JPH0848337A - Managing device of inside of container - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To allow data communication using electromagnetic waves between the inside and outside of a container even when it is a metallic container. CONSTITUTION:A container 25 is made of a metal at least inside and contains objects for management such as wafers 22 or wafer cassettes 21. An ID tag 2 that can store ID data and processing data is attached to the objects for management, and a reading/writing device 1, that performs data communication using electromagnetic waves with the ID tag 2 of the objects for management contained in the container 25, is installed outside the container 25. In addition, a relay device 33 including a first coil 27, etc., that relays the electromagnetic waves that are transmitted and received between the ID tags 2 and the reading/ writing device 1, is provided on a partition wall of the container 25.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention enables data communication between the inside and the outside of a container, at least the inner wall surface of which is made of metal, by using electromagnetic waves, so that a managed object such as a wafer contained in the container can be stored. The present invention relates to a management device in a container to be managed.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art For example, in a semiconductor manufacturing process, dust adhesion to a wafer causes a reduction in yield. Therefore, when the wafer is transported and stored, as shown in FIG. The wafer 54 is housed together with the wafer cassette 55 in a container 53 that can be held. The container 53 is required to be light and inexpensive, and for this reason, resin molding is predominant in combination with productivity improvement and production cost reduction.

Further, in the semiconductor manufacturing process, an in-container management device is used to manage the wafer 54, the wafer cassette 55, etc. housed in the container 53. The conventional in-container management device is provided in a wafer cassette 55 and stores an ID tag 51 (hereinafter referred to as an ID (IDENTITY) tag 51) that stores data in a rewritable manner and reads / writes data from / to this ID tag 51. A read / write device 52. And ID
Data communication between the tag 51 and the read / write device 52 is
Utilizing the fact that the container 53 is made of a resin that allows the electromagnetic waves f _{1 to} f ₃ to pass therethrough, it is designed to be performed by an electromagnetic coupling method and an electromagnetic induction method.

[0004]

By the way, in recent years, the demand for the environment inside the container 53 at the time of transportation and storage has become strict as the functionality and integration of semiconductor devices have increased, and the container 53 has been constructed. The gas permeability of the resin and the amount of outgas from the resin are not negligible. Therefore, paying attention to the fact that the gas permeability and the outgas amount of the metal are smaller than that of the resin, it is possible to reduce the gas permeability and the outgas amount into the container 53 by forming at least the inner wall of the container 53 with the metal. It is considered.

However, when the container 53 whose inside is covered with metal is used, in the conventional container management apparatus,
As shown in FIG. 8, the metal wall of the container 53 causes electromagnetic waves f ₁
Since ~ f ₃ is cut off, there is a problem that data communication between the ID tag 51 and the reading / writing device 52 becomes extremely difficult. This problem is not limited to the semiconductor manufacturing field,
Inside the container 53 formed of metal, electromagnetic waves f _{1 to} f
_It occurs in all fields managed by data communication of ₃ .

Therefore, according to the present invention, even if the inside of the container 53 is covered with metal, data management between the inside and the outside of the container 53 can be easily performed by the electromagnetic waves f _{1 to} f _{3 in the} container management. It is intended to provide a device.

[0007]

In order to solve the above-mentioned object, a data storage means is attached to an object to be managed which is housed in a container whose inner side is made of metal, and which can store data of the object to be managed. A data management means provided outside the container for performing data communication using electromagnetic waves to the data storage means of the management target housed in the container; and a data storage means provided on the partition wall of the container. It has a relay means for relaying an electromagnetic wave transmitted / received to / from the data management means.

[0008]

According to the above construction, since the relay means provided on the partition wall of the container relays electromagnetic waves, even if the inside of the container is covered with metal, the data storage means and Data communication between data management means outside the container can be easily performed by electromagnetic waves.

[0009]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. The in-container management apparatus according to this embodiment is shown in FIG.
As shown in FIG. ₁ , a read / write device 1 (data management means) and an ID tag 2 that perform data communication by electromagnetic waves f _{1 to} f _3.
(Data storage means). Read / write device 1
Has a transmitter 4 that converts a data signal into an electromagnetic wave f ₂ and outputs it to the ID tag 2, and a receiver 5 that receives the electromagnetic wave f ₁ from the ID tag 2 and converts it into a data signal. The transmitter 4 includes a modulator 9 that modulates a data signal, and a driver 10 that converts the signal form of the modulated data signal from an electric signal to an electromagnetic wave f ₁ and outputs the electromagnetic wave f ₁ . On the other hand, the reception unit 5 has an amplification unit 7 that converts the received electromagnetic wave f ₁ into an electric signal and amplifies it, and a demodulation unit 8 that demodulates the data signal converted into the signal form of the electric signal.

