 231c of the guide groove 232, and the locked state by the position variable fixing mechanism is selected. As a result, the board width defining member 200A is positioned and fixed to the front frame 1a of the upper frame 1 and the front frame 2a of the lower frame 2 (first state).

  Next, referring to FIG. 8, the body 201 a of the contact member 210 is gripped, and the contact member 210 is lifted upward so as to compress and compress the coil spring 201 d (M1 direction). As a result, the top and bottom piece members 201c are lifted to a position where they are removed from the guide grooves 232, and at the same time, the pins 201e are also lifted to a position where they are removed from the grooves 211s (second state). Note that the shaft portion 201b positioned below the trunk portion 201a does not come off from the through long hole 223 provided in the front frame 2a of the lower frame 2.

  Next, referring to FIG. 9, the body 201a of the contact member 210 is gripped, and the contact member 210 is rotated about 90 degrees around the axis while the contact member 210 is lifted upward (M2). direction). Then, as shown in FIG. 10, the contact member 210 is pushed down (M2 direction). At this time, since the pin 201e provided below the body portion 201a is also rotated by 90 degrees, the pin 201e contacts the upper surface of the space bar 211 and prevents the contact member 210 from moving downward. . At this time, the piece member 201c also rotates 90 degrees, so that the relationship between the piece member 201c and the guide groove 232 changes from the state shown in FIG. 5 to the state shown in FIG.

  Next, referring to FIG. 11, the body 201 a of the contact member 210 is gripped, and the contact member 210 is slid a predetermined distance to stop the contact member 210 at a desired position. At this time, since the elastic force from the coil spring 201d is received on the upper surface of the space bar 211 via the pin 201e, the contact member 210 can be smoothly slid. Thereafter, the contact member 210 is lifted, and the contact member 210 is rotated 90 degrees in the axial direction while keeping the state, and the contact member 210 is pushed downward. In this case, the contact member is pressed downward by the elastic force of the coil spring 201d. Thereby, the fixed state shown in FIG. 7 is selected again.

(Action / Effect)
As described above, in this embodiment, in the position variable fixing mechanism, when the first width defining member and the second width defining member are positioned in the width direction, the first direction (state shown in FIG. 6) is selected in the piece member 201c. In this case, since the first width region W1 of the piece member 201c is received in the guide groove 232, the contact member 201 can be smoothly moved along the guide groove 232. Further, by providing the guide groove 232 with the uneven surface 231c, a plurality of fixed grooves 232b are defined, and the piece member 201c is rotated to define the second width region W2 of the piece member 201c on the uneven surface 231c. By allowing the triangular protrusion to be received, the piece member 201c can be fixed to the fixing groove 231b. As a result, the interval (the width of the substrate to be stored) between the first width defining member 200A and the second width defining member 200B can be fixed.

  Further, by arranging the abutting member 201 so as to bridge between the upper and lower sides of the frame and providing a position variable fixing mechanism in the upper and lower end regions of the abutting member 201, it is possible to match the positioning positions in the upper and lower sides. It becomes. Based on the operation of one abutting member 201, each position variable fixing mechanism provided in the upper and lower end regions of the abutting member 201 can be operated simultaneously. It becomes possible to simplify the distance adjusting operation with the second width defining member 200B.

  Further, the substrate width defining members 200A and 200B in the present embodiment are provided on the front side and the rear side of the frame, respectively, and the corresponding substrate width defining members in the front and rear are mutually connected by the space bars 210 and 211. For this reason, it is possible to prevent the positional displacement of the front and rear substrate width defining members from each other and to simplify the positioning operation.

  In the present embodiment, it is possible to provide the fixing grooves at a fine pitch (sawtooth shape) by selecting the shape in which the triangular protrusions are provided on the piece member 201c and the shape of the corresponding fixing groove. It becomes possible to store substrates 1000 of various size widths. Further, since the plate member 230 is detachably provided on the frame, the shape of the guide groove 232 can be easily changed.

