JP3854496B2 - Board transfer mechanism - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To safely and surely transfer a substrate between a carriage and the other members without damaging the glass substrate. SOLUTION: This substrate transfer mechanism comprises a plurality of columns 7 diagonally supporting the substrate G on the carriage, downward recessed surface supporting claws fitted to the columns 7 and allowing the upper side edge part of the substrate G to be inserted therein, a plurality of upward recessed surface supporting claw 20 supporting the substrate G so as to raise from the underside, an opening drive mechanism installed on the lower side of a conveying route for traveling the carriage thereon and having a first push-up rod pushed up from the underside to the upper side of the carriage, a close drive mechanism having a second push-up rod, link mechanisms 10 fitted to the columns 7 and movably supporting the support claws 20 so as to be displaced in a state that an attitude making the recessed surface part upward is maintained, and an open/close drive force transmission shaft 75 installed on the carriage and transmitting the drive force of the open drive mechanism and close drive mechanism to the link mechanism 10.

Description

[0001]
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a substrate delivery mechanism for delivering a substrate between a loader / unloader unit and other members in a plasma processing chamber (film forming unit) and a transport carriage.
[0002]
[Prior art]
Conventionally, in a vacuum processing system for performing plasma processing such as plasma CVD, sputtering, and dry etching, when a glass substrate is taken in and out of a vacuum processing chamber, the substrate is fixed to a tray (holder). An oblique tray conveyance system is adopted as a conveyance method. However, the tray transport method has problems that it takes time and labor to fix and remove the substrate from the tray, and impurities are easily adsorbed to the tray. Has been developed.
[0003]
In the trayless oblique conveyance carriage system, as described in, for example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2001-118907 and Japanese Patent Application No. 2000-366034, the conveyance carriage travels along the rail and passes through the load lock chamber. The glass substrates G are conveyed one by one to the film chamber. A pair of support columns are installed upright on the frame of the carriage to support the substrate diagonally, and support edges attached to the support columns are loosely restrained at the edge near the substrate corner so that the substrate is not damaged. is doing.
[0004]
As shown in FIG. 13A, the conventional substrate transfer mechanism pushes the elevating rod 121 with the rod 120 of the opening / closing drive mechanism and operates the swing link mechanisms 122, 123, 125, as shown in FIG. As shown in b), the support claw 127 of the arm portion 124 is swung around the horizontal pivot 126. When the support claw 127 is swung counterclockwise in the figure, the lower edge portion of the substrate G is fitted into the concave surface portion of the support claw 127, and the substrate G is supported by the support claw 127. The substrate G is transferred to the side. On the other hand, when the support claw 127 is swung clockwise in the figure, the support claw 127 is separated from the substrate G, and the substrate G is transferred from the transport carriage to another member.
[0005]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
However, the conventional delivery mechanism has various problems listed in the following (1) to (4).
[0006]
(1) Since the lower support claw 127 is rotated around the shaft 126 when the carriage receives the substrate G, the concave surface portion of the support claw 127 changes the orientation and posture from the diagonal to the corner portion of the substrate G. In this case, chipping is likely to occur.
[0007]
(2) Since the driving force for opening and closing the support claw is transmitted in one direction only in the opening direction via the link arm 123 and returned by the restoring force of the spring 128 in the closing direction, the substrate G is transferred. The support claw 127 may not be completely closed when the link operating resistance or the resistance to pull the substrate away from the counterpart device (frictional force and electrostatic attraction due to charging) is large. May not be delivered. Further, it cannot be reliably detected that the support claw 127 cannot be completely closed.
[0008]
(3) Since the hard material which surface-treated stainless steel is used as the support nail 127, when conveying the large sized glass substrate G, a contact surface pressure becomes large and it is easy to produce a damage to the contact surface of a board | substrate.
[0009]
(4) In addition to the product glass substrate G, the substrate to be transported by the carriage includes a metal holder H for film formation test, which is held by the same concave portion in the support claw 127 regardless of the type of substrate. Therefore, when the metal holder H having a large mass is held, the surface of the concave portion of the support claw is roughened, and when the glass substrate G comes into contact with the rough surface, it is easily damaged.
[0010]
The present invention has been made to solve the above-described problems, and provides a substrate transfer mechanism that can safely and reliably transfer a substrate between a transport carriage and another member without damaging the glass substrate. With the goal.
[0011]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
A substrate delivery mechanism according to the present invention is a substrate delivery mechanism for delivering a substrate between a transport carriage and another member, and a plurality of support pillars that support the board obliquely on the transport carriage, and the support pillars Provided on the substrate, and a downward concave support pawl into which the edge of the upper side of the substrate is inserted, a plurality of upward concave support claws that support the substrate to be lifted from below, and a lower side of the transport path on which the transport carriage travels An opening drive mechanism having a first push-up rod that is provided and pushed upward from the lower side of the transfer carriage; and a lower drive mechanism that is provided below the transfer path on which the transfer carriage travels, and is pushed upward from the lower side of the transfer carriage. A closed drive mechanism having two push-up rods, and a support mechanism for movably supporting the support pawl so as to be displaced while maintaining a posture in which the concave portion is on the upper side. A link mechanism, and an open drive force that is attached to the transport carriage and is generated by pushing up the first push-up rod of the open drive mechanism is transmitted to the link mechanism, and the second push-up rod of the closed drive mechanism is An opening / closing driving force transmission shaft for transmitting a closing driving force generated by pushing up to the link mechanism.
