JPH10239855A - Substrate carrying device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To reduce the deviation of a substrate at the time of transferring the substrate and to shorten a time for the fine alignment of a substrate stage, as for a substrate carrying device. SOLUTION: A mask M is carried from a mask library 11 to a mask stand by part 13 by a carrying arm 12. In the mask stand-by part 13, the deviation of the mask M from a reference position is detected by pre-alignment parts 13a to 13i. The mask M is loaded from the mask stand-by part 13 to a mask stage MS by an interchangeable arm 14. The mask stage MS is shifted by the amount of the deviation detected by the pre-alignment parts 13a to 13i so as to compensate the deviation of the mask M from the reference position.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a substrate transfer apparatus for transferring, for example, a glass substrate and the like, and more particularly to a substrate transfer apparatus used in a semiconductor or liquid crystal display panel manufacturing apparatus.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In a conventional semiconductor or liquid crystal display panel manufacturing apparatus, a substrate transfer apparatus for transferring a glass substrate, a mask or the like is used. In such a substrate transfer apparatus, a mask library for storing a plurality of substrates such as masks, a temporary storage shelf for temporarily storing the masks taken out of the mask library, a mask taken out of the mask library, and A first transfer arm for transferring to a temporary storage shelf while performing pre-alignment;
A second transfer arm for taking out the mask stored in the temporary storage shelf and transferring the mask to a mask stage for performing exposure using the mask.

In such a substrate transfer apparatus, the first
The mask is taken out of the mask library by the transfer arm, and the taken out mask is transferred to a temporary storage shelf while being pre-aligned, and is temporarily stored. Then, the mask stored in the temporary storage shelf is taken out by the second transfer arm and transferred to the mask stage. Fine alignment for accurately aligning the mask with the semiconductor substrate is performed on the mask stage, and thereafter, the semiconductor and the liquid crystal display panel are exposed. Thereafter, the mask is transported to the temporary storage shelf by the second transport arm, and is stored in the temporary storage shelf until necessary for the next exposure if necessary, and is transported to the mask library by the first transport arm if unnecessary. You.

[0004]

However, in the above-described substrate transfer apparatus, the mask is stored in the temporary storage shelf after pre-alignment is performed by the first transfer arm, and is taken out of the temporary storage shelf during exposure. The wafer is then transferred to the mask stage, so that a slight transfer deviation (several tens of μm) occurs at the time of removal from the temporary storage shelf and delivery to the mask stage. Therefore, at the time of fine alignment performed when a semiconductor or the like is exposed by the mask, it is necessary to increase the search amount of the alignment mark on the mask more than necessary.
It takes a long time for fine alignment. Further, since the mask is transported and held in a horizontal position, a mechanism for rotating the mask by 90 degrees near the exposure apparatus is required to apply the transfer device to a manufacturing apparatus that uses the mask in a vertical position. In addition, a space for rotating the mask is required.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is to provide a substrate transfer apparatus capable of reducing a transfer error when transferring a substrate such as a mask. Further objects of the present invention are:
It is an object of the present invention to provide a substrate transfer apparatus that can be easily applied to a manufacturing apparatus that uses a mask in a vertical posture.

[0006]

FIG. 1 shows an embodiment of the present invention.
The invention of claim 1 includes a substrate stage MS for processing a substrate M, a substrate storage unit 11 for storing a plurality of substrates M, and a temporary storage unit 13 for temporarily storing the substrates M. A first transport unit 12 that takes out the substrate M from the substrate storage unit 11 and transports the substrate M to the temporary storage unit 13
And a second transport unit 14 that transports the substrate M temporarily stored in the temporary storage unit 13 to the substrate stage MS. The temporary storage unit 13 performs pre-alignment of the substrate M. Pre-alignment mechanism 1 for
The above object is achieved by providing 3a to 13i.
Here, the pre-alignment mechanisms 13a to 13i may perform pre-alignment measurement, or may move the substrate M.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, the transfer of the substrate M from the substrate storage means 11 to the temporary storage means 13 and the temporary storage means 1
Control means for controlling the first and second transfer means 12 and 14 is provided so that transfer of the substrate M from 3 to the substrate stage MS is performed in parallel. Referring to FIG. 4, in the invention of claim 3, the temporary storage means 23 stores the substrate M in a vertical posture. According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, the temporary storage means 23 is configured to hold the upper and lower ends of the substrate M by the gripper 2.
6a to 26i, and a moving unit that moves the grips 26a to 26i closer to each other in an open state. In the invention of claim 5, the gripping portions 26a to 26i include positioning means 61 and 64 for positioning at least one surface of the substrate M.