(Embodiment 2)
The substrate cassette in the present embodiment is characterized in that a variable position fixing mechanism different from the configuration employed in the first embodiment described above is employed. Therefore, in this description, the position variable fixing mechanism employed in the present embodiment will be described in detail. The same components as those in the first embodiment will be denoted by the same reference numerals, and redundant description will not be repeated. I will do it.

  First, the configuration of the position variable fixing mechanism in the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. FIG. 12A is a side view showing the configuration of the position variable fixing mechanism in the present embodiment. In FIG. 1, the substrate width located on the rightmost front side when viewed from the substrate carry-in port side (front side). It corresponds to a position variable fixing mechanism provided on the lower side of the defining member 200B, and corresponds to a cross section taken along line (a)-(a) in FIG. Moreover, FIG.12 (b) is the figure looked up from the bottom face side. FIG. 13 is an enlarged cross-sectional view showing the internal configuration of the variable position fixing mechanism in the present embodiment.

  In the above embodiment, a mechanism that allows simultaneous operation of each position variable fixing mechanism provided in the upper and lower end regions of the contact member based on the operation of one contact member is employed. However, in the present embodiment, the simultaneous operation is not performed, but the substrate width defining member is fixed by each individual operation.

  The variable fixing mechanism in the present embodiment is not provided directly on the contact member 201, but is provided between the space bar 211 to which the contact member 201 is fixed and the front frame 2a. In a predetermined region of the front frame 2a, a through long hole 323 extending in the lateral direction corresponding to the moving direction of the substrate width defining member 200B is provided. A guide groove 324 having a predetermined depth is provided on the back side of the front frame 2a so as to surround the through long hole 323. The guide groove 324 includes a slide recess groove 324a having a width G11 and a fixed recess groove 324b having a predetermined pitch and a width G12 having a width larger than the width G11 of the slide recess groove 324 and having a length G13. ing.

  On the upper surface side of the space bar 211, a housing 311 fixed to the space bar 211 with a bolt 313 at a position corresponding to the through long hole 323, a through hole 312 provided in the upper portion of the housing 311, and a space bar 211 are provided. The through hole 211h and the operation pin 315 that penetrates the through long hole 323 are provided. A coil spring 317 is inserted into the operation pin 315 between the spacer 318 and the spacer 318 in the housing 311. An operation head 314 is provided at the upper end of the operation pin 315, and an oval piece member 316 is provided at the lower end.

  As shown in FIG. 12B, the piece member 316 has a rectangular outer shape that can be accommodated in the fixed recess groove 324b, and includes a first width region W11 and a second width larger than the first width region W11. And a width region W12. With the above configuration, the lower position variable fixing mechanism is configured.

  Next, the operation of the lower position variable fixing mechanism will be described with reference to FIGS. FIGS. 14 to 17 are first to fourth operation state diagrams showing the operation of the lower position variable fixing mechanism. FIGS. 14A and 17B are the same as FIGS.

  First, referring to FIG. 14, the state shown in this figure is the same as the state shown in FIG. 12, and the piece member 316 provided at the lower end of the operation pin 315 is inserted into the fixed recess groove 324 b of the guide groove 324. The locked state by the lower position variable fixing mechanism is selected (first state).

  Next, referring to FIG. 15, the operation pin 315 is pushed downward (M1 direction). As a result, the piece member 316 is detached from the guide groove 324 (second state). Thereafter, while maintaining this state, the operation head 314 is rotated about 90 degrees around the axial direction of the operation pin 315 (M2 direction). Thereafter, as shown in FIG. 16, the operation pin 315 is lifted upward (M3 direction). At this time, since the piece member 316 provided below is also rotated by 90 degrees, the piece member 316 is slidable along the slide recess groove 324 (first state).

