JP2007222753A - Washing device and washing method - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a washing device and a washing method performing high quality washing of a large substrate, and enhancing the production efficiency. <P>SOLUTION: The washing device 1 comprises first and second washing tubs 2, 3, first and second charging/recovering means 4, 5, a carrying part 6 for connection, and a control part 7. The first charging/recovering means 4, first washing tub 2, carrying part 6 for connection, second washing tub 3, and second charging/recovering means 5 are linearly juxtaposed from the left to right. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2007,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a cleaning apparatus and a cleaning method, and in particular, two or more spin cleaning tanks, input and recovery means provided in each spin cleaning tank, a connecting transport unit provided between the spin cleaning tanks, The present invention relates to a cleaning apparatus and a cleaning method that include a control unit that controls a conveyance path of an object to be processed, perform high-quality cleaning on a large substrate, and improve production efficiency.

Photomasks such as LSI photomasks and LCD large photomasks are exposed to various contaminations during the manufacturing process, and are therefore washed during the manufacturing process or in the final product. As this cleaning method, a dip-type cleaning method is generally used.
The dip type cleaning method is a method in which a photomask substrate supported in a vertical direction is sequentially immersed in a cleaning liquid tank, a rinsing tank, and a drying tank arranged in parallel. Note that various combinations of types, rinses, and drying methods of the chemicals used in these tanks are used.

  The above-described dip cleaning method is suitable for high throughput because a plurality of substrates can be processed at a time for a substrate having a small mask size such as an LSI photomask. For large substrates such as photomasks, each tank has a large size and a large amount of chemical solution is required. Furthermore, in recent years, the substrate size of display panels such as liquid crystal display panels and photomasks for manufacturing them has been increasing. That is, for example, in the manufacture of a liquid crystal panel, the liquid crystal panel substrate has become larger due to the trend toward multi-cavity and a larger screen, and accordingly, the photomask for producing the liquid crystal panel has also become larger. In such a trend of increasing the size and accuracy of the substrate, it is difficult to perform dip cleaning because a large amount of chemical is required when cleaning with a clean cleaning solution in a large chemical tank. The actual situation has become.

  As a technique for solving the above situation, a single wafer spin cleaning method has been noticed and developed. This single wafer spin cleaning method is a method in which a photomask substrate or the like is held on a rotating substrate holding member, and cleaning, rinsing, and drying are continuously performed while rotating. That is, first, while rotating a substrate held horizontally in a processing chamber, chemical cleaning is performed on the substrate by ejecting and cleaning a chemical as a processing liquid, and water cleaning and processing liquid in which pure water is ejected and cleaned as a processing liquid. After scrub cleaning with a brush or the like while spraying, cleaning with ultrasonic cleaning that applies ultrasonic waves to the processing solution to be supplied, rinsing with pure water, etc., and then the substrate at a high speed for a predetermined time Dry by rotating. According to this method, compared to the above dip method, a series of processes can be performed in the same processing chamber, so that the apparatus can be miniaturized, less cleaning liquid is required, and cleaning time can be shortened (for example, Patent Document 1).

By the way, since a spin cleaning apparatus can basically perform a series of cleaning steps (cleaning such as chemical cleaning, rinsing and drying) in one spin cleaning tank, one spin cleaning tank is usually provided. ing. In such a spin cleaning apparatus, cleaning conditions are set in accordance with the degree of contamination of the object to be processed, the cleaning quality, and the like.
JP 2004-290934 A

However, although the above spin cleaning apparatus can basically perform a series of cleaning steps in one spin cleaning tank, in order to improve cleaning quality, it was necessary to set more excellent cleaning conditions. . That is, in order to achieve a desired cleaning quality using one spin cleaning tank, complicated control must be performed on the cleaning apparatus, and there is a problem that the cleaning process becomes complicated.
In addition, when high-quality cleaning is required, there is a problem that even if rinsing is performed in a spin cleaning tank that has performed chemical cleaning, high-quality cleaning may be difficult due to the influence of residual chemical mist. .
Furthermore, for manufacturers, the cleaning process is one of the manufacturing processes, and it has always been desired to improve the production efficiency of the cleaning process.

