SUBSTRATE PROCESSING APPARATUS AND SUBSTRATE PROCESSING METHOD

Abstract

To provide a device capable of performing processing using a dummy substrate while reducing an influence on a transport of a product substrate and a method.SOLUTION: A substrate processing device 1 contains: an indexer block 2; and a processing block 3 adjacent to a lateral direction of the indexer block. The processing block contains a plurality of processing block layers BL and BU laminated in a vertical direction Z. The indexer block contains: a carrier holding part 25 for holding a carrier C housing a substrate W; and an indexer robot 26. Each processing block layer contains: a plurality of processing units 11L-13U and 21L-23U; substrate mounting parts 6L and 6U temporally holding the substrate which is received from and transported to the indexer robot; dummy substrate housing parts 7L and 7U housing a dummy substrate DW; and main conveying robots 8L and 8U conveying the substrate W for a production and the dummy substrate DW. As necessary, the dummy substrate DW is transported between the dummy substrate housing parts 7L and 7U.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to an apparatus and method for processing substrates. Substrates to be processed include, for example, semiconductor wafers, substrates for FPDs (Flat Panel Displays) such as liquid crystal displays and organic EL (Electroluminescence) displays, substrates for optical disks, substrates for magnetic disks, substrates for magneto-optical disks, substrates for photomasks, ceramic substrates, substrates for solar cells, etc. [Background technology]

[0002] In the manufacturing process of semiconductor devices, a substrate processing apparatus is used to process substrates such as semiconductor wafers. An example of such a substrate processing apparatus is disclosed in Patent Document 1. This substrate processing apparatus includes a carrier holding section that holds a carrier that accommodates a substrate, a plurality of processing units that process the substrate, a transport unit that transports the substrate between the carrier and the processing units, and a control unit. When the processing unit is not in use for a predetermined period of time, the control unit requests the host device to load a dummy carrier that holds a dummy substrate. When the dummy carrier is loaded into the carrier holding section, the transport unit transports the dummy substrate from the dummy carrier to the processing unit. The processing unit is cleaned using the dummy substrate.

[0003] The transport unit includes an indexer robot and a main transport robot, with a transfer unit disposed therebetween. The indexer robot transfers the substrate between the carrier and the transfer unit. The main transport robot transfers the substrate between the transfer unit and the processing unit. When the dummy carrier is placed on the carrier holding section, the indexer robot removes the dummy substrate from the dummy carrier and transports it to the transfer unit. The dummy substrate is transported from the transfer unit to the processing unit by the main transport robot. When the unit cleaning process using the dummy substrate is completed, the main transport robot removes the dummy substrate from the processing unit and transports it to the transfer unit. The dummy substrate is transported from the transfer unit to the dummy carrier by the indexer robot. When all the dummy substrates are accommodated in the dummy carrier, the dummy carrier is removed from the carrier holding section. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0004] [Patent Document 1] JP 2017-41506 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] In this way, the dummy substrate is introduced from outside the substrate processing apparatus, transported to the processing unit through the same path as the product substrate, and then unloaded from the processing unit and accommodated in the dummy carrier. Therefore, both the indexer robot and the main transport robot are used to transport the dummy substrate, and the dummy substrate is transported through the transfer unit. This causes interference with the transport of the product substrate, reducing the efficiency of transporting the product substrate, and as a result, preventing improvement in productivity.

[0006] In particular, in a substrate processing apparatus configured to process a large number of product substrates in parallel by increasing the number of processing units, the transport load on the indexer robot and main transport robot is large, and reducing this load is the key to improving productivity. In addition, the dummy carrier is carried into the carrier holding section, the dummy substrate is carried from there to the processing unit, and the dummy carrier occupies the carrier holding section until the dummy substrate is accommodated in the carrier after the processing in the processing unit is completed. Therefore, since the dummy carrier continues to occupy the carrier holding section, there is a risk that a waiting time will occur before the product substrate can be carried in. Therefore, from this viewpoint as well, the improvement of productivity is hindered.

[0007] Therefore, an embodiment of the present invention provides a substrate processing apparatus and a substrate processing method that are capable of performing processing using a dummy substrate in a processing unit while reducing the effect on the transport of product substrates. [Means for solving the problem]

[0008] One embodiment of the present invention includes a carrier holding section that holds a carrier that accommodates a substrate or a dummy substrate, a first processing unit group having a plurality of first processing units that process the substrate and perform a process using the dummy substrate, a second processing unit group having a plurality of second processing units that process the substrate and perform a process using the dummy substrate, a first dummy substrate accommodating section that accommodates the dummy substrate, a second dummy substrate accommodating section that accommodates the dummy substrate, a substrate placement section on which the substrate is placed, a first transport unit configured to be accessible to the plurality of first processing units, the substrate placement section, and the first dummy substrate accommodating section, and transporting a substrate between the plurality of first processing units and the substrate placement section and transporting a dummy substrate between the plurality of first processing units and the first dummy substrate accommodating section, The present invention provides a substrate processing apparatus including: a second transport unit configured to be accessible to a second processing unit, the substrate mounting portion, and the second dummy substrate accommodating portion, transporting a substrate between the plurality of second processing units and the substrate mounting portion, and transporting a dummy substrate between the plurality of second processing units and the second dummy substrate accommodating portion; a third transport unit configured to be accessible to a carrier held by the carrier holding portion and the substrate mounting portion, transporting a substrate between the carrier held by the carrier holding portion and the substrate mounting portion; and a controller for controlling the first transport unit, the second transport unit, and the third transport unit, the controller executing dummy substrate transfer control to transfer a dummy substrate between the first dummy substrate accommodating portion and the second dummy substrate accommodating portion.

[0009] According to this configuration, since a dummy substrate accommodation section is provided within the substrate processing apparatus, when it becomes necessary to use a dummy substrate in the processing unit, the dummy substrate can be transported between the dummy substrate accommodation section and the processing unit without the involvement of the third transport unit. Therefore, the transport load of the third transport unit can be reduced, and processing using dummy substrates can be performed while reducing the impact on the transport of product substrates. In particular, the transport load of the third transport unit, which is involved in the transport of all substrates between the first and second processing unit groups, each having a plurality of processing units, and the carrier held by the carrier holding unit, is very large. Therefore, by reducing the transport load of the third transport unit, the transport efficiency of the product substrates is improved, and accordingly, the productivity can be improved. The first and second transport units share the transport of substrates between the first and second processing unit groups and the substrate placement unit, and therefore the transport load is smaller than that of the third transport unit. Therefore, the first and second transport units taking charge of the transport of dummy substrates is not a major problem from the viewpoint of production efficiency.

[0010] In addition, since the first and second transport units can access the first and second dummy substrate accommodation units, respectively, the transport of the dummy substrate between the dummy substrate accommodation units and the processing units can be performed without passing through the substrate placement unit. This reduces interference between the transport of the dummy substrate and the transport of the product substrate, improving the efficiency of transporting the product substrate and, accordingly, improving productivity.

[0011] Furthermore, in this embodiment, the first transport unit transports the dummy substrate between the first dummy substrate accommodation unit and the first processing unit group, and the second transport unit transports the dummy substrate between the second dummy substrate accommodation unit and the second processing unit group. This distributes the transport load of the dummy substrate, suppressing interference between the transport of the product substrate and the transport of the dummy substrate, improving the efficiency of substrate transport. This also improves productivity.

[0012] Furthermore, unlike the case of Patent Document 1, the carrier holding section is not occupied for a long time by the dummy carrier accommodating the dummy substrate. This can reduce waiting time for carrying in the carrier accommodating the product substrate, which can contribute to improving productivity. Moreover, in this embodiment, the dummy substrate can be transferred between the first dummy substrate accommodating section and the second dummy substrate accommodating section. Therefore, the dummy substrate can be shared between the first processing unit group and the second processing unit group, and the dummy substrates accommodated in the first and second substrate accommodating sections can be effectively utilized. This reduces the number of times that a dummy substrate that has reached its usage limit is replaced with a new dummy substrate. This reduces the number of times and the time that the carrier holding section is occupied by the dummy carrier that accommodates the dummy substrate. This contributes to improving productivity.

[0013] In addition, the processing unit can perform processing using the dummy substrate already introduced into the substrate processing apparatus without waiting for the supply of the dummy substrate from outside the substrate processing apparatus, which allows the processing using the dummy substrate to be performed without delay, thereby also improving productivity. In one embodiment of the present invention, the first transport unit is configured to be unable to access either the second processing unit or the second dummy substrate accommodation unit. Also, in one embodiment of the present invention, the second transport unit is configured to be unable to access either the first processing unit or the first dummy substrate accommodation unit.

[0014] In one embodiment of the present invention, the third transport unit transports a dummy substrate between a carrier held by a carrier holding unit and the substrate mounting unit. Moreover, the first transport unit transports a dummy substrate between the plurality of first processing units, the substrate mounting unit, and the first dummy substrate accommodating unit. Moreover, the second transport unit transports a dummy substrate between the plurality of second processing units, the substrate mounting unit, and the second dummy substrate accommodating unit. This makes it possible to introduce an unused dummy substrate into the first dummy substrate accommodating unit and the second dummy substrate accommodating unit, and to eject a used dummy substrate from the first dummy substrate accommodating unit and the second dummy substrate accommodating unit to the carrier, via the substrate mounting unit.

[0015] In one embodiment of the present invention, the controller executes the dummy substrate transfer control when a predetermined dummy substrate transfer condition is satisfied. With this configuration, by setting appropriate dummy substrate transfer conditions, the dummy substrate can be appropriately transferred between the first and second dummy substrate accommodation parts, thereby improving the utilization efficiency of the dummy substrate. In one embodiment of the present invention, the controller includes a memory unit that stores data including usage history information of the dummy substrate accommodated in the first dummy substrate accommodating section and usage history information of the dummy substrate accommodated in the second dummy substrate accommodating section, and a judgment unit that judges whether the dummy substrate transfer conditions are met based on the data stored in the memory unit.

[0016] With this configuration, whether the dummy substrate transfer condition is met is determined based on the usage history of the dummy substrate, so that it is possible to appropriately determine whether or not the dummy substrate needs to be transferred, and accordingly, the dummy substrate can be appropriately transferred. In one embodiment of the present invention, in the dummy substrate transfer control, the controller controls the first transport unit and the second transport unit so that a dummy substrate is transported between the first dummy substrate accommodating portion and the second dummy substrate accommodating portion via the substrate mounting portion.

[0017] In this configuration, the transfer of the dummy substrate is performed via the substrate placement section. Since the transfer of the dummy substrate is not required frequently, there is little benefit in configuring the first transport unit to be able to access the second dummy substrate accommodation section, or in configuring the second transport unit to be able to access the first dummy substrate accommodation section. Instead, reducing the number of access destinations for the first and second transport units can increase the efficiency of transporting product substrates and contribute to improving productivity.

[0018] In one embodiment of the present invention, the substrate placement portion includes a first substrate placement portion accessible by the first transport unit and the third transport unit, and a second substrate placement portion accessible by the second transport unit and the third transport unit. In addition, the controller controls the first transport unit, the second transport unit, and the third transport unit in the dummy substrate transfer control such that the first transport unit transports a dummy substrate between the first dummy substrate accommodation portion and the first substrate placement portion, the second transport unit transports a dummy substrate between the second dummy substrate accommodation portion and the second substrate placement portion, and the third transport unit transports a dummy substrate between the first substrate placement portion and the second substrate placement portion.

[0019] In this configuration, first and second substrate placement parts corresponding to the first and second transport units, respectively, are provided. As a result, the first and second substrate placement parts can be arranged to be easily accessible by the first and second transport units. As a result, the efficiency of transporting substrates for products can be improved, and productivity can be improved. Although the third transport unit transports the dummy substrate between the first substrate placement part and the second substrate placement part in order to transport the dummy substrate, the need to transport the dummy substrate does not arise frequently, so there is little decrease in productivity due to the third transport unit being involved in the transport of the dummy substrate.

[0020] In one embodiment of the present invention, the third transport unit is accessible to the first dummy substrate accommodating portion and the second dummy substrate accommodating portion, and the controller controls the third transport unit in the dummy substrate transfer control to transport a dummy substrate between the first dummy substrate accommodating portion and the second dummy substrate accommodating portion without passing through the substrate placement portion.

[0021] In this configuration, since the third transport unit can access the first dummy substrate accommodation portion and the second dummy substrate accommodation portion, the dummy substrate can be directly transported between them. Since the transport of the dummy substrate is not required frequently, the involvement of the third transport unit in the transport of the dummy substrate is not likely to have a significant impact on productivity. In one embodiment of the present invention, the substrate processing apparatus includes a first processing block layer and a second processing block layer located above the first processing block layer, the first processing unit group being arranged on the first processing block layer, and the second processing unit group being arranged on the second processing block layer.

[0022] In one embodiment of the present invention, the substrate processing apparatus includes a first processing block and a second processing block located on a side of the first processing block, the first processing unit group is arranged in the first processing block, and the second processing unit group is arranged in the second processing block. In one embodiment of the present invention, the first dummy substrate accommodating portion and the second dummy substrate accommodating portion overlap with the substrate placement portion in a plan view.

[0023] According to this configuration, the dummy substrate accommodating section can be arranged to overlap the substrate mounting section in a plan view by utilizing the space above or below the substrate mounting section, thereby realizing an arrangement of the dummy substrate accommodating section that does not impede the transport of product substrates, and enabling the arrangement of the dummy substrate accommodating section to effectively utilize the space within the substrate processing apparatus. The arrangement in which the dummy substrate accommodating portion overlaps the substrate mounting portion in a planar view may specifically be an arrangement in which part or all of the dummy substrate accommodated in the dummy substrate accommodating portion overlaps with the substrate held on the substrate mounting portion.

[0024] In one embodiment of the present invention, the first dummy substrate accommodating portion and the second dummy substrate accommodating portion are arranged above and below the substrate placement portion. One embodiment of the present invention includes a process for transporting a substrate by a first transport unit between a substrate mounting portion and a plurality of first processing units belonging to a first processing unit group, a process for processing the substrate transported by the first transport unit in the first processing unit, a process for transporting a dummy substrate by the first transport unit between the plurality of first processing units and a first dummy substrate accommodation portion, a process for performing dummy processing in the first processing unit using the dummy substrate transported by the first transport unit, and a process for transporting a substrate by a second transport unit between a plurality of second processing units belonging to a second processing unit group and the substrate mounting portion. a step of transporting a dummy substrate transported by the second transport unit between the plurality of second processing units and a second dummy substrate accommodating section by the second transport unit; a step of performing dummy processing in the second processing unit using the dummy substrate transported by the second transport unit; a step of transporting a substrate by a third transport unit between a carrier held by a carrier holding section and the substrate mounting section; and a dummy substrate transporting step of transporting a dummy substrate between the first dummy substrate accommodating section and the second dummy substrate accommodating section.

