JP2009130173A - Dicing apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a dicing apparatus capable of safely performing the maintenance operation of a processing part, wherein one processing part has a plurality of spindles to which blades are respectively attached. <P>SOLUTION: On the processing part 6, two spindles 10A, 10B to which blades for recessing or cutting a workpiece are respectively attached are arranged face to face and protection covers 100, 102 corresponding to respective spindles 10A, 10B are openably formed as protection covers of the processing part 6. Respective protection covers 100, 102 include interlock devices 104, 106 for locking the covers 100, 102 in a closed state when the corresponding spindles 10A, 10B are rotated. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2009,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a dicing apparatus for grooving or cutting a workpiece such as a wafer on which a semiconductor device or an electronic component is formed.

  A dicing machine for cutting and grooving a workpiece such as a wafer on which a semiconductor device or an electronic component is formed is at least a rotating blade made of a thin grindstone called a blade rotated at high speed by a spindle, and a workpiece holding the workpiece. A table, and X, Y, Z, and θ movement axes that change the relative positions of the work table and the blade are provided. When machining a workpiece, cutting fluid for cooling and lubrication is supplied from the nozzle to a rotating blade or a machining point where the workpiece and the blade are in contact with each other. To be applied.

Conventionally, there is known a dicing apparatus in which two spindles each provided with a blade at the tip are arranged opposite to each other and grooving or cutting a plurality of workpiece lines simultaneously using two blades ( For example, see Patent Document 1).
JP 2002-280328 A

  By the way, in the dicing apparatus, it is essential to replace the blade and adjust the position of the nozzle. In particular, since the nozzle adjustment needs to be performed when the spindle is rotating, if the blade is accidentally applied, the fragments can fly in the rotational direction, which is dangerous.

  Normally, the dicing machine is provided with a protective cover. However, when replacing the blade or adjusting the nozzle, it is necessary to open the protective cover and work, so the spindle is rotated as during nozzle adjustment. Maintenance work is dangerous.

  The present invention has been made for such a problem, and in a dicing apparatus having a plurality of spindles to which a blade is attached in one processing part, a dicing apparatus that can safely perform maintenance work on the processing part is provided. The purpose is to do.

  In order to achieve the above object, a dicing apparatus according to claim 1 is a dicing apparatus having a plurality of spindles for rotating a rotary blade for grooving or cutting a workpiece in one processing section. As the protective cover to be provided, a plurality of protective covers corresponding to each of the plurality of spindles can be opened and closed.

  According to a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided the dicing apparatus according to the first aspect of the invention, wherein the plurality of protective covers each include an interlock unit that locks the protective cover in a closed state when the corresponding spindle is rotating. It is characterized by having prepared.

  According to the present invention, when maintenance work is performed while rotating the spindle, the protective cover of the other spindle that has stopped rotating is opened while the protective cover of the rotating spindle is closed. Since it can be performed from the opening, maintenance work can be performed safely.

  According to the dicing apparatus of the present invention, in a dicing apparatus having a plurality of spindles to which blades are attached in one processing part, maintenance work of the processing part can be performed safely.

  Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of a dicing apparatus according to the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

  FIG. 1 is an overall perspective view of a dicing apparatus to which the present invention is applied. The dicing apparatus 1 in FIG. 1 includes a load port 2 for transferring a cassette containing a plurality of workpieces to and from an external device, a suction unit 3, a conveying means 4 for conveying the workpiece to each part of the device, and an upper surface of the workpiece. It consists of a pair of microscopes 5 and 5 to be observed, a processing unit 6, a spinner 7 for cleaning and drying the processed workpiece, and a controller 8 for controlling the operation of each part of the apparatus.

