Method and system for monitoring machine state in real time

Abstract

The invention provides a method and system for monitoring the state of a machine table in real time. The method for monitoring the state of the machine table in real time comprises the steps that background information containing the state of the machine table is obtained; wherein the machine state comprises a normal operation state, a to-be-processed state and a fault state; on the basis of background information, different icon colors are given to the machines; setting alarm conditions; the alarm condition comprises that the machine is in a fault state, and / or the machine is in a to-be-processed state for a preset time; and when the machine meets the alarm condition, generating an alarm signal. According to the configuration, the background information containing the machine state is obtained, different icon colors are given to the machines according to the machine state, the alarm condition is set, and when the machines meet the alarm condition, the alarm signal is generated, so that an operator can analyze and process in time by combining the real-time background information and the icon colors, visual monitoring is formed, and the working efficiency is improved. According to the invention, the method can quickly respond to the abnormity, improves the working efficiency of operators, and also avoids the loss of yield.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to the field of semiconductor manufacturing, and in particular to a method and system for real-time monitoring of machine status. Background Art

[0002] At present, the online machine monitoring of YE (Yield Engineer) needs to obtain relevant information through a combination of multiple channels. According to the existing system, manual confirmation of the machine's operating status is required every hour. However, since the content of each report is relatively simple, multiple forms need to be used in combination for data analysis, and there are many items that need to be confirmed (each time takes at least 1 hour), machine abnormalities are often not discovered in time. When the abnormality is discovered, the yield has already been damaged. At the same time, it takes manpower and time to check each time, manual errors are inevitable, and the effectiveness is poor.

[0003] Based on this, how to improve efficiency, discover problems in a timely manner and make analysis and processing, so as to avoid yield loss has become a technical problem that technical personnel in this field need to solve. Summary of the invention

[0004] The purpose of the present invention is to provide a method and system for real-time monitoring of machine status, so as to solve the problems that the existing system requires manual confirmation of the operation status, cannot detect abnormalities in time, and manual verification may have errors.

[0005] In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides a method for real-time monitoring of machine status, comprising:

[0006] Acquire background information including machine status; wherein the machine status includes: normal operation status, pending status and fault status;

[0007] Based on the background information, different icon colors are assigned to each machine;

[0008] Setting alarm conditions; the alarm conditions include: the machine is in the fault state, and / or the machine is in the pending state for a predetermined time;

[0009] When the machine meets the alarm condition, an alarm signal is generated.

[0010] Optionally, the method further includes:

[0011] Setting an alarm release condition; the alarm release condition includes: the machine is restored to the normal operating state, and / or, obtaining the abnormal cause;

[0012] When the machine satisfies the alarm cancellation condition, the alarm signal is cancelled.

[0013] Optionally, a first operation is performed on the icon to select or enter the cause of the exception.

[0014] Optionally, the background information includes: real-time status information of the machine and text information of the machine log.

[0015] Optionally, a second operation is performed on the icon to obtain real-time status information of the machine.

[0016] Optionally, the real-time status information of the machine includes: wafer batch information, loading platform information and machine hourly operation information.

[0017] Optionally, the normal operating state includes: the machine is operating normally, backing up, recycling, or in the processing gap between two batches of wafers;

[0018] When the machine is in the normal operating state, the icon color is the first color.

[0019] Optionally, the fault state includes: a circuit breaker is present in the machine;

[0020] When the machine is in the fault state, the icon is in a second color.

[0021] Optionally, the pending state includes: the machine is in an idle stage, a maintenance stage, an overhaul stage, a pending stage, a software upgrade stage or a process switching stage, or a shutdown stage;

[0022] When the machine is in the idle stage, the icon color is the third color; when the machine is in the maintenance stage, the icon color is the fourth color; when the machine is in the overhaul stage, the icon color is the fifth color; when the machine is in the pending stage, the icon color is the sixth color; when the machine is in the software upgrade or process switching stage, the icon color is the seventh color; when the machine is in the shutdown stage, the icon color is the eighth color.

[0023] In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides a system for real-time monitoring of machine status, using the method for real-time monitoring of machine status as described above, comprising:

[0024] The acquisition module is used to obtain background information including machine status;

[0025] A coloring module, used to assign different icon colors to each machine based on the background information;

[0026] An alarm module, used to set alarm conditions and generate an alarm signal when the machine meets the alarm conditions;

[0027] The display module is used to display icons of different colors and corresponding background information.