[0025] A substrate processing method according to an embodiment of the present invention further includes the steps of transporting a dummy substrate between the carrier held by the carrier holding part and the substrate mounting part by the third transport unit, transporting a dummy substrate between the substrate mounting part and the first dummy substrate accommodating part by the first transport unit, and transporting a dummy substrate between the substrate mounting part and the second dummy substrate accommodating part by the second transport unit. This makes it possible to introduce an unused dummy substrate into the first dummy substrate accommodating part and the second dummy substrate accommodating part, and to discharge a used dummy substrate from the first dummy substrate accommodating part and the second dummy substrate accommodating part to the carrier, via the substrate mounting part.

[0026] In one embodiment of the present invention, in the dummy substrate transferring step, a dummy substrate is transferred between the first dummy substrate accommodating part and the second dummy substrate accommodating part via the substrate placement part. In one embodiment of the present invention, the substrate placement portion includes a first substrate placement portion accessible by the first transport unit and the third transport unit, and a second substrate placement portion accessible by the second transport unit and the third transport unit. The dummy substrate transfer step includes a step of the first transport unit transporting a dummy substrate between the first dummy substrate accommodation portion and the first substrate placement portion, a step of the second transport unit transporting a dummy substrate between the second dummy substrate accommodation portion and the second substrate placement portion, and a step of the third transport unit transporting a dummy substrate between the first substrate placement portion and the second substrate placement portion.

[0027] In one embodiment of the present invention, the third transport unit is capable of accessing the first dummy substrate accommodating section and the second dummy substrate accommodating section, and in the dummy substrate transfer process, the third transport unit transports the dummy substrate between the first dummy substrate accommodating section and the second dummy substrate accommodating section without passing through the substrate mounting section. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0028] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a schematic plan view showing the internal configuration of a substrate processing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Diagram 2] FIG. 2 is a schematic vertical sectional view taken along line II-II in FIG. [Diagram 3] FIG. 3 is a schematic cross-sectional view taken along line III-III in FIG. [Figure 4] FIG. 4 is a schematic elevational view showing the internal configuration of the processing block as viewed from the direction IV in FIG. [Diagram 5] FIG. 5 is a diagram for explaining a configuration example of the substrate placement unit. [Figure 6] FIG. 6 is a diagram for explaining a configuration example of a dummy substrate receiving section. [Figure 7]FIG. 7 is a schematic cross-sectional view for explaining a configuration example of the processing unit. [Figure 8] FIG. 8 is a block diagram for explaining a configuration relating to control of the substrate processing apparatus. [Figure 9] FIG. 9 is a flowchart for explaining the operation of the controller related to the dummy process. [Figure 10A] FIG. 10A is a flowchart for explaining an example of an operation relating to the loading of an unused dummy substrate into a dummy substrate accommodation section and the unloading of a used dummy substrate. [Figure 10B] FIG. 10B is a flowchart for explaining an example of an operation relating to the loading of an unused dummy substrate into the dummy substrate accommodation section and the unloading of a used dummy substrate. [Figure 11] FIG. 11 is a schematic vertical sectional view showing an internal configuration of a substrate processing apparatus according to another embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 12] FIG. 12 is a schematic vertical sectional view showing an internal configuration of a substrate processing apparatus according to still another embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 13] FIG. 13 is a schematic plan view showing an internal configuration of a substrate processing apparatus according to another embodiment of the present invention. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0029] Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. Fig. 1 is a schematic plan view showing an internal configuration of a substrate processing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. Fig. 2 is a schematic vertical sectional view taken along line II-II in Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is a schematic horizontal sectional view taken along line III-III in Fig. 1. Fig. 4 is a schematic elevational view showing a part of the internal configuration as viewed from direction IV in Fig. 1.

[0030] The substrate processing apparatus 1 includes an indexer block 2 and a processing block 3 adjacent to the indexer block 2 in the lateral direction (first horizontal direction X). The indexer block 2 includes a plurality of (four in this embodiment) carrier holding parts 25 (load ports) and an indexer robot 26. In the following, for convenience, the side of the carrier holding parts 25 with respect to the first horizontal direction X may be defined as the front, and the opposite side may be defined as the rear.

[0031] The carrier holding parts 25 are arranged along a second horizontal direction Y perpendicular to the first horizontal direction X. Each carrier holding part 25 is configured to receive and hold a carrier C automatically transported by a carrier transport mechanism 300 provided in a factory. Each carrier holding part 25 is configured to hold one carrier C. The carrier C is a substrate container that contains a substrate W (product substrate) to be processed. An example of the carrier C is a front opening unified pod (FOUP). The carrier C is configured to hold a plurality of substrates W (e.g., 25 substrates) in a stacked state. More specifically, when the carrier C is held by the carrier holding part 25, the carrier C is configured to hold a plurality of substrates W in a stacked state along the vertical direction Z in a horizontal position. The carrier holding part 25 is an example of a container holding part that holds the carrier C, which is a substrate container. The substrate W is, for example, a semiconductor wafer.

[0032] The indexer robot 26 is an example of a third transport unit. The indexer robot 26 is configured to access the carriers C held by the multiple carrier holders 25, load / unload the substrate W, and transport the substrate W between the carrier holders 25 and the processing block 3. In this embodiment, the indexer robot 26 is a multi-joint arm robot equipped with a multi-joint arm 27. Specifically, the indexer robot 26 includes a multi-joint arm 27 to which multiple arms 28 are connected, one or more hands 29 connected to the tip of the multi-joint arm 27, and a base unit 30 that supports the multi-joint arm 27 and moves up and down. The multiple arms 28 and hands 29 constituting the multi-joint arm 27 can swing around a vertical swing axis set at each base end, and although not shown, each arm 28 and hand 29 is provided with an individual actuator (typically an electric motor) for swinging the arm 28 and hand 29.

[0033] The processing block 3 includes a plurality of processing block layers BL, BU stacked in the vertical direction Z. In this embodiment, the processing block 3 includes a first (lower) processing block layer (hereinafter referred to as the "first processing block layer BL") and a second (upper) processing block layer (hereinafter referred to as the "second processing block layer BU") stacked thereon. Hereinafter, when distinguishing between the components of the first processing block layer BL and the second processing block layer BU, the components of the first processing block layer BL are designated by reference signs having the letter "L" at the end, and the components of the second processing block layer BU are designated by reference signs having the letter "U" at the end. The same applies to the reference signs in the accompanying drawings.

[0034] The first processing block layer BL and the second processing block layer BU have substantially the same internal configuration in plan view. Therefore, it should be noted that the configuration (arrangement in plan view) of the first processing block layer BL is represented by replacing the letter "U" at the end of the reference numerals in FIG. 1 with the letter "L." The first processing block layer BL includes a plurality of (12 in this embodiment) processing units 11L-13L, 21L-23L, 31L-33L, 41L-43L (hereinafter, the processing units of the first processing block layer BL are collectively referred to as "processing units 11L-43L"), which constitute a first processing unit group. The first processing block layer BL further includes a substrate placement unit 6L, a dummy substrate accommodation unit 7L, and a main transport robot 8L. The processing units 11L-43L process the substrates W. In this embodiment, each of the processing units 11L-43L is a single-wafer processing unit that processes the substrates W one by one. The substrate placement unit 6L is a unit for temporarily holding the substrates W transferred between the indexer robot 26 and the first processing block layer BL. The dummy substrate accommodation unit 7L is a unit for holding a dummy substrate DW that can be used in the processing units 11L-43L inside the substrate processing apparatus 1, and provides a waiting area for the dummy substrate DW. The main transport robot 8L is configured to be able to access the substrate placement unit 6L, the processing units 11L-43L, and the dummy substrate accommodation unit 7L. The main transport robot 8L is an example of a first transport unit that transports a substrate W between the substrate placement unit 6L and the processing units 11L-43L, and transports a dummy substrate DW between the dummy substrate accommodation unit 7L and the processing units 11L-43L.

[0035] The dummy substrate DW is a substrate having the same shape (e.g., circular) and size as the substrate W. The dummy substrate DW is not used in the manufacture of an actual product, unlike the product substrate W supplied from the carrier C. The dummy substrate DW is introduced into the processing units 11L-43L for use in performing pre-processing (preparation processing) for preparing the environment in the processing units 11L-43L, unit cleaning processing for cleaning the inside of the processing units 11L-43L, and the like. Such processing using the dummy substrate DW is hereinafter referred to as "dummy processing." The above-mentioned pre-processing and unit cleaning processing are maintenance processing for maintaining the processing units 11L-43L, and the dummy processing includes such maintenance processing.

[0036] The processing units 11L-43L are arranged on both sides of the transport space 52L, which provides a transport path 51L along which the substrate W is transported by the main transport robot 8L, and face the transport space 52L. In a plan view, the transport space 52L has a certain width in the second horizontal direction Y and extends linearly in a direction away from the indexer block 2 along the first horizontal direction X. The transport space 52L has a height in the vertical direction Z that is approximately equal to the height of the first processing block layer BL. In a plan view, on one side of the transport space 52L, a first liquid supply unit 91, a first processing unit stack S1L, a first exhaust unit 101, a second liquid supply unit 92, a second processing unit stack S2L, and a second exhaust unit 102 are arranged along the transport path 51L in this order from the side closest to the indexer block 2. On the other side of the transfer space 52L, a third exhaust section 103, a third processing unit stack S3L, a third liquid supply section 93, a fourth exhaust section 104, a fourth processing unit stack S4L, and a fourth liquid supply section 94 are arranged along the transfer path 51L in this order from the side closest to the indexer block 2. These are arranged so as to define the transfer space 52L having a substantially rectangular parallelepiped shape.

[0037] The first to fourth processing unit stacks S1L-S4L each include multiple stages (three stages in this embodiment) of processing units 11L-13L, 21L-23L, 31L-33L, 41L-43L stacked in the vertical direction Z. The third processing unit stack S3L faces the first processing unit stack S1L across the transfer space 52L. The fourth processing unit stack S4L faces the second processing unit stack S2L across the transfer space 52L. Therefore, the multiple processing units 31L-33L constituting the third processing unit stack S3L face the multiple stages of processing units 11L-13L constituting the first processing unit stack S1L across the transfer space 52L. Similarly, the multiple stages of processing units 41L-43L constituting the fourth processing unit stack S4L face the multiple stages of processing units 21L-23L constituting the second processing unit stack S2L across the transfer space 52L. In this embodiment, the first processing block layer BL includes twelve processing units 11L-13L, 21L-23L, 31L-33L, and 41L-43L, which are arranged in groups of three in four processing unit stacks S1L-S4L.

[0038] The transfer space 52L is partitioned from above by a middle partition 16 arranged at a position aligned with the upper surfaces of the uppermost processing units 13L, 23L, 33L, and 43L of each processing unit stack S1L-S4L, and is partitioned from below by a lower partition 15 arranged at a position aligned with the lower surfaces of the lowermost processing units 11L, 21, 31L, and 41L. All processing units 11L-43L have a substrate loading / unloading opening 37 that opens at a position facing the transfer space 52L. The main transfer robot 8L transports the substrate W and the dummy substrate DW through the transfer space 52L, and loads and unloads the substrate W and the dummy substrate DW into and from each processing unit 11L-43L via the substrate loading / unloading opening 37.

[0039] The substrate placement part 6L is disposed between the indexer robot 26 and the main transport robot 8L. More specifically, the substrate placement part 6L is disposed at the end of the transport space 52L on the indexer robot 26 side in a plan view. In this embodiment, the substrate placement part 6L is located between the first liquid supply part 91 and the third exhaust part 103. The substrate placement part 6L is disposed at a height between the intermediate partition 16 and the lower partition 15 in the vertical direction Z. In this embodiment, the substrate placement part 6L is disposed near the middle height of the height range from the intermediate partition 16 to the upper partition 17. The vertical position of the substrate placement part 6L needs to be within a height range accessible by the indexer robot 26 and within a height range accessible by the main transport robot 8L.

[0040] The substrate mounting portion 6L includes an unprocessed substrate mounting portion 61 on which an unprocessed substrate W is mounted, and a processed substrate mounting portion 62 on which a processed substrate W is mounted. The unprocessed substrate mounting portion 61 and the processed substrate mounting portion 62 are stacked in the vertical direction Z. It is preferable that the unprocessed substrate mounting portion 61 is disposed above the processed substrate mounting portion 62. As shown in an enlarged configuration example in FIG. 5, the unprocessed substrate placement part 61 and the processed substrate placement part 62 include boxes 63, 64 that are open to both the indexer robot 26 side and the main transport robot 8L side along the first horizontal direction X, and substrate holding shelves 65, 66 arranged inside the boxes 63, 64. The substrate holding shelves 65, 66 have a plurality of (for example, 10) substrate support members 67, 68 arranged in the vertical direction Z. Each of the substrate support members 67, 68 is configured to support the peripheral portion of the lower surface of one substrate W from below and hold the substrate W in a horizontal position. Thereby, the unprocessed substrate placement part 61 and the processed substrate placement part 62 can hold a plurality of (for example, 10) substrates W in a horizontal position stacked at intervals in the vertical direction Z on the substrate holding shelves 65, 66, respectively.

[0041] 2, a window 4L corresponding to the substrate placement part 6L is formed so as to penetrate the rear partition 2a of the indexer block 2 and the front partition 3a of the processing block 3, i.e., the adjacent partitions. The indexer robot 26 can access the substrate placement part 6L through this window 4L to load / unload the substrate W onto / from the substrate placement part 6L.

[0042] The dummy substrate accommodating section 7L is provided at a different height from the substrate placement section 6L, and in this embodiment, is disposed below the substrate placement section 6L in the transfer space 52L. The dummy substrate accommodating section 7L is provided so as to overlap with the substrate placement section 6L in a planar view. More specifically, when the substrate W is held on the substrate placement section 6L and the dummy substrate DW is held on the dummy substrate accommodating section 7L, the dummy substrate accommodating section 7L is disposed so that the substrate W and the dummy substrate DW overlap in a planar view. The overlap between the substrate W and the dummy substrate DW in a planar view may be a partial overlap or a total overlap, that is, the dummy substrate DW may overlap almost the entire substrate W.

