JP2010179420A - Industrial robot - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an industrial robot simplifying a configuration and properly gripping a substrate mounted on a hand even when carrying out changing action of pitches between a plurality of mount parts for mounting substrates. <P>SOLUTION: The industrial robot is equipped with a plurality of hands having mount parts for substrates disposed to overlap in the vertical direction at predetermined pitches, a pitch changing mechanism changing the pitches between the mount parts, and a gripping mechanism 24 for gripping the substrates mounted on the hands. The gripping mechanism 24 is equipped with a plurality of substrate gripping parts 80, a plurality of energizing members urging the gripping parts 80 in the substrate gripping direction, and a moving member 82 abutting on the gripping parts 80 to move the plurality of gripping parts 80 in the withdrawing direction from the substrates. Each of the plurality of gripping parts 80 and the plurality of urging members is respectively held in the plurality of hands, and the moving member 82 is separated away from the gripping part 80 when the gripping part 80 is gripping a substrate. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2010,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to an industrial robot that transports a substrate such as a semiconductor wafer.

  Conventionally, a plurality of semiconductor wafers are transported simultaneously between a cassette in which a plurality of semiconductor wafers are stacked and stored at a predetermined pitch and a storage unit in a semiconductor manufacturing apparatus that performs a predetermined process on the semiconductor wafers. Robots are widely used. Such industrial robots generally include a plurality of hands arranged to overlap in the vertical direction.

  Here, the pitch of the semiconductor wafers stored in the cassette may be different from the pitch of the semiconductor wafers stored in the storage unit in the semiconductor manufacturing apparatus. For this reason, a robot including a substrate holding device that can arbitrarily change the pitch between a plurality of hands on which semiconductor wafers are mounted has been proposed (for example, see Patent Document 1).

  The substrate holding apparatus described in Patent Document 1 includes one hand fixed in the vertical direction and four hands that can move up and down with respect to the fixed hand. In this substrate holding apparatus, a fixed hand is arranged at the center in the vertical direction, and two hands that can move up and down are arranged in the vertical direction on the upper and lower sides of the fixed hand. Yes. The four hands that can move up and down move up and down so that the pitch between the five hands is equal.

  The substrate holding apparatus also includes a chuck body for gripping a semiconductor wafer mounted on the hand and an air cylinder for driving the chuck body. Specifically, the substrate holding device includes a first chuck body and an air cylinder for gripping a semiconductor wafer mounted on a fixed hand, and two hands arranged above the fixed hand. A second chuck body and an air cylinder for gripping the semiconductor wafer mounted on the second hand, and a third chuck for gripping the semiconductor wafer mounted on the two hands disposed below the fixed hand Three chuck bodies and an air cylinder including a chuck body and an air cylinder are provided.

JP 2005-116807 A

  Since the substrate holding device described in Patent Document 1 includes three air cylinders, the configuration of the device is complicated. Further, in the substrate holding device described in Patent Document 1, the chuck body for holding the semiconductor wafer mounted on the two hands arranged on the upper side of the fixed hand is common and fixed. The chuck body for holding the semiconductor wafer mounted on the two hands arranged below the hand is common. For this reason, if a hand that can move up and down moves up and down so that the pitch between the five hands is equal, the semiconductor wafer mounted on the hand may not be properly held by the chuck body.

  In view of the above, an object of the present invention is to simplify the configuration and appropriately hold a substrate mounted on a hand even when changing the pitch between a plurality of mounting portions on which the substrate is mounted. The object is to provide an industrial robot capable of this.

  In order to solve the above problems, the present invention includes a substrate mounting mechanism on which a plurality of substrates are mounted in an industrial robot that unloads a substrate from a storage unit in which a plurality of substrates are stacked and stored at a predetermined pitch. The board mounting mechanism is mounted on the hand with a plurality of hands having a mounting part on which the board is mounted and arranged to overlap in the vertical direction at a predetermined pitch, and a pitch changing mechanism for changing the pitch between the plurality of mounting parts. A gripping mechanism for gripping the substrate, and the gripping mechanism is provided with a plurality of gripping portions for gripping the substrate in contact with the substrate mounted on the hand and a gripping portion in the gripping direction for gripping the substrate. A plurality of urging members to be urged, a moving member that contacts the gripping portion and moves the plurality of gripping portions in the retreating direction to retreat from the substrate, and a drive that is connected to the moving member and drives the moving member in the gripping direction and retreating direction Source and Each of the plurality of gripping units and the plurality of biasing members is held by each of the plurality of hands, and the moving member is separated from the gripping unit when the gripping unit grips the substrate. To do.

  In the industrial robot according to the present invention, the gripping mechanism includes a plurality of gripping portions for gripping the substrate mounted on the hand, and a plurality of biasing members for biasing the gripping portion in the gripping direction for gripping the substrate. Each of the plurality of gripping portions and the plurality of urging members is held by each of the plurality of hands. Therefore, even when the hand moves up and down to change the pitch between the plurality of mounting parts, the gripping part and the urging member also move up and down together with the hand that moves up and down. Therefore, in the present invention, it is possible to appropriately hold the substrate mounted on the hand even when the operation of changing the pitch between the plurality of mounting portions is performed.

  Further, in the present invention, the gripping mechanism drives the moving member in the gripping direction and the retracting direction connected to the moving member, the moving member moving in the retracting direction in contact with the gripping part and retracting from the substrate. And a driving source, and the moving member is separated from the gripping portion when the gripping portion is gripping the substrate. Therefore, when the pitch changing mechanism is used to change the pitch between the plurality of mounting portions, one driving source and one movement are performed while preventing the gripping portion held by the hand from contacting the moving member. A plurality of gripping portions can be retracted using the member. As a result, in the present invention, it is possible to simplify the configuration of the gripping mechanism and simplify the configuration of the industrial robot even when changing the pitch between a plurality of mounting portions. become.

  In the present invention, the gripping portion is disposed at an end on the gripping direction side and is a gripping roller that can contact the substrate, a roller support portion that rotatably supports the gripping roller, and a retraction direction from the roller support portion. It is preferable that the shaft member is inserted through an insertion hole formed in the hand. If comprised in this way, it will become possible to slide a holding part with respect to a hand in a holding direction and a retracting direction with a comparatively simple structure.

  In the present invention, the gripping mechanism preferably includes a regulating member that regulates the movement of the gripping portion in the gripping direction. If comprised in this way, even if it is a case where the board | substrate is not mounted in the hand and the holding part is not contact | abutting to a board | substrate, it will become possible to separate a moving member from a holding part. Therefore, even when the gripping part is not in contact with the substrate, the gripping part held by the hand and the moving member come into contact with each other when the pitch changing mechanism is used to change the pitch between the plurality of mounting parts. Can be prevented.

  In the present invention, the gripping portion is disposed at an end on the gripping direction side and is a gripping roller that can contact the substrate, a roller support portion that rotatably supports the gripping roller, and a retraction direction from the roller support portion. A plurality of shaft members, and a connecting member that connects ends of the plurality of shaft members on the retracting direction side, and the moving member has a plurality of shaft members in an orthogonal direction substantially perpendicular to the vertical direction and the gripping direction. And a first abutting portion that abuts against the surface of the connecting member on the gripping direction side when retracting the gripping portion in the retracting direction. If comprised in this way, it will become possible to reduce a board | substrate mounting mechanism in an orthogonal direction.

  In this invention, it is preferable that a moving member is provided with the 2nd contact part which can contact | abut to the surface at the side of the retracting direction of a connection member. With this configuration, even if the urging member or the like malfunctions and the urging force of the urging member does not move the gripping part smoothly in the gripping direction, the second abutting part is used to hold the gripping part. It can be moved in the gripping direction.

  In the present invention, the substrate mounting mechanism includes a detection mechanism for detecting the respective positions of the plurality of gripping portions in the gripping direction, and the detection mechanism is held on each of the plurality of gripping portions or each of the plurality of hands. It is preferable to include a detection unit to be detected and a detected unit held on each of the plurality of gripping units or each of the plurality of hands. With this configuration, it is possible to appropriately detect the position in the gripping direction of the gripping part held by the hand even when the hand moves up and down in order to change the pitch between the plurality of mounting parts. Become.

  In the present invention, the drive source is, for example, an air cylinder. The drive source may be a hydraulic cylinder or a motor.

  In the present invention, the substrate mounting mechanism includes, for example, a base member that moves together with a plurality of hands when the substrate is unloaded from the storage unit, and as a hand, a fixed hand fixed to the base member, and a base member A plurality of upper movable hands having a mounting portion that is relatively movable in the vertical direction and disposed on the upper side of the mounting portion of the fixed hand; And a plurality of lower movable hands having mounting portions to be arranged. In this case, the board mounting mechanism includes, for example, a first movable hand and a second movable hand arranged in order from the upper side as the upper movable hand, and is arranged in order from the upper side as the lower movable hand. A third movable hand and a fourth movable hand.

