JP-7855940-B2 - Vacuum pump system and control method

JP7855940B2JP 7855940 B2JP7855940 B2JP 7855940B2JP-7855940-B2

Inventors

田中晋悟

Assignees

株式会社島津製作所

Dates

Publication Date: 20260511
Application Date: 20220624

Claims (9)

A vacuum pump system including a vacuum pump that exhausts gas by rotating a rotor with a motor, A storage unit that stores a first threshold value that determines the number of times an anomaly occurs that triggers an alarm, A control unit that counts the number of times an abnormality has occurred in the vacuum pump, determines whether the number of abnormalities is equal to or greater than the first threshold, and outputs an alarm if the number of abnormalities is equal to or greater than the first threshold, A setting unit predicts the number of occurrences of the abnormality when the operating time of the vacuum pump reaches a second time, which is longer than the first time, based on the number of occurrences of the abnormality when the operating time of the vacuum pump reaches a first time, and sets or changes the first threshold based on the predicted number of occurrences . A vacuum pump system equipped with the following features.
The vacuum pump system according to claim 1, wherein the setting unit sets or changes the first threshold based on the history of the occurrence of the abnormality.
The vacuum pump system according to claim 1 , wherein if the predicted number of occurrences is smaller than a first threshold stored in the memory unit, the setting unit sets the predicted number of occurrences as a new first threshold.
The vacuum pump system according to claim 1 , wherein if the predicted number of occurrences is equal to or greater than a first threshold stored in the storage unit, the setting unit decides to maintain the first threshold stored in the storage unit.
The vacuum pump has a measuring unit for measuring the operating state of the vacuum pump, The aforementioned setting unit is, Based on whether the magnitude of the measurement value detected by the measurement unit is equal to or greater than the second threshold, it is determined whether there is a risk of damage to the vacuum pump. The first threshold is set or changed based on the predicted number of occurrences and whether or not there is a risk of damage to the vacuum pump. The vacuum pump system according to claim 1 .
The aforementioned setting unit is, The vacuum pump system according to claim 5, wherein if the magnitude of the measured value is smaller than the second threshold and there is no risk of damage to the vacuum pump, and the predicted number of occurrences is determined to be greater than the first threshold stored in the memory unit , the predicted number of occurrences is set as a new first threshold.
The aforementioned setting unit is, The vacuum pump system according to claim 5, wherein if the magnitude of the measured value is greater than or equal to a second threshold and there is a risk of damage to the vacuum pump, and the predicted number of occurrences is determined to be less than the first threshold stored in the memory unit , the predicted number of occurrences is set as a new first threshold.
The vacuum pump system according to claim 1, wherein the abnormality is at least one selected from an abnormality relating to vibration of the vacuum pump and an abnormality relating to the load of the vacuum pump.
A control method for controlling a vacuum pump that exhausts gas by rotating a rotor with a motor, The steps include counting the number of times an abnormality occurred in the vacuum pump, The steps include: predicting the number of occurrences of the abnormality when the operating time of the vacuum pump reaches a second time, which is longer than the first time, based on the number of occurrences of the abnormality when the operating time of the vacuum pump reaches a first time; The steps include setting or changing a first threshold that determines the number of occurrences of an anomaly that triggers an alarm, based on the predicted number of occurrences , If the number of occurrences of the abnormality is equal to or greater than the first threshold, the step of outputting an alarm, A control method comprising:

Description

This invention relates to a vacuum pump system and a method for controlling a vacuum pump. Some vacuum pumps use a motor to rotate a rotor and exhaust gas. Patent Document 1 describes a vacuum pump that detects the axial displacement of the rotor shaft, accumulates the number of detected displacements, and issues an alarm if the accumulated number exceeds a predetermined number, or if the accumulated number exceeds a predetermined number within a predetermined time. Japanese Patent Publication No. 2004-150340 A diagram showing the configuration of a vacuum pump system.This is a diagram showing the configuration of a vacuum pump.A diagram showing the configuration of the pump control device.This diagram shows the configuration of the setting device.This is a flowchart showing the alarm activation process.This flowchart shows an example of setting the first threshold.This is a flowchart showing an example of setting the first threshold (Example 2).This is a flowchart showing the first setup operation.This is a flowchart showing the second setting operation. <Vacuum Pump System> The vacuum pump system 100 will be explained using Figure 1. Figure 1 is a diagram showing the configuration of the vacuum pump system 100. The vacuum pump system 100 is installed, for example, in a semiconductor factory that manufactures semiconductor devices and the like by performing various processes in a process chamber (not shown). The vacuum pump system 100 comprises a plurality of vacuum pumps 1 and a setting device 10. Multiple vacuum pumps 1 perform vacuum evacuation of a target to be evacuated, such as a process chamber. In the vacuum pump system 100, one target to be evacuated may be evacuated by one vacuum pump 1, or one target to be evacuated by several of the multiple vacuum pumps 1. When a vacuum pump 1 experiences an abnormality, it outputs an alarm when the number of occurrences exceeds a first threshold. Alarm output refers to the collective process of issuing an alarm, storing the alarm in a memory device, and/or stopping the operation of the vacuum pump. The following explanation will use the case of issuing an alarm as an example of alarm output. When an alarm is issued, the user can, for example, overhaul the vacuum pump that issued the alarm for maintenance and replace its parts as needed. The setting device 10 is connected to multiple vacuum pumps 1 via a network N and performs various settings for the multiple vacuum pumps 1. The setting device 10 can refer to various information stored in the vacuum pumps 1 and execute setting operations based on the referenced information. The setting device 10 is a computer system composed of a CPU, storage devices (RAM, ROM, HDD, SSD, etc.), and various interfaces such as communication interfaces. The setting device 10 may be, for example, a personal computer, a tablet terminal, or a mobile terminal. Alternatively, the setting device 10 may be a server, such as a cloud server. The network N may be, for example, a wireless LAN, a wired LAN, a WAN, or a proprietary communication line provided by the vacuum pump 1. Here, "abnormality" occurring in vacuum pump 1 means that the measurement value from the sensor installed in vacuum pump 1 deviates from the normal value. <Vacuum pump> The vacuum pump 1 included in the vacuum pump system 100 will be explained using Figure 2. Figure 2 is a diagram showing the configuration of the vacuum pump 1. The vacuum pump 1 includes a housing 2, a base 3, a rotor 4, a stator 5, and a pump control device 6. The housing 2 includes a first end 11, a second end 12, and a first internal space SP1. An air intake port 13 is provided at the first end 11. The first end 11 is attached to an exhaust target (not shown). The first internal space SP1 communicates with the air intake port 13. The second end 12 is located opposite the first end 11 in the direction of extension of the axis A1 of the rotor 4. The second end 12 is connected to the base 3. The base 3 includes a base end 14. The base end 14 is connected to the second end 12 of the housing 2. The rotor 4 is connected to the shaft 21. The shaft 21 extends in the direction of the extension of axis A1. The shaft 21 is rotatably housed in the base 3. The rotor 4 includes multiple stages of rotor blades 22 and a rotor cylindrical section 23. Each of the multiple stages of rotor blades 22 is connected to the shaft 21. The multiple rotor blades 22 are spaced apart from each other in the direction of the extension of axis A1. Although not shown in the illustration, each of the multiple stages of rotor blades 22 extends radially from the shaft 21. In the drawing, only one of the multiple stages of rotor blades 22 is referenced, and the reference numerals for the other rotor blades 22 are omitted. The rotor cylindrical section 23 is located below the multiple stages of rotor blades 22. The rotor cylindrical section 23 extends in the direction of the extension of axis A1. The stator 5 includes multiple stages