JP5488227B2 - Substrate processing equipment - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a substrate processing apparatus in which a plurality of processing chambers for processing a substrate are connected to a vacuum transfer chamber.

  For example, in an FPD (Flat Panel Display) manufacturing process, a plurality of processing chambers are provided around a vacuum transfer chamber, and a substrate such as a glass substrate is provided between the vacuum transfer chamber and the processing chamber by a transfer arm provided in the transfer chamber. There is known a substrate processing apparatus for delivering the above. Examples of processing performed in the processing chamber on the substrate to be processed include processing such as etching, ashing, and film formation.

  The processing chamber is composed of, for example, a container body on which a substrate is placed and an upper portion is opened, and a lid body that can open and close the opening of the container body. The lid can be removed from the container body. The lid body is provided with a gas shower head for supplying a processing gas, and one of the maintenance operations for the lid body is replacement of parts of the gas shower head.

  This opening / closing operation of the lid is proposed in Patent Document 1. In this configuration, the lid body is lifted from the container body by the lid opening / closing mechanism provided for each processing chamber, and then the lid body is slid to a position removed from the container body. Next, the lid is lowered and then reversed. In this method, the area required for the opening / closing operation of the lid can be reduced by sliding the lid in a direction orthogonal to the direction of transport of the substrate to the processing chamber.

  However, since the FPD substrate is large, the processing chamber is a large rectangular tube container having a side of a planar shape of, for example, 3 m and 3.5 m, respectively. Therefore, in a configuration that requires a mechanism and space for opening / closing and reversing the lid for each processing chamber, it becomes difficult to secure a space for reversing the lid as the number of processing chambers increases. There are concerns. Further, since a lid opening / closing mechanism is provided for each processing chamber, an increase in the number of processing chambers may increase the manufacturing cost of the apparatus.

JP 2007-67218 A (see FIGS. 1 and 19)

  The present invention has been made under such circumstances, and in a substrate processing apparatus in which a plurality of processing chambers for processing a substrate are connected to a vacuum transfer chamber, an increase in size of the apparatus is suppressed, and a footprint is reduced. It is to provide a technique for suppressing the increase.

Therefore, the substrate processing apparatus of the present invention is provided with a substrate transfer mechanism, a vacuum transfer chamber maintained in a vacuum atmosphere,
A preliminary vacuum chamber connected to the side of the vacuum transfer chamber;
In order to process the substrate, the side surface of the vacuum transfer chamber is connected to the auxiliary vacuum chamber so as to be separated from each other in the circumferential direction and arranged in the circumferential direction, and each is provided with a lid on the container body. A plurality of processing chambers,
A guide member provided to extend along the circumferential direction of the vacuum transfer chamber;
A moving body guided along the guide member;
A lid holding mechanism that is provided on the movable body so as to pass above the processing chamber by the movement of the movable body, and that holds and lifts the lid body to detach the lid body from the container body;
And a drive unit for moving the movable body along the guide member.

  Further, the lid body is provided with a held portion that includes a locking portion that extends in a lateral direction and has a space formed below, and the lid body holding mechanism moves while moving along the guide member. You may comprise so that the holding | maintenance part which raises the lid | cover body may be provided by approaching into the space of the downward side of a latching | locking part, raising after that, and pushing up the said latching | locking part from the downward side.

  Further, the guide member is provided on the vacuum transfer chamber, or an inner guide member provided between the vacuum transfer chamber and the processing chamber, and the processing chamber is opposite to the vacuum transfer chamber. You may comprise so that the outer side guide member provided in the side may be provided.

  Furthermore, the vacuum transfer chamber is formed in a polygonal plan shape, and the preliminary vacuum is provided on each of the side surfaces of the vacuum transfer chamber other than the side surface for securing a maintenance area on the outer side. You may comprise so that a chamber and a process chamber may be connected. At this time, the maintenance area may be provided with a lid inversion mechanism that holds and inverts the lid delivered from the lid holding mechanism. Furthermore, the vacuum transfer chamber may have six side surfaces, and one side of the preliminary vacuum chamber and four processing chambers may be connected to the side surfaces.

  According to the present invention, a lid holding mechanism for holding and removing (opening / closing) the lid is shared with a plurality of processing chambers arranged along the periphery of the vacuum transfer chamber. Since the lid holding mechanism is configured so that the upper region of the processing chamber can be moved along the sequence of the processing chambers, a lateral space in the vacuum processing chamber is not required when the lid is attached or detached. For this reason, the enlargement of an apparatus is suppressed and the increase in an installation area (footprint) can be suppressed.

