Conveyance robot

Abstract

This conveyance robot comprises: robot arms (10, 20); hands (30, 40) that have hermetically sealed hollow hand spaces (A30, A40) therein and hold a workpiece (W); chuck parts (50, 60) that secure the workpiece (W) held by the hands (30, 40); and operation parts (52, 62) that are disposed ins the hand spaces (A30, A40) and operate the chuck parts (50, 60).

Description

Transport robot

[0001] This disclosure relates to a transport robot.

[0002] Conventionally, transport robots for transporting workpieces are known. For example, Japanese Patent Publication No. 4262064 discloses a transport robot for transporting substrates as workpieces. The transport robot described in Japanese Patent Publication No. 4262064 is equipped with a hand for holding a workpiece. The hand is positioned on a linear movement mechanism installed on a swivel base. The hand is also equipped with a locking portion for engaging the edge of the workpiece. Separately from the locking portion, a workpiece holding portion is provided on the swivel base that contacts the edge of the workpiece. In the transport robot described in Japanese Patent Publication No. 4262064, in order to fix the workpiece placed on the hand without using a specific vacuum-compatible actuator, the linear movement mechanism is operated to position the hand in a retracted position, so that the locking portion of the hand and the workpiece holding portion on the swivel base grip and hold the workpiece on the hand. With the workpiece gripped and held on the hand by the locking portion and the workpiece holding portion, the transport robot rotates the swivel base to change the orientation of the hand.

[0003] Patent No. 4262064

[0004] However, in the transport robot described in the above-mentioned Japanese Patent Publication No. 4262064, in order to fix and hold a workpiece to the hand without using specific configurations such as vacuum-compatible actuators, the hand is positioned in a retracted position so that the locking part of the hand and the workpiece holding part of the swivel base grip and hold the workpiece held by the hand. Therefore, when the hand is positioned forward, the fixation of the workpiece to the hand is released. Consequently, in the forward position, the operating speed of the hand must be reduced to suppress the displacement of the workpiece relative to the hand, which reduces the work efficiency in the transport operation. Therefore, even without using special configurations such as vacuum-compatible actuators, it is desirable to suppress the displacement of the workpiece relative to the hand and suppress the decrease in work efficiency in the transport operation.

[0005] This disclosure is made to solve the above-mentioned problems, and one of its purposes is to provide a transport robot that can suppress misalignment of the workpiece relative to the hand and suppress a decrease in work efficiency during transport operations, even without using a special configuration.

[0006] To achieve the above objective, a transport robot according to one aspect of this disclosure comprises a robot arm, a hand positioned at the tip of the robot arm and having an airtight, hollow hand space inside, and holding a workpiece, a chuck for fixing the workpiece held by the hand, and an operating unit positioned in the hand space and operating the chuck.

[0007] As described above, the transport robot according to one aspect of this disclosure is positioned at the tip of a robot arm and has an airtight, hollow hand space inside, and comprises a hand for holding a workpiece, a chuck for fixing the workpiece held by the hand, and an operating unit positioned in the hand space for operating the chuck. As a result, since the operating unit for operating the chuck that fixes the workpiece is positioned in the airtight, hollow hand space inside the hand, the chuck can be operated in specific environments such as a vacuum without requiring a special configuration such as a vacuum-compatible actuator for the operating unit. Therefore, the workpiece can be fixed to the hand by operating the chuck using the operating unit without using a special configuration. Consequently, even without using a special configuration, displacement of the workpiece relative to the hand can be suppressed, thereby suppressing a decrease in work efficiency during transport operations.

[0008] According to this disclosure, as described above, it is possible to provide a transport robot that can suppress misalignment of the workpiece relative to the hand and suppress a decrease in work efficiency during transport operations, even without using a special configuration.

[0009] This is a schematic diagram showing the overall configuration of a substrate processing system equipped with a transport robot according to the first embodiment of this disclosure. This is a block diagram showing the configuration of a substrate processing system equipped with a transport robot according to the first embodiment. This is a schematic perspective view showing a transport robot according to the first embodiment. This is a cross-sectional view for explaining the arm space and hand space. This is a cross-sectional view for explaining the configuration of the hand according to the first embodiment. This is a schematic diagram for explaining the sealing member. This is a schematic diagram for explaining the expansion and contraction of the expandable member in the sealing member. This is a flowchart for explaining the control process of the workpiece transport method by the transport robot. This is a schematic diagram showing the overall configuration of a substrate processing system equipped with a transport robot according to the second embodiment of this disclosure. This is a cross-sectional view for explaining the configuration of the hand according to the second embodiment. This is a cross-sectional view for explaining a sealing member according to the first modification. This is a top view for explaining a contact member according to the second modification.

[0010] [First Embodiment] Hereinafter, embodiments of the present disclosure will be described based on the drawings.

[0011] The configuration of the transport robot 100 according to the first embodiment of this disclosure will be described with reference to Figures 1 to 7.

[0012] (Configuration of the Substrate Processing System) As shown in Figure 1, the transport robot 100 according to the first embodiment transports the workpiece W in the substrate processing system 101. The substrate processing system 101 comprises the transport robot 100, a load lock unit 102, and a plurality of processing module units 103. In the example in Figure 1, the substrate processing system 101 comprises two load lock units 102 and four processing module units 103. The substrate processing system 101 also comprises a transport chamber 104 and an loading / unloading chamber 105. The substrate processing system 101 performs processing on workpiece W, such as semiconductor wafers and printed circuit boards. In the first embodiment, the workpiece W is a disc-shaped substrate. The workpiece W is, for example, a glass substrate or a silicon substrate. Here, "disc-shaped" is described as a broad concept that also includes shapes deformed from a circle. A "disc-shaped" substrate includes a substrate provided with a notch or orientation flat that serves as a position reference. Furthermore, "disc-shaped" includes not only perfect circles but also ellipses.

[0013] Each of the multiple processing modules 103 performs a process on a workpiece W, such as coating a resist or etching it. The multiple processing modules 103 are arranged along the outer perimeter of the transport chamber 104. A load lock unit 102 is also located on the outer perimeter of the transport chamber 104. An loading / unloading chamber 105 is located on the opposite side of the load lock unit 102 from the transport chamber 104. On the opposite side of the loading / unloading chamber 105 from the load lock unit 102, there are three ports for attaching carriers 106, each capable of accommodating a workpiece W.

[0014] The transport robot 100 performs a transport operation that includes at least one of the following: unloading the workpiece W from the processing module 103 that processes the workpiece W, and loading the workpiece W into the processing module 103. In other words, the transport robot 100 is a substrate transport robot that loads and unloads the workpiece W, which is a substrate, between the load lock unit 102 and the processing module 103. The transport robot 100 is located in the center of the transport chamber 104. The transport chamber 104 is under vacuum. In other words, the transport robot 100 is a vacuum robot that transports the workpiece W while being located in a vacuum environment.

[0015] In the substrate processing system 101, for example, a robot located in the loading / unloading room 105 loads the workpiece W from the carrier 106 into the load lock section 102. Then, the transport robot 100 of the first embodiment transports the workpiece W from the load lock section 102 to each of the multiple processing module sections 103. For example, the transport robot 100 transports the workpiece W from the mounting section 102a on which the workpiece W is placed in the load lock section 102 to the mounting section 103a on which the workpiece W is placed in the processing module section 103. After processing in each of the multiple processing module sections 103, the workpiece W is transported from each of the multiple processing module sections 103 back to the load lock section 102 by the transport robot 100. Then, a robot located in the loading / unloading room 105 unloads the processed workpiece W from the load lock section 102 to the carrier 106. Multiple workpieces W are stored in the carrier 106.

