JP2014227260A - Transfer device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To prevent a transferred object from entering into a cylindrical chamber and being damaged by contact with an opening edge when a negative pressure is generated in the cylindrical chamber to hold the transferred object in a transfer device including the cylindrical chamber where one end opens.SOLUTION: A transfer device 10 includes: a swirling flow formation body 1; and a baffle plate 2 attached to the swirling flow formation body 1. The swirling flow formation body 1 is a member for suctioning a transferred object. The baffle plate 2 is a member for blocking the transferred object suctioned by the swirling flow formation body 1 from entering into the cylindrical chamber of the swirling flow formation body 1.

Description

  The present invention relates to an apparatus for conveying a hardly adsorbable material.

  In recent years, an apparatus for transporting a plate-like member such as a semiconductor wafer or a glass substrate in a non-contact manner has been developed. For example, Patent Document 1 proposes an apparatus that transports a plate-like member in a non-contact manner using Bernoulli's theorem. In this device, a swirling flow is generated in a cylindrical chamber opened on the lower surface of the device, and a plate-like member is sucked by the negative pressure at the central portion of the swirling flow, while the device and the plate-like member are drawn by a fluid flowing out of the circular chamber. By maintaining a certain distance from the member, the plate-like member can be conveyed in a non-contact manner.

JP-A-2005-51260

  The present invention provides a transfer apparatus having a cylindrical chamber having one end opened, and when the object to be transferred is held by generating a negative pressure in the cylinder chamber, the object to be transferred enters the cylinder chamber, and the opening The purpose is to prevent damage from contact with the edges.

  In order to solve the above-mentioned problem, the present invention is a transport device including a swirl flow forming body and a baffle plate, wherein the swirl flow forming body is formed inside a columnar main body and the main body, and one end thereof. A cylindrical chamber in which the cylindrical chamber is open, a flat end surface formed on a surface of the main body on which the cylindrical chamber is open, a jet port provided on an inner peripheral surface of the cylindrical chamber, and an outer surface of the main body And a fluid passage that connects the ejection port and the fluid introduction port, and the baffle plate is attached to the end face of the swirl flow forming body, and is transported into the cylindrical chamber Provided is a transport device that inhibits entry of an object.

  In a preferred embodiment, the baffle plate has a rod-shaped member spanning the opening of the cylindrical chamber so as to form a cross, and a plurality of concentric annular shapes centering on the intersection of the cross formed by the rod-shaped member. You may have a member.

  In a more preferred aspect, the annular member is provided so as not to obstruct the inflow of the fluid sucked by the negative pressure generated in the central portion of the cylindrical chamber by the swirl flow formed in the cylindrical chamber. May be.

  In a more preferred aspect, the annular member may not be provided so as to cover the central portion of the opening of the cylindrical chamber.

  According to the present invention, in a transport device including a cylindrical chamber whose one end is open, when the transported object is held by generating a negative pressure in the cylindrical chamber, the transported object enters the cylindrical chamber, It is possible to prevent damage from contact with the opening edge.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a transport device 10. 1 is a perspective view of a swirl flow forming body 1. FIG. It is the II sectional view taken on the line of FIG. It is the II-II sectional view taken on the line of FIG. 3 is a plan view of a baffle plate 2. FIG. It is explanatory drawing of the effect of the baffle plate. It is explanatory drawing of the effect of the baffle plate. It is a top view of 2 A of baffle plates.

