KR20080069557A - Centering Fingers for Wafer Transfer - Google Patents

Abstract

A centering finger for wafer transfer is provided.

The present invention includes a finger body having a loading portion opened to one side and having a plurality of guide arrangement grooves inside the loading portion; A wafer guide provided in the guide arrangement groove having a pedestal in contact with a lower surface of the wafer loaded in the loading unit; And an elastic part provided in the wafer guide corresponding to the outer surface of the wafer so as to be in contact with the outer surface of the wafer loaded in the loading part and to elastically support the wafer toward the center of the loading part.

According to the present invention, it is possible to minimize or fundamentally prevent frictional contact between the wafer and the wafer guide when loading the wafer, thereby essentially eliminating the wear of the wafer guide and extending the service life of the consumable component. It is possible to further improve the accuracy of the centering operation of matching the center of the wafer and the loading center with each other when loading the wafer, and increase the reliability of the wafer alignment.

Description

Centering Finger for Wafer Transfer {A CENTERING FINGER FOR MOVING THE WAFER}

The present invention relates to a centering finger used to transfer a wafer, and more particularly, to minimize the damage and wear of the wafer during transfer of the wafer, which is a transfer target, and to more accurately perform the operation of matching the center of loading with the center of the wafer. A centering finger for wafer transfer has been improved.

Generally, semiconductor devices are manufactured by stacking a plurality of circuit patterns by selectively and repeatedly performing various processes such as photolithography, etching, ion implantation, diffusion, metal deposition, polishing, and cleaning on a wafer.

Until the semiconductor device is manufactured as described above, the wafer is not only transferred to a semiconductor device manufacturing facility that performs a unit process, but also accurately transferred to a process performing position or a setting position that assists the process performing within the semiconductor device manufacturing facility.

Therefore, in a semiconductor manufacturing facility, transfer of a transfer object such as a wafer is performed using a wafer transfer centering finger installed on an arm of a transfer robot, and the wafer transfer centering finger moves the wafer loaded thereon to the center of the wafer. The centers of the loading centers of the fingers coincide with each other or the wafers are safely loaded so that the wafers are not separated from the fingers during transfer.

Korean Patent Laid-Open Publication No. 10-2007-0122182 (December 28, 2007) discloses first, second, third and fourth centering guides installed on a body of a centering finger, and a point separated from a center point of a second centering guide. Disclosed is a centering finger comprising a second wafer centering guide moved and installed, a third wafer centering guide installed at a position separated from a center point of the third centering guide, and a vacuum ceramic finger adsorbing a wafer disposed at the center of the finger It is.

However, in the process of loading the wafer on such a centering finger, since the side surface portion of the wafer is loaded in friction contact with a plurality of centering guides provided in the centering finger, the centering guide made of resin material is worn by frictional contact with the wafer. As the amount of wear increases in proportion to time, it must be replaced periodically after a certain time.

Accordingly, the conventional centering finger is accompanied by the work of temporarily suspending the wafer transfer and replacing the centering guide with a new one, thereby lowering the work productivity of the semiconductor manufacturing equipment, and increasing production of the centering guide as a consumable. It was a factor in raising costs.

In addition, when the centering guide in contact with the outer surface of the wafer is worn by frictional contact with the wafer loaded on the centering finger, the center of the wafer and the center of the wafer due to a predetermined size interval generated between the wafer and the wafer guide loaded. Centering faults are caused by the centering of the centering fingers to be shifted from each other, resulting in a fatal failure that causes the entire process of the semiconductor manufacturing equipment to be interrupted during the subsequent process, while the wafer is separated and removed during wafer transfer. It was.

Accordingly, the present invention is to solve the above problems, the object is to minimize or essentially prevent the frictional contact between the wafer and the wafer guide during loading of the wafer to essentially exclude the wear of the wafer guide To provide a wafer transfer centering finger that can extend the service life of consumable components.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a wafer transfer centering finger that can further improve the accuracy of the centering operation of matching the center of the wafer and the loading center when loading the wafer and increase the reliability of the wafer alignment.

Still another object of the present invention is to provide a wafer transfer centering finger that can more stably support a loaded and centered wafer to prevent separation of the wafer to the outside during wafer transfer.

As a specific means for achieving the above object, the present invention includes a finger body having a loading portion opened to one side, and having a plurality of guide arrangement grooves in the loading portion; A wafer guide provided in the guide arrangement groove having a pedestal in contact with a lower surface of the wafer loaded in the loading unit; And an elastic part provided in the wafer guide corresponding to the outer surface of the wafer to elastically support the wafer to the center of the loading part in contact with the outer surface of the wafer loaded in the loading part. 2. do.

