Automatic loading and unloading equipment with wafer carrier

Abstract

The present application relates to a wafer loading and unloading automation work equipment with wafer carrier, comprising a feeding module, a positioning module and a taking and placing module. The feeding module comprises a first conveying element and a feeding gate. The positioning module is adjacent to the feeding module and is used for positioning a wafer conveyed from the feeding module through the first conveying element. The taking and placing module is adjacent to the positioning module and comprises a second conveying element, a carrier positioning element and a wafer carrier. The carrier positioning element is used for positioning a wafer conveyed from the positioning module through the second conveying element. The wafer carrier is used for carrying a wafer conveyed from the carrier positioning element through the second conveying element. Thus, the wafer loading and unloading automation work equipment with wafer carrier of the present application can automatically load and unload wafers, achieving high production efficiency.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention relates to an automated loading and unloading equipment with a wafer carrier, and more particularly to an automated loading and unloading equipment with a wafer carrier suitable for semiconductor processes. Background Technology

[0002] In semiconductor manufacturing, wafers undergo multiple processing steps. Before these steps, the wafers must be secured to a carrier to facilitate subsequent processing. However, current methods rely on manual operation to secure the wafers to the carrier, failing to automate the process. This leads to operational errors, low efficiency, and consequently, business losses or high production costs.

[0003] Driven by this, and in the spirit of active invention, the inventors sought an automated loading and unloading device with a wafer carrier that could solve or improve the above problems. After several research and experiments, they finally completed this invention. Summary of the Invention

[0004] The main objective of this invention is to provide an automated loading and unloading equipment with a wafer carrier, which significantly reduces the risk of human error and achieves high production efficiency through automated loading and unloading operations.

[0005] To achieve the above objectives, the automated loading and unloading equipment with a wafer carrier of the present invention includes a feeding module, a positioning module, and a pick-and-place module. The feeding module includes a first conveying element and a feeding gate, wherein the wafer to be processed is fed into the first conveying element through the feeding gate and then into the positioning module via the first conveying element. The positioning module is adjacent to the feeding module and is used to position a wafer conveyed from the feeding module through the first conveying element, so that the wafer can be positioned according to actual needs. The pick-and-place module is adjacent to the positioning module and includes a second conveying element and a carrier.

[0006] The device includes a positioning element and a wafer carrier. The positioning element is used to position the wafer conveyed from the positioning module through the second conveying element, so that the wafer can be positioned according to actual needs. The wafer carrier is used to carry the wafer conveyed from the positioning element through the second conveying element, thereby fixing the wafer on the wafer carrier for subsequent processing.

[0007] The aforementioned wafer carrier can be disposed on a platform and may include a carrier body, a fastening assembly, a gripper assembly, a support and guide assembly, and a suction cup assembly. The carrier body may include a carrier upper cover and a carrier lower base, which can correspondingly clamp or release a wafer; in other words, the wafer can be clamped between the carrier upper cover and the carrier lower base. The fastening assembly can be disposed on the platform and may include a fastening element and a fastening power source; the fastening element can correspondingly fasten or release the carrier lower base.

[0008] In addition, the gripper assembly can be disposed on the carrier stage and may include a gripper, a horizontal power source for the gripper, and a vertical power source for the gripper. The gripper can correspondingly grip or release the carrier cover. The horizontal power source for the gripper can drive the gripper to grip or release the carrier cover, while the vertical power source for the gripper can move the carrier cover held by the gripper closer to or further away from the carrier base, thereby facilitating the placement of the wafer between the carrier cover and the carrier base. The support and guidance assembly may include a support unit and a guidance unit. The support unit may include a support base and a support power source. The support base can correspondingly support or move away from the wafer, thereby supporting or releasing the wafer. The guidance unit may include a guide base and a guidance power source. The guide base can correspondingly guide or move away from the wafer, thereby guiding and positioning the wafer and placing it on the carrier base. The suction cup assembly may include a drive arm and a suction cup. The suction cup can correspondingly pick up or not pick up the wafer. When the suction cup picks up the wafer, it positions the wafer along the guide base and places it on the carrier base.

[0009] The first conveying element mentioned above can be a conveyor belt.

[0010] The second conveying element mentioned above can be a robotic arm.

