KR101264285B1 - Device for locking cover of wafer carrier - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to a wafer carrier cover locking device, wherein the first conveying guide groove and the second conveying guide groove of the rotating cam are formed to be non-symmetric with each other, and thus, along the first conveying guide groove and the second conveying guide groove. By moving the first locking bar and the second locking bar at a time difference with each other and locking and unlocking the cover, the amount of rotational torque required in the locking and unlocking process of the cover is displaced at a time interval within the range of the maximum rotational torque defined. In more stable, has the effect of allowing the locking and closing operation of the cover can be made.

Description

Wafer Carrier Cover Lock {DEVICE FOR LOCKING COVER OF WAFER CARRIER}

The present invention relates to a wafer carrier cover locking device, and more particularly, to distribute the rotation torque magnitude required in the process of locking and unlocking the cover at a time difference to more securely lock and close the cover within a prescribed maximum rotation torque range. A wafer carrier cover locking device to enable a lock release operation.

As is well known, a wafer carrier refers to wafer transfer and transfer containers for transferring and conveying silicon wafers used in a semiconductor device manufacturing process through each unit of semiconductor manufacturing process.

Wafer carriers are Front Opening Shipping Boxes (FOSBs) used for transport and storage, and Front Open Unified for use in process as well as transport and storage. Pod: hereafter referred to as FOUP).

 The POSB includes a body having an inner accommodating space for accommodating the wafers, and a cover for opening and closing the front opening of the body.

On the other hand, the cover is provided with a locking device for maintaining the locked state when closing by closing the opening of the body in which the wafer is accommodated therein.

In the case of the conventional POSBI cover lock device, a pair of lock bars interlocked by rotating the pivoting cam moves simultaneously and is configured to maintain the lock state of the cover or to release the lock state for the opening of the cover.

On the other hand, since the conveyance and conveyance of the wafer carried through the POSB is made in the high vacuum and ultra-clean zone, the use of lubricant is not only limited, but a low-strength and soft material is used so that particles are not generated by friction of the parts.

Therefore, since the magnitude of the rotational torque that can be used in the process of opening and closing the cover through the cover locking means is defined to be within a predetermined range, the cover and the unlocking of the cover stably within the limited maximum rotational torque There is a need for the development of a lid lock that allows operation.

An object of the present invention for solving the above problems, the locking and unlocking of the cover within the range of the prescribed rotational force by dispersing the size of the rotational force required when locking and unlocking the cover locking device for opening and closing the cover at a time difference It is to provide a wafer carrier cover lock device to facilitate the operation.

Wafer carrier cover locking device of the present invention for achieving the above object, the body having one side is opened and a storage space for receiving a wafer therein; A cover for closing and closing the opening of the body; And at least one cover locking means installed in the cover to close the opening of the body to maintain the locked state of the cover when the cover is closed. The cover locking means may be rotatably installed. Rotating Cam; And locking the cover by a locking groove provided on both sides of the opening of the body by linearly moving in both directions in the width direction of the cover along the guide curved surfaces of the first transfer guide groove and the second transfer guide groove on both sides of the rotation cam. And a pair of locking bars that are installed to maintain the state or exit the locking grooves to release the locking state, wherein the first transfer guide grooves and the second transfer guide grooves are locked at a time difference from each other. Characterized by forming a non-rotational symmetry (Non Rotational Symmetry) to maintain or unlock.

Here, the first conveyance guide groove has a deviation angle θ2 within a range of 2 ° to 8 ° with respect to the same starting point of the second conveyance guide groove with respect to the center line passing through the rotation center point of the pivoting cam, and 172 ° to It is preferable to form a non-rotationally symmetric rotation angle within the range of 178 °.

In addition, the first conveyance guide groove and the second conveyance guide groove are formed to form different groove angles along the circumferential direction of the rotation cam, the groove angle formed by the first conveyance guide groove and the second conveyance guide groove The deviation of is preferably within the range of 2 ° to 8 °.

