JPH10154742A - Transfer device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a transfer device wherein a wafer in a cassette on a cassette stage is prevented from dropping out of the cassette during transfer and the cassette (wafer) is transferred quickly and safely. SOLUTION: A cassette stage 4 on which a cassette 8 housing wafers 18 is placed, and a wafer stage 5 on which wafers 18 are placed are attached while sliding along a guide 3 is allowed. To a cassette support plate 10 of the cassette stage 4, an angle adjustment means 13 for changing placement angle of the wafer 18 appropriately is attached. Thereby, wafer placement angle is changed according to the weight of the wafer 18 (cassette 8), so that the cassette 8 is placed at a posture appropriate for transfer, and the placed cassette 8 is transferred to a specified position with sure.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a transfer machine used in a semiconductor manufacturing apparatus for transferring a substrate such as a semiconductor wafer or a glass substrate for liquid crystal or a cassette containing the substrate to a predetermined position.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art FIG. 8 shows an operation state of a conventional transfer machine 50. FIG. 9 shows details of a conventional transfer machine 50. As shown in these figures, the transfer machine 5
Numeral 0 indicates that a cassette mounting table 53 and a wafer mounting table 54 are separately slidable on a guide 52 fixed to a shaft 51, and the whole is vertically moved in accordance with the movement of the shaft 51. . And the transfer machine 50
Puts the cassette 56 inserted from the cassette insertion slot 55 on the cassette mounting table 53 (see FIG. 10), and conveys the cassette 56 to the cassette shelf 57 in the upper part of the figure. Further, the transfer machine 50 places the wafer (not shown) in the cassette 56 placed on the cassette shelf 57 on the wafer placing table 54,
The wafer is transferred to the boat 58 in the lower part of FIG.

The boat 58 is accommodated in a reaction chamber 59 when a predetermined number of wafers are accommodated. Then, in the reaction chamber 59 of the semiconductor manufacturing apparatus, a predetermined surface treatment is performed on the wafer in the boat 58.

[0004]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION Such a transfer machine 50
Since the cassette support plate 53a of the cassette mounting table 53 and the wafer support plate 54a of the wafer mounting table 54 are formed in a cantilever shape, for example, as shown in FIG. Cassette 56
Is loaded, the cassette support plate 53a bends and deforms under the weight of the cassette 56, the cassette 56 tilts, and the cassette 56
There is a possibility that the wafer 60 in the inside may fly out and the projected wafer 60 may be damaged.

[0005] Even when the wafer 60 is placed on the wafer support plate 54a of the wafer mounting table 54, the wafer support plate 54a may be bent and deformed by the weight of the wafer 60, and the wafer 60 may fall off the wafer mounting table 54. Was.

Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide a transfer machine in which wafers do not fall off from a cassette mounting table or a wafer mounting table.

[0007]

In order to achieve the above object, a transfer machine according to the present invention supports a substrate mounting means for mounting a plurality of substrates, and supports the substrate mounting means so as to be slidable. It is characterized by comprising a guide for guiding the movement of the mounting means, and an angle adjusting means attached to the substrate mounting means for appropriately changing the mounting angle of the substrate.

With this configuration, the transfer apparatus of the present invention changes the substrate mounting angle of the substrate mounting means in accordance with the weight of the substrate, and mounts the substrate in an optimal posture for carrying. Then, the mounted substrate is reliably transported to a predetermined position.

Here, the substrate means a semiconductor wafer, a glass substrate for liquid crystal, or the like. The substrate mounting means refers to a cassette mounting table for mounting a cassette containing a plurality of wafers or the like, or a wafer mounting table for mounting a plurality of wafers or the like. Further, the angle adjusting means may be any as long as it can change the cassette mounting angle of the cassette mounting table or the wafer mounting angle of the wafer mounting table according to the weight of the cassette or wafer to be mounted. For example, a cassette mounting table or a wafer mounting table is divided into a fixed plate supported by a guide and an angle adjusting plate on which a wafer is mounted, so that the deflection amount of the angle adjusting plate can be appropriately changed. It is considered that a compression spring is interposed between the fixed plate and the angle adjustment plate, and the angle between the fixed plate and the angle adjustment plate is changed by appropriately changing the amount of deflection of the compression spring. Can be

[0010]

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

(First Embodiment) FIG. 1 shows a first embodiment of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 1, a transfer machine 1 includes a guide 3 attached to an end of a shaft 2.
And a cassette mounting table 4 and a wafer mounting table 5 slidably mounted on the guide 3 as substrate mounting means. Note that the cassette mounting table 4 and the wafer mounting table 5 can be individually slid.

