TWI909881B - Pressing mechanism, testing device, and processing machine - Google Patents

Abstract

A pressing mechanism includes a support unit, a pressing unit, and a temperature control unit. The support unit has a support member to dispose with the pressing unit. The pressing unit has a pressing member to press and contact the electronic component. The temperature control unit has a temperature control member and an intermediate member. The temperature control member is disposed on the pressing unit to control the temperature of the pressing member and the electronic component. The intermediate member has a transmitting face, an recess portion, and plural lateral transmitting faces. The transmitting face is disposed on the contact face of the pressing member to exchange heat vertically. The pressing member drives the recess portion to engage with the electronic member. Thus, the lateral transmitting faces around the recess portion exchange heat with the lateral faces of the electronic component laterally.

Description

Crimping mechanism, testing equipment and operating machine

This invention provides a pressing mechanism that can rapidly improve temperature control efficiency.

In modern applications, electronic components will be used in low- or high-temperature environments. To ensure product quality, these components must undergo cold or hot testing in a testing device. Referring to Figure 1, the testing device includes an electrically connected circuit board 11 and a test socket 12 for mounting and testing electronic components 21. Depending on the type of electronic component 21, it can be directly placed into the test socket 12 for testing, or it can be electrically connected to a carrier board 22 to assemble an electronic module 20, which is then placed into the test socket 12 for testing. Taking electronic module 20 as an example, its carrier board 22 has a plurality of contacts 221 on its bottom surface, and a metal frame 23 is provided around the top surface. An electronic component 21 is electrically connected to the middle part of the top surface. There is an appropriate distance between the electronic component 21 and the metal frame 23. The testing device also has a transfer arm 13 that can be displaced in the Z direction above the test holder 12. The transfer arm 13 is equipped with a crimping fixture 14 and a cooling wafer 15. When an electronic module 20 with electronic component 21 is placed into the test holder 12, the transfer arm 13 drives the crimping fixture 14 to displace in the Z direction and press the top surface of the electronic component 21, so that the cooling wafer 15 exchanges heat with the electronic component 21 through the crimping fixture 14, thereby controlling the temperature of the electronic component 21 to perform the test operation in the test holder 12.

However, the crimping fixture 14 only contacts the top surface of the electronic component 21 for heat exchange, and the area for heat exchange is limited. As a result, the electronic component 21 can only slowly reach the preset test temperature, which increases the temperature control time and cannot improve test capacity. Furthermore, the periphery of the top surface of some electronic components 21 may be bent and deformed, and may not be able to contact the bottom surface of the crimping fixture 14. This will cause heat to accumulate on the sides of the electronic component 21, which will affect the test quality.

The first objective of this invention is to provide a crimping mechanism, comprising a mounting unit, a bonding unit, and a temperature control unit. The mounting unit is provided with at least one mounting bracket for assembling the bonding unit. The bonding unit is provided with at least one crimping tool capable of crimping electronic components. The temperature control unit includes at least one temperature controller and at least one intermediary component. The temperature controller is mounted on the bonding unit and is capable of temperature-controlling the crimping tool and the electronic components. The transfer surface of the intermediary component and the receiving surface of the crimping tool can adhere to each other under test conditions. Direct heat exchange allows the intermediate component and electronic component to adhere to each other during testing, defining multiple lateral heat transfer surfaces of the intermediate component and multiple peripheral surfaces of the electronic component for lateral heat exchange. By using the intermediate component of the temperature control unit in conjunction with the crimping fixture of the bonding unit to perform multi-surface heat exchange with the electronic component, the heat conduction area is significantly increased, thereby improving the temperature conductivity between the temperature control unit and the electronic component. This allows the temperature of the electronic component to be rapidly controlled to the preset test temperature, facilitating test operations and ultimately improving temperature control performance and test capacity. This, in turn, improves temperature control performance and test capacity.

The second objective of this invention is to provide a pressing mechanism in which the intermediate component of the temperature control unit is bonded to the multiple peripheral surfaces of the electronic component by defining multiple lateral transmission surfaces for lateral heat exchange, which can quickly eliminate the heat accumulation around the electronic component, thereby improving the temperature control performance and test quality.

The third objective of this invention is to provide a testing device comprising at least one testing mechanism and at least one crimping mechanism of this invention. The at least one testing mechanism is provided with at least one tester for mounting and testing electronic components. The at least one crimping mechanism of this invention comprises a mounting unit, a bonding unit, and a temperature control unit for crimping and temperature controlling electronic components, thereby improving testing performance.

