JP7713786B2 - Transport unit - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a transport unit for transporting substrates such as wafers.

In processing equipment, a transport unit is used to transport substrates such as wafers (see, for example, Patent Documents 1 and 2).

In order for transport units that transport this type of substrate to properly hold and transport the substrate, it is necessary to adjust the position and number of suction pads to be optimal for each substrate.

Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2006-054388 JP 2010-099733 A

However, because the positions and number of suction pads on conventional transport units are fixed, multiple types of transport units must be prepared to transport various types of substrates, which poses the problem of increased labor and costs associated with preparing multiple types of transport units.

In particular, when transporting warped substrates, it is necessary to try out multiple patterns for the position and number of transport pads, and improvements were desired.

The object of the present invention is to provide a transport unit that can transport a variety of substrates while suppressing cost increases.

In order to solve the above-mentioned problems and achieve the object, the transport unit of the present invention is a transport unit for transporting a substrate, the transport unit comprising a holding plate for holding the substrate and a drive unit for moving the holding plate, the holding plate comprising a plate-shaped plate body, an adsorption unit connected to a suction source and adsorbing the substrate by being sucked by the suction source, and a position change unit that enables the relative position of the adsorption unit to be changed with respect to the plate body, the position change unit being provided in plurality on the plate body and having a greater number of through holes that penetrate the plate body than the adsorption units, and the adsorption units being attached to some of the plurality of through holes .

In the transport unit , the suction portion has a suction pad attached to the through hole and a suction tube connecting the suction pad to the suction source, and the position change portion may change the relative position of the suction pad of the suction portion to the plate body by selecting the through hole to which the suction pad of the suction portion is attached or by changing the relative position of the suction portion to the through hole to which the suction pad is attached.

The present invention has the advantage of enabling the transport of various substrates while suppressing cost increases.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view illustrating an example of the configuration of a processing apparatus including a transport unit according to a first embodiment. FIG. 2 is a perspective view illustrating an example of the configuration of the transport unit according to the first embodiment. 3 is a plan view of the holding plate of the transport unit shown in FIG. 2. FIG. FIG. 4 is an enlarged plan view of part IV in FIG. FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view taken along line VV in FIG. FIG. 6 is a plan view showing a modification of the suction pad of the transport unit shown in FIG. FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view taken along line VII-VII in FIG. FIG. 8 is a plan view of a holding plate of a transport unit according to the second embodiment. FIG. 9 is an enlarged plan view of the portion IX in FIG. FIG. 10 is a cross-sectional view taken along line XX in FIG. FIG. 11 is a plan view of a holding plate of a transport unit according to the third embodiment. FIG. 12 is a cross-sectional view taken along line XII-XII in FIG. FIG. 13 is a cross-sectional view taken along line XIII-XIII in FIG. FIG. 14 is a cross-sectional view taken along line XIV-XIV in FIG. FIG. 15 is a side view showing the suction pads and the like of the transport unit according to the first modification. FIG. 16 is a plan view of the suction pad shown in FIG. 15 as seen from below. FIG. 17 is a cross-sectional view showing a suction pad and the like according to the second modification. FIG. 18 is a side view showing the suction pads and the like according to the third modification. FIG. 19 is a cross-sectional view showing a suction pad and the like according to the fourth modification.

Modes for carrying out the present invention (embodiments) will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. The present invention is not limited to the contents described in the following embodiments. Furthermore, the components described below include those that would be easily imagined by a person skilled in the art and those that are substantially identical. Furthermore, the configurations described below can be combined as appropriate. Furthermore, various omissions, substitutions, or modifications to the configuration can be made without departing from the spirit of the present invention.

[Embodiment 1]
A transport unit 1 according to a first embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing an example of the configuration of a processing apparatus including a transport unit according to the first embodiment. FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing an example of the configuration of the transport unit according to the first embodiment. FIG. 3 is a plan view of a holding plate of the transport unit shown in FIG. 2. FIG. 4 is an enlarged plan view showing part IV in FIG. 3. FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view taken along line V-V in FIG. 4. FIG. 6 is a plan view showing a modified example of the suction pad of the transport unit shown in FIG. 4. FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view taken along line VII-VII in FIG. 6.
(substrate)

The transport unit 1 according to the first embodiment constitutes the processing apparatus 100 shown in FIG. 1. In the first embodiment, the processing apparatus 100 is a grinding apparatus that grinds a substrate 200 (shown in FIG. 2). The substrate 200, which is the object to be processed by the processing apparatus 100 shown in FIG. 1, is a wafer such as a disk-shaped semiconductor wafer or optical device wafer, whose base material is silicon, sapphire, gallium, or the like. The substrate 200 has a plurality of planned dividing lines set on its surface that intersect with one another, and devices are formed in areas defined by the planned dividing lines.