  In the present invention, the substrate mounting mechanism includes a first gripping roller for gripping the substrate mounted on the first movable hand, and a second gripping roller for gripping the substrate mounted on the second movable hand. , A third gripping roller for gripping a substrate mounted on the third movable hand, a fourth gripping roller for gripping a substrate mounted on the fourth movable hand, and a substrate mounted on the fixed hand A first gripping roller and a second gripping roller are displaced in an orthogonal direction substantially perpendicular to the vertical direction and the gripping direction when viewed from above and below. The second gripping roller and the fifth gripping roller are misaligned, the fifth gripping roller and the third gripping roller are misaligned, and the third gripping roller and the fourth gripping roller are misaligned. Is preferred. If comprised in this way, even if it is a case where the thickness of the up-down direction of the 1st-5th gripping roller is thick, it becomes possible to make the distance of the holding part in an up-down direction close, and can make a board | substrate mounting mechanism in an up-down direction. It becomes possible to reduce the size.

  As described above, the industrial robot of the present invention can be simplified in configuration and mounted on the hand even when the pitch is changed between a plurality of mounting portions on which the substrate is mounted. It becomes possible to hold the substrate appropriately.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS It is a top view of the industrial robot concerning embodiment of this invention, (A) is a figure which shows the state which the 1st arm and the 2nd arm contracted, (B) is the 1st arm contracting, and the 2nd arm It is a figure which shows the state which is extended. It is a side view of the industrial robot shown in FIG. It is a perspective view which shows the board | substrate mounting mechanism shown in FIG. 1 from the base end side. It is a perspective view which shows the board | substrate mounting mechanism of FIG. 3 from the other direction of the base end side. It is a perspective view which shows the state which removed the hand fork etc. from the board | substrate mounting mechanism of FIG. 3 from the front end side. It is a perspective view for demonstrating the structure of the hand shown in FIG. 3, and a 2nd base member. It is a perspective view for demonstrating the structure of the hand shown in FIG. 3, and a 2nd base member. It is a perspective view for demonstrating the structure of the hand shown in FIG. 3, and a 2nd base member. It is a perspective view for demonstrating the structure of the hand shown in FIG. 3, and a 2nd base member. It is a front view for demonstrating the structure of the hand shown in FIG. 3, and a 2nd base member. It is a schematic plan view for demonstrating the structure of the pitch change mechanism shown in FIG. 3, and a guide part. It is the schematic for demonstrating the structure of a pitch change mechanism and a guide part from the EE direction of FIG. It is the schematic for demonstrating the structure of a pitch change mechanism and a guide part from the FF direction of FIG. It is the schematic for demonstrating the structure of a pitch change mechanism and a guide part from the GG direction of FIG. It is the schematic for demonstrating the structure of a pitch change mechanism from the HH direction of FIG. It is a perspective view for demonstrating the structure of the holding | grip mechanism shown in FIG. It is a perspective view for demonstrating the structure of the holding | grip mechanism shown in FIG. It is a perspective view for demonstrating the structure of the holding | grip mechanism shown in FIG. It is a schematic plan view for demonstrating the structure of the holding | grip mechanism shown in FIG.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

[Schematic configuration of industrial robots]
FIG. 1 is a plan view of an industrial robot 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 1A is a diagram showing a state in which a first arm 4 and a second arm 6 are contracted, and FIG. It is a figure which shows the state which the arm 4 contracted and the 2nd arm 6 is extended. FIG. 2 is a side view of the industrial robot 1 shown in FIG.

  The industrial robot 1 of this embodiment (hereinafter referred to as “robot 1”) is a robot for transporting a predetermined substrate 2 such as a semiconductor wafer. For example, the robot 1 simultaneously unloads a plurality of substrates 2 from a cassette (not shown) in which a plurality of substrates 2 are stacked and stored at a predetermined pitch to constitute a semiconductor manufacturing system (not shown) and the substrates. A plurality of substrates 2 carried out from the cassette are carried into a heating furnace in which 2 are stacked and stored at a predetermined pitch. Moreover, the robot 1 carries out the several board | substrate 2 simultaneously from a heating furnace, and carries in this cassette several board | substrate 2 carried out into a cassette. In this embodiment, the pitch of the substrates 2 stored in the cassette is different from the pitch of the substrates 2 stored in the heating furnace.

  As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the robot 1 includes a substrate mounting mechanism 3 on which a plurality of substrates 2 are mounted, a first arm 4 that rotatably supports the base end side of the substrate mounting mechanism 3, and a cassette. A sensing hand 5 for detecting the storage state of the substrate 2 in the inside or the heating furnace, a second arm 6 rotatably supporting the proximal end side of the sensing hand 5, the first arm 4 and the second arm A turning mechanism portion 7 that rotatably supports the base end side of the arm 6 and a main body portion 8 that supports the turning mechanism portion 7 so as to be movable in the vertical direction are provided.

  As will be described later, the substrate mounting mechanism 3 includes a plurality of hands 18 to 22 having hand forks 13 to 17 arranged so as to overlap in the vertical direction at a predetermined pitch. In addition, as described above, in this embodiment, since the pitch of the substrates 2 stored in the cassette is different from the pitch of the substrates 2 stored in the heating furnace, the substrate mounting mechanism 3 is as described below. A pitch changing mechanism 26 for changing the pitch between the plurality of hand forks 13 to 17 is provided. The detailed configuration of the board mounting mechanism 3 will be described later.

  The sensing hand 5 includes an optical sensor composed of a light emitting element and a light receiving element on the tip side (left end side in FIG. 1). The sensing hand 5 of this embodiment moves up and down together with the turning mechanism portion 7 and the like before unloading the substrate 2 from the cassette or the like in order to detect the tilt or protrusion of the substrate 2 accommodated inside the cassette or the like. Note that, as indicated by a two-dot chain line in FIG. 1, the substrate 2 may be mounted on the sensing hand 5, and the substrate 2 may be transported between the cassette and the heating furnace by the sensing hand 5.

  The first arm 4 and the second arm 6 have two joint portions and are configured to expand and contract as a whole. The base end side of the first arm 4 and the base end side of the second arm 6 are supported by the turning mechanism unit 7 so as to be adjacent in the vertical direction of FIG. In this embodiment, the first arm 4 and the second arm 6 extend and contract individually.

  The turning mechanism unit 7 includes a first support unit 9 that supports the first arm 4 and the second arm 6, and a second support unit 10 that supports the first support unit 9. A turning mechanism for turning the first support portion 9 is housed inside the second support portion 10, and the first support portion 9 is rotatably supported by the second support portion 10. . The main body unit 8 includes an elevating member to which the second support unit 10 of the turning mechanism unit 7 is fixed, and an elevating mechanism that elevates and lowers the elevating member.

  Although the robot 1 according to the present embodiment includes the sensing hand 5 and the second arm 6, the robot 1 may not include the sensing hand 5 and the second arm 6.

[Configuration of board mounting mechanism]
FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing the substrate mounting mechanism 3 shown in FIG. 1 from the base end side. FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing the substrate mounting mechanism 3 of FIG. 3 from the other direction on the base end side. FIG. 5 is a perspective view showing the state in which the hand forks 13 to 17 are removed from the board mounting mechanism 3 of FIG. 3 from the front end side.

  In the following description, as shown in FIG. 3 and the like, the three directions orthogonal to each other are defined as an X direction, a Y direction, and a Z direction. Further, since the X1 direction side is the distal end side of the substrate mounting mechanism 3 and the X2 direction side is the proximal end side of the substrate mounting mechanism 3, in the following description, the X1 direction side is referred to as the “front end” side or the “front” side. The “X” direction and the X2 direction side are the “base end” side or the “rear (rear)” side. In the following description, the Y1 direction side is the “right” side, the Y2 direction side is the “left” side, the Z1 direction side is the “upper” side, and the Z2 direction side is the “lower” side. Furthermore, in the following description, the plane formed from the X direction and the Y direction is the XY plane, the plane formed from the Y direction and the Z direction is the YZ plane, and the plane formed from the Z direction and the X direction is ZX. A plane.

  In this embodiment, the X1 direction is a loading direction for loading the substrate 2 into the cassette or the heating furnace, and the X2 direction is a loading direction for unloading the substrate 2 from the cassette or the heating furnace. That is, the front-rear direction (X direction) is the transport direction. Moreover, the left-right direction (Y direction) of this form is an orthogonal direction orthogonal to the carrying-out direction (X2 direction) and the up-down direction (Z direction).

  The substrate mounting mechanism 3 includes five hands 18 to 22 having hand forks 13 to 17 as mounting portions on which the substrate 2 is mounted. That is, in the robot 1 of this embodiment, the five substrates 2 can be transferred simultaneously. As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the five hand forks 13 to 17 are arranged to overlap each other at a predetermined pitch. Specifically, the five hand forks 13 to 17 are arranged at substantially the same pitch. Further, as shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the hand forks 13 to 17 are arranged so that the hand fork 13, the hand fork 14, the hand fork 17, the hand fork 15, and the hand fork 16 overlap in this order from the top. .

