JP6013824B2 - Work transfer device - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a mechanism for gripping and transporting a workpiece in an apparatus for processing a workpiece such as a semiconductor wafer.

  In the manufacturing process of a semiconductor device, various devices are generally used to transport a workpiece such as a semiconductor wafer (for example, Patent Document 1). In some cases, a semiconductor wafer is bonded onto a glass substrate, the semiconductor wafer is transported together with the glass substrate, and a process such as polishing is performed on the semiconductor wafer. In such a case, when transporting the semiconductor wafer, it is desirable to grip and transport only the glass substrate so that the transport mechanism does not contact the semiconductor portion to be processed.

  In manufacturing a semiconductor device, it may be necessary to transport semiconductor wafers of different sizes. Since the transport mechanism of the semiconductor wafer is designed and adjusted according to the size of the wafer to be processed, if the wafer size is different, it may not be transported properly. For example, if the size of the semiconductor wafer is smaller than the adjusted size of the transport mechanism, the gripping force will be weak, and the gap at the location where the wafer is gripped will be excessive, which may deteriorate the wafer positioning accuracy. . Further, when the size of the semiconductor wafer is larger than the size adjusted by the transport mechanism, the gripping force becomes excessive, an excessive stress may be applied to the wafer, and the wafer may not be gripped properly.

International Publication No. 2007/099976 Pamphlet

  When a semiconductor wafer bonded on a glass substrate is transported, it is desirable that the wafer gripping mechanism of the transport mechanism is designed to contact only the glass substrate and not contact the semiconductor wafer. However, there is an error in the bonding position when bonding the semiconductor wafer onto the glass substrate, and the bonding is not always performed at a fixed position. When the bonding position of the semiconductor wafer on the glass substrate is deviated from an ideal position, the semiconductor wafer may come into contact with the semiconductor wafer when the transport mechanism grips the glass substrate, thereby damaging the semiconductor wafer. Therefore, it is desired that the gripping mechanism of the transport mechanism does not contact the semiconductor wafer even when the bonding position of the semiconductor wafer on the glass substrate is deviated from the ideal position.

  When transporting semiconductor wafers of different sizes, the operating range of a gripping mechanism such as an arm for gripping the wafer may be changed. However, it takes time to change the operating range of the gripping mechanism because it is necessary to temporarily interrupt the manufacturing process. Therefore, it is desirable to be able to transport a plurality of sizes of semiconductor wafers in advance.

The present invention solves at least a part of the above problems.
According to one embodiment of the present invention, there is provided a workpiece transfer device for transferring a workpiece having a workpiece layer on a substrate layer and a part of the substrate layer. The workpiece transfer device has a workpiece gripping mechanism configured to operate to grip and release a workpiece. The workpiece gripping mechanism has at least one workpiece gripping surface which is inclined to grip the substrate layer of the workpiece with the workpiece layer positioned below the substrate layer. The inclined workpiece gripping surface is configured such that when the workpiece is gripped by the workpiece gripping mechanism, a clearance having a predetermined distance R or more exists between the workpiece gripping surface and the workpiece layer of the workpiece. Is done.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, the workpiece gripping surface has a first surface for gripping a workpiece of a first dimension and a second surface for gripping a workpiece of a second dimension.
According to one embodiment of the present invention, a workpiece polishing apparatus including the workpiece transfer apparatus according to the present invention is provided.

