Substrate transfer device and substrate transfer method

Abstract

The present invention provides a substrate transport apparatus and a substrate transport method with which it is possible to improve control stability by sensing the state of a substrate during transport of the substrate within a substrate transport region that is set between a removal position of the substrate and an introduction position of the substrate. This substrate transport apparatus transports a substrate between a first chamber and a second chamber, and is provided with: a housing; a transport mechanism which is provided within the housing and transports the substrate; and a first sensing unit which is provided within the housing and senses the state of the substrate that is being transported by the transport mechanism. A first transport region and a second transport region, in which the substrate is transported, are formed within the housing. The first sensing unit forms a first sensing region which extends in a direction that intersects a transport direction of the substrate from the first transport region to the second transport region. The first transport region and the second transport region are positioned so as to oppose each other across the first sensing region. The first sensing unit senses the state of the substrate when the substrate, which is transported in the transport direction from the first transport region to the second transport region, passes through the first sensing region.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a substrate transfer device and a substrate transfer method.

Background Art

[0002] Conventionally, in the field of manufacturing such as semiconductors, a substrate (for example, a wafer, a glass substrate, etc.) is taken out from a container that houses the substrate using an industrial substrate transfer robot provided in a substrate transfer device, transported to various processing devices, and processed on the transported substrate. There is a technology for this. The substrate transfer device transports a substrate between a load port on which a container for housing the substrate is placed and a processing device or a load lock chamber for processing the substrate by a substrate transfer robot as a transfer mechanism. Further, when transporting a substrate inside the substrate transfer device, the state of the substrate transported by the substrate transfer device (for example, the height of the substrate, the thickness of the substrate, or the amount of warping of the substrate, etc.) is detected by a detection unit of the substrate transfer device, and based on the detected state of the substrate, the transfer operation of the substrate transfer robot is controlled.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0003]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0004] In recent years, in the field of semiconductor devices, while the integration density of devices has been increasing, the miniaturization of devices has also been progressing. Along with this, as a packaging technology for high-integration devices, a method called panel-level packaging (hereinafter referred to as PLP) has been spreading. PLP is a method of manufacturing a plurality of semiconductor packages by arranging a large number of chips on a rectangular panel all at once. In the manufacturing line of semiconductor packages using PLP, various industrial robots are used. Among PLPs, there are processes such as coating (sealing) the upper surface of a panel on which a large number of chips are placed with resin. Panels handled in the manufacturing line of semiconductor packages using PLP have problems such as being likely to have large warps (upward warp, downward warp) in the vertical direction.

[0005] In a FOUP (Front Opening Unified Pod), which is a storage container for substrates, support parts for substrates (hereinafter referred to as slots) are formed at equal intervals, and the pitch between each slot has been narrowed to improve the storage efficiency of substrates. When taking out a substrate from the FOUP using a substrate transfer robot, the robot hand is inserted into the FOUP. In addition to the narrow pitch between the slots in the FOUP, when the substrate has an upward warp or a downward warp, the gap into which the robot hand between the slots is inserted becomes uneven. Therefore, at locations where the gap is narrow, there is a risk that the robot hand and the substrate will come into contact when the robot hand is inserted. Also, on the lower surface of the substrate used in PLP, an area where the robot hand may come into contact is predetermined. The robot hand is required to support the substrate with the minimum contact area using support members such as support pins within the above area in order to suppress the adhesion of particles to the substrate due to the contact between the robot hand and the substrate. In addition, the robot hand is required to support the substrate so that the lower surface of the substrate does not touch the hand member of the robot hand described later, regardless of the form of the warp of the substrate. Also, since the robot hand handles heavy objects such as substrates on which chips are mounted, sufficient rigidity is also required.

[0006] As described above, it is required to detect the state of a substrate (e.g., the height of the substrate, the thickness of the substrate, or the amount of warping of the substrate, etc.) being conveyed by a substrate conveying device by a detection unit of the substrate conveying device and reflect it in the control of the conveying operation of the substrate conveying device. Here, the mounting position of the sensor as the detection unit, that is, the position and range of the detection area formed by the detection unit of the substrate conveying device are related to the control accuracy of the conveying operation of the substrate conveying device. For example, when the detection area is set near an opening formed to communicate with a load port on which a FOUP is placed or a processing device that processes a substrate, during the conveying operation of the substrate being conveyed through the opening, detection of the state of the substrate and correction of the conveying operation according to the detected state of the substrate occur continuously, resulting in a lack of control stability of the conveying operation. Also, depending on the number and arrangement of the load port and the processing device or load lock chamber, the number of sensors as the detection unit for forming the detection area may increase.

[0007] Therefore, the present invention provides a substrate conveying device capable of detecting the state of a substrate while the substrate is being conveyed in a substrate conveying area set between the substrate take-out position and the substrate input position, and improving control stability, and a substrate conveying method for conveying a substrate by the substrate conveying device.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0008] In order to achieve the above object, according to the present invention, there is provided a substrate conveying device for conveying a substrate between a first chamber and a second chamber, comprising a housing, a conveying mechanism provided inside the housing for conveying the substrate, and a first detection unit provided inside the housing for detecting the state of the substrate conveyed by the conveying mechanism. Inside the housing, a first conveying area and a second conveying area through which the substrate is conveyed are formed. The first detection unit forms a first detection area extending in a direction intersecting the conveying direction of the substrate from the first conveying area to the second conveying area. The first conveying area and the second conveying area are located opposite each other with the first detection area therebetween. The first detection unit is characterized in that it detects the state of the substrate when the substrate conveyed along the conveying direction from the first conveying area to the second conveying area passes through the first detection area.

[0009] In order to achieve the above object, according to the present invention, there is provided a substrate transfer method for transferring a substrate between a first chamber and a second chamber by a substrate transfer device. The substrate transfer device includes a housing, a transfer mechanism provided inside the housing for transferring the substrate, and a first detection unit provided inside the housing for detecting the state of the substrate transferred by the transfer mechanism. Inside the housing, a first transfer region and a second transfer region through which the substrate is transferred are formed. The first detection unit forms a first detection region extending in a direction intersecting the transfer direction of the substrate from the first transfer region to the second transfer region. The first transfer region and the second transfer region are positioned opposite each other with the first detection region therebetween. The substrate transfer method includes a loading step of loading the substrate into the housing, a first transfer step of transferring the substrate along the transfer direction from the first transfer region to the second transfer region, a first detection step of detecting the state of the substrate, and an unloading step of unloading the substrate from the housing. In the first transfer step, the first detection unit executes the first detection step to detect the state of the substrate when the substrate transferred along the transfer direction from the first transfer region to the second transfer region passes through the first detection region. A substrate transfer method is provided.

Advantages of the Invention

[0010] According to the present invention, it is possible to provide a substrate transfer device that can detect the state of a substrate while the substrate is being transferred in a substrate transfer region set between the substrate take-out position and the substrate input position, and improve control stability, and a substrate transfer method for transferring a substrate by the substrate transfer device.

Brief Description of the Drawings

[0011]

Figure 1

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Figure 17

Embodiments for Carrying Out the Invention

[0012] Here, exemplary embodiments of the present invention will be referred to in detail, and examples of the exemplary embodiments are shown in the accompanying drawings. Hereinafter, with reference to FIGS. 1 to 17 in combination, the substrate transfer apparatus 100 of the present embodiment, the substrate transfer system 50 to which the substrate transfer apparatus 100 is applied, and the flow of the substrate transfer method for transferring the substrate W by the substrate transfer apparatus 100 will be described. The spatial coordinate system XYZ will be described as the left-right direction X, the front-rear direction Y, and the up-down direction Z, but this is only an example of the present invention, and the present invention is not limited thereto.

[0013] First, with reference to FIGS. 1 and 2, the substrate transfer apparatus 100 of the present embodiment and the substrate transfer system 50 to which the substrate transfer apparatus 100 is applied will be described. In the present embodiment, the substrate transfer apparatus 100 is applied to the substrate transfer system 50. Specifically, the substrate transfer system 50 includes the substrate transfer apparatus 100, a plurality (for example, two) of load ports 52 disposed on one side (for example, the front side) of the substrate transfer apparatus 100, and one processing apparatus 54 disposed on the other side (for example, the rear side) of the substrate transfer apparatus 100. Among them, the substrate transfer apparatus 100 is, for example, an EFEM (Equipment Front End Module), the load port 52 is a device for placing a container H (for example, a FOUP) for accommodating the substrate W and opening and closing the door of the container H, and the processing apparatus 54 is a device for processing the substrate W. The type of the processing apparatus 54 can be selected according to the content of the process for processing the substrate W (for example, processing required for semiconductor manufacturing processes such as ion implantation and etching). In other embodiments not shown, a load lock chamber may be further installed between the substrate transfer apparatus 100 and the processing apparatus 54. However, the present invention is not limited thereto.

[0014] The following describes the structure and transfer operation of a substrate transfer device 100, where the container H placed on the load port 52 is referred to as the first chamber C1, the processing device 54 for processing the substrate W is referred to as the second chamber C2. In this embodiment, the substrate transfer device 100 includes a housing 110, a transfer mechanism 120 provided inside the housing 110 for transferring the substrate W, and a first detection unit 130 provided inside the housing 110 for detecting the state of the substrate W transferred by the transfer mechanism 120. As an example, the housing 110 has a frame portion 112 (shown in FIG. 2) and a wall portion 114 (shown in FIG. 1) for covering the frame portion 112. Among them, on one side (for example, the front side) of the housing 110, it communicates with the first chamber C1 through an opening O1 provided in the wall portion 114 of the housing 110, and on the other side (for example, the rear side) of the housing 110, it communicates with the second chamber C2 through an opening O2 provided in the wall portion 114 of the housing 110. Also, the transfer mechanism 120 is provided inside the housing 110 between an opening O1 formed to communicate with the first chamber C1 and an opening O2 formed to communicate with the second chamber C2. Thereby, in the substrate transfer system 50, when the openings O1 and O2 are opened, the substrate transfer device 100 can transfer the substrate W between the first chamber C1 and the second chamber C2.

