Hitachi-high-technologies Corporation

Michinori Kawaguchi

Satomi Inoue

Keita Nogi

Teruo Nakata

Yoshiro Suemitsu

Hideki Kihara

Yuuzou Oohirabaru

Nobuo Nagayasu

A method for operating a vacuum processing apparatus, the vacuum processing apparatus including: a plurality of cassette stands on which a cassette capable of housing a plurality of wafers therein can be placed; a plurality of vacuum processing vessels each having a processing chamber arranged therein, wherein the wafer is arranged and processed in the processing chamber; and at least one transport robot transporting the wafer on a transport path between either one of the plurality of cassettes and the plurality of vacuum processing vessels, the vacuum processing apparatus sequentially transporting in a predetermined transport order the plurality of wafers from either one of the plurality of cassettes to a predetermined one of the plurality of vacuum processing vessels and processing the plurality of wafers. The method includes a number determining step, a remaining-time determining step and a transport order skip step.

Operation method for vacuum processing apparatus

An efficient method of controlling transportation in a linear tool type vacuum process device in a state that a length of time required for a process is not stable. For each process chamber, the number of unprocessed wafers that are in process or are being transported to the process chamber is counted, and in deciding a transport destination of a wafer, when the number of unprocessed wafers is equal to or larger than a charge limit amount, a transport destination of a wafer is decided excluding the process chamber. Also, a wafer holding mechanism on a transport path to a process chamber is reserved, and a transport destination of a processed member to be transported next is decided according to a status of reservation.

Vacuum process device and vacuum process method

Transportation control in a vacuum processing device with high transportation efficiency without lowering throughput is provided. A control unit is configured to update in real time and holds device state information showing an action state of each of a process chamber, a transportation mechanism unit, a buffer room, and a holding mechanism unit, the presence of a process subject member, and a process state thereof; select a transport algorithm from among transport algorithm judgment rules that are obtained by simulating in advance a plurality of transport algorithms for controlling transportation of a process subject member for each condition of a combination of the number and arrangement of the process chambers and process time of a process subject member based on the device state information and process time of the process subject member; and compute a transport destination of the process subject member based on the selected transport algorithm.

Vacuum processing device and method of transporting process subject member

The invention provides a semiconductor processing apparatus having a high throughput capable of appropriately coping with the positional displacement that may occur during transfer of the wafer after correcting the position thereof, without slowing down the transfer speed of the wafer. A position correction quantity of the wafer with respect to a vacuum robot is computed based on the outputs of a &#x3b8; axis sensor for detecting the interception angle of the wafer during rotation of the vacuum robot and an R axis sensor for detecting the interception distance of the wafer during expansion and contraction of the vacuum robot. If the position correction quantity exceeds a predetermined standard value, an operation to change the position data is performed, and if the distance data obtained based on the outputs from the &#x3b8; axis sensor and the R axis sensor exceeds a predetermined permissible value, it is determined that a displacement error has occurred and the operation is stopped.

Growing community of inventors

Shunan, Japan

Michinori Kawaguchi