JP2008114342A - Work loader of substrate working machine - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a work loader capable of carrying in and out a substrate at a working position in a short time to be mounted in a substrate working machine having short working machine, regarding the work loader provided in the substrate working machine for a disk substrate to be an information recording medium and others. <P>SOLUTION: This work loader is provided with at least three holding bases 30 arranged at equal intervals on the same circumference with a vertical direction turning shaft as a center, a rotary table 28 intermittently rotating in one direction around the turning shaft, a first hand for carrying the substrate 9 before working from a stocker to a standby position 4, and a second hand for carrying the worked substrate from a cleaning position 6 to the stocker. The standby position is a position where the turning direction upstream side holding base 30 is located when the one holding base 30 is located at a working position 5 by the intermittent rotation of the rotary table 28. The cleaning position is a position where the turning direction downstream side holding base 30 is located when the one holding base 30 is located at the working position 5 by the intermittent rotation of the rotary table 28. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2008,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a work loader (hereinafter simply referred to as a “loader”) provided in a drilling machine or other substrate processing machine for forming a central hole in a substrate of a disk used as an information recording medium. The present invention relates to an apparatus for carrying in an operation of carrying in a processing position and carrying out a processed substrate from the processing position to a stocker.

  The disc substrate drilling machine centeres (positions) the disc substrate loaded with its surface level at the processing position on the basis of the outer shape, and uses a cylindrical or ring-shaped base (grip body) arranged vertically to hold the disc substrate. This is a machine tool that performs drilling at the center of the disk substrate in the manner of drilling a plate with a hole saw at the periphery of a downward cup-shaped rotating grindstone arranged at the center of the upper base after being clamped. The disc-shaped chips that come out after drilling the holes are discharged through the hollow portion of the lower base.

  The disk substrate drilling machine is provided with a stocker that stores the disk substrate before and after processing adjacent to the processing position, and a loader that transports the disk substrate between the stocker and the processing position. In general, a plurality of cassettes containing a large number of disk substrates are mounted on the stocker, and the unloading and unloading of the unprocessed substrate and processed substrate are performed sequentially with a loader, and the disk substrates stored in the stocker are continuously loaded. Processing is in progress.

  Conventionally, an XY traveling type hand provided with two fingers for a pre-processed substrate and a processed substrate has been used as a loader of a drilling machine. The finger extends from the hand body toward the processing position in order to avoid interference with the base and other members installed at the processing position, and faces downward to attract and hold the workpiece at the tip of the finger. A plurality of suction pads are provided. The plurality of suction pads are provided at positions where two or three intermediate portions in the radial direction of the disk substrate are sucked to avoid interference with a tool or a base provided at the processing position.

  The disk substrate is accommodated in a transport cassette with its surface vertical. On the other hand, the disk substrate is processed with the surface horizontal. The finger of the loader can swing in a horizontal direction and a downward direction of 90 degrees, and the disk substrate is taken out and inserted between the cassette by swinging the finger downward and in a horizontal state. Carry in and out of the disk substrate to and from the processing position.

  The operation of this type of conventional loader will be described with reference to FIG. The hand 12 is moved onto the cassette containing the unprocessed substrate by the movement of the traverse arm 17 in the Y direction and the movement of the hand on the arm in the X direction, and the loading finger 3a is lowered to move the finger downward. One substrate 9a before processing is sucked by the suction pad at the tip. Next, after the carry-in finger 3a is raised and returned to the horizontal state, the hand 12 moves to the machining position. Then, the tip of the carry-out finger 3b is inserted into the processing position, and the processed substrate 9b is sucked by the suction pad at the tip by the lowering operation of the carry-out finger 3b, and then the upper base (not shown) is separated from the substrate, Next, the carry-out finger 3b is moved up to pick up the processed substrate 9b from the lower base.

  Next, the hand 12 inserts the tip of the carry-in finger 3a into the processing position, and by lowering the finger, the pre-processing substrate 9a is placed on the lower base and the upper base is lowered to sandwich the substrate 9a. The suction of the suction pad is released, the carry-in finger 3a is raised, and the substrate 9a before processing is transferred to the processing machine. Next, the hand 12 transports the processed substrate 9b to a cleaning position (position for removing the processing liquid and dust adhering to the processed substrate) provided between the stocker and the processing position. Then, the processing liquid (generally water) adhering to the processed substrate 9b is removed and dried, and then moved onto a cassette for storing the processed substrate 9b.

