JP2000003741A - Connector and circuit board inspecting device using the same - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To surely attain a required electrical connection for a circuit board by providing a conductive part, which is disposed in an insulating sheet with elasticity and has conductivity and elasticity in the thickness direction of the sheet and a wiring part, which is electrically connected with the conductive part and is integrated with the surface of the insulating sheet. SOLUTION: On one surface of an insulating sheet 20, a wiring part 4 of a proper pattern and an electrode for connection 40 are formed. A terminal electrode 30 and the wiring part 4 are electrically connected by a conductive path 42, which penetrates the insulating sheets 20 and extends in the thickness direction. The wiring part 4 and the electrode for connection 40 are electrically connected. When a connector 12 is used for an electrical conducting inspection of a circuit board, all the electrodes for connection 40 and the terminal electrode 30 need not be connected by a one-to-one correspondence relation and various kinds of requested connection states for the terminal electrode 30, the wiring part 4 and the electrodes for connection 40 can be realized. For instance, the electrodes for connection 40 each other can be connected to each other by utilizing the wiring part 4.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a connector having an elastic body and a circuit board inspection apparatus using the connector.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Generally, in a circuit board such as a printed circuit board, as shown in FIG. 19, a functional element region 91 in which functional elements are formed with a high degree of integration is provided at the center of a circuit board 90. A lead electrode region 93 in which a large number of lead electrodes 92 for a functional element region 91 are arranged at the peripheral portion thereof is formed. At present, with the increase in the degree of integration of the functional element region 91, the number of lead electrodes in the lead electrode region 93 tends to increase and the density tends to increase.

In order to inspect the electrical connection between such a lead electrode of a circuit board and other circuit terminals to be connected thereto, an electrical inspection using a probe pin has been conventionally performed. . As the probe pin, a spring pin or a solid pin having a spring therein is known, and those using these pins in various configurations are disclosed in, for example, JP-A-61-161460 and JP-A-62-1422.
No. 79, JP-A-59-150351, JP-A-56-54096 and the like.

[0004]

However, in recent years, due to the increase in the degree of integration of printed circuit boards, the density and miniaturization of electrodes in the functional element region have advanced, making it difficult to perform conventional electrical inspection with probe pins. It is becoming. That is, it is difficult to process a probe pin for inspecting electrical connection of electrodes that are miniaturized and have a narrow pitch (the distance between centers of adjacent lead electrodes is small).
Further, there is a problem that it is difficult to maintain the position accuracy of the probe pin at the time of inspection.

An object of the present invention is to solve the above-mentioned problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide a method for inspecting a circuit board to be inspected, such as a lead electrode, having a fine electrode pitch and a fine electrode pitch. The circuit board has a required electric power even if the circuit board has a high-density and complicated pattern, or if the surface of the substrate to be inspected has a distortion or the electrode height (thickness) is not uniform. It is an object of the present invention to provide a connector which can reliably achieve a reliable connection and has high connection reliability and a circuit board inspection apparatus using the connector.

[0006]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION According to the present invention, there is provided an insulating sheet having elasticity, a conductive portion provided in the insulating sheet, having conductivity in the thickness direction of the sheet and having elasticity, and an electrically conductive portion provided on the conductive portion. And a wiring part integrated on the surface of the insulating sheet. Another object of the present invention is to provide a connector device in which the connector is laminated on a circuit board. The present invention also provides
The present invention provides the connector, wherein the conductive portion present in the insulating sheet has conductive particles. Further, the present invention provides a circuit board inspection apparatus characterized in that the above-mentioned connector is provided so that an electrode to be inspected such as a circuit board to be inspected and an electrical inspection apparatus can be electrically connected to each other. It is.

[0007]

According to the connector of the present invention, the conductive portion provided in the insulating sheet has elasticity, and the connector body integrally provided with the wiring portion has high flexibility. The electrode to be inspected of the circuit board to be inspected is
Even if the electrode pitch is very small and the pattern is fine and dense, and the pattern is complicated, it is also possible to use the one where the plane of the substrate to be inspected has a distortion or the electrode height (thickness) is not uniform. Also, the required electrical connection can be reliably achieved for the circuit board, and a good electrical connection state can be stably maintained against environmental changes such as heat history due to temperature changes, and thus high connection can be achieved. Reliability can be obtained.

