JP4823094B2 - Teeth body and substrate storage container - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a tooth body and a substrate storage container used for a container body of a substrate storage container called a small hoop (SMALL FOUP).

  Various processings are applied to thin semiconductor wafers sliced to 200mm diameter or 300mm diameter, but the processing time of this semiconductor wafer is not uniform and the performance of IC chip Depends on the timing of commercialization, product specifications, etc.

For example, when processing is performed by a memory device manufacturer or the like, especially when the processing target is a general-purpose product, mass production is required, so it takes a long time (for example, 30 to 40 days) through many processes. Processing is performed.
On the other hand, in the case of processing by an LSI manufacturer or the like, it is necessary to respond to requests for high-mix low-volume production, trial manufacture of prototypes, and small-lot products, so a short time (for example, 14 to 20 days) Need to be processed in time.

  Therefore, when a semiconductor wafer is processed by an LSI manufacturer or the like, only a few wafers (for example, 25 or 26) can be stored in a dedicated substrate storage container instead of an existing substrate storage container that can store a plurality (for example, 25 or 26). 1 to 3) is stored, and it is preferable that the processing time per sheet is shortened (see Patent Document 1).

This type of substrate storage container has been studied for a configuration including a horizontally long container body (not shown) and a horizontally long lid that opens and closes the front surface of the container body. The container body is molded by injecting the molding material by clamping the cavity mold and core mold of the mold from the viewpoint of economical mass production and high quality. A plurality of pairs of teeth that support each other are integrally disposed (see Patent Document 2).
JP 2006-100712 A JP-A-11-168136

  However, when molding the container body having the above-described structure, the side walls of the container body and the teeth are in an integrated and complicated relationship, so that it is difficult to open the mold and the core mold must be divided. There is a problem that the structure of the mold becomes extremely complicated.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above, and an object thereof is to provide a tooth body and a substrate storage container capable of simplifying the configuration of a mold for molding a container body.

In the present invention, in order to solve the above-mentioned problem, it is built in a front open box type container body having a size capable of storing three or less substrates, and supports the substrates,
A plurality of teeth that are respectively fitted to the inner surfaces of both side walls of the container body to support the peripheral edge of the back surface of the substrate, and a connecting piece that is connected to the inner bottom surface of the container body by connecting the plurality of teeth. It is a feature.
The plurality of teeth and the connecting piece can be integrally formed with a molding material containing resin.

Further, in the present invention, in order to solve the above problems, a front open box type container main body having a size capable of storing three or less substrates is incorporated with a tooth body that supports the substrates,
The teeth body are respectively fitted to the inner surfaces of both side walls of the container body to support the peripheral edge of the back surface of the substrate, and the connecting piece is connected to the inner bottom surface of the container body by connecting the rear portions of the plurality of teeth. It is characterized by comprising.

  The container body is molded and a fitting groove for the teeth body is formed on the inner surface and the inner bottom surface of both side walls, a viewing window is formed on the back wall of the container body, and the teeth body is formed below the viewing window. It is preferable to position the connecting piece.

  Here, the substrate in the claims includes at least aluminum disks, semiconductor wafers, quartz glass, liquid crystal glass and the like having various sizes. If the container body is a front open box type, it does not particularly ask whether it is transparent, opaque or translucent. For this container body, for example, an insert part is inserted into a mold and the mold is clamped, and a molding material is injected into the mold that has been clamped, so that at least a part of the outer shape is formed by the insert part. can do. Specifically, the rear part of the container body including a rear wall that can be partially seen through can be formed by an insert part.

  The insert part can be at least substantially C-shaped, U-shaped, V-shaped in cross section, and is not limited to metal or resin. Moreover, it is preferable that the teeth of the teeth body and the connecting piece are integrally formed of a molding material containing a resin and have a certain degree of flexibility and elasticity. These teeth and connecting pieces can be appropriately formed with a concave portion or a convex portion for positioning and fitting. The same applies to the fitting groove of the container main body and the vicinity thereof. Furthermore, the teeth of the teeth body can be formed on a straight plate or a curved plate, and may be a triangular shape or a wedge shape having a substantially tapered cross section.

