US20020044855A1 - Automated semiconductor processing system - Google Patents
Automated semiconductor processing system Download PDFInfo
- Publication number
- US20020044855A1 US20020044855A1 US09/932,719 US93271901A US2002044855A1 US 20020044855 A1 US20020044855 A1 US 20020044855A1 US 93271901 A US93271901 A US 93271901A US 2002044855 A1 US2002044855 A1 US 2002044855A1
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- lift
- elbow
- robot
- forearm
- process robot
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- H—ELECTRICITY
- H01—ELECTRIC ELEMENTS
- H01L—SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICES NOT COVERED BY CLASS H10
- H01L21/00—Processes or apparatus adapted for the manufacture or treatment of semiconductor or solid state devices or of parts thereof
- H01L21/67—Apparatus specially adapted for handling semiconductor or electric solid state devices during manufacture or treatment thereof; Apparatus specially adapted for handling wafers during manufacture or treatment of semiconductor or electric solid state devices or components ; Apparatus not specifically provided for elsewhere
- H01L21/677—Apparatus specially adapted for handling semiconductor or electric solid state devices during manufacture or treatment thereof; Apparatus specially adapted for handling wafers during manufacture or treatment of semiconductor or electric solid state devices or components ; Apparatus not specifically provided for elsewhere for conveying, e.g. between different workstations
- H01L21/67739—Apparatus specially adapted for handling semiconductor or electric solid state devices during manufacture or treatment thereof; Apparatus specially adapted for handling wafers during manufacture or treatment of semiconductor or electric solid state devices or components ; Apparatus not specifically provided for elsewhere for conveying, e.g. between different workstations into and out of processing chamber
- H01L21/67754—Apparatus specially adapted for handling semiconductor or electric solid state devices during manufacture or treatment thereof; Apparatus specially adapted for handling wafers during manufacture or treatment of semiconductor or electric solid state devices or components ; Apparatus not specifically provided for elsewhere for conveying, e.g. between different workstations into and out of processing chamber horizontal transfer of a batch of workpieces
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- H—ELECTRICITY
- H01—ELECTRIC ELEMENTS
- H01L—SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICES NOT COVERED BY CLASS H10
- H01L21/00—Processes or apparatus adapted for the manufacture or treatment of semiconductor or solid state devices or of parts thereof
- H01L21/67—Apparatus specially adapted for handling semiconductor or electric solid state devices during manufacture or treatment thereof; Apparatus specially adapted for handling wafers during manufacture or treatment of semiconductor or electric solid state devices or components ; Apparatus not specifically provided for elsewhere
- H01L21/677—Apparatus specially adapted for handling semiconductor or electric solid state devices during manufacture or treatment thereof; Apparatus specially adapted for handling wafers during manufacture or treatment of semiconductor or electric solid state devices or components ; Apparatus not specifically provided for elsewhere for conveying, e.g. between different workstations
- H01L21/67739—Apparatus specially adapted for handling semiconductor or electric solid state devices during manufacture or treatment thereof; Apparatus specially adapted for handling wafers during manufacture or treatment of semiconductor or electric solid state devices or components ; Apparatus not specifically provided for elsewhere for conveying, e.g. between different workstations into and out of processing chamber
- H01L21/67742—Mechanical parts of transfer devices
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- H—ELECTRICITY
- H01—ELECTRIC ELEMENTS
- H01L—SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICES NOT COVERED BY CLASS H10
- H01L21/00—Processes or apparatus adapted for the manufacture or treatment of semiconductor or solid state devices or of parts thereof
- H01L21/67—Apparatus specially adapted for handling semiconductor or electric solid state devices during manufacture or treatment thereof; Apparatus specially adapted for handling wafers during manufacture or treatment of semiconductor or electric solid state devices or components ; Apparatus not specifically provided for elsewhere
- H01L21/677—Apparatus specially adapted for handling semiconductor or electric solid state devices during manufacture or treatment thereof; Apparatus specially adapted for handling wafers during manufacture or treatment of semiconductor or electric solid state devices or components ; Apparatus not specifically provided for elsewhere for conveying, e.g. between different workstations
- H01L21/67763—Apparatus specially adapted for handling semiconductor or electric solid state devices during manufacture or treatment thereof; Apparatus specially adapted for handling wafers during manufacture or treatment of semiconductor or electric solid state devices or components ; Apparatus not specifically provided for elsewhere for conveying, e.g. between different workstations the wafers being stored in a carrier, involving loading and unloading
- H01L21/67769—Storage means
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- H—ELECTRICITY
- H01—ELECTRIC ELEMENTS
- H01L—SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICES NOT COVERED BY CLASS H10
- H01L21/00—Processes or apparatus adapted for the manufacture or treatment of semiconductor or solid state devices or of parts thereof
- H01L21/67—Apparatus specially adapted for handling semiconductor or electric solid state devices during manufacture or treatment thereof; Apparatus specially adapted for handling wafers during manufacture or treatment of semiconductor or electric solid state devices or components ; Apparatus not specifically provided for elsewhere
- H01L21/677—Apparatus specially adapted for handling semiconductor or electric solid state devices during manufacture or treatment thereof; Apparatus specially adapted for handling wafers during manufacture or treatment of semiconductor or electric solid state devices or components ; Apparatus not specifically provided for elsewhere for conveying, e.g. between different workstations
- H01L21/67763—Apparatus specially adapted for handling semiconductor or electric solid state devices during manufacture or treatment thereof; Apparatus specially adapted for handling wafers during manufacture or treatment of semiconductor or electric solid state devices or components ; Apparatus not specifically provided for elsewhere for conveying, e.g. between different workstations the wafers being stored in a carrier, involving loading and unloading
- H01L21/67772—Apparatus specially adapted for handling semiconductor or electric solid state devices during manufacture or treatment thereof; Apparatus specially adapted for handling wafers during manufacture or treatment of semiconductor or electric solid state devices or components ; Apparatus not specifically provided for elsewhere for conveying, e.g. between different workstations the wafers being stored in a carrier, involving loading and unloading involving removal of lid, door, cover
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- H—ELECTRICITY
- H01—ELECTRIC ELEMENTS
- H01L—SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICES NOT COVERED BY CLASS H10
- H01L21/00—Processes or apparatus adapted for the manufacture or treatment of semiconductor or solid state devices or of parts thereof
- H01L21/67—Apparatus specially adapted for handling semiconductor or electric solid state devices during manufacture or treatment thereof; Apparatus specially adapted for handling wafers during manufacture or treatment of semiconductor or electric solid state devices or components ; Apparatus not specifically provided for elsewhere
- H01L21/677—Apparatus specially adapted for handling semiconductor or electric solid state devices during manufacture or treatment thereof; Apparatus specially adapted for handling wafers during manufacture or treatment of semiconductor or electric solid state devices or components ; Apparatus not specifically provided for elsewhere for conveying, e.g. between different workstations
- H01L21/67763—Apparatus specially adapted for handling semiconductor or electric solid state devices during manufacture or treatment thereof; Apparatus specially adapted for handling wafers during manufacture or treatment of semiconductor or electric solid state devices or components ; Apparatus not specifically provided for elsewhere for conveying, e.g. between different workstations the wafers being stored in a carrier, involving loading and unloading
- H01L21/67775—Docking arrangements
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- H—ELECTRICITY
- H01—ELECTRIC ELEMENTS
- H01L—SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICES NOT COVERED BY CLASS H10
- H01L21/00—Processes or apparatus adapted for the manufacture or treatment of semiconductor or solid state devices or of parts thereof
- H01L21/67—Apparatus specially adapted for handling semiconductor or electric solid state devices during manufacture or treatment thereof; Apparatus specially adapted for handling wafers during manufacture or treatment of semiconductor or electric solid state devices or components ; Apparatus not specifically provided for elsewhere
- H01L21/677—Apparatus specially adapted for handling semiconductor or electric solid state devices during manufacture or treatment thereof; Apparatus specially adapted for handling wafers during manufacture or treatment of semiconductor or electric solid state devices or components ; Apparatus not specifically provided for elsewhere for conveying, e.g. between different workstations
- H01L21/67763—Apparatus specially adapted for handling semiconductor or electric solid state devices during manufacture or treatment thereof; Apparatus specially adapted for handling wafers during manufacture or treatment of semiconductor or electric solid state devices or components ; Apparatus not specifically provided for elsewhere for conveying, e.g. between different workstations the wafers being stored in a carrier, involving loading and unloading
- H01L21/67778—Apparatus specially adapted for handling semiconductor or electric solid state devices during manufacture or treatment thereof; Apparatus specially adapted for handling wafers during manufacture or treatment of semiconductor or electric solid state devices or components ; Apparatus not specifically provided for elsewhere for conveying, e.g. between different workstations the wafers being stored in a carrier, involving loading and unloading involving loading and unloading of wafers
- H01L21/67781—Batch transfer of wafers
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- H—ELECTRICITY
- H01—ELECTRIC ELEMENTS
- H01L—SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICES NOT COVERED BY CLASS H10
- H01L21/00—Processes or apparatus adapted for the manufacture or treatment of semiconductor or solid state devices or of parts thereof
- H01L21/67—Apparatus specially adapted for handling semiconductor or electric solid state devices during manufacture or treatment thereof; Apparatus specially adapted for handling wafers during manufacture or treatment of semiconductor or electric solid state devices or components ; Apparatus not specifically provided for elsewhere
- H01L21/683—Apparatus specially adapted for handling semiconductor or electric solid state devices during manufacture or treatment thereof; Apparatus specially adapted for handling wafers during manufacture or treatment of semiconductor or electric solid state devices or components ; Apparatus not specifically provided for elsewhere for supporting or gripping
- H01L21/687—Apparatus specially adapted for handling semiconductor or electric solid state devices during manufacture or treatment thereof; Apparatus specially adapted for handling wafers during manufacture or treatment of semiconductor or electric solid state devices or components ; Apparatus not specifically provided for elsewhere for supporting or gripping using mechanical means, e.g. chucks, clamps or pinches
- H01L21/68707—Apparatus specially adapted for handling semiconductor or electric solid state devices during manufacture or treatment thereof; Apparatus specially adapted for handling wafers during manufacture or treatment of semiconductor or electric solid state devices or components ; Apparatus not specifically provided for elsewhere for supporting or gripping using mechanical means, e.g. chucks, clamps or pinches the wafers being placed on a robot blade, or gripped by a gripper for conveyance
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- Y—GENERAL TAGGING OF NEW TECHNOLOGICAL DEVELOPMENTS; GENERAL TAGGING OF CROSS-SECTIONAL TECHNOLOGIES SPANNING OVER SEVERAL SECTIONS OF THE IPC; TECHNICAL SUBJECTS COVERED BY FORMER USPC CROSS-REFERENCE ART COLLECTIONS [XRACs] AND DIGESTS
- Y10—TECHNICAL SUBJECTS COVERED BY FORMER USPC
- Y10S—TECHNICAL SUBJECTS COVERED BY FORMER USPC CROSS-REFERENCE ART COLLECTIONS [XRACs] AND DIGESTS
- Y10S414/00—Material or article handling
- Y10S414/135—Associated with semiconductor wafer handling
- Y10S414/14—Wafer cassette transporting
Definitions
- the field of the invention is automated semiconductor wafer processing systems, used for processing semiconductor wafers, hard disk media, semiconductor substrates, and similar materials requiring very low levels of contamination.
