Substrate transport device, substrate transport method, and bonding device

Abstract

To provide a substrate conveyance device, a substrate conveyance method, and a bonding device capable of effectively preventing a substrate from floating on a predetermined position (e.g., bonding position) and responding stably to a change in the substrate size.SOLUTION: Included is a conveyance mechanism for conveying a substrate from upstream to downstream along a conveyance direction. When a group of islands in a row consisting of a plurality of islands provided at a predetermined pitch in a substrate width direction is conveyed to a predetermined position via a conveyance mechanism, both end parts in the substrate width direction in the group of islands in a row are held by a pair of holding members for holding both end parts. Each holding member is moved up and down independently via a vertical movement mechanism. At least one of the pair of holding members is moved in a width direction via a width direction moving mechanism.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a substrate transport apparatus, a substrate transport method, and a bonding apparatus. [Background technology]

[0002] In the manufacture of semiconductor devices, a chip bonding technique is adopted in which a wafer on which many elements are collectively fabricated is diced to separate it into individual semiconductor chips, which are then bonded one by one to a predetermined position on a lead frame, etc. A die bonder (bonding device) is used for this chip bonding.

[0003] As shown in FIG. 10, the bonding apparatus includes a bonding arm (not shown) having a collet 3 that adsorbs the semiconductor chip 1 from the supply unit 2, a confirmation camera (not shown) that observes the semiconductor chip 1 from the supply unit 2, and another confirmation camera (not shown) that observes the island portion 5 of the lead frame 4 at the bonding position.

[0004] The supply unit 2 is equipped with a semiconductor wafer 6 (see FIG. 9), and the semiconductor wafer 6 is divided into a large number of semiconductor chips 1. That is, the wafer 6 is attached to an adhesive sheet (dicing sheet), and this dicing sheet is held by a ring-shaped frame. Then, the wafer 6 on the dicing sheet is diced into individual chips 1 using a circular blade (dicing saw) or the like. Also, the bonding arm holding the collet 3 can be moved between the pick-up position and the bonding position via a transport mechanism.

[0005] Furthermore, the chip 1 is vacuum-sucked into the collet 3 through a suction hole opened in the lower end surface thereof, and the chip 1 is adsorbed to the lower end surface of the collet 3. When this vacuum suction (vacuum drawing) is released, the chip 1 is released from the collet 3.

[0006] Next, we will explain the die bonding method using this die bonder. First, the chip 1 to be picked up is observed by a confirmation camera arranged above the supply unit 2, and the collet 3 is positioned above the chip 1 to be picked up. Then, the collet 3 is lowered as shown by arrow B to pick up the chip 1. Then, the collet 3 is raised as shown by arrow A.

[0007] Next, the island portion 5 of the lead frame (substrate) 4 to be bonded is observed with a confirmation camera arranged above the bonding position, and the collet 3 is moved in the direction of arrow E until it is positioned above this island portion 5, and then the collet 3 is moved downward as shown by arrow D to supply the chip 1 to the island portion 5. Furthermore, after the chip 1 has been supplied to the island portion 5, the collet 3 is raised as shown by arrow C, and then returned to the standby position above the pick-up position as shown by arrow F.

[0008] Incidentally, when bonding chip 1 to island portion 5 of substrate 4, if substrate 4 floats up, the chip mounting accuracy deteriorates. Therefore, conventionally, the substrate 4 has been held down during bonding to prevent it from floating up.

[0009] As a pressing mechanism for pressing down the substrate 4 in this manner, one shown in Fig. 8 is proposed. The pressing mechanism shown in Fig. 8 includes a pressing member 10 disposed along the width direction perpendicular to the transport direction of the substrate 4. The pressing member 10 has a pressing member main body 11 and a pair of pressing bodies 12A, 12B suspended from the main body 11. The pair of pressing bodies 12A, 12B respectively correspond to both ends of the substrate 4 in the width direction at the bonding position Q.

[0010] Meanwhile, the substrate 4 is transported from the upstream side to the downstream side along the transport path 15 formed between a pair of guide rails 13A, 13B. In this case, one of the substrate ends in the width direction perpendicular to the transport direction is chucked by the gripper 16, and the gripper 16 is transported downstream via a drive mechanism (not shown). This allows the substrate 4 to be transported sequentially upstream.

