JP3324028B2 - 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 processing apparatus that supplies a processing liquid to a processing target such as a substrate to perform processing.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Generally, a liquid crystal display (LC) is used.
D) In a coating / developing system of an apparatus, for example, ITO (Indium) is formed on an LCD substrate (glass substrate).
In order to form a thin film of TinOxide or an electrode pattern, a processing apparatus for reducing a circuit pattern or the like using a photolithography technique similar to that used in a semiconductor manufacturing process, transferring the circuit pattern to a photoresist, and developing the same. Is provided. Generally, the processing device is an LCD
Cleaning device for substrate, adhesion processing device for performing hydrophobic treatment on LCD substrate after cleaning, cooling processing device for performing cooling process on LCD substrate, resist processing device for applying and forming photoresist film (photosensitive film), heating photoresist film Heat treatment equipment to perform baking processing, after baking processing,
An exposure device for exposing a predetermined pattern, a developing device for applying a predetermined developing solution after the exposure to develop the LCD substrate, a liquid cleaning device for washing the developing solution with a rinsing solution after the development, and between these various processing devices. And a transfer device for transferring the LCD substrate. Then, cleaning of the LCD substrate, hydrophobic treatment of the LCD substrate, cooling of the LCD substrate, formation of a photoresist film, baking of a photoresist film, exposure of a photo pattern, development of the LCD substrate, and cleaning are performed in this order. Is completed.

[0003]

However, if the layout of the coating / developing system is limited so as to be advantageous only for a specific coating / developing process, it will be necessary to cope with other coating / developing processes. There is a disadvantage that the layout of the entire system cannot be optimally determined for a place where the system is installed. Also, if the system layout is determined by giving priority to the processing efficiency, development,
The layout of the processing liquid supply system such as cleaning, drainage system, supply / exhaust system, and power supply system becomes complicated, which makes maintenance and inspection difficult and increases the overall system cost. There is.

An object of the present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and it is an object of the present invention to be able to freely replace various processing means for performing processing on an object with respect to a transport path of the object. It is another object of the present invention to provide a novel processing device.

[0005]

According to the first aspect of the present invention,
In the processing apparatus, on the left and right sides of the transport path of the processing object, while processing the processing object, various processing means provided with a supply and exhaust system and a driving electric system for processing, respectively,
Each of the various processing means is provided with a traveling means for movement, and a joint means for detachably connecting the transport path and the various processing means to each other is provided. The discharge path of the various processing means is provided in the transport path. Removable with liquid outlet
A drain collection pipe connected to the exhaust pipe, an exhaust collection pipe detachably connected to the exhaust discharge port of the above-mentioned various processing means, and the above-mentioned various treatments
Means for detachably connecting to the electric wiring section of the drive electric system of the means.
A power supply wiring section is provided, and the power supply wiring section is
Wiring above the liquid recovery pipe and the exhaust recovery pipe,
It is characterized by.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided a transfer path for an object to be processed.
Process the object to be processed, and supply / exhaust system and
Various processing means equipped with a driving electric system for processing
In the processing apparatus provided,
Drainage removably connected to the drainage outlet of various processing means
The collection pipe, the exhaust outlet of the above-mentioned various processing means, and the detachable
Exhaust recovery pipe connected to the
Power supply wiring section detachably connected to pneumatic electric wiring section
The power supply wiring section, the drainage collection pipe and
Wiring above the exhaust recovery pipe.
You .

In the invention described in claim 2 , the various processing means can be formed by a heating device having at least one heat treatment section and a developing device that performs processing while rotating the object to be processed. 3 ). Further, it is preferable that the transport path and the various processing means are formed so as to be movable (claim 4 ).

According to the present invention, for example, the drainage discharge port and the drainage recovery pipe of the joint means and the various processing means, or the exhaust discharge port and the exhaust recovery pipe, or the wiring part of the driving electric system and the power supply By disconnecting the connection with the supply wiring section, it is possible to easily rearrange the positions of the various processing means with respect to the transport path, freely incorporate desired processing means based on the transport path, and reduce the processing time in the various processing means. Can be shortened. Further, the drainage, the piping of the exhaust system and the like, the electrical wiring, and the like can be refreshed, and the structure of the device can be simplified.

