KR101033159B1 - Horizontal type apparatus for transferring a substrate - Google Patents

Abstract

A horizontal substrate transfer device is disclosed. Horizontal type substrate transfer apparatus of the present invention, the holding unit for holding the at least one area of the substrate arranged side by side with respect to the ground for transferring the substrate forcibly; And an auxiliary transfer unit disposed adjacent to the gripping transfer unit to support the substrate to be transferable. According to the present invention, it is possible to reduce noise generation and particle generation, and to produce a structure more efficient than before, and to enable high-speed transfer to a substrate.

Description

Horizontal type apparatus for transferring a substrate}

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a horizontal substrate transfer device, and more particularly, to a horizontal substrate that can reduce noise generation and particle generation, and can be manufactured in a more efficient structure than in the related art, and also capable of high-speed transfer to a substrate. It relates to a conveying device.

Generally, a substrate is a flat panel display (FPD) such as a plasma display panel (PDP), a liquid crystal display (LCD), and an organic light emitting diode (OLED), The wafer for semiconductors, the glass for photomasks, etc. are pointed out.

Although a substrate as a flat panel display device (FPD) and a substrate as a semiconductor wafer are different from each other in terms of materials and uses thereof, a series of processing processes for the substrates, for example, exposure, development, etching, stripping, rinsing, Processes, such as cleaning, are substantially very similar, and these processes proceed sequentially to produce a substrate. Hereinafter, the LCD substrate will be described as an example among flat panel display devices (FPDs).

LCD substrates are released to products through TFT process, Cell process and Module process.

The TFT process is very similar to the semiconductor manufacturing process, in which thin film transistors are arranged on a glass substrate by repeating deposition, photolithography, and etching.

In the Cell process, an alignment layer is formed on the TFT lower plate manufactured by the TFT process and the upper plate which is a color filter so as to align the liquid crystal well, and the spacers are corald and sealed printed. It is a process of bonding the plates.

The module process attaches a polarizing plate to the completed LCD panel, mounts an integrated circuit (Drive-IC), assembles it with a PCB (Printed Circuit Board), and then back-lights the unit. Point out a series of steps to assemble the tool.

The substrate transfer apparatus is provided between the processes connecting the processes or the lines connecting the processes so that the processes can be sequentially performed. For example, during the module process, a protective film attached to the polarizing plate is peeled off to protect the polarizing plate, and then a polarizing plate attaching process is performed to attach the polarizing plate from which the protective film is peeled off to the surface of the substrate. The polarizing plate attaching device in which the attaching process is performed is also equipped with a substrate conveying device for conveying the substrate.

Most of the known substrate transfer apparatuses are horizontal substrate transfer apparatuses which transfer substrates by dividing the substrate in a horizontal state. As the type of horizontal substrate transfer apparatus, a conveyor type horizontal substrate transfer apparatus and a roller type horizontal substrate transfer apparatus are known.

Among the horizontal substrate transfer apparatuses, a roller-type horizontal substrate transfer apparatus, which is frequently used in a process, includes a contact type that rotates a rotating shaft coupled with a roller by a combination of a motor and a bevel gear, and a magnet. There is known a non-contact method of rotationally driving a rotating shaft coupled with a roller by a non-contact method by magnetic force of. The latter non-contact method has an advantage of reducing noise and particle generation than the former contact method.

However, in the prior art, in the case of a non-contact type horizontal substrate transfer apparatus using magnetics, the manufacturing cost of the substrate transfer apparatus is generally increased because of the high magnetic cost, and in particular, even though the non-contact method using the expensive magnetic is applied. When the high speed transfer to the substrate is difficult as required by the process, and the rotation shaft sag due to the load of the substrate, the front end of the substrate may collide with the rollers of the adjacent rotation shaft when the substrate is transferred, thereby causing damage to the substrate. have.

In other words, in view of the fact that a variety of facilities for manufacturing 11th generation substrates having a length and width of about 3 meters (m) are planned to be applied in the field, a substrate for transferring such a large area substrate to the facilities In the case of the transfer apparatus, the roller or the rotating shaft supporting the substrate may sag due to the weight of the substrate. When the rotating shaft sags, the front end of the substrate hits the roller of the preceding rotating shaft during transfer of the substrate, resulting in damage to the substrate. As it can be continued, it is expected that the research on the high speed transfer of the substrate should be carried out together.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is to provide a horizontal substrate transfer apparatus that can reduce noise generation and particle generation, and can be manufactured in a more efficient structure than the conventional one, and also capable of high-speed transfer to a substrate.

