A compact wafer transfer equipment robot and load port interlock system

Abstract

The wafer conveying equipment manipulator and loadport interlocking system comprises a safety grating, a reflection sensor and a control module; the safety grating is installed at a position with a distance M from the installation surface of the loading and unloading port loadport, and is used for detecting whether the wafer conveying equipment manipulator is at the opening and closing position of the loading and unloading port loadport; the reflection sensor is installed at the position of the lifting door of the loading and unloading port loadport and also considers the position of the falling lifting door, and is used for detecting whether the lifting door of the loading and unloading port loadport is in the process of action; the control module is used for receiving the signals of the safety grating and the reflection sensor and analyzing and processing, and issuing interlocking instructions to the wafer conveying equipment manipulator and the loading and unloading port loadport, so as to ensure that the wafer conveying equipment manipulator stops executing the loading and unloading action when the lifting door of the loading and unloading port loadport is opening and closing. Therefore, the interference problem caused by the reduction of the EFEM depth and the invasion of the robot finger into the action range of the lifting door of the loading and unloading port loadport is effectively solved, and the EFEM floor area is reduced.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD

[0001] The present application relates to the technical field of semiconductor wafer transmission, and particularly to a compact wafer transmission equipment mechanical hand and load port interlocking system. BACKGROUND

[0002] With the rapid development of the chip industry, the semiconductor wafer production, high-end packaging, micro-electro-mechanical system (MEMS) and light emitting diode (LED) fields have higher requirements for the glue coating machine, glue spraying machine, glue removing machine and cleaning machine and other process processing equipment. In particular, the floor space of the process equipment is also one of the important indicators for the manufacturing (Fab) factory.

[0003] As an integrated subsystem of the whole system of semiconductor process equipment, the semiconductor equipment front end module (EFEM) is usually composed of a loading device, a robot, a pre-alignment device, an atmospheric filtration unit and a buffer cooling unit.

[0004] The EFEM is mainly used for manual or automatic loading and unloading of semiconductor wafer carriers and semiconductor wafer alignment to realize the mutual conversion of semiconductor wafers between the atmospheric environment and the vacuum environment. For customers, the floor space of the EFEM is also one of the important indicators to be considered.

[0005] The smaller the floor space of the EFEM, the more competitive it is. For the wafer manufacturing (Fab) factory, the smaller the floor space of the equipment, the more equipment can be accommodated in the same area of the clean room, the more production capacity, and the better economic benefit.

[0006] As a person skilled in the art knows, the floor space of the EFEM is mainly affected by the length of the robot finger, the installation position of the pre-alignment device and the buffer cooling unit, and the opening position of the loading and unloading port (Loaport). The length of the robot finger depends on the distance from the customer's station to the robot inside the EFEM, and the distance that the robot finger can enter the customer's device cavity.

[0007] Generally speaking, a certain distance M (for example, 100 mm) behind the installation surface of the Loadport needs to be permanently reserved and cannot have objects intruding. However, in actual situations, only when the Loadport is opened will there be an impact.

[0008] Therefore, considering the length of the robot finger to normally take the wafer at the customer station, the space 100 mm behind the installation surface of the Loadport is invaded, and the depth of the EFEM is minimized as much as possible, which is also an urgent problem to be solved in the industry. SUMMARY

[0009] The present application aims to at least solve one of the problems in the above-mentioned related art. To this end, the present application aims to provide a compact wafer transfer equipment robot and load port interlocking system for solving the problem of interference between the robot finger and the load port when the load port door is opened, avoiding damage to the robot finger and the load port components caused by collision, that is, when the load port door is opened, the robot finger needs to avoid the position of the load port door.

