End face correction jig and end face correction method

Abstract

To efficiently correct an end face of a flange which receives a cutting blade, in a short time.SOLUTION: An end face correction jig 30 includes: a bottomed-cylindrical end surface correction grind stone 31 provided with a recessed part 31A to which a cylindrical part 12A of a flange 12 is inserted, and a grinding surface 31a; a hollow column (a hold part) 32 which causes the grinding surface 31a of the end surface correction grind stone 31 to face an end surface 12c of the flange 12 and holds the end surface correction grind stone 31; a base 33 which is sucked and held by a holding surface in such a state that the whole surface of the holding surface of a chuck table 6 is covered; and a column 32 which is connected to the base. Further, an end surface correction method is a method of correcting the end surface 12c of the flange 12 through a holding process of causing a chuck table 6 to suck and hold the end face correction jig 30 and an end surface grinding process of causing a spindle 20 and the chuck table 6 to get relatively close to each other while rotating the spindle 20 together with the flange 12, and bringing the end surface correction grind stone 31 into contact with the end surface 12C of the flange 12 to grind the end surface 12C.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 6

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to an end face repairing jig equipped with an end face repairing grindstone that repairs the end face of a flange that fixes a cutting blade that cuts a workpiece such as a wafer to the tip of a spindle, and an end face repairing method carried out using the same. [Background technology]

[0002] For example, in the manufacturing process of semiconductor devices, the surface of a disk-shaped semiconductor wafer (hereinafter simply referred to as a "wafer") is divided into a large number of rectangular regions by planned division lines called streets that are arranged in a grid pattern, and devices such as ICs and LSIs are formed in each rectangular region. Then, the wafer on which a large number of devices have been formed is cut along the planned division lines with a cutting blade of a cutting machine called a dicer, thereby obtaining a plurality of semiconductor chips.

[0003] In a cutting device, for example, when the cutting blade is a hub blade configured by attaching a ring-shaped cutting edge to the outer periphery of a base, the hub blade is attached to the tip of the spindle by inserting the base through the cylindrical part of a flange attached to the tip of the spindle and tightening a fixing nut that screws onto the cylindrical part of the flange, and when such a hub blade wears down to its usable limit, it is replaced with a new one (see, for example, Patent Document 1). Here, the hub blade is replaced by loosening the fixing nut while the flange is fixed to the spindle and removing the fixing nut and the hub blade from the flange.

[0004] Repeated replacement of the hub blade as described above causes aluminum, the material of the hub blade's base, to adhere to the flange end surface, forming irregularities on the end surface. Furthermore, if the cutting blade is a washer blade consisting of a ring-shaped cutting edge without a base, the portion of the flange end surface where the washer blade was in contact will become recessed and uneven. When irregularities occur on the flange end surface in this way, the outer periphery of a newly installed cutting blade will vibrate relative to the spindle's axial direction, causing the problem of an increased width of the kerf (cutting groove) formed on the workpiece.

[0005] Therefore, Patent Documents 2 and 3 propose an end face repair method in which a jig equipped with a chip grinding stone is held by suction on the chuck table of a cutting device, and the chuck table and flange are moved relatively in the cutting feed direction and also relatively close to each other in the index feed direction, thereby grinding the end face of the flange with the chip grinding stone to repair the end face. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0006] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2009-226569 [Patent Document 2] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2009-297855 [Patent Document 3] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2017-221994 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0007] However, in the flange end face repair methods proposed in Patent Documents 2 and 3, the chuck table and the flange are moved relatively in the cutting feed direction and also moved relatively close to each other in the index feed direction to repair the flange end face, which is time-consuming.

[0008] The present invention has been made in consideration of the above problems, and its purpose is to provide an end face repair jig and an end face repair method that can efficiently repair the end face of a flange that receives a cutting blade in a short amount of time. [Means for solving the problem]

[0009] The end face dressing jig of the present invention, which achieves the above-mentioned object, is used to dress an end face of a flange having an insertion hole into which a spindle is fitted, a cylindrical portion through which a cutting blade is inserted, and a ring-shaped end face that supports one side of the cutting blade inserted into the cylindrical portion, and is characterized by comprising: a recess into which the cylindrical portion is inserted; a bottomed cylindrical or bottomed polygonal tubular end face dressing grinding wheel having a grinding surface that comes into contact with the end face when the cylindrical portion is inserted into the recess without contact; a holding portion that holds the end face dressing grinding wheel with the grinding surface of the end face dressing grinding wheel facing the end face of the flange; a base connected to the holding portion and held by suction to the holding surface of a chuck table of a cutting device while covering the entire holding surface; and a pillar connected to the base.