  Next, referring to FIG. 17, the contact member 210 is slid a predetermined distance together with the spacer bar 211 to stop the contact member 210 at a desired position. Thereafter, the operation pin 315 is pushed down again (M4 direction). While maintaining this state, the operation head 314 is rotated about 90 degrees around the axial direction of the operation pin 315 (M5 direction). Thereafter, the operation pin 315 is lifted upward. Thereby, the piece member 316 is accommodated in the fixed recess groove 324b of the guide groove 324, and the locked state by the lower position variable fixing mechanism is selected again.

(Action / Effect)
As described above, in this embodiment, in the position variable fixing mechanism, when positioning the second width defining member 200B in the width direction, when the first direction (state shown in FIG. 16) is selected in the piece member 316, Since the first width region W11 of the piece member 316 is received in the guide groove 324, the contact member 201 can be smoothly moved along the slide recess groove 324a. Further, by providing the guide groove 324 with the fixed recess groove 324b, a fixed recess groove 324b as a plurality of fixed grooves is defined, and the piece member 316 is rotated so that the piece of the piece member 316 is inserted into the fixed recess groove 324b. By receiving the second width region W12, the piece member 316 can be fixed to the fixed recess groove 324b. As a result, the interval (the width of the substrate to be stored) between the first width defining member 200A and the second width defining member 200B can be fixed.

(Embodiment 3)
The substrate cassette in the present embodiment is characterized in that a position variable fixing mechanism different from the configuration employed in the first and second embodiments described above is employed. Therefore, in this description, the position variable fixing mechanism employed in the present embodiment will be described in detail. The same components as those in the first and second embodiments will be denoted by the same reference numerals, and overlapping descriptions will be omitted. Do not repeat.

  First, the configuration of the position variable fixing mechanism in the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. 18 is an overall perspective view showing the configuration of the substrate cassette 400 in the present embodiment, and FIG. 19 shows the configuration of the substrate width defining means 500 employed in the substrate cassette 400 in the present embodiment. FIG. 20 is a partial perspective view, and FIG. 20 is a partially enlarged perspective view showing a configuration of a position variable fixing mechanism employed in the substrate cassette 400 in the present embodiment.

(Overall configuration of substrate cassette 400)
As shown in FIG. 18, substrate cassette 400 in the present embodiment has a basic configuration substantially the same as substrate cassette 100 in Embodiment 1 shown in FIG. 1, and forms a cubic outer frame. As the frames to be performed, an upper frame 1 and a lower frame 2 having a rectangular outer shape, and a plurality of connecting frames 3 that connect the upper frame 1 and the lower frame 2 are provided.

  Further, between the upper frame 1 and the lower frame 2, the same support frame and support pins as the substrate cassette 100 are provided as support members for supporting the substrate from the lower surface side. Illustration is omitted. In the present embodiment, a configuration is adopted in which the substrates can be accommodated in one row (A direction carry-in). The material such as the frame is the same as that of the substrate cassette 100.

  As a characteristic configuration of the substrate cassette 400 in the present embodiment, there is provided a substrate width defining means 500 for defining a width dimension (width direction length) W of a substrate to be accommodated. Hereinafter, the configuration of the substrate width defining means 500 will be described.

(Configuration of substrate width defining means 500)
Referring to FIGS. 18 to 20, the substrate width defining means 500 abuts on the first width defining member 500A that abuts on one side surface (left side surface) of the substrate and the other side surface (right side surface) of the substrate. A second width defining member 500B. The basic configurations of the substrate width defining members 500A and 500B are the same, and are provided on the substrate carry-in entrance side (front side) and the rear side of the substrate cassette 400. From the viewpoint of matching the positioning positions, the upper side is connected by a space bar 411 extending in the front-rear direction and also serving as a connection bar, and the lower side is also connected by a space bar 412 extending in the front-rear direction and also serving as a connection bar. . In addition, an auxiliary plate 550 is attached to the rear ends of the space bar 411 and the space bar 412, and a stopper 540 that contacts the back side surface of the substrate to be accommodated is attached.

