A fault scheduling method for dual-arm robot combined equipment in wafer processing

Abstract

The present invention discloses a dual-arm robot two-combination equipment fault scheduling method in wafer processing. First, a dual-arm robot two-combination equipment system is constructed, which includes a first combination equipment, a second combination equipment and a vacuum lock; the first combination equipment and the second combination equipment are used to process the wafer, and it is determined whether the first combination equipment or the second combination equipment fails; a linear programming model and a nonlinear programming model are constructed, if the first combination equipment fails, the linear programming model is used to solve the action time of the first combination equipment, if the second combination equipment fails, the nonlinear programming model is used to solve the action time of the second combination equipment; finally, according to the action time of the combination equipment solved by the linear programming model or the nonlinear programming model, the scheduling order of the wafer is obtained, and based on the scheduling order, the wafer is transported back to the vacuum lock. The problem that the robot is difficult to schedule when the processing module fails is effectively solved, and the loss of wafers is reduced.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to the technical field of semiconductor chip manufacturing, and in particular to a fault scheduling method for dual-arm robot dual-combination equipment in wafer processing. Background Art

[0002] Wafers are silicon wafer carriers for manufacturing semiconductor chips. The semiconductor chip manufacturing industry uses two-combination equipment to perform most wafer processing processes. Adjacent combination equipment is connected and integrated into a two-combination equipment system through a buffer module (BM). Each combination equipment consists of 4-6 processing modules (PM) and a robot responsible for transporting wafers between processing modules. There are two types of robot configurations: one has a robot arm that can only grab one wafer; the other has two robot arms, each of which can grab one wafer. In the two-combination equipment, one combination equipment is equipped with a vacuum lock (LLs) cassette to input raw wafers and output processed wafers. The two-combination equipment system is equipped with two robots, which need to coordinate the operations of the two robots during operation, which makes the scheduling of the robots complicated. In addition, the wafer processing process is handled in a high-temperature environment. For example, the low-pressure chemical vapor deposition process requires that the wafer must be removed by the robot within a short time after the processing is completed. Otherwise, the surface of the wafer is easily damaged by the high-temperature gas and scrapped. This is called the wafer residence time constraint, which makes the scheduling of the robot more difficult. Moreover, since the scheduling of the two-combination equipment requires the synchronization of the two robots, the existing scheduling algorithm for single-combination equipment cannot be applied to the two-combination equipment.

[0003] When the existing two-combination equipment operates in normal steady state, the wafer processing path is LLs→PM1,1→PM1,2→PM1,3(PM2,0)→PM2,1→PM2,2→PM2,3→PM2,4→PM2,0(PM1,3)→PM1,4→PM1,5→LLs, where PM1,1, PM1,2, PM1,3, PM1,4 and PM1,5 represent processing modules (PM) on the first combination equipment, PM2,0 represents the processing module (PM) in the buffer module, and PM2,1, PM2,2, PM2,3 and PM2,4 represent the processing modules (PM) on the second combination equipment; when a processing module (PM) fails, all wafers need to be returned to the vacuum locks LLs in the shortest time and the wafer residence time constraint must be met to minimize the loss of work-in-progress wafers. However, it is uncertain which assembly equipment and step of the assembly equipment the failed processing module (PM) is located in, and the time when it occurs is also random. Compared with the scheduling of steady-state processes, for some robots, more work-in-progress wafers need to be transported in a short period of time after a processing module (PM) fails. If the scheduling is improper, some robots may become too busy and cause deadlock or scrap more wafers. Therefore, when a processing module (PM) fails, the robot scheduling of the two-assembly equipment system is extremely difficult. Summary of the invention

[0004] In order to solve the problem in the existing semiconductor processing technology that when a processing module fails, the robot scheduling of a two-combination equipment system is difficult, resulting in too many scrapped wafers, the present invention proposes a fault scheduling method for a dual-arm robot two-combination equipment in wafer processing, which can effectively solve the problem of the robot being difficult to schedule when a processing module fails, and reduce the loss of wafers.

[0005] To achieve the purpose of the present invention, the present invention adopts the following technical solutions:

[0006] A method for fault scheduling of dual-arm robot combined equipment in wafer processing comprises the following steps:

[0007] S1: constructing a dual-arm robot two-assembly equipment system, wherein the dual-arm robot two-assembly equipment system comprises a first assembly equipment and a second assembly equipment;

[0008] S2: Processing the wafer using the first combined device and the second combined device, and determining whether the first combined device or the second combined device fails;

[0009] S3: constructing a linear programming model and a nonlinear programming model. If the first combined device fails, the linear programming model is used to solve the action time of the first combined device. If the second combined device fails, the nonlinear programming model is used to solve the action time of the second combined device. The action time represents the time of unloading, moving and loading the wafer.

[0010] S4: Obtain the scheduling order of the wafers according to the action timing of the combined equipment solved by the linear programming model or the nonlinear programming model.

[0011] In the above technical scheme, the problem of wafer processing is considered, a dual-arm robot two-combination equipment system is constructed, and the first combination equipment and the second combination equipment in the dual-arm robot two-combination equipment system are used to process the wafer; in the process of determining the first combination equipment or the second combination equipment, the constructed linear programming model or the nonlinear programming model can solve the action time of the first combination equipment and the second combination equipment in the process of processing the wafer, and the scheduling sequence of the wafer is obtained based on the obtained action time, and the wafer is processed according to the scheduling sequence to avoid deadlock between the first combination equipment and the second combination equipment, minimize the time of the termination state stage after the combination equipment fails, effectively solve the problem of difficulty in scheduling the robot when the processing module fails, and reduce the loss of wafers.