[0015] Specifically, the substrate W is, for example, a glass substrate used for PLP, and is accommodated in a container H for accommodating the substrate W. The container H is placed on the load port 52, has a plurality of stages (for example, 12 stages) of slots, and can accommodate a plurality of substrates W by supporting the substrate W in each of the plurality of stages of slots (details will be as described in the following explanation). Note that the number of substrates W stored in the container H can be appropriately selected, and the present invention is not limited thereto. Also, by opening the door of the container H by the load port 52, the substrate W stored in the container H faces the inside of the housing 110, and the substrate W can be carried into the housing 110 from the container H by the transfer mechanism 120. Similarly, it is also possible to carry out the substrate W from the inside of the housing 110 to the container H by the transfer mechanism 120. Correspondingly, the processing device 54 includes at least one mounting table and can support at least one substrate W during the processing step of the substrate W (details will be as described in the following explanation). Note that the number of substrates W processed by the processing device 54 (that is, the number of mounting tables) can be appropriately selected, and the present invention is not limited thereto. Also, by opening the door of the processing device 54, the substrate W inside the processing device 54 faces the inside of the housing 110, and the substrate W can be carried into the housing 110 from the inside of the processing device 54 by the transfer mechanism 120. Similarly, it is also possible to carry out the substrate W from the inside of the housing 110 to the inside of the processing device 54 by the transfer mechanism 120.

[0016] In addition, the substrate transfer device 100 includes a moving body 116 and a guiding structure 118 inside the housing 110. The moving body 116 is installed in the housing 110 so as to be capable of traveling by the guiding structure 118. For example, the moving body 116 is attached to a guiding structure 118 (e.g., a slide rail structure, a conveyor driving device, etc.) for guiding the movement in the left-right direction X, and can move in the left-right direction X in the housing 110 by the guiding structure 118. Therefore, the transfer mechanism 120 can move to the door position of the load port 52 by the moving body 116, and the substrate W can be transferred between the container H and the inside of the housing 110. Similarly, the transfer mechanism 120 can move to the door position of the processing device 54 by the moving body 116, and the substrate W can be transferred between the processing device 54 and the inside of the housing 110. Thereby, the substrate transfer device 100 can transfer the substrate W between the first chamber C1 as the container H placed on the load port 52 and the second chamber C2 as the processing device 54 inside the housing 110 by the transfer mechanism 120.

[0017] Furthermore, as shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the transfer mechanism 120 is a substrate transfer robot having a main body portion 122, an arm portion 124 attached to the upper end of the main body portion 122, a robot hand 126 attached to the tip of the arm portion 124, and an arm drive portion 128 for driving the arm portion 124. The main body portion 122 is attached to a moving body 116 provided inside the housing 110 and is installed so as to be movable by the moving body 116. For example, the moving body 116 enables the transfer mechanism 120 to move (slide) in the left - right direction X by a guiding structure 118. The arm portion 124 is attached to the upper end of the main body portion 122 so as to be extendable, retractable, and rotatable within a horizontal plane (a virtual horizontal plane formed by the left - right direction X and the front - rear direction Y) with respect to the main body portion 122 and also movable up and down in the vertical direction Z. The arm drive portion 128 is, for example, a motor and a transmission mechanism built into the main body portion 122, and applies a driving force to the arm portion 124. In other embodiments not shown, the arm drive portion 128 may be attached to the outside of the main body portion 122. Therefore, the substrate transfer robot as the transfer mechanism 120 drives the arm portion 124 by the arm drive portion 128 to freely move (lift, turn, move back and forth) the robot hand 126 and transfer the substrate W by the robot hand 126. Also, as shown in FIGS. 3 to 5, the transfer mechanism 120 has a holding portion 129 for holding the substrate W to be transferred. The holding portion 129 is provided on the hand upper surface 126a of the robot hand 126, contacts the lower surface of the substrate W to be transferred, holds the substrate W, and can improve the stability when the substrate W is transferred. The first detection portion 130 detects the state of the substrate W held by the holding portion 129 (for example, the height T1, thickness T2 of the substrate W shown in FIG. 4, or the warpage amount T3 of the substrate W shown in FIG. 5, etc.) (details will be as described in the following explanation). However, the number, position, or presence or absence of installation of the holding portion 129 can be adjusted as necessary. The present invention is not limited to this. When the robot hand 126 does not have the holding portion 129, the robot hand 126 directly holds the substrate W by the hand upper surface 126a of the robot hand 126. In one aspect, the robot hand 126 also serves as the holding portion 129.

[0018] Here, the height T1 of the substrate W shown in FIG. 4 is, for example, the distance from the hand lower surface 126b of the robot hand 126 of the transfer mechanism 120 to the upper surface of the substrate W placed on the holding portion 129 of the robot hand 126. Also, the thickness T2 of the substrate W is the distance from the lower surface of the substrate W to the upper surface of the substrate W. After the first detection unit 130 detects the state of the substrate W, the correction of the transfer operation of the transfer mechanism 120 may use the value of the height T1 of the substrate W or the value of the thickness T2 of the substrate W. As an example, when the substrate W is not warped, if the substrate W is directly held on the hand upper surface 126a of the robot hand 126, the height T1 of the substrate W is the sum of the thickness T2 of the substrate W and Robot the thickness of the hand 126, and correction can be performed assuming this. When the substrate W is not warped and the substrate W is held by the holding portion 129, the height T1 of the substrate W can be corrected assuming that it corresponds to the sum of the thickness T2 of the substrate W and the height from the hand lower surface 126b to the tip of the holding portion 129 (as shown in FIG. 4). Also, when the substrate W is warped (refer to the substrate W in FIG. 5), the height T1 is the distance from the hand lower surface 126b of the robot hand 126 of the transfer mechanism 120 to the position where the warpage amount of the substrate W placed on the holding portion 129 of the robot hand 126 is the largest (the uppermost surface of the substrate W). As shown in FIG. 5, the warpage amount T3 of the substrate W is the distance from the lowermost surface of the substrate W to the uppermost surface of the substrate W. As shown in FIG. 5, the warpage amount T3 of the substrate W can also be expressed as the distance from the hand upper surface 126a to the upper surface of the substrate W placed on the robot hand 126 when the substrate W is directly held on the hand upper surface 126a of the robot hand 126. After the first detection unit 130 detects the state of the substrate W, the correction of the transfer operation of the transfer mechanism 120 may use the value of the height T1 of the substrate W or the value of the warpage amount T3 of the substrate W. In the correction using the value of the warpage amount T3 of the substrate W, it is determined using the Robot known thickness of the hand 126 or the known height from the hand lower surface 126b to the tip of the holding portion 129. As an example, when the substrate W is warped and the substrate W is directly held on the hand upper surface 126a of the robot hand 126, the height T1 of the substrate W is the warpage amount T3 of the substrate W and RobotCorrection can be performed assuming that it corresponds to the total thickness of the hand 126 (as shown in FIG. 5). Further, when the substrate W is warped, when the substrate W is held by the holding portion 129, the height T1 of the substrate W is assumed to correspond to the sum of the warpage amount T3 of the substrate W and the height from the lower surface 126b of the hand to the tip of the holding portion 129 when it is assumed that the lowermost surface of the substrate W is placed on the holding portion 129, and correction can be performed. However, the present invention is not limited to this.

[0019] Also, in the present embodiment, while the substrate W is being conveyed by the conveyance mechanism 120 inside the housing 110, the state of the substrate W is detected by the first detection unit 130 provided inside the housing 110. Among them, as shown in FIG. 6, inside the housing 110, a first conveyance region TR1 and a second conveyance region TR2 for conveying the substrate W are formed. The first detection unit 130 forms a first detection region DR1 for detecting the state of the substrate W. The first detection region DR1 extends in a direction (for example, the front-rear direction Y) intersecting the conveyance direction D of the substrate W from the first conveyance region TR1 to the second conveyance region TR2. The first conveyance region TR1 and the second conveyance region TR2 are positioned opposite to each other with the first detection region DR1 interposed therebetween. In other words, the first detection region DR1 is located between the first conveyance region TR1 and the second conveyance region TR2. Therefore, the first detection unit 130 detects the state of the substrate W when the substrate W conveyed along the conveyance direction D from the first conveyance region TR1 to the second conveyance region TR2 passes through the first detection region DR1.

[0020] Specifically, the substrate transfer device 100 is installed between a plurality (e.g., two) of first chambers C1 and one second chamber C2. The housing 110 of the substrate transfer device 100 includes a first wall portion 114a having a peripheral portion E1 formed for forming an opening O1 communicating with the first chamber C1, a second wall portion 114b having a peripheral portion E2 formed for forming an opening O2 communicating with the second chamber C2 and facing the first wall portion 114a, and a third wall portion 114c and a fourth wall portion 114d connecting the first wall portion 114a and the second wall portion 114b, and constitutes an internal space showing a rectangle when viewed from above to below (in plan view) in the housing 110. Among them, the first wall portion 114a includes a peripheral portion E1 for forming a plurality of openings O1 that respectively communicate with the plurality of first chambers C1 and are arranged side by side. The first transfer region TR1 and the second transfer region TR2 respectively face any one of the plurality of openings O1 of the first wall portion 114a.

[0021] Further, the first detection unit 130 is a line sensor and includes a first light emitting unit 132 (first light emitting unit) that emits detection light forming a first detection region DR1 and a first light receiving unit 134 (first light receiving unit) that receives the detection light. In the housing 110, the first light receiving unit 134 is disposed facing the first light emitting unit 132 at a position separated from the first light emitting unit 132 by a predetermined distance. At least one of the first light emitting unit 132 or the first light receiving unit 134 is fixed to the first wall portion 114a, which is a wall portion 114 adjacent to the first chamber C1 of the housing 110. For example, the first light emitting unit 132 is provided on the first wall portion 114a adjacent to the first chamber C1 of the housing 110, emits detection light toward the opposing second wall portion 114b, and the first light receiving unit 134 is provided at a position facing the first light emitting unit 132 on the second wall portion 114b and receives the detection light emitted by the first light emitting unit 132. Therefore, the first light emitting unit 132 and the first light receiving unit 134 as the first detection unit 130 form a first detection region DR1 between the first wall portion 114a and the second wall portion 114b.

[0022] Specifically, the first light emitting unit 132 emits a strip-shaped detection light L (shown in FIGS. 4 and 5) having a range of a predetermined dimension in the vertical direction Z. The strip-shaped detection light L extends from the first light emitting unit 132 toward the first light receiving unit 134 and forms a first detection region DR1. The first light receiving unit 134 receives the light emitted from the first light emitting unit 132 on the light receiving surface of a line-type CCD sensor (not shown). Further, the dimension of the strip-shaped detection light L in the vertical direction is preferably larger than the height T1, the thickness T2 (shown in FIG. 4), or the warpage amount T3 (shown in FIG. 5) of the substrate W held by the robot hand 126 of the transfer mechanism 120. The dimension of the strip-shaped detection light L in the vertical direction in this embodiment includes the space from the lower surface 126b of the hand of the robot hand 126 to the upper surface side of the substrate W supported by the robot hand 126. The first detection unit 130 detects the state of the substrate W (for example, the height T1, the thickness T2 of the substrate W shown in FIG. 4, or the warpage amount T3 of the substrate W shown in FIG. 5, etc.) by passing through the range of the strip-shaped detection light L directed toward the first light emitting unit 132 or the first light receiving unit 134 on the optical path between the first light emitting unit 132 and the first light receiving unit 134 (that is, the first detection region DR1) so as to be blocked by the robot hand 126 holding the substrate W.