The object is, according to the present invention, a holding unit for holding the at least one area of the substrate arranged side by side with respect to the ground for transferring the substrate forcibly; And an auxiliary transfer unit disposed adjacent to the gripping transfer unit to support the substrate so as to be transferable.

Here, the auxiliary transfer unit may be a non-contact auxiliary transfer unit of a non-contact type to raise the substrate by a predetermined height by at least one air floating module, the gripping transfer unit is a substrate of a predetermined height lifted by the auxiliary transfer unit The substrate may be forcibly transferred by holding at least one region.

The auxiliary transport unit may be provided by a plurality of air floatation modules arranged side by side with a spaced apart from each other, the gripping transport unit may be provided in at least one region of the area between the plurality of air floatation modules.

The gripping transfer unit, the unit body is formed in the air flow space; And a plurality of vacuum holes coupled to the unit body in the upper direction of the unit body so as to be movable relative to the unit body in a moving direction, and communicating with the air flow space of the unit body for vacuum adsorption of the substrate. It may include a forced conveying belt.

A vacuum slot communicating with the plurality of vacuum holes formed in the forced conveyance belt may be formed on the upper surface of the unit body.

The vacuum slot may be divided or formed continuously in sections on the upper surface of the unit body in the longitudinal direction of the forced conveying belt.

The air flow space in the unit body may be divided into a plurality of zones in which a vacuum is formed separately from each other.

The apparatus may further include a vacuum pad coupled to a surface of the forced conveyance belt to substantially contact the bottom surface of the substrate, and having a communication hole formed on the surface thereof to communicate with a plurality of vacuum holes formed in the forced conveyance belt.

The vacuum pad may further include a seating support wing having an inner surface concave to allow the substrate to be substantially seated and to increase a contact area with respect to the substrate.

The seating support wing portion may be made of an elastic material having elasticity, and the communication hole may be formed as a long hole.

On the surface of the unit body is formed a pair of rails protruding side by side with a spaced apart from each other, the inner surface of the forced conveying belt a plurality of rail blocks in contact with the surface of the unit body from the outside of the pair of rails It may be formed, the side suction portion for sucking the air around the gripping transport unit may be further formed between the plurality of rail blocks.

It may further include a check valve coupled to the communication hole region of the vacuum pad, for selectively opening and closing the flow of vacuum through the communication hole based on whether the substrate is in contact with the surface of the vacuum pad.

The check valve may include a shaft portion disposed in the vertical direction in the communication hole region; A head portion which forms an upper end portion of the shaft portion and is exposed to the surface of the vacuum pad; A hole opening and closing portion provided at a lower end portion of the shaft portion opposite to the head portion to selectively open and close one section of the communication hole; And an elastic member coupled to the shaft portion to elastically bias in the direction in which the head portion is exposed to the surface of the vacuum pad.

The vacuum pad may be made of ultra high molecular weight polyethylene (UHMW-PE, Ultra High Molecular Weight-PolyEthylene), and the check valve may be made of a peak material.

The gripping transfer unit is provided on the unit body in such a manner as to cover both upper regions of the forced transfer belt with the forced transfer belt interposed therebetween to further prevent the scattering of the particles generated during transfer of the substrate. Can include

The upper end of the scattering shield may have a lower position than the surface of the vacuum pad.

An air circulation line may be further formed at one side of the unit body, and a filter may be further provided at an area of the air circulation line to remove foreign substances in the air discharged from the unit body.

The gripping transfer unit may include a plurality of unit transfer units disposed along an X-axis direction, which is a direction in which the substrate is transferred, and the plurality of unit transfer units may include any one of an area between the plurality of air floating modules. In the X-axis direction may be disposed continuously or in a zigzag manner in the area between the plurality of the air floating module.

The plurality of unit iso units disposed in the zigzag manner may further include overlapping sections overlapping each other along the Y-axis direction, which is a direction crossing the X-axis direction.

The forced conveying belt may have a closed loop shape, and the gripping conveying unit may include: a driving pulley disposed inside one side of the forced conveying belt; A driven pulley disposed inside the other side of the forced conveying belt; And a drive motor coupled to the drive pulley to provide rotational power of the forced transfer belt.

