BACKGROUND

Transporting or conveying articles for processing is performed throughout the process of manufacturing a semiconductor device. Conventionally, articles are conveyed in a fabrication plant by automatically guided vehicles or overhead transport vehicles that travel on predetermined routes or tracks. For the conveyance of articles, the articles are normally loaded into containers, such as SMIF (a standard machine interface) or FOUP (a front opening unified pod), and then picked up and placed in the automatic conveying vehicles. When the article is transferred to a processing apparatus, the article is removed from the container and moved in the processing apparatus by a transferring module that includes a manipulator.

A semiconductor wafer is one sort of article that may be positioned in the container, and various device elements are formed on the semiconductor wafer. Examples of device elements that are formed on the semiconductor wafer include transistors (e.g., metal oxide semiconductor field effect transistors (MOSFET), complementary metal oxide semiconductor (CMOS) transistors, bipolar junction transistors (BJT), high-voltage transistors, high-frequency transistors, p-channel and/or n-channel field-effect transistors (PFETs/NFETs), etc.), diodes, and other applicable elements.

Alternatively, articles may include a test wafer. The test wafer is used to monitor the integrity of a work station to be used in a semiconductor device fabrication process flow. Alternatively, articles positioned in the containers may include a photomask or reticle. The photomask or the reticle is used in a photolithography exposure process of the semiconductor device fabrication process.

Although existing methods for transferring the article in the processing apparatus have generally been adequate for their intended purposes, they have not been entirely satisfactory in all respects. Consequently, it would be desirable to provide a solution for a transferring tool for article transfer operations.