According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, the temporary storage means 23 comprises:
It has openings 23A to 23C through which the substrate M can be inserted.
Transfer means 22 transfers the substrate M from one side of the openings 23A to 23C to the temporary storage means 23, and the second transfer means 27 unloads the substrate M from the other side of the openings 23A to 23C. .

In the meantime, in the section of the means for solving the above-mentioned problem which explains the constitution of the present invention, the drawings of the embodiments of the present invention are used in order to make the present invention easy to understand. However, the present invention is not limited to this.

[0010]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing the configuration of the substrate transfer device according to the first embodiment of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 1, the substrate transport apparatus according to the first embodiment includes a mask library 11 capable of stacking and storing six masks M1 to M6 (hereinafter sometimes simply referred to as M) in a horizontal state. And a transfer arm 12 for taking out the mask M from the mask library 11 and a mask standby unit 13 for temporarily holding the mask M taken out by the transfer arm 12
And an exchange arm 14 that takes out the mask M waiting in the mask standby unit 13 and transports the mask M to the mask stage MS.

The mask standby section 13 can hold the mask M at three standby positions P1 to P3.
2 of the mask M held in each of the standby positions P1 to P3
Prealignment units 13a to 13 for positioning sides
c, 13d to 13f and 13g to 13i. Pre-alignment units 13a, 13b, 13d, 13e, 13
g and 13h are in the X direction of FIG.
c, 13f and 13i are movable in the Y direction in FIG.
Thereby, the positions of the two sides of the mask M are measured. The mask standby unit 13 can be moved in the X direction in FIG. 1 by a moving mechanism (not shown).

The transfer arm 12 transfers the mask M by vacuum suction and is moved by a moving mechanism (not shown).
It is possible to move in the direction and the Z direction. The exchange arm 14 has forks 14a and 14b, and the mask M is vacuum-adsorbed and transported by the forks 14a and 14b in the same manner as the transport arm 12, and is moved by a moving mechanism (not shown) in FIG. It is movable in the direction and the Z direction and is rotatable around the axis O. Mask stage MS
Is movable in the X and Y directions in FIG.

Next, the operation of the first embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. First, the transfer arm 12 moves in the direction of the mask library 11, and sucks the mask M1. Thereafter, the transfer arm 12 moves in the Y direction and the Z direction, transfers the mask M1 to the standby position P1 of the mask standby unit 13, and retreats from the mask standby unit 13. At the standby position P1 of the mask standby unit 13, the pre-alignment units 13a to 13c move from the position indicated by the solid line in FIG. 1 to the position indicated by the virtual line in FIG. The amount of deviation from the reference position is detected. Then, the exchange arm 14 moves in the Y direction, the mask M1 is vacuum-sucked by the fork portion 14a, and the mask M1 is carried out from the standby position P1.
The exchange arm 14 rotates 180 degrees about the axis O to make the fork portion 14a face the mask stage MS, and moves in the direction of the mask stage MS to load the mask M1 onto the mask stage MS (FIG. 2A). ).
When the mask M1 is placed on the mask stage MS, the mask stage MS moves in the X direction and the Y direction by the amount of deviation detected by the pre-alignment units 13a to 13c, and corrects the amount of deviation of the mask M1, that is, the pre-alignment. Perform alignment. Next, after performing fine alignment by searching for an alignment mark, exposure is performed. Therefore, the mark search amount in fine alignment can be reduced.

