# US 10,768,089 B2 · Particle collecting apparatus and particle collecting system > Agents: this data is available as JSON from the patentgrep API and MCP server — see https://patentgrep.com/llms.txt - Number: US 10,768,089 B2 - Document ID: US10768089B2 - Status: Granted - Kind: B2 - Application number: 15/719,178 - Filed: 2017-09-28 - Published: 2018-04-05 - Granted: 2020-09-08 - Earliest claimed: 2016-10-03 - Assignees: Tokyo Electron Limited - Applicants: Tokyo Electron Limited - Inventors: Toshihiko Kikuchi; Nobuyuki Nagayama; Hikaru Kikuchi; Katsushi Abe - Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US10768089B2 ## CPC - G01N 15/10: Investigating individual particles - G01N 15/06: Investigating concentration of particle suspensions (by weighing G01N5/00; investigating sedimentation of particle suspensions G01N15/04; investigating individual particles G01N15/10) - G01N 33/0014: {by eliminating a gas (by a chemical reaction G01N33/0013; a chemical reaction taking place or a gas being eliminated in one or more analysing channels G01N33/0024)} - H10P 72/0406: {for cleaning followed by drying, rinsing, stripping, blasting or the like} - H10P 72/78: using vacuum or suction, e.g. Bernoulli chucks - G01N 2015/0046: {in gas, e.g. smoke} - G01N: INVESTIGATING OR ANALYSING MATERIALS BY DETERMINING THEIR CHEMICAL OR PHYSICAL PROPERTIES (measuring or testing apparatus or processes other than immunoassay, involving enzymes or microorganisms C12M, C12Q) - H10P: GENERIC PROCESSES OR APPARATUS FOR THE MANUFACTURE OR TREATMENT OF DEVICES COVERED BY CLASS H10 ## Abstract A particle collecting apparatus includes a cylindrical housing, a gap forming unit, a supply port and an intake port. The cylindrical housing has a closed top and an open bottom facing a target object. The gap forming unit is configured to form a gap having a predetermined distance between the bottom and the target object. The supply port is formed at the opening of the bottom in an annular shape along an inner wall of the housing and configured to supply a gas to the target object. The intake port is provided closer to a central axis of the supply port than the supply port and configured to suck particles on the target object. ## Claims ### Claim 1 A particle collecting apparatus comprising: a cylindrical housing having a closed top and an open bottom facing a target object; a gap forming unit configured to form a gap having a predetermined distance between the bottom and the target object; a supply port formed at the opening of the bottom in an annular shape along an inner wall of the housing and configured to supply a gas to the target object; an intake port provided closer to a central axis of the supply port than the supply port and configured to suck particles on the target object; a cylindrical member disposed along a central axis of the supply port; a partition plate configured to partition a gas supplied to the supply port and a gas sucked from the intake port; a first flow path, through which a gas supplied from an outside of the housing flows toward the supply port, formed between an inner wall surface of the housing and an outer wall surface of the partition plate, the first flow path having a ceiling that is gradually decreased while rotating about the central axis of the supply port in a direction in which the gas supplied from the outside of the housing flows; and a second flow path, through which the gas sucked from the intake port flows toward the outside of the housing, formed between an inner wall surface of the partition plate and an outer wall surface of the cylindrical member, the second flow path having a ceiling that is gradually increased while rotating about the cylindrical member in a direction in which the gas sucked from the intake port flows. ### Claim 2 (depends on 1) The particle collecting apparatus of claim 1, wherein the cylindrical member is an ultrasonic wave generator configured to generate an ultrasonic wave toward the target object. ### Claim 3 (depends on 2) The particle collecting apparatus of claim 2, wherein a shock wave pressure applied to a surface of the target object by the ultrasonic wave generated by the ultrasonic wave generator is greater than or equal to 150 dB. ### Claim 4 (depends on 1) The particle collecting apparatus of claim 1, wherein the gas flowing through the first flow path flows from top to bottom while rotating in a predetermined direction along the inner wall surface of the housing about the central axis of the supply port, and the gas flowing through the second flow path flows from bottom to top while rotating in a direction same as the direction of the gas flows through the first flow path along the inner wall surface of the partition plate about the central axis of the intake port. ### Claim 5 (depends on 1) The particle collecting apparatus of claim 1, wherein a wind speed of a gas on the target object is greater than or equal to 0.02 mm/sec. ### Claim 6 (depends