Method and apparatus for semiconductor chip handling
AssigneeGeneral Semiconductor, Inc.
InventorsSalvatore Acello, Detlev Ansinn
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
For stripping selected chips from a wafer of diced chips adhered, bottom surface down, to a flexible, elastic membrane, the bottom surface of the membrane is disposed against an apertured plate of a vacuum chuck for firmly holding the membrane in place with a group of the chips directly overlying push-up pins vertically movable through slots through the apertured plate. Selected pins are fired upwardly with sufficient speed to dislodge struck chips, but not non-selected adjacent chips, off the membrane and to hurl them, in free flight, upwardly against an overlying chip catching member. The stripped and caught chips are then transferred for storage or use.
Claims17
A method of handling a plurality of semiconductor chips each having a bottom surface adhered to a top surface of a flexible membrane comprising the step of striking the undersurface of the membrane directly beneath a selected chip with such force for separating the chip from the membrane at a point in space and projecting the chip along a path to a chip catcher spaced from said point.
An apparatus for transferring chips each having a bottom surface adhered to an upper surface of an elastic membrane, the apparatus comprising a vacuum chuck including a first plate having first apertures therethrough opening onto a first surface of said first plate for pressing said membrane against said first surface when vacuum is applied to said first apertures, and a push-up pin assembly including a second plate having a plurality of second apertures therethrough opening onto a second surface of said second plate continuous with said first surface and directly underlying chips adhered to said membrane, said assembly including a plurality of push-up pins having free ends extending into respective second apertures, and individually actuated pin drivers for simultaneously driving selected said pins upwardly through the upper surface of said plate for simultaneously dislodging from the membrane those chips overlying said selected pins.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.