TW202406811A - Substrate container - Google Patents

Abstract

A substrate container having a container body and a plurality of supporting structures arranged inside the container body is provided. The container body has a bottom, a top, two side walls and a back wall. The supporting structures are spacing arrangement from the bottom to the top and between the two side walls, and separately has a fixed seat, a supporting rod and a plurality of adjustment members. One end of the supporting rod is horizontally inserted into the fixed seat to make the other end in a suspended state toward a front opening of the container body. Each fixed seat has a protruding portion facing the back wall, and the adjustment members are arranged around the protruding portion to set the fixed seats in the container body. The substrate container is therefore easily adjusting the fixed seats to control a position where the supporting rods supports the substrates.

Description

substrate container

The present invention relates to a storage container, particularly a substrate container for storing semiconductor substrates for carrying, storing or transporting.

According to the current semiconductor industry, most of the substrates used are fragile or plate-shaped materials such as glass or silicon wafers. Therefore, during the manufacturing process such as production or processing, it is usually necessary to store the products in containers such as cassettes, storage boxes or transport boxes, and then carry or store them according to the requirements of the process.

However, existing containers still have some problems that need to be improved or overcome. For example: when loading larger substrates, in order to avoid them falling due to their own weight, support rods can be set up in the container for the stacked substrates, and the inclination or level of the support rods needs to be adjusted in a timely manner; another example: in order to To ensure that the above is indeed positioned, the container or related parts need to be designed with corresponding limits or structures to ensure that the substrates are placed stably; another example: in order for the container to be able to withstand the weight of multiple substrates stacked, it should also have sufficient Strength design, etc.

The above considerations will affect the practicality and reliability of the substrate container. Even when it is used in an automated factory, it should be designed with sufficient automated management to ensure that the substrate can be used during production or processing. Safety and quality are not affected.

In view of this, in order to improve and solve the above-mentioned deficiencies, the inventor of the present invention devoted himself to research and combined with the application of academic theory, and finally proposed an invention that is reasonably designed and effectively improves the above-mentioned deficiencies.

The main purpose of the present invention is to provide a substrate container that is designed with various advantages in consideration of the aforementioned problems.

In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides a substrate container, which includes a container body, a plurality of support structures provided in the container body, and a door panel that closes the container body; the container body has a bottom and a top relative to the bottom. , two side walls surrounding the bottom and the top, and a rear wall located behind the bottom and the top and the two side walls, and forming an opening in front of the container body; each support structure is arranged with an up and down spacing in the direction from the bottom to the top, so as to be between It is located at the center between the two side walls and includes a fixed seat, a support rod, and a plurality of adjustment elements. A recessed groove is provided on the fixed seat, and one end of the support rod is laterally inserted into the recessed groove to support the fixed seat. And make the other end of the support rod face the front opening of the container body in a suspended state; wherein, the fixed seat back of each support structure has a protrusion toward the rear wall of the container body on the other side of the inlay groove, and each adjustment element The ring is arranged around the protruding part and the fixed seat is arranged in the container body.

In order to further disclose the features and technical content of the present invention, please refer to the following detailed description and drawings of the present invention. However, the attached drawings are only for reference and illustration and are not intended to limit the present invention.

Please refer to Figure 1, which is an exploded perspective view of the present invention. The invention provides a substrate container, which mainly includes a container body 1, a plurality of support structures 2 provided in the container body 1, and a door panel 3 closed on the container body 1; wherein:

The container body 1 may have a bottom 10 , a top 11 relative to the bottom 10 , two side walls 12 surrounding the bottom 10 and the top 11 , and a bottom 12 located behind the bottom 10 , the top 11 and the two side walls 12 The rear wall 13 (as shown in Figure 5) forms an opening in front of the container body 1, and can accommodate one or a plurality of substrates 4, and is then covered by the door panel 3 to accommodate the inserted substrates. Substrate 4.

