JP2006349769A - Aligning device - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an aligning device that can reliably move an original plate film in a direction along an X-axis or Y-axis and around a θ axis. <P>SOLUTION: The aligning device 100 aligns an original plate film (A) to a photosensitive substrate, and is equipped with a translucent plate 1 to which the original plate film (A) is stuck, a first holding frame 10 and a second holding frame 11 holding the translucent plate 1 at its peripheral part 1a, a fixing mechanism 20 fixing the translucent plate 1 to the first holding frame 10 and the second holding frame 11, a support/lifting unit 30 which supports the translucent plate 1 together with the first holding frame 10 and the second holding frame 11 as movable within a plane almost parallel to the translucent plate 1 and which moves the plate in a vertical direction, an alignment table 40 disposed below the second holding frame 11 and generating a driving force in a direction along the X-axis and the Y-axis or around the θ axis, and an arm 50 and others to transmit the driving force of the aligning table 40 to frame members 11b, 11d of the second holding frame 11. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2007,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to an alignment apparatus that is suitably used in an exposure system or the like for manufacturing a printed circuit board, and aligns an original film and a photosensitive substrate.

Conventionally, this type of aligning apparatus is used in an exposure system for manufacturing a printed circuit board by printing a circuit pattern on a substrate by bringing the original film on which the circuit pattern is formed into close contact with a photosensitive substrate and exposing it. It is done.
Patent Document 1 discloses an exposure apparatus that performs alignment and exposure between an original film and a photosensitive substrate at the same position. This exposure apparatus is fixed to a support substrate that moves in the vertical direction, and includes an original film holding plate on which an original film is stuck, an exposure lamp installed above the original film holding plate, and a positioning mark on the photosensitive substrate. It is provided with an alignment table that is detected by a CCD camera and performs precise positioning of the photosensitive substrate about the X axis, Y axis direction, and θ axis based on the detection result. After aligning the photosensitive substrate, the original film and the photosensitive substrate are brought into close contact with each other and exposed with an exposure lamp to expose the photosensitive substrate.

  However, since the exposure apparatus of Patent Document 1 moves the photosensitive substrate being conveyed by the alignment table, after the photosensitive substrate is carried into the alignment table by the conveyance table, it is not after the conveyance table is retracted. In some cases, the alignment operation cannot be performed and the tact time becomes long.

On the other hand, there is an XYθ axis fine adjustment mechanism used in an aligner for aligning the original film and the photosensitive substrate by driving the original film around the X axis, Y axis direction and θ axis instead of the photosensitive substrate. Known (for example, Patent Document 2).
In the fine adjustment mechanism of the XYθ axis in Patent Document 2, for example, four XY axis adjustment stages are arranged so that the drive point is at the imaginary quadrilateral vertex on the support that supports the original film. The X-axis or Y-axis is adjusted by driving diagonally driving points in the same direction, and the θ-axis is adjusted by driving diagonally driving points in different directions.

  However, the alignment apparatus using the XYθ axis fine adjustment mechanism of Patent Document 2 performs adjustment of the θ axis in combination with driving in the X axis direction and driving in the Y axis direction, and therefore stops at an accurate position. In addition, it takes time for the calculation process, and the resolution of detection and the unit movement amount must be made fine, resulting in an increase in cost.

JP 2001-75288 A JP-A-5-162035

  An object of the present invention is to provide an alignment apparatus that can reliably move an original film around the X-axis direction, the Y-axis direction, and the θ-axis.

  The invention of claim 1 is an alignment apparatus that performs alignment between an original film and a photosensitive substrate, a translucent plate to which the original film is attached, a holding frame that holds the translucent plate at a peripheral portion thereof, A support mechanism that supports the holding frame so as to be movable in a plane substantially parallel to the translucent plate, and is disposed below the holding frame to generate driving force around the X-axis direction, the Y-axis direction, and the θ-axis. An alignment apparatus comprising: one XYθ drive mechanism; and a drive force transmission mechanism that transmits a drive force of the XYθ drive mechanism to at least two sides of the holding frame.

