JPH1116797A - Control system - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To enhance maintainability of the entire production system in the case of a system where a plurality of processors for substrates to be processed, e.g. semiconductor wafers, are controlled under integrated management. SOLUTION: The control system is connected additionally with an AGC (advance group controller) 17 performing analysis of all process data obtained from each processor 11, as well as central management of recipe (process condition values) for each processor or process control thereof based on the recipe, monitoring the analytical results or process data centrally and reflecting the analytical/statistic results on the recipe. Since all process data and analytical results from each processor 11 can be monitored, abnormal or deteriorated state of the processor can be detected in detail on the early stage.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a system for controlling a manufacturing apparatus such as a semiconductor manufacturing apparatus and a liquid crystal panel manufacturing apparatus, and more particularly to a control system having a function for centrally managing a plurality of substrate processing apparatuses.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In recent years, with the increase in the scale of manufacturing systems for semiconductor wafers, liquid crystal panels, and the like, a large number of processing apparatuses for performing processing (processes) such as film forming processing, etching processing, and thermal oxidation processing on substrates to be processed. There is an increasing demand for centralized management.

FIG. 5 shows a configuration of a control system having a centralized management function of such a plurality of processing devices.

In FIG. 1, reference numeral 31 (31-1 to 31-N) denotes a processing apparatus for performing various processing on a substrate to be processed;
2-1 to 32-N) are ECs for individually controlling each processing device 31
C control unit. The ECC control unit 32 is a logical interface unit with the host computer 35.
It has an I (Host Communication Interface) 33, and exchanges various data with a host computer 35 through a data transmission system 34 such as TCP / IP by the HCI 33. The host computer 35
The tracking processing of each processing device 31 is performed by exchanging various data with the ECC control unit 32 of each processing device 31, and the process data received from each processing device 31 is stored as a history in a database 35a, and the contents thereof are stored. Is displayed on a monitor, and various parameters of the processing device 31 are corrected and abnormality is detected based on the process data.

When transferring process data from the ECC controller 32 of each processing device 31 to the host computer 35,
The CI 33 performs tracking processing, parameter correction, and the like from all the process data generated by the ECC control unit 32.
Only some types of data required at least for abnormality detection and the like are selected and transmitted to the host computer 35.

[0006]

However, in the unified management system using such a control system, the process data stored in the host computer is limited, and the process data of each processing device is determined based on the process data displayed on the monitor. The information that can be obtained as a state is also limited. Further, in many cases, a change in process data reflecting a deterioration state of the processing device over time cannot be found simply by referring to the process data displayed on the monitor. Under such circumstances, there has been a problem that it is practically difficult to reliably and early detect abnormality and characteristic deterioration of the processing apparatus.

The present invention has been made in view of such circumstances, and an object of the present invention is to provide a control system capable of achieving more detailed unified management of each processing device and improving maintainability. Another object of the present invention is to provide a control system capable of realizing detailed unified management of each processing device through analysis results of process data and contributing to early detection of abnormality and characteristic deterioration of the processing device. .

In addition, another object of the present invention is to provide a control system which realizes automatic optimization of process conditions of each processing apparatus.

[0009]

In order to achieve the above object, a control system according to the present invention separately comprises a plurality of processing apparatuses for performing a predetermined process on a substrate to be processed. A plurality of control devices for controlling, a host computer for controlling each of the control devices based on the process data received from each of the control devices, a unit for collecting process data received from each of the control devices, the collected process data And a control device having means for outputting the result of the analysis, wherein the individual control devices are means for generating process data, preset from among the generated process data. Means for transmitting some process data to the host computer, and transferring all the generated process data to the host computer. Characterized in that it comprises means for transmitting to the trawl system.

That is, in the present invention, the control device analyzes all the process data generated by the control device of each processing device and outputs the result, so that a part of the process data is concentrated on the conventional host computer. Compared with the monitoring method, the range of information that can be grasped as the state of each processing apparatus is widened, and a change with time of the state of each processing apparatus can be found earlier.

The control system according to the present invention is characterized in that:
And a plurality of control devices that individually control a plurality of processing devices that perform a predetermined process on the substrate to be processed, and control each of the control devices based on process data received from each of the control devices. A control having a host computer, a unit for collecting process data received from each of the control devices, a unit for analyzing the collected process data, and a unit for updating a process condition of each processing device based on a result of the analysis. Device, wherein each of the control devices includes means for generating process data, means for transmitting a part of process data set in advance from the generated process data to the host computer, and Having a means for transmitting all the processed process data to the control device. That.