  Then, after the unloading finger 3b is turned downward, the processed substrate is stored in the 9b cassette by lowering and releasing the suction of the suction pad at the tip of the finger. Thereafter, the carry-out finger 3b is raised and returned to the horizontal position, and is moved to the next position for taking out the substrate before processing.

By repeating the above operation, continuous processing of the disk substrate stored in the cassette on the stocker is performed.
JP 2000-153425 A JP 2006-26874 A

  In the conventional loader described above, while the substrate is being processed at the processing position, the loader transports the processed substrate to the cleaning position, waits for the cleaning operation, inserts the processed substrate into the cassette, and stores the unprocessed substrate. It is necessary to perform an operation of moving onto the cassette, picking up the substrate before processing and moving it toward the processing position.

  In a chamfering machine that chamfers the periphery of a substrate, a processing time of about 30 seconds is required for processing a single substrate, so the loader can perform the above-described operation during this time. However, the processing time for drilling the disk substrate is about 15 seconds, and according to the drilling machine currently under development by the applicant of the present application, the processing time can be shortened to around 10 seconds. When such a reduction in processing time is realized, the loader cannot perform the above-described operation within the processing time, and the processing machine must wait for completion of the loader transport operation after the processing of the substrate is completed. .

  That is, the productivity of the substrate processing machine is determined not by the ability of the processing machine but by the work transfer time of the loader, and it becomes impossible to expect an improvement in productivity due to the reduction of the processing time of the substrate processing machine.

  Therefore, the present invention has an object to obtain a loader capable of loading and unloading a substrate to and from a processing position in a short time for mounting on a substrate processing machine with a short processing time, such as a disk substrate drilling machine. Yes.

  The work loader for a substrate processing machine according to claim 1 of the present application that solves the above-described problems is provided with at least three holding bases arranged at equal intervals on the same circumference around the vertical turning shaft 27. 30, a rotary table 28 that rotates intermittently around the pivot axis in one direction, a first hand 12 a that transports a substrate before processing from the stocker 1 to the standby position 4, and a processed substrate from the cleaning position 6 to the stocker 1. The standby position 4 is a position where the holding table on the upstream side in the turning direction is positioned when one of the holding tables is positioned at the processing position 5 by intermittent rotation of the rotary table. The cleaning position 6 is a position where the holding table on the downstream side in the turning direction is positioned when one of the holding tables is positioned at the processing position 5 by intermittent rotation of the rotary table. It is an butterfly.

  There are various types of substrates such as large glass substrates used for liquid crystal displays, small substrates for card-type information recording media and electronic devices such as ICs, etc. The work loader of the present invention is relatively small It is suitable as a work loader of a processing machine that processes a large number of substrates, especially as a work loader of a disk-shaped substrate processing machine that does not need to specify the in-plane direction during processing, especially a drilling machine with a high processing cycle. is there.

  The number of holding tables 30 provided on the rotary table 28 is usually three. However, when a longer time than the processing time is required for drying and cleaning of the processed substrate, four holding tables are provided on the downstream side of the processing position. It is possible to adopt a structure in which first and second two-stage cleaning positions are provided. The cleaning position 6 is a position where the cutting fluid and chips adhering to the processed substrate are removed, and in general, the substrate surface is cut by the jet air ejected from the nozzle disposed at the position. It is a structure that blows away liquid and dust. If necessary, a gripping device is provided at this cleaning position to grip the substrate to and from the processing table, so that cutting fluid and dust do not remain uncleaned in the portion held by the rotary table holder. Like that.

  The holding table 30 of the rotary table is provided with a holder (such as a finger that flexes and opens when the substrate is inserted and clamps the substrate with the return force of the deflection) that grips the suction pad and the outer periphery of the substrate (see FIG. (Not shown) so that the substrate does not fall off the holding table 30 when the rotary table 28 rotates. The holding of the substrate at the processing position is preferably performed by the caps 21 and 22 provided at the processing position 5. The centering device 25 is also preferably provided at the processing position 5. This is because positioning accuracy and substrate holding rigidity can be increased.

  The holder provided on the rotary table holder 30 has a structure that does not interfere with the caps 21 and 22 provided at the processing position and the gripping claws 25a and 25b of the centering device. This is, for example, a suction pad positioned on the outer side in the radial direction of the caps 21 and 22, or an elastic finger that grips the outer periphery of the disk in a direction perpendicular to the gripping direction of the gripping claws 25a and 25b of the centering device.

