International Business Machines Corporation

Globalfoundries Inc.

Wai Mon Ma

Brian D Chapman

Bruce John Chamberlin

Arch F Nuttall

James J Petrone

Mark Kenneth Hoffmeyer

James R Stack

James Edward Tersigni

John J Squires

Roger Lam

Daniel James Buschel

Wiren Dale Becker

Erich Klink

Peter Jeffrey Brofman

Roland Frech

Charles L Reynolds

Thomas-Michael Winkel

David W Dranchak

Chon Cheong Lei

Thomas G Macek

Donald Merte

Alan D Knight

Horatio Quinones

David E Engle

John P Weir

Todd H Buley

Simone Rehm

Raymond D Birchall

Ellyn M Ingalls

David E Hessian

Jefferson L Watson

Helmut Virag

Timothy W Donahue

Joseph F Basista

A test probe is provided for probing signal information on a back-drilled plated through hole connector formed in a printed circuit board, where the test probe includes a conductive probe body with a distal tip region extending a predetermined minimum coverage length (L) that is longer than a recess depth dimension (D) for a recessed plating layer formed in the back-drilled plated through hole connector with an elastomer test probe tip formed around the distal tip region and having a total tip width (W) which is compressed when inserted into the recessed plating layer formed in a back-drilled plated through hole connector, thereby establishing a conductive path between the conductive probe body and the recessed plating layer.

Test probe coated with conductive elastomer for testing of backdrilled plated through holes in printed circuit board assembly

A primary circuit board has a front surface, a back surface, and a non-conductive void. The void has first planar dimensions through a first portion of a thickness of the primary circuit board extending from the front surface to a position between the front and back surfaces, and second planar dimensions through a second portion of the thickness extending from the position at least towards the back surface. A secondary circuit board holder includes a non-conducting locking member insertable into the non-conductive void at the primary circuit board's front surface to secure the holder while a conductive part of the holder is conductively affixed to a conductive part of the primary circuit board. The first planar dimensions are different than the second planar dimensions to permit the primary circuit board's thickness to be greater than a maximum thickness specification of the holder's non-conducting locking member.

Primary circuit board non-conductive void having different planar dimensions through board thickness to secure non-conducting locking member of holder

A surface mount component adapter, assembly and related method for attaching a surface mount component to a printed circuit board. The surface mount component adapter includes a substrate, a surface mount component holder on the substrate, and flexible leads each having a base end attached to the surface mount component holder and a free end configured to engage a plated through hole on a circuit board. The surface mount component holder is configured to engage electrical contacts of a surface mount component. The surface mount component assembly combines the surface mount adapter with the surface mount component. In the surface mount component method, the surface mount assembly is formed and the free ends of the flexible leads are attached to a corresponding number of the plated through holes on the circuit board.

Adapter for plated through hole mounting of surface mount component

An apparatus may include a housing forming an enclosure having an edge seatable on a printed circuit board (PCB). The enclosure edge may include an edge portion. The housing may be configured to transfer a force applied to the housing to a surface mount component mounted on the PCB to dismount the surface mount component. The apparatus may include a dye inlet formed by the housing and configured to conduct a dye into the enclosure. Another apparatus may include at least one gasket mounted to the enclosure edge to contact the major surface of the PCB adjacent to the surface mount component for forming a seal with the PCB. A method may include enclosing a surface mount component in an enclosure formed in a nozzle apparatus, introducing a dye into the enclosure, and applying a force to the nozzle apparatus to dismount the surface mount component.

Dye-based circuit mount testing

Disclosed is a method, system, and computer program storage product for optimizing land grid array site geometry on an electronic assembly mounting. A first member including at least one convex region is aligned with a first portion of an electronic assembly mounting. A second member is aligned with a second portion of the electronic assembly mounting. The second portion includes at least one concave region corresponding to the convex region of the first portion. The second member includes a dome-shaped region having a predefined geometry. Heat is applied to at least one of the electronic assembly mounting, the first member, and the second member. Pressure is applied to at least one of the first member and the second member to reshape the convex region into a substantially flat surface. Applying pressure also reshapes the concave region into a geometry corresponding to the predefined geometry of the dome-shaped region.

Method of optimizing land grid array geometry

A method to replace an electrical interface on a printed circuit board having a plurality of contact pads on a top surface, the contact pads being connected to conducting material extending through said circuit board. For the contact pad being replaced, drilling a hole through said printed circuit board at that location, and removing any remaining conductor material attached to the contact pad on the top board surface. Providing a replacement conductor/contact pad structure having a generally T-configuration with a stem and a head that completely surrounds the stem, wherein said head has a diameter greater than the diameter of the drilled hole. Inserting the replacement conductor/contact pad into the hole with said stem extending beyond the second surface of the board with the bottom surface of the head being in contact with the first surface of said board. A replacement conductor/contact pad on repaired board is also described.