[0009]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

Here, a case will be described in which the processing apparatus for forming a coating thin film according to the present invention is applied to a coating and developing processing system for an LCD (liquid crystal display) substrate (glass substrate).

As shown in FIG. 2, for example, the coating / developing processing system includes a loader unit 1 for loading / unloading an LCD substrate G (hereinafter, referred to as a substrate) as an object to be processed, and a substrate G
, And a second processing unit 4 connected to the first processing unit 2 via the relay unit 3. The second processing unit 4 includes a delivery unit 5. An exposure device 6 for exposing a predetermined fine pattern to the resist film via the resist film can be connected.

The loader unit 1 includes a cassette mounting table 8 for mounting a cassette 7 for storing an unprocessed substrate G and a cassette 7a for storing a processed substrate G; A substrate loading / unloading pin set 9 that can be moved and rotated (θ) in the horizontal (X, Y) direction and the vertical direction (Z) so that the substrate G can be loaded and unloaded to and from the processing cassettes 7 and 7a. Have been.

The first processing unit 2 includes X, Y, Z
A brush cleaning device 12 for brush cleaning the substrate G, a jet water cleaning device 13 for cleaning the substrate G with high-pressure jet water, and a substrate G An adhesion treatment device 14 for hydrophobizing the surface of the substrate G and a cooling treatment device 15 for cooling the substrate G to a predetermined temperature are arranged. It is configured.

The second processing unit 4 applies a resist solution to one side of the transfer path 11a of the main arm 10a that can move in the X, Y, and Z directions and rotate by θ similarly to the first processing unit 2. A heating device 18 for heating the substrate G before and after the pre-baking or post-baking is disposed, and a developing device 20 is disposed on the other side of the transport path 11a. The relay unit 3 pulls out the relay unit 3 from the first processing unit 2 and the second processing unit 4 as necessary, and stores the work in the first processing unit 2 or the second processing unit 4. Repairs and inspections can be easily performed by staff members.

The transfer unit 5 includes a cassette 19a for temporarily holding the substrate G and a cassette 19a for temporarily holding the substrate G.
Tweezers 19 for transferring the substrate G in and out thereof
b and a transfer table 19c for the substrate G are provided.

In the coating / developing processing system having the above configuration, the unprocessed substrate G stored in the cassette 7 is
After being taken out by the loading / unloading tweezers 9 of the loader unit 1, it is delivered to the main arm 10 of the first processing unit 2,
Then, it is transported into the brush cleaning device 12 or the jet water cleaning device 13 and is cleaned in the cleaning devices 12 and 13. Thereafter, the substrate G is placed on the adhesion processing apparatus 1.
After a hydrophobizing treatment by 4 and cooling by a cooling treatment device 15, a photoresist film, that is, a photosensitive film is coated and formed by a resist coating device 16, and subsequently, by a coating film removing device 17. Unnecessary resist film on the peripheral portion of the substrate G is removed. Then, the photoresist film is heated by the heat treatment device 18 and subjected to a baking process, and then a predetermined pattern is exposed by the exposure device 6. Then, the exposed substrate G is transported into the developing device 20, and after being developed with a predetermined developing solution, the developing solution is washed out with a rinsing solution to complete the developing process. Then, the processed substrate G that has been subjected to the development processing is loaded into the cassette 7 of the loader unit 1.
After being accommodated in a, it is carried out and transported to the next processing step.

Next, the structure of various processing means of the coating / developing processing system will be described with the developing device 20 as a representative.