  Further, the substrate mounting mechanism 3 includes a base member 23 attached to the first arm 4, a gripping mechanism 24 for gripping the substrate 2 mounted on the hands 18 to 22, and a gripping unit described later that constitutes the gripping mechanism 24. The detection mechanism 25 (refer FIG. 17) for detecting that 80 is holding the board | substrate 2 is provided. Further, as described above, since the robot 1 of this embodiment transports the substrate 2 between the cassette and the heating furnace having different pitches, the substrate mounting mechanism 3 changes the pitch between the hand forks 13 to 17. A change mechanism 26 is provided. The base end side of the substrate mounting mechanism 3 is covered with a cover (not shown). A fan (not shown) for exhausting the inside of the cover and a filter (not shown) attached to the exhaust side of the fan are disposed on the base end side of the board mounting mechanism 3.

  In this embodiment, the hand 22 having the hand fork 17 arranged third from the top is fixed to the base member 23. Further, the hands 18 to 21 having the hand forks 13 to 16 are movable relative to the base member 23 in the vertical direction. That is, the hand forks 13 to 16 can move relative to the hand fork 17. Therefore, the board mounting mechanism 3 includes guide portions 28 to 31 for guiding each of the hands 18 to 21 in the vertical direction.

(Configuration of base member and hand)
6 to 9 are perspective views for explaining the configuration of the hands 18 to 22 and the second base member 34 shown in FIG. FIG. 10 is a front view for explaining the configuration of the hands 18 to 22 and the second base member 34 shown in FIG. 3.

  The base member 23 includes a flat plate-like first base member 33 (see FIG. 3) serving as a bottom surface of the substrate mounting mechanism 3 and a second base member 34 fixed to the upper surface of the first base member 33. The base member 23 moves in the transport direction and the vertical direction together with the hands 18 to 22 when the substrate 2 is transported.

  As shown in FIGS. 6 to 10, the second base member 34 includes two standing portions 34 a and 34 b that are substantially parallel to the ZX plane. The standing portions 34a and 34b are formed in a state where a predetermined interval is provided in the left-right direction. A rail fixing groove 34c for fixing a later-described guide rail 50 constituting the guide portions 28 and 29 is formed on the right side surface of the standing portion 34a disposed on the right side, and the left side surface of the standing portion 34b disposed on the left side. A rail fixing groove 34d for fixing a guide rail 50 (described later) constituting the guide portions 30 and 31 is formed. A lever mounting portion 34e to which a later-described first lever member 52 constituting the pitch changing mechanism 26 is rotatably mounted is formed at the upper end on the rear end side of the standing portion 34a.

  As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the front ends of the hand forks 13 to 17 are formed in a bifurcated shape. Moreover, the base end side of the hand forks 13-17 is also formed in the forked shape. Further, a substrate end abutting member 12 for holding the substrate 2 together with the holding mechanism 24 is attached to the front end side of the hand forks 13 to 17.

  In addition to the hand fork 13, the hand 18 includes two fixing members 35 and 36 to which the hand fork 13 is fixed and a connection member 37 that connects the fixing members 35 and 36, as shown in FIGS. 6 to 10. ing. Similarly, the hand 19 includes, in addition to the hand fork 14, two fixing members 38 and 39 to which the hand fork 14 is fixed, and a connection member 40 that connects the fixing members 38 and 39. 15, two fixing members 41 and 42 to which the hand fork 15 is fixed, and a connection member 43 that connects the fixing members 41 and 42. The hand 21 is fixed to the hand fork 16 in addition to the hand fork 16. The two fixing members 44 and 45 and the connection member 46 that connects the fixing members 44 and 45 are provided. In addition to the hand fork 17, the hand 22 includes a fixing member 47 to which the hand fork 17 is fixed.

  The fixing members 35, 36, 44, 45 are arranged on the front side of the second base member 34, and are connected on the front side of the second base member 34 by connection members 37, 46. The fixing members 38, 39, 41, 42 are arranged on the rear surface side of the second base member 34, and are connected on the rear surface side of the second base member 34 by the connection members 40, 43. The fixing members 35, 38, 42, 45 are arranged on the right side of the second base member 34, and the fixing members 36, 39, 41, 44 are arranged on the left side of the second base member 34.

  The fixing member 35 includes a fork fixing portion 35a that is substantially parallel to the XY plane and that fixes the proximal end side of the hand fork 13, a connection member fixing portion 35b that is substantially parallel to the YZ plane and to which the connection member 37 is fixed, and a ZX plane. It is comprised from the block fixing | fixed part 35c to which the below-mentioned guide block 51 which comprises the guide part 28 substantially parallel is fixed. The block fixing portion 35c is formed in a substantially rectangular shape whose longitudinal direction is the vertical direction. The fork fixing part 35a and the connecting member fixing part 35b are formed on the upper end side of the block fixing part 35c. Further, the fork fixing portion 35a is disposed so as to protrude to the right side.

  The fixing member 36 includes a fork fixing portion 36a that is substantially parallel to the XY plane and that fixes the proximal end side of the hand fork 13 and a connection member fixing portion 36b that is substantially parallel to the YZ plane and to which the connection member 37 is fixed. Yes. The fork fixing portion 36a is disposed so as to protrude to the left side.

  The connecting member 37 holds a connecting member 37a that is substantially parallel to the YZ plane and fixed to the connecting member fixing portion 35b and the connecting member fixing portion 36b, and a shaft member 87 that will be described later and that is substantially parallel to the XY plane and constitutes the gripping mechanism 24. The shaft holding portion 37b is formed so that the shape when viewed in the vertical direction is a T shape. The connecting portion 37 a is disposed on the front side of the second base member 34, and the shaft holding portion 37 b is disposed between the standing portions 34 a and 34 b of the second base member 34.

  The fixing member 38 includes a fork fixing portion 38a that is substantially parallel to the XY plane and the base end side of the hand fork 14 is fixed, a connecting member fixing portion 38b that is substantially parallel to the YZ plane and to which the connecting member 40 is fixed, and a ZX plane. A block fixing part 38c to which a later-described guide block 51 constituting the guide part 29 is fixed substantially parallel, and a connection plate fixing part to which a later-described connecting plate 70 constituting the pitch changing mechanism 26 substantially parallel to the XY plane is fixed. 38d. The block fixing portion 38c is formed in a substantially rectangular shape whose longitudinal direction is the vertical direction. The fork fixing portion 38a and the connecting member fixing portion 38b are formed at an intermediate position of the block fixing portion 38c in the vertical direction, and the connection plate fixing portion 38d is formed on the lower end side of the block fixing portion 38c. Further, the fork fixing portion 38a and the connection plate fixing portion 38d are arranged so as to protrude to the right side.

  The fixing member 39 includes a fork fixing portion 39a that is substantially parallel to the XY plane and that fixes the proximal end side of the hand fork 14 and a connection member fixing portion 39b that is substantially parallel to the YZ plane and to which the connecting member 40 is fixed. Yes. The fork fixing part 39a is arranged so as to protrude to the left side.

  The connecting member 40 includes a connecting portion 40a that is substantially parallel to the YZ plane and fixed to the connecting member fixing portion 38b and the connecting member fixing portion 39b, and a shaft holding portion 40b that is substantially parallel to the XY plane and holds a shaft member 87 described later. And is formed so that the shape when viewed from above and below is a T shape. The connecting portion 40 a is disposed on the rear surface side of the second base member 34, and the shaft holding portion 40 b is disposed between the standing portions 34 a and 34 b of the second base member 34.

  The fixing member 41 includes a fork fixing part 41a that is substantially parallel to the XY plane and the base end side of the hand fork 15 is fixed, a connection member fixing part 41b that is substantially parallel to the YZ plane and to which the connection member 43 is fixed, and a ZX plane. It is comprised from the block fixing | fixed part 41c to which the below-mentioned guide block 51 which comprises the guide part 30 substantially parallel is fixed. The block fixing portion 41c is formed in a substantially rectangular shape whose longitudinal direction is the vertical direction. The fork fixing portion 41a and the connecting member fixing portion 41b are formed at an intermediate position of the block fixing portion 41c in the vertical direction. Further, the fork fixing portion 41a is disposed so as to protrude to the left side.

  The fixing member 42 includes a fork fixing portion 42a that is substantially parallel to the XY plane and that fixes the proximal end side of the hand fork 15 and a connection member fixing portion 42b that is substantially parallel to the YZ plane and to which the connection member 43 is fixed. Yes. The fork fixing portion 42a is disposed so as to protrude to the right side.

  The connecting member 43 includes a connecting portion 43a that is substantially parallel to the YZ plane and fixed to the connecting member fixing portion 41b and the connecting member fixing portion 42b, and a shaft holding portion 43b that is substantially parallel to the XY plane and holds a shaft member 87 described later. And is formed so that the shape when viewed from above and below is a T shape. The connection portion 43a is disposed on the rear surface side of the second base member 34, and the shaft holding portion 43b is disposed between the standing portions 34a and 34b of the second base member 34.