1 is a plan view showing an overall configuration of an exemplary polishing apparatus according to an embodiment. It is a perspective view which shows the outline of the grinding | polishing apparatus shown in FIG. It is a perspective view which shows an example swing transporter. It is a top view which shows the holding part of the swing transporter shown in FIG. It is a side view of the holding part of the swing transporter shown in FIG. FIG. 4 is an enlarged side view of a frame of a grip portion of the swing transporter shown in FIG. 3. It is a front view of an exemplary linear transporter. It is a top view of the linear transporter shown by FIG. It is a top view of the conveyance stage of the linear transporter shown by FIG. It is a side view of the conveyance stage of the linear transporter shown by FIG. It is an enlarged side view of the pin of the conveyance stage of the linear transporter shown by FIG. It is a perspective view which shows an example reversing machine. It is a top view of the reversing machine shown by FIG. It is a side view of the inversion machine shown by FIG. It is a longitudinal cross-sectional view which shows the opening / closing mechanism of the reversing machine shown by FIG. It is a longitudinal cross-sectional view which shows the opening / closing mechanism of the reversing machine shown by FIG. 8, and is a figure which shows the state which releases a wafer. FIG. 9 is a side view of the chuck of the reversing machine shown in FIG. 8 and shows a state before the wafer is reversed. FIG. 9 is a side view of the chuck of the reversing machine shown in FIG. 8 and shows a state after the wafer is reversed. It is a figure explaining the method of determining inclination-angle (theta) b of the inclined surface of the chuck | zipper of the reversing machine shown by FIG. It is a longitudinal cross-sectional view which shows an example lifter. It is a top view which shows the stage of the lifter shown by FIG. It is a side view which shows the stage of the lifter shown by FIG. FIG. 16 is a partially enlarged side view showing a nail of the lifter stage shown in FIG. 15. It is a perspective view which shows the conveyance unit of the example washing | cleaning part. It is a perspective view which shows the chuck | zipper piece of the conveyance unit shown by FIG. 17 alone. FIG. 19 is a top view of the chuck piece shown in FIG. 18. FIG. 19 is a cross-sectional view taken along line BB of the chuck piece shown in FIG. 18.

  Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. As an example, a semiconductor wafer polishing apparatus similar to that disclosed in International Publication No. 2007/099976 (Patent Document 1) is taken up. In the accompanying drawings, the same or corresponding components are denoted by the same reference numerals, and redundant description is omitted. In addition, in the polishing apparatus described below, since a structure other than the structure related to the wafer gripping mechanism of each wafer transfer apparatus, a known structure or a structure disclosed in International Publication No. 2007/099976 can be adopted. The detailed description of is omitted.

  FIG. 1 is a plan view showing the overall configuration of an exemplary polishing apparatus, and FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing an outline of the polishing apparatus shown in FIG. As shown in FIG. 1, the polishing apparatus includes a substantially rectangular housing 1, and the interior of the housing 1 includes a load / unload section 2 and a polishing section 3 (3a, 3b) by partition walls 1a, 1b, 1c. It is partitioned into a cleaning unit 4. The load / unload unit 2, the polishing units 3a and 3b, and the cleaning unit 4 are assembled independently and exhausted independently.

  The load / unload unit 2 includes two or more (four in this embodiment) front load units 20 on which a wafer cassette for stocking a large number of semiconductor wafers is placed. These front load portions 20 are arranged adjacent to each other in the width direction (direction perpendicular to the longitudinal direction) of the polishing apparatus. The front load unit 20 can be equipped with an open cassette, a SMIF (Standard Manufacturing Interface) pod, or a FOUP (Front Opening Unified Pod). Here, SMIF and FOUP are sealed containers that can maintain an environment independent of the external space by accommodating a wafer cassette inside and covering with a partition wall.

  The polishing unit 3 is a region where a semiconductor wafer is polished, and includes a first polishing unit 3a having a first polishing unit 30A and a second polishing unit 30B, a third polishing unit 30C, and a fourth polishing unit 30D. The 2nd grinding | polishing part 3b which has these inside. The first polishing unit 30A, the second polishing unit 30B, the third polishing unit 30C, and the fourth polishing unit 30D are arranged along the longitudinal direction of the apparatus as shown in FIG.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the first polishing unit 30A includes a polishing table 300A having a polishing surface, a top ring 301A for holding a semiconductor wafer and polishing the semiconductor wafer while pressing the semiconductor wafer against the polishing table 300A, A polishing liquid supply nozzle 302A for supplying a polishing liquid or a dressing liquid (for example, water) to the polishing table 300A, a dresser 303A for dressing the polishing table 300A, a liquid (for example, pure water), and a gas (for example, nitrogen). And an atomizer 304A that mists the mixed fluid or liquid (for example, pure water) and sprays it onto the polishing surface from one or a plurality of nozzles. Similarly, the second polishing unit 30B includes a polishing table 300B, a top ring 301B, a polishing liquid supply nozzle 302B, a dresser 303B, and an atomizer 304B. The third polishing unit 30C includes a polishing table. 300C, a top ring 301C, a polishing liquid supply nozzle 302C, a dresser 303C, and an atomizer 304C. The fourth polishing unit 30D includes a polishing table 300D, a top ring 301D, and a polishing liquid supply nozzle 302D. , A dresser 303D and an atomizer 304D.

