Substrate lead strip mounting machine and method
AssigneeDie Tech, Inc.
InventorsRichard K. Dennis, Wade D. Myers, James A. Riddle
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
An apparatus and method for simultaneously mounting lead strip segments onto each side of a rectangular ceramic substrate. Four lead strip mounting assemblies are equally spaced 90 degrees apart around a central vertically oriented substrate support so that each assembly is perpendicular an edge of a substrate on the support. Lead strip feed assemblies located adjacent each mounting assemblies cuts lead strip segments and feeds the lead strip segments into the mounting assemblies. The four mounting assemblies simultaneously mount the lead strip segments on the substrate.
Claims49
Apparatus for simultaneously mounting lead strip segments of the type having a carrier strip and a plurality of leads extending from one side of the carrier strip to contact portions on the free ends of the leads on the edges of rectangular integrated circuit substrates with the contact portions of the leads engaging contact pads spaced along the edges of the substrates, the apparatus including,
- a) an integrated circuit substrate support located on a central axis;
- b) a plurality of transport assemblies spaced around the central axis with each transport assembly located outwardly of the substrate support, each transport assembly including a transport head movable between a loading position away from the axis and a mounting position adjacent the axis, lead strip segment clamp means for securing a lead strip segment to the head at a location facing the axis for mounting on the edge of an integrated circuit substrate on the substrate support;
- c) lead strip segment feed means for feeding a lead strip segment to each transport head when in the loading position;
- d) a transport head drive for moving said transport heads simultaneously between said loading position and said mounting position, said transport head drive including an extendable and retractable first drive member, first drive means for extending and retracting the first drive member and first operative connections joining the first drive member and each transport head;
- and
- e) clamp drive means for releasing the clamp means in each transport assembly simultaneously when the transport heads are in the mounting position.
Apparatus for simultaneously mounting a plurality of contact leads on the edges of integrated circuit substrates with the contact portions of the leads engaging contact pads spaced along the edges of the substrates, the apparatus including,
- a) an integrated circuit substrate support located on a central axis;
- b) a plurality of transport assemblies spaced around the central axis with each transport assembly located outwardly of the substrate support, each transport assembly including a transport head movable between a loading position away from the axis and a mounting position adjacent the axis, first means for securing a plurality of contact leads to each head at a location facing the axis for mounting on the edge of an integrated circuit substrate on the substrate support;
- c) second means for feeding leads to each transport head when in the loading position;
- and
- d) a transport head drive for moving said transport heads between said loading position and said mounting position, said transport head drive including a first drive member, third means for moving the first drive member and first operative connections joining the first drive member and said transport heads.
The method of mounting lead strip segments on the edges of rectangular integrated circuit substrates, comprising the steps of:
- a) positioning a rectangular integrated circuit substrate on a central substrate support, the substrate having edges with spaced contact pads extending along the edges;
- b) feeding a lead strip segment having free lead ends to each of a plurality of transfer heads spaced around the integrated circuit substrate, the free ends of the leads in such segments extending toward an adjacent edge of the integrated circuit substrate;
- c) clamping each lead strip segment in position on its respective transfer head;
- d) simultaneously moving the transfer heads toward the integrated circuit substrate to position the free ends of the leads in the lead strip segments clamped on the transfer heads over the contact pads on the adjacent edges of the integrated circuit substrate;
- e) forming physical connections between the lead ends and the contact pads on the substrates;
- and
- f) releasing the lead strip segments from the transfer heads.
An apparatus for simultaneously mounting lead strip segments onto at least two edges of an integrated circuit substrate having a plurality of spaced contact pads spaced along the edges of the substrate with the contact portions of the leads engaging the contact pads, the apparatus comprising:
- a) an integrated circuit substrate support located on a fixed axis;
- b) a lead strip insertion means for simultaneously mounting leads onto each edge of an integrated circuit substrate located on the substrate support, each said means movable between a mounting position adjacent the support and a receiving position remote from the support;
- c) a lead strip supply mechanism for supplying lead strip segments to the insertion means when the insertion means is in said receiving position;
- and
- d) a drive for moving the insertion means between said receiving and mounting positions, said drive including a first drive member movable along said axis and operative connections joining said drive member and each said insertion means.
The method of mounting a plurality of leads onto the edges of integrated circuit substrates having spaced opposed sides joined by edges and contact pads along the edges, said method comprising the steps of:
- a) positioning an integrated circuit substrate on a substrate support located along the fixed axis;
- b) feeding a plurality of spaced leads to each of a plurality of transport heads spaced around the fixed axis with each transport head adjacent a respective edge of the substrate and with lead contact ends of the leads facing the adjacent edge of the substrate;
- c) simultaneously moving each transport head toward its respective substrate edge to position the free ends of the leads above the edges of the substrate.
- d) relatively moving the substrate and leads to bring the ends of the leads into contact with the pads on the edges of the substrate;
- and
- e) forming electrical connections between the contact pads and the ends of the leads.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.