JPWO2006057050A1 - Substrate gripping device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a substrate gripping device capable of delivering a substrate to a narrow carry-in / out entrance and performing accurate centering. A substrate gripping device 1 such as a semiconductor wafer includes a slider 13, an advancing / retreating mechanism 10, a pair of left and right blades 2a and 2b, and a slider 13 and a base end portion of the blades 2a and 2b on the left and right sides. Link mechanisms 21a and 21b that are rotatably connected are provided. When the slider 13 moves back and forth, the blades 2a and 2b move left and right to approach and separate from each other. The advancing / retracting mechanism 10 includes actuators 11 and 12 and a spring 16, and the slider 13 moves forward by a resultant force that gradually attenuates the acting force of the actuators 11 and 12 and the biasing force of the spring 16, but the blades 2 a and 2 b Even if both gripping portions come into contact with the substrate 5 and stop, the resultant gripping force continues to be gradually attenuated so that the gripping portions grip the substrate 5 with a predetermined strength. [Selection] Figure 2

Description

  The present invention relates to a substrate gripping device, and more particularly to a centering type substrate gripping device used for gripping a substrate such as a semiconductor wafer and transporting it between a cassette, an aligner, and an inspection device.

  Conventionally, there are two types of gripping of a semiconductor wafer: a suction hand that holds the back surface of the wafer by suction and an edge clamp hand that grips the edge of the wafer. Since the suction hand adversely affects the back surface of the wafer, in recent years, the edge clamp hand is often used as a wafer gripping device.

  By the way, in this edge clamp hand, gripping by sandwiching with a gripping member in which one is a fixed part and the other is a movable part (a so-called side-shifting method; see Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2004-6534), and from the outer peripheral edge of the substrate. There is a grip (so-called centering method; refer to Japanese Utility Model Publication No. 6-37906) that presses evenly.

  In the former gripping operation, the gripping member that is larger than the wafer size approaches the wafer from the bottom of the wafer so that the wafer is brought into contact with one end fixing portion, and then the wafer is sandwiched by the movement of the movable portion. However, in this case, when a wafer having been centered by a positioning device or the like is received, the center position is shifted again by the gripping operation. In addition, when receiving a wafer from a suction holding unit such as an inspection apparatus, it is difficult to hold the wafer well if the suction release timing is poor.

  In the latter case, there is no such problem, but the plurality of gripping members need to move equally toward the center of the hand. The clamp mechanism described in Japanese Utility Model Publication No. 6-37906 performs a centering operation by a pin engaging with a long hole of the lever pulling the two levers of Y shape and T shape toward each other. However, since the long holes naturally have backlash, the movement distances of the Y-shaped and T-shaped levers are not necessarily equal.

In addition, the gripping operation of the edge clamp hand, as described in these two publications, grips the wafer using the biasing force of the spring, and releases the gripping by suppressing the spring force by operating the actuator. In many cases, a cylinder or the like having a force exceeding the spring force is required in this case. However, if this is accommodated in the wrist of the edge clamp hand, the wrist portion inevitably becomes large. Therefore, there has been a problem that the edge clamp hand is difficult to use for delivering a substrate to an apparatus having a narrow entrance / exit.
JP 2004-6534 A No. 6-37906

  The invention of the present application solves the above-mentioned problems of the conventional substrate gripping device, and provides a substrate gripping device capable of delivering a substrate to a narrow carry-in / out entrance and performing accurate centering. Is an issue.

