JP2006284059A - Treatment device, fan filter unit monitoring control system and program - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To reduce labor and improve reliability by using a carrying mechanism for mechanically, quickly and accurately performing measuring work for the velocity of wind in a carrying part. <P>SOLUTION: The treatment device 1 comprises a placement part 3 on which a transportation container 2 storing a plurality of substrates (w) is placed, treatment parts 4A-4C for giving predetermined treatment to the substrates (w), the carrying part 6 having the carrying mechanism 5 for carrying the substrates (w) between the transportation container 2 on the placement part 3 and each of the treatment parts 4A-4C, and a clean air supply part 7 for supplying clean air into the carrying part 6. The carrying mechanism 5 has a wind velocity measuring means 19 for measuring the velocity of wind of the clean air in the carrying part 6. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2007,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a processing apparatus, a fan filter unit monitoring control system, and a program, and more particularly, to a technique for measuring the wind speed of a fan filter unit in a transport unit of the processing apparatus.

  In the manufacture of a semiconductor device, there are processes for performing various processes such as an etching process on a substrate to be processed, for example, a semiconductor wafer (hereinafter referred to as a wafer), and a processing apparatus for executing these processes is used. Yes. The processing apparatus includes a mounting unit for mounting a hoop (Front Opening Unified Pod) as a transport container storing a plurality of, for example, 25 wafers, a processing unit for performing a predetermined process on the wafer, and the mounting unit described above A transport unit having a transport mechanism for transporting the substrate between the upper hoop and the processing unit. A fan filter unit as a clean air supply unit for supplying clean air into the transfer unit is provided on the ceiling of the transfer unit. The fan filter unit includes a fan and a filter.

  Maintaining a highly clean environment in which particles (including dust) are removed by creating a downflow with clean air and increasing the internal pressure in the transfer unit to prevent contamination of the wafer particles. Is required. On the other hand, if the turbulent flow is generated in the transport unit due to the deterioration of the performance of the fan filter unit due to the clogging of the filter or the variation in the performance between the adjacent fan filter units, a point where particles are rolled up and collected easily occurs.

  Therefore, in the processing apparatus, in order to check whether the fan filter unit is functioning normally in order to maintain the inside of the transport unit with high cleanliness, it is necessary to measure the wind speed at multiple points in the transport unit. Conventionally, the measurement probe attached to the rod tip by the measurer is inserted into the transfer unit from the outside, or the measurer directly enters the transfer unit to measure the wind speed in the transfer unit.

  In addition, as a related technique, a fan filter unit provided with an anemometer (a substrate processing apparatus provided with a life determination device for an atmosphere processing unit) (Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 11-74169), and each transfer / processing unit There is a system (processing system) (Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 9-320914) in which wind direction detecting means is arranged between the processing unit and the outside so that the air flow between the units is detected based on the wind direction between the units. It does not measure the wind speed in the transport section using the transport mechanism.

JP-A-11-74169 Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 9-320914

  In the processing apparatus, since the measurer must measure the wind speed, not only does the measurement work require much labor and time, but also it is difficult to accurately position the measurement probe at a predetermined measurement position. The error tends to increase, and when a measurer enters the transport unit, the work is performed in a narrow space, and workability is poor. Further, it is necessary to stop the transport mechanism for safety during measurement work.

  The present invention has been made in consideration of the above circumstances, and can measure the wind speed in the transport unit mechanically quickly and accurately by the transport mechanism, thereby reducing labor and improving reliability. An object is to provide a device, a fan filter unit monitoring control system, and a program.

  In order to achieve the above object, the processing apparatus according to claim 1 of the present invention includes a mounting unit for mounting a transport container storing a plurality of substrates, and a processing unit for performing a predetermined process on the substrates. A processing apparatus comprising: a transport unit on the placement unit and a transport unit having a transport mechanism for transporting a substrate between the processing unit; and a clean air supply unit that supplies clean air into the transport unit. The transport mechanism is provided with a wind speed measuring means for measuring the wind speed of the clean air in the transport unit.

  The processing apparatus according to claim 2, a mounting unit that mounts a transport container storing a plurality of substrates, a processing unit that performs a predetermined process on the substrate, a transport container on the mounting unit, and the processing unit A transport unit having a transport mechanism for transporting a substrate between them, a fan filter unit having a fan and a filter for supplying clean air into the transport unit, and a wind speed of clean air in the transport unit provided in the transport mechanism A wind speed measuring unit that moves the wind speed measuring unit to a predetermined measurement point in the transport unit by a transport mechanism, collects measurement data, and controls the operation of the fan filter unit based on the measurement data. It is characterized by having.

