Abstract: A cutting apparatus includes a chuck table for holding a workpiece thereon, a cutting unit for cutting the workpiece held on the chuck table with a cutting blade secured in place on a distal-end portion of a spindle by a mount flange mounted on the distal-end portion of the spindle, an indexing feed unit for moving the cutting unit in indexing feed directions parallel to axial directions of the spindle, a processing feed unit for moving the chuck table in processing feed directions perpendicular to the indexing feed directions, and an end face correction unit for correcting an end face of the mount flange that supports the cutting blade in contact therewith. The processing feed unit includes a table moving base that supports the chuck table thereon and an actuating mechanism for moving the table moving base. The end face correction unit is fixedly mounted on the table moving base.

Abstract: A method of processing a wafer includes a protective member affixing step of affixing a protective member whose area covers a face side or a reverse side of the wafer to the wafer, and after the protective member affixing step has been carried out, a ring-shaped stiffener removing step of removing a ring-shaped stiffener from the wafer. The ring-shaped stiffener removing step includes a ring-shaped stiffener separating step of dividing the wafer along an outer circumference of a device region to separate the device region and the ring-shaped stiffener from each other, and after the ring-shaped stiffener separating step has been carried out, a removing step of processing the ring-shaped stiffener with a grindstone to remove the ring-shaped stiffener from the wafer while a processing fluid is being supplied to the wafer.

Abstract: A wafer manufacturing method for manufacturing a wafer from an ingot includes forming a peeling layer within the ingot by positioning a condensing point at a depth corresponding to the thickness of the wafer to be produced, and irradiating the ingot with a first laser beam, forming a character, a number, or a mark representing information regarding resistivity in or on the ingot by positioning a condensing point in a region in which devices are not to be formed and irradiating the ingot with a second laser beam, and dividing the ingot with the peeling layer as a starting point.

Abstract: There is provided a processing method of a wafer. The processing method includes a protective sheet preparation step of preparing a protective sheet including a first sheet that is thermocompression-bonded to a surface of the wafer by heating, a second sheet that is laid on the first sheet and has fluidity due to the heating, and a third sheet that is laid on the second sheet and keeps flatness even with the heating. The processing method also includes a protective sheet laying step of causing a side of the first sheet to face a front surface of the wafer and executing heating to execute thermocompression bonding to lay the protective sheet on the front surface of the wafer and a grinding step of causing a side of the protective sheet to be held by a holding surface of a chuck table and grinding a back surface of the wafer.

Abstract: A wafer processing method for dividing a wafer into individual device chips. The wafer processing method includes a thermocompression bonding sheet providing step of positioning the wafer in an inside opening of a ring frame and providing a thermocompression bonding sheet on a back side of the wafer and on a back side of the ring frame, a uniting step of heating the thermocompression bonding sheet as applying a pressure to the thermocompression bonding sheet to thereby unite the wafer and the ring frame through the thermocompression bonding sheet by thermocompression bonding, a dividing step of cutting the wafer to thereby form a plurality of dividing grooves and dividing the wafer into the individual device chips, a flattening step of flattening the thermocompression bonding sheet, and a back side observing step of observing the back side of each device chip through the thermocompression bonding sheet.

Abstract: Disclosed herein is a management method of a processing tool mounted to a processing apparatus. The management method includes an information input step of inputting product type information that indicates a product type and a serial number displayed on the processing tool or a case of the processing tool to the processing apparatus when the processing tool is mounted to the processing apparatus, and a tallying step of counting the number of inputs of the serial number regarding each identical product type and tallying the number of uses regarding each product type from the input information. Order timing of each product type is determined from the number of uses.

Abstract: A dressing member to be used for dressing of a cutting blade carried out by a cutting apparatus including a chuck table that holds a workpiece, a cutting unit that cuts the workpiece held by the chuck table by a cutting blade, a cassette mounting section on which a cassette accommodating the workpieces is mounted, and a conveying unit that conveys the workpiece between the cassette mounted on the cassette mounting section and the chuck table, includes a dressing board to be cut by the cutting blade and a rigid plate fixed to the dressing board.

Abstract: A cutting blade is mounted on a fixed flange having a cylindrical blade mounting portion. The cutting blade includes an annular blade main body having an outer circumference serving as a cutting edge and a central through-hole that has a diameter greater than an outer diameter of the blade mounting portion and in which the blade mounting portion is to be fitted, and three or more flexible inner circumferential protrusions that project from an inner circumference of the central through-hole toward the center in a diametrical direction and contact at extremities thereof with the blade mounting portion fitted in the central through-hole to support the annular blade main body.

Abstract: A management method of a machining system includes a chuck table, a machining unit, a transfer unit that transfers a wafer onto the chuck table, a camera unit that acquires an image containing a pattern formed on a side of a front surface of the wafer, and an information recording section. The management method is applied when the pattern is recorded in association with machining conditions in the information recording section; and records in the information recording section new machining conditions to be used when machining a new type of wafer, causes an automatic machining program, which automatically machines the new type of wafer, to start, forms an image, which contains a new pattern of the new type of wafer, by the camera unit, and records the new pattern in association with the new machining conditions in the information recording section.

Abstract: There is provided a wet etching method including an etchant supply step of supplying an etchant from an etchant supply nozzle to a to-be-etched surface of a workpiece, an etching step of etching the to-be-etched surface with the etchant remaining on the to-be-etched surface, and an etchant removal step of, after performing the etching step, removing the etchant, which still remains on the resulting etched surface, from the etched surface. The etchant supply step, the etching step, and the etchant removal step are repeated a plurality of times in this order.