Further, according to the manufacturing method of the present invention, an electrode portion for connecting a circuit board can be formed on a highly flexible insulating sheet by photolithography and electrolytic plating. Even if the electrode is used, or the electrode interval (pitch) is narrow, the circuit board connecting electrode portion can be formed as an inspection probe. In addition, a highly flexible conductive path can be formed so as to penetrate the insulating sheet, and the circuit board inspection device having the above-described configuration can be easily and advantageously manufactured.

Hereinafter, the present invention will be described more specifically.
FIGS. 1, 2 and 3 respectively show a connector according to an embodiment of the present invention, a combination of the connector and a substrate to be inspected,
FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram illustrating a configuration of a circuit board inspection apparatus 10. FIG. 1 shows a connector according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 shows a connector body 12 having a plate shape as a whole and a base substrate 15 integrally provided on a surface having a terminal electrode. Shows the connector device that is being used.

As shown in FIG. 1, in the connector of the present invention, a terminal electrode 30 electrically connected to an inspection tester by an appropriate means is provided on one surface of an insulating sheet 20.
Are provided on the lattice points, and the wiring portion 4 and the circuit board connection electrode 40 having an appropriate pattern are formed on the other surface of the insulating sheet 20. The terminal electrode 30 and the wiring portion 4 The wiring section 4 and the circuit board connecting electrode 40 are electrically connected to each other by a conductive path 42 extending through the insulating sheet 20 in the thickness direction thereof. The terminal electrodes are, if necessary, as shown in FIG.
It may be provided via the base board 15. The distance between the lattice points of the terminal electrode 30, that is, the inter-electrode pitch Pt of the terminal electrode 30 is not particularly limited, and may be an appropriate size according to the inspection conditions and the conditions of the base substrate. , For example, 2.5 mm, 2 mm,
1.8 mm, 1.5 mm, 1 mm, etc.

As described above, in the connector body 12, each of the connection electrodes 40 is electrically connected to the terminal electrode 30 via the wiring portion 4 and the conductive path 3. When the connector of the present invention is used for an electrical continuity test on a circuit board, the electrical connection between the connection electrode 40 and the terminal electrode 30 may be achieved in a manner according to the purpose of the circuit board test.
Therefore, it is not always necessary to connect all the connection electrodes 40 and the terminal electrodes 30 in a one-to-one correspondence, and various required connection states of the terminal electrode 30, the wiring portion 4, and the connection electrode 40 are required. Can be realized. For example,
Connecting the connection electrodes 40 by using the wiring portions 4, connecting the plurality of connection electrodes 40 to one wiring portion 4 in common, and connecting one connection electrode 40 to the plurality of wiring portions 4 simultaneously. It is possible to connect. In the insulation sheet 20 of the connector, the thickness of the insulation sheet is preferably 0.01 to 1 mm, more preferably 0.02 to 0.5 mm, particularly preferably 0.02 to 0.5 mm, from the performance of inspection and workability of the conductive path. It is in the range of 0.05 mm to 0.3 mm. The connection electrode 40 is also used as a probe, and its height varies depending on the shape of the circuit board to be inspected, but is preferably 0.01 mm to 0.5 mm, more preferably 0.02 to 0 mm. 0.3 mm, particularly preferably 0.03 to 0.2 mm.

The base substrate 15 can be integrally formed on or adhered to the surface of the connector body 12 having the terminal electrodes. In practice, such a configuration is preferable. As shown in FIG. 2, the base substrate 15 is a wiring substrate including the short-circuit portion 3 connected to the terminal electrode 30 of the insulating sheet, the second wiring portion 5, and the second terminal electrode 31. In addition, by adopting such a configuration, when a circuit board inspection apparatus is used, the flexibility of the connector body is high, and the connection electrode functioning as a probe electrode at the time of circuit board inspection has a small size. Since the electrodes can be formed, even when the electrode pitch and the electrode size of the functional element region of the circuit board to be inspected are minute, required electrical connection can be reliably achieved. Further, since the base substrate 15 is integrated with the connector main body 12, a good electrical connection state is stably maintained even with environmental changes such as a heat history due to a temperature change, and therefore always high connection reliability is obtained. be able to.

