Automatic photomask replacing device and automatic photomask replacing system

Abstract

The utility model discloses an automatic photomask replacing device which comprises a data processing terminal, a storage purging mechanism and a photomask transmission mechanism, and the data processing terminal is further in communication connection with an external machine. The data processing terminal is used for sending photomask replacement information to the storage purging mechanism, sending a photomask exiting signal to the external machine table and sending a transportation instruction containing photomask replacement address information and photomask exiting address information to the photomask transmission mechanism; the storage purging mechanism comprises a purging control unit and a photomask storage unit, and the purging control unit is used for receiving photomask replacement information and feeding back photomask replacement address information of a replaced photomask in the photomask storage unit to the data processing terminal; and the photomask transmission mechanism comprises an automatic mobile robot which is used for transporting the replaced photomask in the photomask storage unit to the external machine table based on the transportation instruction and transporting the retreated photomask in the external machine table to the photomask storage unit. The production efficiency of the machine is improved, and the labor cost is saved.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD

[0001] The utility model relates to the technical field of semiconductor manufacturing, especially to a photomask automatic replacement device and photomask automatic replacement system. BACKGROUND

[0002] The photomask (reticle) is one of the important devices in the semiconductor process. Since the photomask is used in the important process lithography of the semiconductor process, and the cost of each photomask is high, the semiconductor factory usually does not want to spend money to make a spare photomask. Therefore, the use and protection of the photomask are particularly important.

[0003] Currently, the photomask used by the machine needs to be replaced manually. After the EAP system arranges the goods, the operator confirms the photomask based on the arrangement information and effectively replaces the photomask on the machine. However, the existing photomask replacement method has the problems of long replacement time, and the risk of photomask breakage and replacement error, which seriously affects the efficiency of the machine running goods. UTILITY MODEL CONTENTS

[0004] The purpose of the present application is to provide a photomask automatic replacement device and photomask automatic replacement system, which solves the problems of low efficiency, easy photomask damage and replacement error in the existing manual replacement of machine photomask, and seriously affects the efficiency of the machine running goods.

[0005] In the first aspect, the present application provides a photomask automatic replacement device, which comprises a data processing terminal, a storage purging mechanism and a photomask transmission mechanism connected with the data processing terminal in communication, and the data processing terminal is further connected with an external machine in communication;

[0006] The data processing terminal is used to send replacement photomask information to the storage purging mechanism, send exit photomask signals to the external machine, and send transportation instructions containing replacement photomask address information and exit photomask address information to the photomask transmission mechanism;

[0007] The storage purging mechanism comprises a purging control unit and a photomask storage unit connected with the purging control unit, the purging control unit is used to receive the replacement photomask information, and feed back the replacement photomask address information of the replacement photomask in the photomask storage unit to the data processing terminal;

[0008] The photomask transmission mechanism comprises an automatic mobile robot, which is used to transport the replacement photomask in the photomask storage unit to the external machine and transport the exit photomask in the external machine to the photomask storage unit based on the transportation instructions.

[0009] In an embodiment of the present application, the storage and blowing mechanism further comprises a defect scanning unit connected to the blowing control unit, the defect scanning unit being configured to identify the photomask with a number of defects exceeding a standard in the photomask storage unit. The above arrangement enables timely identification and processing of the photomask with a number of defects exceeding the standard.

[0010] In an embodiment of the present application, the storage and blowing mechanism further comprises a photomask cleaning unit connected to the blowing control unit, the photomask cleaning unit being configured to clean the abnormal photomask transported back by the photomask transport mechanism. The above arrangement enables cleaning of the abnormal photomask identified by the machine to make it reusable.

[0011] In an embodiment of the present application, the data processing terminal is further configured to send an abnormal photomask cleaning instruction to the photomask transport mechanism; and the automatic moving robot of the photomask transport mechanism is further configured to transport the abnormal photomask in the external machine to the storage and blowing mechanism and transport the cleaned abnormal photomask to the external machine based on the abnormal photomask cleaning instruction.

