JP5199777B2 - Cutting equipment - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a cutting apparatus having a cutting blade.

  A cutting apparatus used for cutting a semiconductor wafer or the like includes a chuck table that holds a workpiece and a cutting means that has a rotatable cutting blade that cuts the workpiece held on the chuck table. There are two types of cutting blades: a hub blade in which a base (hub) and a cutting blade are integrated and supported by the base, and a washer type blade that has only a cutting blade and does not have a base.

  When a hub blade is used as a cutting blade, a fixed flange is mounted on the rotating shaft constituting the cutting means, and the hub blade is mounted on the mounting shaft formed on the fixed flange, and is formed at the end of the mounting shaft. When the fixing nut is screwed and fastened to the male screw, the cutting blade is sandwiched and fixed between the fixing flange and the nut (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

  On the other hand, when a washer type blade is used as the cutting blade, a fixed flange is mounted on the rotating shaft of the cutting means, a washer type blade is mounted on the mounting shaft formed on the fixed flange, and a detachable flange is inserted into the mounting shaft. After that, when the fixing nut is screwed onto the male screw formed at the end of the mounting shaft, the cutting blade is sandwiched and fixed between the fixing flange and the detachable flange (see, for example, Patent Document 2).

JP 09-314465 A JP-A-10-000555

  However, since the cutting blade is formed as thin as about 30 μm, in the hub blade as described in Patent Document 1, in order to prevent the cutting blade from breaking or cracking, The protruding amount of the cutting blade from the base is relatively small, 0.5 to 1.5 mm. Therefore, although the cutting blade configured in this manner is sufficient for cutting a wafer having a thickness of about 0.1 to 0.5 mm, it is used for cutting when the cutting blade is worn and the protrusion amount is reduced. Since it cannot be used, it has to be discarded, resulting in a short life.

  In addition, as described in Patent Document 2, a washer type blade that includes only a cutting blade and does not have a base has a configuration in which the cutting blade is sandwiched between two flanges and the cutting blade protrudes on the outer peripheral side of the two flanges. Therefore, if the cutting blade wears out, the washer type blade must be replaced. And since the washer type blade is not supported by the base, there is a problem that it must be replaced with a cutting edge and is easily damaged.

  Therefore, the problem to be solved by the present invention is to enable longer use even when the cutting blade of the cutting blade is worn, and not to damage the cutting blade.

  The first invention relates to a cutting apparatus comprising at least a chuck table for holding a workpiece and a cutting means having a rotatable cutting blade for cutting the workpiece held on the chuck table. A rotating shaft, a fixed flange disposed on the rotating shaft, a mounting shaft projecting axially from the fixed flange and having a male screw formed at a tip, a cutting blade having a through-hole penetrating the mounting shaft, and cutting The cutting blade is configured to include a detachable flange that holds the blade between the fixing flange and a fixing nut that is screwed into a male screw formed on the mounting shaft to fix the detachable flange to the mounting shaft. And a cutting blade formed on the outer peripheral side of the gripping portion. The cutting blade is sandwiched between the fixed flange and the detachable flange, and the cutting blade is inserted from the outer periphery of the fixed flange and the detachable flange. Issued thereby, by exchanging fixed flange and removable flange outer diameters different, thereby enabling adjusting the projecting amount of the cutting edge from the outer peripheral side of the fixed flange and removable flange. The detachable flange is formed with an accommodating recess for accommodating a gripping portion of the cutting blade on the side facing the cutting blade.

