JP2022088279A - Substrate storage container - Google Patents

Abstract

To provide a substrate storage container having a valve body with improved reliability of valve opening/closing operation.SOLUTION: A substrate storage container 1 has a valve body 40 for controlling gas distribution to the container body 10, the valve body 40 comprises: an elastic valve body 45 having a valve aperture 454 connecting a first passage 458 leading to the outside and a second passage 459 leading to the inside; a valve plug 46 inserted into the valve aperture 454 to tightly fit the valve aperture 454 and shut off gas distribution; and a retainer 41 holding the elastic valve body 45, and the valve aperture 454 deforms when positive pressure is applied to the first passage 458 to form a gap between it and the valve plug 46, thereby enabling gas distribution to the container body 10.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2E

Description

The present invention relates to a substrate storage container provided with a valve body that controls the flow of gas to the container body.

The substrate storage container for accommodating the substrate includes a container body, a lid for closing the opening of the container body, and a valve body for controlling the flow of gas to the container body. This valve body has a check valve function, and has a valve body and a metal elastic member that opens and closes the valve body (see, for example, Patent Document 1 and Patent Document 2).

By the way, in the substrate storage container, gas is supplied from the valve body in order to store the substrate in an airtight state, and gas is discharged through the valve body, but the gas adheres to the substrate when the substrate to be stored is processed. Residual material may also be discharged with the supplied gas. Therefore, the metal elastic member of the valve body may be corroded by the residual substance.

Therefore, the present inventors have proposed a valve body using an elastic valve body that opens and closes a gas passage without using a metal member (see Patent Document 3). This valve body has a valve opening / closing mechanism that closes the valve opening formed in the elastic valve body by its own elastic force and opens it with a gas pressure exceeding the elastic force.

Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2008-066330 Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2004-179449 Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2019-021736

However, in the valve body described in Patent Document 3, the valve opening is not sufficiently closed due to the thermal stress at the time of cleaning and the elapsed time of the valve opening state, or the valve opening is opened due to the gas pressure when the check valve function is performed. In some cases, the edges were in close contact with each other, the valve opening was not closed linearly, the check valve function did not work, or the valve was not opened at a predetermined pressure.

Therefore, the present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide a substrate storage container provided with a valve body having improved reliability of valve opening / closing operation.

(1) One aspect of the present invention is a substrate storage including a container body for storing a substrate, a lid for closing the opening of the container body, and a valve body for controlling gas flow to the container body. The valve body is a container, and the valve body has an elastic valve body having a valve opening for communicating a first passage communicating with the outside of the container body and a second passage communicating with the inside of the container body, and the valve opening. The valve opening has a valve plug that is inserted into the valve opening and is in close contact with the valve opening to block the flow of gas, and a holding member that holds the elastic valve body, and the valve opening applies positive pressure to the first passage. By forming a gap between the valve plug and the valve plug, the gas can flow to the container body, or when a positive pressure is applied to the second passage, the gas is deformed and described above. By forming a gap between the valve plug and the valve plug, the gas can flow to the container body.
(2) In the embodiment of (1) above, the valve opening may have an oval shape or an elliptical shape, and the valve plug may have a cross-sectional shape that is the same as or similar to the shape of the valve opening.
(3) In the embodiment of (2) above, the major axis of the valve plug may have a length equal to the elliptical or elliptical major axis of the valve opening, or a long axis in the range of 1 mm or less. ..
(4) In any one of the above (1) to (3), the valve plug may be formed of a cycloolefin polymer, a polyether ether ketone, a polyolefin methacrylate, polypropylene, a polybutylene terephthalate, or a polycarbonate. ..
(5) In any one of the above (1) to (4), the valve body is inserted into the elastic valve body to fix the elastic valve body to the holding member. May have.
(6) In any one of the above (1) to (5), the valve plug may be sandwiched between the elastic valve body and the holding member.
(7) In the aspect of (5) above, the valve plug may be sandwiched between the elastic valve body and the tightening cap.
(8) In any one of the above (1) to (7), the holding member may hold a filter for filtering the gas.

According to the present invention, it is possible to provide a substrate storage container provided with a valve body having improved certainty of valve opening / closing operation.

