TW201326013A - Conveyance mechanism - Google Patents

Abstract

A conveyance mechanism (24, 64) for conveying an item to be processed is provided with: arm parts (26, 28, 66, 68) which can move elastically and in rotation or slidably; pick parts (30, 32, 70, 72) which are provided at the tip of the arm parts and mount the item to be processed; and a plurality of holding members (34) which are provided in the pick parts, abut the rim of the item to be processed, swing or rotate due to the weight of the item to be processed and hold the item to be processed.

Description

Transport agency

The present invention relates to a conveying mechanism for conveying a to-be-processed object.

In order to manufacture a semiconductor element or the like, various processes such as a film formation process, an etching process, an oxidative diffusion process, and a reforming process are repeatedly applied to a substrate such as a plate-shaped semiconductor wafer or a glass substrate. For example, in the case of the lobes type processing apparatus, a processing system is configured by connecting a plurality of leaf type processing apparatuses for performing various processes to a periphery of a transfer chamber formed into a polygonal shape and having a vacuum inside.

Then, the semiconductor wafer placed in the outside is transported between the processing apparatuses by, for example, a multi-joint transport mechanism provided in the transfer chamber, and various processing is applied to the wafers in each processing apparatus (Patent Document 1) ). In this case, the transport mechanism can be flexed and rotated, for example, and a pick-up portion for holding the wafer is provided at the front end of the multi-joint arm, and the wafer is transported by bending, stretching, and the like of the multi-joint arm ( Patent Documents 2 and 3).

This pick-up portion is formed, for example, as shown in FIGS. 10A and 10B. 10A and 10B are views showing an example of a general pick-up portion provided by a conventional transport mechanism. Here, a plan view and a side view of two types of pick-up portions are shown. In the case shown in FIG. 10A, three support pins 4 are specifically disposed on the same circumference on the upper surface of the two-shaped pick-up portion 2, and the peripheral edge of the inner surface of the semiconductor wafer W is supported on the support pin 4 unit.

Further, in the case shown in FIG. 10B, a plurality of plural, specifically, four support pins 6 are disposed on the same circumference of the two-ply pick-up portion 2, and here, The lower edge portion of the peripheral portion of the wafer W is supported at the slope of the support pin 6.

Prior technical literature

Patent literature

Patent Document 1: Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication No. 2009-293069

Patent Document 2: Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication No. 2000-003951

Patent Document 3: Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication No. 2001-203251

However, with the demand for miniaturization of semiconductor elements and high speed of operation, it is desired to increase the yield. Therefore, when semiconductor wafers are transferred, the operation speed is further increased and the overall processing time is shortened.

However, in the conventional transfer mechanism as shown in FIGS. 10A and 10B, since the holding force against the wafer W is weak, there is a case where the wafer W is rotated at a higher speed or a higher speed than the wafer W. The acceleration is increased to cause the wafer W to slip relative to the support pins 4, 6 to cause displacement or to fall off from the pick-up portion 2.

In view of the above problems, an object of the present invention is to provide a transport mechanism that can hold a target object and transport it by its own weight.

In order to solve the above problems, according to a certain aspect of the present invention, a transport mechanism for providing a transporting mechanism for transporting a target object includes an arm portion that is bendable, rotatable, or slipping, and is provided at a distal end of the arm portion. The pick-up portion of the object to be processed, the plurality of holding members that are provided in the pick-up portion and that are in contact with the peripheral portion of the object to be processed, and are swung or rotated by the weight of the object to be processed.

The object to be processed can be moved by the weight of the object to be processed give away.

Hereinafter, an embodiment of the transport mechanism of the present invention will be described in detail based on the attached drawings. 1 is a schematic plan view showing an example of a general processing system including a transport mechanism according to an embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a schematic cross-sectional view showing the processing system shown in FIG. 1, and FIG. 3 is a view showing a pick-up portion of the transport mechanism. 4 is an enlarged cross-sectional view showing the operation of the holding member provided in the pick-up portion, and FIGS. 5A and 5B are views showing the rocking roller of the holding member, FIG. 5A is a perspective view, and FIG. 5B is a cross-sectional view. In addition, in FIG. 2, the processing apparatus 14A is represented by the four processing apparatuses 14A-14D, and the mounting base 22A is provided in it. Further, the loading device 20A is represented by two loading devices 20A, 20B.

