JPH11208765A - Plate-like member storing container - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To make the positioning of seal grooves easier when they are fitted to each other at a portion where an upper lid is joined to an outer case main body, and improve workability. SOLUTION: This stoning container is constituted in such a manner that a portion between an outer case main body 3 containing an inner case which contains plate-like members and an upper lid 4 covering an upper part of the outer case main body 3 to be joined thereto is maintained in a state that the upper lid 4 is pressed against the outer case main body 3 by a locking means, and also that a seal member 6 disposed in a seal groove 5 formed throughtout the entire periphery of the joint so that respective openings are opposed to each other is compressed on an opposed face of the other seal groove 18 for which the seal member 6 is fitted to an outer side of the seal groove 18 so as to cover it, and is kept in a sealed state. In this instance, the seal grooves 5, 18 are formed into a cross-sectional U-shape so that the respective openings are opposed to each other, and a guide 21 having an inclined cross section, which is projected from the top 18a of a side wall and expands from the inner side of the seal groove 18 toward the outer side thereof, is provided to the other seal groove 18 to be fitted to the outer side of the seal groove 5 to which the seal member 6 is disposed.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a plate-like member container suitable for storing and transporting plate-like members such as a plurality of semiconductor wafers (hereinafter referred to as "wafers"), disks, and bases. In particular, the present invention relates to the structure of a joint between the upper lid and the outer box body.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art A wafer, which is one of the plate-like members, is obtained by slicing a single crystal ingot of silicon or the like thinly in a direction perpendicular to the axis, but it is thin and brittle, and furthermore, is extremely susceptible to contamination. Requires careful consideration. In other words, in order to transport wafers in a clean state,
Inline basket for storing wafers (inner box)
It is stored in a wafer storage container (transportation wafer shipping box) in a state where it is placed in a container, covered with an upper lid, and sealed in an airtight state. And transport. As described above, the wafer storage container generally includes the outer box main body that stores the inner box, and the upper lid that seals the outer box main body. It is necessary to completely seal the joint between the cover and the upper lid. In such a wafer storage container, it is required both to fix the upper lid to the outer box main body and to release the locking of the upper lid to the outer box main body by a simple operation.

Therefore, as a conventional plate-like member storage container capable of storing and transporting a plate-like member such as a wafer in an orderly manner, for example, a wafer storage container as shown in FIGS. 7 to 11 has been proposed. A brief description will be given with reference to the drawings.

As shown in an external perspective view of FIG. 7 and an exploded perspective view of FIG. 8, a wafer container includes an outer box 1 and an inner box 2 housed in the outer box 1. Box 1
An outer box body 3 and an upper lid 4 that can be opened and closed with respect to the outer box body 3
And divided into The outer box body 3 is provided with a seal groove 5 having a U-shaped cross section over the entire periphery of the opening which is substantially rectangular in a plan view, and a packing 6 as a seal member is arranged by fitting into the seal groove 5. ing. The outer box body 3 is self-supporting with four vertical legs 3a provided at four corners, and a main body recess 3b is provided between a pair of opposing side surfaces 3a, 3a.
The hook / lever member 7 is attached to the upper portion of the side wall forming the concave portion, and a transport concave portion 3c used when carrying the storage container is provided on the other opposing side surface. Reference numeral 8 in the drawing denotes a wafer holder provided with a plurality of wafer holding grooves 8a, which is detachably attached to the inside of the upper cover 4 and the inner box 2
In order to store a plurality of wafers in an orderly manner, a plurality of storage grooves 2a are provided on the inner peripheral surface, the upper part of which is open, and the storage grooves 2a facing the wafer holding grooves 8a.

