JP5270289B2 - Substrate processing equipment - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide technology for realizing appropriate conveyance control without concentrating a processing burden in conveyance control on a part. <P>SOLUTION: A substrate processing apparatus 1 is divided into cells C1 to C6 being a plurality of controlled zones. Cell schedulers CS1 to CS6 managing a conveyance schedule in the respective cells C1 to C6 are arranged. An inter-cell scheduler MS which generally manages a plurality of cell schedulers CS1 to CS6 is formed as a high-order scheduler. The inter-cell scheduler MS controls transfer of the substrate W between the cells by designating the delivery timing of the substrate W for the respective cell schedulers CS1 to CS6. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2010,JPO&amp;INPIT

Description

  The present invention can be applied to semiconductor substrates, glass substrates for liquid crystal display devices, substrates for plasma displays, substrates for optical disks, substrates for magnetic disks, substrates for magneto-optical disks, glass substrates for photomasks (hereinafter simply referred to as “substrates”). The present invention relates to a technique for processing.

  As is well known, products such as semiconductors and liquid crystal displays are manufactured by performing a series of processes such as cleaning, resist coating, exposure, development, etching, interlayer insulation film formation, heat treatment, and dicing on the substrate. Has been. Among these various processes, a resist coating process is performed on a substrate and the substrate is transferred to an exposure unit, and an apparatus that receives the exposed substrate from the exposure unit and performs a development process is widely used as a so-called coater and developer. Yes.

  Patent Document 1 discloses a configuration example of such an apparatus. In the substrate processing apparatus disclosed herein, a plurality of processing units (a processing unit that forms various coating films such as a resist film, a processing unit that performs development processing, a thermal processing unit that performs thermal processing, etc.) and a processing unit The plurality of transport mechanisms for transporting the substrate are arranged at predetermined positions, and each transport mechanism transports the substrate to a predetermined processing unit in a predetermined order. As a result, a series of processing is performed on the substrate.

  In such a substrate processing apparatus, a controller for calculating a schedule for transporting the substrate to each processing unit and controlling the transport mechanism according to the schedule is provided. Conventionally, the conveyance control over the entire apparatus is performed by one controller. However, the schedule calculation becomes more complicated as the number of processing units provided in the apparatus increases, and it takes time for the calculation, and real-time calculation becomes difficult. In addition, software bugs have become frequent.

  Therefore, in order to reduce the processing load on the controller, a configuration has been devised in which the entire apparatus is divided into a plurality of controlled sections and each section is managed independently by a separate controller. For example, in the substrate processing apparatus disclosed in Patent Document 1, the entire apparatus is divided into unit units (cells) including one transport mechanism and a processing unit in which the transport mechanism carries the substrate in and out. The transport schedule in each cell is configured to be managed independently by a separate controller (cell controller).

  According to this configuration, each cell controller only needs to look at the transfer schedule in the cell managed by each cell controller without considering the transfer schedule in the adjacent cell, so the processing load related to transfer control is reduced. . In addition, the time required for processing is shortened and the throughput is improved.

JP 2004-87570 A

  If independent transport control is performed in units of cells, the above-described advantages can be obtained, but there is a disadvantage that total transport control between cells cannot be performed, resulting in various problems.

  For example, in the case where the coupling is performed in a processing unit for coating and forming a resist film, the resist film coating and forming process cannot be performed during that time. Therefore, the cell controller of the cell (resist application cell) including the processing unit stops receiving the substrate into the cell until the coupling is completed. However, since such a situation cannot be detected in other cells, the processing is continued as it is. As a result, in the cell (bark cell) that dispenses the substrate to the resist coating cell, the processed substrate cannot be dispensed to the resist coating cell, and the substrate becomes clogged. In a bark cell, an antireflection film coating formation process and a heat treatment associated therewith are performed. In a clogged state, the heat-treated substrate cannot be carried out of the heat treatment section, and as a result, the antireflection film is formed. There arises a state where the coated and formed substrate cannot be carried into the heat treatment section. That is, the substrate on which the antireflection film is formed waits for a considerable period of time without being heat-treated, which causes a process problem.

  Thus, according to the independent transport control in units of cells, it is not possible to perform schedule adjustment between cells such as adjusting the schedule of other cells according to the delay of the schedule in a certain cell. , Process risk could not be avoided.

  Further, for example, according to independent transfer control in units of cells, there is a disadvantage that it is not possible to realize overall tact transfer across cells (transfer control mode for transferring the same lot of substrates so as to have the same transfer history and processing history). It was. That is, each cell controller only knows the state of transport in its own cell. For example, a certain substrate is accepted into the resist coating cell 3 seconds after being delivered from the bark cell, and another substrate is accepted after 7 seconds. As described above, the delivery timing between cells varies between substrates. For this reason, even if the tact transfer is performed in units of cells, the transfer history as a whole cannot be made constant, and the entire tact transfer cannot be realized.

  As described above, in the configuration in which the entire apparatus is divided into a plurality of controlled sections and the transport control of each controlled section is performed independently by a separate controller, there are advantages in that the processing load is distributed and the processing speed is improved. On the other hand, since the total conveyance control cannot be performed throughout the plurality of controlled sections, there is a drawback that proper conveyance control is not ensured.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide a technique capable of realizing appropriate transport control without concentrating a processing load in transport control.

The invention of claim 1 is a substrate processing apparatus that sequentially conveys a substrate to a plurality of processing units and performs a series of processes, and has a one-to-one correspondence with a plurality of controlled sections defined by dividing the substrate processing apparatus. A plurality of controlled partition schedulers that are associated with each other and manage a transport schedule inside each controlled partition, and a controlled inter-segment scheduler that controls the timing of delivering a substrate between the plurality of controlled partitions, The inter-controlled partition scheduler includes status information acquisition means for acquiring status information that is information indicating the state of the corresponding controlled partition from each of the plurality of controlled partition schedulers, and the status based on the information, to determine when to transfer substrates between the plurality of controlled compartment, said status information, to the controlled compartment Information indicating whether or not a board can be received, and when there is a controlled partition in which the inter-controlled partition scheduler cannot receive a board, the controlled control selected from the plurality of controlled partition schedulers A delivery timing instruction means for giving a partition scheduler an instruction to stop the delivery of a substrate from the controlled partition corresponding to the partition scheduler, and the status information indicates that the substrate cannot be received in the controlled partition The payout timing instruction means selects a controlled partition scheduler to which the stop instruction is to be given from among the plurality of controlled partition schedulers based on the reason .

The invention according to claim 2 is a substrate processing apparatus that sequentially conveys a substrate to a plurality of processing units and performs a series of processes, and has a one-to-one correspondence with a plurality of controlled sections defined by dividing the substrate processing apparatus. A plurality of controlled partition schedulers that are associated with each other and manage a transport schedule inside each controlled partition, and a controlled inter-segment scheduler that controls the timing of delivering a substrate between the plurality of controlled partitions, The inter-controlled partition scheduler includes status information acquisition means for acquiring status information that is information indicating the state of the corresponding controlled partition from each of the plurality of controlled partition schedulers, and the status Based on the information, the timing for delivering the substrate between the plurality of controlled sections is determined, and in the status information, in the controlled section Information indicating whether or not a board can be received, and when there is a controlled partition in which the inter-controlled partition scheduler cannot receive a board, the controlled control selected from the plurality of controlled partition schedulers A delivery timing instruction means for giving an instruction to stop the delivery of a substrate from the controlled partition corresponding to the partition scheduler, and the status information includes a period during which the substrate cannot be received in the controlled partition. The payout timing instructing means gives an instruction to restart the board payout to the controlled partition scheduler that has given the stop instruction at a timing determined based on the period.

A third aspect of the present invention, there is provided a substrate processing apparatus according to claim 1 or claim 2, pre-Symbol controlled-partition scheduler, if there is a controlled compartment can not accept the substrate, the plurality of An acceptance timing instruction means for giving an instruction to stop receiving a substrate to the controlled partition corresponding to the controlled partition scheduler selected from the controlled partition scheduler, and each of the plurality of controlled partitions A safe number specifying means for specifying a safe number that is the maximum number of substrates that can be safely stored in the controlled section without causing a process risk even if the substrate cannot be dispensed from the controlled section; The reception timing instruction means gives a stop instruction to accept a substrate to the controlled section in a number exceeding the safety number of the controlled section. Giving before the plate is accepted into the controlled zone.

Invention of Claim 4 is a substrate processing apparatus in any one of Claim 1 to 3 , Comprising: The said controlled partition scheduler gives an instruction | indication with respect to each of these controlled partition scheduler, In each of the plurality of controlled sections, the in-compartment tact time, which is the time from when a single board is loaded into the controlled section to being dispensed, is set to a predetermined value for all of the plurality of controlled sections. In-compartment tact time adjustment means, and timing adjustment means for synchronizing the timing of substrate delivery from each of the plurality of controlled compartments.

According to the first aspect of the present invention, in addition to the plurality of controlled partition schedulers that manage the transfer schedules of the plurality of controlled partitions, the inter-controlled partition scheduler that controls the timing of transferring the substrates between the plurality of controlled partitions. Is provided. By stratifying the scheduler in this way, it is possible to realize appropriate transport control by performing total transport control between controlled sections while distributing the processing load in transport control.
In addition, when there is a controlled partition that cannot accept a board, the controlled inter-partition scheduler gives a stop instruction for the delivery of the board to the selected controlled partition scheduler, so that it can be transported between the controlled sections. Adjust the schedule. As a result, it is possible to realize appropriate conveyance control that avoids the occurrence of process risk.
In addition, when there is a controlled partition that cannot accept a substrate, the controlled partition scheduler selects a controlled partition scheduler to which a stop instruction should be given based on the reason why the substrate cannot be received there. With this configuration, it is possible to adjust the conveyance schedule between controlled sections flexibly and appropriately, and it is possible to realize appropriate conveyance control that suppresses a decrease in processing efficiency while avoiding the occurrence of process risk. .

According to the invention of claim 2, in addition to the plurality of controlled partition schedulers for managing the transport schedules of the plurality of controlled partitions, the controlled inter-partition scheduler for controlling the timing of transferring the substrate between the plurality of controlled partitions. Is provided. By stratifying the scheduler in this way, it is possible to realize appropriate transport control by performing total transport control between controlled sections while distributing the processing load in transport control.
In addition, when there is a controlled partition that cannot accept a board, the controlled inter-partition scheduler gives a stop instruction for the delivery of the board to the selected controlled partition scheduler, so that it can be transported between the controlled sections. Adjust the schedule. As a result, it is possible to realize appropriate conveyance control that avoids the occurrence of process risk.
In addition, the inter-controlled partition scheduler gives an instruction to resume the delivery of the substrate at a timing determined based on a period during which the substrate cannot be received. With this configuration, it is possible to switch the conveyance schedule between the controlled sections at an appropriate timing, and it is possible to realize an appropriate conveyance control that suppresses a decrease in processing efficiency.

