KR20010110650A - Substrate processing apparatus and method - Google Patents

Abstract

The processing apparatus 100 for performing a predetermined process with respect to the board | substrate G is a 1st process unit group provided with the some process unit for performing a series of 1st process comprised by a some process. (2a), the second processing unit group 2b having a plurality of processing units for performing a series of second processes composed of a plurality of processes, and the first and second processing unit groups 2a and 2b. Common conveying means 42, 44, 46, 48, and 50 for conveying the substrate to each processing unit are provided.

Description

Substrate processing apparatus and substrate processing method {SUBSTRATE PROCESSING APPARATUS AND METHOD}

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a processing apparatus and a processing method for performing a plurality of processes such as resist coating, exposure, and development processing on a substrate such as an LCD glass substrate.

In manufacturing a liquid crystal display (LCD), after forming a predetermined film on an LCD glass substrate as a substrate, a photoresist liquid is applied to form a resist film, and a resist film is formed corresponding to a circuit pattern. A circuit pattern is formed by what is called photo-lithography technique which exposes and develops this.

In this photolithography technique, an LCD substrate as a substrate to be processed is subjected to a series of treatments such as adhesion treatment, resist coating, prebake, exposure, development, postbake, and the like. A predetermined circuit pattern is formed in the layer.

In the prior art, such a process is performed by placing a processing unit that performs each processing in a form conscious of a process flow on both sides of a conveying path, and a substrate to each processing unit by a conveying apparatus capable of traveling the conveying path. It is performed by a processing system formed by arranging one or more process blocks for carrying in and out of. Such a processing system generally includes a liquid treatment system unit for cleaning treatment, resist coating treatment, and development treatment, and a heat treatment system unit for heating, cooling treatment and advice treatment along a conveyance path for conveying a substrate. It is connected in series.

However, in recent years, the demand for large-sized LCD substrates has increased, leading to the emergence of large substrates having a side length of 1 m. Thus, in a processing system having the planar layout as described above, the footprint has been reduced. Due to the extremely large size, the reduction of the footprint is greatly desired from the point of view of effectively using a clean room having a very large manufacturing and maintenance cost per unit area.

Moreover, in recent years, as the demand for high integration and miniaturization of circuits increases, the number of units is increased due to the complexity of the process, and accordingly, the footprint of the processing system is increased. However, in the conventional configuration in which each unit is simply provided along the conveying path, there is a limit to the increase in the number of units even if the footprint is to be reduced. On the other hand, if the number of units is increased to improve the throughput, the foot is required. The print grows. In other words, the increase in the number of units and the reduction in the footprint have opposite relations, and by satisfying the two opposite conditions at the same time, it is possible to sufficiently meet the demand for the substrate processing to be advanced and complicated. Moreover, the emergence of such a device is greatly desired.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made in view of the related circumstances, and an object thereof is to provide a substrate processing apparatus and a substrate processing method having a plurality of processing units, which can reduce the footprint.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a substrate processing apparatus capable of suppressing a footprint and increasing the number of units.

According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a first processing unit, which is a substrate processing apparatus for performing a predetermined processing on a substrate, and has a plurality of processing units for performing a series of first processings constituted by a plurality of processes. Transfer of the board | substrate with respect to each processing unit of the said 1st and 2nd process unit group which has a group, the some process unit for performing a series of 2nd process comprised by a some process, and the said 1st and 2nd process unit group. There is provided a substrate processing apparatus having a common conveying means for carrying out the same.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided a substrate processing apparatus for performing a predetermined process on a substrate, the first processing unit having a plurality of processing units for performing a series of first processes constituted by a plurality of processes. Transfer of the board | substrate with respect to each processing unit of the said 1st and 2nd process unit group which has a group, the some process unit for performing a series of 2nd process comprised by a some process, and the said 1st and 2nd process unit group. There is provided a substrate processing apparatus having a common conveying means for carrying out, and a selection means for selecting which one of the first and second processing unit groups to process.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, there is provided a substrate processing apparatus for performing a predetermined process on a substrate, the first processing unit including a plurality of processing units for performing a series of first processes constituted by a plurality of processes. A second processing unit group having a group, a plurality of processing units for performing a series of second processes constituted by a plurality of processes, and a substrate for each processing unit of the first and second processing unit groups. A common conveying means for conveying is provided, wherein the first and second processing unit groups each include a horizontal processing block in which a plurality of processing units are arranged horizontally and a plurality of processing units are stacked in a vertical direction. A horizontal transfer device having a vertical processing block, wherein the transfer means is installed to be movable in a horizontal direction to transfer the substrate to and from the horizontal processing block; To be installed to enable movement of the substrate processing apparatus align the vertical carrying apparatus for performing the delivery of the substrate relative to the vertical processing block is provided.

According to the 4th viewpoint of this invention, the 1st process unit group provided with the some process unit for performing a series of 1st process comprised by a some process, and the 2nd series of things comprised by a some process By a substrate processing apparatus having a second processing unit group having a plurality of processing units for performing the processing, and a common conveying means for conveying the substrate to each processing unit of the first and second processing unit groups. A substrate processing method for performing a predetermined process on a substrate, wherein each substrate is selected from one of a first processing unit group and a second processing unit group, and each substrate is a processing unit group of the selected side. There is provided a substrate processing method, in which the processing is performed in.

According to the first to fourth aspects of the present invention, since the common conveying means for conveying the substrates to the first and second processing unit groups that perform a series of independent processes, respectively, is provided, one system is provided. Compared with the conventional apparatus structure in which one conveying means is provided, the conveying means can be reduced, and the footprint of the apparatus can be made small.

At this time, a selection means for selecting in which of the first processing unit group and the second processing unit group to process the substrate is provided so as to which one of the first processing unit group and the second processing unit group for each substrate is provided. Select whether to process the substrate and perform processing in the selected processing unit group for each substrate, the predetermined processing is performed on the substrate independently of the first processing unit group and the second processing unit group, respectively. It becomes possible.

According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a substrate processing apparatus for applying a coating liquid to a substrate to form a thin film and developing the exposed thin film corresponding to a circuit pattern. A rotation system unit, a plurality of heat treatment system units for heating and cooling the substrate without rotating the substrate, a conveying apparatus for conveying the substrates into and out of the units, and a conveying path for forming a moving path of the conveying apparatuses And the rotation system unit is arranged along the conveying path, and the heat treatment system unit is stacked in multiple stages to form a thermal processing unit block, and the thermal processing unit block is disposed on the conveying path or in a plurality. There is provided a substrate processing apparatus arranged around a predetermined portion on an extension line thereof.

According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a substrate processing apparatus which applies a coating liquid to a substrate to form a thin film and at the same time develops the exposed thin film in correspondence with a circuit pattern. A plurality of liquid treatment units for carrying out a plurality of heat treatment units, a plurality of heat treatment system units for thermally processing a substrate, a conveying apparatus for conveying the substrates into and out of the units, and a movement path of the conveying apparatus. And a conveying path to be formed, wherein the liquid processing system unit is arranged along the conveying path, and the heat treatment system units are stacked in multiple stages to form a thermal processing unit block, and the thermal processing unit blocks are provided in plurality on the conveying path. Or the substrate processing apparatus arrange | positioned around the predetermined part on the extension line is provided.

According to a seventh aspect of the present invention, there is provided a substrate processing apparatus that performs a series of processes including a plurality of liquid processes and a subsequent thermal process on a substrate, the plurality of liquid processing system units performing liquid processing on a substrate; A plurality of heat treatment system units for performing thermal processing on the substrates with respect to the substrates, a conveying apparatus for conveying the substrates into and out of the units, and a conveying path for forming a moving path of the conveying apparatuses; And the liquid treatment unit is arranged along the conveyance, and the heat treatment system unit is stacked in multiple stages to form a thermal treatment unit block, and the thermal treatment unit blocks are arranged in plural numbers around a predetermined portion on or above the conveyance path. A substrate processing apparatus arranged is provided.

As can be seen from the fifth to the seventh aspects, a rotation system unit or a liquid treatment system unit is provided along the conveying path, and the heat treatment system units are stacked in multiple stages to form a thermal treatment unit block. Since a plurality of thermal processing unit blocks are arranged on a conveyance path or around a predetermined portion on an extension line thereof, the footprint can be reduced and the number of units can be increased.

According to an eighth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a substrate processing apparatus which performs a processing constituted by a plurality of processes including a liquid treatment and a thermal treatment on a substrate to be processed, wherein the substrate is processed along a horizontal conveyance path that extends horizontally. A plurality of liquid processing system processing units for carrying out liquid processing are arranged, and the first processing apparatus for moving the horizontal transport path is used to convey the substrate to be processed to each processing unit provided along the horizontal transport path. A processing unit of 1 and a plurality of thermal processing units for thermally processing the substrate to be processed in the vertical direction along a vertical conveyance path extending vertically, the second conveying apparatus moving the vertical conveyance path There is provided a substrate processing apparatus having a second processing portion for carrying a substrate to be processed to each processing unit provided along a vertical conveyance path.

In this way, a first processing apparatus for conveying the substrate to be processed for each processing unit provided along the horizontal conveying path by a first conveying device for installing a plurality of processing units along the horizontal conveying path and moving the horizontal conveying path is performed. Of the substrate to be processed for each processing unit provided along the vertical conveying path by the processing unit of the second conveying apparatus and a second conveying apparatus for installing a plurality of processing units along the vertical conveying path to move the vertical conveying path. Since the processing unit is provided, the footprint can be reduced by arranging the processing units having no problem of overlapping up and down in the second processing unit, and the first conveying apparatus moves horizontally along the horizontal transport path, Since the second conveying apparatus can separate the conveying apparatus functions such as moving vertically along the vertical conveying path, the throughput can be kept high.