1 is a perspective view showing an embodiment of a substrate processing apparatus according to the present invention. It is a cross-sectional top view which shows the inside of the said substrate processing apparatus. It is sectional drawing which shows an example of the process chamber provided in the said substrate processing apparatus. It is a top view which shows a part of said substrate processing apparatus. It is a side view which shows a part of said substrate processing apparatus. It is a side view which shows a part of said substrate processing apparatus. It is a side view for demonstrating the effect | action of the said substrate processing apparatus. It is a side view for demonstrating the effect | action of the said substrate processing apparatus. It is a top view which shows other embodiment of the said substrate processing apparatus. It is a side view which shows other embodiment of the said substrate processing apparatus. It is a side view which shows other embodiment of the said substrate processing apparatus.

  Hereinafter, an embodiment of the substrate processing apparatus of the present invention will be described in the case where processing is performed on an FPD substrate. As a process to be performed, for example, an etching process is used. FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing an overview of the substrate processing apparatus 1, and FIG. 2 is a transverse plan view showing the inside thereof. In the figure, reference numerals 1A and 1B denote carrier mounting portions for mounting carriers C1 and C2 accommodating a large number of FPD substrates (hereinafter referred to as “substrates”) S from the outside. These carrier mounting portions 1A and 1B are configured to elevate and lower the carriers C1 and C2 by, for example, an elevating mechanism 11, and an untreated substrate S1 is accommodated in one carrier C1 and processed in the other carrier C2. The substrate S2 is accommodated.

  In addition, a load lock chamber 12 and a vacuum transfer chamber 13 forming a preliminary vacuum chamber are provided on the back side of the carrier mounting portions 1A and 1B. Further, a substrate transport means 21 for delivering the substrate S between the two carriers C1 and C2 and the load lock chamber 12 is provided on the support base 14 between the carrier mounting portions 1A and 1B. It has been. The substrate transport means 21 includes, for example, two arms 22 provided on the upper and lower sides, and a base 23 that supports these arms so as to be movable forward and backward and rotatable. The load lock chamber 12 is configured such that the atmosphere can be switched between a vacuum atmosphere and a normal pressure atmosphere, and a buffer rack 15 for supporting the substrate S is disposed therein as shown in FIG. Has been. In the figure, 16 is a positioner.

  The vacuum transfer chamber 13 is formed in a polygonal shape, for example, a regular hexagonal shape, and a plurality of vacuum transfer chambers 13 are connected to the side surfaces of the load lock chamber 12 so as to be separated from each other in the circumferential direction and arranged circumferentially. A processing chamber 30 is provided. In this example, four processing chambers 30 are hermetically connected to the side surfaces corresponding to the four sides of the vacuum transfer chamber 13.

  Further, the load lock chamber 12 is hermetically connected to a side surface corresponding to one of the remaining two sides of the vacuum transfer chamber 13, and a maintenance area M is secured on the outer side of the side surface corresponding to the other side. In addition, a lid reversing mechanism 4 is provided in the maintenance area M. In this example, the load lock chamber 12 and the lid inversion mechanism 4 are provided so as to face each other.

  The vacuum transfer chamber 13 is configured to be maintained in a vacuum atmosphere, and a substrate transfer mechanism 25 is disposed therein as shown in FIG. The substrate transport mechanism 25 transports the substrate S between the load lock chamber 12 and the four processing chambers 30.

  Further, there are openings between the load lock chamber 12 and the vacuum transfer chamber 13, between the vacuum transfer chamber 13 and the processing chamber 30, and between the load lock chamber 12 and the outside air atmosphere. Are sealed, and gate valves GV configured to be openable and closable are respectively inserted.

  Next, the processing chamber 30 will be briefly described with reference to FIG. The processing chamber 30 includes, for example, a container body 31 having a square shape in plan view and an opening in the ceiling, and a lid 32 provided to open and close the ceiling opening in the container body 31. Yes. The lid 32 is configured to be detachable from the container body 31 by a lid opening / closing mechanism 6 described later. The substrate S is, for example, a square substrate having a size of about 2.2 m on one side and about 2.5 m on the other side, and the processing chamber 30 has one side on a horizontal section of 3 m and the other side of about 3.5 m. The size is set.

  A placement table 33 for placing the substrate S is disposed on the bottom surface of the container body 31 via an insulating member 33a. The container body 31 is connected to a vacuum exhaust means including a vacuum pump 34 via an exhaust path 34a. On the other hand, above the inside of the processing chamber 30, a gas supply unit 35, which is a shower head that forms an upper electrode, is supported by a support unit 36 a that protrudes into the lid 32 so as to face the mounting table 33. Is provided. In the figure, 36b is an insulating member, 35a is a gas discharge hole, 37a is a gas supply pipe, 37 is a gas supply system, 38a is a power supply rod, 38b is a matching unit, and 38 is a high-frequency power source.