  A second aspect of the present invention is the alignment apparatus according to the first aspect, further comprising a lifting mechanism for moving the holding frame in the vertical direction, wherein the driving force transmission mechanism is The aligning device is characterized in that it moves up and down independently of the movement in the axial direction, the Y-axis direction and the θ-axis.

(1) The aligning device of the present invention supports the holding frame that holds the translucent plate to which the original film is attached at the peripheral edge portion by a support mechanism so as to be movable in a plane substantially parallel to the translucent plate, The driving force generated by one XYθ driving mechanism is transmitted to at least two sides of the holding frame by the driving force transmission mechanism, so that the holding frame is moved to a predetermined position. For the drive amount necessary for this, it is only necessary to calculate the drive amounts around the independent X-axis direction, Y-axis direction, and θ-axis, so that the calculation process does not take time, and the holding frame is used for the movement of the XYθ drive mechanism. Therefore, the original film can be reliably moved around the X axis direction, the Y axis direction, and the θ axis to a predetermined position.

(2) Since the transmission mechanism moves up and down independently of the movements around the X axis direction, the Y axis direction, and the θ axis with respect to the vertical movement of the lifting mechanism, the holding frame is moved by the vertical movement of the lifting mechanism. When the original film is aligned with the photosensitive substrate without moving around the X-axis direction, the Y-axis direction, and the θ-axis, and then the original film is brought into close contact with the photosensitive substrate, The position will not shift.

  The purpose of the present invention is to reliably move the original film around the X-axis direction, the Y-axis direction, and the θ-axis by using the first holding frame and the second holding frame at the periphery of the translucent plate to which the original film is attached. The first holding frame and the second holding frame are supported by a support / elevating mechanism so as to be movable in a plane substantially parallel to the translucent plate, and are movable in the vertical direction. This is realized by transmitting the driving force about the X-axis direction, the Y-axis direction and the θ-axis generated by one alignment table to the frame member of the frame by the arm unit.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in more detail with reference to the drawings.
FIG. 1 is a view showing the schematic arrangement of an exposure system using an embodiment of an alignment apparatus according to the present invention.
The exposure system 200 according to this embodiment performs exposure on both sides of a photosensitive substrate. The rough positioning unit 210, the alignment / exposure unit 220, the carry-out / reversing unit 230, and the alignment / exposure unit 240 are exposed. And a carry-out unit 250 and the like.
The coarse positioning unit 210 is a part that roughly positions the substrate that has been carried in by the belt conveyor from the previous process, and performs positioning by, for example, abutting the end surface of the substrate against a plurality of pins.

  The alignment / exposure unit 220 moves the original film on which the circuit pattern is formed around the X-axis direction, the Y-axis direction, and the θ-axis so that the original film and the substrate roughly positioned by the rough positioning unit 210 are moved. After the alignment, the original film and the substrate are brought into close contact with each other and exposed with an exposure lamp to expose the surface of the substrate.

The unloading / reversing unit 230 is a part that unloads the substrate that has been exposed by the transfer table, reverses the substrate, and transfers the inverted substrate to the alignment / exposure unit 240 by the transfer table.
The alignment / exposure unit 240 has substantially the same function as that of the alignment / exposure unit 220, and after aligning the original film and the substrate, exposes the back surface of the substrate.
The carry-out unit 250 is a part for carrying out the substrate on which both-side exposure has been completed to the next process.

Next, the alignment apparatus provided in the alignment / exposure unit 220 according to the present invention will be described in detail.
FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an embodiment of a matching device according to the present invention.
The alignment apparatus 100 is an apparatus that performs alignment between the original film A and a substrate (not shown). For example, the translucent plate 1, the first holding frame 10, the second holding frame 11, and the fixing mechanism 20. , A support / elevating mechanism 30, an alignment table 40, an arm portion 50, and the like.

  The translucent plate 1 is an acrylic plate, and an original film A is stuck on the back surface thereof. The translucent plate 1 is not limited to acrylic as long as it is a material that transmits light having an exposure wavelength from an exposure lamp (not shown), and for example, glass, polyethylene, polypropylene, polyvinyl chloride, polycarbonate, or the like can be used.