According to the invention of claim 3 , when there is a controlled partition in which the inter-controlled partition scheduler cannot accept the board, the number of the controlled partition exceeding the safe number of the controlled partition scheduler. An instruction to stop receiving the substrate is given before the substrate is received. As a result, it is possible to realize appropriate conveyance control while avoiding the occurrence of process risk and suppressing a decrease in processing efficiency.

According to the invention of claim 4, the inter-controlled partition scheduler aligns the in-compartment tact time of the plurality of controlled partitions to a predetermined value, and synchronizes the timing of delivering the substrate from each controlled partition. Thereby, it is possible to perform appropriate transport control in which the entire tact transport across the controlled sections is ensured.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

<1. Substrate processing equipment>
<1-1. overall structure>
First, the overall configuration of a substrate processing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described. FIG. 1 is a plan view of a substrate processing apparatus 1 according to the present invention. 2 is a front view of the liquid processing unit of the substrate processing apparatus 1, FIG. 3 is a front view of the heat treatment unit, and FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an arrangement configuration of the transfer robot and the substrate mounting unit. In addition, in FIG. 1 and subsequent figures, in order to clarify the directional relationship, an XYZ orthogonal coordinate system in which the Z-axis direction is a vertical direction and the XY plane is a horizontal plane is appropriately attached.

  The substrate processing apparatus 1 according to this embodiment is an apparatus (so-called coater and developer) that applies a photoresist film to a substrate W such as a semiconductor wafer and performs development processing on the substrate W after pattern exposure. The substrate W to be processed by the substrate processing apparatus 1 according to the present invention is not limited to a semiconductor wafer, and may be a glass substrate for a liquid crystal display device, a glass substrate for a photomask, or the like.

  The substrate processing apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment is configured by connecting five processing blocks of an indexer block 10, a bark block 20, a resist coating block 30, a development processing block 40, and an interface block 50 in one direction (X direction). ing. An exposure unit (stepper) EXP, which is an external device separate from the substrate processing apparatus 1, is connected to the interface block 50. The exposure unit EXP is connected to the substrate processing apparatus 1 via a host computer 100 and a LAN line (not shown).

  The indexer block 10 is a processing block for carrying an unprocessed substrate received from outside the apparatus into the apparatus and carrying out a processed substrate having undergone development processing out of the apparatus. The indexer block 10 takes a mounting table 11 on which a plurality of carriers C (four in this embodiment) are placed side by side, and takes out an unprocessed substrate W from each carrier C and also transfers a processed substrate W to each carrier C. And an indexer robot IR for storage.

  The indexer robot IR can move horizontally along the mounting table 11 (along the Y-axis direction) and can move up and down (Z-axis direction) and rotate around the axis along the vertical direction. 12 is provided. Two movable arms 13 a and 13 b that hold the substrate W in a horizontal posture are mounted on the movable table 12. The holding arms 13a and 13b are slidable back and forth independently of each other. Accordingly, each of the holding arms 13a and 13b performs a horizontal movement along the Y-axis direction, a vertical movement, a turning operation in the horizontal plane, and a forward / backward movement along the turning radius direction. As a result, the indexer robot IR can access the carriers C individually by the holding arms 13a and 13b to take out the unprocessed substrate W and store the processed substrate W. In addition to the FOUP (front opening unified pod) that stores the substrate W in a sealed space, the carrier C may be an OC (open cassette) that exposes the standard mechanical interface (SMIF) pod or the storage substrate W to the outside air. There may be.

  A bark block 20 is provided adjacent to the indexer block 10. A partition wall 15 is provided between the indexer block 10 and the bark block 20 for shielding the atmosphere. In order to transfer the substrate W between the indexer block 10 and the bark block 20, two substrate platform portions PASS 1 and PASS 2 on which the substrate W is placed are stacked on the partition wall 15.

  The upper substrate platform PASS <b> 1 is used to transport the substrate W from the indexer block 10 to the bark block 20. The substrate platform PASS1 is provided with three support pins, and the indexer robot IR of the indexer block 10 places the unprocessed substrate W taken out from the carrier C on the three support pins of the substrate platform PASS1. To do. Then, the transfer robot TR1 of the bark block 20 described later receives the substrate W placed on the substrate platform PASS1. On the other hand, the lower substrate platform PASS <b> 2 is used to transport the substrate W from the bark block 20 to the indexer block 10. The substrate platform PASS2 also includes three support pins, and the transfer robot TR1 of the bark block 20 places the processed substrate W on the three support pins of the substrate platform PASS2. Then, the indexer robot IR receives the substrate W placed on the substrate platform PASS2 and stores it in the carrier C. In addition, the structure of the board | substrate mounting parts PASS3-PASS10 mentioned later is also the same as the board | substrate mounting parts PASS1 and PASS2.

  The substrate platforms PASS <b> 1 and PASS <b> 2 are provided partially penetrating a part of the partition wall 15. The substrate platforms PASS1 and PASS2 are provided with optical sensors (not shown) for detecting the presence or absence of the substrate W, and the indexer robot IR and the transport robot TR1 are controlled based on detection signals from the sensors. It is determined whether or not the substrate W can be delivered to the substrate platforms PASS1 and PASS2.

  Next, the bark block 20 will be described. The bark block 20 is a processing block for applying and forming an antireflection film on the base of the photoresist film in order to reduce standing waves and halation generated during exposure. The bark block 20 includes a base coating processing section 21 for coating and forming an antireflection film on the surface of the substrate W, two heat treatment towers 22 and 23 for performing heat treatment associated with the coating formation of the antireflection film, and a base coating processing. And a transfer robot TR1 for delivering the substrate W to the unit 21 and the heat treatment towers 22 and 23.

  In the bark block 20, the base coating treatment unit 21 and the heat treatment towers 22 and 23 are arranged to face each other with the transfer robot TR <b> 1 interposed therebetween. Specifically, the base coating processing unit 21 is located on the front side of the apparatus ((−Y) side), and the two heat treatment towers 22 and 23 are located on the back side of the apparatus ((+ Y) side). A heat partition (not shown) is provided on the front side of the heat treatment towers 22 and 23. By arranging the base coating processing unit 21 and the heat treatment towers 22 and 23 apart from each other and providing a thermal partition, the thermal processing towers 22 and 23 are prevented from having a thermal influence on the base coating processing unit 21. .

  As shown in FIG. 2, the base coating processing unit 21 is configured by vertically stacking four coating processing units BRC having the same configuration. Each coating processing unit BRC has a spin chuck 26 that sucks and holds the substrate W in a substantially horizontal posture and rotates the substrate W in a substantially horizontal plane, and a coating solution for an antireflection film on the substrate W held on the spin chuck 26. And the like, a spin motor (not shown) for rotating the spin chuck 26, a cup (not shown) surrounding the substrate W held on the spin chuck 26, and the like.

  As shown in FIG. 3, in the heat treatment tower 22, two heating units HP for heating the substrate W to a predetermined temperature, the heated substrate W is cooled to lower the temperature to a predetermined temperature, and the substrate W is cooled. In order to improve the adhesion between the two cooling units CP and the resist film and the substrate W that are maintained at the predetermined temperature, three adhesion reinforcements that heat-treat the substrate W in a vapor atmosphere of HMDS (hexamethyldisilazane). Processing units AHL are stacked in a vertical direction. On the other hand, in the heat treatment tower 23, two heating units HP and two cooling units CP are stacked one above the other. In addition, the piping wiring part and the spare empty space are allocated to the location shown by the "x" mark in FIG. 3 (the same applies to other heat treatment towers described later).

  As shown in FIG. 4, the transport robot TR1 includes transport arms 24a and 24b that hold the substrate W in a substantially horizontal posture in close proximity to two upper and lower stages. Each of the transfer arms 24a and 24b has a "C" shape in a plan view, and a plurality of pins projecting inward from the inside of the "C" shaped arm, the peripheral edge of the substrate W Is supported from below. The transfer arms 24 a and 24 b are mounted on the transfer head 28. The transport head 28 can be moved up and down along the vertical direction (Z-axis direction) and rotated around the axis along the vertical direction by a drive mechanism (not shown). Further, the transport head 28 can move the transport arms 24a and 24b forward and backward in the horizontal direction independently of each other by a slide mechanism (not shown). Therefore, each of the transfer arms 24a and 24b performs the up-and-down movement, the turning operation in the horizontal plane, and the forward and backward movement along the turning radius direction. As a result, the transfer robot TR1 has two transfer arms 24a and 24b, which are individually provided on the substrate platforms PASS1 and PASS2 and the heat treatment towers 22 and 23, respectively (heating unit HP, cooling unit CP, and adhesion reinforcement). The processing unit AHL), the four coating processing units BRC provided in the base coating processing unit 21 and the substrate platforms PASS3 and PASS4, which will be described later, are accessed, and the substrate W is exchanged between them. it can.

  Next, the resist coating block 30 will be described. A resist coating block 30 is provided so as to be sandwiched between the bark block 20 and the development processing block 40. A partition wall 25 for shielding the atmosphere is also provided between the resist coating block 30 and the bark block 20. In order to transfer the substrate W between the bark block 20 and the resist coating block 30, two substrate platforms PASS 3 and PASS 4 on which the substrate W is mounted are stacked on the partition wall 25. The substrate platforms PASS3 and PASS4 have the same configuration as the substrate platforms PASS1 and PASS2 described above.

  The upper substrate platform PASS3 is used to transport the substrate W from the bark block 20 to the resist coating block 30. That is, the transport robot TR2 of the resist coating block 30 receives the substrate W placed on the substrate platform PASS3 by the transport robot TR1 of the bark block 20. On the other hand, the lower substrate platform PASS 4 is used to transport the substrate W from the resist coating block 30 to the bark block 20. That is, the transport robot TR1 of the bark block 20 receives the substrate W placed on the substrate platform PASS4 by the transport robot TR2 of the resist coating block 30.

  The substrate platforms PASS3 and PASS4 are provided partially through a part of the partition wall 25. The substrate platforms PASS3 and PASS4 are provided with optical sensors (not shown) for detecting the presence / absence of the substrate W, and the transfer robots TR1 and TR2 are mounted on the substrate based on detection signals from the sensors. It is determined whether or not the substrate W can be delivered to the placement units PASS3 and PASS4. Under the substrate platforms PASS3 and PASS4, two water-cooled cool plates WCP for roughly cooling the substrate W may be provided vertically through the partition wall 25.

  The resist coating block 30 is a processing block for forming a resist film by coating a resist on the substrate W on which an antireflection film is coated. In the present embodiment, a chemically amplified resist is used as the photoresist. The resist coating block 30 includes a resist coating processing unit 31 that coats a resist on the base-coated antireflection film, two heat treatment towers 32 and 33 that perform heat treatment associated with the resist coating processing, and a resist coating processing unit 31. And a transfer robot TR2 for delivering the substrate W to the heat treatment towers 32 and 33.