[0028] Compared with the existing machine monitoring methods, the present application provides a method and system for real-time monitoring of machine status, which has the following advantages:

[0029] The method for real-time monitoring of machine status provided by the present application obtains background information including the machine status and assigns different icon colors to each machine according to the machine status, so that the operator can timely understand the machine status through the icon color; at the same time, the alarm condition is set, and when the machine meets the alarm condition, an alarm signal is generated, so that the operator can timely discover machine abnormalities. Compared with the existing machine monitoring method, the operator can combine the real-time background information and icon color to make timely analysis and processing, form visual monitoring, and can respond to abnormalities quickly, thereby improving the work efficiency of the operator and avoiding the loss of yield.

[0030] The system for real-time monitoring of machine status provided by the present application assigns different icon colors to each machine based on background information by setting a color assignment module and an alarm module, so that operators can understand the machine status in real time. When the machine meets the alarm conditions, an alarm signal is generated through the alarm module, so that operators can promptly discover machine abnormalities and make timely analysis and judgment based on the background information and icon colors displayed by the display module, thereby improving the work efficiency of operators and avoiding the loss of yield. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0031] Figure 1 A flow chart of a method for real-time monitoring of machine status provided by an embodiment of the present invention;

[0032] Figure 2 A flowchart of performing a first operation provided by an embodiment of the present invention;

[0033] Figure 3 A schematic diagram of a machine provided in an embodiment of the present invention meeting an alarm condition and generating an alarm signal;

[0034] Figure 4 A flowchart of performing a second operation provided by an embodiment of the present invention;

[0035] Figure 5 A diagram showing the correspondence between machine status and icon color provided in an embodiment of the present invention;

[0036] Figure 6 A schematic diagram of a system for real-time monitoring of machine status provided by an embodiment of the present invention;

[0037] The description of each reference numeral is as follows:

[0038] 1-acquisition module; 2-coloring module; 3-alarm module; 4-display module. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0039] In order to make the purpose, advantages and features of the present invention clearer, the present invention is further described in detail below in conjunction with the accompanying drawings and specific embodiments. It should be noted that the drawings are all in a very simplified form and are not drawn to scale, and are only used to conveniently and clearly assist in explaining the purpose of the embodiments of the present invention. In addition, the structure shown in the drawings is often a part of the actual structure. In particular, the emphasis of each drawing is different, and sometimes different scales are used.

[0040] As used in this specification, the singular forms "a", "an" and "the" include plural objects, the term "or" is generally used to include the meaning of "and / or", the term "several" is generally used to include the meaning of "at least one", and the term "at least two" is generally used to include the meaning of "two or more". In addition, the terms "first", "second" and "third" are used for descriptive purposes only and cannot be understood as indicating or implying relative importance or implicitly indicating the number of technical features indicated. Therefore, the features defined as "first", "second" and "third" may explicitly or implicitly include one or at least two of the features, "one end" and "the other end" and "the proximal end" and "the distal end" generally refer to two corresponding parts, which include not only the endpoints, and the terms "installed", "connected" and "connected" should be understood in a broad sense, for example, it can be a fixed connection, a detachable connection, or an integral body; it can be directly connected or indirectly connected through an intermediate medium, it can be the internal connection of two elements or the interaction relationship between two elements. In addition, as used in this specification, an element disposed on another element generally only indicates that there is a connection, coupling, cooperation or transmission relationship between the two elements, and the connection, coupling, cooperation or transmission between the two elements may be direct or indirect through an intermediate element, and it cannot be understood as indicating or implying the spatial position relationship between the two elements, that is, one element may be in any orientation such as inside, outside, above, below or on one side of another element, unless the content clearly indicates otherwise. The terms "upper", "lower", "top" and "bottom" are generally relative position relationships arranged in the direction of gravity; the terms "vertical, vertical direction" generally refer to the direction of gravity, which is generally perpendicular to the ground, and "horizontal, horizontal plane direction" generally refers to the direction parallel to the ground; for ordinary technicians in this field, the specific meanings of the above terms in this specification can be understood according to specific circumstances.

[0041] The purpose of the present invention is to provide a method and system for real-time monitoring of machine status, so as to solve the problems that the existing system requires manual confirmation of the operation status, cannot detect abnormalities in time, and manual verification may have errors.