  The fan filter unit monitoring control system according to claim 3 is a system for monitoring and controlling a fan filter unit arranged in a plurality of sections on the ceiling so as to supply clean air into a transfer unit having a transfer mechanism for transferring a substrate. A fan filter unit controller that controls the operation of each fan filter unit, a transport mechanism controller that controls the transport mechanism, and a wind speed measuring means that is provided in the transport mechanism and measures the wind speed of clean air in the transport section. A user interface for inputting measurement points in each area in the transport unit, and the user interface, the transport mechanism controller, and the wind speed measuring means are connected by a network, and the measurement data of each measurement point from the transport mechanism controller and the wind speed measuring means is obtained. Collect each fan filter unit Characterized by comprising a general controller for performing overall control monitors the bets operating conditions.

  According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a program for causing a computer to perform monitoring control of a fan filter unit arranged in a plurality of areas on a ceiling so as to supply clean air into a transport unit having a transport mechanism for transporting a substrate. A measurement data collection module for collecting measurement data by moving the wind speed measuring means provided in the conveyance mechanism to a predetermined measurement point in the conveyance unit by the conveyance mechanism, and the operation of each fan filter unit based on the measurement data And a fan filter unit monitoring control module for monitoring the state and controlling the operation of each fan filter unit.

  According to the processing apparatus of Claim 1, the mounting part which mounts the conveyance container which accommodated the some board | substrate, the processing part which performs a predetermined process to the said board | substrate, the conveyance container on the said mounting part, and the said A processing apparatus comprising a transport unit having a transport mechanism for transporting a substrate between processing units, and a clean air supply unit for supplying clean air into the transport unit. Since the wind speed measuring means for measuring the wind speed of the air is provided, the measurement work of the wind speed in the transport section can be mechanically and quickly performed by the transport mechanism, and the labor can be reduced and the reliability can be improved.

  The processing apparatus according to claim 2, a mounting unit that mounts a transport container storing a plurality of substrates, a processing unit that performs a predetermined process on the substrate, a transport container on the mounting unit, and the processing unit A transport unit having a transport mechanism for transporting a substrate between them, a fan filter unit having a fan and a filter for supplying clean air into the transport unit, and a wind speed of clean air in the transport unit provided in the transport mechanism A wind speed measuring unit that moves the wind speed measuring unit to a predetermined measurement point in the transport unit by a transport mechanism, collects measurement data, and controls the operation of the fan filter unit based on the measurement data. Therefore, the measurement work of the wind speed in the transport unit can be performed mechanically quickly and accurately by the transport mechanism, and the labor can be reduced and the reliability can be improved.

  According to the fan filter unit monitoring control system of claim 3, the fan filter unit arranged in a plurality of areas on the ceiling is monitored and controlled so as to supply clean air into the transfer unit having the transfer mechanism for transferring the substrate. A fan filter unit controller that controls the operation of each fan filter unit, a transfer arm controller that controls the transfer mechanism, and a wind speed that is provided in the transfer mechanism and measures the wind speed of clean air in the transfer unit The measurement means, a user interface for inputting measurement points in each area in the transfer unit, and the user interface, transfer arm controller, and wind speed measurement means are connected by a network, and measurement of each measurement point from the transfer arm controller and wind speed measurement means is performed. Collect data for each fan Since it is equipped with a general controller that monitors the operation status of the filter unit and performs overall control, the measurement of the wind speed in the transport unit can be performed mechanically quickly and accurately, reducing labor and ensuring reliability. The improvement of the property can be achieved, and the inside of the transport section can be maintained at a high cleanliness.

  According to the program of claim 4, the computer is caused to perform monitoring control of the fan filter unit arranged in a plurality of areas on the ceiling so as to supply clean air into the transport unit having the transport mechanism for transporting the substrate. A measurement data collection module for collecting measurement data by moving a wind speed measuring means provided in the conveyance mechanism to a predetermined measurement point in the conveyance unit by the conveyance mechanism, and each fan filter unit based on the measurement data The fan filter unit monitoring control module that monitors the operation state of each fan filter unit and controls the operation of each fan filter unit, so that the measurement of the wind speed in the transfer section is mechanically quickly and accurately performed by the transfer mechanism. It is possible to reduce labor and improve reliability, and to maintain the inside of the transport section at high cleanliness. It can be.

  The best mode for carrying out the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. FIG. 1 is a perspective view schematically showing a processing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a schematic side sectional view of the processing apparatus, and FIG. 3 is a plan view showing a schematic configuration of the entire processing apparatus. .

