Front-opening substrate container based on the shared use of circular and square substrates.

Abstract

This container appropriately accommodates circular or square substrates, effectively restricting substrates of different shapes and preventing damage due to collisions. [Solution] The present invention proposes a front-opening substrate container based on the shared use of circular and square substrates for accommodating a plurality of circular or rectangular substrates. The substrate container comprises a housing having one top plate, one bottom plate, one back plate, and two side plates, wherein the top plate and the bottom plate are positioned opposite each other on the upper and lower sides of the back plate, and the two side plates are positioned opposite each other on the left and right sides of the back plate, with the top plate, the bottom plate, the back plate, and the two side plates together defining the contour of the internal space and the front opening; a door plate that airtightly closes the front opening to the back plate; and a support assembly having two side supports and one rear support, wherein the two side supports and the rear support are respectively installed on the two side plates and the back plate, thereby spacing them apart and supporting a plurality of substrates. The width of the back plate corresponds to the opening so that each substrate can be accommodated in the internal space.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention belongs to the technical field of semiconductor substrate conveying devices, and particularly relates to a front-opening substrate container structure based on common use for circular substrates and square substrates for accommodating a plurality of semiconductor substrates having circular or square outer contours.

Background Art

[0002] In order to maintain quality during the manufacturing of semiconductor elements, common semiconductor substrates (such as wafers, glass, etc.) are placed in substrate containers during storage or transportation. For example, a front-opening wafer storage pod (FOUP) for transporting wafers with a circular outer contour used in semiconductor processes, and a panel storage pod (Panel FOUP) for transporting square glass applied in fan-out panel level packaging, are used for transferring and supporting wafers and panels during semiconductor processes.

[0003] Substrates that can be conveyed by the semiconductor substrate container usually have a fixed size and shape. These containers accommodate a specific type, that is, wafers or panels of a single size and a single shape. However, with the evolution of semiconductor manufacturing processes, in processes of specific fields, in addition to typical circular substrates (e.g., wafers), square glass is also conveyed, for example, in fan-out panel level packaging. For a φ300 mm wafer substrate and 310 mm*310 mm or 300 mm*300 mm square glass, existing processes require separate preparation of FOUP for circular substrates and Panel FOUP for square glass.

[0004] This not only increases the cost of substrate containers required for processing circular wafers and square glass of various shapes, but also lacks manufacturing flexibility to meet market demand. Therefore, how to solve the above problems is what those skilled in the art and users expect, and is also the problem to be solved by the present invention.

Summary of the Invention

Problem to be Solved by the Invention

[0005] This invention proposes a front-opening substrate container that can accommodate multiple substrates and is compatible with both circular and square substrates. The aim is to appropriately house circular or square substrates within this container, effectively restrict substrates of different shapes, and prevent damage due to collisions between substrates. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] This invention proposes a front-opening substrate container based on the shared use of circular and square substrates. This increases the range of substrate specifications applicable to the substrate container, thereby improving the flexibility of substrate container applications in semiconductor manufacturing processes. Furthermore, it aims to reduce manufacturing material costs by decreasing the quantity of substrate containers that need to be prepared.

[0007] To achieve the above objective, the present invention proposes a front-opening substrate container based on the shared use of circular and square substrates for housing a plurality of circular or rectangular substrates. The substrate container is

[0008] A housing comprising one top plate, one bottom plate, one back plate, and two side plates, wherein the top plate and the bottom plate are positioned opposite each other on the upper and lower sides of the back plate, and the two side plates are positioned opposite each other on the left and right sides of the back plate, and the top plate, the bottom plate, the back plate, and the two side plates together define the contour of the internal space and the front opening;

[0009] A door panel that airtightly closes the front opening to the back panel;

[0010] The support assembly comprises two side supports and one rear support, the two side supports and the rear support being installed on two side plates and the back plate respectively, thereby spaced apart, and supporting multiple substrates.

[0011] The width of the back plate corresponds to the opening, so that each substrate can be accommodated in the internal space. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0012] [Figure 1] is a schematic diagram of the present invention

[0013] [Figure 2] is an exploded view of the present invention.

[0014] [Figure 3] is a schematic front view of the present invention.

[0015] [Figure 4] is a schematic diagram of the side support of the present invention, which is only used to explain the shape and relative relationship of the constituent components thereof.

[0016] [Figure 5] is a schematic diagram of the back support of the present invention, which is only used to explain the shape and relative relationship of the constituent components thereof.

[0017] [Figure 6] is an enlarged view of a partial side cross-section of the side support and the back support of the present invention.