  Next, a specific configuration of the substrate width defining members 500A and 500B will be described with reference to FIGS. Since the basic configurations of the substrate width defining members 500A and 500B are all the same, the substrate width defining member 500A located on the left front side when viewed from the substrate carry-in side (front side) will be described as a representative example.

  The substrate width defining member 500A is provided with a columnar contact member 501 disposed so as to bridge between the front frame 1a of the upper frame 1 and the front frame 2a of the lower frame 2. As shown in FIG. 21, the columnar member 501 has a body portion 501a, and a cylindrical cover 501j made of resin is attached to the outer surface of the body portion 501a. A C-type retaining ring 501f for positioning the cylindrical cover 501j is attached. Further, a shaft hole 501m extending in the axial direction is provided at the upper end of the body 501a, and a pin 501b having a piece member 501c attached to the tip of the shaft hole 501m can adjust the protruding length. In this way, it is inserted and fixed by a positioning screw 501e. The piece member 501c has a substantially conical shape whose outer diameter gradually decreases downward. A coil spring 501d is attached to the outer surface of the pin 501b via a cylindrical cover 501k. Also, a shaft hole 501m (not shown) extending in the axial direction is provided at the lower end portion of the body portion 501a, and a pin 501h having a piece member 501g attached to the lower end of the shaft hole 501m has a protruding length. It is inserted and fixed by a positioning screw 501e so that adjustment is possible. Similar to the piece member 501c, the piece member 501g has a substantially conical shape in which the outer diameter gradually decreases downward. Details of the piece member 501c and the piece member 501g will be described later.

  Next, referring to FIG. 20, in a predetermined region of the front frame 1a of the upper frame 1, a receiving region 520 having a smaller thickness than other regions is provided, and the receiving region 520 includes the substrate. A through long hole 521 extending in the lateral direction corresponding to the moving direction of the width defining member 500A is provided. A plate member 530 that is detachably attached to the receiving area 520 is disposed on the upper surface side of the receiving area 520. The plate member 530 has a main body portion 531 and a guide groove 532 that penetrates the main body portion 531 at a position corresponding to the through long hole 521. The specific shape of the guide groove 532 will be described later.

  In a predetermined area of the front frame 2a of the lower frame 2, a receiving area 522 having a smaller thickness than the other areas is provided. The receiving area 522 corresponds to the moving direction of the substrate width defining member 500A. A penetrating elongated hole 523 extending in the lateral direction is provided. A plate member 530 that is detachably attached to the receiving area 522 is disposed on the upper surface side of the receiving area 522. The plate member 530 has the same shape as the plate member 530 described above.

  As the shape of the piece member 501c and the piece member 501g appears well in FIG. 21, a disk-shaped region having a maximum outer diameter is provided on the upper end side, and the outer diameter gradually narrows downward from the disk-shaped region. A substantially conical region is provided. Further, the guide groove 532 is provided with a slit groove portion 532a having a predetermined width and a wider notch in an arc shape that is wider than the slit groove portion 532a and can accommodate the maximum outer diameter portion positioned at the upper ends of the piece members 501c and 501g. The region portion 532b is formed. A plurality of wide notch region portions 532b are provided at a predetermined pitch.

  In the normal state (fixed state) that is the first state, as shown in FIG. 20, the wide cutout region portion 532b is in a normal state in which the maximum outer diameter portion located at the upper ends of the piece members 501c and 501g is fitted into the guide groove. The piece members 501c and 501g are positioned and fixed to 532. On the other hand, in the open state which is the second state, when the board width defining member 500A is lifted upward against the urging force of the coil spring 501d, the piece members 501c and 501g are fitted into the wide notch region portion 532b. The tapered regions of the piece members 501c and 501g are released to be slidable at the slit groove portion 532a, and the interval between the substrate width defining member 500A and the substrate width defining member 500B can be adjusted.

