Wafer cassette handling system

Abstract

The application provides a wafer box carrying system, which comprises a wafer box, the wafer box comprising a taking block; an AMR, the AMR comprising a moving part, a carrying part, a mechanical arm, a gripper and an image acquisition unit, the carrying part comprising an electric control box and a carrying table, the carrying part being located on the moving part, the base of the mechanical arm being fixed on the carrying part, the gripper being matched with the taking block, the gripper and the image acquisition unit being arranged at the end of the mechanical arm, the moving part, the image acquisition unit and the mechanical arm being electrically connected with the electric control box, the electric control box driving and controlling the moving part to move, the electric control box controlling the movement of the mechanical arm according to the image of the gripper and the taking block collected by the image acquisition unit, so that the gripper is aligned with the taking block and the wafer box is taken. The application can realize the carrying of various wafer boxes through one AMR, the path planning and the moving scene are simple, and the carrying efficiency is high.

Description

A wafer cassette handling system Technical Field

[0001] This invention relates to the field of AMR technology, and more specifically to a wafer cassette handling system. Background Technology

[0002] In the ultra-thin wafer manufacturing area of ​​a 12-inch semiconductor wafer manufacturing plant, personnel handling wafer cassettes may cause breakage due to significant vibration, greatly reducing production yield. Furthermore, the wafer cassettes are quite heavy when fully loaded, and personnel handling them in batches or multiple times can easily cause fatigue or workplace injuries.

[0003] To address these issues, some factories use AMRs (Autonomous Mobile Robots) to transport wafer cassettes. However, due to the diverse types of wafer cassettes, multiple AMRs are often deployed in one area to handle different types, or AMRs with interchangeable grippers or robotic arms are used. This can easily lead to path conflicts between different AMRs, time-consuming gripper replacements, and reduced handling efficiency. Summary of the Invention

[0004] To solve the above-mentioned technical problems, the present invention provides a wafer cassette handling system that can handle multiple wafer cassettes with a single AMR, featuring simple path planning and movement scenarios, and high handling efficiency.

[0005] The technical solution adopted in this invention is as follows:

[0006] A wafer cassette handling system includes: a wafer cassette, the wafer cassette including a picking block; and an automated mobile transporter (AMR), the AMR including a moving part, a carrying part, a robotic arm, grippers, and an image acquisition unit. The carrying part includes an electrical control box and a carrying platform, the carrying part being located on the moving part. The base of the robotic arm is fixed to the carrying part. The grippers are designed to match the picking block. The grippers and the image acquisition unit are disposed at the end of the robotic arm. The moving part, the image acquisition unit, and the robotic arm are all electrically connected to the electrical control box. The electrical control box drives and controls the moving part to move. The electrical control box controls the movement of the robotic arm based on images of the grippers and the picking block acquired by the image acquisition unit, so that the grippers are aligned with the picking block and the wafer cassette is picked up.

[0007] The grabbing block is rectangular, and the gripper includes two parallel gripping arms and a support rod connected between the ends of the two gripping arms. On the inner side of each of the two gripping arms, a groove extending through the length of the gripping arm is provided. The connection position of the support rod to the end of each gripping arm is located on one side of the groove, and the gap between the support rod and the other side of the groove is greater than the thickness of the grabbing block, so as to form an insertion slot suitable for the grabbing block to be inserted and withdrawn.

[0008] A positioning sensor is also provided in the groove of at least one of the clamping arms to detect whether the pick-up block is inserted into position.

[0009] The positioning sensor is a pressure sensor. At least one notch is provided on at least one side of the pick-up block. The pressure sensor is positioned to accommodate the notch. The electrical control box is electrically connected to the pressure sensor so that when the pressure sensor detects a change from continuous pressure to no pressure, it determines that the pick-up block is inserted in place.

[0010] The image acquisition unit is a first camera, which is mounted above the wrist of the gripper. The shooting direction of the first camera is parallel to the length direction of any of the grippers and faces the end of the gripper.