[0011] The aforementioned automated loading and unloading equipment with wafer carriers can automatically fix wafers onto the carriers, completing automated loading and unloading operations. This significantly reduces human error and the risk of mistakes, helping to lower production costs and achieve high production efficiency.

[0012] The above overview and the following detailed description are illustrative in nature and are intended to further illustrate the scope of protection of the claims of this invention. Other objects and advantages of this invention will be set forth in the following description and drawings. Attached Figure Description

[0013] Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram of an automated loading and unloading equipment with a wafer carrier according to an embodiment of the present invention;

[0014] Figure 2 This is a top view of an automated loading and unloading equipment with a wafer carrier according to an embodiment of the present invention;

[0015] Figure 3This is a schematic diagram of a wafer carrier according to an embodiment of the present invention;

[0016] Figure 4 This is a side view of a wafer carrier according to an embodiment of the present invention;

[0017] Figure 5 This is a side view of a wafer carrier according to another embodiment of the present invention;

[0018] Figures 6 to 7 This is a schematic diagram of the main body of the support base according to an embodiment of the present invention;

[0019] Figures 8 to 10 This is a schematic diagram illustrating the operation of a support and guidance component according to an embodiment of the present invention;

[0020] Figures 11 to 23 This is a schematic diagram illustrating the operation of a wafer carrier according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0021] 1-Feeding Module

[0022] 11-First conveying element

[0023] 12-Feed gate

[0024] 2-Positioning Module

[0025] 3-Pick-and-place module

[0026] 31-Second Conveying Element

[0027] 32-Bearing seat positioning component

[0028] 33-Wafer Carrier

[0029] 331-Platform

[0030] 332-Bearing seat body

[0031] 3321-Bearing Top Cover

[0032] 3322-Bearing Lower Seat

[0033] 333-Snap-fit ​​Assembly

[0034] 3331-Fastening Part

[0035] 3332-Activation Power Source

[0036] 334-Gripper Assembly

[0037] 3341-Claw

[0038] 3342-Gripper Horizontal Power Source

[0039] 3343-Gripper Vertical Power Source

[0040] 335-Support Guidance Components

[0041] 3351-Support Unit

[0042] 33511-Support Base

[0043] 33512 - Supporting Power Source

[0044] 3352-Guidance Unit

[0045] 33521-Guide Seat

[0046] 33522-Guided Power Source

[0047] 336-Suction Cup Assembly

[0048] 3361-Drive Arm

[0049] 3362-Suction Cup

[0050] 337-Positioning Component

[0051] 7-Wafer

[0052] 100 - Automated loading and unloading equipment with wafer carriers Detailed Implementation

[0053] Please see Figures 1 to 2 The figures show a schematic diagram and a top view of an automated loading and unloading equipment with a wafer carrier according to an embodiment of the present invention. The automated loading and unloading equipment 100 with a wafer carrier includes a feeding module 1, a positioning module 2, and a pick-and-place module 3. The feeding module 1 includes a first conveying element 11 and a feeding gate 12, wherein the wafer 7 to be processed is fed into the first conveying element 11 through the feeding gate 12 and then into the positioning module 2 via the first conveying element 11.

[0054] Furthermore, the positioning module 2, adjacent to the feeding module 1, is used to position a wafer 7 conveyed from the feeding module 1 via the first conveying element 11, allowing the wafer 7 to be positioned according to actual needs. The pick-and-place module 3, adjacent to the positioning module 2, includes a second conveying element 31, a carrier positioning element 32, and a wafer carrier 33. The carrier positioning element 32 is used to position the wafer 7 conveyed from the positioning module 2 via the second conveying element 31, allowing the wafer 7 to be positioned according to actual needs. The wafer carrier 33 is used to support the wafer 7 conveyed from the carrier positioning element 32 via the second conveying element 31, thereby fixing the wafer 7 onto the wafer carrier 33 for subsequent processing. In this embodiment, the first conveying element 11 is a conveyor belt, and the second conveying element 31 is a robotic arm.

