Lucent Technologies Inc.

Western Electric Company, Inc.

At&t Technologies, Inc.

Bruce C Abraham

Charles R Fegley

Patrick J Drummond

James F Dormer

Jerry C Hurst

Daniel Kern

Loring D Emery, Jr

Robert H Stroup

Harold A Griesemer

A lid guide ensures that a lid is accurately positioned and oriented when it is lowered over and placed onto a tray used to hold electronic devices, for example, for transport between different stages in the manufacturing process, thereby helping to prevent damage to the devices that might otherwise result from physical contact with a lid that is placed onto the tray in a haphazard manner. A lid guide may have one or more openings, each of which may be keyed to restrict the tray and the lid to a single rotational orientation. In addition, channels may be provided in opposing walls of each opening in the lid guide to enable a technician to hold either a tray or a lid between a thumb and a finger when placing the tray onto the lid guide or the lid onto the tray.

Lid guide for electronic devices

A method and apparatus for testing of semiconductor chips. The method and apparatus having a fixture which includes electrical contacts and thermal contacts. The electrical contacts are configured to drive each of the chips in an operating or stressed condition. The thermal contacts are configured to maintain the chip at a desired temperature during testing.

Testing of semiconductor chips

First components such as lids (9) are assembled to second components such as electronic chip carriers (10). Each lid (9) has an external surface opposite a first mating face and each carrier (10) has a second mating face complementary with the first mating face of the lid (9). An assembly station contains a first frame (30) having first walls (31-35) for confining and first ledges (37-38) for supporting a lid (9). Frame (30) has an advantageous peripheral opening (39) suitable for passing therethrough portions of devices for transferring lids (9). Preferably such stations (25) are established in an array suitable for access by an array of lids (9) transferred by a first device (35). A first magazine (70) holds files of lids (9) with external surfaces of leading ones in an array for contact, pickup and transfer. The first device (55) has a plurality of fingers (62) with vacuum pickup portions (64) presenting an array of faces (66) to contact and pickup an array of lids (9) from the first magazine (70) and for releasably retaining the same. Device (55) is moved along a path to the first frame (30) and the fingers (62) pass therethrough in an inverted manner. Thus an array of lids (9) are transferred into the frames (30) in a preferably flat orientation with mating faces turned upward. An escapement (105) is then preferably actuated to permit a second magazine to guidably deliver an array of leading carriers (10), with mating faces downward upon the upturned lids (9).

Assembling components such as lids to chip enclosures

Contact pads (18) of a device (12) are adapted for bonding components such as contacts of a circuit assembly thereto. At least two of the pads (18) are interconnected with a member (34) containing bonding material. Portions of the member (34) lying adjacent the pads (18) are then removed to form isolated bodies (42) containing bonding material on the pads (18). The member (37) may be of a composite structure containing bonding material associated with a hard element (61). The bodies (42) formed therefrom contain a hard element portion (62) having dimensions which remain substantially unchanged to define a desired minimum distance between respective pads (18) and contacts when they are bonded together.

Adapting contacts for connection thereto

In making electrically asymmetrical semiconductor devices, it is generally necessary to orient all of the devices into a common polarity at some point in the manufacturing operation. To accomplish this, a magnetic turning chute receives those devices which do not have the desired common polarity and turns them into the common polarity. A helical magnetic field is established in the turning chute by arranging strip magnets into vertical helices around a cylinder. As the devices, which have magnetic properties, progress through the helical field, they are turned by the magnetic force. Further turning impetus is provided by nonmagnetic helical tracks disposed to coincide with the helical magnetic field so that the leads of the devices can slide along the tracks while they move through the chute. Air jets may be used to assist in forcing the devices through the apparatus.

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Limekiln, PA, United States of America

Bruce C Abraham