- Clean rooms are enclosed areas or rooms within a semiconductor manufacturing facility, designed to keep out contaminants. All air provided to a clean room is typically highly filtered to prevent airborne contaminants from entering into or circulating within the clean room. Special materials and equipment are needed to maintain contaminants within the clean room at adequately low levels. Consequently, construction and maintenance of clean rooms can be time consuming and costly.
- the semiconductor processing equipment installed within a clean room should preferably be compact, so that large numbers of semiconductor wafers can be processed within a smaller space, thereby reducing space requirements and costs. Accordingly, there is a need for smaller semiconductor processing equipment, to reduce clean room space requirements.
- a process robot within an automated semiconductor processing system has a robot arm vertically moveable along a lift rail.
- the robot arm has a forearm segment extending between an elbow joint and a wrist joint.
- the robot arm is compact yet has an extended range of travel. The processing system therefore requires less space, allowing for lower cost manufacturing.
- the process robot has a wafer holder on the robot arm laterally offset from the elbow and wrist joints.
- the process robot can perform both overhand and underhand movements.
- the elbow and wrist joints, and the forearm segment are constantly positioned to one side of the wafer holder. Risk of contamination of the wafers due to particles from the arm segment or joints is greatly reduced.
- the overhand and underhand movement capability of the process robot provides for versatile performance.
- FIG. 1 is a top, rear and left side perspective view of the present automated semiconductor processing system
- FIGS. 2 and 3 are front, top, and left side perspective views thereof
- FIG. 4 is a front elevation view thereof
- FIG. 5 is a left side view thereof
- FIG. 6 is a front perspective view of the input/output robot shown in FIG. 3;
- FIG. 7 is a rear perspective view thereof
- FIG. 8 is a perspective view of the indexer shown in FIGS. 1 - 3 , with various components removed for clarity of illustration;
- FIG. 9 is a perspective view thereof with additional components removed for clarity of illustration;
- FIG. 10 is yet another perspective view thereof showing additional details
- FIG. 11 is a leftside view of the indexer shown in FIGS. 1 - 3 ;
- FIG. 12 is a plan view thereof, with the pallets on the indexer removed, for clarity of illustration;
- FIG. 13 is a front view of the indexer shown in FIGS. 1 - 3 ;
- FIG. 14 is a plan view of the indexer shown in FIGS. 1 - 3 , and illustrating sequences of movement;
- FIG. 15 is a perspective view of the elevator shown in FIG. 5, in the lowered position
- FIG. 16 is a perspective view thereof showing the elevator in the raised position
- FIG. 17 is a front perspective view of the process robot shown in FIGS. 2 and 5;
- FIG. 18 is a plan view thereof
- FIG. 19 is an enlarged plan view thereof
- FIG. 20 is a rear perspective view of the process robot, with the arm fully withdrawn;
- FIG. 21 is a plan view thereof
- FIG. 22 is a side elevation view, in part section, of the process robot
- FIG. 23 is a front perspective view of the process robot
- FIGS. 24 A- 24 E are schematic illustrations showing various positions of the arm of the process robot
- FIG. 25 is a perspective view of a process module, as shown in FIGS. 3 - 5 ;
- FIG. 26 is a perspective view of the semiconductor process module illustrated in FIGS. 4, 5 and 25 , and having a novel door actuation and sealing mechanism;
- FIG. 27 is a perspective view of the process module door actuation assembly
- FIG. 28 is a cross-sectional side view of the process module door in an open position
- FIG. 29 is a cross-sectional side view of the process module door in a closed position
- FIG. 30 is a perspective view of a second indexer embodiment
- FIG. 31 is a reversed perspective view of the indexer shown in FIG. 30, with various components removed, for purposes of illustration.
- an automated semiconductor material processing system 50 is installed within a clean room 52 .
- the system 50 has a clean air enclosure or housing 54 having a left side wall 56 with a fixed transparent window 57 to allow viewing of operations within the enclosure 54 .
- the enclosure 54 has a front wall 58 , as shown in FIG. 2, having a fixed transparent window 59 .
- a loading/unloading opening 60 in the front wall 58 is closed off during operation of the system 50 by a transparent loading window or panel 62 , as illustrated in FIG. 2.
- a transparent loading window or panel 62 as illustrated in FIG. 2.
- down draft fans or blowers 80 are provided on top of the enclosure 54 , to continuously move clean air room downwardly through the enclosure.
- a utilities compartment 82 provides space for power supplies, reagent tanks, pumps, and other components well known for semiconductor processing.
- the system 50 includes an indexer bay or space 75 extending rearwardly along the left side wall 56 .
- a process bay or space 94 extends along the front wall 58 , perpendicularly to the indexer bay 75 .
- the indexer bay or space 75 , and a process bay or space 95 are continuous with each other, and are designated and illustrated schematically in FIG. 3, as separate spaces only for purposes of description.
- the loading/unloading window 60 opens through the front wall 58 of the enclosure 54 into the indexer bay 75 .
- An I/O robot 86 in the indexer bay 75 is located largely below the opening 60 .
- An indexer 72 is provided in the indexer bay 75 , generally in alignment with the opening 60 .
- An input plate 132 on the indexer 72 extends over the I/O robot 86 toward the window 60 .
- the indexer 72 preferably holds up to eight cassettes 88 containing flat media, e.g., silicon wafers 90 .
- the cassettes 88 rest on pallets 136 on the indexer 72 .
- the pallets 136 and the I/O plate 132 are vertically positioned at about the same elevation as the bottom of the opening 60 .
- a moving buffer shelf 76 is supported above the cassettes 88 on the indexer 72 via a vertical buffer plate 130 extending up from a center beam in the indexer 72 .
- the process bay 95 includes two or more process chambers.
- the process chambers are a chemical process chamber 68 , and a spin/rinser dryer 70 .
- a process robot 66 moves through the process bay 95 to the indexer 72 , to carry wafers 90 to or from the chambers 68 or 70 .
- the I/O robot 86 has a mounting plate 110 attached to the left side wall 56 or adjacent enclosure structure.
- a Y-axis rail 112 is supported on the mounting plate 110 .
- a linear actuator 114 on the rail 112 moves an armature 105 in the Y direction, as shown in FIGS. 3 and 6.
- an X-axis rail 106 on the back of the armature 105 supports a Z-axis or vertical fork rail 102 .
- a vertical fork actuator 104 moves the rail 102 vertically on the armature 105 .
- An x-axis actuator 108 moves the vertical rail 102 , along with the vertical actuator 104 , in the X or lateral direction.
- a cassette fork 100 near the top of the vertical rail 102 is adapted to lift a cassette 88 by engaging the cassette side flanges 89 .
- the indexer 72 has a rectangular frame 118 including a bottom plate 120 , a front plate 122 , a back plate 124 , and left and right-end plates 126 and 128 .
- the I/O plate 132 is attached to the right end plate 122 , and braced by gussets 134 .
- a center beam 160 divides the indexer into an input row or side 135 and an output row 137 .
- the vertical buffer support plate 130 is positioned and moves back and forth within a centrally located buffer plate slot 144 in the center beam 160 .
- the indexer 72 includes 10 pallet positions: A, B, C, D, E, F, G, H, I, and J.
- the indexer 72 has eight pallets 136 , so that two positions, at diagonally opposite corners, are always vacant.
- cutouts 162 in the bottom plate 120 of the indexer 72 at positions C and H, allow air to flow downwardly through the indexer 72 .
- Elevator clearance holes 164 through the bottom plate 120 at positions I and J, provide clearance for the elevator 78 .
- the indexer 72 includes a X-axis or lateral shift system or assembly generally designated 140 , and a longitudinal or a Y-axis shift system or assembly, generally designated 170 . These shift systems move the pallets 136 carrying the cassettes 88 around on the indexer 72 , as shown in FIG. 14.
- the lateral shift system 140 includes a lateral guide block 150 , fixed to the indexer frame 118 .
- a lateral shift end fork 146 A is supported on the lateral guide block 150 , and is driven by a lateral drive motor 154 to step or sequence between positions E and F, as shown in FIG. 14.
- An end fork air cylinder 152 raises and lowers the end fork 146 A between fixed up and down positions which are fixed by mechanical stops.
- FIGS. 9 and 10 show components of the lateral shift system 140 at the left or inside end of the indexer 72 . Similar or duplicate components (the lateral guide block 150 ; an end fork 146 B and a lateral air cylinder 152 ) are mounted at the right end as well.
- the longitudinal or Y-axis shift assembly 170 of the indexer 72 includes longitudinal guide rails 172 extending parallel to the front and back plates 122 and 124 , on either side of the center rail 160 .
- Eight side forks 180 B- 180 J are located at positions B, C, D, E, G, H, I, and J, as best shown in FIG. 12.
- a side fork actuator or air cylinder 174 is attached to each of the eight side forks 180 .
- the air cylinders 174 are longitudinally displaceable with the side forks 180 , as they move back and forth on the longitudinal guide rails 172 .
- the eight side forks 180 are joined together by a longitudinal drive belt 178 .
- the longitudinal drive belt 178 extends in a loop around the perimeter of the indexer frame 118 , supported on idlers.
- the longitudinal drive belt 178 is positioned within the indexer frame 118 vertically above the lateral drive belt 156 .
- a longitudinal or Y-axis drive motor 176 is engaged to the drive belt 178 , such that with actuation of the motor 176 , all eight side forks 180 move simultaneously. Referring to FIG. 12, when the motor drives side forks 180 B- 180 E in the input row 135 in direction I, the side forks 180 G- 180 J on the opposite side of the center beam 160 B, in the output row 137 , move in direction O.
- the indexer 72 also includes a buffer shelf shift system or assembly, generally designated 190 .
- the buffer shift system 190 shifts the vertical buffer plate 130 , which supports the buffer shelf 76 from the front position shown in FIG. 9 to the rear position shown in FIG. 8.
- the buffer shelf 76 shown in phantom in FIG. 8 is omitted from the other figures, for clarity of illustration.
- the buffer shift system 190 includes a buffer drive motor 198 linked to a buffer drive belt 200 through a flex coupling 196 , and a buffer capstan 192 .
- the buffer drive belt 200 extends around the capstan 192 and a buffer belt idler 194 , positioned at opposite ends of the buffer plate slot 144 .
- the vertical buffer plate 130 is secured to the buffer drive belt 200 .
- the bottom end of the vertical buffer plate 130 is slidably attached to a buffer plate guide rail 202 underneath the buffer plate slot 144 .
- the indexer 72 has three sets of sensors 138 at each location A-J.
- the three sensors at each location may be separate individual sensors, or a single combination sensor.
- the sensors, at each position sense whether a pallet is present; whether a cassette is present on a pallet; and whether wafers are present in a cassette.
- the sensors are linked to a controller or computer and provide status information for each location in the indexer 72 .