[0011] The electrical control box is specifically used for: when the AMR reaches the loading position and one side of the platform faces the storage area where the wafer cassette is located, controlling the robotic arm to maintain its initial position, wherein when one side of the platform faces the storage area where the wafer cassette is located and the robotic arm is in its initial position, the two gripping arms of the gripper are on the same horizontal plane, and the ends of the two gripping arms point towards the storage area where the wafer cassette is located; when controlling the end of the robotic arm to move laterally from one extreme position to the other extreme position, controlling the first camera to acquire images and record the position of the end of the robotic arm at preset time intervals; based on the images acquired and the recorded positions during the lateral movement, when the pixel at the midpoint of the target surface of the pick-up block in the image and the pixel at the midpoint of the support rod are at the same pixel horizontal coordinate, the position of the end of the robotic arm is taken as the lateral alignment position, wherein the target surface of the pick-up block is the target surface of the pick-up block. The target surface is the side of the pick-up block facing the first camera; the end of the robotic arm is controlled to move to a lateral alignment position; when the end of the robotic arm moves down from the upper limit position to the lower limit position, or moves up from the lower limit position to the upper limit position, the first camera is controlled to acquire images and record the position of the end of the robotic arm at preset time intervals; based on the images acquired and the recorded positions during the downward or upward movement, the position of the end of the robotic arm when the area of ​​the target surface of the pick-up block in the image is maximized is taken as the initial vertical alignment position; the end of the robotic arm is controlled to move to the initial vertical alignment position and continue to move upward by a preset distance, wherein the preset distance is the vertical distance between the center point of the slot and the focal point of the first camera; the end of the robotic arm is controlled to move from the current position along the front-back direction towards the wafer cassette, so that the pick-up block is inserted into the gripper through the slot.

[0012] The moving part includes an obstacle sensor.

[0013] The obstacle sensor includes a lidar sensor and a second camera.

[0014] A first emergency stop button is provided on the side of the moving part, and a second emergency stop button is provided on the top of the carrying part.

[0015] The wafer pod is either a FOUP (Front Opening Unified Pod) or a CST (Cassette).

[0016] The beneficial effects of this invention are:

[0017] This invention, through the design of the pick-up block on the wafer cassette and the matching design of the AMR gripper and the pick-up block, as well as the alignment and pick-up control of the gripper and the pick-up block, enables the handling of multiple wafer cassettes with a single AMR. The path planning and movement scenarios are simple, and the handling efficiency is high. Attached Figure Description

[0018] Figure 1 is a schematic diagram of a wafer cassette handling system according to an embodiment of the present invention;

[0019] Figure 2 is a schematic diagram of the structure of a wafer cassette according to an embodiment of the present invention;

[0020] Figure 3 is a schematic diagram of the wafer cassette from another perspective of an embodiment of the present invention;

[0021] Figure 4 is a schematic diagram of the gripper and the first camera according to an embodiment of the present invention;

[0022] Figure 5 is a schematic diagram of the wafer cassette handling system of one embodiment of the present invention from another perspective.

[0023] Figure label:

[0024] Wafer box 100, AMR200;

[0025] The components include: a pick-up block 110, a moving part 210, a loading part 220, a robotic arm 230, a gripper 240, and an image acquisition unit 250.

[0026] Notch 111, LiDAR 211, Second camera 212, First emergency stop button 213, Electrical control box 221, Platform 222, Second emergency stop button 223, Clamp arm 241, Support rod 242, Groove 243, Insert 244, Pressure sensor 245. Detailed Implementation

[0027] The technical solutions of the embodiments of the present invention will be clearly and completely described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. Obviously, the described embodiments are only some embodiments of the present invention, and not all embodiments. Based on the embodiments of the present invention, all other embodiments obtained by those skilled in the art without creative effort are within the scope of protection of the present invention.