[0012] Furthermore, in the dual-arm robot two-combination equipment system described in step S1, a vacuum lock is also included, and the vacuum lock is used to store wafers;

[0013] The first combined device and the second combined device are both provided with a processing module, a buffer module, a dual-arm robot and a central controller, wherein the first combined device and the second combined device are connected via the buffer module, and there are multiple processing modules on the first combined device and the second combined device, and the processing modules include sensors;

[0014] The processing module is used to process wafers, the buffer module is used to store wafers processed by the processing module, the dual-arm robot is used to transport wafers, the sensor is used to send a fault signal to the central controller, and the central controller is used to control the operation of the dual-arm robot according to the fault signal.

[0015] Furthermore, the specific process of processing the wafer using the first combined device and the second combined device in step S2 is:

[0016] The dual-arm robot is used to unload the wafer from the vacuum lock to the processing module on the first combined device and the second combined device for processing. The wafer processing path meets the following requirements:

[0017] Vacuum lock→processing module on the first assembly device→buffer module→processing module on the second assembly device→buffer module→processing module on the first assembly device→vacuum lock.

[0018] Furthermore, the specific process of determining whether the first combination device or the second combination device fails in step S2 is:

[0019] Let N k ={1,2,…,k} represents a finite set of natural numbers, C i represents the i-th combined device, R i Indicates combined device C i The dual-arm robot, PM i,j Indicates combined device C i The jth processing module in ;

[0020] If the processing module PM i,j If a fault occurs, the processing module PM i,j The sensor in the vacuum lock will send out a fault signal, and the central controller on the combined equipment C1 will control the dual-arm robot R1 to stop unloading the wafer from the vacuum lock;

[0021] Among them, i∈N2, n i Indicates combined device C i The number of processing modules in

[0022] According to the above technical solution, the processing modules, buffer modules and dual-arm robots on the first combination equipment and the second combination equipment can process wafers according to the preset wafer processing path. When a processing module fails directly, the sensor in the processing module will send a fault message to the central controller on the combination equipment, causing the dual-arm robot R1 to stop unloading the raw wafers from the vacuum lock, thereby improving the production efficiency of the dual-arm robot two-combination equipment system and reducing the loss of finished wafers after a processing module fails.

[0023] Further, in step S3:

[0024] S31: If the combined device C i Processing module PM i,j If a failure occurs, it is determined whether the wafers in the buffer module enter the combination device C1 or the combination device C2;

[0025] S32: Get combined device C i The wafer number at the time of failure;

[0026] S33: Determine the processing module PM that has a fault i,jIn the combination device C1 or the combination device C2, if in the combination device C1, the action sequence of the dual-arm robot R1 and the dual-arm robot R2 is obtained; if in the combination device C2, the action sequence of the dual-arm robot R1 and the dual-arm robot R2 is obtained;

[0027] S34: Based on combined device C i At the moment of failure, the wafer number and the action sequence of the dual-arm robot R1 and the dual-arm robot R2 are used to solve the action time of the dual-arm robot R1 and the dual-arm robot R2 using a linear programming model; based on the combined device C i The wafer numbers and the action sequence of the dual-arm robots R1 and R2 at the time of the failure are solved by using a nonlinear programming model. Based on the action moments of the dual-arm robots R1 and R2, the scheduling sequence of the wafers is obtained. Based on the scheduling sequence, the dual-arm robots R1 and R2 are used to transport the wafers back to the vacuum lock for storage.

[0028] The action sequence is represented in the combination device C i When a processing module fails, the dual-arm robot R1 and the dual-arm robot R2 unload, move and load wafers in this action sequence.

[0029] The specific process of determining whether the wafer in the buffer module enters the assembly device C1 or the assembly device C2 in step S31 is as follows:

[0030] Let T0 represent the time when the processing module fails; let after time T0, the dual-arm robot R i The first wafer unloading action is executed at T i , i∈N2;

[0031] Algorithm 1 is designed to determine the wafer flow direction in the buffer module after the processing module fails. The input of Algorithm 1 is:

[0032]

[0033] Get the output m of Algorithm 1;

[0034] If m=1, it means that the dual-arm robot R1 unloads the wafers in the buffer module to the combination equipment C1;

[0035] If m=-1, it means that the dual-arm robot R2 unloads the wafers in the buffer module to the combination equipment C2;

[0036] Among them, ω i,j Represents a dual-arm robot R i Waiting time before unloading the wafer, ω i ' ,jRepresents a dual-arm robot R i Waiting time before loading wafer.

[0037] Step S32 of obtaining the combined device C i The specific process of wafer numbering at the time of failure is as follows:

[0038] Let T0 represent the time when the processing module fails; let after time T0, the dual-arm robot R i The first unloading wafer action is executed at time T i , i∈N2;

[0039] Algorithm 2 is designed to obtain the wafer number of the combined equipment at time T0. The input of Algorithm 2 is:

[0040] n1,n2,b,g,h,e,f,m,z;

[0041] The output of Algorithm 2 is:

[0042]

[0043] Wherein, n1 represents the number of processing modules in the combined device C1, n2 represents the number of processing modules in the combined device C2, b represents the buffer module number of the combined device C1, Indicates the module number of the dual-arm robot R1 unloading the wafer in the combination equipment C1 at time T1, represents the module number of the dual-arm robot R2 unloading the wafer in the combination device C2 at time T2, e represents the number of the faulty module in the case of a fault in the combination device C1, f represents the number of the faulty module in the case of a fault in the combination device C2, m represents the output parameter of Algorithm 1, z represents the total number of wafers in the processing module and held by the robot at time T0, A i Indicates processing module PM 1,j The wafer number in B j Indicates processing module PM 2,j In the figure, r1 represents the wafer number on the dual-arm robot R1, r2 represents the wafer number on the dual-arm robot R2, a represents the wafer number in the faulty processing module, c represents the minimum wafer number in the combined device C2, d represents the maximum wafer number in the combined device C2, c∈N z , d∈N z .

