JPH03195037A - Positioning apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To execute a positioning operation at high speed and simply by a method wherein an acceptance part, a delivery part and a positioning part are actuated by an action of one drive mechanism and a workpiece is conveyed. CONSTITUTION:Up-and-down motion parts 18, 31, 35, 41 are driven upward; individual workpieces W are raised from support parts 16 at mounting parts 17, 33, 34, 40; a nut 22 is moved to the direction H within a stroke range S2. In this case the workpiece W on the mounting part 17 is moved to the conveyance direction within a stroke range S1 and the workpiece W on the mounting part 40 is moved to the conveyance direction within a stroke range S3; the workpieces W on the mounting parts 33, 34 are moved to the direction H within the stroke range S2. The individual up-and-down motion parts are lowered and the workpieces W are set on the support parts 16; then, a conveyance operation is completed; a prescribed operation is executed on the workpieces W; the actuator 20 is driven reversely; the up-and-down motion parts are returned to their starting points. Thereby, workpieces which have been accepted from a previous process can be positioned at high speed and surely even by using a simple structure.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a positioning device used for positioning a workpiece such as a semiconductor wafer.

Conventional technology Conventional positioning devices include the following types.

(2) Belt Conveyance As shown in FIG. 6, the belt 2 is moved by the motor 1 to convey the workpiece W on the belt 2.

■Roller conveyance As shown in Figure 7, the belt 5 is moved by the motor 4,
The workpiece W is conveyed by rotating the roller 6.

■Air flow transport As shown in Fig. 8, air is blown out in the direction of arrow R to transport the workpiece W.

Problems that the invention aims to solve However, each method has the following drawbacks.

Belt conveyance method and roller conveyance method: ■Generation of dust ■Positioning is difficult.

■Transfer speed is slow ■It is difficult to pass the receiver when the workpiece is small.

With the airflow conveyance method, it is difficult to control the air. Difficult to position.

OBJECTS OF THE INVENTION It is an object of the present invention to provide a positioning device that can control the positioning of a workpiece at high speed and easily.

Means for solving the problem Please refer to FIG. First, the configuration from the previous step X to receiving the object W to be inspected as a work and moving it to the work position C will be explained.

The positioning unit 12 positions the work W to be inspected at a working position C.

The receiving unit 13 receives the test object W from the previous process X.

The positioning section 12 and the underwriting section 13 are driven by one drive mechanism 15.

It has a support part 16 for supporting the test object W across the positioning part 12 and the receiving part 13.

The underwriting section 13 has the following elements.

The placement unit 17 places the object W from the previous step X on it.

The vertical moving section 18 lifts the test object W from the support section 16 by the first mounting section 17 at the upper position UL, and at the lower position LL.
Then, the test object W is supported by the support section 16 from the first mounting section 17 .

The moving part 19 moves the first vertical moving part 1 by the operation of the drive mechanism 15.
8 in the first range S1 in a transport direction different from the vertical direction.

The positioning section 12 has the following elements.

The placing parts 33 and 34 place the test object W from the receiving part 13.

The vertical moving part 31.35 is in the upper position UL and the second mounting part 33.3
4, the test object W is lifted from the support part 16, and moreover, the test object W is supported by the support part 16 at the lower position LL.

The moving part 32 moves the second vertical moving part 31.35 in a range that overlaps with the first range S1 by the operation of the drive mechanism 15.

Please refer to FIG. Next, a configuration for transferring the test object W at the work position C to the post-process Y will be explained.

The positioning unit 12 positions the object W at a working position C.

The transfer section 14 transfers the test object W from the positioning section 12 to the post-stroke Y.

It has a support part 16 for supporting the test object W across the positioning part 12 and the transfer part 14.

The positioning section 12 has the following elements.

The placing parts 33 and 34 place the test object W thereon.

The vertical moving part 31.35 is in the upper position UL and the first mounting part 33.3
4, the test object W is lifted from the support part 16, and moreover, the test object W is supported by the support part 16 at the lower position LL.