The conductive path 42 of the connector body 12 of the present invention
Is formed with a large number of conductive portions formed by densely filling conductive particles 8 in an insulating elastic polymer material 7 so as to extend in the thickness direction. The conductive portion may be oriented so that the conductive particles 8 are arranged in the thickness direction such that the resistance value is further reduced when the conductive portion 8 is pressed and compressed in the thickness direction. When such conductive particles are oriented, it is preferable to use conductive particles having magnetism and apply a magnetic field so that lines of magnetic force pass in the thickness direction of the insulating sheet.

In the conductive path 41 of the insulating sheet 20 of the connector body, the filling rate of the conductive particles 8 is preferably 15% by volume or more, particularly preferably 20% by volume or more. When the filling rate of the conductive particles is high, it is preferable in that the intended electrical connection can be reliably achieved. However, when the circuit board is repeatedly used under pressure during the electrical inspection, the elasticity of the conductive path portion is reduced, and the circuit portion lacks flexibility, and there is a possibility that the durability and the inspection performance are reduced. Therefore, the filling rate of the conductive particles 8 in the conductive path portion 41 is preferably 40% by volume or less. The thickness of the insulating sheet can be appropriately set according to the inspection device, but is preferably 0.02 to 2 m.
m, more preferably 0.03 to 1.5 mm, particularly preferably 0.05 to 1 mm.

The conductive particles 8 of the conductive path portion 41 include, for example, particles of magnetic metal such as nickel, iron and cobalt or particles of alloys thereof, or particles of gold, silver, palladium, rhodium or the like. Examples thereof include those subjected to plating, inorganic particles such as non-magnetic metal particles or glass beads, or polymer particles plated with a conductive magnetic material such as nickel or cobalt.

In the method described below, nickel, iron,
Alternatively, conductive magnetic particles made of an alloy thereof or the like are used, and gold-plated particles can be preferably used in terms of electrical characteristics such as low contact resistance. Further, particles composed of a conductive superparamagnetic material can be preferably used because they do not show magnetic hysteresis. Further, by applying a magnetic field so that the lines of magnetic force pass in the thickness direction of the sheet, the particles can be oriented in the thickness direction of the sheet, and the conductivity can be improved. The particle size of the conductive particles is preferably from 1 to 200 μm, particularly preferably from 2 to 100 μm so that sufficient electrical contact between the conductive particles in the conductive path portion 3 can be obtained.

The material of the insulating sheet 20 is preferably an elastic polymer material or a heat-resistant material having high dimensional stability with the elastic polymer material, and various elastic polymer materials and / or various resins can be used. Also, the insulating sheet body is
A sheet composed of a plurality of material layers can be obtained as long as the flexibility is not impaired.

The elastic polymer material forming the insulating sheet body and the elastic polymer material forming the conductive path are preferably in a liquid state before the hardening treatment, and are in close contact with the surface of the adapter body 12 after the hardening treatment. Alternatively, it is preferable to use a material for a polymer substance that is integrated while maintaining an adhesive state. From such a viewpoint, examples of the material for a polymer substance suitable for the present invention include liquid silicone rubber, liquid urethane rubber, and soft liquid epoxy resin. Additives such as a silane coupling agent and a titanium coupling agent can be added to the polymer substance material in order to improve adhesion to a base substrate or the like. A heat-resistant hard resin material can be used in combination with the elastic polymer material of the insulating sheet body. As the heat-resistant hard resin material, polyimide resin and glass fiber reinforced epoxy resin soft liquid epoxy resin are most suitable.

