JPH0590382A - Conveying method of wafer containing jig - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To improve a conveying efficiency by mounting a placing base for arranging a wafer containing jig on a runner of a wafer conveying robot, and transferring to hold the attitudes of the jigs of two types on the runner as a hand protruding from the wrist of the robot inward. CONSTITUTION:When a wafer containing jig 6 is conveyed from a stocker in which the jig 6 is disposed in its attitude vertically before a wafer to a manufacturing apparatus of a wafer horizontal outlet inside, a conveying truck is first traveled to the front of the stocker, and a hand 8 is moved to a position capable of grasping a collar 23 of the jig 6 in the stocker. Then, the jig 6 is raised, and placed on a placing base on a runner 9. Similarly, several wafer containing jigs are placed. The runner 9 is moved to the front of the apparatus, the hand 9 is moved to a position capable of grasping the collar 24 of the jig 6 on the base, the jig 6 is raised, and placed on a mounting position of the jig of the apparatus.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a wafer storage jig transfer method suitable for traveling and transferring a wafer storage jig containing a large number of semiconductor wafers among a plurality of semiconductor manufacturing apparatuses.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In the manufacture of semiconductor devices, cleaning is required to improve the yield of products. For this reason, dust generated by workers has become a problem, and automation of manufacturing apparatuses and unmanned semiconductor wafer transfer have been performed.

A plurality of manufacturing apparatuses are arranged on the production line, and semiconductor wafers are sequentially or selectively conveyed to each manufacturing apparatus to be manufactured. The supply of semiconductor wafers to the manufacturing apparatus is generally performed by aligning and storing 25 semiconductor wafers in a wafer storing jig called a cassette and transporting the wafer storing jig to the manufacturing apparatus. There is a case where wafers are processed one by one in the apparatus, but 25 to 10
There is also a batch process that processes 0 sheets at a time. In this case, it is more efficient to transfer 2 to 4 wafer storage jigs to the manufacturing apparatus at the same time because the time the apparatus waits for transfer is reduced.

A wafer transfer robot for transferring the wafer storage jig includes a traveling device for traveling between a plurality of manufacturing devices, an arm portion mounted on the traveling device and capable of three-dimensional movement, and an arm portion. It is equipped with a wrist part that is provided at the tip and directs the wafer storage jig in a predetermined direction, and a hand that holds the wafer storage jig. It runs to another manufacturing equipment and supplies a wafer storage jig. In order to prevent the wafer in the wafer storage jig from being damaged by vibrations when the wafer transfer robot travels, the wafer storage jig is installed on the wafer transfer robot's travel device during travel to prevent vibration. Place the wafer on the wafer storage jig holder, and open the hand to separate the hand and the wrist from the wafer storage jig.

In order to reduce the traveling time per wafer storage jig, it is preferable to mount a plurality of wafer storage jigs on the traveling device of the wafer transfer robot, and it is common to mount two to six wafer storage jigs. There is. Robot No. 55
(1987-1), pages 90-94, Nikon.
It is described that the FMS automatic transfer system includes a wafer storage jig stand on which six wafer storage jigs can be placed. Further, the front cover of the February 1991 issue of Labor Saving and Automation describes that a trackless automatic guided vehicle is equipped with a wafer storage jig stand on which four wafer storage jigs can be placed.

The wafer storing jig has a box-like structure having an opening surface, and a flange portion for the wafer transfer robot to hold with a hand is formed at the outer surface corner portion thereof, and a large number of flange portions are formed inside thereof. The storage groove is formed, and the wafer is inserted into each storage groove so that the wafer can be pulled out. The orientation of the wafer storage jig in which the wafer is stored is such that when the wafer is loaded in the manufacturing apparatus with the opening surface facing horizontally and the wafer being horizontal and the surface facing upward, There are four types of postures, which are the back, the front, the left, and the right when viewed from the wafer storage jig transfer side of the manufacturing apparatus (the side where the transfer vehicle of the transfer robot exists). After that, change the attitude of these wafer storage jigs
These are referred to as the back of the horizontal horizontal exit, the front of the horizontal horizontal exit, the left of the horizontal horizontal exit, and the right of the horizontal horizontal exit, respectively. Further, when the wafer storage jig is loaded into the manufacturing apparatus in a state where the opening surface of the wafer storage jig faces up and the wafer is vertical, the orientation of the wafer storage jig is such that the surface of the wafer is the wafer of the manufacturing apparatus. There are four types of postures, which are the back, the front, the left, and the right when viewed from the storage jig transfer side (the side where the transfer vehicle of the transfer robot exists). Hereinafter, the attitudes of these wafer storage jigs will be referred to as the wafer vertical front side, the wafer vertical front side, the wafer vertical front side, and the wafer vertical front side, respectively.