The moving unit 32 moves the first vertical moving unit 31.35 in a direction different from the vertical direction in the first range S2.

The delivery unit 14 has the following elements.

The placing section 40 places the object W from the positioning section 12 thereon.

The vertical moving section 41 lifts the test object W from the support section 16 by the second mounting section 40 at the upper position UL, and lifts the object W from the support section 16 at the lower position LL.
It is supported by the support part 16 from the mounting part 40.

The moving part 42 moves the second vertical moving part 41 in the second stroke range S3 by the movement of the positioning part 12 to move the object to be inspected (W
) to the next step.

Operation: By the operation of one drive mechanism 15, the receiving section 13, the transferring section 14, and the positioning section 12 are moved to transport the workpiece W. Moreover, the workpiece W to be inspected can be positioned at the working position C.

The workpieces W are placed on and taken down from the support portion 16 by the vertically moving portions 18.31° and 35.41 of the receiving portion 13, the transfer portion 14, and the positioning portion 12.

Example 1 Referring to the positioning device of FIG. The workpiece W to be positioned is, for example, a semiconductor wafer.

The positioning device 11 is provided between the front stroke X and the rear stroke Y.

The positioning device 11 includes a positioning section 12 , a receiving section 13 , a delivery section 14 , a drive mechanism 15 , and a support section 16 .

A working position C corresponds to the moving part 32 of the positioning part 12. The acceptance unit 13 accepts the workpiece W from the previous process X.

The delivery unit 14 delivers the workpiece W to the post-process Y.

[Supporting part 16] The supporting part 16 includes the positioning part 12, the underwriting part 13, and the delivery part 1.
It is a portion that supports the workpiece W at each predetermined position.

[Underwriting section 13] The underwriting section 13 includes a placing section 17, a vertically moving section 18, and a moving section 19.

The placing section 17 is for placing the workpiece W from the previous step X. The vertical movement section 18 can move the placing section 17 up and down. In other words, when the mounting section 17 is raised to the upper limit position UL, the work W
is lifted from the support section 16 by the mounting section 17. On the other hand, when the placing part 17 is lowered to the lower limit position LL, the workpiece W is placed on the placing part 1.
7 to support part 16.

The moving part 19 moves up and down by the operation of the drive mechanism 15.
can be moved within the stroke range S1.

The drive mechanism 15 includes an actuator 20, a ball screw 21,
It has a nut 22. The nut 22 is the ball screw 21
They are interlocked.

The actuator 20 is a motor and is fixed to the base 28.

On the other hand, the moving part 19 has a carrier 23, a wire 24, a stopper 25, and pulleys 26 and 27. career 23
is integrated with Natsuto 22. Wire 24 is stretched between pulleys 26 and 27. Stopper 25 is wire 2
4 is fixed to the base 28. The vertically movable portion 18 is fixed to a wire 24.

The carrier 23 can move along the guide 29 in the transport direction.

When the actuator 20 operates and the nut 22 moves in the direction of arrow H and comes to the position shown by the imaginary line, the carrier 23 moves by a stroke range of 5L (=1), but the vertical movement part 18 moves within a stroke range of 5L ( =21) Move. In other words, the vertically moving portion 18 moves from the front stroke position A to the front relay position B. This direction of arrow H is the same as the conveying direction and is perpendicular to the vertical direction.

[Positioning section 12] The positioning section 12 includes a mounting section 33, 34, a vertical movement section 31,
35, it has a moving part 32.

The moving part 32 is an arm, and the moving part 32 has placing parts 33 and 34. Both ends of the moving part 32 are vertically moving parts 31.
It is supported by 35. The vertical moving part 31 is the carrier 2
The vertical moving part 35 is provided at one end of the carrier 3, which will be described later.
6. The vertically moving parts 31 and 35 are similar to the vertically moving part 18.