First, an example of a processing system including a transport mechanism according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described. As shown in Figures 1 and 2, the processing system 12 has four processing devices 14A, 14B, 14C, and 14D that can be evacuated. These processing apparatuses 14A to 14D are processing apparatuses suitable for all processing performed in a vacuum atmosphere such as a film forming process or an etching process. The processing devices 14A to 14D are respectively connected to the periphery of the hexagonal transfer chamber 16 that can be evacuated by the gate valve G. Further, the processing system 12 has loading devices 20A and 20B for transporting the semiconductor wafer W as a target while holding the vacuum, and the two loading devices 20A and 20B are respectively transmitted through the transfer chamber 16 The gate valve G is connected to the transfer chamber 16.

Then, the processing units 14A to 14D are provided with mounting stages 22A to 22D for mounting the semiconductor wafer W, respectively. Moreover, the inside of the transfer chamber 16 is The first transfer mechanism 24 according to the embodiment of the present invention which can be flexed and rotated is provided to transport the semiconductor wafer W, and can be transferred between the respective processing devices 14A to 14D and between the load devices 20A and 20B. Semiconductor wafer W.

Specifically, the first conveying mechanism 24 is mainly provided by the pair of arm portions 26 and 28 which are bendable and rotatable as described above, and the pick-up portions 30 and 32 provided at the tips of the respective arm portions 26 and 28. The pick-up portions 30, 32 are formed by the holding members 34 which are features of an embodiment of the present invention. The semiconductor wafers W are held on the pick-up portions 30, 32 and can be transported as described above.

Each of the arm portions 26 and 28 is connected to the first arm 26A, 28A, the second arm 26B, 28B, and the third arm 26C, 28C, respectively, in series and in series, and each of the third arms 26C and 28C is connected to the front end. Pick up the parts 30,32. The base end portions of the arm portions 26, 28 are rotatably assembled by being coupled to the common rotary table 36. Therefore, by bending and stretching the above-described arm portions 26, 28, the whole can be advanced and retracted. The inside of the transfer chamber 16 is a reduced pressure atmosphere of an inert gas such as nitrogen. The holding member 34 will be described later.

Further, holding units 38A and 38B for temporarily holding the semiconductor wafer W are provided in each of the loading devices 20A and 20B. The two loading devices 20A and 20B have the same configuration, and the configuration of the loading device 20A on the one side will be described.

First, the loading device 20A has a loading container 39 formed in a box shape by, for example, an aluminum alloy. The holding table 38A provided in the loading container 39 is assembled to the upper end of the column 40 which is erected from the bottom of the container. Here, the holding stage 38A is formed in a disk shape having a thickness slightly larger than the size of the semiconductor wafer W. Moreover, the holding stage 38A is provided on the semiconductor wafer W At the time of moving in and out, the semiconductor wafer W is lifted and lowered by the lifting mechanism 42.

Specifically, the elevating mechanism 42 has three lift pins 44 (only two are shown in the drawings), and the lower end portions of the lift pins 44 are commonly supported by the lift plates 46 that are arc-shaped. Then, the lifting plate 46 is supported at the upper end of the lifting rod 48 provided through the bottom of the container, and the lifting rod 48 is lifted and lowered by the actuator 50. Further, the penetrating portion of the lifting rod 48 is provided with a stretchable metal telescopic tube 52 that maintains the airtightness in the loading container 39 and allows the lifting rod 48 to move up and down.

Then, the holding table 38A is provided with a pin insertion hole 54 through which the lift pin 44 is inserted, and the lift pin 44 can be lifted and lowered when the semiconductor wafer W is carried in and out, and the pin insertion hole 54 is thereby ejected. Further, a gas introduction port 56 is provided in the bottom of the loading container 39. From this gas introduction port 56, an inert gas such as N ₂ gas can be supplied as needed.

