KR20150104856A - cassette for loading substrates - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to a cassette for loading substrates. Especially, a plurality of substrates are vertically separated and loaded in the cassette for loading substrates and the vertical states of the substrates are maintained by the cassette for loading substrates. Shaking and lapping of the substrates are minimized by the cassette for loading substrates during substrate treatment processes even though the substrates get thinner and larger. Configuration units constituting the cassette for loading substrates comprise: a square-shaped frame; an end support unit which guides both ends of substrates which are vertically loaded from an upper side to a lower side of the frame and faces both sides of the frame to prevent falling of the substrates; a lower support unit which supports each lower end of the vertically loaded substrates and is arranged in a lower side of the frame; and a side support unit which protrudes from an inner lower side of the frame upwardly, and is adjacent to each side of the substrates to prevent lapping of the vertically loaded substrates.

Description

≪ Desc / Clms Page number 1 > cassette for loading substrates &

The present invention relates to a cassette for mounting a substrate, in particular, a plurality of substrates can be vertically stacked with a predetermined spacing, and the substrate can be held and supported in a vertical state. Even if the substrate is thinned and enlarged, To a cassette for substrate loading capable of minimizing shaking and swaying of a substrate.

In order to perform various processes on the substrate, a device capable of fixing or loading the substrate is needed. The substrate thus fixed or loaded is subjected to various surface treatment processes such as a washing process and an etching process in the chamber.

The process efficiency associated with the water washing process or the etching process is closely related to the number of substrates processed within a predetermined time. That is, it is an important way to increase the process efficiency by increasing the number of substrates subjected to the water washing process or the etching process within a predetermined time.

Accordingly, it is necessary to simultaneously process a plurality of substrates in a process of performing a single process, and thus a cassette capable of loading a plurality of substrates is required.

Such a cassette for mounting a substrate must have a structure capable of stacking a plurality of substrates, a minimum contact area for supporting or fixing the substrate, and a structure capable of coping with various substrate sizes.

A related cassette for substrate loading was desig- nated by the present applicant on August 17, 2010, entitled "Cassette for Glass Substrate Etching" (Application No. 10-2010-0079158). The cassette for etching a glass substrate desired to be output has a large effect by itself, but it is a structure capable of supporting the lower end of a vertically stacked substrate and clamping only both ends of the substrate.

However, as the substrate is made thin and large, substrates loaded in a direction perpendicular to the cassette are shaken and shaken in the course of movement of the cassette when the substrate is etched, cleaned, or the like. Therefore, the large area and thinned substrate are very likely to be damaged during the etching process.

Accordingly, there is a need for an additional structure capable of minimizing shaking and swaying of the substrate during the process of the large-area and thinned substrate. This additional structure also needs to be a structure that does not interfere with the process of loading or unloading the substrate with the cassette.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made in order to solve the problems of the prior art as described above, and it is an object of the present invention to provide a method of mounting a plurality of substrates vertically, spaced apart from each other by a predetermined distance, And it is an object of the present invention to provide a cassette for substrate loading capable of minimizing shaking and swaying of the substrate and minimizing breakage of the substrate during the substrate processing step even if the size is increased.

According to an aspect of the present invention, there is provided a cassette for mounting a substrate, the cassette comprising: a frame having a rectangular frame; End supporting means disposed on the lower side of the frame for supporting the lower ends of the vertically stacked substrates, guide means for guiding the lower ends of the vertically stacked substrates, And side supporting means protruding upward from an inner lower side of the frame to be adjacent to respective side surfaces of the substrates to prevent the substrate from being sluggish in the vertically stacked state.

Here, the side supporting means may include a fixing bar placed on the lower side of the frame, a pair of vertically coupled bars disposed between the substrates and protruding toward the side of the adjacent substrate And a support pin having a support pin.

Here, the support bar is inserted into a coupling groove formed on the fixed bar, and the lower end of the support rod is detachably coupled to the coupling groove.

In addition, the pair of support pins are formed in a plurality, and a plurality of pairs of support pins are spaced apart from each other along the vertical direction of the support bar.

