Sym-tek Systems, Inc.

Adv Antest Corporation

Orbitran Company, Inc.

Thomas E Toth

Mitsuaki Tani

Kazuyuki Tsurishima

Mark W Klug

Lawrence J Kamm

John E Toth

James A Ross

Steven David Swendrowski

Teruaki Sakurada

Minoru Baba

Bruce O'Connor

Theodore C Guenther

Steve Swendrowski

Stephen R Lamb

Martin Twite

R Bruce O'Connor

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 transport medium for orderly, in-process transportation of assembled electrical devices during backend processing. A carrier tray is comprised of a plurality of carrier units held in coplanar relationship by a frame. Preferably the carrier units are polyethersulfone inserts latchable into a coordinate matrix of carrier unit holes defined by a metallic sheet. Each carrier unit carries one or more electrical devices in device seats which expose a top and a bottom of each device sufficiently to eliminate any necessity for removing the devices from the medium during all backend processing. Each carrier unit has a standardized perimeter but a core which is adapted to a particular device size and form, and there can be as many different carrier units as there are different device forms and sizes, but all carrier units fit into a standard carrier unit hole. The frames and carrier units are robotically manipulable. Each tray, each carrier unit and each device in a carrier unit are uniquely identifiable by a combination of bar code indicia on the frame and a series of indexing holes along the frame perimeter and centered on each line of carrier units.

Electrical device transport medium

A station for testing electrical devices under elevated and depressed temperature conditions, said devices being transported through and tested in the station while held in coordinated planar sets. The planarly arranged sets of devices are sequentially placed upon a platen movable along three mutually orthogonal axes. A test head has a plurality of electrical device contactors in planar arrangement corresponding to the arrangement of the devices sets. At least one axis along which the platen moves is orthogonal to a general plane of the contactors for establishing parallel contact between the devices and the contactors. During testing each of the leads of the devices resting upon the platen are electrically contacted by a contactor. The leads of the full set of electrical devices can be contacted simultaneously, or the leads can be contacted in subsets depending upon the capacity of the test head. The test head energizes and stimulates the electrical devices, and the responses of the devices are communicated to a tester via the test head. Prior to being deposited upon the platen, the planarly arranged sets of electrical devices are conveyed through a chamber which elevates or depresses the temperature of the devices to a selected testing temperature. Following testing, the sets of electrical devices are conveyed through a chamber which brings the temperature of the devices back to or near equilibrium with the temperature ambient to the test center.

Test station

The system responds to signals from a weight computer to depress selected keys on the postage metering machine keyboard. A solenoid is associated with each key. The solenoids are mounted on a carriage for movement toward and away from the keyboard. Spring bias and weight forces the carriage toward the keyboard. Energized solenoids hold an engagement tip extended so that when the carriage is released toward the keyboard, the carriage force will depress the selected key. The engagement tip on unenergized solenoids contact the key but the solenoid shaft moves upward into the solenoid without depressing the key.

System for operating a postage metering machine keyboard

Growing community of inventors

San Diego, CA, United States of America

Thomas E Toth