[0055] Please see Figures 3 to 5These figures are a schematic diagram, a side view, and a side view from another perspective of a wafer carrier according to an embodiment of the present invention. The figures show a wafer carrier 33 disposed on a stage 331, wherein the wafer carrier 33 includes a carrier body 332, two fastening components 333, two gripper components 334, two support and guide components 335, a suction cup component 336, and three positioning elements 337 (e.g., ...). Figure 11 (As shown). The carrier body 332 includes a carrier upper cover 3321 and a carrier lower base 3322. The carrier upper cover 3321 and the carrier lower base 3322 can correspondingly clamp or release the wafer 7. In other words, the wafer 7 can be clamped between the carrier upper cover 3321 and the carrier lower base 3322. The fastening assembly 333 is disposed on the stage 331 and includes a fastening member 3331 and a fastening power source 3332. The fastening member 3331 can correspondingly fasten or release the carrier lower base 3322. The gripper assembly 334 is disposed on the stage 331 and includes a gripper 3341, a gripper horizontal power source 3342 and a gripper vertical power source 3343. The gripper 3341 can grip or release the carrier cover 3321. The gripper horizontal power source 3342 can drive the gripper 3341 to grip or release the carrier cover 3321, while the gripper vertical power source 3343 can make the carrier cover 3321 gripped by the gripper 3341 move closer to or further away from the carrier lower seat 3322, so as to facilitate the placement of the wafer 7 between the carrier cover 3321 and the carrier lower seat 3322. The support and guidance assembly 335 includes a support unit 3351 and a guidance unit 3352. The support unit 3351 includes a support base 33511 and a support power source 33512. The support base 33511 can support or move away from the wafer 7, thereby supporting or releasing the wafer 7. The guidance unit 3352 includes a guide base 33521 and a guidance power source 33522. The guide base 33521 can guide or move away from the wafer 7, thereby guiding and positioning the wafer 7 and placing it on the support base 3322. The suction cup assembly 336 includes a drive arm 3361 and a suction cup 3362. The suction cup 3362 can pick up or not pick up the wafer 7. When the suction cup 3362 picks up the wafer 7, it positions the wafer 7 along the guide base 33521 and places it on the support base 3322.

[0056] In this embodiment, the suction cup 3362 is a Bernoulli suction cup, the engaging power source 3332 is a rotary cylinder, and the horizontal power source 3342, the vertical power source 3343, the supporting power source 33512, and the guiding power source 33522 are all pneumatic cylinders.

[0057] Please see Figures 11 to 23 These are schematic diagrams illustrating the operation of a wafer carrier according to an embodiment of the present invention. Please also refer to... Figures 6 to 7 as well as Figures 8 to 10These are schematic diagrams of the main body of the wafer carrier according to an embodiment of the present invention and the operation schematic diagram of the support and guide assembly according to an embodiment of the present invention, respectively. In the method of using the wafer carrier of the present invention, the wafer carrier 33, as described above, includes the carrier body 332, the fastening assembly 333, the gripper assembly 334, the support and guide assembly 335, the suction cup assembly 336, the wafer 7, and the positioning member 337, and therefore will not be described again here. The method of using the wafer carrier of the present invention includes the following steps (A) to (M).

[0058] Please see Figure 11 Step (A) positions the carrier body 332 on the platform 331. More specifically, the carrier body 332 is disposed on three positioning members 337 located on the platform 331, and step (B) is performed.

[0059] Please see Figure 12 Step (B) engages the power source 3332 to drive the fastening component 3331, so that the fastening component 3331 engages the bearing lower seat 3322 to fix the bearing lower seat 3322, and then executes step (C).

[0060] Please see Figure 13 In step (C), the horizontal power source 3342 of the gripper extends the gripper 3341 forward, so that the gripper 3341 clamps the upper cover 3321, and then step (D) is executed.

[0061] Please see Figure 14 In step (D), the vertical power source 3343 of the gripper lifts the gripper 3341 and the horizontal power source 3342 of the gripper upwards, so that the upper cover 3321 of the bearing is moved away from the lower support 3322 of the bearing (e.g., Figure 4 (as shown), and perform step (E);

[0062] Please see Figure 15 See also Figures 8 to 10 In step (E), the support power source 33512 extends forward to the support seat 33511, and the guide power source 33522 extends forward to the guide seat 33521, so that the support seat 33511 and the guide seat 33521 simultaneously retract from their retracted state (e.g., Figure 8 As shown, it becomes an extended state (as shown). Figure 9 (as shown), and perform step (F);

[0063] Please see Figure 16 In step (F), wafer 7 is placed on support 33511. At this time, wafer 7 is positioned between support upper cover 3321 and support lower base 3322, and step (G) is performed.

