KR100557302B1 - A load port having function for carring out pod - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to a load port having a pod carrying out function, comprising: a main body portion, a frame portion located above the rear surface of the main body portion and having an opening for carrying out pods, a stage portion for mounting and transferring the pods, and a door of the pod. And a FIMS door part for opening and closing the middle plate, wherein the stage part includes an upper plate on which the pod is mounted, an intermediate plate and a middle plate including a first transfer unit coupled with a lower end of the upper plate and advancing the upper plate forward and backward. It is coupled with the lower end of the second conveying means for advancing the intermediate plate.

Pod, FOUP, Loadport, Wafer, SMIF, SEMI, FIMS.

Description

Load port having function for carrying out POD}

1 is a front perspective view of a load port having a pod carrying out function according to the present invention.

2 is a rear perspective view of the load port having a pod carrying out function according to the present invention.

3 is a diagram illustrating an initial state of a stage unit.

4 is a view showing a state where the stage portion is extended up to the maximum stroke.

5 is a rear perspective view of the load port illustrating a state in which the stage portion is extended to the maximum stroke and the pod is taken out.

<Description of Major Reference Symbols>

10: main body 20: frame

21: opening 23: gas supply

30: stage portion 40: rear cover portion

45: FIMS door portion 50: upper plate

60: middle plate 70: lower plate

The present invention relates to a load port, and more particularly, the stage portion for mounting the pod has a triple plate structure, so that the pod conveying means of the rear end is advanced by passing the frame portion of the stage portion and the upper plate portion to the maximum stroke. It relates to a load port having a pod carrying out function to facilitate the transport.

Load ports are automated equipment related to the transfer of materials such as wafers or reticles in the semiconductor manufacturing process.The load port is one of the standards recommended by SEMI (Semiconductor Equipment and Materials International). opening Interface Mechanical Standard) Included in the equipment that makes up the system.

Among the FIMS systems, the load port of the present invention is an interface device for transferring pods loaded with semiconductor materials such as wafers to pod transfer devices such as robots in pod storage.

Among the components of the SMIF system, pods, which are closed wafer storage containers, include pods with separate and downward open pods mainly used for 200mm wafers, and front-opening unified pods (FOUP), which are cassette-type and front-opened types mainly used for 300mm wafers. The present invention relates to a load port that passes the FOUP to the robot at the rear end, particularly among the pods.

In general, the load port is equipped with a pod mounted on the stage, and after inspection of wafer loading through mapping, the robot at the rear accesses and uses the fork to lift and transport the lower part of the pod to load it at a predetermined place.

However, in this method, since the fork of the robot must be considerably long, there is a problem that the moving distance and the turning radius are increased to significantly lower the transfer work efficiency.

In addition, since the radius of rotation must be taken into account, the work space of the robot must be increased, thereby reducing the space utilization.

This reduction in transfer efficiency and space utilization is a serious problem in terms of semiconductor yield.

Therefore, there is an increasing demand for a load port capable of overcoming the problem of the conventional load port and increasing the transfer work efficiency and the space efficiency.

The present invention has been made in order to solve the above problems, the object of the present invention is to have a three-plate structure of the stage portion for mounting the pod to advance to the maximum stroke past the frame portion of the middle plate portion and the upper plate portion of the stage It is to provide a load port having a pod carrying out function for facilitating the bot to transfer the pod.

Another object of the present invention is to reduce the fork length of the robot through the pod carrying out function as described above to increase the work efficiency and space utilization.

According to an aspect of the present invention for achieving the above object, the main body portion, the frame portion is formed on the rear side of the main body portion formed with an opening for carrying out the pod, the stage portion for mounting and transporting the pod, the pod And a FIMS door part for opening and closing the door, wherein the stage part includes an upper plate on which the pod is mounted, an intermediate plate coupled to a lower end of the upper plate and including first transport means for advancing the upper plate back and forth; A load port having a pod carrying capability is provided, comprising a lower plate coupled to a lower end of the intermediate plate and including a second transfer means for moving the intermediate plate forward and backward.

Hereinafter, with reference to the accompanying drawings will be described in detail a preferred embodiment of the present invention.

1 is a front perspective view of a load port having a pod carrying out function according to the present invention.

As shown in FIG. 1, the load port according to the present invention is largely composed of a main body 10, a frame 20, a stage 30, and a FIMS door 45.

The main body 10 has a shape such as a cabinet and has a symmetrical structure around the center. The main board, the motor unit, the gas control circuit, and the like are built in the main body 10. Function buttons 11 for operating and controlling the load port are provided at both sides of the upper surface of the main body 10.

