Patent Application
20070221335
Not Applicable
This invention relates to the field of gripping and handling glass or semiconductor plates (wafer) or the like, in particular in processes for manufacturing these plates, in particular in the field of robots for gripping and/or moving these plates. A plurality of robots for gripping glass or semiconductor plates (wafer) or the like, using various plate-grasping techniques, are currently known.
In particular, engagement of the rear surface of the plate with a system generating a vacuum so as to hold the plate by suction is known.
Engagement by gravity on the edges of the plate is also known.
A forced engagement system on the edges of the plate between a mobile finger exerting pressure on the edge of the plate and fixed bearings is also known.
These systems function perfectly, but have several disadvantages, a primary one being contamination of the plates.
A system that significantly reduces the risks of contamination, consisting of gripping a plate by its rear surface, by contact, bearing, and adhesion thereof on pads made of a flexible material, for example a polymer, using a complete elastic bond by dry adhesion, obtained by means of Van der Waals forces, could be used. A disadvantage of this technique is that once the plate has been gripped, it is difficult to detach the pads thereof in order to release the plate from the arm supporting it.
This invention proposes a way in which to overcome these disadvantages, and to provide additional advantages. More specifically, it consists of a device for contact by adhesion to a glass or semiconductor plate (wafer) surface or the like, comprising:
a base including a flexible material equipped with an adhesive contact surface intended to be attached to said surface by adhesion, and
means for differentiating the separation resistance between said adhesive contact surface of the flexible material and the plate surface, in a direction perpendicular to the adhesive contact surface and in a direction parallel to said adhesive contact surface.
The applicant has observed that the main movements or accelerations of a plate, when it is gripped and moved by a robot arm, generating significant biases at the adhesive interfaces between the robot and the plate, are essentially parallel to the plane of the plate. This requires good adhesion of the flexible material in this plane, by shear force, while to move and release a plate, the separation occurs in the direction perpendicular to the plane of the plate, which requires low adhesion in this direction so as to facilitate this separation operation. On the basis of such observations and analyses, the applicant had the idea of improving the single massive contact pad made of a flexible material so as to give it clear adhesive capabilities, differentiated in certain directions. The means for differentiating the separation resistance between said adhesive contact surface made of a flexible material and the plate surface, in a direction perpendicular to the adhesive contact surface and in a direction parallel to said adhesive contact surface, or tangential thereto, allow for a good capacity of the flexible material to adhere to the plate in a complete adhesion bond, which is elastic owing to the flexibility of the contact material, without being subject to the disadvantages caused by the difficulty of separating the plate from the flexible material when this plate is to be released. Thus, the separation resistance, which is expressed by a force, can have different values according to the direction perpendicular to the contact surface and according to the direction parallel to this contact surface for the same given contact surface. In the present invention, “flexible material” means any flexible material by nature, such as a flexible polymer, or any material made flexible by geometry, such as a semiconductor or a steel material, for example formed as a very thin layer and/or including a microstructure on its contact surface, particularly a fibrillated or laminate microstructure.
According to an advantageous feature of the device according to the invention, the means for differentiating the separation resistance between said adhesive contact surface made of a flexible material and the plate surface, in a direction perpendicular to the adhesive contact surface and in a direction parallel to said adhesive contact surface, include:
means for conferring on the base stiffness or capacity for elastic extension, in the direction perpendicular to the adhesive contact surface, differentiated on the width of the base.
This feature allows for a gradual separation of the adhesive surfaces in contact, i.e. a separation that starts at a small portion of the surface in contact, therefore requiring little force, then gradually extending to the entire surface, therefore still requiring little force, under the effect of a force causing the surfaces to separate in a perpendicular direction, maintained for the entire duration of the separation of the surfaces in contact.
According to an advantageous feature of the device according to the invention, the separation resistance between said adhesive contact surface and the plate surface, in a direction perpendicular to the adhesive contact surface, is lower than the separation resistance between said adhesive contact surface and the plate in a direction parallel to said adhesive contact surface.
This feature favors one direction over the other, namely the direction perpendicular to the adhesive contact surface, so as to facilitate the separation between the plate and the flexible material. It should be noted that other directions for facilitating the separation can be favored, as needed, more specifically in the directions of movement and accelerations of the plates caused by the robot using the contact device according to the invention.
