JP3029409B2 - Substrate processing equipment - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a method for removing a substrate from a cassette in which substrates such as semiconductor wafers are stored in multiple stages, and transporting the substrate to a substrate processing section such as a spinner section for coating a photoresist or a heat treatment section. The present invention relates to a substrate processing apparatus that performs required processing on a substrate in each substrate processing unit.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Heretofore, as a substrate unloading mechanism provided in this kind of substrate processing apparatus, there is the following one. For example, the cassette storing the substrates is intermittently moved up and down at the same pitch as the pitch of the substrate storage grooves in the cassette, and the presence or absence of the substrate in each groove in the cassette is detected by an optical sensor fixedly installed at a predetermined position. Go. A substrate support arm for taking substrates in and out of the cassette is configured to only move back and forth with respect to the cassette. When taking out a substrate from the cassette, the cassette is raised and lowered, and the groove portion where the presence of the substrate is detected is set at the height of the entry path of the substrate support arm. Subsequently, the substrate support arm enters the cassette and takes out the substrate from the cassette.

Further, in the conventional substrate processing apparatus as described above, there are the following two restrictions on the height at which the cassette is mounted. First, when loading a cassette into a substrate processing apparatus using a cassette transport robot, the height at which the cassette is placed must be set to the first height according to the cassette transport robot. It is a constraint. Second
Is a constraint that when transferring the substrates taken out of the cassette to the respective substrate processing units in the apparatus, it is necessary to set the cassette at a second height suitable for transferring the substrates to the respective substrate processing units. . The cassette elevating mechanism as described above is also used for the purpose of satisfying the restriction on the set height of the cassette.

[0004]

However, the prior art having such a structure has the following problems. That is, according to the conventional apparatus, the cassette vibrates when the cassette is moved up and down in order to take out the substrate from the cassette and to satisfy the restriction of the set height of the cassette. There are inconveniences such as separation and adhesion to the substrate, or rubbing between the inner wall of the substrate storage groove and the end of the substrate to generate dust. Therefore, according to the conventional substrate processing apparatus, there is a problem that the substrate is easily contaminated by the influence of dust caused by vibration of the cassette.

The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and provides a substrate processing apparatus capable of improving the quality of substrate processing by minimizing generation of dust when taking out a substrate from a cassette. It is intended to provide.

Another object of the present invention is to restrict the mounting height of the cassette when loading the cassette into the apparatus, and to restrict the substrate taken out of the cassette to the substrate processing unit in the apparatus. An object of the present invention is to provide a substrate processing apparatus capable of satisfying height restrictions without raising and lowering the cassette.

[0007]

The present invention has the following configuration in order to achieve the above object. In other words, according to the first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a stationary cassette mounting base for mounting a plurality of cassettes accommodating substrates in multiple stages, and a first transport along the cassette mounting base. An indexer transport unit that moves the path and raises and lowers the storage height of a cassette that stores substrates in multiple stages up and down and removes substrates from the cassette; and an indexer transport unit that extends in a direction substantially perpendicular to the center of the first transport path. A process transfer unit that transfers the substrate mounted on the substrate support arm along the second transfer path, a first height for transferring the substrate between the index transfer unit, and the process transfer unit; A substrate mounting device that moves up and down between a second height for transferring a substrate between the first and second substrates, and a plurality of substrate processing units disposed along the second transport path, the indexer transport unit includes: The substrate taken out of the cassette is transported along a first transport path, and the substrate is transferred to a substrate mounting device at the first height, and the substrate mounting device transfers the received substrate to a second height. The process transport unit receives the substrate at the second height from the substrate mounting tool,
The substrate is transported to the plurality of substrate processing units along a second transport path.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided a substrate processing apparatus for coating a substrate with a photoresist and heat-treating the substrate, wherein the plurality of cassettes accommodating the substrates in multiple stages are mounted. An indexer transport that moves along a base and a first transport path along the cassette mounting base, raises and lowers the storage height of a cassette that stores substrates in multiple stages, and removes substrates from the cassette. A unit, a process transport unit that transports a substrate mounted on a substrate support arm along a second transport path extending in a direction substantially perpendicular to the center of the first transport path, and the indexer transport unit. A substrate mounting device that moves up and down between a first height for transferring a substrate between the first height and a second height for transferring a substrate to and from the process transfer unit;
A process unit including a plurality of substrate processing units including a spinner unit and a heat treatment unit disposed along the second transport path, wherein the indexer transport unit transfers the substrate taken out of the cassette to the first transport path. Conveyed along the substrate, the substrate is transferred to the substrate mounting device at the first height, the substrate mounting device raises and lowers the received substrate to a second height, and the process transfer unit The substrate at the height of 2 is received from the substrate placing tool, and the substrate is
The substrate is transported along the transport path to the plurality of substrate processing units including the spinner unit and the heat treatment unit.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the substrate processing apparatus of the first or second aspect, the plurality of substrate processing units are arranged in two rows along a second transport path with a process transport unit therebetween. Are divided and arranged.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the substrate processing apparatus of the third aspect, the substrate mounting tool moves along a cassette mounting base integrally with the indexer transport unit. Things.

According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, in the substrate processing apparatus according to the fourth aspect, the substrate mounting member includes a plurality of support pins on which a substrate is mounted on an upper end, and each support pin has a plurality of support pins. Are ascending and descending together.

