KR20060079123A - Holder and method for separating objects, and flexible material layer with separated objects - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to a method and a holder for connecting and supporting objects such as, but not exclusively, semiconductor products, while separating objects using laser light. The invention also relates to a layer of compliant material provided with a plurality of objects separated and connected to a layer of material on one side.

Description

HOLDER AND METHOD FOR SEPARATING OBJECTS, AND FLEXIBLE MATERIAL LAYER WITH SEPARATED OBJECTS.

The invention is illustrated based on the non-limiting embodiments shown in the accompanying drawings.

1 is a cross-sectional view of a holder according to the present invention.

2 is a perspective view of a holder according to the present invention;

3A shows separate products laid on a layer of flexible material, a method according to the invention.

3B is a view of the method according to the invention in which a layer of flexible material is automatically replaced.

4A is a perspective view of a portion of a layer of flexible material in the formation of perforated foils;

4B is a perspective view of a portion of an alternative embodiment of a layer of compliant material within a formation of structured fibrous material.

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

1, 20: holder

2: shape-keeping carrier

3: block

5: pump

6: glass plate

7: hole

8: flexible material

9: object

10: laser beam

11: segment

12: material in which the capsule is formed

21: suction opening

22: plate

31: roll

The present invention relates to a method and a holder for engaging and supporting objects such as, for example, but not entirely, semiconductor products while separating objects using laser light. The invention also relates to a layer of compliant material provided with a plurality of objects separated and connected to a layer of material on one side.

In the manufacture of smaller products, such as electronic components, for example, they are used in numerous products that are assembled as an assembled assembly at least in some production steps. The advantage of the assembly of products is that they are easier to handle and handle than a relatively large amount of individual products. In the end, the assembled products are separated from each other by a cutting or sawing process. It is limited in size by laser cutting technology, but the use is made for this purpose. Grippers will be difficult to position parts as products for progressive separation have extremely small dimensions.

According to the prior art described in WO 2004/066369, it is possible to position the products for separating using laser light to connect and support the products on a carrier. The carrier described in WO 2004/066369 is provided with a plate and the shape of the holes which are fixed to the plate and the holes arranged on the flat carrying side of the plate. The plate is produced from a material that is at least essentially free of laser light. Such plates make the products positionable in the proper position for removal. However, according to the problem, the plate is a relatively expensive part to produce. Under the influence of the emitted contaminants and the laser light as a result of separation, the tool life of the plate is substantially only a few hours under standard conditions.

It is an object of the present invention to provide an apparatus and method for the intention of reducing the cost of positioning according to the prior art, while at the same time retaining the advantages of positioning of objects for separation using underpressure.

The present invention has the object of providing a holder for connecting and supporting objects during separation of the objects using laser light, which includes the following. The shape-retaining carrier is provided with a flat side to which the plurality of suction openings are connected, the layer of flexible material is connected to the flat side of the shape-retaining carrier, the material layer is gas-permeable, and the shape The holding carrier and the layer of flexible material are at least partly produced from a material which is essentially free of laser light penetration. Such a holder can separate various products, for example electronic components, semiconductor products, micromechanical objects and the like. The shape-bearing carrier provides a hard carrier function and delivers negative pressure to the objects for positioning. In order to prevent the shape-bearing carrier from absorbing too much energy from the laser beam, at least in part it is produced from a material which is essentially free of laser light (i.e. material transmitting the wavelength to which the laser light is applied). The same shape-retaining carrier is very similar to the carrier shown in WO 2004/066369.