[0011] The pressing member 10 is supported on the other guide rail 13B side in a so-called cantilever shape, and moves up and down in the direction of the arrow Z by a vertical movement drive mechanism (not shown). A substrate receiver 17 for receiving the substrate 4 is disposed within the transport path 15. The substrate receiver 17 includes a heater plate 18 for heating the substrate 4, disposed at least at a portion corresponding to the bonding position.

[0012] Moreover, the heater plate 18 is placed on a heater block 19. The heater block 19 has a built-in heat source (heater) (not shown), and the heater plate 18 has a plurality of suction ports formed therein for adsorbing the substrate 4 to the heater plate.

[0013] With this configuration, when the substrate 4 (the island portion of the substrate to which the chip is to be bonded) is transported to the bonding position via a transport means (transport mechanism) equipped with the gripper 16 and a drive mechanism (not shown), the pressing member 10 is lowered and the pressing bodies 12A and 12B press the substrate 4. At this time, the substrate 4 is attracted to the heater plate 18. The gripper 16 moves in the direction of the arrow Y (substrate width direction) by a drive mechanism (not shown).

[0014] Then, while the substrate 4 is attached to the heater plate 18 and held down by the holding member 10, the chip 1 is bonded to the island of the substrate 4.

[0015] This effectively prevents the substrate 4 from floating up from the heater plate 18, thereby preventing deterioration of chip mounting accuracy.

[0016] Conventionally, there are substrate holding mechanisms described in Patent Documents 1 to 4. In the lead frame transport device described in Patent Document 1, a clamp plate is lowered by a clamp support mechanism to hold down the substrate (lead frame). In this case, the clamp plate is lowered by driving a cam of a cam mechanism.

[0017] The devices described in Patent Documents 2 and 3 are equipped with a pressing arm that presses the lead frame against the surface of the rail during bonding. In this case, the board transport path is covered with a cover, and an opening for bonding is provided in the cover. Therefore, the tip of the pressing arm presses the board through this opening. Also, when the shaft rotates, the eccentric cam rotates, and the member to which the pressing arm is attached moves up and down, which causes the pressing arm to move up and down.

[0018] Patent Document 4 relates to a pressing device that presses down the lead terminals of a lead frame. In this case, a pressing body having a flat portion that contacts each lead terminal around the island portion of the lead frame is provided. For this reason, the pressing body has a through hole into which a semiconductor chip fits. That is, in Patent Document 4, each terminal of the lead frame is pressed down by the pressing body, and wire bonding is performed while each lead terminal is immobilized. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0019] [Patent Document 1] JP 2003-77943 A [Patent Document 2] JP 2003-224145 A [Patent Document 3] JP 2003-224148 A [Patent Document 4] Patent No. 3490183 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0020] In the case shown in Fig. 8, the distance between the pair of pressers 12A, 12B of the presser member 10 is constant. This means that it is not possible to accommodate changes in board size. This means that it is necessary to prepare presser members 10 according to the board size, which increases costs and requires replacement work, resulting in poor productivity.

[0021] Furthermore, when the substrate 4 is large, the pressing member 10 must be made larger and heavier in order to ensure the pressing rigidity. Furthermore, since the pressing member 10 is in a cantilever shape, the pressing portion 12A side that is separated from the support portion bends, and pressing portions 12A and 12B cannot be pressed in parallel, and there is a risk that the substrate 4 cannot be pressed stably.

[0022] Furthermore, by moving the pressing member 10 up and down, the pair of pressers 12A, 12B are moved up and down, so that the substrate 4 is pressed down simultaneously. If the substrate 4 is pressed down simultaneously in this manner, voids are likely to occur between the substrate 4 between the pressers 12A, 12B and the heater plate 18 of the substrate receiver 17, and if a void occurs, there is a risk that the accuracy of chip mounting will deteriorate.

[0023] In the method described in Patent Document 1, the length of the clamp plate that is lowered to hold the substrate (lead frame) is fixed, and it is not possible to accommodate changes in substrate size. In addition, multiple clamp plates move up and down simultaneously, which may cause voids to occur between the clamp plates.

[0024] The devices described in Patent Documents 2 and 3 also cannot accommodate changes in the size of the board. In addition, the pair of pressing arms move up and down at the same time.

[0025] In Patent Document 4, each terminal of the lead frame is held down by a holding body, and wire bonding is performed while each lead terminal is immobilized. In other words, Patent Document 4 does not prevent the substrate from floating during bonding.