[0005] Now, the hook lever member 7 described above
As shown in FIGS. 9 and 10, two parts, a hook part 9 and a lever part 10, are rotatably connected.
Engaging recesses 11 and 11 are formed in the upper part of the hook part 9 which is a substantially rectangular plate-like member, and the connecting shaft 13 of the lever part 10 is rotatably supported by a bearing part 12 provided in the lower part. ing. On the other hand, the lever portion 10 is a finger hook portion in which two axes of a connection shaft 13 and a mounting shaft 14 are provided in parallel on a substantially rectangular plate-like member, and a portion near the center of the lower end portion is partially downwardly extended. 15 are provided. The mounting shaft 14 is
A shaft for rotatably supporting the hook / lever member 7 on the outer box main body 3. Both ends of the shaft holes 16, 16 of ribs 3 d, 3 d projecting from a pair of opposing side walls of the outer box main body 3. The portions are supported by penetrating each.

A pair of engaging projections 17, 17 are provided on the upper lid 4, which is substantially rectangular in plan view, on the peripheral side walls of the opening facing each other. The engagement projections 17 and 1
Each of the hooks 7 has a rectangular shape slightly smaller than the engaging recess 11, and has an outer peripheral surface slightly outward. It has a wide slope. A seal groove 18 (see FIG. 10D) having a U-shaped cross section facing the seal groove 5 of the outer box main body 3 is provided on the periphery of the opening of the upper lid 4. The seal groove 18 is provided in the seal groove 5 of the outer box body 3.
The size is set so that it fits on the outside of both side walls forming. The rib 1 is provided on the bottom of the seal groove 18.
9 are protruded over the entire circumference, and similarly, in the seal groove 5 of the outer case body 3, ribs 20 are also protruded on the opposing bottom surface over the entire circumference (see FIG. 11).

Hereinafter, the operation of the above-described locking structure will be described with reference to hooks.
A description will be given together with the locking operation and the unlocking operation by the lever member 7. The cross-sectional view of FIG. 9 shows a locked state. In a state where the upper cover 4 is locked over the upper end opening of the outer box main body 3, the seal groove of the upper cover 4 is engaged with the outer box main body 3.
The sealing action of the packing 6 which is compressed and deformed by pressing the packing 6 disposed in the sealing groove 5 of the outer box body 3 between the ribs 19 and 20 is fitted to the outside of the sealing groove 5 of the outer box main body 3. This prevents outside air from entering the storage container from the joint between the upper lid 4 and the outer box body 3. In such a locked state, the lever 10 and the finger hook 15 are
a in the main body concave portion 3b.

To release the locked state shown in FIG. 9, a finger is inserted between the finger hook 15 and the side wall of the outer box body 3 and the lever 10 is pulled in the direction of arrow F. At this time, a sufficient operation space is secured between the finger hook portion 15 having the extended lower end portion of the lever portion 10 and the side wall of the outer box body 3 inclined inward in accordance with the shape of the circular wafer. .
When the lever portion 10 is pulled in this manner, the locking portion
(A) to (d), and the locked state is released and the upper lid 4 can be opened. Therefore, when this is briefly described, FIG.
It can be seen that the connecting shaft 13 of the lever portion 11 rotated about the fulcrum pulls down the hook portion 9, and as a result, the upper surface of the locking concave portion 11 pulls down the locking projection 17. (B) shows a state in which the hook / lever member 7 has been rotated slightly in the releasing direction (counterclockwise) from the locking position with the mounting shaft 14 as a fulcrum. It is starting to touch the underside. (C) shows the state of further rotation and movement, and the lower surface of the locking concave portion 11 pushes up the lower surface of the locking projection 17 by operating the lever portion 10, so that the upper lid 4 that has been in close contact with the joint portion is lifted. Slightly away from the outer box body 3 as described above. If this happens,
As shown in (d), the upper box 4 can be easily lifted and opened by hand. When the upper cover 4 is put on and locked to the outer box main body 3, the operation may be performed in the reverse order of the above-described releasing operation.
What is necessary is just to press the lever part 10 toward the outer box main body side.