  The present invention has been made to solve the above problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide a cleaning apparatus and a cleaning method capable of performing high-quality cleaning on a large substrate and improving production efficiency.

In order to achieve the above object, the cleaning apparatus of the present invention can perform a plurality of cleaning processes on an object to be processed, and two or more transport ports for transporting the object to be processed are provided at least in two places. The cleaning tank is provided for each of the cleaning tanks, and is provided between the cleaning tank and the input and recovery means for transporting the object to be processed with respect to the first transport port of the transport port. A connection transport unit for transporting the object to be processed with respect to the second transport port of the tank, and a control unit for controlling the transport path of the object to be processed according to the cleaning process of the object to be processed. It is set as the structure comprised.
If it does in this way, since each washing tank can perform a different washing process sequentially or independently with respect to a processed object, washing quality can be raised. For example, when each cleaning tank performs different processing, the object to be processed can be directly put into a predetermined cleaning tank and recovered directly from the predetermined cleaning tank after cleaning, so that the object to be processed passes through different chemical atmospheres. It is not necessary to do so, and the deterioration of the cleaning quality can be suppressed. Moreover, since each washing tank can also be washed in an independent state, production efficiency can be improved.

In the cleaning apparatus of the present invention, the object to be processed is transferred from the input / collecting means to the cleaning tank via the first transfer port as the transfer path, and when the cleaning process is completed, A path transported to the input / recovery means via one transport port, and the object to be processed is transported from the input / recovery means to the cleaning tank via the first transport port to perform a cleaning process. When finished, it is transported to the other cleaning tank via the connection transport section, and when the cleaning process is finished in the other cleaning tank, it passes through the first transport port in the other cleaning tank. And a path transported to the input / recovery means.
If it does in this way, since it can wash in the state where each washing tub became independent, or each washing tub was connected, production efficiency can be improved.

In the cleaning apparatus of the present invention, the cleaning tank is a spin cleaning tank.
In this way, even if the object to be processed is a large substrate, the amount of chemical solution used can be reduced.

In the cleaning apparatus of the present invention, the connection transport unit includes a reversing unit that reverses the object to be processed.
In this way, effective cleaning can be performed on both sides of the substrate, and the cleaning quality can be further improved.

In the cleaning apparatus of the present invention, the object to be processed is a rectangular substrate having a long side of 300 mm or more.
In this way, since the substrate can be reliably held on the substrate holding member, damage to the substrate can be prevented, and the structure of the spin cleaning tank and the reversing means can be simplified by using the substrate holding member. be able to.

In order to achieve the above object, the cleaning method of the present invention is a cleaning method for cleaning an object to be processed using a cleaning apparatus in which two or more spin cleaning tanks are connected. Using at least one, the target object that has undergone the chemical solution cleaning and the rinsing step is cleaned using a chemical solution cleaning and rinsing process for rinsing after the target object is cleaned with a chemical solution, On the other hand, the method further includes an excessive rinsing step of rinsing.
If it does in this way, a chemical | medical solution can be removed more reliably and cleaning quality can be improved.

  According to the cleaning apparatus and the cleaning method of the present invention, high-quality cleaning can be performed on a large substrate, and the production efficiency can be improved.

[Cleaning equipment]
FIG. 1 a shows a schematic plan view of a cleaning apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 1b shows a schematic front view of the cleaning apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention.
1a and 1b, the cleaning apparatus 1 includes a first cleaning tank 2, a second cleaning tank 3, a first input recovery means 4, a second input recovery means 5, a connecting transport section 6 and a control section 7. From left to right, the first input / recovery means 4, the first cleaning tank 2, the connecting transport unit 6, the second cleaning tank 3 and the second input / recovery means 5 are arranged in a straight line. is there.

