Abstract:
A screw groove-type pump has a rotor member mounted for undergoing rotation, a stator member arranged so as to be coaxial with the rotor member and having a peripheral wall disposed opposite to and spaced-apart from a circumferential wall of the rotor member, an inlet port for introducing gas into a space between the circumferential wall of the rotor member and the peripheral wall of the stator member, and an outlet port for discharging gas introduced into the space between the circumferential wall of the rotor member and the peripheral wall of the stator member. A screw groove is formed on one of the circumferential wall of the rotor member and the peripheral wall of the stator member for transferring gas introduced into the inlet port through the space between the circumferential wall of the rotor member and the peripheral wall of the stator member and to the outlet port during rotation of the rotor member. The depth of the screw groove at a point thereof which is nearest the inlet port is equal to or larger than ¼ the diameter of one of the circumferential wall of the rotor member and the peripheral wall of the stator member. An angle of elevation of the screw groove with respect to a radial axis of the rotor member decreases toward the outlet port from the inlet port.

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     1. Field of the Invention 
     The present invention relates to a screw groove type vacuum pump, and a complex pump and a vacuum pump system both of which include the screw groove type vacuum pump. More specifically, the present invention relates to a screw groove type vacuum pump, a complex pump and a vacuum pump system with which excellent exhaust speed can be attained. 
     2. Description of the Related Art 
     Screw groove type vacuum pumps have conventionally been well known. Any of these screw groove type vacuum pumps is provided with a rotor member that rotates and a stator member fixedly arranged so as to be coaxial with the rotor member, and has a screw groove formed on one of a circumferential wall of the rotor member and an opposite wall of the stator member which is opposite to the circumferential wall. The rotor member is rotated to introduce gas from an inlet port into the screw groove and to then transfer the gas along the screw groove, thereby discharging the gas through an outlet port. 
     In the screw groove type vacuum pump as such, conventionally, a screw sealing technique or the like is applied and the screw groove is designed so as to be rather shallow in order to efficiently transfer with the rotation of the rotor member gas molecules whose pressure is of a viscous flow region while utilizing the viscosity, and to thereby prevent the backward-flow from the outlet port side to the inlet port side. 
     However, conventional screw groove type vacuum pumps as described above have a problem of slow exhaust speed, for the average free path of gas molecules is large for gas in a molecule flow region and hence it is difficult to introduce the gas into the screw groove. 
     There has been proposed as a technique for improving the gas exhaust speed a screw groove type vacuum pump in which the screw groove at the inlet port is set deep and the depth of the screw groove is sharply reduced from thereon. In this screw groove type vacuum pump, the intake area of gas that is taken from the inlet port into the screw groove is large making it easy to introduce the gas in the molecule flow region into the screw groove. 
     On the side downstream of the inlet port, however, the pressure of the gas to be transferred through the screw groove is of an intermediate flow region between the molecule flow region and the viscous flow region, and the average free path of gas molecules is relatively large. For that reason, the gas molecules taken in are reflected by the bottom of the screw groove, or the like, which means that a sufficient exhaust speed cannot be obtained by merely setting the screw groove deeper at the inlet port. 
     The present inventors have found that, in a screw groove type vacuum pump, the pressure of the gas to be transferred through the screwed groove maintains the pressure of the intermediate flow region between the molecule flow region and the viscous flow region downstream of the inlet port until the gas reaches a certain depth of the pump in the axial direction, and that setting the flow path wider at this certain depth and securing the sealing from thereon result in prevention of reflection and backward flow of gas molecules, prevention of degradation of sealing, improved gas exhaust efficiency and excellent exhaust speed. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention has been made on the basis of the findings as above, and an object of the present invention is therefore to provide a screw groove type vacuum pump, a complex vacuum pump and a vacuum pump system with which excellent exhaust speed can be attained. 
