US 5,957,292 AGranted

Wafer enclosure with door

AssigneeFluoroware, Inc.

InventorsKirk J. Mikkelsen, Michael S. Adams, Greg Bores, Brian S. Wiseman

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Abstract

A sealable enclosure for wafers has a door with an easily accessible and disassembleable latching mechanism which utilizes a minimal number of moving parts. The door includes an enclosure with a cammed member rotatable on a post and in engagement with a pair of latching arms that extend, retract, move upwardly and downwardly or forwardly and rearwardly depending on whether the door is a front side door or a bottom door. The movement of the latching arms is accomplished by cammed portion of the cammed member configured to move cam follower portions of the latching arms in an axial direction with respect to the cammed member and in a radial direction. The latching arm pivots on a fulcrum within the enclosure. The latching mechanism is accessible through a panel that attaches by integral detents on the panel that cooperate with recesses on the interior edge walls of the door enclosure. The rotatable member has a slotted center and is secured on a T-shaped post extending from the enclosure by placement on the post in an insertion rotational position. When assembled the rotation of the cammed member is restricted to the operative range by stops on the enclosure.

In combination, a sealable enclosure for semiconductor wafers having a cooperating door and an improved latching mechanism for said door, the enclosure generally comprising a container portion with an open interior and a generally rectangular door frame portion defining an open side, the door frame portion having at least two latch receivers positioned opposite from each other with respect to the open side;

the cooperating door comprising a door enclosure having an outer periphery sized for insertion in the door frame portion, the door periphery having at least two openings corresponding to the latch receivers on the door frame portion;
the improved latching mechanism comprising:
a) an integral latching arm comprising an "S" shaped cam follower portion on one end and a latch portion on the opposite end, the cam follower portion having a first cam engagement surface facing substantially radially inward and a first supplemental cam engagement surface opposite the first cam engagement surface and facing substantially radially outward, a second cam engagement surface facing substantially axially upward and a second supplemental cam engagement surface facing substantially axially downward, said cam engagement surfaces located on the S-shaped cam follower portion;
and
b) a rotatable cammed member in an interior of the door enclosure rotatably attached to the door enclosure and rotatable from exterior of said door, the cammed member having a pair of substantially axially facing cam surfaces that slidingly engage and cooperate with both the second cam engagement surface and the second supplemental cam engagement surface of the S-shaped cam follower, the cammed member further has a pair of substantially radially facing and oppositely facing cam surfaces that slidingly engage and cooperate with the first cam engagement surface and the first supplemental cam engagement surface of the S-shaped cam follower;
whereby the pair of substantially radially facing surfaces and the pair of substantially axially facing surfaces combine to engage and capture the S-shaped cam follower portion.

3 more elements

Abstract

Claims10