According to an advantage of the invention, the carrier combined with the layer of flexible material is formed such that gas can penetrate like a negative pressure in the object for positioning to be conveyed and connected from the shape-bearing carrier to the objects. The layer of flexible material may change into a form of the product (such as a non-planar form) for incorporate and / or positioning fine contaminants that may enter between the objects and the shape-bearing carrier ( It provides the possibility of compensation for compensating variations. Another advantage of the layer of flexible material is that it forms a barrier for contaminants released as a result of the laser cutting process. The contaminants will contact the shape-carrying carrier to a size smaller than that described in the prior art, such as the shape-carrying carrier has a relatively long tool life. This means that the later layer of flexible material is replaced by a new, non-contaminated layer of flexible material. Substitution of a layer of flexible material under average conditions is considerably less expensive than replacement of a shape-bearing carrier. Another advantage of the layer of compliant material is the use of simple means of negative pressure applied through holes dispensable at a higher density in the shape-bearing carrier than by the shape-bearing carrier. The accuracy required for the formation of the shape of the holes in the shape-retaining carrier is relatively low. Thus, the cost of producing the shape-bearing carrier is lowered. In addition, the holder according to the invention is more universally applicable, in which the layer of flexible material in the shape-bearing carrier provides a higher density suction action than the shape of the holes. The holder according to the invention can be embodied in a universally applicable manner. (Each product) In this way the carrier can continuously process other types of objects without the necessary change-over.

Another unexpectedly beneficial effect is that the sides of the objects facing the layer of flexible material are contaminated and deformed lower than in the prior art (as a result of the material parts being broken away from the cutting edges). According to 2004/06369 it is due to the fact that a layer of compliant material is connected to the objects in order to support it more preferably than when a shape-bearing material layer is utilized to connect the objects. This has more advantages in separating the electronic materials, and the contact sides of the parts are important for optimum quality. In order to prevent lasers from adversely affecting a significant range of flexible materials, materials similar to shape-bearing carriers are needed, and also have the need to be at least partly made of a material that at least essentially does not absorb laser light.

In a preferred variant, the shape-bearing carrier comprises at least one plate provided with the shape of the holes, which plate is at least partly made of a material which essentially does not at least absorb laser light. The plate may be made of glass or ceramic material. As the dimensional setting is very accurate, the carriers can be made with very many holes (more than 100 holes per cm ² ). The advantage of glass, such as sheet materials, is that such materials are fine-machined manufacturing techniques (eg Powder processing) is easily processed and inexpensive. Thus, boro-silicate glass is suitable for making plates that can be used in combination with YAG-lasers (1064 nm). Another example is the use of zinc selenide (incorporated as a ceramic material) for the manufacture of plates that can be used in combination with a carbon dioxide laser (10600 nm). An additional embodiment is the use of calcium fluoride (which is embodied as a ceramic material) for the manufacture of plates that can be used in combination with a UV laser (354 nm). For the sake of clarity, laser light is understood to mean electromechanical radiation or monochromatic electromechanical radiation which comprises essentially a single wavelength. The cross section of the holes on the side facing the layer of flexible material is preferably larger than the cross section from the side facing the layer of flexible material at a distance apart. The cross sections through the holes close to the carrying side of the plate are larger than the distance from the moving side. This is the case when the holes have an apex angle between 15 ° and 45 °, preferably a 30 ° tip angle.

Preferably the shape-bearing carrier comprises a support structure provided with a branching channel structure, wherein the plurality of suction positions distributed over the surface comprises a few connecting positions for underpressure-generating means. Connected with The part of the shape-retaining carrier can be made of metal, for example. In this way, the carrier forms a connection of holes with a few or single connecting openings for the connection of the negative pressure-generating means.

The layer of compliant material may be formed at least in part by a perforated foil material, such as, for example, a plastic foil. Perforation structures are formed during fabrication of the foil, but certain treatments such as, for example, laser treatment are provided later. Such foils may be embodied to be relatively simple to manufacture and sufficient to withstand processing conditions. At least laser light is sent to the industry so that an impervious foil material is already used.

Alternatively, the layer of flexible material can be embodied as at least a partial fibrous structure. Examples are in a structured composition a fibrous material such as a woven fabric or a compressed fibrous material such as glass fiber. This fiber structure has a desirable filtering action to absorb contaminants formed by laser cutting, and the fiber material has good deformability (depending on thickness and compression).

