Calibration device

Abstract

The utility model provides a calibration device applied to a manipulator of semiconductor equipment, which comprises a calibration workpiece and a calibration table, the calibration workpiece is provided with a first positioning part, a calibration part and a height positioning surface, the first positioning part is used for positioning and matching with a first matching part of the manipulator, and at the moment, the center of the calibration workpiece is coaxial with the center of the manipulator; a connecting part and a second positioning part are arranged on the calibration table, and the connecting part and the calibration part can be switched between a disassembly state and a connection state; in the disassembly state, the calibration part is matched with or separated from the calibration module; and in the connection state, the second positioning part is detachably connected with the second matching part of the loading port, and the distance between the height positioning surface and the bottom surface of the calibration table is a preset distance. When the calibration device is used for calibrating the calibration station or the loading and unloading station of the manipulator, a worker does not need to repeatedly control the manipulator to adjust the center of the wafer to be concentric with the center of the calibration module or the center of the loading port, and the calibration efficiency is high.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The utility model relates to the technical field of semiconductor manufacturing, in particular to a calibration device. Background Art

[0002] Figure 1 The structure of a front-end module of a semiconductor device in the related art is shown. Figure 1 As shown, the semiconductor equipment front-end module (Equipment Front-End Module, referred to as EFEM) 100 generally includes a load port 110, an aligner module

[0003] 120 and robot 130. When the cassette 200 carrying the wafer 300 is loaded on the loading port 110, the robot 130 can take out the wafer 300 from the cassette 200, take the wafer 300 to the calibration module 120 for position calibration, and then transfer the wafer 300 that has completed the position calibration to the loading chamber 140 of the process machine connected to the semiconductor device front-end module 100, so that the loading process of the wafer 300 from the semiconductor device front-end module 100 to the loading chamber 140 is completed, and the wafer 300 in the loading chamber 140 is then transferred to the process chamber for process processing, and the robot 130 can also put the wafer 300 that has completed the process back into the cassette 200.

[0004] The front-end module of semiconductor equipment needs to be maintained regularly. After maintenance, the loading and unloading station and calibration station of the robot need to be recalibrated. Among them, the loading and unloading station refers to the position where the robot takes the wafer from the cassette and the position where the robot puts the wafer back into the cassette. The calibration station refers to the position where the robot places the wafer in the calibration module. If the position of the robot is inaccurate, the robot is prone to collision and friction during the wafer transmission process, affecting the wafer yield.

[0005] At present, a combination of manual operation of a handle and visual inspection is generally used to check whether the manipulator has accurately reached the calibration station or the loading and unloading station. However, this method has low calibration efficiency. Utility Model Content

[0006] The utility model aims to solve at least one of the technical problems existing in the prior art and proposes a calibration device.

[0007] In order to achieve the purpose of the utility model, a calibration device for a manipulator of a semiconductor device is provided. The calibration device comprises: a calibration workpiece and a calibration platform. The calibration workpiece is provided with a first positioning portion, a calibration portion and a height positioning surface. The first positioning portion is used to position and cooperate with a first matching portion of the manipulator. When the first positioning portion is positioned and cooperated with the first matching portion, the center of the calibration workpiece is coaxial with the center of the manipulator.

[0008] The calibration table is provided with a connecting portion and a second positioning portion, and the connecting portion and the calibration portion can be switched between a disassembled state and a connected state;

[0009] In the disassembled state, the calibration part is configured to be able to cooperate with or disengage from the calibration module; when the calibration part cooperates with the calibration module, the central axis of the calibration workpiece coincides with the central axis of the calibration module;

[0010] When in the connected state, the central axis of the calibration workpiece coincides with the central axis of the calibration table, the second positioning portion is configured to be detachably connected to the second mating portion of the loading port, and the distance between the height positioning surface and the bottom surface of the calibration table is a preset distance, which is the distance between the bottom wall of one of the wafer slots on the wafer box of the semiconductor device and the bottom surface of the box bottom plate of the wafer box.

[0011] In a possible embodiment, the calibration portion is a groove formed on the bottom surface of the calibration workpiece, and the calibration platform includes: a tooling plate and a positioning column, the second positioning portion is arranged on the tooling plate; the positioning column is arranged above the tooling plate, and the positioning column serves as a connecting portion.

[0012] In a possible embodiment, the calibration platform further includes a support platform detachably disposed on the tooling plate; a positioning column is protrudingly disposed on the top surface of the support platform, and a central axis of the positioning column coincides with a central axis of the support platform;

[0013] When the support table is installed on the tooling plate and the positioning column and the calibration part are in a connected state, the central axis of the calibration workpiece, the central axis of the support table and the central axis of the tooling plate coincide with each other, and the orthographic projection of the support table on the top surface of the tooling plate falls inside the orthographic projection of the calibration workpiece on the top surface of the tooling plate.

[0014] In a possible embodiment, the orthographic projection of the support platform on the top surface of the tooling plate at least partially overlaps with the orthographic projection of the positioning column on the top surface of the tooling plate.

[0015] In a possible embodiment, a positioning protrusion is provided on one of the support platform and the tooling plate, and a positioning hole is provided on the other, and the positioning protrusion and the positioning hole can be plugged in or out of plug-in cooperation.

[0016] In a possible embodiment, when the connecting portion and the calibration portion are in a connected state, the distance between the top surface of the support platform and the bottom surface of the tooling plate is a preset distance.

[0017] In a possible embodiment, the height of the positioning protrusion is less than or equal to the depth of the positioning hole, the thickness of the tooling plate is equal to the thickness of the box bottom plate of the film box, and the sum of the height of the support platform and the thickness of the tooling plate is equal to the preset distance.

[0018] In a possible embodiment, the second positioning portion includes a plurality of pin holes arranged in one-to-one correspondence with a plurality of positioning pins on the loading surface of the loading port, and the plurality of pin holes are evenly and spacedly distributed around the central axis of the tooling plate.

[0019] In a possible embodiment, the manipulator includes a first finger, a second finger, and an arc-shaped portion connecting the first finger and the second finger; the cross-section of the calibration workpiece is circular, the radius of the calibration workpiece is equal to the radius of the arc-shaped portion, the outer circumferential surface of the calibration workpiece serves as a first positioning portion, and the outer circumferential surface of the calibration workpiece can be fitted with the arc-shaped portion serving as a first matching portion.