  The processing unit 6 is provided with air bearing type or mechanical bearing type spindles 10 and 10 with a built-in high-frequency motor, which are arranged so as to be opposed to each other and to which a blade 9 as a rotary blade is attached. 10 and 10 are rotated at a high speed, and index feed in the Y direction and cut feed in the Z direction are performed independently of each other. The blade 9 is surrounded by a flange cover (not shown) having an opening on the front side and the lower side, and grinding water is supplied from a grinding nozzle provided on the flange cover toward a processing point. The flange cover is provided with a cleaning nozzle (not shown), and cleaning water is supplied from the cleaning nozzle toward the processing point.

  The blade 9 is a thin disk-shaped grindstone, and an electrodeposition blade in which diamond abrasive grains or CBN abrasive grains are electrodeposited with nickel, a metal resin bond blade in which a metal powder is mixed and a resin is used. The dimensions of the blade 9 are variously selected depending on the processing content. When dicing a normal semiconductor wafer as a workpiece, a blade having a diameter of about 50 mm and a thickness of about 30 μm is used.

  Furthermore, the processing unit 6 is provided with two identically shaped work tables 12 and 14 on which the work is sucked and placed, and these are moved in the X direction of FIG. 1 by the movement of the X tables 16 and 18 of FIG. It is fed by grinding.

  FIG. 2 is a perspective view illustrating a main part of the processing unit 6 of the dicing apparatus 1. As shown in the figure, a box-shaped oil pan 20 is horizontally disposed below the work tables 12 and 14 of the processing unit 6 so as to sufficiently surround the two work tables 12 and 14. Two pairs of guide rails (guide mechanisms) 22, 22 are arranged along the arrow X direction in the figure on the left side surface of the oil pan 20, and between these guide rails 22, 22 are arranged. A ball screw 24 constituting a drive mechanism is disposed in parallel with the guide rails 22 and 22 and along the left side surface of the oil pan 20.

  A servo motor 26 that rotationally drives the ball screw 24 is disposed on the deep side of the oil pan 20 in the depth direction. Further, an X table 16 guided in the guide rails 22 and 22 and driven in the X direction by the rotation of the ball screw 24 by the servo motor 26 is arranged in the vertical direction. The drive mechanism of the present invention may be a drive mechanism using a linear motor in addition to the drive mechanism using the ball screw 24.

  As shown in FIG. 3, the X table 16 is provided with a ball nut 28 screwed into the ball screw 24, and sliders 30 and 30 slidably engaged with the guide rails 22 and 22, and in the Z direction (see FIG. 1) (see FIG. 1) is mounted on a θ table (θ rotation shaft) 32 that rotates θ, and the work table 12 is attached to the θ table 32. The bottom surface of the rotation axis of the θ table 32 is fixed to an L-shaped fixing jig 33 attached to the X table 16 so that the work table 12 rotates in the θ direction on a horizontal plane.

  A pair of bellows (bellows members) 34, 34 that are extended and contracted as the X table 16 moves in the X direction and covers the guide rails 22, 22 and the ball screw 24 are disposed on the left side surface of the oil pan 20. . One bellows 34 has one end fixed to the front side in the depth direction of the oil pan 20 and the other end fixed to the front side edge in the depth direction of the X table 16. One end of the other bellows 34 is fixed to the back side in the depth direction of the oil pan 20, and the other end is fixed to the back side edge in the depth direction of the X table 16. In FIG. 2, the other bellows 34 is omitted.

  On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 2, a pair of guide rails (guide mechanisms) 36 and 36 are also provided on the right side surface of the oil pan 20 along the arrow X direction in FIG. Also between 36 and 36, a ball screw 38 constituting a drive mechanism is disposed in parallel with the guide rails 36 and 36 and along the right side surface of the oil pan 20.