[0044] In step S33:

[0045] If a fault occurs in the processing module PM i,j In the combined device C1, the process of obtaining the action sequence of the dual-arm robot R1 and the dual-arm robot R2 is:

[0046] PM 1,e Indicates the processing module on the assembly C1 that has failed. After the processing module on the assembly C1 fails, the dual-arm robot R1 stops unloading the wafer from the vacuum lock to the processing module PM. 1,1 , wafers from the processing module PM 1,1 Processing to Processing Module PM 1,e-1 Stop processing and use the dual-arm robot R1 to start from the processing module PM 1,e-1 After the wafers in the combined equipment C2 are processed, the dual-arm robot R2 transports the wafers in the combined equipment C2 to the buffer module, and then the dual-arm robot R1 directly unloads the wafers from the buffer module to the vacuum lock for storage;

[0047] If a fault occurs in the processing module PM i,j In the combined device C2, the process of obtaining the action sequence of the dual-arm robot R2 and the dual-arm robot R1 is:

[0048] PM 1,b Indicates the buffer module number of the combined device C1, PM 2,f Indicates the processing module on the assembly equipment C2 that has failed. After the processing module on the assembly equipment C2 fails, the dual-arm robot R1 stops unloading the wafer from the vacuum lock to the processing module PM. 1,1 , processing module PM in combination equipment C1 1,1 The wafers on the processing module PM continue to be processed 1,b-1 , and then use the dual-arm robot R1 from the processing module PM 1,b-1 The wafer is unloaded to the vacuum lock for storage, and the wafer in the combined equipment C2 continues to be processed to the processing module PM 2,f-1 , and then use the dual-arm robot R2 to process the PM 2,f-1 The wafers are unloaded into the buffer module, and then the dual-arm robot R1 unloads the wafers from the buffer module into the vacuum lock for storage.

[0049] The process of solving the action time of the dual-arm robot R1 by using the linear programming model in step S34 satisfies:

[0050] Wafer processing module PM 1,j The processing time α i,j Satisfies the expression:

[0051] α i,j ≤u i,j,k -(t i,j,k +β1)≤α i,j +δ i,j ;

[0052] After the processing module fails, the dual-arm robot Ri The expression for the time of unloading wafers, loading wafers and the time of loading the last wafer into the vacuum lock is:

[0053]

[0054]

[0055] Among them, δ i,j Indicates that the wafer is allowed to be processed in the PM module i,j Maximum residence time after processing, t i,j,k (i∈N2,j∈N ni ,k∈N z ) represents a dual-arm robot R i Loading wafer W k Enter the processing module PM i,j The beginning moment, Represents a dual-arm robot R i From the processing module PM i,j The start time of unloading wafer, β i Represents a dual-arm robot R i The time required to load or unload the wafer. a represents the processing module PM where the failure occurs. i,j b represents the number of the buffer module in the combined device C1, c represents the minimum number of the wafers in the combined device C2, d represents the maximum number of the wafers in the combined device C2, c∈N z , d∈N z .

[0056] The process of solving the action time of the dual-arm robot R2 by using the nonlinear programming model in step S34 satisfies:

[0057] Wafer processing module PM 1,j The processing time α i,j Satisfies the expression:

[0058] α i,j ≤u i,j,k -(t i,j,k +β1)≤α i,j +δ i,j ;

[0059] After the processing module fails, the dual-arm robot R i The expression for the time of unloading wafers, loading wafers and the time of loading the last wafer into the vacuum lock is:

[0060]

[0061]

[0062] t 1,0,k =u 1,b,k +β1+μ1k∈N d \N a-1 ;

[0063] Based on the action moment of the dual-arm robot, the optimal solution of the transient termination process of the dual-arm robot two-combination equipment system is obtained.

[0064] In the above technical scheme, when a processing module fails, it is first determined whether the wafers in the buffer module flow to the first combination device or the second combination device at the time of the failure, and the distribution of the wafers on the combination device is obtained, and the wafers are numbered to facilitate recording of the wafers on the combination device after the failure. Then, it is determined whether the failed processing module is on the first combination device or the second combination device, and the action sequence sequence of the dual-arm robot R1 and the dual-arm robot R2 is obtained. Then, a linear programming model or a nonlinear programming model can be used to solve the action moments of the first combination device and the second combination device. Based on the obtained action moments, the optimal solution for the transient termination process of the dual-arm robot two-combination device system is obtained, and then the scheduling sequence of the wafers is obtained. According to the scheduling sequence, the wafers are transported back to the vacuum lock to avoid deadlock between the first combination device and the second combination device, minimize the time of the termination state stage after the combination device fails, effectively solve the problem of difficulty in scheduling robots when the processing module fails, and reduce wafer loss.