According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, in the substrate processing apparatus according to the fifth aspect, the substrate processing apparatus further comprises:
A substrate aligning mechanism is provided for aligning the substrate taken out of the cassette by the indexer transport unit, and the substrate aligning mechanism moves along the cassette mounting base integrally with the indexer transport unit.

According to a seventh aspect of the present invention, in the substrate processing apparatus according to the sixth aspect, the substrate is a semiconductor wafer, and the substrate alignment mechanism has a curvature substantially equal to an outer diameter of the substrate. The positioning of the substrate is performed by contacting / separating a plurality of the arranged protrusions around the periphery of the substrate.

According to an eighth aspect of the present invention, in the substrate processing apparatus of the seventh aspect, the indexer transport unit includes an arm for taking out a substrate which moves back and forth toward the cassette.

[0015]

The operation of the first aspect of the invention is as follows. When removing a substrate from one of the plurality of cassettes placed on the base, the indexer transport unit moves along the first transport path to a position facing a predetermined cassette. Subsequently, the indexer transport unit moves up and down to a height facing a predetermined substrate in the cassette and removes the substrate from the cassette. The indexer transport unit that has taken out the substrate moves along the first transport path and delivers the substrate to the substrate mounting device at the first height. The substrate mounting tool raises and lowers the substrate to the second height. The process transfer unit is
To receive a substrate at a height of The process transport unit moves along the second transport path and transports the received substrate to each substrate processing unit.

When the substrates processed by the substrate processing section are returned to the cassette, the procedure is the reverse of the above-described substrate removal operation. That is, the process transport unit that has received the processed substrate from the substrate processing unit moves along the second transport path and transfers the processed substrate to the substrate mounting device at the second height. The substrate mounting device raises and lowers the substrate to a first height. Subsequently, the indexer transport unit receives the processed substrate from the substrate mounting tool, moves along the first transport path, moves up and down, and stores the processed substrate in a predetermined cassette.

The operation of the second aspect is the same as the operation of the first aspect. In particular, in the present invention, the substrate taken out by the indexer transfer unit and transferred via the substrate mounting device is transferred to the spinner unit and the heat treatment unit arranged along the second transfer path by the process transfer unit. Hand over.

According to the third aspect of the present invention, for a plurality of substrate processing units divided and arranged in two rows along the second transport path,
The process transfer unit transfers the substrate.

According to the fourth aspect of the present invention, the substrate taken out of the cassette by the indexer transport unit is
It is delivered to a substrate mounting tool that moves integrally with the indexer transport unit and is adjusted in height.

According to the fifth aspect of the present invention, the substrate taken out of the cassette by the indexer transport unit is
Placed on the upper ends of the plurality of support pins at the first height,
Subsequently, the substrate is brought to a second height suitable for the process transfer unit by raising and lowering these support pins.

According to the invention of claim 6, the substrate taken out of the cassette by the indexer transport unit is:
After being transferred to the substrate mounting device at the first height, the substrate is aligned by the substrate alignment mechanism, and then the substrate mounting device is moved up and down so that the aligned substrate is suitable for the process transfer unit. To a second height.

According to the seventh aspect of the present invention, the plurality of projections of the substrate alignment mechanism abut and separate from the periphery of the substrate, thereby aligning the substrate, which is a semiconductor wafer.

According to the eighth aspect of the present invention, after the indexer transport unit moves up and down to a height facing the substrate in the cassette to be unloaded, the substrate unloading arm enters below the substrate. Subsequently, the indexer transport unit is slightly raised to receive the substrate on the substrate take-out arm. When the substrate take-out arm that has received the substrate moves backward, the substrate is taken out of the cassette.

[0024]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the drawings. <First Embodiment> FIG. 1 shows a schematic configuration of an embodiment of a substrate processing apparatus according to the present invention. This substrate processing equipment
A device for coating a semiconductor substrate with a photoresist or the like and performing a heat treatment. The device is roughly divided into a portion for storing an unprocessed substrate or a processed substrate (hereinafter, referred to as an indexer module) 10 and a substrate processing. And a process module 20 according to the first embodiment.

Stationary base of the indexer module 10
A plurality (four in this case) of cassettes C as a substrate storage container that stores semiconductor substrates (hereinafter, simply referred to as substrates) W such as silicon wafers in multiple stages are placed on the line 11. . The indexer module 10 is provided with an indexer transport unit 30 that transports a substrate W between each cassette C and a predetermined substrate transfer position P. Note that the delivery position P is determined by the process module 20.
Processing units 23 ₁ , 23 ₂ , 24 ₁ , 24 ₂ , 24 ₃
Process transport unit that transports substrates W in a predetermined order
This is a position where the substrate W is transferred between the indexer transport unit 30 and the indexer transport unit 30.

Referring to FIG. FIG. 2 shows a plan view of the indexer module 10. As described in detail later, the indexer transport unit 30 is configured to be movable between each cassette C and the substrate transfer position P, and an arm 31 that holds the substrate by sucking the lower surface of the substrate, Although not shown in FIG. 2, an arm moving mechanism for moving the arm 31 forward and backward with respect to the cassette C and an arm moving mechanism for moving the arm 31 up and down are mounted, and the substrate W is placed thereon. There are mounted three support pins 32 which can be moved up and down as a substrate mounting tool, and a substrate alignment mechanism for aligning a substrate W mounted on these support pins 32. The substrate alignment mechanism will be described in detail later. A plurality of convex contact pieces 33 are provided on alignment plates 34a and 34b slidably disposed on both sides of the support pins 32, respectively, with substantially the same curvature as the substrate W. The alignment plates 34a and 34b are reciprocally driven so that the abutment piece 33 abuts on and separates from the outer edge of the substrate W on the support pin 32. Then, the position of the substrate W is adjusted.