[0028] As shown in Figure 1, the wafer cassette handling system of this embodiment includes a wafer cassette 100 and an AMR 200. The wafer cassette 100 includes a pick-up block 110. The AMR 200 includes a moving part 210, a carrying part 220, a robotic arm 230, a gripper 240, and an image acquisition unit 250. The carrying part 220 includes an electrical control box 221 and a stage 222. The carrying part 220 is located on the moving part 210. The base of the robotic arm 230 is fixed on the carrying part 210. The gripper 240 and the pick-up block... The 110 matching design includes a gripper 240 and an image acquisition unit 250 located at the end of the robotic arm 230. The moving part 210, the image acquisition unit 250, and the robotic arm 230 are all electrically connected to the control box 221. The control box 221 drives and controls the moving part 210 to move. Based on the images of the gripper 240 and the pick-up block 110 acquired by the image acquisition unit 250, the control box 221 controls the movement of the robotic arm 230 to align the gripper 240 with the pick-up block 110 and pick up the wafer cassette 100.

[0029] In one embodiment of the present invention, as shown in Figures 2 and 3, the pick-up block 110 is cuboid. As shown in Figure 4, the gripper 240 includes two parallel gripping arms 241 and a support rod 242 connected between the ends of the two gripping arms 241. On the inner side of each of the two gripping arms 241, a groove 243 extending through the length of the gripping arm 241 is provided. The connection position of the support rod 242 to the end of each gripping arm 241 is located on one side of the groove 243, and the gap between the support rod 242 and the other side of the groove 243 is greater than the thickness of the pick-up block 110, so as to form an insertion slot 244 suitable for the pick-up block 110 to be inserted and withdrawn.

[0030] In one embodiment of the present invention, the wafer cassette 100 may be of various types such as FOUP or CST. The aforementioned pick-up block 110 is provided on each type of wafer cassette 100, which is suitable for picking up the AMR200 in the embodiment of the present invention.

[0031] In one embodiment of the present invention, a positioning sensor may be provided in the groove 243 of at least one clamping arm 241 to detect whether the picking block 110 is inserted into place. Specifically, as shown in FIG4, the positioning sensor may be a pressure sensor 245. As shown in FIG3, at least one notch 111 is provided on at least one side of the picking block 110. The pressure sensor 245 is positioned to accommodate the notch 111. The control box 221 is electrically connected to the pressure sensor 245 so that when the pressure sensor 245 detects a change from continuous pressure to no pressure, it determines that the picking block 110 is inserted into place. During the insertion of the picking block 110, the side of the picking block 110 can compress the pressure sensor 245 in the groove 243, causing the pressure sensor 245 to continuously sense pressure. When the notch 111 on the side of the picking block 110 reaches the position of the pressure sensor 245, the pressure sensor 245 is no longer compressed by the side of the picking block 110. By designing the position of the notch 111 on the side of the pick-up block 110 and the position of the pressure sensor 245 in the groove 243, the pick-up block 110 can be inserted into place just as the notch 111 reaches the position of the pressure sensor 245, so that the pressure sensor 245 can be used to detect the insertion of the pick-up block 110 into place.

[0032] In one embodiment of the present invention, as shown in FIG4, the image acquisition unit 250 may be a first camera, which is mounted above the wrist of the gripper 240. The shooting direction of the first camera is parallel to the length direction of any gripper arm 241 and faces the end of the gripper arm 241.

[0033] Furthermore, the moving part 210 may include an obstacle sensor for detecting surrounding obstacles during movement to achieve automatic obstacle avoidance.

[0034] As shown in Figures 1 and 5, the obstacle sensor may include a lidar 211 and a second camera 212, both of which are electrically connected to the control box 221 to send the collected lidar data and images to the control box 221. The control box 221 processes and analyzes the lidar data and images to obtain obstacle information.