Further, the reading / writing device 1 has a power transmission unit 3 for transmitting the electromagnetic wave f ₃ for power to the ID tag 2 and also has a control unit 11. The control unit 11
The control device 12 is connected to the control device 12 that manages the process, and the control device 12 sends a predetermined ID tag 2 to the control unit 11, for example.
It is instructed to read the process data such as the manufacturing history and manufacturing conditions stored in, and to write these process data in the ID tag 2. Then, the control unit 11 outputs a data signal including, for example, ID data designating a specific ID tag 2 and process data to the transmission unit 4 in accordance with an instruction from the control device 12, or the reception unit 5.
The ID tag 2 is confirmed and the process data is read based on the data signal from the.

On the other hand, the ID tag 2 receives the electromagnetic wave f ₂ from the reading / writing device 1 and converts it into a data signal, and the transmitting section 13 which converts the data signal into the electromagnetic wave f ₁ and transmits it. And a power supply unit 6 that receives the electromagnetic wave f ₃ from the reading / writing device 1 and converts it into electric power for the ID tag 2. The power supply unit 6 may be a battery, and in this case, the power transmission unit 3 of the reading / writing device 1 and the electromagnetic wave f ₃ for power are unnecessary. The transmitting unit 13 and the receiving unit 14 are similar to the above-mentioned reading / writing device 1 in that the modulating unit 1
5 and a driving unit 16, a demodulating unit 17 and an amplifying unit 18, respectively.

The ID tag 2 also has a memory 19 and a control unit 20. The memory 19 stores an ID number set uniquely to the ID tag 1, and
Process data such as manufacturing history and manufacturing conditions are rewritably stored. Then, when the ID data input via the receiving unit 14 matches its own ID number, the control unit 20 transfers data between the reading / writing device 1 via the transmitting unit 13 and the receiving unit 14. Communication is continued and, for example, a process data read operation and a process operation operation with respect to the memory 19 are performed in response to a request from the read / write device 1.

The above-mentioned ID tag 2 is, as shown in FIG.
The wafers 22 (objects to be managed) are fixedly mounted on a wafer cassette 21 (objects to be managed) capable of accommodating a plurality of wafers. The wafer cassette 21 is housed in a container 25, and the container 25 includes a lid member 23 on which the wafer cassette 21 is placed and a container body 26 that houses the wafer cassette 21 placed on the lid member 23. Have The lid member 23 is provided with a seal 24 so as to abut the opening of the container body 26. The seal 24 brings the container body 26 and the lid member 23 into close contact with each other to protect the environment inside the container 25. It is designed to be kept constant.

The container body 26 and the lid member 23 described above.
Is made of a metal whose gas permeability and amount of outgas are smaller than that of resin, and the inside of the container 25 is covered with the metal. The container body 26
The lid member 23 may be a resin plate whose inner wall surface is covered with a metal plate or metal foil, or may be a metal film formed by plating or vapor deposition.

The partition wall of the container body 26 has an ID
A relay unit 33 that relays the electromagnetic waves f _{1 to} f ₃ between the tag 2 and the reading / writing device 1 is provided. Relay means 33
Has a first coil 27 composed of three systems of coils for transmission, reception, and power.
As shown in FIG. 2, is provided on the inner wall surface of the container body 26 so as to be present inside the container 25. The first coil 27, by having a function as an antenna of the electromagnetic wave f ₁ ~f _3, is adapted to transmit and receive electromagnetic wave f ₁ ~f ₃ in the ID tag 2.

The above-mentioned first coil 27 and container body 26
A non-metal spacer 28 having electrical insulation is provided between the first coil 27 and the metal wall so as to effectively receive electromagnetic waves. Has become. Both ends of the first coil 27 are
It is drawn out of the container body 26 through a through hole formed in the spacer 28 and the container body 26. The through hole is filled with an electrically insulating sealing material so as to prevent contact between the coil and the container body 26 and maintain the container 25 in a hermetically sealed state.

Both ends of the first coil 27 are connected to a male connector 29 (connector means) provided on the outer wall surface of the container body 26. A female connector 30 supported by a connector expansion / contraction device 31 is provided in front of the male connector 29 so as to face the connector expansion / contraction device 31.
Receives an instruction from the control device 12 and receives the female connector 30.
Is moved back and forth in the direction of the male connector 29. Further, the female connector 30 is connected to the above-mentioned reading / writing device 1, and when the female connector 30 is connected to the male connector 29, the reading / writing device 1 emits electromagnetic waves f ₁ to. Data communication with the ID tag 2 is performed by f ₃ .