As shown in Figures 2 and 3, the support structures 2 are installed in the container body 1, and are arranged with vertical spacing in the direction of the bottom 10 and the top 11, so as to be between the two side walls 12; preferably, they can be It is located at the center between the two side walls 12 . Each support structure 2 includes a fixed base 20, a support rod 21, and a plurality of adjusting elements 22. The fixed base 20 can be fixed on the rear wall 13 of the container body 1 through the adjusting elements 22 and provides support. One end of the rod 21 is transversely inserted into the fixed seat 20 so that the other end of the support rod 21 is in a suspended state toward the front opening of the container body 1 so as to support the inserted substrate 4 . As shown in Figure 4, when the substrate 4 is inserted through the opening in the front of the container body 1, the middle position of the substrate 4 is inserted into the container body 1 along the length direction of the support rod 21; 4 is inserted into the gap between the fixed seats 20 and is damaged. The present invention further forms corresponding concave and convex shapes 201 and 202 on the upper and lower edges of the fixed seats 20. In this way, if the inserted substrate 4 accidentally happens When inserting into the gap between the fixing seats 20 , the concave and convex shapes 201 and 202 can also stop the substrate 4 to prevent the above situation from occurring. In addition, the top surface 210 of each support rod 21 has at least one protruding support position 211, for example, through the inclined top surface 210, the highest point of the slope is used as the support position 211, so that the support rod 21 can be positioned between The base plate 4 provides support and required support strength with a minimum contact area.

Please refer to Figures 2, 5 and 6 together. The fixed seat 20 of each support structure 2 has a protruding portion 200 facing the rear wall 13 of the container body 1. The protruding portion 200 is formed in an arched arc. The shape is better. In the embodiment of the present invention, a recessed groove 20a is recessed on the side of the fixed seat 20 facing away from the protruding portion 200, so that one end of the support rod 21 can be fixed in the recessed groove 20; furthermore, , it is also possible to add an adjustment seat 23 erected along the arrangement direction of each support structure 2. The adjustment seat 23 is arranged on the rear wall 13 of the container body 1, and an adjustment rod 230 is pushed inward from the outside of the container body 1 to resist the adjustment. seat 23, and make the protruding portion 200 of each fixed seat 20 abut against the adjusting seat 23, so that each adjusting element 22 is ringed around the protruding portion 200, so that the depth or tightness of the screwing of the adjusting element 22 can be adjusted To control the fine adjustment of the fixed seat 20 in the direction to achieve the purpose of adjusting the support rod 21. Among them, the number of the adjusting elements 22 is preferably three. Of course, additional ones can also be added depending on the number of directions required for adjustment (such as up, down, left, right, or further diagonal adjustment, etc.). In addition, as shown in FIG. 6 , by pushing the adjusting rod 230 against the adjusting base 23 , the supporting structures 2 erected on the adjusting base 23 can be adjusted synchronously.

In addition, as shown in FIGS. 3 and 7 , the container body 1 is provided with support ribs 120 respectively corresponding to the support rods 21 in its two side walls 12 for supporting the two sides of the inserted base plate 4 . At the same time, each support rib 120 is formed with a guide portion 121 in the adjacent side wall 12, so that if the substrate 4 is deflected to the left or right when it is placed, the guide portion 121 can be used to guide the substrate 4 to the center. place, and has the function of preventing the substrate 4 from sliding left and right and causing collision during transportation.

Furthermore, as shown in FIG. 8 , in order to ensure that the inserted substrate 4 can be stably received by the container body 1 . The present invention can be provided with at least one limiting structure 30 on the inside of the above-mentioned door panel 3 for pushing the base plate 4 into the container body 1. The limiting structure 30 can be punched from a metal sheet and includes an upright The extended piece part 300 and the elastic parts 301 arranged along the extending direction of the piece part 300, and each elastic part 301 respectively corresponds to the inserted base plate 4, so that when the door panel 3 is closed on the container body 1 , through each elastic part 301, the inserted substrate 4 is surely pushed inward for positioning, and the substrate 4 can be prevented from shaking during transportation. In addition, in order to prevent the substrate 4 from being accidentally inserted between the elastic parts 301 and causing damage, each of the elastic parts 301 may also have a bevel in an inclined shape. The bevel can make the gap between the elastic parts 301 and the substrate The four phases are misaligned, so that the horizontally placed substrate 4 will not be inserted into the gaps between the inclined elastic portions 301 .