It is an exploded perspective view which shows the substrate storage container of the embodiment which concerns on this invention. It is an exploded perspective view which shows the valve body for air supply. It is a top view which shows the valve body for air supply. It is a front view which shows the valve body for air supply. It is a bottom view which shows the valve body for air supply. FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line AA of FIG. 2B showing a valve body for air supply. FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line BB of FIG. 2B showing a valve body for air supply. It is a top view which shows the holding member of a valve body. It is a front view which shows the holding member of a valve body. It is a bottom view which shows the holding member of a valve body. It is a perspective view which shows the holding member of a valve body. It is a perspective view which shows the handle of a valve body. It is a side view which shows the handle of a valve body. It is a top view which shows the elastic valve body of a valve body. It is a front view which shows the elastic valve body of a valve body. It is a bottom view which shows the elastic valve body of a valve body. It is sectional drawing which shows the elastic valve body of a valve body. It is a top view which shows the valve plug of a valve body. It is a front view which shows the valve plug of a valve body. It is a bottom view which shows the valve plug of a valve body. It is a side view which shows the valve plug of a valve body. It is a top view which shows the cap of a valve body. It is a front view which shows the cap of a valve body. It is a bottom view which shows the cap of a valve body. It is a perspective view which shows the cap of a valve body. It is an exploded perspective view which shows the valve body for exhaust. It is sectional drawing which cut at the same position as FIG. 2E which shows the valve body for exhaust. It is sectional drawing which cut at the same position as FIG. 2F which shows the valve body for exhaust.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. In the embodiments of the present specification, the same members are designated by the same reference numerals throughout.

FIG. 1 is a schematic exploded perspective view showing a substrate storage container 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention.
It includes a container body 10 for accommodating the substrate W, a lid 20 for closing the opening 11 of the container body 10, and an annular gasket 30 provided between the container body 10 and the lid 20.

The container body 10 is a box-shaped body having an opening 11 formed on the front surface. The opening 11 is bent and formed with a step so as to spread outward, and the surface of the step portion is formed on the inner peripheral edge of the front surface of the opening 11 as a sealing surface 12 with which the gasket 30 contacts. The container body 10 is preferably a front open type because it is easy to insert a substrate W having a diameter of 300 mm or a diameter of 450 mm.

Supports 13 are arranged on the left and right sides of the inside of the container body 10. The support 13 has a function of placing and positioning the substrate W. A plurality of grooves are formed in the support 13 in the height direction to form a so-called groove teeth. The substrate W is placed on two groove teeth on the left and right at the same height. The material of the support 13 may be the same as that of the container body 10, but different materials may be used in order to improve the cleanability and slidability.

Further, a rear retainer (not shown) is arranged behind (inside) the inside of the container body 10. When the lid 20 is closed, the rear retainer is paired with the front retainer described later to hold the substrate W. However, the support 13 does not have a rear retainer as in the present embodiment, but has a front retainer and a substrate holding portion on the back side of the groove teeth, for example, by having a “dogleg” or linear substrate holding portion. It may be such that the substrate W is held by the portion. The support 13 and the rear retainer may be provided on the container body 10 by insert molding, fitting, or the like.

The substrate W is supported by the support 13 and stored in the container body 10. An example of the substrate W is a silicon wafer, but the wafer is not particularly limited, and may be, for example, a quartz wafer, a gallium arsenide wafer, or the like.

A robotic flange 14 is detachably provided at the center of the ceiling of the container body 10. The substrate storage container 1 in which the substrate W is airtightly stored in a clean state is grasped by the transfer robot in the factory with the robotic flange 14 and conveyed to the processing apparatus for each process of processing the substrate W.

Further, manual handles 15 held by the operator are detachably attached to the central portions of the outer surfaces of both side portions of the container body 10.

An air supply unit 16 and an exhaust unit 17 are provided on the inner bottom surface of the container body 10, and valve bodies 40 and 50, which will be described later, are attached to the outer bottom surface of the container body 10. These are obtained by supplying an inert gas such as nitrogen gas or dry air from the air supply unit 16 to the inside of the substrate storage container 1 closed by the lid 20, and discharging the dry air from the exhaust unit 17 as needed. By replacing the gas inside the storage container 1, maintaining an airtight state with low humidity, and blowing off impurities on the substrate W, the cleanliness inside the substrate storage container 1 is maintained. .. In addition to supplying gas from the air supply unit 16, the exhaust unit 17 may be connected to a negative pressure (vacuum) generator to forcibly discharge the gas from the exhaust unit 17.