The operation of the in-container management device having the above configuration will be described. First, when the lid member 23 seals the opening of the container body 26 via the seal 24, the container 25 is kept in a sealed state, so that foreign matter, moisture, etc. are prevented from entering the container 25. . In addition, the lid member 23 and the container body 26 that form the container 25 are formed of a metal having a low gas permeability and a small amount of outgas. Therefore, the container 25
The internal environment is kept extremely stable due to the characteristics of the airtight structure and the constituent materials, and the wafer 22 is placed in this container 25.
1 will be accommodated, transported, and stored.

Next, when the container 25 is moved to a predetermined position during transportation and storage by the container 25, the control device 12 detects this container 25 by a sensor or the like (not shown), and the connector expansion / contraction device 31 is detected. By instructing the female connector 30 to connect to the male connector 29, the connector expansion / contraction device 31 moves the female connector 30 toward the male connector 29.

When the connection of the female connector 30 to the male connector 29 is completed, the electromagnetic wave f ₃ for electric power and the electromagnetic wave f ₂ for data signal including ID data are output from the reading / writing device 1 in this order. Therefore, the electromagnetic waves f ₃ and f ₂ are generated by the female connector 30 and the male connector 2.
It will reach the first coil 27 in the container 25 via 9. Then, the first coil 27 causes the electromagnetic wave f ₂ · f
₃ is transmitted to the container 25, and the ID tag 2 transmits the electromagnetic wave f ₂
By receiving f ₃ ·, it will send the electromagnetic wave f ₂ · f ₃ from the reading / writing device 1 to the ID tag 2 is completed. After that, since the ID tag 2 responds based on these electromagnetic waves f ₂ and f ₃ , when the data signal for response is transmitted as the electromagnetic wave f ₁ , this electromagnetic wave f ₁ is received by the first coil 27 and the male It is taken into the read / write device 1 via the mold connector 29 and the female connector 30. As a result, the ID tag 2 is read from the reading / writing device 1
The transmission of the electromagnetic wave f ₁ to the
The bidirectional data communication between the read / write device 1 and the ID tag 2 by _{1 to} f ₃ is realized by the relay of the first coil 27 and the male connector 29.

As described above, the container management apparatus of this embodiment manages the wafer 22 and the wafer cassette 21 which are housed in the container 25 whose inner wall surface is made of metal and whose inside is covered with the metal. An ID tag 2 (data storage means) attached to an object and capable of storing ID data and process data of this management target, and a container 25.
The read / write device 1 (data management means) that is provided outside and performs data communication with the ID tag 2 of the management target housed in the container 25 using electromagnetic waves f _{1 to} f ₃ and the container 25. The relay means 33 is provided on the partition wall and relays the electromagnetic waves f _{1 to} f ₃ transmitted and received between the ID tag 2 and the reading / writing device 1. Specifically, the relay means 33 is the ID of the management target housed in the container 25.
A first coil 27 (first coil means) provided in the container 25 so as to transmit and receive electromagnetic waves f _{1 to} f ₃ to the tag 2, and the first coil 27 is connected to the first coil 27 through a partition wall of the container 25, Container 2 that can be connected to reader / writer 1
5 and a male connector 29 (connector means) provided outside.

As a result, the relay means 33 provided on the partition wall of the container 25 relays the electromagnetic waves f _{1 to} f ₃ , so that the inside of the container 25 is covered with the metal, and the ID tag 2 and the reading / reading information are read. Even if the writing device 1 is blocked by the metal wall, the ID tag 2 and the reading / writing device 1
The data communication between them can be easily performed by the electromagnetic waves f _{1 to} f ₃ .

The relay means 33 in this embodiment has a structure in which the first coil 27 is installed in the container 25 and both ends of the first coil 27 are connected to the male connector 29 outside the container 25. It is not limited to this. That is, as shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, the relay unit 33 transmits / receives the electromagnetic waves f _{1 to} f ₃ to / from the ID tag 2 of the management target housed in the container 25.
First coil 27a provided inside (first coil means)
And a second coil 27b (second coil 27b) which is connected to the first coil 27a through the partition wall of the container 25 and is provided outside the container 25 so as to transmit and receive the electromagnetic waves f _{1 to} f ₃ to the reading / writing device 1. 2 coil means) and these first coils 2
7a and capacitor 3 for resonating second coil 27b
2 (resonance means) may be included.

