JPS6328599Y2 - - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to a wafer transfer device that carries a plurality of wafers into and out of a heat treatment chamber while being held by a holding jig.

In this type of apparatus, when the holding jig and the inner surface of the heat treatment chamber come into contact with each other during wafer transport, dust may be generated from the contact area, resulting in a decrease in chip yield. For this reason, a configuration as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 is generally adopted so that the holding jig and the inner surface of the heat treatment chamber do not come into contact with each other.

That is, the holding jig for holding the plurality of wafers W is formed into a substantially semi-cylindrical shape, and a required number of legs 2 are integrally provided at the lower part. and,
The transport arm 3 is formed in a cylindrical shape, and a support part 4 having an arcuate cross section and supporting the holding jig 1 in a mounted state is integrally provided at its lower end.

The transfer arm 3 is appropriately driven by the arm driving section 5 in the vertical direction and the front-back direction to carry the holding jig 1 placed on the support section 4 into and out of the heat treatment chamber 6. It is composed of

Specifically, after the holding jig 1 is placed on the support part 4 manually or automatically, the transfer arm 3 is
and lift the holding jig 1. Next, the transfer arm 3 is moved forward, and when it is located inside the heat treatment chamber 6, it is lowered. As a result, the holding jig 1 is placed in the heat treatment chamber 6. Then, the transfer arm 3 is returned to the rear, and the wafer W is heat-treated.

Carrying out the holding jig 1 from the heat treatment chamber 6 is achieved by causing the transfer arm 3 to perform an operation opposite to the carrying-in operation described above.

However, now that the production of heavy wafers such as 125 mm or 150 mm in diameter has become a reality, a problem has arisen in that the holding jig 1 cannot be supported by the transfer arm 3 having the above structure. There is. That is, when the holding jig 1 holding a plurality of heavy wafers W is supported by the support part 4 having the above structure, a large load is applied in the plane direction of the support part 4, so that the support part 4 is forced downward. There is a problem that it may be deformed or lost.

The present invention was devised in view of the above conventional problems, and includes a wafer transfer arm that does not bend or break even when supporting a holding jig holding a plurality of heavy wafers W. The purpose is to provide equipment.

Embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail below with reference to FIGS. 3 to 8.

As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, a holding jig 11 that holds a plurality of wafers W in a mounted state
is formed into a semi-cylindrical shape. A required number of legs 12 are protruded below the holding jig 11, and a rib-shaped engaged portion 13 is integrally formed outward on both sides of the upper end. A plurality of protrusions are provided along the direction.

Although the transport arm 14 is made of a cylindrical material as a whole, a notch 15 along the longitudinal direction is provided in the lower part of the front part that supports the holding jig 11, so that the holding jig 11 It has a dome-shaped cross section so that it can be fitted from above (from the side in some cases). By being formed into a dome shape in this manner, it is possible to sufficiently withstand forces applied in the vertical direction without deforming or chipping. In the vicinity of the lower ends of both sides of this dome shape, a plurality of engaging portions 16 are provided along the longitudinal direction, each integrally formed facing inward. Each of these engaging parts 16 is set to a size that allows it to pass between each of the engaged parts 13 formed on the holding jig 11, and as shown in FIG. The spacing is set to allow engagement with each of the two.

The transfer arm 14 supports the holding jig 11 and carries it into and out of the heat treatment chamber 17. In order to perform this carrying-in and carrying-out operation, the transfer arm 14 is driven in the vertical direction and the front-back direction. An arm drive section 18 is provided for this purpose. The arm drive unit 18 can be configured to drive the transfer arm 14 in the vertical direction and the front-back direction by employing a cylindrical cam mechanism, a hydraulic mechanism, etc., but the specific structure thereof is not covered by the gist of the present invention. Since this is not the case, the explanation will be omitted.

Next, the operation of the conveying device having the above structure will be described in detail with reference to FIG. 3, in which the movement of the engaging portion 16 is shown with chain lines.

First, the holding jig 11 placed on the base 19
The engaging portion 16 of the transport arm 14 is positioned above the transport arm 14, and the transport arm 14 is lowered by a predetermined amount as shown by arrow A. As a result, the transport arm 14 gradually approaches the holding jig 11, and each engaging part 16 passes between each engaged part 13 and is located below these engaged parts 13. Then, the transport arm 14 is shifted backward (to the right in FIG. 3) or forward by the width of each engaging portion 16 as shown by arrow B, so that each engaging portion 16 is aligned with the position of each engaged portion 13.
Next, by raising the transport arm 14 as shown by arrow C, each engaging portion 16 engages with each engaged portion 13, and the holding jig 11 is lifted. In this state, the carrying arm 14 is further advanced as shown by arrow D to carry the holding jig 11 into the heat treatment chamber 17, and then lowered as shown by arrow E to move the holding jig 11 into the heat treatment chamber 17. placed inside. After the transfer arm 14 is moved backward as shown by arrow F, the wafer W is subjected to heat treatment.

