Transport device for workpieces in a vacuum system
AssigneeBalzers Aktiengesellschaft
InventorsHans Wolf, Reiner Hinterschuster, Guenter Kemmerer
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A device for transporting substrates through a vacuum system has a flat, parallel piped, plate-shaped substrate holder with upper and lower holder areas that are moveable in a vertical position along a transport path through the system. The upper part of the substrate holder is supported without contact and is movably guided by a magnetic arrangement.
Claims12
A device for transporting a plate-shaped substrate in and through a vacuum treatment system having at least one treatment station with a parallelepiped substrate holder with an upper edge area and a lower edge area, the substrate being adapted to be held in a vertical plane in the substrate holder and the substrate holder being adapted to be held in a vertical plane in the treatment station, the device comprising:
- drive means in the treatment station for engaging the lower edge area of the substrate holder for both supporting and driving the substrate holder along a horizontal transport path in the treatment station while permitting tilting of the substrate holder in a direction transversely to the horizontal transport path and about the drive means;
- and
- magnetic means in the treatment station spaced vertically above the drive means and operatively engaged with the upper edge area of the substrate holder for centering the upper edge area of the substrate holder with respect to the magnetic means to resist tilting of the substrate holder for maintaining the substrate holder vertically while the substrate holder is moved along the horizontal transport path by the drive means.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.