JPH105703A - Substrate processing device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To stably clean a plate member by fixing the conveyance datum level of the member in the vertical direction. SOLUTION: A spray device 20 for injecting a liq. toward a lower roll brush 19 to press a substrate 2 is opposed to the lower roll brush 19 for cleaning the rear of the substrate 2. Consequently, the conveyance datum level of the substrate 2 and the indentation of the lower roll brush are easily adjusted, the lower roll brush 19 is brought into contact with the rear of the substrate 2, then the contact is not uneven and the cleanliness of the rear of the substrate 2 is enhanced.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a substrate processing apparatus for transporting a substrate such as a glass substrate for a liquid crystal display, a printed circuit board, and a semiconductor wafer, and performing a predetermined process such as a brush cleaning process on the front and rear surfaces of the substrate. It is about.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art As shown in FIG. 9, a conventional brush cleaning apparatus as a substrate processing apparatus has a disk brush 51 disposed vertically opposed to a substrate 52 such as a glass substrate or a printed substrate as a plate-like member. By being transported between the upper and lower disk brushes 51, the front and back surfaces of the substrate 52 are simultaneously cleaned. Further, instead of these disk brushes 51, upper and lower roll brushes 53 as shown in FIG.
While rotating the substrate 5 with the upper and lower roll brushes 53.
The cleaning process was carried out at the same time by sandwiching the front and back surfaces of No. 2.

Further, for example, in a manufacturing process of a liquid crystal display, when a substrate is subjected to various processes such as a photolithography process, a surface to be subjected to such a process (hereinafter referred to as a front surface) is more than a rear surface thereof. At present, high cleanliness is often required. For this reason, more brushes are arranged on the front side of the substrate than on the rear side. For example, in a brush cleaning device as shown in FIG. 11, the upper disk brushes 61 and 62 are arranged at a predetermined distance in the transport direction A,
A lower disk brush 63 is disposed between the upper and lower disk brushes 61 and 62, and overall support rollers 64 and 65 are disposed below the upper disk brushes 61 and 62 so as to face each other. These upper disk brushes 61, 62
And the lower disk brush 63 and the whole surface supporting roll 64,
The substrate 66 is conveyed in a horizontal posture with the front side facing upward between the substrate 66 and the substrate 66 so that the cleaning degree on the front side of the substrate 66 is higher than that on the rear side.

For example, as a brush cleaning apparatus using a roll brush instead of the disk brush, as shown in FIG. 12, upper roll brushes 71, 72 and 73 are used.
Are disposed at a predetermined distance from each other in the transport direction A, a lower roll brush 74 is provided between the upper roll brushes 71, 72, and a lower roll brush 75 is provided between the upper roll brushes 72, 73. The whole-surface support rolls 76, 77, 78 are provided so as to face the lower sides of the upper roll brushes 71, 72, 73, respectively. These upper roll brushes 71, 72, 73, lower roll brushes 74, 75,
6, 77, 78, the substrate 66 is conveyed in a horizontal posture with the front side up, so that the front side of the substrate 66 is cleaned so that the degree of cleaning is higher than that of the back side. Was.

[0005]

When brushes such as the disk brush 51 or the roll brush 53 are disposed opposite to each other as shown in FIGS. The support relies on the pushing balance of the upper and lower brushes, and since it is difficult to adjust the pushing balance, it is difficult to determine the substrate position in the vertical direction (hereinafter referred to as the substrate transport reference plane), and to adjust the substrate transport reference plane. In some cases, contact between the brush and both surfaces of the substrate becomes uneven, and in this case, the degree of cleaning of both surfaces of the substrate is reduced.

