WO2022186227A1

WO2022186227A1 - Brush roller

Info

Publication number: WO2022186227A1
Application number: PCT/JP2022/008684
Authority: WO
Inventors: 絵里大久保; 稔正真野
Original assignee: アイオン株式会社
Priority date: 2021-03-03
Filing date: 2022-03-01
Publication date: 2022-09-09
Also published as: TW202237283A; JP2022134658A

Abstract

A brush roller 2 comprises a roll body 3 having a substantially cylindrical shape and a plurality of protrusions 5 formed integrally on an outer circumferential surface 4 of the roll body 3. The brush roller 2 cleans a surface to be cleaned by rotating about a shaft center 7 of the roll body 3 to bring the protrusions 5 into rotational contact with the surface to be cleaned. The plurality of protrusions 5 are configured from a staggered arrangement protrusion group 5A arranged in a staggered pattern at opposite end parts 4A of the outer circumferential surface 4 of the roll body 3 in a longitudinal direction 8 along the shaft center 7, and a spiral arrangement protrusion group 5B arranged in a spiral pattern at a lower density than the staggered arrangement protrusion group 5A at an intermediate part 4B between the opposite end parts 4A.

Description

brush roller

The present invention relates to a brush roller that is mainly used for scrub cleaning in the cleaning process in the manufacturing process of electronic parts such as semiconductor electronic device wafers, silicon wafers, and hard disks.

In the manufacturing process of aluminum hard disks, glass disks, wafers, photomasks, liquid crystal glass substrates, etc., high-precision polishing using various abrasive grains such as silica, alumina, and ceria is used to finish the surface with extremely high precision. , a so-called polishing process is performed. Abrasive grains and polishing dust adhere to the surface of the object to be polished after polishing, and in order to remove these, it is necessary to wash the object sufficiently after polishing.

As a cleaning method after polishing, there are methods using ultrasonic cleaning and jet water flow. Scrubbing with a sponge body consisting of a body) is widely used. As the cleaning liquid, not only DI water but also various chemicals suitable for each substrate, such as acid, alkali, and solvent, are used. For example, as cleaning liquids for silicon wafers, mixed liquids of ammonia water and hydrogen peroxide water, dilute hydrofluoric acid, mixed liquids of hydrochloric acid and hydrogen peroxide water, and the like are known.

The elastic porous body has various shapes, but among them, a brush roller-shaped sponge body (hereinafter referred to as a brush roller) having a large number of projections on the outer peripheral surface of the cylinder is suitable for scrub cleaning (washing process). used for A good cleaning effect can be obtained by continuously bringing the top of the protrusion into contact with the cleaning surface of the object to be cleaned while rotating the brush roller. Since the object to be cleaned contacts only the protrusions of the brush roller, there is less friction and less damage to the object to be cleaned compared to flat sponge bodies that do not have protrusions. It has the advantage that it can easily pass through and be removed from the object to be cleaned. As such a brush roller, a roller having a plurality of protrusions arranged in a zigzag manner over the entire outer peripheral surface of a cylinder is known (see, for example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2002-100003).

In the cleaning process, a dedicated cleaning device corresponding to each substrate is usually used, and the cleaning sponge roller is composed of the sponge body and the core. The core is inserted through the inner diameter of the sponge body and fixedly supports the inner peripheral surface of the sponge body. A state in which both ends of the core are attached to the rotary drive part of the cleaning device, the cleaning sponge roller is attached to the cleaning device, and the sponge body and the object to be cleaned (in the case of the brush roller, the projection and the object to be cleaned) are brought into contact with each other. to rotate the sponge body together with the core. For example, when the object to be cleaned is a disc-shaped substrate and the surface of the substrate (surface to be cleaned) is to be cleaned by a brush roller, the projections of the brush roller are brought into contact with the surface to be cleaned while rotating both the substrate and the brush roller. Thus, cleaning efficiency can be enhanced.

In addition, in the cleaning process, the sponge body and the body to be cleaned are brought into contact while supplying the cleaning liquid. The cleaning liquid may be supplied to the object to be cleaned or the sponge body from the top or side thereof by a nozzle or the like, or may be supplied from the inside of the core to the inside of the sponge body.

Japanese Patent No. 3378015

When the surface of a disk-shaped substrate (surface to be cleaned) is scrub-cleaned by a brush roller, for example, the brush rollers are arranged along the radial direction passing through the center of the circular surface to be cleaned, and the brush rollers are rotated while rotating the substrate. is rotated to continuously bring the protrusions into contact with the surface to be cleaned. The axis of rotation of the substrate passes through the center of the surface to be cleaned, and the axis of rotation of the brush roller passes through the axis of the cylinder of the sponge body. Since the cleaning liquid on the surface to be cleaned rotates together with the substrate, it moves toward the outer periphery due to centrifugal force and is discharged out of the system from the outer peripheral edge of the surface to be cleaned.

