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JP-7855732-B2 - PCB transport device and method of operating the PCB transport device

JP7855732B2JP 7855732 B2JP7855732 B2JP 7855732B2JP-7855732-B2

Inventors

  • ペ ヒョンファン
  • ソン ビョンギュ
  • ミン ジョンキ
  • コ ヒョンシク

Assignees

  • ユ－ジーン テクノロジー カンパニー．リミテッド

Dates

Publication Date
20260508
Application Date
20230519
Priority Date
20220621

Claims (14)

  1. The end effector that supports the circuit board, A motor that provides power for moving the end effector and is capable of accelerated driving with increased torque , A collision detection unit that detects collisions with the end effector, A control unit controls the drive of the motor in response to the collision detection by the collision detection unit, An acceleration time setting unit for setting the acceleration drive time, Equipped with, The aforementioned collision sensing unit A torque measuring unit for measuring the torque value of the motor, A difference value calculation unit calculates the torque difference between two torque measurements taken with a time difference, A collision determination unit that determines the collision of the end effector based on the torque difference value, A reference value setting unit for setting collision judgment criteria values, A measurement cycle setting unit sets the measurement cycle of the motor's torque value according to the set acceleration drive time, Equipped with , The collision determination unit determines that the end effector has collided if the torque difference value is equal to or greater than the collision determination criterion value. The control unit, when the collision detection unit determines that the end effector has collided, stops the motor from driving or drives the motor in the reverse direction. The measurement cycle setting unit sets the measurement cycle of the motor torque value to be shorter than the set acceleration drive time , in a substrate transport device.
  2. The collision sensing unit further includes a measurement position storage unit that records the measurement position of the torque value, The substrate transport apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the control unit drives the motor to the previous measurement position and then stops driving the motor.
  3. The collision sensing unit further comprises a measurement value storage unit that stores the measured torque value of the motor, The torque measuring unit measures the torque value of the motor at a predetermined period, The substrate transport apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the difference value calculation unit calculates a torque difference value between the torque measurement value of the current period and the torque measurement value of the previous period at each predetermined period.
  4. The drive of the aforementioned motor is Constant speed drive in which the torque of the motor is maintained within a predetermined deviation, The reduction drive reduces the torque of the motor, A substrate transport apparatus according to claim 1 , including the following:
  5. The substrate transport apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the reference value setting unit sets the collision judgment reference value according to the rate of change of the motor torque value with respect to the set acceleration drive time.
  6. The substrate transport apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the torque measuring unit measures the torque value of the motor at least twice during the acceleration drive.
  7. The substrate transport apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the torque measuring unit measures the torque value of the motor at least at the starting point of the acceleration drive.
  8. The process involves providing power via a motor to move the end effector on which the circuit board is supported, The process involves the torque measuring unit of the collision sensing unit that detects the collision of the end effector measuring the torque value of the motor multiple times with a time difference, The collision sensing unit's difference value calculation unit performs a process of calculating the torque difference value of two measured torque values, The collision judgment unit of the collision sensing unit determines the collision of the end effector based on the calculated torque difference value, The collision detection unit's reference value setting unit performs a process of setting a collision judgment reference value, In the process of determining the collision of the end effector, if the collision determination unit determines that the end effector has collided, the control unit that controls the motor's drive stops the motor's drive or drives the motor in the reverse direction based on the collision detection by the collision sensing unit. Includes , The process of moving the end effector includes an acceleration process in which the torque of the motor is increased to move it. The acceleration time setting unit includes a process for setting the time of the acceleration process, The collision sensing unit's measurement cycle setting unit performs a process of setting the measurement cycle of the motor's torque value according to the set acceleration process time, It further includes, In the process of determining the collision of the end effector, the collision determination unit determines that the end effector has collided if the calculated torque difference value is equal to or greater than the set collision determination criterion value. In the process of setting the measurement cycle, the acceleration time setting unit sets the measurement cycle of the motor torque value so that it is shorter than the set acceleration process time .
  9. The process further includes recording the measurement position of the torque value, The method for operating a substrate transport apparatus according to claim 8 , wherein the process of stopping the motor's operation or driving the motor in the reverse direction includes the process of stopping the motor's operation after driving the motor to the previous measurement position.
  10. The process further includes storing the measured torque value of the motor, In the process of measuring the torque value of the motor, the torque value of the motor is measured at a predetermined period, In the process of calculating the torque difference value, the method of operating a substrate transport apparatus according to claim 8 , wherein, for each predetermined period, the torque difference value between the torque measurement value of the current period and the torque measurement value of the immediately preceding period is calculated.
  11. The process of moving the aforementioned end effector is as follows : A constant-velocity process for moving the motor while maintaining its torque within a predetermined deviation, A deceleration process that reduces the torque of the motor to move it, A method for operating a substrate transport apparatus according to claim 8 , further comprising :
  12. In the process of setting the reference value, the collision judgment reference value is set according to the rate of change of the motor torque value with respect to the set acceleration process time, as described in claim 8 .
  13. The method for operating a substrate transport apparatus according to claim 8 , wherein, in the process of measuring the torque value of the motor, the torque value of the motor is measured at least twice or more during the acceleration process.
  14. The method for operating a substrate transport apparatus according to claim 8 , wherein, in the process of measuring the torque value of the motor, the torque value of the motor is measured at least at the starting point of the acceleration process.