     In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides a screw groove type vacuum pump comprising: a rotor member that rotates; a stator member fixedly arranged so as to be coaxial with the rotor member and having an opposite wall that is opposite to a circumferential wall of the rotor member; an inlet port for introducing gas into a space between the circumferential wall of the rotor member and the opposite wall of the stator member; and an outlet port for discharging the gas from the space between the circumferential wall of the rotor member and the opposite wall of the stator member, in which: a screw groove for transferring the gas from the inlet port with the rotation of the rotor member is formed on one of the circumferential wall of the rotor member and the opposite wall of the stator member; the depth of the screw groove at the nearest point to the inlet port is 20 mm or more, or is equal to or larger than ¼ the diameter, including the screw groove, of one of the circumferential wall of the rotor member and the opposite wall of the stator member, the depth of the screw groove is decreased toward the outlet port side from the inlet port side, and the depth of the screw groove in a region defined by the inlet port and a point on the rotor member which is 40 mm in the axial direction is 80% or more of the depth at the nearest point to the inlet port; and the slant of the screw groove with respect to the radial direction of the rotor member is decreased toward the outlet port side from the inlet port side, and maintains to be 80% or more of the slant at the inlet port until the thread reaches a point on the rotor member which is at least 40 mm in the axial direction. 
     According to the above screw groove type vacuum pump of the present invention, the depth of the screw groove may be decreased toward the outlet port side, which is downstream of a region defined by the inlet port and the point on the rotor member which is 40 mm in the axial direction, in proportion to the distance in the axial direction. This makes it possible to transfer gas in a viscous flow region with tight sealing. 
     The slant of the screw groove may be decreased toward the outlet port side, which is downstream of a region defined by the inlet port and the point on the rotor member which is 40 mm in the axial direction, in proportion to the distance in the axial direction. This makes it possible to transfer gas in the viscous flow region with tight sealing. 
     The slant of the screw groove may be decreased toward the outlet port side, which is downstream of a region defined by the inlet port and the point on the rotor member which is 40 mm in the axial direction, in logarithmic proportion to the distance in the axial direction. This makes it possible to transfer gas in the viscous flow region with tight sealing. 
     In order to achieve the above object, the present invention also provides a complex vacuum pump including the above screw groove type vacuum pump of the present invention. 
     In order to achieve the above object, the present invention also provides a vacuum pump system comprising the above screw groove type vacuum pump of the present invention and an auxiliary pump for taking in gas discharged through the outlet port of the screw groove type vacuum pump. 
     In order to achieve the above object, the present invention also provides a vacuum pump system comprising the above screw groove type vacuum pump of the present invention and an auxiliary pump for taking in gas discharged through the outlet port of the screw groove type vacuum pump that is included in the complex vacuum pump. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     In the accompanying drawings: 
     FIG. 1 is a sectional view showing the entire structure of a screw groove type vacuum pump according to an embodiment of the present invention; 
     FIG. 2 is a side view showing a rotor body of the screw groove type vacuum pump in FIG. 1; 
     FIG. 3 is an internal side view showing a state where a rotor body  61  of the screw groove type vacuum pump in FIG. 1 is attached to a rotor shaft; and 
     FIG. 4 is a graph showing the relationship between the pressure and the exhaust speed in the screw groove type vacuum pump in FIG. 1, in comparison with a conventional screw groove type vacuum pump. 
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
     Hereinafter, a description will be given in detail of preferred embodiments of the present invention with reference to FIGS. 1 to  4 . 
     FIG. 1 is a sectional view showing the entire structure of a screw groove type vacuum pump according to an embodiment of the present invention. 
     The screw groove type vacuum pump according to this embodiment is comprised of, as shown in FIG. 1, a rotor shaft  18  shaped like a column, a rotor  60  as a rotor member that is fixedly arranged on the rotor shaft  18  and rotates together with the rotor shaft  18 , and a casing or an exterior member  10  and a stator  70  which serve as a stator member. 
     The exterior member  10  has a cylindrical shape whose diameter does not vary over the entire length in the axial direction, and the rotor shaft  18  is coaxially arranged in the center of the exterior member  10 . 
     The exterior member  10  has at its upper end a flange  11  elongated outward in the radial direction. The flange  11  has bolt holes  11   a  drilled therein in a direction parallel to the axis. This flange  11  is fastened to, for example, an apparatus for manufacturing semiconductors with bolts or the like to connect an inlet port  16  formed inside the flange  11  to an outlet port of a vessel, e.g., a chamber, so that the interior of the vessel is communicated with the interior of the exterior member  10 . 