[0023] As an example, as shown in FIG. 6, the first detection region DR1 formed by the first detection unit 130 is between two adjacent ones of the plurality of openings O1 of the first wall portion 114a. OpenIt is formed to extend from between the openings O1 toward the second wall portion 114b as the wall portion facing the first wall portion 114a, is orthogonal to the conveyance direction D from the first conveyance region TR1 to the second conveyance region TR2 (for example, formed to extend in the front-rear direction Y), and extends in the horizontal direction as shown in FIG. 7. However, in other embodiments not shown, the first light emitting portion 132 of the first detection portion 130 may be provided on the second wall portion 114b of the housing 110 and emit detection light toward the opposing first wall portion 114a, and the first light receiving portion 134 may be provided on the first wall portion 114a of the housing 110 and receive the light emitted by the first light emitting portion 132. The installation position of the first detection portion 130 does not interfere with the conveyance path through the openings O1 or O2 of the substrate W (for example, it may be provided between a plurality of openings O1 or at the lower edge portion of one opening O2), and it is only necessary to form a first detection region DR1 between the first wall portion 114a and the second wall portion 114b. Further, the first detection portion 130 may employ detection means other than the line sensor composed of the first light emitting portion 132 and the first light receiving portion 134. In other embodiments not shown, the first detection portion 130 may employ a vision sensor such as a reflective optical line sensor, a line sensor camera, or an area sensor camera. For example, when the first detection portion 130 is a vision sensor, the vision sensor may be fixed to only one of the first wall portion 114a, which is the wall portion 114 adjacent to the first chamber C1 of the housing 110, or the second wall portion 114b, so as to form a first detection region DR1 between the first wall portion 114a and the second wall portion 114b. In this case, the state of the substrate W (for example, the height T1, thickness T2 of the substrate W shown in FIG. 4, or the warpage amount T3 of the substrate W shown in FIG. 5, etc.) can be detected based on the imaging image of the vision sensor. The present invention is not limited to this.

[0024] In the substrate transfer device 100, the first detection unit 130 forms a first detection area DR1 inside the housing 110. In the internal space of the housing 110, one side of the first detection area DR1 (for example, the left side in FIG. 6) is the first transfer area TR1, and the other side of the first detection area DR1 (for example, the right side in FIG. 6) in the internal space of the housing 110 is the second transfer area TR2. Thus, when the substrate W is transferred along the transfer direction D from the first transfer area TR1 to the second transfer area TR2 by the transfer mechanism 120, the substrate W passes through the first detection area DR1 located between the first transfer area TR1 and the second transfer area TR2, and the state of the substrate W can be detected by the first detection unit 130. As an example, as shown in FIG. 6, the first detection area DR1 formed by the first detection unit 130 is formed to extend from between two adjacent Open openings O1 among the plurality of openings O1 of the first wall portion 114a toward the second wall portion 114b as a wall portion facing the first wall portion 114a, is orthogonal to the transfer direction D from the first transfer area TR1 to the second transfer area TR2 (for example, formed to extend in the front-rear direction Y), and as shown in FIG. 7, extends in the horizontal direction. However, the present invention is not limited to this.

[0025] Specifically, in the substrate transfer device 100, the first transfer region TR1 and the second transfer region TR2 formed inside the housing 110 are two transfer regions separated by the first detection region DR1 formed by the first detection unit 130 inside the housing 110. The substrate transfer device 100, for example, after loading the substrate W along the loading direction D1 from the second chamber C2 by the transfer mechanism 120, transfers the substrate W along the transfer direction D from the first transfer region TR1 to the second transfer region TR2, and then unloads the substrate W to the first chamber C1 along the unloading direction D2 (refer to the dotted line and arrow in FIG. 6). And in the process of transferring the substrate W, the substrate W is passed through the first detection region DR1, and the state of the substrate W is detected by the first detection unit 130. As an example, the transfer direction D from the first transfer region TR1 to the second transfer region TR2 intersects (for example, is orthogonal to) the loading direction D1 and the unloading direction D2 of the substrate W. In other embodiments not shown, the substrate transfer device 100 can also load the substrate W from the first chamber C1 by the transfer mechanism 120, then transfer the substrate W along the transfer direction D from the first transfer region TR1 to the second transfer region TR2, and then unload the substrate W to the second chamber C2, and in the process of transferring the substrate W, the substrate W is passed through the first detection region DR1, and the state of the substrate W is detected by the first detection unit 130.

[0026] In addition, in order to improve the detection accuracy of the first detection unit 130, inside the housing 110, each of the first conveyance area TR1 and the second conveyance area TR2 preferably has a size that includes at least the entire substrate W. More specifically, the first conveyance area TR1 is an area having a size that allows the conveyance mechanism 120 to hold the substrate W such that the substrate W before being conveyed from the first conveyance area TR1 to the second conveyance area TR2 does not overlap at least the first detection area DR1, or is an area having an area of a size that includes at least the entire substrate W when the housing 110 is viewed in plan. Similarly, the second conveyance area TR2 is an area having a size that allows the conveyance mechanism 120 to hold the substrate W such that the substrate W after being conveyed from the first conveyance area TR1 to the second conveyance area TR2 does not overlap at least the first detection area DR1, or is an area having an area of a size that includes at least the entire substrate W when the housing 110 is viewed in plan. For example, when applied to a substrate conveyance system 50 having a plurality of first chambers C1, the first detection unit 130 of the substrate conveyance device 100 is installed between openings O1 communicating with the plurality of first chambers C1 to form a first conveyance area TR1 and a second conveyance area TR2 inside the housing 110, each having a size that includes at least the entire substrate W. As a result, when conveying the substrate W along the conveyance direction D from the first conveyance area TR1 to the second conveyance area TR2, the first detection area DR1 can be passed through the entire substrate W, and the first detection unit 130 can detect the state of the substrate W over the entire surface of the substrate W, eliminating detection omissions and improving reliability.

[0027] In other embodiments (not shown), referring to FIG. 6, the modifications from the substrate transfer device 100 are listed below. Based on the substrate transfer device 100 in FIG. 6, the first detection unit 130 provided on the first wall portion 114a is formed to extend obliquely toward the second wall portion 114b as the wall portion facing it, and may intersect obliquely with the transfer direction D from the first transfer region TR1 to the second transfer region TR2. Each of the first transfer region TR1 and the second transfer region TR2 only needs to have a size that includes at least the entire substrate W. Further, the first detection unit 130 may not be fixed to the first wall portion 114a adjacent to the first chamber C1 of the housing 110. For example, it is also possible to provide the first detection unit 130 on the upper or lower wall portions inside the housing 110 and form the first detection region DR1 to extend in the vertical direction Z. Further, it is also possible to provide the first detection unit 130 on the third wall portion 114c or the fourth wall portion 114d inside the housing 110 and form the first detection region DR1 to extend in the horizontal direction X. The first detection unit 130 only needs to be able to detect the state of the substrate W when the substrate W transferred along the transfer direction D from the first transfer region TR1 to the second transfer region TR2 passes through the first detection region DR1.

[0028] Also, as shown in FIG. 7, in the substrate transfer device 100, the height positions of the opening O1 formed in the first wall portion 114a and the opening O2 formed in the second wall portion 114b are different in the vertical direction Z of the housing 110. The first detection region DR1 formed by the first detection unit 130 extends from the first wall portion 114a toward the second wall portion 114b and is formed to be located between the opening O1 formed in the first wall portion 114a and the opening O2 formed in the second wall portion 114b. For example, when the height position of the opening O1 formed in the first wall portion 114a is lower than the height position of the opening O2 formed in the second wall portion 114b, the first detection unit 130 is provided at a position between a plurality of openings O1 arranged in the horizontal direction X and at the same height position on the first wall portion 114a, at a height position corresponding to the central portion corresponding to between the upper edge portion and the lower edge portion of the opening O1, and forms the first detection region DR1 toward the height position corresponding to the lower edge portion of the opening O2 formed in the second wall portion 114b, and forms the first detection region DR1 between the opening O1 and the opening O2.

[0029] Specifically, as shown in FIG. 7, in the substrate transfer device 100, the second chamber C2 as the processing device 54 has a mounting table P. The mounting table P can support at least one substrate W during the processing step of the substrate W. The opening O2 for communicating with the second chamber C2 of the housing 110 is installed corresponding to the position of the mounting table P (for example, the mounting table P is installed near the upper edge of the opening O2). Further, the first chamber C1 as the container H has a plurality of slots S. The slots S can support the substrate W stored in the container H. The opening O1 for communicating with the first chamber C1 of the housing 110 is installed corresponding to the positions of the plurality of slots S (for example, the plurality of slots S are installed so as to be arranged along the vertical direction Z from the upper edge to the lower edge of the opening O1). The transfer mechanism 120 transfers the substrate W taken out from the opening O1 to the height where the first detection unit 130 is located in order to pass the substrate W through the first detection region DR1 formed by the first detection unit 130. Specifically, the transfer mechanism 120 moves the substrate W along the vertical direction Z from the height position of the loading / unloading position of the substrate W at the opening O1 to the height position of the first detection unit 130. Similarly, the transfer mechanism 120 transfers the substrate W taken out from the opening O2 to the height where the first detection unit 130 is located in order to pass the substrate W through the first detection region DR1 formed by the first detection unit 130. Specifically, the transfer mechanism 120 moves the substrate W along the vertical direction Z from the height position of the loading / unloading position of the substrate W at the opening O2 to the height position of the first detection unit 130.

[0030] Therefore, when the distance between the height of the loading / unloading position of the substrate W at the opening O1 and the height of the first detection unit 130 is large, the distance that the arm unit 124 moves up and down in the vertical direction Z becomes long, so the cycle time also becomes long, and the throughput performance is impaired. Similarly, when the distance between the height of the loading / unloading position of the substrate W at the opening O2 and the height of the first detection unit 130 is large, the distance that the arm unit 124 moves up and down in the vertical direction Z becomes long, so the cycle time also becomes long, and the throughput performance is impaired. Therefore, in the embodiment of FIG. 7, by providing the first detection region DR1 between the opening O1 and the opening O2, no matter from which opening the substrate W is taken out and conveyed to the position of the first detection unit 130, compared with the case where the first detection region DR1 is not between the opening O1 and the opening O2 (for example, the position shown in FIG. 9), the lifting distance becomes short. Thus, the cycle time in the substrate conveyance operation becomes short, and it becomes possible to improve the throughput performance.

