JPH065526A - Gas supplier - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To provide a gas supplier capable of accurately opening or closing a valve at all times irrespective of the kind of valve. CONSTITUTION:This embodiment comprises a driving part 8 for opening or closing a valve, a rotation transmitting mechanism 9 for being coupled with the driving part 8, a handle 5 for being coupled with the rotation transmitting mechanism 9 through a coupling member 7 and engaged with a valve 4 of a gas supply cylinder 1, a torque detector 10 for detecting a rotation torque given from the handle 5 to the valve 4, and a control part 11 for being respectively connected with the driving part 8 and the torque detector 10 and controlling the operation of the driving part 8. A predetermined rotation torque is given to the valve 4 by detecting signals of the torque detector 10, and the valve 4 can be opened or closed by this rotation torque.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a gas supply device for supplying a special material gas such as monosilane gas or diborane gas used for manufacturing a semiconductor device.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In manufacturing a semiconductor device, a raw material gas or an impurity gas of this kind is used, for example, in a vapor phase epitaxial growth process. These gases are filled in a predetermined gas supply cylinder, and appropriately supplied to the reaction furnace from there. The gas supply from the gas supply cylinder is controlled by remote control or the like. In the conventional gas supply apparatus, the valve provided in the gas supply cylinder is opened / closed.

FIG. 3 shows an example of the configuration of a conventional gas supply device. In the figure, 1 is a cylinder filled with raw material gas and the like, 2 is a pedestal for mounting the cylinder 1, 3 is a fixing band for fixing the cylinder 1 to the pedestal 2, and 4 is a valve. The valve 4 is mounted on the cylinder 1 through the threaded portion 4a.
It is attached so as to be rotatable, and the opening degree is changed according to the amount of rotation. Further, 5 is a handle that engages with the valve 4, and 6 is a cylinder opening / closing mechanism that is connected to the handle 5 via a connecting means 7 such as a universal joint. The cylinder opening / closing mechanism 6 is designed to be remotely operated, for example, as described above.
The rotational driving force generated there is transmitted to the valve 4 via the connecting means 7 and the handle 5, whereby the valve 4 is rotated.

Here, when the opening / closing control of the valve 4 is performed, the handle 5 is fixed to the valve 4 and the position where the opening of the valve 4 is 0 (closed) is set as the origin. By rotating the handle 5 a certain amount from the origin, the valve 4 is opened, thereby supplying gas. Further, when the gas supply is stopped, the handle 5 is rotated in the opposite direction to the gas supply, whereby the valve 4 is rotated and returned to the initially set origin, and at this point the handle 5 is rotated. It was supposed to stop.

[0005]

However, in such a conventional gas supply apparatus, the opening / closing angle range of the valve 4 differs depending on the cylinder 1, and may be 180 ° / MAX or 360 ° / MAX, for example. Therefore, the valve 4 having the smallest opening / closing angle range is in the fully opened state earliest, and therefore, it is necessary to rotate the valve 4 having the smallest opening / closing angle range as a reference at the start of gas supply. There has been a problem that the valve 4 having an opening / closing angle range larger than that cannot be fully opened due to insufficient rotation amount.

On the other hand, when the valve 4 is closed, it is returned to its origin position as described above, but such origin return is performed by rotating the valve 4 by a certain angle. Since the valve 4 is closed only by the angle amount of the valve 4 as described above, the predetermined torque (normally 3 to 10 kg
cm) could not be obtained. Therefore, when the turning torque of the valve 4 at the time of returning to the origin is less than this, the valve will not be closed sufficiently.

In view of such circumstances, it is an object of the present invention to provide a gas supply device which can always open and close the valve accurately regardless of the type of valve.

[0008]

A gas supply device according to the present invention includes a drive unit for opening and closing a valve, a rotation transmission mechanism connected to the drive unit, and a rotation transmission mechanism connected to the rotation transmission mechanism via a connecting member. A handle that engages with the valve of the gas supply cylinder, a torque detector that detects the rotational torque applied from the handle to the valve, and an operation of the drive unit that is connected to the drive unit and the torque detector, respectively. A control unit for controlling the valve is provided, and the valve is opened / closed by a detection signal of the torque detector.

[0009]

According to the present invention, the valve of the gas supply cylinder is opened / closed via the handle, but the rotational torque applied from the handle to the valve as described above is detected by the torque detector. Then, this detection signal is sent to the control unit, and the control unit operates the drive unit until the rotational torque of the valve reaches a predetermined value. Further, it is confirmed that the rotation torque has reached the predetermined value, and the drive unit is stopped. In this way, when the valve is opened and closed, the valve opening and closing control is performed by applying the rotational torque required for opening and closing the valve, so that reliable and proper gas supply can be performed at all times.
Further, since the opening / closing control of the valve is performed by the rotation torque, it is unnecessary to control the rotation angle for opening / closing the valve. In particular, even when the opening / closing angle range of the valve changes, the valve is opened or closed with a rotational torque of a predetermined magnitude, so that accurate opening / closing control is performed regardless of the type of valve.