[0020] In a possible embodiment, the calibration device is made of metal.

[0021] The utility model has the following beneficial effects:

[0022] The utility model provides a calibration device for a manipulator applied to semiconductor equipment. By designing a calibration workpiece and a calibration platform, the center of the calibration workpiece can simulate the center of a wafer.

[0023] By means of the coordination relationship between the calibration workpiece, the calibration module and the manipulator, the relative position relationship between the wafer located in the calibration module and the manipulator moved to the accurate calibration station can be simulated. In the process of calibrating the calibration station of the manipulator using the calibration device of this embodiment, there is no need for the staff to repeatedly operate the manipulator to adjust the wafer to be concentric with the center of the calibration module, nor is there any need for the staff to repeatedly measure and operate the manipulator to adjust the center of the wafer to be concentric with the center of the manipulator.

[0024] By means of the positioning and matching relationship between the calibration platform and the loading port in the connected state, and the matching relationship between the calibration workpiece and the manipulator, the relative position relationship between the wafer in the cassette loaded in the loading port and the manipulator moved to the accurate loading and unloading station can be simulated. In the process of calibrating the loading and unloading station of the manipulator using the calibration device of this embodiment, there is no need for the staff to repeatedly operate the manipulator to adjust the wafer until its center is in line with the central axis of the wafer slot.

[0025] Therefore, the calibration device can assist the staff to quickly complete the calibration of the calibration station or the loading and unloading station, which is beneficial to greatly shorten the calibration time and improve the calibration efficiency. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0026] Figure 1 It is a structural schematic diagram of a front-end module of a semiconductor device in the related art;

[0027] Figure 2 It is a three-dimensional schematic diagram of the calibration station of the robot in the related art during calibration;

[0028] Figure 3 It is a structural schematic diagram of a film box in the related art;

[0029] Figure 4 It is a three-dimensional schematic diagram of the calibration of the loading and unloading station of the robot in the related art;

[0030] Figure 5 It is a side view schematic diagram of the loading and unloading station calibration of the robot in the related art;

[0031] Figure 6 It is a top view schematic diagram of the loading and unloading station calibration of the robot in the related art;

[0032] Figure 7 A schematic diagram of an application scenario of a calibration device provided in an embodiment of the present application for use in a calibration station;

[0033] Figure 8 A top view of a calibration device provided in one embodiment of the present application for use in calibrating a workstation;

[0034] Fig. 9 A bottom view of a calibration workpiece of a calibration device provided in one embodiment of the present application;

[0035] Fig.10 An exploded schematic diagram of a calibration device provided in an embodiment of the present application in a connected state;

[0036] Fig.11 A schematic diagram of a calibration device provided in an embodiment of the present application when used to calibrate a loading and unloading station;

[0037] Fig.12 A side view of a calibration device provided in one embodiment of the present application being applied to calibrate a loading and unloading station;

[0038] Fig.13 A top view of a calibration device provided in one embodiment of the present application applied to calibrate a loading and unloading station;

[0039] Fig.14 A top view of a tooling plate in a calibration device provided in one embodiment of the present application.

[0040] Description of reference numerals:

[0041] 100-semiconductor equipment front-end module; 110-loading port; 111-loading surface; 120-calibration module; 121-vacuum suction cup; 122-calibrator; 130-manipulator; 131-first finger; 132-second finger; 133-arc-shaped portion; 140-loading chamber;

[0042] 200-film box; 210-box bottom plate; 220-film slot; 230-carrying plate; 240-box top plate;

[0043] 300-wafer;

[0044] 400-calibration device; 410-calibration workpiece; 411-groove; 420-tooling plate; 421-pin hole; 422-positioning hole; 423-opening; 430-positioning column; 440-support table; 441-positioning protrusion. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0045] Figure 2 This is a three-dimensional schematic diagram of the calibration station of the robot in the related art. Figure 2 As shown, a vacuum suction cup 121 is provided on the calibration module 120. During the loading process, the robot 130 needs to place the wafer 300 taken out from the wafer box 200 on the vacuum suction cup 121 of the calibration module 120, and make the center C of the wafer 300 colinear with the central axis of the vacuum suction cup 121, so that the calibration module 120 can accurately calibrate the position of the wafer 300.

[0046] It can be understood that the process of manually calibrating the calibration station of the robot 130 is a process of simulating the wafer 300 being placed on the calibration module 120, and the calibration process specifically includes the following steps. Figure 2 As shown, i) a demonstration wafer 300 is placed on the robot 130 at the initial position, and the center C of the wafer 300 is concentric with the center of the robot 130; ii) the staff controls the robot 130 to move by operating the handle to drive the wafer 300 to move above the vacuum suction cup 121, and at the same time observes the center position of the vacuum suction cup 121, so that the center C of the wafer 300 is roughly aligned with the center of the vacuum suction cup 121, and then the robot 130 is controlled by the handle to move downward, driving the wafer 300 to descend and place on the vacuum suction cup 121, and the position information of the control point of the robot 130 at this time (i.e., the coordinates of the control point) is recorded as the calibration station; iii) the edge of the wafer 300 is measured with a ruler The distance between the center C of the wafer 300 and the edge of the vacuum suction cup 121 is determined based on this, and the offset between the center C of the wafer 300 and the center of the vacuum suction cup 121 in the radial direction of the wafer 300 is determined; iv) According to the calibration position recorded in step ii) and the offset determined in step iii), the calibration position (i.e. the coordinates of the control point) of the robot 130 is calculated and corrected; v) The operating handle controls the robot 130 to drive the wafer 300 to move, and the robot 130 moves to the corrected calibration position; vi) The calibrator 122 of the calibration module 120 performs a calibration action to calibrate the distance between the wafer 300 and the calibrator 122; vii) Repeat steps iii) to vi) until the distance calibrated by the calibrator 122 is basically the same.

[0047] It can be seen that the calibration process of the above-mentioned calibration station requires the staff to repeatedly operate the handle to control the movement of the robot 130 to continuously adjust the position of the wafer 300 until the center C of the wafer 300 is concentric with the center of the vacuum suction cup 121, resulting in long calibration time and low efficiency.