There are a total of eight types of postures of the wafer storage jig loaded in the manufacturing apparatus depending on whether the wafer stored in the jig is horizontal or vertical. Of these, there are two types, one of which is at the back of the horizontal wafer exit and the other of which is at the front of the wafer vertical surface. There is a tendency to unify the postures of the wafer storage jigs in order to transfer the wafer storage jigs by the robot, but it is necessary to unify the postures of the production line devices to be transferred by the same wafer transfer robot into one type of posture. It is difficult and requires at least the two types of postures described above.

In recent years, as the structure of semiconductor elements has become finer, the cleanliness of the clean room in which the semiconductor manufacturing equipment is installed needs to be higher, which increases the installation cost and reduces the floor area of the manufacturing equipment. Is needed. Moreover, the function of the manufacturing apparatus is required to be more advanced, and the volume thereof is increasing. Therefore, the control device of the equipment is placed close to the periphery of the wafer storage jig loaded in the manufacturing equipment to make effective use of the space, and the route for supplying and taking out the wafer storage jig is only on the front side of the wafer storage jig. It is supposed to be limited to. Further, when the manufacturing apparatus becomes larger, the manufacturing apparatus main body 1 is installed in the maintenance area 3 adjacent to the clean room 2 as shown in FIG.
The wafer storage jig 6 is supplied and taken out through a hole formed in the wall 5 at the boundary between the clean room and the maintenance room.
So-called through-the-wall type manufacturing equipment has been developed. In this case, there is no space above the wafer storage jig for the wrist 7 of the robot to enter. In this case, it is necessary to keep the wrist of the robot in front of the wafer storage jig and project the hand 8 to the back of the wrist to grip the wafer storage jig. In this way, when there is no space for the robot wrist to enter above the wafer storage jig and the position of the wrist is limited to the front side of the wafer storage jig, by rotating the robot wrist, the posture of the wafer storage jig is changed. Since it becomes impossible to change the position of the wafer storage jig to be loaded into the manufacturing apparatus, it is necessary to change the attitude of the wafer storage jig viewed from the hand so as to change the wafer storage jig.

Since the wafer storage jig is placed on the traveling device for the purpose of earthquake prevention and improvement of running efficiency, the operation of the robot for holding the wafer can be omitted by changing the holding of the wafer storing jig at this time. Transport efficiency is improved.

Japanese Unexamined Utility Model Publication No. 1-155640 discloses a transfer robot equipped with a posture changing mechanism for changing the postures of the above-mentioned two types of wafer storage jigs on a traveling device.

[0011]

The above publication does not consider the case where there is no space above the wafer storage jig for the robot wrist to enter. Further, no consideration is given to the case where a plurality of wafer storage jigs are placed on the traveling device of the wafer transfer robot. Also, Nikon FM
The S automatic transfer system does not consider the case where the wafer storage jig has two types of postures. Further, in the case of the trackless automatic guided vehicle, no consideration is given to the case where there is no space for the wrist of the robot to enter above the wafer storage jig in the through-sawall type manufacturing apparatus.

Therefore, it is necessary to reduce the number of wafer accommodating jigs mounted on the traveling device to two or less, so that the transportation efficiency of traveling decreases. Alternatively, it is necessary to change the holding of the wafer storage jig at a place other than the traveling device, which reduces the transfer efficiency of the robot. Or, it is necessary to unify the equipment of the production line to be transferred by the same wafer transfer robot to the attitude of one type of wafer storage jig, or it is not possible to transfer it to the through-the-wall manufacturing equipment. There is a high possibility that the latest high-performance manufacturing equipment cannot be installed.

An object of the present invention is to provide a wafer storage jig having two or more postures, in which three or six wafer storage jigs can be placed on a traveling device of a wafer transfer robot, the transfer efficiency is high. , The latest high-performance manufacturing equipment can be freely introduced into the automation line so that it can be carried on the traveling equipment while being carried and can also be carried to the through-the-wall manufacturing equipment. To do so.

[0014]

[Means for Solving the Problems] To achieve the above object,
According to the present invention, a stand is installed on the traveling device of the wafer transfer robot so that the wafer storage jigs are arranged in a square shape, and the robot hand is a hand protruding beyond the wrist. Both of the postures at the back of the horizontal exit and at the front of the vertical surface of the wafer are changed over on the traveling device of the wafer transfer robot.