[0035] Furthermore, a first emergency stop button 213 is provided on the side of the moving part 210, and a second emergency stop button 223 is provided on the top of the carrying part 220. Both emergency stop buttons are electrically connected to the control box 221. When the first emergency stop button 213 is triggered, the control box 221 can control the moving part to stop moving; when the second emergency stop button 223 is triggered, the control box 221 can control the robotic arm to stop moving. The first emergency stop button 213 is located on the side of the moving part 210, at a height suitable for triggering by kicking, while the second emergency stop button 223 is located on the top of the carrying part 220, at a height suitable for triggering by pressing. These two different triggering methods allow operators to distinguish between the two components requiring emergency stop, reducing the possibility of taking incorrect actions in emergency situations.

[0036] In one embodiment of the present invention, the electrical control box 221 may specifically perform the following steps S1 to S8 to achieve alignment between the gripper 240 and the pick-up block 110.

[0037] S1, when the AMR200 reaches the loading position and one side of the stage 222 faces the storage area where the wafer cassette 100 is located, the robotic arm 230 is controlled to maintain the initial position. When one side of the stage 222 faces the storage area where the wafer cassette 100 is located and the robotic arm 230 is in the initial position, the two gripping arms 241 of the gripper 240 are on the same horizontal plane and the ends of the two gripping arms 241 point towards the storage area where the wafer cassette 100 is located.

[0038] The electrical control box 221 can control the AMR200 to reach the loading position according to the preset navigation route and make one side of the platform 222 face the storage area where the wafer box 100 is located.

[0039] S2, when controlling the end of the robotic arm 230 to move laterally from one extreme position to the other extreme position, the first camera is controlled to acquire images and record the position of the end of the robotic arm 230 at preset time intervals.

[0040] The horizontal direction here, from the perspective of the first camera, can also be called the left-right direction. Horizontal movement refers to moving from left to right or from right to left.

[0041] In one embodiment of the present invention, the loading position and the range of motion of the robotic arm 230 can be pre-designed so that when the AMR 200 reaches the loading position, the range encompassed by the lateral and vertical extreme positions of the end of the robotic arm 230 covers the area projected by the pick-up block 110 in the front-back direction. When the robotic arm 230 is in its initial position, the end of the robotic arm 230 may be located at a corner of the aforementioned range, such as the upper left corner.

[0042] In one embodiment of the present invention, the field of view of the first camera can be designed so that the image captured at the loading position always includes the support rod 242 of the gripper 240 and the picking block 110.

[0043] Each time the control box 221 controls the first camera to acquire an image, it simultaneously records the position of the end of the robotic arm 230 at that time and stores the correspondence between the image and the position.

[0044] S3, based on the image acquired and the recorded position during the lateral movement, when the pixel at the midpoint of the target surface of the picking block 110 in the image and the pixel at the midpoint of the support rod 242 are at the same pixel horizontal coordinate, the position of the end of the robotic arm 230 is taken as the lateral alignment position, where the target surface is the side of the picking block 110 facing the first camera.

[0045] In one embodiment of the present invention, targets such as the target surface of the pick-up block 110 and the support rod in the image can be identified by means of template matching or the like. If the target surface of the pick-up block 110 fails to be identified in this step, it may be because the target surface is obscured. In this case, step S2 can be executed again after adjusting the vertical position of the end of the robotic arm 230.

[0046] The support rod 242 not only supports the strength of the gripper 240, but also serves as a feature for the lateral alignment of the gripper 240 and the pick-up block 110, assisting in achieving position alignment and pick-up.

[0047] S4, control the end of the robotic arm 230 to move to the lateral alignment position.

[0048] In steps S2 and S4, the movement of the end of the robotic arm 230 can always be lateral. After moving to the lateral alignment position in step S4, the lateral position of the end of the robotic arm 230 will not change until the pick-up block 110 is inserted into the gripper 240.

[0049] S5, when controlling the end of the robotic arm 230 to move down from the upper limit position to the lower limit position, or to move up from the lower limit position to the upper limit position, the first camera is controlled to acquire images and record the position of the end of the robotic arm 230 at preset time intervals.

