Central management system of wet chemical stations

• US 5,672,230 A
• Filed: 09/01/1995
• Issued: 09/30/1997
• Est. Priority Date: 05/11/1995
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Inventors: Park, Heung-soo, Chae, Hee-sun
• Primary Examiner(s): POWELL, WILLIAM A
• Application Number:
  US08/522,958
• Time in Patent Office: 760 Days
• Field of Search: 134/18, 134/26, 134/36, 134/56 R, 134/61, 134/110, 134/113, 156/345, 156/345 M, 156/345 C, 156/345 L, 437/228 ST
• US Class Current: 156/345.15
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 21/67017 Apparatus for fluid treatment H01L21/67126, H01L21/6715 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 21/67276 Production flow monitoring, e.g. for increasing throughput program-control systems per se G05B19/00, e.g. total factory control G05B19/418

Abstract

A central management system for wet chemical cleaning stations includes a number of wet chemical cleaning stations each having a liquid bath, filter, pump and multiple sensors for sensing the process variables thereof; and a main computer connected to the wet chemical cleaning stations to display, store and process data sensed by the sensors and totally manage the data, to thereby enable effective central management of the cleaning process via the main computer.

Claims

1. A central management system for wet chemical cleaning stations, comprising:

a plurality of wet chemical cleaning stations each having a liquid bath, filter, pump and at least one sensor for sensing a process variable thereof; and

a main computer connected to said plurality of wet chemical cleaning stations for displaying, storing and processing data sensed by any one of said at least one sensor and totally managing said data.

2. A central management system for wet chemical cleaning stations according to claim 1, wherein said process variable sensed by any of said at least one sensor is at least one selected from the group consisting of:

number of particles in said liquid bath, temperature of the liquid in said liquid bath, density of the liquid in said liquid bath, differential pressure of a filter, number of strokes of a pump, chemical flow rate and pump pressure.

3. A central management system for wet chemical cleaning stations according to claim 1, wherein said sensed data is displayed in real time by said main computer.

4. A central management system for wet chemical cleaning stations according to claim 1, wherein said plurality of wet chemical cleaning stations are connected in any one of series, parallel or a combination of series and parallel.

5. A central management system for wet chemical cleaning stations according to claim 1, wherein each one of said plurality of wet chemical cleaning stations comprises an alarm for warning if said sensed process variable has a value which deviates from a normal value.

6. A central management system for wet chemical cleaning station according to claim 1, wherein said at least one sensor can be remotely controlled to be turned on/off by said main computer.

7. A central management system for wet chemical cleaning stations, comprising:

a plurality of wet chemical cleaning stations each having a liquid bath, a filter, a pump and multiple sensors for sensing processing variables thereof;

multiple local computers individually connected to each of said plurality of wet chemical cleaning stations to individually manage the data sensed by said multiple sensors; and

a main computer for displaying, storing and processing the data sensed by said multiple sensors, said main computers being connected to said plurality of wet chemical cleaning stations and to said multiple local computers for totally managing said data.

8. A central management system for wet chemical cleaning stations according to claim 7, further comprising an additional computer connected to said multiple local computers and to said main computer, to enable central management of a production line for producing semiconductor devices and a production line for producing liquid crystal devices.

9. A central management system for wet chemical cleaning stations according to claim 7, wherein said multiple local computers and said main computer are connected by a local area network.

10. A central management system for wet chemical cleaning stations according to claim 7, wherein each of said multiple sensors comprise an alarm for warning if said sensed process variable deviates from a natural value.

11. A central management system for wet chemical cleaning stations according to claim 7, wherein said sensed process variable is displayed by said main computer and by said multiple local computers, in real time.

12. A central management system for wet chemical cleaning stations according to claim 7, wherein said multiple local computers are connected in any one of series, parallel and a combination of series and parallel.