According to an advantageous feature of the device according to the invention, said means for differentiating the separation resistance between the adhesive contact surface and the plate surface, in a direction perpendicular to the adhesive contact surface, and in a direction parallel to said adhesive contact surface, include:
a rigid material secured to the flexible material, forming therewith a base having a uniform or substantially uniform thickness, and defining a different thickness of the flexible material for the width of said base or at least a portion thereof.
A rigid/flexible bimaterial structure of the base, conferring a different thickness of the flexible material in particular on the width of the base, makes it possible to provide a vertical stiffness of the base that is different at various points thereof. The separation between the adhesive surface of the flexible material and the plate surface will begin in the stiffest place, i.e. where the flexible material has a smaller thickness and therefore where the base has a minimum elastic extension capacity. Thus the separation of the surface occurs gradually, first in a small portion of the surface, then gradually extending to the entire surface, thus making it unnecessary to exert a significant force which would be necessary if the entire surface were to be separated simultaneously. The effect achieved in the separation is a “peeling” effect, generating a minimal force. The area of the surface of the flexible material attached to the plate can be determined according to the need for adhesion resistance of the surface under the shear force, according to the tangential force on the maximum surface to which the adhesion bond is subjected, and the distribution of the flexible/rigid material of the base, determining the separation resistance in the direction normal to the adhesive surface can be determined according to the need for adhesion resistance of this surface in a direction normal thereto.
According to an advantageous feature of the device according to the invention, the thickness of the flexible material gradually and continuously increases over the width of said base or at least a portion thereof.
Such a feature provides a continuous and regular progression of the separation between the surface and the plate.
According to an advantageous feature of the device according to the invention, the rigid material adopts a cylindrical shape comprising a biased end, and the flexible material is attached to the rigid material by said biased end and adopts a complementary shape so as to confer a right cylinder assembly form on the base.
According to an advantageous feature of the device according to the invention, the rigid material has a conical shape integrated in the flexible material.
According to an advantageous feature of the device according to the invention, the rigid material adopts a shape comprising a conical recess in which the flexible material having a complementary conical shape is integrated.
According to an advantageous feature of the device according to the invention, the flexible material constitutes the base, in which said means for differentiating the separation resistance between the adhesive contact surface and the plate surface in a direction perpendicular to the adhesive contact surface and in a direction parallel to said adhesive contact surface includes at least one transverse slot in the base, extending over at least a portion of the cross-section of the flexible material.
This feature presents an alternative to a bimaterial base as defined above, by conferring, on the flexible material forming the base, different extension capabilities over the width of said base. Thus, the surface will begin to separate from the plate where the cross-section is not slit, such a location being the least expandable of the base, and will eventually become separated in the location farthest from the zone where the cross-section was not slit, this location being that which has the greatest capacity for pulling away among the portions of the material separated by the slot.
According to an advantageous feature of the device according to the invention, said at least one transverse slot of the base, extends over at least a portion of the transverse cross-section of the flexible material so as to confer a U-structure on the base.
According to an advantageous feature of the device according to the invention, the base includes two opposing transverse slots, extending over at least a portion of the cross-section of the flexible material, at two different heights thereof so as to confer a flexible Z-structure on the base.
Such a structure of the base allows for a degree of freedom of the bond in a direction perpendicular to the contact surface made of the flexible material, wherein the flexible Z-shaped material is capable of unfolding before beginning to separate from the plate; then, once the Z is unfolded, the separation will occur first in the location where the base is least expandable, that is on the side where the upper bar of the Z is attached to the transverse bar of the latter.
According to an advantageous feature of the device according to the invention, the base takes the form of a flexible material layer in which a spiral cross sectional slot is formed, providing a spiral flexible material layer the center of which being attached to a support.
According to an advantageous feature of the device according to the invention, said means for differentiating the separation resistance between the adhesive contact surface and the plate surface, in a direction perpendicular to the adhesion contact surface, and in a direction parallel to said adhesive contact surface, include:
a flexible plate intended to be attached to a rigid support capable of supporting said glass or semiconductor plate (wafer) or the like, on a surface and to an end of which the flexible material is attached, wherein the flexible material forms said base of which a first end constitutes said adhesive contact surface, and of which the other end opposite the first end constitutes a surface for bonding to the flexible plate.
This feature makes it possible to obtain “peeling” effects during the separation, comparable to those of a base made of a flexible slit material, wherein the function of the slot is in this case obtained by means of an elastic movement of the flexible plate, for example, obtained in a hard material. An advantage that can be conferred by the flexible plate is that of providing a complete elastic bond of which the elastic return force of the surface in rest position, which is substantially significant, is determined according to requirements independently of the nature of the flexible contact material, and also of providing a complete elastic bond of which the elastic extension length is greater than that of the flexible material.