[0010] Furthermore, the end face repairing method according to the present invention is a method for repairing the end face of a flange attached to a spindle using the end face repairing jig, and is characterized in that the end face of the flange is repaired through a holding step in which the end face repairing jig is suction-held on a chuck table of a cutting device, and an end face grinding step in which the spindle and the chuck table are brought relatively close to each other while rotating the spindle together with the flange, and the end face repairing grinding stone is brought into contact with the end face of the flange to grind the end face. [Effects of the Invention]

[0011] According to the end face repair method implemented using the end face repair jig of the present invention, the end face repair jig is set on the chuck table by utilizing the negative pressure generated on the holding surface of the chuck table by an existing suction source, and the grinding surface of the end face repair grindstone of the end face repair jig is placed facing the end face of the flange of the cutting blade.The flange and the end face repair jig are then moved in only one direction so that they approach each other while rotating the flange, thereby grinding and repairing the end face of the flange with the grinding surface of the end face repair grindstone, thereby achieving the effect of efficiently repairing the end face of the flange in a short amount of time. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0012] [Figure 1] FIG. [Figure 2] FIG. [Figure 3] FIG. 2 is a side cross-sectional view of the cutting unit. [Figure 4] FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view of the end face repair jig according to the present invention. [Figure 5] FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an end face repair jig according to the present invention. [Figure 6] 1 is a side cross-sectional view showing a method for repairing an end face of a flange using an end face repair jig according to the present invention. [Figure 7] FIG. 7 is an enlarged detailed view of part A in FIG. 6. [Figure 8] FIG. 10 is an exploded perspective view of an end face repairing jig according to Modified Example 1. [Figure 9] FIG. 10 is an exploded perspective view of an end face repairing jig according to Modification 2. [Figure 10] FIG. 11 is an exploded perspective view of an end face repairing jig according to Modification 3. [Figure 11] FIG. 11 is a cutaway side view of an end face repairing jig according to Modification 3. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0013] Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0014] [Cutting equipment configuration] First, the overall configuration of a cutting device to which the present invention is applied will be described below with reference to Fig. 1. In the following description, the left-right direction in Fig. 1 will be referred to as the X-axis direction, the front-rear direction as the Y-axis direction, and the up-down direction as the Z-axis direction.

[0015] FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a cutting device. The illustrated cutting device 1 is a so-called dual dicer and includes a base 2 that supports various components. A rectangular opening 3 that is elongated in the X-axis direction is located in the center of the base 2 in the Y-axis direction. A cassette support 4 that can be raised and lowered in the vertical direction (Z-axis direction) by a lifting mechanism (not shown) is provided in the right-hand (+X-axis) corner in front of the opening 3 (-Y-axis direction). A rectangular box-shaped cassette 5 that holds multiple disk-shaped wafers W (only one wafer is shown in FIG. 1) that are the workpieces is located on the top surface of the cassette support 4. For ease of explanation, only the outline of the cassette 5 is shown in FIG. 1.

[0016] Here, the wafer W has its surface (the upper surface in FIG. 1 ) divided into a number of rectangular regions by planned cutting lines (not shown) called streets that are arranged in a grid pattern, and devices such as ICs and LSIs are formed in each rectangular region. Then, by cutting the wafer W1 on which a number of devices have been formed along the planned dividing lines, multiple semiconductor chips are formed. The wafer W is supported by a ring frame F by bonding a protective tape T attached to its back surface (the lower surface in FIG. 1 ) to the ring frame F.

[0017] Meanwhile, a circular plate-shaped chuck table 6 is provided in an opening 3 on the top surface of the base 2, which suction-holds the wafer W together with the ring frame F on the holding surface. Four clamps 7 for fixing the ring frame F from all sides are arranged around the periphery of the chuck table 6 at equal angular intervals (90° pitch).

[0018] Here, the chuck table 6 is driven to rotate about a vertical axis by a rotation mechanism (not shown) disposed below it, and can be moved back and forth along the X-axis direction (left and right direction) by an X-axis movement mechanism (not shown) disposed below it. The periphery of the chuck table 6 at the opening 3 is covered by a rectangular plate-shaped cover 8 that moves together with the chuck table 6, and both sides (left and right) of the cover 8 in the X-axis direction of the opening 3 are covered by bellows-shaped extendable covers 9 that move and extend in the X-axis direction together with the cover 8. Therefore, regardless of the position of the chuck table 6 on the X-axis, the opening 3 is always closed by the cover 8 and the extendable cover 9, reliably preventing the intrusion of foreign matter and the like into the base 2 through the opening 3.