- optical sensors are used.
- a wrist drive A/C servo motor 265 is contained within a wrist housing 264 pivotably attached to the outer end of the forearm 260 via a wrist joint 262 .
- a wafer holder 268 formed by opposing end effectors 270 is joined to the lower front area of the wrist housing 264 . Grooves 274 in the end effectors 270 facilitate engaging, lifting and carrying the wafers 90 .
- a remote camera head 266 positioned on top of the wrist housing 264 , and linked to the computer/controller 85 , views the positions of the rotor rotainers within the process chambers, as described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,784,797 incorporated herein by reference. The computer/controller can then determine whether the process robot can properly insert the wafers into the process chamber.
- the camera head 266 is also used to verify that the rotor rotainers are fully locked before processing begins within the process chamber.
- a process module 300 in the process bay 95 includes, for example, the spin rinser dryer 70 and the chemical process chamber 68 , 20 although other modules, or additional modules may be used.
- End effector rinser dryers 302 are provided in the front floor 305 of the process module 300 .
- the process module 300 includes a process vessel 310 which partially encloses a process bowl 314 .
- the process vessel 310 mates with a movable door 512 which can be moved between the closed position shown in solid lines in FIG. 26, and an open position shown in phantom outline.
- the door assembly 500 is aligned in a fixed position parallel to a front wall 502 of the process vessel 310 .
- the door assembly 500 includes a door plate 510 supporting a door 512 and a door actuator 514 generally designated 514 .
- the door 512 includes a stiffening plate 504 having a viewing window 508 that permits visual inspection of the processing bowl or chamber 314 .
- the door actuator 514 includes a stationary outer cylinder 516 coupled to the door support plate 510 , and an extension ring 518 .
- the extension ring 518 is concentrically and slidably positioned inside of the outer cylinder ring 516 .
- the door support plate 510 includes a viewing aperture 520 , which aligns with the window 508 , when closed, for providing visibility into the processing chamber.
- the door support plate 510 is attached on each side to slideable guide brackets 522 .
- Each guide bracket 522 is slidably mounted to a pneumatic cylinder 524 .
- the cylinders 524 are connected to the front wall 502 of the processing vessel via mounting plates 528 .
- the combination of the guide brackets 522 , the cylinders 524 , and the mounting plates 528 provides a rigid door mounting construction that needs no additional guides or support blocks.
- the guide brackets 522 are mounted for substantially vertical movement so that the door assembly can be moved between an open position to allow access into the bowl of the processor, and a closed position wherein the door assembly is in substantially concentric alignment with the bowl 314 . In the closed position, the door can be extended and sealed against the bowl 314 of the processor.
- annular inner hub 530 has an annular flange 532 and a cylinder 534 .
- the annular flange 532 is attached to the door support plate 510 .
- a plurality of fasteners secure the outer cylinder ring 516 and the annular flange 532 concentrically to the mounting plate 510 .
- the extension ring 518 is concentrically positioned between the hub 530 and the outer cylinder ring 516 , and includes a U-shaped portion 519 that defines an annular guide receptacle 520 .
- the cylinder 534 fits within the annular guide receptacle 520 .
- the extension ring 518 also includes an annular end face 540 , as shown in FIG. 28.
- the extension ring 518 is displaceable with an annular chamber 542 defined by the cylinder 534 and the other cylinder ring 516 , to seal and unseal the bowl 314 .
- the extension ring 518 bifurcates the chamber 542 into two operative compartments: a retraction chamber 543 and an extension chamber 544 .
- Each chamber is adapted to hold pneumatic or hydraulic fluid and act as pneumatic or hydraulic cylinder.
- Multiple annular seals 550 are positioned on or against the extension ring 518 to seal the chambers 543 and 544 .
- Separate fluid supply conduits are preferably provided to the retraction chamber 543 and the extension chamber 544 to increase or decrease fluid pressure within the respective chambers and effectuate movement of the extension ring 518 .
- the extension ring 518 moves away from the door support plate 510 . Movement of the extension ring 518 into the extended position shown in FIG. 28 moves the door 512 into sealing engagement with the access opening 506 of the processor bowl, thereby sealing the process module 300 .
- An annular door seal 551 is mounted on the periphery of the door 512 .
- the door seal includes a lip 552 and a tongue 554 .
- the lip 552 of the door seal lies in a plane that is within the front wall of the processor, and the tongue presses in sealing engagement against the outside rim of the process bowl 314 thereby making a seal between the door 512 and the process bowl 314 .
- the door seal also preferably includes a flange 555 which acts as a stop for the door seal.
- the combination of the extension ring 518 and the door seal 550 provides a highly reliable and effective door closing and sealing mechanism. Piston-like movement of the ring 518 allows it to move the door 512 straight outwardly from the support plate without bowing or bending, and without the need for peripheral adjustments to ensure smooth movement. By seating against the outside rim of the process bowl, the tongue provides an effective fluid tight seal and automatically compensates for any misalignment between the door and the processor.
- the inner hub 530 and the outer cylinder ring 516 are rigidly attached to the door plate 510 .
- the door plate in turn, is fixed relative to the process bowl 514 , via the connection of the door plate 510 , to the cylinders 524 , to the front wall 502 . Consequently, as the extension ring 518 moves outwardly away from the door plate 510 , it can press tightly against and seal the bowl 514 .
- the operator of the system 50 initiates a loading sequence by entering commands via the user interface 64 .
- the window panel 62 drops down, thereby opening the loading window 60 .
- the operator places a cassette 88 filled with wafers 90 onto the I/O plate 132 .
- the cassette 88 may be initially placed on the I/O plate 132 by a human operator or by another robot.
- the cutout 133 in the I/O plate positions the cassette 88 , so that it may be lifted by the I/O robot, and also allows air to flow downwardly over the wafers 90 in the cassette 88 .
- the fork 100 of the I/O robot 86 is initially in the same X-Y position as the I/O plate 132 .
- the vertical fork motor or actuator 14 raises the fork 100 , until the fork has engaged the side flanges 89 of the cassette 88 .
- the I/O robot 86 then lifts the cassette 88 vertically off of the I/O plate 132 , shifts laterally (in the X direction) towards the left side wall 56 , via actuation of the lateral motor 108 . This movement aligns the now lifted cassette with the input row of the indexer.
- the I/O robot 86 then moves the lifted cassette longitudinally (in the Y-direction) toward the indexer, until the cassette is aligned above a pallet in position A, via the Y-axis motor 114 .
- the I/O robot then sets the cassette 88 down on the pallet 136 at position A on the indexer 72 . If there is no pallet at position A, the indexer 72 must first be sequenced, as described below, to bring a pallet into position A.
- the I/O robot then returns the fork 100 to its initial position.
- the longitudinal shift system 170 moves the side forks 180 B-j (in the direction of arrow O in FIG. 12) until the side fork 180 B is underneath the pallet 136 and cassette 88 in position A.
- the end forks 146 A and 146 B have down or at-rest positions below the down or at-rest positions of the side forks 180 B-J, so that the side forks 180 B, 180 E, 180 G, and 180 J can move into the end positions A, E, F and J, without interfering with the end forks 146 A and 146 B.
- the side forks 180 B-J are attached to the longitudinal drive belt 178 , they all necessarily move together in the Y direction.
- the longitudinal drive motor 176 is again energized to move side fork 180 B back towards position A, and thereby move side fork 180 J from position J back to position 1 .
- the side fork air cylinders 174 are down, so that there is no pallet movement. Rather, the side forks are merely repositioned below the pallets.
- the side forks are moved, in this step, enough to avoid interfering with the end forks, and not necessarily one complete position.
- the lateral drive motor 154 is energized to move the end fork 146 B from position A to position J, and to simultaneously move the end fork 146 A from position F to position E.
- the lateral air cylinders 152 are extended, lifting end fork 146 B, and the pallet at position J, and simultaneously lifting end fork 146 A to lift the pallet at position E.
- the lateral drive motor 154 is then energized in the reverse direction (direction L in FIG. 12) and via the lateral belt 156 , the end fork 146 B carries the pallet from position J to position A, and simultaneously, the end fork 146 A carries a pallet from position E to position F.
- the lateral air cylinders 152 are then retracted, to lower the pallets into positions A and F on the indexer deck 139 .
- the indexer 72 With a second pallet in position A, the indexer 72 is ready to receive a second cassette 88 . After a second cassette is positioned on the I/O plate 132 , the I/O robot 86 repeats the indexer loading sequence of cassette movements, so that the second cassette is placed on the indexer at position A.
- the elevator 78 is energized, lifting the wafer platforms 216 on the lift columns 214 up through the open bottom of the cassettes 88 .
- the wafers 90 in the cassettes are lifted to an elevated access position, as shown in FIG. 16, where they are now ready to be picked up by the process robot 66 .
- the window panel 62 moves up to close off the loading window 60 , to prevent an operator from inadvertently coming into contact with moving components within the enclosure 54 .
- the process robot 66 moves to lift the wafers 90 off of the elevator 78 .
- the lateral drive flux motor 251 moves the lift unit 252 laterally until the wafer holder 268 is properly aligned with the wafers 90 on the elevator 78 .
- the wafer holder 268 is moved in until the end effectors 270 are positioned and aligned on either side of the wafers 90 , with the grooves 274 in the end effectors 270 each aligned to receive a wafer. As shown in FIG.
- this wafer engagement movement is an underhanded movement of the robot arm 255 .
- the wafer holder 268 is moved up to lift the wafers 90 off of the elevator 78 .
- the robot arm 255 then withdraws to the position shown in FIG. 24C.
- the robot arm can be fully backed away from the indexer, with only minimal clearance space required, as shown in FIGS. 20 and 21.
- the wafers are maintained in a vertical or near vertical position.
- the lateral drive motor 251 is energized to move the lift unit 252 so that the wafers in the wafer holder 268 are brought into alignment with the selected process chamber.
- the robot arm 255 is raised up on the lift unit by the lift motor 257 .
- the forearm 260 is pivoted upwardly via the elbow drive motor 259 .
- the wrist drive motor 265 is driven in an opposite direction to bring or maintain the wafer holder in an approximately 10° down incline orientation, as shown in FIG. 22.
- the forearm is pivoted downwardly to extend the wafer holder carrying the wafers into the process chamber.
- the robot arm 255 then withdraws from the process chamber.
- the wrist drive motor 265 is controlled to orient the end effectors vertically, as shown in FIG. 24D. With the end effectors aligned with the end effector rinser/dryer 302 , the lift motor 257 lowers the entire robot arm 255 , to extend the end effectors into the end effector rinser/dryer 302 . After the end effectors 270 are cleaned and dried, they are withdrawn from the end effector rinser/dryer 302 and positioned to remove wafers from either process chamber, or to pick up additional batches of wafers from the indexer for delivery to a process chamber. As the end effectors are cleaned at the process chamber rather than at another location, processing time can be reduced, because this cleaning step is accomplished without the need to move the process robot.
