Circuit board testing equipment

Abstract

The present invention relates to a circuit board detection device, which includes a material loading platform that carries a circuit board and can rotate, two probe devices that can each move along three axes, and an image capture device that can move along three axes to align the electrical contacts of the circuit board. Each of the probe devices includes a mounting seat, a probe unit, an adapter seat and at least one transmission line. The probe unit includes a probe seat that can be rotatably arranged on the mounting seat and relatively fixed to the adapter seat, and at least one probe arranged on the probe seat. The transmission line has a first connector that is electrically connected to the probe unit and the probe, and a second connector that is fixed to the adapter seat. The transmission line is used for another transmission line to be connected to the second connector. This transmission line connection method can achieve good measurement stability, and the rotation of the material loading platform facilitates detection.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a circuit board detection device, and in particular to a circuit board detection device provided with two probe devices for simultaneously detecting the same circuit board. Background Art

[0002] Conventional testing equipment for circuit boards (especially printed circuit boards; PCBs for short) is usually an impedance test equipment for time domain testing. The aforementioned equipment only needs to use a probe device to measure the impedance of each circuit of the circuit board to meet the testing requirements. When considering frequency domain testing, the loss of the circuit board must be measured, and the testing difficulty is relatively high. Usually, two probe devices are used to simultaneously test two points on the circuit board.

[0003] However, the measurement points in the circuit board have many variations, and the two-probe device may interfere with certain specific relative positions due to the limitation of the mechanism size. That is, the two-probe device may encounter certain measurement points that cannot be directly detected during the process of detecting the circuit board. At this time, the user needs to remove the circuit board from the loading platform and then re-fix it to the loading platform to transfer the measurement points that cannot be detected to the position where they can be detected before continuing the detection. This method will cause inconvenience to the user and reduce the detection efficiency.

[0004] In addition, the probe of the probe device is connected to a detection instrument through a transmission line (usually a coaxial cable) of considerable length. However, when the probe device rotates, the transmission line connected to the probe will cause the probe to vibrate, resulting in unstable measurement. Summary of the invention

[0005] In view of the above problems, the main purpose of the present invention is to provide a circuit board testing device, which includes two probe devices for simultaneously testing the same circuit board and can solve at least one of the above problems.

[0006] To achieve the above-mentioned purpose, the present invention provides a circuit board detection device, which can define a first axial direction, a second axial direction and a third axial direction that are perpendicular to each other, and is characterized in that the circuit board detection device includes: a base; a material placement platform, which can be rotatably arranged on the base around the first axial direction, the material placement platform has a bearing surface for a circuit board to be arranged on the bearing surface, and the circuit board includes a plurality of electrical contacts; two probe devices, each of the probe devices includes a mounting seat that can be movably arranged on the base along the first axial direction, the second axial direction and the third axial direction, and a probe unit, the probe unit includes a probe seat that can be rotatably arranged on the mounting seat around the first axial direction, and at least one probe arranged on the probe seat, for using the probe to contact the electrical contacts of the circuit board; an image capture device, which can move along the first axial direction, the second axial direction and the third axial direction and can be arranged on the base to shoot toward the bearing surface of the material placement platform, for aligning the electrical contacts of the circuit board.

[0007] In the technical solution of the present invention, each of the probe devices includes an adapter seat fixed relative to the probe seat, and at least one transmission line, wherein the transmission line includes a first connector and a second connector respectively located at its two ends, wherein the first connector is electrically connected to the probe unit and the second connector is fixed to the adapter seat so that another transmission line can be connected to the second connector.

[0008] By adopting the above technical scheme, the present invention uses the result of aligning the electrical contacts of the circuit board by the image capture device, and the two probe devices can each move to the required point measurement position and the probe unit can be rotated to the required point measurement angle, so as to measure each electrical contact of the circuit board with the probe. When the positions of the electrical contacts to be measured by the two probe devices will cause mechanical interference and cannot be directly detected, the circuit board can be rotated by rotating the material loading platform to change the relative positions of the electrical contacts that cannot be measured by the two probe devices at the same time, so that the detection can continue. This method is convenient and fast and can avoid reducing the detection efficiency.