On the other hand, when the mask to be used next to the mask M1 is the mask M2, the exchange arm 14
Is transferred to the mask stage MS, the transfer arm 12 moves in the direction of the mask library 11, and sucks the mask M2. During this time, the mask standby unit 13 moves to a position where the standby position P <b> 2 faces the transfer arm 12. Then, the transfer arm 12 moves in the direction of the mask standby unit 13 and transfers the mask M2 to the standby position P2.

At the standby position P2 of the mask standby section 13, the pre-alignment sections 13d to 13f are moved from the position indicated by the imaginary line in FIG. 1 to the position indicated by the solid line so as to contact the edge of the mask M2. Of the edge from the reference position is detected. After the exposure using the mask M1 is completed, the exchange arm 14
3 to receive the mask M2 at the standby position P2 by the fork portion 14b, and then move to the mask stage MS to receive the mask M1 placed on the mask stage MS (FIG. 2B). ). Then, after the exchange arm 14 moves to a rotatable position,
The fork portion 14b is rotated by 180 degrees about the axis O to face the mask stage MS, and the mask stage M
The mask M2 is loaded on the mask stage MS by moving in the direction of S. When the mask M2 is loaded on the mask stage MS, the mask stage MS shifts by the amount of displacement X detected by the pre-alignment units 13d to 13f.
Fine alignment is performed after correcting the shift amount of the mask M2 by moving in the directions and the Y directions, and then exposure is performed.

In the meantime, the mask standby section 13 moves so as to face the standby position P1 with the exchange arm 14. After loading the mask M2, the exchange arm 1
4 moves in the direction of the mask standby section 13 and transfers the mask M1 to the standby position P1 (FIG. 2C).

On the other hand, when the mask to be used next to the mask M2 is the mask M3, the exchange arm 14
Is transferred to the standby position P1, the transfer arm 12 moves toward the mask library 11 and sucks the mask M3. Thereafter, the mask standby unit 13 moves to a position where the standby position P3 faces the transfer arm 12. Then, the transfer arm 12 moves in the direction of the mask standby unit 13 and transfers the mask M3 to the standby position P3. At the standby position P3 of the mask standby unit 13, the pre-alignment units 13g to 13i move from the position indicated by the solid line in FIG. 1 to the position indicated by the virtual line in FIG. The amount of deviation from the reference position is detected.

After the exposure using the mask M2 is completed,
The exchange arm 14 moves toward the mask standby unit 13 to receive the mask M3 at the standby position P3 by the fork unit 14a, and then moves toward the mask stage MS to remove the mask M2 placed on the mask stage MS. Receiving (FIG. 2D). After the exchange arm 14 moves to a rotatable position, the exchange arm 14
The fork portion 14a is rotated by an angle to face the mask stage MS, and is moved in the direction of the mask stage MS to load the mask M3 onto the mask stage MS. During this time, the mask standby unit 13 sets the standby position P2
Is moved to face the exchange arm 14. And
After loading the mask M3, the exchange arm 14 moves in the direction of the mask standby unit 13 and transfers the mask M2 to the standby position P2 (FIG. 2E). When the mask M3 is loaded on the mask stage MS, the mask stage MS moves in the X and Y directions by the amount of deviation detected by the pre-alignment units 13g to 13i to correct the amount of deviation of the mask M3, and then performs fine alignment. To perform exposure.

Thereafter, if it is necessary to replace the mask M1 or the mask M2 with another mask M4 to M6, the mask M1 or the mask M1 placed on the mask standby unit 13 by the transport arm 12 during the exposure using the mask M3. M2 is transported to the mask library 11, and the other masks M4 to M6 are transported to the mask standby unit 13. Then, the above-described mask M
1 to M3, masks M4 to M
6 are alternately transported from the mask standby section 13 to the mask stage MS, and exposure using each of the masks M4 to M6 is performed.

