JP2012056613A - Substrate cassette - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a wire type substrate cassette which can take a substrate in and out at high speed without accompanying dust emission and heat generation.SOLUTION: A substrate storage shelf 10 which is formed of a plurality of wires 9 stretched in parallel across the same plane is arranged in a multi-stage in the substrate cassette 1 and an anti-friction bearing 11 is attached on the wire 9 at regular intervals along the axial direction of the wire 9. An inner ring 22 of the anti-friction bearing 11 is fixed to the wire 9 and an outer ring 21 defines a substrate placing surface on which a glass substrate W is placed. When the glass substrate W is taken in and out, the outer ring 21 is rotated accompanied by the movement of the glass substrate W. Since dust emission and heat generation from the glass substrate supporting part accompanied by conveyance do not occur, the glass substrate W can be transferred at high speed and operation efficiency can be improved.

Description

  The present invention relates to a substrate cassette used for storing and transporting a substrate such as a semiconductor substrate and a liquid crystal substrate, and in particular, a substrate storage shelf formed by laying a large number of wires in parallel on the same plane at a constant interval. The present invention relates to an improvement in a substrate cassette in which a multistage array is arranged in the vertical direction.

  In a substrate manufacturing process such as a semiconductor or an LCD, it is necessary to transport a stock substrate through a plurality of different processes. As a substrate cassette used for substrate stock and transportation, a substrate cassette having a configuration in which substrate storage shelves formed in multiple stages are defined by wires extending in parallel at regular intervals on the same plane is known. It has been. The substrate cassette having this configuration is generally called a wire cassette, and more shelves can be formed with a smaller size than when a multistage substrate storage shelf is configured using a shelf board having a constant thickness.

  Patent Document 1 proposes that in a wire cassette, each wire is passed through a cylindrical body with play (gap), and the wires are bridged in this state to form a substrate storage shelf. The substrate stored in each substrate storage shelf of the wire cassette is placed on a cylindrical body attached to the wire, and the cylindrical body can rotate in a sliding contact state with respect to the wire. Therefore, when the substrate is taken in and out of the wire cassette, the cylindrical body rotates around the wire. Therefore, the substrate can be smoothly put in and out as compared with the case where the substrate is directly placed on the wire.

Taiwan Patent Publication No. 594189

Here, in order to increase production efficiency, it is necessary to load and unload substrates at high speed using a robot hand or the like. For example, assuming that the drawing speed of the substrate is V (mm / sec) and the outer diameter of the cylindrical body attached to the wire is D, the rotational speed N (rotation / min) of the cylindrical body when the substrate is drawn is given by the following equation.
N = V / (D × π) = V × 60 / (D × π)
If the drawing speed V = 500 mm / second and the outer diameter D = 6 mm, the rotational speed N of the cylindrical body becomes high as follows.
N = 500 × 60 / (6 × 3.14) = 1589 (rotation / minute)

  When the substrate is taken in and out, the cylindrical body rotates around the wire at a high speed with its inner peripheral surface in sliding contact with the outer peripheral surface of the wire. For this reason, dust generation and heat generation are caused in the sliding contact portion between the wire and the cylindrical body. In particular, when the rotational speed of the cylindrical body is high as described above and higher than the rotational speed of the drilling tool during drilling of the cylindrical body, dust generation and heat generation from the cylindrical body increase. Not suitable for practical use. In addition, when uneven wear occurs at both sliding contact parts due to manufacturing errors of the wire and cylinder, dust generation and heat generation increase even when the rotation speed of the cylinder is low. There is. Such dust generation and heat generation will cause great damage to the substrate and should be avoided as much as possible.

  In order to suppress dust generation and heat generation, it is conceivable to reduce the substrate conveyance speed. However, this causes a problem of conveyance time from the viewpoint of tact time. For example, in the case of a G8 generation class substrate, the substrate transport length is about 2500 mm. When the conveyance speed is set to 50 mm / second, it takes 50 seconds (2500/50) to take out one substrate from the wire cassette, which is not practical.

  Furthermore, in the wire cassette of Patent Document 1, the wire is covered with an elongated cylindrical body. When the substrate is placed, the wire bends due to the weight of the substrate, whereas the rigid cylindrical body hardly bends. As a result, smooth rotation of the cylindrical body when the substrate is taken in and out is prevented, and a large frictional resistance is generated. This also causes dust generation and heat generation, which may damage the substrate.