Further, the support pin is protruded toward the side surface of the substrate, and is protruded so as to be inclined upward.

The lower support means includes a fixed support member disposed horizontally below the frame and a contact support member coupled to the fixed support member to support the lower ends of the vertically stacked substrates, And a plurality of drain holes are formed in the contact grooves in a depth direction of the contact grooves.

According to the cassette for mounting a substrate having the above-described problems and the solution, a plurality of substrates can be vertically stacked with a predetermined spacing, the substrate can be held and supported in a vertical state, the substrate can be made thin It is possible to minimize shaking and wobbling of the substrate in the substrate processing step even if the size of the substrate is increased, thereby minimizing damage to the substrate.

In addition, the lower end supporting means for supporting the lower end of the substrate mounted in the vertical direction can stably support the cassette even if the cassette is oscillated by supporting all the lower ends of the substrate, and a plurality of holes are formed in the contact portion, There is an advantage that excessive etching of the end portion remaining in the contact portion can be prevented.

1 is a perspective view of a cassette for substrate loading according to an embodiment of the present invention.
2 is a configuration diagram of a side support means according to an embodiment of the present invention.
3 is an exemplary view showing various configurations of side support means according to an embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 4 shows an arrangement of support pins constituting side support means according to an embodiment of the present invention.
Fig. 5 is a perspective view of the lower support means applied to the present invention. Fig.
6 is an exploded perspective view of the height adjusting means applied to the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of a cassette for mounting a substrate according to the present invention having the above-described problems, solutions, and effects will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

The sizes and shapes of the components shown in the drawings may be exaggerated for clarity and convenience. In addition, terms defined in consideration of the configuration and operation of the present invention may be changed according to the intention or custom of the user, the operator. Definitions of these terms should be based on the content of this specification.

1 is a perspective view of a cassette for substrate loading according to an embodiment of the present invention. 1, a cassette for loading a substrate according to an embodiment of the present invention includes a rectangular frame 10, end support means 40 disposed opposite to both sides of the frame 10, Lower supporting means 30 disposed on the lower side of the frame 10 and side supporting means 20 protruding upward from the lower side of the frame 10.

The frame 10 has a rectangular frame shape as shown in FIG. 1 and has an open top. The reason why the upper part of the frame 10 is opened is because the substrate 1 loaded on the cassette for loading a substrate according to the present invention is loaded on the cassette vertically downward from the upper side. That is, according to the present invention, the glass 1 is not drawn to the side of the cassette but is loaded, and is pulled down from the upper side of the cassette and loaded.

If the frame has a stable structure, the side and bottom surfaces can be formed in various shapes. Further, a wheel may be attached to the lower surface of the frame. That is, there is a need to move the cassette along which the plurality of substrates are stacked vertically. Accordingly, the cassette for loading substrates according to the present invention can be operated while moving the loading chamber, the washing chamber, and the etching chamber.

The frame 10 basically comprises a vertical frame 11 formed on both sides facing each other and a pair of horizontal frames 13 connecting the vertical frames 11 and a lower frame.

On both sides of the frame (10), end support means (40) are arranged to face each other. That is, the end support means 40 is disposed opposite to both sides of the frame 10 constituting the vertical frame 11 or the horizontal frame 13. Specifically, the end supporting means 40 may be formed in the horizontal frame 13 or the vertical frame 10 in a horizontal direction, and a plurality of the end supporting units 40 may be formed in the vertical direction.

The end support means 40 guides both ends of the substrates 1 vertically stacked from the upper side to the lower side of the frame 10 and functions to prevent the substrate 1 from falling down . That is, the end support means 40 is vertically erected to guide both side ends of the respective substrates 1 to be stacked to prevent the substrate from collapsing.

The end support means 40 guides both sides of the vertically stacked substrate, as shown in FIG. A guide groove 41 is formed in the end supporting means 40 in order to increase the guiding effect of both sides of the substrate.