Further, by detecting the gas exhausted from the exhaust unit 17, it is possible to confirm whether the inside of the substrate storage container 1 has been replaced with the introduced gas. The air supply unit 16 and the exhaust unit 17 are preferably located outside the position where the substrate W is projected onto the bottom surface, but the quantity and position of the air supply unit 16 and the exhaust unit 17 are limited to those shown in the figure. Instead, it may be located at the four corners of the bottom surface of the container body 10. Further, the air supply unit 16 and the exhaust unit 17 may be attached to the side of the lid body 20.

On the other hand, the lid 20 is a substantially rectangular shape attached to the front of the opening 11 of the container body 10. The lid 20 has a locking mechanism (not shown), and is locked by fitting a locking piece into a locking hole (not shown) formed in the container body 10.

Further, the lid 20 is detachably mounted with an elastic front retainer (not shown) that horizontally holds the front peripheral edge of the substrate W in the central portion by fitting or the like, or is integrally formed by insert molding or the like. Has been done. Since the front retainer is a portion where the wafer comes into direct contact with the groove teeth of the support 13 and the substrate holding portion, a material having good detergency and slidability is used.

The lid 20 is formed with a mounting groove 21 for attaching the gasket 30. For example, on the surface of the lid 20 on the container body 10 side, a convex portion 22 smaller than the step portion of the opening 11 is formed in an annular shape, so that a mounting groove 21 having a substantially U-shaped cross section is formed in an annular shape. It is good. When the lid 20 is attached to the container body 10, the convex portion 22 penetrates deeper than the stepped portion of the opening 11.

Examples of the material of the container body 10 and the lid 20 include thermoplastic resins such as polycarbonate, cycloolefin polymer, polyetheretherketone, and liquid crystal polymer. To this thermoplastic resin, a conductive agent made of conductive carbon, conductive fiber, metal fiber, conductive polymer and the like, various antistatic agents, an ultraviolet absorber and the like may be appropriately added.

Next, the gasket 30 has an annular shape corresponding to the front shape of the lid 20 (and the shape of the opening 11 of the container body 10), and in the present embodiment, it has a rectangular frame shape. However, the annular gasket 30 may have a ring shape before being attached to the lid 20.

The gasket 30 is arranged between the sealing surface 12 of the container body 10 and the lid body 20, and when the lid body 20 is attached to the container body 10, the gasket 30 is in close contact with the sealing surface 12 and the lid body 20 to be a substrate storage container. The airtightness of No. 1 is ensured, the intrusion of dust, moisture and the like from the outside into the substrate storage container 1 is reduced, and the leakage of gas from the inside to the outside is reduced.

The gasket 30 is formed by using a thermoplastic elastomer composed of a polyester-based elastomer, a polyolefin-based elastomer, a fluorine-based elastomer, a urethane-based elastomer, and an elastic material such as fluorine rubber, ethylene propylene rubber, and silicone-based rubber. It is good to do it. Various additives may be added to these materials in order to add other functions.

Next, the valve body 40 for air supply will be described.
2A and 2B show a valve body 40 for air supply, FIG. 2A is an exploded perspective view, FIG. 2B is a top view, FIG. 2C is a front view, and FIG. 2D is a bottom view. 2E is a cross-sectional view taken along the line AA of FIG. 2B, and FIG. 2F is a cross-sectional view taken along the line BB of FIG. 2B. In addition, in FIG. 2E and FIG. 2F, the bottom surface portion of the container body 10 is also drawn.

The valve body 40 controls the flow of gas to the container body 10, and when attached to the container body 10, communicates with the air supply unit 16 via a gas flow passage (not shown). As shown in FIGS. 2E and 2F, the valve body 40 has a holding member 41 fitted into a through hole 18 formed by a rib on the bottom surface of the container body 10 (or a bottom plate mounted on the bottom surface of the container body 10). Have. A plurality of ventilation ribs 19 for ensuring the flow of gas to the container body 10 are formed on the base end side of the through hole 18.

3A and 3B show a holding member 41 of the valve body 40, FIG. 3A is a top view, FIG. 3B is a front view, FIG. 3C is a bottom view, and FIG. 3D is a perspective view.

