Probe apparatus for electrical inspection of printed circuit board assembly

Abstract

A probe apparatus for the electrical inspection of a printed circuit board (PCB) assembly includes a probe assembly for inspecting the electrical circuitry of a PCB having electronic components mounted thereon. A first driving mechanism is provided for moving the probe assembly rectilinearly, and a guide is provided for guiding the rectilinear movement of the probe assembly. The probe assembly includes a probe tip for making contact with a solder joint on the PCB to detect a signal for the electrical inspection, a force sensor combined with the rear portion of the probe tip for measuring a contact force applied to the probe tip when the probe tip makes contact with the solder joint, a location sensor for measuring the location of the probe tip when in contact with the solder joint, and a device for controlling the location of the probe tip, according to the measured contact force and location thereof. The probe may further include a second driving mechanism for controlling the angle of inclination of the probe assembly to solder joints. Such a probe is improved in adaptability to the various patterns of the solder joints and thus enables stable testing of the PCB, by preventing poor soldering as well as vibration of the probe tips.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.