Electrical generator or motor structure – Dynamoelectric – Rotary
Reexamination Certificate
1999-11-10
2001-07-24
Waks, Joseph (Department: 2834)
Electrical generator or motor structure
Dynamoelectric
Rotary
C439S012000, C439S020000, C439S021000, C118S730000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06265803
ABSTRACT:
TECHNICAL FIELD
The apparatus of the present invention relates generally to material transfer devices. The material transferred might include, but not be limited to, semiconductor wafers, such as Silicon, Gallium Arsenide, semi conductor packing substrates, such as, High Density Interconnects, semiconductor manufacturing process imaging plates, such as masks or recticles, and large area display panels, such as Active Matrix LCD substrates.
The invention further relates to vacuum robot drive technologies for handling wafers or flat panels and relates more particularly to improvements in such technologies whereby electrical power can be brought to the robot arm for purposes of, wafer sensing, wafer gripping and or other sensory applications while nevertheless allowing robot arm angular movement to achieve unlimited rotation through 360 degrees.
Current vacuum robot drive technology for handling wafers or flat panels does not allow electrical power to be brought to the robot arm while simultaneously allowing for unlimited rotation of the drive joint. Providing continuous theta axis rotation to the rotating drive arms in a robot as set forth above to provide unlimited rotational drive, except for example, as limited by the geometry of the robot arms themselves, has been a long felt need. It has always been conceived that if electrical power could be brought from the robot drive to the robot arm, sensing, clamping or measurement devices could be added to the arm linkage.
However, one concern of the electrical feed through was that it would limit the rotation of the arm. If a limit on shaft rotation was placed in such a robotic device, the advantage of the added devices, e.g. sensing, clamping and measuring, would decrease the present capabilities of the device and make them less appealing in the market place.
Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide an unlimited rotation robot drive which allows electrical power to be brought from outside the atmosphere side of the drive unit and into the arms which reside in a vacuum environment.
It is further object of the invention to provide an unlimited angular movement robot drive capable of unlimited angular rotation for the purpose of providing electrostatic wafer clamping, wafer sensing, arm positioning measurement, arm acceleration measurement and wafer position measurement.
It is still a further object of the invention to provide a system which enables unlimited angular rotations of the coaxial drive vacuum robot which is capable of being modified existing coaxial drive structures.
Further objects and advantages of the invention will become apparent from the following disclosure independent claims.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The invention resides in a coaxial for use in wafer handling and relates more specifically to an improvement therefor whereby the drive is capable of angular rotations fully in a 360 degree circle without interference from electrical connections.
More specifically, the invention resides in a coaxial drive having one part exposed to atmosphere and another part exposed to vacuum. The drive comprises a base member secured to a housing extending vertically therefrom along a central axis, and a drive member having a generally hollow internal confine is disposed over the base member for rotation in either rotational direction with a gap extending therebetween. The drive member and the base include a circumferentially disposed contact means concentrically located about the central axis and the base and the drive members having a contact leads which are located coincidentally with the contact means and in contact therewith along 360° relative rotation between the base member and the drive member. A seal is carried by the drive member and is located thereon between the atmosphere and the vacuum environments and prevents atmosphere from entering the vacuum environment.
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Brooks Automation Inc.
Perman & Green LLP
Waks Joseph
LandOfFree
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