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US 2019/0160690 A1Published application
Transport apparatus
AssigneeBrooks Automation, Inc.
InventorsUlysses GILCHRIST, Jairo Terra MOURA
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A substrate transport apparatus for transporting substrates, the substrate transport apparatus including a frame, at least one transfer arm connected to the frame, at least one end effector mounted to the at least one transfer arm and at least one substrate support pad disposed on the at least one end effector, the at least one substrate support pad has a configuration that effects increased friction force, resulting from an increased friction coefficient, in at least one predetermined direction.
Claims20
A substrate transport apparatus for transporting substrates, the substrate transport apparatus comprising:
- a frame;
- at least one transfer arm connected to the frame;
- at least one end effector mounted to the at least one transfer arm;
- and
- at least one passive substrate support pad disposed on the at least one end effector so that the at least one passive substrate support pad is fixed to the at least one end effector in a fixed position relative to the at least one end effector so as to hold a substrate on the at least one passive substrate support pad, the at least one passive substrate support pad has a configuration that passively effects, substantially coincident with the substrate coming in contact with the at least one end effector by coming into contact with at least one predetermined contact area of the at least one passive substrate support pad along a common contact plane defined by the substrate on the at least one passive substrate support pad, a substantially predetermined coefficient of friction, passively determined by and substantially coincident with the substrate coming in contact with the at least one end effector and the at least one predetermined contact area, that is directionally variable so that the predetermined coefficient of friction, on a common portion of the at least one predetermined contact area contacting the common contact plane, has a predetermined passive peak magnitude with respect to different coplanar directions coincident with the common contact plane to provide a directionally deterministic friction force, independently and passively affixing the substrate to the at least one passive substrate support pad along the common contact plane, resulting from a directionally deterministic peak friction coefficient, in at least one predetermined direction of the different coplanar directions than a coefficient of friction in another predetermined direction of the different coplanar directions.
2 more elements
A substrate holding device comprising:
- a drive section;
- and
- a substrate support connected to the drive section, the substrate support includes at least one passive substrate support pad fixed to the substrate support at a fixed position relative to the substrate support and having a configuration that passively effects, substantially coincident with the substrate coming in contact with the substrate support by coming into contact with at least one predetermined contact area of the at least one passive substrate support pad along a common contact plane defined by the substrate on the at least one passive substrate support pad, a substantially predetermined coefficient of friction, passively determined by and substantially coincident with the substrate coming in contact with the substrate support and the at least one predetermined contact area, that is directionally variable so that the predetermined coefficient of friction, on a common portion of the at least one predetermined contact area contacting the common contact plane, has a predetermined passive peak magnitude with respect to different coplanar directions coincident with the common contact plane to provide a directionally deterministic friction force, independently and passively affixing the substrate to the at least one passive substrate support pad along the common contact plane, resulting from a directionally deterministic peak friction coefficient, in at least one predetermined direction of the different coplanar directions than a coefficient of friction in another predetermined direction of the different coplanar directions.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.