[0010] To achieve the above-mentioned purpose, the present application adopts the following technical solutions:

[0011] A wafer transfer equipment robot and load port interlocking system, the wafer transfer equipment robot is used to take and place wafers from a load port with a lifting door; when the lifting door of the load port is opened, the lifting door needs to be vertically retracted downward after a collision distance M in the direction of the wafer transfer equipment robot, and then opened; when the lifting door of the load port is closed, it needs to be lifted from the position where the lifting door is vertically retracted downward when the wafer transfer equipment robot is opened, and then advanced M in the direction of the wafer transfer equipment robot to close; characterized in that it comprises a safety grating, a reflection sensor and a control module; the safety grating is installed at a position M behind the installation surface of the load port, for detecting whether the wafer transfer equipment robot is at the position of the opening and closing action of the load port; the reflection sensor is installed at the position of the lifting door of the load port and also considers the position of the falling door, for detecting whether the lifting door of the load port is in the process of action; the control module is used to receive and analyze the signals of the safety grating and the reflection sensor, and give the wafer transfer equipment robot and the load port interlocking instructions, to ensure that the wafer transfer equipment robot stops performing the loading and unloading action when the lifting door of the load port is opened and closed.

[0012] Further, the distance M is 100 mm.

[0013] A control method for the wafer transfer equipment robot and load port interlocking system described above, comprising the following steps:

[0014] Step S1: the control module judges the state of the safety light barrier, when detecting that the finger of the wafer transfer equipment manipulator does not shield the detection range of the safety light barrier, the lifting door of the load port normally acts; when the finger of the wafer transfer equipment manipulator shields the detection shielding range of the safety light barrier (3), the action permission signal of the lifting door of the load port is terminated, that is, the lifting door action of the load port is locked;

[0015] Step S2: after the finger of the wafer transfer equipment manipulator moves out of the detection range of the safety light barrier, the load port issues a lifting door action signal, and the load port lifting door is opened or closed;

[0016] Step S3: when the load port lifting door is in the closed or opened state, the control module monitors the signal output by the reflection sensor in real time, when the reflection sensor does not detect the wafer transfer equipment manipulator, the wafer transfer equipment manipulator normally acts; when the reflection sensor detects the wafer transfer equipment manipulator, the wafer transfer equipment manipulator immediately stops acting.

[0017] Compared with the prior art, the present application has the following beneficial effects:

[0018] The present application effectively solves the interference problem caused by reducing the EFEM depth and the robot finger invading into the load port lifting door action range, and provides strong technical support for reducing the EFEM floor area. In addition, the present application is widely applicable to the semiconductor wafer process production and transmission process equipment, high-end packaging, MEMS, LED and other general semiconductor industries. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

[0019] The accompanying drawings incorporated in and forming a part of the specification, illustrate embodiments consistent with the present application and, together with the description, serve to explain the principles of the application.

[0020] In order to more clearly illustrate the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present application or the prior art, the accompanying drawings needed to be used in the embodiments or prior art description will be briefly introduced. Obviously, for those skilled in the art, other drawings can also be obtained based on these drawings without creative labor.

[0021] Figure 1 Partial top view of the wafer transfer equipment manipulator and load port interlocking system of the present application

[0022] Figure 2Figure 1 is a schematic view of the position of the safety grating and the fiber-optic sensor pair in an embodiment of the present application

[0023] Figure 3 Figure 2 is a schematic view of the position of the safety grating and the fiber-optic sensor pair in an embodiment of the present application

[0024] Reference signs:

[0025] 1, robot finger; 2, load port; 3, safety grating; 4, fiber-optic sensor pair DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0026] In order to make the technical features, objectives and effects of the present application more clearly understood, the specific embodiments of the present application will be described in detail below. In the following description, it should be understood that the directions or positional relationships indicated by "front", "back", "upper", "lower", "left", "right", "vertical", "horizontal", "vertical", "horizontal", "top", "bottom", "inner", "outer", "head", "tail" and the like are based on the directions or positional relationships shown in the drawings, constructed and operated in a particular direction, and are only for the convenience of describing the technical solutions, and cannot be understood as indicating that the indicated mechanisms or elements must have a particular direction, therefore, it cannot be understood as a limitation on the present application.

