JPWO2007105310A1 - Transfer robot - Google Patents

Abstract

Transfer provided with a hand (13) for holding the workpiece (W), a placement portion (12) on which the workpiece (W) is placed, and a moving means (14) for reciprocating the hand (13). Robot (A).

Description

  The present invention relates to a transfer robot for transferring a workpiece such as a glass substrate from a storage cassette.

  A rectangular plate-like workpiece such as a glass substrate used for manufacturing a thin display is stored in multiple stages in a storage cassette. When the workpiece is processed, the workpieces are taken out one by one from the storage cassette and conveyed to a processing apparatus or the like, and the processed workpiece is again carried into the storage cassette. In such an installation, a transfer robot for carrying out and carrying in the workpiece from the storage cassette is required.

  As an example of such a transfer robot, one that inserts a hand into a storage cassette, lifts it, and carries it out of the storage cassette is known. However, when the workpiece is enlarged, the hand inserted into the storage cassette is also enlarged, and the transfer robot and the storage cassette are enlarged. Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2005-64431 discloses a transfer robot that holds an end of a work, pulls out the work from a storage cassette, and transfers the work onto a placement unit. By holding the end of the workpiece and pulling out the workpiece from the storage cassette, the transfer robot and the storage cassette can be made smaller than when the hand is inserted into the storage cassette. In addition, since a drive mechanism for loading and unloading the workpiece to and from the storage cassette side is not required, the configuration can be simplified.

  On the other hand, when the transfer destination (processing device or another transfer robot) of the workpiece transferred from the storage cassette is arranged on the side opposite to the storage cassette when viewed from the transfer robot, the transfer robot is generally turned once. After that, the work is transferred to the transfer destination. However, in this method, when the workpiece is rectangular, a larger space is required as a space where the transfer robot can turn, and the occupied area of the entire system increases. Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2005-255356 discloses a transfer robot that pulls out a work from a storage cassette and then moves the work in the same direction to transfer the work to a work transfer destination. However, this transfer robot is a mechanism that, after pulling out the workpiece from the storage cassette, lifts the workpiece with another hand and transfers the workpiece to the workpiece transfer destination. Accordingly, it is necessary to separately provide a hand for pulling out the workpiece from the storage cassette (hereinafter referred to as a loading hand) and a hand for transferring the workpiece to the workpiece transfer destination (hereinafter referred to as a carrying-out hand), and the mechanism is complicated. Turn into. In addition, since the carry-out hand is required to have a size for supporting the workpiece, the transfer robot is increased in size.

  The present invention improves the above-described prior art.

  According to the present invention, in the transfer robot that carries out the workpiece from a storage cassette that stores the rectangular plate-shaped workpiece in a horizontal posture, the hand that holds the workpiece releasably, and the placement on which the workpiece is placed And a control unit that controls the hand and the moving unit. The control unit includes the storage unit, and a moving unit that reciprocates the hand in a carrying-out direction of the workpiece and a direction opposite to the carrying-out direction. The end of the work in the storage cassette is held by the hand so that the work moves in parallel from the cassette onto the placement part, and the hand is moved in the unloading direction by the moving means. When moving onto the placement unit, the holding of the work by the hand is released, the hand is moved to a predetermined position in the opposite direction, and the hand When moving to the predetermined position, the hand again holds the workpiece on the placement unit, and the moving means moves the hand again in the unloading direction, and moves the workpiece in the unloading direction. A transfer robot is provided.

  In the present invention, the hand reciprocally moves the workpiece from the storage cassette to the transfer robot and unloads the loaded workpiece to the transfer destination. Even if the transfer destination is located on the opposite side of the storage cassette as viewed from the transfer robot, the transfer robot does not need to be turned. Therefore, the space occupied by the robot can be reduced and the tact time can be shortened as much as turning is not required. Further, the mechanism can be simplified by carrying in and carrying out the workpiece with the same hand. During the loading and unloading of the workpiece, the workpiece is supported by the mounting portion. Therefore, it is not required that the hand has a size for supporting the workpiece, and the transfer robot can be downsized.

It is a layout diagram of a substrate processing system using a transfer robot A according to an embodiment of the present invention. 4 is a plan view of a transfer robot A and a substrate storage device B. FIG. 4 is a front view of a transfer robot A and a substrate storage device B. FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view of a transfer robot A. FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view of a transfer robot A. FIG. 4 is a perspective view of a substrate storage device B. FIG. It is a perspective view of the storage cassette which stores a board | substrate. It is a figure which shows the mounting part for 1 step | paragraph of the said storage cassette. 4 is a perspective view of a lifting unit constituting the substrate storage device B. FIG. It is a disassembled perspective view of the said raising / lowering unit. 4 is a perspective view of an air ejection unit constituting the substrate storage device B. FIG. 4 is a block diagram of a control device for a transfer robot A and a substrate storage device B. FIG. FIG. 11 is an operation explanatory diagram of the transfer robot A. FIG. 11 is an operation explanatory diagram of the transfer robot A. FIG. 11 is an operation explanatory diagram of the transfer robot A. FIG. 11 is an operation explanatory diagram of the transfer robot A. FIG. 11 is an operation explanatory diagram of the transfer robot A. FIG. 11 is an operation explanatory diagram of the transfer robot A. FIG. 11 is an operation explanatory diagram of the transfer robot A. FIG. 11 is an operation explanatory diagram of the transfer robot A. FIG. 11 is an operation explanatory diagram of the transfer robot A. FIG. 11 is an operation explanatory diagram of the transfer robot A. FIG. 11 is an operation explanatory diagram of the transfer robot A. FIG. 11 is an operation explanatory diagram of the transfer robot A. FIG. 11 is an operation explanatory diagram of the transfer robot A. It is a top view of the transfer robot A which employ | adopted another roller unit. It is explanatory drawing of the roller unit of the transfer robot of FIG. It is the top view of the transfer robot A 'which concerns on other embodiment of this invention, and the perspective view of the structure of the one part. It is operation | movement explanatory drawing of transfer robot A '. It is a figure explaining the other example of a board | substrate storage apparatus.