[0018] [Figure 7] is a partially enlarged view of the side support of the present invention, which is only used to explain the configuration of the integral-piece-shaped horizontal straight stripe array.

[0019] [Figure 8] is a partially enlarged view of the back support of the present invention, which is only used to explain the configuration of the segmented-piece-shaped horizontal straight stripe array.

[0020] [Figure 9] is a partially enlarged view of an embodiment of the horizontal straight stripe array of the present invention.

[0021] [Figure 10] is a partial cross-sectional view taken along line 10-10 in the embodiment of Fig. 9 relating to the horizontal straight stripe array of the present invention.

[0022] [Figure 11] This is a localized enlarged view of another embodiment of the horizontal straight-line reinforcement arrangement of the present invention.

[0023] [Figure 12] This is a local cross-sectional view of line 12-12 in the embodiment of the horizontal straight reinforcement arrangement of the present invention shown in Figure 11.

[0024] [Figure 13] This is a localized enlarged view of yet another embodiment of the horizontal straight-line reinforcement arrangement of the present invention.

[0025] [Figure 14] This is a local cross-sectional view of line 14-14 in the embodiment of the horizontal linear reinforcement arrangement of the present invention shown in Figure 13.

[0026] [Figure 15] This is a top view showing a preferred embodiment of the present invention in which a rectangular substrate is housed.

[0027] [Figure 16] This is a top view showing a circular substrate housed in a preferred embodiment of the present invention. [Modes for carrying out the invention]

[0028] Refer to Figures 1, 2, and 3 for specific embodiments of the present invention. The front-opening substrate container based on the shared use of circular and square substrates according to the present invention is used to house a plurality of substrates 100, each of which may be any substrate used in semiconductor manufacturing. The embodiments of the substrates 100 described herein may include circular substrates 100a having a circular shape or square substrates 100b having a square shape. This substrate container is called a front-opening wafer storage pod (FOUP), and the substrate container comprises a housing 10, a door panel 20, and a support assembly 30.

[0029] The housing 10 has one top plate 11, one bottom plate 12, one back plate 13, and two side plates 14. The top plate 11 and the bottom plate 12 are positioned opposite each other on the upper and lower sides of the back plate 13, and the two side plates 14 are positioned opposite each other on the left and right sides of the back plate. The top plate 11, the bottom plate 12, the back plate 13, and the two side plates 14 together define the contours of the internal space 15 and the front opening 16. The internal space 15 and the front opening 16 can accommodate one of several circuit boards 100, with some additional design modifications. For example, as shown in Figure 3, the circuit board 100 is visible only at positions 1, 13, and 25 in the internal space 15 in Figure 3, and the circuit board 100 can be removed from or inserted into the internal space 15 through the front opening 16. The width of the back plate 13 corresponds to the front opening 16, so that each substrate 100 can be adequately accommodated in the internal space 15, and a clamping head 17 for mechanical clamping is optionally installed on the outer top surface of the top plate 11 of the housing 10. In some implementations, the housing 10 of the substrate container may be combined with the back plate 13, and the housing 10 may further have a rear opening corresponding to the front opening 16 (not shown in the figure), and the back plate 13 may optionally be attached to the housing 10 in the form of a lid to cover the rear opening.

[0030] The door panel 20 can airtightly close the front opening 16 to the back panel 13, and the door panel 20 includes one door body 21, one inner surface 22, and a latch mechanism 23 for fixing the door panel 20 to the front opening 16 of the housing 10. When the door panel 20 is in the closed position shown in Figure 1, the inner surface 22 of the door panel 20 is positioned to face the internal space 15, and a substrate holding member 25 is installed on the inner surface 22 of the door panel 20, and the substrate holding member 25 has a plurality of elastic pieces 28 that extend toward the substrate 100 and are housed in the internal space 15, corresponding to any of the substrates 100. The shape of the elastic piece 28 is adapted to the respective substrate 100, which is designed to be either a circular substrate 100a or a rectangular substrate 100b. Each elastic piece 28 has a retaining groove formed in its cross-section that contacts the substrate 100 (not shown in the figure), thereby imposing movement and restriction on the substrate holding member 25 to press the substrate 100 against it (see Figures 13 and 14), thereby separating each substrate 100 and firmly holding it in the internal space 15.