The fourth objective of this invention is to provide an operating machine comprising a machine base, a feeding device, a receiving device, a testing device of this invention, a conveying device, and a central control device. The feeding device is disposed on the machine base and is provided with at least one feeder for accommodating at least one electronic component to be tested; the receiving device is disposed on the machine base and is provided with at least one receiving device for accommodating at least one tested electronic component; the testing device of this invention is disposed on the machine base and is provided with at least one testing mechanism and at least one crimping mechanism of this invention for testing and temperature control of electronic components; the conveying device is disposed on the machine base and is provided with at least one conveyor for conveying at least one electronic component; and the central control device controls and integrates the operations of each device to perform automated operation.

To enable your review committee to gain a further understanding of this invention, a preferred embodiment is provided below with accompanying drawings:

Please refer to Figure 2, which shows a first embodiment of the crimping mechanism of the present invention, including a mounting unit, a joining unit, and a temperature control unit.

The mounting unit is equipped with at least one mounting device. Depending on the operational requirements, the mounting device can be configured as a fixed or movable unit; for example, the mounting device is a fixed frame, and the tester (not shown in the figure) can be displaced relative to the mounting device; for example, the mounting device is a transfer arm that can be displaced in at least one direction and can be displaced relative to the tester. Of course, it is also possible for the mounting device and the tester to be displaced relative to each other.

In this embodiment, the mounting device is a transfer arm 31, which is driven by a drive source (not shown) to move in the Z direction. Furthermore, the drive source may be a linear motor, a pressure cylinder, or include a motor and at least one transmission assembly, which may be a pulley assembly or a screw and seat assembly.

The bonding unit is mounted on the rack and is provided with at least one crimping tool for crimping electronic components.

Depending on the operational requirements, the coupling unit can be configured with at least one buoy between the mounting device and the crimping tool. The buoy allows the crimping tool to float in at least one direction to cushion and/or fine-tune the accurate crimping of electronic components.

Depending on the operational requirements, the crimping tool can be equipped with at least one suction port for crimping and transferring electronic components.

In this embodiment, the joining unit is provided with a base 32 and a crimping tool 33. One side of the base 32 is connected to the transfer arm 31 of the mounting unit, and the crimping tool 33 is installed on the other side, so that the transfer arm 31 can drive the base 32 and the crimping tool 33 to move synchronously in the Z direction. The bottom surface of the crimping tool 33 is defined as the bearing surface 331, which can be attached to the top surface of the crimping and temperature control electronic components (not shown in the figure).

The temperature control unit includes at least one temperature controller and at least one intermediate component. The temperature controller is mounted on the bonding unit and can control the temperature of the crimping fixture. The transfer surface of the intermediate component and the receiving surface of the crimping fixture can be bonded to each other for direct heat exchange in the test state. The intermediate component and the electronic component can be bonded to each other in the test state. The intermediate component defines a plurality of lateral transfer surfaces and a plurality of lateral peripheral surfaces of the electronic component for lateral heat exchange.

Depending on the operational requirements, the temperature controller may be a heating element, a cooling chip, or a device containing a fluid (such as a refrigerant). The temperature controller may be disposed inside the base 32 of the coupling unit, inside the crimping tool 33, or between the base 32 and the crimping tool 33, etc., and is not limited to this embodiment.

In this embodiment, the temperature controller is a cooling chip 34, which is disposed between the base 32 and the crimping fixture 33 to control the temperature of the crimping fixture 33 and the electronic components.

The intermediary component 35 is made of a flexible and deformable material with good temperature conductivity (e.g., foamed copper). The top surface of the intermediary component 35 is defined as a transfer surface 351 and is fitted onto the receiving surface 331 of the crimping tool 33, allowing the intermediary component 35 to move in the Z-direction with the crimping tool 33. The intermediary component 35 has a fitting portion 352 extending from the transfer surface 351 to the bottom surface, capable of fitting electronic components. The surrounding sides of the fitting portion 352 are defined as a plurality of side transfer surfaces 353, capable of conforming to a plurality of peripheral surfaces of the electronic components.