<Outline of the system>
FIG. 1 is a layout diagram of a substrate processing system using a transfer robot A according to an embodiment. In addition, each figure X and Y shows the horizontal direction orthogonal to each other, and Z shows a vertical direction. Further, the direction of each arrow of X, Y, and Z is referred to as + direction, and the opposite direction is referred to as − direction. This substrate processing system is a system for processing a rectangular plate-like glass substrate, and includes a transfer robot A, a substrate storage device B, and a plurality of types of processing devices C1 to C3.

  The substrate storage device B stores a plurality of glass substrates in a horizontal posture. The transfer robot A takes out the glass substrate from the substrate storage device B, and transfers the glass substrate to any of the processing devices C1 to C3. Further, the transfer robot A takes out the processed glass substrate from any of the processing apparatuses C1 to C3, and transfers the processed glass substrate to the substrate storage apparatus B. The transfer robot A can move in the X direction along the rail 1 provided on the floor where the substrate processing system is installed, and can move to the substrate storage device B and the processing devices C1 to C3. . In the present embodiment, it is assumed that each of the processing apparatuses C1 to C3 has a built-in apparatus such as a conveyor that transfers the glass substrate to and from the transfer robot A.

  In the present embodiment, a glass substrate is taken as an example of a workpiece to be transferred by the transfer robot A, but the transfer target is not limited to a glass substrate, and other types of workpieces can also be transferred. In the present embodiment, the transfer robot A transfers a workpiece between the substrate storage device B and the processing devices C1 to C3. However, the transfer of the substrate storage device B to another transfer robot or a workpiece transfer device. It is also possible to transfer workpieces between them.

<Transfer robot>
FIG. 2 is a plan view of the transfer robot A and the substrate storage device B, and FIG. 3 is a front view of the transfer robot A and the substrate storage device B. 4 is an exploded perspective view of the transfer robot A, in particular, an exploded perspective view of the transfer unit 10 of the transfer robot A, and FIG. 5 is an exploded perspective view of the transfer robot A, in particular, transfer. 2 is an exploded perspective view of a traveling unit 20 of a robot A. FIG. The transfer robot A includes a transfer unit 10 and a traveling unit 20.

<Transfer unit>
First, the transfer unit 10 will be described mainly with reference to FIG. The transfer unit 10 includes a frame 11 formed by combining a plurality of square steel pipes. On the plurality of steel pipes 11a constituting the frame 11, a plurality of roller units 12 constituting a placement portion on which a glass substrate to be transferred is placed are mounted. Each roller unit 12 includes a plurality of rollers 12a that freely rotate. The rotation axis of the roller 12a is set in the X direction. Each roller unit 12 is arranged on the same horizontal plane so that the glass substrate is placed in a horizontal posture on each roller 12a. Each roller 12a is preferably made of a material having a small frictional resistance on its peripheral surface, and is preferably made of a resin material such as UPE (ultra high molecular weight polyethylene).

  Rail members 17 extending in the Y direction are provided on the side portions of the two steel pipes 11a located at both ends of the plurality of steel pipes 11a. Each rail member 17 is provided with a hand unit 13 that can reciprocate in the Y direction. The rail member 17 guides the movement of the hand unit 13.

  Two belt mechanisms 14 are mounted on the plurality of steel pipes 11 b constituting the frame 11. Each belt mechanism 14 is a moving means for reciprocating the hand unit 13 in the Y direction, and includes a timing pulley 14a and a belt 14b wound around the timing pulley 14a. The timing pulleys 14a of the two belt mechanisms 14 are connected by a shaft 14c. Of the two shafts 14c, one shaft 14c is connected to the output shaft of the servo motor 14d. By rotating the servo motor 14d forward / reversely, the belts 14b of the two belt mechanisms 14 run synchronously. Note that shafts 14e on the plurality of steel pipes 11c constituting the frame 11 are provided to adjust the tension of the belt 14b.

  The hand unit 13 includes a hand 13a having suction ports N1 and N2, an actuator 13b that moves the hand 13a up and down in the Z direction, and a connecting member 13c that connects the hand unit 13 to the belt 14b. The suction ports N1 and N2 are connected to an air suction facility (pump, control valve, hose, etc.) (not shown) to suck and stop air. In the present embodiment, the glass substrate is held by the hand 13a by suction of air through the suction ports N1 and N2, and the holding of the glass substrate is released by stopping the suction. That is, the suction ports N1 and N2 are glass substrate holders. The suction ports N1 and N2 are spaced apart from each other in the Y direction (the glass substrate loading / unloading direction). In the present embodiment, the glass substrate is releasably held by air suction, but any other configuration may be used as long as the glass substrate can be releasably held.

  The actuator 13b is an air cylinder, and is an actuator that expands and contracts by an air supply facility (not shown) (pump, control valve, hose, etc.). The actuator 13b has a raised position where the glass substrate placement surface (hereinafter referred to as the substrate placement surface) formed by the roller 12a of the roller unit 12 and the upper surface of the hand 13a are substantially at the same height, and more than the substrate placement surface. The hand 13a is moved up and down between the lower position where the upper surface of the hand 13a is low. By allowing the hand 13a to move up and down, the hand 13a can be prevented from unexpectedly interfering with the glass substrate and damaging the glass substrate when the hand 13a moves to hold the glass substrate. In this embodiment, an air cylinder is employed as the actuator 13b, but other mechanisms can be employed as long as the mechanism can raise and lower the hand 13a.

  Since the hand unit 13 is connected to the belt 14b via the connecting member 13c, the hand unit 13 is guided by the rail member 17 as the belt 14b travels, and reciprocates in the Y direction. Since the belts 14b of the two belt mechanisms 14 run synchronously, the two hand units 13 also move synchronously. In the present embodiment, the belt mechanism 14 is employed as the moving means of the hand unit 13, but another mechanism (for example, a linear guide) may be employed.

