JP2001202123A - Method for teaching carrier robot - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To easily teach the movement control of a carrier robot. SOLUTION: A 2nd jig (a transparent wafer with a mark) is put on the carrier arm 220 and the longitudinal and lateral positions of respective units 102-105 are taught while observing the arm 220 just from the above. Then a 1st jig (a metal wafer) 300 is put on the lowest stage of a storing cassette 102 e.g. and the lead wire 310 of the 1st jig 300 is connected to the common terminal of a control device. On the other hand, a lead wire 222 is fixed on the arm 220 by a conductive tape such as an aluminum tape and connected to the input signal terminal of the control device. When the arm 220 is raised from the lower side of the 1st jig 300 by jog feeding, the arm 220 is brought into contact with the 1st jig 300 and stopped when conduction (signal input) is obtained. Or the arm 220 is forcedly stopped by a program. Since points found out by the operation are set up as teaching points, teaching operation can be surely and easily executed.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a teaching method for teaching a work position at which a transfer object is controlled by a movable body of a transfer robot.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, when a transfer robot performs transfer control of an object to be transferred, as a method of teaching the movement position of a transfer arm (movable body) of the transfer robot, the movement position is directly input as data. There is a way. However, in the method of inputting the movement position of the transfer arm as described above, it is difficult to perform appropriate control when there is an error in the arrangement of each device constituting the actual equipment and the dimensions of each member. . Therefore, conventionally, the transfer arm is moved to an actual movement position by an adjustment operation by manual operation, and the movement position is read by a transfer robot, and the read position data is set as control data of the host computer as teaching data. Such a teaching method is adopted.

FIG. 5 is a side view showing a specific example of a robot transfer operation according to such a conventional teaching method. In the illustrated example, a transfer robot is provided in a cleaning apparatus for cleaning a semiconductor wafer 10 as an object to be transferred. In this cleaning apparatus, the semiconductor wafer 10 placed on the wafer receiving portion 32 of the storage cassette 30 of the wafer cleaning apparatus is taken out by the transfer arm 20 and transferred to the cleaning unit for cleaning (see FIG. 5). Arrows a, b and c). Thereafter, the semiconductor wafer 10 is again stored in the wafer receiving portion 32 of the storage cassette 30 by the transfer arm 20, and waits for the next process (FIG. 5).
, And are indicated by arrows D, E, and F). Storage cassette 30
Are a plurality of wafer receiving portions 3 at predetermined intervals in the vertical direction.
The semiconductor wafer 10 is placed in each of the wafer receiving portions 32 to perform a cleaning operation.

Then, the semiconductor wafer 10 is placed on the wafer receiving portion 32 of the storage cassette 30 and the semiconductor wafer 10 is placed on the storage cassette 30.
The transfer arm 20 is sequentially moved to the actual movement positions A, B, C, and D by an adjustment operation (jog feed operation) by manual operation in order to take out the wafer from the wafer receiving portion 32.
Then, these moving positions are read by the transfer robot, and the read position data is set as control data of the host computer as teaching data.

[0005]

However, the above-mentioned conventional teaching method has a problem that a large number of teaching points are required to teach all necessary moving positions, so that a long working time is required. Further, in order to perform the teaching by the adjustment operation (jog feed operation) by manual operation, a high level of skill and a long working time are usually required. That is, in order to perform accurate teaching, it is necessary to operate the robot in a detailed manner by trial and error while visually confirming the position of the tip of the tool from all directions.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is an object of the present invention to provide a method of teaching a transfer robot which can easily teach the movement control of the transfer robot.

[0007]

In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides a teaching method for teaching a working position for controlling the transfer of an object to be transferred by a movable member of a transfer robot. For a specific first movement position requiring strict positioning, the movable body is actually moved to the first movement position by an adjustment operation by manual operation, and the position data at the first movement position is read by the transfer robot. By setting the teaching data, the second moving position other than the first moving position among the moving positions of the movable body is set.
As for the moving position, the teaching data is set by inputting position data determined in advance to the transfer robot.