The device may be, for example, an integrated circuit such as an IC (Integrated Circuit) or an LSI (Large Scale Integration), or an image sensor such as a CCD (Charge Coupled Device) or a CMOS (Complementary Metal Oxide Semiconductor).

In embodiment 1, the substrate 200 has a protective tape 201 attached to its surface, the back surface behind the surface is ground to thin it to a predetermined finished thickness, and then it is separated into individual devices along the intended separation lines.

(Processing equipment)
Next, the processing apparatus 100 will be described. The processing apparatus 100 is a grinding apparatus that grinds the back surface of the substrate 200 to thin the substrate 200 to a predetermined finish thickness. As shown in Fig. 1, the processing apparatus 100 includes an apparatus main body 101, a rough grinding unit 102, a finish grinding unit 103, a grinding feed unit 104, a turntable 105, a plurality of holding tables 106 (three in the first embodiment) installed on the turntable 105, a cassette 107, an alignment unit 108, a plurality of transfer arms 109, a cleaning unit 111, a control unit 112, and a transfer unit 113.

The turntable 105 is a disk-shaped table mounted on the top surface of the device main body 101. It is rotatable around an axis parallel to the Z-axis direction in a horizontal plane and is driven to rotate at a predetermined timing. On this turntable 105, for example, three holding tables 106 are arranged at equal intervals, for example, at a phase angle of 120 degrees. Each of these three holding tables 106 has a holding table structure with a holding surface equipped with a vacuum chuck connected to a suction source (not shown). The substrate 200 is placed on the holding surface via protective tape 201 and is sucked by the suction source, thereby holding the substrate 200 on the holding surface.

During grinding, these holding tables 106 are rotated in a horizontal plane by a rotary drive mechanism around an axis parallel to the vertical direction, i.e., the Z-axis direction. As the turntable 105 rotates, the holding tables 106 are moved sequentially to the loading/unloading area 301, the rough grinding area 302, the finish grinding area 303, and back to the loading/unloading area 301.

The loading/unloading area 301 is an area where the substrate 200 is loaded onto and unloaded from the holding table 106, the rough grinding area 302 is an area where the rough grinding unit 102 performs rough grinding (equivalent to grinding) on the substrate 200 held on the holding table 106, and the finish grinding area 303 is an area where the finish grinding unit 103 performs finish grinding (equivalent to grinding) on the substrate 200 held on the holding table 106.

The rough grinding unit 102 is a grinding unit that is equipped with a rough grinding wheel 114 having a ring-shaped arrangement of rough grinding grinding stones 113 for rough grinding the exposed upper back surface of the substrate 200 held on the holding table 106, and that roughly grinds the back surface of the substrate 200 held on the holding surface of the holding table 106 in the rough grinding region 302. The finish grinding unit 103 is equipped with a finish grinding wheel 116 having a ring-shaped arrangement of finish grinding grinding stones 115 for finish grinding the back surface of the substrate 200 held on the holding table 106, and that finish grinds the back surface of the substrate 200 held on the holding surface of the holding table 106 in the finish grinding region 303.

The grinding units 102, 103 perform rough grinding or finish grinding of the back surface of the substrate 200 by rotating the grinding wheels 114, 116 around their axes using the motor 118 and supplying grinding water to the back surface of the substrate 200 held on the holding table 106 in the grinding areas 302, 303 while the grinding feed unit 104 moves the grinding stones 113, 115 toward the holding table 106 at a predetermined feed speed.