[0042] Those skilled in the art can understand that the existing machine monitoring method requires YE (yield improvement engineer) to monitor in combination with multiple channels, and requires manual confirmation of the machine's operating status every hour. Each report can only reflect the working status of a single machine. When analyzing and processing, it is necessary to use multiple forms in combination, and there are many items that need to be confirmed, which seriously affects the work efficiency of operators. It is believed that errors are inevitable and machine abnormalities cannot be discovered in time, resulting in yield loss. Based on this, this embodiment provides a method and system for real-time monitoring of machine status, by giving different icon colors to each machine, and generating alarm signals in combination with alarm conditions, forming visual monitoring, which is convenient for operators to respond quickly, analyze and process abnormalities, avoid human errors, and discover untimely or omissions that lead to yield loss.

[0043] Please refer to Figure 1 , Figure 3 and Figure 5 The present invention provides a method for real-time monitoring of machine status, comprising:

[0044] Step S1: Acquire background information including machine status; wherein the machine status includes: normal operation status, pending status and fault status;

[0045] Step S2: assigning different icon colors to each machine based on background information;

[0046] Step S3: setting alarm conditions; the alarm conditions include: the machine is in a fault state, and / or the machine is in a pending state for a predetermined time;

[0047] Step S4: When the machine meets the alarm condition, an alarm signal is generated.

[0048] It should be noted that in step S1, the machine status can be directly obtained from the background information obtained, and the background information includes the real-time status information of the machine and the machine log text information. Among them, the real-time status information of the machine is the real-time data detected and obtained by the sensors located in various parts of the machine; the machine log text information is a file formed by the machine control terminal in combination with the running situation of the machine over a period of time, which records the operating status of the machine over a period of time, including normal operation data and abnormal situations, such as the number of running goods and efficiency of the machine in the above time period, as well as the information of circuit breakage, maintenance, suspension, software upgrade, process switching, etc.

[0049] In step S2, based on the acquired machine real-time status information and machine log text information, different icon colors are assigned to each machine (please refer to Figure 5), for example, combining the real-time status information of the machine and the text information of the machine log, if the machine is running and no abnormal situation has occurred recently, it is judged that the machine is in normal operation, and a green icon is given to the machine; or, combining the real-time status information of the machine and the text information of the machine log, if the machine is running or stopped, and the sensor of a certain node is in a no-signal state, it is judged that the machine is in a circuit-breaking state, and a red icon is given to the machine.

[0050] In step S3 to step S4, the operator needs to set alarm conditions to assist in handling abnormal situations in a timely manner. The alarm conditions may include a machine circuit breaker or other faults that need to be handled urgently, as well as a machine that requires operator processing but the operator has not processed it within the scheduled time. Therefore, the above alarm conditions may be a machine short circuit, or a machine interruption of more than 1h or 2h, etc. Those skilled in the art may reasonably configure the alarm conditions according to actual conditions. Once the machine meets the alarm conditions, an alarm signal is generated. The alarm signal may be an acoustic signal, a light signal, or a pop-up window. In this embodiment, please refer to Figure 3 The alarm signal is a red flashing light signal, that is, when a machine meets the alarm condition, the background of the icon of the machine will trigger a red light signal and flash regularly to prompt the operator.

[0051] With such a configuration, by obtaining background information including the machine status and assigning different icon colors to each machine according to the machine status, the operator can promptly understand the machine status through the icon color; at the same time, the alarm condition is set, and when the machine meets the alarm condition, an alarm signal is generated, which is convenient for the operator to promptly discover machine abnormalities. Compared with the existing machine monitoring method, the operator can combine the real-time background information and icon color to make timely analysis and processing, forming visual monitoring, and can respond quickly to abnormalities, thereby improving the operator's work efficiency and avoiding the loss of yield.

[0052] As an alternative embodiment, please refer to Figure 2 , the method for real-time monitoring of machine status also includes:

[0053] Step S5: setting an alarm release condition; the alarm release condition includes: the machine is restored to a normal operating state, and / or, obtaining the abnormal cause;

[0054] Step S6: When the machine meets the alarm cancellation conditions, cancel the alarm signal.

[0055] It should be noted that in this embodiment, the alarm release condition can be that the machine is restored from a fault state or a pending state to a normal operating state, or that the corresponding abnormal cause is obtained. For abnormalities that can be restored in a short time, the alarm release signal can be that the machine is restored to a normal operating state, or that the abnormal cause is obtained; and for abnormalities that take a while to recover, the alarm release signal is generally that the abnormal cause is obtained. When the machine meets the alarm condition but does not meet the alarm release condition, the alarm signal will remain in a flashing state.