- the wafer holder 268 is offset to one side of the wrist joint 262 and elbow joint 256 , as well as the other components of the process robot 66 . No part of the process robot 66 is ever positioned directly above the wafers. As air is blown downwardly in the enclosure 54 , any particles generated or released by the process robot 66 will not come into contact with the wafers. As a result, the potential for contamination of the wafers during processing is reduced.
- the process robot 66 has an elbow joint 256 and a wrist joint 262 , joined by a single segment or forearm 260 . Consequently, in contrast to earlier known systems having shoulder, elbow and wrist joints, joined by two arm segments, the process robot 66 achieves a range of vertical reach via movement of the robot arm 255 on the lift rail 254 , rather than by articulation of arm segments. This allows the process robot 66 to be very compact, while still achieving sufficient ranges of movement. Correspondingly, the entire enclosure 54 can be made more compact.
- the process robot 66 can perform both underhanded and overhanded movements, the vertical travel necessary on the lift rail 254 is limited. In addition, the ability to perform both underhanded and overhanded movements allows the forearm 260 to be relatively short, which also contributes to a compact enclosure 54 .
- the buffer shelf 76 moves forward (in direction O in FIG. 17) when the elevator 78 is in the down position, to receive up to 50 wafers.
- the buffer shelf 76 holds the wafers until the appropriate empty cassette 88 is moved into the I and J positions, so that the process robot 66 can move the disks from the buffer shelf 76 into the cassettes at positions I and J.
- the buffer shelf 76 is not being loaded or unloaded with wafers, it remains in the back position (moved in direction I), so as not to interfere with operation of the elevator 78 .
- the buffer shelf 76 temporarily holds already processed wafers, so that the process robot 66 can access and move the next batch of wafers for placement into the process chambers, before off loading already processed wafers back into the indexer. This ensures that the process chambers are constantly supplied with wafers for processing
- a second embodiment indexer 600 includes a box frame 602 formed by side walls 604 and 606 , a front end wall 608 , and a back end wall 610 , joined to each other, and to a base plate 612 .
- An input plate 614 extends outwardly from the front end wall 608 .
- a center wall 616 and lateral ribs 666 divide the indexer 600 into first and second rows R 1 and R 2 , with each row having 5 pallet positions or stations, i.e., A-E and F-J, as shown in FIG. 12.
- the center wall 616 is supported in the box frame 602 via support bars 615 extending from the center wall 616 to the side walls 604 and 606 .
- a buffer assembly 618 includes a buffer side plate 620 attached to the inner side wall 606 .
- a buffer tray 622 has combs 624 on comb arms 626 .
- the buffer tray 622 is supported on a buffer tray support 630 .
- the tray support 630 in turn is slidably mounted on upper and lower buffer rails 632 and 634 , on the buffer side plate 620 .
- Linear bearings 636 on the tray support 630 allow for low friction movement of the tray support 630 along the rails 632 and 634 .
- a buffer drive belt 642 extends around a buffer drive motor 638 and an end pulley 640 .
- the buffer drive belt 642 is attached to the buffer tray support, so that rotational movement of the motor 638 causes translational (y-axis) movement of the buffer tray support 630 along the rails 632 and 634 . Locating the buffer assembly 618 on the side of the indexer 600 , as shown in FIG. 30, allows for a more compact design, in comparison to the centrally located buffer assembly of the first indexer embodiment 72 shown in FIG. 8.
- the indexer 600 includes a longitudinal or y-axis shift assembly, generally designated 650 , and a lateral or x-axis shift assembly, generally designated as 652 .
- the y-axis shift assembly 650 includes 2 side by side and parallel y-axis frames 660 .
- Each y-axis frame 660 includes an inner frame plate 662 , adjacent and attached to the center wall 616 , and an outer frame plate 664 , supported on the side walls 604 and 606 .
- the lateral ribs 666 are attached to and extend between the inner frame plate 662 and outer frame plate 664 , in both of the y-axis frames 660 .
- End rollers 674 are rotatably mounted at the ends of each of the inner and outer frame plates 662 and 664 (for a total of 8 end rollers 674 ).
- Idler rollers 676 are spaced apart and rotatably mounted on the frame plates 662 and 664 , between the end rollers 674 , on each frame plate 662 and 664 .
- An endless toothed belt 670 is mounted over the end rollers 674 and idler rollers 676 on each frame plate 662 and 664 (for a total of 4 endless toothed belts 670 ).
- the teeth 672 on the belts 670 face outwardly, so that the smooth inside or back surface of the belts 670 contact the end rollers 674 and idler rollers 676 .
- teeth 672 are shown only at sections of the belts 670 , the belts 670 actually have continuous teeth 672 all around.
- the rollers and belt in the foreground of FIG. 31 have been omitted from the drawing.
- a y-axis drive motor 680 supported on the center wall 616 is linked or engaged to a gear unit 682 , which turns drive shafts 684 A and 684 B (in the side by side parallel y-axis frames 660 ) at equal speeds, but in opposite directions.
- the drive shafts 684 A and 684 B turn drive sprockets 686 , which in turn drive the belts 670 .
- the outside toothed surface of the belts 670 wraps around the drive sprockets 686 , and around an idler sprockets 688 , as shown in dotted line in FIG. 31.
- an x-axis sensor pair 690 and a y-axis sensor pair 696 , is provided at each of the ten pallet stations or locations A-J, delineated by the lateral ribs 666 .
- the x-axis sensor pair includes an infrared transmitter 692 and an infrared detector 694 , laterally aligned with each other (on a line perpendicular to the frame plates 662 and 664 ).
- the y-axis sensor pair 696 includes a y-axis infrared transmitter 698 and a y-axis infrared detector 700 , located generally centrally on the lateral ribs 666 , and aligned with each other (on a line parallel to the frame plates 662 and 664 ).
- a reflective optical sensor 702 is provided in the side walls 604 and 606 , at each of the pallet positions A-J.
- the sensor pairs 690 and 696 and optical sensor 702 are linked to the controller 85 , which monitors and controls operations of the indexer 600 .
- each row R 1 and R 2 of the indexer 600 8 rectangular pallets 710 are provided in each row R 1 and R 2 of the indexer 600 , so that four of the pallet positions in each row are always occupied by a pallet 710 , and one end position adjacent to end wall 608 or 610 is always open.
- Each pallet 710 has a rectangular pallet cutout or opening 712 .
- Pallet tooth racks 715 shown in dotted line in FIG. 30, are provided on the bottom surface of the pallets 710 .
- the tooth rack 715 extends along both of the longer sides of the pallet 710 .
- the toot rack 715 has teeth matching the size and pitch of the teeth 672 on the belts 70 .
- Each pallet 710 has a pair of x-axis and y-axis prisms. Specifically, an x-axis transmitter prism 714 is longitudinally aligned with an x-axis detector prism 716 , on each pallet 710 , as shown in FIG. 30. Similarly, a y-axis transmitter prism 718 is laterally aligned with a y-axis detector prism 720 , on each pallet 710 .
- the x-axis transmitter prism 714 and x-axis detector prism 716 are vertically directly above or aligned with the x-axis infrared transmitter 692 and x-axis infrared detector 694 , respectively, in that pallet position.
- the y-axis transmitter prism 718 and y-axis detector prism 720 are vertically directly above and aligned with the y-axis infrared transmitter 698 and the y-axis infrared detector 700 , in that pallet position.
- the idler rollers 676 have roller flanges 678 which protrude vertically above the belts 670 .
- the roller flanges 678 fit into roller grooves 675 (shown in dotted line in FIG. 30) on the bottom surface of each pallet 710 .
- the engagement of the roller flanges 678 into the grooves 675 prevents any x-axis movement of the pallets 710 (unless the pallet 710 is lifted vertically.) Accordingly, the pallets 710 are vertically supported on both the belts 670 and roller flanges 678 .
- the indexer 600 has an x-axis shift assembly 652 substantially the same as the x-axis shift assembly or shift system 140 shown in FIGS. 9 and 10 and described above, and is therefore not further described or illustrated here. However, rather than the end fork air cylinder 152 used in the x-axis shift system 140 , the x-axis shift assembly 652 in the indexer 600 has a pallet lift electric motor 654 , for better control of pallet lift movement.
- the operation and sequencing of the indexer 600 is similar to that of the indexer 72 described above with reference to FIGS. 8 - 12 .
- pallet movement along the y-axis is achieved via the computer controller 85 controlling the y-axis drive motor 680 to incrementally move, or index, the belts 670 .
- the pallets 710 remain on the belts 670 and rollers 676 .
- there is no vertical movement of pallets 710 as the pallets move in the y-axis direction, between pallet stations.
- X-axis movement of the pallets 710 at the ends of the indexer 600 is similar to the movement described above for the indexer 72 and is therefore not further described here.
- the optical sensor 72 detects the presence or absence of a pallet 710 via detecting the presence or absence of reflected light.
- the x-axis sensor pair 690 detects the presence or absence of a cassette 88 .
- the infrared transmitter 692 projects a light beam vertically upwardly. The light beam passes through the x-axis transmitter prism 714 , on each pallet 710 , which bends the light beam 90°, so that the light beam is then projected horizontally inwardly towards the x-axis detector prism 716 .
- the y-axis sensor pair 696 works in a similar way, to detect the presence or absence of wafers in the cassette 88 .
- infrared light from the y-axis transmitter 698 is projected vertically upwardly, and is turned 90° by the y-axis transmitter prism 718 , so that the light projects through a slot or tunnel 725 at the bottom of the cassette 88 .
- the light travels entirely through the tunnel 75 , is redirected downwardly by the y-axis detector prism 720 , and is detected by the y-axis detector 700 , indicating absence of any wafers in the cassette 88 . If a wafer is in the cassette 88 , the bottom edge of the wafer projects downwardly through the tunnel 725 , preventing light from passing through the tunnel. Accordingly, the presence of any wafer in the cassette 88 will block the light from the y-axis transmitter 698 , so that the y-axis detector 700 detects no light, indicating presence of at least one wafer in the cassette 88 .
- Operation of the buffer assembly 618 in the indexer 600 is similar to operation of the buffer assembly 76 , described above, and shown in FIG. 8. However, locating the buffer assembly 618 at the side of the indexer 600 allows for a more compact design.
- Use of the belts 670 provides for faster and more reliable pallet movement, in contrast to the indexer 72 shown in FIGS. 8 - 16 .
- Use of the prisms 714 - 720 allows for detection of cassettes and wafers, without requiring lifting of the pallets.
Abstract
An automated semiconductor processing system has an indexer bay perpendicularly aligned with a process bay within a clean air enclosure. An indexer in the indexer bay provides stocking or storage for work in progress semiconductor wafers. Process chambers are located in the process bay. A process robot moves between the indexer bay and process bay to carry semi-conductor wafers to and from the process chambers. The process robot has a robot arm vertically moveable along a lift rail. Semiconductor wafers are carried offset from the robot arm, to better avoid contamination. The automated system is compact and requires less clean room floor space.
Description
- This application is a Continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 09/274,511, filed Mar. 23, 1999, now U.S. Pat. No. 6,279,724 incorporated herein by reference, which is a Continuation-in-Part of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 09/112,259, filed Jul. 8, 1998, now U.S. Pat. No. 6,273,110, which is a Continuation-in-Part of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 08/994,737, filed Dec. 19, 1997 and now pending, and incorporated herein by reference.