In addition, the guide curved surface portion of the first conveyance guide groove and the guide curved surface portion of the second conveyance guide groove are formed to have a different curvature, and the guide curved surface portion of the first conveyance guide groove is the guide curved surface of the second conveyance guide groove. It is preferable to have a larger curvature along the circumferential direction of the rotational cam than to be steep.

The rotating cam may include two first rotating cams and a second rotating cam spaced apart from each other along the longitudinal direction of the cover, and the locking bar may include the first transfer guide groove and the first rotating cam of the first rotating cam. A first locking bar and a second locking bar installed to be folded or unfolded along a width direction of the cover along a second transfer guide groove; And a first locking bar and a second locking bar which are installed to be folded or unfolded along the width direction of the cover along the first transfer guide groove and the second transfer guide groove of the second pivoting cam. The first locking bar interlocking with the first locking bar interlocked with the first pivoting cam installed in a diagonal direction is simultaneously locked and released, and the second locking bar interlocking with the first pivoting cam in a diagonal direction. Preferably, the second locking bar interlocked with the second pivoting cam to be installed is locked and released at the same time.

According to the wafer carrier cover locking device of the present invention, the first conveyance guide groove and the second conveyance guide groove of the rotating cam are formed to be non-symmetric with each other, thereby forming the first conveyance guide groove and the second conveyance guide groove. The first locking bar and the second locking bar moving along each other have a time difference with each other and allow the cover to be locked and unlocked so as to disperse the maximum rotational force required in the process of locking and unlocking the cover at a time difference within the range of the prescribed rotation torque. It has the effect of making it more stable in.

1 is a perspective view showing a wafer carrier according to a first embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view illustrating a state in which a cover of the wafer carrier of FIG. 1 is removed.
FIG. 3 is a plan view of the cover from which the top plate of FIG. 2 is separated.
4 is a perspective view illustrating the rotating cam of FIG. 3 separately.
5 is a plane view of the rotation cam of FIG.
FIG. 6 is a side cross-sectional view taken along line VI-VI of FIG. 3.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings so that those skilled in the art can easily carry out the present invention. The present invention may, however, be embodied in many different forms and should not be construed as limited to the embodiments set forth herein. In order to clearly illustrate the present invention, parts not related to the description are omitted, and the same or similar components are denoted by the same reference numerals throughout the specification.

1 is a perspective view showing a wafer carrier according to a first embodiment of the present invention, Figure 2 is an exploded perspective view showing a state in which the cover of the wafer carrier of Figure 1 is removed.

Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2, the wafer carrier 1 in this embodiment is a body 10 and a cover 20 covering a front opening of the body 10. do.

The body 10 has an open front surface and has an inner accommodating space 11 for accommodating a wafer (not shown) therein.

The inside of the body 10 is formed by protruding the side and rear retainers 15 on both sides and the rear of the body so that the wafers (not shown) are layered and spaced apart from each other. Front retainers (not shown) for protruding and fixing the wafer mounted in the body 20 are also formed on the inner surface of the cover 20 covering the opening.

The cover 20 closes and closes the front opening of the body 10 to safely transport and store the wafers mounted in the body 10.

On the other hand, the cover 20 inside the cover 20 to close the front opening of the body 10 to maintain the locked state of the cover 20 when closing or to release the lock state when opening the cover 20 The cover locking means 30 is provided.

The cover locking means 30 is installed to be interposed between the upper plate 21 and the lower plate 22 of the cover 20.

FIG. 3 is a plan view of the cover from which the top plate of FIG. 2 is separated.

Referring to FIG. 3, the cover locking means 30 includes a rotation cam 31 and two pairs of locking bars 32 and 33 installed to interlock with each rotation cam 31.

