JPH0451995Y2 - - Google Patents

Description

[Detailed Description of the Invention] Technical Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a transfer device for wafers, etc., which uses a rotating arm type robot as a transfer means.

Background of the idea Semiconductor parts, such as wafers, are processed in a clean work environment in a clean room in order to avoid the adhesion of airborne particles and germs and produce precision, high-quality products. ,
and can be assembled. In this clean room, clean air is normally blown out from the ceiling to the floor, and particulates in the air are sucked into the floor and discharged to the outside of the clean room.

On the other hand, during the manufacturing process, these wafers are sent to a work station such as a measuring instrument to determine their quality, and after measurement, they are stored inside a cassette case or the like while being classified according to quality.

Prior Art In such a measurement process, there is a process in which a wafer is taken out from a cassette case, transported to a measurement station, and then transported back into a predetermined cassette case after the measurement operation. Conventionally, a belt conveyor has been used as a means for conveying such cassettes, and it is also used as a means for placing wafers in a cassette case on the conveyor belt, or conversely, for transferring wafers on the conveyor belt to the cassette case. As a means of storing
A cassette lifter is used.

In this conventional equipment, a round belt is used as the conveyor belt, so the surface of the wafer is easily contaminated or scratched, and when the external size of the wafer becomes large, the round belt bends due to the weight of the wafer. , the possibility of garbage generation is increasing.

Another method is to use an industrial robot to hold the surface of the wafer while adsorbing it with a vacuum chuck (vacuum pad), and move the wafer between the supply and discharge cassette cases and the measuring station using the robot's motion function. There are ways to move it. However, with this method, traces of the wafer tend to be left on the surface of the wafer, and dust generated from the cassette fritter causes a reduction in cleanliness.

Of course, it is also possible to perform this series of operations by using air tweezers (vacuum parts) to take out the wafers from the supply cassette, transfer them to a measuring device, and then manually sort the discharge cassette based on the measurement results. . However, such manual work has an extremely high possibility of generating dust.
Furthermore, the work efficiency is low, making it unsuitable for work inside a clean room.

Purpose of the invention Therefore, the purpose of the invention is to feed wafers, etc. from storage members such as cassettes to work stations such as measuring instruments, while minimizing the possibility of dust generation and improving cleanliness. The object is to automatically supply the liquid to a storage member such as a cassette on the discharge side after the liquid is removed.

Summary of the invention Therefore, the present invention performs a series of such conveyance operations using a robot with a rotating arm, and utilizes the robot's vertical and rotational conveyance functions to transfer cassette cases, etc. on the supply side and the discharge side. The storage member can be fixedly arranged.

In addition, this robot is equipped with a gripper at its tip to grip the outer circumference of a wafer, etc.
It securely holds the wafer, etc. without making direct contact with the surface of the wafer, etc.

Furthermore, to ensure cleanliness within the clean room, this robot is completely surrounded by a casing, and is equipped with exhaust means inside the casing.
Therefore, even if dust or the like is generated in the movable parts of the robot, such as the bearing part, it will be exhausted to the outside of the clean room by this exhaust means.

Configuration of the Embodiment FIGS. 1 to 3 show an arm-swivel type robot 2 that forms the center of a wafer, etc., transfer device 1 of the present invention. This robot 2 is equipped with a feed screw 4 as a vertical movement means, a feed nut 5, and a motor 6 for vertical movement inside a base 3 which also serves as a casing.
is supported so that it can move up and down. Note that the rotation of the motor 6 is transmitted to the feed screw 4 by a timing belt/pulley 8 and the like. This feed screw 4 is provided rotatably in the vertical direction,
It is rotatably supported by a guide 9 inside the base 3. Further, the vertical movable body 7 is supported in such a manner that it can be slid and guided on the upper part of the base 3 and the lower part of the guide 9, and is fixedly connected to the feed nut 5 at its bottom, and the casing is It holds a dual-purpose robot frame 10.

The robot frame 10 supports a first arm 11 as a pivot arm, a second arm 12 via the first arm 11, and a tip arm 13 in a pivotable state about a vertical axis,
Furthermore, gear motors 14, 15, and 16 for driving these are housed inside. That is, the first arm 11 is rotatably supported by the robot frame 10 by a vertical first shaft 17, and the second arm 12 is supported by the first arm 11.
The distal end arm 13 is vertically supported rotatably by a hollow second shaft 18 at a position above the distal end arm 13 .
The tip is rotatably supported by a vertical tip shaft 19 at the top surface thereof. In addition,
This first arm 11 and second arm 12 are
Both are hollow bodies and also serve as casings. In this way, the first arm 11, the second arm 12, and the distal end arm 13 are sequentially connected in a joint-like manner.

Furthermore, as shown in FIG. 4, the distal end arm 13, as a gripper 22, holds gripping parts 23a and 23b so as to be openable and closable by a pair of elastic bodies 21 via a driving part 20. ing. Note that these two movable side gripping parts 23a and 23b
is arranged at the apex position of the triangle together with another fixed gripper 23c.

The gear motor 15 also includes a timing belt pulley 24 and a hollow shaft 2 concentric with the first shaft 17.
5, and a timing belt/pulley 26 to transmit rotational force to the second shaft 18. The gear motor 16 also includes a timing belt/pulley 27,
Rotational force is transmitted to the tip shaft 19 and the tip arm 13 by the intermediate shaft 28, the timing belt pulley 29, the intermediate shaft 30, and the timing belt pulley 31. In this way, in the process of transmitting rotational force, the shaft and its receiving part are combined concentrically, so the timing belt, pulley, etc. are connected to the robot frame 10, which also serves as a casing, the first arm 11, and the second arm 12. completely surrounded.