[0012] In an embodiment of the present application, the automatic moving robot comprises a transport assembly and a mechanical arm fixed to the transport assembly.

[0013] In an embodiment of the present application, the transport assembly comprises a transport structure and a sensor unit group connected to a control center in the transport structure.

[0014] In an embodiment of the present application, the sensor unit group comprises at least one of an ultrasonic sensor, a gyroscope, an inertial measurement instrument and a steering detection sensor. The above arrangement enables automatic positioning and accurate turning of the photomask transport mechanism.

[0015] In an embodiment of the present application, the photomask transport mechanism further comprises a mobile control unit loaded with a map-based automatic moving system, the mobile control unit being connected to the transport assembly. The above arrangement enables the photomask transport mechanism to automatically plan the optimal transport route.

[0016] In an embodiment of the present application, a terminal auxiliary positioning unit is arranged on the storage and blowing mechanism and the external machine, and all the terminal auxiliary positioning units are in communication connection with the mobile control unit. The above arrangement assists in accurate positioning of the photomask transport mechanism to the storage and blowing mechanism and the external machine, and reduces the breakage rate during photomask replacement.

[0017] In a second aspect, the present application also provides a photomask automatic replacement system, comprising the photomask automatic replacement device, and an EAP device and at least one working machine table which are respectively in communication connection with the data processing terminal in the photomask automatic replacement device, the working machine table serving as an external machine table in the photomask automatic replacement device, and the EAP device and all the working machine tables being in communication connection.

[0018] Compared with the prior art, one or more embodiments in the above solution can have the following advantages or beneficial effects:

[0019] The photomask automatic replacement device provided in the embodiments of the present application can realize the sending of the EAP's inventory information to the corresponding mechanism through the data processing terminal, so that the storage purging mechanism can determine the photomask to be replaced based on the replacement photomask information, the external machine table can determine the photomask to be exited based on the exit photomask information, and the photomask transmission mechanism can transport the replacement photomask to the external machine table and transport the exit photomask to the storage purging mechanism, thereby realizing the full-automatic replacement of the machine table photomask. The device improves the production efficiency of the machine table, saves the labor cost, reduces the personal risk during photomask replacement, minimizes the risk of misplacing the photomask during photomask replacement, and can timely process the photomask whose defect exceeds the quantity standard.

[0020] Other features and advantages of the present application will be described in the following description, and become apparent from the description, or be learned from the practice of the present application. The purpose and other advantages of the present application can be achieved and obtained by the structures specifically pointed out in the description, claims and drawings. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

[0021] The accompanying drawings are intended to provide a further understanding of the present application, and constitute a part of the specification, and together with the embodiments of the present application, serve to explain the present application, and do not constitute a limitation on the present application. In the drawings:

[0022] Figure 1 A structure schematic view of the photomask automatic replacement device according to the first embodiment of the present application is shown.

[0023] Figure 2 A device schematic view of the photomask automatic replacement device according to the first embodiment of the present application is shown.

[0024] Figure 3 A structure schematic view of the photomask automatic replacement system according to the second embodiment of the present application is shown.

[0025] Wherein, 1 is a data processing terminal, 2 is a storage blowing mechanism, 3 is a mask transmission mechanism, 4 is an external machine, 5 is a blowing control unit, 6 is a mask storage unit, 7 is a defect scanning unit, 8 is a mask cleaning unit, 9 is an automatic moving robot, 10 is a moving control unit, 11 is an EAP device, and 12 is a mask automatic replacement device. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0026] The implementation of the present application is described below through specific examples, and other advantages and effects of the present application can be easily understood by those skilled in the art from the disclosure of the specification. The present application can also be implemented or applied through other different specific implementations, and various modifications or changes can be made to the details in the specification without departing from the spirit of the present application. It should be noted that the following examples and features in the examples can be combined with each other without conflict.

[0027] It should be noted that the diagrams provided in the following examples only schematically illustrate the basic concept of the present application, and only the components related to the present application are shown in the diagrams, not the number, shape and size of the components when actually implemented. The actual implementation of each component may be a random change, and the component layout pattern may be more complex.