As described above, in the above-described locking structure, the locking and unlocking operations can be easily performed only by operating the lever portion 10, and the upper lid 4 is moved during the unlocking operation. Since the joint portion is lifted and separated, the pressure difference between the inside and outside of the container is released, even if there is a pressure difference between the inside and the outside of the container. In addition, in the locked state, the hook lever member 7 holds the upper lid 4 in a lowered state, so that even when a temperature change or a pressure change occurs, an appropriate compressive force can be maintained against the packing 6. Like
Good sealing performance can be ensured.

[0010]

By the way, in the above-mentioned structure, when the upper lid 4 is locked to the outer box main body 3, the seal groove 18 of the upper lid 4 is put over the seal groove 5 of the outer box main body 3. So that they fit together. However, since almost no gap is formed between the seal grooves 5 and 18 at the joints forming the sealing structure, it is difficult to position the outer box main body 3 with respect to the seal grooves 5 when the upper lid 4 is covered. In particular, as shown in the enlarged cross-sectional view of FIG. 11, the conventional seal groove 18 has the side wall top 18a which is flat and at the same height, so that the corner portion has the side wall top 5a on the outer box body side. Interfering with smooth fitting. In addition, the hook fitting surface of the outer box main body 3 tends to have low rigidity, and a slight deformation of the side wall near the seal groove 18 may make positioning more difficult.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned problems of the prior art, and has a structure in which both seal grooves can be easily positioned and smoothly fitted at a joint portion between an upper lid and an outer box body. The object of the present invention is to provide a plate-shaped member storage container having improved operability at the time of a locking operation.

[0012]

According to the present invention, there is provided an outer box body for accommodating a plate member or an inner box for accommodating the plate member, and an outer box body covering the upper member. Between the upper lid and the outer box main body, the state where the upper lid is pressed toward the outer box main body by the locking means, and over the entire periphery of the joint between the upper lid and the outer box main body. The seal member is provided on one of the seal grooves formed so that the openings of the seal grooves face each other. In the configured on-board member storage container, the seal groove is formed by a side wall and a bottom surface having a U-shaped cross section whose respective openings are opposed to each other, and is fitted outside one of the seal grooves provided with the seal member. In the other seal groove,
A guide having an inclined cross section that protrudes from the top of the side wall and expands from the inside to the outside of the seal groove is provided.

It is preferable that a joint portion between the upper lid and the outer box body is formed in a substantially rectangular shape in plan view, and the guide is provided in a substantially linear portion of the rectangle.

The seal member is disposed in the seal groove of the outer box body, and the seal member is fitted so as to cover the seal groove of the upper lid over the outer groove of the outer box body, thereby compressing the seal member. It is preferable that the guide is provided at the top of the seal groove side wall of the upper lid, and in this case, the guide is formed of the inner side and the outer side wall top of the U-shaped cross section forming the seal groove. May be provided at the top of the side wall.

Hereinafter, the operation of the present invention will be described. According to the first aspect of the present invention, the seal groove has a U-shaped cross section in which the respective openings face each other, and the other seal groove fitted outside the one seal groove in which the seal member is disposed is provided from the top of the side wall. Since a guide having an inclined cross section that protrudes and extends from the inside to the outside of the seal groove is provided, the seal groove on the fitting side has a wide opening at the front end, and the front end portion is the widest at the opening of the seal groove.

According to the second aspect of the present invention, the guide is provided in a substantially linear portion with respect to a rectangular joint in a plan view.
The seal groove on the side to be fitted has its tip end opening widest.

Further, in a plate-like member storage container in which a seal member is provided in a seal groove of the outer case body and is fitted so that the seal groove of the upper lid covers the outside of the outer case body seal groove, thereby compressing the seal member. When the guide is provided on the top of the seal groove side wall of the upper lid, the tip end opening on the side to be fitted becomes the widest. In this case, it is possible to easily widen the opening of the distal end simply by providing the guide only on the top of the inner side wall among the tops of the inner and outer side walls having the U-shaped cross section forming the seal groove.

[0018]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. The embodiments described below are:
This is only a few examples of the present invention, and the present invention includes modifications such as design changes without departing from the scope of the claims.