  In the resist coating block 30, a resist coating processing unit 31 and heat treatment towers 32 and 33 are arranged to face each other with the transfer robot TR2 interposed therebetween. Specifically, the resist coating processing unit 31 is located on the front side of the apparatus, and the two heat treatment towers 32 and 33 are located on the rear side of the apparatus. A heat partition (not shown) is provided on the front side of the heat treatment towers 32 and 33. By disposing the resist coating processing unit 31 and the heat treatment towers 32 and 33 apart from each other and providing a thermal partition, the thermal processing towers 32 and 33 avoid the thermal application to the resist coating processing unit 31. .

  As shown in FIG. 2, the resist coating processing unit 31 is configured by vertically stacking four coating processing units SC having the same configuration. Each coating processing unit SC sucks and holds the substrate W in a substantially horizontal posture and rotates it in a substantially horizontal plane, and discharges a photoresist coating solution onto the substrate W held on the spin chuck 36. A coating motor 37 for rotating the spin chuck 36 (not shown), a cup (not shown) surrounding the periphery of the substrate W held on the spin chuck 36, and the like.

  As shown in FIG. 3, in the heat treatment tower 32, two heating units HP for heating the substrate W to a predetermined temperature and the heated substrate W are cooled to lower the temperature to a predetermined temperature, and the substrate W is cooled. Two cooling units CP that are maintained at the predetermined temperature are stacked in a vertical direction. On the other hand, in the heat treatment tower 33, two heating units HP and two cooling units CP are stacked one above the other.

  As shown in FIG. 4, the transfer robot TR2 has a configuration similar to that of the transfer robot TR1, and includes transfer arms 34a and 34b that hold the substrate W in a substantially horizontal posture in close proximity to the upper and lower stages. The transfer arms 34a and 34b support the periphery of the substrate W from below with a plurality of pins protruding inward from the inside of the “C” -shaped arm. The transport arms 34 a and 34 b are mounted on the transport head 38. The transport head 38 can be moved up and down along the vertical direction (Z-axis direction) and rotated around the axis along the vertical direction by a drive mechanism (not shown). Further, the transport head 38 can move the transport arms 34a and 34b forward and backward in the horizontal direction independently of each other by a slide mechanism (not shown). Accordingly, each of the transfer arms 34a and 34b performs the up-and-down movement, the turning operation in the horizontal plane, and the forward and backward movement along the turning radius direction. As a result, the transfer robot TR2 includes two transfer arms 34a and 34b individually provided in the substrate placement units PASS3 and PASS4, the heat treatment units provided in the heat treatment towers 32 and 33, and the resist coating processing unit 31. One coating processing unit SC and substrate platforms PASS5 and PASS6, which will be described later, are accessed, and the substrate W can be transferred between them.

  Next, the development processing block 40 will be described. A development processing block 40 is provided so as to be sandwiched between the resist coating block 30 and the interface block 50. A partition wall 35 for shielding the atmosphere is also provided between the development processing block 40 and the resist coating block 30. In order to transfer the substrate W between the resist coating block 30 and the development processing block 40, two substrate platforms PASS5 and PASS6 on which the substrate W is mounted are stacked on the partition wall 35. . The substrate platforms PASS5 and PASS6 have the same configuration as the substrate platforms PASS1 and PASS2 described above.

  The upper substrate platform PASS5 is used for transporting the substrate W from the resist coating block 30 to the development processing block 40. That is, the transport robot TR3 of the development processing block 40 receives the substrate W placed on the substrate platform PASS5 by the transport robot TR2 of the resist coating block 30. On the other hand, the lower substrate platform PASS 6 is used to transport the substrate W from the development processing block 40 to the resist coating block 30. That is, the transport robot TR2 of the resist coating block 30 receives the substrate W placed on the substrate platform PASS6 by the transport robot TR3 of the development processing block 40.

  The substrate platforms PASS5 and PASS6 are provided so as to partially penetrate a part of the partition wall 35. The substrate platforms PASS5 and PASS6 are provided with optical sensors (not shown) for detecting the presence or absence of the substrate W, and the transport robots TR2 and TR3 are mounted on the substrate based on detection signals from the sensors. It is determined whether or not the substrate W can be delivered to the placement units PASS5 and PASS6. Below the substrate platforms PASS5 and PASS6, two water-cooled cool plates WCP for roughly cooling the substrate W may be provided vertically through the partition wall 35.

  The development processing block 40 is a processing block for performing development processing on the substrate W after the exposure processing. The development processing block 40 includes a development processing unit 41 that performs a development process by supplying a developing solution to the substrate W on which the pattern has been exposed, a heat treatment tower 42 that performs a heat treatment after the development process, and a substrate W immediately after the exposure. A heat treatment tower 43 that performs heat treatment, and a transfer robot TR3 that transfers the substrate W to the development processing unit 41 and the heat treatment tower 42 are provided.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the development processing unit 41 is configured by vertically stacking five development processing units SD having the same configuration. Each development processing unit SD includes a spin chuck 46 that sucks and holds the substrate W in a substantially horizontal posture and rotates the substrate W in a substantially horizontal plane, and a nozzle 47 that supplies a developer onto the substrate W held on the spin chuck 46. A spin motor (not shown) for rotating the spin chuck 46 and a cup (not shown) surrounding the periphery of the substrate W held on the spin chuck 46 are provided.

  As shown in FIG. 3, in the heat treatment tower 42, the two heating units HP for heating the substrate W to a predetermined temperature and the heated substrate W are cooled to lower the temperature to a predetermined temperature, and the substrate W is cooled. Two cooling units CP that are maintained at the predetermined temperature are stacked in a vertical direction. On the other hand, in the heat treatment tower 43, two heating units HP and two cooling units CP are stacked one above the other. The heating unit HP of the heat treatment tower 43 performs a post-exposure bake on the substrate W immediately after the exposure. The transfer robot TR4 of the interface block 50 carries the substrate W in and out of the heating unit HP and the cooling unit CP of the heat treatment tower 43.

  In addition, two substrate platforms PASS7 and PASS8 for transferring the substrate W between the development processing block 40 and the interface block 50 are incorporated in the heat treatment tower 43 so as to be close to each other in the vertical direction. The upper substrate platform PASS7 is used to transport the substrate W from the development processing block 40 to the interface block 50. That is, the transport robot TR4 of the interface block 50 receives the substrate W placed on the substrate platform PASS7 by the transport robot TR3 of the development processing block 40. On the other hand, the lower substrate platform PASS8 is used to transport the substrate W from the interface block 50 to the development processing block 40. That is, the transport robot TR3 of the development processing block 40 receives the substrate W placed on the substrate platform PASS8 by the transport robot TR4 of the interface block 50. The substrate platforms PASS7 and PASS8 are open to both sides of the transport robot TR3 of the development processing block 40 and the transport robot TR4 of the interface block 50.

  The transfer robot TR3 includes transfer arms 44a and 44b that hold the substrate W in a substantially horizontal posture in close proximity to each other. The transport arms 44a and 44b support the periphery of the substrate W from below with a plurality of pins protruding inward from the inside of the “C” -shaped arm. The transport arms 44 a and 44 b are mounted on the transport head 48. The transport head 48 can be moved up and down along the vertical direction (Z-axis direction) and rotated around the axis along the vertical direction by a drive mechanism (not shown). Further, the transport head 48 can move the transport arms 44a and 44b forward and backward in the horizontal direction independently of each other by a slide mechanism (not shown). Accordingly, each of the transfer arms 44a and 44b performs an up-and-down movement, a turning operation in a horizontal plane, and a forward and backward movement along the turning radius direction. As a result, the transfer robot TR3 individually transfers the two transfer arms 44a and 44b to the substrate platforms PASS5 and PASS6, the heat treatment unit provided in the heat treatment tower 42, and the five development treatments provided in the development processor 41. It is possible to access the substrate placement units PASS7 and PASS8 of the unit SD and the heat treatment tower 43 and transfer the substrate W between them.

  Next, the interface block 50 will be described. The interface block 50 is disposed adjacent to the development processing block 40 and passes an unexposed substrate W coated with a resist film to an exposure unit EXP which is an external device separate from the substrate processing apparatus 1 and exposes the substrate. This is a processing block that receives a completed substrate W from the exposure unit EXP and passes it to the development processing block 40. In addition to the transport mechanism IFR for transferring the substrate W to and from the exposure unit EXP, the interface block 50 includes two edge exposure units EEW that expose the peripheral portion of the substrate W on which the resist film is formed, and development A heat treatment tower 43 of the processing block 40 and a transfer robot TR4 that delivers the substrate W to the edge exposure unit EEW are provided.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the edge exposure unit EEW irradiates light to the periphery of the substrate W held by the spin chuck 56 and the spin chuck 56 that sucks and holds the substrate W in a substantially horizontal posture and rotates it in a substantially horizontal plane. And a light irradiator 57 for exposure. The two edge exposure units EEW are stacked one above the other at the center of the interface block 50. Further, below the edge exposure unit EEW, two substrate platforms PASS9 and PASS10, a substrate return return buffer RBF, and a substrate feed send buffer SBF are stacked one above the other. The upper substrate platform PASS9 is used to pass the substrate W from the transport robot TR4 to the transport mechanism IFR, and the lower substrate platform PASS10 is used to pass the substrate W from the transport mechanism IFR to the transport robot TR4. It is used for

  In the case where the development processing block 40 cannot perform the development processing of the exposed substrate W due to some trouble, the return buffer RBF performs the post-exposure heating processing in the heat treatment tower 43 of the development processing block 40, and then the substrate W Is temporarily stored. On the other hand, the send buffer SBF temporarily stores and stores the substrate W before the exposure processing when the exposure unit EXP cannot accept the unexposed substrate W. Each of the return buffer RBF and the send buffer SBF is configured by a storage shelf that can store a plurality of substrates W in multiple stages. The transport robot TR4 accesses the return buffer RBF, and the transport mechanism IFR accesses the send buffer SBF.

  The transport robot TR4 disposed adjacent to the post-exposure bake processing unit 43 of the development processing block 40 includes transport arms 54a and 54b that hold the substrate W in a substantially horizontal posture and are close to each other vertically. The operation mechanism is exactly the same as that of the transfer robots TR1 to TR3. In addition, the transport mechanism IFR includes a movable base 52 that can perform horizontal movement in the Y-axis direction, vertical movement, and rotation around the axis along the vertical direction, and holds the substrate W on the movable base 52 in a horizontal posture. Two holding arms 53a and 53b are mounted. The holding arms 53a and 53b are slidable back and forth independently of each other. Accordingly, each of the holding arms 53a and 53b performs a horizontal movement along the Y-axis direction, a vertical movement, a turning movement in a horizontal plane, and a forward / backward movement along the turning radial direction.

  The exposure unit EXP receives an unexposed substrate W coated with resist by the substrate processing apparatus 1 from the transport mechanism IFR and performs an exposure process. The substrate W subjected to the exposure processing in the exposure unit EXP is received by the transport mechanism IFR. The exposure unit EXP performs exposure processing in a state where a liquid having a large refractive index (for example, pure water having a refractive index n = 1.44) is filled between the projection optical system and the substrate W. It may correspond to “exposure processing”.