[0031] As shown in Figures 2, 4, and 5, the support assembly 30 has two side supports 31 and one rear support 35. The two side supports 31 and the rear support 35 are installed on one side of the two side plates 14 and the back plate 13 corresponding to the internal space 15 of the housing 10, respectively, thereby spacing them apart and supporting multiple substrates 100, and the support assembly 30 supports the vertically stacked substrates 100. As shown in Figure 3, at positions 1, 13, and 25, the substrates 100 are supported, and each substrate 100 is placed perpendicular to each other with spacing between them, roughly horizontal to the top plate 11 and bottom plate 12, and each substrate 100 can be removed roughly horizontally through the front opening 16 and inserted. Further details will be given next in combination with Figure 4-14 regarding the side supports 31 and the rear support 35.

[0032] In the example shown in Figure 4-6, the two side supports 31 and the back support 35 each have multiple horizontal linear reinforcement arrangements 41 that are perpendicularly spaced and facing each other on one side surface of the internal space 15, and each horizontal linear reinforcement arrangement 41 at the same position on the two side supports 31 and the back support 35 may be made into an integrated piece (side support 31 in Figure 4) or a segmented piece (back support in Figure 5), so that each horizontal linear reinforcement arrangement 41 at the same position on the two side supports 31 and the back support 35 can together support the substrate 100 (as shown in Figure 3) horizontally. The substrate 100 is a general term for a circular substrate 100a or a rectangular substrate 100b. As shown in Figure 6, each of the horizontal linear reinforcement rows 41 of the two side supports 31 and the back support 35 has a top surface 411 and a bottom surface 412, and a gap 42 contour is defined between the bottom surface 412 of any horizontal linear reinforcement row 41 and the top surface 411 of the horizontal linear reinforcement row 41 adjacent to it below, with a distance D in the gap 42, which allows for the removal or insertion of the respective substrate 100 into the lower horizontal linear reinforcement row 41. In addition, wing portions 43 may protrude horizontally from the free end edges of each of the horizontal linear reinforcement rows 41 of the two side supports 31 and the back support 35, and each wing portion 43 may be formed in the middle of each horizontal linear reinforcement row 41, which helps to increase the area supporting the circular substrate 100a [see Figure 16].

[0033] Next, Figure 7-14 describes the structure of each horizontal linear reinforcement arrangement 41 by drawing an integrated piece-shaped horizontal linear reinforcement arrangement 41, and further examples of various horizontal linear reinforcement arrangements 41 may be given. As shown in Figure 7-8, a stepped recess 44 corresponding to a circular substrate 100a may be formed in the middle of each horizontal linear reinforcement arrangement 41, thereby holding each circular substrate 100a between the stepped recesses 44 of the horizontal linear reinforcement arrangement 41 at the same position on the two side supports 31 and the back support 35.

[0034] For each horizontal linear reinforcement arrangement 41, there are different embodiments, for example, as shown in Figure 9-10, where multiple support cushions 45 are provided on the top surface of each horizontal linear reinforcement arrangement 41 and / or the grade recess 44. Each support cushion 45 is a projection column or projection (see Figure 11-12) with an arc-shaped projection at its top end, and the height of the support cushion 45 located within the step recess 44 does not exceed the top surface of the horizontal linear reinforcement arrangement 41, thereby ensuring that the circular substrate 100a supported by the support cushion 45 within the range of the grade recess 44 is still confined between the grade recess 44 of the horizontal linear reinforcement arrangement 41 at the same position on the two side supports 31 and the back support 35. In addition, as shown in Figure 11-12, multiple positioning cushions 46 are vertically installed on the top surface of the wing portion 43 at both ends and in the middle of each horizontal linear reinforcement arrangement 41, thereby restricting the position of each substrate 100 and reducing the contact area between the two side supports 31 and the back support 35 and the outer edge of each substrate 100. Each positioning cushion 46 has a downward-converging guide edge 47 at its top, thereby correcting the stacking position of each substrate 100.

[0035] Furthermore, as shown in Figures 13-14, the diameter W1 of each circular substrate 100a and the width W2 of each rectangular substrate 100b in the substrate 100 may differ in size. For example, the width W1 of the circular substrate 100a is φ300 mm, and the width W2 of the corresponding common rectangular substrate 100b is 310 mm × 310 mm. According to the description in Figures 13-14, the width W2 between the edges of the two side supports 31 is 310 mm, and when combined with the back support 35, they both accommodate rectangular substrates 100b of relative width W2 [see Figure 15]. Small-diameter stepped recesses 48 with a relative spacing width W1 and a diameter of φ300 mm are formed in the middle and / or outer edges of the wing portions 43 of the horizontal linear reinforcement arrangements 41 of the two side supports 31 and the back support 35 corresponding to the circular substrate 100a, thereby allowing the horizontal linear reinforcement arrangements 41 at the same position on the two side supports 31 and the back support 35 to accommodate a circular substrate 100a of the relative width W1 by utilizing the small-diameter stepped recesses 48 [as shown in Figure 16].