  A plurality of positioning units 15 for positioning the glass substrate moved onto the plurality of roller units 12 in the X direction are mounted on the plurality of steel pipes 11 c constituting the frame 11. Each positioning unit 15 includes a roller 15a that is rotatable about the Z direction as a rotation axis, a support member 15b that supports the roller 15a, and an actuator 15c that is fixed to the steel pipe 11c and reciprocally moves the support member 15b in the X direction. . The actuator 15c is an air cylinder, and is an actuator that expands and contracts by an air supply facility (pump, control valve, hose, etc.) (not shown). In this embodiment, an air cylinder is employed, but other mechanisms can be employed.

  The four positioning units 15 position the glass substrates in the X direction by pressing the opposing edges of the glass substrates placed on the plurality of roller units 12 toward the center of the glass substrate by the rollers 15a. Do.

  An auxiliary moving mechanism 16 is mounted on the plurality of steel pipes 11 d constituting the frame 11. The auxiliary moving mechanism 16 is a mechanism for moving the glass substrate moved onto the plurality of roller units 12 to a predetermined position (hereinafter referred to as a work position) in the −Y direction, and is hidden between the roller units 12. Arranged. The auxiliary moving means includes a contact member (pad) 16a that contacts the edge of the glass substrate, an actuator 16b that supports the pad 16a and moves up and down in the Z direction, and an actuator 16c that reciprocates the actuator 16b in the Y direction. Two sets are provided. The actuator 16b includes a protruding position (a high position where the glass substrate and the pad 16a interfere with each other) where the pad 16a protrudes on the substrate mounting surface, and a non-projecting position (a glass substrate and a pad that does not protrude on the substrate mounting surface). The pad 16a is moved up and down between the lower position and the position where it does not interfere with 16a.

  Each set of actuators 16c is connected by a shaft 16d, and the shaft 16d is supported by a bearing 16d 'so as to be movable in the Y direction. An actuator 16e that expands and contracts in the Y direction is attached to the shaft 16d, and the shaft 16d reciprocates in the Y direction by the expansion and contraction of the actuator 16e. The actuators 16b, 16c, and 16e are air cylinders that are extended and contracted by an air supply facility (pump, control valve, hose, etc.) (not shown). In this embodiment, an air cylinder is employed, but other mechanisms can be employed. The function of the auxiliary movement mechanism 16 will be described later.

<Travel unit>
Next, the traveling unit 20 will be described mainly with reference to FIG. The traveling unit 20 has drive wheels 21 as shown in FIG. The drive wheel 21 moves the travel unit 21 along the rail 1 using a servo motor (not shown) built in the travel unit 20 as a drive source. The traveling unit 20 is provided with a pair of lifting units 22 that lift and lower the transfer unit 10. Each lifting unit 22 is spaced apart in the X direction.

  The elevating unit 22 includes a servo motor 22a, a ball screw 22b that is rotationally driven by the servo motor 22a, and a ball nut 22c that reciprocates in the Z direction along the ball screw 22b by the rotation of the ball screw 22b. A support member 22e that is guided by the rail member 22d and moves is connected to the ball nut 22c. An elevating member 22f is connected to the ball nut 22c and the support member 22e. Thus, when the ball screw 22b rotates and reciprocates in the Z direction along the ball screw 22b, the elevating member 22f moves up and down. The steel pipe 11c of the frame 11 of the transfer unit 10 is fixed to the lifting member 22f, and the transfer unit 10 is lifted and lowered in the Z direction by the lifting and lowering of the lifting member 22f.

<Board storage device>
Next, the substrate storage device B will be described. FIG. 6 is a perspective view of the substrate storage device B. FIG. The substrate storage device B includes an air ejection unit 110, a storage cassette 120 disposed above the air ejection unit 110, and an elevating unit 130.

<Storage cassette>
FIG. 7 is a perspective view of the storage cassette 120. The storage cassette 120 is a cassette capable of storing glass substrates in multiple stages in the vertical direction (Z direction). 6 and 7 show a state in which the glass substrate is not accommodated. In the case of this embodiment, the storage cassette 120 forms a substantially rectangular parallelepiped frame body by a plurality of column members 121a and 121b and beam members 122a to 122g.

  A plurality of column members 121b are arranged in the Y direction, and are arranged in the same number apart in the X direction. The column members 121b are arranged in the vertical direction (Z direction) between the column members 121b in the X direction and between the column members 121a. A plurality of wires 123 are stretched at a pitch of. With this wire 123, a plurality of placement portions on which the glass substrate is placed in a horizontal posture are formed in the vertical direction. FIG. 8 is a view showing a stage for the placement portion. Each stage mounting portion is formed by a plurality of wires 123 spaced apart in the Y direction at the same height, and the glass substrate W is placed on the wires 123. Between each wire 123, the opening part 123a which can each pass the air ejection unit 110 mentioned later is formed. In the present embodiment, the mounting portion is formed of a wire, but other methods can of course be employed. However, by using the wire, the interval between the substrates to be stored can be reduced, and the storage efficiency of the storage cassette 120 can be increased.

  Returning to FIG. 7, both side portions of the storage cassette 120 facing each other in the Y direction are opened in a gate shape by the beam member 122 a and the column member 21 a, respectively, and the side portion in the −Y direction is a glass substrate loading / unloading port 124. Is forming. The bottom of the storage cassette 120 is composed of a pair of beam members 122d, a plurality of beam members 122b, and one beam member 122f, and an air ejection unit 110, which will be described later, passes between these and the vicinity of both ends of the beam member 122d. A possible entrance 125 is formed.

