Computer integrated manufacturing techniques

• US 7,174,230 B2
• Filed: 02/28/2002
• Issued: 02/06/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 07/29/1999
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Applied Materials Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Applied Materials Incorporated
• Inventors: Mohan, Shantha, Chi, Tom, Huang, Charles, Nandy, Bishnu, Jensen, Jett, Yuan, Huey-Shin, D'Souza, Patrick M., Lin, Wen Fong, Arackaparambil, John F., Kulkarni, Prakash M., Hawkins, Parris, Kulkarni, Pradeep M., Chow, Billy, Krishnamurthy, Badri N.
• Primary Examiner(s): Paladini; Albert W.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Garland; Steven R.
• Application Number:
  US10/084,092
• Publication Number:
  US 20020156548A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,804 Days
• Field of Search: 700/108, 700/96, 700/111, 700/97, 700/121
• US Class Current: 700/96
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 19/41845 characterised by system universality, reconfigurability, modularity
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 2219/31018 Virtual factory, modules in network, can be selected and combined at will
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 2219/31202 Semiconductor equipment communication standard SECS
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 2219/45026 Circuit board, pcb
• CPC Class Codes: Y02P 90/02 Total factory control, e.g. smart factories, flexible manufacturing systems [FMS] or integrated manufacturing systems [IMS]
• CPC Class Codes: Y02P 90/80 Management or planning

Abstract

The present invention provides a novel distributed factory system framework including a novel factory automation lifecycle (200) having lifecycle activities for SW developing and integrating (210), installing and administrating (220), factory modeling (230), manufacturing planning (240), manufacturing controlling, monitoring and tracking (250) and analyzing of manufacturing results (260). The factory lifecycle comprises framework components. The distributed factory system framework also includes application components and building blocks. The framework components are adapted to for managing the application components, while the application components are utilized to provide instructions for managing a process such as a wafer fab. The building blocks are adapted for forming or modifying framework and application components. The distributed factory system framework provides computer implemented methods for integrating processing systems and facilitates process and equipment changes.

Claims

1. A method for managing a processing system including one or more computers, the method comprising:

a) running a factory automation lifecycle including one or more framework components on the one or more computers; and

b) running one or more application software components to provide one or more computer implemented instructions for managing the system, wherein the one or more framework components are adapted for managing the application components, wherein said one or more framework components include a visual workflow component configured to execute at least one manufacturing process and at least one business process.

2. The method of claim 1 additionally comprising managing the processing system by executing the one or more instructions in the system.

3. The method of claim 1 wherein running one or more of the framework components comprises running one or more components selected from the group consisting of a security component, a GUI console component, a performance and license management component, a saga management component, a context resolution component, a configuration management component, a calendar component, a resource coordination component, an event monitor component, a bill of resources component and a data manager component.

4. The method of claim 1 wherein running one or more application components comprises running one or more components selected from the group consisting of a quality management component, a tool integration component, an equipment management component, a recipe management component, a dispatching and scheduling component, a material handling component, a work in progress component and a legacy system interface component.

5. The method of claim 1, additionally comprising forming one or more framework components using one or more software building blocks selected from the group consisting of a server construction building block, a persistence building block, a common GUI controls building block, a publish and subscribe messaging building block, a dynamic API discovery building block, an associations building block, a history building block, a generic service executor building block, a classifications building block, a customer defined attributes building block, a state models building block, a namespace building block, a schedule/datebook building block, a templates building block, a versioned objects building block and a navigation building block.

6. The method of claim 1 wherein running one or more framework components additionally comprises communicating a data structure of the one or more framework components to one of the one or more components selected from the group consisting of framework components and application components.

7. The method of claim 1 wherein managing a processing system comprises managing a system for processing an integrated circuit structure.

8. The method of claim 7 wherein the system comprises one or more wafer fabrication tools.

9. The method of claim 1 additionally comprising:

a) determining whether the one or more instructions need to be modified;

b) communicating the one or more instructions to the system, if the instructions do not need to be modified;

c) modifying the instructions if they need to be modified, using the one or more framework components thereby forming modified instructions; and

d) communicating the modified instructions to the system.

10. The method of claim 9 wherein communicating comprises communicating using a tool integration component.

11. The method of claim 9 wherein communicating comprises communicating using:

a) a tool interface program; and

b) a tool integration component adapter.

12. The method of claim 9 wherein the one or more computer implemented instructions are visual framework component instructions.

13. The method of claim 9, wherein modifying the instructions comprises inputting data.

14. A method for processing a product, the method comprising:

a) determining specifications for processing the product; and

b) managing the processing on a distributed factory system framework including;

(1) a factory automated lifecycle having one or more framework components, wherein said one or more framework components include a visual workflow component configured to execute at least one manufacturing process and at least one business process, and (2) one or more application components wherein the framework components are adapted for managing the application components.