Therefore, when the opening of the body 10 is closed by the cover 20 to maintain the lock state or release the lock state to open the cover 20, the rotation cam 31 using the cover automatic or manual opening and closing device (not shown). A pair of locking bars 32 and 33 interlocked with the rotation cam 31 by rotating the linear movement to both sides in the width direction of the cover 20 and unfolding or folding each other to open the edge of the body 10. To catch the locking groove 12 provided on both sides to maintain the lock state of the cover 10 or to exit from the locking groove 12 to release the lock state (see Fig. 6).

As described above, the rotating cam 31 is composed of two first rotating cams 31a and a second rotating cam 31b, and the first rotating cam 31a and the second rotating cam 31b are covered by a cover 10. It is located at the center of the width direction of the) and is installed to be rotatable in a state spaced apart a certain distance along the longitudinal direction.

The locking bars 32 and 33 are installed to interlock along the first transfer guide groove 311a and the second transfer guide groove 311b of the first rotation cam 31a. ) And a first locking bar 32b installed to interlock along the second locking bar 33a and the first conveying guide groove 311a of the second pivoting cam 31b and the second conveying guide groove 311b. ) And the second locking bar 33b.

At this time, each of the first locking cam 31a and the second rotating cam 31b may be locked or maintained at a time difference between the first locking bars 32a and 32b and the second locking bars 33a and 33b. The first transfer guide groove 311a and the second transfer guide groove 311b may be formed to form non-rotational symmetry.

Hereinafter, the first rotating cam will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings, and this will replace the repetitive description of the second rotating cam.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the rotating cam of FIG. 3 separately, FIG. 5 is a plane view of the rotating cam of FIG. 4, and FIG. 6 is a side cross-sectional view taken along line VI-VI of FIG. 4.

4 to 6, the rotation cam 31a is formed with an opening / closing operation protrusion 38 having a tool insertion groove 39 formed in the center on a plane thereof, and the circumferential direction around the opening / closing operation protrusion 38 is formed. Accordingly, the first transfer guide groove 311a and the second transfer guide groove 311b are formed in an arc shape so as to have a guide curved portion having a predetermined curvature.

Meanwhile, both the first transfer guide groove 311a and the second transfer guide groove 311b are formed to have the unlocking groove portions 312a and 312b, the guide curved portions 314a and 314b, and the lock holding groove portions 315a and 315b. .

Therefore, the first locking bar 32a and the second locking bar 33a which are inserted to be transported along the first transfer guide groove 311a and the second transfer guide groove 311b when the rotation cam 31a is rotated. The linear transport position of the first locking bar 32a and the second locking bar 33a is determined according to the positions of the guide protrusions 34a and 35a protruding from the inner end (see FIG. 3).

The locking release grooves 312a and 312b are guide protrusions when the first locking bar 32a and the second locking bar 33a are released from the locking groove 12a of the body 10 to be unlocked. The bottom dead center portion at which the 34a and 35a are positioned, and the first elastic protrusions 313a and 313b for pressing and fixing the guide protrusions 34a and 35a to keep the unlocked state before the set rotational force is applied to the outside. ) Is provided.

The lock retaining grooves 315a and 315b are provided with guide protrusions when the first locking bar 32a and the second locking bar 33b are caught in the locking groove 12 of the body 10 to maintain a locked state. As the top dead center portion, second elastic protrusions 316a and 316b are provided to press the guide protrusions 34a and 35a to keep the lock holding state before the rotation force set therein is applied.

The guide curved portions 314a and 314b connect the locking release groove portions 312a and 312b and the lock holding groove portions 315a and 315b and have an arc shape having an inflection point at the center of the curved surface along the circumferential direction. The position of the guide protrusions 34a and 35a is changed along the curved surface during the rotation, so that the first locking bar 32a and the second locking bar 33a are linearly transferred in the width direction of the cover 20.

In particular, the first conveyance guide groove 311a and the second conveyance guide groove 311b are formed to be non-symmetric with each other, such that the first locking bar 32a and the second locking bar 33a are displaced with each other at a time difference. And the cover 20 to maintain or unlock the locked state.

