A needle device

Abstract

The application discloses a top pin device, and relates to the technical field of semiconductor process equipment. The top pin device comprises a top pin mechanism and a lifting mechanism. The top pin mechanism comprises a top pin base and a top pin fixed to the top pin base. In the lifting mechanism, a lifting shaft is fixedly connected to the top pin base, the output end of a lifting driver is fixed with a moving base, the lifting shaft is movably connected to the moving base and can move up and down with the moving base, and a damping piece is arranged between the lifting shaft and the moving base. The damping piece can provide resistance to the lifting shaft to resist external deflection force received by the lifting shaft. In the top pin device, the deflection of the top pin base and the lifting shaft is synchronous. The moving base is arranged at the output end of the lifting driver, and the damping piece is arranged between the moving base and the lifting shaft to resist the deflection force received by the lifting shaft. The deflection of the lifting shaft can be reduced or avoided, the deflection of the top pin base fixed to the lifting shaft can be compensated synchronously, and therefore the operation precision of the top pin is improved.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD

[0001] The present application relates to the technical field of semiconductor process equipment, in particular to a top pin device. BACKGROUND

[0002] In a semiconductor process route, wafers need to be subjected to etching, deposition, epitaxy and other process steps in different chambers to complete production. After the wafers enter different chambers through a transmission device, a set of motion mechanisms are needed to realize wafer receiving, placing, taking out and other steps. Such mechanisms are usually referred to as top pin devices. Top pin devices are widely used in the entire process flow of semiconductor processing, including wafer testing, sorting, transmission and other links.

[0003] In an existing top pin device, a top pin, a top pin base and a lifting mechanism are included. The top pin is fixed to the top pin base, and the lifting mechanism drives the top pin base to move up and down. However, due to structural limitations or the existence of external forces such as vacuum forces acting on the output end of the lifting mechanism, the top pin base is prone to deflection, which causes the top pin to deviate from the set level, affecting the running accuracy of the top pin.

[0004] Therefore, how to improve the running accuracy of the top pin is a technical problem to be solved by those skilled in the art at present. SUMMARY

[0005] The present application discloses a top pin device for improving the running accuracy of the top pin.

[0006] The present application provides a top pin device, which includes a top pin mechanism and a lifting mechanism. The top pin mechanism includes a top pin base and a top pin fixed to the top pin base. The lifting mechanism includes a lifting shaft, a lifting driver and a damping member. The lifting shaft is fixedly connected to the top pin base. The output end of the lifting driver is fixed with a motion base. The lifting shaft is movably connected to the motion base and can move up and down with the motion base. The damping member is arranged between the lifting shaft and the motion base. The damping member can provide resistance to the lifting shaft to resist external deflection forces acting on the lifting shaft.

[0007] In this top pin device, the lifting shaft, the top pin base and the top pin are fixedly connected, and the deflection of the top pin base and the lifting shaft is synchronous. The motion base is arranged at the output end of the lifting driver, and the damping member is arranged between the motion base and the lifting shaft to resist the deflection force acting on the lifting shaft. This can reduce or avoid the deflection of the lifting shaft, and the synchronous compensation of the deflection of the top pin base fixed to the lifting shaft can be realized, thereby improving the running accuracy of the top pin and improving the problem of the slide caused by the level fluctuation of the top pin.

[0008] In a possible implementation, the damping member is an elastic member.

[0009] At this time, the resistance of the damping member is the elastic force of the elastic member, and as the external force received by the lifting shaft increases, the deformation degree of the elastic member also increases, and the corresponding size of the elastic force can be adaptively provided to balance the external force received by the lifting shaft, so that the resistance which can adaptively fluctuate can be always provided to reduce the deflection degree of the lifting shaft in the case of external force fluctuation. In addition, since the elastic member is a flexible member, hard damage to the moving base and the lifting shaft can be avoided.

[0010] In a possible implementation, the lifting mechanism further comprises an adjusting member fixedly connected to the lifting shaft, and the elastic member is arranged between the adjusting member and the moving base; and the adjusting member is adjustable in the connecting position on the lifting shaft to adjust the deformation amount of the elastic member.

[0011] At this time, due to the adjustability of the adjusting member to the deformation amount of the elastic member, the range of the elastic force provided by the elastic member can be adjusted accordingly, and when the range of the external deflection force received by the lifting shaft is predicted to change, the deformation degree of the elastic member can be adjusted by the adjusting member, so that the elastic force provided by the elastic member is ensured to be not less than the external deflection force received by the lifting shaft.

[0012] In a possible implementation, the lifting mechanism further comprises a housing, and the ejector pin mechanism is arranged in the housing; the lifting mechanism further comprises a connecting plate, a linear bearing is fixedly arranged on the connecting plate, the top end of the lifting shaft extends into the housing, and sequentially passes through a mounting hole in the bottom of the housing and the linear bearing to connect the moving base; and a sealing member is arranged on the connecting plate to seal the gap between the mounting hole and the lifting shaft.

