Flexible decoupling structure, compensation component and control method, motion module and photolithography machine

Abstract

The present invention discloses a flexible decoupling structure, a compensation component and a control method, a motion module and a photolithography machine, and belongs to the field of photolithography equipment. The flexible decoupling structure includes: at least two segmented elastic parts, whose stiffness can be adjusted, including a first spring, a connecting plate and a second spring connected in sequence, and the segmented elastic part is configured to decouple or stroke compensate the motion component; a first connecting end and a second connecting end are arranged in parallel, and the segmented elastic part is connected between the first connecting end and the second connecting end, and one of the first connecting end and the second connecting end moves and the other is fixed; the flexible decoupling structure can decouple in the X, Y, Rx, Ry and Rz directions. The flexible decoupling structure can achieve the target stiffness while having good plastic toughness, reduce the lag time of decoupling, can achieve five-degree-of-freedom decoupling, compensate for the stroke deviation caused by mechanical manufacturing and servo deviation, improve the motion reliability of the photolithography machine, and extend the service life of the photolithography machine.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to the technical field of lithography equipment, and in particular to a flexible decoupling structure, a compensation component and a control method, a motion module and a lithography machine. Background Art

[0002] When designing mechanical structures, there are usually theoretical dimensions, theoretical forces or theoretical travels. However, due to factors such as materials, processing and manufacturing, servo, sensor measurement, and heat, actual values ​​often have deviations. In order to compensate for such errors and increase product fatigue life within the allowable error range and product life cycle, flexible decoupling structures are often used, especially in the field of high-precision motion, such as photolithography.

[0003] The flexible connectors between motion modules in existing photolithography machines cannot meet the requirements of multi-directional synchronous decoupling and higher precision motion components due to material differences, elastic fatigue, no feedback mechanism or structural protection, and a single decoupling direction. At the same time, the motion components of the photolithography machine cannot be protected under abnormal working conditions, such as abnormal motor output, air bearing preload fluctuations, and flexible component fatigue. Once the travel tolerance occurs, it will cause component damage or equipment shutdown for correction, reducing the control accuracy and service life of the motion components, causing serious economic losses.

[0004] Therefore, there is an urgent need to provide a flexible decoupling structure, a compensation component and a control method, a motion module and a lithography machine to solve the above-mentioned technical problems. Summary of the invention

[0005] The purpose of the present invention is to provide a flexible decoupling structure, a compensation component and a control method, a motion module and a lithography machine. The flexible decoupling structure can achieve five-degree-of-freedom decoupling, compensate for the stroke deviation caused by mechanical manufacturing and servo deviation, and improve the motion reliability of the lithography machine.

[0006] To achieve the above object, the present invention adopts the following technical solutions:

[0007] A flexible decoupling structure, comprising:

[0008] At least two segmented elastic members, the stiffness of the segmented elastic members can be adjusted, and the segmented elastic members include a first spring leaf, a connecting plate, and a second spring leaf connected in sequence;

[0009] A first connecting end and a second connecting end are arranged in parallel, the segmented elastic member is connected between the first connecting end and the second connecting end, one of the first connecting end and the second connecting end moves and the other is fixed; the flexible decoupling structure can perform decoupling in X, Y, Rx, Ry and Rz directions.

[0010] As a preferred technical solution of the above-mentioned flexible decoupling structure, the flexible decoupling structure includes:

[0011] Two segmented elastic parts, the first spring leaves of the two segmented elastic parts are respectively connected to the two ends of the first connecting end, the second spring leaves of the two segmented elastic parts are respectively connected to the two ends of the second connecting end, the end of the first spring leaf away from the connecting plate is connected to the first connecting end, and the end of the second spring leaf away from the connecting plate is connected to the second connecting end.

[0012] As a preferred technical solution of the above-mentioned flexible decoupling structure, the flexible decoupling structure includes:

[0013] Four segmented elastic members are respectively a first elastic member, a second elastic member, a third elastic member and a fourth elastic member, wherein the first spring of the first elastic member is connected to the first connecting end, the second spring of the first elastic member is connected to the connecting plate of the second elastic member, the first spring of the second elastic member is connected to the first connecting end and the second connecting end, the second spring of the second elastic member is connected to the second spring of the third elastic member, the connecting plate of the third elastic member is connected to the second spring of the fourth elastic member, the first spring of the third elastic member is connected to the first connecting end and the second connecting end, and the first spring of the fourth elastic member is connected to the first connecting end.

[0014] As a preferred technical solution of the above-mentioned flexible decoupling structure, the flexible decoupling structure includes:

[0015] Six segmented elastic members are respectively a first elastic member, a second elastic member, a third elastic member, a fourth elastic member, a fifth elastic member and a sixth elastic member, wherein the first spring of the first elastic member is connected to the first connecting end, the second spring of the first elastic member is connected to the connecting plate of the second elastic member, the first spring of the second elastic member is connected to the first connecting end and the second connecting end, the second spring of the second elastic member is connected to the second spring of the third elastic member, the connecting plate of the third elastic member is connected to the second spring of the fourth elastic member, the first spring of the third elastic member is connected to the first connecting end and the second connecting end, and the first spring of the fourth elastic member is connected to the first connecting end; the first spring of the fifth elastic member and the first spring of the sixth elastic member are respectively connected to the two ends of the first connecting end, and the second spring of the fifth elastic member and the second spring of the sixth elastic member are respectively connected to the two ends of the second connecting end.

