# US 12,112,961 B2 · Substrate processing system, load port and method

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- Number: US 12,112,961 B2
- Document ID: US12112961B2
- Status: Granted
- Kind: B2
- Application number: 17/174,991
- Filed: 2021-02-12
- Published: 2022-08-04
- Granted: 2024-10-08
- Earliest claimed: 2021-02-01
- Assignees: Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company, Ltd.; Tsmc China Company Limited
- Applicants: Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company, Ltd.; Tsmc China Company, Limited
- Inventors: Chuang Li; Honghua Zhu
- Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US12112961B2

## CPC

- H10P 72/0606: {Position monitoring, e.g. misposition detection or presence detection}
- F26B 11/026: {Arrangements for charging or discharging the materials to be dried, e.g. discharging by reversing drum rotation, using spiral-type inserts}
- G01G 1/00: Weighing apparatus involving the use of a counterweight or other counterbalancing mass
- G01G 19/62: Over or under weighing apparatus
- H10P 72/0408: {for drying}
- H10P 72/0604: {Process monitoring, e.g. flow or thickness monitoring}
- H10P 72/3411: {involving loading and unloading of wafers}
- H10P 72/7618: {characterised by a movable susceptor, stage or support, others than those only rotating on their own vertical axis, e.g. susceptors on a rotating carrousel}
- H10P 72/7621: {characterised by supporting two or more semiconductor substrates}
- H10P: GENERIC PROCESSES OR APPARATUS FOR THE MANUFACTURE OR TREATMENT OF DEVICES COVERED BY CLASS H10
- F26B: DRYING SOLID MATERIALS OR OBJECTS BY REMOVING LIQUID THEREFROM (drying devices for combines A01D41/133; racks for drying fruit or vegetables A01F25/12; drying foodstuffs A23; drying hair A45D20/00; body-drying implements A47K10/00; drying household articles A47L; drying gases or vapours B01D; chemical or physical processes for dewatering or like separating liquids from solids B01D43/00; centrifugal apparatus B04; drying ceramics C04B33/30; drying yarns or fabrics in association with some other form of treatment D06C; drying frames for laundry without heating or positive air circulation, domestic laundry-or spin-driers, wringing or hot pressing laundry D06F; furnaces, kilns, ovens F27)
- G01G: WEIGHING (sorting by weighing B07C5/16)

## Abstract

A system includes at least one sensor and at least one controller. The at least one sensor is configured to generate a first weight signal corresponding to a first weight of a first lot of substrates, and a second weight signal corresponding to a second weight of a second lot of substrates. The at least one controller is coupled to the at least one sensor to receive the first weight signal and the second weight signal. The at least one controller is configured to convert a weight difference between the first weight and the second weight into a number of substrates each having a predetermined weight. The at least one controller is further configured to, based on the converted number of substrates, control a processing apparatus to rotate the first lot of substrates and the second lot of substrates simultaneously.

## Claims

### Claim 1

A system, comprising:
at least one sensor configured to generate
a first weight signal corresponding to a first weight of a first lot of substrates, and
a second weight signal corresponding to a second weight of a second lot of substrates,
at least one controller coupled to the at least one sensor to receive the first weight signal and the second weight signal, the at least one controller configured to
convert a weight difference between the first weight and the second weight into a number of substrates each having a predetermined weight, and
based on the converted number of substrates, control a processing apparatus to rotate the first lot of substrates and the second lot of substrates simultaneously.

### Claim 2 (depends on 1)

The system of claim 1, wherein
the at least one controller is further configured to
generate an indicator indicating whether the first weight is heavier or lighter than the second weight, and
based on the indicator and the converted number of substrates, control the processing apparatus to rotate the first lot of substrates and the second lot of substrates simultaneously.

### Claim 3 (depends on 2)

The system of claim 2, further comprising:
the processing apparatus,
wherein
the processing apparatus comprises a balancing mechanism, and
the at least one controller is configured to, based on the indicator and the converted number of substrates, control the balancing mechanism to balance a rotation of the first lot of substrates and the second lot of substrates simultaneously.