  In these drawings, reference numeral 1 denotes a single wafer processing apparatus (also referred to as a processing system) that carries a predetermined process by transferring semiconductor wafers (hereinafter referred to as wafers) w, which are substrates to be processed, one by one. The processing apparatus 1 is installed in a clean room having a clean atmosphere. The processing apparatus 1 includes a plurality of, for example, three hoop mounting tables 3 which are mounting units on which a hoop 2 serving as a transport container storing a plurality of, for example, 25 wafers w is placed, and a predetermined process such as an etching process on the wafer w. As a transfer unit having three process ships 4A, 4B, and 4C as processing units for performing the process, and a transfer mechanism 5 that transfers the wafer w between the FOUP 2 on the FOUP mounting table 3 and the process ships 4A to 4C. A loader unit 6 and a fan filter unit (hereinafter referred to as FFU) 7 as a clean air supply unit for supplying clean air into the loader unit 6 are provided. Each process ship 4A to 4C includes a process unit 4x and a load lock chamber 4y.

  Each of the process ships 4A to 4C includes a processing chamber (for example, a vacuum processing chamber processing chamber) 4x that performs a predetermined process on the wafer w and a transfer arm (not shown) that transfers the wafer w to the processing chamber 4x. A load lock chamber 4y having one or two buffer mechanisms capable of driving up and down to temporarily place a wafer. The processing chamber 4x has a cylindrical processing chamber container (chamber), and an upper electrode and a lower electrode arranged in the chamber, and the distance between the upper electrode and the lower electrode is an etching process such as a reaction on the wafer. Is set to an appropriate interval for performing the reactive ion etching process. The lower electrode has an electrostatic chuck on its top for holding the wafer by Coulomb force or the like.

In the processing chamber 4x, a processing gas is introduced into the chamber, and an electric field is generated at the electrode, whereby the processing gas is turned into plasma to generate ions and radicals, and a reactive ion etching process is performed on the wafer w by the ions and radicals. . In the processing chamber 4x, a corrosive gas (for example, NH ₃ ) and HF are introduced into the chamber, and an isotropic etching process is performed on the wafer w by a COR (Chemical Oxide Removal) process without using an electric field.

  In the process ships 4A to 4C, the internal pressure of the processing chamber 4x is maintained at a vacuum, and the internal pressure of the load lock chamber 4y can be replaced with vacuum and air as needed, while the internal pressure of the loader unit 6 is maintained at atmospheric pressure. The The internal pressure of the processing chamber 4x is maintained at a vacuum. For this reason, the load lock chamber 4y is provided with a gate valve 4m at the connection portion with the loader unit 6 and with a gate valve 4n at the connection portion with the processing chamber 4x, whereby the vacuum pre-transport can be adjusted. It is configured as a chamber.

  The loader unit 6 includes a horizontally long box-shaped housing 6a, a transport mechanism 5 provided in the housing 6a, and a load port provided on one side wall (front surface) of the housing 6a. And a plurality of, for example, three loading / unloading doors (openers) 8 serving as wafer inlets disposed on the side wall corresponding to the hoop mounting table 3. The inside of the loader unit 6 is a small environment (Mini Environment) that is kept clean. The three process ships 4A to 4C are connected to the other side wall (back surface portion) of the loader unit 6. One end of the loader unit 6 in the longitudinal direction is connected to an orienter 9 that is a wafer alignment mechanism that aligns the orientation of the wafer w carried into the loader unit 6 from the hoop 2 (that is, the orientation flat or notch position). .

  As shown in FIG. 2, the transport mechanism 5 includes an x-axis moving unit 5a that can reciprocate by electromagnet drive along a guide rail 10 disposed in the longitudinal direction in the loader unit 6, and an x-axis moving unit 5a on the x-axis moving unit 5a. A z-axis moving part 5b provided on the z-axis moving part 5b, a swivel base 5e having a built-in R-axis drive motor provided on the z-axis moving part 5b via a θ-axis driving part 5c, and the swivel base 5e, and an articulated transfer arm 5d that can expand and contract in the radial direction (R-axis), that is, in the horizontal direction. The transfer arm 5d has a pick (support part) 11 that supports the wafer w at the tip. The pick 11 is made of a flat U-shaped thin plate made of ceramics, for example. A pick holder 12 for removably attaching the pick 11 is provided at the tip of the transport arm 5d.

  The FFU 7 is disposed on the upper portion or the ceiling portion of the loader unit 6 in order to take in clean air in the clean room and cause a laminar flow downflow of high cleanliness air in the loader unit 6. An exhaust fan unit 13 for exhausting clean air to the outside is disposed at the bottom of the loader unit 6. As shown in FIG. 5, the FFU 7 includes a fan (blower) 7a and a filter 7b, and the fan 7a is disposed above the filter 7b. A high air pressure air flow is created by the fan 7a, and highly clean air is fed into the loader unit 6 through the filter 7b. The pressure inside the loader unit 6 is set higher than the external pressure (atmospheric pressure) so that particles do not enter from the outside.

