PURPOSE:To execute a transfer operation of a wafer quickly and smoothly and, at the same time, to prevent the wafer from being damaged by a method wherein a stopper to position individual wafer cassettes is installed in such a way that their openings are situated face to face with each other and also a tilting mechanism to tilt a tilting plate at a prescribed angle is installed. CONSTITUTION:A wafer cassette 1 where a wafer W is housed is mounted on the left side on the upper face of a tilting plate 15 in such a way that its leg parts 1e are set to stepped parts 17a on both sides of a second stopper 17 and that an opening 1d for feeding and taking-out use is set to a first stopper 16. The leg parts 1e of another empty cassette 1 are set to each stepped part 18a of a pair of third stoppers 18 on the right side on the upper face of the tilting plate 15. An opening 1d for feeding and taking-out use is mounted in such a way that it is set to the first stopper 16. If an operating push button 25 is pressed in this state, a tilting stage 14 is turned clockwise around an axis 12, and the tilting plate 15 is tilted. Because the wafer is transferred smoothly from one wafer cassette to the other cassette, a transfer operation of the wafer can be executed quickly.
展开▼