[0031] Specifically, the first detection unit 130 is preferably installed between a mounting table P installed near the upper edge of the opening O2 and the lower edge of the opening O1 (for example, within the installation range SR1 shown in FIG. 7) so as to form a first detection region DR1. As an example, as shown in FIG. 7, the first detection region DR1 is provided between a height position corresponding to approximately the central portion of the opening O1 and a height position corresponding to approximately the lower edge of the opening O2. Therefore, when the substrate W carried in from the mounting table P through the opening O2 is carried out to a predetermined slot S through the opening O1, the transfer mechanism 120 performs a lifting operation including a descent from the height position of the mounting table P to the height position of the first detection unit 130 and a lift / descent from the height position of the first detection unit 130 to the height position of any one of the plurality of slots S (refer to the dotted line and arrow in FIG. 7). Similarly, when the substrate W carried in from any one of the plurality of slots S through the opening O1 is carried out to the mounting table P through the opening O2, the transfer mechanism 120 performs a lifting operation including a lift / descent from the height position of any one of the plurality of slots S to the height position of the first detection unit 130 and a lift from the height position of the first detection unit 130 to the height position of the mounting table P. Since the first detection region DR1 is formed between the opening O1 and the opening O2, in any case where the substrate W is taken out from any opening and conveyed to the height position of the first detection unit 130, the substrate W does not move to a height position below the lower opening O1 or above the upper opening O2, and the lifting distance is shortened. Therefore, the cycle time in the substrate transfer operation is shortened, and it is possible to improve the throughput performance.

[0032] Referring to the embodiments as other comparative examples, regarding the height position of the first detection unit 130, a first detection region DR1 may be set between a mounting table P installed near the upper edge of the opening O2 and the upper part of the opening O1 (for example, the uppermost slot S) (for example, in the installation range SR2 shown in FIG. 8). As an example, as shown in FIG. 8, the first detection region DR1 is provided between a height position above the upper edge of the opening O1 and a height position corresponding to approximately the upper edge of the opening O2. Therefore, when the substrate W carried in from the mounting table P through the opening O2 is carried out to a predetermined slot S through the opening O1, the transfer mechanism 120 moves from the height position of the mounting table P to the height position of the first detection unit 130 (substantially the same height), and performs a lifting operation of descending from the height position of the first detection unit 130 to the height position of any one of the plurality of slots S (refer to the dotted line and arrow in FIG. 8). Similarly, when the substrate W carried in from any one of the plurality of slots S through the opening O1 is carried out to the mounting table P through the opening O2, the transfer mechanism 120 ascends from the height position of any one of the plurality of slots S to the height position of the first detection unit 130, and Of moves and then performs a lifting operation of moving from the height position of the first detection unit 130 to the height position of the mounting table P (substantially the same height). Since the first detection region DR1 is formed between the opening O1 and the opening O2, in the case where the substrate W is taken out from any opening and conveyed to the height position of the first detection unit 130, the substrate W does not move to a height position below the lower opening O1 located below or above the upper opening O2 located above, and the lifting distance is shortened. Therefore, the cycle time in the substrate transfer operation is shortened, and it is possible to improve the throughput performance.

[0033] Also, in the vertical direction Z, as shown in FIG. 7, the first detection unit 130 may be installed to form the first detection region DR1 between a mounting table P installed near the upper edge of the opening O2 and the lower edge of the opening O1 (in the installation range SR1), and as shown in FIG. 8, between a mounting table P installed near the upper edge of the opening O2 and the upper part of the opening O1 (for example, the uppermost slot S) (in the installation range SR2) is installed to form the first detection region DR1 AlsoGood. Among these, it is preferable that the first detection unit 130 is installed so as to form the first detection area DR1 at the same height as the placement table P. For example, when the placement table P is installed near the upper edge of the opening O2, as shown in FIG. 8, the first detection area DR1 is formed above the opening O1 and near the upper edge of the opening O2. In this case, it can be said that the first detection area DR1 is formed in the installation range SR2 between the placement table P and the upper part of the opening O1 (for example, the uppermost slot S), or it can be said that it is formed in the installation range SR1 between the placement table P and the lower edge of the opening O1. When the first detection area DR1 is formed at the same height as the placement table P, regardless of the distance from the height position of the first detection unit 130 to the height position of the opening O1, no lifting occurs during the movement between the height position of the placement table P and the height position of the first detection unit 130. Therefore, when the transfer mechanism 120 transfers the substrate W carried in from the placement table P or a predetermined slot S to a predetermined slot S or the placement table P, it is possible to avoid the lifting operation that reciprocates in the vertical direction Z, and the lifting distance becomes shorter. Therefore, the cycle time in the substrate transfer operation is shortened, and it is possible to improve the throughput performance. Similarly, when the placement table P is installed near the lower edge of the opening O2, the first detection area DR1 may be formed at the same height as the placement table P. The present invention is not limited to this.

[0034] On the other hand, referring to an embodiment as a comparative example opposite to FIGS. 7 and 8, as shown in FIG. 9, the first detection unit 130 is installed so as to form the first detection area DR1 below the opening O1 instead of between the opening O1 and the opening O2. In this case, the transfer mechanism 120 needs to move the substrate W to the height position of the first detection unit 130 installed below the opening O1 and the opening O2 regardless of which opening the substrate W is carried in from. That is, the lifting distance of the transfer mechanism 120 in the substrate transfer operation becomes longer (refer to the dotted line and arrow in FIG. 9). Therefore, it is preferable to avoid forming the first detection area DR1 at a height position below the opening O1 or above the opening O2. The present invention is not limited to this.

[0035] In other embodiments not shown, referring to FIG. 7, the changes from the substrate transfer device 100 are listed below. Regarding the arrangement of the first detection unit 130, the first detection region DR1 does not necessarily have to be formed to extend in the horizontal direction. For example, based on the substrate transfer device 100 in FIG. 7, the first detection region DR1 may be formed to extend obliquely toward the second wall portion 114b. For example, the first detection region DR1 is formed to extend upward from a height position corresponding to the lower edge of the lower opening O1 to a height position corresponding to the lower edge of the upper opening O2. Therefore, when the substrate W is transferred, the substrate W can be passed through the first detection region DR1, and the state of the substrate W can be detected by the first detection unit 130. Also, although the embodiment in which the first detection region DR1 is formed to be located between the openings O1 and O2 having different height positions has been described, in other embodiments not shown, the height positions of the openings O1 and O2 may be the same, and the first detection region DR1 may be formed at a position separated from the openings O1 and O2 in the vertical direction Z (for example, the first detection region DR1 is formed at a position below the lower edges of the openings O1 and O2). When the substrate W is transferred, it is sufficient that the substrate W can be passed through the first detection region DR1 and the state of the substrate W can be detected by the first detection unit 130.

[0036] More specifically, the first detection unit 130 detects the state of the substrate W being conveyed. As an example, the first detection unit 130 detects the distance from the conveyance mechanism 120 to the upper surface of the substrate W as the height T1 of the substrate W being conveyed. For example, as shown in FIGS. 4, 6, and 7, when the substrate W conveyed by the conveyance mechanism 120 is conveyed along the conveyance direction D from the first conveyance region TR1 to the second conveyance region TR2, it passes through the first detection region DR1 formed by the first detection unit 130, and the height T1 of the substrate W being conveyed is detected by the detection light emitted by the first detection unit 130. The height T1 of the substrate W is, for example, as shown in FIG. 4, the distance from the hand lower surface 126b of the robot hand 126 of the conveyance mechanism 120 to the upper surface of the substrate W. Preferably, the first detection unit 130 detects the substrate W in the process of being conveyed while the substrate W is held by a plurality of holding portions 129 (shown in FIGS. 3 and 4) arranged on the upper surface of the robot hand 126 of the conveyance mechanism 120. Specifically, the first detection unit 130 detects the position of the shadow generated by the robot hand 126 holding the substrate W blocking the range of the detection light emitted from the first light emitting unit 132 as the light receiving result of the first light receiving unit 134, thereby detecting the distance between the upper surface of the substrate W and the hand lower surface 126b of the robot hand 126 holding the substrate W as the height. That is, the first detection unit 130 is a sensor for detecting the state (for example, height T1) of the substrate W being conveyed. Then, based on the detection result (for example, the height T1 of the substrate W), the conveyance mechanism 120 raises and lowers the arm portion 124 in the vertical direction Z, for example, to adjust the height of the robot hand 126 holding the substrate W.

[0037] Specifically, when the transfer mechanism 120 unloads the substrate W into the container H, the robot hand 126 is inserted into the gap between the slots S of the container H. As described above, in addition to the interval between the slots S being made narrower than before due to the narrow pitch, if the substrate W has a large warp, there is a risk of interference between the substrate W or the robot hand 126 and the slot S or another substrate W placed on the slot S. To prevent this interference, as shown in FIG. 2, the substrate transfer device 100 includes a control unit C (shown in FIG. 2) that controls the transfer mechanism 120. The control unit C drives the arm portion 124 according to the height T1 of the substrate W detected by the first detection unit 130, and moves the robot hand 126 that holds the substrate W up and down in the vertical direction Z to a height position where no interference occurs, thereby adjusting the height position of the robot hand 126. More specifically, information such as the height and gap of each slot S of the container H, which has been measured in advance by another sensor (not shown), is input to the control unit C. The control unit C collates this information with the height T1 of the substrate W and adjusts the height position of the robot hand 126 so that no interference occurs. When the control unit C determines that even if the height position of the robot hand 126 is adjusted due to a large warp of the substrate W, interference cannot be avoided, the control unit C outputs a signal to the transfer mechanism 120 to stop the loading of the substrate W into the container H as an error. The substrate W for which the loading into the container H has been stopped is removed from the substrate transfer device 100 by an operator or transferred to a recovery unit (not shown) in the housing 110 by the transfer mechanism 120. The operation of the control unit C will be as described in the following explanation. Further, detecting the state of the substrate W may include not only detecting the height T1 of the substrate W, but also detecting the thickness T2 of the substrate W or the amount of warp of the substrate W with respect to the robot hand 126 (for example, the amount of warp T3 of the substrate W shown in FIG. 5). The present invention is not limited to this.