  The fan 7 a is composed of a rotary blade 14 and an electric motor 15, which are accommodated in a planar rectangular frame 16. The filter 7b is made of, for example, an ULPA (Ultra Low Penetration Air) filter, and is accommodated in a flat rectangular frame 17. A plurality of, for example, three FFUs 7A, 7B, 7c are arranged on the ceiling portion of the loader unit 6 in a plurality of areas (zones). Each FFU 7A, 7B, 7c is provided with a fan filter unit controller (hereinafter referred to as FFU controller) 18A, 18B, 18C for controlling its operation (for example, fan rotation) (see FIG. 7).

  The transport mechanism 5 is provided with wind speed measuring means 19 for measuring the wind speed of clean air in the loader unit 6. The wind speed measuring means 19 is an anemometer. For example, as shown in FIG. 4, the wind speed measuring means 19 includes a measurement probe 19 a that is a wind speed sensor that electrically detects the wind speed by utilizing the property that the electric resistance of the heat ray changes depending on the wind speed, and the measurement probe 19 a. And an anemometer main body 19b that calculates and outputs the wind speed measurement value. An anemometer or measurement probe 19a, which is the wind speed measuring means 19, is provided on the transport arm 5d in the transport mechanism. The anemometer main body 19 b may be provided, for example, in the x-axis moving unit 5 a of the transport mechanism 5 or may be provided outside the loader unit 6.

  As the wind speed measuring means according to the present embodiment, not only the thermal wind sensor but also a vane anemometer and an ultrasonic anemometer are targeted. A vane anemometer is an anemometer that can calculate the flow velocity by counting the number of rotations of a vane wheel that rotates at a speed proportional to the velocity of the fluid with a close switch. Wind direction and speed are measured by propagation speed. In addition, an ultrasonic vortex anemometer (for example, a vortex VA sensor manufactured by Hontzsch) that generates a vortex in a fluid using the Karman vortex phenomenon and measures the frequency of the vortex with an ultrasonic sensor Since it is not exposed to fluid, there is almost no mechanical or electrical damage or wear, and it is excellent in stability and reproducibility over a long period even in a corrosive gas environment including Cl-based and Br-based.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the anemometer or the measurement probe 19 a is attached to the tip of the transfer arm 5 d, for example, the pick holder 12 by an attachment member (attachment) 20. Accordingly, it is possible to quickly and accurately move the measurement probe 19a to a number of preset measurement points in the loader unit 6 by the transfer arm 5d of the transfer mechanism 5 and perform wind speed measurement.

  The processing apparatus (processing system) 1 collects the measurement data by moving the wind speed measuring means 19 to a predetermined measurement point in the loader unit 6 by the transport mechanism 5 and based on the measurement data, the FFU 7 (7A, 7A, 7B, 7C) MC (Module Controller) 24, 25, 26, 27, which will be described later, as a control unit for controlling the operation, and an EC (Equipment Controller) 23, which is an overall controller that supervises and monitors each MC. ing. Further, the processing apparatus (processing system) 1 includes FFUs 7A, 7B, and 7C arranged in a plurality of sections on the ceiling so as to supply clean air into a loader unit 6 having a transfer mechanism 5 for transferring a wafer w. An FFU monitoring control system for monitoring control is provided.

  The FFU monitoring control system includes an FFU control unit 35 and a transport control unit 36. The FFU control unit 35 includes FFU controllers 18A, 18B, and 18C that control fan rotation of the FFUs 7A, 7B, and 7C, and an I / O module 30. And an FFU module controller MC24 that controls the operation of the FFU controllers 18A, 18B, and 18C via the I / O module 30, and the transport control unit 36 includes a transport mechanism controller 21, wind speed measuring means 19, and The I / O module 30 includes a transport module controller MC27 that performs control for executing a transport sequence via the I / O module 30. The FFU monitoring control system is connected to the FFU control unit 35, the transport control unit 36, and the user interface 22 for inputting measurement points in each area in the loader unit 6, and the switching hub 28 to measure each measurement point. The EC 23 is configured as an overall controller that collects data and monitors the operating states of the FFUs 7A, 7B, and 7C and performs overall control.

  Note that MC24 and MC27 may be combined as one controller to be a loader module control unit. In this case, the FFU monitoring and control system includes FFU controllers 18A, 18B, and 18C that control the operations of the FFUs 7A, 7B, and 7C, a transport mechanism controller 21 that controls the transport mechanism 5, and the loader unit provided in the transport mechanism 5. The wind speed measuring means 19 for measuring the wind speed of the clean air in 6, the user interface 22 for inputting measurement points in each area in the loader unit 6, the user interface 22, the transport mechanism controller 21 and the wind speed measuring means 19 are connected to the network. Connected, and collects measurement data of each measurement point from the transport mechanism controller 21 and the wind speed measuring means 19 to monitor the operating state of each FFU 7A, 7B, 7C and EC as an overall controller that performs overall control. May be.