[0012]
When the open drive mechanism pushes up the first push-up rod, the opening / closing drive force transmission shaft rotates around the shaft, the open drive force is transmitted to the link mechanism, the link mechanism arm swings to one side, and the concave surface portion The support claw is forcibly pulled down while maintaining the posture in which the upper side is on the upper side, and the concave surface portion is detached from the lower edge portion of the substrate. As a result, the substrate is transferred from the transport carriage to other members of the loader / unloader unit and the plasma film forming unit.
[0013]
On the other hand, when the closed drive mechanism pushes up the second push-up rod, the opening / closing drive force transmission shaft rotates in the reverse direction, the closed drive force is transmitted to the link mechanism, the link mechanism arm swings to the other side, and the concave surface portion The support claws are forcibly pulled up while maintaining the posture in which the upper side is on the upper side, and the concave surface portion comes into contact with the edge portion of the lower side of the substrate. As a result, the substrate is transferred from the other members of the loader / unloader unit and the plasma film forming unit to the transport carriage.
[0014]
The link mechanism has a first horizontal arm that has one end attached to the opening / closing driving force transmission shaft and swings around the opening / closing driving force transmission shaft, and one end connected to the other end of the first horizontal arm via a pivot. A vertical arm, a second horizontal arm having one end connected to the other end of the vertical arm via a pivot and substantially the same length as the first horizontal arm, and the other of the second horizontal arm. It is preferable to comprise a parallelogram-shaped link arm mechanism having an axis that rotatably supports the end on the support column.
[0015]
Furthermore, it is preferable to have a seesaw arm whose longitudinal center is connected to the opening / closing driving force transmission shaft, one end is pushed up by the first push-up rod, and the other end is pushed up by the second push-up rod. By sharing such a seesaw arm between the open drive mechanism and the close drive mechanism, the transport carriage and the peripheral accessory devices can be reduced in weight and size. Note that the opening drive mechanism and the closing drive mechanism are not necessarily arranged adjacent to each other, and the opening drive mechanism and the closing drive mechanism may be separately provided without using a seesaw arm.
[0016]
Furthermore, it is preferable to have a controller that controls the operation of the open drive mechanism and the close drive mechanism so that either the open drive force or the close drive force is selectively transmitted to the opening / closing drive force transmission shaft. . If an open drive force and a closed drive force are input to the open / close drive force transmission shaft at the same time, the drive force will not be reliably transmitted to the link mechanism and the board will not be delivered safely, causing a fall accident. This is because it may occur. In addition, when using a seesaw arm, if the open driving force and the closing drive force are input simultaneously, the seesaw arm and its peripheral members may be damaged. The operation of both mechanisms is controlled by the controller so that either one of the driving forces is selectively transmitted.
[0017]
It is preferable that the support claw has a soft cushioning material that covers the inner wall of the concave portion. When the outer peripheral edge of the glass substrate comes into contact with the metal part of the support claw at the time of delivery, chipping (deletion) or cracking is likely to occur. Therefore, the concave part of the support claw is covered with a soft cushioning material to prevent this. It is preferable to use a polyimide resin as such a buffer material.
[0018]
Furthermore, it has a swinging horizontal shaft that supports the support claw, a cap attached to the support column, and a pin that is provided in the cap and has a tip that abuts against a notch surface formed on the outer periphery of the swinging horizontal shaft. Is preferred. If such a swing support structure is adopted for the support claw, the support claw swings when the carriage is shaken when the rail step is passed, etc., and the vibration from the carriage is alleviated and transmitted to the board. Is less likely to be damaged.
[0019]
The support claw preferably has a glass substrate support surface covered with a cushioning material and a holder support surface lower than the height of the glass substrate support surface. In this case, the glass substrate support surface is provided at the longitudinal center of the support claw, the holder support surface is provided at both longitudinal sides of the support claw, and a shallow notch is provided at the center of the lower side of the film thickness test holder (metal plate). It is desirable to form.
[0020]
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings.
[0021]
As shown in FIG. 11, the transport carriage 6 stops on the rail 8 at the substrate transfer stage, and the roller frame 101 is provided in the vicinity thereof. At the substrate transfer stage, the glass substrate G is transferred from the roller frame 101 to the transport carriage 6. In the figure, reference numeral 102 denotes a conveyance roller that horizontally conveys the substrate G, reference numeral 103 denotes a conveyance conveyor-main body moving device that adjusts the relative position between the roller frame 101 and the conveyance carriage 6, reference numeral 107 denotes an LM guide, Reference numeral 108 denotes a rotation shaft that is the center of the rotational movement that causes the roller frame 101 to jump up and down, reference numeral 110 denotes an air cylinder that rotates the roller frame 101 around the rotation axis 108, and reference numeral 111 denotes advancement of the roller frame 101. Reference numeral 112 denotes a support claw for supporting the substrate G on the roller frame 101.
[0022]
The substrate G is transported by the roller 102, stops at the roller frame 101, and waits until the transport cart 6 arrives. The roller frame 101 is separated from the entire conveying roller conveyor, and as shown in FIG. 12, the cylinder 110 jumps the substrate G together with the roller frame 101 around the rotation shaft 108 from the horizontal to a predetermined inclination angle. Yes. Further, the advancing / retracting drive mechanism 111 advances the roller frame 101 along the LM guide 107 toward the transport carriage 6, and delivers the substrate G from the roller frame 101 to the transport carriage 6.