[0019] Furthermore, on the left side (-X axis side) of the base 2, a pair of cutting units 10 are disposed facing each other on both the front and rear sides (-Y axis side and +Y axis side) of the opening 3, and an imaging unit 71 is attached to each cutting unit 10. Here, each imaging unit 71 captures an image of the wafer W held by suction on the holding surface of the chuck table 6 to detect the position of the planned dividing line. The configuration of the cutting unit 10 will be described in detail later.

[0020] The cutting unit 10 can be moved up and down in the Z-axis direction (cutting feed direction) by a pair of front and rear Z-axis movement mechanisms 80, and can be moved back and forth in the Y-axis direction (index feed direction) by a pair of front and rear Y-axis movement mechanisms 90.

[0021] Each Z-axis movement mechanism 80 includes a pair of Z-axis guide rails 81 arranged vertically and parallel to each other in front of and behind a rectangular plate-shaped slider 91, a lifting plate 82 that can move up and down along these Z-axis guide rails 81, a rotatable Z-axis ball screw 83 that is arranged vertically between the pair of Z-axis guide rails 81, and a reversible Z-axis pulse motor 84 that rotates the Z-axis ball screw 83. The pair of cutting units 10 and the imaging unit 71 are attached to the lower part of each lifting plate 82. A nut member (not shown) protrudes from the back surface of each lifting plate 82, and the Z-axis ball screw 83 is threadedly inserted into this nut member.

[0022] In the Z-axis moving mechanism 80 configured as described above, when the Z-axis pulse motor 84 is driven and the Z-axis ball screw 83 rotates forward and backward, the lifting plate 82, which has a protruding nut member (not shown) that screws onto the Z-axis ball screw 83, moves up and down along a pair of Z-axis guide rails 81, and the cutting unit 10 and the imaging unit 71 attached to each lifting plate 82 also move up and down along the Z-axis direction (cutting feed direction).

[0023] In addition, each of the pair of front and rear Y-axis moving mechanisms 90 is equipped with the slider 91, and these sliders 91 can each move along the Y-axis direction along a pair of upper and lower Y-axis guide rails 93 that are arranged parallel to each other along the Y-axis direction (front-to-back direction) in front of a gate-shaped column 92 that is erected vertically on the base 2.

[0024] In the pair of front and rear Y-axis movement mechanisms 90, a pair of upper and lower rotatable Y-axis ball screws 94 are arranged along the Y-axis direction (front and rear direction) between the pair of upper and lower Y-axis guide rails 93, and nut members (not shown) protruding from the back surface of each of the pair of front and rear sliders 91 are screwed onto these Y-axis ball screws 94. One axial end of each Y-axis ball screw 94 is coupled to a Y-axis pulse motor 95 (only one of which is shown in FIG. 1) which serves as a rotational drive source.

[0025] Therefore, in each Y-axis movement mechanism 90, when the Y-axis pulse motor 95 is driven to rotate the Y-axis ball screw 94 forward or backward, a pair of front and rear sliders 91, each having a protruding nut member (not shown) that threads onto the Y-axis ball screw 94, can move in the Y-axis direction (index feed direction) along the Y-axis guide rail 93 together with the lifting plate 82. Therefore, a pair of cutting units 10 and imaging units 71, each attached to the lifting plate 82, can move in the Y-axis direction (index feed direction) along the Y-axis guide rail 93.

[0026] As described above, in the cutting device 1 shown in FIG. 1, the chuck table 6 and the wafer W held thereon are movable along the X-axis direction (left-right direction), and the pair of cutting units 10 and imaging unit 71 are movable along the Y-axis direction (front-back direction) and the Z-axis direction (up-down direction), respectively.

[0027] 1, a cleaning unit 75 for cleaning the wafer W after cutting is disposed on the base 2 at a position rearward and to the right of the opening 3. This cleaning unit 75 includes a spinner table 76 that rotates while holding the wafer W by suction, and an injection nozzle 77 that injects a cleaning liquid from above onto the wafer W held by suction on the spinner table 76.

[0028] [Cutting unit configuration] The details of the configuration of the cutting unit 10 will now be described with reference to FIGS.

