Wafer Moving Robot Articulated Arm Mechanism
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional semiconductor material handling systems face challenges in maintaining high cleanliness and throughput while occupying a large footprint, due to the disturbance of laminar flow and additional space requirements for wafer alignment and movement.
Innovation Solution
A semiconductor material handling system with a wafer moving robot that employs an articulated arm and crossing arm mechanism, eliminating the need for a moving unit, reducing particle generation, and integrating a wafer aligner with driven rollers and sensors for precise alignment, thereby improving cleanliness and reducing footprint.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If a moving unit with rail shaft is used for wafer robot movement, then the robot can move along a predetermined path, but it disturbs laminar flow and generates particles, reducing cleanliness
Solution Approach 1:
The patent removes the moving unit and rail shaft from the system entirely. Instead of moving the robot along a rail, the robot body is fixed and only the wafer hand assembly moves along the rail to pick up and deliver wafers. This extraction of the moving unit eliminates the source of particle generation and laminar flow disturbance while preserving the essential function of wafer transport.
2Manufacturing precision
If a pre-aligner is added to align wafers before processing, then wafer alignment is improved, but the footprint of the equipment increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines the wafer alignment function with the existing wafer hand and rail structure. The wafer hand picks up wafers from the cassette and transports them along the rail to the processing chamber, performing both transport and alignment functions in a single integrated mechanism rather than adding a separate pre-aligner device.
Solution Approach 2:
The rail structure serves multiple functions: it guides the movement of the wafer hand, provides a path for wafer transport, and enables alignment of wafers with the processing chamber. This multi-functionality eliminates the need for dedicated alignment equipment, reducing the overall footprint.
3Ease of operation
If the wafer robot moves along a rail shaft with additional space, then movement is enabled, but the footprint is occupied by non-functional space
Solution Approach 1:
The patent removes the moving unit that required additional space around the rail shaft. By fixing the robot body and only moving the compact wafer hand assembly along the rail, the system eliminates the need for extra clearance space, optimizing the footprint.
Data Source
AI summary
A semiconductor material handling system including a frame mounting a wafer cassette and a plurality of load ports thereon, and a wafer moving robot including a robot body which has a lifting member mounted in the frame and vertically moving along a predetermined lifting shaft, an articulated arm which has a driving link mounted in the lifting member and a plurality of driven links whose end part transversely moving along the frame having the load ports, a swing unit which is mounted in the end part of the driven links and rotates along a vertical rotation shaft, and a crossing arm which comprises a base mounted in the swing unit, a plurality of sliding units mounted in the base and reciprocating transversely, and a wafer hand mounted in the sliding units and picking up a wafer from the wafer cassette and storing the wafer back in the wafer cassette.