[0043] The dummy substrate accommodation unit 7L is disposed between the lower partition 15 and the middle partition 16, and is disposed within a height range accessible by the main transport robot 8L. In front of the dummy substrate accommodation unit 7L, i.e., on the indexer block 2 side, the rear partition 2a of the indexer block 2 and the front partition 3a of the processing block 3, i.e., the partitions adjacent to them, are located. These partitions are not provided with windows corresponding to the dummy substrate accommodation unit 7L. Therefore, in this embodiment, the indexer robot 26 cannot access the dummy substrate accommodation unit 7L.

[0044] As shown in an enlarged configuration example in FIG. 6, the dummy substrate accommodating section 7L includes a dummy substrate holding shelf 71. The configuration of the dummy substrate holding shelf 71 may be substantially the same as the configuration of the substrate holding shelves 65, 66 of the substrate placement section 6L. However, the number of dummy substrates DW that the dummy substrate holding shelf 71 can hold does not have to be equal to the number of substrates that the substrate holding shelves 65, 66 can hold. Specifically, the dummy substrate holding shelf 71 has a plurality of (for example, 12) dummy substrate support members 72 arranged in the vertical direction. Each dummy substrate support member 72 is configured to support the lower surface peripheral portion of one dummy substrate DW from below and hold the dummy substrate DW in a horizontal position. The dummy substrate accommodating section 7L can hold a plurality of (for example, 12) dummy substrates DW on the dummy substrate holding shelf 71 in a horizontal position stacked at intervals in the vertical direction Z. That is, the dummy substrate accommodating section 7L has multiple stages (in this embodiment, the same number as the number of processing units provided in the first processing block layer BL) of slots (hereinafter referred to as "dummy substrate slots DL1-DL12") stacked vertically so as to accommodate one dummy substrate DW in each stage in a horizontal position. A dummy substrate sensor (not shown) may be provided for detecting the presence or absence of a dummy substrate DW in each dummy substrate slot DL1-DL12. In this embodiment, unlike the substrate mounting section 6L, the dummy substrate accommodating section 7L does not have a box surrounding the accommodated dummy substrate DW. Of course, there is no problem if such a box is provided.

[0045] As shown in FIG. 2, the main transport robot 8L is disposed in the transport space 52L. The main transport robot 8L includes a hand 81 that holds one substrate in a horizontal position, and a hand drive mechanism 82 that drives the hand 81. A plurality of hands 81 (for example, two) may be provided. The hand drive mechanism 82 can move the hand 81 in the horizontal directions X and Y and the vertical direction Z, and can rotate the hand 81 around a vertical rotation axis. The hand drive mechanism 82 includes two support columns 83, a vertical movement unit 84, a horizontal movement unit 85, a rotation unit 86, and an advance / retract unit 87. The hand 81 is coupled to the advance / retract unit 87. When a plurality of hands 81 are provided, it is preferable to provide a plurality of advance / retract units 87 corresponding to the hands 81.

[0046] The two columns 83 are arranged at an interval along the first horizontal direction X and are fixed to the side walls of the transfer space 52L. The two columns 83 extend along the vertical direction Z and function as rails that guide the vertical movement of the vertical moving part 84. The vertical moving part 84 has the form of a rail that extends in the first horizontal direction X across the two columns 83 and has both ends connected to the two columns 83. The vertical moving part 84 is configured to move in the vertical direction relative to the columns 83 while being guided by the two columns 83. The horizontal moving part 85 is supported on the vertical moving part 84 and configured to move in the first horizontal direction X relative to the vertical moving part 84 while being guided by the vertical moving part 84. A rotating part 86 is supported on the horizontal moving part 85. The rotating part 86 is configured to rotate around a vertical rotation axis on the horizontal moving part 85. An advancing and retreating part 87 is connected to the rotating part 86. The advancing / retreating portion 87 advances and retreats in a direction horizontal to the axis of rotation, thereby causing the hand 81 to advance and retreat in the horizontal direction.

[0047] With this configuration, the main transport robot 8L can transfer the substrate W between the substrate placement unit 6L and the hand 81 by accessing the substrate placement unit 6L. The main transport robot 8L can also transfer the substrate W or the dummy substrate DW between any processing unit 11L-43L in the first processing block layer BL and the hand 81. The main transport robot 8L can also transfer the substrate W or the dummy substrate DW between the processing unit 11L-43L and the hand 81 by accessing the dummy substrate accommodation unit 7L and the hand 81. The main transport robot 8L can transfer the substrate W or DW held by the hand 81 between the substrate placement unit 6L, the processing unit 11L-43L, and the dummy substrate accommodation unit 7L in the first processing block layer BL.

[0048] The structure of the second processing block layer BU is almost the same as that of the first processing block layer BL, so that the following mainly describes the different structure and omits redundant explanations as much as possible. The structure of the elements with the same names as those in the first processing block layer BL is substantially the same. The second processing block layer BU includes a plurality of (12 in this embodiment) processing units 11U-13U, 21U-23U, 31U-33U, 41U-43U (hereinafter, the processing units of the second processing block layer BU are collectively referred to as "processing units 11U-43U"), which constitute a second processing unit group. The second processing block layer BU further includes a substrate placement unit 6U, a dummy substrate accommodation unit 7U, and a main transport robot 8U. The first to fourth liquid supply units 91-94 and the first to fourth exhaust units 101-104 are arranged to extend in the vertical direction Z across the first processing block layer BL and the second processing block layer BU.

[0049] The arrangement of the multiple processing units 11U-43U in the second processing block layer BU is substantially the same as the arrangement of the multiple processing units 11L-43L in the first processing block layer BL. The second processing block layer BU includes first to fourth processing unit stacks S1U-S4U, each of which includes multiple stages (three stages in this embodiment) of processing units 11U-13U, 21U-23U, 31U-33U, 41U-43U stacked in the vertical direction Z.

[0050] In plan view, the first to fourth processing unit stacks S1U-S4U of the second processing block layer BU are arranged so as to overlap with the first to fourth processing unit stacks S1L-S4L of the first processing block layer BL, respectively. The first processing unit stacks S1L, S1U of the first and second processing block layers BL, BU are stacked in the vertical direction Z to form a first tower T1 in which multiple stages (six stages in this embodiment) of processing units 11L, 12L, 13L, 11U, 12U, 13U are stacked. Similarly, the second processing unit stacks S2L, S2U of the first and second processing block layers BL, BU are stacked in the vertical direction Z to form a second tower T2 in which multiple stages (six stages in this embodiment) of processing units 21L, 22L, 23L, 21U, 22U, 23U are stacked. Further, the third processing unit stacks S3L and S3U of the first and second processing block layers BL and BU are stacked in the vertical direction Z to form a third tower T3 in which multiple stages (six stages in this embodiment) of processing units 31L, 32L, 33L, 31U, 32U, and 33U are stacked. Similarly, the fourth processing unit stacks S4L and S4U of the first and second processing block layers BL and BU are stacked in the vertical direction Z to form a fourth tower T4 in which multiple stages (six stages in this embodiment) of processing units 41L, 42L, 43L, 41U, 42U, and 43U are stacked.

[0051] A transfer space 52U defined in the second processing block layer BU and providing a transfer path 51U overlaps with the transfer space 52L of the first processing block layer BL. The transfer space 52U in the second processing block layer BU is defined from below by a middle partition wall 16, and from above by an upper partition wall 17. The upper partition wall 17 is disposed at a height that matches the upper surfaces of the uppermost processing units 13U, 23U, 33U, 43U of the first to fourth towers T1-T4.

[0052] The arrangement of the substrate placement unit 6U in plan view is the same as that of the first processing block layer BL. That is, the substrate placement unit 6U is arranged between the indexer robot 26 and the main transport robot 8U, and is arranged at the end of the transport space 52U on the indexer robot 26 side. The substrate placement unit 6U of the second processing block layer BU is arranged to overlap the substrate placement unit 6L of the first processing block layer BL in plan view. The substrate placement unit 6U is arranged at a height between the middle partition 16 and the upper partition 17 in the vertical direction Z. In this embodiment, the substrate placement unit 6U is arranged below the intermediate height of the height range from the middle partition 16 to the upper partition 17. More specifically, the substrate placement unit 6U is arranged at the highest position within the height range accessible by the indexer robot 26. The vertical position of the substrate placement unit 6U needs to be within the height range accessible by the indexer robot 26 and the height range accessible by the main transport robot 8U. As in the case of the first processing block layer BL, the substrate placement part 6U includes an unprocessed substrate placement part 61 on which an unprocessed substrate W is placed, and a processed substrate placement part 62 on which a processed substrate W is placed. The configurations of the unprocessed substrate placement part 61 and the processed substrate placement part 62 are the same as in the case of the substrate placement part 6L of the first processing block layer BL (see FIG. 5).

[0053] A window 4U corresponding to the substrate placement part 6U is formed so as to penetrate the rear partition 2a of the indexer block 2 and the front partition 3a of the processing block 3, i.e., the adjacent partitions. The indexer robot 26 can access the substrate placement part 6U through this window 4U to load / unload the substrate W into / from the substrate placement part 6U. The dummy substrate accommodation unit 7U is provided at a different height from the substrate placement unit 6U, and in this embodiment, is disposed above the substrate placement unit 6U in the transport space 52U. The dummy substrate accommodation unit 7U is provided so as to overlap the substrate placement unit 6U in a plan view. More specifically, when the substrate W is held on the substrate placement unit 6U and the dummy substrate DW is held on the dummy substrate accommodation unit 7U, the dummy substrate accommodation unit 7U is disposed so that the substrate W and the dummy substrate DW overlap in a plan view. The overlap between the substrate W and the dummy substrate DW in a plan view may be a partial overlap or a total overlap, that is, the dummy substrate DW may overlap almost the entire substrate W. The dummy substrate accommodation unit 7U is disposed at a height between the upper partition wall 17 and the middle partition wall 16, and is disposed within a height range accessible by the main transport robot 8U. In front of the dummy substrate accommodation unit 7U, i.e., on the indexer block 2 side, there are disposed the rear partition 2a of the indexer block 2 and the front partition 3a of the processing block 3, i.e., the partitions adjacent to them. These partitions 2a, 3a are not provided with a window corresponding to the dummy substrate accommodation unit 7U. Therefore, the indexer robot 26 cannot access the dummy substrate accommodation unit 7U.

[0054] The configuration of the dummy substrate accommodating section 7U may be substantially the same as that of the dummy substrate accommodating section 7L of the first processing block layer BL (see FIG. 6). The dummy substrate accommodating section 7U has multiple stages (in this embodiment, the same number as the number of processing units provided in the second processing block layer BU) of slots (hereinafter referred to as "dummy substrate slots DU1-DU12") stacked vertically so as to accommodate one dummy substrate DW in each stage in a horizontal position. A dummy substrate sensor may be provided for detecting the presence or absence of a dummy substrate DW in each of the dummy substrate slots DU1-DU12.

[0055] The main transport robot 8U is disposed in the transport space 52U. The main transport robot 8U includes a hand 81 that holds one substrate in a horizontal position, and a hand drive mechanism 82 that drives the hand 81. The hand drive mechanism 82 includes two support columns 83, a vertical movement section 84, a horizontal movement section 85, a rotation section 86, and an advance / retract section 87. These configurations are the same as those of the main transport robot 8L of the first processing block layer BL. The main transport robot 8U is configured to be accessible to the substrate placement section 6U, the processing unit 11U-43U, and the dummy substrate accommodation section 7U. The main transport robot 8U is an example of a second transport unit that transports a substrate W between the substrate placement section 6U and the processing unit 11U-43U, and transports a dummy substrate DW between the dummy substrate accommodation section 7U and the processing unit 11U-43U.

[0056] The first processing block layer BL and the second processing block layer BU are partitioned by an intermediate partition wall 16, and the product substrate W or dummy substrate DW cannot be transported beyond this intermediate partition wall 16. In other words, the main transport robot 8L of the first processing block layer BL is configured to be unable to access any of the processing units 11U-43U, the dummy substrate accommodation unit 7U, and the substrate placement unit 6U of the second processing block layer BU. Similarly, the main transport robot 8U of the second processing block layer BU is configured to be unable to access any of the processing units 11L-43L, the dummy substrate accommodation unit 7L, and the substrate placement unit 6L of the first processing block layer BL.

[0057] The liquid supply units 91-94 define liquid piping spaces that accommodate piping for supplying processing liquids used in the processing units 11L-43L; 11U-43U. The liquid piping spaces defined by each liquid supply unit 91-94 penetrate the first processing block layer BL and the second processing block layer BU in the vertical direction Z. Each liquid supply unit 91-94 accommodates piping 56 that supplies processing liquids to the six processing units 11L, 12L, 13L, 11U, 12U, 13U; 21L, 22L, 23L, 21U, 22U, 23U; 31L, 32L, 33L, 31U, 32U, 33U; 41L, 42L, 43L, 41U, 42U, 43U that are stacked in six stages in the vertical direction Z at the same position in a plan view to form the towers T1-T4. The liquid supply units 91-94 may further house processing liquid-related devices, such as valves provided midway through the piping, flow meters, tanks for temporarily storing the processing liquid, and pumps for delivering the liquid.

[0058] The exhaust section 101-104 defines an exhaust piping space that accommodates piping for exhausting the atmosphere inside the processing unit. The exhaust piping space defined by each exhaust section 101-104 penetrates the first processing block layer BL and the second processing block layer BU in the vertical direction Z. Each exhaust section 101-104 accommodates an exhaust piping 76 for leading exhaust from six processing units 11L, 12L, 13L, 11U, 12U, 13U; 21L, 22L, 23L, 21U, 22U, 23U; 31L, 32L, 33L, 31U, 32U, 33U; 41L, 42L, 43L, 41U, 42U, 43, which are stacked in six stages in the vertical direction Z at the same position in a plan view to form a tower T1-T4, to an exhaust facility outside the substrate processing apparatus 1. The exhaust units 101-104 may further accommodate a switching mechanism 77 that switches the exhaust pipes 76 depending on the type of processing (more specifically, the type of processing liquid) in the processing unit. Although not shown in the figure, the exhaust unit 101 includes actuators that drive the switching mechanism 77.