[0029] The cutting unit 10 is configured by detachably fixing a hub blade 11 serving as a cutting blade to the tip of a spindle 20 by a flange 12 and a fixing nut 13 .

[0030] The spindle 20 is rotated at high speed by a spindle motor (not shown) built into the spindle housing 21, and the outer periphery of the tip of the spindle 20 protruding from one end face of the spindle housing 21 is formed as a tapered surface 20a whose outer diameter gradually narrows toward the tip. A screw hole 20b is formed in the axial center of the front end of the spindle 20 (see FIG. 2).

[0031] The flange 12 includes a cylindrical portion 12A formed at one axial end thereof, and an annular fixed flange portion 12B integrally projecting radially outward from the base end of the cylindrical portion 12A, and a tapered insertion hole 12a that fits into the tip end of the spindle 20 is formed through the axial center thereof. A male thread 12b (see FIG. 2) is formed on the outer periphery of the tip end of the cylindrical portion 12A, and an end face 12c that abuts against the base 11A of the hub blade 11 is formed on the outer periphery of one axial end face (the left end face in FIG. 3) of the fixed flange portion 12B.

[0032] Here, the annular hub blade 11 is constructed by attaching an annular cutting blade (electroplated grinding wheel) 11B, which is formed by electroplating diamond abrasive grains dispersed in a nickel matrix, to the outer periphery of a circular flange-shaped base 11A, and a circular mounting hole 11a (see Figure 2) is formed in the axial center of the base 11A.

[0033] The fixing nut 13 is an annular fastener with a female thread 13a (see FIG. 2) formed on its inner periphery. Four engagement holes 13b (see FIG. 2) for engagement with a tool (not shown) are formed at equal angular intervals (90°) on the end face of the fixing nut 13 at four positions in the circumferential direction.

[0034] The hub blade 11 is fixed to the tip of the spindle 20 using the flange 12 and fixing nut 13 configured as described above in the following procedure.

[0035] 3, first, flange 12 is attached to the tip of spindle 20 by fitting tapered surface 20a (see FIG. 2) on the outer periphery of the tip of spindle 20 into tapered fitting hole 12a formed in the axial center of flange 12. Then, in this state, bolt 15 inserted through washer 14 is screwed into threaded hole 20b (see FIG. 2) formed in the axial center of spindle 20 and tightened, thereby fixing flange 12 to the tip of spindle 20.

[0036] Next, the hub blade 11 is set on the flange 12 by fitting the mounting hole 11a (see FIG. 2) formed in the axial center of the hub blade 11 onto the outer circumferential surface of the cylindrical portion 12A of the flange 12.

[0037] Finally, the fixing nut 13 is set on the cylindrical portion 12A of the flange 12 by threading the female thread 13a (see FIG. 2) formed on its inner periphery onto the male thread 12b (see FIG. 2) formed on the outer periphery of the cylindrical portion 12A of the flange 12. Then, in this state, the fixing nut 13 is turned with a tool (not shown) that engages with the engagement hole 13b (see FIG. 2) formed in the fixing nut 13, and is screwed onto the cylindrical portion 12A of the flange 12 to fasten the fixing nut 13. Then, the fixing nut 13 presses the hub blade 11 against the end surface 12c of the flange 12, and the hub blade 11 is clamped axially between the flange 12 and the fixing nut 13 and fixed to the tip of the spindle 20.

[0038] [Action of cutting device] Next, the operation of the cutting device 1 shown in FIG. 1 that includes the cutting unit 10 configured as above will be described.

[0039] 1, when cutting the wafer W along the planned dividing lines, the imaging units 71 capture images of the surface of the wafer W to obtain images, and then pattern matching processing based on the images detects the planned dividing lines to be cut. Once the planned dividing lines of the wafer W are detected in this manner, the positions of the hub blades 11 in the Y-axis direction of the cutting unit 10 are determined by the pair of front and rear Y-axis moving mechanisms 90, and the positions of these hub blades 11 in the Y-axis direction are aligned with the positions of the planned dividing lines to be cut.

[0040] Then, from the above state, while the hub blades 11 of both cutting units 10 are rotated at high speed, they are lowered by a predetermined cutting depth by the pair of front and rear Z-axis movement mechanisms 80, and the chuck table 6 and the wafer W held thereon are moved in the X-axis direction by an X-axis movement mechanism (not shown). The wafer W is then cut along the dividing lines by the hub blades 11 of both cutting units 10. After this operation has been performed for all dividing lines in one direction, the chuck table 6 and the wafer W held thereon are rotated 90° by a rotation mechanism (not shown), and cutting is similarly performed along dividing lines in the other direction that are perpendicular to the dividing lines along which cutting has been completed. When cutting of the wafer W along all dividing lines has been completed, a plurality of semiconductor chips each equipped with individual devices are obtained.