     The rotor shaft  18  is supported by a magnetic bearing  20  with a magnetic force, and is rotated with a driving force transmitted from a motor  30 . The stator  70  is provided with a tubular portion  71  that surrounds the rotor shaft  18  and is shaped like a tube and a base portion  72  to which the tubular portion  71  is fixed at an upper part. 
     The magnetic bearing  20  is a 5-axes-control type magnetic bearing, and is provided with: radial electromagnets  21 ,  24  for generating a magnetic force in the radial direction of the rotor shaft  18  in the vicinity of the upper and lower ends of the rotor shaft  18 ; radial sensors  22 ,  26  for detecting the position of the rotor shaft  18  in the radial direction; axial electromagnets  32 ,  34  for generating a magnetic force in the axial direction of the rotor shaft  18 ; a metal disc  31  upon which the magnetic force in the axial direction, generated by the axial electromagnets  32 ,  34 , acts; and an axial sensor  36  for detecting the position of the rotor shaft  18  in the axial direction. 
     The radial electromagnets  21 ,  24  each include two pairs of electromagnets arranged on the tubular portion  71  of the stator  70  such that one pair is perpendicular to the other pair. The electromagnets in each pair are arranged so as to face one another with the rotor shaft  18  interposed therebetween. An excitation current is supplied to these radial electromagnets  21 ,  24  to float the rotor shaft  18  with a magnetic force. 
     Outside the radial electromagnets  21 ,  24  in the thrust direction, two paris of the radial sensors  22  and two pairs of the radial sensors  26  are arranged on the tubular portion  71  of the stator  70  such that the two pairs of the radial sensors  22  and the two pairs of radial sensors  26  are arranged with one pair being perpendicular to the other pair, corresponding to the radial electromagnets  21 ,  24 . Two sensors in each sensor pair face one another with the rotor shaft  18  interposed therebetween. The control of the excitation current supplied to the radial electromagnets  21 ,  24  is made, when the shaft is floated with a magnetic force, in response to position detection signals sent from the radial sensors  22 ,  26 , to thereby keep the rotor shaft  18  at a predetermined position in the radial direction. 
     The metal disc  31  made of a magnetic member and shaped like a disc is fixed to a lower of the rotor shaft  18 . A pair of the axial electromagnets  32  and a pair of the axial electromagnets  34  are arranged on the base portion  72  of the stator  70  such that the electromagnets  32  face the, electromagnets  34  with the metal disc  31  interposed therebetween. The axial sensor  36  is arranged on the base portion  72  of the stator  70  while being opposed to the lower end of the rotor shaft  18 . 
     An excitation current flowing through the axial electromagnets  32 ,  34  is controlled in response to a position detection signal sent from the axial sensor  36 , to thereby keep the rotor shaft  18  at a predetermined position in the axial direction. 
     It is possible for the vacuum pump to be driven in a clean environment, for the employment of the magnetic bearing  20  eliminates any mechanical contacts to produce no dust, and dispenses the pump of oils such as a sealing oil to generate no gas. The screw groove type vacuum pump according to this embodiment is thus suitable for an application in which a high cleanness is required as in manufacture of semiconductors. 
     The screw groove type vacuum pump according to this embodiment also has touch down bearings  38 ,  39  arranged on an upper part and on a lower part of the rotor shaft  18 , respectively. 
     Usually, the rotor unit comprising the rotor shaft  18  and the parts attached to the shaft is, while being rotated by the motor  30 , axially supported by the magnetic bearing  20  without coming into contact with the bearing. The touch down bearings  38 ,  39  are bearings for protecting the entire pump by axially supporting the rotor unit instead of the magnetic bearing  20  when the touch down takes place. 
     Accordingly, the touch down bearings  38 ,  39  are arranged so that their inner rings do not come into contact with the rotor shaft  18 . 
     The motor  30  is arranged almost in the middle between the radial sensors  22  and  26 , inside the exterior member  10 , in the axial direction of the rotor shaft  18 . The motor  30  is energized to rotate the rotor shaft  18  as well as the rotor  60  that is attached to the shaft. 