[0048] Moreover, this method is heavily dependent on the experience of the staff, has high requirements on the staff, and there are differences in the operations of different staff, so the consistency of the calibrated calibration stations is low.

[0049] In addition, it is understandable that the calibration accuracy is also closely related to the relative position accuracy of the center C of the wafer 300 placed on the robot 130 and the control point of the robot 130. When the robot 130 is a vacuum adsorption robot 130, in order to make the center C of the wafer 300 and the center of the robot 130, in step i), after placing the wafer 300 on the robot 130, the staff needs to measure the center of the wafer 300 with a ruler, and continuously adjust the position of the wafer 300 accordingly, so that the center C of the wafer 300 is concentric with the center of the robot 130. In this way, the process of placing the wafer 300 on the robot 130 and making the wafer 300 concentric with the robot 130 will also take a long time, resulting in a long calibration time, and when measuring with a ruler, the error is large, affecting the relative position accuracy of the center C of the wafer 300 and the control point of the robot 130, thereby resulting in low calibration accuracy.

[0050] The accuracy of the loading and unloading station of the robot 130 is also very important. In order to facilitate the understanding of those skilled in the art, the structure of the film box 200 is first introduced here. Figure 3 The structure diagram of a film box 200 in the related art is shown. A plurality of carrier plates 230 are arranged at intervals along the vertical direction inside the film box 200, a film slot 220 is formed between a carrier plate 230 close to the top plate 240 of the film box 200 and the top plate 240, and a film slot 220 is formed between any two other carrier plates 230, so the film box 200 is formed with N film slots 220 ( Figure 3 In the figure, five wafer slots 220 are provided as an example, N wafer slots 220 are arranged in sequence in the vertical direction, each wafer slot 220 is used to carry a wafer 300, and N is an integer greater than or equal to 2. In this way, N wafers 300 can be stored in the wafer box 200. For the sake of clear understanding, along the extension direction of the central axis, from the top of the wafer box 200 to the bottom of the wafer box 200, these N wafer slots 220 are sequentially referred to as the first wafer slot 220, the second wafer slot 220, ..., the nth wafer slot 220, ..., the Nth wafer slot 220, n is a positive integer, and 1≤n≤N.

[0051] By measuring and other methods, the distance between the bottom wall of each film slot 220 and the bottom surface of the box bottom plate 210 of the film box 200 in the vertical direction and the thickness d1 of the box bottom plate 210 of the film box 200 can be obtained. The distance between the bottom wall of the first film slot 220 and the bottom surface of the box bottom plate 210 of the film box 200 is h1, the distance between the bottom wall of the second film slot 220 and the bottom surface of the box bottom plate 210 of the film box 200 is h2, ..., the distance between the bottom wall of the Nth film slot 220 and the bottom surface of the box bottom plate 210 of the film box 200 is h N It is understood that the distance between the bottom wall of any slot 220 and the bottom surface of the box bottom plate 210 of the wafer box 200 is equal to the distance between the bottom surface of the wafer 300 in the corresponding slot 220 and the bottom surface of the box bottom plate 210 of the wafer box 200 .

[0052] Since the N sheet slots 220 are arranged at intervals along the vertical direction, relative to the origin of the coordinate system XYZ of the robot 130, when the robot 130 takes the wafer 300 in each different sheet slot 220, the distance between the control point and the origin in the Z-axis direction is different, so when the robot 130 takes different wafers 300, the corresponding loading and unloading stations are also different. That is, there are N loading and unloading stations. Specifically, when the robot 130 takes the wafer 300 in the nth sheet slot 220, the position information of the control point is the nth loading and unloading station, and the X coordinate value and Y coordinate value of the control point corresponding to each loading and unloading station are the same, and the Z coordinate value is different. And the difference between the Z coordinate value of the nth loading and unloading station and the Z coordinate value of the n+1th loading and unloading station is equal to the distance between the bottom wall of the nth sheet slot 220 and the bottom wall of the n+1th sheet slot 220.

[0053] If the loading and unloading stations of the robot 130 are not accurate, the robot 130 will not be able to accurately transfer the wafer 300 between the stations, and in serious cases, the wafer 300 may even be damaged. Therefore, after the semiconductor equipment front-end module is maintained, it is also necessary to recalibrate the loading and unloading stations of the robot 130. At present, the calibration of the loading and unloading stations is also done manually, and the process of manually calibrating the loading and unloading stations of the robot 130 is to simulate the process of the robot 130 putting the wafer 300 back into the corresponding wafer slot 220.

[0054] Figure 4 It is a three-dimensional schematic diagram of the calibration of the loading and unloading station of the robot 130 in the related art. Figure 5 It is a side view schematic diagram of the loading and unloading station calibration of the robot 130 in the related art, Figure 6 FIG. 1 is a top view of the robot 130 during calibration of the loading and unloading station in the related art. Figures 4 to 6When manually calibrating each loading and unloading station of the robot 130, the specific calibration process is as follows: i) placing a demonstration wafer 300 on the robot 130 at the initial position, and making the center C of the wafer 300 concentric with the center of the robot 130; ii) the staff controls the movement of the robot 130 through the operating handle to drive the wafer 300 to move into the first slot 220, visually inspects the center position of the first slot 220, and operates the robot 130 to adjust the center of the wafer 300 to be roughly colinear with the central axis of the first slot 220, then operates the robot 130 to drive the wafer 300 to move down and place it on the bottom wall of the first slot 220, and records the position information of the control point of the robot 130 at this time as the first loading and unloading station; iii) according to the first loading and unloading station determined in step ii), and the distance between the bottom wall of any film slot 220 and the bottom surface of the box bottom plate 210 is determined and known, so the coordinates of the control points corresponding to the remaining loading and unloading stations can be calculated; iv) the staff controls the manipulator 130 to return to the initial position through the operating handle, places a demonstration wafer 300 on the manipulator 130 located at the initial position and makes the center C of the wafer 300 concentric with the center of the manipulator 130, and then operates the handle to control the manipulator 130 to move to one of the remaining loading and unloading stations determined in step iii) to place the wafer 300 into one of the remaining film slots 220; v) repeat step iv) until a demonstration wafer 300 is successfully placed in each of the N film slots 220, indicating that the N loading and unloading stations are correct and the calibration of each loading and unloading station is completed.

