| US 7,485,188 B2 | ||
| Coating process method and coating process apparatus | ||
| Takashi Takekuma, Kumamoto (Japan); Yasuyuki Kometani, Kumamoto (Japan); Yoshiteru Fukuda, Kumamoto (Japan); and Junya Minamida, Kumamoto (Japan) | ||
| Assigned to Tokyo Electron Limited, Tokyo (Japan) | ||
| Filed on Feb. 27, 2006, as Appl. No. 11/362,105. | ||
| Application 11/362105 is a division of application No. 10/384629, filed on Mar. 11, 2003, abandoned. | ||
| Claims priority of application No. 2002-76418 (JP), filed on Mar. 19, 2002. | ||
| Prior Publication US 2006/0144330 A1, Jul. 06, 2006 | ||
| Int. Cl. B05C 11/10 (2006.01) | ||
| U.S. Cl. 118—683 [118/684; 118/699; 118/702; 118/712; 118/713] | 20 Claims |
| 1. A coating process apparatus for performing a coating process to form a coating film by discharging a coating liquid onto
a target substrate while rotating the target substrate so as to expand the coating liquid radially outward on the target substrate,
the coating process apparatus comprising:
(a) a plurality of coating process units disposed at different heights each for performing the coating process, each of the
coating process units includes
a substrate holding member configured to hold a target substrate in a substantially horizontal state,
a motor configured to rotate the substrate holding member,
a coating liquid discharge nozzle configured to discharge a coating liquid onto the target substrate held by the substrate
holding member, and
a detecting device configured to optically detect discharge of the coating liquid from the coating liquid discharge nozzle;
(b) coating liquid supply mechanisms respectively connected to the coating process units, each of the coating liquid supply
mechanisms includes
a pump connected to the coating liquid discharge nozzle through a supply line and configured to cause the coating liquid to
be discharged from the coating liquid discharge nozzle, and
a valve provided on the supply line and configured to open and close the supply line; and
(c) a controller configured to control an operation of the coating process apparatus and preset to use a detection signal
of the detecting device to calculate a discharge start delay, which is a delay of a start of coating liquid discharge from
the coating liquid discharge nozzle relative to a start of coating liquid supply determined by an operation of at least one
of the pump and the valve, and to use the discharge start delay to correlatively control the motor, the pump, and the valve,
so as to remove variations in a matching time interval among the plurality of coating process units, wherein the matching
time interval is an interval between a drive start time point of the motor to rotate the substrate holding member and a discharge
start time point of the coating liquid from the coating liquid discharge nozzle, in the coating process.
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