As described above, the end support means 40 functions to prevent the substrate from collapsing while guiding both side ends of the vertically stacked substrate. In some cases, however, the amount of the vertically stacked substrate It is also possible to adopt a structure for clamping the side ends so as to perform the function of fixing both side ends of the mounted substrate.

The substrate 1 pulled into the frame 10 and vertically stacked by the end support means 40 is maintained in a vertical state without falling down in the lateral direction by the end support means 40 . In the present invention, both side ends of the substrate are positioned and supported in the guide grooves 41, thereby preventing the substrate from falling down.

The substrate 1 can be vertically stacked on the cassette by preventing the substrate from being collapsed by the end support means 40 and supporting the lower end of the substrate 1. [ Accordingly, the lower supporting means 30 is disposed inside the frame 10 to support the lower end of the vertically stacked substrate.

Meanwhile, the lower end supporting means 30 supporting the lower end of the substrate can be configured to be adjustable in height. Therefore, the present invention may further include a height adjusting means (see FIG. 6) formed on the inner bottom surface of the frame to adjust the height of the lower supporting means 30. FIG. This will be described in detail later.

With such a configuration, the substrate 1 to be stacked in the vertical direction can be basically supported and fixed, and can be loaded in the cassette.

Meanwhile, a plurality of substrates 1 stacked vertically to the cassette are subjected to a washing process, an etching process, and the like while moving the cassette into the chamber. Therefore, the substrate 1 may be shaken and jarred during the movement of the cassette.

Particularly, as the substrate 1 is made larger and thinner, the shaking phenomenon and the swinging phenomenon of the substrate 1 during the movement of the cassette will be further increased, and the substrate 1 is likely to be damaged .

As a result, in order to prevent breakage of the large-sized / thinned substrate 1, an additional structure capable of minimizing the shaking and swaying of the substrate 1 is required. Therefore, in the present invention, the side support means 20 capable of supporting the side surface of the substrate 1 is adopted.

The side support means 20 are formed on the respective sides of the substrates 1 to protrude upward from the inner lower side of the frame 10 to prevent the substrate 1 from being stretched in the vertically stacked state Respectively. The side support means 20 prevents the substrate 1 from being swaying or wobbling after all the substrates 1 are vertically erected and stacked on the cassette so that the large size / It is possible to prevent breakage.

Specifically, the side support means 20 does not continuously support the side surfaces of the substrates, but rather supports the side surface of the substrate 1 so as to prevent the substrate 1 from swaying or wobbling when the substrate 1 is slightly shaken or oscillated Point contact support. As a result, the substrate 1 can be maintained in a stable state without increasing the swinging or wobbling.

Specifically, since the support pins 27 constituting the side support means 20 are located between the adjacent substrates 1, the side surface of the substrate 1 is prevented from being shaken by the support pins Respectively. Therefore, the vertically stacked substrate 1 is not collapsed, and lateral movement is minimized. As a result, the swinging and shaking of the substrate 1 can be minimized.

Fig. 2 is a specific configuration diagram of the side support means 20. Fig. The side support means 20 is basically disposed inside the frame to prevent breakage of the substrate by supporting the side surface of the substrate by point contact when the substrate 1 is jarred or shaken.

As shown in FIG. 2, the side support means 20 includes a support bar 23 having a fixing bar 21 and a support pin 27. The support pin 27 may be fixedly coupled to the circumferential surface of the support rod 23 or may be formed in the coupling hole 25 to be inserted into the support rod 23.

As shown in FIG. 1, the fixing bar 21 is placed on the lower side of the frame. Specifically, the fixing bar 21 has a bar shape and is arranged long in a direction orthogonal to the vertically stacked substrate 1. In addition, a coupling hole 21a through which the support rod 23 can be inserted is formed on the fixed bar 21. [ Accordingly, the support bar 23 can be inserted into the coupling hole 21a of the fixing bar 21 so that the support bar 23 can be detachably coupled to the fixing bar 21 have.

Of course, the support bar 23 may be fixedly coupled to the fixing bar 21. As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the support bar 23, which is fixedly coupled or detachably coupled to the fixed bar 21, is vertically coupled to the fixed bar 21, .

