What Are Cleanroom Robots?
Cleanroom robots are specialized robots designed for use in clean rooms. They are engineered to maintain a specific level of cleanliness within the clean room environment.
There are various types of cleanroom robots tailored to different applications and products.
These robots are deployed to automate tasks within clean rooms, where achieving a certain level of cleanliness may be challenging with human workers present. By using cleanroom robots, it becomes possible to maintain a high level of cleanliness while eliminating the need for human entry into the clean room, thus enabling the production of products under pristine conditions.
Applications of Cleanroom Robots
Cleanroom robots serve as replacements for tasks typically carried out by human workers in cleanroom environments.
In some cases, such as the food industry where relatively straightforward tasks are involved, clean robots are employed as labor-saving devices suitable for clean room use.
Conversely, in the semiconductor manufacturing sector, which demands the highest standards of cleanliness, Cleanroom robots enable the production of top-quality products with even stricter cleanliness standards, eliminating the need for human entry into clean rooms.
Features of Cleanroom Robots
Clean rooms used in handling food and semiconductor materials are isolated from external spaces, and their guaranteed cleanliness levels are defined during the design phase. This includes factors such as the performance and quantity of air filters utilized, as well as the location and capacity of air conditioning equipment.
Classifications are employed to denote cleanliness levels, with smaller class numbers indicating higher guaranteed cleanliness. This ranges from class 100 for semiconductor manufacturing to class 1000 to 10000 for facilities handling food products.
Any equipment installed in a clean room must, in principle, correspond to the specified class, as a cleanliness level below this standard can lead to quality control and quality assurance issues. Conventional machinery, including robots, is unsuitable for use as cleanroom robots, as dust generated by components like grease and motors can compromise cleanliness levels.
In contrast, cleanroom robots are meticulously designed to prevent dust generation, incorporating features such as magnetic fluid seals in sliding components. This ensures their compatibility with clean room environments, meeting class 100 or lower cleanliness standards (even reaching class 1 or lower depending on the specific product).