Disclosed are a substrate treating apparatus and a substrate transporting method for the substrate treating apparatus. Two treating blocks are arranged so as not to be stacked, and a first treating block, an ID block, and a second treating block are linearly connected horizontally. Accordingly, the number of treatment layers is increasable while a height of the substrate treating apparatus is suppressed. The first and second treating blocks are each connected to the ID block directly. This enables suppression in step of passing a substrate through a treating block without performing any treatment on the substrate, leading to prevention of decrease in throughput. In addition, a substrate buffer is placed in the middle of the two treating blocks. The two treating blocks enable transportation of substrates W with the substrate buffer. Thus, reduction in footprint of the substrate treating apparatus is obtainable.

A control unit that controls a transport apparatus executes selection control to select one accommodation portion as a selected accommodation portion, movement control to control the transport apparatus so as to move a transport support portion to a corresponding position, determination control to determine whether or not a detection target portion is detected by a detecting portion, transfer control to control the transport apparatus so as to transfer an article from the transport support portion to an accommodation support member, and update setting control to set the selected accommodation portion and related accommodation portions as prohibited accommodation portions if it is determined, in the determination control, that the detection target portion is not detected, and after the update setting control, the control unit again executes the selection control to newly select a selected accommodation portion, and executes the movement control so as to move the transport support portion to a corresponding position corresponding to the newly selected accommodation portion.

The present invention relates to a chip transfer device capable of floatingly positioning a chip and a method for floatingly positioning a chip. When a chip is placed in a chip socket, a control unit controls an air pressure switching valve to allow at least one vent hole to be communicated with a positive air pressure source. An air flow from the positive air pressure source blows a lower surface of the chip through the vent hole, so that the at least one chip is air-floated. Accordingly, when the chip socket is communicated with the positive air pressure source, the air flow blows the lower surface of the chip in the chip socket through the vent hole, so that the chip is air-floated in the chip socket to reduce the error displacement of the chip offset.

A support member system is described for association with an overhead transport system. The support member system provides a safety feature to the overhead transport system by which the overhead transport system is able to avoid damage to wafers that are contained within a wafer cassette that is unintentionally released by the overhead transport system. The support member system is able to prevent such released cassettes from impacting the ground or tools located under the overhead transport system. The support member system targets wafer cassettes that have dimensions which are different than the dimensions of wafer cassettes for which the overhead transport system was originally designed to transport. Stocker systems for receiving, storing and delivering different types of wafer cassettes are also described.

A system includes a filter purge apparatus configured to supply a flushing gas to a portion of a factory interface chamber located upstream of a chamber filter to minimize moisture contamination of the chamber filter by ambient air. The filter purge apparatus is configured to supply the flushing gas in association with breach of the factory interface chamber which compromises controlled environment of the factory interface chamber.

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 carriage robot includes a robot arm being configured to transport a plurality of containers, a robot hand connected to an end of the robot arm, the robot hand being configured to support a first container having a first size among the containers, and a gripper provided under the robot hand, the gripper being configured to grip a second container having a second size different from the first size. Thus, the carriage robot is capable of transport the containers, each having a size different from each other.

A semiconductor fabrication facility (FAB) is provided. The FAB includes a group of processing tools. The FAB also includes a number of sampling tubes connecting the group of processing tools. In addition, the FAB includes a sampling station which includes a connection port, a valve manifold box and a controller. The valve manifold box is used for switching a gas sample from one of the processing tools to the connection port. The controller is sued for controlling the connection of the valve manifold box and the sampling tubes. The FAB further includes a metrology module. The metrology module is connected to the connection port of the sampling station and is used to perform a measurement of a parameter related to the gas sample.

A wafer handling apparatus includes at least one load port, an image capturing device and a processor. The load port is configured to receive a wafer carrier. The image capturing device is configured to capture an image of the wafer carrier received in the load port before one or more wafers are inserted into the wafer carrier. The processor is communicably connected to the image capturing device and is configured to determine whether the wafer carrier is in a condition that is unsafe for wafer placement based on the image captured by the image capturing device.

A semiconductor processing system includes a first component forming a first chamber. A first sealed environment in the first chamber is at a first state prior to a door being opened. A load port structure is disposed between the first component and a second component. The load port structure includes walls disposed around an opening of the load port structure. The load port structure is separate from the first component and the second component. A third component is configured to change at least one of the first state of the first sealed environment within the first chamber or a second state of a second sealed environment within a second chamber formed by the second component to cause the first state and the second state to be substantially similar before the door between the first sealed environment and the second sealed environment is opened.