Further, an exhaust port 58 is provided at the bottom of the container, and the atmosphere in the loading container 39 can be evacuated through the exhaust port 58. In the loading container 39, the vacuum atmosphere and the atmospheric atmosphere are repeatedly realized in association with the conveyance of the wafer. Further, on the opposite side of the loading devices 20A and 20B, a horizontally long loading module 60 is assembled through the gate valve G, and one side of the loading module 60 is provided with a plurality of semiconductor wafers W. I/O 埠 62 of a box (not shown). Then, the loading module 60 is provided with a second conveying mechanism 64 that can flex and rotate.

Specifically, the second transfer mechanism 64 has the same configuration as the previous first transfer mechanism 24, and is mainly provided by the pair of arm portions 66 and 68 that are bendable and rotatable, and are provided at the front ends of the respective arm portions 66 and 68. The pick-up portions 70, 72 and the pick-up portions 70, 72 are provided as the holding member 34 which is a feature of an embodiment of the present invention. These picks The semiconductor wafer W is held on the upper portions 70, 72 and can be transported as described above.

Each of the arm portions 66 and 68 is connected to the first arm 66A, 68A, the second arm 66B, 68B, and the third arm 66C, 68C, respectively, and the third arm 66C, 68C is connected to the front end of each of the third arms 66C and 68C. Pick up portions 70,72. The base end portions of the respective arm portions 66, 68 are assembled to be coupled to the common rotary table 76 to be rotatable. Therefore, by bending and stretching the above-described arms 66, 68, the whole can be advanced and retracted.

Further, the second transfer mechanism 64 is movable along the guide rail 75 in the longitudinal direction thereof. Then, one end of the loading module 60 is provided with an aligner 76 for aligning and giving directions of the semiconductor wafer W. Before the semiconductor wafer W is carried into the processing devices 14A-14D, the semiconductor crystal is performed here. The alignment of the circle W and the direction. The loading module 60 is made into an almost atmospheric atmosphere by nitrogen or clean air.

<Processing device>

Here, each processing apparatus will be described with reference to Fig. 2 . The treatment device 14A has a processing container 80 that is formed into a box shape by, for example, an aluminum alloy. The mounting table 22A provided in the processing container 80 is assembled to the upper end of the pillar 82 that is erected from the bottom of the container. In the mounting table 22A, for example, a heating mechanism 84 including a resistance heater is embedded, and the semiconductor wafer W placed on the mounting table 22A can be heated to a predetermined temperature. Further, the mounting table 22A is provided with an elevating mechanism 86 for lifting and lowering the semiconductor wafer W when the semiconductor wafer W is carried in and out.

Specifically, the elevating mechanism 86 has three lift pins 88 (only two are shown in the example), and the lower end portions of the lift pins 88 are commonly supported by the lift plate 90 having an arc shape. Then, the lifting plate 90 is supported by The lifting rod 92 is lifted and lowered by the actuator 94 through the upper end of the lifting rod 92 provided at the bottom of the container. Further, the penetrating portion of the lifting rod 92 is provided with a stretchable metal telescopic tube 96 that maintains the airtightness in the processing container 80 and allows the lifting rod 92 to move up and down.

Then, the mounting table 22A is provided with a pin insertion hole 98 for allowing the lift pin 88 to pass therethrough, and the lift pin 88 can be moved up and down when the semiconductor wafer W is carried in and out, and the pin insertion hole 98 is used to be ejected. Further, the top of the processing container 80 is provided with a gas supply mechanism 100 constituted by, for example, a shower head, and the necessary gas can be supplied into the processing container 80. This gas supply mechanism 100 is not limited to a shower head.

Further, an exhaust port 102 is provided at the bottom of the container, and the exhaust port 102 is connected to an exhaust mechanism 104 having a pressure regulating valve or a vacuum pump for exhausting the atmosphere in the processing container 80, and the processing container 80 can be disposed. The atmosphere inside draws vacuum and adjusts the pressure. In the processing apparatus 14A formed in this way, for example, a film forming process is performed.

