JP2996236B1 - Substrate processing equipment - Google Patents

Abstract

Abstract: [PROBLEMS] While maintaining safety and process cleanliness,
Provided is a substrate processing apparatus capable of reducing an exhaust amount and taking out a chemical solution by exhaust. In the substrate processing apparatus, a first evacuation space (8) is formed between adjacent chemical processing chambers (13), and a second exhaust space (8) is provided between an upper lid (6) and an inner lid (7) for sealing the chemical processing chamber (13). An exhaust space 9 is formed, and a shutter 12 is provided in the first exhaust space 8 to shut off and communicate between the first exhaust space 8 and the chemical solution processing chamber 13. Exhaust pipes 20 and 21 for exhausting the chemical solution processing chamber 13 are provided in the section 8 and the second exhaust space 9.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a substrate processing apparatus, and more particularly, to a substrate such as a glass substrate used for a liquid crystal display panel, in a process of manufacturing the panel, such as a chemical cleaning process and a water cleaning process. BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a substrate processing apparatus for performing a process, which can reduce consumption of a chemical solution.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, in a substrate processing apparatus for performing a predetermined process on a substrate used as a glass substrate of a liquid crystal display panel,
A plurality of processing chambers including a chemical processing chamber and a rinsing processing chamber are arranged adjacent to each other in the substrate transfer direction, and the substrate is disposed in the chemical processing chamber,
The substrate is subjected to a chemical solution and a rinsing process while being sequentially transported to the rinsing chamber. Before and after the chemical processing chamber, a preliminary exhaust chamber equipped with means for alternately shutting off and communicating with the chemical processing chamber is provided, completely isolating the operator from the chemical atmosphere in the chemical processing chamber and ensuring safety. A method for preventing contamination from an adjacent processing chamber while solving the problem is disclosed in, for example, JP-A-56-017099 (NEC Kyushu).

However, in the case of such a substrate processing apparatus, a preliminary exhaust chamber space larger than the size of an object to be processed is required, so that the size of the apparatus becomes extremely large, and furthermore, a purge in the preliminary exhaust chamber is required. In addition, there is a disadvantage that the purging time becomes longer as the size of the workpiece increases.

Therefore, in order to eliminate such a drawback, FIG.
And a substrate processing apparatus as shown in FIG. 6 has been proposed. That is, in this conventional substrate processing apparatus, the substrate 18
A plurality of chemical processing chambers 13 for performing the chemical processing and a plurality of rinsing processing chambers 14 for cleaning the substrate 18 after the chemical processing with pure water are alternately arranged adjacent to each other in the transport direction of the substrate 18.
A shutter 12 that alternately shuts off and communicates between the processing chambers is provided between the processing chambers of the chemical processing chamber 13 and the rinsing processing chamber 14, and the chemical atmosphere of the chemical processing chamber 13 is connected to another adjacent processing chamber. Prevents spills and contaminants of objects to be cleaned. The chemical treatment chamber 13 is opened at the top, and the opening is double-closed by a double lid with the upper lid 6 and the inner lid 7 to seal the chemical treatment chamber 13.

A transport roller 4 for transporting the substrate 18 in a horizontal direction and a loading roller 5 are disposed inside the chemical solution processing chamber 13 so as to be in sliding contact with the upper and lower surfaces of the substrate 18. The transport roller 4 and the transfer roller 5 are rotated by a gear driving unit 15 housed in a gear cleaning box 16 to transport the substrate 18. A pair of spray nozzles 10 for spraying the processing liquid onto the upper and lower surfaces of the substrate 18 are disposed above and below the substrate 18, and a liquid draining air knife 1 is provided downstream of each of the processing chambers 13 and 14.
1 are individually arranged. An exhaust pipe 19 is connected to one side wall of the chemical processing chamber 13, and an automatic damper 1 and a manual damper 2 are mounted in the exhaust pipe 19, and the amount of exhaust of the chemical atmosphere in the chemical processing chamber 13 is controlled. It has become. Further, an L-shaped mist prevention plate 17 for preventing the discharge of the chemical mist is fixed to the inner surface of the chemical treatment chamber 13 at a position facing the opening end of the exhaust pipe 19.

Accordingly, in such a substrate processing apparatus, the shutter 12 for alternately shutting off and communicating between the processing chambers is provided.
Is provided, the outflow of the chemical liquid atmosphere of the chemical liquid processing chamber 13 to the adjacent washing processing chamber 14 and the like is prevented, and contamination of the cleaning target is avoided. Further, a preliminary exhaust chamber is not required, the size of the apparatus is reduced, and the apparatus is compact.