As described above, in this embodiment, the pre-alignment sections 13a to 13a in the mask standby section 13
Since the pre-alignment measurement of the mask M is performed by 3i, the movement of the mask after performing the pre-alignment measurement is performed only once from the mask standby unit 13 to the mask stage MS. Therefore, as compared with the conventional apparatus in which the mask is moved twice from the mask library from the mask library to the mask stage after the pre-alignment and the mask stage is moved twice from the mask standby section, the amount of displacement at the time of mask transfer is reduced, and the fineness on the mask stage is thereby reduced. Alignment time can be reduced.

The transfer arm 12 for transferring the mask M between the mask library 11 and the mask standby unit 13, the mask standby unit 13 and the mask stage MS
Arm 1 for transferring mask M between
4, the transfer arm 12 and the exchange arm 14
Thus, two masks M can be transported in parallel and simultaneously. Thereby, the time for replacing the mask M can be reduced.

In the first embodiment,
In the mask standby section 13, the masks M are arranged in the X direction and made to stand by, but as shown in FIG.
1 to P3 may be stacked, and the mask M may be stacked and put on standby. In this case, the mask standby unit 13
In the Z direction to transfer the mask M.

In the first embodiment,
The pre-alignment units 13a to 13i are moved to detect a shift amount of the mask M placed on the mask standby unit 13 from a reference position, and based on the shift amount, the mask stage MS
Are moved to perform the pre-alignment of the mask M, but the pre-alignment of the mask M may be performed in the mask standby unit 13 by moving the pre-alignment units 13a to 13i. In this case, the transfer of the mask M to the mask standby unit 13 by the transfer arm 12 is performed when the edges of the mask M are
It is necessary to transfer the mask M so that the edge of the mask M always comes into contact with the pre-alignment units 13a to 13i when the pre-alignment units 13a to 13i move close to 3i.

Next, a second embodiment of the present invention will be described. FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing the configuration of the substrate transfer device according to the second embodiment of the present invention. In the second embodiment, the present invention is applied to a semiconductor manufacturing apparatus that performs exposure using the vertical stage shown in FIG. Here, the vertical stage shown in FIG. 6 will be described. As shown in FIG. 6, the vertical stage 100 has a base 101, and on the base 101, parallel rail portions 102A,
102B are formed. Rail portions 102A, 102
On B, a moving table 103 movable by a moving mechanism (not shown) is mounted along the rails 102A and 102B. From the moving table 103, a mask stage MS on which a mask M is mounted, and a glass substrate The substrate stage 104 on which G is mounted is erected in parallel with each other. The base 101 includes a light source 105 that irradiates the mask M with exposure light as described later, an optical path 106 that deflects the exposure light emitted from the light source 105 toward the mask M, and an exposure light that irradiates the mask M. Optical system 107 for irradiating light to glass substrate G
And Next, the operation of the vertical stage 100 will be described. First, the mask M is placed on the mask stage MS.
And the glass substrate G is placed on the substrate stage 104. Then, the light source 105 is driven to irradiate the mask M with exposure light, and the movable table 103 is moved along the rails 102A and 102B to scan the mask M with the exposure light, and the pattern formed on the mask M is scanned. This is to be transferred onto a glass substrate G.

As shown in FIG. 4, the substrate transfer apparatus according to the second embodiment has a mask library 21 capable of storing six masks M1 to M6 (hereinafter, sometimes simply referred to as M) in a vertical position. And the mask M from the mask library 21
Arm 22, which takes out the mask M, a mask standby unit 23 that temporarily waits for the mask M taken out by the transfer arm 22, and an exchange arm 27 that takes out the mask M waiting in the mask standby unit 23 and carries it to the mask stage MS. Consists of