When the vertical movement section 31.35 is raised, the mounting section 33.34 lifts the workpiece W from the support section 16. Vertical moving part 31.35
When the workpiece W is lowered, the workpiece W is moved from the mounting section 33, 34 to the support section 1.
6 to support it.

When the nut 22 of the drive mechanism 15 described above moves in the direction of arrow H from the initial state shown in FIG. . In other words, the mounting section 33 moves from the front relay position B to the work position C.

Further, the mounting section 34 moves from the working position C to the rear relay position. Therefore, the vertical moving part 31 has a stroke range S1
from the state where it is located to the stroke range S2.

[Delivery Unit 14] The delivery unit 14 includes a placing unit 40, a vertically moving unit 41, and a moving unit 42.

The placing section 40 is for placing the workpiece W from the positioning section 12. The vertical movement section 41 can move the placing section 40 up and down. That is, when the mounting section 40 is raised to the upper limit position UL, the workpiece W is lifted from the support section 16 by the mounting section 40.

On the other hand, when the mounting section 17 is lowered to the lower limit position LL, the work W is supported from the mounting section 40 to the support section 16.

The moving part 42 moves up and down by the operation of the drive mechanism 15.
can be moved within the stroke range S3.

The moving part 42 includes a carrier 36, a wire 45, and a stopper 46.
, has pulleys 47.48. Wire 45 is stretched between pulleys 47,48. The stopper 46 is the wire 4
5 is fixed to a base 49. The vertically moving part 41 is fixed to a wire 45. Carrier 36 is guide 5
You can move along 0.

When the actuator 20 operates and the nut 22 moves in the direction of arrow H and comes to the position shown by the imaginary line, the vertically moving part 41 moves by a stroke range 53 (=21). In other words, it moves from the rear relay position to the rear stroke position E.

As already mentioned, as shown in the variable magnification mechanism shown in FIG. 2, the stroke range S1 of the vertically moving section 18 and the stroke range S3 of the vertically moving section 41 are twice the stroke range S2 of the moving section 32. That is, the vertical moving part 18.41
will move at twice the speed.

Note that the range J in FIG. 1 indicates the range of the entire working device placed between the front stroke X and the rear stroke Y.

Operation One cycle of workpiece conveyance operation will be explained with reference to FIGS. 1 and 3.

[First stage] The initial state is the state shown by the solid line in FIG.

Each vertically moving part 18, 31, 35, 41 is lowered. Nut 22 is near actuator 20. The workpiece W is attached to the support part 16 corresponding to the vertically moving part 18, 31°35.41.
is supported by That is, they are located at each position A to D.

The vertically moving parts 18, 31, 35.41 are driven upward (upper position UL), and each workpiece W is held by the mounting part 17.33° 34.40 and lifted from the support part 16. Each mounting section holds a workpiece W using, for example, a vacuum chuck.

[Second stage] The actuator 20 is driven to move the cylinder 22 in the direction of the arrow H by a stroke range S2. As a result, the workpiece W on the placement unit 17 moves in the stroke range S1, and the workpiece W on the placement unit 40 moves in the stroke range S3. - The workpiece W on the force positioning parts 33 and 34 moves in the direction of arrow H by a stroke range of 82 minutes.

As a result, the work W at each position of A, B, C, and D is
They will be transported to positions B, C, D, and E, respectively.

[Third stage] Lower each vertically moving part 18, 31, 35, 41 (lower position L)
L), the conveyance is completed by setting the workpiece W on the support section 16. The work W positioned at the work position C undergoes a predetermined work by the work device 60.

[Fourth stage] Drive the actuator 20 in the opposite direction to move the vertical movement section 18.31
．． 35.41 at each position A, B.

Return to C and D. In other words, return to the origin.

By repeating such a cycle, the workpiece W can be sequentially transferred from the front stroke X to the rear stroke Y. And 2
Since the workpiece W can be transported at double speed, the transport time is short.

Embodiment 2.3 In Embodiment 1 of FIG. 1, the upper and lower portions of the wires 24, 45 are parallel, so the speed multiplier is at most 2 times.

