Patent ID: 7308757

Claim:
An intermediate product manufacturing apparatus for carrying intermediate products and processing the intermediate products with a first processing apparatus and a second processing apparatus, the intermediate product manufacturing apparatus comprising: a first carrier for carrying the intermediate products in a single wafer state to the first processing apparatus; a second carrier, arranged in parallel with the first carrier, for carrying the intermediate products in a single wafer state to the second processing apparatus; a common processing apparatus provided between the first and second carriers, for carrying out a common process on the intermediate products carried by the first and second carriers in the single wafer state; a first intermediate product transfer section with a first transfer robot provided between the first carrier and the common processing apparatus, for transferring the intermediate products between the common processing apparatus and the first carrier; a second intermediate product transfer section with a second transfer robot provided between the second carrier and the common processing apparatus, for transferring the intermediate products between the common processing apparatus and the second carrier; and an inter-process carrying conveyor for carrying a plurality of cassettes between the first and second carriers, each cassette configured to detachably house a plurality of the intermediate products; wherein each of the first and second carriers has a first side, for carrying the intermediate products away from the inter-process carrying conveyor, connected to a second side, for carrying the intermediate products towards the inter-process carrying conveyor; wherein the first processing apparatus is arranged and located alongside the first side of the first carrier and includes a third transfer robot for transferring intermediate products between the first side of the first carrier and the first processing apparatus; wherein the second processing apparatus is arranged and located alongside the second side of the second carrier and includes a third transfer robot for transferring intermediate products between the second side of the second carrier and the second processing apparatus; wherein the common processing apparatus is arranged and located alongside the second side of each of the first and second carriers; and wherein the common processing apparatus has a higher processing capacity than the first and second processing apparatuses.