  Referring again to FIG. 18, in the substrate width defining member 500A and the substrate width defining member 500B in the present embodiment, in order to make the movement in the width direction of the substrate smooth, the space bar 412 A roller guide mechanism 600 is provided. The detailed configuration of the roller guide mechanism 600 will be described below with reference to FIGS. 18, 22 and 23. The lower frame 2 is provided with four rectangular opening areas 2h, and guide plates 601 are fitted into the rectangular opening areas 2h. The guide plate 601 is provided with two guide grooves 602 extending in parallel to each other in the lateral direction. The space bar 412 is provided with an attachment hole 412h at a position facing the guide groove 602, and a guide member 650 that can slide along the guide groove 602 is attached to the attachment hole 412h.

  As shown in FIG. 23, the guide member 650 has two guide pins 651 arranged in parallel, and the guide pins 651 are attached so as to pass through the attachment holes 412h. A coil spring 653 is mounted on the upper end side of the guide pin 651 and is positioned by a C-type retaining ring 655. A shaft hole 651 a is provided in the lower end portion of the guide pin 651, and the shaft 658 is attached between the two guide pins 651. For attachment of the shaft 658, C-type retaining rings 660 are used at both ends. A guide roller 675 is fitted on the shaft 658, and a cylindrical positioning member 659 is fitted on the shaft 658 so as to sandwich the guide roller 675 from both sides for positioning the guide roller 675. . The guide roller 675 is provided with a groove portion 657a at the center, and has side rollers 657b on both sides. By providing the guide member 650 having the above configuration between the lower frame 2 and the space bar 412, the lateral movement of the substrate width defining member 500A and the substrate width defining member 500B is made smoother.

(Action / Effect)
As described above, also in this embodiment, it is possible to obtain the same operational effects as in the first and second embodiments. Further, in the present embodiment, in the position variable fixing mechanism, when the first width defining member 500A and the second width defining member 500B are positioned in the width direction, the piece member 501c, 501g is disengaged from the wide notch region portion 532b, and the piece members 501c and 501g can be moved in the lateral direction at the slit groove portion 532a. Thereby, the first width defining member 500A and the second width defining member 500B can be easily moved in the width direction. In positioning the first width defining member 500A and the second width defining member 500B, the first width can be easily set by inserting the piece members 501c and 501g into the wide notch region portion 532b appropriately provided in the slit groove portion 532a. Positioning of the defining member 500A and the second width defining member 500B can be realized.

  In each of the embodiments described above, a configuration in which the position variable fixing mechanism is provided on both the first width defining member and the second width defining member is employed, but a configuration in which the position variable fixing mechanism is provided only on one of them. Even if is adopted, the width of the substrate to be stored can be defined. In addition, it is not always necessary to employ a configuration in which the front and rear substrate width defining members are connected to each other. It is also possible to adopt the following configuration.

  Accordingly, the above-described embodiment disclosed herein is illustrative in all respects and does not serve as a basis for limited interpretation. Therefore, the technical scope of the present invention is not interpreted only by the above-described embodiments, but is defined based on the description of the claims. Further, all modifications within the meaning and scope equivalent to the scope of the claims are included.

