A cascade control system and control method for a silicon carbide epitaxial apparatus

Abstract

The application discloses a cascade control system and control method of a silicon carbide epitaxial device. The system comprises a PLC control module, a hardware interlock device, a host computer and a sensor. The PLC control module comprises an interlock processing module connected with an output mapping module and a signal output module. The host computer has an interlock processing module connected with a logic processing module and a signal output module. The PLC control module is electrically connected with the host computer through Ethernet or other real-time buses. The system adds a matching corresponding interlock processing module in the host computer and the PLC control module. The interlock logic of the interlock processing module is consistent with the interlock logic of the interlock processing module in the hardware interlock device. When the hardware interlock device fails, the interlock system can still work, the safety of the epitaxial device is improved to the maximum, and the safety hidden danger when the hardware interlock device fails can be effectively avoided.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present application relates to the technical field of CVD equipment, and in particular to a chain control system and a control method for silicon carbide epitaxial equipment. Background Art

[0002] Currently, the mainstream method for SiC epitaxial growth is CVD (Chemical Vapor Deposition). The SiC epitaxial growth equipment used in this method includes a reaction chamber, a transfer chamber, gas delivery, exhaust gas treatment, and a control system. The control system typically combines a host computer with a PLC (Programmable Logic Controller), with communication between the host computer and the PLC implemented via Ethernet or other real-time buses. SiC epitaxial growth equipment features a large number of controlled electrical components (over 500 I / O points) and complex process steps, often requiring hundreds of steps to complete. The process also utilizes a variety of hazardous gases and liquids, such as H2, HCl, SiH4, and TCS. Therefore, interlocking functions are required between each process step to ensure equipment and personnel safety. Interlocking is a functional module or device designed for equipment and personnel safety, and is generally categorized as hardware interlocking or software interlocking.

[0003] The existing interlocking control system of silicon carbide epitaxial equipment is as follows: Figure 1 As shown, when the system is in operation: the field sensor 10 transmits a signal to the PLC signal input module 123 and the hardware interlocking device signal input module 111. The PLC 120 converts the input signal and updates it to the input mapping module 121. The host computer 100 signal input module 101 reads the contents of the PLC 120 input mapping module 121 via communication, enabling the host computer 100 to collect the sensor 10 signal status. The logic control program running in the host computer 100 logic processing module 102 generates a corresponding output signal based on the signal in the signal input module 101 and transmits it to the signal output module 103. The host computer 100 signal output module 101 writes to the PLC 120 output mapping module 122 via communication. The output mapping module 122 converts the data and updates it to the signal output module 124, enabling the PLC 120 to collect the host computer 100 output signal. The safety-related output signal of the PLC 120 signal output module 124 is transmitted to the interlocking processing module 112 of the hardware interlocking device 110. The interlocking processing module 112 compares and processes the collected input signals and output signals according to the interlocking logic and transmits the processing results to the signal output module 113. The signal output module 113 transmits the signal to the safety-related actuator 12 to perform relevant control actions to realize the control of the entire process cycle operation.

[0004] In the prior system, the interlocking processing module is only provided in the hardware interlocking device, so that the safety is threatened when the hardware interlocking device is invalid. In addition, the output signal of the hardware interlocking device after executing interlocking is not fed back to the PLC 120 or the host computer 100, so that the state of the interlocking device cannot be monitored.

[0005] Therefore, the interlocking control system of the existing CVD epitaxial equipment needs to be improved. SUMMARY

[0006] In order to overcome the above-mentioned defects, the purpose of the present application is to provide an interlocking control system and a control method of a silicon carbide epitaxial equipment, which is used in the silicon carbide epitaxial equipment and can reliably guarantee the stable operation of the silicon carbide epitaxial equipment.