A U-shaped bracket 35 which can be moved up and down is provided so as to sandwich the front and rear of the cassette C mounted on the base 11, and a light projecting element 36 is provided at both ends of the bracket 35.
And a light sensor comprising a light receiving element 37 are attached. In the present embodiment, before the substrate W is taken out by the arm 31, the bracket 35 is moved up and down along the cassette C to determine whether the substrate W is stored in each storage groove of each cassette C by the optical sensor. The information on the presence or absence of the substrate for each storage groove of each cassette C obtained by the detection is stored in a memory of a control device (not shown), and when the substrate is taken out by the arm 31, the information in the memory is stored in the memory. The position of the arm 31 is set based on this.

Returning to FIG. 1, the indexer transport unit
After being taken out of the cassette C and moved to the substrate transfer position P by 30, the substrate W is positioned and transferred to the process transfer unit 21 as described later.

The process transport unit 21 has a pivotable U
Transferring the substrate W while mounting the substrate W to the substrate support arms 22 of the shaped, spinner unit 23 ₁ provided in the process modules 20, 23 ₂ or, the thermal processing unit 24 _1-24
The substrates W are sequentially set in ₃ . The substrate W processed by the process module 20 is transferred to the substrate transfer position P
In, after being transferred from the process transport unit 21 to the indexer transport unit 30, the indexer transport unit 30 returns the cassette C into the cassette C.

The detailed configuration of the indexer transport unit 30 will be described below with reference to FIGS. FIG. 3 is an exploded perspective view showing the moving mechanism 40, the arm lifting / lowering mechanism 50, and the arm advance / retreat driving mechanism 60 provided in the indexer transport unit 30. In FIG. 3, for easy understanding, support pins provided on the indexer transport unit 30 are provided.
The illustration of the contact member 32, the contact piece 33, and the mechanism for driving these members is omitted.

The movable base member 41 of the moving mechanism 40 is slidably fitted to a pair of guide rails 42 arranged side by side on the cassette setting base 11 shown in FIG. The movable base member 41 is screwed to a screw shaft 43 arranged in parallel with the guide rail 42, and the screw shaft 43 is rotated in the forward and reverse directions by a motor (not shown) connected to one end of the screw shaft 43. , Base
It moves horizontally along 11.

The moving mechanism 40 is equipped with an arm elevating mechanism 50 having the following configuration. That is, a gate-shaped frame 51 is erected on the movable base member 41, and a lifting member 53 is slidably fitted on a pair of guide shafts 52 that are erected on the gate-shaped frame 51 vertically. . The elevating member 53 is screwed to a screw shaft 54 provided side by side with the guide shaft 52, and the screw shaft 54 is attached to the beam member 51a.
The belt is driven in the forward and reverse directions at 55 to ascend and descend. The lifting member 53 includes a pair of brackets 56.
The arm advance / retreat drive mechanism 60 is disposed on the bracket 56.

The base plate 61 of the arm advance / retreat drive mechanism 60 includes
A guide rail 62 is provided in a direction orthogonal to the moving direction of the movable base member 41, and an arm base 63 is slidably fitted on the guide rail 62. Above the support rod 64 erected on the arm base 63, a thin plate-shaped arm 31 for holding the substrate W by suction is horizontally supported in a cantilever manner. At the tip of the arm 31, there is a suction hole 31a for vacuum-sucking the substrate W.

The base plate 61 of the arm advance / retreat drive mechanism 60 includes
An endless belt 65 is stretched between a pair of driven pulleys 66a and 66b in parallel with the guide rail 62.
A part of 65 is connected to the arm base 63. An endless belt 68 is stretched between the driven pulley 66b and the driven pulley 67, and the arm base 63 is connected to the guide rail 62 by driving the driven pulley 67 in the forward and reverse directions by a stepping motor 69. It reciprocates along.

The base plate 61 is provided with an optical sensor 70 for detecting the origin position of the arm base 63. The optical sensor 70 is an L-shaped light shielding plate extending horizontally from the arm base 63. By detecting 71, the origin of the arm 31 is detected.

Next, with reference to FIGS. 4 to 6, the support pins 32, the contact pieces 33,
And a mechanism for driving them will be described. Note that the support pins 32 correspond to the “substrate placing device” in the configuration of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a partially cutaway view of the indexer transport unit 30 with the support pin 32, the contact piece 33, and the drive mechanism mounted thereon, as viewed in the direction of arrow A in FIG.
4 is a view of the indexer transport unit as viewed from the direction of arrow B in FIG. 4, and FIG. 6 is a partially broken plan view of the substrate alignment mechanism mounted on the indexer transport unit 30.

A base plate 80 for slidably supporting the matching plates 34a and 34b described with reference to FIG. 2 is mounted on the upper surface of the portal frame 51 in a cantilever manner. This base plate
A long hole 80a (see FIGS. 2 and 6) is formed in the center of 80 so as to extend the support rod 64 of the arm 31 shown in FIG. 3 and to allow the support rod 64 to move forward and backward when the substrate is taken in and out. ing. As shown in FIG. 4, a pair of guide rails 81a is provided in a direction orthogonal to the elongated holes 80a, and a slide plate 82a is slidably mounted on the guide rails 81a.
One matching plate 34a is supported by the sliding plate 82a via a support plate 83a. Guide rail 81a sandwiching long hole 80a
A similar pair of guide rails 81b is provided at a position opposed to the guide rail 81b (see FIG. 5). A slide plate 82b slidably mounted on the guide rail 81b is connected to the other matching plate 34b via a support plate 83b. Supported.