[0007] Such a technique is disclosed in, for example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open
No. 014813 (Fujitsu).

[0008]

By the way, in the above-mentioned conventional substrate processing apparatus, when the shutter 12 is opened, the leakage of the chemical solution atmosphere to the adjacent processing chamber cannot be prevented.
It is necessary to create an airflow that flows to the safe side between the processing chambers. For this reason, taking out of the chemical solution by exhaust increases,
There is a problem that the taking out of the chemical mist and the chemical vapor increases, and the consumption of the chemical increases.

Further, since a chemical solution used for substrate processing contains a lot of substances harmful to the human body, the processing chamber is constantly exhausted, thereby improving safety such as preventing a chemical solution atmosphere from leaking to a work surface. At the same time, process cleanliness is maintained by preventing leakage of the chemical solution atmosphere to the adjacent processing chamber. However, also in this case, there is a problem that a large amount of the chemical mist generated during the spraying process and the chemical vapor heated to a high temperature are taken out by the exhaust. These chemicals used for various treatments are very expensive, and an increase in the removal of chemical mist and chemical vapor increases the running cost.

[0010] The chemicals taken out by the exhaust gas are treated in an exhaust gas treatment plant, detoxified and then released to the atmosphere, and chemicals condensed in the exhaust pipe or discharged from an exhaust gas treatment plant such as a pure water scrubber. Some high-concentration wastewater is ultimately sent to a wastewater treatment plant and detoxified, but in any case, large quantities of chemicals taken out of the equipment have a significant effect on plant treatment capacity, and investment is increasing. There is a problem that it becomes a factor. In addition, in chemicals that are easily heated and contain volatile components such as organic solvents, chemical components change rapidly due to a large amount of only a small amount of components being reduced by exhaustion, and the chemical solution life cycle Is shortened.

[0011] In order to reduce the exhaust gas, there is a method in which a mist trap using a cooling function is attached to return the condensed chemical solution to the treatment room or the circulation tank. However, the exhaust air velocity is large and sufficient cooling cannot be obtained. Therefore, the consumption reduction effect is very small. Once re-liquefied after vaporization, the chemical composition changes and some chemicals cannot be reused, and at present, there is no inexpensive and effective mist trap.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and has as its object to reduce the removal of chemicals by exhaust while maintaining safety and process cleanliness. It is to provide a substrate processing apparatus.

In order to achieve the above object, a substrate processing apparatus according to the present invention includes a plurality of processing chambers sequentially arranged in a substrate transport direction so as to perform a predetermined processing on a substrate. In a substrate processing apparatus that performs a predetermined process on each of the substrates, an intermediate chamber whose dimension in the substrate transport direction is smaller than the width of the substrate in the transport direction is provided via a partition wall provided with an openable and closable shutter between adjacent processing chambers. A first exhaust space portion having a first exhaust means, and an upper portion of the at least one processing chamber, which is non-airtightly partitioned by two lids separated from each other, and provided as an upper chamber. A second exhaust space having two exhaust means, wherein the first exhaust space removes the substrate from one of the adjacent processing chambers and then loads the substrate into the other processing chamber. To the processing chamber by opening the shutter While the substrate is being processed in the adjacent processing chamber, the shutter is shut off from the processing chamber by closing the shutter, and at least when the shutter is opened, the negative pressure is maintained by the exhaust operation of the first exhaust means, and the second pressure is maintained. The exhaust space is characterized by being maintained at a negative pressure by the exhaust operation of the second exhaust means while the substrate is being processed in the processing chamber having the second exhaust space.

It is not necessary to provide the first exhaust space and the second exhaust space in all of the processing chambers, but from the viewpoints of safety, process cleanliness, suppression of chemical solution consumption, and the like, all of the processing chambers are required. It is preferable to provide them. The present invention can be applied regardless of the type of the substrate and the type of processing. For example, the present invention can be suitably applied to the processing of a glass substrate of a liquid crystal display panel. From the viewpoints of safety, process cleanliness, suppression of chemical solution consumption, and the like, the first exhaust space portion and the second exhaust space portion are maintained at a negative pressure while processing the substrate in the processing chamber. To be. Preferably, the first exhaust unit and the second exhaust unit are
Each is equipped with an auto damper and connected to the suction device,
The first exhaust space and the second exhaust space are each automatically maintained at a negative pressure. More preferably, the processing chamber is provided with an exhaust unit, and the first processing chamber and the next processing chamber are transported from the one processing chamber to the next processing chamber via the first exhaust space. Exhaust.