The mask standby section 23 has openings 23A to 23C.
The mask M can be held in three standby positions P1 to P3 having
Mask mounting pins 24a to 24f for positioning the bottom side of the mask M held by P3 (24e, 24f are not shown)
And pre-alignment units 25a to 25c for detecting the amount of deviation of the mask M from the reference position in the X direction, and mask holding units 26a to 26i (26h, 26h,
26i are not shown). Pre-alignment unit 25
a to 25c can be moved in the X direction in FIG. 4, and thereby measure the position of the mask M in the X direction. As shown in FIG. 5, the mask holding portions 26a to 26i open and close the reference side pad 61, the pressing side pad 62, the moving portion 63, the stopper 64, the reference side pad 61 and the pressing side pad 62, and move the moving portion. A rolling element 65 for moving 63 in the Z direction in FIG. 4 can be moved in the Z direction in FIG. 4 by a drive mechanism (not shown) and can be opened and closed. The mask standby unit 23 is movable in the X direction in FIG. 4 by a moving mechanism (not shown).

The transport arm 22 transports the mask M by suctioning the mask M under vacuum.
It is possible to move in the direction and the Y direction. Similarly to the transfer arm 22, the exchange arm 27 transfers the mask M by vacuum suction, and can be moved in the Y and Z directions in FIG. 4 by a moving mechanism (not shown). The mask stage MS is movable in the X direction and the Z direction in FIG.

Next, the operation of the second embodiment will be described. First, the transfer arm 22 is moved to the mask library 2
Then, the mask M1 is attracted by moving in the direction of 1. At this time, the mask holding units 26a to 26c at the standby position P1 of the mask standby unit 23 have moved to the retracted position and are in an open state as shown in FIG. Then, transfer arm 2
2 moves in the X and Y directions to transfer the mask M1 to the standby position P1 of the mask standby unit 23. In the standby position P1 of the mask standby unit 23, the mask holding unit 26a moves downward, and the mask holding units 26b and 26c move upward to the fall prevention position (see FIG. 5B), and the mask holding units 26a to 26c The upper and lower ends of the mask M1 are located between the pad 61 and the pad 62 of FIG. In this state, the vacuum suction state of the transfer arm 22 is released, and the bottom side of the mask M1 contacts the mask mounting pins 24a and 24b (see FIG. 5C). Then, the reference side pad 61 and the pressing side pad 62 are simultaneously closed.

At this time, the pressing force F of the reference side pad 61
By making 1 larger than the pressing force F2 of the pressing pad 62, the reference pad 61 comes into contact with the stopper 64. Therefore, the pattern surface of the mask M1 is held at the reference position determined by the stopper 64 (see FIG. 5D). Thereafter, the transfer arm 22 retreats from the mask standby unit 23. Then, the pre-alignment unit 25a moves from the position indicated by the imaginary line in FIG. 4 to the position indicated by the solid line, and detects a shift amount of the edge of the mask M1 from the reference position in the X direction. Then, the mask standby unit 23
Moves the standby position P1 to a position facing the exchange arm 27, and the exchange arm 27 moves in the direction of the standby position P1 to suck the mask M1 through the opening 23A. Then, the pad 6 of the mask holding portions 26a to 26c
1 and 62, the mask holder 26a moves upward and the mask holders 26b and 26c move downward to the state shown in FIG. 5A, and the exchange arm 27 moves in the Y direction to wait for the mask M1. Carry out from position P1.

Thereafter, the exchange arm 27 is moved in the Y direction and Z direction.
In the direction opposite to the mask stage MS and the mask M
1 is loaded on the mask stage MS. Mask M
When the mask stage 1 is mounted on the mask stage MS, the mask stage MS moves in the X direction by the shift amount detected by the pre-alignment unit 25a and corrects the shift amount of the mask M1 to perform pre-alignment. After that, fine alignment is performed by searching for a fine alignment mark, and then exposure is performed.

On the other hand, when the mask to be used next to the mask M1 is the mask M2, the exchange arm 27
Is transferred to the mask stage MS, the transfer arm 22 moves in the direction of the mask library 21 and sucks the mask M2. During this time, the mask standby unit 23 moves to a position where the standby position P2 faces the transfer arm 22. Then, the transfer arm 22 moves in the direction of the mask standby unit 23 to transfer the mask M2 to the standby position P2 in the same manner as in the case of the mask M1.