Preferably, the elastic part elastically supports the ball member and the ball member to be exposed to the tip of the hollow member is inserted into the assembly hole formed through the wafer guide and the body portion is exposed to the outside through the exposed hole formed on the tip of the hollow member It includes a spring member disposed inside the hollow member to.

More preferably, the hollow member has a male screw portion screwed to the female screw portion formed on the inner surface of the assembly hole on the outer surface of the body.

More preferably, the hollow member has a protrusion length adjusting groove at the rear end to facilitate the rotation operation of the hollow member.

Preferably, the elastic portion is a hollow member inserted into the assembly hole formed through the wafer guide, the ball member is exposed to the outside of the body through the exposed hole formed in the front end of the hollow member, and the ball member to the front end elasticity It includes a spring member disposed inside the hollow member to support and a stopper for closing the open rear end of the hollow member.

More preferably, the hollow member has a male screw portion which is screwed with the female screw portion formed on the inner circumferential surface of the assembly hole on the outer surface of the body.

More preferably, the stopper has a male screw portion screwed to the female screw portion formed on the inner surface of the hollow member on the outer surface of the body, and has a groove at the rear end to facilitate the rotation operation of the stopper.

Preferably, the elastic portion is a ball member, the body portion is exposed to the outside through the exposed hole formed in the front end of the assembly hole formed in the wafer guide, and the spring is disposed inside the assembly hole to elastically support the ball member to the front end And a stopper for closing the opened rear end of the assembly hole.

More preferably, the stopper has a male screw portion screwed to the female screw portion formed on the inner surface of the assembly hole on the outer surface of the body, and has a groove at the rear end to facilitate the rotation operation of the stopper.

Preferably, the wafer guide has a fastening hole to which the fastening member is fastened so as to be replaceable to the guide placement groove.

Preferably, the wafer guide is bonded and fixed to the guide placement groove by means of an adhesive.

Preferably, the wafer guide is fixed to the outer surface by the inner surface of the guide arrangement groove is fixed position.

Preferably, the wafer guide has an inclined surface on which the wafer is guided and a vertical surface facing the outer surface of the wafer.

Preferably, the wafer guide has a depression formed in the central region of the body corresponding to the pedestal.

According to the present invention, a plurality of guide arrangement grooves are provided inside the loading unit of the finger main body, and the wafer guide provided for each guide arrangement groove includes an elastic unit for elastically supporting the wafer loaded in the loading unit to the center of the loading unit. Since the outer surface of the wafer is in point contact with the ball member elastically supported by the spring member without friction contact with the wafer guide during loading, the wafer guide minimizes or essentially prevents friction contact with the wafer guide during wafer loading. It essentially eliminates wear and extends the service life of consumable components, thereby reducing manufacturing costs.

In addition, since the centering operation of matching the center of the wafer loaded by the contact between the ball member and the wafer elastically supported by the spring member providing a uniform and constant elastic force and the loading center of the loading unit can be performed more accurately, the wafer alignment is performed. By improving the reliability of the system can prevent defects and accidents in the post-process.

In addition, by supporting the wafer loaded and centered on the finger body more stably without damage and damage, the wafer is prevented from being separated from the finger body to the outside during wafer transfer, thereby improving work productivity and reducing the defective rate. Obtained.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

1 is an overall perspective view showing a wafer transfer centering finger according to an embodiment of the present invention, Figure 2 is a detailed view showing a wafer guide provided in the wafer transfer centering finger according to an embodiment of the present invention.

The centering finger 100 for the wafer transfer according to the embodiment of the present invention is a robot so as to safely load the wafer to be transported so that the center of the wafer W and the loading center are coincident with each other or the wafer is not separated out during the transfer. It is provided on the arm of the centering finger 100 includes a finger body 110, a wafer guide 120 and the elastic portion 130.

As illustrated in FIG. 1, the finger body 110 is a plate structure having a loading portion 111 on which a wafer W provided in a disk shape is disposed, at a front end of the body.

Here, the loading unit 111 is preferably provided as a circular through hole having an inner diameter size relatively larger than the outer diameter of the wafer (W) that is the object to be conveyed, the circular through hole is an opening 117 opened to the front end side on one side Although illustrated and described as a shape having a shape, the shape is not limited thereto and may be provided in a circular shape without the opening 117.