The apparatus may further include an up / down driving unit connected to the gripping transfer unit to drive the gripping transfer unit up / down.

According to the present invention, it is possible to manufacture at a much lower cost than in the prior art, and high-speed transfer to the substrate is possible, and the phenomenon in which the substrate collides with a roller, a rotating shaft, or the like during the transfer of the substrate can be prevented.

In order to fully understand the present invention, the operational advantages of the present invention, and the objects achieved by the practice of the present invention, reference should be made to the accompanying drawings which illustrate preferred embodiments of the present invention and the contents described in the accompanying drawings.

Hereinafter, the present invention will be described in detail by explaining preferred embodiments of the present invention with reference to the accompanying drawings. Like reference numerals in the drawings denote like elements.

1 is a perspective view of a horizontal substrate transfer apparatus according to a first embodiment of the present invention, Figure 2 is a plan view of Figure 1, Figure 3 is a partially exploded perspective view of the gripping transfer unit, Figure 4 is a schematic view of the gripping transfer unit 5 and 6 are side views of FIG. 1 showing the operation of the gripping transfer unit, respectively, and FIGS. 7A to 7C schematically illustrate the operation of the horizontal substrate transfer device shown in FIG. Figures are shown.

As shown in these figures, the horizontal substrate transfer apparatus according to the present embodiment is a gripper transfer unit for forcibly transferring a substrate by holding at least one region of the substrate horizontally, that is, arranged side by side with respect to the ground ( 100 and the auxiliary transfer unit 200 disposed adjacent to the gripping transfer unit 100 to support the substrate to be transferable.

First, the auxiliary transfer unit 200 will be described. In the present embodiment, the auxiliary transfer unit 200 is provided as a non-contact auxiliary transfer unit of a non-contact type to lift the substrate by a predetermined height by a plurality of air floating modules 210.

That is, as shown in Figure 1 and 2, the plurality of air-floating module 210 is arranged side by side on the device body 220 with a spaced apart from each other to raise the substrate loaded (loaded) to the upper surface a predetermined height. Play a role.

To this end, a plurality of through-holes 211 are formed on the surface of the air floating module 210. As the air provided from the device body 220 is discharged through the plurality of through holes 211, the substrate may be raised to a predetermined height. Referring to the drawings, six air flotation modules 210 are provided on the apparatus main body 220, but the number thereof cannot limit the scope of the present invention. In addition, the separation interval of the air floating module 210 is also not necessarily equal intervals.

The gripping transfer unit 100 is provided in a region selected from among the air floating modules 210. In the present exemplary embodiment, one grip transfer unit 100 is provided in a state parallel to the air floatation module 210 in the central region of the air floatation modules 210, but it is not necessary to do so.

The gripping transfer unit 100 is in direct contact with the substrate lifted by a predetermined height by the air floating modules 210 to substantially transfer the substrate. The gripping transfer unit 100 includes an air flow space ( 111 is provided with a unit body 110, and a forced conveyance belt 120.

The unit body 110 is a portion fixed at the corresponding position, whereas the forced conveyance belt 120 is in direct contact with the substrate serves to transfer the substrate. The forced conveyance belt 120 is coupled to the unit body 100 in the upper portion of the unit body 100 so as to be relatively movable along the transfer direction of the substrate.

In addition, a plurality of vacuum holes 121 are formed on the surface of the forced conveyance belt 120 to communicate with the air flow space 111 of the unit body 100 for vacuum adsorption of the substrate. The plurality of vacuum holes 121 are disposed at equal intervals between the plurality of vacuum holes 121 in the longitudinal direction of the forced conveyance belt 120, but are not necessarily equal to each other.

In relation to the operation of the vacuum hole 121, the forced conveyance belt 120 of the gripper conveying unit 100, the surface of which is the same height or lower than the air floating module 210, the air floating module ( In order to contact the lower surface of the substrate, which is lifted further by a predetermined height from the substrates, and the vacuum suction of the substrate, the holding transfer unit 100 should be up so that the forced conveyance belt 120 contacts the lower surface of the substrate during the transfer operation. .

To this end, an up / down driving unit 140 is further provided to be connected to the gripping transfer unit 100 to drive the gripping transfer unit 100 up / down. That is, when the transfer operation of the substrate is carried out in the standby state as shown in FIG. 5, the gripping transfer unit 100 is further up (up) by the up / down driving unit 140 as shown in FIG. 6. Forced conveyance belt 120 allows the substrate to be supported by adsorption. The up / down driving unit 140 may be applied as a cylinder or a linear motor.