[0038] Next, with reference to FIGS. 10 to 15, another modified form of the substrate transfer device 100 applied to the substrate transfer system 50 will be described. Specifically, the substrate transfer device 100 shown in FIG. 6 is installed between a plurality of first chambers C1 and one second chamber C2, while the substrate transfer device 100A shown in FIG. 10 is installed between a plurality (for example, two) of first chambers C1 and a plurality (for example, two) of second chambers C2. Therefore, the substrate transfer device 100A communicates with the first chamber C1 through a plurality of openings O1 provided in the first wall portion 114a, and communicates with the second chamber C2 through a plurality of openings O2 provided in the second wall portion 114b. As an example, the first detection region DR1 formed by the first detection unit 130 of the substrate transfer device 100A is provided between the plurality of openings O1 of the first wall portion 114a (for example, at a height position corresponding to the upper edge or lower edge of the opening O1), and is formed to extend between the plurality of openings O2 provided in the second wall portion 114b as the wall portion facing the first wall portion 114a, and extends in the horizontal direction (it may extend obliquely in the vertical direction Z instead of the horizontal direction).

[0039] Similarly, the substrate transfer device 100B shown in FIG. 11 is installed between one first chamber C1 and one second chamber C2. Therefore, the substrate transfer device 100B communicates with the first chamber C1 through one opening O1 provided in the first wall portion 114a, and communicates with the second chamber C2 through one opening O2 provided in the second wall portion 114b. As an example, the first detection region DR1 formed by the first detection unit 130 of the substrate transfer device 100B is provided near the opening O1 of the first wall portion 114a (for example, at a height position corresponding to the upper edge or lower edge), and is formed to extend toward the vicinity of the opening O2 provided in the second wall portion 114b as the wall portion facing the first wall portion 114a, and extends in the horizontal direction (it may extend obliquely in the vertical direction Z instead of the horizontal direction).

[0040] As can be seen from this, the numbers of the first chamber C1 and the second chamber C2 applied to the substrate transfer system 50 may be adjusted as necessary (both can also be plural). Further, the substrate transfer devices 100 to 100B applied to the substrate transfer system 50 may adjust the numbers and positions of the openings O1 and O2 according to the numbers of the first chamber C1 and the second chamber C2. Then, the first detection unit 130 provided in the substrate transfer devices 100 to 100B may adjust the formation position and range of the first detection region DR1 according to the numbers and positions of the openings O1 and O2. The present invention does not limit the numbers of the first chamber C1 and the second chamber C2 applied to the substrate transfer system 50, the numbers and positions of the openings O1 and O2 provided in the substrate transfer devices 100 to 100B applied to the substrate transfer system 50, the position of the first detection unit 130 provided in the substrate transfer devices 100 to 100B, or the formation position and range of the first detection region DR1, etc.

[0041] Also, the substrate transfer apparatuses 100 to 100B shown in FIGS. 6, 10, and 11 are installed between the opposing first chamber C1 and second chamber C2, and the first detection region DR1 formed by the first detection unit 130 provided on the first wall portion 114a extends from the first wall portion 114a toward the second wall portion 114b facing the first wall portion 114a. However, the substrate transfer apparatus 100C shown in FIG. 12 is installed between the first chamber C1 and the second chamber C2 that are installed orthogonally. In this case, in the substrate transfer apparatus 100C, since the first wall portion 114a provided with the opening O1 communicating with the first chamber C1 and the second wall portion 114b provided with the opening O2 communicating with the second chamber C2 are installed orthogonally, the first detection region DR1 formed by the first detection unit 130 provided on the first wall portion 114a extends from the first wall portion 114a toward another wall portion 114 facing the first wall portion 114a. For example, the first light emitting unit 132 is provided near the opening O1 (such as the lower edge portion) of the first wall portion 114a, and the first light receiving unit 134 is provided on another wall portion 114 facing the first wall portion 114a. Among them, the first detection region DR1 may be formed to extend along the front-rear direction Y (orthogonal to the transfer direction D), or may be formed to extend obliquely with respect to the front-rear direction Y (intersecting the transfer direction D). Similarly, the first detection region DR1 may be formed to extend in the horizontal direction, or may be formed to extend obliquely with respect to the vertical direction Z.

[0042] Similarly, the substrate transfer device 100D shown in FIG. 13 is installed on the same side of the first chamber C1 and the second chamber C2 arranged side by side in the left-right direction X. In this case, in the substrate transfer device 100D, since the first wall portion 114a provided with the opening O1 communicating with the first chamber C1 and the second wall portion 114b provided with the opening O2 communicating with the second chamber C2 are arranged side by side in the left-right direction X, the first detection region DR1 formed by the first detection unit 130 provided on the first wall portion 114a is formed to extend from the first wall portion 114a toward another wall portion 114 facing the first wall portion 114a. For example, the first light emitting unit 132 is provided at a location (such as the lower edge portion) of the first wall portion 114a close to the second wall portion 114b, and the first light receiving unit 134 is provided on another wall portion 114 facing the first wall portion 114a. Among them, the first detection region DR1 may be formed to extend along the front-rear direction Y (perpendicular to the transfer direction D), or may be formed to extend obliquely with respect to the front-rear direction Y (intersecting the transfer direction D). Similarly, the first detection region DR1 may be formed to extend in the horizontal direction, or may be formed to extend obliquely with respect to the vertical direction Z.

[0043] As can be seen from this, the first chamber C1 and the second chamber C2 applied to the substrate transfer system 50 do not need to be installed opposite to each other. The positions of the first chamber C1 and the second chamber C2 may be adjusted as needed (both are possible even in the case of multiple ones). Further, the substrate transfer devices 100 to 100D applied to the substrate transfer system 50 may adjust the positions of the first wall portion 114a and the second wall portion 114b according to the positions of the first chamber C1 and the second chamber C2. And the first detection unit 130 provided on the first wall portion 114a of the substrate transfer devices 100 to 100D preferably forms a first detection region DR1 from the first wall portion 114a toward another wall portion 114 facing the first wall portion 114a. There is no need to form the first detection region DR1 from the first wall portion 114a toward the second wall portion 114b. However, the first detection region DR1 may be formed obliquely from the first wall portion 114a toward the second wall portion 114b that does not face the first wall portion 114a. The present invention does not limit the positions of the first chamber C1 and the second chamber C2 applied to the substrate transfer system 50, the positions of the first wall portion 114a and the second wall portion 114b provided in the substrate transfer devices 100 to 100D applied to the substrate transfer system 50, the position of the first detection unit 130 provided in the substrate transfer devices 100 to 100D, or the formation position and range of the first detection region DR1, etc.

[0044] Further, the substrate transfer devices 100 to 100D shown in FIGS. 6 and 10 to 13 have four wall portions 114 including the first wall portion 114a and the second wall portion 114b, and form an internal space that is rectangular when viewed from above to below in the housing 110. However, the substrate transfer device 100E shown in FIG. 14 has six wall portions 114 including one first wall portion 114a provided with an opening O1 communicating with one first chamber C1 and a plurality (for example, two) of second wall portions 114b provided with openings O2 communicating with a plurality of second chambers C2, and forms an internal space that is hexagonal when viewed from above to below in the housing 110. In this case, in the substrate transfer device 100E, the first detection region DR1 formed by the first detection unit 130 provided on the first wall portion 114a is formed to extend from the first wall portion 114a toward the central portion of the housing 110. For example, the first light emitting unit 132 is provided at a corner (such as a lower edge portion) of the first wall portion 114a, and the first light receiving unit 134 is provided at the central portion of the housing 110 facing the first wall portion 114a. In other embodiments not shown, the first detection region DR1 formed by the first detection unit 130 provided on the first wall portion 114a may be formed to extend from the first wall portion 114a toward the second wall portion 114b facing the first wall portion 114a, may be formed to extend from the first wall portion 114a between the two second wall portions 114b, and may be formed to extend from another wall portion 114 other than the first wall portion 114a toward the central portion of the housing 110 or another wall portion 114.

[0045] As can be seen from this, the housing 110 provided in the substrate transfer devices 100 to 100E does not necessarily form an internal space that is rectangular when viewed from above to below. The housing 110 may form an internal space showing other shapes depending on the number and arrangement of the wall portions 114. In other embodiments not shown, the housing 110 may form an internal space that is triangular when viewed from above to below by three wall portions 114, or may form an internal space that is circular when viewed from above to below by one wall portion 114 formed as a continuous curved surface. Further, the first detection region DR1 formed by the first detection unit 130 does not necessarily completely separate the first transfer region TR1 and the second transfer region TR2 inside the housing 110. The spaces on both opposite sides of the first detection region DR1 ToDefine the first transfer area TR1 and the second transfer area TR2, form the first transfer area TR1 and the second transfer area TR2 so as to sandwich the first detection area DR1, and when transporting the substrate W along the transfer direction D from the first transfer area TR1 to the second transfer area TR2, it is only necessary to pass the first detection area DR1 through the substrate W and detect the state of the substrate W by the first detection unit 130. The present invention does not limit the configuration of the housing 110 (such as the number and position of the wall portion 114) and the position and range of the first detection area DR1, etc.

[0046] Furthermore, in the substrate transfer device 100 shown in FIG. 6, the transfer mechanism 120 itself is movably installed between the first chamber C1 and the second chamber C2 by the moving body 116 and the guide structure 118 (as shown in FIGS. 2 and 3) (that is, self-propelled type). In other embodiments not shown, in the substrate transfer device 100, the transfer mechanism 120 itself is fixedly installed between the first chamber C1 and the second chamber C2 (that is, fixed type). That is, when adopting the self-propelled type transfer mechanism 120, as shown in FIG. 6, the moving body 116 and the guide structure 118 are installed inside the housing 110 in the substrate transfer device 100. In this case, the transfer mechanism 120 itself can move in the left-right direction X by the moving body 116 and the guide structure 118 in combination with the expansion and contraction, lifting and lowering of the arm portion 124 and the turning around the main body portion 122, and transfer the substrate W between the first chamber C1 and the second chamber C2. Therefore, the complication of the structure of the arm portion 124 can be avoided. On the contrary, when adopting the fixed type transfer mechanism 120, in the substrate transfer device 100, inside the housing 110, structures such as the moving body 116 and the guide structure 118 are omitted, and the transfer mechanism 120 is directly fixed to the housing 110 (for example, the main body portion 122 of the transfer mechanism 120 is fixed to the lower part of the housing 110). In this case, the transfer mechanism 120 transfers the substrate between the first chamber C1 and the second chamber C2 with the expansion and contraction, lifting and lowering of the arm portion 124 having a plurality of joints and the turning around the main body portion 122. Therefore, the complication of the structure of the housing 110 can be avoided. The substrate transfer devices 100A to 100E shown in FIGS. 10 to 14 can also be adjusted to either the self-propelled type or the fixed type transfer mechanism 120. However, the present invention is not limited thereto.

