JP6128408B2 - Workpiece input device - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a processing object input device used to input a processing object in an airtight state from the outside into a processing apparatus that processes the processing object in an airtight state.

  2. Description of the Related Art Processing apparatuses that process an object to be processed in an airtight state are known. For example, an apparatus for manufacturing single crystal silicon, which is a material for a semiconductor substrate, is known in which a silicon material, which is an object to be processed, is introduced into a processing apparatus and melted, and the molten silicon material is solidified. It has been. During the manufacturing process of the single crystal silicon, the inside of the processing apparatus is placed in a special atmosphere different from the outside air. For example, the inside of the processing apparatus is placed in an inert gas atmosphere or a vacuum atmosphere.

  And the to-be-processed object input apparatus for inputting to-be-processed object from the outside into the said processing apparatus is also known (for example, patent document 1, 2).

  The workpiece input device (silicon granule supply device) described in Patent Document 1 includes a hopper, a feeder, a casing, a quartz port, and a bellows. The hopper is provided to accommodate the silicon granules inside the casing in an inert gas atmosphere, and a feeder for conveying an object to be processed (silicon granules) is provided below the hopper. The quartz port is connected to the housing via the bellows. A part of the quartz port is inserted into the processing apparatus (heating furnace) and communicates with the inside of the heating furnace. Each of the silicon granule supply device and the heating furnace is hermetically sealed. Specifically, each interior is placed in an inert gas atmosphere. That is, the inside of each of the silicon granule supply device and the heating furnace has the same inert gas atmosphere. Thereby, silicon granules can be put into the inside of the heating furnace in an airtight state (inert gas atmosphere) through the quartz port from the hopper.

  Moreover, in this workpiece input device (silicon granule supply device), the lower end of the quartz port, which is a passage for guiding the silicon granules to the crucible inside the processing device, does not interfere with the single crystal silicon pulled up from the crucible. It is fixed to the periphery of the crucible.

  The workpiece input device (charge material supply device) described in Patent Document 2 has the same basic configuration as that described in Patent Document 1. This workpiece input device (charging material supply device) includes a hopper, a trough, a vibrating part, a charging material charging chamber, and a shooter. The charging material charging chamber is in a vacuum atmosphere, and a hopper for storing an object to be processed (charging material) is provided inside the charging material charging chamber. And the trough and vibration part for conveying a charging material are provided under this hopper. A part of the shooter is inserted into the processing apparatus (vacuum chamber) and communicates with the inside of the vacuum chamber. Both the charging material input chamber and the vacuum chamber can be sealed from the outside air, and the inside of each is kept airtight. Specifically, each interior is placed in a vacuum atmosphere. That is, the inside of each of the charging material supply device and the vacuum chamber is the same vacuum atmosphere. Thereby, a charging material can be thrown into the inside of a vacuum chamber in an airtight state (vacuum atmosphere) via a shooter from a hopper.

JP 59-115736 A JP 2003-21470 A

  By the way, in the workpiece input device (silicon granule supply device) described in Patent Document 1, when the silicon granules stored in the hopper must be replenished, The lid provided on the hopper is opened, from which the hopper is refilled with silicon granules. Further, in the workpiece input device (charge material supply device) described in Patent Document 2, when the charge material stored in the hopper is lost, the hopper needs to be replenished with the charge material. The vacuum door provided in the charging material charging chamber is opened, and the charging material is replenished from there to the hopper.

  However, these workpiece input devices (silicon granule supply device, charging material supply device) are all in communication with the inside of the processing device. For this reason, if it is going to replenish a to-be-processed object in the process of a processing apparatus, even the inside of a processing apparatus will be open | released by the open air with opening of a to-be-processed object injection | throwing-in apparatus (open | release of a lid | cover or a vacuum door). . From this, the airtight state (special atmosphere) kept until then is destroyed. Therefore, the replenishment of the object to be processed cannot be performed during the process, and needs to be performed after the process. For this reason, there has been a problem that idle time (operation stop time) increases.

  Therefore, the present invention has been made in view of the problems of the conventional workpiece input device, and the workpiece input device for the object to be processed without destroying the special atmosphere inside the processing device. It is an object of the present invention to provide a workpiece input device capable of replenishing the material.

The present invention can temporarily store a processing object in a processing object input device for inputting the processing object in an airtight state from the outside into a processing apparatus that processes the processing object in an airtight state. A workpiece storage unit having an openable / closable storage port used when storing the workpiece, and a transport unit that takes the workpiece out of the workpiece storage unit in an airtight state and transports the workpiece to the processing apparatus; A closing mechanism capable of blocking the processing device side of the transfer unit from the processing object storage unit side, and of the transfer unit, the transfer object storage unit rather than the closing unit. A joint portion capable of separating and joining the transport section at a position on the side, the workpiece storage section, and a section of the transport section closer to the workpiece storage section than the joint section, configure the dosing device body integrally, the moving mechanism, the joint Was separated, the downstream side in the state able to move the entire of the dosing device body in a direction approaching and separating relative to the processing device, the joint part to be treated housing part side of the section than the one of the transport unit The end portion includes a receiving chute that guides the workpiece to a section closer to the processing device than the joint portion of the transport unit, and the receiving chute includes a cylindrical main body portion through which the workpiece passes. And an outer cylindrical body located on the outer periphery of the main body.