  According to the present invention, a separate tooth body is built in the molded container body after the container body is molded.

  According to the present invention, a plurality of teeth that are respectively fitted to the inner surfaces of both side walls of the container main body to support the peripheral edge of the back surface of the substrate, and a connecting piece that is connected to the inner bottom surface of the container main body by connecting the plurality of teeth. Therefore, the structure of the mold for molding the container body can be simplified.

  In addition, if the container body is molded and the fitting grooves for the teeth body are formed on the inner surface and the inner bottom surface of both side walls, the teeth body can be fitted into the fitting groove to stabilize the posture. The position accuracy of the body and the substrate supported by the body can be improved, which can contribute to automation and smoothing of handling the substrate. Furthermore, if a viewing window is formed on the back wall of the container body and the connecting piece of the teeth body is positioned below the viewing window, the view of the viewer using the viewing window is less likely to be narrowed by the connecting piece.

  Hereinafter, a preferred embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. The substrate storage container in the present embodiment has a size capable of storing two semiconductor wafers W as shown in FIGS. An opaque container body 1, a flexible tooth body 20 that is detachably incorporated in the container body 1 and accommodates the semiconductor wafer W, and is detachably fitted to the open front of the container body 1. A lid 30 that is horizontally long when viewed from the front, and an elastic gasket 40 interposed between the container body 1 and the lid 30 are provided.

  The semiconductor wafer W is sliced thinly into a disk having a diameter of 300 mm (12 inches) so that, for example, an IC chip can be efficiently manufactured, and a film such as an oxide film is selectively laminated on the surface. .

  The container body 1, the teeth body 20, and the lid body 30 are made of, for example, polycarbonate, polybutylene terephthalate, cycloolefin polymer, polyetherimide, polyether ketone, carbon, carbon fiber, carbon nanotube, metal fiber, metal oxide, conductive Molded with a molding material to which a functional polymer or the like is added.

  The container body 1 is insert-molded into a front open box type using a predetermined molding material, and the ratio of the length of the front long side to the short side is in the range of 1.6 to 25. It has a space sufficient for aligning and storing the two semiconductor wafers W arranged side by side. The container body 1 is formed in a band shape in which the fitting groove 2 for the teeth body 20 is continuous in the inside, specifically, the inner surface of both side walls and the back side of the inner bottom surface (see FIGS. 3 and 4). ).

  A bottom plate 3 projecting horizontally outward is integrally formed on the bottom surface of the container body 1, and a peripheral edge of the bottom plate 3 is bent upward and exhibits a reinforcing function. Positioning grooves 4 for positioning with respect to a semiconductor processing device (not shown) are bent in a substantially U-shaped or substantially V-shaped cross section at the rear center of the bottom plate 3 and in front of both sides. In addition, weights 5 functioning as counterweights and balancers for the lid 30 are respectively incorporated on both sides of the rear portion of the bottom plate 3 (see FIGS. 1, 4, and 5).

  From the center of the rear portion of the bottom plate 3 to the side, an IC tag 6 for constructing an RFID system, which is a moving body identification device, is selectively mounted, and a plurality of drain holes 7 that function when the container body 1 is washed are predetermined. (See FIGS. 4 and 5). The IC tag 6 and the draining hole 7 are disposed on the front, rear, and side portions of the bottom plate 3 as necessary.

