TW202001457A - Device and method for artificial intelligence controlling manufacturing apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

A device and a method for artificial intelligence controlling manufacturing apparatus are provided. The device includes a communication unit, a character recognition unit, an image analysis unit and a command providing unit. The communication is used for remotely connecting to the manufacturing apparatus and receiving an operation frame on a user interface. The character recognition unit performs a character recognition on the operation frame to obtain a character recognition result. The image analysis unit performs an image analysis on the operation frame to obtain an image analysis result. The command providing unit provides a controlling command according to the character recognition result and the image analysis result, such that the manufacturing apparatus or the user interface is automatically controlled.

Description

Artificial intelligence control device and method of process equipment

The invention relates to a control device and method of process equipment, and in particular to an artificial intelligence control device and method of process equipment.

With the development of semiconductor technology, the operation of process equipment has become more and more complicated. During the operation of the process equipment, the operator must be very familiar with the flow of the user interface and perform the corresponding operation under the information displayed on the operation screen. Every process equipment needs an operator to stand by for monitoring at any time, so a lot of manpower must be spent to operate the process equipment.

In addition, if the operator makes mistakes on the instructions given by the user interface, it may not only seriously damage the yield of the product, but also cause the process equipment to malfunction. Therefore, how to make technological breakthroughs in the operation of process equipment has always been one of the efforts of the semiconductor industry.

The invention relates to an artificial intelligence control device and method for a process equipment, which uses an artificial intelligence text recognition program and an image analysis program to analyze an operation screen of a user interface to provide correct control instructions to the process equipment, effectively providing Product yield, avoid process equipment failure, and improve process efficiency.

According to the first aspect of the present invention, an artificial intelligence control device for process equipment is proposed. The artificial intelligence control device includes a communication unit, a text recognition unit, an image analysis unit and an instruction providing unit. The communication unit is used to remotely connect to the process equipment to receive an operation screen of a user interface. The character recognition unit recognizes the operation screen with a character recognition program (character recognition) to obtain a character recognition result. The image analysis unit analyzes the operation screen with an image analysis program (image analyzing) to obtain an image analysis result. The instruction providing unit is used for providing a control instruction based on the text recognition result or the image analysis result to automatically control the process equipment or the user interface.

According to the second aspect of the present invention, an artificial intelligence control method for process equipment is proposed. The artificial intelligence control method includes the following steps. Remotely connect to the process equipment to receive an operation screen of a user interface. A character recognition program (character recognition) is used to recognize the operation screen to obtain a character recognition result. An image analysis program (image analyzing) analyzes the operation screen to obtain an image analysis result. According to the text recognition result or the image analysis result, a control command is provided to automatically control the process equipment or the user interface.

In order to have a better understanding of the above and other aspects of the present invention, the following examples are specifically described in conjunction with the accompanying drawings as follows:

Please refer to FIG. 1, which illustrates a schematic diagram of an artificial intelligence control device 100 according to an embodiment. The artificial intelligence control device 100 is, for example, a server, a cluster computing system (cluster computing system), or a computer. The artificial intelligence control device 100 is used to control the process equipment 900 and 800. The process device 900 has a user interface 910. The user interface 910 is, for example, a touch screen. The operator can click the command box on the operation screen F9 displayed on the user interface 910 to issue the control command CM9 to the process equipment 900. In this embodiment, the artificial intelligence control device 100 can perform remote analysis on the operation screen F9, and directly issue the control command CM9 according to the analysis result, without the need for operation by the operator.

Referring to FIG. 1, the artificial intelligence control device 100 includes a communication unit 110, a text recognition unit 120, an image analysis unit 130, and an instruction providing unit 140. The communication unit 110 is used to remotely connect to the process equipment 900 through the network 700, such as a wireless communication module or a wired network module. The character recognition unit 120 is used to recognize characters, the image analysis unit 130 is used to analyze images, and the instruction providing unit 140 is used to provide control instructions of the process equipment 900. The character recognition unit 120, the image analysis unit 130, and the instruction providing unit 140 are, for example, a circuit, a chip, a circuit board, or a storage device that stores array program codes. The following is a detailed description of the operation of the artificial intelligence control device 100 with a flowchart.

Please refer to FIG. 2 and FIG. 3, FIG. 2 shows a flowchart of the artificial intelligence control method according to an embodiment, and FIG. 3 shows an example of the operation screen F9. In step S110, the communication unit 110 is remotely connected to the process device 900 to receive the operation screen F9. In this step, the operation screen F9 on the user interface 910 is directly and synchronously transmitted to the artificial intelligence control device 100. In an embodiment, the communication unit 110 may receive the operation screen F9 every predetermined time (for example, every second). Or, in another embodiment, the user interface 910 notifies the communication unit 110 to receive the operation screen F9 only when the operation screen F9 is updated. As shown in FIG. 3, operation buttons F1, B2, characters C1, and object images O1 are displayed on the operation screen F9.

