SUBSTRATE TRANSPORT CARRIER
A transport container for substrates such as semiconductor wafers and solar cell substrates includes a cover and a base having a plurality of side walls including movable wall portions with vertically extending hinges or hinges that provide a pivot about a vertical axis. The hinges can be resilient movable polymer portions such as living hinges and can have an unconnected upper edge and an unconnected lower edge to allow the movable wall portions to move inwardly relative to a floor of the base. The cover can include a base engagement portion configured as a cam portion that engages a cover engagement portion on the movable wall portions as the cover is inserted onto the base. As the cam portions of the cover engage the cover engagement portions, the cam portions move the wall inwardly relative to the base to align the substrates.
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This application claims priority to U.S. Provisional Application Ser. No. 61/309,747, filed Mar. 2, 2010 and which is incorporated by reference herein.
FIELD OF THE INVENTIONThe present invention relates to a container for packaging items such as semiconductor wafers and solar cells. More particularly, the present invention relates to such a container with movable sidewalls for axially aligning substrates.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTIONSubstrates such as semiconductor wafers and solar cells are often transported in transport containers that maintain substrates in axially aligned stacks of substrates. Such containers must securely contain the substrates in proper position to avoid damage during shipping and handling. The containers must also be adequately cushioned to absorb impacts and must securely contain the substrates to avoid relative movement of the substrates. When used herein “substrates” include semiconductor wafers and solar cells, including the silicon wafers to be made into operational solar cells.
Substrates must be properly aligned in their axial stacks in order to properly interface with support and cushioning mechanisms and to prevent damage to the substrates. This can be difficult due to the conventional manner in which containers are filled with substrates. In order for substrates to be inserted, the container must have an inside dimension that is greater than the outside dimension of the substrates. Therefore, as substrates are loaded into stacks, there is room for some variance between substrates in a stack and the substrates may be misaligned in the stack and vulnerable to damage.
Having a cover surface that slidingly engages the misaligned edges of a stack in order to align them can damage the edges of the substrates; this is particularly true for solar cell wafers which are extremely thin and fragile.
One approach to aligning substrates is manually align the substrates in the stack and to include a plurality of foam cushions to hold the substrates in the aligned axial arrangement within the container by applying forces that tend to resist lateral movement. However, it is possible for more fragile substrates, particularly solar cells, to be damaged by the application of such forces during shipping. It would therefore be desirable for a transport carrier to provide axial alignment of substrates while reducing the possibility of damage.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTIONA transport container for semiconductor substrates and solar cell substrates includes a cover and a base having a plurality of side walls including movable wall portions with vertical pivot axis. Movable wall portions can be connected to upright support structure with resilient movable polymer portions such as living hinges and can have an unconnected upper edge and an unconnected lower edge portions to allow the movable wall portions to move inwardly relative to base portion. The cover can include a base engagement portion configured as a cam portion that engages a cover engagement portion on the movable wall portions as the cover is inserted onto the base. As the cam portions of the cover engage the cover engagement portions, the cam portions move the wall inwardly relative to the base to align the substrates. The inward movement includes the upper portion, the intermediate portion, and the lower edge. In particular embodiments, each of the two sides can move simultaneously. The action movable wall can be upper portion in first and then the lower portion or the action can be that the upper and lower portions move in harmony, that is simultaneously. Control of the action depends on the hinge configuration and the cam portion-movable wall portion configuration. In some embodiments, the cam portion can then drop into a clearance position where it is no longer forcing the movable wall inwardly. This allows the movable wall to move back near its original position via the living hinges to remove the lateral force on the substrates and allow the stack to be seated in the substrate carrier without lateral engagement of the sides of the stack. In other embodiments, the lower portion of the movable wall may be retained inwardly.
A feature and advantage of embodiments of the present invention is movable walls that allow alignment of axially stacked substrates within a transport container with only direct lateral engagement of the substrates, including solar cells. As the cover is engaged with the base, the cover engages the movable walls of the base causing them to move inwardly. This inward movement of the walls brings the stack of substrates into axial alignment with minimal chance of damage to the substrates.
A further feature and advantage of embodiments of the present invention is that the movable walls can release lateral pressure on the substrates after they have been axially aligned. After the movable walls have been moved inwardly by the cover, the engagement portion of the cover can enter a clearance portion of the base such that it no longer is applying inward pressure on the movable walls. The movable walls then release the lateral pressure on the substrates by returning to near their original position via the living hinge.
Figure lb is perspective view of a top cover for a substrate transport container according to an embodiment of the present invention.
Referring to
The base 102 can include one or more apertures 108 extending therethrough. Apertures 108 can have various geometric configurations. This allows base 102 to interface with automation equipment of various configurations. In one embodiment, a piston can enter through one or more of the apertures 108 and contact stack of substrates therein. The piston can then be used to incrementally raise the stack so that the substrates can be sequentially removed from the stack.
In one embodiment depicted in
Wedge surface 126 slides along movable wall portion 110 until flat surface 128 engages cover engagement portion 122 as shown in
Referring to
Although the figures illustrate a container for square substrates, the invention is also equally applicable to transport containers for circular substrates; such containers are known as coin stack wafer containers.
The base and top cover may be conventionally injection molded. The hinges can be formed by thinner material or may be a different polymer adhered to the stationary wall and movable wall by coinjection techniques. Other materials may also be suitable such as pulp.
The present invention may be embodied in other specific forms without departing from the spirit of any of the essential attributes thereof. Therefore, the illustrated embodiments should be considered in all respects as illustrative and not restrictive, reference being made to the appended claims rather than to the foregoing description to indicate the scope of the invention.
Claims
1. A transport container for a stack of substrates, the container having a base and a top cover, the base having a stack receiving region defined by a plurality of movable vertical wall portions, the movable wall portions having two sides and a pair of vertically extending living hinges attached to the two sides allowing the movable wall portions to be moved horizontally toward and away from the stack receiving region, each movable wall having a top cover engaging surface positioned opposite from the stack receiving region;
- the top cover having a plurality of cam portion arranged to engage each of the movable wall portions as the top cover is lowered into engagement with the base whereby the movable wall portion are urged inwardly toward the substrate receiving region.
2-4. (canceled)
5. The transport container of claim 1 wherein the floor, the stationary wall portions, the movable wall portions, and the hinges are all integral with one another.
6. A method of axially aligning substrates in a container, the method comprising the steps of:
- placing a stack of not fully aligned substrates in a receiving region of a base of a transport container, the receiving region defined by a plurality of movable wall portions with a top edge and a bottom edge, each wall portion having a pair of sides with a living hinge on each side, the bottom edge separated from a floor of the base by a gap;
- engaging the movable wall portions with cam portions attached to the top cover such that the movable wall portions are urged inwardly by flexing the living hinges and;
- seating the top cover onto the base.
7. A substrate container comprising:
- a base portion with a floor with a movable sidewall portion positioned above the floor with a gap there between, the movable sidewall portion flexibly attached to a stationary wall portion, by a pair of living hinges, the movable wall portion having a top edge and a bottom edge whereby both are movable horizontally as the movable wall portion moves.
8. The substrate container of claim 7 further comprising a top cover that is engageable with the base portion, the top cover having members that engage a surface on the movable wall to move the wall portion horizontally.
9.
Type: Application
Filed: Mar 2, 2011
Publication Date: Mar 7, 2013
Applicant: ENTEGRIS, INC. (Billerica, MA)
Inventors: John Burns (Colorado Springs, CO), Jeffery J. King (Colorado Springs, CO)
Application Number: 13/582,709
International Classification: B65D 51/04 (20060101); B65B 1/04 (20060101);