  According to the loader having the above-described structure, the carry-in hand 12a moves from the standby position 4 onto the unprocessed substrate cassette 18 to take out the pre-processed substrate and return to the standby position 4, and the carry-out hand 12b moves from the cleaning position 6. The operations of inserting the substrate into the processed substrate cassette 18 and returning to the cleaning position 6 may be completed within the processing time of the substrate, and these operations are far more than the operation of the conventional loader. Therefore, even in processing with a short processing time, the productivity of the processing machine is not limited by the operating time of the loader, and productivity in substrate processing such as drilling of a disc substrate is reduced. There is an effect that high substrate processing can be realized.

  In addition, when drying or cleaning time of the processed substrate is longer than the processing time, it is only necessary to use 4 to 5 holders for the rotary table 28 and 2 to 3 cleaning positions 6, so that drying or cleaning is performed. The productivity of the processing machine is not limited by time.

  Hereinafter, the present invention will be described more specifically with reference to the accompanying drawings showing an example of a preferred embodiment of the present invention. 1 is a perspective view of the apparatus, FIG. 2 is a schematic plan view of the main part, and FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the hand.

  As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the illustrated drilling device includes a planar rectangular stocker 1 and a processing position 5 disposed outside one side thereof. The machining position 5 includes ring-shaped upper and lower caps 21 and 22 for sandwiching a workpiece, a vertical grinding wheel shaft 23 arranged at the axis of the upper cap 21, and a downward cup attached to the lower end of the grinding wheel shaft 23. And a positioning tool 25 are provided. The positioning tool 25 includes a pair of gripping claws 25a and 25b facing each other with a V-shaped opposite side. The positioning tool 25 moves in a direction approaching each other and sandwiches a disk substrate mounted on the lower base 22, thereby processing on the basis of the outer periphery. The disc substrate to be centered is centered. After this centering is performed, the upper base 21 is lowered and the disk substrate is clamped between the lower base 22 and the drilling grindstone 24 is lowered while rotating, thereby forming an inner peripheral hole at the center of the disk substrate. Process.

  The unprocessed and processed disk substrate 9 is mounted on the stocker 1 in a state of being accommodated in the cassette 18 (18a, 18b). The cassette 18 is provided with a plurality of rows of receiving frames (housing units) 19 having an open upper surface and U-shaped support rods at equal intervals on the inside. The disk substrate 9 is housed in a state where the peripheral edge portion is supported by the support frame of the receiving frame, and the disk surface is arranged in a direction perpendicular to the surface with the disk surface vertical.

  On the processing position 5 side of the stocker 1, there is provided a rotary table 28 that can be swung around a swivel axis 27 in the vertical direction and that can rotate intermittently 180 degrees in the direction of arrow A in FIG. The rotary table 28 shown in the figure has an equilateral triangle shape having protrusions at the apexes, and one holding table 30 is provided at the protrusions at intervals of 120 degrees on the same circumference around the turning shaft 27. .

  The rotary table 28 is rotated intermittently by 120 degrees so that one of the three holding bases stops at the processing position 5, and the holding base on the downstream side in the turning direction of the rotary table 28 from the processing position 5 at the time of the stop. The position where the position is located is the cleaning position 6, and the position where the holding table on the upstream side in the turning direction is located is the standby position 4. The cleaning position 6 is provided with an air nozzle or the like for ejecting cleaning air, but since it has a conventionally known structure, illustration and description are omitted.

  A traverse guide 16 that is elongated in the Y direction in the figure is provided above the side opposite to the processing position of the stocker 1 in a portal structure (not shown), and the base ends of two traverse arms 17a and 17b extending toward the processing position 5 Is supported so as to be movable along the traverse guide 16. The traverse arms 17a and 17b are provided with hands 12a and 12b that travel in the extending direction (X direction in the figure). The hands 12a and 12b are moved and positioned along the traverse arms 17a and 17b by the rotation of the X-direction servomotors 32a and 32b. Is moved and positioned along.

  The hands 12a and 12b are each provided with one finger 3a and 3b, and each finger is provided with a suction pad (not shown in the figure) for vacuum-sucking the disk substrate 9 at its tip.

  As shown in FIG. 3, the fingers 3 a are rotatable about a horizontal axis 10 and are connected to the rods of the swing cylinder 11. The orientation can be changed between a horizontal direction shown and a downward direction swinging downward by 90 degrees. The finger 3a is attached to the frame of the hand 12 via an elevating cylinder 13 incorporating an elevating guide. The finger 3b is also attached to the hand 12b with the same structure as the finger 3a.