[0016] (Configuration of the transport robot) As shown in Figure 2, the transport robot 100 comprises a pair of robot arms 10 and 20, and a pair of hands 30 and 40. Hand 30 includes a blade member 31, a hand base portion 32, and a chuck portion 50. Hand 40 includes a blade member 41, a hand base portion 42, and a chuck portion 60. The chuck portion 50 has a contact member 51, a drive portion 52, and a detection portion 53. The chuck portion 60 has a contact member 61, a drive portion 62, and a detection portion 63. Hands 30 and 40 have a common structure to each other. That is, the blade member 31, hand base portion 32, and chuck portion 50 of hand 30 have a common structure to the blade member 41, hand base portion 42, and chuck portion 60 of hand 40, respectively. Furthermore, the contact member 51, drive unit 52, and detection unit 53 of the chuck unit 50 have a common structure with the contact member 61, drive unit 62, and detection unit 63 of the chuck unit 60, respectively. Note that the drive unit 52 and drive unit 62 are examples of the "operating unit" and "linear movement mechanism".

[0017] <Robot Arms> As shown in Figure 3, hands 30 and 40 are positioned at the respective ends of robot arms 10 and 20. Each of robot arms 10 and 20 rotates and extends by driving multiple joints. Furthermore, each of robot arms 10 and 20 operates independently by control processing by the control unit 81 shown in Figure 2. The transport robot 100 is a dual-arm type substrate transport robot that loads and unloads workpieces W, which are substrates, and is a horizontal multi-joint type substrate transport robot. Specifically, robot arm 10 is a horizontal multi-joint robot arm having a pair of interconnected link members 11 and 12 that rotate in the horizontal plane with the vertical Z direction as the axis of rotation. Similarly, robot arm 20 is a horizontal multi-joint robot arm having a pair of interconnected link members 21 and 22 that rotate in the horizontal plane with the vertical Z direction as the axis of rotation. In this context, "horizontal" means parallel to the mounting surface on which the transport robot 100 is installed. If the transport robot 100 is positioned on an inclined surface or a wall, the robot arms 10 and 20 rotate in a plane parallel to the mounting surface, which is different from the horizontal plane relative to gravity.

[0018] A servo motor is provided as a drive source for each of the robot arms 10 and 20. In the transport robot 100, a separate servo motor is provided as a drive source for each joint of the robot arms 10 and 20. The servo motors as drive sources may be located inside the robot arms 10 and 20, or inside the base portion 100a. An encoder is provided for each of the servo motors provided as a drive source for each joint to acquire the rotational speed of the servo motor.

[0019] The base ends of robot arms 10 and 20 are arranged to overlap vertically. The base end of robot arm 10 is positioned lower than the base end of robot arm 20. Each of robot arms 10 and 20 performs rotational and extension movements independently relative to the base portion 100a. In detail, the base end of link member 11 of robot arm 10 is rotatably attached to the base portion 100a. The base end of link member 12 is rotatably attached to the tip end of link member 11. A hand 30 is rotatably attached to the tip end of link member 12. Similarly, the base end of link member 21 of robot arm 20 is rotatably attached to the base portion 100a via link member 11. The base end of link member 22 is rotatably attached to the tip end of link member 21. A hand 40 is rotatably attached to the tip end of link member 22. Furthermore, the base portion 100a has a lifting mechanism that moves each of the robot arms 10 and 20 separately in the vertical Z direction. This lifting mechanism has, for example, a servo motor as a drive source.

[0020] Furthermore, as shown in Figure 4, in the first embodiment, each of the robot arm 10 and the robot arm 20 has a hollow arm space A10 and an arm space A20, respectively, which are airtight and maintained at atmospheric pressure. In the robot arm 10, link member 11 and link member 12 are connected to each other via a hollow shaft member 13. The internal spaces of link member 11 and link member 12 communicate with each other via the shaft member 13. In the robot arm 20, link member 21 and link member 22 are connected to each other via a hollow shaft member 23, and the internal spaces of link member 21 and link member 22 communicate with each other via the shaft member 23. The shaft member 13 and shaft member 23 are supported by bearing members such as ball bearings. The arm space A10 of the robot arm 10 is airtight and maintained at atmospheric pressure, with the internal spaces of link member 11 and link member 12 communicating with each other, and is airtight from the external vacuum environment. Similarly, the arm space A20 of the robot arm 20 is airtight from the external vacuum environment and maintained at atmospheric pressure, with the internal spaces of the link members 21 and 22 communicating with each other. Each joint of the robot arm 10 and the robot arm 20 is equipped with a sealing member to isolate the interior of the robot arm 10 and the robot arm 20 from the vacuum environment and maintain an atmospheric pressure state. In addition, the arm spaces A10 and A20 are in communication with the internal space of the base portion 100a in an airtight state.

[0021] <Hand> As shown in Figure 3, each of the hands 30 and 40 holds the workpiece W. Specifically, one disc-shaped workpiece W is placed on each of the blade members 31 of the hand 30 and 41 of the hand 40. Each of the blade members 31 and 41 is a thin plate-shaped support plate that supports the workpiece W. Each of the blade members 31 and 41 has a U-shape with a bifurcated tip, and supports the back surface of the disc-shaped workpiece W from the Z2 direction, which is the vertically downward side. The base ends of each of the blade members 31 and 41 are connected to the hand base portion 32 and hand base portion 42, respectively. Each of the hand base portion 32 and hand base portion 42 is attached to the robot arm 10 and robot arm 20, respectively, and rotates along the horizontal plane relative to the robot arm 10 and robot arm 20.

[0022] As shown in Figure 4, in the first embodiment, each of the hands 30 and 40 has a hollow hand space A30 and a hand space A40, respectively, which are airtight and maintained at atmospheric pressure. Hand space A30 is located inside the hand base portion 32 of hand 30, and hand space A40 is located inside the hand base portion 42 of hand 40. Hand 30 is connected to the robot arm 10 via a hollow shaft member 14. Hand 40 is connected to the robot arm 20 via a hollow shaft member 24. Hand space A30 of hand 30 communicates with the internal space of the link member 12 of the robot arm 10. Hand space A40 of hand 40 communicates with the internal space of the link member 22 of the robot arm 20. That is, hand space A30 of hand 30 is airtight and maintained at atmospheric pressure, while communicating with arm space A10 of robot arm 10 via the shaft member 14, and is maintained at atmospheric pressure while being airtight from the external vacuum environment. Similarly, the hand space A40 of the hand 40 is in communication with the arm space A20 of the robot arm 20 via the shaft member 24, and is airtight from the external vacuum environment and under atmospheric pressure. In the first embodiment, the hands 30 and 40 are placed in a vacuum environment, and the inside of the hand spaces A30 and A40 are filled with air at atmospheric pressure. The shaft members 14 and 24 are supported by bearing members such as ball bearings, similar to the shaft members 13 and 23.