[0056] Further, the first operation is performed on the icon, and the abnormal reason is selected or entered. It should be noted that in this embodiment, the first operation can be to right-click the corresponding icon with the mouse to enter the alarm details page, where the abnormal process and the machine suspension can be specifically viewed. The operator can select or enter the corresponding abnormal reason according to the relevant situation, which can be a sensor damage, a line failure, a component reaching the service life and needs to be replaced, etc. The alarm signal will be released after the operator confirms the abnormal reason, and will be stored in the cloud together with the alarm details for subsequent call and viewing.

[0057] Please refer to Figure 4 , perform the second operation on the icon to obtain the real-time status information of the machine. It should be noted that in this embodiment, the second operation can be a left-click of the mouse on the corresponding icon. When the machine does not generate an alarm signal, the operator can view the real-time status information of the machine by left-clicking the icon of the machine in normal operation and analyze its production rate and yield; or the operator can make analysis and processing in advance by left-clicking the icon of the machine in the pending state to avoid the generation of an alarm signal.

[0058] In an optional embodiment, the real-time status information of the machine includes: wafer batch information, loading platform information and machine hourly operation information. Among them, the wafer batch information may include the name of the machine, the current state of the machine, the current mode of the machine, etc.; the loading platform information may include the loading platform number, the conveying mechanism number, the wafer box number, etc.; the machine hourly operation information may include the machine process, the number of wafers produced per hour, the total number of wafers produced, the scanning time, etc.

[0059] Please refer to Figure 5 , normal operation status includes: normal operation of the machine, backup, recycling, and processing interval between two batches of wafers; when the machine is in normal operation, the icon color is the first color. Figure 5 In the illustrated example, when the machine is in normal operation, that is, the machine is in normal operation (RUN), backup (BACKUP), recycling (RECYCLE), or in the processing interval between two batches of wafers (TD_LOT), the icon color is green.

[0060] Furthermore, the fault state includes: the machine has a circuit breaker; when the machine is in a fault state, the icon color is a second color. Figure 5 In the example shown, when the machine is in a fault state, that is, when the machine is down, the icon is red.

[0061] Furthermore, the pending status includes: the machine is in the idle stage, maintenance stage, overhaul stage, pending stage, software upgrade stage or process switching stage, and shutdown stage; when the machine is in the idle stage, the icon color is the third color; when the machine is in the maintenance stage, the icon color is the fourth color; when the machine is in the overhaul stage, the icon color is the fifth color; when the machine is in the pending stage, the icon color is the sixth color; when the machine is in the software upgrade or process switching stage, the icon color is the seventh color; when the machine is in the shutdown stage, the icon color is the eighth color. Figure 5 In the example shown, the machine is in the idle stage (IDLE), the icon color is light blue; the machine is in the maintenance stage (PM), the icon color is yellow; the machine is in the overhaul stage (FAC), the icon color is light yellow; the machine is in the pending state (WAIT), the icon color is pink; the machine is in the software upgrade stage (CIM) or process switching stage (CONV), the icon color is dark blue; the machine is in the shutdown state (OFF), the icon color is gray. Figure 5 In the pending state, the pending state also includes the interruption stage (HOLD), in which the icon color is orange, and the normal stage (UP) without maintenance, in which the icon color is light pink. In other embodiments, the machine state may also include other states, and the corresponding icon colors may also be other colors, which is not limited in this embodiment.

[0062] In an alternative embodiment, taking the machine name including "DFI (Dark-field Inspection)", "BFI (Bright-field Inspection)" and "SEM (Scanning Electron Microscope)" as an example, one of the alarm conditions of the above machine can be set to the machine being in the idle stage (IDLE) for more than 1 hour. During daily operation, the operator can perform the second operation to view the real-time status information of the above machine, and after the machine triggers the alarm condition to generate an alarm signal, perform the first operation to provide the cause of the abnormality, such as an abnormality in the previous process, etc. The alarm signal can be released after the cause of the abnormality is collected. This can achieve visual monitoring, helping operators to promptly discover and handle machine abnormalities to avoid yield loss.

[0063] Please refer to Figure 6In another embodiment, the present invention provides a system for real-time monitoring of machine status, using the method for real-time monitoring of machine status as described above, including: an acquisition module 1, used to acquire background information including machine status; a coloring module 2, used to assign different icon colors to each machine based on the background information; an alarm module 3, used to set alarm conditions, and generate an alarm signal when the machine meets the alarm conditions; a display module 4, used to display icons of different colors and corresponding background information. It should be noted that in this embodiment, the system for real-time monitoring of machine status can cooperate with FDC (Fault Detection and Classification System) and EAP (Equipment Automation Programming). The system for real-time monitoring of machine status can collect fault information through the FDC system and generate an alarm signal. After viewing the fault details, the operator can issue control instructions to the machine through the EAP system.