According to an advantageous feature of the device according to the invention, said means for differentiating the separation resistance between the adhesive contact surface and the plate surface, in a direction perpendicular to the adhesion contact surface, and in a direction parallel to said adhesive contact surface, include:
a rigid support capable of supporting said glass or semiconductor plate (wafer) or the like, on a surface and to an end of which the flexible material is attached, wherein the flexible material forming a base of which a first end constitutes said adhesive contact surface, and of which the other end opposite the first end includes an annular surface for bonding to the rigid support, the flexible material adopting a deformable elastic membrane form,
the rigid material comprising a line for supplying pressurized fluid leading to the annular bonding surface,
means for supplying the line with pressurized fluid, so as to confer at least two distinct positions on the deformable membrane:
This feature makes it possible, with a single flexible membrane, and a fluid supply that is pressurized, for example, by compressed air, to obtain an excellent adhesive bond by shear force (according to forces tangential to the contact surface), as well as an excellent bond in the direction perpendicular to said contact surface, while allowing for an easy separation of the plate. Indeed, by means of a simple deformation of the flexible membrane under the effect of a fluid injection, said membrane is deformed so as to minimize the adhesive contact surface area, and thus minimize the force needed to separate the plate from the surface thus reduced. In addition, the deformation of the membrane in order to facilitate the separation of the adhesive bond causes a small movement of the plate which can advantageously be used as a replacement for the corresponding small movement of a robot that holds the plate with a gripping arm advantageously equipped with contact devices according to the invention. These small movements caused by the deformation of the flexible membrane can be controlled, for example, by controlling the fluid injection pressure on one side of the membrane.
According to an advantageous feature of the device according to the invention, said adhesive contact surface made of the flexible material includes a fibrillated or laminate microstructure, increasing the adhesive force.
Such a specific contact surface enables the adhesive forces generated by the surfaces implemented to be improved, by increasing the intensity of the Van de Waals contact forces. This known technique is based on the analysis of adhesive forces enabling an animal called a Gecko to stay and move on smooth vertical surfaces. Such a specific contact surface further enables to reduce the contact contamination of the glass or semiconductor plate (wafer) or the like, and also reduce the accumulation of dirt on such a surface.
According to an advantageous feature of the device according to the invention, said adhesive contact surface consists of a porous or microporous material allowing the passage of a gaseous fluid therethrough.
This feature makes it possible for a gaseous fluid to pass through the flexible material, at least through the adhesive contact surface, by generating a fluidic suction through said flexible material in order to advantageously suck in contaminant particles which would be in the contact area between the flexible material and the semiconductor plate (wafer), preferably before the contact between the flexible material and the plate. The device for contact by adhesion according to the invention thus allows to reduce the risks of contamination of the glass or semi-conductor plate.
The invention also relates to a system for gripping a glass or semiconductor plate (wafer) or the like, including:
a rigid arm for gripping the glass or semiconductor plate (wafer) or the like, equipped with a plurality of degrees of freedom of movement,
at least three devices for adhesive contact with a surface of the glass or semiconductor plate (wafer) or the like, connected to said gripping arm.
This feature proposes a known robot-type system for moving semiconductor plates, for example, comprising an arm for gripping plates equipped with six degrees of freedom in space, to which at least three contact devices according to the invention as defined above, have been connected, thus enabling a minimum isostatic equilibrium of the plate to be ensured. Such a system according to the invention can comprise a gripping arm provided with means for turning the plates about an axis perpendicular to the plane of the plates, wherein the interfaces of the system with the plate are provided by contact devices according to the invention.
The invention can be better understood, and other features and advantages will be clear from the following description of several embodiments of a device for adhesive contact with a glass or semiconductor plate (wafer) surface or the like, and a system according to the invention for gripping a glass or semiconductor plate (wafer) or the like, with appended drawings in which:
Referring to
a base 10 including a flexible material 4 equipped with an adhesive contact surface 5 intended to be attached to the surface 2 by adhesion,
means 6 for differentiating the separation resistance between the adhesive contact surface 5 made of the flexible material 4 and the surface 2 of the plate 3, in a direction 7 perpendicular to the adhesive contact surface 5 and in a direction 8 parallel to the adhesive contact surface 5, wherein said means 6 advantageously comprise a rigid material 9 secured to the flexible material 4, forming a base 10 therewith, advantageously having a uniform or substantially uniform thickness, and defining a different thickness of the flexible material 4 for the width L of the base 10 or at least a portion thereof.