  A second invention is a cutting apparatus comprising at least a chuck table for holding a workpiece and a cutting means having a rotatable cutting blade for cutting the workpiece held on the chuck table. Includes a rotating shaft, a fixed flange disposed on the rotating shaft, a mounting shaft that protrudes axially from the fixed flange and has a male screw formed at the tip, and a cutting blade having a through hole that passes through the mounting shaft. The cutting blade is composed of a detachable flange that clamps the cutting blade with a fixed flange, and a fixing nut that is screwed into a male screw formed on the mounting shaft to fix the detachable flange to the mounting shaft, and the cutting blade has a through hole It consists of a gripping part and a cutting blade formed on the outer peripheral side of the gripping part. The cutting blade is sandwiched between the fixed flange and the detachable flange, and the cutting blade is moved from the outer periphery of the fixed flange and the detachable flange. Regarding the method of using the cutting machine that has been taken out, the fixed flange and the detachable flange are removed from the mounting shaft in response to the wear of the cutting blade, and the fixed flange and the detachable flange that are smaller in diameter than the removed fixed flange and the detachable flange are mounted on the mounting shaft. Then, the cutting blade with the worn cutting blade is clamped to increase the protruding amount of the cutting blade.

  In the present invention, when the cutting blade of the cutting blade is sandwiched between the fixed flange and the detachable flange, the cutting blade protrudes from the outer periphery of the fixed flange and the detachable flange, the cutting blade is worn by cutting, and the protrusion amount becomes insufficient. By replacing the fixed flange and the detachable flange with a small-diameter fixed flange and a small-diameter detachable flange, the worn cutting blade can be protruded to ensure a sufficient amount of protrusion, thereby extending the life of the cutting blade. . In addition, by exchanging the fixed flange and the detachable flange, it is possible to ensure the protruding amount of the cutting blade corresponding to the thickness of the wafer to be cut. Furthermore, since the cutting blade has a gripping portion, the operability of attaching / detaching to / from the fixed flange is increased, and the cutting blade is hardly damaged.

  A cutting apparatus 1 shown in FIG. 1 is an apparatus for cutting a wafer held on a chuck table 2 by a cutting means 3. At the front part of the cutting apparatus 1, there is provided a cassette placement region 4 that is a region on which a wafer cassette 4 a that accommodates a wafer to be cut is placed. Further, on the rear side of the cassette mounting area 4, a loading / unloading means 5 for unloading the wafer from the wafer cassette 4a and loading the wafer into the wafer cassette 4a is disposed.

  Between the cassette placement region 4 and the carry-in / out means 5, a temporary placement region 5a, which is a region on which the wafer is temporarily placed, is provided. In the vicinity of the temporary placement region 5a, a first transport means 6a for transporting the wafer between the temporary placement region 5a and the chuck table 2 is disposed.

  The chuck table 2 is movable in the X-axis direction. Above the movement path of the chuck table 2, an alignment unit 7 that images a wafer held on the chuck table 2 and detects an area to be cut is disposed. Has been. The alignment unit 7 includes an imaging unit 70 that images the surface of the wafer held on the chuck table 2. On the extension of the alignment means 7 in the X-axis direction, a cutting means 3 movable in the Y-axis direction and the Z-axis direction is disposed.

  In the vicinity of the position of the chuck table 2, a cleaning means 8 for cleaning the wafer after cutting is disposed, and a second portion for conveying the wafer between the chuck table 2 and the cleaning means 8 is disposed above the cleaning means 8. Conveying means 6b is provided.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the cutting means 3 has a rotatable cutting blade 30, and the cutting blade 30 is covered with a blade cover 31 from above and from the side.

  As shown in FIG. 3, the blade cover 31 includes a fixed cover 310 fixed to the housing 32 b and a removable cover 311 that can be attached to and detached from the fixed cover 310. Cutting water nozzles 310 a and 311 a are respectively disposed below the fixed cover 310 and the detachable cover 311, and the cutting water nozzle 310 a and the cutting water nozzle 311 a are positioned in front of and behind the cutting blade 30 in the Y-axis direction. Is configured to do. A blade detecting means 312 for detecting wear of the cutting blade or the like is fixed to the upper portion of the fixed cover. The detachable cover 311 and the blade detection means 312 are fixed to the fixed cover 310 by bolts 311b and 312b, respectively.

