Apparatus and methods for handling die carriers are disclosed. In one example, a disclosed apparatus includes: a load port configured to load a die carrier operable to hold a plurality of dies into a processing tool; and a lane changer coupled to the load port and configured to move at least one die in the die carrier to an input of the processing tool and transfer the at least one die into the processing tool for processing the at least one die.

A substrate treating apparatus includes a transporting space, transport mechanisms, and heat-treating sections. The transport mechanisms are provided in the transporting space. The heat-treating section, transporting space, and heat-treating section are aligned in the stated order in a transverse direction. One heat-treating section includes a plurality of heat-treating units. The heat-treating units are arranged in a longitudinal direction. The other heat-treating section includes a plurality of heat-treating units. These heat-treating units are also arranged in the longitudinal direction. One transport mechanism transports substrates to the heat-treating units. The other transport mechanism also transports substrates to the heat-treating units.

Some implementations described herein provide a method that includes loading, from a load port and into a first buffer of a multiple-buffer overhead hoist transport (OHT) vehicle, a first transport carrier storing one or more processed wafers. The method includes unloading to the load port, while the first buffer retains the first transport carrier, and from a second buffer of the multiple-buffer OHT vehicle, a second transport carrier storing one or more wafers for processing. In other implementations, the method includes loading, into a first buffer of the multiple-buffer OHT vehicle, a first transport carrier storing one or more wafers for processing, while a semiconductor processing tool, associated with a load port, is processing one or more wafers associated with a second transport carrier. The method includes positioning the multiple-buffer OHT vehicle above the load port while the multiple-buffer OHT vehicle retains the first transport carrier in the first buffer.

A semiconductor manufacturing system has a series of steps, from manufacturing of a semiconductor on a wafer until packaging, that can be easily linked. A semiconductor chip manufacturing device manufactures a semiconductor chip, and a semiconductor packaging device packages the semiconductor chip by attaching the semiconductor chip to a package substrate which is larger than the wafer. The semiconductor chip manufacturing device includes a PLAD system for loading the wafer into and out of the semiconductor chip manufacturing device through a shuttle which is capable of housing the wafer. The semiconductor packaging device includes a PLAD system capable of loading the package substrate into and out of the semiconductor packaging device through a shuttle which is capable of housing the package substrate. The shuttles have container bodies of a same shape.

A substrate treating apparatus and a substrate transporting method wherein a platform is disposed on a first ID block, and a platform is placed on a second ID block. A currently-used carrier platform is provided only on the first ID block. Accordingly, a substrate is transported in both a forward path and a return path between the first ID block and a second treating block. The substrate is returned not to the first ID block but to the second ID block disposed between the two treating blocks in the return path.

A transport vehicle system includes a transport vehicle having a first travel unit configured to travel on a track and a transfer unit configured to move in a horizontal direction with respect to the first travel unit to transfer an article and a buffer vehicle having a second travel unit configure to travel on the track on which the transport vehicle travels and an article placement unit provided to be movable integrally with the second travel unit and to be able to deliver the article with the transfer unit of the transport vehicle.

A method includes disposing, by using a transport module of a workpiece storage system, a first workpiece on a first workpiece carrier; disposing, by using the transport module, the first workpiece carrier with the first workpiece in a workpiece container; disposing, by using the transport module, a second workpiece in the workpiece container, wherein the first workpiece and the second workpiece have different sizes; and transferring, by using the transport module, the workpiece container containing the second workpiece and the first workpiece carrier with the first workpiece to a stocker to store the workpiece container.

A substrate treating apparatus and a substrate transporting method wherein a platform is disposed on a first ID block, and a platform is placed on a second ID block. A currently-used carrier platform is provided only on the first ID block. Accordingly, a substrate is transported in both a forward path and a return path between the first ID block and a second treating block. The substrate is returned not to the first ID block but to the second ID block disposed between the two treating blocks in the return path.

A conveyance vehicle includes a traveling driver, a main body, an up-and-down stage including a gripper to hold an article and capable of moving up and down with respect to the main body, an up-and-down driver to cause the up-and-down stage to move up and down by drawing out and winding up of belts, a lateral mover to cause the up-and-down driver while being cantilevered to protrude laterally of the main body, and an adjuster. In accordance with a laterally moved amount of the up-and-down driver by the lateral mover and a lowered amount of the up-and-down stage by the up-and-down driver, the adjuster performs one or both of adjustment of the laterally moved amount and adjustment of an orientation of a sensor included in the up-and-down driver to deliver the article to the transfer destination and to receive the article from the transfer destination.

A compact manufacturing device to automatically transport a wafer transport container. The compact manufacturing device comprises a processing chamber and a device front chamber provided inside a housing, a container mounting table provided in the housing to mount a substrate transport container accommodating a processing substrate, and a container transport mechanism. The container transport mechanism delivers the substrate transport container to the adjacent compact manufacturing device along a container transport path and/or receives the substrate transport container from adjacent compact manufacturing device along the container transport path when a plurality of the compact manufacturing devices are provided in parallel.