- The field of the invention is automated semiconductor wafer processing systems, used for processing semiconductor wafers, hard disk media, semiconductor substrates, and similar materials requiring very low levels of contamination.
- Computers, televisions, telephones and other electronic products contain large numbers of essential electronic semiconductor devices. To produce electronic products, hundreds or thousands of semiconductor devices are manufactured in a very small space, using lithography techniques on semiconductor substrates, such as on silicon wafers. Due to the extremely small dimensions involved in manufacturing semiconductor devices, contaminants on the semiconductor substrate material, such as particles of dust, dirt, paint, metal, etc. lead to defects in the end products.
- To exclude contaminants, semiconductor substrates are processed within clean rooms. Clean rooms are enclosed areas or rooms within a semiconductor manufacturing facility, designed to keep out contaminants. All air provided to a clean room is typically highly filtered to prevent airborne contaminants from entering into or circulating within the clean room. Special materials and equipment are needed to maintain contaminants within the clean room at adequately low levels. Consequently, construction and maintenance of clean rooms can be time consuming and costly. As a result, the semiconductor processing equipment installed within a clean room should preferably be compact, so that large numbers of semiconductor wafers can be processed within a smaller space, thereby reducing space requirements and costs. Accordingly, there is a need for smaller semiconductor processing equipment, to reduce clean room space requirements.
- Existing automated semiconductor processing systems use robots to carry the semiconductor materials. These robots are designed to avoid creating particles which could contaminate the semiconductors. However, even with careful design, material selection, and robot operation, particles may still be created by these robots, via their moving parts. Accordingly, there is a need for improved techniques for processing semiconductor substrate materials with very low levels of contamination to maintain the level of defects at acceptable levels.
- In a first aspect of the invention, a process robot within an automated semiconductor processing system has a robot arm vertically moveable along a lift rail. The robot arm has a forearm segment extending between an elbow joint and a wrist joint. The robot arm is compact yet has an extended range of travel. The processing system therefore requires less space, allowing for lower cost manufacturing.
- In a second aspect, the process robot has a wafer holder on the robot arm laterally offset from the elbow and wrist joints. The process robot can perform both overhand and underhand movements. The elbow and wrist joints, and the forearm segment are constantly positioned to one side of the wafer holder. Risk of contamination of the wafers due to particles from the arm segment or joints is greatly reduced. In addition, the overhand and underhand movement capability of the process robot provides for versatile performance.
- It is an object of the invention to provide an automated semiconductor processing system, better designed to keep semiconductor wafers free of contaminants. It is a further object of the invention to provide an automated semiconductor processing system that is versatile, yet compact, to reduce clean room space requirements.
- Other objects, features and advantages will appear hereinafter.
- In the drawings, wherein the same reference number denotes the same element throughout the several views:
- FIG. 1 is a top, rear and left side perspective view of the present automated semiconductor processing system;
- FIGS. 2 and 3 are front, top, and left side perspective views thereof;
- FIG. 4 is a front elevation view thereof;
- FIG. 5 is a left side view thereof;
- FIG. 6 is a front perspective view of the input/output robot shown in FIG. 3;
- FIG. 7 is a rear perspective view thereof;
- FIG. 8 is a perspective view of the indexer shown in FIGS.1-3, with various components removed for clarity of illustration;
- FIG. 9 is a perspective view thereof with additional components removed for clarity of illustration;
- FIG. 10 is yet another perspective view thereof showing additional details;
- FIG. 11 is a leftside view of the indexer shown in FIGS.1-3;
- FIG. 12 is a plan view thereof, with the pallets on the indexer removed, for clarity of illustration;
- FIG. 13 is a front view of the indexer shown in FIGS.1-3;
- FIG. 14 is a plan view of the indexer shown in FIGS.1-3, and illustrating sequences of movement;
- FIG. 15 is a perspective view of the elevator shown in FIG. 5, in the lowered position;
- FIG. 16 is a perspective view thereof showing the elevator in the raised position;
- FIG. 17 is a front perspective view of the process robot shown in FIGS. 2 and 5;
- FIG. 18 is a plan view thereof;
- FIG. 19 is an enlarged plan view thereof;
- FIG. 20 is a rear perspective view of the process robot, with the arm fully withdrawn;
- FIG. 21 is a plan view thereof;
- FIG. 22 is a side elevation view, in part section, of the process robot;
- FIG. 23 is a front perspective view of the process robot;
- FIGS.24A-24E are schematic illustrations showing various positions of the arm of the process robot;
- FIG. 25 is a perspective view of a process module, as shown in FIGS.3-5;
- FIG. 26 is a perspective view of the semiconductor process module illustrated in FIGS. 4, 5 and25, and having a novel door actuation and sealing mechanism;
- FIG. 27 is a perspective view of the process module door actuation assembly;
- FIG. 28 is a cross-sectional side view of the process module door in an open position;
- FIG. 29 is a cross-sectional side view of the process module door in a closed position;
- FIG. 30 is a perspective view of a second indexer embodiment; and
- FIG. 31 is a reversed perspective view of the indexer shown in FIG. 30, with various components removed, for purposes of illustration.
- Turning now in detail to the drawings, as shown in FIGS.1-5, an automated semiconductor
material processing system 50 is installed within aclean room 52. Thesystem 50 has a clean air enclosure orhousing 54 having aleft side wall 56 with a fixedtransparent window 57 to allow viewing of operations within theenclosure 54. Similarly, theenclosure 54 has afront wall 58, as shown in FIG. 2, having a fixedtransparent window 59. - A loading/
unloading opening 60 in thefront wall 58 is closed off during operation of thesystem 50 by a transparent loading window orpanel 62, as illustrated in FIG. 2. Referring to FIGS. 1-5, down draft fans orblowers 80 are provided on top of theenclosure 54, to continuously move clean air room downwardly through the enclosure. Autilities compartment 82 provides space for power supplies, reagent tanks, pumps, and other components well known for semiconductor processing. - A
user interface 64, on thefront wall 58 provides information and inputs control instructions from the system operator. The user interface is linked to a computer/controller 85, in theutilities compartment 82, or at a remote location. The computer/controller 85 is linked to the various motors and sensors described below, as well as to a facility control computer, to control operation of thesystem 50. - Referring to FIGS.1-4, and especially to FIG. 3, the
system 50 includes an indexer bay orspace 75 extending rearwardly along theleft side wall 56. A process bay or space 94 extends along thefront wall 58, perpendicularly to theindexer bay 75. The indexer bay orspace 75, and a process bay orspace 95 are continuous with each other, and are designated and illustrated schematically in FIG. 3, as separate spaces only for purposes of description. Referring to FIGS. 1-5, the loading/unloading window 60 opens through thefront wall 58 of theenclosure 54 into theindexer bay 75. An I/O robot 86 in theindexer bay 75 is located largely below theopening 60. - An
indexer 72 is provided in theindexer bay 75, generally in alignment with theopening 60. Aninput plate 132 on theindexer 72 extends over the I/O robot 86 toward thewindow 60. Theindexer 72 preferably holds up to eightcassettes 88 containing flat media, e.g.,silicon wafers 90. Thecassettes 88 rest onpallets 136 on theindexer 72. Thepallets 136 and the I/O plate 132 are vertically positioned at about the same elevation as the bottom of theopening 60. A movingbuffer shelf 76 is supported above thecassettes 88 on theindexer 72 via avertical buffer plate 130 extending up from a center beam in theindexer 72. - Referring to FIGS. 2, 3 and4, the
process bay 95 includes two or more process chambers. In the embodiment shown, the process chambers are achemical process chamber 68, and a spin/rinser dryer 70. Aprocess robot 66 moves through theprocess bay 95 to theindexer 72, to carrywafers 90 to or from thechambers - Referring to FIGS. 3 and 5, and momentarily to FIGS. 15 and 16, an
elevator 78 under the indexer 72 lifts thewafers 90 out of the cassettes 88 (2 cassette loads at a time) so that they can be picked up and carried by theprocess robot 66. As shown in FIG. 16, eachcassette 88 preferably holds 25 wafers, with the eight cassette capacity of theindexer 72 holding 200 wafers. The wafers are handled in batches of 50, as theelevator 78 andprocess robot 66 carry the combined contents of two cassettes simultaneously. - Referring to FIGS. 6 and 7, the I/
O robot 86 has a mountingplate 110 attached to theleft side wall 56 or adjacent enclosure structure. A Y-axis rail 112 is supported on the mountingplate 110. Alinear actuator 114 on therail 112 moves anarmature 105 in the Y direction, as shown in FIGS. 3 and 6. - Referring to FIG. 7, an
X-axis rail 106 on the back of thearmature 105 supports a Z-axis orvertical fork rail 102. Avertical fork actuator 104 moves therail 102 vertically on thearmature 105. Anx-axis actuator 108 moves thevertical rail 102, along with thevertical actuator 104, in the X or lateral direction. Acassette fork 100 near the top of thevertical rail 102 is adapted to lift acassette 88 by engaging thecassette side flanges 89. - Turning now to FIG. 8, the
indexer 72 has arectangular frame 118 including abottom plate 120, afront plate 122, aback plate 124, and left and right-end plates O plate 132 is attached to theright end plate 122, and braced bygussets 134. Acenter beam 160 divides the indexer into an input row or side 135 and an output row 137. The verticalbuffer support plate 130 is positioned and moves back and forth within a centrally locatedbuffer plate slot 144 in thecenter beam 160. Two pairs of opposing pallet rails 142 extend substantially from theleft end plate 126, to theright end plate 128, and provide resting or supporting surfaces for thepallets 136 at the pallet deck orsurface 139. Referring momentarily to FIG. 14, theindexer 72 includes 10 pallet positions: A, B, C, D, E, F, G, H, I, and J. Theindexer 72 has eightpallets 136, so that two positions, at diagonally opposite corners, are always vacant. Turning to FIG. 12,cutouts 162 in thebottom plate 120 of theindexer 72, at positions C and H, allow air to flow downwardly through theindexer 72.Elevator clearance holes 164 through thebottom plate 120, at positions I and J, provide clearance for theelevator 78. - Referring still to FIGS.8-14, the
indexer 72 includes a X-axis or lateral shift system or assembly generally designated 140, and a longitudinal or a Y-axis shift system or assembly, generally designated 170. These shift systems move thepallets 136 carrying thecassettes 88 around on theindexer 72, as shown in FIG. 14. - As best shown in FIG. 9, the
lateral shift system 140 includes alateral guide block 150, fixed to theindexer frame 118. A lateralshift end fork 146A is supported on thelateral guide block 150, and is driven by alateral drive motor 154 to step or sequence between positions E and F, as shown in FIG. 14. An endfork air cylinder 152 raises and lowers theend fork 146A between fixed up and down positions which are fixed by mechanical stops. FIGS. 9 and 10 show components of thelateral shift system 140 at the left or inside end of theindexer 72. Similar or duplicate components (thelateral guide block 150; anend fork 146B and a lateral air cylinder 152) are mounted at the right end as well. A lateral shiftsystem linking belt 156 extends around the perimeter of theindexer frame 118, supported byidlers 157, and is attached to the diagonallyopposite end forks lateral drive motor 154 is energized,end fork 146A moves from position F to position E, whileend fork 146B simultaneously moves from position A to Position J, and vice versa. - Referring still to FIGS.8-14, the longitudinal or Y-
axis shift assembly 170 of theindexer 72 includeslongitudinal guide rails 172 extending parallel to the front andback plates center rail 160. Eightside forks 180B-180J are located at positions B, C, D, E, G, H, I, and J, as best shown in FIG. 12. A side fork actuator orair cylinder 174 is attached to each of the eightside forks 180. Theair cylinders 174 are longitudinally displaceable with theside forks 180, as they move back and forth on the longitudinal guide rails 172. The eightside forks 180 are joined together by a longitudinal drive belt 178. The longitudinal drive belt 178 extends in a loop around the perimeter of theindexer frame 118, supported on idlers. The longitudinal drive belt 178 is positioned within theindexer frame 118 vertically above thelateral drive belt 156. A longitudinal or Y-axis drive motor 176 is engaged to the drive belt 178, such that with actuation of themotor 176, all eightside forks 180 move simultaneously. Referring to FIG. 12, when the motor drivesside forks 180B-180E in the input row 135 in direction I, theside forks 180G-180J on the opposite side of the center beam 160B, in the output row 137, move in direction O. - Referring to FIGS.8-11, the