[0023] Note that "atmospheric pressure" here refers to, for example, 10 ５ The pressure is approximately Pa, and "atmospheric pressure state" means a state filled with air at atmospheric pressure. "Vacuum," on the other hand, means a space filled with gas at a pressure lower than normal atmospheric pressure. That is, hands 30 and 40 are placed in a vacuum environment with a lower pressure than hand spaces A30 and A40. In the substrate processing system 101, for example, the transport robot 100 is in a high vacuum 10 －１ From Pa to 10 －５ It is placed in a transport chamber 104 filled with gas at a pressure up to Pa.

[0024] <Chuck Section> As shown in Figure 5, the contact member 51, drive unit 52, and detection unit 53 of the chuck section 50 are located on the hand 30. The contact member 61, drive unit 62, and detection unit 63 of the chuck section 60 are located on the hand 40. The chuck section 50 and the chuck section 60 fix the workpiece W held by the hand 30 and the hand 40, respectively. In other words, the hand 30 and the hand 40 are active-type substrate holding hands that hold the workpiece W in a fixed state, and are so-called edge-grip type substrate holding hands. In the following description, since the structure is common, only the description of the chuck section 50 of the hand 30 will be given, and the description of the chuck section 60 of the hand 40 will be omitted.

[0025] The contact member 51 moves in the X direction, which is the front-rear direction, within the hand 30, and contacts the workpiece W held by the hand 30. Specifically, the contact member 51 is a rod-shaped member that extends from the inside to the outside of the hand space A30 of the hand base portion 32, along the front-rear direction, which is the direction from the base end to the tip of the hand 30. The base end of the contact member 51 is located inside the hand space A30 of the hand base portion 32 of the hand 30, and extends in the X direction towards the tip along the Z1 direction surface of the blade member 31 outside the hand space A30. The contact member 51 moves linearly along the linear guide 51a located in the hand space A30 inside the hand base portion 32. The contact member 51 also contacts the peripheral edge of the disc-shaped workpiece W at its tip. The chuck portion 50 positions the workpiece W in a fixed state relative to the hand 30 by the linear movement of the contact member 51 and its contact with the workpiece W held by the hand 30. In other words, the chuck portion 50 fixes the workpiece W, thereby setting the position of the workpiece W relative to the hand 30 to a predetermined position.

[0026] The drive unit 52 operates the contact member 51 of the chuck portion 50. Specifically, the drive unit 52 moves the contact member 51 linearly. The drive unit 52 moves the contact member 51 along the X direction, which is the front-rear direction from the base end to the tip of the hand 30. The drive unit 52 has, for example, an air actuator including an air cylinder as a drive source. The drive unit 52 is located in the hand space A30 inside the hand base portion 32.

[0027] The detection unit 53 detects the position of the contact member 51, which is moved by the drive unit 52. The detection unit 53 is located in the hand space A30 inside the hand base portion 32 of the hand 30 and detects the position of the contact member 51 in the front-rear direction on the hand 30. The detection unit 53 includes a photoelectric sensor that detects the position of the contact member 51 by emitting detection light, for example. When the contact member 51 is brought into contact with a workpiece W placed on the hand 30, the contact member 51, which is moved in the X1 direction by the operation of the drive unit 52, stops at the contact position upon contact with the workpiece W. On the other hand, when the contact member 51 is moved in the X1 direction when the workpiece W is not placed on the hand 30, the contact member 51 moves further in the X1 direction than the contact position. The detection unit 53 detects whether the contact member 51 has stopped at the contact position where it contacts the workpiece W when the contact member 51 is moved in the X1 direction by the drive unit 52 by irradiating the contact member 51 with detection light.

[0028] In the first embodiment, the blade member 31 of the hand 30 has a pair of engaging portions 31a that engage with the placed workpiece W. As shown in Figure 3, each of the pair of engaging portions 31a is positioned at the tip of the bifurcated blade member 31. In the hand 30, the contact member 51 of the chuck portion 50 moves toward the tip of the hand 30 by the operation of the drive unit 52, and together with the pair of engaging portions 31a of the blade member 31, it comes into contact with the peripheral edge of the disc-shaped workpiece W. The contact member 51 and the pair of engaging portions 31a hold the workpiece W placed on the blade member 31 by clamping it in place as they come into contact with the peripheral edge of the workpiece W. The workpiece W is held in a fixed position relative to the hand 30 by being clamped between the contact member 51 and the pair of engaging portions 31a in the XY plane. Similarly, the blade member 41 of the hand 40 also has a pair of engaging portions 41a, and the contact member 61 of the chuck portion 60 and the pair of engaging portions 41a contact the peripheral edge of the workpiece W, thereby holding the workpiece W placed on the blade member 41 by clamping it.

[0029] <Wiring Members> As shown in Figure 4, the transport robot 100 is also equipped with wiring members 54 and 64. Wiring members 54 and 64 are located inside the arm spaces A10 and A20 of the robot arms 10 and 20, respectively. Wiring member 54 extends from the base portion 100a through the arm space A10 to the drive unit 52 located in the hand space A30 of the hand 30. Wiring member 64 also extends from the base portion 100a through the arm space A20 to the drive unit 62 located in the hand space A40 of the hand 40. Wiring members 54 and 64 are connected to the drive units 52 and 62, respectively, and supply power to the drive units 52 and 62. In the first embodiment, wiring members 54 and 64 are air tubes located in the arm spaces A10 and A20 under atmospheric pressure and supply air as power to the drive units 52 and 62 located in the hand spaces A30 and A40 under atmospheric pressure. Note that wiring member 54 and wiring member 64 are examples of "internal wiring members".

[0030] <Sealing Members> As shown in Figure 5, sealing members 71 and 72 are provided in the hands 30 and 40, respectively. The sealing member 71 seals the contact member 51 that moves in the front-rear direction between the inside and outside of the hand space A30. The sealing member 72 seals the contact member 61 that moves in the front-rear direction between the inside and outside of the hand space A40. In the following description, since the structure is the same, only the sealing member 71 of the hand 30 will be described, and the description of the sealing member 72 of the hand 40 will be omitted.

[0031] As shown in Figure 6, the sealing member 71 has an expandable member 71a, a fixing part 71b, and a fixing part 71c. The expandable member 71a expands and contracts in accordance with the linear movement of the contact member 51 by folding in an accordion-like manner. The expandable member 71a is a cylindrical member that surrounds the rod-shaped contact member 51 while folding in an accordion-like manner. The fixing part 71b is an annular member that surrounds the rod-shaped contact member 51 and is attached to the hand base part 32. The fixing part 71c is similarly an annular member. The fixing part 71c surrounds the rod-shaped contact member 51 and is attached to the contact member 51. The fixing part 71b surrounds the hole 32a located in the hand base part 32 and is attached to the outer surface of the hand base part 32. The contact member 51 extends outward from the hand space A30 inside the hand base part 32 through this hole 32a. The cylindrical expandable member 71a has one end connected to a fixed portion 71b and the other end connected to a fixed portion 71c. That is, in the sealing member 71, the fixed portions 71b and 71c are arranged as flanges at both ends of the bellows-shaped cylindrical expandable member 71a. The sealing member 71 is a so-called bellows seal. The sealing member 71, with the expandable member 71a, the fixed portion 71b, and the fixed portion 71c, hermetically seals the space covered by the expandable member 71a to the outside. In the contact member 51, the space covered by the expandable member 71a communicates with the hand space A30 via the hole 32a. As the expandable member 71a expands and contracts in the X direction, even when the contact member 51 moves in the X direction, the hand space A30 and the space covered by the expandable member 71a are kept hermetically sealed to the external vacuum environment at atmospheric pressure.