[0065] Compared with the prior art, the present invention has the following beneficial effects:

[0066] The present invention proposes a dual-arm robot two-assembly equipment fault scheduling method in wafer processing, taking into account the problem of processing module failure in the wafer processing process, constructing a dual-arm robot two-assembly equipment system, and utilizing the first assembly equipment and the second assembly equipment in the dual-arm robot two-assembly equipment system to process the wafer; determining that during the wafer processing process, if a faulty module occurs in the first assembly equipment or the second assembly equipment, the constructed linear programming model or the nonlinear programming model can solve the action time of the first assembly equipment and the second assembly equipment, and the scheduling sequence of the wafers is obtained based on the obtained action time, and the wafers are transported back to the vacuum lock according to the scheduling sequence, so as to avoid deadlock between the first assembly equipment and the second assembly equipment, minimize the time of the termination state stage after the assembly equipment fails, effectively solve the problem that the robot is difficult to schedule when the processing module fails, and reduce the loss of wafers. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0067] Figure 1 A flowchart of a method for fault scheduling of a dual-arm robot and a dual-combination device in wafer processing provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0068] Figure 2A schematic diagram of a steady-state process of a dual-arm robot 2-combination device provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0069] Figure 3 A schematic diagram of a processing module provided in an embodiment of the present application failing in a first assembly device;

[0070] Figure 4 A schematic diagram of a processing module provided in an embodiment of the present application failing in a second combination device. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0071] In order to facilitate the understanding of the present invention, the present invention will be described more fully below with reference to the relevant drawings. Preferred embodiments of the present invention are provided in the drawings. However, the present invention can be implemented in many different forms and is not limited to the embodiments described herein. On the contrary, the purpose of providing these embodiments is to make the understanding of the disclosure of the present invention more thorough and comprehensive.

[0072] Unless otherwise defined, all technical and scientific terms used herein have the same meaning as those commonly understood by those skilled in the art of the present invention. The terms used herein in the specification of the present invention are only for the purpose of describing specific embodiments and are not intended to limit the present invention. The term "and / or" used herein includes any and all combinations of one or more related listed items.

[0073] Embodiment 1:

[0074] This embodiment provides a dual-arm robot two-combination equipment fault scheduling method in wafer processing, see Figure 1 , including the following steps:

[0075] S1: constructing a dual-arm robot two-assembly equipment system, wherein the dual-arm robot two-assembly equipment system comprises a first assembly equipment and a second assembly equipment;

[0076] S2: Processing the wafer using the first combined device and the second combined device, and determining whether the first combined device or the second combined device fails;

[0077] S3: constructing a linear programming model and a nonlinear programming model. If the first combined device fails, the linear programming model is used to solve the action time of the first combined device. If the second combined device fails, the nonlinear programming model is used to solve the action time of the second combined device. The action time represents the time of unloading, moving and loading the wafer.

[0078] S4: Obtain the scheduling order of the wafers according to the action timing of the combined equipment solved by the linear programming model or the nonlinear programming model.

[0079] In this embodiment, taking a dual-arm robot 2-combination equipment system as an example, considering the problem of wafer processing, a dual-arm robot 2-combination equipment system is constructed, and the wafer is processed by using the first combination equipment and the second combination equipment in the dual-arm robot 2-combination equipment system; in the process of processing the wafer, it is determined that if the first combination equipment or the second combination equipment, the constructed linear programming model or nonlinear programming model can solve the action time of the first combination equipment and the second combination equipment, the scheduling sequence of the wafer is obtained based on the obtained action time, and the wafer is transported back to the vacuum lock according to the scheduling sequence to avoid deadlock between the first combination equipment and the second combination equipment, minimize the time of the termination state stage after the combination equipment fails, effectively solve the problem of difficulty in scheduling the robot when the processing module fails, and reduce the loss of wafers.

[0080] Embodiment 2:

[0081] This embodiment further describes step S1 to step S2 in the first embodiment. This embodiment takes the dual-arm robot 2-combined equipment system as an example, and the specific description is as follows:

[0082] In the dual-arm robot two-combination equipment system described in step S1, a vacuum lock is also included, and the vacuum lock is used to store wafers;

[0083] The first combined device and the second combined device are both provided with a processing module, a buffer module, a dual-arm robot and a central controller, wherein the first combined device and the second combined device are connected via the buffer module, and there are multiple processing modules on the first combined device and the second combined device, and the processing modules include sensors;

[0084] The processing module is used to process wafers, the buffer module is used to store wafers processed by the processing module, the dual-arm robot is used to transport wafers, the sensor is used to send a fault signal to the central controller, and the central controller is used to control the operation of the dual-arm robot according to the fault signal.

[0085] See also Figure 2 The specific process of processing the wafer using the first combined device and the second combined device in step S2 is as follows:

[0086] The dual-arm robot is used to unload the wafer from the vacuum lock to the processing module on the first combined device and the second combined device for processing. The wafer processing path meets the following requirements:

[0087] Vacuum lock→processing module on the first assembly device→buffer module→processing module on the second assembly device→buffer module→processing module on the first assembly device→vacuum lock.

[0088] For example, see Figure 2, let LLs represent vacuum lock, C i represents the i-th combined device, R i Indicates combined device C i The dual-arm robot, PM i,j Indicates combined device C i For the jth processing module in , the path of the wafer processed on the first combined device and the second combined device satisfies:

[0089] LLs→PM 1,1 →PM 1,2 →PM 1,3 (PM 2,0 )→PM 2,1 →PM 2,2 →PM 2,3 →PM 2,4 →PM 2,0 (PM 1,3 )→PM 1,4 →PM 1,5 →LLs.

[0090] Let N k ={1,2,…,k} represents a finite set of natural numbers, C i represents the i-th combined device, R i Indicates combined device C i The dual-arm robot, PM i,j Indicates combined device C i The jth processing module in ;

[0091] In the dual-arm robot 2-combination equipment, each combination equipment is processing time-dominated and equipped with a dual-arm robot. Each process step is equipped with a processing module. Each processing module can only process one wafer at a time. All wafers use the same process sequence, that is, only one chip product is produced. There is no reentrant step. Except for the buffer module, the processing module has a wafer residence time constraint;

[0092] Set the wafer in the processing module PM i,j The maximum residence time is τ i,j , the expression that satisfies the dwell time constraint during wafer processing is:

[0093]

[0094] Among them, α i,j Indicates that the wafer is in the processing module PM i,j Processing time, δ i,j Indicates that the wafer is allowed to be processed in the PM module i,j Maximum residence time after processing, n i Indicates combined device C i The number of processing modules in

[0095] In this embodiment, a combined device C is provided. i Processing module PM i,j The process of processing wafers under normal circumstances.