As described above, the bottom surface of the intermediate component 35 may or may not contact a device used to hold electronic components (e.g., the bottom surface of a carrier board, the inner bottom surface of a test socket of a tester, or the inner bottom surface of a stage, etc.), and is not limited to this embodiment. In this embodiment, the bottom surface of the intermediate component 35 is defined as the abutment surface 354 for attaching the carrier board of the electronic module (not shown in the figure).

Please refer to Figures 3 and 4. The test apparatus 30 includes at least one test mechanism and at least one crimping mechanism of the present invention. The at least one test mechanism is provided with at least one tester for mounting and testing electronic components. In this embodiment, the tester of the test mechanism is provided with an electrically connected circuit board 361 and a test socket 362. The test socket 362 has a plurality of probes for mounting and testing an electronic module 40 with electronic components. In this embodiment, the bottom surface of the carrier board 41 of the electronic module 40 is provided with a plurality of contacts, and an electronic component 42 is electrically connected to the middle part of the top surface of the carrier board 41. A metal frame 43 is provided around the periphery. The top surface 421 of the electronic component 42 faces upward, and there is an accommodating space A between the plurality of side peripheral surfaces 422 and the metal frame 43.

The crimping mechanism of this invention is positioned above the testing mechanism, and the crimping tool 33, the cooling wafer 34 and the intermediate component 35 are supported by the transfer arm 31 and are located above the test base 362, with the contact surface 354 of the intermediate component 35 facing downward.

During cold testing, the electronic module 40 is placed into the test socket 362, and the contacts of the carrier board 41 are electrically connected to the probes of the test socket 362, so that the electronic component 42 faces upwards for testing. Of course, depending on the type of electronic component, it is also possible to directly place electronic components without a carrier board and metal frame into the test socket 362.

The transfer arm 31 of the mounting unit is driven by a drive source to synchronously displace the base 32, crimping tool 33, and intermediate component 35 downwards in the Z direction. This causes the intermediate component 35 of the joining unit to be inserted into the receiving space A between the electronic component 42 and the metal frame 43, and its abutting surface 354 abuts against the carrier plate 41. The fitting portion 352 of the intermediate component 35 can accommodate the electronic component 42, allowing the receiving surface 331 of the crimping tool 33 to press against and adhere to the top surface 421 of the electronic component 42. The plurality of transfer surfaces 353 of the intermediate component 35 are attached to the plurality of peripheral surfaces 422 of the electronic component 42. The cooling chip 34 of the temperature control unit exchanges heat with the electronic component 42 via the receiving surface 331 of the crimping tool 33. Because the transfer surface 351 of the intermediate component 35 is attached to the receiving surface 331 of the crimping tool 33, the transfer surface 351 can conduct the temperature of the crimping tool 33 to the intermediate component 35, giving the intermediate component 35 a preset temperature. The plurality of transfer surfaces 353 of the intermediate component 35 are attached to the plurality of peripheral surfaces 422 of the electronic component 42, significantly increasing the heat exchange area. Furthermore, the intermediate component 35 enables lateral temperature conduction for heat exchange with the electronic component 42, preventing heat accumulation on the lateral surface of the electronic component 42. In other words, with improved temperature conductivity on both the top surface 421 and multiple lateral surfaces 422, the temperature control unit can quickly control the electronic component 42 to the preset test temperature, shortening the temperature control operation time. This facilitates rapid testing by the crimping tool 33, thereby improving test quality.

Please refer to Figure 5. The second embodiment of the crimping mechanism of the present invention has a mounting unit, a joining unit and a temperature control unit that are substantially the same as the first embodiment. The difference between the second embodiment and the first embodiment is that the intermediate component 35 of the temperature control unit can be detachably mounted on the electronic component 42. In this embodiment, the intermediate component 35 can be separated from the crimping tool 33 and is pre-embedded in the receiving space A between the electronic component 42 and the metal frame 43 with the fitting part 352, so that the plurality of side transfer surfaces 353 of the intermediate component 35 are in contact with the plurality of side peripheral surfaces 422 of the electronic component 42. When the transfer arm 31 moves the crimping tool 33, the cooling chip 34, etc. downward in the Z direction, the receiving surface 331 of the crimping tool 33 is in contact with the transfer surface 351 of the intermediate component 35, so that the intermediate component 35 can perform lateral temperature conduction heat exchange to the electronic component 42, and the receiving surface 331 of the crimping tool 33 can perform vertical temperature conduction heat exchange to the electronic component 42, which can also improve the temperature control performance.