[0055] It is understandable that the calibration process of the above-mentioned loading and unloading station has the problem of being heavily dependent on the experience of the staff. Since the space inside the film box 200 is usually small and the light inside the film box 200 is dim, it is difficult for the staff to clearly observe the situation inside the film box 200 during the calibration process. Therefore, there is also the problem of high calibration difficulty.

[0056] Based on the above description, the embodiment of the present application proposes a calibration device 400 applied to a manipulator 130 of a semiconductor device, which can assist the staff to calibrate the calibration station or loading and unloading station of the manipulator 130. In order to enable those skilled in the art to better understand the technical solution of the utility model, the calibration device 400 provided by the utility model is described in detail below in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.

[0057] See also Figures 7 to 10The calibration device 400 provided in this embodiment includes a calibration workpiece 410 and a calibration platform. The calibration workpiece 410 is provided with a first positioning portion, a calibration portion and a height positioning surface. Among them, the first positioning portion is used to position and cooperate with the first matching portion of the manipulator 130. And when the first positioning portion is positioned and cooperated with the first matching portion, the center O1 of the calibration workpiece 410 is coaxial with the center O2 of the manipulator 130. A connecting portion and a second positioning portion are provided on the calibration platform, and the connecting portion and the calibration portion can be switched between a disassembled state and a connected state.

[0058] In the disassembled state, the calibration part of the calibration workpiece 410 is configured to be able to cooperate with or disengage from the calibration module. When the calibration part cooperates with the calibration module, the center O1 of the calibration workpiece 410 is coaxial with the central axis of the calibration module. Fig. 9 As shown, the calibration portion may be a groove 411 formed on the bottom surface of the calibration workpiece 410, and the cross-sectional shape and size of the groove 411 are respectively matched with the shape and size of the vacuum suction cup 121 of the calibration module 120. Figure 7 and Figure 8 As shown, the vacuum suction cup 121 is circular, and the cross-sectional shape of the groove 411 is correspondingly circular. In this way, the calibration portion (i.e., the groove 411) and the vacuum suction cup 121 of the calibration module 120 can be plugged and matched, so that the calibration workpiece 410 can be placed on the vacuum suction cup 121, and the center O1 of the calibration workpiece 410 is now colinear with the central axis of the vacuum suction cup 121. And the groove 411 and the vacuum suction cup 121 can be disconnected from the plug-in match, so that the calibration workpiece 410 can be removed from the vacuum suction cup 121.

[0059] In the connected state, Fig.10 As shown, the central axis of the calibration workpiece 410 coincides with the central axis of the calibration stage, and the second positioning portion of the calibration stage is configured to be detachably connected to the second matching portion of the loading port 110. In addition, the distance between the height positioning surface of the calibration workpiece 410 and the bottom surface of the calibration stage is a preset distance.

[0060] As can be seen from the above content, when the calibration workpiece 410 is disassembled and separated from the calibration platform, the calibration workpiece 410 can be used alone to calibrate the calibration station. When the calibration workpiece 410 and the calibration platform are in a connected state, the assembled calibration device 400 can be used to calibrate each loading and unloading station. That is, the calibration device 400 of this embodiment can be used to calibrate the calibration station or the loading and unloading station of the robot 130.

[0061] refer to Figure 7 and Figure 8 An exemplary process of calibrating the calibration station of the robot 130 using the calibration device 400 of this embodiment specifically includes the following steps S11 to S13.

[0062] S11, placing the calibration workpiece 410 on the vacuum chuck 121, and making the groove 411 of the calibration workpiece 410 plug and match with the vacuum chuck 121 of the calibration module. At this time, the center O1 of the calibration workpiece 410 is collinear with the central axis of the vacuum chuck 121.

[0063] S12, the staff operates the robot 130 to move closer to the calibration module 120, until the first matching portion of the robot 130 is positioned and matched with the first positioning portion on the calibration workpiece 410. At this time, the center O1 of the calibration workpiece 410 is concentric with the center O2 of the robot 130.

[0064] S13, recording the position information of the control point of the robot 130 at this time as a calibration position and saving the calibration position. The control point can be any point on the robot 130, which is not limited in this embodiment.

[0065] It can be understood that the process of calibrating the calibration station of the robot 130 using the calibration device 400 of this embodiment is to simulate the process of the robot 130 taking away the wafer 300 whose position has been calibrated from the calibration module 120 .

[0066] Assume that the preset distance is equal to the distance h between the bottom wall of the Nth film slot 220 and the bottom surface of the box bottom plate 210 of the film box 200 N , please combine Figure 3 , Figures 11 to 13 The specific calibration process of each loading and unloading station may include the following steps S21 to S13.

[0067] S21, connect the second positioning part of the calibration table with the second matching part of the loading surface 111 of the loading port 110, move the calibration workpiece 410 to the loading port 110 and place it above the calibration table, move the calibration workpiece 410 downward, so that the connecting part of the calibration table is connected to the calibration part of the calibration workpiece 410, and the center O1 of the calibration workpiece 410 is collinear with the central axis of the calibration table.

[0068] S22, the staff operates the robot 130 to move closer to the calibration workpiece 410 located at the loading port 110, until the first matching portion of the robot 130 is positioned and matched with the first positioning portion on the calibration workpiece 410. At this time, the center O1 of the calibration workpiece 410 is concentric with the center O2 of the robot 130.

[0069] S23, the distance between the control point of the robot 130 and the origin of the robot 130 coordinate XYZ in the X-axis direction is recorded as the X coordinate value X of the Nth loading and unloading station. N , the distance between the robot 130 control point and the origin of the robot 130 coordinate XYZ in the Y-axis direction is recorded as the Y coordinate value Y of the Nth loading and unloading station N .

[0070] S24, the staff operates the manipulator 130 to move in the vertical direction so that the upper surface of the manipulator 130 is aligned with the height positioning surface of the calibration workpiece 410, and the distance between the upper surface of the manipulator 130 and the bottom surface of the calibration table in the vertical direction is equal to the preset distance h N .