Next, in the above-mentioned conventional configuration, as shown in FIGS. 11 and 12, the whole-surface supporting rolls 64, 65 or the whole surface are provided directly below the upper brushes such as the upper disk brushes 61, 62 or the upper roll brushes 71, 72, 73. Support roll 76
In the positions where .about.78 are respectively provided, these full support rolls 64 and 65 or the full support rolls 76-7 are provided.
8, the substrate 66 does not bend by the pressure of the upper brush on the upper surface of the substrate 66 in addition to the weight of the substrate 66 and the cleaning liquid. Thus, the brush contact of the upper brush with the upper surface of the substrate 66 is uniform. However, at the position of the lower disk brush 63 or the lower roll brushes 74 and 75, the substrate 66 moves upward and floats depending on the amount of the lower brush pressed into the back surface of the substrate 66. Since the substrate transfer reference surface at the side brush portion was not determined, it was difficult to adjust the substrate transfer reference surface, and the brush contact with the back surface of the substrate was uneven. Recently, the degree of cleaning of the back surface side of the substrate has also been required, and improvement in the degree of cleaning of the back surface has been desired.

The present invention has been made to solve the above problems, and provides a substrate processing apparatus capable of determining a transfer reference plane of a substrate in a vertical direction and stably performing a predetermined processing such as a cleaning processing. The purpose is to:

[0008]

According to the present invention, there is provided a substrate processing apparatus for transporting a plate-like member and performing a predetermined process, wherein the plate-like member ejects a fluid to a transport path to press the plate-like member. A member pressing means is provided. For example, a transport path includes a transport member that supports and transports the lower surface of the plate member, and a plate member pressing unit that is disposed to face the transport member and ejects a fluid toward the transport member. May be.

With this configuration, if the plate member is pressed by ejecting a fluid from the plate member pressing means, the transport reference surface of the plate member is determined without becoming unstable, and the upper surface of the plate member is fixed. Since the plate-shaped member can be stably conveyed without any contact and without any contamination, a predetermined process such as a cleaning process can be stably performed.

In a cleaning apparatus for cleaning the upper and lower surfaces of a plate member, a substrate processing apparatus according to the present invention includes a cleaning member for cleaning a lower surface of the plate member, a cleaning member for cleaning the lower surface of the plate member, and a cleaning member facing the cleaning member. And a plate-like member pressing means for ejecting a fluid toward the cleaning member.

According to this configuration, since the fluid is ejected from the plate-like member pressing means toward the cleaning member to press the plate-like member against the cleaning member, the amount of pushing between the transport reference surface of the plate-like member and the cleaning device is reduced. Is easy to adjust, and since the contact of the cleaning member with the lower surface of the plate member does not become uneven, the lower surface is reliably cleaned without contacting the upper surface of the plate member, that is, without contaminating the upper surface. As a result, the degree of cleaning of the lower surface of the plate-shaped member becomes higher.

Further, preferably, the plate-like member pressing means in the substrate processing apparatus of the present invention is at least one of a high pressure or high flow rate spray and a high pressure or high flow rate shower.

According to this configuration, the configuration for pressing the surface of the plate member to determine the transport reference plane can be easily configured without touching the surface of the plate member.

[0014]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An embodiment of a substrate processing apparatus according to the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a plan view showing a configuration of a substrate processing system including a substrate cleaning apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 1, the substrate processing system includes:
Mainly, an indexer device 1 that functions as a substrate supply unit or a substrate discharge unit, a substrate cleaning device 3 that cleans front and back surfaces of a substrate 2 such as a glass substrate as a plate-like member with a brush cleaning member, and an indexer device 1. And a robot device 4 for carrying the substrate 2 in and out between the substrate cleaning device 3.

The indexer device 1 has a rectangular substrate 2
Mounting table 7 for mounting cassettes 5 and 6 capable of storing a plurality of sheets
Is provided. These cassettes 5 and 6 are transported to a predetermined position on the mounting table 7 by an automatic transport robot (not shown). With the cassettes 5 and 6 placed on the mounting table 7, the robot device 4 can take out the substrate 2 from the cassette 5 and store the substrate 2 after the cleaning process in the cassette 6.

As described above, the robot device 4 moves between the cassette 5 and the loading side of the substrate cleaning device 3 and the cassette 6
In a state in which the peripheral portion of the substrate 2 is suction-supported by a hand (not shown) capable of turning, moving forward and backward, and moving up and down, the hand is movable in accordance with a command from the control unit. The substrate 2 can be transferred from the cassette 5 to the loading side of the substrate cleaning apparatus 3 by moving the substrate 2 to the cassette 6, and the substrate 2 can be transported to the cassette 6 from the unloading side of the substrate cleaning apparatus 3. it can.