  The indexer block 10, the bark block 20, the resist coating block 30, the development processing block 40, and the interface block 50 are always supplied with clean air as a down flow. To avoid the negative effects of. In addition, the inside of each block is kept at a slightly positive pressure with respect to the external environment of the apparatus to prevent entry of particles and contaminants from the external environment.

  The indexer block 10, the bark block 20, the resist coating block 30, the development processing block 40, and the interface block 50 described above are units obtained by mechanically dividing the substrate processing apparatus 1. Each block is assembled to an individual block frame (frame body), and the substrate processing apparatus 1 is configured by connecting the block frames.

<1-2. Control mechanism>
A control mechanism of the substrate processing apparatus 1 will be described. First, the “cell” will be described. In this embodiment, the transport control unit (controlled section) related to substrate transport is configured separately from the mechanically divided “block”. In this specification, transport control related to such substrate transport is performed. The unit is called “cell”. One cell is configured to include a transfer robot in charge of substrate transfer and a transfer target unit to which the substrate can be transferred by the transfer robot. Each of the substrate placement units described above functions as an entrance substrate placement unit for receiving the substrate W in the cell or an exit substrate placement unit for delivering the substrate W from the cell. That is, the transfer of the substrate W between the cells is also performed via the substrate mounting portion. Note that the transport robot constituting the cell includes the indexer robot IR of the indexer block 10 and the transport mechanism IFR of the interface block 5.

  The substrate processing apparatus 1 includes six cells: an indexer cell C1, a bark cell C2, a resist coating cell C3, a development processing cell C4, a post-exposure bake cell C5, and an interface cell C6. The indexer cell C1 includes the mounting table 11 and the indexer robot IR, and as a result, has the same configuration as the indexer block 10 which is a mechanically divided unit. The bark cell C2 includes a base coating treatment unit 21, two heat treatment towers 22 and 23, and a transfer robot TR1. This bark cell C2 also has the same configuration as the bark block 20, which is a mechanically divided unit. Further, the resist coating cell C3 includes a resist coating processing unit 31, two heat treatment towers 32 and 33, and a transfer robot TR2. This resist coating cell C3 also has the same configuration as the resist coating block 30, which is a mechanically divided unit.

  On the other hand, the development processing cell C4 includes a development processing unit 41, a heat treatment tower 42, and a transfer robot TR3. As described above, the transfer robot TR3 cannot access the heating unit HP and the cooling unit CP of the heat treatment tower 43, and the heat treatment tower 43 is not included in the development processing cell C4. In this respect, the development processing cell C4 is different from the development processing block 40 which is a mechanically divided unit.

  The post-exposure bake cell C5 includes a heat treatment tower 43 located in the development processing block 40, an edge exposure unit EEW located in the interface block 50, and a transfer robot TR4. That is, the post-exposure bake cell C5 extends over the development processing block 40 and the interface block 50 which are mechanically divided units. Thus, since one cell is configured including the heating unit HP that performs the post-exposure heat treatment and the transfer robot TR4, it is possible to quickly carry the heat treatment by carrying the exposed substrate W into the heating unit HP immediately. it can. Such a configuration is suitable when a chemically amplified resist that needs to be heat-treated as soon as possible after pattern exposure is used.

  The substrate platforms PASS7 and PASS8 included in the heat treatment tower 43 are interposed for transferring the substrate W between the transfer robot TR3 of the development processing cell C4 and the transfer robot TR4 of the post-exposure bake cell C5.

  The interface cell C6 includes a transport mechanism IFR that transfers the substrate W to the exposure unit EXP that is an external device. This interface cell C6 is different from the interface block 50, which is a mechanically divided unit, in that it does not include the transfer robot TR4 or the edge exposure unit EEW. The substrate platforms PASS9 and PASS10 provided below the edge exposure unit EEW are interposed for transferring the substrate W between the post-exposure bake cell transfer robot TR4 and the transfer mechanism IFR of the interface cell C6.

  Next, the control mechanism of the substrate processing apparatus 1 will be specifically described with reference to FIG. FIG. 5 is a block diagram showing an outline of the control mechanism. As shown in the figure, the substrate processing apparatus 1 according to this embodiment includes a control hierarchy including three levels of a main controller MC, a cell controller CC, and a unit controller. The hardware configuration of the main controller MC, cell controller CC, and unit controller is the same as that of a general computer. That is, each controller stores a CPU that performs various arithmetic processes, a ROM that is a read-only memory that stores basic programs, a RAM that is a readable and writable memory that stores various information, and control applications and data. A magnetic disk or the like is provided.

  One main controller MC in the first hierarchy is provided for the entire substrate processing apparatus, and is mainly responsible for management of the entire apparatus, management of the main panel MP, and management of the cell controller CC. The main panel MP functions as a display for the main controller MC. Various commands can be input to the main controller MC from the keyboard KB. The main panel MP may be configured by a touch panel, and input work may be performed from the main panel MP to the main controller MC.

  The cell controller CC in the second hierarchy is individually provided for each of the six cells (indexer cell C1, bark cell C2, resist coating cell C3, development processing cell C3, post-exposure bake cell C5, and interface cell C6). . Each cell controller CC is mainly in charge of substrate transport management and unit management in the corresponding cell. Specifically, the cell controller CC of each cell sends information that the substrate W has been placed on a predetermined substrate placement unit to the cell controller CC of the adjacent cell, and the cell controller CC of the cell that has received the substrate W. Transmits / receives information that information indicating that the substrate W has been received from the substrate platform is returned to the cell controller CC of the original cell. Such transmission / reception of information is performed via the main controller MC. Each cell controller CC gives information indicating that the substrate W has been loaded into the cell to the transfer robot controller TC, and the transfer robot controller TC controls the transfer robot to transfer the substrate W in the cell according to a predetermined procedure. Circulate. The transfer robot controller TC is a control unit realized by a predetermined application operating on the cell controller CC.

  In addition, as the unit controller of the third hierarchy, for example, a spin controller or a bake controller is provided. The spin controller directly controls spin units (coating processing unit and development processing unit) arranged in the cell in accordance with instructions from the cell controller CC. Specifically, the spin controller adjusts the rotation speed of the substrate W by controlling a spin motor of the spin unit, for example. Further, the bake controller directly controls the heat treatment units (hot plate, cool plate, heating unit, etc.) arranged in the cell in accordance with instructions from the cell controller CC. The heating units HP7 to HP12 of the development processing block 40 described above are controlled by a bake controller of a post-exposure bake cell.

  A host computer 100 connected to the substrate processing apparatus via a LAN line is positioned as a higher-level control mechanism of the three-level control hierarchy provided in the substrate processing apparatus (see FIG. 1). The host computer 100 is a CPU that performs various arithmetic processes, a ROM that is a read-only memory that stores basic programs, a RAM that is a readable and writable memory that stores various information, and a magnetic that stores control applications and data. It has a disk and the like, and has the same configuration as a general computer. Usually, a plurality of substrate processing apparatuses 1 according to this embodiment are connected to the host computer 100. The host computer 100 passes a recipe describing the processing procedure and processing conditions to each connected substrate processing apparatus 1. The recipe delivered from the host computer 100 is stored in a storage unit (for example, a memory) of the main controller MC of each substrate processing apparatus 1.

  The exposure unit EXP is provided with a separate control unit that is independent from the control mechanism of the substrate processing apparatus. That is, the exposure unit EXP does not operate under the control of the main controller MC of the substrate processing apparatus, but performs independent operation control by itself. However, such an exposure unit EXP also performs operation control according to the recipe received from the host computer 100, and the substrate processing apparatus performs processing synchronized with the exposure processing in the exposure unit EXP.

<1-3. Processing action>
Next, a substrate processing procedure in the substrate processing apparatus 1 will be briefly described. The processing procedure described below is executed by the control mechanism of FIG. 5 controlling each unit in accordance with the description contents of the recipe received from the host computer 100.

  First, an overall processing procedure in the substrate processing apparatus 1 will be briefly described. An unprocessed substrate W is carried into the indexer block 10 by AGV or the like while being stored in the carrier C from the outside of the apparatus. Subsequently, the unprocessed substrate W is dispensed from the indexer block 10. Specifically, the indexer robot IR takes out an unprocessed substrate W from a predetermined carrier C and places it on the upper substrate platform PASS1. When the unprocessed substrate W is placed on the substrate platform PASS1, the transport robot TR1 of the bark block 20 receives the substrate W and transports it to one of the adhesion strengthening processing units AHL of the heat treatment tower 22. In the adhesion strengthening processing unit AHL, the substrate W is heat-treated in an HMDS vapor atmosphere to improve the adhesion of the substrate W. The substrate W that has been subjected to the adhesion strengthening process is taken out by the transport robot TR1, transported to one of the cooling units CP of the heat treatment towers 22 and 23, and cooled.

  The cooled substrate W is transported from the cooling unit CP to any coating processing unit BRC of the base coating processing unit 21 by the transport robot TR1. In the coating processing unit BRC, the coating liquid of the antireflection film is supplied to the surface of the substrate W and is spin-coated.

  After the coating process is completed, the substrate W is transported to one of the heating units HP of the heat treatment towers 22 and 23 by the transport robot TR1. When the substrate W is heated by the heating unit HP, the coating liquid is dried, and the base antireflection film is baked on the substrate W. Thereafter, the substrate W taken out from the heating unit HP by the transfer robot TR1 is transferred to one of the cooling units CP of the heat treatment towers 22 and 23 and cooled. The cooled substrate W is placed on the substrate platform PASS3 by the transport robot TR1.

  Next, when the substrate W on which the antireflection film is formed is placed on the substrate platform PASS3, the transfer robot TR2 of the resist coating block 30 receives the substrate W and cools one of the heat treatment towers 32 and 33. It conveys to unit CP and temperature-controls to predetermined temperature. Subsequently, the transport robot TR2 transports the temperature-controlled substrate W to one of the coating processing units SC of the resist coating processing unit 31. In the coating processing unit SC, a resist film coating solution is spin-coated on the substrate W. In this embodiment, a chemically amplified resist is used as the resist.

  After the resist coating process is completed, the substrate W carried out from the coating processing unit SC is transferred to one of the heating units HP of the heat treatment towers 32 and 33 by the transfer robot TR2. The substrate W is heated (Post Applied Bake) by the heating unit HP, whereby the coating liquid is dried and a resist film is formed on the substrate W. Thereafter, the substrate W taken out from the heating unit HP by the transport robot TR2 is transported to one of the cooling units CP of the heat treatment towers 32 and 33 and cooled. The cooled substrate W is placed on the substrate platform PASS5 by the transport robot TR2.

  When the substrate W on which the resist film is formed is placed on the substrate platform PASS5, the transfer robot TR3 of the development processing block 40 receives the substrate W and places it directly on the substrate platform PASS7. Then, the substrate W placed on the substrate platform PASS7 is received by the transport robot TR4 of the interface block 50 and carried into one of the upper and lower edge exposure units EEW. In the edge exposure unit EEW, exposure processing (edge exposure processing) of the edge portion of the substrate W is performed. The substrate W that has undergone the edge exposure process is placed on the substrate platform PASS9 by the transport robot TR4. Then, the substrate W placed on the substrate platform PASS9 is received by the transport mechanism IFR, carried into the exposure unit EXP, and subjected to pattern exposure processing. Since a chemically amplified resist is used in the present embodiment, an acid is generated by a photochemical reaction in the exposed portion of the resist film formed on the substrate W.