[0028] The following examples of the present application provide a mask automatic replacement device and a mask automatic replacement system, which solve the problems of low efficiency, easy mask damage and replacement error, and serious impact on machine running efficiency caused by the existing mask manual replacement of the machine.

[0029] The principles and implementation modes of the mask automatic replacement device and the mask automatic replacement system of the present embodiment will be described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings, so that those skilled in the art can understand the mask automatic replacement device and the mask automatic replacement system of the present embodiment without creative labor.

[0030] As shown in Figure 1 and Figure 2 The present embodiment provides a mask automatic replacement device, which comprises a data processing terminal 1, a storage blowing mechanism 2 and at least one mask transmission mechanism 3. The data processing terminal 1 is communicatively connected with the storage blowing mechanism 2 and the mask transmission mechanism 3 respectively, and the data processing terminal 1 is also communicatively connected with an external machine 4 to be replaced with a mask. It should be noted that the external machine 4 communicatively connected with the data processing terminal 1 can be multiple, but in order to clearly describe the working mode of the mask automatic replacement device, the present embodiment only takes the interaction mode between a single external machine 4 communicatively connected with the data processing terminal 1 and the mask automatic replacement device as an example for description, and the interaction mode between other external machines 4 and the mask automatic replacement device is the same, so it is not described here.

[0031] The specific data processing terminal 1 can receive the order information of the EAP system, analyze the replacement mask information corresponding to the machine to be replaced and the exit mask information of the machine itself to be exited from the order information, and transmit the replacement mask information to the storage and blowing mechanism 2, so that the storage and blowing mechanism 2 can determine the replacement mask based on the replacement mask information. The data processing terminal 1 also sends the exit mask signal to the external machine 4, so that the external machine 4 can determine the exit mask to be exited based on the exit mask information. At the same time, the data processing terminal 1 also transmits the transportation instruction to the mask transportation mechanism 3, which contains the replacement mask address information and the exit mask address information. The replacement mask address information is obtained from the storage and blowing mechanism 2. Since the exit and entry of the external machine 4 are fixed, each machine is also fixed, so the exit mask address information of the external machine 4 should also be fixed. The machine information of each machine stored in the data processing terminal 1 contains the exit mask address information of the machine, so the data processing terminal 1 can obtain the corresponding exit mask address information based on the machine information of the external machine 4 after determining the external machine 4 that needs to be replaced based on the order information.

[0032] The storage and blowing mechanism 2 specifically includes a blowing control unit 5 and a mask storage unit 6, and the blowing control unit 5 and the mask storage unit 6 are connected. The blowing control unit 5 is used for signal receiving and signal processing, and further includes a replacement mask address information acquisition unit for receiving the replacement mask information and obtaining the replacement mask address information based on the replacement mask information, and then feeding back the replacement mask address information to the data processing terminal 1, so that the data processing terminal 1 can generate the corresponding transportation instruction based on the replacement mask address information. The mask storage unit 6 is used for storing various masks. Specifically, the masks are stored in mask boxes, so the mask storage unit 6 stores a plurality of mask boxes containing masks and empty mask boxes for placing returned masks. Each mask in the mask storage unit 6 has its corresponding specific position information. In this embodiment, the specific position information of the mask in the mask storage unit 6 can be used as the corresponding replacement mask address information, or an automatic taking and placing assembly can be arranged in the mask storage unit 6 to realize the taking and placing of the corresponding mask in the mask storage unit 6. At this time, the specific position information of the mask acquisition port of the automatic taking and placing assembly can be used as the replacement mask address information. It should be noted that the automatic taking and placing assembly can be any mechanism that can realize the fixed taking and placing of objects, such as the automatic goods acquisition mechanism in the automatic vending machine, which is not limited here.