FIG. 1 is a view showing a cross section of a joint portion of a plate-like member storage container according to the present invention, and substantially corresponds to FIG. 11 shown in the description of the prior art. That is, FIG. 1 shows a cross section taken along the line CC of FIG. 7. In this case, the configuration of the other parts of the plate-like member storage container except for the upper lid 4 is the same as that described in the related art. Here, in order to avoid duplication, the same parts are denoted by the same reference numerals, and detailed description thereof will be omitted.

In FIG. 1 showing the locked state, a packing 6 as a sealing member is attached to a sealing groove 5 having a U-shaped cross section of the outer box body 3, and a seal having a U-shaped cross section of the upper lid 4. The groove 18 covers the seal groove 5 and the packing 6 so as to cover the upper surface and the three left and right side surfaces, and is fitted outside the seal groove 5. In this state, the packing 6 is compressed between the bottom surface of the seal groove 5 and the bottom surface (opposed surface) of the seal groove 18 opposed thereto, and both bottom surfaces are packed.
The ribs 19 and 20 projecting from both bottom surfaces of the packing 6 respectively penetrate the upper and lower surfaces of the packing 6 to maintain the sealing of the joint.

As shown in FIG. 2 to FIG. 6, the sealing groove 18 of the upper lid 4 constituting such a joint portion is provided on the inner side, that is, on the side wall on the center side of the upper lid 4 with a sidewall top 18a.
A protruding guide 21 is provided. 2 is a plan view of the upper lid 4 as viewed from the inside (inside of the container), FIG. 3 is a front view of a half section of FIG. 2, and FIG. 4 is a side view of a half section of FIG. , Engaging projection 1 constituting locking means
As in the case of 7, a pair of substantially linear portions (hereinafter, referred to as linear portions) opposed to each other corresponding to the sides of the rectangle are provided so as to protrude. The guide 21 is provided at the center of the above-mentioned straight portion, and the cross-sectional shape of the protruding portion is triangular, so that the inside of the seal groove 18 (the seal groove 18 on which the rib 19 is protruded) is formed. From the center side of
(Central direction of the center). That is, the opening of the seal groove 18 in which the guide 21 is provided has the widest end portion, and the opening width is gradually narrowed from this end portion toward the side wall top portion 18a. Further, it is preferable that the cross-sectional shape of the distal end portion of the guide 21 is R.

The operation of the guide 21 having the above-described structure will be described below. In order to lock the upper lid 4 to the outer box main body 3, the upper lid 4 is first put on the outer box main body 3. At this time, the seal groove 5 of the outer box main body 3 and the seal groove 18 of the upper lid 4 are connected. Need to be aligned. This alignment is performed visually, but since the two seal grooves 5 and 18 are fitted with almost no gap, even if there is a slight displacement, the tops of the side walls interfere with each other and cannot be easily fitted. There is. However, when the above-mentioned guide portion 21 is covered with the upper lid 4, the tip portion first comes into contact with the side wall top portion 5a of the outer box body 3 earlier by an amount protruding from the side wall top portion 18a. For this reason, the seal groove 18 is positioned at the portion where the opening is the widest, and even if there is a slight displacement, once the wide front end is fitted, the slope 2
Since 1a serves as a guide for correction, it is possible to easily position and cover the upper cover 4 at a predetermined position. In addition, such a positional shift also occurs due to the deformation of the upper lid 4. However, since the guide 21 is provided particularly in the relatively low-rigidity linear portion, even if the guide 21 is slightly deformed,
, The upper lid 4 can be easily positioned and put on a predetermined position.