  According to this configuration, by closing the closing portion, the processing device side and the workpiece storage portion side of the transport portion can be shut off and a special atmosphere inside the processing device can be maintained. The processing unit side of the transport unit and the workpiece storage unit side can be separated by the joint unit. And since the main-body part of a receiving chute is provided with an outer cylinder, it can prevent that the impact which a receiving chute receives in the case of isolation | separation and joining of a joint part directly to a main-body part.

  Further, in the present invention, the outer periphery of the receiving chute is provided with a receiving chute jacket bellows that can expand and contract along the extending direction of the receiving chute, and in the shortened state of the receiving chute jacket bellows, the processing of the receiving chute A part of the apparatus side may be exposed from the receiving chute jacket bellows and can be inserted into the closing portion.

  According to this configuration, the airtight state of the transport unit is maintained by the receiving chute jacket bellows, and the receiving chute is protected. And since a to-be-processed object can be prevented from touching the inner surface of a closed part directly by inserting a part of receiving chute into the inside of a closed part, a closed part can be protected from a to-be-processed object.

  Moreover, in this invention, the said main-body part can also be made into a thing whose length is longer than the length of the said outer cylinder.

  According to this configuration, when the outer cylinder is attached to the main body, a part of the main body is exposed from the outer cylinder. Thereby, when exchanging a main-body part, it is easy to remove a main-body part from an outer cylinder.

  In the present invention, the main body may be made of quartz glass, and the outer cylinder may be made of metal.

  According to this configuration, since the outer cylindrical body is made of metal, it is possible to effectively protect the main body that is easily broken because it is made of quartz glass.

  According to the present invention, it is possible to replenish a workpiece into the workpiece input device without destroying the special atmosphere inside the processing device, thereby reducing idle time (operation stop time). Productivity can be improved. And since the body part of the receiving chute has an outer cylinder, it is possible to prevent the impact received by the receiving chute from being transmitted directly to the main body part when separating and joining the joint part, thereby effectively protecting the main body part. it can.

It is a schematic diagram which shows the processing apparatus and workpiece input apparatus which concern on one Embodiment of this invention. The charging device main body is shown among the said workpiece input devices, (A) is a perspective view, (B) is a longitudinal cross-sectional view. It is the schematic which shows the lower part periphery of a supply tank among the to-be-processed material input devices, (A) is a side view, (B) is a front view, (C) is an AA arrow line view of (A), (D) is an operation explanatory view of the stopper in the direction of arrow B in (C), and (E) is an enlarged longitudinal sectional view at the center of the supply tank in the X part of (B). It is a longitudinal cross-sectional view which shows an input part among the to-be-processed object input devices. It is a longitudinal cross-sectional view of the principal part which shows the input part among the to-be-processed object input devices. It is a longitudinal cross-sectional view which shows a receiving chute among the to-be-processed object input devices. It is a longitudinal cross-sectional view which shows a joint part periphery among the to-be-processed object injection | throwing-in apparatuses, (A) shows the state which the receiving chute outer cover bellows contracted most, (B), the state which the receiving chute outer cover bellows extended most Indicates. FIG. 3 shows an input pipe of the workpiece input device, wherein (A) is a perspective view, (B) is a perspective view in an exploded state, and (C) is an axial sectional view showing a joined state between a straight portion and an enlarged portion. It is.

The present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings by taking one embodiment. In the following description of the direction, “up and down” is based on the up and down direction shown in FIG. Further, “front and rear” means that the side closer to the center of the processing apparatus F1 is the front side and the far side is the rear side. Further, “upstream / downstream” is based on the passage direction (flow direction) of the workpiece S. However, this direction notation is used for convenience of explanation, and the present invention is not understood to be limited to the mode described in this direction.

-Processing device-
First, the processing apparatus F1 to which the workpiece input apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment is attached will be described. As shown in FIG. 1, the processing apparatus F <b> 1 can be hermetically sealed and can melt the workpiece S in a furnace body (crucible) F <b> 11 provided inside the processing apparatus F <b> 1. In the present embodiment, the processing apparatus F1 is used for manufacturing single crystal silicon that is a material of a semiconductor substrate. In the furnace body F11, polycrystalline silicon (silicon nugget) which is a lump as the object to be processed S is introduced from the outside through the object input port F12 and melted by being heated in the furnace body F11. The

  In the processing apparatus F1 of the present embodiment, single crystal silicon is manufactured by the CZ method. A method for manufacturing this single crystal silicon will be briefly described. First, the silicon nugget charged into the furnace body F11 in an inert gas atmosphere such as argon or nitrogen is heated to a temperature exceeding the melting point and melted. Single-crystal silicon (not shown) as a seed is immersed in this molten silicon (hereinafter referred to as “molten metal”) S1, and then the single-crystal silicon as a seed is slowly lifted while rotating. As a result, crystals grow. Finally, single crystal silicon (ingot), which is a substantially cylindrical solid, is formed. Depending on the type of the workpiece S, the inside of the processing apparatus F1 may be a vacuum atmosphere instead of an inert gas atmosphere.

  In addition, in this embodiment, the substance which comprises the to-be-processed object S is silicon, However, The to-be-processed object S used as the object of this invention is not limited to this. Various substances such as metals and resins other than silicon can be used as the workpiece S.

The “treatment” in the present embodiment includes a series of operations from melting of the silicon nugget by heating and formation of single crystal silicon (ingot) by pulling up from the molten metal S1. “Processing” is a broader concept, including a general operation for applying various physical changes or chemical changes to the workpiece S in an airtight state.