The developing device 20, for example, as shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, holds a substrate G by vacuum suction and rotates in a horizontal direction, and surrounds the spin chuck 21 and the substrate G. The container 30, a developer supply nozzle 22 (processing solution supply means) for supplying a predetermined developing solution as a processing solution to the resist film surface on the surface of the substrate G, and a suction nozzle 23 for collecting the developer of the substrate G by suction ( (Recovery means), a cleaning liquid supply nozzle 24 (cleaning liquid supply means) for supplying a rinsing liquid (cleaning liquid) to the circuit pattern on the surface of the substrate G after development, and a developing liquid supply nozzle 22 and a suction nozzle 23 are provided on the sides. And a moving mechanism 25 for moving to a processing position above the substrate G.

In this case, the developer supply nozzle 22 is
The developing solution is connected to a developing solution storage tank 27 via a developing solution supply tube 26, and the developing solution is supplied by driving a pump 28 provided in the developing solution supply tube 26 and opening and closing a valve 29. . Further, the suction nozzle 23 is connected to a drain collection pipe 53 described later via a drain discharge pipe 41 having a suction mechanism 40.

In the developing device configured as described above, first, the substrate G is attached to the developing device 20 by the main arm 10a.
In a state where the substrate G is held on the spin chuck 21 by vacuum suction, the developer supply nozzle 22 is scanned in the short side or long side direction of the substrate G as shown in FIG. Then, the developing solution L is supplied to the surface of the substrate G such that the depth (thickness) of the solution becomes a predetermined thickness, for example, about 2 mm. Next, after the developing solution supply nozzle 22 is retracted to the standby position and the developing process is performed for a predetermined period of time, the suction nozzle 23 is brought into a negative pressure state by a suction mechanism (not shown).
As shown in (b), the suction nozzle 23 is set at such an interval that the tip of the suction nozzle 23 does not come into contact with the substrate G, for example, close to about 0.5 mm, and scanning is performed. The developing solution La is sucked and sent to the processing equipment through the drainage discharge pipe and the drainage recovery pipe for regeneration. Next, after the developer La is almost recovered by the suction nozzle 23, as shown in FIG. 5C, the cleaning liquid supply nozzle 24 is moved above the substrate G to supply a rinsing liquid (cleaning liquid). By rotating the spin chuck 21, the developing solution L remaining on the substrate G is washed away with the rinsing solution. Then, after the cleaning liquid supply nozzle whose supply of the cleaning liquid supply nozzle 24 has been stopped is retracted to the standby position, FIG.
As shown in (d), the spin chuck 21 is rotated at a high speed to blow off the developing solution and the rinsing solution adhering to the substrate G by centrifugal force to perform drying, thereby completing the process.

The developing device 20 configured as described above
As shown in FIG. 2, it is formed in a box-like body, and a caster 50 (running means) is provided on the lower surface for running movement. Further, as shown in FIG. 6, a bonding surface of the developing device 20 on the side of the transport path 11a and a frame 11c constituting the transport path 11a are provided with the developing device 20 with respect to the frame 11c.
Means 5 for arbitrarily changing the mounting position of the device with respect to the coating / developing process or the regulation of the installation location of the factory
2 are provided.

In order to incorporate the developing device 20 into the coating / developing processing system, the developing device 20 must be mounted on the frame 1 at a predetermined position.
1c, and are connected by the joint means 52. At this time, as will be described later, a drainage portion, a supply / exhaust portion, and an electric wiring portion of the processing liquid of the developing device 20 are respectively connected to a drainage collection tube, an exhaust collection tube, and a power supply wiring portion provided on the frame 11c side. Connect to

A caster 5 is provided on the lower surface of the box-like body as described above.
0, and the provision of the joint means 52 means that, in addition to the developing device 20, the cassette mounting table 8, the relay portion 3, the transfer portion 5, the exposure device 6, the brush cleaning device 12, Jet water cleaning device 13, adhesion treatment device 14, cooling treatment device 15, resist coating device 16, coating film removing device 17, heating device 18
Also, various devices such as the relay unit 3 are similarly provided.

