Workpiece conveying device and workpiece processing apparatus

Abstract

To provide a workpiece conveying device and a workpiece processing apparatus capable of stably and reliably holding and conveying a workpiece whose state changes due to processing, while suppressing complication and increase in the size of the device.SOLUTION: A workpiece conveying device according to one embodiment of the present invention includes a plurality of holding parts 104 that hold a workpiece. The holding part includes a plurality of pieces of holding means (a vacuum pad being first holding means utilizing a pressure difference, and an electrostatic chuck 1042 being second holding means utilizing at least one of electrical means or magnetic means) that hold the workpiece from one surface side of the workpiece by different mechanisms.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 6

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a workpiece transport device and a workpiece machining device. [Background technology]

[0002] A dicing machine that divides a workpiece such as a wafer on which semiconductor elements or electronic components are formed into individual chips is equipped with a blade that is rotated at high speed by a spindle, a worktable that suctions and holds the workpiece, and X, Y, Z, and θ drive units that change the relative position between the worktable and the blade. In this dicing machine, the blade cuts into the workpiece to perform dicing (cutting) while the blade and the workpiece are moved relatively by the respective drive units.

[0003] In dicing devices, it is common to transport a workpiece by suctioning and holding the dicing frame (see, for example, Patent Document 1). By suctioning and holding the dicing frame, it becomes possible to transport the processed workpiece stably. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0004] [Patent Document 1] JP 2003-86543 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] However, in the case of a method of transporting a workpiece by suction holding a dicing frame, the space inside the dicing device where processing and transporting takes place needs to be designed according to the size of the dicing frame. Therefore, only workpieces smaller than the frame size can be processed in the space inside the device, and the processable work area is small relative to the device area, which is a factor in low productivity. On the other hand, in order to increase productivity, it is necessary to increase the frame size, but doing so would lead to further increases in costs and an increase in the size of the device.

[0006] In response to this, it is conceivable to make maximum use of the space inside the equipment by directly holding and transporting the workpiece (direct transport) without using a dicing frame. Direct transport does not use a dicing frame, so it is possible to expand the workpiece size to the frame size using the same equipment as before, making it possible to process larger workpieces. Another advantage is that larger workpieces can have more chips, which leads to cheaper chips.

[0007] Here, the workpiece to be diced by the dicing device in the case of direct transport will be described with reference to Figures 9 to 11. Figure 9 is a perspective view of the workpiece 200 before dicing. Figure 10 is a perspective view of the workpiece 200A after dicing. Figure 11(A) is a cross-sectional view of the workpiece 200A shown in Figure 10, and Figure 11(B) is an explanatory diagram that typically shows the state in which the workpiece 200A shown in Figure 11(A) is bent.

[0008] As shown in FIG. 9, the work 200 before dicing is a work in which a dicing tape 202 is attached only to the back surface (the surface opposite to the surface on which devices are formed) of the substrate 201 without using a dicing frame. In FIG. 9, the work 200 is configured, for example, in a rectangular shape in a plan view. By dicing the work 200, for example, as shown in FIG. 10, the work 200 is made into a work 200A in which a plurality of grooves 204 are formed along a plurality of mutually intersecting division lines in a checkerboard pattern. As shown in (A) and (B) of FIG. 11, these grooves 204 are cut into the dicing tape 202 (so-called full cut processing). In the work 200A, the chips 203 obtained by dividing the substrate 201 are held by the dicing tape 202.

[0009] As the dicing tape 202, for example, a PVC (polyvinyl chloride) tape is used. The workpieces 200, 200A are attached to the dicing tape 202 via a film-like adhesive such as DAF (Die Attach Film). In this case, for example, a PO (polyolefin)-based film-like adhesive can be used. The above is the configuration of the workpieces 200, 200A. Note that the workpiece 200A after dicing has low rigidity because only the multiple chips 203 obtained by dividing the substrate 201 are held by the dicing tape 202.

