Method and apparatus for joining protective tape

A method for joining a protective tape, comprising the steps of:

• rolling a joining roller on a wide protective tape supplied onto a semiconductor wafer while pressing the joining roller against a non-adhesive face of the semiconductor wafer, thereby joining the protective tape to the semiconductor wafer;
• sticking a cutter blade out of an outer periphery of the semiconductor wafer;
• and
• forcibly tilting the cutter blade on a tape cutting point of the cutter blade by means of an actuator, so as to allow the cutter blade to relatively travel along the outer periphery of the semiconductor wafer while varying a crossing angle of the cutter blade with respect to the surface of the semiconductor wafer.

A method for joining a protective tape, comprising the steps of:

• rolling a joining roller on a wide protective tape supplied onto a semiconductor wafer while pressing the joining roller against a non-adhesive face of the semiconductor wafer, thereby joining the protective tape to the semiconductor wafer;
• sticking a cutter blade out of an outer periphery of the semiconductor wafer;
• and
• allowing the cutter blade to relatively travel along the outer periphery of the semiconductor wafer while forcibly moving the cutter blade to plural positions at different distances from a turn center of the cutter blade by means of an actuator.

A method for joining a protective tape, comprising the steps of:

• rolling a joining roller on a wide protective tape supplied onto a semiconductor wafer while pressing the joining roller against a non-adhesive face of the semiconductor wafer, thereby joining the protective tape to the semiconductor wafer;
• sticking a cutter blade out of an outer periphery of the semiconductor wafer;
• and
• movably supporting the cutter blade in its turn radial direction and biasing the cutter blade in a direction approaching a turn center, so as to allow the cutter blade to relatively travel along the outer periphery of the semiconductor wafer while forcibly moving the biased cutter blade in a direction reverse to the bias direction by means of an actuator.

An apparatus for joining a protective tape, comprising:

• protective tape supplying means for supplying a protective tape onto a surface of a semiconductor wafer mounted on and held by a chuck table;
• a joining unit for rolling a joining roller on the protective tape, thereby joining the protective tape to the surface of the semiconductor wafer while pressing the protective tape against the semiconductor wafer;
• a protective tape cutting mechanism for cutting the joined protective tape in conformity with an outer shape of the semiconductor wafer while allowing the cutter blade to travel along the outer periphery of the semiconductor wafer in a state where a cutter blade sticks out of the protective tape joined onto the semiconductor wafer;
• cutter ascending/descending means, provided in the protective tape cutting mechanism, for ascending/descending the cutter blade between an upper standby position and a lower cutting acting position;
• cutter turning means for turning the cutter blade located at the cutting acting position on a vertical axis passing substantially the center of the chuck table;
• and
• plural adjusting means such configured as to be independently controlled by an actuator in such a manner as to vary a posture or position of the cutter blade.