Here, non-rotational symmetry means that the first transfer guide groove 311a rotates by a predetermined rotation angle θ1 with respect to the center C of the rotation cam 31a on the plane of the rotation cam 31a. In this case, it is formed so as to overlap with the second transfer guide groove 311b so as not to coincide with each other and have a difference in shape.

In the present embodiment, the first conveyance guide groove 311a is approximately 5 ° from the center line CC passing through the rotation center point C of the rotation cam 31a compared with the second conveyance guide groove 311b. For example, the non-rotationally symmetric rotation angle θ1 of 175 ° in the counterclockwise direction having θ2 is formed.

That is, the second transfer guide groove is formed from the point A of the bottom cam of the first locking bar 32a, which is rotated along the first transfer guide groove 311a by the rotation cam 31a. It means that the angle between the counterclockwise direction to the point (B) forming the bottom dead center of the second locking bar (33a) conveyed along the (311b) is 175 °.

However, the present invention is not necessarily limited thereto, and the non-rotationally symmetric rotation angle θ1 has a deviation angle θ2 within a range of 2 ° to 8 ° from the center line CC of the rotational cam 31a and has 172 °. To within 178 °.

On the other hand, the first conveying guide groove 311a and the second conveying guide groove 311b have different groove angles θ3 and θ4 on which they are formed, and are non-rotated symmetrically.

Here, the groove angles θ3 and θ4 are the angle ranges in which the first transfer guide groove 311a and the second transfer guide groove 311b are formed, that is, the rotation cam 31a is based on the rotation center point C, respectively. It means the angle between the point (A, B) forming the bottom dead center of the point (C, D) forming a top dead center.

In the present exemplary embodiment, the first groove angle θ3 with respect to the first transfer guide groove 311a is 80 °, and the second groove angle θ4 with respect to the second transfer guide groove 311b is 85 °. do.

As such, since the first groove angle θ3 and the second groove angle θ1 are formed to have non-rotation symmetry with each other by about 5 °, the guide curved portion 314a of the first transfer guide groove 311a is It is formed with a steeper curvature than the guide curved portion 314b of the second conveyance guide groove 311b.

Accordingly, the time taken for the guide protrusion 34a of the first locking bar 32a to reach the top dead center C from the bottom dead center A of the first transfer guide groove 311a is the second locking bar 33a. The guide projection 35a of the second transfer guide groove 311b is made faster than the time it takes to reach from the bottom dead center (B) to the top dead center (D).

As such, the first locking bar 32a and the second locking bar 33a which are guided along the first conveying guide groove 311a and the second conveying guide groove 311b of the rotation cam 31a are separated from each other. And by causing the lid 20 to be locked and unlocked, the maximum magnitude of the rotational force required for simultaneously transporting the first locking bar 32a and the second locking bar 33a is dispersed at a time difference to reduce it within the range of the prescribed rotational force. By doing so, the cover 20 can be more stably locked and released.

Referring to FIG. 3 again, the first rotation cam 31a and the second rotation cam 31b are disposed symmetrically with each other in the planar diagonal direction of the cover 20.

Accordingly, the first locking bar 31a of the first pivoting cam 31a and the first locking bar 31b of the second pivoting cam 31b positioned in a diagonal direction are first moved to lock and unlock. The second locking bar 32a interlocking with the first rotational cam 31a and the second locking bar 32b interlocking with the second rotational cam 31b positioned in a diagonal direction move with a time difference. Ensure lock and release.

As such, the first locking bars 32a and 32b and the first rotating cam 31a and the first rotating cam 31a of the first rotating cam 31a and the second rotating cam 31b which are positioned in the planar diagonal direction of the cover 20. By simultaneously interlocking the second locking bars 33a and 33b of the rotational cam 31a and the second rotational cam 31b with a time difference from each other, the cover 20 is stably distributed by uniformly distributing rotational force for opening and closing the cover 20. ) Lock and unlock operation.