[0007] In order to achieve the above-mentioned purpose, the present application adopts the following technical solutions:

[0008] An interlocking control system of a silicon carbide epitaxial equipment, comprising:

[0009] a PLC control module, a hardware interlocking device, a host computer and a sensor,

[0010] the sensor is used for sampling the information of the field and feeding back to the hardware interlocking device and the PLC control module,

[0011] the host computer is connected to the PLC control module, and the PLC control module is used for collecting the sampling signal state of the sensor,

[0012] the PLC control module comprises:

[0013] a first interlocking processing module connected to a first output mapping module and a first signal output module, so as to obtain the information of the first output mapping module and output the result to the first signal output module;

[0014] the host computer has a second interlocking processing module connected to a logic processing module and a second signal output module, so as to obtain the information of the logic processing module and output the result to the second signal output module,

[0015] the hardware interlocking device is electrically connected to the PLC control module. The system increases the interlocking processing module matched with the corresponding program interlocking mode in the host computer and the PLC control module respectively, so that the interlocking system can still work when the hardware interlocking device is invalid, and the safety of the equipment is improved to the maximum extent.

[0016] In an embodiment, the hardware interlocking device comprises a third signal input module, a third interlocking processing module and a third signal output module,

[0017] The third interlocking processing module is connected to the third signal input module and the third signal output module to obtain information from the third signal input module and output the result to the third signal output module.

[0018] In one embodiment, the interlocking logic of the first interlocking processing module and the second interlocking processing module is the same as the interlocking logic of the third interlocking processing module.

[0019] In one embodiment, the third signal input module is connected to the sensor.

[0020] In one embodiment, the PLC control module further comprises: a first input mapping module and a first signal input module,

[0021] The first signal input module is connected to the sensor,

[0022] The first signal output module is connected to the third interlocking processing module.

[0023] In one embodiment, the host computer further comprises:

[0024] The second signal input module is connected to the first input mapping module and the logic processing module.

[0025] In one embodiment, the second signal output module is connected to the first output mapping module.

[0026] The present application provides a method for controlling the interlocking control system of the silicon carbide epitaxial device, the method comprising the following steps:

[0027] Based on the sensor, the field sampling signal is obtained and transmitted to the PLC control module and hardware interlocking device.

[0028] The PLC control module receives and responds to the signal fed back by the sensor, performs data conversion and updates the data to its first input mapping module, and then transmits the data to the host computer;

[0029] The logic processing module of the host computer generates a matching output signal based on the input information according to the preset rules and transmits it to the second chain processing module. The second chain processing module outputs the first instruction to the second signal output module according to the preset rules.

[0030] The first output mapping module of the PLC control module receives and responds to the first instruction, performs data conversion and updates it to the first interlocking processing module, the first interlocking processing module performs secondary comparison processing according to preset rules and transmits the second instruction to the first signal output module, which is then transmitted to the third interlocking processing module;

[0031] The third interlocking processing module receives and responds to the second instruction to perform a third comparison of the collected input signals and output signals according to interlocking logic and transmit the processing result to the third signal output module;

[0032] The safety-related actuator responds to the signal of the third signal output module. By this method, the safety of the equipment can still be guaranteed to the maximum extent when the hardware interlocking device fails.

[0033] Advantages

[0034] The interlocking control system of the silicon carbide epitaxial equipment provided by the embodiments of the present application can still function when the hardware interlocking device fails, and the safety of the equipment can still be improved to the maximum extent, by adding a matching interlocking processing module corresponding to the program interlocking mode in the host computer and the PLC control module, and the interlocking logic of the interlocking processing module of the program interlocking mode is completely consistent with the interlocking logic of the interlocking processing module in the hardware interlocking device. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

[0035] The accompanying drawings are included to provide an understanding of the present technical solution, and constitute a part of the specification, and are used together with the embodiments of the present disclosure to explain the technical solution of the present disclosure, and do not constitute a limitation on the technical solution of the present disclosure. The shapes and sizes of the components in the drawings do not reflect the true proportions, and the purpose is only to schematically illustrate the content of the present application.

[0036] Figure 1 The flowchart of the interlocking control system of the existing silicon carbide epitaxial equipment;

[0037] Figure 2 The system function block diagram of the epitaxial equipment of an embodiment of the present application. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0038] The above-mentioned solutions will be further described in combination with specific embodiments. It should be understood that these embodiments are used to illustrate the present application and do not limit the scope of the present application. The implementation conditions used in the embodiments can be further adjusted according to the specific conditions of the manufacturer, and the implementation conditions not mentioned are usually the conditions in the conventional experiments.