[0013] At this time, the guiding effect of the linear bearing on the lifting shaft can improve the stability of the lifting motion of the lifting shaft, and is conducive to ensuring that the ejector pin is maintained at a set level.

[0014] In a possible implementation, the sealing member comprises a first sealing ring arranged between the top surface of the connecting plate and the bottom surface of the housing, and a bellows sleeved outside the lifting shaft; the outer ring of the linear bearing is sealingly connected to the connecting plate, the bellows movably passes through the mounting hole, and the top end is sealingly connected to the lifting shaft and the bottom end is sealingly connected to the outer ring of the linear bearing.

[0015] At this time, the first sealing ring and the bellows are used to seal the lifting shaft at the mounting hole, respectively, compared with the direct sealing cooperation of the lifting shaft and the hole wall of the mounting hole, the restriction of the mounting hole on the lifting shaft can be reduced, and over-positioning of the lifting shaft with the linear bearing can be avoided. While ensuring the sealing effect, the smoothness of the lifting motion of the lifting shaft is improved.

[0016] In a possible implementation, the motion base is provided with a connecting module, a top surface of the connecting module is a positioning spherical surface, and a bottom end of the lifting shaft abuts against the positioning spherical surface.

[0017] At this time, the bottom end of the lifting shaft cooperates with the positioning spherical surface to release the rotational freedom of the bottom end of the lifting shaft in some directions, so that the lifting shaft will not be abnormally worn due to over-positioning and the linear bearing when the lifting mechanism performs the lifting action, and the service life of the equipment can be effectively improved.

[0018] In a possible implementation, the motion base comprises a support plate, and the connecting module comprises a first spherical washer fixed above the support plate, and a top surface of the first spherical washer is the positioning spherical surface.

[0019] At this time, the first spherical washer can be conveniently used to set the positioning spherical surface.

[0020] In a possible implementation, the motion base comprises a support plate, and the lifting mechanism further comprises a locking member, the locking member can pass through a connecting hole of the support plate upward and then fixedly connect a bottom end of the lifting shaft, and a gap is formed between the locking member and the connecting hole.

[0021] At this time, the locking member can improve the stability of the movement of the lifting shaft, and due to the existence of the gap between the locking member and the connecting hole, the connecting hole can constrain the movement range of the locking member within a certain range, and the locking member can also move freely within a certain range, thereby avoiding over-positioning of the lifting shaft fixed to the locking member.

[0022] In a possible implementation, the locking member is a positioning bolt.

[0023] At this time, the positioning bolt is used as the locking member, which is convenient for maintenance and disassembly and is conducive to cost saving.

[0024] In a possible implementation, the damping member is a spring sleeved outside the locking member, and two ends of the spring respectively abut between limiting protrusions on the support plate and the locking member.

[0025] At this time, after the locking member is installed, the installation of the elastic member can be completed at the same time, and the installation and disassembly are convenient.

[0026] In a possible implementation, a second spherical washer is further arranged below the support plate, a bottom surface of the second spherical washer is a spherical surface, and the spring abuts between the second spherical washer and the limiting protrusion.

[0027] At this time, the bottom surface of the second spherical gasket is spherical, and the top of the spring abuts against the second spherical gasket, compared with the elastic member directly abutting against the bottom surface of the support plate, the rotation freedom of the elastic member and the locking member in some directions can be released, further avoiding abnormal wear of the lifting shaft and the linear bearing due to over-positioning.

[0028] In a possible implementation, a guide sleeve is further fixed above the support plate, the locking member passes through the guide sleeve upward and is connected to the lifting shaft, and the guide sleeve and the locking member have a gap therebetween.

[0029] At this time, the guide sleeve can guide the locking member and cover the positioning bolt, having a shielding effect.

[0030] In a possible implementation, the motion base comprises a support plate and a vertical plate fixed to one side of the support plate, the lifting shaft is connected to the support plate, and the vertical plate is fixedly connected to the side surface of the output end of the lifting driver.

[0031] At this time, by respectively arranging the support plate and the vertical plate to be respectively and independently used as the connection structure of the lifting shaft and the connection structure of the output end of the lifting driver, the assembly difficulty can be reduced, the motion base and the lifting driver can be quickly disassembled, and the maintenance difficulty of the lifting mechanism and the ejector pin device can be reduced. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

[0032] In order to more clearly illustrate the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present application or the prior art, the following will briefly introduce the drawings needed to be used in the embodiments or prior art description. Obviously, the drawings in the following description only constitute some embodiments of the present application, and for those skilled in the art, other drawings can also be obtained without creative labor based on these drawings.

[0033] Figure 1 is a vertical sectional view of the ejector pin device of the embodiment of the present application;

[0034] Figure 2 is an axial view of the lifting mechanism of the embodiment of the present application;

[0035] Figure 3 is a vertical sectional view of the lifting mechanism of the embodiment of the present application.