Next, in step S120, the character recognition unit 120 recognizes the operation screen F9 with a character recognition program (character recognition) to obtain a character recognition result CR. For example, the text recognition result CR is, for example, "Target Image". Since the text displayed on the operation screen F9 is generated by computer software, the accuracy of the text recognition result CR is quite high. In one embodiment, the text recognition unit 120 can pre-store all the characters that may appear in the operation screen F9, and then use these characters for comparison to accurately obtain the text recognition result CR.

Then, in step S130, the image analysis unit 130 analyzes the operation screen F9 with an image analysis program (image analyzing) to obtain an image analysis result IR. In one embodiment, the image analysis program can analyze the object image on the operation screen F9, or the operation buttons B1 and B2. The image analysis process can further analyze information such as the size of the object image, the clarity of the object image, the position of the object image, etc., such as the line width, the definition of the mask pattern, and so on.

The order of the above steps S120 and S130 is not limited to the example of FIG. 2. In an embodiment, step S130 may be executed first, and then step S120 is executed. Alternatively, in still another embodiment, step S120 and step S130 may be performed simultaneously.

Next, in step S140, the command providing unit 140 provides a control command CM9 according to the character recognition result CR or the image analysis result IR to automatically control the process equipment 900 or the user interface 910. The control command CM9 is, for example, to control the process equipment 900 to shoot an image, unload a mask, move a mask, or the like. Or, the control command CM9 is, for example, simulating that the user interface 910 is clicked on a certain control button or inputting a certain character string.

In step S140, the command providing unit 140 may generate the control command CM9 based only on the character recognition result CR, and the command providing unit 140 may also generate the control command CM9 based only on the image analysis result IR.

Step S140 can be performed in a variety of programming modules through object-oriented programming (OOP). The following examples are described below.

Please refer to FIG. 4, which illustrates an implementation aspect of step S140. In step S41, it is determined that the character recognition result CR is the first character or the second character. If the character recognition result CR is the first character, go to step S42; if the character recognition result CR is the second character, go to step S43.

In step S42, the program module OP42 (exemplified in FIG. 5) is executed; in step S43, the program module OP43 (exemplified in FIG. 6) is executed.

Please refer to Figure 5, which shows the implementation of the program module OP42. In step S51, it is determined whether the first image appears in the image analysis result IR. If the first image appears in the image analysis result IR, go to step S52; if the first image does not appear in the image analysis result IR, go to step S53.

In step S52, a first control instruction is output; in step S53, a second control instruction is output.

Please refer to Figure 6, which shows the implementation of the program module OP43. In step S61, it is determined that the character recognition result CR is the third character or the fourth character. If the character recognition result CR is the third character, go to step S62; if the character recognition result CR is the fourth character, go to step S63.

In step S62, it is determined whether the size of the image analysis result IR conforms to the standard. If the size meets the standard, proceed to step S64; if the size does not meet the standard, proceed to step S65.

In step S63, a third control instruction is output; in step S64, a fourth control instruction is output; in step S65, a fifth control instruction is output.

The implementation of the above step S140 is only an example and is not intended to limit the scope of the present invention. Through the various program modules provided in step S140, the corresponding control command CM9 can be quickly provided. After the control command CM9 is provided to the process device 900 via the communication unit 110 for operation, the above steps S110 to S140 can be performed again to automatically perform subsequent actions.

For example, referring to FIG. 3, the object image O1 is, for example, an enlarged image of a semiconductor. Through the text recognition program, when it is known that there is "Target Image" on the operation screen F9, the image analysis program can be automatically used to analyze whether the object image O1 is clear. The method for judging whether the object image O1 is analyzed is, for example, a differential operation method by an edge detection algorithm. If the object image O1 is not clear enough, the control command CM9 of "adjust focus" is output.

As another example, please refer to FIG. 7, which shows another example diagram of the operation screen F9. The object image O2 is, for example, an enlarged image of a mask. After analyzing the object image O2 with particles P9 by using the image analysis program, it automatically determines whether the particles P9 are located at the edge of the image window. If the particle P9 is located at the edge of the image window, the control command CM9 of "moving mask carrier" is output so that the particle P9 is located at the center of the image window.

As another example, please refer to FIG. 8, which shows another example of the operation screen F9. The object image O3 is, for example, an enlarged image of the line. After analyzing the critical dimension of the line using the image analysis program, it outputs the control command CM9 of "upload critical dimension to the database".