The grinding feed unit 104 moves the grinding units 102, 103 in the Z-axis direction, moving them closer and further away from the holding table 106. In embodiment 1, the grinding feed unit 104 is mounted on an upright column 117 that stands from one end of the device body 101 in the Y-axis direction, which is parallel to the horizontal direction. The grinding feed unit 104 includes a well-known ball screw that is rotatable about its axis, a well-known motor that rotates the ball screw about its axis, and well-known guide rails that support the spindle housings of the grinding units 102, 103 so that they can move in the Z-axis direction.

In embodiment 1, the rough grinding unit 102 and the finish grinding unit 103 are arranged so that the axes of the grinding wheels 114, 116, which are the centers of rotation, and the axis of the holding table 106, which is the center of rotation, are parallel and spaced apart horizontally, and the grinding wheels 113, 115 pass over the center of the back surface of the substrate 200 held on the holding table 106.

The cassette 107 is a storage container with multiple slots for storing multiple substrates 200. The cassette 107 stores multiple substrates 200 with protective tape 201 attached before and after grinding. In embodiment 1, a pair of cassettes 107 are provided, each of which is placed on a cassette placement table. The cassette placement table raises and lowers the cassette 107 in the Z-axis direction. The alignment unit 108 is a table on which the substrate 200 removed from the cassette 107 is temporarily placed and its center is aligned.

The multiple transport arms 109 have suction pads that adsorb the substrate 200. One of the multiple transport arms 109 adsorbs and holds the pre-grinding substrate 200 that has been aligned by the alignment unit 108, and carries it onto the holding table 106 located in the carry-in/out area 301. Another of the multiple transport arms 109 adsorbs and holds the post-grinding substrate 200 that is held on the holding table 106 located in the carry-in/out area 301, and carries it out to the cleaning unit 111. The cleaning unit 111 cleans the ground substrate 200 and removes contamination such as grinding debris adhering to the ground back surface.

The control unit 112 controls each of the above-mentioned constituent units that make up the processing apparatus 100. In other words, the control unit 112 causes the processing apparatus 100 to perform processing operations on the substrate 200. The control unit 112 is a computer that includes an arithmetic processing device having a microprocessor such as a CPU (central processing unit), a storage device having memory such as ROM (read only memory) or RAM (random access memory), and an input/output interface device.

The arithmetic processing device of the control unit 112 performs arithmetic processing in accordance with a computer program stored in the storage device, and outputs control signals for controlling the processing device 100 to the above-mentioned components of the processing device 100 via the input/output interface device. The control unit 112 is also connected to a display unit composed of an LCD display device or the like that displays the status and images of the processing operation, an input unit used by the operator to register processing content information, and a notification unit that notifies the operator. The input unit is composed of at least one of a touch panel provided on the display unit and a keyboard, etc. The notification unit notifies the operator by emitting at least one of sound, light, and a message on the touch panel.

(Transport unit)
In embodiment 1, the transport unit 1 removes the substrate 200 before grinding from the cassette 107 and transports the substrate 200 to the alignment unit 108, and also removes the substrate 200 after grinding from the cleaning unit 111 and transports it to the cassette 107.

As shown in Figure 2, the transport unit 1 includes a drive unit 2 and a holding plate 3.

The drive unit 2 moves the holding plate 3 in the X-axis direction, which is parallel to the horizontal direction shown in Figure 1; the Y-axis direction, which is parallel to the horizontal direction and perpendicular to the X-axis direction; and the Z-axis direction, which is perpendicular to both the X-axis and Y-axis directions and parallel to the vertical direction.

The drive unit 2 includes a first arm 21, one end of which is rotatably connected to the device main body 101 around an axis parallel to the Z-axis direction; a second arm 22, one end of which is rotatably connected to the other end of the first arm 21 around an axis parallel to the Z-axis direction; a support member 23, which is rotatably connected to the other end of the second arm 22 around an axis parallel to the Z-axis direction and has a holding plate 3 attached; and an arm drive unit that positions the holding plate 3 at any position by rotating the arms 21, 22 and the support member 23 together around an axis parallel to the Z-axis direction.

The holding plate 3 holds the substrate 200. As shown in FIG. 3 , the holding plate 3 includes a plate body 4, a suction portion 6 that is connected to a suction source 5 and that adheres to the substrate 200 by being sucked by the suction source 5, and a position change portion 7 that allows the position of the suction portion 6 relative to the plate body 4 to be changed.