In addition, a plurality of guide placement grooves 113 are provided at a predetermined interval in the circumferential direction so that the wafer guide 120 is disposed inside the loading unit 111.

In addition, the rear end of the finger body 110 is provided with a plurality of fastening holes 115 to be fastened and connected to the arm of the robot not shown.

As illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 2, the wafer guide 120 is a structure that is arranged and assembled for each guide arrangement groove 113 formed in the loading unit 111 of the finger body 110.

The wafer guide 120 is a molded structure formed of a resin material having a hardness lower than that of the wafer W so as to prevent breakage and damage due to an impact generated when the wafer W is in contact with the wafer W. Is done.

The wafer guide 120 has a fastening hole 122 corresponding to a fastening hole formed in the guide disposing groove 113 on the upper surface of the body so that the wafer guide 120 can be replaced with the guide disposing groove 113 by the fastening member 129. Although illustrated and described as being assembled, the present invention is not limited thereto, and the wafer guide 120 may be bonded and fixed to the guide placement groove 113 by an adhesive, and the wafer guide 120 may have an outer surface thereof. It may be fixed to the inner surface of the guide arrangement groove 113 is fixed.

In addition, the wafer guide 120 has a pedestal 121 extending in a predetermined length in contact with the lower surface of the wafer W to prevent the bottom of the wafer W loaded on the loading unit 111 from being lowered. And an inclined surface 123a through which the wafer W is guided when the wafer W is loaded, and a vertical surface 123b facing the outer surface of the wafer W.

Here, the pedestal 121 may be provided as an inclined surface that is gradually lowered toward the center of the loading portion so that the upper surface corresponding to the wafer (W) to minimize the contact area with the lower surface of the wafer (W).

In addition, the inner surface of the body of the wafer guide 120 is exposed to the outer surface of the wafer seated on the pedestal 121 and at the same time to minimize the frictional contact with the wafer (W) and It is preferably provided with a recessed portion 124 is formed in the central region of the corresponding body (120a), the outer surface of the recessed portion 124 is preferably formed of an arc surface of the outer diameter becomes smaller toward the bottom.

As shown in FIGS. 1 to 3, the elastic unit 130 contacts the outer surface of the wafer W loaded on the loading unit 111 of the finger body 110 to load the wafer W. It is provided on the wafer guide 120 corresponding to the outer surface of the wafer (W) to elastically support toward the center side of the portion (111).

The elastic part 130 includes a hollow member 131, a ball member 133 and a spring member 134, the hollow member 131 is an assembly hole 125 is formed through the wafer guide 120 It consists of a hollow tube member of a certain length that is inserted into the.

The ball member 133 is disposed at the front end of the hollow member 131 so that a part of the body is exposed to the outside through a predetermined size of the exposure hole 132 formed at the front end of the hollow member 131, the wafer (W) The contact member is in contact with the outer surface of the).

The spring member 134 is a support member disposed in the inner space of the hollow member 131 to elastically support the ball member 133 as an elastic force of a predetermined strength toward the wafer W, which is the tip side.

Here, the hollow member 131 is the assembly hole 125 to adjust the protruding length (L) of the ball member 133 protruding from the vertical surface 123b of the wafer guide 120 toward the center of the wafer (W). It is preferable to form a male screw portion 137 that is screwed with the female screw portion 126 formed on the inner circumferential surface of the body outer surface.

Accordingly, the rear end of the hollow member 131 is provided with a straight or ten cross-shaped protrusion length adjustment groove 135 to facilitate the rotation operation of the hollow member 131 screwed to the inner surface of the assembly hole (125). It is preferable.

Meanwhile, as shown in FIG. 4, the elastic part 130a may include a hollow member 131a, a ball member 133a, a spring member 134a, and a stopper 136a.

The hollow member 131a may be inserted into an assembly hole 125a formed through the wafer guide 120, or may be externally screwed to an external surface to be screwed into the female screw part 126a formed on the inner surface of the assembly hole 125a. 137a) is formed of a hollow cylinder member of a predetermined length.

The ball member 133a is disposed at the front end of the hollow member 131a so that a part of the body is exposed to the outside through a predetermined size of exposure hole 132a formed at the front end of the hollow member 131a, and thus is a wafer (W). The contact member is in contact with the outer surface of the).

The spring member 134a is a supporting member disposed in the inner space of the hollow member 131a to elastically support the ball member 133a as an elastic force of a predetermined strength toward the wafer W, which is the tip side.

The stopper 136a is a sealing member assembled to the rear end of the hollow member 131a to seal the open rear end of the hollow member 131a into which the ball member 133a and the spring member 134a are inserted.