[0015]

[Operation] Three to six wafer storage jigs can be placed on the traveling device of the wafer transfer robot, the transfer efficiency is high, and the wafer storage jigs in two types of postures can be transferred. In addition, it can be transported to the through-the-wall manufacturing equipment, and the latest high-performance manufacturing equipment can be freely introduced into the automation line.

[0016]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS FIGS. 1 to 7 show an embodiment of a method for carrying a wafer storage jig according to the present invention.

1 to 4 show the structure of a wafer transfer robot used in the present invention.

A six-axis robot 10 and a pedestal 11 having a seismic protection function for the wafer storage jig 6 are placed on a traveling device 9 adapted to travel between the manufacturing devices.

As shown in the link diagram in FIG. 2, the six-axis robot 1
0 is fixed to the upper surface 14 of the carrier vehicle and is a robot column 13
Axis of rotation, robot column 1
Fixed to 3 to rotate the arm 15 on a horizontal axis, a second shaft 18, fixed to the arm 15 to rotate the arm 16 on a horizontal axis, a third shaft 19, fixed to the arm 16 and connected at substantially right angles to each other. The fourth axis 20, the fifth axis 21, which has the function of freely changing the direction of the hand 8 and constitutes the wrist 7,
It comprises a sixth shaft 22.

Returning to FIG. 1, the hand opening / closing mechanism 12 and the hand 8 are attached to the tip of the wrist 7 of the six-axis robot 10.

At this time, when the wafer storage jig loaded in the manufacturing apparatus is gripped, the sixth shaft 22 at the tip of the wrist 7 is held.
Should be oriented almost vertically. Also, the upper part of the hand 8 is a space, and the wrist 7 of the robot is arranged beside it.

As shown in FIG. 3, the wafer storage jig is provided with flanges on an upper portion 23 when the wafer is placed vertically and an upper portion 24 when the wafer is placed horizontally. With the combined hand of the clamp claws corresponding to the respective collars, the wafer storage jigs in two positions can be grasped in the case of the wafer horizontal exit and the wafer vertical front side.

The pedestal 11 is inclined from the horizontal state of the wafer in the wafer storage jig 6 by 5 to 35 degrees in a direction in which the opening surface side faces upward, and the surface of the wafer touches the groove of the wafer storage jig 6. And the wafer should not spill out due to vibration. Further, two wafer storage jigs are arranged such that the outlets of the wafers face each other, and two sets of them are combined and arranged in a square-shaped arrangement as shown in FIG. The robot column 13 is arranged on the mating surface 25 of the two wafer storage jigs.

An example of a state in which the wafer storage jig 6 is held on the traveling device 9 of the wafer transfer robot so that the attitude of the wafer storage jig 6 as viewed from the wrist 7 in FIG. Indicates. Position the wrist 7 on the front side of the wafer in the wafer storage jig and in the direction of the wafer exit side, and tilt the sixth shaft 22 at the tip of the wrist 7 from the horizontal direction as shown in the figure to tilt the wafer in the wafer storage jig from the horizontal direction. The hand 8 holds the brim 23 in a state in which it is rotated by a certain amount.

FIG. 6 shows an example of a state in which the wafer storage jig 6 on the traveling device 9 of the wafer transfer robot is gripped so that the attitude of the wafer storage jig 6 as viewed from the wrist 7 is at the back of the horizontal wafer exit. .. Place the position of the wrist 7 in the direction opposite to the wafer exit side of the wafer storage jig and on the front surface of the wafer. The collar 24 is gripped by the hand 8 while being rotated by an amount corresponding to the inclination.

Next, a warehouse of wafer storage jigs in which the attitude of the wafer storage jigs is in front of the wafer vertical front side (hereinafter referred to as a stocker, there are two loading locations of the wafer storage jigs at the loading / unloading port). The transfer method of the present invention will be described for the case where the wafer storage jig is transferred from the location) to the manufacturing apparatus at the back of the horizontal horizontal exit (four locations for loading the wafer storage jig).