<Elevating unit>
FIG. 9 is a perspective view of the lifting unit 130, and FIG. 10 is an exploded perspective view of the lifting unit 130. The lifting unit 130 is a device that moves the storage cassette 120 and the air ejection unit 110 up and down relatively. In the present embodiment, the air ejection unit 110 is fixed and the storage cassette 120 is moved up and down, but a configuration in which the storage cassette 120 is fixed and the air ejection unit 110 is moved up and down can also be adopted.

  In the case of the present embodiment, two lifting units 130 are provided, and are respectively disposed on opposite sides of the storage cassette 120 in the X direction so as to sandwich the storage cassette 120 therebetween. Each lifting / lowering unit 130 cantilever-supports the storage cassette 120. According to this configuration, the elevating unit 130 can be made thinner, and the installation space for the entire substrate storage device B can be made smaller. Further, it is possible to secure a wider space for the glass substrate loading / unloading port and the air ejection unit 110.

  The elevating unit 130 includes a beam member 131 on which the beam member 122d at the bottom of the storage cassette 120 is placed. As each beam member 131 of each lifting unit 130 moves in the vertical direction (Z direction) synchronously, the storage cassette 120 is lifted and lowered. The elevating unit 130 includes a column 132 extending in the vertical direction, and a pair of rail members 133 and a rack 134 extending in the vertical direction are fixed to the inner surface of the column 132. A beam member 132 a is installed on the upper end of the column 132 between the elevating units 130.

  The beam member 131 is fixed to and supported by one side surface of the support plate 135 via a bracket 135a. Four slide members 136 that are movable along the rail member 133 are fixed to the other side surface of the support plate 135, and the beam member 131 and the support plate 135 move up and down by the guide of the rail member 133. The drive unit 137 includes a motor 137a and a speed reducer 137b, and is fixed to and supported by one side surface of the support plate 135. The output shaft of the speed reducer 137 b passes through the support plate 138 and is connected to a pinion 139 a disposed on the other side of the support plate 138.

  The support plate 135 and the support plate 138 are fixed to each other at a predetermined interval, and pinions 139b to 139d are disposed in the gap between the support plate 135 and the support plate 138. The pinions 139b to 139d are rotatably supported between the support plate 135 and the support plate 138, and the pinion 139b and the pinion 139d rotate following the rotation of the pinion 139a. The pinion 139c rotates following the rotation of the pinion 139b. The pinions 139b to 139d are pinions having the same specifications, and the two pinions 139c and 139d are engaged with the racks 134.

  Thus, when the drive unit 137 is driven, the pinion 139a rotates, and the drive unit 137, the support plates 135 and 138, the slide member 136, and the beam member 131 move together upward or downward by the drive force. As a result, the storage cassette 120 placed on the beam member 131 can be moved up and down. Each lifting / lowering unit 130 is provided with a sensor 131 a at the end of the beam member 131 that detects a shift in the lifting height of the beam member 131.

  The sensor 131a is, for example, an optical sensor including a light emitting unit and a light receiving unit, and determines whether or not the light has been received by irradiating light in the X direction as shown in FIG. When the light is received, there is no deviation in the elevation height of the beam members 131. When there is no light reception, there is a deviation in the elevation height. When the deviation in the elevation height is detected by the sensor 131a, the deviation is eliminated by controlling the motor 137a. By providing the sensor 131a and controlling the shift in the elevation height of the beam member 131, the storage cassette 120 can be prevented from tilting during the elevation and the storage cassette 120 can be raised and lowered more stably.

  The two sensors 131a provided in each beam member 131 may have a configuration in which one of the light emitting unit and the light receiving unit is provided and the other has the other of the light emitting unit and the light receiving unit. Moreover, it is not restricted to an optical sensor, Other sensors are also employable.

<Air ejection unit>
FIG. 11 is a perspective view of the air ejection unit 110. In the present embodiment, a plurality of air ejection units 110 are provided, and each air ejection unit 110 has a size that can pass through the entrance 125 and the opening 123a so as not to interfere with the storage cassette 120 when the storage cassette 120 is raised and lowered. , Is set to position. Each air ejection unit 110 has a substantially horizontal upper surface 111 on which a plurality of air ejection ports 111a are formed. Each upper surface 111 of each air ejection unit 110 is located on the same horizontal plane. The ejection port 111a ejects air supplied from an unillustrated air supply facility (pump, control valve, hose, etc.), and floats the glass substrate stored in the storage cassette 120 on the upper surface 111 in a horizontal posture.

<Control device>
FIG. 12 is a block diagram of the control device 50 of the transfer robot A and the substrate storage device B. The control device 50 provides a CPU 51 that controls the entire transfer robot A and the substrate storage device B, a work area for the CPU 51, a RAM 52 that stores variable data, and a fixed program such as a control program and control data. ROM 53 for storing various data. The RAM 52 and ROM 53 can employ other storage means.

  The input interface (I / F) 54 is an interface between the CPU 51 and various sensors (sensor 131a, rotary encoders provided in the servo motors 14d, 22a, and 137a). The CPU 51 receives various sensors via the input I / F 54. Get the detection result of. The output interface (I / F) 55 is an interface between the CPU 51 and each of the servo motors 14d, 22a, and 137a, and controls the air supply facilities of the actuators 13b, 15c, 16b, 16c, and 16e and the jet outlet 111a, and It is an interface with each control valve that controls the air suction equipment of the suction ports N1, N2, and the CPU 41 controls each servo motor and control valve via the output I / F 55.

  A communication interface (I / F) 56 is an interface between the host computer 6 that controls the entire substrate processing system of the present embodiment and the CPU 51, and the CPU 51 transfers the transfer robot A and the substrate storage device in response to a command from the host computer 6. B will be controlled.

<Operation of transfer robot A>
Next, a glass substrate transfer operation by the transfer robot A will be described with reference to FIGS. Here, a description will be given of the process from when the control device 50 controls the transfer robot A to unload the glass substrate from the substrate storage device B and transfer it to one of the processing devices C1 to C3.

