Compact Substrate Reversing Machine for Bevel Polishing
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional bevel polishing apparatuses fail to effectively clean both surfaces of a substrate, as they only polish the peripheral edge and not the rear surface, requiring a substrate reversal mechanism that often necessitates a temporary mounting table, leading to a bulky setup.
Innovation Solution
A compact reversing machine with a first arm pair and a second arm pair that rotate around a common axis to reverse the substrate upside down, eliminating the need for a temporary mounting table by using an upper and lower arm pair configuration for gripping and delivery, while maintaining substrate position coincidence before and after reversal.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If a conventional bevel polishing apparatus is used, then the peripheral edge polishing function is provided, but the rear surface cleaning capability is missing
Solution Approach 1:
The polishing apparatus is designed to perform multiple functions: front surface cleaning, rear surface cleaning, and bevel portion polishing, all within a single integrated system. The cleaning unit can clean both surfaces of the substrate, and the polishing unit can polish both the bevel portion and rear surface, making the apparatus versatile and eliminating the need for separate equipment.
2Ease of operation
If a temporary mounting table is used for substrate reversal, then the substrate can be reversed upside down, but the apparatus size increases
Solution Approach 1:
The substrate reversal function is merged into the transfer unit, which uses a pair of arms to grip and flip the substrate upside down. This integration eliminates the need for a separate temporary mounting table, thereby reducing the overall apparatus size while maintaining the substrate reversal capability.
Solution Approach 2:
The transfer unit employs an arm pair mechanism that grips the substrate and inverts it 180 degrees to reverse the substrate upside down. This inversion mechanism is built into the transfer unit itself, allowing compact design without external mounting tables.
3Productivity
If the cleaning unit cleans both surfaces of the substrate, then processing throughput is improved, but the apparatus becomes more complex
Solution Approach 1:
The cleaning unit is designed with universal cleaning capability to clean both the front surface and rear surface of the substrate using cleaning rollers. This multi-functional design allows continuous processing without requiring separate cleaning stations for each surface, thereby improving throughput while keeping the structure integrated and manageable.
Data Source
AI summary
Disclosed is a reversing machine that reverses a substrate upside down. The reversing machine includes: a first arm pair configured to mount a substrate thereon; a second arm pair facing the first arm pair; an opening/closing mechanism configured to open/close the second arm pair so as to grip the substrate mounted on the first arm pair; and a rotating mechanism configured to rotate the first arm pair and the second arm pair around a predetermined axis that is set inside the first arm pair and the second arm pair and extends along an extension direction of the first arm pair and the second arm pair such that the substrate is reversed upside down.