As a material for forming the insulating sheet 20,
The same or a different polymer material as the conductive dew 42 can be used, but it is preferable to use one in which the two maintain a close contact state or an adhered state after the curing treatment. By doing so, the integrity of the insulating sheet and the conductive path is increased, so that the conductive path portion can obtain excellent durability against repeated compression.

The connector of the present invention can perform an electrical continuity test of a circuit board, for example, by the following configuration. For example, as shown in FIG. 3, the connector of the present invention has a circuit board 64 to be inspected on its lower surface, an electrode 64A to be inspected of the circuit board being in contact with the connection electrode 40, and an adapter-body. Is connected to the inspection electrode via the base substrate 15 and to the tester. Further, the entire adapter body 12 is in a state of being pressed so as to be compressed in the thickness direction. In this state, the connection electrode 40 and the electrode under test are brought into a conductive state, whereby a required electrical connection between the electrode under test and the tester is achieved.

Next, a preferred method of manufacturing the connector according to the present invention will be described. This method includes a first process of forming a base substrate of a connector and a second process of integrally forming a connector main body on a surface of the base substrate having no terminal electrode.

The first process includes the following first step and second step. First Step This first step is a step of forming thin metal layers on both surfaces of the base substrate. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 4, a flat laminate 15 made of an elastic polymer material and / or a hard resin provided with thin metal layers 30A and 4A made of, for example, copper is laminated on both surfaces. This is the step to be formed.

Second Step This second step is a step of forming a conductive path penetrating the base substrate 15. More specifically, as shown in FIG. 5, a flat substrate 20 made of a hard resin provided with thin metal layers 30A and 4A made of, for example, copper is laminated on both sides.
The through hole 3 for a through hole is formed in the substrate 15 by, for example, a numerically controlled drilling device. The pitch of the through holes 3H is, for example, 2.54 mm, and the hole diameter is, for example, 0.3 mm. next,
As shown in FIG. 6, the through holes 3 for through holes are plated with copper by the electroless copper plating method or the electrolytic copper plating method on the substrate 15 to form short-circuit portions 32 extending through the substrate 15. Further, the thin metal layer 30A on the lower surface of the substrate 15 is subjected to a photo-etching process to form the terminal electrodes 30 arranged on the lattice points.

The second process includes the following first and second steps. 1st process This 1st process forms an insulating sheet on a base substrate,
This is a step of forming a conductive path penetrating the insulating sheet. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 7, a thin metal layer 30A made of, for example, copper or the like and the insulating sheet 20 are provided on one surface of the base substrate. Next, a blind hole 42A for a conductive path is formed in the laminated body as shown in FIG. 8 by, for example, a pulsed carbon dioxide laser processing apparatus.

Next, the conductive path hole 42A of the insulating sheet is formed.
On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 9 and FIG.
A conductive path 42 is filled with a conductive path forming material 9 made of a polymer substance 7 containing
Is formed. In the above step, the conductive particles are dispersed in a polymer material to be an insulating elastic polymer material to prepare a conductive path forming material 9 made of a fluid mixture, as shown in FIG. Is filled in the holes for the conductive paths and hardened. The curing treatment is appropriately selected depending on the material used, but is usually performed by heat treatment. The specific heating temperature and heating time are appropriately selected depending on the material used for the connector body insulating sheet. For example, when the polymer material is a room temperature-curable silicone rubber, the curing process is performed at room temperature for about 24 hours,
The reaction is performed at 40 ° C. for about 2 hours and at 80 ° C. for about 30 minutes.

Second Step This second step is a step of forming a wiring portion and a connection electrode portion electrically connected to the terminal electrode on the surface of the insulating sheet. In the same manner as in FIG. 7, the metal thin film 30A on the insulating sheet 20 in FIG. Connected. Further, a connection electrode 40 having a pattern corresponding to the electrode to be inspected of the circuit board to be inspected is formed by being connected to the wiring portion 4.
Thus, the adapter body 12 is manufactured. When the thickness of the metal layer forming the connection electrode 40 is increased, a photoresist film having a thickness corresponding to the required thickness is formed and patterned to form a hole in a portion where the metal layer is formed. Then, a metal may be filled in the holes by an electrolytic plating method or the like, and then the photoresist film may be removed. By such a method, the connection electrode 40 (FIG. 11) protruding from the surface can be formed.