[0010] As described above, the state of the workpieces transported to the dicing device is different before and after the dicing process. Since the workpieces after the dicing process have grooves, when the workpieces are sucked and adsorbed through a vacuum pad or the like, the grooves may cause leakage. As described above, the workpieces after the dicing process are prone to bending, so leakage is likely to occur, and it is difficult to stably hold the workpieces. In addition, when the workpieces before the dicing process are stacked and stored, if the workpieces are transported using an electrostatic chuck or a magnetic chuck, in addition to the workpieces to be transported, the workpieces located below the workpieces may be transported together. In this way, it is difficult to stably transport the workpieces that are in different states before and after the dicing process using a specific transport means.

[0011] Furthermore, if a plurality of conveying devices each having a different conveying means is provided for one conveying path, the device becomes complicated and large in size.

[0012] The present invention has been made in consideration of the above-mentioned circumstances, and aims to provide a work transport device and a work processing device that are capable of stably and reliably holding and transporting a workpiece whose condition changes due to processing, while suppressing the complexity and size of the device. [Means for solving the problem]

[0013] The inventors came up with the idea of ​​providing a single conveying device with holding means for holding a workpiece from one side of the workpiece using a different mechanism, and arrived at the present invention.

[0014] The gist of the present invention is as follows. (1) A workpiece transport device according to one embodiment of the present invention includes a holding section for holding a workpiece, the holding section having a plurality of holding means for holding the workpiece from one side of the workpiece using different mechanisms. (2) In the workpiece transport device described in (1) above, the holding section may have a first holding means that utilizes a pressure difference, and a second holding means that utilizes at least one of an electrical means and a magnetic means. (3) In the work transport device described in (2) above, the second holding means may be arranged on a surface corresponding to the holding surface of the work, at least at a position corresponding to a position where the work is likely to bend as determined by a holding test or calculation performed in advance. (4) In the work transport device described in (2) or (3) above, a plurality of the second holding means may be arranged on a surface corresponding to the holding surface of the work, at least in an area farthest from a position corresponding to the center of the holding surface, within a range in which the work can be contacted.

[0015] (5) Furthermore, a workpiece processing apparatus according to another aspect of the present invention is a workpiece processing apparatus comprising at least a storage section for storing a workpiece and a transporting device for transporting the workpiece, wherein the transporting device comprises a holding section for holding the workpiece, and the holding section has a plurality of holding means for holding the workpiece from one side of the workpiece using different mechanisms. (6) In the workpiece machining device described in (5) above, the storage section may have a pre-machined workpiece storage section for storing the workpiece before machining, and a post-machined workpiece storage section for storing the workpiece after machining. Effect of the Invention

[0016] According to the present invention, it is possible to stably and reliably hold and transport a workpiece whose surface condition changes due to processing, while suppressing the complexity and size of the device. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0017] [Figure 1] 1 is a configuration diagram of a main part of a workpiece machining device according to an embodiment of the present invention; [Diagram 2] 2 is a perspective view showing an example of the configuration of a processing unit in the workpiece processing device according to the embodiment; FIG. [Diagram 3] 2 is a functional block diagram showing a functional configuration of the workpiece machining device according to the embodiment. FIG. [Figure 4] FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing a first conveying device in a state where a first holding part is in an upright position. [Diagram 5]FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing the first conveying device in a state where the first holding part is in a laid-down position. [Figure 6] 5 is a schematic diagram for explaining the arrangement of holding means in a holding section. FIG. [Figure 7] 5 is a schematic diagram for explaining the arrangement of holding means in a holding section. FIG. [Figure 8] 5 is a schematic diagram for explaining the arrangement of holding means in a holding section. FIG. [Figure 9] FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a workpiece before machining. [Figure 10] FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the workpiece after machining. [Figure 11] FIG. 11 is a cross-sectional view of the workpiece shown in FIG. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0018] Hereinafter, an example of a workpiece machining device according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0019] Fig. 1 is a perspective view showing a main configuration of a dicing device 10 according to an embodiment of the present invention. The dicing device 10 shown in Fig. 1 is an example of a workpiece processing device according to the present invention. The dicing device 10 will be described using a three-dimensional coordinate system of X, Y, and Z.