In addition, a servo motor 40 that rotationally drives the ball screw 38 is disposed on the back side in the depth direction of the oil pan 20. Further, an X table 18 guided by the guide rails 36 and 36 and driven in the X direction by the rotation of the ball screw 38 by the servo motor 40 is disposed.
The X table 18 is provided with a ball nut (not shown) that is screwed with the ball screw 38, and a slider (not shown) that is slidably engaged with the guide rails 36, 36, and in the Z direction (see FIG. 1). ) Is mounted on a θ table (θ rotation shaft) 44, and the work table 14 is attached to the θ table 44. The bottom surface of the rotation axis of the θ table 44 is fixed to an L-shaped fixing jig (not shown) attached to the X table 18 so that the work table 14 rotates in the θ direction on a horizontal plane.

  A pair of bellows (bellows members) 46 and 46 that are extended and contracted as the X table 18 moves in the X direction and covers the guide rails 36 and 36 and the ball screw 38 are disposed on the right side surface of the oil pan 20. . One bellows 46 has one end fixed to the front side in the depth direction of the oil pan 20 and the other end fixed to the front side edge in the depth direction of the X table 18. One end of the other bellows 46 is fixed to the back side in the depth direction of the oil pan 20, and the other end is fixed to the back side edge in the depth direction of the X table 18. In FIG. 2, the other bellows 46 is omitted.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 4, a gate-shaped guide base 48 is erected on the processing portion 6. A spindle Y guide 50 is attached horizontally to the left side of the guide base 48 in FIG. 4 in the direction of arrow Y in the figure, guided by the spindle Y guide 50, and indexed in the Y direction by a drive mechanism (not shown). Two spindle Y tables 52, 52 are provided. Each spindle Y table 52 is provided with a spindle Z table 54 which is cut and fed in the direction of arrow Z in the figure by a guide rail (not shown) and a driving mechanism. Each spindle Z table 54 is connected to a spindle via a holder 56. 10 is attached.

  The two spindles 10 and 10 are disposed so as to face each other, and a rotating blade 9 is attached to the tip of each spindle 10. By such a mechanism, the two rotary blades 9 and 9 are independently fed in the Z direction by cutting and in the Y direction by index feed. Further, the drive mechanism of the spindle Y tables 16 and 18 and the spindle Z table 54 may be a linear motor, or may be a servo motor and a lead screw.

  Two microscope driving means 58 and 60 are provided on the right side of the guide base 48 in FIG. These microscope driving means 58 and 60 are attached to the right side surface of the guide base 48 and are horizontally arranged in the direction of the arrow Y in the drawing, and are guided by the microscope Y guide 62 and a driving mechanism (not shown). The microscope Y table 64 is moved in the Y direction by means of a guide rail (not shown) provided in the microscope Y table 64 and the microscope Z table 66 is sent in the arrow Z direction in the figure by the drive mechanism. A microscope 5 for observing the upper surface of the workpiece W is attached to the microscope Z table 66. The microscope driving units 58 and 60 are not limited to the guide base 48, and may be installed in a microscope Y guide of another guide base provided in parallel with the guide base 48.

  The microscopes 5 and 5 are sent in the Y direction and Z direction in the figure by the microscope driving means 58 and 60 configured as described above. The driving mechanism for the microscope Y guide 62 and the microscope Z table 66 is also a known driving means such as a linear motor or a servo motor and a lead screw. The microscope 5 incorporates a CCD camera (not shown). The image of the workpiece W picked up by the CCD camera is subjected to pattern matching processing by an image processing device provided in the controller 8 of FIG. To be done. Control of the driving means of these parts, control of the alignment operation, control of the processing section 6, control of the transport means 4, etc. are all performed by the controller 8.

  Next, a dicing method by the dicing apparatus 1 configured as described above will be described.

  First, the cassette in which the work is stored is delivered to the load port 2 of the dicing apparatus 1 by the external conveying means. In this cassette, a plurality of workpieces W attached to the frame via dicing tape are stored. Next, the workpieces W are pulled out from the cassette one by one by the conveying means 4 of the dicing apparatus 1 and are attracted to the workpiece table 12. Thereafter, the work table 12 moves below the microscope Y guide 62, and the microscopes 5 and 5 are conveyed by the microscope Y table 64 directly above the work. Here, the microscopes 5 and 5 are focused by the microscope Z table 66. Next, the pattern portion formed on the upper surface of the workpiece W is imaged by a CCD camera incorporated in the microscopes 5 and 5 and aligned using a known pattern matching technique. When the workpiece is aligned, the next workpiece W is placed on the workpiece table 14.