As shown in FIG. 4, below each of the sliding plates 82a and 82b, there are provided link members 85 which are swingably attached to the base plate 80 via support shafts 84, respectively. Each link member 85 is connected to sliding plates 82a, 82b via a connecting pin 86.
Are loosely connected to each other. In addition, each link member 85
Below the guide rail 87 provided on the base plate 80
U-shaped pusher plate slidably fitted on the
The pusher plate 88 is loosely connected to each link member 85 via a connecting pin 89. As shown in FIG. 7, when the pusher plate 88 is pushed out in the direction of arrow C in FIG. 7 by a cam mechanism described later, the acting force is transmitted to each link member 85 via the connecting pin 89, and each link member 85 85 is an arrow D about the support shaft 84
Rocks in the direction. As a result, the connecting pin of each link member 85
The matching plates 34a, 34b connected to the 86 move in the direction approaching each other (the direction of arrow E), and the respective contact pieces 33 provided on the matching plates 34a, 34b contact the outer edge of the substrate W.

As shown in FIG. 6, three support pins 32 between the matching plates 34a and 34b are supported by a U-shaped support plate 90. The base of the support plate 90 is connected to an elevating member 91, and the elevating member 91 is slidably fitted on a guide rail 92 attached to the portal frame 51 in the vertical direction. As shown in FIG. 5, the elevating member 91 is urged downward by a coil spring 93, and the arm 31 is
When the substrate W is being taken in and out of the substrate, it is at the lower limit position as shown in FIG. Note that the arm 31 indicated by a chain line in the figure indicates the arm position when it is at the lower limit position.

The upper end of the contact piece 33 provided on the alignment plates 34a and 34b and the upper end of the support pin 32 at the lower limit position are located at the lowermost stage of the cassette C as shown in FIGS. By setting the position to be lower than the storage height of a certain substrate W ′, when the arm 31 moves the substrate W in and out of the cassette C, the contact pieces 33 and the support pins 32 may interfere with the substrate conveyance. I try not to be.

Next, a mechanism for driving the contact piece 33 and the support pin 32 will be described. As shown in FIGS. 4 and 6, a guide rail 94 is provided on one side wall of the gate-shaped frame 51 in a vertical direction.
A member 97c is slidably fitted to the cam member 95, and the member 97c is connected to the cam member 95 via the member 97b. An air cylinder 96 is mounted inside the side wall of the gate-shaped frame 51 provided with the cam member 95, and a rod 96a of the air cylinder 96 and the cam member 95 are connected via connecting members 97a and 97b. ing. The operation curved surface of the cam groove 95a formed in the cam member 95 has a curved portion 95b such that the upper portion thereof is convex in the sliding direction of the pusher plate 88 (leftward in FIG. 4), and the lower portion of the curved portion 95b is convex. It extends vertically. A cam follower 99 attached below the L-shaped driven member 98 is fitted into the cam member 95, and the other end of the driven member 98 is connected to a pusher plate 88.

As shown in FIG. 5, below the member 97b connected to the cam member 95, a lifting member 100 is provided with a lifting member.
The push-up member 10 is attached while being separated from the lower end of the push-up member 91 while the cam member 95 is being driven upward.
0 comes into contact with the lower end of the elevating member 91, and the lifting member 100 pushes up the elevating member 91 against the urging force of the coil spring 93 as the cam member 95 rises thereafter, thereby supporting the support pin.
32 is configured to rise. Reference numeral 101 shown in FIG. 5 is a stopper that contacts the lower end of the push-up member 100 and restricts the downward movement of the cam member 95.

Next, the operation of the indexer transport unit 30 having the above configuration will be described with reference to FIG. The operation for taking out a predetermined substrate W from the cassette C is as follows. First, the screw shaft of the moving mechanism 40 shown in FIG.
When the 43 is driven to rotate, the movable base member 41 moves horizontally and reaches a position facing a predetermined cassette C. Arm lifting mechanism during or after the above movement
By driving the motor 55 to move the arm 31 up and down, the arm 31 is set at a height corresponding to the storage groove position of the substrate W from which the cassette C is to be taken out. Next, when the stepping motor 69 of the arm advance / retreat drive mechanism 60 is driven to rotate forward, the arm 31 is advanced below the substrate W to be taken out from the cassette C.
Then, by slightly raising the arm 31, the substrate W
Is transferred onto the arm 31, and the arm 31 sucks and holds the substrate W. After the suction of the substrate W, the stepping motor 69 is driven to rotate in the reverse direction, and the arm 31 is retracted to the origin position (the position shown in FIG. 2). At the time of such a substrate taking-out operation, the support pins 32 are lowered to the lower limit position.

When the arm 31 returns to the home position while holding the substrate W by suction, the movable base member 41 of the moving mechanism 40 moves horizontally to transfer the substrate W to the substrate transfer position P shown in FIG. During or after this horizontal movement,
The motor 55 of the arm lifting mechanism 50 is driven to lower the arm 31 to the lower limit position.