[0009] To achieve the above-mentioned purpose, the present invention also provides another circuit board detection device, which can define a first axial direction, a second axial direction and a third axial direction that are perpendicular to each other, and is characterized in that the circuit board detection device includes: a base; a material placement platform, which is arranged on the base, and the material placement platform has a bearing surface for a circuit board to be placed on the bearing surface, and the circuit board includes a plurality of electrical contacts; two probe devices, each of the probe devices includes a mounting seat that can be movably arranged on the base along the first axial direction, the second axial direction and the third axial direction, a probe unit, an adapter, and at least one transmission line, and the probe unit includes a mounting seat that can rotate around the first axial direction. A probe seat is arranged on the mounting seat, and at least one probe is arranged on the probe seat, which is used to contact the electrical contacts of the circuit board with the probe. The adapter seat is relatively fixed to the probe seat. The transmission line includes a first connector and a second connector respectively located at its two ends. The first connector is connected to the probe unit in an electrically conductive manner with the probe, and the second connector is fixed to the adapter seat so that another transmission line can be connected to the second connector; an image capture device, which can move along the first axial direction, the second axial direction and the third axial direction and can be arranged on the base to shoot toward the bearing surface of the material loading platform, and is used to align the electrical contacts of the circuit board.

[0010] In the technical solution of the present invention described above, each of the probe devices includes a rotating shaft rotatably arranged on the mounting seat around the first axial direction, the probe seat and the adapter seat are relatively fixed to the rotating shaft, and the probe seat is closer to the material loading platform than the adapter seat.

[0011] Each of the probe devices comprises a base, the adapter and the base are respectively fixed to two ends of the rotating shaft, and the probe seat is fixed to the base.

[0012] The adapter seat includes a base plate fixed to the rotating shaft, an adapter plate on which the second joint is fixed, and a fixing member for detachably fixing the adapter plate to the base plate.

[0013] Each of the probe devices includes two transmission lines, and the second connectors of the two transmission lines are respectively located on two opposite sides of the fixing member.

[0014] The adapter further includes an extension plate fixed to the base plate and extending from the base plate in a direction away from the rotation axis, and a fixing unit arranged on the extension plate for partially fixing the other transmission line to the fixing unit.

[0015] The invention also comprises a laser distance meter, and the laser distance meter is fixed to the mounting seat of one of the two probe devices.

[0016] The image capturing device is a mounting base fixed to the other probe device of the two probe devices.

[0017] The present invention further comprises another image capturing device fixed to the base and located at the periphery of the material placing platform, and the shooting directions of the two image capturing devices are opposite.

[0018] The present invention further comprises a fixture tray, which is arranged on the bearing surface of the material placing platform and is used for arranging a plurality of the circuit boards on the fixture tray.

[0019] The present invention further comprises a position limiting bearing component arranged on the bearing surface of the material placing platform, and one of the circuit board and a fixture plate arranged on the bearing surface of the material placing platform and used to bear the circuit board is supported by the position limiting bearing component.

[0020] By adopting the above-mentioned technical scheme, the present invention can measure the electrical contacts of the circuit board according to the result of the image capture device aligning the electrical contacts of the circuit board. The two probe devices can each move to the desired point measurement position and the probe units can each rotate to the desired point measurement angle, so as to measure each electrical contact of the circuit board with the probe. Each probe is electrically connected to the long transmission line through a short transmission line, and the long transmission line is connected to a detection instrument, so that the probe and the detection instrument are electrically connected to each other and can be used for the detection instrument to detect the electrical contacts of the circuit board. Such a transmission line connection method can prevent the rotation of the probe unit from affecting the stability of the transmission line, thereby producing better measurement stability. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0021] Figure 1 It is a three-dimensional combination diagram of a circuit board detection device provided by a preferred embodiment of the present invention;

[0022] Figure 2 is a top view of the circuit board detection device;

[0023] Figure 3 yes Figure 1 A partial enlarged view mainly showing a probe device and related components of the circuit board detection equipment;

[0024] Figure 4 yes Figure 3 A three-dimensional combined view of the probe device and its related components as viewed from another angle;

[0025] Figure 5 is a partial enlarged view of the circuit board detection device from another angle, mainly showing another probe device and its related components;

[0026] Figure 6 yes Figure 5 A three-dimensional combined view of the probe device and its related components as viewed from another angle;

[0027] Fig. 7A and Figure 7B It is a top view schematic diagram of a circuit board. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0028] The following embodiments are given in conjunction with the accompanying drawings to illustrate the detailed structure, characteristics, assembly or use of the present invention in detail.