  The aligned workpiece W is conveyed to the processing unit 6 by the work table 12. Here, the two rotary blades 9 and 9 are respectively fed with the necessary cutting feed, and the two machining areas (streets) are machined simultaneously by the X-direction grinding feed of the work table 12. Next, the rotary blades 9 and 9 are indexed by a necessary pitch in the Y direction and positioned on the next street, and these two lines are also processed by the X direction grinding feed of the work table 12. This operation is repeated to process all streets in one direction of the workpiece W. When all the lines in one direction are processed, the work is rotated by 90 degrees by the rotation of the θ table 32, and the street that is orthogonal to the previous street is processed. While the first workpiece W is being processed by the processing unit 6, the next workpiece W is moved under the microscope Y guide 62, and the microscopes 5 and 5 are conveyed directly above the workpiece W by the microscope Y table 64. The Similarly, the microscopes 5 and 5 are focused by the microscope Z table 66, and the pattern portion formed on the upper surface of the next workpiece W is imaged by the CCD camera incorporated in the microscopes 5 and 5 and aligned. Is done. When the processing of the first workpiece W is completed, the next workpiece W after the alignment is carried into the processing unit 6 and processed in the same manner.

  The first workpiece W that has been completely processed is evaluated by measuring the shape of the processing groove and the chipping state under the microscopes 5 and 5 as necessary. When the evaluation of the machining groove is completed, the workpiece W is transferred to the spinner 7 by the transfer means 4, where spin cleaning and spin drying are performed. The workpiece W that has been cleaned and dried is again stored in the original cassette by the conveying means 4. Similarly, the next workpiece W is processed, washed, and dried, and stored in the original cassette. The above operations are repeated one after another to process all the workpieces W in the cassette.

  Incidentally, an opening 6A is provided on the back side of the processing portion 6 of the dicing apparatus 1 as shown in FIG. 5, and two left and right protections corresponding to the left and right spindles 10 and 10 are provided in the opening 6A. Covers 100 and 102 are provided. In the figure, the left spindle is denoted by reference numeral 10A, and the right spindle is denoted by reference numeral 10B.

  These protective covers 100 and 102 mainly prevent mist generated in the processing section 6 from scattering from the opening 6A to the outside of the apparatus, and are independent by the upper hinges 100A, 100A, 102A, and 102A. It swings around the upper side edge as a horizontal axis. Thus, the protective covers 100 and 102 are opened and closed independently in the closed state and the open state in the left and right regions of the opening 6A. FIG. 6 shows a state in which the protective cover 100 is in the closed state and the protective cover 102 is in the open state. The protective cover 100 is also in the open state in the same state as the protective cover 102 in FIG.

  Each protective cover 100, 102 is provided with windows 100B, 102B, and the state of the processing portion 6 can be visually recognized through the protective covers 100, 102 by these windows 100B, 102B.

  Further, the protective covers 100 and 102 are provided with an interlock function. When the spindle 10A is rotating, the left protective cover 100 corresponding to the left spindle 10A is locked in the closed state by the interlock device 104 to prevent the opening / closing operation to the open state. The protective cover 102 corresponding to the spindle 10B on the right side of the drawing is locked in the closed state by the interlock device 106 when the spindle 10B is rotating, and the opening / closing operation to the open state is prevented.