[0016] As a preferred technical solution of the above-mentioned flexible decoupling structure, it also includes:

[0017] A mechanical limit structure is connected between the first connection end and the second connection end, and the mechanical limit structure is used to limit the travel tolerance of the moving component.

[0018] As a preferred technical solution of the above-mentioned flexible decoupling structure, the mechanical limiting structure includes:

[0019] A moving part and a fixed part, wherein the moving part is connected to the moving end of the first connecting end and the second connecting end, and the fixed part is connected to the fixed end of the first connecting end and the second connecting end. The moving part and the fixed part are arranged relatively spaced apart, and there is a first gap preset along the first direction and a second gap preset along the second direction between the moving part and the fixed part, and the first direction is perpendicular to the second direction.

[0020] As a preferred technical solution of the above-mentioned flexible decoupling structure, both the first gap and the second gap are smaller than the rated stroke of the flexible decoupling structure.

[0021] To achieve the above-mentioned purpose, the present invention also proposes a compensation component, which is arranged on the flexible decoupling structure as described in any one of claims 1 to 7, and the compensation component includes a detection part, a detection part and an adjustment part, the detection part is arranged on the first connecting end or the second connecting end, the detection part is arranged above the head of the detection part for monitoring the position of the detection part, and the adjustment part is used to adjust the position of the detection part relative to the detection part.

[0022] To achieve the above object, the present invention further provides a control method for a compensation component, comprising the following steps:

[0023] If a motion component has a stroke error or a position error during motion, the flexible decoupling structure deflects or retracts to perform stroke compensation or decoupling;

[0024] The detection unit determines the size of the target area value S and the preset value, wherein the target area value S is the coverage area of ​​the detection unit covered by the detection unit;

[0025] When S≤S1, the moving component continues to move; when S1<S<S2, control hardware compensation and / or software compensation; when S≥S2, stop for inspection;

[0026] The S1 is a first preset value, and the S2 is a second preset value.

[0027] To achieve the above object, the present invention further provides a motion module, comprising:

[0028] Fixing components;

[0029] A moving component, used to carry the target object, wherein the moving component can move relative to the fixed component;

[0030] At least two flexible decoupling structures as described above are respectively arranged on both sides of the moving component, and the first connection end and the second connection end of the flexible decoupling structure are respectively connected to the moving component and the fixed component; the moving component can at least achieve decoupling in the X, Y and Rz directions.

[0031] As a preferred technical solution of the above-mentioned motion module, it includes two flexible decoupling structures of different types used in groups.

[0032] As a preferred technical solution of the above-mentioned motion module, it includes two flexible decoupling structures of different types and used separately.

[0033] As a preferred technical solution of the above-mentioned motion module, at least two of the same or different types of the flexible decoupling structures are respectively provided on both sides of the motion component.

[0034] To achieve the above objective, the present invention further provides a photolithography machine, comprising the motion module as described above.

[0035] Compared with the prior art, the present invention has the following beneficial effects:

[0036] The flexible decoupling structure provided by the present invention can achieve target stiffness while having good plastic toughness by setting at least two segmented elastic parts with adjustable stiffness, reduce the lag time of decoupling, and is suitable for stroke compensation of the motion module of the lithography machine. It can realize decoupling of five degrees of freedom of X, Y, Rx, Ry and Rz, compensate for the stroke deviation caused by mechanical manufacturing and servo deviation, improve the motion reliability of the lithography machine, and extend the service life of the lithography machine. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0037] Figure 1 is a schematic diagram of the connection relationship of the motion module provided in the first embodiment of the present invention;

[0038] Figure 2 The structure of the flexible decoupling structure provided by the first embodiment of the present invention is shown in FIG. Figure 1 ;

[0039] Figure 3 The structure of the flexible decoupling structure provided by the first embodiment of the present invention is shown in FIG. Figure 2 ;

[0040] Figure 4 The structure of the flexible decoupling structure provided by the first embodiment of the present invention is shown in FIG. Figure 3 ;

[0041] Figure 5 The structure of the mechanical limit structure provided by the first embodiment of the present invention is shown in FIG. Figure 1 ;

[0042] Figure 6The structure of the mechanical limit structure provided by the first embodiment of the present invention is shown in FIG. Figure 2 ;

[0043] Figure 7 is a schematic diagram of the connection relationship between the mechanical limit structure and the compensation component provided in the second embodiment of the present invention;

[0044] Figure 8 is a flow chart of a control method of a compensation component provided in Embodiment 2 of the present invention;