According to the present invention, the means for updating the process conditions based on the analysis results of all the process data generated by each control device is further provided, so that the variation of the characteristics of each processing device over time can be prevented. Optimal process conditions can be automatically obtained from various viewpoints considered, and artificial trial and error for setting process conditions can be made unnecessary.

Further, according to a third aspect of the present invention, there is provided a control system for individually controlling a plurality of processing apparatuses for performing a predetermined process on a substrate to be processed, and each of the control apparatuses. A host computer that controls the control devices based on a part of the process data received from the host device, a unit that collects process data received from the control devices, a unit that analyzes the collected process data, and a result of the analysis. And a control device having means for compensating for the missing process data in the period during which the host computer cannot receive the process data with the collected process data, and the individual control devices generate process data. Means, a part of process data set in advance from the generated process data, Characterized in that it comprises means for transmitting means for transmitting to the serial host computer, and all the process data the generated in the control device.

The present invention further comprises means for compensating for the missing process data in the period during which the host computer cannot receive the process data with the process data collected by the control device. It is possible to immediately restart the control of each processing device with respect to the control device.

[0015]

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

The control system according to the present invention is applied to, for example, the following complex process type semiconductor wafer manufacturing apparatus.

As shown in FIG. 1, this semiconductor wafer manufacturing apparatus performs a plurality of processes such as a film forming process, an etching process, and a thermal oxidation process on a semiconductor wafer.
Process chambers 1, 2, 3 and many
Cassette chambers 4 and 5 for accommodating cassettes C1 and C2 capable of accommodating a single wafer W;
A transfer chamber 6 for transferring wafers W between the cassette chambers 2 and 3 and the cassette chambers 4 and 5 is provided. The chambers are connected via a gate valve G so that they can be opened and closed. In the transfer chamber 6, for example, an articulated transfer arm 7 capable of bending and stretching operations and rotating operation is provided, and the transfer arm 7 controls the wafer W between the chambers.
Is carried out. When the cassettes C1 and C2 are taken into the cassette chambers 4 and 5, the cassettes C1 and C2 are turned 90 degrees, and the wafer insertion / removal openings of the cassettes C1 and C2 are rotated so as to face the center of the transfer chamber 6, so that the transfer arm Is set in a position where the wafer W can be taken in and out of the device.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing the overall configuration of the control system according to the first embodiment of the present invention.

In FIG. 1, reference numeral 11 (11-1 to 11-N) denotes a processing apparatus for performing various processes on a substrate to be processed, such as a film forming process, an etching process, and a thermal oxidation process.
To 12-N) are ECCs which are higher-level control systems of the respective processing devices 11.
The control units 10 (10-1 to 10-N) are MCs (machine controllers) which are lower-level control systems of the respective processing devices 11. As shown in FIG. 3, the ECC control unit 12 is a logical interface unit with the host computer 15.
It has an I (Host Communication Interface) 13, and exchanges various data with a host computer 15 through a data transmission system 14 such as TCP / IP by the HCI 13. In addition, the ECC control unit 12
Advanced Group Controller (hereinafter AGC)
Called. ) 17 and a RAP (Remote Agent Process) 16 which is a logical interface means with the RAP.
The AP 16 exchanges various data with the AGC 17 through the data transmission system 14.

Here, HCI related to process data transfer
The difference between the functions of the RAP 13 and the RAP 16 will be described.

The HCI 13 selects only a predetermined type of process data from all the process data obtained from the processing unit 11 by the ECC controller 12 and transmits the selected process data to the host computer 15. That is, in FIG. 3, reference numeral 18 denotes a memory in which all the process data generated by the ECC control unit 12 is temporarily stored.
3 extracts a part of the preset process data (data 1 and 3) from the memory 18 and writes it in the HCI transmission buffer 19, and collectively transmits the contents of the HCI transmission buffer 19 to the host computer 15. Further, status data and the like generated by the ECC control unit 12 are also transmitted.

The RAP 16 unconditionally converts all the process data obtained from the processing device 11 by the ECC controller 12 into an AG.
Send to C17. That is, the RAP 16 sequentially reads the process data stored in the process data storage memory 18 in the ECC control unit 12 from the beginning, and transfers the process data to the AGC 17 with its data structure. However, an operation of rearranging the order of the data or excluding only a part of the data may be performed here.