[0033] In one embodiment, the storage and purging mechanism 2 further comprises a defect scanning unit 7 connected with the purging control unit 5, which is used to identify the photomask with excessive defects in the photomask storage unit 6, so as to find and report the abnormal photomask in time, and avoid affecting the operation efficiency of the machine when the abnormal photomask is used. The specific defect scanning unit 7 can be realized by using the existing photomask defect scanning module or machine, and the specific structure thereof will not be described herein.

[0034] In one embodiment, the storage and purging mechanism 2 further comprises a photomask cleaning unit 8 connected with the purging control unit 5. The photomask cleaning unit 8 is used to clean the abnormal photomask returned by the photomask transmission mechanism 3, so that the cleaned photomask can be returned to the machine for use, thereby improving the operation efficiency of the machine. Meanwhile, the photomask cleaning unit 8 can also clean the abnormal photomask identified by the defect scanning unit 7. It should be noted that if the photomask cleaning unit 8 cleans a certain photomask for multiple times within a certain time (i.e., the certain photomask is repeatedly scanned by the machine for multiple times and is not qualified, or the certain photomask is repeatedly scanned by the defect scanning unit 7 for multiple times and is not qualified), an alarm information needs to be sent to the data processing terminal 1, so that the staff can process the photomask in time. The specific photomask cleaning unit 8 can be realized by using the existing photomask cleaning mechanism or device, and the specific structure thereof will not be described herein. Correspondingly, the data processing terminal 1 is also used to receive the abnormal photomask information fed back by the external machine 4, and generate a corresponding abnormal photomask cleaning instruction and send it to the photomask transmission mechanism 3. After the photomask transmission mechanism 3 receives the abnormal photomask cleaning instruction, the photomask transmission mechanism 3 transports the abnormal photomask in the external machine 4 to the storage and purging mechanism 2 for cleaning, and transports the cleaned abnormal photomask to the external machine 4.

[0035] The mask transportation mechanism 3 specifically comprises an autonomous mobile robot 9, which has a low center of gravity and is shock-resistant. The autonomous mobile robot 9 is used to transport the replacement mask in the mask storage unit 6 to the external machine 4 based on the transportation instruction, and transport the exit mask in the external machine 4 to the mask storage unit 6, so as to realize the mask replacement of the external machine 4. Further, the autonomous mobile robot 9 specifically comprises a transportation assembly and a mechanical arm fixed on the transportation assembly. The mechanical arm is used to realize the function of picking up or putting down the mask, and the transportation assembly is used to realize the temporary storage and transportation of the mask. The transportation assembly is any existing mechanism that can realize the transportation of objects, and the specific structure thereof will not be described in detail here. Further, in order to realize the automatic positioning and autonomous obstacle avoidance of the autonomous mobile robot 9, the transportation assembly specifically comprises a transportation structure and a sensor unit group connected with a control center in the transportation structure. The sensor unit group comprises at least one of an ultrasonic sensor, a gyroscope, an inertial measurement instrument and a steering detection sensor. Each autonomous mobile robot 9 has a separate power management system, and the battery is a detachable battery supporting fast charging. The power management system can control the charging according to the power feedback of the autonomous mobile robot 9, and the autonomous mobile robot 9 can go to the charging station for self-charging, and can intelligently allocate the charging scheduling between the autonomous mobile robots 9 to make them charge at different peaks.

[0036] In one embodiment, the mask transportation mechanism 3 further comprises a mobile control unit 10 loaded with a map-based automatic mobile system. The mobile control unit 10 can automatically plan the optimal transportation path of the autonomous mobile robot 9 according to the starting address information and the target address information through the map-based automatic mobile system. Meanwhile, the map-based automatic mobile system can also adjust the transportation route in real time according to the real-time road conditions feedback by the autonomous mobile robot 9, and optimize the transportation state detection and the transportation priority sorting.

[0037] In one embodiment, in order to realize the accurate positioning during the process of picking up and putting down the mask by the mask transportation mechanism 3, the embodiment further sets a terminal auxiliary positioning unit on the mobile control unit 10 and the external machine 4, and the terminal auxiliary positioning units on the mobile control unit 10 and the external machine 4 are in communication connection with the mobile control unit 10 in the autonomous mobile robot 9, so as to assist the autonomous mobile robot 9 to realize accurate parking when picking up and putting down the mask, and ensure the safety during the transportation of the mask.