Please refer to Figures 6 and 7. The third embodiment of the crimping mechanism of the present invention has a mounting unit, a joining unit, and a temperature control unit that are substantially the same as the first embodiment. The difference between the third embodiment and the first embodiment is that the intermediate component 35A of the temperature control unit is made of a soft and deformable material, and is mounted on the receiving surface 331 of the crimping tool 33 with a transfer surface 351A. When the transfer arm 31 moves the intermediate component 35A to crimp and bond the electronic component 42, the bottom surface (i.e., the abutment surface 354A) of the intermediate component 35A is pressed and deformed inward toward the transfer surface 351A to form a fitting part 352A. The surrounding area of the fitting part 352A is defined as a plurality of side transfer surfaces 353A, which can bond to a plurality of side peripheral surfaces 422 of the electronic component 42.

Please refer to Figure 8. The fourth embodiment of the crimping mechanism of the present invention has a mounting unit, a joining unit, and a temperature control unit that are substantially the same as the first embodiment. The difference between the fourth embodiment and the first embodiment is that the intermediate part 35B of the temperature control unit is made of a soft and deformable material, and is integrally formed at the position relative to the electronic component (not shown in the figure). A fitting part 352B is recessed from the bottom surface (i.e., the abutment surface 354B) toward the transfer surface 351B. There is a thickness between the fitting part 352B and the transfer surface 351B, which can provide elastic cushioning to avoid damage to the electronic component when the crimping tool 33 presses down on the electronic component. The periphery of the fitting part 352B is defined as a plurality of side transfer surfaces 353B, which can fit the plurality of side peripheral surfaces of the electronic component.

Please refer to Figures 2-4 and Figure 9. The testing device 30 of this invention is applied to an electronic component processing machine. The processing machine includes a machine base 50, a feeding device 60, a receiving device 70, a testing device 30, a conveying device 80, and a central control device (not shown). The feeding device 60 is mounted on the machine base 50 and is equipped with at least one feeder to accommodate at least one electronic component to be tested. The receiving device 70 is mounted on the machine base 50 and is equipped with at least one receiver to accommodate at least one tested electronic component. The testing device 30 is disposed on the machine base 50 and is equipped with at least one testing mechanism and at least one crimping mechanism of this invention. The at least one testing mechanism is equipped with at least one tester for testing electronic components. In this embodiment, the tester is equipped with an electrically connected circuit board 361 and a test socket 362. The present invention provides a crimping mechanism for holding and testing electronic components. This mechanism is positioned above the tester and includes a mounting unit, a bonding unit, and a temperature control unit for temperature control and crimping of the electronic components. A conveying device 80 is mounted on the machine base 50 and includes at least one conveyor for transporting the electronic components. In this embodiment, the conveying device 80 includes a first conveyor 81 to retrieve the electronic component to be tested from the feeder of the feeding device 60 and transfer it to a second conveyor 82. A third conveyor 83 then transports the electronic component to be tested to the testing mechanism of the testing device 30. The test fixture 362, along with the crimping mechanism's crimping tool 33 and temperature control unit, crimps and temperature-controls electronic components for testing. A third conveyor 83 moves the tested electronic components into a second conveyor 82. A first conveyor 81 retrieves the tested electronic components from the second conveyor 82. Based on the test results, the tested electronic components are transported to the receiving unit 70 for sorting and storage. A central control unit (not shown) controls and integrates the operations of each device to automate the process, achieving practical benefits in improving operational efficiency.

[Prepared Knowledge] 11: Circuit Board 12: Test Socket 13: Transfer Arm 14: Crimping Fixture 15: Cooled Wafer 20: Electronic Module 21: Electronic Component 22: Carrier Board 221: Contact 23: Metal Frame [Invention] 30: Test Device 31: Transfer Arm 32: Base 33: Crimping Fixture 331: Receiving Surface 34: Cooled Wafer 35, 35A, 35B: Intermediate Components 351, 351A, 351B: Transfer Surfaces 352, 352A, 352B: Fitting Parts 353, 353A, 353B: Lateral Transfer Surfaces 354, 354A, 354B: Abutment Surfaces 361: Circuit Board 362: Test Socket 40: Electronic Module 41: Carrier Board 42: Electronic Component 421: Top Surface 422: Side Surface 43: Metal Frame A: Accommodation Space 50: Machine Tool 60: Feeding Device 70: Receiving Device 80: Conveying Device 81: First Conveyor 82: Second Conveyor 83: Third Conveyor