  The ceiling of the container body 1 is formed in a substantially planar polygon having a plurality of steps, and both sides of the rear part are inclined inward so as to correspond to the rear edge of the semiconductor wafer W. As shown in FIG. 2, a cylindrical mounting rib 8 is erected at the center of the ceiling of the container body 1, and a substantially plate-shaped reinforcing rib 9 is erected from the outer peripheral surface of the mounting rib 8. A plurality of elongate radial directions are formed, and screw holes 10 are perforated at the cylindrical tip portions of the reinforcing ribs 9. The mounting ribs 8 and the plurality of screw holes 10 are provided for conveyance. The suspension flange 11 is screwed horizontally through a fastener such as a screw.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the suspension flange 11 is formed in a substantially triangular flat plate and is detachably held from above by a transport mechanism (not shown). Then, by being fitted and held on a slidable suspension plate of the semiconductor processing apparatus, the substrate storage container is set in the processing apparatus in a suspended state.

  The front surface of the container main body 1 is formed in a horizontally-long rectangular opening, and the locking grooves 12 for the lid 30 are cut out in the vertical direction on both sides of the inner peripheral surface. As shown in FIG. 1 and FIG. 2, a plurality of round identification holes 13 are respectively drilled in a vertically aligned state on both sides of the front surface of the container body 1, and the plurality of identification holes 13 are detachably identified. By selectively inserting the body 14, the type of the substrate storage container, the presence / absence of the semiconductor wafer W, the number of sheets, and the like are identified by the processing apparatus.

  The identification body 14 is formed into a pin shape, a split pin shape, a screw shape, a cap shape, or the like using a predetermined synthetic resin such as polycarbonate, and is a detection means of a processing device, such as a transmission type or reflection type photoelectric sensor, photo It is detected by a sensor, a touch sensor or the like.

  As shown in FIG. 3 and FIG. 5, a transparent viewing window 15 is formed in a part of the back wall of the container body 1, for example, at the center of the back wall. By visually utilizing, the presence / absence and state of the stored semiconductor wafer W are observed. The viewing window 15 is formed in a circular shape, an elliptical shape, a polygonal shape, or the like as necessary.

  As shown in FIG. 3 and FIG. 4, the teeth bodies 20 are detachably fitted to the inner surfaces of both side walls of the container body 1 through fitting grooves, respectively, and support a plurality of pairs of semiconductor wafers W from below. And a connecting piece 23 that is connected to the inner bottom surface of the container body 1 through a fitting groove so as to be detachable. It is integrally formed in a U-shape, and is injection-molded separately from the container body 1 before and after the container body 1 is molded. The plurality of pairs of teeth 21 are formed by arranging a plurality of pairs of left and right teeth 21 that horizontally support the semiconductor wafer W at predetermined intervals in the vertical direction.

  Each of the teeth 21 includes, for example, a planar semicircular arc-shaped flat plate 22 that extends along the peripheral edge of the semiconductor wafer W, a front middle region formed on the curved front inner side of the flat plate 22, and a front of the flat plate 22. It is formed on the outside of the front portion from the outside of the front middle thickness region, in other words, from the front thick region located near the side wall of the container body 1 and the rear middle thickness region formed on the rear portion of the flat plate 22. It is integrally formed. Further, the connecting piece 23 is formed in an elongated substantially plane U shape, is inclined downward from the thin end portions of the plurality of teeth 21 and is positioned at the lower end portion of the viewing window 15, and is arranged at the rear periphery of the semiconductor wafer W and the container body 1. It functions so as to avoid interference with the back wall of the viewer and not to obstruct the viewing of the viewer using the viewing window 15 (see FIG. 3).

  Such a tooth 21 has a slight step for contacting the semiconductor wafer between the front middle thickness region and the front thick thickness region, and the front middle thickness region and the rear middle thickness region form the semiconductor wafer W. While supporting substantially horizontally, it functions as a stopper which prevents the semiconductor wafer W storing the front thick region from popping out. By adopting the teeth 21, it is possible to improve the accuracy of the support mounting position of the semiconductor wafer W, and to effectively prevent the semiconductor wafer W from being inclined in the vertical direction during support.