[0041] When the hub blade 11 of the cutting unit 10 is worn out due to cutting of the wafer W by the hub blade 11 and needs to be replaced with a new one, the hub blade 11 is removed from the flange 12 by the following procedure.

[0042] That is, to remove the hub blade 11 from the flange 12, the flange 12 is left attached to the tip of the spindle 20 without being removed, and the fixing nut 13 is turned and loosened with a tool (not shown), thereby removing the fixing nut 13 from the cylindrical portion 12A of the flange 12. Next, the hub blade 11 is pulled out and removed from the cylindrical portion 12A of the flange 12, and this hub blade 11 is replaced with a new one.

[0043] The new hub blade 11 is then attached to the flange 12 by reversing the above procedure. That is, the new hub blade 11 is fitted into the outer periphery of the cylindrical portion 12A of the flange 12 by passing the attachment hole 11a formed in the center of the new hub blade 11 through the attachment hole 11a. Then, the female thread 13a of the fixing nut 13 is screwed onto the male thread 12b formed on the outer periphery of the cylindrical portion 12A of the flange 12. The fixing nut 13 is turned with a tool (not shown) to screw the female thread 13a of the fixing nut 13 into the male thread 12b of the cylindrical portion 12A of the flange 12. This attaches the new hub blade 11 to the flange 12.

[0044] Incidentally, repeated replacement of the hub blade 11 causes unevenness to form on the ring-shaped end face 12c of the flange 12 that abuts against the base 11A of the hub blade 11, as mentioned above, and the end face 12c of the flange 12 is therefore ground and corrected. In this embodiment, the correction of the end face 12c of the flange 12 is carried out as shown in Figures 6 and 7 using an end face correction jig 30 shown in Figures 4 and 5.

[0045] [Configuration of end face repair jig] Here, we will explain the configuration of the end face repair jig 30 used to repair the end face 12c of the flange 12. As shown in Figures 4 and 5, the end face repair jig 30 is composed of a cylindrical end face repair grindstone 31 with a bottom, a hollow rectangular pillar 32, and a disk-shaped base 33. These end face repair grindstone 31, hollow pillar 32, and base 33 are assembled and integrated as shown in Figure 5 to form the end face repair jig 30.

[0046] A recess 31A that is open at one end is formed in the cylindrical end face dressing grindstone 31 with a bottom, and the end face of the opening of this recess 31A forms a ring-shaped grinding surface 31a. A rectangular fitting groove 31b into which a part of the upper end of the hollow column 32 fits is formed in the other end face opposite the grinding surface 31a of this end face dressing grindstone 31. In this embodiment, a cylindrical end face dressing grindstone 31 with a bottom is used, but a polygonal cylindrical end face dressing grindstone with a bottom may also be used.

[0047] The hollow pillar 32 is attached to the upper surface of the base 33 so as to stand upright, and constitutes a holding section that holds the end face dressing grindstone 31. The upper end of the hollow pillar 32 is closed, and a rectangular duct-like suction passage 32a is formed vertically inside. One end face of the upper part of the hollow pillar 32 constitutes a suction surface 32A that suction-holds the end face dressing grindstone 31, and a plurality of suction ports 32b (12 in the illustrated example) that communicate with the suction passage 32a are open on this suction surface 32A.

[0048] The disk-shaped base 33 has an outer diameter set to a size that allows it to cover from above the entire holding surface (upper surface) of the porous member 6A that is mounted on the upper part of the chuck table 6. A hollow column 32 is attached to the upper surface of the base 33 in an upright state, and the base 33 has a rectangular communication hole 33a that communicates with a suction path 32a formed inside the hollow column 32.

[0049] [End face modification method] Next, a method for repairing the end surface 12c of the flange 12 of the cutting unit 10 using the end surface repair jig 30 configured as above will be described with reference to FIGS.

[0050] When repairing the end surface 12c of the flange 12 of the cutting unit 10, the end surface repairing jig 30 is set on the chuck table 6 so that the base 33 covers the entire holding surface of the porous member 6A of the chuck table 6 from above, as shown in Fig. 6. Here, as shown in Fig. 6, a suction passage 6a is formed in the center of the chuck table 6 and the rotary shaft 6B that rotatably supports it, and a pipe 51 extending from the suction passage 6a is connected to a suction source 50 such as a vacuum pump or an ejector. An on-off valve V is provided in the pipe 51.

