Wafer flat zone aligner
US6382901B1 · kind B1 · utility
Assignee
Inventors
Key dates
| Filing date | May 3, 2001 |
| Grant date | May 7, 2002 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | May 3, 2021 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC Y)Emerging Cross-Sectional Technologies
- CPC primaryY10S414/136
- WIPO fieldSemiconductors
- WIPO sectorElectrical engineering
Abstract
A wafer flat zone aligner prevents wafers from binding to the walls of a wafer cassette, that define the slots in which the wafers are seated, by restricting axial movement of the wafers while the wafers are being rotated by a wafer rotating roller of the aligner. To this end, the wafer rotating roller includes a shaft portion, and a plurality of spaced apart annular members protruding radially from the shaft portion. Each wafer seated in the cassette is inserted between adjacent ones of the annular members into contact with the shaft portion of the roller. When the roller is rotated, the shaft portion rotates the wafers while the wafers are constrained from moving in the axial direction of the roller by the annular members. The wafer aligner also includes a guide roller that is moved into contact with the wafers and causes the wafers to stop rotating when flat zones of the wafer arrive at the guide roller. The guide roller is made of an elastic material that produces little friction with the wafers so that neither the wafers nor the wafer guide roller itself will be damaged when the wafer guide roller is moved into contact with the wafers.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.