[0010]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS A first embodiment of the gas supply device of the present invention will be described below with reference to FIG. 1 and with reference to FIG. Cylinder 1
Similarly to the case shown in FIG. 3, the valve 4 attached to the valve is opened and closed by the turning operation of the handle 5, and the handle 5 is connected to the connecting means 7. Further, in FIG. 1, reference numeral 8 is a drive unit such as a stepping motor for opening and closing the valve 4, 9 is a rotation transmission mechanism, and the drive unit 8 is provided.
A gear 9a connected to the output shaft 8a, a gear 9b engaged with the gear 9a and connected to the connecting means 7, and a gear 9c engaged with the gear 9b. Although the rotation transmission mechanism 9 may be a spur gear or the like, the rotation force of the drive unit 8 is transmitted to the handle 5 via the rotation transmission mechanism 9.

A torque detector 10 is connected to the gear 9c, and detects the rotational torque of the gear 9b, that is, the rotational torque applied from the handle 5 to the valve 4. Reference numeral 11 is a control unit that is connected to the drive unit 8 and the torque detector 10 and controls the operation of the drive unit 8. The control unit 11 includes a motor rotation control mechanism, but is configured to be remotely operable.

In the above case, the cylinder 1 is filled with the special material gas used for manufacturing this kind of semiconductor device as described above, and the valve 4 attached to the cylinder 1 is used.
The opening / closing angle range differs depending on the cylinder 1, and the opening / closing angle range (for example, 180
In the range of up to 720 °).

The gas supply apparatus according to the first embodiment of the present invention is constructed as described above, and its operation will be described below. When the valve 4 of the cylinder 1 is opened and closed, the driving force of the drive unit 8 is first transmitted to the gear 9a via the output shaft 8a. Further, the rotational force transmitted to the gear 9a is transmitted from the gear 9b meshing with the gear 9a to the valve 4 via the connecting means 7 and the handle 5. On the other hand, the magnitude of the rotational torque transmitted from the gear 9b to the valve 4 is detected by the torque detector 10 via the gear 9c. Then, the detection signal of the torque detector 10 is sent to the control unit 11.

By the way, in order to properly open or close the valve 4, a predetermined amount of rotation torque is required, and if such rotation torque is applied, the valve 4
Opens or closes completely regardless of the opening and closing angle range. The detection signal of the rotational torque for the valve 4 detected by the torque detector 10 as described above is sent to the control unit 11. Based on the detection signal, the control unit 11 operates the drive unit 8 until the rotational torque for the valve 4 reaches a predetermined value, that is, the rotational torque that is necessary and sufficient for proper valve opening or closing.
Then, when the rotational torque for the valve 4 reaches a predetermined value, the drive unit 8 stops.

As described above, when the valve 4 is opened and closed, the opening and closing control of the valve 4 is performed so as to apply the rotational torque required for opening or closing the valve 4, so that reliable and proper gas supply can be always performed. it can. Further, since the opening / closing control of the valve 4 is performed by detecting the rotation torque as described above, the conventional control of the rotation angle for opening / closing the valve becomes unnecessary. In particular, even if the opening / closing angle range of the valve 4 changes greatly, the valve 4 can be opened or closed with certainty as long as a predetermined rotational torque can be obtained, so that proper opening / closing control can be performed regardless of the type of the valve 4. Done. Then, in the case of the valve 4 having any opening / closing angle range, the gas can be sufficiently supplied by opening the valve to the maximum angle. Further, the valve 4 can always be operated accurately and accurately without being affected by the mounting of the valve 4 and the play in the transmission portion of the rotation transmission mechanism 9, and the gas can be supplied / shut off safely and reliably.

Next, FIG. 2 shows a second embodiment of the gas supply device of the present invention. In the figure, the drive part 8'is connected to the handle 5 via a connecting means 7, and the control part 1
1'is connected. Further, the load variation signal of the motor of the drive unit 8'is fed back to the control unit 11 '(see signal line 12), and the rotational torque of the drive unit 8'is detected by the control unit 11'. At the same time, when the rotational torque reaches a predetermined value, the control unit 11 'drives the drive unit 8
Is supposed to stop. Also in the second embodiment, since the opening / closing control of the valve 4 is performed by applying the rotational torque required to open or close the valve 4, it is possible to always reliably and properly supply the gas.

[0017]

As described above, according to the present invention, in this type of gas supply device, the valve opening / closing control is performed by the rotational torque applied to the valve.
It is possible to supply and shut off gas accurately and safely.
Further, there is an advantage that a sufficient gas supply is always guaranteed even when the opening / closing angle range of the valve is different.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a main configuration of a first embodiment of a gas supply device according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a main configuration of a second embodiment of a gas supply device according to the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing a configuration example of a conventional gas supply device.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 cylinder 2 pedestal 3 fixed band 4 valve 5 handle 7 connecting means 8 drive unit 9 rotation transmission mechanism 10 torque detector 11 control unit

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A drive unit for opening and closing a valve, a rotation transmission mechanism connected to the drive unit, a handle connected to the rotation transmission mechanism via a connecting member and engaging with a valve of a gas supply cylinder, A torque detector that detects a rotational torque applied to the valve from the handle, and a control unit that is connected to the drive unit and the torque detector to control the operation of the drive unit, respectively.
A gas supply device configured to open and close the valve according to a detection signal of the torque detector.