Furthermore, as shown in Figures 9 and 10, in other embodiments, the present invention can also further add a frame 5. The frame 5 is used to carry the container body 1 and includes a base 50 and a plurality of supports supported on the base. The vertical poles 51 on both sides of the base 50 and the plurality of push rods 52 connecting the vertical poles on the two sides of the base 50 can be used to carry the container body 1 on the base 50, and can be respectively provided on the vertical poles 51 on both sides. There are lifting rods 510, which can facilitate the automatic robot arm to extend from both sides under each lifting rod 510 to clamp the container body 1, thereby reducing the direct or indirect collision of the container body 1 with the machine and the damage to the substrate stored inside. 4 may cause damage and other external factors. At the same time, the frame 5 can further strengthen the structural strength of the container body 1 and help prevent problems such as deformation caused by the container body 1 carrying an overweight plurality of substrates 4 . Furthermore, diagonal reinforcing rods 511 and 520 can also be provided between each upright pole 51 or between each top pole 52. For example, the reinforcing poles 511 provided between the upright poles 51 can be diagonally opposite from top to bottom. The configuration of the angles, or the reinforcing rods 520 disposed between the push rods 52, can be plural and relatively oblique to each other (such as eight on the outside or eight on the inside) to strengthen the structure of the frame 5. The strength and stability of the frame 5 also help to improve the anti-torsion, anti-deformation and other characteristics or capabilities of the container body 1 carried on the frame 5, so as to further increase the load capacity that the container body can bear.

As shown in Figures 10 and 11, in other embodiments, the present invention can be provided with at least one lock structure 31 for locking on the container body 1 in the door panel 3. The lock structure 31 includes a lock. The lock head 310 and the lock plate 311 that can be operated toward the outside of the door panel 3 are controlled by the lock head 310. The lock head 310 is provided with a lock hole 312 on the door panel 3, and can be twisted by extending the unlocking element 313 into the lock hole 312. The lock head 310 is moved to control the action of the lock plate 311 through the lock head 310 . That is to say: when the lock plate 311 moves toward the outside of the door panel 3, the door panel 3 can be locked on the container body 1; otherwise, the door panel 3 can be detached from the container body 1. It is worth mentioning that the present invention can further provide a storage rack 14 (as shown in Figure 10) for the above-mentioned unlocking element 313 to be accommodated on the container body 1. Specifically, the storage rack 14 can be It is provided on the top 11 of the container body 1, outside any side wall 12 or rear wall 13, etc. In the illustrated embodiment, the placing rack 14 is provided outside one of the side walls 12 , preferably between any two vertical poles 51 of the side wall 12 . Through the above design, it is convenient for the operator to use the corresponding unlocking element 313 for different container bodies 1, or to obtain the unlocking element 313 at any time to open the container body 1, without having to carry keys and other items for opening or locking. .

In addition, as shown in FIGS. 3 and 11 , in order to further improve the structural strength of the container body 1 and the door panel 3 , reinforcing ribs 130 protruding inward or outward may also be formed on the rear wall 13 of the container body 1 (i.e., As shown in Figure 3), the reinforcing ribs 130 can be vertical from bottom to top, or connected horizontally and transversely; in addition, the reinforcing ribs 32 can also be protrudingly provided in the door panel 3 (i.e. As shown in FIG. 11 ), the reinforcing ribs 32 may be in a diagonally staggered connection pattern, such as an "X" shape. This also helps to further improve the anti-twisting, anti-deformation and other characteristics or capabilities of the container body 1 . In addition, as shown in Figures 9, 10 and 11, the outer surface of the door panel 3 can be provided with a plurality of polishing parts 314 for adsorption by automated equipment (such as machines or robot arms with adsorption suction cups). The polishing parts 314 can improve its surface flatness and smoothness through methods such as mirror treatment, which can facilitate automatic equipment operations such as picking and placing the door panel 3.

As shown in Figures 9 and 12, the base 50 of the above-mentioned frame 5 is designed with a positioning structure 53 to cooperate with automated handling equipment. The base 50 may be provided with at least one configuration hole 500 for the positioning structure 53 to be assembled on the base 50 corresponding to the configuration hole 500 . As shown in Figure 13, the positioning structure 53 has a frame edge 530 that is assembled corresponding to the outer edge of the configuration hole 500, and a pair of recessed portions corresponding to the configuration hole 500 are formed in the frame edge 530. The alignment space 531 has mutually inclined guide surfaces 532 formed in the alignment space 531. The preferred inclination angle of the guide surfaces 532 may be 45˚ (as shown in Figure 14). Accordingly, the alignment structure 6 for automated machines can extend into the alignment space 531 and be guided through the guide surface 532, so that the handling machine can be accurately aligned before handling, thereby avoiding misalignment due to misalignment. This will cause the vehicle to collide with surrounding objects along its route.

Please refer to Figures 12 and 13 again. In order to facilitate automatic management, the above-mentioned frame 5 can also be provided with identification elements 54 such as RFID, or through sensing elements 55 such as INFOR PAD for identification and positioning.