  In view of the above, an object of the present invention is to propose a substrate cassette capable of loading and unloading substrates at high speed without generating dust and heat.

  In order to solve the above problems, the present invention provides a substrate cassette in which a substrate storage shelf is formed by a plurality of linear members extending in parallel on the same plane, and the substrate storage shelves are arranged in multiple stages. In the linear member, bearings are arranged at predetermined intervals along the axial direction of the linear member. The bearing includes an inner ring fixed to the linear member in a coaxial state, and an outer peripheral surface of the inner ring. And an outer ring supported in a rotatable state by the outer ring, and a substrate placement surface in the substrate storage shelf is defined by the outer ring of the bearing.

  In the substrate cassette of the present invention, a bearing is attached to each linear member, and the substrate is supported by a rotatable outer ring of each bearing. When the substrate is taken in and out, the outer ring rotates as the substrate moves. The outer ring is rotatable with respect to the inner ring, but the inner ring is fixed to the linear member. Therefore, by using a generally used rolling bearing such as a ball bearing, it is possible to reliably suppress dust generation and heat generation due to the rotation of the outer ring accompanying substrate conveyance. Further, since dust generation and heat generation can be suppressed, the substrate can be transported at a high speed, and work efficiency can be improved.

  Here, in order to fix the inner ring of the bearing to the linear member, an outer peripheral surface on which the inner ring is mounted, a cylindrical member having a through hole through which the linear member passes, and the cylindrical member chucked to the linear member The structure provided with the chucking member to perform can be employ | adopted.

  As the chucking member, it is possible to use a ring member that can squeeze the end portion by fitting it into the outer periphery of one end portion of the cylindrical member. If the cylindrical member is a metal part that is difficult to bend, the end of the cylindrical member that fits the chucking member should be slotted to make it easy to squeeze, and the end should be surely engaged with the wire. Good.

  Moreover, the cylindrical member in which the through hole which lets a linear member pass was formed in the center as a chucking member can be used. In this case, the through hole of the cylindrical member to which the inner ring main body is mounted is set as a hole having an inner diameter into which the chucking member can be fitted, and the chucking member is inserted into the cylinder from one open end of the cylindrical member. The cylindrical member may be chucked to the linear member by fitting into an annular gap between the inner peripheral surface of the linear member and the outer peripheral surface of the linear member.

  In the present invention, it is desirable that the linear member and the bearing have conductivity. In this way, electrostatic charging of the substrate during substrate transportation can be prevented, and dust and the like can be prevented from adhering to the substrate surface.

  It is desirable that the outer ring of the bearing is a resin outer ring, or at least the outer peripheral surface of the outer ring is covered with a resin layer so as not to damage the substrate surface.

  Next, the substrate cassette of the present invention has at least one substrate movement restricting member attached to the linear member in each of the substrate storage shelves, and the substrate is placed on the outer ring of the bearing and the substrate movement restricting member. The board movement restricting member is characterized by being attached to the linear member in a state where it does not rotate around the linear member, or in a state where the rotational load is larger than that of the bearing.

  When the substrate is placed on a rotatable bearing, the substrate may jump out of the substrate storage shelf with a slight force. Further, there is a problem that the substrate is likely to be displaced in the substrate loading / unloading direction, for example, during transport of the substrate cassette in which the substrate is stored. According to the present invention, in each substrate storage shelf, the substrate is placed on at least one substrate movement restricting member having a large rotational load. Accordingly, it is possible to prevent or suppress the substrate from popping out and shifting due to the frictional force with the substrate movement regulating member.

  Here, in each of the substrate storage shelves, if one end in the direction orthogonal to the crossing direction of the linear members is a substrate insertion / removal port for inserting and removing the substrate, the substrate insertion / removal in each of the substrate storage shelves It is desirable to attach at least one substrate movement restricting member to the linear member farthest from the mouth.

  In this way, when the substrate is stored, the substrate is placed on the substrate movement restricting member just before the substrate is stored, so that the substrate storing operation can be performed at high speed as a whole. Further, when the substrate is pulled out, the substrate is removed from the substrate movement regulating member at the beginning, so that the substrate pulling operation can be performed at a high speed as a whole.