According to the invention of the present application, the above-described problems can be solved by the following substrate gripping apparatus.
That is, the substrate gripping device is a substrate gripping device used for gripping and transporting a substrate such as a semiconductor wafer, and includes a slider, a forward / backward mechanism of the slider, and a forward / backward direction of the slider. Is a pair of left and right blades having gripping portions gripping from both sides in the right and left direction orthogonal to each other, and a link mechanism for rotatably connecting the left and right side ends of the slider and the base end portions of the pair of left and right blades on the left and right sides When the slider moves forward and backward, the pair of left and right blades move left and right by an equal amount in conjunction with the forward and backward movement so that they can move toward and away from each other. The advance / retreat mechanism includes an actuator and an elastic body that exerts an urging force that interferes with the acting force of the actuator, and the slider includes the actuator Although it moves forward by the resultant force of the acting force and the urging force of the elastic body that gradually attenuates, it moves forward and the pair of left and right blades approach each other and stops when their gripping portions abut against the substrate respectively. The substrate gripping device is characterized in that the gripping portions of the pair of left and right blades can grip the substrate with a predetermined strength while continuing to receive the resultant force that gradually attenuates. .

According to this substrate gripping device, the pair of left and right blades move left and right by an equal amount and approach each other by the forward movement of the slider, and the substrate can be gripped from both sides in the left and right direction. The thrust is due to the resultant force of the actuator's acting force and the elastic member's urging force that interferes with this, and the slider advances so that the pair of left and right blades approach each other, and their gripping parts are brought into contact with the substrate. Even when the sliders stop by contacting each other, the gripping force of the pair of left and right blades can be held at a predetermined strength by continuing to receive the resultant force that gradually decreases.
Conversely, by simply releasing the actuator and releasing its acting force, the slider retracts due to the biasing force of the elastic body, and the pair of left and right blades move left and right by an equal amount and move away from each other. The holding of the substrate can be released.

  Therefore, unlike the conventional centering type substrate gripping device, the substrate is gripped by using the biasing force of the spring, and the gripping of the substrate is released by suppressing the biasing force of the spring by the operation of the actuator. Therefore, the acting force of the actuator can be small, and the actuator can be miniaturized. If this is housed in the wrist portion of the substrate gripping device, the wrist portion will not be enlarged. Thereby, this board | substrate holding apparatus can be used favorably also for delivery of the board | substrate to the apparatus with a narrow carrying in / out opening.

  In addition, if the substrate is gripped only with the acting force of the actuator, there is a possibility that the substrate may be broken because there is a dimensional error in manufacturing the substrate, but as described above, the acting force of the actuator depends on the slider. Even after the pair of left and right blades move forward and approach each other, and the slider stops due to their gripping portions coming into contact with the substrate, the interference elastic body gradually relaxes by the biasing force of the interference elastic body. The gripping force is also reduced as the gripping progresses, so that the gripping portions of the pair of left and right blades can grip the substrate with a predetermined strength, thereby eliminating the possibility of breaking the substrate.

  In addition, the operation of one actuator causes the substrate to be sandwiched between the pair of left and right blades, and all the gripping points of each blade of the pair of left and right blades are directed to the center position of the substrate at the same timing and at the same distance. Therefore, when the substrate in the centered state is received, the center position is not shifted again by the gripping operation.

  In a preferred embodiment, each grip portion of the pair of left and right blades is formed of an eccentric receiving seat having a concave portion for receiving the edge of the substrate and having a fixed position variable about the eccentric shaft. As a result, when assembling the substrate gripping device, the positions of all the gripping portions on the pair of left and right blades match the contour shape of the substrate of a predetermined shape such as a circle, and can be gripped without play. By rotating the seat, it is easy to adjust the position of the grip portion.

  In another preferred embodiment, the elastic body is made of a spring. As a result, while using a general-purpose elastic material, this is interposed between the actuator and the slider, and the thrust of the actuator and the urging force of the elastic body are gradually attenuated. It is possible to simplify the configuration for obtaining the resultant force.

  As described above, according to the substrate gripping device of the present invention, as in the conventional centering type substrate gripping device, the substrate is gripped using the biasing force of the spring, and the biasing force of the spring is suppressed by the operation of the actuator. Therefore, it is not necessary to release the grip of the board, so that the acting force of the actuator can be small, and the actuator can be miniaturized, and this wrist part is stored in the wrist part of the board gripping device. Does not increase in size. Thereby, this board | substrate holding apparatus can be used favorably also for delivery of the board | substrate to the apparatus with a narrow carrying in / out opening.