Specifically, the first coil 27a (first coil means) and the second coil 27b (second coil means) are installed on both wall surfaces of the container 25 via the spacers 28, 28, and the resonance of FIG. While directly connecting one ends of the first and second coils 27a and 27b to form a circuit,
The other end may be connected via a capacitor 32 (resonance means). In this case, since the connector expansion / contraction device 31 is unnecessary, it is possible to simplify the structure of the in-container management device.

Further, the container management device of this embodiment is
Wafer or a liquid crystal display panel, has been described when applied to the field of semiconductor manufacturing process handling electronic substrate such as a disc, a non-contact manner by electromagnetic wave f ₁ ~f ₃ managed object within metal container 53 It can be applied in all fields controlled by. Further, there are ID tags 2 that can be read-only, write-only, and both read / write, and the in-container management device is configured to transmit and / or receive electromagnetic waves according to their usage patterns. Further, in FIG. 4 and FIG. 5, only one set of the first and second coils 27a and 27b is shown, but normally two sets are required for transmission and reception, respectively, and the power supply power is sent. In this case, three sets are required for power. As a special case, there is a case of f ₁ = f ₂ and f ₂ = f ₃ in FIG.

In this embodiment, the coil and connector means are provided on the side wall of the container 25. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the coil and connector means may be provided on the bottom wall of the container 25. It may be provided. In particular, when provided on the bottom wall of the container 25, the connector expansion / contraction device 31 for connecting the reading / writing device 1 to the connector means of the container 25 becomes unnecessary.

[0027]

As described above, according to the present invention, the data storage means, which is attached to the object to be managed and is capable of storing the data of the object to be managed, is attached to the object to be managed, which container is made of metal at least inside. Data management means provided outside and for performing data communication using electromagnetic waves to the data storage means of the management object housed in the container; and the data storage means and the data management provided on the partition wall of the container. Since it has a relay means for relaying electromagnetic waves transmitted to and received from the means, even if the inside of the container is covered with metal, the data storage means inside the container and the data management means outside the container An effect that data communication can be easily performed by electromagnetic waves is achieved.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 illustrates the present invention, and is a schematic configuration diagram of an in-container management device.

FIG. 2 is a schematic configuration diagram of a relay unit in the in-container management device.

FIG. 3 is a circuit diagram of a read / write device and an ID tag.

FIG. 4 is a schematic configuration diagram of an in-container management device.

FIG. 5 is a schematic configuration diagram of a relay unit in the in-container management device.

FIG. 6 is a circuit diagram of a relay unit in the in-container management device.

FIG. 7 illustrates a conventional example and is a schematic configuration diagram of an in-container management device.

FIG. 8 is a schematic configuration diagram of a relay unit in the in-container management device.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1 Reader / Writer 2 ID Tag 3 Electric Power Transmitter 4 Transmitter 5 Receiver 21 Wafer Cassette 22 Wafer 23 Lid Member 24 Seal 25 Container 26 Container Body 27 First Coil 27a First Coil 27b Second Coil 28 Spacer 29 Male Type connector 30 female type connector 31 connector expansion / contraction device 32 condenser 33 relay means

 ─────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continuation of the front page (72) Inventor Hiroyuki Obebe 100 Takegahana-cho, Ise-shi, Mie Shinko Electric Co., Ltd.Ise Mfg. Co., Ltd. Inside the factory

Claims (3)

[Claims] 1. A data storage means, which is attached to a managed object housed in a container, at least the inside of which is made of metal, and is capable of storing data of the managed object, and which is provided outside the container and is provided in the container. A data management means for performing data communication with the data storage means of the stored object to be managed by using electromagnetic waves, and an electromagnetic wave which is provided on the partition wall of the container and is transmitted and received between the data storage means and the data management means An intra-container management device, comprising: 2. The relay means comprises a first coil means provided in the container so as to transmit and / or receive an electromagnetic wave to the data storage means of the management target housed in the container, and the first coil means. 2. The in-container management device according to claim 1, further comprising: one coil means connected through a partition wall of the container, and connector means provided outside the container so as to be connectable to the data management means. 3. The relay means comprises a first coil means provided in the container so as to transmit and / or receive an electromagnetic wave to the data storage means of the managed object housed in the container, and the first coil means. Second coil means connected to the one coil means through the partition of the container and provided outside the container so as to transmit and / or receive electromagnetic waves to the data management means, and the first coil means and the second coil means. The container management device according to claim 1, further comprising a resonance unit that resonates the coil unit.