-Material input device-
As shown in FIG. 1, the workpiece input device 1 is configured so that the workpiece S can be charged into the furnace body F11 from the outside of the processing device F1 inside the processing device F1. The workpiece input device 1 includes an input device main body 1a and an input portion 1b. The input device main body 1a and the input portion 1b can be separated and joined by a joint portion 15.

<Input device body>
As shown in FIGS. 2A and 2B, the charging device main body 1 a includes a workpiece storage portion (hopper) 11 and a workpiece extraction mechanism 12, which are provided inside the supply tank 111. It has been. The charging device main body 1a includes a joint portion 15 and a receiving chute 16 at the downstream end, and the workpiece S can be sent from the receiving chute 16 to the charging portion 1b. The supply tank 111 includes a substantially tank-shaped supply tank main body 111a made of a stainless alloy and a protruding portion 111b protruding in a horizontal direction from the supply tank main body 111a, and both are integrated. The charging device main body 1a includes an upper joint flange 151 and a receiving chute jacket bellows 153 which are part of a joint portion 15 (described later). In a state where the upper joint flange 151 and the lower joint flange 152 included in the charging unit 1b are coupled (see FIG. 7A), the workpiece input device 1 is processed by the processing device F1 as shown in FIG. In this case, the supply tank 111 itself can maintain an airtight state with respect to the outside air. Note that “outside air” in the description of the present embodiment refers to the atmosphere outside the workpiece input apparatus 1 and the processing apparatus F1.

  The processing object S passes through the processing object take-out mechanism 12 and the receiving chute 16 in this order from the processing object storage unit 11 in the charging apparatus main body 1a. Then, it passes through the closing part 14 of the charging part 1b and the charging pipe 13 in order, and is conveyed to the furnace body F11. The portion of the transport path that is touched by the workpiece S is made of quartz glass, which is a material that is resistant to wear, or quartz glass is lined on a metal or the like. Thereby, the possibility that impurities such as metal powder due to wear are mixed into the workpiece S can be suppressed as much as possible, and high-purity single crystal silicon can be manufactured.

  For convenience of explanation, a part for taking out the workpiece S accommodated in the workpiece storage unit 11 in an airtight state and transporting it to the processing apparatus F1 is defined as a transport unit X. In the present embodiment, the conveyance unit X refers to a part of the charging device main body 1a (section on the workpiece storage unit 11 side relative to the joint unit 15) and the charging unit 1b (from the joint unit 15) when the joint unit 15 is joined. Are also configured on the processing apparatus F1 side). More specifically, the trough 122, the receiving chute 16 and the closing portion 14 of the workpiece removal mechanism (electromagnetic vibration feeder) 12 are taken from the outlet 11c located at the lower end of the workpiece storage portion (hopper) 11 in the charging device main body 1a. , Each part existing in the path to the downstream end 131a of the input pipe 13.

<Processing object container>
The to-be-processed object accommodating part 11 is a site | part which can accommodate the to-be-processed object S temporarily until the to-be-processed object S is conveyed. The supply tank 111 is provided with a storage port 111 c that can open and close the processing object storage unit 11. The storage port 111c is used when the workpiece S is stored in the workpiece storage section 11. In the present embodiment, the accommodation port 111c can be opened and closed by the lid portion 111d. By opening the storage port 111c, the processing object S can be replenished to the processing object storage part 11. The object storage unit 11 of this embodiment is provided in the supply tank 111 and is laminated with flat-plate quartz glass. Specifically, the lower end of an octagonal prism whose upper and lower ends are open. This is a shape in which an octagonal pyramid is connected. In the workpiece storage unit 11, the lower end of the octagonal pyramid portion is open, the workpiece S naturally falls from that portion, and the workpiece S is removed from the workpiece storage unit 11. 12 is taken out.

  The lid part 111d is made of transparent acrylic. For this reason, even when the accommodation port 111c is closed, the inside of the object-to-be-treated accommodation portion 11 can be visually observed from above. Therefore, it is possible to easily confirm the state of the object to be processed S in the object-to-be-processed container 11 without opening the container port 111c.

  The supply tank 111 is provided with a plurality of observation windows 111e. Specifically, in the supply tank main body 111a, one side (see FIG. 3B) is located on the side surface located on the back side in the state shown in FIG. 2A, and two places (111e1, 111e2) on the protruding portion 111b. A transparent plate is attached.

  The observation window provided on the side surface of the supply tank main body 111a is provided so that the lower part of the object-to-be-processed container 11 and the vicinity of the upstream end of the trough 122 in the object-to-be-processed takeout mechanism 12 can be seen from the outside of the supply tank 111. Yes. Thereby, the taking-out situation and the conveyance situation of the to-be-processed object S can be confirmed easily.

  And in the protrusion part 111b, the observation windows 111e1 and 111e2 are provided in the upper surface and side surface of the downstream end periphery. Each of the observation windows is provided so that the periphery of the trough 122 in the workpiece removal mechanism 12 and the funnel-shaped portion 1611 (part) of the main body 161 in the receiving chute 16 can be seen from the outside of the protruding portion 111b. Yes. Thereby, the conveyance condition of the to-be-processed object S and the sending condition to the injection pipe 13 can be confirmed easily.