[0032] For example, as shown in Figure 7, when the contact member 51 is moved along the X2 direction from its position at the contact point in Figure 6 to move away from the workpiece W, the expandable member 71a folds and contracts in the X direction. On the other hand, when the contact member 51 is moved in the X1 direction toward the contact point, the expandable member 71a expands and extends in the X direction, as shown in Figure 6. As a result, the contact member 51 moves along the front-rear direction while maintaining airtightness between the inside of the hand space A30 and the outside, by being sealed by the sealing member 71 having the expandable member 71a.

[0033] As shown in Figure 2, the transport robot 100 also includes a control unit 81 and a storage unit 82. The control unit 81 is a computer having an arithmetic unit such as a CPU (Central Processing Unit). The storage unit 82 includes a storage device including flash memory such as an SSD (Solid State Drive). The control unit 81 may be positioned separately from the transport robot 100, or it may be positioned integrally with the transport robot 100. The control unit 81 is a robot controller that controls the operation of each part of the transport robot 100 based on programs and parameters stored in the storage unit 82.

[0034] The control unit 81 includes, for example, a main control unit that controls the movement of each joint of the robot arms 10 and 20, a servo control unit that controls the drive current output to the servo motors, which are drive sources, located at each joint of the robot arms 10 and 20, based on commands from the main control unit, and a drive circuit unit that supplies power to each joint of the robot arms 10 and 20. In the control unit 81, for example, the main control unit and the servo control unit each have a separate computing device such as a CPU. The control unit 81 controls the movement of the robot arms 10 and 20 by feedback control by controlling the movement of the servo motors, which are drive sources, based on the output from the encoders. The control unit 81 also controls the movement of the drive units 52 and 62. In the first embodiment, the control unit 81 controls the transport operation of a plurality of workpieces W. The control unit 81 controls the transport operation of the workpieces W based on control signals from a higher-level control device that controls the entire substrate processing system 101. The control unit 81 transports the workpieces W based on a preset amount of movement by controlling the movement of the robot arms 10 and hand 30 and the robot arms 20 and hand 40. The set amount of movement is stored in the memory unit 82.

[0035] (Control Processing for Workpiece Transport Method) Next, with reference to Figure 8, the control processing for the workpiece transport method by the transport robot 100 will be described. This control processing for the workpiece transport method is performed by the control unit 81. In the following description, the operations from step S1 to step S3 will be described as an example of controlling transport operations using the robot arm 10 and hand 30. The same applies to transport operations using the robot arm 20 and hand 40.

[0036] First, in step S1, the workpiece W is held in the hand 30. The control unit 81 controls the movement of the robot arm 10 and the hand 30 so that the workpiece W is placed on the blade member 31 of the hand 30, and operates the drive unit 52 to bring the contact member 51 into contact with the workpiece W held in the hand 30 so that the position of the workpiece W is fixed relative to the hand 30. For example, when transporting the workpiece W from the mounting section 102a of the load lock section 102 to the mounting section 103a of the processing module section 103, the control unit 81 controls the movement of the robot arm 10 and the hand 30 so that the workpiece W placed on the mounting section 102a is placed on the blade member 31 of the hand 30. With the workpiece W placed on the blade member 31, the control unit 81 controls the movement of the drive unit 52 to move the contact member 51 to a position where it contacts the workpiece W. Even if the workpiece W placed on the mounting section 102a is misaligned, the contact member 51 of the chuck section 50 positions the workpiece W relative to the hand 30, so that the workpiece W is fixed and held in a predetermined position by the hand 30.

[0037] Next, in step S2, it is determined whether or not the workpiece W has been detected. Specifically, the control unit 81 determines whether or not the workpiece W is being held by the hand 30 by determining whether or not the contact member 51 is positioned at the contact position, which is the position where the contact member 51 contacts the workpiece W, based on the detection result from the detection unit 53. If it is determined that the contact member 51 is positioned at the contact position, it is determined that the workpiece W is being held by the hand 30 and that the workpiece W has been detected. If it is determined that the workpiece W has been detected, the process proceeds to step S3. On the other hand, if it is determined that the contact member 51 is not positioned at the contact position, it is determined that the workpiece W is not being held by the hand 30 and that the workpiece W has not been detected. If it is determined that the workpiece W has not been detected, the control process ends. If the workpiece W is not detected, for example, the control unit 81 outputs a signal to the higher-level control device of the substrate processing system 101 indicating that the workpiece W is not being held. The substrate processing system 101 then notifies the system that the workpiece W is not being held by a display device or a notification device such as a speaker located in the substrate processing system 101.

[0038] In step S3, the workpiece W is transported. The control unit 81 controls the movements of the robot arm 10 and the hand 30 to perform the transport operation of the workpiece W held by the hand 30. Since the workpiece W is fixed to the hand 30 by the chuck 50, the workpiece W is transported to a predetermined position accurately by transporting it by a preset amount of movement. For example, the control unit 81 controls the movements of the robot arm 10 and the hand 30 based on the amount of movement stored in the memory unit 82 so that the workpiece W is transported to the mounting unit 103a while being held by the control unit 81. Then, after transporting the workpiece W to the position of the mounting unit 103a, the control unit 81 controls the movement of the drive unit 52 to move the contact member 51 to a position away from the workpiece W. By moving the contact member 51 to a position away from the workpiece W, the control unit 81 releases the fixation of the workpiece W in the hand 30 and places the workpiece W on the mounting unit 103a.

[0039] [Effects of the First Embodiment] In the first embodiment, as described above, the transfer robot 100 includes: hands 30 and 40 arranged at the distal ends of robot arms 10 and 20, having airtight hollow hand spaces A30 and A40 therein, and holding a workpiece W; chuck portions 50 and 60 that fix the workpiece W held by the hands 30 and 40; and driving portions 52 and 62 arranged in the hand spaces A30 and A40 as operating portions that actuate the chuck portions 50 and 60. Accordingly, since the driving portions 52 and 62 that actuate the chuck portions 50 and 60 for fixing the workpiece W are arranged in the airtight hollow hand spaces A30 and A40 inside the hands 30 and 40, the chuck portions 50 and 60 can be actuated in a specific environment such as a vacuum without, for example, configuring the driving portions 52 and 62 as a special structure such as a vacuum-compatible actuator. Therefore, the workpiece W can be fixed to the hands 30 and 40 by actuating the chuck portions 50 and 60 via the driving portions 52 and 62 without using a special structure. As a result, even when no special structure is used, positional displacement of the workpiece W relative to the hands 30 and 40 can be suppressed, and a decrease in work efficiency during transfer operation can be suppressed.

