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US 2010/0147181 A1Published application
Elevator-based tool loading and buffering system
AssigneeBrooks Automation, Inc.
InventorsMichael L. Bufano, Gerald M. Friedman, Christopher Hofmeister, Ulysses Gilchrist, William Fosnight
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
An exemplary embodiment a substrate transport system is provided. The system has a guideway and at least one transport vehicle. The transport vehicle is adapted for holding at least one substrate and capable of being supported from and moving along the guideway. The guideway comprises at least one travel lane for the vehicle and at least one access lane offset from the travel lane allowing the vehicle selectable access on and off the travel lane.
Claims22
A substrate transport system comprising:
- a guideway;
- and
- at least one transport vehicle adapted for holding at least one substrate and capable of being supported from and moving along the guideway;
- wherein the guideway comprises at least one travel lane for the at least one vehicle and at least one access lane extending substantially along and offset from the travel lane and configured to define selectable access on and off the travel lane for the vehicle, the selectable access being arranged so that the travel lane, access lane and selectable access define a selectable substantially restrictionless path along the guideway for the vehicle to have a substantially unrestricted selectably variable transport rate along the guideway independent of impediments to the vehicle transport rate disposed along the travel lane.
1 more element
A substrate transport system comprising:
- a guideway;
- and
- transport vehicles, each of which is adapted for holding at least one substrate and capable of being supported from and moving along the guideway;
- wherein a section of the guideway, defining a predetermined travel direction for the transport vehicles on the guideway, comprises at least one travel lane for the transport vehicles in the predetermined travel direction and at least one access lane offset from the travel lane and extending substantially along the travel lane in the predetermined travel direction allowing the vehicles selectable access on and off the travel lane;
- the travel lane and access lane being arranged to enable transport vehicles serially and proximally positioned on the travel lane and having different transport rates in the predetermined direction, so that one of the transport vehicles is overtaking another, to avoid each other by accessing the access lane substantially without restriction to the transport rate of the overtaking transport vehicle.
2 more elements
A substrate transport system comprising:
- a guideway;
- and
- at least one transport vehicle adapted for holding at least one substrate and capable of being supported from and moving along the guideway at a selectably variable transport rate;
- wherein the guideway comprises at least one travel lane for the at least one vehicle and at least one access lane extending substantially along and offset from the travel lane allowing the vehicle selectable access on and off the travel lane so that the selectably variable transport rate of the vehicle along the guideway is selectable substantially without restriction substantially everywhere along the guideway.
1 more element
A substrate transport system comprising:
- a guideway;
- and
- at least one transport vehicle, adapted for holding at least one substrate and capable of being supported from and moving along the guideway;
- wherein a section of the guideway, defining a predetermined travel direction for the at least one vehicle on the guideway, comprises at least one travel lane for the at least one vehicle in the predetermined travel direction and at least one access lane extending substantially along the travel lane in the predetermined travel direction and being arranged to allow the at least one vehicle selectable access on and off the travel lane so that the at least one vehicle traveling in the predetermined travel direction along the guideway has a predetermined travel rate substantially independent of another transport vehicle positioned serially and proximally to the at least one vehicle on the travel lane.
1 more element
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.