  Between the first polishing unit 30A and the second polishing unit 30B of the first polishing unit 3a and the cleaning unit 4, four transfer positions along the longitudinal direction (first transfer in order from the load / unload unit 2 side). A first linear transporter 5 for transferring the wafer is disposed between the position TP1, the second transfer position TP2, the third transfer position TP3, and the fourth transfer position TP4. Above the first transfer position TP1 of the first linear transporter 5, a reversing machine 31 for inverting the wafer received from the transfer robot 22 of the load / unload unit 2 is arranged, and below it is vertically moved. A lifter 32 that can be raised and lowered is disposed. A pusher 33 that can be moved up and down is disposed below the second transport position TP2, and a pusher 34 that can be moved up and down is disposed below the third transport position TP3. A shutter 12 is provided between the third transport position TP3 and the fourth transport position TP4.

In addition, the second polishing unit 3b is adjacent to the first linear transporter 5 and has three transfer positions along the longitudinal direction (the fifth transfer position TP5 and the sixth transfer in order from the load / unload unit 2 side). A second linear transporter 6 for transferring the wafer between the position TP6 and the seventh transfer position TP7 is disposed. A pusher 37 is disposed below the sixth transport position TP6 of the second linear transporter 6, and a pusher 38 is disposed below the seventh transport position TP7. A shutter 13 is provided between the fifth transport position TP5 and the sixth transport position TP6.

  The cleaning unit 4 is an area for cleaning the polished semiconductor wafer, and includes a reversing machine 41 that reverses the wafer, four cleaning machines 42 to 45 that clean the polished semiconductor wafer, a reversing machine 41, and a cleaning machine 42. And a transfer unit 46 for transferring a wafer between .about.45. The reversing machine 41 and the washing machines 42 to 45 are arranged in series along the longitudinal direction. In addition, a filter fan unit (not shown) having a clean air filter is provided above the washing machines 42 to 45, and clean air from which particles have been removed by this filter fan unit is always directed downward. Is blowing. Further, the inside of the cleaning unit 4 is constantly maintained at a pressure higher than that of the polishing unit 3 in order to prevent inflow of particles from the polishing unit 3.

  As shown in FIG. 1, between the first linear transporter 5 and the second linear transporter 6, between the first linear transporter 5, the second linear transporter 6, and the reversing machine 41 of the cleaning unit 4. A swing transporter (wafer transport mechanism) 7 for transporting the wafer is disposed. The swing transporter 7 moves from the fourth transport position TP4 of the first linear transporter 5 to the fifth transport position TP5 of the second linear transporter 6, and from the fifth transport position TP5 of the second linear transporter 6 to the reversing machine 41. The wafers can be transferred from the fourth transfer position TP4 of the first linear transporter 5 to the reversing machine 41, respectively.

Hereinafter, each conveyance mechanism will be described.
The swing transporter swing transporter 7 will be described. FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing the swing transporter 7 together with the reversing machine 41 of the cleaning unit 4. As shown in FIG. 3, the swing transporter 7 according to the present embodiment is installed in a frame 102 of the casing of the first polishing unit 3a, and is arranged inside a frame 102 having a substantially U-shaped cross section extending vertically. The robot cylinder 104, the base bracket 106 that moves up and down on the robot cylinder 104, the motor 107 that moves the robot cylinder 104 up and down, the motor cover 108 attached to the base bracket 106, and the motor cover 108. A turning arm 110 attached to the rotating shaft of the motor and a wafer gripping mechanism 112 attached to the tip of the turning arm 110 are provided.

