KR20090006414A - Robot arm align apparatus and semiconductor manufacturing equipment with the same - Google Patents

Robot arm align apparatus and semiconductor manufacturing equipment with the same Download PDF

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Publication number
KR20090006414A
KR20090006414A KR1020070069734A KR20070069734A KR20090006414A KR 20090006414 A KR20090006414 A KR 20090006414A KR 1020070069734 A KR1020070069734 A KR 1020070069734A KR 20070069734 A KR20070069734 A KR 20070069734A KR 20090006414 A KR20090006414 A KR 20090006414A
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KR
South Korea
Prior art keywords
robot arm
alignment
robot
arms
arm
Prior art date
Application number
KR1020070069734A
Other languages
Korean (ko)
Inventor
양종현
Original Assignee
삼성전자주식회사
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Filing date
Publication date
Application filed by 삼성전자주식회사 filed Critical 삼성전자주식회사
Priority to KR1020070069734A priority Critical patent/KR20090006414A/en
Publication of KR20090006414A publication Critical patent/KR20090006414A/en

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    • H—ELECTRICITY
    • H01—ELECTRIC ELEMENTS
    • H01L—SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICES NOT COVERED BY CLASS H10
    • H01L21/00—Processes or apparatus adapted for the manufacture or treatment of semiconductor or solid state devices or of parts thereof
    • H01L21/67—Apparatus specially adapted for handling semiconductor or electric solid state devices during manufacture or treatment thereof; Apparatus specially adapted for handling wafers during manufacture or treatment of semiconductor or electric solid state devices or components ; Apparatus not specifically provided for elsewhere
    • H01L21/67005—Apparatus not specifically provided for elsewhere
    • H01L21/67242—Apparatus for monitoring, sorting or marking
    • H01L21/67259—Position monitoring, e.g. misposition detection or presence detection
    • H—ELECTRICITY
    • H01—ELECTRIC ELEMENTS
    • H01L—SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICES NOT COVERED BY CLASS H10
    • H01L21/00—Processes or apparatus adapted for the manufacture or treatment of semiconductor or solid state devices or of parts thereof
    • H01L21/67—Apparatus specially adapted for handling semiconductor or electric solid state devices during manufacture or treatment thereof; Apparatus specially adapted for handling wafers during manufacture or treatment of semiconductor or electric solid state devices or components ; Apparatus not specifically provided for elsewhere
    • H01L21/677—Apparatus specially adapted for handling semiconductor or electric solid state devices during manufacture or treatment thereof; Apparatus specially adapted for handling wafers during manufacture or treatment of semiconductor or electric solid state devices or components ; Apparatus not specifically provided for elsewhere for conveying, e.g. between different workstations
    • H01L21/67739—Apparatus specially adapted for handling semiconductor or electric solid state devices during manufacture or treatment thereof; Apparatus specially adapted for handling wafers during manufacture or treatment of semiconductor or electric solid state devices or components ; Apparatus not specifically provided for elsewhere for conveying, e.g. between different workstations into and out of processing chamber
    • H01L21/67742—Mechanical parts of transfer devices
    • H—ELECTRICITY
    • H01—ELECTRIC ELEMENTS
    • H01L—SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICES NOT COVERED BY CLASS H10
    • H01L21/00—Processes or apparatus adapted for the manufacture or treatment of semiconductor or solid state devices or of parts thereof
    • H01L21/67—Apparatus specially adapted for handling semiconductor or electric solid state devices during manufacture or treatment thereof; Apparatus specially adapted for handling wafers during manufacture or treatment of semiconductor or electric solid state devices or components ; Apparatus not specifically provided for elsewhere
    • H01L21/68—Apparatus specially adapted for handling semiconductor or electric solid state devices during manufacture or treatment thereof; Apparatus specially adapted for handling wafers during manufacture or treatment of semiconductor or electric solid state devices or components ; Apparatus not specifically provided for elsewhere for positioning, orientation or alignment

Abstract

The semiconductor manufacturing facilities equipped with a plurality of robot arms is provided to perform the exact align of the robot arm. The robot arm aligning apparatus(100) comprises the align fixture(120). The align fixture comprises a plurality of slots(122 :122a,122b) corresponds to a plurality of robot arms to align the robot arms of the wafer transfer device(110). The wafer transfer device has a plurality of robot arms. The robot arm aligning apparatus comprises the support stand(130) for the align fixture. The support stand is comprised of the upper side of the carrier for mounting a plurality of wafers.