  As shown in FIGS. 2 and 5, the lid 30 includes a horizontally long casing 31 having a substantially dish-shaped cross section that is detachably fitted to the opened front of the container body 1, and the opened front of the casing 31. A horizontally long surface plate 32 that covers the surface of the semiconductor wafer W and a locking mechanism that is built in the housing 31 and is covered with the surface plate 32 are provided. An elastic front retainer 33 that is held in a removable manner is detachably mounted (see FIG. 5).

  Although not shown, for example, the locking mechanism is supported on both inner sides of the casing 31 via a support piece and slides inward and outward, and a locking groove of the container body 1 mounted on the distal end of each driving shaft. 12 that can be protruded and retracted to interfere with each other, a stopper that is attached to the end portion of each drive shaft and restricts excessive sliding thereof, and that is inserted into each drive shaft and is attached to the peripheral wall side of the housing 31. The cover 30 is provided with a coil spring that penetrates and exposes from the portion, and the lid 30 fitted to the front surface of the container body 1 is firmly locked. A rotatable roller slidably in contact with the locking groove 12 of the container body 1 is selectively supported at the tip of each locking claw, and this roller effectively prevents the generation of particles due to the contact.

  The gasket 40 is formed into an endless frame shape that can be elastically deformed using, for example, fluorine rubber, silicone rubber, or the like, and is formed between the front inner peripheral portion of the container body 1 and the peripheral portion of the casing 31 that constitutes the lid 30. The airtight function is exhibited by being sandwiched and deformed by pressure contact, and contamination of the semiconductor wafer W and generation of particles are prevented.

  In the above, when obtaining the container main body 1 of the substrate storage container, as shown in FIG. 6 and FIG. 7, first, the mold 51 in which the insert part 50 that forms the rear part of the container main body 1 is previously molded and opened. The core mold 52 is inserted into and supported at the tip of the core 53, and the core mold 52 is inserted into the cavity mold 54 opposite to the mirror-finished recess 55 to insert the insert component 50, and the recess 55 is partitioned. The insert part 50 is brought into contact with the back of the plurality of opposing walls 56, and the mold 51 is clamped.

  When the mold 51 is clamped in this manner, the molding material melted into the mold 51 is injected, the hollow container body 1 integrally formed at the rear portion by the insert part 50 is injection molded, and the mold 51 is clamped. After holding and cooling and opening the cavity mold 54 and the core mold 52 of the mold 51, the container body 1 can be ejected by a projecting pin or a projecting plate and dropped or transferred by a dedicated robot. 1 can be obtained.

  Next, the tooth body 20 is inserted into the molded container body 1 while being deformed and closely fitted and positioned in the fitting groove 2, and the weights 5 are respectively built in both sides of the rear portion of the bottom plate 3 of the container body 1. If the IC tag 6 is mounted on the side of the rear part 3 and the suspension flange 11 is screwed into the mounting rib 8 and the plurality of screw holes 10 of the container body 1, two semiconductor wafers W can be stored with high accuracy. A possible container body 1 can be completed.

  According to the above configuration, the container body 1 and the tooth body 20 are not integrally formed and complicated, but the complicatedly shaped tooth body 20 is assembled later on the container body 1 having a simple structure, so that The mold 51 can be easily configured, and it is difficult to open the mold 51 for molding the container body 1 or the core mold 52 does not need to be divided at all, and the structure of the mold 51 is remarkably simple. Can be achieved. Moreover, since the freedom degree of the shaping | molding is improved by making the teeth body 20 into another body, the freedom degree of the shape of the teeth 21 can be improved significantly.

  Further, since the connecting pieces 23 are connected and integrated at the end portions of the plurality of pairs of teeth 21, it is not necessary to fit each tooth 21 in the container body 1 and closely fit into the fitting groove 2 at all. In addition to the improvement in workability and workability, the productivity and mass productivity of the teeth body 20 can be improved and the quality can be improved. Further, since the connecting piece 23 of the teeth body 20 is positioned below the viewing window 15, it does not become an obstacle across the viewing window 15, and the view of the viewer using the viewing window 15 can be improved. .