[0064] With such configuration, by setting up the coloring module 2 and the alarm module 3, different icon colors are assigned to each machine based on the background information, which is convenient for the operator to understand the machine status in real time. When the machine meets the alarm conditions, an alarm signal is generated through the alarm module 3, so that the operator can promptly discover the machine abnormality, and make timely analysis and judgment based on the background information and icon color displayed by the display module 4, thereby improving the operator's work efficiency and avoiding the loss of yield.

[0065] In summary, in the method and system for real-time monitoring of machine status provided by the embodiments of the present invention, the method for real-time monitoring of machine status includes: obtaining background information including machine status; wherein the machine status includes: normal operation status, pending status and fault status; based on the background information, assigning different icon colors to each machine; setting alarm conditions; the alarm conditions include: the machine is in a fault state, and / or, the machine is in a pending state for a predetermined time; when the machine meets the alarm conditions, an alarm signal is generated.

[0066] With such a configuration, by obtaining background information including the machine status and assigning different icon colors to each machine according to the machine status, the operator can promptly understand the machine status through the icon color; at the same time, the alarm condition is set, and when the machine meets the alarm condition, an alarm signal is generated, which is convenient for the operator to promptly discover machine abnormalities. Compared with the existing machine monitoring method, the operator can combine the real-time background information and icon color to make timely analysis and processing, forming visual monitoring, and can respond quickly to abnormalities, thereby improving the operator's work efficiency and avoiding the loss of yield.

[0067] The above description is only a description of the preferred embodiments of the present invention, and is not intended to limit the scope of the present invention. Any changes or modifications made by a person skilled in the art in the field of the present invention based on the above disclosure shall fall within the scope of protection of the claims.

Claims

1. A method for real-time monitoring of machine status, characterized in that: include: Acquire background information including machine status; wherein the machine status includes: normal operation status, pending status and fault status; Based on the background information, different icon colors are assigned to each machine; Setting alarm conditions; the alarm conditions include: the machine is in the fault state, and / or the machine is in the pending state for a predetermined time; When the machine meets the alarm condition, an alarm signal is generated.

2. The method for real-time monitoring of machine status according to claim 1, characterized in that: The method further comprises: Setting an alarm release condition; the alarm release condition includes: the machine is restored to the normal operating state, and / or, obtaining the abnormal cause; When the machine satisfies the alarm cancellation condition, the alarm signal is cancelled.

3. The method for real-time monitoring of machine status according to claim 2, characterized in that: A first operation is performed on the icon to select or input the abnormal reason.

4. The method for real-time monitoring of machine status according to claim 1, characterized in that: The background information includes: machine real-time status information and machine log text information.

5. The method for real-time monitoring of machine status according to claim 4, characterized in that: A second operation is performed on the icon to obtain real-time status information of the machine.

6. The method for real-time monitoring of machine status according to claim 5, characterized in that: The real-time status information of the machine includes: wafer batch information, loading platform information and machine hourly operation information.

7. The method for real-time monitoring of machine status according to claim 1, characterized in that: The normal operating state includes: the machine is operating normally, backing up, recycling, and in the processing gap between two batches of wafers; When the machine is in the normal operating state, the icon color is the first color.

8. The method for real-time monitoring of machine status according to claim 1, characterized in that: The fault state includes: the machine has a circuit breaker; When the machine is in the fault state, the icon is in a second color.

9. The method for real-time monitoring of machine status according to claim 1, characterized in that: The pending state includes: the machine is in an idle stage, a maintenance stage, an overhaul stage, a pending stage, a software upgrade stage or a process switching stage, or a shutdown stage; When the machine is in the idle stage, the icon color is the third color; when the machine is in the maintenance stage, the icon color is the fourth color; when the machine is in the overhaul stage, the icon color is the fifth color; when the machine is in the pending stage, the icon color is the sixth color; when the machine is in the software upgrade or process switching stage, the icon color is the seventh color; when the machine is in the shutdown stage, the icon color is the eighth color.

10. A system for real-time monitoring of machine status, characterized in that: The method for real-time monitoring of machine status according to any one of claims 1 to 9 comprises: The acquisition module is used to obtain background information including machine status; A coloring module, used to assign different icon colors to each machine based on the background information; An alarm module, used to set alarm conditions and generate an alarm signal when the machine meets the alarm conditions; The display module is used to display icons of different colors and corresponding background information.

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