  The fixing member 44 includes a fork fixing portion 44a that is substantially parallel to the XY plane and that fixes the proximal end side of the hand fork 16, a connection member fixing portion 44b that is substantially parallel to the YZ plane and to which the connection member 46 is fixed, and a ZX plane. It is comprised from the block fixing | fixed part 44c to which the below-mentioned guide block 51 which comprises the guide part 31 substantially parallel is fixed. The block fixing portion 44c is formed in a substantially rectangular shape whose longitudinal direction is the vertical direction. The fork fixing portion 44a and the connection member fixing portion 44b are formed on the lower end side of the block fixing portion 41c. Moreover, the fork fixing | fixed part 44a is arrange | positioned so that it may protrude on the left side.

  The fixing member 45 includes a fork fixing portion 45a that is substantially parallel to the XY plane and that fixes the proximal end side of the hand fork 16 and a connection member fixing portion 45b that is substantially parallel to the YZ plane and to which the connection member 46 is fixed. Yes. The fork fixing part 45a is disposed so as to protrude to the right side.

  The connection member 46 includes a connection portion 46a that is substantially parallel to the YZ plane and is fixed to the connection member fixing portion 44b and the connection member fixing portion 45b, and a shaft holding portion 46b that is substantially parallel to the XY plane and holds a shaft member 87 described later. And is formed so that the shape when viewed from above and below is a T shape. The connecting portion 46 a is disposed on the front side of the second base member 34, and the shaft holding portion 46 b is disposed between the standing portions 34 a and 34 b of the second base member 34.

  The fixing member 47 includes two fork fixing portions 47a that are substantially parallel to the XY plane and the base end side of the hand fork 17 is fixed, and a shaft holding portion 47b that is substantially parallel to the XY plane and holds a shaft member 87 described later. It is comprised and it is formed so that the shape when it sees from an up-down direction may become a substantially T shape. The fixing member 47 is fixed to the second base member 34 such that the fork fixing portion 47 a is disposed on the front side of the second base member 34. Further, the fork fixing part 47a protrudes to the front side.

  As described above, the fixing members 35 and 36 are disposed on the front surface side of the second base member 34, and the fixing members 38 and 39 are disposed on the rear surface side of the second base member 34. Therefore, when viewed from the vertical direction, the fork fixing portion 35a and the fork fixing portion 38a are displaced in the front-rear direction, and the fork fixing portion 36a and the fork fixing portion 39a are displaced in the front-rear direction. The fixing members 41 and 42 are disposed on the rear surface side of the second base member 34, and the fixing members 44 and 45 are disposed on the front surface side of the second base member 34. Therefore, when viewed from the vertical direction, the fork fixing portion 41a and the fork fixing portion 44a are displaced in the front-rear direction, and the fork fixing portion 42a and the fork fixing portion 45a are displaced in the front-rear direction.

  The fork fixing part 35a and the fork fixing part 45a are arranged so as to overlap in the vertical direction, and the fork fixing part 38a and the fork fixing part 42a are arranged so as to overlap in the vertical direction. Further, the fork fixing part 36a and the fork fixing part 44a are arranged so as to overlap in the vertical direction, and the fork fixing part 39a and the fork fixing part 41a are arranged so as to overlap in the vertical direction.

  In this embodiment, the hand fork 13 is fixed to the lower surfaces of the fork fixing portions 35a and 36a, and the hand fork 14 is fixed to the lower surfaces of the fork fixing portions 38a and 39a. Further, the hand fork 15 is fixed to the upper surfaces of the fork fixing portions 41a and 42a, and the hand fork 16 is fixed to the upper surfaces of the fork fixing portions 38a and 39a. Further, the hand fork 17 is fixed to the upper surface of the fork fixing portion 47a.

(Configuration of pitch change mechanism and guide)
FIG. 11 is a schematic plan view for explaining the configuration of the pitch changing mechanism 26 and the guide portions 28 to 31 shown in FIG. 3. FIG. 12 is a schematic diagram for explaining the configuration of the pitch changing mechanism 26 and the guide portions 28 to 31 from the EE direction of FIG. 11. FIG. 13 is a schematic diagram for explaining the configuration of the pitch changing mechanism 26 and the guide portions 28 to 31 from the FF direction of FIG. 11. FIG. 14 is a schematic diagram for explaining the configuration of the pitch changing mechanism 26 and the guide portions 28 to 31 from the GG direction of FIG. 11. FIG. 15 is a schematic diagram for explaining the configuration of the pitch changing mechanism 26 from the direction HH in FIG.

  The guide portions 28 to 31 include a guide rail 50 fixed to the second base member 34 and a guide block 51 that engages with the guide rail 50.

  The guide rails 50 constituting the guide portions 28 and 29 are fixed so as to be adjacent to the rail fixing groove 34c of the standing portion 34a in the front-rear direction. Specifically, the guide rail 50 constituting the guide portion 28 is fixed to the front end side of the rail fixing groove 34c, and the guide rail 50 constituting the guide portion 29 is fixed to the rear end side of the rail fixing groove 34c. Moreover, the guide rail 50 which comprises the guide parts 30 and 31 is being fixed so that it may adjoin to the rail fixing groove 34d of the standing part 34b in the front-back direction. Specifically, the guide rail 50 constituting the guide portion 30 is fixed to the rear end side of the rail fixing groove 34d, and the guide rail 50 constituting the guide portion 31 is fixed to the front end side of the rail fixing groove 34d.

  As shown in FIG. 11, in the front-rear direction, the guide rail 50 constituting the guide portion 28 and the guide rail 50 constituting the guide portion 31 are arranged at substantially the same position, and the guide rail 50 constituting the guide portion 29 and the guide are arranged. The guide rail 50 which comprises the part 30 is arrange | positioned in the substantially the same position.

  The guide block 51 constituting the guide portion 28 is fixed to the left side surface of the block fixing portion 35c, and the guide block 51 constituting the guide portion 29 is fixed to the left side surface of the block fixing portion 38c. The guide block 51 constituting the guide portion 30 is fixed to the right side surface of the block fixing portion 41c, and the guide block 51 constituting the guide portion 31 is fixed to the right side surface of the block fixing portion 44c. In this embodiment, two guide blocks 51 are fixed to each of the block fixing portions 35c, 38c, 41c, and 44c. The two guide blocks 51 are arranged at a predetermined interval in the vertical direction.

  The pitch changing mechanism 26 includes a first lever member 52 to which the hands 18 and 19 are connected, a second lever member 53 to which the hands 20 and 21 are connected, and a first lever member that rotatably supports the first lever member 52. A fulcrum shaft 54, a second fulcrum shaft 55 that rotatably supports the second lever member 53, a hand connecting portion 56 that is a connecting portion between the hands 18, 19 and the first lever member 52, and the hands 20, 21 And a second lever member 53, and a hand connecting portion 57, which is a connecting portion between the first lever member 52 and the second lever member 53.

  The first fulcrum shaft 54 is fixed to the lever mounting portion 34e of the second base member 34 with the left-right direction as the axial direction. As shown in FIG. 11, the second fulcrum shaft 55 is fixed to a shaft support member 59 fixed to the upper surface of the first base member 33 behind the upright portion 34 b of the second base member 34 with the left-right direction as the axial direction. Has been. In this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 11, the first fulcrum shaft 54 and the second fulcrum shaft 55 are arranged at substantially the same position in the front-rear direction.

  The first lever member 52 is disposed on the upper end side of the board mounting mechanism 3 as shown in FIG. As shown in FIG. 11, the distal end side of the first lever member 52 is disposed on the right side of the block fixing portions 35c and 38c, and the proximal end of the first lever member 52 rotates around the first fulcrum shaft 54 via a bearing. It is supported movably.

  The second lever member 53 is disposed on the lower end side of the substrate mounting mechanism 3 as shown in FIG. As shown in FIG. 11, the distal end side of the second lever member 53 is arranged on the left side of the block fixing portions 41c and 44c. Further, the intermediate position of the second lever member 53 in the front-rear direction is rotatably supported by the second fulcrum shaft 55 via a bearing. The base end of the second lever member 53 is connected to the drive mechanism 58 via a lever connecting portion 60 that is a connecting portion between the second lever member 53 and the drive mechanism 58.

  The hand connecting portions 56 and 57 include a protruding member (specifically, a cam follower) 63 having a fixed shaft 61 whose axial direction is the left-right direction and a roller 62 rotatably supported by the fixed shaft 61, and the roller 62 And a guide member 64 in which an engaging groove 64a to be engaged is formed. The guide member 64 is formed in a substantially square groove shape as a whole.

  As shown in FIG. 12 and the like, the guide member 64 constituting the hand connecting portion 56 is fixed to the upper end side of the block fixing portions 35c and 38c. Moreover, the guide member 64 which comprises the hand connection part 57 is being fixed to the lower end side of the block fixing | fixed part 41c, 44c, as shown in FIG. In the present embodiment, the guide member 64 is fixed to the block fixing portions 35c, 38c, 41c, and 44c so that the longitudinal direction of the engaging groove 64a substantially coincides with the front-rear direction.