Here, the stopper 136a is an outer surface of the body screwed with a female screw formed on the inner surface of the hollow member 131a so as to adjust the elastic force of the spring member 134a disposed on the hollow member 131a. It is preferable that the groove 135a is formed at the rear end of the stopper 136a so as to facilitate the rotational operation of the stopper 136a.

In addition, the elastic portion 130b may be configured to include a ball member 133b, a spring member 134b and a stopper 136b, as shown in FIG.

The ball member 133b is disposed at the tip of the exposed hole 132b so that a part of the body is exposed to the outside through a predetermined size of the exposed hole 132b formed at the tip of the assembly hole 125b formed through the wafer guide 120. It is a contact member arrange | positioned and contacting the outer surface of the wafer W which is a conveyance object.

The spring member 134b is a support member disposed in the inner space of the assembly hole 125b to elastically support the ball member 133b as an elastic force of a predetermined strength toward the wafer W, which is the tip side.

The stopper 136b is a sealing member assembled to the rear end of the assembly hole 125b to seal the open rear end of the assembly hole 125b in which the ball member 133b and the spring member 134b are inserted.

Here, the stopper 136b is the outer body portion of the male screw threaded to the female screw portion 126b formed on the inner surface of the assembly hole 125b to adjust the elastic force of the spring member 134b disposed in the assembly hole 125b. It is preferable that the groove 135b is formed on the surface of the stopper 136b so as to facilitate the rotation operation of the stopper 136b.

On the other hand, the exposed holes (132, 132a, 132b) for exposing the body portion of the ball members (133, 133a, 133b) to the outer end of the hollow member (131, 131a) or the end of the assembly hole (125b) than the outer diameter of the ball member Although illustrated and described as being integrally formed to have a relatively small inner diameter, it is not limited thereto.

The exposed holes 132, 132a, and 132b may be provided at the tip of the hollow member 131, 131a or the tip of the assembly hole 125b in a screwed manner or on an exposed tip that is fixed by adhesive means.

Loading and conveying the wafer W, which is the object to be conveyed, by using the wafer transfer centering finger 100 having the above-described configuration, first, as shown in FIG. 1, a wafer W having an outer diameter of a predetermined size, When loaded on the loading unit 111 provided in the finger body 110, the wafer W is centered on the loading unit 111 by the wafer guide 120 provided on the inner surface of the loading unit 111. The center of the wafer W and the center of the wafer (W) while performing the centering operation so as to support the wafer (W) so that there is no separation during transport.

That is, the wafer W is loaded while being lowered along the inclined plane 123a and the vertical plane 123b of the wafer guide 120 provided in the loading unit 111. The lower surface of the wafer W is In contact with the pedestal 121 protruding from the wafer guide 120 to prevent the lower departure from the finger body (110).

Since the ball members 133, 133a, and 133b of the elastic parts 130, 130a, and 130b provided in the wafer guide 120 continuously protrude from the vertical surface 123b of the wafer guide 120, The outer edge of the wafer W, which is lowered along the vertical surface 123b, is in contact with the ball members 133, 133a, and 133b.

At this time, the inner diameter of the virtual circle drawn by the tips of the ball members 133, 133a, and 133b of the elastic parts 130, 130a, and 130b provided in the wafer guide 120 is relative to the inner diameter of the wafer W, which is the object to be conveyed. It should be provided as small as.

At the same time, the ball members 133,133a and 133b are pushed to the spring member side by the weight of the wafer to absorb the shock and at the same time the spring members 134,134a and 134b are contracted to have elastic restoring force, and the ball members 133,133 a, 133b is in point contact with the outer surface of the wafer, and this point contact state is maintained by the elastic restoring force of the spring members 134, 134a, 134b.

In addition, each spring member 134, 134a, 134b of the elastic parts 130, 130a, and 130b provided for each of the wafer guides 120 provided in the loading part 111 may face the wafer W toward the center of the loading part. Since it is supported by a uniform and constant elastic force, the centering operation of matching the outer surface of the wafer W with the center of the wafer and the center of the loading portion without contacting the vertical surface 123a of the wafer guide 120 more accurately Not only can it be carried out, but also prevents the out-of-sealing phenomenon in which the wafer, which is the object to be conveyed, is separated from the top during wafer transfer.

In addition, since the outer surface of the wafer is not in surface contact with the vertical surface 123a of the wafer guide 120 when the wafer W is loaded, the wear of the wafer guide is essentially prevented, thereby extending the service life of the wafer guide. This can be used semi-permanently.

