Wafer carrier handling apparatus and method thereof
AssigneeTaiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company, Ltd.
InventorsTsung-Sheng Kuo, Chih-Hung Huang, Ming-Hsien Tsai, Yang-Ann Chu, Hsuan Lee, Jiun-Rong Pai
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Abstract
A wafer carrier handling apparatus includes a housing, a platform, a moving mechanism and a door storage device. The platform is configured to hold a wafer carrier. The moving mechanism is connected to the housing and configured to move the platform with respect to the housing. The door storage device is disposed above the housing. The door storage device has a first door storage zone. The first door storage zone is configured to allow a door of the wafer carrier to be held thereon.
Claims20
A wafer carrier handling apparatus, comprising:
- a housing;
- a wafer carrier supporting platform above the housing;
- a moving mechanism connected between the housing and the wafer carrier supporting platform and configured to move the wafer carrier supporting platform with respect to the housing;
- and
- a door storage device disposed above the housing, the door storage device comprising a front surface extending upwardly from the housing and facing toward the wafer carrier supporting platform, a first door storage zone within a lower region of the front surface, a second door storage zone within an upper region of the front surface, a first suction head within the first door storage zone, and a second suction head within the second door storage zone and above the first suction head, wherein the first and second suction heads are operative to simultaneously hold doors released from multiple wafer carriers.
A wafer carrier handling apparatus, comprising:
- a processing equipment having a front wall and an opening on the front wall;
- a housing in front of the opening of the processing equipment;
- a platform above the housing and configured to hold a first wafer carrier;
- a moving mechanism connected between the housing and the platform and configured to move the platform to load the first wafer carrier into the processing equipment through the opening;
- a transceiver disposed on the housing and configured to inform a delivery machine above the platform that the platform is ready to receive a second wafer carrier;
- and
- a door storage device disposed above the housing and having a plurality of suction heads operative to hold doors released from multiple wafer carriers, wherein the suction heads are arranged on a surface of the door storage device perpendicular to the front wall of the processing equipment.
A method, comprising:
- detaching a first door from a first wafer carrier and storing the first door at a first door storage zone on a front surface of a door storage device;
- moving the first wafer carrier into a processing equipment along a direction parallel to the front surface of the door storage device after detaching the first door from the first wafer carrier;
- detaching a second door from a second wafer carrier and storing the second door at a second door storage zone;
- and
- moving the second wafer carrier into the processing equipment after detaching the second door from the second wafer carrier.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.