Socket Wall Alignment for DUT Terminal Positioning
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing electronic component testing apparatuses face challenges in achieving high accuracy alignment of terminals of a Device Under Test (DUT) with contactors due to dimensional and fitting tolerances between the device carrier and IC socket, particularly when testing components with narrow terminal pitches.
Innovation Solution
The apparatus incorporates a socket with a first wall projecting towards the carrier and a carrier with a first pressing mechanism that aligns the DUT's terminals with the socket's contactors by pressing against the first wall, reducing the impact of dimensional and fitting tolerances, and optionally includes a second wall and second pressing mechanism for further alignment, with tapered shapes to facilitate smooth alignment and reduce breakage.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Manufacturing precision
If dimensional tolerance of the device carrier and fitting tolerance between guide hole and guide pin are used for alignment, then the structure is simple, but alignment accuracy between DUT terminals and socket contactors deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces a wall as an intermediary element between the DUT and the socket contactor. The wall provides a new alignment interface that is independent of the carrier-guide hole-guide pin tolerance chain. By pressing the DUT against the wall, alignment is achieved through a dedicated alignment surface rather than relying on the cumulative tolerances of multiple mating parts.
Solution Approach 2:
The alignment function is segmented from the carrier structure. Instead of relying on the carrier's guide holes and pins, the socket is given its own alignment feature (the wall) that independently performs the alignment function. This segmentation allows the alignment accuracy to be determined by the wall's geometry rather than the carrier's manufacturing tolerances.
2Manufacturing precision
If guide pin and guide hole fitting is used for alignment, then the manufacturing process is simple, but alignment precision deteriorates due to fitting tolerance
Solution Approach 1:
The wall acts as an intermediary alignment surface that replaces the guide pin-guide hole fitting mechanism for the critical alignment function. The pressing mechanism presses the DUT against the wall, creating a new alignment interface that does not depend on the fit between guide pins and holes, thereby improving alignment precision.
Solution Approach 2:
The alignment function is extracted from the guide pin-guide hole fitting mechanism. The wall provides a dedicated alignment surface that is specifically designed for high-precision alignment, separating this critical function from the general positioning function performed by the guide pins and holes.
3Manufacturing precision
If pressing mechanism presses DUT directly into socket, then the structure is simple, but alignment accuracy deteriorates due to tolerance accumulation
Solution Approach 1:
The wall serves as an intermediary between the pressing mechanism and the DUT. Instead of the pressing mechanism directly pushing the DUT into the socket (which would transmit tolerance errors), the pressing mechanism presses the DUT against the wall, which provides a stable alignment reference that isolates the alignment accuracy from the pressing force application point.
Solution Approach 2:
The alignment is achieved by introducing a new dimensional reference (the wall surface) that is independent of the pressing direction. The wall provides an alignment surface in a direction perpendicular to the pressing force, creating a two-degree-of-freedom constraint system that improves alignment accuracy without complicating the pressing mechanism.
Data Source
AI summary
An electronic component testing apparatus that tests a DUT (device under test) disposed in a carrier includes: a test head including a socket; and an electronic component handling apparatus that presses the DUT in the carrier against the socket. The socket includes: contactors disposed to correspond to terminals of the DUT that are exposed to the socket via a first opening of the carrier; and a first wall projecting toward the carrier along a pressing direction of the DUT. The electronic component handling apparatus aligns the terminals with the contactors by pressing the DUT against the socket such that a first pressing mechanism of the carrier presses the DUT against the first wall.