Description

ROBOT ARM ALIGN APPARATUS AND SEMICONDUCTOR MANUFACTURING EQUIPMENT WITH THE SAME

1 is a perspective view showing some components of a semiconductor manufacturing facility according to an embodiment of the prior art;

FIG. 2 is a front view showing the configuration of the robot arm alignment device shown in FIG. 1; FIG.

3 is a plan view showing the configuration of the robotic arm alignment device shown in FIG. 1;

Figure 4 is a front view showing the configuration of a robot arm aligning device having a plurality of robot arms integrally according to an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 5 is a plan view showing the configuration of the robot arm alignment device shown in FIG. 4; FIG. And

FIG. 6 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the robot arm alignment device shown in FIG. 4.

Explanation of symbols on the main parts of the drawings

100 semiconductor manufacturing equipment 110 robot arm

120: alignment fixture 122: slot

124: first alignment portion 126: second alignment portion

128: detection unit 130: support

140: display unit 150: power supply unit

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a semiconductor manufacturing facility, and more particularly, to a robot arm aligning apparatus of a semiconductor manufacturing facility and a method for aligning the same, wherein a plurality of robot arms are integrally provided.

Referring to FIG. 1, a semiconductor manufacturing facility 2, for example, a high dose (HD) facility, includes a carrier 30 (for example, a cassette, a FOUP, etc.) and a chamber (not shown) in which a plurality of wafers are mounted ( For example, the wafer transfer apparatus 10 is provided between load lock chambers. The wafer transfer apparatus 10 transfers a plurality of wafers at one time using the plurality of robot arms 12. Since the wafer transfer device 10 handles several wafers at the same time, the wafer alignment state and the alignment process between the robot arm 12 and the carrier 30 (ROBOT to CARRIER) are very important. Do.

In other words, the wafer transfer device 10 has a T axis by two arms 14, 16 connected to an arm drive mechanism disposed above the drive device 18 to transfer the wafer between the carrier 30 and the chamber. And an integrated robot arm 12 moved in the R axis and Z axis directions. For example, the drive device 18 is equipped with an arm drive mechanism and devices such as a robot arm 12 and a motor for driving the arms 14 and 16 therein, and the robot arm 12 is integrated with five robot arms. It is provided with.

The carrier 30 is provided with, for example, a FOUP, a plurality of wafers are mounted, and the robot arm alignment device 20 is provided on an upper surface thereof.

The robot arm alignment device 20 protrudes from the upper surface of the carrier 30, that is, the center of the support 22, and an alignment fixture 24 is formed to align the integrated robot arm 12. . As shown in FIG. 2, in the alignment fixture 20, a portion into which the first robot arm 12a at the lower end of the plurality of robot arms 12 is inserted is protruded upward, and the head of the robot arm 12 is disposed. In response to one side of the robot arm 12 is moved is opened, the other side is closed.

Accordingly, the robot arm alignment device 20 aligns the robot arm 12 by inserting the integrated robot arm 12 back and forth in the Z axis direction or up and down in the R axis direction to be inserted into the alignment fixture 24. .

However, although the robot arm alignment device 20 includes a plurality of robot arms 12 integrally, only the alignment of one robot arm, that is, the first robot arm 12a, located at the lower end thereof is made. Also, as shown in FIG. 3, the alignment fixture 24 is formed to have a length a which is inserted into only the head of the robot arm 12 so that an end point of the inside of the alignment fixture 24 is formed by an operator. Visual alignment is achieved by visual judgment only at (END position). As a result, accurate distance adjustment between the robot arm 12 and the alignment fixture 24 is not achieved. The moving direction of the robot arm 12 operates in the directions of the T axis, the R axis, and the Z axis, but the Z-axis length of the alignment fixture 24 is short, so that only the head portion of the robot arm 12 is aligned fixture. Since the alignment of the robot arm 12 from the initial position of the robot arm 12 to the end point of the alignment fixture 24 is not achieved at all, the robot arm 12 moves. Alignment verification is difficult.

