Apparatus productivity improving system and its method

• US 7,133,807 B2
• Filed: 01/22/2002
• Issued: 11/07/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 01/22/2001
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Tokyo Electron Limited
• Original Assignee: Tokyo Electron Limited
• Inventors: Karasawa, Wataru
• Primary Examiner(s): WACHSMAN, HAL D
• Application Number:
  US10/466,787
• Publication Number:
  US 20040073405A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,750 Days
• Field of Search: 702/188, 702182-185, 702/187, 702/45, 702/47, 702/24, 702/81, 702/83, 702/184, 702/122, 702/130, 702/136, 702/138, 702/140, 702176-178, 702/180, 700/108, 700/110, 700/109, 700/121, 700/79, 700/174, 705/28, 701 29- 31, 701 33- 35, 438/14, 438/16, 438/17, 340/870.16, 340/870.17, 340/500, 340/501, 340/526, 340/540, 340/611, 340/626, 340/632, 340/634, 340/679, 340/387, 340/588, 340/3.1, 340/3.43, 340/3.44, 709/224, 714/47
• US Class Current: 702/188
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 2219/32233 Scheduling repair
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 23/0283 Predictive maintenance, e.g. involving the monitoring of a system and, based on the monitoring results, taking decisions on the maintenance schedule of the monitored system; Estimating remaining useful life [RUL] preventive maintenance, i.e. planning maintenance according to the available resources without monitoring the system G06Q10/06
• CPC Class Codes: Y02P 90/80 Management or planning

Abstract

There is provided a system and method for monitoring an apparatus from a remote location. A vendor-side computer obtains operating state data obtained by a monitoring device provided in an apparatus via a communication line, and monitors the operating state of the apparatus from a remote location. Maintenance data at a part replacing time is transmitted from the apparatus, and the vendor-side computer that has received maintenance data calculates an optimal replacement period of a part based on this. The calculated optimal replacement period of each part is sent to a plant. The plant feeds the optimal replacement period back to the operation of the apparatus, so that productivity can be improved.

Claims

1. A system that monitors an apparatus from a remote location, the system comprising:

receiving means, which is connected to the apparatus via a communication line, for receiving history information, including a processing conditional parameter of a predetermined process that the apparatus performs to provide predetermined processing to a processing object;

monitoring means, which monitors said apparatus based on the history information received by said receiving means; and

storing means, which stores information indicating reference information and an error range for the processing conditional parameter;

wherein said monitoring means transmits a notification that trouble has occurred in the apparatus to at least one of the apparatus and a person in charge of said apparatus when a difference between the reference information and the history information received by said receiving means is not included in the error range stored by said storing means.

2. The system according to claim 1, wherein said monitoring means detects the trouble in the apparatus based on said processing conditional parameter, and, when said monitoring means specifies a trouble part of the apparatus, the monitoring means performs at least one of order processing and order preparation processing for a replacement part of the trouble part.

3. The system according to claim 2, wherein said monitoring means derives an optimal periodic check time, based on the history information of the apparatus, and feeds back the derived optimal periodic check time to the apparatus.

4. The system according to claim 1, wherein said monitoring means derives an optimal periodic check time, based on the history information of the apparatus, and feeds back the derived optimal periodic check time to the apparatus.

5. The system according to claim 1, wherein said history information includes maintenance data relating to a replaced part of said apparatus, and said monitoring means monitors the apparatus based on the maintenance data.

6. The system according to claim 5, wherein the maintenance data is data relating to replacement data and time, kind, and usage time of the replaced part that is obtained at the time of replacing the replaced part in the apparatus, and said monitoring means derives an optimal replacement period of the replaced part from the maintenance data and feeds back the optimal replacement period to the apparatus.

7. The system according to claim 6, wherein said monitoring means performs at least one of order processing and order preparation processing for a replacement part based on said maintenance data.

8. The system according to claim 5, wherein said monitoring means performs at least one of order processing and order preparation processing for a replacement part based on said maintenance data.

9. The system according to claim 1, wherein the processing conditional parameter includes temperature of a chamber of the apparatus, pressure, gas flow, or combinations of these.