  As shown in FIGS. 11 and 12, the fixed shaft 61 constituting the hand connecting portion 56 is fixed at a position away from the first fulcrum shaft 54 by a predetermined distance along the longitudinal direction of the first lever member 52. Yes. In this embodiment, the two fixed shafts 61 and the first fulcrum shafts 54 constituting the hand connecting portion 56 are arranged on substantially the same straight line when viewed from the left and right directions as shown in FIG. The fixed shaft 61 is fixed to the first lever member 52 so as to protrude leftward from the first lever member 52. In this embodiment, the distance in the front-rear direction from the fixed shaft 61 constituting the hand connecting portion 56 between the hand 18 and the first lever member 52 to the first fulcrum shaft 54 is the hand connection between the hand 19 and the first lever member 52. The distance in the front-rear direction from the fixed shaft 61 constituting the portion 56 to the first fulcrum shaft 54 is approximately twice.

  As shown in FIGS. 11 and 13, the fixed shaft 61 constituting the hand connecting portion 57 is fixed at a position away from the second fulcrum shaft 55 by a predetermined distance along the longitudinal direction of the second lever member 53. Yes. In this embodiment, the two fixed shafts 61 and the second fulcrum shaft 55 constituting the hand connecting portion 57 are arranged on substantially the same straight line when viewed from the left-right direction as shown in FIG. The fixed shaft 61 is fixed to the second lever member 53 in front of the second fulcrum shaft 55 and is fixed to the second lever member 53 so as to protrude rightward from the second lever member 53. Yes. In this embodiment, the distance in the front-rear direction from the fixed shaft 61 constituting the hand connecting portion 57 between the hand 21 and the second lever member 53 to the second fulcrum shaft 55 is the hand connection between the hand 20 and the second lever member 53. The distance in the front-rear direction from the fixed shaft 61 constituting the portion 57 to the second fulcrum shaft 55 is approximately twice.

  Further, in this embodiment, the distance in the front-rear direction from the fixed shaft 61 to the first fulcrum shaft 54 constituting the hand connecting portion 56 between the hand 18 and the first lever member 52, and the hand 21 and the second lever member 53. The distance in the front-rear direction from the fixed shaft 61 constituting the hand connecting portion 57 to the second fulcrum shaft 55 is substantially equal. That is, the distance in the front-rear direction from the fixed shaft 61 to the first fulcrum shaft 54 constituting the hand connecting portion 56 between the hand 19 and the first lever member 52, and the hand connecting portion 57 between the hand 20 and the second lever member 53. The distance in the front-rear direction from the fixed shaft 61 to the second fulcrum shaft 55 is substantially equal.

  The drive mechanism 58 includes a single motor 65 that serves as a drive source, a single male screw member 66 that is rotated by the power of the motor 65, a nut member 67 that engages with the male screw member 66, and a nut member 67 that is fixed to the top and bottom. A linear motion member 68 that linearly moves in the direction, a guide portion 69 that guides the linear motion member 68 in the vertical direction, and a connection plate 70 that connects the linear motion member 68 and the fixing member 38 are provided. The motor 65, the male screw member 66, and the nut member 67 are disposed at the corner on the right proximal end side of the board mounting mechanism 3. The linear motion member 68 is disposed on the base end side of the substrate mounting mechanism 3.

  The power of the motor 65 is transmitted to the male screw member 66 via the pulley 71 and the belt 72. The male screw member 66 is rotatably supported by a support member 73 (see FIG. 15) fixed to the upper surface of the first base member 33 via a bearing or the like. The guide portion 69 includes a guide rail 74 fixed to the support member 73 and a guide block 75 fixed to the linear motion member 68 and engaged with the guide rail 74. The connection plate 70 is fixed to the front end side of the linear motion member 68 and is fixed to the connection plate fixing portion 38 d of the fixing member 38. That is, the hand 19 is fixed to the linear motion member 68 through the connection plate 70.

  A lever connecting portion 60 that is a connecting portion between the second lever member 53 and the drive mechanism 58 is a roller 76 that is rotatably supported by a fixed shaft that is fixed to the base end of the second lever member 53 with the left-right direction as an axial direction. And an engaging member 77 in which an engaging groove 77a with which the roller 76 is engaged is formed. The engagement member 77 is fixed to the linear motion member 68. Specifically, the engagement member 77 is fixed to the linear motion member 68 by a bolt (not shown) inserted through a through hole formed on the left end side of the linear motion member 68. The through-hole formed in the linear motion member 68 is a long hole that is long in the vertical direction, and the fixing position of the engaging member 77 to the linear motion member 68 in the vertical direction can be adjusted. As shown in FIG. 13, the fixed shaft that rotatably supports the roller 76, the two fixed shafts 61 that constitute the hand connecting portion 57, and the second fulcrum shaft 55 are viewed from the left-right direction. Are arranged on substantially the same straight line. In addition, a cam follower is configured by the fixed shaft and the roller 76 that rotatably support the roller 76.

  In this embodiment, the distance in the front-rear direction from the roller 76 to the second fulcrum shaft 55 is the front-rear direction from the fixed shaft 61 constituting the hand connecting portion 57 between the hand 20 and the second lever member 53 to the second fulcrum shaft 55. Is approximately equal to the distance at. That is, the distance in the front-rear direction from the roller 76 to the second fulcrum shaft 55 is the distance in the front-rear direction from the fixed shaft 61 constituting the hand connecting portion 56 between the hand 19 and the first lever member 52 to the first fulcrum shaft 54. It is almost equal.

  In the pitch changing mechanism 26 configured as described above, when the motor 65 rotates and the linear motion member 68 rises, the connection plate 70 rises together with the linear motion member 68. When the connection plate 70 rises, the fixing member 38 to which the connection plate 70 is fixed rises, so that the roller 62 that engages with the guide member 64 fixed to the fixing member 38 rises, and the tip of the first lever member 52 The first lever member 52 rotates about the first fulcrum shaft 54 so that the side rises. In other words, in this embodiment, the hand connecting portion 56 between the hand 19 and the first lever member 52 is a power point of the first lever member 52. When the distal end side of the first lever member 52 rises, the fixing member 35 also rises. That is, when the linear motion member 68 rises, the hands 18 and 19 rise.

  On the other hand, when the connection plate 70 is lowered together with the linear motion member 68, the first lever member 52 is rotated around the first fulcrum shaft 54 so that the fixing member 38 is lowered and the distal end side of the first lever member 52 is lowered. Move. When the distal end side of the first lever member 52 is lowered, the fixing member 35 is also lowered. That is, when the linear motion member 68 is lowered, the hands 18 and 19 are lowered.

  Further, when the motor 65 rotates and the linear motion member 68 rises, the engagement member 77 rises together with the linear motion member 68. When the engaging member 77 rises, the second lever member 53 rotates about the second fulcrum shaft 55 so that the distal end side of the second lever member 53 descends. That is, in this embodiment, the lever connecting portion 60 is a power point of the second lever member 53. When the distal end side of the second lever member 53 is lowered, the fixing members 41 and 44 are also lowered. That is, when the linear motion member 68 is raised, the hands 20 and 21 are lowered.

  On the other hand, when the engaging member 77 descends together with the linear motion member 68, the second lever member 53 rotates about the second fulcrum shaft 55 so that the tip end side of the second lever member 53 rises. When the distal end side of the second lever member 53 is raised, the fixing members 41 and 44 are also raised. That is, when the linear motion member 68 is lowered, the hands 20 and 21 are raised.

  Thus, in this embodiment, the force point of the first lever member 52 is disposed on the front side of the first fulcrum shaft 54, and the force point of the second lever member 53 is disposed on the rear side of the second fulcrum shaft 55. Therefore, the first lever member 52 and the second lever member 53 rotate in opposite directions with the vertical movement of the linear motion member 68.

  In this embodiment, as described above, the first fulcrum shaft 54 and the second fulcrum shaft 55 are arranged at substantially the same position in the front-rear direction. The distance in the front-rear direction from the roller 76 to the second fulcrum shaft 55 is the distance in the front-rear direction from the fixed shaft 61 that constitutes the hand connecting portion 56 between the hand 19 and the first lever member 52 to the first fulcrum shaft 54. It is almost equal. That is, the distance from the power point of the first lever member 52 to the first fulcrum shaft 54 is substantially equal to the distance from the power point of the second lever member 53 to the second fulcrum shaft 55. Further, the distance in the front-rear direction from the fixed shaft 61 constituting the hand connecting portion 56 of the hand 18 and the first lever member 52 to the first fulcrum shaft 54 is the hand connecting portion 56 between the hand 19 and the first lever member 52. Is approximately twice the distance in the front-rear direction from the fixed shaft 61 to the first fulcrum shaft 54, and the fixed shaft 61 to the second fulcrum shaft 55 constituting the hand connecting portion 57 between the hand 21 and the second lever member 53. The distance in the front-rear direction is approximately twice the distance in the front-rear direction from the fixed shaft 61 to the second fulcrum shaft 55 constituting the hand connecting portion 57 between the hand 20 and the second lever member 53. Furthermore, the distance in the front-rear direction from the fixed shaft 61 to the first fulcrum shaft 54 constituting the hand connecting portion 56 between the hand 18 and the first lever member 52, and the hand connecting portion between the hand 21 and the second lever member 53. The distance in the front-rear direction from the fixed shaft 61 constituting the 57 to the second fulcrum shaft 55 is substantially equal.