  An outline of carrying out of the glass substrate from the substrate storage device B by the transfer robot A will be described. In this embodiment, the air ejection unit 110 is moved into the storage cassette 120 by the lifting operation by the lifting unit 130, and the wire 123 is moved by the air ejection unit 110. The upper glass substrate is suspended from the wire 123. Then, the hand unit 13 of the transfer robot A holds the glass substrate in a floating state, and carries it out of the storage cassette 120 so as to be pulled out.

  First, as shown in FIG. 13, the hand unit 13 of the transfer robot A is positioned at the initial position P1. At the initial position P1, the + Y side end of the hand 13a of the hand unit 13 does not protrude into the substrate storage device B. The hand 13a is in the lowered position. About the board | substrate storage apparatus B, air is ejected from the ejection port 111a of each air ejection unit 110. FIG. Then, the storage cassette 120 is lowered by the elevating unit 130 (not shown) to cause the air ejection unit 110 to enter the storage cassette 120, and the upper surface 111 of each air ejection unit 110 is substantially the same height as the lowermost glass substrate Wt. To be located. Then, the glass substrate Wt floats due to the ejection of air from the ejection port 111a and enters a floating state.

  Next, as shown in FIG. 14, the hand unit 13 is moved in the + Y direction so that the end of the hand 13 a is positioned at a position (P 2) where it is inserted below the lower surface of the glass substrate Wt in the storage cassette 120. At the position P2, the suction port N1 is located on the lower surface of the glass substrate Wt, but the suction port N2 is not located on the lower surface of the glass substrate Wt. Subsequently, the actuator 13b is extended to raise the hand 13a to the raised position. Further, air is sucked from the suction port N1, and the end of the glass substrate Wt is held by the hand 13a. That is, in this embodiment, when the glass substrate Wt is carried out of the storage cassette 120, the glass substrate Wt is held by the suction port N1, and the suction port N2 does not hold the glass substrate Wt.

  Next, as shown in FIG. 15, the hand unit 13 is moved in the carry-out direction (−Y direction) of the glass substrate Wt. Thereby, the glass substrate Wt moves in parallel on the roller unit 12. The hand 13a holds only the end of the glass substrate Wt, but the glass substrate Wt is supported not only by the air ejection unit 110 but also by the roller 12a of the roller unit 12 by pulling the glass substrate Wt out of the storage cassette 120. Therefore, the glass substrate Wt can be moved in a horizontal posture.

  The hand unit 13 moves to a position P3 in FIG. When the hand unit 13 moves to the position P3, the glass substrate Wt is completely pulled out from the storage cassette 120 and positioned on the roller unit 12. When the glass substrate Wt is completely pulled out from the storage cassette 120, the substrate storage apparatus B stops the ejection of air from the ejection port 111a of each air ejection unit 110.

  Next, the suction of air from the suction port N1 of the hand 13a is stopped to release the holding of the glass substrate Wt, and the hand 13a is lowered to the lowered position by the actuator 13b as shown in FIG. Subsequently, the hand unit 13 is moved in the + Y direction (return operation of the hand unit 13). The hand unit 13 is moved to the initial position P1 as shown in FIG.

  Next, the glass substrate Wt is positioned by the positioning unit 15 (glass substrate positioning operation). Positioning is performed by contracting the actuator 15c and moving each roller 15a toward the center of the glass substrate Wt in the + X direction or the -X direction as shown in FIG. Each roller 15a moves to a predetermined position, whereby the glass substrate Wt is positioned.

  Next, the glass substrate Wt is moved to the workpiece position by the auxiliary movement mechanism 16 (auxiliary movement operation of the glass substrate). While the glass substrate Wt is moved to the workpiece position, the positioning by each roller 15a is continued. 20 to 23 are explanatory views of the operation of the auxiliary movement mechanism 16. FIG. 20 shows an initial state of the auxiliary movement mechanism 16. At this time, the pad 16a is located at the non-projecting position. The actuator 16b is extended from the state of FIG. 20 to raise the pad 16a to the protruding position as shown in FIG. Then, the actuator 16c is contracted, and the glass substrate Wt on the roller unit 12 is sandwiched between the two pads 16a.

  Subsequently, as shown in FIG. 22, the actuator 16e is contracted, the shaft 16d is moved in the −Y direction, and the two sets of pads 16a and the actuators 16b and 16c are moved in the −Y direction. As a result, the glass substrate Wt moves by a certain amount in the −Y direction. FIG. 23 shows a state where the glass substrate Wt is located at the workpiece position. It can be seen that the glass substrate Wt has moved in the -Y direction from the position shown in FIG. Thus, the movement of the glass substrate Wt by the auxiliary movement mechanism 16 is completed, and the auxiliary movement mechanism 16 returns to the initial state shown in FIG.

  In this embodiment, the return unit of the hand unit 13 → the glass substrate positioning operation → the auxiliary movement operation of the glass substrate is shown. However, if these three operations are performed in parallel, the tact will be achieved. Time can be shortened.

  Next, the glass substrate Wt is transferred to one of the predetermined processing apparatuses among the processing apparatuses C1 to C3. First, as shown in FIG. 24, the actuator 13b is extended to raise the hand 13a to the raised position. Further, air is sucked from the suction port N2, and the end of the glass substrate Wt is held again by the hand 13a. The hand 13a holds the glass substrate Wt that has been positioned by the positioning unit 15. After the holding, in order to complete the positioning by the positioning unit 15, the actuator 15c is extended to retract each roller 15a to an initial position away from the glass substrate Wt.

  Here, as shown in FIG. 23, the position of the edge of the glass substrate Wt on the storage cassette 120 side at the work position is between the suction port N1 and the suction port N2 of the hand 13a in the initial position, and the suction position The port N2 is located on the lower surface of the glass substrate Wt, but the suction port N1 is not located on the lower surface of the glass substrate Wt. That is, in this embodiment, when the glass substrate Wt is carried out from the transfer robot A to the processing apparatuses C1 to C3, the glass substrate Wt is held by the suction port N2, and the suction port N1 does not hold the glass substrate Wt.