  The processing apparatus or processing system includes a system controller that controls the operation of the three process ships 4A to 4C and the loader unit 6, and a user interface 22 disposed at one end in the longitudinal direction of the loader unit 6. The user interface 22 includes an input unit (keyboard) and a display unit (monitor) including, for example, an LCD (Liquid Crystal Display), and the display unit displays the operation status of each component of the processing apparatus 1.

  FIG. 7 is a diagram showing a schematic configuration of a system controller in the processing apparatus or processing system of FIGS. As shown in FIG. 7, the system controller includes an EC (Equipment Controller) 23, a plurality of, for example, four module controllers MC (Module Controllers) 24, 25, 26, and 27, and a switching hub 28 that connects the EC 23 and MCs 24-27. And. The system controller is connected from the EC 23 via a LAN (Local Area Network) to a host computer 29 as a MES (Manufacturing Execution System) that manages the manufacturing process of the entire factory where the processing apparatus 1 is installed. The host computer 29 cooperates with the system controller to feed back real-time information related to processes in the factory to a basic business system (not shown), and makes a determination related to processes in consideration of the load of the entire factory.

  The EC 23 is an overall control unit that controls each of the MCs 24 to 27 to control the operation of the entire processing apparatus. The EC 23 includes a CPU, a RAM, an HDD, and the like. Depending on a wafer processing method designated by the user or the like on the user interface 22, that is, a program corresponding to a recipe (including position information of measurement points), the CPU By transmitting a control program corresponding to the recipe to each MC 24-27, the operation of each process ship 4A-4C and the loader unit 6 is controlled.

  The switching hub 28 switches the MCs 24 to 27 as connection destinations of the EC 23 according to a control signal from the EC 23. The MCs 24 to 27 are normal control units that control the operations of the process ships 4A to 4C and the loader unit 6. Each MC 24 to 27 is connected to each I / O (input / output) module 30 via a GHOST network. This is a network realized by an LSI called GHOST (general high-speed optimal scalable transceiver). In the GHOST network, MCs 24 to 27 correspond to masters, and the I / O module 30 corresponds to slaves.

  The I / O module 30 has a plurality of I / O units 31 connected to each component (end device) of the loader unit 6, and transmits a control signal to the end device and an output signal from the end device. . An I / O board that controls input / output of digital signals, analog signals, and serial signals in the I / O unit 31 is also connected to the GHOST network.

  In the system controller of FIG. 7, the plurality of end devices are not directly connected to the EC 23, but the I / O unit 31 connected to the plurality of end devices is modularized to form the I / O module 30. Since the I / O module 30 is connected to the EC 23 via the MCs 24 to 27 and the switching hub 28, the communication system can be simplified.

  In addition, the control signals transmitted by the CPUs of the MCs 24 to 27 refer to the addresses of the I / O units connected to the desired end devices and the addresses of the I / O modules including the I / O units. 27 GHOST refers to the address of the I / O unit in the control signal, so that the switching hub 28, the transport mechanism controller 21, the wind speed measuring means 19, and the FFU controllers 18A to 18C inquire the CPU about the destination of the control signal. The necessity can be eliminated, and thereby smooth transmission of the control signal can be realized.

  Further, the system controller may include a data collection server 32 as a data collection / recording unit that collects and records data output from the wind speed measuring means 19 over time. In this case, the detection signal, which is data output from the measurement probe 19a, is extracted as an analog signal from the anemometer body 19b, input to the I / O unit 31, and input to the data collection server 32 via the network.

  According to the processing apparatus 1 configured as described above, the FOUP mounting table 3 for mounting the FOUP 2 storing a plurality of wafers w, the process ships 4A to 4C for performing predetermined processing on the wafer w, A loader unit 6 having a transfer mechanism 5 for transferring a wafer w between the hoop 2 on the hoop mounting table 3 and the process ships 4A to 4C, and a clean air supply unit for supplying clean air into the loader unit 6 FFU 7 is provided and wind speed measuring means 19 for measuring the wind speed of the clean air in the loader unit 6 is provided in the transport mechanism 5, so that the work of measuring the wind speed in the loader unit 6 is mechanically performed by the transport mechanism 5. Therefore, it is possible to reduce the labor for measuring the wind speed and improve the reliability of the processing apparatus.