[0029] The applicant first explains that in the embodiments and drawings to be introduced below, the same reference numbers represent the same or similar elements or their structural features. It should be noted that the elements and structures in the drawings are for illustration purposes only and are not drawn according to the actual proportions and quantities, and if it is possible in practice, the features of different embodiments can be applied interchangeably. Secondly, when it is mentioned that an element is disposed on another element, it means that the aforementioned element is directly disposed on the other element, or the aforementioned element is indirectly disposed on the other element, that is, one or more other elements are disposed between the two elements. When it is mentioned that an element is "directly" disposed on another element, it means that no other elements are disposed between the two elements.

[0030] Please read first Figure 1 and Figure 2 As shown, a circuit board testing device 10 provided in a preferred embodiment of the present invention mainly comprises a base 11, a material placement platform 12, a displacement mechanism 20, and two probe devices 30A, 30B.

[0031] The loading platform 12 is disposed on the base 11 and can rotate ±180 degrees around a first axis (Z axis). More specifically, a rotation drive device (not shown) connected to the bottom surface of the loading platform 12 is disposed inside the base 11, and is used to drive the loading platform 12 to rotate relative to the base 11. The top surface of the loading platform 12 is a bearing surface 122, and a circuit board 40 is disposed on the bearing surface 122, such as Fig. 7A As shown, the circuit board 40 includes a plurality of circuits 42, and each circuit 42 has two electrical contacts 422 at its two ends. Figure 1 and Figure 2As shown, the bearing surface 122 of the material loading platform 12 of the present embodiment is provided with a fixture tray 13 for multiple circuit boards 40 to be placed on the fixture tray 13. In other words, the circuit board 40 is indirectly placed on the bearing surface 122 through the fixture tray 13. More specifically, multiple circuit boards 40 are first fixed to the fixture tray 13, and then the fixture tray 13 carrying multiple circuit boards 40 is placed on the bearing surface 122 of the material loading platform 12. In this way, the circuit board detection device 10 can continuously detect multiple circuit boards to save time for replacing circuit boards. However, the circuit board detection device 10 of the present invention is not limited to including the fixture tray 13. For example, when the size of the circuit board 40 is large and the material loading platform 12 cannot carry multiple circuit boards 40 at the same time, the fixture tray 13 is not required. That is, the circuit board 40 can be directly placed on the bearing surface 122 of the material loading platform 12. In addition, the bearing surface 122 of the material loading platform 12 of the present embodiment is also provided with a limit bearing component 14. The position limiting support assembly 14 includes two L-shaped first support members 141 and four roughly rectangular second support members 142, so that the fixture plate 13 can be limited by its four edges supporting the first and second support members 141 and 142. Alternatively, when the circuit board 40 is directly disposed on the bearing surface 122, the circuit board 40 can also be limited by its four edges supporting the first and second support members 141 and 142.

[0032] The displacement mechanism 20 is disposed on the base 11, and the displacement mechanism 20 can drive the two probe devices 30A and 30B disposed on the displacement mechanism 20 to linearly displace along three axes above the material placement stage 12. Figure 1 and Figure 2 In terms of the direction shown, the displacement mechanism 20 includes two first linear displacement components 21 respectively located at the front and rear sides of the material loading platform 12, two second linear displacement components 22 jointly straddling the two first linear displacement components 21, and two third linear displacement components 23 respectively disposed on the two second linear displacement components 22. Each linear displacement component 21, 22, 23 can be a conventional linear displacement component including components such as a motor, a lead screw, and a slide rail, and its structure is not described in detail by the applicant. The two second linear displacement components 22 are driven by the two first linear displacement components 21 and can each be linearly displaced along a second axial direction (Y axis). The two third linear displacement components 23 are driven by the two second linear displacement components 22 and can each be linearly displaced along a third axial direction (X axis). The two probe devices 30A and 30B are respectively disposed on the two third linear displacement components 23, and are respectively driven by the two third linear displacement components 23 and can each be linearly displaced along the first axial direction (Z axis). In other words, the two probe devices 30A and 30B are indirectly disposed on the base 11 through the displacement mechanism 20 , and can be driven by the displacement mechanism 20 to move along the first axial direction (Z axis), the second axial direction (Y axis) and the third axial direction (X axis).