  Subsequently, as shown in FIG. 24, the lifting unit 22 is operated to move the glass substrate Wt so that the glass substrate Wt is positioned at the delivery height of the glass substrate Wt set in the processing apparatuses C1 to C3 for transferring the glass substrate Wt. The loading unit 10 is raised. Subsequently, as required by the traveling unit 20 (when the glass substrate Wt is transferred to the processing apparatus C2 or C3), the transfer robot A is moved in the X direction to transfer the glass substrate Wt to the processing apparatuses C1 to C3. The transfer robot A is moved to a position facing the. Next, as shown in FIG. 25, the hand unit 13 is moved again in the -Y direction. The hand unit 13 is moved to a position P4 where the end of the hand 13a protrudes toward the processing devices C1 to C3. The glass substrate Wt is introduced into the processing apparatus while being supported by an apparatus such as a conveyor built in each of the processing apparatuses C1 to C3. Thereafter, the suction of air from the suction port N2 is stopped, the holding of the glass substrate Wt is released, and the work of carrying the glass substrate Wt to the processing apparatuses C1 to C3 is completed. .

  Thus, one unit of transfer processing is completed. Thereafter, the glass substrate is transferred from the substrate storage device B to the processing devices C1 to C3 by the transfer robot A in the same procedure. Note that the transfer of the glass substrate from the processing apparatuses C1 to C3 to the substrate storage apparatus B is generally the reverse of the above-described procedure.

  As described above, in this embodiment, the hand 13a reciprocally moves, so that the glass substrate is transferred from the storage cassette 120 to the transfer robot A, and the transferred glass substrate is transferred to the transfer destination (processing devices C1 to C3). To do. For this reason, as shown in FIG. 1, even when the transfer destination (processing devices C1 to C3) is located on the opposite side of the storage cassette 120 as viewed from the transfer robot A, Does not require a turn. Further, the mechanism is simplified by carrying in the glass substrate from the storage cassette 120 to the transfer robot A and carrying out the glass substrate from the transfer robot A to the transfer destination (processing devices C1 to C3) with the same hand 13a. it can. Further, the glass substrate is supported by the roller unit 12 during loading and unloading of the glass substrate. Therefore, it is not required that the hand 13a has a size for supporting the glass substrate, and the transfer robot A can be downsized. Further, the roller unit 12 is configured such that the roller 12a rotates freely, and there is no need to rotationally drive the roller 12a. This leads to simplification and cost reduction of the mechanism of the transfer robot A.

  Further, in the present embodiment, the hand 13a is provided with two suction ports N1 and N2 spaced apart in the glass substrate transport direction (Y direction), and the suction port N1 removes the glass substrate when the glass substrate is unloaded from the storage cassette 120. The suction port N2 is configured to hold the glass substrate when the glass substrate is carried out from the transfer robot A to the processing apparatuses C1 to C3. According to this configuration, the moving distance of the glass substrate due to the reciprocating movement of the hand 13a can be increased.

  In addition, since the auxiliary moving mechanism 16 is provided to move the glass substrate in an auxiliary manner, the moving distance of the glass substrate by the reciprocating movement of the hand 13a can be further increased. Further, since the glass substrate is positioned on the transfer robot A by the positioning unit 15, the glass substrate can be carried out in a positioned state.

<Other Embodiments of Roller Unit>
26 is a plan view of the transfer robot A that employs the roller unit 200 in place of the roller unit 12, and FIG. 27 is an explanatory view of the roller unit 200, and is a perspective view of the vicinity of the end of the roller unit 200.

  Each roller unit 200 includes a plurality of rollers 201 and 202 arranged in the Y direction. The roller 201 is connected to a shaft 203 a, and the shaft 203 a is rotatably supported by a pair of bearings 204. The roller 202 is connected to a shaft 203b having a shorter length than the shaft 203a, and the shaft 203b is rotatably supported by a pair of bearings 204. The bearing 204 is fixed to a side surface of a square member 205 extending in the Y direction.

  The rollers 201 and 202 are arranged so as to be alternately shifted in the X direction orthogonal to the Y direction so that part of the side surfaces of the adjacent rollers 201 and 202 overlap each other when viewed from the Y direction.

  Specifically, the plurality of rollers 201 constitutes a roller array arranged on the same straight line (Y direction). Similarly, the plurality of rollers 202 constitutes a roller array arranged on the same straight line (Y direction). The roller row of the roller 201 and the roller row of the roller 202 are arranged so as to be shifted from each other in the X direction. The arrangement pitch of the shafts 203a and 203b in the Y direction is equal. The diameters of the rollers 201 and 202 are set larger than the arrangement pitch of the shafts 203a and 203b in the Y direction.

  In the case of the present embodiment, the adjacent rollers 201 and 202 are arranged so that the overlapping side surfaces thereof are close to each other without contacting each other.

  The advantages of the configuration of the rollers 201 and 202 will be described. When the glass substrate moves on the rollers 201 and 202, the glass substrate sequentially transfers the rollers 201 and 202. When an extremely thin glass substrate is transported as the glass substrate, the tip of the glass substrate is easily bent downward. For this reason, when a single-row roller row (for example, only the roller row of the roller 201) is used as a roller for supporting the glass substrate, there is a certain distance between adjacent rollers. At the end, noise may be generated or the tip of the glass substrate may be damaged.

  In the present embodiment, since the rollers 201 and 202 are configured as described above, the distance between the adjacent rollers 201 and 202 can be shortened, so that such a problem can be solved.

  Further, when the rollers 201 and 202 are configured as described above, the diameters of the rollers 201 and 202 can be increased while shortening the distance between the adjacent rollers 201 and 202. Increasing the diameters of the rollers 201 and 202 has an advantage that the rotation speed of the rollers 201 and 202 can be further reduced when the glass substrate is conveyed at the same speed. The low rotation speed of the rollers 201 and 202 has an advantage that slip between the rollers 201 and 202 and the glass substrate is reduced, and the glass substrate can be easily stopped at a fixed position.