The base 10 adopts, for example, a right cylinder shape with a uniform thickness, in which the thickness of the flexible material gradually and continuously increases over the width of the base. The rigid material 9 adopts, for example, a general wedge shape, for example a cylindrical shape comprising a biased end 11, and the flexible material 4 is attached to the rigid material 9 by the biased end 11 and adopts a complementary shape so as to confer on the base a right cylinder assembly shape of uniform thickness.
The rigid material 9 can be silicon, silicon oxide, a stainless steel, or aluminum, for compatibility or affinity with a semiconductor plate, and the flexible, or preferably very flexible material 4 can be a polyurethane or silicone-type polymer, such as a PDMS silicone. The combination of the flexible or very flexible material and the rigid material can be achieved by means of entirely known techniques, such as bonding, grafting, and so on.
In the example shown in
The two end surfaces of the base 10 thus formed, denoted by reference 5 for the surface in contact with the plate and 13 for the surface bound to the support 12, are advantageously parallel so as to allow for a rigid bonding support 12 of the base 10 to a robot arm or the like intended to grip the plate and/or move it in space, parallel to the plane of the plate 3. The plates 3 are generally, but not exclusively, silicon plate with a circular outer edge 14, in the shape of a disk or a plate.
Thus, in the example of
The means 6 thus enable a stiffness or capacity for elastic extension to be conferred on the base 10, in a direction 7 perpendicular to the adhesive contact surface 5, differentiated over the width of the base 10, in order to facilitate the separation of surface 5 from surface 2 of the plate 3 in this direction, by means of a gradual separation of the surfaces.
According to the invention, this difference in elastic extension capacity of the base 10 over its width or a portion thereof makes it possible to obtain a separation resistance between the adhesive contact surface 5 and the surface 2 of the plate 3, in a direction 7 perpendicular to the surface 5, different from, and advantageously lower than, the separation resistance between this surface 5 and the plate in a direction parallel to the adhesive contact surface 5.
The device shown in
The device shown in
The device of
The device shown in
In the spirit of
The device shown in
In the device shown in
a rigid support 12 capable of supporting the glass or semiconductor plate 3 (wafer) or the like, on a surface 31 and to an end 32 of which the flexible material 4 is attached, the flexible material 4 forming a base 10 of which a first end 33 constitutes the adhesive contact surface 5, and of which the other end 34 opposite the first includes an annular surface 13 for bonding to the rigid support 12, the flexible material 4 adopting a deformable elastic membrane form,
the rigid support 12 comprising a line 35 for supplying pressurized fluid leading to the annular bonding surface 13,
means (not shown) for supplying the line 35 with pressurized fluid, so as to confer at least two distinct positions on the deformable membrane 4, as shown in
a first so-called adhesion position (
a second so-called separation position (
The elastic membrane 4 can, for example, adopt the shape of a disk attached to the periphery of the surface 13 in contact with the rigid support, via a connection impervious to the pressurized fluid, by any means known, for example, by bonding or grafting, so as to leave a central portion of the surface 13 free, where the pressurized fluid line is to lead, as shown in
when a pressurized fluid is sent through the line 35, it causes the contact surface 5 to gradually separate, thus reducing the force needed for separation of the contact surface 5 from the plate 3.
This seventh embodiment of the device according to the invention advantageously makes it possible, by allowing a central contact portion to remain at the apex of the dome when the fluid is sent under maximum pressure, whereof the surface can be controlled with the value of the injected fluid pressure, to simultaneously provide minimum adhesion in direction 8 and in direction 7, for example for small movements of the arm 12 supporting the plate.
In addition, this seventh embodiment of the device according to the invention advantageously makes it possible to use the movement of the plate due to the swelling of the membrane, such as a small movement capable of replacing a movement of the rigid support 12 which bears the plate 3, in direction 7.
The device of
the support 12 bearing, for example, three bases 10 distributed so as to statically support a plate 3, and which can be supplied with pressurized fluid, is brought close to the rear surface 2 of a plate 3 which is to be gripped and moved, without any fluid being injected into the bases 10,
before the contact with the plate, a fluid is optionally injected at a predetermined pressure, greater than ambient pressure of the plate, into the bases so that each base forms a dome capable of forming a contact buffer,
the gripping of the plate with bases having a contact surface thus reduced, can be used for small movements of the plate not requiring a significant adhesive force,
the removal of the pressure under the bases 10 when a plate is in place on said bases, enables the membranes to return to their initial contact form by means of elastic return, and thus the contact surface to be increased, and consequently the adhesive force to be increased, which is useful for high accelerations and rapid movements of the support 12,
to separate the bases 10 and therefore the rigid support 12 from the plate 3, a pressurized fluid is again injected into the line 35, gradually separating the adhesive contact surface 5 by deformation of the membrane 4, enabling the complete separation to be performed with minimal force exerted on the support 12 in direction 7 due to the minimum reduction of the adhesive contact surface.