  As shown in FIG. 4, the cutting means 3 includes a rotary shaft 32a, a housing 32b that rotatably supports the rotary shaft 32a, and a male screw 320 having an axial center in the Y-axis direction and having a tip formed with a male screw 320. The mounting shaft 32 attached to the rotary shaft 32a, the through-hole 330 passing through the mounting shaft 32, the fixing flange 33 attached to the rotary shaft 32a via the mounting shaft 32, and the mounting shaft 32 The cutting blade 30 that has a through-hole 340 that penetrates and is mounted on the mounting shaft 32 next to the fixed flange 33, and the through-hole 340 that passes through the mounting shaft 32 and that is mounted on the mounting shaft 32 next to the cutting blade 30. And a fixing nut 35 that is screwed into the male screw 320 of the mounting shaft 32. The fixed flange 33 and the detachable flange 34 have the same outer diameter.

  As shown in FIG. 4, the cutting blade 30 includes a ring-shaped cutting blade 300 and a gripping portion 301 fixed to the center of the cutting blade 300. The cutting blade 300 is formed on the outer peripheral side of the grip portion 301 and has a thickness of about 30 μm. On the other hand, a through hole 301 a is formed in the grip portion 301. Corresponding to the gripping portion 301 projecting in the axial direction of the mounting shaft 32, the gripping portion 301 is accommodated on the back side of the detachable flange 34, that is, the side facing the cutting blade 30 as shown in FIG. An accommodating recess 341 is formed. Unlike the base constituting the conventional hub blade, the gripping portion 301 has an outer diameter that is significantly smaller than the outer diameter of the cutting blade.

  When manufacturing the cutting blade 30, for example, a base and an electrolytic metal having the same outer diameter as the cutting edge 300 are immersed in an electrolytic solution in which diamond abrasive grains are mixed, and the diamond abrasive mixed in the electrolytic solution is immersed. The grains are allowed to settle and deposited on the base, and the deposited diamond abrasive grains are fixed with molten electrolytic metal to form a cutting edge. Then, the outer peripheral side of the base is removed by etching to leave the gripping portion 301, and the cutting blade 30 having the shape shown in FIG. 4 is formed. Moreover, you may adhere | attach the holding | grip part 301 to the cutting blade 300 using a bond agent.

  As shown in FIG. 6, when the fixing flange 33 is mounted on the mounting shaft 32, the mounting shaft 32 protrudes in the axial direction from the fixed flange 33. Then, the cutting blade 30 and the detachable flange 34 are inserted into the protruding portion, and the fixing nut 35 is screwed to the male screw 320, whereby the cutting blade 30 is sandwiched between the fixed flange 33 and the detachable flange 34. Then, the cutting blade 300 protrudes to the outer peripheral side by the protrusion amount P with reference to the outer peripheral surfaces of the fixed flange 33 and the detachable flange 34.

  Next, the case where the wafer W is cut and divided into devices by using the cutting apparatus 1 shown in FIG. The wafer W to be cut shown in FIG. 1 is partitioned by a predetermined division line (street) and a device is formed on the surface. The back surface of the wafer W is attached to the tape T, and a ring is attached to the outer periphery of the tape T. By sticking the frame F, the wafer W is accommodated in the wafer cassette 4a while being supported by the frame F via the tape T. Then, after the wafer W supported by the frame F by the loading / unloading means 5 is unloaded to the temporary placement region 5a, it is transferred to the chuck table 2 by the first transfer means 6a.

  Next, as the chuck table 2 moves in the X-axis direction, the wafer W is aligned below the image pickup means 70, a division line to be cut is detected, and alignment with the cutting blade 30 in the Y-axis direction is performed. Made. Then, the chuck table 2 further moves in the same direction, and the cutting means 3 descends while the cutting blade 30 rotates at a high speed, whereby the cutting blade 300 cuts into the wafer W and the detected street is cut. Further, when streets are sequentially cut while indexing and feeding the cutting means 3 in the Y-axis direction at intervals of streets, all streets in the same direction are cut. When the same cutting is performed after the chuck table 2 is further rotated by 90 degrees, all streets are cut vertically and horizontally and divided into individual devices.