  The wafer gripping mechanism 112 includes a pair of gripping portions 114 that grip the periphery of the wafer W from both sides, and an opening / closing mechanism 116 that opens and closes the rod 114a of the gripping portion 114 in the radial direction of the wafer W (arrow A). The pair of gripping portions 114 are arranged so as to face each other across the center of the wafer W, and at each end of each gripping portion 114, a top (chuck mechanism) 118 that makes point contact with the outer peripheral portion of the wafer W is provided. Two each are provided. These pieces 118 are provided so as to protrude downward from both ends of the gripping portion 114.

The opening / closing mechanism 116 is constituted by, for example, an air cylinder, and grips the wafer W by moving the gripping portions 114 in directions close to each other, and releases the wafer W by moving the gripping portions 114 in directions away from each other. 4A and 4B are diagrams showing the gripping portion 114. FIG. 4A is a top view of the gripping portion 114, FIG. 4B is a side view of the gripping portion 114, and FIG. FIG. In FIG. 4, the structure other than the grip portion 114 is omitted for clarity of illustration and description. As shown in FIG. 4C, the top 118 is formed with tapered portions 120a and 120b having different inclination angles, and the tapered portions 120a and 120b support wafers (W1 and W2) having different dimensions. be able to. for that reason,
In the swing transporter 7 of this embodiment, wafers having different dimensions can be transferred. In this embodiment, the example in which the two pieces 118 are provided in each gripping portion 114 has been described. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and three or more pieces 118 may be provided in each gripping portion 114. Good.

  As described above, the wafer gripping mechanism 112 of the swing transporter 7 of the present embodiment grips and releases the wafer W by moving the pair of gripping portions 114 in one direction opposite to each other. The wafer W can be gripped.

  A ball screw and a slide guide are provided in the ROBO cylinder 104, and the base bracket 106 on the ROBO cylinder 104 is moved up and down by the drive of the motor 107 (arrow B). As a result, the wafer gripping mechanism 112 moves up and down together with the base bracket 106, and the vertical movement mechanism that moves the wafer gripping mechanism 112 up and down along the frame 102 is constituted by the ROBO cylinder 104 and the base bracket 106.

  Further, the turning arm 110 is turned around the rotation axis of the motor by driving the motor in the motor cover 108 (arrow C). As a result, the wafer gripping mechanism 112 is moved between the first linear transporter 5, the second linear transporter 6, and the reversing machine 41 of the cleaning unit 4, and the motor 108 adjacent to the frame 102. A turning mechanism for turning the wafer gripping mechanism 112 around the rotation axis is constituted by the motor in the motor cover 108 and the turning arm 110. In this embodiment, the example in which the wafer gripping mechanism 112 is turned around the rotation axis of the motor in the motor cover 108 adjacent to the frame 102 has been described. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the frame 102 is the center. The wafer gripping mechanism 112 may be turned.

When gripping the wafer W, the base bracket 106 is lowered with the gripping portion 114 open until the top 118 of the gripping portion 114 is positioned below the wafer W. Then, the opening / closing mechanism 116 is driven to move the gripping part 114 in a direction approaching each other, so that the innermost peripheral part of the top 118 of the gripping part 114 is positioned inside the outermost peripheral part of the wafer W. In this state, the base bracket 106 is raised, and the wafer W is lifted while being gripped by the top 118 of the gripping portion 114. In this embodiment, the top 118 and the wafer W are in point contact, and the contact area of the wafer W can be reduced as much as possible. Therefore, dust attached to the surface of the wafer W when the wafer is held can be reduced. .
Linear transporter Next, the first linear transporter 5 of the first polishing section 3a will be described. 5 is a front view of the first linear transporter 5, and FIG. 6 is a plan view of FIG. As shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, the first linear transporter 5 includes four transfer stages TS1, TS2, TS3, TS4 that can move back and forth in a straight line. It has become. That is, the first transfer stage TS1, the second transfer stage TS2, and the third transfer stage TS3 are arranged in the lower stage, and the fourth transfer stage TS4 is arranged in the upper stage.