[0036] EXPLANATION OF REFERENCE NUMERALS:

[0037] 1 - housing;

[0038] 11 - mounting hole;

[0039] 2 - lifting mechanism;

[0040] 21-lifting shaft, 22-moving base, 23-elastic member, 24-lifting driver, 25-connection module, 26-linear bearing, 27-connection plate, 28-bellow;

[0041] 221-supporting plate, 2211-connection hole, 222-vertical plate;

[0042] 251-positioning bolt, 252-first spherical washer, 253-guide sleeve, 254-second spherical washer;

[0043] 261-mounting plate;

[0044] 271-first sealing ring;

[0045] 3-ejector pin mechanism;

[0046] 31-ejector pin, 32-ejector pin base. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0047] The ejector pin device provided by the present application is applied to the technical field of semiconductor process equipment, and is arranged in a scene with wafer lifting movement requirements. The main products include, but are not limited to, wafer cleaning equipment, wafer measurement equipment, wafer transmission equipment, and process equipment such as etching and deposition.

[0048] Embodiment one

[0049] Please refer to Figures 1 to 3 The ejector pin device comprises an ejector pin mechanism 3, a lifting mechanism 2 and a shell 1.

[0050] The ejector pin mechanism 3 comprises an ejector pin base 32 and an ejector pin 31 fixed on the ejector pin base 32. The ejector pin base 32 is usually fixedly connected with a plurality of ejector pins 31. The ejector pin mechanism 3 is arranged in the shell 1.

[0051] The lifting mechanism 2 comprises a lifting shaft 21 and a lifting driver 24. The lifting shaft 21 is fixedly connected with the ejector pin base 32, so as to drive the lifting movement of the ejector pin mechanism 3. The output end of the lifting driver 24 is fixed with a moving base 22. In this embodiment, the output end of the lifting driver 24 is additionally fixedly connected with the moving base 22. In other embodiments, the moving base 22 can also directly use part of the structure on the output end of the lifting driver 24. The lifting shaft 21 is movably connected with the moving base 22 and can move up and down with the moving base 22.

[0052] The lifting driver 24 can realize stepless adjustment of the lifting height of the ejector pin 31. The lifting driver 24 drives the lifting movement of the moving base 22, and at the same time, the moving base 22 drives the lifting movement of the lifting shaft 21. The lifting driver 24 can specifically comprise a linear driver, a linear guide rail, a single-shaft driver, a slider and other components with lifting driving function.

[0053] When the shell 1 is installed, the bottom of the shell 1 is provided with a mounting hole 11, and the lifting shaft 21 is connected to the mounting hole 11 in a lifting manner. The top end of the lifting shaft 21 is fixedly connected to the needle base 32, and the remaining part of the lifting shaft 21, as well as the lifting driver 24 and the damping member in the lifting mechanism 2 are all externally arranged on the shell 1, so as to reduce the occupation of the internal space of the shell 1.

[0054] The lifting mechanism 2 further comprises a damping member. The damping member is arranged between the lifting shaft 21 and the movement base 22, and can provide resistance to the lifting shaft 21 to resist the external deflection force received by the lifting shaft 21.

[0055] In such a needle device, the lifting shaft 21, the needle base 32 and the needle 31 are fixedly connected, and the deflection of the needle base 32 and the lifting shaft 21 is synchronous. The movement base 22 is arranged at the output end of the lifting driver 24, and the damping member is arranged between the movement base 22 and the lifting shaft 21 to resist the deflection force received by the lifting shaft 21, so as to reduce or avoid the deflection of the lifting shaft 21. The synchronization can realize compensation for the deflection of the needle base 32 fixed to the lifting shaft 21, so as to improve the operation accuracy of the needle 31 and solve the problem of the slide caused by the fluctuation of the levelness of the needle 31.

[0056] Further, the damping member is an elastic member 23, which is specifically a spring in this embodiment, and more specifically a compression spring. In other embodiments, according to the needs of the installation position, the spring force size and direction, the elastic member 23 can also be selected as a tension spring, or a torsion spring, a clamping spring or a rubber block with elasticity.

[0057] It should be noted that in order to ensure that the elastic member 23 can provide resistance, the elastic member 23 is always in a deformed state when it is assembled between the lifting shaft 21 and the movement base 22. For the compression spring in this embodiment, it is installed in a pre-compressed state on the lifting shaft 21 and the movement base 22.

[0058] At this time, the resistance of the damping member is the spring force of the elastic member 23. As the external force received by the lifting shaft 21 increases, the degree of deformation of the elastic member 23 also increases, and the corresponding size of the spring force can be adaptively provided to balance the external force received by the lifting shaft 21, so as to ensure that the resistance which can adaptively fluctuate is always provided to reduce the deflection degree of the lifting shaft 21 in the case of external force fluctuation. In addition, since the elastic member 23 is a flexible member, it can avoid hard damage to the movement base 22 and the lifting shaft 21.

[0059] In addition, in order to ensure that the elastic member 23 can balance the external deflection force received by the lifting shaft 21 from different directions, the elastic member 23 can be provided with the ability to provide resistance at different positions on the outer periphery of the lifting shaft 21. For example, the elastic member 23 is provided with one, and is sleeved on the outer side of the lifting shaft 21, so as to provide elastic force from any direction on the outer periphery of the lifting shaft 21, or the elastic member 23 is provided with at least two, and is connected with different elastic members 23 at different positions on the outer periphery of the lifting shaft 21.

