Solutions Details

Airtight Cabinet Valve Island Solution for Semiconductor Equipment

Application Overview

In semiconductor manufacturing equipment, airtight cabinets are widely used to protect sensitive components and maintain a controlled internal environment. Pneumatic valve islands play a key role in controlling actuators and process flows within these cabinets, where reliability, response speed, and leakage control are critical.

This case describes a valve island solution applied in an airtight cabinet for semiconductor equipment, aimed at improving valve life, switching performance, and system wiring efficiency.

Engineering Challenges

⚙️ Limited Valve Core Service Life

The customer’s existing pneumatic valve group experienced frequent valve core failures, with a service life of less than 30 million cycles, leading to increased maintenance and downtime.

⚙️ Slow Valve Switching Response

Valve core switching speed did not meet process requirements, affecting equipment response time and overall operational efficiency.

⚙️ Complex and Time-Consuming Wiring

The original solution required extensive point-to-point wiring, increasing assembly time, error risk, and difficulty in maintenance and troubleshooting.

INCT Solution

The airtight cabinet adopts an integrated valve island solution designed for semiconductor applications, combining pneumatic control and bus-based communication.

Valve Island Assembly

The valve island integrates multiple solenoid valves into a compact unit with optimized internal flow paths. The design provides excellent sealing performance and significantly reduces leakage.

Key characteristics include:

👉 Simple wiring architecture

👉 Low leakage rate (< 0.1 L/h)

👉 Long valve core service life (> 80 million cycles)

Bus-Based Control Architecture

A fieldbus communication approach is used to replace traditional point-to-point wiring. Control and communication are handled through a minimal number of cables, simplifying system integration.

Implementation Process

👉 Customer requirements confirmed within 1 day

👉 Solution design completed in 2 days

👉 Sample units delivered within 1 week

Key Results and Performance

🚀 Solenoid valve wiring simplified to one signal line and one communication line

🚀 Assembly efficiency significantly improved due to reduced wiring complexity

🚀 Valve group service life increased by approximately 30% compared to the previous solution

🚀 Reduced failure rate and improved system reliability

Keys to Success

🎯 Integrated valve island design reduces mechanical wear and leakage

🎯 Bus-based wiring architecture simplifies installation and maintenance

🎯 Rapid engineering response supports fast project validation

🎯 Solution tailored to semiconductor equipment reliability requirements

Typical Applications

• Semiconductor manufacturing equipment

Engineering Consultation

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Customer Background:

1. Industry: Semiconductor

2. Core Pain Points: The current pneumatic valve group solution suffers from low service life of valve cores, slow valve core switching, and complicated wiring.

Solution:

1. Product Functions: Simple wiring, excellent sealing, low leakage (<0.1L/H), long service life (over 80 million cycles).

2. Technical Highlights: Resolved the customer’s tedious wiring issue through a bus-based approach.

3. Implementation Process:

- Confirmed customer requirements in 1 day
- Completed design in 2 days
- Delivered samples within 1 week

Result:

1. Reduced solenoid valve wiring time for the customer: Wiring is simplified with 1 signal line and 1 communication line, improving employees’ assembly efficiency.

2. Reduced failure rate: The customer’s previous valve group had a service life of less than 30 million cycles; the new solution increases service life by 30%.