After the wafer W is heat treated, the holding jig 11
When carrying out the material from the heat treatment chamber 17, an operation completely opposite to the above-mentioned carrying-in operation is performed. That is, after moving the transport arm 14 forward to align each engaging part 16 with the position of each engaged part 13, by raising the transport arm 14, each engaging part 16 is aligned with each engaged part 1.
3 and lift the holding jig 11. Next, the holding jig 11 is carried out from the heat treatment chamber 17 and placed on the base 19 by moving the carrying arm 14 backward and then lowering it. Then, by moving the transport arm 14 forward or backward by the width of the engaging portion 16 and then raising it, each engaging portion 1
6 passes between each engaged portion 13 and returns to its original position, completing one stroke of operation.

In the above embodiment, the engaging portion 16 of the transfer arm 14 and the engaged portion 13 of the holding jig 11 are engaged and disengaged by the movement of the transfer arm 14 in the A, B, and C directions and the movement in the opposite direction. This example shows what can be achieved. However, the transfer arm 14 may be stopped and the holding jig 11 may be engaged or disengaged by moving it manually or by a drive mechanism (not shown). In this case, the engaging operation is performed by raising the holding jig 11 so that each engaged part 13 passes between each engaging part 16, then shifting it in the front-back direction by the width of the engaging part 16, and then lowering the holding jig 11. The disengagement operation is achieved by performing an operation opposite to the above-mentioned engagement operation.

Further, one of the characteristics of the transfer arm 14 of the present invention is that it is made strong by forming a dome-shaped cross section, but it does not need to be dome-shaped in the strict sense. For example, the transport arm 21 shown in FIG. 6 has an arcuate upper part and flat plate-like sides, and has a plurality of engaging parts 22 inside the lower end, or the transport arm 21 shown in FIG. Like the transport arm 23, both the upper part and both sides may be flat, and the lower end may have a plurality of engaging parts 24 inward. Furthermore, as shown in FIG. 8, both sides of the transport arm 25 are arcuate and have a plurality of engaging parts 26 inside the lower end, and both sides are connected by only a portion of the front upper part. , only a portion of the front portion may be formed into a dome shape.

Further, in the above embodiment, the engaging portion 16 of the transport arm 14 is exemplified as protruding inward from the dome-shaped portion, but the lower ends of the dome-shaped portion are cut out in a comb-tooth shape to form the engaging portion. You can also use it as Furthermore, although an example has been described in which the wafer W is heat-treated with the holding jig 11 carried in by the transfer arm 14 placed in the heat treatment chamber 17, the holding jig 11 is supported by the transfer arm 14. It is also possible to perform heat treatment on the wafer W as it is.

As mentioned above, the wafer transfer device according to the present invention has the following features:
The transport arm has a dome-like cross section. Therefore, the transfer arm has a strong structure that resists forces applied in the vertical direction, so it will not be deformed or damaged even when supporting a holding jig that holds multiple large-diameter, heavy-weight wafers. Not at all.
In addition, since the transport arm can be strongly constructed without having a thick shape that is difficult to process, it is extremely easy to manufacture.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

Fig. 1 is an overall side view showing the conventional example, Fig. 2 is a cross-sectional view showing the engagement state of the holding jig and the transfer arm shown in Fig. 1, and Figs. 3 to 8 are the main parts. This shows an example of the invention, and Figure 3 is a side view of the whole;
FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the main parts, FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view showing the state of engagement between the holding jig and the transfer arm, and FIGS.
FIG. 8 is a perspective view showing another embodiment of the transfer arm. In the drawings, 11...Holding jig, 13...Engaged portion, 14, 21, 23, 25...Transport arm, 1
5... Notch, 16, 22, 24, 26... Engagement part, 17... Heat treatment chamber, 18... Arm drive part.

Claims (1)

[Scope of utility model registration request] A holding jig that holds a plurality of wafers, a transfer arm that supports the holding jig, and an arm drive that carries the holding jig into and out of the heat treatment chamber by appropriately driving the transfer arm. In the wafer transfer device, the holding jig is provided with engaged portions formed in a convex shape outwardly at regular intervals on both sides of the holding jig, and at regular intervals along the longitudinal direction. The arm has a dome-shaped cross section that can be fitted into the holding jig, and near both lower ends of the arm, engaging portions are formed inwardly in a convex shape at regular intervals along the longitudinal direction. A wafer transfer device characterized in that it is provided with a wafer transfer device.