[0045] Fig. 9 is a structural diagram of a specific form of the first motion module provided in the third embodiment of the present invention;

[0046] Fig.10 is a structural schematic diagram of a specific form of a second motion module provided in Embodiment 3 of the present invention from one viewing angle;

[0047] Fig.11 is a structural schematic diagram of a specific form of the second motion module provided in the third embodiment of the present invention from another perspective;

[0048] Fig.12 is a structural schematic diagram of a specific form of the first flexible decoupling structure provided by the fourth embodiment of the present invention;

[0049] Fig.13 is a structural schematic diagram of a specific form of a second flexible decoupling structure provided by the fourth embodiment of the present invention;

[0050] Fig.14 is a structural schematic diagram of a specific form of a third flexible decoupling structure provided by the fourth embodiment of the present invention;

[0051] Fig.15 yes Fig.14 A magnified view of the local structure in .

[0052] In the figure:

[0053] 100, motion module; 200, motor;

[0054] 10. Flexible decoupling structure; 20. Mechanical limiting structure; 30. Fixed component; 40. Moving component; 50. Base component; 60. Target;

[0055] 11. Segmented elastic member; 12. First connecting end; 13. Second connecting end; 14. Compensation component;

[0056] 111, first segmented elastic member; 112, second segmented elastic member; 113, third segmented elastic member; 114, fourth segmented elastic member; 115, fifth segmented elastic member; 116, sixth segmented elastic member;

[0057] 141. Detection unit; 142. Testing unit; 143. Adjustment unit. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0058] In order to make the purpose, technical solutions and advantages of the embodiments of the present invention clearer, the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present invention will be clearly and completely described below in conjunction with the drawings in the embodiments of the present invention. Obviously, the described embodiments are part of the embodiments of the present invention, not all of the embodiments. Generally, the components of the embodiments of the present invention described and shown in the drawings here can be arranged and designed in various different configurations.

[0059] Therefore, the following detailed description of the embodiments of the present invention provided in the accompanying drawings is not intended to limit the scope of the invention claimed for protection, but merely represents selected embodiments of the present invention. Based on the embodiments of the present invention, all other embodiments obtained by ordinary technicians in this field without creative work are within the scope of protection of the present invention.

[0060] It should be noted that similar reference numerals and letters denote similar items in the following drawings, and therefore, once an item is defined in one drawing, further definition and explanation thereof is not required in subsequent drawings.

[0061] In the description of the present invention, it should be noted that the terms "upper", "lower", "left", "right", "vertical", "horizontal", "inside", "outside", etc. indicate positions or positional relationships based on the positions or positional relationships shown in the accompanying drawings, or are the positions or positional relationships in which the inventive product is usually placed when in use. They are only for the convenience of describing the present invention and simplifying the description, and do not indicate or imply that the device or element referred to must have a specific orientation, be constructed and operated in a specific orientation, and therefore cannot be understood as limiting the present invention. In addition, the terms "first", "second", "third", etc. are only used to distinguish the description, and cannot be understood as indicating or implying relative importance. In the description of the present invention, unless otherwise specified, "multiple" means two or more.

[0062] In the description of the present invention, it is also necessary to explain that, unless otherwise clearly specified and limited, the terms "disposed" and "connected" should be understood in a broad sense, for example, it can be a fixed connection, a detachable connection, or an integral connection; it can be a mechanical connection or an electrical connection. For ordinary technicians in this field, the specific meanings of the above terms in the present invention can be understood according to specific circumstances.

[0063] In the present invention, unless otherwise clearly specified and limited, a first feature being "above" or "below" a second feature may include that the first and second features are in direct contact, or may include that the first and second features are not in direct contact but are in contact through another feature between them. Moreover, a first feature being "above", "above" and "above" a second feature includes that the first feature is directly above and obliquely above the second feature, or simply indicates that the first feature is higher in level than the second feature. A first feature being "below", "below" and "below" a second feature includes that the first feature is directly below and obliquely below the second feature, or simply indicates that the first feature is lower in level than the second feature.

[0064] Embodiments of the present invention are described in detail below, examples of which are shown in the accompanying drawings, wherein the same or similar reference numerals throughout represent the same or similar elements or elements having the same or similar functions. The embodiments described below with reference to the accompanying drawings are exemplary and are only used to explain the present invention, and cannot be understood as limiting the present invention.

[0065] Embodiment 1

[0066] like Figure 1 As shown, this example discloses a motion module 100 that can be used in a lithography machine, the motion module 100 includes a fixed component 30, a motion component 40, a flexible decoupling structure 10 and a base component 50, the base component 50 is used as a bearing component for bearing the motion component 40 and the fixed component 30. The motion component 40 is used to bear the target object 60, and the motion component 40 can move relative to the fixed component 30. At least two flexible decoupling structures 10 are respectively arranged on both sides of the motion component 40 and connected to the fixed component 30, and the flexible decoupling structure 10 can deflect or extend to decouple or stroke compensate the motion component 40, so that the motion component 40 can at least achieve decoupling in the X, Y and Rz directions.