Further, the other processing devices 14B to 14D are processing devices for applying various processes to the semiconductor wafer W as needed, and a plasma processing device may be used. Further, as described above, the transfer chamber 16 to which the processing units 14A to 14D are connected can supply an inert gas such as N ₂ gas, and can also evacuate the internal atmosphere, but it is frequently maintained during operation. Vacuum atmosphere.

<Retaining member of the pick-up portion>

Here, the holding member 34 of the embodiment of the present invention, which is provided in each of the pick-up portions 30, 32, 70, 72 of the first and second conveying mechanisms 24, 64, is also referred to in FIGS. 3 to 5. Explain. Each holding member 34 is the same knot Therefore, the pick-up portion 30 provided in the arm portion 26 of the first transport mechanism 24, which is a representative of the pick-up portion, will be described as an example.

The entire 2-peck pick-up portion 30 assembled at the tip end of the third arm 26C of the arm portion 26 is formed of a ceramic material such as aluminum, aluminum alloy, stainless steel, quartz, or alumina. The thickness of the pick-up portion 30 is about 2 to 6 mm. Then, a plurality of the above-described holding members 34 are provided on the upper surface side of the pick-up portion 30, and here, for example, four. The holding member 34 is disposed in a distributed manner in accordance with the peripheral portion of the wafer W held by the pick-up portion 30.

The holding member 34 is in contact with the peripheral portion of the wafer W, and is held by the weight of the wafer W to hold the peripheral portion of the wafer. Specifically, the holding member 34 has a rocking roller 108 that is slidably or rotatably supported by a part of the accommodating portion 106 (see FIG. 4) provided in the pick-up portion 30; The receiving portion 110 is provided at a portion of the rocking roller 108 to form an opening angle θ for contacting the peripheral portion of the wafer W.

Here, as shown in FIG. 5A and FIG. 5B, the rocking roller block 108 is formed in a columnar shape as a whole, and one of the cylindrical portions is cut into a cross-sectional fan shape, and the receiving portion 110 is formed therein. The receiving portion 110 is a receiving surface 110A that becomes an opening angle θ as described above. A support shaft 112 is provided at both ends of the rocking roller block 108 which is formed in a cylindrical shape including the receiving portion 110. This support shaft 112 is provided to protrude from the center of the end face of the circular shape of the rocking roller 108. Then, the support shaft 112 is rotatably supported by a pair of support protrusions 114 standing from above the pick-up portion 30. Thereby, the rocking block 108 is freely supported by rotation or shaking.

Here, the accommodating portion 106 is formed as a concave portion having a circular arc shape in cross section. The lower end portion of the above-mentioned rocking roller block 108 is accommodated in a shape instead of a contact. In this case, as shown in FIGS. 4A and B, the center of gravity G1 of the above-described rocking roller 108 is located at an eccentricity on the opposite side of the position of the receiving portion 110 of the support shaft 112. Therefore, in a free state in which no load is applied to the rocking roller 108, as shown in FIG. 4A, the center of gravity G1 is located immediately below the support shaft 112, and the receiving portion 110 is stopped in a state of being opened upward. This state is the initial state.

Then, when the wafer W is lowered by the receiving portion 110, the rocking roller 108 is pressed by the wafer W to rotate (shake) a predetermined angle as shown in FIG. 4B, and is supported by the receiving surface 110A of the receiving portion 110. It can be maintained by its own weight by the peripheral part (edge part) of W. In this case, the opening angle θ of the receiving portion 110 is preferably set to a range of, for example, 90 to 150 degrees so that the lower surface of the wafer W does not contact the upper surface of the pick-up portion 30 and the peripheral portion of the wafer W can be surely captured. Inside, it is better in the range of 120 to 140 degrees. Further, here, a stop member 116 for stopping the rotation of the rocking roller 108 that holds the wafer W and shaking it is provided.