Through the above embodiments, the artificial intelligence control device 100 and artificial intelligence control method of the process equipment use the character recognition program and the image analysis program of the artificial intelligence to analyze the operation screen F9 to provide the correct control command CM9 to the process equipment 900, which effectively provides Product yield, avoid process equipment failure, and improve process efficiency.

In addition, the above-mentioned artificial intelligence control device 100 is operated by remote control, and can be implemented in multiple process equipments, and can be realized without installing a large amount of hardware.

In summary, although the present invention has been disclosed as above with examples, it is not intended to limit the present invention. Those with ordinary knowledge in the technical field to which the present invention belongs can make various modifications and retouching without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention. Therefore, the scope of protection of the present invention shall be deemed as defined by the scope of the attached patent application.

100‧‧‧Artificial intelligence control device 110‧‧‧Communication unit 120‧‧‧Text recognition unit 130‧‧‧Image analysis unit 140‧‧‧Command supply unit 700‧‧‧Network 800‧‧‧Processing equipment 900‧‧ ‧Process equipment 910‧‧‧User interface B1, B2‧‧‧Control button C1‧‧‧Text CM9‧‧‧Control command CR‧‧‧Text recognition result F9‧‧‧Operation screen IR‧‧‧Image analysis result S110 , S120, S130, S140, S41, S42, S43, S51, S52, S53, S61, S62, S63, S64, S65 ‧‧‧ steps O1, O2, O3 Group P9‧‧‧Particles

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of an artificial intelligence control device according to an embodiment. FIG. 2 is a flowchart of an artificial intelligence control method according to an embodiment. FIG. 3 shows an example of an operation screen. FIG. 4 shows an implementation aspect of step S140. Fig. 5 shows the implementation of the program module OP42. Fig. 6 shows the implementation of the program module OP43. FIG. 7 shows another example diagram of the operation screen. FIG. 8 shows another example diagram of the operation screen.

100‧‧‧Artificial intelligence control device

110‧‧‧Communication unit

120‧‧‧ character recognition unit

130‧‧‧Image Analysis Unit

140‧‧‧Command supply unit

700‧‧‧ Internet

800‧‧‧Process equipment

900‧‧‧Process equipment

910‧‧‧User interface

CM9‧‧‧Control command

CR‧‧‧Text recognition result

F9‧‧‧Operation screen

IR‧‧‧Image analysis results

Claims (12)

An artificial intelligence control device for process equipment, including: a communication unit for remotely connecting to the process equipment to receive an operation screen of a user interface; and a text recognition unit using a character recognition program (character recognition) Recognize the operation screen to obtain a text recognition result; an image analysis unit analyzes the operation screen with an image analysis program (image analysis) to obtain an image analysis result; and an instruction providing unit to recognize based on the text The result or the image analysis result provides a control command to automatically control the process equipment or the user interface. The artificial intelligence control device of the process equipment as described in item 1 of the patent scope, wherein when the operation screen changes, the character recognition unit executes the character recognition program, and the image analysis unit executes the image analysis unit. An artificial intelligence control device for process equipment as described in item 1 of the patent application scope, wherein the image analysis program analyzes whether an object image is clear. An artificial intelligence control device for process equipment as described in item 1 of the patent application scope, wherein the image analysis program analyzes a critical dimension. An artificial intelligence control device for process equipment as described in item 1 of the patent application scope, wherein the image analysis program analyzes whether a particle is located at the edge of an image window. An artificial intelligence control device for process equipment as described in item 1 of the patent application scope, wherein the character recognition unit repeatedly executes the character recognition process, and the image analysis unit repeatedly executes the image analysis procedure. An artificial intelligence control method for a process device includes: remotely connecting to the process device to receive an operation screen of a user interface; identifying the operation screen with a character recognition program (character recognition) to obtain a text recognition result; An image analysis program (image analyzing) is used to analyze the operation screen to obtain an image analysis result; and based on the text recognition result or the image analysis result, a control command is provided to automatically execute the process equipment or the user interface control. The artificial intelligence control method of the process equipment as described in item 7 of the patent application scope further includes: judging whether the operation screen is changed; and if the operation screen is changed, executing the character recognition program and the image analysis program. The artificial intelligence control method of the process equipment as described in item 7 of the patent application scope, wherein the image analysis program analyzes whether an object image is clear. The artificial intelligence control method of process equipment as described in item 7 of the patent application scope, wherein the image analysis program analyzes a critical dimension. The artificial intelligence control method of the process equipment as described in item 7 of the patent application scope, wherein the image analysis program analyzes whether a particle is located at the edge of an image window. The artificial intelligence control method of the process equipment as described in item 7 of the patent application scope, wherein the character recognition program and the image analysis program are repeatedly executed.

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