1 is a plan view showing a resist coating and developing apparatus for an LCD substrate according to a first embodiment of the present invention.

Fig. 2 is a side view showing the inside of a resist coating and developing apparatus for an LCD substrate according to the first embodiment of the present invention.

Fig. 3 is a block diagram showing a control system of a processing station in the resist coating and developing apparatus for an LCD substrate according to the first embodiment of the present invention.

4 is a side view showing a schematic configuration of a horizontal conveying apparatus.

5 is a sectional view showing a schematic configuration of a horizontal conveying apparatus.

Fig. 6 is a flowchart showing an example of the selective substrate loading operation in the LCD substrate resist coating and developing apparatus according to the first embodiment of the present invention.

Fig. 7 is a flowchart showing another example of the selective substrate loading operation in the resist coating and developing apparatus for an LCD substrate according to the first embodiment of the present invention.

Fig. 8 is a flowchart showing an example of a processing operation in the resist coating and developing apparatus for an LCD substrate according to the first embodiment of the present invention.

Fig. 9 is a plan view showing a resist coating and developing apparatus for an LCD substrate according to the second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 10 is a side view showing a part of the resist coating and developing apparatus of FIG. 9.

FIG. 11 is a plan view of a substrate transport apparatus applied to the resist coating and developing apparatus of FIG. 9.

FIG. 12 is a front view of the substrate transfer apparatus applied to the resist coating and developing apparatus of FIG. 9.

FIG. 13 is a flowchart of a processing step using the resist coating and developing apparatus of FIG. 9.

FIG. 14 is a plan view showing a modification of the substrate processing apparatus shown in FIGS. 11 and 12.

Fig. 15 is a plan view showing a modification of the LCD substrate resist coating and developing process according to the second embodiment of the present invention.

Fig. 16 is a plan view showing another modification of the LCD substrate resist coating and developing process according to the second embodiment of the present invention.

<Description of the symbols for the main parts of the drawings>

1: cassette station 2: processing station

2a: 1st process unit group 2b: 2nd process unit group

3: Interface Station

21a, 21b: ultraviolet irradiation unit (UV)

22a, 22b, 23a, 23b: scrubber cleaning unit (SCR)

24a, 24b: resist coating unit

27a, 27b: resist processing block

28a, 28b, 32, 33, 34, 35: processing block

29a, 29b, 30a, 30b, 31a, 31b: developing unit

42, 44, 46, 48, 50: conveying apparatus (conveying means)

70: controller (selection means)

100, 300, 300A, 300B: resist coating and developing apparatus

104, 106, 106A, 106B, 109B, 109C: Liquid treatment system process section

105, 105A, 105B, 107, 107A, 107B, 109A: heat treatment system process part

113, 113A, 113B: sub arm mechanism

115, 125, 190: main arm mechanism

116, 124, 191: Central transport route

G: LCD board

EMBODIMENT OF THE INVENTION Hereinafter, embodiment of this invention is described in detail with reference to an accompanying drawing.

(1st embodiment)

First, the first embodiment will be described.

1 is a plan view showing a resist coating and developing apparatus for an LCD substrate according to a first embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a side view showing the inside thereof.

The resist coating and developing apparatus 100 includes a cassette station for placing and unloading (lada / unload) the substrate G by placing the cassette C containing the plurality of substrates G therein ( 1) and a processing station 2 having a plurality of processing units for performing a series of processes including resist coating and developing on the substrate G, and a substrate (between the exposure apparatus 200). An interface station 3 for exchanging G) is provided, and the cassette station 1 and the interface station 3 are disposed at both ends of the processing station 2, respectively.

The cassette station 1 is provided with a conveyance mechanism 11 for conveying the LCD substrate G between the cassette C and the processing station 2, and the cassette station 1 is provided with respect to the outside. Loading and unloading of the cassette C are performed. Moreover, the conveyance mechanism 11 is equipped with the conveyance arm 11a, and is movable on the conveyance path 10 provided along the arrangement direction of a cassette, and the cassette C and the processing station 2 are conveyed by the conveyance arm 11a. ), The substrate G is conveyed.

The interface station 3 includes an extension 61 for temporarily holding a substrate when the substrate is exchanged with the processing station 2, and two buffer cassettes disposed on both sides thereof. A buffer stage 62 and a conveyance mechanism 64 for carrying in and carrying out the substrate G between these and the exposure apparatus 200 are provided. The conveyance mechanism 64 is provided with the conveyance arm 64a which can move on the conveyance path 63 provided along the direction of the extension 61 and the buffer stage 62, and the conveyance arm 64a carries out the processing station ( The conveyance of the board | substrate G is performed between 2) and the exposure apparatus 200. FIG.

The processing station 2 is provided with the 1st process unit group 2a and the 2nd process unit group 2b which respectively independently perform a series of application | coating development process. The first processing unit group 2a and the second processing unit group 2b are configured by arranging a plurality of processing units or processing blocks in the horizontal direction, and both have the same processing unit.

The first processing unit group 2a sequentially performs ultraviolet irradiation unit (UV) 21a, two scrubber cleaning units (SCRs) 22a and 23a, resist coating and subsequent processing from the cassette station 1 side. The resist processing block 27a to be performed, the processing block 28a in which four thermal processing units are stacked up and down, and the three development processing units (DEVs) 29a, 30a, and 31a which perform development processing after exposure are in a straight line ( It is arranged in a straight line.

The second processing unit group 2b sequentially performs ultraviolet irradiation unit (UV) 21b, two scrubber cleaning units (SCRs) 22b and 23b, resist coating and subsequent processing from the cassette station 1 side. A resist processing block 27b to be carried out, a processing block 28b in which four thermal processing units are stacked up and down, and three development processing units (DEVs) 29b, 30b and 31b which perform development processing after exposure are in a straight line. It is arranged in an arrangement.

On the other hand, the ultraviolet irradiation unit (UV) 21a and the two scrubber cleaning units (SCRs) 22a and 23a of the first processing unit group 2a and the ultraviolet irradiation unit (UV) of the second processing unit group 2b. ) 21b and two scrubber cleaning units (SCRs) 22b and 23b are provided to face each other, and a horizontal conveyance path 41 is formed between them, and the horizontal conveyance path ( The horizontal conveyance apparatus 42 which can move along 41 is provided, and the 1st process section 36 is comprised by these.

The resist processing block 27a of the first processing unit group 2a and the resist processing block 27b of the second processing unit group 2b are provided to face each other, and two vertical conveyance paths (vertically in the vertical direction) are disposed therebetween. 43, 45) are formed. Then, a processing block 33 composed of four thermal processing units common to the first and second processing unit groups 2a and 2b stacked up and down is disposed, and along the vertical transport paths 43 and 45, respectively. The vertical conveyance apparatuses 44 and 46 which are movable are provided, and the 2nd process section 37 is comprised by these.

The resist processing block 27a has a resist coating process unit (CT) 24a, a reduced pressure drying unit (VD) 25a, and a peripheral resist removal unit (ER) 26a horizontally. The resist processing block 27b includes a resist coating process unit (CT) 24b, a reduced pressure drying unit (VD) 25b, and a peripheral resist removal unit (ER). The 26b is arrange | positioned in the horizontal direction, and is comprised integrally.

In the resist processing block 27a, the substrate G is loaded into the resist coating processing unit (CT) 24a by the vertical transfer device 44, where the resist liquid coating is applied thereafter, and then the resist processing is performed. The sub-arm (not shown) in the block 27a is conveyed to the reduced pressure drying unit (VD) 25a and dried under reduced pressure, and the sub-arm is conveyed to the peripheral resist removal unit (ER) 26a to convey the substrate (G). The unnecessary resist around the periphery is removed, and the substrate G is then conveyed from the resist processing block 27a by the vertical transfer device 46. In the same manner as the resist processing block 27b, the substrate G is carried into the resist coating processing unit CT 24b by the vertical transfer device 44, where the resist liquid coating is performed, and then the resist processing. The sub-arm (not shown) in the block 27b is conveyed to the reduced pressure drying unit (VD) 25b and dried under reduced pressure, and the sub-arm is conveyed to the peripheral resist removal unit (ER) 26b to convey the substrate (G). The unnecessary peripheral peripheral resist is removed, and then the substrate G is carried out from the resist processing block 27b by the vertical transfer device 46.

The processing block 33 is provided between the vertical conveying paths 43 and 45, and is an extension cooling unit for exchanging substrates between the vertical conveying apparatuses 44 and 46 in order from the bottom and cooling the substrates. (EXT · COL), two hot plate units HP for heat treating the substrate G, and an advice processing unit AD for performing a hydrophobization treatment on the substrate G are laminated.

Between the first processing section 36 and the second processing section 37, a processing block 32 composed of four thermal processing units common to the first and second processing unit groups 2b stacked up and down is disposed. It is. The processing block 32 is an extension cooling unit (EXT) for transferring the substrate G and cooling the substrate G between the horizontal conveying device 42 and the vertical conveying device 44 in order from the bottom. COL), two hot plate units (HP), and advice processing unit (AD).

The processing block 28a of the first processing unit group 2a and the processing block 2b of the second processing unit group 2b are provided to face each other, and the vertical conveyance path 47 is arranged along the vertical direction therebetween. Is formed, and the vertical conveyance apparatus 48 which can move along the vertical conveyance path 47 is provided, and the 3rd process section 38 is comprised by these. In the third processing section 38, two processing blocks 34 and 35 common to the first and second processing unit groups 2a and 2b face the processing blocks 28a and 28b. It is arrange | positioned so that it may face across the vertical conveyance path 47 along the direction orthogonal to it. In either of the processing blocks 28a and 28b, four hot plate units HP for heating the substrate G are stacked. In addition, the processing blocks 34 and 35 each have a configuration in which an extension cooling unit (EXT COL), a cooling unit COL, and two hot plate units HP are stacked in order from the bottom. have. Subsequently, the substrate G is exchanged between the vertical cooling units 46 and 48 by the extension cooling unit EXT COL of the processing block 34, and the extension cooling unit of the processing block 35 is transferred. In EXT COL, the substrate G is exchanged between the vertical transfer device 48 and the horizontal transfer device 50 (to be described later).