(First input recovery means)
The first input / recovery means 4 has a rectangular parallelepiped housing structure and is disposed at the left end of the cleaning apparatus 1. The first input / recovery means 4 is provided adjacent to the first transfer port 21 of the first cleaning tank 2, and transfers the photomask substrate 8, which is an object to be processed, to the first transfer port 21 ( That is, carry-in and / or carry-out). As a result, the photomask substrate 8 is loaded into the first cleaning tank 2 or recovered from the first cleaning tank 2.

The first input / recovery means 4 is provided with a pair of rails 24 facing in the left-right direction on the front side and back side of the upper part, and a crane (not shown) is movable on the upper side of the rails 24 in the left-right direction. )). The first input / recovery means 4 includes first movement means (not shown) for moving the crane. The first movement means is controlled by the control unit 7 and the crane is moved to the first input / recovery means 4. Are moved between a carry-in / carry-out position A, a washing position B of the first washing tank 2, a delivery position C of the connecting transport unit 6, and a washing position D of the second washing tank 3.
Moreover, although not shown in figure, the crane is provided with a pair of opposed chucks on the front side and the back side so as to be movable in the front-rear direction. This chuck is controlled by the control unit 7, and the chucks sandwich the substrate holding member 81.

Here, the photomask substrate 8 is preferably a rectangular substrate having a long side of 300 mm or more. In this way, since the photomask substrate 8 can be reliably held on the substrate holding member 81, damage to the photomask substrate 8 can be prevented, and the first cleaning tank 2 can be used by using the substrate holding member 81. , The structures of the second cleaning tank 3 and the substrate reversing means 63 can be simplified. Further, the effect of spin cleaning can be exhibited and economical cleaning can be performed.
Note that the photomask substrate includes a glass substrate for photomask, a photomask blank, and a photomask.

(First cleaning tank)
The first cleaning tank 2 is a rectangular parallelepiped spin cleaning tank including a first transport port 21, a second transport port 22 and a rail 24, and is disposed on the left side of the cleaning device 1. By using the first cleaning tank 2 as a spin cleaning tank, even when the photomask substrate 8 is a large substrate, the amount of processing liquid such as a chemical solution is reduced. The first cleaning tank 2 performs a plurality of cleaning processes (for example, chemical cleaning, pure water cleaning, scrub cleaning, rinsing, drying, etc.).

  The first cleaning tank 2 is provided with a first transfer port 21 and a second transfer port 22 for transferring the photomask substrate 8 at the upper left side and upper right side, respectively, and the front side and the back side of the upper side. In addition, a pair of rails 24 facing in the left-right direction are provided. On the rail 24, the crane moves freely in the left-right direction.

  Although not shown, the first cleaning tank 2 is usually provided with a processing cup, a shower pipe, a roll brush, and the like, and the photomask substrate 8 and the substrate holding member 81 conveyed by a crane are placed in the processing cup. The photomask substrate 8 is spin cleaned in the accommodated state. The shower pipe and roll brush are supplied with various chemicals and pure water, and perform cleaning (cleaning with various chemicals and pure water, scrub cleaning, rinsing, etc.) according to the cleaning conditions. Further, the first cleaning tank 2 is provided with a controller (not shown) composed of an information processing device such as a sequencer or a computer, and this controller controls the cleaning of the first cleaning tank 2.

(Second input recovery means)
The second input / recovery means 5 has a rectangular parallelepiped housing structure and is disposed at the left end of the cleaning apparatus 1. The second input / recovery means 5 is provided adjacent to the first transfer port 31 of the second cleaning tank 3, and transfers the photomask substrate 8, which is the object to be processed, to the first transfer port 31 ( That is, carry-in and / or carry-out). Thereby, the photomask substrate 8 is put into the second cleaning tank 3 or recovered from the second cleaning tank 3.

