Flexible holding gripper

Abstract

This invention provides a flexible gripper that can adapt to the width of the wafer cassette for gripping, resulting in good versatility of a single gripper set and eliminating the need for manual replacement, thus improving the stability of the production process, the consistency of operation, and the overall efficiency. It includes: a mounting base comprising a base plate, two side plates, and a rear end plate, with notches at the front and top; a supporting base plate for supporting the wafer cassette; a supporting back plate; at least one pair of gripper assemblies, each pair including two opposing moving plates, each opposing moving plate having at least one flexible pressing attachment arranged facing each other, and the ends of the two opposing moving plates sharing a common double-ended lead screw, the driving end of which is connected to a rotating mechanism that drives the opposing moving plates to move closer or further apart; and an X-axis linear movement mechanism.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention relates to the technical field of wafer-type product transfer, specifically a flexible gripper. Background Technology

[0002] During the wafer fabrication process, wafers need to be placed in wafer cassettes, and then the wafer cassettes are transferred using equipment. Existing wafer cassette clamping equipment requires a corresponding gripper for each size of wafer cassette. The size of the gripper is used to adapt to the size of different wafer cassettes. When the size of the wafer cassette changes, the gripper needs to be replaced manually. Manual replacement of grippers or adjustment of parameters can lead to operational errors, compatibility issues, and potential workpiece damage risks. Summary of the Invention

[0003] To address the aforementioned issues, this invention provides a flexible gripper that can adapt to the width of the wafer cassette for gripping, resulting in good versatility of a single set of grippers and eliminating the need for manual replacement, thereby improving the stability of the production process, the consistency of operations, and overall efficiency.

[0004] A flexible gripper, characterized in that it comprises: The mounting base includes a base plate, two side plates, and a rear end plate, with notches provided at the front end and top. Support base plate, which is used to support the wafer cassette; Support back plate; At least one pair of gripper assemblies, each pair of gripper assemblies includes two opposing moving plates on both sides, each opposing moving plate on both sides is provided with at least one flexible pressing attachment, and the ends of the two opposing moving plates on both sides are also connected to a double-ended lead screw, the driving end of the double-ended lead screw is connected to a rotating mechanism, the rotating mechanism drives the two opposing moving plates on both sides to move closer or further apart. And an X-axis linear motion mechanism; A support back plate is fixed to the rear end of the support base plate, and a corresponding rotating mechanism is fixed to the support back plate. A connecting plate is provided at the rear end of each side of the opposing moving plate. The connecting plate is connected to the corresponding surface of the support back plate through a Y-guide rail, which makes the spacing between the opposing flexible pressing attachments of the gripper assembly adjustable. An X-axis linear moving mechanism is provided between the support base plate and the base plate. The X-axis linear moving mechanism drives the support base plate to detach from the front notch of the mounting base and bulge outward, so as to transfer the entire wafer cassette to the external gripping position.

[0005] Its further features are: It includes two pairs of gripper assemblies, specifically an upper gripper assembly and a lower gripper assembly. Each gripper assembly is driven to perform gripping or opening operations through an independent rotating mechanism. It can reliably select the required gripper assembly for operation according to the height of the wafer cassette. The rotating mechanism includes a rotating servo motor and a synchronous belt pulley mechanism. The synchronous belt pulley mechanism includes a driving pulley, a driven pulley, and a synchronous belt. A first lead screw nut is fixedly connected to the connecting plate of the opposing moving plate. A double-ended lead screw with a fixed axial position passes through and is threaded to the lead screw nuts on both sides. A driven pulley is fixedly sleeved at one end of the double-ended lead screw. The rotating servo motor is fixedly connected to the support back plate. The driving pulley is fixedly sleeved at the output end of the rotating servo motor. The driving pulley is connected to the driven pulley through the synchronous belt. Each of the opposing moving plates has a pair of flexible clamping attachments fixed on its inner surface, which are spaced apart along the X direction to ensure reliable clamping operation for the wafer cassette. The X-axis linear motion mechanism includes an X-axis guide rail and an X-axis servo drive assembly, wherein the X-axis servo drive assembly drives the support base plate to move along the X-axis guide rail. The bottom of the support base plate is also provided with a downwardly protruding X-direction linear rack, and a rotation sensing device is correspondingly provided on the base plate. The input end of the rotation sensing device is provided with a sensing gear, which meshes with the X-direction linear rack and is used to reliably sense the X-direction movement of the entire support base plate.

