Contact Assembly Alignment via Rigid Shaft Datum
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Solution Overview
Problem
Integrated circuit testing apparatuses face alignment and tolerance issues due to temperature-induced expansion, leading to poor contact and ease of maintenance challenges during high current/power testing, especially with cantilever contact pin designs.
Innovation Solution
An electrical contact assembly featuring rigid shafts with through-openings matching the cross-section of contact pins and insulators, preventing rotation and ensuring precise alignment, along with a rectangular assembly design that interlocks to maintain stability and facilitate easy replacement of faulty pins.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Power
If cantilever contact pins are used for high current/power testing, then power handling capacity is improved, but alignment precision deteriorates due to temperature-induced expansion
Solution Approach 1:
The contact pin assembly is segmented into modular units, each comprising a contact pin mounted on a rigid shaft with integrated insulation. This segmentation allows individual modules to be manufactured with precise alignment features (through-openings matching shaft cross-section) while maintaining overall system power handling capability through modular configuration.
Solution Approach 2:
A rigid shaft acts as an intermediary element between the contact pin and the insulating structure. The shaft provides a stable mechanical reference (datum) that maintains alignment precision, while the through-opening in the shaft serves as an intermediary feature that prevents rotation and ensures consistent positioning of the contact pin relative to the insulator.
2Stability of the object's composition
If contact pins are secured to prevent rotation, then alignment stability is improved, but device complexity increases due to additional structural components
Solution Approach 1:
The alignment and anti-rotation functions are merged into a single structural feature: the through-opening in the rigid shaft that matches the cross-section of the contact pin. This integrated design prevents rotation and maintains alignment stability simultaneously, without requiring separate complex mechanisms for each function.
Solution Approach 2:
The rigid shaft serves multiple functions: it provides mechanical support for the contact pin, acts as a datum for alignment, prevents rotation through its cross-sectional shape matching the through-opening, and contributes to the overall structural integrity of the assembly. This multi-functionality reduces the need for additional specialized components.
3Ease of repair
If modular assembly design is implemented for easy replacement, then ease of maintenance is improved, but manufacturing precision may deteriorate due to assembly tolerances
Solution Approach 1:
Alignment features (through-openings matching shaft cross-section) are built into the components during manufacturing, establishing precise geometric relationships before assembly. This preliminary establishment of alignment geometry ensures that when modules are assembled for replacement, the pre-defined mating features guide precise re-alignment without requiring complex adjustment procedures.
Solution Approach 2:
The through-openings in the rigid shaft and corresponding components are designed with specific local geometric qualities (matching cross-sectional shapes and sizes) that ensure precise alignment at critical interfaces. This localized precision at key mating surfaces maintains overall assembly precision even though the system is modular and intended for easy replacement.
Data Source
AI summary
An electrical contact assembly for use in an integrated circuit testing apparatus having a plurality of electrical contact pins and electrical insulators that are each fashioned with through-openings that match a cross-section of a rigid shaft so that the rigid shaft can be threaded through the contact pins and insulators. This ensures that the position of each contact pin is substantially aligned in a single datum with other contact pins following the datum of the rigid shaft. The electrical insulators are placed between each contact pin to prevent electrical connection between contact pins. Further, four rigid shafts assembled in this manner may be interlocked with each other to form a rectangular assembly, which can be inserted into an appropriate housing of the testing apparatus.