  Although not shown, the charging apparatus main body 1a of the present embodiment includes a control unit that controls the vibration of the trough 122 in the workpiece removal mechanism 12, and is obtained through each of the above-described observation windows (visually. Alternatively, the conveyance control of the workpiece S can be performed efficiently by controlling the control unit based on the conveyance status of the workpiece S (obtained by the camera sensor).

  The supply tank 111 has a flange 111f on the outer periphery of the side surface, and can be divided into upper and lower parts. In the present embodiment, the flange 111f is clamped as illustrated, but various means for fixing such as screwing can be employed. The upper and lower divisions of the supply tank 111 are made at the boundary position between the octagonal prism portion and the octagonal pyramid portion in the workpiece storage unit 11. In addition, in this division | segmentation part, the lower end surface of the said octagonal column part in the to-be-processed object accommodating part 11 and the upper end surface of the said octagonal pyramid part are faced | matched, and the to-be-processed object S does not leak outside. Yes. With this configuration, maintenance such as cleaning of the workpiece storage unit 11 is easy.

  A bellows mounting flange 111g is provided on the lower surface of the supply tank 111 around the downstream end of the protruding portion 111b. At the center of the bellows mounting flange 111g, there is a through hole 111g1 having a size such that the funnel-shaped portion 1611 does not interfere (see FIG. 2B). A bellows upper flange 153a is fixed below the bellows mounting flange 111g.

  Further, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 3, a flat tank support plate is provided on the upper surface of the fork portion 211 having a bifurcated shape provided in the lift 21 in the moving mechanism 2 provided to move the charging device main body 1a. 31 is fixed. On the tank support plate 31, a bearing 212 having a movable portion (ball) 212a that can rotate 360 ° in each of the vertical, horizontal, and diagonal directions is provided. The movable portion 212 a of the bearing 212 faces upward and is in contact with the bottom surface of the supply tank 111. With this configuration, the supply tank 111 can be moved in the horizontal direction even when the moving mechanism 2 (described later) is fixed to the processing apparatus F1. For this reason, since the upper joint flange 151 can be easily moved horizontally along with the supply tank 111 with respect to the lower joint flange 152 when the charging device main body 1a and the charging portion 1b are joined, Alignment of the upper joint flange 151 with respect to the lower joint flange 152 can be facilitated without moving the moving mechanism 2 (described later), and a quick joining operation of the joint portion 15 is possible.

  In addition, a movement restricting mechanism is provided between the supply tank 111 and the fork 211 in order to restrict the movement of the supply tank 111 in the horizontal direction within a predetermined range. As this movement restricting mechanism, a combination of a protrusion 32 provided so as to protrude downward from the bottom surface of the supply tank 111 and an opening 33 provided in the tank support plate 31 can be exemplified. May be.

  As shown in FIG. 3E, the projecting portion 32 of the present embodiment is located at the lower end of the cylindrical portion 321 that penetrates the tank support plate 31 and parallel to the tank support plate 31. And a disk portion 322. The opening 33 is a home base-shaped through-hole provided in the tank support plate 31 as shown in FIG. The top portion of the home base shape is located at the center of the supply tank 111, and the base portion is located forward. The size of the opening 33 is larger than the cross-sectional dimension of the cylindrical part 321 and smaller than the cross-sectional dimension of the disk part 33. For this reason, the horizontal movement range of the supply tank 111 is regulated by the cylindrical portion 32 coming into contact with the peripheral edge of the opening 33, and the disc tank 322 is restricted from shifting the supply tank 111 upward. To do. Since the opening 33 has a home base shape, the supply tank 111 is a range in which a range corresponding to the width of the home base shape is movable in a range closer to the front than the center.

  Moreover, the tank support plate 31 is provided with the front-back groove part 311 as shown to FIG. 3 (A)-(C). The supply tank 111 includes a regulation bar portion 34 on the side surface. The restriction rod portion 34 has a lower end portion 341 inserted into the front and rear groove portions 311 so that the movement direction of the supply tank 111 is limited to a movable range by a combination of the protruding portion 32 and the opening portion 33. It can be restricted only in the front-rear direction. This range of movement in the front-rear direction corresponds to the length of the front-rear groove 311 extending in the front-rear direction. Note that the regulating bar portion 34 can be detached from the front and rear groove portions 311 by operating the lever 342 to move the lower end portion 341 upward. In this case, the restriction of the moving direction only in the front-rear direction is released.

  Further, in order to prevent the supply tank 111 from being displaced from the position on the center of the tank support plate 31 when the charging device main body 1a is left in a state separated from the charging portion 1b, FIG. As shown in C), a stopper 35 is provided. As shown in FIG. 3D, the stopper 35 can be fitted with a fitting hole 111h provided at the lower end edge of the supply tank by lever operation.

<Workpiece removal mechanism>
The workpiece removal mechanism 12 is a part for transporting the workpiece S in an airtight state from the workpiece storage portion 11 toward the processing apparatus F1. In the present embodiment, an electromagnetic vibration feeder is used as the workpiece removal mechanism 12.