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.
1. Embodiment FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a transfer apparatus 10 according to an embodiment of the present invention. A transport apparatus 10 shown in FIG. 1 is an apparatus for holding and transporting a plate-shaped member such as a semiconductor wafer or a glass substrate. As shown in FIG. 1, the transport device 10 includes a swirl flow forming body 1 and a baffle plate 2 attached to the swirl flow forming body 1. The swirl flow forming body 1 is a member that sucks the conveyed object W. The baffle plate 2 is a member for inhibiting the conveyed object W sucked by the swirling flow forming body 1 from entering a cylindrical chamber 11 described later.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the swirl flow forming body 1. 3 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line II of FIG. FIG.
These are the II-II sectional view taken on the line of FIG. The swirl flow forming body 1 has a cylindrical chamber 11 having a columnar space therein and one end of which is open. The swirl flow forming body 1 has a flat end surface 12 on the surface where the cylindrical chamber 11 is open. Two spouts 13 are provided on the inner peripheral surface of the cylindrical chamber 11. On the other hand, two fluid inlets 14 are provided on the outer peripheral surface of the swirl flow forming body 1. The ejection port 13 and the fluid introduction port 14 are connected by a fluid passage 15. The two fluid passages 15 are arranged in parallel to each other. An inclined surface 16 is formed at the opening of the cylindrical chamber 11.

  FIG. 5 is a plan view of the baffle plate 2. As shown in FIG. 5, the baffle plate 2 has a circular shape and is attached to the swirl flow forming body 1 so as to be concentric with the end face 12. For example, the baffle plate 2 is attached to the swirl flow forming body 1 by screwing. As shown in FIG. 5, the baffle plate 2 includes a disc portion 21 having a circular opening and a plurality of rod-like members 22 a and 22 b (hereinafter collectively referred to as “ And a plurality of annular members 23a and 23b (hereinafter collectively referred to as "annular member 23") spanned between the rod-like members 22a and 22b.

  When the baffle plate 2 is attached to the swirling flow forming body 1, one surface of the disc portion 21 contacts the end surface 12 of the swirling flow forming body 1. The rod-like members 22a and 22b are bridged so as to cross each other at the center of the opening of the disc part 21. When the baffle plate 2 is attached to the swirl flow forming body 1, the rod-shaped members 22 a and 22 b are in a state of being spanned over the opening of the cylindrical chamber 11. The rod-like members 22a and 22b are bridged so as to form, for example, a cross. The annular members 23a and 23b are bridged concentrically around the intersection where the rod-like members 22a and 22b intersect.

  A gap is provided between the innermost annular member 23a and the intersection of the rod-like members 22a and 22b. That is, the annular member 23 a is provided so as not to cover the central portion of the opening of the cylindrical chamber 11 when the baffle plate 2 is attached to the swirl flow forming body 1. Therefore, the annular member 23a does not hinder the inflow of the fluid sucked into the cylindrical chamber 11 according to the principle described later.

  In the transport device 10 having the above-described configuration, when a fluid (for example, air) is supplied from a fluid supply device (not shown) through the fluid introduction port 14, the fluid passes through the fluid passage 15 and the jet 13. Is discharged into the cylindrical chamber 11. The fluid discharged into the cylindrical chamber 11 is rectified as a swirling flow in the cylindrical chamber 11, and then flows out from the opening of the cylindrical chamber 11.

  At that time, when the transported object W exists at a position facing the baffle plate 2, the flow of external air into the cylindrical chamber 11 is limited, and the center of the swirl flow is caused by the centrifugal force of the swirl flow and the entrainment effect. The density of fluid molecules per unit volume of the part is reduced, and negative pressure is generated. As a result, the article W to be transported is pressed by the surrounding air and drawn toward the baffle plate 2 side. On the other hand, as the distance between the baffle plate 2 and the object to be transported W approaches, the amount of air flowing out from the cylindrical chamber 11 is limited, and the speed of the fluid discharged from the ejection port 13 into the cylindrical chamber 11 becomes slow. Thus, the pressure at the center of the swirling flow increases. As a result, the conveyed object W does not contact the baffle plate 2, and a certain distance is maintained between the conveyed object W and the baffle plate 2.

  However, when the transported object W is a hardly adsorbing material, the transported object W and the baffle plate 2 may come into contact with each other. Here, the hard-to-adsorb material is a soft, breathable and heavy material. When transporting the difficult-to-adsorb material, the suction force of the transport device 10 must be increased, and as a result, the transported object W and the baffle plate 2 may come into contact with each other. However, in the case of the transfer apparatus 10 according to the present embodiment, the baffle plate 2 is present, so that the transfer object W is not sucked into the cylindrical chamber 11 as shown in FIG.