[0020] 1, the dicing apparatus 10 includes a storage section 12 in which the workpieces are stored, a placement section 14 on which the workpieces are temporarily placed, a processing section 16 which processes the workpieces, and a cleaning section 18 which cleans the workpieces. The dicing apparatus 10 also includes a transport device 20 having a holding section, which will be described later, and the transport device 20 transports the workpieces along the respective transport paths between the storage section 12, the placement section 14, the processing section 16, and the cleaning section 18. The dicing apparatus 10 also includes a control section 22 which provides overall control over the operations of the various components of the dicing apparatus 10.

[0021] The storage section 12 is, for example, configured in a box shape, and has two storage shelves 24 and 26 arranged one on top of the other in the vertical direction (Z direction). For example, unmachined workpieces 200 are stored in the storage shelf 24, and machined workpieces 200A are stored in the storage shelf 26. Thus, the storage shelf 24 is an example of an unmachined workpiece storage section, and the storage shelf 26 is an example of a machined workpiece storage section. The workpieces are stored in the storage shelves 24, 26 in a stacked state of multiple sheets, for example up to about 150 sheets.

[0022] Furthermore, the storage unit 12 is moved up and down by the elevator 28. When the transport device 20 takes out the workpiece 200 from the storage shelf 24 or stores the workpiece 200A in the storage shelf 26, the height of the storage unit 12 is adjusted by the elevator 28 to match the height of the transport device 20.

[0023] 1, the placement unit 14 has a table 30 on which the workpieces 200, 200A are placed. On this table 30, the unmachined workpieces 200 taken out from the storage shelf 24 are temporarily placed before being transported to the processing unit 16, and the cleaned (processed) workpieces 200A that have been cleaned in the cleaning unit 18 are temporarily placed before being stored in the storage shelf 26. In other words, the placement unit 14 is used as a temporary storage area for the workpieces 200, 200A.

[0024] Fig. 2 is a perspective view showing an example of the configuration of the processing unit 16. As shown in Fig. 2, the processing unit 16 includes an X-table 32. The X-table 32 is guided by X-guides 36, 36 provided on an X-base 34, and is driven in the X-direction indicated by the arrow XX by a linear motor 38. A rotary table 40 that rotates in the θ-direction is fixed to the upper surface of the X-table 32, and a work table 42 that adsorbs and holds a workpiece 200 is provided on the rotary table 40. Thus, the work table 42 is moved in the X-direction by the X-table 32, and rotated in the θ-direction by the rotary table 40.

[0025] Furthermore, processing unit 16 is equipped with a Y base 44 configured in a gate shape so as to straddle X base 34. Y tables 46, 46 are provided on the wall surface of Y base 44. Y tables 46, 46 are guided by Y guides 48, 48 fixed to the wall surface of Y base 44, and are driven in the Y direction indicated by arrow YY by a drive device made up of a stepping motor and a ball screw (not shown).

[0026] Z tables 50, 50 are provided on the Y tables 46, 46, respectively. The Z tables 50, 50 are guided by Z guides (not shown) provided on the Y table 46, and are driven in the Z direction indicated by the arrow ZZ by a drive device consisting of a stepping motor and a ball screw (not shown). Spindles 52, 52 are fixed to the Z tables 50, 50 in an opposing state, and blades 54, 54 attached to the tips of the spindles 52, 52 are arranged to face each other.

[0027] With the above-described configuration of the processing unit 16, the blades 54, 54 are indexed in the Y direction and cut in the Z direction, and the work table 42 is cut in the X direction and rotated in the θ direction. By such operation of the processing unit 16 and the rotating blades 54, 54, a plurality of grooves 204 are cut in a grid pattern on the surface of the workpiece 200, resulting in a workpiece 200A having a plurality of individual chips 203.

[0028] 1, the cleaning unit 18 has a turntable 56 that holds the workpiece 200A machined by the processing unit 16. In the cleaning unit 18, chemical treatment, rinsing treatment, drying treatment, and the like are performed on the workpiece 200A held on the turntable 56 while the workpiece 200A is spun by the turntable 56. In the dicing apparatus 10 of this example, the storage unit 12, the processing unit 16, and the cleaning unit 18 are arranged along the Y direction.