Finally, as shown in Figure 12, Figure 15A and Figure 15B, the present invention can also be provided with at least one air valve 56 on the base 50 of the above-mentioned frame 5. The air valve 56 can be used to control exhaust (as shown in Figure 15A) or air intake (as shown in Figure 15B), and has a valve sleeve 560, a valve seat 561 that fixes the valve sleeve 560 on the base 50, a valve body 562 located in the valve sleeve 560, and a valve body The one-way valve member 563 and elastic element 564 are actuated in 562, and the valve sleeve 560 is provided with a first air port 560a and a reversely arranged second air port 560b, and the elastic element 5642 pushes the one-way valve member 561 The first air port 560a serves as a barrier, and when the gas pushes the one-way valve 561 to move to the second air port 560b, the gas can pass through, so as to achieve the purpose of adjusting or controlling the exhaust and air in conjunction with an air filling station such as automated equipment. . At the same time, in the present invention, the valve body 561 can be configured in reverse to select exhaust or air intake, so the air valve 56 has commonality.

Therefore, through the above structural composition, the substrate container of the present invention can be obtained.

To sum up, the present invention is indeed a rare invention product. It can indeed achieve the expected purpose of use and solve the deficiencies in conventional knowledge. It is also very novel and progressive, and fully meets the requirements for invention patent application. If you apply under the Patent Law, please check carefully and grant the patent in this case to protect the rights of the inventor.

However, the above descriptions are only the best possible embodiments of the present invention and do not limit the patent scope of the present invention. Therefore, all equivalent structural changes made by using the contents of the description and drawings of the present invention are also included in the present invention. Within the scope of the invention, it shall be stated clearly.

<The present invention> 1: Container body 10: Bottom 11:Top 12:Side wall 120:Support rib 121: Guide inclined part 13:Back wall 130: Reinforcement rib 14:Placement rack 2:Support structure 20: Fixed seat 20a: Groove 200:Protrusion 201: Concave and convex shapes 202: Concave and convex shapes 21:Support rod 210:Top surface 211: Support position 22:Adjusting components 23: Adjustment seat 230:Adjustment lever 3:Door panel 30:Limiting structure 300: Film Department 301: Flexible Department 31:Lock structure 310:Lock 311:Lock plate 312:Keyhole 313: Unlock components 314: Polishing Department 32: Reinforcement ribs 4:Substrate 5:Framework 50: base 500:Configuration hole 51:Pole 510: Lifting rod 511: Reinforcement rod 52: ejector rod 520: Reinforcement rod 53: Positioning structure 530: Frame edge 531: Counterpoint space 532:Guide surface 54:Identification component 55: Sensing element 56:Air valve 560: Valve sleeve 560a: first breath 560b: Second air port 561: Valve seat 562: Valve body 563: One-way valve parts 564: Elastic element 6: Counterpoint structure

Figure 1 is an exploded perspective view of the present invention.

Figure 2 is a schematic diagram of the assembly of the support structure and the adjustment seat of the present invention.

Figure 3 is a schematic end view of the present invention for inserting the substrate.

Figure 4 is an enlarged detailed view of part A of Figure 3.

Figure 5 is a side cross-sectional view of the present invention for inserting a substrate.

Figure 6 is an enlarged detailed view of part C of Figure 5.

Figure 7 is an enlarged detailed view of part B of Figure 3.

Figure 8 is a schematic plan view of the door panel corresponding to each substrate according to the present invention.

Figure 9 is an exploded perspective view of the additional frame of the present invention.

Figure 10 is a three-dimensional assembly view of the additional frame of the present invention.

Figure 11 is an exploded view of the internal structure of the door panel of the present invention.

Figure 12 is a perspective assembly view of the additional frame of the present invention from another perspective.

Figure 13 is an enlarged detailed view of part D of Figure 12.

Figure 14 is a schematic diagram of the operation of the positioning structure of the present invention.

Figure 15A is a partial cross-sectional schematic diagram of the air inlet valve of the present invention.

Figure 15B is a partial cross-sectional view of the air valve of the present invention for exhausting.

