Material or article handling – Apparatus for charging a load holding or supporting element... – Load holding or supporting element including gripping means
Patent
1987-12-17
1989-11-21
Spar, Robert J.
Material or article handling
Apparatus for charging a load holding or supporting element...
Load holding or supporting element including gripping means
29720, 209546, 209581, 382 8, 382 46, 901 47, B65H 512
Patent
active
048818631
ABSTRACT:
An apparatus for inspecting semiconductor, or other types of, wafers is disclosed. The apparatus uses a robot arm to move wafers from an incoming location to an inspection location, and then to an outgoing location. The robot arm may be supported on a floating platform to prevent mechanical chafing and resulting contamination. The robot arm is constructed to have a free end which moves laterally, but not vertically. The arm may be retractable to reduce wobble when the wafer is being inspected. A wafer in the inspection position is inspected by scanning with an objective lens coupled to an associated optical system. If desired, an automatic discrimination system can be coupled to the optical system to permit discrimination between acceptable and non-acceptable wafers. The objective lens may face upwardly and the wafer downwardly to urge contaminants to fall from the wafer. The inspection apparatus may be mounted on a table and shielded by a housing over the table to maintain the cleanliness of the inspection environment.
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"Automatic Wafer Transfer and Turnover Tool", Western Electric Technical Digest, No. 49, Jan. 1978, B. C. Abraham, C. R. Fogley, pp. 1, 2.
"Clean Room Robot", IBM Technical Disclosure Bulletin, vol. 25, No. 4, Sep. 1982, R. E. Floyd, A. S. Gasparri, R. D. Glaeser, E. P. Hecker, F. T. Majewski, L. W. Manthei, D. L. Miller, C. D. Riggs, R. C. Stanley, D. B. Vozzola.
IBM Technical Disclosure Bulletin, vol 20, No. 3, pp. 1100-1101, 8/77.
Primary Systems Corporation
Spar Robert J.
Underwood Donald W.
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