Autonomous mobile robot and semiconductor manufacturing equipment including the same

Semiconductor manufacturing equipment comprising:

• a plurality of semiconductor manufacturing apparatuses for manufacturing semiconductor devices;
• an autonomous mobile robot (AMR) capable of autonomously moving along an autonomous motion path between the plurality of semiconductor manufacturing apparatuses to supply materials to or perform maintenance on any one of the plurality of semiconductor manufacturing apparatuses;
• and
• a motion controller capable of applying a control signal to the AMR in a wireless manner to control motion of the AMR,
• wherein the AMR comprises:
• an autonomous mobile module capable of autonomously moving along a certain path between the plurality of semiconductor manufacturing apparatuses;
• and
• a loading module provided as a transferable structure comprising a manipulator for supplying materials to or performing maintenance on any one of the plurality of semiconductor manufacturing apparatuses, and docked to and transferred by the autonomous mobile module, and
• wherein, in the autonomous mobile module, a male coupler rotatably protruding from a docking surface of the autonomous mobile module so as to be inserted into a female coupler of the loading module is flexibly supported by a first elastic member so as to be easily inserted into the female coupler despite a stop position error of the autonomous mobile module when the loading module is docked, and
• wherein the male coupler includes a coupler body having a bottom surface connected to the first elastic member.

An autonomous mobile robot (AMR) comprising:

• an autonomous mobile module capable of autonomously moving along a certain path between a plurality of semiconductor manufacturing apparatuses disposed in semiconductor manufacturing equipment for manufacturing semiconductor devices, to supply materials to or perform maintenance on any one of the plurality of semiconductor manufacturing apparatuses in the semiconductor manufacturing equipment;
• and
• a loading module provided as a transferable structure comprising a manipulator for supplying materials to or performing maintenance on any one of the plurality of semiconductor manufacturing apparatuses, and docked to and transferred by the autonomous mobile module,
• wherein, in the autonomous mobile module, a male coupler rotatably protruding from a docking surface of the autonomous mobile module so as to be inserted into a female coupler of the loading module is flexibly supported by a first elastic member so as to be easily inserted into the female coupler despite a stop position error of the autonomous mobile module when the loading module is docked,
• wherein the autonomous mobile module comprises:
• a mobile body provided with a plurality of wheel units to autonomously move between the plurality of semiconductor manufacturing apparatuses in the semiconductor manufacturing equipment;
• a docking plate provided in a plate shape to provide a flat docking surface on an upper surface of the docking plate, and mounted on an upper surface of the mobile body;
• and
• the male coupler rotatably mounted on the docking surface of the docking plate so as to be inserted into the female coupler of the loading module,
• wherein the male coupler comprises:
• a coupler body provided in a shape corresponding to at least a portion of a shape of the female coupler of the loading module;
• and
• a rotating cylinder provided in a cylindrical shape overall, rotatably mounted on the docking plate, and provided as the first elastic member comprising a first coil spring produced by spirally coiling a wire rod with a circular horizontal cross-section, to flexibly support the coupler body,
• wherein the female coupler comprises:
• a coupler holder provided in a cylindrical shape;
• a docking indentation concavely formed from a lower surface of the coupler holder to have a circular horizontal cross-section;
• a bump indentation concavely formed sideward or upward from the docking indentation in a certain shape;
• and
• a second elastic member comprising a second coil spring produced by spirally coiling a wire rod with a circular horizontal cross-section in a cylindrical shape overall, in such a manner that the coupler holder is flexibly supported by the loading module,
• wherein the coupler body comprises:
• a docking protrusion provided in a circular plate shape or cylindrical shape having a smaller diameter than the coupler holder so as to be at least partially inserted into the docking indentation;
• and
• a bump protruding sideward or upward from the docking protrusion in a shape corresponding to at least a portion of a shape of the bump indentation so as to be at least partially inserted into the bump indentation,
• wherein a plurality of first contact terminals are radially and equiangularly disposed on a bottom surface of the docking indentation of the female coupler with respect to a center of the docking indentation, and
• wherein a plurality of second contact terminals are radially and equiangularly disposed on an upper surface of the docking protrusion of the male coupler with respect to a center of the docking protrusion.