In embodiment 1, the plate body 4 is made of a magnetic metal and is formed into a plate shape with a uniform thickness. In embodiment 1, the plate body 4 integrally includes a holding portion 41 that has a rectangular planar shape and a narrow portion 42 that is narrower than the holding portion 41, continues to the holding portion 41, and is attached to the support member 23 of the drive unit 2.

The position change portion 7 is provided in plurality on the plate body 4 and has a plurality of through holes 71 that penetrate the plate body 4. In embodiment 1, the planar shape of the through holes 71 is circular (round). In embodiment 1, the through holes 71 are arranged at equal intervals across the holding portion 41 and narrow portion 42 of the plate body 4. Note that in the present invention, the through holes 71, i.e., the position change portion 7, may be provided at least in the holding portion 41 of the plate body 4 and not necessarily in the narrow portion 42. Note that Figure 2 only shows the through holes 71 provided at the four corners of the plate body 4, omitting the other through holes 71.

As shown in Figures 4 and 5, the suction portion 6 has a suction pad 8, a joint 9, and a suction tube 10. The suction pad 8 is attached to the through-hole 71. In embodiment 1, the suction pad 8 includes an annular pad body 81 made of resin and having an inner diameter smaller than the inner diameter of the through-hole 71, an annular permanent magnet 82 provided within the pad body 81 and magnetically attracted to the holding portion 41 of the plate body 4, and an annular pad 83 made of elastic resin such as sponge.

The permanent magnet 82 has an inner diameter larger than that of the pad body 81 and an outer diameter smaller than that of the pad body 81, and is positioned coaxially with the pad body 81. The pad body 81, i.e., the suction pad 8, is attached to the holding portion 41 of the plate body 4 with the permanent magnet 82 adsorbed to the underside 43 of the holding portion 41 of the plate body 4 that faces the substrate 200. At this time, the inside of the pad body 81 of the suction pad 8 communicates with the through-hole 71, keeping the through-hole 71 open. It is also desirable to position the suction pad 8 so that the pad body 81 is coaxial with the through-hole 71.

The pad 83 has an inner diameter equal to the inner diameter of the pad body 81 and an outer diameter smaller than the outer diameters of the pad body 81 and the permanent magnet 82, and is positioned coaxially with the pad body 81 and the permanent magnet 82. The pad 83 is attached to the surface of the pad body 81 of the suction pad 8 attached to the holding portion 41 of the holding plate 3 that faces the substrate 200.

One end of the connector 9 passes through the through-hole 71 and is attached to the inside of the suction pad 8, and the other end is attached to the suction tube 10, connecting the suction pad 8 and the suction tube 10.

The suction tube 10 is a tube made of flexible resin, with one end connected to the joint 9. The other end of the suction tube 10 is connected to a junction joint 61 attached to the narrow portion 42 of the plate body 4 and connected to the suction source 5. The suction tube 10 connects the suction pad 8 and the suction source 5 by having one end connected to the joint 9 attached to the inside of the suction pad 8 and the other end connected to the junction joint 61 connected to the suction source 5.

The suction unit 6 configured as described above is attached to the plate body 4 by attaching the permanent magnet 82 to the underside 43 of the holding portion 41 of the plate body 4 at a position where the suction pad 8 is coaxial with the through hole 71. In this way, when the permanent magnet 82 is attached to the holding portion 41 of the plate body 4 at a position where the suction pad 8 is coaxial with the through hole 71, this is referred to as the suction pad 8 being attached to the through hole 71 in the present invention. Furthermore, the suction unit 6 can change the through hole 71 to which the suction pad 8 is attached by changing the position where the permanent magnet 82 is attached. Furthermore, the suction unit 6 can change the number of suction pads 8 attached to the through hole 71 of one plate body 4.

The position change unit 7 changes the relative position of the suction pads 8 of the suction unit 6 with respect to the plate body 4 by selecting the through holes 71 to which the suction pads 8 of the suction unit 6 are attached. Furthermore, the position change unit 7 changes the number of suction pads 8 of the suction unit 6 attached to the through holes 71, thereby changing the number of suction units 6 provided on one plate body 4, i.e., one transport unit 1.