[0059] The carrier transport mechanism 300 (see FIG. 1) operates to carry a carrier C accommodating an unprocessed product substrate W into the carrier holding part 25 and to carry a carrier C accommodating a processed product substrate W out of the carrier holding part 25. The carrier transport mechanism 300 also operates to carry a supply dummy carrier DC accommodating an unused dummy substrate DW into the carrier holding part 25 and, after the unused dummy substrate DW has been removed from the supply dummy carrier DC, to carry out the dummy carrier DC out of the carrier holding part 25. The carrier transport mechanism 300 also operates to carry a recovery dummy carrier DC for recovering a used dummy substrate DW into the carrier holding part 25 and, after the used dummy substrate DW has been accommodated in the recovery dummy carrier DC, to carry out the recovery dummy carrier DC out of the carrier holding part 25. The dummy carrier DC may have a configuration substantially similar to that of the carrier C for the product substrate W.

[0060] The carrier transport mechanism 300 typically includes an overhead hoist transport (OHT). The carrier transport mechanism 300 transports the carrier C between the carrier storage 350 and the carrier holding unit 25 (load port). The carrier transport mechanism 300 also transports the dummy carrier DC between the dummy carrier storage 351 and the carrier holding unit 25.

[0061] The carrier transport mechanism 300 is controlled by a host computer 150, and transports the carriers C and the dummy carriers DC. The host computer 150 is connected to the controller 110 of the substrate processing apparatus 1 via a communication line 170 so as to be able to communicate with each other. The controller 110 controls the indexer robot 26 and the main transport robots 8L, 8U to transport the substrate W and the dummy substrate DW. The controller 110 also controls each part of the processing units 11L-43L, 11U-43U to perform substrate processing in the processing units 11L-43L, 11U-43U and dummy processing using the dummy substrate DW.

[0062] 7 is a schematic cross-sectional view for explaining a configuration example of processing units 11L-43L; 11U-43U (hereinafter collectively referred to as "processing units 11L-43U"). Processing unit 11L-43U includes a unit partition 36 forming a processing chamber 35, a processing cup 39 arranged in unit partition 36, a spin chuck 40 arranged in processing cup 39, and a nozzle 55 for supplying a processing liquid to substrates W, DW held by spin chuck 40.

[0063] The unit partition 36 includes, for example, a side wall 36a having a substantially rectangular shape in a plan view, a top wall 36b defining an upper portion, and a bottom wall 36c defining a lower portion. One surface of the side wall 36a faces the transfer space 52U, extends along the first horizontal direction X and the up-down direction Z, and has a substrate loading / unloading opening 37 for loading / unloading the substrates W, DW. The substrate loading / unloading opening 37 may have a slot shape extending in the first horizontal direction X. A shutter 38 is provided for opening and closing the substrate loading / unloading opening 37. The substrates W, DW are loaded through the substrate loading / unloading opening 37 formed in the unit partition 36 and delivered to the spin chuck 40.

[0064] The spin chuck 40 includes a spin base 45 that holds one substrate W, DW in a horizontal position, and a spin motor 46 that rotates the spin base 45 around a vertical axis of rotation. The spin chuck 40 may be of a vacuum type that holds the lower surface of the substrate W, DW by suction to the upper surface of the spin base 45. Alternatively, the spin base 45 may be of a mechanical type chuck that has a circular planar shape corresponding to the substrate W, DW and includes three or more holding pins spaced apart from each other around its periphery, and that grips the substrate W, DW with the holding pins.

[0065] The processing unit 11L-43U includes one or more nozzles 55 that supply a processing liquid to the substrate W, DW held by the spin chuck 40. In this embodiment, a plurality of nozzles 55 are provided. The plurality of nozzles 55 may include a plurality of chemical liquid nozzles used to eject a plurality of types of chemical liquid, respectively. A processing liquid is supplied from a nozzle 55 to the surface of the substrate W, DW held and rotated by the spin chuck 40. The nozzle 55 is coupled to a processing liquid pipe 56 arranged through the liquid supply units 91-94. The processing liquid pipe 56 is routed through the liquid supply units 91-94 and connected to the processing liquid supply source 54. A valve 59 for opening and closing the flow path is interposed in the processing liquid pipe 56. A pump 60 for sending the processing liquid toward the nozzle 55 is also interposed in the processing liquid pipe 56. The valve 59 and the pump 60 are arranged in the liquid supply units 91-94. The processing liquid supply source 54 supplies a chemical liquid such as an etching liquid and a rinsing liquid such as pure water (deionized water). A plurality of processing liquid pipes 56 and a corresponding plurality of nozzles 55 may be provided depending on the type of processing liquid. A part or all of the plurality of nozzles 55 may have the form of a moving nozzle that moves above the substrate W, DW and along the upper surface of the substrate W, DW. The movable nozzle may have a structure in which a base end of a horizontal nozzle arm 57 is supported by a swing shaft 58 disposed to the side of the spin chuck 40 and the swing shaft 58 is rotated about a vertical axis (see FIG. 1). Some or all of the multiple nozzles 55 may be fixed nozzles whose relative positions with respect to the spin chuck 40 are invariable.

[0066] The atmosphere inside the unit partition 36 is exhausted through an exhaust connection pipe 75 penetrating the unit partition 36. The exhaust connection pipe 75 is connected to exhaust pipes 76 arranged in the exhaust sections 101-104. The exhaust connection pipe 75 may be connected to a plurality of exhaust pipes 76 through a switching mechanism 77. The switching mechanism 77 operates, for example, in accordance with the type of processing liquid (e.g., type of chemical liquid) discharged from the plurality of nozzles 55 so as to guide the exhaust from the exhaust connection pipe 75 to the exhaust pipe 76 that is previously associated with the type of the processing liquid.

[0067] FIG. 8 is a block diagram for explaining a configuration related to control of the substrate processing apparatus 1. The substrate processing apparatus 1 includes a controller 110. The controller 110 may be a computer including a processor 111 (CPU) and a memory 112 (storage unit). The processor 111 executes a program 120 stored in the memory 112. Thereby, the controller 110 realizes a substrate transport operation in which the indexer robot 26 and the main transport robots 8L and 8U transport the substrates W and DW, a substrate processing operation in which the processing unit 11L-43U processes the substrate W, and a dummy processing operation in which the processing unit 11L-43U performs dummy processing using a dummy substrate DW. For these operations, the controller 110 controls various control objects provided in the substrate processing apparatus 1. The control objects include drive units provided in the indexer robot 26, the main transport robots 8L and 8U, the processing unit 11L-43U, and the like. Furthermore, objects controlled by the controller 110 include the valves 59 and pumps 60 arranged in the liquid supply units 91-94, and actuators arranged in the exhaust units 101-104.

[0068] Various data 130 are stored in the memory 112. The data 130 includes a product recipe 131 for processing a product substrate W, and a dummy processing recipe 132 for dummy processing using a dummy substrate DW. The product recipe 131 is data that specifies the transport operation of the substrate W and the processing content for the substrate W. The dummy processing recipe 132 is data that specifies the transport operation of the dummy substrate DW and the processing content using the dummy substrate DW. When processing the substrate W, the controller 110 controls the control target according to the product recipe 131, and when performing dummy processing, the controller 110 controls the control target according to the dummy processing recipe 132.

[0069] The product recipe 131 may be provided by data communication from a host computer 150 communicatively connected to the controller 110 and stored in the memory 112. Similarly, the dummy process recipe 132 may be provided by communication from the host computer 150 and stored in the memory 112. Moreover, these recipes 131, 132 may be input or edited by an operator using a user interface 140 connected to the controller 110. The dummy process recipe 132 may be automatically generated by the controller 110 according to the contents of the product recipe 131. There is no need to be only one type of product recipe 131 or dummy process recipe 132, and a plurality of product recipes 131 or a plurality of dummy process recipes 132 may be stored in the memory 112.

[0070] For example, the dummy processing recipe 132 includes a pre-processing recipe that specifies a pre-processing for performing the same processing on the dummy substrate DW as on the product substrate W. The pre-processing recipe may be a recipe in which the substrate to be loaded into the processing unit 11L-43U is replaced from the product substrate W to the dummy substrate DW in the product recipe 131. Such a pre-processing recipe may be automatically generated by the controller 110 based on the product recipe 131. For example, when performing a process of supplying a high-temperature processing liquid to the substrate W, the high-temperature processing liquid can be guided to the nozzle 55 by performing the pre-processing, and the inside of the pipe 56 and the processing unit 11L-43U can be heated by the high-temperature processing liquid. As a result, the processing liquid at an appropriate temperature can be supplied to the product substrate W in an appropriately temperature-controlled environment. In this way, the pre-processing is an example of a preparation process for preparing the processing environment of the processing unit 11L-43U for appropriately processing the product substrate W.

[0071] The dummy processing recipe 132 also includes a unit cleaning recipe for cleaning the inside of the processing unit 11L-43U by holding the dummy substrate DW on the spin chuck 40. In the unit cleaning process performed according to the unit cleaning recipe, the spin chuck 40 holds the dummy substrate DW and rotates, and in this state, a cleaning liquid (chemical liquid or pure water) is supplied to the dummy substrate DW. As a result, the cleaning liquid subjected to centrifugal force on the dummy substrate DW is scattered around the spin chuck 40 to clean the inside of the processing cup 39. If necessary, the processing cup 39 is moved up and down to change the incident position of the cleaning liquid with respect to the inner wall surface of the processing cup 39 up and down, so that the inner wall surface of the processing cup 39 can be efficiently cleaned. Also, the dummy substrate DW can be positioned above the upper end of the processing cup 39 by moving the processing cup 39 up and down or the spin chuck 40 up and down, and the cleaning liquid can be supplied to the inside of the processing chamber 35 outside the processing cup 39 to clean the inside of the processing chamber 35.

[0072] The data 130 stored in the memory 112 further includes a dummy substrate table 133 that associates the multiple processing units 11L-43U with the dummy substrate slots DL1-DL12, DU1-DU12 of the dummy substrate accommodation units 7L, 7U. A unique dummy substrate slot number (dummy substrate slot identification information) is assigned to each of the multiple dummy substrate slots DL1-DL12, DU1-DU12. Then, one dummy substrate slot number is associated with each processing unit 11L-43U. The dummy substrate table 133 associates the multiple (12 in this embodiment) processing units 11L-43U of the first processing block layer BL with the multiple (12 in this embodiment) dummy substrate slot numbers of the dummy substrate accommodation unit 7L of the first processing block layer BL in a one-to-one manner. Furthermore, the dummy substrate table 133 provides a one-to-one correspondence between the multiple (12 in this embodiment) processing units 11L-43U of the second processing block layer BU and the multiple (12 in this embodiment) dummy substrate slot numbers of the dummy substrate accommodation unit 7U of the second processing block layer BU. Therefore, the dummy substrate table 133 provides a one-to-one correspondence between the multiple (24 in this embodiment) processing units 11L-43U provided in the substrate processing apparatus 1 and the multiple (24 in this embodiment) slot numbers of the dummy substrate accommodation units 7L, 7U.

[0073] The data 130 stored in the memory 112 further includes dummy substrate history data 134. The dummy substrate history data 134 includes data (usage history information) representing the usage history of the dummy substrate DW accommodated in the dummy substrate slots DL1-DL12, DU1-DU12 corresponding to the multiple dummy substrate slot numbers of the dummy substrate accommodation sections 7L, 7U, respectively. The usage history preferably includes at least one of the number of times (accumulated number of times) the dummy substrate DW was used for processing in the processing unit 11L-43U, the usage time (accumulated time) the dummy substrate DW was used for processing in the processing unit 11L-43U, and the history of the processing contents the dummy substrate DW received in the processing unit 11L-43U.

[0074] The data 130 stored in the memory 112 further includes unit use history data 135 representing the unit use history of each processing unit 11L-43U. The unit use history data 135 preferably includes the number of substrates processed by each processing unit 11L-43U and the continuous non-use time representing the continuous time during which each processing unit 11L-43U is not used for substrate processing. Since the environment inside the processing unit 11L-43U gradually deteriorates with repeated substrate processing, it is preferable to set an appropriate upper limit for the number of substrates that can be continuously processed without requiring maintenance. In addition, the environment inside the processing unit 11L-43U gradually deteriorates as the time during which the processing unit 11L-43U is not processing substrates W increases. Specifically, the chemical liquid adhering to the inner wall of the processing cup 39 or the like dries and crystallizes, which may cause particles. In addition, when a high-temperature processing liquid that is higher than room temperature is used, if the flow of the processing liquid is blocked for a long period of time due to continued non-use, the temperature of the pipe 56 or the nozzle 55 decreases. Therefore, when the processing liquid is discharged next time, heat of the processing liquid may be lost in the pipe 56 or the nozzle 55, and the temperature of the processing liquid immediately after discharge may become inappropriate. Therefore, it is preferable to set an appropriate upper limit for the duration of non-use as well. By comparing the unit usage history data 135 (number of processed substrates, duration of non-use, etc.) with the corresponding set values, it is possible to determine whether maintenance is required for the processing unit 11L-43U.

[0075] Fig. 9 is a flowchart for explaining the operation of the controller 110 related to the dummy processing. The controller 110 executes the processing of Fig. 9 in parallel or sequentially for each of the multiple processing units 11L-43U. The controller 110 judges whether or not the processing of the product substrate W is being performed in the target processing unit 11L-43U (step A1). When the processing of the substrate W is completed in the processing unit 11L-43U and the processed substrate W is unloaded from the processing unit 11L-43U (step A1: NO), the controller 110 refers to the unit usage history data 135 of the processing unit 11L-43U and judges whether or not the number of substrates processed reaches a set value (step A2). When the number of substrates processed is equal to or greater than the set value (step A2: YES), the controller 110 judges that the unit cleaning execution condition (an example of the maintenance execution condition) is satisfied, and executes a unit cleaning process (an example of the maintenance process) according to the unit cleaning recipe to clean the inside of the processing unit 11L-43U (step A3). The controller 110 also resets the number of substrates processed in the processing unit to an initial value (for example, 0) and updates the unit usage history data 135 (step A4).

[0076] The unit cleaning process is an example of a dummy process, and includes a dummy substrate carrying-in step A31, a dummy processing step A32, and a dummy substrate accommodation step A33. The dummy substrate carrying-in step A31 is a step in which the main transport robot 8L, 8U carries out a dummy substrate DW from the corresponding dummy substrate slot DL1-DL12, DU1-DU12, transports it to the processing unit 11L-43U, and carries it into the processing unit. The dummy processing step A32 is a step in which a process using the dummy substrate DW is performed in the processing unit, and in this case, it is a cleaning process of the inside of the processing unit. The dummy substrate accommodation step A33 is a step in which, after cleaning the inside of the processing unit, the dummy substrate DW is carried out from the processing unit, transported to the original dummy substrate slot DL1-DL12, DU1-DU12, and accommodated therein. The controller 110 refers to the dummy substrate table 133, identifies the dummy substrate slots DL1-DL12, DU1-DU12 corresponding to the processing unit 11L-43U, and executes the dummy substrate carry-in step A31 and the dummy substrate accommodation step A33.

