Scheduler, substrate processing apparatus, and substrate conveyance method

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11099546-B2
Application number	US-202017036189-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Sep 29, 2020
Priority date	Jan 17, 2017
Publication date	Aug 24, 2021
Grant date	Aug 24, 2021

Abstract

A calculation amount and calculation time for a substrate conveyance schedule are reduced. A scheduler is provided which is incorporated in a control section of a substrate processing apparatus including a plurality of substrate processing sections that process a substrate, a conveyance section that conveys the substrate, and the control section that controls the conveyance section and the substrate processing sections, and calculates a substrate conveyance schedule. The scheduler includes: a modeling section that models processing conditions, processing time and constraints of the substrate processing apparatus into nodes and edges using a graph network theory, prepares a graph network, and calculates a longest route length to each node; and a calculation section that calculates the substrate conveyance schedule based on the longest route length.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A scheduler incorporated in a substrate processing apparatus, the substrate processing apparatus comprising:
a processor and a non-transitory memory, the non-transitory memory having stored therein instructions that when executed by the processor cause the scheduler at least to;
model processing conditions, processing time and constraints of the substrate processing apparatus into nodes and edges of a graph network, prepare the graph network, and calculate a longest route length to each node; and
calculate a substrate conveyance schedule based on the longest route length to each node;
convey substrates based on the calculated conveyance schedule; and
divide a specified processing number of the substrates into mini batches of an arbitrary number of the substrates;
wherein preparing the graph network prepares the graph network for a mini batch;
add an arbitrary number of a substrate for a next mini batch; and
repeat preparation of the graph network for the next mini batch until the specified processing number.

2. The scheduler according to claim 1 , wherein the memory having further stored therein instructions that when executed by the processor cause the scheduler at least to:
detect whether or not the substrate processing apparatus has shifted to a nonstationary state,
model the processing conditions, the processing time and the constraints of the substrate processing apparatus in the nonstationary state to the nodes and the edges when it is detected that the substrate processing apparatus has shifted to the nonstationary state, prepare the graph network and calculate the longest route length to each node, and
calculate the substrate conveyance schedule based on the longest route length to each node in the nonstationary state.

3. The scheduler according to claim 2 , wherein the nonstationary state includes a state at a time of a fault of the substrate processing apparatus, a state at a time of maintenance of a substrate holder, or a state at a time of maintenance of an anode holder.

4. A substrate conveyance method using a substrate processing apparatus, the method comprising:
modeling processing conditions, processing time and constraints of the substrate processing apparatus into nodes and edges of a graph network, preparing the graph network, and calculating a longest route length to each node;
calculating a substrate conveyance schedule based on the longest route length to each node;
conveying a substrate based on the substrate conveyance schedule; and
dividing a specified processing number of the substrates into mini batches of an arbitrary number of the substrates,
wherein preparing the graph network prepares the graph network for a mini batch, and
adding an arbitrary number of substrates for a next mini batch and repeating preparation of the graph network for the next mini batch until the specified processing number has been reached.

5. The substrate conveyance method according to claim 4 , comprising
detecting whether or not the substrate processing apparatus has shifted to a nonstationary state,
wherein modeling the processing conditions, the processing time and the constraints of the substrate processing apparatus in the nonstationary state to the nodes and the edges of the graph network when it is detected that the substrate processing apparatus has shifted to the nonstationary state, preparing the graph network and calculating the longest route length to each node, and
wherein calculating the substrate conveyance schedule based on the longest route length to each node in the nonstationary state.

6. The substrate conveyance method according to claim 5 ,
wherein the nonstationary state includes a state at a time of a fault of the substrate processing apparatus, a state at a time of maintenance of a substrate holder, or a state at a time of maintenance of an anode holder.

Assignees

• Ebara Corp

Inventors

• Nonobe Koji
• Mitsuya Takashi
• Koizumi Ryuya
• Oishi Kunio

Classifications

• H10P72/3411

  involving loading and unloading of wafers · CPC title

• H10P72/3402

  Mechanical parts of transfer devices · CPC title

• H10P72/3304

  characterised by movements or sequence of movements of transfer devices · CPC title

• H10P72/0612 Primary

  Production flow monitoring, e.g. for increasing throughput · CPC title

• H10P72/0604

  Process monitoring, e.g. flow or thickness monitoring · CPC title