[0096] Embodiment three:

[0097] This embodiment further describes steps S2 to S4 in the first embodiment. This embodiment takes the dual-arm robot 2-combination equipment system as an example, and the specific description is as follows:

[0098] The specific process of determining whether the first combined device or the second combined device fails in step S2 is as follows:

[0099] If the processing module PM i,j If a fault occurs, the processing module PM i,j The sensor in the vacuum lock will send out a fault signal, and the central controller on the combined equipment C1 will control the dual-arm robot R1 to stop unloading the wafer from the vacuum lock;

[0100] Among them, i∈N2, n i Indicates combined device C i The number of processing modules in

[0101] Understandably, the processing module PM i,j In case of failure, the processing module PM i,j The sensors in the combined device will send fault information to the central controller on the combined device, which will make the dual-arm robot R i Stop unloading raw wafers from vacuum locks, improve production efficiency of dual-arm robot 2-combination equipment system, and reduce the loss of finished wafers after processing module failure

[0102] In step S3:

[0103] S31: If the combined device C i Processing module PM i,j If a failure occurs, it is determined whether the wafers in the buffer module enter the combination device C1 or the combination device C2;

[0104] S32: Get combined device C i The wafer number at the time of failure;

[0105] S33: Determine the processing module PM that has a fault i,jIn the combination device C1 or the combination device C2, if in the combination device C1, the action sequence of the dual-arm robot R1 and the dual-arm robot R2 is obtained; if in the combination device C2, the action sequence of the dual-arm robot R2 and the dual-arm robot R1 is obtained;

[0106] S34: Based on combined device C i At the moment of failure, the wafer number and the action sequence of the dual-arm robot R1 and the dual-arm robot R2 are used to solve the action time of the dual-arm robot R1 and the dual-arm robot R2 using a linear programming model; based on the combined device C i The wafer numbers and the action sequence of the dual-arm robots R1 and R2 at the time of the failure are solved by using a nonlinear programming model. Based on the action moments of the dual-arm robots R1 and R2, the scheduling sequence of the wafers is obtained. Based on the scheduling sequence, the dual-arm robots R1 and R2 are used to transport the wafers back to the vacuum lock for storage.

[0107] The action sequence is represented in the combination device C i When a processing module fails, the dual-arm robot R1 and the dual-arm robot R2 unload, move and load wafers in this action sequence.

[0108] The specific process of determining whether the wafer in the buffer module enters the assembly device C1 or the assembly device C2 in step S31 is as follows:

[0109] Let T0 represent the time when the processing module fails; let after time T0, the dual-arm robot R i The first wafer unloading action is executed at T i , i∈N2;

[0110] Algorithm 1 is designed to determine the wafer flow direction in the buffer module after the processing module fails. The input of Algorithm 1 is:

[0111]

[0112] Get the output m of Algorithm 1;

[0113] If m=1, it means that the dual-arm robot R1 unloads the wafers in the buffer module to the combination equipment C1;

[0114] If m=-1, it means that the dual-arm robot R2 unloads the wafers in the buffer module to the combination equipment C2;

[0115] Among them, ω i,j Represents a dual-arm robot R i Waiting time before unloading the wafer, ω i ' ,jRepresents a dual-arm robot R i Waiting time before loading wafer, T0, T1, T2, θ, μ i ,λ i (i∈N2) are all known parameters.

[0116] In this embodiment, the designed algorithm 1 is as follows:

[0117]

[0118]

[0119] Step S32 of obtaining the combined device C i The specific process of wafer numbering at the time of failure is as follows:

[0120] Let T0 represent the time when the processing module fails; let after time T0, the dual-arm robot R i The first unloading wafer action is executed at time T i , i∈N2;

[0121] Algorithm 2 is designed to obtain the wafer number of the combined equipment at time T0. The input of Algorithm 2 is:

[0122] n1,n2,b,g,h,e,f,m,z;

[0123] The output of Algorithm 2 is:

[0124]

[0125] Wherein, n1 represents the number of processing modules in the combined device C1, n2 represents the number of processing modules in the combined device C2, b represents the buffer module number of the combined device C1, Indicates the module number of the dual-arm robot R1 unloading the wafer in the combination equipment C1 at time T1, represents the module number of the dual-arm robot R2 unloading the wafer in the combination device C2 at time T2, e represents the number of the faulty module in the case of a fault in the combination device C1, f represents the number of the faulty module in the case of a fault in the combination device C2, m represents the output parameter of Algorithm 1, z represents the total number of wafers in the processing module and held by the robot at time T0, z=n1+n2+1 or z=n1+n2+2, A i Indicates processing module PM 1,j The wafer number in B j Indicates processing module PM 2,jIn the figure, r1 represents the wafer number on the dual-arm robot R1, r2 represents the wafer number on the dual-arm robot R2, a represents the wafer number in the faulty processing module, c represents the minimum wafer number in the combined device C2, d represents the maximum wafer number in the combined device C2, c∈N z , d∈N z .