  Next, as the linear member, a wire made of a single metal or plastic thread, or a wire formed by bundling a plurality of metal or plastic threads can be used.

  In the substrate cassette of the present invention, a bearing is attached to each linear member, and the substrate is supported by the outer ring of each bearing. When the substrate is taken in and out, the outer ring rotates as the substrate moves. The outer ring is rotatable with respect to the inner ring, but the inner ring is fixed to the linear member. Therefore, by using a generally used rolling bearing such as a ball bearing, it is possible to reliably suppress dust generation and heat generation due to the rotation of the outer ring accompanying substrate conveyance. Further, since dust generation and heat generation can be suppressed, the substrate can be transported at a high speed, and work efficiency can be improved.

It is a perspective view which shows the substrate cassette which concerns on embodiment of this invention. It is a perspective view which shows one board | substrate storage shelf in the board | substrate cassette of FIG. It is a disassembled perspective view which shows the bearing attached to the wire of the board | substrate cassette of FIG. It is a longitudinal cross-sectional view of the bearing of FIG. It is a longitudinal cross-sectional view which shows an example of the board | substrate movement control member used for a board | substrate cassette. It is a longitudinal cross-sectional view which shows the modification of the bearing of FIG. It is a longitudinal cross-sectional view which shows another example of the bearing used for a board | substrate cassette. It is a longitudinal cross-sectional view which shows another example of the bearing used for a board | substrate cassette.

  A substrate cassette according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

(overall structure)
FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a substrate cassette according to the present embodiment. The substrate cassette 1 includes a cassette frame 2 having a horizontally long rectangular parallelepiped shape as a whole. The cassette frame 2 is provided with a rectangular bottom plate 3 and a top plate 4 and vertical side plates 5 and 6 connecting the ends on both sides thereof, and the front end surface thereof is a substrate loading / unloading port 7. The side end face is also a rear opening 8. The left and right vertical side plates 5 and 6 have a structure in which vertical frames 5a and 6a having the same number n (n is an integer equal to or greater than 2) are formed at regular intervals.

  Between a pair of corresponding left and right vertical frames 5a and 6a, for example, between a pair of vertical frames 5a and 6a positioned on the substrate loading / unloading port 7 side, a plurality of wires 9 are spaced at regular intervals in the vertical direction. (1, 1) to 9 (m, 1) (m: a positive integer) are bridged horizontally (in the following description, when there is no relation to the position of the wire, each wire is “wired”). 9 ”). Therefore, as a whole, m × n wires 9 are bridged between the vertical side plates 5 and 6. Among these wires 9, the plurality of wires 9 (1, 1) to 9 (1, n) spanned to the uppermost stage are located at the same height (on the same plane), and A one-stage substrate storage shelf 10 (1) is defined. Similarly, the substrate storage shelves 10 (m) at each stage are defined by the wires 9 (m) at the respective height positions. The wire 9 can be made of SUS or steel. It can also be a resin wire, and a wire can be formed by bundling a large number of thin threads.

  FIG. 2 is a partial perspective view showing a plurality of wires 9 (1, 1) to 9 (1, n) defining the first stage substrate storage shelf 10 (1). As shown in this figure, a rectangular substrate having a size slightly smaller than this, for example, a glass substrate W is stored in the substrate storage shelf 10 (1). Rolling bearings 11 are attached to the wires 9 (1, 1) to 9 (1, n) at regular intervals along the axial direction thereof. In the center of the wire 9 (1, n) located in the innermost part of the substrate storage shelf 10 (1) in the axial direction, two fixed pieces are used as substrate movement restricting members instead of the rolling bearings 11. A roller 12 is attached. The outer diameters of the rolling bearing 11 and the fixed roller 12 are the same, and these define the substrate placement surface on which the glass substrate W is placed.

  In addition, the arrangement | positioning space | interval of the rolling bearing 11 and the number of arrangement | positioning are a thing of the property which should be suitably set according to the magnitude | size of the glass substrate W, a weight, a board | substrate taking-in / out speed, etc. Further, the number of fixed rollers 12 is not limited to two, and may be one, or may be three or more depending on circumstances. Further, the substrate storage shelves 10 (2) to 10 (m) at the second and lower stages are also configured in the same manner, and thus description thereof is omitted.

