Circuit board contact contamination probe

Apparatus for testing circuit boards (100), said apparatus having

• circuitry (50) for measuring electrical resistance, and
• test apparatus (1) for coupling said measuring circuitry to conducting fingers (101) of a circuit board
• CHARACTERIZED IN THAT
• said testing apparatus comprises
• a plurality of electrodes (330),
• a probe assembly (33) for resiliently mounting a pair of said electrodes,
• a block assembly (11) for receiving a circuit board and for aligning a conducting finger of the circuit board with said probe assembly,
• resiliently biased retaining apparatus (24, 25, 26) for securely holding the circuit board in said block assembly,
• carrier apparatus (30, 31) for securely holding said probe assembly,
• operating apparatus (20, 21, 22, 23, 32) coupled to said resiliently biased retaining apparatus and said carrier apparatus for enabling said resiliently biased retaining apparatus to clamp the circuit board to said block assembly and for enabling said carrier apparatus to move said pair of electrodes into engagement with the circuit board conducting finger,
• coupling apparatus (40, 42, 43, 44-, 45-, 46-, 400, 401, 402) for selectively connecting said pair of engaged electrodes with said measuring circuitry to measure the resistance of contamination films and foreign material appearing on the conducting finger between said pair of electrodes.

Apparatus for testing circuit boards (100), said apparatus having

• a constant current source (501),
• a voltage measuring device (502), and
• testing apparatus (1) for coupling said constant current source and said voltage measuring device to conducting fingers (101) of a circuit board
• CHARACTERIZED IN THAT
• said testing apparatus comprises
• a plurality of electrodes (330) each of said electrodes having a needle member (3300) and a contact member (3301) affixed to an end of said needle member,
• plug apparatus (331, 332, 333) for resiliently mounting pairs of said electrodes,
• guide apparatus (11) for receiving a circuit board and for aligning each conducting finger of the circuit board with respect to a corresponding pair of said electrodes,
• resiliently biased apparatus (24, 25, 26) for retaining the circuit board in a fixed relationship to said guide apparatus,
• carrier apparatus (30, 31) for securely holding said plug apparatus and for moving pairs of said electrodes into and out of engagement with the circuit board conducting fingers,
• operating apparatus (20, 21, 22, 23, 32) coupled to said resiliently biased apparatus and to said carrier apparatus for enabling said resiliently biased apparatus to clamp the circuit board to said guide apparatus and for enabling said carrier apparatus to simultaneously move said electrode contact members into engagement with the circuit board conducting fingers,
• controller apparatus (43) for selecting ones of said pairs of contacts, and
• coupling apparatus (40, 42, 44-, 45-, 46-, 400, 401, 402) coupled to said pairs of electrodes and controlled by said controller apparatus for selectively coupling said voltage measuring device to said electrode contact members and said constant current source to said electrode needle members to measure the resistance of contamination films and foreign matter appearing on the conducting fingers between a pair of said electrodes.

Apparatus for testing conducting fingers of a circuit board, said apparatus comprising

• a plurality of electrodes each having a needle member and a contact member,
• means for receiving and holding the circuit board,
• means for mounting pairs of said electrodes,
• means for positioning said mounting means to simultaneously engage said contact members of a pair of said electrodes with each circuit board conducting finger,
• means for measuring electrical resistance, and
• means for selectively connecting said electrical resistance measuring means to both said needle members and said contact members of each engaged pair of said electrodes to measure the resistance of contamination films and foreign material appearing on a circuit board conducting finger between said pair of electrode contact members.