The forced conveyance belt 120 has a closed loop shape like a conventional conveyor belt, so that the gripper conveying unit 100 is forcibly conveyed to the substrate while the forced conveyance belt 120 rotates. As described above, the driving pulley 131 disposed inside one side of the forced conveyance belt 120, the driven pulley 132 disposed inside the other side of the forced conveyance belt 120, and coupled to the driving pulley 132 forcibly It is provided with a drive motor 133 for providing rotational power of the conveyance belt (120).

The upper surface of the unit body 110 is formed with a vacuum slot 112 in communication with a plurality of vacuum holes 121 formed in the forced conveyance belt 120. The vacuum slot 112 is formed in the stepped portion 114 stepped downward from the upper surface of the unit body 110. In addition, an air circulation passage 113 is formed on a lower surface of the unit body 110 facing the vacuum slot 112.

In the present embodiment, as shown in Figure 3, the air flow space 111 in the unit body 110 is divided into a plurality of zones (Z1, Z2, Z3 ,, zone) in which a vacuum is formed separately from each other There is a vacuum slot 112 is formed on the upper surface of the unit body 110 to correspond to each zone (Z1, Z2, Z3 ,,, one).

Thus, the air flow space 111 in the unit body 110 is formed of a plurality of zones (Z1, Z2, Z3) in which a vacuum is formed separately from each other and correspond to each zone (Z1, Z2, Z3 ,,,) one by one. In the case where the vacuum slot 112 is formed by dividing, even if a leak of vacuum is generated in one zone (Z1, Z2, Z3 ,,), through the other zones (Z1, Z2, Z3 ,,) Since the vacuum can be provided, vacuum suction between the forced conveyance belt 120 and the substrate is released, thereby preventing the transfer of the substrate to failure.

However, since the scope of the present invention does not need to be limited thereto, unlike FIG. 3, the vacuum slot 112 may be continuously formed on the upper surface of the unit body 110 along the longitudinal direction of the forced conveyance belt 120. In addition, the air flow space 111 in the unit body 110 is also not necessarily formed of a plurality of zones (Z1, Z2, Z3) in which a vacuum is formed separately.

Thus, when a vacuum pump (not shown) disposed inside the apparatus main body 220 is operated, the vacuum holes 121 and the vacuum slots 112 may be removed from the outside of the vacuum holes 121 as shown in the arrow direction of FIG. 4. As the vacuum is formed toward the air flow space 111 and the air circulation passage 113 in the unit body 100, the substrate can be adsorbed in a vacuum on the surface of the forced conveyance belt 120. In actual experiments, even if the 11th generation substrate of about 3 meters (m) in length and width, the vacuum suction force of the forced conveying belt 120 is strong enough to confirm that there is no problem in transferring the substrate at high speed It has been.

The operation of the horizontal substrate transfer apparatus having such a configuration will be described below with reference to FIG. 7.

First, when the substrate to be transferred is supplied to the horizontal substrate transfer apparatus of the present embodiment, at the same time, air provided from the apparatus main body 220 is discharged through a plurality of through holes 211 formed on the surface of the air floating module 210. As a result, the substrate may be raised to a predetermined height in a state as shown in FIG.

When the substrate floats, the gripping transfer unit 100 is operated. That is, as shown in Figure 5, the upper surface is the same or slightly lower than the upper surface of the air floating module 210, the gripper transfer unit 100 is waiting for air by the operation of the up / down drive unit 140 as shown in FIG. It is further up (up) than the floating module (210) to force the conveying belt 120 to contact the lower surface of the substrate.

Subsequently, when the vacuum pump (not shown) disposed inside the apparatus main body 220 is operated, the vacuum holes 121 and the vacuum slots 112 are removed from the outside of the vacuum holes 121 as shown in the arrow direction of FIG. 4. As the vacuum is formed toward the air flow space 111 and the air circulation passage 113 in the unit body 100 via the substrate, the substrate can be adsorbed in a vacuum on the surface of the forced conveyance belt 120 (FIG. 7 ( b)).

After the forced conveying belt 120 sucks the substrate in a vacuum, the driving motor 133 is operated to rotate the forced conveying belt 120 wound around the driving pulley 132 and the driven pulley 132 in the form of a closed loop. In addition, the substrate in a state of being already in a predetermined height by the air floating module 210 may be transferred as shown in FIG. 7C due to the forced transfer belt 120.