[0067] The moving component 40 can be a wafer stage, an X-axis guide rail or a Y-axis motor, etc., the fixed component 30 can be a counterweight block for balancing the mass or a magnetic steel frame (magnetic levitation double stage), etc., the target object 60 can be a silicon wafer, a mask plate, etc., and the base component 50 can be a workpiece stage frame, a mask stage frame, a coarse motion frame, etc.

[0068] Furthermore, if Figures 2 to 4As shown, the flexible decoupling structure 10 includes a first connecting end 12, a second connecting end 13 and at least two segmented elastic members 11. The stiffness of the segmented elastic member 11 can be adjusted. The segmented elastic member 11 includes a first spring leaf, a connecting plate and a second spring leaf connected in sequence. The stiffness of the three can be the same or different. Preferably, the stiffness of the connecting plate is the largest. The stiffness of the segmented elastic member 11 can be adjusted by grinding its length, width and height according to the actual experimental measurement results, or by adjusting it by a top screw. The first connecting end 12 and the second connecting end 13 are arranged in parallel. The first connecting end 12 and the second connecting end 13 are respectively connected to the moving component 40 and the fixed component 30. The segmented elastic member 11 is connected between the first connecting end 12 and the second connecting end 13. The flexible decoupling structure 10 can be decoupled in the X, Y, Rx, Ry and Rz directions, so that the moving component 40 can at least achieve decoupling in the X, Y and Rz directions.

[0069] The first spring and the second spring are both flexible springs, and their main advantages are no mechanical gap, no friction, no mechanical wear and particle pollution, and no need for repair and maintenance. Therefore, the segmented elastic member 11 adopts the above segmented structure, which not only meets the requirements of different stiffness, but also improves the plastic toughness of the entire segmented elastic member 11 and reduces the lag time of decoupling of the flexible decoupling structure 10. The flexible decoupling structure 10 can achieve the target stiffness while having good plastic toughness and reducing the lag time of decoupling by setting at least two segmented elastic members with adjustable stiffness, and is suitable for stroke compensation of the motion module of the lithography machine, and can realize the decoupling of the five degrees of freedom of X, Y, Rx, Ry and Rz, compensate for the stroke deviation caused by mechanical manufacturing and servo deviation, improve the motion reliability of the lithography machine, and extend the service life of the lithography machine.

[0070] The number of flexible decoupling structures 10 in the motion module 100 can be set according to actual conditions. According to the force conditions in different directions, in order to adapt to the positional relationship between the motion component 40 and the fixed component 30, the multiple flexible decoupling structures 10 on both sides of the motion component 40 can be symmetrical or asymmetrical. The following provides three specific structures of the flexible decoupling structure 10. In practical applications, the flexible decoupling structure 10 can be selected according to specific working conditions.

[0071] The first type: Figure 2 As shown, the flexible decoupling structure 10 includes two segmented elastic members 11, the first spring leaves of the two segmented elastic members 11 are respectively connected to the two ends of the first connecting end 12, the second spring leaves of the two segmented elastic members 11 are respectively connected to the two ends of the second connecting end 13, the end of the first spring leaf away from the connecting plate is connected to the first connecting end 12, and the end of the second spring leaf away from the connecting plate is connected to the second connecting end 13.

[0072] The second type: Figure 3As shown, the flexible decoupling structure 10 includes four segmented elastic members 11, namely a first elastic member, a second elastic member, a third elastic member and a fourth elastic member. The first spring of the first elastic member is connected to the first connecting end 12, the second spring of the first elastic member is connected to the connecting plate of the second elastic member, the first spring of the second elastic member is connected to the first connecting end 12 and the second connecting end 13, the second spring of the second elastic member is connected to the second spring of the third elastic member, the connecting plate of the third elastic member is connected to the second spring of the fourth elastic member, the first spring of the third elastic member is connected to the first connecting end 12 and the second connecting end 13, and the first spring of the fourth elastic member is connected to the first connecting end 12.

[0073] The third type: Figure 4 As shown, the flexible decoupling structure 10 includes six segmented elastic members 11, namely a first elastic member, a second elastic member, a third elastic member, a fourth elastic member, a fifth elastic member and a sixth elastic member. The first spring of the first elastic member is connected to the first connecting end 12, the second spring of the first elastic member is connected to the connecting plate of the second elastic member, the first spring of the second elastic member is connected to the first connecting end 12 and the second connecting end 13, the second spring of the second elastic member is connected to the second spring of the third elastic member, the connecting plate of the third elastic member is connected to the second spring of the fourth elastic member, the first spring of the third elastic member is connected to the first connecting end 12 and the second connecting end 13, and the first spring of the fourth elastic member is connected to the first connecting end 12; the first spring of the fifth elastic member and the first spring of the sixth elastic member are respectively connected to the two ends of the first connecting end 12, and the second spring of the fifth elastic member and the second spring of the sixth elastic member are respectively connected to the two ends of the second connecting end 13.

