Patent ID: 7244088

Claim:
A device ( 12 ) to pick up at least one disc-shaped semi-conductor wafer ( 11 ) from a container ( 14 ) of such wafers on one side ( 15 ) of an aperture ( 13 ) in the transfer station ( 10 ) of a semi-conductor wafer processing plant, the device being situated in the space ( 16 ) on the opposite side ( 17 ) of the said aperture, the device incorporating a moving shutter ( 1 ) designed to move between a first, closed aperture, position and a second, open aperture, position allowing access to the interior of the container, a means of moving ( 18 ) this shutter between these first and second positions, the said movement taking place, at least in part, in a plane approximately parallel to the plane of the aperture, the said device is identifiable in that it incorporates: means of picking up ( 2 ) at least one semi-conductor wafer ( 11 ) by partially entering the container below a wafer and then picking up the wafer by its rim, means of moving ( 3 ) the said pick-ups ( 2 ) between the space on the second side of the aperture and the first side, and back again, means of linking ( 4 ) the said shutter with the said pick-up mechanism, the said pick-ups ( 2 ) incorporate first ( 6 ) and second ( 7 ) moving arms designed to adopt an initial position in which they lie approximately parallel and a second position in which they form a specific angle (α) to one another such that they form a flat, support structure for the semi-conductor wafer ( 11 ).