  In the processing apparatus or processing system, the wind speed measuring means 19 is moved to a predetermined measurement point in the loader unit 6 by the transfer arm 5d of the transfer mechanism 5 to collect the measurement data, and the FFU 7 is based on the measurement data. Since the MCs 24 to 27 serving as control units for controlling the operation of the loader unit 6 are provided, the measurement of the wind speed in the loader unit 6 can be performed mechanically quickly and accurately by the transfer arm 5d of the transfer mechanism 5, and the FFU 7 Thus, the loader unit 6 can be maintained at high cleanliness, reducing the labor of wind speed measurement work and further improving the reliability of the processing apparatus or processing system.

  Furthermore, according to the FFU monitoring and control system, the FFUs 7A to 7C arranged in a plurality of areas on the ceiling are monitored and controlled so as to supply clean air into the loader unit 6 having the transfer mechanism 5 for transferring the wafer w. FFU controllers 18A to 18C that control the operation of the FFUs 7A to 7C, a transport mechanism controller 21 that controls the transport mechanism 5, and clean air in the loader unit 6 provided in the transport mechanism 5 A wind speed measuring means 19 for measuring the wind speed, a user interface 22 for inputting measurement points in each area in the loader unit 6, the user interface 22, the transport mechanism controller 21 and the wind speed measuring means 19 are connected via a network, and the transport mechanism Each measurement poi from the controller 21 and the wind speed measuring means 19 EC 23 as an overall controller that performs overall control by monitoring through module controllers MC24 to 27 that collect measurement data of each of the FFUs 7A to 7C and control the operating state of each of the FFUs 7A to 7C. Can be mechanically quickly and accurately performed by the transport mechanism 5, and each FFU is maintained normally and the wind speed between the zones is adjusted to keep the wind speed in the loader unit 6 uniform in the plane. Thus, the loader unit 6 can be maintained at a high cleanliness, and the labor of the wind speed measurement work can be reduced and the reliability of the processing apparatus or processing system can be improved.

  An object of the present invention is to supply a software program for realizing the functions of the above-described embodiments or a recording medium (storage medium) on which the program is recorded to the EC 23, and the CPU of the EC 23 stores the program stored on the recording medium. It is also achieved by reading and executing. In this case, the program situation read from the recording medium realizes the functions of the above-described embodiment, and the program and the recording medium on which the program is recorded constitute the present invention.

  In the program for causing a computer to execute monitoring control of the FFUs 7A to 7C arranged in a plurality of sections on the ceiling to supply clean air into the loader unit 6 having the transfer mechanism 5 for transferring the wafer w, the transfer A measurement data collection module (measurement data collection step) for collecting measurement data by moving the wind speed measurement means 19 provided in the mechanism 5 to a predetermined measurement point in the loader unit 6 by the transport mechanism 5, and based on the measurement data An FFU monitoring control module (FFU monitoring control step) that monitors the operating state of each of the FFUs 7A to 7C and controls the operation of each of the FFUs 7A to 7C is provided. According to this program, the measurement work of the wind speed in the loader unit 6 can be performed mechanically quickly and accurately by the transport mechanism 5, and each FFU is maintained normally and the loader unit is kept clean. Therefore, the labor of wind speed measurement work can be reduced and the reliability of the processing apparatus or processing system can be improved.

  As a recording medium for supplying the program, for example, floppy (registered trademark) disk, hard disk, magneto-optical disk, CD-ROM, CD-R, CD-RW, DVD-ROM, DVD-RAM, DVD-RW Magnetic tape or the like can be used. The program may be downloaded via a network.

  FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view schematically showing another example of the FFU. In FIG. 6, the same components as those of the FFU in FIG. 5 are denoted by the same reference numerals, and the description thereof is omitted. As shown in FIG. 6, the FFU is configured such that an opening adjustment mechanism 33 that adjusts the opening of the air intake is provided at the air intake of the fan 7 a, and the opening adjustment mechanism 33 is controlled. May be.

  FIG. 8 is a plan view showing a schematic configuration of a modified example of the processing apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention. In FIG. 8, the same components as those of the processing apparatus of FIGS. 1 to 3 are denoted by the same reference numerals, and the description thereof is omitted. In FIG. 8, the processing apparatus 100 includes a plane vertically long hexagonal transfer unit 41, six processing chambers 42 arranged radially around the transfer unit 41, a loader unit 6, the loader unit 6 and the transfer unit. 41, and two load lock chambers 43 that connect the loader unit 6 and the transfer unit 41 to each other. The internal pressure of the transfer unit 41 and each processing chamber 42 is maintained at a vacuum, and the transfer unit 41 and each processing chamber 42 are connected to each other via a gate valve 44.

