Wafer handling device

Abstract

A wafer pick-and-place device is suitable for taking out wafers from a wafer transport box, and the wafer pick-and-place device comprises: a driving module and two carrying arms. The carrying arms are arranged on the driving module at intervals from each other, and can be driven by the driving module to move between initial positions relatively far away from each other and working positions relatively close to each other, and can be operated to extend into the wafer transport box at the initial position, and move from the initial position to the working position to carry the wafer. Each carrying arm includes an arm body and a vacuum suction cup and a supporting protrusion arranged on the arm body. This can reduce the probability of wafer taking failure and wafer damage.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The invention relates to a wafer taking and placing device, in particular to a wafer taking and placing device used for taking out wafers from a wafer transport box. Background Art

[0002] See also Figure 1 In the semiconductor manufacturing process, a wafer transport box B is usually used to accommodate multiple wafers W so as to transfer the wafers W to the next workstation. When the wafer W is thinned and its rigidity is reduced during the back-end process, the wafer W is easily deformed when placed in the wafer transport box B. Some of the wafers W in the wafer transport box B may warp upwards while others may warp downwards, resulting in a smaller gap between some adjacent wafers W.

[0003] Currently, a fork-shaped robot (not shown) is usually used to take out the wafer W from the wafer transport box B. Since the position where the robot extends into the wafer transport box B is fixed relative to the two side walls B1 of the wafer transport box B and is approximately in the middle between the center of the wafer W and the side wall B1, when the gap between adjacent wafers W is too small, that is, there is not enough space for the robot to extend, it is easy to cause the robot to fail to take the wafer or collide with the wafer W. Summary of the invention

[0004] An object of the present invention is to provide a wafer placing device that can solve the above-mentioned problems.

[0005] In some embodiments, the wafer pick-and-place device of the present invention is suitable for taking out wafers from a wafer transport box, and the wafer pick-and-place device includes: a driving module and two carrying arms. The carrying arms are arranged on the driving module at intervals from each other, and can be driven by the driving module to move between an initial position relatively far away from each other and a working position relatively close to each other, and can be operated to extend into the wafer transport box at the initial position, and move from the initial position to the working position to carry the wafer. Each carrying arm includes an arm body, a vacuum suction cup and a supporting protrusion. The arm body extends from the driving module along an extension direction, and has a first end connected to the driving module, a second end located at the end of the arm body, and an upper surface extending from the first end to the second end and facing upward. The vacuum suction cup is arranged on the arm body and protrudes from the upper surface and is located near the second end, so as to adsorb and fix the wafer when the carrying arm is located at the working position. The supporting protrusion is arranged on the arm body and protrudes from the upper surface, so as to support the wafer.

[0006] In some embodiments, each carrying arm also includes a roller, which is disposed on the arm body, protrudes from the upper surface, is located close to the vacuum suction cup and can rotate around an axis parallel to the extension direction, so as to support the wafer and roll relative to the wafer during the movement of the carrying arm from the initial position to the working position.

[0007] In some embodiments, the vacuum suction cup can be floatingly disposed on the arm body, and when no external force is applied, the height of the vacuum suction cup protruding from the upper surface is lower than the roller, and the vacuum suction cup can be lifted by the airflow so that the height of the vacuum suction cup protruding from the upper surface is higher than the roller.

[0008] In some implementations, the roller is in an elongated strip shape and extends in the extending direction.

[0009] In some embodiments, the arm body also has a base section extending from the first end, and an extension section extending from the base section to the second end, the upper surface is formed on the base section and the extension section, the width of the base section is greater than that of the extension section, the vacuum suction cup and the roller are located in the extension section, the supporting protrusion is located in the base section and close to the extension section, and is closer to another supporting arm than the vacuum suction cup and the roller.

[0010] The present invention has at least the following effects: the carrying arm can extend into the wafer transport box at the initial position to avoid collision with the wafer, and after the carrying arm enters the wafer transport box and then moves to the working position, it can effectively support the wafer so as to smoothly take the wafer out of the wafer transport box, thereby reducing the probability of wafer retrieval failure and wafer damage. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0011] Other features and effects of the present invention will be clearly presented in the embodiments with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

[0012] Figure 1 It is an incomplete schematic diagram illustrating a state in which a conventional wafer transport box accommodates wafers;

[0013] Figure 2 is a schematic diagram of two carrying arms of an embodiment of a wafer handling device of the present invention in an initial position;

[0014] Figure 3 is a schematic diagram of the carrying arm in a working position;

[0015] Figure 4 is a schematic diagram of the process of taking out a wafer from a wafer transport box according to the embodiment;

[0016] Figure 5 is an incomplete cross-sectional schematic diagram illustrating the vacuum suction cup of the carrying arm in a normal position; and

[0017] Figure 6 An incomplete schematic cross-sectional view illustrating the vacuum cup as it floats. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0018] See also Figures 2 to 4The embodiment of the wafer placing and retrieving device 100 of the present invention is suitable for taking out a wafer W from a wafer transport box B. The wafer placing and retrieving device 100 includes a driving module 1 and two carrying arms 2 .