[0047] Also, in the substrate transfer device 100 shown in FIG. 6, among the plurality of openings O1 in the first wall portion 114a, two adjacent Open ones of the openings O1 are provided between them. The first detection region DR1 formed by the first detection unit 130 forms a first transfer region TR1 and a second transfer region TR2 having substantially the same size. In other embodiments, the position of the first detection unit 130 and the sizes of the first transfer region TR1 and the second transfer region TR2 are not limited thereto. As an example, as shown in FIG. 15, in the substrate transfer device 100F, the first wall portion 114 of the housing 110 a is installed to extend long toward one side (for example, the right side), and the first detection unit 130 is provided at a position on one side (for example, the end on the right side) of the plurality of openings O1 in the first wall portion 114a, and forms the first detection region DR1 at a position on one side of the plurality of openings O1. The size of the first transfer region TR1 is larger than the size of the second transfer region TR2. In this case, the substrate W is transferred along the transfer direction D from the first transfer region TR1 to the second transfer region TR2 by the transfer mechanism 120, and the first detection unit 130 detects the state of the substrate W when the substrate W transferred along the transfer direction D from the first transfer region TR1 to the second transfer region TR2 passes through the first detection region DR1 . As can be seen from this, the installation positions of the first detection unit 130 and the first detection region DR1, the sizes of the first transfer region TR1 and the second transfer region TR2 divided by the first detection region DR1, etc. can be adjusted as necessary. The present invention is not limited to this.

[0048] Also, referring to FIGS. 2 and 16, in the present embodiment, in the substrate transfer device 100, the first detection unit 130 Is the baseAlthough it is provided to detect the state of the substrate W (such as the height T1, thickness T2, warpage amount T3, etc. of the substrate W), the substrate transfer device 100 is provided inside the housing 110 and may further include a second detection unit 140 that detects the position of the substrate W transferred by the transfer mechanism 120. As an example, the second detection unit 140 may use a line sensor similar to the first detection unit 130. The second detection unit 140 is provided on a second wall portion 114b which is a wall portion 114 adjacent to the second chamber C2 of the housing 110, provided to the housing 110 corresponding to the opening O2 of the processing device 54 (second chamber C2), forms a second detection region DR2 extending in the vertical direction Z of the housing 110, and detects the position of the substrate W in the horizontal direction intersecting the vertical direction Z. Therefore, the first detection region DR1 formed by the first detection unit 130 and the second detection region DR2 formed by the second detection unit 140 are formed to intersect (for example, be orthogonal) when viewed from the side surface of the housing 110. Thus, different from the role of the first detection region DR1, the second detection region DR2 is used to detect the position of the substrate W in the left-right direction X when transferring the substrate W to the substrate placement position (for example, the placement Base P) of the processing device 54 (second chamber C2) (that is, when carrying out the substrate W from the inside of the housing 110 to the substrate placement position (placement Base P) of the second chamber C2 through the opening O2). Specifically, the second detection region DR2 detects the position of the edge of the substrate W with respect to the substrate placement position (placement Base P). The substrate placement position (placement Base P, slot S) is the position where the substrate W is placed inside the first chamber C1 or the second chamber C2. As an example, the substrate placement position (slot S) in the first chamber C1 is the inner position of the side wall of the FOUP that supports the substrate W by the slots forming the same horizontal plane among the plurality of slots formed in the FOUP, and the substrate placement position (placement Base P) in the second chamber C2 is the position where a placement table for temporarily placing the substrate W is installed when transferring the substrate W between the housing 110 and the processing device 54 (second chamber C2), but the present invention is not limited thereto.

[0049] As an example, the second detection unit 140 includes a second light emitting unit 142 (second light emitting unit) that emits detection light for forming a second detection region DR2, and a second light receiving unit 144 (second light receiving unit) that receives the detection light. At least one of the second light emitting unit 142 or the second light receiving unit 144 is provided on a second wall portion 114b adjacent to the second chamber C2 of the housing 110. For example, the second light emitting unit 142 is provided at a corner at the upper edge and side portion of an opening O2 provided in the second wall portion 114b, and the second light receiving unit 144 is provided at a corner at the lower edge and side portion of the opening O2 provided in the second wall portion 114b. When the second light emitting unit 142 emits detection light downward from above along the side portion of the opening O2 and the second light receiving unit 144 receives the detection light, a second detection region DR2 extending in the vertical direction Z along the side portion of the opening O2 is formed. In this case, the second detection region DR2 is formed at a position that does not overlap with the conveyance path of the substrate W conveyed by the conveyance mechanism 120 from the inside of the housing 110 to the substrate placement position (placement Base P ) in the second chamber C2 through the opening O2. Therefore, the second detection region DR2 does not interfere with the substrate W carried out to the substrate placement position (placement Base P ) in the second chamber C2. However, the present invention is not limited to this. The second detection region DR2 may be formed at a position that overlaps with the conveyance path of the substrate W conveyed by the conveyance mechanism 120 from the inside of the housing 110 to the substrate placement position (placement Base P ) in the second chamber C2 through the opening O2.

[0050] Further, the second detection region DR2 is the substrate placement position of the processing device 54 (second chamber C2) (placement Base P) When transporting the substrate W, it is preferably used to detect the position of the edge of the substrate W on one side in the left - right direction X of the substrate W. In other words, when the substrate W transported by the transport mechanism 120 is positioned in the second detection region DR2, the second light - receiving unit 144 detects the position of the shadow or the change in the amount of light generated by blocking a part of the detection light emitted from the second light - emitting unit 142. Thereby, the relative position in the left - right direction X of the substrate W with respect to the transport mechanism 120 of the substrate W (specifically, the robot hand 126) is detected. Specifically, the second detection unit 140 detects the deviation of the substrate in the left - right direction X (corresponding to the deviation between the center line L1 of the robot hand 126 and the center line L2 of the substrate W) that cannot be detected in the first detection region DR1. As an example, the operation of bringing the substrate W closer to the second detection region DR2 may be an orthogonal operation in which the robot hand 126 is first approached to a predetermined position in the front - rear direction Y with respect to the opening O2 (moved in the front - rear direction Y) and then moved to the second detection region DR2 in the left - right direction X, or an operation (including diagonal movement) of moving from a predetermined position separated from the opening O2 to the coordinate position of the second detection region DR2. Also, for the detection of the substrate W by the second detection region DR2, in the second detection region DR2, the second detection unit 140 may calculate the center position of the substrate W from the amount of the detection light blocked by the substrate W, or may identify the position where the on / off switching of the detection light occurs as the edge position of the substrate W, and the second detection unit 140 calculates the center position of the substrate W from this position. Based on the detection result, the substrate W is inserted at a position where the center line L3 of the opening O2 coincides with the center line L2 of the substrate W held by the robot hand 126 (for example, the operation of the transport mechanism 120 is controlled by the control unit C described later).

[0051] Furthermore, as an example of the correction by the second detection unit 140, by correcting the position of the robot hand 126 in the left - right direction X by the total amount of a predetermined value a and the shielding amount b, the substrate W held by the robot hand 126 can be carried out into the second chamber C2 without collision. The predetermined value a is the end of the second detection region DR2 (here, the left end) and the placement Base PIt is the distance to the end (here, the right end), and is a value uniquely determined from the layout of the substrate transfer device 100. Therefore, depending on the arrangement of the second chamber C2 with respect to the second detection region DR2, the predetermined value a may be 0. Also, the shielding amount b is the distance between the edge of the substrate W (here, the right edge) and the end of the second detection region DR2 (here, the left end), and is a value determined by the range blocked by the substrate W among the detection light forming the second detection region DR2. As an example of correction by the second detection unit 140, by correcting the position of the robot hand 126 in the left - right direction X by the total amount of the shielding amount b and the predetermined value a, the substrate W held by the robot hand 126 can be carried into the second chamber C2 without collision. However, in the case of the above correction, depending on the balance between the size of the substrate W and the size of the Base P mounting, the actual center position (center line L2) of the substrate W and the center position (center line L3) of the Base P (second chamber C2) do not necessarily coincide. Also, although the second detection unit 140 is applied to the second chamber C2 side, in other embodiments not shown, the second detection unit 140 may be installed on the first chamber C1 side and substantially the same operation can be performed. In this case, the second detection region DR2 is preferably formed at a position that does not overlap with the transport path of the substrate W carried out from the inside of the housing 110 to the substrate mounting position (slot S) of the first chamber C1 through the opening O1 by the transport mechanism 120 (that is, the second detection region DR2 and the substrate W carried out to the substrate mounting position (slot S) of the first chamber C1 do not interfere), but the present invention is not limited to this. Also, the second detection unit 140 may employ a vision sensor such as a reflective optical line sensor, a line sensor camera, an area sensor camera, etc., and the structure, position of the second detection unit 140, the position and range of the second detection region DR2 formed by the second detection unit 140, or the presence or absence of installation of the second detection unit 140, etc. may be adjusted as necessary. The present invention is not limited to these.

[0052] Next, referring to FIGS. 6 and 17, a substrate transfer method for transferring the substrate W between the first chamber C1 and the second chamber C2 by the substrate transfer device 100 in the present embodiment will be described. As an example, the substrate transfer method is suitable for transferring the substrate W between the first chamber C1 and the second chamber C2 by the substrate transfer device 100. The substrate transfer method can also repeatedly transfer a plurality of substrates W by repeating the transfer from the first chamber C1 to the second chamber C2 and the transfer from the second chamber C2 to the first chamber C1. The substrate transfer method includes the following steps. Loading step S01: Load the substrate W into the housing 110. Transfer step S02: Transfer the substrate W to the housing 110. First detection step S03: Detect the state of the substrate W. Second detection step S04: Detect the position of the substrate W in the horizontal direction intersecting the vertical direction Z. Unloading step S05: Unload the substrate W from the housing 110. Among them, the transfer step S02 includes the following steps. First transfer step S021: Transfer the substrate W along the transfer direction D from the first transfer region TR1 to the second transfer region TR2. Second transfer step S022: Transfer the substrate W so that the substrate W heads toward the second detection region DR2. Therefore, the first detection step S03 is executed in the first transfer step S021 to detect the state of the substrate W, and the second detection step S04 is executed in the second transfer step S022 to detect the position of the substrate W in the horizontal direction.