The support rods 23 are provided with a pair of support pins 27 along the peripheral surface thereof in order to prevent the substrate from slipping. The pair of support pins 27 are formed so as to protrude toward the side surface of the adjacent substrate 1. The support pins constituting the pair of support pins 27 are arranged to face each other and are arranged so as to maintain 180 degrees mutually along the circumferential surface of the support rod 23. [

Since the support rods 23 are disposed one by one between the substrates 1 and the support pins 27 are arranged at a distance of 180 degrees from each other in a pair, one of the pair of support pins 27 is adjacent And the other is protruded toward another substrate adjacent to the specific substrate.

As described above, the support pins 27 are formed along the circumferential surface of the support bar 23. If the support pin 27 is broken or the support pin 27 having a different length is required, the entire support rod 23 should be discarded or replaced. Therefore, a structure capable of replacing only the support pin 27 may be required.

2, the support pin 27 may be provided in the coupling hole 25, and the coupling hole 25 may be detachably attached to the support shaft 23. In this case,

Specifically, the coupling hole 25 is configured to be inserted into the peripheral surface of the support rod 23, and is configured to be detachable again in some cases. And a pair of support pins 27 that are opposed to each other along the circumferential surface of the coupling member 25 and can maintain an interval of 180 degrees.

The supporting bar 23 may be fixedly coupled to the fixing bar 21. In some cases, the fixing bar 21 may be left unchanged, and only the supporting bar 23 may be separated. The lower end of the support rod 23 is inserted into the coupling groove 21a formed on the fixing bar 21 so that the lower end of the support rod 23 is detachably coupled to the coupling groove 21a.

Meanwhile, the pair of support pins 27 are disposed to support the side surfaces of the substrate 1, respectively, so as to prevent the substrate from being slung when the substrate is sluggish. Therefore, as the substrate becomes larger, the number of the pair of support pins 27 also needs to be increased.

3, the plurality of pair of support pins 27 are spaced apart from each other along the vertical direction of the support bar 23. The pair of support pins 27 are formed of a plurality of support pins 27, Can be configured. As a result, since the side surfaces of the enlarged substrate support the plurality of pairs of support pins 27 at a plurality of points in the vertical direction, the possibility of breakage due to swaying of the substrate is eliminated.

On the other hand, the plurality of pairs of support pins 27 are arranged corresponding to the substrate having a large height (vertical length) because the side surfaces of the substrate are arranged in the vertical direction. Therefore, in order to prevent the substrate from being stretched in the lengthwise (transverse) direction, the side support means 20 according to the present invention may be spaced apart from each other. That is, a plurality of the side support means 20 may be provided and spaced apart from each other under the frame.

As described above, the support pins 27 are protruded toward the side surface of the adjacent substrate. This is for applying a braking force to the substrate. As such, the support pins 27 protruding toward the side surfaces of the adjacent substrate can serve as obstacles for inducing the flow of the etching liquid in the process, for example, the etching process.

In particular, the etchant may be deposited on the support pins 27 and flow down along the support pins to continuously guide the etchant to specific points on the substrate. In this case, a specific point of the substrate may be etched more than other points, and there is a problem that stains may occur.

Therefore, the support pin 27 according to the present invention is arranged to be inclined upward so as not to induce the flow of the etching liquid. 4, the support pin 27 is protruded toward the side surface of the substrate, and is protruded to be inclined upward. When the support pins are arranged to be inclined downward, the etching solution may flow downward along the support pins. Therefore, the support pins are preferably arranged to be inclined upward by a predetermined angle? Do.

The side surface of the substrate 1 loaded on the cassette can be held and supported at an appropriate position by the structure and operation of the side support means 20 described above. Accordingly, the substrate 1 loaded on the cassette is minimized in the swinging and shaking phenomenon during the cassette transfer, and consequently, the possibility of substrate breakage can be reduced.

The side support means 20 supports the side surfaces to prevent the substrate 1 from slipping and the end support means 40 supports both sides of the substrate 1, It is necessary to support the lower end of the substrate 1 in order for the substrate 1 to stand vertically and be stacked.