The lower transfer stages TS1, TS2, TS3 and the upper transfer stage TS4 move on the same axis in the plan view of FIG. 6, but are installed at different heights. TS2 and TS3 and the upper transfer stage TS4 can freely move without interfering with each other. The first transfer stage TS1 transfers the wafer between the first transfer position TP1 where the reversing machine 31 and the lifter 32 are arranged, and the second transfer position TP2 where the pusher 33 is arranged (which is a wafer transfer position). The second transfer stage TS2 transfers the wafer between the second transfer position TP2 and the third transfer position TP3 where the pusher 34 is disposed (wafer transfer position). The third transfer stage TS3 The wafer is transferred between the third transfer position TP3 and the fourth transfer position TP4. The fourth transfer stage TS4 transfers the wafer between the first transfer position TP1 and the fourth transfer position TP4.

  As shown in FIG. 6, four pins 50 are fixed to each transfer stage TS1, TS2, TS3, TS4, and the outer periphery of the wafer placed on the transfer stage is guided by these pins 50. In this state, the wafer is supported on the transfer stage. These pins 50 are made of a resin such as polypropylene (PP), polychlorotrifluoroethylene (PCTFE), or polyetheretherketone (PEEK). Each transfer stage is configured with a sensor (not shown) that detects the presence or absence of a wafer by a transmission sensor or the like, so that the presence or absence of a wafer on each transfer stage can be detected. .

7A and 7B are diagrams showing the transfer stage TS. FIG. 7A is a top view of the transfer stage ST, FIG. 7B is a side view of the transfer stage ST, and FIG. 7C is a pin of the transfer stage ST. FIG. As shown in FIG. 7C, the pin 50 is formed with taper portions 50a and 50b having different inclination angles, and the taper portions 50a and 50b support wafers (W1 and W2) having different dimensions. can do. Therefore, in the linear transporter 5 of this embodiment, wafers having different dimensions can be transferred.
Reversing machine will now be described reversing machine 31 of the first polishing section 3a. The reversing machine 31 of the first polishing unit 3a is disposed at a position where the hand of the transfer robot 22 of the load / unload unit 2 can reach, receives the wafer before polishing from the transfer robot 22, and reverses the wafer upside down. To the lifter 32.

  8 is a perspective view showing the reversing machine 31, FIG. 9 is a plan view of FIG. 8, and FIG. 10 is a side view of FIG. As shown in FIGS. 8 to 10, the reversing machine 31 includes a pair of arc-shaped gripping portions 310 that grip the peripheral edge of the wafer W from both sides, a shaft 314 attached to the gripping portion 310, and the shaft 314 as its axis. And an opening / closing mechanism 312 that opens and closes the grip portion 310. The pair of gripping portions 310 are arranged to face each other across the center of the wafer W, and two chuck portions 311 that are in line contact with the outer peripheral portion of the wafer W are provided at both ends of each gripping portion 310. Is provided. In this embodiment, an example in which two chuck portions 311 are provided in each gripping portion 310 will be described. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and each gripping portion 310 is provided with three or more chuck portions 311. May be.

  FIG. 11 is a longitudinal sectional view showing the opening / closing mechanism 312 of the reversing machine 31. As shown in FIG. 11, the opening / closing mechanism 312 includes a compression spring 315 that biases each shaft 314 and the grip portion 310 in the closing direction, and a sliding air cylinder 313 coupled to each shaft 314. . The opening / closing mechanism 312 is configured to grip the wafer W by moving the gripping portion 310 toward each other by a compression spring 315. At this time, the movable portion 313 a of the air cylinder 313 is in contact with the mechanical stopper 317. It has become. In addition, the opening / closing mechanism 312 releases the wafer W by moving the gripping portions 310 in directions away from each other by driving the air cylinder 313. The state at this time is shown in FIG.

  That is, when gripping the wafer W, one air cylinder 313 is pressurized, and the other air cylinder 313 is closed only by the urging force of the compression spring 315. At this time, only the movable portion 313a of the pressurized air cylinder 313 is pressed against the mechanical stopper 317 and fixed at that position. At this time, the position of the grip portion 310 connected to the other air cylinder 313 urged by the compression spring 315 is detected by the sensor 319. When there is no wafer W, the air cylinder 313 that is not pressurized is in the full stroke position, and the sensor 319 does not respond, so that it is detected that the wafer W is not gripped.