15. The method of claim 14 wherein managing additionally comprises:

a) determining whether the distributed factory system framework needs to be modified in order to meet the specifications; and

b) modifying one or more of the application components if the distributed factory system framework needs to be modified.

16. The method of claim 15 wherein modifying comprises inputting data.

17. The method of claim 14 wherein managing additionally comprises forming one or more framework components using one or more software building blocks.

18. The method of claim 14 wherein managing additionally comprises:

a) forming one or more computer implemented instructions for managing, using the one or more application components;

b) communicating the one or more instructions to equipment for processing the product; and

c) executing the one or more instructions on the equipment.

19. The method of claim 18 wherein communicating comprises communicating using a tool integration component, wherein the tool integration component comprises:

(1) a tool integration component adapter and (2) a tool interface program.

20. The method of claim 14 wherein processing a product comprises processing an integrated circuit structure.

21. An apparatus for processing a product, the apparatus comprising:

a) product processing equipment; and

b) a distributed factory system framework for managing the product processing equipment, the distributed factory system framework comprising;

(1) a digitally coded first data structure comprising a factory automation lifecycle including one or more digitally coded framework components, wherein said one or more digitally coded framework components include a visual workflow component configured to execute at least one manufacturing process and at least one business process, (2) a digitally coded second data structure comprising application components adapted for communicating digitally coded instructions to the processing equipment, wherein the first data structure is adapted for managing the second data structure and (3) a link for communicating the digitally coded instructions to the processing equipment.

22. The apparatus of claim 21 comprising an apparatus for processing an integrated circuit structure.

23. A distributed factory system framework for managing a processing system, the distributed factory system framework comprising:

a) at least one computer readable medium, readable by the processing system;

b) a digitally coded first data structure, provided on the at least one computer readable medium, comprising one or more digitally coded framework components, wherein said one or more digitally coded framework components include a visual workflow component configured to execute at least one manufacturing process and at least one business process;

c) a digitally coded second data structure, provided on the at least one computer readable medium, comprising application components adapted for communicating digitally coded instructions to the processing system, wherein the first data structure is adapted for managing the second data structure; and

d) a link for communicating the digitally coded instructions to the processing system.

24. The distributed factory system framework of claim 23 wherein the framework components comprise one or more components selected from the group consisting of a security component, a GUI console component, a performance and license management component, a saga management component, a context resolution component, a configuration management component, a calendar component, a resource coordination component, an event monitor component, a bill of resources component and a data manager component.

25. The distributed factory system framework of claim 23 wherein the application components comprise one or more components selected from the group consisting of a quality management component, a tool integration component, an equipment management component, a recipe management component, a dispatching and scheduling component, a material handling component, a work in progress component and a legacy system interface component.

26. The distributed factory system framework of claim 23 wherein the link comprises a third data structure, provided on the at least one computer readable medium, including a tool integration component.

27. The distributed factory system framework of claim 26 wherein the third data structure comprises:

a) a tool interface program fourth data structure, provided on the at least one computer readable medium; and

b) a tool integration component adapter fifth data structure, provided on the at least one computer readable medium.

28. The distributed factory system framework of claim 23, additionally comprising one or more software building blocks selected from the group consisting of a server construction building block, a persistence building block, a common GUI controls building block, a publish and subscribe messaging building block, a dynamic API discovery building block, an associations building block, a history building block, a generic service executor building block, a classifications building block, a customer defined attributes building block, a state models building block, a namespace building block, a schedule/datebook building block, a templates building block, a versioned objects building block and a navigation building block.

29. A data storage device comprising:

a) a digitally coded first data structure comprising a factory automation lifecycle including one or more digitally coded framework components, wherein said one or more digitally coded framework components include a visual workflow component configured to execute at least one manufacturing process and at least one business process; and

b) a digitally coded second data structure comprising application components, wherein the first data structure is adapted for modifying the second data structure.

30. The device of claim 29 wherein the framework components comprise one or more components selected from the group consisting of a security component, a GUI console component, a performance and license management component, a saga management component, a context resolution component, a configuration management component, a calendar component, a resource coordination component, an event monitor component, a bill of resources component and a data manager component.

31. The device of claim 29 wherein the application components comprise one or more components selected from the group consisting of a quality management component, a tool integration component, an equipment management component, a recipe management component, a dispatching and scheduling component, a material handling component, a work in progress component and a legacy system interface component.

32. The device of claim 29 additionally comprising a digitally coded third data structure including one or more software building blocks selected from the group consisting of a server construction building block, a persistence building block, a common GUI controls building block, a publish and subscribe messaging building block, a dynamic API discovery building block, an associations building block, a history building block, a generic service executor building block, a classifications building block, a customer defined attributes building block, a state models building block, a namespace building block, a schedule/datebook building block, a templates building block, a versioned objects building block and a navigation building block.