The developing processing units (DEV) 29a, 30a, 31a of the first processing unit group 2a and the developing processing units (DEV) 29b, 30b, 31b of the second processing unit group 2b are provided opposite to each other. The horizontal conveyance path 49 is formed in the horizontal direction between them, and the horizontal conveyance apparatus 50 which is movable along this horizontal conveyance path 49 is provided, and by this, a 4th process section is provided. 39 is comprised. In addition, the horizontal transfer apparatus 50 is configured to exchange the substrate G with the interface station 3.

As shown in FIG. 1, the conveyance system including a conveyance path and a conveying apparatus is formed in linear form, and the 1st process unit group 2a and the 2nd process unit group 2b are completely the same unit. Are arranged in the same order, and are arranged symmetrically with a straight transfer path therebetween. Therefore, the 1st processing unit group 2a and the 2nd processing unit group 2b can process the same content, using also a common unit.

In addition, as shown in FIG. 2, each processing unit is provided with the carry-in / out port 10 for taking out or injecting a board | substrate by the conveying apparatus of each process block, and this carry-in / out port 10 has a shutter. It is possible to open and close by shutter (not shown).

In the processing station 2, blocks 32, 33, 34, which are composed of each processing unit of the first processing unit group 2a, each processing unit of the second processing unit group 2b, and a common processing unit; 35) Each processing unit and conveying apparatuses 42, 44, 46, 48, and 50 of the common processing unit group 2c are controlled by the controller 70 as shown in FIG. The controller 70 also processes in which the first processing unit group 2a and the second processing unit group 2b process the substrate G carried from the cassette C to the processing station 2. It serves as a selection means for selecting.

The horizontal conveying apparatuses 42 and 50 have the same configuration, and as shown in FIG. 4, the apparatus main body 71 and the apparatus main body 71 which are movable along the horizontal conveying path and the apparatus main body 71 are moved up and down. The base member 72 which can be moved, and the upper and lower board support members 73a and 73b which can move independently in the horizontal direction along the base member 72 are provided. And the center part of the base member 72 and the apparatus main body 71 are connected by the connection part 74. As shown in FIG. The base member 72 is pivoted via a connecting portion 74 by a driving source (not shown), for example, a motor, which is built in the apparatus main body 71. By such a mechanism, the horizontal movement and the pivoting of the substrate G can be performed at high speed. In addition, the base member 72 is movable in the vertical direction by a drive source, for example, a motor, which is built in the apparatus main body 71, and fine adjustment of the conveyance position in the vertical direction is possible. It is possible.

The vertical conveying devices 44, 46, and 48 have the same structure, and as shown in Fig. 5, they extend in the vertical direction, and the vertical walls 81a and 81b and the side openings therebetween. A normal support 81 having a recess 81c, and a substrate transfer part 82 provided inside the normal support 81 in such a manner as to be freely moved up and down in a vertical direction. The ordinary support body 81 can be rotated by the rotational driving force of the drive source 83 such as a motor, and with this, the substrate feeder 82 is also integrally rotated.

The board | substrate exchange part 82 is equipped with the carrier base 90 and the two board | substrate holding arms 91 and 92 which can move back and forth along the carrier base 90, These arms ( 91 and 92 are sized to allow passage of the side support part 81c of the support body 81 normally. This board | substrate sending / receiving part 82 is made to be able to raise and lower by driving the belt 85 by the motor 84. FIG. In addition, the code | symbol 86 is a drive pulley, and 87 is a driven pulley. By such a mechanism, the movement and the rotational movement of the substrate G in the vertical direction can be performed at high speed.

Next, the processing operation in the resist coating and developing apparatus 100 configured as described above will be described.

When the same processing is performed in the first processing unit group 2a and the second processing unit group 2b, for example, as shown in FIG. 6, first from the cassette station 1 to the processing station 2; The board | substrate is carried in (step S1). Next, the side from which the substrate G can be transported is detected from the first process unit group 2a and the second process unit group 2b, and the substrate G is transferred to the process unit group that can be transported based on the detection result. The horizontal conveyance device 42 is controlled by the controller 70 functioning as a selection means so as to carry in, and then a series of processes are performed by the selected process unit group. Specifically, it is judged whether or not the first processing unit group 2a allows the loading of the substrate G (step S2), and when allowing the loading, the substrate is the first processing unit group 2a. (G) is carried in (step S3) to perform substrate G processing in the first processing unit group 2a (step S4). On the other hand, when the first processing unit group 2a is not empty and does not allow the loading of the substrate G, it is determined whether the second processing unit group 2b allows the loading of the substrate or not (step ( S5)}, when carrying in is allowed, the board | substrate G is carried in to the 2nd process unit group 2b {step S6}, and the process of the board | substrate G is performed in the 2nd process unit group 2b. {Step S7}.

In the case where the processing of different contents is performed in the first processing unit group 2a and the second processing unit group 2b, for example, marking is performed on the substrate G in accordance with the processing contents to detect this. To select the processing unit group to be carried in. For example, as shown in FIG. 7, first, the board | substrate G is carried in from the cassette station 1 to the processing station 2 (step S11). Next, the marking of the board | substrate G is detected (step S12). It is judged whether or not the detected marking corresponds to the first processing unit group 2a (step S13), and when it corresponds to the first processing unit group 2a, the first marking is made to the first processing unit group 2a. The board | substrate is carried in (step S14), and the process of the board | substrate G is performed in the 1st process unit group 2a (step S15). On the other hand, if the marking does not correspond to the first processing unit group 2a, it is judged whether or not the marking corresponds to the second processing unit group 2b (step S16), and the second processing unit group ( If it does not correspond to 2b), the board | substrate G is carried in to the 2nd process unit group 2b {step S17}, and the process of the board | substrate G is performed in the 2nd process unit group 2b { Step S18}.

In this way, in order to perform a series of processes in any one of the processing unit groups, each conveying apparatus is controlled by the controller 70 so that the processing can be performed consistently in the first processing unit group.

Next, an example of a specific process is demonstrated, referring FIG. Here, the processing in the first processing unit group 2a will be described. First, the board | substrate G of the cassette C is taken out by the conveyance mechanism 11 in the cassette station 1, is passed to the horizontal conveyance apparatus 42, and is carried in to the 1st process section 36. As shown in FIG. {Step S21}. In the first processing section 36, surface modification and cleaning processing is first performed in the ultraviolet irradiation unit (UV) 21a (step S22), and then the scrubber cleaning unit (UV) ( Scrubber cleaning is performed by 22a and 23a (step S23).

Subsequently, the substrate G is conveyed by the horizontal direction conveying device 42 to the extension cooling unit EXT COL of the processing block 32 and then vertical conveying device of the second processing section 37. (44) is conveyed to the process block 32 or the hot plate unit HP of the process block 33, and dehydration baking is performed (step S24), and the process block 32 or the process block 33 It cools to predetermined temperature in extension cooling unit EXTCOL (step S25). Subsequently, the substrate G is conveyed to the treatment process unit AD of the process block 32 or the process block 33 and subjected to a hydrophobization process (HMDS process) for improving the fixability of the resist (step S26). )}. Subsequently, the substrate is conveyed to the extension cooling unit EXT COL, cooled to a predetermined temperature (step S27), and then conveyed to the resist processing block 27a by the vertical conveying apparatus 44. . In the resist processing block 27a, first, a resist liquid coating is applied to the substrate G from a resist coating process unit (CT) 24a, and then to a sub arm (not shown) in the resist processing block 27a. Is conveyed to the reduced pressure drying unit (VD) 25a and dried under reduced pressure, and is conveyed to the peripheral resist removal unit (ER) 26a by the subarm to remove unnecessary resist around the substrate G (step S28). )}. After the peripheral resist is removed, the substrate G is carried out from the resist processing block 27a by the vertical transfer device 46.

Thus, the provision of the pressure reduction drying unit (VD) 25a after the resist coating processing unit (CT) 24a is performed after the prebaking of the substrate to which the resist is applied and after the post-baking treatment. After that, although the shape of a lift pin, a fixed pin, etc. may be transferred to the board | substrate G, in this way, pressure reduction drying is carried out without heating by the pressure reduction drying unit VD, and the solvent in a resist This is because the rapid drying does not occur as in the case where it is gradually released and dried, so that drying of the resist can be promoted without adversely affecting the resist, thereby effectively preventing transfer from occurring on the substrate.

After the coating process is completed in this manner, the substrate G is stretched and cooled in the processing block 34 in the third processing section 38 by the vertical transfer device 46 (EXT COL). Is returned. The substrate G conveyed by the extension cooling unit EXT COL is transferred to the processing block 28a or one of the hot plates HP of the processing blocks 34 and 35 by the vertical transfer device 48. It is conveyed, it is prebaked (step S29), and it is conveyed to either cooling unit COL in process blocks 34 and 35, and is cooled to predetermined temperature (step S30).

Then, the board | substrate G is conveyed by the extension conveyance apparatus 48 to the extension cooling unit EXT COL of the process block 35. As shown in FIG. The board | substrate G conveyed by the extension cooling unit EXTCOL is conveyed to the interface station 3 by the horizontal conveyance apparatus 50 of the 4th process section 39, and is arrange | positioned by the extension 61. As shown in FIG. . And the board | substrate G on the extension 61 is conveyed to the exposure apparatus 200 by the conveyance mechanism 64 (step S31), and a predetermined pattern is exposed.