[0026] In view of the above, the present invention provides a substrate transport device and a substrate transport method that can effectively prevent a substrate from floating at a predetermined position (eg, a bonding position) and can also stably accommodate changes in substrate size. [Means for solving the problem]

[0027] The substrate transport device of the present invention is a substrate transport device that transports a substrate having islands formed in a matrix shape at a predetermined pitch along the transport direction and a width direction, which is a direction perpendicular to the transport direction, from the upstream side to the downstream side along the transport direction, and is equipped with a transport mechanism that transports the substrate from the upstream side to the downstream side along the transport direction, a pair of pressing members that press both widthwise ends of the substrate in a row of island groups consisting of a plurality of islands arranged at a predetermined pitch in the width direction when the row of island groups is transported to a predetermined position via the transport mechanism, an up-down movement mechanism that moves each pressing member up and down independently, and a widthwise movement mechanism that moves at least one of the pair of pressing members in the width direction.

[0028] According to the substrate transport device of the present invention, the substrate can be transported from the upstream side to the downstream side along the transport direction via the transport mechanism. Also, a pair of pressing members can press both widthwise ends of the substrate in a row of islands. This can prevent the substrate from floating up at the bonding position. Furthermore, a width direction movement mechanism can move at least one of the pair of pressing members in the width direction. This can accommodate substrates of different sizes (substrates with different width dimensions).

[0029] It is preferable that the substrate conveying device has a conveying path along which the substrate is conveyed, the conveying path has a substrate receiver that receives the substrate and adsorbs the substrate, and the substrate receiver has a heating section that heats the substrate at least in a section corresponding to the bonding position, which is the predetermined position. By having such a substrate receiver, it is possible to effectively prevent the substrate from floating up at the bonding position. In addition, in a device having such a heating section, if the adhesive supplied to the islands is one that hardens when heated (e.g., a die attach film, etc.), the chips can be stably bonded to each island by thermocompression.

[0030] The operation of the pair of pressing members can be controlled to provide a mode in which the substrate is pressed simultaneously and a mode in which one pressing member is pressed earlier than the other pressing member. In the case of using a substrate that is unlikely to generate voids between the substrate and the receiving member (substrate receiver), the mode in which the substrate is pressed simultaneously can shorten the bonding operation, resulting in an apparatus with excellent productivity. In addition, when a substrate that is likely to generate voids between the substrate and the substrate receiver is used, if the mode in which one pressing member is pressed earlier than the other pressing member is used, the substrate is pressed from one pressing member side, and thereafter, the substrate can be sucked to the substrate receiver starting from this one side toward the other side, and voids can be prevented from being generated on the underside of the substrate.

[0031] It is preferable that the transport mechanism includes a gripper for chuck- ing at least one of the widthwise ends of the substrate, a gripper transport direction moving mechanism for moving the gripper along the transport direction, and a gripper width direction moving mechanism for moving the gripper along the width direction which is perpendicular to the substrate transport direction.

[0032] By setting it in this way, the substrate can be stably transported from the upstream side to the downstream side in the transport direction. Also, since the gripper can move in the width direction, which is the direction perpendicular to the substrate transport direction, it can accommodate changes in substrate size (changes in substrates with different width dimensions).

[0033] The bonding apparatus of the present invention is a bonding apparatus that uses the substrate transport apparatus, and bonds a chip to each island in the row of islands while the substrate is being held down by a pair of holding members.

[0034] The bonding device of the present invention can prevent the substrate from floating up at the bonding position, and can perform the chip bonding operation without the substrate floating up. Furthermore, the width direction movement mechanism can move at least one of the pair of pressing members in the width direction. Therefore, it can handle substrates of different sizes (substrates with different width dimensions).

[0035] The substrate transport method of the present invention is a substrate transport method in which a substrate having islands formed in a matrix shape at a predetermined pitch along the transport direction and a width direction, which is a direction perpendicular to the transport direction, is transported from the upstream side to the downstream side along the transport direction, and when a row of island groups consisting of a plurality of islands arranged at a predetermined pitch in the width direction is transported to a bonding position, which is a predetermined position, both widthwise ends of the substrate in the row of island groups are pressed by a pair of independent pressing members, and in this state, a chip is bonded to each island in the island group.

[0036] The substrate transport method according to the present invention can prevent the substrate from floating up at the bonding position, and can perform chip bonding operations without the substrate floating up. In addition, stable bonding operations can be performed even for substrates of different sizes (substrates with different width dimensions).