  Next, auxiliary rollers 206a having a smaller diameter than the rollers 201 and 202 are provided at both ends of each roller unit 200 in the Y direction. The auxiliary roller 206 a is rotatably supported on the shaft 207, and the shaft 207 is fixed to the support portion 208. The support portion 208 is fixed to the side surface of the end portion of the square member 205 in the Y direction.

  The top parts 201a and 202a of the rollers 201 and 202 and the top part 206a of the roller 206 are located on the same horizontal plane. The top is the highest position in the Z direction on the peripheral surface of the roller.

  The auxiliary roller 206a is one of the countermeasures when the tip of the glass substrate is bent downward. The transfer robot A is separated from the substrate storage device B and the processing device C. Therefore, when the glass substrate moves from the substrate storage device B to the transfer robot A, or when the glass substrate moves from the processing device C to the transfer robot A, when the glass substrate moves onto the rollers 201 and 202, the glass substrate There is a possibility that the tip of the roller hits against the peripheral surfaces of the rollers 201 and 202. By providing the auxiliary roller 206a, the glass substrate moves onto the auxiliary roller 206a and then onto the rollers 201 and 202. Since the tip of the glass substrate is supported earlier by the auxiliary roller 206a, the tip of the glass substrate can be prevented from bending downward.

<Other embodiment of a mounting part>
In the above-described embodiment, the placement unit of the transfer robot A is configured by the roller unit 12. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and various mechanisms can be employed. Moreover, although the structure which pinches | interposes and moves a glass substrate as the auxiliary | assistant moving mechanism 16 was employ | adopted, it is not restricted to this, A various mechanism is employable.

  FIG. 28 is a plan view of a transfer robot A ′ according to another embodiment of the present invention and a perspective view of a part of the configuration. The transfer robot A ′ is provided with an air ejection unit 12 ′ instead of the roller unit 12 to constitute a placement unit. Further, instead of the auxiliary movement mechanism 16, an auxiliary movement mechanism 16 'that holds and moves the glass substrate by air suction is employed. Other configurations are the same as those of the transfer robot A.

  The air ejection unit 12 ′ is a unit having the same configuration as the air ejection unit 110 described above, and has a horizontal upper surface on which a plurality of air ejection ports 12a ′ are formed. By the ejection of air from the ejection port 12a ′, A glass substrate is floated on the upper surface in a horizontal posture. While the transfer robot A 'transfers the glass substrate, air is ejected from the air ejection unit 12' to support the glass substrate in a floating state. Since the glass substrate is supported in a floating state, there is an advantage that the glass substrate is hardly damaged.

  The auxiliary movement mechanism 16 ′ includes a suction pad 161 that is sucked to the lower surface of the glass substrate, an actuator 162 that supports the suction pad 161 and moves up and down, an actuator 163 that moves the actuator 162 in the carry-out direction (Y direction) of the glass substrate, Is provided.

  The suction pad 161 has a suction port 161a on its upper surface, and holds the lower surface of the glass substrate by sucking air from the suction port 161a. The suction port 161a is connected to air suction equipment (not shown) (pump, control valve, hose, etc.) to suck and stop air.

  The actuator 162 includes a protruding position where the suction pad 161a protrudes on the upper surface of the air ejection unit 12 ′ (a high position where the glass substrate and the suction pad 161 interfere) and a non-projecting position where the suction pad 161a does not protrude on the upper surface (the glass substrate and the suction surface). The suction pad 161a is moved up and down with a lower position) where the pad 161 does not interfere. Actuators 162 and 163 are air cylinders that are extended and contracted by an air supply facility (pump, control valve, hose, etc.) (not shown). In this embodiment, an air cylinder is employed, but other mechanisms can be employed.

  The glass substrate transfer operation by the transfer robot A 'is basically the same as that of the transfer robot A. As described above, while the transfer robot A 'transfers the glass substrate, air is ejected from the air ejection unit 12' to support the glass substrate in a floating state.

The operation of the auxiliary movement mechanism 16 ′ will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 29 is a diagram for explaining the operation of the transfer robot A ′, particularly the auxiliary movement mechanism 16 ′. This figure shows three modes of the auxiliary movement mechanism 16 ′. First, the uppermost aspect shows the initial state of the auxiliary movement mechanism 16 ′. At this time, the suction pad 161 is located at the non-projecting position. From this state, the actuator 162 is extended to raise the suction pad 161 to the protruding position as in the middle mode, and air is sucked from the suction port 161a. As a result, the glass substrate Wt is held on the suction pad 161. Then, the actuator 163 is contracted to move the glass substrate Wt to the above-described workpiece position as in the lowermost stage. Thus, the auxiliary movement by the auxiliary movement mechanism 16 ′ is completed. Compared to the case of the auxiliary movement mechanism 16, there is an advantage that the glass substrate Wt is less likely to be damaged.
<Another embodiment of substrate storage device>
In the substrate storage apparatus B, the air ejection unit 110 is used, but instead of this, a glass substrate carried out and carried in from the storage cassette 120 can be supported by a roller unit comprising a plurality of freely rotating rollers.

  FIG. 30 is a diagram for explaining another example of the substrate storage device, and is a diagram showing an example in which a roller unit 300 is adopted instead of the air ejection unit 110 in the configuration shown in FIG. The roller unit 300 is a unit of the same type as the roller unit 12 of the transfer robot A. As the roller unit 300, a unit having the same type of configuration as the roller unit 200 shown in FIG.