[0053] Specifically, in the loading step S01, the substrate W is loaded into the housing 110. For example, as shown in FIG. 6, the transfer mechanism 120 provided inside the housing 110 inserts the robot hand 126 into the processing device 54 as the second chamber C2 through the opening O2 by the movement of the arm portion 124 (shown in FIG. 3), holds the substrate W by the holding portion 129, and returns the robot hand 126 to the housing 110 through the opening O2 by the movement of the arm portion 124 (for example, moves toward the housing 110 along the loading direction D1), and the substrate W held on the upper surface of the robot hand 126 by the holding portion 129 is loaded into the housing 110. As a result, the transfer mechanism 120 can load the substrate W from the processing device 54 as the second chamber C2 into the housing 110. However, in the loading step S01, it is also possible to load the substrate W from the first chamber C1 into the housing 110. The present invention is not limited to these.

[0054] Next, the transfer process S02 includes all operations of transferring the substrate W inside the housing 110 between the first chamber C1 and the second chamber C2. The transfer process S02 includes a first transfer process S021 and a second transfer process S022. The first transfer process S021 transfers the substrate W along the transfer direction D from the first transfer region TR1 to the second transfer region TR2. The second transfer process S022 transfers the substrate W so that the substrate W heads toward the second detection region DR2. Specifically, in the transfer process S02 (including the first transfer process S021 and the second transfer process S022), the substrate W held by the robot hand 126 inside the housing 110 is transferred by the movement of the main body 122 (shown in FIG. 3) of the transfer mechanism 120. Among them, the first transfer region TR1 is a region located on the end point side of the path for loading the substrate W into the housing 110 from the second chamber C2 or the first chamber C1, and the second transfer region TR2 is a region located on the starting point side of the path for unloading the substrate W from the inside of the housing 110 to the first chamber C1 or the second chamber C2 thereafter. Therefore, in the first transfer process S021, the substrate W is transferred from the first transfer region TR1 facing the opening O2 or the opening O1 to be passed through in the loading process S01 to the second transfer region TR2 facing the opening O1 or the opening O2 to be passed through in the unloading process S05.

[0055] Then, in the first detection step S03, the state of the substrate W is detected while the first transfer step S021 is being performed. The first detection unit 130 executes the first detection step S03 to detect the state of the substrate W when the substrate W being transferred along the transfer direction D from the first transfer region TR1 to the second transfer region TR2 passes through the first detection region DR1 between the first transfer region TR1 and the second transfer region TR2. That is, the first detection step S03 is executed while the first transfer step S021 is being executed, and the state of the substrate W being transferred by the first detection unit 130 is detected. For example, in the first transfer step S021, when the substrate W being transferred by the transfer mechanism 120 passes through the first detection region DR1 along the transfer direction D, the first detection step S03 is executed, and the state of the substrate W is detected by the first detection unit 130. As an example, in the first transfer step S021, the transfer direction D from the first transfer region TR1 to the second transfer region TR2 preferably intersects (for example, is orthogonal to) the loading direction D1 and the unloading direction D2 of the substrate W, but the present invention is not limited thereto.

[0056] Also, based on the structure of the substrate transfer device 100 shown in FIGS. 6 and 7, in the present embodiment, since the first detection step S03 is executed while the first transfer step S021 is being executed, the first detection step S03 detects the state of the substrate W (such as the height T1, thickness T2, warpage amount T3, etc. of the substrate W) from one edge portion of the substrate W to the other edge portion of the substrate W. Specifically, as shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, the first detection step S03 can detect the state of the substrate W (such as the height T1, thickness T2, warpage amount T3, etc. of the substrate W) based on the detection amount of the strip-shaped detection light L. For example, in the first detection step S03, the distance from the transfer mechanism 120 to the upper surface of the substrate W (for example, from the lower surface of the robot hand 126 to the upper surface of the substrate W) as the height T1 of the transferred substrate W is detected.

[0057] Similarly, in the second transfer step S022, the substrate W is transferred so as to move toward the second detection region DR2. As an example, in the second transfer step S022, the substrate W is transferred along the left-right direction X so as to pass through the second detection region DR2. In that case, the second transfer step S022 may transfer the substrate W along the transfer direction D as in the first transfer step S021. However, in the operation of the second transfer step S022 toward the second detection region DR2, the specific operation direction is not specified and can be adjusted as needed. Also, in the second transfer step S022, when transferring the substrate W to the substrate placement position (placement Base P ) of the processing apparatus 54 (second chamber C2), the second detection region DR2 is passed through the substrate W and the second detection step S04 is executed. That is, the second detection step S04 is executed in the process in which the second transfer step S022 is executed, and the position of the transferred substrate W is detected by the second detector 140. For example, in the second transfer step S022, the substrate W transferred by the transfer mechanism 120 is at the substrate placement position (placement Base P) When passing through the second detection area DR2 toward , the second detection step S04 is executed, and the position of the substrate W is detected by the second detection unit 140. In other words, in the second detection step S04, the second detection unit 140 detects the relative position in the left-right direction X of the substrate W with respect to the transfer mechanism 120 (robot hand 126). That is, the second transfer step S022 and the second detection step S04 are executed in order to correct the position of the substrate W toward the unloading step S05 (for example, transfer the substrate W so that the aforementioned center line L2 and center line L3 are aligned). In this case, it is preferable to make the second chamber C2 the unloading destination in the unloading step S05. In other embodiments not shown, the second detection unit 140 is installed with respect to the first chamber C1, the first chamber C1 is made the unloading destination in the unloading step S05, and in the second transfer step S022, the substrate W conveyed by the transfer mechanism 120 passes through the second detection area DR2 toward the substrate placement position (slot S) of the first chamber C1 to execute the second detection step S04, and it is also possible to detect the position of the substrate W by the second detection unit 140. Therefore, the second transfer step S022 and the second detection step S04 are not limited to the steps executed to correct the position of the substrate W toward the unloading step S05. Also, the order of the first detection step S03 and the second detection step S04 can be adjusted according to conditions such as the order in which the substrate W passes through the first detection area DR1 and the second detection area DR2 when the substrate W is transferred, that is, the positions of the first detection area DR1 and the second detection area DR2. However, the present invention does not limit the presence or absence of the installation of the second detection unit 140, that is, the presence or absence of the second detection step S04.

[0058] Also, in the present embodiment, as shown in FIG. 2, the substrate transfer device 100 includes a control unit C (shown in FIG. 2) that controls the transfer mechanism 120, and controls the operation of the transfer mechanism 120. The control unit C may be installed, for example, in the housing 110 of the substrate transfer device 100, may be installed in the transfer mechanism 120 of the substrate transfer device 100, or may be installed separately from the substrate transfer device 100 outside the substrate transfer device 100. The control unit C only needs to be electrically connected to the transfer mechanism 120 to control the transfer mechanism 120. Further, the control unit C may calculate the state (such as height) and position of the substrate W based on the information from the first detection unit 130 and the second detection unit 140. Therefore, in order to execute the first detection step S03 in the process of executing the first transfer step S021, in the first transfer step S021, the control unit C controls the operation of the transfer mechanism 120 according to the state of the substrate W (such as the height T1, thickness T2, warpage amount T3, etc. of the substrate W) detected in the first detection step S03. As an example, in the first transfer step S021, when the substrate W being transferred by the transfer mechanism 120 passes through the first detection region DR1, information regarding the state of the substrate W (such as the height T1, thickness T2, warpage amount T3, etc. of the substrate W) detected in the first detection step S03 is acquired. Then, the control unit C controls the operation of the transfer mechanism 120 that moves from passing through the first detection region DR1 to the second transfer region TR2 according to the information detected in the first detection step S03, so that the state of the transferred substrate W can be adjusted to preset conditions. Similarly, in order to execute the second detection step S04 in the process of executing the second transfer step S022, in the second transfer step S022, the operation of the transfer mechanism 120 is controlled according to the relative position in the left-right direction X of the substrate W detected in the second detection step S04 with respect to the transfer mechanism 120 (robot hand 126). As an example, in the second transfer step S022, when the substrate W being transferred by the transfer mechanism 120 passes through the second detection region DR2, information regarding the relative position in the left-right direction X of the substrate W detected in the second detection step S04 with respect to the transfer mechanism 120 (robot hand 126) is acquired. Then, the control unit C controls the operation of the transfer mechanism 120 that moves from passing through the second detection region DR2 to the second transfer region TR2 according to the information detected in the second detection step S04, so that the state of the transferred substrate W can be adjusted to preset conditions.

[0059] Finally, the unloading process S05 unloads the substrate W from the housing 110. For example, as shown in FIG. 6, the transfer mechanism 120 provided inside the housing 110 inserts the robot hand 126 into the container H as the first chamber C1 through the opening O1 by the movement of the arm portion 124 (shown in FIG. 3) (for example, moves to the first chamber C1 along the unloading direction D2), unloads the substrate W held on the upper surface of the robot hand 126 by the holding portion 129 from the housing 110, stores the substrate W in the slot S of the container H, and returns the robot hand 126 to the housing 110 through the opening O1 by the movement of the arm portion 124. As a result, the transfer mechanism 120 can unload the substrate W from the inside of the housing 110 to the container H as the first chamber C1. However, in the unloading process S05, it is also possible to unload the substrate W from the housing 110 to the second chamber C2. Further, the substrate transfer apparatus 100 that completes the unloading process S05 proceeds to the next process. For example, the transfer mechanism 120 transfers the next substrate W from the processing apparatus 54 as the second chamber C2 to the container H as the first chamber C1, or transfers the next substrate W from the container H as the first chamber C1 to the processing apparatus 54 as the second chamber C2. The present invention is not limited to this. Also, the content and order of each step of the above substrate transfer method have been described by taking the substrate transfer apparatus 100 shown in FIGS. 1 to 7 and FIG. 16 as an example, but the substrate transfer apparatuses 100A to 100F shown in FIGS. 10 to 15 are also applicable to the substrate transfer method of the present invention. The content and order of each step of the substrate transfer method can be adjusted according to the structural differences of the substrate transfer apparatuses 100A to 100F.