As such, according to the present embodiment, since it is possible to manufacture only a simple configuration of the air floating module 210 and the gripping transfer unit 100 without using expensive components such as a magnet as in the prior art at a much lower cost There is an advantage to manufacture a horizontal substrate transfer device.

In addition, since the structure in which the forced conveying belt 120 of the gripping transfer unit 100 is forcibly transported to the substrate injured by the air floating module 210 is reduced, noise and particles are reduced. It is possible, but the transfer speed of the substrate can be much faster than the conventional has the advantage that the high-speed transfer to the substrate is possible. When the high-speed transfer to the substrate as described above, the processing speed of the various processes for the substrate can be increased by that it can contribute to the improved yield and productivity.

In addition, in the present embodiment, since the substrate is transported in a state of being injured by the air flotation modules 210, the substrate is damaged by hitting a roller (not shown) or a rotating shaft (not shown) during the transfer of the substrate. The phenomenon can be prevented.

FIG. 8 is a schematic cross-sectional view of the gripping transfer unit in the horizontal substrate transfer apparatus according to the second embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 9 is a cross-sectional view of an operating state of FIG. 8, and FIG. 10 is an enlarged view of a main part of FIG. 9.

The gripping transfer unit 100a of this embodiment has the same function as the gripping transfer unit 100 of the above-described embodiment, but has a slightly different configuration.

In this regard, first, the shape of the unit body 110a is different. Of course, the shape of the unit body (110a) is not limited to the scope of the present invention, the unit body (110a) of the same form as the present embodiment can be easily produced by extrusion molding, etc., and other devices on the side Assembling unit 110b and the like for assembling can be formed, thereby increasing convenience in assembling the transport apparatus.

In the case of the gripping transfer unit 100a of this embodiment, the surface of the forced transfer belt 120 is further provided with a vacuum pad 151 for substantially contacting the bottom surface of the substrate while preventing scratches from occurring on the substrate.

The vacuum pad 151 may be separately manufactured as shown and coupled to the surface of the forced conveyance belt 120, or may be in the form of applying a coating film to the surface of the forced conveyance belt 120. In any case, a communication hole 152 communicating with a plurality of vacuum holes 121 formed in the forced conveyance belt 120 should be formed on the surface of the forced conveyance belt 120, so that the communication hole 152 and the vacuum hole may be formed. The flow of air through the air circulation line 153, which will be described later, is formed (121) and the substrate can be adsorbed by vacuum.

On the other hand, in order to maximize the vacuum efficiency by the gripping transfer unit (100a), that is, one area of the gripping transfer unit (100a) that is substantially in contact with the substrate on the gripping transfer unit (100a) is provided long along the process line Only a check valve 154 is further provided in the gripping transfer unit 100a of the present embodiment in order to solve the loss or leakage of the vacuum caused by the vacuum being formed only to the unnecessary portion.

The check valve 154 is coupled to an area of the communication hole 152 of the vacuum pad 151 to selectively select the flow of vacuum through the communication hole 152 based on whether the substrate contacts the surface of the vacuum pad 151. Serves to open and close.

The check valve 154 may include a shaft portion 154a disposed in the up and down direction in the communication hole 152 area, and an upper end portion of the shaft portion 154a and exposed to the surface of the vacuum pad 151. 154b and a hole opening / closing portion 154c for selectively opening and closing a section of the communication hole 152 provided at the lower end of the shaft portion 154a opposite to the head portion 154b, and coupled to the shaft portion 154a to provide a head portion ( The elastic member 154d is elastically biased in the direction in which the 154b is exposed to the surface of the vacuum pad 151. As shown, the hole opening and closing portion 154c may be applied as a ball type, and the elastic member 154d may be applied as a compression spring, but it is not necessarily so.

Thus, as shown in FIG. 8, the substrate is not in contact with the surface of the vacuum pad 151, and as shown in FIGS. 9 and 10, the substrate is supported on the surface of the vacuum pad 151 to be provided in the vacuum pad 151. When the head portion 154b of the check valve 154 is pressurized, one section of the communication hole 152 as the head portion 154b, the shaft portion 154a, and the hole opening / closing portion 154c is lowered by the weight of the substrate. Open to the air flow as shown by the arrow of FIG. Therefore, the substrate can be supported by the suction on the surface of the vacuum pad 151. In this case, the elastic member 154d is in a compressed state.