The stop member 116 is composed of a stop groove 116A formed along the outer circumference of the rocking roller 108 and a stop projection 116B projecting upward from the upper surface of the storage portion 106 of the pick-up portion 30 toward the inside of the stop groove 116A. . The stop groove 116A is set to a predetermined length along the rocking direction or the rotation direction of the rocking roller 108, and when the predetermined angle is rotated, the stop protrusion 116B abuts against the end of the stop groove 116A to stop the rolling of the roller block 108. Rotate. At this time, as shown in FIG. 4B, the lower surface of the wafer W is in a state of being slightly above the upper surface of the pick-up portion 30. That is, here, the length of the stop groove 116A is at least set such that the rocking roller block 108 can be as shown in FIG. 4A. The state is rotated to the length as shown in the state of B of Fig. 4. Further, the stop groove 116A may be provided on the side of the accommodating portion 106, and the stop protrusion 116B may be provided on the side of the oscillating roller block 108.

Here, as the material of the rocking roller 108 and the support shaft 112, ceramics such as aluminum, aluminum alloy, or aluminum oxide, quartz, Teflon (registered trademark), or resin represented by polyvinyl chloride, Vespel (registered trademark), etc. may be used. . Further, the rocking roller 108 has a diameter of about 5 to 10 mm and a length of about 5 to 10 mm. Further, a bearing may be provided on the side of the support protrusion 114 that receives the support shaft 112 to smooth the rotation (shake) of the rocking roller 108.

<Action Description>

Next, the operation in the processing system 1 of the above configuration will be described. First, the unprocessed semiconductor wafer W is placed in the loading module 60 by the second transfer mechanism 64 from the cassette container (not shown) provided in the I/O unit 62, and the semiconductor wafer after the insertion is placed. W will be transported to the aligner 76 provided at one end of the loading module 60 where it is positioned and oriented. The semiconductor wafer W is formed of, for example, a germanium substrate.

The semiconductor wafer W after the positioning or the like is again transported by the second transfer mechanism 64, and is carried into the loading device of either of the two loading devices 20A and 20B. After the vacuum is applied to the loading device, the first transfer mechanism 24 in the transfer chamber 16 that has been previously evacuated is used to place the semiconductor wafer W in the loading device into the transfer chamber 16.

Then, the unprocessed semiconductor wafer W placed in the transfer chamber 16 is sequentially transferred to the respective processing devices 14A to 14D by the first transfer mechanism 24 as needed, and is respectively disposed in each of the processing devices 14A to 14D. Apply the established treatment. For example, the semiconductor wafer W is subjected to a film formation process, an etching process, an oxidative diffusion process, or the like.

In this way, the semiconductor wafer W after the completion of the processing is applied to all of the loading devices 20A and 20B by the first conveying mechanism 24. After returning to the atmospheric pressure in the loading device that stores the vacuum state of the semiconductor wafer W after the completion of the process, the semiconductor wafer W in the loading device is again placed in the loading module 60 using the second transfer device 64. Further, the processing stored in the I/O port 62 is completed in a cassette container (not shown) for the semiconductor wafer W. The wafer W between the pick-up portions of the respective transport mechanisms 24 and 64 and the mounting tables 22A to 22D or the holding tables 38A and 38B is lifted and lowered by the lift pins 44 and 88 to lift and lower the wafer W. .

Here, the case where the wafer W is transported by using the first and second transport mechanisms 24 and 64 will be described. As described above, since the movement of each of the holding members 34 in each of the pick-up portions 30, 32, 70, and 72 of the first and second conveying mechanisms 24 and 64 is the same, the first conveying mechanism 24 is used in the same manner as described above. The pick-up portion 30 provided in the arm portion 26 will be described as an example.

First, as shown in FIG. 4A, in the case where the wafer W is not placed on the pick-up portion 30 and the wafer W is positioned above the pick-up portion 30, the rocking roller block 108 of the holding member 34 is at its receiving portion 110. The initial position state that stops upwards. In this case, as shown in FIG. 4A, the center of gravity G1 of the rocking roller 108 is located below the support shaft 112. Therefore, the inner side of the end portion (edge portion) of the wafer W corresponds to the inner side of the receiving portion 110 which is opened at a predetermined angle θ.