1 is an overall perspective view showing a configuration of a substrate cassette in Embodiment 1. FIG. 3 is a partially enlarged perspective view showing a configuration of a position variable fixing mechanism employed in the substrate cassette in Embodiment 1. FIG. FIG. 3 is a first partial enlarged perspective view showing a part of the configuration of the position variable fixing mechanism in the first embodiment. FIG. 6 is a second partial enlarged perspective view showing a part of the configuration of the position variable fixing mechanism in the first embodiment. FIG. 6 is a plan view showing a first state showing a shape relationship between a piece member and a guide groove of the position variable fixing mechanism in the first embodiment. FIG. 6 is a plan view showing a second state showing a shape relationship between the piece member and the guide groove of the position variable fixing mechanism in the first embodiment. FIG. 6 is a first operation state diagram showing operations of an upper position variable fixing mechanism and a lower position variable fixing mechanism in the first embodiment. FIG. 6 is a second operation state diagram showing operations of the upper position variable fixing mechanism and the lower position variable fixing mechanism in the first embodiment. FIG. 8 is a third operation state diagram showing operations of the upper position variable fixing mechanism and the lower position variable fixing mechanism in the first embodiment. FIG. 10 is a fourth operation state diagram showing operations of the upper position variable fixing mechanism and the lower position variable fixing mechanism in the first embodiment. FIG. 10 is a fifth operation state diagram showing operations of the upper position variable fixing mechanism and the lower position variable fixing mechanism in the first embodiment. (A) is a side view which shows the structure of the position variable fixing mechanism in Embodiment 2, and is equivalent to the (a)-(a) arrow cross section in (b). (B) is the figure looked up from the bottom face side. 6 is an enlarged cross-sectional view showing an internal configuration of a position variable fixing mechanism according to Embodiment 2. FIG. FIG. 10 is a first operation state diagram showing the operation of the lower position variable fixing mechanism in the second embodiment. FIG. 12 is a second operation state diagram showing the operation of the lower position variable fixing mechanism in the second embodiment. FIG. 10 is a third operation state diagram showing the operation of the lower position variable fixing mechanism in the second embodiment. FIG. 10 is a fourth operation state diagram showing the operation of the lower position variable fixing mechanism in the second embodiment. FIG. 6 is an overall perspective view showing a configuration of a substrate cassette in a third embodiment. FIG. 10 is a partial perspective view showing a configuration of substrate width defining means employed in the substrate cassette in the third embodiment. 10 is a partially enlarged perspective view showing a configuration of a position variable fixing mechanism employed in a substrate cassette in Embodiment 3. FIG. 10 is an exploded perspective view showing a detailed structure of a columnar member of a position variable fixing mechanism employed in a substrate cassette in Embodiment 3. FIG. 10 is a partially enlarged perspective view showing a roller guide mechanism employed in a substrate cassette in Embodiment 3. FIG. 6 is a detailed partial exploded perspective view showing a roller guide mechanism employed in a substrate cassette in Embodiment 3. FIG.

Explanation of symbols

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Upper frame, 2 Lower frame, 2a Front side frame, 2h Open area, 3 Connection frame, 4 Support frame, 5 Support pin, 100,400 Substrate for substrate, 200,500 Substrate width defining means, 200A, 500A First width definition Member, 200B, 500B second width defining member, 201 abutting member, 201a body, 201b shaft, 201d, 210d, 317 coil spring, 201c, 316 piece member, 201e pin, 210, 211, 411, 412 space bar, 220 receiving area, 221, 221, 223, 323 through-hole, 210h, 211h, 312 through-hole, 211s shallow groove, 222 receiving area, 230 plate member, 231c saw-tooth uneven surface, 232, 324 guide groove, 232a Slide groove, 232b Fixed groove, 3 1 Housing, 313 bolt, 315 operation pin, 318 spacer, 324a slide recessed groove, 324b fixed recessed groove, 412h mounting hole, 550 auxiliary plate, 540 stopper, 501 cylindrical member, 501a body, 501b pin, 501c, 501g piece member , 501d Coil spring, 501e Positioning screw, 501f, 660, 655 C type retaining ring, 501j Cylindrical cover, 501m Shaft hole, 520, 522 Receiving area, 521, 523 Through long hole, 530 Plate member, 531 Main body, 532 Guide Groove, 532a slit groove portion, 532b wide notch region portion, 600 roller guide mechanism, 601 guide plate, 602 guide groove, 650 guide member, 651 guide pin, 651a shaft hole, 653 coil spring, 657a groove portion, 657b Side roller, 658 shaft, 659 positioning member, 675 guide roller, 1000 substrate, W1, W11 first width region, W2, W12 second width region.