[0060] Of course, the damping member is not limited to the elastic member 23. In another embodiment, the damping member adopts a magnetic assembly, which includes two magnetic members respectively connected to the moving base 22 and the lifting shaft 21, and the two magnetic members provide resistance by repelling each other. Alternatively, in other embodiments, the damping member can also be replaced by other dampers, such as a friction damper that provides resistance by means of friction. In this case, the resistance may be a constant value, and it can also be a gas damper.

[0061] In order to improve the applicability of the elastic member 23, the lifting mechanism 2 further includes an adjusting member fixedly connected to the lifting shaft 21, and the elastic member 23 is arranged between the adjusting member and the moving base 22. The connecting position of the adjusting member on the lifting shaft 21 is adjustable, so as to adjust the deformation amount of the elastic member 23.

[0062] At this time, due to the adjustability of the adjusting member to the deformation amount of the elastic member 23, the elastic force range provided by the elastic member 23 can be adjusted accordingly. When the range of the external deflection force received by the lifting shaft 21 is predicted to change, the deformation degree of the elastic member 23 can be adjusted by the adjusting member, so as to ensure that the elastic force provided by the elastic member 23 is not less than the external deflection force that the lifting shaft 21 will receive.

[0063] It should be noted that the adjustment of the adjusting member to the elastic member 23 is usually applied in the assembly process, and the adjusting member is adjusted manually or by other external force to change the initial deformation degree of the elastic member 23. After entering the use state, the deformation amount of the elastic member 23 changes adaptively when the stress of the lifting shaft 21 changes, and the adjusting member is no longer adjusted.

[0064] Optionally, the adjustability of the adjusting member to the deformation amount of the elastic member 23 can be applied in the assembly process of the elastic member 23. For example, a kind of external deflection force of the lifting shaft 21 caused by structural restriction, such as Figure 1As shown, the lifting shaft 21 is eccentrically connected to the ejector pin mechanism 3, that is, in the horizontal direction, the lifting shaft 21 is located on one side of the vertical line where the center of gravity of the ejector pin mechanism 3 is located, at this time, the ejector pin mechanism 3 forms a cantilever structure relative to the lifting shaft 21, constituting the eccentric load of the lifting shaft 21, in the atmospheric environment, after the lifting shaft 21 drives the ejector pin mechanism 3 to move to the suspended state, the ejector pin mechanism 3 is only subjected to atmospheric pressure, gravity and the supporting force of the lifting shaft 21, the gravity of the ejector pin mechanism 3 will form a torque relative to the lifting shaft 21, the gravity of the ejector pin mechanism 3 constitutes the external deflection force of the lifting shaft 21, in the traditional technology without setting the damping member, the ejector pin mechanism 3 and the lifting shaft 21 will thus be deflected as a whole. In the embodiment, the elastic member 23 is additionally provided as a damping member, in the assembly process, by means of the adjusting member adjusting the deformation amount of the elastic member 23, the elastic force provided by the elastic member 23 and the gravity of the ejector pin mechanism 3 can form torques with equal size and opposite direction between them and the lifting shaft 21, then in the atmospheric environment, after the lifting shaft 21 drives the ejector pin mechanism 3 to move to the suspended state, the ejector pin mechanism 3 can always be kept at the set level, completely overcoming the problem that the ejector pin mechanism 3 deviates from the set level due to the eccentric connection of the lifting shaft 21 and the ejector pin mechanism 3.

[0065] Among them, in order to ensure that the elastic member 23 forms a torque relative to the lifting shaft 21, when the elastic member 23 is sleeved on the lifting shaft 21, the elastic member 23 can provide elastic force around the lifting shaft 21, at this time, different positions of the elastic member 23 can provide elastic force with different sizes by means of different deformation degrees of different positions; or, the elastic member 23 can also be connected to one side of the lifting shaft 21 in the horizontal direction, for example, the center of gravity of the ejector pin mechanism 3 and the elastic member 23 are arranged on the same side of the lifting shaft 21, and the elastic member 23 provides upward elastic force.

[0066] Or, in the assembly process, the elastic member 23 can also not overcome the eccentric gravity of the lifting mechanism 3 in advance, but in the atmospheric environment, after the lifting shaft 21 drives the ejector pin mechanism 3 to move to the suspended state, when the lifting shaft 21 is deflected due to the eccentric load of the ejector pin mechanism 3, the elastic member 23 adaptively increases the deformation degree to provide resistance, compared with the traditional technology without setting the damping member, the deflection degree of the ejector pin 31 can also be reduced, and the movement precision of the ejector pin 31 can be improved.