In addition, in embodiment 1, the transport unit 1 may have at least one screw hole 44 around each through-hole 71 of at least the holding portion 41 of the plate main body 4, as shown in FIG. 6, and as shown in FIG. 7, the pad main body 81 may have a hole 85 through which a screw 84 passes, which threads into the screw hole 44, without providing a permanent magnet 82. In this case, the suction pad 8 is attached to the through-hole 71, i.e., the holding portion 41 of the plate main body 4, by threading the screw 84 that passes through the hole 85 into the screw hole 44.

In the transport unit 1 according to embodiment 1, the positions of the suction pads 8 of the suction section 6 attached to the plate body 4 and the number of suction pads 8 are changed depending on the substrate 200, and the suction pads 8 are attached to the plate body 4 in order to appropriately hold the substrate 200. The transport unit 1 abuts the pad 83 against the back surface of the substrate 200 and is sucked by the suction source 5, thereby suctioning and holding the substrate 200 to the pad 83 of the suction pad 8. At this time, the gap between the joints 9, 61 and the suction tube 10 is kept airtight, the gap between the joint 9 and the pad body 81 of the suction pad 8 is kept airtight, and the gap between the pad body 81 and the substrate 200 is kept airtight by the pad 83.

The transport unit 1 adsorbs the substrate 200 onto the pad 83 of the suction pad 8, and when the drive unit 2 is driven by the arm drive unit, the held substrate 200 is transported from the cassette 107 to the alignment unit 108, and from the cleaning unit 111 to the cassette 107.

As described above, the transport unit 1 according to embodiment 1 can easily change the number and arrangement of suction pads 8 attached to the plate body 4 by selecting the through holes 71 to which suction pads 8 are attached from among the multiple through holes 71 in the position change section 7 provided on the plate body 4. Therefore, the transport unit 1 can arrange the suction pads 8 in an arrangement compatible with various substrates 200 by adjusting the number and arrangement of the suction pads 8 without preparing multiple types of transport units. As a result, the transport unit 1 does not require the preparation of multiple types of transport units, and therefore has the effect of enabling the transport of various substrates 200 while suppressing rising costs.

[Embodiment 2]
A transport unit 1-2 according to a second embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. Fig. 8 is a plan view of a holding plate of the transport unit according to the second embodiment. Fig. 9 is an enlarged plan view of part IX in Fig. 8. Fig. 10 is a cross-sectional view taken along line X-X in Fig. 9. In Figs. 8, 9, and 10, the same parts as those in the first embodiment are designated by the same reference numerals, and their description will be omitted.

The transport unit 1-2 according to the second embodiment constitutes the processing apparatus 100, similar to that of the first embodiment. The transport unit 1-2 according to the second embodiment is the same as that according to the first embodiment, except that the planar shape of the holding portion 41-2 of the plate body 4-2 of the holding plate 3-2 and the planar shape of the through-hole 71-2 are different.

As shown in Figure 8, the holding portion 41-2 of the plate body 4-2 of the holding plate 3-2 of the transport unit 1-2 in embodiment 2 has a circular planar shape.

The position change section 7-2 of the holding plate 3-2 of the transport unit 1-2 according to the second embodiment has a plurality of through holes 71-2 that penetrate the plate body 4, similar to the first embodiment. In the second embodiment, one of the plurality of through holes 71-2, which penetrates the center of the holding section 41-2 of the plate body 4-2 of the holding plate 3-2, has a circular (round) planar shape.

Of the multiple through holes 71-2, the planar shapes of all but one through hole 71-2 that penetrates the center of the holding portion 41-2 of the plate body 4-2 of the holding plate 3-2 are formed as arc-shaped elongated holes whose longitudinal direction is parallel to the circumferential direction of the holding portion 41-2 of the plate body 4-2. Furthermore, the through holes 71-2 other than the one through hole 71-2 that penetrates the center of the holding portion 41-2 are spaced apart in both the radial and circumferential directions of the holding portion 41-2 of the plate body 4-2 of the holding plate 3-2.

In the same manner as in embodiment 1, the suction portion 6 of the holding plate 3-2 of the transport unit 1-2 in embodiment 2 is attached to the through-hole 71-1, i.e., the plate body 4-2, with the permanent magnet 82 attached to the underside 43 of the holding portion 41-2 of the plate body 4-2 at a position where the inside of the suction pad 8 overlaps with the through-hole 71. As shown in Figures 9 and 10, the suction portion 6 is attached to the inside of the suction pad 8 with one end of the coupling 9 passing through the through-hole 71, and the suction tube 10 connected to the other end of the coupling 9 is connected to the suction source 5 via the junction coupling 61.