After completion of exposure, the substrate G is returned to the interface station 3 again by the transfer mechanism 64 (step S32), and is carried into the processing station 2 by the transfer mechanism 64. Specifically, the substrate G is received from the extension 61 of the interface station 3 by the horizontal transfer device 50 of the fourth processing section 39. Subsequently, the substrate G is conveyed to any one of the developing units (DEVs) 29a, 30a, and 31a by the horizontal conveying apparatus 50 and developed to form a pattern of a predetermined circuit (step). (S33)}.

The developed substrate G is conveyed by the horizontal conveying device 50 to the extension cooling unit EXT COL in the processing block 35 in the third processing section 38, and the vertical direction. The conveying apparatus 48 is conveyed to the hot plate HP of either the processing block 28a or the processing blocks 34 and 35 and post-baked (step S34), after which the processing block 34 It is conveyed to the cooling unit COL in any one of 35 and is cooled to predetermined temperature (step S35).

Subsequently, the substrate G includes the extension cooling unit EXT COL of the processing block 34, the extension cooling unit EXT COL of the processing block 33, and the extension cooling of the processing block 34. Via the unit EXT / COL, it is conveyed toward the cassette station 1 by the horizontal conveying apparatus 42 of the first processing section 36, and is carried out by the conveying mechanism 11, and the cassette station 1 It is accommodated in the predetermined cassette C of the image (step S36).

Also with respect to the processing by the second processing unit group 2b, the same processing as in the first processing unit group 2a can be performed. It is also possible to omit a part of the processing so as to perform a different process from the processing by the first processing unit group 2a.

As mentioned above, according to this embodiment, the common conveyance apparatus 42 which conveys the board | substrate G with respect to each of these process units between the 1st and 2nd process unit groups 2a and 2b which performs a series of independent processes, respectively. , 44, 46, 48, and 50, the transfer apparatus can be reduced compared to the conventional apparatus configuration in which the transfer apparatus is installed in each system, and the footprint of the resist coating and developing apparatus can be reduced. In addition, when the system of the present embodiment is viewed as one system, since a large number of units of the liquid treatment system are provided, the throughput can be made very high.

In addition, the controller 70 functioning as the selection means allows the substrate G to be selected in which of the first processing unit group 2a and the second processing unit group 2b to be selected. Since the processing is performed in the selected processing unit group with respect to the first processing unit group 2a and the second processing unit group 2b, it is possible to independently perform a resist coating and developing process on the substrate.

Moreover, since the conveyance system containing a conveyance path and a conveying apparatus is formed in linear form, a conveyance path is simple and it can process with high throughput. The first processing unit group 2a and the second processing unit group 2b are arranged in the same order and are provided symmetrically with a straight transfer path interposed therebetween. High throughput can be achieved by performing parallel processing in the first processing unit group 2a and the second processing unit group 2b. Moreover, it is also possible to process different content in the 1st process unit group 2a and the 2nd process unit group 2b, and it becomes possible to implement | achieve the process with high variation.

In addition, in the above example, although the same process units in the 1st process unit group 2a and the 2nd process unit group 2b were arranged in completely the same order, the kind of process units may differ, and the arrangement The order of may be different. Moreover, although the 1st process unit group 2a and the 2nd process unit group 2b were arrange | positioned at both sides of a conveyance system, you may arrange | position so that both process units may be mixed on one side. In the above example, when the processing contents of the first processing unit group 2a and the second processing unit group 2b are the same, among the first processing unit group 2a and the second processing unit group 2b, The substrate G can be detected, and the substrate G is carried in the transferable group of processing units based on the detection result. The first processing unit group 2a and the second processing unit group 2b are detected. In the case where the processing contents of the &quot;) are different, a processing unit group to be carried out by marking the substrate G according to the processing contents and detecting the same is selected, but the present invention is not limited thereto. For example, the first processing unit group 2a is selected. The cassette C containing only the substrate G for processing by the C) and the cassette C containing only the substrate G for the processing by the second processing unit group 2b are separately arranged. The substrate G may be carried in to the processing station 2 mutually.

(2nd embodiment)

Next, a second embodiment of the present invention will be described.

9 is a plan view showing a resist coating and developing apparatus for an LCD substrate according to the second embodiment of the present invention. The resist coating and developing apparatus 300 applies the resist to the LCD substrate, passes it to the exposure apparatus once, passes the substrate after the exposure treatment by the exposure apparatus 400, and performs development.

In order to perform such a series of processes, the resist coating and developing apparatus 300 rotates the carry-in / out section 103 which carries out the carry-in / out (load / unload) of the LCD substrate G, and rotates the substrate G. The first liquid processing system processing unit 104 for washing, the first heat treatment system processing unit 105 for giving a thermal treatment such as heating and cooling treatment to the substrate G, and a substrate ( A second liquid treatment system processor 106 for performing application (coating) of the resist liquid, drying under reduced pressure, removing the peripheral resist and rotating the substrate G, and developing the substrate while rotating the substrate G; And a second heat treatment system process unit 107 for performing heating and cooling treatment with respect to the substrate, and an interface unit (IF) 108 for exchanging substrates between the exposure apparatus 400.

The carry-in / out part 103 is equipped with the cassette mounting stand 110 and the conveyance part (CS) 111. As shown in FIG. On the cassette placing table 110, two kinds of cassettes C1 and C2 are placed. For example, the board | substrate G before a process is accommodated in the 1st cassette C1, and the board | substrate G after a process is accommodated in the 2nd cassette C2.

Moreover, the 1st sub arm mechanism 113 is provided in the conveyance part 111. As shown in FIG. This 1st sub-arm mechanism 113 is equipped with the arm 114 which can hold | maintain a board | substrate, and pulls out the board | substrate accommodated in the 1st cassette C1 by pivoting this arm 114, and the 1st liquid It can be delivered to the processing system processor 104 side. In addition, the board | substrate which completed all the processes is accommodated in the 2nd cassette C2 from the 1st liquid processing system process part 104 side by this 1st sub-arm mechanism 113, for example.

The 1st liquid processing system process part 104 is equipped with the 1st main arm mechanism 115 which receives the board | substrate G from the 1st sub arm mechanism 113. As shown in FIG. The main arm mechanism 115 includes a base 117 that travels on the first central conveying path 116 that extends in the Y direction, and swings, advances, and moves up and down the base 117. For example, with an arm 118.

On one side of the main arm mechanism 115, two cleaning units (SCRs) 119 for performing scrubber cleaning with a brush, for example, are provided along the central conveyance path 116. In addition, on the other side of the first main arm mechanism 115, an excimer unit 112 for cleaning organic matters along the central conveyance path 116 and a cleaning unit (SCR) 119 are provided. Is added.

The 1st main arm mechanism 115 carries in the board | substrate G handed in from the carrying-in / out part 103 to either of the process units 112 and 119, and processes the board | substrate G to which the necessary process was performed. At the same time, the substrate G is taken out from one of the units 112 and 119, and the substrate G taken out is transferred to another processing unit or conveyed to the first heat treatment system processing unit 105.

The 1st heat processing system process part 105 is arrange | positioned with respect to the 1st center conveyance path 116 in series (on the extension line of the center conveyance path 116). 113 A of 2nd sub arm mechanisms are provided in this 1st heat processing system process part 105. As shown in FIG. This second sub-arm mechanism 113A has an arm 114 for holding a substrate, and the arm 114 is pivoted, retracted, and vertically driven to drive the substrate to a predetermined device (described later) of the peripheral processing unit. It is to be able to pass.

Around the second sub arm mechanism 113A, a first thermal processing unit block 120, a second thermal processing unit block 121, a third thermal processing unit block 122, The fourth thermal processing unit block 123 is provided so as to surround the second sub arm mechanism 113A. Among them, the first thermal processing unit block 120 sequentially exchanges the substrate G between the first liquid processing system 104 and the first thermal processing system 105 from the bottom. It consists of three layers of an extension cooling unit (EXT / COL) that combines the function as a relay unit and a substrate cooling function, and two dehydration bake units (HP) for heating and heating the substrate. .

The second heat treatment system treatment unit block 121 is provided to face the first heat treatment unit block 120 in the Y direction with the second sub-arm mechanism 113A interposed therebetween. An extension / cooling unit (EXT / COL) having a function as a relay unit and a substrate cooling function when exchanging substrates between the processing system processing unit 106 and the first liquid processing system processing unit 105; It is comprised by laminating | stacking the cooling unit COL and the advise process unit AD which performs a hydrophobization process in three steps. In addition, both the third and fourth thermal processing unit blocks 122 and 123 are constituted by stacking three post-baking hot plate units POST in three stages above and below, and these are the second sub-arms. Exposed to face each other in the X direction with the mechanism 113A interposed therebetween. In addition, the first thermal processing unit block 120 is connected to the first central transfer path 116 of the first liquid processing system process unit 104, and the second thermal processing unit block 121 is connected to the first thermal processing unit block 121. It is connected to the 2nd central conveyance path 124 of the 2 liquid processing system process part 106 (it mentions later).

The second sub arm mechanism 113A is an extension cooling unit (EXT COL) of the first thermal processing unit block 120 by the first main arm mechanism 115 of the first liquid processing system processing unit 104. The board | substrate G handed in is received, it is carried in from the surrounding 1st to each unit of the 4th thermal processing unit blocks 120-123, and the board | substrate G on which the necessary process was performed was carried out 1st. From each unit of the fourth thermal processing unit blocks 120 to 123, and in turn the other processing unit of the fourth thermal processing unit blocks 120 to 123 or the extension of the third thermal processing unit block 122. It is conveyed by a cooling unit (EXT / COL), or the reverse operation is performed.