  On the other hand, when the baffle plate 2 does not exist, the conveyed object W may be sucked into the cylindrical chamber 11 as shown in FIG. In this case, the object to be conveyed W and the opening edge of the cylindrical chamber 11 (particularly, the inclined surface 16) may come into contact (see dotted line area A), and the object to be conveyed W may be scratched or marked.

  As described above, according to the transport device 10 according to the present embodiment, even when the hardly adsorbing material is transported, the material enters the cylindrical chamber 11 and is damaged by coming into contact with the opening edge thereof. This can be prevented.

2. Modifications The above embodiment may be modified as follows. The following modifications may be combined with each other.

2-1. Modification 1
The shape of the baffle plate is not limited to that employed in the above embodiment. For example, as shown in FIG. 8, compared to the baffle plate 2 according to the above-described embodiment, a shape in which the rod-shaped members 22 a and 22 b are cut out in a region inside the annular member 23 a disposed on the innermost side. It may be adopted. As shown in FIG. 8, the baffle plate 2 </ b> A having this shape includes a disc portion 21, rod-like members 22 c, 22 d, 22 e, 22 f, and annular members 23 a, 23 b.

  The rod-shaped members 22c, 22d, 22e, and 22f are equal-length members that extend from the opening edge of the disc portion 21 toward the center of the opening. The rod-shaped members 22c, 22d, 22e, and 22f extend perpendicular to the adjacent rod-shaped members, respectively. The annular member 23a is arranged so that the outer peripheral edge thereof is in contact with the tips of the rod-like members 22c, 22d, 22e, and 22f. The annular member 23b is bridged between the rod-like members 22c, 22d, 22e, and 22f so as to be concentric with the annular member 23a.

2-2. Modification 2
In the above embodiment, the swirl flow forming body 1 and the baffle plate 2 may be integrally formed.
Moreover, in said embodiment, the number of the jet nozzle 13 and the fluid channel | path 15 of the turning flow formation body 1 may be one, or may be three or more. In said embodiment, the number of the rod-shaped member 22 and the annular member 23 may be one, or three or more.
Further, depending on the area of the article to be transported W, a plurality of the transporting apparatuses 10 according to the above embodiments may be used by being attached to a plate-like frame.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Swirling flow formation body, 2 and 2A ... Baffle plate, 10 ... Transfer apparatus, 11 ... Cylindrical chamber, 12 ... End surface, 13 ... Jet port, 14 ... Fluid introduction port, 15 ... Fluid passage, 16 ... Inclined surface, 21 ... disc part, 22, 22a, 22b, 22c, 22d, 22e, 22f ... rod-like member, 23, 23a, 23b ... annular member, W ... conveyed object

Claims (4)

A conveying device comprising a swirl flow forming body and a baffle plate,
The swirl flow forming body is:
A columnar body,
A cylindrical chamber formed inside the main body, one end of which is open;
A flat end surface formed on a surface of the main body on the side where the cylindrical chamber opens;
A spout provided on the inner peripheral surface of the cylindrical chamber;
A fluid inlet provided on the outer surface of the main body;
A fluid passage connecting the jet port and the fluid introduction port,
The said baffle plate is attached to the said end surface of the said rotational flow formation body, and obstructs the approach of the to-be-conveyed object into the said cylindrical chamber. The conveying apparatus characterized by the above-mentioned. The baffle plate is
A rod-like member that spans the opening of the cylindrical chamber so as to form a cross,
The conveying apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising: a plurality of concentric annular members centering on intersections of the cross formed by the rod-shaped members.   The annular member is provided so as not to obstruct the inflow of the fluid sucked by the negative pressure generated in the central portion of the cylindrical chamber by the swirl flow formed in the cylindrical chamber. The transport apparatus according to claim 2.   The said annular member is not provided so that the center part of the opening part of the said cylindrical chamber may be covered, The conveying apparatus of Claim 3 characterized by the above-mentioned.

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