A Parallel Type Micro-Robotic System for Semi-Conductor Manufacturing Machines: Preliminary Results

Abstract

A novel parallel robot design with spherical flexure joints for use in the short-stroke stage in semi-conductor manufacturing motion systems, i.e. nanolithography machines, is introduced. The new design consists of a poly-articulated parallel robot operated by six piezo-electric actuators to move the reticle stage on a nano-scale in 6-DOF. This design makes use of flexure hinge-based mechanisms as it requires no clearance and no lubrication. The kinematic and dynamic model of the system is found using the quaternion and Euler Lagrangian approach respectively, allowing the model to be optimized for the performance specifications required. The robot then can be controlled using PID controllers to counteract any errors induced in the system. Simulated results showed that injected harmonic errors were reduced substantially from 100μ m to 1.15nm, and 100nrad to 1.36prad. This design will be fabricated and further tested experimentally in future studies.