[0067] On the lifting mechanism 2, in order to realize the connection with the shell 1, the lifting mechanism 2 further comprises a connecting plate 27, the top end of the lifting shaft 21 extends into the shell 1 and is connected to the movement base 22 after passing through the mounting hole 11 at the bottom of the shell 1, and the lifting shaft 21 can be lifted relative to the mounting hole 11. The connecting plate 27 is provided with a sealing member to seal the gap between the mounting hole 11 and the lifting shaft 21. Among them, the ejector pin 31 and the ejector pin base 32, the ejector pin base 32 and the lifting shaft 21, and the shell 1 and the connecting plate 27 are rigidly connected.

[0068] Since the shell 1 can be in an atmospheric environment for debugging operation, or a vacuum environment for corresponding work on the wafer, by providing a sealing element on the connecting plate 27, the sealing of the shell 1 is ensured, the vacuum degree of the vacuum environment is ensured, assembly is facilitated, and the sealing element can reduce the obstruction to the lifting movement of the lifting shaft 21.

[0069] To facilitate the assembly of the lifting mechanism 2 and the shell 1, the top end of the lifting driver 24 is connected to the bottom end of the connecting plate 27. At this time, the lifting mechanism 2 forms an integral module and can be integrally installed in the shell 1.

[0070] To improve the stability of the lifting movement of the lifting shaft 21, a linear bearing 26 is fixedly provided on the connecting plate 27. The top end of the lifting shaft 21 extends into the shell 1 and is connected to the movement base 22 in turn after passing through the mounting hole 11 at the bottom of the shell 1 and the linear bearing 26. The linear bearing 26 has a guiding effect, which can improve the stability of the lifting movement of the lifting shaft 21 and is beneficial to ensuring that the probe 31 is maintained at a set level.

[0071] In the sealing element, it includes a first sealing ring 271 provided between the top surface of the connecting plate 27 and the bottom surface of the shell 1, and a bellows 28 sleeved on the outside of the lifting shaft 21.

[0072] Specifically, the bellows 28 movably passes through the mounting hole 11 and is sealingly connected to the lifting shaft 21 at the top end and the linear bearing 26 at the bottom end. The outer ring of the linear bearing 26 is sealingly connected to the connecting plate 27. At this time, the upper part of the bellows 28 is located in the shell 1, and the lower part extends out of the shell 1. The first sealing ring 271 is sleeved on the outside of the bellows 28. In addition, there is a gap between the mounting hole 11 and the lifting shaft 21, and the mounting hole 11 does not have a restraining effect on the lifting shaft 21, which can avoid over-positioning of the lifting shaft 21 with the linear bearing 26.

[0073] Wherein, the bellows 28 is connected with the outer ring of the linear bearing 26, and the lifting shaft 21 is connected with the inner ring of the linear bearing 26. When the lifting shaft 21 lifts, the bottom end of the bellows 28 does not move, and the top end lifts synchronously with the lifting shaft 21. The bellows 28 expands and deforms. When the lifting shaft 21 descends, the bellows 28 adaptively shrinks and deforms.

[0074] Wherein, to facilitate the sealing connection of the outer ring of the linear bearing 26 to the connecting plate 27, the outer top end of the linear bearing 26 is further fixed with a mounting plate 261, and the mounting plate 261 is fixedly connected to the connecting plate 27. A second sealing ring can be provided between the top surface of the mounting plate 261 and the bottom surface of the connecting plate 27 to achieve sealing connection, or the mounting plate 261 and the connecting plate 27 can be inserted and interference-fitted with each other through concave-convex structures to achieve sealing.

[0075] It should be noted that based on such a lifting mechanism 2, in addition to the external deflection force caused by the eccentric gravity of the thimble mechanism 3 mentioned above, another kind of external deflection force will also be caused due to the change of the vacuum or atmospheric environment in the shell 1.

[0076] As shown in Figure 1 , the space inside the mounting hole 11 outside the bellows 28 is a space communicating with the inside of the shell 1 and is isolated from the outside atmosphere through the linear bearing 26, the bellows 28, the connecting plate 27 and the sealing of the first sealing ring 217. During the process of changing the environment inside the shell 1 from atmosphere to vacuum, the lower side of the connecting plate 27 is subjected to atmospheric pressure, while the upper side is subjected to the gas pressure inside the shell 1, which gradually decreases as the gas decreases, and the downward gas pressure also gradually decreases. At this time, the pressure difference between the gas inside and outside the shell 1 on the connecting plate 27 is upward and is called vacuum force. Due to the existence of the vacuum force, the connecting plate 27 may be subjected to unbalanced force, as shown in Figure 2 , the vacuum force acts on the D side of the connecting plate 27, causing the D side of the connecting plate 27 to overturn upward relative to the S side, which in turn drives the linear bearing 26 on the D side of the connecting plate 27 to overturn, and then the linear bearing 26 generates another external deflection force on the lifting shaft 21. With continuous vacuuming, the vacuum force gradually increases, and this external deflection force also becomes larger. At this time, the corresponding resistance can be provided by the elastic member 23, and the resistance also becomes larger and larger to reduce the influence of this external deflection force on the lifting shaft and the influence on the levelness of the thimble 31.

