Cooling air flow control valve for burn-in system

A burn-in oven comprising:

• a heat exchange chamber;
• a burn-in board comprising a plurality of device receiving sockets exposed to the heat exchange chamber;
• a tray supported adjacent to the burn-in board and having a plurality of openings, each of which is aligned with one of the device receiving sockets;
• a plenum chamber having a flow of cooling air supplied thereto separated from the heat exchange chamber by the tray;
• and
• a plurality of valves mounted to the tray, each valve configured to control air flow between the plenum chamber and the heat exchange chamber through one of the openings directly Onto a device receiving socket.

A method of controlling the cooling of devices under test in a burn-in oven comprising steps of:

• installing the devices in sockets of a burn-in board;
• installing the bum-in board in the burn-in oven;
• installing a tray adjacent to the burn-in board in the bum-in oven, the tray including a plurality of openings, each of which is aligned with one of the devices on the burn-in board, and a plurality of valves that are each mounted to the tray adjacent to one of the openings;
• testing the devices installed on the burn-in board within a heat exchange chamber defined by boundaries including the burn-in board and the tray;
• providing a cooling air flow to a plenum chamber that is separated from the heat exchange chamber by the tray;
• generating a temperature signal for each of the devices that is indicative of the temperature of the corresponding device;
• and
• actuating each of the valves independently from each other between an open position, in which an air flow path comprising the corresponding opening in the tray is open between the plenum chamber and the heat exchange chamber and air from the plenum chamber is directed onto the corresponding device, and a closed position, in which the air flow path is blocked, based on the temperature signal for the corresponding device.