Bridge Transport Layout for Higher-Throughput Substrate Processing
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing substrate processing apparatuses face challenges in improving throughput efficiency.
Innovation Solution
The apparatus is designed with a first front portion, a first rear portion, and a bridge portion arranged in a horizontal direction, featuring transport mechanisms and distribution mechanisms to minimize transport operations, allowing for efficient substrate placement and retrieval across multiple processing units.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If substrates are transported sequentially between processing units using conventional transport mechanisms, then substrate processing can be performed, but the number of transport operations increases and throughput is reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The processing chamber is divided into multiple independent processing units (first, second, third, and fourth processing units) arranged in a circular configuration. Each processing unit can independently process substrates, allowing parallel processing operations. The transport mechanism is segmented into multiple transfer arms that can operate independently to move substrates between different processing units, reducing the overall transport time and enabling simultaneous processing of multiple substrates.
Solution Approach 2:
Multiple processing units are combined into a single integrated processing chamber, allowing multiple substrate processing operations to occur simultaneously in different spatial locations. The transport mechanism combines multiple transfer arms that can operate in parallel, and intermediate holding portions are provided to enable batch transfer operations, effectively merging transport functions to reduce the total number of sequential transport operations required.
2Productivity
If multiple processing units are added to increase throughput, then productivity improves, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The transfer arms are designed with universal functionality to perform multiple operations: transferring substrates between processing units, placing substrates on intermediate holding portions, and retrieving substrates from intermediate holding portions. The processing units share common structural features and control mechanisms, allowing the system to handle multiple substrate types and processing operations using the same basic hardware configuration, thereby reducing overall system complexity despite having multiple processing units.
Solution Approach 2:
Intermediate holding portions are introduced as intermediary elements between processing units and transfer arms. These holding portions act as buffers that decouple the transfer operations from the processing operations, allowing substrates to be staged and transferred in batches rather than requiring direct point-to-point transfers between all processing units. This intermediary structure simplifies the transport mechanism by reducing the number of direct transfer paths needed.
Data Source
AI summary
The present invention relates to a substrate processing apparatus and a substrate processing method. A substrate processing apparatus includes a first front portion, a first rear portion, and a bridge portion that are arranged in this order in a front-rear direction. The first front portion includes a plurality of processing units. The first front portion includes a transport mechanism that transports a substrate to the processing units of the first front portion. The first rear portion includes a plurality of processing units. The first rear portion includes a transport mechanism that transports the substrate to the processing units of the first rear portion. The bridge portion includes the transport mechanism that places the substrate in the first front portion and the first rear portion.