[0033] See also Figures 3 to 6 As shown, the two probe devices 30A and 30B respectively include a mounting base 31 disposed on the corresponding third linear displacement assembly 23 and capable of being driven by the displacement mechanism 20 to move along the X, Y, and Z axes, a rotation drive device 32 passing through a bottom plate 311 of the mounting base 31 and fixed to the bottom plate 311, a rotation shaft 33 passing through the bottom plate 311 and connected to the rotation drive device 32 and capable of being driven by the rotation drive device 32 to rotate ±90 degrees around the Z axis, a base 34 fixed to the bottom end of the rotation shaft 33, and a probe unit 35 fixed to an edge of the base 34. The probe unit 35 includes a probe base 352 fixed to the base 34, and two probes (the number is not limited) disposed on the probe base 352. In other words, the probe unit 35 not only moves along the X, Y, and Z axes with the mounting base 31, but also rotates relative to the mounting base 31 around the Z axis with the rotation shaft 33, so that the probe can contact the electrical contact 422 of the circuit board 40. Since the probes are very small and difficult to be clearly shown in the drawings, each probe is indicated by a dot (representing the tip of the probe) in the figure. Fig. 7A and 7B , wherein the probes 354A and 354B are probes of the probe devices 30A and 30B respectively. It is worth mentioning that the probe unit 35 used in this embodiment is similar to the probe unit provided by Taiwan Patent No. I397694, China, and its structure is not described in detail by the applicant. The probe unit of the present invention is not limited to this type of probe unit, for example, it can also be a probe unit including a circuit board and an elastic probe arranged on the circuit board. In addition, the rotary drive device can be a conventional rotary drive device including components such as a motor and a bearing, and its structure is not described in detail by the applicant.

[0034] like Figures 3 to 6 As shown, each probe device 30A, 30B, in addition to the aforementioned components, also includes an adapter 36 fixed to the top of the rotating shaft 33, and two transmission lines 37 arranged on the adapter 36. It should be explained here that each transmission line 37 is used to connect another transmission line 50 to connect to a detection instrument (not shown in the figure) through the transmission line 50, so the transmission line 50 will have a considerable length, which is also called a long transmission line in the present invention. In contrast, the transmission line 37 is much shorter than the transmission line 50, which is also called a short transmission line in the present invention. In addition, there is no limit to the number of transmission lines 37 of each probe device 30A, 30B, and each probe device 30A, 30B may have only one transmission line 37. The structure of the adapter 36 can have different designs according to the number of transmission lines 37, and is not limited to that provided in this embodiment.

[0035] The adapter seat 36 of this embodiment includes a base plate 361 fixed to the top of the rotating shaft 33, an adapter plate 362 arranged along an edge of the base plate 361 and located directly above the probe seat 352, and a fixing member 363 passing through the central block of the adapter plate 362 and fixing the adapter plate 362 to the base plate 361 in a detachable manner. Each transmission line 37 includes a first connector 371 and a second connector 372 located at its two ends. The first connectors 371 of the two transmission lines 37 are respectively connected to the two connectors 353 of the probe seat 352, and are electrically connected to the corresponding probes through the conductive structure inside the probe seat 352. The second connectors 372 of the two transmission lines 37 are fixed to the adapter plate 362 and are respectively located on two opposite sides of the fixing member 363, so that the connector 51 at one end of the transmission line 50 is connected to the second connector 372, so that each probe 354A, 354B is electrically connected to the detection instrument through the probe seat 352, the transmission line 37 and the transmission line 50 in sequence. It is worth mentioning that Figure 3 and Figure 5 The first and second connectors 371 and 372 of the two transmission lines 37 are not connected to the probe base 352 and the transmission line 50, and the transmission lines 37 and 50 are drawn shorter to more clearly show the structure of the transmission lines 37 and 50 and the probe base 352. In fact, the transmission lines 37 and 50 are longer and can be connected as shown in FIG. Figure 4 and Figure 6 In addition, the adapter 36 of this embodiment further includes an extension plate 364 fixed to the base plate 361 and extending from the base plate 361 in a direction away from the rotation axis 33, and a fixing unit 365 disposed at the end of the extension plate 364, so that the transmission line 50 is partially fixed to the fixing unit 365.