  The electromagnetic vibration feeder includes a drive unit 121 and a trough 122. The trough 122 can be vibrated by the drive unit 121, and the workpiece S placed on the trough 122 can be conveyed downstream. The trough 122 is a bowl-shaped part with an open upper end and a downstream end. In this embodiment, quartz glass is lined on the inner surface. The trough 122 is provided from the position immediately below the workpiece receiving portion 11 to the vicinity of the downstream end of the protruding portion 111b along the extending direction of the protruding portion 111b in the supply tank 111. As a result, the workpiece S that naturally falls from the lower end of the workpiece storage unit 11 is placed on the trough 122 and conveyed downstream. Then, the workpiece S that has reached the downstream end of the trough 122 falls to the funnel-shaped portion 1611 of the main body 161 in the receiving chute 16.

  In addition, the workpiece removal mechanism 12 is not limited to the electromagnetic vibration feeder as in the present embodiment, and for example, the workpiece S can be conveyed from one side to the other, such as a belt conveyor or a roller conveyor. As long as it has a function that can be performed, various transport mechanisms can be used.

<Receiving shoot>
The receiving chute 16 is made of quartz glass, and includes a cylindrical main body 161 and an outer cylindrical body 162 through which the workpiece S passes, and has a shape as shown in FIGS. 2 (B) and 6. is there. The upper half of the main body 161 is a funnel-shaped portion 1611, and the lower half is a cylindrical portion 1612. The funnel-shaped portion 161 has an inner surface opening angle of 60 ° (30 ° in terms of an angle with respect to the central axis of the receiving chute 16). This is an angle larger than the angle of repose (about 40 °) of the silicon nugget that is the workpiece S in the present embodiment. For this reason, the workpiece S is transported smoothly without being caught on the inner surface of the funnel-shaped portion 161.

  As shown in FIG. 6, the outer cylindrical body 162 is provided on the outer periphery of the main body portion 161 and protects the main body portion 161 from an external force. Therefore, for example, when the joint portion 15 is separated and joined, it is possible to prevent the impact received by the receiving chute 16 from being directly transmitted to the main body portion 161. For this reason, the main-body part 161 can be effectively protected from the impact which the receiving chute | shoot 16 receives.

  The outer cylindrical body 162 is made of a stainless alloy, and integrally includes a cylindrical portion main body 1621, a funnel-shaped portion supporting portion 1622, and a mounting bracket 1623. Here, the main body 161 is formed such that the length in the vertical direction is longer than the length of the outer cylinder 162. When the outer cylinder 162 is attached to the main body 161, as shown in FIG. The upper and lower ends of the part 161 are exposed from the outer cylinder 162. Thereby, when exchanging the main body part 161, it is easy to remove the main body part 161 from the outer cylindrical body 162 by gripping a portion exposed from the outer cylindrical body 162.

  The cylinder main body 1621 is located on the outer periphery of the cylindrical portion 1612 in the main body 161. The cylindrical portion main body 1621 has an inner diameter dimension larger than the outer diameter size of the cylindrical portion 1612. Between the inner peripheral surface of the cylindrical portion main body 1621 and the outer peripheral surface of the cylindrical portion 1612, An O-ring 1625 made of an elastic body such as synthetic rubber is provided. The O-ring 1625 can position the cylindrical portion 1612 inside the cylindrical body 1621 and can effectively protect the body 161 from an external force due to elasticity.

  The funnel-shaped part support part 1622 continues to the upper end of the cylindrical part main body 1621, and the inner diameter dimension increases as the shape of the inner peripheral surface follows the shape of the outer peripheral surface of the funnel-shaped part 1611 in the main body part 161. The shape is enlarged. The outer cylindrical body 162 supports the main body portion 161 by the funnel-shaped portion 1611 coming into contact with the funnel-shaped portion supporting portion 1622.

  A cushioning material 1624 is disposed between the funnel-shaped portion support 1622 and the funnel-shaped portion 1611. The shock absorbing material 1624 can mitigate the impact on the main body 161 when the workpiece S falls on the receiving chute 16, and can prevent the funnel-shaped portion 1611 from being damaged.

The mounting bracket 1623 is a plate-like portion provided so as to protrude radially outward and horizontally from between the tube portion main body 1621 and the funnel-shaped portion support portion 1622. The mounting bracket 1623 is fixed by screwing in a state where the lower surface is in contact with the upper surface of the bellows upper flange 153a. Since fixing by screwing is performed in this way, when replacing the main body 161 due to damage or the like, the bellows upper flange 153a is removed from the bellows mounting flange 111g, and the outer cylindrical body 162 is removed from the bellows upper flange 153a. By removing, the replacement work can be easily performed.

-Input section-
The input unit 1b is a part through which the workpiece S input to the processing apparatus F1 can pass. The upstream end of the charging unit 1b is provided at a position where the workpiece S can be received from the charging device main body 1a. As shown in FIGS. 1 and 4, the charging portion 1 b includes a lower joint flange 152, a charging tube 13, a closing portion 14, a loading portion moving mechanism 17, and a processing device fixing portion 18 in a joint portion 15 (described later). Prepare. In the loading unit 1 b, parts other than the processing device fixing unit 18 are moved relative to the processing device F 1 by operating the loading unit moving mechanism 17.