[0060] In summary, the substrate transfer device and the substrate transfer method can transfer a substrate between a first chamber and a second chamber. Among them, in the substrate transfer device, a first transfer region and a second transfer region where the substrate is transferred are formed inside the housing, and a first detection unit forms a first detection region extending in a direction intersecting the transfer direction of the substrate from the first transfer region to the second transfer region, and the first transfer region and the second transfer region are located on opposite sides of the first detection region sandwiching the first detection region. Therefore, when the transfer mechanism transfers the substrate along the transfer direction from the first transfer region to the second transfer region, the substrate is passed through the first detection region, and the state of the substrate is detected by the first detection unit. Thereby, the present invention provides a substrate transfer device and a substrate transfer method that can detect the state of a substrate while the substrate is being transferred in the substrate transfer region set between the substrate take-out position and the substrate input position, and improve control stability.

[0061] Finally, it should be noted that the above embodiments are only used for explaining the technical solutions of the present invention and are not intended to limit them. Although the present invention has been described in detail with reference to the above embodiments, those skilled in the art can naturally understand that the technical solutions described in the above embodiments can still be modified, or equivalent replacements can be made for some or all of the technical features. However, these modifications or replacements do not deviate the essence of the corresponding technical solutions from the scope of the technical solutions of the embodiments of the present invention.

Industrial Applicability

[0062] The present invention provides a substrate transfer device and a substrate transfer method that can detect the state of a substrate while the substrate is being transferred in the substrate transfer region set between the substrate take-out position and the substrate input position, and improve control stability.

Explanation of Reference Numerals

[0063] 50 Substrate transfer system, 52 Load port, 54 Processing device, 100 - 100F Substrate transfer device, 110 Housing, 112 Frame part, 114 Wall part, 114a First wall part, 114b Second wall part, 114c Third wall part, 114d Fourth wall part, 116 Moving body, 118 Guide structure, 120 Transfer mechanism, 122 Body part, 124 Arm part, 126 Robot hand, 126a hand upper surface, 126b hand lower surface, 128 Arm drive part, 129 Holding part, 130 First detection part, 132 First light emitting part, 134 First light receiving part, 140 Second detection part, 142 Second light emitting part, 144 Second light receiving part, a Predetermined value, b Shielding amount, C Control part, C1 First chamber, C2 Second chamber, D Transfer direction, D1 Loading direction, D2 Unloading direction, DR1 First detection area, DR2 Second detection area, E1 Peripheral part, E2 Peripheral part, H Container, L Detection light, L1 Center line of robot hand, L2 Center line of substrate, L3 Center line of opening, O1 Opening, O2 Opening, P Mounting table, S Slot, S01 Loading process, S02 Transfer process, S021 First transfer process, S022 Second transfer process, S03 First detection process, S04 Second detection process, S05 Unloading process, SR1 Installation range, SR2 Installation range, T1 Height, T2 Thickness, T3 Warp amount, TR1 First transfer area, TR2 Second transfer area, W Substrate, X Left - right direction, Y Front - back direction, Z Up - down direction

Claims

1. A substrate transfer device for transferring a substrate between a first chamber and a second chamber, comprising: a housing; a transfer mechanism provided inside the housing for transferring the substrate; a first detection unit provided inside the housing for detecting at least one of the height, thickness, or warpage amount of the substrate transferred by the transfer mechanism in a first detection region; wherein the housing is formed with a first opening communicating with the first chamber and a second opening communicating with the second chamber; a first transfer region and a second transfer region through which the substrate is transferred are formed inside the housing; the first detection region extends in a direction intersecting the transfer direction of the substrate from the first transfer region to the second transfer region; the first transfer region and the second transfer region are positioned opposite to each other with the first detection region therebetween; after the substrate is carried into the housing from one of the first chamber or the second chamber, the substrate passes through the first detection region during the process of being transferred from the first transfer region to the second transfer region along the transfer direction. A substrate transfer device characterized by the above.

2. Each of the first transfer region and the second transfer region has a size that includes at least the entire substrate in a plan view. The substrate transfer device according to claim 1, characterized by the above.

3. The size of the first transfer region is such that the transfer mechanism can hold the substrate so that the substrate before being transferred from the first transfer region to the second transfer region does not overlap at least the first detection region. The size of the second transfer region is such that the transfer mechanism can hold the substrate so that the substrate after being transferred from the first transfer region to the second transfer region does not overlap at least the first detection region. The substrate transfer device according to claim 2, characterized by the above.

4. The transfer mechanism has a holding unit for holding the substrate to be transferred. The first detection unit detects at least one of the height, thickness, or warpage amount of the substrate held by the holding unit. The substrate transfer device according to claim 1, characterized by the above.

5. The substrate transfer device further comprises a control unit for controlling the transfer mechanism. The control unit corrects the transfer operation of the transfer mechanism based on at least one of the detected height, thickness, or warpage amount of the substrate. The substrate transfer device according to claim 1, characterized by the above.

6. The substrate transfer device further comprises a control unit for controlling the transfer mechanism. The transfer mechanism has a holding unit for holding the substrate to be transferred. ​ ​ ​ ​ The first chamber is a container placed on a load port and having a plurality of slots capable of supporting the substrate. After the substrate is carried into the housing from the second chamber, in the process of the substrate being carried along the carrying direction from the first carrying region to the second carrying region, the substrate passes through the first detection region. After the first detector detects the height of the substrate held by the holding unit, the substrate is carried out of the housing into the container. The control unit adjusts the height position of the holding unit when carrying out the substrate into the container based on the detected height of the substrate. The substrate transfer device according to claim 1, characterized in that.

7. The housing includes a first wall portion formed with a peripheral portion for forming the first opening. The first detection region is formed to extend from the first wall portion toward the wall portion facing the first wall portion. The substrate transfer device according to claim 1, characterized in that.

8. A plurality of the first openings are provided. Peripheral portions for forming the respective first openings are provided on the first wall portion respectively. The first transfer region and the second transfer region face any one of the plurality of first openings. The first detection region extends from between two adjacent first openings in the first wall portion toward the wall portion facing the first wall portion. The substrate transfer device according to claim 7, characterized in that.

9. The housing is A first wall portion formed with a peripheral portion for forming the first opening, and A second wall portion formed with a peripheral portion for forming the second opening, and includes. In the vertical direction of the housing, the height positions of the first opening and the second opening are different. The first detection region extends from the first wall portion toward the second wall portion and is located between the first opening and the second opening. The substrate transfer device according to claim 1, characterized in that.

10. The first detection unit includes a first light emitting unit that emits detection light forming the first detection region, and a first light receiving unit that receives the detection light. The substrate transfer device according to claim 1, characterized in that at least one of the first light emitting unit or the first light receiving unit is fixed to a wall portion adjacent to the first chamber of the housing.

11. The housing further includes a second detection unit provided inside the housing for detecting the position of the substrate carried by the transfer mechanism. The second detection unit forms a second detection region extending in the vertical direction of the housing and detects the position of the substrate in the horizontal direction intersecting the vertical direction. The substrate transfer device according to claim 1, characterized in that...

12. The second detection unit includes a second light emitting unit that emits detection light forming the second detection region, and a second light receiving unit that receives the detection light. At least one of the second light emitting unit or the second light receiving unit is provided on a wall portion adjacent to the second chamber of the housing. The substrate transfer device according to claim 11, characterized in that...

13. The second detection region is formed at a position that does not overlap with the second opening. The substrate transfer device according to claim 11, characterized in that...

14. A substrate transfer device for transferring a substrate between a first chamber and a second chamber, comprising: A housing; A transfer mechanism provided inside the housing for transferring the substrate; A first detection unit provided inside the housing for detecting at least one of the height, thickness, or warpage amount of the substrate transferred by the transfer mechanism in a first detection region; Comprising; The housing is formed with a first opening communicating with the first chamber and a second opening communicating with the second chamber; Inside the housing, there are a first transfer region and a second transfer region through which the substrate is transferred; The first opening faces the first transfer region; Each of the first transfer region and the second transfer region has a size that includes at least the entire substrate in a plan view; The first detection region extends in a direction intersecting the transfer direction of the substrate from the first transfer region to the second transfer region; A substrate transfer device, characterized in that...

15. The first detection region extends along the direction of loading or unloading the substrate into or out of one of the first chamber or the second chamber. The substrate transfer device according to claim 1 or 14, characterized in that...

16. A substrate transfer method for transferring a substrate between a first chamber and a second chamber by a substrate transfer device, wherein: The substrate transfer device includes a housing, a transfer mechanism provided inside the housing for transferring the substrate, and a first detection unit provided inside the housing for detecting at least one of the height, thickness, or warpage amount of the substrate transferred by the transfer mechanism; Inside the housing, a first transfer region and a second transfer region through which the substrate is transferred are formed; The first detection unit forms a first detection region extending in a direction intersecting the transfer direction of the substrate from the first transfer region to the second transfer region; The first transfer region and the second transfer region are positioned opposite each other with the first detection region therebetween; The substrate transfer method includes: A loading step of loading the substrate into the housing from one of the first chamber or the second chamber; A first conveying step of conveying the substrate along the conveying direction from the first conveying region to the second conveying region; A first detecting step of detecting at least one of the height, thickness, or warpage amount of the substrate; An unloading step of unloading the substrate from the housing to the other of the first chamber or the second chamber after the detecting step is completed; Comprising; In the first conveying step, when the substrate conveyed along the conveying direction from the first conveying region to the second conveying region passes through the first detection region, the first detection unit executes the first detection step A substrate conveying method characterized by the above.

17. The detection by the first detection unit is performed with a strip-shaped detection light having a predetermined dimension, The first detection step detects at least one of the height, thickness, or warpage amount of the substrate based on the detection amount of the strip-shaped detection light The substrate conveying method according to claim 16, characterized by the above.

18. The substrate conveying device further includes a second detection unit provided inside the housing for detecting the position of the substrate conveyed by the conveying mechanism, The second detection unit is provided on a wall portion adjacent to the second chamber of the housing, and forms a second detection region extending in the vertical direction of the housing, The substrate conveying method is as follows: A second conveying step of conveying the substrate so that the substrate heads toward the second detection region; A second detection step of detecting the position of the substrate in a horizontal direction intersecting the vertical direction in the second conveying step; Further comprising The substrate conveying method according to claim 16, characterized by the above.

19. The substrate conveying device includes a control unit for controlling the conveying mechanism, The conveying mechanism has a holding unit for holding the conveyed substrate, The first detection unit detects the height of the substrate held by the holding unit, The first chamber is a container having a plurality of slots placed on a load port and capable of supporting the substrate, In the loading step, the substrate is loaded into the housing from the second chamber, In the unloading step, according to the height of the substrate detected in the first detection step, the control unit adjusts the height position of the holding unit to unload the substrate into the container The substrate conveying method according to claim 16, characterized by the above.

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