In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, in the processing chamber connected to the first exhaust space and having the second exhaust space, the first exhaust space and the second exhaust space are provided. An exhaust communication space configured by communicating with the space, and a third exhaust unit provided in the exhaust communication space instead of the first exhaust unit and the second exhaust unit; Maintains the exhaust communication space at a negative pressure at least when the shutter is opened or while the substrate is being processed in the processing chamber having the second exhaust space.

In a further preferred embodiment of the present invention, the exhaust communication spaces provided in the plurality of processing chambers are further communicated with each other. The third exhaust means is provided with an automatic damper and connected to the suction device, and automatically maintains the exhaust communication space at a negative pressure.

In a further preferred embodiment of the present invention, the plurality of processing chambers comprise a combination of a processing chamber for performing a chemical cleaning process and a processing chamber for performing a water cleaning process.

According to the present invention, a first exhaust space is formed between adjacent processing chambers, a second exhaust space is formed between double lids that seal the processing chamber, and a first exhaust space is formed. Further, since the exhaust means for exhausting the processing chamber is provided in the second exhaust space part, the exhaust means is constantly exhausted from the first exhaust space part, so that the opening and closing means before and after the first exhaust space part can be opened and closed. In both cases of opening and closing, the outflow of the atmosphere to the adjacent processing chamber is completely prevented. Further, by constantly exhausting the gas from the second exhaust space portion, a very slight leakage of the chemical solution can be completely eliminated in the second exhaust space portion, thereby improving safety. In addition, since the amount of the chemical solution consumed by the exhaust is very small taken out of the second exhaust space, the chemical mist taken out of the first exhaust space during the movement time of the substrate between the adjacent processing chambers is reduced. In addition, the amount of the chemical liquid becomes almost the same as the amount of the chemical liquid vapor, so that the amount of exhaust gas is reduced and the amount of chemical liquid taken out by the exhaust gas is reduced.

[0019]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. In describing the embodiments, those having the same functions as those of the conventional substrate processing apparatus will be described with the same reference numerals.

Embodiment 1 This embodiment is an example of an embodiment of a substrate processing apparatus according to the present invention applied to a substrate processing apparatus for cleaning a glass substrate used as a substrate of a liquid crystal display panel. FIG. 2 is a schematic configuration diagram of a substrate processing apparatus of the embodiment, and FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view of a processing chamber of the embodiment. As shown in FIG. 1, the substrate processing apparatus according to the present embodiment includes a plurality of chemical processing chambers 13 for performing a chemical processing of a substrate 18 and a substrate 18 after the chemical processing.
A plurality of washing processing chambers 14 for washing the substrate with pure water are alternately or continuously arranged adjacent to each other in the transport direction of the substrate 18.
Is formed.

Between the first exhaust space 8 and each of the processing chambers adjacent on both sides, a shutter for alternately opening and closing the first exhaust space 8 and each of the processing chambers by opening and closing operations. 12 is provided to prevent the chemical atmosphere in the chemical processing chamber 13 from flowing out to another adjacent processing chamber and contaminating the object to be cleaned. The chemical solution treatment chamber 13 has an upper part opened, the opening part is double-closed by a double lid with an upper lid 6 and an inner lid 7, and a second exhaust space 9 between the upper lid 6 and the inner lid 7. Are formed. Inside the chemical processing chamber 13,
A transport roller 4 for transporting the substrate 18 in the horizontal direction and an upper roller 5 are disposed so as to slide on the upper and lower surfaces of the substrate 18. The transport roller 4 and the transfer roller 5 are rotated by a gear driving unit 15 housed in a gear cleaning box 16 to transport the substrate 18.

Above and below the substrate 18, a pair of spray nozzles 10 for spraying the processing liquid onto the upper and lower surfaces of the substrate 18 are provided.
The liquid draining air knives 11 are individually arranged downstream of the processing chambers of the chemical processing chamber 13 and the rinsing processing chamber 14, respectively. On one side wall of the chemical processing chamber 13,
An exhaust pipe 19 is connected, and an auto damper 1 and a manual damper 2 are mounted in the exhaust pipe 19 in the middle. A trachea 20 is connected to the first exhaust space 9, and an auto damper 1 and a manual damper 2 are mounted in the exhaust pipe 20. Thus, the exhaust amount of the chemical solution atmosphere in the chemical solution processing chamber 13 and the second exhaust space 9 is controlled. Further, an L-shaped mist prevention plate 17 for preventing discharge of the chemical mist is fixed to a position facing the opening end of the exhaust pipe 19 of the chemical treatment chamber 13.