The reason why the both ends of the substrate stacked in the vertical direction by the end support means 40 can be fixedly held is that the lower end support means 30 supports the lower end of the substrate.

1, the lower support means 30 is disposed at the lower side of the frame 10 to support the lower end of the substrate which is stacked downward in the vertical direction at the upper portion.

5, the lower support means 30 includes a fixed support 31 disposed horizontally below the frame 10, a vertical support 31 coupled to the fixed support 31, And a contact support 33 for supporting the lower end of the substrate 1 in contact with the substrate 1. The contact support 33 is disposed long in the longitudinal direction of the lower end of the substrate 1, A groove 33a is formed in the contact groove 33a and a plurality of drain holes 33b are formed in the contact groove 33a in the depth direction.

The fixed support 31 may be fixedly disposed within the frame 10, and may be arranged to be movable up and down. That is, the height adjusting means 50 may be arranged to change the height. Therefore, the fixed support 31 may be disposed so as not to move completely within the frame, may be fixed to the height adjusting means 50, and may be arranged to be adjusted in height by the height adjusting means 50 .

The contact support 33 is coupled to the stationary support 31 and has a structure capable of supporting and supporting the lower end of the substrate to be stacked in the vertical direction. Therefore, as shown in FIG. 8, the substrate 1 is arranged to be long in the longitudinal direction of the substrate so as to be contactable with the lower end of the substrate 1.

The contact support 33 is formed with a long contact groove 33a at a portion contacting the lower end of the substrate so as to stably and firmly support the lower end of the substrate 1. [ Therefore, by positioning the lower end of the substrate in contact with the contact groove, the substrate can be firmly and stably supported.

On the other hand, when a specific process is performed by spraying an etchant onto the substrate mounted on the cassette, the etchant may remain in the contact grooves 33a, with the result that the lower end of the substrate is excessively etched, May remain in the contact groove.

Therefore, as shown in FIG. 5, the contact groove 33a is formed with a plurality of drain holes 33b spaced apart from each other by a predetermined distance in the depth direction. Since the etching solution or the by-products are discharged downward through the drain hole, undesired etching solution or by-product can be prevented from remaining in the contact groove 33a.

The lower end supporting means 30 may be completely fixed within the frame 10 but may be fixed to the height adjusting means 50 so as to be vertically adjustable in height have. The height adjusting means 50 may be disposed below the lower supporting means 30 to adjust the height of the lower supporting means 30. [

6 is an exploded perspective view of the height adjusting means. 6, the height adjusting means includes a vertical base 51 and a height adjuster, one end of which is slidably coupled to the vertical base 51, and the other end of which is coupled to the lower supporting means 30, And the like.

As shown in FIG. 6, a plurality of vertical bases 51 are formed on the inner bottom floor of the frame, and a plurality of the vertical bases 51 are arranged in the horizontal or vertical direction of the frame. A plurality of first height adjusting holes 51a are formed in the vertical direction on the side surface of the vertical base 51 of the vertical plate shape.

One end of the height adjuster is slidable on the vertical base 51. That is, as shown in FIG. 6, the lower end of the height adjuster is inserted into the vertical base and can be moved up and down. One through-hole 53b having a shape similar to the first height-adjusting hole 51a is formed.

Accordingly, the lower end of the height adjuster can be firmly coupled to the vertical base 51 by coupling the first tightening tool 51b to the through hole 53b and the first height adjusting hole 51a. The position of the height adjuster can be adjusted by selecting the plurality of first height adjusting holes 51a to be coupled with the through holes 53b by the first tightening tool 51b. As a result, the height of the lower support means 30 coupled with the upper end (the other side) of the height adjuster can be adjusted.