[0019] The carrying arms 2 are arranged at intervals on the driving module 1 and can be driven by the driving module 1 to be at an initial position (such as Figure 2 ) and a relatively close working position (such as Figure 3 The carrying arm 2 is movable between the carrying arm 2 and the wafer carrier B, and can be operated to extend into the wafer carrier B at the initial position and move from the initial position to the working position to carry the wafer W. The driving module 1 can drive the carrying arm 2 using general mechanical structures such as a pneumatic cylinder, a screw, a pulley, a gear, a rack, etc.

[0020] Each carrying arm 2 includes an arm body 21, a vacuum suction cup 22, a roller 23 and a supporting protrusion 24. The arm body 21 extends from the driving module 1 along an extension direction D1 and has a first end 211 connected to the driving module 1, a second end 212 located at the end of the arm body 21, and an upper surface 213 extending from the first end 211 to the second end 212 and facing upward. The vacuum suction cup 22 is provided on the arm body 21 and protrudes from the upper surface 213 and is located near the second end 212, so as to absorb and fix the wafer W when the carrying arm 2 is located at the working position. The roller 23 is provided on the arm body 21, protrudes from the upper surface 213, is located near the vacuum suction cup 22, and can rotate around an axis A parallel to the extension direction D1, so as to support the wafer W and roll relative to the wafer W during the movement of the carrying arm 2 from the initial position to the working position. In this embodiment, the roller 23 is in an elongated shape and extends in the extending direction D1 to increase the contact area with the wafer W. The supporting protrusion 24 is disposed on the arm 21 and protrudes from the upper surface 213 to support the wafer W.

[0021] In this embodiment, the arm body 21 further has a base section 214 extending from the first end 211 and an extension section 215 extending from the base section 214 to the second end 212. The upper surface 213 is formed on the base section 214 and the extension section 215. The width of the base section 214 is greater than that of the extension section 215. The vacuum suction cup 22 and the roller 23 are located on the extension section 215. The supporting protrusion 24 is located on the base section 214 and close to the extension section 215, and closer to the other supporting arm 2 than the vacuum suction cup 22 and the roller 23. In other words, the base section 214 has an inner side 214a adjacent to the other supporting arm 2, and the supporting protrusion 24 is located close to the inner side 214a.

[0022] See also Figure 4In this embodiment, the initial position of the carrying arm 2 is set to correspond to the distance between the two side walls B1 of the wafer transport box B, so that when the carrying arm 2 is inserted into the wafer transport box B, the carrying arm 2 is close to the side walls B1. Since the side walls B1 jointly support the wafer W, the parts of the wafer W on both sides supported by the side walls B1 will not deviate from the preset position due to warping and deformation. In this way, at the position close to the side walls B1, the spacing between adjacent wafers W can still maintain enough space for the carrying arm 2 to extend, and can avoid colliding with adjacent wafers W. When the carrying arm 2 is located at the initial position and extends into the wafer transport box B to reach the position, the carrying arm 2 is first moved slightly upward so that the carrying arm 2 is against the wafer W from bottom to top, and then the carrying arm 2 is moved toward each other to the working position. When the carrying arm 2 reaches the working position, the vacuum suction cup 22 starts to operate to vacuum absorb the wafer W, and the wafer W is adsorbed and fixed on the carrying arm 2. After the wafer W is fixed, the carrying arm 2 is moved out of the wafer transport box B and the wafer W is transferred to a process equipment (not shown) for processing the wafer W.

[0023] In this embodiment, during the process of the carrying arm 2 moving to the working position, the roller 23 can be further used to reduce the friction resistance between the carrying arm 2 and the wafer W, and the wafer W with the center bent downward can be gradually lifted upward along the roller 23, and can be stably supported by the carrying arm 2. However, if the roller 23 is not provided, the carrying arm 2 can also avoid colliding with the adjacent wafer W when taking out the wafer W from the wafer transport box B.