Then, in this state, the lift pin 88 or 44 is lowered (not shown in FIG. 4) When the wafer W is lowered, the lower portion of the peripheral portion of the wafer W contacts the vicinity of the front end of the receiving portion 110 of the rocking roller 108 which is opened by the predetermined opening angle θ, and when the wafer W is further lowered, each of the shaking rolls is rolled. The block 108 will pivot or rock inward as indicated by the arrow 120 in B of FIG. 4 with the support shaft 112 as a fulcrum. Then, when the stop projection 116B of the stop member 116 comes into contact with one end of the stop groove 116A, the rotation of the rocking roller 108 is stopped to be in a state as shown in Fig. 4B. As a result, as shown in FIG. 4B, the peripheral portion of the wafer W is held by the receiving surface 110A of the receiving portion 110.

That is, the peripheral portion of the wafer W is supported by the receiving surface 110A of the receiving portion 110 by the self-weight of the wafer W. At this time, as described above, the rotation of the rolling block 108 is stopped by the stopping projection 116B of the stopping member 116, and the lower surface of the wafer W does not reach the upper surface of the pick-up portion 30, but is located at the slight gap L1 (refer to FIG. 4B). ) above.

In this manner, the peripheral portion of the wafer W is held by the receiving portion 110 of the rolling block 108. Therefore, when the arm portion 26 is rotated and flexed to transport the wafer W, the operation is performed at a high speed. It is still possible to prevent the wafer W from being displaced relative to the pick-up portion 30 or, therefore, ejected. Therefore, the transfer speed of the wafer W can be increased to increase the yield. In other words, since the rocking roller 108 is pressed to the stop projection 116B by the weight of the wafer to be in a fixed state, the wafer W is surely held in the receiving portion 110 of the rocking roller 108. Further, when the wafer W is brought into contact with the rocking roller 108 of the pick-up portion 30 and held, the rocking roller 108 is shaken, so that no friction occurs between the two, and as a result, the occurrence of particles can be suppressed.

Here, although the pick-up portion 30 has been described, in the same manner as in the other pick-up portions 32, 70, and 72, the wafer W is held by the weight of the wafer W by the holding member 34. . Moreover, when the wafer W is transported to the destination and the wafer W is lifted by the lift pins 44 or 77, the rocking roller 108 will be self-weighted in the opposite direction to the arrow 120 in FIG. Shake or rotate to return to the initial state as shown in Figure 4A.

As described above, in the embodiment of the present invention, the object to be processed, for example, the transfer device for transporting the semiconductor wafer W, is placed on the preparation body by the plurality of holding members provided in the pick-up portions 30, 32, 70, 72. The holding member 34 can be held by the weight of the object to be processed to hold the peripheral portion of the object to be processed. Therefore, since the object to be processed is held by its own weight, the object to be processed can be transported at a high speed, and the yield can be improved.

Further, the above-described embodiment is such that the support shaft 112 is located at the circular center of the receiving portion 110 at the end surface of the rocking roller 108. However, the present invention is not limited thereto, and may be disposed at an eccentric position offset from the center of gravity G1. Support shaft 112.

Further, in the above embodiment, the support shaft 112 is supported by the support protrusion 114 (see FIG. 5B) which is erected from the upper surface of the pick-up portion 30. However, the present invention is not limited thereto, and the roll may be rolled as shown in FIG. As shown in the first modified example of the block, the accommodating portion 106 of the pick-up portion 30 is cut into a deep recessed portion, and is rotatably (shaken) supported at the side wall of the pick-up portion 30 that partitions the accommodating portion 106.

Further, although the rocking roller block 108 of the above-described embodiment is formed into a cylindrical shape including the receiving portion 110, the present invention is not limited thereto, and may be formed to include as in the second modified embodiment of the rocking roller block shown in FIG. The ball shape of the receiving portion 110. That is, in this case, a part of the sphere is formed by forming a predetermined opening angle θ The receiving portion 110 is provided with a receiving surface 110A. Then, a support shaft 112 that protrudes in the radial direction of the ball, for example, is provided along the receiving portion 110.