[0071] S25, record the distance between the control point of the robot 130 and the origin in the Z-axis direction as the Z coordinate value Z of the Nth loading and unloading station N , combined with step S23, the X coordinate value X of the Nth loading and unloading station N , Y coordinate value Y N and Z coordinate value Z N If all are known, the calibration of the Nth loading and unloading station is completed.

[0072] S26, since the distance between the bottom wall of each film slot 220 and the bottom surface of the box bottom plate 210 of the film box 200 is fixed and known, according to the Nth loading and unloading station and h1, h2, ..., h N , the coordinates of the control points corresponding to each loading and unloading station except the Nth loading and unloading station can be calculated, and the calibration of each loading and unloading station from the first loading and unloading station to the N-1th loading and unloading station is completed. Specifically, the X coordinate value X of the N-1th loading and unloading station N-1 Equal to X N , Y coordinate value Y N-1 Equal to Y N , Z coordinate value Z N-1 Equal to Z N +(h N-1 -h N ).

[0073] Of course, the above step S21 can also be replaced by assembling and connecting the connection part of the calibration platform with the calibration part of the calibration workpiece 410 in advance, so that the calibration device 400 is in a connected state, and then moving the calibration device 400 in the connected state, and positioning and matching the second positioning part with the second matching part of the loading surface 111 of the loading port 110. That is, the order of connecting the calibration platform and the calibration workpiece 410 can be before or after the calibration platform is installed on the loading surface 111.

[0074] Based on the above description, it can be seen that when the calibration device 400 of this embodiment is used to calibrate the Nth loading and unloading station of the robot 130, the Nth loading and unloading station is calibrated by simulating the process of the robot 130 taking out the wafer 300 from the Nth wafer slot 220.

[0075] Of course, in other embodiments, the preset distance may also be selected from h1, h2, ..., h n , ... or h N-1That is, the preset distance may be equal to the distance between the bottom wall of any one of the slots 220 on the film box and the bottom surface of the box bottom plate 210 of the film box 200. It is easy to understand that if the preset distance is equal to h1, correspondingly, the calibration device 400 of this embodiment is used to calibrate the first loading and unloading station of the robot 130 first, and then the first loading and unloading station and h1, h2, ..., h N , calculate the coordinates of the control points corresponding to each loading and unloading station except the first loading and unloading station, and then the calibration of each loading and unloading station from the second loading and unloading station to the Nth loading and unloading station is completed. The process of calibrating the first loading and unloading station of the robot 130 using the calibration device 400 of this embodiment is to simulate the process of the robot 130 taking the wafer 300 from the first wafer slot 220. If the preset distance is equal to h2, correspondingly, the calibration device 400 of this embodiment is used to calibrate the second loading and unloading station of the robot 130 first, and then according to the first loading and unloading station and h1, h2, ..., h N , the coordinates of the control points corresponding to each loading and unloading station except the second loading and unloading station are calculated, and the process of calibrating the second loading and unloading station of the robot 130 using the calibration device 400 is to simulate the process of the robot 130 taking the wafer 300 from the second wafer slot 220.

[0076] In the calibration device 400 of this embodiment, the center O1 of the calibration workpiece 410 can simulate the center C of the wafer 300. Based on this, when the staff uses the calibration device 400 of this embodiment to calibrate the calibration station of the robot 130, the staff only needs to manipulate the robot 130 to move the first matching portion and the first positioning portion of the calibration workpiece 410 that matches the calibration module to position and match, so that the center O1 of the calibration workpiece 410 can be concentric with the center O2 of the robot 130 moved to the accurate calibration station, which is equivalent to making the center C of the wafer 300 concentric with the center O2 of the robot 130 moved to the accurate calibration station. Similarly, when the staff uses the calibration device 400 to calibrate each loading and unloading station, they only need to install the connected calibration device 400 to the loading port 110, so that the center O1 of the calibration workpiece 410 can be collinear with the center of the tooling plate 420 and the central axis of the loading surface 111, which is equivalent to making the center C of the wafer 300 and the central axis of the wafer slot 220 collinear. They only need to control the robot 130 to move so that the first matching part is positioned and matched with the first positioning part of the calibration workpiece 410, so that the center O1 of the calibration workpiece 410 can be concentric with the center O2 of the robot 130, which is equivalent to making the center C of the wafer 300 and the center O2 of the robot 130 concentric.

[0077] Therefore, in the process of calibrating the calibration station of the robot 130 using the calibration device 400 of the present embodiment, there is no need for the staff to repeatedly manipulate the robot 130 to adjust the wafer 300 to be concentric with the center C of the calibration module, nor is there any need for the staff to repeatedly measure and manipulate the robot 130 to adjust the center C of the wafer 300 to be concentric with the center O2 of the robot 130 (e.g., vacuum adsorption robot 130). In the process of calibrating the loading and unloading station of the robot 130 using the calibration device 400 of the present embodiment, there is no need for the staff to repeatedly manipulate the robot 130 to adjust the wafer 300 to be colinear with the center C of the wafer 300 and the central axis of the wafer slot 220. In summary, the calibration device 400 can assist the staff to quickly complete the calibration of the calibration station or the loading and unloading station, which is conducive to greatly shortening the calibration time, and the calibration efficiency is high, which is conducive to shortening the maintenance time of semiconductor equipment.

[0078] During the use of the calibration device 400, the relative position relationship between the wafer located on the vacuum chuck 121 and the robot 130 moving to an accurate calibration position can be simulated by means of the coordination relationship between the calibration workpiece 410, the calibration module and the robot 130. By means of the positioning coordination relationship between the calibration platform and the loading port 110 in the connected state, and the coordination relationship between the calibration workpiece 410 and the robot 130, the relative position relationship between the wafer loaded in the cassette of the loading port 110 and the robot 130 moving to an accurate loading and unloading position can be simulated, thereby reducing the reliance of the staff on the visual observation results and experience during the calibration process. In this way, on the one hand, it is conducive to reducing the requirements of the professional ability of the staff in the calibration process, so as to reduce the labor cost. On the other hand, it weakens the influence of the operational differences of the staff on the calibration accuracy, which is conducive to ensuring that the calibration positions and loading and unloading positions obtained by different staff by means of the calibration device 400 are highly consistent.