In addition, in FIG. 10, the process unit lamination | stacking of the 1st thermal processing unit block 120 and the 2nd thermal processing unit block 121 which are arrange | positioned so that it may face in the Y direction with the 2nd sub-arm mechanism 113A between them may be carried out. The state is illustrated like the sub arm mechanism 113A.

On the other hand, the 2nd liquid processing system process part 106 is equipped with the 2nd main arm mechanism 125 which runs on the 2nd central conveyance path 124 extended along the Y direction. The second main arm mechanism 125 includes a base 126 and an arm 127 configured similarly to the first main arm mechanism 115.

In addition, a resist processing block 130 is provided on one side of the second main arm mechanism 125. The resist processing block 130 includes a resist liquid coating unit (CT) for applying a resist liquid to a substrate, a reduced pressure drying unit (VD) for drying a substrate to which the resist liquid is applied, and a substrate peripheral portion after drying. The edge remover ER removes unnecessary resists, which are integrated with each other and are arranged along the second central transport path 124. On the other side of the second main arm mechanism 125, three development processing units (DEVs) 131 for developing the exposed LCD substrate along the second central transport path 124 are provided.

The 2nd main arm mechanism 125 carries in the board | substrate G received from the 1st heat processing system process part 5 to the resist processing block 130, and carries out the processed board | substrate from the resist processing block 130. FIG. It removes and conveys to the 2nd heat processing system process part 107 side. In addition, the substrate received from the second heat treatment system 107 is loaded into the developing unit 131, the processed substrate G is taken out of the developing unit 131, and the first heat treatment system ( Return to 105).

The 2nd heat processing system process part 107 is arrange | positioned in series with the 2nd center conveyance path 124 (on the extension line of the center conveyance path 124). The third sub arm mechanism 113B is provided in the second heat treatment system process unit 107. Similarly to the second sub arm mechanism 113A, the third sub arm mechanism 113B has an arm 114 that holds the substrate G, and the arm 114 is pivoted, moved back and forth, and driven. The substrate can be passed to a predetermined device (to be described later) of the peripheral processing unit.

Around the third sub arm mechanism 113B, a fifth thermal processing unit block 132, a sixth thermal processing unit block 133, and a seventh thermal processing unit block 134 include a third sub arm mechanism. It is installed so as to surround 113B. Among them, the fifth thermal processing unit block 132 sequentially receives the substrate G from the second liquid processing system 106 and the second thermal processing system 107. An extension unit EXT functioning as a relay unit at the time of carrying out and two prebaking units PRE for performing the prebaking process are stacked in three stages, and a second portion of the second liquid processing system processing unit 106 is formed. The central conveyance path 124 is connected to each other, and is disposed so as to face the interface portion IF 108 in the Y direction with the third sub-arm mechanism 113B interposed therebetween. The sixth and seventh heat treatment unit blocks 133 and 134 have a cooling unit COL for cooling the substrate G in order from the bottom, and two prebaking units PRE for prebaking. Is laminated | stacked in three steps. These sixth and seventh thermal processing unit blocks 133 and 134 are arranged to face each other in the X direction with the third sub-arm mechanism 113B interposed therebetween.

The third sub-arm mechanism 113B is a substrate passed to the extension unit EXT of the fourth thermal processing unit block 132 by the second main arm mechanism 125 of the second liquid processing system processing unit 106. (G) is received and brought into each unit of the fifth to seventh thermal processing unit blocks 132 to 134 around it, and the substrate G subjected to the necessary processing is carried out from the fifth to seventh. Are removed from the respective processing blocks of the thermal processing unit blocks 132 to 134, and are transferred to the interface unit (IF) 108 on the exposure apparatus 400 side. In addition, the third sub arm mechanism 113B receives the substrate G on which the exposure has been completed, from the exposure apparatus 400 via the interface unit IF 108, and again the second liquid treatment system process. It returns to the part 106.

The interface unit 108 (I. F.) is configured by the conveyance / waiting unit 137 and the exchange unit 138. The conveyance / waiting part 137 functions as a relay part and substrate cooling function when the substrate G is exchanged between the second heat treatment system process part 107 and the interface part IF 108. And an extension cooling unit (EXT COL) stage 136, a buffer cassette (Buf) 135, and a fourth sub-arm mechanism (not shown). The transfer section 138 is provided with a transfer table (not shown) for exchanging substrates between the fourth sub-arm mechanism and the exposure apparatus 400.

Next, with reference to the top view of FIG. 11 and the side view of FIG. 12, the structure of the 2nd and 3rd sub-arm mechanism 113A, 113B arrange | positioned at the heat processing system process part 105, 107 is demonstrated. The second and third sub-arm mechanisms 113A and 113B are horizontal scalar robots having the same structure, and as shown in Figs. 11 and 12, pivoting around a pivot axis (not shown) and It is equipped with the turning board 140 moving up and down, and two hands 142 and 144 which hold | maintain and move back and forth, holding the board | substrate G. As shown in FIG.

In addition, both sides of the base end of the upper hand 142 are provided with support shafts 150 and 150 facing upwards, and a pair of agents connected to the support shafts 150 and 150 so as to be rotatable. The first arm 152, 152 and a pair of second arms 156, 156 connected to the first arms 152, 152 so as to be rotatable via the support shafts 157, 157 are provided. The first arms 152, 152 are provided below the second arms 156, 156, and the hand 142 is supported by the first arms 152, 152. The pair of second arms 156 and 156 are rotatably connected to the pair of first rotation drive shafts 155 and 155 extending upward from the pivot plate 140.

On the other hand, on both sides of the proximal end of the lower hand 144, the support shafts 160 and 160 are provided downward, and a pair of third arms 162 and 162 connected to the support shafts 160 and 160 so as to be rotatable, A pair of fourth arms 166 and 166 connected to the third arms 162 and 162 so as to be rotatable via the support shafts 167 and 167 are provided. The third arms 162 and 162 are provided below the fourth arms 166 and 166, and the hand 144 is supported from the lower side by the third arms 162 and 162. The pair of fourth arms 166 and 166 are rotatably connected to the pair of second rotation drive shafts 165 and 165 extending upward from the pivot plate 140.

As shown, the first rotation drive shaft 155 and the second rotation drive shaft 165 are disposed coaxially, and the first rotation drive shaft 155 extends above the second rotation drive shaft 165. . Moreover, these rotation drive shafts 155 and 165 are located in the inside of the turning radius of the sub arm drive mechanism 113A, 113B, and correspond to the outer side of the hands 142,144. In addition, a pulley (not shown) is provided in each rotation drive shaft 155, 165, and each arm 152, 156, 162, 166 is rotated by the timing belt over this pulley.

Next, an example of the processing procedure in the application | coating development system 300 of the said structure is demonstrated, referring the flowchart of FIG.

First, the unprocessed board | substrate G accommodated in the 1st cassette C on the mounting base 110 is a 1st liquid processing system process part via the conveyance part CS 111 from the carrying-in / out part 103. As shown in FIG. It is passed to the 1st main arm mechanism 115 of 104 (step S41). Subsequently, the substrate G is cleaned of organic matter by the excimer unit {step S}, and then, for example, the first thermal processing unit block of the first thermal processing unit 105 is, for example. The cooling process is performed in the extension cooling unit EXT COL of 120 (step S43).

Subsequently, the substrate G subjected to the cooling treatment is subjected to a scrubber cleaning with a brush by a scrubber cleaning unit (SCT) 119 (step S44), and after the processing is completed, the second sub-arm By the carry-in / out operation by the mechanism 113A, the dehydration baking process is performed in the hot plate HP of the 1st heat processing unit block 120 of the 1st heat processing system process part 105 (step S45). Next, a cooling process is performed in the cooling unit COL of the second heat treatment process block 121 (step S46). Subsequently, the substrate is subjected to hydrophobization treatment of the surface in the Advance Treatment Unit AD (step S47) in order to increase the fixability of the resist (Step S47), and the extension cooling unit of the second thermal processing unit block 121 is formed. It cools to predetermined temperature in EXT-COL (step S48).

Subsequently, the substrate on which the hydrophobization treatment has been completed is introduced into the second liquid processing system processing unit 106 by the second main arm mechanism 125, and the resist liquid coating processing unit CT of the resist processing block 130, By the reduced pressure drying process unit VD and the edge remover ER, the resist liquid coating, the reduced pressure drying process, and the removal of the unnecessary resist liquid around the substrate are sequentially performed (step S49).

The resist processed substrate G is introduced into the second heat treatment system processor 107 by the third sub-arm mechanism 113B through the extension unit EXT of the fourth heat treatment unit block 132. Prebaking is carried out in any one of the prebaking units PRE of the fifth to seventh thermal processing unit blocks 132, 133, and 134 of the second heat treatment system processing unit 107 (step S50). . Thereby, the solvent contained in the resist liquid apply | coated to the board | substrate G is volatilized. The substrate G is then brought to room temperature at almost the cooling unit COL of the sixth or seventh thermal processing unit blocks 133 and 134 of the second thermal processing unit 107. It cools (step S51). Subsequently, the substrate G is carried into the extension cooling unit (EXT COL) 136 of the interface unit 108 by the third sub arm mechanism 113B, and at the same time, the interface unit 108 is moved. It is passed to the exposure apparatus 400 via the medium (step S52), and a predetermined pattern is exposed there.

The substrate subjected to the exposure process is inserted into a titler 139 and subjected to the title process (step S53). Subsequently, the substrate G is introduced into the second liquid treatment system processor 106 via the interface unit 108 and the second heat treatment system processor 107, and the predetermined development processing unit DEV is applied. In step 131, a developing process is performed (step S54). In this developing unit 131, for example, a developing solution is supplied onto the substrate in a state in which the substrate is rotated to perform development. In addition, after the developer is washed with the rinse solution, it is dried by falling off by rotation.

