JP6437884B2 - Planar moving device - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a planar moving device.

  Currently, a technique has been proposed in which piezo elements are arranged on the sides of a table and the position of the table in the horizontal direction (X direction and Y direction) is finely adjusted by the driving force of these piezo elements (for example, Patent Documents 1 to 3). 3).

JP 2010-190657 A JP 59-101834 A Japanese Utility Model Publication No. 63-103925

  However, in the conventional techniques as described in Patent Documents 1 to 3, it is necessary to arrange a plurality of piezo elements along the X direction and the Y direction and to synchronize the piezo elements with each other. For this reason, the assembly and control of the piezo element are complicated, and there is a problem that the manufacturing cost increases. In addition, when such a technique is employed, the piezo element is disposed on the side of the table, and thus there is a problem that the occupied space becomes large.

  In order to solve these problems, in recent years, a base portion having a rectangular frame shape in plan view and a moving portion arranged inside the base portion are provided, and the moving portion is moved relative to the base portion by the driving force of the piezoelectric element. Piezo stages configured to move horizontally have been proposed and put into practical use. Although such a piezo stage is relatively small and inexpensive, there is a problem that the load capacity in the vertical direction is extremely small and the weight of the loadable object is greatly restricted.

  The present invention has been made in view of such circumstances, and can achieve a highly accurate alignment of an object by a piezo element in the horizontal direction and has a high load resistance in the vertical direction. The purpose is to provide.

  In order to achieve the above object, a planar moving device according to the present invention includes a first table, a base portion and a moving portion disposed above the first table, and the moving portion is moved relative to the base portion by the driving force of the piezo element. A piezo stage configured to move horizontally, a second table disposed above the piezo stage, the first table and the second table are coupled, and the second table is allowed to move horizontally with respect to the first table. And a driving force transmission means for transmitting the driving force of the piezo element of the piezo stage to the second table and interlocking the second table with the moving part of the piezo stage. And a gap between the lower surface of the second table.

  When such a configuration is adopted, the first table arranged below the piezo stage and the second table arranged above the piezo stage are connected by a connecting member, and the upper surface of the piezo stage and the lower surface of the second table are Since a gap is formed between them, a vertical load due to an object placed on the second table can be received by the connecting member, and the vertical load can be prevented from directly acting on the piezo stage. . On the other hand, the connecting member is configured to allow horizontal movement of the second table with respect to the first table, and transmits the driving force of the piezo element of the piezo stage to the second table by the driving force transmitting means. Since the table can be interlocked with the moving part of the piezo stage, it is possible to achieve highly accurate alignment of the object by the piezo element in the horizontal direction.

  In the planar moving device according to the present invention, a piezo stage configured such that the upper surface of the base portion and the upper surface of the moving portion are substantially flush with each other can be employed. In such a case, the plate-like member fixed to the upper surface of the moving part of the piezo stage and disposed below the second table, and fixed to the lower surface of the second table and locked to the side surface of the plate-like member. The driving force transmission means having the locking member formed can be employed, and a gap can be formed between the upper surface of the plate-like member and the lower surface of the second table.

  By adopting such a configuration, the driving force of the piezo element can be transmitted to the second table via the plate-like member and the locking member of the driving force transmitting means, and the second table can be interlocked with the moving part of the piezo stage. . At this time, since a gap is formed between the upper surface of the plate-like member and the lower surface of the second table arranged above the plate-like member, the vertical load by the object placed on the second table Can be prevented from acting on the piezo stage via the plate-like member.

  In the planar moving device according to the present invention, a columnar member standing upright so as to extend in the vertical direction can be employed as the connecting member.

  When such a configuration is adopted, the connecting member is a columnar member that is erected so as to extend in the vertical direction, so that it can sufficiently receive a load in the vertical direction and a driving force of the piezo element in the horizontal direction. Therefore, it can be easily bent.

  In the planar moving device according to the present invention, the columnar member may be a polygon whose cross-sectional shape in the central portion in the axial direction is a circle or a quadrangle or more.

  When such a configuration is employed, a columnar member (connecting member) can be manufactured by cutting a material. In particular, a columnar member having a square (or more polygonal) cross-sectional shape is preferable because it can be cut with relatively high accuracy. If the roundness can be realized with high accuracy, a columnar member (column) having a circular cross section is optimal.

  In the planar moving device according to the present invention, a spherical member can be employed as the connecting member.