The second input / recovery means 5 is provided with a pair of rails 24 facing in the left-right direction on the front side and back side of the upper part, and a crane (not shown) is movably movable in the left-right direction above the rails 24. )). The second input / recovery means 5 is provided with second moving means (not shown) for moving the crane. This second moving means is controlled by the control unit 7, and the crane is moved to the second input / recovery means 5. Are moved between a carry-in / carry-out position E, a washing position D of the second washing tank 3, a delivery position C of the connecting transport unit 6, and a washing position B of the first washing tank 2. That is, in the cleaning apparatus 1, the first input / recovery means 4 and the second input / recovery means 5 are each provided with a crane.
Moreover, although not shown in figure, the crane is provided with a pair of opposed chucks on the front side and the back side so as to be movable in the front-rear direction. This chuck is controlled by the control unit 7, and the chucks sandwich the substrate holding member 81.
The other configuration of the second input / recovery means 5 is substantially the same as that of the first input / recovery means 4.

(Second cleaning tank)
The second cleaning tank 3 is a rectangular parallelepiped spin cleaning tank including a first transport port 31, a second transport port 32, and a rail 24, and is disposed on the right side of the cleaning device 1. By using the second cleaning tank 3 as a spin cleaning tank, even when the photomask substrate 8 is a large substrate, the amount of processing solution such as a chemical solution used is reduced. The second cleaning tank 3 performs a plurality of cleaning processes (for example, chemical cleaning, pure water cleaning, scrub cleaning, rinsing, and drying).

  The second cleaning tank 3 is provided with a first transfer port 31 and a second transfer port 32 for transferring the photomask substrate 8 at the upper part on the right side and the upper side on the left side, respectively. In addition, a pair of rails 24 facing in the left-right direction are provided. The crane moves freely on the rail 24 in the left-right direction.

  Although not shown, the second cleaning tank 3 is usually provided with a processing cup, a shower pipe, a roll brush, and the like, and the photomask substrate 8 and the substrate holding member 81 conveyed by a crane are placed in the processing cup. The photomask substrate 8 is spin cleaned in the accommodated state. The shower pipe and roll brush are supplied with various chemicals and pure water, and perform cleaning (cleaning with various chemicals and pure water, scrub cleaning, rinsing, etc.) according to the cleaning conditions. Further, the second cleaning tank 3 is provided with a controller (not shown) composed of an information processing device such as a sequencer or a computer, and this controller controls the cleaning of the second cleaning tank 3.

(Conveying part for connection)
The connection transport unit 6 has a rectangular parallelepiped housing structure including the rails 24 and the substrate reversing means 63, and is disposed between the first cleaning tank 2 and the second cleaning tank 3. This connection transport unit 6 is a photomask for the second transport port 22 of the first cleaning tank 2 and the second transport port 32 of the second cleaning tank 3 by moving two cranes on the rail 24. The substrate 8 is transferred.

FIG. 2 is a schematic plan view of the main part of the substrate reversing means of the cleaning apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention.
In the figure, the substrate reversing means 63 includes a mounting plate 61 and a reversing unit 630.
The mounting plate 61 is a disc on which a substrate holding member 81 is provided at a substantially central portion of the connecting transport unit 6 so as to be movable up and down. The connecting conveyance unit 6 includes elevating means (not shown) for elevating the mounting plate 61. This raising / lowering means is controlled by the control unit 7 and descends when the sandwiching arm of the reversing unit 630 moving in the left-right direction sandwiches the photomask substrate 8, and then the reversing unit 630 reverses to move the photomask substrate 8. Invert. The inverted photomask substrate 8 is held in an inverted state by the rising substrate holding member 81.
In the present embodiment, the connecting transport unit 6 includes the substrate reversing unit 63. However, the present invention is not limited to this. For example, the substrate reversing unit 63 may not be provided.

(Control part)
The control unit 7 is an information processing apparatus such as a sequencer or a computer, and controls the conveyance path of the object to be processed according to the cleaning process of the object to be processed. That is, the control unit 7 controls the first input / recovery unit 4, the second input / recovery unit 5, and the connection transport unit 6.