[0023]
Two parallel rails 8 extend from the substrate transfer stage toward the vacuum processing chamber 106, and the transport carriage 6 runs on each rail 8 one by one. When the transfer carriage 6 receives the substrate G from the roller frame 101, the transfer carriage 6 moves toward the vacuum processing chamber 106 and stops before the gate valve 104. When the gate valve 104 is opened, the transfer carriage 6 enters the vacuum processing chamber 106 through the entrance / exit 105 and delivers the substrate G to other members in the vacuum processing chamber 106.
[0024]
As shown in FIG. 1, the transport carriage 6 includes a pair of support pillars 7, a pair of support claws 70, a pair of lower support claws 20, and a plurality of pressing plate springs 71, 72, 73 as an upper structure of the main body frame 61. And has a large number of wheels 66a, 66b, 66c with shock-absorbing mechanisms as the lower structure of the main body frame 61.
[0025]
First, the upper structure of the transport carriage 6 will be described.
[0026]
The pair of left and right support columns 7 are made of a metal square tube having a substantially square cross section, stand upright on the upper surface in the vicinity of both ends in the longitudinal direction of the carriage main body frame 61, and support the substrate G by tilting about 10 ° with respect to the Z axis. To do. The length of the column 7 is longer than one side of the substrate G, and the distance between the arms 7 is slightly shorter than one side of the substrate G. The substrate G is held by the upper support claw 70 and the lower support claw 20 attached to the pair of support columns 7, and the plurality of support claws 71, 72, 73 restrain the outer peripheral edge of the substrate G. ing.
[0027]
The two struts 7 are firmly fastened to the carriage main body frame 61 with bolts / nuts so as to withstand the weight of the substrate G. The support column 7 and the cart body frame 61 are made of a high-strength and strong metal material such as stainless steel. Incidentally, when the length of one side of the glass substrate G is set to 1 m and the plate thickness is set to 4 mm, the weight exceeds 10 kgf.
[0028]
Each of the holding plate springs 71, 72, 73 is made of stainless spring steel having a thickness of 0.25 to 1.50 mm and has substantially the same shape. The first presser leaf springs 71 are attached to the upper, middle, and lower portions of each column 7 at substantially equal intervals. These six first pressing plate springs 71 restrain the left and right sides of the substrate G to prevent the substrate G being transferred from being displaced in the traveling direction (X-axis direction).
[0029]
The second presser leaf spring 72 is attached to the center of the upper reinforcing rib 74 and restrains the substrate G so as to press the center of the upper side of the substrate G from above. The third presser leaf spring 73 is attached to a bracket 78 supported by the upper end of the support member 77 and restrains the center of the lower side of the substrate G.
[0030]
The upper support claw 70 has a U-shaped cross section, and receives and supports the edge portion near the upper corner of the substrate G.
[0031]
As shown in FIGS. 6 and 9, the support claw 20 has a U-shaped cross section and receives and supports the edge near the lower corner of the substrate G. The support claw 20 is movably supported by a link mechanism 10 described later as shown in FIG. The concave surface portion 28 of the support claw 20 is covered and filled with a soft cushioning material such as polyimide resin to protect the end surface portion of the substrate G from damage. The support claw 20 will be described in detail in a third embodiment described later.
[0032]
Next, the lower structure of the transport carriage 6 will be described.
[0033]
A rack (not shown) is formed on the side surface of the main body frame 61 of the carriage, and pinion gears (not shown) are arranged on the side of the rail 8 at a predetermined pitch so as to be able to be engaged with the rack. A motor drive shaft is connected to each pinion gear (not shown), and when the pinion gear is driven to rotate, a rack engaged with the pinion gear is sent and the carriage 6 moves forward.
[0034]
As shown in FIG. 10, the rail 8 has an inverted T-shaped cross section and includes a lower flange 81, a connecting portion 82, and an upper flange 83. Three types of preload wheels 66a, 66b, and 66c are slidably contacted with the upper and lower flanges 81 and 83 of the rail 8 so that the transport carriage 6 can be run in a state in which shaking is suppressed.
[0035]
A wheel 66a shown in FIGS. 10A and 10B includes a buffer mechanism for suppressing upward displacement of the main body frame 61 and suppressing vertical vibration transmitted from the carriage 6 to the substrate G. . This buffer mechanism includes a bracket 62a, an arm stopper 64a, a swing arm 65a, a torsion spring 67a, and a spring stopper 68a. The wheel 66a is flexibly combined with the swing arm 65a using the biasing force (preload) of the torsion spring 67a. To move up and down.
[0036]
The wheel 66a has a horizontal shaft, is rotatably attached to one side of the swing arm 65a via a bearing, and an outer peripheral surface thereof is in contact with a lower surface portion of the upper flange 83 of the rail 8. Although only one wheel 66a is shown in the figure, another similar wheel 66a is actually attached to the opposite side across the rail 8.
[0037]
The torsion spring 67a is attached to the other side of the swing arm 65a, one end is locked to a stopper in the swing arm 65a, and the other end is locked to a spring stopper 68a on the main body frame 61 side.