[0064] Please see Figure 17In step (G), the drive arm 3361 drives the chuck 3362 to descend and pick up the wafer 7 (not shown), and then performs step (H).

[0065] Please see Figure 18 In step (H), the power source 33512 retracts to the support seat 33511, while the guide seat 33521 remains extended forward. At this time, the states of the support seat 33511 and the guide seat 33521 are as follows: Figure 10 As shown, and perform step (I);

[0066] Please see Figure 19 In step (I), the drive arm 3361 drives the chuck 3362 to lower the wafer 7 (not shown) along the guide seat 33521 and place it on the carrier seat 3322, thereby positioning the wafer 7 (not shown) on the carrier seat 3322 and performing step (J).

[0067] Please see Figure 20 In step (J), the chuck 3362 (not shown) does not pick up the wafer 7. The drive arm 3361 (not shown) drives the chuck 3362 (not shown) to rise away from the wafer 7. The guide power source 33522 retracts the guide seat 33521, so that the support seat 33511 and the guide seat 33521 are simultaneously in the retracted state (e.g., Figure 8 (as shown), and perform step (K);

[0068] Please see Figure 21 In step (K), the vertical power source 3343 lowers the gripper 3341 downwards, causing the upper bearing cover 3321 to close the lower bearing seat 3322 (as shown in the image). Figure 7 As shown), the wafer 7 is clamped between the upper support cover 3321 and the lower support base 3322, and step (L) is executed.

[0069] Please see Figure 22 In step (L), the horizontal power source 3342 of the gripper retracts the gripper 3341, causing the gripper 3341 to loosen from the bearing cover 3321, and then step (M) is executed.

[0070] Please see Figure 23 Step (M) engages the power source 3332 to drive the fastening component 3331, causing the fastening component 3331 to loosen from the bearing lower seat 3322, so that the bearing seat body 332 clamps the wafer 7.

[0071] Steps (A) to (M) above describe the method of placing the wafer 7 on the carrier body 332. Reversing the above steps can release the wafer 7 clamped on the carrier body 332.

[0072] Therefore, the automated loading and unloading equipment with wafer carrier described in the above embodiments can operate automatically. By automating loading and unloading operations, the risk of human error and mistakes is greatly reduced, which helps to reduce production costs and achieve high production efficiency.

[0073] The above embodiments are merely illustrative examples for ease of explanation. The claims asserted in this invention should be interpreted as described in the claims, and not limited to the above embodiments.

Claims

1. An automated loading and unloading equipment with a wafer carrier, comprising: A feeding module includes a first conveying element and a feeding gate; A positioning module, adjacent to the feeding module, is used to position a wafer conveyed from the feeding module through the first conveying element; and A pick-and-place module, adjacent to the positioning module, includes a second conveying element, a carrier positioning element, and a wafer carrier. The carrier positioning element is used to position the wafer conveyed from the positioning module via the second conveying element. The wafer carrier is used to carry the wafer conveyed from the carrier positioning element via the second conveying element. The wafer carrier is disposed on a platform and includes: a carrier body, a fastening assembly, a gripper assembly, a support and guide assembly, and a suction cup assembly. The carrier body includes a carrier upper cover and a carrier lower base, which can correspondingly clamp or release the wafer. The fastening assembly is disposed on the platform. On the platform, there is a fastening component and a fastening power source, which can fasten or release the lower support of the carrier; the gripper assembly is disposed on the platform and includes a gripper, a gripper horizontal power source and a gripper vertical power source, which can grip or release the upper support cover; the support and guide assembly includes a support unit and a guide unit, the support unit includes a support base and a support power source, the support base can support or move away from the wafer, and the guide unit includes a guide base and a guide power source, the guide base can guide or move away from the wafer; the suction cup assembly includes a drive arm and a suction cup, which can pick up or not pick up the wafer.

2. The automated loading and unloading equipment with a wafer carrier as described in claim 1, wherein the first conveying element is a conveyor belt.

3. The automated loading and unloading equipment with a wafer carrier as described in claim 1, wherein the second conveying element is a robotic arm.

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