  For this reason, when the linear motion member 68 is raised, the rising amount of the hand 18 and the descending amount of the hand 21 are substantially equal, and the rising amount of the hand 19 and the descending amount of the hand 20 are substantially equal. Further, the amount of movement of the hand 18 when the linear motion member 68 is raised is approximately twice the amount of movement of the hand 19, and the amount of movement of the hand 21 when the linear motion member 68 is raised is the amount of movement of the hand 20. About twice the amount. Further, when the linear motion member 68 descends, the descending amount of the hand 18 and the ascending amount of the hand 21 are substantially equal, and the descending amount of the hand 19 and the ascending amount of the hand 20 are approximately equal. Further, the descending amount of the hand 18 is approximately twice the descending amount of the hand 19, and the ascending amount of the hand 21 is approximately twice the ascending amount of the hand 20.

  In this embodiment, the pitch changing operation between the hand forks 13 to 17 is performed during the transfer of the substrate 2 between the cassette and the heating furnace. That is, the pitch changing operation between the hand forks 13 to 17 is performed in a state where the substrate 2 is mounted on the hand forks 13 to 17.

(Configuration of gripping mechanism)
16 to 18 are perspective views for explaining the configuration of the gripping mechanism 24 shown in FIG. FIG. 19 is a schematic plan view for explaining the configuration of the gripping mechanism 24 shown in FIG.

  The gripping mechanism 24 abuts against the substrate 2 mounted on the hands 18 to 22 and a plurality of gripping portions 80 for gripping the substrate 2 and a biasing force for biasing the gripping portion 80 in the gripping direction for gripping the substrate 2. A plurality of compression coil springs 81 as members are provided. In this embodiment, the gripping mechanism 24 includes five gripping portions 80 and five compression coil springs 81 in order to grip the substrates 2 mounted on the hands 18 to 22 individually. In addition, the gripping mechanism 24 is in contact with the five gripping portions 80 and moves the gripping portion 80 in the retracting direction to retract from the substrate 2, and is connected to the moving member 82 and moves in the gripping direction and the retracting direction. An air cylinder 83 as a drive source for driving 82 and a regulating member 84 for regulating the movement of the gripping portion 80 in the gripping direction are provided. In this embodiment, the X1 direction is the gripping direction, and the X2 direction is the retracting direction.

  The gripping portion 80 includes two gripping rollers 85 that are disposed on the front end side of the gripping portion 80 and can contact the substrate 2, a roller support portion 86 that rotatably supports the gripping roller 85, and a roller support portion Two shaft members 87 extending from 86 to the base end side of the gripping portion 80, a connecting member 88 connecting the base end portions of the two shaft members 87, and a spring insertion shaft 89 inserted through the compression coil spring 81. And. The two gripping rollers 85 are arranged with a predetermined interval in the left-right direction. The two shaft members 87 are also arranged with a predetermined interval in the left-right direction.

  In this embodiment, the arrangement pitch of the gripping rollers 85 of the gripping unit 80 that grips the substrate 2 mounted on the hands 13, 16, and 17 and the gripping of the gripping unit 80 that grips the substrate 2 mounted on the hands 14 and 15. The arrangement pitch of the rollers 85 for use is different. Therefore, when two types of gripping portions 80 having different arrangement pitches of the gripping rollers 85 are distinguished from each other, the gripping portion 80 that grips the substrate 2 mounted on the hands 13, 16, and 17 is referred to as “gripping portion 80 </ b> A”, A gripping portion 80 that grips the substrate 2 mounted on the hands 14 and 15 is referred to as a “gripping portion 80B”.

  The gripping roller 85 is disposed on the base end side of the hand forks 13 to 17. As shown in FIG. 18, the arrangement pitch of the gripping rollers 85 of the gripping part 80B is wider than the pitch of the gripping rollers 85 of the gripping part 80A. Specifically, when viewed from above and below, the gripping roller 85 of the gripping portion 80A and the gripping roller 85 of the gripping portion 80B do not overlap and are displaced in the left-right direction.

  The distal end of the shaft member 87 is fixed to the roller support portion 86, and the proximal end of the shaft member 87 is fixed to the connecting member 88. Two shaft members 87 are formed so as to penetrate the shaft holding portions 37b, 40b, 43b, 46b of the connection members 37, 40, 43, 46 and the shaft holding portion 47b of the fixing member 47 in the front-rear direction. The insertion holes 37c, 40c, 43c, 46c, 47c (see FIG. 10) are inserted. The shaft member 87 is inserted into the insertion holes 37c, 40c, 43c, 46c, and 47c so as to be slidable in the front-rear direction. In addition, the sliding bearing which supports the shaft member 87 so that sliding is possible is attached to the both ends of insertion hole 37c, 40c, 43c, 46c, 47c.

  The tip of the spring insertion shaft 89 is fixed to the roller support portion 86. Further, the base end side of the spring insertion shaft 89 penetrates the shaft holding portions 37b, 40b, 43b, 46b of the connection members 37, 40, 43, 46 and the shaft holding portion 47b of the fixing member 47 in the front-rear direction. The through holes 37d, 40d, 43d, 46d, 47d (see FIG. 10) are formed. The shaft member 87 is inserted into the through holes 37d, 40d, 43d, 46d, and 47d so as to be slidable in the front-rear direction. Further, as shown in FIG. 19, an abutting step portion 89 a with which the distal end of the compression coil spring 81 abuts is formed on the distal end side of the spring insertion shaft 89.

  As described above, the shaft member 87 is inserted into the insertion holes 37c, 40c, 43c, 46c, and 47c, and the spring insertion shaft 89 is inserted into the through holes 37d, 40d, 43d, 46d, and 47d. That is, the gripping portion 80 is held by the connection members 37, 40, 43, 46 and the fixing member 47. In other words, the grip part 80 is held by each of the hands 18 to 22. Therefore, the shaft member 87 inserted into the insertion holes 37c, 40c, 43c, 46c and the spring insertion shaft 89 inserted into the through holes 37d, 40d, 43d, 46d move up and down together with the hands 18-21. That is, the gripping portion 80 for gripping the substrate 2 mounted on the hand forks 13 to 16 moves up and down together with the hands 18 to 21.

  As shown in FIG. 19, the compression coil spring 81 that biases the gripping portion 80 for gripping the substrate 2 mounted on the hand 18 is in a state where the proximal end side of the spring insertion shaft 89 is inserted on the inner peripheral side thereof. Are disposed inside the through hole 37d. That is, the compression coil spring 81 is held by the hand 18. The proximal end of the compression coil spring 81 is in contact with a contact step portion 37e formed in the through hole 37d. Similarly, the other four compression coil springs 81 are also arranged inside the through holes 40d, 43d, 46d, and 47d in a state where the proximal end side of the spring insertion shaft 89 is inserted on the inner peripheral side thereof. That is, each of the other four compression coil springs 81 is held by each of the hands 19 to 22. The base ends of these compression coil springs 81 are in contact with contact step portions (not shown) formed in the through holes 40d, 43d, 46d, and 47d.

  The air cylinder 83 is fixed to a support member 90 fixed to the upper surface of the first base member 33. Specifically, the rod of the air cylinder 83 is fixed to the support member 90 so as to protrude toward the base end side. As shown in FIG. 16, a guide cylinder 91 for guiding the moving member 82 in the front-rear direction is fixed to the support member 90.

  The moving member 82 includes a rod fixing portion 82a to which the rod of the air cylinder 83 is fixed, a first contact portion 82b that contacts the connecting member 88 when the five gripping portions 80 are retracted together from the substrate 2, And a second contact portion 82c that can contact the rear surface of the connecting member 88. A guide shaft 92 that passes through the inner peripheral side of the guide tube 91 is fixed to the rod fixing portion 82a (see FIG. 16).

  The first abutting portion 82b is formed in a rectangular shape whose longitudinal direction is the vertical direction, and is disposed between the two shaft members 87 in the horizontal direction as shown in FIG. Specifically, the connection member 88 is formed with a recess that is recessed from the front surface toward the rear surface, and the first contact portion 82 b is disposed in the recess of the connection member 88. Further, the vertical length of the first abutting portion 82 b is a length that can abut on all of the five connecting members 88. For this reason, when the five gripping portions 80 are retracted from the substrate 2, the first contact portions 82 b are in contact with the bottom surfaces of the recesses of the five connecting members 88.