Since the lower limit position of the arm 31 is set lower than the upper end of the support pin 32 at the retracted position,
When the suction is released when the arm 31 is lowered, the arm 31 is released.
As shown in FIGS. 8 (A1) and (B1), the upper substrate W
It is delivered on the support pin 32 in the retracted position. At this time, since the rod 96a of the air cylinder 96 shown in FIG. 4 is retracted (the state shown in FIG. 4), the cam member 95 is at the lower limit position. Therefore, as shown in FIG.
Since the cam follower 99 provided at 98 is at the upper limit position of the cam groove 95a, the alignment plates 34a and 34b are in an open state.

When the arm 31 reaches the lower limit position, the air
When the cylinder 96 is driven, the rod 96a extends, and the cam member
95 moves up. As the cam member 95 rises, FIG.
As shown in FIG. 7, the cam follower 99 is a curved portion 95 of the cam groove 95a.
As shown in FIG.
The member 98 is displaced in the same direction, so that the alignment plate 34
a and 34b move closer to each other. Cam Follower 99
Is the vertex P of the curved portion 95b ₁When it comes to
When the plates 34a and 34b are closest to each other,
Matching plate 34 so that the inscribed circle to
Since the positional relationship between a and 34b has been adjusted in advance,
The plate W is placed on the support pins 32 with the position shifted.
Even if the alignment plates 34a and 34b are moving,
The piece 33 contacts the outer edge of the substrate W to shift the substrate W horizontally.
As a result, the substrate W always has a fixed position relative to the support pins 32.
9 (A2), (B
2)).

[0048] When the cam member 95 is further increased, cam follower 99 gradually returns to the right from P ₁ position of FIG. 12, P ₂
When you reach the position, return to the original position. As a result, the matching plates 34a and 34b return to the original open state. Cam follower 99 until the P ₂ position, when the cam member 95 is raised, the push-up member 100 connected to the cam member 95 comes into contact with the lower end of the elevating member 91, thereafter, with increasing cam member 95 Then, the elevating member 91 moves up. As a result, the support pins 32 are raised in a state where the aligned substrate W is placed thereon, and the height set in advance so that the substrate W is transferred between the indexer transport unit 30 and the process transport unit 21 ( Hereinafter, the substrate W is lifted up to “substrate transfer height” (see FIGS. 10A3 and 10B3). The substrate transfer height corresponds to P ₃ position of the cam follower 99 shown in FIG. 12.

When the moving mechanism 40 reaches the substrate transfer position P and the positioning of the substrate is completed, the substrate supporting arm 22 of the process transfer unit 21 having reached this position is moved to the position shown in FIG.
As shown in (B4), the substrate W placed on the support pins 32
Enter below. Thereafter, as the substrate support arm 22 is raised, the substrate W is transferred to the substrate support arm 22, and the substrate support arm 22 transfers the substrate W to each processing unit of the process module 20, as described above.

Next, the operation when the substrate W is carried into the cassette C will be described. The loading of the substrate W is performed in substantially the reverse order of the above-described unloading operation of the substrate W. That is, at the substrate transfer position P, the indexer transport unit 30 is on standby with the arm 31 lowered and the support pin 32 raised. Thereafter, the substrate W processed by the process module 20 is transferred to the substrate transfer position P while being placed on the substrate support arm 22. Thereafter, the substrate support arm 22 of the process transfer unit 21 is lowered,
The substrate W is transferred to the support pins 32.

[0051] In this state, cam follower 99, as shown in FIG. 12, in P ₃ position of the cam member 95. When the substrate W is delivery, the rod 96a of the air cylinder 96 retracts, the cam member 95 is lowered, cam follower 99 moves toward the P ₂ position from the P ₃ position. During this time, the cam member 95
As the elevating member 91 descends along with the downward movement, the support pins 32 descend, and the substrate W is set at the lower limit position. The cam member 95 further descends, and the cam follower 99 moves to P ₂
By moving from the position in P ₁ position, the abutment piece 33 is similarly described above, the driven so as to contact the outer edge of the substrate W, the alignment of the substrate W is performed. When the cam member 95 is lowered to the home position, cam follower 99 returns to P ₀ position. Thereby, the contact piece 33 returns to the initial state separated from the substrate W.

After the above-described alignment, the arm 31 is raised, and the substrate W aligned on the support pins 32 is moved to the arm 31.
It is placed on and held by suction. Subsequently, the moving mechanism 40
Is horizontally driven to a position facing the original cassette C, and is moved up and down to the height of the storage groove in which the substrate W is stored.

When the movement of the movement mechanism 40 and the setting of the height of the arm 31 are completed, the arm advance / retreat drive mechanism 60 is driven, the arm 31 enters the cassette C, and the substrate W is carried into the predetermined storage groove. You. After that, the arm 31
The substrate W is transferred to the storage groove by slightly lowering in a state where the suction of the substrate W is released. When the transfer of the substrate W is completed, the arm 31 is driven to retreat and returns to the origin position. As described above, when the transfer of the substrate W is completed, the indexer transport unit 30 waits for the next substrate W removal operation.