  If the substrate is gripped only by the actuator's acting force, there is a risk of breaking the substrate because the substrate has a manufacturing dimensional error. Even after the slider is stopped by the pair of blades approaching each other and their gripping portions abutting on the substrate, the interference elastic body is gradually relaxed by the biasing force of the interference elastic body. As the gripping progresses, it is relaxed and both gripping portions of the pair of left and right blades can grip the substrate with a predetermined strength, and the possibility of breaking the substrate is eliminated.

  In addition, the operation of one actuator causes the substrate to be sandwiched between the pair of left and right blades, and all the gripping points of each blade of the pair of left and right blades are directed to the center position of the substrate at the same timing and at the same distance. Therefore, when the substrate in the centered state is received, the center position is not shifted again by the gripping operation.

Further, when each of the gripping portions of the pair of left and right blades has a recess for receiving the edge of the substrate and is made up of an eccentric receiving seat whose fixed position is variable about the eccentric shaft, When the device is assembled, the eccentric receiving seat is rotated so that the arrangement of all the gripping portions on the pair of left and right blades matches the contour shape of the substrate of a predetermined shape such as a circle and can be gripped without any play. This makes it easy to adjust the position of the gripping portion.
In addition, the effects as described above can be achieved.

It is a figure which shows the outline of the whole structure of the board | substrate holding | gripping apparatus of a present Example, Comprising: (a) is a top view which removes the cover of the drive part, and (b) is a sectional side view. FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the same drive unit, with one blade removed. It is a disassembled perspective view of the slider advance / retreat mechanism part of the same drive unit. It is a figure which shows the eccentric receiving seat which comprises the board | substrate holding part fixed on the braid | blade of the board | substrate holding apparatus, (a) is the side view, (b) is a top view. It is a figure for demonstrating the operating state of the drive part with time.

Explanation of symbols

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Board | substrate holding | grip apparatus, 2a, 2b ... A pair of left and right blades, 3 ... Drive mechanism, 4 ... Eccentric receiving seat, 4a ... Upper inverted truncated cone part, 4b ... Frustum part, 4c ... Recessed part, 4d ... Eccentric shaft, 5 ... wafer, 6 ... support plate, 6a ... projection wall, 6b ... rear projecting part, 6c ... bottom surface, 10 ... slider advance / retreat mechanism, 11 ... air cylinder, 12 ... piston rod, 13 ... slider, 13a ... recess, 14 ... engaging member, 14a ... circular hole, 15 ... spring restraining member, 16 ... spring, 17 ... propulsion member, 19 ... guide rail, 20 ... motion conversion mechanism, 21a, 21b ... pair of left and right link mechanisms, 22a, 22b ... a pair of left and right slide mechanisms, 23a-1, 23a-2 ... a pair of front and rear guide rails, 23b-1, 23b-2 ... a pair of front and rear guide rails, 24 ... a traveling block body, 30 ... a wafer Seat sensor.

  A substrate gripping device used for gripping and transporting a substrate such as a semiconductor wafer has a slider, a slider advancement / retraction mechanism, and a gripper for gripping the substrate from both sides in the left-right direction perpendicular to the slider advance / retreat direction. Provided with a pair of left and right blades, and a link mechanism that pivotally connects the left and right side ends of the slider and the base end of the pair of left and right blades on both the left and right sides. Then, the pair of left and right blades move left and right by an equal amount so that they can approach and separate from each other.

The slider advance / retreat mechanism includes an actuator and a spring that exerts an urging force that interferes with the acting force of the actuator, and the slider moves forward by a resultant force that gradually attenuates the acting force of the actuator and the urging force of the spring. Even if the pair of left and right blades approach each other and stop when their gripping portions come into contact with the substrate, the gripping portions of the pair of left and right blades continue to receive the resultant force. It can be gripped with a predetermined strength.
Each grip part of the pair of left and right blades has a recess for receiving the edge of the substrate, and is composed of an eccentric receiving seat whose fixed position is variable about the eccentric shaft.