It should be noted that, if the line 35 is not supplied with pressurized fluid, the annular shape of the attachment of the membrane to the support 12 and the elastic nature of the material forming the membrane enable the latter to retain a greater elastic extension capacity at the center of the disk than at the edge of the disk which is attached to the support. Thus, in the absence of any pressurized fluid supply, the shape of the attachment of the membrane enables the base to have a stiffness or elastic extension capacity, in the direction perpendicular to the adhesive contact surface, differentiated over the width of the base. The pressurized fluid supply enables the surface in contact with the plate to be guided or controlled.
The flexible material 4 shown on FIGS. 1 to 11 may consist of a porous or microporous material in order to allow a gaseous flow through the adhesive contact surface 5, with the aim of sucking in contaminant particles, advantageously in view of removing said particles from the contact surface 5 of the plate before a contact with the flexible material 4. A suction device which could be used for this purpose is a suction device similar to that described referring to
The microstructure 40 includes microlamellas or micropins on the surface, which increase the intensity of the Van de Waals forces in play in the adhesion of surface 5 with surface 2 of the plate 3. The micropins can have a diameter of between 0.1 μm and several dozen micrometers. The microlamellas have thicknesses of the same order. The height of the microlamellas or micropins is between 1 and 200 μm. Such shapes can be obtained in any way known, for example, by lithographic or “nanoinprint” methods. The material constituting the microstructure 40 can, for example, be an intrinsically hard material, as silicon (compatible for a contact with a semiconductor plate) and can be polymerized or stuck to all or a portion of the surface 5 of the flexible material 4 in order to improve the adhesion of the base 10, and the flexible material can be a monomer or polymer-type flexible material, an organic-type flexible material such as PU, PMMA, or silicone PDMS, compatible with the material of the semiconductor plate used in this case. The material forming the microstructure 40 can be, alternatively, the constituent flexible material of the base, at the surface of which the microstructure has been formed.
The invention also relates to a system for gripping a glass or semiconductor plate 2 (wafer) or the like, comprising:
a rigid arm 12 for gripping the glass or semiconductor plate (wafer) or the like, having a plurality of degrees of freedom of movement, and
at least three devices for adhesive contact with a surface of the glass or semiconductor plate (wafer) or the like, according to any one of the examples shown in FIGS. 1 to 7, connected to the rigid gripping arm 12.
The rigid arm 12 for gripping a glass or semiconductor plate or the like can be of any known type, for example, any type of flat plate-like element comprising, on a substantially planar surface, at least three devices according to the invention, arranged so as to ensure the static equilibrium of the plate, and a dynamic equilibrium when the plate moves with the arm. The plate-like element will be attached to a robot, giving it, as needed, an appropriate number of degrees of freedom, for example six. A plate is gripped by bringing the plate-like element near a surface of the plate by means of a movement of the plate-like element enabled by the robot, then against the surface of the plate-like element so that the respective adhesive surfaces of the bases of the contact devices adhere to the plate and thus enable the latter to be gripped, then transported in space owing to the degrees of movement of the plate-like element. The device according to the invention allows for rapid movement and high accelerations of the plate in a direction parallel to the contact surface of the bases, regardless of the direction of gravitational pull with respect to the plate. According to the selected embodiment, the device according to the invention can also allow for maximum adhesion in a direction perpendicular to the adhesive contact surface, for example, the embodiment shown in
On a single rigid arm, the devices can be identical or different, depending, for example, on their position and distribution.
The above description is illustrative and is not restrictive. Many variations of the invention will become apparent to those skilled in the art upon review of the disclosure. The scope of the invention should, therefore, be determined not with reference to the above description, but instead should be determined with reference to the pending claims along with their full scope or equivalents.
A recitation of “a”, “an” or “the” is intended to mean “one or more” unless specifically indicated to the contrary.
All patents, patent applications, publications, and descriptions mentioned above are herein incorporated by reference in their entirety for all purposes. None is admitted to be prior art.