  In such a processing chamber 30, plasma of a processing gas is formed in the space above the substrate S by applying high-frequency power from the high-frequency power source 38 to the gas supply unit 35, and thus the etching process for the substrate S proceeds. Will do. In the drawings other than FIG. 3, for convenience of illustration, the matching unit 38b, the high frequency power source 38, the gas supply system 37, and the like are omitted.

  Here, the processing operation of the substrate S will be briefly described. First, the substrate transport means 21 carries the substrate S1 into the load lock chamber 12 from the one carrier C1 containing the unprocessed substrate S1. In the load lock chamber 12, the substrate S1 is held by the buffer rack 15, and after the arm 22 of the substrate transfer means 21 is retracted, the load lock chamber 12 is evacuated to reduce the inside to a predetermined vacuum level. After completion of evacuation, the positioner 16 aligns the substrate S1.

  Thereafter, the gate valve GV between the load lock chamber 12 and the vacuum transfer chamber 13 is opened, the substrate transfer mechanism 25 receives the substrate S1, and the gate valve GV is closed. Next, the gate valve GV between the vacuum transfer chamber 13 and the predetermined processing chamber 30 is opened, the substrate S1 is carried into the processing chamber 30 by the substrate transfer mechanism 25, and the gate valve GV is closed.

  In the processing chamber 30, as described above, the etching process is performed on the substrate S <b> 1 by forming plasma in the space above the substrate S <b> 1. After the etching process, the processed substrate S2 is received by the substrate transfer mechanism 25 and transferred to the load lock chamber 12, and then the substrate S2 is transferred by the transfer means 21 to the carrier C2 for the processed substrate. As a result, the processing on one substrate is completed, but this processing is performed on all the substrates S1 mounted on the carrier C1 for unprocessed substrates.

  Subsequently, the processing chamber 30 will be further described. As shown in FIGS. 1 to 5, a held portion 5 is provided at the center of the upper surface of the lid 32. FIG. 5 is a side view seen from the line AA in FIG. The held portion 5 includes a pair of saddle-shaped members 51 and 51 arranged back to back. Each vertical portion of the saddle-shaped members 51, 51 is parallel to one side of the vacuum transfer chamber 13 to which the processing chamber 30 is connected, and is symmetric with respect to the central portion of the lid 32 in a direction orthogonal to the one side. Are spaced apart from each other. The horizontal portions of the saddle-shaped members 51 and 51 extend opposite to each other, and form a locking portion 50 held by a lid holding mechanism 7 described later. In this example, the four processing chambers 30 are configured in the same shape, and the held portions 5 having the same shape are formed on the upper surface of the lid 32 of each processing chamber 30 at the same position.

  Furthermore, in this substrate processing apparatus, the lid opening / closing mechanism 6 for engaging with the held portion 5 to open and close the lid 32 moves along the outer periphery of the vacuum transfer chamber 13. Is provided. The lid opening / closing mechanism 6 includes a portal-shaped moving body 61. The substrate processing apparatus includes a guide member provided so as to extend along the circumferential direction of the vacuum transfer chamber 13, and the movable body 61 moves while being guided along the guide member. It is configured. In this example, an inner rail 62 that forms an inner guide member is provided on the upper surface of the vacuum transfer chamber 13, and the outer rail that forms the outer guide member so as to face the inner rail 62 at a predetermined interval through each processing chamber 30. 63 is provided. Here, as shown in FIG. 5, the processing chamber 30 and the vacuum transfer chamber 13 are supported by support bases 30 a and 13 a, respectively, and the outer guide rail 63 is provided around the vacuum transfer chamber 13 with a space therebetween. It is supported by the column 63a.

  In this example, since the vacuum transfer chamber 13 has a regular hexagonal shape, the inner rail 62 and the outer rail 63 are concentric circles except for the area facing the load lock chamber 12 with respect to the center of the vacuum transfer chamber 13. It is provided in the shape. Thus, the lid opening / closing mechanism 6 moves in the same positional relationship with respect to the processing chambers 30 provided on the four side surfaces of the vacuum transfer chamber 13.

  The inner rail 62 is provided in a region near the outer periphery on the upper surface of the vacuum transfer chamber 13, and an opening 17 for maintenance is provided on the upper surface of the vacuum transfer chamber 13 in the inner region of the inner rail 62. The opening 17 has a lid and is normally closed to keep the inside of the vacuum transfer chamber 13 in a vacuum. At the time of maintenance, the opening 17 is configured to be larger than the substrate transport mechanism 25 so that the substrate transport mechanism 25 in the vacuum transport chamber 13 can be taken out from the opening 17.