Furthermore, in embodiment 2, the suction unit 6 can change the position at which the permanent magnet 82 is attracted, thereby changing the through hole 71-2 to which the suction pad 8 is attached, and the relative position of the suction pad 8 to the through hole 71-2 (the longitudinal position of the through hole 71-2) can be changed. In embodiment 2, the suction unit 6 can change the number of suction pads 8 attached to the through holes 71-2 of one plate body 4-2. Note that in embodiment 2, an annular washer 11 is provided between the joint 9 and the plate body 4 of the holding plate 3, through which one end of the joint 9 passes.

The position change unit 7-2 of the holding plate 3-2 of the transport unit 1-2 in the second embodiment changes the relative position of the suction pads 8 of the suction units 6 with respect to the plate body 4-2 by selecting the through holes 71-2 to which the suction units 6 are attached and by changing the longitudinal position of the through holes 71 relative to the through holes 71-2 to which the suction units 6 are attached. Also, as in the first embodiment, the position change unit 7 changes the number of suction pads 8 of the suction units 6 attached to the through holes 71-2, thereby changing the number of suction units 6 included in one plate body 4-2, i.e., one transport unit 1-2.

The transport unit 1-2 according to the second embodiment can easily change the number and arrangement of suction pads 8 attached to the plate body 4-2 by selecting the through holes 71-2 for attaching suction pads 8 from among the multiple through holes 71-2 in the position change section 7 provided on the plate body 4-2 and changing the relative positions of the suction pads 8 with respect to the through holes 71-2. As a result, the transport unit 1-2 can arrange the suction pads 8 in an arrangement compatible with various substrates 200 by adjusting the number and arrangement of the suction pads 8 without preparing multiple types of transport units, thereby achieving the effect of enabling the transport of various substrates 200 while suppressing rising costs.

[Embodiment 3]
A transport unit 1-3 according to a third embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. Fig. 11 is a plan view of a holding plate of the transport unit according to the third embodiment. Fig. 12 is a cross-sectional view taken along line XII-XII in Fig. 11. Fig. 13 is a cross-sectional view taken along line XIII-XIII in Fig. 11. Fig. 14 is a cross-sectional view taken along line XIV-XIV in Fig. 11. Note that in Figs. 11, 12, 13, and 14, the same parts as those in the first embodiment are designated by the same reference numerals, and their description will be omitted.

In the transport unit 1-3 according to embodiment 3, the holding portion 41-3 of the plate body 4-3 of the holding plate 3-3 has a circular planar shape, as shown in FIG. 11, similar to embodiment 2. As shown in FIGS. 12, 13, and 14, the plate body 4-3 of the transport unit 1-3 according to embodiment 3 includes a first plate 45 and a second plate 46 that are stacked on top of each other and have the same planar shape. These plates 45, 46 are made of a magnetic metal and are formed into plates with a uniform thickness. The first plate 45 has a lower surface 43 to which the suction pad 8 of the suction unit 6 is attached.

In embodiment 3, the holding plate 3 has a first plate 45 of the plate body 4 with multiple suction holes 72 opening on the underside 43 facing the substrate 200, and an air flow path 47 connected to the suction source 5 and communicating with the suction holes 72 is formed within the plate body 4-3.

In embodiment 3, the suction holes 72 penetrate the first plate 45 without being formed in the second plate 46, and are arranged at equal intervals across the holding portion 41-3 and narrow portion 42 of the plate main body 4-3. Note that in the present invention, the suction holes 72 may be formed at least in the holding portion 41-3 of the plate main body 4-3, and may not be formed in the narrow portion 42. In embodiment 2, the suction holes 72 are formed in a circular (round) planar shape.

In embodiment 3, the air flow path 47 is formed as a recessed groove extending from the surface of the first plate 45 facing the second plate 46. The air flow path 47 connects the suction holes 72 in the holding portion 41-3 and is connected to the suction source 5 from the narrow portion 42. The air flow path 47 connects the suction holes 72 to the suction source 5, forming the suction portion 6. Thus, the holding plate 3 has a plurality of suction holes 72 that open to the underside 43 of the plate main body 4-3 facing the substrate 200 and that communicate with the air flow path 47 formed in the plate main body 4-3 and connected to the suction source 5.