[0079] Compared with moving the wafer 300 into the wafer slot 220 and making the center C of the wafer 300 collinear with the central axis of the wafer slot 220, when the calibration device 400 of this embodiment is used to calibrate the loading and unloading station of the robot 130, the dark light inside the wafer box 200 can be avoided from affecting the naked eye observation of the staff, which is conducive to reducing the difficulty of calibration.

[0080] In addition, compared to adjusting the wafer 300 so that its center C is concentric with the center O2 of the robot 130 based on measurement and visual observation results, when the calibration device 400 of this embodiment is used to calibrate the calibration station or the loading and unloading station, the influence of measurement errors and visual observation errors on the calibration accuracy can be reduced or even eliminated, which is beneficial to improving the calibration accuracy.

[0081] In the calibration device 400 disclosed herein, the calibration part may be configured to cooperate with the calibrator 122 in addition to the groove 411 that cooperates with the vacuum chuck 121. The groove 411 is used as the calibration part for exemplary description below.

[0082] In some embodiments, please refer to Figure 7 and Figure 8 The manipulator 130 includes a first finger 131, a second finger 132, and an arc portion 133 located between the first finger 131 and the second finger 132. The first finger 131 and the second finger 132 are connected by the arc portion 133, and the center of the arc portion 133 is the center O2 of the manipulator 130. The cross section of the calibration workpiece 410 can be specifically circular, and the radius R1 of the calibration workpiece 410 is equal to the radius R2 of the arc portion 133. In this embodiment, the outer circumferential surface of the calibration workpiece 410 is used as the first positioning portion, and the arc portion 133 is used as the first matching portion. The outer circumferential surface of the calibration workpiece 410 matches the arc portion 133.

[0083] When the calibration station of the manipulator 130 is calibrated using the calibration device 400 of this embodiment, the above-mentioned step S12 is specifically as follows: the staff operates the manipulator 130 to move close to the calibration workpiece 410 placed on the vacuum suction cup 121, so that the arc portion 133 of the manipulator 130 fits with the outer circumferential surface of the calibration workpiece 410, and the center O1 of the calibration workpiece 410 is collinear with the center of the arc portion 133, and the center O1 of the calibration workpiece 410 is concentric with the center O2 of the manipulator 130.

[0084] Through the above arrangement, during the use of the calibration device 400 of this embodiment, the staff only needs to manipulate the manipulator 130 to move the arc portion 133 to fit the outer circumferential surface of the calibration workpiece 410, so that the center O1 of the calibration workpiece 410 can be concentric with the center O2 of the manipulator 130, which is equivalent to making the center C of the wafer 300 concentric with the center O2 of the manipulator 130. Therefore, when the calibration device 400 is used to calibrate the calibration station or loading and unloading station of the manipulator 130, the operation is simple and convenient, and the calibration device 400 can assist the staff to quickly complete the calibration of the calibration station or loading and unloading station, which is conducive to further improving the calibration efficiency.

[0085] The calibration workpiece 410 may also be provided with a first center hole, the center of which is the center O1 of the calibration workpiece 410 . When the calibration workpiece 410 is placed on the vacuum suction cup 121 , the center of the first center hole is collinear with the center of the vacuum suction cup 121 .

[0086] The height positioning surface may specifically refer to the bottom surface of the calibration workpiece 410 . When the cross section of the calibration workpiece 410 is circular, the height positioning surface is equivalent to the bottom surface of the wafer. Alternatively, in other examples, the height positioning surface may also be other planes on the calibration workpiece 410 .

[0087] In some embodiments, see Fig.10 The calibration platform may specifically include a tooling plate 420 and a positioning column 430, wherein the second positioning portion is disposed on the tooling plate 420, so that the tooling plate 420 can be detachably disposed on the loading surface 111 of the loading port 110. When the tooling plate 420 is disposed on the loading surface 111, the center O3 of the tooling plate 420 is coaxial with the center of the loading port 110.

[0088] The positioning column 430 is arranged above the tooling plate 420, and the cross-sectional shape and size of the positioning column 430 are respectively matched with the cross-sectional shape and size of the groove 411, that is, the cross-sectional shape of the positioning column 430 is circular. In this way, the positioning column 430 is used as a connecting part, and the positioning column 430 and the groove 411 can be plugged together, so that the calibration workpiece 410 can be assembled on the positioning column 430, and the calibration workpiece 410 and the calibration table are in a connected state. The bottom surface of the tooling plate 420 is the bottom surface of the calibration table. In the connected state, the distance between the bottom surface of the calibration workpiece 410 and the bottom surface of the tooling plate 420 is a preset distance. And the positioning column 430 and the groove 411 can be disengaged from the plug-in fit, so that the calibration workpiece 410 can be removed from the positioning column 430, and the calibration workpiece 410 and the calibration table are switched to a disassembled state.

[0089] The calibration platform of this embodiment is designed to include a tooling plate 420 and a positioning column 430. The tooling plate 420 can be equivalent to the box bottom plate 210 of the film box 200. The second positioning portion on the tooling plate 420 is connected to the second matching portion of the loading port 110 to simulate the loading of the film box 200 on the loading port 110. In the connected state, the distance between the bottom surface of the calibration workpiece 410 and the bottom surface of the tooling plate 420 is equivalent to the distance between the bottom wall of one of the N film slots 220 and the bottom surface of the box bottom plate 210 of the film box 200.

[0090] Fig.14 FIG. 4 is a top view of a tooling plate 420 in a calibration device 400 provided in an embodiment of the present application. As an optional example, see Fig.14 The second positioning portion includes three pin holes 421 disposed on the tooling plate 420, and the three pin holes 421 are positioned and matched with the three positioning pins on the loading surface 111 in a one-to-one correspondence, and the three pin holes 421 are evenly and spacedly distributed around the central axis of the tooling plate 420. That is, the second matching portion is the three positioning pins disposed on the loading surface 111.

[0091] When the calibration device 400 of this embodiment is used to calibrate the loading and unloading station of the robot 130, the specific implementation process of "the second positioning portion of the calibration table is connected to the second matching portion of the loading surface 111 of the loading port 110" in the above step S21 is: move the tooling plate 420 to above the loading surface 111, and align the three pin holes 421 roughly one by one with the three positioning pins, and move the tooling plate 420 downward so that each positioning pin is inserted into a corresponding pin hole 421.

