JPH1012700A - Indexer adjusting carrier - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To easily and accurately adjust position of an indexer arm. SOLUTION: The upper part of an indexer adjusting carrier 10 is opened. When position-adjusting an arm 21 of an indexer, firstly, a sheet of transparent dummy wafer 31 is housed in the indexer adjusting carrier 10, and the indexer adjusting carrier 10 is assigned at a specified position. Then, the arm 21 is inserted on the lower side of the dummy wafer 31, and the arm 21 is adjusted in position so that a sucking opening 22 agrees with a mark 32 of the dummy wafer 31 in terms of position in horizontal direction, and the gap between the lower surface of the dummy wafer 31 and the upper surface of the arm 21 becomes a specified interval. After the position of the arm 21 is decided, the position of the arm 21 or the position to which the arm 21 is moved from the position by a specified distance in a specified direction is stored.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

[0001] 1. Field of the Invention [0002] The present invention relates to an indexer adjusting carrier used for adjusting the position of an arm in an indexer having an arm for taking in and out a substrate one by one with respect to a carrier accommodating a plurality of substrates.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Various processing apparatuses for manufacturing semiconductors are provided with arms for taking in and out substrates one by one with respect to a carrier (also called a cassette) accommodating a plurality of substrates such as wafers and masks to be processed. An indexer is used.

Here, referring to FIG. 6, the configuration of a carrier and the operation of an indexer will be described by taking a case where a wafer is used as a substrate as an example. FIG. 6 shows a state in which a dummy wafer described later is stored in a carrier. The carrier 101 is formed in a box shape with an open front. A plurality of grooves 102 for accommodating a plurality of wafers in the vertical direction are formed in the inner wall at the side of the carrier 101 along the front-rear direction. The carrier 101
The front part is arranged so as to face the arm 103 of the indexer. A suction port 104 is provided on the upper surface of the tip portion of the indexer arm 103. The suction port 104 is connected to a suction device via a suction path (not shown). The base of the arm 103 is connected to the shaft 105. The shaft 105 is rotatable by a robot (not shown) in a rotation direction about the shaft 105 (hereinafter referred to as a θ direction), and the carrier 10
1 direction (hereinafter referred to as X direction), a direction perpendicular to the X direction in a horizontal plane (hereinafter referred to as Y direction),
And a vertical direction (hereinafter, referred to as a Z direction). As a result, the arms 103 are connected to X, Y, Z,
It is possible to move in each direction of θ.

When taking out a wafer housed in the carrier 101, the arm 103 is inserted below a desired wafer so that a slight gap is opened between the arm 103 and the lower surface of the wafer. Thereafter, the carrier 101 is slightly lowered by a driving device (not shown), the suction port 104 of the arm 103 comes into contact with the lower surface of the wafer, and the wafer is sucked into the suction port 104. Thereafter, the wafer is taken out of the carrier 101 by pulling out the arm 103. When the wafer is stored in the carrier 101, an operation opposite to the above operation is performed.

In such an indexer, the position of the arm with respect to the wafer is adjusted before the processing apparatus is actually used or periodically. Conventionally, this adjustment has been performed as follows using the carrier 101 used in actual processing. First, as shown in FIG. 6, one transparent dummy wafer 111 made of glass or the like is stored in the carrier 101, and the carrier 101 is arranged at a predetermined position. At the center of the dummy wafer 111, a mark (for example, a cross mark) 112 indicating the center position is written. Next, the robot is driven to insert the arm 103 below the dummy wafer 111, and the suction port 104 is moved to the mark 112 of the dummy wafer 111 with respect to the horizontal position.
And the lower surface of the dummy wafer 111 and the arm 1
03, so that the distance from the upper surface of X.03 is a predetermined distance.
The position of the arm 103 is adjusted in each of the Y, Z, and θ directions. When the position of the arm 103 is determined in this manner, the position of the arm 103 or the position at which the arm 103 has been moved by a predetermined distance in a predetermined direction from the position is stored in the control unit of the robot.

[0006]

As shown in FIG. 6, a carrier 101 used in actual processing is used.
Since the upper surface is covered to prevent the attachment of dust and the like to the wafer, the above adjustment is
Dummy wafer 1 from diagonally above in front of carrier 101
It was performed while looking at 11 and the tip of the arm 103. Therefore, there are many blind spots and the dummy wafer 111
The mark 112 and the suction port 104 of the arm 103 are difficult to see, so that the adjustment often depends on the skill of the operator. In addition, accurate adjustment cannot be performed due to visual adjustment from an oblique direction, and inaccurate adjustment causes a problem such as contact between the wafer and the carrier 101 or cracking of the wafer.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide an indexer adjusting carrier capable of easily and accurately adjusting the position of an indexer arm. .

