Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Comp. Ltd.

Li-Ren Lin

Cheng-Chang Chang

Shi-Ming Wang

Yuh-Dean Tsay

Chien-Jung Huang

Yuh-Dean Tsai

Wen-Yao Chen

Chien-Fei Cheng

Hsueh-Cheng Wu

Yuan-Ching Lu

Pei-Chen Yeh

Chen-Chieh Lan

Shih-Chieh Liao

Bruce Chen

A method for aligning a loadport of a process machine to an overhead hoist transport (OHT) system which can be carried out by first providing an OHT rail overhanging a cleanroom floor; setting a reference point in the cleanroom in proximity to the OHT rail; marking on the cleanroom floor boundary reference lines for each row of process machines based on the reference point; positioning a process machine on the cleanroom floor with a boundary line of the machine aligned to the boundary reference line; mounting a loadport onto the process machine; and fine tuning a center line of the loadport to a reference line on the floor that is 200 mm apart from and parallel to the boundary reference line.

Method for aligning a loadport to an overhead hoist transport system

A semiconductor fabrication enterprise includes fabrication equipment, transportable containers for work&#x2014;in&#x2014;process and an enterprise information system. The transportable containers have associated radio frequency tags having identification codes uniquely identifying the carriers in the fabrication process. The enterprise information system contains data corresponding to each such identification code. The identification codes are read by a radio frequency interrogation device, and the radio frequency interrogation device carries out transactions with the enterprise data system to transfer the data corresponding to the identification codes to the radio frequency interrogation device. The radio frequency tags may be adapted for read/write functionality allowing for writing data to the radio frequency tags and synchronization of radio frequency tag data and enterprise information system data.

Wireless wafer carrier identification and enterprise data synchronization

A safety system for an overhead transport (OHT) vehicle. In one embodiment, the safety system may include a pair of safety panels provided on opposite sides of the load and unload ports on a tool or stocker. An overhead sensor is provided on the OHT and is operably connected to a light curtain on the tool. In the event that the overhead sensor detects an obstruction in the travel path of the OHT during loading of a pod or cassette into the tool or stocker, the light curtain transmits an emergency stop signal to the tool or stocker controller, which terminates further loading operation of the OHT. In another embodiment, the light curtain assumes the look-down sensing function of the overhead sensor in the event that tool components interfere with the look-down function of the overhead sensor.

Safety system for overhead transport vehicle

An interbay transfer interface between an automated material handling system and a stocker which includes a conveyor belt positioned juxtaposed to the stocker, a plurality of open-top containers positioned on the conveyor belt, at least two locating pins situated on the conveyor belt for engaging the containers, a wave emitting/receiving device positioned immediately adjacent to the conveyor belt, and a controller for receiving signals from the wave emitting/receiving device and sensors mounted on the locating pins.

Interbay transfer interface between an automated material handling system and a stocker

An automatic inspecting system for detecting the presence of and identifying whether the proper replacement container has been installed at a work station in a processing line, which automatic container checking system is capable of reading identifying information on the container, e.g., a bar-code, and comparing the information read with stored information indicative of a desired identification to determine whether there is a match. In the absence of a match, an alarm or other means can be used, by way of notification of a problem or to automatically stop the processing line.

Container inspection system and method of using in semiconductor manufacturing

An interlock system prevents collision of handling equipment and damage to wafers in an automated wafer transport apparatus during manual control by an operator. Sensors are used to sense when wafer transport arms and wafer stage are both in their home positions. A controller is responsive to the sensors for operating the lockout system such that attempted activation of the transport arm by the operator is locked out unless both the stage and the arms are in their home positions. The lockout system preferably comprises normally closed electrical relays.

Interlock system for semiconductor wafer transport apparatus

The present invention discloses a method for controlling lots' dispatch of tool groups, and all the lots can be transferred to correct places for further processing. The lots are transferred to the storage places of the tool when there is only a single tool for the next process. A decision step is performed for deciding whether the storage places of the next tool group and the next-next tool group overlap when the next process contains a tool group. If there are overlapped storage places, then the lots will be moved to the overlapped storage place having minimum loading. When there is no overlapped storage place, the lots will be dispatched to the storage place having minimum loading among the next tool group. All the lots can be processed with at minimum moving steps, and all the tools perform their processes under balance loading whenever the productions increase or decrease.

Method for controlling lots dispatches of tool groups

A visualizing method for the working condition of the semiconductor's manufacturing machines is disclosed. Firstly, the datas of different stages in a processing line are collected from the key-stage report of the processing line. The datas are &ldquo;MAIN&rdquo;, &ldquo;MRUN&rdquo;, &ldquo;AFTER&rdquo; and &ldquo;PRE&rdquo;, meaning the working condition of the stage. Every stage has a group of data. Specified stage-pairs in the processing line are determined. These pairs are photolithography and etching, photolithography and implanting and others. The data of each stage-pair is sequentially put in a bar chart. Then the pairs are sequentially arranged in the order of the processing line. One pair has a supplied stage and a requested stage. From the bar chart, supervisors of the processing line know the condition and the priority of every pair, and the relationship between the supplied stage and requested stage. According to the visual presentation, the supervisors can easily make decisions of the allocation of the tools in the processing line.

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Hsin-Chu, Taiwan

Li-Ren Lin