  The first holding frame 10 is a frame that holds the translucent plate 1 at its peripheral edge 1a, and is a frame in which frame members 10a, 10b, 10c, and 10d that hold the four sides of the translucent plate 1 are assembled in a cross-beam shape. Make up body.

  The second holding frame 11 is a frame arranged below the first holding frame 10 at a predetermined interval, and frame members 11a, 11b, and 11c to which fixing portions 20A to 20D of the fixing mechanism 20 described later are respectively attached. , 11d are configured in a cross-beam shape (see FIG. 5). The frame members 11b and 11d are provided with connecting portions 14 and 15 that are connected to a distal end portion of a rod 51b of an arm portion 50, which will be described later, at a substantially central portion thereof.

FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating a state in which the translucent plate 1 is fixed.
FIG. 4 is an enlarged view showing the fixing portion 20A.
FIG. 5 is a diagram mainly showing the fixing mechanism 20 and the support / lifting mechanism 30.
The fixing mechanism 20 is a mechanism for fixing the translucent plate 1 to the first holding frame 10 and the second holding frame 11, and is fixed to the four corners of the first holding frame 10 and the second holding frame 11. The units 20A, 20B, 20C, and 20D are provided. The fixing portions 20A, 20B, 20C, and 20D have the same function, and the fixing portion 20A will be described below.

  As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the fixing portion 20A includes a first support plate 21a, a shaft member 22a, a second support plate 23a, a screw member 24a, and the like. The first support plate 21a has a crank-shaped vertical cross section, the lower flat plate portion is fixed to the frame members 11a and 11b described above, and a substrate that has been transferred to the lower end by a transfer table (not shown). Is attached to the lower side of the translucent plate 1. The upper flat plate portion of the first support plate 21a is supported by a support base provided at the tip of the rod 33a of the support / lifting mechanism 30 described later (see FIG. 6). The other receiving plates 12b, 12c, and 12d have the same function as the receiving plate 12a, and a description thereof is omitted.

The shaft member 22a is a member for guiding the second support plate 23a in the vertical direction, and is provided at the tip of the flat plate portion on the lower side of the first support plate 21a. The shaft member 22a is inserted into a linear motion bearing provided on the second support plate 23a to guide the second support plate 23a.
The second support plate 23a has a T-shaped cross section, and is provided with a linear motion bearing having a shaft member 22a inserted at one end thereof and a screw member 24a at the other end thereof. The lower end of the second support plate 23a is fixed to the frame member 10a described above.
As shown in FIG. 3, the screw member 24a is a screw for fixing the translucent plate 1 to the second support plate 23a. The translucent plate 1 is guided by a plurality of pins provided on the frame members 10a and 10c, and can be exchanged by sliding in the arrow B direction shown in FIG.

  A cylinder 13a is disposed between the fixed portion 20A and the fixed portion 20D. The cylinder 13a is installed on a plate-like member provided on the frame member 11a. The cylinder 13a is provided with a rod movably in the vertical direction, and the rod tip supports a bracket fixed to the frame member 10a from below. Note that a cylinder 13b having the same mechanism as the cylinder 13a is disposed in a range between the fixed portion 20B and the fixed portion 20C.

Here, an operation when the translucent plate 1 is fixed to the first holding frame 10 and the second holding frame 11 will be described.
The translucent plate 1 is screwed by the screw members 24a to 24d of the fixing portions 20A, 20B, 20C, and 20D, and the side surface of the translucent plate 1 is in sliding contact with a plurality of pins provided on the first holding frame 10 at the time of replacement. Guided in the B direction. The first holding frame 10 is held movably in the vertical direction with respect to the second holding frame 11 by the fixing portions 20A, 20B, 20C, and 20D. The first holding frame 10 and the second holding frame 11 can be adjusted in the vertical distance by driving the rods provided in the cylinders 13a and 13b. That is, the distance between the first holding frame 10 and the second holding frame 11 is reduced by driving the rod provided on the cylinders 13a and 13b downward (on the second holding frame 11 side) and stopping at a predetermined position. Thus, the translucent plate 1 can be held by the first holding frame 10 and the second holding frame 11.