As described above, in the semiconductor manufacturing facility 2, the position of the alignment fixture 24 and the robot arm 12 are moved when the robot arms 12, which are provided in a plural number, are moved to the alignment fixture 24. Alignment should be done to avoid misalignment. The semiconductor fabrication facility 2 has an alignment fixture 24 (or alignment jig) for aligning the robot arm 12 for this purpose. For example, the alignment fixture 24 is disposed on the carrier 30 to drive the wafer transfer robot 10 including the plurality of robot arms 12 to process the alignment operation.

Since the wafer transfer device 10 of the semiconductor manufacturing facility 2 is provided with five robot arms in one body, five wafers are loaded and unloaded at one time. As a result, when an alignment defect occurs in the wafer transfer device 10, not only an abnormality occurs for one wafer but also an impact is applied to five wafers, which may cause a large amount of wafer damage.

Furthermore, the robot arm 12 is moved to the alignment fixture 24 provided on the carrier 30, and the alignment process is performed in accordance with the alignment position of the alignment fixture 24. FIG. However, since the robot arm 12 itself moves with the T-axis, the R-axis, and the Z-axis, the correct value must be set for each axis operation so as not to cause an abnormality in the wafer. For example, due to misalignment of the robot arm, wafer breakage, sliding of the wafer during wafer transfer, and the like may occur.

In addition, at the time of aligning the robot arm 12 using the alignment fixture 24, one worker is in progress, and precise position alignment through robot arm manipulation and teaching is virtually impossible. In addition, when the robot arm alignment is processed by several workers, the reference point is different for each worker, so that accurate alignment is difficult to be achieved, thereby causing a potential for wafer abnormality.

In addition, although the wafer transfer device 10 of the semiconductor manufacturing facility 2 includes five robot arms as an integrated body 12, the alignment fixture 24 is located at the bottom of the five robot arms 12. Only the alignment with the first robot arm 12a is checked. Therefore, the accuracy of alignment with respect to the second to fifth robot arms of the robot arms 12 is inferior.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is to provide a robot arm alignment apparatus for precise alignment of a robot arm in a semiconductor manufacturing facility having a plurality of robot arms integrally.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a semiconductor manufacturing facility having a robot arm alignment device for aligning an integrated robot arm.

In order to achieve the above objects, the robot arm alignment apparatus of the present invention is characterized in providing an alignment fixture having a plurality of slots corresponding to the plurality of robot arms. As described above, the robot arm alignment apparatus enables accurate and standardized alignment processing of a plurality of robot arms.

Robot arm alignment apparatus of the present invention, the support and; It is formed to protrude on top of the support, the plurality of robot arms are inserted at the same time includes an alignment fixture for aligning the robot arms.

In one embodiment, the support is provided with a carrier upper surface on which a plurality of wafers are mounted.

In another embodiment, the alignment fixture; A plurality of slots are provided corresponding to each of the robot arms, and the slots are arranged to insert one robot arm.

In yet another embodiment, the alignment fixtures are; A sensing unit for sensing a contact state between the robot arm and the slot, a display unit for receiving sensing information from the sensing unit and indicating the contact state between the robot arm and the slot, and supplying power to the sensing unit and the display unit It further comprises a power supply.

In yet another embodiment, the alignment fixture is selected from the group consisting of: an alignment fixture; The interior of the robot arm is divided into one alignment portion for aligning the head and the second alignment portion for aligning the head of the robot arm with the insertion direction of the robot arm.

According to another feature of the invention, the semiconductor manufacturing equipment is provided with a robot arm alignment device for a wafer transfer device is provided with a plurality of robot arms integrally.