The frame part 20 is integrally formed with the main body part 10 at the rear end side of the upper surface of the main body part 10 or is attached to the main body part 10. The frame portion 20 has a rectangular opening 21, which is a passage through which the FOUP 100 is transferred.

Two stage units 30 are mounted on an upper surface of the main body unit 10. When the FOUP 100 is mounted, the stage unit 30 performs forward and backward motions according to each operation order, extends to the maximum stroke in the final transfer step, and delivers the FOUP 100 to the robot of the rear stage. The detailed configuration and operation of the stage unit 30 will be described in detail with reference to FIGS. 3 and 4.

The FIMS door part 45 is installed at the rear side of the main body 10 and serves to open and close the door of the FOUP 100. A latch key 45-5 for opening the FOUP 100 door is formed at a front center corner of the FIMS door part 45 by being coupled to a latch hole (not shown) formed in a door (not shown) of the FOUP 100. Although not shown, a cylinder (not shown) for operating the two latch keys 45-5 is provided inside the FIMS door part 45.

At the upper left and lower right of the FIMS door portion 45, a registration pin 45-3 is disposed to check whether the FOUP 100 is normally engaged with the FIMS door portion 70, and the circumference of the registration pin 45-3 is provided. The vacuum pad 45-1 is attached to the FOUP 100 door by vacuum suction to assist in opening and transporting the FOUP 100 door.

The upper surface portion of the FIMS door portion 45 is provided with mapping means (not shown) for inspecting the state of loading of the wafer.

2 is a rear perspective view of the load port having a pod carrying out function according to the present invention.

As shown in FIG. 2, the FIMS door part 45 for opening and closing the FOUP 100 door is installed at the rear of the main body part 10, and the FIMS door part 45 is located outside the FIMS door part 45. The rear cover portion 40 is installed to surround the.

The rear cover part 40 is a kind of sealing means for preventing contamination inside the FOUP 100 in the mapping step of inspecting the loading state of the wafer. Since the purging step of the inert gas is performed in a completely sealed state before the FOUP 100 is actually brought into each manufacturing process, the rear cover portion 40 does not need to provide a complete sealed state.

According to each operation step of the FIMS door unit 45 and the rear cover unit 40, the corresponding operation is performed by raising or lowering individually, which will be described in detail later.

The gas supply unit 23 for purging the inert gas is installed at the upper rear side of the frame unit 20. Although not shown in the drawing, a plurality of purging holes (not shown) are formed on the lower surface of the gas supply unit 23 so that the gas flowing out of the purging holes descends to remove contaminated air from the FOUP 100.

In the purging step, after the rear cover part 40 is raised to form a certain closed space, the inert gas is discharged from the gas supply part 23 to maintain the inside of the FOUP 100 in a clean state.

3 is a diagram illustrating an initial state of the stage unit 30.

As shown in FIG. 3, the stage part 30 includes an upper plate 50, an intermediate plate 60, and a lower plate 70.

The upper plate 50 has an opening 51 formed in the advancing direction so that the fork of the robot, which is a wafer transfer means, can lift and transport the FOUP 100 from the lower end of the opening 51. Inside the opening 51, three kinematic coupling pins 52 and a position sensor 53 for detecting whether the FOUP 100 is normally mounted are mounted. In addition, clamping portions 54 are provided at both sides of the upper surface of the upper plate 50 to closely fix the FOUP 100 to the upper surface of the upper plate 50. The clamping part 54 is operated by pneumatic pressure to fix the FOUP 100 by moving up and down and rotating.

The intermediate plate 60 is installed below the upper plate 50, and two pairs of supports 68 are mounted at each corner of both sides, and the guide rods 64 are connected between the two supports 68. Each guide rod 64 passes through a cylinder member 67 located between two support portions 68. The cylinder member 67 has an upper surface mounted on the lower surface side of the upper plate 50 so that the cylinder member 67 is formed. When moving back and forth along the guide rod 64 is moved in conjunction.

Belt means 62 is installed at one side of the intermediate plate 60, and a first motor 61 for driving the belt means 62 is positioned between the intermediate plate 60 and the lower plate 70.

A bracket 63 is mounted on one side of the upper plate 60, and the bracket 63 is also coupled to the belt means 62, so that the bracket means 62 is driven by the first motor 61. 63 moves in conjunction with this, and as a result, the upper plate 60 on which the bracket 63 is mounted moves.