[0038]
The arm stopper 64a is in contact with the upper surfaces on both sides of the swing arm 65a and restricts the swing range of the wheel 66a in the vertical direction.
[0039]
The bracket 62a is fastened to the body frame 61 of the carriage by a plurality of fastening bolts 63, and its arm portion is connected to the swing arm 65a by the axle of the wheel 66a.
[0040]
The wheels 66b shown in FIGS. 10C and 10D are provided with a buffer mechanism for suppressing the downward displacement of the main body frame 61 and for suppressing the vertical vibration transmitted from the carriage 6 to the substrate G. . This buffer mechanism includes a bracket 62b, an arm stopper 64b, a swing arm 65b, a torsion spring 67b, and a spring stopper 68b. The wheel 66b is flexibly combined with the swing arm 65b using the biasing force (preload) of the torsion spring 67b. To move up and down.
[0041]
The wheel 66b has a horizontal shaft, is rotatably attached to one side of the swing arm 65b via a bearing, and an outer peripheral surface thereof is in contact with an upper surface portion of the lower flange 81 of the rail 8. Although only one wheel 66b is shown in the figure, another similar wheel 66b is actually attached to the opposite side across the rail 8.
[0042]
The torsion spring 67b is attached to the other side of the swing arm 65b, one end is locked to a stopper in the swing arm 65b, and the other end is locked to a spring stopper 68b on the main body frame 61 side.
[0043]
The arm stopper 64b is in contact with the upper surfaces on both sides of the swing arm 65b, and limits the swing range of the wheel 66b in the vertical direction.
[0044]
The bracket 62b is fastened to the body frame 61 of the carriage by a plurality of fastening bolts 63, and its arm portion is connected to the swing arm 65b by the axle of the wheel 66b.
[0045]
The wheels 66c shown in FIGS. 10 (e) and 10 (f) suppress the displacement of the main body frame 61 in the lateral direction (the carriage width direction; the Y-axis direction), and suppress the roll transmitted from the carriage 6 to the substrate G. A buffer mechanism is provided. This buffer mechanism includes a bracket 62c, an arm stopper 64c, a swing arm 65c, a torsion spring 67c, and a spring stopper 69. The wheel 66c is flexible together with the swing arm 65c using the biasing force (preload) of the torsion spring 67c. To move horizontally.
[0046]
The wheel 66c has a vertical axis, is rotatably attached to one side of the swing arm 65c via a bearing, and an outer peripheral surface thereof is in contact with a side surface portion of the upper flange 83 of the rail 8. Although only one wheel 66c is shown in FIGS. 10 (e) and 10 (f), another similar wheel 66c is actually attached to the opposite side across the rail 8.
[0047]
The torsion spring 67c is attached to the other side of the swing arm 65c, one end is locked to a stopper in the swing arm 65c, and the other end is locked to a spring stopper 69 on the main body frame 61 side.
[0048]
(First embodiment)
Next, the board | substrate delivery mechanism of 1st Embodiment is demonstrated with reference to FIGS. 1-3.
[0049]
The substrate transfer mechanism of the first embodiment includes a parallelogram-shaped link arm mechanism 10 shown in FIGS. The link arm mechanism 10 is composed of a parallelogram-shaped four-joint link in which a pair of upper and lower horizontal arms 11 and 15, a vertical arm 13 and a support column 7 are connected by four pivots 12, 14, 16 and 75.
[0050]
One end of the lower horizontal arm 11 is connected to the opening / closing driving force transmission shaft 75 to be prevented from rotating, and the other end is rotatably connected to the lower end of the vertical arm 13 via the pivot 12. One end of the upper lateral arm 15 is pivotally connected to the pivot 16, and the other end is pivotally coupled to the upper end of the vertical arm 13 via the pivot 14. The support claw 20 is attached to the upper part of the vertical arm 13 horizontally in front view, parallel to the bottom surface of the substrate perpendicular to the column 7 in side view so that the concave surface portion 28 faces upward.
[0051]
Further, a tension spring 17 is attached to the upper end of the vertical arm 13 and pulls the vertical arm 13 upward so as to assist the return operation (closing operation) of the vertical arm 13. The upper end of the spring 17 is connected to an urging force adjusting bolt 18 attached to the fixing bracket 19 so that the urging force applied from the spring 17 to the vertical arm 13 can be adjusted.
[0052]
As shown in FIG. 1, the opening / closing driving force transmission shaft 75 is provided between the front column 7 and the rear column 7 along the carriage body frame 61. The horizontal arm 11 of the above-mentioned link mechanism is connected to both the left and right ends of the opening / closing driving force transmission shaft 75, and the seesaw arm 35 is connected to the rotation center of the opening / closing driving force transmission shaft 75.
[0053]
When an open drive mechanism 30A described later in the second embodiment pushes up the first rod 33a, the seesaw arm 35 swings to transmit the open drive force to the opening / closing drive force transmission shaft 75, and the link mechanism 10 is displaced downward. Thus, the support claw 20 is pulled down.
[0054]
On the other hand, when the closing drive mechanism 30B, which will be described later in the second embodiment, pushes up the second rod 33b, the seesaw arm 35 swings in the opposite direction and the closing driving force is transmitted to the opening / closing driving force transmission shaft 75, and the link mechanism 10 is displaced upward and the support claw 20 is pulled up.