The holding member 41 is formed of a cylindrical first cylinder portion 411 and a second cylinder portion 412 having a central axis eccentric from the central axis of the first cylinder portion 411 (see FIGS. 3A and 3C). ..

The first tubular portion 411 has a ring groove 414 formed on the outer peripheral surface thereof. Further, in the first cylinder portion 411, a partition rib 413 extending radially from the ventilation holes 416 is erected on the upper surface of the container main body 10 side. The ventilation hole 416 is formed in the first cylinder portion 411 so that the central axis coincides with the central axis of the second cylinder portion 412.

Further, the first cylinder portion 411 is also formed with a storage hole 417 communicating with the ventilation hole 416 (see FIGS. 3C and 3D). The storage hole 417 has an inner diameter larger than the inner diameter of the ventilation hole 416.

On the other hand, in the second cylinder portion 412, a pair of support shafts 415 project from the outer peripheral surface along a direction substantially orthogonal to the eccentric direction. The support shaft 415 is chamfered downward (see FIG. 3B).

Further, the second tubular portion 412 has a fitting hole 418 formed in the center (see FIGS. 3C and 3D). The fitting hole 418 has an inner diameter larger than the inner diameter of the storage hole 417. The fitting hole 418 has an inner diameter equal to or slightly larger than the outer diameter of the fitting body portion 451 of the elastic valve body 45 described later.

The holding member 41 is molded from, for example, a thermoplastic resin such as polycarbonate, polyetherimide, polyetheretherketone, or liquid crystal polymer.

Here, an annular seal ring 42 is mounted on the ring groove 414 of the holding member 41 (see FIGS. 2A, 2E, and 2F). The seal ring 42 ensures airtightness between the holding member 41 and the through hole 18 when the holding member 41 is inserted into the through hole 18 of the container body 10, and is fitted into the through hole 18. By doing so, it also has a function of fixing the holding member 41.

The seal ring 42 is made of, for example, a material such as fluorine rubber, natural rubber, urethane rubber, or ethylene propylene rubber.

Further, one or a plurality of filters 43 are provided at the upper end of the first cylinder portion 411 (partition rib 413) of the holding member 41, for example, by adhesion or welding (see FIG. 2A). This filter 43 filters the gas supplied or discharged, and is used for a porous film made of ethylene tetrafluoride, polyester fiber, fluororesin, etc., a molecular filtration filter made of glass fiber, etc., and a filter medium such as activated carbon fiber. It is selected from a chemical filter carrying a chemical adsorbent and the like.

When using a plurality of filters 43, they may be of the same type, but it is better to combine filters having different properties because it is possible to prevent contamination of organic substances in addition to particles. preferable. For example, when cleaning the container body 10, a hydrophobic or hydrophilic material is used on one of the filters 43 in order to suppress the retention of liquids such as water and cleaning liquid, or to suppress the passage of liquids. It may be used to suppress the permeation of the liquid.

FIG. 4 shows the handle 44 of the valve body 40, FIG. 4A is a perspective view, and FIG. 4B is a side view.

The handle 44 is formed in a U shape, and has an arc-shaped main body portion 441 and bearings 442 provided at both ends of the main body portion 441. The bearing 442 is formed with a shaft hole 442a into which the support shaft 415 of the holding member 41 is inserted (see FIG. 2A).

Further, the bearing 442 has a protruding piece 443 formed on the opposite side of the side connected to the main body portion 441. The protruding piece 443 is used when the valve body 40 is mounted on the container body 10, and by rotating the handle 44 in the stored state as shown in FIG. 2C, the mounting portion of the container body 10 is used as a fulcrum. The valve body 40 is fitted into the through hole 18 by the principle of leverage (for details, refer to Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2014-160783).

The handle 44 is molded from a thermoplastic resin such as polycarbonate, polyetherimide, polyetheretherketone, or liquid crystal polymer.

5A and 5B show an elastic valve body 45 of the valve body 40, FIG. 5A is a top view, FIG. 5B is a front view, FIG. 5C is a bottom view, and FIG. 5D is a cross-sectional view.

The elastic valve body 45 has a cylindrical fitting body portion 451 and a tubular portion 452 extending from the concave upper surface of the fitting body portion 451 concentrically. The fitting body portion 451 has an outer diameter equal to or slightly larger than the inner diameter of the fitting hole 418 of the holding member 41, and the flange portion 455 is formed at the lower end. It is preferable that the fitting body portion 451 is fitted into the fitting hole 418 in a forced fit (tightening fit) state.