  When such a configuration is adopted, it is possible to easily follow the operation of the piezo element by utilizing the rolling of the spherical member (connecting member). Further, when a spherical member is adopted as the connecting member, there is an advantage that it is possible to easily assemble without worrying about a minute twist or the like because bolt fastening to the first table or the second table is unnecessary. .

  In the planar moving device according to the present invention, the connecting member can be made of a copper alloy.

  By adopting such a configuration, the connecting member is made of a copper alloy (beryllium copper or phosphor bronze) having a relatively high strength suitable for a spring material, so that it can withstand vertical loads that are always applied and repeated bending. Can do.

  In the planar moving device according to the present invention, the connecting member can be made of a damping alloy.

  When such a configuration is adopted, since the connecting member is made of a damping alloy, vibration can be effectively reduced, and the time from the start to the stop of the stage can be greatly shortened.

  ADVANTAGE OF THE INVENTION According to this invention, it becomes possible to provide the plane moving apparatus which can implement | achieve the highly accurate position alignment of the target object by a piezo element in a horizontal direction, and has high load bearing performance in a perpendicular direction.

It is explanatory drawing for demonstrating the structure of the plane movement apparatus which concerns on embodiment of this invention. It is explanatory drawing for demonstrating the motion of the plane movement apparatus which concerns on embodiment of this invention.

  Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. In addition, the following embodiment is a suitable application example to the last, Comprising: The application range of this invention is not limited to this.

  First, the configuration of the planar moving device 1 according to the embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the planar moving device 1 according to the present embodiment includes a bottom table 10, a piezo stage 20 disposed above the bottom table 10, and a top table 30 disposed above the piezo stage 20. A connecting member 40 that connects the bottom table 10 and the top table 30 and a driving force transmission means 50 that transmits the driving force of the piezo elements of the piezo stage 20 to the top table 30 are provided.

  The bottom table 10 corresponds to the first table in the present invention, and is arranged at a predetermined location. The bottom table 10 only needs to be configured so that other configurations (such as the piezo stage 20 and the connecting member 40) can be mounted thereon, and a plate-like body having a predetermined thickness can be employed. As a material of the bottom table 10, a metal material, a synthetic resin material, or the like can be employed.

  The piezo stage 20 includes a base 21 disposed above the bottom table 10 and a moving unit 22 configured to move horizontally with respect to the base 21 by the driving force of the piezo element. And the upper surface of the moving part 22 are substantially flush with each other. In the present embodiment, the base 21 is fixed to the bottom table 10 using a fixing means such as a bolt. For this reason, the moving part 22 moves horizontally with respect to the base part 21 and the bottom table 10.

  The planar shape of the piezo stage 20 is not particularly limited. However, in the present embodiment, the planar portion 21 having a rectangular frame shape in plan view, and the rectangular shape having a rectangular shape that is slightly smaller than the base portion 21 disposed inside the base portion 21. The moving unit 22 is employed. The length and height of one side of the piezo stage 20 can be appropriately set depending on the size of the object. As the piezo stage 20, for example, a product (trade name P-542.2CD, etc.) of PI Japan Co., Ltd. can be employed.

  The top table 30 corresponds to the second table in the present invention, and is arranged above the piezo stage 20 in a state of being connected to the bottom table 10 via the connecting member 40. As the top table 30, a plate-like body having a predetermined thickness can be adopted as in the case of the bottom table 10, and a metal material, a synthetic resin material, or the like can be adopted as the material. In the present embodiment, the area and shape of the top table 30 are matched with the area and shape of the bottom table 10 in plan view.

  The connecting member 40 is a member configured to connect the bottom table 10 and the top table 30 and to allow the horizontal movement of the top table 30 with respect to the bottom table 10. As shown in FIG. 1, the connecting member 40 in the present embodiment is a columnar member erected so as to extend in the vertical direction. In the present embodiment, the connecting member 40 is made of a copper alloy (beryllium copper or phosphor bronze). Since the copper alloy has a relatively high strength suitable for a spring material, it can withstand a normal vertical load and repeated bending.

  The connecting member (columnar member) 40 can have a cross-sectional shape in the central portion in the axial direction that is a circle or a polygon that is equal to or greater than a square. In this way, the connecting member (columnar member) 40 can be manufactured by cutting the material. In particular, a columnar member having a square (or more polygonal) cross-sectional shape is preferable because it can be cut with relatively high accuracy. If the roundness can be realized with high accuracy, a columnar member (column) having a circular cross section is optimal.

