A novel algorithm for wafer sojourn time analysis of single-arm cluster tools with wafer residency time constraints and activity time variation

Abstract

This paper addresses the scheduling problem of single-arm cluster tools with both wafer residency time constraints and activity time variation in semiconductor manufacturing. Based on a Petri net model developed in our previous work, polynomial algorithms are proposed to obtain the exact upper bound of the wafer sojourn time delay for the first time. With the obtained results, one can check the feasibility of a given schedule or find a feasible and optimal one if it exists. Illustrative examples are given to show the applications of the proposed method.