Substrate processing system

A substrate processing system comprising:

• a frame;
• a substrate processing station and at least one substrate input or output station connected to the frame and forming a substrate process echelon of the substrate processing system;
• a substrate transport movably mounted to the frame and configured to transport substrates along the substrate processing echelon between the input or output station and substrate processing station, the substrate transport forming a transport echelon of the substrate processing system;
• a suite of sensors including, transport echelon sensors communicably coupled to the substrate transport disposed to sense transport echelon predetermined characteristics, and process echelon metrology sensors disposed to sense process echelon metrology predetermined characteristics, different than the transport echelon predetermined characteristics;
• and
• a controller communicably coupled to the transport echelon sensors and the metrology echelon sensors, and configured to generate, from sensor data embodying both the transport echelon predetermined characteristics, and the process echelon metrology predetermined characteristics, a set of predetermined functional characteristic indices, each index corresponding to a different respective predetermined functional characteristic, of the substrate transport transporting the substrate or of the substrate processing echelon, and informing a relationship between the respective predetermined functional characteristic and a motion quality of the substrate transported by the substrate transport;
• and
• the controller is configured to determine from the set of predetermined functional characteristic indices an integral holistic measure index of holistic motion quality of the substrate transported by the substrate transport.

A method comprising:

• providing a substrate processing system having:
• a frame forming a substrate transport space within the substrate processing system
• a substrate transport apparatus operably coupled to the frame with a movable arm and a drive section configured to move the movable arm and transport a substrate, held on an end effector of the arm, through the transport space from a first position of the substrate processing system to a second position of the substrate processing system different than the first position, and
• a controller operably coupled to the movable arm and drive section so as to effect movement of the movable arm to the different system positions;
• sensing with at least one arm motion sensor, coupled to the controller, arm motion predetermined characteristics;
• sensing with at least one system metrology sensor, coupled to the controller, system metrology predetermined characteristics, different that the arm motion predetermined characteristics;
• registering data, with the controller, from at least one of the at least one arm motion sensor and the at least one system metrology sensor, and determining from the registered data a set of predetermined functional characteristic indices, each index corresponding to a different respective predetermined functional characteristic, of arm motion transporting the substrate or of the substrate processing system, and informing a relationship between the respective predetermined functional characteristic and a motion quality of the substrate transported by the movable arm;
• and
• determining, with the controller, from the set of predetermined functional characteristic indices an integral holistic measure index of holistic motion quality of the substrate transported by the movable arm.