Next, an embodiment of the present invention will be described.
FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an overview of the overall configuration of the substrate gripping apparatus according to the present embodiment, in which (a) is a plan view showing the drive unit removed, (b) is a side sectional view, and FIG. FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the drive unit, with one blade removed, FIG. 3 is an exploded perspective view of a slider advance / retreat mechanism portion of the drive unit, and FIG. FIGS. 5A and 5B are diagrams showing an eccentric receiving seat that constitutes a substrate gripping portion fixed to FIG. 5A, FIG. 5B is a side view thereof, FIG. 5B is a plan view, and FIG. It is a figure for demonstrating. In the following description, the forward / backward direction of the slider is defined as the front / rear direction, and the direction orthogonal thereto is defined as the left / right direction.

  The substrate gripping device (edge clamp hand) 1 of this embodiment is used to grip a substrate such as a semiconductor wafer and transport it between a cassette, an aligner, and an inspection device. As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the outline of the configuration is composed of a pair of left and right blades 2 a and 2 b and a driving mechanism 3. The pair of left and right blades 2a and 2b are accurately configured symmetrically.

  On the pair of left and right blades 2a and 2b, three eccentric receiving seats 4 are fixed by bolt fastening, one at the tip and two at the root. The reason why the two eccentric receiving seats 4 are attached to the root portions of the blades 2a and 2b is to use one of them as an auxiliary when the notch or the like of the wafer 5 comes into contact with the eccentric receiving seat of the root portion. It is.

  The eccentric receiving seat 4 is a portion that forms a grip portion of the wafer 5 and is made of a resin material, and as shown in FIG. 4, is a seat member having a concave portion 4 c that is constricted in a V shape at the center. This seat member has an upper inverted truncated cone part 4a above and a lower truncated cone part 4b below it, with a central equal-diameter recessed part 4c as a boundary. The lower truncated cone part 4b has a larger diameter than the upper inverted truncated cone part 4a. This is because when the wafer 5 is gripped, the lower surface of the edge of the wafer 5 is first placed on the skirt of the lower truncated cone part 4b and smoothly lifted from there to reach a fixed position (recess 4c). This is because gripping is performed.

  The eccentric receiving seat 4 has a circular shape in plan view. When the eccentric receiving seat 4 is fixed on the blades 2a and 2b, the fixing portion is eccentric from the circular center. Therefore, if the fixing by bolt fastening or the like is loosened, rotated by a desired amount about the eccentric shaft 4d, and fixed again, the fixed position of the eccentric receiving seat 4 can be changed to a desired rotational position. In this way, when the substrate holding apparatus 1 is assembled, even if it is necessary to adjust the fixed position of each eccentric receiving seat 4 to match the contour shape of the wafer 5, the adjustment can be easily performed. Can do. Through such adjustment, the substrate gripping apparatus 1 can grip the wafer 5 evenly.

Next, the drive mechanism 3 will be described in detail with reference to FIGS.
The drive mechanism 3 includes a slider advance / retreat mechanism 10 and a motion conversion mechanism 20 for converting the advance / retreat movement of the slider 13 by the operation of the slider advance / retreat mechanism 10 into the left / right movement of the pair of left and right blades 2a, 2b. The motion conversion mechanism 20 includes a pair of left and right link mechanisms 21a and 21b that rotatably connect the left and right ends of the slider 13 and the bases of the pair of left and right blades 2a and 2b on the left and right sides, and a pair of left and right blades 2a, It consists of a pair of left and right slide mechanisms 22a and 22b for smoothly performing the left and right movement of 2b. In addition, a wafer presence sensor 30 for detecting the presence of the wafer 5 on the pair of left and right blades 2a and 2b is provided.