[0036] In addition to the aforementioned components, the circuit board inspection device 10 of this embodiment further includes a laser rangefinder 15, a first image capturing device 16, and a second image capturing device 17. Figure 3 and Figure 4 As shown, the laser distance meter 15 is fixed to a vertical plate 312 of the mounting base 31 of the probe device 30A, so the laser distance meter 15 moves along the X, Y, and Z axes with the probe device 30A. The relative position of the laser distance meter 15 and the probe device 30A is fixed, so the Z-axis distance between the probe device 30A and the material placement stage 12 can be detected. Figure 5 and Figure 6 As shown, the first image capturing device 16 is fixed to a vertical plate 312 of the mounting base 31 of the probe device 30B, so the first image capturing device 16 moves along the X, Y, and Z axes with the probe device 30B. The first image capturing device 16 shoots toward the supporting surface 122 of the material loading platform 12 (i.e., shoots downward) to align the electrical contacts 422 of the circuit board 40. Figure 1 and Figure 2As shown, the second image capture device 17 is fixed to the base 11 and is located outside the material loading platform 12. The shooting direction of the second image capture device 17 is opposite to that of the first image capture device 16 (i.e., shooting upwards), and is used to align the needle tips of the probes 354A and 354B of the probe devices 30A and 30B. This alignment result is compared with the Z-axis distance between the probe device 30A and the material loading platform 12 measured by the laser rangefinder 15, and the Z-axis distance between the probe device 30B and the material loading platform 12 can be converted to obtain the distance that the probe devices 30A and 30B need to move along the Z-axis when detecting the electrical contacts 422 of the circuit board 40. In addition, the position offset of the electrical contact 422 of the circuit board 40 and the probe tip position of the probes 354A and 354B measured by the first and second image capture devices 16 and 17 can be obtained, thereby obtaining the distance that the probe devices 30A and 30B need to move along the X and Y axes when detecting the electrical contact 422 of the circuit board 40.

[0037] According to the above-mentioned alignment and distance measurement results, the two probe devices 30A and 30B can be moved to the desired detection position and the probe unit 35 can be rotated to the desired detection angle, and then the probes 354A and 354B can be used to simultaneously test the electrical contacts 422 of the circuit board 40 to perform frequency domain testing on the circuit board 40. For example, the probes 354A and 354B of the two probe devices 30A and 30B can be used to simultaneously test the electrical contacts 422 at both ends of the same circuit 42 to measure the electrical loss of the circuit 42. Fig. 7A As shown, the circuits 42 of the circuit board 40 are not arranged neatly but have different extension directions, so the relative positions of the electrical contacts 422 of different circuits 42 are different. Fig. 7A When the electrical contacts 422 at the two ends of the circuit indicated by the reference numeral 42 are located, due to the limitation of the size of the mechanism, if the Y-axis positions of the two probe devices 30A and 30B are too close, the mechanism will interfere with each other, so direct detection cannot be performed. Figure 7B The direction shown can change the relative position of the electrical contact 422 that was originally unable to be tested, so that the test can continue. This method is convenient and fast and can avoid reducing the test efficiency. It is worth mentioning that the circuit board test device 10 of the present invention is not limited to frequency domain testing, and can also use only a single probe device for time domain testing.

[0038] In addition, it can be known from the above content that the adapter seat 36 of each probe device 30A, 30B is relatively fixed to the rotating shaft 33 and the probe unit 35, so the adapter seat 36 will rotate together when the probe unit 35 rotates to the required detection angle. Since the signal transmission path between the probe and the test instrument adopts a two-stage transmission line design, that is, it is connected between the probe seat 352 and the adapter seat 36 through a short transmission line 37, and then extends from the top of the short transmission line 37 to a farther test instrument through a long transmission line 50. This can prevent the rotation of the probe unit 35 from affecting the stability of the signal transmission path, thereby producing better measurement stability. Moreover, the fixing member 363 of the adapter seat 36 allows the user to remove the adapter plate 362 together with the transmission line 37, so that the transmission line 37 can be connected to a correction member (not shown in the figure) for line correction to overcome the line loss caused by the two-stage transmission line design.