Claims (5)

A substrate cassette for supporting and storing substrates in a horizontal and stacked state,
Frames (1,2,3) that make up the outer frame,
A support member (4, 5) provided on the frame (1, 2, 3) for supporting the substrate from the lower surface side;
In order to define the width direction length of the substrate to be supported and accommodated in the substrate cassette, the substrate width defining means (500A, provided in the frame (1, 2, 3) so as to sandwich the substrate from the width direction 500B), and
The substrate width defining means (500A, 500B)
A first width defining member (500A) including an abutting member (501) that abuts on one side surface of the substrate, and a second width defining member (500A) including an abutting member (501) that abuts on the other side surface of the substrate. 500B)
At least one of the first width defining member (500A) and the second width defining member (500B) can slide relative to the frame (1, 2, 3) in the width direction of the substrate. Including a variable position fixing mechanism,
The variable position fixing mechanism is
A guide groove (532) provided in the frame (1, 2) and extending along the width direction of the substrate;
A first state provided in the contact member (501) and fixed in position in the guide groove (532), and a second state in which the position is fixed upward in the first state and not fixed in the guide groove (532). A conical member (501g) having a substantially conical shape whose outer diameter gradually decreases downward.
The guide groove (532) is provided wider than the slit groove portion (532a) when the slit groove portion (532a) having a predetermined width and the piece member (501g) are in the first state, and the piece member (501g And a wide notch region portion (532b) capable of accommodating the largest outer diameter portion located at the upper end of the substrate cassette.   The substrate cassette according to claim 1, wherein the contact member (501) is arranged so as to bridge between the upper and lower sides of the frame.   By sliding the contact member (501) up and down, it is possible to simultaneously operate each of the position variable fixing mechanisms provided in the upper and lower end regions of the contact member (501). The cassette for substrates according to claim 2.   The substrate width defining means (500A, 500B) are provided on the front side and the rear side of the frame (1, 2), respectively, and the corresponding substrate width defining means (500A, 500B) in the front and rear are connected to each other. The cassette for substrates according to any one of claims 1 to 3. A substrate cassette for supporting and storing substrates in a horizontal and stacked state,
Frames (1,2,3) that make up the outer frame,
A support member (4, 5) provided on the frame (1, 2, 3) for supporting the substrate from the lower surface side;
In order to define the width direction length of the substrate to be supported and stored in the substrate cassette, the substrate width defining means (200A, 200) provided on the frame (1, 2, 3) so as to sandwich the substrate from the width direction 200B), and
The substrate width defining means (200A, 200B)
A first width defining member (200A) including an abutting member (201) that abuts on one side surface of the substrate and a second width defining member (200A) including an abutting member (201) that abuts on the other side surface of the substrate. 200B)
At least one of the first width defining member (200A) and the second width defining member (200B) is slidable in the width direction of the substrate with respect to the frame (1, 2, 3). Including a variable position fixing mechanism,
The variable position fixing mechanism is
Guide grooves (232, 324) provided in the frame (1, 2) and extending along the width direction of the substrate;
A first state connected to the contact member (201) and accommodated in the guide groove (232, 324), and a first state that moves upward or downward from the first state and is not accommodated in the guide groove (232, 324). Two pieces are selectably provided, and a piece member (201c) having a first width region (W1, W11) and a second width region (W2, W12) larger than the first width region (W1, W11). 316)
The guide grooves (232, 324) are formed when the piece members (201c, 316) are in the first state.
When a first direction is selected in the piece members (201c, 316), a slide groove (232a) that accepts the first width region (W1, W11) and allows continuous sliding of the piece members (201c, 316). , 324a)
When the piece member (201c, 316) rotates by a predetermined angle from the first direction and the second direction is selected, the second width region (W2) is received and the piece member (201c, 316) is slid. A substrate cassette having a plurality of fixing grooves (232b, 324b) which are not allowed.

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