[0126] In this embodiment, the designed algorithm 2 is as follows:

[0127]

[0128]

[0129] In step S33:

[0130] Designing Algorithm 3 for obtaining the action sequence of the dual-arm robot when the processing module of the combined device C1 fails and Algorithm 4 for obtaining the action sequence of the dual-arm robot when the processing module of the combined device C2 fails;

[0131] like Figure 3 As mentioned above, if a fault occurs in the processing module PM i,j In the combined device C1, the process of obtaining the action sequence of the dual-arm robot R1 and the dual-arm robot R2 using Algorithm 3 is as follows:

[0132] PM 1,e Indicates the processing module on the assembly equipment C1 that has failed. After the processing module on the assembly equipment C1 fails, the dual-arm robot R1 stops unloading the raw wafer from the vacuum lock to the processing module PM. 1,1 , wafers from the processing module PM 1,1 Processing to Processing Module PM 1,e-1 Stop processing and use the dual-arm robot R1 to start from the processing module PM 1,e-1 The wafers are unloaded into the vacuum lock for storage; after the wafers in the combination equipment C2 are processed, the dual-arm robot R2 transports the wafers in the combination equipment C2 to the buffer module, and then the dual-arm robot R1 unloads the wafers directly from the buffer module into the vacuum lock for storage.

[0133] For example, see Figure 3 , dual-arm robot 2-combination equipment in processing module PM 1,3 A malfunction occurred and the dual-arm robot R1 stopped unloading the raw wafers from the vacuum lock to the processing module PM 1,1 , wafers from the processing module PM 1,1 Processing to Processing Module PM 1,2 Stop processing and use the dual-arm robot R1 to start from the processing module PM 1,2The wafers are unloaded into the vacuum lock for storage, and the processed wafers from the combination equipment C2 enter the PM 2,0 (PM 1,2 ) will be unloaded by robot R1 and transported to vacuum locks (LLs) for storage.

[0134] In this embodiment, the designed algorithm 3 is as follows:

[0135]

[0136]

[0137]

[0138] Among them, the output parameter w represents the number of wafers unloaded in C1, and the array D i and E i (i∈N w ) respectively represent the module number of the combined equipment C1 and the number of the wafer unloaded by R1 corresponding to the time T1; F j represents the wafer number in array E, And j∈N x ; Wafer Process according to the normal path, and continue to load the wafer into the next module after it is unloaded; H k (k∈N y ) indicates the number of the wafer that is returned to the vacuum lock after being unloaded. L m (m∈N l ) represents the number of the wafer that the robot unloads after unloading a wafer into the vacuum lock, and the corresponding element in array E

[0139] In the combined device C2, P i Indicates the module number of C2, Q i Indicates that the slave module The wafer number to be unloaded; v represents the number of elements in arrays P and Q, i.e., the number of wafer unloading actions in C2; the numbers in array Q correspond to the following wafers: 1) r wafers are unloaded by H j (j∈N r )=Q i 1) After unloading, s wafers are transported to the buffer module, which is numbered S. j (j∈N s )=Q i ; 3) o wafers are unloaded by R2 (after R2 loads the wafers into the buffer), and its number is O j (j∈N o )=Q i; It can be seen that the output of Algorithm 3 provides detailed information of the wafer path.

[0140] See also Figure 4 If a fault occurs in the processing module PM i,j In the combined device C2, the process of using Algorithm 4 to obtain the action sequence of the dual-arm robot R2 and the dual-arm robot R1 is:

[0141] PM 1,b Indicates the buffer module number of the combined device C1, PM 2,f Indicates the processing module on the assembly equipment C2 that has failed. After the processing module on the assembly equipment C2 fails, the dual-arm robot R1 stops unloading the wafer from the vacuum lock to the processing module PM. 1,1 , processing module PM in combination equipment C1 1,1 The wafers on the processing module PM continue to be processed 1,b-1 , and then use the dual-arm robot R1 from the processing module PM 1,b-1 The wafer is unloaded to the vacuum lock for storage, and the wafer in the combined equipment C2 continues to be processed to the processing module PM 2,f-1 , and then use the dual-arm robot R2 to process the PM 2,f-1 The wafers are unloaded into the buffer module, and then the dual-arm robot R1 unloads the wafers from the buffer module into the vacuum lock for storage.

[0142] For example, see Figure 4 , dual-arm robot 2-combination equipment in processing module PM 2,3 A malfunction occurred and the dual-arm robot R1 stopped unloading the raw wafers from the vacuum lock to the processing module PM 1,1 , wafer processing to processing module PM 1,1 Stop processing and use the dual-arm robot R1 to start from the processing module PM 1,1 The wafer is unloaded into the vacuum lock for storage, and the wafer continues to be processed in the combination equipment C2 to the processing module PM 2,2 , and then use the dual-arm robot R2 to process the PM 2,2 The wafers are unloaded into the buffer module, and then the dual-arm robot R1 unloads the wafers from the buffer module into the vacuum lock for storage.

[0143] In this embodiment, the designed algorithm 4 is as follows:

[0144]

[0145]

[0146] The process of solving the action time of the dual-arm robot R1 by using the linear programming model in step S34 satisfies:

[0147] Wafer processing module PM 1,j The processing time α i,j Satisfies the expression:

[0148] α i,j ≤u i,j,k -(t i,j,k +β1)≤α i,j +δ i,j ;

[0149] After the processing module fails, the dual-arm robot R i The expression for the time of unloading wafers, loading wafers and the time of loading the last wafer into the vacuum lock is:

[0150]

[0151]

[0152] Among them, δ i,j Indicates that the wafer is allowed to be processed in the PM module i,j The maximum dwell time after processing, Represents a dual-arm robot R i Loading wafer W k Enter the processing module PM i,j The beginning moment, Represents a dual-arm robot R i From the processing module PM i,j The start time of unloading wafer, β i Represents a dual-arm robot R i The time required to load or unload the wafer. a represents the processing module PM where the failure occurs. i,j b represents the number of the buffer module in the combined device C1, c represents the minimum number of the wafers in the combined device C2, d represents the maximum number of the wafers in the combined device C2, c∈N z , d∈N z .