  The moving body 61 is configured such that one end side thereof is guided along the inner rail 62 and the other end side thereof is guided along the outer rail 63. In this example, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 5, the moving body 61 is provided in the vacuum transfer chamber 13 from the horizontal member 64 extending horizontally outward from the vacuum transfer chamber 13 and the horizontal member 64. An inner foot 65 extending downward toward the inner rail 62 and an outer foot 66 extending downward from the horizontal member 64 toward the outer rail 63 provided outside the processing chamber 30 are provided.

  A plurality of wheels 67A are provided along the moving direction of the lid opening / closing mechanism 6 on the lower end side of the inner foot 65, and these wheels 67A are configured to be driven by an inner moving motor 68A. Yes. A plurality of wheels 67B are provided on the lower end side of the outer foot portion 66 along the moving direction, and these wheels 67B are configured to be driven by an outer moving motor 68B. As shown in FIG. 6, in this example, two wheels are provided as the wheel 67A and the wheel 67B. The inner moving motor 68A and the outer moving motor 68B are driven so that the lid opening / closing mechanism 6 moves along the outer periphery of the vacuum transfer chamber 13 while passing through the opening / closing positions of the lids 32 in the processing chambers 30. Is controlled. In this example, the wheels 67A and 68B and the movement motors 67B and 68B constitute a drive unit for moving the moving body 61 along the guide member.

  Further, in the substrate processing apparatus 1, the movable body 61 is provided so as to pass above the processing chamber 30 by the movement of the movable body 61, and the lid 32 is attached to and detached from the container main body 31. A lid holding mechanism 7 for holding the lid 32 and moving it up and down is provided. The lid holding mechanism 7 moves along the guide rail 6 and enters the space below the locking portion 50, and then rises to push the locking portion 50 from the lower side. The holding part 70 which lifts 32 is provided. The holding portion 70 is composed of a pair of saddle-shaped members 71 and 71 arranged to face each other. The vertical portions of the saddle members 71 and 71 are parallel to the saddle members 51 and 51 of the held portion 5 at the opening / closing position where the holding portion 70 enters the space below the locking portion 50. It arrange | positions so that it may be located in the outer side of the said saddle-shaped member 51,51. Further, the horizontal portions 70a of the saddle-shaped members 71, 71 are configured to extend inward from each other.

  These saddle-shaped members 71 and 71 are provided so that they can be raised and lowered by jack mechanisms 72 and 72 that constitute an elevating mechanism. The jack mechanism 72 includes an elevating shaft 73 in which a thread is engraved, and a screw portion main body 74 in which a screw thread that engages with the elevating shaft 73 is formed on the inner surface. The upper ends of the saddle-shaped members 71 and 71 are connected to each other. In the figure, reference numeral 75 denotes an elevating motor, and 76 denotes a speed reducer. The two screw portion main bodies 74 are connected to the elevating motor 75 via a common speed reducer 76 by a coupling 77. In the figure, reference numeral 78 denotes a support for the screw portion main body 74, the lifting motor 75 and the speed reducer 76. In such a jack mechanism 72, when the screw portion main body 74 is rotated by the lift motor 75 via the speed reducer 76 and the coupling 77, the lift shaft 73 becomes a guide mechanism (not shown) inside the screw portion main body 74 depending on the rotation direction. It goes up and down along. In FIG. 5, 78 a and 64 a are openings formed in the support base 78 and the horizontal member 64, respectively.

  Thus, the lid holding mechanism 7 is configured such that when the lid opening / closing mechanism 6 is in the opening / closing position, the horizontal portion 70a is positioned below the locking portion 50 of the held portion 5, and the locking portion By pushing up 50 from the lower side, it is configured to be movable up and down between the raised position where the lid 32 is lifted.

  The lid opening / closing mechanism 6 moves the lid opening / closing mechanism 6 along the periphery of the vacuum transfer chamber 13 with the lid holding mechanism 7 in the lowered position. The horizontal portion 70 a of the lid holding mechanism 7 is positioned below the locking portion 50 of the held portion 5 at the open / closed position in each processing chamber 30. .

  Accordingly, when the lid holding mechanism 7 is raised at the open / closed position in each processing chamber 30, the locking portion 50 is lifted by the lid holding mechanism 7 and the lid 32 is opened. On the other hand, the lid opening / closing mechanism 6 moves so that the lid 32 passes over the other processing chamber 30 while holding the lid 32 in the raised position. For this reason, the raised position is set to a height at which the lifted lid 32 can move without interfering with the held portion 5 of the other processing chamber 30.

  The lid body 32 held by the lid body holding mechanism 7 is transferred to the container body 31 so as to close the opening of the container body 31 by lowering the lid body holding mechanism 7 at the open / close position. The lid opening / closing mechanism 6 resumes movement after further lowering the lid holding mechanism 7 from the delivery position to the lowered position.