[0029] Fig. 3 is a functional block diagram showing the functional configuration of the dicing apparatus 10 shown in Fig. 1. As shown in Fig. 3, the control unit 22 of the dicing apparatus 10 includes a system control unit 60, a processing control unit 62, an elevator control unit 64, a transport control unit 66, an undulation control unit 68, a holding control unit 70, and a computer-readable medium 72.

[0030] The system control unit 60 comprehensively controls the various control units included in the control unit 22. The system control unit 60 also controls writing of data, etc. to the computer-readable medium 72 and reading of data, etc. from the computer-readable medium 72.

[0031] The processing control unit 62 controls the operation of various drive members of the processing unit 16 and the cleaning unit 18. The elevator control unit 64 controls the operation of the elevator 28. The transport control unit 66 controls the operation of each transport drive unit 74 of the first and second transport devices described below. The elevation control unit 68 controls the operation of the elevation drive unit 76 described below. The holding control unit 70 controls the operation of the holding drive units 78 of the first to third holding units described below. Note that the operation control of the various drive members by the processing control unit 62 is well known, so a detailed explanation will be omitted.

[0032] A computer is applied to the hardware of the control unit 22. The computer functioning as the control unit 22 includes one or more processors and one or more computer-readable media 72. The computer realizes various functions of the control unit 22 by causing the processor to execute a program including one or more instructions stored in the computer-readable medium 72.

[0033] In the control unit 22, one processing unit or two or more processing units may be realized using one processor, or one processing unit may be realized using multiple processors. The processor may include a CPU (Central Processing Unit) which is a general-purpose processing device, or may include a processing device specialized for a specific process. The multiple processors may be of the same type, or may be of multiple different types.

[0034] The computer-readable medium 72 includes a memory serving as a main storage device and a storage serving as an auxiliary storage device. The computer-readable medium 72 may also use a semiconductor memory, a hard disk drive, a solid-state drive, or the like. Furthermore, the computer-readable medium 72 may use any combination of multiple devices.

[0035] Next, the configuration and operation of the transport device 20 will be described.

[0036] As shown in FIG. 1, the dicing device 10 includes a first conveying device 100 and a second conveying device 102 as a conveying device 20 for the workpieces 200 and 200A. The first conveying device 100 includes a first holding section 104 and a second holding section 106 for holding the workpieces 200 and 200A. The second conveying device 102 includes a third holding section 108. The second conveying device 102 includes a placement section 14. The first conveying device 100 is an example of the workpiece conveying device of the present invention. At least the first holding section 104 corresponds to the holding section of the present invention.

[0037] Here, an outline of the operation of the dicing apparatus 10, including the operation of the first conveying device 100 and the second conveying device 102, will be described. In the dicing apparatus 10, first, the first holding unit 104 cooperates with the first conveying device 100 to hold the unmachined workpiece 200 stored in the storage shelf 24, and then the workpiece 200 is taken out of the storage shelf 24 and temporarily placed on the placement unit 14. In FIG. 1, the placement unit 14 is placed above the cleaning unit 18, but when performing the above operation (the operation of temporarily placing the unmachined workpiece 200 on the placement unit 14), the placement unit 14 is placed in advance at a position above the processing unit 16 by the second conveying device 102. That is, the unmachined workpiece 200 is temporarily placed on the placement unit 14 placed at a position above the processing unit 16. The upper position of the processing unit 16 does not have to be a strictly upper position in the Z direction. That is, the placement unit 14 may be disposed at a position slightly shifted in the Y direction from the position above the processing unit 16. The same applies below.

[0038] Next, the second holding unit 106 cooperates with the first conveying device 100 to hold the workpiece 200 placed on the placement unit 14 and convey the workpiece 200 to the processing unit 16. When performing this operation (the operation of conveying the workpiece 200 to the processing unit 16), the placement unit 14 is positioned in advance by the second conveying device 102 at a position above the cleaning unit 18 shown in FIG. 1. This allows the workpiece 200 to be conveyed to the processing unit 16 without interfering with the placement unit 14. The position above the cleaning unit 18 does not have to be a strictly upper position in the Z direction. In other words, the placement unit 14 may be positioned at a position slightly shifted, for example, in the Y direction from the upper position of the cleaning unit 18. The same applies below.