[0008]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An indexer adjusting carrier according to the present invention is used for adjusting the position of an arm in an indexer having an arm for taking in and out substrates one by one with respect to a carrier containing a plurality of substrates. And has a storage portion for storing an adjustment substrate used for adjusting the position of the arm, and has an open or transparent upper portion.

In this indexer adjusting carrier, since the upper portion is open or transparent, when adjusting the position of the arm of the indexer, it is necessary to check the adjusting substrate and the arm from various angles on the upper and front sides. This makes it possible to easily and accurately adjust the position of the arm.

[0010]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the drawings.

First, an outline of an indexer using the indexer adjusting carrier according to the present embodiment will be described. FIG. 4 shows a partial appearance of an example of a processing apparatus for manufacturing a semiconductor having an indexer. Hereinafter, a case where a wafer is used as a substrate will be described as an example. The processing apparatus includes an indexer for taking a wafer in and out of a carrier, a processing unit for performing a predetermined process on the wafer, and a transfer device for transferring the wafer between the indexer and the processing unit. . Examples of such a processing apparatus include a coating apparatus for applying a resist to a wafer in a semiconductor manufacturing process, a developing apparatus for developing a pattern after exposing the resist, and an etching apparatus for etching after the development.

The indexer in the processing apparatus shown in FIG. 4 has two carrier set sections 1 and 2 in which carriers storing wafers before processing are arranged and carriers in which wafers after processing are stored. Two carrier setting sections 3 and 4, an arm (not shown in FIG. 4) for taking a wafer in and out of the carriers arranged in these carrier setting sections 1 to 4, and an unillustrated drive for driving this arm With a robot. The carrier setting unit 1 is arranged at the upper left front end of the processing apparatus, and the carrier setting unit 2 is arranged behind the carrier setting unit 1. The carrier setting units 3 and 4 are arranged on the right side of the carrier setting units 1 and 2, respectively. Each of the carrier setting units 1 to 4 can be moved up and down by a driving device (not shown). The arm and the robot are arranged at the position indicated by reference numeral 5 facing the carrier setting units 2 and 4 on the rear side. This indexer uses an arm and a robot to take out wafers one by one from carriers arranged in the carrier setting units 1 and 2 and deliver the wafers to a transfer device. The transported wafers are received and stored in carriers arranged in the carrier setting units 3 and 4.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing an indexer adjusting carrier and an arm of an indexer according to a first embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a plan view of FIG. As shown in these figures, the arm 21 of the indexer has a suction port 22 on the upper surface of the tip. The suction port 22 is connected to a suction device via a suction path (not shown). Arm 21
Is connected to the shaft 23. The axis 23 is rotatable by a robot (not shown) in the θ direction, which is a rotation direction about the axis 23, and is the X direction, which is the front-back direction of the carrier, and the direction orthogonal to the X direction in a horizontal plane. It is movable in the Y direction and the Z direction, which is the vertical direction. As a result, the arm 21 becomes X,
It is movable in each of the Y, Z, and θ directions.

The indexer adjusting carrier 10 according to the present embodiment is a dedicated jig used for adjusting the position of the arm 21 of the indexer. As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the indexer adjusting carrier 10
It has two side walls 11 and 12 and a connecting part 13 connecting between the bottoms of the side walls 11 and 12, and the front, rear and upper parts are open. The side walls 11 and 12 are main parts 11a and 12a which are parallel parts excluding a part on the front side and a part on the rear side, and are bent outward from the front ends of the main parts 11a and 12a. The formed front end 11b,
12b, rear portions 11c and 12c formed so as to gradually approach each other from the rear ends of the main portions 11a and 12a, and rear ends 11d and 12d extending in parallel from the rear ends of the rear portions 11c and 12c. And Front end 11b,
A part of the front face 12b near the main parts 11a and 12a is a slope slightly inward. The slopes at the front end portions 11b and 12b, the inner surfaces of the main portions 11a and 12a, and the inner surfaces of the rear portions 11c and 12c include a plurality (for example, 25) for accommodating a plurality of (for example, 25) wafers in the vertical direction. The groove 14 is formed continuously along the front-rear direction.