[0040] Hands 30 and 40 hold a workpiece W including a disk-shaped substrate or a jig imitating a disk-shaped substrate. Chuck portions 50 and 60 fix the disk-shaped workpiece W. Driving portions 52 and 62 serving as operating portions are arranged in hand spaces A30 and A40 provided in the hands 30 and 40 that hold the disk-shaped workpiece W, and operate the chuck portions 50 and 60 that fix the disk-shaped workpiece W. Here, when conveying a substrate as the workpiece W, the workpiece W may be conveyed in a specific environment such as a vacuum environment in order to suppress the adhesion of foreign matter to the substrate. In contrast, in the first embodiment, the driving portions 52 and 62 are arranged in the hand spaces A30 and A40 provided in the hands 30 and 40 that hold the disk-shaped workpiece W, and operate the chuck portions 50 and 60 that fix the disk-shaped workpiece W. Accordingly, even when conveying the workpiece W including a disk-shaped substrate or a jig imitating a disk-shaped substrate in a specific environment such as a vacuum environment, positional displacement of the workpiece W relative to the hands 30 and 40 can be suppressed without using a special configuration such as a vacuum-compatible actuator, and a decrease in workability during the conveying operation can be effectively suppressed.

[0041] Hands 30 and 40 are arranged in a vacuum environment. The hand spaces A30 and A40 are at atmospheric pressure. Accordingly, the workpiece W can be conveyed in a vacuum environment using the driving portions 52 and 62 serving as operating portions that operate at atmospheric pressure. Therefore, even when the driving portions 52 and 62 that operate at atmospheric pressure are used, positional displacement of the workpiece W relative to the hands 30 and 40 can be suppressed during conveyance in a vacuum environment, and a decrease in workability during the conveying operation can be effectively suppressed. In addition, in a vacuum environment, it is difficult to operate an air actuator that operates by air pressure. Therefore, as in the first embodiment, by arranging the driving portions 52 and 62 including air actuators in the hand spaces A30 and A40 at atmospheric pressure, positional displacement of the workpiece W relative to the hands 30 and 40 can be suppressed using the driving portions 52 and 62 including air actuators even in a vacuum environment, and a decrease in workability during the conveying operation can be effectively suppressed.

[0042] The transport robot 100 includes a pair of hands 30 and 40. At least one of the pair of hands 30 and 40 has airtight, hollow hand spaces A30 and A40, and drive units 52 and 62, which act as operating parts, are arranged in the hand spaces A30 and A40. As a result, even when transporting a workpiece W using the pair of hands 30 and 40, displacement of the workpiece W can be suppressed and a decrease in work efficiency during transport can be suppressed without using special configurations such as vacuum-compatible actuators. Therefore, by using the pair of hands 30 and 40, the efficiency of transporting the workpiece W can be improved, and displacement of the workpiece W can be suppressed without using special configurations, thereby effectively suppressing a decrease in work efficiency during transport.

[0043] The chuck sections 50 and 60 include contact members 51 and 61 that contact the workpiece W held by the hands 30 and 40. The drive units 52 and 62, acting as linear movement mechanisms, move the contact members 51 and 61 linearly. As a result, even when the contact members 51 and 61 are brought into contact with the workpiece W held by the hands 30 and 40 to fix the workpiece W, the drive units 52 and 62 that move the contact members 51 and 61 linearly can be positioned in the airtight, hollow hand spaces A30 and A40 inside the hands 30 and 40, allowing the contact members 51 and 61 to move linearly without using special linear movement mechanisms such as vacuum-compatible actuators. Therefore, since the contact members 51 and 61 can be moved linearly without using special linear movement mechanisms, misalignment of the workpiece W relative to the hands 30 and 40 can be suppressed, effectively reducing the decrease in workability during transport operations.

[0044] The chuck portions 50 and 60 position the workpiece W in a fixed state relative to the hands 30 and 40 by having the contact members 51 and 61 move linearly and contact the workpiece W held by the hands 30 and 40. As a result, the contact members 51 and 61, which are used to position the workpiece W in a fixed state relative to the hands 30 and 40, can be moved by the drive units 52 and 62, which are linear movement mechanisms located in the airtight, hollow hand spaces A30 and A40 inside the hands 30 and 40. Therefore, the workpiece W can be positioned in a fixed state relative to the hands 30 and 40 by the contact members 51 and 61 without using special linear movement mechanisms such as vacuum-compatible actuators. Thus, the workpiece W can be easily positioned in a fixed state relative to the hands 30 and 40 without using any special configurations.

[0045] The contact members 51 and 61 are positioned from the inside to the outside of the hand spaces A30 and A40. The transport robot 100 is equipped with sealing members 71 and 72 that seal the contact members 51 and 61 between the inside and outside of the hand spaces A30 and A40. As a result, even when the contact members 51 and 61 are positioned from the inside to the outside of the hand spaces A30 and A40, the sealing members 71 and 72 allow the contact members 51 and 61 to move linearly while maintaining the airtightness of the hand spaces A30 and A40. Therefore, even without using special configurations such as vacuum-compatible actuators, the airtightness of the hand spaces A30 and A40, where the drive units 52 and 62 that move the contact members 51 and 61 are located, can be maintained by the sealing members 71 and 72, allowing the drive units 52 and 62 to operate stably.

[0046] The sealing member 71 includes an expandable / contractible member 71a that expands and contracts in response to the linear movement of the contact member 51 by folding in an accordion-like manner. As a result, because the sealing member 71 includes an expandable / contractible member 71a that expands and contracts in response to the linear movement of the contact member 51, the contact member 51 can be easily moved linearly while maintaining the airtightness of the hand space A30 by expanding and contracting the expandable / contractible member 71a. Therefore, the operation of the drive unit 52 can be easily stabilized by expanding and contracting the expandable / contractible member 71a.

[0047] The transport robot 100 is equipped with detection units 53 and 63 positioned in the hand spaces A30 and A40 to detect the positions of the contact members 51 and 61. As a result, since the detection units 53 and 63 for detecting the positions of the contact members 51 and 61 are positioned in the hand spaces A30 and A40, it is possible to easily detect whether or not the workpiece W is being held by the hands 30 and 40 by detecting the positions of the contact members 51 and 61 in the hand spaces A30 and A40 without using special configurations such as vacuum-compatible sensors.

[0048] The robot arms 10 and 20 have airtight, hollow arm spaces A10 and A20. This eliminates the need for the internal configuration of the robot arms 10 and 20 to be a special configuration that can operate in specific environments such as a vacuum, thereby increasing the flexibility of the internal configuration options for the robot arms 10 and 20.

[0049] The transport robot 100 is positioned inside the arm spaces A10 and A20 and extends to the drive units 52 and 62, which are operating parts located in the hand spaces A30 and A40 of the hands 30 and 40. It also includes wiring members 54 and 64 as internal wiring members that supply power to the drive units 52 and 62. By positioning the wiring members 54 and 64 that supply power to the drive units 52 and 62 in the arm spaces A10 and A20 inside the robot arms 10 and 20, power can be easily supplied to the drive units 52 and 62 without using special wiring members. For example, if the arm spaces A10 and A20 are airtight against a vacuum environment, power can be easily supplied to the drive units 52 and 62 without using wiring members with characteristics that can withstand a vacuum environment by positioning the wiring members 54 and 64 inside the arm spaces A10 and A20.

[0050] The transport robot 100 includes a pair of robot arms 10 and 20. At least one of the pair of robot arms 10 and 20 has airtight, hollow arm spaces A10 and A20. As a result, since at least one of the pair of robot arms 10 and 20 has airtight arm spaces A10 and A20, even when transporting a workpiece W using the pair of robot arms 10 and 20, the displacement of the workpiece W relative to the hands 30 and 40 can be suppressed, thereby suppressing a decrease in work efficiency during transport operations, without requiring a special configuration for the components placed inside at least one of the pair of robot arms 10 and 20. Therefore, by using a pair of robot arms 10 and 20, the efficiency of transporting the workpiece W can be improved, and the displacement of the workpiece W relative to the hands 30 and 40 can be suppressed, thereby suppressing a decrease in work efficiency during transport operations, without requiring a special configuration.