[0039] Next, the third holding unit 108 cooperates with the second transport device 102 to hold the workpiece 200A after processing in the processing unit 16, and transports the workpiece 200A to the cleaning unit 18.

[0040] Next, the second holding unit 106 cooperates with the first conveying device 100 to hold the cleaned workpiece 200A cleaned in the cleaning unit 18, and temporarily places the workpiece 200A on the placement unit 14. When performing this operation (the operation of temporarily placing the cleaned workpiece 200A on the placement unit 14), the placement unit 14 is previously positioned above the processing unit 16 by the second conveying device 102. In other words, the cleaned workpiece 200A is temporarily placed on the placement unit 14 which is positioned above the processing unit 16.

[0041] Finally, the first holding unit 104 cooperates with the first conveying device 100 to hold the cleaned workpiece 200A placed on the placement unit 14, and stores the workpiece 200A in the storage shelf 26. In this manner, by the operations of the first conveying device 100 and the second conveying device 102, the workpiece 200 taken out of the storage shelf 24 is processed in the processing unit 16, cleaned in the cleaning unit 18, and then stored in the storage shelf 26 as the workpiece 200A.

[0042] Next, a detailed configuration of the conveying device 20 (the first conveying device 100 and the second conveying device 102) of this embodiment will be described.

[0043] 1, the first conveyance device 100 has a main body 110, an arm 112 protruding upward from the main body 110, and a Y rail 114. The main body 110 is supported by the Y rail 114 via the arm 112, and is provided so as to be movable in the Y direction along the Y rail 114. As a result, in the Y direction, the main body 110 is movable along a conveyance path between a workpiece removal position and a workpiece storage position for the storage section 12, a workpiece delivery position and a workpiece reception position for the placement section 14, a workpiece delivery position for the processing section 16, a workpiece reception position for the cleaning section 18, a workpiece delivery position after cleaning for the placement section 14, and a workpiece reception position after cleaning for the placement section 14.

[0044] Similarly, the second conveyance device 102 has a main body 116, an arm 118 protruding upward from the main body 116, and a Y rail 120. The main body 116 is supported by the Y rail 120 via the arm 118, and is provided so as to be movable in the Y direction along the Y rail 120. This allows the main body 116 to move in the Y direction along a conveyance path between a position where a workpiece can be received by the processing unit 16 and a position where a workpiece can be delivered to the cleaning unit 18.

[0045] Moreover, the main body 110 and the main body 116 are driven in the Y direction and the Z direction by the transport drive unit 74. As the transport drive unit 74, for example, a drive device having a stepping motor and a ball screw can be exemplified. In this case, the movement in the Y direction is performed by rotating a ball screw arranged in the Y direction by a stepping motor, thereby moving the main body 110 and the main body 116 in the Y direction together with the arms 112 and 118. Moreover, the movement in the Z direction is performed by rotating a ball screw arranged in the Z direction by a stepping motor, thereby moving the main body 110 and the main body 116 in the Z direction relative to the arms 112 and 118. Note that the above drive device is one example.

[0046] Furthermore, the first conveying device 100 and the second conveying device 102 are configured so that the main body 110 and the main body 116 can pass each other without interfering with each other when the main body 110 and the main body 116 move in the Y direction.

[0047] Figures 4 and 5 are perspective views showing the configuration of the first conveying device 100. Figure 4 shows the first conveying device in a state where the first holding part 104 is in an upright position, and Figure 5 shows the first conveying device in a state where the first holding part 104 is in a laid-down position.

[0048] As shown in Fig. 4 and Fig. 5, the first conveying device 100 is equipped with a first holding unit 104 and a second holding unit 106. The first conveying device 100 is also equipped with a lifting / lowering drive unit 76 for lifting / lowering the first holding unit 104 between the upright position in Fig. 4 and the laid-down position in Fig. 5. The first holding unit 104 is also equipped with a holding drive unit 78 for driving the holding means. The holding drive unit 78 drives the holding means described below, each of which is publicly known. Therefore, since the configuration of the holding drive unit 78 is also publicly known, a detailed description of the holding drive unit 78 will be omitted.