(Rolling bearing)
3 is an exploded perspective view showing the rolling bearing 11, and FIG. 4 is a longitudinal sectional view thereof. The rolling bearing 11 includes an annular outer ring 21 and an inner ring 22, and a plurality of balls 23 inserted in an annular raceway between them in a freely rollable state. Further, a cylindrical member 24 having a circular outer peripheral surface on which the inner ring 22 is mounted, and a chucking ring member 25 for fixing the cylindrical member 24 to the wire 9 are provided.

  At the center of the cylindrical member 24, a wire through hole 24a (through hole) extending through the axial direction is formed. The wire 9 of this example has a circular cross section, and the inner diameter of the wire through hole 24a is the same as the outer diameter of the wire, and the wire 9 is passed therethrough. At one end of the cylindrical member 24, an annular inner ring receiver 24b having a larger diameter than the other part is formed. An outer peripheral surface portion 24c of the cylindrical member 24 adjacent to the inner ring receiver 24b is a circular outer peripheral surface having a constant outer diameter, and the inner ring 22 is attached thereto. A portion continuous with the outer peripheral surface portion 24c is a tapered outer peripheral surface portion 24d that is tapered. An annular protrusion 24e having a chevron cross section is formed in the middle of the tapered outer peripheral surface portion 24d.

  The inner peripheral surface of the center hole of the chucking ring member 25 is a tapered inner peripheral surface 25a having a slightly smaller diameter than the tapered outer peripheral surface portion 24d. Is formed. When the ring member 25 is mounted on the tapered outer peripheral surface portion 24d from the end of the cylindrical member 24 in a state where the wire 9 is passed through the wire through hole 24a of the cylindrical member 24, the tapered outer peripheral surface portion 24d is narrowed by the ring member 25. Then, the inner peripheral surface portion of the wire through hole 24 a is fastened to the outer peripheral surface of the wire 9. Further, the annular protrusion 24e on the cylindrical member 24 side is fitted into the annular V groove 25b of the attached ring member 25, so that the ring member 25 is prevented from coming off. As a result, a state in which the inner ring 22 is chucked so as not to rotate with respect to the wire 9 is formed.

  Further, the annular end surface 25c of the attached ring member 25 is pressed against the end surface of the inner ring 22 and functions as an inner ring receiver. That is, a state in which the inner ring 22 is fixed without rattling is formed between the end face 25c and the inner ring receiver 24b on the cylindrical member 24 side.

  Here, the rolling bearing 11 is preferably a non-lubricated bearing so that the glass substrate W is not contaminated by grease or the like. The outer ring 21, the inner ring 22 and the ball 23 can be made of metal parts as in the case of a general ball bearing. However, if the outer ring 21 contacting the glass substrate W is formed from a resin material such as POM or UPE, glass is used. This is preferable because damage to the substrate W can be reduced. Further, the cylindrical member 24 and the ring member 25 can be metal parts or resin parts. A slit may be formed at the end of the cylindrical member 24 where the tapered outer peripheral surface portion 24 d is formed, so that the end can be reliably constricted by the ring member 25.

  Further, when these parts are made of resin, it is desirable to impart conductivity by performing a treatment such as mixing conductive fillers, particles, and the like. In this way, it is possible to prevent or suppress the static electricity from being charged on the glass substrate W and attracting and holding dust on the surface.

(Fixed roller)
FIG. 5 is a longitudinal sectional view showing the fixed roller 12 as a substrate movement restricting member attached to the wires 9 (1, n) to 9 (m, n) that are stretched most deeply. The fixed roller 12 includes an annular roller body 31, a cylindrical roller pedestal 32 that is mounted in a state where the roller body 31 is rotatable under a predetermined rotational load, and the roller pedestal 32 is attached to the wire 9. And a ring member 33 for chucking.

  At the center of the roller pedestal 32, a wire through hole 32a (through hole) extending through in the axial direction is formed. The inner diameter of the wire through hole 32a is the same as the outer diameter of the wire, and the wire 9 is passed therethrough. At one end of the roller pedestal 32, an annular roller receiver 32b having a larger diameter than the other part is formed. An outer peripheral surface portion 32c of the roller base 32 adjacent to the roller receiver 32b is a circular outer peripheral surface having a constant outer diameter, and the roller main body 31 is attached thereto. A portion continuous with the outer peripheral surface portion 32c is a tapered outer peripheral surface portion 32d that is tapered. An annular protrusion 32e having a chevron cross section is formed in the middle of the tapered outer peripheral surface portion 32d.