[0051] The transport robot 100 includes horizontally articulated robot arms 10 and 20. This allows for easy transport operations in the horizontal direction using the horizontally articulated robot arms 10 and 20, and effectively suppresses the reduction in work efficiency during transport operations by preventing misalignment of the workpiece W relative to the hands 30 and 40 without the use of special configurations.

[0052] [Second Embodiment] Next, a transport robot 200 according to the second embodiment will be described with reference to Figures 9 and 10. Unlike the first embodiment, in which the chuck portions 50 and 60 had contact members 51 and 61 that contacted the workpiece W, in the second embodiment, the chuck portions 250 and 260 have electrostatic chuck portions 251 and 261. Components similar to those in the first embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals and their description is omitted.

[0053] As shown in Figure 9, in the second embodiment, the transport robot 200 includes a hand 230 and a hand 240. The hands 230 and 240 are positioned at the ends of the robot arms 10 and 20, respectively, similar to the hands 30 and 40 in the first embodiment, and hold the workpiece W. The hand 230 includes a blade member 231, a hand base portion 232, and a chuck portion 250. The hand 240 includes a blade member 241, a hand base portion 242, and a chuck portion 260. The chuck portions 250 and 260 fix the workpiece W held by the hands 230 and 240, respectively, similar to the chuck portions 50 and 60 in the first embodiment. In the second embodiment, the chuck portion 250 has an electrostatic chuck portion 251 and a charging device 252. The chuck portion 260 has an electrostatic chuck portion 261 and a charging device 262. Note that the charging devices 252 and 262 are examples of "operating units".

[0054] Furthermore, as shown in Figure 10, the hands 230 and 240 each have airtight, hollow hand spaces A230 and A240 inside, similar to the hand space A30 of the hand 30 and the hand space A40 of the hand 40 in the first embodiment. Hand space A230 is located inside the hand base portion 232 of the hand 230, and hand space A240 is located inside the hand base portion 242 of the hand 240. In the following description, since the structure is common, the details of the hand 230 and the chuck portion 250 will be described, while the details of the hand 240 and the chuck portion 260 will be omitted.

[0055] As shown in Figure 10, the blade member 231 is a thin plate-shaped support plate on which a disc-shaped workpiece W is placed, similar to the blade member 31 in the first embodiment. In the second embodiment, an electrostatic chuck portion 251 is arranged on the blade member 231. The electrostatic chuck portion 251 is charged with static electricity, and the charged static electricity attracts and holds the workpiece W. That is, the electrostatic chuck portion 251 fixes the workpiece W placed on the blade member 231 to the blade member 231 by attracting it with static electricity.

[0056] The charging device 252 operates the chuck portion 250. The charging device 252 charges the electrostatic chuck portion 251 with static electricity. The charging device 252 is an amplifier device that supplies power to the electrostatic chuck portion 251. The charging device 252 is located in the hand space A230 of the hand base portion 232 of the hand 230. The charging device 252 is powered via a wiring member 254 located in the arm space A10 of the robot arm 10, similar to the drive unit 52 as the operating unit in the first embodiment. That is, in the second embodiment, the wiring member 254 is located inside the arm space A10 and extends to the charging device 252 located in the hand space A230 of the hand 230, and supplies power to the charging device 252 as power. The wiring member 254 is an example of an "internal wiring member".

[0057] Furthermore, the charging device 252 supplies power to the electrostatic chuck 251 via the wiring member 255 and the connector 256 to charge it with static electricity. The wiring member 255 is located outside the hand space A230 and supplies power from the charging device 252 to the electrostatic chuck 251. In other words, the wiring member 255 is a vacuum-compatible wiring member that supplies power in a vacuum environment. The connector 256 is a vacuum connector that electrically connects the inside and outside of the hand space A230 and hermetically seals the inside of the hand space A230 to the outside. In the connector 256, the charging device 252 is electrically connected on the inside side of the hand space A230, which is at atmospheric pressure, and the wiring member 255 is electrically connected on the outside side, which is a vacuum. The charging device 252 is electrically connected to the wiring member 255 via the connector 256. Note that the wiring member 255 is an example of a "wiring member for electrostatic chuck".

[0058] As described above, the configuration of the chuck portion 260 of the hand 240 is the same as that of the chuck portion 250 of the hand 230. That is, a charging device 262 located in the hand space A240 of the hand base portion 242 of the hand 240 supplies power to the electrostatic chuck portion 261 located on the blade member 241 via a wiring member 265 and a connector 266, thereby charging the electrostatic chuck portion 261. The charging device 262, like the charging device 252, is powered by a wiring member 264 located in the arm space A20 of the robot arm 20. The electrostatic chuck portion 261 attracts and holds the workpiece W to the blade member 241 using the charged static electricity. The wiring member 264, like the wiring member 254, is an example of an "internal wiring member". The wiring member 265, like the wiring member 255, is an example of an "electrostatic chuck wiring member". Other configurations according to the second embodiment are the same as those of the first embodiment.

[0059] [Effects of the Second Embodiment] In the second embodiment, the chucks 250 and 260 include electrostatic chucks 251 and 261 that attract and hold the workpiece W by static electricity after being charged with static electricity. The transport robot 200 includes charging devices 252 and 262 as operating parts that charge the electrostatic chucks 251 and 261 with static electricity. As a result, even when the electrostatic chucks 251 and 261 that attract and hold the workpiece W by static electricity to fix the workpiece W are arranged, power can be supplied to the electrostatic chucks 251 and 261 without using special equipment such as vacuum-compatible devices, by arranging the charging devices 252 and 262 that charge the electrostatic chucks 251 and 261 with static electricity in the airtight hollow hand spaces A230 and A240 inside the hands 230 and 240. Therefore, since the electrostatic chucks 251 and 261 can be operated without using special equipment, positional displacement of the workpiece W relative to the hands 230 and 240 can be suppressed, effectively reducing the decrease in work efficiency during transport. Furthermore, in the second embodiment, when transporting the workpiece W in a vacuum environment, the charging devices 252 and 262, which act as operating parts, are located in the atmospheric pressure hand spaces A230 and A240, making it easier to dissipate heat from the charging devices 252 and 262 compared to when they are located in a vacuum environment.

[0060] Furthermore, the transport robot 200 is equipped with wiring members 255 and 265 as wiring members for electrostatic chucks, which supply power from the charging devices 252 and 262 to the electrostatic chucks 251 and 261. The wiring members 255 and 265 are located outside the hand spaces A230 and A240. As a result, because the wiring members 255 and 265 are located outside the hand spaces A230 and A240, power can be easily supplied from the charging devices 252 and 262, located inside the hand spaces A230 and A240, to the electrostatic chucks 251 and 261, which are located on the hands 230 and 240, outside the hand spaces A230 and A240. Other effects of the second embodiment are the same as those of the first embodiment.

[0061] [Modification] It should be considered that the embodiment disclosed herein is illustrative in all aspects and not restrictive. The scope of the present disclosure is defined by the claims rather than the above description of the embodiments, and all modifications (variations) within the meaning and scope equivalent to the claims are included.