Further, although the support shaft 112 of each of the above embodiments is provided to protrude outward from the rocking roller 108, the present invention is not limited thereto, and the support shaft 112 may be protruded from the support protrusion 114 side or the pick-up portion 30 side. On the other hand, the rocking roller block 108 is provided with a recess for the front end of the support protrusion 114 to be inserted and rocked freely.

Further, it is also possible to have a structure as shown in the third modified embodiment of the rocking roller shown in Figs. 8A and 8B. Fig. 8A shows a cylindrical rocking roller block, and Fig. 8B shows a ball-shaped rocking roller block. In this case, each of the rocking rollers 108 is provided with a through hole 124 penetrating the opposite side corresponding to a portion where the support shaft 112 is provided, so that the through hole 124 is inserted into the elongated support which is inserted through the opposite side. The shaft 112 is configured to rock or rotate the rocking block 108 freely. Then, in this case, both ends of the support shaft 112 are fixed to the support protrusion 114 or the pick-up portion 30 side. In this case, the same effects as those of the previous embodiment can be exerted.

Further, in the above embodiments, the support shaft 112 is provided on the rocking roller 108. However, in the case where the rocking roller 108 is cylindrical, the fourth embodiment of the rocking roller shown in Fig. 9 may be used. Without setting the support shaft. In other words, in this case, the accommodating portion 106 is formed to be slightly deep so that one half or more of the cross-sectional direction of the columnar rocking roller block 108 is accommodated in the accommodating portion 106. Then, in the peripheral portion of the rocking roller block 108 housed in the accommodating portion 106, an opening of the accommodating portion 106 of the peripheral portion of the accommodating portion 106 is formed to be annular in order to prevent the oscillating roller 108 from being ejected. The prevention ring 112 is ejected. The eject preventing ring 122 is fixed to the partition accommodating portion 106. The starting part 30 side. Further, the inner diameter of the eject preventing ring 122 is set to be slightly smaller than the diameter of the rocking roller 108 to prevent the popping of the rolling block 108 as described above.

In this case, the bottom portion of the accommodating portion 106 is formed into an arc shape larger than the circular shape of the rocking roller block 108, and the rocking roller block 108 is in a state in which the receiving portion 110 faces upward and is rocked on the bottom of the arc shape. Or rotate. Further, in each of the above-described embodiments, the arm portions of the transport mechanisms 24 and 64 are exemplified by a configuration in which a plurality of arms that can be flexed and extended are connected. However, the present invention is not limited thereto, and the arm can be slidably moved. The arm portion can also be applied to this embodiment.

As described above, according to the configuration of the transport mechanism according to the embodiment and the modified embodiment, it is possible to exhibit an excellent effect as the second. In other words, in the transport mechanism that transports the object to be processed, the object to be processed is placed on the plurality of holding members 34 provided in the pick-up portion, and the holding member 34 can be shaken or rotated by the weight of the object to be processed. The peripheral portion of the object to be processed is held. Therefore, since the object to be processed is held by its own weight, the object to be processed can be transported at a high speed, and the yield can be improved.

Hereinabove, the transport mechanism for transporting the object to be processed has been described with reference to the embodiment and the modified embodiment. However, the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments and modified examples, and various modifications and modifications are possible within the scope of the present invention. Improvement.

For example, in the above-described embodiment, a semiconductor wafer is used as a processed object as an example. However, the semiconductor wafer also includes a germanium substrate or a compound semiconductor substrate such as GaAs, SiC, or GaN, and is not limited thereto. These substrates can also be applied to a glass substrate or a ceramic substrate used in a liquid crystal display device.

This international application is based on the Japanese country submitted on August 25, 2011. I wish to give priority to the 2011-183236 and apply the entire contents to this international application.