indexer 72 also includes a buffer shelf shift system or assembly, generally designated 190. Thebuffer shift system 190 shifts thevertical buffer plate 130, which supports thebuffer shelf 76 from the front position shown in FIG. 9 to the rear position shown in FIG. 8. Thebuffer shelf 76, shown in phantom in FIG. 8 is omitted from the other figures, for clarity of illustration. - Referring primarily to FIG. 10, the
buffer shift system 190 includes abuffer drive motor 198 linked to abuffer drive belt 200 through aflex coupling 196, and abuffer capstan 192. Thebuffer drive belt 200 extends around thecapstan 192 and abuffer belt idler 194, positioned at opposite ends of thebuffer plate slot 144. Thevertical buffer plate 130 is secured to thebuffer drive belt 200. The bottom end of thevertical buffer plate 130 is slidably attached to a bufferplate guide rail 202 underneath thebuffer plate slot 144. - The
indexer 72 has three sets ofsensors 138 at each location A-J. The three sensors at each location may be separate individual sensors, or a single combination sensor. The sensors, at each position, sense whether a pallet is present; whether a cassette is present on a pallet; and whether wafers are present in a cassette. The sensors are linked to a controller or computer and provide status information for each location in theindexer 72. Preferably, optical sensors are used. - Turning now to FIGS. 15 and 16, the
elevator 78 has amotor 210 linked to anarmature 212 through a lead screw or other rotation to linear drive.Wafer platforms 216 are supported onlift columns 214. Actuation of themotor 210 lifts thearmature 212 up along aelevator rail 215, to vertically move thewafers 90 into and out of thecassettes 88. With thewafers 90 lifted out of thecassettes 88 as shown in FIG. 16, they can be picked up by theprocess robot 66. - Turning now to FIGS.17-23, the
process robot 66 includes a lateral orX-axis rail 250 extending through theprocess bay 95 and partially into theindexer bay 75. Alift unit 252 is moveable along thelateral rail 250, driven by a magnetic fluxlinear drive motor 251. A robot arm, 255, is attached to avertical lift rail 254 on thelift unit 252. An A/C lift motor 257 moves therobot arm 255 vertically along thelift rail 254. As shown in FIG. 23, thecylinder 280 of a gasspring counter balance 278 is attached to therobot arm 255. Apiston 282 extending out of thecylinder 280 is attached to thelift unit 252. Thegas spring counterbalance 278 exerts a constant upward force on therobot arm 255, to reduce the lifting or braking force that thelift motor 257 must exert to move or position therobot arm 255. - Referring still to FIGS.17-23, the
robot arm 255 has an elbow drive A/C motor 259 within anelbow housing 258. Theelbow housing 258 is attached to the slide of thelift rail 254, on thelift unit 252. Aforearm 260 is attached to theelbow housing 258 via anelbow joint 256. Theforearm 260 is mechanically coupled to theelbow drive motor 259 via agear reduction 261. - A wrist drive A/
C servo motor 265 is contained within awrist housing 264 pivotably attached to the outer end of theforearm 260 via awrist joint 262. Awafer holder 268 formed by opposingend effectors 270 is joined to the lower front area of thewrist housing 264. Grooves 274 in theend effectors 270 facilitate engaging, lifting and carrying thewafers 90. Aremote camera head 266 positioned on top of thewrist housing 264, and linked to the computer/controller 85, views the positions of the rotor rotainers within the process chambers, as described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,784,797 incorporated herein by reference. The computer/controller can then determine whether the process robot can properly insert the wafers into the process chamber. Thecamera head 266 is also used to verify that the rotor rotainers are fully locked before processing begins within the process chamber. -
Motor amplifiers 275, for driving thewrist drive motor 265,elbow drive motor 259,lift motor 257, andlateral drive motor 251, are contained in and move with thelift unit 252. Locating the motor amplifiers in thelift unit 252 reduces space requirements and cabling requirements. - Turning now to FIG. 25, a
process module 300 in theprocess bay 95 includes, for example, thespin rinser dryer 70 and thechemical process chamber 68, 20 although other modules, or additional modules may be used. Endeffector rinser dryers 302 are provided in thefront floor 305 of theprocess module 300. - Referring to FIGS.26-29, the
process module 300 includes aprocess vessel 310 which partially encloses aprocess bowl 314. Theprocess vessel 310 mates with amovable door 512 which can be moved between the closed position shown in solid lines in FIG. 26, and an open position shown in phantom outline. - Referring to FIGS. 26 and 27, the
door assembly 500 is aligned in a fixed position parallel to afront wall 502 of theprocess vessel 310. - The
door assembly 500 includes adoor plate 510 supporting adoor 512 and adoor actuator 514 generally designated 514. Thedoor 512 includes astiffening plate 504 having aviewing window 508 that permits visual inspection of the processing bowl orchamber 314. Thedoor actuator 514 includes a stationaryouter cylinder 516 coupled to thedoor support plate 510, and anextension ring 518. Theextension ring 518 is concentrically and slidably positioned inside of theouter cylinder ring 516. Thedoor support plate 510 includes aviewing aperture 520, which aligns with thewindow 508, when closed, for providing visibility into the processing chamber. - Referring to FIGS. 26 and 27, the
door support plate 510 is attached on each side toslideable guide brackets 522. Eachguide bracket 522 is slidably mounted to apneumatic cylinder 524. Thecylinders 524 are connected to thefront wall 502 of the processing vessel via mountingplates 528. The combination of theguide brackets 522, thecylinders 524, and the mountingplates 528 provides a rigid door mounting construction that needs no additional guides or support blocks. Theguide brackets 522 are mounted for substantially vertical movement so that the door assembly can be moved between an open position to allow access into the bowl of the processor, and a closed position wherein the door assembly is in substantially concentric alignment with thebowl 314. In the closed position, the door can be extended and sealed against thebowl 314 of the processor. - Referring to FIGS. 28 and 29, an annular
inner hub 530 has anannular flange 532 and acylinder 534. Theannular flange 532 is attached to thedoor support plate 510. A plurality of fasteners secure theouter cylinder ring 516 and theannular flange 532 concentrically to the mountingplate 510. - The
extension ring 518 is concentrically positioned between thehub 530 and theouter cylinder ring 516, and includes aU-shaped portion 519 that defines anannular guide receptacle 520. Thecylinder 534 fits within theannular guide receptacle 520. Theextension ring 518 also includes anannular end face 540, as shown in FIG. 28. Theextension ring 518 is displaceable with anannular chamber 542 defined by thecylinder 534 and theother cylinder ring 516, to seal and unseal thebowl 314. - The
extension ring 518 bifurcates thechamber 542 into two operative compartments: aretraction chamber 543 and anextension chamber 544. Each chamber is adapted to hold pneumatic or hydraulic fluid and act as pneumatic or hydraulic cylinder. Multipleannular seals 550 are positioned on or against theextension ring 518 to seal thechambers - Separate fluid supply conduits are preferably provided to the
retraction chamber 543 and theextension chamber 544 to increase or decrease fluid pressure within the respective chambers and effectuate movement of theextension ring 518. As shown in FIG. 28, when hydraulic fluid is supplied to theextension chamber 544, theextension ring 518 moves away from thedoor support plate 510. Movement of theextension ring 518 into the extended position shown in FIG. 28 moves thedoor 512 into sealing engagement with the access opening 506 of the processor bowl, thereby sealing theprocess module 300. - An
annular door seal 551 is mounted on the periphery of thedoor 512. The door seal includes a lip 552 and atongue 554. When the door is in the closed position shown in FIG. 28, the lip 552 of the door seal lies in a plane that is within the front wall of the processor, and the tongue presses in sealing engagement against the outside rim of theprocess bowl 314 thereby making a seal between thedoor 512 and theprocess bowl 314. The door seal also preferably includes aflange 555 which acts as a stop for the door seal. - The combination of the
extension ring 518 and thedoor seal 550 provides a highly reliable and effective door closing and sealing mechanism. Piston-like movement of thering 518 allows it to move thedoor 512 straight outwardly from the support plate without bowing or bending, and without the need for peripheral adjustments to ensure smooth movement. By seating against the outside rim of the process bowl, the tongue provides an effective fluid tight seal and automatically compensates for any misalignment between the door and the processor. - The
inner hub 530 and theouter cylinder ring 516, are rigidly attached to thedoor plate 510. The door plate, in turn, is fixed relative to theprocess bowl 514, via the connection of thedoor plate 510, to thecylinders 524, to thefront wall 502. Consequently, as theextension ring 518 moves outwardly away from thedoor plate 510, it can press tightly against and seal thebowl 514. - In use, the operator of the
system 50 initiates a loading sequence by entering commands via theuser interface 64. Thewindow panel 62 drops down, thereby opening theloading window 60. The operator places acassette 88 filled withwafers 90 onto the I/O plate 132. Thecassette 88 may be initially placed on the I/O plate 132 by a human operator or by another robot. Thecutout 133 in the I/O plate positions thecassette 88, so that it may be lifted by the I/O robot, and also allows air to flow downwardly over thewafers 90 in thecassette 88. - The
fork 100 of the I/O robot 86 is initially in the same X-Y position as the I/O plate 132. The vertical fork motor or actuator 14 raises thefork 100, until the fork has engaged theside flanges 89 of thecassette 88. The I/O robot 86 then lifts thecassette 88 vertically off of the I/O plate 132, shifts laterally (in the X direction) towards theleft side wall 56, via actuation of thelateral motor 108. This movement aligns the now lifted cassette with the input row of the indexer. The I/O robot 86 then moves the lifted cassette longitudinally (in the Y-direction) toward the indexer, until the cassette is aligned above a pallet in position A, via the Y-axis motor 114. The I/O robot then sets thecassette 88 down on thepallet 136 at position A on theindexer 72. If there is no pallet at position A, theindexer 72 must first be sequenced, as described below, to bring a pallet into position A. The I/O robot then returns thefork 100 to its initial position. - With a
first cassette 88 resting on apallet 136 at position A, which is the cassette loading position, thelongitudinal shift system 170 moves theside forks 180B-j (in the direction of arrow O in FIG. 12) until theside fork 180B is underneath thepallet 136 andcassette 88 in position A. Theend forks side forks 180B-J, so that theside forks end forks side forks 180B-J are attached to the longitudinal drive belt 178, they all necessarily move together in the Y direction. - With the
side fork 180B underneath thefirst cassette 88 in position A, the eight side fork air actuators orcylinders 174 are extended, causing theside forks 180 to lift the pallets above them up and off of thepallet deck 139. With the pallets in the up position, thelongitudinal drive motor 176 turns in the opposite direction, movingside fork 180B, now carrying thefirst cassette 88 on a pallet, from position A to position B. Theair cylinders 174 are then retracted to lower thepallet 136 andcassette 88 down into position B. After this movement is completed, there is no pallet at position A. As all of theside fork actuators 174 are controlled to move simultaneously, all of theside forks 180B-J necessarily move together in the vertical Z-axis direction. - To continue loading or sequencing the
indexer 72, thelongitudinal drive motor 176 is again energized to moveside fork 180B back towards position A, and thereby moveside fork 180J from position J back toposition 1. During this movement, the sidefork air cylinders 174 are down, so that there is no pallet movement. Rather, the side forks are merely repositioned below the pallets. The side forks are moved, in this step, enough to avoid interfering with the end forks, and not necessarily one complete position. With theside fork 180J now clear of position J, thelateral drive motor 154 is energized to move theend fork 146B from position A to position J, and to simultaneously move theend fork 146A from position F to position E. Once under position J, thelateral air cylinders 152 are extended, liftingend fork 146B, and the pallet at position J, and simultaneously liftingend fork 146A to lift the pallet at position E. Thelateral drive motor 154 is then energized in the reverse direction (direction L in FIG. 12) and via thelateral belt 156, theend fork 146B carries the pallet from position J to position A, and simultaneously, theend fork 146A carries a pallet from position E to position F. Thelateral air cylinders 152 are then retracted, to lower the pallets into positions A and F on theindexer deck 139. - With a second pallet in position A, the
indexer 72 is ready to receive asecond cassette 88. After a second cassette is positioned on the I/O plate 132, the I/O robot 86 repeats the indexer loading sequence of cassette movements, so that the second cassette is placed on the indexer at position A. - The foregoing sequence of steps is repeated until a cassette is loaded onto each of the eight pallets in the indexer. As the indexer has ten positions A-J, and eight pallets, two diagonally opposite corner positions, either positions A and F, or positions E and J, will, at any given time, not have a pallet.