The developed substrate G is introduced into the first heat treatment system 105 and subjected to post bake treatment in the post bake unit POST of the third or fourth heat treatment process blocks 122 and 123. {Step S55} Next, the cooling unit COL of the second heat treatment process block 121 or the extension cooling unit EXT and COL of the first or second heat treatment process blocks 120 and 121. It is cooled to a predetermined temperature at (step S56).

The board | substrate G in which all the above processes were performed is the 1st sub-arm provided in the conveyance part 111 (C / S) from the 2nd sub-arm mechanism 113A via the 1st main arm mechanism 115. It transfers to the mechanism 113, and is accommodated in the 2nd cassette mounted by the 1st sub-arm mechanism 113 to the carrying-in / out part 103 (step S57).

As described above, in the coating and developing processing system 300 of the present embodiment, the scrubber cleaning unit (SCR) 119 which is a relatively large rotating system unit, the resist liquid coating processing unit (CT) of the resist processing block 130, and A liquid processing system unit including a developing processing unit (DEV) 131 is installed along the central conveying paths 116 and 124, and is a smaller heat treatment system unit than these units, that is, a dehydration baking unit, a prebaking unit, and a postbaking unit. Units (HP, PRE, PSOT), Cooling Unit (COL), Advance Unit (AD), etc. are placed in multiple stages around the sub-arm mechanisms 113A, 113B located on the extension lines of the central conveying paths 116, 124. They are stacked and arranged. In this way, when the heat treatment system unit is integrated and integrated, not only the area can be saved, but also the processing efficiency can be improved, and a plurality of units can be arranged. That is, the footprint can be reduced and the number of units can be increased. In addition, by integrating and integrating a heat treatment system unit, various lines can be compactly arranged because electrical wiring and piping can be concentrated here.

In the present embodiment, the liquid processing system process unit including the rotating system unit as the main component and the thermal processing system processing unit formed by the unit of the thermal processing system are directly connected to each other by means of a central transfer path. Are separated. Therefore, the thermal effect from the heat treatment system unit to the liquid treatment system unit can be minimized.

In addition, a plurality of liquid processing system units for performing a liquid treatment on the substrate G are disposed along the central transport paths 116 and 124 extending horizontally, and the main arm mechanism for moving the central transport paths 116 and 124 ( The liquid processing system processing sections 104 and 106, in which the substrate G is conveyed to each processing unit provided along the central transport paths 116 and 124 by the 115 and 125, and the vertical transport paths which extend vertically, A plurality of heat treatment system units are arranged to be stacked in the vertical direction, and the substrate G is conveyed to each heat treatment system unit which is vertically stacked by the sub-arm mechanisms 113A and 113B which move the vertical conveyance path. The heat treatment system block including heat treatment system processing parts 105 and 107, and the heat treatment system units which do not have a problem of overlapping up and down are stacked up and down, and the treatment units are overlapped around the subarm mechanisms 113A and 113B. Since we have to place Since the footprint can be reduced as much as possible, and the liquid processing system processing units which are hindered from overlapping up and down are horizontally disposed and conveyed to the main arm mechanisms 115 and 125, the main arm mechanism 115 125 can be used to move horizontally at a high speed, and the subarm mechanisms 113A and 113B can be used to move vertically at high speed. It is possible to keep the throughput high.

In the present embodiment, both of the second and third subarm mechanisms 113A and 113B serving as substrate transport apparatuses provided in the heat treatment system processing units 105 and 107 are provided for holding the substrate G. Since the two hands 142 and 144 are supported by two arms 152 and 152 and arms 162 and 162, respectively, the rigidity is high and the large rectangular LCD substrate is stable at high speed. I can support it. The first rotary drive shaft 155 and the second rotary drive shaft 165 are arranged coaxially with each other, and are the inside of the turning radii of the subarm mechanisms 113A and 113B and the outside of the hands 142 and 144. Since it is located at this location, the arm mechanism can be miniaturized while preventing the interference between the hands 142 and 144 and the rotation drive shafts 155 and 165.

The substrate transfer subarms 113A and 113B having such a structure are particularly advantageous in the resist coating and developing apparatus 300 as in the present embodiment. In other words, in the resist coating and developing apparatus 300 according to the present embodiment, thermal units are integrated and integrated as described above, so that the equipment area and the efficiency of processing are improved. It is possible to increase the number of units at the same time while suppressing small). Therefore, when the sub-arm mechanisms 113A and 113B are miniaturized by the unique configuration as shown in Figs. 11 and 12, the footprint of the coating and developing processing system 300 having the above configuration is further promoted and at the same time. When the high-speed transfer is possible due to the high rigidity of the subarm mechanisms 113A and 113B, the improvement of the throughput by the resist coating and developing apparatus 300, which enables the increase in the number of units, is further improved. Is promoted.

14 shows modifications of the second and third subarm mechanisms 113A and 113B. In this modification, the second rotation drive shafts 165 and 165 for operating the lower hand 144 are front side X than the first rotation drive shafts 155 and 155 for operating the upper hand 144. Direction or the position separated along the Y-direction, and is offset in the radial direction outside the center of the pivot table 140 (the outer side of the 1st rotation drive shaft 155, 155). In addition, since the other structure is the same as that of FIG. 11 and FIG. 12, the same code | symbol is attached | subjected and the description is abbreviate | omitted. According to the structure of this modification, since the same effect as the structure of FIG. 11 and FIG. 12 is acquired, and the 2nd rotation drive shafts 165 and 165 are offset to the outer side of the 1st rotation drive shafts 155 and 155, Therefore, the interference between the hands 142 and 144 and the rotation driving shafts 155 and 165 can be more reliably prevented.

It is a top view which shows the modification of 2nd Embodiment of this invention. In addition, in FIG. 15, the same code | symbol is attached | subjected about the component which is common in FIG.

The resist coating and developing apparatus 300A according to the present example includes an import / export unit 103 for carrying in carrying out (loading and unloading) of the LCD substrate G, and a substrate for carrying out cleaning treatment by rotating the substrate. The first liquid processing system 104, the first heat treatment system 105A mainly for heating and cooling, and the substrate G are rotated to apply (coat) and remove the peripheral resist 106A of 2nd liquid-processing system process parts to process, the 2nd heat processing system process part 107A for performing a heating and cooling process, the liquid-processing system / heat processing system combined process part 109, and an exposure apparatus An interface unit (IF) 108 for exchanging the substrate G with the 400 is provided. In addition, the liquid treatment system / heat treatment system combined process unit 109 includes a third heat treatment system process unit 109A for performing heating and cooling treatment, and a third liquid treatment system for performing development by rotating the substrate. It is comprised by the process part 109B. In addition, since the structure of the carry-in / out part 103, the 1st liquid processing system process part 104, and the interface part (I. F.) 108 among these is completely the same as the example of FIG. 9, it abbreviate | omits description.

105 A of 1st heat processing system process parts are arrange | positioned in series (above the extension line of the center conveyance path 116) in the 1st central conveyance path 116, and arrange | position the 2nd sub-arm mechanism 113A. Around the second subarm mechanism 113A, a first heat treatment system unit block 170, a second heat treatment unit block 171, and a third heat treatment machine unit block 172 are provided with a second sub arm mechanism ( It is provided so as to surround 113A) from the outside. Among them, the first thermal processing unit block 170 can sequentially exchange the substrate G between the first liquid processing processor 104 and the first thermal processing processor 105. A three-stage extension cooling unit (COL) that combines the function of a relay and substrate cooling, two dehydration bake units (HP) for dehydrating bake treatment, and an AD treatment unit (AD) for hydrophobization treatment. It is equipped with the structure laminated | stacked. The third thermal processing unit block 172 functions as a relay and a substrate when the substrate G is exchanged between the first thermal processing unit 105A and the second thermal processing unit 107A. An extension cooling plate (EXT / COL) with a cooling function, a cooling plate (COL), and two prebaking units (PRE) for prebaking are stacked in four stages. In addition, the 1st thermal processing unit block 170 is connected to the 1st central conveyance path 116 of the 1st liquid processing system process part 140, and is interposed between the 2nd sub-arm mechanism 113A. It is arranged so as to face the third thermal processing unit block 172 in the Y direction.

The second heat treatment system processor 107A is connected to the second central conveyance path 124A (to be described later) of the liquid treatment system / heat treatment system combined process part 109 (above the extension line of the central transport path 124A). It is arrange | positioned and the 3rd subarm mechanism 113B is provided.

Around the third subarm mechanism 113B, a third thermal processing unit block 172, a fourth thermal processing unit block 173, and a fifth thermal processing unit block 174 are provided. The third subarm mechanism 113B is provided so as to surround the outside. That is, the third thermal processing unit block 172 is disposed between the second subarm mechanism 113A and the third subarm mechanism 113B, so that the first thermal processing system 105A and the second thermal processing system are arranged. It is also used as the process part 107A. The fourth thermal processing unit block 173 is constituted by stacking four pre-baking units PRE for prebaking in four stages above and below. In addition, the fifth thermal processing unit block 174 sequentially exchanges the substrate G between the second thermal processing system 107A and the liquid / thermal processing system combined process 109 from the bottom. The extension cooling unit (EXT / COL), the cooling unit (COL), and the post-baking unit (POST) for post-baking are stacked in three stages. It is composed by. In addition, the 5th heat processing system process unit block 174 is connected to the 2nd central conveyance path 124A (described later) of the liquid processing system / heat processing system combined process part 109, and the 3rd sub-arm. It is arrange | positioned so that the 3rd thermal processing unit block 172 may face in a Y direction across the mechanism 113B.

The second liquid treatment system processing section 106A is constituted by a resist processing block 130 and includes second and third subarm mechanisms 113A arranged in series on an extension line of the first central conveyance path 116. 113B) along with the third thermal processing unit block 172 therebetween, and are accessible by the second and third subarm mechanisms 113A and 113B.