  For example, an electromagnetic lock is used as a locking method of the interlock devices 104 and 106 for locking the protective covers 100 and 102 in a closed state, and the presence or absence of rotation of each of the spindles 10A and 10B is detected by a predetermined sensor. Based on the detection result, whether or not each of the protective covers 100 and 102 is locked in a closed state by electromagnetic lock is electrically controlled. However, the presence or absence of rotation of the spindles 10A and 10B may not be detected by a sensor, but may be determined based on the control information of the spindles 10A and 10B.

  According to the protective covers 100 and 102 having such an interlock function, for example, the spindle 10A side is rotated while the spindle 10A is rotated like nozzle adjustment on the spindle 10A side (position adjustment of a grinding nozzle, a washing nozzle, etc.). When performing maintenance work, it is performed as follows. First, the spindle 10A is rotated, while the rotation of the spindle 10B is stopped. As a result, the protective cover 100 is prevented from being opened by the interlock function, and the safety is ensured even when the protective cover 100 is locked in a closed state and the blade of the spindle 10A is applied.

  On the other hand, since the rotation of the spindle 10B is stopped, the protective cover 102 can be opened without releasing the interlock function itself, so the protective cover 102 is opened (the state shown in FIG. 6). Thus, maintenance work on the spindle 10A side can be performed from the opening on the protective cover 102 side of the opening 6A.

  The maintenance work on the spindle 10B side can also be performed in the same manner as on the spindle 10A side. The spindle 10B is rotated while the spindle 10B is rotated, and the protective cover 100 is opened. Thus, maintenance work on the spindle 10B side is performed.

  As described above, the individual protective covers 100 and 102 provided corresponding to the respective spindles 10A and 10B can safely perform maintenance work in a state where the spindles 10A and 10B are rotated.

  In the above-described embodiment, the protective covers 100 and 102 are configured to be opened and closed by the hinges 100A and 102A at the upper ends, but any mechanism for opening and closing the protective covers 100 and 102 is used. There may be.

  In the above-described embodiment, the dicing apparatus including the two spindles 10A and 10B has been described. However, the present invention can be applied even when there are three or more spindles. An individual protective cover may be provided at each position for preventing mist generated from the cutting area. Moreover, it is not always necessary to provide each protective cover with an interlock function, but it is desirable to provide an interlock function in order to ensure safety.

The perspective view which shows the external appearance of the dicing apparatus which concerns on embodiment of this invention. The perspective view which showed the structure of the process part of the dicing apparatus shown in FIG. Sectional drawing which showed the principal part structure of the process part shown in FIG. The top view of the process part shown in FIG. The perspective view which showed the protective cover provided in a dicing apparatus. The perspective view which showed the mode when the protective cover provided in a dicing apparatus is an open state.

Explanation of symbols

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Dicing apparatus, 5 ... Microscope, 9 ... Rotary blade, 9A, 9B ... Flange, 10 ... Spindle, 12, 14 ... Work table, 16, 18 ... X table, 20 ... Oil pan, 22 ... Guide rail, 24 ... Ball screw, 26 ... Servo motor, 28 ... Ball nut, 30 ... Slider, 32 ... θ table, 33 ... Fixing jig, 34 ... Bellows, 36 ... Guide rail, 38 ... Ball screw, 40 ... Servo motor, 44 ... θ Table, 46 ... bellows, 48 ... guide base, 50 ... spindle Y guide, 52 ... spindle Y table, 54 ... spindle Z table, 56 ... holder, 58, 60 ... microscope drive means, 62 ... microscope Y guide, 64 ... microscope Y table, 66 ... microscope Z table, 100, 102 ... protective cover, 104, 106 ... interlock device

Claims (2)

In a dicing apparatus having a plurality of spindles for rotating a rotary blade for grooving or cutting a workpiece in one processing part,
A dicing apparatus comprising a plurality of protective covers corresponding to each of the plurality of spindles as a protective cover provided in the processing portion so as to be opened and closed.   2. The dicing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising interlock means for locking each of the plurality of protective covers in a closed state when the corresponding spindle is rotating.

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