[0027] It should also be noted that, unless otherwise explicitly specified and limited, the terms "mounting", "connection", "connection", "fixing", "setting" and the like should be understood broadly, for example, it can be fixedly connected, or it can be detachably connected, or it can be integrated; it can be mechanically connected, or it can be electrically connected; it can be directly connected, or it can be indirectly connected through an intermediate medium, or it can be the internal communication of two elements or the interaction relationship between two elements. When an element is referred to as "on" or "below" another element, the element can be "directly" or "indirectly" above the other element, or there can be one or more intervening elements. The terms "first", "second", "third" and the like are only for the convenience of describing the technical solutions, and cannot be understood as indicating or implying the relative importance or implicitly indicating the number of the indicated technical features, therefore, the features with "first", "second", "third" and the like can be explicitly or implicitly included one or more of the features. For those skilled in the art, the specific meaning of the above terms in the present application can be understood according to the specific circumstances.

[0028] In the following description, specific details such as specific system structures, techniques, etc. are presented in order to facilitate a thorough understanding of the embodiments of the present application. However, it should be clear to those skilled in the art that the present application can also be implemented in other embodiments without these specific details. In other cases, detailed descriptions of well-known systems, mechanisms, circuits and methods are omitted to avoid unnecessary details that hinder the description of the present application.

[0029] It should be noted that, in order to ensure that the robot finger can reach the wafer at the customer's workstation, the present invention has taken into account the length of the space 100mm behind the loading port mounting surface and minimized the depth of the EFEM. Therefore, when the loading port is opened, the robot finger avoids being in that position.

[0030] Please see Figure 1 , Figure 1 This is a partial top view of the interlocking system between the robotic arm and the loading / unloading port of the wafer transfer equipment of the present invention. Figure 1 As shown, the wafer transfer device robot 1 is used to pick up and place wafers from the loading port 2 with a lifting door; when the loading port 2 opens the lifting door, the lifting door needs to be offset by a distance M in the direction in which the wafer transfer device robot 1 extends, and then retract vertically downward to open; when the loading port 2 closes the lifting door, it needs to rise from the position when the wafer transfer device robot 1 is retracted vertically downward, and then advance a distance M in the direction in which the wafer transfer device robot 1 extends to close.

[0031] Please see Figure 2 and Figure 3 , Figure 2 This is a schematic diagram showing the positions of the safety grating and the fiber optic through-beam sensor in an embodiment of the present invention; Figure 3 This is a partially enlarged schematic diagram of the position of the through-beam sensor in an embodiment of the present invention.

[0032] In an embodiment of the present invention, the interlock system between the wafer transfer equipment robot and the loading / unloading port may include a safety light curtain 3, a through-beam sensor 4, and a control module. The safety light curtain 3 is installed at a distance M behind the mounting surface of the loading / unloading port 2, and is used to detect whether the wafer transfer equipment robot 1 is in the position of opening and closing the loading / unloading port 2. The through-beam sensor 4 is installed at the position of the lifting door of the loading / unloading port 2 and also considers the position of the lifting door when it is closed, and is used to detect whether the lifting door of the loading / unloading port 2 is in the process of operation. The control module is used to receive and analyze the signals from the safety light curtain 3 and the through-beam sensor 4, and issue an interlock command to the wafer transfer equipment robot 1 and the loading / unloading port 2 to ensure that the wafer transfer equipment robot 1 stops performing loading / unloading operations when the lifting door of the loading / unloading port 2 is opening or closing.

[0033] Typically, the distance M can be 100mm.

[0034] In the embodiment of the present application, the control module can be one module in the EFEM host system, used for receiving signals of the safety grating 3 and the opposite-acting sensor 4 and analyzing and processing, giving next action instruction of the wafer transfer equipment robot 1 and the lift door of the load port 2.

[0035] The control method of the wafer transfer equipment robot and the load port interlock can include the following steps:

[0036] Step S1: the control module judges the state of the safety grating 3, when detecting that the finger of the wafer transfer equipment robot 1 does not shield the detection range of the safety grating 3, the lift door of the load port 2 normally acts; when the finger of the wafer transfer equipment robot 1 shields the detection shielding range of the safety grating 3, the action permission signal of the lift door of the load port 2 is terminated, that is, the action of the lift door of the load port 2 is locked;

[0037] Step S2: after the finger of the wafer transfer equipment robot 1 moves out of the detection range of the safety grating 3, the load port 2 issues a lift door action signal, and the lift door of the load port 2 is opened or closed;

[0038] Step S3: when the lift door of the load port 2 is in the closed or opened state, the control module monitors the signal output by the opposite-acting sensor 4 in real time, when the opposite-acting sensor 4 does not detect the wafer transfer equipment robot 1, the wafer transfer equipment robot 1 normally acts; when the opposite-acting sensor 4 detects the wafer transfer equipment robot 1, the wafer transfer equipment robot 1 immediately stops acting.