[0037] It is preferable to press one of the pair of pressing members against the substrate early and to allow the substrate to be adsorbed onto the substrate receiver disposed at the bonding position from one pressing member side toward the other pressing member side. In this method, the substrate is pressed from one pressing member side, and then the substrate can be adsorbed onto the substrate receiver starting from this one side toward the other side in sequence, which prevents the generation of voids on the underside of the substrate. Effect of the Invention

[0038] The present invention can prevent the substrate from floating up at the bonding position, so that the chip mounting accuracy is not deteriorated. It can also accommodate substrates of different sizes, effectively preventing high costs, and does not require replacement of the pressing member, resulting in excellent productivity. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0039] [Figure 1] 1 is a simplified block diagram of a substrate transport apparatus according to the present invention; [Diagram 2] 2 is a simplified block diagram of a transport mechanism of the substrate transport apparatus; [Diagram 3] 11 is a simplified cross-sectional view of a main portion of a state in which the substrates are simultaneously held down by the holding members of the substrate transport device. FIG. [Figure 4] 11 is a simplified cross-sectional view of a main part of a state in which a substrate is pressed by a pressing member of a substrate transport device at different times. FIG. [Diagram 5] FIG. [Figure 6] FIG. 2 is a simplified perspective view showing a wafer. [Figure 7] 1 is a simplified diagram showing a bonding process. [Figure 8] FIG. 1 is a simplified cross-sectional view of a conventional substrate transport device. [Figure 9] FIG. 2 is a simplified perspective view showing a wafer. [Figure 10] 1 is a simplified diagram showing a bonding process. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0040] Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to Figs.

[0041] FIG. 1 shows a simplified block diagram of a substrate conveying device according to the present invention. As shown in FIG. 5, the substrate conveying device conveys a substrate 22 on which islands 30 are formed in a matrix shape at a predetermined pitch along a conveying direction (the direction of an arrow in FIG. 5) and a width direction perpendicular to the conveying direction, from the upstream side to the downstream side along the conveying direction. In FIG. 5, for the sake of simplicity, the islands 30 on which the chips 21 are mounted are formed in two rows along the conveying direction and six columns in a direction perpendicular to the conveying direction, but this is not limited to this. An adhesive is applied to each island 30 at a dispense position upstream of the bonding position Q (see FIG. 7) in the conveying direction. Examples of the adhesive include solder paste, resin paste, and resin film. In addition, various resin bonding materials such as epoxy and polyamide can be used as the resin paste and resin film.

[0042] The substrate transport device includes a transport mechanism 31 that transports substrate 22 from the upstream side to the downstream side along the transport direction, a pair of pressing members 32A, 32B that press both ends of substrate 22 in the width direction in one row of island group 30A when island group 30A arranged at a predetermined pitch in the width direction (direction perpendicular to the transport direction) is transported to a predetermined position (bonding position) via transport mechanism 31, up-down movement mechanisms 33A, 33B that independently move each pressing member 32A, 32B up and down in the directions of arrows Z1, Z2, and a pair of pressing members 32A, 32B that move at least one of the pair of pressing members 32A, 32B in the direction of arrow Y (see FIG. 3). and a width direction moving mechanism 34 for moving the sheet in the width direction.

[0043] 3, each of the pressing members 32A and 32B includes pressing pieces 35A and 35B for pressing the substrate surface at the widthwise end of the substrate 22. Therefore, when the pressing members 32A and 32B are lowered via the vertical movement mechanisms 33A and 33B, the pressing pieces 35A and 35B can press the substrate surface at the widthwise end of the substrate 22 at the bonding position Q, and when the pressing pieces 35A and 35B are raised via the vertical movement mechanisms 33A and 33B, they are separated from the substrate surface and the substrate pressing state is released. The pressing pieces 35A and 35B are made of a flat plate whose thickness direction is the substrate width direction, and the substrate transfer direction dimension is equal to or slightly longer than the substrate transfer direction dimension of the island 30, and the thickness dimension may be such that the pressing pieces 35A and 35B have a rigidity that does not buckle when pressing the substrate 22. 3, when the substrate 22 is pressed by the pressing pieces 35A and 35B, the pressing pieces 35A and 35B press the outer widthwise sides of the row of island group 30A at bonding position Q. Therefore, the pressing pieces 35A and 35B do not affect the bonding operation (movement) of the chip 21 to each island 30 in the island group 30A.