[0077] After the unit cleaning process is completed, the controller 110 judges whether pre-processing is required to prepare the processing environment (processing conditions) of the processing unit 11L-43U (steps A5 and A6). Specifically, the controller 110 checks whether a processing request (processing reservation) for a product substrate is given from the host computer 150 (step A5). When a processing request for a product substrate is given (step A5: YES), the controller 110 judges whether the non-use duration of the processing unit 11L-43U reaches a set value (step A6). When the non-use duration is equal to or longer than the set value (step A6: YES), that is, when the processing unit 11L-43U has not been used for a product substrate W for a predetermined long time or longer, the controller 110 judges that pre-processing is required, that is, that the pre-processing execution condition (an example of a maintenance execution condition) is satisfied.

[0078] When it is determined that pretreatment is necessary, the controller 110 performs pretreatment according to the pretreatment recipe (step A7). Specifically, the controller 110 refers to the dummy substrate table 133 to identify the dummy substrate slots DL1-DL12, DU1-DU12 corresponding to the processing unit 11L-43U. Then, the controller 110 controls the main transport robots 8L, 8U to unload the dummy substrate DW from the identified dummy substrate slot and transport the dummy substrate DW to the processing unit 11L-43U (dummy substrate loading step A71). After the transport, the host computer 150 performs the same processing on the dummy substrate DW in the processing unit 11L-43U as that on the product substrate W (dummy processing step A72). When the processing is completed, the host computer 150 controls the main transport robots 8L, 8U to remove the dummy substrate DW from the processing unit 11L-43U, transport it to the original dummy substrate slot, and accommodate the dummy substrate DW in the dummy substrate slot (dummy substrate accommodation step A73). After executing the pre-processing in this manner, the controller 110 resets the non-use duration to an initial value (for example, 0) and updates the unit usage history data 135 (step A8).

[0079] As described above, when a processing request (processing reservation) for the product substrate W is given, the controller 110 executes the pre-processing. The pre-processing includes transport of the dummy substrate DW (step A71) and dummy processing using the dummy substrate DW (step A72). Therefore, the carrier C accommodating the product substrate W is held by the carrier holding part 25, and the pre-processing (dummy substrate carry-in step A71 and / or dummy processing step A72) is executed in parallel with or before the substrate carry-in operation (step A20) in which the indexer robot 26 takes out the substrate W to be processed from the carrier C and transports it to the substrate placement parts 6L, 6U. At this time, the indexer robot 26 is not involved in the transport of the dummy substrate DW. Therefore, the dummy substrate DW is transported inside the processing block 3 and the pre-processing is executed without impeding the transport of the product substrate W by the indexer robot 26.

[0080] 9 shows the step A20 of carrying in the product substrate W by the indexer robot 26 for convenience, but does not mean that the sequence of the step with respect to the pre-processing step A7 is as shown in the figure. As described above, the product substrate carrying in step A20 may be performed (started) prior to or in parallel with the pre-processing step A7, and the product substrate carrying in step A20 may also be performed (started) after the pre-processing step A7.

[0081] The pre-processing recipe specifies a pre-processing to be performed on the dummy substrate DW, which is to be performed on the product substrate W. Therefore, by performing the pre-processing on the dummy substrate DW, the dummy substrate DW is consumed. Specifically, by performing the pre-processing using a chemical solution having an etching effect on the dummy substrate DW, the surface of the dummy substrate DW is etched, and the thickness of the dummy substrate DW is reduced. Therefore, when the pre-processing recipe is performed, the controller 110 updates the dummy substrate history data 134 of the dummy substrate slots DL1-DL12, DU1-DU12 associated with the processing unit 11L-43U (step A9). For example, when the dummy substrate history data 134 includes usage count data, the usage count data is incremented.

[0082] When the pre-processing is completed, the controller 110 executes control according to the product recipe (step A12). As a result, the main transport robot 8L, 8U takes out the substrate W from the substrate placement unit 6L, 6U and transports it to the processing unit 11L-43U (substrate loading step A121). Then, in the processing unit 11L-43U, processing is performed on the substrate W using a processing liquid (chemical liquid, rinse liquid, etc.) (processing step A122). After that, the main transport robot 8L, 8U takes out the processed substrate W and transports it to the substrate placement unit 6L, 6U (substrate accommodation step A123). If an unprocessed substrate W exists (in the case of continuous processing of multiple substrates W) (step A13: YES), the same operation is repeated. Meanwhile, if the number of substrates processed in the processing unit reaches a set value (step A14: YES), the process returns to step A3 and the unit cleaning process is performed. If it is not continuous processing (step A13: NO), the process returns and the processing from step A1 is repeated.

[0083] If there is no processing request (processing reservation) from the host computer 150 (step A5: NO), the controller 110 judges whether the duration of the standby state, i.e., the duration of non-use, has reached a set value (step A15). If the duration of non-use has not reached the set value, the controller 110 enters a standby state. If the duration of non-use reaches the set value (step A15: YES), the controller 110 executes a preset maintenance process (step A16). The maintenance process may be a unit cleaning process. As in the case of step A3, the unit cleaning process may be a process using a dummy substrate DW (a type of dummy process), or may be a process not using a dummy substrate DW. The maintenance process may be a process similar to the pre-processing. The maintenance process may be another process. The maintenance process is mainly a process for maintaining the environment in the processing chamber 35 of the processing unit 11L-43U in a state suitable for processing the product substrate W, and may be a process preset by the user of the substrate processing apparatus 1. When dummy processing using a dummy substrate DW is performed as a maintenance process, the maintenance process includes step A161 of removing the dummy substrate DW from the corresponding dummy substrate slot and loading it into the processing unit, step A162 of performing dummy processing using the dummy substrate DW in the processing unit, and step A163 of storing the dummy substrate DW in the corresponding dummy substrate slot after the processing.

[0084] When there is no processing request (processing reservation) from the host computer 150, the controller 110 cannot automatically plan pre-processing similar to the product recipe 131. Therefore, even if the maintenance process (step A16) is being performed at any time, when there is a processing request (processing reservation) from the host computer 150, it is preferable to perform the pre-processing (step A7) corresponding to the product processing.

[0085] The dummy substrate DW is introduced into the substrate processing apparatus 1 in advance and accommodated in the dummy substrate accommodation unit 7L, 7U. Specifically, for example, a supply dummy carrier DC accommodating the dummy substrate DW is delivered to the carrier holding unit 25 by a carrier transport mechanism 300 (see FIG. 1) provided in the factory. The indexer robot 26 takes out the dummy substrate DW from the supply dummy carrier DC and transports it to the substrate placement units 6L, 6U. The main transport robot 8L of the first processing block layer BL transports the dummy substrate DW from the substrate placement unit 6L to the dummy substrate accommodation unit 7L and accommodates it therein. The main transport robot 8U of the second processing block layer BU transports the dummy substrate DW from the substrate placement unit 6U to the dummy substrate accommodation unit 7U and accommodates it therein.

[0086] When a new dummy substrate DW is introduced and accommodated in a dummy substrate accommodating portion 7L, 7U, the controller 110 resets the dummy substrate history data 134 corresponding to the dummy substrate slot in which the new dummy substrate DW is accommodated to an initial value. When replacing the dummy substrate DW in the substrate processing apparatus 1, the main transport robots 8L, 8U and the indexer robot 26 transport the dummy substrate DW from the dummy substrate accommodation units 7L, 7U to the recovery dummy carrier DC held by the carrier holding unit 25. Specifically, when the dummy substrate DW to be replaced is accommodated in the dummy substrate accommodation unit 7L of the first processing block layer BL, the main transport robot 8L transports the dummy substrate DW from the dummy substrate accommodation unit 7L to the substrate placement unit 6L. When the dummy substrate DW to be replaced is accommodated in the dummy substrate accommodation unit 7U of the second processing block layer BU, the main transport robot 8U transports the dummy substrate DW from the dummy substrate accommodation unit 7U to the substrate placement unit 6U. The indexer robot 26 transports the dummy substrate DW placed on the substrate placement units 6L, 6U to the recovery dummy carrier DC held by the carrier holding unit 25 and accommodates it therein. When a plurality of dummy substrates DW are to be replaced, the same operation is repeated.

[0087] 10A and 10B are flow charts for explaining an example of operation relating to the loading of unused dummy substrates into dummy substrate accommodation sections 7L, 7U and the unloading of used dummy substrates. First, refer to FIG. 10A. The controller 110 refers to the dummy substrate history data 134 to calculate status data indicating whether or not the dummy substrate DW needs to be replaced (step S1). A calculation formula for calculating the status data is stored in the memory 112. The calculation formula may be stored in the memory 112 in the form of a table. For example, when the number of times of use reaches a predetermined threshold, the status data becomes a value indicating the need for replacement. The status data is calculated for all dummy substrates DW accommodated in the dummy substrate accommodation units 7L, 7U. The calculation formula for calculating the status data is not necessarily common among a plurality of dummy substrates DW. As described above, a plurality of dummy substrates DW are associated one-to-one with a plurality of processing units. The processing of the product substrates W and the dummy processing performed in each processing unit are not necessarily common. Therefore, it is possible to set a calculation formula individually for each dummy substrate DW corresponding to each processing unit. That is, a plurality of calculation formulas are stored in the memory 112, and the status data is calculated using a calculation formula corresponding to each dummy substrate DW (i.e., corresponding to each processing unit). The controller 110 may calculate the status data each time the dummy substrate DW is used in the corresponding processing unit, that is, each time the dummy substrate history data 134 is updated, and store the latest status data in the memory 112.

[0088] The controller 110 executes the function of a determination unit that determines whether or not replacement of the dummy substrate DW is necessary based on the status data. Specifically, it determines whether or not the status data of any of the dummy substrates DW is a value indicating the need for replacement (step S2). When any of the dummy substrates DW needs to be replaced (step S2: YES), the controller 110 determines whether or not there is another dummy substrate DW in the substrate processing apparatus 1 that can replace the dummy substrate DW (steps S3, S5).

[0089] When a problem such as contamination occurs after substrate processing in a processing unit, it may be necessary to investigate the cause, including the possibility that the dummy substrate DW is the source of contamination. If a common dummy substrate DW is used in a plurality of processing units, such investigation of the cause becomes difficult, so it is preferable that a plurality of processing units and a plurality of dummy substrates DW correspond one-to-one. Therefore, even if a certain dummy substrate DW reaches its expiration date, it is not preferable to replace the dummy substrate DW with another dummy substrate DW. However, if an unused dummy substrate DW exists in the substrate processing apparatus 1, the unused dummy substrate DW can be used instead of the dummy substrate DW that has reached its expiration date, without the above-mentioned problem. As described above, a plurality of processing units do not necessarily perform the same processing, and therefore the frequency with which dummy processing is performed in a plurality of processing units is not necessarily the same.

[0090] To explain in detail, the controller 110 first judges whether or not a substitutable dummy substrate DW is stored in another slot of the dummy substrate accommodation unit 7L, 7U in which the dummy substrate DW is accommodated (step S3). A substitutable dummy substrate DW is basically a dummy substrate DW that has not yet been used in dummy processing. In this case, the controller 110 judges whether or not the dummy substrate DW is substitutable based on the dummy substrate history data 134 of each dummy substrate DW. However, instead of immediately judging that the dummy substrate DW is substitutable if it is unused, another judgment rule may be provided. For example, even if the dummy substrate DW is unused, if it is associated with a specific processing unit, it may be judged whether or not the dummy substrate DW is substitutable based on a predetermined additional judgment rule.

[0091] If a usable alternative dummy substrate DW is found, the controller 110 uses the main transport robots 8L and 8U to replace the dummy substrate DW that needs to be replaced, i.e., the used dummy substrate DW, with the alternative dummy substrate DW, i.e., the unused dummy substrate DW, in the same dummy substrate accommodation unit 7L and 7U (step S4). That is, the main transport robots 8L and 8U take out the used dummy substrate DW from the slot, transport it to the slot of the unused dummy substrate DW, take out the unused dummy substrate DW from the slot, and carry the used dummy substrate DW into the slot. Furthermore, the main transport robots 8L and 8U carry the taken out unused dummy substrate DW into the original slot of the used dummy substrate DW. If the dummy substrate accommodation unit 7L and 7U has an extra slot, the used dummy substrate DW may be carried into the extra slot.

[0092] Instead of transporting the dummy substrate DW in this way, the controller 110 may rewrite the data representing the correspondence between the slots of the dummy substrate accommodation units 7L, 7U and the processing units 11L-43U by updating the dummy substrate table 133 (see FIG. 8). That is, the slots of the unused dummy substrate DW may be associated with the processing units associated with the slots of the used dummy substrate DW. In this way, there is no need to transport the dummy substrate DW.

[0093] If there is no substitutable dummy substrate DW in the same dummy substrate accommodating portion 7L, 7U (step S3: NO), the controller 110 judges whether or not there is a substitutable dummy substrate DW in the other dummy substrate accommodating portion 7L, 7U, i.e., the other dummy substrate accommodating portion 7L, 7U (step S5). As in the above case, the controller 110 judges whether or not there is a substitutable dummy substrate DW based on the dummy substrate history data 134 of each dummy substrate DW. If a substitutable dummy substrate DW is found, the controller 110 creates and executes a transport schedule for transporting the substitutable dummy substrate DW, i.e., an unused dummy substrate DW (step S6: dummy substrate transport control, dummy substrate transport process).

[0094] For example, consider a case where a dummy substrate DW needs to be replaced in the dummy substrate accommodation unit 7L of the first processing block layer BL, and a usable dummy substrate DW is not present in the dummy substrate accommodation unit 7L. Then, consider a case where a usable dummy substrate DW (unused dummy substrate) is found in the dummy substrate accommodation unit 7U of the second processing block layer BU. In this case, the controller 110 creates a transport schedule for the following transport operation. That is, the main transport robot 8U transports the unused dummy substrate DW from the dummy substrate accommodation unit 7U to the substrate placement unit 6U. Then, the indexer robot 26 transports the unused dummy substrate DW from the substrate placement unit 6U to the substrate placement unit 6L. Then, the main transport robot 8L transports the unused dummy substrate DW from the substrate placement unit 6L to an empty slot in the dummy substrate accommodation unit 7L.