[0038] All the communication connections in the above description can be realized through a wireless communication unit, and can also be realized through other reasonable ways, which are not fixedly limited by the embodiment.

[0039] In order to illustrate the working mode of the mask automatic replacement device, the following is an example of a mask transmission mechanism 3 in the mask automatic replacement device and the working interaction mode of the device with only one external machine 4.

[0040] The EAP system arranges the goods and sends the arrangement information to the data processing terminal 1 of the mask automatic replacement device. The data processing terminal 1 analyzes the arrangement information to obtain replacement mask information and exit mask signals, and sends the replacement mask information to the storage purge mechanism 2, so that the storage purge mechanism 2 prepares to replace the mask based on the replacement mask information; and sends the exit mask signal to the external machine 4, so that the external machine 4 exits the corresponding exit mask.

[0041] The storage purge mechanism 2 determines the replacement mask address information of the replacement mask based on the replacement mask information, and feeds back the replacement mask address information to the data processing terminal 1, and then the data processing terminal 1 generates corresponding transportation instructions based on the replacement mask address information and the corresponding external machine 4 exit mask address information, and sends the transportation instructions to the mask transmission mechanism 3.

[0042] The automatic mobile robot 9 in the mask transmission mechanism 3 transports the replacement mask in the mask storage unit 6 to the external machine 4 based on the transportation instructions, and transports the exit mask in the external machine 4 to the mask storage unit 6, to realize the replacement of the mask of the external machine 4.

[0043] After the external machine 4 receives the replacement mask, it will perform a defect scan on the replacement mask. If the number of defects of the replacement mask is normal, the external machine 4 will transmit information to the EAP system to start production; if the number of defects of the replacement mask is abnormal, the external machine 4 will transmit information to the EAP system, and the EAP system will feed back the information to the data processing terminal 1, and the data processing terminal 1 will send an abnormal mask cleaning instruction to the mask transmission mechanism 3; the automatic mobile robot 9 of the mask transmission mechanism 3 transports the abnormal mask in the external machine 4 to the storage purge mechanism 2 based on the abnormal mask cleaning instruction for cleaning, and transports the cleaned abnormal mask to the external machine 4 for re-scanning. If the storage purge mechanism 2 has cleaned a certain mask for multiple times within a certain time (i.e. a certain mask is repeatedly scanned by the machine and is unqualified, or a certain mask is repeatedly scanned by the defect scanning unit 7 and is unqualified), an alarm information needs to be sent to the data processing terminal 1, so that the staff can timely process such masks.

[0044] The above mask automatic replacement device of the embodiment realizes the automatic replacement of the mask of the machine.

[0045] The photomask automatic replacement device provided by the embodiment of the utility model, through the data processing terminal, the EAP's goods arrangement information is respectively sent to the corresponding mechanism, so that the storage purging mechanism can determine the photomask to be replaced based on the replacement photomask information, so that the external machine platform can determine the photomask to be exited based on the exit photomask information, and the photomask transmission mechanism realizes the transportation of the replacement photomask to the external machine platform and the transportation of the exit photomask to the storage purging mechanism, and the full-automatic replacement of the machine platform photomask is realized.

[0046] As Figure 3 The embodiment also provides a photomask automatic replacement system, which comprises the photomask automatic replacement device 12 and an EAP device 11 and at least one working machine platform which are respectively in communication connection with the data processing terminal 1 in the photomask automatic replacement device 12, wherein the photomask automatic replacement device 12 is the photomask automatic replacement device 12 in the above embodiment, that is, all the functions of the photomask automatic replacement device 12 in the above embodiment can be realized; the EAP device 11 is the EAP system in the embodiment of the photomask automatic replacement device 12, the working machine platform is the external machine platform 4 in the embodiment of the photomask automatic replacement device 12, and the EAP goods arrangement device and all the working machine platforms are in communication connection.