  The exposed substrate W for which the pattern exposure processing has been completed is returned from the exposure unit EXP to the interface block 50, and is placed on the substrate platform PASS10 by the transport mechanism IFR. When the exposed substrate W is placed on the substrate platform PASS10, the transport robot TR4 receives the substrate W and transports it to one of the heating units HP of the heat treatment tower 43 of the development processing block 40. In the heating unit HP of the heat treatment tower 43, reaction such as cross-linking / polymerization of the resist resin proceeds using the product generated by the photochemical reaction during exposure as an acid catalyst, and the solubility in the developing solution is locally changed only in the exposed portion. A post-exposure heat treatment (Post Exposure Bake) is performed.

  The substrate W that has been subjected to post-exposure heat treatment is cooled by a mechanism inside the heating unit HP, whereby the chemical reaction is stopped. Subsequently, the substrate W is taken out from the heating unit HP of the heat treatment tower 43 by the transfer robot TR4 and placed on the substrate platform PASS8.

  When the substrate W is placed on the substrate platform PASS 8, the transport robot TR 3 of the development processing block 40 receives the substrate W and transports it to one of the cooling units CP of the heat treatment tower 42. In the cooling unit CP, the substrate W that has been subjected to the post-exposure heat treatment is further cooled and accurately adjusted to a predetermined temperature. Thereafter, the transport robot TR3 takes out the substrate W from the cooling unit CP and transports it to one of the development processing units SD of the development processing unit 41. In the development processing unit SD, a developing solution is supplied to the substrate W to advance the development processing. After the development processing is finished, the substrate W is transferred to one of the heating units HP of the heat treatment tower 42 by the transfer robot TR3, and further transferred to one of the cooling units CP.

  Thereafter, the substrate W is placed on the substrate platform PASS6 by the transport robot TR3. The substrate W placed on the substrate platform PASS6 is placed on the substrate platform PASS4 as it is by the transfer robot TR2 of the resist coating block 30. Further, the substrate W placed on the substrate platform PASS4 is stored in the indexer block 10 by being placed on the substrate platform PASS2 as it is by the transfer robot TR1 of the bark block 20. The processed substrate W placed on the substrate platform PASS2 is stored in a predetermined carrier C by the indexer robot IR. Thereafter, the carrier C storing the predetermined number of processed substrates W is carried out of the apparatus, and a series of photolithography processes are completed.

<2. Transport scheduler>
<2-1. Hierarchy>
Next, the configuration of the transfer scheduler of the substrate processing apparatus 1 will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 6 is a block diagram schematically showing functional units related to the transport scheduler. The substrate processing apparatus 1 of this embodiment includes a control hierarchy composed of two hierarchies: an inter-cell scheduler MS and a cell scheduler CS.

  The first-layer inter-cell scheduler MS is a functional unit realized by a predetermined application operating on the main controller MC. The inter-cell scheduler MS generally manages them as a scheduler above the cell scheduler CS. Specifically, the timing for delivering the substrate W between cells is controlled by instructing each of the cell schedulers CS to pay out the substrate W from the cell (or receive it into the cell).

  The cell scheduler CS in the second layer is a functional unit realized by a predetermined application operating on the cell controller CC. Each of the cell schedulers CS is associated with a plurality of cells defined by dividing the substrate processing apparatus 1 on a one-to-one basis, and each manages a transfer schedule inside the corresponding cell.

  For example, the cell scheduler CS realized by the cell controller CC provided for the bark cell C2 is associated with the bark cell C2 and manages the transport schedule inside the bark cell C2. Therefore, the transfer operation inside the bark cell C2 (specifically, a series of transfer operations starting from the reception of the substrate W placed on the PASS 1 by the transfer robot TR1 until the substrate W is placed on the PASS 2) The cell scheduler CS2 is managed independently of other cells.

  In the following, cell schedulers CS associated with the respective cells C1 to C6 are referred to as “indexer cell scheduler CS1”, “bark cell scheduler CS2”, “resist coating cell scheduler CS3”, “development processing cell scheduler CS4”, “ It is also called “post-exposure bake cell scheduler CS5” or “interface cell scheduler CS6”.

<2-2. Cell-to-cell scheduler>
The configuration and processing operation of the inter-cell scheduler MS will be specifically described. In the following, three modes of inter-cell scheduler MS (inter-cell scheduler MSa, MSb, MSc) will be described. The inter-cell scheduler MS provided in the substrate processing apparatus 1 may be any of the inter-cell schedulers MSa, MSb, MSc. Moreover, what has each function demonstrated as inter-cell scheduler MSa, MSb, MSc may be used.

<2-2-1. First Mode Intercell Scheduler>
<A. Constitution>
The inter-cell scheduler MS (inter-cell scheduler MSa) according to the first aspect will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 7A is a block diagram showing a functional configuration of the inter-cell scheduler MSa. The inter-cell scheduler MSa is a functional unit that adjusts schedules between cells, and includes a status information acquisition unit 811 and a payout timing instruction unit 812.

  The status information acquisition unit 811 acquires information (status information) indicating the state of each of the cells C1 to C6 from each of the cell schedulers CS1 to CS6. The cell status information includes information indicating whether or not the substrate W can be received in the cell. For example, when there is a circumstance where the substrate W cannot be processed in any of the processing units in the cell (for example, when performing the rinse in the coating processing unit, or when changing the set temperature in the thermal processing unit, the temperature of the processing liquid When the change is made, when an abnormality is detected, etc., the status information “Unable to accept substrate” is notified from the cell scheduler CS managing the cell, and is acquired by the status information acquisition unit 811.

  The status information may include information indicating the reason why the substrate W cannot be accepted in the cell. That is, in addition to the information that “the substrate cannot be received”, information indicating the reason (for example, “for the coupling cleaning of the coating processing unit SC”, “for the temperature change processing of the heating unit HP”, “processing” The status information may include information such as “for liquid temperature change processing” and “because an abnormality has occurred in the coating processing unit SC”.

  Further, the status information may include information indicating a period during which the substrate W cannot be received in the cell. In other words, in addition to the information “substrate cannot be accepted”, information indicating the period (for example, information such as “acceptable after 120 seconds”) may be included in the status information.

  The dispensing timing instruction unit 812 determines the timing at which the substrate W should be dispensed from each of the cells C1 to C6 based on the status information of each of the cells C1 to C6 acquired by the status information acquisition unit 811, and each cell scheduler CS Are given a start instruction, a stop instruction, a restart instruction, and the like.

  Specifically, the payout timing instruction unit 812 selects one of the cell schedulers CS when the status information “cannot accept substrate” is acquired from any cell scheduler CS, and the selected cell An instruction to stop paying out the substrate W is given to the scheduler CS. As a result, the delivery of the substrate W from the cell managed by the selected cell scheduler CS is stopped.

  By the way, if the reason why the substrate W cannot be received in the cell is determined, the cell that may cause the process risk is identified based on the reason and the processing recipe unless the discharge of the substrate W from the cell is stopped. can do. For example, if the resist coating cell C3 cannot accept the substrate W due to the coupling rinse of the coating processing unit SC, the substrate W in the bark cell C2 is not stopped unless the dispensing of the substrate W from the indexer cell C1 to the bark cell C2 is stopped. As a result, the substrate W on which the antireflection film is formed cannot be continuously heat-treated, resulting in a process risk. That is, unless the delivery of the substrate W from the indexer cell C1 is stopped, there is a risk of incurring a process risk. That is, a cell that may cause a process risk unless the discharge of the substrate W from the cell is stopped can be specified as the indexer cell C1.

  Therefore, when the status information including the reason why the substrate W cannot be accepted in the cell is acquired, the payout timing instruction unit 812 identifies such a cell based on the status information and the recipe information, and manages the cell. The cell scheduler CS to be selected is selected as the cell scheduler CS to be instructed to stop paying out the substrate W. In the case of the above example, the payout timing instruction unit 812 selects the indexer cell scheduler CS1, which is the cell scheduler CS that manages the indexer cell C1, as the cell scheduler CS that should give a stop instruction.

  In addition, when status information including a period during which the substrate W cannot be received in the cell is acquired, the dispensing timing instruction unit 812 determines a timing for giving an instruction to resume the dispensing of the substrate W based on the period. For example, when the status information indicating that the substrate W can be accepted after 120 is acquired, the payout timing instruction unit 812 instructs to stop the payout of the substrate W when 120 seconds have elapsed since the status information was acquired. Is given to the cell scheduler CS that has given

<B. Processing action>
The processing operation of the inter-cell scheduler MSa will be described with a specific example.

<Specific example 1>
Please refer to FIG. FIG. 8 is a diagram schematically illustrating the processing operation of the inter-cell scheduler MSa according to the first specific example. The processing described below is executed when processing for a new lot is started.

  When processing for a new lot is started, the host computer 100 notifies each of the inter-cell scheduler MSa and the cell schedulers CS1 to CS6 of recipe information related to the lot to be processed.

  Subsequently, the status information acquisition unit 811 acquires the status information of each of the cells C1 to C6 from each of the cell schedulers CS1 to CS6. Here, for example, it is assumed that status information “Unacceptable of substrate” is acquired from the resist coating cell scheduler CS3.

  In this case, the payout timing instruction unit 812 selects any of the cell schedulers CS1 to CS6, and instructs the selected cell scheduler CS (here, for example, the indexer cell scheduler CS1) to stop paying out the substrate W. give. In response to this stop instruction, the indexer cell scheduler CS1 controls the indexer robot IR, so that the delivery of the substrate W from the indexer cell C1 is stopped.

  Note that any mode may be used for selecting the cell scheduler CS that gives a stop instruction. For example, when the reason why the substrate W cannot be received in the cell is known, the configuration may be selected based on the reason (this configuration will be described later as <Specific Example 2>). Moreover, it is good also as a structure which an operator selects, and you may prescribe | regulate the cell scheduler CS which gives a stop instruction | indication for every recipe.

  When the status information acquisition unit 811 acquires status information “Accept substrate W” from the resist coating cell scheduler CS3, the dispensing timing instruction unit 812 gives the indexer that has given the instruction to stop the dispensing of the substrate W. An instruction to resume the delivery of the substrate W is given to the cell scheduler CS1. In response to the restart instruction, the indexer cell scheduler CS1 controls the indexer robot IR, so that the delivery of the substrate W from the indexer cell C1 is restarted.

  According to the transfer control described above, when there is a cell that cannot accept the substrate W, the transfer schedule between the cells is adjusted by giving an instruction to stop the discharge of the substrate W to the selected cell scheduler CS. Therefore, the occurrence of process risk can be avoided.

<Specific example 2>
Please refer to FIG. FIG. 9 is a diagram schematically illustrating the processing operation of the inter-cell scheduler MSa according to the second specific example.