[0095] If there is no free slot in the dummy substrate accommodating section 7L to accommodate the unused dummy substrate DW, the controller 110 plans an operation (dummy substrate unloading operation) for unloading the used dummy substrate DW from the dummy substrate accommodating section 7L to secure a free slot prior to the transport operation as described above. The dummy substrate unloading operation may be an operation for accommodating the used dummy substrate DW in a carrier held by the carrier holding section 25. The carrier in this case is typically a dedicated carrier for recovering the used dummy substrate DW, that is, a recovery dummy carrier DC. Since the recovery dummy carrier DC is supplied to the carrier holding section 25 as needed, normally, all the carrier holding sections 25 (load ports) are occupied by normal carriers C that accommodate product substrates, and the recovery dummy carrier DC will not be present in the carrier holding section 25. Therefore, the controller 110 plans a transport operation for transporting the used dummy substrate DW to an empty slot of the dummy substrate accommodating portion 7U of the other processing block layer BU.

[0096] An example of the transport operation in this case is as follows. The main transport robot 8L holds the unused dummy substrate DW transferred from the second processing block layer BU with one hand, and carries out the used dummy substrate DW from the dummy substrate accommodation unit 7L with the other hand. As a result, an empty slot is secured in the dummy substrate accommodation unit 7L, and the unused dummy substrate DW held by one hand is carried into the secured empty slot. That is, the main transport robot 8L operates to exchange the used dummy substrate DW with the unused dummy substrate DW for the slot in which the used dummy substrate DW is accommodated. The main transport robot 8L transports the carried out used dummy substrate DW to the substrate placement unit 6L. Thereafter, the indexer robot 26 transports the used dummy substrate DW from the substrate placement unit 6L to the substrate placement unit 6U for the second processing block layer BU. Thereafter, the main transport robot 8U transports the used dummy substrate DW from the substrate mounting portion 6U to an empty slot of the dummy substrate accommodating portion 7U. Since the unused dummy substrate DW has been removed from one slot of the dummy substrate accommodating portion 7U, there is at least one empty slot in the dummy substrate accommodating portion 7U.

[0097] In this example, the transport of the unused dummy substrate DW is started first, but the transport of the used dummy substrate DW can also be started first. In this case, an example of the transport operation is as follows. The main transport robot 8L transports the used dummy substrate DW from the dummy substrate accommodation unit 7L to the substrate placement unit 6L. Then, the indexer robot 26 transports the used dummy substrate DW from the substrate placement unit 6L to the substrate placement unit 6U. Then, the main transport robot 8U transports the used dummy substrate DW from the substrate placement unit 6U to the dummy substrate accommodation unit 7U. The main transport robot 8U holds the used dummy substrate DW transferred from the first processing block layer BL with one hand, and carries out the unused dummy substrate DW from the dummy substrate accommodation unit 7U with the other hand. As a result, an empty slot is secured in the dummy substrate accommodation unit 7U, and the used dummy substrate DW held by one hand is carried into the secured empty slot. That is, the main transport robot 8U operates to exchange the unused dummy substrate DW with a used dummy substrate DW for the slot in which the unused dummy substrate DW is accommodated. The main transport robot 8U transports the unused dummy substrate DW that has been removed to the substrate placement unit 6U. The indexer robot 26 then transports the unused dummy substrate DW from the substrate placement unit 6U to the substrate placement unit 6L for the first processing block layer BL. The main transport robot 8L then transports the unused dummy substrate DW from the substrate placement unit 6L to an empty slot in the dummy substrate accommodation unit 7U. Since the used dummy substrate DW has been removed from one slot of the dummy substrate accommodation unit 7L, there is at least one empty slot in the dummy substrate accommodation unit 7L.

[0098] In parallel with the operation of the main transport robot 8L of the first processing block layer BL unloading the used dummy substrate DW from the dummy substrate accommodation portion 7L and transporting it to the substrate placement portion 6L, the main transport robot 8U of the second processing block layer BU may unload the unused dummy substrate DW from the dummy substrate accommodation portion 7U and transport it to the substrate placement portion 6U. In this case, the time required for transferring (replacing) the dummy substrate DW can be shortened.

[0099] The same applies to the transport operation when it becomes necessary to replace the dummy substrate DW in the dummy substrate accommodation unit 7U of the second processing block layer BU and an unused dummy substrate DW in the dummy substrate accommodation unit 7L of the first processing block layer BL is used instead. A detailed description of the transport operation example in this case can be obtained by replacing the processing block layer BU with the processing block layer BL, the main transport robot 8U with the main transport robot 8L, the dummy substrate accommodation unit 7U with the dummy substrate accommodation unit 7L, and the substrate placement unit 6U with the substrate placement unit 6L in the above operation example, and therefore will not be repeated here.

[0100] If there is no alternative dummy substrate DW available in the substrate processing apparatus 1 (NO in both steps S4 and S5), the controller 110 sends a dummy substrate replacement request to the host computer 150 to request replacement of the dummy substrate DW (step S7). The controller 110 may be programmed to calculate the number of unused dummy substrates DW that are accommodated in the dummy substrate accommodation units 7L, 7U and can be used as substitutes each time a dummy process is performed in any of the processing units. In this case, it is preferable that the controller 110 transmits a dummy substrate exchange request to the host computer 150 when the number of unused dummy substrates DW that can be used as substitutes in the substrate processing apparatus 1 falls below a predetermined threshold (for example, 1). The controller 110 may also transmit a dummy substrate exchange request to the host computer 150, taking into further consideration information on the urgency of the process in any of the processing units. For example, even if the number of unused dummy substrates DW that can be used as substitutes exceeds the threshold, if the number of unused dummy substrates DW that can be used as substitutes is expected to fall below the threshold in the near future due to dummy processes that have already been scheduled, a dummy substrate exchange request may be issued.

[0101] When the host computer 150 receives a dummy substrate exchange request from the substrate processing apparatus 1, it judges whether or not a recovery dummy carrier DC is held in any of the carrier holding parts 25 of the substrate processing apparatus 1. If a recovery dummy carrier DC is not held in any of the carrier holding parts 25, the host computer 150 plans the supply of a recovery dummy carrier DC by the carrier transport mechanism 300, and operates the carrier transport mechanism 300 according to the plan. If a recovery dummy carrier DC is held in any of the carrier holding parts 25, the host computer 150 judges whether or not a supply dummy carrier DC is held in any of the carrier holding parts 25 of the substrate processing apparatus 1. If a supply dummy carrier DC is not held in any of the carrier holding parts 25, the host computer plans the supply of a supply dummy carrier DC by the carrier transport mechanism 300, and operates the carrier transport mechanism 300 according to the plan.

[0102] 10B. When the recovery dummy carrier DC is held by any of the carrier holding parts 25 (step S11: YES), the controller 110 of the substrate processing apparatus 1 operates to transport the used dummy substrate DW into the recovery dummy carrier DC (step S12). That is, the used dummy substrate DW is transported from the dummy substrate accommodation parts 7L, 7U to the substrate placement parts 6L, 6U by the main transport robots 8U, 8L, and is transported from the substrate placement parts 6L, 6U to the recovery dummy carrier DC by the indexer robot 26 and accommodated therein. When the supply dummy carrier DC is held by any of the carrier holding parts 25 (step S13: YES), the controller 110 of the substrate processing apparatus 1 operates to transport the unused dummy substrate DW from the supply dummy carrier DC to the dummy substrate accommodation parts 7L, 7U (step S14). That is, the unused dummy substrate DW is transported from the supply dummy carrier DC to the substrate mounting parts 6L, 6U by the indexer robot 26, then transported from the substrate mounting parts 6L, 6U to the dummy substrate accommodating parts 7L, 7U by the main transport robot, and loaded into the dummy substrate accommodating parts 7L, 7U.

[0103] When the dummy substrate DW in a certain slot of the dummy substrate accommodating sections 7L, 7U is replaced with an unused dummy substrate DW, the dummy substrate history data 134 corresponding to that slot (i.e., corresponding to the dummy substrate DW accommodated in that slot) is reset to its initial value (step S8 in FIG. 10A, step S15 in FIG. 10B). The transfer of the unused dummy substrate DW in the substrate processing apparatus 1 shown in Fig. 10A is not necessary when the supply dummy carrier DC is held by the carrier holding part 25 (step S13) and the used dummy substrate DW can be replaced by the unused dummy substrate DW supplied from the supply dummy carrier DC. That is, instead of transferring the unused dummy substrate DW between the dummy substrate accommodating parts 7L, 7U, the unused dummy substrate DW may be transported from the supply dummy carrier DC to the dummy substrate accommodating parts 7L, 7U. Therefore, one of the dummy substrate transfer conditions may be that the supply dummy carrier DC is not held by the carrier holding part 25 or that the unused dummy substrate DW cannot be replaced by the unused dummy substrate DW from the supply dummy carrier DC held by the carrier holding part 25.

[0104] Furthermore, the transfer of the used dummy substrate DW within the substrate processing apparatus 1 is not necessary when the recovery dummy carrier DC is held by the carrier holding part 25 (step S11) and the recovery dummy carrier DC can accommodate the used dummy substrate DW. That is, instead of transferring the used dummy substrate DW between the dummy substrate accommodating parts 7L, 7U, the used dummy substrate DW may be transported from the dummy substrate accommodating parts 7L, 7U to the recovery dummy carrier DC. Therefore, one of the dummy substrate transfer conditions may be that the recovery dummy carrier DC is not held by the carrier holding part 25, or that the recovery dummy carrier DC held by the carrier holding part 25 cannot accommodate the used dummy substrate DW.

[0105] Furthermore, depending on the operating conditions of the substrate processing apparatus 1 and the carrier transport mechanism 300, it may be possible to replace the used dummy substrate DW with an unused dummy substrate DW more quickly by waiting for the arrival of the supply dummy carrier DC than by transferring the dummy substrate DW between the dummy substrate accommodating units 7L and 7U. In such a case, it is not necessary to transfer the dummy substrate DW between the dummy substrate accommodating units 7L and 7U. Therefore, one of the dummy substrate transfer conditions may be that the used dummy substrate DW can be replaced with an unused dummy substrate DW more quickly by transferring the dummy substrate DW within the substrate processing apparatus 1 than by waiting for the supply of the dummy substrate DW from outside the substrate processing apparatus 1.

[0106] As described above, according to this embodiment, the processing block 3 laterally adjacent to the indexer block 2 is configured by stacking a plurality of processing block layers BL, BU in the vertical direction Z. Each processing block layer BL, BU is provided with a dummy substrate accommodating portion 7L, 7U that accommodates a dummy substrate DW. Since the dummy substrate DW can be accommodated inside the processing block layers BL, BU, when it becomes necessary to use the dummy substrate DW in the processing unit 11L-43U, the dummy substrate DW can be transported between the dummy substrate accommodating portion 7L, 7U and the processing unit 11L-43U without the involvement of the indexer robot 26.

[0107] Therefore, the transport load of the indexer robot 26 can be reduced, and processing using the dummy substrate DW can be performed while reducing the impact on the transport of the product substrate W. In particular, the transport load of the indexer robot 26, which transports the substrate W between the carrier holder 25 and the processing block layers BL, BU each having a plurality of processing units 11L-43L, 11U-43U, is very large. Therefore, by reducing the transport load of the indexer robot 26, the transport efficiency of the product substrate W is improved, and the productivity can be improved accordingly. The main transport robots 8L, 8U of each processing block layer BL, BU are responsible for transporting the substrate W within the processing block layer BL, BU, and therefore have a smaller transport load than the indexer robot 26. Therefore, the main transport robots 8L, 8U are responsible for transporting the dummy substrate DW within the processing block layers BL, BU, which does not pose a major problem in terms of production efficiency.

[0108] Furthermore, since the dummy substrate accommodation units 7L, 7U are located within the processing block layers BL, BU, the dummy substrate DW can be transported between the dummy substrate accommodation units 7L, 7U and the processing units 11L-43U without passing through the substrate placement units 6L, 6U for substrate delivery between the indexer robot 26 and the processing block layers BL, BU. This reduces interference between the transport of the dummy substrate DW and the transport of the product substrates W, improving the efficiency of transport of the product substrates W and, accordingly, improving productivity.

[0109] Furthermore, unlike the case of Patent Document 1, the carrier holding portion 25 is not occupied for a long period of time by the dummy carrier accommodating the dummy substrate DW. This makes it possible to suppress waiting time for carrying in the carrier C accommodating the product substrate W, thereby contributing to improved productivity. In this embodiment, in each processing block layer BL, BU, a plurality of processing units 11L-43L, 11U-43U are arranged on both sides of the transport path 51L, 51U along which the substrate W is transported by the main transport robot 8L, 8U, and are arranged stacked in the vertical direction Z. Therefore, the arrangement of the plurality of processing units 11L-43U in the processing block layer BL, BU is designed so that the substrate transport by the main transport robot 8L, 8U can be efficiently performed. This can contribute to improving productivity.

[0110] In this embodiment, the substrate placement units 6L, 6U and the dummy substrate accommodation units 7L, 7U are both disposed between the indexer robot 26 and the main transport robots 8L, 8U. This allows efficient transport of the substrates W between the indexer robot 26 and the main transport robots 8L, 8U via the substrate placement units 6L, 6U. The dummy substrate accommodation units 7L, 7U can be disposed at positions that do not interfere with the transport of the substrates W by the indexer robot 26 and the main transport robots 8L, 8U. This allows the dummy substrates DW to be held in the processing block layers BL, BU without affecting the transport of the product substrates W.

[0111] More specifically, in this embodiment, the dummy substrate accommodation units 7L, 7U and the substrate placement units 6L, 6U are arranged three-dimensionally with different heights. This allows the dummy substrate accommodation units 7L, 7U to be appropriately arranged in the processing block layers BL, BU by effectively utilizing the space in the processing block layers BL, BU. As a result, the dummy substrate accommodation units 7L, 7U are arranged in a manner that does not impede the transport of the product substrates W.

[0112] Furthermore, in this embodiment, the dummy substrate accommodation parts 7L, 7U are arranged so as to overlap with the substrate placement parts 6L, 6U in plan view. As a result, the dummy substrate accommodation parts 7L, 7U are arranged using the space above or below the substrate placement parts 6L, 6U. As a result, the arrangement of the dummy substrate accommodation parts 7L, 7U that does not impede the transport of the product substrate W is realized, and the dummy substrate accommodation parts 7L, 7U can be arranged by effectively utilizing the space in the processing block layers BL, BU. As described above, the arrangement in which the dummy substrate accommodation parts 7L, 7U overlap with the substrate placement parts 6L, 6U in plan view may specifically be an arrangement in which a part or all of the dummy substrate DW accommodated in the dummy substrate accommodation parts 7L, 7U overlaps with the substrate W held on the substrate placement parts 6L, 6U.