The slider advance / retreat mechanism 10 includes a slider 13, an actuator that moves the slider 13 back and forth, and a spring 16 that exerts a biasing force that interferes with the acting force of the actuator. A coil spring is used as the spring 16.
As understood from FIG. 3, the slider 13 is composed of a block body formed in a shape having a concave-shaped recess 13 a when viewed from the front, and is arranged on the support plate 6 in the front-rear direction. The piston rod 12 and the spring, which will be described later, are mounted on the guide rail 19 and pushed or pushed back on the guide rail 19 by the resultant force of the acting force of the actuator and the biasing force of the interference spring 16. It moves forward and backward while avoiding interference with the restraining member 15.

  The actuator is a portion serving as a drive source of the slider advance / retreat mechanism 10, is configured by a cylinder / piston mechanism, and includes an air cylinder 11 and a piston rod 12. The air cylinder 11 is fixed to the upper surface of the center portion of the support plate 6, and the piston rod 12 projects forward from the air cylinder 11. A disc-shaped spring restraining member 15 is fixed to the tip of the piston rod 12, and the piston rod 12 applies a compressive force to the spring 16 through the spring restraining member 15, and a restoring force is applied from the spring 16. Can receive.

  The spring 16 is accommodated in a diamond-shaped recess 13 a of the slider 13, and the rear end thereof is in contact with the spring pressing member 15, and the front end thereof is in contact with the back surface of the engaging member 14. The engaging member 14 is bolted to the side surface of the slider 13 opposite to the air cylinder 11 so as to close the diamond-shaped concave portion 13a of the slider 13, and a circular hole is formed in the central portion thereof. 14a.

  Therefore, now, when the actuator is operated and the piston rod 12 moves forward, the forward movement is transmitted to the engaging member 14 via the spring 16 which is compressed and deformed, and the slider 13 integrated with the engaging member 14 is guided to the guide lever. -Travel forward on the rail 19 in the forward direction. If the slider 13 stops for some reason and the piston rod 12 further advances, the spring restraining member 15 enters the recess 13a of the slider 13, and the piston rod 12 advances while receiving the restoring force of the spring 16. The slider 13 continues to be pushed in the traveling direction.

  The propulsion member 17 is slidably inserted into a circular hole 14a formed in a central portion of the engagement member 14 except for a collar portion at a front end thereof, and the inside of the coil spring 16 , And abuts on the front surface of the spring restraining member 15, and is fixed to the same shaft center. The length of the cylindrical main body portion of the propelling member 17 is sufficiently longer than the natural length of the spring 16. Therefore, when the piston rod 12 moves backward, the flange portion of the propelling member 17 comes into contact with the engaging member 14 and moves the slider 13 backward. The spring 16 at this time is not compressed because the length of the cylindrical main body portion of the propelling member 17 is sufficiently longer than the natural length of the spring 16.

  As apparent from the above, the pair of left and right blades 2a and 2b approach each other as the slider 13 advances, and the eccentric receiving seat 4 on the blades 2a and 2b comes into contact with the corresponding edge portion of the wafer 5. Even after the slider 13 stops, the piston rod 12 can still advance a small distance while compressing the spring 16. The maximum forward position is a position where the resultant force of the acting force of the actuator (cylinder / piston mechanism) and the urging force (repulsive force) based on the compression deformation of the spring 16 becomes zero. Since this resultant force is gradually attenuated, when the gripping portions of the pair of left and right blades 2a and 2b grip the wafer 5, the gripping force is relaxed and the wafer 5 can be gripped with a predetermined appropriate strength. The size of the wafer 5 can protect the wafer 5 from damage.

Next, the motion conversion mechanism 20 will be described in detail with reference to FIGS. 2 and 5.
As described above, the motion conversion mechanism 20 is for converting the forward / backward movement of the slider 13 by the operation of the slider advance / retreat mechanism 10 into the left / right movement of the pair of left and right blades 2a, 2b. For this purpose, the motion conversion mechanism 20 includes a pair of left and right link mechanisms 21a and 21b that rotatably connect the left and right ends of the slider 13 and the bases of the pair of left and right blades 2a and 2b on the left and right sides. And a pair of left and right slide mechanisms 22a and 22b for smoothly moving the left and right blades 2a and 2b.