However, since the centrifugal force acting on the cleaning liquid on the surface to be cleaned becomes stronger from the center to the outer periphery of the surface to be cleaned, the speed of movement of the cleaning liquid to the outer periphery is slow in the central region including the center of the surface to be cleaned. There is a possibility that the cleaning liquid will stay in the central region. If the cleaning liquid remains, there is a possibility that contaminants will remain on the surface to be cleaned without being removed from the surface to be cleaned. In addition, there is a possibility that the cleaning power becomes too strong due to the retention of the cleaning liquid, and the surface to be cleaned is damaged. In this way, the retention of the cleaning liquid may lead to deterioration of the cleaning performance.

Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide a brush roller capable of suppressing retention of cleaning liquid on the surface to be cleaned.

In order to achieve the above object, the brush roller of the present invention is made of a porous material having elasticity in a wet state, and includes a substantially cylindrical roll body and a plurality of projections integrally formed on the outer peripheral surface of the roll body. have. As the brush roller rotates around the axis of the roll body, the protrusions come into rotational contact with the surface to be cleaned, thereby cleaning the surface to be cleaned. The plurality of protrusions are arranged in a zigzag arrangement at both longitudinal ends along the axial center of the outer peripheral surface of the roll body, and are lower than the zigzag arrangement protrusion group in an intermediate portion between the both ends. and a group of spirally arranged projections that are spirally arranged at a high density.

The brush roller may be made of a polyvinyl acetal-based porous material, and the intermediate portion where the spirally arranged projection group is arranged may be the central portion including the center in the longitudinal direction of the outer peripheral surface of the roll body. The ratio of the longitudinal length of the central portion to the total longitudinal length of the roll body is preferably 5% or more and 95% or less, more preferably 30% or more and 60% or less.

When scrubbing the surface (surface to be cleaned) of a disk-shaped substrate with the brush roller having the above configuration, for example, the brush roller traverses the surface to be cleaned along the radial direction passing through the center of the circular surface to be cleaned. , and the substrate is rotated while the brush roller is rotated to continuously bring the protrusions into contact with the surface to be cleaned. The brush roller is arranged such that the spirally arranged projection group at the intermediate portion faces the substrate central region including the center of the surface to be cleaned, and the zigzag arranged projection group at both ends faces the substrate peripheral region outside the substrate central region in the radial direction. placed in

The cleaning liquid on the surface to be cleaned rotates with the substrate and moves to the outer peripheral side due to centrifugal force. The centrifugal force acting on the cleaning liquid on the surface to be cleaned becomes stronger from the center to the outer periphery of the surface to be cleaned. The moving speed is high, and it is easy to smoothly discharge from the outer peripheral edge of the surface to be cleaned to the outside of the system without staying. In addition, in the staggered array of protrusions facing the outer peripheral area of the substrate, the protrusions are arranged at a higher density than in the spirally arrayed protrusion group, so that the cleaning efficiency of the surface to be cleaned can be enhanced.

On the other hand, in the spirally arranged projection group facing the central region of the substrate, a plurality of projections are spirally arranged at a lower density than in the zigzag arranged projection group. In other words, in the spirally arranged protrusion group, a plurality of protrusions are arranged at an angle with respect to the longitudinal direction and the circumferential direction of the roll body, and the gap between two protrusions adjacent in the longitudinal direction is staggered in the spirally arranged protrusion group. Larger than array protrusion group. For this reason, the cleaning liquid in the central region of the substrate flows from one side of the surface to be cleaned bordering on the brush roller to the other side along the direction inclined with respect to the radial direction of the surface to be cleaned on which the brush roller is arranged. A liquid flow (liquid flow due to the group of spirally arranged projections) is generated. The cleaning liquid in the central area of the substrate tends to stay because the moving speed toward the outer peripheral side is slower than that in the outer peripheral area of the substrate, but the cleaning liquid spreads over the central area of the substrate due to the liquid flow by the spirally arranged projection group, and moves from the central area of the substrate to the outer peripheral area of the substrate. It moves and is discharged out of the system. Therefore, it is possible to suppress deterioration of the cleaning performance due to retention of the cleaning liquid. In addition, in the spiral array projection group, since the projections are arranged in a spiral shape, the projections can be brought into contact with the surface to be cleaned at an equal frequency throughout the entire central region of the substrate, resulting in variations in the frequency of contact with the projections. It is possible to suppress the deterioration of the cleaning performance.