[0055]
In this case, since the upper and lower two horizontal arms 11 and 15 are substantially the same length and the horizontal arms 11 and 15 are considerably shorter than the vertical arm 13, when the link mechanism 10 is displaced, The support claw 20 performs a quasi-linear motion with the concave portion 28 facing upward. In the present embodiment, the length ratio of the vertical arm 13 and the horizontal arms 11 and 15 is set to 12: 1. The ratio of the length and width arm length is preferably in the range of 8: 1 to 16: 1.
[0056]
According to the present embodiment, since the support claw can be driven to open and close so that the concave surface portion is always parallel to the bottom surface of the substrate and facing upward, the substrate can be smoothly delivered without causing chipping at the edge portion of the substrate G. can do.
[0057]
(Second Embodiment)
Next, a substrate transfer mechanism according to the second embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. 4 and 5. In addition, description of the part which this embodiment overlaps with said embodiment is abbreviate | omitted.
[0058]
The substrate delivery mechanism of the second embodiment includes a seesaw-type opening drive mechanism 30A and a closing drive mechanism 30B shown in FIG. In this embodiment, the cylinder 31a of the open drive mechanism 30A and the cylinder 31b of the close drive mechanism 30B are arranged adjacent to each other below the rail 8 as illustrated. Both cylinders 31 a and 31 b are fixedly supported on the base frame 40 by brackets 42.
[0059]
Long push-up rods 32a and 32b are screwed into the piston rods of the cylinders 31a and 31b and extend upward. A pair of rod guides 41 are provided side by side on the base frame 40, and the upper half portions of the rods 32a and 32b are inserted into the upper and lower through holes of the rod guides 41, respectively. Note that the upper ends of the push-up rods 32 a and 32 b when not in operation are located substantially flush with the upper surface of the base frame 40.
[0060]
A rail 8 and a pinion drive mechanism 43 are provided on the base frame 40. The pinion gear of the pinion drive mechanism 43 is engaged with a rack on the side surface of the carriage main body frame 61 so as to apply a forward or backward driving force to the transport carriage 6.
[0061]
Short push-up rods 33 a and 33 b are inserted into the upper and lower through holes of the carriage main body frame 61 so as to protrude and retract. A stopper is attached to the upper ends of the push-up rods 33 a and 33 b so that the rods 33 a and 33 b do not fall out of the through holes of the main body frame 61.
[0062]
The seesaw arm 35 is connected to the center of the longitudinal direction of the opening / closing driving force transmission shaft 75 to prevent rotation, and rollers 36 a and 36 b are respectively attached to both arm portions of the seesaw arm 35. The roller 36a on one side is positioned immediately above the upper end of the short push-up rod 33a. When the short rod 33a is pushed up by the long rod 32a, the roller 36a is pushed up by the short rod 33a, and the seesaw arm 35 is shown in the figure. Oscillate clockwise. The other side roller 36b is positioned immediately above the upper end of the short push-up rod 33b. When the short rod 33b is pushed up by the long rod 32b, the roller 36b is pushed up by the short rod 33b, and the seesaw arm 35 is shown in FIG. It swings counterclockwise inside.
[0063]
A power source 51 is connected to the drive circuits of the cylinder 31a of the open drive mechanism 30A and the cylinder 31b of the close drive mechanism 30B. In this embodiment, an electric cylinder is used for the drive mechanism, but a pneumatic cylinder may be used instead. A power supply operation of the power supply 51 is controlled by the controller 50. A sensor (not shown) for detecting the position of the transport carriage 6 is connected to the input section of the controller 50 so that a carriage position detection signal is input. The controller 50 drives the pinion drive mechanism 43 (not shown) so that the transport carriage 6 stops just above the cylinders 31a and 31b (substrate transfer position) based on the input carriage position detection signal. Is controlled with high accuracy.
[0064]
In the delivery mechanism of this embodiment, when the cylinder 31a of the open drive mechanism 30A protrudes the long rod 32a and pushes the short rod 33a upward, the seesaw arm 35 swings clockwise in the figure, At the same time, the transmission shaft 75 rotates to transmit the opening driving force to the parallelogram link arm mechanism 10. At this time, the link arm mechanism 10 overcomes the tensile force of the spring 17 and is displaced downward, the support claw 20 descends, and after placing the substrate G on the counterpart device, it is separated from the lower edge of the substrate G (opened). Operation).
[0065]
On the other hand, when the cylinder 31b of the closing drive mechanism 30B protrudes the long rod 32b and pushes the short rod 33b upward, the seesaw arm 35 swings counterclockwise in the drawing, and the transmission shaft 75 is reversed. The closing drive force is transmitted to the parallelogram link arm mechanism 10 by rotating in the direction. At this time, since the return force of the spring 17 and the closing drive force are applied to the link arm mechanism 10 in an overlapping manner, the parallelogram link arm mechanism 10 is easily displaced upward, and the support claw 20 is raised to raise the substrate G. Is held (closed operation).
[0066]
It should be noted that the controller 50 controls the cylinder 31a of the open drive mechanism 30A and the cylinder 31b of the close drive mechanism 30B so that either the open drive force or the close drive force is selectively transmitted to the opening / closing drive force transmission shaft 75. To control the operation. If an opening driving force and a closing driving force are simultaneously input to the opening / closing driving force transmission shaft 75, the driving force is not reliably transmitted to the link mechanism 10, and the board G is not delivered safely. This is because a fall accident may occur.