[0049] The elevation drive unit 76 has an arm member 122. The first holding unit 104 is connected to the tip end of the arm member 122, and a shaft 124 is connected to the base end of the arm member 122. The shaft 124 is disposed along the X direction, and is journaled on a swing support unit 126 fixed to a lower component member 128 of the main body 110. The shaft 124 is also connected to a drive source (not shown) of the elevation drive unit 76.

[0050] With the elevation drive unit 76 configured in this manner, the shaft 124 is rotated forward and backward by a drive source (not shown) of the elevation drive unit 76, causing the arm member 122 to swing along the Y(-)Z plane with the shaft 124 as the swing fulcrum. This causes the posture of the first holding unit 104 to change between the laid-down position in Fig. 5 when holding the workpiece 200 and the upright position in Fig. 4 when not holding the workpiece 200. Note that the configuration of the elevation drive unit 76 is not limited to this, and may be any configuration that allows the first holding unit 104 to perform elevation operations.

[0051] Next, there will be described an example of the configuration of first holding section 104. Fig. 6 is a schematic diagram for explaining the arrangement of holding means in first holding section 104.

[0052] The first holding section 104 has a plurality of holding means for holding the workpiece 200 or 200A from one surface side of the workpiece 200 or 200A by different mechanisms.

[0053] Examples of the holding means include holding means using a pressure difference, holding means using an electrical property, and holding means using a magnetic property. Examples of the holding means using a pressure difference include a vacuum pad or a Bernoulli chuck. Examples of the holding means using an electrical property include an electrostatic chuck. Examples of the holding means using a magnetic property include a magnetic chuck. Any of the above-mentioned holding means can be applied to the first holding unit 104 as long as it can be provided therein.

[0054] The first holding unit 104 includes, for example, four vacuum pads 1041 and five electrostatic chucks 1042 as shown in FIG. 6. In the example shown in FIG. 6, the four vacuum pads 1041 and five electrostatic chucks 1042 are arranged in a lattice pattern. The vacuum pads 1041 and the electrostatic chucks 1042 are rectangular. The first holding unit 104 holds the workpieces 200 and 200A with the four vacuum pads 1041 or the five electrostatic chucks 1042. Specifically, when holding the workpiece 200A after processing, the workpiece 200A is held by the electrostatic chuck 1042. Since the grooves 204 are formed on the holding surface of the workpiece 200A (the surface held by the first holding unit 104), the first holding unit 104 can stably hold the workpiece 200A by holding the workpiece 200A with the electrostatic chuck 1042. When holding the workpiece 200 before machining, either the vacuum pad 1041 or the electrostatic chuck 1042 may be used since the holding surface of the workpiece 200 is flat. However, when a plurality of workpieces 200 are loaded on the storage shelf 24, it is preferable to use the vacuum pad 1041 so as to reliably hold only the workpiece 200 located on the uppermost surface. In this manner, the holding means to be used is selected according to the state of the holding surface of the workpiece. Therefore, it is preferable that the first holding unit 104 has a first holding means using a pressure difference and a second holding means using at least one of an electrical means and a magnetic means.

[0055] The first holding unit 104 transports the object to be held with one or more of the multiple holding means holding the workpiece. The workpiece 200A can be transported only by the electrostatic chuck 1042 located at the center of the first holding unit 104. However, since the workpiece 200A is easily bent after processing, by holding the corners of the workpiece 200A, it is possible to prevent the workpiece 200A from falling or the individual chips from falling during transportation. Therefore, it is preferable that the first holding unit 104 holds the workpiece 200A with at least four electrostatic chucks 1042 located at positions corresponding to the corners of the workpiece 200A.