The connector can be manufactured as described above. As the connector, as shown in FIG. 1, the adapter main body 15 can be formed independently, and then the connector main body and the base substrate can be integrated by joining or connecting to the base substrate.

Embodiments Embodiments of the present invention will be described below, but the present invention is not limited to these embodiments. Examples (A) First Process First Step Each of 18 μm thick copper metal thin layers (30A, 4A) is laminated on both sides of a substrate (15) made of a glass fiber reinforced epoxy resin having a thickness of 0.2 mm. The material is prepared and cut into a rectangular shape having a length of 200 mm and a width of 250 mm, and the pitch is 2.54 m using a biaxial drilling device.
Through-holes (3) for through holes each having an inner diameter of 0.2 mm were formed so as to be arranged on m lattice points (see FIGS. 4 and 5).

Second Step Next, a short-circuit portion 32 is formed in the through hole by copper plating, and unnecessary portions are removed by performing a photo-etching process on the thin metal layers on both surfaces of the substrate 20. A terminal electrode (30) was formed on the lower surface according to the pattern corresponding to the electrode to be inspected on the circuit board to be inspected. Further, a wiring portion (5) electrically connected via a short-circuit portion (32) was formed on the upper surface to manufacture a base substrate (see FIG. 6).

Second Process First Process A liquid room temperature-curable silicone rubber is applied to a thickness of 200 μm on the surface of the base substrate on which the terminal electrodes are not formed, and is formed on a 35 μm supporting copper foil. 9μ thick copper foil 3
OA was placed so as to be in contact with the silicone rubber, and was left to cure at 80 ° C. for 4 hours in this state. As a result, the insulation sheet (connector body) having a thickness of 0.244 mm
And a base substrate with a thickness of 0.5 mm and a length of 20
An adapter-device substrate measuring 25 cm in width and 25 cm in width was manufactured. Next, an opening having a diameter of 0.15 mm is formed in the copper foil 30A by a drill device controlled by NC, and the opening is formed as a conformal mask. Hole 4 for conductive path to be connected
Two blind holes were formed (FIG. 8). The blind hole is filled with a paste made of a conductive path forming material 9 obtained by mixing conductive particles in a room-temperature-curable silicone rubber so as to contain a volume fraction of 30% with a squeegee, and then heated at 100 ° C. for 50 minutes. The curable silicone rubber was cured to form a conductive path.

Second Step This is a step of forming a connection electrode electrically connected to the wiring portion. In the same manner as in the second step of the first process, unnecessary portions of the thin metal layer 30A on the insulating sheet 15 are removed by photolithography and electrolytic plating, and the electrode to be inspected of the circuit board to be inspected is removed. Is formed, and a connection electrode 40 is formed by connecting to the wiring portion. Thus, the connector device 10 is manufactured.

EXPERIMENTAL EXAMPLE 1 Using the connector of the present invention, in the configuration as shown in FIG. 3, contacts of 0.25 mm pitch arranged in four rows for solder connection of an IC chip to a functional element region were partially formed. Was inspected. As a result of the electrical inspection using the printed circuit board inspection apparatus, it was confirmed that all the contacts of the circuit board had an electrical resistance of 100Ω or less in the inspection, and that the circuit board continuity inspection using the connector could be performed. Through this experiment, it was confirmed that the electrical connection between the contact of the circuit board to be inspected, the terminal electrode, and the connection electrode was sufficiently achieved.

Experimental Example 2 Further, regarding the connector, of the configuration of Experimental Example 1,
An electrically insulating glass fiber reinforced epoxy substrate was placed on the circuit board, and the electrical resistance between adjacent connecting electrodes to be insulated from each other was measured. It was confirmed that a sufficient insulating state was achieved between the connection electrodes adjacent to the connector.