The host computer 15 is connected to each processing device 1
It performs overall operation control of each processing device 11 such as performing tracking processing of each processing device 11 by exchanging various data with one ECC control unit 12.

The AGC 17 targets all process data obtained from each processing device 11 including centralized management of recipes (process condition values) for each processing device and process control of each processing device 11 based on the recipe. The analysis processing, the statistical processing, the centralized monitoring processing of the process data and the analysis / statistics results, and the processing of reflecting the analysis / statistics results in the recipe are performed.

AGC 17 communicates with AGC server 17a and AGC
It is composed of a client 17b. The communication I / F (interface unit) 21 of the AGC server 17a transmits and receives various data to and from the ECC control unit 12 and the AGC client 17b of each processing device 11 through the data transmission system 14. The EQM control unit 22 corrects various parameters of the process for each processing device based on the predefined process conditions and the process data obtained from each processing device 11, stores the received parameters in the database 23, and It mainly performs processing of searching the database 23 for process data to be transferred to the client 17b.

The AGC client 17b has a data analysis unit 25 for analyzing and statistically processing the process data transferred from the AGC server 17a, and allows the client user to use and process the captured process data and its analysis results. A data conversion unit 26 for converting data into various types of data, a data display unit 27 for displaying the converted data on a monitor or the like, and a recipe ( A function such as a recipe correction unit 28 for updating the process condition) is optimized.

Next, the operation of this system will be described focusing on operations involving AGC.

First, the ECC controller 12 of each processing device 11
Controls the corresponding processing apparatus 11 under the process control by the AGC 17 to execute processing on the substrate to be processed.

The individual ECC controllers 12 control the processing units 11
Are written into the process data storage memory 18 shown in FIG. The process data written in the process data storage memory 18 is a logical interface means H for external transfer.
The data is transferred to the host computer 15 and the AGC 17 through independent channels of the data transmission system 14 such as TCP / IP by the CI 13 and the RAP 16.

Here, the HCI 13 extracts only a predetermined type of process data from all the process data held in the process data storage memory 18 and writes it to the HCI transmission buffer 19,
The contents of the I transmission buffer 19 are transmitted to the host computer 15 through the data transmission system 14. On the other hand, RAP16
Reads all process data from the process data storage memory 18 and transfers it to the AGC 17.

The AGC 17 (AGC server 17a) receives the process data transmitted by the RAP 16 of the ECC control unit 12 of each processing device, accumulates the process data in the database 23, and obtains each process data from the process data and the recipe data. The process control is performed by generating a parameter correction value of the processing device and transmitting it to the ECC control unit 12.

When the AGC server 17a receives a process data transfer request from the AGC client 17b, the AGC server 17a reads the corresponding process data from the database 23, and sends the AGC client 1 through the communication I / F 21.
7b. The process data transferred to the AGC client 17b is converted by the data converter 26 into data in a format that can be used and processed by the client user.
The data is displayed on the monitor by the data display unit 27. Further, the process data transferred to the AGC client 17b is analyzed and statistically processed by the data analysis unit 25, and the analysis result is converted by the data conversion unit 26 into data in a format usable by the user, similarly to the process data. ,
Displayed on the monitor. AGC client 1
The centralized management of the entire substrate processing system on 7b is realized.

The data analysis section 25 of the AGC client 17b detects and predicts an abnormality of the processing device from the analysis result of the process data, and when the abnormality is detected and predicted, the data display section 27 indicates the fact. To the monitor and notify the AGC server 17a. According to this notification, the AGC server 17a, for example,
It performs control such as instructing the ECC control unit 12 that controls the processing device 11 that has detected or predicted abnormality to stop the processing device.

Further, the recipe correction unit 28 of the AGC client 17b performs an update process for optimizing a recipe (process condition) from an analysis result on process data including measurement data such as a film thickness measurement result on a substrate.

Further, in this embodiment, when the host computer 15 goes down, the spooling process of the process data by the AGC 17 is performed. That is, the host computer 15 can immediately take in the process data of the down period from the AGC 17 after the recovery. Thereby, each processing device 1 by the host computer 15
1 can be resumed immediately after recovery.

