Substrate processing apparatus
View Patent ↗A substrate processing apparatus is presented having a transport chamber defining substantially linear substrate transport paths, a linear array of substrate holding modules, each communicably connected to the chamber. The substrate transport has at least one transporter capable of holding and moving the substrate on more than one substantially linear substrate transport paths. The transport chamber having different transport tubes at least one of which is sealable at both ends of the transport tube and configured to hold an isolated atmosphere different from that of the transport tubes, each of the different transport tubes having one of the substrate transport paths located therein different from another of the transport paths located in another of the transport tubes, and being communicably connected to each other, where at least one of the transport tubes is configured to provide uninterrupted transit of the substrate transport through the transport tubes.
1. A substrate processing apparatus comprising:
a transport chamber defining more than one substantially linear substrate transport paths extending longitudinally along the transport chamber between opposing walls of the transport chamber;
a generally linear array of substrate holding modules alongside the transport chamber, each communicably connected to the chamber to allow passage of a substrate between transport chamber and holding module; and
a substrate transport located in and movably mounted to the transport chamber for transporting the substrate along the more than one substantially linear substrate transport paths, the substrate transport having at least one transporter capable of holding and moving the substrate on at least one of the more than one substantially linear substrate transport paths;
wherein the transport chamber comprises different transport tubes at least one of which is sealable at both ends of the transport tube and configured to hold an isolated atmosphere different from an atmosphere of another of the transport tubes where each transport tube has a separate interface at least at one end of a respective transport tube separately mating each transport tube with a common substrate holding module that is common to the different transport tubes, each interface having an opening through which at least one path of the more than one substantially linear substrate transport paths extends through into the common substrate holding module and the at least one transporter is configured to travel through the transport tubes having the different atmospheres for transporting substrates through the different atmospheres corresponding to respective substrate holding modules, each of the different transport tubes having at least one of the substrate transport paths located therein different from another of the transport paths located in another of the transport tubes, and being communicably connected to each other at a first location to allow substrate transfer between different substrate transport paths in different transport tubes, each transport tube extending longitudinally to another location common to each transport tube and distant from the first location, where at least one of the transport tubes is configured to provide substantially uninterrupted transit of the substrate transport through the at least one of the transport tubes along a respective transport path.
2. The apparatus according to claim 1 , further comprising an interface section connected to the transport chamber, the interface section being adapted to load and unload substrates from the apparatus, wherein the transport tubes are each communicably connected at the other location to the interface section to allow substrate transfer from each transport tube to the interface section.
3. The apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein at least two of the transport tubes are substantially parallel to each other.
4. The apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein at least one of the transport tubes has a selectably variable longitudinal length.
5. The apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the length of at least one of the more than one linear transport paths is selectably variable, path length variability being set with variance of a longitudinal length of a corresponding one of the transport tubes.
6. The apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein each of the transport tubes are separated from each other.
7. The apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein at least one of the transport tubes is capable of holding an internal atmosphere isolated from and different than another internal atmosphere in another of the transport tubes.
8. The apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein at least one of the transport tubes has a tube portion, with at least one of the more than one transport paths located therein, that is capable of holding a first isolated atmosphere isolated from another atmosphere in another tube portion of the at least one transport tube, the at least one transport path extending through the other tube portion.
9. The apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein at least one of the transport tubes has a load lock therein.
10. The apparatus according to claim 9 , wherein the load lock is capable of thermal conditioning a substrate transported along one of the more than one transport paths through the load lock.
11. The apparatus according to claim 1 , further comprising at least one interface section connected to the transport chamber and configured to load and unload substrates from the apparatus, wherein the at least one of the transport tubes configured to provide substantially uninterrupted transit is configured to provide substantially uninterrupted transit between the at least one interface section and at least a point of the transport chamber between the first location and the other location.
12. The apparatus of according to claim 11 , wherein the at least one interface section includes an first interface section disposed at the first location and a second interface section disposed at the other location, and the at least one of the transport tubes configured to provide substantially uninterrupted transit is configured to provide substantially uninterrupted transit substantially directly between the first and second interface sections.
13. The apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the transport chamber has holding module ports and at least one of the transport tubes is free of holding module ports.