The liquid treatment system / heat treatment system combined process unit 109 includes a second main arm mechanism 125 that travels on the second central conveyance path 124A extended along the Y direction. This 2nd main arm mechanism 125 is equipped with the base 126 and the arm 127 comprised similarly to embodiment shown in FIG.

In addition, on one side of the second main arm mechanism 125, two developments for developing the sixth thermal processing unit block 175 and the LCD substrate after the exposure treatment along the second central conveyance path 124A. A processing unit (dEV) 131 is provided, and on the other side, a seventh thermal processing unit block 176 and two developing processing units (DEV) 131 are provided along the second central conveying path 124A. . The sixth and seventh thermal processing unit blocks 175 and 176 are constituted by stacking two post-baking units (POST), each of which performs post-baking, in two upper and lower stages, and the second main arm. With the mechanism 125 positioned between the sixth and seventh thermal processing unit blocks 175 and 176, a third thermal processing unit 109A is formed like the fifth thermal processing unit block 174. In this case, the fifth thermal processing unit block 174 is the result of being combined between the second thermal processing unit 107A and the third thermal processing unit 109A. In addition, the four developing units (DEV) 131 arranged on both sides of the second main arm mechanism 125 constitute the third rotation system processor 109B like the second main arm mechanism 125.

Since the basic flow of the process using the resist coating and developing apparatus 300A configured as described above is the same as that of the system shown in FIG. 9 described above, description thereof is omitted.

As described above, also in the resist coating and developing apparatus 300A according to the present example, a resist liquid coating processing unit (CT) of the scrubber cleaning unit (SCR) 119 and the resist processing block 130 which are relatively large rotational units. And a liquid treatment system unit including a development treatment unit (DEV) 131 are arranged along the central conveying paths 116 and 124A, and the heat treatment system treatment units HP, PRE, POST, COL, and AD are centered. Since it is arrange | positioned in multiple stages around the sub arm mechanism 113A, 113B located on the extension line of conveyance path 116, 124A, the effect similar to embodiment shown in FIG. 9 can be acquired.

It is a top view which shows the other modification of 2nd Embodiment of this invention. In addition, in FIG. 16, the same code | symbol is attached | subjected about the component which is common in FIG.

The resist coating and developing apparatus 300B according to the present example rotates the carry-in / out unit 103 for carrying in carrying out (loading and unloading) of the LCD substrate G, and the substrate G is rotated to perform the cleaning process. 104A of first liquid processing system processing units for performing the process, the first heat treatment system processing unit 105B mainly for performing the heating and cooling process, and the substrate G to rotate (coating) and The second liquid treatment system 106B for performing the peripheral resist removal treatment, the second heat treatment system 107B for performing the heating and cooling treatment, and the third liquid for performing development by rotating the substrate. An interface unit IF 108 is provided to exchange the substrate G between the processing system processor 109C and the exposure apparatus 400. In addition, since the structure of the carrying-in / out part 103 and the interface part I. F. 108 is the same as that of the example of FIG. 9, description is abbreviate | omitted.

104 A of 1st liquid-processing system process parts are equipped with the 1st main arm mechanism 115 which receives a board | substrate from the 1st sub-arm mechanism 113. As shown in FIG. On one side of the first main arm mechanism 115, two cleaning units (SCRs) 119 constituted by, for example, brush scrubbers along the central conveying path 116A, and an excimer unit for cleaning organic matter ( Excimer 112 is provided in parallel.

104 A of 1st heat processing system process parts are arrange | positioned in series (on the extension line of the central conveyance path 16) to the 1st central conveyance path 116A. 113 A of 2nd subarm mechanisms are provided in this 1st heat processing system process part 105B. This second subarm mechanism 113A is basically configured in the same manner as shown in FIG. 9, and has an arm 114 capable of holding the substrate G, and swings, advances, and moves up and down the arm 114. In this way, the substrate can be passed to a predetermined device (to be described later) of the peripheral processing unit.

Around the second subarm mechanism 113A, a first heat treatment system unit block 177, a second heat treatment unit block 178, and a third heat treatment machine unit block 179 are provided. It is provided so as to surround 113A) from the outside. Among them, the first thermal processing unit block 177 is a relay when the substrate is exchanged between the first liquid processing processor 104A and the first thermal processing processor 105B in order from the bottom. An extension cooling unit (COL) having both a negative function and a substrate cooling function, and two dehydration bake units (HP) subjected to dehydration bake treatment are laminated in three stages. The third thermal processing unit block 179 functions as a relay and a substrate when the substrate G is exchanged between the first thermal processing unit 105B and the second thermal processing unit 106B. Two extension cooling units (EXT / COL) with cooling function and advanced treatment unit (AD) are stacked in three stages. In addition, the 1st thermal processing unit block 177 is connected to the 1st central conveyance path 116A of the 1st liquid processing system process part 104A, and the 3rd thermal processing unit block 179 is a 1st heat processing unit block 179, It is connected to the 2nd central conveyance path of 2 liquid processing system process part 106B, and these 1st and 3rd thermal processing unit blocks 177, 179 are mutually Y with the 2nd sub-arm mechanism 113A interposed. It is arranged to face in the direction.

On the other hand, the 2nd liquid processing system process part 106B is equipped with the 2nd main arm mechanism 125 which runs on the 2nd center conveyance path 124B extended along the Y direction. This second main arm mechanism 125 is configured in the same manner as the first main arm mechanism 115, and has bases 126 and 127 basically configured as shown in FIG. In addition, a resist processing block 130 is provided on one side of the second main arm mechanism 125.

The 2nd heat processing system process part 107B is arrange | positioned in series with the 2nd center conveyance path 124B (on the extension line of the center conveyance path 24). The 3rd sub-arm mechanism 113B is provided in this 2nd heat processing system process part 107B. The third subarm mechanism 113B is configured similarly to the second subarm mechanism 113A, has an arm 114 capable of holding the substrate G, and pivots, retracts, and moves the arm 114. By moving up and down, it is possible to transfer the substrate to a predetermined place of the surrounding processing unit described later.

Around the third subarm mechanism 113B, the fourth thermal processing unit block 180, the fifth thermal processing unit block 181, the sixth thermal processing unit block 182, and the seventh thermal processing unit The block 183 is provided so as to surround the third subarm mechanism 113B in an arc shape from the outside. In other words, the fourth thermal processing unit block 180 functions as a relay unit that exchanges substrates between the second liquid processing system processing unit 106B and the second thermal processing system processing unit 107B in order from the bottom. And an extension cooling unit (EXT / COL) having a substrate cooling function and two prebaking units (PRE) for prebaking are stacked in three stages above and below. The fifth thermal processing unit block 181 has a configuration in which three prebaking units PRE for prebaking are stacked in three stages above and below. The sixth thermal processing unit block 182 is configured by stacking three post-baking units POST performing the post-baking process in three stages above and below. In addition, the fourth thermal processing unit block 180 is connected to the second central transfer path 124B of the second liquid processing system processor 106B, and the seventh thermal processing unit block 183 is the third liquid. It is connected to the 3rd center conveyance path 191 mentioned later of the processing system process part 109C, and these 4th and 7th thermal processing unit blocks 180 and 183 are between the 3rd subarm mechanism 113B. It is arranged to face each other in the direction.

The third liquid processing system processor 109c includes a third main arm mechanism 190 that travels on the third central conveyance path 191 extending along the Y direction. The third main arm mechanism 190 includes a base 193 and an arm 192 and is configured similarly to the first main arm mechanism 115. In addition, on one side of the third main arm mechanism 190, three development processing units (DEVs) 31 for developing the substrate after the exposure treatment are provided along the third central transport path 191. .

Since the basic flow of the process using the resist coating and developing apparatus 300B configured as described above is the same as that of the system shown in FIG. 9, description thereof is omitted.

As described above, with respect to the coating and developing apparatus 300B according to the present example, the resist of the scrubber cleaning unit (SCR) 119 and the resist processing block 130, which are rotational units, is the same as the examples of FIGS. 9 and 15. A liquid processing system unit including a liquid coating processing unit (CT) and a developing processing unit (DEV) 131 is provided along the central conveying paths 116A, 124B, and 191, and further, the heat treatment system units HP, PRE, POST, COL, and AD are stacked and arranged in multiple stages around the subarm mechanisms 113A and 113B positioned on the extension lines of the central transport paths 116A and 124B. Therefore, the effect similar to 1st Embodiment can be acquired. In the present embodiment, since the unit is provided only on one side of the substrate transport path, the substrate transport path is long, but the width of the system can be made smaller than the two examples shown in FIGS. 9 and 15. In this example, the post-baking unit POST performing the post-baking process and the pre-baking unit PRE performing the pre-baking process are collectively disposed between the resist processing block 130 and the developing processing unit (DEV) 131. Since it is provided concentrated in the 2nd heat processing system process part 107B located in, it is possible to shorten the board | substrate conveyance time from the prebaking process to the postbaking process through an exposure process.

In addition, this invention is not limited to the said embodiment, A various deformation | transformation is possible within the range which does not deviate from the summary. For example, in the above embodiment, an example in which the present invention is applied to a resist coating and developing apparatus for an LCD substrate is shown. However, the present invention is not limited thereto, and the present invention can be applied to a coating and developing processing system for other substrates such as color filters. It is also possible to apply it to other substrate processing apparatuses other than the resist coating and developing apparatus.

In the first embodiment, similarly to the second embodiment, a plurality of thermal processing unit blocks constituted by stacking the heat treatment system units in a plurality of stages are arranged around a predetermined portion on an extension line of the conveying path. Therefore, the same effects as in the second embodiment can be expected.