As described above, according to the control system of this embodiment, all or almost all the detailed process data obtained from each processing device can be taken into the AGC 17 for centralized monitoring. The range of information that can be grasped as the state is expanded, and the abnormality and the deterioration state of the processing device can be discovered in more detail and earlier. In addition, since all or almost all detailed process data obtained from each processing device can be analyzed and the result of the explanation can be centrally monitored, it is possible to find a change with time of the state of each processing device at an early stage. it can. This makes it possible to enhance the maintenance reliability of a manufacturing system including a large number of processing devices. Further, in the present embodiment, each data in the recipe is updated to a more preferable value from an analysis result and a statistical result for detailed process data including measurement data such as a film thickness measurement result on the substrate, so that each processing device can be used with a longer time. It is possible to automatically obtain the optimum process conditions from various viewpoints in consideration of the characteristic fluctuation, thereby improving the reliability.

Further, by dividing the AGC 17 into an AGC server 17a for collecting process data in hardware and an AGC client 17b for actually operating the process data, each control load is distributed and a larger number of processes are performed. Even in a configuration in which the devices are connected, the performance does not decrease.

In the embodiment described above, A
The GC 17 is composed of one AGC server 17a and one AGC client 17b. However, if the number of connections of the processing devices further increases, it is expected that the load on the AGC server 17a will become extremely large. Therefore, as shown in FIG. 4, an AGC server 17a is provided for each function, for example, for each type of recipe.
(17a-1 to 17a-M) may be provided. In such a case, when upgrading the function of each AGC server or performing maintenance and inspection, it is not necessary to stop the operation of the processing device group under the control of another AGC server, and the entire system is not required. Processing efficiency can be improved.

[0039]

As described above, according to the control system of the first aspect of the present invention, the control device analyzes all the process data generated by the control device of each processing device and outputs the result. Compared to the conventional method of centrally monitoring some process data on the host computer, the range of information that can be grasped as the status of each processing device is expanded, and changes in the status of each processing device over time can be found earlier. Can be.

According to the control system of the second aspect of the present invention, a means for updating the process conditions based on the analysis result of all the process data generated by each control device is further provided. Optimal process conditions can be automatically obtained from various viewpoints in consideration of the fluctuation of the characteristics of the processing apparatus over time, thereby eliminating the need for artificial trial and error for setting process conditions. it can.

Further, according to the control system of the third aspect of the present invention, the means for supplementing the missing process data in the period during which the host computer cannot receive the process data with the process data collected by the control device is further provided. Immediately after the computer recovers from the down state, the control of the control device of each processing device can be immediately restarted.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a configuration of a complex process type semiconductor wafer manufacturing apparatus to be controlled by a control system according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a control system according to the first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing a configuration of a part related to process data transfer in an ECC control unit in FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a control system according to a second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a block diagram showing the overall configuration of a conventional control system.

[Explanation of symbols]

 11 (11-1 to 11-N) Processing unit 12 (12-1 to 12-N) ECC control unit 13 HCI 14 Data transmission path 15 Host computer 16 RAP 17 AGC 17a AGC server 17b AGC client 21 Communication I / F 22 EQM control unit 23 Database 25 Data analysis unit 26 Data conversion unit 27 Data display unit 28 Recipe correction section

Claims (3)

[Claims] 1. A plurality of control units for individually controlling a plurality of processing units for performing a predetermined process on a substrate to be processed, and a host computer for controlling each of the control units based on process data received from each of the control units. And a control device having means for collecting process data received from each of the control devices, means for analyzing the collected process data, and means for outputting the result of the analysis. Means for generating process data, means for transmitting a part of process data set in advance from the generated process data to the host computer, and transmitting all the generated process data to the control device. A control system, comprising: 2. A plurality of control units for individually controlling a plurality of processing units for performing a predetermined process on a substrate to be processed, and a host computer for controlling each of the control units based on process data received from each of the control units. And a control device having means for collecting process data received from each of the control devices, means for analyzing the collected process data, and means for updating the process conditions of each processing device based on the result of the analysis. Comprising: means for generating process data, means for transmitting a part of process data set in advance from the generated process data to the host computer, and Means for transmitting all process data to the control device. Your system. 3. A plurality of control units for individually controlling a plurality of processing units for performing a predetermined process on a substrate to be processed, and controlling each of the control units based on a part of process data received from each of the control units. A host computer that performs processing, a unit that collects process data received from each of the control devices, a unit that analyzes the collected process data, a unit that outputs a result of the analysis, and a process of the host computer that uses the collected process data. A control device having means for compensating for missing process data during a data reception disabled period, wherein the individual control devices are means for generating process data, and a part set in advance from among the generated process data. Means for transmitting process data to the host computer; and A control system comprising means for transmitting all process data to the control device.