[0074] Generally, the same size Figure 3 The deflection travel ratio of the flexible decoupling structure 10 is shown as Figure 2 The deflection stroke of the flexible decoupling structure 10 shown is small. Figure 2 The flexible decoupling structure 10 can be used for the motion component 40 with a deflection stroke accuracy less than [-16, 16] mrad. Figure 3 The flexible decoupling structure 10 can be used for the motion component 40 with a deflection stroke accuracy less than [-6, 6] mrad. Figure 2 and Figure 3 The medium-flexible decoupling structure 10 can be used alone for motion components 40 with different stroke accuracy requirements and different degrees of freedom decoupling requirements, or multiple structures can be used in groups to achieve multi-degree-of-freedom decoupling. Figure 4 The flexible decoupling structure 10 has a telescopic stroke accuracy of up to 1 μm, and a deflection stroke accuracy of up to 0.05 mrad. Figure 4 The flexible decoupling structure 10 can realize movement within a plane and rotation perpendicular to the plane individually, or multiple ones can be used in groups to realize multi-degree-of-freedom synchronous decoupling.

[0075] In this embodiment, the flexible decoupling structure 10 also includes a mechanical limiting structure 20, which is connected between the first connection end 12 and the second connection end 13. The mechanical limiting structure 20 is configured to prevent the flexible decoupling structure 10 from continuing to deflect or extend when the motion component 40 has a travel deviation, thereby limiting the travel deviation of the motion component 40. The flexible decoupling structure 10 partially or completely contains the mechanical limiting structure 20. According to the actual processing technology and assembly space, the mechanical limiting structure 20 can be an integral part or multiple independent parts with the flexible decoupling structure 10. The mechanical limiting structure 20 can be contained inside the flexible decoupling structure 10, such as Figure 5 As shown; it can also be a separate component, which can be disassembled and assembled according to different situations such as storage, transportation, testing and use, so as to improve the applicability and scalability of the structure, such as Figure 6 As shown; it can also be a part of the moving component 40 or the fixed component 30, and this embodiment does not impose any specific limitation on this.

[0076] When the motion component 40 generates a stroke error or position error due to micro-displacement or gravity such as deflection, lateral string movement, thermal expansion and contraction, vibration, etc. due to vibration, yaw, thermal expansion and contraction or telescopic movement in the X, Y, Z, Rx, Ry or Rz directions, the segmented elastic member 11 of the flexible decoupling structure 10 will yaw left and right and stretch or compress laterally to alleviate such abnormal movement, so as to achieve motion decoupling, thermal decoupling or motion compensation. When the deflection or lateral string movement of the motion component 40 exceeds the stroke allowed by the lithography machine (i.e., a stroke out-of-tolerance occurs), the mechanical limit structure 20 prevents the flexible decoupling structure from further deflecting or telescoping through mechanical limit, thereby achieving the beneficial effects of limiting the stroke out-of-tolerance and protecting the flexible decoupling structure 10, thereby reducing the motion risk of the motion module 100, improving the motion reliability of the lithography machine, and extending the service life of the lithography machine.

[0077] In the present embodiment, the mechanical limiting structure 20 includes a moving part and a fixed part, wherein the moving part is connected to the moving end of the first connecting end 12 and the second connecting end 13, and the fixed part is connected to the fixed end of the first connecting end 12 and the second connecting end 13, and the moving part and the fixed part are arranged with a relative interval, and there is a first gap δ1 preset along the first direction and a second gap δ2 preset along the second direction between the moving part and the fixed part, and the first direction is perpendicular to the second direction, and the first gap δ1 and the second gap δ2 are the limiting strokes of the mechanical limiting structure 20. Among them, the first direction or the second direction is the moving direction, and the corresponding first gap δ1 or the second gap δ2 is the moving direction gap. Specifically, when the movement deflection of the segmented elastic member 11 exceeds the travel, it is limited by adjusting the reduction or increase of the first gap δ1 and the second gap δ2, thereby achieving the beneficial effect of limiting the travel deviation and protecting the moving component 40.

[0078] In order to play a good role in buffering and limiting protection, the first gap δ1 and the second gap δ2 are both smaller than the rated stroke of the flexible decoupling structure 10. Exemplarily, when the rated stroke of the flexible decoupling structure 10 is 5mrad, the material properties of the flexible decoupling structure 10 should be better than the material properties of the mechanical limiting structure 20 or be the same as the material properties of the mechanical limiting structure 20. For example, when the limiting stroke of the mechanical limiting structure 20 is δ1=0.5mm and δ2=0.2mm, and the flexible decoupling structure 10 is made of precipitation hardened stainless steel or high-quality martensitic stainless steel, the mechanical limiting structure 20 can be made of precipitation hardened stainless steel, high-quality martensitic aging steel, spring steel or 2Cr13.