[0050] S6, based on the images and recorded positions acquired during downward or upward movement, the position of the end of the robotic arm 230 when the area of ​​the target surface of the picking block 110 in the image is maximized is taken as the initial vertical alignment position.

[0051] When the target surface of the pick-up block 110 fails to be identified due to obstruction, the area of ​​the target surface can be recorded as 0.

[0052] S7, control the end of the robotic arm 230 to move to the initial vertical alignment position, and continue to move upward a preset distance, wherein the preset distance is the vertical distance between the center point of the slot 244 and the focal point of the first camera.

[0053] S8, control the end of the robotic arm 230 to move from its current position toward the wafer cassette 100 in the front-back direction, so that the pick-up block 110 is inserted into the gripper 240 through the slot 244.

[0054] The alignment algorithm between the gripper 240 and the pick-up block 110 in steps S1 to S8 is relatively simple and has high recognition accuracy.

[0055] After the positioning sensor detects that the pick-up block 110 has been inserted into place, the control box 221 can control the end effector of the robotic arm 230 to stop moving forward and instead control the end effector of the robotic arm 230 to move upward to pick up the wafer cassette 100. Following a pre-planned path, the end effector of the robotic arm 230 ultimately moves the wafer cassette 100 onto the stage 222. Figures 1 and 5 show the state of the wafer cassette 100 being moved onto the stage 222. It should be understood that the orientation of the gripper 240 at this point is reversed compared to the alignment and gripping processes. After the wafer cassette 100 is moved onto the stage 222, the end effector of the robotic arm 230 can be controlled to move backward relative to the wafer cassette 100 to remove the pick-up block 110 from the gripper 240. The robotic arm 230 can then be controlled to return to its initial position, and the above process is repeated to pick up another wafer cassette 100 until all stages 222 are fully loaded.

[0056] According to the wafer cassette handling system of the present invention, through the design of the pick-up block on the wafer cassette and the matching design of the AMR gripper and the pick-up block, as well as the alignment and pick-up control of the gripper and the pick-up block, it is possible to handle multiple wafer cassettes with one AMR. The path planning and movement scenarios are simple and the handling efficiency is high.

[0057] In the description of this invention, the terms "first" and "second" are used for descriptive purposes only and should not be construed as indicating or implying relative importance or implicitly specifying the number of indicated technical features. Thus, a feature defined as "first" or "second" may explicitly or implicitly include one or more of that feature. "A plurality of" means two or more, unless otherwise explicitly specified.

[0058] In this invention, unless otherwise explicitly specified and limited, the terms "installation," "connection," "linking," and "fixing," etc., should be interpreted broadly. For example, they can refer to a fixed connection, a detachable connection, or an integral part; they can refer to a mechanical connection or an electrical connection; they can refer to a direct connection or an indirect connection through an intermediate medium; they can refer to the internal communication of two components or the interaction between two components. Those skilled in the art can understand the specific meaning of the above terms in this invention according to the specific circumstances.

[0059] In this invention, unless otherwise explicitly specified and limited, "above" or "below" the second feature can mean that the first feature is in direct contact with the second feature, or that the first feature is in indirect contact with the second feature through an intermediate medium. Furthermore, "above," "over," and "on top" of the second feature can mean that the first feature is directly above or diagonally above the second feature, or simply that the first feature is at a higher horizontal level than the second feature. "Below," "below," and "under" the second feature can mean that the first feature is directly below or diagonally below the second feature, or simply that the first feature is at a lower horizontal level than the second feature.

[0060] In the description of this specification, the references to terms such as "one embodiment," "some embodiments," "example," "specific example," or "some examples," etc., indicate that a specific feature, structure, material, or characteristic described in connection with that embodiment or example is included in at least one embodiment or example of the present invention. In this specification, the illustrative expressions of the above terms do not necessarily refer to the same embodiment or example. Moreover, the specific features, structures, materials, or characteristics described may be combined in any suitable manner in one or more embodiments or examples. Furthermore, without contradiction, those skilled in the art can combine and integrate the different embodiments or examples described in this specification, as well as the features of different embodiments or examples.