At the standby position P2 of the mask standby section 23, the mask M2 is set in the same manner as the above-described mask M1.
Contact the mask mounting pins 24c and 24d, and the mask M2 is held by the mask holding portions 26d to 26f. Then, the pre-alignment unit 25b moves from the position of the imaginary line in FIG. 4 to the position of the solid line so as to contact the edge of the mask M2, and detects the amount of deviation of the edge of the mask M2 from the reference position. After the exposure using the mask M1 is completed, the exchange arm 27 receives the mask M1 from the mask stage MS. Then, the mask standby unit 23 moves to a position where the standby position P1 faces the exchange arm 27,
In this position, the exchange arm 27 transfers the mask M1 to the standby position P1. This delivery procedure is the same as the delivery procedure by the transfer arm 22.

Subsequently, the mask standby section 23 moves to a position where the standby position P2 faces the exchange arm 27. The exchange arm 27 receives the mask M2 from the standby position P2, and moves in the direction of the mask stage MS to move the mask M.
2 is loaded on the mask stage MS. Mask M
When the mask stage MS2 is loaded on the mask stage MS, the mask stage MS moves in the X direction by the shift amount detected by the pre-alignment unit 25b to correct the shift amount of the mask M2. Do.

Thereafter, if it is necessary to replace the mask M1 or M2 with another mask M3 to M6, the mask M1 placed on the mask standby unit 23 by the transfer arm 22 during the exposure using the mask M2. The mask is transferred to the mask library 11, and the other masks M <b> 3 to M <b> 6 are transferred to a predetermined standby position of the mask standby unit 23. Then, similarly to the masks M1 and M2 described above, the exchange arm 27
, The masks M3 to M6 are alternately transported from the mask standby section 23 to the mask stage MS to perform exposure using the masks M3 to M6.

As described above, in the present embodiment, the mask M is made to stand by in the vertical position in the mask stand-by section 23, and the lower end of the mask M is defined by the mask mounting pins 24a to 24f to perform pre-alignment in the Z direction. And the X of the mask M is further controlled by the pre-alignment units 25a to 25c.
Since the pre-alignment measurement is performed by detecting the amount of deviation in the direction, the movement of the mask after performing the Z-direction pre-alignment measurement and the X-direction pre-alignment measurement is performed only once from the mask standby unit 23 to the mask stage MS. Becomes Therefore, as compared with the conventional apparatus in which the mask is moved twice from the mask library from the mask library and the mask stage from the mask standby section after the pre-alignment,
The amount of displacement at the time of mask delivery is reduced, and the time for fine alignment on the mask stage MS can be shortened.

The transfer arm 22 for transferring the mask M between the mask library 21 and the mask standby unit 23, the mask standby unit 23, and the mask stage MS
Exchange arm 2 for transferring mask M between
7, the transfer arm 22 and the exchange arm 27
Thus, two masks M can be transported in parallel and simultaneously. Thereby, the time for replacing the mask M can be reduced.

Further, the mask M is held in the vertical position in the mask standby section 23, and the mask M is loaded on the mask stage MS while maintaining the vertical position. There is no need to rotate the mask M to a vertical position.
This eliminates the need for providing a rotating mechanism for rotating the mask M and a space for rotating the mask M. Therefore, the substrate transfer apparatus according to the present invention can be easily applied to an exposure apparatus using a vertical stage. Can be.

Note that in the second embodiment,
The mask stage MS is moved by moving the pre-alignment units 25a to 25c to detect a shift amount in the X direction from a reference position of the mask M placed on the mask standby unit 23, and moving the mask stage MS based on the shift amount. Although the X-direction pre-alignment of M is performed, the pre-alignment of the mask M may be performed in the mask standby unit 23 by moving the pre-alignment units 25a to 25c.
In this case, the transfer of the mask M to the mask standby unit 23 by the transfer arm 22 is performed only when the edge of the mask M approaches the pre-alignment units 25a to 25c and the pre-alignment units 25a to 25c move. It is necessary to transfer the mask M so that the mask M comes into contact with the pre-alignment portions 25a to 25c.

