JP2771645B2 - Positioning device installed in wafer carrier cleaning tank - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION [Industrial Application Field] The present invention relates to cleaning of a wafer carrier for accommodating a wafer serving as a substrate of an IC or a transistor in a disk shape obtained by thinly cutting a columnar crystal such as silicon. The present invention relates to a positioning device provided in a wafer carrier cleaning tank provided on a bottom surface of the tank.

[Prior Art] The above-mentioned positioning device is required to be easily attached and detached and to have a simple structure so as not to cause contamination from the device.

In a conventional positioning device, for example, as shown in FIG. 2, four L-shaped locating pieces 30 are fixed to a bottom surface 3 (FIG. 1) of a cleaning tank A, and long side portions of the pieces 30 facing each other are fixed. The four corners 24 of the wafer carrier C are fitted between the short sides.

In the conventional locate piece 30, the carrier C is fixed by the pressing force between the piece 30 and the wafer carrier C. Therefore, if the pressing force is large, it is difficult to attach and detach the carrier C. On the other hand, when the pressing force is reduced, the wafer carrier C is generally formed of a synthetic resin material such as polypropylene having a small specific gravity, so that the wafer carrier C easily floats.
In addition, when the cleaning is performed by the rotating brush, there is a problem that the surface is moved by the rotating force of the rotating brush and floats.

Further, as a wafer carrier positioning device, there have been proposed a device for positioning the carrier by pressing the carrier with a presser, a device using a swing type presser, and the like. Since a cylinder is used for the rotation, the structure is complicated, and there is a risk of contamination from the apparatus. Therefore, it cannot be adopted as a positioning apparatus provided on the bottom surface of the cleaning tank of the wafer carrier.

[Problems to be Solved by the Invention] The present invention can easily and securely fix a wafer carrier in a detachable manner, has a simple structure, and has no inconvenience such as contamination from the apparatus. It is an object of the present invention to provide a positioning device provided in a vehicle.

[Means for Solving the Problems] According to the present invention, a disk-shaped wafer formed of a columnar crystal of silicon or the like is thinly sliced into a disk shape and is used as a substrate for an IC or a transistor. In the provided wafer carrier positioning device, the positioning device includes a main body on which the wafer carrier is placed, and the main body has a plurality of pairs of guide bars standing upright for guiding the side surface of the wafer carrier. A plurality of pairs of levers are pivotally mounted on the main body, and spring means for urging the upper end of the lever toward the wafer carrier is interposed between the lower part of the lever and the main body. A protection roller is supported by a shaft, and a portion of the main body facing the spring means is provided with the spring in a free state of the lever where the wafer carrier is not mounted on the main body. The lever is urged, the stopper protection roller pivotally supported at its upper end is locked at a position projecting slightly inwardly from a position in contact with the side surfaces of the wafer carrier is provided by the step.

[Operation] In the wafer carrier positioning device configured as described above, when the wafer carrier is lowered into the cleaning tank, it is substantially positioned by the guide bar, and when the wafer carrier is further lowered, the side portion of the carrier is rotated inward. The protective roller is pushed out and spreads so that the bottom reaches the main body, and is automatically positioned by the pressure-contacting protective roller and securely fixed.

When the wafer carrier is pulled up, the protection roller rotates and the fixing is easily released.

Embodiment An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

In FIG. 1, a cleaning tank generally designated by reference numeral A has a cleaning section 1 and an overflow section 2 surrounding the cleaning section. A water supply pipe (not shown) from a pure water supply source (not shown) is connected to a bottom surface 3 of the washing unit 1, and a bottom part of the overflow unit 2 is connected to a wastewater treatment facility (not shown) by a drain pipe (not shown).

On the bottom surface of the cleaning unit 1, a positioning device indicated by reference numeral B is welded.

The main body 10 of the positioning device B is formed in a rectangular frame body, and around its periphery, the side surfaces 21 and 21 on the side orthogonal to the wafer groove 20 (FIG. 2) for supporting the wafer of the wafer carrier C and the other side. And a pair of guide bars (not shown) are provided upright, and a support surface 12 on which the bottom of the carrier C is placed is formed on the upper surface.