The guide 3 includes a boss 6 engaged with the shaft 2 and a rectangular guide base 7 orthogonal to the shaft 2, and the guide base 7 and the boss 6 are integrated. Have been. The guide 3 moves up and down integrally with the shaft 2.

The cassette mounting table 4 is provided on both sides of the wafer mounting table 5 and has a pair of arms 9a and 9b attached to the guide base 7 so as to be slidable in the direction A in FIG. I have. The upper part of the pair of arms 9a and 9b in FIG.
Connected by As shown in FIG. 2, the cassette supporting plate 10 includes a fixing plate 11 and an angle adjusting plate 12, and the deflection angle of the angle adjusting plate 12 (the mounting angle of the cassette 8, that is, the mounting of the wafer (substrate) 18). Angle adjusting means 13 for changing the angle is provided on each of the arm 9a side and the arm 9b side.

The angle adjusting means 13 includes the angle adjusting plate 12
A hexagonal bolt 15 whose tip is in contact with the fixing plate 11 and a through hole 16 formed in the center of the hexagonal bolt 15 are loosely fitted into the screw hole 14 of the fixing plate 11.
7 and a hexagon socket head cap screw 19 (see FIG. 3). Then, as shown in FIG. 2, for example, as shown in FIG. 2, the right-side tip of the angle adjusting plate 12 is displaced by tightening the right hexagonal bolt 15 into the angle adjusting plate 12, and the angle adjusting plate 12 is moved to a desired position. (In the present embodiment, 2 degrees).

Therefore, the cassette mounting table 4 supports the cassette 8 with the angle adjusting plate 12 tilted by 2 degrees (see FIG. 4). As a result, the cassette 8 is mounted on the tip of the angle adjusting plate 12, and even if the tip of the angle adjusting plate 12 bends and deforms due to the weight of the cassette 8, the cassette 8 is kept in the optimal conveyance posture and the angle adjusting plate 12 is moved. Can be supported on top.

The wafer mounting table 5, as shown in FIG.
It is attached to the guide 3 so that it can slide in the direction A in the figure. The wafer mounting table 5 includes five wafer support plates 20 so that five wafers 18 can be mounted at one time. Further, this wafer mounting table 5 is as shown in FIG.
As shown in FIG.
2 and an angle adjusting plate 23, a hexagonal bolt 24 is screwed to the fixing plate 22, and a hexagonal bolt 25 for accommodating the hexagonal bolt 24 is screwed to the angle adjusting plate 23. The fixing plate 22 moves in the direction A along the guide base 7. Therefore, the right side in FIG. 5 is displaced by tightening the hexagonal bolt 25 on the right side in FIG. 5 into the angle adjusting plate 23, and the entire other part of the wafer mounting table 5 except the fixing plate 22 is tightened. It can be tilted to a desired angle (2 degrees in the present embodiment) (see FIG. 6). As a result, the wafer mounting angle of the wafer mounting table 5 changes. Here, similarly to the cassette mounting table 4, FIG.
The pair of left and right hexagonal bolts 25 and the hexagonal bolts 24 constitute angle adjusting means 26.

The amount of tilt of the angle adjusting plate 12 of the cassette mounting table 4 and the amount of tilt of the wafer mounting table 5 depend on the weight of the cassette 8 mounted on the cassette mounting table 4 and the wafer 18 mounted on the wafer mounting table 5. The weight is determined in consideration of the deflection amount of the cassette support plate 10 and the deflection amount of the wafer support plate 20. Also, hexagon bolts 15, 25
The head may be a screw or the like having a two-part width portion, and the hexagon socket head bolts 19 and 24 may be simple hexagon bolts or other screws.

According to the present embodiment as described above, the cassette support plate 10 of the cassette mounting table 4 and the wafer support plate 20 of the wafer mounting table 5 can be inclined at a desired angle according to the weight of the cassette 8 or the wafer 18. Since the cassette and the wafer can always be transported in the optimal transporting posture, the wafer 18 can be ejected from the cassette 8 on the cassette mounting table 4 when the transfer machine 1 moves, or can be transferred on the wafer mounting table 5. No longer falls off the wafer 18, and the wafer 1
8 can be prevented from being damaged. Therefore, according to the present embodiment, the wafer can be transported safely and quickly, and the reliability of the transfer machine 1 can be significantly improved.