[0062] For example, in the first and second embodiments described above, an example is shown in which the workpiece W is a disk-shaped substrate, but the present disclosure is not limited thereto. In the present disclosure, the workpiece W may be a jig imitating a disk-shaped substrate. Further, the workpiece W may be a plate-shaped member having a shape different from a disk shape such as a rectangle. Furthermore, the workpiece W does not have to be plate-shaped.

[0063] Further, in the first and second embodiments described above, the hands 30, 40, 230, and 240 are placed in a high vacuum of 10 －１ Pa to 10 －５ Pa, and an example is shown in which the hand spaces A30, A40, A230, and A240 are filled with air at an atmospheric pressure of about 10 ５ Pa, but the present disclosure is not limited thereto. In the present disclosure, the hand may be placed in an ultra-high vacuum environment with a pressure lower than 10 －５ Pa, or may be placed in an environment with a pressure higher than 10 －１ Pa, that is, 10 ２ Pa to 10 －１ Pa medium vacuum, or 10 ５ Pa to 10 ２ Pa low vacuum environment. Further, the hand space may be filled with gas at a pressure of 10 ５The hand space may be filled with a gas at a pressure higher than atmospheric pressure, such as Pa, or with a gas at a pressure lower than atmospheric pressure. Furthermore, the inside of the hand space may be filled with a gas other than air, such as nitrogen or carbon dioxide. Also, the pressure inside and outside the hand space may be equal, or the pressure outside the hand space may be higher. For example, even when the hand is placed in an environment where foreign matter such as liquids is scattered, by placing the working parts in an airtight, hollow hand space, it is possible to suppress the displacement of the workpiece relative to the hand and effectively reduce the decrease in workability during transport operations without using special configurations such as drip-proof or dustproof features.

[0064] Furthermore, although the first embodiment described above shows an example in which the detection units 53 and 63 are photoelectric sensors that detect the positions of the contact members 51 and 61, the present disclosure is not limited thereto. In the present disclosure, the detection unit may be contact-type or non-contact-type. For example, the detection unit may be a magnetic linear scale, an optical linear scale, or a potentiometer. Also, if the operating unit that moves the contact member includes a motor as a drive source, the position of the contact member may be detected based on the rotation of the motor detected by the detection unit by arranging a detection unit that includes an encoder that detects the rotation of the motor included in the operating unit that moves the contact member. In addition, the detection unit that detects the position of the contact member may be arranged in a hand or robot arm other than the hand space.

[0065] Furthermore, while the first embodiment described above shows an example in which the contact members 51 and 61 are moved by drive units 52 and 62, which are operating units including air actuators, the present disclosure is not limited thereto. In the present disclosure, the operating unit that moves the contact members may include a servo motor. The operating unit may also include a solenoid coil. The operating unit may also include a linear motor. If the operating unit includes a motor driven by electricity, an internal wiring member arranged in the arm space supplies electricity as power to the operating unit. Also, if the operating unit includes a rotary motor, the operating unit may include a linear movement mechanism such as a ball screw, belt and pulley, or rack and pinion.

[0066] Furthermore, although the first embodiment described above shows an example in which a sealing member 71 including a bellows-shaped expandable member 71a is provided, the present disclosure is not limited thereto. In the present disclosure, a sealing member that does not include a bellows-shaped expandable member may be provided. For example, an O-ring or a rod seal such as an oil seal may be provided as the sealing member. For example, as shown in the first modified example in Figure 11, an O-ring sealing member 371 may be provided in a hole 32a provided in the hand base portion 32. The sealing member 371 is provided in the hole 32a so as to surround the rod-shaped contact member 51 and seal the contact member 51 as it moves in the front-rear direction between the inside and outside of the hand space A30.

[0067] Furthermore, in the first embodiment described above, the contact members 51 and 52 are shown as members that move along the front-rear direction from the base end to the tip in the hands 30 and 40, but the present disclosure is not limited thereto. In the present disclosure, the contact members may be moved in directions other than the front-rear direction to come into contact with the workpiece. Also, multiple contact members may be arranged in a single hand. In addition, if multiple contact members that move by an operating part are arranged, the workpiece may be clamped and fixed by only the multiple contact members. That is, the blade member of the hand does not need to have an engaging part. Also, as shown in the second modified example in Figure 12, a chuck portion 450 having contact members 451 that come into contact with the workpiece W at multiple positions may be arranged. The contact members 451 of the chuck portion 450 are sealed at the base end by a sealing member 71, similar to the contact member 51 in the first embodiment, and at the two divided tips they come into contact with the workpiece W held by the hand 30. Similar to the contact member 51 in the first embodiment, the contact member 451 moves along the front-rear direction from the base end to the tip in the hand 30, and together with the pair of engaging portions 31a of the blade member 31, it contacts the peripheral edge of the disc-shaped workpiece W. The contact member 451 contacts the workpiece W at two locations, for example.

[0068] Furthermore, while the first and second embodiments described above show examples in which bifurcated plate-shaped blade members 31, 41, 231, and 241 are arranged on hands 30, 40, 230, and 240, respectively, the disclosure is not limited thereto. In this disclosure, the blade members of the hands do not have to be bifurcated. The blade members may be rectangular plate-shaped. Also, the blade members may be branched into three or more parts. In addition, multiple blade members may be arranged on a single hand. In that case, chucks may be arranged on all of the multiple blade members, or on only some of them.

[0069] Furthermore, while the first and second embodiments described above show examples in which the transport robots 100 and 200 are equipped with a pair of hands 30 and 40, or 230 and 240, and each pair of hands 30 and 40, or 230 and 240, has an airtight hand space A30 and A40, or A230 and A240, the disclosure is not limited thereto. In the disclosure, at least one of the pair of hands may have an airtight hand space. Also, there may be one hand or three or more hands.

[0070] Furthermore, while the first and second embodiments described above show examples where the transport robots 100 and 200 are dual-arm robots equipped with a pair of robot arms 10 and 20, the disclosure is not limited thereto. In this disclosure, the transport robot may be equipped with only one robot arm, or it may be equipped with three or more robot arms. Also, when it is equipped with a pair of robot arms, a hollow arm space may be provided in one of the robot arms of the pair. Alternatively, no arm space may be provided in the robot arms. Similarly, when it is equipped with three or more robot arms, a hollow arm space may be provided in some of the robot arms. Also, multiple hands may be provided for a single robot arm.

[0071] Furthermore, while the first and second embodiments described above show examples in which the robot arms 10 and 20 are horizontally articulated, this disclosure is not limited thereto. In this disclosure, the robot arm may have a configuration other than horizontally articulated, such as vertically articulated.

[0072] Furthermore, while the first and second embodiments described above show examples in which servo motors, which serve as drive sources and are located at each of the multiple joints of the robot arms 10 and 20, are controlled independently of each other, the disclosure is not limited to this. In this disclosure, some of the multiple joints of the robot arm may be controlled in conjunction with each other.

[0073] Furthermore, while the first and second embodiments described above show examples in which a pair of robot arms 10 and 20 have a common structure, and a pair of hands 30 and 40 have a common structure, the disclosure is not limited thereto. In this disclosure, a pair of robot arms may have different structures. Also, a pair of hands may have different structures.