[0077] Further, in the lifting mechanism 2, a connecting module 25 is further provided on the moving base 22 to realize the connection between the lifting shaft 21 and the moving base 22.

[0078] The connecting module 25 is a separate structure connected to the connecting module 25. The connecting module 25 includes a locking member, and a first spherical gasket 252, a guide sleeve 253 and a second spherical gasket 254 arranged in sequence from top to bottom. In addition, the moving base 22 includes a support plate 221, the first spherical gasket 252 and the guide sleeve 253 are arranged above the support plate 221, the second spherical gasket 254 is located below the support plate 221, and the locking member passes through the second spherical gasket 254, the connecting hole 2211 on the support plate 221, the guide sleeve 253 and the first spherical gasket 252 in sequence from bottom to top, and is fixed to the bottom end of the lifting shaft 21.

[0079] Since the linear bearing 26 is arranged in the lifting mechanism 2 to guide the lifting shaft 21, the linear movement direction defined thereby is the Z axis, and the Z axis, the X axis and the Y axis are perpendicular to each other, within the setting accuracy range of the linear bearing 26, the movement degrees of freedom of the lifting shaft 21 along the X axis and the Y axis and the rotation degrees of freedom of the lifting shaft 21 around the X axis and the Y axis are all limited. In order to avoid over-positioning of the connecting module 25 and the linear bearing 26 on the lifting shaft 21 and abnormal wear of the linear bearing 26 caused by the lifting movement of the lifting shaft 21, a positioning spherical surface matched with the bottom end of the lifting shaft 21 and a movable locking member within a certain range can be arranged.

[0080] Specifically, the first spherical gasket 252 constitutes the top surface of the connecting module 25, which is the positioning spherical surface, and the bottom end of the lifting shaft 21 abuts against the positioning spherical surface. Since the bottom end of the lifting shaft 21 abuts against the positioning spherical surface, the bottom end of the lifting shaft 21 is matched with the spherical surface of the first spherical gasket 252, and the rotation degrees of freedom of the bottom end of the lifting shaft 21 around the X axis and the Y axis are released. When the lifting mechanism 2 performs the lifting action, the lifting shaft 21 will not cause abnormal wear of the linear bearing 26 due to over-positioning, and the service life of the equipment can be effectively improved. Of course, in other embodiments, the positioning spherical surface can also be integrally formed on the support plate 221, and the bottom end of the lifting shaft 21 directly abuts against the positioning spherical surface.

[0081] Specifically, the locking member, the second spherical gasket 254, the connecting hole 2211 on the support plate 221, the guide sleeve 253 and the first spherical gasket 252 all have gaps, and can be matched with the gaps, respectively. At this time, the connecting module can constrain the movement range of the locking member within a certain range, and can also move freely within a certain range, so as to avoid over-positioning of the lifting shaft 21 fixed to the locking member.

[0082] In addition, the locking member can also be applied to the connecting or limiting elastic member 23. Specifically, the damping member is a spring sleeved outside the locking member, and the two ends of the spring are respectively abutted between the support plate 221 and the limiting protrusion on the locking member. At this time, after the locking member is installed, the installation of the elastic member 23 can be completed synchronously, and the installation and disassembly are convenient.

[0083] Specifically, the locking member is a positioning bolt 251, which is screwed into the threaded hole at the bottom of the lifting shaft 21, is convenient for maintenance and disassembly, is conducive to cost saving, and can realize the installation and disassembly of the lifting shaft 21 and the elastic member 23 relative to the moving base 22 through only one positioning bolt 251. Compared with the traditional lifting mechanism, the structure is simpler, and whether the installation of the whole device or the maintenance of the linear bearing 26 or the bellows 28 is more convenient.

[0084] In addition, the locking member can directly serve as the adjusting member of the positioning bolt 251. Specifically, the locking member is the positioning bolt 251, the limiting protrusion on the locking member is the head end of the positioning bolt 251, and the elastic member 23 is arranged between the head end of the positioning bolt 251 and the support plate 221. By rotating the positioning bolt 251 relative to the lifting shaft 21, the deformation of the elastic member 23 can be adjusted, and the operation is convenient.

[0085] In the assembly process, in order to ensure that the elastic member 23 can compensate for different forces in a vacuum and atmosphere, and improve the consistency of the levelness of the ejector pin 31 in different environments, the range of the vacuum force borne by the lifting mechanism 2 can be determined according to different vacuum requirements in semiconductor equipment, vacuum area and other factors, or according to the eccentric load of the ejector pin mechanism 3 borne by the lifting shaft 21. The positioning bolt 251 can be screwed to select a spring with a suitable elastic coefficient, or the positioning bolt 251 can be screwed to adjust the pre-tightening force of the spring to match different resistance requirements.