FIG. 2 is a partial side view showing a main part of the substrate cleaning apparatus of FIG. 1, and FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line BB 'showing the front structure of the high-pressure spraying apparatus of the substrate cleaning apparatus of FIG. FIG. 2 is a front view showing in detail a configuration of a transport roller and an additional roller of the substrate cleaning apparatus of FIG. 1.

In FIG. 2 to FIG.
Is provided with a front conveyor section 11 on the loading side of the substrate 2,
The rear conveyor unit 1 is located on the unloading side of the substrate 2 after the brush cleaning process.
2, a brush cleaning unit 13 is provided between the front conveyor unit 11 and the rear conveyor unit 12.

In the front conveyor section 11 and the rear conveyor section 12, a plurality of conveying rollers 14 are arranged in the conveying direction in parallel with each other. These transport rollers 14
The structure of each of these transport rollers 1 will be described later.
4 is connected to a driving unit (not shown), and is configured to rotate in a certain direction by the driving force from the driving unit and to convey the substrate 2 in the conveying direction A while holding the substrate 2 horizontally.

The brush cleaning unit 13 is disposed on a substrate cleaning / conveying path between the front conveyor unit 11 and the rear conveyor unit 12, and has a nozzle N on the front surface and the rear surface of the substrate 2.
It is configured to perform cleaning by a brush while supplying a cleaning liquid such as pure water and a detergent. On the upstream side of the path, an upper roll brush 17 for cleaning the surface of the substrate 2, and a whole substrate support as a support member disposed directly below the upper roll brush 17 and supporting the substrate 2 over the entire width of the substrate 2. The upper and lower roll brushes 17 are arranged so that their axes are vertically parallel.
The substrate 2 is configured to be transported between the support roll 18 and the entire substrate support roll 18. In this case, the substrate full-surface support roll 18 is configured to support the entire width of the substrate 2 passing above it, and the presence of the substrate full-surface support roll 18 causes the upper roll brush in addition to the substrate 2 and the cleaning liquid to have its own weight. Even when the pressure is applied to the substrate 17, the substrate 2 does not bend downward, and the upper roll brush 17 can more uniformly contact the surface of the substrate 2. Further, the upper roll brush 17 is disposed over the entire width of the substrate passing thereunder, and the amount of pushing of the upper roll brush 17 onto the surface of the substrate 2 is appropriately adjusted due to the presence of the entire substrate support roll 18. Thus, uniform contact of the upper roll brush 17 with the surface of the substrate 2 can be obtained.

A lower roll brush 19 for cleaning the back surface of the substrate 2 is disposed downstream of the substrate cleaning and transporting path, and is disposed above and opposed to the lower roll brush 19. And a high-pressure or high-flow-rate spray device 20 as a plate-like member pressing means for ejecting a mixed fluid of air and a processing liquid (pure water in the present embodiment) toward the lower roll brush. The configuration is such that the substrate 2 is transported between 19 and the spray device 20. The lower roll brush 19 is disposed over the entire width of the substrate 2 passing above it. In this case, on the surface facing the lower roll brush 19 of the spray device 20, a slit-shaped nozzle portion 20a elongated in the width direction in which the mixed fluid is jetted is provided in the width direction of the substrate 2 (in the transport direction A in the horizontal plane). (In the direction perpendicular to the direction). The jet angle from the nozzle portion 20a is set so that the band-shaped portion where the mixed fluid spouted from the nozzle portion 20a hits the surface of the substrate 2 includes the band-shaped portion of the lower roll brush 19 in contact with the back surface of the substrate 2, The flatness of the substrate 2 is maintained so that the brush abuts more uniformly. Further, the spray device 20 is configured to press the surface of the substrate 2 downward in a non-contact manner by the pressure of the collision of the mixed fluid in order to prevent contamination or damage to the surface of the substrate 2. Also, even when the lower roll brush 19 is pushed upwardly with respect to the back surface of the substrate 2, the substrate 2 does not move upward or bend, and the transport reference surface of the substrate 2 is not good. Determined without becoming stable. Further, since the mixed fluid is ejected to press the surface of the substrate 2 against the lower roll brush 19, the amount of the lower roll brush 19 pressed into the back surface of the substrate 2 can be adjusted appropriately, and the lower roll Uniform contact of the brush 19 with the back surface of the substrate 2 can be easily obtained.