  Here, as in the case of <Specific Example 1>, the host computer 100 notifies each of the inter-cell scheduler MSa and the cell schedulers CS1 to CS6 of the recipe information relating to the lot to be processed, and subsequently the status. The information acquisition unit 811 acquires status information of each of the cells C1 to C6 from each of the cell schedulers CS1 to CS6. Here, for example, it is assumed that status information “Unable to accept substrate for coupling cleaning of coating processing unit SC” is acquired from the resist coating cell scheduler CS3.

  In this case, the payout timing instruction unit 812 selects one of the cell schedulers CS1 to CS6, and gives an instruction to stop the payout of the substrate W to the selected cell scheduler CS. However, here, since the reason why the acquired status information cannot accept the substrate W is included, the payout timing instruction unit 812 selects the cell scheduler CS that gives a stop instruction based on the reason.

  Specifically, based on the status information and the recipe information, the cell scheduler CS that manages the cell is identified by identifying a cell that may cause a process risk unless the delivery of the substrate W from the cell is stopped. The cell scheduler CS to be instructed to stop paying out the substrate W is selected.

  As described above, if the resist coating cell C3 cannot accept the substrate W for the coupling cleaning of the coating processing unit SC, the cell may cause a process risk unless the dispensing of the substrate W from the cell is stopped. Is the indexer cell C1.

  Therefore, in this case, the payout timing instruction unit 812 selects the indexer cell scheduler CS1 as the cell scheduler CS to be given a stop instruction, and gives a stop instruction thereto. In response to this stop instruction, the indexer cell scheduler CS1 controls the indexer robot IR, so that the delivery of the substrate W from the indexer cell C1 is stopped.

  Then, when the status information acquisition unit 811 acquires status information from the resist coating cell scheduler CS3 that the resist coating cell C3 can accept the substrate W, the dispensing timing instruction unit 812 has given the stop instruction. An instruction to resume the delivery of the substrate W is given to the cell scheduler CS1. In response to the restart instruction, the indexer cell scheduler CS1 controls the indexer robot IR, so that the delivery of the substrate W from the indexer cell C1 is restarted.

  According to the above transport control, since the cell scheduler CS to be given a stop instruction is selected based on the reason why the substrate W cannot be received in the cell, the transport schedule between cells can be adjusted flexibly and appropriately. , Process risk can be reliably avoided. This will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 10 shows that in the situation where the coating process unit SC of the resist coating cell C3 is subjected to the coupling cleaning when the processing for the lot A is finished and the processing for the lot B is subsequently started, It is a figure which shows typically a mode that a process is performed in a cell along time.

  The case where the conventional conveyance control is performed will be described with reference to FIG. When the last substrate W (LotA25) of the lot A is dispensed from the indexer cell C1 toward the barkcell C2, the first substrate W (LotB1) of the lot B is subsequently dispensed from the indexer cell C1. The substrate W (LotB1) paid out from the indexer cell C1 is carried into the bark cell C2, and after performing a predetermined process, it is paid out from the bark cell C2 and placed on the PASS3.

  However, the coating processing unit SC of the resist coating cell C3 (specifically, the coating processing unit in which the substrate W (LotB1) among the three coating processing units SC1, SC2, SC3 of the resist coating cell C3 is to be carried). The resist coating cell C3 cannot accept the substrate W (LotB1) until the SC1) coupling cleaning is completed. Therefore, the substrate W (LotB1) is kept on the PASS3 as it is without being carried into the resist coating cell C3 until the coupling rinse is completed. As a result, the processing history varies between the substrates. Further, a clogged state occurs in the bark cell C2 during this period, which causes a process risk.

  On the other hand, the case where the above transport control according to the present invention is performed will be described with reference to FIG. Here, while the resist coating cell C3 cannot accept the substrate W, the inter-cell scheduler MS gives an instruction to stop the dispensing of the substrate W to the indexer cell scheduler CS1. Therefore, even if the last substrate W (LotA25) of lot A is dispensed from the indexer cell C1, the first substrate W (LotB1) of lot B is paid from the indexer cell C1 while the stop instruction is given. Not issued.

  When the resist coating cell C3 becomes able to accept the substrate W, the inter-cell scheduler MS gives an instruction to resume the dispensing of the substrate W to the indexer cell scheduler CS1, and in response to this, the first substrate W (LotB1) of the lot B It is paid out from the indexer cell C1. The substrate W (LotB1) paid out from the indexer cell C1 is carried into the bark cell C2, and after performing a predetermined process, it is paid out from the bark cell C2 and placed on the PASS3. At this time, the coupling rinse of the coating processing unit SC of the resist coating cell C3 has been completed, and the resist coating cell C3 is in a state where it can accept the substrate W (LotB1). Accordingly, the substrate W (LotB1) is smoothly carried into the resist coating cell C3 without being made to wait on the PASS3. Here, there is no time for waiting on the PASS 3, so there is no variation in processing history between substrates. In addition, since a clogged state does not occur in the bark cell C2, generation of process risk can be avoided.

<Specific example 3>
Please refer to FIG. FIG. 11 is a diagram schematically illustrating the processing operation of the inter-cell scheduler MSa according to the third specific example.

  Here, as in the case of <Specific Example 1>, the host computer 100 notifies each of the inter-cell scheduler MSa and the cell schedulers CS1 to CS6 of the recipe information relating to the lot to be processed, and subsequently the status. The information acquisition unit 811 acquires status information of each of the cells C1 to C6 from each of the cell schedulers CS1 to CS6. Here, for example, it is assumed that status information “cannot accept substrate due to temperature change process of heating unit HP” is acquired from post-exposure bake cell scheduler CS5.

  In this case, the payout timing instruction unit 812 selects one of the cell schedulers CS1 to CS6, and gives an instruction to stop the payout of the substrate W to the selected cell scheduler CS. However, since the reason why the acquired status information cannot accept the substrate W is included here, the dispensing timing instruction unit 812 stops dispensing the substrate W from the cell based on the status information and the recipe information. If not, a cell that may cause a process risk is identified, and the cell scheduler CS that manages the cell is selected as the cell scheduler CS to be given an instruction to stop paying out the substrate W.

  When the post-exposure bake cell C5 cannot accept the substrate W due to the temperature change process of the heating unit HP, the cell that may cause process risk unless the discharge of the substrate W from the cell is stopped is the interface cell C6. It is. The time from the exposure process to the post-exposure heat treatment must be strictly controlled, and the once exposed substrate W has a process risk unless it is promptly subjected to the post-exposure heat treatment in the post-exposure bake cell C5. If the post-exposure bake cell C5 cannot accept the substrate W due to the temperature change process of the heating unit HP, the substrate subjected to the exposure process must be stopped unless the dispensing from the interface cell C6 to the exposure unit EXP is stopped. This is because a state where W cannot be heat-treated after exposure occurs, resulting in process risk.

  Therefore, in this case, the payout timing instruction unit 812 selects the interface cell scheduler CS6 as the cell scheduler CS to be given a stop instruction, and gives a stop instruction thereto. In response to the stop instruction, the interface cell scheduler CS6 controls the transport mechanism IFR, so that the delivery of the substrate W from the interface cell C6 to the exposure unit EXP is stopped. While the payout is stopped, the interface cell scheduler CS6 controls the transport mechanism IFR to sequentially store the substrates W before the exposure process in the send buffer SBF.

  Then, when the status information acquisition unit 811 acquires status information that the post-exposure bake cell C5 can accept the substrate W from the post-exposure bake cell scheduler CS5, the dispensing timing instruction unit 812 has given a stop instruction. An instruction to resume the delivery of the substrate W is given to the interface cell scheduler CS6. In response to the restart instruction, the interface cell scheduler CS6 controls the transport mechanism IFR, so that the delivery of the substrate W from the interface cell C6 is restarted. The interface cell scheduler CS6 controls the transport mechanism IFR so that the substrates W stored in the send buffer SBF are discharged toward the exposure unit EXP in order from the first stored.

  According to the conveyance control described above, it is possible to reliably avoid the generation of process risk as in the conveyance control of <Specific Example 2>. That is, in the above transport control, the inter-cell scheduler MS gives an instruction to stop the delivery of the substrate W to the interface cell scheduler CS6 while the post-exposure bake cell C5 cannot accept the substrate W. Therefore, for example, even if the last substrate W of lot A is discharged from the interface cell C6 to the exposure unit EXP, the first substrate W of lot B is not discharged from the interface cell C6 while the stop instruction is given. The exposure process is not started for the substrate W of lot B.

  Then, when the post-exposure bake cell C5 can accept the substrate W, the inter-cell scheduler MS gives an instruction to resume the discharge of the substrate W to the interface cell scheduler CS6, and the first substrate W of the lot B is interfaced accordingly. It is paid out from the cell C6 to the exposure unit EXP. The substrate W delivered from the interface cell C6 is subjected to exposure processing by the exposure unit EXP and then carried into the post-exposure bake cell C5 through the interface cell C6. At this time, the temperature changing process of the heating unit HP of the post-exposure bake cell C5 has been completed, and the post-exposure bake cell C5 is ready to receive the substrate W of the lot B. Therefore, the substrate W after the exposure processing is smoothly carried into the post-exposure bake cell C5 without being put on standby. This makes it possible to strictly manage the time from the exposure process to the post-exposure heat treatment, thereby avoiding process risk.

<Specific Example 4>
Please refer to FIG. FIG. 12 is a diagram schematically illustrating the processing operation of the inter-cell scheduler MSa according to the fourth specific example.

  Here, as in the case of <Specific Example 1>, the host computer 100 notifies each of the inter-cell scheduler MSa and the cell schedulers CS1 to CS6 of the recipe information relating to the lot to be processed, and subsequently the status. The information acquisition unit 811 acquires status information of each of the cells C1 to C6 from each of the cell schedulers CS1 to CS6. Here, for example, from the resist coating cell scheduler CS3, the information that “the substrate cannot be accepted for the coupling cleaning of the coating processing unit SC” and the information that “can be accepted after 120 seconds” are acquired as the status information. To do.

  In this case, the payout timing instruction unit 812 selects one of the cell schedulers CS1 to CS6 (for example, the indexer cell scheduler CS1), and gives an instruction to stop the payout of the substrate W to the selected cell scheduler CS. In response to this stop instruction, the indexer cell scheduler CS1 controls the indexer robot IR, so that the delivery of the substrate W from the indexer cell C1 is stopped.

  When the status information acquisition unit 811 acquires status information “acceptable after 120 seconds” from the resist coating cell scheduler CS3, 120 seconds have passed, and the dispensing timing instruction unit 812 gives a stop instruction. In addition, an instruction to resume the delivery of the substrate W is given to the indexer cell scheduler CS1. In response to the restart instruction, the indexer cell scheduler CS1 controls the indexer robot IR, so that the delivery of the substrate W from the indexer cell C1 is restarted.

  According to the above transport control, the timing at which the instruction to resume the discharge of the substrate W is determined based on the period during which the substrate W cannot be received in the cell, so that the transport schedule between cells can be switched at an appropriate timing. Therefore, it is possible to realize appropriate transport control that suppresses a decrease in processing efficiency.

