Adv Antest Corporation

Sym-tek Systems, Inc.

Mark W Klug

Thomas E Toth

Mitsuaki Tani

Kazuyuki Tsurishima

Steven David Swendrowski

Teruaki Sakurada

Minoru Baba

Santino Marrone

Theodore C Guenther

Ray G Twigg

Malcolm V Hawkes

Martin Twite

Stephen R Lamb

An integrated circuit (IC) device test handler which is adaptable to receive various customer tray configurations and automatically test the ICs within. The test handler comprises a customer tray magazine input area, a load section, a soak chamber, a test section, an unsoak chamber and an unload area. Two magazines containing customer trays with IC devices are input to the handler. An elevator mechanism raises the customer trays within one magazine at a time to a position which can be accessed by the loader of the test handler. A catcher device moves the trays to a buffer platform where the trays can be accessed by a transfer arm. The transfer arms moves the customer trays to one of two load stages. A pick and place apparatus removes the IC devices from each customer tray on the load stages and transfers them to a precisor for alignment and then to a test tray. The test trays are conveyed through a soak chamber to simulate certain environmental conditions and then through a double test head chamber where the IC devices are tested. The test trays are returned to ambient conditions through an unsoak chamber. A pair of unload pick and place apparatus move tested IC devices from the test trays to customer trays waiting on unload stages. The transfer arm moves the customer trays to various tray magazines based on the test results. Elevators under the magazines step down as each full customer tray is placed thereon.

Apparatus for automatic handling

A separation and transfer apparatus for use in an electronic test system for testing electronic devices such as IC's, and the like. The apparatus has a housing for holding in a horizontal position, a magazine containing such electronic devices, an air blower for blowing compressed air at the electronic devices at an angle through a slit of the magazine so that the electronic devices are separated from one another and urged in a desired direction, a piston pin for insertion into a space developed between the last electronic device in the magazine and one end of the magazine, an advancing apparatus for changing the horizontal position of the air blower and the piston pin and for expelling the electronic devices from the magazine, and a controller for controlling the timing of the air blowing, the movement of the advancing apparatus, and the operation of the piston pin. The invention also includes a transfer apparatus having mounted thereon a second air blower and piston pin for transferring the electronic devices thus expelled from the magazine to the next stage of the test system, such as a temperature chamber. Another aspect of the present invention is a universal electronic device magazine for use in such separation and transfer apparatus, which magazine need not be changed or varied despite differences in the shape and kinds of the electronic devices to be tested.

Separation and transfer apparatus

A device for automatically presenting electronic devices to a tester for testing. A plurality of carriers, each for carrying a set of electronic devices are cyclically conveyed in a close loop from a loading stage where electronic devices are loaded onto the carriers, through a pre-test chamber, such as a 'soak' chamber, from the pre-test chamber to a test stage where the devices are preferably lifted from the carrier to come into contact with a test head contactor for testing, from the test stage to a post-test chamber, such as 'un-soak' chamber, through the post-test chamber to an unloading stage where the carriers are unloaded of the tested electronic devices, and then from the unloading stage back to the loading stage to receive a new set of untested electronic devices. Optionally, each carrier comprises a set of secondary carriers which ride in a like number of seats defined by a primary carrier and sets of electronic devices are loaded onto and unloaded from the secondary carriers. Among other uses, the secondary carriers serve as adapters between the various forms of electronic devices and a standard form of primary carrier.

Electronic device test handler

Growing community of inventors

San Diego, CA, United States of America

Mark W Klug