[0074] Furthermore, while the first and second embodiments described above show examples in which the transport robots 100 and 200 perform the transport operation of workpieces W between the load lock unit 102 and the processing module unit 103 in the substrate processing system 101, the disclosure is not limited thereto. In this disclosure, the transport robots may be configured to transport workpieces between the load lock unit and the carrier in the loading / unloading chamber of the substrate processing system. Alternatively, the transport robots may be configured to transport workpieces in a system different from the substrate processing system of the first and second embodiments described above. For example, the workpieces may be transported directly from the carrier in which they are stored to the processing module.

[0075] The functions of the elements disclosed herein can be performed using circuits or processing circuits, including general-purpose processors, dedicated processors, integrated circuits, ASICs (Application Specific Integrated Circuits), conventional circuits, and / or combinations thereof, configured or programmed to perform the disclosed functions. A processor is considered a processing circuit or circuit because it includes transistors and other circuits. In this disclosure, a circuit, unit, or means is hardware that performs the enumerated functions, or hardware programmed to perform the enumerated functions. The hardware may be hardware disclosed herein, or other known hardware that is programmed or configured to perform the enumerated functions. If the hardware is a processor, which is considered a type of circuit, then the circuit, means, or unit is a combination of hardware and software, and the software is used to configure the hardware and / or the processor.

[0076] [Embodiments] The exemplary embodiments described above will be understood by those skilled in the art to be specific examples of the following embodiments.

[0077] (Aspect 1) A transport robot comprising: a robot arm; a hand positioned at the tip of the robot arm and having an airtight, hollow hand space inside, and for holding a workpiece; a chuck for fixing the workpiece held by the hand; and an operating unit positioned in the hand space and for operating the chuck.

[0078] (Aspect 2) The transfer robot according to aspect 1, wherein the hand holds the workpiece including a disc-shaped substrate or a jig that mimics the disc-shaped substrate, the chuck portion fixes the disc-shaped workpiece, and the operating portion is arranged in the hand space of the hand that holds the disc-shaped workpiece and operates the chuck portion that fixes the disc-shaped workpiece.

[0079] (Aspect 3) The transport robot according to aspect 1 or aspect 2, wherein the hand is placed in a vacuum environment and the hand space is at atmospheric pressure.

[0080] (Aspect 4) The transport robot according to any one of aspects 1 to 3, wherein the hand includes a pair of hands, at least one of the pair of hands has an airtight, hollow hand space, and the operating part is located in the hand space.

[0081] (Aspect 5) The transport robot according to any one of aspects 1 to 4, wherein the chuck portion includes a contact member that contacts the workpiece held by the hand, and the operating portion includes a linear movement mechanism that moves the contact member linearly.

[0082] (Aspect 6) The transport robot according to aspect 5, wherein the chuck portion is positioned in a fixed state relative to the hand by the contact member moving linearly and contacting the workpiece held by the hand.

[0083] (Aspect 7) The transport robot according to aspect 5 or aspect 6, wherein the contact member is arranged from the inside to the outside of the hand space, and the transport robot further comprises a sealing member that seals the contact member between the inside and outside of the hand space.

[0084] (Aspect 8) The transport robot according to aspect 7, wherein the sealing member includes an expandable / contractible member that expands and contracts in accordance with the linear movement of the contact member by being folded in an accordion-like manner.

[0085] (Aspect 9) The transport robot according to any one of aspects 5 to 8, further comprising a detection unit arranged in the hand space for detecting the position of the contact member.

[0086] (Aspect 10) The transport robot according to any one of aspects 1 to 9, wherein the robot arm has an airtight, hollow arm space.

[0087] (Aspect 11) The transport robot according to aspect 10, further comprising an internal wiring member disposed inside the arm space, extending to the operating part disposed in the hand space of the hand, and supplying power to the operating part.

[0088] (Aspect 12) The transport robot according to aspect 10 or aspect 11, wherein the robot arm includes a pair of robot arms, and at least one of the pair of robot arms has an airtight, hollow arm space.

[0089] (Aspect 13) The transport robot according to any one of aspects 1 to 12, wherein the robot arm includes a horizontally articulated robot arm.

[0090] (Aspect 14) The transfer robot according to any one of aspects 1 to 13, wherein the chuck portion includes an electrostatic chuck portion that attracts and holds the workpiece by the electrostatic charge when electrostatic charge is applied, and the operating portion includes a charging device that charges the electrostatic chuck portion with electrostatic charge.

[0091] (Aspect 15) The transport robot according to aspect 14, further comprising an electrostatic chuck wiring member that supplies power from the charging device to the electrostatic chuck, wherein the electrostatic chuck wiring member is located outside the hand space.

[0092] 10, 20 Robot arm 30, 40, 230, 240 Hand 31, 41, 231, 241 Blade member 50, 60, 250, 260, 450 Chuck part 51, 61, 451 Contact member 52, 62 Drive unit (operating part, linear movement mechanism) 53, 63 Detection unit 54, 64, 254, 264 Wiring member (internal wiring member) 71, 72, 371 Seal member 71a Expandable / contractible member 81 Control unit 100, 200 Transport robot 252, 262 Charging device (operating part)

Claims

1. A transport robot comprising: a robotic arm; a hand positioned at the tip of the robotic arm and having an airtight, hollow hand space inside, and for holding a workpiece; a chuck for fixing the workpiece held by the hand; and an operating unit positioned in the hand space and for operating the chuck.

2. The transfer robot according to claim 1, wherein the hand holds the workpiece, which includes a disc-shaped substrate or a jig that mimics the disc-shaped substrate; the chuck portion fixes the disc-shaped workpiece; and the operating portion is arranged in the hand space of the hand that holds the disc-shaped workpiece and operates the chuck portion that fixes the disc-shaped workpiece.

3. The transport robot according to claim 1, wherein the hand is placed in a vacuum environment and the hand space is at atmospheric pressure.

4. The transport robot according to claim 1, wherein the hand includes a pair of hands, at least one of the pair of hands having an airtight, hollow hand space, and the operating unit is disposed in the hand space.

5. The transport robot according to claim 1, wherein the chuck portion includes a contact member that contacts the workpiece held by the hand, and the operating portion includes a linear movement mechanism that moves the contact member linearly.

6. The transfer robot according to claim 5, wherein the chuck portion positions the workpiece in a fixed state relative to the hand by the contact member moving linearly and contacting the workpiece held by the hand.

7. The transport robot according to claim 5, wherein the contact member is arranged from the inside to the outside of the hand space, and further comprises a sealing member that seals the contact member between the inside and outside of the hand space.

8. The transport robot according to claim 7, wherein the sealing member includes an expandable / contractible member that expands and contracts in accordance with the linear movement of the contact member by being folded in an accordion-like manner.

9. The transport robot according to claim 5, further comprising a detection unit disposed in the hand space for detecting the position of the contact member.

10. The transport robot according to claim 1, wherein the robot arm has an airtight, hollow arm space.

11. The transport robot according to claim 10, further comprising an internal wiring member disposed inside the arm space, extending to the operating part disposed in the hand space of the hand, and supplying power to the operating part.

12. The transport robot according to claim 10, wherein the robot arm includes a pair of robot arms, and at least one of the pair of robot arms has an airtight, hollow arm space.

13. The transport robot according to claim 1, wherein the robot arm includes a horizontally articulated robot arm.

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