  In addition, since the insert part 50 supported on the tip of the core 53 of the core mold 52 is brought into contact with the recess 55 of the cavity mold 54, the vibration of the free tip of the flat core 53 is restricted. Even if an injection pressure difference occurs in the material, the core 53 of the core mold 52 fitted into the cavity mold 54 is not beaten or bent.

  Therefore, there is no variation in the thickness of the container body 1 to be molded, and the core 53 of the core mold 52 can be extremely effectively prevented from being broken. Further, the insert part 50 is not simply supported at the tip of the core 53, but the insert part 50 is inserted to stabilize the molding position and posture, so that the container body 1 can be molded with high quality. .

  In the above-described embodiment, two semiconductor wafers W are stored in the container body 1. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and only one or three semiconductor wafers W may be stored in the container body 1. good. Moreover, if the same effect can be expected, the fitting groove 2 which is not continuous between the both side walls and the inner bottom surface of the container body 1 may be formed as a recess. Moreover, although the container main body 1 and the bottom plate 3 may be integrated, it is good also as a separate body.

  Further, the suspension flange 11 may be formed in a flat circular shape, a polygonal shape, or the like, or may be detachably attached to both side portions of the container body 1. In addition, the rear part and the center part of the plurality of pairs of teeth 21 can be connected by the connecting piece 23 as long as there is no problem. Furthermore, the plurality of locking claws of the locking mechanism of the lid body 30 can be exposed from the upper part or the lower part of the peripheral wall of the casing 31 so that the lid body 30 fitted to the front surface of the container body 1 can be firmly locked.

It is a whole perspective explanatory view showing typically an embodiment of a substrate storage container concerning the present invention. It is an exploded perspective explanatory view showing typically an embodiment of a substrate storage container concerning the present invention. It is front explanatory drawing which shows typically the container main body in embodiment of the teeth body and board | substrate storage container which concern on this invention. It is a plane sectional view showing typically the embodiment of the teeth object and substrate storage container concerning the present invention. It is a rear part perspective view showing typically a container main part in an embodiment of a substrate storage container concerning the present invention. It is a partial cross section explanatory view showing typically a metal mold for container body manufacture in an embodiment of a substrate storage container concerning the present invention. It is plane explanatory drawing which shows typically the core type | mold of the metal mold | die for container main body manufacture in embodiment of the substrate storage container which concerns on this invention.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Container body 2 Fitting groove 15 Inspection window 20 Teeth body 21 Teeth 22 Flat plate 23 Connecting piece 30 Lid 40 Gasket 50 Insert component 51 Mold 52 Core mold 53 Core 54 Cavity mold 55 Recess W Semiconductor wafer (substrate)

Claims (3)

A teeth body built in a front open box type container body having a size capable of storing three or less substrates and supporting the substrate,
A plurality of teeth that are respectively fitted to the inner surfaces of both side walls of the container body to support the peripheral edge of the back surface of the substrate, and a connecting piece that is connected to the inner bottom surface of the container body by connecting the plurality of teeth. Characteristic tooth body. A substrate storage container in which a tooth body supporting a substrate is incorporated in a front open box type container body having a size capable of storing three or less substrates,
The teeth body are respectively fitted to the inner surfaces of both side walls of the container body to support the peripheral edge of the back surface of the substrate, and the connecting piece is connected to the inner bottom surface of the container body by connecting the rear portions of the plurality of teeth. A substrate storage container comprising:   The container body is molded and a fitting groove for the teeth body is formed on the inner surface and inner bottom surface of both side walls, and a viewing window is formed on the back wall of the container body, and the connecting piece of the teeth body is formed below the viewing window. The substrate storage container according to claim 2, wherein:

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