[0008] In the teaching method of the transfer robot according to the present invention, the specific first movement position, which requires strict positioning among the movement positions of the movable body, is actually moved by the manual operation to perform the first movement. The teaching data is set by moving to the position and causing the transfer robot to read the position data at the first movement position. Further, for the second moving position other than the first moving position among the moving positions of the movable body, the teaching data is set by inputting previously determined position data to the transfer robot. Therefore, all the main movement positions of the transfer robot are not taught by the adjustment operation by manual operation as in the related art,
Since only the necessary movement position is taught by the adjustment operation by manual operation, the number of teaching points can be reduced,
Work can be shortened and simplified.

[0009]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An embodiment of a transfer robot teaching method according to the present invention will be specifically described below. FIG. 1 is a side view for explaining a method of teaching a transfer robot according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a side view showing a specific example of a robot transfer operation based on the teaching method shown in FIG. FIG. 3 is a plan view showing an outline of a wafer cleaning apparatus provided with the transfer robot shown in FIG. First,
3, the cleaning apparatus 101 includes a storage cassette 102, a pre-cleaning positioning unit 103, a post-cleaning positioning unit 104, a cleaning unit 105, and a wafer transfer robot 106.

[0010] Of these, the storage cassette 102 has storage sections of 25 stages at equal intervals above and below, and has a structure capable of storing semiconductor wafers in each storage section. Further, the wafer transfer robot 106 sequentially orders the semiconductor wafer (transferred object) 100 for each of the storage cassette 102, the pre-cleaning positioning unit 103, the post-cleaning positioning unit 104, and the cleaning unit 105 along with the cleaning operation.
And the storage (set) and removal of the semiconductor wafer 100 are repeatedly performed. For example, when removing the semiconductor wafer 100 from the storage cassette 102, the transfer arm 220 (movable body) is moved as shown by arrows A, B, and C in FIG.
Is taken out of the wafer receiving portion 232 of the storage cassette 102, and the process proceeds to the next step. In addition, the semiconductor wafer 10
When the transfer arm 220 holding the semiconductor wafer 100 is stored in the storage cassette 102 in FIG.
4B, the semiconductor wafer 100 is moved as indicated by arrows D, E, and F, and the semiconductor wafer 100 is placed on the upper surface of the wafer receiving portion 232 of the storage cassette 102.

In this example, the point a shown in FIG. 2 is set as a teaching point (first movement position) on the transfer robot, and the other positions (second movement positions) are set by data input. . That is, the point a shown in FIG.
Is a point where the transfer arm 220 and the wafer 310 come into contact with each other, and strict positional accuracy is required. Therefore, only this point is set by an adjustment operation (jog feed operation) of the transfer arm 220 by manual operation. In addition, other positions
It is possible to control using data that has been determined in advance (in this example, difference data from the point a). By inputting this data, the teaching data can be changed without performing the teaching operation based on the actual moving position. To set. In this way, the teaching method of the present embodiment reduces the number of teaching points due to actual movement adjustment and improves the efficiency of teaching work.

For example, in the equipment shown in FIG. 3, in the conventional teaching method shown in FIG. 5, each of the units 102 to 105 teaches four points of A, B, C, and D, respectively. (4 × 4 = 16 points of teaching required). On the other hand, in the teaching method of the present embodiment, the clearance amount of the transfer arm 220 (the wafer receiving portion 13
2 (the difference from the receiving surface to the insertion height of the transfer arm) and the lifting amount (the height at which the wafer is lifted from the receiving surface of the wafer receiving portion 132) are numerically input (initial setting). Although the storage cassette 102 has 25 storage sections, only the point of the lowermost storage section is taught, and the other rows are set based on the intervals between the storage sections.

Thus, the point a may be instructed to each of the units 102 to 105 one point at a time. Therefore, in the equipment configuration shown in FIG.
Only 4-point teaching is required. Also, with the current equipment,
Since it has two transfer arms for taking out and storing, or for setting, in this case, in the conventional example, 16 × 2 =
It is necessary to teach 32 points, but by using the teaching method of the present embodiment, it is possible to complete the operation only by teaching 4 × 2 = 8 points.

In this embodiment, the teaching of the point a is performed using a dedicated jig as shown in FIG. In FIG. 1, a conductive (metal) first jig 300 formed in a wafer shape is arranged on an actual wafer receiving portion 132. The first jig 300 has, for example, a shape similar to an actual semiconductor wafer, and is positioned and arranged at the same position as the actual semiconductor wafer. A lead wire 310 is connected to the first jig 300 so that a small voltage signal for measurement is applied. On the other hand, a lead wire 222 is also connected to the transfer arm 220 so that a small voltage signal for measurement is applied.