[0079] Embodiment 2

[0080] This embodiment discloses a compensation component 14, which is arranged on the flexible decoupling structure 10 of the above-mentioned embodiment 1, and the compensation component 14 is configured to be able to perform feedback compensation or shutdown inspection and other operations according to the stroke accuracy of the motion component 40. By setting the compensation component 14, when the stroke of the motion component 40 is out of tolerance, the flexible decoupling structure 10 and the motion component 40 can be effectively monitored and protected, the movement of the motion component 40 can be more accurately controlled, the motion component 10 can be protected, the service life of the motion component 10 can be extended, the movement risk can be reduced, and the economic loss can be reduced.

[0081] Specifically, Figure 7 As shown, the compensation component 14 includes a detection part 141, a detection part 142 and an adjustment part 143. The detection part 141 is arranged on the first connection end 12 or the second connection end 13, the detection part 142 is arranged above the head of the detection part 141, and is used to detect the position of the detection part 141. The adjustment part 143 is used to adjust the position of the detection part 141 relative to the detection part 142 to change the coverage area of ​​the detection part 141 covering the detection part 142.

[0082] Optionally, the detection part 141 is a flexible detection sheet, and the detection part 142 is a proximity sensor. Further, the compensation component 14 is electrically connected to the controller to transmit the position signal detected by the detection part 142 to the controller, and the controller makes a judgment based on the received data and controls the motion component 40. In this embodiment, the controller can be a centralized or distributed controller, for example, the controller can be a single microcontroller, or it can be composed of multiple distributed microcontrollers, and the control program can be run in the microcontroller to control the compensation component 14 to realize its function.

[0083] like Figure 8 As shown, this embodiment also provides a control method for the compensation component 14, which mainly includes the following steps:

[0084] If a stroke error or position error occurs in the motion component 40 during the motion process, the flexible decoupling structure 10 deflects or retracts to perform stroke compensation or decoupling;

[0085] The detection unit 142 determines the size of the target area value S and the preset value, and the target area value S is the coverage area of ​​the detection unit 142 covered by the detection unit 141;

[0086] When S≤S1, it is a normal working condition, and the motion component 40 continues to move; when S1<S<S2, the control drive hardware compensation and / or software compensation is performed; when S≥S2, a shutdown inspection is performed, and the motion component continues to move after the fault is eliminated. It should be noted that S1 is a first preset value, such as 50%±1%, and S2 is a second preset value, such as 50%±10%.

[0087] Embodiment 3

[0088] This embodiment discloses several specific forms of the motion module 100. The motion module 100 may include two flexible decoupling structures 10 of different types used in groups, such as Fig. 9 As shown; it may also include two different types of flexible decoupling structures 10 used separately; as Fig.10 and Fig.11 As shown, at least two flexible decoupling structures 10 of the same type or different types are disposed on both sides of the motion component 40 .

[0089] Specifically, Fig. 9 As shown, both ends of the motion component 40 of the motion module 100 are connected to the fixed component 30 through a flexible decoupling structure 10, and a motor 200 is provided at both ends of the motion component 40. The motor 200 is connected between the motion component 40 and the flexible decoupling structure 10, and a target object 60 is carried on the motion component 40.

[0090] Further, the flexible decoupling structures 10 at both ends of the motion component 40 are of different types and are two independent parts. For example, the flexible decoupling structure 10 at one end includes two segmented elastic members 11, a first connection end 12, a mechanical limit structure 20 and a second connection end 13 located on both sides, and the flexible decoupling structure 10 at the other end includes four segmented elastic members 11, a first connection end 12 and a second connection end 13. The two flexible decoupling structures 10 are used in groups. The motion module 100 of this structure can achieve decoupling in the X, Y and Rz directions. Exemplarily, the allowable Rz rotation angle range of the motors 200 on both sides is 1mrad to 6mrad. When the motors 200 on both sides are not synchronized in the X, Y or Rz direction due to manufacturing, assembly, asynchronous output of the motors 200, etc., decoupling can be achieved through the flexible decoupling structure 10 at both ends to ensure that the motion component 40 is not stuck or "stuck", thereby achieving more accurate control of the accuracy of the lithography machine, controlling motion errors, ensuring motion quality, increasing the service life of the motion module 100, reducing manufacturing costs and reducing potential accident risks.

[0091] Alternatively, if Fig.10 and Fig.11 As shown, for a motion module 100 that requires vertical motion accuracy or position accuracy, the decoupling in Rx, Ry and Z directions and the control of motion accuracy can be achieved by adding a flexible decoupling structure 10. The three flexible decoupling structures 10 are used in combination to achieve six-degree-of-freedom motion control.

[0092] This embodiment also discloses a photolithography machine, comprising the above-mentioned motion module 100. The photolithography machine has high motion accuracy and long service life.

[0093] Embodiment 4

[0094] This embodiment discloses several specific forms of the flexible decoupling structure 10 .