[0056] The first holding unit 104 may have holding means arranged as shown in Fig. 7. Fig. 7 is a schematic diagram for explaining the arrangement of the holding means in the first holding unit 104. Fig. 7 shows one vacuum pad 1041 arranged in the center of the first holding unit 104 and four electrostatic chucks 1042 arranged at corners of the first holding unit 104. In addition, as shown in Fig. 7, the vacuum pad 1041 and the electrostatic chucks 1042 may be different in size from each other.

[0057] The second holding unit 106 and the third holding unit 108 are not particularly limited in configuration as long as they can hold the workpieces 200 and 200A. However, considering the transportation of the machined workpiece 200A having the grooves 204, it is preferable that the second holding unit 106 and the third holding unit 108 employ at least one of electrical means and magnetic means. Like the first holding unit 104, the second holding unit 106 and the third holding unit 108 may have a plurality of holding means that hold the workpiece 200 or 200A from one side of the workpiece 200 or 200A with different mechanisms.

[0058] Since the first holding unit 104 of the first conveying device 100 has a plurality of holding means for holding the workpiece 200 or the workpiece 200A from one side of the workpiece 200 or the workpiece 200A with different mechanisms, it is possible to prevent the device from becoming complicated and large in size. Furthermore, according to the first conveying device 100, since the holding means can be selected according to the state of the workpiece, it is possible to stably and reliably hold and convey a workpiece whose state changes.

[0059] Moreover, since the first holding unit 104 has the vacuum pad 1041 and the electrostatic chuck 1042, only the uppermost workpiece out of the multiple workpieces 200 stacked can be reliably held by using the vacuum pad 1041. Furthermore, the processed workpiece 200A having the grooves 204 can be reliably held by using the electrostatic chuck 1042.

[0060] In addition, the first holding unit 104 is preferably arranged such that the electrostatic chuck 1042 is arranged at a position corresponding to the position where the workpiece 200A is likely to bend on the surface corresponding to the holding surface of the workpiece 200, 200A. The position where the workpiece 200A is likely to bend is determined by a holding test or calculation performed in advance. For example, it is preferable that the electrostatic chucks 1042 are arranged in an area that is at least the farthest from a position corresponding to the center of the holding surface within a range where the workpiece 200A can be contacted. This makes it possible to hold the workpiece 200A, which is likely to bend, more stably. It is more preferable that the electrostatic chucks 1042 are arranged symmetrically in the above area. In the example shown in FIGS. 6 and 7, four electrostatic chucks 1042 are arranged at positions corresponding to the corners where the workpiece 200A is likely to bend. Note that the farthest area referred to here is not strictly limited to the farthest area, but is an area including a range from the farthest area where the workpiece 200A is likely to bend.

[0061] The above-mentioned dicing apparatus 10 is equipped with a storage section 12 having storage shelves 24 and 26 that can be raised and lowered by an elevator 28, and the workpieces 200, 200A are transported along the same path. Since the workpieces 200, 200A are transported along the path only by the first transport apparatus 100, the size of the apparatus is suppressed.

[0062] The present invention has been described above with reference to the present embodiment. The technical scope of the present invention is not limited to the above embodiment, and various modifications can be made without departing from the spirit of the present invention.

[0063] In the above example, a dicing machine having a blade 54 has been described, but the present invention is not limited to this and can be applied to, for example, a dicing machine that uses a laser beam as a dicing means. Also, the present invention is not limited to a dicing machine and can be applied to other workpiece processing machines that include a storage unit, a processing unit, a cleaning unit, etc.

[0064] Also, for example, in the above-described example, the shape of the vacuum pad 1041 as the first holding means and the shape of the electrostatic chuck 1042 as the second holding means are rectangular, but these shapes are not limited to rectangular and may be various shapes, such as circular or elliptical.

[0065] In the above example, the vacuum pad and the electrostatic chuck are given as the holding means, but a plurality of holding means may be selected from a holding means utilizing a pressure difference, an electrical means, and a magnetic means. The plurality of holding means preferably includes a first holding means utilizing a pressure difference and a second holding means utilizing at least one of an electrical means and a magnetic means.

[0066] Furthermore, the types of holding means that first holding portion 104 has are not limited to two, and may be three or more types.