### Claim 4 (depends on 3)

The system of claim 3, wherein
the balancing mechanism comprises at least one counterweight, and
the at least one controller is configured to, based on the indicator and the converted number of substrates, control the balancing mechanism to move the at least one counterweight relative to at least one of the first lot of substrates or the second lot of substrates, for balancing the rotation of the first lot of substrates and the second lot of substrates simultaneously.

### Claim 5 (depends on 1)

The system of claim 1, further comprising:
a first cassette support configured to support thereon a first cassette containing the first lot of substrates,
wherein the at least one sensor comprises at least one first sensor coupled to the first cassette support and configured to generate the first weight signal corresponding to a first total weight of the first cassette and the first lot of substrates.

### Claim 6 (depends on 5)

The system of claim 5, further comprising:
a second cassette support configured to support thereon a second cassette containing the second lot of substrates,
wherein the at least one sensor further comprises at least one second sensor coupled to the second cassette support and configured to generate the second weight signal corresponding to a second total weight of the second cassette and the second lot of substrates.

### Claim 7 (depends on 6)

The system of claim 6, wherein
the at least one first sensor comprises a plurality of first sensors,
the at least one second sensor comprises a plurality of second sensors,
the system further comprising:
a plurality of first rods each extending downwardly from a bottom of the first cassette support to a corresponding first sensor among the plurality of first sensors, the plurality of first rods configured to transfer a first load corresponding to the first total weight to the plurality of first sensors; and
a plurality of second rods each extending downwardly from a bottom of the second cassette support to a corresponding second sensor among the plurality of second sensors, the plurality of second rods configured to transfer a second load corresponding to the second total weight to the plurality of second sensors.

### Claim 8 (depends on 6)

The system of claim 6, wherein the system is a wafer processing system comprising:
a plurality of processing apparatuses, including the processing apparatus which is a spin dryer;
a housing in which the plurality of processing apparatuses is accommodated; and
a load port configured to load the first lot of substrates and the second lot of substrates into the housing for processing by one or more of the plurality of processing apparatuses,
wherein the load port comprises the first cassette support, the second cassette support, the at least one first sensor, and the at least one second sensor.

### Claim 9 (depends on 6)

The system of claim 6, wherein the at least one controller comprises:
an analog-to-digital converter (ADC) configured to
convert the first weight signal into first weight data corresponding to the first weight, and
convert the second weight signal into second weight data corresponding to the second weight; and
a processing circuitry coupled to the ADC to receive the first weight data and the second weight data, the processing circuitry configured to
generate a plurality of first bits corresponding to the converted number of substrates, and
generate a second bit, wherein a first logic state of the second bit indicates that the first weight is heavier than the second weight, and an opposite, second logic state of the second bit indicates that the first weight is lighter than the second weight.

### Claim 10 (depends on 9)

The system of claim 9, wherein the at least one controller comprises:
a microcontroller (MCU) comprising the ADC and the processing circuitry; and
a programmable logic controller (PLC) coupled to the MCU to receive the plurality of first bits and the second bit, the PLC configured to, based on the plurality of first bits and the second bit, control the processing apparatus to balance a rotation of the first lot of substrates and the second lot of substrates simultaneously.

### Claim 11

A load port for a wafer processing system, the load port comprising:
a first cassette support configured to support thereon a first cassette containing a first lot of wafers;
at least one first sensor coupled to the first cassette support and configured to generate a first weight signal corresponding to a first total weight of the first cassette and the first lot of wafers;
a second cassette support configured to support thereon a second cassette containing a second lot of wafers;
at least one second sensor coupled to the second cassette support and configured to generate a second weight signal corresponding to a second total weight of the second cassette and the second lot of wafers; and
a microcontroller (MCU) coupled to the at least one first sensor and the at least one second sensor to receive the first weight signal and the second weight signal, respectively, the MCU configured to
convert a weight difference between the first total weight and the second total weight into a number of wafers each having a predetermined weight,
generate an indicator indicating whether the first lot of wafers is heavier or lighter than the second lot of wafers, and
output the indicator and the converted number of wafers to a controller of a processing apparatus of the wafer processing system to enable the controller to control the processing apparatus to balance a rotation of the first lot of wafers and the second lot of wafers simultaneously.