[0095] like Fig.12As shown, the first flexible decoupling structure 10 mainly includes a first connecting end 12, a second connecting end 13, a mechanical limiting structure 20 and two segmented elastic members 11. Among them, the mechanical limiting structure 20 is a separate component, the flexible decoupling structure 10 is a symmetrical structure, the two segmented elastic members 11 are symmetrically arranged about the center line of the flexible decoupling structure 10, and the geometric dimensions of the first spring leaf and the second spring leaf of the segmented elastic member 11 are the same. The mechanical limiting structure 20 is assembled with the flexible decoupling structure 10 by fastening screws. When the motion component 40 has a stroke error, the two segmented elastic members 11 deflect to decouple the motion, relieve vibration or compensate for thermal deformation; when the motion deflection of the segmented elastic member 11 exceeds the travel, the motion is limited by adjusting the first gap δ1 and the second gap δ2 to reduce or increase, thereby achieving the beneficial effect of limiting the stroke deviation and protecting the motion component 40. Among them, the first gap δ1 is the gap in the motion direction, and the second gap δ2 is the gap perpendicular to the motion direction.

[0096] like Fig.13 As shown, the second flexible decoupling structure 10 mainly includes a first connecting end 12, a second connecting end 13, a mechanical limiting structure 20 and six segmented elastic members 11. Among them, the mechanical limiting structure 20 is a part of the flexible decoupling structure 10, and the flexible decoupling structure 10 is an incompletely symmetrical structure. The upper and lower geometric dimensions of the first segmented elastic member 111 and the second segmented elastic member 112 are different, the third segmented elastic member 113 and the fourth segmented elastic member 114 are symmetrical, and the fifth segmented elastic member 115 and the sixth segmented elastic member 116 are symmetrical and have the same geometric dimensions. When the motion component 40 has a stroke error, the above six segmented elastic members 11 perform error compensation, multi-degree-of-freedom motion decoupling, vibration relief and thermal deformation compensation by yaw or tension and compression motion; when the motion component 40 has a stroke error, by adjusting the first gap δ1 and the second gap δ2 to reduce or increase, it has the beneficial effect of limiting the stroke error and protecting the motion component 40. The first gap δ1 is a gap in the moving direction, and the second gap δ2 is a gap perpendicular to the moving direction.

[0097] In order to achieve good motion compensation, buffering and limit protection, the first gap δ1 and the second gap δ2 should be smaller than the stroke of the flexible structure spring, and the material properties of the flexible decoupling structure 10 should be better than or the same as the material properties of the mechanical limit structure 20. For example, when the flexible decoupling structure 10 is made of spring steel, precipitation hardening stainless steel, high-quality martensitic stainless steel or composite materials, the mechanical limit structure 20 can be made of precipitation hardening stainless steel, high-quality martensitic aging steel, spring steel, 2Cr13, organic polymer materials or other materials or composite materials with excellent comprehensive properties.

[0098] like Fig.14As shown, the third flexible decoupling structure 10 mainly includes a first connection end 12, a second connection end 13, a mechanical limit structure 20, two segmented elastic members 11 and a compensation component 14. Fig.15 As shown, the compensation component 14 includes a detection part 141, a detection part 142 and an adjustment part 143. The adjustment part 143 adjusts the position of the detection part 141 relative to the detection part 142 by adjusting the size of the third gap δ3. The compensation component 14 can be combined with the flexible decoupling structure 10 alone. When the motion component 40 has a stroke error, compensation is performed through a software algorithm; when the motion component 40 has a stroke error, the software is driven to shut down the machine and troubleshoot according to the error range. The compensation component 14 can be used in conjunction with the mechanical limit structure 20. In addition to stroke error compensation and stroke error shutdown processing, when the motion component 40 is damaged due to fatigue damage, large inertia force or other conditions, the compensation component 14 can perform emergency stop protection to prevent huge economic losses and downtime caused by accidental collisions, flying moving parts, etc.

[0099] Obviously, the above embodiments of the present invention are merely examples for clearly illustrating the present invention, and are not intended to limit the embodiments of the present invention. For those skilled in the art, other different forms of changes or modifications can be made based on the above description. It is not necessary and impossible to list all the embodiments here. Any modifications, equivalent substitutions and improvements made within the spirit and principles of the present invention should be included in the protection scope of the claims of the present invention.

Claims

1. A flexible decoupling structure, characterized in that: include: At least two segmented elastic members (11), the stiffness of the segmented elastic members (11) being adjustable, the segmented elastic members (11) comprising a first spring leaf, a connecting plate, and a second spring leaf connected in sequence; A first connecting end (12) and a second connecting end (13) are arranged in parallel, the segmented elastic member (11) is connected between the first connecting end (12) and the second connecting end (13), one of the first connecting end (12) and the second connecting end (13) moves and the other is fixed; the flexible decoupling structure can be decoupled in the X, Y, Rx, Ry and Rz directions; A mechanical limiting structure (20) connected between the first connection end (12) and the second connection end (13), the mechanical limiting structure (20) being used to limit the travel tolerance of the moving component (40); The mechanical limiting structure (20) comprises: A moving part and a fixed part, wherein the moving part is connected to the moving end of the first connecting end (12) and the second connecting end (13), and the fixed part is connected to the fixed end of the first connecting end (12) and the second connecting end (13), the moving part and the fixed part are arranged relatively spaced apart, and there is a first gap preset along a first direction and a second gap preset along a second direction between the moving part and the fixed part, and the first direction is perpendicular to the second direction.