When the transfer arm 220 itself is conductive, the first jig 300 and the transfer arm 220 come into contact with each other, so that the lead wires 310 and 222 are electrically connected to each other. By measuring, the first
By detecting contact between the jig 300 and the transfer arm 220, it is possible to determine that this position is a teaching point. When the transfer arm 220 itself is not conductive, a conductive tape such as an aluminum tape is attached to a portion of the transfer arm 220 that contacts the first jig 300, and the lead wire 222 is connected. When the first jig 300 and the conductive tape of the transfer arm 220 come into contact with each other, each lead wire 31
By conducting between 0 and 222 and measuring a voltage change due to this, the contact between the first jig 300 and the transfer arm 220 is detected, and it can be determined that this position is a teaching point.

Prior to the determination of the teaching point a, the transfer arm 220 is positioned in the horizontal direction. This is achieved by attaching a second jig (not shown) to the transfer arm 220.
Is placed, and this position is visually determined. The second jig is a transparent wafer having a mark at the center. The transparent jig is placed on the transfer arm 220, and the transfer arm 220 is moved. To match the position.

In the above configuration, the actual teaching procedure is as follows. First, a second jig (a transparent wafer with a mark) is placed on the transfer arm 220, and the front and rear of each unit 102 to 105 is visually checked from directly above. Teach left and right position. Next, the first jig (metal wafer) is placed, for example, on the lowermost stage of the storage cassette 102, and the lead wire 310 of the first jig 300 is connected to a common terminal of a control device (not shown). On the other hand, the lead wire 222 is fixed to the transfer arm 220 with a conductive tape such as an aluminum tape and connected to the input signal terminal of the control device. Move the transfer arm 220 to the first jig 300
The first jig 300 and the transfer arm 220 come into contact with each other by jog feed from the lower side, and stop or forcibly stop when there is conduction (input of a signal). By setting the points obtained by such operations as teaching points, the teaching operation can be performed reliably and easily.

In the above example, an example has been described in which only one point is taught for the storage cassette 102 having one row of storage units at the top and bottom. However, for example, as shown in FIG. Storage cassette 400 having section
By teaching a plurality of points (three in this example), the position of each storage unit and the overall inclination can be calculated. That is, in the multi-row cassette 400 shown in FIG. 4, when the interval between the upper and lower rows and the interval between the left and right rows can be obtained by calculation, the point a1 at the lowermost row and the lowermost row shown in FIG. Point a in the upper row
By teaching the two points and the point a3 at the bottom of the rightmost row in the teaching procedure of the present embodiment, the positions of the other storage units are calculated based on the teaching data. .

For example, the left-right direction is X, the up-down direction is Z, the left-right teaching position of point a1 is a1X, the left-right teaching position of point a2 is a2X, and the left-right teaching position of point a3 is a3X. The vertical teaching position of the point a1 in the vertical direction is a1Z, the vertical teaching position of the point a2 is a2Z, and the vertical teaching position of the point a3 is a3Z. In this case, the horizontal position of each storage unit is calculated by performing the calculation of (a3X−a1X) / (the number of columns−1), and (a2
By performing the calculation of (Z−a1Z) / (number of stages−1), the vertical position of each storage unit can be calculated. Also, (a3Z
−a1Z) / (the number of columns−1), the inclination of the entire cassette can be calculated. From these calculation results,
The points of each storage section can be calculated and set as teaching data.

It should be noted that various points can be selected and the method of calculation for collecting actual teaching data can be adopted, and other points can be obtained by various calculations using the teaching data of two or more points. The data can be calculated, and is not limited to the above example. For example, by teaching the points of the uppermost step and the lowermost step for a cassette having one row of storage units, the positions of the other steps are calculated based on the setting of the number of steps, and the take-out height and the storage height are obtained. be able to. In the case of a multi-row cassette, the calculation of the row interval and the correction of the inclination of the cassette in the left-right direction can be performed by teaching the left and right ends and setting the number of rows. Further, in the above example, the teaching method of the transfer robot provided in the wafer cleaning apparatus has been described as an example, but the present invention can be similarly applied as a teaching method for other various robots.