[0153] In this embodiment, the constructed linear programming model is as follows:

[0154] α i,j ≤u i,j,k -(t i,j,k +β1)≤α i,j +δ i,j (0.1)

[0155]

[0156] Subject to:

[0157]

[0158]

[0159]

[0160]

[0161]

[0162]

[0163]

[0164]

[0165]

[0166]

[0167]

[0168]

[0169]

[0170]

[0171]

[0172]

[0173]

[0174]

[0175]

[0176]

[0177] The process of solving the action time of the dual-arm robot R2 by using the nonlinear programming model in step S34 satisfies:

[0178] Wafer processing module PM 1,j The processing time α i,j Satisfies the expression:

[0179] α i,j ≤u i,j,k -(t i,j,k +β1)≤α i,j +δ i,j ;

[0180] After the processing module fails, the dual-arm robot R i The expression for the time of unloading wafers, loading wafers and the time of loading the last wafer into the vacuum lock is:

[0181]

[0182]

[0183] t 1,0,k =u 1,b,k +β1+μ1k∈N d \N a-1 ;

[0184] Based on the action moments of the dual-arm robot, the optimal solution of the transient termination process of the dual-arm robot 2-combination equipment system is obtained.

[0185] In this embodiment, the nonlinear programming model constructed is as follows:

[0186]

[0187] Subject to: (4.3)to(4.20)

[0188]

[0189]

[0190] t 1,0,k =u 1,b,k +β1+μ1k∈N d \N a-1 (0.26)

[0191] If m<0 and h <f,then

[0192]

[0193] If m<0 and h <f,thent 1,0,d =u 1,b,d +β1+μ1 (0.28)

[0194]

[0195]

[0196]

[0197] In this embodiment, when a processing module fails, it is first determined whether the wafers in the buffer module flow to the first combination device or the second combination device at the time of the failure, and the distribution of the wafers on the combination device is obtained, and the wafers are numbered to facilitate recording of the wafers on the combination device after the failure. Then, it is determined whether the failed processing module is on the first combination device or the second combination device, and the action sequence of the dual-arm robot R1 and the dual-arm robot R2 is obtained. Then, a linear programming model or a nonlinear programming model can be used to solve the action moments of the first combination device and the second combination device. Based on the obtained action moments, the optimal solution for the transient termination process of the dual-arm robot 2-combination device system is obtained, and then the scheduling sequence of the wafers is obtained. According to the scheduling sequence, the wafers are transported back to the vacuum lock to avoid deadlock between the first combination device and the second combination device, minimize the time of the termination state stage after the combination device fails, effectively solve the problem of difficulty in scheduling robots when the processing module fails, and reduce wafer loss.

[0198] The above descriptions are merely embodiments of the present invention and are not intended to limit the patent scope of the present invention. Any equivalent structure or equivalent process transformation made using the contents of the present invention specification and drawings, or directly or indirectly applied in other related technical fields, are also included in the patent protection scope of the present invention.

Claims

1. A method for fault scheduling of dual-arm robot combined equipment in wafer processing, characterized in that: The following steps are involved: S1: constructing a dual-arm robot two-assembly equipment system, wherein the dual-arm robot two-assembly equipment system comprises a first assembly equipment and a second assembly equipment; S2: Processing the wafer using the first combined device and the second combined device, and determining whether the first combined device or the second combined device fails; S3: constructing a linear programming model and a nonlinear programming model. If the first combined device fails, the linear programming model is used to solve the action time of the first combined device. If the second combined device fails, the nonlinear programming model is used to solve the action time of the second combined device. The action time represents the time of unloading, moving and loading the wafer. S4: Obtaining a scheduling order of wafers according to the action time of the combined equipment obtained by solving the linear programming model or the nonlinear programming model; In the dual-arm robot two-combination equipment system described in step S1, a vacuum lock is also included, and the vacuum lock is used to store wafers; The first combined device and the second combined device are both provided with a processing module, a buffer module, a dual-arm robot and a central controller, wherein the first combined device and the second combined device are connected via the buffer module, and there are multiple processing modules on the first combined device and the second combined device, and the processing modules include sensors; The processing module is used to process the wafers, the buffer module is used to store the wafers processed by the processing module, the dual-arm robot is used to transport the wafers, the sensor is used to send a fault signal to the central controller, and the central controller is used to control the operation of the dual-arm robot according to the fault signal; The specific process of processing the wafer by using the first combined equipment and the second combined equipment in step S2 is as follows: The dual-arm robot is used to unload the wafer from the vacuum lock to the processing module on the first combined device and the second combined device for processing. The wafer processing path meets the following requirements: Vacuum lock → processing module on the first assembly equipment → buffer module → processing module on the second assembly equipment → buffer module → processing module on the first assembly equipment → vacuum lock; The specific process of determining whether the first combined device or the second combined device fails in step S2 is as follows: make represents a finite set of natural numbers, Indicates Combination equipment, Indicates a combined device The dual-arm robot, Indicates a combined device The j processing modules; If the processing module If a fault occurs, the processing module The sensor in the robot will send a fault signal to the central controller of the second combined device to control the dual-arm robot. Stop unloading wafers from vacuum lock; in, , Indicates a combined device The number of processing modules in ; In step S3: S31: If combined equipment Processing module on If a failure occurs, it is determined that the wafers in the buffer module enter the combined equipment Or a combination device ; S32: Get combined device The wafer number at the time of failure; S33: Determine the processing module where the fault occurs In combination equipment Or a combination device , if in combined device , then get the dual-arm robot and dual-arm robots The action sequence sequence; if in the combined device , then get the dual-arm robot and dual-arm robots The sequence of actions; S34: Based on combined equipment Wafer number at the time of failure, dual-arm robot and dual-arm robots The action sequence of the dual-arm robot is solved by using the linear programming model and dual-arm robots Action time; based on combined equipment Wafer numbering and dual-arm robot at the moment of failure and dual-arm robots The action sequence of the dual-arm robot is solved by using the nonlinear programming model and dual-arm robots The action time of the dual-arm robot and dual-arm robots The action time is used to obtain the wafer scheduling sequence. Based on the scheduling sequence, the dual-arm robot is used to and dual-arm robots Transport the wafer back to the vacuum lock for storage; The action sequence is represented in the combined device When a processing module fails, the dual-arm robot and dual-arm robots The sequence of actions for unloading wafers, moving and loading wafers; Step S31 determines that the wafers in the buffer module enter the assembly equipment. Or a combination device The specific process is: make represents the time when the processing module fails; let Later, the dual-arm robot The first wafer unloading action is executed at , ; Algorithm 1 is designed to determine the wafer flow direction in the buffer module after the processing module fails. The input of Algorithm 1 is: ； Get the output of Algorithm 1 m ; like m =1, it means a dual-arm robot Unload wafers from the buffer module to the assembly equipment ; like m =-1, it means a dual-arm robot Unload wafers from the buffer module to the assembly equipment ; in, Represents a dual-arm robot Waiting time before unloading wafers, Represents a dual-arm robot The waiting time before loading the wafer, θ represents the production cycle of the two-combination equipment, λ i represents the time it takes the robot to unload, rotate, and load wafers. Indicates the time it takes the robot to move between two modules.