Further, in the cleaning apparatus 1, the object to be processed is transferred from the input / collecting means 4 (5) to the cleaning tank 2 (3) via the first transfer port 21 (31) as a transfer path of the object to be processed. When the cleaning process is completed, the path transported to the input / recovery means 4 (5) via the first transport port 21 (31) and the object to be processed are transferred from the input / recovery means 4 to the first transport port 21. When the cleaning process is completed, the cleaning process is finished. In the other cleaning tank 5, the cleaning process is completed. And a path that is transported to the input / recovery means 5 via the first transport port 31 in the cleaning tank 5.
If it does in this way, since each washing tank 2 and 3 can wash in the state where it became independent, or each washing tank 2 and 3 can be washed in the connected state, production efficiency can be improved.

Next, cleaning examples and operations of the cleaning apparatus 1 will be described with reference to the drawings.
<First cleaning example>
FIG. 3: has shown the schematic plan view of the board | substrate inversion means for demonstrating the 1st cleaning example of the cleaning apparatus concerning one Embodiment of this invention.
In the figure, the cleaning apparatus 1 transports the photomask substrate 8 in the order of the first input / recovery means 4, the first cleaning tank 2, the connecting transport unit 6, the second cleaning tank 3, and the second input / recovery means 5. The first cleaning tank 2 performs chemical solution cleaning + rinsing on the surface of the photomask substrate 8, and the second cleaning tank 3 performs excessive rinsing.

First, in the cleaning apparatus 1, when the substrate holding member 81 holding the photomask substrate 8 is mounted on the first input / recovery means 4 and a start switch (not shown) is pressed, both chucks are moved to the center side. The chuck moves to sandwich the substrate holding member 81. At this time, the crane is located at point A.
Next, the crane moves to the right on the rail 24, moves to the point B, and stops (that is, the photomask substrate 8 is put into the first cleaning tank 2).

Next, the cleaning apparatus 1 accommodates the substrate holding member 81 and the photomask substrate 8 in the processing cup, and the crane 43 moves to the point A.
Subsequently, in the first cleaning tank 2, the photomask substrate 8 is rotated, and the shower pipe discharges the chemical solution to clean the surface of the photomask substrate 8 with the chemical solution. After a predetermined time has elapsed, the discharge of the chemical solution from the shower pipe is stopped, and the rotation of the photomask substrate 8 is stopped.

Next, the first cleaning tank 2 rotates the photomask substrate 8 and the shower pipe discharges pure water to rinse the surface of the photomask substrate 8. After a predetermined time has elapsed, the release of pure water from the shower pipe is stopped, and the rotation of the photomask substrate 8 is stopped.
Subsequently, the chuck of the crane that has moved from the point A is closed, the substrate holding member 81 is held, and the crane moves rightward on the rail 24, moves to the point D, and stops.

Next, the cleaning apparatus 1 accommodates the substrate holding member 81 and the photomask substrate 8 in the processing cup of the second cleaning tank 3, and the crane moves to point A.
Subsequently, the second cleaning tank 3 rotates the photomask substrate 8, and the shower pipe releases pure, thereby excessively rinsing the surface of the photomask substrate 8. After a predetermined time has elapsed, the release of pure water from the shower pipe is stopped, and the rotation of the photomask substrate 8 is stopped.

Next, the chuck of the crane that has moved from the point E to the point D is closed, the substrate holding member 81 is clamped, the crane moves rightward on the rail 24, moves to the point E, and stops.
Next, the second input / recovery means 5 opens both chucks, removes the substrate holding member 81 holding the photomask substrate 8, and completes the cleaning of the photomask substrate 8.

  As described above, according to the first cleaning example, it is possible to perform high-quality cleaning in which the photomask substrate 8 is rinsed excessively. In this cleaning example, the first cleaning tank 2 performs chemical solution cleaning + rinsing, and the second cleaning tank 3 performs excessive rinsing. However, the present invention is not limited to this. For example, the first cleaning tank 2 may perform a chemical solution (b) cleaning + rinse, and the second cleaning tank 3 may perform a chemical solution (b) cleaning + rinse.