On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 1, FIG. 7, and FIG.
6. A drainage collection pipe 53 is laid to convey wastewater, such as processed washing water and developer, of the coating film removing device 17, the brush cleaning device 12, and the developing device 20 to an external processing facility.
Exhaust collection pipe 54 for exhausting the nitrogen gas or the coating and developing system in the atmosphere is laid. And the floor of the transport path 11,11a is, lead 55 for supplying power to the various devices (power supply wiring) are wired. The drain collection pipe 53 and the exhaust collection pipe 54 are provided with a pump 56 for sucking drain and exhaust, respectively.

As shown in FIG. 6, the joint means 52 includes, for example, a first bracket 57 fixed at a predetermined interval along the frame 11c and the transport path 11, 11a from the first bracket 57. A bolt 58 extending horizontally outward and a second bracket 60 having a bolt insertion hole 59 fixed to a mounting / dismounting surface of the frame 11c of the various devices and having a bolt insertion hole 59 for allowing the insertion of the bolt 58; A nut 61 is screwed into the screw 58 to fix the second bracket 60 to the first bracket 57. In this case, the hole pitches of the bolt insertion holes 59 of the various devices are equal to each other, and
It is set equal to the bolt pitch of the frame 11c. And in each of these joint means 52,
The hole diameter of the bolt insertion hole 59 is larger than the outer diameter of the bolt 58 or is formed in a long hole shape, so that the degree of freedom at the time of attachment and detachment can be obtained.

On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 1, FIG. 7, and FIG. 8, the drain recovery pipe 53 and the exhaust recovery pipe 54 are respectively provided at predetermined intervals in the longitudinal direction.
2. An exhaust recovery port 63 is provided, and the above various devices such as the brush cleaning device 12, the jet water cleaning device 13, the resist coating device 16, the coating film removing device 17, and the developing device 20 are provided in FIG. As shown, the drainage discharge pipe 41 and the exhaust discharge pipe 64 which are detachably connected to the drainage recovery port 62 or the exhaust recovery port 63 of the drainage recovery pipe 53 are provided. Further, as shown in FIG. 1, the wiring 65 of the driving electric system of various devices and the above-mentioned lead wire 55 are detachably connected via an electric connector 66 such as a connector or a plug.

In the description of FIG. 6, it is of course possible to attach the first bracket 57 to the frame-side attachment / detachment side of the above-mentioned various devices and attach the second bracket 60 to the frame 11c. The above joint means 5
The configuration of 2 is not limited to the configuration of the bolts 58 and the nuts 61 as long as various devices can be attached to and detached from the frame 11c. The joint means 52 is also used for connecting various devices.

Therefore, the layout of the above-mentioned various devices with respect to the transport paths 11 and 11b is
For example, it can be set as shown in FIG. Also, a frame 11c constituting the transport path 11a (see FIGS.
6) also on the lower surface of the caster 50 for traveling movement.
(Running means), and as shown in FIG. 10, the above-described various devices are pre-assembled as sub-assays in the vicinity of a factory or an installation place, and the assembled sub-assay is carried to the site and is prescribed. To build a system for
Similarly, by reassembling the sub-assays for the layout of various devices and loading them in, it becomes possible to construct the desired line freely. A sufficiently compatible system can be constructed.

In the above embodiment, the case where the processing apparatus of the present invention is applied to an LCD substrate coating / developing processing system has been described. However, the processing apparatus of the present invention is applied to a processing object other than the LCD substrate such as a semiconductor wafer. -It is needless to say that the present invention can be applied to a processing apparatus having a development processing system or other various processing means.

[0030]

As described above, according to the present invention, for example, the drain discharge port and the drain recovery pipe of the joint means and various processing means, or the exhaust discharge port and the exhaust recovery pipe, or Since the connection between the wiring section of the drive electric system and the power supply wiring section can be released and the positions of various processing means with respect to the transport path can be easily rearranged, a processing system incorporating processing means according to a desired processing step can be used. It can be constructed, the processing time with various processing solutions can be shortened, and the throughput can be improved.