2. The method for fault scheduling of dual-arm robot combined equipment in wafer processing according to claim 1, characterized in that: Step S32 of obtaining a combined device The specific process of wafer numbering at the time of failure is as follows: Designed to obtain the combined device T Algorithm 2 for wafer numbering at time 0. The input of Algorithm 2 is: ； The output of Algorithm 2 is: ； in, n 1 indicates a combined device C 1. The number of processing modules. n 2 indicates a combined device C 2. The number of processing modules in Indicates a combined device The buffer module number, Represents a dual-arm robot R 1 at time T 1 in combination equipment C The module number for unloading wafers in 1, Represents a dual-arm robot R 2 at time T 2 in combined equipment C The module number of the wafer unloaded in 2, e Indicates a combined device C The number of the faulty module in case of a fault in 1, f Indicates a combined device C The number of the faulty module in case of a fault in 2, m represents the output parameter of Algorithm 1, Indicated in The total number of wafers in the processing module and held by the robot at any given moment, Indicates processing module The wafer number in Indicates processing module The wafer number in Represents a dual-arm robot The wafer number on the Represents a dual-arm robot The wafer number on the a Indicates the number of the wafer in the faulty processing module, c Indicates a combined device The minimum number of wafers in the d Indicates a combined device The maximum number of wafers in the , .

3. The method for fault scheduling of dual-arm robot combined equipment in wafer processing according to claim 2, characterized in that: In step S33: If a processing module fails In combination equipment , then get the dual-arm robot and dual-arm robots The action sequence of the process is: make Indicates a combined device Faulty processing module, combined equipment After the processing module on the dual-arm robot fails, Stop unloading wafers from vacuum lock to process module , wafers from processing modules Processing until processing module Stop processing and use dual-arm robot From the processing module Unload the wafer into the vacuum lock for storage and combine the equipment After the wafers in the process are processed, the dual-arm robot Combined equipment The wafers are transported to the buffer module and then transported to the buffer module by a dual-arm robot. Unload wafers directly from the buffer module into a vacuum lock for storage; If a processing module fails In combination equipment , then get the dual-arm robot and dual-arm robots The action sequence of the process is: make Indicates a combined device The buffer module number, Indicates a combined device Faulty processing module, combined equipment After the processing module on the dual-arm robot fails, Stop unloading wafers from vacuum lock to process module , combined equipment Mid-processing module The wafer on the processing module continues to be processed , and then use the dual-arm robot From the processing module Unload the wafer to the vacuum lock for storage and assemble the equipment The wafer continues to be processed to the processing module , and then use the dual-arm robot From the processing module The wafer is unloaded to the buffer module and then the dual-arm robot The wafers are unloaded from the buffer module into a vacuum lock for storage.

4. The method for fault scheduling of dual-arm robot combined equipment in wafer processing according to claim 3 is characterized in that: Step S34 uses the linear programming model to solve the dual-arm robot The process of action moments satisfies: Wafer processing module Processing time in Satisfies the expression: ； After the processing module fails, the dual-arm robot The expression for the time of unloading wafers, loading wafers and the time of loading the last wafer into the vacuum lock is: ； ； in, Indicates that the wafer is allowed to be processed in the module The maximum dwell time after processing, Represents a dual-arm robot Loading wafer Processing module The beginning moment, Represents a dual-arm robot From the processing module The start time of unloading wafers, Represents a dual-arm robot R 𝑖 The time required to load or unload the wafer, a Indicates the processing module where the fault occurred The wafer number in b Indicates a combined device The number of the buffer module in the c Indicates a combined device The minimum number of wafers in the d Indicates a combined device The maximum number of wafers in the , .

5. The method for fault scheduling of dual-arm robot combined equipment in wafer processing according to claim 4, characterized in that: Step S34 uses the nonlinear programming model to solve the dual-arm robot The process of action moments satisfies: Wafer processing module Processing time in Satisfies the expression: ； After the processing module fails, the dual-arm robot The expression for the time of unloading wafers, loading wafers and the time of loading the last wafer into the vacuum lock is: ； ； ； Based on the action moment of the dual-arm robot, the optimal solution of the transient termination process of the dual-arm robot two-combination equipment system is obtained.

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