  The inner peripheral surface of the center hole of the chucking ring member 33 is a tapered inner peripheral surface 33a having a slightly smaller diameter than the tapered outer peripheral surface portion 32d. Is formed. When the ring member 33 is mounted on the tapered outer peripheral surface portion 32d from the end of the roller pedestal 32 in a state where the wire 9 is passed through the wire through hole 32a of the roller pedestal 32, the tapered outer peripheral surface portion 32d is narrowed by the ring member 33. Then, the inner peripheral surface portion of the wire through hole 32 a is fastened to the outer peripheral surface of the wire 9. Further, the annular protrusion 32e on the roller pedestal 32 side is fitted into the annular V groove 33b of the attached ring member 33, so that the ring member 33 is prevented from coming off. As a result, a state where the roller pedestal 32 is chucked so as not to rotate with respect to the wire 9 is formed.

  Here, the inner peripheral surface of the roller main body 31 is attached to the outer peripheral surface portion 32c of the roller pedestal 32 in a sliding contact state, and the roller main body 31 is rotatable with a predetermined rotational load.

  As the substrate movement restricting member, a fixed roller having a structure in which the roller main body 31 and the roller base 32 are integrally formed as a single component can be used. In this case, the roller body 31 does not rotate but is fixed to the wire 9.

(Substrate in / out operation)
A substrate loading / unloading operation in the substrate cassette 1 configured as described above will be described. A substrate transport mechanism such as a robot hand (not shown) is used to grip the end of the glass substrate W. For example, in front of the substrate loading / unloading port 7 of the substrate cassette 1, the height position of the uppermost substrate storage shelf 10 (1). Position horizontally. Then, the glass substrate W is pushed horizontally from the substrate loading / unloading port 7 of the substrate storage shelf 10 (1). The glass substrate W is placed on the rolling bearing 11 that defines the substrate placement surface of the substrate storage shelf 10 (1), and is guided rearward. Since the outer ring 21 of the rolling bearing 11 rolls with the movement of the glass substrate W, almost no pushing load is generated when the glass substrate is pushed. Moreover, there is almost no dust generation and heat generation from each sliding portion in the rolling bearing. Furthermore, since the inner ring 22 is fixed to the wire 9 and no friction occurs between them, no dust or heat is generated between them. Therefore, the glass substrate W can be stored in the substrate storage shelf 10 (1) at high speed without generating dust and heat.

  In a state where the glass substrate W is stored in the substrate storage shelf 10 (1), the central portion of the rear end portion of the glass substrate W is two fixed rollers 12 attached to the wire 9 (1, n) located in the back. It will be on the state. The roller body 31 of the fixed roller 12 can rotate under a predetermined rotational load. Therefore, the free movement of the glass substrate W is restricted by the rotational load of these two fixed rollers 12. Therefore, the glass substrate W does not jump out of the substrate loading / unloading port 7 or the rear opening 8 in the stored state. Further, the glass substrate W is also prevented from shifting back and forth in the stored state. By setting the binding force of the glass substrate W by the fixed roller 12 to an appropriate value, the glass substrate W can be reliably prevented from popping out and shifting.

  When the glass substrate W is taken out from the substrate storage shelf 10 (1), the tip of the glass substrate W may be grasped from the substrate loading / unloading port 7 side of the substrate cassette 1 and pulled out horizontally. In this case, since the rear end portion of the glass substrate W is detached from the fixed roller 12 at the first time of drawing, the glass substrate W is quickly drawn forward along the rolling bearing 11. Further, in the pulling-out operation of the glass substrate W, since there is no dust generation and heat generation from the rolling bearing 11 and the portion between the rolling bearing 11 and the wire 9, the glass substrate W can be pulled out at high speed.

(Another example of rolling bearing)
FIG. 6 is a longitudinal sectional view showing another example of the rolling bearing 11. Since the basic configuration of the rolling bearing 11A shown in this figure is the same as that of the rolling bearing 11, the corresponding portions are denoted by the same reference numerals, and only different portions will be described below.