In the first and second embodiments, the substrate transfer apparatus of the present invention is applied to the transfer of a mask. However, the present invention is not limited to this. The present invention can be applied to an apparatus.

In the correspondence between the above embodiment and the claims, the mask stage MS is a substrate stage, the mask libraries 11 and 21 are substrate storage means, and the mask standby unit 1
3 and 23 are temporary storage units, the transfer arms 12 and 22 are first transfer units, the exchange arms 14 and 27 are second transfer units, and the pre-alignment units 13a to 13i and 25a to 2
5c denotes a pre-alignment mechanism, and the mask holding units 26a to 26c
26i constitutes a grip part.

[0041]

As described in detail above, according to the first aspect of the present invention, in the temporary storage means, the substrate is pre-aligned by the pre-alignment mechanism. The amount of movement is
Only once from the temporary storage means to the substrate stage.
Therefore, as compared with the conventional apparatus in which the substrate is moved twice from the substrate storage means to the temporary storage means and from the temporary storage means to the substrate stage after the pre-alignment, the amount of displacement when the substrate is transferred is reduced. The time for fine alignment on the stage can be shortened, and semiconductors and the like can be manufactured efficiently.

According to the second aspect of the present invention, the transfer of the substrate from the substrate storage unit to the temporary storage unit and the transfer of the substrate from the temporary storage unit to the substrate stage are performed in parallel. Delivery of the substrate can be performed efficiently by shortening the time, whereby the manufacture of a semiconductor or the like can be performed more efficiently.

According to the third aspect of the present invention, since the substrate is stored in a vertical posture, the bottom side of the substrate can be defined by its own weight, thereby simplifying the configuration of the pre-alignment mechanism. be able to. In addition, by holding the substrate in a vertical position and transporting the substrate to the substrate stage in a state where the vertical position is maintained, when the substrate is used in an exposure apparatus using a vertical stage, a horizontal position is provided near the substrate stage. It is not necessary to rotate the substrate in a vertical position. Thus, there is no need to provide a rotation mechanism for rotating the substrate or a space for performing the rotation.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a configuration of a substrate transfer device according to a first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram illustrating the operation of the substrate transfer device according to the first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing a configuration of another embodiment of a mask library.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing a configuration of a substrate transfer device according to a second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram illustrating the operation of the substrate transfer device according to the second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a perspective view showing a configuration of a vertical stage.

[Explanation of symbols]

 11, 21 Mask library 12, 22 Transfer arm 13, 23 Mask standby unit 13a to 13i, 25a to 25c Prealignment unit 14, 27 Replacement arm 24a to 24f Mask mounting pin 26a to 26i Mask holding unit MS Mask stage

Claims (6)

[Claims] A substrate stage for processing a substrate; a substrate storage unit for storing a plurality of substrates; a temporary storage unit for temporarily storing the substrate; A substrate transport device comprising: first transport means for transporting to a storage means; and second transport means for transporting the substrate temporarily stored in the temporary storage means to the substrate stage. A pre-alignment mechanism for pre-alignment of the substrate is provided. 2. The method according to claim 1, wherein the transfer of the substrate from the substrate storage unit to the temporary storage unit and the transfer of the substrate from the temporary storage unit to the substrate stage are performed in parallel. 2. The substrate transfer apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising control means for controlling the second transfer means. 3. The substrate transport apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the temporary storage unit stores the substrate in a vertical posture. 4. The temporary storage device according to claim 1, further comprising: a gripper for gripping the upper and lower ends of the substrate, and a moving unit for bringing the grippers closer to each other in an open state. 4. The substrate transfer device according to 3. 5. The substrate transfer apparatus according to claim 4, wherein said grip portion includes a positioning unit for positioning at least one surface of said substrate. 6. The temporary storage means has an opening through which the substrate can be inserted, and the first transport means transports the substrate to the temporary storage means from one side of the opening, The substrate transfer apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the second transfer unit unloads the substrate from the other side of the opening.