First, the carrier is run in front of the stocker. Next, the six-axis robot is operated to move the hand to the wafer storage jig 6 at the first loading place of the wafer storage jig of the stocker.
The collar 23 is moved to a position where it can be gripped. Next, the hand is closed, the wafer storage jig is grasped and lifted, and the wafer storage jig is placed on one place of the stand 11 on the traveling device. The posture of the robot at this time is the posture shown in FIG. 5 because the posture of the wafer storage jig of the stocker is in front of the wafer vertical front side. Next, the hand is opened and the six-axis robot is moved to a position where the collar portion 23 of the wafer storage jig 6 at the second loading place of the wafer storage jig of the stocker can be gripped. Next, the hand is closed, the wafer storage jig is grasped and lifted, and the wafer storage jig is placed at the next one position on the table 11 on the traveling device. The posture of the robot at this time is the posture shown in FIG. 5 because the posture of the wafer storage jig of the stocker is in front of the wafer vertical front side. During this time, the transfer device inside the stocker transfers a new wafer storage jig from the stocker shelf to the first loading location of the stocker wafer storage jig. By repeating this, four wafer storage jigs are placed on the traveling device. Next, the hand is opened and the six-axis robot is placed in a posture suitable for the traveling of the traveling device. Next, the running device is run and stopped in front of the manufacturing device. Next, the six-axis robot is operated to move the hand to a position where one of the wafer storage jigs on the stand 11 on the traveling device can grip the collar 24. The posture of the robot at this time is the posture shown in FIG. 6 because the posture of the wafer storage jig of the manufacturing apparatus is behind the horizontal wafer exit. Next, the hand is closed, the wafer storage jig is grasped and lifted, and the wafer storage jig of the manufacturing apparatus is placed on one of the loading places. Next, the hand is opened and the six-axis robot is operated to move the hand to a position where the next one collar 24 of the wafer storage jig on the stand 11 on the traveling device can be gripped. The posture of the robot at this time is the posture shown in FIG. 6 because the posture of the wafer storage jig of the manufacturing apparatus is “inside the horizontal wafer exit”. Next, the hand is closed, the wafer storage jig is gripped and lifted, and the wafer storage jig of the manufacturing apparatus is placed at the next place in the loading place of the wafer storage jig. By repeating this, four wafer storage jigs are placed on the manufacturing apparatus. Next, the hand is opened, and the six-axis robot is placed in a posture suitable for the traveling of the traveling device and stands by until the next transfer request is made.

In the above embodiment, four wafer storage jigs are mounted on the carrier, but the present invention is not limited to this, and three or six may be arranged as shown in FIG. Good.

[0029]

According to the present invention, three or six wafer storage jigs can be placed on the traveling device of the wafer transfer robot, the transfer efficiency is high, and the wafer storage jigs in two kinds of postures are provided. It can be transported and can also be transported to through-the-wall manufacturing equipment, and the latest high-performance manufacturing equipment can be freely introduced into the automation line.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a side view of a wafer transfer robot according to an embodiment of the present invention,

FIG. 2 is a link diagram of a robot according to an embodiment of the present invention,

FIG. 3 is a front view of a wafer transfer robot according to an embodiment of the present invention,

FIG. 4 is a plan view of a wafer transfer robot according to an embodiment of the present invention,

FIG. 5 is an explanatory view showing a gripped state of a wafer storage jig according to an embodiment of the present invention,

FIG. 6 is an explanatory diagram showing a gripped state of a wafer storage jig according to an embodiment of the present invention,

FIG. 7 is a plan view of a wafer transfer robot according to another embodiment of the present invention,

FIG. 8 is a side sectional view showing an example of a manufacturing apparatus.

[Explanation of symbols]

 6 ... Wafer storage jig, 7 ... Robot wrist, 8 ... Robot hand, 9 ... Traveling device, 10 ... Six-axis robot, 11 ... Stand.

Claims (2)

[Claims] 1. A traveling device, a robot having six axes mounted on the traveling device, a hand attached to a wrist of the robot for gripping a wafer storage jig, and three provided on the traveling device. In a method of transferring a wafer storage jig using a wafer storage jig transfer robot including a table for placing six to six wafer storage jigs, the wafer storage jig is gripped while the hand is loaded in the manufacturing apparatus. When doing, the sixth axis of the tip of the wrist is oriented substantially in the vertical direction, and the wrist is arranged so as to be on the front side with respect to the vertical plane set up at the front end of the wafer storage jig. With the wafer storage jig viewed from the wrist in two different postures, the table and the robot are arranged so that the arbitrary wafer storage jig placed on the table can be gripped, and The above Method of transporting a wafer housing jig and performing re-holding the storage jig. 2. The wafer storage jig according to claim 1, wherein the attitude of the wafer storage jig is such that the wafer stored therein is horizontal, the front is up, and the entrance / exit of the wafer is on the back side. The wafer stored in is vertical, the front is the front side,
There are two types of postures when the entrance and exit of the wafer is on the upper side, and the two wafer storage jigs are arranged so that the exits of the wafer are substantially facing each other. The robot is an arrangement in which three sets or six pieces of the wafer storage jigs are taken out from an arrangement in which three sets of the two wafer storage jigs are arranged in parallel so that the facing surfaces of the two wafer storage jigs match each other. A method for transporting a wafer storage jig, in which the column is arranged on the facing surface.