US 8,783,463 B2 · Wafer container with tubular environmental control components

Abstract

A wafer container utilizes a rigid polymer tubular tower with slots and a “getter” therein for absorbing and filtering moisture and vapors within the wafer container. The tower preferably utilizes a purge grommet at the base of the container and may have a check valve therein to control the flow direction of gas (including air) into and out of the container and with respect to the tower. The tower is sealingly connected with the grommet. The tower may have a getter media piece rolled in an elongate circular fashion forming or shaped as a tube and disposed within the tower and may have axially extending. The media can provide active and/or passive filtration as well as having capabilities to be recharged. Front opening wafer containers for 300 mm sized wafers generally have a pair of recesses on each of the left and right side in the inside rear of the container portions. These recesses are preferably utilized for elongate towers, such towers extending substantially from a bottom wafer position to a top wafer position. In alternative embodiment, a tubular shape of getter material is exposed within the front opening container without containment of the getter other than at the ends. The tubular getter form is preferably supported at discrete locations to maximize exposure to the internal container environment. A blocker member can selectively close the apertures. An elastomeric cap can facilitate securement of the tubular component in the container portion.

Claims28

Dependent claims

A front opening wafer container for wafers 300 mm and larger, the container comprising:

a container portion having container wall that extends around a closed left side, a closed right side, a closed bottom, a closed top, and a closed backside defining an open interior, the container portion having a plurality of horizontal wafer shelves spaced apart, affixed therein and defining a generally cylindrical wafer receiving region in the open interior for holding a stack of horizontal spaced apart wafers seated in the shelves, a door frame defining an open front, wherein the container portion wall at the back side has a inwardly extending recess extending from the top of the container portion to the bottom of the container portion, at both lateral sides of the recess a protruding portion of the shell defines a pair of upright feet for seating the wafer container when the wafer container is rotated backwardly with the open front facing upwardly, the feet defining interior compartments,
each compartment having a pair of opposing side wall portions, a back wall portion, two interior vertical corners, a top wall portion and a bottom wall portion;
a door to fit in the open front and latchable to the door frame;
at least one elongate tubular environmental control component, secured within one of said compartments and being spaced from the pair of side wall portions and the back wall portion, the elongate tubular environmental control component having a length and the length extending substantially a distance between the top wall portion and the bottom wall portion, wherein the elongate tubular environmental control component has an axis that is upright and the elongate tubular environmental control component is connected to the bottom of the container portion at a purge port that is offset from the axis of the tubular environmental control component.

1 more element

A front opening wafer container for wafers 300 mm and larger, comprising:

a container portion having container wall that extends around a closed left side, a closed right side, a closed bottom, a closed top, and a closed backside defining an open interior, the container portion having a plurality of horizontal wafer shelves spaced apart, affixed therein and defining a generally cylindrical wafer receiving region in the open interior for holding a stack of horizontal spaced apart wafers seated in the shelves, a door frame defining an open front, wherein the container portion wall at the back side has a pair of corner regions extending from the top of the container portion to the bottom of the container portion;
a door to fit in the open front and latchable to the door frame;
a pair of elongate tubular environmental control components positioned in the corner regions, each elongate tubular environmental control component having a containment portion with an interior and a plurality of apertures providing communication between the interior of the containment portion and the open interior of the container portion, and wherein each of the elongate tubular environmental control component has an axis that is upright and the elongate tubular environmental control component is connected to the bottom of the container portion at a purge port that is offset from the axis of the tubular environmental control component.

A front opening wafer container for wafers 300 mm and larger, the wafer container comprising:

a container portion having container wall that extends around a closed left side, a closed right side, a closed bottom, a closed top, and a closed backside defining an open interior, the container portion having a plurality of horizontal wafer shelves spaced apart, affixed therein and defining a generally cylindrical wafer receiving region in the open interior for holding a stack of horizontal spaced apart wafers seated in the shelves, a door frame defining an open front, wherein the container portion wall at the back side has a pair of corner regions extending from the top of the container portion to the bottom of the container portion;
a door to fit in the open front and latchable to the door frame;
an elongate tubular environmental control component positioned in one of the corner regions, said elongate tubular environmental control component having a containment portion with an interior and a plurality of apertures providing communication between the interior of the containment portion and the open interior of the container portion, and wherein said elongate tubular environmental control component has an axis that is upright and the elongate tubular environmental control component is connected to the bottom of the container portion at a purge port that is offset from the axis of the tubular environmental control component, and wherein the elongate tubular environmental control component is comprised of two elongate portions, each elongate portion connected to the other by at least one of a plurality of latches and hinges, the two portions defining a containment portion.

A front opening wafer container comprising:

a container portion having container wall that extends around a closed left side, a closed right side, a closed bottom, a closed top, and a closed backside defining an open interior, the container portion having a plurality of horizontal wafer shelves spaced apart, affixed therein and defining a generally cylindrical wafer receiving region in the open interior for holding a stack of horizontal spaced apart wafers seated in the shelves, a door frame defining an open front, wherein the container portion wall at the back side has a pair of corner regions extending from the top of the container portion to the bottom of the container portion;
a door to fit in the open front and latchable to the door frame;
an elongate tubular environmental control component positioned in the container portion and extending substantially from the bottom of the container portion to the top of the container portion, said elongate tubular environmental control component having a containment portion with an interior and a plurality of apertures providing communication between the interior of the containment portion and the open interior of the container portion, and wherein said elongate tubular environmental control component has an axis that is upright and is connected to the bottom of the container portion at a purge port and wherein the elongate tubular environmental control component is further comprised of an elongate blocking member that is positionable on the tubular environmental control component to selectively obstruct the communication between the interior of the containment portion and the open interior of the container portion.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Wafer container with tubular environmental control components

Life of this patent

Wafer container with tubular environmental control components

Life of this patent

Abstract

Claims28