24‧‧‧1st transport agency

26,28,66,68‧‧‧arms

26A, 28A‧‧‧1st arm

26B, 28B‧‧‧2nd arm

26C, 28C‧‧‧3rd arm

30,32,70,72‧‧‧ Pick up

34‧‧‧Retaining components

64‧‧‧2nd transport agency

106‧‧‧Storage Department

108‧‧‧Shaking rolling blocks

110‧‧‧Receiving Department

110A‧‧‧ receiving surface

112‧‧‧Support shaft

114‧‧‧Support protrusion

122‧‧‧Eject prevention ring

W‧‧‧Semiconductor wafer (processed object)

Fig. 1 is a schematic plan view showing an example of a general processing system including a conveying mechanism according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Figure 2 is a schematic cross-sectional view showing the processing system shown in Figure 1.

Fig. 3 is a plan view showing a pick-up portion of the conveying mechanism of the embodiment.

Fig. 4 is an enlarged cross-sectional view showing the operation of the holding member provided in the pick-up portion of the embodiment.

Fig. 5A is a view showing a rocking roller of a holding member of an embodiment.

Fig. 5B is a view showing a rocking roller of the holding member of the embodiment.

Figure 6

Fig. 7 is a view showing a second modified embodiment of the rocking roller.

Fig. 8A is a view showing a third modified embodiment of the rocking roller.

Fig. 8B is a view showing a third modified embodiment of the rocking roller.

Fig. 9 is a view showing a fourth modified embodiment of the rocking roller.

Fig. 10A is a view showing an example of a general starting portion provided by a conventional conveying mechanism.

Fig. 10B is a view showing an example of a general starting portion provided by a conventional conveying mechanism.

W‧‧‧Semiconductor Wafer

G1‧‧‧ center of gravity

Θ‧‧‧ opening angle

106‧‧‧Storage Department

108‧‧‧Shaking rolling blocks

110‧‧‧Receiving Department

110A‧‧‧ receiving surface

112‧‧‧Support shaft

116‧‧‧stop components

116A‧‧‧stop ditch

116B‧‧‧Stop the protrusion

30‧‧‧ Pick up

34‧‧‧Retaining components

Claims (9)

A conveying mechanism is provided in a conveying mechanism that conveys a target object, and includes: an arm portion that can be bent and rotated or slipped; a picking portion that is disposed at a tip end of the arm portion to mount the object to be processed; The pick-up portion is in contact with the peripheral edge portion of the object to be processed, and is swung or rotated by the weight of the object to be processed to hold the plurality of holding members of the object to be processed. The conveying mechanism of claim 1, wherein the plurality of holding members each have: a rocking roller block, and a part of the accommodating portion provided in the pick-up portion is accommodated and supported by rocking or rotating; The portion is provided in a portion of the rocking roller and is in contact with a peripheral portion of the object to be processed, and a predetermined opening angle is formed in order to hold the object to be processed. A conveying mechanism according to the second aspect of the patent application, comprising a stopping member for stopping rotation of the rocking roller that holds the object to be processed and that is rocked or rotated. The conveying mechanism of claim 2, wherein the rocking roller is rotatably or rotatably supported by the picking portion by a support shaft. The transport mechanism of claim 4, wherein the support shaft is supported by a support protrusion that is erected on the pick-up portion. For example, the conveying mechanism of claim 2, wherein the periphery of the rolling roller In the portion, an eject preventing ring that is fixed to the pick-up portion is provided on a peripheral portion of the accommodating portion in order to prevent ejection of the rocking roller. The transport mechanism of claim 2, wherein the opening angle of the receiving portion is set to 90° when the object to be processed is held, and the lower surface of the object to be processed does not contact the upper surface of the pick-up portion. Within 150 degrees. The conveying mechanism of claim 2, wherein the rocking roller is configured to set the rocking roller when the object to be processed is moved away from the rocking roller, and the rocking roller is rocked or rotated to return to an initial state. The center of gravity of the block. The conveying mechanism of claim 2, wherein the rocking roller block comprises a portion of the receiving portion and is formed into a spherical shape or a cylindrical shape.