In the embodiment described so far, the locking means is constituted by the hook lever member 7 and the engaging projection 17, but in the present invention described above, the upper lid 4 is pressed toward the outer box body 3. It goes without saying that the present invention can be applied to a device employing a locking means having another configuration for maintaining the state.
In addition, the present invention described above is not limited to the case in which the inner box accommodating the plurality of plate-like members is housed in the outer box body, but the plurality of plate-like members are directly inserted into the outer box body without passing through the inner box. It can also be applied to those stored in

[0024]

According to the present invention described above, since the guide groove having the inclined cross section is provided, the seal groove on the fitting side has a wide opening at the front end, and the front end portion is the widest at the opening of the seal groove. Even if there is some misalignment, the wide opening facilitates the fitting, and after the front end is fitted, the inclined surface serves as a guide to correct the position, so that the upper lid is put on the predetermined position of the outer box body. This has the effect of facilitating work. Also,
A guide is provided on the rectangular straight section that tends to have the lowest rigidity, so a wide opening facilitates fitting even when some deformation occurs, and after the tip is fitted, the inclined surface becomes a guide Since the position is corrected, an effect of facilitating the work of putting the upper lid on a predetermined position of the outer box main body is achieved.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view of a main part showing a joint part of a plate-shaped member storage container according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a plan view of the upper lid of the plate-like member storage container according to the present invention as viewed from the inside.

FIG. 3 is a half sectional front view of FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a half sectional side view of FIG. 2;

FIG. 5 is a sectional view taken along the line AA in FIG. 2;

FIG. 6 is a sectional view taken along the line BB in FIG. 2;

FIG. 7 is a perspective view showing the appearance of the on-board member storage container.

FIG. 8 is an exploded perspective view showing the configuration of the plate-shaped member storage container of FIG.

FIG. 9 is a cross-sectional view of a conventional plate-shaped member storage container in a locked state.

10A and 10B are diagrams showing the operation of the locking means, in which FIG. 10A is a cross-sectional view of a main part showing a locked state, FIG. 10B is a cross-sectional view of a main part showing a state in which the upper lid has been released from being pushed down by a hook part, FIG. 3C is a cross-sectional view of a main part showing a state where the hook part starts pushing up the upper lid, and FIG. 4D is a cross-sectional view of a main part showing a state where the upper lid is opened.

FIG. 11 is an enlarged sectional view of a portion D in FIG. 9;

[Explanation of symbols]

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Outer box 2 Inner box 3 Outer box main body 4 Top lid 5, 18 Seal groove 5a, 18a Side wall top part 6 Packing (seal member) 7 Hook / lever member (locking means) 11 Engaging recess 17 Engaging projection (locking means) ) 19,20 rib 21 guide 21a inclined surface W wafer

Claims (4)

[Claims] An engaging means is provided between an outer box body accommodating an upper member or an inner box accommodating an inner box accommodating the upper member, and an upper lid covered and joined to an upper portion of the outer box body. One of seal grooves formed such that the upper lid maintains a state pressed toward the outer box main body, and the respective openings face each other over the entire periphery of the joint between the upper lid and the outer box main body. A plate-like member storage container configured to maintain a sealed state by compressing on a facing surface of the other seal groove fitted so as to cover the seal member provided on the outside, wherein each of the seal grooves is The opening is formed by a side wall and a bottom face having a U-shaped cross section facing each other, and the other sealing groove fitted outside the one sealing groove in which the sealing member is provided projects from the top of the side wall and the inside of the sealing groove. Of an inclined cross section that spreads outward from Plate upper member container which is characterized in that a id. 2. The method according to claim 1, wherein a joining portion between the upper lid and the outer box body is formed in a substantially rectangular shape in plan view, and the guide is provided in a substantially linear portion of the rectangle. The plate-shaped member storage container according to any one of the preceding claims. 3. The seal member is disposed in a seal groove of the outer box body, and the seal member is fitted so as to cover the seal groove of the upper lid over the outer groove of the outer box body, thereby compressing the seal member. The plate-like member storage container according to claim 1, wherein the guide is provided at a top of a seal groove side wall of the upper lid. 4. The method according to claim 3, wherein the guide is provided at the top of the inner side wall of the inner and outer side walls having the U-shaped cross section forming the seal groove. Plate-shaped member storage container.