Software application to analyze event log and chart tool fail rate as function of chamber and recipe

• US 8,335,582 B2
• Filed: 02/10/2009
• Issued: 12/18/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 05/19/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Applied Materials Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Applied Materials Incorporated
• Inventors: Shimshi, Rinat
• Primary Examiner(s): ROBERTSON, DAVID
• Application Number:
  US12/368,760
• Publication Number:
  US 20090287339A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,407 Days
• Field of Search: 700/108, 700/110, 700/121, 714/57, 702/81, 702181-183, 702/185, 438/14
• US Class Current: 700/108
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 19/0428 Safety, monitoring G05B19/0423 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 2219/24085 Analyze, trace fault signals according to tree, table
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 2219/24093 Display, show place of error, fault
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 2219/24103 Graphical display of proces as function of detected alarm signals
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 23/0272 Presentation of monitored results, e.g. selection of status reports to be displayed; Filtering information to the user

Abstract

In one embodiment, a method for providing a user interface to graphically indicate a cause for fault-related events includes providing a user interface to illustrate a plurality of fault-related events for a plurality of recipes performed on a plurality of manufacturing process hardware tools, presenting in the user interface the plurality of recipes in a first axis and the plurality of manufacturing process hardware tools in a second axis, and graphically indicating in the user interface whether the plurality of fault-related events were caused by one of the plurality of manufacturing process hardware tools or one of the plurality of recipes performed on the one manufacturing process hardware tools.

Claims

1. A computer-implemented method, comprising:

providing a user interface to illustrate a plurality of fault-related events for a plurality of recipes performed on a plurality of manufacturing process hardware tools, wherein each of the plurality of fault-related events corresponds to one of the plurality of recipes being performed on one of the plurality of manufacturing process hardware tools;

presenting in the user interface the plurality of recipes in a first axis and tool identifiers of the plurality of manufacturing process hardware tools in a second axis, wherein at least one manufacturing process hardware tool includes a plurality of processing chambers that are identified in the user interface in the second axis; and

graphically indicating in the user interface whether the plurality of fault-related events were caused by one of the plurality of manufacturing process hardware tools or one of the plurality of recipes performed on the manufacturing process hardware tools.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein providing a user interface to illustrate a plurality of fault-related events comprises:

receiving event data for each of the plurality of manufacturing process hardware tools, the event data comprising activity information of the manufacturing process hardware tools; and

analyzing the event data for each manufacturing process hardware tool to identify a plurality of fault-related events, wherein each of the plurality of fault-related events relates to performing one of a plurality of recipes on the manufacturing process hardware tool.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein each of the plurality of manufacturing process hardware tools includes a plurality of processing chambers that are identified in the user interface in the second axis.

4. The method of claim 1 wherein areas on the user interface where each of the plurality of recipes on the first axis intersect with each of the plurality of manufacturing process hardware tools on the second axis are cells, each cell corresponding to one of the plurality of recipes being performed on one of the plurality of manufacturing process hardware tools.

5. The method of claim 4 further comprising:

providing a visual indication of a fault-related calculation for each cell, the visual indication provided using at least one of different colors, different symbols, different patterns, different shading, different values or any combination thereof.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein each color is associated with a value for the fault-related calculation.

7. The method of claim 5, wherein providing a visual indication of a fault-related calculation for each cell comprises:

providing a user interface to define a qualified alarm;

receiving an input defining a qualified alarm;

determining a number of qualified alarms reported for performing one of the plurality of recipes on one of the plurality of manufacturing process hardware tools; and

performing a fault-related calculation for performing the one recipe on the one manufacturing process hardware tool.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein the fault-related calculation is a fail rate for performing the one recipe on the one manufacturing process hardware tool calculated as the number of qualified alarms reported in relation to a total number of times the one recipe is performed on the one manufacturing process hardware tool.

9. The method of claim 7, wherein the fault-related calculation is a fail count for performing the one recipe on the one manufacturing process hardware tool calculated as the number of qualified alarms reported for performing the one recipe on the one manufacturing process hardware tool.

10. The method of claim 5, further comprising presenting a user interface to illustrate additional information of the fault-related calculation for a cell.

11. The method of claim 2, further comprising:

providing a user interface to exclude event data;

receiving an input identifying event data to exclude; and

analyzing the event data, excluding the identified event data in the analysis, for each manufacturing process hardware tool to identify a plurality of fault-related events, wherein each of the plurality of fault-related events relates to performing one of a plurality of recipes on the manufacturing process hardware tool.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein event data to be excluded includes event data associated with at least one of the plurality of fault-related events based on a status of at least one manufacturing process hardware tool.