Further, at the front and rear positions of the upper roll brush 17 and the lower roll brush 19, transport rollers 21 to 23 are disposed at a predetermined distance in the transport direction A in parallel with each other. Each of these transport rollers 21 to
Reference numeral 23 denotes a shaft portion 15 and the shaft portion 15 as shown in FIG.
A supporting shaft portion 16a provided at both ends of the support shaft 2 to support both end edges of the substrate 2, and a brim portion 16b connected to the supporting shaft portion 16a. A space between the flange portion 16b at each end and the support shaft portion 16a is formed by a tapered portion. The configuration is such that the substrate 2 can be placed on both support shafts 16a while guiding the substrate 2 by the tapered portion. Each of the transport rollers 21 to 23 is connected to a driving unit, and is configured to rotate in a certain direction by a driving force from the driving unit and transport the substrate 2 in the transport direction A while holding the substrate 2 horizontally. ing.

Further, on each of these transport rollers 21 to 23, additional rollers 24 to 26 are arranged so as to sandwich both end edges 2a of the substrate 2, respectively. As shown in FIG. 4, each of these additional rollers 24 to 26 includes a shaft 27 and circular flanges 28 disposed at both ends of the shaft 27 and pressing the both end edges 2 a of the substrate 2 while rolling the two ends. Have. As described above, although the additional roller 26 is shown in FIG. 4, the additional roller 26 and the other additional rollers 24 and 25 have the same configuration, and have the transport roller 23 and the other transport rollers 21 and 22. Has the same configuration. Further, the transport rollers 14 in the front conveyor section 11 and the rear conveyor section 12 are not combined with additional rollers, but the configuration is the same as that of the transport rollers 23. The transport roller 14 may be combined with a similar additional roller.

With the above structure, the substrate 2 is sucked and taken out from the cassette 5 mounted on the mounting table 7 of the indexer device 1 by the hand of the robot device 4, and the substrate cleaning device 3
Is carried into each carrying roller 14 on the carrying-in side. As described above, the front surface and the back surface of the substrate 2 carried into the respective transport rollers 14 from the cassette 5 are cleaned by the brush cleaning unit 13.

At this time, first, on the upstream side of the substrate cleaning / conveying path, the upper roll brush 17 and the entire substrate supporting roll 1
8 is adjusted, the substrate transport reference surface can be easily determined by the presence of the substrate full-surface support rolls 18, and the pressing amount of the upper roll brush 17 can be set to an appropriate value. Uniform contact with the entire front surface of the substrate 2 can be obtained.

Next, on the downstream side of the substrate cleaning / conveying path, the mixed fluid is jetted downward from the nozzle portion 20a of the spray device 20 toward the lower roll brush 19 to press the surface of the substrate 2 downward. Since the substrate transfer reference surface of the substrate 2 is determined, the amount of pressing of the lower roll brush 19 against the transfer reference surface is adjusted, and uniform contact of the lower roll brush 19 with the entire back surface of the substrate 2 is obtained. be able to. Thus, the brush cleaning unit 1
In step 3, the front and back surfaces of the substrate 2 can be cleaned with a higher degree of cleaning.

Thereafter, the substrate 2 after the brush cleaning process is completed.
Is the rear conveyor unit 1 on the unloading side of the substrate cleaning device 3.
The substrate 2 is sucked and taken out from each of the transfer rollers 14 by the hand of the robot device 4 and stored in the cassette 6.