[0067]
According to the mechanism of the present embodiment, the support claw 20 can be reliably opened by the opening drive mechanism 30A, so that the large glass substrate G can be smoothly transferred from the carriage to other members.
[0068]
Further, according to the mechanism of the present embodiment, the support claw 20 can be reliably closed by the closing drive mechanism 30B, so that the large glass substrate G that has been charged and electrostatically adsorbed to the film forming unit or the like can be moved to another type. It becomes possible to receive smoothly from an apparatus, and the spring coefficient of the spring 17 can be made smaller than before. Further, since the support claw is reliably closed by the ascending confirmation sensor of the cylinder 30b outside the container, there is no malfunction after receiving the substrate, the conventional confirmation work is not required, and the operation cost is reduced. , Improve productivity.
[0069]
In the above embodiment, the open drive mechanism and the closed drive mechanism are operated by separate drive sources (cylinders). However, as shown in FIG. 4, the open drive mechanism and the closed drive mechanism are a single drive source. The opening / closing drive mechanism 30C may be shared. In other words, the opening / closing drive mechanism 30C includes a pinion gear 39 that is rotationally driven by a common motor (not shown), and a pair of push-up rods 37a and 37b having a rack 38 that the pinion gear 39 engages with.
[0070]
According to the opening / closing drive mechanism 30C of this modified example, the opening operation and the closing operation are operated in one of two options, so that the delivery of the substrate G becomes further safe and reliable.
[0071]
(Third embodiment)
Next, the substrate transfer mechanism of the third embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. In addition, description of the part which this embodiment overlaps with said embodiment is abbreviate | omitted.
[0072]
The substrate delivery mechanism of the third embodiment includes a support claw 20 in which the concave surface portion 28 shown in FIG. The support claw 20 includes a U-shaped base 21, a flat bolt 22, a buffer material 23, a substrate support surface 24, and a swing horizontal shaft 25. The U-shaped base 21 and the swinging horizontal shaft 25 are made of a metal such as stainless steel, and the buffer material 23 is made of a soft resin such as a polyimide resin.
[0073]
The oscillating horizontal shaft 25 supports the U-shaped base 21 horizontally so that the concave portion 28 faces upward, one end is joined to the center of the side surface of the U-shaped base 21, and the other end is connected to the vertical link arm 13. Connected to the top. A cushioning material 23 is provided so as to cover most of the concave surface portion 28 of the U-shaped base 21. The buffer material 23 is fastened to the U-shaped base 21 by two flat bolts 22. The flat bolt 22 is screwed into the U-shaped base 21 so that the head is buried at a level or lower than the upper surface of the cushioning material 23 so as not to protrude.
[0074]
According to the support claw 20 of the present embodiment, since the upper surface of the buffer material 23 becomes the glass substrate support surface 24, the edge of the glass substrate G is protected, the surface of the substrate G is not damaged, and the substrate G No corner edges are missing.
[0075]
In this embodiment, polyimide resin is used as the buffer material. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and other soft resins such as fluorinated ethylene resin (Teflon) can be used as the buffer material. It is.
[0076]
(Fourth embodiment)
Next, a substrate transfer mechanism according to the fourth embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. In addition, description of the part which this embodiment overlaps with said embodiment is abbreviate | omitted.
[0077]
The substrate delivery mechanism of the fourth embodiment includes a support claw 20A that can be swung as shown in FIG. The swinging horizontal shaft 25 of the support claw 20 </ b> A is connected to the vertical arm 13 through a cap 26. The cap 26 is provided with a pin 27 directed from the outside to the inside. The pin 27 is provided so that its position can be adjusted and removed from the outside of the cap 26, and its tip abuts on a notch surface 25 c of the oscillating horizontal shaft 25 inserted in the recess of the cap 26 or has a slight gap. The position is adjusted.
[0078]
In the present embodiment, the swing horizontal shaft 25 is supported in an unconstrained or semi-constrained state by the cap 26 having the pin 27, so that vibration has propagated from the transport carriage 6 to the cap 26 through the vertical arm 13. Sometimes, the support claw 20 swings around the swinging horizontal axis 25 and the vibration is absorbed and relaxed. For this reason, the board | substrate G becomes further hard to receive a damage.
[0079]
(Fifth embodiment)
Next, a substrate transfer mechanism according to the fifth embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. In addition, description of the part which this embodiment overlaps with said embodiment is abbreviate | omitted.
[0080]
The substrate transfer mechanism of the fifth embodiment includes a support claw 20A having a glass substrate support surface 24A and a holder support surface 24B shown in FIGS. In addition to the glass substrate G as a product, a film forming test holder H may flow through the film forming line. Since such a test holder H is made of a metal plate, if it is directly supported by the support claws 20, the buffer material 23 on the glass substrate support surface 24A is damaged and deteriorated.
[0081]
Therefore, in the support claw 20A of the present embodiment, a step is provided in the buffer material 23A, and the higher step is used as the glass substrate support surface 24A, and the lower step is used as the holder support surface 24B. That is, the glass substrate support surface 24A is constituted by a cushioning material 23A covering the longitudinal center of the support claw 20, as shown in FIGS. 8A and 9A, and the holder support surface 24B is formed as shown in FIG. 9 (b) and FIG. 9 (b), the heads of the flat bolts 22 on both longitudinal sides of the support claw 20 are configured.