  The driving force transmission means 50 transmits the driving force of the piezo elements of the piezo stage 20 to the top table 30 and interlocks the top table 30 with the moving part 22 of the piezo stage 20. The driving force transmission means 50 in this embodiment has a piezo drive transmission plate 51 and a stopper 52.

  The piezo drive transmission plate 51 corresponds to a plate-like member in the present invention, and is fixed to the upper surface of the moving part 22 of the piezo stage 20 (via a fixing means such as a bolt) and below the top table 30. And is configured to be interlocked with the moving unit 22 of the piezo stage 20 below the top table 30. The piezo drive transmission plate 51 can be made of a metal material or a synthetic resin material. In the present embodiment, a piezo drive transmission plate 51 having a rectangular shape in plan view is employed so as to correspond to the planar shape of the moving part 22 of the piezo stage 20, and the area thereof is the same as that of the moving part 22 of the piezo stage 20. It is set to be slightly smaller than the area (including the area of the hollow part when the moving part 22 has a hollow part).

  The stopper 52 corresponds to the locking member in the present invention, is fixed to the lower surface of the top table 30 (via a fixing means such as a bolt), and is locked to the side surface of the piezo drive transmission plate 51. It is configured. In the present embodiment, as shown in FIG. 1, a pair of opposing side surfaces of the piezo drive transmission plate 51 is sandwiched between a pair of stoppers 52, and a fastening bolt 53 provided on one of the pair of stoppers 52 is tightened. The stopper 52 is engaged with the side surface of the piezo transmission plate 51.

  As shown in FIG. 1, a gap G is formed between the upper surface of the piezo drive transmission plate 51 and the lower surface of the top table 30. For this reason, it is possible to prevent a vertical load from the object O (FIG. 1) placed on the top table 30 from acting on the piezo stage 20 via the piezo transmission plate 51.

  Next, the operation (position adjustment function) of the planar moving device 1 according to the embodiment of the present invention will be described.

  When the position of the object O is adjusted using the planar moving device 1 according to the present embodiment, first, the object O is placed on the upper surface of the top table 30 as shown in FIG. Next, by driving the piezo element with a controller (not shown), the moving unit 22 of the piezo stage 20 is moved in a predetermined direction (for example, a direction indicated by an arrow in FIG. 2). Then, the driving force transmitting means 50 transmits the driving force of the piezo element to the top table 30, and the top table 30 is interlocked with the moving part 22 of the piezo stage 20. At this time, the connecting member 40 bends as shown in FIG. 2 to allow the top table 30 to move in the horizontal direction. As a result, the position adjustment of the object O placed on the top surface of the top table 30 is realized.

  In the planar moving device 1 according to the embodiment described above, the bottom table 10 disposed below the piezo stage 20 and the top table 30 disposed above the piezo stage 20 are coupled by the coupling member 40. Since a gap G is formed between the upper surface of the piezo drive transmission plate 51 fixed to the upper surface of the piezo stage 20 and the lower surface of the top table 30, the vertical movement by the object O placed on the top table 30 is performed. A load can be received by the connecting member 40, and a vertical load can be prevented from acting directly on the piezo stage 20. On the other hand, the connecting member 40 is configured to allow horizontal movement of the top table 30 with respect to the bottom table 10, and the driving force transmitting means 50 transmits the driving force of the piezo elements of the piezo stage 20 to the top table 30. Since the top table 30 can be interlocked with the moving part 22 of the piezo stage 20, it is possible to achieve high-precision alignment (for example, positioning accuracy of about ± 5 nm) of the object O by the piezo element in the horizontal direction. Can do.

  Further, in the planar moving device 1 according to the embodiment described above, the driving force of the piezo element is transmitted to the top table 30 via the piezo drive transmitting plate 51 and the stopper 52 of the driving force transmitting means 50, and the top table 30. Can be linked to the moving part 22 of the piezo stage 20. At this time, since the gap G is formed between the upper surface of the piezo drive transmission plate 51 and the lower surface of the top table 30 disposed above the piezo drive transmission plate 51, the gap is placed on the top table 30. It is possible to prevent the vertical load due to the object O from acting on the piezo stage 20 via the piezo drive transmission plate 51.

  Moreover, in the plane movement apparatus 1 which concerns on embodiment described above, the columnar member erected so that it may extend in the perpendicular direction is employ | adopted as the connection member 40. FIG. For this reason, the connecting member 40 can sufficiently receive a load in the vertical direction and can be easily bent by the driving force of the piezo element in the horizontal direction.