<Input pipe>
The input pipe 13 is connected to the downstream end of the input apparatus main body 1 a through the closing part 14 and the joint part 15 so that the workpiece S can pass through. As shown in FIG. 1, the charging pipe 13 is disposed so as to extend obliquely downward and forward in a state where the charging unit 1 b is attached to the processing apparatus F <b> 1. As shown in FIG. 4, the charging pipe 13 is supported by a charging pipe support block 192 and a straight part support flange 193 below the closing portion 14. The input tube 13 of this embodiment is made of quartz glass, and as shown in FIG. 8A, is arranged adjacent to a straight portion 131 made of a single pipe and an upstream end portion of the straight portion 131. And an enlarged portion 132. In the present embodiment, as shown in FIG. 8B, the linear portion 131 and the enlarged portion 132 are formed separately, and as shown in FIG. 8C, the upstream end 131b of the linear portion 131. And the downstream end 132a of the enlarged portion 132 are assembled in the insertion portion 1b. In a state where the end portions 131b and 132a are in contact with each other, the linear portion 131 extends downstream so as to be orthogonal to the downstream end portion of the enlarged portion 132, as shown in FIGS. As described above, since the straight portion 131 and the enlarged portion 132 are separately formed, it is easier to manufacture the input tube 13 than when the input tube 13 is formed integrally, and when the input tube 13 is damaged. This is economical because only the damaged part can be replaced for each part.

  The straight portion 131 is a portion that penetrates the inside and outside of the processing apparatus F1 in a state in which the charging unit 1b is attached to the processing apparatus F1, and the end surface of the downstream end 131a extends along the horizontal direction, and the inside of the furnace body (crucible) F11. Is substantially parallel to the surface of the molten metal S1. However, not limited to this, for example, the downstream end 131a may be along the vertical direction (direction parallel to the vertical line passing through the center of the furnace body F11). In addition, a plurality of pipes may be combined for the straight portion 131. Furthermore, when a plurality of pipes are combined, for example, the straight portion 131 may be configured to be extendable / contractable by allowing the other pipe to be inserted into one pipe.

  The straight portion 131 includes a straight tubular straight portion main body 1311 and a disk-shaped flange portion 1312 provided on the upstream end face of the straight portion main body 1311. As shown in FIG. 5, the flange portion 1312 is fixed by a linear portion support flange 193. For this reason, an attachment recess 193a is provided on the upper surface of the straight portion support flange 193 and around the through hole through which the straight portion main body 1311 passes. A flange portion 1312 can be fitted into the mounting recess 193a as shown.

  The enlarged portion 132 is a funnel-shaped portion formed with a diameter dimension enlarged toward the upstream side. The enlarged portion 132 is positioned below the downstream end of the trough 122 in the workpiece removal mechanism (electromagnetic vibration feeder) 12. Then, the workpiece S conveyed on the trough 122 is received by the enlarged portion 132 via the receiving chute 16 (see FIG. 7A) and guided to the straight portion 131 of the charging pipe 13.

  As shown in FIG. 8C, the enlarged portion 132 has a cross-sectional shape along the axial direction, and an upstream side edge (right side in the figure) and a downstream side edge (left side in the figure) are processed by the input pipe 13. The shape is inclined substantially corresponding to the angle extending obliquely downward and forward with respect to the device F1. Accordingly, as shown in FIG. 5, when the upstream end 132b of the enlarged portion 132 is horizontal, the downstream end 132a is inclined by the inclination. And this enlarged part 132 is arrange | positioned inside the injection pipe support block 192, as shown in FIG.4 and FIG.5.

  Here, as shown in FIG. 4, the charging pipe support block 192 is disposed so that the upper surface thereof is in contact with the lower surface of the closing portion 14. A protective bellows 191 is positioned below the input pipe support block 192. As shown in FIG. 5, the charging pipe support block 192 includes a cooling water channel 192a. During the operation of the processing apparatus F1, heat is transferred from the furnace body F11 and the molten metal S1 to the charging pipe 13. The cooling water passed through the cooling water passage 192a absorbs this heat, thereby suppressing the closed portion 14 from being distorted by the influence of heat. Therefore, the closing part 14 can be reliably operated without being affected by heat. As shown in the figure, the cooling water channel 192a is formed inside the charging pipe support block 192 so as to surround the outer periphery of the charging pipe 13 (enlarged portion 132). .

  In order to avoid interference with the single crystal silicon pulled up from the furnace body F11 and to adjust the input position of the workpiece S into the furnace body F11, the input pipe 13 is movable with respect to the processing apparatus F1. ing. For this reason, the straight part 131 of the injection tube 13 is linear in the entire section in the longitudinal direction. The input tube 13 is moved forward and backward along the direction in which the straight portion 131 extends by the input portion moving mechanism 17. However, on the condition that the movement of the charging pipe 13 with respect to the processing apparatus F1 is not hindered, only a part of the charging pipe 13 may be linear and may be curved or bent in the middle section.

  This input pipe 13 is provided through the workpiece input port F12 of the processing apparatus F1. The input pipe 13 in the present embodiment is supported by a cylindrical attachment part F13 formed around the workpiece input port part F12. This support is made via a processing apparatus fixing portion 18 as shown in FIG.

  In addition, since the input pipe 13 moves with respect to the processing apparatus F1, it may be exposed to the outside of the processing apparatus F1. At this time, a protective bellows 191 is provided so as to cover the outer periphery of the charging tube 13 in order to protect the charging tube 13 made of quartz glass from being damaged. The protective bellows 191 is a thin plate made of stainless alloy formed in a bellows shape, and expands and contracts in accordance with the operation of the input portion moving mechanism 17.