According to the present invention, retention of the cleaning liquid on the surface to be cleaned can be suppressed.

1 is a perspective view of a brush roller according to one embodiment of the present invention; FIG. It is a side view of a brush roller. FIG. 4 is an arrangement diagram of protrusions when the outer peripheral surface of the roll body is developed in a plane. It is a top view which shows the use condition of a brush roller. FIG. 5 is a front view of FIG. 4 viewed from the direction of arrow V; It is a top view which shows the use condition of the brush roller of a 1st modification. FIG. 11 is a perspective view of a brush roller of a second modified example; FIG. 11 is an arrangement diagram of protrusions when the outer peripheral surface of the roll body of the brush roller of the third modification is developed in a plane.

A brush roller according to one embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the brush roller 2 has a substantially cylindrical roll body 3 and a plurality of cylindrical projections 5 integrally formed on the outer peripheral surface 4 of the roll body 3 . A core 6 that is a shaft member made of a hard material such as metal or plastic is attached to the inner diameter of the roll body 3 . The cleaning sponge roller 1 is composed of the brush roller 2 and the core 6, and when the roll body 3 is attached to the core 6, the shaft centers 7 of both substantially coincide. In addition, the shape of the protrusion 5 is not limited to a cylindrical shape.

As shown in FIG. 4, the object to be cleaned 11 to be scrub-cleaned is a thin disk-shaped wafer (substrate). The cleaning sponge roller 1 is attached to a cleaning device by attaching both ends of the core 6 to a rotation drive section (not shown) of the cleaning device (not shown). The object to be cleaned 11 is installed in the cleaning apparatus substantially horizontally, and the circular upper surface (surface to be cleaned 12) of the object to be cleaned 11 is substantially orthogonal to the vertical direction. The brush roller 2 is arranged above the surface 12 to be cleaned so as to traverse the surface 12 to be cleaned along a radial direction passing through the center of the surface 12 to be cleaned.

By rotating the cleaning sponge roller 1 (brush roller 2 and core 6) while rotating the object 11 to be cleaned, and bringing the projections 5 into continuous contact with the surface 12 to be cleaned (see FIG. 5), scrub cleaning is performed. done. The direction of rotation of the object 11 to be cleaned is indicated by an arrow 21 in FIG. 4, and the direction of rotation of the brush roller 2 is indicated by an arrow 20 in FIG. The rotating shaft 13 of the object to be cleaned 11 passes through the center of the surface to be cleaned 12 , and the brush roller 2 rotates about the axial center 7 of the roll body 3 and the core 6 . The rotating shaft 13 and the shaft center 7 are substantially perpendicular to each other, the rotating shaft 13 extending substantially vertically, and the shaft center 7 extending substantially horizontally. A cleaning liquid is supplied onto the surface 12 to be cleaned from a cleaning liquid supply unit 14 such as a nozzle. In the example of FIG. 4, the cleaning liquid is supplied from two cleaning liquid supply units 14 . Since the cleaning liquid on the surface to be cleaned 12 rotates together with the object to be cleaned 11 , it moves toward the outer periphery due to centrifugal force and is discharged from the outer peripheral edge of the surface to be cleaned 12 to the outside of the system. The direction of rotation of the brush roller 2 and the direction of rotation of the object to be cleaned 11 can be set arbitrarily.

The brush roller 2 (roll body 3 and projections 5) is made of a polyvinyl acetal-based porous material (PVAt-based porous material) having elasticity in a water-containing state. A PVAt-based porous material hardens in a dry state and softens in a wet state. In addition, the PVAt-based porous material is excellent in water absorption and water retention, exhibits favorable flexibility and moderate impact resilience when wet, and is also excellent in abrasion resistance. The core 6 is inserted through the inner diameter of the roll body 3 and supports the roll body 3 in a fixed manner. For example, the outer peripheral surface of the core 6 and the inner peripheral surface of the roll body 3 may be fixed with an adhesive. The roll body 3 may be fixedly supported on the core 6 by the elastic force of the roll body 3 by pressing it into the inner diameter portion of the roll body 3 . Furthermore, when the brush roller 2 is manufactured, the core 6 may be placed in a mold, and the brush roller 2 (roll body 3) after the reaction may be removed from the mold with the core 6 still attached. Such fixed support allows the roll body 3 to rotate together with the core 6 .