On the other hand, the tubular portion 452 includes a valve portion 453 in which the valve opening 454 is formed on the inner peripheral surface (see FIG. 5D). The valve portion 453 is formed in a beak shape having two inclined surfaces extending toward the valve opening 454 at the tip so as to have a mountain-shaped cross-sectional shape toward the container body 10 side. The mountain-shaped ridgeline is not limited to a straight line as in the embodiment, but may be an arc shape.

The valve portion 453 divides the inner space of the tubular portion 452 into a first passage 458 communicating with the outside of the container main body 10 and a second passage 459 communicating with the inside of the container main body 10. The passage 458 and the second passage 459 communicate with each other through the valve opening 454.

The valve opening 454 is formed as an oval or elliptical slit opening. When forming the valve opening 454, it may be simultaneously molded at the time of molding with a mold, or it may be cut with a cutter or the like after molding. The valve opening 454 may have a minor axis length of, for example, about 0.1 mm or more and 2.0 mm or less, although it depends on the thickness of the elastic valve body 45.

A cylindrical ventilation opening 456 communicating with the first passage 458 is formed inside the fitting body portion 451, and a tightening cap 47 described later can be inserted into the ventilation opening 456. Further, a positioning convex portion 457 for positioning the valve plug 46, which will be described later, is formed on the inner side of the ventilation opening 456 (the connection portion with the valve portion 453).

The elastic valve body 45 may be formed by using various rubbers, a thermoplastic elastomer resin, or the like. For example, rubbers such as fluororubber and ethylene propylene rubber, and thermoplastic elastomers made of polyester-based elastomers, polyolefin-based elastomers, fluoroelastomers, urethane-based elastomers, and the like can be used.

6A and 6B show a valve plug 46 of the valve body 40, FIG. 6A is a top view, FIG. 6B is a front view, FIG. 6C is a bottom view, and FIG. 6D is a side view.

The valve plug 46 has a ring-shaped base 461, two legs 462 erected on the base 461, and a seal plate 463 bridged to the two legs 462. The base portion 461 is chamfered as chamfered portions 465 at two points on the upper surface on which the leg portions 462 are erected, and engages with the positioning convex portion 457 of the elastic valve body 45 (see FIG. 2E). ).

The seal plate portion 463 has a cross-sectional shape that is the same as or similar to the shape of the valve opening 454. That is, the long axis of the seal plate portion 463 has a length equal to the oval or elliptical long axis of the valve opening 454, or has a long length in the range of 1 mm or less. In other words, the seal plate portion 463 has a circumference equal to or slightly longer than the circumference of the valve opening 454.

The circular opening inside the base 461 and the space between the two legs 462 are an opening 464 through which gas can pass.

The valve plug 46 is made of a material that is difficult to adhere to the material forming the elastic valve body 45, for example, cycloolefin polymer, polyether ether ketone, polyolefin methacrylate, polypropylene, polybutylene terephthalate, and polycarbonate. ..

7A and 7B show a tightening cap 47 of the valve body 40, FIG. 7A is a top view, FIG. 7B is a front view, FIG. 7C is a bottom view, and FIG. 7D is a perspective view.

A tightening cap 47 is inserted into the ventilation opening 456 of the elastic valve body 45 (see FIGS. 2A, 2E and 2F). The tightening cap 47 has an annular portion 471 and a plurality of (for example, four) leg portions 473 extending from one surface of the annular portion 471 toward the center in an L shape. The four legs 473 are connected to each other to form a cross shape.

In the annular portion 471, a plurality of (for example, four) reinforcing ribs 474 are formed on the inner peripheral surface, and four locking claws 472 are formed on the outer peripheral surface. Further, the annular portion 471 has an outer diameter equal to or slightly larger than the inner diameter of the ventilation opening 456 of the elastic valve body 45.

The locking claw 472 is locked by the ventilation opening 456 of the elastic valve body 45, and the elastic valve body 45 is held by the fitting hole of the holding member 41 by expanding the fitting body portion 451 outside the ventilation opening 456. It has a retaining function that can be brought into close contact with 418 (see FIGS. 2E and 2F). If the fitting force between the fitting hole 418 of the holding member 41 and the fitting body portion 451 of the elastic valve body 45 can be sufficiently increased, the tightening cap 47 can be omitted.