<Second Embodiment> In the first embodiment, the moving mechanism
The arm 31 is moved up and down to a height opposite to a predetermined storage groove of the cassette C by the arm elevating mechanism 50 mounted on the cassette 40 to carry out and carry in the substrate W. A mechanism (corresponding to the moving mechanism 40 of the first embodiment) is mounted on the elevating mechanism so that the moving mechanism can be moved up and down, and the arm is set to a predetermined storage groove height by moving the moving mechanism itself up and down. May be configured. The arm mounted on the moving mechanism has a substrate holding mechanism by suction or the like, and is driven forward and backward with respect to the cassette by the same arm forward and backward driving mechanism as in the first embodiment.

In the second embodiment, since the moving mechanism itself is moved up and down, and the arm itself does not move up and down independently as in the first embodiment, the arm and the substrate mounting device (the first embodiment) are not used. In order to transfer the substrate between the support pins 32), the following mounting mechanism is provided. That is, the substrate mounting device lifting / lowering mechanism of the second embodiment is configured such that the upper end of the substrate mounting device is located between the retracted position lower than the substrate transfer height by the arm and the substrate mounting position higher than the substrate transfer height. The substrate mounting tool is configured to be driven to move up and down so as to move in the direction.

Further, in the second embodiment, since the arm is configured not to move up and down independently, when the substrate is moved in and out of the cassette by the arm, the contacting piece for positioning the substrate obstructs the movement of the substrate. It is evacuated to a position where it will not be. That is, the substrate aligning means of this embodiment (for example, the alignment plates 34a and 34b in the first embodiment) is provided with a plurality of abutting pieces provided when the substrate is transported by the arm. The substrate is retracted to a retreat position outside the region where the substrate is transported (that is, in the first embodiment, the alignment plate 34a is arranged so that the contact piece 33 does not come into contact with the substrate when the substrate is carried out / in. , 34b are retracted to a position where the outer diameter of the substrate W is wider than the outer diameter of the substrate W). When aligning the substrate placed on the substrate mounting device, the contact piece is moved from the retracted position to a position in contact with the outer edge of the substrate so that the substrate is aligned. ing.

According to the second embodiment, after the arm is set to a height facing a predetermined storage groove of the cassette by the horizontal movement and the vertical movement by the moving means, the arm is moved by the arm advance / retreat drive mechanism. To receive the substrate in the cassette and hold the substrate. After that, the arm withdraws from the cassette and takes out the substrate above the substrate placing device. Next, the moving mechanism horizontally moves and transports the substrate to the substrate delivery position.
This is the same as in the embodiment. Thereafter, the substrate on the arm is transferred to the substrate mounting tool by raising the substrate mounting tool to a position higher than the substrate transfer height by the arm.
Then, the substrate alignment mechanism is driven to perform substrate alignment.

When a substrate is loaded into a cassette, the substrate transfer device according to the present invention is made to stand by at the substrate transfer position with the substrate mounting tool raised to a position higher than the substrate transfer height by the arm. The substrate is transferred from the process transfer unit 21 shown in FIG. Next, after the substrate alignment means is driven and the substrate is positioned, the substrate mounting tool is lowered, whereby the substrate on the substrate mounting tool is mounted on the arm and held. After the above-described substrate alignment, the moving mechanism moves up and down together with the horizontal movement, transports the substrate to a position facing the original storage groove of the cassette, and drives the arm to enter the cassette, thereby moving the substrate. In a predetermined groove in the cassette. With this configuration,
As in the first embodiment, the loading / unloading of the substrate with respect to the cassette and the positioning of the substrate can be performed in the same substrate transport apparatus.

<Third Embodiment> In the third embodiment, similarly to the second embodiment, a moving mechanism is used as a mechanism for raising and lowering an arm to a height opposed to a predetermined storage groove of a cassette. The arm is set to a predetermined storage groove height by raising and lowering the moving mechanism itself. The arm mounted on the moving mechanism has a substrate holding mechanism by suction or the like, and is driven forward and backward with respect to the cassette by the same arm forward and backward driving mechanism as in the first embodiment.

The substrate mounting device mounted on the moving mechanism for mounting the substrate is provided at a position lower than the substrate transfer height so as not to hinder the transfer of the substrate by the arm. Further, a plurality of contact pieces provided in the substrate aligning means for aligning the substrate placed on the substrate placing device are configured in the same manner as in the second embodiment. Further, an arm lifting / lowering drive mechanism similar to the arm lifting / lowering mechanism 50 of the first embodiment is mounted on the moving mechanism as a means for transferring the substrate between the arm and the substrate mounting tool. However, since the arm lifting / lowering drive mechanism of the present embodiment is provided for transferring the substrate between the arm and the substrate mounting device, the driving range of the arm is limited to the substrate mounting of the substrate mounting device. It is between a position higher than the height and a position lower than the substrate mounting height.

According to the present embodiment, similar to the second embodiment,
After the moving mechanism is driven, the substrate in the cassette is taken out by the arm. After the arm withdraws from the cassette, the moving mechanism moves horizontally to transfer the substrate to the substrate transfer position, as in the first embodiment. next,
When the arm is lowered by the arm lifting / lowering drive mechanism, the substrate is transferred to the substrate mounting tool, and the substrate alignment mechanism is driven to perform the alignment of the substrate.

When a substrate is loaded into a cassette, the substrate transfer device according to the present invention is caused to stand by at the substrate transfer position with the arm retracted to a position lower than the substrate mounting device. The substrate is transferred from the process transfer unit 21 or the like to the substrate mounting tool. Next, the substrate alignment means is driven, and after the substrate is aligned, the arm is driven up to a position higher than the substrate mounting height, so that the substrate on the substrate mounting tool is placed on the arm. Put on,
Will be retained. After the above-described substrate alignment, the moving mechanism moves horizontally and vertically, transports the substrate to a position facing the original storage groove of the cassette, and drives the arm into the cassette to move the substrate. It is stored in a predetermined groove in the cassette.