[0039] It should be noted that in the embodiment of the present application, the sensor used for robot finger detection is not limited to the safety grating, but can also be other sensors that can realize this function. The sensor used for load port load door detection is not limited to the opposite-acting sensor, but can also be other sensors that can realize this function, such as a reflective sensor, a laser sensor, etc.

[0040] The interlock system of the present application is not limited to the integrated circuit industry, but can also be applied to other industries of general semiconductors, such as flat panel display, LED, solar cell, etc.

[0041] It can be understood that the above embodiments only express the preferred embodiments of the present application, the description is more specific and detailed, but it cannot be understood as the limitation of the patent scope of the present application; it should be pointed out that for ordinary skilled in the art, the above technical features can be freely combined without departing from the concept of the present application, and several modifications and improvements can be made, which belong to the protection scope of the present application; therefore, any equivalent transformation and modification made with the patent claim scope of the present application shall belong to the coverage of the patent claim of the present application.

Claims

1. A wafer transfer device robot arm and loading / unloading port interlocking system, wherein the wafer transfer device robot arm (1) is used to pick up and place wafers from a loading / unloading port (2) with a lifting door; when the lifting door is opened, the lifting door needs to be offset by a distance M in the direction in which the wafer transfer device robot arm (1) extends, and then retracts vertically downward to open; when the lifting door is closed, the loading / unloading port (2) needs to rise from the position when the wafer transfer device robot arm (1) is retracted vertically downward to open, and then advances a distance M in the direction in which the wafer transfer device robot arm (1) extends to close; characterized in that, It includes a safety light curtain (3), a beam sensor (4), and a control module; The safety light curtain (3) is installed at a distance M behind the mounting surface of the loading port (2) to detect whether the wafer transfer equipment robot (1) is in the position of the opening and closing action of the loading port (2); The through-beam sensor (4) is installed at the position of the lifting door of the loading port (2) and also takes into account the position of the lifting door when it is falling, and is used to detect whether the lifting door of the loading port (2) is in the process of operation. The control module is used to receive and analyze the signals from the safety light curtain (3) and the through-beam sensor (4), and issue interlock commands to the wafer transfer equipment robot (1) and the loading / unloading port (2) to ensure that the wafer transfer equipment robot (1) stops performing loading / unloading actions when the lifting door of the loading / unloading port (2) is opened or closed.

2. The interlocking system between the robotic arm and loading / unloading port of the wafer transfer equipment according to claim 1, characterized in that, The distance M is 100mm.

3. A control method for a wafer transfer equipment robot arm and loading / unloading port interlocking system as described in claim 1 or 2, characterized in that, Includes the following steps: Step S1: The control module determines the state of the safety light curtain (3). When it detects that the finger of the wafer transfer device robot arm (1) does not block the detection range of the safety light curtain (3), the lifting door of the loading and unloading port (2) operates normally. When the finger of the wafer transfer device robot arm (1) blocks the detection range of the safety light curtain (3), the operation permission signal of the lifting door of the loading and unloading port (2) is terminated, that is, the operation of the lifting door of the loading and unloading port (2) is locked. Step S2: After the fingers of the robotic arm (1) of the wafer transfer device are moved out of the detection range of the safety light curtain (3), the loading port (2) issues a lifting door action signal, and the lifting door of the loading port (2) opens or closes. Step S3: When the loading port (2) lifting door is closed or open, the control module monitors the signal output by the through-beam sensor (4) in real time. When the through-beam sensor (4) does not detect the wafer transfer equipment robot (1), the wafer transfer equipment robot (1) performs normal operation. When the through-beam sensor (4) detects the wafer transfer device robot (1), the wafer transfer device robot (1) immediately stops moving.

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