  When cutting is performed in this manner, the cutting edge 300 of the cutting blade 30 shown in FIG. 4 is worn and its outer diameter is reduced, so that the outer peripheral side from the fixed flange 33 and the detachable flange 34 as shown in FIG. When the value of the protrusion amount P protruding to a smaller value and the protrusion amount P becomes smaller than the thickness of the wafer W, the wafer W cannot be completely cut. Therefore, in this case, the cutting blade 30 is not replaced, and instead of the fixed flange 33 and the detachable flange 34 shown in FIG. A small-diameter fixed flange 36 and a small-diameter attaching / detaching flange 37 are used. The small-diameter fixed flange 36 and the small-diameter detachable flange 37 are formed with through holes 360 and 370 through which the mounting shaft 320 passes.

  Specifically, after removing the fixing nut 34 shown in FIG. 4 from the mounting shaft 32 and then removing the detachable flange 34, the cutting blade 30 and the fixing flange 33 from the mounting shaft 32, as shown in FIG. The fixing blade 36, the cutting blade 30 whose cutting blade 300 is worn by use, and the small-diameter attaching / detaching flange 37 are mounted on the mounting shaft 32, and the fixing nut 35 is screwed onto the male screw 320 to fix the cutting blade 30. At this time, the gripping portion 301 of the cutting blade 30 is accommodated in the accommodating portion 371 formed on the detachable flange 370 as shown in FIG. The cutting blade 30 can be attached and detached by holding the holding portion 301 to prevent the cutting blade 300 from being damaged.

  When the cutting blade 30 is sandwiched between the small-diameter fixed flange 36 and the small-diameter attaching / detaching flange 37 in this way, as shown in FIG. 8, the protrusion amount P1 of the cutting blade 300 becomes a value sufficient for cutting the wafer. In FIG. 8, the fixed flange 33 and the detachable flange 34 that have been removed are depicted by two-dot chain lines.

  Instead of the cutting means 3 shown in FIGS. 4 to 6, the cutting means 9 shown in FIG. 9 can be used. The cutting means 9 includes a rotating shaft 32a and a housing 32b that rotatably supports the rotating shaft 32a. A fixed flange 90 is attached and fixed to the rotary shaft 32a. The fixed flange 90 is formed by integrally forming a wall portion 900 standing upright in a direction perpendicular to the axis of the rotation shaft 32a and a mounting shaft 901 protruding in the axial direction from the wall portion 900. A male screw 902 is formed at the tip.

  A cutting blade 30 including a cutting blade 300 and a grip portion 301 is attached to the attachment shaft 901. The attachment / detachment flange 91 is attached to the attachment shaft 901, and the fastening nut 92 is fastened to the male screw 902, whereby the cutting blade 30 is sandwiched between the wall portion 900 of the fixed flange 90 and the attachment / detachment flange 91. Furthermore, by fixing the fixing nut 93 to the male screw 902, the fixing flange 90, the cutting blade 30, and the detachable flange 91 are fixed to the rotating shaft 32a.

  Also in the cutting means 9 shown in FIG. 9, when the cutting amount P2 of the cutting blade 301 from the fixed flange 90 and the detachable flange 91 is not sufficient to cut the wafer due to the cutting, the fixed flange 90 and the detachable flange 91 are also cut. Is replaced with a small-diameter fixed flange and a small-diameter detachable flange. Then, it becomes possible to cut the wafer again without exchanging the cutting blade 30.