Figure 1: Schematic diagram of the use of the conventional testing apparatus. Figure 2: First embodiment diagram of the crimping mechanism of the present invention. Figure 3: Schematic diagram of the application of the crimping mechanism of the present invention in a testing apparatus. Figure 4: Schematic diagram of the use of the crimping mechanism of the present invention. Figure 5: Second embodiment diagram of the crimping mechanism of the present invention. Figure 6: Third embodiment diagram of the crimping mechanism of the present invention. Figure 7: Schematic diagram of the use of the third embodiment diagram. Figure 8: Fourth embodiment diagram of the crimping mechanism of the present invention. Figure 9: Configuration diagram of the testing apparatus of the present invention applied to a workpiece.

30: Testing Device

31: Transfer Arm

32: Base

33: Crimping Fixture

331: Surface to be bonded

34: Cooling chip

35: Intermediary Documents

351: Transfer Page

353: Side Pass

354: Contact Surface

361: Circuit Board

362: Test Socket

40: Electronic Modules

41: Carrier Plate

42: Electronic Components

421: Top surface

422: Lateral surface

43: Metal frame

A: Storage space

Claims (10)

A crimping mechanism includes: a mounting unit having at least one mounting device; a bonding unit mounted on the at least one mounting device and having at least one crimping tool for crimping at least one electronic component; and a temperature control unit having at least one temperature controller and at least one intermediary, the at least one temperature controller being mounted on the bonding unit and capable of temperature controlling the at least one crimping tool, wherein the transfer surface of the at least one intermediary and the receiving surface of the at least one crimping tool can be bonded to each other for direct heat exchange in a test state, and the at least one intermediary and the at least one electronic component can be bonded to each other in the test state, the at least one intermediary defining a plurality of lateral transfer surfaces for lateral heat exchange with a plurality of lateral peripheral surfaces of the at least one electronic component. As described in claim 1, the pressing mechanism has at least one intermediate component of the temperature control unit made of a soft and deformable material and having a fitting portion extending from the transfer surface to the bottom surface, capable of fitting the at least one electronic component. The periphery of the fitting portion is defined as the plurality of side transfer surfaces, capable of conforming to the plurality of side peripheral surfaces of the at least one electronic component. As described in claim 1, the at least one intermediate component of the temperature control unit is made of a soft and deformable material, and when the at least one electronic component is bonded, the bottom surface of the at least one intermediate component is pressed and deformed inward to form a fitting portion, the periphery of the fitting portion is defined as the plurality of side transmission surfaces, which can bond to the plurality of side peripheral surfaces of the at least one electronic component. As described in claim 1, in the pressing mechanism, the at least one intermediate member of the temperature control unit is integrally formed at a position relative to the at least one electronic component and has a recessed fitting portion from the bottom surface toward the transfer surface. The periphery of the fitting portion is defined as the plurality of side transfer surfaces, which can fit the plurality of side peripheral surfaces of the at least one electronic component. As described in claim 1, the bottom surface of the at least one intermediate component of the temperature control unit is defined as the contact surface. As described in any of claims 1 to 5, the transfer surface of the at least one intermediate component of the temperature control unit is capable of being fitted onto the bearing surface of the at least one crimping tool and moving synchronously. The pressing mechanism as described in claim 1, 2 or 5, wherein the at least one intermediate component of the temperature control unit is detachably mounted to the at least one electronic component. The crimping mechanism as described in any of claims 1 to 5, wherein at least one of the mounting units is capable of displacement in at least one direction. A testing apparatus comprising: at least one testing mechanism having at least one tester for holding and testing at least one electronic component; and at least one crimping mechanism as described in claim 1 for temperature control and crimping the at least one electronic component of the at least one tester. A machine tool includes: a machine base; a feeding device: disposed on the machine base and having at least one feeder for holding at least one electronic component to be tested; a receiving device: disposed on the machine base and having at least one receiving device for holding the at least one electronic component that has been tested; at least one testing device as described in claim 9: disposed on the machine base for performing testing operations on the at least one electronic component; a conveying device: disposed on the machine base and having at least one conveyor for conveying the at least one electronic component; and a central control device for controlling and integrating the operations of the various devices to perform automated operations.