Switchable Guide Parts for Contamination-Free Substrate Inversion
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing substrate processing apparatuses face challenges in efficiently inverting substrates while preventing contamination from grime or particles, as they often require separate inversion parts for unprocessed and processed substrates, leading to increased size and potential cross-contamination.
Innovation Solution
A substrate inverting device with a supporting mechanism and catch-and-hold inversion mechanism that uses guide parts with switchable contact regions, allowing the device to adapt its contact points based on the substrate's state, preventing contamination by switching between different contact positions for unprocessed and processed substrates.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Volume of moving object
If one and the same substrate inverting device is used to invert substrates irrespective of the state (e.g., unprocessed or processed) of the substrates, then the size of the substrate processing apparatus is reduced, but grime, particles, or the like on unprocessed substrates may adhere to the support members (i.e., guide parts) for supporting substrates and be transferred to processed substrates
Solution Approach 1:
The guide parts are made movable along the substrate surface, allowing them to dynamically adjust their contact position. The guide parts can be positioned at a first contact position when handling unprocessed substrates and at a second contact position when handling processed substrates, preventing contamination while using a single inverting device.
Solution Approach 2:
Different regions of the guide parts are designated for different functions: a first contact region for contacting unprocessed substrates and a second contact region for contacting processed substrates. This local differentiation allows the same guide part to serve multiple purposes without causing cross-contamination.
2Object-affected harmful factors
If separate inversion parts are provided for inverting unprocessed substrates and inverting processed substrates, then contamination is prevented, but the size of the substrate processing apparatus increases
Solution Approach 1:
A single substrate inverting device is designed to handle both unprocessed and processed substrates by incorporating movable guide parts with multiple contact regions. This multi-functional design eliminates the need for separate inversion parts while maintaining contamination prevention through selective contact positioning.
Solution Approach 2:
The guide parts can dynamically reposition between first and second contact positions depending on whether unprocessed or processed substrates are being handled. This dynamic adaptability allows one device to replace multiple devices, reducing overall apparatus size while preventing contamination.
Data Source
AI summary
A pair of guide parts of a substrate inverting device comes in contact with the peripheral edge portion of a substrate on both sides in the width direction of the substrate. The switching mechanism changes a state of contact between the pair of guide parts and the substrate by switching the positions of the pair of guide parts between a first contact position and a second contact position. Each of the pair of guide parts has a first contact region and a second contact region. The second contact region is located at a position different in the up-down direction and the width direction from the position of the first contact region. The substrate inverting device is capable of switching regions of the guide parts that come in contact with the substrate between the first contact regions and the second contact regions in accordance with the state of the substrate.