Patent ID: 7336471

Claim:
A charge eliminating mechanism for a stage for a work-to-be-processed, comprising: a grounded wiring line having a first end and a second end, the second end being grounded; and a mechanical switching mechanism arranged between the stage and the first end of the wiring line, wherein the mechanical switching mechanism of the charge eliminating mechanism comprises: a contact terminal including a contact terminal main body, a third end, and a fourth end, the fourth end being electrically connected to the first end of the wiring line, and a contact state between the third end and the stage being physically turning on/off, and when the third end is in contact with the stage, the stage is grounded through the third end of the contact terminal, the contact terminal main body, the fourth end, the first end of the wiring line, a resistor, and the second end of the wiring line, and wherein at least one of the contact terminal and the stage includes an elastic contact mechanism to cause the third end of the contact terminal and the stage to come into elastic contact with each other by moving the stage in X and Y directions.