Furthermore, in embodiment 3, as shown in Figures 12 and 13, the suction portion 6 includes a suction pad 8 attached to the plate body 4, similar to embodiment 1 and the like. The inside of the pad body 81 of the suction pad 8 communicates with the suction hole 72, maintaining the suction hole 72 in an open state. Note that the suction pad 8 is preferably positioned so that the pad body 81 is coaxial with the suction hole 72. Thus, in embodiment 3, the suction portion 6 is composed of some of the multiple suction holes 72 that are maintained open by the suction pad 8 attached to the plate body 4-3.

In the third embodiment, the plate body 4-3 has threaded holes 44 formed around the suction holes 72, and the suction pad 8 is attached to the plate body 4-3 by screws 84 that thread into the threaded holes 84. However, in the present invention, a permanent magnet 82 may be provided inside the pad body 81, and the suction pad 8 may be attached to the plate body 4-3 by this permanent magnet 82.

In embodiment 3, the suction unit 6 is capable of changing the suction holes 72 to which suction pads 8 are attached and maintained in an open state, and the number of suction pads 8 attached to the suction holes 72 of one plate body 4-3 can be changed to change the number of suction holes 72 maintained in an open state.

In embodiment 3, all of the suction holes 72 are sealed with plugs 12 shown in FIG. 14, except for some of the suction holes 72 that are maintained open by the suction pads 8. In this way, in embodiment 3, the position change unit 7 selects the suction holes 72 that are maintained open by the suction pads 8 attached, and the remaining suction holes 72 are sealed with plugs 12, thereby changing the relative position of the suction unit 6 with respect to the plate body 4.

In embodiment 3, the stopper 12 is made of an elastic resin such as rubber and integrally comprises a cylindrical columnar portion 121 that is inserted into the suction hole 72 to maintain an airtight seal with the inner surface of the suction hole 72, and a disk portion 122 that is connected to one end of the columnar portion 121, has a larger diameter than the columnar portion 121, and is placed on the underside 43 of the plate body 4.

Note that Figure 11 shows some of the suction holes 72 that remain open, i.e., some of the suction holes 72 with suction pads 8 attached, and some of the suction holes 72 that are sealed with plugs 12, while omitting the others. However, in the present invention, some of the suction holes 72 have suction pads 8 attached to them, so that some of the suction holes 72 remain open, and all of the remaining suction holes 72 are sealed with plugs 12.

In the transport unit 1-3 of embodiment 3, a portion of the suction holes 72 provided in the plate body 4-3 are selected to remain open, and the remaining suction holes 72 are sealed with plugs 12, making it easy to change the relative position of the suction portion 6 with respect to the plate body 4 and the number and arrangement of the suction holes 72 that remain open. As a result, the transport unit 1-3 can adjust the number and arrangement of the suction holes 72 that remain open without preparing multiple types of transport units, thereby achieving the effect of enabling the transport of various substrates 200 while suppressing rising costs.

[Modification]
Next, transport units 1 according to modified examples will be described. Fig. 15 is a side view showing suction pads and the like of a transport unit according to modified example 1. Fig. 16 is a plan view of the suction pads shown in Fig. 15 viewed from below. Fig. 17 is a cross-sectional view showing suction pads and the like according to modified example 2. Fig. 18 is a side view showing suction pads and the like according to modified example 3. Fig. 19 is a cross-sectional view showing suction pads and the like according to modified example 4. Note that in Figs. 15, 16, 17, 18, and 19, the same parts as those in embodiment 1 are designated by the same reference numerals, and description thereof will be omitted.

In the present invention, as in Variation 1 shown in Figures 15 and 16, the suction pad 8-1 does not have a pad 83, but instead has a pad body 81-1 made of resin with a space 86 connected to the suction source 5 inside, and multiple holes 87 communicating with the space 86 on the underside of the pad body 81 facing the substrate 200. The planar shape of the pad body 81-1 of the suction pad 8-1 of the transport unit 1 according to Variation 1 is rectangular.