[0024] In this embodiment, the parts of the vacuum chuck 22, the roller 23 and the supporting protrusion 24 that are used to contact the wafer W are all made of soft materials, and will not damage the wafer W. In the process of operating the wafer pick-and-place device 100 to take out the wafer W from the wafer transport box B, the depth of the carrying arm 2 extending into the wafer transport box B at the initial position can be adjusted according to the state of different wafers W. For example, when the deformation degree of the wafer W is large, the carrying arm 2 can be first inserted deeper into the wafer transport box B, and then the carrying arm 2 can be moved to the working position to more easily lift the middle part of the wafer W upward, and then the carrying arm 2 is retreated to an appropriate position so that the vacuum chuck 22 and the supporting protrusion 24 relative to the position of the wafer W can evenly support the wafer W, and then the vacuum chuck 22 starts to operate to adsorb and fix the wafer W.

[0025] In addition, see Figure 5 and Figure 6 In this embodiment, the vacuum suction cup 22 of each carrying arm 2 can be floatingly arranged on the arm body 21. Figure 5As shown, when no external force is applied (normal state), the height of the vacuum chuck 22 protruding from the upper surface 213 is lower than that of the roller 23, and as shown in FIG. Figure 6 The vacuum suction cup 22 shown can be lifted by an airflow so that the height of the vacuum suction cup 22 protruding from the upper surface 213 is higher than the roller 23. In this way, when the vacuum suction cup 22 is not in operation, the vacuum suction cup 22 is in a normal state and the height is lower than the roller 23, so that the vacuum suction cup 22 does not contact the wafer W, so as to further reduce the friction resistance between the carrying arm 2 and the wafer W. Specifically, the arm body 21 of each carrying arm 2 also has a suction cup receiving groove 216 for accommodating the vacuum suction cup 22 and a gas flow channel 217 connected to the suction cup receiving groove 216. The vacuum suction cup 22 can move up and down in the suction cup receiving groove 216, and the gas flow channel 217 is connected to an inflation and suction device (not shown). When the vacuum suction cup 22 is not in operation, the vacuum suction cup 22 is in a normal state. To operate the vacuum chuck 22, the gas flow channel 217 is first inflated to push the vacuum chuck 22 up through the airflow so that the vacuum chuck 22 contacts the wafer W. After the vacuum chuck 22 contacts and adsorbs the wafer W, the gas flow channel 217 is evacuated to further form a vacuum on the vacuum chuck 22 to adsorb the wafer W.

[0026] In summary, the carrying arm 2 can be extended into the wafer transport box B when in the initial position to avoid collision with the wafer W, and after the carrying arm 2 enters the wafer transport box B and then moves to the working position, it can effectively support the wafer W so as to smoothly take the wafer W out of the wafer transport box B, thereby reducing the probability of wafer retrieval failure and damage to the wafer W.

[0027] The above are merely embodiments of the present invention and should not be used to limit the scope of the present invention. That is, any simple equivalent changes and modifications made according to the claims and description of the present invention still fall within the scope of the present invention.

Claims

1. A wafer pick-and-place device, suitable for taking out wafers from a wafer transport box, characterized in that: The wafer pick-and-place device comprises: Driver module; and Two carrying arms are arranged on the driving module at intervals, and can be driven by the driving module to move between initial positions relatively far away from each other and working positions relatively close to each other, and can be operated to extend into the wafer transport box at the initial position, and move from the initial position to the working position to carry the wafer, each carrying arm includes an arm body extending from the driving module along an extending direction, and having a first end connected to the driving module, a second end located at the end of the arm body, and an upper surface extending from the first end to the second end and facing upward, A roller, which is disposed on the arm body, protrudes from the upper surface, and can rotate around an axis parallel to the extending direction, and is used to support the wafer and roll relative to the wafer during the movement of the carrying arm from the initial position to the working position. a vacuum suction cup which can be floatingly arranged on the arm body and protrudes from the upper surface and is located near the second end and the roller, and is used for adsorbing and fixing the wafer when the carrying arm is located at the working position; when no external force is applied, the height of the vacuum suction cup protruding from the upper surface is lower than the roller, and the vacuum suction cup can be lifted by airflow so that the height of the vacuum suction cup protruding from the upper surface is higher than the roller, and The supporting protrusion is arranged on the arm body and protrudes from the upper surface, and is used for supporting the wafer.

2. The wafer handling device according to claim 1, characterized in that: The roller is in an elongated strip shape and extends in the extending direction.

3. The wafer handling device according to claim 1, characterized in that: The arm body also has a base section extending from the first end, and an extension section extending from the base section to the second end, the upper surface is formed on the base section and the extension section, the width of the base section is greater than the extension section, the vacuum suction cup and the roller are located in the extension section, the supporting protrusion is located in the base section and close to the extension section, and is closer to another supporting arm than the vacuum suction cup and the roller.

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