[0092] Through the above arrangement, when the calibration device 400 of this embodiment is used to calibrate the loading and unloading station of the robot 130, the tooling plate 420 can be simply assembled and connected to the loading surface 111, which is beneficial to improving the calibration efficiency.

[0093] The cross-sectional shape of the tooling plate 420 is not limited, for example Fig.14 In the triangle shown, the three pin holes 421 are arranged one by one at the three corner ends of the triangular tooling plate 420. Alternatively, the tooling plate 420 can also be circular, rectangular, etc. It can be understood that the number of the pin holes 421 is not limited to the above number, and can be specifically designed according to needs and actual working conditions.

[0094] The positioning column 430 may be non-detachably connected to the tooling plate 420 , and the non-detachable connection may be achieved by any one of adhesive connection, welding connection, and integral molding connection.

[0095] Please continue reading Fig.10 , the calibration platform may further include a support platform 440, the support platform 440 is detachably disposed on the tooling plate 420, the positioning column 430 is protrudingly disposed on the top surface of the support platform 440, and the central axis of the positioning column 430 coincides with the central axis of the support platform 440. In this embodiment, the positioning column 430 and the support platform 440 connected to the positioning column 430 are detachably connected to the tooling plate 420. When the support platform 440 is assembled with the tooling plate 420, and the calibration workpiece 410 is assembled with the positioning column 430, the central axis of the support platform 440 is collinear with the center O3 of the tooling plate 420 and the center O1 of the calibration workpiece 410, so that when the calibration device 400 is fixed on the loading port 110, the center O1 of the calibration workpiece 410 can be collinear with the center of the loading surface 111, that is, it can ensure that the center C of the wafer 300 and the central axis of the wafer slot 220 can be accurately simulated to be collinear, thereby ensuring the calibration accuracy of the loading and unloading station.

[0096] When the support table 440 and the tooling plate 420 are assembled together and the calibration workpiece 410 and the positioning column 430 are in a connected state, the orthographic projection of the support table 440 on the top surface of the tooling plate 420 falls inside the orthographic projection of the calibration workpiece 410 on the top surface of the tooling plate 420, and the edge of the calibration workpiece 410 protrudes from the support table 440. In this way, when the bottom surface of the calibration workpiece 410 is a height positioning surface, it is helpful to ensure that the upper surface of the robot 130 can be fitted with the bottom surface of the calibration workpiece 410 when executing step S24, that is, to ensure that the distance between the upper surface of the robot 130 and the box bottom plate 210 when the robot 130 takes the wafer 300 in the corresponding wafer slot 220 can be simulated.

[0097] The cross-sectional shape of the support platform 440 is not limited, for example, circular, rectangular, triangular, etc. When the support platform 440 is circular, the outer diameter D1 of the support platform 440 is smaller than the outer diameter 2R1 of the calibration workpiece 410. Fig.10 As shown, the outer diameter D1 of the support platform 440 may also be larger than the outer diameter D2 of the positioning column 430, that is, D2<D1<2R1, and the orthographic projection of the positioning column 430 on the top surface of the tooling plate 420 falls inside the orthographic projection of the support platform 440 on the top surface of the tooling plate 420. In other achievable ways, D1 may also be equal to D2, or D1 may also be smaller than D2, and the edge of the positioning column 430 may protrude from the support platform 440. In general, the orthographic projection of the support platform 440 on the top surface of the tooling plate 420 at least partially overlaps with the orthographic projection of the positioning column 430 on the top surface of the tooling plate 420.

[0098] Exemplarily, the depth of the groove 411 may be equal to the height L1 of the positioning post 430, so that when the calibration workpiece 410 and the positioning post 430 are assembled together, the entire positioning post 430 is completely inserted into the groove 411. In this embodiment, the distance between the top surface of the support table 440 and the bottom surface of the tooling plate 420 (i.e., the bottom surface of the calibration table) is the preset distance, so as to ensure that when the upper surface of the manipulator 130 is in contact with the bottom surface of the calibration workpiece 410 in step S24, the distance between the upper surface of the manipulator 130 and the bottom surface of the tooling plate 420 is equal to the preset distance, i.e., to ensure that the distance between the upper surface of the wafer 300 in the corresponding sheet slot 220 taken by the manipulator 130 and the bottom surface of the box bottom plate 210 is ensured, so as to ensure that the process of the manipulator 130 taking the wafer 300 in the corresponding sheet slot 220 can be accurately simulated, so as to ensure the calibration accuracy of the loading and unloading station.

[0099] In the calibration device 400 disclosed herein, the detachable connection between the support platform 440 and the tooling plate 420 can be achieved by, for example, snap connection, magnetic connection, or screw connection. Fig.10 as well as Fig.14, a positioning protrusion 441 is protrudingly provided on the support platform 440, and a positioning hole 422 is recessedly formed on the tooling plate 420. The shape and size of the positioning protrusion 441 match the shape and size of the positioning hole 422, respectively, so that the positioning protrusion 441 and the positioning hole 422 can be plugged in or out of the plug-in fit. In another example, the positioning protrusion 441 can be replaced by a protruding protrusion on the tooling plate 420, and correspondingly, the positioning hole 422 is replaced by a bottom portion of the support platform 440. In the embodiment in which the positioning protrusion 441 and the positioning hole 422 can be plugged in or out of the plug-in fit, the disassembly process of the support platform 440 and the tooling plate 420 is simple.

[0100] The height of the positioning protrusion 441 is less than or equal to the depth of the positioning hole 422. When the positioning protrusion 441 is plugged into the positioning hole 422, the bottom surface of the support platform 440 can be flush with the top surface of the tooling plate 420. The positioning hole 422 can be a through hole that penetrates the thickness of the tooling plate 420 or a blind hole, which is not limited in this embodiment.