Also, piping for drainage and exhaust systems, electric wiring, etc.
Can be refreshed , the structure of the device can be simplified, and the cost can be reduced.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a detailed sectional view of a main part for describing a processing apparatus of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing a processing apparatus of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram illustrating a configuration of a developing device according to the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a schematic plan view of the developing device.

FIG. 5 is a process chart showing processing steps of the developing device.

FIG. 6 is a configuration diagram showing a joint means in the present invention.

FIG. 7 is a plan view showing a drainage collection pipe according to the present invention.

FIG. 8 is a side view showing a drainage collection pipe according to the present invention.

FIG. 9 is a plan view showing an example of a system layout of the processing apparatus of the present invention.

FIG. 10 is a process chart showing an example of an assembling process of the processing apparatus of the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

 G LCD substrate (object to be processed) 1 Loader unit 3 Relay unit 6 Exposure device 8 Cassette mounting table 11, 11a Transport path 12 Brush cleaning device 13 Jet water cleaning device 14 Adhesion processing device 15 Cooling processing device 16 Resist coating device 17 Coating film 17 Removal device 18 Heating device 20 Developing device 41 Drainage discharge pipe 50 Caster (traveling device) 52 Joint means 53 Drainage recovery pipe 54 Exhaust recovery pipe 55 Lead wire 62 Drainage recovery port 63 Exhaust recovery port 64 Exhaust discharge pipe 65 Electrical wiring 66 Power supply connector

──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continued on the front page (51) Int.Cl. ⁷ Identification code FI H01L 21/30 567 569C (72) Inventor Koichi Tagami Oomachi, Kikuchi-gun, Kumamoto Prefecture (56) References JP-A-60-84819 (JP, A) JP-A-8-17891 (JP, A) JP-A-7-326571 (JP, A) JP-A-7-326565 (JP) JP-A-7-283099 (JP, A) JP-A-7-193115 (JP, A) JP-A-7-185444 (JP, A) JP-A-7-142339 (JP, A) 5-259059 (JP, A) JP-A-5-178416 (JP, A) JP-A-4-244252 (JP, A) JP-A-4-38817 (JP, A) JP-A-2-119929 (JP, A A) (58) Field surveyed (Int. Cl. ⁷ , DB name) H01L 21/027 H0 1L 21/68

Claims (4)

(57) [Claims] 1. A processing apparatus comprising: a processing unit configured to process an object to be processed and a supply / exhaust system and a driving electric system for processing to be disposed on left and right sides of a conveyance path of the object. , to the various processing means, with each providing a driving means for moving, provided the joint means for removably connecting each other and the transport path and the various processing means, in the transport path, the various processing means Drainage outlet and detachable
A drain collection pipe that is freely connected, an exhaust collection pipe that is detachably connected to an exhaust outlet of the above-described various processing means, and the above various types.
It is detachably connected to the electric wiring section of the drive electric system of the processing means.
Power supply wiring section , and the power supply wiring section is connected to the drain collection pipe and the exhaust collection pipe.
A processing device characterized by being wired above . 2. The object to be processed is provided on the left and right of the conveyance path of the object.
Process and supply / exhaust system and drive electric system for processing.
A processing apparatus in which various processing means are provided.
In the above-mentioned conveyance path, the drainage outlet of the above-mentioned various processing means is attached and detached.
Drainage collection pipes that are freely connected, and exhaust from the above various processing means
Exhaust recovery pipe detachably connected to the discharge port and the above various types
It is detachably connected to the electric wiring section of the drive electric system of the processing means.
Power supply wiring section, and the power supply wiring section is connected to the drain collection pipe and the exhaust collection pipe.
A processing device characterized by being wired above. 3. The processing apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the various processing units include a heating device having at least one heat treatment section, and a developing device that performs processing while rotating the object to be processed. Characteristic processing device. 4. The processing apparatus according to claim 2 , wherein said transport path and said various processing means are respectively formed so as to be movable.