Inflatable bladder with suction for supporting circuit board assembly processing

Abstract

An inflatable bladder comprising at least one aperture and/or at least one baffle within the bladder for supporting a printed circuit board during component placement on a semiconductor substrate such as a printed circuit board is provided. The inflatable bladder is positioned to provide support for the substrate while apertures within the inflatable bladder communicate a suction force to the substrate to inhibit the substrate from bending, bowing, or flexing away from contact with the inflatable bladder during component placement. The inflatable bladder provides support for the substrate while attempting to prevent injury to components by pliably conforming to component irregularities on the back side of the substrate. The inflatable bladder can be selectively inflated or deflated for contacting the substrate and thereafter supporting the back side of the substrate during assembly operations. Alternatively, a lift table can be selectively raised or lowered for placing the inflatable bladder in contact with the back side of the substrate during assembly operations. The inflatable bladder can contain one or more baffles to define one or more compartments within the inflatable bladder. The inflatable bladder can be incorporated into a typical system for component assembly comprising a pair of rails, each having a slot therein, for receiving a substrate.