Dainippon Screen Mfg. Co., Ltd.

Fuminori Asa

Kenji Fujii

Tomoyuki Komura

Ryuichi Hayama

A substrate is supported by planes of four substrate supporters arranged on the top surface of a transport arm. Three ultrasonic distance measuring sensors are fixed on a fixing base arranged above the substrate. The three ultrasonic distance measuring sensors are arranged to measure the distances to the top surface of the substrate in the vicinity of its periphery. In this case, the ultrasonic distance measuring sensors are positioned so that measurement values of the ultrasonic distance measuring sensors may become equal to each other with the substrate being normally supported. The ultrasonic distance measuring sensors each measure the distances to the top surface of the substrate to supply the measurement values to a controller.

Substrate detecting apparatus and method, substrate transporting apparatus and method, and substrate processing apparatus and method

A substrate transfer apparatus provided with a first substrate transfer mechanism having a first substrate holding hand which is movable while holding a substrate; and a second substrate transfer mechanism having a second substrate holding hand for receiving and transferring a substrate directly from and to the first substrate holding hand. The apparatus has a positioning mechanism disposed, in a moving passage of a substrate held by the first substrate holding hand, independently from the first substrate transfer mechanism, and having a positioning contact portion for regulating the movement of a substrate such that the substrate is positioned at a predetermined position on the first substrate holding hand.

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Kyoto, Japan

Fuminori Asa