<Second cleaning example>
FIG. 4: has shown the schematic plan view of the board | substrate inversion means for demonstrating the 2nd cleaning example of the cleaning apparatus concerning one Embodiment of this invention.
In the figure, the cleaning apparatus 1 transports the photomask substrate 8 in the order of the first input / recovery means 4, the first cleaning tank 2, the connecting transport unit 6, the second cleaning tank 3, and the second input / recovery means 5. The first cleaning tank 2 performs chemical cleaning and rinsing on the surface of the photomask substrate 8, the connecting transport unit 6 reverses the photomask substrate 8, and the second cleaning tank 3 on the back surface of the photomask substrate 8. Do chemical cleaning and rinsing.

First, as described above, when the photomask substrate 8 is mounted on the first input / recovery unit 4, the cleaning apparatus 1 inputs the photomask substrate 8 into the first cleaning tank 2, The first cleaning tank 2 cleans the photomask substrate 8.
Next, after the first cleaning tank 2 performs chemical cleaning and rinsing, the chuck of the crane that has moved from the point A is closed, and the substrate holding member 81 is clamped. Subsequently, the crane moves to the right on the rail 24, moves to point C, and stops.

  Next, in the cleaning apparatus 1, the substrate reversing unit 63 of the connecting transport unit 6 reverses the photomask substrate 8 as described above, and the substrate holding member 81 holds the photomask substrate 8. Subsequently, the chuck of the crane that has moved from the point E is closed, the substrate holding member 81 is clamped, the crane moves rightward on the rail 24, moves to the point D, and stops.

Next, the cleaning apparatus 1 accommodates the substrate holding member 81 and the photomask substrate 8 in the processing cup of the second cleaning tank 3, and the crane moves to the point E.
Next, the second cleaning tank 3 rotates the photomask substrate 8 and discharges the chemical solution from the shower pipe to clean the back surface of the photomask substrate 8 with the chemical solution. After a predetermined time elapses, the discharge of the chemical solution from the shower pipe is stopped, and then the shower pipe releases pure and rinses the surface of the photomask substrate 8. After a predetermined time has elapsed, the release of pure water from the shower pipe is stopped, and the rotation of the photomask substrate 8 is stopped. In this way, it is possible to perform chemical cleaning and rinsing on both surfaces of the photomask substrate 8 continuously.

Next, the chuck of the crane that has moved from point E to point D is closed, the substrate holding member 81 is clamped, the crane moves right on the rail 24, moves to point D, and stops.
Next, the second input / recovery means 5 opens both chucks, removes the substrate holding member 81 holding the photomask substrate 8, and completes the double-sided cleaning of the photomask substrate 8.
Thus, according to the second cleaning example, both surfaces of the photomask substrate 8 can be efficiently cleaned.

<Example of third cleaning>
FIG. 5: has shown the schematic plan view for demonstrating the 3rd cleaning example of the washing | cleaning apparatus concerning one Embodiment of this invention.
In the figure, the cleaning apparatus 1 is configured to operate the first cleaning tank 2 and the second cleaning tank 3 in an independent state. The photomask substrate 8 input from the first input recovery means 4 is After washing in the first washing tank 2, the photomask substrate 8 collected by the first loading / collecting means 4 and fed from the second loading / collecting means 5 is washed in the second washing tank 3, It is recovered by the second input recovery means.
In this cleaning example, the first cleaning tank 2 and the second cleaning tank 3 are operated. However, the present invention is not limited to this. For example, only the first cleaning tank 2 is operated, or It is good also as a structure which operates only the 2nd washing tank 3.