Furthermore, in the present invention, the outer diameters of the pad bodies 81-2 and 81-3 of the suction pads 8-2 and 8-3 may be variously changed, as shown in Modification 2 in FIG. 17 and Modification 3 in FIG. 18. Furthermore, in the present invention, the planar shape of the pad body 81-2 of the suction pad 8-2 may be polygonal (e.g., rectangular) in addition to circular.

As shown in Variation 2 in FIG. 17 and Variation 3 in FIG. 18, the suction pads 8-2 and 8-3 may be formed in a suction cup shape, with the pads 83-2 and 83-3 gradually expanding in inner and outer diameter as they approach the substrate 200 from the pad main bodies 81-2 and 81-3, or the shape of the suction cup-shaped pads 83-2 and 83-3 may be modified in various ways. Also, in the present invention, as shown in Variation 4 in FIG. 19, the height 83-1 of the pad 83-4 of the suction pad 8-4 from the pad main body 81 may be modified in various ways.

Note that the suction pads 8-1, 8-2, 8-3, and 8-4 of the transport unit 1 according to Modifications 1, 2, 3, and 4 are connected to the suction source 5 via the joints 9 and suction tubes 10. However, in the present invention, they may also be connected to the suction source 5 via the air flow path 47 formed in the plate body 4, as in Embodiment 3.

The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment. In other words, various modifications can be made without departing from the gist of the present invention. In the above-described embodiment, the transport units 1, 1-2, and 1-3 transfer the substrate 200 to and from the cassette 107, but the present invention is not limited to this. In other words, in the present invention, the transport arm 109 may be equipped with the above-described holding plates 3, 3-2, and 3-3, and the present invention may be applied to the transport arm 109.

In addition, in the present invention, the processing device 100 is not limited to the grinding device described in the embodiments, but may be various other devices such as a cutting device that holds the substrate 200 on a chuck table and cuts it along the planned division line with a cutting blade, a laser processing device that irradiates the substrate 200 with a laser beam of a wavelength that is transparent to or absorbent for the substrate 200, a polishing device that polishes the substrate 200, a bite cutting device that cuts the substrate 200 with a bite, a plasma device that performs plasma etching or the like on the substrate 200, a tape application device that applies adhesive tape 202 to the substrate 200, or an inspection device that holds the substrate 200 with a transparent body and inspects the front and back surfaces of the substrate 200.

In addition, in the present invention, the substrate 200 is not limited to the wafer described in the embodiment, but may be a so-called TAIKO (registered trademark) wafer, which is thinned in the center and thickened on the periphery, or a rectangular package substrate having multiple devices sealed with resin, a ceramic substrate, a ferrite substrate, or a substrate containing at least one of nickel and iron. In addition, in the present invention, the transport unit 1 in embodiment 1 may be provided with an annular washer 11 between the joint 9 and the plate body 4 of the holding plate 3, as in embodiment 2, through which one end of the joint 9 passes inside.

1, 1-2, 1-3 Transport unit 2 Drive unit 3, 3-2, 3-3 Holding plate 4, 4-2, 4-3 Plate body 5 Suction source 6 Suction unit 7, 7-2 Position change unit 8, 8-1, 8-2, 8-3, 8-4 Suction pad 10 Suction tube 12 Plug 43 Underside (surface)
47 Air flow path 71, 71-2 Through hole 72 Suction hole 200 Substrate

Claims (2)

A transport unit for transporting a substrate,
The transport unit includes:
a holding plate for holding the substrate;
a drive unit that moves the holding plate,
The holding plate is
A plate-shaped plate body;
a suction unit that is connected to a suction source and that suctions the substrate by being sucked by the suction source;
a position changer that changes the position of the suction portion relative to the plate body;
Equipped with
The position change unit is characterized in that it has multiple position change sections provided on the plate body, has a greater number of through holes penetrating the plate body than the suction sections, and the suction sections are attached to some of the multiple through holes. the suction unit includes a suction pad attached to the through hole and a suction tube connecting the suction pad to the suction source;
The transport unit of claim 1, characterized in that the position change unit changes the relative position of the suction pad of the suction unit with respect to the plate body by selecting a through hole to which the suction pad of the suction unit is attached or by changing the relative position of the suction unit with respect to the through hole to which the suction pad is attached.