1: Container body

10: Bottom

11:Top

12:Side wall

14:Placement rack

2:Support structure

3:Door panel

30:Limiting structure

301: Flexible Department

313: Unlock components

4:Substrate

Claims (25)

A substrate container including: A container body having a bottom, a top relative to the bottom, two side walls surrounding the bottom and the top, and a rear wall located behind the bottom, the top and the two side walls, and in the container The front of the body forms an opening; A plurality of support structures are provided in the container body and are arranged at vertical intervals from the bottom to the top, so as to be at a central position between the two side walls, and each support structure includes a fixed base, a support rod, and A plurality of adjustment elements are provided. The fixed base is recessed with a slot. One end of the support rod is laterally inserted into the slot to support the fixed base, and the other end of the support rod faces the front opening of the container body. and is in a suspended state; and A door panel, closed at the front opening of the container body; Among them, the fixed seat of each support structure has a protruding portion facing the rear wall of the container body on the other side facing the inlay groove, and the adjusting elements are arranged around the protruding portion to set the fixed seat on Inside the container body, the upper and lower edges of the fixing base are respectively formed with corresponding concave and convex shapes. . The substrate container of claim 1, wherein the container body is provided with support ribs corresponding to the support rods in its two side walls, and each support rib is formed with a guide portion adjacent to the side wall. The substrate container as claimed in claim 1, wherein the rear wall of the container body is formed with inwardly or outwardly protruding reinforcing ribs. The substrate container as claimed in claim 1, wherein the fixing base is fixed on the rear wall of the container body using the adjusting elements. The substrate container as claimed in claim 1, wherein the top surface of the support rod has at least one protruding support position. The substrate container as claimed in claim 5, wherein the top surface of the support rod is inclined. The substrate container as described in claim 1 is further provided with an adjustment seat, which is installed vertically along the arrangement direction of each support structure, and the protruding portion of the fixed seat of each support structure is in contact with the adjustment seat. . The substrate container as claimed in claim 7, wherein the adjustment base is disposed on the rear wall of the container body, and an adjustment rod is used to push inwardly against the adjustment base from outside the container body. The substrate container of claim 1, wherein at least one limiting structure is provided on the inner side of the door panel, and the limiting structure includes an upright extending piece and elastic portions arranged along the extending direction of the piece. The substrate container as described in claim 9, wherein the limiting structure is punched from a metal sheet. The substrate container as claimed in claim 9, wherein each elastic portion has a bevel and is inclined. The substrate container as described in claim 1, wherein the door panel is provided with at least one locking structure that is locked on the container body, and the locking structure includes a locking head and can be controlled by the locking head toward the The lock plate operates on the outside of the door panel. The lock head is provided with a lock hole on the door panel, and an unlocking element is inserted into the lock hole to twist the lock head. The substrate container as claimed in claim 12, wherein the container body is provided with a storage rack for storing the unlocking component. The substrate container as claimed in claim 1, wherein the door panel is protrudingly provided with reinforcing ribs that are diagonally staggered with each other. The substrate container as claimed in claim 1, wherein the outer surface of the door panel is provided with a plurality of polished portions, and the polished portions are formed by mirror processing. The substrate container of claim 1 further includes a frame, which includes a base, a plurality of vertical poles supported on two sides of the base, and a plurality of push rods connected between the vertical poles on both sides of the base. The substrate container as described in claim 16, wherein the vertical poles on both sides of the frame are respectively provided with lifting poles. The substrate container as described in claim 16, wherein reinforcing rods are arranged between the vertical rods, and the reinforcing rods are arranged diagonally from top to bottom. The substrate container as described in claim 16, wherein reinforcing rods are arranged between the push rods, and the reinforcing rods are plural and arranged in a relatively oblique arrangement with each other. The substrate container of claim 16, wherein the base of the frame is provided with a positioning structure, and the base is provided with at least one configuration hole for the positioning structure to be assembled on the base corresponding to the configuration hole. The substrate container as described in claim 20, wherein the positioning structure has a frame edge corresponding to the outer edge of the configuration hole for assembly, and a recessed alignment space corresponding to the configuration hole is formed in the frame edge, Mutually inclined guide surfaces are formed in the alignment space. The substrate container as claimed in claim 16, wherein the base of the frame is provided with an identification element. The substrate container as described in claim 16 or 20, wherein the base of the frame is provided with a sensing element. The substrate container as claimed in claim 16, wherein at least one air valve is provided on the base of the frame. The substrate container as described in claim 24, wherein the air valve includes a valve sleeve, a valve seat that fixes the valve sleeve on the base, a valve body located in the valve sleeve, and a valve body in the valve body. An actuated one-way valve member and an elastic element, and the valve sleeve is provided with a first air port and a reversely arranged second air port, and the elastic element pushes the one-way valve member to the first air port for air intake or Exhaust.

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