[0006] After adopting the above technical solution, since a corresponding rotating mechanism is fixed on the support back plate, and a connecting plate is provided at the rear end of each side of the opposing moving plate, the connecting plate is connected to the corresponding surface of the support back plate through the Y guide rail. The rotating mechanism drives the double-headed screw to rotate, thereby driving the opposing moving plates to move synchronously in opposite directions or away from each other. This makes the spacing of the opposing flexible pressing attachments of the gripper assembly adjustable, thus adapting to the clamping operation of wafer cassettes of different sizes. It can adapt to the width of the wafer cassette for clamping, making the single set of gripper versatility good, and eliminating the need for manual replacement, thereby improving the stability of the production process, the consistency of operation and the overall efficiency. Attached Figure Description

[0007] Figure 1 This is a perspective view of the wafer cassette held in place by the present invention; Figure 2 To remove the three-dimensionality of the mounting base in this invention Figure 1 ; Figure 3 To remove the three-dimensionality of the mounting base in this invention Figure 2 ; Figure 4 This is a top view of the invention without the mounting base; Figure 5 The front view of the mounting base is removed for this invention; The names corresponding to the serial numbers in the diagram are as follows: 100 wafer boxes; Mounting base 10, base plate 11, side plate 12, rear end plate 13, support base plate 20, support back plate 30, gripper assembly 40, upper gripper assembly 401, lower gripper assembly 402, opposing moving plate 41, flexible pressure attachment 42, double-ended lead screw 43, connecting plate 44, first lead screw nut 45, Y-axis guide rail 46, rotating mechanism 50, rotating servo motor 51, driving pulley 52, driven pulley 53, synchronous belt 54, X-axis linear moving mechanism 60, X-axis guide rail 61, X-axis servo drive motor 62, X-axis lead screw 63, X-axis lead screw nut 64, X-axis linear rack 70, rotation sensing device 80, sensing gear 81. Detailed Implementation

[0008] A flexible gripper, see Figures 1-5 It includes a mounting base 10, a support base plate 20, a support back plate 30, at least a pair of gripper assemblies 40, and an X-direction linear movement mechanism 60; Mounting base 10 includes a base plate 11, two side plates 12, and a rear end plate 13, with notches at the front end and top of the mounting base; The support base plate 20 is used to support the wafer box 100; Each pair of gripper assemblies 40 includes two opposing movable plates 41 on both sides. Each opposing movable plate 41 is provided with at least one flexible pressing attachment 42 facing each other. The ends of the two opposing movable plates 41 are also connected to a double-ended lead screw 43. The driving end of the double-ended lead screw 43 is connected to a rotating mechanism 50. The rotating mechanism 50 drives the two opposing movable plates 41 to move closer or further apart. A support back plate 30 is fixedly provided at the rear end of the support base plate 20. A corresponding rotating mechanism 50 is fixedly provided on the support back plate 30. A connecting plate 44 is provided at the rear end of each side of the opposing moving plate 41. The connecting plate 44 is connected to the corresponding surface of the support back plate 30 through two sets of parallel Y guide rails 46, which makes the spacing of the opposing flexible pressing attachments 42 of the gripper assembly 40 adjustable. An X-axis linear moving mechanism 60 is provided between the support base plate 20 and the base plate 11. The X-axis linear moving mechanism 60 drives the support base plate 20 to detach from the front notch of the mounting base 10 and bulge outward, so as to transfer the entire wafer cassette 100 to the external gripping position.

[0009] In specific implementation, it includes two pairs of gripper assemblies, specifically an upper gripper assembly 401 and a lower gripper assembly 402. Each set of gripper assemblies 40 is driven to perform gripping or opening operations by an independent rotating mechanism 50. It can reliably select the required gripper assembly for operation according to the height of the wafer cassette 100. The rotating mechanism 50 includes a rotating servo motor 51 and a synchronous belt pulley mechanism. The synchronous belt pulley mechanism includes a driving pulley 52, a driven pulley 53, and a synchronous belt 54. A first lead screw nut 45 is fixedly connected to the connecting plate 44 of the opposing moving plate 41. A double-ended lead screw 43 with a fixed axial position passes through and is threadedly connected to the lead screw nuts 45 on both sides. A driven pulley 53 is fixedly sleeved at one end of the double-ended lead screw 43. The rotating servo motor 51 is fixedly connected to the support back plate 30. The output end of the rotating servo motor 51 is fixedly sleeved with the driving pulley 52. ​​The driving pulley 52 is connected to the driven pulley 53 through the synchronous belt 54.

[0010] In practice, a pair of flexible clamping attachments 42 arranged at intervals along the X direction are fixed on the inner surface of each opposing moving plate 41 to ensure reliable clamping operation for the wafer cassette 100. The X-axis linear motion mechanism 60 includes an X-axis guide rail 61 and an X-axis servo drive assembly. The X-axis servo drive assembly drives the support base plate to move along the X-axis guide rail. In a specific implementation, the X-axis servo drive assembly includes an X-axis servo drive motor 62, an X-axis lead screw 63, and an X-axis lead screw nut 64. The X-axis lead screw nut 64 is provided at the lower part of the support base plate 20, and the X-axis servo drive motor 62 is fixed at the rear end of the base plate 11. The output end of the X-axis servo drive motor 62 is connected to the X-axis lead screw 63, and the X-axis lead screw 63 is threaded and connected to the X-axis lead screw nut 64. The bottom of the support base plate 20 is also provided with a downwardly protruding X-direction linear rack 70, and a rotation sensing device 80 is correspondingly provided on the base plate 11. The input end of the rotation sensing device 80 is provided with a sensing gear 81, which meshes with the X-direction linear rack 70 and is used to reliably sense the X-direction movement of the entire support base plate 20.