[0044] In this embodiment, one pressing member 32A is movable in the width direction and the up-down direction, while the other pressing member 32B is not movable in the width direction. In this case, the one pressing member 32A and the other pressing member 32B can be moved up and down independently. The up-down movement mechanisms 33A, 33B and the width direction movement mechanism 34 can be various known and commonly used movement mechanisms such as a ball screw mechanism, a cylinder mechanism, a motor linear mechanism, etc.

[0045] Furthermore, the substrate 22 is transported along a transport path 40 as shown in Fig. 5. As shown in Fig. 3, the transport path 40 includes guide rails 41A and 41B, and a substrate receiver 42 is provided between the guide rails 41A and 41B. As shown in Fig. 3, a bonding position Q including a heater block 44 and a heater plate (heating unit) 45 disposed on the heater block 44 is provided downstream of the transport path 40. The bonding position Q in this case is a range corresponding to a row of island group 30A including islands 30 to which chips 21 are to be bonded.

[0046] The heater block 44 is provided with a built-in heat source (heater) (not shown), and the heater plate 45 is provided with a plurality of suction ports for suctioning the substrate 22 to the heater plate 45. For this reason, the heater plate 45 is provided with a suction mechanism 35 (see FIG. 1). The suction mechanism 35 includes a vacuum path provided in the heater plate 45 and a suction port communicating with the vacuum path and opening on the upper surface of the heater plate 45, and a vacuum generator (not shown), such as a vacuum pump or an ejector, is connected to the vacuum path.

[0047] One guide rail 41A has a positioning piece 46 that faces an end portion that positions one width direction end portion 22a of the substrate 22, and the other guide rail 41B has a receiving portion 47 that receives the other width direction end portion 22b of the substrate 22. The positioning piece 46 of one guide rail 41A moves toward or away from the substrate width direction via a moving mechanism (not shown).

[0048] As shown in FIG. 2, the transport mechanism 31 includes a gripper 50 that chucks one widthwise end portion 22a of the substrate 22, a gripper transport direction reciprocating mechanism 51 that transports the gripper 50 from the upstream side to the downstream side of the transport path and from the downstream side to the upstream side, a gripper opening / closing mechanism 52 that opens and closes the gripper 50, and a gripper width direction moving mechanism 53 that moves the gripper 50 in a direction approaching or separating along the substrate width direction.

[0049] 3, the gripper 50 includes a pair of upper and lower gripping members 50a, 50b, and each of the gripping members 50a, 50b moves up and down via a gripper opening / closing mechanism 52. The gripping members 50a, 50b are provided with gripping pieces 55, 55, and the gripping members 50a, 50b are opened by being displaced in directions away from each other by the gripper opening / closing mechanism 52, and are closed by being displaced in directions approaching each other by the gripper opening / closing mechanism 52, thereby enabling the other width direction end of the substrate 22 to be chucked.

[0050] The gripper 50 is capable of chucking all of the substrates 22 in the transport path 40 at once, and various known and commonly used moving mechanisms such as a ball screw mechanism, a cylinder mechanism, a motor linear mechanism, etc. can be used for the gripper transport direction reciprocating mechanism 51, the gripper opening / closing mechanism 52, and the gripper width direction moving mechanism 53. The moving mechanism that moves the positioning piece 46 of one of the guide rails 41A can be composed of the gripper width direction moving mechanism 53.

[0051] Incidentally, each mechanism 31, 33, 34, 35, 51, 52, 53 of this device is controlled by a computer 100 shown in FIG. 1. Here, the computer 100 is basically composed of an input means having an input function, an output means having an output function, a storage means having a storage function, a calculation means having a calculation function, and a control means having a control function. The input function is for reading information from the outside into the computer, and the read data and programs are converted into signals in a format suitable for the computer system. The output function is for displaying the calculation results and stored data to the outside. The storage means is for storing and saving programs, data, processing results, etc. The calculation function is for processing data by calculating and comparing according to program instructions. The control function is for decoding program instructions and issuing instructions to each means, and this control function is for controlling all the means of the computer. The input means include a keyboard, a mouse, a tablet, a microphone, a joystick, a scanner, a capture board, etc. Also, the output means include a monitor, a speaker, a printer, etc. The storage means includes memory, hard disk, CD / CD-R, PD / MO, etc. The calculation means includes a CPU, etc., and the control means includes a CPU, motherboard, etc.