The present invention can be configured as follows. (1) In the first embodiment, four cassettes are mounted on a stationary base. However, the number of cassettes may be one or five or more.

(2) In the first embodiment, the support pins 32 are moved up and down by the wafer support arm of the wafer transfer mechanism 21.
Since the arm 22 has a U-shaped arm that supports the substrate W from the outside of the support pin 32, when the substrate W is transferred at the lower limit position of the support pin 32, the matching plates 34a and 34b are in the way. This is because the wafer support arm 22 cannot enter below the substrate W. Therefore, the matching plate 34
If a wafer support arm having a structure that does not interfere with the substrates a and 34b (for example, an arm that suction-holds the substrate W from above) is used, it is not necessary to raise and lower the support pins 32 in order to transfer the substrate W. Absent.

(3) As an example of the substrate processing apparatus according to the present invention, a semiconductor manufacturing apparatus that coats a substrate with a photoresist or the like has been described as an example.
For example, the present invention can be applied to various substrate processing apparatuses such as a developing, etching, and diffusion processing apparatus.

(4) The substrate to be transferred is not limited to the semiconductor substrate as in the embodiment, but may be various substrates such as a glass substrate for a liquid crystal display and a metal plate. .

(5) The substrate holding mechanism provided on the arm is not limited to the one by suction, and may be constituted by a support pin or the like for mounting the substrate.

(6) Further, the substrate mounting member is not necessarily limited to the pin structure, but may be a plate-like member. The contact piece of the substrate alignment means is not limited to the pin structure, but may have an edge. The position of the substrate may be adjusted by bringing a concave plate-shaped member having a curvature similar to the outer diameter of the substrate into and out of contact with the outer edge of the substrate. When the substrate is rectangular, it goes without saying that the contact pieces are arranged and formed according to the shape.

As described above, each part of the present invention can be variously modified and implemented, and these modifications are also included in the present invention without departing from the gist of the present invention.

[0070]

As apparent from the above description, the present invention has the following effects. According to the invention of claim 1,
Since the cassette does not move up and down when removing the substrate from the cassette, there is no generation of dust due to vibration of the cassette.
The substrate can be transported and processed in a clean state.

According to the first aspect of the present invention, when the substrate taken out of the cassette is transported to the substrate processing section,
Since the substrate mounting tool moves up and down to bring the substrate to a height corresponding to the process transfer unit, the height of the base can be fixed to, for example, a height corresponding to the cassette transfer robot. In other words, the restrictions on the mounting height of the cassette when loading the cassette into the apparatus and the restrictions on the height when transporting the substrate taken out of the cassette to the substrate processing unit in the apparatus are as follows.
Satisfaction can also be achieved without raising and lowering the cassette.

Further, according to the first aspect of the present invention, the arrangement of the plurality of cassettes placed on the base and the arrangement of the plurality of substrate processing units arranged along the second transport path are at right angles. The substrate processing apparatus can be made more compact as compared with a case where a plurality of cassettes and a plurality of substrate processing units are arranged in a row.

According to the first aspect of the present invention, the second transport path extends from the center of the first transport path at a substantially right angle.
There is no significant difference between cassettes in the time required for the indexer transport unit to transfer the substrates taken out of the cassettes arranged along the first transport path to the process transport unit via the substrate mount. On the other hand, if the second transport section extends at a right angle from one end of the first transport path, the substrate taken out of the cassette at the other end of the first transport path is transferred from the indexer transport unit to the process transport unit. The time required for delivery is much longer than that of the cassette near one end of the first transport unit.
Such a variation in the time required for the delivery of the substrate adversely affects the smooth transport of the substrate. According to the present invention,
Such variations in the time required to transfer the substrate can be minimized.

According to the second aspect of the invention, the same effect as the first aspect of the invention can be obtained. In particular, according to the present invention, it is possible to improve the quality of each of the coating process of the photoresist on the substrate and the heat treatment of the substrate.

According to the third aspect of the present invention, the plurality of substrate processing sections are divided and arranged in two rows along the second transport path. Thus, the respective substrate processing units can be efficiently arranged, and the substrate processing apparatus can be configured to be more compact.

According to the fourth aspect of the present invention, since the substrate mounting device is configured to be movable integrally with the indexer transport unit, the apparatus can be made more compact as compared with a case where these components are individually installed. . According to the present invention,
In the process of moving the indexer transport unit, it is also possible to adjust the height of the substrate using the substrate mounting tool, so that the transfer of the substrate to the process transport unit can be performed efficiently.

According to the fifth aspect of the present invention, since the substrate taken out of the cassette is placed on the support pins and the height is adjusted, the contact area between the substrate and the support pins is reduced, and the substrate is contaminated accordingly. Is reduced.

According to the sixth aspect of the invention, when a substrate is transferred to the substrate processing section, the substrate taken out of the cassette is aligned by the substrate alignment mechanism before being transferred to the process transfer unit. In addition, the substrate transfer by the process transfer unit can be performed accurately. Further, when carrying the processed substrate into the cassette, the substrate is aligned by the substrate alignment mechanism before being transferred to the indexer transport unit, so that the substrate can be smoothly carried into the cassette. .