As shown in FIGS. 1 to 4, a plurality of protrusions 5 are arranged in a zigzag arrangement on both ends 4A of the outer peripheral surface 4 of the roll body 3 in the longitudinal direction 8 along the axis 7. and a spiral array projection group 5B which is spirally arranged at a lower density than the zigzag array projection group 5A in a central portion (intermediate portion) 4B between both ends. The central portion 4B in which the spirally arranged projection group 5B is arranged is a region including the center 10 (see FIG. 2) of the outer peripheral surface 4 of the roll body 3 in the longitudinal direction 8. As shown in FIG. Note that the spirally arranged projection group 5B may be arranged in an intermediate portion of the outer peripheral surface 4 that does not include the center 10 .

In this embodiment, the length LA1 in one longitudinal direction 8 of both ends 4A and the length LA2 in the other longitudinal direction 8 are set substantially equal. The ratio of the length LB of the central portion 4B in the longitudinal direction 8 to the total length (LA1+LA2+LB) in the longitudinal direction 8 of the roll body 3 is preferably 5% or more and 95% or less, more preferably 30% or more and 60% or less. .

As shown in FIG. 3, the “staggered arrangement” means that a plurality of annular rows FA along the circumferential direction 9 are arranged on the outer peripheral surface 4 of the roll body 3 at equal intervals in the longitudinal direction 8, and each It means a state in which a plurality of protrusions 5 are arranged in the row FA at equal pitches, and the protrusions 5 of two adjacent rows FA are arranged so as to be displaced in the circumferential direction 9 (in this embodiment, they are displaced by half a pitch). On the other hand, the “spiral arrangement” is set so that a plurality of spiral rows FB inclined with respect to the longitudinal direction 8 and the circumferential direction 9 of the roll body 3 are arranged at equal intervals in the longitudinal direction 8, and each row FB A plurality of protrusions 5 are arranged at equal pitches on the same row FB, and the distance (gap) D1 between the protrusions 5 on two adjacent rows FB is greater than the distance (gap) D2 between two adjacent projections 5 on the same row FB FB are arranged to be longer (the gap is increased), and a spiral groove is provided between the protrusions 5 of two adjacent rows FB. Further, since the spirally arranged protrusion group 5B has a lower density than the zigzag arrangement protrusion group 5A, the distance (gap) between two protrusions 5 adjacent to each other in the longitudinal direction 8 is greater in the spiral arrangement distance D3 than in the zigzag arrangement. It becomes longer than the array distance D4 (the gap becomes larger).

When the surface to be cleaned 12 is scrub-cleaned by the brush roller 2, as shown in FIG. 2 is arranged, and the brush roller 2 is rotated while rotating the object 11 to be cleaned so that the protrusions 5 are brought into continuous contact with the surface 12 to be cleaned. The brush roller 2 has a circular substrate center region 12B including the center (rotating shaft 13) of the surface 12 to be cleaned, and the spiral array protrusion group 5B of the center portion 4B faces the circular substrate center region 12B. The zigzag arrangement protrusion groups 5A of the both end portions 4A are arranged so as to face the substrate peripheral region 12A having a shape. The cleaning liquid supply unit 14 supplies cleaning liquid to the outer peripheral side of the substrate central area 12B and the inner peripheral side of the substrate outer peripheral area 12A. In the example of FIG. 4, the cleaning liquid is supplied to the inner circumference side of the substrate outer circumference area 12A.

The cleaning liquid on the surface to be cleaned 12 rotates together with the object to be cleaned 11 and moves to the outer peripheral side due to centrifugal force. The centrifugal force acting on the cleaning liquid on the surface to be cleaned 12 becomes stronger as it goes from the center (rotating shaft 13) of the surface to be cleaned 12 toward the outer periphery. The cleaning liquid in the region 12A moves at a high speed toward the outer periphery, and is easily discharged from the outer peripheral edge of the surface 12 to be cleaned to the outside of the system without staying there. In the staggered protrusion group 5A facing the substrate peripheral area 12A, the protrusions 5 are arranged at a higher density than in the spirally arranged protrusion group 5B, so that the cleaning efficiency of the surface 12 to be cleaned can be improved.