  If the processing chamber 30 is configured to be interposed between the inner rail 61 and the outer rail 62, the processing chambers 30 may be configured to have different sizes. In this case, when the lid opening / closing mechanism 6 is moved in the circumferential direction of the vacuum transfer chamber 13 and the lid holding mechanism 7 is in the lowered position, the lid holding mechanism 7 and each processing chamber 30 are covered. Each process is performed so that the held part 5 is lifted when the lid holding mechanism 7 is raised by positioning the lid opening / closing mechanism 6 at the opening / closing position in each processing chamber 30 without interfering with the holding part 5. The held portion 5 and the lid opening / closing mechanism 6 of the chamber 30 are configured. With such a configuration, when the lid holding mechanism 7 is arranged at the lowered position, the lid opening / closing mechanism 6 is not interfered with the held portions 5 of all the processing chambers 30 by the lid opening / closing mechanism 6. It can move along the outer periphery of the vacuum transfer chamber 13, and the lids 32 of all the processing chambers 30 can be opened and closed.

  The lid inversion mechanism 4 is configured to hold and invert the lid 32 transferred from the lid holding mechanism 7. For example, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 8, the lid 32 is held. A frame body 41, and a rotation drive unit 42 that rotates the frame body 41 along a horizontal rotation axis. The rotational drive unit 42 includes a drive motor 43, a speed reducer 44, and a bearing 45, which are supported by a support base 46. The frame body 41 holds the periphery of the lid body 32 when the lid body opening / closing mechanism 6 holding the lid body 32 moves to the lid body placement position and the lid body 32 is lowered from this position. It is configured.

  Furthermore, in the above-described embodiment, the upper position of the lid body reversing mechanism 4 is the standby position of the lid body opening / closing mechanism 6. In this example, since the lid reversing mechanism 4 is provided at a position facing the load lock chamber 12 across the vacuum transfer chamber 13, between the load lock chamber 12 and the lid reversing mechanism 4, Two processing chambers 30 are provided on both sides of the lid reversing mechanism 4. Therefore, for convenience of explanation, the direction from the lid inverting mechanism 4 toward the load lock chamber 12 will be described as the traveling direction of the lid opening / closing mechanism 6.

  In the above-described embodiment, as shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, a position sensor for detecting a stop position for stopping the lid opening / closing mechanism 6 at the open / close position for each processing chamber 30 is provided. In this example, the position sensor is an optical sensor. For example, a light emitting unit is provided on the outer surface of the processing chamber 30, and a light receiving unit is provided at a position corresponding to the light emitting unit outside the outer rail 62.

  For example, as the optical sensor, a first optical sensor 81 and a second optical sensor 82 are prepared for each processing chamber 30. The first optical sensor 81 has an optical axis L of the optical sensor 81 on one end side (front side) of the moving body 61 in the traveling direction of the lid opening / closing mechanism 6 when the lid opening / closing mechanism 6 is located at the opening / closing position. It is provided in the position which interrupts. The second optical sensor 82 is provided in front of the first optical sensor 64 in the traveling direction of the lid opening / closing mechanism 6. In the figure, 81A and 82A are light emitting sections, and 81B and 82B are light receiving sections. Detection signals from these optical sensors 81 and 82 are output to the control unit 100 described later. Based on the detection signals, the control unit 100 sends a deceleration command and a stop command to the moving motors 67B and 68B of the lid opening / closing mechanism 6. Is configured to output.

  The substrate processing apparatus is provided with a control unit 100 composed of, for example, a computer. The control unit 100 includes a data processing unit including a program, a memory, and a CPU. The control unit 100 sends a control signal to the processing chamber 30, the transport system, the lid opening / closing mechanism 6, and the like. By proceeding with the determined steps, instructions (each step) are incorporated so that a process on the substrate S, for example, an etching process, an opening / closing operation of the lid body 32, and an inversion operation of the lid body 32 are performed. This program is stored in a storage unit such as a computer storage medium such as a flexible disk, a compact disk, a hard disk, or an MO (magneto-optical disk) and installed in the control unit 100.

  Further, the control unit 100 moves the lid opening / closing mechanism 6 from the standby position on the upper side of the lid reversing mechanism 4 toward the processing chamber 30 to open the lid 32 based on a command from the operator. Or a command to move the lid opening / closing mechanism 6 holding the lid 32 to the standby position, or to place the lid opening / closing mechanism 6 on the lid reversing mechanism 4, or the moving motors 67B and 68B or the lifting / lowering motor 65. Output to.

  Here, in the control unit 100, when the lid opening / closing mechanism 6 is stopped at the opening / closing position of each lid 32 in the processing chamber 30 by the encoders of the movement motors 67B, 68B, Although the stop position is grasped, in this embodiment, the lid opening / closing mechanism 6 is stopped at the opening / closing position with high accuracy based on the detection value of the optical sensor 8 described above. .