  In the processing apparatus 100, the internal pressure of the loader unit 6 is maintained at atmospheric pressure, while the internal pressure of the transfer unit 41 is maintained at vacuum. Therefore, each load lock chamber 43 is configured as a vacuum preparatory chamber whose internal pressure can be adjusted by providing gate valves 45 and 46 at the connecting portion with the transfer unit 41 and the connecting portion with the loader unit 6, respectively. Has been. Further, the load lock chamber 43 has a wafer mounting table 47 for temporarily mounting the wafer w transferred between the loader unit 6 and the transfer unit 41.

  Each processing chamber 42 has a wafer mounting table 48 on which a wafer to be processed is placed. The transfer unit 41 includes a transfer arm unit 49 composed of two SCARA arm type transfer arms. The transfer arm unit 49 moves along the guide rail 50 disposed in the longitudinal direction in the transfer unit 41 and transfers the wafer w between the processing chambers 42 and the load lock chamber 43. . This processing apparatus 100 can achieve the same effects as the processing apparatus 1 of FIGS. 1 to 3.

  FIG. 9 is a diagram showing a schematic configuration of another modification of the processing apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention, where (a) is a plan view and (b) is a cross-sectional view taken along the line AA of (a). A processing apparatus (processing system) 101 in FIG. 9 is configured as a coating / development processing system that performs coating / development processing on a wafer w, and includes a FOUP mounting table 51 on which a plurality of FOUPs 2 are mounted, a FOUP 2 and a processing unit 52. A first transfer unit 54 having a first transfer mechanism 53 for transferring the wafer to and from the interface unit 56, which is provided on the opposite side of the hoop mounting table 51 with the processing unit 52 interposed therebetween and to which an exposure device 55 can be connected. And. The processing unit 52 is provided with a second transport unit 59 having a second transport mechanism 58 movable along the passage 57. The second transfer mechanism 58 transfers the wafer w between the first transfer mechanism 53 and each processing unit. The first and second transfer mechanisms 53 and 58 include transfer arms 53a and 58a for transferring wafers.

  A bake unit 60, a brush cleaning unit 61, an adobe treatment unit 62, a cooling unit 63 therebelow, and a bake unit 64 are provided on one side of the passage 57, and a resist coating unit 65 and a water washing unit 66 are provided on the other side. And a development processing unit 67 are arranged. The interface unit 56 is provided with a transfer table 68 for transferring wafers to and from the exposure apparatus 55.

  FFUs 7 are respectively provided on the ceilings of the first and second transport units 54 and 59 (the FFU of the first transport unit is not shown). As shown in FIG. 9B, the FFU 7 includes a fan 7a and a filter 7b. Further, a chemical filter 69 is disposed on the FFU 7. The transport arms 53a, 58a of the first and second transport mechanisms 53, 58 are provided with a wind speed measuring means 19 (see FIG. 9B), and the wind speed measuring means 19 is connected to the transport mechanisms 53, 58. The transfer arms 53a and 58a are moved to predetermined measurement points in the transfer units 54 and 59 to collect measurement data, and the operation of the FFU 7 is controlled based on the measurement data. This processing apparatus 101 can achieve the same effects as the processing apparatus 1 of FIGS.

  FIG. 10 is a longitudinal sectional view showing a schematic configuration of still another modification of the processing apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention. The processing apparatus (processing system) 102 in FIG. 10 is configured as a vertical heat treatment system capable of heat-treating a large number of wafers at one time, and the front part in the housing 70 is a transfer / storage area (transfer part) of the hoop 2. 71, a vertical heat treatment furnace 72 is provided at the upper part of the rear portion of the housing 70, and a loading area 73 is provided at the lower part. In the transfer / storage area 71, a hoop carry-in / out port 74 and a hoop mounting table 75 are provided at the front, and a shelf-like storage unit 76 for storing a plurality of hoops 2 is provided at the top.

  Further, in the transfer / storage area 71, a partition 77 with the loading area 73 is provided with a hoop mounting portion 78 and a wafer carry-in / out port 79, and between the hoop mounting table 75 and the hoop mounting portion 78. A first transport mechanism 80 that transports the hoop 2 between these and the storage unit 76 is provided. On the other hand, the loading / unloading of the boat 82 is performed in the loading area 73 in a state where a boat 82 on which a large number of, for example, 100 wafers can be mounted on a lid 81 that opens and closes the furnace port of the heat treatment furnace 72 is mounted. A lifting mechanism (not shown) is provided, and a second transfer mechanism (transfer mechanism) 83 for transferring wafers between the hoop 2 and the boat 82 is provided.