[0082]
When the substrate G is supported, the glass substrate support surface 24A is higher than the holder support surface 24B, so that a gap S is generated between the substrate G and the holder support surface 24B as shown in FIG.
[0083]
When the holder H is supported, the holder support surface 24B is lower than the glass substrate support surface 24A. Therefore, as shown in FIG. It forms and avoids that the glass substrate support surface 24A and the holder H interfere.
[0084]
According to the support claw 20A of the present embodiment, both the glass substrate G and the test holder H can be handled, and the upper surface of the cushioning material 23 becomes the glass substrate support surface 24. The portion is protected, the surface of the substrate G is not damaged, and the corner edges of the substrate G are not lost.
[0085]
【The invention's effect】
As described above in detail, according to the present invention, the substrate can be safely and reliably transferred between the transport carriage and the other member without damaging the glass substrate. In particular, according to the mechanism of the present invention, the support claw can be reliably opened by the opening drive mechanism, so that the large glass substrate G that is charged and electrostatically attracted is smoothly transferred from the carriage to the other members. be able to. Further, since the support claw can be reliably closed by the closing drive mechanism, the spring coefficient of the return spring can be made smaller than that of the conventional one. In addition, since the support claw 20 is reliably closed by the sensor for confirming the rise of the cylinder 30b of the closing drive mechanism outside the container, there is no malfunction after receiving and the conventional confirmation work is unnecessary. Become. Thus, since the confirmation operation of the closing operation can be omitted, the operating cost is reduced and the productivity is improved. Furthermore, since the opening operation and the closing operation are performed in one of two alternatives, the delivery of the substrate G becomes further safe and reliable.
[0086]
In addition, according to the present invention, the supporting claw can be driven to open and close so that the concave surface portion is always parallel to the bottom surface of the substrate and directed upward, so that the substrate can be delivered smoothly without causing damage to the edge portion of the substrate. be able to.
[0087]
In addition, according to the present invention, since the upper surface of the cushioning material becomes the substrate support surface, the edge portion of the substrate is protected, the surface of the substrate is not damaged, and the corner edge of the substrate is not lost.
[0088]
Further, according to the present invention, since the swinging horizontal axis is supported in a non-constrained or semi-constrained state by a cap having a pin, when vibration has propagated from the transport carriage to the cap via the vertical arm, The support claw swings around the swinging horizontal axis to absorb and reduce vibration. This makes the substrate less susceptible to damage.
[0089]
Furthermore, according to the present invention, both the glass substrate and the test holder can be transported. When transporting the glass substrate, the upper surface of the cushioning material becomes the glass substrate support surface in the support claws. The edge portion is protected, the surface of the glass substrate is not scratched, and the corner edge of the glass substrate is not lost.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a substrate delivery mechanism of a transport carriage according to an embodiment of the present invention as viewed from a direction orthogonal to a transport path (Y-axis direction).
FIG. 2A is a diagram showing a substrate delivery mechanism (before substrate reception) of a transport cart according to the first embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 2B is a diagram of the transport cart according to the first embodiment of the present invention. The figure which shows a board | substrate delivery mechanism (after board | substrate receipt). FIG.
FIG. 3 is a skeleton diagram showing a substrate transfer mechanism (parallelogram link mechanism) according to the first embodiment;
FIG. 4 is a schematic configuration diagram showing a modified example of a substrate transfer mechanism (seesaw type driving mechanism).
FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional block diagram showing a substrate transfer mechanism (seesaw type drive mechanism) according to a second embodiment of the present invention.
6A is an enlarged longitudinal sectional view showing a part of a substrate delivery mechanism (buffer support claw mechanism) according to a third embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 6B is a substrate delivery mechanism according to the embodiment. (C) is a top view of the board | substrate delivery mechanism of the embodiment.
FIG. 7 is a plan view showing a substrate transfer mechanism (buffer support claw mechanism) according to a fourth embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 8A is a longitudinal sectional view showing a substrate delivery mechanism (stepped support claw mechanism holding a glass substrate) according to a fifth embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 8B is a substrate delivery mechanism of the embodiment. The longitudinal cross-sectional view of (the step-shaped support nail mechanism holding the metal holder for a film-forming test).
9A is a transverse cross-sectional view showing the stepped support claw mechanism as viewed from the direction of arrows AA in FIG. 8A, and FIG. 9B is a view in the direction of arrows BB in FIG. 8B. The cross-sectional view which shows the step-shaped support nail | claw mechanism seen from the side.
10A is a front view of a wheel with a shock absorbing mechanism for reducing upward swing, FIG. 10B is a side view of the wheel with a shock absorbing mechanism for reducing upward swing, and FIG. 10C is a downward swing. (D) is a side view of a wheel with a buffering mechanism for reducing downward swing, (e) is a front view of a wheel with a buffering mechanism for reducing lateral shaking, (F) is a side view of the wheel with a buffer mechanism which relieves the shaking to the side.
FIG. 11 is a perspective view showing a roller frame and a carriage for explanation when the substrate is mounted on the carriage.
FIG. 12 is a schematic configuration diagram showing a roller frame and a carriage as viewed from the direction of a conveyance path (X-axis direction) for explanation when the substrate is mounted on the carriage.
