US 5,402,079 AGranted

Integrated circuit relay control system

AssigneeVLSI Technology, Inc.

InventorPaul S. Levy

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Abstract

A universal performance board for use with integrated circuit testers operates to set the power supply attribute relays or I/O loads on a performance board or load board through an integrated circuit relay control circuit. The control information for the power supply attribute relays or I/O loads is supplied from the tester to the data input of the relay control circuit at the start-up of operation for testing each new integrated circuit under test. The required control information is loaded into the relay control circuit, which then selectively operates the power supply attribute relays or I/O loads. After the relay control information has been loaded into the control circuit, the tester channels are released to be used by the tester in a normal testing function of the integrated circuit device under test. A battery back-up support is provided for memory retention in the relay control circuit; so that the control information is retained until it is subsequently changed by the supply of new control information from the tester whenever the integrated circuit device under test is changed to a different type of device.

Claims14

Dependent claims

A relay switch control system for effecting power selection for the terminals of a multiple pin integrated circuit device undergoing testing by a multiple channel tester including in combination:

a relay control circuit having a plurality of output channels;
a relay connected to each of the output channels of said relay control circuit for operation in response to operating signals supplied to each of said output channels by said relay control circuit;
said tester coupled with said relay control circuit for supplying control information from said tester to said relay control circuit to cause said relay control circuit to supply operating signals to selected ones of said plurality of output channels thereof corresponding to said control information;
a plurality of potential supply leads corresponding to each of said plurality of output channels of said relay control circuit;
means coupled with each of said relays for supplying predetermined potentials to said potential supply leads in accordance with operating signals supplied to said selected output channels of said relay control circuit;
and
a switch connected between each of said potential supply leads and corresponding pins of said multiple pin integrated circuit device undergoing testing.

4 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.