[0021]

As described above, in the teaching method of the transfer robot according to the present invention, the specific first moving position, which requires strict positioning among the moving positions of the movable body, is actually adjusted by the manual operation. Then, the movable body is moved to the first movement position, the position data at the first movement position is read by the transport robot, the teaching data is set, and the second movement position of the movable body other than the first movement position is set.
Regarding the movement position, the teaching data is set by inputting the position data that has been determined in advance to the transfer robot. Therefore, the teaching point can be reduced because the main movement position of the transfer robot is not taught by the adjustment operation by manual operation as in the related art, but only the necessary movement position is taught by the adjustment operation by manual operation. It is possible to shorten the work and simplify the work. As a result, the robot can be easily taught irrespective of the skill level of the work.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a side view illustrating a teaching method of a transfer robot according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a side view showing a specific example of a robot transfer operation by the teaching method shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a plan view schematically showing a wafer cleaning apparatus provided with the transfer robot shown in FIG.

FIG. 4 is a front view showing a teaching method for a multi-row cassette.

FIG. 5 is a side view showing a specific example of a robot transfer operation according to a conventional teaching method.

[Explanation of symbols]

100: semiconductor wafer, 101: cleaning device, 10
2 ... cassette for storage, 103 ... positioning unit before washing, 104 ... positioning unit after washing, 105 ...
Cleaning unit 106 wafer transfer robot 13
2 .... wafer receiving part, 220 ... transfer arm, 300
... First jig.

Claims (12)

[Claims] 1. A teaching method for teaching a work position for controlling a transfer of an object to be transferred by a movable body of a transfer robot, wherein a specific first movement position which requires strict positioning among the movement positions of the movable body is provided. Setting the teaching data by actually moving the movable body to the first movement position by an adjustment operation by a manual operation and causing the transfer robot to read the position data at the first movement position, For the second moving position other than the first moving position among the moving positions, the teaching data is set by inputting predetermined position data to the transfer robot. Teaching method of transfer robot to do. 2. The method according to claim 1, wherein, among the moving positions of the movable body, the first moving position requiring strict positioning includes a position at which the movable body comes into contact with an object to be conveyed. Transfer robot teaching method. 3. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the first movement position requiring a strict positioning among the movement positions of the movable body includes a position where a certain error is assumed for each facility. Transfer robot teaching method. 4. The method according to claim 1, wherein the position data of the second movement position is input in the form of difference data with respect to the first movement position. 5. The method according to claim 5, further comprising: arranging a first jig for conducting current measurement at an actual moving position, applying a detection voltage between the first jig and the movable body, and The moving position is determined by detecting whether the first jig and the movable body are energized by moving the body to the first moving position and bringing the body into contact with the first jig. The teaching method of the transfer robot described above. 6. The method according to claim 6, wherein the first moving position is adjusted by visually adjusting a position of the movable body using the second jig in a state where the second jig for visual measurement is arranged on the movable body. 6. The method for teaching a transfer robot according to claim 5, wherein the first jig for measurement determines by energization. 7. In the second jig for visual measurement, positioning is performed in a direction intersecting with a direction in which the movable body comes into contact with an object to be conveyed. The teaching method for a transfer robot according to claim 5, wherein the movable body is moved in a direction in which the movable body comes into contact with the object to be transferred, and the energization determination is performed. 8. A moving position group comprising a plurality of moving positions arranged at equal intervals at the moving position of the movable body, wherein the moving position group is one of the plurality of moving positions. At least two first movement positions are set, position data is obtained for each first movement position, and other movement positions are determined based on the position data of the two first movement positions and the interval data of each movement position. 2. The method for teaching a transfer robot according to claim 1, wherein the position data is calculated by the calculation and set as the teaching data. 9. The moving position group includes a plurality of moving positions arranged in a matrix in a vertical direction and a horizontal direction, and at least three first moving positions that are not linearly arranged in the moving position group. The position data is determined for each first movement position, and position data is calculated for the other movement positions based on the position data of the three first movement positions and the interval data of each movement position. 9. The method for teaching a transfer robot according to claim 8, wherein the method is set as teaching data. 10. The transfer robot according to claim 9, wherein the inclination of the moving position group is calculated based on the position data of the three first moving positions, and the position data of each moving position is corrected. Teaching method. 11. The method according to claim 8, wherein the two first movement positions are set to the outermost movement positions of the movement position group. 12. The method according to claim 9, wherein the three first movement positions are set to outermost movement positions of the movement position group.