Description

This invention relates to a substrate transport device and a method for operating a substrate transport device, and more specifically, to a substrate transport device and a method for operating a substrate transport device that detect collisions of end effectors. In the manufacturing process of semiconductors and displays, in order to carry out a wide variety of unit processes such as deposition, etching, and cleaning, multiple pieces of equipment suited to the characteristics of each process are required. Each of these different pieces of equipment is equipped with a substrate transport device for transporting substrates such as wafers. Generally, semiconductor equipment substrate handling systems play the role of transporting substrates from a load-lock chamber to a substrate storage component (e.g., a FOUP (Front Opening Unified Pod, a sealed wafer carrier/storage container), a carrier, etc.), or from the substrate storage component to the load-lock chamber. Such substrate transport devices use power provided by a motor to perform mechanical motion and operate within a defined movement area. During movement within this area, if the substrate deviates from its designated position, if the end effector of the substrate transport device is not positioned correctly, or if there is an error in the transport program, there is a risk of collision with an obstacle. This could lead to damage to the substrate transport device and/or the object of collision (or obstacle) or defects in the substrate. Republic of Korea Publication Patent No. 10-2020-0130058 A schematic diagram showing a substrate transport device according to one embodiment of the present invention.A graph showing torque measurements for each period and the torque measurement for the immediately preceding period related to one embodiment of the present invention.A conceptual diagram illustrating the calculation of torque difference values related to one embodiment of the present invention.A procedure diagram showing a method for operating a substrate transport apparatus according to another embodiment of the present invention. The embodiments of the present invention will be described in more detail below, based on the accompanying drawings. However, the present invention is not limited in any way to the embodiments disclosed below, and can be embodied in a variety of different forms. These embodiments are provided merely to complete the disclosure of the present invention and to fully inform those skilled in the art of the scope of the invention. In describing the present invention, the same reference numerals are used for the same components, and the drawings may be partially exaggerated in size to accurately illustrate the embodiments of the present invention. In the drawings, the same reference numerals refer to the same components. Figure 1 is a schematic diagram showing a substrate transport device according to one embodiment of the present invention, where Figure 1(a) is a plan view of the substrate transport device, and Figure 1(b) is a block diagram of the collision detection unit. Referring to Figure 1, a substrate transport device 100 according to one embodiment of the present invention may include an end effector 110 on which the substrate 10 is supported, a motor 120 that provides power for moving the end effector 110, a collision detection unit 130 that detects collisions with the end effector 110, and a control unit 140 that controls the driving of the motor 120 in response to collision detection by the collision detection unit 130. The end-effector 110 is capable of supporting the substrate 10 and can extend in a first direction. For example, the end-effector 110 may have the shape of a fork with a plurality of fingers arranged (or aligned) in a second direction intersecting the first direction so as to be aligned in the first direction, and can contact the lower surface of the substrate 10 and support the substrate 10. Here, the second direction may be a horizontal direction that intersects the first direction, and if the first direction is the front-to-back direction, it may be the left-to-right direction. The end-effector 110 may also be made from a ceramic material such as quartz, aluminum oxide ( Al₂O₃ ), aluminum nitride ( AlN), silicon carbide (SiC), titanium dioxide ( TiO₂ ), or silicon dioxide ( SiO₂ ). In this case, the substrate 10 may be a wafer, and is not particularly limited to a wafer; it may also be a glass substrate or the like. On the other hand, the end effectors 110 may be composed of multiple units and arranged in multiple stages (or in a third direction intersecting both the first and second directions) (or stacked), with each stage (i.e., each of the multiple end effectors) supporting a substrate 10, allowing two or more substrates 10 corresponding to the number of end effectors 110 to be transported simultaneously. The motor 120 can provide power for moving the end effector 110, and the end effector 110 can be