  The pair of left and right slide mechanisms 22a, 22b are a pair of front and rear guide rails 23a-1, 23a- laid respectively on the front and rear of the left half and right half of the bottom surface 6c of the support plate 6. 2, 23 b-1, 23 b-2, and two traveling block bodies 24 slidably mounted on these guide rails. The pair of left and right blades 2a and 2b are connected and fixed to these traveling block bodies 24 at two locations, a front portion and a rear portion of the base portion, for a total of four locations. And smoothly move left and right on the pair of front and rear guide rails 23a-1, 23a-2, 23b-1, and 23b-2.

  Therefore, now, when the slider 13 moves forward, the link mechanisms 21a and 21b try to move the blades 2a and 2b along with the forward movement of the slider 13, but the blades 2a and 2b Since it can only move left and right according to 22a and 22b, it tries to maintain the respective link lengths while moving the blades 2a and 2b close to each other. Therefore, the approach amount of the blades 2a and 2b, in other words, the advance amount of the slider 13 corresponds to the diameter of the wafer 5, and the gripping force of the wafer 5 is adjusted by adjusting the compression force of the spring 16. It is possible.

  When the slider 13 moves backward, the blades 2a and 2b move to the left and right in the opposite directions, move away from each other, and release the held wafer 5. The backward movement of the slider 13 is simply by releasing the operation of the actuator, the piston rod 12 is retracted, and the compression force of the spring 16 is released. This is possible by locking the slider 13 via the engaging member 14 and moving backward.

  The support plate 6 has a plate shape with a convex shape in plan view, and a projecting surrounding wall 6a is formed around a portion excluding the rear projecting portion 6b. The projecting surrounding wall 6a and the rear projecting portion 6b The guide rail 19 and the pair of left and right slide mechanisms 22a and 22b are installed on the inner bottom surface 6c surrounded by the wall. The air cylinder 11 is installed from the surface of the rear protruding portion 6b of the support plate 6 to the bottom surface 6c. All parts constituting the drive mechanism 3 are covered with a cover (not shown).

Next, the operation of the pair of left and right blades 2a and 2b will be described in detail with reference to FIG.
Now, when the actuator (cylinder / piston mechanism) is operated, the piston rod 12 moves forward. Thereby, the piston rod 12 advances the propelling member 17 through the holding member 15. Then, the slider 13 is also moved forward by the spring 16 sandwiched between the holding member 15 and the engaging member 14. Since the slider 13 is connected to the blades 2a and 2b by the link mechanisms 21a and 21b, the blades 2a and 2b move leftward and rightward inward as the slider 13 advances (FIGS. 5A and 5B). )).

  When the slider 13 further advances, the pair of left and right blades 2a and 2b approach each other, and the eccentric receiving seat 4 above them abuts the corresponding edge portion of the wafer 5, the slider 13 stops (FIG. 5). (C)).

  On the other hand, even if the slider 13 stops, the piston rod 12 still pushes the propulsion member 17 as long as the spring 16 sandwiched between the restraining member 15 and the engagement member 14 allows, so the propulsion member 17 continues to advance. The piston rod 12 continues to press the slider 13 via the spring 16. However, the force that the piston rod 12 pushes the propulsion member 17, that is, the resultant force of the acting force of the actuator and the repulsive force based on the compression deformation of the spring 16 gradually attenuates and eventually becomes zero. Stopping and pressing of the slider 13 via the spring 16 of the piston rod 12 also stops while maintaining the maximum pressing force. Thereby, the increase in the force with which the blades 2a and 2b grip the wafer 5 is also stopped.

  If the wafer 5 is gripped by a mechanical force, cracks will occur, but conversely, if the wafer 5 is simply touched, the wafer 5 may be dropped. Therefore, the wafer 5 is preferably held while being reduced by the force of the spring 16 instead of only by the mechanical force by the driving force of the actuator as described above.