[0067] Furthermore, the number of each holding means is not particularly limited and may be changed depending on the size, shape, etc. of the workpiece to be held.

[0068] For example, the shape of the workpiece 200 is not limited to a rectangular shape, and may be, for example, a circular shape, an ellipse, or the like. When the workpiece is a regular polygon or a circle, the second holding means are preferably arranged at equal intervals in the circumferential direction at positions corresponding to the peripheral end of the workpiece 200. For example, in the example shown in FIG. 8, the four electrostatic chucks 1042 are arranged at equal intervals at positions farthest from a point C corresponding to the center of the workpiece in the first holding unit 104. The circle indicated by the two-dot chain line in FIG. 8 is a circle having the point C as its center and including the center of the electrostatic chuck 1042. Thus, whether the workpiece is rectangular or circular, the second holding means is preferably arranged such that a plurality of second holding means are arranged at equal intervals on a surface corresponding to the holding surface of the workpiece in the second holding means at least at a position farthest from a position corresponding to the center of the holding surface.

[0069] In addition, in the above example, the storage section is configured in a box shape and has two storage shelves 24 (unmachined work storage section) and 26 (post-machined work storage section) arranged one on top of the other in the vertical direction, but the unmachined work storage section and the post-machined work storage section may be separate and located in different positions.

[0070] In addition, the shape of the grooves 204 of the workpiece 200A is not limited to a checkerboard pattern, and may be, for example, a shape in which a plurality of grooves are formed in only one direction, or a shape in which only one groove is formed. In addition, the processing shape of the grooves 204 is not limited to full cut processing, and may be, for example, half cut processing or semi-full cut processing. [Explanation of symbols]

[0071] 10 Dicing Equipment 12 Storage area 14 Placement section 16 Processing Department 18 Cleaning section 20. Conveyor 22 Control section 24 Storage Shelf 26 Storage Shelf 28 Elevator 30 Tables 32X table 34 X Base 36 X Guide 38 Linear Motor 40 Rotating Table 42 Work Table 44 Y Base 46 Y Table 48 Y Guide 50 Z-table 52 Spindle 54 Blade 56 Rotating Table 60 System control section 62 Processing control section 64 Elevator control unit 66 Transport control section 68 Elevation control section 70 Retention control section 72 Computer-readable medium 74 Transport drive unit 76 Elevation drive unit 78 Holding drive unit 100 First conveying device 102 Second conveying device 104 1st holding part 106 Second holding part 108 Third holding part 110 Main unit 112 Arm 114 Y-rail 116 Main Unit 118 Arm 120 Y-rail 122 Arm member 124 Axis 126 Swing support part 128 Lower component 200 Work 200A Work 201 Substrate 202 Dicing tape 203 Chips 204 Groove 1041 Vacuum Pad 1042 Electrostatic Chuck

Claims

1. A holding portion for holding a workpiece is provided. The holding section has a plurality of holding means for holding the workpiece from one side of the workpiece using different mechanisms.

2. 2. The workpiece transport device according to claim 1, wherein the holding section has a first holding means that utilizes a pressure difference, and a second holding means that utilizes at least one of an electrical means and a magnetic means.

3. The work transport device according to claim 2, wherein the second holding means is arranged on a surface corresponding to the holding surface of the work, at least at a position corresponding to a position where the work is likely to bend as determined by a holding test or calculation performed in advance.

4. A work transport device as described in claim 2 or 3, wherein a plurality of the second holding means are arranged on a surface corresponding to the holding surface of the workpiece, at least in an area farthest from a position corresponding to the center of the holding surface within a range in which the workpiece can be contacted.

5. A workpiece machining apparatus including at least a storage unit for storing a workpiece and a transport device for transporting the workpiece, The conveying device includes a holding unit that holds the workpiece, The holding section of the workpiece machining apparatus has a plurality of holding means for holding the workpiece from one side of the workpiece using different mechanisms.

6. The workpiece machining device according to claim 5 , wherein the storage section includes a pre-machined workpiece storage section for storing the workpiece before machining, and a post-machined workpiece storage section for storing the workpiece after machining.

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