- After the first and
second cassettes 88 loaded into theindexer 72 arrive at positions I and J, theelevator 78 is energized, lifting thewafer platforms 216 on thelift columns 214 up through the open bottom of thecassettes 88. Thewafers 90 in the cassettes are lifted to an elevated access position, as shown in FIG. 16, where they are now ready to be picked up by theprocess robot 66. - The
window panel 62 moves up to close off theloading window 60, to prevent an operator from inadvertently coming into contact with moving components within theenclosure 54. - Referring now to FIGS. 20, 21 and24B, the
process robot 66 moves to lift thewafers 90 off of theelevator 78. Specifically, the lateraldrive flux motor 251 moves thelift unit 252 laterally until thewafer holder 268 is properly aligned with thewafers 90 on theelevator 78. With appropriate control of thelift motor 257, theelbow drive motor 258, and thewrist drive motor 265, thewafer holder 268 is moved in until theend effectors 270 are positioned and aligned on either side of thewafers 90, with the grooves 274 in theend effectors 270 each aligned to receive a wafer. As shown in FIG. 24B, this wafer engagement movement is an underhanded movement of therobot arm 255. Thewafer holder 268 is moved up to lift thewafers 90 off of theelevator 78. Therobot arm 255 then withdraws to the position shown in FIG. 24C. As the forearm has a 370° range of movement, androbot arm 255 is offset from the lift unit, the robot arm can be fully backed away from the indexer, with only minimal clearance space required, as shown in FIGS. 20 and 21. By appropriate control of the motors in the robot arm, the wafers are maintained in a vertical or near vertical position. - To deliver the
wafers 90 to a process chamber, thelateral drive motor 251 is energized to move thelift unit 252 so that the wafers in thewafer holder 268 are brought into alignment with the selected process chamber. Therobot arm 255 is raised up on the lift unit by thelift motor 257. In addition, theforearm 260 is pivoted upwardly via theelbow drive motor 259. Simultaneously, thewrist drive motor 265 is driven in an opposite direction to bring or maintain the wafer holder in an approximately 10° down incline orientation, as shown in FIG. 22. Using an overhand movement, as shown in FIG. 24A, the forearm is pivoted downwardly to extend the wafer holder carrying the wafers into the process chamber. Therobot arm 255 then withdraws from the process chamber. - To clean the
end effectors 270, thewrist drive motor 265 is controlled to orient the end effectors vertically, as shown in FIG. 24D. With the end effectors aligned with the end effector rinser/dryer 302, thelift motor 257 lowers theentire robot arm 255, to extend the end effectors into the end effector rinser/dryer 302. After theend effectors 270 are cleaned and dried, they are withdrawn from the end effector rinser/dryer 302 and positioned to remove wafers from either process chamber, or to pick up additional batches of wafers from the indexer for delivery to a process chamber. As the end effectors are cleaned at the process chamber rather than at another location, processing time can be reduced, because this cleaning step is accomplished without the need to move the process robot. - As is apparent from e.g., FIG. 23, the
wafer holder 268 is offset to one side of the wrist joint 262 and elbow joint 256, as well as the other components of theprocess robot 66. No part of theprocess robot 66 is ever positioned directly above the wafers. As air is blown downwardly in theenclosure 54, any particles generated or released by theprocess robot 66 will not come into contact with the wafers. As a result, the potential for contamination of the wafers during processing is reduced. - Referring to FIGS.24A-24E, the
process robot 66 has an elbow joint 256 and a wrist joint 262, joined by a single segment orforearm 260. Consequently, in contrast to earlier known systems having shoulder, elbow and wrist joints, joined by two arm segments, theprocess robot 66 achieves a range of vertical reach via movement of therobot arm 255 on thelift rail 254, rather than by articulation of arm segments. This allows theprocess robot 66 to be very compact, while still achieving sufficient ranges of movement. Correspondingly, theentire enclosure 54 can be made more compact. - As the
process robot 66 can perform both underhanded and overhanded movements, the vertical travel necessary on thelift rail 254 is limited. In addition, the ability to perform both underhanded and overhanded movements allows theforearm 260 to be relatively short, which also contributes to acompact enclosure 54. - Referring to FIGS. 1 and 16, the
buffer shelf 76 moves forward (in direction O in FIG. 17) when theelevator 78 is in the down position, to receive up to 50 wafers. Thebuffer shelf 76 holds the wafers until the appropriateempty cassette 88 is moved into the I and J positions, so that theprocess robot 66 can move the disks from thebuffer shelf 76 into the cassettes at positions I and J. When thebuffer shelf 76 is not being loaded or unloaded with wafers, it remains in the back position (moved in direction I), so as not to interfere with operation of theelevator 78. Thebuffer shelf 76 temporarily holds already processed wafers, so that theprocess robot 66 can access and move the next batch of wafers for placement into the process chambers, before off loading already processed wafers back into the indexer. This ensures that the process chambers are constantly supplied with wafers for processing - As shown in FIGS. 30 and 31, a
second embodiment indexer 600 includes abox frame 602 formed byside walls front end wall 608, and aback end wall 610, joined to each other, and to abase plate 612. Aninput plate 614 extends outwardly from thefront end wall 608. Acenter wall 616 andlateral ribs 666, divide theindexer 600 into first and second rows R1 and R2, with each row having 5 pallet positions or stations, i.e., A-E and F-J, as shown in FIG. 12. Thecenter wall 616 is supported in thebox frame 602 via support bars 615 extending from thecenter wall 616 to theside walls - Referring to FIG. 30, a
buffer assembly 618 includes abuffer side plate 620 attached to theinner side wall 606. Abuffer tray 622 hascombs 624 oncomb arms 626. Thebuffer tray 622 is supported on abuffer tray support 630. Thetray support 630 in turn is slidably mounted on upper andlower buffer rails buffer side plate 620.Linear bearings 636 on thetray support 630 allow for low friction movement of thetray support 630 along therails - A
buffer drive belt 642 extends around abuffer drive motor 638 and anend pulley 640. Thebuffer drive belt 642 is attached to the buffer tray support, so that rotational movement of themotor 638 causes translational (y-axis) movement of thebuffer tray support 630 along therails buffer assembly 618 on the side of theindexer 600, as shown in FIG. 30, allows for a more compact design, in comparison to the centrally located buffer assembly of thefirst indexer embodiment 72 shown in FIG. 8. - Referring to FIGS. 30 and 31, the
indexer 600 includes a longitudinal or y-axis shift assembly, generally designated 650, and a lateral or x-axis shift assembly, generally designated as 652. - Referring to FIG. 31, the y-
axis shift assembly 650 includes 2 side by side and parallel y-axis frames 660. Each y-axis frame 660 includes aninner frame plate 662, adjacent and attached to thecenter wall 616, and anouter frame plate 664, supported on theside walls lateral ribs 666 are attached to and extend between theinner frame plate 662 andouter frame plate 664, in both of the y-axis frames 660. -
End rollers 674 are rotatably mounted at the ends of each of the inner andouter frame plates 662 and 664 (for a total of 8 end rollers 674).Idler rollers 676 are spaced apart and rotatably mounted on theframe plates end rollers 674, on eachframe plate toothed belt 670 is mounted over theend rollers 674 andidler rollers 676 on eachframe plate 662 and 664 (for a total of 4 endless toothed belts 670). Theteeth 672 on thebelts 670 face outwardly, so that the smooth inside or back surface of thebelts 670 contact theend rollers 674 andidler rollers 676. While for illustration purposes, theteeth 672 are shown only at sections of thebelts 670, thebelts 670 actually havecontinuous teeth 672 all around. In addition, for illustration purposes, the rollers and belt in the foreground of FIG. 31 have been omitted from the drawing. - Referring still to FIG. 31, a y-
axis drive motor 680 supported on thecenter wall 616 is linked or engaged to agear unit 682, which turnsdrive shafts drive shafts sprockets 686, which in turn drive thebelts 670. The outside toothed surface of thebelts 670 wraps around thedrive sprockets 686, and around anidler sprockets 688, as shown in dotted line in FIG. 31. - As shown in FIG. 31, an
x-axis sensor pair 690, and a y-axis sensor pair 696, is provided at each of the ten pallet stations or locations A-J, delineated by thelateral ribs 666. The x-axis sensor pair includes an infrared transmitter 692 and aninfrared detector 694, laterally aligned with each other (on a line perpendicular to theframe plates 662 and 664). Similarly, the y-axis sensor pair 696 includes a y-axisinfrared transmitter 698 and a y-axisinfrared detector 700, located generally centrally on thelateral ribs 666, and aligned with each other (on a line parallel to theframe plates 662 and 664). - A reflective
optical sensor 702 is provided in theside walls optical sensor 702 are linked to thecontroller 85, which monitors and controls operations of theindexer 600. - Referring back to FIG. 30, 8
rectangular pallets 710 are provided in each row R1 and R2 of theindexer 600, so that four of the pallet positions in each row are always occupied by apallet 710, and one end position adjacent to endwall pallet 710 has a rectangular pallet cutout oropening 712. Pallet tooth racks 715, shown in dotted line in FIG. 30, are provided on the bottom surface of thepallets 710. Thetooth rack 715 extends along both of the longer sides of thepallet 710. Thetoot rack 715 has teeth matching the size and pitch of theteeth 672 on thebelts 70. Consequently, when apallet 710 is placed on a y-axis frame 660, the teeth on thepallet tooth rack 715 positively engage theteeth 672 on thebelts 670, so that the pallet is substantially locked against y-axis movement relative to thebelts 670. - Each
