Petri Net-Based Optimal One-Wafer Scheduling of Single-Arm Multi-Cluster Tools in Semiconductor Manufacturing

Zhu, Qinghua; Wu, Naiqi; Qiao, Yan; Zhou, MengChu

doi:10.1109/tsm.2013.2278378

Cited by 73 publications

(19 citation statements)

References 41 publications

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“…In order to effectively operate cluster tools, extensive studies on their modeling and performance evaluation have been done [11], [19]- [26], [28], [31], [32], [38], [39], [41]- [44], [47], [48]. They show that a cluster tool operates under a steady state for most of the time.…”

Section: Related Workmentioning

confidence: 99%

Optimal One-Wafer Cyclic Scheduling of Single-Arm Multicluster Tools With Two-Space Buffering Modules

Yang

Qiao

et al. 2014

IEEE Trans. Syst. Man Cybern, Syst.

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A multi-cluster tool is composed of a number of individual cluster tools linked by buffering modules (BMs). The capacity of a BM can be one or two. Aiming at finding an optimal one-wafer cyclic schedule, this paper explores the effect of twospace BMs on the performance of a multi-cluster tool. A Petri net (PN) model is developed to model it by extending resourceoriented PNs. The dynamic behavior of robot waiting and tasks, process modules, and buffers is well described by the model. This paper shows that there is always a one-wafer cyclic schedule that reaches the lower bound of the cycle time of a process-bound tool. Furthermore, a closed-form algorithm is revealed to find such a schedule for the first time for such multi-cluster tools. Illustrative examples are given to show the application and power of the proposed method.Index Terms-Multi-cluster tools, Petri net (PN), scheduling, semiconductor manufacturing.

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Section: Related Workmentioning

confidence: 99%

Optimal One-Wafer Cyclic Scheduling of Single-Arm Multicluster Tools With Two-Space Buffering Modules

Yang

Qiao

et al. 2014

IEEE Trans. Syst. Man Cybern, Syst.

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“…Limited results on scheduling multi-cluster tools have been reported [1], [2], [5], [7], [8], [10], [41]- [44], [60], [61]. By using a longest waiting pair policy, studies [4], [6], [17], [35], [45] investigate the scheduling problem of photolithography equipment that is similar to a multi-cluster tool.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…By using a longest waiting pair policy, studies [4], [6], [17], [35], [45] investigate the scheduling problem of photolithography equipment that is similar to a multi-cluster tool. The work [60] shows that if a multi-cluster tool's bottleneck tool is process-bound, one can always find a one-wafer cyclic schedule, and efficient algorithms are given to find the optimal one. With wafer residency time constraints, it is very challenging to schedule a multi-cluster tool.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Scheduling of Single-Arm Multi-cluster Tools With Wafer Residency Time Constraints in Semiconductor Manufacturing

Zhu

Qiao

et al. 2015

IEEE Trans. Semicond. Manufact.

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This paper studies the challenging problem of scheduling single-arm multi-cluster tools with wafer residency time constraints. They have a linear topology and their bottleneck tool is process-bound. This work aims to find an optimal one-wafer cyclic schedule. With the Petri net model developed in our previous work and the minimal cycle time for a multicluster tool without wafer residency time constraints, it derives the necessary and sufficient schedulability conditions for multicluster tools with wafer residency time constraints for the first time. Then, it gives an algorithm to find an optimal one-wafer cyclic schedule if schedulable. This is done by simply setting the robots' waiting time for each tool. Thus, it is very computationally efficient and applicable to practical problems. An example is presented to illustrate the proposed method.

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“…There have been numerous works on scheduling dual-armed tools including basic dual-armed tools without complex scheduling requirements, and ones with additional requirements such as reentrant wafer flows [4], [7]- [9], wafer delay constraints [2], [10]- [13], probabilistic processing times [14]- [16], concurrent processing of multiple types of wafers [17], constant or nonconstant interchamber moving times [18], noncyclic schedules [19], etc. Moreover, various types of tool architectures have been examined, including track equipment [20], [21], multicluster tools [22]- [26], among others. A review can be found in [2].…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Modeling, Analysis, and Scheduling of Cluster Tools With Two Independent Arms

Tonke¹,

Lee

2016

IEEE Trans. Automat. Sci. Eng.

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Dual-armed cluster tools for semiconductor manufacturing typically have had two arms fixed in opposite directions. Recently, new cluster tool robot systems with two independent robot arms have been introduced with the expectation that the arms' flexibility will improve the throughput. However, the productivity gain has yet to be examined. Accordingly, we examine under which circumstances and the extent to which productivity gains can be achieved and how the robot task sequences should be scheduled to maximize the throughput. For this purpose, we develop a Petri net model that represents the tool behavior. We show that the wellknown swap sequence, which is known to be optimal for conventional dual-armed tools, is not always optimal. Instead, we identify two other sequences that are optimal under certain conditions. We define the workloads for each process step and the transport module to derive conditions for optimality of the sequences, based on the Petri net model and the workload. We also develop a mixed integer programming (MIP) model to determine optimal sequences among one-cyclic schedules for the cases in which the proposed sequences are not optimal. Furthermore, we analyze and demonstrate how the two independent arms can increase the throughput in comparison to a conventional dual-armed robot.Note to Practitioners-New robot technology enables reliable operation of two independent arms in cluster tools. Its operational flexibility has significant potential for tool productivity gain. Our results identify when the two independent arms are better and how their flexibility can be fully utilized. Optimal scheduling methods for the two independent arms are also given. Based on our results, tool vendors, engineers, and fabs should consider adoption of the new tool architecture.

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Petri Net-Based Optimal One-Wafer Scheduling of Single-Arm Multi-Cluster Tools in Semiconductor Manufacturing

Cited by 73 publications

References 41 publications

Optimal One-Wafer Cyclic Scheduling of Single-Arm Multicluster Tools With Two-Space Buffering Modules

Optimal One-Wafer Cyclic Scheduling of Single-Arm Multicluster Tools With Two-Space Buffering Modules

Scheduling of Single-Arm Multi-cluster Tools With Wafer Residency Time Constraints in Semiconductor Manufacturing

Modeling, Analysis, and Scheduling of Cluster Tools With Two Independent Arms

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