Abstract: A cutting blade supplying apparatus includes a cutting blade stocker that stocks a plurality of cutting blades; a carrying unit that carries out the cutting blade from the cutting blade stocker and carries the cutting blade to a cutting apparatus, a transferring unit that transfers the cutting blade carried by the carrying unit to a cutting blade replacing unit of the cutting apparatus, and a control unit. The cutting blade stocker includes a cutting blade case that accommodates the cutting blades each of which includes a mounting port formed in a center thereof to be mounted to a spindle and a cutting edge formed at an outer periphery of the mounting port, and a cutting blade case mounting unit on which to mount the cutting blade case.

Abstract: A cutting apparatus includes a chuck table having a holding surface used for holding either a workpiece unit that includes a plate-shaped workpiece supported on an annular frame by a tape or a tray shaped similarly to the annular frame, a rest area used for placing a receptacle that houses the workpiece unit or the tray, a transport unit configured to transport the workpiece unit or the tray between the rest area and the chuck table, the transport unit having a holding pad that holds the workpiece unit or the tray, a sub-chuck table that is disposed sideways of the chuck table and has a holding surface used for holding a board for use in adjusting a cutting unit, and a board transport unit configured to transport the board between the tray held on the chuck table and the sub-chuck table.

Abstract: A recess or through-hole forming method for forming a substrate with a recess or a through-hole along a thickness direction of the substrate, the method including: a modified region forming step of applying a laser beam of such a wavelength as to be transmitted through the substrate to the substrate, with a focal region of the laser beam positioned inside the substrate, to form a column-shaped modified region which is exposed to a surface of the substrate and extends along the thickness direction of the substrate; and an etching step of etching the modified region to form the substrate with the recess or the through-hole, after the modified region forming step is performed.

Abstract: A chuck table includes a main part having a holding surface for holding thereon a workpiece through a dicing tape, and a frame holder disposed around the main part for holding the annular frame. The main part has a flat surface that functions as the holding surface, an outer circumferential suction groove defined in a region of the holding surface that underlies an annular region of the adhesive tape between the workpiece and the frame of the frame unit, for holding the annular region of the adhesive tape under suction, and a suction channel held in fluid communication with the outer circumferential suction groove and a suction source. The frame holder pulls down the frame to a position lower than the holding surface to hold the dicing tape in close contact with the holding surface.

Abstract: A method of manufacturing a packaged board includes the steps of blanketing a wiring board with devices disposed thereon in a molding die and supplying the molding resin to the molding die, provisionally sintering the molding resin at a relatively low provisional sintering temperature below a final sintering temperature, detaching the wiring board from the molding die, and thereafter, placing the wiring board on a first base having a first flat surface, pressing the wiring board with a second base having a second flat surface parallel to the first flat surface, and heating the wiring board at the final sintering temperature to finally sinter the provisionally sintered molding resin while keeping its thickness uniform.

Abstract: A wafer producing method includes a peel-off layer forming step of applying a laser beam of a wavelength passing through a hexagonal single crystal ingot with a focal point of the laser beam positioned at a depth corresponding to a thickness of a wafer to be produced from an end face of the hexagonal single crystal ingot to form a peel-off layer, a production history forming step of applying a laser beam of a wavelength passing through the wafer with a focal point of the laser beam positioned inside the wafer at a position corresponding to each of a plurality of devices to be formed on a front surface of the wafer to form a production history, and a wafer peeling step of peeling off the wafer from the hexagonal single crystal ingot.

Abstract: A conveyance system for conveying a workpiece to each of a plurality of processing apparatuses includes a track extending over the plurality of processing apparatuses and fixed to the upper portions of the processing apparatuses; an automated conveying vehicle for traveling on the track, the automated conveying vehicle including a storage member having a housing space for housing the workpiece therein, a traveling member coupled from above to the storage member, a traveling mechanism mounted on the traveling member, a lifting and lowering mechanism mounted on the traveling member, for lifting and lowering the storage member while suspending the storage member from above, and a receiver for receiving control signals.

Abstract: A protective member forming method includes forming a water film on a flat holding surface of a support base, placing a wafer on the water film formed on the holding surface and next freezing the water film in a condition where the wafer floats on an upper surface of the water film owing to the surface tension of the water film, thereby forming an ice layer and fixing the wafer on the ice layer, supplying a liquid resin curable by the application of ultraviolet light to the upper surface of the wafer, opposing a transparent sheet to the wafer with the liquid resin interposed therebetween, and applying ultraviolet light to the liquid resin, thereby curing the liquid resin to form a protective member on a whole of the upper surface of the wafer.

Abstract: A protective sheet application method for applying a protective sheet on a front surface of a substrate includes mounting the substrate on a support table in a vacuum chamber, mounting the protective sheet on the substrate to separate a space in the vacuum chamber into a first compartment and a second compartment, depressurizing the first compartment to a predetermined air pressure and also depressurizing the second compartment, opening the depressurized second compartment to the atmosphere to bring the protective sheet into close contact with the substrate by a predetermined force, and opening the depressurized first compartment to the atmosphere to separate the lower housing and the upper housing from each other. A protective sheet application apparatus for applying the protective sheet on the front surface of the substrate includes the vacuum chamber.

Abstract: A management system for supervising an operator within an operation area with a processing apparatus installed therein has an imaging camera for capturing an image of the operator and a control unit. The control unit stores an area map that includes information about the processing apparatus and the positions of the processing apparatus, acquires identifying information regarding the operator on the basis of the image captured by the imaging camera, and extracts traffic lines of the operator. A management unit records the traffic lines of the operator and the identifying information of the operator, in relation to each other on the area map.