[0036] Further examples of the back support 35 may be given, as shown in Figure 5, the back support 35 has one gas chamber 36 inside, and at least one gas introduction mechanism 37 communicating with the gas chamber 36 and at least one gas valve 38 connected to the bottom plate 12 of the substrate container housing 10 are arranged at the bottom end of the back support 35, thereby introducing clean gas into the gas chamber 37 of the back support 35. When the substrate 100 is housed in the back support 35 corresponding to each horizontal linear groove arrangement 41, a plurality of gas blowing gaps 39 are formed corresponding to the upper surface of the substrate 100, and each gas blowing gap 39 supplies clean gas flowing onto the surface of the substrate 100, reducing fine particles adhering to the surface of the substrate 100.

[0037] The front-opening substrate container according to the present invention, which is based on the shared use of circular and square substrates, has a support assembly 30 having two side supports 31 and one rear support 35, both of which are installed on two side plates 14 and a back plate 13 of the housing 10, respectively, and the width of the back plate corresponds to one front opening 16 of the housing 10, and the two side supports 31 and the rear support 35 have multiple horizontal linear rib arrangements 41 at the same position, and the multiple horizontal linear rib arrangements 41 are arranged at vertical intervals to support multiple substrates 100 in the internal space 15 of the housing 10. In addition, since each substrate 100 can be a circular substrate 100a and a square substrate 100b, the flexibility of the application of the substrate container in the semiconductor manufacturing process is improved and the number of substrate containers to be prepared is reduced.

Claims

1. A front-opening substrate container based on the shared use of circular and square substrates for housing multiple circular or rectangular substrates, A housing comprising one top plate, one bottom plate, one back plate, and two side plates, wherein the top plate and the bottom plate are positioned opposite each other on the upper and lower sides of the back plate, and the two side plates are positioned opposite each other on the left and right sides of the back plate, and the top plate, the bottom plate, the back plate, and the two side plates together define the contour of the internal space and the front opening; A door panel that airtightly closes the front opening to the back panel; The support assembly comprises two side supports and one rear support, the two side supports and the rear support being installed on two side plates and the back plate respectively, thereby spaced apart, and supporting multiple substrates. The width of the back plate corresponds to the opening, so that each substrate can be housed in the internal space. A front-opening substrate container characterized by the shared use of circular and square substrates.

2. The two side supports and the back support each have a plurality of horizontal linear reinforcement arrangements that are perpendicularly spaced and facing each other with respect to one side surface of the internal space, so that the horizontal linear reinforcement arrangements at the same position on the two side supports and the back support both horizontally support one of the plurality of substrates. A front-opening substrate container based on the shared use of a circular substrate and a square substrate as described in feature 1.

3. A stepped recess corresponding to a circular substrate is formed in the middle of each of the horizontal linear reinforcement arrangements, thereby holding each circular substrate between the class recesses of the horizontal linear reinforcement arrangements at the same position on the two side supports and the back support, and both the class recesses of the horizontal linear reinforcement arrangements at the same position on the two side supports and the back support horizontally support each circular substrate, and the diameter of each circular substrate is equal to the diameter of each rectangular substrate. A front-opening substrate container based on the shared use of a circular substrate and a square substrate as described in feature 2.

4. The two side supports and the back support each have a plurality of horizontal linear reinforcement arrangements that are perpendicularly spaced and facing each other on one side surface of the internal space, thereby allowing the horizontal linear reinforcement arrangements at the same position on the two side supports and the back support to horizontally support each rectangular substrate, and forming small-diameter stepped recesses corresponding to each circular substrate in the intermediate portions of the horizontal linear reinforcement arrangements on the two side supports and the back support, the diameter of each circular substrate being smaller than the width of each rectangular substrate, thereby allowing the small-diameter stepped recesses of the horizontal linear reinforcement arrangements at the same position on the two side supports and the back support to horizontally support each circular substrate. A front-opening substrate container based on the shared use of a circular substrate and a square substrate as described in feature 1.

5. A front-opening substrate container based on the shared use of a circular substrate and a square substrate according to claim 2, 3, or 4, characterized in that each of the aforementioned horizontal linear groove arrangements at the same position is made into an integrated piece or a segmented piece.

6. A front-opening substrate container based on the shared use of a circular substrate and a square substrate, characterized in that a plurality of support cushions are provided on the top surface of each of the aforementioned horizontal linear reinforcement arrangements.

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