The intermediate plate 60 is equipped with first to fourth sensors 66-1 to 66-4 for detecting the position of the upper plate 60 and controlling the movement position, which will be described in more detail with reference to FIG. 4. do.

The lower plate 70 is installed below the middle plate 60, and two pairs of support parts 76 are mounted at each corner of both sides, and guide rods 77 are connected between the two support parts 76. Each guide rod 77 penetrates through a cylinder member (not shown) located between two support portions 76, and the cylinder member has an upper surface mounted on the lower surface side of the intermediate plate 60, so that the cylinder member is guide rod 77. When moving forward and backward along, it moves in conjunction.

On one side of the upper surface of the lower plate 70, the belt means 73 and the second motor 71 for driving the belt means 73 is located. When the second motor 71 drives the belt means 73, the intermediate plate 60 and the upper plate 50 move forward and backward.

In the present embodiment, the first motor 61 and the second motor 71 are geared motors, and in the case of the gear motors, since the moving distance cannot be controlled, the above-described sensors 66-1 to 66-4. ) Is required. If the step motor is used as the first motor 61 and the second motor 71, since the movement distance can be controlled, a sensor will not be required and this will also be included in the scope of the present invention.

One end of the lower plate 70 is provided with light emission and light reception sensors 74. Although not shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, reflecting means such as a mirror is installed on the inner surface of the opening 21 of the frame part 20, and the light emitted from the light emitting and receiving sensor 74 is reflected by the reflecting means. And the light reflected by the light receiving sensor 74 to recognize that there is no obstacle in the opening 21. Therefore, if a human hand or the like is located in the opening 21, the reflected light cannot be recognized by the light emission and light reception sensor 74, and thus the operation of the load port is stopped because it is recognized as a dangerous state.

The pinch sensor 65 is positioned at both ends of the other end of the lower plate 70, and when the obstacle is positioned between the pinch sensors 65, the transfer operation of the stage unit 30 is stopped.

4 is a diagram illustrating a state in which the stage part 30 is extended to the maximum stroke.

In the discharging step of the final FOUP 100, the first and second motors 61, 71 drive the belt means 62, 72 so that the belt means 62, 72 are the upper plate 50 and the intermediate plate 60. Advance to maximum stroke.

As described above, four sensors 66-1 to 66-4 are attached to the intermediate plate 60. The first sensor 66-1 is located at the left front side, and is positioned on the maximum forward movement position of the upper plate 50, so that when the upper plate 50 moves to the first sensor 66-1, the first sensor 66-1 detects this and stops the operation of the second motor 71. FIG.

 The second sensor 66-2 is located slightly rearward from the position of the first sensor 66-1 on the left side, and is located on the forward position of the upper plate 50 for opening the FOUP 100 door, When the upper plate 50 moves to the second sensor 66-2 during the door opening operation, the second sensor 66-2 detects this and stops the operation of the second motor 71.

The third sensor 66-3 is located at the left rear side, and is located on the rear retreat position of the upper plate 50 during the mapping operation, so that the third sensor 66-3 after the mapping of the upper plate 50 is completed. When retreating up to), the third sensor 66-3 detects this and stops the operation of the second motor 71.

The fourth sensor 66-4 is located slightly rearward from the position of the third sensor 66-1 on the left side, and is located at the maximum retreat position of the upper plate 50, and after the FOUP 100 is taken out, When the upper plate 50 retreats to the fourth sensor 66-4, the fourth sensor 66-4 detects this and stops the operation of the second motor 71.

As shown in FIG. 4, a state in which the stage 30 is extended to the maximum stroke and the FOUP 100 is taken out is illustrated in FIG. 5. As shown in FIG. 5, when the upper plate 50 and the lower plate 60 of the stage unit 50 move to the maximum forward position, the upper plate 50 completely penetrates through the frame unit 30 so that Since it protrudes to the rear end, the wafer transfer means can easily transfer the FOUP 100.

Hereinafter, with reference to the accompanying drawings will be described the operation of the load port having a pod carrying function according to the present invention.

Mounting Steps of the FOUP

First, when the FOUP 100 is mounted on the stage unit 30, the clamping unit 54 tightly fixes the FOUP 100 to the stage unit 30, and the kinematic coupling pin 52 and the position sensor 53. Check whether the FOUP 100 is normally installed.