[0052] Meanwhile, chips 21 are bonded to islands 30 of substrate 22 at a bonding position by a bonding device. As shown in Fig. 7, the bonding device picks up chips (semiconductor chips) 21 cut out from wafer 26 (see Fig. 6) at a pickup position P with a collet (suction collet) 23, and transfers (mounts) them to a bonding position Q of substrate 22 such as a lead frame. As shown in Fig. 6, wafer 26 is adhered to a wafer sheet (adhesive sheet 25) stretched over a metal ring (wafer ring), and is cut (divided) into a large number of chips 21 by a dicing process.

[0053] 7, collet 23 can move upward in the direction of arrow A and downward in the direction of arrow B at pickup position P, can move upward in the direction of arrow C and downward in the direction of arrow D at bonding position Q, and can move in the directions of arrows E and F between pickup position P and bonding position Q. Collet 23 is attached to a bonding head (not shown), and this bonding head is attached to a bonding arm (not shown). The bonding arm is controlled by a control means (not shown) to control the movements of collet 23 in the directions of arrows A, B, C, D, E, and F.

[0054] Next, a process for transporting a substrate by the substrate transport device configured as described above will be described. The substrate 22 is supplied to the transport path 40. In this case, as shown in Fig. 5, a plurality of substrates 22 are arranged at a predetermined pitch along the transport direction. Then, each substrate 22 is received by the substrate receiver 42 and guided by the guide rails 41A and 41B. That is, the other widthwise end 22b of the substrate 22 is received by the receiver 47 of the other guide rail 41B, and the edge of one widthwise end 22a of the substrate 22 faces the positioning piece 46 of one guide rail 41A from the outside in the width direction.

[0055] In this state, as shown in FIG. 3, one widthwise end portion 22a of the substrate 22 is gripped (chucked) by the gripper 50, and the substrate 22 is transported at a predetermined pitch along the transport path 40 from the upstream side to the downstream side via the gripper transport direction reciprocating mechanism 51.

[0056] When the most downstream row of island group 30A (an island group having islands 30 to which chips 21 are to be bonded) on the substrate 22 is transported to a predetermined position (bonding position Q) via the gripper transport direction reciprocating mechanism 51 of the transport mechanism 31, the transport of the substrate 22 is stopped.

[0057] In this state, the substrate 22 is attracted to the heater plate 45 and heated via the heater plate 45. Then, the pressing members 32A and 32B move down to press down both widthwise ends of the substrate 22, thereby effectively preventing the substrate 22 from lifting up from the heater plate 45.

[0058] In this manner, the chips 21 are bonded by the bonding device in sequence from the island 30 at one widthwise end 22a of the row of island group 30A to the island 30 at the other widthwise end 22b, or from the island 30 at the other widthwise end 22b to the island 30 at one widthwise end 22a, with the substrate 22 in intimate contact with the heater plate 45 without floating up. During this bonding operation, the gripper 50 may release the chuck of the substrate 22 from its chuck or may maintain the chuck.

[0059] When bonding of the chips 21 to each island 30 in the row of island group 30A is completed, the pressing members 32A and 32B are raised to release the pressing of the substrate by the pressing members 32A and 32B. Also, the suction of substrate 22 to heater plate 45 is released.

[0060] After that, the substrate is transported one pitch downstream. In this case, one pitch is the feed amount that brings the next row of island groups 30A into correspondence with the bonding position. After this, as in the previous step, substrate 22 is attracted to heater plate 45, substrate 22 is heated via heater plate 45, and both widthwise ends of substrate 22 are pressed by pressing members 32A and 32B. Then, chips 21 are bonded to islands 30 in one row of island groups 30A.

[0061] By performing similar operations thereafter, chips 21 can be bonded to each island 30 of one substrate 22. Thereafter, if the row of islands 30 on the most downstream side of the next substrate 22 is transported to bonding position Q, chips 21 can be bonded to all islands 30 of this substrate 22. That is, chips 21 can be bonded to all islands 30 of the substrate 22 supplied to the transport path 40.

[0062] Incidentally, in the state shown in FIG. 3, a pair of pressing members 32A, 32B are in a mode for simultaneously pressing the widthwise ends of the substrate 22. However, as shown in FIG. 4, a mode may also be set in which one pressing member 32A presses the substrate 22 earlier than the other pressing member 32B.