pallet 710 has a pair of x-axis and y-axis prisms. Specifically, anx-axis transmitter prism 714 is longitudinally aligned with anx-axis detector prism 716, on eachpallet 710, as shown in FIG. 30. Similarly, a y-axis transmitter prism 718 is laterally aligned with a y-axis detector prism 720, on eachpallet 710. With thepallet 710 in any one of the ten pallet positions A-J in theindexer 600, thex-axis transmitter prism 714 andx-axis detector prism 716 are vertically directly above or aligned with the x-axis infrared transmitter 692 and x-axisinfrared detector 694, respectively, in that pallet position. Similarly, the y-axis transmitter prism 718 and y-axis detector prism 720 are vertically directly above and aligned with the y-axisinfrared transmitter 698 and the y-axisinfrared detector 700, in that pallet position. - Referring to FIG. 31, the
idler rollers 676 haveroller flanges 678 which protrude vertically above thebelts 670. Theroller flanges 678 fit into roller grooves 675 (shown in dotted line in FIG. 30) on the bottom surface of eachpallet 710. The engagement of theroller flanges 678 into thegrooves 675 prevents any x-axis movement of the pallets 710 (unless thepallet 710 is lifted vertically.) Accordingly, thepallets 710 are vertically supported on both thebelts 670 androller flanges 678. - The
indexer 600 has anx-axis shift assembly 652 substantially the same as the x-axis shift assembly orshift system 140 shown in FIGS. 9 and 10 and described above, and is therefore not further described or illustrated here. However, rather than the endfork air cylinder 152 used in thex-axis shift system 140, thex-axis shift assembly 652 in theindexer 600 has a pallet liftelectric motor 654, for better control of pallet lift movement. - The operation and sequencing of the
indexer 600 is similar to that of theindexer 72 described above with reference to FIGS. 8-12. However, pallet movement along the y-axis is achieved via thecomputer controller 85 controlling the y-axis drive motor 680 to incrementally move, or index, thebelts 670. During movement in the y-axis, thepallets 710 remain on thebelts 670 androllers 676. As a result, unlike theindexer 72, in theindexer 600, shown in FIGS. 30 and 31, there is no vertical movement ofpallets 710, as the pallets move in the y-axis direction, between pallet stations. - X-axis movement of the
pallets 710 at the ends of theindexer 600, is similar to the movement described above for theindexer 72 and is therefore not further described here. - At each pallet position, the
optical sensor 72 detects the presence or absence of apallet 710 via detecting the presence or absence of reflected light. In addition, at each pallet position A-J, thex-axis sensor pair 690 detects the presence or absence of acassette 88. Specifically, the infrared transmitter 692 projects a light beam vertically upwardly. The light beam passes through thex-axis transmitter prism 714, on eachpallet 710, which bends thelight beam 90°, so that the light beam is then projected horizontally inwardly towards thex-axis detector prism 716. If acassette 88 is present on thepallet 710, the light beam will be blocked by thecassette 88, and thex-axis detector 694 will not detect any infrared light, indicating presence of acassette 88. On the other hand, if thepallet 710 has nocassette 88 on it, infrared light from the transmitter 692 passes through thex-axis transmitter prism 714, passes over thepallet 710, and is redirected downwardly by thex-axis detector prism 716, so that the infrared light is directed to and detected by the x-axisinfrared detector 694, indicating the absence of acassette 88. - The y-
axis sensor pair 696 works in a similar way, to detect the presence or absence of wafers in thecassette 88. With acassette 88 on apallet 710, infrared light from the y-axis transmitter 698 is projected vertically upwardly, and is turned 90° by the y-axis transmitter prism 718, so that the light projects through a slot ortunnel 725 at the bottom of thecassette 88. If no wafers or other flat media are present in thecassette 88, the light travels entirely through thetunnel 75, is redirected downwardly by the y-axis detector prism 720, and is detected by the y-axis detector 700, indicating absence of any wafers in thecassette 88. If a wafer is in thecassette 88, the bottom edge of the wafer projects downwardly through thetunnel 725, preventing light from passing through the tunnel. Accordingly, the presence of any wafer in thecassette 88 will block the light from the y-axis transmitter 698, so that the y-axis detector 700 detects no light, indicating presence of at least one wafer in thecassette 88. - Operation of the
buffer assembly 618 in theindexer 600 is similar to operation of thebuffer assembly 76, described above, and shown in FIG. 8. However, locating thebuffer assembly 618 at the side of theindexer 600 allows for a more compact design. Use of thebelts 670 provides for faster and more reliable pallet movement, in contrast to theindexer 72 shown in FIGS. 8-16. Use of the prisms 714-720 allows for detection of cassettes and wafers, without requiring lifting of the pallets. - Thus, a novel automated semiconductor processing system has been shown and described. Various changes can of course be made without departing from the sprit and scope of the invention. The invention, therefore, should not be limited, except by the following claims and their equivalents.
Claims (21)
1. A process robot for moving articles in an automated processing system, comprising:
a lift unit;
an elbow joint on the lift unit;
a forearm attached to the lift unit at the elbow joint;
a wrist joint attached to the forearm;
an end effector for holding articles to one side of the forearm and attached to the forearm at the wrist joint, with the process robot moveable into an overhand position wherein the wrist joint is above the elbow joint, and moveable into an underhand position wherein the wrist joint is below the elbow joint.
2. The process robot of claim 1 further comprising a vertical lift rail on the lift unit, with the elbow joint moveable along the lift rail via a lift motor.
3. The process robot of claim 1 wherein the end effector is displaced to one side of the wrist joint and the elbow joint, so that neither the wrist joint or the elbow joint is positionable vertically above the end effector, regardless of the orientation of the process robot.
4. The process robot of claim 1 further comprising an elbow drive motor in the elbow joint and linked to the forearm, for pivoting the forearm relative to the lift unit.
5. The process robot of claim 1 further comprising a wrist joint motor in the wrist joint, for pivoting the end effector relative to the forearm.
6. The process robot of claim 5 further comprising a motor amplifier in the lift unit and electrically connected to the wrist joint motor.
7. The process robot of claim 1 further comprising a lateral rail, and a linear drive motor for moving the lift unit along the lateral rail.
8. The process robot of claim 1 further comprising a pair of spaced apart wafer holders on the end effector.
9. The process robot of claim 1 further comprising a counterbalance exerting an upward force on the elbow.
10. The process robot of claim 9 where the counterbalance comprises a gas spring.
11. A process robot for moving articles in an automated processing system, comprising:
a lateral rail;
a lift unit moveable horizontally along the lateral rail;
an arm assembly supported and moveable vertically on the lift unit, with the arm assembly including an elbow joint, a forearm attached to the elbow joint, a wrist joint on the forearm, and an end effector attached to the wrist joint, for holding articles to one side of the wrist joint, the forearm and the elbow joint.
12. The process robot of claim 11 further comprising a vertical lift rail on the lift unit, with the arm assembly moveable along the lift rail via a lift motor.
13. The process robot of claim 11 further comprising an elbow drive motor in the elbow joint and linked to the forearm, for pivoting the forearm relative to the lift unit.
14. The process robot of claim 11 further comprising a wrist joint motor in the wrist joint, for pivoting the end effector relative to the forearm.
15. The process robot of claim 11 further comprising counterbalance means on the lift unit for constantly exerting a counterbalancing upward force on the arm assembly.
16. A process robot for moving articles in an automated processing system, comprising:
a lateral rail;
a lift unit supported on the lateral rail;
a liner drive motor for moving the lift unit horizontally along the lateral rail;
an arm assembly supported on the lift unit;
a lift motor in the lift unit for moving the arm assembly vertically on the lift unit;
with the arm assembly including an elbow drive motor within an elbow housing, a forearm having a first end attached to the elbow drive motor, a wrist drive motor within a wrist housing on a second end of the forearm, and an end effector attached to the wrist drive motor, for holding articles to one side of the wrist housing, the forearm and the elbow housing; and
a counterbalance attached to the lift unit and the arm assembly.
17. The process robot of claim 16 further comprising a vertical lift rail on the lift unit, with the arm assembly moveable along the lift rail via a lift motor in the lift unit.
18. The process robot of claim 16 further comprising a gear reduction between the elbow drive motor and the forearm.
19. The process robot of claim 16 wherein the elbow housing can move only linearly up and down on the lift unit.
20. The process robot of claim 16 wherein all movements of the process robot are performed only via one or more of the linear drive motor, the lift motor, the elbow drive motor, and the wrist drive motor.
21. A robot unit for use in an automated processing system, comprising:
a robot arm assembly having an article support for holding articles, first rotary drive means connecting the article support to an arm segment, and second rotary drive means connected with the arm segment;
lifting means for moving the entire robot arm assembly vertically; and
lateral drive means for moving the entire robot arm assembly and the lifting means horizontally.
Priority Applications (1)
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US08/994,737 US6447232B1 (en) | 1994-04-28 | 1997-12-19 | Semiconductor wafer processing apparatus having improved wafer input/output handling system |
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US09/274,511 US6279724B1 (en) | 1997-12-19 | 1999-03-23 | Automated semiconductor processing system |
US09/932,719 US20020044855A1 (en) | 1997-12-19 | 2001-08-17 | Automated semiconductor processing system |
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Also Published As
Publication number | Publication date |
---|---|
CN1126610C (en) | 2003-11-05 |
CN1308565A (en) | 2001-08-15 |
WO2000002675A9 (en) | 2000-07-06 |
EP1109632A4 (en) | 2006-11-22 |
US6279724B1 (en) | 2001-08-28 |
WO2000002675A1 (en) | 2000-01-20 |
TW507265B (en) | 2002-10-21 |
JP2002520140A (en) | 2002-07-09 |
EP1109632A1 (en) | 2001-06-27 |
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