<2-2-2. Second Mode Inter-cell Scheduler>
<A. Constitution>
The inter-cell scheduler MS (inter-cell scheduler MSb) according to the second aspect will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 7B is a block diagram showing a functional configuration of the inter-cell scheduler MSb. Similar to the inter-cell scheduler MSa, the inter-cell scheduler MSb is a functional unit that adjusts schedules between cells, and includes a status information acquisition unit 821, a safe number specifying unit 822, and an acceptance timing instruction unit 823. Since the function of the status information acquisition unit 821 is the same as that of the status information acquisition unit 811 described above, description thereof is omitted.

  The safe number specifying unit 822 specifies the “safe number” of each of the cells C1 to C6 based on the recipe information. The “safe number” of a cell is the maximum number of substrates W that can be safely accommodated in the cell without causing a process risk even when the substrate W cannot be discharged from the cell. Determined from configuration and processing recipe.

  For example, the safe number of bark cells C2 is determined as follows. In the recipe information, it is assumed that the substrate W placed on the PASS 1 is received and the antireflection film coating formation, the heating process, and the cooling process are performed in this order. On the other hand, in the bark cell C2, it is assumed that there are four coating treatment units BRC, four heating treatment units, and four cooling units CP that can be used for the series of treatments. In this case, in performing the series of processes, the number of substrates W accommodated in the bark cell C2 at one time is one on the PASS 1 and one on the four coating processing units BRC, four on the heating unit HP. There are 13 in total, one in each, one in four cooling units CP.

  Here, it is assumed that the substrate W cannot be paid out from the bark cell C2 for some reason. In this case, since the substrate W carried into the cooling unit CP is made to wait in the cooling unit CP in a state where the cooling process is completed, there is no concern about process risk. However, if the substrate W cannot be dispensed, all four cooling units CP will be occupied by the substrate W over time. In this case, the substrate W loaded in the fifth sheet is put on standby in the heating unit HP in a state where the cooling process is not completed, and a process risk occurs here. That is, even when the substrate W cannot be discharged from the bark cell C2, the maximum number of substrates W that can be safely accommodated in the cell without causing a process risk, that is, the safe number of the bark cell C2 is "4 sheets". "It turns out that.

  The reception timing instruction unit 823 selects one of the cell schedulers CS when the status information “cannot accept a substrate” is acquired from any of the cell schedulers CS, and the selected cell scheduler CS An instruction to stop accepting the substrate W is given. As a result, the acceptance of the substrate W to the cell managed by the selected cell scheduler CS is stopped.

  However, the acceptance timing instruction unit 823 gives an instruction to stop accepting a substrate to the cell before a number of substrates W exceeding the safe number of the cell are accepted by the cell. That is, the acceptance timing instruction unit 823 gives an instruction to stop acceptance to the cell scheduler CS that manages the cell before the number of substrates W exceeding the safe number of cells is loaded.

<B. Processing action>
The processing operation of the inter-cell scheduler MSb will be described with a specific example. Please refer to FIG. FIG. 13 is a diagram schematically illustrating a specific example of the processing operation executed by the inter-cell scheduler MSb.

  As described above, when processing for a new lot is started, the host computer 100 notifies each of the inter-cell scheduler MSa and the cell scheduler CS of recipe information related to the lot to be processed. Then, the safe number specifying unit 822 specifies the safe number of the cells C1 to C6 based on the acquired recipe information. Here, it is assumed that the safe number of the bark cells C2 is specified as “4 sheets”, for example.

  When starting a process for a new lot, or at a predetermined timing while the process is being executed (for example, at regular intervals), the status information acquisition unit 821 receives cells from each of the cell schedulers CS1 to CS6. The status information of each of C1 to C6 is acquired. Here, for example, it is assumed that status information “Unable to accept substrate due to occurrence of abnormality” is acquired from the resist coating cell C3.

  In this case, the reception timing instruction unit 823 selects one of the cell schedulers CS1 to CS6, and gives an instruction to stop receiving the substrate W to the selected cell scheduler CS. When the resist coating cell C3 cannot accept the substrate, the substrate W cannot be discharged from the bark cell C2 to the resist coating cell C3. Then, a clogged state occurs in the bark cell C2, which may cause a process risk. Accordingly, the reception timing instruction unit 823 instructs the bark cell scheduler CS2 to stop accepting the substrate W so that the number of substrates W exceeding the safe number (“4”) of the cell is not loaded into the bark cell C2. give.

  Specifically, the reception timing instruction unit 823 displays status information indicating that the fourth substrate W has been loaded into the bark cell C2 (that is, status information that the fourth substrate W has been loaded into the bark cell C2). When notified from the cell scheduler CS2, a stop instruction is given to the bark cell scheduler CS2. In response to this stop instruction, the bark cell scheduler CS2 controls the transfer robot TR1, and the acceptance of the substrate W to the bark cell C2 is stopped.

  Then, when the status information acquisition unit 821 acquires status information from the resist coating cell scheduler CS3 that the resist coating cell C3 can accept the substrate W, the reception timing instruction unit 823 displays the bar code that has given the stop instruction. An instruction to resume acceptance of the substrate W is given to the cell scheduler CS2. In response to the restart instruction, the bark cell scheduler CS2 controls the transfer robot TR1, and the acceptance of the substrate W to the bark cell C2 is restarted.

  According to the above transport control, when a cell that cannot accept the substrate W is generated, the substrate W exceeding the safe number is not carried into another cell, so that the generation of process risk can be prevented in advance. become. In addition, since acceptance of the substrate W is permitted within a range that does not exceed the safe number, it is possible to proceed with processing as many substrates W as possible, and it is possible to suppress a decrease in processing efficiency.

<2-2-3. Third Mode Intercell Scheduler>
<A. Constitution>
The inter-cell scheduler MS (inter-cell scheduler MSc) according to the third aspect will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 7C is a block diagram showing a functional configuration of the inter-cell scheduler MSc. The inter-cell scheduler MSc is a functional unit that manages overall tact conveyance, and includes an in-cell tact adjustment instruction unit 831, a payout timing synchronization adjustment unit 832, and an empty conveyance instruction unit 833.

  The in-cell tact adjustment instruction unit 831 gives an instruction to each of the cell schedulers CS1 to CS6 and is paid out after the in-cell tact time of all the cells C1 to C6 (one substrate W is carried into the cell). Time) until a predetermined value is set. The predetermined value is preferably the in-cell tact time of the cell having the longest in-cell tact time among the cells C1 to C6.

  The payout timing synchronization adjustment unit 832 instructs each of the cell schedulers CS1 to CS6 to pay out the substrate W so that the substrates are simultaneously paid out from the cells C1 to C6, respectively. Synchronize the payout timing.

  The empty transfer instruction unit 833 gives an instruction to the interface cell scheduler CS6 to perform empty transfer when the substrate W is discharged from the exposure unit EXP at a timing different from the discharge timing synchronized between cells. However, “empty transfer” here means that the transfer operation is performed without actually transferring the substrate W.

<B. Processing action>
The processing operation of the inter-cell scheduler MSc will be described with a specific example. Refer to FIG. FIG. 14 is a diagram schematically showing processing operations executed by the inter-cell scheduler MSc. The processing described below is executed when processing for a new lot is started.

  When processing for a new lot is started, the host computer 100 notifies each of the inter-cell scheduler MSa and the cell schedulers CS1 to CS6 of recipe information related to the lot to be processed.

  When the recipe information is acquired from the host computer 100, the in-cell tact adjustment instruction unit 831 calculates the in-cell tact time of each of the cells C1 to C6, and among the cells C1 to C6, the cell with the longest in-cell tact time is obtained. Specify the in-cell tact time. Then, a conveyance schedule adjustment instruction is given to each of the cell schedulers CS1 to CS6 so that the in-cell tact time becomes the specified in-cell tact time. In response to this instruction, each of the cell schedulers CS1 to CS6 adjusts the transport schedule in each of the cells C1 to C6, so that the in-cell tact time of each of the cells C1 to C6 becomes equal. However, it is assumed that each of the cell schedulers CS1 to CS6 realizes in-cell tact transport (a transport control mode in which the same lot of substrates are transported so as to have the same transport history and processing history in the cell).

  Subsequently, the payout timing synchronization adjustment unit 832 instructs the cell schedulers CS1 to CS6 to pay out the substrate W at the same time, thereby synchronizing the payout timing of the substrates from the cells C1 to C6.

  According to the above transport control, since the in-cell tact time of each cell C1 to C6 is unified, the timing at which the substrate W is discharged from each cell C1 to C6 is made simultaneously. The time placed on each PASS can be made equal for any substrate W in the lot. On the other hand, in-cell tact transfer is realized by each of the cell schedulers CS1 to CS6. Therefore, the above-described transport control realizes the entire tact transport across cells.

  By the way, by the above control, the substrate W is discharged from the cells C1 to C6 at the same timing. For example, if the in-cell tact times are aligned at “24 seconds”, as shown in FIG. 15A, from a certain cell (indexer cell C1 in the example of FIG. 15), t = 24, t = At each time of 48, t = 72, t = 96..., The substrate W is discharged to the adjacent cell (bark cell C2 in the example of FIG. 15) at a periodic timing, and the adjacent cell (bark cell) It will be carried into C2). However, the timing at which the substrate W is dispensed from the exposure unit EXP is not always the same. For example, as shown in FIG. 15B, the fourth substrate W may be paid out toward the interface cell C6 later than the normal payout timing.

  In such a case, as shown in FIG. 15B, if the interface cell C6 matches the timing of payout from the exposure unit EXP delayed from the synchronized timing (that is, the payout was delayed). If the rhythm of conveyance is changed after waiting for the substrate W), the timing at which the substrate W is dispensed between the cells C1 to C6 varies.

  Therefore, in such a case, the empty transfer instruction unit 833 instructs the interface cell scheduler CS6 to perform empty transfer, and the interface cell scheduler CS6 causes the transfer mechanism IFR to perform empty transfer in response to the instruction. . That is, as shown in FIG. 15C, among the transfer operations repeatedly executed in the interface cell C6, the transfer of receiving the substrate W from the exposure unit EXP at t = 96 and transferring it to the post-exposure bake cell C5. The transport operation of the mechanism IFR is performed without the actual substrate W. Then, the substrate W discharged from the exposure unit EXP is transported at t = 96 in the transport operation of the next cycle (that is, the transport operation of receiving the substrate W at t = 120 and transporting it to the post-exposure bake cell C5).

  That is, as shown in FIG. 14, for example, when the notification from the host computer 100 detects that the substrate W is paid out at a timing deviated from the timing synchronized with the exposure unit EXP, the inter-cell scheduler MSc detects The empty transfer instruction unit 833 gives an instruction to the interface cell scheduler CS6 to perform empty transfer, and the interface cell scheduler CS6 causes the transfer mechanism IFR to perform empty transfer in response to the instruction.

  According to the transport control described above, even when the payout timing from the exposure unit EXP is shifted, the payout timing of the substrate W from the interface cell scheduler CS6 is synchronized with the payout timing from other cells. Can be maintained. That is, the entire tact conveyance can be maintained.