FIG. 6 is an enlarged view showing a part of the support / elevating mechanism 30.
The support / elevating mechanism 30 includes the translucent plate 1, the first holding frame 10, the second holding frame 11, the fixing mechanism 20, and the cylinders 13 a and 13 b in a horizontal direction (in a plane substantially parallel to the translucent plate 1). Air cylinders 30A, 30B, 30C, 30D, etc. are provided which are movably supported (see FIG. 3) and further move them up and down integrally. The air cylinders 30A, 30B, 30C, and 30D have the same function, and the air cylinder 30A will be described below.

As shown in FIGS. 2 and 5, the air cylinder 30A includes a cylinder body 31a, a mounting portion 32a, a rod 33a, a cylindrical portion 34a, and the like. The attachment portion 32a extends below the cylinder body portion 31a and is attached to an appropriate member (not shown). Thereby, the position of the air cylinder 30A is fixed. The rod 33a is inserted into the cylindrical portion 34a and moves up and down with respect to the cylinder main body 31a by a driving force of a driving source (not shown).
As shown in FIG. 6, the rod 33a is provided with a support at the tip. This support base is provided with four ball bearing portions 35a, and supports the first support plate 21a of the fixed portion 20A from its lower surface. Thereby, the 1st support plate 21a is supported so that a movement in a horizontal direction (in the plane parallel to the translucent plate 1) is possible.

  With the above structure, the translucent plate 1 is integrated with the first holding frame 10, the second holding frame 11, the fixing mechanism 20, and the cylinders 13a and 13b by the support / elevating mechanism 30 in the horizontal direction (substantially the same as the translucent plate 1). In a plane parallel to each other, and is supported so as to be movable in the vertical direction integrally therewith.

As shown in FIG. 2, the alignment table 40 is disposed below the second holding frame 11 and generates a driving force around the X axis direction, the Y axis direction, and the θ axis. An axis movement stage 42, a Y axis movement stage 43, an X axis movement stage 44, a movement table 45, and the like are provided.
The θ-axis moving stage 42 is placed on the base 41 and is a part that rotates and moves the moving table 45 around the θ-axis (see the arrow in the figure). The Y-axis moving stage 43 is placed on the θ-axis moving stage 42 and is a part that reciprocates the moving table 45 in the Y-axis (see arrow in the figure) direction. The X-axis moving stage 44 is placed on the Y-axis moving stage 43, and is a part that reciprocates the moving table 45 in the X-axis (see arrow in the figure) direction.

  For this reason, the alignment table 40 moves the moving table 45 by driving the θ-axis moving stage 42, the Y-axis moving stage 43, and the X-axis moving stage 44. Therefore, the alignment table 40 is driven around the X-axis direction, the Y-axis direction, and the θ-axis. Each can be done independently.

The arm unit 50 is a mechanism that transmits the driving force generated around the X-axis direction, the Y-axis direction, and the θ-axis generated by the alignment table 40 to the second holding frame 11. For example, the arm unit 50 is provided at one end of the moving table 45. Arm 51 and an arm 52 provided at the other end.
The arm 51 includes a column 51a, a rod 51b, and the like. The support column 51a is provided substantially perpendicular to the moving table 45, and a plurality of reinforcing members are provided to increase rigidity. The rod 51b moves up and down with respect to the column 51a and is non-rotatable, and moves in the vertical direction with respect to the column 51a as the support / elevating mechanism 30 moves up and down.

The rod 51b is connected to the connecting portion 14 provided on the above-described frame member 11b at the tip. The connecting portion 14 moves around the X-axis direction, the Y-axis direction, and the θ-axis with the movement of the moving table 45 via the support column 51a and the rod 51b.
Thereby, the arm 51 can transmit the driving force generated by the alignment table 40 to the frame member 11 b of the second holding frame 11. The arm 52 is different from the arm 51 in that the driving force generated by the alignment table 40 is transmitted to the frame member 11d of the second holding frame 11 via the connecting portion 15.