The tightening cap 47 is molded from a thermoplastic resin such as polycarbonate, polyetherimide, polyetheretherketone, or liquid crystal polymer.

Next, the valve body 50 for exhaust will be described. Since the exhaust valve body 50 is composed of the same parts except for the elastic valve body 45 of the air supply valve body 40, the description of each part will be omitted as appropriate.
FIG. 8 shows the valve body 50 for exhaust, FIG. 8A is an exploded perspective view, FIG. 8B is a cross-sectional view cut at the same position as FIG. 2E, and FIG. 8C is the same position as FIG. 2F. It is a cross-sectional view cut in.

The valve body 50 controls the flow of gas to the container body 10, and when attached to the container body 10, communicates with the exhaust unit 17 via a gas flow passage (not shown). Then, in the valve body 50, contrary to the valve body 40, the gas can be exhausted from the container body 10 to the outside, but the gas can not be supplied to the inside of the container body 10, for the exhaust unit 17. Used as.

In the valve body 50, the valve portion 553 of the elastic valve body 55 is formed in a valley shape with respect to the container body 10 side, and the valve plug 46 is held between the holding member 41 and the elastic valve body 55. ing.

Finally, a state in which the valve body 40 controls the flow of gas will be described.
In the valve body 40, if positive pressure is not applied to the first passage 458 and the second passage 459 of the elastic valve body 45, the valve opening 454 comes into close contact with the valve plug 46, and gas flows to either side. It is blocking. Further, when a positive pressure is applied to the second passage 459, the two slopes of the valve portion 453 are pressed against the valve plug 46 side, but even if different pressures are applied to each slope, the valve plug 46 is sandwiched in the center. The valve opening 454 is not distorted and blocks the flow of gas to either side.

Then, for example, when a positive pressure of a predetermined value or more is applied to the first passage 458, the elastic valve body 45 is deformed so as to expand the valve opening 454 according to the magnitude of the positive pressure, thereby forming the valve plug 46. A gap is formed between the two. Then, the gas supplied from the outside of the container body 10 passes through this gap, flows to the second passage 459, and is supplied to the inside of the container body 10.

On the other hand, when a negative pressure of a predetermined value or more is applied to the second passage 459, it is relatively the same as when a positive pressure of a predetermined value or more is applied to the first passage 458. Therefore, the valve body 40 is a similar valve. Perform the open operation.

On the contrary, when a positive pressure is applied to the second passage 459, the valve portion 453 of the elastic valve body 45 has a tapered shape toward the apex (top line), so that it bends downward in the opposite direction and closes the valve opening 454. It is deformed so as to be in close contact with the valve plug 46. When the valve opening 454 and the valve plug 46 are in close contact with each other, the gas from the second passage 459 side is blocked from flowing and cannot flow to the first passage 458 side.

It should be noted that even when a negative pressure of a predetermined value or more is applied to the first passage 458, it is relatively the same as when a positive pressure of a predetermined value or more is applied to the second passage 459, so that the valve body 40 operates in the same manner. I do.

The predetermined value of the pressure at which the gas can flow changes the material, hardness, shape / dimension, thickness, valve opening 454 and width or length of the valve plug 46 (seal plate portion 463) of the elastic valve body 45. It is adjustable by.

The state in which the valve body 50 controls the flow of gas is basically in the opposite direction to the valve body 40, and thus the description thereof will be omitted.

As described above, the substrate storage container 1 of the embodiment according to the present invention has a container body 10 for storing the substrate W, a lid 20 for closing the opening 11 of the container body 10, and gas flow to the container body 10. A substrate storage container 1 including a control valve body 40, 50, wherein the valve body 40, 50 communicates with a first passage 458 communicating with the outside of the container body 10 and a second passage communicating with the inside of the container body 10. An elastic valve body 45 having a valve opening 454 that communicates with a passage 459, a valve plug 46 that is inserted into the valve opening 454 and is in close contact with the valve opening 454 to block gas flow, and a holding that holds the elastic valve body 45. The valve opening 454 has a member 41 and is deformed when a positive pressure is applied to the first passage 458 to form a gap between the member 41 and the valve plug 46, thereby allowing gas to flow to the container body 10. Or, when a positive pressure is applied to the second passage 459, the gas is deformed to form a gap between the second passage 459 and the valve plug 46, thereby enabling the flow of gas to the container body 10.