[0086] When the spring provides resistance to prevent the lifting shaft 21 from deflecting relative to the set lifting direction, in the conventional technology, according to the size of the deflection force, the lifting shaft 21 can deflect in the linear bearing 26 or directly drive the linear bearing 26 to deflect. In the embodiment, the top end of the spring abuts against the moving base 22, and the bottom end abuts against the positioning bolt 251 which is fixedly connected with the lifting shaft 21 and moves synchronously. When the lifting shaft 21 has a deflection trend or deflects in different directions due to external deflection force, the positioning bolt 251 also has the same deflection trend or deflects. The head end of the positioning bolt 251 and the support plate 221 have a larger deformation degree in the corresponding direction, and a counterforce is generated to overcome the deflection of the positioning bolt 251, so as to reduce or avoid the deflection of the lifting shaft 21 and ensure that the ejector pin 31 has good levelness.

[0087] In addition, the second spherical gasket 254 is arranged below the support plate 221, the bottom surface of the second spherical gasket 254 is a spherical surface, and the top of the spring abuts against the second spherical gasket 254. Compared with the elastic member 23 directly abutting against the bottom surface of the support plate 221, the rotation freedom of the elastic member 23 and the locking member around the X-axis and the Y-axis is released, and the abnormal wear of the lifting shaft 21 and the linear bearing 26 due to over-positioning is further avoided.

[0088] In addition, the guide sleeve 253 can guide the positioning bolt 251 and cover the positioning bolt 251, and has a shielding effect.

[0089] Of course, in addition to the positioning bolt 251, in other embodiments, the locking column can also be selected to be clamped and fixed with the lifting shaft 21 or to be interference fit or friction fixed; alternatively, the bottom end of the lifting shaft 21 can also not be provided with a locking member, and the bottom end of the lifting shaft 21 is directly abutted on the first spherical gasket 252 or the top surface of the support plate 221.

[0090] Obviously, in other embodiments, the connecting module 25 can also be directly selected as a part of structure integrally arranged on the movement base 22; alternatively, the connecting module 25 can also not be arranged, and the damping member is directly connected between the lifting shaft 21 and the movement base 22, for example, the damping member is selected as a gas damper or a tension spring, at this time, the two ends of the damping member are connected to the lifting shaft 21 and the movement base 22, respectively, and the same can achieve the movable connection between the lifting shaft 21 and the movement base 22, and the movement base 22 can drive the lifting shaft 21 to move up and down through the damping member.

[0091] In the movement base 22, it includes the support plate 221 and the vertical plate 222 fixed to one side of the support plate 221. The lifting shaft 21 is connected to the support plate 221, and the vertical plate 222 is fixedly connected to the side surface of the output end of the lifting driver 24. Among them, the vertical plate 222 and the support plate 221 can be arranged vertically to form a right-angle seat, so as to facilitate processing.

[0092] At this time, by respectively arranging the support plate 221 and the vertical plate 222 to respectively serve as the connection structure with the lifting shaft 21 and the connection structure with the output end of the lifting driver 24, the assembly difficulty can be reduced, the quick disassembly between the movement base 22 and the lifting driver 24 can be achieved, and the maintenance difficulty of the lifting mechanism 2 and the ejector pin device is reduced.

[0093] Specifically, when connecting the output end of the lifting driver 24 and the vertical plate 222, a fastening bolt can be selected, and the vertical plate 222 is fixed to the side surface of the output end of the lifting driver 24 through the fastening bolt. In addition, on the side surface, the fastening bolt is completely overlapped with the vertical projection of the lifting shaft 21 on the side surface of the output end of the lifting driver 24, so as to avoid the lifting shaft 21 blocking the assembly and disassembly of the fastening bolt, and further improve the assembly and disassembly convenience of the movement base 22 and the lifting driver 24.

[0094] Of course, in addition to the movement base 22 in the embodiment, in other embodiments, the movement base 22 can also be arranged in other shapes, for example, a block structure, as long as the connection between the lifting driver 24 and the lifting shaft 21 can be achieved.

[0095] Based on the needle mechanism 3 provided in the embodiment, the wafer can be transported and conveyed, the requirement of rapid disassembly and maintenance can be met, the problems such as over-positioning of the lifting mechanism 2 and poor levelness of the needle 31 are avoided, the disassembly is more convenient, and the linear driver is more convenient to maintain.

[0096] The above preferred embodiments further describe the purposes, technical solutions and advantages of the present application in detail. It should be understood that the above description is only for the preferred embodiments of the present application and is not intended to limit the present application. Any modification, equivalent replacement, improvement, etc. made within the spirit and principle of the present application should be included in the protection scope of the present application.

[0097] It should be noted that when an element is referred to as being "fixed" to another element, it can be directly on the other element or there can be an intervening element. When an element is referred to as being "connected" to another element, it can be directly connected to the other element or intervening elements can be present. In addition, in the description of the present application, unless otherwise specified, the meaning of "a plurality of", "a plurality of", "a plurality of" is two or more than two.

[0098] The terms "center", "upper", "lower", "left", "right", "vertical", "horizontal", "inner", "outer", and the like indicate the orientation or positional relationship based on the orientation or positional relationship shown in the drawings, and are only for the convenience of describing the present application and simplifying the description, and do not indicate or imply that the device or element referred to must have a particular orientation, be constructed and operated in a particular orientation, and therefore cannot be understood as limiting the present application. In addition, the terms "first", "second", "third" are only for the purpose of description, and cannot be understood as indicating or implying relative importance or implicitly indicating the number of technical features indicated.