However, as shown in FIG. 8, if the substrate is spaced apart from the surface of the vacuum pad 151, the compressed elastic member 154d is expanded to its original state, and thus the head portion 154b, the shaft portion 154a, and the hole opening and closing portion 154c are provided. ) Is returned to its original position and thus the air flow is blocked as the hole opening and closing part 154c shields one section of the communication hole 152.

As described above, by applying the check valve 154 having such a structure and operation to the vacuum pad 151 so that the vacuum is formed only in a state where the substrate is substantially in contact with each other, a loss problem caused by unnecessary vacuum is formed, In addition, it is possible to effectively eliminate the leakage of the vacuum (leak) problem.

In this embodiment, the vacuum pad 151 is made of ultra high molecular weight polyethylene (UHMW-PE, Ultra High Molecular Weight-PolyEthylene) material, and the check valve 154 is made of a peak material, but the matter is It is not possible to limit the scope of the invention. For example, the vacuum pad 151 may be made of fluorine rubber or the like.

In addition, the gripping transfer unit 100a according to the present embodiment is provided on the unit body 110a in such a manner as to cover both upper regions of the forced transfer belt 120 with the forced transfer belt 120 interposed therebetween. A scattering prevention shield 155 for preventing the scattering is further provided.

Shatterproof shield 155 may be manufactured separately and coupled to the unit body (110a), or, as in this embodiment, the shatterproof shield 155 may be integrally formed when the unit body (110a). .

However, in forming the shatterproof shield 155, the shatterproof shield 155 should not be in contact with the lower surface of the substrate, so that the height H1 of the upper portion of the shatterproof shield 155 is the surface of the vacuum pad 151. You will have to have a position lower than (H2). In the case of the first embodiment in which the vacuum pad 151 is not provided, the height H1 of the upper end of the shatterproof shield 155 should have a position lower than the surface of the forced conveyance belt 120.

And in the case of the gripping transfer unit (100a) of the present embodiment, a filter (not shown) is further provided in the region of the air circulation line 153. When the filter is provided in the area of the air circulation line 153, it is good to keep the environment of the working space clean, and also circulates the air sucked by the gripping transfer unit 100a to the air floating modules 210. This is advantageous because it can remove foreign matter in the air for reuse. For reference, a blower for suctioning air is provided at the rear end of the air circulation line 153, and it is sufficient if the filter is detachably assembled at the inlet end of the blower.

11 is a plan view of a horizontal substrate transfer apparatus according to a third embodiment of the present invention.

In the above-described first embodiment, one gripping transfer unit 100 is provided along the transfer direction of the substrate between six air floating modules 210.

As mentioned earlier, the gripping transfer unit 100 may be provided in one area (middle area or end area) among the areas between the plurality of air floating modules 210, or may be provided in number. good.

However, in the case where the distance that the substrate is to be transported is long, the air floatation module 210 or the gripping transfer unit 100 having an indefinite length cannot be manufactured. 100 is generally used assembled and assembled along the X-axis direction, which is the direction in which the substrate is transferred. In this case, the gripping transfer unit (not shown) may be continuously connected along the X-axis direction, or FIG. 11. As described above, the gripping transfer unit 100b may be arranged along the X-axis direction after being arranged in a zigzag manner between the air floating modules 210.

In the latter case, as shown in FIG. 11, it is preferable that overlapping sections O overlapping each other along the Y-axis direction exist between the gripping transfer units 100b arranged in a zigzag manner, so that during the transfer of the substrate, It is possible to solve the problem of breakage of the substrate which may be caused. Of course, the overlapping section O does not have to exist.

FIG. 12 is a partial perspective view of a gripper conveying unit in a horizontal substrate transfer apparatus according to a fourth embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 13 is an exploded perspective view of FIG.

As shown in these figures, the gripping transfer unit 100c of the present embodiment has the same function and role as the gripping transfer unit 100, 100a, 100b of the above-described embodiment, but the structure is provided in some different ways. In particular, since the structure of the gripping transfer unit 100c of the present embodiment is similar to that of the gripping transfer unit 100a of the second embodiment described above, it will be described based on the gripping transfer unit 100a of the second embodiment.