on 1) The particle collecting apparatus of claim 1, wherein a ratio of a flow rate of the gas supplied through the supply port to a flow rate of the gas sucked through the intake port is greater than or equal to 1.0 and smaller than or equal to 1.2. ### Claim 7 (depends on 1) The particle collecting apparatus of claim 1, wherein the housing has a substantially cylindrical shape, the supply port is inclined toward the central axis of the supply port at the bottom of the housing, and an angle of the inclination of the supply port with respect to the bottom of the housing is within a range specified by tan−1(d1/2r)<θ≤60°, wherein r is a radius of the bottom of the housing and d1 is a distance between the bottom of the housing and the target object. ### Claim 8 (depends on 1) The particle collecting apparatus of claim 1, wherein the gas supplied from the supply port is dry air or inert gas. ### Claim 9 A particle collecting method by a particle collecting apparatus comprising: forming a gap having a predetermined distance between a target object and a cylindrical housing having a closed top and an open bottom facing the target object; supplying a gas to the target objet from a supply port formed at the opening of the bottom in an annular shape along an inner wall surface of the housing; and sucking particles on the target object from an intake port positioned closer to a central axis of the supply port than the supply port; wherein the particle collecting apparatus comprises: a cylindrical member disposed along a central axis of the supply port; a partition plate configured to partition a gas supplied to the supply port and a gas sucked from the intake port; a first flow path, through which a gas supplied from an outside of the housing flows toward the supply port, formed between an inner wall surface of the housing and an outer wall surface of the partition plate, the first flow path having a ceiling that is gradually decreased while rotating about the central axis of the supply port in a direction in which the gas supplied from the outside of the housing flows; and a second flow path, through which the gas sucked from the intake port flows toward the outside of the housing, formed between an inner wall surface of the partition plate and an outer wall surface of the cylindrical member, the second flow path having a ceiling that is gradually increased while rotating about the cylindrical member in a direction in which the gas sucked from the intake port flows. ### Claim 10 A particle collecting system comprising: a particle collecting apparatus; a gas supply unit configured to supply a gas to the particle collecting apparatus; a flow rate controller configured to control a flow rate of the gas supplied from the gas supply unit to the particle collecting apparatus; a suction pump configured to suck the gas from the particle collecting apparatus; and a flow speed meter configured to measure a flow speed of the gas sucked from the particle collecting apparatus by the suction pump, wherein the particle collecting apparatus includes: a cylindrical housing having a closed top and an open bottom facing a target object; a gap forming unit configured to form a gap having a predetermined distance between the bottom and the target object; a supply port formed at the opening of the bottom in an annular shape along an inner wall surface of the housing and configured to supply the gas supplied from the gas supply unit to the target object; an intake port provided closer to a central axis of the supply port than the supply port and configured to suck a gas containing particles on the target object by suction of the suction pump; cylindrical member disposed along a central axis of the supply port; a partition plate configured to partition a gas supplied to the supply port and a gas sucked from the intake port; a first flow path, through which a gas supplied from an outside of the housing flows toward the supply port, formed between an inner wall surface of the housing and an outer wall surface of the partition plate, the first flow path having a ceiling that is gradually decreased while rotating about the central axis of the supply port in a direction in which the gas supplied from the outside of the housing flows; and a second flow path, through which the gas sucked from the intake port flows toward the outside of the housing, formed between an inner wall surface of the partition plate and an outer wall surface of the cylindrical member, the second flow path having a ceiling that is gradually increased while rotating about the cylindrical member in a direction in which the gas sucked from the intake port flows. ### Claim 11 (depends on 10) The particle collecting system of claim 10, further comprising: a particle counter provided between the particle collecting apparatus and the flow speed meter and configured to measure the number of particles contained in a gas sucked through the particle collecting apparatus.