In the cleaning using the first cleaning tank 2, as described above, when the photomask substrate 8 is mounted on the first input / recovery means 4, the first input / recovery means 4 is placed in the first cleaning tank 2. The first cleaning tank 2 cleans the photomask substrate 8. This cleaning is generally performed by chemical cleaning + rinsing. In addition, the cleaning in the first cleaning tank 2 is not limited to the above chemical solution cleaning + rinse cleaning, and may be, for example, a rinse only.
Next, the cleaning is completed, the chuck of the crane moved from the point A is closed, and the substrate holding member 81 is clamped. Subsequently, the crane moves to the left on the rail 24, moves to the loading / unloading position A and stops (that is, collects the photomask substrate 8 from the first cleaning tank 2).

  Next, in the first input / recovery means 4, both chucks are opened, the substrate holding member 81 holding the photomask substrate 8 is removed from the mounting plate 41, and the photomask substrate 8 is cleaned by the first cleaning tank 2. Complete.

  In the cleaning using the second cleaning tank 3, first, the substrate holding member 81 holding the photomask substrate 8 is mounted on the second input / collecting means 5, and a start switch (not shown) is pressed. Then, the chuck holds the substrate holding member 81. Subsequently, the crane moves to the left on the rail 24, moves to the point D, and stops (that is, the photomask substrate 8 is put into the second cleaning tank 3).

Next, as described above, the second cleaning tank 3 performs cleaning. This cleaning is generally used when only the rinse is performed and the photomask substrate 8 is relatively lightly soiled. Note that the cleaning in the second cleaning tank 3 is not limited to the above-described rinse only, and may be, for example, chemical solution cleaning + rinse cleaning.
Next, when the cleaning by the second cleaning tank 3 is completed, as described above, the crane that has moved from the point E recovers the photomask substrate 8 to the second input recovery means 5, The mask substrate 8 is removed and the cleaning of the photomask substrate 8 by the second cleaning tank 3 is completed.

  As described above, according to the third cleaning example, since the first cleaning tank 2 and the second cleaning tank 3 can be operated in an independent state, the operating rate of the cleaning device 1 can be improved. When the first cleaning tank 2 and the second cleaning tank 3 perform different processes, the photomask substrate 8 is directly put into the predetermined first cleaning tank 2 or the second cleaning tank 3, and the predetermined first cleaning is performed after the cleaning. Since it can collect | recover directly from the tank 2 or the 2nd washing tank 3, it does not need to pass through the chemical | medical solution atmosphere from which the photomask substrate 8 differs, for example, and can suppress the fall of washing | cleaning quality.

  In this cleaning example, the first cleaning tank 2 and the second cleaning tank 3 are configured to clean only one surface of the photomask substrate 8, respectively, but are not limited to this configuration. For example, in the cleaning in the first cleaning tank 2, when the photomask substrate 8 is mounted on the first input / recovery means 4, the first input / recovery means 4 is input into the first cleaning tank 2, and the first cleaning tank 2 is The surface of the photomask substrate 8 is cleaned. Next, the crane 43 moved from the point A moves the photomask substrate 8 to the point C. Next, after the substrate reversing unit 63 reverses the photomask substrate 8, the crane moves the photomask substrate 8 to the point B, and the first cleaning tank 2 cleans the back surface of the photomask substrate 8. Next, after the back surface is cleaned, the crane that has moved from point A collects the photomask substrate 8 in the first input / recovery means 4, and the photomask substrate 8 is removed from the first input / recovery means 4, The double-sided cleaning of the photomask substrate 8 is completed.

  As described above, according to the cleaning apparatus 1, the first cleaning tank 2 and the second cleaning tank 3 can perform different processes sequentially or independently on the photomask substrate 8, thereby improving the cleaning quality. Can be made. Moreover, since the 1st washing tank 2 and the 2nd washing tank 3 can wash | clean in the independent state, production efficiency can be improved.