As a result, for example, gas is introduced from one side of the valve bodies 40 and 50 to become a positive pressure, and when a predetermined pressure value is reached, the valve opening 454 of the elastic valve body 45 swells, and the elastic valve body 45 and the valve plug 46. Since a gap is formed between the valve body and the valve body, the introduced gas is supplied to the other side of the valve bodies 40 and 50.

Further, since the substrate storage container 1 includes valves 40 and 50 that do not use metal members, even if the substrate W to be stored contains metal corrosive residual substances, the problem of metal corrosion does not occur. , It is unlikely that the valve bodies 40 and 50 will not operate.

Further, by simply replacing the elastic valve bodies 45 and 55 and changing the position of the valve plug 46, gas can be circulated in the air supply direction or the exhaust direction, and the position and number of the air supply unit 16 and the exhaust unit 17 can be changed. Regardless, it can accommodate any gas supply and exhaust route.

In addition, a humidity retention test was conducted using the substrate storage container 1 of the embodiment, but the decrease in humidity with the passage of time did not show a particularly large difference from the conventional one.

The opening 464 of the valve plug 46 and the ventilation opening 475 of the tightening cap 47 are also connected to the first passage 458, which corresponds to the "first passage" described in the claims, and the ventilation hole 416 is also the second passage. It can be said that it corresponds to the "second passage" described in the claims in that it connects to the passage 459.

The valve opening 454 of the embodiment has an oval shape or an elliptical shape, and the valve plug 46 has a cross-sectional shape that is the same as or similar to the shape of the valve opening 454. As a result, the periphery of the valve opening 454 of the elastic valve body 45 is in a stretched state, so that when the valve is changed from the valve open state to the valve closed state, it contracts due to the elastic force of the elastic valve body 45 and becomes the valve plug 46. It can be surely adhered.

The major axis of the valve plug 46 of the embodiment has a length equal to the elliptical or elliptical major axis of the valve opening 454, or a long axis in the range of 1 mm or less. As a result, the periphery of the valve opening 454 of the elastic valve body 45 is in a stretched state, so that when the valve is changed from the valve open state to the valve closed state, it contracts due to the elastic force of the elastic valve body 45 and becomes the valve plug 46. It can be securely adhered.

The valve plug 46 of the embodiment is made of a cycloolefin polymer, a polyether ether ketone, a polyolefin methacrylate, polypropylene, a polybutylene terephthalate, and a polycarbonate. As a result, the adhesion (stickiness) of the valve plug 46 to the elastic valve body 45 can be reduced, and an increase in the valve opening pressure can be suppressed. In particular, for the elastic valve body 45 formed of fluororubber, the valve plug 46 may be formed of a cycloolefin polymer, a polyether ether ketone, or a polyolefin methacrylate.

The valve bodies 40 and 50 of the embodiment have a tightening cap 47 for fixing the elastic valve body 45 to the holding member 41 by being inserted into the elastic valve body 45. Thereby, the elastic valve body 45 can be fixed by attaching the tightening cap 47 to the elastic valve body 45. Further, since the fitting force between the holding member 41 and the elastic valve body 45 can be increased, it is possible to prevent gas from leaking from these gaps.

The valve plug 46 of the embodiment is sandwiched between the elastic valve body 55 and the holding member 41. As a result, the valve plug 46 can be fixed by inserting the tightening cap 47 into the elastic valve body 55 and attaching it to the holding member 41.

The valve plug 46 of the embodiment is sandwiched between the elastic valve body 45 and the tightening cap 47. Thereby, the valve plug 46 and the elastic valve body 45 can be fixed by attaching the tightening cap 47 to the elastic valve body 45.

The holding member 41 of the embodiment holds a filter 43 for filtering gas. As a result, the gas passing through the valve bodies 40 and 50 can be filtered. Further, by sandwiching the filter 43 between the holding member 41 (partition rib 413) and the container body 10 (ventilation rib 19), it is possible to prevent the filter 43 from falling off.

Although the preferred embodiments of the present invention have been described in detail above, the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and various modifications and variations are made within the scope of the gist of the present invention described in the claims. It can be changed.

