A heuristic input control method for a single-product, high-volume wafer fabrication process to minimize the number of photomask changes

This study proposed an input control policy, called the ( k, W) rule, for a single-product, high-volume wafer fabrication process based on the special characteristics of steppers in the photolithography area, implying that the production environment possesses reentrant production flows. To add to th...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of manufacturing systems 2004, Vol.23 (1), p.30-45
Main Authors: Chern, Ching-Chin, Huang, Kwei-Long
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Algorithms
Applied sciences
Exact sciences and technology
Heuristic
Input Control Policy
Inventory control, production control. Distribution
LotSize
Mechanical engineering. Machine design
Operational research and scientific management
Operational research. Management science
Performance evaluation
Photolithography
Production management
Simulation
Studies
Wafer Fabrication
Workload Regulation
Workloads
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Summary:This study proposed an input control policy, called the ( k, W) rule, for a single-product, high-volume wafer fabrication process based on the special characteristics of steppers in the photolithography area, implying that the production environment possesses reentrant production flows. To add to the complexity, the setup time of each operation is time consuming. The ( k, W) rule adopts the concepts of workload regulation and batch-sizing policies to release k lots of wafers for a stepper when the workload of this stepper is lower than a predefined threshold, W, for reducing setup time and raising stepper utilization. A search algorithm is proposed to determine k and W, to minimize the weighted sum of wafer waiting time, stepper idle time, and setup time. To compare the performace of the ( k, W) rule with other input control policies, a simulation model is built with data collected from a DRAM wafer fabrication process in Taiwan. As observed from the simulation results, the ( k, W) rule decreases setup time and increases throughput without increasing cycle time.
ISSN:0278-6125
1878-6642
DOI:10.1016/S0278-6125(04)80005-0