  For example, the optical sensors 81 and 82 are in an ON state in which neither the optical axis of the first optical sensor 81 nor the optical axis of the second optical sensor 82 is blocked when the lid opening / closing mechanism 6 is in the standby position. Yes, this ON signal is output to the control unit 100. When the lid opening / closing mechanism 6 moves from the standby position to the processing chamber 30 to open / close the lid 32, first, the optical axis of the second optical sensor 82 is blocked by the one end side of the moving body 61 and is turned off. Therefore, an OFF signal is output from the second optical sensor 82 to the control unit 100. Based on this OFF signal, the control unit 100 outputs a deceleration command to the moving motors 68A and 68B of the lid opening / closing mechanism 6, and from here the lid opening / closing mechanism 6 slowly moves at a reduced speed.

  Then, when the optical axis of the first optical sensor 81 is blocked by the one end side of the moving body 61 and is turned off, an OFF signal is output from the first optical sensor 81 to the control unit 100. Based on this OFF signal, the control unit 100 outputs a stop command to the moving motors 68A and 68B of the lid opening / closing mechanism 6 to stop the lid opening / closing mechanism 6. Accordingly, the lid opening / closing mechanism 6 is accurately stopped at the opening / closing position in each processing chamber 30.

  In such a substrate processing apparatus 1, the above-described etching process is normally performed on the substrate S in a state where the lid opening / closing mechanism 6 is kept in a standby position above the lid reversing mechanism 4. Is called. When the lid 32 is opened during maintenance of the lid 32 or the processing chamber 30, the lid opening / closing mechanism 6 is moved from the standby position to the target processing chamber while the lid holding mechanism 7 is in the lowered position. Move toward 30. At this time, when there is another processing chamber 30 between the standby position and the target processing chamber 30, the horizontal portion 70 a of the lid holding mechanism 7 is connected to the held portion 5 of the processing chamber 30. Passes below the locking portion 50.

  Then, the lid opening / closing mechanism 6 is stopped at the opening / closing position of the target processing chamber 30 by the method described above (see FIG. 7A). At this opening / closing position, as described above, the horizontal portion 70a of the lid holding mechanism 7 of the lid opening / closing mechanism 6 is positioned below the locking portion 50 of the held portion 5 of the target processing chamber 30. doing. Next, as shown in FIG. 7B, the lid 32 is lifted from the processing chamber 30 by raising the lid holding mechanism 7 so as to push up the locking portion 50 at the horizontal portion 70a.

Thus, the lid opening / closing mechanism 6 moves toward the lid inverting mechanism 4 while the lid 32 is held by the lid opening / closing mechanism 6. Next, as shown in FIG. 8 (a), the lid stops at the lid mounting position on the upper side of the lid inverting mechanism 4, and descends from there to deliver the lid 32 to the frame 41. The lid holding mechanism 7 is further lowered to the lowered position, and the horizontal portion 70a of the lid holding mechanism 7 is positioned below the locking portion 50 of the held portion 5 of the lid 32, and then the lid is held. The body opening / closing mechanism 6 is moved to a position where it does not interfere with the reversing operation of the lid 32.
On the other hand, in the lid reversing mechanism 4, as shown in FIG. 8 (b), the frame 41 is rotated around the horizontal axis by the rotation drive unit 42 while the lid 32 is held by the frame 41, The lid 32 is inverted. A gas supply unit 35 and the like are attached to the back surface of the lid 32, and maintenance is performed with the lid 32 inverted and the gas supply unit 35 facing upward.

  In addition, the lid opening / closing mechanism 6 can be moved from the standby position toward the target processing chamber 30 in a state where the lid holding mechanism 7 is located at the raised position. In this case, the lid holding mechanism 7 is lowered to the lowered position before the opening / closing position of the target processing chamber 30, and then the lid opening / closing mechanism 6 is moved to the opening / closing position.

  In the above-described embodiment, the lid opening / closing mechanism 6 is provided so as to move along the outer periphery of the vacuum transfer chamber 13, and a plurality of processing chambers are provided by the lid holding mechanism 7 provided in the lid opening / closing mechanism 6. The 30 lid bodies 32 are each lifted. Since the lid holding mechanism 7 is configured to be able to move in the upper region of the processing chamber 30 along the arrangement of the processing chambers 30, the lateral space of the processing chamber 30 is not required when the lid 32 is attached or detached. It becomes. For this reason, the enlargement of an apparatus is suppressed and the increase in an installation area (footprint) can be suppressed.

  Further, since the lids 32 of all the processing chambers 30 can be attached and detached by the common lid opening / closing mechanism 6, the processing chamber 30 is smaller than the configuration in which the opening / closing mechanism of the lid 32 is provided for each processing chamber 30. The size of the apparatus can be suppressed, and an increase in footprint can be suppressed.

