Patent Application
20060045663
1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates in general to the field of semiconductor processing equipment, and specifically to a load port for transferring wafers to or from a FOUP, the port having a manual FOUP door opening mechanism.
2. Description of the Related Art
In the semiconductor manufacturing industry, wafers are often stored and transported in sealable containers called front opening unified pods (FOUPs). It is often desirable or necessary to transfer wafers from one FOUP to another, or from a FOUP to a cassette, or from a shipping box to a FOUP, etc. These transfer processes are typically performed in a controlled environment, and are typically performed by wafer handling robots utilizing load ports for loading a FOUP into operative relationship with the robot. Presently available load ports utilize an automatic FOUP door opening mechanism, as described for example in U.S. patent application publication No. 2002/00699333 A1. These automated load ports are generally quite expensive, and in the case of an environment in which the volume of wafers to be transferred is relatively low, such load ports may be prohibitively expensive.
Notwithstanding the particular advantages of these automated FOUP opening load ports, there remains a need for a wafer transferring load port which is less expensive, but which adequately performs the transferring process.
In one embodiment, a method of transferring semiconductor wafers from a first container to a second container is provided. This embodiment comprises providing first and second containers, at least one of the containers having a plurality of wafers removably supported therein. The method also includes providing a wafer transfer robot having at least one load port which is configured to allow at least one of the containers to translate linearly, and to rotate. The method further includes placing a first container on the load port, manually removing a door of the first container, rotating the first container until an opening in the container is in a position to allow the robot to transfer wafers through the opening, and sealably locking the container to the load port.
According to another embodiment, an apparatus for transferring wafers between a first container and a second container comprises first and second supports for supporting the first and second containers. At least one of the supports is configured to allow a container to be rotatable and linearly translatable thereon. The apparatus further includes a mechanism for manually removing a door of at least one of the containers. The mechanism is mounted in proximity to at least one of the platforms. The apparatus also includes a wafer transfer robot configured to transfer wafers in a controlled environment between the first and second containers.
Still another embodiment teaches a method comprising providing first and second containers, each with a removable door, and at least one of the containers having a plurality of wafers removably supported therein. The method further includes providing a wafer transfer robot with a load port having a platform. The platform is configured to allow at least one of the containers to translate linearly and to rotate thereon. The method further includes providing a mechanism for manually removing a door of one of the containers. The mechanism is integrally mounted to the door of the housing. The method also includes placing a first container on the platform, engaging the door removal mechanism with the container door, and manually removing the door of the first container. Once the container door has been removed, the container is displaced toward the load port opening, and sealably locked to the opening in the load port such that wafers may be transferred through the opening. Additionally, the method includes exchanging wafers between first and second containers.
For purposes of summarizing the invention and the advantages achieved over the prior art, certain objects and advantages of the invention have been described herein above. Of course, it is to be understood that not necessarily all such objects or advantages may be achieved in accordance with any particular embodiment of the invention. Thus, for example, those skilled in the art will recognize that the invention may be embodied or carried out in a manner that achieves or optimizes one advantage or group of advantages as taught herein without necessarily achieving other objects or advantages as may be taught or suggested herein.
All of these embodiments are intended to be within the scope of the present invention herein disclosed. These and other embodiments of the present invention will become readily apparent to those skilled in the art from the following detailed description of the preferred embodiments having reference to the attached figures, the invention not being limited to any particular preferred embodiment(s) disclosed.
Having thus summarized the general nature of the invention, certain preferred embodiments and modifications thereof will become apparent to those skilled in the art from the detailed description herein having reference to the figures that follow, of which:
A method and apparatus for transferring wafers between first and second containers will now be described with reference to
During the transport and/or storage of wafers in a semiconductor fabrication facility, the wafers are contained inside a front-opening unified pod (FOUP) carrier 20, as shown in
The exterior of the FOUP 20 may also be fitted with a handle 22 for transporting the FOUP 20 manually. Inside, the wafers 24 are held spaced apart in a stack and are supported by ledges 26 forming slots. The top 11 of the FOUP has a handling flange 28 that can be engaged by a robot (not shown) to move the FOUP 20. A sealing mechanism 30 that is designed to press against and seal to a surface of a loading port at a process tool is located at the front opening of the FOUP. On the bottom 12 of the FOUP a coupling plate can be provided with recessed pockets or other features to facilitate in self-locating placement of the FOUP 20.
The manual FOUP door removal device 56 generally includes pins or holes 62 for aligning the mechanism 57 with the registration pins or holes 32 of the FOUP door 10, and keys 64 for engaging and rotating the key slots 34. In embodiments in which the door removal device 56 is hinged relative to the platform, the FOUP should be placed in a position such that the keys 64, slots 34 and alignment features 32, 62 are aligned when the door removal device 56 is rotated to the position shown in
The FOUP door removal device 56 may be provided with an actuating mechanism 72 (see
The door removal device 56 is preferably configured such that the door will be held by the device 56 as the FOUP is moved away from the device 56. Once the FOUP door 10 has been removed by the mechanism 56, the FOUP can be moved to seal against the load port opening in order to transfer wafers into and/or out of the FOUP 20. Once the transfer process is complete, the FOUP may be moved to a position in which the FOUP door can be replaced. The door 10 can be replaced by pressing the FOUP up against the door 10 which is held by the door removal device 56, and the keys may be rotated to engage the latch keys with the FOUP 20.
In the embodiment shown, the door removal mechanism 56 is mounted to the platform 52 such that the mechanism 56 is perpendicular to the load port opening 58. Thus the platform 52 is also configured to allow a FOUP placed thereon to be moved to be sealed against the load port opening 58. Any appropriate path between a FOUP door removal position and a wafer loading position can be used. One exemplary path of a FOUP on a platform 52 is schematically illustrated in
In
A second FOUP 20 may be loaded and sealed to the second side of the load port 50b in a similar manner. Alternatively, any other wafer-carrying container may be positioned on the second side of the load port 50b. Wafers may then be transferred between the FOUPs (or other containers) positioned on the first and second load port sides 50a & 50b as desired. Once the desired wafer transfer process is complete, the FOUP 20 may be moved to the mechanism 56 by reversing the steps discussed above with reference to FIGS. 4A-E. The FOUP door may be manually sealed to the FOUP 20, the FOUP may be moved back away from the FOUP door opening mechanism, and the FOUP 20 may be removed from the platform 52.
The load port platform 52 may be configured to include tracks for guiding the motion of the FOUP 20 along the above-described path. The FOUP 20 may be moved along the tracks manually or automatically. Alternatively, a manual or automatic mechanism may be provided to engage the handling flange 28 on the top of the FOUP 20 in order to move the FOUP 20 along the desired path.
In the embodiment shown in FIGS. 4A-E, the load ports 50a and 50b are arranged in a side-by-side manner. Those skilled in the art will recognize that the load ports 50a and 50b may be configured such that one of the load port platforms is vertically above the other and the transfer robot 80 may be configured to transfer wafers between the vertically displaced FOUPs.
In an alternative embodiment, illustrated in
According to the embodiment of
Although certain preferred embodiments and examples have been described herein, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that the present inventive subject matter extends beyond the specifically disclosed embodiments to other alternative embodiments and/or uses of the invention and obvious modifications and equivalents thereof. Thus, it is intended that the scope of the present inventive subject matter herein disclosed should not be limited by the particular disclosed embodiments described above, but should be determined only by a fair reading of the claims that follow.