In the vicinity of the guide bar 11 on the side surface 21 of the carrier of the main body 10, two pairs of levers 13, 13 are pivotally connected by pins 14 via brackets 10b attached to the main body 10.
A coil spring 15 as a spring means is interposed between the lower portion of the lever 13 and the main body 10 to urge the upper end of the lever 13 toward the lower side surface 22 of the carrier C. That is,
One end of the coil spring 15 is inserted into a concave portion 10a provided in the main body 10, and the other end is provided below the lever 13 to form a concave portion 13a.
It is inserted in. Although not shown, the upper end of the lever 13 is formed in a bifurcated shape, and a protection roller 16 made of a soft material such as rubber is supported by a shaft 16b inside the protection roller 16 so as to protrude from the upper end. Have been. A stopper bolt 17 is provided on a bracket 17a integral with the main body 10 at a portion facing the spring 15 of the main body 10, and when the wafer carrier C is not supported, the stopper bolt 17 is urged by the coil spring 15 and The protection roller 16
The lever 13 is locked so that the lever 13 projects to a position 16a indicated by a chain line slightly inward from a position in contact with the lower side surface 22.

Therefore, when the wafer carrier C is lowered into the cleaning section 1, the side surfaces 21, 21 are guided by the guide bars 11, 11, and the left, right, front and rear sides where the side surfaces 23, 23 are guided by the guide bar (not shown) are substantially positioned.

Further, when the carrier C is lowered, the lower side surfaces 22 and 22 of the carrier C are moved inward to the protection roller 1 at the position 16a rotated inward.
6 and 16 are pushed down and lowered, the bottom 25 abuts against the support surface 12, and the carrier C is pressed against the protective rollers 16, 16 and the support surface 12.
Automatically positioned and securely fixed.

When the wafer carrier C is lifted, the protection roller
16 and 16 rotate, and the fixing of the carrier C by the positioning device B is easily released.

[Effects of the Invention] According to the present invention, when the wafer carrier is lowered into the cleaning tank, the side surface thereof is guided by the guide bar and substantially positioned. Further, when the wafer carrier is lowered, the lower side surface of the carrier pushes and expands the protective roller located at a position slightly protruding inward, and the lower surface thereof comes into contact with the support surface of the main body. It is automatically positioned by the support surface of the main body and securely fixed. Therefore,
The wafer carrier is fixed at a predetermined position, and there is no inconvenience such as floating during cleaning and movement by the rotating brush. Then, when the wafer carrier is pulled up, the protection roller rotates and the fixing of the carrier by the positioning device is easily released.

Further, in the present invention, since a cylinder or the like for operating a lever for positioning the carrier is not used, the structure is simple, and there is no inconvenience such as generation of contamination from the apparatus, and a cleaning tank for the wafer carrier is used. The present invention can be implemented without any trouble as a positioning device provided in the apparatus.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a longitudinal sectional view parallel to a wafer groove of a positioning device provided in a cleaning tank of a wafer carrier according to one embodiment of the present invention;
FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a conventional positioning device. A: Septic tank, B: Positioning device, C: Wafer carrier, 10: Main body, 11: Guide bar, 13: Lever,
15 ... Spring, 16 ... Protective roller, 17 ... Stopper

──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continued on the front page (72) Inventor Nobuo Fujie 1015 Uedanaka, Nakahara-ku, Kawasaki-shi, Kanagawa Prefecture Inside Fujitsu Limited (72) Inventor Hiroaki Sonoda 1015 Kamiodanaka, Nakahara-ku, Kawasaki-shi, Kanagawa Fujitsu Limited ( 56) References JP-A-63-225014 (JP, A) JP-A-61-129662 (JP, U) JP-A-61-189025 (JP, U) JP-A-63-65236 (JP, U) (58) ) Surveyed field (Int.Cl. ⁶ , DB name) H01L 21/304 H01L 21/68

Claims (1)

(57) [Claims] An apparatus for positioning a wafer carrier provided on a bottom surface of a cleaning tank of a wafer carrier for accommodating a wafer serving as a substrate of an IC or a transistor in a disk shape obtained by thinly slicing a columnar crystal such as silicon. The positioning device includes a main body on which the wafer carrier is placed, and the main body has a plurality of pairs of guide bars that guide the side surfaces of the wafer carrier, and the main body has a plurality of pairs of levers. Spring means for urging the upper end of the lever toward the wafer carrier is interposed between the lower part of the lever and the main body, and a protection roller is pivotally supported on the upper end of the lever. And a lever which is urged by the spring means when the wafer carrier is not mounted on the main body in a free state, at a portion of the main body facing the spring means. A stopper is provided at the upper end of the cleaning tank, the stopper being locked at a position where the protection roller pivotally supported projects slightly inward from a position in contact with the side surface of the wafer carrier. Positioning device.