[0047] The photomask automatic replacement system provided by the embodiment of the utility model realizes that the EAP's goods arrangement information is respectively sent to the corresponding mechanism through the data processing terminal, so that the storage purging mechanism can determine the photomask to be replaced based on the replacement photomask information, so that the external machine platform can determine the photomask to be exited based on the exit photomask information, and the photomask transmission mechanism realizes the transportation of the replacement photomask to the external machine platform and the transportation of the exit photomask to the storage purging mechanism, and the full-automatic replacement of the machine platform photomask is realized. The system improves the machine platform production efficiency, saves the labor cost, reduces the personal risk existing when the photomask is replaced, reduces the photomask misplacement risk as much as possible when the photomask is replaced, and can timely process the photomask with the defect exceeding the quantity standard.

[0048] Although the embodiment disclosed by the utility model is as above, the content described is only the embodiment adopted for the convenience of understanding the utility model, and is not used to limit the utility model. Any person skilled in the art of the utility model can make any modification and change in the implementation form and details without departing from the spirit and range disclosed by the utility model, but the protection range of the utility model still needs to be limited by the range defined by the attached claim.

Claims

1. A reticle autochanger, characterized by, The application relates to a photomask automatic replacement device, which comprises a data processing terminal, a storage and purging mechanism and a photomask transmission mechanism connected with the data processing terminal, and the data processing terminal is further connected with an external machine. The data processing terminal is used for sending replacement photomask information to the storage and purging mechanism, sending exit photomask signals to the external machine, and sending transportation instructions containing replacement photomask address information and exit photomask address information to the photomask transmission mechanism. The storage and purging mechanism comprises a purging control unit and a photomask storage unit connected with the purging control unit, the purging control unit is used for receiving the replacement photomask information, and feeding back replacement photomask address information of the replacement photomask in the photomask storage unit to the data processing terminal. The photomask transmission mechanism comprises an automatic moving robot, which is used for transporting the replacement photomask in the photomask storage unit to the external machine and transporting the exit photomask in the external machine to the photomask storage unit based on the transportation instructions.

2. The reticle autochange apparatus according to claim 1, wherein The storage and purging mechanism further comprises a defect scanning unit connected with the purging control unit, which is used for identifying photomasks with excessive defects in the photomask storage unit.

3. The reticle autochange apparatus according to claim 1, wherein The storage and purging mechanism further comprises a photomask cleaning unit connected with the purging control unit, which is used for cleaning abnormal photomasks transported back by the photomask transmission mechanism.

4. The reticle autochange apparatus according to claim 3, wherein The data processing terminal is further used for sending abnormal photomask cleaning instructions to the photomask transmission mechanism, and the automatic moving robot of the photomask transmission mechanism is further used for transporting abnormal photomasks in the external machine to the storage and purging mechanism and transporting the cleaned abnormal photomasks to the external machine based on the abnormal photomask cleaning instructions.

5. The automatic reticle changer of claim 1, wherein The automatic moving robot comprises a transportation assembly and a mechanical arm fixed on the transportation assembly.

6. The reticle autochange apparatus according to claim 5, wherein The transportation assembly comprises a transportation structure and a sensor unit group connected with a control center in the transportation structure.

7. The reticle autochange apparatus according to claim 6, wherein The sensor unit group comprises at least one of an ultrasonic sensor, a gyroscope, an inertial measurement instrument and a steering detection sensor.

8. The automatic reticle changer according to claim 5, wherein The photomask transmission mechanism further comprises a moving control unit loaded with a map automatic moving system, and the moving control unit is connected with the transportation assembly.

9. The reticle autochange apparatus according to claim 8, wherein Terminal auxiliary positioning units are arranged on the storage and purging mechanism and the external machine, and all the terminal auxiliary positioning units are connected with the moving control unit.

10. A reticle autochange system characterized by, The application further relates to an EAP device and at least one working machine connected with the data processing terminal of the photomask automatic replacement device, the working machine is used as the external machine in the photomask automatic replacement device, and the EAP device and all the working machines are connected.

Images