Multi-stage single-drive FOUP door system
First Claim
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1. Apparatus for connecting front opening unified pods to substrate handling equipment, said apparatus comprising:
- a lower pod support platform;
an upper pod support platform spaced above the lower platform a distance to permit the placement of a pod on the lower platform;
a lower pod door opener interface configured to interface with a front door of said the pod in the lower platform;
an upper door opener interface configured to interface with a front door of a pod on the upper platform, said upper and lower interfaces being interconnected so that movement of the lower interface will move the upper interface;
a horizontal actuator located below said lower platform for moving said pods and said door opening interfaces horizontally to remove front doors from said pods; and
a vertical actuator located below said lower platform for lowering both of said door opening interfaces at the same time together with said pod doors carried by said interfaces to permit access to substrates within the interior of said pods.
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Abstract
Two FOUPs are stacked and moved together towards an equipment wall by a horizontal actuator. FOUP doors are withdrawn as a unit by a horizontal actuator, and lowered as a unit by a vertical actuator to provide access to the interior of the FOUPs.
95 Citations
7 Claims
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1. Apparatus for connecting front opening unified pods to substrate handling equipment, said apparatus comprising:
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a lower pod support platform; an upper pod support platform spaced above the lower platform a distance to permit the placement of a pod on the lower platform; a lower pod door opener interface configured to interface with a front door of said the pod in the lower platform; an upper door opener interface configured to interface with a front door of a pod on the upper platform, said upper and lower interfaces being interconnected so that movement of the lower interface will move the upper interface; a horizontal actuator located below said lower platform for moving said pods and said door opening interfaces horizontally to remove front doors from said pods; and a vertical actuator located below said lower platform for lowering both of said door opening interfaces at the same time together with said pod doors carried by said interfaces to permit access to substrates within the interior of said pods. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3)
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4. A method of connecting and opening front opening unified pods to equipment for moving substrates into and out of the pods, said method comprising the steps of:
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positioning one of said pods on a lower platform mounted on said equipment; positioning a second one of said pods on an upper platform spaced above said lower platform; positioning a lower pod door opening interface in front of a front door of said lower pod and positioning an upper pod door opening interface in front of the front door of said upper pod, said door opening interfaces being connected to move as a unit; producing relative horizontal movement between said door interfaces and said pods to cause the door interfaces to be connected to said doors; producing relative movement between said pods and said door opening interfaces to simultaneously withdraw said doors from said upper and lower pods produced by an actuator positioned beneath said lower pod so that particles produced by the actuator are remote from the opened pods; and lowering said door opening interfaces unit and said pod doors to a position wherein the interiors of said pods are accessible for the removal of substrates within said pods. - View Dependent Claims (5, 6, 7)
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Specification