As shown in FIG. 6, the height adjuster includes a first height adjuster 53 which is vertically slidable on the vertical base 51 and whose vertical height is adjusted by the first tightening tool 51b, And a second height adjuster 55 having one end connected to the upper end of the first height adjuster 53 and the other end coupled to the lower end supporting means 30. [

The first height adjuster 53 has a structure in which the lower end of the first height adjuster 53 can be inserted and slid in a direction perpendicular to the base plate, so that the height of the first height adjuster 53 can be adjusted. As described above, the first height adjuster 53 is formed with a through hole 53b, and the first tightening hole 51b penetrates the through hole and the plurality of first height adjusting holes 51a. .

A plurality of second height adjusting grooves 53a are vertically formed at an upper end of the first height adjusting bar 53. [ The lower end of the second height adjuster 55 is coupled to the second height adjusting groove 53a by a second tightening hole 55a. Therefore, a coupling hole 55b is formed at the lower end of the second height adjuster 55. As a result, the second tightening member 55a engages the engagement hole 55b and the plurality of second height adjusting grooves 53a to adjust the height of the second height adjusting member 55 And can engage with the upper end of the first height adjuster 53.

The upper end of the second height adjuster 55 is coupled to the lower end support means 30 by various fastening methods and the first height adjuster 53 and the second height adjuster 55 are fixed by the second height adjuster 55, When the lower support means is coupled at a predetermined height, the height of the support table 57 connecting between the upper end of the first height adjuster and the lower portion of the lower support means is adjusted to prevent the lower support means from being deflected downward, Thereby preventing sagging of the lower support means.

As described above, since the height of the lower supporting means 30 is adjusted by the height adjusting means, even if the size of the substrate mounted on the cassette is changed, it is possible to cope easily.

On the other hand, the above-described cassette for loading a substrate of FIG. 1 may perform a cassette function as a single structure, or a plurality of cassettes may be connected to each other to function as a cassette for loading a large substrate. That is, the cassettes for loading substrates shown in Fig. 1 can be connected in series or in parallel, and can also be reconfigured into a large cassette. In this case, a great number of substrates can be stacked on the cassette, and various sizes of substrates can be stacked together.

While the invention has been shown and described with reference to certain preferred embodiments thereof, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that various changes and modifications may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims. Accordingly, the true scope of the present invention should be determined by the following claims.

1: substrate 10: frame
11: vertical frame 13: horizontal frame
20: side support means 21: fixed bar
21a: coupling groove 23: support rod
25: coupling part 25: support pin
30: lower end supporting means 31:
33: contact support 33a: contact groove
33b: drain hole 40: end support means
41: guide groove 50: height adjusting means
51: vertical base 51a: first height adjustment hole
51b: first fastener 53: first height adjuster
53a: second height adjustment hole 55: second height adjuster
55a: second fastening port 57: cradle

Claims (6)

In a cassette for substrate loading,
A frame of a rectangular frame;
End supporting means disposed on both sides of the frame so as to guide both side ends of the vertically stacked substrates from the upper side to the lower side of the frame and to prevent the substrate from falling down;
Lower supporting means disposed inside the frame and supporting respective lower ends of the vertically stacked substrates;
And side support means protruding upwardly from the inner lower side of the frame to be adjacent to each side of the substrates to prevent the substrate from being slungy in the vertically stacked state. For cassettes.
The method according to claim 1,
Wherein the side support means comprises: a fixing bar which is placed on the lower side of the frame, a pair of support pins which are vertically coupled to the fixing bar and are disposed between the substrates, And a supporting bar provided on the cassette.
The method of claim 2,
Wherein the lower end of the support rod is inserted into a coupling groove formed on the fixing bar and is detachably coupled to the coupling groove.
The method of claim 2,
Wherein the pair of support pins are constituted by a plurality of members, and the pair of support pins are spaced apart from each other along the vertical direction of the support bar.
The method of claim 2,
Wherein the support pins are protruded toward the side surface of the substrate and protrude so as to be inclined upward.
The method according to any one of claims 1 to 5,
Wherein the lower support means comprises a fixed support disposed horizontally below the frame and a contact support coupled to the fixed support and supporting the lower ends of the vertically stacked substrates, And a plurality of drain holes are formed in the contact grooves in a depth direction of the cassette. The cassette of claim 1, wherein the plurality of drain holes are formed in the contact groove.

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