Next, a method of adjusting the position of the arm 21 using the indexer adjusting carrier 10 according to the present embodiment will be described. In this adjustment, first, one transparent dummy wafer 31 made of glass or the like as an adjustment substrate is accommodated in the indexer adjustment carrier 10, and the indexer adjustment carrier 10 is placed in the carrier setting units 1 to 1 in FIG. 4, for example, first placed in the carrier set unit 1. At the center of the dummy wafer 31, a mark (for example, a cross mark) 32 indicating the center position is written. Next, the robot is driven to insert the arm 21 below the dummy wafer 31 so that the suction port 22 is aligned with the mark 32 of the dummy wafer 31 with respect to the horizontal position, and the lower surface of the dummy wafer 31 is The position of the arm 21 is adjusted in each of the X, Y, Z, and θ directions so that the distance between the arm 21 and the upper surface becomes a predetermined distance. FIG.
FIG. 3 is an enlarged sectional view showing an indexer adjusting carrier 10, a dummy wafer 31, and an arm 21 in this state. In this example, the pitch of the grooves 14 of the indexer adjusting carrier 10 is 5 mm, and the distance between the lower surface of the dummy wafer 31 and the upper surface of the arm 21 is adjusted to 1.5 mm. The distance between the lower surface of the dummy wafer 31 and the upper surface of the arm 21 is adjusted using, for example, a gap gauge. When the position of the arm 21 is determined in this way, the position of the arm 21 or the position at which the arm 21 has been moved by a predetermined distance in a predetermined direction from the position is stored in the control unit of the robot. Similar adjustment is performed for the other carrier setting units 2 to 4 in FIG.

In the actual processing, for example, FIG.
The carrier shown in FIG. When taking out the wafer stored in the carrier, the arm 21 is inserted under the desired wafer so that a slight gap is opened between the arm 21 and the lower surface of the wafer. Thereafter, the carrier is lowered by the driving device, the suction port 22 of the arm 21 contacts the lower surface of the wafer, and the wafer is suctioned to the suction port 22. Thereafter, the wafer is taken out of the carrier by pulling out the arm 21. When the wafer is stored in the carrier, an operation opposite to the above operation is performed.

As described above, according to the indexer adjusting carrier 10 according to the present embodiment, since the upper portion is opened, the dummy wafer 31 and the arm 21 are moved when the position of the indexer arm 21 is adjusted. The arm 21 can be checked from all angles on the upper and front sides of the indexer adjusting carrier 10, particularly from directly above.
Can be easily and accurately adjusted.
As a result, individual differences in adjustment are reduced, and the time for adjustment can be shortened. In addition, since the adjustment is facilitated, the number of maintenance steps and time can be reduced.

FIG. 5 is a perspective view showing an indexer adjusting carrier and an indexer arm according to a second embodiment of the present invention. The indexer adjusting carrier 40 according to the present embodiment is obtained by fixing a transparent cover 41 to the upper part of the indexer adjusting carrier 10 according to the first embodiment.

According to the indexer adjusting carrier 40 according to the present embodiment, the same effects as those of the indexer adjusting carrier 10 according to the first embodiment can be obtained, and the upper part is covered with a transparent cover 41. Therefore, it can be used as a jig for adjusting the indexer arm 21 and also as a carrier used in actual processing. Other configurations and operations in the present embodiment are the same as those in the first embodiment.

The present invention is not limited to each of the above embodiments. For example, in each of the above embodiments, the case where a wafer is used as a substrate has been described.
The present invention can be applied to a case where another type of substrate such as a mask is used as the substrate. In the present invention, the upper portion of the indexer adjusting carrier is not necessarily completely open or transparent, and may be partially (eg, only at the center portion) within a range that does not hinder the adjustment of the indexer arm. ) Including cases where it is open or transparent.

[0021]

As described above, according to the indexer adjusting carrier of the present invention, since the upper part is open or transparent, the adjusting substrate and the arm are moved upward and forward when the position of the indexer arm is adjusted. It is possible to confirm from various angles on the part side, and it is possible to easily and accurately adjust the position of the arm.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing an indexer adjusting carrier and an arm of an indexer according to a first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a plan view of FIG.

FIG. 3 is an enlarged sectional view showing an indexer adjusting carrier, a dummy wafer, and an arm according to the first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing an external appearance of a part of an example of a processing apparatus for manufacturing a semiconductor having an indexer.

FIG. 5 is a perspective view showing an indexer adjusting carrier and an indexer arm according to a second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a perspective view for explaining a method of adjusting the position of an arm of a conventional indexer.

[Explanation of symbols]

10 Indexer adjustment carrier, 14 Groove, 21 Arm, 22 Suction port, 31 Dummy wafer, 32 Mark

Claims (2)

[Claims] The present invention is used for adjusting the position of an arm in an indexer having an arm for taking in and out one substrate at a time with respect to a carrier accommodating a plurality of substrates, and used for adjusting the position of the arm. An indexer adjustment carrier having a storage portion for storing an adjustment substrate and having an upper part opened. 2. An indexer provided with an arm for taking in and out one substrate at a time from a carrier accommodating a plurality of substrates. The indexer is used for adjusting the position of the arm, and is used for adjusting the position of the arm. An indexer adjustment carrier having a storage portion for storing an adjustment substrate and having a transparent upper portion.