(Second Embodiment) Hereinafter, a second embodiment of the present invention will be described.
The embodiment will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

In this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 7, a compression spring 32 is interposed between a fixed plate 30 and an angle adjustment plate 31, and this compression spring 32 is pressed and shrunk by bolts 33 to thereby adjust the angle of the angle adjustment plate. There is provided a pair of angle adjusting means 34 configured to change the angle between 31 and fixed plate 30.

The bolt 3 constituting the angle adjusting means 34
3 is inserted into a bolt hole 35 formed in the angle adjusting plate 31 with a predetermined gap, and a predetermined gap is formed in the inner periphery of a compression spring 32 interposed between the fixed plate 30 and the angle adjusting plate 31. And is screwed into the screw hole 36 of the fixing plate 30. Then, depending on whether the bolt 33 on the right side in FIG. 7 is loosened or the bolt 33 on the left side in FIG. 7 is tightened, the amount of deflection of the left and right springs 32 changes, and the angle between the fixing plate 30 and the angle adjusting plate 31 changes. I do. By adjusting the tightening of the pair of left and right bolts 33 in this manner, the angle between the fixing plate 30 and the angle adjusting plate 31 can be appropriately changed.

As described above, the angle between the fixing plate 30 and the angle adjusting plate 31 can be changed also in the present embodiment, so that the wafer mounting angles of the cassette mounting table 4 and the wafer mounting table 5 can be used. It can be changed according to the conditions, and it is possible to effectively prevent the wafer 18 from falling off from the cassette mounting table 4 or the wafer mounting table 5 (see FIG. 1).

Further, according to the present embodiment, the angle adjusting plate 3
Since compression spring 32 is interposed between 1 and fixed plate 30, compression spring 32 absorbs vibration of angle adjusting plate 31. Therefore, the cassette 8 and the wafer 18 are stored in the first
It is supported in a more stable state than in the embodiment, and is conveyed more reliably.

In the above embodiment, the cassette mounting table 4
Although the mode in which the angle adjusting means is installed on both the wafer mounting table 5 and the wafer mounting table 5 is shown, the invention is not limited to this, and only one of the cassette mounting table 4 and the wafer mounting table 5 is provided with the angle adjusting means 13, 26, 34. You may do so.

[0025]

As is apparent from the above description, according to the present invention, the substrate mounting means is provided with the angle adjusting means capable of appropriately changing the mounting angle of the substrate. The mounting angle can be changed according to the weight of the substrate, and the substrate can always be transported in the optimal posture for transport, so that the substrate can be effectively prevented from falling off from the substrate mounting means, and The reliability for transportation can be significantly improved.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a configuration diagram of a transfer machine according to a first embodiment of the present invention. 1A is a front view of the transfer machine, and FIG. 1B is a plan view of the transfer machine.

FIG. 2 is an enlarged view of a portion B in FIG.

FIG. 3 is a detailed view of an angle adjusting unit. FIG. 3A is an exploded view of the angle adjusting means, and FIG. 3B is an exploded view of the angle adjusting means shown in cross section of a hexagon bolt.

FIG. 4 shows a first example of the transfer machine according to the first embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. FIG. 4A is a front view showing a first operation state of the transfer machine, and FIG. 4B is a plan view showing a first operation state of the transfer machine.

FIG. 5 is a partially enlarged view of a transfer machine according to the first embodiment of the present invention (an enlarged view of a main part of a wafer mounting table).

FIG. 6 shows a second example of the transfer machine according to the first embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. FIG. 6A is a front view showing a second operation state of the transfer machine, and FIG. 6B is a plan view showing a second operation state of the transfer machine.

FIG. 7 is an enlarged view of an angle adjusting unit according to the second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 8 is a first operation state diagram of a conventional transfer machine.

FIG. 9 is a configuration diagram of a conventional transfer machine. FIG. 9A is a front view illustrating the configuration of the transfer machine, and FIG. 9B is a plan view illustrating the configuration of the transfer machine.

FIG. 10 is a second operation state diagram of the conventional transfer machine. FIG.
10A is a front view showing a second operation state of the transfer machine, and FIG.
(B) is a top view which shows the 2nd operation state of a transfer machine.

[Explanation of symbols]

 Reference Signs List 1 transfer machine 3 guide 4 cassette mounting table (substrate mounting means) 5 wafer mounting table (substrate mounting means) 13, 26, 34 angle adjusting means 18 wafer (substrate)

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A substrate mounting means for mounting a plurality of substrates, a guide for slidably supporting the substrate mounting means and guiding the movement of the substrate mounting means, and being attached to the substrate mounting means. A transfer machine, comprising: an angle adjusting means for appropriately changing a mounting angle of a substrate.