As described above, according to the present invention, since the common conveying means for conveying the substrates to the first and second processing unit groups which perform a series of independent processes respectively is provided, the conveying means is provided in each system. Compared with the conventional device configuration, the conveying means can be reduced, and the footprint of the device can be reduced.

According to another aspect of the present invention, a rotation system unit or a liquid processing system unit is installed along a conveying path, and the liquid processing system units are stacked in multiple stages to constitute a liquid processing system unit block, and such thermal processing unit blocks are provided in plurality. Since it is arrange | positioned around the predetermined part on the conveyance path or its extension line, it is possible to increase the number of units while suppressing the footprint.

Claims (32)

It is a processing apparatus for performing a predetermined process with respect to a board | substrate, A first process unit group having a plurality of process units for performing a series of first processes constituted by a plurality of processes; A second process unit group having a plurality of process units for performing a series of second processes constituted by a plurality of processes; The substrate processing apparatus provided with the common conveyance means which conveys the board | substrate with respect to each process unit of the said 1st and 2nd process unit group. The method according to claim 1, A substrate processing apparatus having the same contents of processing performed in the first processing unit group and the second processing unit group. The method according to claim 2, And said first and second processing unit groups are provided symmetrically with a transfer means therebetween. The method according to claim 1, A substrate processing apparatus having abnormalities in the processing performed by the first processing unit group and the second processing unit group. The method according to claim 1, And the conveying means comprises a horizontal conveying path extending in the horizontal direction and a horizontal conveying mechanism which moves along the horizontal conveying path and exchanges substrates between the processing units. The method according to claim 1, And the conveying means comprises a vertical conveying path extending in the vertical direction and a vertical conveying mechanism which moves along the vertical conveying path and exchanges substrates between the processing units. The method according to claim 1, A substrate processing apparatus, further comprising: an import / export unit for carrying in and out of a substrate, the storage container placing portion for placing a substrate storage container capable of storing a substrate. It is a substrate processing apparatus for performing a predetermined process with respect to a board | substrate, A first process unit group having a plurality of process units for performing a series of first processes constituted by a plurality of processes; A second process unit group having a plurality of process units for performing a series of second processes constituted by a plurality of processes; Common conveying means for conveying a substrate to each processing unit of the first and second processing unit groups; And selection means for selecting which of the first and second processing unit groups the substrate is to be processed. The method according to claim 8, A substrate processing apparatus having the same contents of processing performed in the first processing unit group and the second processing unit group. The method according to claim 9, The selection means detects a side from which the substrate can be transported among the first processing unit group and the second processing unit group, and controls the transfer means to carry the substrate into the transferable group of processing units based on the detection result. Substrate processing apparatus. The method according to claim 8, A substrate processing apparatus having different contents of processing performed in the first processing unit group and the second processing unit group. The method according to claim 11, The selection means determines which of the first processing unit group and the second processing unit group the substrate performs processing, and controls the conveying means to carry the substrate into the determined processing unit group based on the result. Substrate processing apparatus. The method according to claim 8, A substrate processing apparatus further comprising an import / export unit for carrying in and carrying out a substrate, comprising a storage container placing unit for placing a substrate storage container capable of storing a substrate. It is a substrate processing apparatus for performing a predetermined process with respect to a board | substrate, A first process unit group having a plurality of process units for performing a series of first processes constituted by a plurality of processes; A second process unit group having a plurality of process units for performing a series of second processes constituted by a plurality of processes; It is provided with common conveyance means which conveys a board | substrate with respect to each process unit of the said 1st and 2nd process unit group, The first and second processing unit groups each include a horizontal processing block in which a plurality of processing units are arranged horizontally, and a vertical processing block in which a plurality of processing units are stacked in a vertical direction. The conveying means is provided so as to be movable in the horizontal direction to transfer the substrate to and from the horizontal processing block, and the horizontal conveying apparatus is installed so as to be movable in the vertical direction, and the substrate is transferred to the vertical processing block. A substrate processing apparatus having a vertical transfer device for receiving. The method according to claim 14, The horizontal processing block includes a plurality of liquid processing units for performing liquid processing on a substrate, and the vertical processing block includes a plurality of thermal processing units for performing thermal processing on a substrate. The method according to claim 14, A plurality of horizontal processing blocks are provided, and the transfer path to which the horizontal transfer device corresponding thereto is moved is arranged in a straight line. The method according to claim 14, The substrate processing apparatus is a substrate processing apparatus which performs development after resist coating and exposure to a substrate, and the horizontal processing block is a resist liquid coating processing unit for applying a resist to a substrate and / or a developing processing unit for performing development treatment. Substrate processing apparatus having a. The method according to claim 17, The horizontal processing block further comprises a cleaning processing unit for cleaning the substrate. The method according to claim 17 or 18, A substrate processing apparatus further comprising an interface portion for exchanging a substrate with an exposure apparatus that performs exposure after applying a resist liquid to the substrate. The method according to claim 14, A substrate processing apparatus further comprising an import / export unit for carrying in / out of a substrate, comprising a storage container placing unit for placing a substrate storage container capable of storing a substrate. A first process unit group having a plurality of process units for performing a series of first processes constituted by a plurality of processes, and a plurality of process units for performing a series of second processes constituted by a plurality of processes. A substrate to be subjected to a predetermined process to the substrate by a substrate processing apparatus having a second processing unit group including a second transfer unit and common transfer means for transferring the substrates to the respective processing units of the first and second processing unit groups. Treatment method, A substrate processing method in which one of a first processing unit group and a second processing unit group is selected for each substrate, and each substrate is processed in the selected processing unit group. It is a substrate processing apparatus which apply | coats a coating liquid to a board | substrate, forms a thin film, and develops the said thin film exposed according to a circuit pattern, A plurality of rotation system units for rotating and processing the substrate, a plurality of heat treatment system units for heating and cooling the substrate without rotating the substrate, a conveying apparatus for transporting the substrate into and out of the units, and movement of the conveying apparatus With a return path to form a path, The rotation system unit is arranged along the conveying path, and the heat treatment system unit is stacked in multiple stages to form a thermal unit block, and the thermal processing unit blocks are plural, around a predetermined portion on the conveying path or on an extension line thereof. The substrate processing apparatus arrange | positioned. The method according to claim 22, A substrate which is distinguished from each other by having a rotation system processing unit constituted by a rotation system unit and a heat treatment system process unit constituted by a heat treatment system unit, wherein the rotation system process unit and the heat treatment system process unit are connected in series through a transfer path. Processing unit. The method according to claim 22, The rotation system unit includes at least a thin film forming unit for coating a coating liquid onto a substrate to form a thin film, and a developing unit for developing the exposed thin film in correspondence with a circuit pattern, wherein the heat treatment unit is before developing. And a plurality of baking treatment units which bake the substrates after the developing treatment. The method of claim 24, And said plurality of bake units are concentrated between said thin film developing unit and said developing unit. The method according to claim 22, The rotation system unit includes at least a cleaning processing apparatus for cleaning the substrate, a thin film forming unit for applying a coating liquid to the substrate to form a thin film, and a developing processing unit for developing the exposed thin film corresponding to the circuit pattern. Further, the heat treatment system unit includes a plurality of baking treatment units for baking the substrate after the cleaning treatment and before and after the developing treatment, a cooling treatment unit for cooling the substrate, and an advice treatment for the substrate. Substrate processing apparatus comprising at least an advice unit for performing. The method according to claim 22, A substrate processing apparatus in which a rotation system unit is provided only on one side of a conveying path. The method according to claim 22, And a sub-arm mechanism for entering and exiting a substrate to each unit of the plurality of thermal processing unit blocks in the predetermined portion. It is a substrate processing apparatus which forms a thin film by apply | coating a coating liquid to a board | substrate, and develops the said thin film exposed corresponding to a circuit pattern, A plurality of liquid processing system units for processing by supplying a predetermined liquid onto a substrate, a plurality of heat treatment system units for thermally processing the substrate, a conveying apparatus for transporting the substrates into and out of the units, and the A conveying path forming a moving path of the conveying apparatus, The liquid treatment system unit is arranged along the conveying path, and the heat treatment system unit is stacked in multiple stages to form a thermal treatment unit block, and the thermal treatment unit blocks are plural, and a predetermined portion on the conveying path or on an extension line thereof. A substrate processing apparatus disposed around the perimeter. The method of claim 29, And a sub-arm mechanism for entering and exiting a substrate to each unit of the plurality of thermal processing unit blocks in the predetermined portion. A substrate processing apparatus for performing a series of treatments including a plurality of liquid treatments and thermal treatments accompanying the substrates, A plurality of liquid processing system units for processing a substrate, a heat treatment system unit for performing thermal processing associated with the plurality of liquid processings on a substrate, a conveying apparatus for transporting a substrate to and from each of the units, and the A conveying path forming a moving path of the conveying apparatus, The liquid treatment unit is arranged along the conveying path, and the heat treatment system unit is stacked in multiple stages to form a thermal treatment unit block, and the thermal treatment unit blocks are provided in plural, and a predetermined portion on the conveying path or on an extension line thereof. Substrate processing apparatus disposed around. It is a substrate processing apparatus which performs the process comprised by a some process including a liquid process and a thermal process to a to-be-processed substrate, A plurality of liquid processing system processing units are disposed on the substrate to be processed along the horizontal transport path that extends horizontally, and each processing is provided along the horizontal transport path by a first transport device that moves the horizontal transport path. A first processing unit to which the substrate to be processed is conveyed to the unit, A plurality of thermal processing units for thermally processing the substrate to be processed in an up and down direction are arranged along the vertical conveying path along a vertical conveying path which extends vertically along a vertical conveying path extending vertically. The substrate processing apparatus provided with the 2nd process part which conveys the to-be-processed board | substrate with respect to each processing unit.