[0011] Its working principle is as follows: Since a corresponding rotating mechanism is fixed on the support back plate, a connecting plate is set at the rear end of each side of the opposing moving plate. The connecting plate is connected to the corresponding surface of the support back plate through the Y guide rail. The rotating mechanism drives the double-headed screw to rotate, thereby driving the opposing moving plates to move synchronously in opposite directions or away from each other. This makes the spacing between the opposing flexible clamping attachments of the gripper assembly adjustable, thus adapting to the clamping operation of wafer cassettes of different sizes. It can adapt to the width of the wafer cassette for clamping, making the single set of gripping claws highly versatile and eliminating the need for manual replacement, thereby improving the stability of the production process, the consistency of operation, and the overall efficiency.

[0012] It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that the present invention is not limited to the details of the exemplary embodiments described above, and that the invention can be implemented in other specific forms without departing from its spirit or essential characteristics. Therefore, the embodiments should be considered in all respects as exemplary and non-limiting, and the scope of the invention is defined by the appended claims rather than the foregoing description. Thus, all variations falling within the meaning and scope of equivalents of the claims are intended to be included within the present invention. No reference numerals in the claims should be construed as limiting the scope of the claims.

[0013] Furthermore, it should be understood that although this specification describes embodiments, not every embodiment contains only one independent technical solution. This narrative style is merely for clarity. Those skilled in the art should consider the specification as a whole, and the technical solutions in each embodiment can also be appropriately combined to form other embodiments that can be understood by those skilled in the art.

Claims

1. A flexible gripper, characterized in that, It includes: The mounting base includes a base plate, two side plates, and a rear end plate, with notches provided at the front end and top. Support base plate, which is used to support the wafer cassette; Support back plate; At least one pair of gripper assemblies, each pair of gripper assemblies includes two opposing moving plates on both sides, each opposing moving plate on both sides is provided with at least one flexible pressing attachment, and the ends of the two opposing moving plates on both sides are also connected to a double-ended lead screw, the driving end of the double-ended lead screw is connected to a rotating mechanism, the rotating mechanism drives the two opposing moving plates on both sides to move closer or further apart. And an X-axis linear motion mechanism; A support back plate is fixed to the rear end of the support base plate, and a corresponding rotating mechanism is fixed to the support back plate. A connecting plate is provided at the rear end of each side of the opposing moving plate. The connecting plate is connected to the corresponding surface of the support back plate through a Y-guide rail, which makes the spacing between the opposing flexible pressing attachments of the gripper assembly adjustable. An X-axis linear moving mechanism is provided between the support base plate and the base plate. The X-axis linear moving mechanism drives the support base plate to detach from the front notch of the mounting base and bulge outward, so as to transfer the entire wafer cassette to the external gripping position.

2. The flexible gripper according to claim 1, characterized in that: It includes two pairs of gripper assemblies, specifically an upper gripper assembly and a lower gripper assembly. Each gripper assembly is driven by an independent rotating mechanism to perform gripping or opening operations. It can reliably select the required gripper assembly for operation based on the height of the wafer cassette.

3. A flexible gripper according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that: The rotating mechanism includes a rotating servo motor and a synchronous belt pulley mechanism. The synchronous belt pulley mechanism includes a driving pulley, a driven pulley, and a synchronous belt. A first lead screw nut is fixedly connected to the connecting plate of the opposing moving plate. A double-ended lead screw with a fixed axial position passes through and is threadedly connected to the lead screw nuts on both sides. A driven pulley is fixedly sleeved at one end of the double-ended lead screw. The rotating servo motor is fixedly connected to the support back plate. The driving pulley is fixedly sleeved at the output end of the rotating servo motor. The driving pulley is connected to the driven pulley through the synchronous belt.

4. The flexible gripper according to claim 1, characterized in that: Each of the opposing moving plates has a pair of flexible pressure attachments fixed to its inner surface, arranged at intervals along the X direction.

5. The flexible gripper according to claim 1, characterized in that: The X-axis linear motion mechanism includes an X-axis guide rail and an X-axis servo drive assembly, which drives the support base plate to move along the X-axis guide rail.

6. A flexible gripper according to claim 5, characterized in that: The bottom of the support base plate is also provided with a downwardly protruding X-direction linear rack, and a rotation sensing device is correspondingly provided on the base plate. The input end of the rotation sensing device is provided with a sensing gear, which meshes with the X-direction linear rack and is used to reliably sense the X-direction movement of the entire support base plate.

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