  In the rolling bearing 11 </ b> A, the circular outer peripheral surface of the metal outer ring 21 is covered with the resin layer 26. Therefore, unlike the case where the metal surface directly contacts the surface of the glass substrate W, damage to the surface of the glass substrate W can be reduced or eliminated.

  Further, an annular uneven portion 27 having a mountain-shaped cross section is repeated at a constant interval along the axial direction on the inner peripheral surface portion of the wire through hole 24a inside the tapered outer peripheral surface portion 24d of the cylindrical member 24 of the rolling bearing 11A. Is formed. By forming such a portion, the cylindrical member 24 can be more reliably chucked with respect to the outer peripheral surface of the wire 9.

  FIG. 7 is a longitudinal sectional view showing still another example of the rolling bearing 11. The rolling bearing 11 </ b> B includes an annular outer ring 41 and an inner ring 42, and a plurality of balls 43 that are inserted in an annular raceway therebetween so as to be able to roll. Further, a cylindrical member 44 having a circular outer peripheral surface to which the inner ring 42 is mounted, and a chucking screw 45 for fixing the cylindrical member 44 to the wire 9 are provided.

  At the center of the cylindrical member 44, a wire through hole 44a (through hole) is formed extending through the axial direction. At both ends of the cylindrical member 44, annular inner ring bearings 44b and 44c having a larger diameter than the other parts are formed. Between these inner ring receivers 44b and 44c is a circular outer peripheral surface 44d having a constant outer diameter, and the inner ring 42 is mounted and fixed thereto. A screw hole 44e extending in the radial direction from the outer peripheral surface to the wire through hole 44a is formed in a portion of one inner ring receiver 44b. In this example, two screw holes 44e are formed at an angular interval of 180 degrees. The number of screw holes can be one, or three or more. A chucking screw 45 is screwed into the screw hole 44 e and the tip of each chucking screw 45 is pressed against the outer peripheral surface of the wire 9, whereby the cylindrical member 44 is chucked to the wire 9. That is, the inner ring 42 is fixed to the wire 9.

  FIG. 8 is a longitudinal sectional view showing still another example of the rolling bearing 11. The rolling bearing 11C of the present example includes an annular outer ring 51 and an inner ring 52, and a plurality of balls 53 that are inserted in an annular raceway between them in a freely rollable state. Further, a cylindrical member 54 having a circular outer peripheral surface to which the inner ring 52 is mounted and fixed, and two chucking ring members 55 for fixing the cylindrical member 54 to the wire 9 are provided.

  A through hole 54 a is formed at the center of the cylindrical member 54 so as to extend in the axial direction. The through hole 54a is a hole of a size into which the ring member 55 can be inserted, and a tapered inner peripheral surface portion 54b having an inner diameter gradually decreasing toward the inner side is formed at both end portions thereof. Between the ends, a circular inner peripheral surface portion 54d having the same inner diameter is formed via an annular step surface 54c.

  The ring member 55 for chucking has an insertion portion 55a inserted into and fixed to the through hole 54a of the cylindrical member 54, a large-diameter end flange 55b formed at the rear end of the insertion portion 55a, and penetrates these. And a wire through hole 55c extending. The wire through hole 55 c is a hole having an inner diameter corresponding to the wire 9.

  Here, the outer peripheral surface shape of the insertion portion 55a of the ring member 55 is complementary to the inner peripheral surface shape of both end portions of the through hole 54a of the cylindrical member 54, and is slightly larger than the inner peripheral surface shape. . In other words, a circular outer peripheral surface portion 55d having the same outer diameter is formed on the distal end side of the outer peripheral surface of the insertion portion 55a. A tapered outer peripheral surface portion 55f whose outer diameter gradually increases toward the rear end side is formed at the rear end of the circular outer peripheral surface portion 55d via an annular step surface 55e. A circular outer peripheral surface portion 55g is formed between the rear end of the tapered outer peripheral surface portion 55f and the end flange 55b.