<Closed part>
The closing part 14 is a part capable of blocking the space between the input pipe 13 and the joint part 15. The closing portion 14 is a gate valve provided so as to be adjacent to the lower joint flange 152 of the joint portion 15. By shutting off the closing part 14, the input pipe 13, which is a part closer to the processing device F 1 than the closing part 14, can be closed in an airtight state. As a kind of valve used for the closing part 14, various valves, such as a globe valve, a ball valve, and a butterfly valve, can be used besides a gate valve.

  By providing the closing part 14 in this way, if the closing part 14 is shut off, it becomes possible to open the workpiece containing part 11 to the outside air while maintaining the inert gas atmosphere inside the processing apparatus F1. . Therefore, it is possible to replenish the object to be processed 11 in the object container 11 by opening the lid 111d while continuing to melt the object S in the furnace body F11 of the processing apparatus F1. And after replenishing the to-be-processed object storage part 11 to the to-be-processed object accommodating part 11, the to-be-processed object S newly replenished to the to-be-processed object accommodating part 11 is thrown in in the furnace body F11 by opening the closing part 14. be able to. In addition, when the to-be-processed object S newly replenished to the to-be-processed object accommodating part 11 is thrown in in the furnace body F11, the to-be-processed object accommodating part 11 side needs to be made into inert gas atmosphere rather than the closing part 14. There is.

<Inlet moving mechanism>
The charging unit moving mechanism 17 is a part capable of moving the charging tube 13 relative to the processing apparatus F1 by moving the charging tube 13 forward and backward along the direction in which the straight portion 131 extends. Although a detailed description of the input portion moving mechanism 17 is omitted, the shaft portion 172 is rotated by operating the operation handle 171, and accordingly, the input tube 13 is connected via the bracket 173 attached to the shaft portion 172. Move.

<Processing device fixing unit>
The processing device fixing portion 18 is a part used for mounting the charging tube 13 to the processing device F1 in a penetrating state, and includes a mounting flange 181. The mounting flange 181 is overlapped and fixed on the mounting portion F13 of the processing apparatus F1.

-Joint part-
The joint part 15 is a part which makes it possible to separate and join the charging device main body 1a and the charging part 1b. The joint portion 15 includes an upper joint flange 151, a lower joint flange 152, and a receiving chute jacket bellows 153.

  The upper joint flange 151 is provided at the downstream end of the charging device main body 1a. The upper joint flange 151 has a plate shape arranged in the horizontal direction. The upper joint flange 151 is provided with a through hole in the center, and a cylindrical portion 1612 of the main body portion 161 in the receiving chute 16 and a cylindrical portion main body 1621 of the outer cylindrical body 162 are provided below the through hole. It can project (see FIG. 7A). The receiving chute jacket bellows 153 is provided above the upper joint flange 151. The receiving chute jacket bellows 153 is located on the cylindrical portion 1612 of the main body portion 161 of the receiving chute 16 and the outer peripheral portion of the cylindrical portion main body 1621 of the outer cylindrical body 162, and the direction in which the receiving chute 16 extends (up and down) Direction). As a result, the receiving chute 16 can be protected. The receiving chute jacket bellows 153 is provided between the bellows upper flange 153a and the upper joint flange 151. Like the protective bellows 191, a thin plate of stainless alloy is formed in a bellows shape. It expands and contracts in accordance with the change in the distance between 1a and the insertion portion 1b. Therefore, the receiving chute jacket bellows 153 can be expanded and contracted according to the vertical distance between the charging device main body 1a and the charging portion 1b, so that the charging device main body 1a and the charging portion 1b can be bonded, so that the joining work is easy.

  The state where the receiving chute jacket bellows 153 is contracted most is the state shown in FIG. 7A, and the state where the receiving chute jacket bellows 153 is most extended is the state shown in FIG. In the state where the receiving chute jacket bellows 153 is most extended, the lower end of the receiving chute 16 is positioned above the receiving chute jacket bellows 153 and the upper joint flange 151 as shown in FIG. Not exposed.

  On the other hand, in a state where the receiving chute jacket bellows 153 is shortened, a part of the lower end side of the receiving chute 16 is exposed from the receiving chute jacket bellows 153 as shown in FIG. Can be inserted. Thereby, the cylindrical part 1612 of the main-body part 161 in the receiving chute | shoot 16 and the cylindrical part main body 1621 of the outer cylinder 162 are inserted in the inside of the closure part 14 at the time of joining of the joint part 15 (FIG. 7 ( A)). Thereby, since the to-be-processed object S can prevent the inner surface of the closing part 14 from touching directly, the closing part 14 can be protected from the to-be-processed object S.

  As shown in FIGS. 2A and 2B and FIGS. 7A and 7B, a straight rod-shaped guide shaft 154 is provided in the vertical direction along the receiving chute jacket bellows 153. The guide shaft 154 has a lower end portion 154 a fixed to the upper joint flange 151. The upper end 154b of the guide shaft 154 passes through the bellows upper flange 153a and the bellows mounting flange 111g. And this upper end part 154b has the stopper 154c with which the diameter dimension expanded.

By providing the guide shaft 154 having such a configuration, the positional displacement of the upper joint flange 151 in the left-right direction can be suppressed. Thereby, it is possible to prevent an excessive force from being applied to the receiving chute 16 (particularly, the main body 161 made of quartz). Further, by providing a scale on the surface of the guide shaft 154, the guide shaft 154 can be used as an indicator indicating the amount of insertion of the receiving chute 16 into the closing portion 14 (see FIG. 7A).

