Protective Member Forming Apparatus Sheet Wrinkle Removal
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing methods for forming protective members on wafers using resin application can result in wrinkles when placing the sheet on a stage, leading to uneven resin application and potential warpage issues.
Innovation Solution
A protective member forming apparatus that includes a stage with air supply holes, a sheet pressing pad, and a control unit to remove wrinkles by air flow, ensuring the sheet is flat before resin application, and a fluororesin-coated stage for easy sheet movement.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Manufacturing precision
If the sheet is placed on the stage without air supply, then the sheet can be positioned on the stage, but wrinkles occur in the sheet
Solution Approach 1:
The patent uses air supply holes in the stage to blow air onto the sheet surface, creating airflow that lifts and smooths the sheet to remove wrinkles. This pneumatic approach directly addresses the wrinkle problem by using gas flow to manipulate the sheet's contact with the stage surface.
Solution Approach 2:
The air supply operation is performed before resin application to pre-smooth the sheet and eliminate wrinkles in advance. This preliminary action ensures the sheet is wrinkle-free before the critical resin application step, preventing defects in the final product.
2Manufacturing precision
If the sheet pressing pad presses the entire sheet, then the sheet is flat, but air cannot flow to remove wrinkles from the peripheral portion
Solution Approach 1:
The sheet pressing pad is designed to press only the central portion of the sheet, leaving the peripheral portion unpressed. This local differentiation allows air to flow freely under the peripheral sheet to remove wrinkles in that region, while the central portion remains pressed for flatness. The selective pressing approach optimizes both wrinkle removal and flatness.
3Stability of the object's composition
If the sheet is pressed firmly on the stage, then the sheet remains stable, but the sheet cannot slide to remove wrinkles
Solution Approach 1:
The pressing force is applied locally to the central portion of the sheet rather than uniformly across the entire sheet. This creates a stability gradient where the central region remains firmly pressed for stability, while the peripheral region remains loosely contacted to allow sliding motion for wrinkle removal through air flow.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The apparatus effectively removes wrinkles from the sheet, allowing for uniform resin application and preventing warpage, thereby ensuring a smooth and even protective member formation on the wafer surface.
Implementation Method 1
a peripheral portion of the sheet not in contact with the sheet pressing pad is made to fly from the stage due to a flow of the air supplied from the air supply holes
Implementation Method 2
the frame of the stage is coated with fluororesin
Data Source
AI summary
Apparatus for forming a protective member on a wafer includes a stage for mounting a sheet, the stage having a frame and a chuck table supported to and surrounded by the frame, the frame having a plurality of air supply holes opening to the upper surface of the frame. A holding unit is adapted to be moved to a position opposed to the stage for holding the wafer, and a resin supply unit supplies a liquid resin to the upper surface of the sheet placed on the stage. The liquid resin is formed into the protective member. A sheet pressing pad vertically movably supported so as to be opposed to the sheet is placed on the stage. The sheet pressing pad comes into contact with a part of the sheet placed on the stage in an area inside the air supply holes, thereby pressing the sheet.