  Since the arm 51 is provided so that the rod 51b cannot rotate with respect to the support column 51a, for example, when the rod 51b moves in the vertical direction as the support / lifting mechanism 30 moves up and down, Due to the movement, the moving table 45 does not move around the X axis direction, the Y axis direction, and the θ axis. That is, the vertical movement of the rod 51b is independent of the movement of the moving table 45 about the X axis direction, the Y axis direction, and the θ axis.

Next, the matching operation by the matching device 100 will be described. Note that the alignment operation refers to the translucent plate 1 to which the original film A is adhered after the substrate that has been roughly positioned by the coarse positioning unit 210 is transported below the translucent plate 1 by a transport table (not shown). It is an operation of moving and aligning the original film A and the substrate.
The alignment apparatus 100 reads the positioning marks on the substrate with a CCD camera (not shown), and generates a driving force around the X-axis direction, Y-axis direction, and θ-axis on the alignment table 40 based on the detection signal. The table 45 is moved to a predetermined position.
Thereafter, the aligning apparatus 100 lowers the light transmitting plate 1 together with the first holding frame 10 and the second holding frame 11 by the support / lifting mechanism 30 to bring the original film A and the substrate into close contact with each other.

Therefore, the matching device 100 has the following effects.
(1) Since the alignment table 40 can independently drive around the X-axis direction, the Y-axis direction, and the θ-axis, the amount of drive required to move the translucent plate 1 to a predetermined position is Thus, it is only necessary to calculate the drive amounts around the independent X-axis direction, Y-axis direction, and θ-axis, and the calculation process does not take much time.
(2) Since the driving force of the alignment table 40 can be transmitted to the second holding frame 11 by the arms 51 and 52, the second holding frame 11 can follow the movement of the alignment table 40. As a result, the original film A Can be reliably moved to a predetermined position.
(3) Since the movement of the arms 51 and 52 in the vertical direction is independent of the movement of the moving table 45 about the X axis direction, the Y axis direction and the θ axis, the original film A and the photosensitive substrate are moved. Then, when the original film A is brought into close contact with the photosensitive substrate, the position of the original film A is not shifted.

(Comparative example)
FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating a comparative example of the matching apparatus 100. The same members as those of the alignment device 100 described above are denoted by the same reference numerals, and descriptions of functions and the like are omitted as appropriate.
Similar to the alignment apparatus 100, the alignment apparatus 300 is an apparatus for aligning the original film A and the substrate. The aligning device 300 includes the translucent plate 1, a holding frame 310, a support mechanism 320, an elevating mechanism 330, alignment tables 340 and 350, and the like.
The holding frame 310 is a frame that holds the light-transmitting plate 1 at its peripheral edge 1a, and is a frame that is formed by assembling frame members 310a, 310b, 310c, and 310d that hold the four sides of the light-transmitting plate 1 in a cross-beam shape. It is composed.

  The support mechanism 320 is a mechanism for supporting the holding frame 310 so as to be movable in a plane substantially parallel to the translucent plate 1, and supports 320 A, 320 B, 320 C attached to the four corners of the holding frame 310. , 320D. The support portions 320A, 320B, 320C, and 320D have the same function, and the support portion 320A will be described below.

The support portion 320A includes a U-shaped member 321a, ball members 322a and 323a, and the like. The U-shaped member 321a is provided at an upper end portion of an air cylinder 330A of an elevating mechanism 330 described later. The ball members 322a and 323a are rotatably supported by the opposing upper and lower plates of the U-shaped member 321a.
Between these ball members 322a and 323a, a connecting plate 311a connected to the frame member 310a via a plate-like member is sandwiched so as to be movable. The other connecting plates 311b, 311c, 311d are also supported so as to be movable by the support portions 320B, 320C, 320D, respectively.