[0051] When the on-off valve V is opened and the porous member 6A of the chuck table 6 is evacuated by the suction source 50, a negative pressure is generated in the porous member 6A, and the base 33 of the end face dressing jig 30 is sucked and held by the holding surface of the porous member 6A due to this negative pressure, and the end face dressing jig 30 equipped with this base 33 is attached to the chuck table 6. At this time, it is desirable that the grinding surface 31a of the end face dressing grindstone 31 of the end face dressing jig 30 coincides with the center of rotation of the chuck table 6 so that the grinding surface 31a of the end face dressing grindstone 31 always contacts the end face 12c of the flange 12 perpendicularly, and that the chuck table 6 is in a rotatable state.

[0052] As described above, the base 33 of the end face repair jig 30 is sucked and held onto the holding surface of the porous member 6A of the chuck table 6 by the suction source 50, and at the same time, the end face repair grinding wheel 31, whose fitting groove 31b fits into the upper part of the hollow column 32 of the end face repair jig 30, is attracted by this negative pressure and held onto the upper part of the hollow column 32 because the negative pressure generated by the suction source 50 acts on the suction surface 32A of the hollow column 32 through the communicating hole 33a of the base 33, the suction path 32a of the hollow column 32, and the multiple suction ports 32b.

[0053] Furthermore, when repairing the end face 12c of the flange 12 of the cutting unit 10, as shown in Figures 6 and 7, the fixing nut 13 and hub blade 11 are removed from the cutting unit 10, leaving the flange 12 at the tip of the spindle 20, and with the grinding surface 31a of the end face repairing grindstone 31 facing the end face 12c of this flange 12, the end face 12c of the flange 12 is ground by the grinding surface 31a of the end face repairing grindstone 31 to repair it into a smooth surface without any irregularities.

[0054] That is, while the spindle 20 and flange 12 are rotated at a predetermined speed, the flange 12 is brought close to the end face dressing grindstone 31 by the Y-axis movement mechanism 90 shown in Fig. 1, and the grinding surface 31a of the end face dressing grindstone 31 is brought into contact with the end face 12c of the flange 12, and the end face 12c is ground by the end face dressing grindstone 31, thereby dressing the end face 12c of the flange 12 to a smooth surface without any irregularities. At this time, the cylindrical portion 12A of the flange 12 is inserted into the recess 31A of the end face dressing grindstone 31 in a non-contact state.

[0055] Incidentally, the load when the grinding surface 31a of the end face dressing grindstone 31 is brought into contact with the end face 12c of the flange 12 may be detected by a load sensor, and the grinding surface 31a of the end face dressing grindstone 31 may be brought into contact with the end face 12c of the flange 12 for a preset time with a predetermined set load to dress the end face 12c of the flange 12. The load sensor may be disposed on the end face dressing jig 30, the chuck table 6, or the spindle 20.

[0056] As described above, the end face repair method using the end face repair jig 30 according to this embodiment utilizes the negative pressure generated in the porous member 6A of the chuck table 6 by the existing suction source 50 to set the end face repair jig 30 on the chuck table 6. The grinding surface 31a of the end face repair grindstone 31 of the end face repair jig 30 is then positioned facing the end face 12c of the flange 12 of the cutting unit 10. While the flange 12 is rotated, the Y-axis movement mechanism 90 moves the flange 12 only in the Y-axis direction (index feed direction) to grind and repair the end face 12c of the flange 12 with the grinding surface 31a of the end face repair grindstone 31. This effectively repairs the end face 12c of the flange 12 in a short time. In this embodiment, the flange 12 is moved relative to the end face repair jig 30 to bring them closer together due to the configuration of the cutting device 1. However, if possible, the end face repair jig 30 may be moved closer to the flange 12.

[0057] [Another form of end face repair jig] <Alternative form 1> Next, an end face repairing jig 30' according to a first modified embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG.

[0058] The end face repair jig 30' shown in Figure 8, like the end face repair jig 30 shown in Figures 4 and 5, uses a method in which the end face repair grindstone 31 is sucked and held to the upper end of the hollow pillar 32', which serves as the holding part, by using negative pressure generated in the porous member 60A of the chuck table 6, and in Figure 8, the same elements as those shown in Figures 4 and 5 are given the same symbols.