  The left and right ring members 55 are inserted into the through holes 54a from both ends of the cylindrical member 54 in a state of facing each other. As a result, the insertion portion 55a of the ring member 55 is inserted and fixed in an annular gap between the inner peripheral surface of the through hole 54a and the outer peripheral surface of the wire 9, and the insertion portion 55a is constricted inward to the wire 9. Chucked. Further, the annular step surface 55e of the ring member 55 is engaged with the step surface 54c of the cylindrical member 54, so that the ring member 5 is prevented from coming off from the cylindrical member 54.

  In addition, although the example which used the ball bearing as the rolling bearing 11 was demonstrated, rolling bearings other than a ball bearing can also be used. Further, a mechanism having a configuration other than that described above can be used as the inner ring chucking mechanism. In some cases, it is also possible to fix the cylindrical member on which the inner ring is mounted and fixed to the wire using an adhesive.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Substrate cassette 2 Cassette frame 3 Bottom plate 4 Top plate 5, 6 Vertical side plate 5a, 6a Vertical frame 7 Substrate loading / unloading port 8 Rear side opening 9, 9 (m, n) Wire 10 (1) -10 (m) Substrate Storage shelf 11 Rolling bearing 12 Fixed roller 21 Outer ring 22 Inner ring 23 Ball 24 Cylindrical member 24a Wire through hole 24b Inner ring receiver 24c Outer peripheral surface portion 24d Tapered outer peripheral surface portion 24e Annular protrusion 25 Ring member 25a Tapered inner peripheral surface 25b Annular V groove 25c annular end surface 31 roller body 32 roller pedestal 32a wire through hole 32b roller receiver 32c outer peripheral surface portion 32d tapered outer peripheral surface portion 32e annular protrusion 33 ring member 33a tapered inner peripheral surface 33b annular V groove W glass substrate

Claims (10)

In a substrate cassette in which a substrate storage shelf is formed by a plurality of linear members extending in parallel on the same plane, and the substrate storage shelves are arranged in multiple stages,
In the linear member, bearings are arranged at predetermined intervals along the axial direction of the linear member,
The bearing includes an inner ring fixed coaxially to the linear member, and an outer ring supported in a rotatable state by the outer peripheral surface of the inner ring.
A substrate cassette, wherein a substrate mounting surface in a substrate storage shelf is defined by an outer ring of a bearing. In claim 1,
The substrate cassette is characterized in that the bearing is a rolling bearing in which a plurality of rolling elements are inserted into an annular raceway formed between the outer ring and the inner ring in a state where the rolling element can freely roll. In claim 1 or 2,
A cylindrical member provided with an outer peripheral surface on which an inner ring of the bearing is mounted and a through hole through which the linear member passes;
A substrate cassette comprising: a chucking member for chucking the cylindrical member to a linear member. In claim 3,
The substrate cassette, wherein the chucking member is a ring member that is fitted into an outer periphery of one end portion of the cylindrical member to narrow the end portion and chuck the linear member. In claim 3,
The chucking member is a cylindrical member having a through hole through which the linear member passes.
When the chucking member is fitted into an annular gap between the inner peripheral surface of the cylindrical member and the outer peripheral surface of the linear member from at least one open end of the cylindrical member, the cylindrical member becomes the linear member. A substrate cassette characterized by being in a chucked state. In any one of claims 1 to 5,
A substrate cassette, wherein the linear member and the bearing have conductivity. In any one of claims 1 to 6,
A substrate cassette, wherein the outer ring of the bearing is a resin outer ring or at least an outer ring whose outer peripheral surface is covered with a resin layer. In any one of claims 1 to 7,
Each of the substrate storage shelves has at least one substrate movement restricting member attached to the linear member, and the substrate placement surface is defined by the outer ring of the bearing and the substrate restricting member,
The substrate cassette, wherein the substrate movement regulating member is attached to the linear member in a state in which the substrate movement restricting member does not rotate around the linear member, or in a state in which the rotational load is larger than that of the bearing. In claim 8,
Each of the substrate storage shelves, one end in the direction orthogonal to the direction of the linear member crossing is a substrate loading and unloading port for inserting and removing the substrate,
A substrate cassette, wherein at least one substrate movement restricting member is attached to a linear member at a position farthest from a substrate loading / unloading port in each of the substrate storage shelves. In any one of claims 1 to 9,
A substrate cassette, wherein the linear member is a wire made of a single metal or plastic thread, or a wire formed by bundling a plurality of metal or plastic threads.

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