     The rotor  60  is comprised of a rotor body  61  having a sectional shape like an inverted letter U and arranged on the outer periphery of the rotor shaft  18 , and a screw thread  63  elongated outward from the outer peripheral surface of the rotor body  61 . This rotor body  61  is attached to the top of the rotor shaft  18  with bolts  19 . 
     FIG. 2 is a side view of the rotor body  61 , and FIG. 3 is an internal side view showing a state in which the rotor body  61  is attached to the rotor shaft  18 . 
     As shown in FIG. 2, the screw thread  63  of the rotor  60  is helically formed of plural threads so as to be coaxial with the axis of the rotor body  61  on the outer peripheral surface of the rotor body  61 . The space between the threads of the screw thread  63  is a screw groove  62 . As shown in FIG. 3, the rotor  60  is fixed to the rotor shaft  18 , and the edge face of the screw thread  63  faces the inner circumferential wall of the exterior member  10  with a gap that may be deemed as invariable over the entire length of the rotor body. 
     The screw groove  62  is communicated with the inlet port  16  so that gas from the chamber is introduced into the screw groove  62 . The screw groove  62  has at the nearest point to the inlet port  16  a depth D (distance from the free edge face of the screw thread  63  down to the outer peripheral surface of the rotor body  61 ) of 20 mm or more. The slant θ with respect to the radial direction of the rotor  60  (an angle of elevation) of the screw groove  62  is 20 to 40° at the nearest point to the inlet port  16 . 
     The diameter of the rotor body  61  is increased downstream (toward the outlet port  17  side), as the distance from the inlet port  16  is increased, protruding to the inner circumferential wall of the exterior member  10 . The screw groove  62  is adapted to this increase in diameter of the rotor body  61  and the depth D of the groove is made shallow. The slope of the screw thread  63  with respect to the radial direction becomes gentle as it distances itself from the inlet port  16  and approaches the outlet port  17 , and the angle of elevation θ of the screw groove  62  accordingly takes a smaller value. 
     From the inlet port  16  to a point on the rotor body  61  which is 40 mm in the axial direction (in a range indicated by reference symbol B in the drawing), the depth D and the angle of elevation θ of the screw groove  62  are gently and continuously decreased but maintain to be 80% or more of the depth D and the angle of elevation θ at the inlet port  16 . The ratio of a distance d from the bottom of the screw groove  62  to the outer circumferential wall of the exterior member  10  to a distance c from the edge of the screw thread  63  to the inner circumferential wall of the exterior member  10  (clearance ratio: d/c in FIG. 1) is set to 50 or more. 
     On the side downstream of the region defined by the inlet port  16  and the point on the rotor body  61  which is 40 mm in the axial direction (region indicated by B in the drawing), the depth D and the angle of elevation θ of the screw groove  62  are continuously and gradually reduced as the distance from the outlet port  17  is decreased. The degree of this reduction is in proportion to the distance in the axial direction. 
     Given the distance in the axial direction between predetermined positions P and Q of the screw groove as Lv, and the depth of the screw groove  62  at the respective positions as Dp, Dq, the following expression is satisfied when the degree of reduction in the depth D of the screw groove  62  is in proportion to the distance in the axial direction: 
     
       
           Dp−Dq=k·Lv   [Numerical Expression 1] 
       
     
     where k is a constant that is a plus if P is closer to the inlet port than Q is and which is a minus if P is closer to the outlet port than Q is). 
     Therefore when, for example, the depth of the screw groove at the nearest point to the outlet port side in the region B is T mm and the depth D of the screw groove  62  at a point 1 cm in the axial direction down there is reduced therefrom by t mm, i.e., (T−t) mm, the depth D of the screw groove at a point 3 cm in the axial direction down the nearest point to the outlet port side in the region B is reduced by 3t mm, i.e., (T−3t) mm. 
     Given the distance in the axial direction between predetermined positions P and Q of the screw groove as Lv, and the angle of elevation of the screw groove  62  at the respective positions as θp, θq, the following expression is satisfied when the degree of reduction in the angle of elevation θ of the screw groove  62  is in proportion to the distance in the axial direction: 
       θp−θq=k·Lv   [Numerical Expression 2] 
     where k is a constant that is a plus if P is closer to the inlet port than Q is and which is a minus if P is closer to the outlet port than Q is). 