[0059] 8 employs a configuration in which a suction path 32a' partially formed inside a hollow column 32' and a porous member 6A of a chuck table 6 communicate with each other via a pipe 34 bent into an inverted L shape and a circular communication port 33a' formed in the center of a base 33. Both ends of the pipe 34 are attached to the hollow column 32' and the base 33 by nipples 35 and 36, respectively.

[0060] The negative pressure generated in the porous member 6A of the chuck table 6 is transmitted to the suction surface 32A of the hollow column 32' via the communicating hole 33a' in the base 33 of the end face correction jig 30' and the suction path 32a' and suction port 32b of the hollow column 32', and the end face correction grinding wheel 31 is attracted by this negative pressure and held by the hollow column 32'.

[0061] Therefore, as shown in Figure 6, the end face correction jig 30', which is set by suction-holding the base 33 on the porous member 6A of the chuck table 6, also grinds and corrects the end face 12c of the flange 12 (see Figures 6 and 7) with the grinding surface 31a of the end face correction grindstone 31.

[0062] <Alternative form 2> Next, an end face correcting jig 30 ″ according to a second modified embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. 9 .

[0063] The end face conditioning jig 30" shown in Figure 9, like the end face conditioning jig 30 shown in Figures 4 and 5, employs a system in which the end face conditioning grindstone 31 is sucked and held to the upper end of the solid pillar 32" that serves as the holding portion by using negative pressure generated in the porous member 60A of the chuck table 6, and in Figure 9, the same elements as those shown in Figures 4 and 5 are given the same symbols.

[0064] That is, in the end face correction jig 30" shown in Figure 9, a ring-shaped suction groove 37a and a linear suction groove 37b that passes through the center of the suction groove 37a and communicates with the suction groove 37a are formed in the upper end 32A of a hollow column 32". Furthermore, a circular hole-shaped communication passage 32a" is horizontally formed through the upper end of the solid shaft 32", one end of which opens into the center of the suction groove 27b and the other end of which is connected to one end of a three-dimensionally bent pipe 38 by a nipple 39. The other end of this pipe 38 is connected by a nipple 39 to a circular hole-shaped communication hole 33a" formed in the center of the base 33.

[0065] The negative pressure generated in the porous member 6A of the chuck table 6 is transmitted to the suction grooves 37a, 37b formed in the suction surface 32A of the solid pillar 32" via the communicating hole 33a" of the base 33 of the end face conditioning jig 30", the pipe 38, and the suction path 32a" of the solid pillar 32", and the end face conditioning grinding wheel 31 is sucked and held by the solid pillar 32" due to the negative pressure generated in these suction grooves 37a, 37b.

[0066] Therefore, as shown in FIG. 6, the end face 12c (see FIGS. 6 and 7) of the flange 12 is ground and repaired by the grinding surface 31a of the end face repairing grindstone 31 also by the end face repairing jig 30″ set by suction-holding the base 33 on the porous member 6A of the chuck table 6.

[0067] <Alternative form 3> Next, an end face repairing jig 40 according to a third modified embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to FIGS.

[0068] The end face repair jig 40 of this embodiment is composed of an end face repair grindstone 41, a solid rectangular pillar 42 constituting the holding portion, and a disk-shaped base 43, similar to the end face repair jig 30 shown in Figures 4 and 5, but the end face repair grindstone 41 is not held by suction using negative pressure, but is fastened to the upper end of the solid pillar 42 by a bolt 44.

[0069] 10, a circular bolt insertion hole 41c is formed in the center of the end face of the end face dressing grindstone 41 opposite to the side where the recess 41A opens, and a screw hole 42a is formed in the upper part of a solid pillar 42 that constitutes the holding part. In the end face dressing grindstone 41, 41A is the recess, 41a is the grinding surface, and 41b is the fitting groove.

[0070] Therefore, as shown in Figure 11, by fitting the fitting groove 41b of the end surface conditioning grindstone 41 into the upper end of the solid pillar 42 and screwing the bolt 44 inserted into the bolt insertion hole 41c of the end surface conditioning grindstone 41 into the screw hole 42a of the solid pillar 42, the end surface conditioning grindstone 41 is fastened to the upper end of the solid pillar 42 by the bolt 44.

[0071] Therefore, the correction of the end face 12c of the flange 12 using the end face correction jig 40 of variant 3 is also carried out in the same manner as described above using the end face correction jig 30, and the same effects as described above are obtained, so further explanation of this will be omitted.