  The lower joint flange 152 is provided at the upstream end of the input portion 1b. The lower joint flange 152 is also a plate-like member arranged in the horizontal direction. The lower joint flange 152 is provided with a through hole 152a at the center. Therefore, when the joint portion 15 is joined, the cylindrical portion 1612 of the main body portion 161 in the receiving chute 16 and the cylindrical portion main body 1621 of the outer cylindrical body 162 enter the through hole 152 a, and the lower surface of the upper joint flange 151. And the upper surface of the lower joint flange 152 come into contact with each other to be in a joined state. When the joint portion 15 is separated and joined, the relative movement direction of the upper joint flange 151 and the lower joint flange 152 is the vertical direction.

  In this embodiment, when the closing portion 14 and the joint portion 15 are provided, when the closing device body 1 a and the closing portion 1 b are separated by the joint portion 15, the closing portion 14 causes the closing tube 14 to airtight. Can keep the state. Specifically, the following is possible. In other words, if the processing object S still remains in the processing object storage unit 11 at the time when it is no longer necessary to replenish the processing object S in the processing apparatus F1, the closing unit 14 is shut off. Thus, the charging unit 1b can be separated with the joint unit 15 as a boundary, and the charging device main body 1a can be replaced with a processing device F1 different from that before separation. Thereby, the to-be-processed object S remaining in the to-be-processed object accommodating part 11 can be thrown into another processing apparatus F1.

And when the to-be-processed object S accommodated in the to-be-processed object accommodating part 11 is lose | eliminated, first, after the closing part 14 is closed, the injection | throwing-in part 1b is isolate | separated by the joint part 15 as a boundary. . Then, the charging device main body 1a is moved down to a position convenient for work by, for example, lowering the charging device main body 1a by the operation of the lift, and then the processing object S is replenished to the processing object container 11. The Thereafter, the charging device main body 1a is replaced with a processing device F1 different from that before separation.

-Movement mechanism-
Moreover, in this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 1, the moving mechanism 2 which can move the input device main body 1a in the direction which approaches / separates with respect to the processing apparatus F1 is provided. The moving mechanism 2 of the present embodiment includes a lift 21 and a plurality of wheels 22 (a front wheel 221 and a rear wheel 222). By operating the lift 21, the input device main body 1 a can be moved in the vertical direction. In the present embodiment, a manual lift that moves the input device main body 1a up and down by a handle operation by an operator is employed, but a lift driven by a motor or the like may be used. The wheel 22 rotates along the installation surface G on which the processing device F1 is installed, and can move the input device main body 1a and the lift 21 mainly in the front-rear direction, and the input device main body 1a and the lift 21. Can also be moved in the left-right direction.

By this moving mechanism 2, it becomes easy to move the charging device main body 1a to separate and join the joint portion 15. Then, the input device main body 1a can be moved relative to the different processing device F1. In addition, since the charging device main body 1a is lowered to the vicinity of the installation surface G of the processing device F1 , the replenishment of the workpiece S can be simplified. Further, as shown in FIG. 1, the workpiece S in the portion of the transport section X where natural dropping is caused by gravity (the charging pipe 13 in this embodiment) is made by placing the charging apparatus main body 1a at a high position. Can be transported more smoothly. Thus, by providing the moving mechanism 2, the workpiece input device 1 can be made very convenient. Moreover, the restrictions given to the layout of the production site can be made small.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 To-be-processed material input apparatus 111 To-be-processed object accommodating part 111c Accommodating port 14 Closure part 15 Joint part 153 Receiving chute jacket bellows 16 Receiving chute 161 Main-body part 162 Outer cylindrical body F1 Processing apparatus S To-be-processed object, silicon nugget X Conveyance part

Claims (4)

In a processing object input device for supplying a processing object in an airtight state from the outside into a processing apparatus that processes the processing object in an airtight state,
The object to be treated can be temporarily accommodated, and the object to be treated has an opening / closing accommodation opening used for accommodating the object to be treated, and the object to be treated is taken out from the object to be treated in an airtight state. A transport unit for transporting to the processing apparatus, and a moving mechanism;
The transfer unit is a closed unit capable of blocking the processing unit side and the workpiece storage unit side of the transfer unit, and of the transfer unit, at a position closer to the workpiece storage unit than the closing unit, A joint part capable of separating and joining the transport part,
The workpiece storage section and the section of the transport section that is closer to the workpiece storage section than the joint section constitute an integral charging device main body,
The moving mechanism is capable of separating the joint portion and moving the entire charging device main body in a state of approaching / separating from the processing device in that state ,
A receiving chute for guiding the object to be processed to a section closer to the processing device than the joint part of the transport part is provided at a downstream end in the part of the transport part closer to the object storage part than the joint part. Prepared,
The receiving chute includes a cylindrical main body portion through which an object to be processed passes, and an outer cylindrical body positioned on the outer periphery of the main body portion. The outer periphery of the receiving chute is provided with a receiving chute jacket bellows that can expand and contract along the extending direction of the receiving chute,
2. In the shortened state of the receiving chute jacket bellows, a part of the receiving chute on the processing device side is exposed from the receiving chute jacket bellows and can be inserted into the closing portion. 2. The workpiece input device according to 1.   The workpiece input device according to claim 1, wherein the main body has a length longer than a length of the outer cylinder.   The workpiece input device according to claim 1, wherein the main body is made of quartz glass, and the outer cylinder is made of metal.

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