Process apparatus with on-the-fly substrate centering
US-2017084476-A1 · Mar 23, 2017 · US
Wafer tray sorter with door coupled to detector
US10092929B2 · US · B2
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| Publication number | US-10092929-B2 |
| Application number | US-201615386799-A |
| Country | US |
| Kind code | B2 |
| Filing date | Dec 21, 2016 |
| Priority date | Mar 14, 2013 |
| Publication date | Oct 9, 2018 |
| Grant date | Oct 9, 2018 |
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- Title
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Abstract
Official abstract text for this publication.
A tray engine includes a vertical drive column, a rotation mechanism for rotating the vertical drive column, and an end effector attached to the vertical drive column. The end effector includes an end effector base attached to the vertical drive column. The end effector further includes a slide attached to the end effector base to support a tray, when present. The slide enables the tray to slide along a length of the end effector base. The tray engine includes a drive mechanism attached to the end effector base for moving along the length of the end effector base to enable the tray, when present, to slide linearly along the length and load or unload the tray to or from the slide.
First claim
Opening claim text (preview).
The invention claimed is: 1. A wafer tray sorter comprising: a first wall having a plurality of doors, wherein the doors are configured to open to create a plurality of openings in the first wall, wherein one of the openings is configured to interface with a cassette having one or more trays, wherein one of the trays is configured to carry a wafer, a second wall that faces the first wall, wherein the second wall includes a plurality of slots, wherein one of the slots is configured to interface with an indexer; and a tray engine configured to move in a linear direction between the first wall and the second wall to facilitate a transfer of the one of the trays, wherein the transfer occurs between the one of the openings and one of the slots, wherein one of the doors is coupled to a detector configured to detect the one of the trays, wherein the detector is configured to identify the one of the trays by reading a plurality of numbers, or a barcode, or a combination of a barcode and numbers, or an EZ code, or an alphanumeric code on the one of the trays. 2. The sorter of claim 1 , wherein the detector is a sensor, wherein the sensor is configured to detect whether the one of the trays is present within the cassette. 3. The sorter of claim 1 , wherein the detector is a camera, wherein the camera is configured to identify the one of the trays. 4. The sorter of claim 1 , wherein the detector is attached to a top surface of the one of the doors, wherein the one of the doors is configured to slide down to form the one of the openings. 5. The sorter of claim 1 , wherein the detector is attached to a bottom surface of the one of the doors, wherein the one of the doors is configured to slide up to form the one of the openings.
Assignees
Inventors
Classifications
the wafers being placed on a robot blade or gripped by a gripper for conveyance · CPC title
Batch transfer of wafers · CPC title
involving loading and unloading of wafers · CPC title
involving removal of lid, door or cover · CPC title
Mechanical parts of transfer devices · CPC title
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Frequently asked questions
Answers are generated from the same data shown on this page.
- What does patent US10092929B2 cover?
- A tray engine includes a vertical drive column, a rotation mechanism for rotating the vertical drive column, and an end effector attached to the vertical drive column. The end effector includes an end effector base attached to the vertical drive column. The end effector further includes a slide attached to the end effector base to support a tray, when present. The slide enables the tray to slid…
- Who is the assignee on this patent?
- Brooks Automation Inc
- What technology area does this patent fall under?
- Primary CPC classification B25J15/0028. Mapped technology areas include Operations & Transport.
- When was this patent published?
- Publication date Tue Oct 09 2018 00:00:00 GMT+0000 (Coordinated Universal Time) (B2). Legal status and post-grant events are not shown on this page.
- What related patents are in patentsdb?
- We list 7 related publications on this page (citations in our corpus or others sharing the same primary CPC).