[0063] In this way, by accelerating the one pressing member 32A, it is possible to effectively prevent the occurrence of voids that are likely to occur between the substrate 22 and the heater plate 45. That is, if only one pressing member 32A is lowered as shown by the arrow Z1a to press one widthwise end 22a of the substrate 22, the substrate 22 will be in a state of floating from one widthwise end 22a side toward the other widthwise end 22b side, as shown in Fig. 4. At this time, the substrate 22 is attracted to the heater plate 45, so that the substrate 22 is brought into close contact with the heater plate 45 successively from one widthwise end 22a side to the other widthwise end 22b side, and air is generated between the substrate 22 and the heater plate 45 and discharged from one widthwise end side. In this state, if the other pressing member 32B is lowered along the arrow Z2a direction, it is possible to prevent the occurrence of voids.

[0064] According to the substrate transport device of the present invention, the substrate 22 can be transported from the upstream side to the downstream side along the transport direction via the transport mechanism 31. In addition, the pair of pressing members 32 can press both widthwise ends 22a, 22b of the substrate 22 in a row of island groups 30A. This can prevent the substrate 22 from floating up at the bonding position Q. Furthermore, the width-direction moving mechanism 34 can move at least one of the pair of pressing members 32A, 32B in the width direction. This makes it possible to handle substrates of different sizes (substrates with different width dimensions).

[0065] That is, the substrate 22 can be prevented from floating up at the bonding position Q, and thus the chip mounting accuracy is not deteriorated. Also, substrates 22 of different sizes can be accommodated, which effectively prevents the cost from increasing and eliminates the need for replacing the pressing members 32A and 32B, resulting in excellent productivity.

[0066] Also, the device is provided with a transport path 40 along which the substrate 22 is transported, the transport path 40 having a substrate receiver 42 that receives the substrate 22 and adsorbs the substrate 22, and the substrate receiver 42 is preferably provided with a heating section (heater plate 45) that heats the substrate receiver 42 at least in a section corresponding to the bonding position Q, which is a predetermined position. By providing such a substrate receiver 42, the substrate 22 can be effectively prevented from floating up at the bonding position Q. Also, in a device provided with such a heating section 45, if the adhesive supplied to the island 30 is one that hardens when heated (for example, a die attach film), the chip can be stably bonded to each island by thermocompression.

[0067] The operation of the pair of pressing members 32A and 32B can be controlled to provide a mode in which the substrate 22 is pressed simultaneously, and a mode in which one pressing member 32A is pressed earlier than the other pressing member 32B. In the case of using a substrate 22 in which voids are unlikely to occur between the substrate 22 and the substrate receiver 42, the mode in which the substrate 22 is pressed simultaneously can shorten the bonding work, resulting in an apparatus with excellent productivity. In addition, if the pair of pressing members 32A press the substrate 22 simultaneously, in the case of using a substrate in which voids are likely to occur between the substrate 22 and the heater plate 45 of the substrate receiver 42, the mode in which one pressing member 32A is pressed earlier than the other pressing member 32B can be used to press the substrate 22 from the side of one pressing member 32A, and thereafter, the substrate 22 can be sucked to the substrate receiver 42 in sequence starting from this side toward the other side, and voids can be prevented from occurring on the lower surface side of the substrate 22.

[0068] It is preferable that the conveying mechanism 31 includes a gripper 50 that chucks at least one of the widthwise ends of the substrate 22, a gripper conveying direction reciprocating mechanism 51 that moves the gripper 50 along the conveying direction, and a gripper width direction moving mechanism 53 that moves the gripper 50 along the width direction, which is a direction perpendicular to the substrate conveying direction.

[0069] By setting it in this way, the substrate 22 can be stably transported from the upstream side to the downstream side in the transport direction. In addition, since the gripper 50 can move in the width direction, which is a direction perpendicular to the substrate transport direction, it is possible to accommodate changes in the size of the substrate 22 (changes in substrates with different width dimensions).

[0070] The bonding apparatus of the present invention is a bonding apparatus that uses the present substrate transport apparatus, and bonds chips 21 to each island 30 in a row of island group 30A while substrate 22 is held down by a pair of holding members 32A, 32B.

[0071] The bonding device of the present invention can prevent the substrate 22 from floating up at the bonding position Q, and can perform the bonding operation of the chip 21 while the substrate 22 is not floating up. Furthermore, the width direction moving mechanism 34 can move at least one of the pair of pressing members 32A, 32B in the width direction. Therefore, it can handle substrates 22 of different sizes (substrates with different width dimensions).