10. The system according to claim 1, wherein said history information includes image data.

11. The system according to claim 1, wherein said history information includes yield data of the apparatus.

12. The system according to claim 1, wherein said history information includes the number of processing objects processed by the apparatus.

13. The system according to claim 1, wherein the apparatus is a manufacturing apparatus for at least one of semiconductor devices and liquid crystal display devices.

14. The system according to claim 1, wherein the system is prepared by a vendor that provides the apparatus.

15. The system according to claim 1, wherein said storing means stores maintenance information so that the processing conditional parameter of the apparatus is included in said error range, and said monitoring means includes said maintenance information in said notification that trouble has occurred in the apparatus.

16. The system according to claim 1, wherein said history information includes measurement data relating to products manufactured by said apparatus, and said monitoring means monitors said apparatus based on the measurement data received from said receiving means.

17. A system that monitors an apparatus from a remote location, the system comprising:

an apparatus including sensor means, which obtains history information, including a processing conditional parameter of a predetermined process that the apparatus performs to provide predetermined processing to a processing object, and transmitting means, which transmits the history information obtained by said sensor means; and

a server including receiving means, which is connected to the apparatus via a communication line, for receiving the history information transmitted by said transmitting means of the apparatus, monitoring means, which monitors said apparatus based on the history information received by said receiving means, and storing means, which stores information indicating reference information and an error range for the processing conditional parameter,

wherein said monitoring means transmits a notification that trouble has occurred in the apparatus to at least one of the apparatus and a person in charge of said apparatus when a difference between the reference information and the processing conditional parameter received from said receiving means is not included in the error range stored by said storing means.

18. The system according to claim 17, wherein when said monitoring means detects trouble in said apparatus and specifies a trouble part of said apparatus, said monitoring means performs at least one of order processing and order preparation processing for a replacement part of the trouble part.

19. The system according to claim 18, wherein said monitoring means derives an optimal periodic check time of said apparatus based on the history information of said apparatus, and feeds back the derived optimal periodic check time to said apparatus.

20. The system according to claim 17, wherein said monitoring means derives an optimal periodic check time of said apparatus based on the history information of said apparatus, and feeds back the derived optimal periodic check time to said apparatus.

21. The system according to claim 17, wherein said apparatus further includes inputting means that inputs maintenance data relating to a replaced part of said apparatus, and said transmitting means transmits maintenance data input by said inputting means to said monitoring means.

22. The system according to claim 21, wherein the maintenance data is data relating to replacement date and time, kind, and usage time of the replaced part that is obtained at the time of replacing the replaced part in said apparatus, and said monitoring means derives an optimal replacement period of the replaced part from the maintenance data and feeds back the optimal replacement period to said apparatus.

23. The system according to claim 22, wherein said monitoring means performs at least one of order processing and order preparation processing for a replacement part based on the maintenance data.

24. The system according to claim 21, wherein said monitoring means performs at least one of order processing and order preparation processing for a replacement part based on the maintenance data.

25. The system according to claim 17, wherein said apparatus includes a chamber and the processing conditional parameter includes temperature of the chamber, pressure, gas flow, or combinations of these.

26. The system according to claim 17, wherein the history information includes image data.

27. The system according to claim 17, wherein the history information includes yield data of said apparatus.

28. The system according to claim 17, wherein the history information includes the number of processing objects processed by said apparatus.

29. The system according to claim 17, wherein said apparatus is a manufacturing apparatus for at least one of semiconductor devices and liquid crystal display devices.

30. The system according to claim 17, wherein said server is prepared by a vendor that provides the apparatus.

31. The system according to claim 17, wherein said storing means stores maintenance information so that the processing conditional parameter of the apparatus is included in said error range, and said monitoring means includes said maintenance information in said notification that trouble has occurred in the apparatus.

32. The system according to claim 17 further comprising a measuring apparatus having measuring means, which measures products manufactured by said apparatus, and transmitting means, which transmits measurement data measured by said measuring means, wherein said monitoring means monitors said apparatus based on the measurement data received by said receiving means.