[0002]
The robot is a mechanism for picking up a workpiece from a storage cassette, lifting the workpiece with another hand, and transferring the workpiece to a workpiece transfer destination. Accordingly, it is necessary to separately provide a hand for pulling out the workpiece from the storage cassette (hereinafter referred to as a loading hand) and a hand for transferring the workpiece to the workpiece transfer destination (hereinafter referred to as a carrying-out hand), and the mechanism is complicated. Turn into. In addition, since the carry-out hand is required to have a size for supporting the workpiece, the transfer robot is increased in size.
Disclosure of the Invention [0005]
The present invention improves the above-described prior art.
[0006]
According to the present invention, in the transfer robot that carries out the workpiece from a storage cassette that stores the rectangular plate-shaped workpiece in a horizontal posture, the hand that holds the workpiece releasably, and the placement on which the workpiece is placed And a control unit that controls the hand and the moving unit. The control unit includes: a moving unit that reciprocally moves the hand in a carrying-out direction of the workpiece and a direction opposite to the carrying-out direction; A first conveyance control for conveying the workpiece from the storage cassette onto the placement section, and the unloading direction of the workpiece on the placement section in order to unload the workpiece on the placement section from the transfer robot. And a second transfer control for transferring the workpiece to the end of the workpiece in the storage cassette so that the workpiece is translated from the storage cassette onto the mounting portion. The second transport control is configured to release the holding of the workpiece by the hand after the first transport control, and to move the hand in the carry-out direction by the moving means held by the hand. Control for moving the hand in the opposite direction, holding the work on the placement unit again by the hand, moving the hand again in the unloading direction by the moving means, and moving the work in the unloading direction A transfer robot characterized by the above is provided.
[0007]
In the present invention, the hand reciprocally moves the workpiece from the storage cassette to the transfer robot and unloads the loaded workpiece to the transfer destination. Even when the transfer destination is disposed on the opposite side of the storage cassette as viewed from the transfer robot, the transfer robot does not need to be turned. Therefore, the space occupied by the robot can be reduced and the tact time can be shortened as much as turning is not required. Further, the mechanism can be simplified by carrying in and carrying out the workpiece with the same hand. During the loading and unloading of the workpiece, the workpiece is supported by the mounting portion. Therefore, it is not required that the hand has a size for supporting the workpiece, and the transfer robot can be downsized.

Claims (14)

In the transfer robot that carries out the workpiece from a storage cassette that stores the rectangular plate-shaped workpiece in a horizontal posture,
A hand for releasably holding the workpiece;
A placement section on which the workpiece is placed;
Moving means for reciprocating the hand in the direction of carrying out the workpiece and in the direction opposite to the carrying-out direction;
Control means for controlling the hand and the moving means;
With
The control means includes
The end of the workpiece in the storage cassette is held by the hand so that the workpiece moves in parallel from the storage cassette onto the placement unit, and the hand is moved in the unloading direction by the moving means,
When the workpiece has moved onto the placement unit, the holding of the workpiece by the hand is released, and the hand is moved to a predetermined position in the opposite direction,
When the hand moves to the predetermined position, the hand holds the work on the placement unit again, moves the hand again in the unloading direction by the moving means, and removes the work. A transfer robot characterized by moving in a direction. The placement section is
An air ejection means having a horizontal upper surface formed with a plurality of air ejection ports and suspending the workpiece on the upper surface in a horizontal posture by ejecting air from the ejection ports. Item 4. The transfer robot according to Item 1. The placement section is
The transfer robot according to claim 1, further comprising a plurality of freely rotating rollers. The hand includes: a first holding unit that holds the workpiece; and a second holding unit that is provided apart from the first holding unit in the unloading direction and holds the workpiece.
The control means includes
When the workpiece is moved from the storage cassette onto the placement unit, the workpiece is held by the first holding unit,
The transfer robot according to claim 1, wherein the workpiece is held by the second holding unit when the workpiece is moved in the carry-out direction from the placement unit. Furthermore,
Auxiliary movement means that is controlled by the control means and moves the workpiece moved onto the placement portion to a predetermined workpiece position in the unloading direction,
The control means includes
The transfer robot according to claim 4, wherein the work is moved by the auxiliary moving unit before the second holding unit holds the work.   The position of the edge on the storage cassette side of the work at the work position is between the first holding part and the second holding part of the hand at the predetermined position. The transfer robot according to claim 5. The auxiliary moving means is
A contact member that contacts the workpiece;
An elevating unit that raises and lowers the abutting member between a protruding position where the abutting member protrudes on the mounting portion and a non-projecting position;
A moving unit that moves the abutting member and the elevating means in the carry-out direction;
The transfer robot according to claim 5, further comprising: The placement section is
A plurality of air outlets having a horizontal upper surface, and air jetting means for floating the workpiece on the upper surface in a horizontal posture by jetting air from the jets;
The auxiliary moving means includes
A suction pad for suction to the lower surface of the workpiece;
Lifting means for raising and lowering the suction pad between a protruding position where the suction surface of the suction pad protrudes above the mounting portion and a non-projecting position;
A moving unit for moving the suction pad and the lifting means in the carry-out direction;
The transfer robot according to claim 5, further comprising: Furthermore,
2. The transfer robot according to claim 1, further comprising positioning means for positioning the workpiece, which has been controlled by the control means and moved onto the placement unit, in a direction perpendicular to the unloading direction.   The transfer robot according to claim 9, wherein the positioning unit presses each opposing edge of the workpiece toward the center of the workpiece.   The transfer robot according to claim 9, wherein the positioning unit positions the workpiece after the workpiece has moved onto the placement unit and before the hand holds the workpiece again.   The transfer robot according to claim 1, further comprising lifting means for lifting the hand. The plurality of rollers are disposed in the carry-out direction;
The transfer robot according to claim 3, wherein the plurality of rollers are alternately displaced in a direction orthogonal to the carry-out direction so that a part of the side surfaces of the adjacent rollers overlap each other. . A roller unit including the plurality of rollers arranged in the carry-out direction;
An auxiliary roller having a smaller diameter than the roller is provided at both ends of the roller unit in the carry-out direction,
The transfer robot according to claim 13, wherein the top of the roller and the top of the auxiliary roller are located on the same horizontal plane.

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