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US 4,908,571 AGranted
Contact probe assembly with fine positioning means
AssigneeInternational Business Machines Corporation
InventorRoland R. Stoehr
Life of this patent
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AssigneeInternational Business Machines Corporation
InventorRoland R. Stoehr
Estimating the term…
A contact probe assembly is described comprising a motor-driven fine positioning means. The fine positioning means permits the contact probe assembly to move in two directions X and Y which are perpendicular to each other. For positioning several contact probe assemblies, provided with fine positioning means, closely adjacent to each other, the longitudinal axis of each fine positioning means extends perpendicularly to the plane defined by the X and the Y direction. An electromotor is provided for either direction of movement. In one embodiment, fine positioning in either direction is effected by a perpendicularly arranged hollow shaft, the lower end of which is eccentrically shaped, reciprocally moving a carrier slide which is permanently connected to the contact probe assembly. The hollow shaft for moving the contact probe assembly in the Y direction is arranged inside the hollow shaft for movement in the X direction. The travel performed is detected by sensors. In a second embodiment, the contact probe assembly is fine positioned by means of wedges, two of which connected to each other by a seesaw, rest on opposite surfaces of a quadrangular pyramid frustrum which is permanently connected to the contact probe assembly. The up and down movement of the wedges fine positions the contact probe assembly in the X and the Y direction, respectively.
In a system for the testing of the electrical characteristics of semiconductor devices wherein a contact probe assembly with a head comprising a maxtrix of test probe leads of millimeter diameter, electrically conductive wires which are arranged to contact the connector pads on said semiconductor device, the improvement to said contact probe assembly comprising:
In a system for the testing of the electrical characteristics of semiconductor devices including a contact probe assembly with a head comprising a matrix of test probe leads of millimeter diameter, and electrically conductive wires which are arranged to contact the connector pads on said semiconductor device, the improvement to said contact probe assembly comprising:
Contact probe assembly according to claim 5 wherein the first or second wedges associated with one of the two directions of movement are interconnected by a seesaw one arm of which engages the recess of a fork-shaped element having one wedge positioned at its lower end and the other arm of which is connected to another wedge.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.