In another embodiment, the layer of compliant material is connected to the shape-bearing carrier by an adhesive layer. The material layer can be easily positioned relative to the shape-bearing carrier without underpressure applied to the shape-bearing carrier. An adhesive layer can be provided on the side where the layer of compliant material is away from the shape-bearing carrier. By using such an adhesive layer, the objects can be held in a fixed direction relative to the layer of flexible material when the layer of flexible material is separated from the shape-bearing carrier.

In another variant, the holder is provided with a vehicle for displacing the layer of compliant material relative to the shape-bearing carrier. This supply and / or discharge means for the layer of flexible material is embodied as a driven roller for winding or unwinding the layer of material (more detailed permeable foil material). It is possible to replace the layer of flexible material, either mechanically or mechanically. In another possible variant, the holder is connected to the suction openings and provided with means for generating a negative pressure, which negative pressure-generating means can be more markedly formed by a pump.

The present invention provides a means for engaging and supporting objects during separation of the objects using laser light, comprising the following steps. Step A) The shape-retaining carrier supports the layer of flexible material, connects the layer of flexible material to the shape-retaining carrier, and step B) separates the objects for separation on the side of the layer of flexible material away from the shape-retaining carrier. At least partially, the layer of flexible material sends negative pressure to the objects to be placed and separated on the layer of material, and is subjected to negative pressure by a shape-bearing carrier on the layer of flexible material. , And step D) the layer of flexible material and the shape-bearing carrier at least partially transmit the laser light and separate the laser light from the object. It is possible that the layer of flexible material is attached to the shape-holding holder during the process of step A) and the objects for separation during the process of step B) are attached to the layer of flexible material. After performing process step D), the separated objects are removed from the layer of flexible material. It is effective to end the negative pressure applied on the separated objects before removing the objects.

1 shows a holder 1, the lower part of which is formed by a form-retaining carrier 2. The shape-bearing carrier 2 is constituted by a block 3, and inside the block 3, chambers 4 connected to the pump 5 are formed in a recess structure. For example, the block 3 can be made of metal. The block 3 connects a glass plate 6 to holes 7 formed in the groove structure. Underpressure can be generated by an activating pump 5, and the holes 7 away from the block 3 on the side of the glass plate 6 form suction openings. In addition, a flexible material layer 8 can be penetrated and then connected to the side of the glass plate 6 away from the block 3. The layer of flexible material 8 is connected to the object 9, which is divided into segments 11 by a laser beam 10. For example, the segments 11 may consist of electronic components 13 protected by an encapsulating material 12. By means of the glass plate 4 and the layer 8 of the flexible material, the negative pressure in the chambers 4 will be applied to the object 9 which can be maintained in the desired orientation, and at the same time a laser cutting process is performed.

2 shows a shape-bearing carrier 20 of a plate 22 provided with suction openings 21 partially formed. The suction openings 21 are connected to a central gas outlet 23 for generating underpressure. A layer of flexible material (partially broken) 24 is arranged on the plate 22. The object 25 divided by laser cutting on the side away from the carrier 20 is located in the layer 24 of the flexible material.

3A diagrammatically shows a shape-bearing carrier 30 in which a layer 32 of flexible material flowing from a roll 31 is arranged. In addition, the object 34 divided by the laser beam 33 is provided with a layer 32 of a flexible material. The segmented segments 35 are then ejected from the shape-bearing carrier 30 comprising a layer 32 of flexible material. The layer 32 of flexible material is in turn divided by a knife 36 into a material layer segment 37 which functions as a production carrier for the divided segments 35. For example, this method is very useful in the processing of semiconductor components produced in a map configuration.

3B diagrammatically shows a shape-bearing carrier 40 arranged in a layer 42 of flexible material flowing out of a roll 41. When a portion of the layer 42 of flexible material connected to the shape-retaining carrier 40 is replaced (for example to reduce or significantly compromise the flexibility of the portion), the second roll 43 is made of the flexible material. The layer 42 is housed to wind up.