Structure for repairing or modifying surface connections on circuit boards

An apparatus for applying solder to an electronic circuit board substrate includes a solder wave device for generating a molten wave of solder and, above that, a movable substrate holder. The substrate holder includes a support for an electronic circuit board substrate inclined at an angle with respect to the direction and an opening on a bottom thereof for access of a protruding connector disposed near an end of the substrate to the molten solder wave. The angle of incline is sufficient to prevent a component disposed at a distance from the end of the substrate from contacting the molten solder wave when the substrate holder is moved over the solder wave device. A shield in the substrate holder prevents the component not to be soldered from contacting the molten solder wave.

Inclined solder wave methodology for wave soldering double sided pin-in-hole electronic components

Method and structure for repairing or modifying surface connections on circuit boards

This invention relates to electrically connecting a first electronic component to a second electronic component wherein at least one of the electronic components must undergo modifications or repair when, for example, there is a floating signal generated from the first electronic component which can cause problems in operation of the electronic component assembly. For this type assembly an opening is provided in the second electronic component proximate the site or sites to be electrically connected to the first electronic component, which opening extends to an internal plane of the second electronic component desired to be connected to the first electronic component. A wire having a melting point higher than the solder used to make the assembly is used to connect the internal plane of the second electronic component to the pad of the second electronic component which second electronic component is to be electrically connected to the first electronic component thereby avoiding a floating signal in the electronic component assembly.

Terminating floating signals on a BGA module to a ground plane on a ball grid array (BGA) circuit board site

Described is a method for minimizing switching noise in the high- and mid-frequency range on printed circuit cards or boards by means of a plurality of surface mounted decoupling capacitors. A novel configuration and implementation of capacitor pads including the connecting vias is also presented. As a result the parasitic inductance of the pads and vias can be significantly reduced. Thus the effectiveness of the decoupling capacitors in the mid and high frequency range can be increased, the voltage drop can be reduced and the system performance can be increased. Several design rules for the new pad via configuration lead to the significant reduction of the parasitic inductance. The proposal is especially important for high integrated system designs on boards and cards combined with increased cycle times.

Method and structure for reducing power noise

A nozzle is provided for the reworking of printed circuit boards with CBGA and CCGA solder containing chips comprising a housing having an internal hot gas chamber and configured to hold at the lower end of the nozzle a chip to be attached to the printed circuit board. The nozzle is provided with a support member and resilient means on the lower surface thereof which resilient means contacts the upper surface of the chip when the chip is placed in the nozzle. When a vacuum is applied to the nozzle the chip is held against the resilient means and compresses the resilient means so that the lower portion of the solder array is below the lower end of the nozzle. When the nozzle is then placed against a printed circuit board, the resilient means provides a pressure force against the chip and the printed circuit board which enables rework of the printed circuit board even though the printed circuit board may be warped.

Method and apparatus for reworking ceramic ball grid array or ceramic column grid array on circuit cards

A method for establishing electrical communication between a first and second object, comprising the steps of 1) obtaining a first object in electrical communication with at least one BLM, each at least one BLM in contact with a high melting point solder ball coated with a low melting point solder, the low melting point solder contacting each solder ball over at least the portion of the solder ball not in contact with the BLM; 2) interacting a second object having at least one attachment point, each at least one attachment point corresponding to at least one solder ball on the first object where electrical communication is desirable, each solder ball and corresponding attachment point are proximally situated such that each solder ball is capable of forming an electrical communication with the corresponding attachment point; and 3) reflowing the first object and the second object while the first object and the second object are interacted, such that the first object and the second object are in electrical communication and are physically connected.

Method for establishing electrical communication between a first object

A method of forming a solder ball structure comprising the steps of 1) obtaining a first object having at least one high melting point solder ball, each solder ball having a corresponding BLM containing a low melting point solder, each solder ball having an outer surface, top and bottom, each BLM having a top and bottom, the bottom of each solder ball in contact with the top of the corresponding BLM over a portion of the outer surface, the bottom of each BLM in electrical communication with the first object; 2) obtaining a template having a first surface; 3) applying a disjoint area of low melting point solder paste to the first surface of the template; 4) interacting the top of each solder ball and the solder paste; and 5) reflowing each solder ball and disjoint area of solder paste while each solder ball and disjoint area of solder paste are interacted.

Method of making a high melting point solder ball coated with a low

A non-destructive method for identifying off-composition solder columns of for example, a ceramic column grid array. The method is performed at the ceramic module level prior to card assembly to avoid costly loss or rework post card assembly. The assembly of solder columns on a substrate is heated to a temperature below the melting temperature of pure-composition solder and above the temperature of attachment of a solder column to an organic board. Heating the assembly produces visually detectable changes characteristic of off-composition solder which are used for identifying which solder columns are composed of off-composition solder.

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Poughkeepsie, NY, United States of America

Wai Mon Ma