公开(公告)号：US10541157B2

公开(公告)日：2020-01-21

申请号：US15333021

申请日：2016-10-24

Applicant: Brooks Automation, Inc.

Inventor： Christopher Hofmeister ,  Martin R. Elliott ,  Alexander Krupyshev ,  Joseph Hallisey ,  Joseph Kraus ,  William Fosnight ,  Craig J. Carbone ,  Jeffrey C. Blahnik ,  Ho Yin Owen Fong

IPC: H01L21/67

Abstract: A semiconductor processing tool is disclosed, the tool having a frame forming at least one chamber with an opening and having a sealing surface around a periphery of the opening, a door configured to interact with the sealing surface for sealing the opening, the door having sides perpendicular to the door sealing surface and perpendicular to a transfer plane of a substrate, and at least one drive located on the frame to a side of at least one of the sides that are substantially perpendicular to the door sealing surface and substantially perpendicular to the transfer plane of the substrate, the drive having actuators located at least partially in front of the sealing surface and the actuators being coupled to one of the sides of the door for moving the door from a sealed position. The at least one drive is located outside of a substrate transfer zone.

公开(公告)号：US10534356B2

公开(公告)日：2020-01-14

申请号：US14530102

申请日：2014-10-31

Applicant: Brooks Automation, Inc.

Inventor： Pablo Gonzalez ,  Gary Roy Watts

IPC: G05B19/41 ,  G05B19/418 ,  G06F21/44

Abstract: An access arbitration module includes a plurality of active component communication ports for communicating with a plurality of active components, and includes a passive component communication port for communicating with a passive component. The access arbitration module also includes switching logic defined to control transmission of access communication protocol signals between each of the plurality of active component communication ports and the passive component communication port, such that an authorized one of the plurality of active component communication ports is connected in communication with the passive component communication port at a given time, and such that non-authorized ones of the plurality of active component communication ports are prevented from communication with the passive component communication port at the given time.

公开(公告)号：US20200002104A1

公开(公告)日：2020-01-02

申请号：US16426983

申请日：2019-05-30

Applicant: Brooks Automation, Inc.

Inventor： Christopher A. Bussiere ,  Robert T. Caveney

IPC: B65G47/90

Abstract: A substrate processing apparatus includes a frame and a transport apparatus connected to the frame. The transport apparatus has an upper arm link, a forearm link rotatably coupled to the upper arm link about an elbow axis, at least a third arm link rotatably coupled to the forearm about a wrist axis, and an end effector rotatably coupled to the third arm link about a knuckle axis. A two degree of freedom drive system is operably connected to at least one of the upper arm link, the forearm link, and the third arm link for effecting extension and retraction of the end effector wherein a height of the end effector is within the stack height profile of the wrist axis so that a total stack height of the end effector and wrist axis is sized to conform within a pass through of a slot valve.

公开(公告)号：US20200001451A1

公开(公告)日：2020-01-02

申请号：US16566730

申请日：2019-09-10

Applicant: BROOKS AUTOMATION, INC.

Inventor： Robert T. Caveney ,  David Martin ,  Ulysses Gilchrist

IPC: B25J9/04 ,  H01L21/677

Abstract: A substrate transport apparatus comprising a drive section, a controller, an upper arm, forearm and substrate holder. A proximate end of the upper arm being rotatably mounted to the drive section at a shoulder joint. A proximate end of the forearm being rotatably mounted to a distal end of the upper arm at an elbow joint. The substrate holder being rotatably mounted to a distal end of the forearm at a wrist joint. The upper arm and the forearm being unequal in length from joint center to joint center. The substrate transport arm is adapted to transport substrate to and from at least two substrate holding areas with the drive section of the transport apparatus remaining in a fixed position relative to the holding areas. Each of the upper arm, forearm and substrate holder being independently rotatable with respect to each other.

公开(公告)号：US10395959B2

公开(公告)日：2019-08-27

申请号：US14161039

申请日：2014-01-22

Applicant: Brooks Automation, Inc.

Inventor： Daniel Babbs ,  Robert T. Caveney ,  Robert C. May ,  Krysztof A. Majczak

IPC: H01L21/677 ,  H01L21/673 ,  H01L21/67

Abstract: A substrate transport system includes a carrier having a housing forming an interior environment having an opening for holding at least one substrate and a door for sealing the opening from an outside atmosphere where when sealed the interior environment is configured to maintain an interior atmosphere therein, the housing including a fluid reservoir exterior to the interior environment and configured to contain a fluid, forming a different atmosphere in the fluid reservoir than the interior atmosphere, to form a fluidic barrier seal that seals the interior environment from an environment exterior to the carrier.

公开(公告)号：US10381252B2

公开(公告)日：2019-08-13

申请号：US16011978

申请日：2018-06-19

Applicant: Brooks Automation, Inc.