     Therefore when, for example, the angle of elevation of the screw groove at the nearest point to the outlet port side in the region B is S° and the angle of elevation of the screw groove  62  at a point 1 cm in the axial direction down there is reduced therefrom by s°, i.e., (S−s)°, the angle of elevation θ of the screw groove at a point 3 cm in the axial direction down the nearest point to the outlet port side in the region B is reduced by  3 so, i.e., (S−3s)°. 
     The screw groove  62  is communicated with the outlet port  17  arranged in a lower part of the exterior member  10 , so that the gas transferred through the screw groove  62  is discharged from the outlet port  17 . At the outlet port  17 , the clearance ratio d/c of the screw groove  62  is 20 or less and the angle of elevation thereof is 10 to 20°. 
     In the vacuum pump as such, the rotor shaft  18  is rotated at a high speed with the motor  30  to thereby rotate at a high speed the rotor  60  as well. This has process gas or the like in a chamber  90  transferred through the inlet port  16  of the screw groove type vacuum pump and through the screw groove  62  to be discharged from an outlet port  52 . 
     At this point, the pressure in the screw groove  62  is about 0.1 Pa or less in the region defined by the inlet port  16  and the point on the rotor  60  which is 40 mm in the axial direction (the region B), and the depth D and the angle of elevation θ of the screw groove  62  are both set to rather large values. The gas molecules are thus captured at the screw thread  63  efficiently and transferred to the outlet port  17  side without being reflected or flowing backwards. 
     On the side downstream of the region defined by the inlet port  16  and the point on the rotor  60  which is 40 mm in the axial direction, the pressure in the screw groove  62  is of the viscous flow region. The screw groove here changes sharply and markedly to a shallow groove and comes to have a small angle of elevation θ, which leads to efficient transfer of the captured gas molecules by viscosity to the outlet port  17  while obtaining excellent sealing. 
     According to this embodiment, the depth D of the screw groove  62  is 20 mm or more and the angle of elevation θ thereof is 20 to 40° at the end on the inlet port  16  side. The intake area of the gas taken in from the inlet port  16  to the screw groove  62  is therefore large, making it easy to introduce the gas into the screw groove. 
     According to this embodiment, in the region defined by the inlet port  16  and the point on the rotor  60  which is 40 mm in the axial direction (region B) where the pressure is about 0.1 Pa or less, the screw groove  62  has a depth D of 80% or more of the depth at the end on the inlet port  16  side and has a clearance ratio d/c of 50 or more, which together provide the groove  62  with a sufficient depth. In addition, the angle of elevation θ of the groove  62  in the region B is 80% or more of the angle at the end on the inlet port  16  side. Therefore, the gas molecules in the intermediate flow region are captured well at the screw thread  63 , and quickly transferred to the outlet port  17  side without flowing backwards. 
     According to this embodiment, on the side downstream of the region defined by the inlet port  16  and the point on the rotor  60  which is 40 mm in the axial direction, the screw groove changes sharply and markedly to a shallow groove and comes to have a small angle of elevation θ, which leads to efficient transfer of the gas molecules in the molecule flow region by viscosity to the outlet port  17  while obtaining excellent sealing. 
     According to this embodiment, at the end of the outlet port  17 , the depth D of the screw groove  62  is sufficiently shallow, the clearance ratio d/c is 20 or less, and the angle of elevation θ thereof is as sufficiently small as 10 to 20°. The back pressure dependency is thus small, which also is a contributor to obtainment of excellent gas exhaust speed. 
     FIG. 4 is a graph showing the relationship between the pressure and the exhaust speed in the screw groove type vacuum pump according to this embodiment, in comparison with a conventional screw groove type vacuum pump, in which the line A is associated with the screw groove type vacuum pump of this embodiment and the line B is associated with the screw groove type vacuum pump in prior art. 