An exhaust pipe 21 is also connected to the first exhaust space 8, and an auto damper 1 and a manual damper 2 for controlling the amount of exhaust of the chemical solution atmosphere are mounted in the exhaust pipe 21. I have.

Hereinafter, the operation of the substrate processing apparatus will be described.
Since the substrate processing apparatus is configured as described above, the substrate detecting unit (not shown) detects that the substrate 18 has been transported to the position just before the first exhaust space 8 by the transport roller 4 and the additional roller 5. Upon detection, the shutters 12 on the front and rear sides of the first exhaust space 8 open, and the substrate 18 is carried into the chemical solution processing chamber 13. Next, when the substrate detection unit detects the completion of the transfer of the substrate into the chemical solution processing chamber 13, the shutter 12 closes. Here, the spraying of the processing liquid from the spray nozzle 10 is started, and the spraying is stopped after the processing for the specified time is completed.

Thereafter, the shutter 12 between the chemical processing chambers 13
Opens to start blowing high-pressure air from the liquid draining air knife 11 in the chemical solution processing chamber 13 onto the substrate 18. Then, the substrate 18 is transported by the transport roller 4 and the upper roller 5.
Is transported to the next chemical processing chamber 13, the shutter 12 is closed, and the blowing of high-pressure air from the liquid draining air knife 11 in the chemical processing chamber 13 is stopped. In the operation in the rinsing processing chamber 14 after the chemical processing chamber 13, the chemical processing chamber 13 is also used.
Is the same as

Here, during a series of operations from loading and unloading of the substrate in the chemical solution processing chamber 13, the respective exhaust pipes 2 of the first exhaust space 8 and the second exhaust space 9 are arranged.
The automatic dampers 1 of 0 and 21 are always open, and the first exhaust space 8 and the second exhaust space 9 are always at a negative pressure.

As for the exhaust in the chemical processing chamber 13, the automatic damper 1 of the exhaust pipe 19 is always closed, and the processing in the chemical processing chamber 13 is not exhausted during the processing. When detecting that the upper lid 6 in the upper part of the chemical processing chamber 13 is open, all processing is stopped as a safety mechanism. At the same time, the automatic damper 1 of the exhaust pipe 19 of the chemical processing chamber 13 is opened, and the inside of the chemical processing chamber 13 is opened. Is set to a negative pressure to prevent the outflow of the chemical solution atmosphere to the work surface.

As described above, in the past, by adjusting the exhaust amount of each processing chamber, the internal pressure of the processing chamber, which has little effect on the process cleanliness, was reduced to create an airflow in one direction. However, according to the present embodiment, By providing the first exhaust space 8 between the adjacent processing chambers and always performing the exhaust, the first exhaust space 8
Regardless of whether the front and rear shutters 12 are opened or closed, the outflow of the atmosphere to the adjacent processing chamber can be completely prevented, and the process cleanliness can be improved.

Conventionally, when the internal pressure of the processing chamber changes when the shutter 12 between the adjacent processing chambers is opened and closed, knocking occurs in the processing chamber. However, in this embodiment, the second exhaust space 9 is provided between the upper lid 6 and the inner lid 7 which double-close the upper part of the chemical solution treatment chamber, and the second exhaust space 9 is constantly exhausted, so that a very small amount of air is exhausted. The atmosphere of the chemical solution that leaks into the second exhaust space 9 can be completely eliminated, and safety can be improved.

Further, the amount of the chemical solution consumed by the exhaust of the present embodiment is very small, which is taken out of the second exhaust space 9, so that the shutter disposed before and after the first exhaust space 8 is used. When the opening 12 is open, it is substantially equal to the amount of chemical mist and the amount of chemical vapor taken out of the processing chamber through the shutter opening from the first exhaust space 8. In other words, consumption occurs only during the movement time between adjacent processing chambers.