  As described above, by using the compression spring 315 for gripping the wafer W and using the air cylinder 313 for releasing the wafer W, it is possible to prevent the wafer W from being damaged by the air pressure of the air cylinder 313.

  As shown in FIGS. 8 to 10, the opening / closing mechanism 312 is provided with a rotating shaft 316 that rotates about an axis perpendicular to the central axis of the wafer W. The rotating shaft 316 is connected to a reversing mechanism 318 and is rotated by the reversing mechanism 318. Therefore, when the reversing mechanism 318 is driven, the opening / closing mechanism 312 and the gripping portion 310 rotate around the rotation shaft 316 so that the wafer W gripped by the gripping portion 310 is reversed.

  FIG. 13 is a side view of the chuck 311. FIG. 13A shows a state before the semiconductor wafer W bonded to the glass substrate G is inverted, and FIG. 13B shows a state after the inversion. As shown in FIG. 13, the chuck portion 311 of the reversing machine 31 includes an inclined surface 311 a (lower protrusion) that gradually increases from the radially inner side to the outer side of the wafers G and W and the radially outer side of the wafer W. And an inclined surface 311b that gradually increases toward the inside. Wafers G and W are positioned between these inclined surfaces 311a and 311b. In FIG. 13, the wafer W is bonded onto the glass substrate G. In the state before inversion shown in FIG. 13A, the wafer W is positioned above the glass substrate G, and in the state after inversion shown in FIG. 13B, the wafer W is below the glass substrate G. To position. At this time, it is desirable to prevent the wafer W from coming into contact with the inclined surfaces 311 a and 311 b of the chuck 311. Therefore, the inclined surfaces 311a and 311b of the chuck 311 are set as follows.

FIG. 14 is a diagram for explaining a method of determining the inclination angle θb of the inclined surface 311b of the chuck 311. FIG. 14 shows a cross section of a work in which a wafer W is bonded to a glass substrate G. A straight line in contact with the glass substrate G and the semiconductor wafer W in the cross section of the wafers G and W is defined as L1. The angle between L1 and the glass substrate is θ1. A circle with a radius R is drawn around the contact point between L1 and the wafer W. The radius R is a clearance between the inclined surface 311b and the wafer W that is desired to be secured as a design value. R is determined in consideration of a positioning error when bonding the wafer W onto the glass substrate G. A straight line in contact with the circle with the radius R and the glass substrate G is defined as L2. The angle formed by L1 and L2 is θ2. An angle formed by a straight line parallel to the surface of L2 and the wafer W is defined as θ3. At this time, the inclination angle θb of the inclined surface 311b is set to θ3 or more and less than 90 ° (θ3 ≦ θb <90 °). By setting θb in this way, a clearance equal to or greater than the design value R is always formed between the inclined surface 311b and the wafer W. R is determined in consideration of a positioning error when bonding the wafer W onto the glass substrate G. Therefore, even if there is a positioning error when bonding the wafer W onto the glass substrate G, the inclined surface 311b is There is no contact with W. Note that the inclined surface 311a can be determined in the same way as the inclined surface 311b. When the tilt angle θb is 90 ° or more, in the state of FIG. 13B, the wafer W falls from the reversing machine without being supported by the tilted surface 311b. Therefore, in order to prevent the wafer W from dropping from the reversing machine, θb is set to less than 90 °.

Further, the wafer holding structure of the reversing machine 41 of the cleaning unit 4 can be configured in the same manner as the reversing machine 31 of the polishing unit 3.
Lifter will be described next lifter 32 of the first polishing section 3a. The lifter 32 of the first polishing unit 3a is disposed at a position where the transfer robot 22 and the first linear transporter 5 can be accessed, and functions as a delivery mechanism for delivering a wafer between them. That is, the wafer reversed by the reversing machine 31 is transferred to the first transfer stage TS1 or the fourth transfer stage TS4 of the first linear transporter 5.