[0113] More specifically, in this embodiment, a second processing block layer BU (upper processing block layer) is stacked on a first processing block layer BL (lower processing block layer). In the first processing block layer BL, the dummy substrate accommodation portion 7L is located below the substrate placement portion 6L. Meanwhile, in the second processing block layer BU, the dummy substrate accommodation portion 7U is located below the substrate placement portion 6U. This can reduce the height difference between the substrate placement portion 6L of the first processing block layer BL and the substrate placement portion 6U of the second processing block layer BU. This can shorten the substrate transport stroke in the vertical direction Z by the indexer robot 26, thereby reducing the transport load of the indexer robot 26. This can increase the transport efficiency of the product substrate W, contributing to improved productivity.

[0114] In this embodiment, the dummy substrate accommodation section 7L, 7U of each processing block layer BL, BU includes a number of dummy substrate slots DL1-DL12, DU1-DU12, the same number as the number of processing units 11L-43L, 11U-43U included in the processing block layer BL, BU. Each dummy substrate slot DL1-DL12, DU1-DU12 is configured to hold one dummy substrate DW. This allows the same number of dummy substrates DW as the processing units 11L-43L, 11U-43U to be held in each processing block layer BL, BU. Therefore, if it becomes necessary to carry a dummy substrate DW into any of the processing units 11L-43L, 11U-43U, the main transport robot 8L, 8U can quickly carry the dummy substrate DW into the processing unit and perform dummy processing. Since the indexer robot 26 is not involved in carrying the dummy substrate DW, it is possible to suppress or prevent any influence on the transport of the product substrate W.

[0115] Furthermore, in this embodiment, the multiple processing units 11L-43L, 11U-43U of each processing block layer BL, BU correspond one-to-one to the multiple dummy substrate slots DL1-DL12, DU1-DU12 of the processing block layer. The main transport robots 8L, 8U transport the dummy substrates DW between the corresponding dummy substrate slots DL1-DL12, DU1-DU12 and the processing units 11L-43L, 11U-43U. With this configuration, the dummy substrates DW held in the dummy substrate slots can be used as dedicated dummy substrates for the corresponding processing units. This makes it easier to manage the usage history of the dummy substrates DW.

[0116] Furthermore, in this embodiment, when the dummy processing conditions (unit cleaning execution conditions, pre-processing execution conditions, maintenance execution conditions) are satisfied, the controller 110 controls the main transport robots 8L, 8U to transport the dummy substrate DW from the dummy substrate accommodation units 7L, 7U to the processing units 11L-43L, 11U-43U, and executes the dummy processing in the processing units. In this way, the dummy processing can be started by transporting the dummy substrate DW in the processing block layers BL, BU, so that the dummy processing can be started promptly while suppressing or preventing any influence on the transport of the product substrates W.

[0117] According to this embodiment, the controller 110 controls each part of the substrate processing apparatus 1 to execute the following steps. That is, in each processing block layer BL, BU, a dummy substrate loading step (steps A31, A71, A161) is executed in which the main transport robot 8L, 8U loads the dummy substrate DW accommodated in the dummy substrate accommodation unit 7L, 7U in the processing block layer into one of the processing units 11L-43L, 11U-43U in the processing block layer. Then, a dummy processing step (steps A32, A72, A162) is executed in which dummy processing is performed using the loaded dummy substrate DW in the processing unit. Furthermore, after the dummy processing, a step is executed in which the main transport robot 8L, 8U takes out the dummy substrate DW from the processing unit and transports it to the dummy substrate accommodation unit 7L, 7U (steps A33, A73, A163). Furthermore, a step is performed in which the substrate W placed on the substrate placement portion 6L, 6U of the processing block layer BL, BU is loaded into one of the processing units 11L-43L, 11U-43U of the processing block layer BL, BU (step A121). Then, a step is performed in which the loaded substrate W is processed in the processing unit (step A122). This allows the processing using the dummy substrate DW to be performed in the processing units 11L-43L, 11U-43U of each processing block layer BL, BU while reducing the transport load of the indexer robot 26. This improves production efficiency.

[0118] The controller 110 may control the indexer robot 26 to take out the substrate W from the carrier C held by the carrier holder 25 and to carry it into the substrate placement unit 6L, 6U of one of the processing block layers BL, BU in parallel with or prior to the substrate carry-in step (step A20). This allows the indexer robot 26 to carry the product substrate W into the processing block layers BL, BU while carrying the dummy substrate DW into the processing units 11L-43L, 11U-43U in each processing block layer BL, BU. The indexer robot 26 does not need to be involved in carrying in the dummy substrate DW, so that the dummy substrate DW can be transported in the processing block layers BL, BU without waiting for the substrate W to be transported by the indexer robot 26 or in parallel with the substrate transport. Therefore, the transport load on the indexer robot 26 can be reduced, and in the processing block layers BL, BU, the dummy substrate DW can be promptly transported to the processing units.

[0119] Furthermore, under the control of the controller 110, the above-mentioned dummy processing step (step A72) may be executed in parallel with or prior to the substrate loading step (step A20) in which the indexer robot 26 loads the product substrate W onto the substrate placement unit 6L, 6U. This reduces the transport load on the indexer robot 26 and allows the dummy processing to be started promptly in the processing block layers BL, BU. For example, when a substrate processing request is received from the host computer 150, the transport of the dummy substrate DW and the subsequent dummy processing can be started at an appropriate time in response to the request. This allows the environment in the processing units 11L-43L, 11U-43U to be prepared at an appropriate time, so that when the carrier C containing the product substrate W is loaded into the carrier holding unit 25, the processing of the substrate W can be started promptly. This contributes to improving productivity.

[0120] In addition, in this embodiment, a process of transferring the dummy substrate DW between the dummy substrate accommodating portion 7L of the first processing block layer BL and the dummy substrate accommodating portion 7U of the second processing block layer BU is performed. Therefore, the dummy substrate DW can be shared between the processing block layers BL and BU, and the dummy substrate DW accommodated in the dummy substrate accommodating portions 7L and 7U can be effectively utilized. This can reduce the number of times that the dummy substrate DW that has reached its usage limit is replaced with a new dummy substrate DW. Therefore, it can reduce the number of times and the time that the carrier holding portion 25 is occupied by the dummy carrier DC that accommodates the dummy substrate DW. This can contribute to improving productivity.

[0121] In addition, it is possible to perform dummy processing using a dummy substrate DW that has already been introduced into the substrate processing apparatus 1, without waiting for the supply of a dummy substrate DW from outside the substrate processing apparatus 1. Therefore, the dummy processing can be performed without delay, which also contributes to improving productivity. Furthermore, the transfer of the dummy substrate DW between the dummy substrate accommodation units 7L, 7U is performed under the condition that the status data calculated based on the dummy substrate history data 134 becomes a value indicating the need for replacement (the establishment of the dummy substrate transfer condition). This allows the transfer of the dummy substrate DW to be performed appropriately, thereby improving the utilization efficiency of the dummy substrate DW. As described above, the dummy substrate transfer condition may include a condition that the supply dummy carrier DC is not held in the carrier holding unit 25, and a condition that the supply dummy carrier DC held in the carrier holding unit 25 does not accommodate an unused dummy substrate DW that can replace the used dummy substrate DW. The dummy substrate transfer condition may also include a condition that the transfer of the dummy substrate DW within the substrate processing apparatus 1 can be completed faster than the supply of the dummy substrate DW from outside the substrate processing apparatus 1.

[0122] 11 is a schematic vertical cross-sectional view for explaining the configuration of a substrate processing apparatus according to a second embodiment of the present invention, and shows the configuration in a vertical cross-section corresponding to the vertical cross-section of FIG. 2. Compared with the first embodiment described above, in this embodiment, the intermediate partition wall 16 that separates the first processing block layer BL and the second processing block layer BU is removed. Furthermore, the support pillars 83 that guide the vertical movement of the main transport robots 8L and 8U extend vertically across the first processing block layer BL and the second processing block layer BU. This allows the main transport robots 8L and 8U to move vertically with a larger stroke than in the first embodiment. Of course, the controller 110 controls the operations of the main transport robots 8L and 8U so that they do not interfere with each other.

[0123] In this embodiment, the two substrate placement parts 6U, 6L in the first embodiment are replaced with one substrate placement part 6. The substrate placement part 6 is shared by the first processing block layer BL and the second processing block layer BU. That is, the main transport robot 8L of the first processing block layer BL can access the substrate placement part 6 and transports the product substrate W between the substrate placement part 6 and the processing units 11L-43L of the first processing block layer BL. The main transport robot 8L also transports the dummy substrate DW between the substrate placement part 6, the processing units 11L-43L, and the dummy substrate accommodation part 7L. Similarly, the main transport robot 8U of the second processing block layer BU can access the substrate placement part 6 and transports the product substrate W between the substrate placement part 6 and the processing units 11U-43U of the second processing block layer BU. Furthermore, the main transport robot 8U transports the dummy substrate DW between the substrate placement part 6, the processing units 11U-43U, and the dummy substrate accommodation part 7U.

[0124] The substrate placement section 6 includes an unprocessed substrate placement section 61 and a processed substrate placement section 62. However, since the substrate placement section 6 is shared by the first and second processing block layers BL and BU, it is preferable that the unprocessed substrate placement section 61 and the processed substrate placement section 62 each include a substrate holding shelf 65, 66 having more slots than in the first embodiment. The substrate holding shelves 65, 66 included in the substrate placement section 6 are preferably arranged such that at least one (i.e., a part or all) of the slots can be accessed by both main transport robots 8L and 8U. More specifically, the substrate holding shelf 65 (see FIG. 5) of the unprocessed substrate placement section 61 is preferably arranged such that at least one (i.e., a part or all) of the slots can be accessed by both main transport robots 8L and 8U. Similarly, the substrate holding shelf 66 (see FIG. 5) of the processed substrate placement portion 62 is preferably arranged so that at least one (i.e., a part or all) of the slots can be accessed by both of the main transport robots 8L, 8U. Hereinafter, a slot that can be accessed by both of the main transport robots 8L, 8U is referred to as a "shared slot."

[0125] The substrate mounting portion 6 is preferably arranged so as to be accessible by the indexer robot 26. More specifically, the indexer robot 26 is preferably configured so as to be able to access all of the slots of the substrate holding shelves 65, 66 of the substrate mounting portion 6 and to be able to load and unload the product substrates W or dummy substrates DW thereto. When it becomes necessary to transport a dummy substrate DW between processing block layers BL, BU, the controller 110 creates a plan for transporting the dummy substrate DW between the dummy substrate accommodation sections 7L, 7U via a transport route that passes through the substrate mounting section 6, and operates the main transport robots 8L, 8U in accordance with the plan.

[0126] Specifically, when the dummy substrate DW stored in the dummy substrate accommodation unit 7L is transported to the dummy substrate accommodation unit 7U, the main transport robot 8L takes out the dummy substrate DW to be transferred from the dummy substrate accommodation unit 7L and carries the dummy substrate DW into the slot of the substrate placement unit 6. At this time, the main transport robot 8L of the first processing block layer BL carries it into the shared slot of the substrate placement unit 6. After the target dummy substrate DW is carried into the shared slot, the main transport robot 8U of the second processing block layer BU takes out the dummy substrate DW from the shared slot of the substrate placement unit 6 and carries it into the dummy substrate accommodation unit 7U. In this way, the dummy substrate DW is transported from the first processing block layer BL to the second processing block layer BU.

[0127] The operation when transporting the dummy substrate DW stored in the dummy substrate accommodating unit 7U to the dummy substrate accommodating unit 7L is the opposite of that described above. That is, the main transport robot 8U takes out the dummy substrate DW to be transferred from the dummy substrate accommodating unit 7U and carries the dummy substrate DW into the shared slot of the substrate placement unit 6. Thereafter, the main transport robot 8L of the first processing block layer BL takes out the dummy substrate DW from the shared slot of the substrate placement unit 6 and carries it into the dummy substrate accommodating unit 7L. In this way, the dummy substrate DW is transported from the second processing block layer BU to the first processing block layer BL.

[0128] When exchanging the dummy substrate DW between the first processing block layer BL and the second processing block layer BU, the above two operations may be performed sequentially or in parallel. The above-mentioned operations are planned and executed by the controller 110, thereby achieving the transfer of the dummy substrate DW. In this embodiment, the substrate mounting part 6 has a shared slot accessible to both the main transport robots 8L, 8U, and therefore the dummy substrate DW can be transferred without the involvement of the indexer robot 26. This reduces the transport load on the indexer robot 26, which contributes to improved productivity.

[0129] Fig. 12 is a vertical cross-sectional view for explaining the configuration of a substrate processing apparatus according to a third embodiment of the present invention, showing the configuration in a vertical cross section corresponding to the vertical cross section of Fig. 2. In the first embodiment, windows 4L, 4U corresponding to the substrate placement portions 6L, 6U are formed in the adjacent partition walls 2a, 3a of the indexer block 2 and the processing block 3, but no windows corresponding to the dummy substrate accommodation portions 7L, 7U are formed. In contrast, in this embodiment, windows 5L, 5U corresponding to the dummy substrate accommodation portions 7L, 7U are added to the partition walls 2a, 3a.

[0130] By providing such additional windows 5L, 5U, when the dummy substrate DW is introduced into the processing block layer BL, BU, the indexer robot 26 can directly access the dummy substrate accommodation unit 7L, 7U to carry in the dummy substrate DW. Furthermore, when it becomes necessary to transfer the dummy substrate DW between the dummy substrate accommodation unit 7L of the first processing block layer BL and the dummy substrate accommodation unit 7L of the second processing block layer BU, the indexer robot 26 can directly access them and transfer the dummy substrate DW between them. Neither of the main transport robots 8L, 8U needs to be involved in the transfer of this dummy substrate DW. Therefore, the transport load of the main transport robots 8L, 8U can be reduced, improving productivity.