4A shows a portion of layer 50 of a flexible material. The layer of flexible material 50 is comprised of a foil material 51 and a number of small perforations 52 are arranged. 4B in turn shows a portion of layer 55 of flexible material. The layer of flexible material 55 is composed of a structure of fiber material 56.

 Alternatively, the separated objects may be stripped of the flexible material from the shape-bearing carrier. It is also effective to at least reduce or end the negative pressure before starting this process. Thus separate objects can be quickly removed from the shape-holding holder, which offers the possibility to improve the use of a suitable laser cutting device. An additional advantage is that it can retain the relative orientation of separate objects. This is the case when the objects are connected to the flexible material by an adhesive layer. On one side the layer of flexible material is provided with numerous separate objects connected to the material layer, and the adhesive layer is used between the layer of flexible material and the objects, which forms part of the present invention. Separate products can be connected to a layer of flexible material that simplifies further processing, for example in a grid arrangement. The material layer has the advantage that the gas is formed by the permeable foil layer.

Claims (17)

A holder for engaging and supporting objects during separation of objects using laser light, the holder A form-retaining carrier connected to a plurality of suction openings and provided with a plate side; A gas-permeable flexible material layer connected to the plate side of the shape-retaining carrier, The holder of the shape-retaining carrier and the flexible material is at least partly made from a material which does not absorb laser light at least. The holder according to claim 1, wherein the shape-bearing carrier comprises at least one plate provided with a pattern of holes, the plate being made from a material which at least does not absorb laser light. 3. The shape-bearing carrier of claim 1 or 2, wherein the shape-bearing carrier comprises a support structure provided with a branching channel structure, and the plurality of suction positions distributed over the surface are characterized by a negative pressure-generating means ( Holder characterized in that it is connected to a smaller number of connection positions for underpressure-generating means. The holder of claim 1, wherein the layer of flexible material is formed at least in part by a perforated foil material. The holder according to claim 1, wherein the layer of flexible material is formed at least in part by a fiber structure. The holder of claim 1, wherein the layer of flexible material is connected to the shape-bearing carrier by an adhesive layer. A holder according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the layer of flexible material on the side away from the shape-bearing carrier is provided with an adhesive layer. A holder according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the holder is provided with a vehicle for displacing the layer of compliant material with respect to the shape-bearing carrier. A holder according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the holder is provided in a means for generating underpressure connected to the suction openings. A method for connecting and supporting objects while separating objects using laser light, the method comprising Step A) the shape-retaining carrier supports the layer of flexible material, connects the layer of flexible material to the shape-retaining carrier, Step B) placing the objects to separate on the side of the layer of flexible material away from the shape-bearing carrier, Step C) the layer of flexible material at least partially sends negative pressure to the objects to be located and separated on the layer of material, under negative pressure by a shape-bearing carrier on the layer of flexible material, and Step D) the layer of flexible material and the shape-bearing carrier at least partially transmit the laser light, the method comprising separating the laser light and the object. A method according to claim 10, wherein during the process of step A) the layer of flexible material is attached to the shape-holding holder. 12. The method according to claim 10 or 11, wherein the objects for separation during the process of step B) are attached to a layer of flexible material. The method according to claim 10, wherein the separated objects after carrying out process step D) are removed from the layer of flexible material. 13. The method of any one of claims 10 to 12, wherein the separated objects are removed from the shape-bearing carrier comprising a layer of flexible material. 15. A layer of flexible material that provides a plurality of separated objects connected to a layer of material on one side according to any of claims 10-14, wherein the separated objects are connected to the layer of flexible material by an adhesive layer. A layer of flexible material, characterized in that. The layer of compliant material according to claim 15, wherein the products separated in the grid arrangement are connected to a layer of compliant material. 17. The layer of compliant material according to claim 15 or 16, wherein the material layer is formed by a gas-permeable foil layer.

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