On the other hand, in the spirally arranged projection group 5B facing the substrate center region 12B, a plurality of projections 5 are spirally arranged at a lower density than in the zigzag arranged projection group 5A. That is, in the spirally arranged protrusion group 5B, a plurality of protrusions 5 are arranged in a slanting manner with respect to the longitudinal direction 8 and the circumferential direction 9 of the roll body 3, and the gap between two protrusions 5 adjacent to each other in the longitudinal direction 8 is spirally arranged. The protrusion group 5B is larger than the staggered protrusion group 5A (see FIG. 3). For this reason, the cleaning liquid in the central region 12B of the substrate flows along a direction inclined with respect to the radial direction of the surface 12 to be cleaned (longitudinal direction 8 of the roll body 3) on which the brush roller 2 is arranged. A liquid flow 15 (liquid flow by the spiral array projection group 5B) is generated from one side (cleaning liquid supply side) to the other side (cleaning liquid non-supply side) of the surface 12 to be cleaned. The cleaning liquid in the substrate central region 12B moves slower toward the outer peripheral side than in the substrate outer peripheral region 12A, and tends to stay in the substrate central region 12B. It flows into the substrate central area 12B radially inner than the supply position (cleaning liquid supply unit 14), spreads over the substrate central area 12B, moves from the substrate central area 12B to the substrate peripheral area 12A, and is discharged out of the system. Therefore, it is possible to suppress deterioration of the cleaning performance due to retention of the cleaning liquid. In addition, since the protrusions 5 are arranged spirally in the spirally arranged protrusion group 5B, the protrusions 5 can be brought into contact with the surface 12 to be cleaned at an equal frequency throughout the entire substrate central region 12B. It is possible to suppress deterioration in cleaning performance due to variation in contact frequency.

It should be noted that the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, examples, and modifications thereof, which have been described as examples. As long as it is within the range, various changes are possible according to the design and the like.

For example, the material of the brush roller 2 is not limited to a PVAt-based porous material, and any porous material having continuous pores and elasticity in a wet state may be used.

In addition, the form of the brush roller 2 is not limited to the above-described embodiment. What is necessary is just to provide the spiral array protrusion group 5B between the groups 5A. For example, like the brush roller 30 shown in FIG. 6, the spiral array projection group 5B may be inclined in the direction opposite to that of the above embodiment. Further, as in the brush roller 31 shown in FIG. 7, the length LA1 of one longitudinal direction 8 of both ends 4A and the length LA2 of the other longitudinal direction 8 may be different (in the example of FIG. 7, LA1>LA2). Moreover, as shown in FIG. 8, a group of protrusions other than the zigzag arrangement and the spiral arrangement (in the example of FIG. A hybrid array protrusion group 5C) in which the array and the spiral array are mixed may be provided.

In addition, in the above-described embodiment, the horizontal cleaning apparatus in which the object to be cleaned 11 is arranged substantially horizontally (so that the surface to be cleaned 12 is substantially perpendicular to the vertical direction) was described. is not limited to the above, and the brush roller 1 may be placed substantially parallel to the surface 12 to be cleaned in any desired posture. For example, the object to be cleaned 11 is arranged substantially vertically between two brush rollers (so that the surface to be cleaned 12 is substantially perpendicular to the horizontal direction), and the front and back surfaces of the object to be cleaned are respectively brushed by the two brush rollers. The brush roller 1 of the present invention may be used for each of the two brush rollers in a vertical washing apparatus for washing.

The present invention can be widely used as a brush roller for scrub cleaning.

1: Cleaning sponge roller 2: Brush roller 3: Roll body 4: Outer peripheral surface of roll body 4A: Both ends of outer peripheral surface of roll body 4B: Central portion (intermediate portion) of outer peripheral surface of roll body
4C: Boundary region 5: Protrusions 5A: Staggered array protrusion group 5B: Spiral array protrusion group 5C: Hybrid array protrusion group 6: Core 7: Axial center 8: Longitudinal direction of roll body 9: Circumferential direction of roll body 10: Roll body 11: Object to be cleaned 12: Surface to be cleaned 12A: Substrate outer peripheral area 12B: Substrate central area 13: Rotation shaft of the object to be cleaned 14: Cleaning liquid supply part 15: Liquid flow

Claims

It is composed of a porous material having elasticity in a wet state, has a substantially cylindrical roll body and a plurality of projections integrally formed on the outer peripheral surface of the roll body, and rotates around the axis of the roll body. A brush roller that cleans the surface to be cleaned by rotating the protrusions to contact the surface to be cleaned,
The plurality of protrusions are arranged in a zigzag arrangement at both ends of the outer peripheral surface of the roll body in the longitudinal direction along the axial center, and the zigzag arrangement in an intermediate portion between the both ends. A brush roller characterized by comprising a group of spirally arranged protrusions arranged in a spiral shape at a lower density than the group of protrusions.
The brush roller according to claim 1,
The brush roller, wherein the intermediate portion in which the group of spirally arranged protrusions are arranged is a central portion including the center in the longitudinal direction of the outer peripheral surface of the roll body.
2. The brush roller according to claim 1, which is made of a polyvinyl acetal-based porous material,
The brush roller, wherein the ratio of the length of the central portion in the longitudinal direction to the total length of the roll body in the longitudinal direction is 5% or more and 95% or less.