2. The flexible decoupling structure according to claim 1, characterized in that: The flexible decoupling structure comprises: Two segmented elastic members (11), the first spring leaves of the two segmented elastic members (11) are respectively connected to the two ends of the first connecting end (12), the second spring leaves of the two segmented elastic members (11) are respectively connected to the two ends of the second connecting end (13), the end of the first spring leaf away from the connecting plate is connected to the first connecting end (12), and the end of the second spring leaf away from the connecting plate is connected to the second connecting end (13).

3. The flexible decoupling structure according to claim 1, characterized in that: The flexible decoupling structure comprises: Four segmented elastic members (11) are respectively a first elastic member, a second elastic member, a third elastic member and a fourth elastic member, wherein the first spring of the first elastic member is connected to the first connecting end (12), the second spring of the first elastic member is connected to the connecting plate of the second elastic member, the first spring of the second elastic member is connected to the first connecting end (12) and the second connecting end (13), the second spring of the second elastic member is connected to the second spring of the third elastic member, the connecting plate of the third elastic member is connected to the second spring of the fourth elastic member, the first spring of the third elastic member is connected to the first connecting end (12) and the second connecting end (13), and the first spring of the fourth elastic member is connected to the first connecting end (12).

4. The flexible decoupling structure according to claim 1, characterized in that: The flexible decoupling structure comprises: Six segmented elastic members (11) are respectively a first elastic member, a second elastic member, a third elastic member, a fourth elastic member, a fifth elastic member and a sixth elastic member, wherein the first spring of the first elastic member is connected to the first connecting end (12), the second spring of the first elastic member is connected to the connecting plate of the second elastic member, the first spring of the second elastic member is connected to the first connecting end (12) and the second connecting end (13), the second spring of the second elastic member is connected to the second spring of the third elastic member, the connecting plate of the third elastic member is connected to the second spring of the fourth elastic member, the first spring of the third elastic member is connected to the first connecting end (12) and the second connecting end (13), and the first spring of the fourth elastic member is connected to the first connecting end (12); the first spring of the fifth elastic member and the first spring of the sixth elastic member are respectively connected to the two ends of the first connecting end (12), and the second spring of the fifth elastic member and the second spring of the sixth elastic member are respectively connected to the two ends of the second connecting end (13).

5. The flexible decoupling structure according to claim 1, characterized in that: The first gap and the second gap are both smaller than a rated stroke of the flexible decoupling structure.

6. A compensation component, characterized in that: The compensation component (14) is arranged on the flexible decoupling structure (10) as described in any one of claims 1 to 5, and the compensation component (14) comprises a detection part (141), a detection part (142) and an adjustment part (143), the detection part (141) is arranged on the first connecting end (12) or the second connecting end (13), the detection part (142) is arranged above the head of the detection part (141) and is used to detect the position of the detection part (141), and the adjustment part (143) is used to adjust the position of the detection part (141) relative to the detection part (142).

7. A control method for a compensation component as claimed in claim 6, characterized in that: The following steps are involved: If a stroke error or position error occurs in the motion component (40) during the motion process, the flexible decoupling structure (10) deflects or retracts to perform stroke compensation or decoupling; The detection unit (142) determines the size of the target area value S and a preset value, wherein the target area value S is the coverage area of ​​the detection unit (142) covered by the detection unit (141); When S≤S1, the motion component (40) continues to move; when S1<S<S2, hardware compensation and / or software compensation are controlled; when S≥S2, the machine is stopped for inspection; The S1 is a first preset value, and the S2 is a second preset value.

8. A motion module, characterized in that: include: A fixing assembly (30); A moving component (40) for carrying a target object (60), wherein the moving component (40) is movable relative to the fixed component (30); At least two flexible decoupling structures (10) as described in any one of claims 1 to 5 are respectively arranged on both sides of the moving component (40), and the first connecting end (12) and the second connecting end (13) of the flexible decoupling structure (10) are respectively connected to the moving component (40) and the fixed component (30); the moving component (40) can at least achieve decoupling in the X, Y and Rz directions.

9. The motion module according to claim 8, characterized in that: The invention comprises two flexible decoupling structures (10) of different types used in groups.

10. The motion module according to claim 8, characterized in that: The invention comprises two flexible decoupling structures (10) which are of different types and used separately.

11. The motion module according to claim 8, characterized in that: At least two of the same or different types of flexible decoupling structures (10) are respectively arranged on both sides of the motion component (40).

12. A photolithography machine, characterized in that: Comprising a motion module as described in any one of claims 8-11.

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