[0039] It is worth mentioning that if the two-stage transmission line design of the present invention is formed without using an adapter, that is, if the transmission line 50 and the transmission line 37 of the same signal transmission path are the same transmission line, and only one section of the same transmission line is fixed to the adapter 36, then the fixed part of the transmission line will be frequently twisted due to the rotation of the shaft 33, resulting in a shortened service life of the transmission line. Therefore, the two-stage transmission line design adopted by the present invention can have the advantages of good measurement stability and long service life of the transmission line.

[0040] Finally, it must be stated again that the constituent elements disclosed in the aforementioned embodiments of the present invention are for illustrative purposes only. A person having ordinary knowledge in the field of the present invention should be able to understand that the aforementioned detailed description and the specific embodiments listed for implementing the present invention are only used to illustrate the present invention and are not intended to limit the scope of patent protection of this case. Replacements or changes of other equivalent elements should also be covered by the scope of patent protection of this case.

Claims

1. A circuit board inspection device, which can define a first axis, a second axis and a third axis perpendicular to each other, characterized in that The circuit board detection equipment comprises: a base; A material placement platform is disposed on the base, and the material placement platform has a carrying surface for a circuit board to be placed on the carrying surface, and the circuit board includes a plurality of electrical contacts; Two probe devices, each of the probe devices comprises a mounting base movably arranged on the base along the first axial direction, the second axial direction and the third axial direction, a probe unit, an adapter, and at least one transmission line, the probe unit comprises a probe seat rotatably arranged on the mounting base around the first axial direction, and at least one probe arranged on the probe seat, for contacting the electrical contacts of the circuit board with the probe, the adapter is relatively fixed to the probe seat, the transmission line comprises a first connector and a second connector respectively located at two ends thereof, the first connector is connected to the probe unit in an electrically conductive manner with the probe, and the second connector is fixed to the adapter so that another transmission line can be connected to the second connector; An image capturing device is disposed on the base and can move along the first axis, the second axis and the third axis and can shoot toward the bearing surface of the material placement platform, and is used for aligning the electrical contacts of the circuit board.

2. The circuit board testing device according to claim 1, characterized in that: Each of the probe devices comprises a rotating shaft rotatably arranged on the mounting seat around the first axial direction. The probe seat and the adapter seat are relatively fixed to the rotating shaft. The probe seat is closer to the material placement platform than the adapter seat.

3. The circuit board testing device according to claim 2, characterized in that: Each of the probe devices comprises a base, the adapter and the base are respectively fixed to two ends of the rotating shaft, and the probe seat is fixed to the base.

4. The circuit board testing device according to claim 3, characterized in that: The adapter seat includes a base plate fixed to the rotating shaft, an adapter plate fixed with the second joint, and a fixing member for detachably fixing the adapter plate to the base plate.

5. The circuit board testing device according to claim 4, characterized in that: Each of the probe devices includes two transmission lines, and the second connectors of the two transmission lines are respectively located on two opposite sides of the fixing member.

6. The circuit board testing device according to claim 4, characterized in that: The adapter further includes an extension plate fixed to the base plate and extending from the base plate in a direction away from the rotation axis, and a fixing unit arranged on the extension plate for partially fixing the other transmission line to the fixing unit.

7. The circuit board testing device according to claim 1, characterized in that: The invention also comprises a laser distance meter, and the laser distance meter is fixed to the mounting seat of one of the two probe devices.

8. The circuit board testing device according to claim 7, characterized in that: The image capturing device is a mounting base fixed to the other probe device of the two probe devices.

9. The circuit board testing device according to claim 1, characterized in that: It also includes another image capturing device which is fixed to the base and located at the periphery of the material placing platform. The shooting directions of the two image capturing devices are opposite.

10. The circuit board testing device according to claim 1, characterized in that: The utility model further comprises a fixture tray, which is arranged on the bearing surface of the material placing platform and is used for arranging a plurality of the circuit boards on the fixture tray.

11. The circuit board testing device according to claim 1, characterized in that: It also includes a position limiting bearing component arranged on the bearing surface of the material placing platform, and one of the circuit board and a fixture plate arranged on the bearing surface of the material placing platform and used to bear the circuit board is supported by the position limiting bearing component.

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