Industrial Technology Research Institute

Wu-Lang Lin

Tzong-Ming Wu

Kuan-Chou Chen

Kuei-Jung Chen

Ping-Yu Hu

Fu-Ching Tung

Muh-Wang Liang

Jen-Rong Huang

Hong-Ming Chen

Chia-Ming Chen

Peter L Mahneke

Jiann-Cherng Chen

Wen-Yo Lee

Janathan Wang

The invention includes mainly a machine base, a carrier, a sliding control mechanism, a latch mechanism, a horizontal shifting mechanism, and a lifting mechanism. The FOUP (front-opening unified pod) is put on the carrier and latched by a locking plate of the latch at an accurate position. The carrier moves forwardly to tightly engage the FOUP to a gate on an access at a backboard of the machine base, and thus a cover of the FOUP is opened by a headstock gear at the back of the gate then carried backwardly away from the FOUP by the horizontal shifting mechanism and lowered by the lifting mechanism. Reversely, the cover is closed on the FOUP. As such, the cover is loaded and opened automatically, as well as in closed, which can be a part of automation and prevents wafers from contamination.

Front-opening unified pod auto-loading structure

A wafer loading system positioning method and device, comprising a loading system, having a base and a rear plate for docking on a positioning frame of a production equipment. The main characteristic thereof is that the loading system in an upper part of the rear plate has a holding seat and the positioning frame in an upper part of a front side has an upward extending positioning element. Two eccentric cams on the holding seat and the positioning element allow to adjust a relative position of the holding seat with respect to the positioning element. A lifting mechanism enables raising of the loading system for lifting said holding seat above said positioning element, so as to enable said holding seat to engage with said positioning element.

Wafer loading system positioning method and device

A front-opening unified pod closing/opening control structure includes a transmission motor controlled to rotate a transmission shaft, causing the transmission shaft to rotate two worm gear sets through two worms, each worm gear set including a worm gear meshed with one worm, a radially extended locating plate fixedly fastened to the worm gear, and a gasket member having a rectangular center hole, two actuating bolts respectively fitted into the rectangular center hole and secured to the worm gear sets by a respective nut, keeping the locating plates of the worm gear sets maintained at right angles, two first stop pins adapted to stop the locating plates of the worm gear sets in a first position where the actuating bolts close the cover of the FOUP, and two second stop pins adapted to stop the locating plates of the worm gear sets in a second position where the actuating bolts open the cover of the FOUP.

Front-opening unified pod closing/opening control structure

A two screw double-stroke and screw differential-motion mechanism is applied in a standard mechanical interface. The two mechanisms are utilized for the correlation of transmission between screws and nuts and the screw differential-motion, so as to achieve more efficient positioning and clamp retrieval and placement.

Two screws double-stroke and screw differential-motion mechanism applied in standard mechanical interface

A wafer backside protection apparatus includes a motor, a vacuum chuck, an annular seat and a top cover. The motor has an output shaft upon which the chuck is mounted. The chuck has a front surface to suck and hold a wafer from its backside. The chuck has a backside in which a water guard ring and a plurality of slant bores are formed. The slant bores run from the water guard ring through the wafer front surface. The annular seat is located below the chuck and has two symmetrical slant nozzles projecting toward motor rotating direction for ejecting protection liquid to the water guard ring. Protection liquid may be spun and splashed out through the slant bores to form a protection liquid film between the chuck and the wafer backside due to centrifugal force resulting from chuck and wafer rotation driven by the motor. The protection liquid film may protect wafer backside from chemical erosion and contamination resulting from wafer production process.

Wafer backside protection apparatus

Growing community of inventors

Hsinchu Hsien, Taiwan

Wu-Lang Lin