Mapping phase

When the FOUP 100 is normally mounted on the stage part 30, the second motor 61 drives the belt means 62 to move the upper plate 50 to the mapping forward position. When the FIMS door portion 45 moves forward to open the FOUP 100 door portion, the upper plate 50 moves backward to the mapping retreat position by the operation of the second motor 61 and the belt means 62. When the upper plate 50 is retracted to the mapping retreat position, the FIMS door part 45 gradually descends and the mapping means provided on the upper surface of the FIMS door part 45 operates to inspect the wafer loading state in the FOUP 100. During the mapping operation, the inert gas is continuously discharged from the gas supply part 23 while the rear cover part 40 covers the opening 21 of the frame part 20 to prevent the inside of the FOUP 100 from being contaminated.

FOUP Door Locking and FOUP Reverse Steps

When mapping is complete, the FIMS door 45 rises again to lock the FOUP 100 door and the top plate 50 backs to the mapping retreat position.

FOUP export step

Finally, when the rear cover portion 40 and the FIMS door portion 45 are lowered, the first motor portion 61 and the second motor portion 71 operate at the same time so that the upper plate 50 and the intermediate plate 60 are operated. Advances to the maximum stroke and passes the FOUP 100 to the wafer transfer means at a later stage. At this time, the upper plate 50 completely protrudes beyond the frame portion 20 to the rear end of the load port to allow the FOUP transfer means to easily transfer the FOUP 100.

 According to the present invention as described above, since the stage portion for mounting the pod has a triple plate structure, the pod is carried out to advance the maximum stroke through the frame portion where the middle plate portion and the upper plate portion of the stage portion are at the interface, so that the robot at the rear end can easily transfer the pod. It is possible to provide a load port having a function.

Another object of the present invention has the effect of increasing the work efficiency and space utilization by reducing the length of the fork of the robot through the pod carrying out function as described above.

Although the present invention has been described in connection with the above-mentioned preferred embodiments, it is possible to make various modifications or variations without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. Accordingly, the appended claims will cover such modifications and variations as fall within the spirit of the invention.

Claims (10)

Main body; A frame part disposed on an upper rear side of the main body part and having an opening for carrying out pods; A stage unit for mounting and transporting the pod; FIMS door unit for opening and closing the door of the pod, The stage portion is coupled to the upper plate on which the pod is mounted, the middle plate including first transfer means coupled to the lower end of the upper plate and advancing the upper plate and the lower end of the intermediate plate, and the front and rear of the intermediate plate. A lower plate comprising a second conveying means for thickening, The load port having a pod can be carried out, characterized in that the upper plate and the intermediate plate is advanced to the maximum stroke by the first and second transfer means in the carrying out operation of the pod to carry out the pod. The method of claim 1, It is mounted to the rear portion of the main body portion, the pod out of the FIMS door portion so as to surround the FIMS door portion during the mapping operation further comprises a rear cover portion to prevent the external pollutants from entering the pod Load port with enable. The method of claim 1, The upper plate of the stage portion includes a load port having a pod carrying function, characterized in that it comprises a clamping portion for closely fixing the pod to the upper surface of the stage. The method of claim 1, The intermediate plate is Support parts installed at each corner of the intermediate plate; A guide rod connected between the supports; And a cylinder member through which the guide rod is penetrated and fastened to the upper plate. The method of claim 4, wherein The intermediate plate further comprises a plurality of sensor units for detecting the position of the upper plate to control the movement position of the upper plate load port having a pod carrying function. The method of claim 5, wherein The sensor unit A first sensor for detecting a first forward position of the top plate; A second sensor for positioning the second forward position of the upper plate; A third sensor detecting a first retracted position of the top plate; And And a fourth sensor for detecting a second retracted position of said top plate. The method of claim 4, wherein The first conveying means A first motor; First belt means driven by the first motor; And One side is coupled to the first belt means and the other side is coupled to the upper plate having a pod carrying function characterized in that it comprises a bracket for moving the upper plate forward and backward in conjunction with the operation of the first belt means. Loading port. The method of claim 1, The second conveying means A second motor; And And a second belt means which is driven by the second motor to move the intermediate plate back and forth. The method of claim 8, The frame portion includes a reflecting means on the inner surface of the opening, The lower plate further includes a light emitting and light receiving sensor unit which emits light at one end and detects the reflected light by the reflecting means to detect the presence or absence of an obstacle between the lower plate and the frame unit. Loading port. The method of claim 7, wherein The lower plate is And a pinch sensor unit disposed at both ends of the other end and detecting a presence or absence of an obstacle in the vicinity of the other end.

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