Although the preferred embodiments of the present invention have been described above, the present invention is not limited thereto, and various modifications or changes can be made within the scope of the claims and the detailed description of the invention and the accompanying drawings. In addition, it is natural that it belongs to the scope of the present invention.

1: wafer carrier 10: body
20: cover 30: cover locking means
31: cam cam 31a; 1st Cam
31b: 2nd rotation cam 32a, 32b: 1st locking bar
33a, 33b: 2nd locking bar 34a, 34b: 1st guide protrusion
35a, 35b: second guide protrusion 36a, 36b: first locking bar end
37a, 37b: 2nd locking bar end 38: Opening and closing operation protrusion
39: tool insertion groove 311a: first feed guide groove
311b: second transfer guide grooves 312a, 312b; Unlocking groove
313a, 313b; 1st elastic protrusion 314a, 314b: guide surface part
315a, 315b: lock retaining grooves 316a, 316b; 2nd elastic protrusion
A, B: bottom dead center of the first and second locking bars C, D: top dead center of the first and second locking bars
θ1: non-rotational symmetry rotation angle θ2: deviation angle
θ3: Groove angle of the first transfer guide groove θ4: Groove angle of the second transfer guide groove

Claims (8)

A body having one side open and a storage space accommodating a wafer therein;
A cover for closing and closing the opening of the body; And
At least one cover locking means installed on the cover to close the opening of the body to maintain the locked state of the cover when the cover is closed;

The cover locking means,
A rotatable cam of a disc type that is rotatably installed; And
The locking state of the cover is caught by a locking groove provided on both sides of the opening part of the body while linearly moving along the guide curved surfaces of the first transfer guide groove and the second transfer guide groove on both sides of the rotation cam. And a pair of lock bars installed to maintain or exit the locking groove to release the lock state.

The first transfer guide groove and the second transfer guide groove,
And the lock bars are formed in non-rotational symmetry such that the lock bars are locked or kept locked at a time difference from each other.
In claim 1,
The first transfer guide groove,
It has a deviation angle θ2 within a range of 2 ° to 8 ° with respect to the same starting point of the second transfer guide groove with respect to a center line passing through the rotation center point of the rotation cam, and a non-rotation within a range of 172 ° to 178 °. A wafer carrier cover lock formed to achieve a symmetrical rotation angle.
In claim 2,
The first carrier guide groove and the second carrier guide groove is formed in the groove carrier cover locking device formed in the groove angle different from each other in the circumferential direction of the rotation cam.
4. The method of claim 3,
The deviation of the groove angle formed by the first transfer guide groove and the second transfer guide groove is within a range of 2 ° to 8 ° range, the wafer carrier cover locking device.
5. The method of claim 4,
And a guide curved portion of the first transfer guide groove and a guide curved portion of the second transfer guide groove have different curvatures.
The method of claim 5,
And a guide curved surface portion of the first transfer guide groove is steeply formed along the circumferential direction of the rotation cam and is steeply formed than a guide curved portion of the second transfer guide groove.
In claim 1,
The rotation cam,
It consists of two first rotating cam and the second rotating cam spaced apart from each other along the longitudinal direction of the cover,

The lock bar is,
A first locking bar and a second locking bar which are installed to lock and unlock to be folded or unfolded along the width direction of the cover along the first transfer guide groove and the second transfer guide groove of the first pivoting cam; And
And a first locking bar and a second locking bar installed to lock and unlock the folding or spreading along the width direction of the cover along the first conveyance guide groove and the second conveyance guide groove of the second pivoting cam. Wafer Carrier Cover Lock.
In claim 7,
The first locking bar interlocking with the first locking bar interlocked with the second pivoting cam installed in a diagonal direction is locked and released at the same time by moving linearly.
And a second locking bar interlocked with the first pivoting cam and the second locking bar interlocked with the second pivoting cam installed in a diagonal direction, simultaneously moving and locking and unlocking.

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