As described above, the entire substrate support roll 18 is located directly below the upper roll brush 17 and the spray device 20 is located directly above the lower roll brush 19, so that the substrate transport reference in the vertical direction is maintained. The surface is determined, and the brush pushing amount for uniform contact of the brush with both surfaces of the substrate 2 can be easily adjusted, so that the substrate 2 can be stably transported and the stable cleaning process can be performed.

Since the upper surface of the substrate 2 has no contact other than the brushes except for the edge of the substrate 2, the upper surface of the substrate 2 can be cleaned without contaminating the substrate 2. At this time,
The forces acting uniformly downward on the substrate 2 are the ejection pressure of the processing liquid and the weight of the processing liquid in addition to the weight of the substrate 2, and these uniformly act on the substrate surface. With these forces, the substrate 2
Of the substrate 2 can be uniformly cleaned by pressing the rear surface of the substrate 2 against the lower roll brush 19.

Further, as in the conventional arrangement of the brushes facing each other in FIGS. 9 and 10, there is a risk of dust generation due to the thinning of the substrate 2 or the rubbing of the brush tips depending on the amount of pushing of the brush. By sequentially arranging the combination of the upper roll brush 17 and the whole substrate supporting roll 18, the spray device 20 and the lower roll brush 19 on the substrate transport path, the brush tips do not rub against each other, The possibility of dust generation is suppressed.

A modification of the above embodiment will be described below.
Hereinafter, illustration of the nozzle N is omitted.

In the above embodiment, the upper roll brush 17 and the lower roll brush 19 are used as brushes as cleaning members.
However, instead of the upper roll brush 17 and the lower roll brush 19, a lower disk brush and an upper disk brush may be used. Also, a roll brush and a disc brush may be mixed, for example,
An upper disk brush may be used on the upstream side of the transport path and a lower roll brush may be used on the downstream side of the transport path, or an upper roll brush may be used on the upstream side of the transport path and a lower disk brush may be used on the downstream side of the transport path. You may. Also in these cases, similarly to the above embodiment, the entire substrate supporting rolls 18 are provided.
The above effect can be obtained by using the spray device 20.

In the above embodiment, the spray device 20 of high pressure or high flow rate is used as the substrate pressing means.
A high-pressure or high-flow-rate shower device 31 as shown in FIGS. 5 and 6 may be used. In this case, a processing liquid such as a cleaning liquid is used as the fluid to be ejected. Also,
The shower device 31 is more advantageous in terms of space than the spray device 20.

Further, in the above-described embodiment, the nozzle portion 20a of the spray device 20 is formed as an elongated body in a row in the width direction of the substrate 2, but as shown in FIG.
May be arranged in two rows. In this case, more space is required, but the band-shaped pressing width on the substrate 2 is increased, and a more uniform flatness of the substrate 2 is obtained. Will be done. More rows and nozzles may be provided, but it is necessary to consider both the required space and the substrate flatness.

Further, in the above embodiment, when the substrate 2 is cleaned by the upper roll brush 17 and the lower roll brush 19, the cleaning liquid is supplied from both sides slightly upstream of the upper roll brush 17 and the lower roll brush 19. However, the configuration may be such that the upper roll brush 17 and the lower roll brush 19 are respectively supplied from the central portions thereof.

The high-pressure or high-flow-rate spray device 20 is used for pressing the substrate 2 against the lower roll brush 19 for cleaning the substrate without contact, but the invention is not limited thereto. The present invention can also be used to press and securely transport. That is, in the above-described embodiment, as shown in FIG. 4, both edge portions of the substrate 2 are pressed by the circular brim portions 28 of the rollers 24 to 26 to press the substrate 2 against the transport roller 23. It is also possible to use a spray device 20 or a shower device 31 instead of 24 to 26 for pressing. That is, in the above embodiment, the brush cleaning device as the substrate processing device has been described as an example, but the present invention is not limited to this.
In a substrate processing apparatus that transports a plate-like member such as the substrate 2 and performs a predetermined process, for example, processing such as development, peeling, and etching of a photoresist film, a transport that supports and transports the back surface of the plate-like member in a transport path. The spray device 20 and the shower device 31 may be provided as plate member pressing means for ejecting a fluid toward the conveying member, facing the member. Also, in particular, the additional roller 24
Instead of using the spray device 20 or the shower device 31, the cleaning liquid may be ejected before the upper roll brush 17. In this case, the supply of the cleaning liquid and the pressing of the substrate 2 can be performed simultaneously.