[Cleaning method]
The present invention is also effective as a cleaning method, and the cleaning method according to an embodiment of the present invention is a cleaning method for cleaning the photomask substrate 8 which is a processing object, using the cleaning apparatus 1. A photomask that has undergone chemical cleaning and rinsing using the first cleaning tank 2 and the chemical cleaning + rinsing process for rinsing after the photomask substrate 8 is cleaned with the chemical cleaning using the first cleaning tank 2 The method further includes an excessive rinsing step of rinsing the substrate 8.
If it does in this way, it can rinse in the 2nd washing tank 3 without a chemical | medical solution atmosphere, a chemical | medical solution can be removed more reliably, and cleaning quality can be improved.

While the cleaning apparatus and the cleaning method of the present invention have been described with reference to the preferred embodiments, the cleaning apparatus and the cleaning method according to the present invention are not limited to the above-described embodiments, and the scope of the present invention. Needless to say, various modifications can be made.
For example, although the washing | cleaning apparatus 1 is set as the structure provided with the two washing tanks of the 1st washing tank 2 and the 2nd washing tank 3, it is not limited to this structure, For example, it comprises three or more washing tanks. It is good also as a structure.

  The cleaning apparatus and the cleaning method of the present invention are not limited to the configuration for cleaning the photomask substrate, and can be used for cleaning apparatuses and cleaning methods for ceramic plates, metal plates, and the like.

1 shows a schematic plan view of a cleaning apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. The schematic front view of the washing device concerning one embodiment of the present invention is shown. The schematic plan view of the principal part in the board | substrate inversion means of the washing | cleaning apparatus concerning one Embodiment of this invention is shown. The schematic plan view of the board | substrate inversion means for demonstrating the 1st cleaning example of the washing | cleaning apparatus concerning one Embodiment of this invention is shown. The schematic plan view of the board | substrate inversion means for demonstrating the 2nd cleaning example of the cleaning apparatus concerning one Embodiment of this invention is shown. The schematic plan view for demonstrating the 3rd cleaning example of the washing | cleaning apparatus concerning one Embodiment of this invention is shown.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Cleaning apparatus 2 1st washing tank 3 2nd washing tank 4 1st input collection means 5 2nd input collection means 6 Connection conveyance part 7 Control part 8 Photomask board | substrate 21 1st conveyance port 22 2nd conveyance port 24 Rail 31 First transport port 32 Second transport port 61 Placement plate 63 Substrate reversing means 81 Substrate holding member 630 Reversing unit

Claims (6)

A plurality of cleaning treatments can be performed on the object to be processed, and two or more cleaning tanks provided with at least two transfer ports for transferring the object to be processed;
Input / recovery means that is provided for each of the cleaning tanks and that transports the object to be processed with respect to the first transport port of the transport port;
A connecting transport unit for transporting the object to be processed to the second transport port of the cleaning tank, provided between the cleaning tanks,
A cleaning apparatus comprising: a control unit that controls a transfer path of the object to be processed according to a cleaning process of the object to be processed. As the transport path,
The object to be processed is transferred from the input / recovery means to the cleaning tank via the first transfer port, and when the cleaning process is completed, it is transferred to the input / recovery means via the first transfer port. Route,
The object to be processed is transported from the input / collecting means to the cleaning tank via the first transport port, and when the cleaning process is completed, it is transported to the other cleaning tank via the connection transport unit. And when the cleaning process is completed in the other cleaning tank, the path is transported to the input and recovery means via the first transport port in the other cleaning tank. The cleaning apparatus according to 1.   The cleaning apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the cleaning tank is a spin cleaning tank.   The cleaning apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the connection transport unit includes a reversing unit that reverses the object to be processed.   The cleaning apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the object to be processed is a rectangular substrate having a long side of 300 mm or more. A cleaning method for cleaning an object to be processed using a cleaning apparatus in which two or more spin cleaning tanks are connected,
Using at least one of the spin cleaning tanks, the target object is cleaned with a chemical solution and then rinsed with a chemical solution cleaning + rinsing step;
An excessive rinsing step of further rinsing the target object that has undergone the chemical solution cleaning + rinsing step using a spin cleaning bath dedicated to rinsing.

Images