[0034]

According to the connector of the present invention, the wiring portion is formed integrally with the connector body so as to be able to follow the deformation thereof, and is arranged on the surface corresponding to the electrode to be inspected of the circuit board to be inspected. The connection electrodes are formed, and terminal electrodes arranged at lattice points are formed on the other surface of the connector, and the connection electrodes and the terminal electrodes are electrically connected to the wiring layer portion. An elastic conductive path is formed for the connection, and the connection electrode is formed on an elastic insulating substrate. For this reason, the flexibility of the substrate is sufficiently high, and even if the electrodes to be inspected on the circuit board have a fine electrode pitch and a complicated pattern of fine and high density, the required electrical The connection can be reliably achieved, and a good electrical connection state can be stably maintained against environmental changes such as heat history due to temperature changes, and thus high connection reliability can be obtained.

[0035]

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is an explanatory sectional view of a connector according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is an explanatory view showing a connector device according to one embodiment of the present invention in which a connector and a base substrate are integrated, and a state of arrangement of a substrate to be inspected.

FIG. 3 is an explanatory cross-sectional view showing a configuration of an apparatus for performing an electrical inspection of a circuit board using a connector manufactured in one embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view for explaining a base substrate material used for manufacturing a connector device in one embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view for explaining a state in which a through hole for a through hole is formed in a base substrate material.

FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view illustrating a state in which a terminal electrode, a short-circuit portion, and a wiring are formed in a base substrate material.

FIG. 7 is an explanatory cross-sectional view illustrating a state where an insulating sheet forming a connector main body is formed on one surface of a base substrate.

FIG. 8 is a cross-sectional view for explaining a state in which a blind hole for forming a conductive path is formed in an insulating sheet formed on one surface of a base substrate.

FIG. 9 is an explanatory cross-sectional view showing a state in which a conductive path forming material composed of a mixture of conductive particles and a polymer material is filled in a conductive path hole of an insulating sheet in one embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 10 is an explanatory cross-sectional view showing a state where a wiring portion is formed on an insulating sheet by being connected to a conductive path in one embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 11 is an explanatory sectional view of a connector device in which a connector main body and a base substrate of the present invention are formed integrally.

[Explanation of symbols]

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Inspection board (circuit board) 2 Inspection electrode 3 Sulfur 4 Wiring part 4A Thin metal layer 5 Second
Wiring portion 7 Insulating and elastic polymer material 8 Conductive particles 9 Conductive path forming material 10 Connector device 12 Connector 15 Base substrate 20 Insulating sheet 30 Terminal electrode 30A Metal thin layer 31 Second terminal electrode 32 Short-circuit portion 40 Connection electrode 42 Conductive path 42A Conductive path hole 61 Inspection head 62 Anisotropic conductive sheet (having conductivity in the thickness direction) 63 Off-grid adapter 64 Printed circuit board 64A Inspected part (electrode) 65 Inspection Electrode 66 conversion board

Claims (6)

[Claims] 1. An insulating sheet having elasticity, a conductive part disposed therein and having conductivity in the thickness direction of the sheet and having elasticity, and electrically connected to the conductive part and integrated with the surface of the insulating sheet. A connector characterized by having a wiring portion formed into a connector. 2. The connector according to claim 1, wherein the conductive portion present in the insulating sheet has conductive particles. 3. The connector according to claim 1, wherein the wiring portion is integrally deformable following deformation of the insulating sheet. 4. A connector device in which a circuit board is laminated on a connector having a required thickness. 5. A process for forming a conductive path by disposing a conductive path forming material containing conductive particles so as to penetrate an elastic insulating sheet in a thickness direction thereof, and (2)
Forming a terminal electrode on one surface of the insulating sheet and forming a wiring portion and a connection electrode electrically connected to the terminal electrode on the other surface integrally with the insulating sheet. The method for manufacturing a connector according to claim 1, wherein 6. The connector according to claim 1 or the connector device according to claim 4, wherein an electrode to be inspected of a circuit board to be inspected and an electrical inspection device are interposed so as to be electrically connectable. Circuit board inspection equipment.