(Modification example)
In the above embodiment, the first cylinder portion 411 and the second cylinder portion 412 of the holding member 41 conform to the positioning relationship between the existing board storage container 1 and the load port including the air supply / exhaust nozzles. Although it was eccentric, for example, it may be concentric as seen in the conventional valve body described in Patent Document 3. Further, in the structure of the conventional valve body, the valve plug 46 of the embodiment may be inserted into the slit of the elastic body (corresponding to the valve opening 454 of the elastic valve body 45).

In the above embodiment, the valve portion 453 of the elastic valve body 45 may have a cross shape in which two valve openings 454 are orthogonal to each other. In this case, the seal plate portion 463 of the valve plug 46 may also be formed so that the cross section has a cross section.

Further, in the above embodiment, the filter 43 may be arranged in the gas flow path from the gas supply source to the gas discharge port inside the container body 10, separately from the valves 40 and 50.

In the above embodiment and the like, the valve bodies 40 and 50 are configured to be attached to the through holes 18 formed in at least one of the container body 10 and the lid body 20, but the valve body described in Patent Document 3 is described. As described above, the gas flow path (piping) provided in the container body 10 or the like, for example, may be configured to be attached in the middle of the gas flow path communicating with at least one of the air supply unit 16 or the exhaust unit 17.

1 Board storage container 10 Container body, 11 Opening, 12 Sealing surface, 13 Support, 14 Robotic flange, 15 Manual handle, 16 Air supply part, 17 Exhaust part, 18 Through hole, 19 Ventilation rib 20 Lid, 21 Mounting Groove, 22 Convex 30 Gasket 40,50 Valve body 41 Holding member 411 1st cylinder, 412 2nd cylinder, 413 Section rib, 414 Ring groove, 415 Support shaft, 416 Vent hole, 417 Storage hole, 418 Fitting Flange 42 Seal ring 43 Filter 44 Handle, 441 Main body, 442 Bearing, 442a Shaft hole, 443 Protruding piece 45,55 Elastic valve body, 451 Fitting body, 452 Cylindrical part, 453,553 Valve part, 454 valve Opening, 455 Flange, 456 Ventilation opening, 457 Positioning convex, 458 1st passage, 459 2nd passage 46 Valve plug, 461 base, 462 legs, 463 Seal plate, 464 Opening, 465 chamfer 47 tightening With cap, 471 annular part, 472 locking claws, 473 legs, 474 reinforcing ribs, 475 ventilation openings W board

Claims (8)

The container body that stores the board and
A lid that closes the opening of the container body and
A substrate storage container including a valve body that controls the flow of gas to the container body.
The valve body is
An elastic valve body having a valve opening for communicating a first passage communicating with the outside of the container body and a second passage communicating with the inside of the container body.
A valve plug that is inserted into the valve opening and is in close contact with the valve opening to block the flow of gas.
It has a holding member for holding the elastic valve body, and has.
The valve opening is
When a positive pressure is applied to the first passage, the gas is deformed to form a gap between the first passage and the valve plug, thereby allowing the gas to flow to the container body.
When a positive pressure is applied to the second passage, the gas is deformed to form a gap between the second passage and the valve plug, thereby enabling the flow of the gas to the container body.
A board storage container characterized by this. The valve opening is oval or elliptical and has an oval shape.
The valve plug has a cross-sectional shape that is the same as or similar to the shape of the valve opening.
The substrate storage container according to claim 1. The major axis of the valve plug has a length equal to the elliptical or elliptical major axis of the valve opening, or a long axis in the range of 1 mm or less.
The substrate storage container according to claim 2, wherein the substrate storage container is characterized by the above. The valve plug is made of cycloolefin polymer, polyether ether ketone, polyolefin methacrylate, polypropylene, polybutylene terephthalate, and polycarbonate.
The substrate storage container according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the substrate storage container is characterized by the above. The valve body has a tightening cap for fixing the elastic valve body to the holding member by being inserted into the elastic valve body.
The substrate storage container according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the substrate storage container is characterized by the above. The valve plug is sandwiched between the elastic valve body and the holding member.
The substrate storage container according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the substrate storage container is characterized by the above. The valve plug is sandwiched between the elastic valve body and the tightening cap.
The substrate storage container according to claim 5. The holding member holds a filter that filters the gas.
The substrate storage container according to any one of claims 1 to 7, wherein the substrate storage container is characterized by the above.

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