The semiconductor manufacturing equipment includes: a carrier on which a plurality of wafers are mounted; a wafer transfer device in which a plurality of robot arms are integrally provided; And a robot arm alignment device provided on the carrier upper surface and inserted with the robot arms to align the wafer transfer device at the same time.

In one embodiment, the robot arm alignment device; And a support fixture formed as an upper surface of the carrier and protruding from the upper portion of the support, wherein the plurality of robot arms are inserted at the same time to align the robot arms.

In another embodiment, the alignment fixture; A plurality of slots are provided corresponding to each of the robot arms, and the slots are arranged to insert one robot arm.

In yet another embodiment, the alignment fixtures are; A sensing unit for sensing a contact state between the robot arm and the slot, a display unit for receiving sensing information from the sensing unit and indicating the contact state between the robot arm and the slot, and supplying power to the sensing unit and the display unit It further comprises a power supply.

In yet another embodiment, the alignment fixture is selected from the group consisting of: an alignment fixture; The interior of the robot arm is divided into one alignment portion for aligning the head and the second alignment portion for aligning the head of the robot arm with the insertion direction of the robot arm.

The embodiments of the present invention may be modified in various forms, and the scope of the present invention should not be interpreted as being limited by the embodiments described below. This embodiment is provided to more completely explain the present invention to those skilled in the art. Therefore, the shape of the components in the drawings, etc. have been exaggerated to emphasize a more clear description.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to FIGS. 4 to 6.

4 is a front view illustrating a configuration of a robot arm alignment apparatus in which a plurality of robot arms are integrally provided according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 4, a semiconductor manufacturing apparatus using the robot arm alignment apparatus 100 according to the present invention includes a wafer transfer apparatus 110 in which a plurality of robot arms are provided (eg, five) as an integrated body. do. Thus, the wafer transfer device 110 transfers a plurality of wafers at one time, for example, between a carrier (not shown) and a chamber (not shown).

The robot arm alignment device 100 includes a plurality of slots 122: 122a and 122b corresponding to the plurality of robot arms to align the robot arms of the wafer transfer device 110 having a plurality of robot arms integrally. It includes an alignment fixture 120 having a). In addition, the robot arm alignment apparatus 100 includes a support 130 on which an alignment fixture 120 is formed.

The support 130 is provided as, for example, an upper surface of a carrier (cassette or unwind) (not shown) on which a plurality of wafers are mounted.

The alignment fixture 120 is formed to protrude in the center of the upper portion of the support 130, and a plurality of slots 122 are symmetrically provided corresponding to the number of robot arms. One robot arm is inserted between upper and lower slots 122. Accordingly, the alignment fixture 120 inserts a plurality of robot arms between each slot 122 to align the plurality of robot arms. In addition, each slot 122 has a sensing unit (128 in FIG. 6) electrically connected to verify the interval and alignment state of the robot arm, a display unit 140 indicating the sensing state of the sensing unit 128, A power supply unit 150 for supplying power to the detector 128 and the display unit 140 is provided. The sensing unit is provided with, for example, an electrode and a contact sensor in each slot 122 to detect whether or not the robot arm is inserted into the slot 122. For example, the display unit 140 is provided as a lamp, a display device, or the like, and outputs information indicating on / off or contact state in response to the information detected by the sensing unit. Therefore, when aligning the robot arm, the sensing unit 128 detects each alignment state of the robot arms inserted into the slots 122, and at least one of the robot arms inserted into the slots 122. Is hit and hit at least one of the slots 122, the display unit 140 indicates a misaligned state. Therefore, the visual alignment status determination can be processed more effectively by the prior art.

In addition, as shown in FIG. 5, the robot arm alignment apparatus 100 extends the Z axis length c of the alignment fixture 120 in the advancing direction to align the movement of the robot arm. .

In detail, referring to FIG. 5, the alignment fixture 120 includes a first alignment unit 124 for inserting the head of the robot arm to align the head of the robot arm, and inserting the arm of the robot arm into the robot arm. It is divided into a second alignment portion 126 for aligning the direction.