[0099] Unless otherwise defined, all technical and scientific terms used herein have the same meaning as commonly understood by one of ordinary skill in the art to which the present application belongs. The terms used in the specification of the present application are only for the purpose of describing the specific embodiments of the present application, and are not intended to limit the present application.

[0100] The various embodiments in the specification are described in a progressive manner, and each embodiment focuses on the differences from other embodiments. The same or similar parts between various embodiments can be referred to each other.

[0101] The above describes the needle device provided by the present application in detail. The principle and implementation of the present application are described by applying specific examples, and the above description of the examples is only used to help understand the method of the present application and its core idea. It should be pointed out that, for those skilled in the art, some improvements and modifications can be made to the present application without departing from the principle of the present application, and these improvements and modifications also fall within the protection scope of the claims of the present application.

Claims

1. A pin device, characterized in that, The device comprises a thimble mechanism (3) and a lifting mechanism (2); The thimble mechanism (3) comprises a thimble base (32) and a thimble (31) fixed on the thimble base (32); The lifting mechanism (2) comprises a lifting shaft (21), a lifting driver (24) and a damping member, the lifting shaft (21) is fixedly connected to the thimble base (32), the output end of the lifting driver (24) is fixed with a moving base (22), the lifting shaft (21) is movably connected to the moving base (22) and can move up and down with the moving base (22), the damping member is arranged between the lifting shaft (21) and the moving base (22), and the damping member can provide resistance to the lifting shaft (21) to resist external deflection force received by the lifting shaft (21). A connecting module (25) is arranged on the moving base (22), the top surface of the connecting module (25) is a positioning spherical surface, and the bottom end of the lifting shaft (21) abuts against the positioning spherical surface. The moving base (22) comprises a support plate (221) and a locking member, the locking member can pass through a connecting hole (2211) of the support plate (221) upwards and then fixedly connect the bottom end of the lifting shaft (21), and the damping member is an elastic member (23) sleeved outside the locking member, the two ends of the elastic member (23) are respectively located between limiting protrusions on the support plate (221) and the locking member.

2. The pim device of claim 1, wherein The lifting mechanism (2) further comprises an adjusting member fixedly connected to the lifting shaft (21), and the elastic member (23) is arranged between the adjusting member and the moving base (22); the connecting position of the adjusting member on the lifting shaft (21) is adjustable, so as to adjust the deformation amount of the elastic member (23).

3. A needle arrangement according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that The device further comprises a shell (1), the thimble mechanism (3) is arranged in the shell (1), the lifting mechanism (2) further comprises a connecting plate (27), a linear bearing (26) is fixedly arranged on the connecting plate (27), the top end of the lifting shaft (21) penetrates the shell (1) downwards, sequentially passes through a mounting hole (11) at the bottom of the shell (1) and the linear bearing (26) and then connects the moving base (22), and a sealing member is arranged on the connecting plate (27) to seal the gap between the mounting hole (11) and the lifting shaft (21).

4. The thimble device of claim 3, wherein, The sealing member comprises a first sealing ring (271) arranged between the top surface of the connecting plate (27) and the bottom surface of the shell (1) and a bellows (28) sleeved outside the lifting shaft (21), the outer ring of the linear bearing (26) is sealingly connected to the connecting plate (27), the bellows (28) movably penetrates the mounting hole (11) and is sealingly connected to the outer ring of the lifting shaft (21) at the top end and to the outer ring of the linear bearing (26) at the bottom end.

5. The ejector pin assembly of claim 1 or 2, wherein, The connecting module (25) comprises a first spherical gasket (252) fixed above the support plate (221), and the top surface of the first spherical gasket (252) is the positioning spherical surface.

6. The ejector pin assembly of claim 1 or 2, wherein, There is a gap between the locking member and the connecting hole (2211).

7. The ejector pin assembly of claim 1 or 2, wherein, The locking member is a positioning bolt.

8. The ejector pin assembly of claim 1 or 2, wherein, The damping member is a spring sleeved outside the locking member.

9. The ejector pin assembly of claim 1 or 2, wherein, The support plate (221) is further provided with a second spherical gasket (254) below, the bottom surface of the second spherical gasket (254) is a spherical surface, and the elastic member (23) is arranged between the second spherical gasket (254) and the limiting protrusion.

10. The ejector pin assembly of claim 1 or 2, wherein: The support plate (221) is further provided with a guide sleeve (253) above, the locking member passes through the guide sleeve (253) upwards and is connected with the lifting shaft (21), and the guide sleeve (253) and the locking member have a gap therebetween.

11. The ejector pin assembly of claim 1 or 2, wherein, The movement base (22) comprises a vertical plate (222) fixed to one side of the support plate (221), the lifting shaft (21) is connected to the support plate (221), and the vertical plate (222) is fixedly connected to the side surface of the output end of the lifting driver (24).

Images