13. A machine-accessible non-transitory storage medium that provides instructions that, if executed by a machine, will cause the machine to perform operations, comprising:

providing a user interface to illustrate a plurality of fault-related events for a plurality of recipes performed on a plurality of manufacturing process hardware tools, wherein each of the plurality of fault-related events corresponds to one of the plurality of recipes being performed on one of the plurality of manufacturing process hardware tools;

presenting in the user interface the plurality of recipes in a first axis and tool identifiers of the plurality of manufacturing process hardware tools in a second axis, wherein at least one manufacturing process hardware tool includes a plurality of processing chambers that are identified in the user interface in the second axis; and

graphically indicating in the user interface whether the plurality of fault-related events were caused by one of the plurality of manufacturing process hardware tools or one of the plurality of recipes performed on the manufacturing process hardware tools.

14. The machine-accessible non-transitory storage medium of claim 13, wherein providing a user interface to illustrate a plurality of fault-related events comprises:

receiving event data for each of the plurality of manufacturing process hardware tools, the event data comprising activity information of the manufacturing process hardware tools; and

analyzing the event data for each manufacturing process hardware tool to identify a plurality of fault-related events, wherein each of the plurality of fault-related events relates to performing one of a plurality of recipes on the manufacturing process hardware tool.

15. The machine-accessible non-transitory storage medium of claim 13 further comprising:

providing a visual indication of a fault-related calculation for each cell, the visual indication provided using at least one of different colors, different symbols, different patterns, different shading, different values or any combination thereof.

16. The machine-accessible non-transitory storage medium of claim 15, wherein providing a visual indication of a fault-related calculation for each cell comprises:

providing a user interface to define a qualified alarm;

receiving an input defining a qualified alarm;

determining a number of qualified alarms reported for performing one of the plurality of recipes on one of the plurality of manufacturing process hardware tools; and

performing a fault-related calculation for performing the one recipe on the one manufacturing process hardware tool.

17. The machine-accessible non-transitory storage medium of claim 14, further comprising:

providing a user interface to exclude event data;

receiving an input identifying event data to exclude; and

analyzing the event data, excluding the identified event data in the analysis, for each manufacturing process hardware tool to identify a plurality of fault-related events, wherein each of the plurality of fault-related events relates to performing one of a plurality of recipes on the manufacturing process hardware tool.

18. The machine-accessible non-transitory storage medium of claim 17, wherein event data to be excluded is at least one of:

at least one of the plurality of fault-related events, at least one of the plurality of manufacturing process hardware tools, at least one of the plurality of recipes.

19. A system comprising:

a database to store event data for a plurality of recipes performed on a plurality of manufacturing process hardware tools, and to store fault-related calculations for the plurality of recipes performed on the plurality of manufacturing process hardware tools; and

a graphical user interface (GUI) module, coupled to the database, to provide a user interface to illustrate a plurality of fault-related events for the plurality of recipes performed on the plurality of manufacturing process hardware tools, wherein each of the plurality of fault-related events corresponds to one of the plurality of recipes being performed on one of the plurality of manufacturing process hardware tools;

present in the user interface the plurality of recipes in a first axis and tool identifiers of the plurality of manufacturing process hardware tools in a second axis, wherein at least one manufacturing process hardware tool includes a plurality of processing chambers that are identified in the user interface in the second axis; and

graphically indicate in the user interface whether the plurality of fault-related events were caused by one of the plurality of manufacturing process hardware tools or one of the plurality of recipes performed on the manufacturing process hardware tools.

20. The system of claim 19, wherein areas on the user interface where each of the plurality of recipes on the first axis intersect with each of the plurality of manufacturing process hardware tools on the second axis are cells, each cell corresponding to one of the plurality of recipes being performed on one of the plurality of manufacturing process hardware tools.

21. The system of claim 20, wherein the GUI module is further to provide a visual indication of a fault-related calculation for each cell, the visual indication provided using at least one of different colors, different symbols, different patterns, different shading, different values or any combination thereof.

22. The system of claim 21, wherein to provide a visual indication of a fault-related calculation for each cell, the GUI module is further to:

provide a user interface to define a qualified alarm;

receive an input defining a qualified alarm;

determine a number of qualified alarms reported for performing one of the plurality of recipes on one of the plurality of manufacturing process hardware tools; and

perform a fault-related calculation for performing the one recipe on the one manufacturing process hardware tool.

23. The system of claim 22, wherein the fault-related calculation is a fail rate for performing the one recipe on the one manufacturing process hardware tool calculated as the number of qualified alarms reported in relation to a total number of times the one recipe is performed on the one manufacturing process hardware tool.

24. The system of claim 22, wherein the fault-related calculation is a fail count for performing the one recipe on the one manufacturing process hardware tool calculated as the number of qualified alarms reported for performing the one recipe on the one manufacturing process hardware tool.