[0039] The present application discloses an interlocking control system and method of a silicon carbide epitaxial equipment. The system comprises a PLC control module, a hardware interlocking device, a host computer and a sensor,

[0040] The PLC control module comprises an input mapping module, an output mapping module, a signal input module, a signal output module and an interlocking processing module. The interlocking processing module is connected to the output mapping module and the signal output module to obtain the information of the output mapping module and output the result to the signal output module.

[0041] The host computer has a signal input module, a logic processing module, a interlocking processing module and a signal output module, the logic processing module is connected with the logic processing module and the signal output module, so as to obtain the information of the logic processing module, and the result is output to the signal output module. The system increases the matching corresponding interlocking processing module in the host computer and the PLC control module, the interlocking logic of the interlocking processing module is consistent with the interlocking logic of the interlocking processing module in the hardware interlocking device, so that the interlocking system can still work when the hardware interlocking device fails, and the safety of the epitaxial equipment is improved to the maximum extent, and the safety hidden danger when the hardware interlocking device fails can be effectively avoided. The input mapping module of the PLC control module is also called the first input mapping module, the output mapping module is also called the first output mapping module, the signal input module is also called the first signal input module, the signal output module is also called the first signal output module, and the interlocking processing module is also called the first interlocking processing module. The signal input module of the host computer is also called the second signal input module, the logic processing module, the interlocking processing module is also called the second interlocking processing module, and the signal output module is also called the second signal output module. The signal input module of the hardware interlocking device is also called the third signal input module, the interlocking processing module is also called the third interlocking processing module, and the signal output module is also called the third signal output module.

[0042] Next, the interlocking control system and method of the silicon carbide epitaxial equipment proposed in the application will be described in combination with the drawings.

[0043] As Figure 2 It is a schematic diagram of the interlocking control system of the embodiment of the application.

[0044] The system comprises:

[0045] The PLC control module 220, the hardware interlocking device 210, the host computer 200 and the sensor 20,

[0046] The sensor 20 is electrically connected to the PLC control module 220 and the hardware interlocking device 210,

[0047] The PLC control module 220 is electrically connected to the host computer 200 (such as through Ethernet or other real-time bus); the system also has an actuator 21 and a safety-related actuator 22 (the actuator acts to protect the safety of the equipment), which respectively act based on the instructions of the PLC control module 220 or the hardware interlocking device 210. The sensor 20 can be multiple, and can also be multiple (such as pressure sensor, temperature sensor and flow sensor).

[0048] When the system is running:

[0049] The sensor 20 transmits the signals collected on site to the signal input module 223 of the PLC control module 220 and the signal input module 211 of the hardware interlocking device 210;

[0050] The PLC control module 220 receives and responds to the signal, performs data conversion, and updates the data to the input mapping module 221;

[0051] The host computer 200 has a signal input module 201, which obtains the content input to the mapping module 221 by the PLC control module 220 through communication, so that the host computer 200 can collect the signal status of the sensor 20;

[0052] The host computer 200 further includes a logic processing module 202 , which is pre-installed with a logic control program. The logic control program generates a corresponding output signal according to the signal in the signal input module 201 and transmits it to the chain processing module 204 .

[0053] The chain processing module 204 processes according to preset rules (comparison processing according to chain logic) and transmits the processing results to the signal output module 203;

[0054] The signal output module 203 writes to the output mapping module 212 of the PLC control module 220 through communication. The output mapping module 212 receives and responds to the signal, performs data conversion, and updates it to its chain processing module 225. The chain processing module 225 performs a secondary comparison process according to a preset rule (such as chain logic) and transmits the processing result to the signal output module 224.

