A workpiece has a device area and a peripheral area surrounding the device area on a front surface side thereof. A workpiece grinding method includes a groove forming step of performing grinding feed of a grinding unit while a spindle is rotated, and grinding a predetermined area on a back surface side of the workpiece, the predetermined area corresponding to the device area, in a state in which a chuck table holding the workpiece is not rotated, thereby forming a groove on the back surface side, a groove removing step of starting rotation of the chuck table while the spindle is kept rotating, thereby grinding side walls of the groove and removing the groove, and a recess forming step of performing grinding feed of the grinding unit while the spindle and the chuck table are rotated, thereby grinding the predetermined area and forming a recess and a ring-shaped reinforcement part.

A grinding wheel jig includes a bottomed cylindrical grindstone accommodating section that accommodates the annular grindstone section, an annular base accommodating section that is located on a side opposite to a bottom portion of the grindstone accommodating section in a height direction of the grindstone accommodating section, has an outside diameter greater than an outside diameter of the grindstone accommodating section, and is capable of accommodating at least a part of the base, and a plurality of cylindrical bolt accommodating sections provided at bottom portions of the base accommodating sections and each capable of accommodating a head part of a bolt. In the grinding wheel jig, each bolt accommodating section is provided, at a bottom portion thereof, with an opening in which a fastening tool is insertable into the head part of the bolt.

A suction holding table for holding a holdable object under suction includes a base seat rotatable about a rotational axis, and a plurality of holders erected from the base seat and angularly spaced at equal angular intervals along a circle around the rotational axis, in which each of the holders has an upper surface functioning as a holding surface with a suction port defined therein, and attract the holdable object to the holder under a negative pressure applied via the suction port.

A wafer grinding method includes grinding a central portion of a wafer by using a plurality of abrasive members annularly arranged so as to form a circular ring, thereby forming a circular recess at the central portion of the wafer and simultaneously forming an annular projection around the circular recess, recognizing a height of a grinding unit after grinding the center by using a height recognizing unit and next storing the height recognized above, and grinding an upper surface of the annular projection to a predetermined value for a height of the annular projection previously set by a setting section as a grinding end height where the grinding of the annular projection by the grinding unit is ended.

A processing apparatus used in processing a workpiece having a device in each of a plurality of regions that includes a chuck table holding the workpiece, positioning means positioning the workpiece before grinding, resin coating means including a rotatable spinner table for coating the workpiece with a resin, cleaning means, a grinding unit, and a transfer unit. The transfer unit includes a first transfer unit transferring the workpiece from the positioning means to the spinner table and from the spinner table to the chuck table, a second transfer unit transferring the workpiece from the chuck table to the cleaning means, and a front/back surface inversion transfer unit taking over the workpiece from the cleaning means to the second transfer unit.

A determining tool for use in determining the shape of the tip end of a machining tool that machines a workpiece held on a table while the machining tool moves relatively to the table includes a bottom surface adapted to be held on the table and a flat slanting surface inclined to the bottom surface and oriented across a direction in which the machining tool moves relatively to the table, the flat slanting surface being adapted to be cut through by the tip end of the machining tool.

A grinding apparatus includes a chuck table for holding a workpiece thereon, a table base supporting the chuck table, a grinding unit for grinding the workpiece held on the chuck table with a grinding wheel mounted on an end of a spindle, a load detecting unit for detecting a load applied from the grinding unit to the table base, a tilt adjustment unit supporting the table base thereon, for adjusting a tilt of the table base, a storage for storing a correlative relation between loads applied to the table base and changes in the tilt of the table base, and a controller for controlling the tilt adjustment unit based on the load detected by the load detecting unit and the correlative relation, to adjust the tilt of the table base so that a change in the tilt of the table base that corresponds to the detected load is cancelled out.

A device includes: a separating unit 10 which forms a weak layer WL in a semiconductor wafer WF supported by a base support unit BS to divide the wafer WF into a thinned wafer WF1 and a residual wafer WF2 with the weak layer WL as a boundary, and separates the wafer WF2 from the wafer WF1; a first transfer unit 20 which transfers the wafer WF1 from which the wafer WF2 is separated by the unit 10; a processing unit 30 which applies predetermined processing to the WF1 transferred by the unit 20; a second transfer unit 40 which transfers the wafer WF1 to which the predetermined processing is applied by the unit 30; and a reinforcing member pasting unit 50 which pastes a reinforcing member AS on the wafer WF1 transferred by the unit 40. The unit 20 and the unit 40 transfer the wafer WF1 with the unit BS.

Disclosed is a processing method for a workpiece. The processing method includes a holding step of holding the workpiece on a holding table, a grinding step of grinding the workpiece that is held on the holding table at and around its center by a grinding wheel, so that a recess portion is formed at and around the center of the workpiece and an annular projection portion is formed surrounding the recess portion at and along an outer periphery of the workpiece, and a fusion step of applying a laser beam to a surface of the workpiece, the surface having been ground in the grinding step, so that the ground surface is fused. A processing apparatus for a workpiece is also disclosed.

There is provided a wafer grinding method of grinding a wafer having an orientation flat for indicating a crystal orientation in the condition where the wafer is held on a holding surface of a chuck table. The chuck table includes a suction holding portion for holding the wafer under suction and a frame portion surrounding the suction holding portion. The suction holding portion has a first cutout portion corresponding to the orientation flat, and the frame portion has a second cutout portion formed along the first cutout portion. The wafer grinding method includes a holding surface grinding step of grinding the holding surface by using abrasive members of a grinding wheel, and a wafer grinding step of grinding the wafer by using the abrasive members in the condition where the wafer is held on the holding surface ground by the abrasive members.