<3. effect>
According to the substrate processing apparatus 1 according to the above-described embodiment, in addition to the cell scheduler CS that manages the transfer schedules of the cells C1 to C6, the intercell scheduler MS that controls the timing for transferring the substrate W between cells is provided. . By stratifying the scheduler in this way, it is possible to realize appropriate transport control by performing total transport control between cells while distributing the processing load in transport control.

  The total transport control between cells is transport control for adjusting a transport schedule between cells, and is realized by the above-described inter-cell schedulers MSa and MSb. By realizing this, various factors (for example, in the case of performing the coupling in the coating processing unit, in the case of performing the change process of the set temperature in the heat treatment unit, in the case of performing the temperature change of the processing liquid, If a cell that cannot accept the substrate W is generated due to an abnormality detected, etc., the process risk caused by the cell can be reduced.

  The second is transport control that guarantees overall tact transport across cells, and is realized by the above-described inter-cell scheduler MSc. By realizing this, the transfer history and the processing history of the substrates W of the same lot can be made equal.

<4. Modification>
<4-1. Multi-layered>
In the substrate processing apparatus 1 according to the above-described embodiment, the upper-layer scheduler (inter-cell scheduler MS) performs the delivery timing of the substrate W between controlled partitions (each cell in the above-described embodiment). The transport schedule in the controlled section is managed by a lower layer scheduler (cell scheduler CS).

  By applying this configuration as it is, it is possible to form a further multi-hierarchy. For example, a case where the control hierarchy of the substrate processing apparatus 1 according to the above embodiment is formed from three levels will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 16 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a transport scheduler formed from three layers.

  The third-layer schedulers are the above-described cell schedulers CS1 to CS6, which manage the transfer schedules of the substrates W in the cells C1 to C6, respectively.

  Of the second-layer schedulers (second-layer inter-cell schedulers MS11 and MS12), one inter-cell scheduler MS11 collectively manages these as schedulers higher than the cell schedulers CS1, CS2, and CS3. Specifically, by instructing each of the cell schedulers CS1, CS2, and CS3 when to pay out the substrate W from the cell (or to receive it into the cell), the timing for delivering the substrate W between the cells is determined. Control. The other inter-cell scheduler MS12 generally manages these as schedulers higher than the cell schedulers CS4, CS5 and CS6. Specifically, by instructing each of the cell schedulers CS4, CS5, and CS6 at a timing of paying out the substrate W from the cell (or receiving it in the cell), the timing of delivering the substrate W between the cells is determined. Control. The specific functional configuration of the second-layer inter-cell schedulers MS11 and MS12 is exactly the same as that of the inter-cell scheduler MS described above.

  The first-layer scheduler (first-layer inter-cell scheduler MS1) generally manages these as higher-level schedulers than the second-layer inter-cell schedulers MS11 and MS12. Specifically, instructing the timing of paying out the substrate W from the controlled partition managed by the scheduler (or receiving into the controlled partition) to each of the second-layer inter-cell schedulers MS11 and MS12. Thus, the timing for delivering the substrate W between the controlled sections is controlled. However, the controlled section C10 managed by the second-layer inter-cell scheduler MS11 includes an indexer cell C1, a bark cell C2, and a resist coating cell C3. The controlled section C20 managed by the second-layer inter-cell scheduler MS12 includes a development processing cell C4, a post-exposure bake cell C5, and an interface cell C6. The specific functional configuration of the first inter-cell scheduler MS1 is exactly the same as that of the inter-cell scheduler MS described above.

  Thus, the configuration of the above-described inter-cell scheduler MS can be applied as it is, and the control hierarchy can be made multi-tiered. As a result, it is possible to easily cope with an increase in the size of the system. For example, in the case of configuring a system composed of a plurality of apparatuses in which the substrate processing apparatus 1 according to the above-described embodiment is incorporated, a scheduler is provided that supervises and manages them above the highest-level scheduler of each apparatus, It is only necessary to control the timing for transferring the substrate W between the apparatuses.

<4-2. Other variations>
In the above embodiment, the inter-cell scheduler MSa controls the timing of delivery of the substrate W between the cells by giving an instruction to stop the delivery of the substrate W, but gives an instruction to stop accepting the substrate W. You may control this by.

  Similarly, the inter-cell scheduler MSb may control this by giving an instruction to stop the delivery of the substrate W. However, in this case, the inter-cell scheduler MSb is the time when the number of substrates W paid out from the cell managed by the cell scheduler CS giving the stop instruction to the adjacent cell reaches the safe number of the adjacent cell. Then give the stop instruction. For example, when the safety number of the bark cell C2 is specified as “4”, the inter-cell scheduler MSb, when the indexer cell C1 pays out the fourth substrate W toward the bark cell C2, the indexer cell scheduler CS1. Is instructed to stop paying out the substrate W.

  The configuration of the substrate processing apparatus according to the present invention is not limited to the configuration shown in FIGS. 1 to 4, and various arrangement configurations can be adopted.

  The substrate W to be processed by the substrate processing apparatus according to the present invention is not limited to a semiconductor wafer, and may be a liquid crystal glass substrate.

It is a top view of the substrate processing apparatus incorporating the heat processing apparatus which concerns on this invention. It is a front view of the liquid processing part of the substrate processing apparatus of FIG. It is a front view of the heat processing part of the substrate processing apparatus of FIG. It is a figure which shows the arrangement configuration of the conveyance robot and substrate mounting part of the substrate processing apparatus of FIG. It is a block diagram which shows the control mechanism of a substrate processing apparatus. It is a block diagram which shows the structure of a conveyance scheduler. It is a block diagram which shows the structure of the scheduler between cells. It is a figure which shows typically the processing operation which the scheduler between cells concerning a 1st aspect performs. It is a figure which shows typically the processing operation which the scheduler between cells concerning a 1st aspect performs. It is a figure which shows typically a mode that a board | substrate is processed along time. It is a figure which shows typically the processing operation which the scheduler between cells concerning a 1st aspect performs. It is a figure which shows typically the processing operation which the scheduler between cells concerning a 1st aspect performs. It is a figure which shows typically the processing operation which the scheduler between cells which concerns on a 2nd aspect performs. It is a figure which shows typically the processing operation which the scheduler between cells concerning a 3rd aspect performs. It is a figure which shows typically the timing at which a board | substrate is paid out from a cell or an exposure unit. It is a block diagram which shows the structure of a conveyance scheduler.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Substrate processing apparatus 10 Indexer block 20 Bark block 30 Resist coating block 40 Development processing block 50 Interface block 80 Bake plate 811 and 821 Status information acquisition part 812 Discharge timing instruction | indication part 822 Safety number specification part 823 Acceptance timing instruction | indication part 831 Intra-cell tact Adjustment instruction unit 832 Dispensing timing synchronization adjustment unit 833 Empty conveyance instruction unit BRC, SC Coating processing unit CP Cooling unit HP heating unit IFR conveyance mechanism IR indexer robot PASS1 to PASS10 Substrate placing unit SD Development processing units TR1, TR2, TR3, TR4 Transfer robot C1 Indexer cell C2 Bark cell C3 Resist coating cell C4 Development processing cell C5 Post exposure bake cell C6 Interface cell CS Cell scheduler MS, MSa, MSb, MSc Inter-cell scheduler
W substrate

Claims (4)

A substrate processing apparatus that sequentially conveys a substrate to a plurality of processing units and performs a series of processes,
A plurality of controlled partition schedulers that are associated with a plurality of controlled partitions that are defined by dividing the substrate processing apparatus in a one-to-one correspondence, and that each manage a transfer schedule inside the corresponding controlled partition;
A controlled inter-segment scheduler that controls the timing of delivering a substrate between the plurality of controlled partitions;
Equipped with a,
The controlled inter-partition scheduler is
Status information acquisition means for acquiring status information that is information indicating the state of the corresponding controlled partition from each of the plurality of controlled partition schedulers,
With
Based on the status information, determine the timing to deliver the substrate between the plurality of controlled sections ,
The status information includes information indicating whether a substrate can be received in the controlled section,
The controlled inter-partition scheduler is
When there is a controlled partition that cannot receive a substrate, the controlled partition scheduler selected from the plurality of controlled partition schedulers is instructed to stop paying out the substrate from the controlled partition corresponding to the controlled partition scheduler. Payout timing instruction means,
With
The status information includes information indicating the reason why the substrate cannot be received in the controlled compartment,
The substrate processing apparatus, wherein the payout timing instruction means selects a controlled partition scheduler to which the stop instruction is to be given from the plurality of controlled partition schedulers based on the reason . A substrate processing apparatus that sequentially conveys a substrate to a plurality of processing units and performs a series of processes,
A plurality of controlled partition schedulers that are associated with a plurality of controlled partitions that are defined by dividing the substrate processing apparatus in a one-to-one correspondence, and that each manage a transfer schedule inside the corresponding controlled partition;
A controlled inter-segment scheduler that controls the timing of delivering a substrate between the plurality of controlled partitions;
With
The controlled inter-partition scheduler is
Status information acquisition means for acquiring status information that is information indicating the state of the corresponding controlled partition from each of the plurality of controlled partition schedulers,
With
Based on the status information, determine the timing to deliver the substrate between the plurality of controlled sections,
The status information includes information indicating whether a substrate can be received in the controlled section,
The controlled inter-partition scheduler is
When there is a controlled partition that cannot receive a substrate, the controlled partition scheduler selected from the plurality of controlled partition schedulers is instructed to stop paying out the substrate from the controlled partition corresponding to the controlled partition scheduler. Payout timing instruction means,
With
The status information includes information indicating a period during which the substrate cannot be received in the controlled section.
The substrate processing apparatus, wherein the payout timing instructing unit gives an instruction to resume the payout of a substrate to the controlled partition scheduler that has given the stop instruction at a timing determined based on the period . The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 1 or 2, wherein
The controlled inter-partition scheduler is
When there is a controlled partition that cannot accept a substrate, the controlled partition scheduler selected from among the plurality of controlled partition schedulers is instructed to stop receiving a substrate in the controlled partition to which it corresponds. Receiving timing instruction means for providing
For each of the plurality of controlled sections, a safety that is the maximum number of substrates that can be safely accommodated in the controlled section without causing a process risk even if the substrate cannot be dispensed from the controlled section Safety number identifying means for identifying the number of sheets;
With
The reception timing instructing unit gives an instruction to stop receiving substrates to the controlled section before a number of substrates exceeding the safety number of the controlled section are received into the controlled section. Substrate processing equipment. A substrate processing apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 3,
The controlled inter-partition scheduler is
An in-compartment tact time, which is a time from when an instruction is given to each of the plurality of controlled partition schedulers and when one substrate is loaded into the controlled partition after each substrate is delivered. In-zone tact time adjustment means for aligning a predetermined value for all of the plurality of controlled zones,
A timing adjusting means for synchronizing the timing of discharging the substrate from each of the plurality of controlled sections;
A substrate processing apparatus, characterized in that it comprises a.

Images