In the second embodiment shown in FIG. 4 and the third embodiment shown in FIG.
By lowering the position of wires 125 and 150,
155, an angle α or β is provided in each lower portion. By changing this angle, the speed magnification can be changed to an arbitrary value. Note that 180 is a vertically moving part, and 190 is a carrier.

By the way, in Example 1, the drive mechanism was provided on the underwriting part side, but
Alternatively, it may be provided on the delivery side. In any case 1
The entire system can be driven with just one drive mechanism.

Effects of the Invention According to claim 1, the workpiece received from the previous process can be reliably moved and positioned to the working position with a simple structure, at high speed, and with high accuracy without raising dust or damaging the workpiece. can do. Only one drive mechanism is required,
It is easy to control and can travel a large distance per unit of power consumption.

According to claim 2, it is possible to reliably position a workpiece positioned at a working position at a predetermined post-stroke position with a simple structure, at high speed, and with high precision without raising dust or damaging the workpiece. I can do it.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

Fig. 1 is a diagram showing an embodiment of the positioning device of the present invention, Fig. 2 is an operation diagram showing the variable magnification mechanism, Fig. 3 is a schematic diagram of the workpiece conveyance path, and Figs. 4 and 5 are the invention. Embodiment 2.3 of the positioning device, and FIGS. 6 to 8 are diagrams showing conventional examples. 11・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・
......Positioning device 12...
・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・Positioning part 13・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・
・・・・・・Underwriting Department 14・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・
・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・Delivery Department 15...
・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・
・・Drive mechanism 16・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・
・・・・・・・・・・・・・Support part 17.33, 34.
40... Placement part

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A positioning section (12) that positions the object (W) to be inspected at the working position (C), and a receiving section (13) that takes over the object (W) from the previous process (X). , one drive mechanism (15) that drives the positioning part (12) and the acceptance part (13), and a support part ( 16), and the receiving section (13) has a first mounting section (17) on which the specimen (W) from the previous step (X) is placed, and a first mounting section (17) on which the specimen (W) from the previous step (X) is placed. The test object (W) is lifted from the support section (16) by the placing section (17), and the test object (W) is lifted from the first mounting section (17) at the lower position (LL).
W) is supported by the support portion (16).
); and a first moving part (19) that moves the first vertically moving part (18) in a direction different from the vertical direction in the first range (S1) by the operation of the drive mechanism (15), and a positioning part. (12) includes a second placement section (33, 34) on which the test object (W) from the acceptance section (13) is placed, and a second placement section (33, 34) at the upper position (UL). a second vertical movement section (31, 35) that lifts the test object (W) from the support section (16) and supports the test object (W) on the support section (16) at the lower position (LL); A second moving part (32) that moves the second vertical moving part (31, 35) in a range that overlaps with the first range (S1) by the operation of the drive mechanism (15). positioning device. 2. A positioning section (12) that positions the object to be inspected (W) at the working position (C), a transfer section (14) that transfers it from the positioning section (12) to the subsequent process (Y), and a positioning section (12). The transfer part (14) has a support part (16) for supporting the test object (W), and the positioning part (12) has a first mounting part (33) on which the test object (W) is placed. , 34), the test object (W) is lifted from the support part (16) by the first mounting part (33, 34) at the upper position (UL), and at the lower position (UL).
The first vertically moving part (31, 35) supports the test object (W) on the support part (16) in the first range (S2) in the vertical direction. a first moving part (32) that moves in a direction different from the first moving part (32); ), the test object (W) is lifted from the support part (16) by the second mounting part (40) at the upper position (UL), and supported from the second mounting part (40) at the lower position (LL). Part (16)
By moving the second vertically moving part (41) supported by the second vertically moving part (41) and the positioning part (12), the second vertically moving part (41) is moved in the second stroke range (S3) to move the object (W) behind. A positioning device characterized by having a second moving part (42) for passing the stroke.