[0072] The substrate transport method of the present invention is a substrate transport method for transporting a substrate 22, on which islands 30 are formed in a matrix shape at a predetermined pitch along the transport direction and a width direction that is perpendicular to the transport direction, from the upstream side to the downstream side along the transport direction, in which, when a row of island group 30A arranged at a predetermined pitch in the width direction is transported to a predetermined bonding position Q, both widthwise ends 22a, 22b of the substrate 22 are pressed by a pair of independent pressing members 32A, 32B, respectively, and in this state, a chip 21 is bonded to each island 30 in the island group 30A.

[0073] In the substrate conveying method according to the present invention, it is possible to prevent the substrate 22 from floating up at the bonding position Q, and to perform the bonding operation of the chip 21 while the substrate 22 is not floating up. In addition, it is possible to perform a stable bonding operation even for substrates 22 of different sizes (substrates having different width dimensions).

[0074] The present invention is not limited to the above embodiment and various modifications are possible, for example, in the embodiment, the other pressing member 32B does not move in the board width direction, but the other pressing member 32B may move in the board width direction. Also, since the gripper 50 is capable of gripping all the boards 22 in the transport path, the length in the transport direction may be one unit that spans the entire length of the transport path, or multiple units corresponding to each board.

[0075] In the above embodiment, a means for heating the substrate 22 is provided because a thermosetting resin that hardens when heated is used as the adhesive. However, if no such adhesive is used, there is no need to provide such a heating means.

[0076] 4, the pressing of the board by one pressing member 32A is earlier than the pressing of the board by the other pressing member 32B, that is, the pressing of the board by the other pressing member 32B is later than the pressing of the board by one pressing member 32A. However, when shifting the timing of pressing the board by one pressing member 32A and the timing of pressing the board by the other pressing member 32B, the pressing of the board by the other pressing member 32B may be earlier than the pressing of the board by one pressing member 32A. [Explanation of symbols]

[0077] Q Bonding Position 21 Chips 22 Substrate 22a Width direction end 22b Width end 30 Island 30A Islands 31 Transport mechanism 32A, 32B Holding member 33A,33B Vertical movement mechanism 34 Width direction movement mechanism 40 Transport Path 50 Gripper 51 Gripper transport direction reciprocating mechanism

Claims

1. A substrate transport device that transports a substrate, on which islands are formed in a matrix shape at a predetermined pitch along a transport direction and a width direction that is a direction perpendicular to the transport direction, from an upstream side to a downstream side along the transport direction, a transport mechanism that transports the substrate from an upstream side to a downstream side along a transport direction; a pair of pressing members that press both ends of a substrate in a width direction in a row of an island group, the island group being made up of a plurality of islands arranged at a predetermined pitch in the width direction, when the row of island group is transported to a predetermined position by the transport mechanism; a vertical movement mechanism for independently moving each of the pressing members vertically; and a width direction moving mechanism for moving at least one of the pair of pressing members in the width direction.

2. 2. A substrate transport device as described in claim 1, further comprising: a transport path along which a substrate is transported, the transport path having a substrate receiver which receives the substrate and adsorbs the substrate, and the substrate receiver having a heating section which heats the substrate at least in a portion corresponding to the bonding position which is the specified position.

3. 3. The substrate transport device according to claim 1, further comprising: a mode in which the operation of the pair of pressure members is controlled to simultaneously press the substrate; and a mode in which one pressure member is moved faster than the other pressure member to press the substrate.

4. The substrate transport device of any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that the transport mechanism comprises a gripper that chucks at least one of the widthwise ends of the substrate, and a gripper transport direction moving mechanism that moves the gripper along the transport direction, enabling the gripper to move along the width direction, which is a direction perpendicular to the substrate transport direction.

5. A bonding apparatus using the substrate transport apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 4, A bonding apparatus that bonds a chip to each island in the row of islands while the substrate is held down by a pair of holding members.

6. A substrate transport method for transporting a substrate, on which islands are formed in a matrix shape at a predetermined pitch along a transport direction and a width direction perpendicular to the transport direction, from an upstream side to a downstream side along the transport direction, the method comprising the steps of: A substrate transport method in which, when a row of island groups consisting of a plurality of islands arranged at a predetermined pitch in the width direction is transported to a predetermined bonding position, both widthwise ends of the substrate in the row of island groups are pressed down by a pair of independent pressing members, and in this state, a chip is bonded to each island in the island group.

7. A substrate transport method as described in claim 6, characterized in that one of a pair of pressure members presses the substrate quickly, and the substrate is adsorbed onto a substrate receiver arranged at the bonding position from the side of one pressure member toward the side of the other pressure member.

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