[0072] In the above embodiment, a hub blade is used as an example of a cutting blade, and an end face repair jig for repairing the end face of its flange and an end face repair method using the same are described. However, the present invention is similarly applicable to an end face repair jig and end face repair method used to repair the end face of a flange of a washer blade that does not have a base.

[0073] Furthermore, the cutting blade is not limited to one that cuts wafers, but may be one that cuts any workpiece other than wafers.

[0074] Furthermore, the present invention is not limited to the application of the above-described embodiments, and it goes without saying that various modifications are possible within the scope of the claims and the technical ideas described in the specification and drawings. [Explanation of symbols]

[0075] 1: cutting device, 2: base, 3: opening, 4: cassette support, 5: cassette, 6: chuck table, 6A: porous member, 7: clamp, 8: cover, 9: Telescopic cover, 10: Cutting unit, 11: Hub blade (cutting blade), 11A: base, 11B: cutting blade, 11a: mounting hole, 12: flange, 12A: cylindrical portion, 12B: Fixed flange, 12a: Fitting hole, 12b: Male thread, 12c: End surface, 13: fixing nut, 13a: female screw, 13b: engagement hole, 14: washer, 15: bolt, 20: spindle, 20a: tapered surface of spindle, 20b: screw hole, 21: Spindle housing, 30, 30', 30": End face correction jig, 31: End face correction grindstone, 31A: Recess, 31a: Grinding surface, 31b: Fitting groove, 32, 32': Hollow column (holding portion), 32A: Suction surface, 32a, 32a', 32a": Suction path, 32b: Suction port, 33: Base, 33a, 33a', 33a": communication holes, 34: pipe, 35, 36: nipples, 37a, 37b: suction groove, 38: pipe, 40: end surface correction jig, 39: nipple, 41: end face correction grindstone, 41A: recess, 41a: grinding surface, 41b: fitting groove, 41c: bolt insertion hole, 42: solid column (holding portion), 42a: screw hole, 43: base, 44: Bolt, 50: Suction source, 51: Piping, 71: Imaging unit, 75: Cleaning unit, 76: Spinner table, 77: Injection nozzle, 80: Z-axis movement mechanism, 81: Z-axis guide rail, 82: lifting plate, 83: Z-axis ball screw, 84: Z-axis pulse motor, 90: Y-axis moving means, 91: slider, 92: column, 93: Y-axis guide rail, 94: Y-axis ball screw, 95: Y-axis pulse motor, F: Ring frame, T: Protective tape, V: On-off valve, W: Wafer

Claims

1. An end face correction jig for correcting the end face of a flange having an insertion hole into which a spindle is inserted, a cylindrical portion into which a cutting blade is inserted, and a ring-shaped end face that supports one surface of the cutting blade inserted into the cylindrical portion, an end face dressing grindstone having a bottomed cylindrical or bottomed polygonal cylindrical shape, the end face dressing grindstone having a recess into which the cylindrical portion is inserted and a grinding surface that comes into contact with the end face when the cylindrical portion is inserted into the recess without contacting the grinding surface; a holding portion for holding the end face dressing grindstone such that the grinding surface of the end face dressing grindstone faces the end face of the flange; a base connected to the holding portion and suction-held on the holding surface in a state of covering the entire holding surface of the chuck table of the cutting device; a column connected to the base; An end face repair jig comprising:

2. The holding portion is a suction port disposed on a side surface of the pillar and opening to a suction surface for sucking a surface of the end face dressing grindstone opposite to the grinding surface; a communication hole penetrating the upper and lower surfaces of the base; a suction path connecting the communication hole and the suction port; 2. The end face repair jig according to claim 1, further comprising:

3. The holding portion is 2. The end face dressing jig according to claim 1, further comprising a fixing portion for screwing the end face dressing grindstone to a support surface arranged on a side surface of the pillar and supporting the surface of the end face dressing grindstone opposite the grinding surface.

4. 2. An end face repair method for repairing an end face of a flange attached to a spindle using the end face repair jig according to claim 1, comprising: a holding step of suction-holding the end face correction jig on a chuck table of a cutting device; an end face grinding step in which the spindle and the chuck table are moved relatively close to each other while rotating the spindle together with the flange, and the end face grinding stone is brought into contact with the end face of the flange to grind the end face; The end face repair method is characterized in that the end face of the flange is repaired through the following steps.

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