  Furthermore, since the lid opening / closing mechanism 6 is provided on the upper side of the processing chamber 30, the size can be reduced as compared with the configuration in which the lid opening / closing mechanism is provided around the processing chamber 30. Further, since a common lid opening / closing mechanism 6 may be provided for the plurality of processing chambers 30, it is advantageous in terms of manufacturing cost. Furthermore, it is not necessary to secure a maintenance area for the lid 32 for each processing chamber 30, and it is only necessary to secure a common maintenance area for the plurality of processing chambers 30. be able to.

  Furthermore, when the lid opening / closing mechanism 6 is configured in a gate shape, one end side thereof moves along the inner rail 62 and the other end side thereof moves along the outer rail 64. For this reason, since the load is dispersed, the lid 32 lifted by the lid holding mechanism 7 can be moved in a stable state. As described above, the processing chamber 30 is quite large, and the lid 32 also has a weight of about 10,000 kg. Therefore, it is very advantageous to move the load in a dispersed state.

  Furthermore, the lid opening / closing mechanism 6 is provided separately from the processing chamber 30, and the inner rail 62 and the outer rail 63 can be installed later according to the configuration of the processing chamber 30 and the vacuum transfer chamber 13. Therefore, it can be provided in combination with an existing substrate processing apparatus and has high utility value.

  Furthermore, the lid opening / closing mechanism 6 is provided so as to be movable along the outer periphery of the vacuum transfer chamber 13, and is normally located in a standby area different from the processing chamber 30. For this reason, even if the lid opening / closing mechanism 6 is provided, there is no obstacle in the vicinity of the gate valve GV between the processing chamber 30 and the vacuum transfer chamber 13, and maintenance is not hindered. Further, by providing the inner rail 62 in the vicinity of the outer periphery of the vacuum transfer chamber 13, it is possible to secure a space for forming the above-described opening 17 in the ceiling portion of the vacuum transfer chamber 13. For this reason, when necessary, there is an advantage that the substrate transfer mechanism 25 of the vacuum transfer chamber 13 can be taken out from the opening 17 and maintained.

  In this example, the inner rail 62 is provided directly on the top plate of the vacuum transfer chamber 13, but the inner rail 62 is provided on the support plate, and this support plate is installed on the top plate of the vacuum transfer chamber 13. You may make it do. With such a configuration, there is an advantage that the inner rail 62 is produced in another region and can be installed in the vacuum transfer chamber 13 later. Further, a support column that supports the inner rail 62 may be provided on the top plate of the vacuum transfer chamber 13, and the inner rail 62 may be provided thereon.

  Next, another embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. This embodiment differs from the above-described embodiment in that an inner rail 91 serving as an inner guide member is provided between the processing chamber 30 and the vacuum transfer chamber 13, and the inner rail 91 and the outer rail 92 are further connected to the vacuum transfer chamber. 13 is provided all around. By providing the inner rail 91 and the outer rail 92 on the entire circumference of the vacuum transfer chamber 13, for example, the upper portion of the load lock chamber 12 is made a lid having a held portion similar to the held portion 5 of the processing chamber 30. As a result, the lid of the load lock chamber 12 can be opened and closed by the lid opening / closing mechanism 6.

  The inner rail 91 is provided concentrically with respect to the center of the vacuum transfer chamber 13 above the gate valve GV between the processing chamber 30 and the vacuum transfer chamber 13. The inner rail 91 is supported by a column 93 provided in a region where the gate valve GV does not exist. The outer rail 92 is provided on the opposite side of the processing chamber 30 from the vacuum transfer chamber 13 so as to be supported by the support column 94 concentrically with respect to the center of the vacuum transfer chamber 13.

  In the example shown in FIG. 10, the inner rail 91 and the outer rail 92 are provided at a position lower than the upper surface of the processing chamber 30. In the example shown in FIG. 11, the inner rail 91 and the outer rail 92 are arranged in the processing chamber 30. It is the structure provided in the position higher than an upper surface. About another structure, it is the same as that of the above-mentioned embodiment.

  Also in these examples, the lid opening / closing mechanism 6 moves on the inner rail 91 and the outer rail 92 along the outer periphery of the vacuum transfer chamber 13, so that the increase in size of the apparatus is suppressed as in the above-described embodiment. , The increase in footprint can be suppressed. Further, by providing the inner rail 91 on the upper side of the gate valve GV, the inner rail 91 can be provided on the entire periphery of the vacuum transfer chamber 13. For this reason, since the lid opening / closing mechanism 6 can move around the vacuum transfer chamber 13, movement control is facilitated.