### Claim 12 (depends on 11)

The load port of claim 11, further comprising:
at least one first rod extending downwardly from a bottom of the first cassette support to the at least one first sensor, the at least one first rod configured to transfer a first load corresponding to the first total weight to the at least one first sensor; and
at least one second rod extending downwardly from a bottom of the second cassette support to the at least one second sensor, the at least one second rod configured to transfer a second load corresponding to the second total weight to the at least one second sensor.

### Claim 13 (depends on 12)

The load port of claim 12, wherein
the first cassette support comprises, on the bottom thereof, at least one first hollow hub in which an upper end of the at least one first rod is received to couple the at least one first rod to the first cassette support, and
the second cassette support comprises, on the bottom thereof, at least one second hollow hub in which an upper end of the at least one second rod is received to couple the at least one second rod to the second cassette support.

### Claim 14 (depends on 12)

The load port of claim 12, further comprising:
a platform over which the first cassette support and the second cassette support are arranged,
wherein the at least one first rod and the at least one second rod extend downwardly from the bottoms of the first cassette support and the second cassette support, respectively, through the platform, to the at least one first sensor and the at least one second sensor, respectively.

### Claim 15 (depends on 11)

The load port of claim 11, wherein the MCU comprises:
an analog-to-digital converter (ADC) configured to
convert the first weight signal into first weight data corresponding to the first total weight, and
convert the second weight signal into second weight data corresponding to the second total weight; and
a processing circuitry coupled to the ADC to receive the first weight data and the
second weight data, the processing circuitry configured to generate a plurality of first bits corresponding to the converted number of wafers, and
generate a second bit, wherein a first logic state of the second bit indicates that the first lot of wafers is heavier than the second lot of wafers, and an opposite, second logic state of the second bit indicates that the first lot of wafers is lighter than the second lot of wafers.

### Claim 16

A method, comprising:
obtaining a weight difference between a first weight of a first lot of substrates and a second weight of a second lot of substrates;
converting the weight difference into a number of substrates each having a predetermined weight;
generating an indicator indicating whether the first weight is heavier or lighter than the second weight; and
based on the converted number of substrates and the indicator, controlling a processing apparatus to balance a rotation of the first lot of substrates and the second lot of substrates simultaneously.

### Claim 17 (depends on 16)

The method of claim 16, wherein
said controlling comprises moving at least one counterweight of a balancing mechanism of the processing apparatus
toward the first lot of substrates mounted in the processing apparatus in response to the indicator indicating that the first weight is lighter than the second weight, and
toward the second lot of substrates mounted in the processing apparatus in response to the indicator indicating that the first weight is heavier than the second weight, and
as a result of said moving, the at least one counterweight is moved a distance corresponding to the converted number of substrates.

### Claim 18 (depends on 16)

The method of claim 16, wherein
an actual weight of a first substrate in the first lot of substrates is different from at least one of
the predetermined weight, or
an actual weight of a second substrate in the second lot of substrates.

### Claim 19 (depends on 16)

The method of claim 16, wherein said obtaining the weight difference comprises:
detecting, by at least one first sensor, a first total weight of a first cassette containing the first lot of substrates and the first weight of the first lot of substrates;
detecting, by at least one second sensor, a second total weight of a second cassette containing the second lot of substrates and the second weight of the second lot of substrates; and
subtracting the first total weight from the second total weight and adopting a result of said subtracting as the weight difference between the first weight of the first lot of substrates and the second weight of the second lot of substrates.

### Claim 20 (depends on 16)

The method of claim 16, wherein
said converting comprises:
dividing the weight difference by the predetermined weight, regardless of whether the predetermined weight is an actual weight of any substrate in the first lot of substrates or the second lot of substrates, and
rounding a result of said dividing to obtain the converted number of substrates, said method further comprising:
inputting, into a controller of the processing apparatus,
a plurality of first bits corresponding to the converted number of substrates, and
a second bit, wherein a first logic state of the second bit indicates that the first weight is heavier than the second weight, and an opposite, second logic state of the second bit indicates that the first weight is lighter than the second weight.