  An FFU 7 for supplying clean air toward the storage unit 76 is disposed behind the storage unit 76, and a wind speed measuring unit 19 is provided on the transfer arm 80 a of the first transfer mechanism 80. The means 19 is moved to a predetermined measurement point in the storage unit 76 in the transfer / storage area (transfer unit) 71 by the transfer arm 80a of the transfer mechanism 80 to collect measurement data and operate the FFU 7 based on the measurement data. Is to control. In addition, in the loading area 73, an FFU (not shown) for supplying clean air from one side that is perpendicular to the paper surface of FIG. Wind speed measuring means is provided, and the wind speed measuring means (not shown) is moved to a predetermined measurement point in the loading area 73 by the second transport mechanism 83 to collect measurement data, and the FFU of the FFU is collected based on the measurement data. The operation may be controlled. This processing apparatus 102 can achieve the same effects as those of the processing apparatus shown in FIGS.

  As mentioned above, although embodiment thru | or example of this invention has been explained in full detail with drawing, this invention is not limited to the said embodiment thru | or example, Various in the range which does not deviate from the summary of this invention. Design changes can be made. For example, the processing chamber in the processing apparatus may be a chamber that performs a CVD process or the like, or a chamber that performs a normal pressure process. As the wind speed measuring means, an anemometer such as a three-dimensional anemometer may be provided.

1 is a perspective view schematically showing a processing apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. It is a schematic sectional side view of the processing apparatus. It is a top view which shows the schematic structure of the whole processing apparatus. It is a figure which shows an example of a wind speed measurement means. It is sectional drawing which shows an example of a fan filter unit roughly. It is sectional drawing which shows the other example of a fan filter unit roughly. It is a figure which shows schematic structure of the system controller in the processing apparatus of FIG. It is a top view which shows schematic structure of the modification of the processing apparatus which concerns on embodiment of this invention. It is a figure which shows schematic structure of the other modification of the processing apparatus which concerns on embodiment of this invention, (a) is a top view, (b) is the sectional view on the AA line of (a). It is a longitudinal cross-sectional view which shows schematic structure of the other modification of the processing apparatus which concerns on embodiment of this invention.

Explanation of symbols

1 Processing Equipment w Semiconductor Wafer (Substrate)
2 Hoop (conveying container)
3 Hoop mounting table (mounting unit)
4A-4C Process Ship (Processing Department)
5 Transport mechanism 6 Loader unit (transport part)
7 Fan filter unit (clean air supply part)
18A-18C Fan filter unit controller 19 Wind speed measuring means 100 Processing device 101 Processing device 102 Processing device

Claims (4)

  A placement unit for placing a transport container containing a plurality of substrates, a processing unit for performing a predetermined process on the substrate, and a transport mechanism for transporting the substrate between the transport container on the placement unit and the processing unit. And a clean air supply unit for supplying clean air into the transport unit, wherein the transport mechanism is provided with wind speed measuring means for measuring the wind speed of the clean air in the transport unit. A processing apparatus characterized by that.   A placement unit for placing a transport container containing a plurality of substrates, a processing unit for performing a predetermined process on the substrate, and a transport mechanism for transporting the substrate between the transport container on the placement unit and the processing unit. A fan filter unit having a filter and a fan for supplying clean air into the transport unit and a filter, a wind speed measuring means provided in the transport mechanism for measuring the wind speed of the clean air in the transport unit, and the wind speed measurement A processing apparatus comprising: a control unit that moves the means to a predetermined measurement point in the transport unit by the transport mechanism to collect measurement data and controls the operation of the fan filter unit based on the measurement data .   A system for monitoring and controlling fan filter units arranged in a plurality of sections on a ceiling to supply clean air into a transport unit having a transport mechanism for transporting a substrate, and controls the operation of each fan filter unit A fan filter unit controller, a transport mechanism controller for controlling the transport mechanism, a wind speed measuring means provided in the transport mechanism for measuring the wind speed of clean air in the transport section, and measurement points in each zone in the transport section are input. The user interface, the user interface, the transport mechanism controller, and the wind speed measuring means are connected by a network, and the measurement data of each measurement point from the transport mechanism controller and the wind speed measuring means is collected to monitor the operation state of each fan filter unit. General control system that performs general control together with Fan filter unit monitoring and control system is characterized in that a La.   A program for causing a computer to perform monitoring control of a fan filter unit arranged in a plurality of sections on a ceiling to supply clean air into a transport unit having a transport mechanism for transporting a substrate, and is provided in the transport mechanism A measurement data collection module that collects measurement data by moving the wind speed measurement means to a predetermined measurement point in the conveyance unit by the conveyance mechanism, and monitors the operating state of each fan filter unit based on the measurement data and each fan filter A fan filter unit monitoring control module for controlling the operation of the unit.

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