  FIG. 15 is a longitudinal sectional view showing the lifter 32. 16A is a top view of the stage 322 of the lifter 32, FIG. 16B is a side view of the stage 322, and FIG. 16C is a partially enlarged side view of the claw 325 of the stage 322. The lifter 32 includes a stage 322 on which a wafer is placed, and a cylinder 323 that moves the stage 322 up and down. The cylinder 323 and the stage 322 are connected by a slidable shaft 324. As shown in FIG. 16A, the stage 322 is divided into a plurality of claws 325, and each of the claws 325 can hold the wafer within a range that does not affect the conveyance even when the orientation flat wafer is placed. Arranged at intervals. The claw 325 is arranged in a direction that does not match the phase of the chuck portion 311 of the reversing machine 31. That is, the first wafer edge portion where the chuck portion 311 holds the wafer does not coincide with the second wafer edge portion held by the claw 325 of the lifter 32. Further, the claw 325 for delivering the wafer to the reversing machine 31 and the first linear transporter 5 has a surface on which the wafer is placed, and the upper part absorbs the transfer positioning error when the wafer is placed. The taper is formed so as to center the wafer.

As shown in FIG. 16C, the claw 325 includes a wafer support member 326. Preferably, the wafer support member 326 is formed from an elastomer material. More preferably, the wafer support member 326 can be formed from an elastomeric material having a durometer D scale of 30 to 50, most preferably 40 hardness.
Transport unit of the cleaning unit will be described next transport unit 46 of the cleaning section 4. FIG. 17 is a perspective view showing the transport unit 46. As shown in FIG. 17, the transport unit 46 includes four chucking units 461 to 464 as wafer gripping mechanisms that detachably grip the wafer in the cleaning machine, and these chucking units 461 to 464 include A guide frame 466 extending in the horizontal direction from the main frame 465 is attached. A ball screw (not shown) extending in the vertical direction is attached to the main frame 465, and the chucking units 461 to 464 are moved up and down by driving a motor 468 connected to the ball screw. ing. Therefore, the motor 468 and the ball screw constitute a vertical movement mechanism that moves the chucking units 461 to 464 up and down.

  Further, a ball screw 469 extending in parallel with the arrangement of the washing machines 42 to 45 is attached to the main frame 465, and the main frame 465 and the chucking unit 461 are driven by driving a motor 470 coupled to the ball screw 469. 464 move in the horizontal direction. Therefore, the motor 470 and the ball screw 469 constitute a moving mechanism that moves the chucking units 461 to 464 along the arrangement direction of the cleaning machines 42 to 45 (the arrangement direction of the chucking units 461 to 464).

  In the present embodiment, the same number of chucking units as the washing machines 42 to 45 are used. Since the chucking units 461 and 462 and the chucking units 463 and 464 have basically the same structure and are symmetrical with respect to the main frame 465, only the chucking units 461 and 462 will be described below.

The chucking unit 461 includes a pair of openable and closable arms 471a and 471b that hold the wafer W, and the chucking unit 462 includes a pair of arms 472a and 472b. At least three (four in this embodiment) chuck pieces 473 are provided on the arms of each chucking unit. These chuck pieces 473 sandwich and hold the peripheral edge of the wafer W so that the wafer can be conveyed to the next cleaning machine. The structure of the chuck piece 473 will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 18 is a view for explaining the chuck piece 473. FIG. 18A is a perspective view showing the chuck piece 473 before mounting as a single unit. 18B is a top view of the chuck piece 473, and FIG. 18C is a cross-sectional view taken along the line BB in FIG. 18B. As shown in FIG. 18C, the chuck piece 473 is formed with inclined surfaces 473a and 473b for supporting wafers having different dimensions. Therefore, wafers W having different dimensions can be transferred without adjusting the movable range of the arm.

  As shown in FIG. 17, the guide frame 466 has an air cylinder for opening and closing the arms 471a and 471b of the chucking unit 461 and the arms 472a and 472b of the chucking unit 462 in a direction close to each other or a direction away from each other. 474 is provided. Although not described in detail, a link mechanism for transmitting the motion of the air cylinder 474 to the arms 471a, 471b, 472a, 472b is provided. Therefore, by closing the arms 471a, 471b, 472a, 472b with the air cylinder 474, the wafer W can be held while the end surface of the wafer W is sandwiched between the arms 471a, 471b, 472a, 472b. As described above, the air cylinder 474 constitutes an opening / closing mechanism that opens and closes the arms of the chucking units 461 to 464 in a direction close to each other or a direction away from each other. Each chucking unit can detect the presence or absence of a wafer by detecting the stroke of the air cylinder. Note that the wafer may be held by vacuum suction. In this case, the presence or absence of the wafer can be detected by measuring the vacuum pressure.