[0061] Any process or method description in the flowchart or otherwise herein can be understood as representing a module, segment, or portion of code comprising one or more executable instructions for implementing a particular logical function or process, and the scope of the preferred embodiments of the invention includes additional implementations in which functions may be performed not in the order shown or discussed, including substantially simultaneously or in reverse order depending on the functions involved, as will be understood by those skilled in the art to which embodiments of the invention pertain.

[0062] The logic and / or steps represented in the flowchart or otherwise described herein, for example, can be considered as a ordered list of executable instructions for implementing logical functions, and can be embodied in any computer-readable medium for use by, or in conjunction with, an instruction execution system, apparatus, or device (such as a computer-based system, a processor-included system, or other system that can fetch and execute instructions from, an instruction execution system, apparatus, or device). For the purposes of this specification, "computer-readable medium" can be any means that can contain, store, communicate, propagate, or transmit programs for use by, or in conjunction with, an instruction execution system, apparatus, or device. More specific examples (a non-exhaustive list) of computer-readable media include: an electrical connection having one or more wires (electronic device), a portable computer disk drive (magnetic device), random access memory (RAM), read-only memory (ROM), erasable and editable read-only memory (EPROM or flash memory), fiber optic devices, and portable optical disc read-only memory (CDROM). Alternatively, the computer-readable medium may be paper or other suitable media on which the program can be printed, since the program can be obtained electronically, for example, by optically scanning the paper or other medium, followed by editing, interpreting, or otherwise processing as necessary, and then stored in a computer memory.

[0063] It should be understood that various parts of the present invention can be implemented in hardware, software, firmware, or a combination thereof. In the above embodiments, multiple steps or methods can be implemented in software or firmware stored in memory and executed by a suitable instruction execution system. For example, if implemented in hardware, as in another embodiment, it can be implemented using any one or a combination of the following techniques known in the art: discrete logic circuits having logic gates for implementing logical functions on data signals, application-specific integrated circuits (ASICs) having suitable combinational logic gates, programmable gate arrays (PGAs), field-programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), etc.

[0064] Those skilled in the art will understand that all or part of the steps of the methods in the above embodiments can be implemented by a program instructing related hardware. The program can be stored in a computer-readable storage medium, and when executed, the program includes one or a combination of the steps of the method embodiments.

[0065] Furthermore, the functional units in the various embodiments of the present invention can be integrated into a processing module, or each unit can exist physically separately, or two or more units can be integrated into a module. The integrated module can be implemented in hardware or as a software functional module. If the integrated module is implemented as a software functional module and sold or used as an independent product, it can also be stored in a computer-readable storage medium.

[0066] Although embodiments of the present invention have been shown and described above, it is understood that the above embodiments are exemplary and should not be construed as limiting the present invention. Those skilled in the art can make changes, modifications, substitutions and variations to the above embodiments within the scope of the present invention.