First, in the case of the gripping transfer unit 100c of the present embodiment, a vacuum pad 151 is provided in the same manner as the gripping transfer unit 100a of the second embodiment, which is different from the second embodiment in the upper portion of the vacuum pad 151. The seating support wing portion 151a is further provided.

The seating support wing portion 151a is a portion on which the substrate is substantially seated and supported, and is made of an elastic material having elasticity while the inner surface is concave so as to increase the contact area with respect to the substrate.

In the case of providing the seating support wing 151a as described above, even if the diarrhea substrate is disposed slightly inclined rather than being completely horizontal from the surface of the seating support wing 151a, the seating support wing 151a of an elastic material is provided. The corresponding deformation can support the substrate, thereby reducing the occurrence of leaks between the substrate and the substrate.

In the present embodiment, while manufacturing the mounting support wing 151a in the shape of an ellipse in consideration of efficiency, while forming the communication hole 152b therein in the long hole, the scope of the present invention does not need to be limited thereto. .

In addition, in the grip transfer unit 100c according to the present embodiment, the vacuum is formed in only one region of the grip transfer unit 100c to which the substrate is in contact with the vacuum pad 151 region. Alternatively, a check valve 154 is provided as a means for solving the leak problem of vacuum. The structure and function of the check valve 154 are the same as in the second embodiment, and thus description thereof will be omitted.

 On the other hand, in the present embodiment, a pair of rails 115 are formed on the surface of the unit body (110c) protruding side by side with a spaced interval between each other, a pair of rails on the inner surface of the forced conveying belt (120c) A plurality of rail blocks 125 are formed on the outside of the 115 in contact with the surface of the unit body 110c.

As the pair of rails 115 and the plurality of rail blocks 125 engage each other in a rail manner, the force transfer belt 120c rotates with respect to the unit body 110c, thereby forcibly transferring the substrate.

In this structure, the side suction portion 126 is further formed between the plurality of rail blocks 125 of the forced conveyance belt (120c) to suck the air around the gripping transfer unit (100c). The side suction part 126 may be naturally formed between the plurality of rail blocks 125 as the plurality of rail blocks 125 are formed in an uneven shape, and the side suction part 126 is formed to transfer the substrate. There is an advantage that can be discharged to the outside of the device by sucking the foreign matter or particles that can be generated in the interior of the unit body (110c).

As described above, the present invention is not limited to the described embodiments, and various modifications and changes can be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention, which will be apparent to those skilled in the art. Therefore, such modifications or variations will have to be belong to the claims of the present invention.

1 is a perspective view of a horizontal substrate transfer apparatus according to a first embodiment of the present invention.

2 is a plan view of Fig.

3 is a partially exploded perspective view of the gripping transfer unit.

4 is a schematic cross-sectional view of the holding transfer unit.

5 and 6 are side views of Fig. 1 showing the operation of the gripping transfer unit, respectively.

7 (a) to 7 (c) are diagrams schematically showing the operation of the horizontal substrate transfer apparatus shown in FIG.

8 is a schematic cross-sectional view of a gripper conveying unit in a horizontal substrate conveying apparatus according to a second embodiment of the present invention.

9 is a cross-sectional view of the operating state of FIG. 8.

10 is an enlarged view illustrating main parts of FIG. 9.

11 is a plan view of a horizontal substrate transfer apparatus according to a third embodiment of the present invention.

12 is a partial perspective view of the gripper conveying unit in the horizontal substrate transfer apparatus according to the fourth embodiment of the present invention.

13 is an exploded perspective view of FIG. 12.

* Explanation of symbols for the main parts of the drawings

100: holding unit 110: unit body

111: air flow space 112: vacuum slot

120: forced conveying belt 121: vacuum hole

131: driven pulley 132: driven pulley

133: drive motor 140: up / down drive unit

200: auxiliary transfer unit 210: air floating module

211: through-hole 220: device body

Claims (21)