[0131] 13 is a schematic plan view showing the internal configuration of a substrate processing apparatus according to a fourth embodiment of the present invention. In the first embodiment, the processing units 11L-43U are divided into a first processing unit group provided in a lower processing block layer BL and a second processing unit group provided in an upper processing block layer BU, with a horizontal intermediate partition wall 16 provided between them. In contrast, in this embodiment, the intermediate partition wall 16 that divides the space in the processing block 3 into upper and lower parts is not provided, and instead, a central partition wall 18 that divides the space in the processing block 3 in the horizontal direction is provided.

[0132] The central partition 18 divides the space in the processing block 3 into left and right in a front view in the first horizontal direction X from the carrier holding part 25 side. The central partition 18 is a flat partition extending along the first horizontal direction X and the up-down direction Z near the center of the processing block 3 in the second horizontal direction Y (left-right direction). The central partition 18 forms a first processing block B1 arranged on one side thereof and a second processing block B2 arranged on the other side thereof. That is, the first processing block B1 and the second processing block B2 are arranged on the sides of each other. The multiple processing units 11L-43U provided in the processing block 3 are divided into a first processing unit group G1 included in the first processing block B1 and a second processing unit group G2 included in the second processing block B2. The arrangement of the multiple processing units 11L-43U is similar to that of the first embodiment, so in Fig. 13, the multiple processing units 11L-43U are given the same reference symbols as in Fig. 1. The first processing unit group G1 is composed of multiple processing units 11L, 12L, 13L, 11U, 12U, 13U; 21L, 22L, 23L, 21U, 22U, 23U forming the first tower T1 and the second tower T2. The second processing unit group G2 is composed of multiple processing units 31L, 32L, 33L, 31U, 32U, 33U; 41L, 42L, 43L, 41U, 42U, 43U forming the third tower T3 and the fourth tower T4.

[0133] A first main transport robot 8A is provided on one side of the central partition 18 in correspondence with the first processing unit group G1. The first main transport robot 8A operates in a first transport space 53A defined between the central partition 18 and the first processing unit group G1, whereby the product substrate W and the dummy substrate DW are transported through the first transport space 53A. Similarly, a second main transport robot 8B is provided on the other side of the central partition 18 in correspondence with the second processing unit group G2. The second main transport robot 8B operates in a second transport space 53B defined between the central partition 18 and the second processing unit group G2, whereby the product substrate W and the dummy substrate DW are transported through the second transport space 53B. The configurations of the first main transport robot 8A and the second main transport robot 8B are substantially similar to those of the second embodiment shown in FIG. 11, and therefore the same reference numerals are used for corresponding components, and the description thereof will be omitted. However, in this embodiment, the support pillar 83 that guides the vertical movement is fixed to the central partition wall 18.

[0134] Furthermore, a first substrate placement part 6A is provided at an end of the first transfer space 53A adjacent to the indexer block 2 in correspondence with the first processing unit group G1. Furthermore, a first dummy substrate accommodation part 7A is arranged above and / or below the first substrate placement part 6A so as to overlap partially or entirely with the first substrate placement part 6A in plan view. Similarly, a second substrate placement part 6B is provided at an end of the second transfer space 53B adjacent to the indexer block 2 in correspondence with the second processing unit group G2. Furthermore, a second dummy substrate accommodation part 7B is arranged above and / or below the second substrate placement part 6B so as to overlap partially or entirely with the second substrate placement part 6B in plan view.

[0135] The first main transport robot 8A can access the multiple processing units constituting the first processing unit group G1, the first substrate placement part 6A, and the first dummy substrate accommodation part 7A. As a result, the first main transport robot 8A transports the product substrate W between the multiple processing units constituting the first processing unit group G1 and the first substrate placement part 6A. The first main transport robot 8A also transports the dummy substrate DW between the multiple processing units constituting the first processing unit group G1, the first substrate placement part 6A, and the first dummy substrate accommodation part 7A. In this embodiment, the first main transport robot 8A cannot access any of the second processing unit group G2, the second substrate placement part 6B, and the second dummy substrate accommodation part 7B.

[0136] Similarly, the second main transport robot 8B can access the multiple processing units constituting the second processing unit group G2, the second substrate placement part 6B, and the second dummy substrate accommodation part 7B. As a result, the second main transport robot 8B transports the product substrate W between the multiple processing units constituting the second processing unit group G2 and the second substrate placement part 6B. In addition, the second main transport robot 8B transports the dummy substrate DW between the multiple processing units constituting the second processing unit group G2, the second substrate placement part 6B, and the second dummy substrate accommodation part 7B. In this embodiment, the second main transport robot 8B cannot access any of the first processing unit group G1, the first substrate placement part 6A, and the first dummy substrate accommodation part 7A.

[0137] The indexer robot 26 can access the carriers C, DC held by the carrier holding part 25, the first substrate mounting part 6A and the second substrate mounting part 6B, and transports the product substrate W and dummy substrate DW between them. In this embodiment, the indexer robot 26 cannot access either the first dummy substrate accommodation part 7A or the second dummy substrate accommodation part 7B. Needless to say, the indexer robot 26 cannot access the first processing unit group G1 or the second processing unit group G2 either.

[0138] In the substrate processing apparatus 1 having such a configuration, as in the first embodiment, the dummy substrate DW can be transferred between the first dummy substrate accommodating portion 7A and the second dummy substrate accommodating portion 7B as necessary. This fourth embodiment may be modified according to the second embodiment (see FIG. 11) and, instead of the first substrate placement portion 6A and the second substrate placement portion 6B, a substrate placement portion commonly accessible by the indexer robot 26, the first main transport robot 8A, and the second main transport robot 8B may be provided. For example, a notch may be provided in the end portion of the central partition 18 on the indexer block 2 side to provide a substrate placement portion commonly used by the first processing unit group G1 and the second processing unit group G2. By providing such a common substrate placement portion, the first main transport robot 8A and the second main transport robot 8B can transfer the dummy substrate DW between the first dummy substrate accommodation portion 7A and the second dummy substrate accommodation portion 7B without the involvement of the indexer robot.

[0139] Furthermore, the fourth embodiment may be modified following the third embodiment (see FIG. 12) described above, so that the indexer robot 26 can access the first dummy substrate accommodation portion 7A and the second dummy substrate accommodation portion 7B. This allows the indexer robot 26 to transfer the dummy substrate DW between the first dummy substrate accommodation portion 7A and the second dummy substrate accommodation portion 7B without the involvement of the first main transport robot 8A and the second main transport robot 8B.

[0140] Although four embodiments of the present invention have been described above, the present invention can be embodied in other forms. For example, in the first embodiment and the like described above, the configuration of the processing block 3 configured by stacking two processing block layers BL, BU has been shown, but the processing block may be configured by stacking three or more processing block layers. In addition, in the first embodiment and the like described above, an example has been shown in which each processing block layer BL, BU has a processing unit arrangement in which three processing block layers are stacked, but the processing units included in each processing block layer may be stacked in two stages, or may be stacked in four or more stages, or all the processing units may be arranged in one stage. Furthermore, in the first embodiment and the like described above, an example has been shown in which the processing units 11L-43U are arranged on both sides of the transport paths 51L, 51U, but the processing units may be arranged on one side of the transport paths 51L, 51U. In addition, in the first embodiment and the like described above, two processing units are arranged along one side of the transport paths 51L, 51U, but one processing unit may be arranged, or three or more processing units may be arranged.

[0141] Furthermore, in the above-mentioned first embodiment and the like, the dummy substrate accommodating sections 7L, 7U of each processing block layer BL, BU are provided with the same number of dummy substrate slots DL1-DL12, DU1-DU12 as the processing units 11L-43L, 11U-43U, which correspond one-to-one to the processing units 11L-43L, 11U-43U. However, for example, the number of dummy substrate slots in each processing block layer BL, BU may be made smaller than the number of processing units, so that one dummy substrate slot corresponds to multiple processing units.

[0142] In addition, various design modifications can be made within the scope of the claims. [Explanation of symbols]

[0143] C Carrier DC Dummy Carrier W board (product board) DW dummy board 1. Substrate Processing Equipment 2. Indexer Blocks 25 Carrier holding part 26 Indexer Robot 3 Processing Blocks BL 1st processing block layer 11L-13L Processing Unit 21L-23L Processing Unit 31L-33L Processing Unit 41L-43L Processing Unit 6L Substrate placement area 7L Dummy board housing DL1-DL12 Dummy board slot 8L Main transport robot 51L Transport route 52L transport space BU 2nd processing block layer 11U-13U Processing Unit 21U-23U Processing Unit 31U-33U Processing Unit 41U-43U Processing Unit 6U PCB placement area 7U Dummy board housing DU1-DU12 Dummy board slot 8U Main transport robot 51U Transport route 52U transport space B1 First processing block B2 Second processing block G1 First Processing Unit Group G2 Second Processing Unit Group 8A First main transport robot 8B Second main transport robot 6 Substrate placement section 6A First substrate placement section 6B Second substrate placement section 7A First dummy board housing section 7B Second dummy board housing section 110 Controller 150 Host Computer 300 Carrier transport mechanism

Claims

1. a carrier holding portion that holds a carrier that houses a substrate or a dummy substrate; a first processing unit group having a plurality of first processing units for processing a substrate and performing a process using a dummy substrate; a second processing unit group having a plurality of second processing units for processing a substrate and performing a process using a dummy substrate; a first dummy substrate accommodating portion for accommodating a dummy substrate; a second dummy substrate accommodating portion for accommodating a dummy substrate; a substrate placement section on which a substrate is placed; a first transport unit configured to be accessible to the plurality of first processing units, the substrate mounting portion, and the first dummy substrate accommodation portion, and configured to transport a substrate between the plurality of first processing units and the substrate mounting portion and to transport a dummy substrate between the plurality of first processing units and the first dummy substrate accommodation portion; a second transport unit configured to be accessible to the second processing units, the substrate mounting portion, and the second dummy substrate accommodation portion, and configured to transport a substrate between the second processing units and the substrate mounting portion and to transport a dummy substrate between the second processing units and the second dummy substrate accommodation portion; a third transport unit that is accessible to the carrier held by the carrier holding unit and the substrate mounting unit and transports a substrate between the carrier held by the carrier holding unit and the substrate mounting unit; A substrate processing apparatus comprising: a controller that controls the first transport unit, the second transport unit, and the third transport unit, and that performs dummy substrate transfer control to transfer a dummy substrate between the first dummy substrate accommodating portion and the second dummy substrate accommodating portion.

2. The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the controller executes the dummy substrate transfer control when a predetermined dummy substrate transfer condition is met.

3. The controller: a storage unit configured to store data including usage history information of a dummy substrate accommodated in the first dummy substrate accommodating portion and usage history information of a dummy substrate accommodated in the second dummy substrate accommodating portion; The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 2 , further comprising: a determination unit that determines whether or not the dummy substrate transfer condition is satisfied based on the data stored in the memory unit.

4. A substrate processing apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein, in the dummy substrate transfer control, the controller controls the first transport unit and the second transport unit so that a dummy substrate is transported between the first dummy substrate accommodating portion and the second dummy substrate accommodating portion via the substrate mounting portion.

5. the substrate placement part includes a first substrate placement part accessible to the first transport unit and the third transport unit, and a second substrate placement part accessible to the second transport unit and the third transport unit, The substrate processing apparatus of any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein, in the dummy substrate transfer control, the controller controls the first transport unit, the second transport unit, and the third transport unit such that the first transport unit transports a dummy substrate between the first dummy substrate accommodating section and the first substrate mounting section, the second transport unit transports a dummy substrate between the second dummy substrate accommodating section and the second substrate mounting section, and the third transport unit transports a dummy substrate between the first substrate mounting section and the second substrate mounting section.

6. the third transport unit is capable of accessing the first dummy substrate accommodating portion and the second dummy substrate accommodating portion, The substrate processing apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein, in the dummy substrate transfer control, the controller controls the third transport unit so as to transport a dummy substrate between the first dummy substrate accommodating section and the second dummy substrate accommodating section without passing through the substrate mounting section.

7. a first processing block layer and a second processing block layer located above the first processing block layer, the first processing unit group is disposed on the first processing block layer, The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the second processing unit group is arranged on the second processing block layer.

8. a first processing block and a second processing block located to one side of the first processing block, the first processing unit group is disposed in the first processing block; 7. The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the second processing unit group is arranged in the second processing block.

9. 9. The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the first dummy substrate accommodating portion and the second dummy substrate accommodating portion overlap with the substrate placement portion in a plan view.

10. The substrate processing apparatus according to claim 9 , wherein the first dummy substrate accommodating portion and the second dummy substrate accommodating portion are arranged above and below the substrate placement portion.

11. transporting the substrate between a plurality of first processing units belonging to a first processing unit group and the substrate mounting part by a first transport unit; processing the substrate transferred by the first transfer unit in the first processing unit; transporting a dummy substrate between the plurality of first processing units and a first dummy substrate accommodation unit by the first transport unit; performing a dummy process in the first processing unit using a dummy substrate transported by the first transport unit; transporting a substrate between a plurality of second processing units belonging to a second processing unit group and the substrate mounting part by a second transport unit; processing the substrate transferred by the second transfer unit in the second processing unit; transporting a dummy substrate between the second processing units and a second dummy substrate accommodation unit by the second transport unit; performing a dummy process in the second processing unit using a dummy substrate transported by the second transport unit; transporting a substrate between a carrier held by a carrier holding part and the substrate mounting part by a third transport unit; a dummy substrate transfer step of transferring a dummy substrate between the first dummy substrate accommodating portion and the second dummy substrate accommodating portion; A method for processing a substrate, comprising:

12. The substrate processing method according to claim 11 , wherein in the dummy substrate transferring step, the dummy substrate is transferred between the first dummy substrate accommodating part and the second dummy substrate accommodating part via the substrate placement part.

13. the substrate placement part includes a first substrate placement part accessible to the first transport unit and the third transport unit, and a second substrate placement part accessible to the second transport unit and the third transport unit, 13. The substrate processing method according to claim 11 or 12, wherein the dummy substrate transfer process includes a process in which the first transport unit transports a dummy substrate between the first dummy substrate accommodating portion and the first substrate mounting portion, a process in which the second transport unit transports a dummy substrate between the second dummy substrate accommodating portion and the second substrate mounting portion, and a process in which the third transport unit transports a dummy substrate between the first substrate mounting portion and the second substrate mounting portion.

14. the third transport unit is capable of accessing the first dummy substrate accommodating portion and the second dummy substrate accommodating portion, 12. The substrate processing method according to claim 11, wherein in the dummy substrate transfer process, the third transport unit transports the dummy substrate between the first dummy substrate accommodating portion and the second dummy substrate accommodating portion without passing through the substrate mounting portion.

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