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Wafer transfer system having rotational capability
| Details |
Inventors: Wiesler, Mordechai; Weiss, Mitchell;
Assignee: PRI Automation, Inc. (Billerica, MA)
Primary Examiner: Bucci; David A.
Assistant Examiner:
Attorney, Agent or Firm: Weingarten, Schurgin, Gagnebin & Hayes LLP
A wafer transfer system is operable with a front or side loading wafer carrier to move one or more horizontally oriented wafers out of the carrier and to rotate the wafers to a vertical orientation in which the wafers are accessible for further processing. The transfer system provides a wafer extractor which employs a plurality of paired fingers of a size and configuration to fit between the spaced, stacked wafers in the carrier for lifting the wafers off the shoulders of the carrier. The fingers are then movable generally horizontally to remove the wafers from the carrier into two angled combs having ledges for receiving wafers. The fingers and combs are rotated to a vertical orientation in which the wafers are supported along their edges by the combs. The fingers are shifted horizontally a small amount relative to the combs to disengage from the wafers, either by a translation following the rotation or by rotating the fingers and combs about different axes. In this manner, the wafers are in a position from which they can be accessed by a robot arm according to the particular process. In a further embodiment, the fingers and combs are also translated forward during the rotation, thereby minimizing the floor space or footprint required by the system. |
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DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION A transfer system 10 according to the present invention is shown generally in FIG.
1.
In the configuration shown, a plurality of carriers 12 are held in a storage device 14 on the opposite side of a wall 16 of a contaminant-free environment 18 containing processing equipment 19, including a robot arm 21.
The carrier 12 to be accessed is positioned adjacent and sealed against an opening 20 in the wall 16.
A door 22 sealing the opening is removable to reveal semiconductor wafers 24 stacked horizontally on paired, opposed shoulders 26 inside the carrier 12 (shown in FIGS.
4 and 5), as is known in the art.
A transfer system 10 according to the present invention is positioned adjacent the opening 20 in the contaminant-free environment for transferring wafers from the carrier to the processing equipment, first along a straight line out of the carrier and then by rotating the wafers to a vertical orientation, indicated at 23.
For clarity, only a portion of the transfer system 10 is shown in FIG.
1; the rotational mechanism is shown and discussed in greater detail below.
In the configuration shown in FIG.
1, a second opening 28 is also provided for access to a carrier; a transfer system 10' may be positioned adjacent this opening also.
Additionally, although illustrated in conjunction with a carrier storage device, the transfer system is operable with any type of wafer handling apparatus.
Referring more particularly to FIGS.
2 through 5, the transfer system comprises a wafer extractor 30 having a support structure 32 from which are cantilevered one or more pairs of fingers 34 for supporting the wafers 24.
For clarity, the rotational mechanism is not shown in FIGS.
2 through 5.
The extractor support structure may comprise, for example, a frame formed by two columns 36 supported by a lower beam 38 and connected together at their upper ends by an upper beam 40 in a box configuration.
The upstanding columns are spaced apart horizontally a distance sufficient to provide clearance for a comb structure 90 to fit therebetween as discussed further below
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Control Computers 