Here, the size of the substrate to be processed is 550 mm ×
650 mm, processing tact: 60 seconds / sheet, pitch between adjacent chemical processing chambers via the first exhaust space 8 is 1000
An example of the peeling device when the transfer speed to the next processing chamber is 4000 mm / min. While the conventional apparatus constantly evacuates, the transfer time of the apparatus under the preconditions of the present embodiment to the next processing chamber is “1000 mm / 400 mm”.
0 mm / min × 60 seconds = 15 seconds ”, which is the chemical solution consumption time due to the exhaust during the processing tact.

Next, the consumption rate during the shower process in which a large amount of chemical solution is conventionally taken out is about 40 c.
In contrast, in the present embodiment, most of the chemical solution is taken out while the shower is stopped, and the consumption rate is about 10 cc / min. From these facts, the consumption amount of the chemical solution due to the exhaust during the substrate processing is “40 cc / min ×
45 seconds + 10 cc / min × 15 seconds = 32.5 cc / min ”, whereas the present embodiment example is“ 10 cc / min × 15 seconds =
2.5 cc / min ", and the consumption of the chemical solution by the exhaust according to the present embodiment is 1/13 of the conventional one.

Further, by reducing the taking out of the chemical solution by the exhaust gas of this embodiment, the load on the exhaust treatment plant and the waste water treatment plant can be reduced, and the capital investment required for the treatment plant can be reduced.

In the present embodiment, the processing chamber during the chemical solution treatment is sealed and brought into a saturated state, thereby promoting the re-liquefaction of the chemical mist and the chemical vapor. That is, by suppressing the change in the liquid composition, the life cycle of the liquid chemical can be extended.

Embodiment 2 This embodiment is another example of the embodiment of the substrate processing apparatus according to the present invention applied to a substrate processing apparatus for cleaning a glass substrate used as a substrate of a liquid crystal display panel. FIG. 3 is a schematic configuration diagram of the substrate processing apparatus of the present embodiment. In the first embodiment, the first exhaust space 8 is formed between the adjacent processing chambers of the chemical processing chamber 13 and the rinsing processing chamber 14. However, the substrate processing apparatus of the present embodiment is replaced with this. As shown in FIG. 3, a first exhaust space 8 for each processing chamber is provided.
And the second exhaust space 9 to form an exhaust communication space 22, and a single exhaust pipe 23 having the automatic damper 1 and the manual damper 2 in the exhaust communication space 22.
May be provided.

Embodiment 3 This embodiment is still another example of the embodiment of the substrate processing apparatus according to the present invention applied to a substrate processing apparatus for cleaning a glass substrate used as a substrate of a liquid crystal display panel. FIG. 4 is a schematic configuration diagram of the substrate processing apparatus of the present embodiment.
In the first embodiment, the first exhaust space 8 is formed between the adjacent processing chambers of the chemical processing chamber 13 and the rinsing processing chamber 14. However, the substrate processing apparatus of the present embodiment is replaced with this. As shown in FIG. 4, a plurality of exhaust pipes 24 having an automatic damper 1 and a manual damper 2 may be provided by further communicating the exhaust communication spaces 22 of the plurality of processing chambers.

In the case where the processing chambers for performing the same chemical treatment are determined to have no influence on the cleanliness of the process, such as adjacent processing chambers, a first exhaust space 8 is provided between the processing chambers. It is not necessary. Further, the exhaust of the processing chamber may be operated in the same sequence as the first exhaust space 8 for exhausting the substrate 18 during the transfer to the next processing chamber.

As described above, the substrate processing apparatus according to this embodiment has been described in detail. However, the present invention is not limited to the substrate processing apparatus described in the above embodiment, and is described in the claims of the present invention. Without departing from the spirit of the invention
Various changes can be made in the design.

[0039]

As will be understood from the above description, according to the substrate processing apparatus of the present invention, the first exhaust space is formed between the adjacent processing chambers, and the space between the double lids that seals the processing chambers. The second exhaust space is formed, and the first exhaust space and the second exhaust space are provided with exhaust means for exhausting the processing chamber. By performing the exhaust, the outflow of the atmosphere to the adjacent processing chamber can be completely prevented in any case of opening and closing the opening and closing means before and after the first exhaust space portion, and the process cleanliness can be improved. . In addition, by constantly exhausting the gas from the second exhaust space, it is possible to completely eliminate the very slightly leaking chemical solution atmosphere in the second exhaust space,
Safety can be improved. In addition, since the amount of the chemical solution consumed by the exhaust is very small taken out of the second exhaust space portion, the chemical mist taken out of the first exhaust space portion during the movement time of the substrate between the adjacent processing chambers is reduced. In addition, the amount becomes substantially the same as the amount of the chemical liquid vapor, so that it is possible to reduce the amount of exhaust gas and take out the chemical liquid due to the exhaust gas. In addition, the reduction of the chemical solution taken out by the exhaust reduces the load on the exhaust treatment plant and the wastewater treatment plant, thereby reducing the capital investment required for the treatment plant.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic configuration diagram of a substrate processing apparatus according to a first embodiment.