Claims

1. A wafer cassette handling system, characterized in that, include: A wafer cassette (100) includes a pick-up block (110); an analog magnetic resonance imaging (AMR) unit (200) includes a moving part (210), a loading part (220), a robotic arm (230), a gripper (240), and an image acquisition unit (250). The loading part (220) includes an electrical control box (221) and a stage (222). The loading part (220) is located on the moving part (210). The base of the robotic arm (230) is fixed to the loading part (220). The gripper (240) is designed to match the pick-up block (110). The gripper (240) and the loading part are designed to match the pick-up block (110). The image acquisition unit (250) is disposed at the end of the robotic arm (230). The moving part (210), the image acquisition unit (250), and the robotic arm (230) are all electrically connected to the electrical control box (221). The electrical control box (221) drives and controls the moving part (210) to move. The electrical control box (221) controls the movement of the robotic arm (230) based on the images of the gripper (240) and the pick-up block (110) acquired by the image acquisition unit (250), so that the gripper (240) is aligned with the pick-up block (110) and picks up the wafer cassette (100). The block (110) is rectangular. The gripper (240) includes two parallel gripping arms (241) and a support rod (242) connecting the ends of the two gripping arms (241). A groove (243) penetrating the length of each gripping arm (241) is provided on the inner side of each of the two gripping arms (241). The connection point between the support rod (242) and the end of each gripping arm (241) is located on one side of the groove (243), and the gap between the support rod (242) and the other side of the groove (243) is greater than the thickness of the picking block (110), to form a shape suitable for inserting the picking block (110). The insertion and withdrawal slot (244) is provided with a positioning sensor in the groove (243) of at least one of the clamping arms (241) to detect whether the picking block is inserted in place. The positioning sensor is a pressure sensor (245). At least one notch (111) is opened on at least one side of the picking block (110). The pressure sensor (245) is set to adapt to the position of the notch (111). The electrical control box (221) is electrically connected to the pressure sensor (245) so that when the pressure sensor (245) detects that the pressure has changed from continuous to no pressure, it is determined that the picking block (110) is inserted in place.

2. The wafer cassette handling system according to claim 1, characterized in that, The image acquisition unit (250) is a first camera, which is mounted above the wrist of the gripper (240). The shooting direction of the first camera is parallel to the length direction of any of the grippers (241) and faces the end of the gripper (241).

3. The wafer cassette handling system according to claim 2, characterized in that, The electrical control box (221) is specifically used to: when the AMR (200) reaches the loading position and one side of the platform (222) faces the storage area where the wafer cassette (100) is located, control the robotic arm (230) to maintain its initial position. Specifically, when one side of the platform (222) faces the storage area where the wafer cassette (100) is located and the robotic arm (230) is in its initial position, the two gripping arms (241) of the gripper (240) are on the same horizontal plane, and the ends of the two gripping arms (241) point towards... The wafer cassette (100) is located in the storage area; when controlling the end of the robotic arm (230) to move laterally from one extreme position to the other, the first camera is controlled to acquire images and record the position of the end of the robotic arm (230) at preset time intervals; based on the images acquired and the recorded positions during the lateral movement, when the pixel at the midpoint of the target surface of the pick-up block (110) in the image and the pixel at the midpoint of the support rod (242) are at the same pixel horizontal coordinate, the position of the end of the robotic arm (230) is taken as The horizontal alignment position is defined as follows: the target surface is the side of the pick-up block (110) facing the first camera; the end of the robotic arm (230) is controlled to move to the horizontal alignment position; when the end of the robotic arm (230) moves down from the upper limit position to the lower limit position, or moves up from the lower limit position to the upper limit position, the first camera is controlled to acquire images and record the position of the end of the robotic arm (230) at preset time intervals; based on the image acquired and the recorded position during the downward or upward movement, the pick-up block (110) in the image is positioned... When the area of ​​the target surface is maximized, the position of the end of the robotic arm (230) is taken as the initial vertical alignment position; the end of the robotic arm (230) is controlled to move to the initial vertical alignment position and continue to move upward a preset distance, wherein the preset distance is the vertical distance between the center point of the slot (244) and the focal point of the first camera; the end of the robotic arm (230) is controlled to move from the current position along the front-back direction toward the wafer cassette so that the pick-up block (110) is inserted into the gripper (240) from the slot (244).

4. The wafer cassette handling system according to claim 1, characterized in that, The moving part (210) includes an obstacle sensor.

5. The wafer cassette handling system according to claim 4, characterized in that, The obstacle sensor includes a lidar (211) and a second camera (212).

6. The wafer cassette handling system according to claim 1, characterized in that, The side of the moving part (210) is provided with a first emergency stop button (213), and the top of the carrying part (220) is provided with a second emergency stop button (223).

7. The wafer cassette handling system according to claim 1, characterized in that, The wafer cassette (100) is either a FOUP or a CST.

Images