Chip Device Assembly on Wires Using Pinching Rollers
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing methods for assembling small microelectronic chip devices on wires are inefficient, leading to prolonged manufacturing times and potential damage to the devices due to high friction and wear.
Innovation Solution
A pinching device with cylindrical rollers and a chip device feeder system that aligns and securely attaches chip devices to wires using a combination of gravity, vibration, or mechanical means, allowing for continuous and efficient assembly of chip devices into a string format.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If conventional wire-bond equipment is used to individually run wire through each chip device groove, then assembly can be performed with existing equipment, but manufacturing time is prolonged and friction and wear increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines multiple wire-bonding operations into a single parallel processing step. Multiple wires are simultaneously inserted through multiple chip devices using a single apparatus, merging sequential operations into concurrent ones. This directly addresses the productivity-time contradiction by enabling parallel assembly without requiring multiple separate wire-bonding cycles.
Solution Approach 2:
The apparatus pre-positions multiple wires and chip devices in alignment before the actual bonding operation. The wires are fed through guides that precisely position them relative to the chip device grooves in advance, eliminating the need for time-consuming individual positioning during the assembly process. This preliminary alignment enables rapid simultaneous insertion of multiple wires.
2Manufacturing precision
If individual wire insertion is performed for each chip device, then precise control is possible, but friction and wear on devices increase
Solution Approach 1:
The apparatus performs preliminary alignment of wires with chip device grooves using fixed guides and positioning mechanisms. The wires are pre-positioned in exact alignment with the grooves before the insertion action, ensuring precise positioning is achieved once rather than through repeated trial-and-error individual insertions that cause friction and wear.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces wire guides and alignment fixtures as intermediary elements between the wire-bonding equipment and the chip devices. These intermediaries provide precise geometric constraints that guide wire insertion without requiring high forces or repeated adjustments, thereby reducing friction and wear on the delicate chip devices while maintaining positioning precision.
Data Source
Figure 1~2A
Figure 2B~2F
Figure 3~4
AI summary
The invention relates to an apparatus for assembling chip devices on a wire (8a, 8b), each chip device (10) comprising two substantially parallel lateral walls, and a groove in one of the lateral walls for receiving said wire. The apparatus includes a pinching device (14a, 14b) comprising two opposing surfaces (16a, 16b), the distance between the opposing surfaces being substantially constant and substantially equal to the distance between the two lateral walls of a chip device. A wire feeder is adapted to continuously feed the wire in contact with one of the opposing surfaces of the pinching device. A chip device feeder (20, 28) is adapted to drive chip devices, one at a time, between the opposing surfaces, with their grooves turned towards the wire. The pinching device may comprise two cylindrical rollers (14a, 14b) having rotation axes substantially perpendicular to the wire, the opposing surfaces (16a, 16b) being formed by respective surfaces of the rollers.