Further, exhaust tubes 32 and 33 are provided as exhaust means in an open state inside the base 3, the robot frame 10, and the first arm 11.
The other end portions of these exhaust tubes 32 and 33 are
It is connected to the suction side of the exhaust pump 34 inside or outside the base 3.

The robot 2 is installed at a position facing the work station 35. A measuring device 36 is installed on this work station 35 within the range of rotation of the robot 2. In addition, a storage member 38 such as a cassette is used to supply wafers 37 to other parts of the rotation range of the robot 2, and a storage member 39 such as a cassette is used to eject the wafers 37 after work (measurement). There are multiple of each.

Effect of the invention The robot 2 combines the vertical movement of the vertically movable body 7 and the rotational movement of the first arm 11 and the second arm 12 to move the storage member 38 on the supply side.
While holding the wafer 37 between the grippers 22, the wafer 37 is taken out from the storage member 38 in order from the lower side to the upper side and supplied to the measuring device 36 of the work station 35. Based on the data of the measurement results of the measuring device 36, the wafers 37 are classified into non-defective products and, for example, two defective products (defective products with a thickness greater than or equal to the standard thickness and defective products with a thickness less than the standard).

Therefore, the robot 2 stores the wafers 37 in a plurality of storage members 39 on the ejection side based on the measurement results.
Sort them into categories and store them in order from the top to the bottom. Such a series of movements is taught in advance through a teaching operation.

At this time, the gripping parts 23a, 2 of the gripper 22
Since 3b and 23c are in contact with the outer peripheral surface of the wafer 37, the surface is free from scratches and adhesion of dust. Also, during this work, the base 3, the robot frame 10, the first arm 11,
Since the inside of the second arm 12 is constantly sucked and discharged to the outside, generation of dust and the like due to the movement of the robot 2 can be reliably prevented. In addition, the first arm 11, the second arm 12, and the tip arm 13 are connected sequentially in an upper-joint manner, and the wafer 37 holding part is located at a higher position than the first arm 11, the second arm 12, and the tip arm 13, so that the wafer 37 is always exposed to clean air from above. This is the first thing that comes into contact with the surface of the surface, so it is possible to reliably prevent the adhesion of dirt, etc.

Modified example of the invention In the above embodiment, only one set of grippers 22 is provided on the tip arm 13, but when the measurement time at the work station 35 is long, the tip arm 13 can be moved relative to the tip shaft 19 as shown in FIG. The wafers 37 can be turned to the work station 35 alternately. As a result, the time required for the transport operation of the robot 2 can be shortened.

Further, the pair of gripping parts 23a and 23b are attached to the elastic body 21.
If the wafer 37 is supported by the wafer 37, the wafer 37 will not be damaged, which is advantageous. However, these grippers 22 can also be held using a common opening/closing chuck or the like. Of course, the object to be transported is not limited to the wafer 37, but may be other semiconductor components that require high cleanliness.

Effect of invention The present invention provides the following effects.

The arm-swivel type robot not only rotates but also moves up and down to move the gripper to the supply or discharge position of wafers, etc., and also to the height of the working position, eliminating the need for a lift for the storage member and reducing waste caused by this. can be prevented from occurring. In particular, even if a large number of storage members are installed, no elevator is required, so the equipment is inexpensive and does not become complicated.

In addition, since the robot is wrapped in a casing and an exhaust means is provided inside the casing, it is possible to reliably prevent dust from scattering outside due to the movement of the robot, improving the cleanliness of the clean room, for example. .

Since the gripper at the tip of the robot mechanically grips the wafer, etc. by contacting the outer circumference of the wafer, no scratches or vacuum marks are left on the surface of the wafer, etc., and therefore, the wafer, etc. Quality deterioration can be reliably prevented.

A plurality of rotating arms are sequentially connected to the robot frame on the vertically movable body, and the gripper at the tip is installed at a higher position than other parts of the robot, especially the vertically movable means, so that wafers, etc. Since the wafers are first exposed to clean air from above, it is possible to reliably prevent dust from adhering to the wafers during the wafer transport process.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a side view of the device for transporting wafers, etc. of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a plan view of the device, FIG. 3 is a skeleton diagram of the robot, and FIG. 4 is a front view of the gripper.
FIG. 5 is a plan view of the tip arm of another embodiment. 1... Conveyance device for wafers, etc., 2... Arm rotating robot, 3... Base that also serves as a casing,
4...Feed screw, 5...Feed nut, 6...Motor for vertical movement, 7...Vertical movement body, 11...First arm, 12...Second arm, 13...Tip arm, 22...Gripper , 23a, 23b, 23
c...Gripping part, 32, 33...Exhaust tube, 3
4...exhaust pump, 35...work station,
37... Wafer, 38, 39... Storage member.

Claims (1)

[Scope of Claim for Utility Model Registration] (1) A base having a built-in vertical movement means, a vertically moving body that moves vertically by the vertically moving unit, a robot frame held on the top surface of this vertically moving body, and a robot frame that is An arm-swivel type robot having rotating arms connected in succession in an overlapping manner, each of which is surrounded by a casing, and an exhaust means provided inside the casing, and a robot whose tip end is higher than each part of the robot. The robot comprises a gripper for wafers etc. provided at a position, a storage member for supplying and discharging wafers etc. located in a rotation area of the rotation arm, and a work station located in a rotation area of the rotation arm. A wafer, etc., conveying device is characterized in that the wafer, etc. is conveyed from a supply storage member to a work station, and after being worked at the work station, the wafer or the like is transported to a discharge storage member. (2) The wafer, etc. according to claim 1 of the utility model registration claim, characterized in that the gripper is constituted by a gripping part that touches the periphery of the wafer etc. through an elastic body, and means for opening and closing this gripping part. Conveyance device.