Inventor： Jairo T. Moura ,  Aaron Gawlik ,  Reza Saeidpourazar

IPC: H01L21/677 ,  H01L21/67 ,  H01L21/68 ,  H01L21/687

Abstract: A substrate transport apparatus auto-teach system for auto-teaching a substrate station location, the system including a frame, a substrate transport connected to the frame, the substrate transport having an end effector configured to support a substrate, and a controller configured to move the substrate transport so that the substrate transport biases the substrate supported on the end effector against a substrate station feature causing a change in eccentricity between the substrate and the end effector, determine the change in eccentricity, and determine the substrate station location based on at least the change in eccentricity between the substrate and the end effector.

公开(公告)号：US10336539B2

公开(公告)日：2019-07-02

申请号：US15085431

申请日：2016-03-30

Applicant: Brooks Automation, Inc.

Inventor： Robert T. Caveney ,  Frank Hunt ,  Lingchen Sun ,  Julian D. Warhurst ,  Bruce S. Zandi ,  Anthony C. Bonora

IPC: B65G1/04 ,  B65G1/06 ,  B65G1/10 ,  F25D3/10 ,  F25D21/02 ,  F25D21/04 ,  F25D25/02 ,  F25D29/00 ,  F25D3/11 ,  F25D25/04

Abstract: An automated cryogenic storage system includes a freezer and an automation system to provide automated transfer of samples to and from the freezer. The freezer includes a bearing and a drive shaft though the freezer, the drive shaft being coupled to a rack carrier inside the freezer and adapted to be coupled to a motor. The automation module includes a rack puller that is automatically positioned above an access port of the freezer. The rack puller engages with a sample rack within the freezer, and elevates the rack into an insulating sleeve external to the freezer. From the insulating sleeve, samples can be added to and removed from the sample rack before it is returned to the freezer.

公开(公告)号：US20190179298A1

公开(公告)日：2019-06-13

申请号：US16181208

申请日：2018-11-05

Applicant: Brooks Automation, Inc.

Inventor： Martin HOSEK ,  Jay KRISHNASAMY ,  Jan PROCHAZKA

IPC: G05B23/02 ,  G06F11/22 ,  G05B19/418 ,  B25J9/16

Abstract: A system for condition monitoring and fault diagnosis includes a data collection function that acquires time histories of selected variables for one or more of the components, a pre-processing function that calculates specified characteristics of the time histories, an analysis function for evaluating the characteristics to produce one or more hypotheses of a condition of the one or more components, and a reasoning function for determining the condition of the one or more components from the one or more hypotheses.

公开(公告)号：US10251388B2

公开(公告)日：2019-04-09

申请号：US14875921

申请日：2015-10-06

Applicant: BROOKS AUTOMATION, INC.

Inventor： Beat Reuteler

IPC: B65G1/06 ,  A47F5/00 ,  A01N1/02 ,  G01N35/00 ,  G01N35/10 ,  B65G1/04

Abstract: A storage stack for storing sample containers in a low temperature sample store, each storage stack includes first and second rigid lateral support flanges including a multitude of storage webs for supporting sample containers; a rigid back panel; a rigid bottom plate; and a rigid insulation cover. The insulation cover includes a handling plate and an insulation block. A number of insulation covers of all storage stacks of a storage stack array form an essentially continuous insulation layer on a storage area of the low temperature sample store. For all storage stacks, carrying elements are provided that statically connect the bottom plate of each individual storage stack with a bottom structure of the storage area, carry the entire weight of the individual storage stack and all sample containers inserted therein, and confer this entire weight to a bottom structure of the storage area of the low temperature sample store.

公开(公告)号：US20190054612A1

公开(公告)日：2019-02-21

申请号：US16043757

申请日：2018-07-24

Applicant: BROOKS AUTOMATION, INC.

Inventor： Izya Kremerman

IPC: B25J9/04 ,  B25J9/12 ,  H01L21/677 ,  B25J15/02

Abstract: A robot assembly for transporting a substrate is presented. The robot assembly having a first arm and a second arm supported by a column, the first arm further having a first limb, the first limb having a first set of revolute joint/line pairs configured to provide translation and rotation of the distal most link of the first limb in the horizontal plane. The assembly further having a second arm further having a second limb, the second limb comprising a second set of revolute joint/link pairs configured to provide translation and rotation of a distalmost link of the second limb in the horizontal plane. The first limb and second limb further having proximal revolute joints having a common vertical axis of rotation and a proximal inner joint housed in a common housing. The assembly further having an actuator assembly coupled to the first set of revolute joint/link pairs and to the second set of revolute joint/link pairs to effect rotation and translation of the distalmost links of the first limb and the second limb, each of the first limb and the second limb defining, in conjunction with the actuator assembly, at least three degrees of freedom per limb, whereby the distalmost links of the first limb and the second limb are independently horizontally translatable for extension and retraction.