Movable body apparatus, exposure apparatus and device manufacturing method

Abstract

An exposure apparatus has a substrate holding member, a first supporting member, a second supporting member, and a driving system. The first supporting member supports the substrate holding member from below. The second supporting member supports the first supporting member from below such that the first supporting member and the second supporting member are capable of moving relative to each other. The driving system moves the substrate holding member, the first supporting member and the second supporting member. The driving system includes a first driving device and a second driving device, the first driving device moving the substrate holding member and the first supporting member in a direction along a predetermined axis, and the second driving device moving the second supporting member in the direction along the predetermined axis.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A movable body apparatus comprising:
 a plurality of surface plates each of which has a guide surface parallel to a two-dimensional plane that includes a first axis and a second axis orthogonal to each other, and which are placed at a predetermined distance in a direction parallel to the first axis;   a first movable body that is movable along a plane parallel to the two-dimensional plane, above the plurality of surface plates;   a first support member that supports an empty weight of the first movable body and moves within a plane parallel to the two-dimensional plane above the plurality of surface plates, together with the first movable body;   a second support member that supports the first support member such that the first support member is relatively movable in the direction parallel to the first axis; and   a plurality of third support members placed so as to correspond to the plurality of surface plates, respectively, which support the second support member in a state where the second support member is bridged over the plurality of surface plates.