  The second contact portion 82c is formed in a rectangular shape whose longitudinal direction is the vertical direction, and is disposed on the rear side of the connecting member 88 as shown in FIG. The length of the second contact portion 82 c in the vertical direction is a length that can contact all of the five connecting members 88. In this embodiment, the gripping portion 80 is biased in the gripping direction for gripping the substrate 2 by the compression coil spring 81, and the gripping portion 80 normally moves in the gripping direction by the biasing force of the compression coil spring 81. However, when a problem occurs in the compression coil spring 81 or the like and the gripping portion 80 does not move smoothly in the gripping direction due to the urging force of the compression coil spring 81, the second contact portion 82c contacts the back surface of the connecting member 88 and grips. The part 80 is moved in the gripping direction.

  As shown in FIG. 19, the regulating member 84 that regulates the movement of the grip portion 80 that grips the substrate 2 mounted on the hand 18 is fixed to the rear surface of the shaft holding portion 37 b of the connection member 37. It protrudes rearward from the rear surface. Similarly, the other restricting members 84 are also fixed to the rear surfaces of the shaft holding portions 40b, 43b, 46b of the connection members 40, 43, 46 and the rear surface of the shaft holding portion 47b of the fixing member 47. , 46 and the rear surface of the fixing member 47 protrude rearward. When the board 2 is not mounted on the hand forks 13 to 17 and the moving member 82 moves in the gripping direction, the regulating member 84 is a contact block 93 that is fixed to the concave portion of the connecting member 88 (see FIG. 19). ) To regulate the movement of the gripping portion 80 toward the gripping direction.

  In the gripping mechanism 24 configured as described above, the gripper 80 grips the substrate 2 by the urging force of the compression coil spring 81. At this time, a gap is formed between the first and second contact portions 82b and 82c and the connecting member 88 in the front-rear direction. That is, the moving member 82 is separated from the gripping portion 80 when the gripping portion 80 is gripping the substrate 2.

  In this state, when the rod of the air cylinder 83 protrudes and the moving member 82 moves rearward, the first abutting portion 82 b comes into contact with the connecting member 88 and the gripping portion 80 is retracted from the substrate 2. Further, when the rod of the air cylinder 83 is retracted and the moving member 82 moves forward while the gripping portion 80 is retracted from the substrate 2, the gripping portion 80 is moved forward by the biasing force of the compression coil spring 81. 2 abuts. At this time, the first contact portion 82 b is in contact with the connecting member 88 until the gripping portion 80 is in contact with the substrate 2. Further, even after the gripping portion 80 comes into contact with the substrate 2, the moving member 82 further moves forward so that a gap is formed between the first contact portion 82 b and the second contact portion 82 c and the connecting member 88. Moving. That is, at the stroke end of the air cylinder 83, a gap is formed between the first contact portion 82 b and the second contact portion 82 c and the connecting member 88.

  As described above, the pitch changing operation between the hand forks 13 to 17 is performed in a state where the substrate 2 is mounted on the hand forks 13 to 17. Specifically, the operation of changing the pitch between the hand forks 13 to 17 is performed in a state where the substrate 2 is mounted on the hand forks 13 to 17 and the substrate 2 is held by the holding unit 80. Therefore, when the operation of changing the pitch between the hand forks 13 to 17 is performed, a gap is formed between the first contact portion 82 b and the second contact portion 82 c and the connecting member 88. That is, when the pitch changing operation between the hand forks 13 to 17 is performed, the moving member 82 is separated from the grip portion 80.

  Even when the board 2 is not mounted on the hand forks 13 to 17 and the restricting member 84 is in contact with the contact block 93, the first contact portion 82b and the second contact portion 82c in the front-rear direction. A gap is formed between the connection member 88 and the connection member 88.

(Configuration of detection mechanism)
As shown in FIG. 17, the detection mechanism 25 includes five sensors 95 as detection units for detecting the positions of the five gripping units 80 in the front-rear direction. The sensor 95 of the present embodiment is an optical sensor in which a light emitting element and a light receiving element are arranged to face each other. The five sensors 95 are fixed to the shaft holding portions 37b, 40b, 43b, 46b of the connection members 37, 40, 43, and 46 and the shaft holding portion 47b of the fixing member 47 via predetermined attachment members. That is, the sensor 95 is held in each of the hands 18 to 22. Therefore, the sensor 95 fixed to the shaft holding portions 37b, 40b, 43b, 46b moves up and down together with the hands 18-21.

  The detection mechanism 25 includes a detection plate 96 as a detected portion that passes between the light emitting element and the light receiving element of the sensor 95. The detection plate 96 is fixed or formed on each of the five connecting members 88. That is, the detection plate 96 is held by each of the five grip portions 80. Therefore, the detection plate 96 fixed to the grip part 80 for gripping the substrate 2 mounted on the hand forks 13 to 16 moves up and down together with the grip part 80.

  As shown in FIG. 19, the detection plate 96 has a slit 96a. In this embodiment, the slit 96 a is disposed between the light emitting element and the light receiving element of the sensor 95 when the gripping part 80 is gripping the substrate 2. Therefore, when the light receiving element of the sensor 95 receives light from the light emitting element, it is detected that the substrate 2 is gripped by the gripping portion 80.

[Main effects of this embodiment]
As described above, in this embodiment, the gripping mechanism 24 includes the five gripping portions 80 and the five compression coil springs 81 in order to grip the substrates 2 mounted on the hands 18 to 22 individually. . Each of the gripping portion 80 and the compression coil spring 81 is held by each of the hands 18 to 22. Therefore, even when the hands 18 to 21 move up and down to change the pitch between the hand forks 13 to 17, the gripping portion 80 and the compression coil spring 81 also move up and down together with the hands 18 to 21 that move up and down. . Therefore, in this embodiment, even when the operation of changing the pitch between the hand forks 13 to 17 is performed, the substrate 2 mounted on the hands 18 to 22 can be appropriately held.

  In this embodiment, the gripping mechanism 24 includes a moving member 82 that contacts the gripping portion 80 and moves the five gripping portions 80 together in the retracting direction, and an air cylinder 83 that is connected to the moving member 82. . Further, the moving member 82 is separated from the gripping portion 80 when the gripping portion 80 is gripping the substrate 2, and when the operation of changing the pitch between the hand forks 13 to 17 is performed, the moving member 82 grips the moving member 82. It is away from the part 80. Therefore, one moving member 82 and one air cylinder 83 are prevented while the grip changing portion 26 and the moving member 82 are prevented from being contacted by the pitch changing mechanism 26 when changing the pitch between the hand forks 13 to 17. Can be used to retract the five gripping portions 80. Therefore, in this embodiment, the configuration of the gripping mechanism 24 can be simplified even when the pitch changing operation between the hand forks 13 to 17 is performed.

  Further, in this embodiment, since the grip portion 80 is not fixed to the moving member 82, the grip portion 80 and the moving member 82 can be detached individually. Therefore, in this embodiment, the maintenance work of the grip part 80 and the moving member 82 is facilitated.

  In this embodiment, the shaft member 87 constituting the grip portion 80 is slidably inserted into insertion holes 37c, 40c, 43c, 46c, and 47c formed in the hands 18 to 22. Therefore, the grip 80 can be slid in the front-rear direction with respect to the hands 18 to 22 with a relatively simple configuration. Moreover, the holding part 80 can be appropriately slid with respect to the hands 18 to 22 in the front-rear direction, and the substrate 2 mounted on the hands 18 to 22 can be appropriately held.

  In this embodiment, the gripping mechanism 24 includes a regulating member 84 that regulates the movement of the gripping unit 80 in the gripping direction. Even when the substrate 2 is not mounted on the hand forks 13 to 17 and the regulating member 84 is in contact with the contact block 93, the first contact portion 82 b and the second contact portion 82 c in the front-rear direction. A gap is formed between the connection member 88 and the connection member 88. Therefore, even when the substrate 2 is not mounted on the hand forks 13 to 17 and the gripping portion 80 is not in contact with the substrate 2, the pitch change mechanism 26 allows the pitch between the hand forks 13 to 17 to be adjusted. When performing the changing operation, it is possible to prevent contact between the gripping portion 80 and the moving member 82.

  In this embodiment, the first contact portion 82b of the moving member 82 is disposed between the two shaft members 87 in the left-right direction. Therefore, the board mounting mechanism 3 can be downsized in the left-right direction as compared with the case where the first contact portion 82b is disposed outside the shaft member 87 in the left-right direction.

  In this embodiment, the moving member 82 includes a second contact portion 82 c that can contact the rear surface of the connecting member 88. Therefore, as described above, even if the compression coil spring 81 or the like has a problem and the gripping portion 80 does not move smoothly in the gripping direction due to the urging force of the compression coil spring 81, the second contact portion 82c is connected to the connecting member. The gripping portion 80 can be moved in the gripping direction by contacting the back surface of 88.