  In this embodiment, the theoretical thrust of the actuator is about 0.57 kg. At this time, the theoretical thrust is reduced to about 0.46 kg by the repulsive force of the spring 16. This force is distributed to the blades 2a and 2b, and the load applied from one blade to the wafer 5 is about 294 g (generally, the load on the wafer 5 is up to 300 g). The expansion / contraction amount of the spring 16 is 23 mm in a free state, 10.5 mm when assembled in the apparatus, and about 8.5 mm in a final compressed state in which the driving force of the actuator is acting.

Since the substrate gripping apparatus 1 of the present embodiment is configured as described above, the following effects can be obtained.
Unlike conventional centering-type substrate gripping devices, the substrate is gripped using the biasing force of the spring, and the gripping of the substrate is released by suppressing the biasing force of the spring by the operation of the actuator. The acting force of the actuator can be small, and the actuator can be miniaturized. If this is housed in the wrist portion of the substrate gripping device 1, the wrist portion does not increase in size. As a result, the substrate gripping apparatus 1 can be satisfactorily used for delivering the wafer 5 to an apparatus having a narrow carry-in / out entrance.

  Further, if the wafer 5 is gripped only by the acting force of the actuator, there is a risk that the wafer 5 may be broken because there is a dimensional error in manufacturing, but the acting force of the actuator is a pair of left and right. Even after the blades 2a and 2b come close to each other and the eccentric receiving seats 4 on the blades 2a and 2b come into contact with the corresponding edge portions of the wafer 5, the slider 13 is stopped. Therefore, the gripping force of the wafer 5 as a resultant force is also reduced as the gripping progresses, and both gripping portions of the pair of left and right blades 2a and 2b can grip the wafer 5 with a predetermined appropriate strength. The possibility of breaking the wafer 5 is eliminated.

  Further, the operation of sandwiching the wafer 5 between the pair of left and right blades 2a and 2b by the operation of one actuator is performed, and all the gripping points of the blades of the pair of left and right blades 2a and 2b are at the center position of the wafer 5. Therefore, when the wafer 5 in the centered state is received, the center position is not shifted again by the gripping operation.

  Further, each gripping portion of the pair of left and right blade blades 2a and 2b includes an eccentric receiving seat 4 having a concave portion 4c for receiving the edge of the wafer 5 and having a fixed position variable about the eccentric shaft 4d. Therefore, when the substrate gripping device 1 is assembled, the arrangement of all the gripping portions on the pair of left and right blades 2a and 2b matches the contour shape of the wafer 5 having a predetermined shape such as a circle, and grips this without play. This makes it easy to adjust the position of the grip portion.

The invention of the present application is not limited to the above embodiments, and various modifications can be made without departing from the scope of the invention.

Claims (3)

A substrate gripping device used to grip and transport a substrate such as a semiconductor wafer,
A slider,
An advance / retreat mechanism of the slider;
A pair of left and right blades having gripping portions for gripping the substrate from both sides in the left-right direction perpendicular to the advancing and retreating direction of the slider;
A link mechanism that rotatably connects the left and right side ends of the slider and the base end portions of the pair of left and right blades on the left and right sides;
When the slider moves forward and backward, the pair of left and right blades move left and right by the same amount in conjunction with the forward and backward movement, so that they can approach and separate from each other.
The advance / retreat mechanism of the slider is:
An actuator,
An elastic body that exerts an urging force that interferes with the acting force of the actuator,
The slider advances by a resultant force that gradually attenuates the acting force of the actuator and the urging force of the elastic body. However, the slider moves forward so that the pair of left and right blades approach each other, and their gripping portions respectively contact the substrate. Even when stopped by contact, the gripping portion of the pair of left and right blades can grip the substrate with a predetermined strength while continuing to receive the resultant force that gradually attenuates. A substrate gripping device.   The gripping portion of each of the pair of left and right blades includes an eccentric receiving seat having a recess for receiving an edge of the substrate and having a fixed position that is variable about an eccentric shaft. Substrate gripping device.   The substrate holding apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the elastic body is formed of a spring.

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