It is a perspective view which shows an example of a cutting device. It is a perspective view which shows an example of the cutting means which attached the blade cover. It is a disassembled perspective view which shows an example of the cutting means to which the blade cover was attached. It is a disassembled perspective view which shows an example of a cutting means. It is a perspective view which shows the back side of an attachment or detachment flange. It is sectional drawing which shows a cutting means schematically. It is a disassembled perspective view which shows the cutting means of the state which replaced the fixed flange and the attachment / detachment flange with the thing of a small diameter type. It is sectional drawing which shows schematically the cutting means of the state which replaced the fixed flange and the attachment / detachment flange with the thing of a small diameter type. It is sectional drawing which shows the 2nd example of a cutting means schematically.

Explanation of symbols

1: Cutting device 2: Chuck table 3: Cutting means 30: Cutting blade 300: Cutting blade 301: Holding part 31: Blade cover 310: Fixed cover 310a: Cutting water nozzle 311: Removable cover 311a: Cutting water nozzle 311b: Bolt 312 : Blade detection means 312b: Bolt 32a: Rotating shaft 32b: Housing 32: Mounting shaft 320: Male screw 33: Fixing flange 330 Through hole 34: Removable flange 340: Through hole 341: Housing recess 35: Fixing nut 35: Fixing of small diameter Flange 360: Through hole 37: Small-diameter attaching / detaching flange 370: Through hole 4: Cassette mounting area 4a: Wafer cassette 5: Loading / unloading means 5a: Temporary placing area 6a: First conveying means 6b: Second conveying means 7 : Alignment means 70: Imaging means 8: Cleaning means 9: Cutting means 90: Fixed frame 900: Wall 901: Mounting shaft 902: Male screw 91: Removable flange 92: Tightening nut 93: Fixed nut

Claims (3)

A cutting apparatus comprising at least a chuck table for holding a workpiece and a cutting means having a rotatable cutting blade for cutting the workpiece held on the chuck table,
The cutting means includes a rotating shaft, a fixed flange disposed on the rotating shaft, a mounting shaft that protrudes axially from the fixed flange and has a male screw formed at a tip, and a through-penetrating through the mounting shaft. A cutting blade having a hole, a detachable flange that clamps the cutting blade with the fixing flange, and a fixing nut that is screwed into a male screw formed on the mounting shaft and fixes the detachable flange to the mounting shaft. Configured,
The cutting blade is composed of a grip portion having the through hole and a cutting blade formed on the outer peripheral side of the grip portion,
The cutting blade is sandwiched between the fixing flange and the detachable flange, the cutting blade protrudes from the outer periphery of the fixing flange and the detachable flange, and the fixed flange and the detachable flange are exchanged to ones having different outer diameters. The cutting device which enabled adjustment of the protrusion amount of this cutting blade from the outer peripheral side of this fixed flange and this attachment / detachment flange.   The cutting apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the detachable flange is formed with an accommodating recess for accommodating a gripping portion of the cutting blade on a side facing the cutting blade. A cutting apparatus comprising at least a chuck table for holding a workpiece and a cutting means having a rotatable cutting blade for cutting the workpiece held on the chuck table,
The cutting means includes a rotating shaft, a fixed flange disposed on the rotating shaft, a mounting shaft that protrudes axially from the fixed flange and has a male screw formed at a tip, and a through-penetrating through the mounting shaft. A cutting blade having a hole, a detachable flange that clamps the cutting blade with the fixing flange, and a fixing nut that is screwed into a male screw formed on the mounting shaft and fixes the detachable flange to the mounting shaft. Configured,
The cutting blade includes a grip portion having the through-hole and a cutting blade formed on the outer peripheral side of the grip portion, and the fixing blade is sandwiched between the fixing flange and the detachable flange. And a method of using the cutting device in which the cutting blade protrudes from the outer periphery of the detachable flange,
The fixing flange and the detachable flange are removed from the mounting shaft in response to the wear of the cutting blade, and the fixed flange and the detachable flange having a smaller diameter than the removed fixing flange and the detachable flange are mounted on the mounting shaft. A method of using a cutting device that sandwiches a cutting blade with worn cutting blades and increases a protruding amount of the cutting blade.

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