The additional rollers 24 to 26 shown in FIG.
The lower roll brush 1 has the same configuration as the circular flange 28 of FIG.
The substrate pressing roll 32 can be disposed so as to face above the lower roll brush 9. However, depending on the amount of the lower roll brush 19 pressed, the lower roll brush 19 is particularly required when the substrate 2 has a large area or is thin. Fig. 8
As shown in FIG. 5, the center of the substrate 2 may bend upward. In this case, the contact of the lower surface of the substrate 2 with, for example, the lower roll brush 19 becomes non-uniform. The degree of cleaning will be reduced. Instead of such a substrate holding roll 32 or such a substrate holding roll 3
If the spray device 20 or the shower device 31 is used in addition to 2, the substrate 2 does not warp and the contact of the lower roll brush 19 to the back surface of the substrate 2 becomes uneven as described above.

[0039]

As described above, according to the present invention, since the plate-like member is pressed by the fluid ejected from the plate-like member pressing means to define the transport reference plane of the plate-like member, the upper surface of the plate-like member is completely removed. The plate member can be stably conveyed without contact and without contamination, and a predetermined process can be performed on the plate member.

Further, since the plate-like member is pressed against the cleaning member side by the fluid ejected from the plate-like member pressing means to define the transfer reference surface of the plate-like member, the pressing of the transfer reference surface of the plate-like member and the cleaning member is performed. The amount can be easily adjusted, the contact of the cleaning member with the lower surface of the plate member does not become uneven, and the degree of cleaning of the lower surface of the plate member can be further increased.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a plan view illustrating a configuration of a substrate processing system including a substrate cleaning apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a partial side view showing a main part of the substrate cleaning apparatus of FIG.

FIG. 3 is a sectional view taken along the line BB ′ showing a front configuration of the spray device of the substrate cleaning device of FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a front view showing in detail a configuration of a transport roller and an additional roller of the substrate cleaning apparatus of FIG. 1;

FIG. 5 is a front view of a main part when a shower device is used in place of the spray device of the substrate cleaning device of FIG. 2;

FIG. 6 is a side view of a main part of FIG. 5;

FIG. 7 is a side view of a main part when two shower devices are used in place of the spray device of the substrate cleaning device of FIG. 2;

FIG. 8 is a front view when the substrate is warped upward.

FIG. 9 is a partial side view schematically showing a main part of a conventional brush cleaning device when disk brushes are arranged to face each other.

FIG. 10 is a partial side view schematically illustrating a main part of a conventional brush cleaning device when a roll brush is disposed to face the roller brush.

FIG. 11 is a partial side view schematically showing a main part of a conventional brush cleaning device when more disk brushes are arranged on the substrate surface side.

FIG. 12 is a partial side view schematically showing a main part of a conventional brush cleaning device when more roll brushes are provided on the substrate surface side.

[Explanation of symbols]

 2 Substrate 3 Substrate cleaning device 13 Brush cleaning unit 17 Upper roll brush 18 Substrate whole surface support roll 19 Lower roll brush (cleaning member) 20 Spray device (plate-like member pressing means) 31 Shower device (plate-like member pressing means)

Claims (3)

[Claims] 1. A substrate processing apparatus for transporting a plate-shaped member and performing a predetermined process, wherein a plate-shaped member pressing means for ejecting a fluid to press the plate-shaped member is provided on a transfer path. Processing equipment. 2. A substrate processing apparatus for cleaning an upper surface and a lower surface of a plate-shaped member, respectively. A cleaning member for cleaning a lower surface of the plate-shaped member on a transport path, and the cleaning member disposed opposite to the cleaning member. A substrate processing apparatus comprising: a plate-shaped member pressing unit that ejects a fluid toward a member. 3. The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said plate member pressing means is at least one of a high pressure or high flow rate spray and a high pressure or high flow rate shower.