14. A substrate processing apparatus comprising:
a plurality of first transport modules coupled to each other to form a first substantially linearly elongated transport tube having a first and second end and at least one transport path extending between the first and second end, the first substantially linearly elongated transport tube having a plurality of holding module ports configured for coupling a generally linear array of substrate holding modules, arranged in a processing plane, to the first substantially linearly elongated transport tube, each holding module port being configured to allow passage of a substrate between the first substantially linearly elongated transport tube and the substrate holding module;
at least one substrate transport movably mounted within the first substantially linearly elongated transport tube, the at least one substrate transport being configured to traverse the at least one transport path; and
a plurality of second transport modules coupled to each other to form a second substantially linearly elongated transport tube that is free of holding module ports and having a first and second end and at least one express transport path extending between the first and second end, the at least one express transport path being different than and substantially parallel to the at least one transport path, the second substantially linearly elongated transport tube being communicably connected to the first substantially linearly elongated transport tube and configured to allow passage of the at least one substrate transport between the first and second substantially linearly elongated transport tubes along a path arranged at an angle to the at least one transport path and the at least one express transport path and disposed between the first and second ends of the first and second substantially linearly elongated transport tubes
wherein at least the first ends of the first and second substantially linearly elongated transport tubes are separately coterminous.
15. The apparatus according to claim 14 , wherein the second substantially linearly elongated transport tube includes an atmospheric controlled environment and the first substantially linearly elongated transport tube includes an environment different than the atmospheric controlled environment.
16. The apparatus according to claim 14 , wherein the first and second substantially linearly elongated transport tubes share a common environment.
17. The apparatus according to claim 14 , wherein and the second ends of the first and second substantially linearly elongated transport tubes are coterminous, the apparatus further comprising an interface section disposed at least at one of the first and second ends and communicably connected to at least one of the first and second substantially linearly elongated transport tubes, the interface section being to load and unload substrates from the apparatus.
18. The apparatus according to claim 17 , wherein the interface section is communicably coupled to the second substantially linearly elongated transport tube and the second substantially linearly elongated transport tube is configured to provide substantially uninterrupted travel along the at least one express transport path to one of both the second end and a first transport module disposed between the first and second ends.
19. The apparatus according to claim 14 , wherein each of the at least one transport path and the at least one express transport path include at least two transport paths configured to allow substantially simultaneous bi-directional travel of the at least one substrate transport within a respective one of the first and second substantially linearly elongated transport tube.
20. The apparatus according to claim 19 , wherein each of the at least one transport path and the at least one express transport path include at least two transport paths configured to allow two substrate transports to pass adjacently by one another within a respective one of the first and second substantially linearly elongated transport tube.
21. The apparatus according to claim 14 , wherein the second substantially linearly elongated transport tube is disposed in a plane that is different and spatially offset from than the processing plane.
22. The apparatus according to claim 14 , wherein at least one of the plurality of first transport modules comprises a load lock disposed between the first and second ends where the load lock is configured to allow passage of the at least one substrate transport between the first and second substantially linearly elongated transport tubes along the path arranged at an angle to the at least one transport path and the at least one express transport path.
23. A substrate processing apparatus comprising:
a plurality of first transport modules coupled to each other to form a first substantially linearly elongated transport tube having a first and second end and at least one transport path extending between the first and second end;
at least one substrate transport movable along the at least one transport path
a plurality of substrate holding module ports disposed in walls of the first substantially linearly elongated transport tube and configured to connect substrate holding modules to the first substantially linearly elongated transport tube where the plurality of substrate holding modules are arranged so that a substrate is transported to be processed in the plurality of substrate holding modules in a predetermined sequence that substantially avoids substrate transport to substrate transport interference;
at least one load lock disposed between the first and second ends of the first substantially linearly elongated transport tube at a location with at least one intervening substrate holding module port between the first end and the load lock; and
a second substantially linearly elongated transport tube disposed adjacent the first substantially elongated transport tube and free from substrate holding module ports, where the at least one load lock is configured to sealingly communicably couple the first and second linearly elongated transport tubes at a point between the first and second ends and where the second substantially elongated transport tube is configured to provide at least one substantially uninterrupted pathway to at least the first end.
24. The apparatus according to claim 23 , wherein the apparatus further comprises at least one of a front interface module coupled to the first end and at back interface module coupled to the second end, the front and back interface modules being configured to at least one of add or remove substrates to or from at least one of the first and second linearly elongated transfer tubes.
25. The apparatus according to claim 24 , wherein at least one of the front and back transfer modules comprises a pair of vertically stacked interface modules.