FIG. 2 is a sectional view of a processing chamber of the substrate processing apparatus according to the first embodiment.

FIG. 3 is a schematic configuration diagram of a substrate processing apparatus according to a second embodiment.

FIG. 4 is a schematic configuration diagram of a substrate processing apparatus according to a third embodiment.

FIG. 5 is a schematic configuration diagram of a conventional substrate processing apparatus.

FIG. 6 is a sectional view of a processing chamber of a conventional substrate processing apparatus.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Auto damper 2 Manual damper 6 Upper lid 7 Inner lid 8 First exhaust space 9 Second exhaust space 10 Spray nozzle 11 Drainer air knife 12 Shutter 13 Chemical treatment chamber 14 Rinse treatment chamber 18 Substrate 19, 20, 21, 23, 24 Exhaust pipe 22 Exhaust communication space

Claims (9)

(57) [Claims] 1. A substrate processing apparatus, comprising: a plurality of processing chambers sequentially arranged in a substrate transport direction so as to perform predetermined processing on a substrate, wherein a predetermined processing is performed on each of the substrates in the processing chamber. In the middle, the dimension in the board transfer direction is smaller than the width in the board transfer direction
Chambers that can be opened and closed between adjacent processing chambers.
Provided through a girder partition wall and having first exhaust means
That the first exhaust space, two spaced from each other an upper part of at least one treatment chamber
Non-airtightly partitioned by a lid and provided as an upper chamber
Is, Bei a second exhaust space having a second exhaust means
In addition, the first exhaust space portion is provided with a substrate from one of the adjacent processing chambers.
And then carry the substrate into the other processing chamber.
Communicates with the processing chamber by opening the shutter, and
While the substrate is being processed in the laboratory, the shutter closes.
From the processing chamber and open at least the shutter
Sometimes, the negative pressure is maintained by the exhaust operation of the first exhaust means.
Is, the second exhaust space is punished with a second exhaust space
While the substrate is being processed in the laboratory, the exhaust operation of the second exhaust means is performed.
A substrate processing apparatus characterized by being maintained at a negative pressure by operation . 2. The first exhaust means and the second exhaust means,
Each is equipped with an auto damper and connected to the suction device,
Each of the first exhaust space portion and the second exhaust space portion
The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the pressure is automatically maintained at a negative pressure . 3. The processing chamber is provided with an exhaust means, and the substrate is processed in one process.
Conveying from the processing room to the next processing room via the first exhaust space
In addition, one processing chamber and the next processing chamber are evacuated.
The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein: 4. A method for connecting to a first exhaust space portion and a second exhaust space portion.
In the processing chamber having the first exhaust space portion, the first exhaust space portion and the second exhaust space portion communicate with each other to form an exhaust communication space portion, and the first exhaust means and the second exhaust portion Instead of the means, a third exhaust means is provided in the exhaust communication space, and the third exhaust means processes the substrate at least when the shutter is opened and in a processing chamber having the second exhaust space.
While maintaining a negative pressure in the exhaust communication space
The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 1. 5. The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 4 , wherein the exhaust communication spaces provided in the plurality of processing chambers are further communicated with each other. 6. The third exhaust means includes an automatic damper.
Connected to the suction device to automatically disconnect the exhaust communication space.
6. The method according to claim 4, wherein the pressure is maintained.
Substrate processing equipment. 7. The processing chamber includes an exhaust unit, and the first processing chamber and the next processing chamber are exhausted while the substrate is being transported from one processing chamber to the next processing chamber via the first exhaust space. The substrate processing apparatus according to any one of claims 4 to 6, wherein the substrate processing apparatus is configured as described above. 8. The processing chamber according to claim 1, wherein the plurality of processing chambers comprise a combination of a processing chamber for performing a chemical cleaning process and a processing chamber for performing a water cleaning process. A substrate processing apparatus according to claim 1. 9. The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 8, wherein the substrate is a glass substrate of a liquid crystal display panel.