[0055] The signal output module 224 of the PLC control module 220 transmits the signal to the interlock processing module 212 of the hardware interlock device 210;

[0056] The chain processing module 212 receives and responds to the signal, performs a third comparison process on the collected input signal and output signal according to the chain logic, and transmits the processing result to the signal output module 213;

[0057] The signal output module 213 of the PLC control module 220 receives and transmits the signal to the safety-related actuator 22 to execute the relevant control action, thus achieving a cyclic operation of the entire process. This system adds corresponding interlocking processing modules to the host computer and PLC control module. The interlocking logic of these interlocking processing modules is consistent with the interlocking logic of the interlocking processing modules in the hardware interlocking device. This ensures that the interlocking system can still function even if the hardware interlocking device fails, maximizing the safety of the external equipment and effectively preventing safety hazards caused by hardware interlocking device failure.

[0058] The above embodiments are intended only to illustrate the technical concepts and features of this application. Their purpose is to enable those familiar with the art to understand the content of this application and implement it accordingly. They are not intended to limit the scope of protection of this application. Any equivalent changes or modifications made in accordance with the spirit of this application shall be included in the scope of protection of this application.

Claims

1. A chain control system for silicon carbide epitaxial equipment, characterized in that: include: PLC control module, hardware interlocking device, host computer and sensor, The sensor is used to sample on-site information and feed it back to the hardware interlocking device and the PLC control module. The host computer is connected to the PLC control module, and collects the sensor sampling signal status through the PLC control module. The PLC control module has: a first interlocking processing module connected to the first output mapping module and the first signal output module to obtain information from the first output mapping module and output the result to the first signal output module; The host computer has: A second interlocking processing module is connected to the logic processing module and the second signal output module to obtain information from the logic processing module and output the result to the second signal output module. The hardware interlocking device is electrically connected to the PLC control module; The hardware interlocking device includes: a third signal input module, a third interlocking processing module and a third signal output module. The third interlocking processing module is connected to the third signal input module and the third signal output module to obtain information from the third signal input module and output the result to the third signal output module; The interlocking logic of the first interlocking processing module and the second interlocking processing module is the same as the interlocking logic of the third interlocking processing module.

2. The interlocking control system of the silicon carbide epitaxial equipment according to claim 1, characterized in that: The third signal input module is connected to the sensor.

3. The interlocking control system of the silicon carbide epitaxial equipment according to claim 1, characterized in that: The PLC control module further comprises: a first input mapping module and a first signal input module, The first signal input module is connected to the sensor, The first signal output module is connected to the third interlocking processing module.

4. The interlocking control system of the silicon carbide epitaxial equipment according to claim 3, characterized in that: The host computer also has: The second signal input module is connected to the first input mapping module and the logic processing module.

5. The interlocking control system of the silicon carbide epitaxial equipment according to claim 3, characterized in that: The second signal output module is connected to the first output mapping module.

6. A control method for a chain control system of a silicon carbide epitaxial equipment according to any one of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that: The method comprises the following steps: Based on the sensor sampling signal on site and feeding it back to the PLC control module and hardware interlocking device, The PLC control module receives and responds to the signal fed back by the sensor, performs data conversion and updates the data to its first input mapping module, and then transmits the data to the host computer; The logic processing module of the host computer generates a matching output signal based on the input information according to the preset rules and transmits it to the second chain processing module. The second chain processing module outputs the first instruction to the second signal output module according to the preset rules. The first output mapping module of the PLC control module receives and responds to the first instruction, performs data conversion and updates it to the first interlocking processing module, the first interlocking processing module performs secondary comparison processing according to preset rules and transmits the second instruction to the first signal output module, which is then transmitted to the third interlocking processing module; The third interlocking processing module receives and responds to the second instruction, performs a third comparison between the collected input signal and the output signal according to the interlocking logic, and transmits the processing result to the third signal output module; The safety-related actuator operates in response to the signal from the third signal output module.

7. The control method according to claim 6, wherein: The first signal input module is based on the sensor sampling the signal at the scene and feeding it back to the PLC control module.

8. The control method according to claim 6, wherein: The second signal input module of the host computer reads the content of the first input mapping module through communication to realize the collection of the sensor signal status.

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