FIG. 13A is a view showing a conventional substrate transfer mechanism, and FIG. 13B is an enlarged view of a main part showing an enlarged substrate support portion of the conventional substrate transfer mechanism.
[Explanation of symbols]
6 ... transport cart,
7: support (support arm), 71, 72, 73 ... presser leaf spring, 74 ... reinforcing rib,
75 ... Opening / closing driving force transmission shaft, 77 ... Support member,
8 ... Rail (rail), 81 ... Lower flange, 82 ... Connecting part, 83 ... Upper flange,
10 ... Parallelogram link arm mechanism,
11, 15 ... Horizontal arm (swinging arm),
12, 14, 16 ... axis,
13 ... Vertical arm (long arm),
17 ... Spring,
18 ... adjustment screw,
19 ... Fixing bracket,
20, 20A ... support nails,
21 ... U-shaped base,
22 ... Flat bolt,
23, 23A ... buffer material (polyimide resin),
24, 24A ... glass substrate support surface,
24B ... Holder support surface,
25 ... Oscillating horizontal axis,
25c ... notched surface,
26 ... Cap,
27 ... pin,
28 ... concave surface,
30A ... Open drive mechanism,
30B: Closed drive mechanism,
30C: Open / close drive mechanism,
31a, 31b ... cylinders,
32a, 32b, 33a, 33b ... push-up rod,
35 ... Seesaw arm,
36a, 36b ... rollers,
37a, 37b ... push-up rod,
38 ... Rack,
39 ... pinion gear,
40 ... Base frame,
41 ... Rod guide,
42 ... Bracket,
43 ... Pinion drive mechanism,
50 ... Controller,
51 ... Power supply,
61 ... Dolly frame,
62a, 62b, 62c ... bracket,
63 ... fastening bolt,
64a, 64b, 64c ... arm stopper,
65a, 65b, 65c ... swing arm,
66a, 66b, 66c ... wheels,
67a, 67b, 67c ... torsion spring,
68a, 68b, 69 ... spring stopper,
70 ... supporting nails,
G ... Glass substrate,
H ... Test holder (metal plate for film formation test),
S ... Gap.

Claims (8)

A substrate delivery mechanism for delivering a substrate between a transport carriage and another member,
A plurality of supports for supporting the substrate diagonally on the transport carriage;
A downward concave support claw provided on each of the pillars, into which the edge of the upper side of the substrate is inserted, and
A plurality of upward concave support claws for supporting the substrate to be lifted from below;
An opening drive mechanism having a first push-up rod provided below a transfer path on which the transfer carriage travels and pushed upward from below the transfer carriage;
A closed drive mechanism that is provided below a conveyance path on which the conveyance carriage travels and has a second push-up rod that is pushed upward from below the conveyance carriage;
A link mechanism that is provided on each of the columns, and that supports the upward concave support claws movably so as to be displaced while maintaining a posture in which the concave portion is on the upper side;
An open drive force attached to the transport carriage and generated by pushing up the first push-up rod of the open drive mechanism is transmitted to the link mechanism and closed by raising the second push-up rod of the closed drive mechanism. An opening / closing driving force transmission shaft for transmitting a driving force to the link mechanism,
When the opening drive mechanism pushes up the first push-up rod, the upward concave support pawl is forcibly pulled down while maintaining the posture in which the concave portion is on the upper side, and the concave portion is a side of the lower side of the substrate. Detach from the edge,
When the closed drive mechanism pushes up the second push-up rod, the upward concave support pawl is forcibly pulled up in a state where the concave portion is maintained in an upper side, and the concave portion is a side of the lower side of the substrate. A substrate delivery mechanism that abuts against an edge.   The link mechanism has one end attached to the opening / closing driving force transmission shaft and swinging around the opening / closing driving force transmission shaft, and the other end of the first side arm via a pivot. A connected vertical arm, a second horizontal arm having one end connected to the other end of the vertical arm via a pivot and substantially the same length as the first horizontal arm, and the second horizontal arm The mechanism according to claim 1, further comprising a parallelogram-shaped link arm mechanism including a shaft that rotatably supports the other end of the support on the support column.   2. A seesaw arm having a longitudinal center connected to the opening / closing driving force transmission shaft, one end pushed up by the first push-up rod, and the other end pushed up by the second push-up rod. The mechanism described.   A controller for controlling the operation of the open drive mechanism and the close drive mechanism so that either the open drive force or the close drive force is selectively transmitted to the opening / closing drive force transmission shaft; The mechanism according to claim 3. The mechanism according to claim 1, wherein the upward concave support pawl has a soft cushioning material covering an inner wall of the concave portion. A swing horizontal axis that supports the upward concave support pawl;
A cap connected to the vertical arm ;
The mechanism according to claim 2 , further comprising a pin provided in the cap and having a tip abutting against a notch surface formed on an outer periphery of the swing horizontal shaft. The mechanism according to claim 1, wherein the upward concave support pawl has a glass substrate support surface covered with a buffer material and a holder support surface lower than the height of the glass substrate support surface. The mechanism according to claim 7, wherein the glass substrate support surface is provided at a longitudinal center portion of the upward concave support claw, and the holder support surface is provided at both longitudinal sides of the upward concave support claw.

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