According to the seventh aspect of the present invention, a plurality of protrusions come into contact with and separate from the periphery of the substrate taken out of the cassette, so that the center of the substrate can be accurately aligned.

According to the invention of claim 8, the substrate in the cassette can be easily taken out by the substrate suction arm provided in the substrate taking out mechanism.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is an external perspective view of a first embodiment of a substrate processing apparatus according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a plan view of the indexer transport unit.

FIG. 3 is an exploded perspective view showing a moving mechanism, an arm lifting / lowering mechanism, and an arm advance / retreat driving mechanism provided in the indexer transport unit.

FIG. 4 is a view in the direction of arrow A in FIG. 3 showing a configuration of a substrate mounting mechanism and a substrate alignment mechanism provided in the indexer transport unit.

FIG. 5 is a view in the direction of arrow B in FIG. 4;

FIG. 6 is a partially cutaway view of the substrate mounting mechanism and the substrate alignment mechanism as viewed in plan.

FIG. 7 is an explanatory diagram of a substrate alignment mechanism.

FIG. 8 is an explanatory diagram of the operation of the embodiment apparatus.

FIG. 9 is an explanatory diagram of the operation of the embodiment device.

FIG. 10 is an explanatory diagram of the operation of the embodiment device.

FIG. 11 is an explanatory diagram of the operation of the embodiment device.

FIG. 12 is an explanatory diagram of a position of a cam follower as the cam member moves up and down.

[Explanation of symbols]

W ... semiconductor substrate (substrate) C ... cassette 11 ... base 21 ... process transport unit 30 ... indexer transport unit 32 ... support pin (substrate placement base) 23 _1, 23 ₂ ... spinner unit 24 _{1-24 3} ... thermal processing unit

──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continuing on the front page (72) Inventor Takeo Okamoto 322 Hashizushi Furukawa-cho, Fushimi-ku, Kyoto-shi Dai Nippon Screen Manufacturing Co., Ltd. (56) References JP-A-3-290946 (JP, A) JP-A-2-132840 (JP, A) JP-A-57-39430 (JP, U) (58) ) Surveyed field (Int.Cl. ⁷ , DB name) H01L 21/68 B65G 49/07 H01L 21/027

Claims (8)

(57) [Claims] 1. A stationary cassette mounting base on which a plurality of cassettes accommodating substrates are stored in multiple stages, a first transport path along the cassette mounting base is moved, and An indexer transport unit that raises and lowers the storage height of a cassette that stores substrates in multiple stages and removes substrates from the cassette; and a second extender that extends in a direction substantially perpendicular to the center of the first transport path.
A process transfer unit that transfers a substrate mounted on a substrate support arm along a transfer path; a first height for transferring the substrate between the index transfer unit and the process transfer unit; A substrate mounting device that moves up and down between a second height at which the substrate is transferred and a plurality of substrate processing units arranged along the second transport path, wherein the indexer transport unit is a cassette Is transported along the first transport path, and the substrate is transferred to the substrate mounting device at the first height, and the substrate mounting device moves the received substrate to the second height. The process transport unit receives the substrate at the second height from the substrate mounting tool, and transports the substrate along the second transport path to the plurality of substrate processing units. Substrate processing equipment 2. A substrate processing apparatus for coating a substrate with a photoresist and heat-treating the substrate, comprising: a stationary cassette mounting base for mounting a plurality of cassettes accommodating the substrates in multiple stages; An indexer transport unit that moves along a first transport path along a mounting base and raises and lowers the storage height of a cassette that stores substrates in multiple stages, and takes out substrates from the cassette; A second extending from the center of the road at a substantially right angle
A process transfer unit that transfers a substrate mounted on a substrate support arm along a transfer path; a first height for transferring the substrate between the index transfer unit and the process transfer unit; A substrate mounting device that moves up and down between a second height for transferring a substrate and a plurality of substrate processing units disposed along the second transport path and including a spinner unit and a heat treatment unit The indexer transport unit transports the substrate taken out of the cassette along a first transport path, transfers the substrate to a substrate platform at the first height, and places the substrate on the substrate. The process transfer unit receives the substrate at the second height from the substrate mounting tool and spins the substrate along the second transfer path. The substrate processing apparatus characterized by conveying to the plurality of substrate processing unit comprising a thermal processor over portion. 3. The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the plurality of substrate processing units are divided into two rows along a second transport path with a process transport unit therebetween. Substrate processing equipment. 4. The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 3 , wherein the substrate mounting tool moves along a cassette mounting base integrally with an indexer transport unit. 5. The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the substrate mounting member includes a plurality of support pins on which a substrate is mounted on an upper end, and each of the support pins moves up and down integrally. apparatus. 6. The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 5 , wherein said substrate processing apparatus further includes a substrate alignment mechanism for aligning a substrate taken out of the cassette by an indexer transport unit, wherein said substrate alignment mechanism is an indexer. A substrate processing apparatus that moves together with a transfer unit along a cassette mounting base. 7. The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 6, wherein the substrate is a semiconductor wafer, and wherein the substrate alignment mechanism has a plurality of protrusions arranged to have substantially the same curvature as the outer diameter of the substrate. A substrate processing apparatus for aligning a substrate by contacting and separating the substrate with the periphery of the substrate. 8. The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 7 , wherein the indexer transport unit includes a substrate unloading arm that moves back and forth toward a cassette.