A semiconductor wafer cassette warehouse transportation structure system includes a wafer cassette lift transportation structure body, a wafer cassette frame structure body, an arm structure body, an arm gripping wafer cassette structure body, and a wafer cassette warehouse structure body. The suspension support rods are suspended on a ceiling. The wafer cassette lift transportation structure body lifts the wafer cassettes to the inlet and outlet. The arm structure body grips the wafer cassettes and puts same on the tracks so that the wafer cassettes can be transported to the wafer cassette warehouse structure body to be precisely accessed. The system saves space and facilitates the access of the wafer cassettes because the wafer cassettes are stored on the wafer cassette warehouse structure body suspended on the ceiling.

In an article transport vehicle that is able to transport a plurality of types of articles, the efficiency of operations is improved in accordance with the type of article, while suppressing an increase in the size of the article transport vehicle. If a control device determines that an article held by a holding portion is a first-type article, the control device controls the transfer mechanism so as to cause the turning mechanism to perform a turning mechanism and cause a sliding mechanism to perform a sliding operation such that operation periods of these operations do not overlap. If the control device determines that the article held by the holding portion is a second-type article, the control device controls the transfer mechanism so as to perform the turning operation and the sliding operation such that the operation periods of these operations overlap.

Embodiments herein relate to a transport system and a substrate processing and transfer (SPT) system. The SPT system includes a transport system that connects two processing tools. The transport system includes a vacuum tunnel that is configured to transport substrates between the processing tools. The vacuum tunnel includes a substrate transport carriage to move the substrate through the vacuum tunnel. The SPT system has a variety of configurations that allow the user to add or remove processing chambers, depending on the process chambers required for a desired substrate processing procedure.

A first carriage is provided with a support rail that supports a main body, and is configured to travel together with a second carriage that includes the main body along the first path, in a supporting state that is a state of supporting the main body, using the support rail. In a state where the first carriage is located at a connection part of the first path, which is connected to the second path, the support rail is located on an extension line of the travel rail.

A crane monitoring system includes: a first detection apparatus configured to detect a position of a crane, to send a first detection signal when the crane is located above a Front Opening Unified Pod (FOUP) load port of a semiconductor device, and to send a second detection signal when the crane leaves a space above the FOUP load port; a processing apparatus configured to generate a start control signal responsive to receiving the first detection signal, and to generate a stop control signal responsive to receiving the second detection signal; and a second detection apparatus configured to start a detection of whether there is a foreign matter between the crane and the FOUP load port after receiving the start control signal, and to stop the detection after receiving the stop control signal.

A multiple die container load port may include a housing with an opening, and an elevator to accommodate a plurality of different sized die containers. The multiple die container load port may include a stage supported by the housing and moveable within the opening of the housing by the elevator. The stage may include one or more positioning mechanisms to facilitate positioning of the plurality of different sized die containers on the stage, and may include different portions movable by the elevator to accommodate the plurality of different sized die containers. The multiple die container load port may include a position sensor to identify one of the plurality of different sized die containers positioned on the stage.

In a control method, a controller obtains equipment specifying information that specifies an equipment to which a transportable object is to be delivered, and a transport carriage obtains carriage position information indicating the position of the transport carriage. Any one of the transport carriage, a specific communication device, and the controller calculates the distance between the transport carriage and the specific communication device based on delivery position information indicating the position of a specific equipment and the carriage position information, and determines whether the distance is not more than a predetermined distance. When the distance is not more than the predetermined distance, one of the transport carriage and the specific communication device transmits, wirelessly to the surroundings, a trigger signal to start wireless communication between the transport carriage and the specific equipment, and performs wireless communication to deliver the transportable object between the transport carriage and the specific equipment.

A stacker crane that prevents an increase in facility cost while lightening a mast and transfers an article to a target position, includes a traveling carriage including a carriage driver and traveling on a track provided on a ceiling of a facility, a mast suspended from the traveling carriage, an elevating platform vertically movable and guided along the mast, a transfer conveyor to transfer an article, a stopper to fix the mast, a switch to switch a state of the mast between a fixed and released states by the stopper, in which the switch releases the fixing of the stopper to allow a lower portion of the mast to follow an upper portion of the mast in the traveling direction when the carriage driver drives the traveler, the stopper fixes the mast when the carriage driver stops the traveling carriage.

A storing system includes: a traveling rail including a plurality of first rails extending in a first direction and a plurality of second rails extending in a second direction, the first rails and the second rails being disposed in a grid pattern on the same horizontal plane to form lengthwise and crosswise a plurality of opening areas each of which is surrounded by a pair of the first rails and a pair of the second rails; a vehicle including a traveling unit and a transfer unit; and a storage unit on which a FOUP is to be placed. The storage unit includes a plurality of rack units adjacent to each other. Each of the rack units includes a placement member on which the FOUP is to be placed, is provided such that the placement member is positioned directly below the corresponding opening area, and is detachable from the traveling rail.

An apparatus for handling wafer carriers in a semiconductor fabrication facility (FAB) is disclosed. In one example, the apparatus includes: a table configured to receive a wafer carrier having a first door and operable to hold a plurality of wafers; an opening mechanism configured to open the first door of the wafer carrier; and a door storage space configured to store the first door. The apparatus may be either located on a floor of the FAB or physically coupled to a ceiling of the FAB.