A holding unit for holding the at least one region of the substrate arranged side by side with respect to the ground to forcibly transfer the substrate; And An auxiliary transfer unit disposed adjacent to the gripping transfer unit to support the substrate to be transferable; The auxiliary transfer unit is a non-contact auxiliary transfer unit of a non-contact type to raise the substrate by a predetermined height by at least one air floating module is provided by a plurality of air floating modules arranged side by side at intervals from each other, The gripping transfer unit grips at least one region of the substrate lifted by a predetermined height by the auxiliary transfer unit to forcibly transfer the substrate, and is provided in at least one region among the plurality of air floating modules. The gripping transfer unit, A unit body having an airflow space partitioned into a plurality of zones in which vacuums are formed separately from each other; And Forced to form a plurality of vacuum holes in the upper portion of the unit body relative to the unit body relative to the transfer direction of the substrate, a plurality of vacuum holes in communication with the air flow space of the unit body for the vacuum adsorption of the substrate Horizontal substrate transfer apparatus comprising a transfer belt. delete delete delete The method of claim 1, And a vacuum slot communicating with the plurality of vacuum holes formed in the forced conveyance belt is formed on the upper surface of the unit body. The method of claim 5, Wherein the vacuum slot is a horizontal substrate transfer apparatus, characterized in that formed in each section is formed on the upper surface of the unit body along the longitudinal direction of the forced conveying belt divided into sections or continuously formed. delete The method of claim 1, And a vacuum pad coupled to the surface of the forced conveyance belt to substantially contact the bottom surface of the substrate, and having a communication hole formed therein, the communication hole communicating with a plurality of vacuum holes formed in the forced conveyance belt. Horizontal substrate feeder. The method of claim 8, The vacuum pad may further include a mounting support wing having an inner surface concave to allow the substrate to be substantially seated and to increase an area of contact with the substrate. 10. The method of claim 9, The seating support wing is made of an elastic material having elasticity, The communication hole is a horizontal substrate transfer apparatus, characterized in that formed in the long hole. 10. The method of claim 9, On the surface of the unit body is formed a pair of rails protruding side by side with a spaced apart from each other, the inner surface of the forced conveying belt a plurality of rail blocks in contact with the surface of the unit body from the outside of the pair of rails Is formed, A horizontal substrate transfer device, characterized in that the side suction portion for sucking the air around the holding unit is further formed between the plurality of rail blocks. The method of claim 8, And a check valve coupled to the communication hole region of the vacuum pad, for selectively opening and closing the flow of vacuum through the communication hole based on whether the substrate contacts the surface of the vacuum pad. Balanced substrate feeder. The method of claim 12, The check valve, A shaft portion disposed in the vertical direction in the communication hole region; A head portion which forms an upper end portion of the shaft portion and is exposed to the surface of the vacuum pad; A hole opening and closing portion provided at a lower end portion of the shaft portion opposite to the head portion to selectively open and close one section of the communication hole; And And an elastic member coupled to the shaft to elastically bias in a direction in which the head portion is exposed to the surface of the vacuum pad. The method of claim 12, The vacuum pad is made of ultra high molecular weight polyethylene (UHMW-PE, Ultra High Molecular Weight-PolyEthylene) material, the check valve is a horizontal substrate transfer device, characterized in that made of a peak (Peek) material. The method of claim 8, The gripping transfer unit is provided on the unit body in such a manner as to cover both upper regions of the forced transfer belt with the forced transfer belt interposed therebetween to further prevent the scattering of the particles generated during transfer of the substrate. Horizontal substrate transfer apparatus comprising a. The method of claim 15, And an upper end portion of the shield for preventing scattering has a lower position than a surface of the vacuum pad. The method of claim 8, One side of the unit body is further formed with an air circulation line, Horizontal substrate transfer apparatus, characterized in that further provided in the area of the air circulation line filter for removing foreign matter in the air discharged from the unit body. The method of claim 1, The gripping transfer unit includes a plurality of unit transfer units disposed along an X axis direction, which is a direction in which the substrate is transferred. The plurality of unit transfer units may be continuously disposed along the X-axis direction in any one of the areas between the plurality of air floating modules, or may be arranged in a zigzag manner in the areas between the plurality of air floating modules. Horizontal substrate transfer apparatus, characterized in that. The method of claim 18, And a plurality of overlapping sections overlapping each other along the Y-axis direction, which is a direction crossing the X-axis direction, between the plurality of unit iso units arranged in the zigzag manner. The method of claim 1, The forced conveying belt has a closed loop shape, The gripping transfer unit, A driving pulley disposed inside one side of the forced conveying belt; A driven pulley disposed inside the other side of the forced conveying belt; And And a drive motor coupled to the drive pulley to provide rotational power of the forced transfer belt. The method of claim 1, And an up / down driving unit connected to the gripping transfer unit to drive the gripping transfer unit up / down.

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