  In this embodiment, each of the five sensors 95 is held by each of the hands 18 to 22, and each of the five detection plates 96 is held by each of the five grip portions 80. Therefore, even when the hands 18 to 21 move up and down to change the pitch between the hand forks 13 to 17, the sensor 95 appropriately detects that the grip portion 80 is gripping the substrate 2. can do.

  In this embodiment, when viewed from the up and down direction, the gripping roller 85 of the gripping portion 80A and the gripping roller 85 of the gripping portion 80B do not overlap and are shifted in the left-right direction. Therefore, even when the gripping roller 85 is thick in the vertical direction, the distance of the gripping portion 80 in the vertical direction can be reduced, and the substrate mounting mechanism 3 can be downsized in the vertical direction. become.

  In this embodiment, the gripping roller 85 disposed on the front end side of the gripping portion 80 is in contact with the substrate 2 to grip the substrate 2. Therefore, when the gripping roller 85 is in contact with the substrate 2 as compared with the case where the gripping protrusion (non-rotating protrusion) disposed on the distal end side of the gripping portion 80 is in contact with the substrate 2 and grips the substrate 2. Frictional resistance can be reduced. Therefore, the urging force of the compression coil spring 81 can be reduced. In addition, the generation of dust can be suppressed as compared with the case where the gripping protrusion is in contact with the substrate 2 to grip the substrate 2.

[Other embodiments]
The above-described embodiment is an example of a preferred embodiment of the present invention, but is not limited thereto, and various modifications can be made without departing from the scope of the present invention.

  In the embodiment described above, the drive source that drives the moving member 82 is the air cylinder 83, but the drive source that drives the moving member 82 may be a hydraulic cylinder, a motor, or the like. In the above-described embodiment, the air cylinder 83 is directly connected to the moving member 82. For example, the moving member 82 is connected to a drive source such as the air cylinder 83 via a lever member that rotates in an arc shape. May be. In this case, for example, the lever member is rotated by the power of the drive source, the rotating lever member abuts on the moving member 82, and the moving member 82 moves in the gripping direction or the retracting direction.

  In the embodiment described above, the pitch changing mechanism 26 includes the first lever member 52, the second lever member 53, the first fulcrum shaft 54, the second fulcrum shaft 55, and the hand connecting portions 56 and 57, and Using this principle, the hands 18 to 21 are moved up and down. In addition to this, for example, the pitch changing mechanism 26 raises and lowers the hands 18 to 21 using a crank mechanism including a drive link member and a driven link member as in the substrate holding device described in Patent Document 1 described above. May be. The pitch changing mechanism 26 may elevate and lower the hands 18 to 21 using, for example, a ball screw and a nut as described in JP-A-2002-231787.

  In the embodiment described above, the urging member that urges the gripping portion 80 in the gripping direction for gripping the substrate 2 is the compression coil spring 81. In addition, for example, the urging member that urges the gripping portion 80 in the gripping direction may be another spring member such as a leaf spring or an elastic member such as rubber. In the embodiment described above, the gripping portion 80 includes the two shaft members 87, but the number of the shaft members 87 included in the gripping portion 80 may be three or more. May be.

  In the embodiment described above, the sensor 95 is an optical sensor, but the sensor 95 may be a mechanical sensor including a contact lever and a contact switch.

  In the embodiment described above, the moving member 82 includes the second contact portion 82 c that can contact the rear surface of the connecting member 88. In addition to this, for example, if the gripping portion 80 is reliably moved in the gripping direction by the biasing force of the compression coil spring 81, the moving member 82 may not include the second contact portion 82c.

  In the above-described form, the robot 1 includes the five hands 18 to 22. However, the robot 1 may include two, three, or four hands, or six or more. There may be. In the embodiment described above, the substrate 2 transported to the robot 1 is, for example, a semiconductor wafer. However, the substrate 2 may be a glass substrate for a liquid crystal display, a mask used in an exposure apparatus, or the like.

1 Robot (industrial robot)
2 Substrate 3 Substrate mounting mechanism 13-17 Hand fork (mounting part)
18 hands (upper movable hand, first movable hand)
19 hands (upper movable hand, second movable hand)
20 hands (lower movable hand, third movable hand)
21 hands (lower movable hand, fourth movable hand)
22 hands (fixed hands)
23 Base member 24 Grip mechanism 25 Detection mechanism 26 Pitch change mechanism 37c, 40c, 43c, 46c, 47c Insertion hole 80 Grip portion 81 Compression coil spring (biasing member)
82 Moving member 82b First contact portion 82c Second contact portion 83 Air cylinder (drive source)
84 Restricting member 85 Gripping roller (first to fifth gripping rollers)
86 Roller support part 87 Shaft member 88 Connection member 95 Sensor (detection part)
96 Detection plate (detected part)
X1 Grasping direction X2 Retraction direction Y Orthogonal direction Z Vertical direction

Claims (10)

In an industrial robot that unloads a substrate from a storage unit in which a plurality of substrates are stacked and stored at a predetermined pitch,
A substrate mounting mechanism on which a plurality of the substrates are mounted,
The substrate mounting mechanism includes a plurality of hands having mounting portions on which the substrate is mounted and arranged so as to overlap in the vertical direction at a predetermined pitch, a pitch changing mechanism for changing a pitch between the plurality of mounting portions, and the hand A gripping mechanism for gripping the substrate mounted on
The gripping mechanism includes a plurality of gripping portions for gripping the substrate in contact with the substrate mounted on the hand, and a plurality of biasing members for biasing the gripping portion in a gripping direction for gripping the substrate. A moving member that moves the plurality of gripping parts in a retreating direction that comes into contact with the gripping part and retreats from the substrate, and a drive that is connected to the moving member and drives the moving member in the gripping direction and the retreating direction With a source,
Each of the plurality of gripping units and the plurality of urging members is held by each of the plurality of hands,
The industrial robot according to claim 1, wherein the moving member is separated from the gripping portion when the gripping portion is gripping the substrate. The gripping portion is disposed at an end on the gripping direction side and is a gripping roller that can contact the substrate, a roller support portion that rotatably supports the gripping roller, and a retracting direction from the roller support portion. A shaft member extending toward the
The industrial robot according to claim 1, wherein the shaft member is inserted through an insertion hole formed in the hand.   The industrial robot according to claim 1, wherein the gripping mechanism includes a regulating member that regulates movement of the gripping portion in the gripping direction. The gripping portion is disposed at an end on the gripping direction side and is a gripping roller that can contact the substrate, a roller support portion that rotatably supports the gripping roller, and a retracting direction from the roller support portion. A plurality of shaft members extending toward the end, and a connecting member that connects end portions on the retraction direction side of the plurality of shaft members,
The moving member is disposed between the plurality of shaft members in an orthogonal direction substantially orthogonal to the up-down direction and the gripping direction, and when the gripping portion is retracted in the retracting direction, The industrial robot according to any one of claims 1 to 3, further comprising a first abutting portion that abuts on a surface on a gripping direction side.   The industrial robot according to claim 4, wherein the moving member includes a second abutting portion capable of abutting against a surface of the connecting member on the retraction direction side. The substrate mounting mechanism includes a detection mechanism for detecting each position of the plurality of gripping units in the gripping direction,
The detection mechanism includes: a detection unit held on each of the plurality of gripping units or each of the plurality of hands; and a target held on each of the plurality of gripping units or each of the plurality of hands. The industrial robot according to claim 1, further comprising a detection unit.   The industrial robot according to claim 1, wherein the drive source is an air cylinder.   The substrate mounting mechanism includes a base member that moves together with the plurality of hands when the substrate is unloaded from the storage unit, and as the hand, a fixed hand fixed to the base member, and the base member A plurality of upper movable hands having the mounting portion that can be moved relative to each other in the vertical direction and disposed above the mounting portion of the fixed hand; and The industrial robot according to any one of claims 1 to 7, further comprising a plurality of lower movable hands having the mounting portion disposed below the mounting portion.   The substrate mounting mechanism includes a first movable hand and a second movable hand arranged in order from the upper side as the upper movable hand, and a third movable hand arranged in order from the upper side as the lower movable hand. The industrial robot according to claim 8, further comprising: a fourth movable hand. The substrate mounting mechanism includes a first gripping roller for gripping the substrate mounted on the first movable hand and a second gripping roller for gripping the substrate mounted on the second movable hand. A third gripping roller for gripping the substrate mounted on the third movable hand, a fourth gripping roller for gripping the substrate mounted on the fourth movable hand, and the fixing A fifth gripping roller for gripping the substrate mounted on the hand,
When viewed in the up-down direction, the first gripping roller and the second gripping roller are displaced in the orthogonal direction substantially perpendicular to the up-down direction and the gripping direction, and the second gripping roller and the fifth gripping roller The gripping roller is shifted, the fifth gripping roller and the third gripping roller are shifted, and the third gripping roller and the fourth gripping roller are shifted. Item 10. The industrial robot according to Item 9.

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