  In the above-described embodiment, an example in which a columnar member (a cylinder or a prism) is employed as the connecting member 40 is shown, but a spherical member may be employed as the connecting member. In this way, it is possible to easily follow the operation of the piezo element by utilizing the rolling of the spherical member. Further, when a spherical member is adopted as the connecting member, there is an advantage that it is possible to easily assemble without worrying about a minute twist or the like because bolt fastening to the bottom table 10 or the top table 30 is unnecessary. .

  Moreover, although the example which comprised the connection member 40 with the copper alloy (beryllium copper and phosphor bronze) was shown in the above embodiment, the product (brand name Star Silent D2052) of Daido Special Steel Co., Ltd. The connecting member may be made of a vibration damping alloy such as a product (trade names WAVLES1, WAVLES2). Thus, if a connection member is comprised with a damping alloy, a vibration can be reduced effectively. As one of the vibration factors, the resonance of the connecting member 40 and the piezo stage 20 can be mentioned. The vibration damping alloy as described above reduces vibration by consuming externally applied force as kinetic energy in the metal structure. With this characteristic, it is not necessary to increase the rigidity of the structure as generally considered in response to vibration reduction, and it is possible to reduce vibration without impairing the bending ability of the connecting member 40. It becomes possible. As an example, a connecting member having the same rigidity as a connecting member made of beryllium copper using a damping alloy (trade name Star Silent D2052) made by Daido Steel Co., Ltd. was compared with a connecting member made of beryllium copper. Then, the vibration duration time was reduced to about ½.

  In the above embodiment, the drive transmission means 50 is configured by the piezo drive transmission plate 51 and the stopper 52, and the gap G is formed between the upper surface of the piezo drive transmission plate 51 and the lower surface of the top table 30. Although shown, the configuration of the drive transmission means is not limited to this, and the driving force of the piezo element can be transmitted to the top table 30 so that the top table 30 can be interlocked with the moving part 22 of the piezo stage 20. Any configuration may be adopted as long as it is a configuration. In any case, however, a gap is formed between the member constituting the drive transmission means and the top table 30 to prevent the vertical load from directly acting on the piezo stage 20. To.

  The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and those in which those skilled in the art appropriately modify the design are included in the scope of the present invention as long as they have the features of the present invention. . In other words, each element included in the embodiment and its arrangement, material, condition, shape, size, and the like are not limited to those illustrated, and can be appropriately changed. Moreover, each element with which the said embodiment is provided can be combined as much as technically possible, and the combination of these is also included in the scope of the present invention as long as it includes the features of the present invention.

  The planar moving device according to the present invention can be suitably used, for example, as a fine movement XY stage for scanning electron microscope observation or a fine movement XY stage for a semiconductor exposure apparatus.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Planar movement apparatus 10 ... Bottom table (1st table)
20 ... Piezo stage 21 ... Base 22 ... Moving part 30 ... Top table (second table)
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 40 ... Connection member 50 ... Drive force transmission means 51 ... Piezo drive transmission plate (plate-shaped member)
52. Stopper (locking member)
G ... Gap

Claims (7)

The first table,
A piezo stage configured to move horizontally with respect to the base by a driving force of a piezo element; and a base and a moving part disposed above the first table;
A second table disposed above the piezo stage;
A connecting member configured to connect the first table and the second table and to allow horizontal movement of the second table relative to the first table;
Driving force transmitting means for transmitting the driving force of the piezo element of the piezo stage to the second table and interlocking the second table with the moving part of the piezo stage;
A gap is formed between the upper surface of the piezo stage and the lower surface of the second table.
Planar moving device. The piezo stage is configured such that the upper surface of the base and the upper surface of the moving unit are substantially flush with each other.
The driving force transmission means is fixed to the upper surface of the moving part of the piezo stage and disposed below the second table, and fixed to the lower surface of the second table and A locking member configured to lock to the side surface,
The planar moving device according to claim 1, wherein a gap is formed between an upper surface of the plate-like member and a lower surface of the second table.   The planar moving device according to claim 1, wherein the connecting member is a columnar member that is erected so as to extend in a vertical direction.   The planar moving device according to claim 3, wherein the columnar member has a cross-sectional shape in a central portion in the axial direction that is a circle or a polygon that is equal to or greater than a quadrangle.   The planar moving device according to claim 1, wherein the connecting member is a spherical member.   The planar moving device according to claim 1, wherein the connecting member is made of a copper alloy.   The planar moving device according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the connecting member is made of a damping alloy.