  The elevating mechanism 330 is a mechanism for moving the translucent plate 1 in the vertical direction together with the holding frame 310 and the support mechanism 320, and includes air cylinders 330A, 330B, 330C, 330D, and the like. Support portions 320A, 320B, 320C, and 320D are provided.

  The alignment table 340 includes an X-axis stage 341 that moves in the X-axis direction, a Y-axis stage 342 that moves in the Y-axis direction, a connecting portion 343 provided on the frame member 310b of the holding frame 310, and an X-axis stage. A motor 344 for driving the stage 341, a motor (not shown) for driving the Y-axis stage 342, a rod 345 having a connecting portion 343 attached to the upper end thereof, and the like are provided. The alignment table 350 has the same function as the alignment table 340, and is different in that the connecting portion is provided on the frame member 310d of the holding frame 310.

This aligning device 300 drives the holding frame 310 that holds the translucent plate 1 to which the original film A is adhered at its peripheral edge 1a in the X-axis direction or the Y-axis direction by the two alignment tables 340 and 350, Further, by combining the driving in the X-axis direction and the driving in the Y-axis direction, the rotation about the θ axis is performed in a pseudo manner.
For this reason, since the alignment device 300 requires two alignment tables 340 and 350, the structure becomes complicated, and when the translucent plate 1 is rotated around the θ axis, driving in the X axis direction and the Y axis are performed. Since it is necessary to combine driving in the direction, it may be considered that it takes time to perform arithmetic processing in order to stop at an accurate position.

  On the other hand, as described above, the alignment device 100 according to the present embodiment fixes the peripheral edge 1a of the light transmitting plate 1 to the first holding frame 10 and the second holding frame 11 by the fixing mechanism 20, The support / elevating mechanism 30 supports the translucent plate 1 so as to be movable in a plane, and allows it to move in the vertical direction. Further, the alignment table 40 is generated in the frame members 11b and 11d of the second holding frame 11. Since the driving force about the X axis direction, the Y axis direction, and the θ axis is transmitted by the arm portion 50, the original film A can be reliably moved about the X axis direction, the Y axis direction, and the θ axis.

(Modification)
The present invention is not limited to the embodiments described above, and various modifications and changes are possible, and these are also within the equivalent scope of the present invention.
The arms 51, 52 are connected to the opposing frame members 11b, 11d of the second holding frame 11 via the connecting portions 14, 15, but the X-axis direction, Y-axis direction, and As long as the driving force around the θ axis can be accurately transmitted to the second holding frame 11, the driving force is not limited to this, and the driving force may be coupled diagonally.

It is a figure which shows schematic structure of the exposure system using the Example of the alignment apparatus by this invention. It is a figure which shows the Example of the matching apparatus by this invention. It is a figure which shows the state by which the translucent plate 1 was fixed. It is an enlarged view which shows 20 A of fixing parts. It is a figure mainly showing the fixing mechanism 20 and the support / lifting mechanism 30. 4 is an enlarged view showing a part of the support / elevating mechanism 30. FIG. It is a figure which shows the comparative example of the matching apparatus.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Light transmission board 10 1st holding frame 11 2nd holding frame 20 Fixing mechanism 30 Supporting / elevating mechanism 40 Alignment table 50 Arm part 100,300 Alignment apparatus 200 Exposure system A Original film

Claims (2)

In the aligner that aligns the original film and photosensitive substrate,
A translucent plate with an original film attached thereto,
A holding frame for holding the translucent plate at its peripheral edge;
A support mechanism for supporting the holding frame so as to be movable in a plane substantially parallel to the translucent plate;
One XYθ drive mechanism that is disposed below the holding frame and generates a driving force around the X-axis direction, the Y-axis direction, and the θ-axis;
A driving force transmission mechanism that transmits the driving force of the XYθ driving mechanism to at least two sides of the holding frame;
A matching device comprising: The alignment device according to claim 1,
An elevating mechanism for moving the holding frame in the vertical direction;
The driving force transmission mechanism moves up and down independently of the movement about the X axis direction, the Y axis direction, and the θ axis with respect to the vertical movement of the lifting mechanism;
An alignment device characterized by.

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