  The raising / lowering operation of the finger 3 a by the raising / lowering cylinder 13 is performed when the disk substrate 9 is taken out by inserting the finger 12 a into the cassette 18 a from above, and when the desk substrate 9 is mounted on the holding base at the standby position 4. The raising and lowering operation of the finger 3b is performed when the desk substrate 9 is picked up from the holding table at the drying position 6 and when the disk substrate 9 is inserted into the cassette 18b from above.

  The pre-processed substrate accommodated in the cassette 18a on the stocker 1 with its surface vertical is sucked and held by the suction pad of the finger 3a moved downward and moved upward, and then the cassette 3a is lifted. Drawn from. Next, the finger 3a is set in the horizontal direction, and the disk substrate 9 is placed on the holding table at the standby position 4 by the movement of the hand 12 and the lowering operation of the finger 3a. The rotary table 28 rotates 120 degrees in the direction of arrow A in FIG. 2 when the processing of the preceding disk substrate is completed and the upper and lower caps 21 and 22 are separated from the processed substrate. By this rotation, the processed substrate moves to the cleaning position 6, and the unprocessed substrate mounted at the standby position 4 moves to the processing position 5. An empty holding base moves to the standby position 4. The disk substrate moved to the processing position 5 is punched in the same procedure as the above-described conventional apparatus.

  At the cleaning position 6, the working fluid, cutting chips and other dust adhering to the processed substrate that has moved are blown off by the jet air, and the water adhering to the substrate is evaporated. The dried processed substrate is picked up from the holding table at the cleaning position 6 by a series of operations of lowering the finger 3b, sucking the substrate with the suction pad of the finger, and raising the finger. The next pre-processing substrate is mounted on the holding table at the standby position 4 by the fingers 3a.

  When the processing at the processing position 5 is completed and the caps 21 and 22 are separated, the rotary table 28 is rotated 120 degrees to send the processed substrate to the cleaning position 6 and newly mounted on the holding table at the standby position 4. The front substrate is sent to the processing position 5. The drilling of the disk substrate at the processing position 5 and the drying of the processed substrate at the cleaning position 6 are performed in parallel. During this time, the finger 3a mounts a new unprocessed substrate on the holding table at the standby position 4, The finger 3b returns the processed substrate picked up from the holding table at the cleaning position 6 to the cassette for storing the drilled disc. This returning operation is performed by moving the hand 12b onto the cassette, turning the finger 3b downward, and then lowering the finger 3b and then releasing the suction of the suction pad at the tip of the finger.

  By repeating the above operation, the disk substrate before processing stored in the ridge-shaped cassette 18a is processed one after another and stored in the cassette 18b, and when processing of the substrate in one cassette is completed, it moves to the next cassette. The substrate mounted on the stocker 1 is continuously processed. Note that the cassettes 18a and 18b do not have to be separate cassettes. In general, a processed disk is placed in an empty cassette from which a pre-processing disk has been taken out or an empty part of a cassette from which a pre-processing disk has been taken out. This is an operation of sequentially storing.

The perspective view which shows an Example 1 is a plan view of the main part of the apparatus of FIG. Perspective view showing an example of a hand A perspective view showing an example of a hand of a conventional device

Explanation of symbols

1 Stocker
3a, 3b Finger 4 Standby position 5 Processing position 6 Cleaning position 9 Substrate
16 Traverse Guide
17 Traverse arms
12a, 12b hand
24 Whetstone
27 Rotating axis
28 Rotary table
30 Holding stand

Claims (2)

A rotary table (28) provided with at least three holding bases (30) arranged at equal intervals on the same circumference centering on the vertical turning axis (27) and intermittently rotating in one direction around the turning axis (28) ), A first hand (12a) for transporting the substrate before processing from the stocker (1) to the standby position (4), and a second hand for transporting the processed substrate from the cleaning position (6) to the stocker (1) ( 12b)
The standby position (4) is a position where the holding table on the upstream side in the turning direction is positioned when one of the holding tables is positioned at the machining position (5) by intermittent rotation of the rotary table.
The cleaning position (6) is a position where the holding table on the downstream side in the turning direction is positioned when one of the holding tables is positioned at the processing position (5) by intermittent rotation of the rotary table. , Work loader for substrate processing machine.   The work loader according to claim 1, wherein the substrate processing machine is a disk substrate drilling machine.

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