[0101] On the basis of this embodiment, the thickness d2 of the tooling plate 420 can be equal to the thickness d1 of the box bottom plate 210 of the film box 200, and the sum of the height L2 of the support platform 440 and the thickness d2 of the tooling plate 420 is equal to the preset distance. That is, the height L2 of the support platform 440 is equal to the difference between the preset distance and the thickness d2 of the tooling plate 420. With this design, the tooling plate 420 can be used to simulate the box bottom plate 210 of the film box 200, and the height L2 of the support platform 440 can be used to simulate the distance between the bottom wall of the slot 220 corresponding to the preset distance and the top surface of the box bottom plate 210, that is, the distance simulated is the distance between the wafer 300 in the slot 220 corresponding to the preset distance and the top surface of the box bottom plate 210. For example, for example, the preset distance is h. N , the height L2 of the support platform 440 is equal to the distance between the bottom wall of the Nth film slot 220 and the top surface of the box bottom plate 210. If the distance between the bottom wall of the last film slot 220 (i.e., the Nth film slot) and the top surface of the box bottom plate 210 along the vertical direction from the top to the bottom of the film box 200 is 44 mm, then the height L2 of the support platform 440 is equal to 44 mm.

[0102] In an optional embodiment, a second center hole may be further opened on the tooling plate 420, and the center of the second center hole is the center O3 of the tooling plate 420. When the connecting part and the calibration part are in a connected state, the center of the first center hole is collinear with the center of the second center hole.

[0103] Also, please read Fig.14 The tooling plate 420 may be provided with one or more openings 423 , so that the material required for preparing the tooling plate 420 can be reduced, thereby saving the cost of the calibration device 400 .

[0104] In any of the above embodiments, the calibration workpiece 410 is made of a metal material such as aluminum. For example, the material of the calibration workpiece 410 is aluminum or an aluminum alloy. In the embodiment where the calibration device 400 includes a tooling plate 420, a positioning column 430, and a support platform 440, the tooling plate 420, the positioning column 430, and the support platform 440 are also made of a metal material such as aluminum. For example, the material of the tooling plate 420, the positioning column 430, and the support platform 440 is aluminum or an aluminum alloy. With this arrangement, the calibration device 400 has a higher structural reliability, and when the material of the calibration device 400 includes aluminum, the cost of the calibration device 400 is also lower.

[0105] It is understood that the above embodiments are merely exemplary embodiments used to illustrate the principles of the present invention, but the present invention is not limited thereto. For those skilled in the art, various modifications and improvements can be made without departing from the spirit and essence of the present invention, and these modifications and improvements are also considered to be within the scope of protection of the present invention.

Claims

1. A calibration device, applied to a manipulator of a semiconductor device, characterized in that: include: A calibration workpiece, wherein the calibration workpiece is provided with a first positioning portion, a calibration portion and a height positioning surface, wherein the first positioning portion is used for positioning and cooperating with the first matching portion of the manipulator, and when the first positioning portion is positioned and cooperating with the first matching portion, the center of the calibration workpiece is coaxial with the center of the manipulator; as well as A calibration platform, wherein a connecting portion and a second positioning portion are provided on the calibration platform, and the connecting portion and the calibration portion can be switched between a disassembled state and a connected state; In the disassembled state, the calibration part is configured to be able to cooperate with or disengage from the calibration module; when the calibration part cooperates with the calibration module, the central axis of the calibration workpiece coincides with the central axis of the calibration module; In the connected state, the central axis of the calibration workpiece coincides with the central axis of the calibration table, the second positioning portion is configured to be detachably connected to the second mating portion of the loading port, and the distance between the height positioning surface and the bottom surface of the calibration table is a preset distance, which is the distance between the bottom wall of one of the wafer slots on the wafer box of the semiconductor device and the bottom surface of the box bottom plate of the wafer box.

2. The calibration device according to claim 1, characterized in that: The calibration portion is a groove formed on the bottom surface of the calibration workpiece; The calibration station comprises: a tooling plate, wherein the second positioning portion is disposed on the tooling plate; and A positioning column is arranged above the tooling plate, and the positioning column serves as the connecting portion.

3. The calibration device according to claim 2, characterized in that: The calibration platform also includes a support platform detachably arranged on the tooling plate; the positioning column is protrudingly arranged on the top surface of the support platform, and the central axis of the positioning column coincides with the central axis of the support platform; When the support table is installed on the tooling plate and the positioning column and the calibration part are in the connected state, the central axis of the calibration workpiece, the central axis of the support table and the central axis of the tooling plate coincide with each other, and the orthographic projection of the support table on the top surface of the tooling plate falls inside the orthographic projection of the calibration workpiece on the top surface of the tooling plate.

4. The calibration device according to claim 3, characterized in that: The orthographic projection of the support platform on the top surface of the tooling plate and the orthographic projection of the positioning column on the top surface of the tooling plate at least partially overlap.

5. The calibration device according to claim 3, characterized in that: One of the support platform and the tooling plate is provided with a positioning protrusion, and the other is provided with a positioning hole. The positioning protrusion and the positioning hole can be plugged in or out of the plug-in fit.

6. The calibration device according to claim 5, characterized in that: When the connecting portion and the calibrating portion are in the connected state, the distance between the top surface of the supporting platform and the bottom surface of the tooling plate is the preset distance.

7. The calibration device according to claim 6, characterized in that: The height of the positioning protrusion is less than or equal to the depth of the positioning hole, the thickness of the tooling plate is equal to the thickness of the box bottom plate of the film box, and the sum of the height of the support platform and the thickness of the tooling plate is equal to the preset distance.

8. The calibration device according to any one of claims 2 to 7, characterized in that: The second positioning portion includes a plurality of pin holes which are arranged in one-to-one correspondence with the plurality of positioning pins on the loading surface of the loading port, and the plurality of pin holes are evenly and spacedly distributed around the central axis of the tooling plate.

9. The calibration device according to any one of claims 1 to 7, characterized in that: The manipulator comprises a first finger, a second finger and an arc-shaped portion connecting the first finger and the second finger; The cross section of the calibration workpiece is circular, the radius of the calibration workpiece is equal to the radius of the arc-shaped portion, the outer circumferential surface of the calibration workpiece serves as the first positioning portion, and the outer circumferential surface of the calibration workpiece can fit with the arc-shaped portion serving as the first matching portion.

10. The calibration device according to any one of claims 1 to 7, characterized in that: The calibration device is made of metal material.

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