     As shown in FIG. 4, in the screw groove type vacuum pump of this embodiment, the depth D and the angle of elevation θ of the screw groove  62  are set to large values in the molecule flow region and the intermediate flow region where the pressure in the screw a groove  62  is 0.1 Pa or less to thereby take in many gas molecules, introduce the gas into the screw groove without reflecting the gas or causing the backward flow of the gas, and transfer the gas molecules to the viscous flow region. Then in the viscous flow region, the depth D and the angle of elevation θ of the screw groove  62  are set to small values to secure the sealing, thereby minimizing the deterioration of the sealing and efficiently transferring the gas molecules from the intermediate flow region. Therefore, an exhaust speed better than in the screw groove type vacuum pump of the prior art can be obtained in any region of the molecule flow region, the intermediate flow region, and the viscous flow region. 
     The screw groove type vacuum pump structured as above is employed in an embodiment of a vacuum pump system of the present invention in which an auxiliary pump is connected to the outlet port  17 . 
     In the vacuum pump system according to this embodiment, the auxiliary pump may be a well-known one and, as in prior art, is connected to the outlet port  17  of the screw groove type vacuum pump. 
     In the vacuum pump system according to this embodiment, employment of the screw groove type vacuum pump according to the embodiment previously described makes it possible to fully utilize the capacity of the conventional auxiliary pump, so that the pressure on the outlet port  17  side is adjusted and the discharge capacity of the system is further improved. 
     The screw groove type vacuum pump of the present invention and the vacuum pump system of the present invention are not limited to the embodiments above, and may be modified suitably as long as the modification does not depart from the spirit of the present invention. 
     For instance, the depth D of the screw groove  62  of the screw groove type vacuum pump at the end on the inlet port  16  side, which is 20 mm or more in the previous embodiments, may be less than 20 mm. Because the same action and effect as in the previous embodiment can be obtained if the depth D is ¼ or more of the diameter of, including the screw groove  62 , the circumferential wall of the rotor on which the screw groove  62  is formed. 
     The depth D and the angle of elevation θ of the screw groove  62  are both reduced gradually at any point from the end on the inlet port  16  side to the end on the outlet port  17  side in the previous embodiment. However, the depth D and the angle of elevation θ may remain the same at some points along the path, provided that the depth and the angle are not increased at a downstream point from an upstream point. For instance, in the region defined by the inlet port  16  and the point on the rotor  60  which is 40 mm in the axial direction (region B), one of or both of the depth D and the angle of elevation θ may not be reduced but may keep the same value as the depth D and the angle of elevation θ at the end of the inlet port. 
     In the previous embodiment, the angle of elevation θ of the screw groove  62  is continuously reduced toward the outlet port  17  side in proportion to the distance in the axial direction on the side downstream of the region defined by the inlet port  16  and the point on the rotor body  61  which is 40 mm in the axial direction (region B in the drawing). However, the degree of this reduction may be in logarithmic proportion to the distance in the axial direction, instead. If the degree of reduction in the angle of elevation θ of the screw groove  62  is in logarithmic proportion to the distance in the axial direction, the angle of elevation θ is sharply reduced as the screw groove approaches the outlet port  17 , avoiding the influence of the back pressure even more effectively. 
     Though the screw groove  62  is formed on the rotor  60  in the previous embodiment, the groove may be formed on the surface of the exterior member  10  which is opposite to the rotor. 
     In the screw groove type vacuum pump according to the previous embodiment, the screw groove  62  is formed on the outer peripheral surface of the rotor  60  and the gas is transferred through a space between the screw groove  62  and an outer tube member that is a stator member arranged outside the groove. Alternatively, for example, an outer rotor type motor may be used to arrange the stator member inside the rotor  60  and form the screw groove  62  on the inner peripheral surface of the rotor  60  or on the outer peripheral surface of the stator member. 
     The same effect can be obtained in a complex vacuum pump in which the screw groove type vacuum pump according to the previous embodiment or according to the modified examples described above and a vacuum pump other than the screw groove type vacuum pump, such as a turbomolecular pump or a centrifugal flow type pump, are connected. The same effect also can be obtained in a vacuum pump system in which an auxiliary pump is provided in addition to this complex vacuum pump. 
     As has been described, according to the screw groove type vacuum pump, the complex vacuum pump and the vacuum pump system of the present invention, the intake area of the gas that is taken from the inlet port into the screw groove is large and the gas is hardly reflected, so that the gas is efficiently introduced from the inlet port into the screw groove and the introduced gas is transferred to the outlet port with excellent sealing properties. A high exhaust speed thus can be obtained.