  Furthermore, since the lid opening / closing mechanism 6 is configured in a gate shape as in the above-described embodiment, the lid 32 can be moved in a stable state with the load dispersed, and the inner rail 91 can be moved. The outer rail 92 and the lid opening / closing mechanism 6 can be installed later on an existing substrate processing apparatus. Furthermore, since the inner rail 91 is provided outside the vacuum transfer chamber 13, the above-described opening 17 can be formed in the ceiling portion of the vacuum transfer chamber 13, and maintenance becomes convenient.

  In the above, the inner rail may be configured to be provided on the ceiling portion of the vacuum transfer chamber 13 in a state of being supported by the support columns provided around the vacuum transfer chamber 13. Further, when the weight of the lid 32 is light, such as the processing chamber 30 is small, the lid opening / closing mechanism 6 is not limited to the portal shape, and is opposite to the vacuum conveyance chamber 13 side or the vacuum conveyance chamber 13. It may be configured to extend from one of the sides to the processing chamber 30 and be supported only on one side. In this case, the guide member is provided on either the vacuum transfer chamber 13 side or the opposite side of the vacuum transfer chamber 13.

  Further, a plurality of lid opening / closing mechanisms 6 may be provided so as to be moved along a common guide member. Furthermore, the planar shape of the vacuum transfer chamber 13 is not limited to a regular polygon shape, and the plurality of processing chambers are not limited to the same shape. Further, the number of processing chambers 30 connected to the transfer chamber 13 may be any number as long as it is two or more, and the lid reversing mechanism 4 for the lid 32 is not necessarily provided. Further, when the lid body reversing mechanism 4 is provided, the arrangement of the processing chamber 30 and the lid body reversing mechanism 4 around the vacuum transfer chamber 13 can be appropriately selected. Furthermore, the drive unit for moving the moving body along the guide member may be a slider that is moved by the motor along the guide member. Further, with regard to the lifting mechanism that lifts and lowers the lid holding mechanism 7, a movable body is provided at the upper end of the saddle-shaped members 71a, 71a, and the lifting shaft on which the screw thread is formed rotates relative to the movable body. You may comprise so that a movable body may be raised / lowered along a raising / lowering axis | shaft.

  Further, the shape of the held portion 5 provided on the lid 32 is not limited as long as the lid holding mechanism 7 is raised and lowered to lift the held portion 5, and the shape is not limited, and the held portion 5 is provided on the side surface of the lid 32. May be. Further, the held portion 5 is not necessarily provided on the lid body 32, and a magnet may be provided at the lower end of the lid body holding mechanism 7, and the lid body may be attracted and held by this magnet and lifted.

S FPD substrate 13 Transfer chamber 30 Processing chamber 31 Container body 32 Lid 4 Lid reversing mechanism 5 Held part 50 Locking part 6 Lid opening / closing mechanism 62, 91 Inner rail 63, 92 Outer rail 67A, 67B Wheels 68A, 68B Moving motor 7 Lid holding part 70 Horizontal part

Claims (6)

A substrate transfer mechanism and a vacuum transfer chamber maintained in a vacuum atmosphere;
A preliminary vacuum chamber connected to the side of the vacuum transfer chamber;
In order to process the substrate, the side surface of the vacuum transfer chamber is connected to the auxiliary vacuum chamber so as to be separated from each other in the circumferential direction and arranged in the circumferential direction, and each is provided with a lid on the container body. A plurality of processing chambers,
A guide member provided to extend along the circumferential direction of the vacuum transfer chamber;
A moving body guided along the guide member;
A lid holding mechanism that is provided on the movable body so as to pass above the processing chamber by the movement of the movable body, and that holds and lifts the lid body to detach the lid body from the container body;
A substrate processing apparatus comprising: a driving unit configured to move the movable body along the guide member.   The lid body is provided with a held portion including a latching portion extending in a lateral direction and having a space formed below, and the lid body holding mechanism moves along the guide member while the latching portion is engaged. The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a holding portion that enters a space below the portion and then lifts and lifts the locking portion by pushing up the locking portion from below.   The guide member is provided on the vacuum transfer chamber, or an inner guide member provided between the vacuum transfer chamber and the processing chamber, and on the side opposite to the vacuum transfer chamber with respect to the processing chamber. The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising an outer guide member provided. The vacuum transfer chamber is formed in a polygonal planar shape,
The preliminary vacuum chamber and the processing chamber are respectively connected to other side surfaces of the vacuum transfer chamber except for a side surface for securing a maintenance area on the outer side thereof. The substrate processing apparatus according to any one of 1 to 3.   The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the maintenance area is provided with a lid reversing mechanism for holding and reversing the lid received from the lid holding mechanism.   5. The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the vacuum transfer chamber has six side surfaces, and the one preliminary vacuum chamber and four processing chambers are connected to the side surfaces.

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