While the invention has been shown and described with respect to particular embodiments, it will be understood that various changes and modifications can be made in the art without departing from the spirit or scope of the invention as set forth in the claims below. It will be appreciated that those skilled in the art can easily know.

1 is an overall perspective view showing a wafer transfer centering finger according to an embodiment of the present invention.

2 is a detailed view showing a wafer guide provided in the wafer transfer centering finger according to an embodiment of the present invention.

3 is a detailed view showing a wafer guide provided in the wafer transfer centering finger according to an embodiment of the present invention.

4 is a detailed view illustrating another form of the wafer guide provided in the wafer transfer centering finger according to the embodiment of the present invention.

5 is a detailed view illustrating another form of the wafer guide provided in the wafer transfer centering finger according to the embodiment of the present invention.

Explanation of symbols on the main parts of the drawings

110: finger body 111: loading unit

113: guide placement groove 120: wafer guide

121: base 124: depression

125,125a, 125b: Assembly worker 130,130a, 130b: elastic part

131,131a: hollow member 132,132a, 132b: exposed hole

133,133a, 133b: ball member 134,134a, 134b: spring member

Claims (14)

A finger body having a loading part opened to one side and having a plurality of guide arrangement grooves inside the loading part; A wafer guide provided in the guide arrangement groove having a pedestal in contact with a lower surface of the wafer loaded in the loading unit; And And an elastic portion provided on a wafer guide corresponding to the outer surface of the wafer to elastically support the wafer to the center of the loading portion in contact with an outer surface of the wafer loaded in the loading portion. The method of claim 1, wherein the elastic portion is a front end of the ball member and the ball member is exposed to the hollow member inserted into the assembly hole formed through the wafer guide, the body portion is exposed through the exposed hole formed in the front end of the hollow member A centering finger for wafer transfer, characterized in that it comprises a spring member disposed inside the hollow member so as to be elastically supported. The centering finger of claim 2, wherein the hollow member has a male screw portion which is screwed with a female screw portion formed on an inner surface of the assembly hole on an outer surface of the body. 3. The wafer transfer centering finger of claim 2, wherein the hollow member has a protrusion length adjusting groove at a rear end thereof to facilitate rotational operation of the hollow member. The method of claim 1, wherein the elastic portion is a hollow member inserted into the assembly hole is formed through the wafer guide, a ball member to which the body portion is exposed to the outside through an exposure hole formed in the front end of the hollow member, and the ball member And a spring member disposed in the hollow member so as to be elastically supported at the front end, and a stopper for closing the open rear end of the hollow member. The centering finger of claim 5, wherein the hollow member has a male screw portion that is screwed with a female screw portion formed on an inner circumferential surface of the assembly hole on an outer surface of the body. 6. The stopper according to claim 5, wherein the stopper has a male screw portion screwed to the female screw portion formed on the inner surface of the hollow member on the outer surface of the body, and has a groove at the rear end to facilitate the rotation operation of the stopper. Centering finger for wafer transfer. The ball assembly of claim 1, wherein the elastic part is disposed inside the assembly hole so as to elastically support the ball member to the tip through an exposed hole formed at the tip of the assembly hole formed through the wafer guide. A centering finger for wafer transfer, characterized in that it comprises a spring member and a stopper for closing the open rear end of the assembly hole. 9. The wafer according to claim 8, wherein the stopper has a male screw portion which is screwed with the female screw portion formed on the inner surface of the assembly hole on the outer surface of the body, and has a groove at the rear end to facilitate the rotation operation of the stopper. Centering finger for transfer. The wafer guide according to any one of claims 1, 2, 5, and 8, wherein the wafer guide has a fastening hole to which the fastening member is fastened so as to be replaceably assembled in the guide placement groove. Centering finger for wafer transfer. The wafer transfer centering finger according to any one of claims 1, 2, 5, and 8, wherein the wafer guide is bonded and fixed to the guide placement groove through an adhesive. . The wafer transfer centering according to any one of claims 1, 2, 5, and 8, wherein the wafer guide is fixed to an inner surface of the wafer guide groove by fixing an outer surface thereof. Finger. The wafer guide according to any one of claims 1, 2, 5, and 8, wherein the wafer guide has an inclined surface on which the wafer is guided and a vertical surface facing the outer surface of the wafer. Centering finger for wafer transfer. The wafer transfer apparatus of claim 1, wherein the wafer guide has a recess formed in a central region of the body corresponding to the pedestal. Centering finger.

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