The first alignment portion 124 is formed with a proper length (b) so that each head does not contact the slot so that the robot arm is inserted in the Z axis direction of the robot arm. The second alignment unit 126 is formed to extend by the length (c) to be moved in the Z axis direction of the robot arm to verify the initial alignment state with respect to the moving direction of the robot arm, the alignment according to the movement of the robot arm To verify the status.

In the above, the configuration and operation of the robot arm alignment device and the semiconductor manufacturing equipment having the same according to the present invention has been shown in accordance with the detailed description and drawings, but this is merely described by way of example, and do not depart from the spirit of the present invention. Many variations and modifications are possible without departing from the scope of the invention.

As described above, the robot arm alignment apparatus of the present invention includes an alignment fixture in which a plurality of slots are formed, so that accurate alignment of the plurality of robot arms that are integrally provided may be performed.

In addition, by precise alignment processing, wafer damage prevention and stable wafer transfer are possible.

Also, when aligning the robot arm, the alignment fixture's slots, the detector and the display unit can be used to identify the alignment status more accurately and in real time than the visual alignment. Misalignment can be prevented, so standardized alignment is possible.

And by changing the internal structure of the alignment fixture to insert the head and the arm of the robot arm, it is possible to align and verify according to the head and the moving direction of the robot arm.

Claims (10)

In the robot arm alignment apparatus for a wafer transfer apparatus having a plurality of robot arms integrally: Support and; And a align fixture protruding from the upper portion of the support, wherein the plurality of robot arms are inserted at the same time to align the robot arms. The method of claim 1, The support arm is a robot arm alignment device, characterized in that provided with a carrier upper surface on which a plurality of wafers are mounted. The method according to claim 1 or 2, The alignment fixture; And a plurality of slots corresponding to each of the robot arms, wherein the slots are arranged such that one robot arm is inserted therein. The method of claim 3, wherein Alignment fixtures; A detection unit for detecting a contact state between the robot arm and the slot; A display unit indicating the contact state between the robot arm and the slot by receiving detection information from the detection unit; Robot arm alignment device further comprises a power supply for supplying power to the detector and the display. The method of claim 3, wherein The alignment fixture; The interior of the robot arm is divided into one alignment portion for aligning the head is inserted into the alignment, and the second alignment portion for inserting the arm of the robot arm to align in accordance with the moving direction of the robot arm. Robot arm aligning device. In semiconductor manufacturing equipment: A carrier on which a plurality of wafers are mounted: A wafer transfer device in which a plurality of robot arms are integrally provided; And a robot arm alignment device provided on the carrier upper surface and inserting the robot arms to align the wafer transfer device at the same time. The method of claim 6, The robot arm alignment device; A support formed by the upper surface of the carrier, And an alignment fixture protruding from the upper portion of the support, wherein the plurality of robot arms are inserted at the same time to align the robot arms. The method of claim 7, wherein The alignment fixture; And a plurality of slots corresponding to each of the robot arms, wherein the slots are arranged to insert one robot arm. The method of claim 8, Alignment fixtures; A detection unit for detecting a contact state between the robot arm and the slot; A display unit indicating the contact state between the robot arm and the slot by receiving detection information from the detection unit; And a power supply for supplying power to the sensing unit and the display unit. The method according to claim 8 or 9, The alignment fixture; The interior of the robot arm is divided into one alignment portion for aligning the head is inserted into the alignment, and the second alignment portion for inserting the arm of the robot arm to align in accordance with the moving direction of the robot arm. Semiconductor manufacturing equipment.
KR1020070069734A 2007-07-11 2007-07-11 Robot arm align apparatus and semiconductor manufacturing equipment with the same KR20090006414A (en)

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Cited By (1)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
KR20170029293A (en) * 2015-09-07 2017-03-15 삼성전자주식회사 Robot arm aligning apparatus and semiconductor manufacturing apparatus having the same

Cited By (1)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
KR20170029293A (en) * 2015-09-07 2017-03-15 삼성전자주식회사 Robot arm aligning apparatus and semiconductor manufacturing apparatus having the same

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