  Further, the arms 471 a and 471 b of the chucking unit 461 and the arms 472 a and 472 b of the chucking unit 462 are attached to a rotation shaft 475 provided rotatably on the guide frame 466. The guide frame 466 is provided with an air cylinder 476 that rotates these arms 471a, 471b, 472a, 472b around the rotation shaft 475. A link member 478 that can rotate around a pin 477 is provided at the tip of the rod of the air cylinder 476. The link member 478 is connected to the rotation shaft 475 via the rod 479. Thus, the air cylinder 476, the link member 478, and the rod 479 constitute a rotation mechanism that rotates the arms of the chucking units 461 to 464 around the rotation shaft 475.

  As mentioned above, although embodiment of this invention was described, this invention is not limited to the above embodiment. For example, the embodiments of the wafer gripping mechanism in the above-described swing transporter, linear transporter, reversing machine, lifter, cleaning unit transport unit, and the like can be exchanged as long as they do not contradict each other.

  For example, the inclination angle θb of the inclined surface 311b of the reversing machine is determined by the inclination angles of the tapered portions 120a and 120b of the top 118 of the swing transporter 7 and the tapered portions 50a and 50b of the pin 50 of the linear transporter 5. This can be similarly applied to the determination of the inclination angle and the inclination angles of the inclined portions 473a and 473b of the chucking piece 473 of the transport unit 46. By determining the respective inclination angles in this manner, the gripping mechanism is prevented from coming into contact with the wafer W when the wafer W is bonded onto the glass substrate, as described in the example of the reversing machine. be able to.

Claims (4)

A workpiece transfer device for transferring a workpiece having a substrate layer and a layer to be processed on a part of the substrate layer, wherein the workpiece transfer device is
A workpiece gripping mechanism configured to operate to grip and release the workpiece, wherein the workpiece gripping mechanism is configured such that the substrate layer of the workpiece is positioned under the substrate layer. The workpiece gripping mechanism is configured to grip
A first inclined surface that gradually increases from the radially inner side to the outer side of the workpiece to be gripped;
A second inclined surface that gradually increases from the radially outer side to the inner side of the workpiece to be gripped;
A contact surface that is located between the first inclined surface and the second inclined surface and that grips the substrate layer of the workpiece,
When the substrate layer before Symbol workpiece is gripped by the contact surface, so that there is a predetermined distance R or more the size of the clearance between the layer to be processed of the said second inclined surface work A workpiece transfer device. It is a workpiece conveyance apparatus of Claim 1, Comprising:
The inclination angle θb of the second inclined surface satisfies θ3 ≦ θb <90 ° and θ3 = θ1 + θ2.
Here, a straight line in contact with the substrate layer and the workpiece layer is L1, an angle formed by the straight line L1 and the substrate layer is θ1, and a circle with a radius R is drawn with the straight line L1 and the contact point of the workpiece as a center. In this case, a straight line contacting the circle of radius R and the substrate layer is L2, an angle formed by the straight line L1 and the straight line L2 is θ2, and an angle formed by the straight line L2 and a straight line parallel to the surface of the workpiece is θ3. A workpiece transfer device. A workpiece transfer device for transferring a workpiece having a substrate layer and a layer to be processed on a part of the substrate layer, wherein the workpiece transfer device is
A workpiece gripping mechanism configured to operate to grip and release the workpiece, the workpiece gripping mechanism having at least one workpiece gripping surface for gripping the substrate layer;
The workpiece gripping surface includes a first tapered portion for gripping a workpiece of a first dimension, a second tapered portion for gripping the workpiece in the second dimension, the possess, said first tapered portion The workpiece conveying device , which is different from the second tapered portion and is continuously located . Having a workpiece transfer device according to any one of claims 1 to 3, a work polishing apparatus.

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